Wolves In Sheep's Clothing...

On many weekends during the Bush administration, the group "Pax Christie," would stage antiwar protests in front of our local Barnes & Noble. When asked of their intentions, they would state that their beef wasn't with then-President George W. Bush, but rather they were against war in all its forms.

Curiously, they continue to be absent since the election of Barack Obama.

Oh, they would say that since Obama's election, a new era of hope and change had emerged; that protests are no longer necessary.

Yet, since Obama’s election, there has been an escalation of the war in Afghanistan--and now in Libya, where Muammar Khaddaffy's son and three grandchildren were recently killed at a "family gathering." Guantanamo Bay remains open for business. Even an extra-legal assassination of a well-known Al Qaeda leader took place in a foreign country without U.N. approval!

Yet, the shadows of Pax Christi members still remain absent from the grassy knoll in front of Barnes & Noble. The makeshift caskets, pictures of civilians killed, and "NO BLOOD FOR OIL!" signs have vanished. Even the omnipresent NO-HALLIBURTON signs no longer grace the area, though the 'evil' bogeyman continues to provide logistical support for the wars.

Not a single word of protest. Zip. Zero. Nada.

Could it be that members of "Pax Christi" actually had a political axe to grind; that their protestations and concern over war and its accompanying horrors were secondary, at best, to whomever occupied 2600 Pennsylvania Avenue?

Perish the thought.

I'm sure their intentions are as pure as the wind-driven snow-- that they have a vegan cooking class to make every Saturday, or that the batteries in their Prius died and they are patiently awaiting their exchange.

Yeah. That must be it.

A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit
Lk. 6.43, 44
15	¶ Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16	Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17	Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18	A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19	Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Mt. 3.10 · Lk. 3.9
20	Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Mt. 12.33

Regarding The Caucus...

I attended our SD-15 BPOU caucus last night, and I was kind of sorry that my first choice, Tom Emmer, did not finish first.

But I was heartened by Emmer campaign manager, David Fitzsimmons who had this to say in an email:

We are very pleased with the results - they matched our expectations and show we clearly have the momentum heading into the next phase of the campaign. Here are some notes on the straw poll results that you can share with other Emmer supporters:

• Tom Emmer has the momentum, both in endorsements and now in the balloting. We closed the gap from 14 points to 10 points and we're the only campaign moving in a positive direction.

• Although we lost the non-binding straw poll, we did win in key delegate-rich areas. Remember, the next round is winner-take-all as we elect delegates to the state convention.

• In fact, Emmer won four of the eight Congressional Districts, but more importantly, he won the districts with the most delegate strength. If you add the delegate strength from districts won by Emmer (2, 3, 5, and 6) you get 1080 delegates. That is more than Seifert's total of 920 delegates from districts 1, 4, 7 and 8.

• Our strong second place finish has made this a two person race - no one else has a legitimate shot at endorsement from this point forward.

• Seifert's edge was in Greater Minnesota where name recognition is key, and his 3 years as a minority spokesman was a huge advantage. Tom's overwhelming success came in the metro area where it was possible to meet and speak with folks. We must now ensure that our outstate friends have an opportunity to get to know Tom on a personal level.

• In order to win the general election, the Republican candidate needs to connect with voters in the swing districts in the suburbs. The numbers don't lie - Tom is clearly stronger here and there is no reason to believe he won't also do well in traditional Republican strongholds like the 7th Congressional District.

The numbers behind the numbers look really positive for the Emmer campaign, but it's going to take a lot of hard work to win this endorsement. Thanks you very much for the support you've shown so far and please keep it up as we head into the next phase of this election.

Don't get me wrong--I won't shed any tears if Seifert eventually gets the nod. But it seems to me that Tom has the rare gift to be able to connect with voters on a gut level. Spend just five minutes with Mr. Emmer, and you feel that he's not some lofty politician, he's one of us, a guy who can connect with you on a personal level, not just in an ideological sense.

Not that Marty Seifert is a slouch, but for the reasons outlined above, I think Tom Emmer is an even more electable candidate, and I believe he will be more effective in driving the grass roots GOP agenda to fruition.

Ross Ueckert--an American Patriot

Ross spoke at our TEA party this past Saturday (9/12) in St. Cloud... below is a video of the speech he gave:
Mr. Ueckert was in Wadena, MN as of yesterday, and he'll continue making his eastward trek until he gets to the Lincoln Monument in D.C., in his words, "Whenever God wants me there." Mr. Ueckert's goal is to have 10,000,000 patriots join him.

After speaking with the contagiously optimistic Mr. Ueckert, that just may be an underestimate.

Follow Ross at his website, http://ourgreatwalk.com.

St. Cloud Superman Sighting...

.I was passing by the Dairy Queen today, and the St. Cloud Superman had his very own version of "Mini-Me,"donning a "V for Vendetta" mask.

Not being one to pass up an opportunity for some blog-fodder on a light news day, I stopped and asked John if I could take his picture (to which he happily consented).

I remarked about his "V for Vendetta" mask on his protege, to which he commented, "There's a line in the movie, where the character says, "People shouldn't be afraid of its government; government should be afraid of the people. I thought it a fitting symbol for this day and age."

Can't say that I disagree.

