Voodoo on the Hudson?

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The New York Times does a feature about the persistence of Caribbean superstition among the city’s estimated 300,000 Haitians:

The fire, in a building in Flatbush in February, was ignited by candles surrounding a bed during a ceremony in the apartment of a voodoo priest who the authorities said was hired by a woman to chase away evil spirits. The fire killed a 64-year-old woman in another apartment and left dozens of tenants homeless.
In Queens, a Haitian immigrant, Marie Lauradin, 29, is to go on trial this summer because prosecutors say she performed a voodoo exorcism ritual two years ago during which she lighted a flammable liquid in the form of a circle on a floor and placed her 6-year-old daughter, Frantzcia, within it, engulfing her in flames. Ms. Lauradin is charged with assault and endangering the welfare of a child. . . .
The episodes have shaken the tight-knit and largely secretive voodoo community in New York . . .
Dowoti Desir, a Haitian-American voodoo scholar who has a temple in her home in Harlem, said the episodes were contributing to the demonization of voodoo and forcing people to practice it underground.
“Voodoo practitioners are in the closet for fear of being hounded or suffering reprisals,” she said. “The truth is that voodoo has been a source of empowerment for generations of Haitians.”

And who could be against “empowerment,” right? As a bastion of multicultural tolerance, the New York Times is entirely sympathetic to the “voodoo community.” Now imagine what they’d write if the city had an influx of 300,000 Appalachian hillbilly snake-handlers.

Or even 300,000 NRA members . . .

On This Caption Like Sweet On Cherry Pie

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by Smitty (h/t Maggie’s Farm)

a_jolly_heh
The Federal Reserve: holding the purchasing power, if not the denomination, of the bill with Abe's face constant since 1913

Or, as Ron Paul said, End the Fed. Also available for the mighty Kindle, which gadget I have been enjoying immensely here by the Hindu Kush.
I don’t know how to link Amazon URLs to Stacy’s tip jar, but we really need to support him financially so that he can offer the Full Gonzo at the Republican Leadership Conference here in a couple of months.
My wife loves her some New Orleans, but she’ll be rather gravid at the time, not to mention my location halfway around the world, so I can’t go. But at least I can live vicariously through Stacy McCain, which is a not-bad alternative.

To the Reader Who Bought the Foodsaver V2244 Vacuum Sealer from Amazon

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About a week ago, somebody clicked on one of the several Amazon links on our blog and ended up purchasing the Foodsaver V2244 Advanced Design Vacuum Sealer ($79.50) plus several packages of Foodsaver bags ($24.45 and $9.97). The result of your purchase through my Amazon Associates links was a $4.56 commission for me. Thanks!

Instapundit sometimes feels the need to explain to his readers how the Amazon Associates program works, so perhaps I should also explain.

You click one of the Amazon links on this blog — whether the display advertises books, groceries, electronics, whatever — and regardless of how you surf around within Amazon’s massive online shopping selection from there, anything you purchase from Amazon during that particular trip will result in a small commission to me.

It’s pretty interesting to check these sales reports online because, although as a rule I only use Amazon links for book titles — Thucydides’ History of the Pelopponesian War, a timeless classic, only $10.28! — people buy all kinds of stuff there. Earlier this year, for example, some photography buff among our readership bought a Sekonic L-358 Light Meter for $309 and thereby earned me a shweeeet $12.36 commission. The reader who paid $69.95 for a pair of Shimano Men’s Mountain Bike Shoes? That was $2.80 in my pocket.

So even though I don’t think of the blog primarily as a vendor of photography equipment and sports shoes, nevertheless Amazon Associates permits me to earn cash that way. And since I am proud to call myself a Shameless Capitalist Blogger, earning cash with little effort on my part is super-cool. However, since I’m now actually expending a little effort to explain all this, let me highlight a few goodies:

  • Cuisinart Grind and Brew Thermal 10-Cup Coffee Maker — A few years ago, I got my wife one of these for Christmas, and it’s the best doggone coffee maker on the planet. You add the beans, it grinds ’em up and then brews the coffee — automatically! The coolest thing is the timer feature: You put in the beans and water the night before, set the timer and then in the morning you wake up to the sound of the whirrrr as it’s grinding those beans. About 10 minutes later, you get up to find that delicious coffee from fresh-ground beans waiting for you to pour your first cup. Oh, yeah: The stainless-steel thermal carafe will keep the coffee warm for hours. Only $115.
  • Kobe Wagyu Beef Tenderloin Filets — How awesome is the Internet, huh? You can order eight 8-ounce super-premium steaks, and get free two-day shipping, for only $449! Imagine the look on your friends’ faces at your next backyard barbecue when you tell them they’re about to eat a $56 steak. (Hey, I’m just a poor blogger, so I can only imagine it, but maybe some of our upscale readers are into that high-status gourmet beef thing.)
  • The Hanky Panky Low Rise Signature Thong Panty — Maybe you ladies want to surprise your guy by wearing something kind of slinky, or you guys want to buy something sexy for the missus. Amazon Associates doesn’t judge you. They just want you to buy this deluxe lingerie item for $18.

