Gordy Hulten, who ran IlliniPundit blog site has been selected for the Champaign City Council Unit 5. While it shared its usual amount of pedigree lunacy, Hulten's blog was one of the most unabashed sources of the C-U Citizenry; certainly more than any local publication. It has been an invaluable source as a result, and its services missed (especially for No. 3, who’s beat along with the Saluki Way included IP posting. No worry, something else will be found for him to blog about).

We wish Gordy good luck in the future, and we shall keep the link as an honorary display as one of our favorite blogs.

Thank you for the opportunity Mr. Hulten. Tali Ho.

Posted by Alpha Hound

Last week the Chronicle reported that Duke University would be selling the property where the lacrosse rape hoax occurred but didn’t back in 2006. What will happen? Will Victoria Peterson buy it so she can finally burn it down? Or will Mary Katherine Ham purchase it as some historical marker, marking where Mangum never got raped?


In all seriousness, however, the statement that made us sit up and wag our tails was the part that said:

"The University plans to sell the lacrosse house—located at 610 North Buchanan and the site of the 2006 lacrosse scandal—following the resolution of several remaining civil suits."

Resolution of several remaining suits? The only lawsuit outstanding that was resolved recently was the Pressler lawsuit, stemming from when he was slandered by the Flying Squirrel. It was our impressions that the Ekstrand Lawsuit and others were nowhere near close to being finished, given the amount at stake. Perhaps though, as Duke settled with Pressler to avoid the discovery process, Duke is planing on the same thing with the others, and this property sale is a cue?

Is there something that the Chronicle knows that we do not?


Posed by Hound No. 2

When Speech gets Flagged

Yesterday, the news and blogs were barking up a storm concerning a blatant RABIES break out at Five Live Oak High School in California. Five boys (of various ethnicity) were sent home for wearing U.S. Flag-themed clothing during school on May 5th. The orchestrator of this particular outrage was the vice-principal (a Miguel Rodriguez). This has lead to parental and national outrage, and was met with denunciation by the district itself.

We predict it shall be extremely difficult for the school to lie its way out such a blatant free speech violation, even if the chameleons attempt to camouflage their actions under the guise of the "safety first' ruse. Such a move to obfuscate the obvious PC-grandstanding ere will hardly hold up. In order for it to do so, the backers of Rodriguez et al. would have to suggest, that the display of U.S. themed apparel (something we would expect to find in the U.S. perhaps?) could prompt a violence response, those celebrating Cinco de Mayo (who wearing mexican garb were not asked to leave as the others were) are predisposed to violence-the last thing the school would want. Naturally, lawsuit talk is on the tip of wet tongues.

The principal of the school and superintendent have since "apologized" for the incident by claiming the safety gambit we described above. There is no word, however from the instigator, Rodriguez, nor are any privy to what his current status is. Whether the apology suffices, or the occurrence becomes a cause celebre and court fight is unclear, but no matter which way, this will constantly return to bite them in the rear.

Posted by Hound No. 4

The news of the week has been, of course, Mayor Jerry Schweighart's well-publicized, and woefully moronic 'birther" opinion that Barack Obama has been less than forthright with the original copy of his birth certificate.

The comments are certainly ignorant and demonstrate he has the brains of a sheep (no disrespect intended. We know many sheep dogs, and many sheep. Most sheep we know are just meek and need something to flock to), but hardly novel. Remember please, that this is the state of ILL, and in the last year, there has been no shortage of dumb utterances.

For example, here are some from ILL alone in just the past year that you may remember:

“There's no secret clout list.” -B. Joseph White lying about the admissions scandal that, as the Tribune so poetically put it,"sunk his presidency." (The skunk's claim was later discredited after emails of his own lobbying for Tony Rezko's family members surfaced)

”All admissions... should be based on merit .” -White again. Anyone who was familiar with his thoughts and actions regarding his work during and after at the University of Michigan can spot this fib easily.

“It's very confusing to the University and the community."-Renee Romano insulting the intelligence of the average citizen of ILL,after being caught attempting to limit free speech of those who support retired Chief Illiniwek.

-Students aren’t qualified -Jarred Hall equally capricious of students (he himself is one, by the way...) who dared think critically of the University after the DI posted a list of faculty and employee salaries.

“You never asked” -Roland Burris explaining why he committed perjury during his testimony about the sale of his senate seat.

“I don't that's a productive use of my time - Dick Durbin explaining why he would not meet with his own constituents.


And here are some other winners:

"The system worked." -Janet Napalitano when the only reason people were not killed by the Christmas Day bomber was his hands were in his underpants.

"Baby Killer!"- Rep. Randy Neugebauer to Michigan Representative Bart Stupak.

"I don't worry about the Constitution on this."- Phil Hare on the Constitution's limits of congressional power. (Hare also pulled a DI and could not tell the difference between the Declaration of Independence)

“...acted stupidly- Barack Obama's description of a police officer in Cambridge responded to a burglary report.


And of course

"I don't think he is American, personally.“ -Jerry Schweighart


Schweightt's claim was ignorant and unnecessary. But it was hardly the only one.