MN SD-15 BPOU Convention

Well, we got some fresh blood in the leadership of MN SD 15 BPOU (Basic Political Organizational Unit, for those of you in Rio Linda); not that I'm complaining about the old blood.. My hat's off to Jeff Johnson and Josh Behling, who both did a bang-up job helping our BPOU; especially during the unprecedented turnout that was experienced at last winter's BPOU caucus, in which by all accounts over 1,000 SD 15 Republican faithful showed up to make a difference.

We will certainly miss Jeff's and Josh's leadership and expertise, especially in integrating our BPOU into the electronics age. On top of that, it would be difficult to find two nicer guys if you searched the world over with binoculars.

As of now, Jeff Radcliffe and newcomer Rick Vanden..(gads, can't remember the last name--sorry Rick) will co-chair SD15; Barbara Banaian (yes, King's wife), will be SD 15B vice chair, Dan Ochsner will be 15A vice chair, Dorothy Thompson will remain on as treasurer, and yours truly (yes, me) was elected as the new SD 15 secretary. Additionally, I was elected as an alternate delegate for State Central.

There were some surprises in store tonight, as well; specifically, I was honored as a recipient of two recognition awards; one a "suitable for framing" award from Michele Bachmann for Congress campaign, and another beautiful wooden plaque for service to SD-15 and "toward the cause of conservatism." Fellow SCBA bloggers Gary Gross and King Banaian were given similar awards. Truth be told, I was at once flabbergasted and honored, as I have never before received such recognition.

Another surprise was that my 18-year old son, Leo III, who was basically at his first BPOU meeting as a voting-aged citizen, ran for State Central delegate. He got up and gave a speech, the whole nine yards, saying that he was no longer going to sit on the sidelines, and that he wanted to make a difference.

Even though he was not elected, to say that I was proud of him this evening would be a gross understatement.

He is a fine young man, and is destined, as he says, to make a difference in his lifetime.

Granite City Days Parade a Success!

I had the honor of being in St. Cloud's Granite City Days Parade with Steve Gottwalt this evening-- and I would term the affair a rousing success, not so much of all that went well, but because of things that didn't go so well.

Let me explain.

There was a lot of energy at the beginning of the parade route. Although there was a little mist in the air, it was still relatively good parade weather. There were approximately 20 supporters of Steve who were walking the route with him; myself, I had the honor of driving a hot-looking 2006 Pontiac Solstice in the parade. Everything was going great until around half-way in the parade, when all hell let loose weatherwise. It was pouring rain like the dickens; an event that would have led a lesser group of people take cover. But instead of losing energy from a drenching rain, Steve's pace picked up! He was running back and forth in the pouring rain, shaking everyone's hands, smiling, and exuding enough energy to power a medium-sized town for a week. He was in his element, and on his game, and the crowd was cheering him on.

We, those who were walking and riding with Steve, were able to pick up on his energy ourselves. King's wife, Barb, along with littlest Scholar, made up some on-the-spot choreography with the other sign carriers--and all were having a blast!

[I did get a chance to see the DFL portion of the parade, and I believe that Al Franken himself was walking in it (though I can't be sure).. The DFLers actually had a real jack-ass (no kidding) walking with them. And on the top of one of their cars, was a life-sized standing cardboard cutout of "The Messiah" Obama (oh, the rich irony in that)].

Unfortunately, during the rain my Treo 680 got wet, and FUBARed, so I was unable to take pictures. Rest assured, though, I have never seen a campaigner like Steve Gottwalt, and I'm honored to be on his team!

From "Superman" to "SuperPimp"?

As you remember, I posted stories regarding St. Cloud's very own superman here, and here (more here) Well, the other day I was tooling around town on my Virago and passed the intersection of 25th and Division street, right by the Dairy Queen. Instead of seeing the venerable St. Cloud Superman, I saw a new character, sitting on a Coleman folding chair, with a fishing pole, and dressed up kinda like this:

Well, I had to check this out. So I parked my motorcycle at the DQ, got a frozen hot chocolate, approached the guy, and asked him, "What gives with the new get-up?"

He assured me that he was doing it just to "keep people guessing." He related that to dress up like a pimp was the antithesis of Superman. He added that he was all about freedom and freedom of expression.

Of course, during the conversation John Filla was his old congenial self, and graciously accepted when I asked him to pose for the picture above.

I don't know--I gotta kinda hand it to a guy who's not afraid to be "out there" and to make a statement.

Carry on, Superman.

Et tu, George?

George Bush has drunk the Gore-Aid....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush, stepping into the debate over global warming, plans to announce on Wednesday a national goal for stopping the growth of greenhouse gas emissions over the next few decades.

In a speech in the Rose Garden, Bush will lay out a strategy rather than a specific proposal for curbing emissions, White House press secretary Dana Perino said Tuesday. She did not disclose details of his announcement and would not say whether the president would propose any kind of mandatory cap on greenhouse gas emissions.

The president wants every major economy, including fast-growing nations like China and India, to establish a national goal for cutting the emissions believed responsible for global warming.

Granted that Bush's plan doesn't seem as extreme as Algore's or other enviro-nutters, but what bothers me most in the first place is the perceived need among so-called conservative politicians to even humor the demonstrably false notion that human activities actually have an impact on something as global as climate; all for the purpose of being able to beat your chest at election time and say that you care.

