Hollywood Hate Fest

The Drudge Report has got its hands on an invitation to a big Hollywood confab where various people in the TV/movie business will gather to "discuss the strategies... to affect what happens next November." Also, there's a list of names on the invite, including people that you heard have hear of and people connected to those people.

This fabulous soiree is entitled "Hate Bush 12/2 - Event." Ah, those love-filled liberals; they constantly preach against hate, but apparently that doesn't apply to those wascally Wepubwicans.

Hotty Toddy

The Ole Miss Rebels shut out the Mississippi State Bulldogs, 31-0, in the Egg Bowl, today. Oh, glorious day!

Some Observations

MSNBC is canceling "Buchanan & Press". I never really watched the show especially since it has Pat Buchanan on who has just become too paleocon as of the last few years. I'm a Hannity and Colmes fellow, myself.

There are three potential GOP challengers to incumbent Democrat Bennie Thompson (who is black) in Mississippi's 2nd Congressional District. (FYI: This district consists mostly of the predominantly black Mississippi Delta) Clinton Leseuer, who got 44% of the vote in the 2002 race, is planning a rematch. Also, U.S. Postal Rate Commission Vice Chairman Danny Covington, who ran in 1996, and Jackson educator James Broadwater are angling for the GOP nomination. It's interesting to note that all three potential candidates are black, which says that the GOP is having some success in appealing to blacks. If a political neophyte with a shoe-string campaign budget like Lesueur can come within 10% of the incumbent like he did last election, someone with a bigger bankroll and greater experience can evict Thompson from his seat.

Personally, Thompson has always striked me as someone who was angry at racial discrimination in Mississippi, not because of the inherit injustice of white supremacy, but because he didn't get to do the discriminating.

One last note on this topic: I wager that Yvonne Brown, the black Republican mayor of the small Delta town of Tchula, will eventually run against Thompson if he continues to win election. Brown just started her term as mayor in 2001, so it'll probably be a few cycles before she would possibly run. She's been an effective mayor due to her efforts to put some level of compentence in city govenment despite some city council members ploys against her. Mark my words, she'll be a GOP star in the next few years.

I betcha Paul Krugman is having a bad day: Third quarter growth was 8.2%, and consumer spending is up.

Natalie Maines is at it again: The Dixie Chick lead singer spouts off on The Today Show saying that the American people were misled in going to war with Iraq. I guess she wants her record sales to pummel further down the charts.

Ken Lucas, Democrat Congressman from Kentucky, isn't seeking re-election next year and according to the newspaper's sources, Nick Clooney, father of idiotarian movie star George Clooney, plans on running as a Democrat for the seat. The elder Clooney is a newspaper columnist that, to quote this article, "has published columns and made statements that Republicans would label as liberal." Wouldn't other Democrats label those statements and columns as "liberal", too?

The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy at work:

District Magistrate Niteshwar Kumar has ordered an inquiry into the failure of the steering wheel of the battery-operated bus carrying former US President Bill Clinton back from the Taj Mahal to his hotel on November 22.

Sahdeo, secretary of the Agra Development Authority which maintains the battery bus service to the Taj Mahal, has also ordered an inquiry into the incident which caused much embarrassment to the local authorities.

According to those accompanying Clinton, he had to get down from the bus and walk the remainder of the distance to Amar Vilas Hotel where he was staying.

More Sickness

Jay Nordlinger in his Impromptus column today, points out this lovely toy being sold in the streets of Gaza and Ramallah. Mr. Nordlinger responds aptly (as he always does), "Do try to remember this next time you wonder why Israelis can't get along more harmoniously with their neighbors, or why the U.S. is having trouble making headway in the 'peace process.'"

Yikes

In the comments of my post linking to Greg Griffith's General Sherman post, a person named "Mark Konrad" left a profanity stricken rant on those pesky Jews, blacks, and Latinos have ruined the white man's country, etc., etc. In other words, your typical neo-Nazi vomit. I've deleted his material on the basis that I have a "no profanity" rule concerning the comments and that I can't stand such idiotic "thinking."

Thanks to Greg, for pointing out the comment, or else I would have not noticed it.

