Tomorrow is a Day for the United States Flag
The picture above from our front deck depicts a spot of sunshine and flowers with storm clouds moving in at a distance!

For America means a bit more than tall towers,
It means more than wealth or political powers,
It's more than our enemies ever could guess,
So may God bless America! Bless us! God bless
Author Unknown

The entire world anxiously awaits each 9/11 anniversary of the World Trade Center terrorism that killed over 3,000 innocent civilians and injured many more both on September 11 and the rest of their lives due to illness brought about by the explosions and subsequent cleaning up of the site.

Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Hopefully, it will be a day of peace and remembrance, a day to lick our wounds inflicted every hour of every day since September 11, 2001. But if our enemies are successful, innocent people will be burned up and blown up by the thousands or better yet, in bin Laden's eyes, by the millions.

Our own little village of Sugar Hill lost its Police Chief, Jose Pequeno Jr., to permanent brain disability from a roadside bomb in Ramadi. I knew Jose slightly and liked him a lot. Many residents of Sugar Hill and surrounding areas came together to build his wife and children a new house.
See        http://www.nhchiefsofpolice.com/Chief Jose Pequeno.htm
Also see http://www.caledonianrecord.com/pages/local_news/story/49bad61eb

A new video tape purportedly made by al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has urged the American people to embrace Islam in order to stop the war in Iraq.
BBC, September 7, 2007 --- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6984102.stm

One conclusion to draw from the new Osama bin Laden video tape is that the mastermind of 9/11 apparently is worrying about his relevance these days . . . The new tape aside, it's hard to imagine that bin Laden is happy about what he's wrought in the last six years since 9/11. How can he not see that he is accountable for the death of tens of thousands of Muslims, nearly all of them believers, innocent of any crimes against Islam? Whether he intended it or not, bin Laden is largely responsible for destroying Iraq. And displacing two million Iraqi Muslims. Bin Laden has lost in the Kingdom. The Saudi royal family is still standing, having rooted out bin Laden's networks. Saudi Arabia is no closer now to the Islamic caliphate bin Laden envisaged than it was before 9/11. And Iraq has shown his vision of a supranational radical Islam to be more of a pipe dream than a reality. The same is true for the rest of the Middle East. Without exception, regimes across the Middle East, from Pakistan to Morocco, are more repressive than they were before 9/11. It's arguable they are more stable and better prepared to crush bin Laden's extremist interpretation of Islam.
Robert Baer, "Bin Laden Fights to Stay Relevant, Time Magazine, September 7, 2007 --- http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1660197,00.html

Jensen Comment
According to a transcript of the video obtained by ABC News on September 8, 2007 , bin Laden apparently says there are two ways to end the Iraq war. "The first is from our side, and it is to continue to escalate the killing and fighting against you," bin Laden says, according to the transcript published by ABC. "The second is to do away with the American democratic system of government, "ABC said --- http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/070907193243.l6cmzcim.html
Also see http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14239653
 

In my own opinion bin Laden's messages (the last one is probably a forgery but others aren't so quick about calling it a fake) in hiding have softened, and he realizes his terrible mistake in executing 9/11 terror on U.S. soil before Al-Qaeda captured the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq. The micro danger at the moment lies in splinter groups not directed by Al-Qaeda who think they're helping Jihad. Bin Laden himself has been marginalized except in the partisan politics of the United States. That's not to say that he's harmless, but he never can he emerge from a hole in the ground to collect any of his winnings. Al Qaeda terrorism, however, could fiercely rebound if it manages to establish a new headquarters in the power vacuum of Iraq when U.S. forces depart. The macro danger lies in the inevitable nuclear and biological warfare face off between Islamic fundamentalists (e.g., in Iran and Pakistan) versus opposing nuclear-armed nation. For a time Russia may continue to play both sides in a self-serving strategy.

A huge worry for survival of the world is that Russia may actually overplay it's own global conspiracy seeking an energy monopoly to first weaken and then bring down the United States.

 

Bob Jensen's patriotism message/music on September 10, 2007
http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/tidbits/2007/tidbits070910.htm 

Videos Lending Insight Into Leading Terrorists and Their Motives

Imagining Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah bravely standing knee deep in Jewish blood raising Hezbollah's yellow and green flag before masses of his fighters in Tel Aviv is sheer fantasy. Instead he'd have to bury himself much deeper than bin Laden and never show his head again in open air. Terrorism's a nobody-wins game! It's only a losing game of revenge.

