Fox News has an article about the Feds arresting some men in Alabama for planning a machine gun attack on Mexicans. A federal agent said that the men call themselves the Alabama Free Militia. These very well might be some really bad guys who intended to harm some Mexicans, but I tend to be suspicious of cases like this. They might also be guys who went way overboard in preparing to protect themselves from what they see as potential threats. And who really knows what 'overboard' is in these days of terrorism and out-of-control illegal immigration?

The evidence, as reported by Fox, raises a lot of questions:

A federal agent testified they found two rooms loaded with guns and possible explosives components, including fireworks, ball bearings, primers, mouse traps, light bulbs and fertilizer.

Mouse traps? Light bulbs? As far as I know, every item listed is legal in Alabama. Notice that the agent said "possible explosives components." I would venture a guess that most residents of Alabama have mouse traps, light bulbs and fertilizer that are not used as explosives components. A few may have some loose ball bearings in their tool sheds.

I don't live in Alabama but I have every item on the list, except fireworks, in my workshop right now. I also have a couple of cans of gun powder. And some gun parts. (Whoops! Now the feds are probably going to come after me.) Years ago I used to hand load shotgun shells for skeet shooting and rifle cartridges for target practice and deer hunting. I haven't researched the laws in that area recently, but as far as I know all that stuff is still legal.

The five are charged with conspiring to make a firearm.

I didn't know that it was illegal to make a firearm, much less conspire to make one. I never made a gun myself but I knew back then of people who did. Perhaps they had a license or something. If I discussed with friends a desire to make a gun now could I be charged with a federal crime?

Nesmith (a federal agent) said one of the men told an informant that the group, which calls itself the Alabama Free Militia, saw government agents as "the enemy" and had a standing order to open fire if anyone saw government agents approaching.

Notice that he is getting this information from an informant, not from an undercover federal agent. We all know how reliable informants are. Is the informant a current or former member of the group with a grudge? Who knows!

I'm going to try to follow this case and see how it turns out.

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Fox News reports:

A man died while trying to outdo a rival with an acrobatic move while "battle dancing," police said.

Robert Stitt, 48, and his rival were competing in a parking lot Monday night when he tried a forward flip and landed on his head.

"It was just two guys dancing. Everybody was laughing," Stitt's friend John Boxley said.

Boxley said James Brown was on the radio and Stitt wanted to outdo a rival dancer, who had flipped in the air.

Police said the victim went into cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead a short time later at a local hospital.

Police said several people were in the parking lot drinking and battle dancing -- a competition in which each dancer tries one-upmanship with unique moves.

This is just another instance of the process of natural selection at work.

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I returned home yesterday from a 1500 mile road trip to Dallas. One of my wife's relatives got married there on Saturday. The trip went well except for one thing: I learned that I can't depend on hotel lobby computers for e-mail and blogging. I suppose I'll have to give in and get a laptop (I hate laptops).

We stayed in a very nice Marriott Courtyard. They have two computers in the lobby for laptopless guests like me to use. I had a little time between wedding events so I thought I would do a little blogging. I typed in the URL for my blog and hit the Enter key. But, instead of seeing my familiar home page I got a message box saying that my site was blocked. It didn't like the word 'hatemongers' in my blogroll. Thanks to the "crack young staff" of Hatemongers Quarterly I am banned in Dallas (at least I'm banned at the Marriott Courtyard).

Message to the creators of site blocking software: It's not the word 'hatemongers' that's bad, it's the hatemongers and the practice of mongering hate. Would you ban the word 'racists' because racists are generally bad people? Would you ban the word 'killers' because killers are generally bad people? Would you block an opinion piece at a major news site because it describes fringe elements on the political left or right as hatemongers? Are you an imbecile?

The only justification I can imagine for having site blocking software on computers is to prevent young children from viewing inappropriate material. But, how many children check in to hotels without being accompanied by adults?

In another hotel the lobby computer didn't choke on the word 'hatemongers', but it wouldn't allow me to send an e-mail message. All I could do was read my messages. I think it was because it lacked some version of Java.

As I said above, I may have to break down and get a laptop -- or just quit traveling.

