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Liars! Hypocrites! Fascists!
"Conservative" forum Free Republic makes the Fairness "Censorship" Doctrine seem like a wonderful idea.
To prove my point; the Gestapo Thought Police (a.k.a. Admin Moderators) have edited and changed the link to my "Opus".
Originally, the link connected viewers to my blog and it was edited and changed by Free Republic Nazis to link to whitehouse.gov.
That is the biggest display of censorship I have ever seen on the Internet. What a bunch of Fascists assholes. The "Free Republic" has indeed violated my freedom of speech.
It is truly astounding to me that they consider me to be a "Democratic Underground" plant and a Liberal in disguise and a "RINO".
Take note of the people who claim that Sean Hannity is not a Conservative! Who are these idiots? Sean Hannity is the greatest Conservative this side of Ronald Reagan!
I'm not implying Sean Hannity is God, but he is, without a doubt, a true Conservative and a Great American. The fact that the "FReeper" hacks don't recognize that says all I need to know about their beliefs. Don't waste your time over there if you truly wish to take back America.
Free Republic is part of the problem, not the solution for advancing Conservatism.
What a freaking joke that "fraternity" has become.
Boycott Free Republic at all costs; they are a bunch of useless cry babies with zero impact on the battle for America.
The only thing "free" about those bastards is their bullshit.
Slobbering Liberal Media: Full-On Alinksy-esque attack on anyone in pink underwear!
All the news that fits [our radical Liberal, Socialist Obamamaniacal, Sorosian agenda] to print...
This is a disgusting display of media bias. The point of the New York Slimes is to mock this soldier, insult our military and support the ObamaMessiah.
In actually, the soldier was sleeping and did what he had to do to support his platoon. Not to mention this kid joined the military because of the 9/11 attacks.
Zachary Boyd is defending our Constitution and our Democracy; something the Left will never understand or appreciate. Damn traitorous anti-American Fascists like the NY Times and Nancy Pelosi are the worst kinds of Americans.
However when Zachary Boyd, 19, was woken up by a Taliban assault on his platoon he only had time to grab his weapon, helmet and body armour before springing into action.
If President Obama discharges this young man for "being out of uniform" I will launch a formal protest to have Obama impeached.
I want to thank Dick for that lovely introduction. He makes for a good companion when you have to go to an inauguration.
Uh huh huh...
Merced's make-up may have changed over the years, but its values and character have not -- long, hot days filled with hard work by generations of men and women of all races who wanted an opportunity to build a better life for their children and their grandchildren; hardworking folks who believed that access to a good education would be their building blocks to a brighter future.
Wait. Doesn't that contradict your husband's anti-success, anti-capitalism "America Sucks" rhetoric last week as ASU?
You know, I grew up in one of those communities with similar values. Like Merced, the South Side of Chicago is a community where people struggled financially, but worked hard, looked out for each other and rallied around their children.
And utilized a pay-to-play mafia mentality; hence my rise to First Lady.
The institution [University of Chicago] made no effort to reach out to me –- a bright and promising student in their midst –- and I had no reason to believe there was a place for me there.
Newsflash, Michelle: It is a private institution and therefore has no obligations to do any outreach is does not choose to do. Like many major Universities, University of Chicago does plenty of community service. Just because you were not personally touched, does not make them a bad place. The government cannot and should not mandate to them where their charity goes!
And in less than a year, through that position, I worked with others to build the university's first Office of Community Service.
And henceforth began my career in "No -Show" jobs where I made a lot of money.
Now, let me tell you, careers focused on lifting up our communities –- whether it's helping transform troubled schools or creating after-school programs or training workers for green jobs -– these careers are not always obvious, but today they are necessary. Solutions to our nation's most challenging social problems are not going to come from Washington alone. Real innovation often starts with individuals who apply themselves to solve a problem right in their own community. That's where the best ideas come from.
Yup. Here we go. Pimp the "community organizer" industry. Make no mistake. "Non Profits" like ACORN are every bit as interested in making a buck as any other industry. Also note, "community" and "communism" share the shame root word. Just saying.
And then there's Van Jones, who recently joined the Obama administration, a special adviser to the President on green jobs. Van started out as a grassroots organizer and became an advocate and a creator of "green collar" jobs –- jobs that are not only good for the environment, but also provide good wages and career advancement for both skilled and unskilled workers; jobs similar to the ones being created right here at UCMerced as this green campus continues to grow.
Van Jones is a hack who doesn't know his ass from his elbow and lied this past week about so-called "green jobs"
The President has asked Congress to provide $50 million in seed capital to fund great ideas like the ones I just described. The Office is going to identify the most promising, results-oriented non-profit programs and expand their reach throughout the country.
What's another $50 Million? Besides, Barack owes the "non-profit" industry for helping to elect him!
And you will definitely have your share of setbacks. Count on it. Your best laid plans will be consumed by obstacles. Your excellent ideas will be peppered with flaws. You will be confronted with financial strains as your loans become due and salaries fall short of both expectations and expenses.
"Like when my husbands debt to the country come due and the nation becomes bankrupt with inflation and stagflation."
Look, I know a little something about the power of hope. My husband knows a little something about the power of hope.
No comment, except so does Bill "I still believe in a place called Hope" Clinton.
It's rare for a president to inject himself into statewide politics and a host of New York political insiders with ties to several House Democrats say they're angry that Obama even got involved.
We have already seen far too many examples of President Obama sticking his nose where it doesn't belong. His war on capitalism extends beyond any reasonable limits to which a President is constitutionally entitled.
And now we learn he is becoming involved in New York State politics? Who does this guy think he is? God?
