The Los Angeles City Council narrowly voted down a supposed resolution “against the war against Iraq.” Problem is, the drafters of the resolution are idiots. Even if they had passed it, and even if the administration gave a rat’s keester about the opinion of the City Council of Los Angeles, it would still have had no effect, because there is no chance of what they’re opposing happening anyway.

Here are the key words:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, with the concurrence of the Mayor, that by the adoption of this Resolution, the City of Los Angeles hereby includes in its 2003-2004 Federal Legislative Program SUPPORT for all international diplomatic efforts to resolve the current conflict with Iraq, and OPPOSES a unilateral war against Iraq.

See, here’s the rub. We have no intention of going into a “unilateral war” against Iraq. Unilateral means, to anyone with an IQ higher than room temperature in an uninsulated shack at the north pole in January, and capable of reading an English dictionary, “by oneself.” We already have dozens of countries signed up to support our actions in the Middle East, but to these cretins, “unilateral” apparently means “without sanction of the United Nations.” Of course, as a result of UNSCR 1441, we already have that too, but we wouldn’t want to explode their miniscule brains by confusing them with facts and reality.

It’s becoming increasingly clear that Chirac has blown it, big time. It’s going to be a lot harder to take him seriously when he calls Americans “arrogant.”

The eastern Europeans should be feeling a relief similar to that of a prospective bride whose fiancee beats her the day before the wedding. Before, that is, it’s too late…

Here she is, at her campaign rally that was attended by a single supporter.

…”and I’d like to conclude by saying that if everyone who had intended to attend had attended, this room would be full.”

[Update a few minutes later]

There are some good ones over at this Free Republic thread.

I like the one that has her channeling Neil Diamond:

“I am,” I said, to no one there,
and no one heard at all not even the chair
“I am,” I cried, “I am,” said I
and I am lost and I can’t even say why.

I also liked “Empty Suit Addresses Empty Chairs.”

Here’s another great one: “The NAACP estimated the crowd at about ten thousand, however, the parks commission put the total closer to zero.”

You know, after that last post, I just came up with an idea that would not only save the taxpayers money, but have a major effect on improving our educational system. Congress should pass a law denying federal aid or loans to students getting degrees in education. Force them to get a real degree, in which they might have to actually learn something.

It would probably put most colleges of education out of business, something that can’t happen too soon.

It’s not just UCLA–now they’re having an affirmative-action bake sale in (appropriately) Ann Arbor.

Wilson emphasized that the staff of The Michigan Review supports minorities. Profits from the bake sale were donated to the United Negro College Fund – that amount totaled $17 at the end of the sale.

Students’ opinions were split on the means and effectiveness of the bake sale. Many students refused to comment on the sale due to personal outrage.

Scott Unger, an LSA sophomore, found the bake sale offensive and ignorant. “I don’t think anything’s going to happen (as a result of the sale),” he said. “But I don’t feel it’s right.”

Well, maybe if you try thinking, instead of “feeling,” you might have a shot at getting it.

Education senior Agnes Aleobua said she hoped the sale made students interested in fighting for affirmative action. “Baked goods are in no way relatable to when a student is admitted to college. It’s not a tangible example at all,” she said. “What’s at stake is that minority students have an opportunity to continue their education past high school.”

That’s about the kind of logic I’d expect to see from an education major. Frightening to think she’ll be teaching kids next year.

LSA freshman Dana Dougherty said she participated in the sale to demonstrate the real-life effects of the University’s policies. “I’m participating because I believe affirmative action policies are unconstitutional,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of debate – peaceful debate. The people who stayed to debate the longest are for affirmative action.”

Let’s see one of these on every campus.

It’s not just UCLA–now they’re having an affirmative-action bake sale in (appropriately) Ann Arbor.

Wilson emphasized that the staff of The Michigan Review supports minorities. Profits from the bake sale were donated to the United Negro College Fund – that amount totaled $17 at the end of the sale.

Students’ opinions were split on the means and effectiveness of the bake sale. Many students refused to comment on the sale due to personal outrage.

