Happy New Year!

To all who stop by this blog:

CLICK HERE FOR AN E-CARD COUNTING DOWN THE ARRIVAL OF THE NEW YEAR
So, do YOU have any New Year's resolutions?

My resolutions for 2013: (1) spending less time on the web, (2) spending more time reading novels, and (3) spending more time practicing the piano according to workable schedule.   The past few weeks, I've returned to one of my favorite pastimes, a pastime that I gave up after 9/11: working the crossword puzzle in my daily newspaper;  I'm going to continue to enjoy that pastime in the new year.

For once, I don't need to make a resolution to lose weight.  Over 40 pounds lost in 2012.  Yeehaw!

Do YOU have any specific wishes for 2013?

I wish for continued health for myself and for every living creature in the AOW household.

Do YOU have anything specific that you're looking forward to in the new year?

Mr. AOW and I are looking forward to a January visit from Tammy Swofford, journalist, author, and fellow blogger; she will be staying with us for a few days, and we'll be cramming as much fun as possible into those few days.  In the summer, Mr. AOW and I hope to take our first road trip since his brain hemorrhage in 2009.

(hat tip to Conservatives on Fire for the above video)

Cameo And The Christmas Tree

(This re-post will be stuck here through the Christmas season. Please scroll down for more recent material)

With many thanks to Stogie, who made the graphic for this post in 2011! Click directly on the picture to enlarge it:


I wrote the story below the fold in 2005. Within the past several months, Cameo has mellowed (somewhat, anyway, in large part due to her recent illness). But the memories of those bygone days Cameo's terrorizing the Christmas tree still bring a smile to our faces. I hope that the anecdote will bring a smile to your face too.

Retro Break From Politics

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

The parody Went with the Wind, one of the best comedy skits ever:

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

Mona Eltahawy links her vandalism of AFDI ads to a sexual revolution, or something

[Narcissist in Chief] Obama Uses Funeral Service to Talk About Himself [63 Times]

Analysis of social media in Libya finds no reference to anti-Islam film on day of [Benghazi] attack

Dated December 21, 2012: Mr. Obama repeatedly lost patience with the speaker as negotiations faltered. In an Oval Office meeting last week, he told Mr. Boehner that if the sides didn't reach agreement, he would use his inaugural address and his State of the Union speech to tell the country the Republicans were at fault.

At one point, according to notes taken by a participant, Mr. Boehner told the president, "I put $800 billion [in tax revenue] on the table. What do I get for that?"

[...]

The president repeatedly reminded Mr. Boehner of the election results: "You're asking me to accept Mitt Romney's tax plan. Why would I do that?"

The Sword Wielder At The School

Creeping Sharia asks:

Why wasn’t this story big news this week following Sandy Hook? Why no outrcries to ban swords (a popular Islamic icon along with AK-47′s)? Why such a muted reaction from the Islamic school and the sharia-pushers?

Could it be because the perpetrator isn’t an ideal target for CAIR nor big brother media? Could the perp herself be Muslim?

According to the News 6 video she was driving a vehicle registered to the Dept. of Defense at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Odd to say the least.

Video of one news report about the incident, which occurred on December 19, 2012:

Mr. AOW And Amber Settle In For Their Long Winter's Nap

I couldn't resist lifting this post from Mr. AOW's web site (Click directly on the images to enlarge them):

After all the Christmas goodies on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, Amber, the kitten that Mrs. AOW and I got a few months ago, and I have settled in for our long winter's nap:

Amber has celebrated her first Christmas. What a hoot!

On Christmas Eve, she freaked out when she saw those big flakes of snow flying around.

On Christmas morning, Amber got so excited about her Christmas present - a catnip toy - that she flipped up in the air and came down in her water dish! Mrs. AOW couldn't grab the camera in time, of course. Amber was off and running to get away from all that spilled water.