Yet more onerous is the fact that the man-made global warming (MMWG) fairy tale, when translated into public and fiscal policy, it is nothing less than devastating to our economic and strategic well-being. A fairy tale, that when followed to its logical conclusion, inflicts very real yet very-unnecessary suffering and hardship on all of us.

When we are prevented from harvesting our own proven domestic sources of energy for fear of offending the nature-nutters, to the point where not only does the cost of energy skyrocket exponentially, to the point where we are not only beholden to third world thugs to meet our energy needs, but also to the point where the cost of the very food on which we survive becomes less and less affordable, I have a bit more than a problem with that.

And to add insult to injury, we have supposedly conservative folks like our front-runner for president, our governor, and even our mayor wantonly perpetuating the MMWG myth for nothing else than for purposes of political correctness. I spoke with Governor Pawlenty about a month ago regarding his stances on the Midwestern Regional Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord, and he in effect had the attitude that it "wasn't hurting anybody" and that he would only go along with the initiatives if they don't have a deleterious effect on the economy.

Memo to Pawlenty: It has.

There are those, even in the conservative blogosphere, who say that there is a need for conservative candidates to pay homage to the MMGW gods in order to be elected.

To that, I politely say, "POPPYCOCK!"

The heretofore widespread public belief in the MMGW scam has hit its watermark; and the impending backlash is very apparent to anyone who lives and does business outside the beltway and outside the Capitol grounds in St. Paul. Anyone with an IQ above room temperature and a bleeding wallet to match has seen, is starting to see, or soon will see the ruse; and the first politician to have the presence of mind and the cajones to call this hoax for what it is will rightly go miles in the current and future political landscape.

And just for telling the truth.

Feature that.

Sharia, Dhimmitude come to St. Cloud...

St. Cloud area banks now making special "interest free" loans for Muslims:

Specialty loan programs give Muslim buyers opportunities
By Britt Johnsen, bljohnsen@stcloudtimes.com

Published: March 26. 2008 12:30AM

It took more than two years, but Hassan Shire finally got a loan to start his business.

He hopes to get a permit soon to build his cafe — Kushite Gourmet Coffee — on West St. Germain Street.

"It was a happy ending," he said through interpreter Mohamoud Mohamed, founder and director of the St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization.

But those two years weren't easy. Shire, a Muslim, had difficulty obtaining a loan that would accommodate his faith. Islamic laws forbid Muslims from earning or paying interest.

SASSO is working with some area banks to help more Somali Muslims find success through home ownership or entrepreneurship.

Banks are creating loan programs that allow Muslims such as Shire to obtain financing for homes, businesses or cars. The programs meet American banking standards and regulations while complying with Islamic beliefs.

Now isn't that special? They have their own taxpayer-funded prayer rooms in public schools, their own taxpayer-footed footbaths at airports, now their own "interest free" loans.

Where the hell do I sign up?

Highway Robbery

With a day job with little opportunity for interaction with the outside world, you can unfortunately miss some important events that happen in a given day. To say that I missed an important event today would be a gross understatement.

After reading Andy's post about the woodshedding that was going on with respective Repbulican candidates and their delegate conventions, I held out a ray of hope that the economic homicide that the Minnesota democrat delegation was about to commit would be put on hold, in favor of cooler heads, and common sense.

I was wrong. The Minnesota DFL (D-Tax-N-Spend), along with 8 RINOs, voted to override what little protection that was left for Minnesota's already-beleaguered taxpayers. There were even two Republican senators who voted to override the veto, even though all that was needed was a party-line vote.

Congratulations, democrats and ex-Republicans. You just gave Minnesota's taxpayers the biggest state tax increase in the history of our lives; in the history of Minnesota, all in one feld swoop, without batting an eyelash.

Full of pork and empty promises, this "anything but transportation bill" will saddle Minnesotans with over $7 BILLION DOLLARS in NEW TAXES. At a time when the price of gas is near an ALL TIME HIGH; at a time when Minnesota is teetering on the brink of RECESSION, if not already in it.

Senator Tarryl Clark and Representative Larry Haws, and Representative Larry Hosch will all have some 'splainin' to do to St. Cloud area voters as to why they didn't feel the need to prioritize any spending before reaching their grubby little fingers into their constituents' wallets.

The 6 EX-REPUBLICAN house members, and 2 EX-REPUBLICAN senate members should be duly placed on notice that their seats are NOT SAFE, and they will be from now on known as personna non grata to their Republican constituents, as well as to the State Republican party as turncoats who couldn't be counted on to support their party leader as he tried to protect Minnesota taxpayers from this confiscatory, bloated, spending orgy.

This tax and spending orgy party created by the Minnesota DFL should be proof positive that they are genetically, and aphrodisiastically-addicted to spending other people's money like drunken prostitutes with an unlimited ATM card.

DOES ANYBODY REMEMBER THIS??

No tax increases in DFL budget plan

by Tom Scheck, Minnesota Public Radio

March 8, 2007

Listen to feature audio

Despite their criticism that Gov. Pawlenty hasn't proposed spending enough on programs like education and health care, DFL leaders of the Minnesota Senate have come up with a budget plan of their own that doesn't raise general taxes. The proposal disappoints several committee chairs who were hoping for more money to follow through on some of the campaign promises they made last year.

