Monday, October 31, 2005

And then there was Alito

President Bush has just nominated Judge Samuel Alito. This is a awesome pick that he should have used the first time, I was really hoping for Owens or Brown, but Alito looks a little more palatable after you read some of his opinions. I have put some of the most important opinions below. Some of these are going to be controversial, but after hearing his nomination speech and the hearings, both the Conservatives and others are going to be in awe.



This nominee is going to be confirmed, so get to know him!



Brief biography

Judge Alito currently serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third
Circuit. Prior to his nomination to the Third Circuit by President
George H.W. Bush, he served as U.S. Attorney for the District of New
Jersey (1987-1990), Deputy Assistant Attorney General (1985-1987), and
Assistant to the Solicitor General (1981-1985).


Judge Alito was born in 1950 in Trenton NJ. He attended Princeton
University and Yale Law School. He clerked for Judge Leonard I. Garth
on the Third Circuit.



Useful weblinks

Access a profile of Judge Alito at Law.com



Notable opinions:



A majority opinion in ACLU v. Schundler,
168 F.3d 92 (3d Cir. 1999), holding that the Establishment Clause was
not violated by a city hall holiday display that contained a creche, a
menorah, secular symbols of the season, and a banner proclaiming the
city's dedication to diversity.



A majority opinion in Fatin v. INS, 12 F.3d 1233 (3d Cir. 1993),
holding that an Iranian woman seeking asylum could establish that she
had a well founded fear of persecution in Iran if she could show that
compliance with that country's "gender specific laws and repressive
social norms," such as the requirement that women wear a veil in
public, would be deeply abhorrent to her. Judge Alito also held that
she could establish eligibility for asylum by showing that she would be
persecuted because of gender, belief in feminism, or membership in a
feminist group.



A majority opinion in Saxe v. State College Area School District,
240 F.3d 200 (3d Cir. 2001), striking down as contrary to the First
Amendment a public school district anti-harassment policy that extended
to nonvulgar, non-school-sponsored speech that posed no realistic
threat of substantial disruption of school work.



A majority opinion in Shore Regional High School Board of Education v.
P.S., 381 F.3d 194 (3d Cir. 2004), holding that a school district did
not provide a high school student with a free and appropriate public
education, as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act, when it failed to protect the student from bullying by fellow
students who taunted the student based on his lack of athleticism and
his perceived sexual orientation.



A majority opinion in Williams v. Price,
343 F.3d 223 (3d Cir. 2003), granting a writ of habeas corpus to an
African-American state prisoner after state courts had refused to
consider the testimony of a witness who stated that a juror had uttered
derogatory remarks about African Americans during an encounter in the
courthouse after the conclusion of the trial.



A dissenting opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, 947 F.2d 682
(3d Cir. 1991), arguing that a Pennsylvania that required women seeking
abortions to inform their husbands should have been upheld. As Judge
Alito reasoned, "[t]he Pennsylvania legislature could have rationally
believed that some married women are initially inclined to obtain an
abortion without their husbands' knowledge because of perceived
problems--such as economic constraints, future plans, or the husbands'
previously expressed opposition--that may be obviated by discussion
prior to the abortion." Chief Justice Rehnquist's dissent from the
Supreme Court's 5-4 [corrected] decision
striking down the spousal notification provision of the law quoted
Judge Alito's dissent and expressed support for Judge Alito's reasoning.





A dissenting opinion in Homar v. Gilbert,
89 F.3d 1009 (3d Cir. 1996) arguing that that a state university did
not violate the procedural due process rights of a campus policeman
when it suspended him without pay and without a prior hearing upon
learning that he had been arrested and charged with drug offenses. The Supreme Court,
which reversed and remanded the case on other grounds, agreed with
Judge Alito's reasoning that no hearing was required prior to the
suspension because the drug charges showed that the suspension was not
baseless.



