Sometimes I just wuv BreitBart. This has to be one of the best things I’ve ever seen on MSBC/CNBC.
Exit Question: I just wonder how long it is before Rick Santelli gets terminated for not embracing the politics of hope and change?
Tag: Nationalism
Manufacturing Suffers
Some more grim news… đ
Via the Economist:
$0.00, not counting fuel and handling: that is the cheapest quote right now if you want to ship a container from southern China to Europe. Back in the summer of 2007 the shipper would have charged $1,400. Half-empty freighters are just one sign of a worldwide collapse in manufacturing. In Germany Decemberâs machine-tool orders were 40% lower than a year earlier. Half of Chinaâs 9,000 or so toy exporters have gone bust. Taiwanâs shipments of notebook computers fell by a third in the month of January. The number of cars being assembled in America was 60% below January 2008.
The destructive global power of the financial crisis became clear last year. The immensity of the manufacturing crisis is still sinking in, largely because it is seen in national termsâindeed, often nationalistic ones. In fact manufacturing is also caught up in a global whirlwind.
Industrial production fell in the latest three months by 3.6% and 4.4% respectively in America and Britain (equivalent to annual declines of 13.8% and 16.4%). Some locals blame that on Wall Street and the City. But the collapse is much worse in countries more dependent on manufacturing exports, which have come to rely on consumers in debtor countries. Germanyâs industrial production in the fourth quarter fell by 6.8%; Taiwanâs by 21.7%; Japanâs by 12%âwhich helps to explain why GDP is falling even faster there than it did in the early 1990s (see article). Industrial production is volatile, but the world has not seen a contraction like this since the first oil shock in the 1970sâand even that was not so widespread. Industry is collapsing in eastern Europe, as it is in Brazil, Malaysia and Turkey. Thousands of factories in southern China are now abandoned. Their workers went home to the countryside for the new year in January. Millions never came back (see article).
This is what happens when you create an economic bubble, by loosening up regulations to sell mortgages to those who cannot afford them. The whole world suffers. Our American companies suffer, the World manufacturing sector suffers. It is a domino effect. The problem is, that the United States is going about this all wrong. Instead of changing the way our economic system works. They are simply trying to reinflate the broken bubble. It is like trying to tape up a busted air ballon and trying to put air back into it again. It works for a while, but ends up breaking again.
Islamic subversion is real and it is on the move
This stuff really bothers me:
A former FBI special agent told law enforcement and Homeland Security personnel that a network of Islamic organizations are working to incrementally implement Islamic law in the United States.
During a presentation at the Bedford County Emergency Management Agency, former FBI agent John Guandolo briefed members about groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, which he claims is working with other Islamic groups to slowly implement Shariah, also known as Islamic law, which encompasses all areas of life.
Guandolo worked in the FBI since 1996, including nine years as a member of its SWAT team. After 9/11, he worked in the Bureau’s Washington Field Office’s Counterterrorism Division, developing expertise concerning Al Qaeda, Muslim Brotherhood organizations and the Islamic movement in the U.S.
He now works with Stephen Coughlin, former Islamic Expert for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to advise leaders at the federal level and also brief local law enforcement about the Islamic threat at home.
Coughlin was fired from his position with the Joint Chiefs following a report revealing opposition to his work by officials within the office of Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England, according to a Washington Times report dated Jan. 4, 2008.
Coughlin had run afoul of a key aide to England, Hasham Islam, who accused him of being a Christian zealot or extremist “with a pen,” according to defense officials, the report states.
via Shelbyville Times-Gazette: Story: Islamic subversion alleged by speaker.
I think this one warrants a full read. Please go read now.
This is why Ammo sales are going through the roof, because our Government cannot be trusted. The Radical Muslims have figured it out, they did not destroy us on September 11, 2001; so, they are going to do it from within, and now with a Liberal President, they just might succeed.
Act accordingly.
Others: The Corner, Jihad Watch, Moonbattery
The Washington Post Promotes Communism
They’re not even trying to hide it anymore.
Via the Washington Post:
The U.S. banking system is close to being insolvent, and unless we want to become like Japan in the 1990s — or the United States in the 1930s — the only way to save it is nationalization.
As free-market economists teaching at a business school in the heart of the world’s financial capital, we feel downright blasphemous proposing an all-out government takeover of the banking system. But the U.S. financial system has reached such a dangerous tipping point that little choice remains. And while Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s recent plan to save it has many of the right elements, it’s basically too late.
The subprime mortgage mess alone does not force our hand; the $1.2 trillion it involves is just the beginning of the problem. Another $7 trillion — including commercial real estate loans, consumer credit-card debt and high-yield bonds and leveraged loans — is at risk of losing much of its value. Then there are trillions more in high-grade corporate bonds and loans and jumbo prime mortgages, whose worth will also drop precipitously as the recession deepens and more firms and households default on their loans and mortgages.
Last year we predicted that losses by U.S. financial institutions would hit $1 trillion and possibly go as high as $2 trillion. We were accused of exaggerating. But since then, write-downs by U.S. banks have passed the $1 trillion mark, and now institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and Goldman Sachs predict losses of more than $2 trillion.
