Category: News

Updated: NY-23 Gate Continues

Posted on1 Comment

The saga of the NY-23 election race continues. Seems that there has been some interesting stuff uncovered by some very enterprising reporters.

Michael Patrick Leahy over at the TCOT Report writes about some interesting information about how this Liberal-lite candidate was chosen. Dan Riehl also has some interesting information as well. Dan is also making some new friends as well! 😉 😛 😀

Robert Stacy McCain, who is really a good guy and a damn good shoe-leather reporter; has some good information as well, and is also kicking at the stalls to get back up to upstate New York and do some more shoe-leather reporting. McCain also reports that the New Media, together with the big time endorsements has really help Hoffman’s Campaign. McCain could also use some donations as well. So, head on over and help the old man out. Better yet, Click right here to give to McCain. Mention my name and my Blog; and maybe I will get some kind words out of the deal. When you are done, donate to me as well; as I would just LOVE to be up there in the middle of all that myself. I have many needs, I need a better car; as the one I am driving now is just not road worthy at all. In fact, if my cousin doesn’t have the money to buy it by next week, it is going to the junk yard.

So, if you can click on my donate button as well and GIVE LIBERALLY! 😀

Update: Looks like the Liberals are hitting back a bit: (H/T to Simon via E-mail)

The Politico has more.

My feelings on this is basically this; Class warfare. Which is quite lame. It is the Democrats last line of defense, sort of like the Race Card.

Update #2: Some Great Bloggers covering this story: Campaign Trail, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Michelle Malkin, The Other McCain, American Spectator, AmSpecBlog, The Washington Independent and RedState (H/T Memeorandum)

Matthew Hoh resigns over Afghanistan

Posted on3 Comments

I have to give this man credit; he is a man of conviction, for that alone, he is a true patriot.

Via the Washington Times:

When Matthew Hoh joined the Foreign Service early this year, he was exactly the kind of smart civil-military hybrid the administration was looking for to help expand its development efforts in Afghanistan.

A former Marine Corps captain with combat experience in Iraq, Hoh had also served in uniform at the Pentagon, and as a civilian in Iraq and at the State Department. By July, he was the senior U.S. civilian in Zabul province, a Taliban hotbed.

But last month, in a move that has sent ripples all the way to the White House, Hoh, 36, became the first U.S. official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war, which he had come to believe simply fueled the insurgency.

“I have lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes of the United States’ presence in Afghanistan,” he wrote Sept. 10 in a four-page letter to the department’s head of personnel. “I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end.”

The reaction to Hoh’s letter was immediate. Senior U.S. officials, concerned that they would lose an outstanding officer and perhaps gain a prominent critic, appealed to him to stay.

U.S. Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry brought him to Kabul and offered him a job on his senior embassy staff. Hoh declined. From there, he was flown home for a face-to-face meeting with Richard C. Holbrooke, the administration’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

“We took his letter very seriously, because he was a good officer,” Holbrooke said in an interview. “We all thought that given how serious his letter was, how much commitment there was, and his prior track record, we should pay close attention to him.”

While he did not share Hoh’s view that the war “wasn’t worth the fight,” Holbrooke said, “I agreed with much of his analysis.” He asked Hoh to join his team in Washington, saying that “if he really wanted to affect policy and help reduce the cost of the war on lives and treasure,” why not be “inside the building, rather than outside, where you can get a lot of attention but you won’t have the same political impact?”

Hoh accepted the argument and the job, but changed his mind a week later. “I recognize the career implications, but it wasn’t the right thing to do,” he said in an interview Friday, two days after his resignation became final.

“I’m not some peacenik, pot-smoking hippie who wants everyone to be in love,” Hoh said. Although he said his time in Zabul was the “second-best job I’ve ever had,” his dominant experience is from the Marines, where many of his closest friends still serve.

“There are plenty of dudes who need to be killed,” he said of al-Qaeda and the Taliban. “I was never more happy than when our Iraq team whacked a bunch of guys.”

But many Afghans, he wrote in his resignation letter, are fighting the United States largely because its troops are there — a growing military presence in villages and valleys where outsiders, including other Afghans, are not welcome and where the corrupt, U.S.-backed national government is rejected. While the Taliban is a malign presence, and Pakistan-based al-Qaeda needs to be confronted, he said, the United States is asking its troops to die in Afghanistan for what is essentially a far-off civil war.

As the White House deliberates over whether to deploy more troops, Hoh said he decided to speak out publicly because “I want people in Iowa, people in Arkansas, people in Arizona, to call their congressman and say, ‘Listen, I don’t think this is right.’ “

“I realize what I’m getting into . . . what people are going to say about me,” he said. “I never thought I would be doing this.”

The underlined parts up here are the parts that I think are the most inspiring. Some Conservatives and even some MilBloggers might want to slam this guy. Well, I will not be counted among that group.  I have said on this blog many times that I felt that Bush basically screwed us in the long run, for trying to fight two wars at the same time. That belief is becoming clearer now, eight years on and we’re still trying to catch Osama Bin Laden —- and that task is becoming more of a difficult task everyday. There is plenty of blame to go around; Bush is not the sole person responsible for this terrible screw up. The whole “We have to fight them there, so, we don’t have to fight them here..” line is a bit worn thin now, seeing that there has been people arrested on terror plotting charges here now.

Again, I applaud this man for having the courage to stand up and dissent. Some may knock him, but not sane thinking Americans, who see things through the long lens; like me.

The Round up for ALL sides of the Political fence: The Washington Independent, The Moderate Voice, Top of the Ticket, Abu Muqawama, Matthew Yglesias, JustOneMinute, New York Times, Neptunus Lex, Firedoglake, ABCNEWS, MoJo Blog Posts, Alan Colmes’ Liberaland, The New Republic, Salon, The Atlanticist, BLACKFIVE, Jules Crittenden, The Daily Dish, Guardian, Mudville Gazette, Rethink Afghanistan, Newshoggers.com, Atlas Shrugs, Chicago Boyz, RedState, Newsweek Blogs, LewRockwell.com Blog, Wall Street Journal, Taylor Marsh, MyDD and Politics Daily

Joe Lieberman says that he will back GOP filibuster of Senate Healthcare Bill

Posted on

I have an idea as to why Lieberman is doing this; well, I have several different ideas:

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Tuesday that he’d back a GOP filibuster of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s health care reform bill.

Lieberman, who caucuses with Democrats and is positioning himself as a fiscal hawk on the issue, said he opposes any health care bill that includes a government-run insurance program — even if it includes a provision allowing states to opt out of the program, as Reid has said the Senate bill will.

“We’re trying to do too much at once,” Lieberman said. “To put this government-created insurance company on top of everything else is just asking for trouble for the taxpayers, for the premium payers and for the national debt. I don’t think we need it now.”

Lieberman added that he’d vote against a public option plan “even with an opt-out because it still creates a whole new government entitlement program for which taxpayers will be on the line.”

His comments confirmed that Reid is short of the 60 votes needed to advance the bill out of the Senate, even after Reid included the opt-out provision. Several other moderate Democrats expressed skepticism at the proposal as well, but most of the wavering Democratic senators did not go as far as Lieberman Tuesday, saying they were waiting to see the details.

