Condoleezza Rice und deutsche Wiedervereinigung / and German reunification (YouTube)

Condoleezza Rice at the Malta Summit with USA. President George H. W. Bush and USSR General Secretary Mikhail S. Gorbachev in December 1989, on board the Soviet cruise ship Maxim Gorky, Marsaxlokk Harbour, Malta.

Condoleezza Rice attends for the signing of The Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany in Moscow, USSR, on 12 September 1990, that paved the way for German reunification on 3 October 1990.

In this video of excerpts from the German film of the year 2000, “Deutschlandspiel” Condoleezza Rice narrates, dubbed into German, the history of the Malta Summit and the subsequent momentous meetings and agreements which sealed the formal reunification of Germany and the end of the cold war between East and West.

It would be nice to have this video in English for English speakers to enjoy.
 
I believe that the “Deutschlandspiel” DVD comes with an English-language subtitles option but I mean it would be nice to have something like this video in all English audio with Condoleezza Rice’s voice heard and Gorbachev’s voice dubbed-over in English and with the dramatisations played or dubbed-over by English-speaking actors/actresses and the additional commentary in spoken English.
 
Maybe there is an American movie or a British film with that in it already but it hasn’t been uploaded to the web as yet? If not it would be a nice movie for someone to make.
 
Such video would obviously be an important chapter in a “The Condoleezza Rice Story” movie biography whenever Holywood gets round to that.
 
Well here’s hoping!

Rice for President Yahoo Group

I am going to attempt to update this every 2-3 days as polling data trickles in.

Much has been said on a few blogs about the poll showing a lead for pumpkinhead in Wisconsin if he so chose to challenge Feingold. As he is undeclared, I am not changing the status until either an existing GOP contender polls close, or Tommy Boy actually jumps in.

We have another hypothetical poll as well: Washington state. Even Murray cannot seem to avoid some potential trouble in November, though the match-up proposed against Rossi is iffy at best (like the ballots they “found” costing him the gubernatorial election in 2004). Still, to reflect an ever going trend of Democratic vulnerability, the Washington Senate seat moves down just a tick in the Democrat’s column.

I propose we may even see a similar trend out of Schumer’s in New York if PPP/Rasmussen/Sienna/SurveyUSA/etc bothered to do a poll there.

Currently the only Democratic/Democratic-siding seats that are a lock are:

Maryland, New York (Schumer), Oregon, Hawaii, Vermont and Connecticut.

According to a recently released December report, Clark County Washington’s unemployment is at 14.3%, the worst among Washington State’s 39 counties. Considering those who have stopped reporting, real joblessness in Clark County could be more like 22%-25% … the equivalent of nearly 1 in 4 Clark County residents out of work.

Jon Russell, Candidate for U.S. Congress in Southwest Washington’s 3rd District (encompassing Clark County) published a blog post on his campaign Website today, to address this topic. Russell does a great job of pointing out where our State and Federal Legislators have been failing us in this regard. At the same time, Russell offers several alternatives that make much more sense than the approach being taken by our current batch of elected officials. In fact, he does such a good job of “hitting the nail on the head” on this issue that I got his permission to re-post his article in its entirety, as follows:

As continuing layoffs coupled with negligible new hiring has continued to push Clark County’s unemployment rate higher and higher, it seems that our State and Federal Legislators have remained missing in action, in terms of offering real solutions. For the most part, they have looked to the government for solutions, such as the much heralded “stimulus spending’” program.

But where are the jobs resulting from this? So far, all that is apparent is that we’ve turbocharged our nation’s indebtedness, providing no immediate relief and financially enslaving future generations. Our Legislators have spent their time tinkering with existing government programs and budgets, as the source of solutions for this crisis.

When will they realize that American Greatness has never come from its government? It comes from our people and what we have built into our communities. That’s why my proposals have been aimed at firing up the private sector through helping small businesses to be able to start up and to grow and to create jobs. Likewise, that’s why, as an elected official, I’ve consistently voted against accepting any “stimulus money” and instead, I’ve worked to find as many ways as possible to reduce the economic burden our citizens are presently bearing.