But if you think that $2 trillion is high, consider our latest estimates at RGE Monitor, the financial Web site we run: They suggest that total losses on loans made by U.S. banks and the fall in the market value of the assets they are holding will reach about $3.6 trillion. The U.S. banking sector is exposed to half of that figure, or $1.8 trillion. Even with the original federal bailout funds from last fall, the capital backing the banks’ assets was only $1.4 trillion, leaving the U.S. banking system about $400 billion in the hole.
Nationalization is Federal Ownership of a private industry; which is what Communist Russia did during the soviet era. It is Communism. This is the agenda of the Liberal left, the Federal ownership of the banking system. It also sets the United States up for the Biblical Mark of the Beast.
We are living in dangerous times.
From the Bible:
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. (Revelation 13:1-18 KJV)
Others: The Corner, Vox Popoli
Dutch MP refused entry to by the cowardly Government in Britain
This is a disgrace….
The Video and listen to Mr. Wilders stand up to the Liberal BBC’s baiting questions:
The Story:
A Dutch MP who called the Koran a “fascist book” has been sent back to the Netherlands after attempting to defy a ban on entering the UK.
Freedom Party MP Geert Wilders had been invited to show his controversial film – which links the Islamic holy book to terrorism – in the UK’s House of Lords.
But Mr Wilders, who faces trial in his own country for inciting hatred, has been denied entry by the Home Office.
He told the BBC it was a “very sad day” for UK democracy.
The Dutch ambassador was also at Heathrow to make clear his government’s opposition to the ban on Mr Wilders entering the UK.
As far as I am concerned, Britain is nothing more than a Nation of terrorist sympathizers. This is a disgrace and should be held as an example of what America will become if we allow the Liberals in America to have their way. This man put out a video exposing Islam for what it really is and now he is being persecuted for it. Yes, the video was extreme, and yes, the framing of his argument was a bit extreme, but there is a thing called freedom of speech, and his man’s right are being violated.
In the Spirit of freedom of speech, I present, once again, Fitna:
Others: Fausta’s Blog, Riehl World View, Gateway Pundit, Atlas Shrugs and Gates of Vienna
New Hampshire Draws the line in the sand….
Pat Dollard Reports:
The New Hampshire state legislature took an unbelievably bold step Monday by introducing a resolution to declare certain actions by the federal government to completely totally void and warning that certain future acts will be viewed as a âbreach of peaceâ with the states themselves that risks ânullifying the Constitution.â
This act by New Hampshire is a clear warning to the federal government that they could face being stripped of their power by the States (presumably through civil war!
The remarkable document outlines with perfect clarity, some basics long forgotten. For instance, it reminds Congress âThat the Constitution of the United States, having delegated to Congress a power to punish treason, counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States, piracies, and felonies committed on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations, slavery, and no other crimes whatsoever;. . . . . therefore all acts of Congress which assume to create, define, or punish crimes, other than those so enumerated in the Constitution are altogether void, and of no force;â
Federal gun crime laws? Void. Federal drug crime laws? Void. The gazzillion other federal criminal laws that deal with anything other than the specific enumerated crimes? ALL VOID.
Wow…. This should be an interesting development.
(H/T to Freedom’s Phoenix)
Radical Eco-Activist gets 22 Years for 1999 Arson at MSU
Justice Served or Overzealous Justice? You Decide.
A radical activist who helped set a $1 million fire to protest research on genetically modified crops was sentenced Thursday to nearly 22 years in prison _ even more than the prosecution recommended.
Marie Mason decided to “elevate her grievances beyond the norms of civilized society” through fire and destruction, U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney said. The case _ which was prosecuted as domestic terrorism _ was “about an abandonment of the marketplace of ideas,” he added.
The explosion and fire caused more than $1 million in damage to Michigan State University’s Agriculture Hall on New Year’s Eve 1999.
In her plea agreement, she also admitted causing another $3 million in damage through other acts from 1999 to 2003, including destroying homes under construction in the Detroit area and Indiana and setting fire to two boats owned by a man who formerly raised minks.
The 47-year-old Mason, of Cincinnati, had acted on behalf of the radical group Earth Liberation Front, or ELF, which has been implicated in a spate of similar crimes, mostly in the West.
She had pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy and arson after reaching a deal with prosecutors. The prosecution had been aided by Frank Ambrose, her former husband, who cooperated with the FBI.
The investigation was cold until spring 2007, when a man looking for scrap cardboard found gas masks, an M-80 explosive, maps and anti-government writings in a suburban Detroit trash bin.
They belonged to Ambrose, who apparently was trying to shed remnants of his past. The FBI searched his home, and he became an informant, blowing the whistle on himself and Mason and going undercover to record 178 conversations with other activists.
At MSU, Mason and Ambrose targeted a campus office that held records on research related to moth-resistant potatoes for poor parts of Africa. Computers, file cabinets and desks were doused with a flammable liquid. Vapors contributed to an explosion, and the fire got out of control.
The explosion burned Mason’s hair and prevented her from finishing the message, “No GMO,” on a wall, a reference to genetically modified organisms.
