Be on the lookout for infamous pedophile and scourge of the blogosphere Jack McClellan.

Now that this has hit the local media (it was a top story on KATU at 5 o’clock), word is sure to spread fast. But if you haven’t done so yet, be sure to be on the lookout. Report any suspicious activity you may see him engaged in and be sure to keep your children away from this terrible, evil man. If he approaches your children, call 911 and report it. Do not trust him and do everything you can to avoid him.

AP Photo

It is my firm belief that he poses a direct and very real danger to every child in the greater Portland Metro area.

From Warriors for Innocence

Jack just posted again on his favorite pedophile message board. He’s announced that he’s decided to live in Portalnd[sic], Oregon because it’s “the biggest media market in Oregon” and he would feel safer there.

Jack originally wanted to live in Gold Beach. Kudos go to the Gold Beach Police who warned Jack that they’d be keeping a close eye on him. Jack immediately ran off crying and complaining about his “safety”.

Jack’s already up to his old tricks and bragging about it as well. He says he “already attended a big GL event in the area (The Oregon State Fair in Salem), and had a great time with no problems. There are several more GL events coming up this weekend that look promising, and I doubt I’ll be bored living here.”

Freedom of Speech is a great thing, but sometimes is just goes too far. I very much believe that such is the case with McClellan, who claims he’s never actually done anything ‘illegal’ with a child.

Again, if you live in the greater Portland area, be sure to tell all your friends and neighbors - especially those with young children - to be on the lookout for this evil, evil man. If you have a blog, post a warning and a link to Warriors for Innocence. Just do something, anything, to protect local children and to get this man locked up for as long as possible.

Special thanks to KATU, Texas Fred, and especially Warriors for Innocence.

Edit: Added photo

A 76-year-old Jewish-Romanian lecturer was hailed a hero after blocking his classroom door long enough for many of his students to escape the Virginia Tech gunman, before being shot dead.

Liviu Librescu, a Holocaust survivor, pressed himself against the door of the classroom while shots were fired in the corridor and surrounding rooms. He stood firm, attempting to barricade the door, while his students clambered out of the windows.

His son, Joe Librescu, said in an interview from Tel Aviv that the professor e-mailed his wife to say that he had prevented the gunman getting into the classroom. However, the next e-mails received by the family were from students in the class informing them that Mr Librescu had not survived the shootings.

“My father blocked the doorway with his body and asked the students to flee,” Joe Librescu said. “Students started opening windows and jumping out.”

Source: http://www.timesonline.co.uk

This article really got to me. The fact that a college professor was willing to risk - and as it unfortunately turned out, sacrifice - his life to help buy his students more time to escape is probably the most touching story to come out of this terrible tragedy.

In a world where ever so many college professors seem to be soulless monsters set on indoctrinating the youth of America, it’s truly amazing to see one who clearly cared for his students and was willing to take such risks to help protect them.

May God bless Liviu Librescu, all the victims, and their families.

Professor Liviu Librescu, 76, sacrificed his life to save his students

I honestly don’t know what to say about this one. The very idea that someone can have the heartless contempt for humanity and human life to engage in such a terrible act. At this point I’m not going to offer any analysis or try and politicize anything.

Thirty-two and the gunman dead. The worst single shooting, school or otherwise, in US history.

My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. May God bless.

Links:
Multiple Associated Press Articles
Virginia Tech Website
Wikipedia Article with many sources

It’s been yet another week and I’m again behind on my posting. I’ve decided to try something new this week, I’m offering a ‘news roundup’ of things I found interesting, important, and insightful. They are presented in no particular order.

Wisconsin Police Chief Writes Himself a Ticket

KEWASKUM, Wis. - Police Chief Richard Knoebel says he wasn’t about to take the easy way out when he accidentally drove past a stopped school bus with its emergency lights flashing.

For violating traffic laws, Knoebel wrote himself a ticket for $235, docked himself four points on his driving record and paid the fine the next day.

Yahoo! News

I applaud Mr. Knoebel and his actions. I’m sure that police are more honest and trustworthy than the general American population (not everyone, though, I’m making generalizations), but it’s still amazingly reassuring to see that he had the honesty and integrity to do what was right. I’m sure that he could just as easily have ignored his violation and gone on without a second thought. I wish I could say that this is indicative of a new moral and social direction in America, but I’m afraid it remains an outlier in the continuous decay that surrounds us.