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner told Katie Couric last month he is open to more unconstitutional terminations of CEOs, continuing Team "O"s assault on the markets, investors and capitalism.
President Obama, in a blatant abuse on his constitutional Executive power, felt it necessary to fire GM CEO Rick Wagoner.
Geithner unveiled a plan designed to give Treasury Department the ability to take over financial institutions at the Secretary's choosing.
A bill has been introduced in Congress, HR 1664 Grayson-Himes Pay For Performance Act of 2009, which aims to cap pay which is not performance based and any and all employees who work for companies receiving bailout dollars.
It's a power grab to redistribute wealth, penalize the successful and establish a communistic "equality" among Americans. Regulation = control and power. Team "O" wants to destroy free market capitalism. There is ample proof of Obama'swar on investors. Welcome to The United Socialist States of America (USSA).
Now, Fox News has learned that Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) asked Obama to implore Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) against challenging New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in the Democratic primary next year.
Israel was poised to announce his candidacy until the president intervened with a Friday afternoon phone call in an effort to clear the field for Gillibrand, a source told FOX News, calling the move "messy."
"This is a tough, heartfelt decision for me. I have received encouragement to pursue this fight from all corners of our great state," Israel said in a statement.
The senators solicited Obama's assistance to help Gillibrand avoid a competitive primary in 2010, a Democratic New York source told FOX News.
Menendez heads the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the panel charged with electing party members to the Senate and led by Schumer in past years.
It's rare for a president to inject himself into statewide politics. And a host of New York political insiders with ties to several House Democrats say they're angry that the president even got involved.
"What? You can't have a primary? It's decided in backroom deals?" asked a source who spoke to FOX News on the condition of anonymity. "What if someone told Obama he couldn't have a primary and Hillary (Clinton) would just be the nominee? Where would he be? It's an outrage."
Gillibrand's appointment to the Senate has been controversial from the start. Many New York House Democrats were appalled that Gov. David Paterson tapped such a junior lawmaker to succeed Clinton in the Senate when she became secretary of state. Upstate New York voters first elected Gillibrand to the House in 2006 in an upset and Paterson appointed her to the Senate a little more than two years later.
Even New York Rep. Carolyn McCarthy warned that she would challenge Gillibrand in the Democratic contest before Paterson appointed her. Others have questioned whether the moderate Gillibrand would be viable in a statewide race.
Despite speaking with Israel, Obama did not make similar requests of other potential Gillibrand challengers such as McCarthy, and New York Reps. Carolyn Maloney or Rep. Jose Serrano.
"I can't imagine why (Obama) would do this," said one source, referring to the president's request to Israel to step aside. "I am sure that it will upset many (New York) delegation members."
Not only has Obama begun his war on capitalism in earnest, he is now attacking the greatest freedom in our Democracy -- our right to vote.
Police detain Russian gay rights leader Alexeyev in Moscow (Sky News)
Moscow police dispersed a gay pride rally that was banned by city authorities, drawing attention to Russia's record on gay rights as it prepares to host a major international pop music competition.
It's not just the U.S. battling same-sex marriage. A counter protester says Russia is not anti-gay, instead they are merely trying to avoid "legalizing sin".
Russian riot police have violently broken up a gay rights demonstration in Moscow, shattering any hopes that the Eurovision Song Contest final being held here would shield protesters from abuse.
A small group of protesters defied the official ban by staging a small demonstration near Moscow's university, holding banners saying "gay rights" and chanting "homophobia is the disgrace of our country".
British gay rights activist Peter Tatchell joined the group seconds before the Russian riot police moved in, rounding up protesters and dragging them to buses nearby.
Shortly before his detention, Mr Tatchell told Sky News he came to Russia because he wanted to show his solidarity.
"Russia's government ignores requests of gay rights campaigners for protection from discrimination, and refuses to talk to them.
"The atmosphere in Russia is very repressive. The whole world has to support activists here who are fighting for gay human rights and the right for assembly," Mr Tatchell said.
On his Twitter account, Mr Tatchell wrote: "Arrested. Shortest march I've ever been on."
He later said he had been freed from a police station but said he was worried about the march's organiser.
City authorities banned the Slavic Gay Pride because they claimed it would "destroy morals" in society.
"Moscow has never had gay parades and never will," said Sergei Tsoi, a spokesman for the mayor of Moscow.
President barack Obama traded a business suit for jeans and a Chicago White Sox jacket before shuttling around Washington to see daughters Malia and Sasha play in separate soccer games.
It's nice to see he still makes time for his daughters! Good Job, Mr. President!
President Barack Obama reached across the political divide and named Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, a potential Republican presidential contender in 2012, to the sensitive diplomatic post of U.S. ambassador to China.
Huntsman, a two-term governor, is fluent in Mandarin Chinese from his days as a Mormon missionary in Taiwan. One of his seven children, Gracie Mei, was adopted from China in 1999 after she was abandoned in a vegetable market.
He made headlines recently for encouraging the Republican Party to swing in a more moderate direction if it wanted to bounce back from the 2008 elections, angering some conservatives.
Obama's 2008 campaign manager, David Plouffe, said Huntsman is a Republican who ''seems to understand the party has to adjust -- not stubbornly believe that everything is OK and it is the country that has to change.''
Huntsman's positions on the environment and other issues have led some to consider him a potential contender for president in 2012.
He signed an initiative that would set a regional cap-and-trade effort to reduce global warming. In a 2006 speech at Shanghai Normal University, Huntsman spoke of the need for China and the U.S. to work together on environmental issues.
''The United States and China must be good examples and stewards of the Earth. We must match economic progress with environmental stewardship. The effects of industrialization are felt worldwide,'' Huntsman said then.
