Microsoft was told a few months ago that they had to release a version of Windows in the EU that had Media Player taken out of. So Microsoft agreed. The version was called Windows XP Reduced Media Edition. I kid you not! The EU was not amused and told Microsoft to change it. Insiders say Microsoft knew that that wouldn't fly, but they just wanted to get underneath the EU's skin. I have to ask you if you saw two versions of Windows XP one called Windows XP Home Edition and another called Windows XP Reduced Media Edition which would you choose? I think hands down you wouldn't want to buy a "Reduced" edition of anything. So far we do not know what the new version will be called, but I do know I think this is stupid all together. The Accessibly Options menu in Windows allows you to prevent access to certain programs. Why Microsoft couldn't have just had it turned off at install and the EU be happy seems odd. But the EU doesn't want it at all, even though you could easily just download it later on.

My Solution is release Windows XP EUxclusive but not under Microsoft's name. Have a third party release it. This would mean Microsoft would not have to support the product, so compatibility with other programs could be stripped and access to Windows Update denied. Show the EU that an American company can do what ever it wants, they need to show that the American powerhouse and 500 pound guerrilla Microsoft will not let the EU bully them around. American Superiority in Europe shall prevail through Microsoft.

Democracy has won! The first election in over fifty years in Iraqi history has taken place today with an overwhelming turnout. Surprisingly most of the Arab press has covered this as a positive event that could be a turning point in the outcome of Iraq. Aljazera on the other hand has almost ignored the entire events, and focused more on the next vote in Iraq later this year. The American press is mixed coverage. I have been going between the major channels looking at how they are covering it, and it was not quite what I expected. MSNBC has focused mostly on the positives of the war and how the lockdown on the country has succeeded, Dan Rather also focused on the positives by highlighting the high turnout and also how successful the lockdown was, Peter Jennings took a much more negative approach by making the attacks seem much larger than they were and the turn out being disappointing (which they are in the triangle, but the turnout is high in the rest of the country which he failed to speak of), Fox News is the one I have watched the least of but seems to be the most balanced. I have seen on Fox them question the war itself and whether we even should be there, talking about the successful lockdown, talking about the attacks, saying this will mean the attacks will begin to stop, saying the attacks will step up, and other things that have been said that they then give the opposite side of. Fox News does seem to be for focused on the positives though.

The turn out of the election seems to be very promising. The Iraqi people have come in higher turnouts than any US election in history, as much as seventy-two percent or more. Some precincts are reporting an amazing ninety-five percent turnout! Within the triangle some polling places say that have lines with thousands upon thousands of people in line. Outside the polls the people are dancing and cheering in celebration of the wonderful events they have witnessed and participated in. Attacks have been sparse and mostly within the triangle. Only one US soldier was killed in the election, and one British C-130 down, and as I write the first reports are coming in so I may have some outdated information as far as I know it was an accident. Less than forty Iraqis have been killed in attacks, most of which were by suicide bombers. Before the election insurgents were warning the Iraqis that they had more than five hundred suicide bombers ready for an attack, and now it looks more like maybe a dozen or so.

When it is all said and done with today will be seen as a tremendous day in Iraq and the world’s history. Democracy has won, the Iraqi people are cheering and thankful, and most importantly the Iraqi people are officially free! They may have to walk thirteen miles to vote, US spy planes have tracked large groups of people doing this to get to the polls, but they want to vote in this historic election and shape there country and future. God Bless America, God Bless the Iraqi people, and God Bless Democracy.

Presidnet Bush said Thursday that if asked he would take the troops out of Iraq right now, because we are not occupiers. He added by saying, "I've, you know, heard the voices of the people that presumably will be in a position of responsibility after these elections, although you never know, but it seems like most of the leadership there understands that there will be a need for coalition troops at least until Iraqis are able to fight." This doesnt seem like much of a change though. Also during the interview Bush said quote, "children can receive love from gay couples, but studies have shown that the ideal is where a child is raised in a married family with a man and a woman" No flip-flopping from this guy.

So what do you think, has Bush changed his positions on Iraq; do you agree with his family statement? Don't forget to link to my blog.

Sunday at church my preacher had a very good sermon with some very excellent points. I would like to share and analogy he did with pencils and pens.

Pencils and Pens, what a person uses can sometimes tell you something about that person. First you have to ask yourself what is the difference between a pencil and a pen. The major difference is that with a pencil you can erase, but with a pen you are stuck with what you wrote.

