Tuesday, November 20, 2007

What Republicans Want In A Presidential Candidate By Phyllis Schlafly

Source: http://sunlituplands.blogspot.com/2007/11/what-republicans-want-in-presidential.html

The media have designated the frontrunners for Republican and Democratic nominations for President and seem to expect American voters to line up behind one of them right now even though the national nominating conventions won't take place until next summer. Most Republicans are still shopping, and here are some of the statements they would like hear from a presidential candidate.

Republicans want a President to appoint only judges who will enforce the Constitution as it was written. They want our President to appoint only judges who publicly reject the liberal notion that our Constitution is "evolving," or that decisions can be based on "emerging awareness" about morals.

Republicans want the U.S. President to be a leader in protecting American sovereignty and independence from foreign control over our lives and laws. Republicans want him to reject all United Nations treaties such as the UN Law of the Sea Treaty, which would make all use of the oceans subject to the International Seabed Authority, the UN Treaty on the Rights of the Child, and the UN Treaty on Women (known as CEDAW).

Republicans want their candidate for President to announce that he considers it a presidential duty to prevent illegal entry into our country. He should praise the American people for successfully getting the U.S. Senate to defeat the Bush-Kennedy Amnesty bill earlier this year.

Republicans want their presidential candidate to promise that he will never try to bamboozle us with a similar so-called "comprehensive" immigration bill or a so-called "DREAM Act," which includes amnesty for the millions of illegal aliens now in our country.

Republicans want their candidate to tell us now exactly what he will do to prevent the entry of the illegal drugs over our southern border. They want a presidential candidate to say he will pardon Border Guards Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean who are unjustly imprisoned for intercepting a professional Mexican drug smuggler.

Republicans want their candidate to build the fence on our southern border which the Secure Fence Law legislated. They want our candidate to promise to enforce the law against employers hiring illegal aliens.

Republicans want their candidate to explain how he will lift the tax burden that Americans suffer today in providing a net value of $20,000 a year to every illegal alien household.

Republicans want their candidate to stop the entry of Mexican trucks on our highways and roads. They want their candidate to deep-six the plan called "totalization" which would put illegal aliens into our Social Security system.

Republicans want their presidential candidate to protect parents' rights in public schools by repudiating the offensive and impudent Ninth Circuit Court decision which ruled that parents' fundamental right to control the upbringing of their children "does not extend beyond the threshold of the school door."

Since the federal government gives about $60 billion a year to public schools, Republicans want their candidate to promise to sign school appropriation bills only if they contain language to protect parents' rights to protect their children against such things as mental health screening; forcing schoolchildren to be put on psychotropic drugs; courses that promote Islam or homosexuality; nosy questionnaires about sex, drugs and suicide; and giving birth control to 6th grade girls without parents' knowledge or consent.

Smart Republicans want their presidential candidate to reach out to Reagan Democrats by rejecting trade deals that are unfair to American workers and allow foreign countries to discriminate against U.S. producers and products by subsidies and tax-rebates. We want to hear a presidential candidate's plan to get us out from under the hostility of the World Trade Organization which has ruled against us in 40 out of 47 cases.

Americans want to hear whether or not their presidential candidate supports the "global economy," which forces Americans to compete against pitifully low wages, slave labor, and discriminatory practices imposed by foreign countries and foreign tribunals. Americans don't want to be patronized by being told that we must be more competitive with Chinese factory workers who are paid 30 cents an hour with no benefits.

Grassroots Americans want their candidate for President to promise that the Security and Prosperity Partnership will not be a stepping-stone to a North American Union modeled on the European Union. They expect their candidate to announce that he will never allow the United States to be economically integrated with Mexico and Canada, and will never allow the free movement of labor across open borders.

Most Americans want national leadership so that our economy produces good jobs that enable guys to buy a home and a car, support their families, live the American dream, and confidently expect their children to have an even better life. We're listening to the candidates and waiting to hear them address these important issues.

Monday, November 19, 2007

Which 'Big Burger' Worth Fat Bomb?: Some Sandwiches Tip Scales At 1,400 Calories by J. Scott Wilson

Source: http://www.wyff4.com/health/14607325/detail.html
Hardee's Monster Thickburger
Almost every fast-food chain has one: A "giant monster bacon-wrapped 100-percent trans-fat-laden Artery Bomb."

Whatever names they actually use, these mammoths of the drive-through are the things the happy folks at the Center for Science in the Public Interest wave about like a red rag at a bullfight to raise a hue and cry about the dangers of fast food.

Best Subs | Best Pizza

There's no denying that these burgers are true nightmares of calories, fat, sodium and cholesterol. They are the "dare" foods: The ones your friends lay bets you won't be able to eat at 3 a.m. after a night of dissolute behavior.