Senate DFLers have been leading the charge in recent years to increase taxes. This year, DFL Sen. Tarryl Clark of St. Cloud says their spending plan will be more in line with Gov. Pawlenty's $34.4 billion two year budget proposal. (MPR Photo/Tom Scheck)

Gee... me thinks thou speakest with a forked tongue, Tarryl.

Andy Barnett to be on Hardball...

St. Cloud resident and talk show host Andy Barnett will be on Chris Matthews' Hardball in around another 25 minutes...

He will reportedly be discussing the evangelicals's continuing support for a Mike Huckabee candidacy for POTUS...

Tune in!

Impressive... most impressive.

I didn't know this was Jeff's son.

I knew it would only be a matter of time...

Until the St. Cloud Superman got his own song:





Pretty much sums it up :-)

Michele Bachmann kicks off 2008 Campaign in St. Cloud

And in grand style.

Fresh in from a Christmas trip to Iraq, and an earlier trip to Israel, MN 6th District U.S. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann kicked off her 2008 campaign today at a home in St. Cloud. Looking even better than she did a year ago, Bachmann was her usual firebrand self, yet even more confident in her convictions than she was a year ago.

Bachmann related that after the 2006 elections, the House Republicans had a "Come to Jesus" moment and realized that their poor showing in the 2006 elections were directly related to the fact that many in the Republican Party had forgotten how to be Republican, and that House Republicans stood firm in the face of a democrat majority that voted 40 times to declare defeat in Iraq, and who tried to put forth the largest tax increase in the history of the United States.

Bachmann related how when Republicans were in the majority, an average of 600 votes were cast during a normal legislative year. Last year, according to Bachmann, somewhere in the neighborhood of 1200 bills were put up for a vote in the House. Of those 1200, only around 140 passed; and of those 140 bills, nearly half of those were for re-naming post offices.

In other words, the U.S. House Democrat leadership got nothing done of substance. Bachmann described most of the 1200 bills brought to the floor as "vanity bills," bills designed to look good to constituents, but were short on substance and weren't even meant to pass.

This despite an inordinate amount of time spent in Washington at the behest of the House democrat leadership. In her talk, Bachmann lamented the fact that she was required to spend so much time in Washington, as she didn't get nearly as much of a chance to visit with her constituents as her predecessor, Mark Kennedy, who was in office during a Republican majority.

In her speech, Bachmann described herself as having an iron spine, and that she has not and would not bend from her principles of small government, sanctity of life, strong national defense, and low taxes.

Bachmann also related how she is one of 16 legislators in the U.S. House and Senate (Senator Norm Coleman being the other Minnesota legislator on the list) being targeted for extinction by George Soros and Moveon.org. She related how the democrats had outspent her campaign by $3,000,000 in 2006, yet she emerged victorious because she stayed true to the conservative message.

Bachmann closed her talk as she related her experiences in Israel and Iraq, having spent Christmas with our troops in Baghdad. She related how humbled she felt at their sacrifices, and the pride that she felt with regard to all that they accomplished since the surge began.

Also present at the gala were Minnesota Representatives Steve Gottwalt and Dan Severson, as well as bloggers extraordinaire King Banaian (and his lovely wife) and Gary Gross; along with St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis, and soon-to-be returning KNSI talk show host Dan "The Ox" Ochsner.

Everyone there was fired up and ready to run through walls to ensure a successful 2008 election.

Folks, there is no greater conservative voice in the United States House of Representatives than Michele Bachmann. Although I was a bit skiddish in the beginning, since I have come to know her I have every confidence in her conservative, principled leadership, and the residents of Minnesota 6th are more than fortunate to benefit from her unwavering dedication to conservative ideals.

Leighton Broadcasting Kowtows to Liberal Whining (bumped)

****UPDATE (11/5/2007; 9:41pm CST)

According to Eva Young, John Sowada sent an email to her claiming that Langsjoen did not complain to him (see comments).

Consistent with what I wrote in my last update, I apologize to Ms. Langsjoen for posting what appears to be an inaccurate account of what happened.

My assessment of Langsjoen's character; which was solely based on her behavior during the interview, still stands.

---------------------------------------------------------------------


If you can't beat them, silence them.

Andy Barnett, of KNSI-AM 1450's morning show, Hot Talk, has been fired.

I listened this morning to Barnett's interview of two St. Cloud City Council Ward 3 candidates, John Libert, and Karen J. Langsjoen.

Langsjoen displayed her mean spiritedness right off the bat when Barnett mispronounced her name (well, who the hell wouldn't?). Langsjoen, whom one could tell is as liberal as the year is long, took great umbrage with Barnett's quizzing both her and Libert on their stances regarding the sanctity of life.

To put it mildly, Langsjoen had a cow, saying that Barnett had no call to question city council candidates on their stance toward abortion.

Barnett countered that it was indeed relevant on a number of levels; including the notion that many of KNSI's conservative listeners (yes, KNSI is a station heavily geared toward conservatives) would assess the pro-life stance of candidates as a barometer of the candidate's character; additionally, Barnett brought up the fact that the Council may have to choose city employees' health plans, and voters may be interested as to whether Langsjoen would approve a plan that paid for abortions, and/or domestic partnerships (read: Gay civil unions).