For example, when retreating (literally sounding retreat on bugles) in August/September of 2007, British commanders admitted that they lost southern Iraq to Iranian snipers and roadside/vehicle bomb makers. These commanders specifically claimed the most troublesome clandestine terrorists were actually Iranian. The majority of American people want the U.S. to also retreat from all of Iraq even if it means giving all of Iraq to Iran. But Iranians may find collecting that prize is a terrorizing experience when the U.S. withdraws under its new president. Terrorism's a nobody-wins game!

Some Argue That the U.S. Military Under George Bush is Hopelessly Incompetent and Defeated

There are Some Who Argue That Our 9/11 Enemies Were Faked by Republican Party Puppets and
the Zionists Who Pull Their Strings

Some Argue That the U.S. Military, Israel, England, and U.S. Business Enterprises, Comprise an Evil Empire
That Needs to Be Either Defeated or Politically Dismantled

Jensen Comment
I believe that the United States is not an Evil Empire.
It's instead the beacon of hope for democracy and
freedom surviving against a totalitarianism war being
waged by a clever, albeit cowardly, enemy
hiding amongst and terrorizing innocent civilians!
As our allies retreat in surrender to fear of terror,
America may soon find itself standing alone in the
face of nuclear and biological terror of unbelievable magnitude.
But at the moment the only war we're really losing is the
propaganda and a dysfunctional partisan-political war!

Bravo America!
Tomorrow (September 11 Anniversary)  is a day we should honor our dead and wounded and
give thanks for those who bravely sacrificed so much for our freedom and well being.


Gen. Petraeus letter to the troops on September 7, 2007 ---
http://www.mnf-iraq.com/images/stories/CGs_Corner/070907_cg_mess.pdf

General Kevin Bergner is a spokesman for the Multi-National Force in Iraq and generally gives straight talk a world of distorted and biased media --- http://www.mnf-iraq.com/
Some of his favorite blogs are as follows:

Small Wars Journal --- http://smallwarsjournal.com/index.php
Blackfive --- http://www.blackfive.net/
The Mudville Gazette --- http://www.mudvillegazette.com/

If you want to help our badly injured troops, please check out
Valour-IT: Voice-Activated Laptops for Our Injured Troops  --- http://www.valour-it.blogspot.com/

Bob Jensen's links to patriotic and inspirational music --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Music.htm

 

 

Tidbits on September 10, 2007
Bob Jensen

Videos From Bob Jensen's Personal Camera (the pictures are clear but some of them lost a bit in the video) ---
http://www.cs.trinity.edu/~rjensen/EdTech/Video/Personal/
The Tidbits.wmv video is narrated.

For earlier editions of Tidbits go to http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/TidbitsDirectory.htm
For earlier editions of New Bookmarks go to http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/bookurl.htm 

Click here to search Bob Jensen's web site if you have key words to enter --- Search Site.
For example if you want to know what Jensen documents have the term "Enron" enter the phrase Jensen AND Enron. Another search engine that covers Trinity and other universities is at http://www.searchedu.com/.


Bob Jensen's past presentations and lectures --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/resume.htm#Presentations   

Bob Jensen's Threads --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/threads.htm

Bob Jensen's Home Page is at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/

Bob Jensen's blogs and various threads on many topics --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/threads.htm
       (Also scroll down to the table at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/ )

Set up free conference calls at http://www.freeconference.com/  

World Clock --- http://www.peterussell.com/Odds/WorldClock.php

Online Video, Slide Shows, and Audio
In the past I've provided links to various types of music and video available free on the Web. 
I created a page that summarizes those various links --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm

Stories from the Heart of the Land (audio) ---  http://www.nature.org/heart/about/

Glenn Beck's Favorite Commercials --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p-a4-8Z52g

Space Toilet --- Click Here

Arab Tribes Fighting Each Other in Darfur --- http://video.on.nytimes.com/?fr_story=16a8fc7e09c85528299fffb15525bc4f69225159

National Capital Language Resource Center (quite a lot of multimedia available) --- http://www.nclrc.org/

John Tory shows 'Zero Respect' for the University of Ottawa --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FkXCkJnMUQ
Ontario’s Conservative Party leader, John Tory, is under fire for making a joke about the University of Ottawa on the campaign trail. In a video clip currently on YouTube, Tory refers to the institution jokingly as “the University of Zero.” Tory has since issued an apology of sorts ("I apologize if my remarks offended anyone"), in which he said he first heard to joke from an alumnus and considered it part of the way people tease one another about their alma maters.
Inside Higher Ed, September 5, 2007 --- http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/09/05/qt

Funny or Not, Here I Come
Fred Thompson on the Jay Leno Show --- Click Here

Why Don Imus? There are racists all over the media --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GpAafmhBHQ

