We left Carmel on the morning of January 13 from the Monterey Airport bound to San Diego where we would meet the shiphellipall went well. Upon boarding the ship we checked into our suite 1022 next door to last yearsrsquo. We then walked up to the pool deck and watched as all the World Cruiserrsquos baggage was being loaded onto the deck by crane and brought to the rooms. Everything went fl
catching up….
21 JanFlights.....So we managed the OttawaToronto flight and the luggage did finally arrive. At the Cathay Pacific check in we had a bit of drama although contained with Bruce's ticket. The CP agent was concerned that he did not have an 'onward' ticket from Cambodia....a bit of back and forth and we had his boarding pass. Wondering why his pass is yellow and our are orange. We will find out in
ASC Woche 4
Hallo daheimIch bins wieder Schn dass ihr da seid Es hat sich schon so viel getan seit meinem letzten Eintrag Wahnsinn Jeden Tag passiert so viel ich bin die meiste Zeit mit verarbeiten beschftigt hahaAaaalso die Kurse sind der Hammer in jeder Hinsicht. Erstmal sind alle superinteressant. Der Kurs ber Young Adult Literature ist besonders toll. Die Professorin ist um die 50 und voll
"im a bilingual"
Ok so I was going to update this yesterday but I was having kind of an off day so I put it off. I didn't want to take out my frustration with the Spanish language in my blog so I just whined to my family . My frustration came as a result of being in my room all day struggling through my homework. Homework that would've taken me at most half of the time that this took had it been in English. 4
Borneo
17 to 23rd of January.Sabah North Eastern Borneo and Sarawak North Western Borneo are the two largest states in the Malaysian Federation. They also represent approx 13 of the area of the island of Borneo. Borneo is the 3rd largest island in the World. The locals call it ldquothe land below the windrdquo. It is a region that has not been hit by earthquakes typhoons hurricanes or volcan
Bangkok Fashion House Don’t go there
I had some shirts and pants made at Bangkok Fashion House tailors next to Four Sons Place. They stuffed me around arrived late knowing I was leaving so I wouldn't have a chance to make changes if necessary which it was because the tailoring was average at best eg buttons not aligned threads everywhere. They also had a shocking attitude once the deposit was paid. With so many tailors around g
Michel in Honduras
I have lived and worked in many area of Honduras for 15 years and am fluent in Spanish. I have worked in health care and tourism for small NGO's and also for organizations like the WHOPAHO and the Secretaria de Salud. In the years that I have been here I have made many contacts and have always been able to find answers for the tourists that I in contact with on a daily basis.As a volunteer at var
Camper Litchfield
There's always something rewarding when visiting Darwin not only for the world known rock formations but for its National Parks.Give an eye to Litchfield National Park. It is 130 km away from Darwin driving duration 2 hours. Through a 4WD hire or a campervan hire . Litchfield features eucalyptus woodland falls rivers swimming spots and many more. The best time to visit Litchfield is durin
Down South with the family in Dunsborough
The funny thing is that while I lived in Perth from the ages of 12 to 22 I never managed to make it ldquodown southrdquo which is the term generally used to encompass the areas immediately surrounding Busselton Dunsborough and Margaret River. This came about partially because I didn't have a car partially because the roads down there were not great and partially due to lack of interest. I ha
Busy in Coban
I feel like I've already been slacking when it comes to writing these blogs. But that's only because I'm too busy writing a million other things to actually write something I want to write. Work has been really really busy. Tuesday my day lasted 8 hours in class plus another 7 planning. Wednesday 8 hours in class and add in another 8 hours of planning and by then I couldn't care less about writ
New Zealand
North Island Part 1 We kicked off to a less than perfect start in New Zealand. It's funny how Qantas can say your baggage has been ldquolostrdquo even though they themselves knowingly left it on the tarmac at Sydney During the 3 days we had to wait we hired a car and spent some time exploring the city. Auckland itself isn't all that stylish and there isn't an abundance of greenery or par
Trip across Australia
From Sydney to Perth December 2009 to Jan 2010
Brisbane area
Just as Borneo marked an end to 6 months of backpacking SouthEast Asia so Brisbane marks the begining of a new trip...A change of pace and a change of means of locomotion...The idea is to cycle my way down the Eastern Australian coast taking it as slow as necessary and stopping frequently for long periods of time in order to do some farm work WWOOFing.If all goes well I'll eventually end u
January 25 2010 Escuela
Tengo mi primera dia en la escuela hoy. You estoy en el groupo intermediado. Cuando llegar en la escuela tomamos en groupos de cuartro o cinco personas por la manana para gramatica. Despues del almuerzo muovamos a una groupa mas largo con siete personas para conversation de la diabetes.La escuela es muy bonita con muchas salas y una piscina.Despues de las clases muchas personas caminan al cen
CNN calls Scott Brown’s 52% to 46% win "narrow"; but Obama’s 2008 win with 53.9% "overwhelming"
Whose Mandate for Change?
From Eric Dondero:
At CNN's Political Ticker, in a post election analysis Jan. 23, Republican Scott Brown's win over Martha Coakley was described as "narrow."
