Tag: Terrorism

Are Conservatives finally waking up to the realities of war?

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This all comes via Little Miss Whatsherface.

Kenneth Anderson writing over at The Volokh Conspiracy says:

It’s heartbreaking, if you’ve spent a lot of time and energy over years of your life, figuring out how to deal with the local village elders and try and start development projects and improve governance and send Afghan girls to school, to realize that the institutions that one believes one has started and got off the ground are far more likely to blow away like a Potemkin village.  You have these hard-won skills and these small, on the ground achievements, and it looks like maybe you’ve started something that might someday bear fruit.  You’ve actually done remarkable things, by any ordinary measure.  But then it doesn’t bear fruit, because it isn’t rooted, not culturally or institutionally, and the belief that it will have a life after your funding is gone is illusion.

But it’s not an unusual story, if one looks beyond Afghanistan and indeed beyond war.  It’s actually the oldest story in the world in development work.  In development, we believe we need to develop institutional governance capacities so that the efforts that shelter and take root under those institutions will not be in vain.  No doubt that’s true.  But unfortunately we don’t have a clue how to do that — and even less of a clue how to do that in war.

I highly recommend that you go read that whole quote. Because if this is broadening feeling among Conservatives; we could be looking at a total change in attitude among the right.

Mark Steyn over at National Review puts it in more plain terms:

Before I got into the Derb/Andy discussion, I was reading an obituary in The Daily Telegraph of Anthony Brooke, former Rajah Muda of Sarawak, whose family reigned over much of the Borneo jungle for over a century until 1946, when the kingdom lost its independence and was formally incorporated into the British Empire. As often with flotsam and jetsam (Flintstone and Jetson?) from the imperial byways, you’re struck by how much London accomplished with so little. By contrast, we’ve spent a fortune in Afghanistan and have nothing to show for it.

I think the difference is this: When America goes into Afghanistan, it doesn’t think it’s prosecuting American interests. Quite the opposite: Regardless of whether it’s officially UN- or Nato-sanctioned, America goes in as the expeditionary force of “world opinion” or “the global commons”. It doesn’t believe it has a national interest in Afghanistan, and indeed assumes that it would be a kind of transnational faux pas to be seen to have one, so it’s hardly surprising that the “nation” it winds up “building” doesn’t look much like anywhere any American would want to have anything to do with. Even nation-building requires the builder to build it in what he perceives as his national interest – as the British did in India and the Americans in post-war Japan. If you have disinterested, transnational nation-building, you wind up as we have in Kabul.

To go back to Sarawak, it was ceded to His Britannic Majesty in 1946 and became independent in 1963, when it joined the new Federation of Malaysia: Seventeen years from colony to statehood – versus a decade spent presiding over Take Your Catamite To Work Day in Kandahar. And, as a New Jersey reader wrote to me the other day, “Does anybody really think we’re leaving anytime soon?” In Afghanistan and elsewhere, transnational nation-building is like a mangled Hotel California: We never seriously check in, and yet we never leave.

Now, if I were a rabid Ron Paul or Pat Buchanan type; I would say something to the effect of, “See? Now that the Neo-Conservatives are not controlling the war, they want to stop it!” Well, rest assured I am not a rabid anything at all. I think that it is encouraging to see that the Conservative Blogosphere is finally starting to figure out, what the rest of the America already knows; that we went into Afghanistan to hunt down, and capture or kill Osama Bin Laden and destroy Al-Qaeda. Now that has become like the secondary mission and defeating the Taliban and setting up Government there is now this goal, which is essentially “Nation Building.” Something that never works, ever. Especially in the middle east, where some, if not all, of the Governments are inherently corrupt.

Either way, it is good to now see writers question the very thing, that back in 2003, they were mindlessly cheerleading.

 

 

So much for Democracy in Iraq

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Next time some stupid moron Neo-Conservative tells you that Bush brought Democracy to Iraq, by invading it — show ’em this:

BAGHDAD – Among the revolts sweeping the Middle East and North Africa, Iraq’s has been an exception: Here, protesters are seeking to reform a democratically elected government, not to topple an autocrat.But protesters, human rights workers and security officials say the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has responded to Iraq’s demonstrations in much the same way as many of its more authoritarian neighbors: with force.Witnesses in Baghdad and as far north as Kirkuk described watching last week as security forces in black uniforms, tracksuits and T-shirts roared up in trucks and Humvees, attacked protesters, rounded up others from cafes and homes and hauled them off, blindfolded, to army detention centers.Entire neighborhoods – primarily Sunni areas where residents are generally opposed to Maliki – were blockaded to prevent residents from joining the demonstrations. Journalists were beaten.In most cases, regular soldiers and police officers simply stood aside, with one saying the matter was “beyond us.” In all, 29 people were killed.”Maliki is starting to act like Saddam Hussein, to use the same fear, to plant it inside Iraqis who criticize him,” said Salam Mohammed al-Segar, a human rights activist who was among those beaten during a sit-in. “The U.S. must feel embarrassed right now – it is they who promised a modern state, a democratic state. But in reality?”He shook his head.Last Friday, the U.S. Embassy here issued a statement saying that security forces appeared to have followed Maliki’s directive to allow peaceful protests. As reports emerged Saturday of the beaten journalists, the White House issued a statement saying that U.S. officials were “deeply troubled.” The U.S. Embassy has declined to comment further.

via Protesters say Maliki is using special security forces to shut down demonstrations in Iraq.

So much for that little pipe dream, eh? Iraq is no more a damned Democracy than North Korea. The elections over there were nothing more than a smoke screen to fool the American people into believing that the invasion in Iraq in 2003 was justified.  Which thinking Conservatives, like me, knew was a pack of damned lies. As was the whole WMD story.

Nice work Dubya! 🙄

Conservatives of all stripes should really be following this coming 2012 election. If whomever the Republican Party chooses to be our next President; starts talking about “exporting Democracy” to foriegn lands, that Conservative should not vote or vote for a third party. Forget the Democrats, they do the same stuff as Neo-Conservatives. Vote different, because America cannot afford no more General’s wars. Just that simple. Exporting Democracy does not work people and this story here is living proof of that.

Fixed rather funny typo. I meant WMD’s, not WND’s… More coffee!

 

 

Video: Las Vegas Boom & Bust – A Preview for Singapore & China?

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This comes via GoldSiver.com:

Wouldn’t it be a good time to invest in Gold and Silver and beat the rush?

