"The difference is that instead of dirt and poison, we have rather chosen to fill our hives with honey and wax, thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are Sweetness and Light." - Jonathan Swift

« Rights Comm To Investigate PA Pool | Home | BHO To Africa: End Tyranny, Corruption »

Selected News For Jul 11 – Jul 17

This thread is for the busy bees of S&L to post news items we might otherwise miss.

To make the articles as readable as possible, please stick to the format described here.

  • Only post ‘hard news’ from established media outlets.
  • Avoid editorials and ‘thought pieces,’ unless they are truly newsworthy.
  • Avoid ‘major news’ items that most people will likely have seen elsewhere.
  • Articles that fit under the topic of a recent thread should be posted as a comment there.

  • Always post less than a third of the original article.

Posts of articles that do not follow these guidelines are susceptible to being edited or deleted.

Related Articles:

 

This article was posted by Steve Gilbert on Saturday, July 11th, 2009 at 12:00 am. You can leave a response.

86 Responses to “Selected News For Jul 11 – Jul 17”

  1. canary
    July 11, 2009 at 1:15 am

    AP: Cemetery workers made $300K in gravedigging scheme
    By Associated Press Writer Don Babwin July 10 2009

    ALSIP, Ill. – Four former employees accused of digging up bodies and reselling plots at a historic black cemetery near Chicago made about $300,000 in a scheme believed to have stretched back at least four years, authorities said Friday.

    Three gravediggers and a manager at the Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip are accused of unearthing hundreds of corpses and either dumping some in a weeded, desolate area near the cemetery or double-stacking others in graves. The cemetery is the burial place of civil rights-era lynching victim Emmett Till and blues singers Willie Dixon and Dinah Washington.

    While Till’s grave site was not disturbed, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said investigators found his original iconic glass-topped casket rusting in a shack at the cemetery.

    The sheriff said two burials planned for Thursday also have gone wrong — with one person initially buried in the wrong plot and another whose plot was already occupied by someone else’s body.

    The cemetery is owned by Perpetua Holdings of Illinois.

    The suspects, all of whom are black, were identified as Carolyn Towns, 49, Keith Nicks, 45, and Terrence Nicks, 39 — all of Chicago — and Maurice Dailey, 61, of Robbins. They each have been charged with one count of dismembering a human body, a felony.

    Bond was set at $250,000 for Towns, the cemetery’s manager, and at $200,000 for the other three.

    Authorities said Towns also pocketed donations she elicited for a Till memorial museum. She has not been charged in connection with those allegations. Court documents show she was fired from the cemetery in late May amid allegations of financial wrongdoing.

    The Cook County public defender’s office said it had not yet assigned attorneys to the other three cases.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....esecration

  2. BillK
    July 11, 2009 at 1:17 am

    Want to be depressed?

    The top source of news for 18-34 year-olds? The unashamedly left-wing MSNBC.

    From MediaBistro’s TVNewser:

    Q2 Cable Ratings: MSNBC Tops CNN in Prime

    For the first time ever, MSNBC beat CNN in weekday primetime for the second quarter 2009 (M-F, 8-11pmET) in Total Viewers and among A25-54 viewers. MSNBC is up 18% in Total Viewers while CNN is down 10% in Total Viewers in prime time compared to Q2 ‘08. …

    http://www.mediabistro.com/tvn.....120395.asp

    But as much as you hear liberals whining about Rush’s “hate speech,” here’s proof that real hate speech is king among young adults:

    - MSNBC was the number one cable news network among younger viewers for 2Q09, Adults 18-34, in 2Q09, in M-F and M-Su primetime. MSNBC was also number one in A18-34 at 8 p.m. with “Countdown.”

    - “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” continues to drive MSNBC primetime, out-rating “Campbell Brown” by a huge 65 percent among A25-54 (350,000 vs. 212,000) and by 51 percent in total viewers (1,159,000 vs. 769,000) in 2Q09. “Countdown” is up 7 percent in total viewers (1,159,000 vs. 1,081,000) for the quarter, while “Campbell Brown” is down -4 percent in total viewers.

    • Celina
      July 11, 2009 at 1:38 am

      That is nauseating. I weep for my peers. At least I am raising my children with good conservative values.

    • Flession
      July 11, 2009 at 5:45 am

      This doesn’t surprise me at all.

      Although, a point of note, Fox News and its commentators continue to smack around Mr. Cownell and his Biased posse ratings like they were a redheaded stepchild in the total ratings.

      But with all these media sources my age group watch (Family Guy, American Dad, Adult Swim block) that do consistently bash Fox News, I doubt we’re gonna convert too many of them until they’re older and realize how the world works…

      If any of them can be saved.

    • ThreeBus
      July 11, 2009 at 7:35 am

      It’s only because of Michael Jacksons death.
      Empty heads only turn on MSNBC and the like when
      they think there is actual news happening.
      Right now they are being indoctrinated on how to
      ‘feel’ about Sarah Palin. Soon they will all go back into
      their liberal coma’s and the news channels will go
      off in their homes.

      Trust me, Fox will be on top again shortly.

  3. BillK
    July 11, 2009 at 1:35 am

    From an absolutely ecstatic AP:

    House Dems want to tax the rich for health care

    By Erica Werner

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Key House Democrats decided Friday to raise taxes on the wealthy to help pay for health care legislation, capping an up-and-down week for President Barack Obama’s top domestic priority. At the same time, Democratic leaders tried to quell concerns among moderate and conservative lawmakers about other elements of the bill.

    “We’re closer to that significant reform than at any time in recent history. That doesn’t make it easy. It’s hard,” Obama said while traveling overseas.

    Democrats on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee agreed to a new surtax that would start with households making $350,000 a year and begin in 2011, said the committee’s chairman, Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.

    It would raise some $540 billion over 10 years, about half the cost of Obama’s ambitious plan to reshape the nation’s health care system and provide care to the 50 million uninsured. However, lawmakers could not provide an exact price tag of the overall bill.

    The proposal faces an uncertain reception in the Senate and from moderate and conservative Democrats in the House, who rebelled Thursday over various aspects – including costs – of the plan.

    Democratic leaders spent hours Friday trying to soothe those concerns without reaching resolution, even as Rangel’s panel met to come up with the payment proposal. …

    http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/s.....E_OVERHAUL

    Why the hell not? After all, the rich are a bottomless source of funds, right?

    Note that the article inadvertently revealed the truth when it talked about conservative Democrats, as recall Republicans can do nothing to stop anything Democrats want anymore – we simply don’t have the votes and thus, don’t even need to be contacted.

    Here’s the bad news:

    Rangel didn’t describe details, but one official said the surtax would apply to individuals with adjusted gross incomes over $280,000 a year, and couples over $350,000. A senior House aide said the surtax would be 1 percent for the first group of high earners, those households making $350,000 or more. The levels for the other two groups, those above $500,000 and $1 million in annual income are still being determined, said the aide.

    Wow, within a paragraph it goes from $350,000 to $280,000. Funny.

    Of course, Obama’s shock troops will be involved:

    Whatever the final plan, Obama’s political machine is stepping up efforts to gin up support. Organizing for America is asking supporters to join door-to-door canvasses on upcoming weekends to ask their neighbors to support the president on health care.

    • Flession
      July 11, 2009 at 5:50 am

      I can’t believe the Demi’s are trying to screw one of their largest voting block!

      Although I’m sure the ones they really like will be excluded somehow.

      Even more amusing, when do we start taking the Democratic Senators and Representatives that make that amount? Oh, silly me, that would assume that they even know how to file their taxes!

    • U NO HOO
      July 14, 2009 at 10:00 pm

      I was told that federal health insurance was going to save us money.

      What’s up with tax increases?

  4. BillK
    July 11, 2009 at 5:03 am

    Democrats practicing politics as usual.

    From the Denver Post:

    Guv rejected low offer in favor of former firm

    Ex-firm gets up to sixfold hike over AG’s $75-an-hour bid on stimulus aid

    By Karen E. Crummy

    Gov. Bill Ritter turned down a $75-an-hour offer from the Colorado attorney general’s office to handle legal matters regarding the disbursement of federal stimulus funds, instead hiring his former law partners for up to six times that cost.

    The governor’s lawyers told the attorney general’s office in February that they planned to hire outside counsel to help with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money. Deputy Attorney General Geoff Blue told them his office was willing to do it, but his offer was rejected.

    “They thought we didn’t have the expertise or manpower,” said Blue, who handles legal policy and government affairs. “We would’ve gotten the job done. But we told them, ‘That’s your call,’ and we had nothing more to do with it.”

    A few weeks later, Ritter hired Hogan & Hartson through a no-bid contract. So far, the firm has been paid $40,000 from federal funds.

    Although Colorado has laws governing the circumstances under which the state can contract, the governor and other elected officials are exempt. In 1941, the state legislature buried a sentence in an unrelated section of the law that essentially permits elected officials to disregard procurement rules — including a requirement to seek multiple bids — when entering into contracts.

    Although the firm is working at a discount, lawyers receive either $290 or $450 an hour, depending on who is working on the case.

    Myung Oak Kim, spokeswoman for the governor’s economic-recovery team, said Hogan & Hartson was the right firm for the job.

    “We disagreed with the AG’s position that its staff could provide the help we required,” she said. “We needed deep legal expertise on the most complex federal legislation passed in decades, and we needed it quickly.”

    But Jenny Flanagan, executive director of the watchdog group Colorado Common Cause, said that even if Hogan & Hartson was the most qualified firm to do the work, the fact that it’s Ritter’s former employer should have “signaled the need for greater transparency.”

    “The better approach would’ve been to conduct an open process,” she said. “The governor’s actions didn’t violate any laws, but that alone doesn’t make it right.”

    The March contract between the firm and the governor’s office is vague. A letter attached to the contract says Hogan & Hartson will represent the governor’s office in analyzing the recovery act and help ensure that the state “receive and distribute its full share” of the funds.

    Other documents that may shed more light on the work the firm is doing for taxpayers were withheld by the governor’s office on the grounds of “attorney-client privilege.” …

    http://www.denverpost.com/ci_12814406

    Colorado’s Governor learned well from his Democratic mentors.

    The previous day’s coverage, also from the Denver Post:

    Governor gave no-bid deal to former partners

    Ritter’s ex-firm got contract to work with state on stimulus money

    By Karen E. Crummy

    As the first stimulus money flowed into Colorado, it was doled out to shovel-ready transportation projects — and some of Gov. Bill Ritter’s former law partners.

    Ritter hired the politically connected firm of Hogan & Hartson three months ago to work on issues surrounding the state’s disbursement of federal stimulus funds. The firm has been paid $40,000 through June and is expected to file monthly bills.

    The state attorney general’s office deemed the no-bid contract acceptable, according to the governor’s office, which said the state needed to move quickly to get legal opinions on stimulus money.

    Ritter has also used the federal funds to hire five employees for a total of $349,000 to help Don Elliman oversee stimulus money. Elliman, with the new title of chief operating officer, makes $146,034 a year.

    State workers are facing furlough days and are amid freezes in hiring and pay, but Myung Oak Kim, spokeswoman for the governor’s economic recovery group, said the hires don’t violate the spirit or the letter of that policy. Federal taxpayers — not state taxpayers — are signing their checks.

    “Federally funded employees are not part of the hiring freeze,” she said in an e-mail. She also said that Hogan & Hartson was hired because “they are national experts” on the stimulus package</b..

