Quick Roundup 245

More on Ernie Chambers

Qwertz takes a look at the legal side of Nebraska state senator Ernie Chambers' recent lawsuit against God, and then comes a lot closer than I did to figuring out what he was trying to say by filing a frivolous lawsuit.

So as far as I can tell, Chambers' position here is simply, "That's rubbish; there ought to be a law." Unfortunately for Nebraskans, Chambers has the power to act on this position.

Chambers may be an unusual politician in terms of his religious orientation, but he is all too typical in his approach to government.

Iranian Butcher to Enter United States

Galileo Blogs offers the most succinct commentary on how it will come to pass (again) that the leader of a nation waging war against the United States -- and repeatedly explaining that it intends to destroy Israel as it openly prepares to do so -- will be permitted to enter the United States alive and free to attend a meeting of nations supposedly interested in the peaceful resolution of international disputes.

The obstacles against his entry into the heart of capitalist, individualist, selfish America were cleared two millennia ago by the peace-loving "philosopher" who teaches us to love our enemies and sacrifice ourselves to our tormentors.

So far, it appears that we will at least be spared his gloating presence at the grave site of our countrymen at the World Trade Center, although I'm sure there's plenty of time for our cowardly, morally bankrupt politicians to change their minds on that score.

A Lecture in Honor of H.L. Mencken

From an interesting article about a birthday celebration of H.L. Mencken, credited for nicknaming the Scopes evolution trial the "Monkey Trial" and remembered for his curmudgeonly persona, comes the following snippet:

[Leftist columnist Anthony] Lewis did bring the lecture around to Mencken. He doubted that the tools of the writer who skewered William Jennings Bryan and Warren G. Harding, ... would suffice in this moment in history. "Mencken's work is unequal to the scale of today's disasters," he said.

The reference to the writer came too late, however, to change the course Lewis' earlier remarks had set. Mencken fans pride themselves, by and large, on their self-perceived distance from the American "booboisie" Mencken criticized. It's a group the Menckenites identify as largely conservative. Bush-bashing was a trigger, and when it came time for a Q&A, they were off and running.

"Do you think it's possible that come January of 2009, Bush could decide to ignore the election results and keep himself in power?" one man asked.

Amusingly enough, the article opens with the following Mencken quote: "I never lecture, not because I am shy or a bad speaker, but simply because I detest the sort of people who go to lectures and don't want to meet them." It would appear that his most avid fans were doing their best to prove he had a point!

-- CAV