Lieberman did say he’s “strongly inclined” to vote to proceed to the debate, but that he’ll ultimately vote to block a floor vote on the bill if it isn’t changed first.

“I’ve told Sen. Reid that if the bill stays as it is now I will vote against cloture,” he said.

via Joe Lieberman: I’ll block vote on Harry Reid’s plan – Manu Raju – POLITICO.com.

Here is my official theory as to why Lieberman is doing this. For one; I believe that Lieberman is doing this to get back at the Senate Majority leader for his scolding of him for supporting John McCain during the 2008 election. Another theory I have is that Lieberman is attempting to garner support amongst the Conservative leadership on the hill. Maybe Lieberman is going to try for a run as a moderate to Liberal Republican in the not-so-distant future in the Senate. Either that, or Lieberman knows that he will never be elected as a Republican or a Democrat ever again and he is doing this, thinking that it will, someday be seen as his last great feat to save the Country from out of control socialism.

Either way, I believe that any chance of Lieberman getting back into the Democratic Party just totally dissolved. At this point, if I were a Democrat, I would want Lieberman’s head on a platter.

Others: Michelle Malkin, Townhall.com, Weekly Standard, The Corner, AmSpecBlog, The Greenroom, JOSHUAPUNDIT, The Moderate Voice,

14 Americans killed in 2 helicopter crashes in Afghanistan

Posted on

A sad bit of news: (H/T Gateway Pundit)

KABUL (AP) – A series of helicopter crashes killed 14 Americans in insurgent-wracked Afghanistan on Monday, the U.S. military said. It was one of the deadliest days of the war for U.S. troops.

In the first crash, a chopper went down in the west of the country after leaving the scene of a firefight with insurgents, killing 10 Americans—seven troops and three civilians working for the government. Eleven American troops, one U.S. civilian and 14 Afghans were also injured.

In a separate incident in the south, two other U.S. choppers collided while in flight, killing four American troops and wounding two more, the military said.

U.S. authorities have ruled out hostile fire in the collision but have not given a cause for the other fatal crash in the west. Taliban spokesman Qari Yusuf Ahmedi claimed Taliban fighters shot down a helicopter in northwest Badghis province’s Darabam district. It was impossible to verify the claim and unclear if he was referring to the same incident.

via BreitBart:  US: 14 Americans killed in 2 helicopter crashes.

I think it would be a good thing to remember all of our service men in our Prayers this day.

I just hope this is all worth it.

Is Islam pure evil?

Posted on

There are some that believe that it is, and believe that those that practice it are pure evil.

That reason can be found here at Jammie Wearing Fool’s Blog. There is Video as well. I HIGHLY suggest that you click the link!

Quote:

When are our vaunted women’s rights groups in this country going to finally stand up and recognize this aspect of Islam that revolves around nothing more then the subjugation of women? Where are all of those civil rights folks who paraded in the streets demanding equal rights for blacks?

Good question!

The sick part is, the Socialist Liberal Democrats, they defend this sort of a thing.

NY23 Update

Posted on

For all of you that give a hoot about what’s happening up in upstate New York’s NY23 special election. There are a good amount of updates.

Robert Stacy McCain’s Blog is on top of it. Please, Go Here, Here, Here, and Here.

Check this woman’s nutty Presser:

…and finally from Day By Day with Chris Muir:

Another Mao Worshiping Communist in the White House

Posted on

Here we go again!

Via Gateway Pundit:

So, who is Ron Bloom? Jammie Wearing Fool writes:

The name Ron Bloom is one that we need to start paying attention to. He has a long history of being the negotiating face of unions in a suit. He is a Harvard Business School graduate who has worked for the unions beginning with SEIU for decades. The most recent union he represented was the United Steel Workers (USW) before becoming a part of the automotive team that Obama put together. You know the one that had the head Steven Rattner having to resign over some questions about his personal finances mixed in with a little fraudulent money gifts.Rattner was replaced by Ron Bloom, and voila the United Auto Workers (UAW), got a sweetheart deal backed up by the power of the federal government to try and stave off bankruptcy.

Nice….. So, President Obama’s communications director is a Mao-Loving Communist and now his Manufacturing Czar; or Union Liaison is now a Mao-loving Communist. I expect that Glenn Beck is going to be all over this one. President Obama needs to rid himself of these people or resign his Presidency.

Living Proof that Socialist Liberals have no originality

Posted on

What an idiot….

Shepard Fairey, the artist whose “Hope” poster of Barack Obama became an iconic emblem of the presidential campaign, has admitted that he lied about which photograph from The Associated Press he used as his source, and that he then covered up evidence to substantiate his lie.

Mr. Fairey’s admission, which he made public on Friday, threw his legal battle with the news agency into disarray.

The A.P. claimed in January that Mr. Fairey owed it credit and compensation for using the photograph. But in February Mr. Fairey sued The A.P., seeking a declaratory judgment that the poster did not infringe on the agency’s copyrights and that he was entitled to the image under the “fair use” exception of the copyright law. The A.P. countersued in March, saying Mr. Fairey had misappropriated the photograph.

Mr. Fairey told the agency — and his own lawyers — that he had used a photograph from an April 27, 2006, event about Darfur at the National Press Club in Washington where Mr. Obama was seated next to the actor George Clooney. Instead, the photograph he used was from the same event, but was a solo image of Mr. Obama’s head, tilted in intense concentration.

via Artist Admits Using Other Photo for ‘Hope’ Poster – NYTimes.com.

…..and his defense?

“In an attempt to conceal my mistake, I submitted false images and deleted other images,” Mr. Fairey said in a statement, released on his Web site. “I sincerely apologize for my lapse in judgment, and I take full responsibility for my actions, which were mine alone.”

Mr. Fairey’s lawyers said they intended to withdraw when he could find new counsel.

“There are lots of reasons that it becomes difficult or effectively impossible for a lawyer to continue to represent a client in this situation,” Anthony Falzone, Mr. Fairey’s lawyer and the executive director of the Fair Use Project at Stanford University, said in a telephone interview Saturday. “We have informed The A.P.’s lawyers that we do intend to withdraw as counsel upon transition to new lawyers.”

Mr. Falzone called the disclosure “a very unfortunate situation.” But he added that regardless which photograph Mr. Fairey used, the copyright issues remained unchanged. “We still believe, as strongly as ever, in the underlying fair use and expression issues of this case,” he said.

In other words, He lied like a dog; and proceeded to try and cover up for his lies, by lying some more. But he still has a case for fair use! What a joke! Put this lying stack crap behind bars for a few years. That is unless his “Magic Messiah” does not come out and order the courts to drop the suit. Which would not surprise me at all.  After all, he was getting “The One” elected was he not?

Just more living proof that socialist scum have no originality and what they cannot legally use; they steal. Just look at all of the bail-outs of the banks, and auto companies. They were stealing our money to bail out failed businesses. Look at all the property that has been taken by the Government under the “Eminent domain” laws; liberals gave us that nonsense. It means that one day, the Government can say, “we want this property” and they can set you out, and take you property, no questions asked. That is basically legalized theft. Which is basically what this Fairey guy is trying to do. Which is stealing someone else’s property in the name of art.