Video: Blowback from 9/11

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The reason why I am posting this, is because I feel it needs to be shown. Andrew Sullivan and Digby the owner of the progressive blog Hullabaloo say this is hate and by definition, yes it is. However, I think more broadly, it is simply blowback; which is an C.I.A. term, from what happened on 9/11. Not only that, these people are simply fed up, with all the recent acts of terrorism happening in America and elsewhere, people are just simply fed up to their wits end.

Again, I do not justify these actions, at all. I simply think progressive liberals need to understand, that people are just fed up.

More than anything else, this just gets up my libertarian nose a bit. What if those were blacks? Ya know? I’m just sayin’

Video:

 

Once Again, HotAir.com lies about Ron Paul

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I like these guys; but when they resort to lies, I most expose them.

Ron Paul gave an interview with the News Real Blog, which is owned by the Neo-Conservative goon David Horowitz; who also, by the way, was a former far-leftist. Some would argue that he still is. Anyhow, It appears that this blog wanted to do a follow up.

Here is what Ron Paul really said about Israel:

NRB: David Horowitz and others have been critical of the effect that your foreign policy would have upon Israel… How would you describe a libertarian vision for alliance that could support democracies where people want to determine their own course while under threat by external forces?

Ron Paul: We’ve been involved a long time, since World War II, especially since we’ve inherited or developed our empire. We strongly supported all the dictators that surround Israel, and sometimes we buy peace and pay for it. But it’s unstable. And that instability has always been a threat to Israel. Now, when it’s coming apart, and our financial system’s coming apart, Israel is in worse shape than ever because of our so-called protection.

I believe in non-intervention. I believe we should treat all other countries alike, and that we should be friends. Israel is very, very powerful. If we weren’t in there, they could do what they want to protect themselves, and they wouldn’t have to ask us permission, and we would never have to be dragged in if something happens over there. I think they’d be much better off, and that would be a constitutional position.

NRB: Is there a point where the existence of Israel being under threat would compel even a libertarian to take action to protect her?

Paul: First off, they’re under threat because we’re there. We’re a greater threat to them, and our polices, because they have assumed that we’ll [intervene] if they don’t do the right things for themselves.

I don’t know of anybody who can militarily threaten them. They have 300 nuclear weapons. Nobody’s gonna touch them. This notion that we have to support them over the Palestinians – we shouldn’t favor one over the other. It’s a very different problem over there. If you’re a Palestinian-American, you might not like [America’s position on Israel]. I’m not saying you should support the Palestinian side or the Israeli side. I’m saying let them work it out.

…and what does HotAir.com put in their headlines as what Ron Paul said? This:

Ron Paul: We shouldn’t favor Israel over the Palestinians

Thus proving what I have believed about Neo-Conservatives since I have been blogging. That nothing matters to them, as long as the agenda of defending Israel to the death is followed —– even telling the truth. Ron Paul simply said, “Treat them all the same.” The way that headline was written, one would think Paul was anti-Israel or even Anti-Semitic.  To be fair, I disagree with this part here myself:

I believe in non-intervention. I believe we should treat all other countries alike, and that we should be friends. Israel is very, very powerful. If we weren’t in there, they could do what they want to protect themselves, and they wouldn’t have to ask us permission, and we would never have to be dragged in if something happens over there. I think they’d be much better off, and that would be a constitutional position.

The problem here is, there are more Arab nations and Israel is one small Country. If all these Arabs Nations were to decide to gang up on Israel; the results would disastrous. Now that, would not be a good thing to any normal, sane, rational person. That is, unless you are some sort of White Nationalist or Jew-Hater — and a good amount of Ron Paul followers are Jew-Haters, Conspiracy Kooks and just plain old weirdos. I personally, if Ron Paul were running, would not vote for him. Ron Paul is not going to run to actually win the election; he is running to spread his message. Some of Ron Paul’s biggest supporters admitted that to me. Plus, I do not agree with Paul’s strict isolationism.

My point here is this; I can understand someone not agreeing with Ron Paul’s policy stance; but when you resort to writing bogus headlines to make someone look like someone that they are not, you lose any sort of credibility. I also will say that HotAir is not the only blog to do this; it happens everywhere in the right wing Blogosphere. I try and shy away from that. Link baiting is a easy cheap way of getting hits. But the harder way is to write good content; I try to stay with the latter.

 

Uh-Oh: Days of Rage protests reach Iraq

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Not to ripoff AllahPundit over at HotAir.com or anything…. But… gulp. 😮

Via Fox News:

BAGHDAD –  Thousands marched on government buildings and clashed with security forces in cities across Iraq on Friday, in the largest and most violent anti-government protests here since political unrest began spreading in the Arab world several weeks ago.

In two northern Iraqi cities, security forces trying to push back crowds opened fire, killing six demonstrators. In the capital of Baghdad, demonstrators knocked down blast walls, threw rocks and scuffled with club-wielding troops.

The protests, billed as a “Day of Rage, were fueled by anger over corruption, chronic unemployment and shoddy public services.

“We want a good life like human beings, not like animals,” said Khalil Ibrahim, 44, one of about 3,000 protesters in the capital Baghdad.

Like many Iraqis, he railed against a government that locks itself in the highly fortified Green Zone, home to the parliament and the U.S. Embassy, and is viewed by most of its citizens as more interested in personal gain than public service.

Oh, it gets worse too:

Demonstrators trying to get across a bridge going from the square to the Green Zone clashed with security forces. The demonstrators knocked down some of the concrete blast walls that were put up Thursday night and threw rocks at troops who beat them back with batons. Six riot police and 12 demonstrators were wounded in the melee, said police and hospital officials.

The protests stretched from the northern city of Mosul to the southern city of Basra, reflecting the widespread anger many Iraqis feel at the government’s seeming inability to improve their lives.

A crowd of angry marchers in the northern city of Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, tried to break into the city’s municipal building, said the head of the local city council, Ali Hussein Salih.

Security forces trying to block the crow opened fire, killing three demonstrators and wounding 15, local officials said. The Iraqi Army was eventually called in to restore order.

In Mosul, also in northern Iraq, hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the provincial council building, demanding jobs and better services, when guards opened fire, according to a police official. A police and hospital official said three protesters were killed and 15 people wounded. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to brief the media.

Black smoke could later be seen billowing from the building.

In the south, about 4,000 people demonstrated in front of the office of Gov. Sheltagh Aboud al-Mayahi in the port city of Basra, Iraq’s second-largest city, 340 miles (550 kilometers) southeast of Baghdad. They knocked over one of the concrete barriers and demanded his resignation, saying he’d done nothing to improve city services.