The Libertarian in me says; A lady gets 22 years for setting fire to a Eco-Lab, but a President and his cabinet deceive the American people into a war that had nothing to do with September 11’th and he is sitting in Texas. Something is wrong with America. For the record, nobody was killed as a result of this fire, 4000+ of our finest young people are dead. The fire cost what? 1 Million?? How much is the Iraq war costing us; 1 Trillion? Does anyone else see the oddball nature of this? Of course, the Fascist Neo-Con’s just love this conviction. That’s because they just love tossing around that word, “Terrorism.” That’s because it serves their masters well.
Thankfully, Mason’s lawyer is appealing this judgment, and I believe it is warranted, I believe this crime is wrong, but 22 years is extremely excessive.
Update: Jazz Shaw who writes at the Moderate Voice, kind of agrees with me.
Japan could serve as a lesson to the United States
Barack Obama could learn a lesson from Japan. There’s a very good article in the New York Times today, on the mistakes made by the country of Japan in the 1990’s to fix their failing economy:
The Hamada Marine Bridge soars majestically over this small fishing harbor, so much larger than the squid boats anchored below that it seems out of place.
And it is not just the bridge. Two decades of generous public works spending have showered this city of 61,000 mostly graying residents with a highway, a two-lane bypass, a university, a prison, a childrenâs art museum, the Sun Village Hamada sports center, a bright red welcome center, a ski resort and an aquarium featuring three ring-blowing Beluga whales.
Nor is this remote port in western Japan unusual. Japanâs rural areas have been paved over and filled in with roads, dams and other big infrastructure projects, the legacy of trillions of dollars spent to lift the economy from a severe downturn caused by the bursting of a real estate bubble in the late 1980s. During those nearly two decades, Japan accumulated the largest public debt in the developed world â totaling 180 percent of its $5.5 trillion economy â while failing to generate a convincing recovery.
Now, as the Obama administration embarks on a similar path, proposing to spend more than $820 billion to stimulate the sagging American economy, many economists are taking a fresh look at Japanâs troubled experience. While Japan is not exactly comparable to the United States â especially as a late developer with a history of heavy state investment in infrastructure â economists say it can still offer important lessons about the pitfalls, and chances for success, of a stimulus package in an advanced economy.
The Lesson to be learned here is:
âIt is not enough just to hire workers to dig holes and then fill them in again,â said Toshihiro Ihori, an economics professor at the University of Tokyo. âOne lesson from Japan is that public works get the best results when they create something useful for the future.
But the real lesson to be learned here is the follow and pay special close attention to what is said here:
In the end, say economists, it was not public works but an expensive cleanup of the debt-ridden banking system, combined with growing exports to China and the United States, that brought a close to Japanâs Lost Decade. This has led many to conclude that spending did little more than sink Japan deeply into debt, leaving an enormous tax burden for future generations.
Gee, is that not what Ron Paul said ALL ALONG, while he was running for President of the United States? For Ron Paul’s troubles and hard work he was slandered, maligned and marginalized by the Neo-Conservatives who hated him and the Liberal Democrats who were sacred to death of him.
I highly suggest that you read the rest of this article. The United States could learn much from this lesson that Japan had to learn. We could very well end up causing more harm than good to our economy.
Others: Glenn Thrush’s Blogs, Hot Air, A Blog For All, Cafe Hayek, Weekly Standard and QandO
The Story of John Birch
Here is a very excellent video on the life of John Birch:
This video is by the founder of the John Birch Society, Robert Welch explaining what the John Birch Society is about:
News from a Fundamental Baptist Perspective
I am reprinting this here, because I happen to agree with almost all of this man’s positions. Enjoy, -Pat
——————————————————————-
FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES
January 30, 2009, Volume 10, Issue 5
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 obviously 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.
Why does America always do stupid things like this?
I will never, ever understand why America does stupid things like this right here, ever!
The Obama administration on Friday made an emergency contribution of more than $20 million for urgent relief efforts in the Gaza Strip, a day after the United Nations launched a flash appeal for $613 million to help Palestinians recover from Israel’s three-week military operation there.
The State Department said President Barack Obama had authorized the use of $20.3 million from the U.S. Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund for humanitarian assistance to the 1.4 million Palestinians in Gaza.
The money will go to U.N. agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross, which are distributing emergency food assistance, providing medical care and temporary shelter, creating temporary employment and restoring access to electricity and potable water, the department said in a statement.
The Israeli offensive killed nearly 1,300 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated $2 billion in damage, Palestinian officials say. The assault was launched to halt years of Hamas rocket fire on southern Israel.
You want to know where this money is going to end up? In the hands of Hamas, the very terrorist organization that was attacking Israel, in the first place. This money is supposed to be reserved for American Citizens, not for foreign countries! You know, I find it absolutely amazing that the United States of America, would support a military attack on Gaza by Israel to defeat terrorists; only to have them send aid to the very people that Israel attacked. Not only this, our government is using money that is specifically earmarked for the people of the United States of America. This is an outrage! Someone should be complaining to the high Heavens about it!
The reason this outrages me so much is this; yeah, that money might go to American agencies approved by our Government, but ultimately, it will end up right back into the hands of the Hamas terrorists.
I will never understand why America continues to prop up those they claim are terrorists.