    Elliman, whose salary is paid by the state, said he wishes he could hire more people to help with overseeing the funds.

    “The complexity of this thing is almost hard to imagine,” he said, noting that the small state of Rhode Island has twice as many people on its economic recovery staff as does Colorado. “We have a strong obligation to communicate to the public on how this money is spent.”

    Ritter worked for the Denver office of Hogan & Hartson in 2005, leaving the following year when he ran for governor. The law firm has about 1,300 lawyers across the country and specializes in public finance, real estate, white-collar litigation and environmental and governmental regulation.

    Many of Hogan’s lawyers are Ritter supporters, and two who work directly on the state’s stimulus issues are contributors.

    Managing partner Cole Finegan, former Denver city attorney and chief of staff to John Hickenlooper, also backed Ritter in his gubernatorial bid. Finegan, who was once chief of staff for the U.S. House Budget Committee, and another partner reduced their hourly rates to $450 each from a “substantially higher” amount because, he said, the work was of “tremendous importance.” …

    http://www.denverpost.com/ci_12806466

    How can a firm be “national experts” on a plan that passed mere months ago?

    It’s also nice to see the spirit of furloughs wasn’t violated because Federal tax dollars are involved.

    Now you see where the “stimulus” funds are really going – to Democrat-friendly lawyers and cronies.

    No surprise there.

  5. canary
    July 11, 2009 at 5:14 am

    Obama is becoming a slave master, owning Americans. Already many work a full year, but only get a half years pay, because the government takes it to pay
    themselves. Reminds ya of communism, the federal govt taking workers money, telling them where, when, and how they will work. What a forked tongue.

    We’re closer to that significant reform than at any time in recent history. That doesn’t make it easy. It’s hard,” Obama said while traveling overseas.

    Not that his double talk is easy to understand, but I guess he means it will be hard on individuals who work an entire year, but only get paid for half of year. And before he’s done some will only get paid a few monthes of the entire year.

  6. bronzeprofessor
    July 11, 2009 at 2:32 pm

    Anti-Abortion Position Keeps Gaining Ground

    http://www.newsmax.com/insidec.....34176.html

    Poll: 86 Percent of U.S. Wants Abortion Restrictions

    Among the key findings:

    86% of Americans would significantly restrict abortion.
    60% of Americans would limit abortion to cases of rape, incest or to save the life of a mother – or would not allow it at all.
    53% of Americans believe abortion does more harm than good to a woman in the long term….

    Additionally, the data showed that since October nearly every demographic sub-group had moved toward the pro-life position except for non-practicing Catholics and men under 45 years of age.

    Independents and liberals showed the greatest shift to the pro-life position since October, while Democrats were slightly less likely to be pro-life now than they were in October.

  7. proreason
    July 11, 2009 at 11:21 pm

    Wow. Bush economic strategy in 2003 blows away Moron’s strategy in 2009. From Bizblogger, who unlike the msm, is curious about historical precedents.

    ….
    Bush’s plan passed in April 2003 while Obama’s passed in February 2009. I chose the S&P 500 Index starting point one month prior to passage because the market typically discounts the information beforehand as the bills work their way through Congress. I chose 6 months-post passage as the ending point because that’s all the data we have for Obama’s plan so far.

    Bush: From March 2003 to October 2003, the S&P 500 went from 835 to 1034 or +23.8%.

    Obama: From January 2009 through July 2009, the S&P went from 932 to 879 or -5.2%.

    By way of comparison, I also reviewed the market returns a full year prior to these time periods and the results show a very similar situation.

    The S&P 500 return under Bush 1-year prior was -26.2%, hurt by the internet bubble collapse, 9/11 and corporate scandals. Trillions of dollars in lost wealth.

    The S&P 500 return under Obama 1-year prior was -35.9%, hurt by the housing bubble collapse. Also trillions of dollars in lost wealth.

    Both presidents had very similar economic challenges, but the difference in market confidence inspired by the two stimulus plans couldn’t be more stark.
    …

    http://bizblogger.blogspot.com.....mulus.html

    This is fascinating. I didn’t realize the similarities between Bush’s post 9/11 economic problems and the Moron’s post Soros 9/11 problems.

    Bush:
    - economic catastrophe (from 9/11, the Internet bubble, and the Enron corporate scandals)
    - mega market losses preceding the response
    - despite the problems, there was a strong rallying point

    Obamy:
    - economic catastrophe (from the Droolers gigantic bet on deadbeats, and Soron / GoldmanSachs market manipulations)
    - mega market losses preceding the resonse
    - despite the problems, there was a strong rallying point

    But look at the results!

    For Bush:
    - a united nation (for a while)
    - huge market rally
    - climb in employment

    For Obamy
    - a nation ripped apart by criminal favoratism
    - market tanks further
    - employment reaching Great Depression levels.

    Could anything be more clear?

    Using a crisis for political payoffs and revenge deepens the problems and deepens the divisions in the country. Cutting taxes, letting the free market do its thing, and remaining optimistic allows the American magic to emerge.

  8. proreason
    July 12, 2009 at 12:05 am

    Not everyone is as convinced as Obamapollyanna that his Depression Stimulus is a triumph. This Forbes columnist end esteemed economist sees a different picture that the greatest liar who has ever lived:

    Brown Manure, Not Green Shoots

    The June employment report suggests that the alleged green shoots are mostly yellow weeds that may eventually turn into brown manure. …. I expect the unemployment rate is going to peak at around 11% at some point in 2010, well above historical standards for even severe recessions.

    It’s clear that even if the recession were to be over anytime soon–and it’s not going to be over before the end of the year–job losses are going to continue for at least another year and a half. … when we’re looking at the effect of the labor market on labor income, we should consider that the total value of labor income is the product of jobs, hours and average hourly wages–and that all three elements are falling right now. So the effect on labor income is much more significant than job losses alone.

    The details also suggest that other aspects of the labor markets are worsening. If you include discouraged workers and partially employed workers, the unemployment rate is already above 16%. If you consider also that temporary jobs are falling now quite sharply, labor market conditions are becoming worse and the average duration of unemployment now is at an all-time high. So people not only are losing jobs, but they’re finding it harder to find new jobs. So every element of the labor market is worsening.

    The unemployment rate rose only marginally from 9.4% to 9.5%, but that’s because so many people are discouraged that they exited the labor force voluntarily and therefore are not counted in the official unemployment rate.
    ….

    it’s more likely that the job losses are closer to 600,000 per month rather than the figures officially reported.
    …
    Here is my take on all of this. We are the worlds economy that is why it is so bad now everywhere and will stay bad for a long time due to Hope and Changes policies. ….

    These job losses are going to have a significant effect on consumer confidence and consumption in the months ahead. We’ve also seen extreme weakness in consumption. …

    if the unemployment rate is going to peak around 11% next year, the expected losses for banks on their loans and securities are going to be much higher than the ones estimated in the recent stress tests. You plug an unemployment rate of 11% in any model of loan losses and recovery rates and you get very ugly losses for subprime, near-prime, prime, home equity loan lines, credit cards, auto loans, student loans, leverage loans and commercial loans–much bigger numbers than what the stress tests projected.

    In the stress tests, the average unemployment rate next year was assumed to be 10.3% in the most adverse scenario. We’ll be already at 10.3% by the fall or the winter of this year, and certainly well above that and close to 11% at some point next year.

    So these very weak conditions in the labor market suggest problems for the U.S. consumer, but also increasing problems for the banking system as these sharp increases in job losses lead to further delinquencies on loans and securities and lower than expected recovery rates.
    …
    The housing market, in terms of price adjustment, remains weak, even if the quantities–demand and supply–may be closer to bottoming out.
    …
    It’s already estimated that by the end of this year, there will be about 8.4 million people with a mortgage who have lost jobs, and therefore have little income. Therefore, the number of people who will have difficulties servicing their mortgages is going to rise very sharply.

    Home prices …are going to fall by at least 40% from their peak, and more likely 45%, before they bottom out……about half of all households that have a mortgage–about 25 million of the 51 million that have mortgages–are going to be underwater with negative equity and will have a significant incentive to walk away from their homes.

    The job market report is essentially the tip of the iceberg. It’s a significant signal of the weaknesses in the economy. It affects consumer confidence. It affects labor income. It affects consumption. It affects the willingness of firms to start increasing production. It has significant consequences of the housing market. And it has significant consequences, of course, on the banking system.

    recovery will be anemic, subpar, below trend. We are still estimating that U.S. growth next year is going to be 1% above the 2009 level, well below a potential growth rate of 3%. ….

    There are also signs that there may be forces leading to a double-dip recession sometime toward the second half of next year or toward 2011. If oil prices rise too much, too fast, too soon, that’s going to have a negative effect on trade and real disposable income in oil-importing countries (U.S., Europe, Japan, China, etc.).

    …toward the end of next year, you are going to have a sharp increase in expected inflation–after three years of deflationary pressures–that’s going to push interest rates even higher.
    …
    But eventually, large budget deficits and their monetization are going to lead–toward the end of next year and in 2011–to an increase in expected inflation that may lead to a further increase in 10-year treasuries and other long-term government bond yields, and thus mortgage and private-market rates. Together with higher oil prices driven up by this wall of liquidity rather than fundamentals alone, this could be the double whammy that could push the economy into a double-dip or W-shaped recession by late 2010 or 2011.

    http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/.....ubini.html

    If you aren’t a communist, and love America instead of lusting for revenge against people who have been successful in their lives, you might be thinking it’s about time to give the people some of their money back, instead of spending it on world tours for the kings children, $6,000 clutches, and $3,000 signs to give credit to the king for creating a few ditch digging jobs.

    Or, you can declare that the “Stimulus” is working as intended, and go back to fiddling while the country you hate goes down the tubes..

  9. jobeth
    July 12, 2009 at 12:52 am

    Found this in of all places, the Huffington Post! Its a great read.

    Don’t Count Saint Sarah Palin Out for President in 2012!

    Bonnie FullerFounder, Bonnie Fuller Media
    Posted: July 9, 2009 08:24 AM

    Don’t write off Saint Sarah all you political pundits, press smartypants, and Washington insiders. You’re out of touch with the men and women who love Sarah Palin–always have been and clearly will be. In your mind–Mr. Rove, Mr. Steele, and Mr. Huckabee–Sarah Palin has thrown away her chance to take the White House by handing in her resignation as governor. That’s not what presidential candidates are supposed to do. They’re supposed to toil away for years–decades, even–as senators or governors–before announcing their candidacy on the long haul to The Big White House.

    Well guess what, boys–election rules are now made to be broken. Didn’t you all just watch Barack Obama steal the White House right out from under the feet of the establishment-anointed Hillary Clinton? And he did it by forging a new path to the presidency based on an enormous grass roots movement that got its momentum from regular folks.

    Oh yeah. Sounds familiar. Well Sarah Palin, despite her Katie Couric missteps, is no dumb bunny. The lady from Wasilla didn’t leapfrog from nowheresville to Alaska governor by accident. She is a canny operator in her own right, with the ability to understand and embody the opinions of her audience. And they already like her better than before!
    …(More…)

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....28466.html

    I like to see what the libs are saying, and found this. I didn’t expect this on this site, but have to say I agree. Yikes! I just agreed with something on the Huffington Post!

    • bronzeprofessor
      July 12, 2009 at 12:57 am

      Thanks, Jobeth, I read the piece also. It was surprisingly readable for the Huffington Post!