Ole Miss vs. LSU, 14-17

The Rebels fought valiantly against the Cajun Tigers, but LSU's defense was just too powerful. However, Ole Miss's defense dished out a lot of grief for LSU in reponse. Oh, well, there's Thanksgiving night when the Rebs take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs, who have been having a horrible year.

Sickness

WorldNetDaily has a video clip from a Syrian TV program that depicts Jews killing a Christian boy in order to use his blood in baking bread for a Passover meal. This vile program was shown on Hezbollah TV, of course.

USS Cairo

The Union ironclad, sunk in 1862 and raised in 1964, is being examined by officials to determine whether its cannons are still dangerous after all this years. The fear is that the cannons are loaded with explosives that have survived. I saw the Cairo at its display at Vicksburg Military Park with my parents and grandparents the summer before I started 8th grade. It was surprising entact, though much of the iron cladding was gone. But the cannons, wooden frame, boilers, and parts of the cladding were still there. I have pictures of our trip that I took that I might put on the web one day.

Southern Appeal

I have a few posts over there, so check 'em out!

Attention Yankees:

Southerners hold grudges for a long time:

Near the Plaza Hotel in New York is a staue of William Tecumseh Sherman, and whenever I'm in New York and find myself within walking distance of it, I'll walk over and spit on it. To most New Yorkers, I'm sure, I appear to be just another ill-bred local, and thus I attract little if any attention. What they don't know is that I'm staging my own private mini-protest, but without the gaudy giant puppets and tables full of International A.N.S.W.E.R. agit-prop for sale.

Actually, this a just a small part on a smart piece by Greg comparing the War Between the States and today's War on Terror.

Moscow on the Mississippi

The Clarion-Ledger has a rather charming piece on a group of Russians attending historical black Alcorn State University located in Lorman, MS.

In fact, there are now 29 full-time undergrads and advanced-degree students who came from Russia to Alcorn for a higher education — higher, many believe, than they can get in their country.

"It doesn't matter if you say 'Alcorn' or 'Harvard,' " says Ivan Dylko, a journalism/political science major. "Coming to America to get an education is prestigious."

And I just got a kick out of this:

Between Dennis Crossroads and Red Lick, in a one-story house set in the middle of nowhere's navel, the smell of frying omelets, bacon, sausage and hamburgers drifts from the kitchen into the night air, where it's absorbed by the noses of seven drooling dogs, including Eddie, who's treed a raccoon.

The home belongs to Ann Brown, 77, as do the dogs, who were once her main burglar alarm. Today, they're supplemented by Russians, who room here, rent-free.

"I'm not altruistic," says Brown, a widow since 1998.

"I took them in because I wanted somebody to be here whenever I come home in the dark. Or to take care of my dogs if I'm out of town."

Let Me Get This Straight

The ACLU pitches conniptions over Nativity scenes on public property, but defends a Wiccan's right to pray before a county board meeting?

New Blog To Me

I present Greg Griffith

Judge Pickering

As y'all know, he's one of the several Bush judicial nominees being blocked by a faux-filibuster of Senate Democrats. For over two years now, he hasn't had a straight up-or-down by the Senate (he was defeated in committee back in Mar 2002 when the Dems had Senate control, but Bush renominated him after the Republican victory in the 2002 elections.) Senate Democrats, like UpChuck Schumer, claim that Judge Pickering is too "racially insensitive" to serve on the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals. However, Judge Pickering has a lot of support from many blacks in Mississippis that have met him over the years, including civil rights activist Charles Evers. Back in March 2002, before the committee vote, Evers declared that, "I'm not going to sit by and let these Yankees scuttle the nomination." And remember, Evers had a brother, the famous Medgar Evers, that was slain for trying to protect black Mississippians right to vote. So if a judge has rather troubling views on race and has made questionable judicial decisions where race is involved, you would guess that Evers would denounce him.

But Evers hasn't denounced Pickering; he's done just the opposite in his active pushing for this nomination. So heres my point: Senate Democrats, who are all white, believe that they know more about civil rights and "racial insenitivity" than a black man who has worked for years for a better racial climate and who lost a brother in that struggle.