Scott Unger, an LSA sophomore, found the bake sale offensive and ignorant. “I don’t think anything’s going to happen (as a result of the sale),” he said. “But I don’t feel it’s right.”

Well, maybe if you try thinking, instead of “feeling,” you might have a shot at getting it.

Education senior Agnes Aleobua said she hoped the sale made students interested in fighting for affirmative action. “Baked goods are in no way relatable to when a student is admitted to college. It’s not a tangible example at all,” she said. “What’s at stake is that minority students have an opportunity to continue their education past high school.”

That’s about the kind of logic I’d expect to see from an education major. Frightening to think she’ll be teaching kids next year.

LSA freshman Dana Dougherty said she participated in the sale to demonstrate the real-life effects of the University’s policies. “I’m participating because I believe affirmative action policies are unconstitutional,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of debate – peaceful debate. The people who stayed to debate the longest are for affirmative action.”

Let’s see one of these on every campus.

It’s not just UCLA–now they’re having an affirmative-action bake sale in (appropriately) Ann Arbor.

Wilson emphasized that the staff of The Michigan Review supports minorities. Profits from the bake sale were donated to the United Negro College Fund – that amount totaled $17 at the end of the sale.

Students’ opinions were split on the means and effectiveness of the bake sale. Many students refused to comment on the sale due to personal outrage.

Scott Unger, an LSA sophomore, found the bake sale offensive and ignorant. “I don’t think anything’s going to happen (as a result of the sale),” he said. “But I don’t feel it’s right.”

Well, maybe if you try thinking, instead of “feeling,” you might have a shot at getting it.

Education senior Agnes Aleobua said she hoped the sale made students interested in fighting for affirmative action. “Baked goods are in no way relatable to when a student is admitted to college. It’s not a tangible example at all,” she said. “What’s at stake is that minority students have an opportunity to continue their education past high school.”

That’s about the kind of logic I’d expect to see from an education major. Frightening to think she’ll be teaching kids next year.

LSA freshman Dana Dougherty said she participated in the sale to demonstrate the real-life effects of the University’s policies. “I’m participating because I believe affirmative action policies are unconstitutional,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of debate – peaceful debate. The people who stayed to debate the longest are for affirmative action.”

Let’s see one of these on every campus.

Today’s New York Times has an article about cumulative effects of outsourcing and privatization on NASA.

As usual, all the assumptions are there: NASA is a science and technology agency, we need to have a centralized government agency for space science, we’re losing our nobility of purpose, bla bla bla.

These folks remain stuck in the 1950s.

In a fairly accurate take, over at the Space Policy Digest BBS, Paul Spudis writes:

Here’s a summary in 50 words or less…

NASA used to be great, but now it sucks because it uses nothing but contractors. However, JPL, alone among the centers, is God’s Gift to Humanity and only screws up when it uses contractors. Eliminate human space flight and give OSS a trillion dollars a year.

There you go. The whole essence in less than 50 words. Saved you a bunch of time and effort.

OSS is Office of Space Science.

Yes, NASA has lost a lot of technical capability, and its work force is aging, but that’s not so much because it uses contractors, as the fact that it’s not doing much that’s technically challenging, exciting or useful. It can’t compete with computer graphics and the internet, or nanotech, or the technologies that people perceive as actually being relevant to their lives, as long as it stays stuck in the mode of spending billions of dollars to send a few government employees into orbit a few times a year.

And the authors of this piece have nothing to say about that problem.

Here is a “fly-on-the-wall” account of the EU meeting this past weekend. Mssr. Chirac apparently had a less-than-pleasant time.

At Mr Annan’s hawkish stance, Mr Chirac stood up and with Gallic passion began a defence of the French position.

Flinging his arms up and down, he declared that war was a terrible thing and that thousands of innocent people would lose their lives in a second Gulf war. “It is a question of life and death,” he declared.

Then came the most dramatic point of the evening. Silvio Berlusconi, the diminutive Italian premier, eyeballed Mr Chirac and insisted: “I’m just as concerned about life and death as you are.”

Here’s hoping that the account is accurate, particularly as regards Kofi Annan’s stand.