THANKS BE TO GOD

In advance of the holiday weekend, I want to share with the blogosphere what I am thankful for in 2005. And as important as saying what you're thankful for is acknowledging who deserves your thanks. So I am grateful to the God of Christianity for the following blessings:

1) My beautiful wife Mrs. Media Matters. For most of my adult life I never imagined I would marry. But the right woman came along and made me a lucky man when she said "yes."

2) Our unborn child. My family is expanding and I am excited and scared to death. But I know it will all be worth it. Baby Media Matters is already a part of my life and has a place in my heart.

3) The Mrs. and I both have our health. Sure, there are a few concerns, but nothing that robs us of our ability to live our daily lives. And we have great health insurance through Stephanie's work, so that is a blessing as well and something we shouldn't take for granted.

4) President George W. Bush. Not only is he a solid leader, I believe he is a born again Christian who desires to please God with his life and his leadership. We will be blessed for many years to come, in ways that we don't even realize yet, by his example.

5) Our men and women in uniform. The US military is the finest in the world, both in power and in personality. I am thankful for their willingness to be in harm's way every day to protect me and my family and my freedoms. I wish a special Thanksgiving blessing on those serving in the Middle East.

6) My friends -- the Hills, Mr. Howes, the Massagli family and the Kings -- have radically changed me. I am moved by their investment and involvement in my life. I love you guys.

7) The Mrs. and I are both gainfully employed in jobs that we enjoy. And in career fields that are stable. As we anticipate the new arrival, there will be money challenges. But I am thankful for the financial foundation we already have.

8) Chocolate peanut butter ice cream, Reese's peanut butter cups, and any other combination of the two greatest flavors known to man. Can you tell I have a sweet tooth?

9) The rise of the new media, with its conservative bent. Thank God for the Fox News Channel, talk radio and conservative blog sites. A year ago I didn't know who Powerline and Thirdwavedave were. Now I feel a kinship to them and others and I have a few more ideological friends. It is a true blessing to know that I no longer have to rely on the MSM for my information.

10) A new trend in TV programming that honors the human spirit and promotes hospitality, generosity, community, fellowship, and the list goes on. And the best of the best - Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and Three Wishes.

OK, that is my list. What are you thankful for?

BUSH IS A BLESSING TO CHINESE CHRISTIANS

Of all the wonderful things George W. Bush has done, this may be the most significant of his presidency. Praise God. He is a godly man and I have been convinced to pray for him and his efforts even more fervently. We are so lucky to have him, and so grateful to God. I read a post on Lucianne about how years from now we will hear of how many Chinese accepted Christ and practiced Christianity because of this moment. I don't doubt it. Bush's faith is real, and it scares a lot of people. But it does my heart good.

Boy or Girl?

My beautiful wife is 15 weeks pregnant. Ever since she found out she was expecting, it has been her desire for us to have a baby girl (although I know she'd be happy with a boy). Last week I was inclined to agree with her. I told her with the crazy world that we live in right now, as unstable as it is, maybe if we have a daughter, she'll be less likely to have to grow up and fight in a war some day. (She might choose to on her own, and that would be fine with us. We would support her and be proud.) However, my wife said something very wise and selfless in response. She said, if we have a boy, maybe we'll raise him in such a way as to prepare him to be a soldier if in fact his country needs him some day. And she's right. We need boys like that. We need families who raise boys like that. No one wants to go to war. But there are times when you must. And this is one of those times. We have crazy Islamo-fascists who want to kill us for no other reason than we are free, and democratic, and pro-Israel, and Christian (at least in heritage). We have every right and need to defend ourselves and defeat them before they kill us. I support the President and the war in Iraq 1,000%. And if someday my son (or daughter) decides to serve in the military, or even is expected to do so, to fight the global war on terror, my prayer is that he is up to the task and willing to do so. His mom and I will be so proud.

I FIRST WROTE ABOUT THIS IN SEPTEMBER

Here's what I wrote about in early September. And then two weeks later I saw an exhaustive report on CBS news (I promise, I hardly ever watch them) about exactly my point.

HOLLYWOOD VS. HOME THEATERS: Hollywood is distressed because box office numbers are down. For (at least) 14 consecutive weeks, ticket sales have been down. Well, I sort of like the idea of Hollywood being nervous. Let the leftist libtards suffer for a while. There are a number of theories as to why box office receipts are slipping. The most prominent one I have heard is that this year's crop of summer films has been dull. Maybe. But the Mrs. and I have seen a number of films that we liked: Mr. & Mrs. Smith is non-stop action, Fantastic Four is good, cheesy fun, and Bewitched was cute and harmless. In fact the only film we haven't liked this summer was Monster-In-Law. So I'm not convinced it is the movie's plots. I would recommend that Hollywood take something from the success of the Passion of the Christ and make more movies that appeal to the heartland of America -- wholesome, family-oriented films, even ones with a blatantly Christian message. But I think the real reason that box office sales are down is because of the advent of the home theater. People don't want or need to leave their homes anymore to enjoy a theater experience. More and more people have advanced equipment in their homes for enjoying DVDs. Services like Netflix and Showtime make it easy to enjoy recent releases in the privacy of your home. Save the $9 bucks on the ticket and the $45 bucks you'd pay for the popcorn and drinks, and just snuggle up on the couch with your main squeeze to watch the latest Nicole Kidman remake. Things have changed. We have now brought the theater experience into our homes. And Hollywood may never get the box office numbers it used to for that very reason. Please put your own "me" in media, and tell me what you think.