Ha! Good Luck with that!

Posted on

Oh this is too funny.

Reverend Al Sharpton and his lawyers say they are preparing to file a defamation lawsuit against conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh for an op-ed published Saturday, which Sharpton alleges “erroneously” characterizes his (Sharpton’s) role in a string of violent incidents in New York in the early 90’s.

In the op-ed published in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal Limbaugh writes Sharpton “played a leading role in the 1991 Crown Heights riot (he called neighborhood Jews ‘diamond merchants’) and 1995 Freddie’s Fashion Mart riot.”

The Crown Heights riot began after a Hasidic Rabbi accidently struck and killed an African American boy with his car. The boy died from the injuries–sparking four nights of riots. The Rabbi was not charged, but Sharpton played a large role in rallying on behalf of the young boy’s family and the African American community.

According to a statement put out by Sharpton’s media consultant, a study New York Governor Mario Cuomo commissioned showed Sharpton was not involved in the Crown Heights incident until after the rioting concluded.

“Mr. Limbaugh’s blatant and defamatory statements regarding the Crown Heights Riots falsely give the impression that Rev. Sharpton was present during the violence that occurred when in reality he had been called in by the family after the violence,” Sharpton’s statement says.

via CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive – Sharpton threatens suit against Limbaugh « – Blogs from CNN.com.

I would give anything to be in that Courtroom, when Al Sharpton and his lawyers get their butts handed to them by the Judge for filing a frivolous lawsuit. Looks like Al Sharpton and his crowd of baffoons can dish it out, but they cannot take it. Which is quite typical of people of their ilk. Besides that; there is evidence that Rush is absolutely right. The evidence is right on, what else? Wikipedia: (H/T JammieWearingFool)

The Crown Heights riot began on August 19, 1991, after a car driven by a Jewish man, and part of a procession led by an unmarked police car, went through an intersection and was struck by another vehicle causing it to veer onto the sidewalk where it accidentally struck and killed a seven-year-old Guyanese boy named Gavin Cato and severely injured his cousin Angela. Witnesses could not agree upon the speed and could not agree whether the light was yellow or red. One of the factors that sparked the riot was the arrival of a private ambulance which, on the orders of a police officer worried for the Jewish driver’s safety, removed the uninjured driver from the scene while Cato lay pinned under his car.[42] Cato and his cousin were treated soon after by a city ambulance. Caribbean-American and African-American residents of the neighborhood rioted for four consecutive days fueled by rumors that the private ambulance had refused to treat Cato.[38][42] During the riot blacks looted stores,[42] beat Jews in the street,[42] and clashed with groups of Jews, hurling rocks and bottles at one another [43] after Yankel Rosenbaum, a visiting student from Australia, was stabbed and killed by a member of a mob shouting “Kill the Jew.”[44] Sharpton, who arranged a rally in Crown Heights after Cato’s death,[42] has been seen by some commentators as inflaming tensions by making remarks that included “If the Jews want to get it on, tell them to pin their yarmulkes back and come over to my house”[45] and referring to Jews as “diamond merchants.”[46]

Sharpton marched through Crown Heights and in front of “770”, shortly after the riot, with about 400 protesters (who chanted “Whose streets? Our streets!” and “No justice, no peace!”), in spite of Mayor David Dinkins’s attempts to keep the march from happening.[47]

And what about this here, Al?

In 1995, a black Pentecostal Church, the United House of Prayer, which owned a retail property on 125th Street, asked Fred Harari, a Jewish tenant who operated Freddie’s Fashion Mart, to evict his longtime subtenant, a black-owned record store called The Record Shack. Sharpton led a protest in Harlem against the planned eviction of The Record Shack.[48][49][50] Sharpton told the protesters, “We will not stand by and allow them to move this brother so that some white interloper can expand his business.”[51]

On December 8, 1995, Roland J. Smith Jr., one of the protesters, entered Harari’s store with a gun and flammable liquid, shot several customers and set the store on fire. The gunman fatally shot himself, and seven store employees died of smoke inhalation.[52][53] Fire Department officials discovered that the store’s sprinkler had been shut down, in violation of the local fire code.[54] Sharpton claimed that the perpetrator was an open critic of himself and his nonviolent tactics. Sharpton later expressed regret for making the racial remark, “white interloper,” and denied responsibility for inflaming or provoking the violence.[13][55]

It is amazing how the Liberals, when cornered; like to lash out, accuse people of lying. But you can find the truth about them. All you have to do, is use the very tool created by them, to find the truth.

Update: Crossed Posted to Alexandria.

Rush Limbaugh speaks out on the N.F.L. Controversy

Posted on1 Comment

Rush Limbaugh gets the last word:

As I explained on my radio show, this spectacle is bigger than I am on several levels. There is a contempt in the news business, including the sportswriter community, for conservatives that reflects the blind hatred espoused by Messrs. Sharpton and Jackson. “Racism” is too often their sledgehammer. And it is being used to try to keep citizens who don’t share the left’s agenda from participating in the full array of opportunities this nation otherwise affords each of us. It was on display many years ago in an effort to smear Clarence Thomas with racist stereotypes and keep him off the Supreme Court. More recently, it was employed against patriotic citizens who attended town-hall meetings and tea-party protests.

These intimidation tactics are working and spreading, and they are a cancer on our society.

via Rush Limbaugh: The Race Card, Football and Me – WSJ.com.

Personally, I have tried to avoid writing about this controversy; because quite frankly, I found it all to be a bit absurd. However, it is fitting to note, that the left has always engaged in this sort of politically correct McCarthyism since about the 1960’s. To be fair and balanced, Rush did make a comment back in the 1970’s; that was totally and wildly inappropriate, when he told a black caller, who was having trouble hearing him or understanding him, to call him back, when he got the bone out of his nose. That was totally racist and should have gotten him fired. However, Rush did express regret for making the comment.  Further more, Rush state that he felt a particular player to be totally overrated; because in his words, “people always want to see a African-American succeed.” Many people felt that to be racist, but Rush was simply expressing his opinion.  Which, last time I checked, was not a Federal crime in this Country of ours.

Some Conservative Bloggers are not taking the news of Rush getting dumped well at all. Jack Moss, who runs Macsmind is pulling out all the stops:

I love the game of football too, but today I walked every bit of NFL gear out to the dumpster and tossed it. Additionally my participation is more than nominal – I will not mention to the extent – but I’m canceling that as well. But I can’t do it on my own.

I’m calling for conservative bloggers everywhere to follow suit. Rush listeners called in droves this week talking about canceling season tickets, and NFL packages on cable and dish TV.

The NFL is in a crunch right now trying to squeak out dollars everywhere. This is the time to hit them, when they are down and get the message to them loud and clear that we are not going to tolerate this discrimination against conservatives.

Pass the word, do your duty conservatives.

