Jihad Watch has excellent coverage of the investigation into the murders of the Armanious family in New Jersey. This was a family of Coptic Christians who immigrated to the U.S. from Egypt, and were murdered, likely by Islamic radicals, after the father, Hossam Armanious, made a controversial statement about Islam in a chatroom.

Among the more interesting revelations are:

Shortly after the murders, members of the Egyptian consulate went to visit the family to encourage them to keep quiet. And many family members have obeyed, saying nothing to reporters or anyone else.

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Though the family wants to reserve judgment until the results of the case are released, they did say that the way the four family members were bound and gagged and the way their throats were slit with holes carved is similar to executions that are shown on al-Jazeera.

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A reporter who is closely following this case said that this delay was because the police and prosecutor want this case to go away. They want things to cool down. That’s why they set the autopsy date as March 14, two months after the murders.

It is still possible that this wasn’t a Muslim hate crime. The problem is that investigators have not taken the necessary steps to ensure a fair review of the evidence. There are too many holes here, too many inconsistencies in the official story. Too many obvious tasks have not been done: an Armanious family friend with whom I spoke, who gave me names and motives of possible perpetrators, is still waiting for a call from investigators.

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This background information may illuminate why this investigation has been so curiously lacking:

There are a number of clergy in the Coptic community who are in bed with the Egyptian government. Some even act as agents for the Mubarak regime. Coptic clergy who wont cooperate are often exiled into the Egyptian desert, where they live a very difficult life.

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A number of Muslims have infiltrated the Coptic community, pretending to be Christians in order to gather information. Jersey City has a large number of Copts. Some of this infiltration has taken place there; some of the Coptic clergy there are also compromised. However, most Copts trust their clergy wholeheartedly, making it easy for the moles to operate.

Read the whole thing. It is very disturbing.

It looks like this story is destined to become yet another blog driven story, as the mainstream media have yet to give it any significant coverage. One would think that the murder of a Christian family, probably by Muslim fanatics for criticizing Islam, in the United States would be a major new story. Yet, it isn’t. Could it be because it contradicts what the media has been so persistent in trying to convince us: That radical Islam is no threat to us?

State Sen. Tommy Kilby, who warned against Howard Dean as chair of the DNC, has garnered some criticism from Steve Scarborough, who wants the Democratic party to move further leftward:

Our local state senator says he’s a Democrat. He campaigned as pro gun, anti government, pro life, anti gay, and pro war. He ran a little to the right of the Republican. This last week he came out publicly urging the Democratic National Party not to choose Howard Dean as chairman because it would alienate Southern Democrats.

“It would prompt many Southern Democrats to abandon the party,” is what he said. Where the heck else can I go, you idiot? You are already agianst danged near everything I hold dear, Senator, and you think Howard Dean is the one alienating Democrats?

I realize my state senator is probably unemployable in the private sector and needs this job, but why in the heck does he want to come out against the only Democarat with national stature who says, “We need the South!”

While you’re at Steve’s blog, be sure to read his moonshine memories. He may be a liberal Democrat, but in my book, he’s okay!

Libertarian Girl has an update which seems to indicate that the Armanious family, a Coptic Christian family from New Jersey that appear to have been murdered by radical Muslims.

American high school students are ignorant of the First Amendment, feeling free speech is no big deal, according to a new survey from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation:

Yet, when told of the exact text of the First Amendment, more than one in three high school students said it goes “too far” in the rights it guarantees. Only half of the students said newspapers should be allowed to publish freely without government approval of stories.

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When asked whether people should be allowed to express unpopular views, 97 percent of teachers and 99 percent of school principals said yes. Only 83 percent of students did.

Obviously, this is quite a disturbing trend in our youth, and one that must be reversed if we are to preserve our liberties. Our schools must do a better job educating children on the need for freedom of speech (in addition to other liberties).

Former Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker and former Vice President Al Gore will speak at a symposium on clean air at UT on March 9, Georgiana Vines reports. Should make for an interesting discussion. I wonder who Gore will blame for our dirty air?

Today is the big day in Iraq.

