A commando-like operation that breaks down doors and grabs a six-year-old boy from his home at gunpoint in the middle of the night. Castro must be proud of his American puppets Reno and Clinton. But just to show how conflicted this controversy has made me, I am glad that Elian is reunited with his father.
The photo of the raid of Elian at gunpoint is the type that wins Pulitzer Prizes. You'll see it for decades to come. But why is there no video from the camera crew stationed inside the Gonzalez home? Naitonal Review's Jonah Goldberg describes the situation: "The pool cameraman, Tony Zumbado of NBC News, was immediately kicked in the stomach. His sound man was bludgeoned in the skull with the butt of a shotgun. The agents dragged the near-unconscious sound man outside and said, if you move we will kill you. They also told the residents of the house that they would be shot and killed if they moved or disobeyed."
Columnist Robert Novak points out that the boy's re-indoctrination to Communist Cuba may have already begun: "A U.S. senator, Bob Smith of New Hampshire, could not gain admittance to (Andrews Air Force Base) for himself and the boy's Miami relatives Saturday night. But Greg Craig, the Washington super lawyer paid by undisclosed donors to represent Juan Miguel Gonzalez, in a moment of candor revealed that Castro diplomats from the Cuban Interest Section were present at Andrews when Elian arrived."
If you want to know how your local newspaper stands on Elian's seizure, look no further than the front page. If you paper had the aforementioned photo of the boy and the fisherman at gunpoint, then they were against the government's tactics. However, if the paper (such as my hometown Atlanta Journal-Constitution) showed the oversized photo of Juan Miguel and Elian after being re-united with the gunpoint photo much smaller, then your paper supported the government's actions.
Oracle Corp. Chairman Larry Ellison is close to eclipsing Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates as the world's richest man. Someone should warn Ellison that the Justice Department will be filing a monopoly suit anyday now.
I wish all television shows would follow the lead of HBO or "NYPD Blue" this spring, and run every episode back-to-back. Viewers don't have to worry about wondering if they're missing a new episode and end up wasting time on a rerun.
Key to life: If someone says they have something to say to you, and you also have something important to share, LET THEM GO FIRST! Otherwise you take a risk in making a fool of yourself. At least they always do in the movies.
From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's The Vent: "Clinton will not ask for a pardon. But he will take one in a New York minute."
Notre Dame had the same number of players taken in the NFL draft as Hofstra and Harvard. As a fan of the Southeastern Conference and avid hater of the Fighting Irish football program, this brings a smile to my face.
From The Trink Trove in the Bangkok Post online:
"I know my rights" is the most popular saying in the States, usually prefaced by "It's a free country." But far too many Americans overlook
that the rights stated in the Declaration of Independence and spelled out in
the Constitution of the United States aren't boundless. State Representative Mitchell Kaye from Cobb County, Georgia, notes the limitations.
You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV or any other form of wealth. More power to you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing anything.
You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc., but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be.
You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to be more careful, do not expect the tool manufacturer to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.
You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidising generation after generation of professional couch potatoes who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes.
You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the look of public housing, we're just not interested in public
health care.
You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you fry in the electric chair.
You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be
surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big-screen color TV or a life of leisure.
You don't have the right to demand that our children risk their lives in foreign wars to soothe your aching conscience. We hate oppressive
governments and won't lift a finger to stop you from going to fight if you'd like; however, we don't enjoy parenting the entire world, and do
not want to spend so much of our time battling each and every little tyrant with a military uniform and a funny hat.
You don't have the right to do a job. All of us sure want all of you to have one, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of education and vocational training aid before you to make yourself useful.
You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to pursue happiness - which by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an overabundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights."
Random site of the week: I pity the fool who doesn't look at how Mr. T sees your web page!