The Death of Vince Guaraldi, Famous Jazz Pianist: More Information from a Reader

I have previously sought information regarding the death of Vince Guaraldi, my biggest music hero, and wrote about it here.  I was later contacted by someone claiming to be a former girlfriend of Guaraldi, and then by an author who is writing a biography of Vince Guaraldi.

Today I was contacted by a jazz musician, Jim B., who has played at the Charles Schultz Museum in Santa Rosa, California, and who has met Vince Guaraldi's son and grandson, as well as members of the Schulz family. The Guaraldi-Schultz connection was that Vince composed original jazz themes for Charles Schultz's television episodes based on the famous Charlie Brown cartoon series.

There have been rumors that drugs played a significant part in the death of Vince Guaraldi.  According to Jim B., those rumors appear to be untrue.  Jim writes:

Guaraldi died of an aneurysm that developed in a major blood vessel just next to his heart. He had been feeling unwell for at least a day before he died, and no one, including himself, knew he had an aneurysm. It could have been removed by surgery and he could have still been living today (he would be 81).

I know this from Guaraldi's son, who read the coroner's certificate.

The only person with him at the moment of his death was drummer Eliot Zigmund, who lives in NYC now. He was playing with Vince at Butterfield's that night.

When they took their set break, he and Vince went into the provided motel room to relax. Vince headed for the bathroom but never made it. The aneurysm burst mid-stride, VG fell to the floor, and since the blood flow was not reaching his brain he died instantly.

I have added Jim's narrative to my original post linked above.

Another commenter says that the drummer with Guaraldi was Jim Zimmerman, not Zigmund, and quotes a published source as support.  I believe that this other commenter is correct about Zimmerman.

Recession Deepens: Brother Have You Got a Dime?

The reports are in, and the Jobs Report for June shows a minuscule increase; meanwhile, consumer confidence in the economy plummeted further in June.  Where this economic misery will end is anyone's guess.

Meanwhile, enjoy this patriotic poster celebrating the Democrat Party's contributions to human misery.  Like being unemployed?  Miserable? Poor?  Then join masochists everywhere who are joining together to VOTE DEMOCRAT!  There's a soup kitchen in your future!  Just reach out and grab it!


UPDATE, 7/1/2010:  Huge "Obamaville,"  50 Acre Tent City Takes Root in Hawaii

The Braying Jackass Known as Rep. Pete Stark

The braying jackass called Pete Stark once again reveals his arrogance and contempt for his own constituents.  Instead of answering questions at a town hall meeting, he instead belittles and insults the questioners.  Pete Stark is the equivalent of a street punk who desperately needs a punch in the mouth.  However, we would settle for simply tossing the bum out in the November elections.

 Of course, Stark is a Democrat.  Naturally, he's a California representative.  Obviously, the man is a horse's ass.

Read all about Rep. Jackass here.

Read a prior post here, "Pete Stark is Stark Raving Mad."

Al Gore: Should Be Presumed Innocent Unless Further Support for Sexual Assault Tale is Forthcoming

A masseuse has come forward to accuse Al Gore of sexual assault during a massage session in his hotel room.

The masseuse's tale has a lot of detail and sounds true. She comes across as believable. She reported the alleged incident to a close friend the next day and eventually filed a police report. She did not initially go public with the story nor did she try to sell the story for money (she has now changed her mind and is asking $1 million for a more detailed tale).

However, anecdotal tales do not constitute proof. If this one masseuse was sexually assaulted by Gore, are there other masseuse's with a similar story? Is there corroborating evidence? Without this, Al Gore deserves the benefit of a doubt.

So for now, Al Gore is still Man-Bear-Pig. If additional evidence comes forth regarding his sexual escapades, then and only then can we delete the Man-Bear and conclude that he is simply a pig.

Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia Dead at 92

Senator Robert Byrd has died.  The obnoxious old leftist and Klan member picked a good time to depart this world.  His absence may help prevent the Democrats from passing their latest Orwellian power grab, the so-called Finance Reform bill.

Sayonara, Senator Byrd.  May your Heavenly Reward be commensurate with the damage you have done to freedom.

Supreme Court Upholds Second Amendment Gun Rights 5 - 4

The Washington Post has the story, complete with propagandistic headline:  "Justices Extend Gun Owner Rights Nationwide."  No, the Supremes didn't "extend" gun rights, they merely upheld the rights in existence for over 200 years, the same rights under attack by the left for some time.

Barack Obama, the egregious little communist, has wanted to disarm the populace for years.  Now that a historical mistake has placed this anti-American radical in the Oval Office, he had a chance to get his way.  He has been defeated, for the moment anyway.

The vote was 5 to 4, a very close vote.  This once again shows how important it is to keep radicals off the court.  Radicals do not serve as justices in order to protect and preserve the Constitution, they serve to pervert it or dismantle it in service to their ideology.

When the Supremes are sufficiently corrupted by Obama appointees and they vote to end our historic right to keep and bear arms, then it will be time to "lock and load."  If they want the guns, let them come and get them.

Personal Note: Stogie Band and the Joy of Music

This past Saturday my band played for a family party to celebrate the 84th birthday of my mother-in-law.  My wife's family is large and none of them have ever heard me play bass before; most didn't even know I played at all.  So it was nice to play for them and surprise them with a side of myself that was largely unknown to the family.

We played well and the music was much appreciated.  One sister-in-law told me she was "very impressed."  A brother-in-law asked me "When did you start playing bass?"  Actually, I started many years ago, but hung up my bass to finish college and establish a career.  I finally returned to this long neglected passion in January of this year, when I answered an ad on Craig's List.

In this terrible time of economic dysfunction, music is the main positive activity in my life.  It's good to know that I am making progress, in this one endeavor at least, while I watch my economic life otherwise fall apart.