They appeared to get their wish when the commander of Basra military operations, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Jawad Hawaidi, told the crowd that the governor had resigned in response to the demonstrations. Iraqi state TV announced that the prime minister had asked the governor to step down but did not mention the protests.

Around 1,000 demonstrators also clashed with police in the western city of Fallujah 40 miles (65 kilometers) west of Baghdad clashed with authorities, witnesses said. And in the southern city of Karbala, about 1,000 protesters rallied for better services.

The reason I say gulp is because, what happens if this goes totally out of control and we end up with another civil war in Iraq? Somehow, I do not see President Obama doing anything about it. if anything, he will just end up pulling our forces out of there; and by rights, he most likely should. We did our jobs, we did defeat Al-Qaeda and stopped the insurgency. So, why should we put more people into Iraq and risk more lives? It just would not make any sense.

Either way, it just does not look good for our guys on the ground there.

 

UPDATED: I am no Tabitha Hale fan, at all; But this is Bullcrap – Tabitha Hale speaks out on her attack!

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Believe me, when I tell you. I am not a big fan of Tabitha Hale; she just did not make a big impression on me at all. Might be because of silly photos like this here. Not that a I hate her or anything; just with me, first impressions are everything, and she did not really impress me much.

Having said all that, Tabitha Hale got roughed up a bit. Michelle Malkin has the story:

This is Tabitha Hale, a young conservative activist/original Tea Party organizer/blogger who works for Washington, D.C.-based FreedomWorks. I know her from her great grass-roots work with Smart Girl Politics when the Tea Party movement was just emerging.

Today, Big Labor groups took their Grievance March to the offices of FreedomWorks.

Among the groups protesting: the Communications Workers of America. They’re one of the heavyweight labor biggies that have received a coveted Obamacare Waiver for Favors. CWA facts here.

Video of the assault:

Only defense is I have for the guy is this; he did not want to be taped and he slapped the camera. It is considered assault and I would have been calling the police, or better yet, I would have been kicking the guys ass. This is why I advocate going to these events armed, or if you know one of these is showing up. I would have armed to tooth and would have exercised my second amendment rights on his head with my glock. I do not advocate just shooting someone —- just to be shooting someone or murder — but I do advocate defense; and in this case, this mans killing would have been justified.

Like I said, I do not hate the lady or anything, but her silly looking photos did not impress me one bit.

This must be more of that liberal civility we have been hearing about, right? 🙄

Others: RedState, The Sundries Shack, The Other McCain, Caffeinated Thoughts, Fire Andrea Mitchell!, The Gateway Pundit, All American Blogger, Sister Toldjah, Weasel Zippers, Doug Ross, AmSpecBlog, UNCOVERAGE.net, POWIP, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Da Techguy’s Blog, No Runny Eggs, The Daley Gator, American Power and Pajamas Media

Update: Tabitha Hale speaks out on her attack:

I’m a 5?1 female in a dress, and he was standing up on a garden wall above me in the courtyard. He hardly felt threatened. I was stunned, because generally protesters are there to, you know, get their message out. They don’t normally shy away from the camera.

I’m very much okay, and very appreciative of the support from my fellow bloggers and activists today. I am, however, shaken up by the level of sheer hatred I experienced today. The look of fury on his face in the close up is appalling. I had not exchanged a word with him. He didn’t know who I was. He didn’t even know my name, what I do. He had probably surmised that I was with FreedomWorks and that was enough.

This just can’t be tolerated anymore. It’s one thing to be called a violent teabagger. It’s another to be called a violent teabagger while you’re being assaulted. They’ve been comparing themselves to the Egyptians ousting Mubarak. Looks like they’re not too far off, given that they share the tendency to assault women with cameras.

In addition, it’s disgusting to me that the first response I received from the Left was rationalization. “You were too close, respect personal space” and “well he obviously didn’t want to be filmed!” – essentially, it’s the “her skirt was too short” defense. No one deserves to be hit. The concern from a bystander was that “You’ll get on the news, stop it!” Unfortunately for him, he did not know who he was dealing with. I will ensure that this happens.

I was not asking for this. There was no confrontation between the thug and myself prior to this. He had not asked me to put the camera away. I was not as close as the video implies (it was cropped from a vertical iPhone video so it would fit on youtube). I was simply filming a protest, as I have done for the past two years. Amazingly enough, none of those crazy right wing extremists ever hit me.

At this point, I’m grateful we moved to a higher security building last month. For a bunch of violent racists, the Left sure seems to be comfortable threatening and attacking us.

We must really suck as bullies.

First of all, I do not know who the hell she thinks she’s calling someone on the left, and second of all; my feeling is, you can’t take the damned heat, then stay out of the kitchen. Also too, thanks for reminding us, that your a poor innocent little girl, we needed that.  If Freedom Works is so damned worried about security, why was not the police called and a report filed, why were there no people there armed to make sure nothing like that happened? I will tell you why; because it is all about publicity; Tabitha’s and more broadly Freedom Work’s. This Video will get circulated and more people will feel sorry for Tabitha and money will flow, it is a classic strategy.

…and lastly, No Tabitha, you do not suck as a bully; but you sure do suck at sob stories and at being a political pawn.

Related: Yikes! Anti-Semitsm during Union Demostration at Freedom Works HQ?

 

 

Video: Congressman Allen West tell Terrorist-front CAIR rep don’t “try to blow sunshine up my butt” and “put the microphone down and go home.”

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This is truly awesome; this towel-headed moron tried to play Congressman Allen West for a fool and instead; got seriously schooled.

The Video from Shark-Tank:

Myself, I would have just pulled out the 9MM and emptied a clip into the mohammad-worshiping idiot and told the cops that he tried to attack me; but that’s just me.

By the way there are verses that speak of killing those who reject Islam:

From Submission.org, the Authorized English translation of the Koran:

[9:1] An ultimatum is herein issued from GOD and His messenger to the idol worshipers who enter into a treaty with you.

[9:2] Therefore, roam the earth freely for four months, and know that you cannot escape from GOD, and that GOD humiliates the disbelievers.

[9:3] A proclamation is herein issued from GOD and His messenger to all the people on the great day of pilgrimage, that GOD has disowned the idol worshipers, and so did His messenger. Thus, if you repent, it would be better for you. But if you turn away, then know that you can never escape from GOD. Promise those who disbelieve a painful retribution.

[9:4] If the idol worshipers sign a peace treaty with you, and do not violate it, nor band together with others against you, you shall fulfill your treaty with them until the expiration date. GOD loves the righteous.