      I was okay until I got to the bottom of the article and saw the picture of Peggy Noonan, one of the conservative females who, like Kathleen Parker, seems on a mission to bring Sarah Palin down. I don’t get why Peggy and Kathleen are so hellbent. But who needs them now? We have Sarah.

      I wonder if the Huffpo writer reads our website by any chance. We seem to be one of the most pro-Palin places on the Web, from what I can tell from my surfing.

    • jobeth
      July 12, 2009 at 1:18 am

      I’ve never liked Peggy Noonan. I didn’t like her even when she was pretending to be a conservative. I know she was Reagan’s speech writer…but she is just so full of herself and really does look down her nose at others.

      Her mannerisms when she speaks reeks of condescending attitude. She’s just full of herself. Why I can’t fathom…she’s a nobody!

      And I agree, I’m sure a lot of people read this site including the WH. Especially since its the CPAC Blog of the year and Rush constantly refers to it. It’s a good place to get the temp of the conservative base’s opinions.
      And just like I will read Huffington Post and watch MSNBC (spit, spit) they read S&L. I’m sure of it.

      “I don’t get why Peggy and Kathleen are so hellbent.” Pure and simple jealousy.

    • bronzeprofessor
      July 12, 2009 at 2:52 am

      I checked out Noonan’s book on Reagan “When Character was King” but I haven’t had the chance to read it yet. Mostly I find Noonan herself intolerable when she writes her columns. Her unhinged rants about Palin were beyond the pale, almost as bad as Kathleen Parker. They’re both, I think, simply very old and crusty; they’ve been in the establishment too long and don’t understand that “conservative” Beltway wonks are as far away from “conservative” people in America as are liberal college professors. We need a whole new generation of right-wing thinkers — and let Sarah lead the way!

      Speaking of CPAC I wonder if we can all get to meet each other at CPAC 10 or 11. At some point Steve Gilbert should post a CPAC thread and see how many of us are interested in attending. I was registered to go in ‘09 but my wife nixed the plan because she had a conference in Boston that weekend and I had to stay home and be Mr. Mom while she was away. CPAC ‘10 might pose a problem if I’m still stationed at Ft. Benning when it takes place. But I hope to give it a shot! Would you go?

    • canary
      July 12, 2009 at 4:12 am

      My dad met President Ford, lol. We both got to meet and shake hands with Ronald Reagan after he left office, at a dinner.

    • ptat
      July 12, 2009 at 7:19 am

      wow, it’s comforting to know I am not the only one who finds Peggy Noonan a pretentious fraud!

    • Steve
      July 12, 2009 at 12:26 pm

      “Speaking of CPAC I wonder if we can all get to meet each other at CPAC 10 or 11. At some point Steve Gilbert should post a CPAC thread and see how many of us are interested in attending. I was registered to go in ‘09 but my wife nixed the plan because she had a conference in Boston that weekend and I had to stay home and be Mr. Mom while she was away.”

      Well, you sure missed at great chance to get together with other S&L-ers, since S&L was awarded CPAC 2009’s site of the year.

      S&L Named CPAC’s ‘Blogger Of The Year’ | Sweetness & Light
      http://sweetness-light.com/arc.....f-the-year

      CPAC ‘09 – Coulter, Limbaugh… And Me | Sweetness & Light
      http://sweetness-light.com/arc.....t-saturday

      Saturday CPAC – Ann, Rush… And S&L | Sweetness & Light
      http://sweetness-light.com/arc.....ive-stream

    • jobeth
      July 12, 2009 at 2:21 pm

      BP…Just spoke with my husband about going next year. He’s ok with me going. Now it all depends on how bad Obamy distroys our budget LOL. We’ll keep each other posted on this.

      This would be great. I’m so ready to meet my fellow conservatives. Feel like you guys are family to me.

    • neocon mom
      July 15, 2009 at 4:53 pm

      Would be great to get an S&Ler travel package going for CPAC ! (Hint, hint!)

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 8:13 am

      I have been to CPAC twice – and yes, I got to meet Steve in person!!!

      My daughter has been/is the President of College Republicans – which is why I go (and for the first one, it was a chance to visit 2 of my grandchildren and of course their mother!) It is a lot of driving for me as I have to go 3 hours north (to get my daughter) to turn and go about 8 hours east. But I’m getting use to the drive (with son & family at Ft Belvoir – we made the trip at least 3 times). Last year however since they were gone we had to pay for eats and a hotel (Mt Vernon Best Western on Richmond HWY – great and only a dollar more a night than the Belvoir lodging which I wasn’t able to get into – and about two hundred less a night than the Omni) However, this year I hear that they are moving CPAC – just as I get used to the Metro stops and all such.

      I just find it refreshing and uplifting to be with so many of the giants and would be giants of conservatism and (mostly young) people who believe in America, Pro-Life and conservatism – it gives me, gag, hope . Leave it to the Liberals to so soil the meaning of a word, that no one wants to use it ever again.

  10. canary
    July 12, 2009 at 4:08 am

    ABC: An Emotional President Obama Tours Former Slave Port with Family
    Fom Jake Tapper, Karen Travers, and Sunlen Miller — July 11 2009

    ACCRA, GHANA — Standing with his family at the Cape Coast Castle, a port of no-return from which kidnapped African were shackled, sold and sent away in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, an emotional President Obama on Saturday said his daughters needed to see the fortification to be reminded of the evil that exists in the world.

    The president called it “particularly important for Malia and Sasha, who are growing up in such a blessed way, to be reminded that history can take very cruel turns,” said the president, whose wife is the great great grand-daughter of slaves in South Carolina. “And hopefully one of the things that was imparted to them during this trip is their sense of obligation to fight oppression and cruelty wherever it appears and that any group of people who are degrading another group of people have to be fought against with whatever tools we have available to us.”

    He called it “striking” that “right above one of the dungeons where male captives were kept was a church. And that reminds us that sometimes we can tolerate and stand by a great evil even as we think that we are doing good.”

    Loudspeakers had been set up outside the castle so the thousands gathered could hear the remarks of the first African-American U.S. president. Tens of thousands lined the streets from to the Castle from the landing zone where his helicopter from Accra arrived. Many wearing Obama t-shirts and chanting the president’s name, Ghanaians cheered his arrival from rooftops, leaning out of windows, and hanging from scaffolding. At one moment, hundreds began chasing the motorcade until they were stopped by security.

    “As Americans, and as African Americans obviously there’s a – there’s a special sense that on the one hand this place was a place of profound sadness,” said Mr. Obama. “On the other hand it is here where the journey of much of the African American experience began.”

    At one point in his family’s tour of the facility, the guide showed them the Door of No Return, through which slaves would pass, never to return to Africa again. Mr. Obama had his arm around his 8-year-old daughter Sasha, while First Lady Michelle Obama held hands with 11-year-old Malia. In remarks to children during February’s celebration of black history month, the First Lady noted that “African American slaves helped to build this house” in which the first African-American First Family of the United States now resides.

    The president said today that “symbolically to be able to come back with my family, with Michelle and our children and see the portal thru which the Diaspora began —
    The president seemed to be overcome with emotion as his made these remarks, pausing to collect his composure.

    The First Family participated in the unveiling of a plaque now hanging outside the male slave dungeons that reads: “This plaque was unveiled by President Barack Obama and the First Lady Michelle Obama of the United States of America on the occasion of their visit to the Cape Coast Castle on the 11th day of July 2009.”

    – Jake Tapper, Karen Travers, and Sunlen Miller

    http://blogs.abcnews.com/polit.....amily.html

    “And hopefully one of the things that was imparted to them during this trip is their sense of obligation to fight oppression and cruelty wherever it appears and that any group of people who are degrading another group of people have to be fought against with whatever tools we have available to us.”

    Except for Muslim and Mexican terrorists that come into America. Are our taxes paying for this family sightseeing vacation? 3 jets.

    • ptat
      July 12, 2009 at 7:24 am

      It is very sad what the blacks, who mostly ran the slave trade, did to their own people during the slave trade. And what they are even doing today, during the slave trade.

  11. canary
    July 12, 2009 at 5:09 am

    Not everyone in Ghana Africa worshiped Obama. Outside Obama’s meeting at the presidental castle worshipped Obama. A colorful reggae band called Blakk Rasta blared rasta sang a song called “Barack Obama” full of insults that had the crowds cheering. One phrase said that some may him, but only faking it
    it. The chorus sang “Barack, Barack, Barack Obama,” with other lyrics such as
    “As you keep the fire burning, black president,” and,

    “judgment will come with Barack for legalizing unnecessary abortions in Africa.”

    also some comments about Obama’s war. I assume they are a muslim band.
    Prior to election they were for him.

    The second Obama song on the CD after “Barack Obama” is called “Cocaine in the Palace”.

    Good Morning America spoke of this July 11th. I found the link to the one of the songs that was played. Not sure if ya all remember one of first to actually recieve money from the stimulous package was an abortion clinic in Africa.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L85YF0pyPH0

  12. canary
    July 12, 2009 at 5:50 am

    Chips in official IDs raise privacy fears
    By TODD LEWAN, AP National Writer – Sun Jul 12, 2009

    Climbing into his Volvo, outfitted with a Matrics antenna and a Motorola reader he’d bought on eBay for $190, Chris Paget cruised the streets of San Francisco with this objective: To read the identity cards of strangers, wirelessly, without ever leaving his car. ..It took him 20 minutes to strike hacker’s gold.

    Zipping past Fisherman’s Wharf, his scanner downloaded to his laptop the unique serial numbers of two pedestrians’ electronic U.S. passport cards embedded with radio frequency identification, or RFID, tags.

    … That RFID, coupled with other technologies, could make people trackable without their knowledge…He filmed his heist,..

    Putting a traceable RFID in every pocket has the potential to make everybody a blip on someone’s radar screen,..”Little Brother,” some are already calling it —

    But with advances in tracking technologies coming at an ever-faster rate, critics say, it won’t be long before governments could be able to identify and track anyone in real time, 24-7, from a cafe in Paris to the shores of California.

    On June 1, it became mandatory for Americans entering the United States by land or sea from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean to present identity documents embedded with RFID tags, though conventional passports remain valid until they expire.
    … federal government to offer chipped licenses, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has recommended expansion to non-border states.

    Critics warn that RFID-tagged identities will enable identity thieves and other criminals to commit “contactless” crimes against victims

    Neville Pattinson, vice president for government affairs at Gemalto, Inc., a major supplier of microchipped cards, is no RFID basher. He’s a board member of the Smart Card Alliance, an RFID industry group, and is serving on the Department of Homeland Security’s Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee.

    Once a tag number is intercepted, “it is relatively easy to directly associate it with an individual,” he says. “If this is done, then it is possible to make an entire set of movements posing as somebody else without that person’s knowledge.”

    Meanwhile, Homeland Security has been promoting broad use of RFID even though its own advisory committee on data integrity and privacy issued caveats.

    http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/.....v_abridged

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 8:26 am

      First they should call a spade a spade – Big Brother.

      Second – gps/onstar to track our vehicles

      RFID to track us

      and of course that marvel (meant to help us when we are smashed up on some lonely highway)

      Electronic medical records so that Uncle Obama and his henchman Holdren can really ascertain as to who should receive medical care and who is a waste of our ‘finite’ resourses and finances.

