The Extreme Side Of The Immigration Debate

I'm aghast and agog. I thought that I had heard all of the tripe that was out there to be heard about immigration whether or not it was documented or condoned. I thought that there was nothing that could knock me back in my chair. I underestimated Ralph Ovadal.

You remember Pastor Ralph, he of the International Conference on Homo-Fascism, and his attacks on the Pope. Ovadal is a rabble rouser who supplies much of his own rabble. He has slammed Paul Soglin and Charlie Sykes in his tirades. That makes him, perhaps, the least focused ranter on the Wisconsin scene.

I was pointed to a posting on Ovadal's extensive website by a post that referred to him only tangentially. (If you'd like to see some prime Michele Malkin smack-down check out this link.) Ovadal was referenced by Alex Koppleman over at Dragonfire.

Ovadal's screed dates back to June 30 of 2004 and is prime Ralph. Alliteratively entitled, "Reconquista, Republicanism, and Rome," he compares Ulster to the Southwest US before going on to share his vision for a Mexican takeover of no fewer than 5 states.

Most Mexicans living in America illegally -- and in some cases, even legally --
consider themselves Mexicans, not Americans. In fact, in some city neighborhoods
in the border regions, one does not see American flags flying but Mexican flags.

He's silent on the subject of the Swiss flags which fly in downtown Monroe.

He shares, but fails to document, a Mexican military incursion into the US. Presumably at some point since Black Jack Pershing was in Texas.

Mexican authorities are anything but concerned about this situation; in fact,
there are several documented incidents in which Mexican military personnel have
penetrated into American territory and even fired at American citizens.

In his opening Ovadal says that he will let the informed reader connect the dots for himself but Ralph just keeps connecting the points he's marking out until he gets to the real reason that all of these brown people are so anxious to reclaim the Southwest.

The answer is simple -- the Roman Catholic Church has its own plan of
reconquest. She is determined to reestablish the power she once exercised over
the civil governments and populations of the world. The pope, along with the
Reconquista cadre, views South, Central, and North Americas as being one "from
Argentina to Alaska." On several occasions, Pope John Paul II has "consecrated"
this "America" to "Our Lady of Guadalupe." The Mexican people streaming across
America's porous southern border are Roman Catholics. It is in the interest of
the Vatican to establish as many Roman Catholics as possible in the United
States of America. The pope and his partners in spiritual crime care little how
the job is done -- whether illegally or legally -- just so it is done.

There you have it. John Paul II then and Benedict now have set the marching orders for the conquest of the United States.

Ralph rambles about Jesuits and Brown Berets and the group which call themselves Minutemen now but which were only vigilantes in 2004. That there is one person who believes this pap is bad enough. When that man professes to be a preacher and a teacher and develops a following it is stomach-turning.

He is entitled to say these hateful things. He's entitled to believe them. This is America, after all. Just the same as we all have the right to say out loud what a fool we think that he is.

Another Definition Of "Lazy"

I'm too lazy to post on my own this morning but I'm leaving cranky tracks all over the Cheddarsphere.

Paul writes about what the referenda mean.

Dennis defends making laws in the dark.

Mason wants to know, "What's the big deal with Vietnam?"

The Observer writes about voter registration and how Mark Green is trying to block it.

Corey shares the record of the Wisconsin delegation on votes that affect real people.

Althouse muses on the nature of gestures.

Richard tells a joke that I'm not going to repeat here.

Aaron's dreaming.

Nick lends perspective to the bandying about of words.

Clint disagrees with me about immigration reform. We're both trying to act civil. Neither one of us is succeeding very well.

And all because I didn't feel like writing this morning.

Jay Gets It Right- John Gard Gets It Wrong

Coincidence and failure of John Gard to think-through his e-mails make Jay the Peerless Prognosticator.

When Was The Last Time You Registered To Vote?

Unless you voted in the February primaries chances are good that you'll have to register now. Xoff has a good post on who doesn't want you to be able to register and what you'll need to have to get registered next Tuesday.

1. If you have a Wisconsin driver's license, it would be wise, but not
required, that you have it with you. That will allow the poll worker to write
down the license number on your registration card.

