Memoirs Of A Geisha

To be a Geisha is to be judged as a moving work of art

Memoirs Of A Geisha, from director Rob Marshall, is a visually evocative epic; truly a moving work of art, but not quite a Masterpiece.

A much stronger script was needed.

It's a chick flick, so call your girlfriends, pick an afternoon to see the film, make dinner reservations at a Japanese restaurant, and leave the men at home.

Camp Katrina

Tis the Season....to spread the word about the great humanitarian work being done by the Military, Spc. Phil Van Treuren, Ohio Army National Guard, has created a wonderful blog,
Camp Katrina, which now features a voice from the left, Jake Moses, contributing every Monday, as well as a Canadian Pro West Muslim perspective from Amal Chaaban.

One look at how kute Phil is, and that's reason enough to bookmark his blog......but take some time read the stories - they are insightful and serve as a great reminder that the single largest worldwide humanitarian effort comes from our Military.

Are you listening John Kerry????????

Broken Promises

Kudos to Ron Silver for lending his support to the documentary, Broken Promises about the corruption within and the many failures of the United Nations. Ron narrated and co- produced the documentary, along with David Bossie, which is written and directed by Kevin Knoblock.

As his interest in public policy grew, Mr. Silver said he came to see an "unbelievably yawning chasm between the ideals of [the United Nation's] charter and how it operated in reality. When you see its lack of effectiveness with genocides, and its corruption ... it's not simply that they were ineffective, it's that in many cases they were abetting the injustices.""

Today on Fox, Ron talked about the lessons of Rwanda that we have failed to learn, citing Darfur where genocide going on right now as "a fictional world community has turned a blind eye" He explains that UN reflects its membership and that the Human Rights Commission should be abolished.


Ron astutely pointed out that the lies, deception, and corruption that the UN has indulged in should be an affront to liberals and democrats as much as it IS to conservatives and republicans. More so to the former because it laughs in the face of those very values that they insist they uphold and live by.

But in reality, we know that it is liberals/democrats that have been the most vocal supporters of the UN, which serves as yet another example of liberal hypocrisy.

Check out the website, and please go see this documentary!

www.BrokenPromisesMovie.com

Christmas Greetings!

In the cultural battle over whether to use the seasonal greeting "Happy holidays" or "Merry Christmas," the latter appears to be winning, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll released Tuesday.

This year, a majority of liberals and a majority of Democrats said their preference was "Merry Christmas" over "Happy Holidays".

Read the full story at CNN.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

God, Family, Duty, Honor

Mike Stokely didn't die for a just cause, he died for a lot of just causes, including the ones I set out above. I wish I were fit to tie his shoe laces but I am fortunate enough to have a son who believed in God, family, duty, honor and country and who certainly turned out to be the better of the two of us.

SGT Michael "Mike" James Stokely, KIA Operation Iraqi Freedom 16 Aug 05
2nd Platoon, E Troop 108th CAV 48h Brigaded GA NATL GUARD
15 miles south of Baghdad near Yusufiyah / IED

Rest in Peace, Mike. HOOOOOOOOAAAH!

Greyhawk has posted this must read heartfelt tribute from Robert Stokely to his son.

We will not lose!

We are on the eve of yet another monumentous milestone in Iraq - in just a few short hours, the Iraqi's will once again vote to elect their new parliment.

American Son shares his thoughts:

While we fight for the Iraqi people, we also fight for our brothers who have given their lives for this cause. We will not dishonor the memories of these warriors by cowering to fanatics. Let it be heard from the mountaintops, "WE WILL NOT LOSE! Brothers, we will continue your fight and we will NOT let you down.

A democratic Iraq is no longer a vision. It is a reality; a result of bravery, heroism and dedication which our enemies cannot even begin to fathom. The cowards whom we fight are heartless and are blinded by their fanaticism and false hopes. They have no concept of soldiery, bravery or virtue; they are the infidels.

Read the entire post, Let Freedom Ring, here.

The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe

I've seen it.....

Breathtaking, beautiful, magical, true to the spirit of the books, sublimely crafted, dazzling.

It's hard to escape the reality that Lewis thematic message: "Victory on the battlefield is linked to the triumph of the holy spirit", is inescapably intertwined with current events.

In todays world, where terror is a frightening reality, the movie has Peter (yes- the name is significant) battling evil with a pious sword. The subtext was best articulated by Rick Groen:
"He has to kill in order to be good and he must be good in order to kill".

More to come.....but for now I need to wallow in the pure enjoyment of this work of art. It is a masterpiece that may transcend its original medium.

Get Well Soon, Joshua Sparling

A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.
Christopher Reeve

I heard about Joshua on Michelle Malkin's blog, and sent him a card this morning, which included the above quote.

I think it aptly describes Josh.

Get Well Soon, Joshua! Thank you for your service and your sacrifice.

The Noble and The Brave

"I pledge my allegiance to the grand old flag
And the promise of hope from sea to sea
Under God one nation,
Undivided we will stand
Lift the banner of liberty!"
Gloria Gaither


From The Patriette, the wife of a Minnesota National Guardsman preparing for deployment to Iraq, and the daughter of a Vietnam Vet:

My husband was frustrated to read the latest comments from Congressman Murtha today: Murtha says army is 'broken, worn out'

So, he wrote a short letter to Representative Murtha that he gave me permission to post here

"I am currently assigned to a National Guard unit that is deploying to Iraq. Most of the soldiers in this brigade are on their second overseas deployment since 9/11. However, in spite of this we had an extremely high percentage volunteer for a second deployment. We have been training at a mobilization station for almost three months now, and the morale of the soldiers is high"

From Noodles who shares with us a letter from Sgt.Dave Thul "A Minnesota Soldiers View"

"But the truth is that there are almost 4000 young men and women
here, over half of them from Minnesota, who are double volunteers.
Volunteered once to join the Army, and most of us volunteered again to go to Iraq. It is truly inspiring to see so many step forward to defend the things we believe in."


Hat tip: Sgt Hook