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It has long been a pet peeve of mine that so many people call public toilets 'bathrooms'. What brought this to mind this morning is an article at FoxNews.com about confusing signage on the bathrooms at McGuire's Irish Pub in Destin FL (this just happens to be very near where I live). The title of the article referred to the toilets as bathrooms. Even Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation called them bathrooms.

I don't remember ever seeing either a shower or a bathtub in the men's room at McGuire's. Even if they had one I don't think I would ever consider taking a bath there. Do you suppose the writer of the article and the Florida bureaucrat often bathe in public toilets?

Of course people get into the habit of calling toilets bathrooms because homes generally combine the two functions. But let's call a toilet a toilet, or at least use the more polite 'restroom'.

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Steven Milloy asks that question in a column at FoxNews.com. He quotes studies that found the number of deaths per year attributable to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards range from 1,300 to 3,900. The CAFE standards force auto manufacturers to build lighter cars and trucks in order to achieve the required lower mileage rates. The lighter cars and trucks result in higher numbers of fatalities and injuries from accidents.

The fatality rate from the CAFE standards is higher than the fatality rate among the American military in the Iraq war. Do you see any liberals lining up to protest President Bush's proposal to increase the CAFE gasoline mileage requirements? Liberals apparently don't mind if large numbers of Americans die for a cause as long as it is their cause.

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According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and MSNBC, Jimmy Carter believes that the George W. Bush Administration is the worst in history. He's probably very happy about that because before Bush his Administration was generally thought to be the worst. Many people might disagree that Bush has replaced him as the worst president. Currently I'm on the fence, but if Bush succeeds in granting amnesty to all the illegal immigrants and fails to secure our borders, I will have to agree with Carter for the first time.

They report that Carter also said:

"We now have endorsed the concept of pre-emptive war where we go to war with another nation militarily, even though our own security is not directly threatened, if we want to change the regime there or if we fear that some time in the future our security might be endangered," Carter said.

Did Carter sleep through the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Operation Desert Storm, and the operations in the Balkan States? None of these represented a direct threat to the USA and all but Operation Desert Storm were initiated by Democrat Presidents.

The White House says that Carter has become irrelevant. I think he is more than irrelevant; I think he is getting a little soft in the head.

Carter later admitted that his comments were careless.  Now that becomes the first time I have agreed with Carter.

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Here's what Martinez is boasting about in his latest newsletter:

Thursday, Senator Martinez joined a bipartisan group of senators in announcing the Border Security and Immigration Reform Act. The consensus bill was introduced on the Senate floor on Monday, and debate is currently underway. "This bipartisan and comprehensive reform package addresses our nation's security, our economy, and reforms our country's immigration policy so that we don't have the severe illegal immigration problem that we do today."

"So that we don't have the severe illegal immigration problem that we do today?" Nice justification Mel. Are you gonna make all our problems go away? Are you gonna make our hurts all better? Are you gonna make the world a better place? Are you smarter than a fifth grader? Do you think that I'm a fifth grader?

Are you trying to be clever? I noticed that you don't promise to eliminate severe immigration problems; you just promise that the next one won't be the same as the one we have today.

Thursday, Senator Martinez opposed the largest tax increase in American history by voting against the Budget Resolution for Fiscal Year (FY) 2008. The measure will increase taxes by a minimum of $736 billion dollars over the next five years. The resolution passed in the Senate by a vote of 52 to 40. "It is unfortunate that an unreasonable budget resolution passed today, taking more money out of the pockets of the American people," said Martinez.

Way to go, Mel! I'm glad to know that you occasionally flinch from raiding the pockets of the taxpayers. But how are you going to finance all the pork you brag about bringing to Florida if you're shy about thrusting your hands into our pockets? Read on.

Last Wednesday, Senator Martinez voted in favor of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (WRDA). The measure authorizes Everglades restoration, projects for the Picayune Strand and Indian River Lagoon, a study for the Lake Okeechobee Herbert Hoover Dike, and authorizes numerous Army Corps of Engineers projects vital to Florida. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 91 to 4.

Mel, you need to understand that most of us who receive your newsletter know that the politics of pork require that each project you bring to Florida has to be mirrored in 49 other states. Senators that don't receive pork aren't going to vote for your pork. We can do the math: When you bring a million dollar project to Florida we know it actually costs 50 million dollars. Read on.