Langsjoen would have none of it, and refused to answer the questions. Barnett continued to be respectful toward Langsjoen throughout the interview, and never raised his voice toward her; however Langsjoen continued to be very short and terse with Barnett, avoiding and evading questions in a manner that would make Hillary Clinton appear to be a "straight shooter." Immediately following the interview, Langsjoen apparently stormed into the offices and threw what could be described as a whiny hissy fit to Leighton Broadcasting 's general manager John Sawada, who, after reportedly apologizing to Langsjoen up and down, fired Barnett.

First of all at the start of the interview, Langsjoen had stated that she "always was interested in getting into politics."

Word to Langsjoen: If you can't take the heat, get the hell out of the kitchen.

Secondly, KNSI's Hot Talk, ever since its inception with then-host Dan Ochsner, has been an edgy, hard-hitting, yet entertaining morning talk show.

As a conservative (and I would imagine the lion's share of listener's to Hot Talk and other KNSI programming are, as well, conservatives). I truly believe that it is an important component of one's character about how one feels and thinks regarding the sanctity of life.

I agree with Mr. Barnett's assertion that it is always prudent to have a read on someone's character before placing them in a position of trust in the community.

While it may have seemed unorthodox to quiz the candidates regarding their stance on the sanctity of life, in my opinion, it was nonetheless relevant.

Perhaps Mr. Barnett didn't include as many local city issues as he should have, but that was no reason for Leighton to fire him. A reprimand would have sufficed.

I do not expect Hot Talk to be a hallmark of genteel chit chat. I expect it to be hard hitting, as well as entertaining.

If KNSI goes milquetoast, they can expect their current listenership to decrease exponentially.

You want genteel chit-chat? Go call your grandmother.

I ask readers in the KNSI-AM listening area to contact Mr. Sawada and register their disappointment in their decision to fire Barnett:

General Manger: John Sowada

jsowada@leighton-stcloud.com

320-251-1450

As for you, Ms. Karen J. Langsjoen--you whiny, joyless, hateful fishwife-- as a result of your adolescent whining, I hope you don't get vote one from Ward 3 voters.

And as luck would have it, I myself will have the honor to cast my vote for your challenger.

****UPDATE*****

King has more.

In the Times Story Chat, Langsjoen denies ever having spoken to Leighton management about the interview. My source states otherwise.

****UPDATE**** (11/3/07 11:26pm CDT)

When I asked Mr. Barnett to clarify whether Langsjoen complained to Sowada, Barnett replied,

Several people at Leighton told me that they saw her talking with John Sowada and heard him apologizing repeatedly to her... I didn't witness it myself however...

****UPDATE****(11/5/07, 6:43pm CST)

I just spoke over the phone with Mr. Barnett to clarify whether Langsjoen complained to Sowada. Barnett maintains that someone told him that they overheard Langjsjoen complaining to Sowada, and Sowada apologizing to her. He also, however, states that the whole situation was "a blurr" (understandable when one gets fired). Others state that she was complaining to an intern ("The Senator) working on the show.

I will continue to try to investigate the story.

If it is confirmed, in fact, that Langsjoen didn't talk with Sowada, I will wholeheartedly apologize in advance.

But my opinion of Langsjoen's evasive, caustic and abrasive behavior on the show, as well as my resultant impression of her fitness for office (or lack thereof) still stands; and I believe that in any event, it was her histrionic reaction to the questions that was ultimately the catalyst for Barnett's dismissal. Also, it remains my opinion that Barnett's questions were not out of line, given the context of the show and its audience.

Republican Lies I Didn't Know Were Lies (until Mark Ritchie told me so)

Just for the edification of it all, I attended a MN DFL fundraiser last night in St. Cloud, called the "Minnesota DFL Local & Sustainable Foods Dinner."

Before I begin, let me say that my DFL hosts were more than gracious. The event was largely apolitical in nature. It consisted of a meal prepared from "sustainable area ingredients," consisting of yak meat (no, I'm not kidding--and it was quite tasty, as well), squash, tiny cherry tomatoes, a couple of pasta dishes, and a fantastic apple cobbler. The meal was followed by the local producers of the food, explaining how they grow them organically, as well as the chef (a fantastic chef, to be sure), who told how the meal was put together, and also gave a presentation as to chemicals present in non-organic foods. I sat with a DFL official from Cold Spring and his wife, and we had a great chat about a number of issues, including Iraq and my son's service there. They were very gracious, and wished my son well.

All well and good, and interesting.

Then came the keynote speaker of the evening, Minnesota Secretary of State, Mark Ritchie. Since it was an evening that had to do with "sustainable" foods, Mark Ritchie was invited, ostensibly due to his work with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

Basically, what it all appeared to boil down to is that Ritchie applied his experience as a lobbyist for the organic food industry to advancing liberal/neo-socialist political causes. After taking some obligatory, uncalled-for swipes at former Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer, and telling the obligatory tales about blacks in the South being murdered on their way to vote, Ritchie went on to talk about large corporate food operations' alleged propaganda war against "sustainable" organic food operations, and applied the same process to supposed republican propaganda (read: lies). Said Ritchie,

"There's a whole propaganda machine out there that says you know better what to do with your money than the government, or that home schooling is better than public schools."

"Gee. Maybe the government does know best!" (/sarc)

Later, Ritchie loudly proclaimed another Republican lie; or rather the neo-socialist version of the "truth," saying:

"Just like Greenspan said, the Iraq war was all about oil!"

I thought to myself, "The minute Greenspan begins commanding our soldiers, I might give him credibility in that department."