Amber in her kitty hut:

One Cat's Views On Christmas

Henri Le Chat Noir:

Welcome All Wonders

Many years ago, I had the privilege of working under the baton of Richard Wayne Dirksen at the Washington National Cathedral. Below is one of his choral pieces, a glorious celebration of the birth of Christ the Lord. Ever since I obtained a recording of "Welcome All Wonders," I never let a Christmas go by without listening to this glorious musical celebration of the birth of Christ the Lord:

Welcome all wonders in one sight! Eternity shut in a span.
Summer in winter, day in night, heaven in earth, and God in man,
That He, the old Eternal Word, should be a Child and weep.
Each of us his lamb will bring, each his pair of silver doves,
Till burnt at last in fire of thy fair eyes, ourselves become our own best sacrifice.
Welcome all wonders in one sight!

(Thanks, Stogie, for the Christmas graphic of Amber, Mysti, and Cameo)

Christmas Eve

For today, no politics! Instead, two beloved carols to feed the soul during this Holy Season:

Longfellow's Christmas

With thanks to Mustang, who emailed me the following last Christmas:

Christmas Lights

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

The Winter Walk of Lights at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Northern Virginia:

More images from the Winter Walk of Lights HERE.

This web site has many photos taken at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens during other seasons of the year.  This particular photo shows the gazebo in the spring.

So much beauty in the world!  I hope that you will take a few moments to explore the above links.  It seems to me that we spend too much time dwelling on politics — and the ugliness and the divisiveness thereof.

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

Despite Tax Increase, California State Revenues in Freefall

"We have a country where the young don’t know Shakespeare and haven’t read the Bible, and their lives are almost wholly unconnected with the past."

JD Hayworth Infomercial: Free money! You never have to pay it back!

Obama approved F-16 fighter jets as gift to Egypt

[Baltimore] Speed camera nabs car stopped at light

Christmas Jazz: "O Tannenbaum" And "Canadian Sunset"

Enjoy and relax (hat tip to Stogie for the first video):


Crooner jazz from 1959 below the fold:

Musical Interlude

!

The words, a poem by Christina Rosetti:

Madonna And Child

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

A lovely Madonna and Child:

When Autists Become Monsters

(This post is my final one regarding the terrible events of last week)

It is not politically correct to criticize the disabled.

But sometimes disability is mental illness.  Rarely, thank God!

According to some information to date, dangerous and deadly mental illness resulted in the horror inside the walls of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012.

From Salon in March of 2009:

Dangerous Travel Destinations

According to Travel and Leisure, the following are the top ten most dangerous travel destinations (hat tip to Debbie of Right Truth):

1. Pakistan

2. The Sudan

3. Georgia

4. Lebanon

5. North Korea

6. Syria

7. Yemen

8. Uzbekistan

9. Iran

10. Algeria

The above are dominated by Islamic law or socialism.

Musical Interlude

Enjoy!


Information about "Carol of the Bells," composed in 1904 by Ukrainians Mykola Leontovych (music) and Peter J. Wilhousky (lyrics).

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

ELECTION OVER, ADMINISTRATION UNLEASHES NEW "JOB-KILLING" REGULATIONS

New York City Hits Sandy Victims With ‘Failure To Maintain’ Property Citation: And What's More, The Tree Causing All The Fuss Was City's Responsibility

21 Blatant Lies Obama Has Told you Directly To Your Face

Obama Honors Rosa Parks by Tweeting a Photograph of Himself

Beyond Horrible, Beyond Tragic

Dead in Connecticut school shooting include 20 children

The bereaved and the survivors are scarred for life.  They will never recover.

The saddest music I know below the fold:

Amazing!

(If you must have politics, please scroll to a few posts below this one)

Salvador Dali and Walt Disney collaborated (hat tip to Thersites):


More information below the fold.

An Annual Odious Task (And My Consolation Prize: The Life of Pi)

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

I have never enjoyed shopping — especially Christmas shopping.

The crowds.

