This an excellent video: (Via True Conservatives on Facebook)
Tag: Libertarian
Surprise!: Democrats make promises that they cannot keep
The problem is, the only people that are surprised are the in-the-tank media and possibly some of Obama’s loyal followers.
It’s looking more and more like Barack Obama’s pledge to usher in a new era of openness in government may well go unfulfilled.
Yesterday, administration lawyers cited national security concerns to argue that Bush-era documents detailing the videotaped interrogations of detainees should not be released. And in the wake of that news, open-government advocates are reluctantly acknowledging that, despite Obama’s campaign promises, his approach to secrecy on issues of national security will likely not depart significantly from that of George Bush.
“The Obama administration is not going to represent an abrupt departure from Bush-era policy,” Steven Aftergood, who runs the Federation of American Scientists’ Project on Government Secrecy, told TPMmuckraker. “If we thought they were, we were mistaken.”
He added that it’s no longer realistic to think that Obama’s administration will take a strong stand in favor of openness on national security issues. “We have to recalibrate our expectations.”
The above is why I believe that Blogs, especially Independent bloggers; like myself, play important role in our Nation’s political process. Because I blogged long ago, on this blog and on my previous blog; that whomever was elected President, would end up not fulfilling all of the campaign promises. As long as our Government is controlled by outside forces, I.E. The UN and others; promises like that ones that President Obama made during his campaign, will go unfulfilled. It is a plain and sobering fact. The President just does not control as much as people are lead to believe.
However, I will make this observation. I do not believe that Obama is totally to blame for some of the reversals. I believe that some of them were forced, because of National Security concerns. Again, more of that “big Government” that the Democrats and Neo-Conservatives just love and what true or Paleo-Conservatives and Libertarians loathe. We must protect our own misdeeds in the interest of National Security. It has been practice of our Government for years, to cover up. There are a great deal of examples of this.
So, while it might be convenient of the Liberal grass roots to go after Obama on this, I believe doing so masks the true issue at heart here, and that’s our already oversized and quite centralized Government.
Unemployment Soars higher than expected and the Dems solution is throw more money at it!
But of course, is that not what Democrats always do? When a problem arises, they throw more money at a problem and exert more Governmental Control over it; thinking that will fix it?
Anyhow, here is the story; The Voice of America reports:
The White House says America’s employment picture is worse than the Obama administration had anticipated just a few months ago. The somber admission follows the latest jobless report showing the highest unemployment rate the United States has seen in more than 25 years.
U.S. unemployment jumped a half percent in May, to 9.4 percent prompting this comment by Austan Goolsbee, a member of President Barack Obama’s Council of Economic Advisors:
“The economy clearly has gotten substantially worse from the initial predictions that were being made, not just by the White House, but by all of the private sector,” said Austan Goolsbee.
Economists point out that the current jobless rate is already higher than the hypothetical rate that was used to calculate the health of banks and other financial institutions in so-called “stress tests” earlier this year. And, the upward unemployment trajectory is expected to continue in coming months, even if the overall economy begins to recover.
But never fear your Government is on the case! They are going to do, what Government has always done; especially Liberal Governments. They going to throw money at the problem! Woo Hoo! 🙄
The Barack Obama Apologist, Politico reports:
President Barack Obama is announcing Monday that he is ramping up stimulus spending exponentially in the next three months, allowing the administration to “save or create” 600,00 jobs — four times as many as during the first 100 days since he signed the bill.
The spending plans include National Parks, summer youth jobs, veterans’ medical centers, police and teachers.
Obama will make the announcement during a late-morning Cabinet meeting, when Vice President Joe Biden will present a Roadmap to Recovery, which the White House calls “an Administration-wide effort to accelerate implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in its second 100 days.”
“As a result of this accelerated pace of activity, over 600,000 jobs are expected to be created or saved by the Recovery Act in the second 100 days,” compared with roughly 150,000 in the first 100 days, the White House said.
While the administration is sensitive to criticism that stimulus spending has been too slow, a new Gallup Poll shows danger in the other direction. For the first time, a majority of respondents disapprove of Obama on the issue of “controlling federal spending” (51 percent to 45 percent), compared to the 67 percent who view him favorably overall.
Here’s what the “Magic One” is going to do with all that money:
- Enable 1,129 Health Centers in 50 States and 8 Territories to Provide Expanded Service to Approximately 300,000 Patients – Department of Health and Human Services
- Begin Work on 107 National Parks – Department of the Interior
- Begin Work on Rehabilitation and Improvement Projects at 98 Airports and Over 1,500 Highway Locations throughout the Country – Department of Transportation
- Fund 135,000 Education Jobs Including Teachers, Principals and Support Staff – Department of Education
- Begin Improvements at 90 Veterans Medical Centers across 38 States – Department of Veterans Affairs
- Hire or Keep on the Job Approximately 5,000 Law Enforcement Officers – Department of Justice
- Start 200 New Waste and Water Systems in Rural America – United States Department of Agriculture
- Begin or Accelerate Cleanup Work at 20 Superfund Sites from the National Priority List – Environmental Protection Agency
- Create 125,000 Summer Youth Jobs – Department of Labor
- Initiate 2,300 Construction and Rehabilitation Projects at 359 Military Facilities across the Nation – Department of Defense
Here’s the problem; The President or more specifically our wonderful Government is going do all these wonderful things with money that we don’t even have; because we are barrowing it all from China. After all, did not the President say that we are broke? Yes, he did!
Quotable Quote:
In a sobering holiday interview with C-SPAN, President Obama boldly told Americans: “We are out of money.”
C-SPAN host Steve Scully broke from a meek Washington press corps with probing questions for the new president.
SCULLY: You know the numbers, $1.7 trillion debt, a national deficit of $11 trillion. At what point do we run out of money?
OBAMA: Well, we are out of money now. We are operating in deep deficits, not caused by any decisions we’ve made on health care so far. This is a consequence of the crisis that we’ve seen and in fact our failure to make some good decisions on health care over the last several decades.
So we’ve got a short-term problem, which is we had to spend a lot of money to salvage our financial system, we had to deal with the auto companies, a huge recession which drains tax revenue at the same time it’s putting more pressure on governments to provide unemployment insurance or make sure that food stamps are available for people who have been laid off.
