The more I learn about the port deal, the less concerned I become about this particular deal. I am still somewhat concerned about the ports being handled by foreign companies, but it appears that’s not a new thing. And while I still agree with Hillary that it might be better not to have foreign governments acquiring U.S. ports, I should’ve been on the look out for Hillary’s hypocrisy, which was all but a certainty.

Jim has a good post about it.

And, it was back in 1997, when Hillary was serving as co-president, the Saudi owned shipping company (NSCSA) began service between North America and Italy, Greece and Turkey?This just proves that the Clintons have evolved a long way since 1999 when they claimed that port control was “silly stuff”.

Back in 1999 when a Chinese owned Hutchinson-Whampoa, Ltd. took control of ports at both ends of the Panama Canal the Clinton White House scoffed at the security risks:

Clinton White House spokesman Joe Lockhart dismissed the Insight story about Chinese port control including the Panama Canal and the surrounding controversy as “silly stuff.”Chinese owned Hutchison-Whampoa Ltd. today owns 90% of Panama Ports Company.

So, as usual, it appears her opposition to, and “outrage” of, foreign ownership is nothing more than continued opposition to Republicans, and more specifically George W. Bush.

In fact, the appearance that we were on the same side should’ve clued me in to review my position for possible flaws. I now realize one nuance Hillary slid stealthily in her criticism of the ports deal:

Clinton said critical infrastructure like ports must be operated by the United States, not foreign-owned companies.

Of course she wants “the United States” to own things as opposed to “companies”. That’s what she wanted with healthcare… and pretty much everything else. It’s called Socialism… or worse.

I have to admit, though, it was nice to see Hillary and her Democrat coattails finally warming up to profiling when it comes to national security for a change.

Update: The disinformation campaign.

Update 2: Jamie Alman has a proposed speech drafted for Bush to give.

His words, not mine.

Pat at Brainster does a good job deconstructing the sloppy work in Paul Krugman’s January 30th New York Times article in passing along incorrect information about the Abramoff story. The thing that jumps out at me first in his post is that MSM is either unwilling or unable to fully analyze stories these days. I tend to think there’s a little of both, especially the former, when it deals with a Republican. 

Why is Pat’s analysis, and others like it, important? Here’s one very big reason.

Democrats love to pretend that polls matter more than actual elections. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Friday that if midterm elections were held today “Democrats would win the five seats they need to draw even in the Senate…”

I can understand the wishful thinking, since the only time Democrats have been capable of securing control of the Senate in the last 10 years, it required a candidate disenfranchising voters by switching parties after being elected as a Republican.

Going back a few years, Democrats have clung to the hope that random polls throughout the year were indicative of actual election results. Maybe it’s that faulty reliance that gives rise to such shock, when their candidates go down in flames at the hands of voters, instead of “a representative sample teenagers at the grocery store” or “a statistical sampling of elderly Lakers fans”.

Over and over again, they build their dreams on the false hopes…

October 31, 2003 - “An independent poll released this week by the non-partisan William C. Velasquez Institute (WCVI) confirmed that Hispanics are growing increasingly frustrated with President Bush’s policies and performance. According to the Institute’s research, if the election were held today, any Democratic presidential candidate would beat Bush by a margin of almost two to one, or 55 percent to 28 percent.”

February 3, 2004 - “Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry would defeat President Bush if the election were held today, according to a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll that shows serious vulnerabilities for the president.”

February 18, 2004 - “US President George W. Bush would lose to either of the two leading Democratic presidential contenders, if elections were held today, according to a new public opinion poll.”

May 5, 2004 - “So, the bottom line is if the election were held today, Kerry would take 51% of the vote to Mr. Bush’s 36%.”

October 5, 2004 - “If the election were held today, John Kerry and George Bush would tie in Ohio, according to an exclusive WKYC-TV survey.”

And if building false hopes wasn’t enough for them, there’s this:

June 16, 2005 - “Here’s a poll whose results I’d love to know: a do-over of the presidential election, six months later.”

Unfortunately for Democrats our country is not governed by mid-year polls and media surveys. But I have no problem if they want to keep thinking they mean something.

From The Daily Texan (hat tip: reader Nita Rene):

Two female students from Moore-Hill dormitory were still being treated late Friday for Ricin exposure after coming into contact with the toxin Thursday afternoon, law enforcement and UT officials said.Students began evacuating the dorm shortly after 11 p.m. when University Residence Hall resident assistants began knocking door-to-door evacuating residents…The toxin was first discovered around 2:30 p.m. Thursday when one of the students who received treatment discovered a white powder after opening a roll of quarters from a non-local bank to do laundry on the first floor, Spalding said. The quarters had been in her dorm room on the second floor for several months, Spalding said. The powder fell out on the student’s hands, which she washed immediately before reporting the incident to the UT Police Department, Spalding said.