Posted by Alpha Hound

Prayer Should Stay Out of Schools

The New Jersey Education Association (the same oufit that is trying to downsize the popularity of "The Cartel" film) finally got religion. That's right, they have gotten on their knees and held their card (or whatever they use in place of rosaries) and prayed for the death of newly elected NJ governor Chris Christie.

The NJEA has done some damage control, saying the leaked memo was a private joke.

Cristie pounced on this too with all four paws, and mused, "They said they didn't intend it to be public. So, private prayer for my death would have been OK?"

Will the NJEA's new heavenly weapon work? Who knows? Though we cannot see how much good a divine DEFCON 1 will do against a man who's name is "Chris Christie."

Let us suppose that the NJEA gets its indulgence granted, and Christie goes the way of the NJEA's other favorites: Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, etc. Did you see Michael Jackson's funeral? To get an outing by the NJEA like his, Christie would have to have been quite an incredible person!

Posted by Hound No. 4

[Update 4/13/2010]

Chris Christie has called on for the head of the chapter responsible to resign.

Posted by Hound No. 4

Duke just barely beat out Butler, and Coach K and his players are to be congratulated. Perhaps this will make up for the rather dismal weak Duke brought upon itself prior:

It has not been a good week for Duke. Now that April is here, the so-called Sexual Assault Awareness month, all eyes have turned to the place where the college-level crime of the decade occurred. A crime committed by Duke, its faculty, president, and the score of media toads who latched on to a rogue prosecutor.

While visiting the Volokh Conspiracy, we saw Professor Eugene had posted about Duke’s Women Center’s cancellation of the a pro-life display at the women’s center. The rationale for the censorship was that there was too much backlash (from whom?).

Within moments, the incident was all over the blogspherer. FIRE immediately started burning, DIW had picked up, and so had Erin O’Conner over at Critical Mass to name just a few. It disappointed us, however, that the Chronicle has yet to make any mention of the story. We must wonder if Schoenfeld has a red phone in the Chronicle editor’s office to make sure that stories like these are quickly buried or ignored.

Duke reversed itself within 24 hours (a record for the institution! ), accompanied by Ada Gregory‘s, the head of the Women’s Center, generously-described apology.

We long-memoried mastiffs are no strangers to the name or role of Ada Gregory. Lest we forget (and believe us, we will not), this is the same Ada Gregory, who without explanation or rational, proceeded to succinctly describe the Women’s Center’s mission at the university with a blatantly slanderous and misandry-filled publication. IN it, she lambasted the intelligence of male Duke students, as "manipulative", and claiming that the higher the IQ, the more successful they are at rape. A similar half-hearted mea culpa (where she blamed the quote as "out of context" (?!)) came from her office by the end of the week.

In her most recent letter, she references Duke complete reversal concerning the actions of her Center, and goes on to Claim that actions had taken place to “ensure that ….does not happen again.” Given Gregory’s pedigree regarding open, honest dialogue (not to mention Duke on a whole), we can only believe her assurances if those said steps include her immediate resignation, and self-imposed exile from institutional office.

-In other Duke News, Gary Lombard, was fond guilty.

-Finally, Duke has settled with Mike Pressler for its failure to reign in the rabid ravings of the Flying Squirrel. If Duke, was actually sincere in this claim, then we fail to understand why there was a need for a libel lawsuit and why Duke settled. If Duke and Burness held and continue to hold Pressler in such high esteem, then why was Burness making disparaging remarks in the first place? Two possible answers present themselves:

Duke is lying and is now trying to do damage control in the face of Duke’s settlement (which is a legal term for “we were wrong, we lost, but we are too cowardly to admit it.”).

-Duke on the whole is sincere, and these highly insulting comments were either Burness' own grudges or they fostered on him by specific higher eidolons in the Duke hierarchy, worried that the evidence presentation process would produce less savory bits of information about specific Duke administrators' going-ons.

Either way, it as several bloggers have noted, does not bode well for Duke and its future.

Posted by Hound No. 2

One Year and Still in the Dog House

One year has gone by (quickly), since the Dogs of Blog have trotted out and it certainly has been quite a year. When several of us wired bassets formed together, we had no idea what we were getting into, nor what an exciting and tumultuous year it would be.



Here are some of the highlights of the year that we have covered:

• The continuation of the Jon Andrew White Case


• The continuation of the Duke Lacrosse Hoax


• The arrest up of Frank Lombard


• The assault on free speech against Tim Lantham


• The spying on students in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania


• The arrest of Crystal Mangum


• The downfall of ACORN


• The appointment and subsequent depravity of Roland Burris


• The Witchhunts at Southern Illinois-Carbondale


• And the Major "Cloutgate" scandal that took down the most powerful criminals at the University of ILL

Those are just a few. Since then, we have commented on notable blogs such as Durham in Wonderland, the Volokh Conspiracy, IlliniPundit, and others. We have had more comments from readers than we expected, surprisingly the majority of them positive, including one (presumably) from as far as North Carolina.

For all our work accomplished, we have much more to do. This will be a busy week. Yet, we do wish to take out time to those who have supported us thus far.

Best wishes from your cyber canines.

Posted by Alpha Hound