Quote of the Day
In Jerry Z. Mullerâs âUs and Them: The Enduring Power of Ethnic Nationalism,â in Foreign Affairs, his thesis is summarized:
âAmericans generally belittle the role of ethnic nationalism in politics. But ⌠it corresponds to some enduring propensities of the human spirit. It is galvanized by modernization, and ⌠it will drive global politics for generations to come. Once ethnic nationalism has captured the imagination of groups in a multiethnic society, ethnic disaggregation or partition is often the least bad answer.â
Disaggregation or partition, the man said.
Are we really in a post-racial America, or is our multicultural multiethnic America, too, destined for Balkanization and break-up?
Liberal Democrat John Conyers starts Liberal Witch-Hunt against Bush Administration
This ought to be very interesting.
via Politico.com:
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) has subpoenaed Karl Rove, the former top political advisor to President George W. Bush, to question what Rove knows about âpoliticizationâ of the Justice Department.
The Senate Judiciary Committee had subpoenaed Rove during the last Congress, but relying on an executive privilege claim by Bush, Rove refused to appear.
Conyers had previously subpoenaed former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten, Bush former White House chief of staff, seeking any information they had. Conyers is also seeking White House documents related to the firing of nine U.S. attorneys.
After the White House refused to comply with the subpoenas, and Miers refused to even appear before the committee to answer the subpoena, the House Judiciary Committee sued. A federal judge backed the committee in a major win for Conyers and House Democrats, but resolution of the case has been delayed by the changeover in administrations. President Obama has vowed to comply with congressional subpoenas.
âI have said many times that I will carry this investigation forward to its conclusion, whether in Congress or in court, and todayâs action is an important step along the way,â Conyers said.
Rove has until Feb. 2 to respond to the subpoena.
To me, this looks like a partisan witch-hunt. Because no proof that Karl Rove or anyone else at the White House knew about it. Just Liberal accusations.
Update:Â This is not to say there was no bad conduct at the Justice Department, Monica Goodling basically admitted that she made some very unethical decisions. But to attempt to tie it to Karl Rove and to George W. Bush by Proxy; is basically a stretch. I mean, because there is no proof of it, at all. All there is, are E-mails that have been parsed to extract Liberal talking points. I mean, do the Liberals really believe that Karl Rove, of all people, is going to sing like a bird? I mean, the man’s a Bush Loyalist. He is just not going to give the Democrats what they want.
The problem is, Obama is not going to enforce this at all:
Obama and Eric Holder, the administrationâs nominee for attorney general, have both said they will not try to âcriminalize policy differencesâ with the Bush administration, especially controversial policies like authorization by the Justice Department of waterboarding.
So, it looks like Mr. Conyers is going a have a bit of trouble of getting the support of the White House on this. However, there’s this:
But many prominent Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (Vt.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, have said they want to pursue Bush administration officials whom they believe misled Congress.
There two ways one can look at this. It could be that Conyers will be on his own, because Pelosi won’t support it. However, on the other hand; Pelosi, Leahy and possibly other, like Wexler, might get behind this and pursue it and not have the support the White House; thereby creating a rift between Congress and the White House.
Either way, it will be an interesting story to follow, as you know, as well as I, that this will spark an outrage among the far right, especially amongst the Neo-Conservative media. Somehow, I just do not think that the Democrats in Congress want to risk a fierce blowback in the media from the Conservatives. Because any way you attempt to paint this, it will be viewed by some, as a partsian witch hunt. I just do not believe that the Democrats have the stomach for a backlash that would follow something of this nature.
Is Obama setting the United States of America up for a dictatorship?
Looks that way to me!
Via Politico.com:
West Wing on steroids in Obama W.H.
President Barack Obama is taking far-reaching steps to centralize decision-making inside the White House, surrounding himself with influential counselors, overseas envoys and policy “czars” that shift power from traditional Cabinet posts.
Not even a week has passed since he was sworn in, but already Obama is moving to create perhaps the most powerful staff in modern history â a sort of West Wing on steroids that places no less than a half-dozen of his top initiatives into the hands of advisers outside the Cabinet.
For all the talk of his âTeam of Rivalsâ pick in Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Obama last week handed the two hottest hotspots in American foreign policy to presidential envoys â one to former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, and the other to a man who knows his way around Foggy Bottom better than Clinton does, Richard Holbrooke.
“Czar” Carol Browner will head up Obama’s fight on global warming, where once his energy and environmental chiefs might have stepped in. Tom Daschle scored a ground floor office in the West Wing not by running Health and Human Services â but because of his role as Obama’s health-reform czar.
Pulling power close is something all recent presidents have done â and on the campaign trail, Obama spoke out against George W. Bushâs attempt to expand his executive authority.
But when it comes to building his own team, Obama is taking the notion of a powerful White House staff to new heights, leaving little doubt who will set policy and guide the politics of the his newborn administration.
….. Aides say he believes the Cabinet structure is outdated because it doesnât recognize that problems like global warming sprawl across several agencies, often requiring a sort of uber-Cabinet member â a czar â to confront them.
That helps explain the selection of Browner as an “energy-environment” czar, said one Obama aide.
…..Whatâs notable about Obamaâs approach â and expands on the approaches taken by Bush and Bill Clinton â is the number of different areas where Obama is seeking to tap a central figure, outside the Cabinet structure, who will carry out his wishes.