Ritchie's comments drew cheers from some, silence from others.

Ritchie also brought up the supposed propaganda machine with regard to the use of oil, implying that ethanol was the end-all and be-all of liquid energy.

Ritchie went on to say with all the disgust he could muster,

"On my way here, I saw a Burlington Northern train, just spewing out black smoke, and carrying rail car after rail car full of coal!" "I hate oil." "I hate oil and coal!"

But, much to my surprise, not all DFLers present were prepared to drink the ethanol kool-aid! There were several who brought up the problems associated with using corn for ethanol, and one in the audience even went so far as to in effect say "the ethanol emperor had no clothes," and called the ethanol movement "a disaster." People also noted that switchgrass would be a viable alternative, citing that the ethanol-driven increase in the price of corn was increasing the price of food. Ritchie downplayed and/or dismissed the notion altogether, saying that,

"Americans don't eat corn; Americans feed the corn to cattle, and then Americans eat cattle."

Hmm. I guess that last piece of corn on the cob I ate must have been a figment of my imagination. But I digress.

Another in the audience went on to cite that in Mexico, where corn is a staple, much of the corn now growing there goes toward ethanol, rather than food; which resulted in a substantial price increase in food with which Mexicans were ill-prepared to deal.

Again, Ritchie dismissed this, saying "They grow a different kind of corn in Mexico, than they do in the U.S." But the audience member retorted, "But they're still growing corn for ethanol now, instead of food." Ritchie went on to say that if everyone pastured their cattle vs. feeding them corn, it wouldn't be a problem.

Finally, another DFL audience member stated, "Will there ever be a time when the DFL can have an open and honest debate about this?

Ritchie replied,

"Well, as you know, the DFL has always had open and honest debates about everything!"

A portion of my cup of Peace Coffee just about came out of my nose when I heard that.

Yet another DFLer asked Mark, "Seeing all the environmental and other problems that have come about as a result of ethanol production, do you still endorse corn-based ethanol as a viable alternative?

Ritchie replied, in a loud, forceful voice, "ABSOLUTELY!" and went on to say, "When you go about things, there's always the possibility that you'll do it wrong," [Tell me about it--ed.]. "But it's just like the Texas Instrument Calculators when they first came out--they were clumsy and didn't work too well--now look at them."

Yes, Ritchie proved himself a regular Mr. Bojangles on this topic.

He sidestepped, two-stepped and tried to tarantella his way out of it, but everyone saw through him like the combined wardrobe of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton.

As a sidenote, on my way out, I had a chance to compliment the gentleman who brought up the "honest, open debate," comment; he smiled and said that he knew that Ritchie wouldn't be able to answer his question, for he and the DFL were too beholden to the ethanol interests.

Ritchie then went on a spiel about how Republicans are fearmongers, and always try to play the fear card to maintain their power.

Incidentally, Ritchie followed those comments with,

"You gotta be careful, cause this is an armed country! Remember 1968, when our nation was willing to use bullets to stifle dissent! This isn't like Canada, or England. This is an ARMED country!"

If nothing else, it was a perfect example of the psychological defense mechanism known as projection. Not to mention a short memory, given that the 1968 riots occurred in Chicago. During the Democrat Convention. Under a Democrat Mayor who gave the orders to "shoot to kill;" and to utilize mace to detain youngsters.

Mark's comments suggest, in no uncertain terms, that the elitist Mark Ritchie wishes to portray conservatives in America as gun-totin' shootem' up paramilitary folk who are just chompin' at the bit to pick themselves off a few of dem dere hippies.

Puhleeeeze!

At the end of the evening, I approached Secretary of State Ritchie, and confronted him about his gratuitous Iraq war statement. Specifically, I told him about my son's service, and stated in no uncertain terms that Ritchie's comments served to demean his service. Ritchie immediately retorted with, "But Alan Greenspan said," to which I said, "I don't care what he said. The soldiers aren't there for oil! My son has helped the Iraqis build irrigation systems; he helped them get running water; he was protecting those people! Your statement deeply offended me."

Ritchie responded by stating something to the effect, "You're right, I should have been more careful of what I said."

I wonder if he'll remember that next time.

If I see pigs flying in the near future, I'll be sure and let you know.

Local St. Cloud Area Legislators sound off on I-35 W Bridge Issue

From yesterday morning's KNSI's Hot Talk with AndyBarnett.

Barnett invited all area legislators for a round table to discuss the prospects of bridge funding, a special session, and other issues.

Present in the interview were Representative Steve Gottwalt (R-15-A), Representative Dan Severson (R-14-A), and via phone with Representative Larry Hosch (D-14-B).

Refusing to participate were District 15 State Senator Tarryl Clark (D), as well as Representative Larry Haws (D-15-B). District 14 Senator Michelle Fischbach (R) was unable to participate due to prior commitments.

The first part focuses on possible funding sources for upkeep of infrastructure (i.e., bridges) as well as the prospect for a special session and a gas tax increase; the second part focuses on the same; however, the discussion later on veers into the provision of the recently passed omnibus bill that affords free contraception to 12-year olds without parental notification.

Yes, both parts are long, but well worth the listen!

(Both links will open in a new window)

Part 1.


Part 2.


It should be noted that I had lunch with Rep. Gottwalt and with Rep. Matt Dean, and both have grave reservations regarding a special session.