Switzerland May Allow Assisted Suicide for the Mentally Ill

LAUSANNE, Switzerland: A ruling by Switzerland’s highest court has opened the possibility that people with serious mental illnesses could be helped by doctors to take their own lives.

Switzerland already allows physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients under certain circumstances but the Federal Tribunal’s decision, which was released on Friday, puts mental illnesses on the same level as physical ones.

International Herald Tribune

I see real problems with this on two fronts, one being the continuing decay of the importance and sanctity of human life, and the other being the fact that mentally ill patients are being allowed to make such decisions. If many mentally ill patients cannot even make decisions about their treatments, what position are they in to decide to end their lives?

Frankly, I just don’t get the idea of assisted suicide laws in the first place, and I find physician assisted suicide especially troubling - it is the role of doctors to work to protect and save their patients, not end their lives. I don’t really care if people decide that there lives are so terrible that they need to commit suicide, but at the point that there are laws that allow doctors to ‘help’ is just insane. And what is there to stop the slippery slip from assisted suicide (which is apparently now expanding) to mandatory euthanasia for seriously ill or elderly patients. I don’t like it one bit.

China to Censor Year of the Pig Commercials

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese state television will censor advertisements featuring pigs in order not to offend Muslims in the Year of the Pig, a media company said on Friday.

“Originally they didn’t want pig images in ads on TV, because they worry about conflicting issues with Muslims in China,” said Lisa Wei, managing director of media investment firm GroupM China Trading.

Yahoo! News

Personally, I find this terribly surprising and a sad reflection of the world we live in. While I can’t say that I care for the Chinese government or their rampant censorship policies, this just seems to be going off the deep end. I’m not even going to pretend to be an expert on China, but I’ve always had the impression that they at least ignore religion and often seem to actively suppress it - it seems very strange to me that they would thus censor for such a purpose. The other aspect that gets to me is the fact that the Chinese have a rich culture dating back 1000s of years. For a great many of these years, the zodiac system and lunar calendar have been essential - that they are censoring their own traditions to pacify Muslims is silly at best and cultural suicide at worst.

More than 120 People Killed in Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A suicide bomber driving a truck loaded with a ton of explosives hidden beneath cooking oil, canned food and bags of flour obliterated a Baghdad food market on Saturday, killing at least 121 people in one of the most fearsome attacks in the capital since the U.S. invasion in 2003.

It was the fifth major bombing in less than a month targeting predominantly Shiite districts in Baghdad and one provincial city to the south. This one leveled about 30 shops and 40 houses, witnesses said.

Yahoo! News

What is it with these terrorists?! When are they going to learn that killing innocent civilians (and your own people at that) is no way to get the support you need to make real change. I’m going to refrain from offering many comments on this, mainly because I just can’t understand why the terrorists perform such heinous acts and I have no ‘advice’ to offer. I just know that there is someone out there who can stop this, some way that it can be done, I’m just not sure who or how.

Teacher Fired over Suicide Bomber Comment

Andrew McLuskey was sacked from Bayliss Court Secondary School in Slough after a Religious Education lesson discussing the pros and cons of religion.

Pupils at the predominantly Muslim school claimed Mr McLuskey said most suicide bombers were Muslim.

BBC News

I’m not going to bother finding statistics for this one, but I’m confident enough to say that his comments were 100% accurate (that most suicide bombers are Muslim). I understand that the fact he teaches ar a mainly Muslim school (talk about the Islamification of Europe), but if the facts do support the statement, I see no justifiable grounds for letting the teacher go. I understand that the school likely wanted to create a ’safe’ environment free of ‘prejudice,’ but to fire a teacher over (seemingly) factual comments is insane and incomprehensible in my mind.

Again on a bit of a tangent, this situation highlights an interesting difference between British and American schools. In the United States even teachers of accused terrible crimes will almost always be put on ‘administrative leave’ for weeks or months before the school can even consider firing said teacher. In England, it seems, a few complaints about a teacher’s comments (even if they are seemingly truthful) and the teacher’s out the door faster than you can ask, ‘huh?’

German Preteen Gets Sex Change

A 12-year-old German boy who insisted he was a girl trapped in a boy’s body convinced his parents that something had to be done, so they agreed to allow him to receive a series of hormone injections, making him the youngest sex-change patient in the world, according to published reports Monday.

[…] Her treatment, which has cost more than $40,000, is being funded by German taxpayers.

FoxNews

This story comes straight from the ‘what in the world were they thinking’ department on multiple levels. I’m really not even sure where to begin, so I’ll go ahead with the most obvious to me.

