LisaFabrizio.com

Dead Catsup Bounce

Day two of the turkey that is the Democratic National Convention is in the books which now makes it officially half-baked. As of this writing, on the afternoon of day three, I am into my seventeenth straight hour of viewing the televised coverage and fear I’ve come down with a case of acute hearing loss coupled with a touch of diversity fatigue. More

Sounds like Kerry has invented a new tap dance routine. - Carlotta B.

I am beginning to believe the DNC has, like Judas, sold out to the adversary. But then as Ephesians 6-12 tells us, "we battle not against flesh and blood but against the powers of darkness." Keep up the good fight! - Robert R.

The Long Goodbye

The other night as I was readying for bed, I happened to catch the second half of a 1990 Larry King interview with Ronald Reagan. As weary as I was, I sat enthralled by the sight of him; still tall in the saddle, bright-eyed and beloved by the TV camera, just as I’d remembered. More

John Kerry -- Catholic Warrior

There's an old saying around these parts: If you bring your business to the bar, it becomes the bar's business. John F. Kerry has, for most of his adult life, run for political office on the strength of his Vietnam service record and, in Massachusetts where this once counted, as a professed Catholic. Now that he's in the biggest race of his life, he's feeling a bit tender toward those who are questioning the validity of both of these issues. More

Ms. Fabrizio,

You should note that while many Catholics morally object to abortion, they may also object to legislation denying others the right to have an abortion. The legal system in America has become so accustomed to legislating morality that we have failed to consider whether or not morality should be legislated at all. There is a difference between what morality requires of us and the extent to which the law should reinforce this. God gave us free will for a reason-- so we can make the choice to follow Him. Legislating morality, denies us an oportunity to make our own moral judgements, thereby undermining His gift of free will. Senator Kerry meerly attempts to reaffirm this by arguing that "Church and state should remain seperate."

Organized religion is an institutionalized expression of faith. Similarly, faith is an institutionalized expression of the Divine. One can clearly see the potential for distortion (consider all of the factions of Christianity if you disagree). It is in this way that followers do not "pick and choose their beliefs," rather their beliefs pick and choose them. Not every aspect of Catholicism serves every Catholic's needs, but this shouldn't deny them the right to belong to a faith community where, on the whole, their ideologies align.

It must be easy to offer your conservative readers a conservative, sarcastically written ed-op about The Enemy. Anybody could do that. All the information you regurgitate is available to anyone with a newspaper. Next time, I challenge you to write using critical discussion and not tongue in cheek rhetoric to convince all of us, not only the already convinced, why, in fact, we shouldn't vote for the Senator.

Sincerely,

Luke R,

University of Southern California

If you have a chance, ask Kerry if he faults Archbishop Joseph Rummel of New Orleans for excommunicating Catholic public officials for enforcing segregation laws in effect in the 1960's. 

Or did Eisenhower violate the Constitution  for firing Earl Butz, Secretary of Agriculture in the 1950's for saying, off the record to reporters on a plane back from Rome where the Pope said he would not agree to distributions of condoms:  "If'n he no playa da gama, he no maka da rules" - Peter B.

Great article today. Having lived in Boston in the mid- to late-eighties, and having attended meetings at the Paulist Center on Park Street, I attest to the vaguely smug feeling about the tone of worship there. Kind of like those people who stay in their homes when a hurricane is headed their way; there was a bemused, defiant denial that seemed to provide a comforting, temporary reprieve from a much larger and unavoidable force headed their way. - Dave P.

America and Her Military

At several crucial times in our nation’s history, Almighty forces have intervened to aid in the course of events. From the writing of the Declaration of Independence when our Founding Fathers affirmed “a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence,” to the present day, many of us believe that because America is on God’s side, that He is on ours. More

John Kerry's Sun Valley Serenade

John F. Kerry descended this week from the mountaintops and pleasure palaces of Idaho, doffed his designer ski duds, boarded his private jet and resumed his quest to be elected president on the 'common man' ticket. More

Loved your "Sun Valley Seranade " article on John Kerry, sent to me by a friend on the far side of the country ( Ca ). I'm a Florida Native, living in North Florida now.