Doesn’t that name Czar sound a bit Communist to you?
Does any remember Obama telling the world on his campaign that a cabinet structure was outdated?
Further more, does anyone remember Obama excoriating the Bush Administration’s overreaching power, and how Obama’s White House was going to be different? So much for that little campaign promise.
Same beat, different drummer. Some Corruption, Different Party.
So Much for that “Hope and Change.” đ
Others: NewsBusters.org and Daled Amos
Living proof that Neo-Cons are flippin’ stupid
Neo-Con Tony Blankley calls for a National Mandatory draft.
Watch it:
That’s about 75 degrees worth of stupid. What we need to do, is send a drone or a squadron of fighters into that Region where Osama Bin Laden is holed up, bomb everything that fucking breathes and call it a war and get our fucking people out of there, that’s what we ought to do!
Damned idiot Neo-Cons, they’re about as fucking stupid as liberals!
(Via Anti-War)
More on the Spying on Journalists by the Bush Administration
Following up my posting from Last Night, More on the Spying of Journalists by the Bush Administration:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
and….
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
….and now to answer a question that some of you are possibly asking. Why I posting this here?
Ladies and Gents, I have one simple, but very direct answer. I am, and always will be for accountability in Government. If this is even remotely true. It would mean that the Bush Administration is even more corrupt that one though. I am sorry, but that transcends political parties, political ideology or affiliation. The President of the United States; is, in fact, the President of Everyone, he is elected by the people and he is the President of the people and not the Republican or Democratic Parties.
I make no apologies whatsoever, to any Conservatives or Republicans that read this Blog for posting these videos. It is my hope and prayer, that our newly elected Congress takes up this cause and leans on the justice department to do a full investigation into the possible crimes committed by the former administration.
Corruption cannot exist in Government, if it does, it begats more corruption. Somewhere the line must be drawn in the sand, somewhere someone within the halls of Congress someone must stand up and say this cannot be allowed to continue and go unpunished.
I hope the Congress, The President and the Justice Dept. does the right thing. It must investigate.
Freed from Gitmo, Saudi Becomes a Al-Qaeda Chief
This is not good at all, and timing could not be worse.
The emergence of a former GuantĂĄnamo Bay detainee as the deputy leader of Al Qaedaâs Yemeni branch has underscored the potential complications in carrying out the executive order President Obama signed Thursday that the detention center be shut down within a year.
The militant, Said Ali al-Shihri, is suspected of involvement in a deadly bombing of the United States Embassy in Yemenâs capital, Sana, in September. He was released to Saudi Arabia in 2007 and passed through a Saudi rehabilitation program for former jihadists before resurfacing with Al Qaeda in Yemen.
His status was announced in an Internet statement by the militant group and was confirmed by an American counterterrorism official.
âTheyâre one and the same guy,â said the official, who insisted on anonymity because he was discussing an intelligence analysis. âHe returned to Saudi Arabia in 2007, but his movements to Yemen remain unclear.â
The development came as Republican legislators criticized the plan to close the GuantĂĄnamo Bay, Cuba, detention camp in the absence of any measures for dealing with current detainees. But it also helps explain why the new administration wants to move cautiously, taking time to work out a plan to cope with the complications.
Almost half the campâs remaining detainees are Yemenis, and efforts to repatriate them depend in part on the creation of a Yemeni rehabilitation program â partly financed by the United States â similar to the Saudi one. Saudi Arabia has claimed that no graduate of its program has returned to terrorism.
âThe lesson here is, whoever receives former GuantĂĄnamo detainees needs to keep a close eye on them,â the American official said.
via Freed by the U.S., Saudi Becomes a Qaeda Chief – NYTimes.com.
I suppose you all think that I am going to point blame on Obama or Bush. Well, Surprise. I am not going to do either. Because, quite frankly, it is stupid to point fingers. The sobering truth is, that you take a horse to the water, but you cannot make them drink.
Put another way, you can send someone who’s convicted as a terrorist, to rehab and try to deprogram them, you can beat them over the head and tell them to stop; but they have to want to stop. Truth is, you cannot control people. If they’re going to be a terrorist, they’re going to do it, irregardless of what we or any other country does.
We troubles me is the fact that the far left is blaming Bush, and the far right is screaming that Obama is selling out America, or something like that. I think that want needs to happen is that there needs to be a independent review of each and every case, and the right thing done about it. This should not be a Political situation, but rather something that is right for the country.
I don’t claim to be an expert. So, take my opinion for what it is worth. There are a good number of opinions on this, and I encourage you to read them all.
Others: Washington Monthly, Room for Debate, Weekly Standard, Firedoglake, Balloon Juice, The Strata-Sphere, The Washington Independent, Hot Air, Newshoggers.com, FinkelBlog, Political Machine, A Blog For All, Gateway Pundit , The Huffington Post, Boston Globe, The Corner, Washington Times, The Plum Line, Little Green Footballs, Atlas Shrugs, Flopping Aces, Wizbang
President Obama to order gitmo closed in 12 months
This is a big change from Bush’s policies.
President Barack Obama will begin overhauling U.S. national security policy Thursday with orders to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center, review military trials of terror suspects and end harsh interrogations, two government officials said.