So we have a short-term problem and we also have a long-term problem. The short-term problem is dwarfed by the long-term problem. And the long-term problem is Medicaid and Medicare. If we don’t reduce long-term health care inflation substantially, we can’t get control of the deficit.
So, one option is just to do nothing. We say, well, it’s too expensive for us to make some short-term investments in health care. We can’t afford it. We’ve got this big deficit. Let’s just keep the health care system that we’ve got now.
Along that trajectory, we will see health care cost as an overall share of our federal spending grow and grow and grow and grow until essentially it consumes everything…
But yet, we are going to throw more money at the jobless problem. But we’re broke? Does anyone else see the problem with this picture?
Mixed feelings on the Blogger outing
I am commenting on this because I think it deserves a comment. I have very mixed feelings on the outing of a centrist Blogger, who blogged under the name of publius over at Obsidian Wings.
The reason why I have these mixed feelings is this. Because I personally know how frustrating it can be, when you have some anonymous Blogger or even person on the internet harassing you. Believe me when I tell you; I have been there and done that. However, I also believe in the right to privacy as well. So, I am quite conflicted.
To his credit, publius or John Blevins gives some very valid reasons for his wanting to remain anonymous:
As I told Ed (to no avail), I have blogged under a pseudonym largely for private and professional reasons. Professionally, I’ve heard that pre-tenure blogging (particularly on politics) can cause problems. And before that, I was a lawyer with real clients. I also believe that the classroom should be as nonpolitical as possible – and I don’t want conservative students to feel uncomfortable before they take a single class based on my posts. So I don’t tell them about this blog. Also, I write and research on telecom policy – and I consider blogging and academic research separate endeavors. This, frankly, is a hobby.
Privately, I don’t write under my own name for family reasons. I’m from a conservative Southern family – and there are certain family members who I’d prefer not to know about this blog (thanks Ed). Also, I have family members who are well known in my home state who have had political jobs with Republicans, and I don’t want my posts to jeopardize anything for them (thanks again).
All of these things I would have told Ed, if he had asked. Instead, I told him that I have family and professional reasons for not publishing under my own name, and he wrote back and called me an “idiot” and a “coward.” (I’ve posted the email exchange below).
So there you have it – I’ve been successfully pseudonymous since the Iowa caucuses in 2004. During that time, I’ve criticized hundreds of people – and been criticized myself by hundreds more. But this has never happened.
And yes – I criticized Whelan rather harshly. But that’s what the blogosphere is about. Blogging is not for the thin-skinned. And you would think that someone who spends their days trying to destroy other people’s reputations in dishonest and inflammatory ways wouldn’t be so childish and thin-skinned.
Again, I believe that Ed did have a right to know who it was that was criticizing him. However, I have reviewed the posts in question, and I simply do not believe that a public outing was necessary and quite frankly; it shows a lack of class and a very childish demeanor on the part of Ed Whelan. I do however disagree with the line of “But that’s what the blogosphere is about.” I feel that if you are going to criticize someone, you should have the guts to give your true identity. Criticizing someone behind the cloak of anonymity is the essence of cowardice, in my humble opinion.
The bottom line is this; if you are going criticize someone and you are going to hide behind an assumed named, you should be prepared to be exposed for the coward that you are. Further, one should not complain that they are being exposed, because a “pen name” is not a guarantee of privacy.
However, in the wake of the shooting of the abortion doctor and many of the other incidents in the last few months, one would think that Ed Whelan would have used a bit more common sense in a situation as this. But then again, we are talking about Neo-Cons. Not that they care about privacy, just ask George W. Bush. 🙄
Update: Ed Morrissey gives his take and quite surprisingly basically somewhat agrees with me. Not to rip off Redd Foxx or anything, but….This is the big one, Elizabeth I’m coming join you honey! Oh hell, Here’s Mr. Foxx doing it better, than I ever could: (Scroll to the 3:13 mark, if you want to see what I’m referring to…)
Update #2: Ed Whelan posts a follow up, further proving that he’s nothing more than a fucking asshole. But then again, you most likely already knew that. I retract this, click here to see why.
Update #3: Whelan Apologizes and Outed blogger accepts. Case Closed. Well done on both sides.
Others:The Anonymous Liberal, Washington Monthly, Outside The Beltway, JustOneMinute, Opinio Juris, The Strata-Sphere, Riehl World View, PointOfLaw Forum, PoliGazette, Sadly, No!, TBogg and Balloon Juice
Ouch: So much for that simulus!
Finally, something to draw me out of my funk. Yeah, I know, I’ve been slipping. I’m just bored of the whole damn thing.
Seems ol’ Barry’s Stimulus horseshit, is just that…. Horseshit.
Via Innocent Bystanders:
So much for that stimulus eh? (click to make bigger)
Of interest….: (H/T The Strata-Sphere)
of the 2009 deficit by $481 billion, to $1.7 trillion (see Table 1-3). Much of that change stems from lower esti mated revenues and the increased costs attributable to the TARP. Over the 2010–2019 period, CBO has increased its estimate of the cumulative deficit by $1.3 trillion—mostly because of recently enacted legislation. Nearly half of that projected increase occurs in 2010 and 2011, largely as a result of the 2009 stimulus legislation (ARRA)
Lovely. Of course, that’s what the people voted for. All I can say is; Welcome to my world folks. It was bad back when I became unemployed, it is now worse.I guess I will be blogging for a while. That is if I can get back into the swing of it. It would help if people would donate and I could get readers. It gets old blogging to myself. I guess because I do not suck up to the idiot Neo-Cons and do not placate the Military-Hating so-called “libertarians”; nobody wants to read my site. I say screw ’em. I don’t need their readership anyhow.
So, yeah, it is going to be an interesting new few years around these damned parts.
Others Covering: Stop The ACLU, BizzyBlog, QandO, Fausta’s Blog, Politics and Critical Thinking, Gateway Pundit, Fox News, Hot Air, The Strata-Sphere, Cold Fury, Conservatives4Palin.com and protein wisdom
Video: O’Reilly Versus Olbermann on the Tiller Murder
It is not everyday that I get to do something of this nature. As you all know there was a murder of an abortion doctor in Kansas yesterday. As I said last night, I do not support this sort of extremist nonsense. As neither does any other sort of sane thinking American; Conservative or Liberal, or anything else in between.