A dissenting opinion in Sheridan v. Dupont,
74 F.3d 1439 (3d Cir. 1996) (en banc) arguing that a plaintiff in a sex
discrimination case should not inevitably be able to survive summary
judgment simply by casting doubt on the employer's proffer of
legitimate, nondiscriminatory reasons for the adverse employment
decision.

Sunday, October 30, 2005

Public Reaction to Libby Indictments Is Low Key

According to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll conducted this past weekend, less than half of the American public believes former senior White House aide I. Lewis Libby Jr. did anything illegal in the matter for which he was indicted; a majority says the controversy involving him is an isolated incident rather than symptomatic of low ethics at the White House.

Monday, October 24, 2005

Largest Gas Price Decline in History

In the past 2 (two) weeks gas prices have had the biggest decline in 50 years. This drop is the biggest in the Lundberg Survey's history.


The Oct. 21 level is just 3 cents above what it was on August 26, two days before Katrina rampaged along the Gulf Coast, damaging many of the refineries there, Lundberg said.
With Hurricane Wilma far from the refinery-rich region, Lundberg predicted "a lot more price cutting" at the pump.


With the thousands of "news" stories written during the increase in prices, lets see how many of the MSM will cover (for days on end) the drop in prices.

P.S. This story was buried deep @ money.com

Friday, October 21, 2005

Air America nonexistent in NY

I can seem to find the number for Chicago but, Air America is nonexistent in the most liberal city in America. I suppose this is because Liberal Americans can just get all the Bush bashing they want by picking up a NYTs or turning on the MSM.

Air America, the liberal talk network carried on WWRC-AM (1260), went from bad to nonexistent. After WWRC recorded a mere fraction of a rating point in the spring with syndicated shows from the likes of lefty talkers Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo and Stephanie Miller, Arbitron couldn't detect a measurable listenership for the station this time around.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

The Unspoken Abortion Debate

While most of the political country is focused on how Meires is going to vote on Roe, it was refreshing to read this piece on the effects of (not)aborting children with down Syndrome. It is important to remember that these abortions kill real people, and in the cases that selfish people abort children with Down syndrome, we are all worst off. People with disabilities are wonderful people that add joy and depth to the lives they touch. We all live in a worse-off society when these people are taken from us.

The story above is a must read, it asks: "why do we as a society view abortion as justified and unremarkable in the case of children with disabilities?"

It hard to imagine, but due to prenatal testing and abortion, some studies estimate 80 to 90 percent of prenatal diagnoses that indicate that a child has Down Syndrom result in an abortion. 80% to 90%!

And just to throw some political irony in here, I can't stop thinking about how many liberals fight for the rights of people with disabilities, and continue the fight to ensure that they have the right end the life of a baby with Down syndrome.

I leave you with the following story from the article, that I feel happens all to often around the Country

At a dinner party not long ago, I was seated next to the director of an Ivy League ethics program. In answer to another guest's question, he said he believes that prospective parents have a moral obligation to undergo prenatal testing and to terminate their pregnancy to avoid bringing forth a child with a disability, because it was immoral to subject a child to the kind of suffering he or she would have to endure. (When I started to pipe up about our family's experience, he smiled politely and turned to the lady on his left.


I have always felt that the abortion debate is all about knowledge. As people learned that a "fetus" is alive people became more pro-life, as they read stories like this and learn what joy people with disabilities can add to society, maybe they will make the right "Choice", and we won't have to worry about "Roe"

Bush gets tough on immigration

In a signing ceremony authorizing the 32 Billion Homeland security budget, President Bush stepped-up his push for immigration reform saying:
  • We've got to stop people from coming here in the first place.
  • Secondly, we must improve our ability to find and apprehend illegal immigrants who've made it across the border. If somebody is here illegally, we've got to do everything we can to find them.
  • Thirdly, we've got to work to ensure that those who are caught are returned to their home countries as soon as possible.


I would think that this is just talk, but Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff promised Tuesday to end the "catch and release" policy that has allowed tens of thousands of non-Mexican illegal aliens to disappear within the United States.

