Monday, March 20, 2006

On the Hot Seat with American News Crusader

New York

1 Do you feel a certain energy in NYC ? Is NYC a special place for you
2 Do you enjoy a wide variety of ethnic enclaves in NYC like China Town and Boro Park
3 When you leave NYC do people notice the accent? The other day I was in a bar and a hot woman asked me to say " I'll cap ya".

War on Terror
4 Were you in NYC on 9-11 ?
5 Do you feel a greater urgency because our city was attacked ?
6 Has this war started before 9-11 and we were asleep ?

General Blog Related
7 Did you expect your blog to be as big as it is now
8 What advice would you give a rookie

General
9 Have you ever driven a motorcycle
10 Chinese or Jewish food
11 What sports do you follow

Taxation
12 Can a legal comodity be overtaxed ? Have cigarette taxes just reached the point where smugling is big business
13 Are user fees and larger fines hidden taxes
14 Are you in favor of a flat tax ?

Crime
15 What are your views on racial profiling ?
16 Do we take identity theft seriouly enough
17 Should we impose capital punishment on pedophiles

Group rights

18 Do rights belong to individuals or groups
19 Are you for or against affirmative action

Big Media

20 Has big media lost touch with the average American
21 Have movies gotten too expensive

Random

23 Do you prefer Gangster movies, westerns or standard adventure films like Raiders of the lost Ark
24 Who is moe annoying Sean Penn or Barbara Striesand ?
25 Will we ever be rid of the Clintons ?

13 comments:

nanc said...

he means he'd like to interview you. a 25 question interview - that's what's happening here - you just walked in on someone's interview. let beak know if you want to be interviewed; he'll compose 25 questions JUST 4 YOU and you answer them and then we criticize your answers. can you handle that? if not, go back to the sandbox!

nanc said...

ODL - i didn't mean for my last sentence to sound so, so, well, you know - apologies are in order. what i meant is if you want to play with the big dogs, you've got to stop peeing like a puppy!

beakerkin said...

Anum

I will do an interview like the ones on this page. I am not a theologan so the topic of the Koran and Mohammed will not come up.

However Islamic history , current events , sharia law are fair game.

You will also get a few popular culture questions . However in your case the number will be around five.

This is your chance as I have no shortage of volunteers.

You have the advantage because as host I can not throw the book at you. A good host shows hospitality
and that is your temporary advantage ?

Always On Watch said...

Beak,
As yet, I've been unable to read through all these interviews. Dealing with phone-line problems and glitches with installing broadband. I see that I've been missing out!

I'll catch up, though.

PS: I got my copy of Fallaci's Force of Reason yesterday. I've just barely started reading it.

nanc said...

i hope you do catch up, aow - so far you're the MOST popular in the hotseat! hip-hip for the brave women in the hotseat!

American Crusader said...

1 Do you feel a certain energy in NYC ? Is NYC a special place for you

New York is where my parents were born and where their parents were born. I have a picture going back to 1916 where my family on my mom's side operated and lived over a bar in Yonkers. So yes, New York is a very special place with an energy level unlike any other in the world

2 Do you enjoy a wide variety of ethnic enclaves in NYC like China Town and Boro Park

Going down to Canal Street or Houston Street is always entertaining. You see things here that you won't see in any other cities. A lot of the smaller enclaves like the Irish and the Polish have given away to Hispanic or Russian enclaves. Brighton Beach is almost entirely Russian. Little Italy is still a favorite.

3 When you leave NYC do people notice the accent? The other day I was in a bar and a hot woman asked me to say " I'll cap ya".

I grew up in a military family so I moved around quite a bit. I've lived overseas in Germany and all across the United States. Monterey California, Fort Knox Kentucky, Fort Hood Texas, Fort Leavenworth Kansas... and quite a few other places so my accent isn't as pronounced as someone who has lived their entire life in New York.

War on Terror
4 Were you in NYC on 9-11 ?

No, at this time I was living in Hopewell Virginia but my girlfriend was in New York City. I remember trying to call but getting "all circuits are busy" messages for hours.

5 Do you feel a greater urgency because our city was attacked ?

I was living at Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island when the World Trade Center was being built. Going to school at PS 39. I remember watching the progress as the Towers went up. One of the things I missed the most was wherever you were, you could look and see the Towers. Even driving up the New Jersey Turnpike, you would see the Towers long before you could see the city. I still find myself looking for them at times.