[9:5] Once the Sacred Months are past, (and they refuse to make peace) you may kill the idol worshipers when you encounter them, punish them, and resist every move they make. If they repent and observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) and give the obligatory charity (Zakat), you shall let them go. GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.

[9:6] If one of the idol worshipers sought safe passage with you, you shall grant him safe passage, so that he can hear the word of GOD, then send him back to his place of security. That is because they are people who do not know.

….and you were saying, Towel-Head?

(H/T HotAir)

Others: Pajamas Media, iOwnTheWorld.com, UrbanGrounds, Fire Andrea Mitchell!, All American Blogger, Sister Toldjah, Weasel Zippers, Jihad Watch and Nice Deb

Ann Althouse gets threatened

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By a Wisconsin union thug:

I receive a threat: “whoever video taped this has no life and needs to be shot in the head.”

I mean, my Dad is a retired G.M. worker and a union member himself; but he would not approve of such stuff.

You just do not threaten people and in any way, shape or form try to strike fear into people; to make a political point. That, my friends is what al-Qaeda did here on 9/11. That is correct, that is a form of terrorism and should be treated as such by the United States Government.

Others: Chicago Boyz, BizzyBlog, The Daily Caller, Pajamas Media

More news on the stand off between the Government of Wisconsin and Unions here.

Special Comment: Birthers, Birchers and Paleoconservatives are Americans too

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It appears to me that there seems to be a problem in the Conservative movement; and that is an attempt by the Republican and Conservative establishment, to silence those with whom they disagree or dislike.  Earlier this week, on my personal Blog, I posted two videos; one of RINO, Neo-Conservative princess Sarah Palin, saying that the “Birther” issue was a distraction to the Conservative and Tea Party movement and another of Karl Rove; who conversely was the brains behind Neo-Conservative George W. Bush’s Presidency.  A Presidency that included the invasion and occupation of the sovereign Nation of Iraq —-which we now know was based upon a lie.  Karl Rove in this video suggested that the Birther movement should be excommunicated from the Republican Party and from the Conservative movement entirely, like the John Birch Society was from the Republican Party and the Conservative movement was by that pied piper of the establishment; William F. Buckley.

I have read quite a bit about that so-called excommunication, and in all reality it was an unfair branding of the John Birch Society as being a racist and anti-Semitic organization.  This was performed by Neo-Conservatives, which were and still are, former Democrats who seem to be in love with idea of a big Government — as long as they are the people controlling it.  Furthermore, Neo-Conservatives claim, falsely of course; to be for the constitution — all the while declaring war against countries and other actions that fly in the face of the very principles that the document itself was founded upon.  They do this, all the while, defending a Country and people, who look upon the people of Christian America as nothing more than a group of idiots, of good use.  Yes, Neo-Conservatives, I am referring to your pet project —- Israel.  All of this, in the name of “Defending America” or as it should be called, “defending the empire.”

If any of this sounds even vaguely familiar — it is because Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany or for you history buffs — Rome — minus Israel, of course; did the same very things and eventually were destroyed or simply went broke and failed.

You see, I happen to believe that those who have doubts about President Barack Obama’s place of origin or birthplace; or “Birthers” as they are called by those who wish to degrade them, members of the John Birch Society, we Paleoconservatives and our cousins;  Libertarians — are Americans too. I believe that anyone who tries to silence any sort of political thought, belief, or conviction — of any sort — is doing what was done to those who dared to challenge the actions of Adolf Hitler and the Communist leadership in the former Soviet Union.  Yes, that does include those, of whom I disagree with.  It is called thought policing and it goes against the very tenets of our United States Constitution and the very ideals that surrounded our leaving of England to find a land, where we as a people could be free to worship God in the way that we pleased — without fear of persecution.  This is what caused Senator Joseph McCarthy to lose support from his fellow Republicans.

Whenever you seek to control those with whom you disagree, you run the danger of becoming like the liberal left in this Country.  This is why I have such an issue with the Neo-Conservative wing of the Republican Party.  It is because of the mentality of “We are always right in what we believe and if anyone disagrees with our way of thinking and Governing; then that person is not a real Conservative.” Furthermore, they will try to suppress those, of whom they disagree; that my friend is a tactic right out of the Saul Alinsky playbook.  This is to isolate, suppress and even mock and ridicule those who are in opposition to what these people believe.  Hence, the reason Neo-Conservatives are even called by that name, it is not a slanderous term that is related to a particular ethnic or Religious group, it is a name given to bunch of people, who bolted from the socialist party and joined the right — and brought their tactics with them.

Now, I feel that I should be clear; I do not have any problem believing that President Barack Obama is a citizen of the United States of America.  However, I believe that President Barack Obama, like every other President; should release his original long form birth certificate.  Now does that make me a crazy person?  I think not.  Furthermore, I believe that John Birch Society is a great American institution of liberty and I happen to agree with the majority of what they believe in, if not all of it — Now does that make me a crazy person or even a racist or anti-Semite —  of course not.  I also happen to believe that Pat Buchanan and Representative Ron Paul are both exemplary Americans, who happen to love their Country and do not wish to see it become another third world Nation lost to the wiles of Socialism and Globalism.  Now, does that make me some sort of a racist, Anti-Semite terrorist?  I think not.

Now, do I believe that Ron Paul can be elected President of the United States?  As much as I would like to believe that he could be elected; I cannot.  Neo-Conservatives control a good part of the Republican Party, and between them and the Neo-Liberal left in this Country; which control a good part of the media — except for Fox News that is Neo-Conservative and not Ron Paul friendly at all, I just do not believe that Ron Paul would be able to overcome such odds.  You do not believe that the Neo-Conservatives would give up that cottage industry that easily, do you.  Oh please, just look what they did to Pat Buchanan when he tried to break into that little clique in the Republican Party — much of the same thing as did happen to Ron Paul —- False accusations of racism and Anti-Semitism.

As long as there is empire to defend, Countries to be invaded for oil and pseudo-states to support the Neo-Conservatives will never surrender control of the Republican Party.  Furthermore, as long as there is a stranglehold on the mainstream media by the neo-liberal left in this Country someone like Ron Paul does not have a chance in Hades to be elected President of the United States of America.  As long as lying Neo-Conservatives like Karl Rove, Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich are around, the chances of Paleoconservatives like Pat Buchanan or libertarian Conservatives like Ron Paul do not stand a chance of ever being elected.

In closing, America is a great Country; it is just being held hostage, so to speak — by some very powerful and evil people, as is the Republican Party.