We are scheduled to play again on July 4th in Menlo Park.

Obama "the Most Radical President that America Has Ever Had"

The video below supports Lawrence Auster's view that Barack Obama's ruination of the United States is purposeful. The scholar in the video explains why (hat tip: Drzz.Info).  The interviewee is Dr. Richard L. Rubenstein, a director of the New English Review.  He holds a PhD from Harvard University.

Is Obama Trying to Destroy America? Or Merely Incompetent?

Lawrence Auster of View from the Right is impatient with conservatives who merely decry Obama as incompetent, disinterested or disengaged.  Auster believes Obama's disastrous performance as President is all part of his plan to remake America into a socialist, third-world country.  Auster writes:

How can they indict him as a leftist revolutionary and complain about the fact that he is not up to--or not interested in--the job? What possesses these conservatives that they are unwilling or unable to acknowledge that an enemy is an enemy? Don't they see that if Obama is "unengaged" in, say, the Gulf oil spill disaster, it's for exactly the same reason that he was hyper-engaged in ramming through the health care bill? Namely that he wants America to be crippled, he wants America to be rendered unable to sustain itself as a free and independent country, so that the left and the nonwhites and the Muslims can take it over. Some of the conservatives do seem to see this disturbing truth, but then they veer away from it, obsessing on Obama's inexperience and detachment. Yes, he's detached. He's detached from America in the same sense that if your worst enemy saw you drowning in a lake, instead of saving you he would be detached about it and go play golf.

I would have preferred that Auster not use the word "nonwhites."  Being "nonwhite" does not automatically equate to anti-western hostility.  However, he makes an interesting point.

Is Obama merely incompetent, or is he trying to ruin the country?  And if it is the latter, to what purpose?

My personal feeling is that Obama is a rigid, far-left ideologue who has no clue as to how the world actually works.  He is largely divorced from reality.  He is a product of a pot-smoking culture of far-left illusions that do not work in the real world.  Whatever the case, the sooner he is out of office the better.  Barack Obama is clearly the worst and most destructive president in the last 100 years.

French Conservative and Anti-Islamization Movements Ignored by the Press

I received the following message from reader Atikva, who is French but now a citizen of the United States.  It demonstrates that the tactics of the mainstream media are the same in France as in the U.S.:  ignore all events that do not further the leftist agenda.

On June 18, 2010 at a rally in the place de l'Etoile, to protest against the islamisation of France, gathered about 2,000 people. Not one political or famous personality was present, not one. The only reason why it was at all reported by a few media was due to the fact that the municipality's decision to ban the "Apéritif géant" had made headlines the previous days - but they downplayed the number of participants to 800. 

The following day, some 10,000 Chinese living in Paris took to the streets to protest against the attacks by young muslims they have had to endure for too long in the districts where they live - not a peep from the media. Again, a few days later, there was yet another rally of some 15,000 people in favor of Gilad Shalit (he has double nationality, Israeli and French). The media were mum again. 

The French media follow the same leftist tactics than the US media when it comes to any action by "we the people": they ignore it or minimize it, and those who would join the resistance have no way of getting organized. 

It doesn't mean that the French are not fed up and willing to fight to recover their independence, but short of starting a civil war they have no means of reversing the trend - not one valid candidate for whom to vote, no recourse to referendum (vetoed by government), and the dictum of the European Community to hamper any attempt at reversing the deadly trend.

UPDATE:  Atikva describes France's loss of sovereignty (to the European Union) to be a major factor in its continuing demise:

Stogie, there are no frontiers any more between members of the European Union, and the latter has decreed that immigration from "developing countries" was a good thing. Even if the French government wanted to stop the invasion, it couldn't close the country's borders and the immigrants would continue to pour in from other European countries. And the EU has just asked Switzerland, who is not even a member, to ignore the vote of the Swiss people on the erection of minarets, just to show how impossible it has become for the EU members to protect their own countries!

Paul McCartney: Musical Genius, Political Idiot

Former Beatle Paul McCartney has announced that global warming "deniers" are equivalent to holocaust deniers.

This proves that a musical genius can still be a political idiot.  You're really pushing it, Paulsy.  Let me explain to you a few basic facts.

Anthropogenic Global warming is a socialist scam for gaining power and increasing control over the lives and fortunes of citizens everywhere.  It is an invented "crisis" with no basis in reality, marked by doctored data and fraudulent science.  There are more scientists who don't believe in AGW then there are ones who do.  The ones who do are generally socialists with an agenda who are making big bucks off of government grants to supply their comrades in power with the doctored data needed to further the fraud.

The Holocaust, on the other hand had some evidence to support it.  All of those dead bodies and mass graves, for instance.  The AGW theory, however, has only "computer models" to support it, and those models are woefully incapable of predicting weather patterns.  Major AGW theories, like the "hockey stick," keep getting knocked down by facts and objective science.  Worldwide temperatures continue to plunge, sea ice has never been more plentiful and polar bears are thriving.  No matter, the fraud will continue to attract superficial and naive celebrities like the vacuous Paul McCartney.

As some Russian once observed, even idiots can be useful.

Algerians in Paris Break and Burn Things After US Soccer Win

La Pensee Neoconservatrice, a French blog, describes Algerian antics in Paris after the U.S. soccer team defeated Algeria.  This post, like the last, shows the cultural aggression that occurs when unlimited numbers of Muslims are allowed to immigrate without any requirement to assimilate.

LPN tells the tale (translated into English by Stogie):

Ah, how beautifully integrated they are into France.  When the USA [soccer team] pulled out a win in the last minute (after being refused a perfectly legitimate goal in the first half), fans of the Algerian team took advantage of the defeat to engage in their favorite sport:  rioting!

Modestly referred to as "incidents" by the media, disgruntled fans broke shop windows, overturned cars, defaced buses, burned scooters, and confronted the police...the long, ordinary litany of misdeeds by hateful groups who are incapable of enduring the most minor frustration.