What in the heck were they thinking. There is no way in the world that a twelve year old has the maturity, intelligence, and common sense to make such a life-altering decision. The very idea that this was ever allowed even makes me a bit nauseous. People are born with a specific gender for a reason, and to do something so disgusting and self-mutilating as ‘gender reassignment’ is a complete travesty to the moral and ethical values that lie at the basis of our society and culture. I am also appalled at the doctors for taking any part in such a disgusting act.

I realize that much of the scientific literature does not support my following contention, but I still firmly believe that virtually all of the diseases that deal with gender identity and sexuality are entirely psychological in nature and can be treated with the right combination of therepy and neurological medications. Until I see solid and repeated scientific evidence, I also refuse to believe that any of it is genetic.

In the whole scheme of things, some random Tim becoming Kim is not going to have any impact on me at all (beyond, perhaps, spawning a rant like this). But this is different, and if I was German, I’d be fuming mad and protesting the government right about now. Why? The $40,000 cost of Tim’s mutilation is being paid for by the German people, through their national health plan, and ultimately through their taxes. I’ve always thought that socialized medicine is nonsense, but this takes it to a new low. In some countries (Canada comes to mind), people have to wait days, weeks, or months for the medical care they need (perhaps to save their lives). Yet, at the same time, government funded health care is permanently disfiguring a young boy in Germany. Does anyone care to explain why this is a good thing? I guess that’s one more reason to avoid the Democrats in 2008.

Boston Bomb Scare

BOSTON — The CEO of a New York City-based marketing firm apologized for a publicity stunt that caused a bomb scare, saying the firm had acted quickly to try to resolve the problem.

[…] More than three dozen of the devices were installed around Boston weeks before authorities responded Wednesday. Authorities shut down highways, bridges and river traffic as bomb squads checked out the devices. There was barely a stir in nine other cities across the country where similar devices were placed.

NewsDay

I fully understand that authorities across the United States (and the entire world) have been very uptight and perhaps a bit jittery in recent years, but I just don’t see how LED signs can be confused for bombs. I understand that some of the locations they were placed could be considered targets for terrorist attacks, to nearly shut down the city over it was certainly an overreaction.

When it comes to punishment, I’m really not sure what should be done. Yes, the men placed very odd, clearly either littering or vandalizing signs around the city, but I believe them in that they had no criminal intentions and certainly did not intend to create a bomb scare. At the same time, I think that they (or the advertising agency) should be held somehow responsible for their actions, most likely in a financial manner (reimburse the police and other public safety costs) or perhaps community service, but not through prison time - we have bigger things to worry about. I also hope that this incident sends a message for any person or company considering an unusual or ‘creative’ marketing campaign, please try to avoid possible bomb scares.

News:
According to a report by Britain’s TimesOnline, officials from the Scotland Yard have come to the conclusion that the Polonium used to kill former KGB Agent Alexander Litvinenko cost more than $10,000,000. This staggering amount was actually more than ten times the lethal dose, and make it look more and more like the Russian Government was either involved or at least had some knowledge of the plot.

While the $10 million price tag could easily be footed by a unscrupulous businessman or organized terrorist organization, it would be very difficult for any entity not connected to, or at least allied with, a government or government official to obtain. As one British source put it: “You can?t buy this much off the internet or steal it from a laboratory without raising an alarm so the only two plausible explanations for the source are that it was obtained from a nuclear reactor or very well connected black market smugglers.”

Although little information is being released, mostly for diplomatic reasons, it also seems that there are heavy suspicions on two Russian businessmen, Andrei Lugovoy and Dmitri Kovtun, who met with Litvinenko in the weeks leading up to his death. Perhaps most incriminating of all, traces of Polonium have been found in places that they visited as early as October 16th, before the poisoning ever occurred.

Views:
If I were Vladimir Putin, I’d be sweating bullets right about now. I don’t care what the official explanations turn out to be: there is some connection to wither thew Russian Government or high ranking Russian officials, and perhaps the Russian President himself.

With the KGB being as scary, ominous, and corrupt an organization as it was back in the days of the Soviet Union, I am truly amazed that someone like Putin - former head of the KGB - could have ever been elected in the first place. Russia is a corrupt country, no doubt, but when you have former spy and secret police officials in positions of great power, problems are bound to occur - whether they mean to or not.

Surely, SOMEONE in the Russian administration must have known about or supported the plot. I simply don’t see how someone or some group acting without the help of an official could have pulled of such a dangerous.