Our unfamiliarity with the layout of the mall and the department stores.

Too many decisions to make.

The U.S. National Debt Visualized (With Addendum)

With a hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News:


Where do we go from here?

Please make time to watch the following short addendum (hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance):


Did you hear what Harry Belafonte said toward the end of the above video clip?  He has actually advocated imprisonment of opposition to the Obama agenda and that Obama "work like a Third World Dictator"!

Good News!

Back on October 5, I posted about M, one of my finest students  — exceptional in several ways.  She is of Ethiopian descent, and both of her parents immigrated to the United States, where her five children were born.  M is the oldest of the five and turned 11 years old on December 4.

At the age of 41, M's mother perished on November 5 of inflammatory breast cancer, one of the most aggressive types of the disease, while she was visiting friends and family in the country of her birth. She chose to go there alone so as to spare her husband and her children from witnessing those last terrible days.  In fact, her visit to Ethiopia was very short  — only a matter of a week or so.

Blog Break

The semester break and Christmas vacation officially begin on December 11 at 3:00 P.M.  I have an unusually-heavy teaching schedule the next few days and am taking a short blog break until my workload eases off. In addition, I need some time to consider the direction in which to take this blog after the debacle of an election on November 6.

IED Detonated At Arizona Social Security Office

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

[Pictured at the left: Abdullatif Aldosary, arrested for detonating the IED on November 30, 2012]

The major mainstream media outlets continue to ignore whatever doesn't contribute to the agenda actively promoted by our so-called leaders. Thus far, only local media in Arizona have reported the name of the man arrested.

From Pajamas Media, dated December 2:

About The Fiscal Cliff

Possibly of interest (hat tip to American Power):


Of course, WE THE PEOPLE are powerless in all this negotiation relating to the fiscal cliff. WE THE PEOPLE had our say on November 6 and will have to live with the consequences.

Musical Interlude

Advent 2012 begins today.   The Advent season is the time of preparation for celebration of the Nativity.

A processional hymn for Franciscan nuns, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" is one of the oldest and one of the most solemn pieces in the Advent repertoire:


Another interpretation:


More information about "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" HERE.

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

Texas Schools Teaching Boston Tea Party As Terrorist Act

Jamie Foxx Gives “Honor to God and Our Lord and Savior Barack Obama” (Video)

White House Says Disagreeing With Obama-Claus Will Ruin Christmas

Who Knew?

(Two posts today.  Please scroll down)

November 2012 has been Islamophobia Awareness Month (hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News):

Birds Of A Feather

From Politico on November 28, 2012 (hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance):

Obama And The Fiscal Cliff

In the video clip below the fold, Charles Krauthammer opines that Obama is trying to destroy the GOP — not trying fix the economy (hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News):

Holiday Trees

Why not just throw any reference to Christmas to the curb? But don't you dare avoid references to Ramadan!

Via Weasel Zippers:

A North Carolina community college has been accused of violating the First Amendment rights of students after they told a club they could not use the word “Christmas” to promote a Christmas tree sale.

Academia's Lies

Recently, George Washington University, an educational institution with astronomical tuition rates, lost its coveted spot in the college rankings list produced by U.S. News & World Report, a guide often consulted by parents, students, and guidance counselors.  Excerpt from this article in the Washington Post:

Pat Condell On Middle East Peace

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

Worth a few minutes of your time (hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News):

A Viable Strategy?

From this article that appeared on November 16, 2012 (hat tip to Rational Nation USA):

LAS VEGAS—After two days of meetings at the Republican Governors Association conference, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez on Thursday said she heard a lot about the party's need to reach new constituencies—particularly women and ethnic minorities—but few specifics about how.

Dance A Jig Of Thanks!