It should be noted that the City of Paris provided these fans with a giant viewing screen in Charlety Stadium.  No thank-you is expected.  France allowed a mass gathering of these fans to watch a match, in spite of their thuggish behavior last November, but wine and sausage gatherings are forbidden in the name of public "security."

Understand that if you can!

The Modern Battle for Paris: Sausages, Wine and a Working Class Neighborhood

During World War II, when France was occupied by the Nazis, Parisians found ways to resist.  Today France is again undergoing a foreign occupation, and Parisians are forming strategies of resistance.

The occupation today is from Muslim immigrants, who are aggressively foisting their culture and customs onto an unwilling host.  The central battle is around a working class neighborhood called "La Goutte d'Or," translated as "the drop of gold."  The term was originally in reference to a white wine from ancient vineyards.

Today La Goutte d'Or is largely occupied by Muslim immigrants of African and Arabic origins.  Many of these immigrants are illegal.  Most are not loyal to France and are hostile to its language, culture and customs.  Every Friday in the Goutte d'Or, thousands of Muslims illegally fill the streets to pray (see photo), blocking traffic and commerce.  Shopkeepers are unable to open their stores and conduct business.  This activity is not just about praying.  It is cultural aggression, an assertion of Islamic superiority over the streets and neighborhoods of France.

Many French are alarmed and believe that the "Islamization" of France is well underway.  One of the ways they are fighting back is to stage large block parties in Paris on Fridays, where "salami and booze" are served and consumed. Both foods are traditional to France but forbidden and repulsive to Muslims.

Does this annoy and irritate the Muslim interlopers?  Too bad.  If the Muslims of Paris want to get "in your face" about their religion, the Parisians will get right back in the faces of the Muslims with the preservation of their own cuisine, culture and customs.  It's a way of saying, "We French are here to stay and will not be displaced."

The French term for these finger-food outings is "Apéro-Géant," roughly translated as "Giant Aperitif."  (Apéro means a drink served before meals, accompanied by appetizers or finger foods.)

Unfortunately, a planned "Apéro-Géant" in the Goutte d'Or was prohibited by French authorities, who feared a confrontation between Muslims and non-Muslims.  On June 18, the pro-French protestors moved the party to a new venue, one more symbolic of France, at the Place de l'Etoile, near the Arc de Triomphe.  This area is historically significant. It was here, on November 11, 1940, that university students assembled to protest the Nazi occupation.  Many were arrested and imprisoned, but they sparked the Parisian resistance.

According to the Blog Bloc Identitaire, This gathering was intended to commemorate 70th anniversary of General De Gaulle's call for French resistance to its Nazi occupiers.  More than 800 Parisians showed up for the event, intent on making themselves heard in their refusal to accept the Islamization of France.  Speeches were made, the French national anthem was sung, French flags were waved, wine was poured, salami was eaten, flares were fired to ward off the dark of early evening.

In spite of the French left's usual cries of "racism," the event was considered a large success by its organizers, gathering much media attention and scoring a win in the battle of public opinion.

Bloc Identitaire summarizes the event as follows:

The aggressive proselytism of Islam is symbolised by the illegal occupation of public space in the Goutte d'Or for Muslim prayers on Fridays.  Even though denounced for years with no effect, Muslim aggressiveness was fully unmasked on this important day. 

This opposition [to Islamization] is today recognized as a just cause.  The French people have been exasperated by the daily denial of their identity, their roots, and even their culinary and festive traditions.  This has been a direct result of the demands of an Islam for which "multicultural" France is to be considered conquered territory.  French voices have now been liberated in the media, the internet and the streets, and at last have been heard.

Wine and sausages seem a delicious but mild way of fighting back.  However, it's a start.

Note:  some links and photo credits are provided by the blog Bivouac-ID.  See all of their videos and photos of the June 18 event here.

VFR: Further Discussion on Division of USA Into Two Countries

View from the Right has expanded its discussion of the possibility of secession, the blue counties from the red and vice versa.  Yes, I said counties, not states, and the author "Jeffersonian" explains why in his article:  "The Reds and the Blues:  It's Time for a Divorce."

This discussion may seem far-fetched to many, but it seems to me a possible future resolution of the internecine struggle for domination of America.

The truth is that the "blue" counties (aka the Democrat Party) have rejected America and seek a new country with new laws and new values.  They want to replace America with something different.  We of the red persuasion will be G*D D*MND if we are going to let them do it.

The solution:  allow the blues and the reds to mutually separate and form their own governments, socialism for the blues and an American federal constitutional republic for the reds.

Will this ever happen?  I doubt it.  I think it is far more probable that one or two or maybe three individual states will just secede when the Obamunism of America becomes too much to bear; probably Texas, maybe Alaska and possibly one or two of the Southern or southwestern states, maybe Arizona.  Of course, if one or two states secede, more may be encouraged to go the same route.

Israeli Warplanes Land at Saudi Base for Attack on Iran?

There is an internet rumor, as yet unsubstantiated, that Israeli warplanes have landed in Saudi Arabia for an attack on Iran.  In the past few days American warships were reported moving through the Suez Canal, and the scuttlebutt is that Israel and the US are preparing to attack the nuclear facilities in Iran.

Personally, I find it hard to believe that Obama would support such an operation.  However, it may be another case of the tail wagging the dog in preparation for the November elections.

See story here.

Nurse from Famous "Times Square Kiss" Photo Dies at 91

One of the many famous photographs of World War II is this one:  on VJ Day, August 14, 1945, a sailor kisses a nurse in Times Square, bending her backwards.  The photo depicts spontaneous joy over the end of the war.

The lady in the picture, Edith Shain, died yesterday in Santa Monica, California.  She was 91.