While I admire Jack’s courage and taking of this issue very seriously. I think he might be going overboard, just a tiny bit. Me personally, I never have been a huge football fan. To be quote honest; I find football hopelessly and extremely boring. I just do not understand the entertainment value of watching mostly African-American, steroid laden men, running up and down a field chasing a ball and beating each other senseless to get control of said ball. It must be in my wiring; because quite frankly, I just do not get it at all. Baseball; that is another story. Hit the ball, head for the bases and hope like hell that the outfielders cannot catch. That I get, but football — I just do not get the concept. Nor do I care to. To me it seems to be a bit of a base sport, that requires muscles and not much brains; which possibly explains why many African-Americans play it. 😯 😮 Did I say that? 😯

Others: Macsmind, Sister Toldjah, Vox Popoli, NewsBusters.org, Riehl World View American Thinker via Memeorandum

News from a different perspective

Posted on1 Comment

Fundamental Baptist Information Service October 16, 2009

PDF VERSION

FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES

October 16, 2009, Volume 10, Issue 42

The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature’s Fundamental Baptist Information Service. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of sources, but this does not imply an endorsement. For instructions on how to unsubscribe to this list or to change mailing addresses, please consult the information paragraph at the end.

U.S. PRESIDENT PROMISES HOMOSEXUALS THE MOON AND EXPRESSES COMPLETE DISDAIN TOWARD SUPPORTERS OF TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE (Friday Church News Notes, October 16, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) – The following is excerpted from “Obama: Homosexual Relationships ‘Just as Real and Admirable’ as Heterosexual Marriage,” CNSNews, Oct. 13, 2009: “President Obama delivered an unprecedented message to the Human Rights Campaign Saturday night. Sounding more like a homosexual activist than a sitting president, Obama went well beyond his expected message of ‘I’m here with you’ on the homosexual agenda. ‘My expectation is that when you look back on these years, you will see a time in which we put a stop to discrimination against gays and lesbians–whether in the office or on the battlefield,’ Obama told an estimated audience of 3,000. ‘You will see a time in which we as a nation finally recognize relati onships between two men or two women as just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and a woman.’ Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese said, ‘This was a historic night when we felt the full embrace and commitment of the President of the United States.’ Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, told CNSNews.com. ‘I think this is the ultimate Obama audacity play–for him, just declaring it seems to make it so. … he also mentioned his support for a laundry list of homosexual activist issues, including bringing an end to the military’s ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy on homosexuals serving in the military and overturning the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as being between one man and one woman. … [T]he president also characterized those who oppose the homosexual agenda in terminology reminiscent of last year’s presidential campaign, when then-candida te Obama, campaigning in Pennsylvania, referred to ‘bitter’ residents of small-town America who ‘cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them.’ Obama told Saturday’s event that there are still people ‘who hold fast to outworn arguments and old attitudes; who fail to see your families like their families; who would deny you the rights most Americans take for granted.’”

HOMOSEXUAL HATE CRIMES LEGISLATION POISED TO BECOME LAW (Friday Church News Notes, October 16, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) – The following is excerpted from LifeSiteNews.com, Oct. 13, 2009: “In what appears to mark the end of a years-long battle over homosexual hate crime legislation in America, the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday passed a law authorizing the federal government to intervene in violent crimes that appear motivated by hatred of homosexuals. The hate crimes language passed in a 281-146 vote as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill, with 15 Democrats and 131 Republicans voting against the must-pass bill in apparent protest against the hate crime language. The expanded hate crime legislation would extend special protection to victims of crime based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. The measure is now poised to become law after final approval by the Senate. President Obama, as an avowed supporter of the homosexual lobby, is expected to sign the measure. … Commenting on Thursday, Family Research President Tony Perkins said that the law ‘sets us on a slippery slope toward serious infringements of the freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Hate crime legislation will lay the legal foundation and framework for investigating, prosecuting and persecuting pastors, business owners, and anyone else whose actions reflect their faith.’”

EVOLUTIONISTS RE-EVALUATING NUMBER OF DINOSAURS (Friday Church News Notes, October 16, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) – National Geographic is reporting that as many as a third of alleged dinosaur species might never have existed. The report is based on new findings that juvenile dinosaurs have mistakenly been labeled as separate species from their parents because paleontologists didn’t understand how different they looked in the juvenile stage. National Geographic says, “… young dinosaurs didn’t look like Mini-Me versions of their parents, according to new analyses by paleontologists Mark Goodwin, University of California, Berkeley, and Jack Horner, of Montana State University. Instead, like birds and some other living animals, the juveniles went through dramatic physical changes during adulthood. This means many fossils of young dinosaurs, including T. rex relatives, have been misidentified as unique species, the researchers ar gue. … The lean and graceful Nanotyrannus is one strong example. Thought to be a smaller relative of T. rex, the supposed species is now considered by many experts to be based on a misidentified fossil of a juvenile T. rex” (“A Third of Dinosaur Species Never Existed?” National Geographic News, Oct. 9, 2009). This report shows how terribly fallible the evolutionist fossil investigators are. It also lessens the number of animals that would have been on Noah’s Ark. Noah did not have to carry every sub-species, such as every kind of dog, into the Ark. He only had to carry a representative of each kind. The average size of the dinosaurs, based on the fossil record, was the size of a sheep or small pony (M. Crichton, The Lost World, p. 122). Struthiomimus, for example, was the size of an ostrich, and Compsognathus was the size of a chicken. Thus, only some so-called dinosaurs were overly large, and of these, Noah could have taken the eggs or juveniles. Since repti les can grow as long as they live, the large dinosaurs were probably very old ones (The New Answers Book). Even the largest dinosaurs were small when first hatched. “There were probably fewer than 50 distinct groups or kinds of dinosaurs that had to be on the Ark” (Ken Ham, The New Answers Book, p. 168).

Read More …

Falcon the boy ballooner is found safe

Posted on

So, Falcon is found safe…..and the world goes Whew!

But leave it AllahPundit to piss on the Parade!

Imagine if they’d sent the National Guard up there to try to rescue him and a Guardsman fell to his death. Million-dollar exit question: The cops didn’t think to check every room on the property before kicking off an international media frenzy?

Well, he does have a point; that could have happened. I’m just glad the kid is okay. Falcon had better be glad that he is not my kid! I’d be beating me some little boy behind with a BELT! 😮 😯

I’m just glad that he is okay. 😀

Exit Question: Liberals? or just lousy Parents?

Robert Wexler to step down.

Posted on

So says the Miami Herald:

U.S. House of Representatives member Robert Wexler of Boca Raton, a self-described “fire-breathing liberal,” defender of Israel and friend of both President Barack Obama and Gov. Charlie Crist, is quitting Congress to head a think tank seeking peace in the Middle East.

In a conference call Tuesday night with Democratic leaders, Wexler said he will become director of the Washington-based Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation. Wexler, 48, is expected to make a public statement about his plans at a 10 a.m. Wednesday press conference at his Boca Raton office.

The jockeying to represent his heavily Democratic congressional district began in earnest Tuesday as the news of his departure began to leak out.

“I’m still a little bit in shock over all this,” said state Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Parkland, though he added he was “for sure” considering a run for the seat.

Other potential Democratic contenders in the district covering parts of North Broward and Palm Beach counties are state Sen. Ted Deutch of Delray Beach, West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel, Broward County Mayor Stacy Ritter and former Broward County Commissioner Ben Graber.

