Last week, Bloomberg ran an article about McCain’s meager (when compared to Obama) campaign fund-raising. Just looking at the numbers, it just doesn’t look that good for Mr. McCain.

Is this enough of a reason for McCain take a second look at Mr. Rolling-in-the-dough Romney? Or shall we rest on the old adage, “Slow and steady wins the race?” Anyone have any ideas about McCain’s lackluster performance in the fundraising arena?

What shall we take away from campaign fundraising? Is Obama’s windfall due to the fact that so many people do not like Hillary; are his supporters trying to buy his nomination? Time will tell how much money the dem nominee will continue generate after the nomination is wrapped up.

SCOTUS decided on the 25th of March on the Medellin v. Texas case. Essentially it asserts that International Treaties (in this case, the U.N. Vienna Convention) are not automatically enforceable judicially, and the wording of the treaty itself can be used to determine whether the law must be codified by Executive or Legislative action.

The Vienna Convention held that foreign nationals needed to be notified of their right to consult their consulate if they were arrested and charged. The justice system in Texas had not offered Medellin that right, so he brought it up on appeal in the U.S. District Court, and it eventually made its way up to the Supreme Court.

I’m of the opinion that Justice Roberts (and the other four in the majority) have this right, legally. There’s a little debate at the Federalist Society which is interesting. If you can make your way through the legal stuff, (and if I can…you can) you’ll see those that support the decision have a pretty strong argument.

As always, though, with these international cases, I try to pretend that if an American was in another country and committed a heinous crime, would I want them to be extradited? Would it depend on the crime? Or would it depend on the country? Or neither?

It’s an interesting case.

I just received an update from Dr Boustany explaining some of the new reforms Bobby Jindal is trying to establish at the state level. There was also a poll which asked if I would prefer to see a doctor that used electronic records that were patient owned. Of all the medical tests I’ve taken over the years I’d have to say I own none of them, and don’t have ready access to them…anyway, here’s the post from Dr. Boustany.

During my career as a heart surgeon, I saw too many patients who were trapped in a paper-based system that led to duplicative tests and tragic avoidable medical errors. Despite the advancement of innovative health information technology, America’s healthcare system remains trapped in the 20th century.

The need for health IT and health information exchange became even more apparent during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, when I saw displaced patients present themselves in makeshift clinics with little or no medical history to guide their health providers. To date, many physicians remain reluctant to convert their offices to electronic health records because many are unwilling or unable to handle the cost.

We must do more to empower patients and providers with better information about health care costs and quality, and protect patients’ control over their personally identifiable information and individual treatment decisions.

I believe both political parties clearly understand that we need to modernize our healthcare system to give patients better value for their healthcare dollars.

The Governor is right to spearhead this important issue at the state level, and I look forward to working towards straightforward solutions to increase access for all Americans to quality healthcare while decreasing costs.

“Uncle-Bill” politician Sheila Jackson Lee booed by her constituents (a.k.a. Yessa’ Massa’): http://www.khou.com/….ee.11d275a3.html

Another liberal anti-military movie flops:
http://www….-is-superflop-stop-loss-doa/

Liberal newspaper ad revenue in the shitter:
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/…03781895

The Religion of Peace (*ahem*) threatens to kill livleak.com employees for hosting anti-muslim film:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr……/

CBS continues to help with terrorist propaganda: http://www.cbsnews.com/…/main3976928.shtml

Merkel stands on principle and refuses to attend opening day of China olympics: http://www.guardian.co.uk/…olympicgames2008

John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United Nations, has written an excellent piece on the recent elections in Taiwan. Here’s the kicker:

U.S. policy has long held that the Taiwanese people should make their own decisions about their political future, free from Beijing’s political or military coercion. Unfortunately, during Chen’s administration, relations between Taipei and Washington grew chilly, as much or more because of mistakes in Washington than anything Taiwan did. Whatever the causes of the tension, however, now is the time for the United States to reaffirm clearly and unequivocally that it supports the expression of the people’s will in Taiwan’s elections and will continue to stand beside its longtime ally, including through necessary military assistance.

For the United States, the clearest way of expressing that support is to give full diplomatic recognition to the state that already exists and that the Taiwanese overwhelmingly wish to preserve. Maintaining ambiguous, informal ties to Taiwan is confusing and potentially dangerous; it obscures Beijing’s understanding of just how committed the United States is to Taiwan’s defense and self-determination.

I agree one million percent.

Too funny to pass up.