Why is no one talking about the fact that Saddam had more than ample time to  remove, hide, destroy, whatever, any  weapons, while the opposition party made sure of that by hampering and delaying the invasion any way they could ! ? !

I don't not happen to have a short memory ! Playing on the short memory of most of the great un-washed, is a lesson from the Clintons, well learned by the present Democrat  party.

I read your article regarding the self loving and self serving John Kerry and enjoyed it immensely.  Being from Brockton Mass., nothing about that twerp surprises me.  As I said to our Email group, where have they been hiding this reporter?  Keep them coming. - Sam F.

A Bad Week For Bush?  

It's been a bad week for President Bush, or so they say. After all, he was accused of being a traitor by a man who accepted campaign funds from the Red Chinese, a deserter by a man who shilled for an overt draft-dodger, embarrassed by his hand-picked weapons inspector and probably most dire of all, he had a less-than-inspiring appearance on a Sunday morning talk show. Or so they say. More 

I enjoyed and thoroughly agreed with your article on the President's "bad week." Too many conservative pundits, like their liberal counterparts, continue to underestimate George W. Bush. His equanimity and poise make his opponents look like Al Gore, John Dean, and sooner-or-later, John Flapjack Kerrey shrieking into a microphone. - Mike V.

This is a beautiful essay. Keep up the great work. Too many think the rush of mainstream Kerry mania means the death knell of GWB's magnificent work.

Hide and watch, is all I can say, and you said as much, in a brilliant fashion. - JR

Well done. I think that Kerry will go down, maybe not in flames, but down he'll go.

 His own record and sound bites will do him in too. There is also a part of me that's saying, he really doesn't want this job. I mean if he wins, how will Hillary be able to run in 2008 with a Dem in the WH? Being President is a full-time job and Kerry has never been a full-time anything. – Bob M.

Charlie Hustles Baseball  

So Pete Rose is pulling a Bill Clinton. You remember how it goes; get caught at something, then deny, deny and deny until they air the evidence. Next give a convincing teary-eyed, lip-biting admission and finally, make a good act of contrition like attending services at a black church. More  

Only one thing you can not explain away, who broke and who set all those records? This man should never be allowed in Baseball again, but you can't deny what he did.....Sosa cheated to achieve his records and got caught in the act, who knows how many times he was not caught, so that is wrong too. Pete Rose deserves to be recognized for what he did on the field as an athlete. - Ginger

Darn good article on Pete Rose. As an aside, I could never understand how they could compare any modern day stats with the Babe Ruth era. For example, in order to beat Babe Ruth's home run record they had to add more games. That in itself is one rotten apple in the bushel. – George H.

Great column, Lisa.  You make some thought provoking points and comparisons.  I especially like the "Baby Boomer Syndrome."  I hadn't thought of it before, but it certainly often seems to be true.

I read your columns faithfully on TGR and enjoy your insights and analyses as well as you writing style.  One little correction today however; Pete Rose didn't flaunt the rules, he flouted them.  I'm sure you know this but wanted to point it out, as I've made the mistake before also. - Ralph E

On A Tribute To A Marine Corps Leatherneck

I received some interesting email last week regarding my report on President Bush's Thanksgiving trip to Iraq. Mostly I heard from folks who were thrilled with W's visit, including Marci Warpness, who signed herself, 'A Proud Mother of a Marine':

I thought it was wonderful, speaking as a mother of a Marine who was over there and will have to go back. It is just what the men and women of our military need. It's important to show the troops that they are supported by one and all, not just family and friends when they are at war. More

Thank you for your positive and supporting article, as a retired Marine I really appreciate your work. I fought in Viet Nam and was involved in the Beirut goat rope. I'm too old and beat up to go back on active duty, but my heart is with them every day. Thanks again. - Don D.

Lisa...Your article was Great and you are 100% correct...this kind of stuff does not get the attention it deserves. PFC Warpness has the kind of courage that a lot of those young men and women have, but you would never know it from reading the mainstream press here.

I feel you are doing a wonderful job for our country. Politics sometimes gets in the way of humanity. The people of our country who are doubting our president and forgetting why we are over there in the first place should be ashamed of themselves. Our own country suffered in front of our eyes with the trade center and it is like these people have just blown it off.