Also Published at USA Sentinel

Video: The Reality Report: Taking the Neo-Conservatives to the mat!

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In this space, before I post this video; I usually post a disclaimer, because usually, I do not agree with some of the content and ideas presented in this Video report.  However, this week, I am going to forgo the disclaimer. Because a good ninety percent of what is presented here, I absolutely agree with and besides, nothing gives me more joy, than to watch freedom-loving Americans making Neo-Conservative fascists look like the damn fools that they are. Yes, it warms the cackles of my stone cold heart to see those who wish to sell our freedoms out to the altar of “Security” made to look like buffoons.

Very well done gents, very, very, well done. 😀

Having said all that —- here is the synopsis and Video….

Synopsis: In this special CPAC expanded edition of the Reality Report, we go face to face with Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and Newt Gingrich and present the highlights (and lowlights)! ; Gary Franchi runs into former Saturday Night Live star, Victoria Jackson, and interviews CPAC Chair David Keene about the Defender of the Constitution Award. Gary also meets with Jesse Benton, Ron Paul’s Communications Director, to give you the inside scoop on the Ron Paul 2012 Presidential campaign. Jeff Frazee from Young Americans for Liberty joins the show to tell us how he got turned on to Ron Paul’s message. We meet with Congresswoman Nan Hayworth from New York’s 19th district to ask her about her vote for the Patriot Act. We also ask Ron Paul supporters what it is about his message that inspires them. We also take you to the Jordan Page after party for the release of his new album titled “Liberty”. Angie returns to deliver the headlines with a special report on the Young Americans for Freedom and Truth Squad.TV’s confrontation. We’ll read your email, review last week’s poll results and brand a new enemy of the state.

The Video:

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Source for WMD’s in Iraq admits to making it all up.

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This is a very interesting story, the problem is; I cannot embed the stupid video, because the U.K. Guardian does not allow embedding of their videos. doggone putzes. 🙄

Anyhow, go watch the video, by clicking here.

The story via the Guardian:

In a small flat in the German town of Erlangen in February 2003, an out-of-work Iraqi sat down with his wife to watch one of the world’s most powerful men deliver the speech of his career on live TV.

As US secretary of state, Colin Powell gathered his notes in front of the United Nations security council, the man watching — Rafid Ahmed Alwan al-Janabi, known to the west’s intelligence services as “Curveball” — had more than an inkling of what was to come. He was, after all, Powell’s main source, a man his German handlers had feted as a new “Deep throat” — an agent so pivotal that he could bring down a government.

As Curveball watched Powell make the US case to invade Iraq, he was hiding an admission that he has not made until now: that nearly every word he had told his interrogators from Germany’s secret service, the BND, was a lie.

Everything he had said about the inner workings of Saddam Hussein’s biological weapons programme was a flight of fantasy – one that, he now claims was aimed at ousting the Iraqi dictator. Janabi, a chemical engineering graduate who had worked in the Iraqi industry, says he looked on in shock as Powell’s presentation revealed that the Bush administration’s hawkish decisionmakers had swallowed the lot. Something else left him even more amazed; until that point he had not met a US official, let alone been interviewed by one.

“I had the chance to fabricate something to topple the regime,” he told the Guardian in a series of interviews carried out in his native Arabic and German. “I and my sons are proud of that, and we are proud that we were the reason to give Iraq the margin of democracy.”

His interviews with the Guardian, which took place over two days, appeared to be partly a purge of conscience, partly an attempt to justify what he did. It also seems to be a bid to resurrect his own reputation, which might help him start again in Iraq — a country that eight years later is still reeling from more than 100,000 civilian deaths and the aftermath of a savage sectarian war.

I very highly recommend that you go read the rest of that; because it is very much involved.  I must confess, I have very much mixed feelings about watching that; on one hand, It sort of angers me, that this idiot was trusted to the point of sending our and other nations troops over there and for what? Because of a guy who hated Saddam enough to lie? On the other hand; which is the overriding feeling is this — Saddam was, as we all know; a very bad man and treated his own people horribly. So, in hind sight, perhaps it was all worth it.

Ace is not buying the dude’s reasoning; it is a really long posting, I’ll quote a snippet, but I highly recommend you read his too. Thus saith Ace:

So to me this is guy being pressed for further information or proof and (having none) saying “Fine, if that’s what he says.” That doesn’t seem to sound anything like a confession, and I’m not surprised that no one took it as such at the time.

Furthermore, I don’t trust Curveball now, either. We already know, by self-confession, he’s a longtime liar who tells interested parties what they wish to hear. His current version of reality is that the spun these lies for the patriotic purpose of deposing a tyrant; he doesn’t mention that valued intelligence assets get money and nice little protected apartments, too.

Again, as with the Guardian story, Go read the rest. As it is a very interesting read. The gomer award should go to a bunch of people and a couple of Governments, including ours. The real cute part is this; you know how the left says Bush and Co. are all war criminals; if that is the case, ol’ Curvy here, is an accessory and should be tried as well. Truth is, Bush and Co. acted on what they had, which was this guy and other pieces of fragmented evidence. Because of it, they acted. In all honesty, Bush and Co. are simply guilty of violating an old Russian proverb — Trust, but verify.  For that, they paid for it dearly, in the loss of the trust of the American people.

No amount of navel grazing will ever change anything, bring back the lost Vets and such. We just should ensure that this never, ever, happens again. Because this War will be a black mark on America’s record for a very long time. God help us, if this ever happens again.

Blogger Roundup, Mostly liberals, mileage may very here: The Huffington Post, Alan Colmes’ Liberaland, TPMMuckraker, msnbc.com, Oliver Willis, Outside the Beltway, New York Magazine, Balloon Juice, Comments from Left Field, ABCNEWS, Sky Dancing, Wonkette, Mock, Paper, Scissors, The Raw Story, AOL News, LewRockwell.com Blog and Newshoggers.com (Via Memeorandum)

Update: John Sexton, writing over at HotAir.com,  has an excellent take on this story:

Now we know that the justification for the war really was based in part on a lie. The left can find some vindication in this fact. That said, the details presented do not support the idea that some dark cabal within the Bush administration organized our entrance into Iraq. On the contrary, we now know who the liar was and he wasn’t part of the administration. We also know why he lied, and it wasn’t to get rich off Iraqi oil, to finish what Bush 41 started or any of the other explanations the left has offered over the years. Curveball wanted to see Saddam toppled for the good of the Iraqi people.