The current focus on “Health care Reform” is only aggravating our unemployment crisis without actually improving health care. Here again, our State and Federal Legislators are mostly looking to the government to offers solutions or they’re tinkering with existing related government programs and budgets. With the business model I established at Columbia Gorge Medical Center, we’ve created a successful and expanding business that’s created jobs and is meeting under served health care needs in our community without any government involvement. Why are our current State and Federal elected officials not looking to private sector solutions like this when it comes to improving health care?

And finally, I want to say that I’ve been very dismayed with how our State and Federal Legislators are failing to engage with citizens, to work shoulder-to-shoulder in finding the solutions they see as being best. This past August, it was apparent that many were dissatisfied with our incumbent U.S. Congressional Representative looking only to himself as the source for right answers to our communities challenges, while he provided the illusion of “listening to the people” through devices like Tele-Town-Halls. Sadly, other State and Federal Legislators are carrying on with that approach. That’s why I recently invested in a Mobile Campaign Headquarters, better enabling us to be with the people throughout Washington’s 3rd Congressional District, continuing the Town Hall series we initiated last Summer and to offer numerous other forms of meeting opportunities, as well as holding Town Hall after Town Hall.

Remember, We are the solution to the economic crisis. Our businesses, communities & charities are what made our nation great and will again.

Independents and conservatives are going to burst the Democrat’s bubble in 2010 and 2012. The election of Scott Brown in Massachusetts is only the beginning of the end of "progressive" ideology.

Bubble World, Washington, D.C.

http://jeffersonsrebels.blogspot.com/2010/01/bubble-world-washington-dc.html

You may be familiar with the 1969 book, The Peter Principle, in which Dr. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull promulgated the theory that, “in a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.” This came to mind when I heard yesterday, via @nwdigest, that a “top Democrat” from Washington is rumored as a potential replacement for Interior Secretary Ken Salazar if he runs for governor of Colorado. I wonder if that’s code for Christine Gregoire.

If so, a new theory will need to be formulated. I’d like to suggest the Obama Principle: “in a political hierarchy, players tend to rise beyond their level of incompetence in direct proportion their WTF!?! factor.”

Obama’s Administration would seem to be a case study. Does Janet “The System Worked or Didn’t Work” Napolitano ring any bells for you? Or “Safe Schools” Czar Kevin Jennings, perhaps?

It seems Christine Gregoire would be a perfect fit for this Administration. She’s certainly proven herself to be incompetent. During her tenure as Attorney General, two avoidable errors cost the State millions of dollars. One of those errors led to the forced resignation of Janet Capp, who sued and eventually settled with the State to the tune of $1.5 million. “Gregoire said the settlement was a “good deal” for taxpayers. She estimated that it would have cost the state more than $500,000 to try the case.” I admit to having weak math skills, but it occurs to me that $500,000 is $1 million less than $1.5 million…so I’m going to conclude that the only way this could have been a “good deal” for the taxpayers is if Gregoire expected to lose in court on the merits of the case.

Either that or her math skills are even worse than mine, which could go a long way toward explaining our current budget situation. Speaking of the budget, Gregoire’s incompetence is truly remarkable. In just five years under her leadership, Washington has plunged from a series of budget surpluses and a fat rainy day fund to a situation so dire, the State Treasurer is warning that the State is about to go broke.

Gregoire’s dismal record on public safety and her penchant for blaming others for her own shortcomings (Gregoire has long-standing experience in this highly prized skill) add to her qualifications for an appointment to any position within the Obama Administration.

As much as I would love for Washington State to be rid of Gregoire, an Administration appointment would be a travesty. So I suppose she’s in.

Cross posted at It’s Only Words.

I may not be a genius, but I don’t think you need to use rocket science to conclude that Chris Widener will make his Senate run official tomorrow morning.

Patty Murray is the Senate’s most liberal legislator. Her lifetime ACU rating is 2.92, barely above Jim McDermott’s 2.52. But - get this - in 2008, Murray scored zero. She must be replaced.

Look for Clint Didier’s announcement on January 11th.

It’s my belief that the primary will be a contest between these two candidates, unless someone with huge name recognition and expert fund-raising skills enters the race late.

Cross posted at It’s Only Words.