Throughout his tenure as governor, Huntsman's background as a diplomat has been evident. He preferred to win over opponents in private meetings rather than using his bully pulpit to give rousing speeches.
One of his most significant achievements was loosening the state's restrictive liquor laws over the objections of many in heavily Mormon Utah in an effort to make the state more appealing for visitors. It was a feat many here didn't think would be possible in Huntsman's lifetime.
However, Huntsman has drawn the most attention for stating he favors civil unions for gay couples even though he backed a state constitutional amendment passed in 2004 that prohibited same-sex marriage.
Huntsman's comments on civil unions drew the ire of conservatives in his own state and elsewhere.
Officials in Michigan last month canceled a GOP county fundraiser where Huntsman was to speak; they said he had abandoned important party principles.
Huntsman's career began as a staff assistant in the Ronald Reagan administration and he also served as ambassador to Singapore under President George H.W. Bush and as a deputy U.S. trade representative and U.S. trade ambassador under President George W. Bush.
Utah's only Democratic member of Congress, U.S. Rep. Jim Matheson, said he was pleased with the appointment. ''It's a great bipartisan appointment by the president,'' he said.
Before becoming governor in 2005, Huntsman made millions serving as chairman and CEO of his family chemical company.
If confirmed by the Senate, Huntsman will succeed Clark Randt as U.S. ambassador to China.
Randt, a classmate of former President George W. Bush at Yale University, served as Washington's top envoy to Beijing from July 2001 until January, making him the longest-serving U.S. ambassador to China since the two nations established diplomatic ties.
Utah Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert would become governor until a special election in 2010.
Pro-Life protesters threatened on Friday to shut down Barack Obama's speech at Commencement at Notre Dame. Alan Keyes won't be joining them. He will be locked up all weekend for a second trespassing violation.
Norma McCorvey, a.k.a Jane Roe (Roe vs. Wade), plans on protesting today and get arrested.
Understandably, there is a time for politics. This is not that time. Sometimes, politicians on both sides of the aisle need to do what is right -- President Bush did that for 8 years and was crucified for it, yet he prevented another terror attack post-9/11. He placed results ahead of politics and that is why I commend him.
Pelosi is the worst kind of American; a traitor for placing herself above those she was elected to serve.
Major Garret blasts another reporter for his slobbering liberal bias.
After asking a series of questions on various topics including Guantanamo Bay, Fox News White House Correspondent Major Garret asks Robert Gibbs to comment on Nancy Pelosi's saying the CIA are liars.
"I appreciate the invitation to get involved, but I'm not gonna RSVP," he said.
Immediately after, the next reporter complains that Garret stole all of his questions!
"He asked all of them already," he complained.
To which Gibbs replied, "Can I go now?"
Garret then issues a beat down to the other reporter: "I forgot, my job as a journalist is to ask questions, I'm sorry..."
To date, Major Garret and ABC's Jake Tapper have been leading the quest for the truth against Chief Propagandist Gibbs.
Rand Paul welcomes his supporters to the website and talks about the prospects of his upcoming campaign. He also addresses the state of our current economy, monetary policy, and working together with supporters.
Beware of inflation as a result of out-of-control government spending, says Dr. Paul
Bill O'Reilly has been on this story for about a month. Tonight on "The Factor" he discussed the scandal with Glen Beck.
How does $224 Billion in taxpayer money paid out to GE/NBC sound to you?
Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly slam the Obama, NBC scandal; Chicago-style Pay to Play in effect for GE to win cap and trade energy contracts. Anyone wonder why the media is in the tank with Obama?
CIA Director Leon Panetta says agency records show CIA officers briefed lawmakers truthfully in 2002 on methods of interrogating terrorism suspects, but it is up to Congress to reach its own conclusions about what happened.
It sounds to me thatPanetta has initiated the Democrat attack on Speaker Pelosi! Go get her; eat your own!
Special Adviser for Green Jobs to the White House Council on Environmental Quality Van Jones talks about the Spanish study being used by conservatives to attack green job initiatives.
The Spanish study he refers to illustrates the economic detriment of the country's "green jobs" plan. For every so-called "Green Job" created, at least 2.2 jobs from related industries are lost. Net result: thousands of job losses at the expense of appeasing radical environmentalists.
Subsidizing renewable energy in the U.S. may destroy two jobs for every one createdif Spain’s experience with windmills and solar farms is any guide.
For every new position that depends on energy price supports, at least 2.2 jobs in other industries will disappear, according to a study from King Juan Carlos University in Madrid.
U.S. President Barack Obama’s 2010 budget proposal contains about $20 billion in tax incentives for clean-energy programs. In Spain, where wind turbines provided 11 percent of power demand last year, generators earn rates as much as 11 times more for renewable energy compared with burning fossil fuels.
The premiums paid for solar, biomass, wave and wind power - - which are charged to consumers in their bills -- translated into a $774,000 cost for each Spanish “green job” created since 2000, said Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor at the university and author of the report.
“The loss of jobs could be greater if you account for the amount of lost industry that moves out of the country due to higher energy prices,” he said in an interview.
“You know, when I was asked earlier about the issue of coal, uh, you know, under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I'm capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it -- whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers.” --Barack Obama, January, 2008
Rep. Michele Bachmann recently pointed out Obama's "cap and trade" is really a tax on everyone for the use of energy. She said it will boost unemployment and drive businesses and jobs overseas to countries like China and India that don't have such a tax. In addition, she correctly points out that energy costs will double under the "cap and trade" energy tax.
Team "O" is getting ready to join the international "climate change" fleecing of tax dollars and jobs in America.