Get Over It

Donald Adderton, the editor of the Delta Democrat Times of Greenville, MS, takes defeated lt. gubertorial candidate Barbara Blackmon to task over her using the race card to explain her lost. Let me do a quick primer for those who haven't been following Mississippi's election. In the Lt. Gov. race, there was incumbent Republican Amy Tuck (who switched from the Democratic Party last December) and Democrat state senator Barbara Blackmon, who is also black. On election day, Tuck routed Blackmon, 63% to 37% (or something like that). Blackmon soon complained,

"It is my belief as well as the belief probably of over 300,000 voters of this state that if my pigmentation were different, I would be the lieutenant governor of this state."

Mr. Adderton, who, by the way, is also black, rightly throws the facts in her face:

What Blackmon refuses to recognize is that she indeed had white voter support during the campaign until — for reasons known only to her and her campaign team — she decided to tar Republican incumbent Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck with the abortion issue. The move backfired mightily, as voters began to view Tuck as being unfairly impugned by Blackmon.

One wonders what Blackmon and her advisors were thinking to even dare to contemplate entering the politically volatile waters of abortion — especially in a Bible state like Mississippi. Blackmon should have known better, but she obviously didn't, and paid a hefty price at the polls.

Well, the disgruntled Democrat should take a long look at the reflection bouncing back from the mirror. Blackmon was smoked on Election Day by Tuck because her misguided campaign strategy blew up in her face. Race had nothing to do with it.

Blackmon was doing fairly well and was a serious threat to Tuck, until Blackmon called for the pro-life Tuck to sign an affidavit swearing that she (Tuck) hadn't had an abortion. That pretty much doomed the state senator's campaign since many were angered over the possible implication that Tuck had had an abortion but was now pro-life in order to gain Republican votes (I think that was the reasoning).

Adderton concludes with this,

While Blackmon is bellyaching over her defeat, she should look at fellow Democrat Gary Anderson, who ran an efficient campaign for state treasurer, but lost to Republican neophyte Tate Reeves. Anderson suffered a tough loss, but he has not gone around the state crying "racism." Anderson, who had every reason to complain, took his defeat like a man and is moving on.

If Anderson should run again, and the hope here is that he will, the electorate will remember his political comportment. It's a human virtue that Blackmon doesn't have a clue about.

Read the whole thing, as they say.

29th Senate District Race

There's a bit of a situation concerning the results of this race for a state senate seat in Hinds County (Jackson area). Incumbent Republican Richard White currently lags behind Democrat challenger Dewayne Thomas by 98 votes out of over 17,000 ballots cast, according an unofficial tabulation by Thomas's attorney.

White vowed a court challenge after the attorney general's office upheld validation of 546 paper ballots from Precinct 94.

"We're a little frustrated," White said. "The Supreme Court says it is mandatory (to initial ballots). That should be the official (word). We'll just see what the court says."

White alleges the ballots were not secure at that precinct and that blank ballots were removed from the premises and returned marked.

"We expect it to end up in court either way," Attorney General Mike Moore said.

The ballots came under scrutiny Friday after it was determined neither the poll manager nor the manager overseeing the ballots had initialed any of them.

Poll workers had to rely on paper ballots for most of the day when voting machines failed. Problems with the machines weren't corrected until that afternoon.

Concerns were multiplied when it was learned that poll manager Alvin McGowan had manually entered 411 of the 546 votes into the machines himself.

Moore said he's confident all ballots were properly tracked. and "they could identify the validity of those paper ballots," he said.

Huzzah!

Steve, the Grand Poobah of Southern Appeal, has invited me to join that esteemed blog. I'm greatly honored and look forward to contributing there. Don't worry, I'll still keep things jumping here.

Veterans Day

Even though the day's almost over, I wish to say "Thank You" to all that have served and are serving in our Armed Forces. Because of their dedication and sacrifice, we all get to live free.

Generosity

According to the lastest Generosity Index released by the Catalogue for Philanthropy, Mississippi is the most generous in giving to charity. Pretty impressive, considering how Mississippi ranks near dead last in personal income.