"Return every single illegal entrant -- no exceptions," Chertoff said in prepared testimony to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on proposals to overhaul the immigration system.

Sound like they are finally taking boarder control seriously

Friday, October 14, 2005

Today Show scripts the news

The Today show really out did them selves today. Like all the MSM they are hypping the made-up story about the troop video conference. They ran the story that all the MSM are leading with today, about how the troops got prepped before they went on a video conference with the president. NO SHIT!!! On every interview on every TV show all over the world, people get prepped. Nobody want to look like a fool speaking to their commander in chief, they are going to be prepped. That doesn't mean that there answers were fake, but the media didn't like the answers, so they have to discredit format.

Then in an sorry attempt to stage a shot, the horrible (reporter?) Katie Couric puts a reporter in a canoe. This is supposed to show the flooding in New England this week. This is a dramatic shot until the illusion is ruined by two people walking in front of her in the ankle deep water.

Come on people, report the real stories (the Iraq Election), don't make them up.

Thursday, October 13, 2005

SUV make the EPA's MPG top 10 list

The Ford Escape Hybrid is the first SUV to make the EPA's "Most fuel efficient cars" list. With SUVs getting more efficient and receiving hybrid engines. I wonder how long the "soft green" environmentalists will continue to demonize them. Further down the list you will also find the Lexus RX 400h and Toyota's Highlander Hybrid. These SUVs are all ranked above all non-diesel, non-hybrid "hippy" cars.

Iraq news to get really bad

With the Iraq election coming up this weekend, expect the news media to cover every little explosion. Media Research Center has found that even prior to this election, 61% has focused on negative topics like car bombings. Expect closer to 90% this weekend.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Laura Ingraham coming to Chicago

The New Trier Republican Organization has announced that Laura Ingraham will be the keynotespeaker for their annual Dinneree.

Come on out, donate to a good cause, have a good dinner, meet good republicans, and hear to what Laura has to say.

Sunday, October, 16th, 2005

Allgauer's (Hilton)
28855 N. Milwaukee
Northbrook, IL (sorry)

$150 per person
847 251-6100

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Miers is a Threat to a Dream


No one has anything against her, but the idea that one is supposed to sacrifice both intellectual distinction and philosophical clarity at the same time is just ridiculous.


Washington Post:

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Ari Fleischer in Chicago

RJC Chicago Chapter



Is proud to present

Ari Fleischer
Former White House Press Secretary
and RJC Board Member



"An Insiders View on the Events and Issues
Affecting the US and the World Today"



Sunday, October 9, 11:45 am

Renaissance North Shore Hotel
933 Skokie Blvd.
Northbrook, IL 60062




To RSVP or arrange transportation, please contact:
Dr. Michael Menis at
Michaelmenis@Hotmail.com or
815-459-7400



No Charge for RJC members & students
$15 for non-members
Check or credit card payment

Monday, October 03, 2005

Justice Harriet Miers

Well here she is, Justice Harriet Miers. I don't yet know what to think. While I would like to trust president Bush. I have been waiting 6 long years for these picks, and I won't know what what kind of judiciary my kids will have to grow up with for at lease a year or more.
I do know 1 thing. From now on, if you want a libertarian Justis, that you have to elect Libertarians. We can't trust "conservative Republicans" to shrink the government or to apoint strict construtionalist.
It's a sad day!

Sunday, October 02, 2005

Typical Red Chicago Tribune

This isn't really Bog worthy, Last stand in the Arctic, except that I knew that with a slow news cycle yesterday, I knew that the Red Chicago Tribune would highlight some extremely liberal front page feature.

I was dead on! What can I say? I'm know these people.

By 3-to-1 Public Sees Liberal Over Conservative News Media Bias

People are getting it!!! More support for my long held beleif that the media is loosing its power. A new Gallup poll shows thatby 3-to-1 the public sees Liberal News Media Bias. I haven't heard this all over the MSM news shows, like all the other Bush bashing polls of recent.