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I remember the shock, surprise, and immediate horror that washed over me. I remember thinking, "Who would do this?" I remember wondering, "How many were on that plane?"

I remember hearing about the Pentagon, and then Pennsylvania...

I remember watching my nation lock itself down...

I remember this day...

Because to forget it, would be to ignore the evil in this world as it exists, and would be to go on with life as "usual".

But because I lived through that day, and because I do not wish for my children to see one like it ever again, I will choose to remember it for the rest of my life.

I made the soundtrack to THIS video, on this DAY, eight years ago:

Former President Bush walked a very tight line last night speaking to manufacturers in Erie Pa. (a state he lost twice) where he (and how bad does this tell you the buyer's remorse on the current guy is) got a larger ovation than...

Wait for it...

Joe Paterno!

Perhaps in light of the current non-solutions that are spiking unemployment instead of bringing it down, and perhaps in light of the fact that potential for building wealth by the average American is shrinking instead of growing, and perhaps the fact that the only one's benefiting in any way presently are elected officials who are swallowing up more and more power a la Hugo Chavez, perhaps in light of all these developments... the principles in former President Bush's speech didn't sound so bad after all:

On this blog space I have lamented the decisions made by Bush that I disagreed with. His decision to create the largest Government entitlement--the Drug plan--in more than a generation was his largest first term mistake. His willingness to make concessions on bailing out industry sectors towards the conclusion of his second term was his biggest mistake in the second term. (Both were significant spending measures/increases.) His stance on immigration and border security and not shifting from Rumsfeld's battle-plan to Gen. Petraeus' quickly enough in Iraq were his biggest foreign policy mistakes.

Keeping us safe for the duration of his time in office, keeping our enemies on the run, pushing freedom and democracy to the corners of the globe will be his legacy. That along with Justices Roberts and Alito as well as unparalleled economic growth in light of two wars -- for seven straight years will be his domestic agenda historical notes.

As I mentioned there has been much buyer's remorse, for while the people of America still like President Obama on a personal level, the restlessness on his policy direction is bubbling up, 10% national unemployment (twice the worst rate ever seen under Bush), the inflationary effect of spending three trillion dollars before he authorized his first budget (Bush had not spent three trillion dollars in seven years, with two wars), and the undisguisable move to radically nationalize much of the private sector of industry, banking, market management, and production, are all causing people to scratch their heads.

Moves like putting a young thirty something who's never owned a car in charge of a car company seems very nepotistic. Refusing to label our great conflict a war against those who are committing terror, and telling jihadists at a Muslim university that America and Islam are one and the same are utter foolishness.

I was the first one to predict President Obama's election. (Even the guttersnipe trolls who are addicted to my blog have to admit that...) But I was also the first to criticize Bush when he wandered away from the larger principles of sound governance. So let me also clearly state that the rearview mirror of history will treat President Bush very kind.

Because if the worst your enemies can say about you is that you went to every length possible to protect your citizens, even if it meant little Ahmad got a little water on his face (just like our troops do in training), then you're in pretty good shape compared to the hole that the present "O"ministration insists upon digging.

So this little tidbit of news should be shocking Obama's anti-war, peacenik loons... er campaign contributors... I mean... supporters into the next decade. Mr. President, the man who is now seen as more heroic than the Savior of the world, is now replicating the same position on the constitutional rights of detainees from the war on terror as the great Satan himself George W. Bush.

Those who support the terror thugs are shocked at this:

"The hope we all had in President Obama to lead us on a different path has not turned out as we'd hoped," said Tina Monshipour Foster, a human rights attorney representing a detainee at the Bagram Air Base. "We all expected better."

Foster and other supporters of terrorists consider this a body blow:

"They've now embraced the Bush policy that you can create prisons outside the law," said Jonathan Hafetz, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union who has represented several detainees.

Hmm... even though he basically ran a campaign on nothing, pitched Bush as the devil incarnate, and himself as the second virgin born human of all time, where does this put him with his base? Because he has adopted Bush's EXACT positions on Iraq, Gitmo, and now terror detainees. On foreign policy he has not yet announced his tactic on Iran yet, but given that little monkey Ahmadinejad has said there's a hair's difference between Obama and Bush - right now NOTHING would surprise me more than for him to announce a bombing run on the suspected nuclear development facility.

Brack Obama AND George Bush adopting the exact same foreign policy... sure doesn't seem like "change," but I'll let you decide whether or not it's "hope."

(This post brought to you by the NoWeCan'tPAC tracking Barack Obama's constant streak of breaking campaign promises minute by minute...)