The identities of both the sailor and the nurse were unknown for many years.  Finally, in 1970, Edith Shain contacted the photographer, Alfred Eisenstaed, claiming to be the girl in the photo.  Several other women came forward with the same claim, but Shain's claim has never been seriously disputed.  She was a nurse in New York at the end of the war, and Eisenstaed said he believed that Shain was the woman he photographed.

However, the identity of the sailor was more problematic.  According to the UK Online, at least ten men have come forward to claim that they were the man in the picture.  One of them was Carl Muscarello, and Shain accepted his claim as true.  In later years he posed for pictures with Shain in Times Square to commemorate that historic kiss.

But not so fast.  Another man eventually came forward, insisting that it was he who was the famous Navy kisser.  He was Glenn McDuffie, who tried for years to prove that it was he in the famous photo.  His claims were roundly rejected, probably because belief had already gelled around Muscarello, and firm opinions are not easily changed.

However, McDuffie had a well-known forensic artist, Lois Gibson, of the Houston Police Department, take many photos of him kissing a pillow in a recreation of the event.  The U.K. Online quotes the Gibson's findings:

She compared the pictures using digital imaging techniques and precise measurements of his bone structure including his forehead, ears, wrists, knuckles and arms. "I am positive it's Glenn. What I do is usually a matter of life or death, so I don't mess around when I identify someone," she said.

The Sydney Morning Herald has the details on Gibson's analysis here, and quotes her view of other men who have claimed to be the kissing sailor:

"All other people who have come forward I have eliminated based on their facial bones," she said. "To me that's definitive. Everything is consistent. I'm as positive as you can be."

After viewing photos of both Muscarello and McDuffie, I feel that McDuffie is the real deal.  View the pics at the U.K. Online and judge for yourself.  More pics are below.

Side Notes:
I was always intrigued by the "BOND" sign in the famous picture.  I looked it up -- it was a men's clothing store, famous for its sale of men's suits with two pairs of trousers.  Bond began in 1933 and went out of business in 1979.  The "O" in BOND was also a clock that showed the time of day.  Here's another view of the Bond building in Times Square on VJ Day 1945.

 There is a BOND 45 restaurant in New York today that uses the old Bond name, and its neon sign also uses the "O" for a clock.  I love nostalgia!

It isn't surprising that several sailors believed they were the ones in the famous kiss scene.  There were many girls and sailors in Times Square that day and many kisses as well.  Once victory over Japan was announced, Times Square quickly filled with thousands of people -- see a photo of the crowd here.

Son of Stogie: Folsom, California: Wedding Update

My niece was married yesterday here in Folsom, California.  I didn't like the lady pastor who married her and her husband.  Her ceremony was a bunch of new age crapola.  God wasn't mentioned even once, and the age old words, "for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, til death do you part" was not part of Pastor Airhead's lexicon.  I wouldn't have minded if "to honor and obey" had been modernized, perhaps to "honor and negotiate in good faith," but that's about it.

In any case, my youngest son was there (see pic).  He's a handsome 29 year old and he's single and unattached.  Beautiful young women are invited to submit their resumes, which I will forward to him.  Ha ha!

No Blogging Today: Off to a Wedding in Folsom

I may not have the opportunity to blog before Monday.  We are off to Folsom (yes, where the prison is located) to attend a wedding.  Not in the prison.  In someone's garden.

Cheerio, see you soon.

The Debbie Schlussel Diet: Quick Way to Lose Weight!

From Twitter:

 DasSchlussel:  Looked in the mirror this morning & thought to myself "I'm looking a bit heavy." So I served me with a cease and desist letter. All better.

Debbie Schlussel: The Train Wreck Continues

There is a couple of good posts today on Debbie Schlussel.  When I complained about Schlussel's behavior towards other conservatives a few weeks back, I had no idea as to the extent of it.

Today Psota at Free Will has an interesting post on "crazy conservatives."  In it, Psota references a recent post by Right Wing News called "The Debbie Schlussel Experience."

Debbie, if you're out there:  GET HELP.

BY THE WAY, "FREE WILL" is an excellent new blog, written by a conservative attorney in San Francisco.  I strongly advise linking him and reading his blog daily.  Good stuff!


Update:  Yid With Lid attacked by Debbie Schlussel in email threatening to "expose" him for womanizing (or something).  Well if that be the case, don't worry Debbie, you're safe....

Perez Hilton Posting Kiddie Porn on Twitter?

Perez Hilton, the grouchy and pushy gay guy who politicized the Miss USA contest, may be in hot water with the law.  He posted a photo of 17 year old Miley Cyrus climbing out of a car, with her skirt riding up to apparently display her undies-less crotch.  The photo may have been Photoshopped.  However, web sources state that even the display of an altered photo of a minor is a crime, when the photo is pornographic.

Really dumb, Perez.  I would say, "In the jail showers, don't bend over to pick up the soap," but I think you'd probably enjoy it.

By the way, to even possess kiddie porn is a crime.  If you made a copy of Hilton's photo of Cyrus, delete it at once.

ABC has deleted its advertising from Perez Hilton's website following the scandal.  The Other McCain has the story here.

Butts for Sale in Paris? Pork and Wine Fest Called Off on Account of Islam

I saw this picture on a French website, Bloc Identitaire.  It appears to be a storage bin for human butts.  See how neatly they are stacked and arranged.   Not sure if the butts are for commercial purposes or not, but I assume they must be for sale.  Horrors, I would hate to think that human butts are the next French delicacy.  I will stick to snails.

Bloc Identitaire was supporting a Paris public street party featuring wine and pork delicacies, but French officials banned it, for fear it would enrage Muslims.  I kind of think that was the whole idea!

