Today, October 31st, marks our tenth favorite holiday of the year, Halloween; since you’re wondering, Independence Day is our first through fourth favorite, followed by Memorial Day, Veterans Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Independence Day again, in that order.

The great thing about Halloween is that it’s perfect for everyone, young and old, rich and poor, pumpkin and non-pumpkin. The only people who don’t enjoy Halloween are “tweens” who think they’re “rebellious” so they just dress up like pissed off middle schoolers and go out and egg houses. But whatever your age, it’s an excuse to dress up and get sick on candy, drunk on beer, high on laughter, bored on television or whatever it is you do to ward off evil spirits.

And if you’re like us, you’re excited because, not only do you get to scare away the undead — by which we mean little kids — but you get to show all your friends how much better you are because you have a far superior costume. We’re kidding of course, we don’t really aim to scare little kids. But we’re not above stealing their candy.

Anyway, here’s a cool YouTube clip of a pretty funny way to mess with people and get candy, even if you’re an adult:

Have a fun and safe Halloween, kids… of all ages.

Last time he went hunting, Vice President Dick Cheney shot a man. This time he was caught, gasp, near a Confederate battle flag! Oh… my… GOSH!

And because it was in New York and they have nothing better to harp on, the MSM is trying to make a big deal of it.

It was Cheney’s second visit to Clove Valley Rod & Gun Club in Dutchess County, about 70 miles north of New York City. The previous trip was in fall 2001.

Although a heavy police presence kept the media and curious local residents at a distance, Cheney’s visit did stir up a bit of controversy when a New York Daily News photographer snapped a picture of a small Confederate flag hanging inside a garage on the hunt club property.

The photo was shown to New York City civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton, who issued a statement demanding that the vice president “leave immediately, denounce the club and apologize for going to a club that represents lynching, hate and murder to black people.” [AP]

First of all, who goes hunting 70 miles from New York City? That makes about as much sense as flying a kite in purgatory.

Secondly, why does the MSM sprint to Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson every time a racially-based issue pops into the national news cycle? Who appointed them the official voice of the black community?

But more importantly, who cares? It’s not like Cheney was chasing pheasants through a forest whistling Dixie with the rebel flag stuck to the barrel of his gun - although that would be awesome. The guy was at a lodge where there happened to be a very small Confederate flag and he didn’t even see it. Get over it.

We’ve had more than our fair share of recent battles over the battle flag in South Carolina, and while it’s still a hot issue, for the most part we’ve all tried to move on and get away from wedge issues that needlessly exploit deep-seeded emotions. It’s about time for the MSM to do the same.

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UPDATE: To “reown” and anyone else who wants to paint us into a “pro-flag” or “anti-flag” corner: We neither condemn nor condone the Confederate battle flag. It’s a difficult, emotionally-charged issue that — for lack of a better phrase — is neither black nor white but rather gray.

The point of this post is that it does us no good to unnecessarily exhaust ourselves exchanging bitter sentiments in a never-ending, cyclical argument of heritage versus hate. Nobody wins and we all lose.

From the worst graduation rates in the country to pitiful SAT scores to the “Corridor of Shame” to Miss Teen S.C. Lauren Caitlin Upton, it’s difficult to find an adjective to adequately describe the stagnant state of public education in South Carolina. So it shouldn’t come as to much of a surprise that the Department of Education’s 2007 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) results, which were released Tuesday, showed that not one single school district in the state met federal yearly progress targets. That’s none, nada, zip, zilch.

Almost as bad, only 37 percent of state schools managed to meet the AYP mark.

[VIEW COMPLETE RESULTS]

A product of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, AYP is the minimum amount of progress schools and districts are expected to meet each year. The goal under NCLB is that all students score proficient or higher in English and math by 2014.

For South Carolina elementary schools, AYP data is based on scores from the Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test (PACT). Along with PACT scores, high school graduation rates and elementary and middle school attendance rates are factors in AYP for school districts.

In a press release, state Education Superintendent Jim Rex commended educators for their hard work, but warned that next year’s results will likely be even more dismal. That’s because the bar to meet AYP will be raised once again, which may make it virtually unrealistic for schools in this state to meet it since our measure of proficiency is set so high.