There must be more to this than meets the eye
Kyla Ebbert says she wants an apology from Southwest Airlines after being told to get off a plane and change her clothes because what she was wearing was too revealing. Ebbert, 23, told the Today Show's Matt Lauer that an airline employee asked her to come up to the front of the plane just before the crew closed the plane's doors.
Pictures --- http://www.knbc.com/slideshow/news/14068161/detail.html
Video --- http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=154022

Free music downloads --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm

Bob Jensen's Favorite
Hope Has Place --- http://www.jessiesweb.com/pity.htm
If the sound does not commence after 30 seconds, scroll to the bottom of the page and turn it on.
Enya's home page is at http://www.enya.com/

And Another All Time Favorite
 A Special Love Song (Charlie Rich) --- http://www.barb-coolwaters.com/c004/lovesong_rich.html

Opera great Pavarotti dead at 71 --- Click Here
Luciano Pavarotti on YouTube

Memory from Cats (Musical)

Memory - Kim Bum Soo --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0i89DE5StBM
Winter Sonata (My Memory) --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SEz_dW2wsI

Banjo Master Baugus Looks to Old Times --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14099046

Pierre-Laurent Aimard and the Art of the Etude --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12361634

Like many jazz musicians, South African pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim grew up listening to gospel music. His grandmother played piano in the African Methodist Episcopalian Church --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13940226  

Uncle Earl: Old-Time Strings in Concert --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14004327

Already a superstar in Ireland, folk-rock singer-songwriter and Idaho native Josh Ritter is finally getting the recognition in America that he deserves. Ritter will headline a concert from WXPN and World Café Live in Philadelphia on Friday at noon ET --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13877719

Upon discovering Gregg Miner's Museum of Vintage, Exotic and Just Plain Unusual Musical Instruments in Tarzana, Calif., a couple years ago, Weekend Edition essayist Tim Brookes saw something called a harp guitar. Brookes humorously described it as a "combination guitar and wooden shoulder-mounted grenade launcher." --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13924188

Flight of the Conchords: Hilariously Deadpan --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=11753727

Boogie with Eddie Bo:--- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14078460

Ira Gershwin Official Site --- http://www.gershwin.com/

From The Washington Post on September 7, 2007

How many pieces of music will the United Kingdom license to YouTube?

A. 1 million
B. 10 million
C. 25 million
D. 50 million
 

Send in the Clowns (History in YouTube Video for Bob Jensen's retirement theme song)
A song written in two days and never intended to be such a hit:

September 9, 2007 reply from Linda A Kidwell [lkidwell@UWYO.EDU]

For me, the danger of YouTube is having too much fun clicking on related links (though it IS Friday afternoon)! Watching the Julie Andrews rendition, I followed the link to a simply wonderful joint performance of Julie Andews and Gene Kelly (my all time favorite), tap dancing and singing Supercalifragilistic. Here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1dmKyj9kN0 

My favorite YouTube entry so far is the Free Hugs campaign, first entry in the series here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4 

The ones that followed demonstrate the positive power potential of the internet.

Linda Kidwell

Forwarded by Auntie Bev

Free Hugs Paris

Free Hugs New York City

Free Hugs China

Free Hugs Tel Aviv

Free Hugs World

 

Photographs and Art

Smithsonian American Art Museum: Interactive --- http://americanart.si.edu/interact/index.cf

Bryan Berg Cardstacker --- http://www.cardstacker.com/gallery.html

Don Marko, The Master Crayon Artist (Click on Gallery) --- http://www.themastercrayonartist.biz/Results.asp?category=0&pg=0

Ralph Goings, Four Decades of Realism --- http://www.ralphlgoings.com/

Chinese Paper Gods --- http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/eastasian/paper_gods/index.html

John Bega Photography --- http://johnbega.com/home/home.html

Bolte Bridge --- http://gosu.co.za/

Auguścik & Hołownia (nice photography) --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_IA6xDesyA

Clown paintings video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CEnwIXyck8

Clever Site (move your mouse about) --- http://www.logolalia.com/minimalistconcretepoetry/archives/marko-niemi/ariadne.html

University of Missouri Digital Library --- http://digital.library.umsystem.edu/
Includes photographs and art.

There must be more to this than meets the eye
Kyla Ebbert says she wants an apology from Southwest Airlines after being told to get off a plane and change her clothes because what she was wearing was too revealing. Ebbert, 23, told the Today Show's Matt Lauer that an airline employee asked her to come up to the front of the plane just before the crew closed the plane's doors.
Pictures --- http://www.knbc.com/slideshow/news/14068161/detail.html
Video --- http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=154022

 

Online Books, Poems, References, and Other Literature
In the past I've provided links to various types electronic literature available free on the Web. 
I created a page that summarizes those various links --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/ElectronicLiterature.htm

From the British Library --- http://www.bl.uk/sacred
"The world's greatest collection of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim holy books."