GAS GOES DOWN

Gas prices continue to decline. WooHoo! This morning I paid less than $22 to fill up my tank (9+ gallons). The price at the pump was $2.37 and later that morning I saw another station at $2.34. Praise God! High fuel prices have been eating up our budget lately. The continual decline in gas prices should help the President's poll numbers improve. That is another added benefit.

Incidentally, I no longer purchase gas at ARCO. They are usually the cheapest, but they charge a $.45 transaction fee to pay by ATM. And that 45 cents usually puts them equal too or above the price per gallon at other stations. That transaction fee irritates the heck out of me. Other stations don't charge it, so why does ARCO? As often as I can, I am going to take my business elsewhere.

IT'S NOT ARNOLD'S FAULT

For those who blame Arnold for the low turn-out of conservatives in last week's election, I say don't blame the Govenator. He is to be applauded for his courage in taking on the unions. Plus, we had a cause to rally around. Proposition 73 would have required parental notification before a minor seeks an abortion. We should have came to the polls in droves to support this measure. The fact that we didn't is not Arnold's fault. It is our own fault -- our own laziness, our own apathy. It's depressing. We had a chance to change the face of abortion in California and we let the unborn down. We have no one to blame but ourselves.

THIS DOES MY HEART SO MUCH GOOD

GatewayPundit has some encouraging news about the White House staying in attack mode. Scott McLellan goes after Senator Kennedy BIG TIME. Amen. This gets me so excited and encouraged. I hope they keep it up. And I hope more harsh words of criticism come out of the President's mouth. He needs to defend his credibility and his decision. I support him and many others do as well. And we want an excuse to rally around him. Go GWB!

Hat tip: Instapundit

MUST SEE TV

Thursday night TV has really rejuvenated itself lately. This is partly due to the fact that my wife has gotten me hooked on CBS' two crime dramas, CSI and Without A Trace. Without A Trace is especially well done. It always amazes me when a show has basically the same premise every week, in this case finding a missing person, and yet they still manage to make it interesting and entertaining. Without A Trace is top-notch. But beyond these two CBS stalwarts, other Thursday shows are showing a renaissance as well. NBCs Apprentice has been taking some risks lately. Good for the Donald. Recently he fired four candidates in one week, and then this week it was two more firings in the boardroom. All six of them deserved it and I applaud the Donald for gutting the cast. Of the six candidates who are left, I really only like Rebecca. Sure, her opinion of Toral was way off base at first, but other than that one mistake she has been classy and well-qualified the entire time. And finally, Alias may be turning things around, too. While I disagree with the decision to get rid of Vaughn, at least temporarily, the show has bounced back in other areas. Sloane appears to be heading back toward his bad guy days. It's about time. And on last week's episode, the new girl, Rachel, actually kicked some butt. With Jennifer Garner pregnant, the programs have lacked an action-adventure quality. At least last week the bad guys got thrashed. Here's hoping all four of these shows continue to stay on track. Although, admittedly for me and Mrs. Media Matters, once baby media matters arrives, we may not have much time for TV.

ALL I CAN SAY IS...

THANKS. To all those I know who served our country faithfully in the military, specifically those I know and count as family and friends:

My dad, who served in Korea.
My father-in-law, who was in the US Army
My brother-in-law, who is currently deployed in the Middle East
My friend Andy
My friend Thirdwavedave
Our current Soldiers Angel Staff Sgt. Shannon
Our Previous Soldiers Angel Staff Sgt. Brian
My cousin Mark
Regis Philbin (OK, he's not really a friend, but I wish he was)

I am grateful for your service on a daily basis. And I am grateful for our current Commander In Chief (and I don't mean Geena Davis).

God Bless you all.

MY IDOL

I was on the Hugh Hewitt show today. WooHoo! Hugh is my favorite conservative radio talk show host. He was discussing the new screening tests that allow pregnant women to find out if the baby they are carrying is likely to be born with Downs Syndrome, trisomy 21, or other genetic abnormalities. Hugh's concern was that the test would probably lead to an increase in abortions. And he's probably right and that would be a tragedy. I am about as PRO-LIFE as you can get. Still, my wife, who is 14-weeks pregnant and has that beautiful pregnancy glow, recently went through the testing and I supported her decision to do so. Our approach wasn't to find out so that we could possibly abort a potential Downs baby. Instead, we simply wanted to know as much about our child as possible. If it was likely to have Downs, the sooner we know that, the sooner we can prepare ourselves for that reality. Hugh seemed to understand and respect that. I was just thrilled to be on his show. My first time and hopefully not my last.

I'M TRYING TO STAY AWAKE UNTIL LOST COMES ON

Arnold got hit hard in yesterday's special election in California. Don't know if he can rebound for reelection in 2006.

We're getting the chance to be a Nielsen family this week for November sweeps. Gotta love that Regis. And three cheers for Three Wishes.

Lots of stress for this soon to be dad. I've got to figure out how to bring in more income. A career change may be necessary. AARGH!

I feel so old, I am sleepy by 7:30 PM. Being a new dad should really challenge those sleeping patterns, huh?

Sam Alito's meetings with Senators seem to be going well. Let's hope he's confirmed in early January.

AMEN FOR ALITO

The title of this post says it all. I hope the Republican members of the Gang of 14 come out early and often and speak of how they will vote to use the constitutional option to end a filibuster. This gentleman, Judge Sam Alito, deserves to be confirmed by Christmas.

Here in California, I am supporting "Yes" votes on propositions 73-77. I'm all for parental notification. And let's support Arnold's attempts to overhaul Sacramento.