U.T.’s associate director of Student Health Services, Theresa Spalding, says:

“There is no threat coming from this… the authorities do not believe there is any type of terroristic plot against the University of Texas.”

Yet, according to the CDC:

It would take a deliberate act to make ricin and use it to poison people. Accidental exposure to ricin is highly unlikely.

Looks like another instance at a University where officials are quick to dismiss the obvious in favor of the “no threat here” line.The University said, in a prepared release that the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating this event deemed by university officials as a non-threat. (Sound familiar?) According to the website of the San Antonio field office of the JTTF:

The JTTF is responsible for all domestic and international terrorism matters. The JTTF mission is to prevent acts of terrorism, and investigate acts of terrorism in an effort to identify and prosecute those responsible.

In fact, during the 2003 Ricin-terror plot investigation in London:

The FBI advises U.S. law enforcement agencies about the dangers associated with ricin following the discovery of the deadly poison in London. The FBI notice says ricin “could be used in a terrorist operation to contaminate closed ventilation systems … drinking water, lakes, rivers and food supplies.”

According to KXAN, students who lived in the dorm were interviewed and said that they were not aware of the problem when it was first found on Thursday. They weren’t informed or evacuated until sometime Friday! The Daily Texan confirms:

The decision to evacuate was made more than 24 hours after the powder was first found because samples of the substance had to be expedited to a lab in Atlanta, Spalding said. The substance was reported back from the lab as Ricin from preliminary tests, Valadez said.Students were still able to access the exposed areas of Moore-Hill, including the first floor laundry room. No areas were closed until the dorm was evacuated at 11 p.m.

So they sent the samples for testing because they thought it might be a dangerous substance, but allowed students to remain in the building without warning for more than 24 hours. Something doesn’t seem right about that.

The Austin Police Department, Austin Fire Department, EMS and UT Police Department were called to the area after the substance was confirmed to be Ricin.

So authorities were called in after the Ricin was confirmed? Seems like they would’ve been called once U.T. officials thought the substance was suspicious enough to send it to CDC labs for testing.It appears the response to this has been questionable from the beginning. Probably explains why authorities are so quick to dismiss this whole event.

Here are some photos from the scene (Courtesy Daily Texan Staff):

 Update: Looks like USAToday, Fox and ABC are finally picking this story up…

Other Ricin discoveries and officials’ “nothing to see here” line:February, 2004 - Dirksen Senate Office Building mailroom.

-“Federal authorities said Tuesday they have found no indication of international terrorism in the discovery.”

November, 2003 - An intercepted letter addressed to the White House.

-”That letter is now part of a federal investigation”

- Greenville, S.C. airport postal distribution center. -”officials said Wednesday they do not believe the incident is related to terrorism”

The second victim was her roommate, Sophomore Casi Adams.

Update 3: It’s being reported that 3 tests were conducted, each with a different result. One positive, one negative and one inconclusive. Further tests are being done at CDC and officials hope to know for sure whether this was in fact ricin or not by Sunday.

Update 4: The FBI is reporting that further tests were negative.

The FBI tests did not identify the substance, but they came back negative for the poison that is extracted from castor beans, said San Antonio FBI spokesman Rene Salinas.”There were no proteins in there to indicate it was in fact ricin,” Salinas said. He said was unlikely further testing would be done.

Texas health officials did “just a quick test and they don’t check for the proteins in ricin,” Salinas said.

If they didn’t check for ricin in the first place, why are we having this discussion? Obviously, someone checked for ricin proteins… and allegedly found them.

Others:

Bryan has info on another weird Ricin case. Michelle has a roundup, including a “chronology of incidents involving ricin“. Deborah hits the nail on the head: “Let’s see if the MSM gives this story as much play as it gave U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney’s hunting accident.” -I’m not holing my breath.

Michelle links to a great story of a kid who truly is overcoming adversity.

Jason McElwain had done everything he was asked to do for the Greece Athena High School basketball team - keep the stats, run the clock, hand out water bottles.

That all changed last week for the team manager in the final home game of the season. The 17-year-old senior, who is autistic and usually sits on the bench in a white shirt and black tie, put on a uniform and entered the game with his team way ahead.

McElwain proceeded to hit six 3-point shots, finished with 20 points and was carried off the court on his teammates’ shoulders.

He scored 20 points in just 4 minutes, sinking 6-of-10 3 pointers. His team won 79-43, which means they would’ve only won by 16 points without his contribution. While the story focuses on the inspirational story of his dedication to the sport and the team, despite his autism, and his one chance at glory… perhaps I’m not the only one wondering whether McElwain’s performance indicates he should’ve been in uniform for more games.I dare you to watch the video of his big shots and not smile. Jason McElwain is an amazing kid.

Suicide bombers in explosives-laden cars attacked the world’s largest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia.

