Politically Direct
Twice, we have propped up Jean Bertrand Aristide as the leader of Haiti. What did this accomplish? We reduced one of the poorest countries in the western hemisphere to one of the poorest countries on earth. Now the country is in chaos.
The question is: are we going to make the same mistake thrice?
The answer appears to be, “yes!” Continue reading “Haitian Hat Trick”
After last week’s column on why I am going back to wearing fur again, I received a ton of e-mail. Some could best be described as toxic waste: I was scolded, lectured, preached to and called names.
I also heard from many others who are tired of being intimidated by the radical animal-rights movement. They, too, have decided to wear fur again and want to know where to go to enlist in the war against these extremists. Continue reading “The Fur Flies”
Thanksgiving was particularly cold. As I prepared to go to a dinner party, I reached back into an area of my closet for rarely used items and pulled out a silk zipper bag. There was dust on the top, and I realized that it had not been disturbed since I placed it there the day we moved into our new house eight years ago. I was afraid to look inside.
Much to my delight, the red fox jacket was every bit as beautiful as it was the day it was purchased 20 years earlier.
I hadn’t worn fur for a good 10 years. I had allowed myself to be intimidated by a few radical animal-rights extremists. I had kidded myself into thinking that if I just bided my time, these people would tire of their tirades and the whole anti-fur movement would just die out.
This never works. All it does is empower them. Continue reading “Why this Bunny will Wear Fur again”
The liberal press dubbed him “Senator No.” However, the gentleman, who represented the people of North Carolina in the Upper Chamber of the United States Congress longer than anyone in history, was much too polite to use that simple two-letter word all by itself. Southern tradition demands the addition of a simple title of respect. Jesse Helms was much more likely to say, “No, sir.” Continue reading “A fond farewell to Senator “No Sir””
One-fifth of our states have passed ballot initiatives that are chipping away at the nation’s drug laws. Some 24 states permit voters to participate in the initiative process and this is where the drug legalization battle is being waged.
The initiative process was originally designed to give ordinary citizens a voice in proposing legislation but the people who are bankrolling these initiatives are far from ordinary. George Soros, Peter Lewis and John Sperling are three of the wealthiest – perhaps misguided, but certainly most devious men on earth.
They no longer want to legalize marijuana and other drugs. They want to legalize marijuana as medicine, repeal unfair mandatory minimum prison sentences and end, what they claim, is our failed war on drugs, in order to reduce crime and minimize the harm drugs do. In other words, they want to push the public in a direction that carefully crafted opinion polls and focus groups have shown the 80 percent of Americans, who oppose drug legalization, may be willing to go. Continue reading “Legalizing Drugs is Dead Wrong”
No one is quite sure how the custom of giving and receiving gifts on the anniversary of Christ’s birth actually began. Some say it was a holdover from a celebration the Romans held at the end of the year to honor Saturn, their harvest god.Some say it came from Saint Nicholas, a kind-hearted Christian bishop who lived around 300 A.D., who is said to have given gold to each of three girls who did not have dowries, so they could get married. Continue reading “Exchanging Gifts with Jesus”
George W. Bush will be our 43rd president, having squeaked by on the thinnest of margins: a handful of undimpled votes in the state of Florida, two votes in the Electoral College and one vote in the United States Supreme Court. Now, he is getting a lot of advice on how to reach out to the left and compromise his way through the next four years.
In the comic strip “Peanuts,” time and time again, Lucy would offer to hold the football for Charlie Brown to kick, only to pull that ball right out from under him just before his toe made contact, leaving poor Charlie flat on his back. He never learned. Continue reading “Mr. Bush, Consider Roscoe Bartlett”
When ticking off his foreign policy accomplishments, President Clinton always has listed “restored democracy to Haiti,” at or near the top. However, in this year’s State of the Union address, which was his longest ever, he failed to mention Haiti for the very first time since he invaded that tiny country on Sept. 19, 1994, to force defrocked priest Jean-Bertrand Aristide back on his people. Was it an oversight? Continue reading “Re-evaluating Clinton’s Haiti”
The impeachment trial of William Jefferson Clinton barely was over when loyalists suggested that those who crossed swords with this president would be singled out for punishment. Those familiar with the current occupants of the White House know that these people do not believe in turning the other cheek. While Bill was telling the nation he truly was sorry for his misdeeds and the pain he had caused his family and his country, his minions made it clear that they were out to destroy the House managers who were charged with presenting the case against him in the Upper Chamber.Apparently they feel Clinton’s enemies have to be destroyed in order to deter others. He has made too many compromises, cut too many corners, covered up too many actions, and bent the law too many times. Continue reading “Clinton: Crimes and Punishment”
It’s official! Democracy is dead in Haiti. It had been on life support for the last 21 months but President Renee Preval officially pulled the plug shortly after 11:00 p.m. on Monday January 11 by following through with his threat to dissolved parliament, setting up what should be a confrontation with the United States and the international community. Continue reading “The Death of Democracy in Haiti”
Jane Chastain 