M.O.P.

From National Lampoon's comes this delicious website:
MoveOnPlease.Org

For an organization founded upon the irrational partisan hounding of one president, MoveOn has done a pretty good job of morphing into their opposition.

And on a similar topic, James Lileks had an interesting observation on the "escalation" of POTUS-hating in recent times. Scroll down to "A great many letters . . ."

Indianapolis UNIGOV

Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson is getting some substantial support in his effort to overhaul the city-county government from some big names, three former Mayors of our capital: Sen. Richard Lugar, William Hudnut, and Steve Goldsmith.

Why Am I Not Surprised?

DePauw University has been selected for a pilot project to combat binge drinking. Unfortunately, I think that if the Dannies can't drink, they'll just switch to crack.

Survival and Updates

I'm now safely back in Indiana and ready to steady myself with some food from the Indiana State Fair. How did I survive Hurricane Charley? you might ask. Well, I simply hopped in a canoe and paddled through the weaker side of the eye wall to hang out in the eye of the storm. It moved inland at about 20 mph, must faster than I can row, so to keep inside the protected area, I lassoed some of my old friends, the manattees. The gentle beasts hauled up into Charlotte Habour and then into the freshwaters of inland Florida, where they were eaten by alligators. But by that time the storm had weakened, and I was able to make my way back home by hitching rides on the power company trucks, lending a hand to repair the downed powerlines along the storm's path. It was a great experience, and I'll never forget the look of delight on a little girl's face when I restored power to her Lite Brite.

Meanwhile, HR's Scott Tibbs has been very productive, churning out two pieces featured on the sidebar. My regrets at not having posted them sooner.

Convoluted Man

So Kerry says that "he would have voted for the congressional resolution authorizing force against Iraq even if he had known then no weapons of mass destruction would be found."

Does this anger any of his supporters? I would think it would, but then I don't support Kerry in the first place. If I understand it correctly, Kerry originally said he voted for the war resolution becasue he thought it meant that Bush would do a bunch of things such as talk to allies more and inspect more before going to war. An important point to make here was that if he didn't understand the resolution, why did he vote yes on it? That seems to be a valid point in whether or not he would be an effective leader. If he was unsure of what might transpire, and he didn't like some of the results, he should have voted no or at least asked questions before voting.

So where does Kerry's newest statement leave him? Well, essentially where he was. To the average listener, Kerry appeared to say that he supported the war and he was tough on terror. To his supporters, he actually said he supported the resolution, but not what Bush did with it. So with one phrase he was both for and against the war. Typical Kerry.

Another question I'd like to see him answer is how he would get international allies (France) to deploy troops. Consider the following: The Kingdon of Tonga committed 45 troops to Iraq, and it has a population of 100,000. A proportional committment from France would be 27,450 troops. As Mark Steyn from National Review says: "No matter how much conversational ketchup Teresa drizzles over Chirac, that's never going to happen."

In the end, we are left with empty promises, convoluted statements, and typical Kerry.

Great, Just Great

Looks like I picked the worst possible time to take a vacation to Florida. Tropical Storm Bonnie did a fine job of missing me completely, but Hurricane Charley looks poised to strike nearby. The storm is presently expected to hit Tampa Bay, about 30 miles north of me. Unfortunately, the weather technocrats give about a 26-mile margin on either side. Even worse, the hurricane-force winds extend 30 miles from the eye of the storm, and tropical storm-force winds extend 125 miles. Bully.

The good news is that I'm not in an evacuation zone, even though my county is in a declared state of emergency. It's my choice as to whether I want to leave, but the people on TV tell me to stay put. As I was riding the bus back from kayaking* today, the driver regaled us with the latest stats. He encouraged me especially to get the hell out of dodge. Another fellow and his son on the bus were from Tampa and seemed game and ready to stay. A small English family seemed curious about the whole business, but in such a way that conveyed they didn't know how worried to be. The locals assured them that they were in something called the "Orange Zone," and would only get some tremendous winds. As I was driving away, the bus driver was still regaling them with descriptions of the coming catastrophe, including a pantomime of some spectacular meteorological phenomenon.

I stopped by the grocery for some jugs with which to hold drinking water. Besides the fact that the water aisle was bare, everyone seems rather sanguine about it. I've decided to stay and tough out the storm. Mostly, I'm excited about being in a natural disaster (middle-aged HR readers should be reminded that I am 24-years-old and, therefore, indestructible). Partly, I'm curious, both of the event and how a community recovers afterward. Marginally, as I was driving on I-75 South and looking at I-75 North, it struck me that an evacuation is indistinguishable from an awful traffic jam, and I hate traffic more than hurricanes.

The storm isn't supposed to strike until tomorrow evening, with winds reaching 74 mph by 6:30 EDT. Peak winds may reach up to 95 mph. By midnight, the winds are supposed to have passed, and then an 8-foot storm surge will flood the county. Apparently, I'm suppose to take refuge in the bathroom, maybe with a mattress, and fill the bathtub with water (for reasons that still aren't entirely clear). I was heartened by the fact that a small fleet of utility vehicles from the power company were on I-75 S as I headed home. Hopefully, these Floridians know how to put things back into shape quickly.

Is it wrong for me, as a tourist, to wonder whether the locals can put the pieces of their shattered lives back together in time for me to enjoy the rest of my vacation? And on vacation I am! I didn't feel much like posting a lot this week, and I'll feel even less like it if I don't have water or electricity.

* I felt very special, as I was one of the last people on the river right before they opened up the flood gates.

Update - 8/13/04, 8:44 pm (EST): I'm still alive, thanks.

Pix of Chix

What's more adorable than baby toucans?

I can think of one thing.