A person who primarily uses a pen can be seen as a determined, unwavering, overly confident person. The person feels they make no mistakes and have no need to erase. When writing say a paper they can go start to finish without making mistakes, they can take notes without missing a thing, they can create anything with there pen and never mess up. If you do make a mistake it tarnishes your paper and you can scribble it out, but you still have leftovers of the mistake. Now we all know that the first part about perfection is not true to the extreme, but makes you think about the pen.

Moving on to a pencil. The pencil is for people unsure, can be seen as lacking self-confidence, and can easily be changed. When you use a pencil if you make a mistake you can easily fix it. You can erase and erase and most of your marks are gone. The pencil is no permanent and you are never stuck with what you wrote.

Now lets relater this to life. Pencil people can go through life and if they see things not going there way they can change it. Think about when you erase a part of a paper multiple times what happens? The piece begins to fade away and eventually wear a hole in you paper, or life. When you continually erase things from life you will begin to corrode at your life itself, this can be mental or physical.

Pen people on the other hand like I said can’t go back and fix their mistakes; they can only try and scribble it out. Scribbling it out only does one thing, makes a splotch in your life forever that is unchangeable. You can add, or you can blotch it out leaving a flaw in your “perfect” paper.

So what should we be the pencil or the paper? Well you could be the word processor, but that’s not an option. I say be the hybrid, we have all see those erasable pens with the eraser at the end. With these you can make permanent decisions, but at they same time go back and at least make the mistake less visible but always there. This allows you to have the best of both worlds. Be a pen, be a pencil, or be a hybrid, it’s your decision. If you’re the pencil don’t let temptations stray you down the wrong path, be confident. For then pen people, don’t let your pride over take you. Yes it’s true you can actually make a mistake, I kid you not, always keep in mind your not perfect. And for those hybrid people, pick the best traits of both worlds; be confident and unwavering, but at the same time accept your faults and sometimes you have to go back and fix things.

::Sorry if the entry seems a little confusing or poorly written. Like most of the time lately I have not had much time, so I had to get this typed up as soon as possible without really having time to think about the entry. Enjoy, try and piece my thoughts together and then ponder on it::

Vice President Cheney, Mr. Chief Justice, President Carter, President Bush, President Clinton, members of the United States Congress, reverend clergy, distinguished guests, fellow citizens:

On this day, prescribed by law and marked by ceremony, we celebrate the durable wisdom of our Constitution, and recall the deep commitments that unite our country. I am grateful for the honor of this hour, mindful of the consequential times in which we live, and determined to fulfill the oath that I have sworn and you have witnessed.

At this second gathering, our duties are defined not by the words I use, but by the history we have seen together. For a half century, America defended our own freedom by standing watch on distant borders. After the shipwreck of communism came years of relative quiet, years of repose, years of sabbatical – and then there came a day of fire.

We have seen our vulnerability – and we have seen its deepest source. For as long as whole regions of the world simmer in resentment and tyranny – prone to ideologies that feed hatred and excuse murder – violence will gather, and multiply in destructive power, and cross the most defended borders, and raise a mortal threat. There is only one force of history that can break the reign of hatred and resentment, and expose the pretensions of tyrants, and reward the hopes of the decent and tolerant, and that is the force of human freedom.

We are led, by events and common sense, to one conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands. The best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of freedom in all the world.

America’s vital interests and our deepest beliefs are now one. From the day of our Founding, we have proclaimed that every man and woman on this earth has rights, and dignity, and matchless value, because they bear the image of the Maker of Heaven and earth. Across the generations we have proclaimed the imperative of self-government, because no one is fit to be a master, and no one deserves to be a slave. Advancing these ideals is the mission that created our Nation. It is the honorable achievement of our fathers. Now it is the urgent requirement of our nation’s security, and the calling of our time.

So it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.

This is not primarily the task of arms, though we will defend ourselves and our friends by force of arms when necessary. Freedom, by its nature, must be chosen, and defended by citizens, and sustained by the rule of law and the protection of minorities. And when the soul of a nation finally speaks, the institutions that arise may reflect customs and traditions very different from our own. America will not impose our own style of government on the unwilling. Our goal instead is to help others find their own voice, attain their own freedom, and make their own way.

The great objective of ending tyranny is the concentrated work of generations. The difficulty of the task is no excuse for avoiding it. America’s influence is not unlimited, but fortunately for the oppressed, America’s influence is considerable, and we will use it confidently in freedom’s cause.

My most solemn duty is to protect this nation and its people from further attacks and emerging threats. Some have unwisely chosen to test America’s resolve, and have found it firm.

