Right As Usual

is saying all the things I've been saying for some time. The social networks are only as important insofar as they WORK. For that to happehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif n, you need 2 types: The technology innovators - those who create the tools, and The technology power users, for lack of a better word. Those who aren't just passive users, following the crowd, but those who can see the tool, and understand the power of it for a particular purpose. In the new campaigns, they are known as the OPOs - the Online Political Operatives. This all came up on the Twitter site, #DiggCons . As I have recently traded in my phone for a Blackberry, I can see where this would be useful. I'm not totally sure that the site will do all that I want, but I'm willing to give it a try. I've decided to think of it as a newsreader on steroids - one that will bump up stories that I want to follow.

She was recently interviewed, and used the phrase "you know" 142 times . Just a sample: So I think in many ways, you know, we want to have all kinds of different voices, you know, representing us, and I think what I bring to it is, you know, my experience as a mother, as a woman, as a lawyer, you know, I've been an education activist for the last six years here, and, you know, I've written seven books – two on the Constitution, two on American politics. "So obviously, you know, we have different strengths and weaknesses. What an airhead! Oh, one tiny change to that information - it wasn't Sarah Palin, it was Caroline Kennedy. But, of course, that changes EVERYTHING!

OK, this is bad - really bad. But funny. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It seems that we will always have curmudgeons. Now that Andy Rooney is one step from the grave, how about Richard Cohen? He can be the replacement old man who complains constantly, about a variety of things, in an incoherent way. A BlackBerry is of limited utility. You cannot have a hearty family breakfast with everyone gathered around the BlackBerry. But with a good newspaper, the president could read the hard-news section, the first lady could adhere to gender orthodoxy and read the softer sections, and the kids could chuckle at the comics. Just as in the old movies, papa could explain things, like what’s the purpose of NATO anymore. (I’m dying to know this myself.) Not all newspapers have comic sections, but even those that don’t usually have sports pages and business columns. Someone really ought to tell Cohen that the stereotype of the old person who is befuddled and suspicious about technology is G-O-N-E. Maybe that someone should be me.

Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays. Even when life was not totally wonderful, I loved it. This year, although I have been sidelined from much of the running around this week (asthma attack), I remain grateful for all the love I have been surrounded by. My kids and husband, my grandchildren, and all the rest of the family, have been nurturing and loving, and have stepped in when I was unable to stay vertical. My mother was a major influence on my enjoyment of the December festivities. She loved all the schmaltz and corniness, and loved making the holiday season memorable for us. She did all the above on a VERY limited budget. She saved out of the household budget, took advantage of sales and layaways, and sewed, baked, and crafted with a vengeance. She sang Christmas carols, delighted in the umpteenth re-play of corny commercials, songs, and Christmas specials. And, for us kids, attendance at Christmas Mass was non-negotiable. My father sometimes drove us on r...

I'm weak right now, feeling down with asthma troubles. I'm drinking fluids and getting my meds into me, trying to get enough energy to finish shopping. I may have to get a wheelchair to be able to have the energy to stay out long enough.

Dean's World has a post that's an excellent start on the many steps that could be taken to remove fraud from elections. The trouble is: many machine politics cities (Chicago, Philly, Cleveland, etc.) don't want to get the fraud out. They just want the OTHER side not to be able to cheat. I think I've figured out why the Dems are so sure that Republicans are cheating. It's similar to how adulterers think. They reason: I know I'm cheating, so I'll bet - no, I'm SURE that the other guys are, too. It is inconceivable that someone could have the opportunity to cheat, but have a moral code that they adhere to that prevents them from doing so.

I'm with this guy . He succinctly makes the case against "giving", or perhaps I should say, bequeathing, the NY Senator seat to Caroline Kennedy. Where the blazes are the feminists on this? Haven't we progressed beyond the days when the only way a woman made it into the Senate was as a relative of someone? Bad as the "semi-entitled" Clinton run was, she did, at least, run for the position. She was a kid when the President died. She's done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING political until recently, when she held out the Magic Fairy Wand, and blessed the Anointed One with the Camelot Imprimatur. What Hogwash! She's just a rich kid, whose father died in office, and who spent the majority of her life in the lap of luxury. However nice she is (and, I admit, she has a good reputation for being a decent human being), she ain't the heir to the throne. This is America - 'ya gotta work for what you want.

"You have to be carefully taught to hate..." This post is about the frightening program of systemically training children to become martyrs for the cause in the the radical Islamicist world.

Here's a link about incubators in the 3rd world - often, the developed world is quite generous about donating medical equipment, but the donated items are expensive to run, require training to use, and VERY expensive to repair. So, essentially, they are worthless to the recipients. The low-cost device is built from auto parts.

I've been mainly using my Blackberry for the past several days. Today, at my daughter's house, I finally have access to a computer. It is nice to have a full keyboard. For short bursts, a Blackberry is OK. but, for extended times, you need to get a larger setup. The political news is not consuming my full attention right now. Until Obama is officially in, all the buzz is just -- air (not unlike a lot of his platform). Once he takes office, I'll see what happens, and comment on it. That's in contrast to the left, who spent most of their time emoting on the POSSIBLE, WIDELY IMAGINED, PROBABLY HORRIBLE POTENTIALLY, MAYBE, NOT TOTALLY WONDERFUL, BUT - OF COURSE - IF SUGGESTED BY A MODERATE REPUBLICAN - SOLELY DESIGNED TO BRING ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD works of the Bush administration. That exhausted me just writing it.

I'm listening to my husband and Brother-in-law looking at a high school yearbook and discussing their classmates. There are many things they remember - how "crazy" someone was, the wild times they had, the days they spent just hanging out. When it comes to the distaff side of the class, the memories are more pointed. Were they hot, or not! That pretty much describes it.