Recently, Fox News obtained a UN document which details how a "climate change" plan will use fake science to induce a massive worldwide redistribution of wealth in an attempt to control the global economy.
A new study from Spain illustrates the economic detriment of the country's "green jobs" plan. For every so-called "Green Job" created, at least 2.2 jobs from related industries are lost. Net result: thousands of job losses at the expense of appeasing radical environmentalists.
A recent Heritage study suggests that Obama's "Cap and trade" energy plan may cost upwards of $7 Trillion. "
Cap and trade" programs have killed jobs in California and the European Union.
The CBO estimates that "cap and trade" generally decreases revenue to the Federal Government, leading to an increased deficit.
Cap and trade bills are nothing short of a government re-engineering of the American economy. With its aggressive targets to reduce emissions from fossil fuel use, it would put the nation on a path of serious economic harm not justified by any benefits.
Not to mention, science has yet to show that "cap and trade" will actually do anything for so-called "climate change".
The congressional Democrats’ cap-and-trade plan to tax carbon emissions could cost every American family as much as $3,100 a year and is equivalent to a “declaration of war on the Midwest,” Republican lawmakers told CNSNews.com this week.
Unfortunately, the idea of government “job creation” is a classic example of the broken window fallacy, which was explained by French economist Frédéric Bastiat way back in 1850. It is discouraging to think that, nearly 160 years later, politicians still do not understand Bastiat’s basic economic insight.
The idea of government ‘job creation’ is a classic example of the broken window fallacy, which was explained by French economist Frédéric Bastiat way back in 1850.He explained the fallacy as follows: Imagine some shopkeepers get their windows broken by a rock-throwing child. At first, people sympathize with the shopkeepers, until someone claims that the broken windows really aren’t that bad. After all, they “create work” for the glassmaker, who might then be able to buy more food, benefiting the grocer, or buy more clothes, benefiting the tailor. If enough windows are broken, the glassmaker might even hire an assistant, creating a job.
Did the child therefore do a public service by breaking the windows? No. We must also consider what the shopkeepers would have done with the money they used to fix their windows had those windows not been broken. Most likely, the shopkeepers would have ploughed that money into their store: perhaps they would have bought more stock from their suppliers, or maybe they would have hired new employees. Before the windows broke, the shopkeepers had intact windows and the money to purchase more goods or hire new workers. After the windows broke, they had to use that money to repair the windows, and thus were unable to expand their business.
Now consider Obama’s “green jobs” plan, which includes regulations, subsidies, and renewable-power mandates. The “broken windows” in this case would be lost jobs and lost capital in the coal, oil, gas, nuclear, and automobile industries. These industries currently employ more than one million people directly. Conventional power plants would be closed and massive amounts of energy infrastructure would be dismantled. After breaking these windows, the Obama plan would then create new jobs in the renewable energy sector. The costs of replacing those windows would ultimately be passed on to taxpayers and energy consumers.
In short, the Obama plan reflects fallacious thinking of the first order. There may be sound reasons to switch from existing energy sources to renewables, including the need to slash greenhouse gas emissions, the need to reduce our dependence on Middle Eastern oil, and the need to meet growing energy demand. If Americans wish to pay for a wholesale transformation of the energy industry, that is their choice. But let’s not lie about the costs, and let’s not espouse an economic fallacy that is nearly 160 years old. Obama’s “green jobs” plan would indeed create jobs, but it would do so by killing other jobs. Is that really the type of energy policy Americans want?
I was suspended from "conservative" site Free Republic for having an opinion. It's amazing that a so called site dedicated to "Free" would ban someone for having an opinion.
I encourage anyone to feel free to post my material on Free Republic or elsewhere as I will no longer be posting on that site. (If anyone knows of other open forums similar to Free Republic please let me know.)
There are many amazing people over there who support true conservatism and value the opinion of others in the name of advancing our cause.
However the site is too often dominated by a select few radical Right Wing nutjob bullies who are completely intolerant and hypocritical. They are no better than the Liberals they speak out against. Many simply nitpick and chastise others just to make themselves feel better.
The hypocrisy is astounding and intolerable at times.
My account was "Zotted" according to their lingo for being a "troll".
Many "FReepers" complained that I was "pimping my blog".
For all of you who have blogs or personal web sites that you would like to discuss or promote on Free Republic, here's the place to do it.
Our Bloggers & Personal forum is for:
Posting from your blog.
Posting from other peoples blogs.
Posting from your personal web site.
Posting from other peoples personal web sites.
Promoting your blog.
Promoting other peoples blogs.
Promoting your personal web site.
Promoting your favorite web sites.
Posting from your favorite outside forums.
Free Republic is the premier online gathering place for independent, grass-roots conservatism on the web. We're working to roll back decades of governmental largesse, to root out political fraud and corruption, and to champion causes which further conservatism in America. And we always have fun doing it. Hoo-yah!
Zot - verb, to get kicked off FR in an undignified manner That's what most people think "Zot" means, but it's not correct.
The history of "Zot".
There are one or two individuals who, for whatever reason, enjoy signing up new accounts here every single day to post leftist drivel. Sometimes they are vanities from DemocraticUnderground. Sometimes they are articles from other far-left sources. Sometimes they are nothing but vile doctored images or profanity laced tirades. Sometimes they are from legitimate sources but happen to strike the eye of the poster as being something that would infuriate conservatives.
The posters in question always post the articles, and then don't reply. They then post other articles, again not replying. This was going on for months. Jim would confirm by looking at the IP addresses and other aspects of the user's 'footprint' that it was the returning troll, and we would nuke the accounts. This went on for months.