      Must run – have to take advantage of my health insurance while I still have it!

  13. canary
    July 12, 2009 at 5:49 pm

    wait til we all have cards.

  14. canary
    July 13, 2009 at 3:49 am

    Charles Taylor to begin his war crimes defense
    By Associated Press Writer Mike Corder July 13 2009

    THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Charles Taylor begins his defense Monday against charges he led rebels in Sierra Leone who murdered, raped and mutilated villagers in a brutal terror campaign during the country’s civil war.

    The former Liberian president is accused of commanding and arming the rebels from his presidential palace in Monrovia.

    Taylor, the first African head of state to be tried by an international court, has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges including murder, torture, rape, sexual slavery, using child soldiers and spreading terror.

    Taylor was forced into exile after being indicted in 2003 and was finally arrested in Nigeria three years later. He was sent for trial in The Hague in June 2006 because officials feared staging the case in Sierra Leone could spark further violence.
    He boycotted the start of his trial in June 2007 and fired his attorney, holding up proceedings until January 2008 when prosecutors called their first witness.

    Witnesses testified about radio exchanges between Taylor and the rebels, arms smuggled from Liberia to Sierra Leone in sacks of rice and diamonds sent back in a mayonnaise jar. One former aide said he saw Taylor eat a human liver.

    It is estimated that about a 500,000 people were victims of killings, systematic mutilation and other atrocities in Sierra Leone’s 1991-2002 civil war. Some of the worst crimes were carried out by gangs of child soldiers fed drugs to desensitize them to the horror of their actions.

    After Taylor, the defense team has a list of more than 200 witnesses, though not all are expected to testify. Among them are former African heads of state and high-ranking U.N. officials who will testify on his behalf, according to a list that does not name them.

    Griffiths aims to portray Taylor as a peace maker asked by the 15-member Economic Community of West African States and the United Nations to help halt the atrocities in Sierra Leone.

    Dan Saryee, a rights advocate who runs the pro-democracy Liberia Democratic Institute, dismissed the idea.

    “Taylor’s war machinery was never a peacekeeping force; how could it go into Sierra Leone to make peace?” Saryee said. “It is unthinkable.”

    Associated Press writers Clarence Roy-Macaulay in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and Jonathan Paye-Layleh in Monrovia, Liberia, contributed to this report.
    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....mes_taylor

    “..holding up proceedings until January 2008 when prosecutors called their first witness.” ? Waiting on the Obama’s black hooded team to pressure the UN into dismissing the charges?

  15. BillK
    July 13, 2009 at 5:07 am

    It’s amazing – each and every day I seem to come across more and more reasons I’m glad I no longer donate to the GOP.

    What’s even more amazing is the sheer number of idiots out there who believe they are somehow doing the GOP good with their pathetic spew.

    Case in point – Peggy Noonan, someone I once had a modicum of respect for.

    If you didn’t catch her piece in the Wall Street Journal:

    A Farewell to Harms

    Palin was bad for the Republicans—and the republic.

    Sarah Palin’s resignation gives Republicans a new opportunity to see her plain—to review the bidding, see her strengths, acknowledge her limits, and let go of her drama. It is an opportunity they should take. They mean to rebuild a great party. They need to do it on solid ground.

    Her history does not need to be rehearsed at any length. Ten months ago she was embraced with friendliness by her party. The left and the media immediately overplayed their hand, with attacks on her children. The party rallied round, as a party should. She went on the trail a sensation but demonstrated in the ensuing months that she was not ready to go national and in fact never would be. She was hungry, loved politics, had charm and energy, loved walking onto the stage, waving and doing the stump speech. All good. But she was not thoughtful. She was a gifted retail politician who displayed the disadvantages of being born into a point of view (in her case a form of conservatism; elsewhere and in other circumstances, it could have been a form of liberalism) and swallowing it whole: She never learned how the other sides think, or why.

    In television interviews she was out of her depth in a shallow pool. She was limited in her ability to explain and defend her positions, and sometimes in knowing them. She couldn’t say what she read because she didn’t read anything. She was utterly unconcerned by all this and seemed in fact rather proud of it: It was evidence of her authenticity. She experienced criticism as both partisan and cruel because she could see no truth in any of it. She wasn’t thoughtful enough to know she wasn’t thoughtful enough. Her presentation up to the end has been scattered, illogical, manipulative and self-referential to the point of self-reverence. “I’m not wired that way,” “I’m not a quitter,” “I’m standing up for our values.” I’m, I’m, I’m. …

    http://online.wsj.com/article/.....19351.html

    Just wow.

    If anyone is a self-centered self-reverent know-nothing who seems to think she knows what the GOP needs, it’s Noonan.

    All I can say is if Noonan represents the “new” GOP’s thinking, please count me out.

    I can’t believe Noonan once actually wrote speeches for Reagan.

    Let’s hope the uproar surrounding Palin does give the GOP pause and that they realize that Palin is their chance at reinvention and if they instead choose to lionize the same old people thinking the same old moderate things it will get them the vast political power they enjoy today.

    So yes, let the GOP blow off Palin. They’ll get people like Romney instead, with the end result of further insignificance.

    Third parties “don’t work” but the behavior of the GOP “elite” seems to show they’re irreparably broken.

    • bronzeprofessor
      July 13, 2009 at 11:11 am

      Bill, both Noonan and Kathleen Parker are inexplicable in their hatred of Sarah Palin.

      With no offense to the many bright women who post on this site, I think Noonan and Palin are women first, conservatives second. They can’t shake their female tendency to be jealous and want to tear down another woman. Call it the alpha female syndrome. Or, more simply, Mean Girls who never got past high school.

      Peggy Noonan and Kathleen Parker don’t like Sarah Palin because Palin is (1) pretty, (2) successful in her own right, (3) not part of their clique, and (4) a girl whom men respect. Noonan and Parker have been functioning as men’s shadows and cheerleaders for so long, it never occurred to them that people with penises could actually respect a working woman with her own career and principles, based on her accomplishments. The fact that Sarah Palin continues to win the love and backing of so many conservative men floors all the conservative girls who have thought all along they could never be the ones in power; they thought all along they had to sit by the sidelines in their pearls and heels, with their legs crossed, writing snappy little columns like pretty glorified secretaries. I think the Peggys and Kathleens of the world thought that was how men wanted them to be…. Then Sarah comes along. It must make the Beltway ladies furious, especially because the conservative men they’ve been trying to sidle up to for so long, have basically said, “I don’t want a fawning, pearl-wearing, frigid, pretty secretary to kiss my butt, I want a woman who’ll argue with me, someone who can fight with her fists and a gun, someone who doesn’t act like a lady at all, someone who acts like a real-life woman.”

      So it’s jealousy that drives Peggy and Kathleen. Good for them: the more they trash Sarah Palin, the more they relegate themselves to the sidelines. Conservative men are tired of their catfighting, liberal men will hate them because all liberal men are at heart woman-haters, conservative women will hate them for betraying Sarah, and liberal women have no use for conservatives of any kind.

      There is a sad but visceral justice in the fate awaiting Peggy Noonan and Kathleen Parker. I did respect them at one point, but by now, it’s time to say, “Be gone, ladies. Get thee to a nunnery.”

    • Gila Monster
      July 13, 2009 at 12:13 pm

      “Her presentation up to the end has been scattered, illogical, manipulative and self-referential to the point of self-reverence.”

      Interesting, …. Noonan was obviously looking in a mirror when she wrote this screed, …self-assessment perhaps? Closet liberals excel in navel gazing.

  16. BannedbytheTaliban
    July 13, 2009 at 11:46 am

    From the AP via the Marine Corps Times:

    Obama seeks review of reputed Afghan mass grave

    WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has ordered his national security team to investigate reports that U.S. allies were responsible for the deaths of as many as 2,000 Taliban prisoners of war during the opening days of the war in Afghanistan.

    Obama told CNN in an interview that aired Sunday that he doesn’t know how the U.S.-allied Northern Alliance behaved in November 2001, but he wants a full accounting before deciding how to move forward.

    ……The mass deaths were brought up anew Friday in a report by The New York Times. It quoted government and human rights officials accusing the Bush administration of failing to investigate the executions of hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of prisoners.

    U.S. officials said Friday they did not have legal grounds to investigate the deaths because only foreigners were involved and the alleged killings occurred in a foreign country.

    http://www.marinecorpstimes.co.....be_071209/

    Looks like Obama has run out of things to apologize for. But no worries, the NY Times will find more. The great thing is that they want to circumvent the laws preventing foreign powers from interfering with domestic affairs of other nations, article 2(4) of the UN charter, so we can enforce the “laws of war” and the democrats punish more American service men for fighting Bush’s wars.

    • canary
      July 14, 2009 at 3:51 am

      You mean Obama wants to investigate how the taliban fought to the death win we tried to arrest them? He never speaks of the loss of our soldiers, yet alone the increase do to his idea of ground troops, civilians living with terrorists have priority over our American soldiers who volunteered. Remember Vietnam, even the drafted were spit on, for refusing to go awol.

  17. bronzeprofessor
    July 13, 2009 at 1:38 pm

    More Palinophobia:

    http://www.broadcastingcable.c....._Palin.php

    From the always intellectually profound Broadcasting & Cable:

    TV Syndicators Say “No, Thanks!” to Sarah Palin

    by Paige Albiniak

    It’s been almost a week now and we still really have no idea why Sarah Palin–governor of Alaska and running mate to Presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)–abruptly announced her plans to resign, just as most of us were preparing to enjoy a weekend of BBQ, beer and bottle rockets.

    …

    A survey of syndicators reveals that they believe that Palin, while certainly mediagenic, “does not have the skills,” “appeals to too narrow of an audience” and overall is too polarizing. Not one syndicator indicated a whiff of interest in doing a show with her.

    And it’s not because Sarah’s a Republican with a capital R. Many American women share her identification as a Republican, Christian and conservative, and these women want to watch other women like themselves on TV.

    …

    In the meantime, we’re all still left wondering exactly why Palin felt the need to depart her post now, just 2 1/2 years into her governorship, with 2012 still shimmering in the distance. It looks like we have to wait for Palin’s upcoming memoir, recently bought by News Corp.-owned HarperCollins, to find out.

    Meow, meow, meow.

    Another catty swipe from a woman who has obvious jealousy issues.

  18. bronzeprofessor
    July 13, 2009 at 1:45 pm

    Spanish language ad boosting Sotomayor, attacking Limbaugh:

    http://newsbusters.org/blogs/n.....d#comments

    From the wonderful Newsbusters.

    This ad in Spanish is so incredibly, mind-blowingly patronizing, right down to the over-articulated neutral, 8th-grade-Spanish-teacher accent in the original language of the ad.

    “Sotomayor will be the first Latina, and the first Puerto Rican, to serve on the Supreme Court…. It is a moment of pride for everyone in the Latino community.”

    To which I respond, “thank you, nameless voice-over woman, for telling me how I ought to feel.” But I’m not going to call Congressman Mica to ask him to condemn Rush Limbaugh. The whole ad is so ridiculous it makes me want to scream.

    • Rusty Shackleford
      July 15, 2009 at 4:06 pm

      Bronze,

      Thank you again for being a voice of well-rounded reason here. So many times it would be so nice to just talk to people as people instead of “african-americans” or “Latinos” or….what-have-you.

      I seem to get into more trouble by actually treating people as PEOPLE than anything else.