Together, the three executive orders and a presidential directive will reshape how the United States prosecutes and questions al-Qaida, Taliban or other foreign fighters who pose a threat to Americans.
A senior Obama administration official said the president would sign an order Thursday to shutter the Guantanamo prison within one year, fulfilling his campaign promise to close a facility that critics around the world say violates domestic and international detainee rights. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because the order has not yet been issued.
A draft copy of the order, obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, notes that “in view of significant concerns raised by these detentions, both within the United States and internationally, prompt and appropriate disposition of the individuals currently detained at Guantanamo and closure of the facility would further the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States and the interests of justice.
via Sources: Obama to order Guantanamo closed – Yahoo! News.
I have mixed feelings about this. I think it is good that this nightmare for the United States is basically going to be going away. But on the other hand, I do not like the idea of releasing possibly terrorists, who might want to harm us again.
Either way, it is quite the mixed bag. I just hope this new Presidential Administration makes the right call.
(via Memeorandum)
Editorial: President Obama, You Must Order an Investigation, NOW!
I started Blogging on February of 2006, I started out as a independent Blogger, a bit of a âLeft of Centerâ type; I began because I broke off a relationship with a Church. This was due to a pastor royally stabbing me in the back. Around that same time, CNN did a special on just how mismanaged the Iraq had been; not long after this, it was revealed that there were absolutely no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, at all. This is when I knew that it was time to go back to something I did well at, as a young boy; writing.
When Bush won in 2000, I did not think much of it, I, like most of the country, was very tired of hearing about ongoing Clinton scandal. I felt that Bill Clinton had disgraced the White House, I had voted for him, twice and now I was hearing that he had disgraced that White House by giving oral sex to an intern. I was quite miffed about it. However, I figured America would get past it. When Al Gore lost, I did not go to pieces; I really did not follow politics as I do now. To me, they were all the same, elect the best person, and hope he does the job. That was at the time, my philosophy, if you want to call it that. Besides, I was very busy working a job that kept me working almost fifty hours a week, if not more. In short, I was about as far away from politics as one can be and I did not care that much for it.
However, in 2006, after the event described above happened, I began to read online and see in the news reports the Bush was wrong about Iraq. That began to tip my suspicions about him. Thus began my venture into the world of Blogging. I did not and still do not consider myself a Democrat, I could never run with those who believe that the Government is the solution to worldâs problems. Furthermore, I could never align myself with a group of people that believe that making a profit is evil. However, something that Bush was doing just did not seem right. At the time, I thought calling my Blog, âThe Populistâ was a perfect solution. I always felt that the Government should be, âof, for, and by we the people.â The problem with that is, that I was quite unaware that the Populist Party that existed between the period of 1884 and 1908, is quite different from the Democratic Party of today. I know this to be the case now.
I never was a far left Democrat, While I am all for the supporting of the middle class, and I feel unions have their place too. I feel abortion is just morally wrong, at the same time, however, I feel that it should never be a legislative issue, at all. Further, I believe, as a Christian that the homosexual lifestyle is morally wrong. Nevertheless, I believe that if someone wants to carry out that lifestyle behind closed doors that is that personâs business. However, I do not believe that our Nationâs constitution should be modified to change the definition of marriage. I guess you would call me a âReagan Democrat.â
I crossed to the âright of centerâ political stance because of what took place in this election. I watched a party that I voted for, since I was eligible to vote at age 18, basically take the principles it was founded upon and toss them in to the wind, all to elected a man, that was, I felt, not even remotely qualified to President of the United States.
Having said all of this, I find myself back here at the writing tablet, angry again. This time because of a serious revelation that the now Former President of the United States of America was actually using his powers as President of the United States to spy upon the people of this nation. That is correct, this is not a joke, revelations are now coming out that Former President Bush was using the NSA to spy on the American people, more specifically Journalists, who Bush knew were not on his side.
Let me say this, before I get into the video that I am about to present. This is not about Conservatism, this is not about Liberalism, this about that sacred document that is at the National Archives, called the Constitution of the United States of America. This is about the proper rule of law; we are not Nazi Germany, nor are we the Soviet Union, We are America and American Presidents do not do things like this, at all!
Now the video and I do not want to hear any stupid remarks about who is presenting this information:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Having seen this video and allowed it to sink in and digest what information was laid at my feet; I felt the need to write, mainly to channel my anger, and to send the new President of United States of America an open and clear message.
Mr. President, You must investigate this and investigate this now!
This sort of blatant disregard for the rule of law in America cannot be tolerated at all. As the presenter of this video told in a special comment, just a day before, if we do not punish those who attempt to Govern outside of the rule law to get away with their crimes, it will only continue to fester into more crimes in the future.
Mister President Obama, I did not vote for you, however, you are the President of all of us, even those of us who did not vote for you. I ask you, as a humble citizen of the United States of America, as someone who believe that the Constitution of the United States of America still matters; please, order an investigation of this lawlessness; now.
Because what will we tell our children? That we allowed a paranoid President to rule as a tyrant, because he felt like that it was right thing to do at the time? Insanity, Mister President cannot be the order of the law in a Free and Constitutional Republic. Nor can it be the rule of law in a free and democratic society.
I simply ask you sir, please, for the future of our nation, do the right thing.