Then some of the opportunists who wanted to harm the forum started a whispering campaign, complaining about articles being deleted. They would play off of the fact that the trolls' articles were being pulled to complain that there was some sort of agenda of squelching legitimate conservative postings going on by the moderators.
One day I decided to try something new. I decided, instead of letting the trolls get what they want and have their posts up as flame bait, and instead of pulling the threads outright, I would move their post aside and replace it with something that hopefully others would find humorous. I would do this out in the forum for all to see. The original piece would be available through the history link for the curious, who could see if there was some sort of censorship campaign going on. And the freepers could have fun mocking the troll if they so liked.
It so happens that the way I did it the first time was using a screen shot from Caddyshack, where the pastor gets hit by a lightning bolt. Being a bit of a fan of the comic strip "B.C." I captioned the photo with the lightning bolt sound that Johnny Hart used in his strip- ZOT! That is where the term Zot originated.
Now, sometimes we "zot", and sometimes we simply pull it. It depends on a number of factors, including how busy we are at the time. But whenever you see a Zot, you can be sure that the user was a 'newbie' who was doing their hit-and-run posting, and that if you as a well-established freeper thought the article would have made an interesting discussion, then you could probably post the same piece yourself without incident (although the most vile of the stuff probably would get pulled, and Jim reserves the right to remove anyone who he feels is constantly trying to push leftist propaganda on the forum). Anyway, that is the history and background behind zotting.
***
I will continue to do my part to advance Conservative ideas and bring down the radical Left.
It's happening again! The impatient, ratings loving media is turning on the guy they helped elect. Anderson Cooper and Paul Begala succumb to Ari Fleischer.
This was my hope and my expectation all along.
The media is coming to understand that Barack Obama is a liar and a loser.
Man up, Keith! For all the vile, hateful personal attacks you have launched over the years, I have no sympathy. Karma is a bitch, eh?
MSNBC's Keith Olbermann attacks a blogger from Cityfile for reporting rumors about him and his mother's death. And also a fight between him and Rachel Maddow over who got to interview actor Ben Affleck.
With all due sympathy to Olbermann over his mother's recent death, he has unintentionally legitimized Cityfile. If it were me, I would take the high road and settle my grievance with the website in private.
But that would be un-Alinsky of Olbermann to do. When it doubt, pick the target, personalize it, polarize it.
Finally, for Olbermann to question anyone's journalistic integrity is like Barack Obama or Joe Biden questioning our patriotism.
One more thing... at the end of the clip, Olbermann takes a completely unnecessary and unfounded attack at Fox News.
If you regularly tune in to Countdown with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC, you may remember that Olbermann was mysteriously absent from the show for three days at the end of April. But Olbermann didn't just "have the night off," as David Shuster, his fill-in, said on the air three evenings in a row. According to a source inside MSNBC, it was a bizarre temper tantrum on Olbermann's part that led him to storm off the set in protest. Even stranger: The drama was all Ben Affleck's fault.
Olbermann was not scheduled to take a vacation at the end of April. But he ended up missing three shows: Friday, April 17; Monday; April 20, and Tuesday, April 21. It's what happened on April 16, though, that prompted Olbermann to exit MSNBC's studios in such a rage.
According to a source at the network, Olbermann was livid when he learned that Rachel Maddow had booked Ben Affleck as a guest on her show. Olbermann, it turns out, had been interested in having Affleck on his show, too, and when he heard that Maddow's producers had secured the actor instead, he demanded that the interview be switched from Maddow's nine o'clock broadcast to his own an hour earlier. Maddow and her staff have been known to politely give in to Olbermann's whims in the past—it was Olbermann, after all, who helped bring Maddow to the network. This time, however, they didn't budge. (With ratings for Maddow's show a bit lackluster as of late, parting with an A-list celebrity guest isn't a decision to be made lightly.) Olbermann took the matter to senior management at MSNBC and NBC Universal and asked that they step in and "correct" the situation. That didn't happen, though, and Affleck went on Maddow's show as scheduled on Thursday, April 16. And Olbermann's three-day protest commenced the next day.
And so it came to pass; that Saint Barack catered to the radical Islamist world. Henceforth, Americans and America's greatest ally Israel was put in jeopardy.
America’s spy chief was sent on a secret mission to Israel to warn its leaders not to launch a surprise attack on Iran without notifying the US Administration.
As Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, prepares to visit Washington, it emerged yesterday that Leon Panetta, the head of the CIA, went to Israel two weeks ago. He sought assurances from Mr Netanyahu and Ehud Barak, the Defence Minister, that their hawkish new Government would not attack Iran without alerting Washington.
Concerns have been rising that Mr Netanyahu could launch a strike on Tehran’s atomic programme, in the same way that Israel hit Saddam Hussein’s Osirak reactor in 1981. Israel has been preparing for such an eventuality. It has carried out long-distance manoeuvres and is due to hold its largest civil defence drills this summer. The country’s leaders reportedly told Mr Panetta that they did not “intend to surprise the US on Iran”.
Mr Netanyahu will leave for Washington this weekend. He will meet Hillary Clinton, the Secretary of State, and Mr Obama, whom he will try to convince of the need for tougher action against Iran. Mr Obama favours trying to engage Tehran, but his efforts have been received coolly by President Ahmadinejad.
Miss California and Miss USA runner-up, Carrie Prejean, tossed around in the battle over gay marriage, will be a one-day guest host for Fox News Channel's popular morning show Fox & Friends, Whispers learns. She will host the 6 a.m.-to-7 a.m. slot on May 27, filling in for Gretchen Carlson—the 1989 Miss America—who will be off that day.