We will persistently clarify the choice before every ruler and every nation: The moral choice between oppression, which is always wrong, and freedom, which is eternally right. America will not pretend that jailed dissidents prefer their chains, or that women welcome humiliation and servitude, or that any human being aspires to live at the mercy of bullies.

We will encourage reform in other governments by making clear that success in our relations will require the decent treatment of their own people. America’s belief in human dignity will guide our policies, yet rights must be more than the grudging concessions of dictators; they are secured by free dissent and the participation of the governed. In the long run, there is no justice without freedom, and there can be no human rights without human liberty.

Some, I know, have questioned the global appeal of liberty – though this time in history, four decades defined by the swiftest advance of freedom ever seen, is an odd time for doubt. Americans, of all people, should never be surprised by the power of our ideals. Eventually, the call of freedom comes to every mind and every soul. We do not accept the existence of permanent tyranny because we do not accept the possibility of permanent slavery. Liberty will come to those who love it.

Today, America speaks anew to the peoples of the world:

All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you.

Democratic reformers facing repression, prison, or exile can know: America sees you for who you are: the future leaders of your free country.

The rulers of outlaw regimes can know that we still believe as Abraham Lincoln did: “Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves; and, under the rule of a just God, cannot long retain it.”

The leaders of governments with long habits of control need to know: To serve your people you must learn to trust them. Start on this journey of progress and justice, and America will walk at your side.

And all the allies of the United States can know: we honor your friendship, we rely on your counsel, and we depend on your help. Division among free nations is a primary goal of freedom’s enemies. The concerted effort of free nations to promote democracy is a prelude to our enemies’ defeat.

Today, I also speak anew to my fellow citizens:

From all of you, I have asked patience in the hard task of securing America, which you have granted in good measure. Our country has accepted obligations that are difficult to fulfill, and would be dishonorable to abandon. Yet because we have acted in the great liberating tradition of this nation, tens of millions have achieved their freedom. And as hope kindles hope, millions more will find it. By our efforts, we have lit a fire as well – a fire in the minds of men. It warms those who feel its power, it burns those who fight its progress, and one day this untamed fire of freedom will reach the darkest corners of our world.

A few Americans have accepted the hardest duties in this cause – in the quiet work of intelligence and diplomacy … the idealistic work of helping raise up free governments … the dangerous and necessary work of fighting our enemies. Some have shown their devotion to our country in deaths that honored their whole lives – and we will always honor their names and their sacrifice.

All Americans have witnessed this idealism, and some for the first time. I ask our youngest citizens to believe the evidence of your eyes. You have seen duty and allegiance in the determined faces of our soldiers. You have seen that life is fragile, and evil is real, and courage triumphs. Make the choice to serve in a cause larger than your wants, larger than yourself – and in your days you will add not just to the wealth of our country, but to its character.

America has need of idealism and courage, because we have essential work at home – the unfinished work of American freedom. In a world moving toward liberty, we are determined to show the meaning and promise of liberty.

In America’s ideal of freedom, citizens find the dignity and security of economic independence, instead of laboring on the edge of subsistence. This is the broader definition of liberty that motivated the Homestead Act, the Social Security Act, and the G.I. Bill of Rights. And now we will extend this vision by reforming great institutions to serve the needs of our time. To give every American a stake in the promise and future of our country, we will bring the highest standards to our schools, and build an ownership society. We will widen the ownership of homes and businesses, retirement savings and health insurance – preparing our people for the challenges of life in a free society. By making every citizen an agent of his or her own destiny, we will give our fellow Americans greater freedom from want and fear, and make our society more prosperous and just and equal.

In America’s ideal of freedom, the public interest depends on private character – on integrity, and tolerance toward others, and the rule of conscience in our own lives. Self-government relies, in the end, on the governing of the self. That edifice of character is built in families, supported by communities with standards, and sustained in our national life by the truths of Sinai, the Sermon on the Mount, the words of the Koran, and the varied faiths of our people. Americans move forward in every generation by reaffirming all that is good and true that came before – ideals of justice and conduct that are the same yesterday, today, and forever.

In America’s ideal of freedom, the exercise of rights is ennobled by service, and mercy, and a heart for the weak. Liberty for all does not mean independence from one another. Our nation relies on men and women who look after a neighbor and surround the lost with love. Americans, at our best, value the life we see in one another, and must always remember that even the unwanted have worth. And our country must abandon all the habits of racism, because we cannot carry the message of freedom and the baggage of bigotry at the same time.