2. If you don't have a license or don't have it with you, you will need to
know the last four digits of your Social Security number. You don't need to have
the actual card with you, but you do need to know the number. (If you have your
driver's license, you don't need your Social Security number.)

3. You need some proof of your current address -- a lease, utility bills
with your name and address, or other documents showing where you live.

One Quick Question- OK, Two

Did anyone else in the Madison area get a brain cramp when they heard the ad that said that the Mega Liquidation Club was going out of business?

Where do they send their remainders?

Senator Cornyn Explains It All

Well, you know, that's the problem in America, we're always having elections.

Sen. John Cornyn shared his vision for America on CNN Wednesday.

h/t Pere Ubu

Channel 15 Has The Scoop

Channel 15 is reporting that the majority of the speakers at tonight's forum were in favor of the referendum to begin an orderly withdrawal from Iraq.

Opposition supporter Ron Gay admits to second thoughts about the way he worded the referendum to stay in Iraq until "unquestioned victory" is won.

Pastor Gay says the one mistake he might have made in the wording was
saying that voting yes on his question, would also be voting to support
president Bush.
He admits that could cost him votes, but he also says, that's
how he feels, and that's why it belongs in the measure.

Unfortunate Headline Of The Night

I have had occasion in the past to e-mail the editors of Channel3000.com to correct grammar or facts. They are notoriously bad about providing a soundbite story which tells little and demands that you watch one of their newscasts for more info.

Tonight, however, they had a story on the brutal murder in Beloit on Monday morning. Their choice of headline?

Police Ask For Public's Help In Beloit Killing

I'm not gonna do it. If they need help for that kind of work let them hire it done.

I'm Only A Bill- Except When I'm Not

Click on the link for a blast from the past. Jack Sheldon sings a clip from "I'm just a bill," the story of how bills used to be passed in Congress.

Now Carrie has a link to story about how bills are passed in 2006. What do you do when the House and Senate pass different versions of the same bill? It used to be that you had to have an open debate on the two versions and then reconcile them before voting again. Now, apparently, you just say that it doesn't matter.

The Washington Post reports that the White House doesn't believe that a $2 billion difference in the omnibus budget bill is significant enough to force them to follow the procedure for making laws in the US and has signed it anyway. Now a lawsuit has been filed to revoke the budget package.

It would have been awfully embarrassing for Republican leaders to have to vote on this slash and burn bill one more time. The Senate version only passed the first time because VP Dick Cheney cut short an overseas trip to come back and break the tie. Now, given two months of horrifies reaction from constituents over the cuts in the package, no one was anxious to have to go on record again to cut student loans, food stamps and Medicare.

Mark Green toed the party line the first time. If he's forced to vote again will he waffle? We'll have to see.

I'm just a bill
Yes I'm only a bill,
And I got as far as Capitol Hill.
Well, now I'm stuck in committee
And I'll sit here and wait
While a few key Congressmen discussand debate
Whether they should let me be a law.
How I hope and pray that they will,
But today I am still just a bill.

You Need To Know Who You Can Trust

Brett Davis came over to the house when the concealed carry bill was being debated. He told me that he was holding out for stricter training requirements and for other changes to the bill as it was being debated to make it a "tougher" bill and more palatable for him to vote for.

Many of those changes were made and Davis did vote for the bill and, as promised, he voted to override Gov Doyle's veto.

Brett thought that by holding out for changes to the bill he would make Wisconsin a safer state. How has a concealed carry law in another state held up over ten years?

Under a Texas law passed in 1995, a license may be suspended if the holder
is charged with a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or indicted on felony
charges.

But now, indicted felon Tom DeLay is asking to have his suspension revoked after his indictment for felony money laudering.
The author of the original bill, Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who was a state senator, said the section of law calling for suspension of licenses of people under indictment should probably be removed from the statute.