University of Missouri Digital Library --- http://digital.library.umsystem.edu/
Includes such things as sheet music and photographs.

Bartleby.com: Nonfiction --- http://www.bartleby.com/nonfiction/

Great Books (Classics from the Access Foundation) --- http://www.anova.org/ 

From the British Library --- http://www.bl.uk/sacred
"The world's greatest collection of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim holy books."

Into the Wardrobe :: a C. S. Lewis web site --- http://cslewis.drzeus.net/

The Walt Whitman Archive --- http://www.whitmanarchive.org/

An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce --- Click Here

Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens (1812-1870) --- Click Here

The Lesson Of The Master by Henry James --- Click Here

Eve's Diary by Mark Twain --- http://www.gutenberg.org/files/8525/8525-h/8525-h.htm

Song Lyric Quotes --- http://thinkexist.com/quotations/song_lyrics/

Deathbed Quotes and Epitaphs --- http://www.saidwhat.co.uk/quotes/deathbed/

 

A bank is a place where they lend you an umbrella in fair weather and ask for it back when it begins to rain.
Robert Frost --- Click Here

What's true of New Orleans is true of the entire gulf coast, increasingly a government subsidized set of bowling pins in the path of inevitable hurricanes.
Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. --- http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118895500527017646.html
Jensen Comment
The first Category 4 and 5 hurricanes of the 2007 season did not cause immense death and monetary damage because they hit relatively unpopulated costal areas in Mexico and Honduras. But here in the U.S. we're racing to populate the entire southern coast with government-insured bowling pins called "housing with a beach and a view "and casinos by the water.

A State Department report obtained by NPR gives fresh evidence that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government is not only failing to stop officials from committing crimes, it's hindering its own watchdog agency from conducting investigations.
Debbie Elliott and Corey Flintoff , NPR, September 2, 2007 --- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14117853

British forces in southern Iraq have been fighting a "proxy war" against Iran, the commander of the troops who withdrew from Basra Palace has said. Frontline: Our troops in Afghanistan and IraqWhile the Army has frequently accused Iran of stirring violence across southern Iraq by arming Shia militias, no officer has been as blunt as Lt Col Patrick Sanders, commander of 4th Battalion The Rifles. Â British forces leave central Basra He told the BBC that 5,500 British soldiers still based at Basra...
David Blair, London Telegraph, September 9, 2007 --- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/09/06/nbasra206.xml

The federal government has already allocated a substantial amount of money to Gulf Coast reconstruction. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), as of July 2007 the federal government had appropriated $94.8 billion for Katrina recovery. Congress has allowed the National Flood Insurance Program to borrow another $17 billion from the government to cover the deficit it racked up paying out Katrina claims. The federal government has also created $16 billion in targeted tax breaks through Gulf Opportunity (GO) Zone credits and other programs.So it's not a lack of funding that's the problem. It's spending the money. Under existing laws, FEMA can't simply write checks to Katrina victims. Some recipients would undoubtedly squander their funds, and there would be widespread fraud. This isn't idle speculation. According to the Government Accountability Office, immediately after Katrina hit, about a billion dollars of emergency aid—16 percent of the total—was lost to fraudulent claims. Even legitimately obtained pre-paid debit cards given to aid Katrina's victims were used to buy champagne, guns, tattoos, and porn.
Daniel Rothschild, "The Myths of Hurricane Katrina Myth number one: A lack of federal money," Reason Magazine, August 29, 2007 --- http://www.reason.com/news/show/122221.html

Kim Jong Il  is once again besting the U.S. in accomplishing his two central strategic objectives: staying in power and preserving his nuclear-weapons program. The working groups currently underway do nothing to achieve the proper ends of U.S. foreign policy. A few weeks ago in Shenyang, China, the "denuclearization" working group met without visible progress, even on permanently dismantling Yongbyon.
John R. Bolton, "Pyongyang's Upper Hand Thanks to feckless diplomacy, Kim Jong Il may preserve his nuclear program," The Wall Street Journal, August 31, 2007 ---  http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110010542

During the Samuel Johnson days they had big men enjoying small talk; today we have small men enjoying big talk.
Fred Allen --- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Allen