And we love them. Whether it's the tarted-up pictures on the menu boards or the commercials featuring women making the act of eating one look like something out of the Kama Sutra, there is an allure to abandoning oneself to the consumption of something so completely unhealthy.

Which ones give the most bang for the buck? We took a look at the "fattest" item on each chains' menu. Nutritional information is included for each sandwich, although the faint of heart may wish to skip that.

Since I could not in good conscience ask anyone else to submit their arteries to the punishment, you'll have to trust me on the ratings for each food item. I've rated them using the old-fashioned A through F school scale on appearance and taste.

Hardee's Monster Thickburger: 1,410 calories, 47 grams carbs, 107 grams fat, 229 mg cholesterol, 2,740 mg sodium

This is the heaviest of all the burgers tested by a wide margin. Hardee's does not even tip its hat in the direction of anything like recognizable vegetation on the burger; This is just meat, cheese, bun and something that looked like mayonnaise but may have just been semi-congealed bacon grease.

And yet, for all that fat content, the burger was dry and the bacon fairly free of that bacony goodness that makes it the thinking carnivore's favorite burger adornment. It was a conundrum: The burger looked good, but the flavor just didn't match. I gave the Monster Thickburger a B+ for appearance but a D for flavor.

McDonald's Double Quarter-Pounder With Cheese: 740 calories, 40 grams carbs, 42 grams fat, 155 mg cholesterol, 1380 mg sodium

McDonald's is the one burger giant that hasn't truly committed to the "big burger" war. The Double Quarter-Pounder has remained essentially unchanged since it hit the menu many moons ago. And, surprisingly, as big burgers go, it's quite serviceable.

The meat, of course, is that oddly textured, vaguely gray mess found in most McDonald's burgers, but the onions are fresh, the pickles are generous and the bun at the very least average. I gave it a solid B for appearance and a C+ for taste.

Burger King Triple Whopper With Cheese: 1,230 calories, 52 grams carbs, 82 grams fat, 275 mg cholesterol, 1,590 mg sodium

The one flame-broiled entry in the big burger race did not disappoint. The patties were agreeably charred on the edges, the cheese was perfectly melted and -- wonder of wonders -- there were generous slices of fresh tomato. It was the messiest burger tested, but also the best tasting. It scored a B+ for appearance and an A for flavor. If you're looking to go off the dietary rails for a meal, this would be a great choice.

Wendy's Classic Triple With Cheese: 980 calories, 38 grams carbs, 59 grams fat, 215 mg cholesterol, 2,090 mg sodium

This burger reminded me of one I had years ago at a Little League cookout. Wendy's offering was freshly cooked, loaded with tomato, lettuce and onion, and served hot. However, when I tried to eat it the bun disintegrated and the whole heap of deliciousness ended up on my shirt.

Nobody expects a fast-food burger bun to be a bakery-fresh marvel, but it's got to have the structural integrity to contain whatever ingredients are placed within it. The Wendy's bun got soggy before the first bite. Trust me when I tell you it didn't get any better. This affected both appearance and flavor, resulting in a final score of C for looks and B for flavor. This one could have won handily for flavor if not for that wretched bun.

Jack In The Box Sirloin Bacon 'n Cheese Burger: 1,120 calories, 63 grams carbs, 73 grams fat, 190 mg cholesterol, 2,620 mg sodium

This burger was the closest to one that would come off my own backyard grill, except for the fact that it was nearly vulcanized and left far too dry. The bacon tasted like bacon, the lettuce, tomato and grilled (yes, grilled!) onions were tasty, and the bun was the best of the bunch. Jack's beauty notched an A for appearance, but the overcooked patty dropped it to a B for flavor.

SuperSonic Cheeseburger: 980 calories, 58 grams carbs, 64 grams fat, 165 mg cholesterol, 1,430 mg sodium

Everyone knows the best reason to go to Sonic is the tater tots, and this burger really didn't do much to change my opinion. The meat itself looks good, with an excellent char-grilled color to the edges. The bun, however, appears to have been run through an apparatus specially designed to smash it as flat as possible. I believe the picture on the menu board showed lettuce and tomato on the burger, but the one I was given had none. For appearance, that meat earns the burger points, but the absurdly flat bun drags it back down to a C+. For taste, the juicy burgers redeem the lack of veggies for a B.

None of these burgers matched anything off my backyard grill or from my beloved Five Guys, with the fried onions, mushrooms and jalapenos, but a couple of them came close. Flame-grilling, in the end, made the difference for Burger King, our winner.

