et ceteras

Last week I wrote about how Sarah's first cheerleading appearance, at a youth football game, was cancelled due to lightning. The good news is that this week's game was not cancelled, but the bad news is that Sarah had to miss it because she was sick. Sooner or later I will have pictures of her cheering at an official event to post, but until then, here she is topping the pyramid in practice:

On another family-related topic, this morning I went to a breakfast at her school that was sponsored by All Pro Dads, an organization made famous by Tony Dungy's involvement with it. Much of what was said was common sense boilerplate ("be there for your kids," "stand up to the way pop culture portrays dads as incompetent buffoons," etc.) but something really struck me. The speaker said that he keeps a jar filled with marbles -- one for each week until his daughter turns 18 -- and removes one each week to provide a visual reminder of time slipping away as the day approaches when she will leave for college. That gave me goosebumps, and I feel compelled to pass it on.

Switching to politics, much ado has been made about an editorial written by Dinesh D'Souza. D'Souza theorizes that Barack Obama believes in the doctrine of anti-colonialism, which is prevalent in Third World societies, and that this doctrine is the driving force behind Obama's policies. Predictably, liberals have responded not by addressing the editorial's merits, but by accusing those who agree with it of being racists. In truth, the editorial is well thought out, cites the president's own claims, and is not racist in any way. You can make up your own mind by reading it here.

Lastly, I find it disturbing, but not at all surprising, that the MSM has spent far more time gibbering about Terry Jones (the would-be Koran-burner) than it has ever spent reporting the truth about Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf (the would-be builder of the so-called Grand Zero Mosque). Jones heads a minuscule congregation, and his provocations have been widely and publicly condemned by Christians. On the other hand, Rauf has immense influence and cavorts with men of international power, and his refusal to condemn terrorist organizations has received no public criticism from Muslims. That difference is what the media should be focusing on, but they are ignoring it like the sycophants they are.

Now Sarah and I are off to go swimming. Have a good weekend!