From the perspective of a single day, including this day of dedication, the issues and questions before our country are many. From the viewpoint of centuries, the questions that come to us are narrowed and few. Did our generation advance the cause of freedom? And did our character bring credit to that cause?

These questions that judge us also unite us, because Americans of every party and background, Americans by choice and by birth, are bound to one another in the cause of freedom. We have known divisions, which must be healed to move forward in great purposes – and I will strive in good faith to heal them. Yet those divisions do not define America. We felt the unity and fellowship of our nation when freedom came under attack, and our response came like a single hand over a single heart. And we can feel that same unity and pride whenever America acts for good, and the victims of disaster are given hope, and the unjust encounter justice, and the captives are set free.

We go forward with complete confidence in the eventual triumph of freedom. Not because history runs on the wheels of inevitability; it is human choices that move events. Not because we consider ourselves a chosen nation; God moves and chooses as He wills. We have confidence because freedom is the permanent hope of mankind, the hunger in dark places, the longing of the soul. When our Founders declared a new order of the ages; when soldiers died in wave upon wave for a union based on liberty; when citizens marched in peaceful outrage under the banner “Freedom Now” – they were acting on an ancient hope that is meant to be fulfilled. History has an ebb and flow of justice, but history also has a visible direction, set by liberty and the Author of Liberty.

When the Declaration of Independence was first read in public and the Liberty Bell was sounded in celebration, a witness said, “It rang as if it meant something.” In our time it means something still. America, in this young century, proclaims liberty throughout all the world, and to all the inhabitants thereof. Renewed in our strength – tested, but not weary – we are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom.

May God bless you, and may He watch over the United States of America.

::MY COMMENTS ON THE DAY AND THE SPEECH WILL COME SOON::

Today is the day that we inaugurate our President for the next four years. I have never hidden the fact I am a strong supporter of President Bush, and looking back at my post you can see that those post were biased during the election horserace. I would like to think that all my hard work in maintaining this blog during those many weeks and months at least shifted one vote to Bush. To be honest with you I would be happy if I only affected one vote for either candidate, just the fact they took there time to vote made all of it worth it. Today all the work of the people who helped Bush win the election will come to an end, the hard work will finally see its final pay off and a new chapter in American History will begin.

America through the ages has been unique its transfers of power. Throughout history the transfer of power in a government has been full of violence and anarchy. The United States to this date has yet to have either. People have the right to protest and the right to support, but the one thing that has been preserved is the peaceful transfer of the power of the Presidency.

            The day of inauguration is one of the few days in a Presidency that the man who holds that position it treated like a king in a ceremony fit for the monarchy of large kingdoms. When I see the stage of the inauguration and watch re-runs of past inaugurations I cannot help but think of the great kingdoms of the past like the Roman Empire. I imagine that our process of inducting of the President must have been much like it was when greats like Alexander took power. The large crowds coming to show there support, the honoring of the man who takes power, and the overwhelming pride an American must have in our democracy. The inauguration is the day in which Americans should forget their differences from the election and begin show their support* for their leader, the leader of the free world, the leader of our nation. Lets face it, like it or not your stuck with him so make the best of it, set your differences aside for the day and once it’s over use your right to protest and try and make a difference in America.

            When you watch the inauguration today I want one thing to be on your mind. I want you to imagine a Kings induction and compare it to our President’s induction. By no means am I trying to imply the spoof of “King George”, but I only am trying to convey my thoughts of inaugurations. Today is George Bush’s day, one of the few days in which he is allowed to be treated as a king, the day that marks the begging of his Presidency.

*Remember he is your leader and no matter what you have to support him, but you don’t have to agree with him. Keep in mind by support I mean support for the person, which is different than support for what he does. You have the right to change America and he is one of your tickets to that change. Support him in your prayers, your thoughts, and your hopes. He is your leader for the next four years and he will play a direct role in your future.

By Arshad Mohammed and Saul Hudson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State-designate Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday defended her integrity and honesty as she clashed with senators about Iraq and vowed to press diplomacy to repair ties strained by the war.

Testifying at her U.S. Senate confirmation hearing, Rice was questioned about the number of U.S. troops sent to Iraq, the adequacy of Iraqi forces being trained to replace them and the failure to find weapons of mass destruction that were the Bush administration's central justification for the war.

Rice, whose confirmation as the first black woman secretary of state is all but assured in the Republican-led Senate, said she believed the White House sent enough U.S. troops to Iraq despite the raging insurgency that erupted after the invasion.

In a heated exchange in an otherwise generally cordial hearing, California Democrat Sen. Barbara Boxer argued the Bush administration had shifted its justification for the war because it had failed to find stocks of biological and chemical weapons it had asserted were there.

