The Wandering Minstrel

I had a good laugh when I read Charles Krauthammer’s take on Joe Biden’s switch from pessimism in 2007 to his current optimism on Iraq Note the un-comparison to T. Roosevelt in the last sentence. (via The Corner):

Image - The Street in San Pedro, CA, named for the Vice President

Well, when I hear [the] vice president saying that he’s giving us assurances — ‘Absolutely, there’s going to be a unity government’ — this is the wrong way to go about it, I think. First of all, you shouldn’t announce it publicly if you are working behind the scenes. It gives the impression that this is a U.S. creation, the coalition that he says will emerge, and it undermines the legitimacy and the independence of such a government.

Secondly, we are not exerting that influence behind the scenes. We have a very weak ambassador. We have a president who’s shown no interest whatsoever in Iraq. He talks only about ending the war and leaving, not about success.

And — we have an administration that is linked and tied to a rigid withdrawal schedule arbitrarily chosen by Obama a year and a half ago, thinking we would have a stable government now. But in the absence of it, we have a drawdown, which weakens whatever influence America has in the first place.

So for all of those reasons we’ve had little influence. The Iranians have had influence on the shaping of the government, the Saudis have, and the Syrians and the Turks, each riding its own horse, each creating a stalemate. We have not.

What essentially has happened with the Biden speech is we’re talking loudly and carrying no stick at all.

Emphasis added. Biden is no Theodore Roosevelt, that’s for sure.

Just after the conclusion of our latest excursion to Arizona, the belt clip on my Don Hume IWB Strike Holster failed. The Kydex thermoplastic belt clip fractured at the top of the loop where it fits over the top of my belt.

I like the holster, so I contacted the manufacturer to inquire about returning it for repair. They promptly got back to me in an email this morning with instructions for mailing it back. I dropped into our mail service store and shipped the holster back to them this morning. They should have the item by Thursday.

I decided that the tuckable feature for this holster will not generally be needed, so I ordered another IWB holster with a metal clip for “Little Boy,” my Glock 26. I also ordered the same model for “Fat Man,” my Glock 30.

Since the new holsters do not have the strap that holds the gun in, it should be easier to get the gun out of the holster. I visited a website a while back that recommended that IWB holsters should not have the strap. I’ll give it a try.

This is the second of a series of articles intended to dispel misinformation generated by illegal aliens and open-borders liberals about SB 1070, the new immigration law in Arizona. Mainstream media also seems to believe these myths. With this entry I have posted the first two of the 10 most common myths. I will post the other eight soon.

MYTH: S.B. 1070 requires police officers in Arizona to stop, ID and arrest anyone they suspect of being in the country illegally..

FACT: Police officers are authorized, but not required, to determine any person’s immigration status if reasonable suspicion exists as explained above. Police officers are only required to: (1) make a “reasonable attempt” to determine a person’s immigration status (2) “when practicable” (3) but not “if the determination may hinder or obstruct an investigation.” Arizona Revised Statutes (”A.R.S.”) § 11-1051(B). The only absolute requirement for law enforcement officers and agencies to confirm a person’s immigration status is if they are arrested for another crime. A.R.S. § 11-1051(B).

Again, nothing in Arizona’s new statute does anything more than the Federal statutes. All the blown-out and hyped bullshit coming out of the left and the media are purely lies in defense of legalizing an open border immigration policy.

After the weekly shopping, The Better Half and I settled down on the backyard swing to enjoy a nice sunny afternoon with each other and the dogs. The weather was sunny with a little breeze and temperature at a comfortable 73° F. That’s not exactly what we’re used to, having spent the two weeks in 103° F. Arizona. But, it was nice and we enjoyed the day.

Clickable image - dinner in progress

About an hour before dinner time, I started some rosemary garnished potato wedges on the griddle. A half hour later I put the Santa Maria Tri-tip roast on the grill and started steaming some green beans on the side burner. The meal turned out very well in spite of having to change the propane cylinder halfway through the operation.

Bottom line - a very tasty and heart-healthy meal enjoyed by all (including the dogs).

Why would a cellular tower have to look like a tree amongst the power lines and electrical infrastructure? This is dumber than the stupid cell tower disguised as a conifer along US 60 near Wickenburg, AZ. They would have been better off putting up a standard cell tower which would blend in to the hi-tension infrastructure. Clickable image courtesy The Better Half.

The Better Half and I went out to the construction site where our contractor is building our new house. I walked up the little hill at the east side of our property and snapped images of the site. We were there at roughly the same time each day, Monday through Thursday, mid to late morning.

The top panel in the composite image is of the work done on day one, the day of the groundbreaking. The entire foundation trench was already complete. This time of the year in Arizona, they get to work early and get the work done before daytime temperatures become very hot.

Clickable image - Days one through four.

The second panel, day two, shows the nearly completed form for the foundation concrete pour. The crew used a level laser projector to ensure the forms were all at the same height.

The third panel, day three, shows the completed foundation forms and the rough blackwater plumbing. We asked for a blackwater dump to be available for our RV pad so it is available outside the foundation behind the master bath. You can see the sewer vent (the long vertical pipe) extending upwards near the RV connection just outside the foundation.

Today, day four, we stopped to get a final panorama of the progress. Inside the frame, the ground has been leveled in preparation for the concrete slab to be poured.

The Better Half and I are headed back to California for a few weeks to take care of personal business and family matters. We plan to return to Arizona after the Labor Day Holiday to track progress and to continue with the transition to the Copper State.

This is the first of a series of articles intended to dispel misinformation generated by illegal aliens and open-borders liberals about SB 1070, the new immigration law in Arizona. Mainstream media also seems to believe these myths.

MYTH: S.B. 1070 grants new powers to police officers to pull drivers over just to check their immigration status. Police can now just come up to you for no reason and ask for papers.

FACT: S.B. 1070 is a “secondary enforcement” law. S.B. 1070 requires that there must first be a “lawful stop, detention or arrest made by a law enforcement official or a law enforcement agency . . . in the enforcement of any other law or ordinance. . . .” A.R.S. § 11-1051(B). Much like enforcement of seat belt laws in many states such as Arizona – under S.B. 1070 there must first be reasonable suspicion that you are breaking some OTHER law before an officer can ask a person about their legal status. Only then, after law enforcement officers have a “reasonable suspicion” that another law has been broken, can they inquire about immigration status – but ONLY if that individual’s behavior provides “reasonable suspicion” that the person is here illegally.

“Reasonable Suspicion” is a well-established legal standard defined by the U.S. Supreme Court and used by law enforcement in every state and jurisdiction in the country for decades.

The bottom line here is that if you’re in compliance with Arizona statutes, police and other law enforcement agencies may not detain you to establish legal residence. Anyone who says otherwise is a liar.

The AZ Primary Election is a week from today. On our errands here and there over the last two weeks, we see campaign signs on the roadsides in front of businesses and homes. This one was in front of a local auto supply store.

A Recent Rasmussen Poll puts Governor Jan Brewer well ahead of Goddard, current AZ Atty. General and the likely Democratic nominee. Another Rasmussen Poll shows that 60% of Florida voters favor an Arizona-like immigration law for their state. I’m sure that many other states lean that way as well.