"It is clearly not rational, not called for, but it was one of those things we
did to make somebody say, 'OK, I'll vote for it,' " Patterson said
Monday.
Patterson said several provisions were put in the bill by backers in
order to garner support from other lawmakers who were leery about the
law.
Patterson said since the bill's passage more than a decade ago,
legislators have amended the statute and removed some of the parts he called
"onerous."
"There is a presumption of innocence. Would we take away his First
Amendment right to free speech?" Patterson said.

"Not rational," He says. "Presumed innocent," He says. "Not called for." Would Patterson be saying the same things if we were discussing Steven Avery? Is he willing to throw out the provision of suspension because it is "onerous?" Which felonies carry that form of presumption that would allow the indicted to continue to carry?

Those who draft these bills will keep coming back, year after year, to peel away the small protections offered in the original drafting. Paul Soglin has written about the attempts to rewrite the Castle Doctrine. I've written about attempts to change the presumption of an obligation to retreat before firing.

The proponents of concealed carry are like high-school boys in the back seat of an old Chevy. They're willing to say anything to get us to say yes in the hopes that they can get a little farther the next time. It's time to take a page from Nancy Reagan's book. Just say, "No."

Some Wrap-Up Thoughts From The Candidate Forum

The Gazette has a recap of the candidate forum last Saturday morning. Once again Gina Duwe was on the spot.

You can follow the virtual portion of the discussion continuation at the Observer.

Mason called it informational and fun. That's what we were going for.

In this picture, blatantly stolen from The Observer, are (l to r) Karen Aikman, Mason Braunschweig, Fred Juergens, grumps, and Art Phillips. Looking closely in the audience you can see the back of the mayor's head, the back of my lovely wife's head and the back of my daughter's head.

Reprinted below are my opening remarks from Saturday.

Good morning and my thanks to you all for coming out this
morning.

This week President Bush said, “One of the things that
we've got to value is the fact that we do have a media, free media, that's able
to do what they want to do. -- there's word of mouth, there's blogs, there's
Internet, there's all kinds of ways to communicate which is literally changing
the way people are getting their information.”

That’s part of the reason we are here today. Weblogging is changing the way Americans interact. In an increasingly busy society the Internet gives people the
chance to get news and comment on it on their own terms. Our candidates
are here this morning to answer our questions and will expand on their answers
to these and to a few others later on The Evansville Observer. The voters
of Evansville will then have the opportunity to weigh in on those answers and to
move the debate forward.

I was tempted to show up here today in my pajamas. There are those who feel that bloggers never leave their basements. They are mistaken. Bloggers are your neighbors, your daughters, sons and coworkers. Some estimates say that one new weblog is started every second. Bloggers are the pamphleteers of the 21st Century,
just hoping to get the word out to help voters inform their choices.

Thank you for being a part of this. Now I’m proud to
turn over this conversation to our current mayor, Janis
Rinhand.

Getting Handguns Out Of The Hands Of Criminals- Schadenfreude Edition

Texas suspends Tom Delay's concealed carry permit because of his felony indictment.

Apparently, I've Been Sipping The Kool-Aid

Aaron takes me to task for a comment I left on Subject2Change regarding Mark Green's position on the ethanol mandate.

He makes some good points about the designer gasoline that the Southeast corner of the state is required to use which drives up costs for motorists there. But that has little to do with the ethanol argument and a lot to do with proximity to Chicago and its teeming millions of cars. He also talks about MTBE gasoline being hard on engines.

There is an argument made that today's autos are not made to run on an ethanol blend. That ignores that fact that millions of cars throughout the Midwest have been running on ethanol blends for years, mandated or not. The auto manufacturers are pushing their flex fuel vehicles harder every year and doing it so smoothly that hardly anyone notices. Other countries have used ethanol blends in varying mixtures for years without the world coming to an end. I'm not sure what that has to do with ethanol, either. Weaning this country off tetraethyl lead wasn't easy but it has proven worthwhile.


There is an assertion made that the price of ethanol will increase as more of it is used. That's probably true but I'd rather see Cousin Donny's kids getting a cut than Exxon/Mobil. Once ethanol is in widespread use the price will level out. I'm not sure where but it will level out.

