Even if President Obama was born in Kenya, it's too late to do much about it.
According to a 2 August "breaking news" item from WorldNetDaily, a purported copy of President Obama's 1961 Kenyan birth certificate, certified by a Kenyan official in February 1964, has been found. The linked article reproduces a copy. As the article properly notes, a few weeks ago a different Kenyan "birth certificate" had been discovered by someone else and attempted to be marketed on eBay; it was determined to be a fraud. It seems likely that this one may also be a fraud; it has been so claimed, and the some of the claims at first glance make some sense. On 4 August, an article published in Australasia seemed to claim that the Kenyan "birth certificate" was a forgery based on an Australian birth certificate issued to an Australian. Oh well. Maybe the Birthers are just as nuts as the Truthers, an apparently more reputable bunch who believe that 9-11 was a put-up job by President Bush. Then there are those who think that President Obama's policies are increasing the national debt. How could seventy-one percent of the voters believe in such heresy? Still, "88% of Republicans blame the president’s policies, compared to 52% of Democrats. But 79% of voters not affiliated with either party agree." Tsk Tsk! And, as all good people know, those who oppose President Obama's magnificent health care reforms are part of a wicked Republican cabal, mendaciously spreading falsehoods. President Obama and his friends have told us so. We're going to get Obamacare, like it or not; we need it! We had better like it.…
Article comments
176 - roger nowosielski
#171,
Fresno does seem to have that effect, no reflection on Dreadful.
177 - roger nowosielski
#175,
Then you had better change venue. We don't want to lose the crispness of your expression.
178 - roger nowosielski
Only parts of WSJ are available online.
179 - Dr Dreadful
Working on it, Roger...
180 - roger nowosielski
Just don't leave for the mother-country yet. We need English-speaking people in the USA.
181 - Silas Kain
From what I see even the "English" speaking people don't speak the Queen's English any longer. That's another of my pet peeves. I haven't any problem with immigrants coming into the United States but there MUST be a common language, period. I know this invokes a lot of reactions but in ONE country there should be ONE language. If it's not to be English, then let it be Latin.
182 - Bliffle
I can see Fresno from the top of the mountain! It looks like a big ball of dust.
I'll wave to you DD.
183 - STM
Chonies?? Fair dinkum Doc, what's going on? Then again, if you lived here you'd be using classics like "Reg Grundys" -obviously in Australia shortened to "Reg's" or "grundies".
I'm sure you heard that on yer travels Down Under, along with a million other things that only make sense when you understand the context.
The man I feel most sorry for is the great jocket Edgar Britt.
But Chonies?? Where's that come from?
184 - Dr Dreadful
Bliff:
If I could see further than a quarter of a mile I'd wave back!
Stan:
'Chonies' is Mexican slang, I believe.
185 - STM
Silas: From what I see even the "English" speaking people don't speak the Queen's English any longer.
Ah, Silas, a man after me own 'eart. It's OK to have regional dialects and slang - the mother tongue has a million in England alone - but we do need to use it properly in a formal setting.
I'm with you. I know what's happening in the US and it's not much different here. In Australia, because of our migrant population, even driving tests can be conducted in a language other than English, say, Chinese, Korean or Arabic.
How does that help a new Chinese or Lebanese migrant to read an English-language road sign?
It doesn't, it's a nonsense.
I say to those coming here for a new life: if you want to come and live here and live the good life, you'll be welcomed with open arms. We love the diversity of many cultures that make this place such fun and so interesting.
Just do us the courtesy of learning the language and the customs of the country, while accepting that we are an anglo-celtic society with our roots and our laws and our way of life based on British/Irish/European/north American culture. We don't have to fit in with you, although we do try and we will make the effort because we want you to be as happy here as we are.
But sharing's no good if it's a one-way street - you also need to make EVERY effort to fit in with us.
And please, take the driving test in English (and do about three times as many hours on the road learning as everyone else if you spend a lot of time in Chinatown and come from a certain country to the north of us that's fond of using chopsticks, just so you get to understand that changing lanes without indicating and driving slowly in the right-hand lane during peak hour is a no-no :)
186 - Cindy
Fuck the Queen and her English! She doesn't even know how to wave properly! ;-)
187 - Cindy
I am making plans to be a very cool old lady. I am gonna show my grand-nieces and nephews how to do great graffiti. The hell with old ladies who wave backward. If I were the Queen, I'd lead everybody in the Macarena. (even if I couldn't remember exactly how to do it.)
188 - STM
And here's just one little reason why folks are banging down the door to get in, and why I wouldn't live anywhere but Sydney. Bear in mind on looking at this that it's still winter down here.
Don't get jealous, now, Doc. The door's still open for you. Plus, to make you feel at home, we have a Union Jack on our flag (then again, so does Hawaii) and some nice stars on a blue background to make Yanks feel at home too.
189 - STM
Cindy: "If I were the Queen, I'd lead everybody in the Macarena."
She's pretty Savvy. She ordered the Guards band to play The Star Spangled Banner at the Changing of the Guard at Buck House in the week after 9/11.
I can already guess your feelings on this, but it was a nice gesture anyway at a time of America's pain, especially since you told them to bugger off 200 years ago and - far worse - got into bed with those bouffant-headed, perfumed nancy-boy troublemakers across the channel in order to achieve that goal.
You might have been better off sticking it out with the rest of us.
190 - Clavos
She ordered the Guards band to play The Star Spangled Banner at the Changing of the Guard at Buck House in the week after 9/11.
Didn't know that.
The lady is a gentlewoman in the very best sense of the word.
191 - STM
You could probably find that on Youtube Clav.
American tourists doing the London thing and going to the palace to watch the changing of the guard were in tears.