The other question that this whole incident raises in my mind is just how safe and secure the United Kingdom’s borders are. I want to know how the Polonium was smuggled in and why nothing was done to stop it. Could this be the beginning of truly extensive use of radiation detectors? I don’t know, only time will tell.

What I really think this comes down to is the fact that there are going to have to be some major shakeups in Moscow. I’m not expecting Putin to step down or anything like that, but I have a gut feeling that someone is going to loose either his or his life over this whole fiasco. If it turns out to be the former, we’re going to get real answers; if its the later, than I’m not sure there’s ever going to be an answer.

Common Sense:
If you’re a Government official or prosperous businessman, stay out of assassinations and other terrorist-like operations: there is no good that can come out of it. If you’re a former spy for a corrupt former superpower, be extremely careful with what you say and do if you value your life.

The Global Language Monitor has issued their annual list of the Top Ten Politically Incorrect Words for 2006. This year’s selections range from coffee ordering to business presentations and includes classics from the midterm election as well as an attempt at changing history.

I can’t say that I agree with them, but the list is still quite entertaining and a good review of some of the strangest and more obscure news stories and social trends of the year.

The Top Five Politically Incorrect Words of 2006:

1. Macaca
2. Global Warming Denier
3. History
4. Flip Chart
5. 1a and 1b

To view the full list of ten and complete explanations, head on over to the Global Language Monitor website.

The Constitution could not be any more clear when it comes to the separation of Church and State:

There is no provision in the constitution requiring the total separation of church and state.

Despite this fact, cities and towns across the country seem to believe it is there duty to prevent any potentially religious objects from finding there way into public ‘holiday’ displays. Most of the time they seem to take the ax (pun intended) to Christmas trees and manger scenes. This year, however, the fight seems to be going another direction entirely.

News:

Views:

Needless to say, I find the whole thing entirely retarded. I am a Christian, but I respect the Jewish people and their religion a great deal. In a world where we usually hear about people fighting for Christmas trees and manger scenes, it is almost a bit refreshing to see that other groups sometimes have to go through the same hoops. Not that such a situation makes it any better, but it demonstrates a level of ‘equality’ that often seems to be missing.

Getting back on topic, there is no reason - so far as I can tell - to deny permission for a private religious group to erect a temporary holiday symbol on the same public property that is shared by other, more secular symbols (such as ‘holiday trees’). If anything, I would view the city’s decision as limiting the rights of freedom and expression and of religion of those being denied the permission.

By no means would allowing a religious holiday symbol in the display constitute a government ‘endorsement’ of religion. In fact, by allowing various holiday symbols they would be showcasing the diversity that most places seem to flaunt endlessly. It is the threats from the ambulance-chasers of religion - your friends at the ACLU - that are responsible for a great deal of this. On that notion, I encourage everyone to check out an organization actually defending your rights to practice and share your religion and related holidays - the Alliance Defense Fund and their special Christmas Page.

I also applaud Senator Allard on his support of the effort and scheduled attendance at the lighting ceremony - it is people like him that will lead the fight against those who want to trample over our traditional values and implement nonsense levels of diversity and sensitivity. I also encourage all people in Fort Collins who are religious - regardless of your denomination - to join in the lighting ceremony to show your support.

When it really comes down to it, I feel that the whole problem can be solved with two simple changes:

1. Allow the Menorah to be built
2. Pass a law requiring future symbols to be granted permission unless a valid reason can be found not to.

Common Sense:

Holidays are meant to be celebrated and enjoyed. If a group wants to construct a temporary religious symbol on public property (as long as it is reasonable, legal, and non-damaging - no sacrifice pits or things of that nature) they should be allowed to. It does not represent a government endorsement of religion and helps to encourage diversity in the community. It would truly be a win-win situation.

News:
Forget the Insurgents targeting our Troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Forget the Palestinian Terrorists targeting innocent civilians in Israel. In this day and age, Radical Islamic beasts have a new target: Thai students and teachers. The problem has been growing since 2004 and Today it has reached a new low.

Officials from the Southern Thai province of Pattani have announced that 336 schools will be closed on Monday after two more teachers were killed in as many days, adding to 57 other school officials killed over the past three years by armed terrorists.

More than 1,800 people have died in terrorist attacks across Thailand since January 2004, the vast majority in the southern parts of the country. As of late, schools have become a popular target. One school was burned down on Thursday, and several others were targeted.