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

With a hat tip to FreeThinke, who provides additional information about this music by J.S. Bach and the painting by Peter Paul Rubens:

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more may be added as the weekend progresses):

NYC sends health teams to post-Sandy food handouts, rubbing some wrong way

New Beltway express lanes lead to crashes and changes

Barack Obama blunders again on the world stage

Crime And Punishment In The UK

If the following is accurate, Eurabia is in full bloom in the UK:

Thanksgiving 2012

During this season of Thanksgiving, may we put aside all matters except the counting of our bountiful blessings!

This Thanksgiving 2012, what are you most thankful for?

Below the fold, you can read my responses to that question.

The Ship Of State

From this essay at American Digest (hat tip to Pastorius of Infidel Bloggers Alliance):

The thing is under the boat. The crew suspects as much but can't know for sure exactly where it is. They won't know where Leviathan is until it rises, inevitable and unstoppable, from the deep directly beneath them.

Can you feel it lurking just under the surface? I can and I think you can as well. The Greeks knew it as "Nemesis." Melville's Ahab knew it as "thou damned whale" and he struck at it from Hell's heart. Unperturbed it gathered him up and took him down. Then it took the boat and after that the ship. All save one followed. The whale beneath the surface of America's life is still there and all signs point to its breaching soon. Exactly where and exactly how are still unknown, but soon.

I feel the thing beneath the boat and I think others of my fellow citizens in ever growing millions feel it as well. We do not feel good about it and what it augers for the near and far future.


[...]

It's large and it's under the boat and it is beginning to rise. The crew is confused and flailing about. And the captain is insane but convinced he's on the right course. During the boom years it was commonly said, "A rising tide lifts all boats." True enough, but the rising of Leviathan can break the spine of our boat and send it down into the Maelstrom. And the thing is under the boat.

Read the entire essay HERE.

Or was Longfellow correct in his poem "O Ship of State"?

A Time Gone By

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

Believe it or not, life here in Northern Virginia in the 1950s was much like what is depicted in the video below — without the Western flavor, of course (hat tip to Paladin of Jumpmaster 263):


More photos HERE.

Nincompoopery

(Weekend roundup post, a new feature here at Always On Watch. For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more added below the fold as the weekend progresses):

Obama Consults With MSNBC Host Al Sharpton, and Other Civil Rights Leaders, on Fiscal Talks

Despite $15.9 billion loss, U.S. Postal Service execs see boost in pay

Goodbye, Private Retirement Accounts?

From the National Seniors Council (hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News):

Thoughts From An Obama Supporter

Food for thought.


An Obama supporter whom I indirectly know opined the following the day after the November 2012 Election (paraphrase):

Botox On The Brain?

Nancy Pelosi on November 14, 2012, outdoes herself. Spew alert!

Behind Gore's Fraud

By Sam Huntington

According to a recent report by UPI, Al Gore said that global warming is the real culprit behind Hurricane Sandy, and predicts that global warming could mean even more storms like Sandy.  According to Gore, “Scientists tell us that by continually dumping 90 million tons of global warming pollution into the atmosphere every single day, we are altering the environment in which all storms develop.  As the oceans and atmosphere continue to warm, storms are becoming more energetic and powerful.” 

My only response to this is, Simply Amazing.  I’m cleaning up my vocabulary. 

Obama Moving Quickly On His Agenda

Two recent items from the Washington Times:

A New Era

(If you haven't read yesterday's post here at Always On Watch, please do so. The videos are, well, something else)

"The dawn of a new era," says the Communist Party USA upon the re-election of Barack Hussein Obama on November 6, 2012.

I hear cries of bravado from the Right: "We'll take back the Senate in two years!"

Reality check!

"America"

The video of college students celebrating Obama's reelection outside the White House makes me doubly sad and doubly angry on this 2012 observance of Veterans Day (hat tip to Geeeeez! for the video):

Veterans Day

Blog Break

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

The reasons for this blog break are three — and completely unrelated to the recent election results.

The Day After Election Day (With Addendum)

Now, what? 

And what have we learned about America via this 2012 election?