Here's a few things that I noticed about the index:

Of the top ten most generous states: All voted for Bush in 2000
Of the bottom ten: 4 voted for Bush, 6 voted for Gore

Both Mississippi, ranked #1, and New Hampshire, ranked #50, voted for Bush

Rankings of the states of the Old Confederacy:
Mississippi: 1
Arkansas: 2
Alabama: 5
Tennessee: 6
Louisiana: 7
South Carolina: 9
Texas: 13
North Carolina: 16
Florida: 17
Georgia: 20
Virginia: 39

Rankings of the New England states
Maine: 31
Connecticut: 37
Vermont: 38
Massachusetts: 47
Rhode Island: 49
New Hampshire: 50

Short Electoral Roundup

A Hattiesburg American editorial takes Blackmon to task over her comment that she lost the Lt. Gov's race because of her skin color. It's a bit similar to a post by a certain dashing young blogger.

Columnist Sid Salter provides an overview of voter turnout and compares it to the last 2 previous statewide elections.

Lloyd Gray offers a few random thoughts

From a Church Sign

As seen in Greenville, MS: "If you don't believe in God, you better be right."

Ole Miss vs. Auburn

Man! Talk about a football game! I'm proud that my beloved Rebels managed to hold on to victory (24-20) over a very good Auburn team with a very good defense. But the Ole Miss defense prevented Auburn, sitting 2 yards from the goal line, from making a game winning TD. It sounds too dry when I describe it, but believe me, if you missed this game, then you missed a great game.

Personal Stuff

I had a job interview last Friday at the hospital in Greenville, MS (well, the one that counts, anyway) for a programming analyst position. It went well, I think, and the director of IT there was very personable and seemed like a good fellow to work for. I'll find out if I got it or not this week. My mother works there (well, she's there on contract and she used to work there before we moved to Clarksville) and has put a good word in for me, and others there have, too. I'm really nervous while I wait to hear back from them, I would really like to get this job. I believe that I'm qualified enough and this would by a good place to start my career. Anyway, please keep me in your prayers if y'all don't mind. I would really 'preciate it.

Cole

Sam R. Hall is calling for Mississippi Democrat chairman Rickey Cole to resign:

The truth is that Cole cannot put a good face on the Democratic Party. He is sour. He is pompous. He is polarizing. Under his leadership, the Democratic Party is quickly slipping into nothing of substance for state and national elections. It is becoming the party of county politics and nothing more. In the coming elections, if trends continue, then legislative races will see more and more Republicans claim victories.

Oh, Please

Barbara Blackmon says that she didn't win on Tuesday because of her race.

"It is my belief as well as the belief probably of over 300,000 voters of this state that if my pigmentation were different, I would be the lieutenant governor of this state," Blackmon said at a news conference at her campaign headquarters in Jackson.

The comment was greeted with loud applause from those gathered for Blackmon's first public appearance since being defeated by incumbent Republican Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck.

[Sigh] You and 300,000 voters can believe that to be true, but that doesn't mean that it is, Mrs. Blackmon.

Perhaps it was the fact that Mrs. Blackmon:
(a) Is a trial lawyer in a state where a lot of voters support much needed tort reform.

(b) Called for Tuck to sign an affidavit stating that she hadn't had an abortion, implying that the pro-life Tuck was being a hypocrite if she did abort an unborn child. That was a move loudly denounced by many, especially in the editorial pages,

(c) Is a liberal in a conservative state. Now, that's not to say that a dyed-in-the-wool liberal can't win in Mississippi. William Winter, the Great White Liberal Hope of Mississippi, won the governorship in 1979 despite that fact that he was (is) fairly to the left of much Mississippi electorate. But he was able to connect with voters on a few issues, like employment, that led to him being elected. Blackmon failed to do that.

(d) Ran against a fairly popular incumbent. Here, the what I call the "Ticked-Off Voter Factor," or TOVF, came into play. People really weren't cheesed off at Tuck, and if you're an incumbent seeking re-election, that's manna from heaven. I'll also note that in 1999, Tuck won as a Democrat with a solid backing from many conservative voters. I even had a few friends at Ole Miss that lean conservative who voted for her then. When she switched to the Republican Party in December of last year, she probably gained the support of those conservatives that won't for a Democrat regardless of her positions. And she probably held on to the support of a good many Democrats that still liked her after her defection.