Once Wexler’s resignation becomes official, state law requires Crist to call a special election. That can leave candidates little time to raise funds and campaign, and sometimes makes for an unpredictable and chaotic race.

Some of you might be expecting me to trash this guy. Sorry, Just not going to do that. I will give my honest opinion of the man. When I was still doing the “Left of Center” blogger thing; I admired this guy. He stood up for what he believed in. The problem is; he, like Cindy Sheehan, had become a caricature of himself. Basically, the man just kept pounding the drum of “Impeach Bush”, until it was quite annoying, even for Democrats. Wexler most likely knows that he cannot change, or further his goal of getting Bush impeached or prosecuted for war crimes. So, he is going to work on the outside.

Honestly, I actually feel sorry for people like Wexler and Sheehan; because they were used by the Democratic Party, as a means to an end. Sheehan for her Son and Wexler for his voice. But, then again, that is how the Democratic Party operates. Just look at the Black Community; the very same party that fought to keep slavery legal, and to keep segregation legal is now using that same very group for votes. It is a sad and quite sickening thing to observe.

Memeorandum has the round up.

Update: Here is Wexler’s Official Statement:

Dear Pat,

Today, with both sadness and excitement, I announced that I am leaving Congress in January to accept the position of President of the Center for Middle East Peace, a non-profit institute devoted to achieving a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East

This decision was not easy:  I love my job and my devoted staff, and have a long, close relationship with my constituents – many of whom I’ve served for nearly 20 years.

Throughout my 13 years in Congress, I sought to be an advocate for democratic values and provide a voice to vitally important progressive causes. Whether it was working to end the use of torture by the Bush Administration, fighting for a legitimate vote during election 2000, successfully pushing for a voter verified paper trail in Florida, or our shared quest for genuine accountability these last few years – I’m proud of the stands I’ve taken.  I am even prouder to have had you standing with me.

Those who have followed my career know that in addition to the progressive causes I have championed, one of my overriding passions has been my work on the Foreign Affairs Committee helping to ensure the unbreakable bond between the United States and Israel, and promoting a comprehensive peace between Israel and the Palestinians and Israel and the Arab world.

While I regret that I will be unable to complete my current term in office, I truly believe we are at a unique and critically tense moment in the history of the Middle East and decisions made today will shape the world for years to come.  There is no time to waste.

The work on issues of accountability did not start with me, nor will it end with me leaving office.  This movement has always been driven by you – and your support for the vital causes we have worked on together.

One of the great lessons I learned in my time in Congress I learned from you – and it is this:
If you stand up for and defend the constitution and rule of law, you will gain the support of hundreds of thousands of citizens across the country.

Thank you for having being part of my team and, most especially, for being brave American patriots.

With warm regards,

Congressman Robert Wexler

Here is the statement from his Congress Page:

(Boca Raton, FL) Today, Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL) issued the following statement:

“Today, I am announcing that I will be accepting the position of president of the Center for Middle East Peace and will leave Congress effective in January of 2010.

“More than anything, I want to thank the voters of Palm Beach and Broward Counties who have allowed me the privilege of representing our community in the United States House of Representatives and the Florida Senate for the past nineteen years.  I have truly cherished the opportunity to serve my constituents – many of whom make up the generation that sacrificed in World War II and Korea and rebuilt our nation after the Great Depression.

“I have both admired and learned from my constituents, especially their love of country and commitment to community.

“I am proud that everyday I have sought to advocate for and provide a voice to my constituents: whether it was fighting for a legitimate vote during the 2000 election, working toward enacting a voter verified paper trail in Florida, or advocating for health care, education, Social Security and countless other issues. Therefore, my decision to leave Congress did not come easy.

“Those who know me, and those who have followed my career know that one of my overriding passions has been my work on the Foreign Affairs Committee helping to strengthen and preserve the unbreakable bond between the United States and Israel, and working toward a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East between Israelis and Palestinians and between Israel and the Arab world. Additionally, I have made a special effort to improve congressional relations with key allies in the Muslim world by founding the Turkey and Indonesia caucuses. Moreover, it was an extraordinary honor to serve as a Middle East advisor to President Obama during the presidential campaign, and I treasure the experiences I had traveling the country, and especially throughout Florida, advocating for the President’s Middle East agenda.

“Taking over as president of the Center for Middle East Peace offers me an unparalleled opportunity to work on behalf of Middle East peace for an important and influential non-profit institute. After much discussion with my family, I have decided that I cannot pass up on this opportunity.

“My one regret is that I will be unable to complete my current term in office, but I truly believe there is no time to waste.  We are at a unique and critically tense moment in the history of the Middle East with both significant opportunities to succeed in the Arab-Israeli conflict as well as major challenges involving Iran, Hamas, and al Qaeda. In the coming months, Israeli and Arab leaders will be faced with monumental decisions that will dramatically affect the region and the entire world for decades to come. Critically important American security and foreign policy interests are also at stake. I am convinced that now is the time for me to engage on these issues on a full time basis.”

Does Bank of America have a problem with the American flag and our war dead?

Posted on

It sure seems that way to me.

First of all a very big tip of the hat to John Sykes on twitter for bringing this story to my attention.

The Video:

The Story: (H/T Captain’s Journal)

Via Greenville Online:

Only the faint sound of lightly marching feet could be heard as hundreds stood silent on the Greenville-Spartanburg International tarmac Wednesday while fully adorned Marines carried Lance Cpl. Chris Fowlkes’ flag-draped coffin.

The solemn arrival began an afternoon-long procession that ultimately wound through the streets of the 20-year-old Marine’s hometown of Gaffney, where businesses shut down and mourners lined the streets.

The homecoming came six days after the former Gaffney High School football player died in a military hospital in Germany from injuries sustained a week earlier in an explosion in the Helman province of Afghanistan.

Well-wishers waved flags, saluted and shed tears as an army of police cars escorted Fowlkes’ family along the 40-mile stretch from the airport to the town.

Among them were those who knew Fowlkes and remembered his life fondly.

Dan Phillips, a family friend who waited for the escort outside the Blakely Funeral Home in Gaffney where Fowlkes’ body will remain until a memorial service today and burial on Saturday, said that Fowlkes had spoken with his grandmother not long before he was killed.

She had talked with her grandson over the phone, Phillips said, and asked him if he missed being home as school was getting started again.

“He told her, ‘No, I’m right where I want to be,’” Phillips said. “That’s a very powerful statement.”

Indeed it is a powerful statement, many of our finest, bravest and best young men are going and fighting in a war; so that the rest of us can be safe from terrorists, who want to harm this Nation and our people in it. You would think that everyone in this Nation would be proud of something like that, and would want to honor their bravery and sacrifice. Well, it seems that some, in the interest of political correctness, want to dishonor our war dead.

That “some” is Bank of America.

The Story via The Palmetto Scoop:

A South Carolina Bank of America branch is drawing criticism Thursday after an employee reportedly ordered the removal of American flags placed to honor a fallen Marine over fears that people would be offended.

The Palmetto Scoop received one eyewitness email claiming that the branch manager at Bank of America’s Gaffney branch at 1602 West Floyd Baker Blvd. “told a citizen who was preparing the route for a U.S. Marine killed in action in Afghanistan by placing small American flags along the roadway that the flags might upset some of her customers.”