Hat tip: Jewish Internet Defense League

How to Piss Off Your Professor: Wear an Israeli T Shirt to Class

Dang it, I read somewhere today that a conservative decided to piss off his anti-semitic, leftwing professors by wearing a bandanna to class made from an Israeli flag.  Now I can't find that post in order to link it.

UPDATE:  I found it.  It was a post by Jay Nordlinger at the Corner.  One of his readers wrote in to tell the tale of how the bandanna provoked pro-Holocaust remarks from one of his commie professors.  Another reader wrote:

Anyway, I think that wearing or displaying the Star of David is a great way to show support for Israel and to let today’s Nazis know that the Zionist conspiracy is as close as next door or the office across the hall.

GREAT IDEA.  Perhaps we could generate T shirts and other apparel to show support for Israel.  I whipped out my Photoshop and came up with a few suggestions.  Here they are.

Left to Right:  1.  Here's the simplest idea:  Just a white T shirt with a blue Star of David, reminiscent of the Israeli flag.

2.  I like this one better:  Same T shirt, but with the Hebrew script for Israel added.

3.  Here's one with a spicy statement.

Suggestions?

A Pleasant Sunday: Stogie Band Plays in Palo Alto

This afternoon my band played for a block party in Palo Alto, California.  A neighborhood there closed off the street, homeowners brought out their tables and grills and beer and lawn chairs.  Then they ate, drank, mingled and listened to us play music.

We were good.  No brag, just fact.  AND, we got paid, $50 each.  I wasn't expecting that.  I thought we were just playing for practice, for fun and for exposure.  It will pay for a tank of gas, so I can't complain.

It was obvious that the 100 or so persons there enjoyed themselves; they were smiling and friendly and grateful.

Our band is rare in that we have no drama queens or interpersonal issues; we like the same kinds of music and like and support each other.  We are all equally committed to building our band and continuously adding more songs to our repertoire.

After pie and coffee at our drummer's house (he lives in the neighborhood), I drove home feeling very much at peace in my soul.  Playing music, and striving to be good at it, chases away a lot of demons.

Paypal Punishing Conservative Opinion by Withholding Services?

UPDATE:  Perhaps in response to a large outpouring of support for Atlas Shrugs, Paypal has reversed its classification of Atlas Shrugs as a "hate site."  However, Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs says she will not go  back to using Paypal to receive online payments.  She will begin using GPal instead.
********
Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs has had her Paypal account cancelled due to dirty politics.  I have written an email to Paypal to complain about this injustice.  My email message is reprinted below.  Feel free to use it as an example for your own email to Paypal to protest this injustice.  

Emailed to: aupviolations@paypal.com

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to strenuously protest your recent, ill-advised cancellation of Pamela Geller’s account at Paypal, under the totally erroneous notion that her website is a “hate site.”

I am a Paypal user and I read “Atlas Shrugs” every day.  Atlas Shrugs is a political site with a conservative point of view; that does not make it a “hate site” except in the lexicons of the far left and violent fanatics of the Islamic religion.  I assume you were contacted by a bevy of leftists or Muslim readers in a concerted effort to punish Geller for her views, views by the way, that I and many others share.

It is a tactic of the far left and other political extremists to label legitimate opposition as “racist” or “hateful” in order to discredit them.  In the past, before Google and other companies got wise to the tactic, conservative blogs and websites were shut down based on these false charges.   This kind of activity is merely dirty politics and dirty pool.   You should get wise to it right away and not allow Paypal to be used as a political tool by ruthless operatives.

Our views are mainstream, do not preach violence or hatred, but indeed, confront and oppose both violence and hatred.  Geller specifically documents and reports on Muslim honor killings throughout the world, where young women are murdered by their families for marrying an unapproved spouse, for acting “too Western,” or for even being suspected of a romantic dalliance.  The problem is widespread throughout the Muslim world,  and has recently become a western problem as well due to Islamic immigration.  Geller’s goal is to save the lives of these women, and that is the reason also of her “Leaving Islam?” advertising campaign.   Her goal is to save lives.  Do you have a problem with that?

I urge you to reverse this ban immediately.  The conservative blogosphere is united on this and we have an extensive readership, with ties to major news outlets like Fox.  I can almost guarantee you that this controversy will make it to the television airwaves soon, and it will not present Paypal in a favorable light.

I have been planning to add a Paypal button to my own website, but now I will wait until this controversy is resolved, or I will look for alternative means of receiving payments.  Unfortunately, Paypal appears to be a monopoly in furnishing this mode of online bank transactions.  For that reason, Paypal has a strong responsibility not to abuse its position by punishing legitimate political opinion by withholding services.


Hat tip:  The Other McCain

"Death to the Juice": The Islamic Thinkers Society (TITS) and Dueling Cockroaches

Recently a photo emerged of a really dumb Muslim carrying a sign in New York that read "Death to All Jews."  Well, almost.  Dumb-boy couldn't spell "Jews," so his sign read "Death to All Juice."  O.J. Simpson could not be reached for comment.

As for dumb-boy, one Carlos Almonte (or is that Al-Monte?), he was last seen trying to behead a bottle of Tropicana.  The orange juice, however, was holding its own in this timeless clash of civilizations.  Almonte was grunting and grappling and struggling with the Tropicana as the two disappeared into the crowd.

The Jawa Report has proved that dumb-boy is a member of "The Islamic Thinkers Society," or as I like to call them, TITS.  Jawa ran the photograph below, showing dumb-boy holding a poster with the TITS logo.  The poster, below, shows a spray-can of Muslim hate being applied to a cockroach with the Star of David on its back.  Below that is my version of how Israelis should deal with Islamic cockroaches.

Dumb-boy, with the "what town am I in?" look on his face, holds a sign of TITS.  He is no doubt wondering why TITS is opposing a Jewish marijuana cigarette.










Hey, TITS has their cockroach and I have mine.  Well, technically, mine is a horsefly, but you get the idea. Squish.