From CNN:
(CNN) - Voter anger at current conditions in the country right now and at the Democrats' agenda in Washington helped fuel the upset victory of Republican Scott Brown in Tuesday's special senate election in Massachusetts, according to a new poll
Brown narrowly defeated state attorney general Martha Coakley in the special election to fill the last three years of the term of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy. Brown became the first Massachusetts Republican to win a senate election since 1972.
7.5% win overwhelming; 5% razor-thin
Brown won the race with a 52% margin over Democrat Martha Coakley with 47%. Independent/Libertarian candidate Joe Kennedy ended with roughly 1%.
On Nov. 5, 2008 this is how Obama's victory over McCain was described at the same CNN Politics Blog:
Obama had an overwhelming victory over Sen. John McCain, who pledged Tuesday night to help Obama lead.
The precise ending vote total for 2008 was as follows:
Barack Obama 53.9%
John McCain 45.6%
Other .5%
(Source: Wiki)
You have to wonder, if McCain/Palin had prevailed by say, 53% to 46%, would CNN have called it a "narrow win" with no mandate for change?
Dondero joins Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com
Readers, I have some very exciting news to report to you this morning. It happened last week, but I've held the announcement til today.
I have been taken on as a regular contributing writer to Andrew Breitbart's BigGovernment.com. I am very pleased to join Andrew, and his group of fine libertarian-conservative writers.
The articles/commentary which I write for BigGovernment will be original, differing from those posted here. I expect maybe one or two pieces a month. Mostly focusing on foreign policy and a Pro-defense libertarian stance.
Here's my first. A bit controversial, especially for some Ron Paul supporters. Titled, "Scott Brown Victory is a Win for Bush Foreign Policy, over Ron Paul Isolationism":
And please add BigGovernment.com to your Daily Favorites.
UPDATE!
My article was picked up and run in full (ZinOwl) or excerpted by at least 5 different other sites, including the hugely popular Lucianne.com and New Media Blog.
UPDATE!
Alas, I have just received my first negative review. From some lowly blog calling itself "The Quick and the Dead," (emphasis on the Dead):
Breitbart pisses his credibility away
The site that began with the Giles/OKeefe stings is now reduced to publishing empty anti-Ron Paul screeds by Eric Dondero.
Dondero, a self-proclaimed “libertarian Republican” has for years haunted the libertarian blogosphere with screeds mocking libertarians, arguing that the GOP darling-du-jour (Bush, Giuliani or whomever) is “really libertarian.” Even the mention of his name has become a punch line. In the latest rant, he equates Coakley’s position on the Middle East wars with Ron Paul’s (a stretch; Coakley never met a principle she could hold), and ends “But its [sic] notable that voters of one of the most dove-ish of states, [comma sic] chose to side forthrightly with the candidate of the Bush foreign policy agenda, over Obama/Paul.”
You can excuse me if I don't add a link.
Libertarian Party local Chair praises Scott Brown win
William N. Gaillard is Chair of the South Bay Libertarians (near Los Angeles), and a former 3-time State Assembly candidate on the Libertarian ticket. He is also a part-time resident of Prescott, Arizona.
Gilliard had an opinion piece published by the Arizona Republic, Jan. 23, "Libertarian Cheers Mass Results" (Excerpt):
Tuesday's special election in Massachusetts was a real double whammy against the Rocky Mountain canaries by the pachyderms.
As a Libertarian, aka "Third Party" member, I can well afford the luxury of standing on the sidelines simply to lick my chops and then gloat at the cared-for results... Not only did Republicans take a Senate seat in Democratic "seat-safe" Taxachusetts, they took a Kennedy seat. This has been unheard of since 1962.
When the last surviving paterfamilias of "Camelot" died last year, so did the pervasive hegemony of this family upon American politics. I just didn't believe that it would crash and burn this quickly and with such a resounding thud.
This unassailable repudiation of political arrogance in Washington over the past year will also sound the death knell for both this "health-scare" bill and the Obama administration.
President Barack Obama will now go down in the history of this republic as America's first, first-term, lame-duck president.
Art Coday wins a major endorsement for race against Democrat incumbent Sen. Patty Murray
"Government must be limited to prevent tyranny and oppression and to maximize individual Rights and Liberties. Our Constitution goes to great lengths to limit the power of Government. Government should be limited and should intrude as little as possible into the private sector, including the free marketplace, religious and social establishments, and the personal lives of Citizens. It should be lean, efficient, and beholden to the People and the Constitution." -- Dr. Art Coday
by Steve Beren
I've had the opportunity to meet each of the GOP candidates seeking to unseat Patty Murray. And I've interviewed them, one on one, no holds barred, for an average of two hours each. Also, I've attended the three Candidate Forums. I've done my research, and I know these candidates well.
With Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts, it is clear that a powerful change is sweeping America. The American people are standing up, speaking out, and voting in favor of protecting liberty, in favor of cutting federal spending, and in favor of protecting constitutional government. The Tea Party movement, the townhall protesters, and other grassroots pro-liberty movements have inspired and electrified the nation.