Even though Governor Pawlenty can dictate the conditions under which he will call the special session, once the special session has started, the majority DFL party are then free to change the agenda to suit themselves, and can come out of the session with something much different than what was agreed upon by themselves and the Governor. In other words, once the session starts, it is totally out of the Governor's hands.

The Governor can still veto what comes out of the session, however, he did reportedly express that he was hesitant to veto legislation from a special session that he himself would call.

It is my opinion, however, that the Governor has every right to veto legislation which is clearly outside of the parameters of what would have been agreed upon in good faith at the outset.

However, to save all of the trouble that would certainly ensue, it would behoove Governor Pawlenty (who incidentally has political capital to the tune of a 75% approval rating) to follow the advice of Reps. Severson and Gottwalt: Don't call a special session in the first place. It has been proven that the DFL leadership cannot be trusted in such matters, and a special session will inevitably result in a political can of worms that would be better left unopened.

Larry Haws has some serious competion..

Larry Haws, who can best be described as a sort of Jekyll & Hyde version of Wilford Brimley, (no kidding!)


now has some real competition for his Minnesota District 15 B legislative seat:

A St. Cloud Republican began his bid for a state legislative seat Tuesday, almost 17 months before next year's election.

Joshua Behling, 26, said he filed paperwork with the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Disclosure Board that would allow him to raise money and run for a House District 15B seat occupied by Rep. Larry Haws, DFL-St. Cloud.

"I considered running in the last election, but I didn't feel it was the right time," said Behling, who became co-chairman of the Senate District 15 Republican Party earlier this year. "I'm frustrated with the way things happened at the Capitol this year. I'm frustrated by the amount of tax increase proposals that came out."

Behling, a Buffalo native, owns a small business that provides marketing and sales assistance to other small businesses. If he runs, it would be his first attempt at public elected office.

Having personally met Mr. Behling, I can tell you that along with being a young man, he has a "fire in the belly" that has led him to stand out in his administration of MN Senate District 15 BPOU.

Mr. Haws, who likes to present himself as a kindly, grandfatherly moderate, has received a dismal rating from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, and actually has chosen to endorse the way-out-left-whacko Al Franken for Minnesota's open U.S. Senate seat in 2008.

Although Mr. Haws would state otherwise, the differences couldn't be more stark, and MN SD 15 B residents will have a real choice in November of 2008.

But your sign said "Drive thru" service!

From here:

No one was hurt today when a car went through the front entrance of Walgreens Store, 2505 Division St.

Sylvester Becker, 84, of St. Cloud was driving his car at 1 p.m. today when it went through the doors to the store, Sgt. Dave Bentrud said. Becker told police that the car’s throttle got stuck.

The building did not receive any structural damage, but it left a mess of glass in the main entrance, he said.

.Looks more like Mr. Becker hit the throttle instead of the brakes..

Sunday Evening Smackdown...

The St. Cloud "SomeTimes" (Thanks, Gary) had an op-ed from Opinion Page Editor Randy Krebs:


Gottwalt joins in partisan choir

After hearing his recent radio rants, though, I wonder. Did I misjudge him? Did he mislead the voters of District 15A last fall? Did the Republican Party somehow implant its platform of partisan cliches in his brain? Or is the Capitol environment really so partisan that there is no chance for common-sense government?

Now I realize the radio station he spoke on probably should be renamed "KGOP," and it most certainly will never be able to broadcast in stereo because all its programming comes out of the speaker on the right.

But as surely as Gottwalt knows that, he also knows all listeners are not lockstep members of the right-leaning choir to whom he clearly is preaching.

Yet for a month, he has done nothing but portray himself and the Republican Party as the saviors of state government, your morals and, of course, your tax dollars, while pretty much demonizing the DFL Party.

Although he speaks for only a few minutes each week, he routinely manages to parrot the governor's "no new taxes" philosophy and bash the DFL as playing nothing but politics at the Capitol.

Indeed, I find it perplexing that he talks in such starkly partisan tones about those issues, but in the next breath makes it sound like local legislators — no matter their party — are holding hands and singing "We Are The World" on local issues. (Aren't all politics local?)

KGOP? Never mind that the St. Cloud editorial board can just as easily be called the St. Cloud DFL Times.

KNSI, a talk radio station, is conservative, and unabashedly so. None of the shows, including Hot Talk, make any pretenses about being fair and balanced. Most all shows are political opinion.

Suffice it to say, that two local bloggers, Gary Gross and King Banaian have taken it upon themselves to take Mr. Krebs to task, and have done so swimmingly!:

...From Gary:

Having followed this legislative session with a microscope, I'm qualified to say that, yes, the partisanship that Rep. Gottwalt has talked about exists. In fact, I'd say that Rep. Gottwalt's criticism is a bit mild.

Here's the link to my post about the ugly partisanship displayed by House Majority Leader Tony Sertich:

http://www.letfreedomringblog.com/2007/02/28/the-indictment-against-tony-sertich/

When the House voted on the permanent rules for the House, Sertich defeated all but one of the rules that the GOP offered. The only rule that passed was one that put in place a 1 year ban on lobbying after a legislator left the legislature. Worse than that, Sertich made some of the snippiest comments I've ever seen. It wasn't enough that he defeated a series of great reforms. He had to add to that by being a total jerk that day.