A major Swiss political party has launched an anti-immigrant campaign that worries U.N. anti-racism officials. The party, which holds the largest number of seats in the Swiss Parliament, is pushing a number of controversial proposals, including a law that would expel an entire immigrant family if a child under 18 commits a crime. Ulrich Schluer, one of the party's leaders, wants to ban the building of minarets attached to Muslim mosques.
"Swiss Parliament Takes Aim At Immigrants," RightBias News, September 8, 2007 --- http://rightbias.com/Articles/090807up1.aspx

In a meeting today with Dennis Kucinich, US Democratic Presidential candidate, Syrian President Bashar Assad said that Syria would be willing to participate in a multinational conference and peacekeeping force to help Iraq to manage its transition from occupied country to sovereign nation. Assad made these assurances and other observations in a two-hour meeting with Kucinich, who traveled to Syria to discuss a peace initiative which has arisen out of his anti-war work in the House of Representatives. President Assad agreed with Kucinich that various US demands for the privatization of Iraq's oil and... (export of all Jews from the Middle East, export all Christians from Lebanon, provide Syria with advanced nuclear weapons, and give Syria all the oil of the Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Kucinich could easily deliver peace in the Middle East if he could only give Assad all of Persia as well).
"Kucinich Meets President Assad in Syria to Discuss Iraq Peace Plan," Yahoo News, September 2, 2007 --- Click Here
Jensen Comment
Makes us wonder why anti-war Congressional leader Nancy Pelosi did not accompany Dennis to meet Assad (for a second time). Since her first meeting with Assad she's been strangely silent about negotiations with Syria. I think powerful Jewish Democrats caught her attention afterwards.

In saying this, I am not criticizing liberalism, just explaining what it is. It is a form of political organization that is militantly secular and incapable, by definition, of seeing the strong claim of religion – the claim to be in possession of a truth all should acknowledge – as anything but an expression of unreasonableness and irrationality. Berlinerblau and Krattenmaker hold out the hope that secularists and strong religionists might come to an accommodation if they would listen to each other rather than just condemn each other. That hope is illusory, for each is defined by what is sees as the other’s errors. But surely, one might object, this is too categorical a statement. There are many who are liberal in their political views – they honor free expression, toleration, individual rights, free and frequent elections, and limited government – and are also people of faith. Yes there are, but the faiths they profess (at least publicly) must be the moderate and undemanding kind liberalism recognizes as legitimate. There are two answers presidential candidates cannot give to the now obligatory (and deeply offensive) question about their religious faith. A candidate cannot say, “I don’t have any,” and a candidate cannot say, “My faith dictates every decision I make and every action I take.” Rather, a candidate must say something like, “My faith generally informs my moral values, but my judgments and actions as president will follow from the constitutional obligations of the office, not from my religion.” In other words, I too believe in the public-private distinction and I will uphold it. I won’t insist that you adopt my values and I will respect yours. (In short, I’m a liberal.)
Stanley Fish, "Liberalism and Secularism: One and the Same,"  The New York Times, September 2, 2007 --- Click Here
Jensen Comment
Why must some candidates truly lie and hypocritically grit their teeth by attending weekly Christian church services during their campaigns?. Why can't they admit they are truly agnostic or atheist if that is the truly the case? Sadly candidates have no chance in modern times  if they're truly honest about everything!

The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego said Friday it has agreed to pay $198.1 million to settle 144 claims of sexual abuse by clergy, the second-largest payment by a diocese.
NewsMax, September 7, 2007 --- http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/catholic_abuse_priest/2007/09/07/30926.html

Lewis Uhler, president of the National Tax Limitation Committee, has criticized proposals to bail out the so-called "subprime" lending industry. With potential losses hitting $100 billion, he said "Borrowers, lenders, and investors must be held responsible for their own mistakes."
AccountingWeb, September 6, 2007 --- http://www.accountingweb.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=103972
Jensen Comment
The subprime lending industry never once proposed a surtax on their excess profits when they were earning astronomical returns.

"I tell them: 'I am an engineer and I am a master in calculation and tabulation. I draw up tables. For hours, I write out different hypotheses. I reject, I reason. I reason with planning and I make a conclusion. They cannot make problems for Iran."' (Iranian President) Ahmadinejad has long expressed pride in his academic prowess. He holds a PhD on transport engineering and planning from Tehran's Science and Technology University and is the author several of scientific papers. The deeply religious President said his second reason was: "I believe in what God says."
"Maths proves US won't attack: Iran leader," Australia's News.com, September 3, 2007 --- http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22355111-1702,00.html 
Jensen Comment
Sadly President Bush is not known for math skills and probably cannot comprehend Ahmadinejad's QED! But then again, Einstein could not comprehend Ahmadinejad's QED once God is taken out of the equations.