Said the outraged tipster, “[The branch manager] took them down and made the citizen go in to get them if she didn’t want them thrown away.”

The flags were part of the funeral procession of Lance Corporal Christopher Fowlkes, 20, who died last week after an explosion in Afghanistan’s Helmand province.

WSPA-TV has also received similar tips about the “flag flap.”

A teller at the branch confirmed to TPS that the branch manager had been there around the time of the incident but had left for the day.

Bank of America released a statement apologizing for the incident and celled it a misunderstanding.

“We want to ensure the community knows how deeply proud we are of the men and women who have sacrificed so much in service to our country,” the statement said. “The bank does fly the American Flag at our locations throughout the country and flags were displayed in front of our banking center in Gaffney the evening prior to our dedicated Marine returning home.”

___________

UPDATE: WCBD in Charleston reports that Bank of America said the incident was a “miscommunication in corporate policy.” That raises the question, which policy would require employees to remove American flags that are part of a funeral procession for a fallen Marine?

Mis-communication my hind leg. Someone in that damned bank was some sort of hippy liberal and was offended by the very damned site of Patriotism.

Herschel Smith over at Captain’s Journal weighs in:

So should BofA rename their corporation to bank of Russia?  Is it Bank of America, or is it not?  With whose offense were they worried?  Really.  Who, exactly, would have come into the bank and demanded that an American flag be removed for a Marine who perished in Afghanistan?  And why would Bank of AMERICA have cared?

What corporate policy was in effect?  Was this a branch-specific issue, or is there a corporate policy that forbids the displaying of American flags for the fear of causing offense?  Who was responsible for removing the flags?  Has corporate policy been changed?  If so, why was the policy in effect?  If not, what is the justification for the policy?  Will Bank of AMERICA issue a formal apology to the Fowlkes family first and then to AMERICA?

There are many unanswered questions concerning this ugly incident.  I feel that it’s necessary for a BofA official to formally comment on this article to enlighten my readers.

Indeed, I would like Bank of America to enlighten the rest of the Conservative Blogosphere as well. I would like to also see this Branch Manager terminated as well. A simply apology is NOT enough this man needs to be fired from his Job. He disrespected the war dead; there is no excuse, he must go, now.

Here is the contact information for Bank of America Corporate Office:

Bank of America Corporate Center
100 North Tryon Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28255
Tel: 1.800.432.1000

REMEMBER: Be Civil, No Threats or anything stupid like that! Simply ask to speak to someone in charge; and ask them if they believe that ordering people to remove American Flags respecting the Nation’s War dead is acceptable corporate policy and if not, why they would continue employ someone who would feel that way; and why they would allow this to happen. You could also kindly suggest that if this person was not terminated that you would take your business and money elsewhere.

Georgia Racist Bar Owner Redux

Posted on

As you all well know; I pointed out yesterday that the Georgia Bar owner had ties to the White Nationalist movement. Which prompted some idiot, who either reads mine or Robert Stacy McCain‘s blog to try and defend the ignorant douche Nozzle. Which resulted me in giving the idiot the once over here on the blog.

In process of pointing out that this idiot was, in fact, White Nationalist, I gave R.S. McCain a gentle poke in the ribs; to basically inform him that he forgot to use Google. Well, being the Southern Gentleman that he is, he responded:

My friend at Political Byline discovered that, according to Stormfront (which ought to know), Patrick Lanzo has made his restaurant available for “white pride” events organized by, inter alia, the late J.B. Stoner.

OK, so if this is true, it clearly puts Lanzo on the far side of a clearly defined line between any sort of mere “political incorrectness” and outright hatemongering.

Paleo Pat’s research is appreciated; however, I disagree with his characterization that my own previous discussion of Lanzo’s restaurant as “spinning” for Lanzo. As I clearly said, “To explain is not to defend.” Obviously, I erred in failing to research Lanzo before endeavoring to explain him, which makes me guilty of carelessness, and I appreciate Paleo Pat clarifying the nature of Lanzo’s operation.

What J.B. Stoner promoted ought to be called by its right name: Evil. Did Lanzo know what he was getting himself into when he hosted Stoner’s events? I don’t know. But he either needs to reconsider his actions or else admit that he’s on the other side of that line.

I’ll except that explanation. I realize that Stacy is a busy man with a wife and what… 36 kids? So, this will suffice. I was kind of using a well-known tag line that is used by the left, when someone tries to explain something. You know, “Oh, he’s just spinning!” Did I also mention that I like to play mind games with people? 😉 😛 😀 It is a perverse joy of mine; and it is so easy too, with the sheep that we have running around these days. (Anyone who has read the book, knows of what I speak.)

The real funny part about this is; that I made the LGF’ers get all excited for about a second and then suddenly deflated their balloon just as quick. It seems ol’ Klingore Trout linked here; using Google Cache and then realized a few seconds later, that I was not on his side. That alone, made writing that blog posting and the subsequent piece from the mailbag worth every minute of my time writing it. I really do love doing the “Mental Joust” with intellectual midgets; it is quite the fun sport.  Anyhow,  This prompted Charles Johnson to call me, “the new hero of the right“.  While I am most humbled by his compliment; I hardly call myself a hero. Of course, when one jousts with those who foolishly believe that the Government is the solution to all of the world’s and by proxy. the Nation’s problems; one can only expect so much. Of course, I humbly submit that if one gave Mr. Johnson a blow up doll, a ball of yarn, and a yo-yo; that he would become so disoriented that his cranial matter would self-combust.  But I digress.

In other news:

She got married.

Whew. Someone’s gonna have hootin’ nanny of a good time in Ireland!  My Prediction; she comes back Pregnant…..with twins. 😮 😛

Shootout in Toledo Ohio Bar

Posted on

Oh, this is just too damned rich….

First the Video:

Now, the story; via the Toledo Blade:

A late-night disagreement between two men in a bar becomes a stare-down.

One side throws fists, and a brief brawl breaks out. Customers scatter. Tables are overturned. Friends on the sidelines straighten their postures and walk tough. Others grab their coats and head for the door.

Some physical commotion is not uncommon at evening establishments where alcohol is served. But it’s what happened next on Thursday evening inside the Route 66 Kitchen in West Toledo that has unsettled some Toledoans.

With surveillance cameras rolling, several figures pulled out handguns and engaged in a shootout that raged inside and outside the bar for several minutes. Seventeen shell casings littered the floor or ground before the gun battle petered out, leaving a front door riddled with bullet holes and scenes of lawless mayhem preserved on video.

Amazingly, no one was hurt.

Welcome to Obama’s America. These are the one’s that voted for Obama and they’re the one’s that Obama is using for votes —- er, um, I mean “Fighting For”.

This is not to say that White people could not do this; they could, and sometimes do. But you have to believe, unless you’re totally stupid, that socialism and yes, Liberals played a big part in this.

News from an Fundamentalist Christian point of view

Posted on

PDF VERSION

FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES

October 9, 2009, Volume 10, Issue 41

The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature’s Fundamental Baptist Information Service. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of sources, but this does not imply an endorsement. For instructions on how to unsubscribe to this list or to change mailing addresses, please consult the information paragraph at the end.