My Opinion on the Geert Wilders Movie and charges being filed
First the Story via BBC NEWS:
Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders made a controversial film last year equating Islam with violence and has likened the Koran to Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf.
“In a democratic system, hate speech is considered so serious that it is in the general interest to… draw a clear line,” the court in Amsterdam said.
Mr Wilders said the judgement was an “attack on the freedom of expression”.
“Participation in the public debate has become a dangerous activity. If you give your opinion, you risk being prosecuted,” he said.
Not only he, but all Dutch citizens opposed to the “Islamisation” of their country would be on trial, Mr Wilders warned.
“Who will stand up for our culture if I am silenced?” he added.
The three judges said that they had weighed Mr Wilders’s “one-sided generalizations” against his right to free speech, and ruled that he had gone beyond the normal leeway granted to politicians.
“The Amsterdam appeals court has ordered the prosecution of member of parliament Geert Wilders for inciting hatred and discrimination, based on comments by him in various media on Muslims and their beliefs,” the court said in a statement.
“The court also considers appropriate criminal prosecution for insulting Muslim worshippers because of comparisons between Islam and Nazism made by Wilders,” it added.
The court’s ruling reverses a decision last year by the public prosecutor’s office, which said Mr Wilders’s comments had been made outside parliament as a contribution to the debate on Islam in Dutch society and that no criminal offense had been committed.
Prosecutors said on Wednesday that they could not appeal against the judgment and would open an investigation immediately.
Gerard Spong, a prominent lawyer who pushed for Mr Wilders’s prosecution, welcomed the court’s decision.
“This is a happy day for all followers of Islam who do not want to be tossed on the garbage dump of Nazism,” he told reporters.
Okay, here is my opinion on this situation. Before I voice my opinion; let me say in the interest in full disclosure, that I fully believe that radical Islam is a threat to our way of life. Further more, I will be the first to say that it is very difficult to determine who among the Muslim community is radicalized and who is not. I also feel that if continue to allow Islam to be practiced in our country unchecked, doing so could result in a major terrorist attack in our Country again. I am, unashamedly an advocate of freedom of Religion; But when that Religion purposes to threaten the way of life of all Americans; it is no longer a Religion, but rather an instrument of terror. Having said thus, I believe that the United States of America would be abdicating the responsibility of the well being of its citizens by allowing the practice of Islam in America to continue unchecked.
Having said all this, seeing that I am more of a Libertarian and a Moderate politically; I will be the first one concede the fact that Wilders my have brought this prosecution unto himself. Yes, I know, I posted the video here, on more than one occasion as a matter of fact. The reason I did, is because that most people are intellectually honest enough to know, that the video was about radicalized Islam and not Islam in General. However, as well all know, intellectual honesty does not usually extend to those of the Liberal mindset or those within the Islamic community, who have a agenda to paint those who are opposed to radical Islam as racists or hatemongers.
The reason I believe that Wilders might have brought this upon himself is because the video, if you watch it. Does send an unspoken message that all Muslims are terrorists. It is not spoken nor printed in the movie at all. However, it is the inferred message within the actual movie itself, that is the cause of the outrage among the Muslim community and is the reason for the conviction.
So, while I believe that the sounding of the alarm about radical Islam is legitimate pursuit, I also believe that framing of that pursuit is very important and will do more to bring light to that issue in a proper manner, without offending those in the Muslim community who do not subscribe to the radical mindset.
Update: Neo-Conservative Ed Morrissey shows his abject Hypocrisy:
Freedom of speech, in a democratic system or any other, requires tolerance by the populace of unpopular ideas and criticisms. Popular speech requires no protection. Imposing limits on what can and cannot be criticized and opposed through rhetoric and peaceful assembly ends freedom and starts totalitarianism. If Wilders cannot criticize Islam openly and freely without the government requiring permission, then the government can declare all dissent illegal through âhate crimesâ legislation based on the whim of the government in question. It wonât be long before the ruling class in Holland discover that they can protect their own status through such prosecution and attack dissent accordingly.
The reason I say this is the fact that, anytime someone says something unpopular over at HotAir.com, like dropping the “N Word”, when talking about a black person or possibly making a negative comments about Jews and Neo-Cons, they’re banned from commenting. In fact, I was banned from the chat room on his show, because I happened to speak my mind about Obama once there. So, that little song and dance is a crock of crap. Neo-Con’s are just as bad about censoring free speech as Liberals. Nice try Ed, but I know better. Identity Politics is just as bad in Neo-Con circles as it is in Liberal circles. đ
Others: Harry’s Place, Israpundit, Hot Air, Samizdata.net, Gateway Pundit, Gates of Vienna, QandO, Jihad Watch, Atlas Shrugs
My Pledge to America
More like abject hypocrisy, if you ask me.
Check out this vomit inducing video, straight out of HollyWeird:
MySpace Celebrity and Katalyst present The Presidential Pledge
In an reaction, that can only described as a direct kick to the gonads of Hollywood; Andrew BreitBart lays the smack down to the Obama Bots and believe me, he does not mince words:
Forgive and forget? Right.