A Minnesota school backed out from an agreement to host veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan in the classroom. What an opportunity to learn about history in the making. I remember when some Vietnam vets came to our school and talked about the war. I’ll never forget it and learned more about the war than from the news.

“The event was structured to be an academic classroom discussion around military service. We thought we’d provide an opportunity for kids to learn about service in the context of our history classes,” Massey said. “As the day progressed, it became clear that this was becoming a political event … which would be inappropriate in a public setting.

Whatever you think about the war this would have been an eye-opening experience for a lot of young people and teachers.  I support those families and kids that skip school to attend this.

OK…A little healthy, or unhealthy, mix of entertainment and political theory. Bear with me.

Believe it or not, I’ve put a lot of thought lately (meaning about the last 4 years or so) into how important it is for us to think deeply about why we believe what we believe, and why seeing different perspectives is not only useful, but absolutely necessary to put our own views in their proper context.

With that in mind, let me reiterate what I’ve pointed out in a previous post, and this will likely become a recurring theme of mine:

Maybe the problem is that the “Conservative” three-legged stool should NOT be:

• Free Markets
• Christian Fundamentalism
• Peace through Strength.

But should instead be:

• Limited and Enumerated Government
• Community and Family Values
• National Sovereignty

…Without this perspective Conservatives look like either: 1) warmongers, 2) greedy money-grubbers, or 3) fanatic proselytes. (As opposed to Environmentalist Wackos, Feminazis, and Peaceniks)…

The above was my ranting about the quick narrowing of alternatives on the Republican side of the ticket for the Presidency, however, there are several things that I have observed over the last 6 weeks or so that has crystallized my thinking even further. Those events were these:

A trip to Richmond to the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Capitol where the most striking moment of the day (for me anyway) was reading this inscription on the statue of Robert E Lee, planted six steps into the chambers where he actually stood to say these words:

Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Convention:

Profoundly impressed with the solemnity of the occasion, for which I must say I was not prepared, I accept the position assigned me by your partiality. I would have preferred had your choice fallen upon an abler man. Trusting in Almighty God, an approving conscience, and the aid of my fellow-citizens, I devote myself to the service of my native State, in whose behalf alone will I ever again draw my sword.

Now, I had heard that quote before, but seeing it on his statue right there in the Chambers put a huge lump in my throat. I stood speechless for a moment and tried to understand what he must have gone through. I sincerely hope I never REALLY have to understand it. If any reading this has not read a thorough history of Robert E Lee, then we will have a hard time having a conversation about what it truly means to be an American. He is in my mind one of our great Patriots. If you think that’s just crazy, well…too bad.

Another “event” was catching (sporadically) back episodes of Jericho on HD and the new season on CBS. Never has a fictional show made me think more about the role of my Federal Government. If you haven’t watched this show…please do so. Regardless of your political perspective, it’s an excellent warning about how dangerous it is for us to place so much authority and responsibility on bureaucrats hundreds and even thousands of miles away.

Add to the above (in random order): The SCOTUS taking on the DC gun ban; Newt Gingrich’s speech at CPAC; a local project I worked on titled–”Ensuring a Sense of Community in Loudoun County” (long story); of course, the unlikely successes and lack thereof, of Governor Huckabee; and lastly a few chapters into “Liberal Fascism” by Jonah Goldberg…

…And I have come to the conclusion that what is really missing from the “Conservative movement,” the “Reagan Coalition,” or perhaps a NEW collective, starts with fundamental belief in the following:

• Having strong self-reliant communities where simple (dare I say “traditional”) values of that community are encouraged and supported by neighbors instead of enforced by the Government.
• A simple and direct foreign (and border) policy, which certainly respects the sovereignty of other countries, but first and foremost places our OWN sovereignty, safety, and indeed prosperity on the TOP of the priority list (as we would expect other countries to put THEIR rights and THEIR welfares on top of THEIR priority list).
• A health, education, and welfare system with a “bottom-up” approach instead of a “top-down” approach, where States, local communities, and families have ALL of the authority and all of the responsibility over the health, education, and welfare of their citizens and families. The Federal Government’s role in these areas would be limited to that of promoting “best practices” among the Republic, and would instead focus its attention on that which is in its purview, including the task of making sure that fundamental Constitutional rights of individual citizens are not infringed upon.

Am I simply in a dream world, or do these sound like universally Constitutional and classically liberal values? If not, what am I missing? Are these concepts outdated? Impossible in a “modern world”?  If they are appropriate–why is it that these values have been completely lost on the leadership of both major political parties?

And lastly? What can be done about this disconnect?

Step 1. Send this viral video to everyone you know.

Step 2. Sit back and laugh.