Just Julie on those Charmin Ultra Commercials with the bears:

I just can’t stand this anymore! Those naked bears of t.v. wiping themselves ~~back and forth~~ in their private area is just disgusting! I mean, maybe I’m a prude when it comes to cartoon bears, but I DON’T WANT TO KNOW HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH!!! I mean, what, are the Charmin Ultra police gonna come crashing into my bathroom some night to judge if I’m using too little or too much toliet paper? That damn song! “What you thought was enough might be too much”??? Come on! It’s none of your goddamn business you creepy little toliet paper monitor! And the joy those bears are having, shaking their naked butts on the t.v.,AND the fact that it’s supposed to be a dad bear and his daughter bear. MY Dad never checked to see if I was using the right amount of toliet paper! That is just wrong! On so many levels, but mostly that damn song makes me want to KILLKILLKILL!!

Amen.

Former State Sen. Bill Owen, who ran unsuccessfully against Tim Burchett in 2002, is polling Tennessee Democrats on Howard Dean, the former presidential candidate and Vermont governor now in the running for the chairmanship of the national party, Georgiana Vines points out.

As it stands now, most state Executive Committee members are undecided, but Dean leads among those who have made their decision. State Democratic Chairman Randy Button is among the undecideds. Button, a Harriman native, has been asked by State Sen. Tommy Kilby (D-Wartburg) to vote against Dean.

I personally would be surprised to see Howard Dean carry a majority of Tennessee’s votes. However, if it does happen, it will almost assure him his chairmanship.

State Senator Tommy Kilby (D-Wartburg) is urging Tennessee Democratic Party Chair Randy Button to oppose the candidacy of Howard Dean for chair of the Democratic National Committee:

“It is my greatest fear that should he be elected, many Democratic elected officials will abandon the party,” Kilby said. “We, as a party, must get back to mainstream America.

“We must open our party and allow people who are pro-life, pro-gun and pro-traditional marriage to have an active role in developing our platform and message,” he said. “The election of Howard Dean as chairman will be disastrous to any future election successes. We must change course or cease to be a national party and most likely a party at all.”

Wise words from a guy I don’t particularly care for. We shall see if the national Democratic party has learned anything. Here’s hoping they haven’t.

Many Democrats, such as South Knox Bubba, are frustrated by Gov. Bredesen, whom they percieve as being too conservative, maybe even a sellout to his own Democratic party. On the other hand, many Republicans have supported Bredesen strongly (this may be partially due to the governor’s high poll numbers.

Thus Bredesen is conservative, right? Not so fast, as today’s News-Sentinel indicates:

Gov. Phil Bredesen said he is adamantly against putting a proposed “taxpayer bill of rights” into the state constitution, but he will not actively oppose an amendment to forbid gay marriage.

Questioned during an interview about proposed state constitutional amendments, the governor said he thinks popular election of the state comptroller, treasurer and secretary of state is a bad idea but is less strongly opposed to permanently banning a state income tax.

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“I think the taxpayer bill of rights is a bad thing that goes to the heart of my ability to operate government day-to-day as opposed to some of the other things that are out there,” he said.

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The governor said he believes the constitutional amendment unnecessary since state law already prohibits same-sex weddings, but “I won’t actively urge defeat” of the proposal.

He said gay marriage is “a vastly different issue from tolerance for gays.”

The jury is still out on Bredesen. I have given him praise in the past, and will continue to do so when he deserves it. I will say that I find myself mostly agreeing with the governor on gay marriage, so it isn’t a total loss. Many conservatives won’t be as understanding as myself, however.

Suzanne Fields exposes some warts on that great “humanitarian” organization, the United Nations.

Evan Coyne Maloney is back with another video. This time he’s trying to bridge the gap between Red America and Blue America. It’s a shame he didn’t talk to my Daily Beacon colleague Thomas Walker.

Shameless plug: I was featured in one of Evan’s films last year, Brainwashing 101.

So on the way back from the UT basketball game tonight, I stopped at the Texaco on Sutherland to fill up my car. While pumping gas, a sign was pointed out to me which informed the reader that Texaco cards were no longer accepted, but that Shell cards were. This is at a Texaco station, mind you. I wanted to ask the cashier, but she was really creepy, so I just took my gatorade and left. It was a very confusing time.

Dennis Prager has some tough words for American Universities:

But for most professors, neither finding truth nor seeking wisdom nor teaching is the primary goal of the university; promoting leftist ideas is. Most Americans know this to be true — hence the chasm between most Americans and the university. But many Americans do not wish to acknowledge this. To come to realize that the highest institutions of learning often do not value learning but seek to propagandize their children (largely against everything they, the parents, believe in) is too painful. Most people can’t confront the fact that, unless their child is studying the natural sciences, they have paid huge sums of money for their child to be able to share bathrooms with members of the opposite sex, read columns in college newspapers about American evil and tongue techniques for better oral sex, binge drink and, with a few noble exceptions, be propagandized.