These videos, I believe are a text book example of the dogmatic positions that have infested the Liberal and Conservative factions of the political debate in this country.
First off, here’s Bill O. condemning the attacks, and all the while denying the fact, that the killer might have actually watched his show:
Notice that there is no “Hey, We’re sorry that the man is dead.” or anything of that sort, just an arrogant bristle at his critics that accuse him of having at least some sort of culpability; even if it is simply being a messenger boy for the traditionalists.
Next up, we have the poster child for the far left, the man; whom I thought was a legit answer to Wilsonian, Neo-Conservative Foreign Policy of George W. Bush. Whom also magically transformed himself, after the election of President Barack Obama; into a political hack and a defender of the throne, of sorts, to the new Liberal President. What follows is nothing more than a Left Wing smear of the Conservatives, of all stripes and flavors:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
As a libertarian-minded, Paleo-Conservative; I find both of these men equally disturbing. First off; any broadcaster and political opinion maker who favors “quarantining” anyone’s freedom of speech, is as far as I am concerned not better than the soviet communists of old. That goes well beyond just being a Liberal Democrat; that is basically being a far left wing Liberal Fascist. This sort of nonsense is NOT, I repeat, NOT what the founders of the Democratic Party of old would have wanted.
Further more; I find Bill O’Reilly’s arrogance to be absolutely sickening. A man was just gunned down in the lobby of his own god damned Church for Christ’s sake; and the best this idiot Irish piece of shit can do, is smirk and bristle when someone points out the obvious about the far right and their tendency towards a fascist position of individual rights and freedoms of women? It is no damned wonder that ALL of the old media is tanking like a leaking boat! 🙄
While I am quite sympathetic to the right to life cause. I cannot and will not endorse a policy that I feel to be border-line Nazi Fascist in nature. This is one of the main sticking points between me and the G.O.P.; I believe that Abortion and ANY laws pertaining to it, should be on a STATE level and NOT on a Federal level. How these Republicans can talk limited Government out of one side of their mouth and then want to have Federal Government regulation on something is now and should always be the choice of the individual, is nothing short of an equal with Hitler’s Nazi Germany. There is no such thing as big Government Conservatism. You are either a big Government type or a small limited Government person, you cannot be both.
While I am on the soapbox here, let me say a few other things that are radar here. I notice that today that there was a shooting of couple of our American Soldiers, by some Negro Muslim convert. I notice the Liberal Blogs are not exactly running this one up a flag pole, now are they? No! You know why? Because the Radical Muslims and possibly all Muslims in general share the same trait as the Liberals in this Country, and that’s a hatred of this Country’s Christian values and our Military.
…and one more here, before I finish this rather cranky blog post, another thing that I saw that burned my damned balls with this little gem by noted Neo-Conservative Blogger Ed Morrissey, on the Tiller Murder:
The murder of George Tiller at his church is a heinous crime, without any sense or justice. Regardless of how one feels about George Tiller’s profession, his murderer is nothing more than a domestic terrorist — someone attempting to impose by force a policy that one cannot get in place through democratic means. Tiller’s killer is no better than William Ayers, Kathleen Soliah, and Eric Rudolph, people who attempted to use violence for their extremist ends. Those who value life know that murder is the antithesis of the pro-life movement.
That stupid idiotic nonsense up there that I bolded, italicized and underlined up there. Could have been written by John Podhartz or Bill Kristol, both noted Neo-Conservatives. The cold, hard, sober fact is that this Scott Roeder is nothing more than a cold blooded killer; who was a part of a far right wing, anti-Governmental underground group, he is NOT a jihadist. I, quite frankly, wish that Ed Morrissey would pull his rather pointed head out his ass long enough to realize that. This drivel comes from the same place that says that Israel has never, ever, committed any acts of “Terrorism” themselves and the CIVILIANS (not Hamas or Hezbollah) of Palestine and more specifically Gaza; got exactly what was coming to them.
Technorati Tags: blogging ,Blogs ,Conservatism ,Conservative ,Conservatives ,Liberals ,Libertarian ,Media ,Opinion ,Politics
My Feelings on the Murder of Abortion Doctor George Tiller
I believe that the Murder of the Abortion Doctor George Miller was just plain awful.
While I believe that Abortion is murder; I believe that using violence to achieve ones political agenda and those who partake in such morally depraved activities are no better than the abortionists themselves.
Further more, I find the reaction in the Blogsphere; both on the right and left to be absolutely disgusting. Placing blame on a particular group does nothing to bring this man’s life back. Further more; praising the actions of a cold blooded killer, who fired those shots of pure terrorism; does nothing, at all to further the cause of the Pro-Life movement. Shame on you all.
Statements:
National Right to Life extends its sympathies to Dr. Tiller’s family over this loss of life.
Further, the National Right to Life Committee unequivocally condemns any such acts of violence regardless of motivation. The pro-life movement works to protect the right to life and increase respect for human life. The unlawful use of violence is directly contrary to that goal. – Via National Right to Life’s Website
From the Family Research Council:
We are stunned at today’s news. As Christians we pray and look toward the end of all violence and for the saving of souls, not the taking of human life. George Tiller was a man who we publicly sought to stop through legal and peaceful means. We strongly condemn the actions taken today by this vigilante killer and we pray for the Tiller family and for the nation that we might once again be a nation that values all human, both born and unborn.
Let me say that, I, Paleo Pat, the owner of this blog, agree wholeheartedly with the above statements. Also, out of respect for the family of murdered victim, and because I know that there will be idiots chomping at the bit to make asinine comments here, I am closing the comments on this entry.
Update: I’m with Malkin, It’s going be a long week. Others on the right are covering this and at this point, I’m not pairing Neo-Cons from the Paleo-Cons, because at this point, we’re all in this together…
Here’s the roundup: Hot Air, The Corner, The Strata-Sphere, Macsmind, Stop The ACLU, Sister Toldjah, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS,freerepublic.com, Scared Monkeys, Don Surber, Say Anything, Wizbang, BitsBlog, Weekly Standard, Gateway Pundit, Sweetness & Light, protein wisdom, Gateway Pundit, Sister Toldjah, Macsmind, Wizbang, The Sundries Shack, The Other McCain and Yes, liberals are covering… wanna see what they’re writing, go here.