They also flew the Stars and Stripes over London that Thanksgiving Day in 2001 from the roof of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea, the war veterans' hospital. No other flag apart from the Union Flag or the royal standard (on the occasion of royal visitors) has ever been flown there in its 300-plus-year history (founded 1682).
The Queen also broke with tradition to sing the US national anthem - the royals as I understand it have never sung another nation's national anthem before - at the 9/11 remembrance service in St Paul's Cathedral the day after breaking with tradition at Buckingham Palace for the anthem there played by the Guards.
I guess they don't readily forget who their friends are (neither do we, although sometimes it feels like getting poked in the eye with a burnt stick:). Got to admire them for that, and they don't just back up words with hot air, unlike some of America's other "friends".
Whatever brand of politics you believe in, at that time, that was a pretty significant gesture.
Not bad when you consider that Franis Scott Key's poem was written aboard a British warship about a British bombardment of Baltimore, a short time after the British had burned every public building in Washington to the ground, including the White House.
Who needs enemies when we're all friends :)
192 - Bliffle
And, of course, the tune was cribbed from an old drinking song from the Anacreonic Society of London. Popular on both sides of the Atlantic because it provided another excuse for drinking.
193 - STM
Well, that's something we've all inherited Bliff :)
We're carrying on the tradition down here too.
194 - Silas Kain
Fuck the Queen and her English! She doesn't even know how to wave properly! ;-)
WHICH Queen, Cindy? 'Cause I've done many.
The lady is a gentlewoman in the very best sense of the word.
I agree. She has been the source of wise counsel for a half century to Prime Ministers. Her role,, while largely ceremonial, is pivotal in the U.K. Elizabeth II may be royalty but she remains the 'property' of the English people. She is keenly aware of her role, its' evolution, and the solemn pact she maintains with her subjects.
Just do us the courtesy of learning the language and the customs of the country, while accepting that we are an anglo-celtic society with our roots and our laws and our way of life based on British/Irish/European/north American culture. We don't have to fit in with you, although we do try and we will make the effort because we want you to be as happy here as we are.
Just what is 'American' culture? We're a young country and a melting pot of cultures, traditions and Puritanical double-speak. That being said, there has to be a common language to all who live within our borders. If people coming to the States want to make their lives here they should be required to be proficient in speaking AND writing the language, period. If not, hop on a plane, space shuttle or raft go go back from where you came.
195 - Dr Dreadful
Plus, to make you feel at home, we have a Union Jack on our flag (then again, so does Hawaii) and some nice stars on a blue background to make Yanks feel at home too.
It's definitely an option, mate.
First time we went Down Under we did a stopover in the islands. Hawaiian Airlines had just started their Honolulu-Sydney service so we got a great deal on the flights.
Plus on the way back, thanks to flight schedules and the International Date Line, we got to stand on two of the world's most famous beaches - Bondi and Waikiki - on the same morning!
196 - Dr Dreadful
WHICH Queen, Cindy? 'Cause I've done many.
[Dread wipes coffee off screen and looks around for a new employee to blame it on]
197 - Silas Kain
What would Sr. Ronald do, Dread?
198 - doug m
You Americans should watch The Queen with Helen Mirren to get a better sense of her Majesty's role
199 - Silas Kain
LOVED it! Helen Mirren is one of the greatest actors of our time. As far as I'm concerned I would heartily support the colonies returning to the Crown. At least then we would not have a Head of State who is tainted by the political system. God Save the Queen -- each and every one of them!
200 - Dr Dreadful
What would Sr. Ronald do, Dread?
I'm having trouble supplying an answer, because 'What would Sister Mary Ignatius do?' keeps superimposing itself on my mental processes...
And I'm not even Catholic! ;-)
BTW, have you heard back from the esteemed Sister yet?
201 - Silas Kain
Yes, Dread, I mentioned it on another thread and thanked you in particular for giving me the inspiration. It was a lovely reply. She's on the road and upon her return home she would like to maintain a dialog. She remembered my family well and was touched by my letter. I will keep you informed.
If Sr Mary Ignatius were here, she'd just shoot me.
202 - STM
Silas: "As far as I'm concerned I would heartily support the colonies returning to the Crown".
I've been agitating for this now for some years :)
Happy family, all back together again with the successful prodigal son returning to the table.
All jokes aside, you are right though about the Queen's executive role: it's the same as that of the US President, but without that near-unlimited power and the party politics involved. She's bound by convention to do as the Government wishes, within reason (which is also good).
While she's head of state, she's not head of government (the PM is) and has no real role in the running of the country beyond the ties of what are best described as tradition. Plus, she doesn't have an unelected cabinet. Most senior government ministers - there have been exceptions - are drawn from the House of Commons, not the House of Lords.
In Australia, New Zealand and Canada, all cabinet ministers are elected members of parliament, either from the upper or lower houses, except in NZ which is unicameral. However, the Queen or her representaive remains head of state and fulfils the same executive role as in the UK.
I prefer the system to that of the US, as it seems to have more checks and balances. Elections can be held between terms too in time of parliamentary crisis, in the event of bills not being passed etc, which throws the whole thing back to the people.
I have struggled to explain the process to many Americans, who seem to misunderstand the notion of British-style constitutional monarchy in a stable, modern, liberal democracy and always come back with: "Ain't you still under the Queen" (Andy, take a bow:)
But I say to the Republican movement in Australia: this system has lasted more than 300 years without interruption and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
There is a tongue-in-cheek monarchists' movement in the Sunshine State (yours, in Florida, not ours in Queensland) to reisntate the British Dominion of West Florida.
Their site is a hoot.
203 - STM
Dan, haven't heard from you for a few days. Is everything cool regarding that business with the fruit-juice mob??