The Bosque Boys

Washington D.C. groups giving away free condoms report that demand has dropped radically since the MADE IN CHINA prophylactics have packaging that tears easily, sometimes in a pocket or purse, giving the product a shoddy and defective appearance. Story here.

I'll refrain from immature jokes, though I'm tempted to list possible advertising slogans.

It struck me at the time of his announcement--but I forgot to note publicly--that Alberto Gonzales is resigning as Attorney General effective September 17.

So what?

September 17 is the official birthday of the Constitution, ceremoniously signed on that date in 1787 in Philadelphia.

So what?

Perhaps it is coincidence, or perhaps the Bushies enjoy subtle practical gags--but even as the chattering classes continue to denounce the Bush administration as the most tyrannical regime since James II, the personnel come and go, serving and fading away. And, finally, on January 20, 2009, the much-maligned current President of the United States will walk off the American political stage and retire to his ranch in Texas, performing the most important ritual in all of American government: the peaceful and voluntary renunciation of ultimate power.

Hat tip to George Washington.

So what?

While I am not unconcerned by claims of an imperial presidency and/or the stealthily encroaching "unitary executive" theory, one must keep in mind our deep-seated tradition of public service above individual power accumulation. A whole host of pundits, partisans and scholars are convinced that George Bush and Dick Cheney set out to permanently alter the balance of power in favor of the executive.

Check out this scary title: Takeover: The Return of the Imperial Presidency and the Subversion of American Democracy. More info on the plot from reporter Charlie Savage here via NPR.

But I wonder, how long can this cottage industry of calumnious drivel survive?

For all those who posit that Bush is Hitler, when are they going to contend with the notion that all this alleged power accumulation, if true, profits him nearly nothing—but stands to offer his likely Democratic Party successor a tremendous boon?

UPDATE: Welcome to Hugh Hewitt readers. We are honored.

The Bosque Boys invite all Hugh fans to browse the site and make yourself at home.

Previous thoughts on the signing statements controversy from 2006 here and here.

MSN lists and describes the 10 best donut shops in the U.S. I love America.

Once more the Left shows us their definition of "diversity." The new panel empowered by Vermont to evaluate the possiblility of same-sex marriage in civil society has no members espousing traditional marriage. It does however, have a member living in a same-sex union. Story here, from Anglican News via The Institution on Religion and Democracy.

Perhaps the Chinese are hoping that if we have enought of these stories, we will stop noticing. AP is announcing that Mattel will recall more toys MADE IN CHINA because of lead. Story from The Times of India.

If the Republicans had this sort of scandal going on, cable-news would have wall-to-wall coverage.

Gateway Pundit brings together the latest information here and here.

Farmer once said that Bill's downfall always would be women; Hillary's downfall always would be money. Interesting couple.

Well Merle, we made the trip from Oklahoma and back in a '98 Ford that had 167 thousand miles on it when we started. It gave us no problems and did just fine in the fast lane of the interestates. Maybe the good times are not really over for good.

Lyrics.

Here. From the New York Sun. Link from Instapundit.

Pete Seeger, folk-singer legend and member of the Old Left, now acknowledges the evil of Stalinism and sings about it in his new song The Big Joe Blues.

"I'm singing about old Joe, cruel Joe," the lyrics read. "He ruled with an iron hand / He put an end to the dreams / Of so many in every land / He had a chance to make / A brand new start for the human race / Instead he set it back / Right in the same nasty place / I got the Big Joe Blues / (Keep your mouth shut or you will die fast) / I got the Big Joe Blues / (Do this job, no questions asked) / I got the Big Joe Blues."

Better late than never. I think it was Susan Sontag who wrote that it should discomfort New York liberals that subscribers to The Readers' Digest were given a truer understanding of the Soviet Union than subscribers to elite journals.

We left Georgia by way of Chattanooga. Just south of the city we visited the Battle of Chickamauga historic site. Visiting Civil War battle sites is always a moving experience for me; I think of the men who died for Liberty and their suffering. Ironically, both sides fought for Liberty, each side defining it differently. I am glad the Union won, for its definition of Liberty, by the end of the war, made possible today's multiracial nation.

We drove around the site, following the tour map. I knew very little about this battle, other than it was part of the campaign by the Army of the Cumberland to secure Chattanooga for the Union. The tour map, and the signs at each stop, gave the story. The battle event that struck me most was the near rout of the Union forces. General Rosecrans was informed that a gap had opened in his lines. He ordered units shuffled to fill the gap. However, there was no gap, faulty information. Shuffling the other units created a real gap that Longstreet immediately exploited with his Confederate troops, driving Union forces back and threatening to turn the battlefield into a killing field for the Army of the Cumberland. Even Rosecrans fled. The remaining Union ranking officer on the field, Thomas, moved the troops who remained into a defensible position and held off wave after wave of Confederate assaults until after dark, then withdrew. His actions allowed Union forces to regroup and hold Chattanooga.

American voters need to know more military history. We expect today, and our media heighten this expectation, that everything will go according to plan in military operations. Never has. Never will. War is the most complex of human undertakings. Whether called the "fog of war" or the "friction of war" or by some other name, plans and decisions are based on limited information, sometimes wrong. No plan survives intact the first contact with the enemy. Armies must improvise under fire, when clear heads and stout hearts count most. Our modern media is too quick with hysterical reporting when things do not go perfectly in America's modern wars. Learn some history.

A brief summary of the battle is here. The website for the Chickamauga & Chattanooga Military Park is here.

Flopping Aces has a helpful timeline and information here.

Gateway Pundit offers historical comparison between Democrat and Republican scandals here.

Wizbang has a list of New England Democrat politicians who received money from Hsu here. Federal politicians were not the only ones.

Wizbang raises the essential question: where did Hsu's money come from?