The Southern Avenger on “The Problem with Sotomayor”
Yeah, I know what I wrote here, But Jack does bring up some vary valid points.
—
How President Obama’s choice for the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor, will place identity politics and liberal ideology above the Constitution.
The Obligatory Obama nominates Sonia Sotomayor to SCOTUS posting
Yes, I know about the story that is burning up the Blogosphere right now. I am talking about the nomination of Justice Sonia Sotomayor to the SCOTUS.
I suppose some of you are expecting me to go on some sort of half-cocked, loose cannon, type of rant about this. Well, surprise. I am not going to do that. Not on this one anyhow.
For starters; quite bluntly, elections have consequences. The American people decided that the George W. Bush style of rule, that being the Wilsonian, Neo-Conservative, Cowboy syle of rule was not going to stand any longer and they voted against it and John McCain and his wish-washy style of Conservatism. Instead, the American people elected a progressive; some would say, far left wing liberal President. The appointment of this lady to the SCOTUS is a direct byproduct of this. This is the normal course of a free society, and a Constitutional Republic and the cost of free elections. This is why it pays to be fully informed of whom exactly one is voting for.
For what I have read and observed on the far right; The Conservatives are acting like President Obama nominated Karl Marx. Hopefully, the Republican Party does not get into this dangerous game of stupidity with this woman. It could very well cost them dearly in the coming 2010 elections. Because you just know that the Liberals will take any sort of criticism of this woman that even remotely sounds racist and run it up a flag pole. As sad as it is for me to have to write this and make this observation; But it is the facts, quite bluntly, The Democrats are holding the cards right now and controlling the poker table; the Republican Party and the Conservative are best to just stick to the issues and the facts, and stay as far away as possible from the stupidity people like Glenn Beck. I mean, if I or some other well known blogger went off on him about his Mormon Religion or his Alcoholism or his inability to keep his first marriage together; we could be derided as haters, would we not? So, why should Beck get a free pass? He doesn’t. Not with me anyhow.
I believe in a balance of political opinion in the SCOTUS, some feel it is tiliting too far to the left. I disagree. I believe that for too long it has tiltled too far toward Conservatism. I would love to see a true blue Libertarian in there. Of course, we all know that this will never happen. So, you take what you can get.
I will be following this story and will post more, as details come out.
The Southern Avenger Says “Obama and Cheney Make Us Less Safe”
In the ongoing debate between President Obama and former Vice President Dick Cheney on torture, former CIA terrorism expert Michael Scheuer points out how both leaders’ refusal to address U.S. interventionism as the primary catalyst for terrorism makes us all “less safe.”
The Southern Avenger says “Just Say No” to Government
When South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford was attacked by Republican state leaders for not accepting federal stimulus dollars, it was worth pointing out the utter uselessness of GOP politicians who refuse to follow through on their conservative rhetoric.
Terrorist plot to blow up Jewish Synagogues in the Bronx thwarted
This news broke last night, but I was not in any mood to write about it.
Video Report, showing NY’s Mayor Bloomberg:
Four men were arrested Wednesday night in what the authorities said was a plot to bomb two synagogues in the Bronx and shoot down military planes at an Air National Guard base in Newburgh, N.Y.
The men, all of whom live in Newburgh, about 60 miles north of New York City, were arrested around 9 p.m. after planting what they believed to be bombs in cars outside the Riverdale Temple and the nearby Riverdale Jewish Center, officials said. But the men did not know the bombs, obtained with the help of an informant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, were fake.
The arrests capped what officials described as a “painstaking investigation” that began in June 2008 involving an F.B.I. agent who had been told by a federal informant of the men’s desire to attack targets in America. As part of the plot, the men intended to fire Stinger missiles at military aircraft at the base, which is at Stewart International Airport, officials said.
“This latest attempt to attack our freedoms shows that the homeland security threats against New York City are sadly all too real and underscores why we must remain vigilant in our efforts to prevent terrorism,” Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said in a statement. The mayor was expected to appear at 6:45 a.m. Thursday at the Riverdale Jewish Center morning services, joined by Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.
The charges against the four men represent some of the most significant allegations of domestic terrorism in some time, and come months into a new presidential administration, as President Obama grapples with the question of how to handle detainees at the Guantánamo Bay camp in Cuba.
Rabbi Jonathan I. Rosenblatt, the senior rabbi at the Riverdale Jewish Center, a modern Orthodox congregation, said the police informed him on Wednesday evening that his synagogue was a target of the plot, as well as the Riverdale Temple, a Reform synagogue that is a short distance away, on Independence Avenue. The two buildings are about six blocks apart, each with a brick facade. Outside the synagogues on Wednesday night, the streets were eerily quiet.
Rabbi Rosenblatt said in a phone interview that he took the news with “shock, surprise — a sense of disbelief that something which is supposed to belong to the world of front pages and the evening news had invaded the quiet world of our synagogue.”
via 4 Accused of Bombing Plot at Bronx Synagogues – NYTimes.com.
Of course, the Neo-Conservative Blogs are all over this one. A couple of things to point out:
- There’s no proof at all, that these guys were connected to any sort of formal terrorist group
- They never were able to obtain any sort of real weapons
So, what we have here is a group of wanna-be’s who got caught. This is what, the second time? The first was the much hyped Fort Dix plot; which turned out to be a great deal of nothing. I am sure that the Conservative media and blogs are going to hype this for all it is worth. The liberal-controlled media; hopefully, will take a more reasoned approach to the situation and report the facts, and shy away from the hype.
Do not misunderstand me here. I personally believe that the war on terrorism, as George W. Bush rightfully called it, is quite real. However, I have a hard time believing that this group of bumbling idiots were a part of it formally. If anything, these guys were a group of morons who could not even make a pipe bomb; much less a damn bomb capable of causing any sort of real damage.