A consortium of minority and women business leaders in the private equity, real estate, and investment management industries has announced the formation of the Access to Capital Coalition to oppose efforts in Congress to change tax laws in a way that would adversely affect minority and women entrepreneurs.
AccountingWeb, September 6, 2007 --- http://www.accountingweb.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=103975
Jensen Comment
Democrats face a real dilemma on this issue. The want to substantially raise taxes on upper-end and upper middle class taxpayers. But do they exclude upper-end and upper middle class taxpayers on the basis of gender and/or race?

American workers stay longer in the office, at the factory or on the farm than their counterparts in Europe and most other rich nations, and they produce more per person over the year. They also get more done per hour than everyone but the Norwegians, according to a U.N. report released Monday, which said the United States "leads the world in labor productivity." The average U.S. worker produces $63,885 of wealth per year, more than their counterparts in all other countries, the International Labor Organization said in its report. Ireland comes in second at $55,986, followed by Luxembourg at $55,641, Belgium at $55,235 and France at $54,609. The productivity figure is found by dividing the country's gross domestic product by the number of people employed. The U.N. report is based on 2006 figures for many countries, or the most recent available.
"Americans Are World's Most Productive Workers, U.N. Report Finds," Fox News, September 3, 2007 --- http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295556,00.html
Also see http://www.worldnetdaily.com/biznetdaily/
Jensen Comment
One wonders if the nation of Technologia with a population of 100 people and 20,000 manufacturing robots will soon overtake the U.S. in terms of productivity per capita as computed above? My point is that the U.S. may do somewhat better per capita than other nations because of technology as well as worker motivation. Having said this, I do know that American workers tend to have longer hours and fewer vacation days than most other parts of the world, especially among nations with stronger labor unions.

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is getting the endorsement of two unions, the United Steelworkers and the United Mine Workers of America, on Labor Day. Edwards is scheduled to be in Pittsburgh, home of the Steelworkers' international headquarters, for a Monday rally and will accept the endorsements there. "The members of the Steelworkers Union and the Mine Workers union are some of the country's hardest-working, bravest, most courageous workers," Edwards said. "It is their tireless hard work which has helped build a stronger America that benefits all of us. I honor what they do every day."
Jesse J. Holland, "Unions to endorse Edwards," Yahoo News, September 3, 2007 --- http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070903/ap_on_el_pr/edwards_unions_1
Jensen Comment
Interestingly Edwards and McCain have almost identical stances on amnesty and other immigration reform proposals. This must not bother these labor unions that place a greater priority on high tariffs, class action lawsuits, restrained globalization, "free" national health care, soaring minimum wages, and an end to the Bill Clinton-sponsored NAFTA. A problem for Edwards, however, is that workers like their Wal-Mart prices on imported products, prefer longer-lasting Toyotas and Subarus, hate trial lawyers, vote against higher taxes on the middle class, despise amnesty for illegal immigrants, vote against welfare for drug addicts and lazy slobs, and often vote opposite of union recommendations. Hillary Clinton is probably not too worried about this union endorsement of her rival and knows that she will eventually get union support after she wins the Democratic nomination.

The Path to 9/11." The $40-million, five-hour ABC miniseries, which recently received seven Emmy nominations and drew a combined two-night audience of more than 25 million viewers, is for now on the path to nowhere . . . Last year, a Clinton spokesman referred to the ABC enterprise as "despicable," (because it bashes Bill Clinton rather than George Bush) and then Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and four other Democratic senators signed a letter to Disney Chief Executive Robert A. Iger stating that if the miniseries were shown it would "deeply damage" Disney's reputation. As a result of the tumult, ABC was unable to attract advertisers for the miniseries.
Martin Miller, "Blocking 'The Path to 9/11'," Los Angeles Times, September 6, 2007 --- Click Here

In the Hell Hath No Fury sweepstakes, groups like MoveOn.org are gearing up to take on a new set of perceived traitors in their midst--Democrats who have acknowledged some success from the troop surge in Iraq. Chief among the targets is Washington Congressman Brian Baird, whose indiscretion was recognizing progress on the ground, despite having initially opposed the surge and having opposed the war in the first place. After a recent trip to Iraq, Mr. Baird said: "One of the things that gets very little attention is that virtually every other country I visited says it would be a mistake to pull out now."
"MoveOn vs. Democrats:  Punishing Congressmen for reporting what they see in Iraq," The Wall Street Journal, September 5, 2007 --- http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110010562

Thousands of Britons who have taken early retirement and moved to France are to lose free health care under radical reforms introduced by France's new president. In his drive to kick-start the French economy by creating a culture of hard work, Nicolas Sarkozy believes those who chose to retire early - under 65 - should not benefit from free health care. advertisementDuring his election campaign earlier this year Mr Sarkozy said: "If you think 53 makes you old enough to retire, then fine, go ahead and retire. But don't expect the state to pay for it." As a result, thousands . . .
Peter Allen, Telegraph, September 3, 2007 --- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/core/Content/displayPrintable.jhtml
Jensen Comment
Sounds "Sicko" to me! Since retirees pay taxes in France it's not at all clear that French health care is free to any person who pays relatively high taxes in France. It sounds more like double taxation to force the Brits to pay out-of-pocket for French health care and still pay taxes into the French health care system. They can get a better deal by learning Spanish instead of French and retiring in Cuba. Go for it!