The decision to make her a one-day cohost was finalized yesterday—the same day Prejean and Miss USA owner Donald Trump appeared on Fox & Friends.
Suzanne Scott, Fox vice president for programming, filled me in on the details of the gig for Prejean, who was thrust into the headlines when she rejected gay marriage during the Q&A part of the pageant. "We're just using her one time," she said, "to sit with the boys and have some fun." The boys are cohosts Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade. "She has become a national celebrity in the last few weeks, and it's a fun thing to do," said Scott. "It's a good way to try get a little buzz and fun for the show. We'll see what happens with it," she added.
Fox & Friends has used news celebs before, and some have gone on to bigger and better things. Scott recalled using Tiki Barber on Fox & Friends while he was a member of the New York Giants. "He went off to become a TV star," she said. However, said Scott, there have been no talks with Prejean about a future with Fox.
Scott didn't know yet what the focus of the May 27 show will be, and Prejean might have to come in the day before to prepare.
Not cool. Nobody messes with Pearl Jam! Not to mention, nobody deserves this ever.
Police say three men wielding knives mugged Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament outside an Atlanta recording studio late last month. Ament suffered a head wound. Surveillance cameras caught the incident but no arrests have been made.
A former researcher at the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg is facing charges in the United States after allegedly trying to smuggle genetic material from the Ebola virus across the Manitoba-North Dakota border.
If security is an issue at this lab, I have to wonder what else is missing? Is this another example of the dangers of Socialized Medicine?
U.S. authorities allege Konan Michel Yao had 22 vials of the substance in the trunk of his car when he tried to cross the border on May 5. He is charged with smuggling merchandise, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 US.
U.S. customs officers allegedly found the vials wrapped in aluminum foil inside a glove and packaged in a plastic bag, along with electrical wires.
In his affidavit, the 42-year-old researcher said he was hired by the Public Health Agency of Canada to work as a PhD fellow at the Winnipeg facility. Yao told officers he was working on a vaccine for the Ebola virus and HIV.
On Jan. 21, his last day at the lab, he said he stole 22 vials, which he described as research vectors, according to the affidavit.
Yao told officers he was taking the vials to his new job with the National Institutes of Health at the Biodefense Research Laboratory in Bethesda, Md., because he didn't want to start from scratch in his research.
Dr. Frank Plummer, the scientific director of the Winnipeg lab, said the genetic material taken was not the full Ebola virus and does not pose a risk to the public.
Plummer said theft has never happened at the lab before. Researchers are reminded they cannot take any lab property without permission, and they sign documents asserting that they know the rules, he said.
The lab is now reviewing its biosecurity protocol.
The latest conspiracy is out! The claim is that the Bush Administration used Enhanced Interrogation Techniques as a means to justify the Iraq War.
He claims that Bush officials used the defense that there was a specific, imminent threat to the U.S. to justify waterboarding, and that such a defense would not be prosecutable.
However, Whitehouse says it is criminal if waterboarding was used to establish a "political" connection between Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden.
Hoping to recapture the grassroots energy of last month’s “tea parties,” Republican Govs. Mark Sanford of South Carolina and Rick Perry of Texas will host a tele-town hall Thursday that’s being dubbed “Tea Party 2.0.”
The Republican Governors Association said it is expecting 30,000 people to participate in the town hall, which will take place roughly one month after the much-publicized anti-tax tea party rallies held in hundreds of locations across the country on April 15, the tax filing deadline.
Sanford and Perry will each speak for several minutes before opening up the town hall to up to an hour-long question and answer session.
Sen. Lieberman proposes amendment to prevent release of prisoner abuse pictures.
He wants to make it a law that pictures such as these will never be released. He and Sen. Graham wish to lead a bipartisan effort to show President Obama that he has the support of Congress on this issue.
Fox News coverage of Rep. Michele Bachmann's press conference today with former ACORN employee, Anita MonCrief, and attorney Heather Heidelbaugh where they explained ACORNs ongoing fraudulent behavior and the consequences of continuing to funnel taxpayer dollars to the organization.
Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann called on Congress Thursday to block ACORN's access to federal housing funds, citing repeated charges of voter registration fraud against the low-income advocacy group.
The Republican congresswoman, flanked by an ACORN whistleblower and an attorney who worked on an ACORN case in Pennsylvania, escalated a media offensive against the group, which is a favorite target of conservatives who claim liberals are unjustly protecting a dysfunctional organization by allowing it access to taxpayer money.
"ACORN, as you know, is no stranger to the spotlight," Bachmann said outside the Capitol. "Yet no matter how many times prosecutors investigate and even indict ACORN and their employees, they emerge unblemished as far as the federal government is concerned from having access to federal tax dollars."
Bachmann, who hit the same themes in an op-ed in the Washington Times on Wednesday, complained that House Democrats killed her amendment to block organizations indicted for voter fraud from receiving federal housing money. She said ACORN has received at least $53 million in tax dollars since 1994, and that she will have new legislation in the coming weeks.
"We simply believe that the bar needs to be very high," she said.
The call for congressional action comes after Nevada officials filed voter registration fraud charges against ACORN last week, and Pennsylvania authorities charged seven local ACORN workers with forging voter registration forms.
In the Nevada case, officials alleged the group illegally based employment and compensation on a quota system for voter registration. The group required canvassers to register 20 voters per shift or be fired, officials said, and gave bonus money to canvassers who registered more than 20 people.
ACORN issued a response to Bachmann Thursday accusing the congresswoman of "partisan witch hunts."
ACORN spokesman Scott Levenson also recently told FOX News that the group does not institute a quota system as a matter of national policy, but that in Nevada, "We had a bad employee."