As to why they did it. These guys were upset about our involvement in Afghanistan. We can expect to see this sort of a thing, as that War progresses. Now the idiots on the far liberal left will try and say that this is why we should leave Afghanistan. Which any sane, rational person knows is foolish. We should not leave until Osama and his henchmen are dead and Al-Qaeda is formally defeated. Some say this is impossible. I believe nothing is impossible, if it is done correctly. The far left likes to bring up that Russia tried to fight a war in this region and ended up pulling out. I say; apples and oranges. Different kind of a war, and the Russians did not have nearly the Military that we have and the technology that we have today.
The good thing about all this is, that this terrorist cell was broken up and these idiots are going to jail. Thanks to the fine work of our men at the F.B.I. Good show guys, keep up the good work.
Update: …and then there’s the Libertarian conspiracy theorist angle. No wonder the Republicans think that most libertarians are kooks.
The Southern Avenger on “Lindsey Graham Republicans”
When Lindsey Graham denounced Ron Paul-style libertarianism and advocated for George W. Bush-style neoconservatism during a speech at the South Carolina Republican Convention, it was worth pointing out that Graham’s suggested GOP path is the road to nowhere.
The Southern Avenger says “Partisans Make Us Less Safe”
How support for both “financial security” and “national security” reveal partisan hypocrisy and make us less safe.
President Obama, The time is now.
That’s correct, you read that headline right. Enough is enough, the deception and lies needs to stop. I am sure that most of you have been following the internet Meme floating around right now about Nancy Pelosi’s saying that the CIA lied to her about the enhanced interrogations. Well, the accusations just got some serious merit and I do mean huge serious merit.
The Huffington Post is now reporting:
In testimony that could bolster Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s claim that the CIA misled her during briefings on detainee interrogations, former Senator Bob Graham insisted on Thursday that he too was kept in the dark about the use of waterboarding, and called the agency’s records on these briefings "suspect."
In an interview with the Huffington Post, the former Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman said that approximately a month ago, the CIA provided him with false information about how many times and when he was briefed on enhanced interrogations.
"When this issue started to resurface I called the appropriate people in the agency and said I would like to know the dates from your records that briefings were held," Graham recalled. "And they contacted me and gave me four dates — two in April ’02 and two in September ’02. Now, one of
the things I do, and for which I have taken some flack, is keep a spiral notebook of what I do throughout the day. And so I went through my records and through a combination of my daily schedule, which I keep, and my notebooks, I confirmed and the CIA agreed that my notes were accurate; that three of those four dates there had been no briefing. There was only one day that I had been briefed, which was September the 27th of 2002."
As for the one briefing he did attend, the Florida Democrat said that he had "no recollection that issues such as waterboarding were discussed." He was not, per the sensitive nature of the matters discussed, allowed to take notes at the time. But he did highlight what he considered to be pretty strong proof that the controversial technique was not discussed.
"What struck me…was the fact that in that briefing, there were also two staff members," he said. "As you know, the general rule is that the executive is to brief the full committees of the House and Senate Intelligence committees about any ongoing or proposed action. The exception to that is what is called "covert action," where the president…only briefs the Gang of Eight, which is the four congressional leaders and the four intelligence committee leaders. Those sessions are generally conducted at an executive site, primarily at the White House itself. And they are conducted with just the authorized personnel, not with any staff or any other member of the committee…. Which leads me to conclude that this was not considered by the CIA to be a Gang of Eight briefing. Otherwise they would not have had staff in the room. And that leads me to then believe that they didn’t brief us on any of the sensitive programs such as the waterboarding or other forms of excessive interrogation."
The remarks made by Graham bolster the comments offered by Pelosi on Thursday. The Speaker told reporters that during her briefing session in the fall of 2002 she was not just kept in the dark about the issue of waterboarding, she was assured that it had not been used.
[….]
"The irony," said Graham, "is that the whole series of events in late September of ’02 were concurrent with the CIA’s release of the first classified version of the National Intelligence Estimate, which was one of the key factors that led me to vote against the war in Iraq because I thought that their case was so weak. And they were making to the public these very bold statements about how we were in extreme danger if we didn’t move quickly to eradicate Saddam Hussein. The whole, ‘a smoking gun may appear in the form of a mushroom cloud’ kind of argument."
I know some Conservatives that read this blog are going to say something to the effect of, “Oh, that’s the Huffington Post, you cannot trust what they say.” Well, to that I say; Unsinn! (nonsense!) While I may have a personal problem with the way that the comment sections are handled over there and I may have some issues with the political ideology behind that website. I am quite sorry to say it, but news is news; and this my friends is big news.
Since I began blogging back in the winter of 2006; first as a populist and then when my site was hacked, and which at the time this happened; I had began to change my views, and I finally came out as a “Right of Center” or a Traditional Conservative or if you will, a Paleo-Conservative. (As opposed to a Wilsonian, Neo-Conservative; like George W. Bush) I made it quite clear for my disdain of the Wilsonian, Neo-Conservatism of George W. Bush and his Administration. Having said this, I believe it is time that I be the first “Right of Center” blogger to say this:
It is time that the United States of America actually used it’s systems of “Check and Balances.” It is time for a formal investigation into the Bush Administration.
I realize that the Obama Administration wants to avoid a “partisan witch-hunt.” I can respect this, but at this point, this whole mess has gone way beyond the bounds of partisanship, and to the point of an outright betrayal of the American values and of the United States Constitution that the now former President was supposed to swear to uphold. It is quite obvious to this writer that the now former President of the United States and his Administration fully instructed the C.I.A. to lie to the Democrats in office about the techniques used in the enhanced interrogations that took place after the invasion of Iraq.
Lying to the Congress of the United States of America under the orders of the President of the United States of America for the sole purpose of achieving a political goal, in this case the Iraq War and the supposed “War on terror,” in this writers opinion, amounts to treason of the worst kind. Lying to Congress in order to skirt around the agreements signed by the United States of America and many other Nations, under the accord of the United Nations is a crime and should be dealt with immediately. I am not a huge fan of the United Nations, but agreements are agreements and laws are laws, and it is quite obvious, to this writer, that this previous Administration was not interested in upholding those laws or the United States Constitution or the Geneva Conventions. Instead the President of the United States ordered the C.I.A. to lie to Congress on it’s use to waterboarding in the enhanced interrogations. This, my friends, is treason. It is wrong, and it should be prosecuted.