As we reported at the time, the fight over Mr. Wolfowitz had little to do with his girlfriend and everything to do with his anti-corruption efforts. That truth is now coming into sharper relief, as a showdown looms over a series of reports about, and by, the bank's anti-corruption unit. Senior bank officials are especially eager to discredit, and if possible deep-six, a forthcoming internal report on corruption in a major bank-supported health care project in India. If that report ever sees the light of day, several top bank officials could lose their jobs, and rightly so. The India controversy began with a 2005 report by the bank's Institutional Integrity unit into pharmaceutical drug procurement as part of the bank's Reproductive and Child Health I Project (or RCH I). The 16-page report has never been made public. But we've seen a copy, and it's a stunner that readers can find in full here.
"World Bank Corruption:  Bribery in India, and a test for Bob Zoellick," The Wall Street Journal, September 4, 2007 --- http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110010557

On Thursday, the Government Accountability Project, (GAP), a self-described public interest law firm, will release an unofficial report on the Department of Institutional Integrity, the World Bank's anti-corruption unit known internally as the INT. Next week comes a second, official report about the INT from a panel of worthies led by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker. By the end of the month the INT intends to release its own report on the Bank's health-related projects in India, where there is evidence of corruption running into the hundreds of millions of dollars. That third report is what the first two are really about. But whether its conclusions are ever acted on -- or so much as shared with the Bank's funders, including the U.S. Congress -- will depend on whether Mr. Zoellick has the courage to confront his entrenched bureaucracy.
Bret Stephens, "Mind the GAP," The Wall Street Journal, September 4, 2007; Page A16 --- http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118887092392916538.html

Veteran Boston political reporter Jon Keller also invites us to behold his native state . . . and shudder in dismay. In "The Bluest State," he argues that, although Massachusetts does not suffer alone from its notorious affection for liberalism, it is the incubator for "Massachusetts viruses" that infect the national Democratic Party. The viruses come in many forms: "addiction to tax revenues and a raging edifice complex couched in disrespect to wage earners; phony identity politics without real results for women and minorities; reflexive anti-Americanism in foreign affairs; vain indulgence in obnoxious political correctness; self-serving featherbedding; NIMBYism; authoritarian distortion of the balance of governmental power, all simmered in a broth of hypocritical paternalism."
Guy Darst, "Bay State Blues:  Massachusetts incubates the "viruses" that afflict the Democratic Party," The Wall Street Journal, September 5, 2007 --- http://www.opinionjournal.com/la/?id=110010561
The Bluest State: How Democrats Created the Massachusetts Blueprint for American Political Disaster (Hardcover) by Jon Keller (Author) --- Click Here 

Obnoxious political correctness? The school superintendent in Amherst put the kibosh on "West Side Story" as the annual high-school senior musical after a handful of complaints claiming that the work was racist in its portrayal of Puerto Ricans. (In fact, this modern-day Romeo-and-Juliet story is the most beautiful anti-racism work in American musical theater.) "Political correctness," writes Mr. Keller, "is the signature cultural statement of the ruling elites, undermining their moral authority and driving a wedge between them and the working class far more effectively than any right-wing demagogue could hope for."
Guy Darst, "Bay State Blues:  Massachusetts incubates the "viruses" that afflict the Democratic Party," The Wall Street Journal, September 5, 2007 --- http://www.opinionjournal.com/la/?id=110010561
The Bluest State: How Democrats Created the Massachusetts Blueprint for American Political Disaster (Hardcover) by Jon Keller (Author) --- Click Here 