Of course that doesn’t mean American soldiers and taxpayers should have had to go along for the ride. Conspiracies aside, there’s plenty to be upset about here. Numerous intelligence agencies failed, starting with the German BND which interviewed Curveball over a period of six months. British and American intelligence agencies failed to detect the fraud as well. The result is that we were led to war, in part, by a lie. Even if you believe the US is better off without Saddam in Iraq, you can’t be pleased about taking such a big swing on a curveball.

To that, I simply offer a hearty — Amen.

Clinton to announce new envoy for the “AfPak” Theater

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This looks like it could be a big mess.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has chosen a new special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, after months of delay and disagreements between the White House and the State Department over the parameters of the job that became vacant with the December death of Richard C. Holbrooke, senior officials said.

Retired diplomat Marc Grossman is expected to take over as the administration is facing a crucial year for its war strategy in Afghanistan, where it plans to begin U.S. troop withdrawals this summer and to move toward a political settlement including negotiations with the Taliban before the end of 2011.

In Pakistan, a key partner in the strategy, the situation has become even more fraught with peril, as U.S.-Pakistani relations have plummeted to their lowest point in years over Pakistan’s rejection of U.S. demands to grant diplomatic immunity to a U.S. official accused of murder there.

The administration has suspended high-level official contacts with the Pakistanis, and senior members of Congress have warned Islamabad that it risks a cutoff of U.S. aid.

via Washington Post:  Clinton to announce new ‘AfPak’ envoy.

Wow, I was not aware of all these problems. Looks like Hillary Clinton has her work cut out for her. Two things that stand out here:

  1. Why do we keep sending over retired people to handle these situations? Cannot Hillary Clinton or President Obama find anyone who is not at retirement age to handle this problem? Just a thought there, not trying to criticize it; because I doubt John McCain would be able to handle this any better.
  2. This situation with the murder charge just looks bad all around and will most likely hamper our efforts to combat the war on terror and will hinder us from capturing or killing Osama Bin Ladin. Because you cannot capture the bad guys; if you cannot get along with the people where they are hiding.

Again, I have said this a million times here, and I will say it again. Bush handled this whole thing wrong after 9/11. Bush should have went after the Countries that financed the attacks on 9/11. Instead he went after their training grounds, with the assumption that it would be a cakewalk to catch them; and then he went into Iraq, on what we now now to be bad intelligence and also assumed that would be cake walk too — and Afghanistan was left to neglect.  As of a result that poor leadership, we now have this mess to contend with. I pity Hillary and even President Obama to a point, they inherited this awful mess and now, they have to make gold, out of a steaming bag of crap. What a mess! I would not want to be in their shoes at all. 🙁

But, that is what happens, when you elect Neo-Conservatives who are on a so-called “Mission from God.” Let this be a lesson to America and to the Republican Party and all who supported and voted for the man. Say what you want, but between the bailouts and his poorly planned war on terror — we find ourselves in a awful mess; both with debt and with foriegn diplomacy.

Pat Buchanan Asks, “Will Multiculturalism End Europe?”

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One of the greatest Conservatives ever to walk this planet says:

Devout Muslims do not believe all religions are equal. They believe there is one God, Allah, and submission to his law is the path to paradise. They do not believe in freedom of speech and the press if it means mocking the Prophet. They do not believe in Western dress codes or mixing men and women in schools and sports. They do not believe all lifestyles are equal. Some think adulterers should be stoned and honor killings are justified for girls who disgrace the family.

They wish to live their faith and their culture in our countries, to live alongside us but to dwell apart.

“If you come to France,” said Sarkozy last week, “you accept to melt into a single community, which is the national community, and if you do not want to accept that, you cannot be welcome in France.”

A little late for that. Some 5 million to 8 million Arabs and Muslims are in France, their birth rate is higher, and more are on the way.

The real questions: Whose idea was it to bring these people in? And what do France, Britain and Germany do if they say: This is a democracy, we will live as we wish to live, according to our beliefs, not yours.

How does a liberal, permissive society that celebrates diversity impose its values on a militant immigrant minority that rejects them?

Answer: It doesn’t. All the rest is chatter.

This is what James Burnham meant when he wrote that liberalism is the ideology of Western suicide.

Amen to that; if we do not wake up and realize that radical Muslims and some cases Muslims in general do not wish to intermingle with we Christians, but rather wish to destroy we Christians and our free capitalist system; it will one day be the death of us. Liberal Progressives and radical Muslims have one thing in common. They want to destroy America and it’s Christian values and it’s capitalistic system.

However, if says such things, he is reviled among the Blogosphere and called a bigot and a racist. These things comes with the territory. Also, something else I feel the need to say; because there are actually people stupid enough to say this; and believe me, blogging for six years brings experience with dealing with idiots, such as these here —  these people will say, “Well, I thought you said this?:

Not only that but as that  little cartoon on my “About This Blog” page says; whenever someone tries to preach disunity, through class warfare, race hatred or Religious intolerance — they seek to rob us of the one founding thing that this Country was founded upon — Freedom

To those people I say, I did say that and I totally stand behind it. However, I will point out to the unwashed masses of liberalism, that just happen to pass by the little blog of mine; that pointing out that fact that Muslims, especially of the radical sort, want to take away our religious freedoms and put all Americans under Sharia Law; that is not racist to mention that, that is simply stating the truth about Islamofacists. Now there are some, like th author quoted above, that believe that ALL Muslims are this way. I personally have not seen that here in America just yet. It is one thing to want that; it is another to be actually able to do such a thing.

So far, when Muslims have tried treading on American values, such as in our schools and so forth; they have been met with much resistance. Hopefully this continues.

Uh Oh: WMD’s found in the United States?

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This does not sound good at all…

First the video:

The Story via The Daily Mail in the UK:

A port official has admitted that a ‘weapon of mass effect’  has been found by ‘partner agencies’ in the U.S., raising major questions over a possible government cover-up.

The disturbing revelation came in an interview with San Diego’s assistant port director screened by a television channel in the city.

The Customs and Border Protection Department tried to dampen speculation over his remarks, but doubts remained over whether he had inadvertently revealed a dirty bomb plot to attack the U.S. mainland.

Concern over a secret WMD bust came after U.S. cables made public by the Wikileaks whistleblower website revealed terror groups were plotting a ‘nuclear 911.’

In the interview screened by San Diego’s 10News, Al Hallor, assistant San Diego port director, said ‘weapons of mass effect’ had been found, although he did not specify exactly where or what they were.