I realize that some Conservatives are going to disagree, that is their prerogative. However, those Conservatives and those who are non-partisan who believe that the rule of law in this Country should be upheld, not just for Conservative Presidents, but also for Democratic Party Presidents; will agree with me in saying that the current attorney should open a full an unbiased investigation into this situation forthwith. The future of this Constitutional Republic depends on it.
Mr. President, The time is now.
The Southern Avenger on “Ron Paul Republicans”
While the GOP establishment continues to debate how the party lost its way, Republicans should consider the best path out of the wilderness – by following the one man who has always remained loyal to his party’s conservative roots.
The Obligatory “Nancy Pelosi supposedly knew about Torture” Posting
Honestly, I would rather be getting a root canal without any anesthesia, than to have to blog about this. But everyone else is, so, here goes!
ABC NEWS Blog “The Note” reports the following:
ABC News’ Rick Klein reports: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefed on the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques” on terrorist suspect Abu Zubaydah in September 2002, according to a report prepared by the Director of National Intelligence’s office and obtained by ABC News.
The report, submitted to the Senate Intelligence Committee and other Capitol Hill officials Wednesday, appears to contradict Pelosi’s statement last month that she was never told about the use of waterboarding or other special interrogation tactics. Instead, she has said, she was told only that the Bush administration had legal opinions that would have supported the use of such techniques.
The report details a Sept. 4, 2002 meeting between intelligence officials and Pelosi, then-House intelligence committee chairman Porter Goss, and two aides. At the time, Pelosi was the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee.
The meeting is described as a “Briefing on EITs including use of EITs on Abu Zubaydah, background on authorities, and a description of particular EITs that had been employed.”
EITs stand for “enhanced interrogation techniques,” a classification of special interrogation tactics that includes waterboarding.
Of course, everyone on the right is jumping up and down and saying, “See we told you so!” Don’t count me in with that crowd, please. When it comes to this entire issue; I am a fence sitter. On one hand, I hate to know that a fellow human being is being tortured. But on the other hand, I also know what happened on September 11, 2001, and please; do not come in here and spout that stupid Alex Jones bullcrap about 9/11 being an inside job, okay? I am just not that simple-minded to believe that idiotic nonsense. The truth is that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by Muslim extremists who hate our Country and for what we stand for; they also happened because of our interventionist foreign policy and because of our occupation of parts of Arab peninsula. Further, the attacks were a revenge attack on United States because of the actions of the United States in the 1980’s. Osama Bin Ladin said that in one of his many tapes. This is NOT to say that the United States had it coming or anything of that sort. It is simply the bare, and sometimes ugly; truth.
Now back to the story at hand, there are some, mostly liberals who have problems with this story. Emptywheel, for example seems to believe that the CIA is lying about the briefings. I won’t quote here, what’s being said there. Because there is just so much to read. I’d advise everyone to just go over and read what is being said there.
The truth is folks, I do not believe we will ever know the truth about what happened, and who knew what when. I am sorry if that busts any balloons or anything of that sort. Our Government has a very good track record of covering up secrets and quite frankly covering it’s backside to the point of burying the truth. So for those who were hoping that Bush and Co. would be prosecuted. I hate to be the one to say this, but you are in for a big letdown. I knew this was coming; I blogged about a great deal of times. Obama will not go after the former President and his staff and cabinet. Obama just will not burn the political capital. President Obama would rather risk being a one-term President, than try and go after a former President and his staff. It just never has been done. Nor will it ever.
If the Obama Administration told holder to open an investigation as to “Who knew what, when…” when it came to the 9/11 attacks, The Iraq War, and the torture stuff. Both Parties; Democratic and Republican would be utterly destroyed and stripped void of any credibility that they still have now. That is something that the Obama Administration is simply not going to allow to happen. Because both of these political parties want to maintain their grip on a two party system in this Country. One Party may talk about wanted to see the other destroyed. But they know how long their leash is, and when it reaches it max length, the parties that be know when to get back into line.
So, I feel that this all just a big witch hunt, to distract us from the real issues. Like the state of our economy and so forth.
The Southern Avenger Asks “Is Secession Crazy?”
When Texas Governor Rick Perry suggested his state had the right to secede from the union, liberals laughed at the mere suggestion. But secession not only has deep American roots, but is no “crazier” than socialism.
Tom Ridge decides not to run
MSNBC’s (I know, icky!) First Read reports, that Tom Ridge has decided not to run for Arlen Specter’s seat.
The full statement:
“After careful consideration and many conversations with friends and family and the leadership of my party, I have decided not to seek the Republican nomination for Senate.
“I am enormously grateful for the confidence my party expressed in me, the encouragement and kindness of my fellow citizens in Pennsylvania and the valuable counsel I received from so many of my party colleagues. The 2010 race has significant implications for my party, and that required thoughtful reflection. All of the above made my decision a difficult and deeply personal conclusion to reach. However, this process also impressed upon me how fortunate I am to have so many friends who volunteered to support my journey if I chose to take it and continue to offer their support after I conveyed to them this morning how I believe I can best serve my commonwealth, my party and my country.
“Public service has long played a significant role in my life. That service does not end here. There are causes to which I remain intensely committed, including my work on behalf of the disability community, our nation’s veterans, our national security and the GOP — the party I enthusiastically joined more than four decades ago.
“To those who believe that the Republican Party is facing challenges; they are right. To those who believe the Democratic Party is without its own difficulties, they are wrong. No one party has a monopoly on all of the answers. The more important view, in my mind, is that we remember, whether Republican or Democrat, we are foremost Americans. And as Americans, we have always overcome challenges when we put partisanship aside and solutions first.
“And so my desire and intention is to help my party craft solutions that both sides of the aisle can embrace. My hope is to raise the level of civility in public debate and raise the bar on outcomes that serve our citizens fully, fairly and equally. My belief is that those in my home state can best be served by the principles of limited government, less taxes, competent governance and shared responsibility. So I stand ready and excited to help my party and my country prevail as we continue to work to preserve and protect our strong, storied and much beloved nation.