Amazon offers great prices, huge selection and “Super Saver” shipping deals. Like I said, click the links, order whatever you like, and the commission helps support your favorite Shameless Capitalist Blogger.

Coffee, beef and booty? These are just random suggestions, people, and not intended to imply any thematic connection. But I guess the combination would make for an excellent weekend, huh?

Not Trying to Play ‘True Conservative’ Here, But the Budget Deal Is a Problem

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Where to begin? I suppose a good logical starting point is this video with Mark Levin calling in to Neal Cavuto’s show:

Those Republicans who are in high-five victory-lap end-zone-dance mode over the late-night budget deal — and yeah, I’m looking at you, Carl Cameron — will be tempted to dismiss Levin’s criticism as just so much “True Conservative” fulmination. But Levin is pointing out serious issues, both politically and policy-wise, for Republicans:

“I love this conga line of Bush staffers telling us this is great. The second-biggest creator of deficits in world history, the Bush administration. Far out-run by Obama, don’t get me wrong. So now they tell us, if we try to hold Boehner to his own pledge, that we’re seeking ‘perfection.’ A hundred billion, he said. Nixed. Sixty-one billion, he said. Nixed. Thirty-eight-point-five billion, now the president’s happy, Reid’s happy, the bureaucrats are happy, the Republican propaganda mill is in full force . . . Let me ask you something: Has anybody looked at this $38.5 billion even?”

And in case you missed it, Levin is pointing to a big problem: Bush-era “brand damage” for the GOP.

One reason that Karl Rove’s fantasy of a “permanent Republican majority” collapsed so drastically after 2004 is that Bush and the GOP leadership in Congress totally abandoned any pretense of fiscal conservatism. Continue reading Not Trying to Play ‘True Conservative’ Here, But the Budget Deal Is a Problem →

New Orleans, Again?

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The croupiers at Harrah’s are probably rubbing their hands in gleeful anticipation at the prospect that I’ll resume my roulette losing streak during the Republican Leadership Conference and Reagan Centennial Celebration in New Orleans June 16-18.

But really: This trip would be a legitimate business expense, right? I’m a political journalist and my man Herman Cain has already been announced as a speaker, so it would be wrong for me to miss it.

Not only that, but Joseph Sheppard is predicting that Sarah Palin will announce her 2012 presidential campaign in New Orleans — and you know I’ve got to be there for that. Last year’s conference introduced me to the French Quarter voodoo, although I fortunately escaped the random violence.

There can be no argument, then, that I am professionally obligated to attend this event in New Orleans. So I’m encouraging readers also to make plans to attend: Standard registration is $299 and VIP registration is $699 — but if you register before April 15 there’s an “Early Bird” discount!

Sign up now, and I’ll see you in New Orleans in June. You might also want to hit the tip jar for $10 or $20 to help me get a head start on covering my legitimate travel expenses losses at the roulette table.

Rep. Ryan Pulls Weekly GOP Address Duty

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by Smitty via (No Sheeples Here)

Government has not been telling us the truth? Really?

We need to get behind Paul Ryan and demand accountability, both from our government and ourselves.

And when you’ve had your fill of sobriety, Iowahawk shreds Lindsey Graham.

My experience has only served to underscore Miss Buelah’s perspicacity, for I have seen that convivial manners always provide a welcome lubricant to social intercourse; whether it takes place in a fraternity bunkroom, the JAG officers barracks, or the late-night well of the Senate.

Update: linked by That Mr. G Guy and The Lonely Conservative!

Allen West: A Firm ‘No’ on Budget Deal

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by Smitty

The Hill has it briefly, Liberty Pundits picked it up, and Cubachi elaborates with a Fox clip elaborating on his opposition:
West is such a mensch he scared Debbie Wasserman-Schultz out of the Florida delegation.
Given sufficient Allen West clones, I think the country’s problems are solveable. The question would move to where to put all the homo bureaucratus human wreckage left in his wake.

Bonus West at BlogProf.

Thad McCotter On The House Floor With A Rock Reference So Old, Even Stacy McCain Gets It

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by Smitty (via Treacher on Twitter)

So the post title is a trifle gratuitous. Sorry. Meanwhile, as seen on Breitbart TV:

“The Democratic Party will shut down the government so they can spend more of your money. The Republican Party is committed to keeping the government open and spending less of your money.”

“The Song Remains the Same”

Thank you, McCotter, for truly packin’ the gear. We need more of your ilk, sir.

Update: linked at Bitsblog.