Rick Santorum Creeps Me Out.

I swear, I was looking for a better word than creepy, and I guess if I come up with one, I'll change the title. That's probably why I'm not a writer :) But the guy reminds me of Greg Stillson from "The Dead Zone" by Stephen King. I read that book a long time ago, but the impression that I got from the Stillson character has lasted. And that guy is always played by Rick Santorum (google Santorum)

Ron Paul and the Schadenfreude of the Left.

I wish I spoke German. It seems to me that those Germans have a word for everything. My all-time favorite word is "spannungsbogen", which, if Frank Herbert hasn't lied to me, means "span of the bow", or "the time between when you realize you want something and when you reach out to grab it." I suspect that's not a real meaning, but I like it all the same. (You gotta love the internet. It knows everything! ["Spannungsbogen!". Waff rolled the ancient word on his tongue: The span of the bow! How far back you draw the bow before releasing your arrow.])

Ron Paul being blamed for classless Huntsman video.

So there is a lot of chatter regarding the Jon Huntsman - Manchurian Candidate video. There's a somewhat fair piece over at CBS on the issue, including an update (why wasn't it included in the original?) stating "Though there is no evidence the Paul campaign is involved with the ad,...". Ron Paul has come out condemning the video.

Well, while reading the comments over at Politico, one of the commentors, named Joe Gennaro, pointed out some interesting evidence indicating that it was "likely that the video came from a source within or closely tied to the Huntsman Campaign". In addition to this report, someone at the Jon Huntsman forum bragged about doing it.

While the evidence is far from conclusive, it looks even more damning than the "NHLiberty4Paul" handle used to post it.

What I find even more reprehensible than the Huntsman campaign trying to smear RP, (after all, which candidate but Ron Paul is honourable?) is the lazy media reporting the video as if it were fact! How low can they go? It would appear the depths are being plumbed as you read this.

Ron Paul - Freedom, Peace and Prosperity in 2012!

Ron Paul's New Hampshire Debate Performance

It was a pretty wide ranging debate, and I'm not sure that I saw anybody being a big loser. And, before I get into RP's performance, I'd like to recount just s few of my initial impressions.

Iran Propaganda

You probably have a pretty good idea about how I feel about our current wars. But watching the Republican debates reminds me that the Neocons are still out there, and some of them are running for President, and may win.

So anyway – the gist of the Iran propaganda goes something like this:

1. Ahmadinejad gave a speech threatening to “wipe Israel off the map”.
2. Iran supports insurgents in Iraq. , and this from the evil CFR.
3. Iran is developing nuclear weapons to achieve #1.
4. Iran is a sponsor of terrorist.
5. The Muslim caliphate will take over the world (this is more of a meme than a published idea).

Therefore, ipso facto, QED, we must bomb the hell out of them.

It Sure Looks Like Ron Paul May Run.

For the fans of Texas Republican Congressman Ron Paul this trip to Iowa sure bodes well. If the actions of past candidates are any gauge, visiting Iowa would seem to be a prerequisite of a Presidential run. He'll be

"explaining why his platform of limited, Constitutional government provides the greatest protection for American values"

After the recent "money bomb" and it's infusion of over $700,000, I'd have to imagine he has to feel good about his chances. And that came before any commitment to a run. Sportsbook is not as optimistic, placing him at +5000 for a win, +2000 for the Republican nomination.

Despite his recent straw poll wins at CPAC and the Tea Party Patriots, he still seems to be the long shot, scorned and hated by the media, and by more than a few blog commentors. I wish him luck. He'll need it.

Stay out of Libya

I've been quiet of late. It's not that there's nothing to say. There is a lot going on.

I'm mostly trying to take it all in. Still trying to figure out what is happening and what it means.

I read a disturbing piece from the Washington Post. It wasn't the part about Mr. Obama dragging his feet on the Libya issue. It was the "marked only the first in a range of steps that could include military options" part that bothered me. For all of you interventionists out there - if you think that military options are a good idea - please rethink.

From The Christian Science Monitor's article titled Gates's warning: Avoid land war in Asia, Middle East, and Africa

“Any future defense secretary who advises the president to again send a big American land army into Asia or into the Middle East or Africa should 'have his head examined,' as General [Douglas] MacArthur so delicately put it.”  – Defense Secretary Robert Gates

No one wants to see people die, but these Libyans seem to be fighting for their own freedom, and it sure seems like they are gaining. Let's just wish them well, support them if you want, and stay the heck out of it.

I really don't want to be responsible for the deaths of more brown people than we are already responsible for.