Some think this might be a blow to the G.O.P.; personally, I am not so sure. I believe that the Democrat’s might leave Arlen Specter twisting in the wind. However, Pat Toomy is running, and could use the support.
The Republican Party and Reagan
A very interesting piece is in the Wall Street Journal today, about the Republican Party and the Era of Ronald Reagan. Republicans and most Conservatives; including this writer, find themselves nostalgic about the Reagan era. The 1980’s was a magical time for me. I could get into all that; but this entry would soon turn into a sappy trip down memory lane. Because I am not ready to break out the ensure and reminisce about the good old days just yet, I will spare you the stories. —– I mean, I am only 36 people, give a guy a break!
Getting back on track here, the Wall Street Journal does an excellent piece on the Era of Reagan and the Republican Party. Here is a summary video:
Quote:
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush made headlines last weekend suggesting it’s time for the party to get over its glory days: “I felt like there was a lot of nostalgia and the good old days in the [GOP] messaging. I mean, it’s great, but it doesn’t draw people toward your cause.” Joyful Democratic bloggers put this more clearly in five tight words: GOP Needs to Forget Reagan.
Is this true?
The answer to that historic question is an apt subject this week as the GOP, looking for a path from the wilderness, says farewell at National Cathedral tomorrow to Jack Kemp, who remained a Reaganite to the end.
Jack Kemp, anyone who spent time around him will tell you, stayed on message. That message, like Reagan’s, had a number of parts, but it is not possible to even guess how many times Jack Kemp summarized his explanations of that message in three words: “Work, save and invest.” Republicans should think hard about building a governing philosophy on the foundation of those three words, ideas that most voters understand.
The article goes on to praise Jack Kemp and to further praise Reagan and his ideals. Those ideals, I believe, are important to remember; Self-Reliance, Small Government, Personal Freedom, all are commendable principles and are ones that all Americans should know and believe in. However, it would be a monumental mistake to sit here and not acknowledge the fact that Ronald Reagan’s policies were not perfect at all. The fact is the man had flaws. As humans, we tend to gloss over the bad parts of a President legacy that we hold in high esteem. Even President Franklin Roosevelt, of whom I admire greatly, had flaws as well. Some of his policies did more to hurt, than they did to help.
Richard Gamble over at The American Conservative, writes a very interesting piece on the policies and legacy of President Ronald Reagan, here are some excerpts:
Such an endorsement from one of the greatest inspirations of the post-World War II conservative renaissance carries considerable authority with the movement. And rightly so. It should give pause to anyone reckless enough to challenge Reagan’s legacy. But that legacy itself raises nagging questions. The federal payroll was larger in 1989 than it had been in 1981. Reagan’s tax cuts, whatever their merits as short-term fiscal policy, left large and growing budget deficits when combined with increased spending, and added to the national debt. His tax increases were among the largest proportionate ones in U.S. history. And more than one historian has called Reagan’s foreign policy “Wilsonian.” In short, it is hard in 2009 to point to any concrete evidence that the Reagan Revolution fundamentally altered the nation’s trajectory toward bloated, centralized, interventionist government. Conservatism in the 1980s made its peace with much of liberalism—if not with all of its legislative agenda, then at least with its means to power. Republicans and Democrats now argue over how big the bailouts should be or how long the troops should remain deployed, rarely about first principles.
(…)
Reagan’s speeches abounded with themes that were anything but conservative. He aligned the Republican crusader more closely with America’s expansive liberal temperament. In particular, his brand of evangelical Christianity, combined with fragments of Puritanism, enlightenment optimism, and romantic liberalism, set Reagan apart in key ways from historic conservatism.
(…)
Reagan grew up in the 1920s in Dixon, Illinois in the pietistic, revivalist world of the Disciples of Christ—a world known to many millions of American evangelicals then and since. Biographer Edmund Morris’s Dutch (1999) and Paul Kengor’s God and Ronald Reagan (2004) make much of the “practical Christianity” espoused by Reagan’s mother, the local pastor and congregation, and such religious best-sellers as That Printer of Udell’s. This activist faith shared important assumptions with the social gospel’s “applied Christianity.” Both set out to remake the City of Man through the power of the church’s moral influence. Reagan’s spirituality was shaped by a “Jesus-only” populist Christianity that emphasized the conversion experience and an activist faith suspicious of creeds, rituals, ecclesiastical bodies, and denominational boundaries.
Reagan never turned away from this transformationist Christianity. It became a fundamental part of his civil religion. Historian John Patrick Diggins, in Ronald Reagan: Fate, Freedom, and the Making of History (2007), goes as far as to say that the president’s theology “seemed to offer a Christianity without Christ and the crucifixion, a religion without reference to sin, evil, suffering, or sacrifice.” Diggins’s implicit question, “Why couldn’t Reagan have been more like Reinhold Niebuhr?” may not be exactly the right one. Why should we expect our presidents to do theology at all, even neo-orthodox theology? But his point is well taken. Reagan’s optimistic Christianity seemed ready made for an America disinclined to hear talk of limits to power and wealth. The historic Christian message can sound downright un-American.
(…)
In a further criticism, Lukacs traced the “militarization of the image of the presidency” to Reagan. It was Reagan, after all, who began the practice of returning the salutes of the military—a precedent followed by every president since. While doing so may seem to honor the military, it in fact erodes the public’s understanding of the presidency as a civilian office, Lukacs argued. Indeed, Fox News bears out Lukacs’s warning. The cable news giant got into the habit during the Bush II administration of referring to the president as commander in chief no matter what story they were reporting, seemingly unaware that the nation’s executive is the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of the Untied States and not commander in chief of the American people at large. If the president visits a city ravaged by a hurricane, he is emphatically not there in his role as commander in chief. If every American thinks of the president—of whatever political party—as my commander in chief and not narrowly as the Army or Navy’s commander in chief, then we have taken another decisive step from republic to empire. If every American expects the president to be the commander in chief of the economy, then we can’t be surprised by nationalized banks and corporations.
I think it would be a good idea to read that article in it’s entirety to truly get what is being said. It is indeed a truly interesting article to read.