6 Has this war started before 9-11 and we were asleep ?

This war started in the seventh century. This was a religion born in violence. As far back as the early 1800s, America fought to stop Islamic intimidation.
While we were focused on the Soviet Union, Islamic movements were underway and waging war on the West. Reestablishing the caliphate has long been the goal of Islam.
Winston Churchill stated in 1899 "Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science the civilisation of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilisation of ancient Rome." I wonder what Churchill would say today?

7 Did you expect your blog to be as big as it is now

I'm smalltime. I'm glad to have several readers that stop by regularly and I try to reciprocate as much as possible.

8 What advice would you give a rookie

Ha... I am a rookie. The only advice I can give is to find something that really matters to you. It takes an obligation to keep a blog going. If it isn't something you really care about, it won't last long.

9 Have you ever driven a motorcycle

Yes. Back in college I had a small Kawasaki LTD. It was great for getting around campus and it didn't hurt meeting girls.

10 Chinese or Jewish food

Easy. Chinese.

11 What sports do you follow

I am a big sports fan. The Yankees and the Jets are my favorite professional teams but my heart is with the Kansas Jayhawks, particularly their basketball team. I am still in depression over our recent loss in the first round to Bradley. I attended KU back in the late seventies.

Taxation
12 Can a legal comodity be overtaxed ? Have cigarette taxes just reached the point where smugling is big business

OK, this is where I wish I had ducky's knowledge. Short answer is yes. This is what a sales-tax is. Overtaxing discourages sales. We live in a consumer driven economy, and over taxation will hurt economic growth.

13 Are user fees and larger fines hidden taxes

Yes. User fees are just another method of revenue enhancement. Why does it cost $15-$20 to obtain your birth certificate? The cost should only cover the cost of the service; if it also pays for something he isn't getting or doesn't want, then he's paying a tax. Larger fines follow the same principle. Sometimes there is even a surcharge on the fine. This is most politicians preferred method of "not" raising taxes.

14 Are you in favor of a flat tax ?

No. I think that although this sounds fair, in the end, the middle-class would end up funding the wealthier class.


Crime
15 What are your views on racial profiling ?

I've commented on this before. I think it is an effective law enforcement tool, but it has its limits.

16 Do we take identity theft seriouly enough

Now we do. There certainly weren't enough precautions taken when the Internet exploded into our daily life and many people have paid the consequences. My bank uses virtual numbers for credit card purchases which has helped ease my mind when making purchases over the Internet.

17 Should we impose capital punishment on pedophiles

This to me is the worst crime that could be perpetrated against children. I noticed on another interview, child combatants was identified as the worst crime against children. I disagree. I can live with either capital punishment or life in prison without parole.


Group rights

18 Do rights belong to individuals or groups

Both obviously, but individual rights trump group rights. The Bill of Rights was written to guarantee rights to individuals.

19 Are you for or against affirmative action

Against. It doesn't work and it gives the wrong message. I think it demeans minorities and gives the message that they aren't good enough.

Big Media

20 Has big media lost touch with the average American

I think so. Journalism is no longer about the truth and Hollywood promotes values that most Americans don't agree with. This year's Oscars went to movies that most Americans didn't even watch.

21 Have movies gotten too expensive

I like the big blockbuster type movies with special effects and lots of action. Jurassic Park, Independence Day... these aren't going to win any awards, but they provide escapist entertainment. I also enjoy movies like Capote but in general I'm more of a "Terminator" type movies fan.


Random

23 Do you prefer Gangster movies, westerns or standard adventure films like Raiders of the lost Ark

One my favorite movies is "Good Fellows" but in general I would have to say the standard adventure type films.

24 Who is more annoying Sean Penn or Barbara Striesand ?

Barbra Streisand, at least Sean Penn can act.

25 Will we ever be rid of the Clintons ?

Yes, but I won't be alive to see it.

nanc said...

great interview! i'm with you all the way on the affirmative action question AND answer. having worked for the government for a number of years - we were plagued by this monster. when i'd have to go to "affirmative action training" i'd tell my boss, "i'm not going this year - i'm not prejudiced - i hate everybody just the same!" he'd make me go anyway. how much fairer could i have been?

American Crusader said...

"Not a bad set of answers for a Spankees fan."

ha...from you I will take that as a high compliment.

Mad Zionist said...

Since when is Chinese food not Jewish?

Freedomnow said...

Its outrageous that you can accuse Hollywood of being out of touch with America.

With extremist views like that how can there be any dialog?

I'm with Ducky. No one is entitled to a point of view except for Leftists. You all had your chance to shut up...

nanc said...

i think it's the pork, madze.

Always On Watch said...

Crusader,
You did a good job with your answers.

American Crusader said...

Thank you AOW, I think I was thrown some softballs so I escaped without looking completely stupid.