      I read your posts thoughtfully and I always know I’m dealing with a straightforward individual. We need more thinkers like you, who have the stones to come out and say what the real issue is and can also do so with sufficient background and experience to make it stick.

      And, also, again…thanks for your service to this nation. My hat’s off and my hand is out in gratitude.

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 12:37 pm

      bp – then you will enjoy greatly the video/audio of the The Black Chamber of Commerce CEO Harry Alford going after Babs Boxer with her condescending (racist) prattle (implying btw, that all blacks should what – think alike?!?) -

      Boxer: “Sir, they passed it. They passed it. Now, also, if that isn’t interesting you to we’ll quote John Grant, who is the CEO of 100 Black Men of Atlanta.” [She goes on to read quote.]

      Alford: “Madam Chair, that is condescending to me. I’m the National Black Chamber of Commerce and you’re trying to put up some other black group to pit against me.”

      Boxer: “If this gentlemen were here he would be proud that he was being quoted.”

      Alford: “He should have been invited!”

      Boxer: “…just as he would be proud..” Alford: “It is condescending to me.”

      Boxer: “…he’s proud, I’m sure, that I am quoting him.”

      First how arrogant of that woman to think that anyone must automatically be proud that she read something that person said
      Second how racist of her to think simply because someone from 100 Black Men of Atlanta believes buys into the GlowBall Warning scam that the CEO of the Black Chamber of Commerce should be 1) proud to listen to her read his statement, 2) agree with it 100% and 3) be what, stupid enough, to think that a group 100 Black Men of Atlanta is or should be listened to by a Black Business Man and of course 4) has a damn thing to do with what was being discussed (i.e. Mr. Alfords resistance to believing GlowBall Warning.

      How anyone can vote for these racist, bigoted, sexist, morons is beyond me – and it is the reason America is on the road to hell.

  19. bronzeprofessor
    July 13, 2009 at 6:30 pm

    Obama’s polling numbers hit new low, acc. to Rasmussen

    http://www.rasmussenreports.co.....cking_poll

    Daily Presidential Tracking Poll

    The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 28% of the nation’s voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-six percent (36%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –8 (see trends).

    As confirmation hearings begin today, Americans overwhelmingly expect Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be confirmed as the nation’s next Supreme Court Justice. But, they are evenly divided as to whether or not she should be confirmed.

    …

    Overall, 53% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President’s performance. Forty-six percent (46%) disapprove. For other barometers of the President’s performance, see Obama By the Numbers or review recent demographic highlights from the tracking polls.

  20. canary
    July 14, 2009 at 5:03 am

    NRA-ILA 23 State Attorneys General To Attorney General Holder: “No Semi-Auto Ban” Friday June 12 2009

    On June 11, the top law enforcement officials of nearly half the states signed a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, expressing their opposition to reinstatement of the federal ban on semi-automatic firearms.

    “We share the Obama Administration’s commitment to reducing illegal drugs and violent crime within the United States. We also share your deep concern about drug cartel violence in Mexico. However, we do not believe that restricting law-abiding Americans’ access to certain semi-automatic firearms will resolve any of these problems,” the letter said.

    The 23 state Attorneys General by state, are: AR,AL,CO,FL,GE,ID,KS,KY,LA,MI,MO,MT,OK,NE,NV,NH,ND,SC,SD,TX,UT,WI,WY For entire June 11, 2009 letter go to link below

    Dear Attorney General Holder:
    We the undersigned Attorneys General respectfully write to express our opposition to the reinstatement of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994’s semi-automatic firearms prohibition, which is commonly referred to as the assault weapons ban. However, we do not believe that restricting lawabiding Americans’ access to certain semi-automatic firearms will resolve any of these problems. As you know, the 1994 ban on so-called ‘assault weapons’ did not apply to machine guns or other fully automatic firearms. Machine gun ownership was first regulated when the National Firearms Act was passed in 1934. Recent public statements by congressional leaders reflect that same view. On February 26, 2009,
    Recent public statements by congressional leaders reflect that same view. The same sentiment has also been expressed to you by sixty-five (65) Congressional Democrats
    in a letter dated March 17, 2009. In that letter, they astutely noted, “It is hard to believe the ban would be…effective in controlling crime by well-funded international drug traffickers, who regularly use grenade launchers, anti-tank rockets, and other weapons that are not available on the civilian market in the United States.” Under Title 18, Section 924 of the U.S. Code, knowingly transferring a firearm to an individual who will use that firearm to commit a violent or drug-related crime is already a federal offense. Similarly, it is also a felony to possess a firearm for the purpose of furthering drug trafficking. At a recent Congressional hearing, Kumar Kibble, the Deputy Director of the Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Office of Investigations, testified that the Patriot Act included changes to Title 18, Section 554 of the U.S. Code, which improved federal authorities’ ability to investigate and prosecute illegal smuggling.
    As Attorneys General, we are committed to defending our constituents’ constitutional rights – including their constitutionally-protected right to keep and bear arms. This duty is particularly important in light of the United States Supreme Court’s recent Heller decision, which held that the Second Amendment “elevated above all other interests the right of law-abiding, responsible citizens to use arms in defense of hearth and home.” The high court’s landmark decision affirmed that individual Americans have a constitutionally-protected right to keep and bear arms. ” We share that appreciation for hunters and are committed to defending our Second Amendment rights—which is why we believe that additional gun control
    laws are unnecessary. Instead, authorities need to enforce laws that are already in place. As Attorneys General, we look forward to working with you and President Obama on commonsense law enforcement solutions to transnational crime. We stand ready to cooperate and collaborate on crime prevention and law enforcement initiatives that will protect our constituents, crack down on transnational crime, and help reduce narcotics consumption in the
    United States. But, for the reasons explained in this letter, we do not believe that reinstating the 1994 assault weapons ban will solve the problems currently facing the United States or Mexico.
    Sincerely,
    http://www.nraila.org/media/PD.....061109.pdf
    http://www.nraila.org/Legislat.....px?id=4971

    They left out muslim terrorist cells in the U.S.

  21. canary
    July 14, 2009 at 6:57 am

    AP sources: Obama wants Senate health bill quickly
    By Associated Press Writers David Espo And Erica Werner, July 14 2009

    WASHINGTON – …Moving forcefully on his top domestic priority, Obama told Sen. Max Baucus he wants legislation ready by week’s end

    “Don’t bet against us. We are going to make this thing happen,” the president told reporters earlier Monday,

    The officials who described the private meeting did so on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to discuss private meetings.
    Majority House Democrats expect to introduce legislation Tuesday

    The measure would spend billions of dollars subsidizing lower-income individuals and families who cannot afford coverage in an attempt to cut dramatically into the ranks of the uninsured. Its total price tag remains unknown, but to comply with another presidential priority, it would rely on cuts in Medicare and Medicaid

    The measure is expected to impose a fee on large companies that fail to offer insurance,
    * ~ and individuals also would have to pay a penalty if they refused to purchase affordable insurance. ~*

    Democratic leaders have indicated that they’re increasing the size of the exemption for small businesses from a requirement for employers to provide health care to their employees. The exemption is expected to increase from businesses with payrolls of $100,000 to those with payrolls of $250,000,

    In the Finance Committee some highly controversial issues remain unresolved

    Associated Press writer Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar contributed to this report.
    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....JjZXNvYmE-

    Obama denied and denied McCain’s insisting Obama would penalize anyone not covered.

  22. canary
    July 14, 2009 at 7:10 am

    AP: Zelaya issues ultimatum: ‘Reinstate me or else’
    By Associated Press Writer Freddy Cuevas, Tue Jul 14, 2009

    TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Negotiations to end Honduras’ political crisis are facing a new challenge after the ousted president vowed to act on his own if he is not returned to power in the next round of talks,

    Manuel Zelaya, is clearly frustrated by the slow movement of negotiations

    “We are giving the coup regime an ultimatum,” Zelaya said Monday at a news conference in Nicaragua, where he arrived Sunday night following a brief trip to Washington.

    If at the next round of talks the interim government does not agree to reinstate him, “the mediation effort will be considered failed and other measures will be taken,” he said. He did not say what those measures would be.

    Members of Micheletti’s administration did not immediately respond to Zelaya’s comments.

    In Washington, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly reiterated U.S. support for Arias’ mediation efforts.

    “It is not a process that’s being led by the United States of America. We just have to give time for this process to work. And I’ll just say, we’re standing firmly behind President Arias,” Kelly said.

    Despite Kelly’s comments, Washington has clearly been playing an influential role in the negotiations: It was U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who invited Arias to mediate and Zelaya supporters have been urging the United States in particular to take firm action that they say would force the interim government to back down.

    Zelaya is scheduled to travel to Guatemala on Tuesday, where he will meet with President Alvaro Colom, said Ronaldo Robles, a spokesman from Colom’s office.

    Former Honduran Foreign Minister Carlos Lopez, a Micheletti representative at the talks, said his side had not ruled out the possibility of early elections

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....lcw–

  23. proreason
    July 14, 2009 at 9:27 pm

    This’ll make you feel better:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 12:47 pm

      You might want to add a tissue alert for us Soldier’s mommies who are overly sensitive to commercials like this (I use to cry in Germany at the old Folgers soldier home for Christmas commercial). Wow almost makes me want to go out and buy a Ford. How come I’ve never seen this on tv – yeah the length, I know, I know.

  24. U NO HOO
    July 14, 2009 at 10:11 pm

    Greta is covering Sarah as the new Rush.

    Rush says third parties lose.

    Duh, the Republican Party just lost. Maybe Sarah will be starting a second party!

  25. canary
    July 15, 2009 at 7:15 am

    AP World pirate attacks more than double this year Wed Jul 15, 2009

    KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Pirate attacks worldwide more than doubled in the first half of 2009 amid a surge of raids on vessels in the Gulf of Aden and the east coast of Somalia,

    The number of attacks rose to 240 between January and June, up from 114 incidents in the same period a year ago, according to a report released by the International Maritime Bureau’s piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur.

    Ships were boarded in 78 cases and 31 vessels were hijacked, with 561 crew taken hostage, 19 injured and six killed, the bureau said in its quarterly report.

    The higher attacks were due mainly to increased Somali pirate activity off the Gulf of Aden and east coast of Somalia, which combined accounts for 130 of the cases, the report said.

    The International Maritime Bureau said Somali attacks peaked in March and April, with no attacks recorded in June. The recent decline was largely because of monsoon-related poor weather that is expected to continue through August, the report said.

    International navy patrols in the gulf have also helped to thwart pirate activity, though military vessels are hard-pressed to cover the vast expanse of ocean along Somalia’s coastline.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....RwaXJhdGVh

  26. canary
    July 15, 2009 at 7:27 am

    AP: 168 reportedly killed in Iran plane crash
    By Associated Press Writer Ali Akbar Dareini July 15 2009

    TEHRAN, Iran – An Iranian passenger plane carrying 168 people crashed a quarter-hour after takeoff Wednesday, smashing into a field northwest of the capital and shattering to pieces. State television said all on board were killed.

    The Russian-made Caspian Airlines jet was heading from Tehran to the Armenian capital Yerevan near the village of Jannatabad outside the city of Qazvin, around 75 miles northwest of Tehran, state television said. It crashed at about 11:30 am, 16 minutes after taking off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, TV reported.

    The Qazvin emergency services director Hossein Bahzadpour told the IRNA news agency that the plane was completely destroyed and shattered to pieces, and the wreckage was in flames.