"You sent them in there because of weapons of mass destruction. Later the mission changed when there were none," Boxer told Rice. "Let's not rewrite history, it's too soon to do that."

"It wasn't just weapons of mass destruction," Rice told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, saying former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein supported terrorism, attacked Kuwait and Israel and needed to be removed given the new U.S. threat perception after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

"We can have this discussion in any way that you would like, but I really hope that you will refrain from impugning my integrity," Rice told Boxer. "I really hope that you will not imply that I take the truth lightly."

The exchange was the most pointed in a hearing that included disagreements between Rice and Democrats on the numbers of trained Iraqi troops -- the linchpin of the U.S. exit strategy -- and the numbers of U.S. troops sent to stabilize Iraq.

Rice said she believed there were more than 120,000 trained Iraqi forces -- acknowledging problems of absenteeism and desertion -- but drew a quick rebuke from Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, who said he thought the number was closer to 4,000.

The discrepancy might be explained by a Jan. 12 State Department report that shows 126,961 Iraqi forces -- including 53,520 police and 40,063 national guard -- as trained but only 4,159 regular Army.

If confirmed, Rice will take on many of the huge challenges facing the Bush administration: the raging insurgency in Iraq, the rift with U.S. allies in Europe, concerns about another attack like Sept. 11, 2001, and U.S. unpopularity abroad.

Rice said she would seek to rebuild U.S. alliances and to spread freedom around the world -- stances met with skepticism by critics who regard the Bush administration's foreign policy as marked by go-it-alone, America first tendencies.

"We must use American diplomacy to help create a balance of power in the world that favors freedom," Rice told the committee. "And the time for diplomacy is now."

Biden shot back: "Despite our great military might we are in my view more alone in the world than we've been in any time in recent memory. The time for diplomacy, in my view, is long overdue."

"We went in to rescue Iraq from Saddam Hussein, now I think we have to rescue our policy from ourselves," added Sen. John Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat who failed to unseat Bush. "I don't take any joy in this but it's ... the reality we've got to deal with. We've got kids dying over there."

Rice declined to predict when U.S. soldiers may come home from Iraq and said the U.S. exit strategy was tied to training Iraqi forces to replace the roughly 150,000 U.S. soldiers still in the country 21 months after Saddam was toppled.

"Our role is directly proportional, I think, to how capable the Iraqis are," she said.

Rice was national security adviser during Bush's tumultuous first term, which was marked by the Sept. 11 hijacked airliner attacks, the resulting U.S.-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and arguably, the worst rift with Europe since World War II.

A Soviet specialist, Rice said preserving Russia's democracy was vital to U.S.-Russian relations amid worries the Kremlin is turning increasingly authoritarian, and she promised to work "personally" to promote Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Bush has chosen the 50-year-old former Stanford provost to replace Colin Powell, widely admired and often seen as the Cabinet's lonesome dove stressing diplomacy to solve crises.

Today we celebrate Martin Luther King Day here in the United States. The federal holiday is to celebrate the birth and life of a god, sorry I mean Martin Luther King. I said “god” because the man, yes man, has been put upon a pedestal greater than many other important figures in American history. Now don’t get me wrong Dr. King was a great man, and what he did was just as great but the people that made his life what it is are ignored.

            When you ask the average American citizen whom John Locke is chances are they won’t know the answer, but ask them who King is and they can give you an answer quickly. Why does King have a day when the founders of this nation have none? Why does King have a day when George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Locke, Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, and countless others that without them King would have never existed not have a day? The simple answer is political correctness and liberal elites have hijacked this nation.

            George Washington and Abraham Lincoln once had there own days to there own where we paid respects to there lives, but now they are thrown into a watered down and almost unimportant holiday called Presidents Day. We get the day off and here some speeches, but in some respects King Day is more important to some people.

            Now to John Locke, I personally think August 29 should also be a National Holiday to honor the man who planted the seed of America. In case you don’t know who he is let me briefly tell you. Have you heard the phrase “life, liberty, and the pursuit of property”? Locke believed that people could be in a contract with one another for a particular kind of government, and that they could modify or even abolish the government. The founders of our nation used Locke’s theorys on life and government to write the Decleration of Independence and provide the foundations of American government. The phrase “life, liberty, and the pursuit of property” was also used by Thomas Jefferson to come up with his world renound and imfamous “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. He felt Locke’s vision was to exclusive to land owners, so Jefferson wanted to be more inclusive by saying all people have the right to be happy.

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