Barack Obama's Birth Certificate - the Saga Continues

Donald Douglas has an interesting post about the re-emergence of the birth certificate controversy.

Apparenty, World Net Daily has interviewed a former Hawaii elections clerk, who claims that Obama was not born in Hawaii, and that this fact is known among Hawaii officials.  The clerk, Tim Adams, says:

"There is no birth certificate," said Tim Adams, a graduate assistant who teaches English at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Ky. "It's like an open secret. There isn't one. Everyone in the government there knows this."

Adams also claims he tried to verify Obama's birth with two Hawaiian hospitals that had been identified as his probable birth site.  Both hospitals said they had no record of Obama having been born there.

World Net Daily has been passionately attempting to disprove Obama's U.S. birth since before the 2009 elections.  They have periodically produced evidence to that effect, only to have the evidence later proven fraudulent or forged.

My personal feeling is that I am suspicious. I include myself among those who want to see the long form of Obama's original birth certificate.  If it turns out he is not U.S. born, perhaps he could be removed from office on that basis.  Any legal reason to remove this walking disaster is okay by me.

Turkish "Aid" Ship Contained No Aid

Israel has released the results of its inspection of the Turkish "Aid" Ship, on which nine combatants were slain last week.  Their findings:  the ship carried no aid at all:

Of the six ships in the flotilla which announced their intentions to break Israel’s legal maritime blockade of Hamas-controlled Gaza, five were redirected without incident. The one vessel, Turkish-operated Mavi Marmara, was the only ship which ambushed Israeli soldiers. Over the past 10 days, it has been obvious that the dozens of “peace activists” came ready and eager for a violent skirmish and were thus anything but peace loving individuals.

After contents of the ship were unloaded, it has been discovered that the Mavi Marmara did not contain a single ounce of aid. Not one box of food or medicine for the people of Gaza.

With all of the lamentations, wailing and grief poured out for the nine terrorists who bought the farm, it is now indisputable that the Mavi Marmara was never about "aid" for the so-called "Palestinians."  It was a war effort against Israel, an ambush.  This fact will matter little, however, to the Islam-Firsters among the Democrats, the Leftists and Paleoconservatives, who just want Israel to disappear.

Left Gearing Up for Slime Fest on Sharron Angle

Legal Insurrection reports that the Dems are planning a slime fest for Sharron Angle.

Angle is the "Tea Party" candidate who won the right to oppose Harry Reid for Senator from Nevada.

Harry Reid is a bitter, obnoxious far-leftist who wants to help Obama "transform" America into a socialist (or worse) state, overseen by a massive federal bureaucracy with tentacles into every aspect of our lives.  As William Jacobson points out:

The Democrats have a strategy of crazy because their policies have been so disastrous and their rule so inept. So they will tear down people like Angle, turn them into caricatures, and do anything else necessary to avoid talking about unpopular policies which have put us on a course towards economic and political suicide.

Leftist talking heads are now describing Angle as a "Salty Nut" and a "Whack Job," in preparation for a full frontal slime fest.  We must be ready for it with our own fund raising efforts for Angle.  Reid will have a huge war chest, as Powerline points out, derived involuntarily from union members through their dues, where Angle will have no such resource.

To support Sharron Angle, go here.

Liberal Punches Out Local GOP Chairman in North Carolina

Well this is interesting.  A group of Tea Party protesters were peacefully protesting in North Carolina, when they were approached by an angry liberal man who punched the leader in the face.

YouTube has removed the video but you can still watch it here.

Related Post:  Big Government interviews the Sockee.

Sarah Palin Breast Implants? We Have the Photographic Proof!

The Left's new Sarah Palin obsession is over Mrs. Palin's breasts.  They claim that the photograph on the left proves that Palin has had breast implants.

I don't know -- do they look bigger to you?

Note to Bob Belvedere:  Now THAT'S the way to use the liquefy/bloat tool!

My First Instalanche!

This morning I couldn't sleep, so got up at 3 AM, ate some yogurt and read some of Lawrence Auster's latest posts about the paleoconservatives and their rampant anti-semitism.  I checked my hit counter and I had less than 100 hits for today -- not surprising, considering the hour.  I went back to bed at 4:30 AM.

When I logged on again at 10:30 AM, my Neocounter showed that I had 60 people online at that moment, from five different countries, and I realized something significant had happened.  I opened sitemeter to see that my hits for today were now in excess of 3,200.  Sitemeter also disclosed that my torrent of hits was coming from Instapundit, who had linked my post on Rabbi Nessenoff (below).

In other words, I had my first Instalanche.  Robert Stacy McCain at The Other McCain, who is always inventing new and useful words, came up with the term.  Take Instapundit and merge it with avalanche and you have an Instalanche -- a link from Instapundit and the resulting torrent of hits.

Thanks Stacy -- now I can explain my great hits for Thursday in a single word!

Rabbi Who Taped Helen Thomas Is Inundated With Hate Mail and Death Threats

Rabbi David Nesenoff of New York (left) is the cinematographer who taped Helen Thomas's anti-Israel rant this week.  The YouTube video of Thomas went viral and she was denounced far and wide, leading to her abrupt retirement from the White House Press Corps.

Now Rabbi Nesenoff is the recipient of torrents of hateful bile from anti-semites and Islam-Firsters who are outraged that Jews should be allowed to exist.

Fox News has the story here.

Meanwhile, Rabbi Nesenoff is busily posting all of the hate mail to his site at Rabbilive.com.

I really don't understand Jew hatred.  It seems to be an irrational mental condition, a form of insanity, like being a Democrat.

It's Meg vs. Moonbeam in the Land of Fruits and Nuts

Meg Whitman won the Republican primary for governor of California.  I voted for her, after American Power confirmed my suspicions that Steve Poizner was really a flaming liberal repackaged as a conservative.  She will face "Governor Moonbeam," otherwise known as Jerry Brown, who was the governor of California over 30 years ago.