    A Caspian Airlines representative told AP in Yerevan that most of the passengers were Armenians, and that some Georgian citizens were also on board.

    Also among the passengers were eight members of Iran’s national youth judo team, along with two trainers and a delegation chief, who were scheduled to train with the Armenian judo team before attending competitions in Hungary on Aug. 6, state TV said.

    Caspian Airlines is a Russian-Iranian joint venture founded in 1993. Iran has frequent plane crashes often because of bad maintenance of its aging aircraft. Tehran blames the problem in part on U.S. sanctions that prevent Iran from getting spare parts for some planes. Caspian Airlines, however, uses Russian-made Tupolevs whose maintenance would be less impaired by American sanctions.

    In February 2006, a Russian-made TU-154 operated by Iran Airtour, which is affiliated with Iran’s national carrier, crashed during landing in Tehran, killing 29 of the 148 people on board. Another Airtour Tupolev crashed in 2002 in the mountains of western Iran, killing all 199 on board.

    The crashes have also affected Iran’s military. In December 2005, 115 people were killed when a U.S.-made C-130 plane, crashed into a 10-story building near Tehran’s Mehrabad airport. In Nov. 2007, a Russian-made Iranian military plane crashed shortly after takeoff killing 36 members of the elite Revolutionary Guards.

    AP writer Avet Demourian in Yerevan, Armenia, contributed to this report.
    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....vcg–

  27. BannedbytheTaliban
    July 15, 2009 at 3:40 pm

    North Carolina “State Employees” Protest for Public Option:

    From WRAL:

    Workers urge Blue Cross to back health reform

    Chapel Hill, N.C. — State employees rallied Wednesday morning outside the headquarters of Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, urging the state’s largest insurer to back nationwide health-care reform instead of fighting it.

    Members of the State Employees Association of North Carolina lined U.S. Highway 15/501, chanting and waving signs supporting the so-called “public option” that President Barack Obama has proposed as a guaranteed backstop to ensure all Americans have health insurance.

    http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/5578819/

    So who is the State Employees Association of North Carolina? From their website, http://www.seanc.org/ :

    Welcome to the State Employees Association of North Carolina, SEIU Local 2008. SEANC is the South’s leading state employees’ association 55,000 members strong. We work to gain respect in the legislature for hardworking state employees and valuable retirees who dedicated their careers to state service.

    They report roughly 100 protesters. Pictures of said protesters include Acorn shirts, and pre-printed signs as part of their “grassrots” efforts.

    So where do these “hardworking state employees” find time to protest for a political issue in the middle of the day? And how do they get to use their positions as STATE employees to stump for an issue?

    From the NC code on State Employee Activites, http://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLe.....cle_5.html ,

    no State employee subject to the Personnel Act or temporary State employee shall:
    (1) Take any active part in managing a campaign, or campaign for political office or otherwise engage in political activity while on duty or within any period of time during which he is expected to perform services for which he receives compensation from the State;

    (2) Otherwise use the authority of his position, or utilize State funds, supplies or vehicles to secure support for or oppose any candidate, party, or issue in an election involving candidates for office or party nominations, or affect the results thereof.

    As well as the Hatch Act.

    • neocon mom
      July 15, 2009 at 3:57 pm

      Wouldn’t be tough in Chapel Hill to find 100 or so schlubs who have nothing better to do than stand in front of the solar-paneled headquarters of BC/BS and rant for a while.
      Quite easy in fact, too, to find state employees who would. UNC is after all a state school.

  28. CaliforniaBear
    July 15, 2009 at 3:56 pm

    Franken makes his mark while questioning Sotomayor:

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/ynews_pl720

    “The former comedian sat quietly through nearly three full days before finally getting to ask questions at the Sotomayor hearing. At the end, he asked her if she remembered the name of the one case that TV lawyer Perry Mason lost.”

    “Chairman Leahy then asked Franken what the name of the episode was.

    “I don’t know. If I knew I wouldn’t have asked her.”"

    Boy, I’m sure glad he’s in there, so he can ask those tough questions. Thanks for getting it done, Franken.

    • canary
      July 15, 2009 at 4:43 pm

      I saw a news clip of Graham questioning her, and he did an excellent job

    • neocon mom
      July 15, 2009 at 4:43 pm

      He really is taking his job seriously and representing the “(sniff, sniff) working families (sniff, sniff) of Minnesota.”

      Remember though, what a hallowed place such inane pop-culture trivia does enjoy among the left. And being a snarky cut-up is more venerable than being a 4-star general.

    • canary
      July 15, 2009 at 4:49 pm

      considering Franken’s opening statement, I’m not sure I could puke from anything else him might say. He made it clear he was on the side of changing the Constitution.

      A Senator Graham really did a good job, but I did not know how to link the news clip.

      I was thinking though, just how serious an unheard of for her to put in a footnote that Baring Arms is not a fundamental issue, without siting the actual law. It seems she did it as a lark, a do what she wants type judge.

  29. canary
    July 15, 2009 at 5:33 pm

    APA: NH man charged 23 quadrillion dollars for smokes
    Information from: WMUR-TV, http://wmur.com July 15 2009

    MANCHESTER, N.H. – A New Hampshire man says he swiped his debit card at a gas station to buy a pack of cigarettes and was charged over 23 quadrillion dollars. Josh Muszynski checked his account online a few hours later and saw the 17-digit number — a stunning $23,148,855,308,184,500 (twenty-three quadrillion, one hundred forty-eight trillion, eight hundred fifty-five billion, three hundred eight million, one hundred eighty-four thousand, five hundred dollars).

    Muszynski says he spent two hours on the phone with Bank of America trying to sort out the string of numbers and the $15 overdraft fee.

    The bank corrected the error the next day.

    Bank of America tells WMUR-TV only the card issuer, Visa, could answer questions. Visa, in turn, referred questions to the bank.

    yahoo.com/s/ap/20090715/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_quadrillion_dollar_debit

  30. BillK
    July 15, 2009 at 10:25 pm

    If only this were a joke; the latest from an absolutely thrilled AP:

    Obama shifts into campaign mode on health care

    By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Ben Feller

    WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama achieved a milestone Wednesday when a Senate committee approved a plan to revamp the U.S. health care system.

    The Senate panel’s action, which attracted no Republican votes, came as the president’s campaign organization rolled out television ads to build support for his top domestic priority.

    Obama met with Republicans at the White House in search of an elusive bipartisan compromise on his call to expand coverage to the nearly 50 million uninsured Americans as well as restrain spending increases in health care.

    But the 13-10 party-line vote in the Senate health committee signaled a deepening rift in Congress. While Democrats respond to Obama’s call for action with renewed determination, Republicans are using harsher words to voice their misgivings.

    In the House, Democrats began pushing legislation through the first of three committees, although moderate and conservative members of the rank and file were demanding changes. In the Senate, lawmakers were considering fees on health insurance companies as a new source of potential financing for a $1 trillion package that’s short on funds.

    “We have delivered on the promise of real change,” Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said as he presided over the Senate health committee vote, alluding not only to his bill but also to Obama’s campaign promise.

    The president was in the Rose Garden for the latest in a daily series of public appeals to Congress to “step up and meet our responsibilities” and move legislation this summer. Obama also pushed his message in network television interviews, telling employers that his plan would require them to offer benefits or face a fine.

    “If you can afford it, either give your employees health insurance or pay into the pot so that we’re not subsidizing you,” Obama told CBS News.

    Wednesday’s Senate health committee vote “should make us hopeful — but it can’t make us complacent,” Obama said. “It should instead provide the urgency for both the House and the Senate to finish their critical work on health reform before the August recess.”

    The health panel’s $615 billion measure would require individuals to get health insurance and employers to contribute to the cost. The bill calls for the government to provide financial assistance with premiums for individuals and families making up to four times the federal poverty level, or about $88,000 for a family of four, a broad cross-section of the middle class.

    Obama wants the House and Senate to act on health care this summer so lawmakers can reconcile differences in their respective bills after Labor Day and put final legislation on his desk this fall.

    Obama’s all-out effort since he returned from his overseas trip last week has “galvanized things,” Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said.

    Obama met at the White House with Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, Bob Corker of Tennessee and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.

    “I urged him not to rush consideration of the bill,” Collins told reporters later. “This bill is going to affect virtually every American. If the president tries to rush this through in the next two weeks … I fear the process will be very divisive.”

    Another senior Republican, whom Obama courted only a few months ago to become his commerce secretary, also sounded alarm bells.

    “This supposed health care fix is a health care failure and a disaster for the American people,” Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., said. “We still have time to turn this process around instead of steamrolling our country into a sub-par government-run plan, but it will require serious action from Democrats and Republicans and a pledge to put politics aside.” …

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....e_overhaul

    Of course Collins didn’t say she’d vote against the bill, she just warned it would be “divisive.”

    Let’s examine His quote again:

    If you can afford it, either give your employees health insurance or pay into the pot so that we’re not subsidizing you

    Aside from the question of it being the Government that will decide whether your business can “afford it,” now not providing health care is “being subsidized” by the Government.

    Somehow Federal takeover of most of the economy is OK, but “subsidizing” businesses by not driving them into bankruptcy is not.

    Words truly mean nothing anymore.

    Meanwhile, sure, let’s tax health insurance companies, making sure businesses will choose to dump their insurance plans and force everyone into the public pool.

    “Just Capitalism at work” the Democrats will say:

    Finance Committee members are considering a proposal from Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., that would raise $100 billion over 10 years by imposing new fees on health insurance companies.

    Oh, sorry, not taxes, “fees.”

    Of course the middle class will have no problem with this because the Government will provide “assistance” to pay for the plan – yet another funding hole which will require ever more money from which there will never be an escape.

    Just stick a fork into the U.S., folks – it’s all over.

    This will make Social Security look like a minor accounting error.

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 12:54 pm

      “This bill is going to affect virtually every American

      Inquiring minds just might want to ask Ms Collins – as to exactly who are the Americans this bill isn’t going to affect.

      Oh never mind I already know Congress.

  31. BillK
    July 15, 2009 at 10:38 pm

    No surprise, and of course the AP doesn’t see it as a bad thing but rather a source of pride.

    House plan boosts taxes on rich to 20-year high

    By Stephen Ohlemacher

    WASHINGTON – House Democrats scrambling for ways to pay for overhauling health care would raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans to levels not seen since the 1980s, breaking one of President Barack Obama’s campaign pledges.

    The tax increase would be limited to the top 1.2 percent of earners — families that make more than $350,000 a year. But it would raise a total of $544 billion over the next decade, covering a little more than half the cost of the health care plan.

    The bill unveiled by House Democratic leaders Tuesday would create three new tax brackets for high earners, with a top rate of 45 percent for families making more than $1 million. That would be the highest income tax rate since 1986, when the top rate was 50 percent.

    The plan would honor Obama’s campaign promise not to raise taxes on families making less than $250,000. But it would break an Obama pledge that no one — including the wealthy — would pay higher taxes than they did in the 1990s. The pledge, as listed on Obama’s campaign Web site, was: “No family will pay higher tax rates than they would have paid in the 1990s.”

    Democrats argue that high-income families fared well under President George W. Bush’s two terms as their taxes dropped and their incomes soared, giving them the ability to absorb higher taxes. Republicans argue that the tax increases would hurt small business owners who typically pay their business taxes on their individual returns.