Inauguration Day arrives on January 21, 2013.  The inauguration of the President of the United States cannot occur on January 20 because that date falls on a Sunday next year.

Addendum: Election analysis by Epaminondas of Infidel Bloggers Alliance below the fold (lightly edited and with emphases mine):

Election Day Open Thread

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

Have your say at the ballot box and here at Always On Watch!

Mr. AOW and I plan to go to the polls early this morning before I go to work. If the line is so long that I have to get to work before I've voted, I'll have to get back into the line when I get off from work.

If we have to make two trips to cast my vote, so be it.  Since the day that I first became eligible to vote, I've never missed the opportunity to exercise my right to have my say at the ballot box.

We do expect long lines here in Virginia, a 2012 battleground state.

Recommended Reading

See The devolution of an American president, a commentary by Tammy Swofford in the Daily Times Pakistan.

Also see The Benghazi Fiasco. Why? Why? WHY?!!! at Conservatives on Fire.  Worth your time and consideration.

Both essays are worth your time.

Video: Conservatism Is Calling

(Two posts today.  Please scroll down)

Please watch (with a hat tip to Black Sheep of Newsbleat):

Obama's Green Energy Failures

The complete list and all taxpayer funded, of course (hat tip to Randy's Roundtable):

Fall Colors

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling.  I have a political post for today)

CLICK HERE to enjoy some beauty and a respite from politics!

The home page for this photographer is HERE.

Informed Voters?

On the campus of Ohio University on October 17, 2012 (hat tip to Mike's America):


Ye, gods!

Your comments welcome.

Obama's Outrageous Lies

Sixty-five of them (hat tip to Reliapundit of THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS):

Message To Duck From The Beak

From the disaster zone of New York City, Beakerkin phoned me with the following message to relay:

Quote Of The Day

Dated April 18, 2011, the following is from the Prager Zeitung, a publication in the Czech Republic (hat tip to Freedom by the Way):

The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting an inexperienced man like him with the Presidency.  It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America.  Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince.  The Republic can survive a Barack Obama. It is less likely to survive a multitude of Idiots such as those who made him their president.

Beyond Incompetent

Our government is so large, and so complex that I am by now convinced that it doesn’t know what it doesn’t know. Worse, it doesn’t seem to understand very much about what it does know. I will happily admit that “nation building” is complex in the extreme, and the truth of this helps us to understand why so many Americans are opposed to such policy. What follows is but one example of the pitfalls of nation building.

A Halloween Poem

See Free Thinke's original poem:
"All Hallows Eve."

Halloween Cats

(With much gratitude to Stogie of Saberpoint for the graphic below)

Back row, from left to right: Cameo, alpha cat of the household and surrogate mother to the new arrival in the basket; and Mysti, still pouting a bit about the new arrival.

In the front: Amber, the sweetest of all torties, born on March 13, 2012, and still in her kittenhood.  She  tears around the house night and day as if possessed.

Enjoy the video below the fold (hat tip to Amusing Bunni's Musings):

Spooky

Not ravens (hat tip to FJ):


Even in the city, an ordinary autumn day seems spooky around this time of year ("Mist," from Duck's Flickr photostream):

People revel in fear and the eerie, particularly at this time of year.

Frankenstorm!

According to the weather reports I've been hearing and reading, Northern Virginia, where I live, will be slammed by Frankenstorm.  Forecasts project Tuesday as the worst day, but heavy rains and high winds will likely arrive earlier.

Consider The Course of Empire

(Click directly on all images to enlarge them)

From 1833-1836, American artist Thomas Cole created the following series of five paintings (oil on canvas). The title of the series is The Course of Empire. The literary source for these paintings was the following verse from Byron's from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage:

There is the moral of all human tales;
'Tis but the same rehearsal of the past.
First freedom and then Glory - when that fails,
Wealth, vice, corruption - barbarism at last.
And History, with all her volumes vast,
Hath but one page...