My take on the subject at hand is this; The Republican Party needs to catch up with the times. This is not 1981; this is 2009, America is facing some serious challenges in this new era. The Republican Party needs to provide a sane alternative to the socialist madness of the Democratic Party; doing so, while keeping Reagan’s principles in mind. But the Republican Party must also be mindful that some, not all, some of Reagan’s policies did more to hurt, than they did to help. If they do this properly, they will be able to retake the White House in 2012. Another important issue is who they choose to run against Obama in 2012. If they try and run someone like Mitt Romney or Sarah Palin, they are going to get eaten alive in the election. However, if they run someone like Mark Sanford; they might just have a chance at winning. The problem with the Republican Party has not been principles, but the framing of the Party’s message. The Party needs to be a little more Mark Sanford and Ron Paul, and maybe even Pat Buchanan and much less Coulter, Limbaugh, Hannity and Ingraham. There is nothing wrong with Conservative principles, but when the people that are attempting to promote them are doing more to alienate, than they are to actually promote them, something is wrong.
It has been said, that you can catch more files with honey than you can with vinegar. The Republican Party needs to work on that.
Update: Thanks to memeornadum for the link in and hello to the readers from that service! 😀
Update #2: Hello to all the readers of the Moderate Voice, thanks to Joe for the link in! 😀
We’re such nasty fascists!
If there was any one person that I still feel funny about linking to, it’s Jonah Goldberg. When I was still “Left of Center”, I despised the man. However, once I switched my moderate “Right of center” position, I began to see that Mr. Goldberg was a bit more right about liberalism, than I thought.
Goldberg makes the following observation:
Here’s a really perfectly distilled bit of stereotypical idiocy about the threat from the oogy-boogy-gun-loving-Right by Sara Robinson of the Campaign for America’s Future . It’s funny how I thought it was cribbed from David Neiwert and all of his campus coffeehouse philosophizing and — lo and behold — on page two the author reveals she is a colleague of Neiwert’s. It’s tiresome overheated nonsense that actually fits the us vs. them paranoia she ascribes to the Right better than most of the stuff you’ll ever find on the Right.
Do go follow the link, it is a very interesting read. I didn’t read it all myself. I couldn’t stomach the bile that comes out of the far left this early in the morning. Even I have limits. Even Goldberg’s readers were not very pleased with it either. Yes, I know, Goldberg is a Neo-Conservative; but he makes some very valid points about the left. Especially when it comes to tolerance, it seems that the Liberals of today are much less tolerate on dissenting opinions than they used to be; especially during this time of Obama’s Hope and Change mantra.
Video: Motorhome Diaries Interviews Ernest Hancock of Freedom’s Phoenix
Some of you might know this, but I submit some of my Blog postings over at a place called Freedom’s Phoenix. Freedom’s Phoenix is a Libertarian News Portal system, that I happen to enjoy, quite a bit.
Here is a video of the founder of Freedom’s Phoenix, Earnest Hancock being interviewed by Motorhome Diaries.
The Southern Avenger on “The Mexican Flu”
How the news coverage of the swine flu isn’t so much indicative of any serious crisis, but the mainstream media’s corporate and government, PC sensibilities.
The Charles Johnson, Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller feud…. A Follow up
This is a follow up to a posting that I made a while back about the running feud between Charles Johnson against Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller and a few other players.
I realize that no matter how I phrase this posting; someone is going to be offended or is going to hate me to the point of wanting to see my death. I mean, in this sort of a damned thing, you cannot win. If you say anything that one of the parties dislikes, you will be smeared and forced to take a side in the argument. When I lost my other blog to a hacking job; by somebody who was angered about comment that I made about a person on another blog, which was a horrific misstep on my part, which I did and still do readily admit. I made a promise to myself, that I would never engage in Blog wars or any other sort of nonsense.
However, I believe it is important to be clear where I stand; and because of this, I am going to make my feelings clear…
I was contacted by Dr. Robert Spencer about my initial posting. We discussed what I wrote and how I phrased my posting. He did ask me some very pointed questions and I answered honestly, I commend him for writing and asking. Because of this I feel the important need to clear the air.
It appears that Charles Johnson is playing a little game; a deadly game, that hurts people, smears them and makes them into something that they are not. This, I am afraid is wrong. That game is called “guilt by association.” This is a game that liberals play, especially when they are trying to further their agenda of identity politics. It appears that Mr. Johnson is now trying to smear Pat Buchanan, he seems to believe, for whatever foolish reason; that Pat Buchanan is an Anti-Semite. This is nothing more than a classic liberal smear. That’s right, I question the very idea that Charles Johnson is even a Conservative.
For the record, I have zero against Israel, Jews or Judaism. I do however, reject the Zionist movement, on Biblical theological basis only. (See 2 Corinthians 6:14-18) I have Zero against those who choose to practice Islam. However, I reject Islam as a false religion, and those who practice it, as lost and in need of Salvation, that comes only by Jesus Christ. The same goes for those who reject Christ and follow strictly after of the Law of Moses. (See John 14:4-11 and John 10:22-38 and Galatians 3:6-18)
Now, I will be the first to admit that some of the postings over at Pamela Geller’s Blog are, at times, borderline hysteria and could be interpreted by some as Anti-Islamic. However, for Charles Johnson to simply smear someone, because they are associated with a particular group is, in my opinion, unfair and is borderline libelous. I suppose that someone like me would be labeled Anti-Semite by Johnson as well, because of my issues with the Zionist Movement and its influence on the foreign policy of United States. If that is the badge that Mr. Johnson wants to hang on me; fine, I will wear it, I make no apologies for thinking and believing that the Capital of the United States of America is Washington D.C. and not Tel Aviv, Israel. If the Neo-Conservative and Liberal thought police want to try and smear me on this one, fine.
While my initial posting might have sounded like I was praising Charles Johnson, I was not, at all. It was simply lamenting the fact that people, who are supposedly opposed to Islamic fascism, were engaging in a bitter feud. However, since that posting, it seems that Charles Johnson wants to go after people like Michelle Malkin and others, who are in support of the combating of Terrorism and Islamic Fascism. This is totally unacceptable, and I hereby reject Charles Johnson as an enemy to America and a Liberal.
Pamela Geller may not like me, because of my position on Zionism. However, I stand for Freedom of speech and against the Liberal thought police. Hopefully, she understands.