    Rep. Charles Rangel, chairman of tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, called the plan “the moral thing to do.”

    “This innovative bill provides a uniquely American solution to control costs and put patients first without burdening future generations with debt,” the New York Democrat said. …

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_health_taxes

    I want to see any single member of Congress introduce this addendum, live on C-SPAN:

    “To show solidarity with those whose taxes are being raised, I would like to add that members of Congress shall pay the same tax rate.”

    C-SPAN would go dark immediately so as not to show the ensuing violence.

    Amazingly enough, AP actually printed the truth, though by accident and at the bottom of the story, which will get “edited out” in most newspapers:

    House Republican leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, called the bill a job killer that would result in rationed care, fewer choices for patients and diminished quality.

    “If this isn’t bad enough, this new maze of government bureaucracy will be funded by a new small business tax that will cost more American jobs,” Boehner said. “During a time of economic recession, the last thing Congress should be doing is punishing small businesses that create a majority of the jobs in this country.”

    Democrats argue that the tax increases would affect only 4.1 percent of tax filers who report small business income. Those small businesses, however tend to be the ones that employ the most workers, according to data from the National Federation of Independent Business.

    The National Association of Manufacturers said the new taxes would make it harder for small businesses to grow, invest and create jobs.

    “These new taxes will have longstanding negative consequences to the U.S. economy and cost jobs,” Jay Timmons, the association’s executive vice president, wrote in a letter to members of Congress.

    But who cares – everyone knows all job growth comes from the Government, not individuals…

  32. texaspsue
    July 16, 2009 at 2:23 am

    From Fred Thompson’s website::

    Staff Sgt. Beale’s return home

    Killed in action the week before, the body of Staff Sergeant First Class John C. Beale was returned to Falcon Field in Peachtree City, Georgia, just south of Atlanta, on June 11, 2009. The Henry County Police Department escorted the procession to the funeral home in McDonough, Georgia. A simple notice in local papers indicated the road route to be taken and the approximate time.

    Nowadays one can be led to believe that America no longer respects honor and no longer honors sacrifice outside the military. But the best of America is still out there, beyond the Beltway, beyond the news rooms, beyond many faculty lounges. Be it known that there are many places in this land where people still recognize the courage and impact of total self-sacrifice. Georgia appears to remain one of those places. The link below is a short travelogue of that Sergeant Beale’s remarkable and painful journey.

    God please bless the sergeant, his family and his colleagues in uniform.
    Watch the video. http://tinyurl.com/krdf6o

    What a great tribute to an Amerian Hero. It is beautiful videos like this that make me proud to be an American and gives me hope for this great Country.

    RIP Staff Sgt. Beale. (Thoughts and prayers to his family.)
    God bless America!

    • neocon mom
      July 16, 2009 at 10:06 pm

      What a touching tribute. This is America.

    • wardmama4
      July 17, 2009 at 1:20 pm

      After you take the 10 minutes to view that video – say a prayer also for

      SGT Gregory Missman and his family (he leaves a 4 year old son) who is being buried today in Clermont County OH.

  33. canary
    July 16, 2009 at 5:53 am

    TIME: How Iran Might Beat Future Sanctions: The China Card
    By Vivienne Walt July 15, 2009

    On July 13 Iran’s Oil Ministry announced that it had China’s agreement to invest about $40 billion in refining Iranian gasoline. China would also overhaul Iran’s aging Abadan refinery in the south

    The deal has not yet been signed (and China has yet to confirm it), but if Iran pulls it off, it would solve one of the country’s biggest headaches. For despite vast oil reserves and exports, Iran still imports about 130,000 bbl. of gasoline a day because its refineries are too few and too old to meet the demand at home. The Chinese deal would literally keep Iran’s factories, homes and cars – in effect, a nation of 66 million people – running.

    At the moment, Iran’s gasoline imports are not affected by U.S. sanctions or the international, U.N.-agreed sanctions. But the willingness of other countries to sell gasoline to Iran has faltered as political pressure mounts over Iran’s nuclear program. India, a major supplier, recently suspended exports of gas for a brief while, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency. “If you really want to use effective sanctions, then you want to cut off gas imports,” says Erica Downs, China energy fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. “If the Chinese do invest $40 billion and dramatically increase Iran’s refining capacity, it would definitely weaken one of the weapons in the U.S. arsenal.”

    Iran’s ties with China, which have steadily grown over the past decade, have accelerated rapidly in the past 18 months. In December 2007, the Chinese oil giant Sinopec Group signed a $70 billion deal to begin drilling in Iran’s Yadavaran field, which has estimated reserves of about 17 billion bbl. In January of this year, China’s biggest energy producer, CNPC, agreed to develop a medium-size oil field called North Azadegan – a deal worth about $2 billion. And last month, while demonstrators were fighting pitched battles with paramilitaries on Tehran’s streets, Iranian oil officials flew to Beijing to negotiate a $5 billion deal with CNPC for the newest phase of Iran’s huge South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf. Pummeled by the drop in world oil prices from $147 per bbl. last July to about $64 per bbl. this week, “Iranians are feeling more and more of an acute need for capital,” Downs says.

    And China is awash in cash. Furthermore, having invested tens of billions of dollars in Iran’s energy sector, China – a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council – looks almost certain to veto any new tough sanctions against the country. In contrast, in the U.S. and Europe, there are growing anxieties over Iran’s nuclear program as well as outrage over last month’s violence.

    Major Western oil companies operating in Iran, including Total, Royal Dutch Shell and the Italian company ENI, have held off from signing new deals with Iranian oil officials for several months, perhaps waiting to see if President Obama’s moves to open talks with Tehran will succeed in breaking the political impasse.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/2.....9191066900

    Well, China and Pakistan, and now China and Iran.

  34. canary
    July 16, 2009 at 6:17 am

    AP: 2 black boxes from Iranian plane crash recovered
    Associated Press Writer Nasser Karimi July 15 2009

    TEHRAN, Iran – Investigators have recovered two of the three black boxes belonging to a Russian-made jetliner that crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran, Iran’s state radio reported Thursday.

    The radio’s report quoted chief investigator Ahmad Majidi as saying one of the two recovered boxes was damaged. It said the boxes — the plane’s cockpit voice and flight data recorders — would likely be sent to the aircraft’s Russian manufacturers for analysis.

    Most of the passengers were Iranians, many of them from Iran’s large ethnic Armenian community, as well as 11 members of Iran’s national youth judo team. Five Armenian citizens were among the dead, Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, along with two Georgians, including a staffer from the Caucasus nation’s embassy in Yerevan.

    Witnesses said the plane’s tail was on fire before it went down, plowing a deep, long trench into agricultural fields outside the village of Jannat Abad, and the aircraft was blasted to bits.

    Ali Akbar Hashemi, a 23-year-old, was laying gas pipes in a house by the field when he saw the stricken jet overhead. He said the plane was circling in the air, flames shooting from its tail section.

    “Then, I saw the plane crashing nose-down. It hit the ground causing a big explosion.

    Serob Karapetian, the chief of Yerevan airport’s aviation security service, said the plane may have attempted an emergency landing, but reports that it caught fire in the air were “only one version.” He did not elaborate.

    A police officer told Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency that several witnesses reported seeing the plane’s tail on fire.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....zZg–

  35. CaliforniaBear
    July 16, 2009 at 11:33 am

    This yahoo article got me on the edge of my seat, but left me wanting more:

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/ynews_pl758

    “Sotomayor, who has danced around the question all week, started to review the facts of the case when Kyl interjected. “The question I asked was very simple,” he said, apologizing for the interruption and reminding her of the question: What was the precedent by which she was bound?”

    Does the article give us her answer?

    “And on it went.”

    Apparently not.

  36. tranquil.night
    July 16, 2009 at 1:43 pm

    Pentagon Orders Soldier Fired from Civilian Job for Challenging President’s Eligibility

    from worldnetdaily:

    By Chelsea Schilling and Joe Kovacs
    © 2009 WorldNetDaily

    The Department of Defense has allegedly compelled a private employer to fire a U.S. Army Reserve major from his civilian job after he had his military deployment orders revoked for arguing he should not be required to serve under a president who has not proven his eligibility for office.
    “[Simtech CEO Larry] Grice told plaintiff, in essence, that the situation had become ‘nutty and crazy,’ and that plaintiff would no longer be able to work at his old position,” Taitz wrote.

    Grice made clear that it was Defense Security Services that had compelled Simtech to fire Cook, [Cook's attorney Orly] Taitz wrote.

    According to the report, Grice told Cook “there was some gossip that ‘people were disappointed in’ the plaintiff because they thought he was manipulating his deployment orders to create a platform for political purposes.”

    The Department of Defense does contracting in the general field of information technology/systems integration, at which Cook, a senior systems engineer and architect, was employed until taking a military leave of absence on July 10 in preparation for his deployment to Afghanistan.

    “A federal agency (such as the Department of Defense, acting through the Defense Security Services Agency) clearly violates the Whistleblower Protection Act if it takes or fails to take (or threatens to take or fail to take) a personnel action with respect to any employee or applicant because of any disclosure of information by the employee or applicant that he or she reasonably believes evidences a violation of a law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; an abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety,” Taitz wrote.

    “What has happened in the present case of Stefan Frederick Cook is that a federal agency appears to have taken action against Stefan Frederick Cook’s private employer, Simtech, Inc., which is a closely held corporation owned and operated by members of a single family, who are as much victims of the Department of Defense’s heavy-handed interference with plaintiff Cook’s private-sector employment as is plaintiff Cook himself.”

    As WND reported, Taitz confirmed to WND the military rescinded Maj. Cook’s impending deployment orders.

    Only more evidence that challenging this president means submitting every facet of one’s personal and professional life for destruction.

    Forget Forty years ago, nine months ago this man would have been lauded and given a fast-track path to political stardom.

    • Rusty Shackleford
      July 16, 2009 at 1:53 pm

      So how does the pentagon order he be fired? The only way that can happen is if the civilian job is a significant conflict of interest or if he is somehow unable to meet his military obligations because of the civilian job. It’s so nice that the “more enlightened” in our government are so “tolerant” and “willing to extend a hand across the aisle”.

      What a pant-load.

      So he questioned the eligibility of the presdent to be president…so what? Unfortunately, he hadn’t disobeyed any military orders so they couldn’t go after him that way….so like the chicago mobsters they are, someone said, “You want I should break his legs, bawss?”

      Really gets under my skin.

    • bronzeprofessor
      July 16, 2009 at 6:19 pm

      Wow. I thought Maj. Cook was out of line, but the retaliation is disproportionate and excessive. It seems that someone in Washington wanted to make an example out of him so nobody in the military questions the President at all.

    • canary
      July 17, 2009 at 4:45 am

      There has been so many rumors about Obama’s citizenship. Such as his citizenship in Indonesa adopted by his step-father, they didn’t allow dual citizenship, so he possibly kept his Indonesia citizenship, to get into the prestigous Hawaii prep school. Also, when his mother was chewing him out about his grades dropping, and the drugging, she said he could go to any school he wanted. The Occidental school he went to free, had an International student program, and he mostly hung around with Internationl students, according to dreams. And then U.S. citizenship laws would mean at some point he’d have to have put in for U.S. citizenship to get it back. Birthplace isn’t just the only question.