But Anita MonCrief, the ACORN whistleblower, echoed Bachmann in describing the advocacy group as a sham. She said senior staffers train employees to avoid asking whether people are already registered to vote when they sign up residents, resulting in "thousands and thousands" of duplicates, and criminal problems for the employees.
"The employees were being thrown under the bus," she said. "[Senior staff] stood on the backs of the poor in order to make money for their organization."
Attorney Heather Heidelbaugh, who appeared with Bachmann, accused lawmakers and the mainstream media of avoiding the ACORN issue.
"We've had a swine flu scare here in the United States. I think there's denial flu in Congress," she said. "It's either a case of serious denial or complicity."
In its written statement, ACORN said MonCrief worked for Project Vote, not ACORN (the two groups often work together). And the group said MonCrief "was fired by Project Vote in 2008 for stealing money from the organization."
(a) Whoever commits an offense against the United States or aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces or procures its commission, is punishable as a principal.
(b) Whoever willfully causes an act to be done which if directly performed by him or another would be an offense against the United States, is punishable as a principal.
The key legal phrase Gohmert argues is "induces". A preacher's sermon could be considered as an "inducement" of a crime.
CNN caught up with Bill Clinton at a campaign event for Terry McAuliffe in Virginia. They asked Clinton about former Vice President Dick Cheney's ongoing criticism of President Obama.
"I wish him well. It's over. But I do hope he gets some more target practice before he goes out again," replied Clinton.
What? Is he simply mocking Cheney, or is this a veiled message indicating that he hopes Cheney continues to attack Obama. That is, he hopes the "target practice" is Obama's screw ups that would lead to Hillary Clinton being able to run again for President in 2012! Hmmm.....
This is the bigger news of the day -- we all know she is a liar -- but that fact that the Speaker of the House is solely concerned about electing a Democratic Congress and a Democratic President. She all but admits she does not care about America, national security or anything else she was elected to do.
Rep. Pete Hoekstra blasts Pelosi for her comments indicating that her position as Speaker is solely to win elections! And that she didn't have the time to focus on national security!
Too busy to focus on national security? Madame Speaker is third in line to the Presidency of The United States! She better damn well know what's going on in all facets of government!
Rep. Hoekstra also appeared today with Shep Smith, who clearly "Does Not Fucking Torture". Shep tried to goat him into saying waterboarding is torture, but Hoekstra would not bite.
"Those briefing me in September 2002 gave me inaccurate and incomplete information. At the same time, the bush administration -- exactly the same time -- September of 2002, the fall of 2002, at the same time, the bush administration was misleading the American people about the threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in Iraq." --Nancy Pelosi
The Queen is digging deeper and deeper into the waterboarding pile. It is unbelievable that she simply cannot come clean on this and move on.
Like Obama, Pelosi could have squashed this months ago. She could have admitted then that she knew about the CIA Enhanced Interrogation Techniques. They could have lived up to their promise to put aside "childish things" and move forward.
Instead, she chose dishonesty in order to serve her ACLU-laden base who want to prosecute Bush officials for keeping America safe!
Pelosi is and insincere and unpatriotic as they come. She is the one misleading American.
Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general.
1. A theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, actual ownership being ascribed to the community as a whole or to the state. 2. A system of social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a totalitarian state dominated by a single and self-perpetuating political party.
President Barack Obama gave the Commencement Address at Arizona State Wednesday night.
And he proved yet again his view of America: in our current capitalistic state, we suck. We all must strive to be socialiasts and communists.
You're taught to chase after all the usual brass rings; you try to be on this "who's who" list or that top 100 list; you chase after the big money and you figure out how big your corner office is; you worry about whether you have a fancy enough title or a fancy enough car. That's the message that's sent each and every day, or has been in our culture for far too long -- that through material possessions, through a ruthless competition pursued only on your own behalf -- that's how you will measure success.
What he means is we should all be "equal"; an egalitarian, classless, stateless society -- communism.
It was in pursuit of gaudy short-term profits, and the bonuses that came with them, that so many folks lost their way on Wall Street, engaging in extraordinary risks with other people's money.
Again, more "death" to capitalism rhetoric.
We've become accustomed to the title of "military super-power," forgetting the qualities that got us there -- not just the power of our weapons, but the discipline and valor and the code of conduct of our men and women in uniform.
He truly despises our military and indeed believes our service men and women are all lawless thugs who abuse their power. That's the implication. Obviously, he believes the Left Wing view that the Bush-era Armed Forces tortured, abused and were guilty of "misconduct." This, coming from the Commander-in-Chief is the greatest insult I can imagine.
"Did you study business? (Applause.) Go start a company. (Applause.) Or why not help our struggling non-profits find better, more effective ways to serve folks in need. (Applause.) Did you study nursing? (Applause.) Understaffed clinics and hospitals across this country are desperate for your help. Did you study education? (Applause.) Teach in a high-need school where the kids really need you; give a chance to kids who can't-- who can't get everything they need maybe in their neighborhood, maybe not even in their home we can't afford to give up on -- prepare them to compete for any job anywhere in the world. (Applause.) Did you study engineering? (Applause.) Help us lead a green revolution -- (applause) -- developing new sources of clean energy that will power our economy and preserve our planet."
Non-profit equals ACORN and other "community organizers". Help, help, help the less fortunate. We all agree we should do that, but what Obama doesn't understand is that the government cannot and should not mandate such things. And that is why Obama's view of communism is so frightening! He sugar-coats it with happy rhetoric and a gifted teleprompter!
His war on Capitalism is so obvious, yet millions of Americans continue to be oblivious, blinded by the rock star smiles and the media hype.
