President Lyndon Johnson once said at a civil rights symposium:

I believe that the essence of government lies with unceasing concern for the welfare and dignity and decency and innate integrity of life for every individual. I don’t like to say this and wish I didn’t have to add these words to make it clear but I will—regardless of color, creed, ancestry, sex or age.

Dignity. Self-respect. Esteem.

When President Barack Obama insisted on including his middle name “Hussein” when he took the oath of office he sent a powerful message to Muslims, and it resonated, Imam Sayed Moustafa al-Qazwini told me this week when I interviewed him at the Islamic Educational Center of Orange County in Costa Mesa.

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That gnashing of teeth you heard on Newport-Mesa golf courses today? Uh, probably not because of the usual missed putts.

Try Gov. Ahnold’s proposal to tax golf. Bad enough he wants to add a nickel to your bar tab every time you hoist a drink. Oh, and don’t forget the proposed increase in vehicle license fees. Wait, wasn’t that why voters recalled Gov. Gray Davis? Never mind. It’s a good idea now.

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Joe Shaw, good progressive that he is, might not appreciate that pun, but, hey, I like irony.

But what I really like is his approach to his new blog ocprogressive.com. 

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