Reporter Mitch Blacher asked Mr Hallor: ‘Do you ever find things that are dangerous like a chemical agent or a weaponised device?’

‘At the airport, seaport, at our port of entry we have not this past fiscal year, but our partner agencies have found those things,’ the customs official replied.

‘So, specifically, you’re looking for the dirty bomb? You’re looking for the nuclear device?’ asked Mr Blacher.

‘Correct. Weapons of mass effect,’ said Mr Hallor.

‘You ever found one?’ asked Mr Blacher.

‘Not at this location,’ Mr Hallor said.

‘But they have found them?’ asked Mr Blacher.

‘Yes,’ said Mr Hallor.

‘You never found one in San Diego though?’ Mr Blacher asked.

‘I would say at the port of San Diego we have not,’ Mr Hallor said.

‘Have you found one in San Diego?’ Mr Blacher asked.

The interview was then interrupted and cut short by a public relations official before Mr Hallor was able to answer the question.

San Diego’s Customs and Border Protection agency was unavailable for comment today.

All of the other Conservatives blogs are saying this guy will lose his job. I doubt that; but my real concern is that they have found WMD’s in this Country. It looks like the whole canard that is touted by the Paleo-Conservatives and the Paul nuts and the liberal left that the War on Terror is a Government invention is a load of bunk.

I may not agree with interventionist foreign policy, but I do agree with protecting the homeland; I am grateful that our homeland security officers have caught this stuff coming in. Hopefully, they will continue to be successful in catching this stuff, before it is too late.

Hope and Change?: FBI doesn’t need court’s OK to get phone records, Obama’s Justice Department claims

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Well, isn’t this just a lovely story to pick up on a Sunday Morning?

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration’s Justice Department has asserted that the FBI can obtain telephone records of international calls made from the United States without any formal legal process or court oversight, according to a document obtained by McClatchy.

That assertion was revealed by the department – perhaps inadvertently – in its response to a McClatchy request for a copy of a secret Justice Department memo.

Critics say the legal position is flawed and creates a potential loophole that could lead to a repeat of FBI abuses that were supposed to have been stopped in 2006.

The controversy is a legacy of the Bush administration’s war on terror. Critics say the Obama administration appears to be continuing many of the most controversial tactics of that strategy, including the assertion of sweeping executive powers.

For years after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, the FBI sought and obtained thousands of telephone records for international calls in an attempt to thwart potential terrorists. The bureau devised an informal system of requesting the records from three telecommunications firms to create what one agent called a “phone database on steroids” that included names, addresses, length of service and billing information.

Go read the rest here

Which proves to this old school, Paleoconservative, Fundamentalist Christian one thing and one thing alone. That the only difference between a Neo-Liberal; like President Obama and a Neoconservative like President Bush is this —- One loves big Government and the other loves big Government as long as they are the one’s controlling it.

I remember how doing the Bush era, people like Keith Olbermann,were wailing to the top of their lungs about how darned horrible of the Bush Administration to allow such stuff to happen; and now that the Obama Administration is in power, what do you hear?

(click to play)

That is right, absolutely nothing about it at all. That is because the socialist liberals do not give a damn about personal liberty, all they care about is winning elections. All of the attacks against the Bush administration about everything; Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, Iraq —- everything  —was just partisan politics. It never was about the people; because socialists do not give a darn about the people! All they care about is power – governmental power — everything else to them is just second nature.

Which pretty much sums up why I stopped voted for the Democratic Party.  I am pretty much on to their game anymore. They try to come off as the party of the people; but anymore, they are all about the party of the state.

UPDATED:BREAKING: Egypt: Mubarak Resigns, Military to take power, President Obama to make statement

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Some interesting news that I meet with cautious optimism.

Video: the moment of truth via Fox News Insider:

The statement of the Vice President of Egypt:

Full statement from Vice-President Suleiman: “In the name of God the merciful, the compassionate, citizens, during these very difficult circumstances Egypt is going through, President Hosni Mubarak has decided to step down from the office of president of the republic and has charged the high council of the armed forces to administer the affairs of the country. May God help everybody.”

Make no mistake, this was a Military Coup.

You can watch the live coverage Here, Here, and Here.

Of course, the stupid idiots on the left are giving President Obama the credit. (H/T HotAir.com)

Great news for the administration/president. People will remember , despite some fumbles yesterday, that the President played an excellent hand, walked the right line and that his statement last night was potentially decisive in brining this issue to a close. The situation remains complicated and delicate going forward, but this is a huge affirmation of the President’s leadership on the international stage.

Oh Brother. Talk about spinning like a top! 🙄 Yeah, President Obama did it; by being behind the curve, the point of looking like a total buffoon? Please.

Either way, this is a much historic day in Egypt. I simply look at it with cautious optimism. I just hope it goes well; and that Egypt does not turn into another Iran. — and believe you me; it could very well happen. I like to think that it would not; seeing that Egypt is a secular Country. However, where evil gathers; things happen.

President Obama will be delivering a message; of course, and when it becomes available on video. I will post it here. Update #3: Still waiting on that. See below…

Update:  Video: Happy people tend to be bit noisy!:

Some depressing news, it isn’t going to get much better in Egypt:

As in many undemocratic countries, the military is more than just the military. Egypt’s officer corps is said to own or operate vast networks of commercial enterprises, including water, construction, cement, olive oil, the hotel and gasoline industries—in all, about one-third of the country’s economy—as well as vast chunks of seaside property…

The army’s material interests don’t mesh so well with the premises of a thriving middle-class society. And the absence of such a society—the combination of large numbers of well-educated young people and few jobs to suit their talents—has no doubt fueled these last two weeks of protest.

That same WikiLeaks cable from the U.S. embassy in Cairo reported that the military views efforts at privatization “as a threat to its economic position, and therefore generally opposes economic reforms.” To the extent the military does retain power in Egypt, the people’s “rising expectations” may be frustrated, regardless of the outcome of this current clash. Whatever happens in the coming days and weeks, Egypt, once the emblem of Arab stability, might be locked in the dynamics of revolution for a long time to come.

…and even more depressing news:

The practical demands of the protesters seem fairly simple: end the state of emergency, hold new elections, and grant the freedom to form parties without state interference. But these demands would amount to opening up the political space to everyone across Egypt’s social and political structure. That would involve constitutional and statutory changes, such as reforming Egypt as a parliamentary rather than a presidential system, in which a freely elected majority selects the prime minister (who is now appointed by the president). These changes would wipe away the power structure the army created in 1952 and has backed since.