The closed schools will remain closed, for the safety and security of staff and students, until the teachers feel safe and are no longer easy targets for the terrorists.http://news.lycos.com/dynamic/stories/T/THAILAND_SOUTHERN_VIOLENCE

Views:
There is a line when acts of terrorism go from bad to insane: the line is a fuzzy one, but in the words of Justice Potter Stewart, “I know it when I see it”. These attacks cross that line and so many others.

Terrorism is terrible regardless of the situation, but at least striking a military institution or personal makes a little sense - they are out there trying to eliminate your kind. What makes no sense to me, however, is the logic behind striking schools and teachers. By striking such location, the terrorists are only going to diminish their limited and retarded supporters, while destroying the future of their nation - in this case Thailand - in the process.

Children are the future of any nation and by either killing them or preventing them from receiving an education, there will be nothing but trouble: the citizens will be idiots, there will be no one to lead, and the workers will know nothing but terror. When a nation degrades to such a point, the downward spiral will be incredibly difficult to break.

With the new revelations and recent increase in attacks on schools, the Thai authorities have an increased duty - at least in my mind - to go out there and destroy the terrorists and cells. Attacking schools is simply the last straw.

I see no reason that the Thai authorities would not be out there on the street this very minute arresting and conviction every single terrorist in their country. Such a goal remains a dream, even in a country as powerful as the United States, but it should stand with all.

Common Sense:
If you’re a Thai student or teacher, stay as far away from your school as possible for the duration of the closure - my understanding is that things do not look good.

At the same time, anyone attending a closed school should continue to learn and read during the closure, be it be book, the computer, private school, or other means.

News:
British Television Station Sky News is reporting that a former Russian spy killed in the United Kingdom is the victim of Polonium 210 poisoning. Alexander Litvinenko, who died Thursday night, had met with two other Russians shortly before falling ill.

British authorities have been searching many areas for radiation, and have so far found it in Litvinenko’s home, a Sushi bar in which he ate, and at the hotel where he met with the other Russian men. Although no one has taken responsibility, the general consensus of friends and family seems to be that it was a assassin working for Vladimir Putin and the Russian Government.

According to the victim’s father, who blames the Russian President for the death: “You have shown yourself to be unworthy of your office, to be unworthy of the trust of civilized men and women.” Whether the claims turnout to be true or not, this could prove to be troublesome for the administration.http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-13553599,00.html

Thanks to Captain Ed, we have some additional insight into the poisoning:

Views:
If the suspicions that seem to be present are true, I suspect that the administration in Russia is going to face some very tough questions. I see no reason that this would be terrorism, it is way too targeted, and Captain Ed’s insight (which is also available in Wikipedia’s Polonium article) seems quite convincing.

At the same time, however, I would not be surprised if this is a far more common event to have occur inside Russia and the news simply never makes it out. I realize that they have changed a great deal since the fall of the Soviet leadership, but there is still something a little strange with them, at least in my mind.

Common Sense:
If you’re a former Russian spy, watch out for your life. If you’re a Russian government assassin, be very careful and don’t use such unusual methods of poisoning.

Thanks to HotAir.com for the original story

News:
According to the Associated Press, Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington has canceled classes tomorrow (11/9/2006) in order to host a campus-wide, student led, ‘diversity symposium’.

Apparently the mess started when a group of students attended an off campus party dressed in blackface, mimicking the racial segregation on the newest season of the popular reality show Survivor.

The real trouble started when pictures were taken at the party found there way online and became fodder for raging debate and discussion on a campus e-mail list.http://news.lycos.com/dynamic/stories/C/COLLEGE_RACE_SYMPOSIUM

Views:
At first glance it was my strong opinion that Whitman had gone one step too far in canceling classes for such a symposium. I did see some merit in such a response, but I saw no reason for them to put learning on hold so that students could attend.

That view, however, had one major thing missing: context. I have no connection whatsoever to Whitman: I had no real idea what the climate was like on campus. It is on that note that I must go out and take a look around the blogosphere - apparently this whole controversy is a very big issue on the campus. I think the following quote sums up my research pretty well:

Even with that in mind, I still believe that canceling classes is excessive and I applaud the administration for not making (as far as I can tell) the event a mandatory, indoctrination type event as we have seen in the Freshman Orientations (which I bet provide amazing content for blogs) at various colleges around the nation, as seen here and here.

I’m starting to ramble, so I’ll close with one last thought: I really hope that parts of the symposium get put online for the blogosphere to dissect. Somehow it has piqued my interest, and I really wonder just what they’ll be talking about.

Common Sense:
Don’t dress in blackface unless you have a really good reason.