How much good Whitman can do in a very blue state is debatable.  Without a Republican legislature to back her up, she will be stymied in restoring fiscal health to the Land of Fruits and Nuts.

Schwarzenegger went into the governor's chair determined to clean things up; after he had his ass handed to him in a special election (where a number of needed reforms were all voted down), he quickly assumed the role of the left's bitch.  It was really embarrassing seeing him show up to legislative sessions in the black leather jumpsuit, with the studded collar around his neck and the red ball gag in his mouth.  Arnie figured that it was much easier to go along and get along then to change the direction of the state towards fiscal sanity.

How Meg can affect a better outcome is beyond me.  I think the Democrat legislature will greet her with as much enthusiasm as a room full of drunks would greet Carry Nation.

In yesterday's elections, my fellow Californians again repudiated my wisdom by voting the wrong way on most of the propositions.  They voted in the open primary (Proposition 14), which I opposed, so now all candidates will be listed on the same ballot without party affiliation noted.  The top two will proceed to the general election.  Under this system you can have two Democrats on the ballot for the general election; that should suppress the Republican vote even more, cementing control of the state in the hands of the neo-bolsheviks.  Who wants to bother voting when the choices are Commie A or Commie B?

Yes, I know the candidates' party affiliation won't be on the ballot, but everyone will know what it is anyway.

Barack Obama Must Go, the Sooner the Better

For the good of the country, Barack Obama must RESIGN.

If he will not resign, then he must be impeached.  In any case, if the USA is to survive, Barack Obama needs to vacate the Oval Office as soon as humanly possible.

Stogie is "The Godfather of Bass": Our Saturday Band Jam

Our party in San Jose on Saturday went well.  We had invited other musician friends and we all took turns playing.  The pics below are not of my band, but of one of the other bands.  The female singer is our singer, however, shown belting it out for the guests.

Our singer belts it out.  She is cool.















Click here to see more.

Helen Thomas's Fast Exit

Helen Thomas of the White House Press Corps has pulled her foot out of her mouth and used it to quickly exit stage left.  She announced her retirement, "effective immediately."

Thomas received widespread criticism for her recent remark that the Jews "ought to get the hell out of Palestine."

I was surprised to learn that Thomas is almost 90 years old.  Seems it's way past time she retired.

It's too bad her retirement is a result of her public disgrace, but she is the sole author of that.  Goodbye Helen, I for one won't miss you one bit.

Read about it at Politico here.

Related Article:  Jonah Goldberg says Helen Thomas has "always been slimy" during her long career.

Mass Demonstration Against Ground Zero Mega-Mosque

The People's Cube has a collection of pictures of demonstrators against the Ground Zero Mega-Mosque, taken yesterday.  Go here to see them.

Urban Infidel has more pics, like this one:
And I particularly like this one:

D-Day, June 6, 1944: 66 Years Ago Today

Thanks to my French reader Annie, of Paris, who reminded me that today is the 66th anniversary of D-Day.

Here is a video and photographic remembrance of that historic day.

Helen Thomas's Secret Crush (Graphic of the Day)

I found this over at No Sheeples Here. It explains why Helen Thomas supports Muslim terrorism.

Note the little kid's expression in the insert, below, right.  Yes, the image of these two bumping uglies is definitely horrific to imagine.  Of course, lucky Arafat, he's dead so it isn't going to happen, but perhaps Helen will be one of his 72 virgins in the after life.

The Ship Rachel Corrie Captured!

It looks like they have moonbats in Belfast too.   A collection of Jew-haters there bought an old commercial ship and named it "The Rachel Corrie," after a rabid leftist from Washington state.  This old boat is the latest to be stopped by the Israeli blockade of Gaza.  It is telling that the operators of the ship named it after an anti-Israel radical.

Rachel Corrie was best depicted by photos of her with face contorted by hate, gritting her teeth or yelling in anger as she burned an American flag.  Corrie decided to support terrorism in Gaza by trying to prevent Israeli bulldozers from razing houses used as depots for smuggler tunnels.  The tunnels, of course, were used to smuggle in weapons and explosives to kill Israelis.

In 2003, Corrie made herself a human shield against an Israeli bulldozer that was in the process of demolishing a terrorist house in Gaza.  The bulldozer driver didn't see her and she died, either from falling debris from the house or by being crushed by the bulldozer (there are conflicting claims as to what killed her).

In any case, the name "Rachel Corrie" will long be a name precious to Jew-haters, radical leftists and supporters of Muslim terrorism.  Personally, for me, the name will forever be associated with the mindless, ranting left, the support of hatred, totalitarianism and mass murder.

Sarah Palin's Gorgeous Gams

I found this picture of Sarah Palin, changing her shoes, at Riehl World View.

My God, this woman has great gams.

Happy Wedding, Rush Limbaugh!

Rush Limbaugh is getting married tomorrow, on June 5, 2010.  Rush has been married before, but maybe this wedding date will be as good for him as it has been for me and Mrs. Chomper.  We were also married on June 5th, 34 years ago, in 1976.

Good luck Rush.  Try and make it work this time.  Wives should not be traded in every few years like used cars.  I know.  I tried kicking Mrs. Chomper's tires yesterday and she bashed me over the head with a stew pot.

Tomorrow my band is throwing a big party where a lot of local musicians will jam, eat, jam, drink and jam.  It should be a lot of fun. Maybe I will post some pictures of the event.

