The Orange County Register, arguably the most authentic conservative voice among daily U.S. newspapers, the Wall Street Journal excluded, traditionally uses the end of the year to measure how much freedom has advanced during the previous 365 days.

The newspaper’s conclusion?

I went to the market to pick up a copy of today’s Orange County Register, and I was forced to take a serious double take in front of the newsrack.  A huge headline at the top of the paper shouted, “Saddam Hanged.”  Fine, but a few inches below it was an almost-as-large headline reading, “Tribute fits the man.”  It was only upon closer examination that I noticed the second headline had a smaller one above it with the notation, “Gerald R. Ford 1913-2006.”  Somehow, I think they should’ve rearranged things a bit.

That being said, hanging Saddam Hussein could definitely be considered a “tribute” that fits the man.

This is my last posting on Gerald Ford, I promise.  When the 38th President was honored by, of all people, Ted Kennedy for pardoning Richard Nixon, the Massachusetts senator had to eat a lot of crow, obviously, as he had vigorously opposed the pardon when it occurred. Still, it was Teddy who presented the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award to President Ford.

In accepting the award, Mr. Ford noted:

The ultimate test of leadership is not the polls you take, but the risks you take.  In the short run, some risks prove overwhelming.  Political courage can be self-defeating.  But the greatest defeat of all would be to live without courage, for that would hardly be living at all.

This statement shows why the poll-loving Bill Clinton stayed popular (but did nothing), while Ford and other risk-takers like Winston Churhill were shown the door.  It’s a sad commentary on life and politics but a tribute to those who live courageously.

With the passing of Gerald Ford, I and many others, it appears, have had a sobering chance to reconsider not just the man but what he stood for.  Basically, Ford was an Eisenhower and Rockefellar type of Republican: Balance the budget, keep spending and taxes in line, and let the people live their lives.  How different is that from the present-day Democrats who want to tell us how to think and live–socialize us in the political sense–and the new Republicans who want to have us believe as they do, in fundamental Christianity.  And never the twain shall meet, God and Lenin forbid.  It would be nice to go back to Ford’s type of governing philosophy and let the cultural wars fade into history.

At any rate, here is one of my favorite quotations from President Ford:

A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have.

To that, a hearty “amen” and “yes, comrade” from the modern ruling classes, or rather from those oppressed by these elites.

The thing that stands out in my mind about Gerald Ford is that he vetoed just about every damn high-spending, high-taxing bill that the Democrats could send his way. It didn’t take Jimmy Carter long to reverse that trend and, in the process, create the worst economy since the Great Depression.

That being that, the thing that will stand out now that President Ford has left us at the ripe old age of 93 is his genuine goodness as a human being. No pretense like Bill Clinton, no preaching like Carter, no prevarication like George Bush (and Clinton), Ford was a true example for our nation, probably the last president not to be subjected to constant cheap shots because his character stood above that (and it helped that he hadn’t been elected in a bitter campaign). We as a nation can only hope we can find another person of Gerald Ford’s character to occupy the White House and bring some peace to our nonstop cultural wars. The question is—is such cultural peace even possible anymore?

Hi folks, thanks for hanging in there. I’ve been off holidaying with the family like most of the world. Meanwhile, my ascerbic view of society remains unabated and will return soon.

Anyway, posts may be thin for a while due to both the holidays and the fact that I’m porting this blog over to WordPress from Blogger for more personal control and to build readership. Note to would-be bloggers: If you start at Blogger, fine, but just stay there long enough to get accustomed to what’s going on. When you want serious results and serious readership, switch over to WordPress and host your own site (though I’m hosting this one, Blogger doesn’t provide enough functions to make it reach the Blogosphere in full force). Stay tuned for the next incarnation of Mr. Unlucky’s Almanack.

“Ho, ho, ho,” he was heard to exclaim as he abused his official status to park illegally on the curb at the doorway to a Target store, while he yakked away on his cell phone to his girlfriend/wife. Some last-minute shopping on Christmas Eve is certainly nothing unusual, but to think you deserve special treatment because you wear a badge is, to me, completely arrogant. This officer-at-law, like almost every one of his associates/cronies, could care less, of course. He got his presents and didn’t have to move many muscles to get inside the store. He no doubt jumped to the head of the line as well. I wonder if he paid.

They too serve and protect who merely abuse their power while supposedly working.