      A job is not to fire a Reserve or National Guard soldier, if they miss work to perform training, once a month duty, etc. And if a soldier is deployed they are rehire them when they come back. Cook had not recieved any discipline so far for his challenge, and a hearing was coming up soon to decide. He’s spent alot of money on attorney and going to court, (course he goes up against the U.S. Attorney General’s office) and it might have been best for his private employer to not publically said what he said. But, you can see losing his job, loses the money he needs to go to court. So, prehaps he will get some aid to help at least til his hearing coming up.

  37. bronzeprofessor
    July 16, 2009 at 8:15 pm

    Mexican-American actor Paul Rodriguez defects to GOP

    From NewsBusters: (FULL URL: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/b.....gered-fis)

    Actor Paul Rodriguez Turns GOP After Farmers Hurt to Save Endangered Fish

    Rodriguez, the son of Mexican immigrants, also spoke of his late father’s admiration for America, and the good fortune one has in just getting to live in this country: “He had a deep love for this country. He was grateful. He told me that he wasn’t going to leave an inheritance for his children. He was going to leave something more important than that. He was going to leave them in a place with ideals, and a place where you can become someone if you really wanted to, you had a shot at it.”

    And in contrast to much of the mainstream media’s habit of encouraging Republicans to moderate on social issues, he suggested that the Republican party’s conservative positions on issues like abortion and family values would be an advantage in attracting Hispanic voters. Rodriguez: “You need to attract more of me, or else you’d be an endangered species. … You know, we have so much in common. A lot of the values that this party espouses, we espouse. We believe strongly in family. We believe life is sacred.”

    Rodriguez lamented as he concluded his speech: “It is tragic that in the most fertile soil that God has ever placed on any corner of this blue marble that we should have a desert where there should be a garden.”

    • neocon mom
      July 17, 2009 at 9:31 am

      Reminds me of when David Mamet decided to quit being “a brain-dead liberal”.

      It’s always brave of someone in the entertainment industry (especially a minority) to endorse the G.O.P. It’s a lonely club right now for Rodriguez and Mencia, but that I do believe will gradually change. And God knows the irrigation situation in the Central Valley is a man-caused disaster–40% unemployment. It must be a source of pride for Bamster though, simultaneously increasing the price of food for all Americans while destroying jobs.

      Wouldn’t it be interesting to see him go on the View after making this announcement and see how fellow comics Whoopi and especially Behar treat him now?

    • bronzeprofessor
      July 17, 2009 at 11:13 am

      “It’s always brave of someone in the entertainment industry (especially a minority) to endorse the G.O.P. It’s a lonely club right now for Rodriguez and Mencia, but that I do believe will gradually change. “

      Thank you, nMom. It means a lot for conservative minorities to hear encouragement. For many of us it’s scary and lonely… The academy is about as treacherous as show business about conservatism. (Maybe worse.)

  38. BillK
    July 16, 2009 at 9:01 pm

    The House bill actually makes private health insurance illegal.

    From Investor’s Business Daily:

    It’s Not An Option

    Congress: It didn’t take long to run into an “uh-oh” moment when reading the House’s “health care for all Americans” bill. Right there on Page 16 is a provision making individual private medical insurance illegal.

    When we first saw the paragraph Tuesday, just after the 1,018-page document was released, we thought we surely must be misreading it. So we sought help from the House Ways and Means Committee.

    It turns out we were right: The provision would indeed outlaw individual private coverage. Under the Orwellian header of “Protecting The Choice To Keep Current Coverage,” the “Limitation On New Enrollment” section of the bill clearly states:

    “Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day” of the year the legislation becomes law.

    So we can all keep our coverage, just as promised — with, of course, exceptions: Those who currently have private individual coverage won’t be able to change it. Nor will those who leave a company to work for themselves be free to buy individual plans from private carriers.

    From the beginning, opponents of the public option plan have warned that if the government gets into the business of offering subsidized health insurance coverage, the private insurance market will wither. Drawn by a public option that will be 30% to 40% cheaper than their current premiums because taxpayers will be funding it, employers will gladly scrap their private plans and go with Washington’s coverage.

    The nonpartisan Lewin Group estimated in April that 120 million or more Americans could lose their group coverage at work and end up in such a program. That would leave private carriers with 50 million or fewer customers. This could cause the market to, as Lewin Vice President John Sheils put it, “fizzle out altogether.”

    What wasn’t known until now is that the bill itself will kill the market for private individual coverage by not letting any new policies be written after the public option becomes law.

    The legislation is also likely to finish off health savings accounts, a goal that Democrats have had for years. They want to crush that alternative because nothing gives individuals more control over their medical care, and the government less, than HSAs. …

    http://www.ibdeditorials.com/I.....8165656854

    Not surprising, and of course the sheeple won’t care.

    • proreason
      July 16, 2009 at 9:11 pm

      Got a hunch that’s in the bill so that they can “compromise” by removing it.

      But whether that particular dagger ends up in or out, if the monstrosity passes in any form remotely similar to what is being talked about, freedom of choice in health care will be a thing of the past.

  39. Rusty Shackleford
    July 17, 2009 at 12:25 am

    Obama tackles racism in NAACP speech

    Um, no he doesn’t …he actually fans the flames….reverend Wright style

    “There is no stronger weapon against inequality and no better path to opportunity than an education that can unlock a child’s God-given potential,” Mr Obama said.

    Funny he should mention God.

    http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a8b0.....abdc0.html

    And here’s one gaint non-sequitur:

    “We need a new mindset, a new set of attitudes – because one of the most durable and destructive legacies of discrimination is the way that we have internalised a sense of limitation,” he said.

    Whaaaaaa? Sorry…you lost me, dude.

    Well, to put it bluntly, it seems it was another “ain’t I sumpin’?” speech from the brown clown. One for the record books to ignore..and oh yeah….a year ago it was Jesse Jackson who said Obama talks down to blacks and that he wanted to cut his nuts off.

    Just sayin’

  40. Rusty Shackleford
    July 17, 2009 at 12:35 am

    From a worshipping NYT:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07.....obama.html

    He was one part politician and one part black preacher as he spoke in lilting cadences, his voice quiet at times, thundering at others, in unusually personal terms. At one point, when his audience shouted back at him, repeating his words, he threw back his head and laughed, saying, “I’ve got an amen corner back there.”

    Shades of what he learned from Ol’ Jerry?

    And here’s a real hoot (betcha didn’t know what caused poor housing, crime and drug use in black areas):

    Even as he urged blacks to take responsibility for themselves, he spoke of the societal ills — high unemployment, the housing and energy crisis — that have created the conditions for black joblessness. And he said the legacy of the Jim Crow era is still felt, albeit in different ways today.

    I want them aspiring to be a Supreme Court justice. I want them aspiring to be president of the United States of America.”

    My god….what a pant-load of pandering, self-aggrandizing and polishing the gold “S” on his blue jumper with red shorts and cape.

    • catie
      July 17, 2009 at 7:02 am

      Exactly Rusty, when did this clown ever experience Jim Crow? The whites or haoles as they’re called are more discriminated against in HI than blacks are. But of course it’s whitey’s fault.

    • neocon mom
      July 17, 2009 at 9:41 am

      He grew up in Hawaii for goodness sake! Living in Grandma and Grandpa’s condo and attending private school!

      I love it when they try to make him “non-elitist” by saying he was on foodstamps as a child. With the cost of living in HI so high, many folks qualify for government assistance who work full time at professional level jobs. And jobs are not scarce in HI either.

    • catie
      July 17, 2009 at 12:51 pm

      Neocon Mom, I think he and his old lady and those two grandparents made sure old Barry got his fair share (in their view) of everything they could get their grubby hands on.
      Where he lived at in HI, even though it was a condo is a very nice area. His condo would be worth as much if not more than our single family home. We lived on the Ewa plain where it was dry and hot. He lived where you don’t even need air conditioning. He’s such a pig.

  41. texaspsue
    July 17, 2009 at 10:01 am

    The truth about Honduras that you won’t hear from the MSM:

    Despite the Views of the Political Elite, Democracy Prevails in Honduras

    http://tinyurl.com/l9y3jk

    This video paints quite a different story from what we have been hearing in the news. Zeyala was the one trying to pull a coup, Honduras is just trying to defend their Constitution. They decided they want freedom.

  42. nuthingbettertodo
    July 17, 2009 at 2:41 pm

    If you happen to be in the Chicago area this weekend…..

    Islamic Supremacist Group Holds First U.S. Conference
    Friday, July 17, 2009
    Diane Macedo

    A group committed to establishing an international Islamic empire and reportedly linked to Al Qaeda is stepping up its Western recruitment efforts by holding its first official conference in the U.S.

    Hizb ut-Tahrir is a global Sunni network with reported ties to confessed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Al Qaeda in Iraq’s onetime leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. It has operated discreetly in the U.S. for decades.

    Now, it is coming out of the shadows and openly hosting a July 19 conference entitled, “The Fall of Capitalism and the Rise of Islam,” at a posh Hilton hotel in a suburb of Chicago….

    http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,533525,00.html

    • proreason
      July 17, 2009 at 3:00 pm

      Maybe they’ve solidified their bake-sale fund-raising strategy.

      Certainly our President has made it abundantly clear that he will only tolerate tolerance in his country, so by holding bake-sales, fellow peaceful citizens like the Islamic Supremisists can demonstrate solidarity with PTA’s and the like.

      And if they don’t toe the line, they could get slapped with a less than average amount of carbon credits.

  43. wardmama4
    July 17, 2009 at 3:15 pm

    How ironic, apropos indeed what a revelation that this event (don’t forget that historic word first) should happen in Chicago – wonder what B.Hussein Obama had to do with that?

    Perhaps it is a fund raiser for him or maybe a rise of a Civilian Force to insure his seat as head of America, for ever?

    So I will provide an appropriate prayer for this event in America –

    GOD HELP AMERICA

  44. wardmama4
    July 17, 2009 at 4:06 pm

    I am – speechless – when I saw this

    Feds arrest felon in sale of gun in McNair killing

    By TRAVIS LOLLER, Associated Press Writer Travis Loller, Associated Press Writer – 6 mins ago

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Federal prosecutors announced gun charges Friday against a convicted murderer who admitted he sold the pistol that was used to kill ex-NFL quarterback Steve McNair. Adrian J. Gilliam Jr., 33, of LaVergne, Tenn., was arrested by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

    He is charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Conviction could bring a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, federal prosecutors said.
    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_mcnair_gun_arrest

    I know, I know that this is just another ploy for Sotomayor, Obama, Lautenberg, and of course McCarthy to infringe, deny and attempt to close any and all legal ways for legal American citizens to have or purchase guns.

    But mostly I have to ask (and wonder as to why the report did not ask/report it):

    what is a convicted murderer doing out to be able to buy a gun?

  45. Rusty Shackleford
    July 18, 2009 at 12:04 am

    Walter Cronkite passes.

    http://www.latimes.com/news/ob.....6121.story

    • caligirl9
      July 18, 2009 at 1:26 am

      There goes another piece of my youth … and how strange that it’s this weekend—the 40th anniversary of the moon landing. The CBS broadcast was what my neighbor was watching, though the picture was snowy and poor (antenna). I remember it vividly; I’d been horseback riding all day and my friend’s dad called us in to watch history. We were pissed. Sometimes adults do know best …

You must be logged in to post a comment.


« Home | To Top
« Rights Comm To Investigate PA Pool | BHO To Africa: End Tyranny, Corruption »