Flashback 15 years to the Gulf War when Saddam Hussein sent a team of engineers into the Kuwaiti oil fields and blew up hundreds of wells destroying billions of barrels of oil.

And again, just as the coalition’s invasion began in March, 2003, Saddam’s regime set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Iraq.

In December, 2003, insurgents terrorists targeted Iraq’s oil infrastructure… setting fires that blazed for hours and lost millions of gallons of oil. 

The U.S. has been fighting for freedom and security, not to steal another country’s oil. If that were the case, we’d invade Canada. They provide us with more oil then any country in the middle east and they’re a heck of a lot closer. If you look at the amount of oil we’re getting from Iraq now, it’s no more than what we were getting prior to 2003… so when your liberal/socialist friend tells you the war is about oil… remind them which side is focusing on the oil.

Admitted Al-Qaida conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui is whining that the pool of potential jurors for his sentencing was being stacked against him. Sorry, Zack, but we couldn’t find a “jury of your peers” because they all died when the planes they hijacked parked themselves into the sides of skyscrapers.

Zacarias Moussaoui is whining that the pool of potential jurors for his sentencing was being stacked against him. Sorry, Zack, but we couldn’t find a “jury of your peers” because they all died when the planes they hijacked parked themselves into the sides of skyscrapers.

On leaving, he muttered his standard curse on his court-appointed lawyers and America and added: “God save Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida.”

Nobody on this planet can question America’s committment to justice after we spend millions of dollars on a trial for an admitted al-Qaeda member that plead guilty to conspiring with terrorists who committed the worst act of terrorism on our soil.

Here’s an interesting development in the Democrats’ latest attempt to manufacture a campaign around the corruption issue. (hat tip: Matt) Right on the heels of the Washington Times article that said “Democrats have taken more money from lobbyists than Republicans during the past 15 years,” the Democrats have released a document entitled, “America For Sale: The Cost of Republican Corrruption.”

Here’s an interesting development in the Democrats’ latest attempt to manufacture a campaign around the corruption issue. Right on the heels of the that said “Democrats have taken more money from lobbyists than Republicans during the past 15 years,” the Democrats have released a document entitled, “.”As if that hypocrisy wasn’t enough, the Democrats sprinkled in some irony as well. The cover page of this campaign brochure includes the official House emblem and the title, “United States House of Representatives, House Committee on Rules… A Congressional Report on How America is Being Sold to the Highest Bidder.” It also indicates it was “Prepared By the House Rules Committee Democratic Staff.”

But according to House Ethics Rules:

[O]fficial resources of the House must, as a general rule, be used for the performance of official business of the House, and hence those resources may not be used for campaign or political purposes. The laws and rules referenced in this section reflect “the basic principle that government funds should not be spent to help incumbents gain reelection.”

…

Among the specific activities that clearly may not be undertaken in a congressional office or using House resources (including official staff time) are, for example, the solicitation of contributions; the drafting of campaign speeches, statements, press releases or literature; the completion of Federal Election Commission reports; the creation or issuance of a campaign mailing; or the holding of a meeting on campaign business.

It’s like an irony, wrapped in hypocrisy, inside an enigma. And, once again, it’s priceless.Update: It also looks like this wasn’t the first time Democrats violated the rules to announce violations of rules.

From the Houston Chronicle:

New Orleans doesn’t want its poorest residents back - “unless they agree to work.” That was the message from three New Orleans City Council members who said government programs have “pampered” the city’s residents for too long.

It’s always nice to hear folks speak the truth without trying to sanitize it for the sake of political correctness. Maybe, just maybe, this had something to do with why so many relied on the government to take care of them during the storm… and then why so many blamed the government when it couldn’t handle the load. As always, LaShawn hits the nail on the head:

What Hurricane Katrina proved was not how racist America was or how its poor got left behind. It proved that generational government dependency has rendered poor black communities helpless and unable to think and plan for themselves.

Thank you. Of course, the moment the government started doling out the cash, they quickly used it for the necessities in life: Strippers and Casinos

“We don’t need soap opera watchers right now,” said New Orleans City Council President Oliver Thomas, during a housing committee meeting. “We’re going to target the people who are going to work. It’s not that I’m fed up, but that at some point there has to be a whole new level of motivation, and people have got to stop blaming the government for something they ought to do.”

I just wish the New Orleans City Council would’ve been this motivated and politically incorrect BEFORE the storm hit New Orleans. Perhaps if more of the able-bodied New Orleans’ residents got off their butts and went to work, there wouldn’t be 100,000 of them in my hometown complaining about their freebies running out. The problem that arises with the NOCC’s newfound backbone is that those unwilling to work for their handouts in New Orleans are simply not being welcomed back home… which means they keep their laziness (and crime) in Houston.

I’m all for helping those in need, but Jerry Maguire summed it up pretty well…