Wednesday, Senator Martinez announced that the Department of Education has awarded more than $5 million in Upward Bound Program Grants to 17 Florida colleges and universities. Upward Bound programs assist participants in completing secondary and post-secondary education.

The actual cost to the taxpayers is more than 250 million dollars. Yes Mel, we understand.

Isn't secondary education high-school? Then why is the money going to colleges and universities? Are they having to send their students back to high school?

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Rosie O'Donnell is not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Most of us have known that for some time now. It's about time that Rosie accepted it and returned to comedy where playing fast and loose with facts is more acceptable. How anyone could think Rosie's views on important issues are worth broadcasting to millions of people is a mystery to me. Well, on second thought it's not that much of a mystery. I've always thought that Barbara Walters is a bit dopey too.

Rosie's greatest strength in debate is a strong voice and imposing figure. She is never deterred by actual facts in asserting her view of the issues. A few weeks ago on The View she was stating her opinion that some kind of conspiracy was involved in the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings on 9/11/01. She said that it was the first time in history that fire had melted steel, that it was physically impossible. One would think that it should have been inconvenient for Rosie that just a couple of weeks later a fuel tanker truck burned on a freeway exchange in California and melted the steel girders of an overhead span, causing the span to collapse. But not a word from Rosie on that. Of course, anyone with half a brain knows that fire melts steel every day, but apparently not Rosie.

On another episode of The View the hosts were discussing the firing of United States Attorneys by the Bush Administration. Rosie repeatedly referred to the attorneys as judges. It was clear that she didn't understand the difference between a federal judge and a federal prosecutor. If she understood the difference she might have also known that federal judges can't be fired by the president; they have to be impeached. It was also quite clear that she didn't know much about the whole firing issue. In fact, there is no evidence that Rosie ever spends any time preparing for her appearances on the show.

I'm glad that this soap box has been yanked from under Rosie, but she will probably find another one.

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The Associated Press reports that Hillary Clinton promotes shared responsibility:

Presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton outlined a broad economic vision Tuesday, saying it's time to replace an "on your own" society with one based on shared responsibility and prosperity.

The Democratic senator said what the Bush administration touts as an "ownership society" really is an "on your own" society that has widened the gap between rich and poor.

"I prefer a 'we're all in it together' society," she said. "I believe our government can once again work for all Americans. It can promote the great American tradition of opportunity for all and special privileges for none."

If there was any doubt left in anyone's mind that Hillary is a socialist these comments should remove that doubt. "Shared responsibility?" "We're all in it together?" What does that mean? Does she propose that the government assign part of my time to helping someone else meet their goals? No, I think she means that the government should assign all our time.

Hillary clearly believes that the government can take care of people better than people can take care of themselves. She demeans everyone by criticizing the concept of an "on your own" society. Hillary holds people in general in very low esteem yet it is people that will have to staff this government of hers that she expects to lead us all to prosperity.

Actually, most people are quite adept at looking out for themselves. This is one reason that socialism doesn't work and capitalism does. In a socialistic society the competent people in charge are looking out for themselves and the incompetent people in charge are botching up the process. In a capitalistic, free-market society only the competent people are in charge (for the most part).

There is one thing we can count on from Hillary's vision of government: It will definitely narrow the gap between the rich and the poor. It will rid the country of the rich and make all of us poorer.

There might be a little golden nugget in Hillary's comments though. If she believes in "special privileges for none," does that mean she opposes Affirmative Action?

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Obama Offers Universal Health Care Plan
This is fantastic news for a lot of people -- but I wasn't aware that Obama is that wealthy.

Pelosi: Climate Change Is a Reality
Uh... Nancy, I think most of us learned that in elementary school.

Will Warming Lead to a Rise in Hurricanes?
Most likely. We've never had many hurricanes during the winter.

Rice Cautions Israel on Syria
Uh... Condi, I think Israel is already aware of the danger posed by Syria.

Lawmakers renew effort for ealth coverage
Soon they'll know how to spell it.

Methodists tackle transition issue in clergy sex changes
What can I say?

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