The Poor, Starving People of Gaza! (Have a Box of Kleenex ready)

From the French Blog Bivouac ID, we see a series of pictures depicting the barren stores of the market place in Gaza, where human skeletons have resorted to eating rats because of the Israeli blockade. It is truly a disturbing picture. Oh wait, no it isn't. (Hat tip View From the Right)

Pat Buchanan: an Embarrassment to America, the South and the Human Race

I have now lost all respect for Pat Buchanan.  The old anti-semite has written a piece comparing Israel's blockade of Gaza with the Russian blockade of Berlin in the late 1940's.  The comparison is ludicrous, and Lawrence Auster of View From the Right gives Buchanan a needed spanking and sends him to bed without his strudel.

Read it here.

Helen Thomas: Old, Grouchy, Homely and NOW ANTISEMITIC

Helen Thomas can't help being an old bat; it happens to all of us given enough time.  We age.  Some of us learn something and become both old and wise.  Some of learn little and become old and a wise-ass.  Helen Thomas is of the latter category.

Apparently, Helen was pissed off that the Israelis won't agree to mass suicide so her heroes, the Palestinians, won't be bothered with having to murder them.  Imagine those damn Jews, shooting terrorists instead of allowing themselves to be beaten, knifed and shot.  I've said it before and I'll say it again:  leftists are a perfect reverse barometer of everything good, right, true and just.  Helen is living proof.

In a video taken yesterday by RabbiLive.com, Thomas was asked what the Jews should do.  Thomas parked her broom, hung up her long black, pointed hat, and cackled, "Get the Hell out of Palestine!"  Thomas was obviously a hag of the left, one who believes enlightened pluralistic democracies should be replaced by barbaric tyrannies who saw off heads for sport.

Helen Hag has since been taken to task for her anti-semitism all over the net, with former Bush White House Secretary Ari Fleischer calling for her dismissal from the White House Press Corps.

If God has a sense of humor, let's hope that all of the dead terrorists will get their 72 virgins in the afterlife, and all of them will look just like Helen Thomas.  She will give the dead terrorists a blast of sour denture breath just before she slips them some tongue.

Pat Condell: "No Mosque at Ground Zero"

Unbelievable!  The religion that murdered 3,000 Americans plans to build a 13 story mosque at the site where the Americans were murdered, i.e. Ground Zero in New York City.  Even more outrageous is that the Muslim builders plan to dedicate the mosque on September 11, 2011, the tenth anniversary of Islam's attack on America.  The liberals and leftists are, of course, supportive of the plan.  Pat Condell tells them off in the video below.



Hat tip: Gates of Vienna

Detailed Description of the Israeli Commando Raid on the Gaza Flotilla

Here is a detailed description of the Israeli raid on the Gaza flotilla.  Since you can't rely on the so-called mainstream media accounts, do yourself a favor and read the facts.

Hat tip:  Melanie Phillips

The Uncappable Spewing Spigot: And No, I'm Not Referencing Obama's Big Mouth

Ann Althouse asks, "Are we keeping a constant eye on the BP Oil Leak?" She mentions that an HD TV screen in a restaurant showed a live feed of the spewing underwater oil leak, without cease. She wondered what's the point?

One of her readers, Pogo, hit a home run with this remark:

The Uncappable Spewing Spigot of Spending is the avatar for Obama and the New Deal Democrats.

My God, isn't that the truth?

The Gaza Flotilla Choir Sings "We Con the World"

This funny, musical video has been already linked by a number of sites; if you haven't seen it, do watch it. A little comic relief is necessary to retain one's sanity in a world gone mad.

A 46 Year Fan to Paul McCartney: Shut Up and Sing, Paul. No One Is Interested In Your Naive Political Views.

Paul McCartney, formerly of the Beatles and world renowned singer/songwriter, shot himself in the foot yesterday.  After performing for the mental midget in the White House, McCartney felt obligated to take an unnecessary potshot at George W. Bush.  The performance occasion at the White House was to award McCartney the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.  Thanking the Library of Congress, McCartney quipped, "After the last eight years, it's great to have a president who knows what a library is."

McCartney's remark implies some sort of intellectual superiority of Obama over Bush; however, someone who is rigidly married to the perennial failure of socialism is no genius, and certainly not someone intellectually curious, informed or well read.  Further, the incompetence, naiveté and ignorance of Barack Obama is now becoming glaringly obvious to even his most ardent supporters. There is a reason why Obama has not released his college transcripts for public review, i.e. his grades are not so hot.  Perhaps he should have spent more time in a library and less time smoking pot.

It's funny, guys like Paul McCartney moved the USA to avoid the killing taxes of their socialist home country; then once here, they advocate that the US convert to the same system they tried to escape.

I have been a fan of Paul McCartney since I first saw his mug on a television screen in 1964, when the Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.  I saw him perform live with the Beatles in 1964 and 1965, at the Cow Palace near San Francisco.  I have long admired and celebrated his musical genius.  However, his dumb statement yesterday is disappointing.

"Israel is Presumed Guilty Until Proven Guilty" -- Netanyahu

Prime Minister Natanyahu ably defends Israel's actions in intercepting the flotilla bound for Gaza this week.

Cartoon: Why Does Israel Blockade the Peace-Loving Palestinians?

Hat tip:  Jewish Internet Defense Force

Israel Complied With International Law in Intercepting Flotilla

Debby Schlussel researched international law as it applies to merchant ships on the high seas, and has concluded, convincingly, that Israel was in compliance with international law when it intercepted the Gaza flotilla this week.

She points to the San Remo Manual on International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea, including this section:

SECTION V : NEUTRAL MERCHANT VESSELS AND CIVIL AIRCRAFT

Neutral merchant vessels

67. Merchant vessels flying the flag of neutral States may not be attacked unless they:

(a) are believed on reasonable grounds to be carrying contraband or breaching a blockade, and after prior warning they intentionally and clearly refuse to stop, or intentionally and clearly resist visit, search or capture;

Quite clearly, Section 67 (a) clearly describes the Israel/flotilla situation exactly.  Read the entire article here.