NEW APE-MAN ANNOUNCED (Friday Church News Notes, October 9, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) – Evolutionary paleoanthropologists have announced the discovery of a new ape-man they are calling Ardipithecus ramidus. Supposedly 4.4 million years old, the first fossils of this creature were found 15 years ago in Ethiopia. A partial skeleton dubbed “Ardi” has been presented to the public by its founders, which include Tim White, who was also involved in the “Lucy” discovery. Ardi has an ape head, ape arms, ape hands, ape legs and feet, and is no compelling reason to say it is anything other than an extinct ape other than the extreme evolutionary bias of modern paleoanthropologists. Having rejected the God of the Bible, they have been searching for the missing link for 150 years. This is in spite of the fact that evolutionary ape-men have repeatedly turned out to be either hoaxes or cases of mistaken identity (e.g., Neanderthal man, Java man, Piltdown man, Peking man, Nebraska man). As was the case with previous ape-men, Ardi has her own drawings. She is depicted as an upright creature that has an ape’s head and feet, but otherwise looking like a hairy woman. This is purely mythical. Ardi doubtless looked nothing like a human being. Its founders claim that she walked upright, but, as is the case with Lucy, this is disputed even by other evolutionary scientists. Ian Tattersall, curator of the American Museum of Natural History, admitted to National Public Radio that “some people are even suggesting there’s not much evidence of bipedality at all” (“Researchers Unearth A Hominid More Ancient Than Lucy,” NPR, Science Friday, Oct. 2, 2009). I have observed rhesus macaque monkeys in Kathmandu, Nepal, walking upright for considerable distances, but they are neither “bipedal” nor “missing links.” Seven years ago, Science magazine reported that “skeptic s argue that the published fossils [of Ardi] are so chimplike that they may represent the long-lost ancestor of the chimp, not human, lineage” (Ann Gibbons, “In Search of the First Hominids,” Science, February 15, 2002). Time magazine reported that “looking at the evidence, different paleoanthropologists may have different interpretations of how Ardi moved or what she reveals about the last common ancestor of humans and chimps” (Michael Lemonick and Andrea Dorfman, “Excavating Ardi: A New Piece for the Puzzle of Human Evolution,” Time, Oct. 1, 2009). It is important to understand that the pelvis of Ardi was “found crushed nearly to smithereens and needed extensive digital reconstruction” (Time, Oct. 1, 2009). We are reminded of the daring reconstruction of Lucy’s pelvis in such a fashion that it now wondrously fits its founder’s hypothesis that it was bipedal.

QUEEN OF ENGLAND HAS AFFINITY WITH THE POPE (Friday Church News Notes, October 9, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) – The following is excerpted from “Queen ‘Appalled’ at Church of England Moves,” London Telegraph, Oct. 3, 2009: “When Pope Benedict visits this country next year, he is expected to stay at Buckingham Palace as a guest of the Queen. The warmth of her welcome will come as no surprise to the Pontiff, if senior sources at the Vatican are to be believed. According to informants quoted in The Catholic Herald, the Queen has ‘grown increasingly sympathetic’ to the Catholic Church over the years while being ‘appalled’, along with the Prince of Wales, at developments in the Church of England. The usually well-informed newspaper adds that the Queen, who is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, ‘also said to have an affinity with the Holy Father, who is of her generation.’&rd quo; CONCLUDING NOTE: The Anglican Church broke away from the Pope in the 16th century under King Henry VIII, but it has always retained many aspects of Romanism and over the past century has been permeated with theological liberalism. In 1982, Robert Runcie, Archbishop of Canterbury, said he was an agnostic as to why Jesus suffered on the cross (Sunday Times Weekly Review, London, April 11, 1982). (Billy Graham was one of the honored guests at Runcie’s ordination in 1980 and spoke highly of the heretical archbishop during his evangelistic crusades in England in 1984 and 1989.)

Read More …

In case anyone has forgotten

Posted on

This is the real cost of war.

LittleSoldierGirlPaigeinFormation

NBC in Philly has the whole story

White House is screwing the War in Afghanistan to hell

Posted on4 Comments

Not a big surprise, considering the President’s middle name; I mean after all, The President does not even want the words “War on Terror” used anymore.

This comes via the AP:

President Barack Obama is prepared to accept some Taliban involvement in Afghanistan‘s political future and appears inclined to send only as many more U.S. troops as needed to keep al-Qaida at bay, a senior administration official said Thursday.

The sharpened focus by Obama’s team on fighting al-Qaida above all other goals, while downgrading the emphasis on the Taliban, comes in the midst of an intensely debated administration review of the increasingly unpopular eight-year-old war.

Though aides stress that the president’s final decision on any changes is still at least two weeks away, the emerging thinking suggests that he would be very unlikely to favor a large military increase of the kind being advocated by the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

McChrystal’s troop request is said to include a range of options, from adding as few as 10,000 combat troops to — the general’s strong preference — as many as 40,000.

Obama’s developing strategy on the Taliban will “not tolerate their return to power,” the senior official said in an interview with The Associated Press. But the U.S. would fight only to keep the Taliban from retaking control of Afghanistan’s central government — something it is now far from being capable of — and from giving renewed sanctuary in Afghanistan to al-Qaida, the official said.

[….]

There now are no more than 100 al-Qaida in Afghanistan. Instead, the U.S. fight in Afghanistan is against the Taliban, now increasingly being defined by the Obama team as distinct from al-Qaida. While still dangerous, the Taliban is seen as an indigenous movement with almost entirely local and territorial aims, less of a threat to the U.S. than the terrorist network.

Obama’s team believes some elements in the Taliban are aligned with al-Qaida, with its transnational reach and aims of attacking the West, but probably not the majority and mostly for tactical rather than ideological reasons, the official said.

“They’re not the same type of group,” White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. “It’s certainly not backed up by any of the intelligence.”

That leaves the primary aim in Afghanistan to deny al-Qaida any ability to regroup there as it did when the Taliban was in power before the 2001 invasion that ousted them. And this points to a smaller military increase in Afghanistan and a bigger focus on surgical strikes against terrorists in Pakistan and elsewhere — essentially the approach being advocated by Biden as an alternative to the McChrystal recommendation for a fuller counterinsurgency effort inside Afghanistan.

Biden has argued for keeping the American force there around the 68,000 already authorized, including the 21,000 extra troops Obama ordered earlier this year, but significantly increasing the use of unmanned Predator drones and special forces that have been successful in Pakistan, Somalia and elsewhere.

[….]

Clinton has not tipped her hand as to how she is leaning in the sessions, according to aides. While she is broadly supportive of building up troop levels — although not necessarily in the numbers favored by McChrystal — she also believes the military cannot be the only focus, said the aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to detail her views.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates, long wary of a large troop presence in Afghanistan, appears to have grown more comfortable with the prospect of a moderate, middle-path increase.

Many lawmakers from Obama’s own Democratic Party do not want to see additional U.S. troops sent to Afghanistan. According to a new Associated Press-GfK poll, public support for the war has dropped to 40 percent from 44 percent in July.