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Western Washington is reeling at the deaths of six law enforcement officers in just under two months: Officer Timothy Brenton, Sergeant Mark Renninger, Officer Ronald Owens, Officer Tina Griswold, Officer Greg Richards, and earlier this week, Deputy Sheriff Kent Mundell.

With a lightning quick response - Rahm Emmanuel would be proud - supporters of the Aaron Sullivan Public Safety and Police Protection Bill are using one of the deaths, Brenton’s, to justify the legislation, which would “ban the sale of military-style semi-automatic weapons.”

The bill is sponsored by Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina; Sen. Adam Kline, D-Seattle; and Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle. “The ban would cover semiautomatics designed for military use that are capable of rapid-fire and can hold more than 10 rounds. Semiautomatics designed for sporting or hunting purposes wouldn’t be banned.”

This is the type of empty gesture of which the left is so enamored. It gives the appearance that the sponsors are “tough on crime” yet does nothing to actually stop criminals from acquiring such weapons, nothing to actually increase public safety…while at the same time seriously infringing on the right of honest citizens to keep and bear the arms of their choice.

Yet Kohl-Welles doesn’t believe the ban would be unconstitutional.

She also said she doesn’t believe such a ban would violate the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms. “Did the framers of our Constitution ever envision something like a semi-automatic weapon?” she asked.

Whether or not the “framers of the Constitution” envisioned semi-automatic weapons has no bearing on the advisability of the current legislation. Rep. Kohl-Wells should re-read the 2nd Amendment and try to understand the thinking behind it. The 2nd Amendment wasn’t written to protect the rights of hunters and sportsmen; it was written to protect the “the security of a free state.” Consequently, it should be assumed that the author envisioned the citizens being well armed according to the standard of the day.

I believe that Hunter, Kline and Kohl-Welles are well-intentioned, albeit dangerously misguided. Here is the simple and rather obvious point that they are missing: You can never make enough laws to guarantee good behavior from people who are willing to break the law. You can, however make so many laws that the rights and freedoms we cherish are gradually eroded until…they are…no more.

And I assure you, I have a vivid imagination.

State of Washington Department of Corrections has lost an Arkansas felon. Sean Robinson, writing at the Tacoma News Tribune, fills us in on the details.

He’s William T. Forbes, one of 14 Arkansas parolees Washington is required to supervise under the terms of an interstate agreement.

Forbes is a fugitive – the only wayward parolee in the Arkansas group. His whereabouts are unknown; last known address in Moses Lake. An active warrant, valid anywhere in the country, calls for his arrest.

The Arkansas offenders, including Forbes, represent a sliver of the total; Washington supervises 2,393 out-of-state offenders, according to records from the state Department of Corrections.

It’s unclear how many of those offenders have violated the terms of their parole or absconded from supervision. The News Tribune recently requested a state-by-state breakdown from the Department of Corrections, with particular emphasis on Arkansas.

I especially love this part:

The numbers also reveal an apparent trade deficit. Washington’s exported offenders number 1,046 – less than half as many as the 2,393 the state received from elsewhere.

Corrections officials cite multiple reasons for the disparity.

“Offenders – like a lot of people across the country – are attracted to Washington’s quality of life,” said DOC spokeswoman Maria Peterson.

Other factors revolve around differences in state corrections law, officials say. Washington’s community supervision system differs from other states’, many of which use more traditional parole and probation systems. Some Washington offenders are from Washington originally, and have convictions here as well as elsewhere, Peterson said. She added that the interstate agreements governing offender supervision are not designed to create a 1-to-1 ratio among all states.

Right…our “community supervision system” differs from other states. I wonder if that isn’t some sort of code for “we just sort of shoo them out the door and hope they report in once in a while.”

Meanwhile, Governor Gregoire’s moratorium on accepting parolees from Arkansas is still in effect; smoke and mirrors of little substance that does little to protect the public, designed primarily to deflect attention away from her own abysmal record on public safety.

More on this subject:

• Gregoire’s Political Posturing Over Lakewood Shootings
• Christine Gregoire. Glass House. Throwing Stones
• The Buck Doesn’t Stop Here

Cross posted at It’s Only Words.