Thanks...

...to Snippets for the permalink!

Election Predictions, Cont.

Today, I continue my review of my election predictions:

Attorney General

Actual Result:
Scott Newton (R) 38%
Jim Hood (D) 62%

Comment: I forgot to add my percentages to my prediction, but I would have put them at 52% Newton, 48% Hood. As it turns out, I was really way off on that one. And, goodness, how the mud was slung in this'un. Newton called Hood a chronic plea bargainer in murder and drug cases, Hood said that Newton was not experienced. The ace in the hole for Hood was the retiring AG, Democrat Mike Moore. The popular Moore (he served 4 terms, if that's not the definition of popular, I don't know what is) gave his endorsement to Hood that ran on TV ads right before the election. Newton lost, at least in part, for one of the main reasons Musgrove lost: he ran a too negative of a campaign. Both of them ran ads that essentially claimed that the world would end if their opponents won.

Secretary of State

My Prediction:
Eric Clark (D) 70%
Julio Del Castillo (R) 29%
Brenda Blackburn (Reform) 1%

Actual result:
Eric Clark (D) 71%
Julio Del Castillo (R) 24%
Brenda Blackburn (Reform) 6%

Comment: About what I predicted, though Blackburn managed to get 6% mainly due to to Del Castillo's weak candidacy.

State Treasurer

My Prediction:
Tate Reeves (R) 52%
Gary Anderson (D) 48%
Lee Dilworth (Reform) less than 1%

Actual Result:
Tate Reeves (R) 52%
Gary Anderson (D) 46%
Lee Dilworth (Reform) 2%

Comment: Of all my predictions, I think this one was most accruate. Unlike the other big-time races, this one was pretty free of rancor. Anderson emphasized his fiscal conservativism and years of experience in government, while Reeve's highlighted his own private sector financial know-how.

State Auditor

My Prediction:
Phil Bryant (R) 90%
Billy Blackburn (Reform) 10%

Actual Result:
Phil Bryant (R) 76%
Billy Blackburn (Reform) 24%

Comment: Bryant handily crushes Blackburn, but by a smaller marigin than I predicted.

Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce

My Prediction:
Lester Spell (D) 55%
Max Phillips (R) 44%
Bob Claunch (Reform) 1%

Actual Result:
Lester Spell (D) 66%
Max Phillips (R) 32%
Bob Claunch (Reform) 2%

Comment: Spell won easily, but better than I guessed. But like I said, Spell hadn't ticked off anybody royally, so his re-election wasn't in doubt.

Commissioner of Insurance

My Prediction:
George Dale (D) 64%
Aaron Dupuy III (R) 35%
Barbara Dale Washer (Reform) 1%

Actual Result:
George Dale (D) 71%
Aaron Dupuy III (R) 25%
Barbara Dale Washer (Reform) 4%

Comment: Dale cruises to his eighth term; while Dupuy offers less of a challenge than I originally thought. Even Washer managed to climb over the 1% mark.

That's it for now, but I'll have an analysis on the State House and Senate races some time soon.

A Couple of Quick Links

NRO has debate over whether the plan to merge two major Canadian political parties, the Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance, is a good idea that will work.

This fellow is completely off his rocker. The article is a prime example of the absolute insanity that many on the Left have. You could almost swear the piece is parody written by a conservative.

Election Predictions

A few weeks ago, I made some predictions on how the various state-wide races in Mississippi would turn out. Tonight, I'm focusing on the Governor's and Lt. Gov.'s races. Let's see how well I did.

Governor's Race

My Prediction:
Haley Barbour (R) 51%
Ronnie Musgrove (D) 46%
John Thomas Cripps (Constitution) around 2%
Sherman Lee Dillon (Green) 1%
Shawn O'Hara (Reform) below 1%

Actual Result:
Haley Barbour (R) 53%
Ronnie Musgrove (D) 46%
John Thomas Cripps (Constitution) below 1%
Sherman Lee Dillon (Green) below 1%
Shawn O'Hara (Reform) below 1%

Comment: GOP turnout was good, causing Barbour to get a few more points than I guessed. He emphasized that I had Musgrove pegged pretty good. He stressed that he was "conservative, independent", but if you're a conservative, you're sticking with Barbour, not someone who endorsed Al Gore in 2000. He tried to paint Barbour has an outsider from Washington, but Barbour countered that angle by embracing it to a degree. Barbour touted his connections to Pres. Bush and national Republicans and pitched that a Governor with such connections would only benefit the state.