President Bush was not holding back Moore from âfree[ing] one million people from slavery in the next five years.â Nor was he holding back the Obama-biquitous Will.I.Am from âchang[ing] how [he] live[s].â Ditto: Aaron Ekhart (âTo be a better person,â) Marisa Tomei (âTo integrate into my heart what I already know in my head which is that we are all in this together,â) Kutcher (âTo the abolition to 21st century slavery,â) Anthony Kiedis (âTo be of service to Barack Obama,â) P. Diddy (â pledge to turn the lights off, cause I used to leave the lights on but we want to conserve energy so Iâma turn the lights off, you turn the lights off,) and all-in-unison (âBecause together we can, together we are, and together we will be the change that we seek.â)
Missing are pledges not to kiss the ring of Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez and other pledged enemies of America. Nor are there pledges not to make movies that glorify these tyrants. Nor are there pledges to take seriously that we are at war, will continue to be at war under President Obama and that our precious and under-appreciated military is fighting an avowed and evil enemy â so that, among other things, Hollywood can continue to make decadent crap that actually motivates our enemy to fight us harder!
[âŚ]
Remember this video: It is a instructive relic of the era of celebrity decadence and boutique anti-Republican activism under President Bush. It is a sickening display that they want fast and easy absolution for having comported themselves like ill-behaved children for eight difficult and war-torn years.
Good luck, President Obama. The rest of you can go to hell.
Having said all that, (Well, quoted⌠
) I will make my pledge; I pledge to use this Blog, to praise Obama when he does something that I agree with and likewise, I will use this Blog to criticize President Obama when he does something that I feel is detrimental to the Liberty of all Americans. I predict that many Conservatives will roll up the sidewalks and end up stop Blogging, because of the change of the political climate. Well, I will still be here; I do not care, if I ever make a dime on this Blog. I will not stop, I will not leave, I will continue to write, it does not matter if I have five thousand, five hundred readers, fifty readers or even five; I will not stop, because if I do, I would be doing the same thing, as if someone walked away from the attacks at Pearl Harbor and did nothing. Because I still believe in America, I still believe that dissent is the highest form of Patriotism.
While I did have and still do have, issue and reservations with Neo-Conservatism, and I do identify myself as a paleo or old Conservative, with a twist of Libertarianism; I do believe that Conservatism is an honorable strain of political thought, that the notion that the Government is not the solution to Americaâs problems. That mankind can be do by itself, without intervention of the United States Government. That the middle class of America still matters, and that American made products are the lifeblood of America and that uncontrolled globalism is dangerous to the survival of America and itâs people.
Likewise, I will continue to blog about the dangers of an interventionist foreign policy; I will continue to blog about the dangers of big government, I will continue to blog about the short comings and the out dangers of a socialist Government, and the way that socialist Governments repress and utterly steal the freedoms of all Americans. I will continue to blog about the dangers of printing more money that the United States has gold to back it up and how going back to the Gold standard is a valid idea and how the United States should pursue that more aggressively and what it will do to America, if we do not.
It is the least I can do for my Country.
Others: Flopping Aces, Wizbang, Gateway Pundit, Scared Monkeys, Sister Toldjah, RedState, Fausta’s Blog, Blue Crab Boulevard, Weekly Standard and Reason
Tucker Carlson on Obama’s Inauguration, “Let’s Not Pretend This is the Second Coming of Jesus”
This is why I like Tucker Carlson, he is absolutely fearless and is not afraid to speak his mind.
Listen to it: (Via Media Bistro)
Quote:
Former MSNBC and CNN anchor Tucker Carlson, who is already “worn out” from the Inauguration festivities, joined us this morning on the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu. Carlson and host Glynnis MacNicol are two of the millions in D.C. right now.
He had some strong thoughts about the media’s love affair with President-elect Barack Obama. “I’m excited about it, I live here, I want my kids to see it…On the other hand, in the end he’s a politician taking a political office, 52% of the public voted for him, 48% didn’t vote for him, so let’s not pretend this is the second coming of Jesus,” said Carlson.
And although he didn’t want to sound like “a libertarian wacko,” he had some problems with the D.C. security. “The security is really over the top, anti-American really…We are far too willing to accept security restrictions,” he said.
As for the “exclusive” deals being worked out between TV networks and the Presidential Inauguration Committee, Carlson said, “How you can decide you have exclusive right to something that takes place on the National Mall? I don’t know who came up with that? I should try it!”
He also had some other suggestions: “Why don’t we name the White House? We could call it the Staples House, you know what I mean. The Home Depot House.”
Carlson also said that a friend of his tried to cross the Washington Bridge and was confronted by a United States Army solider with a bullhorn and an assault rifle. Which I believe, if I am not mistaken, against the law and our constitution.
I also agree with his assessment of the Liberal media’s infatuation with “The One”, it’s a sad day; when the media refuses to look at something objectively. I mean, there are so many questions, his citizenship, his ties to communism, it just sickens me, that the media and the American citizens not asking more questions.
Of course, you can expect that the far lefty liberal media will, of course, pay attempt to paint Tucker Carlson as a hater. But thinking Americans will know better. Further more, the Fascist Neo-Conservatives will refuse to report this, because of their love affair with the Democrats, seeing that most Neo-Cons are of Democratic breed.
I fear for what America is about to become. The Rapture of the Church cannot come fast enough, if you ask me.