I've watched committee hearings on the government access channel, too. One afternoon, the DFL defeated all but one of the GOP's amendments to various education bills by a 9-5 vote. The amendment that passed did so by an 8-6 vote.

I've watched the DFL House stripped out all of Gov. Pawlenty's education recommendations. Does that sound like bipartisanship?

Now, let's deal with Rep. Gottwalt's speaking well of "local legislators". There's a simple reason why he does that. It's because Larry Haws has probably been the least partisan DFL legislator in the state.

I also remember the night I got a call from Rep. Gottwalt, telling me of how Rep. Cy Thao told him at a committee hearing "When you guys win, you get to keep your money. When we win, we take your money." I remember him telling me how the DFL wasn't having anything to do with any 'GOP-only' amendments, that they were shooting down almost all of the GOP only amendments.

That doesn't sound like bipartisanship.

I remember the day Assistant House Minority Leader Laura Brod tried proposing a series of tax cuts during the debate on the tax conformity bill that's now the law. Speaker Margaret Anderson-Kelliher ruled all of Rep. Brod's amendments "not germane". It was her way of saying that the DFL legislature wouldn't debate any GOP amendments. This was in the first week of the session.

Now we know why. Now the DFL have proposed $5 BILLION worth of new tax increases. That despite running all summer & fall on their 'ability' to fund their priorities without raising taxes. I said then that the DFL shouldn't be trusted with not raising taxes:

http://www.letfreedomringblog.com/2006/06/12/does-anyone-believe-them/

Now the Minnesota GOP has put an internet video together showing the DFL's hypocrisy on taxes:

http://www.letfreedomringblog.com/2007/04/13/simply-brilliant/

These are all prime examples of the hyperpartisanship that the DFL leadership have shown. These are all prime examples of how the DFL leadership hijacked this legislative session from the opening week.

At the end of the day, Rep. Gottwalt's complaints about the DFL's partisanship are more than just speculation. Unfortunately, they're the reality this year.

From King

Hi Randy,

I think if everything else was equal, if the other people in the Legislature were behaving as they campaigned last fall, and Steve had turned out to behave as he is now, you could have a legitimate complaint. But unfortunately the DFL has not followed through on their pledges from last fall to work with the GOP, and has absolutely lied to us about living within the revenues provided in the budget. Seen the Taxapalooza video yet? Sure, it's a political ad, but those are real, live DFL legislators in the first 80 or so seconds telling us no tax increases, and then dropping the mother of all tax increases on us on a Saturday before slipping out the door to campaign for more of my money during Holy Week.

(I know, separation of church and state and all that. But I'm not the one calling it the Easter/Passover break; they are.)

So I see Steve having a choice to make: He can either take a principled stand -- one with which you might disagree -- or he may compromise. I believe the first few weeks of the session caused some scales to fall from Steve's eyes and he returned to principles he already held. If you think he campaigned on a platform that included tax increases, then find the quote. (Unlike me, you don't have to pay to use your archive!)

If you can't, your alternative is to argue for an ever-expanding government in which case I can't understand why you ever supported Gottwalt at all. Either that, or you really didn't to begin with and this is just a charade (as well as taking a shot at a competitor in the local news market?)

One more thing. Your newspaper reported on 11/4/06 on a debate between Tarryl Clark and Jeff Johnson thus:

“(Tarryl) Clark cites a vote cast against her DFL leadership's proposed commercial and industrial income tax rates as proof of her independence. She supports increasing that state's gas tax to pay for transportation improvements, but said Minnesotans need to decide on priorities before deciding whether we need to increase other taxes to pay for them. ‘If we have a $2 billion tax bill put in front of us, I'm not going to vote for it,’ she said.”

Has Sen. Clark voted against any of the tax increases that we've seen from the Senate this past month? Isn't she in fact author of the bill in which a billion dollars of income tax increases are nestled inside an education spending bill to make it harder for Governor Pawlenty to veto? Can you find the quote where Tarryl Clark and the DFL said "Vote for us, and we'll spend all of the $2 billion surplus and raise your taxes $5 billion more"?

When may I expect your column on this volte face? Or don't they sing that song in your choir?

Never to be left out of a good bru-ha-ha, in much the manner of a skid row drunk getting into a debate on Shakespeare, a former St. Cloud Mayor (and damn-near self-proclaimed emperor) had this to say:

John Ellenbecker from St. Cloud
Comment Posted: 4/15/2007 6:42:26 PM

Does work with the GOP mean pass the GOP agenda? I don't think so. DFL legislators where not elected to enact the GOP agenda.

To which King retorted:

scsuscholars from the blogosphere
Comment Posted: 4/15/2007 6:48:00 PM

So do I have you on record, John, saying the DFL agenda requires more taxes?

And when did the DFL announce during the 2006 campaign that this was in their agenda?

IOW, The Minnesota DFL isn't presenting the agenda that the voters signed up for. Far from it. So when Mr. Gottwalt takes a principled stance and refuses to support it, he gets lambasted for not supporting what the voters didn't support.

Sorry, Mr. Krebs and Emperor Ellenbecker, bi-partisanship in the face of kicking taxpayers in the groin is not bipartisanship--that's out-and-out collusion.

Oh yes, and one more note to Mssrs. Krebs and Ellenbecker:

Never bring a knife to a gunfight.