We’re finally painting the bedroom!

My master bedroom has been under siege for over a year as my husband did all sorts of new windows/moulding/custom shelving/built-in drawers stuff. He does wonderful work, but between his 50-60 hours a week at his job, and his Scouting activities and the occasional need to watch a football game (which I do not mind) all projects begun in this household tend to take oh…ten times as long as they should. Finally we’re ready to paint! Got nifty shades of green, I’m happy!

But blogging will be light, so I thought I’d direct your attention to various and sundry topics:

Jack Kelly went to the Able Danger hearing on the 16th and came back with audio and observations. He wonders, as do we all, why there seems to be a bi-partisan (and successive administration) attempt to keep this story quiet. Amazing. The only time they all want to work together is to apparently cover stuff up. AJ has more.

These Illinois students published the Mohammed cartoons and were promptly in trouble. What bothers me the most about this story is the co-workers on the paper who were so “outraged” and “scandalized.” It sounds a lot like folks kowtowing to fascism. Which is what so many in the press are doing. John at Stop the ACLU is noting that for once he is on the side of the ACLU, as they are defending these students decision. Good.

Instapundit, however, has an encouraging story about the positive feedback Rocky Mountain News got for publishing the pictures. Guess what? Americans support free speech and do not want the press to kowtow. As Glenn Reynolds observed: [The press] keep forgetting that it’s their job to tell us stuff, not to decide what we shouldn’t be told.

There is some debate on whether or not Bill Clinton actually said that publishers of those cartoons should be convicted. Would it surprise me if he did say it? No. But let’s find out the truth of it. Is the press burying it or spiking it? Or did he simply not say it? Mark in Mexico is having some trouble finding corroboration. Professor Bainbridge is becoming uncomfortable with Clinton’s apparent bid to become king of the world (this world, anyway), Sisu has more thoughts.

The Confederate Yankee has an exclusive with a WMD expert on the Saddam Tapes that is very interesting, and The American Thinker has Ray Robison commenting on them.

Powerline has a story about a retired flight attendant who knows our troops well and is very angry on their behalf.

This is what my uncle would have called “happy horse****” – that ski-jumping is dangerous for women! Tammy Bruce notes that this is a real issue for feminists to address. I wonder if they will. Meanwhile, Bernard Higgins is hopping mad at the way the media went after Lindsay Jacobellis for not winning the gold in the snowboardcross. Hey – it’s not like they would have shown her medal ceremony, anyway!

So, Here we have “the west” telling women they can’t ski jump, getting all over a 20 year old for having young sensibilities, and – oh yes – we have Islamofascists calling for the muder of homosexuals, which is really something that should concern us all, and it should particularly perhaps open the eyes of some on the left who figure, “hey, if Bush is fighting the Islamic Extremists, they mustn’t be so bad.” Wake up and smell the hummus, baby!

Captain Ed has an unsettling piece about a 14 year old girl who recieves less protection from the Italian courts because she is not a virgin. I personally have an enormous sense of the value of virginity, but I have had some experience in life with the Italian hymen-madness that throws too many things out of perspective for some, and therefore nothing but sympathy for this girl. The story is outrageous.

Mark in Mexico also has some remarks from Newsweek editor Jon Meacham which are surprisingly sympathetic to President Bush and VP Cheney.

Neo-neocon takes a smart look at The NY Times new role as mouthpiece for Hamas.

Charmaine Yoest has a look at a very touching video concerning Downs Syndrome children and society’s seeming interest in doing away with them. Lovely pictures.

Ed Driscoll links to an interesting historical piece on H.L. Mencken that you’ll want to print out and sprawl on the couch with.

Okay, need a break and want to read something fun? Head over to American Digest where Vanderleun links to beauty, cute Korean kids and some terrifyingly emotional Chinese lip-synchers Scroll down and you’ll see Islamofascism succinctly defined. He also has fun busting chops in a Seattle bookstore. Just keep scrolling. He’s got more.

Ann Althouse needs gutters. I love the picture.

Dr. Sanity links you to folks she is calling a bit deranged.

Chris Lynch has a great link to an exhaustive look at the religious affiliations of super-heroes. I knew, of course, that Gambit was a Cajun Catholic, and I wasn’t surprised to learn that Superman was a Methodist – but some of the others are eye-opening. Wolverine is a Buddhist?

Alexandra has ruminations on the Bergdorf Blondes.

And yes! Everyday you have to vote for me! :-) And Julie! and all the other Catholic pals in my blogroll! Thanks! Off to paint, now!