For the last 3 days, I've been keeping up and posting primarily through my new Blackberry. It's been mixed. The Blackberry keyboard is a little different in the placement of keys - close, but just enough offset that a good typist, like me, makes a few typos. I have to look at the keys, rather than the screen. As a result, I tend to create shorter posts, with fewer links. Over time, I expect I'll get more comfortable with the keyboard. It is, however, terrific for staying connected away from home.

OK, it may be a little over-the-top, but that's how the teachers in my building feel right now. The kids were predictably out of control today - and most of the week.

I'm racing around madly, trying to tie up loose ends before everything closes down for Christmas. I may not get to sleep until midnight.

I've only owned the Blackberry 1 day, and I can already say.that I'm hooked. I'm writing this from the chiropractor's during treatment.

I've joined the New Generation - I'm now a Crackberry Addict. It's pink (how girly) - and surprisingly easy to use. Well, after all, Paris Hilton managed to use one. This is a test of my ability to blog with one. If the link is right, it should send you to Facebook.

This post discusses the differences between the way a modern Germany (an E.U. state) handles the threatened torture of prisoners, and how the U.S. does the same. The circumstances are quiet similar, although the response of the media are quite different.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Imagine! Christmas carols at a Christmas Winter Festival! Read the whole thing here. I was gently chastised at a faculty meeting recently when I asked about the Christmas staff party. "That's Winter Holiday party." I answered, "I'll call it that when it EVER falls in a time period that DOESN'T include Christmas."

I just read a really great suggestion about how to get the crime, graft, and corruption out of politics: Call me a dreamer, but I propose a simple fix to this problem. Pay politicians more. Give these takers the chance to become rich legally. Here is how. Let’s put every elected federal official and appointee and bureaucrat on a stock option plan. The value of these options would be tied to the health and wealth of America. Now, that's out-of-the-box thinking! We need to look at this and similar proposals.

Charles Krauthammer has an interesting slant on what the appointments of Obama, so far, reveal about his plans for America (or, like his buddies might say, Amerikkka). Obama the centrist? I'm not so sure. Take the foreign policy team: Hillary Clinton, James Jones and Bush holdover Robert Gates. As centrist as you can get. But the choice was far less ideological than practical. Obama has no intention of being a foreign policy president. Unlike, say, Nixon or Reagan, he does not have aspirations abroad. He simply wants quiet on his eastern and western fronts so that he can proceed with what he really cares about -- his domestic agenda.

I've not been writing much lately - hardly anyone has, Instapundit to the contrary. It's the pre-Christmas season, and we're all very busy. But, several things have made that lack of output less depressing. As of today, all my family seems to be improving in health, or at least no worse. After playing around with scratchy throats and stuffy noses, we seem to have avoided a major outbreak of disgusting respiratory infections (well, they ARE disgusting. Everyone makes the most awful noises, and sniffs, and has a puffy face - they look horrid). My computer (PC) is back in operation, the Mac is still working, and a few of my missing electronics have been found. Although I haven't bought much yet in the way of gifts, today I received a large and unexpected check, so I will have the cash to buy them, when I get around to it. The weather has warmed (I must send Al Gore a thank-you card), and, even with a light drizzle, it's a pleasure to be out. Obama is making rather ...

I've been following the issue of Obama's missing birth certificate. His campaign produced a Certificate of Live Birth, which is NOT the same thing. It is a affirmation from the state of Hawaii that Obama was born on a certain day, to certain parents. As the law of Hawaii is written, a Certificate of Live Birth can, and has, been issued to babies born in other countries. Which is not a problem, for the most part. I believe that Hawaii has this practice because of the high number of military families that are resident in their state. It makes the process of asserting citizenship easier. However, for one citizen of Hawaii, this practice isn't sufficient. Obama, due to job requirements, needs to have an actual birth certificate, showing his actual place of birth. Now, I don't think it's at all that likely that Obama will be proved to have been born in another country. Because of the age of Obama's mother, and his father's non-citizen status, his qualifica...

I urge you to read the post about the use of words in this war.

Althouse has an update on the Trig Truther controversy - otherwise known as the Crazy Test - if you buy into those hypotheses (NOT theories), you really are crazy. A relatively minor correction - Palin had SOME leakage of amniotic fluid, not "water breaking" - it's a matter of degree. The first is a concern, but NOT mandating an immediate trip to the emergency room. I like the way Althouse smacks down one of Andrew Sullivan's comments: If the Bridge To Nowhere is worth checking out, why aren't the pregnancy's bizarre details? Althouse delivers the ultimate blow: Because the Bridge to Nowhere involved public, government actions, and the pregnancy was something happening inside her body as a result of purely private behavior. Ya'know, all that stuff about A Woman's Right to Privacy?

No, not the Dostoevsky novel, but a fascinating discussion at The Volokh Conspiracy , a law blog. The issue: should a criminal receive reduced sentencing, based on prior military activity (i.e., a good record, meritorious service, the like)? It caused me to think: What is the purpose of a sentence in a criminal conviction? Is it to punish the criminal? Is it to vindicate and satisfy the victim? Is it to keep the offender away from society, so they will not re-offend? Is it to rehabilitate the criminal? What does rehabilitation mean today? My view is personal: I want that person locked up long enough to change him/her, if possible. For that purpose, in a first-time crime, a relatively short "shock probation" where the person is sent to regular prison, then unexpectedly released a few months later, and placed on probation for an extended time (which can be revoked if they offend again), is suitable for non-violent offenders. Ohio used to use that method in the 1970s. I d...

Time to gear up again for another amnesty fight. Michelle Malkin has the news. If you haven't checked out Tom Tancredo's Team America PAC website , do so now.