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  • Sunday, November 18, 2007

    Hy Lit dead at 73

    Posted on Sat, Nov. 17, 2007

    Hy Lit dead at 73

    By Michael Klein

    INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

    Hy Lit, 73, one of Philadelphia's pioneer disc jockeys, died today at Paoli Memorial Hospital of what his son termed "bizarre complications" after a knee injury.
    Sam Lit said his father fell on Nov. 4 and was admitted to Lankenau Hospital to have the knee drained. What followed, the son said, was a "terrible situation that should have never happened."

    Over the next week and a half, the DJ, heavily sedated, was transferred to Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital and, on Thursday, to Paoli Memorial, Sam Lit said.

    A spokeswoman for Paoli Memorial tonight referred questions to Mr. Lit's family. No cause of death has been announced.

    Hy Lit, who lived in Lower Merion, had suffered in recent years from Parkinson's disease, but his son said it hadn't slowed him down. Father and son had started a music Web site, www.hylitradio.com. Mr. Lit had cut audio for the site the day before he went into the hospital.

    "This should not have happened," Sam Lit said. "We didn't have to lose him now."

    "Hyski," or "Hyski O'Rooney McVoutie O'Zoot," as he called himself - or Hyman Litsky, as he was born in South Philadelphia - came of age with rock-and-roll, in an era when disc jockeys talkedlikethis.

    Mr. Lit, whose family moved from Fifth and Ritner Streets to 46th Street and Osage Avenue when he was young, got started in the business in 1955, fresh out of the University of Miami.

    He flourished in radio alongside such popular Philadelphia DJs of the early rock era as Frank X. Feller, Dean Tyler, Jimmy Bishop, and Joe Niagara.

    Mr. Lit's biography credits Georgie Woods, another influential radio personality, with saving him one night during an early appearance, when the mostly African American audience did not believe that the white man at the microphone truly was Hy Lit.

    It's said that in the 1960s, Mr. Lit's nighttime show on "Wibbage" (WIBG) drew three-quarters of the listening audience, many under covers defying parents' direct orders to shut off that music and go to bed.

    The roster of Mr. Lit's stations - WHAT, WRCV, WIBG, WDAS-FM, WPGR, WSNI and WOGL - reads like a roll call of Philadelphia music. Mr. Lit also had the distinction on Aug. 15, 1990, of launching the oldies format on WCAU (1210).

    "Hi, this is Hy Lit. Welcome to Oldies 1210," he said, leading into "Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay." His signature tunes were "Quarter to Three" by Gary U.S. Bonds and the instrumental "A Night with Daddy 'G' " by the Church Street Five.

    Mr. Lit was on hand for much rock-and-roll history as it played out in Philadelphia. He played Rolling Stones music early on and accompanied the Beatles to he city in 1964.

    A dashing figure with a face for television, he also hosted dance shows on WKBS in Philadelphia and a New York station.

    "I would be nothing if not for him," said Joe "Butterball" Tamburro, program director of WDAS, whom Mr. Lit took under his wing in the early 1960s. Tamburro remembered Mr. Lit as a "fascinating, dynamic impresario."

    "There's a piece of Hy Lit in all of us," said DJ Bob Pantano last night from his dance party, a concept that Mr. Lit embraced and helped to develop in the late 1950s. "My greatest thrill was working with him."

    "Here's a guy who made it for all of us," said Don Cannon, another radio personality. "He was kind of wild back then."

    Cannon supervised Mr. Lit in the 1990s at WSNI, "and he was always trying to take the edge on me. I used to tell him, 'If you had a 25-year-old program director here, you'd be out on your butt.' He could get away with it. Everyone wanted to be Hy."

    In recent years, Mr. Lit endured financial strain, and friends rallied around him with fund-raisers. After his last station, WOGL, reduced his hours, Mr. Lit sued it for age discrimination. The case was settled in December 2005. Mr. Lit then retired.

    Jim Loftus, general manager of WOGL, said, "It's a sad day for Philadelphia and a sad day for radio. He was one of a kind."

    His son called him "the magic man. When he spoke, people listened. People were interested in what he had to say. A lot of people say that anyone can spin records. That's wrong. There's a science to it. He knew it."

    His many honors include a spot on the Avenue of the Arts Walk of Fame; the first March of Dimes Lifetime Achievement of Radio Award in 1994; an AIR Award for best show in 1997; and Radio and Records magazine's Oldies Personality of the Year for 1999. He also was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame in 2003.

    Besides his son, he is survived by a daughter, Benna, three grandchildren, and a sister. Mr. Lit was divorced from the former Miriam Uniman in the 1970s. His second wife, Maggie, died in 2000.

    Sam Lit said funeral arrangements were incomplete last night.

    Contact staff writer Michael Klein at 215-854-5514 or mklein@phillynews.com.