Copying the Massachusetts Miracle for Washington State
My goal is to promote "five star conservatism" right in the heart of liberal Seattle - and throughout the state of Washington. Senator Patty Murray, who is so closely tied to President Obama's failed policies, is more vulnerable than ever. I believe that I can best help promote the cause of liberty in our state put concentrating all my efforts, resources, and talents into helping replace Senator Murray this fall.
I endorse Dr. Art Coday for U.S. Senate. He is an outstanding candidate, a true conservative, a sincere defender of freedom, and a passionate patriot. Dr. Coday is a dedicated physician who knows - from the inside, from his own life and work experiences - that increased government control of healthcare will be severely harmful to the American people.
As a physician, Dr. Coday is uniquely qualified to get the Senate on the right track towards true healthcare reform based on a free market approach. He is deeply devoted to the elderly, disabled, and the very poor.
Art Coday has correctly centered his message on economic growth and job creation. As he said in the Seattle Times, Congress should act to revitalize the economy "by controlling its insatiable urge to spend our hard-earned money, lowering tax rates, and paying off a national debt that is ruining our credit." This issue cuts across all demographic and ideological lines, and has a special appeal to independent voters and others who don't necessarily usually vote Republican. Dr. Coday presents unmistakably common-sense solutions to the issues troubling the American people.
Dr. Coday is the candidate who is in the best position to promote liberty and to defeat Patty Murray. He is an outstanding and effective communicator, and possesses a brilliant intellect - he graduated from the University Washington, magna cum laude, with honors, with a degree in cellular and molecular biology, and then went on to Harvard Medical School where he earned his Doctor of Medicine degree.
What a contrast to Patty Murray!
Art Coday is a fiscal conservative, favoring reduced spending and lower taxes, a return to constitutional government, an audit of the Federal Reserve, and an end to corporate bailouts and phony "stimulus" programs. He is a strong proponent of border security first and a strong opponent of amnesty for illegal immigrants. He is a national security conservative, advocating a strategy of peace through strength and supporting our troops in the war against terrorism.
From his campaign website:
The preamble of the Constitution names provision for "the common defence" as one of the primary reasons for which the Constitution was ordained an established. Indeed, this is one of the primary functions of our Government, and it should fulfill this duty honorably and reliably. However, as keepers of the Constitution, providing for the common defense is also our responsibility. We should not withhold our willing service or treasure when called upon by our Country for its defense, nor should our Government take away our ability to defend ourselves and our Nation by unduly infringing upon our right to keep and bear arms.
There are Tea Party students, Tea Party veterans, Tea Party housewives, Tea Party retirees, and Tea Party business owners. Art Coday is not just a doctor - he is a Tea Party activist and patriot. He's for less spending and less government. Coday is for less taxation and more representation.
Art Coday is the candidate who is best able to raise the necessary funds, win key endorsements, and persuade voters. He is the best candidate to go toe-to-toe in a debate with Patty Murray.
Note - Steve Beren, a staunchly Pro-Defense libertarian-conservative, is a two-time Republican candidate for Congress (Jim McDermott seat), in the Seattle area.
Gary Johnson: Democrats, un-elected Bureaucrats the problem
Mitchell Langbert of the Republican Liberty Caucus recently interviewed former New Mexico Governor and prospective 2012 Republican Presidential candidate Gary Johnson. The interview was posted to the RLC Blog. On an economics question and what to do about spending and the deficit, Johnson squarely put the blame on two culprits.
From RLC blog:
these government employees produce no value for the economy... The spending train is out of control. But the Democratic legislature [in New Mexico] fought me and the courts handed down adverse rulings. The legislature was 2 to 1 Democratic. Common sense has gone out the window. First you have to stop the spending. The time is ripe for doing so in Washington, and it’s accomplishable.
We are a bankrupt nation. We’re not taking care of our own house. Unlike the generation before us, interest and principle payments are due now. The enormous budget deficits will lead to inflation and an ever weaker dollar.
Note - Dave Nalle, National Chairman of the RLC will be hosting an open hour-long conference call for Libertarian Republicans with Gary Johnson on Jan. 26. For specific information and to sign up, go to the RLC blog.
New Publication: ‘Embattled Avant-Gardes’
Embattled Avant-Gardes: Modernism’s Resistance to Commodity Culture in Europe
By Walter L. Adamson
University of California Press, 2010
ISBN: 9780520252707
This sweeping work, at once a panoramic overview and an ambitious critical reinterpretation of European modernism, provides a bold new perspective on a movement that defined the cultural landscape of the early twentieth century. Walter L. Adamson embarks on a lucid, wide-ranging exploration of the avant-garde practices through which the modernist generations after 1900 resisted the rise of commodity culture as a threat to authentic cultural expression. Taking biographical approaches to numerous avant-garde leaders, Adamson charts the rise and fall of modernist aspirations in movements and individuals as diverse as Ruskin, Marinetti, Kandinsky, Bauhaus, Purism, and the art critic Herbert Read. In conclusion, Adamson rises to the defense of the modernists, suggesting that their ideas are relevant to current efforts to think through what it might mean to create a vibrant, aesthetically satisfying form of cultural democracy.