Cripps ended up being a non-factor for Barbour, while the other two third-party candidates never significantly threatened the 2 major ones.

Lt. Governor's Race

My Prediction:
Amy Tuck (R) 52%
Barbara Blackmon (D) 47%
Anna Reives (Reform) 1%

Actual Result:
Amy Tuck (R) 61%
Barbara Blackmon (D) 37%
Anna Reives (Reform) 2%

Comment: I was correct that Tuck would win, though I was way off on the margin of victory. I thought that the whole "First Black State-wide Elected Official"-ness of her campaign would led to a higher black turnout. Clearly that wasn't the case. Many pundits on the Left will probably conclude white Mississippians won't vote a black to such a high position. There may be a kernel of truth to that, but the real reason that Blackmon was defeated handily was that she was simply too liberal to the voters of conservative-leaning MS. Plus, Tuck probably carried over a good chunk of Democratic voters who backed her in the 1999 race.

Ah...

The joys of a 24 Kbps dial-up connection.

Random Thoughts

The first half of the Ole Miss-Arkansas was almost unwatchable, with all the penalties being called on both teams. But apparently both coaches read their respective teams the riot act during halftime, since the second half had far fewer.

Ole Miss vs. South Carolina: After the ping-ponging of 2 touchdowns for each team during the beginning of the first quarter, Ole Miss smacked around SC until the 4th quarter, when the Gamecocks decided to actually play. That led to them eating up the Rebs commanding lead down to 3 pts at the end of the game. Over all, though, an enjoyable game.

Chris Lawrence is a smart fella and I like him a lot, but he has committed what's considered a sin here in the South: He called the Confederate Battle Flag the "Stars and Bars." I'll would expect that from an uncouth, uneducated Yankee, but, from Chris? For shame. The "Stars and Bars" was the first national flag of the CSA and consisted of three vertical bars (2 red and 1 white) with a blue canton containing 7 stars representing the states that had seceded at the time.

If you don't read Day By Day...well, you're not my friend. A lot of bloggers have described it as "Like Doonesbury, but funny," which is definitely true, but would I like to come up with my own description: "Like Marmaduke, but it's not about dogs."

In Kentucky's gubertorial race, GOP candidate Ernie Fletcher has been declared the winner, becoming the first Republican governor there in 3 decades.

Caught the TV again, Amy Tuck has been declared the winner of the Lt. Gov. race by a healthy margin by the AP.

Howdy, Y'all

'Tis I, Senor Patrick reporting in. First, off, I would like to say that Mrs. Landes is doing a bang up job guest posting.

I'm still here in Mississippi at my grandparents' in Leland, and I may have a job opportunity here, so hopefully that will go well. My dad has set up the computer here with a modem and got Earthlink as an ISP, so now I can post. Though, I'm on a dial-up and posting will be limited to mostly late in the evenings.

Today's election day here in Mississippi, and returns are ssssllllooowwwlllyyyy coming in. Last time I checked, Barbour was leading 53% to Musgrove's 46% (39% precincts reporting). Tuck has a significant lead over Blackmon, 61% to 37%, in the Lt. Gov's race. In the AG contest, Jim Hood is doing far better than I expected a few weeks ago, 63% to Scott Newton's 37%. According the local TV station I have been watching, the AP has already called the race for Hood. As for the State Treasurer's race, Tate Reeves has 52% to Gary Anderson's 46%. Still, the night is young.

Have mercy...

If you think Mississippi is about to get ugly, read this.

When did our republic start growing such soulless, unpatriotic partisans?

Whining, Cheating, and Manipulation Fest Begins

Here we go.

Dry run for 2004. Fasten your seat belts.

Oy vey

I don't know quite WHAT to make of this. Perhaps hormone replacement therapy would be an option?

Tragic

Horrible news to wake up to. What will the reaction of the American electorate be?