Ouch. Read the whole thing.

Like many, many citizens, I stood in the frigid street in front of the Capital building in Washington, DC, to witness the 55th Inauguration, having waited in line forever and enduring the humiliation of security and fighting off a snow storm in order to see a screen far off in the distance on which the action took place. We could barely make out the words of President Bush, Vice President Cheney, or Chief Justice Rehnquist. We could barely even see them on the screen. But we knew something big was happening, and we were a part of history.

Those who attended the Inauguration were a slice of America - Republicans, Democrats, Independents, Libertarians, and Greens. I stood next to a young man who cheered on protestors, and explored Washington with a formerly hardcore Kerry supporter. Those came from every state and many countries, most taking time away from work or school to attend. It was truly an American experience.

President Bush is a divisive figure, so they say. His approval rating was not very high when he was re-elected, and some polls indicate it has declined since then. Yet, for a moment in time, save for a few of the most zealous protestors, we were all united as a people, as Americans or as supporters of America. We could all take a deep breath and know that we were truly blessed to live in a country where leaders take power peacefully and only through the consent of the people. We could all thank God that we lived in a country where we would be free to go back to our homes and say anything we wanted about the president we had just seen inaugurated and not fear retribution.

In many ways, the inauguration of a president is a non-partisan event. Those who support the president that is being sworn in are obviously happier than those who do not, but even they can take pride in knowing that in four years they’ll get another chance. The republic does not end if one loses an election. We do not have to fear death or imprisonment for supporting the “wrong” candidate. We can just go about our lives, and live in peace with those whom we feel are dead wrong when it comes to politics, but who are good people with only the best of intentions.

Should America get involved in the affairs of other countries to bring liberty and freedom to them also? Therein lies a great debate in our nation today. President Bush certainly thinks so, as he said in his speech: “There is only one force of history that can break the reign of hatred and resentment, and expose the pretensions of tyrants, and reward the hopes of the decent and tolerant, and that is the force of human freedom.” But he went on to explain how freedom for others was in our interests: “The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands.” A controversial statement, to be sure. Many cheered it. A person next to me sarcastically wondered aloud why he failed to include Saudi Arabia in his wish list for liberty.

America has its problems. Astute observers of history know that questioning virtually everything the government does, whether it be imposing taxes or the Patriot Act, is necessary to maintaining liberty. Our government has become far larger and more intrusive than our Founders ever wanted. And yet, it is still a success, because America remains a city on a hill, a place where the poor and downtrodden of the world aspire to come. How can anyone not be moved when we see Cubans risking it all on inflatable rafts to get to Miami, or refugees from Haiti doing the same. Some say America is a racist society. Someone apparently forgot to tell these braves souls that.

As much as I disliked John Kerry, no politician was ever more right than he was the day after he was defeated when he proclaimed: “But in an American election, there are no losers, because whether or not our candidates are successful, the next morning we all wake up as Americans. And that — that is the greatest privilege and the most remarkable good fortune that can come to us on earth.”

We can all debate on how liberty should be spread abroad, about abortion or gun control, about the death penalty or war. And then we can remain friends, united in our love of freedom and liberty. Our ability to do this is a rarity in the world, and we are truly blessed to be here, because this is America, the greatest country in history.

Former WWF/E wrestler and current political speaker Warrior spoke at UT today. Covering a variety of political topics, he stressed the need for mentoring and improved discipline in American society. He also spoke in terms of clear moral absolutes, for example - stating that there are two sides to every issue: right and wrong.

Warrior is unabashedly conservative, claiming that the difference between conservatives and liberals are that conservatives think and liberals feel. Through it all, he regaled the audience with stories of his wresting days.

Warrior was nice enough to pose for this photo with me:

The folks at Jib Jab have done it again.

So I was in the grocery section of Wal Mart yesterday, when I saw a carton of “Organic Eggs.” Huh? I thought eggs were already about as organic as you can get….

I took the following photos during my trip to Washington, DC, which I was visiting to attend the 55th Inauguration. While there, I had the honor of meeting Congressman Jimmy Duncan, and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

I made it back to Knoxville from DC around 3:30 AM last night. I promptly went to bed. We had a nice time at the inauguration. I will be posting some photos on here in the not-to-distant future.

In the meantime, here is a News-Sentinel article in which I am quoted.