Parting question for you geniuses who sat here and argued with me over and over and over about Bush's HORRIBLE position on terror detainees... WHAT have you to say about this?

Speak up I can't hear you for the crickets chirping...

It was the last time he will address the American people as their President, but it was thirteen minutes of transparency, gratitude and humility.

Critics will disparage it as another speech from the simpleton in chief.

President Bush did not get a free pass from me on a good deal of his handling of term two. The bail-out mania that ended his second term perhaps historically misguided, his refusal to take strong measures to merely fence up the southern border, and his expansion of government entitlement through the drug programs for medicaid/medicare are some of the biggest mistakes movement conservatives will point to.

No President gets to a 21% approval rate (still double that of Reid/Pelosi) by merely ticking off his opponents.

But as I have stated before, history will see Bush differently than the intense leftists in today's political discussions do. We know this to be true already because the incoming administration made a sudden centrist jerk after being elected and are now headed smack dab into the more or less same directions, particularly on national security/terrorism.

The fact that Mr. Obama has moved his position from "bring them home day one" on Iraq to an identical position with Bush will eventually be noted in the textbooks. The fact that Mr. Obama may sign a symbolic piece of paper indicating a vague future date to close Gitmo, but then chooses to do nothing to change it will also prove Bush right on the need to detain the most serious of monsters off of our own shores.

One thing that is difficult to be critical of President Bush in any way is his compassion for people. Karl Rove told me over dinner in New York, not two months ago that every time official business would take Bush in the vicinity of immediate relatives of fallen service personnel he would have meetings set up where he would meet individually with family after family. Looking them in the eye, putting his arm around them, and expressing his sorrow at their loss.

The blame dumped on him for Katrina was unjustified and dishonest. Anyone with an ounce of integrity that sees the facts can easily confirm. Yet again, he has time and again met with families who did lose loved ones in that tragedy.

And one thing that riveted my attention sitting across from Rove was that the President did so regardless of whether the families were pleased with his performance or angry with him. And there were ton's of both.

At the end of the day Bush's Supreme Court appointments will be seen as genius for champions of the Constitution, and perhaps his longest lasting legacy.

America stayed safe on his watch, and post 9.11 not another American life was lost on American soil due to "disruption" his strategy and commitment levied against those who wished to kill us. He chased the terrorists into caves--exactly as he promised, and from their position they have been unable to re-organize, re-supply, re-finance, or re-strategize against us.

I was the first pundit in all of America to predict that Barrack Obama would be the next President. I have been just in my scrutiny of Obama prior to his election, and I have been fair to him in commenting on his moves since, giving credit where credit is due.

Unfortunately those on the left will never recognize, even after his admission of things that did not work out so well, that President Bush's motivation in all of it was to do what he felt was best for the nation he loved and served.

And though I hope for President Obama's success, because the nation depends on it... (And have even cut him a bit of slack since his election, understanding that his actions will have merits to be judged by once he is in office.)

I will miss President Bush, and I wish him well for guiding us through America's most terrified season, and reminding that some things like freedom are virtues still worth protecting and even dying for.

Opened Friday night at number one, had fallen off to 4th by Saturday, and will barely place for the weekend...

The Georgian crisis with Russia is something that gives everyone in Europe cause for pause, but consider how the rest of Europe has responded. Instead of cowering to Putin's muscle, the leaders of other likely Russian aspirations not only all met with the Georgian government with strong solidarity, but are making overt gestures to the U.S. even now when it could cause the Russian sore to become even more inflamed.

A missile defense deal with Poland signed and in effect, now Ukraine is offering up old Soviet facilities for the U.S. to do something similar.

If Russia suffers from paranoia about freedom edging too closely to its border, it seems it has taken exactly the wrong actions to slow its process.

I hope and trust that I'm not the only one watching and in great distress over the fact that from all signs it appears that Russia is about to absorb - not merely the tiny territory that started the flare up between Georgia and it's former tyrannical landlord - Russia, but that now it appears the Russians are ready to go after absorbing Georgia itself.

All this because Georgia likes the U.S. and wants to be part of NATO.

And unlike U.S. military advances that have brought freedom to 50 million Afghans and Iraqis - Russia will likely have no plans to surrender a conquered territory once they've raped her sufficiently.

The doctors for United States Senator Ted Kennedy are stating that he is victim to a malignant brain tumor.

This is never a good thing.

Today, conservative - even church going - Christians across America (including the President) will pray for Kennedy's health and outcome.

A stark contrast indeed to what liberals would do if this same diagnosis was given to President Bush, where no doubt shouts of glee would be uttered at the dramatic worsening of an "opponent's" outlook.