Lisa, it was a pleasure to read this article. I wish everybody living the good life here at home could express their pride in our servicemen as Pres. Bush has done. -  Bill B.

On President Bush's Turkey Trot Runs Afowl Of The Left

When George W. Bush stepped from behind a curtain at a huge mess tent at Baghdad Airport to a standing ovation by six hundred of his loyal troops on Thanksgiving Day, liberals everywhere gagged on their giblets. The awful image of the President interacting with the worshipful men and women he had sent into harm's way was too much for them to stomach. Once again, the boy emperor had eaten their lunch. More

When I heard the news on Thanksgiving Day, it was such an uplift. can you imagine how quickly the word must have spread among all of our troops in Iraq! What an incredible gesture! and most of all, having made this dangerous journey, not to sit at the head of the table like a king, but to actually serve the troops their meal before he himself sat down to eat was monumental, because it was genuine. I am a veteran, and a Texan by choice, and I am so proud of my President, and so thankful that a leader of this caliber arrived when America needed him most. - Larry

You are so right in this article.  Comparing the President to John Wayne is very much a compliment.  I think we have all seen our share of John Wayne's movies and in all of them the theme was independence, standing tough in all circumstances and having the courage to do the right thing. It's a spirit that Americans like and that is why we like "W" so much.  

The media referring to "W" as a cowboy like it is a bad thing is certainly an insult to many Americans whether they are or aren't cowboys.   These "panty waist" politicians could learn some decent values from cowboys. Contrary to the media portraying cowboys as simple and stupid they are often very smart, very "together" and very wise about life in general.  Most of them have a great sense of humor which is very appealing and best of all many many of them look really good in those tight Levis!!!  - Janice

Thanks for the positive and true article.  It is all too apparent that the democrat party is against America, American traditions, the constitution and everything else that has made our country great.  They are truly the enemy within. - Bill B.

On Losing Momentum In Iraq? Only In The Mainstream Media

Forces hostile to the occupation here apparently intended to show their increasing sophistication and firepower by exploding two huge bombs ... at police stations about 20 miles apart north of Baghdad.

The attacks on Friday offered a taste of how difficult that task is likely to be, given the insurgents' quickness in exploiting any American weakness and their readiness to resort to low-technology tactics that can help them escape detection.

Increasing sophistication and low-technology tactics? The above excerpts from two separate articles from Saturday's New York Times, call to mind; “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Except that when it comes to coverage of the War On Terror, there is no best of times at The Times. More

Your article hit the nail on the head,  The democrats have no agenda for taking over the presidency, so all they can do is to bash President Bush and claim that the war is a failure.  It would be impossible to get your article published in the New York Times - the democrats would kill each other trying to get it squashed! - Wayne M.

Lisa, bravissimo, bravissimo!! Best line of the week from any source:  "inept ... oil-baron conquistador..." - Al R.

On "'Rock The Vote" Debate - That 70's Show" 

It started sometime in the late 1960s. This was the beginning of the end of America as we knew it. Up until the 'Summer of Love', there were children and then there were adults. The adults ran things, acted responsibly and were respected by children who obeyed and tried to emulate them.

This was before the 'Generation Gap' replaced the bridge which had connected the old and the young, resulting in a devastating case of role-reversal. Faced with the admonition that no one over 30 was to be trusted, parents ceded their roles as leaders and shapers of opinion to their children, and donned the love beads of same.   More

While reluctant to offer anything appearing to critique your superb writing, I would merely say your characterization of General Clark's performance at Harvard as: "to render Clark amorphous" might better have been stated as: "to render Clark 'ever more' amorphous." Since he entered the Democrat Party primary process, I have yet to heard him utter a single rational paragraph. Jeez, being a Rhodes Scholar, one would think he could communicate a few conceptually coherent principles or plans. - Al R.

This is a great summary of this whacky bunch of kids running for president. It’s obvious that most of them inhaled and the rest are still holding their breath! :-) - Ken B.