Below are photographs of all five paintings from Thomas Cole's series The Course of Empire:

The first painting, The Savage State, shows the valley from the shore opposite the crag, in the dim light of a dawning stormy day. A hunter clad in skins hastens through the wilderness, pursuing a deer; canoes paddle up the river; on the far shore can be seen a clearing with a cluster of wigwams around a fire, the nucleus of the city that is to be. The visual references are those of Native American life.

Obama Campaign Ad Equates Voting For Obama With Having Sex?

(with a hat tip to Reliapundit of THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS)

The devolving exhibited by the Democratic Party during this election season continues. Trashy, to say the least:

Obama’s Failed Foreign Policy

It should not come as a surprise to anyone that I think US foreign policy is now, and has for a long time, been sophomoric. It is not something that originated with Barack Obama, not by a long shot, but it is also nothing Obama has reconciled his administration to improve upon. Worse, US foreign policy may be an even greater disaster today than at any other time in our post-World War II experience. I believe this because the stakes are much higher than at any other time since 1945.

Respite From Politics

(If you must politics, please keep scrolling)

Enjoy this respite from contentious topics, especially the topic of politics:


Another of Gruntlesnoot's nature videos below the fold.

Last Night's Debate

(Two posts day.  Please scroll down)

Video from NewsBusters below the fold:

Muslims Enraged By Swiss Flag

With thanks to Will for alerting us to Jihad Watch's new venture:


More RealDeal News HERE.

How to make your own animated video HERE.   

Use your freedom of expression while you still have it!

David Axelrod Outdoes Himself (With Music Addendum)

May Axelrod's words undo Obama's chances for re-election!

From Red Alert Politics:

Obama: Broken Record

Demagoguery promises to deliver but does not deliver:

Europe Today?

Check out the symbols in the graphic below (Click directly on the image to enlarge it):

Rational Nation USA has more information.

What Do Benghazi and Fort Hood Have In Common?

(With a hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance)

Connect the dots. Obama is reticent to call a terrorist attack by its correct name: Islamic jihad.  On the other hand, Obama frequently reminds us of how much Islam has contributed to America.

Mona Eltahawy – Again

I have previously posted about Mona Eltahawy and her vandalism of a sign in the New York City Subway.  The Muslim Brotherhood lauded her vandalism.

HERE she is again in a different context, that of her Tweet questioning the recent arrest in New York City of a wannabe jihadist terrorist Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis:

Is this Fed Reserve bomb plot another of those entrapments?

Twitchy has more HERE.

Jihad Watch also has MORE, and many of the comments are particularly interesting.

"Moderate Muslim" Mona Eltahawy, who became a United States citizien in 2011, certainly seems dissatisfied lately with life in the United States.

That Gigantic Sucking Noise …

by Sam Huntington

China has been as busy as a little bee flitting around the globe, making friends, asserting interests in other people’s business, intimidating neighbors, threatening others with their new navy, demanding access to oil reserves that clearly do not belong to them. They are even beginning to establish military advisory groups in some countries, providing arms and munitions to others, and selling modern military equipment to their new friends.

What The Taliban Really Fears

Hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance:

The story of Malala Yousufzai

TITLE OF THIS BLOG POST CORRECTED: Obama's Rose Garden Speech About Benghazi

LINK.  Also see THIS.

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

A Revealing Meeting: Part Two

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

As I indicated in "A Revealing Meeting: Part One," my former student R doesn't know where to turn and is under intense pressure.  She has been assigned an impossible task.  Also, various evaluators are filling R's employment folder with their critiques and calling conference after conference with her; in these conferences, no specific advice is given other than telling her what he is doing wrong.

Furthermore, R has only a provisional teaching certificate and is still taking education courses, thereby having even less time to devote to teaching her classes.  Worse, the content of these education courses consists mostly of theory nonspecific to teaching non-English speakers.