I don't understand the opposition to something that has proven its worth time and again. The ugly backlash is beyond my ken. There seems to be a deeply held belief that something that is good for Wisconsin farmers is somehow bad for Milwaukee and Racine counties and that the only possible solution is to keep pissing money down the fossil fuel rathole.

Those seem to be the places where we can have an open scientific discussion on the merits of alt-fuels and the sociological merits of economic mandates to drive desirable behaviors. There is room for honest disagreement in Aaron and Nick's replies to me.

UPDATE: Dean has this post which links to the argument from both sides.

I try to not be too snide when disagreeing with folks but how am I expected to deal with the assertion that because ethanol is volatile it can't be used as small-engine fuel? That is what makes it useful as fuel in the first place. And then to argue that somehow Paul Harvey has turned into a radical treehugger ethanol pusher? I'm sorry. Lowell Thomas is dead. Get over it.

Evansville Election Links- Not Complete

Link to the Rock County ballot for April 4, 2006. Only 3 of 29 districts have a contested race but there is a hotly contested race for Branch 7 Circuit Cirt judge.

Link to Evansville Ward Map.

If I can get an e-link to the City Ballot I will post it here.

Feingold Vindicated For Stance Against PATRIOT Act

The Pres. says it's not a law that applies to him, anyway.

Remember voters in the 5th, F Jim makes this all possible. Vote for Bryan Kennedy.

RIP Alvis Edgar Owens jr.

The man who brought The Bakersfield Sound to America died yesterday at age 76. Although he was known to many as the Clown Prince of Hee Haw, Buck Owens was a savvy businessman who built a fortune in real estate and media operations.

Buck brought the twangy steel guitar sounds of California to the country music scene in the 60's in stark contrast to the string-laden path being taken in Nashville. His "Cryin' Time" was recorded by Ray Charles as was the Beatles' hit, "Act Naturally."

One of the first albums I can remember playing was "I've Got A Tiger By The Tail." It showed me that there was more to country music than I was hearing on the radio. Life since then has been good.

Rest easy, Buck. You've earned it.

The MJS and The War Referenda

Jay has a deconstruction of the Patrick McIlheran jibberish about why the various anti-war referenda will mean nothing. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist is setting the stage for the referenda across Wisconsin to pass and then to dismiss the result as aberrant.

Here in Evansville we have a different choice that is not mentioned in the article. We should have a clearer picture of city sentiment based on having two referenda of our own, one which calls for an orderly withdrawal plan and one which blesses the efforts of Bush and Co.

Don't let the vagaries of a Spring election keep you away from the polls. Get out and make your voice heard. If you need to know more about the differences between the referenda in Evansville you should attend CUUE's informational forum on Wednesday night. The moderator for the event will be Georgia Duerst-Lahti. You can see the questions to be asked here. Or you can watch for the forum on your local news outlet.

Now It's Your Turn

This morning's candidate forum was a rousing sucess, especially for a first time affair. The Observer has pics posted (look close and you can see your humble reporter) and has the questions up as a series of Watercoolers. We will be moderating the discussion all weekend.

Come join the fun.

A Two Horse Race For the Time Being

Scott Walker is withdrawing his candidacy for governor citing the damage a Republican primary could cause and Mark Green's money lead.

His full statement is here.

Why Am I Writing About the Waukesha County Board?

James Wigderson sent me an impassioned note calling for help in the petition drive to reduce the size of the Waukesha County Board. I won't post it here for several reasons. If any of you want to see his letter you may follow this link.

My reasons.
1) I don't live in Waukesha County. It's not my fight.
2) I don't think the Waukesha County Board should be reduced in size.
3) It's hard enough to run a non-profit with budget of $150,000 and a board of 8. Trying to run a growing county with 11 is borderline insanity.
4) You need sufficient involvement to maintain an effective committee structure. Eleven ain't enough.
5) With the population and the growth of the county you will be best served by greater representation. If Scott Newcomer can fool that many people at one time, the influence of one or two people should be diluted.

And for those who don't believe the damage that one or two well-intentioned but misguided people on a county board can do, I have two words. Progressive Dane. 'nuff said.