Outraged! Outraged, I say!

I guess Barack Obama has finally had his Sista Souljah monent.

Obama says he's outraged by former pastor's comments

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) - Democrat Barack Obama said Tuesday he was outraged and appalled by the latest comments from his former pastor, who asserted that criticism of his fiery sermons is an attack on the black church and the U.S. government was responsible for the creation of the AIDS virus.

The presidential candidate is seeking to tamp down the growing fury over Rev. Jeremiah Wright and his incendiary remarks that threaten to undermine his campaign.

"I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened by the spectacle that we saw yesterday," Obama told reporters at a news conference.

After weeks of staying out of the public eye while critics lambasted his sermons, Wright made three public appearances in four days to defend himself. The former pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago has been combative, providing colorful commentary and feeding the story Obama had hoped was dying down.

Hat tip: Drudge

Let's see, it took him 20 years as a member of Rev. Wright's flock, and another couple months as a Presidential candidate to figure out that Wright is an extremist nut. From where I sit, that can be chalked up to one of three things:

1. Obama is very slow on the uptake.

2. Obama figured it out long ago, but lacked the guts to speak up.

3. Obama is feigning outrage in order to put the issue to rest so he can refocus our collective attention on his mantra of "change."

So, which is it? Is he dumb, gutless, or a slick-talking con man who thinks we're all idiots? Whichever one it is, I wouldn't want this guy in the big chair during a time of crisis. Would you?

Bombast from Bloomberg

NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg--who's not a Republican, but he played one on TV (long enough to get elected, at any rate)--is at it again.

NY mayor looking forward to an 'adult' in the White House

NEW YORK (AP) — Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who decided against a White House run, said Thursday his endorsement will go to the most straight-talking candidate and predicted "at least we'll have an adult in office who can lead and can accomplish something."

Bloomberg, a Democrat-turned-Republican-turned- independent, later ducked a question about whether he was taking a shot at President Bush.

h/t: Drudge

Of course he was taking a shot at Bush, how stupid does he think we are? OK, I know; too stupid to decide for ourselves on what to eat, or whether to smoke.

But look on the bright side, every minute that Mike Bloomberg spends sniping at President Bush is one less minute spent thinking up new ways to run our lives under his pined-for nanny state.

Alberto Martinez Case Update

Here's the latest in the murder case against SSG Alberto Martinez.

Prosecutors to appeal ruling in fragging that killed Suffern Army captain

Prosecutors in the murder trial of a man accused of killing two Army officers in Iraq will appeal a court decision that prevents them from using potentially incriminating statements made by the accused to officers who arrested him.

Staff Sgt. Alberto Martinez, 40, of Troy, N.Y., is charged with two counts of premeditated murder in the 2005 deaths of Capt. Phillip Esposito, 30, of Suffern, who was his company commander, and 1st Lt. Louis E. Allen, 34, of Milford, Pa., second in command of the 42nd Infantry Division's headquarters support company in Tikrit, Iraq.

The statements in question were allegedly made by Martinez to an officer while he was being advised of his rights and to other law enforcement officers, but were not formally recorded.

Col. Stephen Henley, a military judge hearing pretrial motions, refused to admit the statements in the final court-martial scheduled for July and refused it again on appeal. The prosecution, however, was given the right to appeal to the Army Court of Criminal Appeals.

One aspect of this story that has been lost in the news media's (limited) coverage is the impact all of this is having on the families of the murdered men.

Family pleas over soldier's trial

CHESTER — Lou Allen's family has campaigned heavily to have the murder trial of his accused killer held at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

The military said no.

The family then campaigned to have a video feed broadcast to West Point so family and friends of 1st Lt. Allen, from Chester, and Capt. Phil Esposito of Suffern could watch as the much-postponed trial begins in late June.

Now the family doesn't think it will get that, either.

At a recent pre-trial hearing in Fort Bragg, N.C., the prosecution asked to have a video feed broadcast to an armory in Latham, N.Y., two hours away from Chester, and near the family of the accused, Staff Sgt. Alberto Martinez. The judge has not yet ruled on the motion.

OK, I'm no lawyer, but I fail to see how this (mis)treatment of the victims' families serves justice. Or is justice not a priority to the military in this case?

Iraq: Getting a Clue

Here's a shocker: Our illustrious media is, yet again, totally missing the point in covering the current troubles with the Shia militias in Iraq. Unbelievable, isn't it? If you're interested in some good, in-depth analysis of the situation, check out CTA Symposium: Iraq v. Mahdi Army. The symposium includes analysis by Bill Roggio, Dr. Michael Ledeen, LTC Ralph Peters (Ret.), and Mohammed and Omar Fadhil of the Iraq the Model blog. Forget the mainstream media*, if you want to understand what's really going on over there, these folks are the place to start.


*Please note that I'm not suggesting you give up on the MSM entirely. They're still a good source for stories on Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, and other really important stuff. They're just useless when it comes to stories involving domestic or foreign policy, that's all.