Last week we noted a bizarre op-ed piece from Kathy Rudy, a professor of "women's studies" at Duke, who described herself as a supporter of animal rights but proceeded to defend erstwhile NFL player Michael Vick's involvement in illegal dogfighting on the ground that he is black . . . What's more, according to this page , Rudy was not among the 89 Duke faculty members (which included some who had been among the 88 and some who hadn't) who signed a " clarifying statement http://www.concerneddukefaculty.org/ " which said the ad had not been intended to prejudge the rape case--not a terribly believable assertion, but at least an implicit acknowledgment of error. Blogger KC Johnson http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com/2007/07/group-profile-kathy-rudy.html --co-author of "Until Proven Innocent," which is reviewed today by Abigail Thernstrom http://www.opinionjournal.com/la/?id=110010564 and is available from the OpinionJournal bookstore has more background on Rudy, a tenured associate professor:
Opinion Journal, September 6, 2007

Violence is so intertwined with male sexuality that military pilots watch porn movies before they go out on sorties. The war in Afghanistan could not possibly offer a chance to liberate women from their oppressors, since it would simply expose women to yet another set of oppressors, in the gender feminists’ view.
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, --- http://class.csueastbay.edu/ethnicstudies/Roxanne_Dunbar-Ortiz.php
As quoted among her assertions that the U.S. (where she lives and prospers) is an evil empire --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/hypocrisyEvilEmpire.htm
Jensen Comment:  I wonder if Professor Dunbar-Ortiz researched current Afgan women before asserting as a fact that their life is no better now than under the Taliban that would not even allow women to become educated to a point of being able to read and write.  I'll just bet Professor  Dunbar-Ortiz never did a simple Google search to find http://www.rawa.org/ (a site that would have been banned by the Taliban under threat of execution).
 Professor Dunbar-Ortiz's official home page is at http://www.reddirtsite.com/
Professor Dunbar-Ortiz has a regular column at http://www.counterpunch.org/
 
On Tuesday, the Middle East Studies Association released two letters protesting what the group considers to be serious violations of academic freedom. One concerns Norman Finkelstein, the DePaul University political scientist who was denied tenure in June and who has since been placed on a paid leave, with his classes called off and his office shut down. The other concerns the decision by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs to call off a lecture by John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, two scholars who have written a book that is harshly critical of the influence of Israel and its supporters on U.S. foreign policy.Today, Finkelstein is expected to stage a protest over his situation by teaching the class that the university canceled and then going to his old office, from which he has been barred. Finkelstein has vowed to enter the office, even if that gets him arrested, in which case he says he will go on a hunger strike
Scott Jaschik, "Middle East Tensions Flare Again (in U.S.)," Inside Higher Ed, September 5, 2007 --- http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/09/05/middleeast

Norman Finkelstein Professes His Solidarity With Hezbollah --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpFmxnwQ9Bw

Wednesday was supposed to be the day of the big showdown at DePaul University. Instead it turned out to be the day of the big compromise. DePaul and Norman Finkelstein, the professor to whom it had denied tenure, announced that he was resigning immediately. The university and Finkelstein even managed to say some nice things about one another. But while Finkelstein will be leaving, some at the university and elsewhere believe that significant academic freedom issues raised by his case are very much alive.
Scott Jaschik,  "Finkelstein and DePaul Settle," Inside Higher Ed, September 6, 2007 --- http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/09/06/finkelstein
Jensen Comment
Depaul University has always insisted that tenure was denied solely on the basis of a weak research and publication record for Professor Finkelstein. He countered by contending that it was his anti-Israeli activism that caused his tenure denial. His media ploys were most unprofessional.

Northeastern University likes entrepreneurial students, but prefers legal enterprises. The Boston Globe reported that two freshmen were expelled after one of them shouted out a dormitory window: “If you’re looking for weed, my roommate Ferrante has some for sale.” Plainclothes police officers heard, the students were arrested and they are no longer enrolled.
Inside Higher Ed, September 8, 2007 --- http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/09/07/qt

Either that wallpaper goes, or I do.
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), British dramatist. As he lay dying in Paris --- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Wilde

I'm so bored with it all.
Winston Churchill on his death bed --- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill

Is That All There Is? (Peggy Lee) --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-hiDMpcN9Y

I've been invited to conduct a one-day education technology workshop for accounting educators in Mississippi hosted by the Mississippi Society of CPAs. My  Education Technology PowerPoint Files and Video Samplings in development are at --- http://www.cs.trinity.edu/~rjensen/EdTech/

I received this invitation from Wayne Nix [ WENix@mc.edu ] from Mississippi College

"YouTube Studies," by Elia Powers, Inside Higher Ed, September 6, 2007 --- http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/09/06/youtube

If you’re reading this article on a Tuesday or Thursday between noon and 1:10 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, then a class called “Learning From YouTube” is meeting right now at Pitzer College.

Not that the time or place really matters — you can experience this course anytime you want. For the first time this fall, Pitzer is offering a class about the popular video-sharing Web site, and every session is being filmed and posted on that site (not quite live, but close to it).