Republicans, meanwhile, are urging Obama to heed the military commanders’ calls soon or risk failure. “Unnecessary delay could undermine our opportunity for success,” House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio said Thursday.

So, while President Obama and Hillary Clinton are playing political chess and trying not to offend one another; our troops are dying on the battlefield. Terrific.

AllahPundit over at HotAir.com, who was in New York during the 9/11 attacks; is quite livid:

They’re looking for any way they can to avoid giving McChrystal the troops he says he needs to secure the country, so they’ve come up with a way out. If the people we’ve been fighting for eight years aren’t the enemy, then the country no longer needs to be secured from them, does it?

[…]

In other words, rather than eat crap by forthrightly admitting he’s prepared to abandon huge swaths of the country to Islamist fascists rather than invest another 40,000 troops, he’s going to create an artificial distinction between the Taliban and Al Qaeda to let him save face by claiming he’s focused on “the real enemy.” Much like how he was focused during the campaign on “the good war” in Afghanistan rather than “the bad war” in Iraq. I wonder how long it’ll be before he decides that not everyone who’s in Al Qaeda is an enemy either — or, better yet, that AQ’s been “substantially defeated” or something, which has been the unstated thrust of all those WH-leaked pieces in the press lately about how weak Bin Laden’s gang has become. Why, I’ll bet in a year or so we’ll be told that they’re so weak that we can start pulling out of Afghanistan altogether. Things sure have improved over there since Bush was president, huh?

I would not want to be in the United States Military right now for no amount of money in the world. Not with that idiot buffoon running the Military. The man has zero, and I do mean ZERO clue how to fight a war. I feel for our boys over there right now; because, quite frankly, they are trapped. Just like in Vietnam.

The real sick and sad part is; that the Republican and the Democrats both are taking this whole, “Whatever you decide to do boss! We’ll support you, all the way!” attitude; because none of them have the damn guts to stand up and tell this jack assed idiot to either damn lead or resign and let someone else lead for him. That is what makes me so damned angry.

Update: Video: (H/T to reader Stephanie)

As Stephanie said, this is going to be tough one. But he does need to stand up and lead and quit putting it off.

Others: Atlas Shrugs,  The Long War Journal, Flopping Aces, Stop The ACLU, theblogprof, War in Context and Pajamas Media

Updated: BREAKING NEWS: President Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize Liberals even shocked

Posted on

My first question is, For what?

Via the NYT:

OSLO — In a stunning surprise, the Nobel Committee announced Friday that it had awarded its annual peace prize to President Obama “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”

“He has created a new international climate,” the committee said in its announcement. President Obama’s name had not figured in speculation about the likely winner until minutes before the prize was announced here.

Likely candidates had been seen here as including human rights activists in China and Afghanistan and political figures in Africa.

The committee said it wanted to enhance Mr. Obama’s diplomatic efforts. “We are awarding Obama for what he has done,” the committee said. “Many other people and leaders and nations have to respond in a positive way” to President Obama’s diplomacy.

The announcement noted the special importance the committee attached to President Obama’s vision of a world without nuclear weapons. “Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play,” the committee said.

I have been watching twitter since this news broke and boy are the Conservative blogger angry. Wow! 😮

Anyhow, I do not think he deserves it; he has done nothing. But, that is your liberal world for you. Reward you for doing nothing. Just look at all these bailouts and such.

It is a bit of a shock, but hardly a surprise.

Update: Memeorandum has the roundup.

Update #2: Even Liberals are asking themselves, “Why?” Rob Kall, Who runs Op Ed News; which is about as Liberal, as I am Conservative, Writes:

I woke up to a text message from CNN that Obama had won the Nobel peace prize. First thought– “Why? What did he do to earn it? Extend the Afghan war? Send thousands of storm trooper police to Pittsburgh for G-20?

[…]

But maybe Josh is right. Maybe it will inspire Obama, who’s proven to be a disappointment so far, to live up to the honor. Maybe it will give him an attitudinal boost so he finds more spine to represent the people who voted for him. Maybe it will get the right wing blowhards to STFU. Maybe it will give him the spine it takes to tell his DLC, right wing Dem advisors to STFU and maybe even leave.

Ironically, I feel little pride in this awarding of the Nobel. I don’t think he deserves it. Sure, it’s a nice image boost for the US and the Democrats, but it is a failure by the Nobel committee. If they had waited until Obama made his decision on Afghanistan, and he did the right thing– stand up to a General with a hard-on for un-ending war, and all his backers, then Obama would have deserved it. I pray the Nobel committee knows something we don’t know about Obama and Afghanistan.

Now, we have a “peace price winning” president about to commit tens of thousands more troops to a never ending war in a country that has never been defeated.

[…]

Let’s hope the prize inspires Obama, not just to be a peace maker but also to be a stronger president who stands up to the corporations which have waged war against humanity. Maybe he’ll pay attention to Justice Sotomayor’s questions about corporate personhood and wage the good war, ending the longest war of human history– and kill the right of corporations to be treated as persons.

Awarding the prize to someone who is older, whose work with war and the possibilities for peace is done is a passive act. Awarding the price to someone who has the potential to make a difference, well that’s a bold step to take, a gamble. I still have a little hope that Obama will find his inner strength, cast off the corporate enablers rife throughout his administration and do the right things, maybe with Michelle Obama’s inspiration. Maybe this award will help. Maybe it will remind him of what he could become– a great man who goes down in history for standing up to the powerful tides and forces within and outside his party which pushed him to do more of the same. Maybe he will reject the garbage the corpsestream media spews, the pressure the lobbyists apply and the corruption and sold out humanity within the beltway.

Sometimes extraordinary things result from extraordinary acts are done. This could be one of those times. Let us hope.

Now, while I disagree with some of the thoughts articulated here; as they are from a Liberal standpoint; I must commend Rob for having the boldness to express his true feelings about this President. I wonder. are the Obama-Bots going to call Rob a racist bigot? I wonder. As they sure do love to call me that, quite a bit.

As for his feelings about Obama being a disappointment; That is because he overreached so horribly bad, and now, people are having a case of buyers remorse.

Yes, Twitter is down or at least wonky

Posted on

Heh…..

The Story via Chicago Now:

I’m not sure what’s worse … Twitter being completely down or being so slow that you see no updates from your friends.

Today it’s the latter. Normally I have like a hundred replies to things I’ve posted by now and there’s not a single one. And each time a RedEye staffer logs in, they are asking if it’s down because there’s nothing happening.

And how about this juicy tidbit — everytime Twitter experiences a slowdown or outage, it’s almost ALWAYS on a Thursday. I know this because it happens before @redeyechicago’s #80slunch.


Tell you what I think … we’ve got the Fail Whale when Twitter’s down. I think we need a mascot for when it’s slow. I nominate the Fail Turtle.
Now, while my reaction might not be as strong the above video. But it is kind of annoying. As I use Twitter, for traffic and other such stuff. They’re working on it, so they say. So, We’ll see.
By the way, in case you pay zero attention to my sidebars. I am RightBloggerPat on twitter. Hopefully, Twitter fixes this, so people can actually see/read/hear me again. 😀
The Round up of moans at TechMeMe