Author: jason

Turtles All the Way Down

Turtles All the Way Down

Jonah Goldberg, a National Review author, recently noted on The Corner the anniversary of the passing of his Father.  I was pretty moved by the aching he expressed in his post even two years after his father’s death, and moved even more by the touching, funny tribute to his father shortly after his death.  I really appreciated Jonah’s connection of humor and wisdom, and how he highlighted that with stories about his dad, who sound like a really, really neat man — the kind of man I would have liked to have known. 

The stories of the walks with his dad and the seemingly random pearls of wisdom he would share challenges me to make sure that I have those moments with my boys.  What really struck me, though, was the phrase at the end:

“He was turtles all the way down.”

I love the image that stirs.  I hope someday (a long, long time from now, hopefully) my children can write about me the way Jonah wrote his dad.

“Evolution, Abortion, and Other Stuff We Care About”

“Evolution, Abortion, and Other Stuff We Care About”

If you ever needed a really good reason not to vote for Oklahoma Democrats (and, one might easily conculde, Democrats in general) this is it.  Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Republicans are better, but I can’t see they can be any worse. As you read their declarations, note how they dance around the word “abortion,” preferring to talk about “reproductive care,” “health care decsions,” “reproductive freedom,” and “termination of unintended pregnancy.” If there was ever any doubt that they are the Party of Death, that list should clear things up.

This was never given a title, so I’m just filling in the blank now, 2 years later

This was never given a title, so I’m just filling in the blank now, 2 years later

This Peggy Noonan article is spot on, I think.  I especially appreciate the “battered wife” reference, as that’s how it has felt these past few years.  I’ve not always been a Bush supporter — I have grudgingly admitted to voting for McCain in 2000 — but, as the Republican candidate and office holder, he’s what we’ve got, so I’ve voted for and done my best to support him (I still contend he’s better than the alternatives we’ve been given, even if not by much). 

To be completely honest, he’s done some dumb things that, as Noonan, Laura Ingraham, and Mark Levin point out, have been hard to swallow — I’ve never been too shy about admitting that — and  I agree whole-heartedly with the assertion, by a political commentator whose name eludes me, that Bush is not a conservative, but a “neo-liberal.”  I find myself longing for 2009, though at the same time fearing it because a Democrat might win the White House, making things a whole lot worse.  But at least we won’t have “illegal” wiretaps, so I guess that’s got to be a plus. 😐

Why won’t you sleep?

Why won’t you sleep?

For the most part, I can’t really complain about how Noah sleeps. He usually falls asleep easily, and sleeps through just about anything, it seems. Given how much Andrew fought sleep at the same age, I should be extremely grateful for any sort of improvement, and I am. However, Noah has had a rough night or two over the past few days, so I have had to get up a couple of times a night to go pat or rock him to get him to go sleep: Stumble in the room; Start the classical CD playing again; Re-insert the pacifier (which I hate using, btw, but what do you do?); Starting patting or rocking. This morning at around 2:00 or 4:00 (you lose track eventually), as I was losing feeling in my arm from patting, listening to the CD and praying he’d drift off, I got to thinking, “Noah, the sooner you learn that you’re supposed to fall asleep when classical music plays, the happier we’ll both be.” 😉

Governor Henry, Illegal immigration and Abortion

Governor Henry, Illegal immigration and Abortion

Governor Henry recently did something that was, for me, quite unexpected: he signed into law illegal immigration legislation described as “nation’s most sweeping attempt to deny jobs and public benefits to illegal immigrants,” for which I applaud him. Despite this good decision, though, not all of the Governor’s actions are commendable. He recently vetoed Senate Bill 714 over fears of “unintended consequences.”

Oddly enough, groups like La Raza and the ACLU are wont to file lawsuits against this sort of immigration legislation due to, among other things, the “unintended consequences” regarding the children of those here illegally. Given the likely legal challenges both bills were or are likely to face, there must be something else driving Governor Henry’s veto of SB 714. One thing is clear, though: In Oklahoma, it’s OK to gamble or kill your preborn child, but, before doing so, you had better make sure you’re in the country legally.

RSS Killed the Web Browsing Star

RSS Killed the Web Browsing Star

One of the outlets/time-killers for office works the world over is browsing the web, and I’m certainly no exception.  There are times when you just need a break, and hitting the various news and geek news sites often does the trick for me.  There is, though, a technology that has become increasing popular over the last few years that has managed to ruin things for me:  RSS.

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