 Your insights on the dem freakshow were right on the money. Actually the  material is thin as we've been hearing it for years, but you did a fine job of deconstruction and they can look that up in their Funk and Wagnalls! - Paul P.

The Democrats' Great - Depression: The 2004 Elections

The Democrats are having a Herbert Hoover moment. They've been having lots of them lately. In their never-ending quest to bring down George W. Bush, they've taken to likening his economic prowess to that of the 31st president. Typical of these statements is that of Richard Gephardt; "This president is the Houdini of economics. Three million jobs have disappeared. He has got the worst record since Herbert Hoover."

What punsters hath the Democrat Party wrought! It's a pity that they've only lately taken up historical allegory. What witticisms they might have turned in the 70's on phrases like 'stagflation', 'misery-index' and 'national malaise'. And during that Constitutional unpleasantness in 1998, I'm sure they would have had many Andrew Johnson moments.   More

You have expressed my feelings to a "T".  As the media talking heads continue to express subtle hope that the president's approval is slipping and that the 04 election will be a squeaker, I see a "silent majority" out there like in the past when Nixon and Reagan ran for re-election that will come to the polls in large numbers to register their anger about all the elite media mis-information and crap.  I look forward to watching the faces of the big three news network anchors when the results flow in and they see how wrong they have been about mood of the voters. - Charles D.

Your article suggests a Bush landslide in 2004 and Republican gains in Congress, but there are two big factors that could work against this. While the economic figures released last week are encouraging, I still want to see what happens with jobs. You can ridicule the claim that 3 million jobs have been lost since 2000 but try asking the people out of work which way they are going to vote.

On "An Execution In Florida - Terri Schiavo On Death Row"

According to the Florida Department of Corrections, the average stay on their state's death row prior to execution is 11.76 years. That means that convicted murderers, many of whom have signed confessions, are usually given a decade to use the legal system to pursue the means of extending their lives. Armed with teams of lawyers and abetted by anti-death penalty advocates and judges, they do not receive their due punishment until all legal processes have been exhausted, and sometimes not even then.

Terri Schiavo received her death sentence on February 11, 2000 and her time on death row may be running out.   More

God has a definite plan for Terri Schiavo.  Either she will be allowed to live to see possible justice  or she will be killed and her death will be a scarlet stain on the resume of the ALCU and the soul of a godless husband.  Either way God will use this to work His will in this world.  Either way the grace of God will accomplish His work. There is a lot for which the liberal, 'quality of life' crowd will have to answer before a God who will reward them for their works. Hopefully she will be spared to recover as much as possible.  If she is the subject of abuse I hope that comes out and her husband is prosecuted.

This whole affair is an indicator of just how sick our courts are and how depraved a good portion of our populace is. - Jimmy W.

That SOB is gonna get his, I know it...!!! No one can look at the facts of this case and not know what happened here. I hope his lawyer can look at himself in the mirror when he shaves in the morning!!! - Annie S.

Just curious, WHY is Dr. Kervorkian in jail?  Seems to me like he wanted to help people like Terry Schiavo die with dignity and peacefully quick, if that is her choice and that is what the judges have said she wanted.   Isn't it against the law to starve an animal to death in Florida?  Seems like there is double speak here, the same ones who want Korvickian in jail for helping people die with dignity and peacefully when they choose to do so, see no problem with giving Terry a horrid death by starvation. - Anonymous

I wholeheartedly agree with your article about Terry Schiavo.  The question is, now that this has become such a public issue, is anything going to be done about it?  Will someone investigate her poor excuse for a husband?  Will they get him and anyone who agrees with him away from Terri, and let the people who love her help her?

On "The American Blowback"

Since the end of the Great Depression, the soul of this country has been split, though not down the middle. There are those in the vast majority who consciously or intrinsically esteem and celebrate the history and prospects of our nation...Then there is the minority, a leftist cadre of writers, media-types, educators, entertainers and other self-proclaimed members of the 'intelligentsia' whose image of the country vastly differs from that of most Americans. For years, this loquacious minority has held sway over their countrymen in the fields of education, the justice system and the 'arts' as well as exerting a covert influence over any moral debate through control of most of the mainstream media...More