Content by Leverkuhn
Posted at 5:43am on Jul. 8, 2008 Random thoughts from Leverkuhn
By Leverkuhn
Having trouble sleeping? So am I. Perhaps the following items will help numb your brain to the point that you can drift off into never-never land. What follows is not a diary in the traditional sense. It's simply a bunch of observations I've been collecting, some of them since before my return from self-imposed exile in the university library. Most don't merit a diary by themselves, but you may find them interesting reading nonetheless.
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Posted at 6:16am on Jul. 1, 2008 Jindal three-step
By Leverkuhn
As one of those who actually supported Jindal's initial decision not to veto the legislative pay raise, I'll admit I'm kind of miffed that he has chosen to reverse himself. [1] This is partly because I'm one of the few Louisiana residents outside of the state legislature who actually supported the pay raise in the first place. I did think it might have been a bit excessive (17K in one fell swoop is harder for the public to accept than incremental raises over 5 or 6 years), but I didn't think it was wrong. The fact is that it's hard for legislators to stay honest on $16,800 per year, even if it is technically a "part time" job.
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Posted at 9:48pm on Jun. 26, 2008 Why We Fight
By Leverkuhn
For all you conservatives out there who have been disappointed and disillusioned over the shortcomings of Republican government, today's events will prove heartening. Today, in a bitterly contested 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment does, in fact, belong in the United States Constitution. [1] In Justice Scalia's majority opinion ... let's pause to savor those last few words ... in Justice Scalia's majority opinion, the Court declared that Second Amendment rights are not tied to membership in a state militia or similar organization. [2] Moreover, Scalia affirms that the "historical narrative" reinforces the central message of the 2nd Amendment: that owning firearms is a fundamental right which the federal government can not simply discard. While Scalia allowed that some restrictions on gun ownership are constitutional, and many may be desirable, an "absolute prohibition of handguns held and used for self-defense in the home" was clearly unconstitutional. [3]
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Posted at 3:27pm on Jun. 21, 2008 And to think I was going to sit this one out ...
By Leverkuhn
Hey guys, I'm not sure if anybody here still remembers me, but I'm Leverkuhn. I used to hang around these parts until I said "goodbye for now" a couple of months ago so I could focus on more important things, like passing my general exams and so forth. (psst, I did pass, if you wanted to know)
I've got to admit, there was a certain part of me that didn't want to come back. There was a certain part of me that wanted to sit this one out, take a breather, shut it down till next December. I even practiced saying "President Obama" in front of the mirror just to see if I could get used to the idea. And you know what, for the briefest moment I actually thought I could. But that all ended when I saw this! [1] There are some things this hillbilly from Missouri can stand, and some things he can't. I can get used to another liberal president. We've had them before, and some of them have grown in office and ended being halfway decent. I can even deal with the idea of a President named "Barack Obama." Funny name, but then we've had presidents named "Millard," and "Ulysses," so I guess it's a wash. But I can not handle the idea of a president who changes the frickin' Great Seal, even if it's just a joke.
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Posted at 4:34pm on Feb. 17, 2008 Leverkuhn leaving ... for the moment
By Leverkuhn
Today I'd like to announce that I'm leaving Redstate, but not permanently. Don't take this as a "goodbye cruel world" diary because that's not what it is. I am not leaving because I've been deeply offended by anyone on Redstate, or because I'm tired of conservatism, or sick of the Republican Party. I am not mad at anybody, and I am not giving up on the GOP's chances to win this November. I'm simply giving up blogging for the next couple of months so that I can focus on other, less important things, like studying for my general exams.
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Posted at 8:17pm on Feb. 15, 2008 On school shootings and gun control - a personal perspective
By Leverkuhn
Even as the nation's thoughts and prayers go out to the faculty and students of Northern Illinois University where deranged gunman Steven Kazmierczak shot 20 people and killed five [1][2], some people are using this tragedy as a political football to push for more stringent gun control legislation. [3] As the days go by that tendency to exploit the misery of others will only grow stronger.
Rather than get caught up in the ceaseless war of words, I'd like to give my personal perspective on the issue, a perspective which I believe I have gained through hard experience. Some of you may remember that a few months ago there was a deadly shooting incident at Louisiana State University, which happens to the institution where I study. Two Indian graduate students were killed, in grisly execution-style fashion, in one of the apartments in the university's Edward Gay apartment complex. If you don't remember this incident, this news video may help refresh your memory.
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Posted at 11:04pm on Feb. 14, 2008 Well, Well, Well ... bribery at the DNC?
By Leverkuhn
According to a new story in the Boston Herald, Senator's Obama and Clinton may both be attempting to influence the decision of many so-called "superdelegates" with cold hard cash. [1] The article explains that Obama and Clinton both have political action committees (PACs, for those of us unfamiliar with the political nomenclature), which have been making unusually large donations to the campaigns of hundreds of elected officials now serving as superdelegates.
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Posted at 4:56am on Feb. 9, 2008 My apologies to Romney and his supporters ... y'all got nothing on Obamania
By Leverkuhn
At some point during my two-year-long campaign to crush the Rombots, drive them before me, and hear the lamentations of their women, I remember writing on this website that the Romney supporters had created one of the weirdest political personality cults that I'd ever seen in my lifetime. I can't find the comment strand, but I know I said it somewhere. Today, as part of the "healing and reconciliation" movement here at Redstate, I'd like to humbly retract that statement. I personally apologize to Jbonham, JJfuller, and every other former Rombot around here. It's true, some of you were far too willing to accept Romney's political "Damascus Road" experience at face value. Others of you displayed something painfully close to man-love for the good governor's chiseled jaw and impeccably tailored attire. But for the most part you simply supported your candidate aggressively in the good old GOP tradition.
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Posted at 9:18pm on Feb. 6, 2008 Update on California Delegates
By Leverkuhn
I don't intend to comment much on this, because it seems that this post [1] by Henry Olson is pretty much self-explanatory. It shows that McCain's delegate total in California could end up being as high as 161 of the 173 total delegates from that state, and will certainly be no lower than 140. His data comes from the California Secretary of State. Consider this a simple FYI post.
[1] http://tim
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Posted at 12:57pm on Feb. 6, 2008 Zogby sucks, Part 2 [Updated]
By Leverkuhn
While Clinton and Obama argue over who had the best showing on Tuesday (Obama is right, btw), and while Mitt Romney tries desperately to convince the GOP that he still has a pulse, there is a little-noticed sub-story in the world of professional pollsters. John Zogby, once considered the "king of pollsters," is on the fast track toward irrelevance. I've blogged about this before, most recently when I suggested that Zogby's suggestion that Obama was the man to beat could actually spell "bad news" for his candidacy. [1]