“NCLB requires 100 percent proficiency, and that isn’t going to happen,” Rex said in a press release “On top of that, it rewards states for lowering their expectations for students and schools. The only states that ultimately will escape federal sanctions will be those that set the bar an inch off the floor.” [Spartanburg Herald Journal]

Wow Jim, what a great message: “We suck really bad and, under my watch, it’s only going to get worse.” But in his defense, there’s really nothing he can do… he’s just oversees all public education in this state.

Regardless, we need to really get this education mess under control because we’re running out of banner images.

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UPDATE: FITSNews notes that South Carolina”leads the nation in ‘dropout factories.’”  Even more gooder news!

WRONG!

STEPHEN COLBERT’S FAVORITE BLOG, S.C. (TPS) - We’re big fans of The State’s Brad Warthen, but we were a little upset that we didn’t get an invitation to Sunday’s “Stephen Colbert Brunch” following the “Key to the City” event on the USC campus. Actually, we’re not that mad because it turned out to be a bunch of Dwight Drake’s good-ole-boy Democrat buddies, which means the event was probably about as fun as much fun as reading a Garfield comic strip (seriously, has that crap ever been funny?).

But what really annoyed us was the YouTube clip he posted Monday afternoon in which he coerced Colbert into saying, “I get all my South Carolina news from Brad Warthen’s blog.” Which is wrong, because everyone and their mother knows Colbert reads The Palmetto Scoop and ONLY The Palmetto Scoop.

Of course, poetic justice being what it is, Colbert immediately turned to Warthen and asked, “Which blog?”

Warthen not only has the video posted on the top of his blog, but he has a message proudly proclaiming, “Welcome to Stephen Colbert’s only South Carolina news source… Brad Warthen’s blog.” Again, wrong.

So if he wants a custody battle over Stephen, then a custody battle he shall have. It won’t really be fair though, since we were writing about Colbert before you even knew who he was. That’s right, we went there.

Anyway, if you’re reading this Mr. Warthen, then we’ll see you in court… the court of public opinion.

As South Carolina mourns the tragic loss of seven college students after a fire early Sunday morning in Ocean Isle Beach, N.C., state and local leaders offered words of support.

Governor Mark Sanford released a statement Monday, saying, “the deaths of these students are an incredible loss, made all the more tragic by the fact that they died at such a young age when they had their entire lives ahead of them.”

“Their families, as well as their extended families at USC and Clemson, will be in Jenny, the four boys, and my thoughts and prayers in the coming weeks and months as they make their way through the difficult times ahead,” Sanford said. “I’d ask that every South Carolinian keep them in their thoughts and prayers as well, and to pray for the speedy recovery of those injured in the fire.”

Clemson University President James Barker says the school family is mourning the loss of one of its students.

Barker issued a statement Monday saying he also is reaching out to the University of South Carolina, which lost six students in the fire at Ocean Isle Beach.

Barker says he feels the deepest sympathy for the families of the seven students. [...]

USC President Andew Sorensen was in Washington DC Sunday for a conference. He returned to Columbia as soon as he heard the news of the fire.

Sorensen gave a press conference Sunday afternoon, and Dean of Students Dennis Pruitt spoke on Monday. Pruitt announced a vigil to be held at the Russell House Ballroom at 6:00pm Monday.

SAE and Delta Delta Delta presidents Jay Laura and Lauren Hodge also made statements, thanking the public for their support and expressing condolences to those affected by the tragedy.

Hodge says her organization is doing everything it can for members and that phone calls of sympathy have been flooding in.

Laura says his thoughts are dominated by grief, but that he believes those who died are now in a better place. [AP]

And President Clinton, speaking in Spartanburg on behalf of his wife, said his thoughts are with the families and the people of South Carolina.

The former president spoke to students at the University of South Carolina Upstate. The school is a satellite campus of the university based in Columbia.

Clinton called the fire terrible and says that his heart is with the people of this state. [AP]

We would also like extend our thoughts and prayers to the families and friends of those lost as we all mourn on this very somber Monday.

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Photo: NY Times

Sen. Lindsey Graham has joined a number of senators voicing concern over President Bush’s nominee for U.S. Attorney General, Michael Mukasey, and his position on the harsh interrogation technique known as “waterboarding.” Graham, who sits on the judiciary committee, is hesitant to approve a candidate that condones the practice - seen by many as torture.

“I am convinced as an individual senator, as a military lawyer for 25 years, that waterboarding … does violate the Geneva Convention, does violate our war crimes statute, and is clearly illegal,” Graham told “Face the Nation.”

“I think it would serve the attorney general nominee well to embrace that concept,” Graham said.