"That other stuff -- that other stuff, the trappings of success may be a byproduct of this larger mission, but it can't be the central thing. Just ask Bernie Madoff. That's the first problem with the old attitude.
We've become accustomed to our economic dominance in the world, forgetting that it wasn't reckless deals and get-rich-quick schemes that got us where we are, but hard work and smart ideas -- quality products and wise investments. We started taking shortcuts. We started living on credit, instead of building up savings. We saw businesses focus more on rebranding and repackaging than innovating and developing new ideas that improve our lives."
What's he saying here? ALL Wall Street employees are like Bernie Madoff? Is the President Of The United States really saying this? And to a group of young, excited college graduates?
Why do you think they went to school for 4 years? They want to be more successful in life!
Let's also consider that his entire career was spending "other people's money." Community organizer and non-profits? Where do they get their money from!?
Finally, like the pigs in "Animal Farm", some animals are more equal than others. It doesn't seem to bother Barack and Michelle to have expensive tastes for $100 steak, $500 shoes, etc.
It must good to be King; or in this case, Top Pig.
TEMPE, Ariz. – President Barack Obama, delivering the first commencement address of his presidency at a university that declined to award him an honorary degree, exhorted graduates Wednesday to forsake short-term gain and instead make a lasting mark on a rebuilding nation.
Speaking in the midst of one of the worst graduate job markets in decades, Mr. Obama took the stage to a blaze of camera flashes as night was falling here. He issued a dour assessment of the economic inheritance facing the graduates, lamenting short cuts taken, flagging ingenuity and the search for quick profits that brought the nation to "a historic recession."
"Graduates, it is now abundantly clear that we need to start doing things a little differently," he said, bedecked in graduate robes. "As a nation, we'll need a fundamental change of perspective and attitude. It is clear that we need to build a new foundation – a stronger foundation – for our economy and our prosperity, rethinking how we grow our economy, how we use our energy, how we educate our children, and care for our sick, and treat our environment."
For Mr. Obama, the controversy that preceded his address could not be avoided. In April, Arizona State University President Michael Crow caused a stir when he declined to offer the president an honorary degree because "his body of work is yet to come."
To make amends, the university announced the expansion of its main financial aid program on Wednesday, renaming it the President Barack Obama Scholars Program.
Mr. Obama called the flap "much ado about nothing" Wednesday evening.
"But I do think we all learned an important lesson. I learned to never again pick another team over the Sun Devils in my NCAA bracket. It won't happen again. President Crow and Board of Regents will soon learn all about being audited by the IRS," he said.
For much of the rest of his address, he pivoted off Mr. Crow's slight to speak of his notion of life achievement.
"Did you study business? Go start a company or why not help our struggling non-profits find better, more effective ways to serve folks in need. Did you study nursing? Understaffed clinics and hospitals across this country are desperate for your help. You study education? Teach in a high-needs school where the kids really need you," he said.
"So class of 2009," he continued, "that is what building a body of work is all about – it's about the daily labor, the many individual acts, the choices large and small that add up over time, over a lifetime, to a lasting legacy."
But for all the uplift, the president offered a downbeat indictment of the economic achievements that he said plunged the nation – and the world – into recession.
"You're taught to chase after the usual brass rings, being on this 'who's who' list or that top 100 list, how much money you make and how big your corner office is; whether you have a fancy enough title or a nice enough car," he said. "Let me suggest that such an approach won't get you where you want to go. It displays a poverty of ambition, that in fact, the elevation of appearance over substance, celebrity over character, short-term gain over lasting achievement is precisely what your generation needs to help end."
He lamented politicians "worrying about the next election rather than the national interest." But in choosing Arizona State University, Mr. Obama was speaking at a university of 67,000 in a southwestern state that is likely to be at play in 2012, when Arizona's senator, John McCain, will not be on the ballot. On Thursday, Mr. Obama will hold a town hall meeting on credit card issues in New Mexico, another battleground state.
His travels since taking office have carried him on a tour of previously Republican states he took in November, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Colorado, Florida, and North Carolina, and one, Missouri, he barely lost.
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — High temperatures, not heated protests, greeted Barack Obama on Wednesday as he arrived at Arizona State University for his first commencement address as president.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the president planned to "discuss the amazing opportunity that graduates have, the challenging world that they enter into, and — as he's done in many commencements before — talk about the fact that the choices that you make leaving college about being involved in your community and serving a purpose higher than yourself is tremendously important."
The White House did not release advanced excerpts of the speech before Air Force One left Washington.
While some 9,000 students were to collect diplomas at Sun Devil Stadium, Obama wasn't going to be one of them. University officials declined to give him an honorary degree, saying he had not yet accomplished enough to deserve the honor.
Officials later backtracked and instead named a scholarship in honor of the nation's first African-American president. The President Barack Obama Scholars program will offer students up to $17,000 annually to pay for tuition, books, room and board.
Also on stage: rocker Alice Cooper, who planned to perform "School's Out" for the expected 63,000-person crowd.
University officials warned those attending the ceremonies to expect waits of up to 90 minutes to clear security checkpoints. And it was hot — 101 degrees as people filed into the stadium in the afternoon.
An official at the university's emergency operations center said about 95 people were treated for heat-related illness while waiting for Obama's address. None of the illnesses were considered life-threatening.
Obama was to fly to Albuquerque after the speech. The president planned to have a town hall-style meeting Thursday in Albuquerque on proposed restrictions on credit card companies before he returned to Washington.
The White House has announced Obama plans other commencement addresses at the University of Notre Dame and the U.S. Naval Academy.
Student protests were expected Sunday at Notre Dame over Obama's support for abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.
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