A Revealing Meeting: Part One

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

On October 8, I met with R, a former student of many years ago.  She hunted me down on the Internet and asked if I would advise her. This young lady, who did not go into teaching directly from college but rather pursued another career for a few years, thought that teaching would be relatively easy.  She actually said to me, "When you were teaching me, I thought that teaching looked so easy!"

This first year as a classroom teacher, R is finding out the hard way that effective teaching is anything but easy, particularly during those first years.

R's lack of experience, however, is only the beginning of her woes as a first-year teacher.

Under the Obama Regime, Any Incompetence Is Possible

Because of Visa issues, the Obama Administration didn't reach Benghazi for seventeen days after the September 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate and the murder of Ambassador Stevens?

The mind reels.

Benghazi-gate?

(hat tip to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS for the above graphic of Susan Rice)

I remember when the news broke about what later became the Watergate Scandal, a scandal that ultimately forced President Nixon to resign – the first and only time that a United States President has resigned in the face of mounting evidence of malfeasance.  Little did even political wonks on mid-June of 1972  realize the significance of the arrests.

During the televised hearings, we heard over and over again the following: "What did you know, and when did you know it?"

To no avail, President Nixon tried all sorts of ways to cover up his own involvement in the Watergate Scandal.  His mantra of "Deny, deny, deny!" couldn't save him, and he resigned on August 9, 1974.

Right now, it seems as if the White House is getting ready to throw U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice under the bus.  After all, Obama does have a history throwing supporters and adherents under the bus.  He is all about saving himself.

Now, let's consider the words of White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on October 12, 1972 at a press conference. Please watch the entire clip:


The Daily Caller story is HERE.

Furthermore, we have this from Obama himself on September 18, 2012 (hat tip to Mike's America):


What did Obama know and when did he know it?

As one who lived through all the Watergate Scandal mess, I can tell you that the hallmarks are lining up for throwing anybody but Obama under the proverbial bus.

Will Obama attempt to throw Secretary of State Hillary Clinton under the bus in attempt to divert his own responsibility regarding the murder of Libyan Ambassador Stevens on September 11, 2012?

Maybe.

If  Hillary is targeted, however, she won't go alone under the wheels of the Obama Bus. No, siree. She'll take Obama with her.

If this information is accurate, Hillary is already preparing to save herself.

Musical Interlude

(If you must politics, please keep scrolling)

Jackie Evancho, age 12:

Biden Shows How Not To Behave During A Debate

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

Video clips from last night's debate and commentary below the fold.

Unbelievable!

Forget "Hail to the Chief" and "Yes, We Can." Obama finally has a theme song that suits his governing ability.

Pathetic.

Laughable in oh-so-many ways:

Deus Ex Machina

by Sam Huntington

Dr. Victor Davis Hanson’s recent article, “The Neurotic Middle East” is a worthwhile read (follow the link). He writes, in part:

“Finally, what accounts for Middle Eastern neuroticism? A sense of collective inferiority, a feeling that life is pretty miserable, when it need not be — and that the causes are foreign rather than homegrown. Exasperated Arab secular intellectuals sometimes confess that tribalism in place of meritocracy, statism in place of free markets, authoritarianism in place of consensuality, religious fundamentalism in place of tolerance, censorship in place of transparency, and gender apartheid in place of sexual equality combine in the Middle East to ensure poverty and violence.”

More Recommended Reading

See General Dempsey Fires on Own Troops at Fix Bayonets!, Mustang's site. It is unconscionable and inconceivable that such a travesty has occurred!

Reasons Not To Vote For Obama

See 1001 Reasons to Vote Against Barack Obama: Complete Edition at Conservative Daily News.

Mine the list for all it's worth, and tailor your talking parts to the situation and the individual!

Only a few weeks remain until the 2012 Election.

Recommended Reading

See Did the mainstream media’s bias contribute towards President Obama’s terrible debate performance? over at Conservative Hideout 2.0. In my view, Matt has made valid points.