Asked if he would oppose Mukasey if the nominee refused to do so, Graham said, “If he does not believe that waterboarding is illegal, then that would really put doubts in my own mind.” [Reuters]

The waterboarding technique, according to a 2005 ABC News investigation of CIA practices, involves “a prisoner, who is bound and gagged, and has water poured over him to make him think he is about to drown.” Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez said the legality of waterboarding under the Geneva Convention was “not so clear.”

We’re not sure what a “Key to the City” does, if anything, but Columbia residents better watch out because comedian/America’s next president Stephen Colbert now has one. Mayor Bob Coble declared Sunday to be “Stephen Colbert Day” at a morning press conference on the University of South Carolina campus where he delivered Colbert, a Charleston native, the key to Columbia.

And while back in his native state, he certainly showed that he was ready to pander.

Colbert was honored to recieve the key to the city and says he “loves South Carolina, almost as much as South Carolina loves” him.

Colbert also says that if he is elected as President, he promises not only to crush the state of Georgia, but also Tennessee. His promised comes on the heels of Carolina’s 27-24 loss to the Volunteers.

His final words of wisdom Sunday morning made the crowd cheer. “Go Cocks!” [WLTX]

Here’s the raw video, courtesy of WLTX-TV:

We’re personally pretty glad to see that Colbert now has the key to the city because whoever has had it for the last few years — the person who let the likes of former police officer Lenard Paige, Mark Sanford’sReform SC, the Commission on Columbia City Government Reform and Restructuring, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, and certain members of the state legislature wander the streets of Columbia — has done a regrettable job. So here’s to hoping Colbert will not only win both South Carolina primaries, but that he’ll use his key to clean up Columbia.

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Photo: WLTX

WHO THE HELL INVITED CYNTHIA McKINNEY TO SOUTH CAROLINA?!?!?!

CONSPIRACY, S.C. (TPS) - We received an e-mail message Friday morning with the headline “Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney to visit South Carolina.” At we first we thought, “that should be ‘former Congresswoman’ because…” And then, before actually finishing that thought, it hit us that — if that headline held true — the worst terror known to man was about to be unleashed on the Palmetto State.

Who would have that much contempt for the people of South Carolina that they would invite Cynthia McKinney to come here?

The Cynthia McKinney that disgraced the metro Atlanta region (even more) as the worst member of the U.S. House of Representatives… EVER!

The Cynthia McKinney that punched a Capitol Police officer because he made her go through a metal detector.

The Cynthia McKinney that hired members of the anti-Semitic New Black Panthers as her bodyguards — bodyguards that fought with reporters, called her black opponent Hank Johnson “Uncle Tom” and white members of the media “mother—-ing crackers,” and blamed the “J-E-W-S” after she was soundly defeated in the Democratic primary in 2006.

The Cynthia McKinney that believed electronic voting machines were oppressing the black community and were responsible for her 2006 defeat, despite losing by more than 17 percent.

The Cynthia McKinney that tried to impeach President Bush as her “parting shot.”

The Cynthia McKinney that introduced a bill in Congress to investigate the death of rapper Tupac Shakur because she believed the FBI was behind his murder.

The Cynthia McKinney that held an eight hour “hearing” into whether or not the Bush Administration was responsible for the events of 9/11.

The Cynthia McKinney that threatened reporters when they caught her calling her top aide “Coz” a fool.

The Cynthia McKinney that blamed everything on racial profiling.

The Cynthia McKinney that was caught lying on CNN.

The Cynthia McKinney that teamed up with Cindy Sheehan to form the great moonbat tinfoil hat club.

And the Cynthia McKinney that gave an amazing rendition of the anti-Bush song “Dear Mr. President” as her concession speech.

Yes, THAT Cynthia McKinney.

Well, it turns out she was invited by the Green Party of South Carolina. And they’ve asked her to “deliver an address” at the Baptist Church in Fort Mill on Nov. 1 supporting fellow nut job Bryan Smith, who is running for town council.

Said the York County Green Party in a press release heralding the event, “Her message of hope will bolster Smith’s campaign for Fort Mill Town Council as well as giving the York County Greens their first big opportunity to build a solid local base of support for their cause.”

The only message of hope McKinney could ever deliver to anyone would be word that she is moving to the Great Barrier Reef to pursue a career in shark wrangling. Otherwise, please keep her the hell out of South Carolina.