A freely elected parliament and a reconstituted government would weaken the role of the presidency, a position the military is likely to try to keep in its portfolio. Moreover, open elections could hand the new business elites power in parliament where they could work to limit the role of the army in the economy. This would put the army’s vast economic holdings — from the ubiquitous propane cylinders that provide all Egyptian homes with cooking gas to clothing, food, and hotels — in jeopardy. Moreover, the army has always preferred that the country be orderly and hierarchical. It is uncomfortable with the growing participatory festival on the streets and, even if the officers were to tolerate more contestation than their grandfathers did in the 1950s, they would likely try to limit participation in politics to those whose lives have been spent in the military by retaining the system of presidential appointment for government ministers.

Sigh…

Update #2: Now they’re saying that the Army threatened to bolt, if Mubarak did not quit:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

AllahPundit, about the above says:

A mystery solved, maybe: Richard Engel claims that senior Egyptian military leaders expected Mubarak to quit yesterday and were “furious” when he didn’t, going so far as to threaten to resign and join the protests if he didn’t do so today. True, or self-serving spin after the fact aimed at proving that they were on the people’s side all along? The rumor yesterday was that Mubarak’s speech was pre-recorded; if that’s true, then if the military disapproved of it, presumably they could have stopped it from airing. I still like my “trial balloon” theory from way up top in this post better.

Actually, both could be the case. The President could have made that video to test the waters; and when he saw it did not work, he bolted. Plus, during that time, the Army could have simply said “get out!” It could have been a mutual decision. The truth is, I highly doubt that we will ever know what really happened; at least not for a very long time.

Just my opinion. 😛

Also too; I will confess; I am shocked that he resigned. I figure that Mubarak would hang on and we would continue to prop him up, to keep the Saudi’s from doing it. I guess not! Maybe the pressure was just too much.

Update #3: Here’s the video, But I must ask, as the Anchoress did on twitter:  Where was this speech when the Green Revolution first got going in Iran? Update #4: After writing that, I had a little time to think about it; and besides the oil thing, which I wrote about below, there is also another reason why Obama did not engage with Iran, like he did Egypt. The reason is this; put simply, we do not have normalized relations with Iran, like we do Egypt. We have not had that sort of a thing, since the Carter Administration. So, being that the case; there was not much Obama could do, without causing an uproar; that would have resulted in Oil and Gas prices going through the roof — of which the Republican Party would have blamed him for, like they have done about everything else. 😀 Sorry, it is the truth. Not popular among those on the right, but just the same, quite true.

There’s one answer to that; Oil — That’s right oil. If we had done the same thing in Iran. That Strait of Hormuz would have been shut down so quick; and the price of a barrel of oil would have sky rocketed, and our gas prices would have went through the roof. That is why President Obama did nothing more than they did in Iran.

For all of President Obama’s faults, one main one being his politics —- being an uninformed idiot is not one of them. I am all for Iran having Freedom, but not at the cost of gas going to 8 dollars a gallon.

Quotes of the Day

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Nine Eight House Republican freshmen and three inaugural members of the Tea Party Caucus voted against a proposed extension of three Patriot Act provisions Tuesday night, blocking the measure from passage under fast-track rules.

The House clearly backed the measure, voting 277 to 148 to extend the provisions, and most Republicans stuck by their leadership and supported the extension. But enough defected, joined by most Democrats, to keep the measure seven votes shy of the two-thirds majority required for passage under the fast-track procedure.

The House is likely to bring the extensions back up before the end of the month under regular procedures, when a simple majority would suffice to send it to the Senate.

Attention immediately swung to whether House members sympathetic to the tea party had decided the matter, especially after Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich (D-Ohio) said Monday that the vote would be “the tea party’s first test.”

******

The vote was a blow to President Obama, who had asked Congress to extend the PATRIOT Act’s surveillance authorities — which are due to expire February 28 — for three years.

House Republican leaders weren’t willing to go that far in removing meaningful congressional checks and balances on the surveillance authorities that both the Bush and Obama administrations have used to conduct “roving surveillance” of communications, to collect and examine business records, and to target individuals who are not tied to terrorist groups for surveillance. But they did propose a one-year extension of the authorities.

Most House Republicans — including supposed defenders of the Constitution such as Michigan Congresswoman Michele Bachmann — went along with their leadership. In so doing, they failed to address fundamental concerns, raised by conservatives and liberals, about Patriot Act abuses of the very Constitution that theyread aloud at the opening of the current Congress.

But House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California, led the vast majority of House Democrats in opposing any extension. In all, 122 Democrats — roughly two-thirds of the party’s House caucus — voted “no” to extending surveillance authorities that the American Civil Liberties Union warns “give the government sweeping authority to spy on individuals inside the United States and, in some cases, without any suspicion of wrongdoing. All three should be allowed to expire if they are not amended to include privacy protections to protect personal information from government overreach.”

*****

Today, Dennis Kucinich and the Tea Partiers were on the same side. If Obama wants to be on the wrong side of this issue (as he seems to be on the wrong side in nearly every aspect of the ‘War on Terror’), then so be it. But the House of Representatives has shot down (perhaps only temporarily) a measure to extend the three most grievous portions of the Patriot Act from 2001 (the ‘lone wolf’ provision, the roving wiretaps, and the unchecked powers to seize records with little-to-no probable cause). It has been beyond disheartening to watch Barack Obama more or less carry the mantle of unchecked police powers and indefinite detention that highlighted George W. Bush’s reckless and counterproductive ‘War on Terror’ strategy. More importantly, the apparent approval and continuation of such policies by the Obama administration has turned what was once a bitterly divided series of issues into something resembling bi-partisan consensus. Quite frankly, there is much that the likes of Rand Paul and Dennis Kucinich can indeed agree on. Perhaps this may be the start of the genuine liberals in Congress joining with the genuine conservatives in order to attempt to stop much of the genuinely un-American activities that have occurred post-9/11 on our watch and in our name. It is a pipe dream, but it is a goal worth advocating none-the-less.

*****

As Members of Congress, we are obligated to protect the rights and civil liberties afforded to us by the Constitution and to exercise our oversight powers fully.  Despite years of documentation evidencing abuse of these provisions by the Inspector General of the Department of Justice, they may extended without any meaningful debate or opportunity to implement common-sense reforms to ensure that the privacy and civil liberties of all Americans are fully protected. Our failure to do so makes Congress complicit in these violations of basic constitutional rights.

****

The three provisions, incidentally, were for surveillance of non-citizens, roving wiretaps of multiple phones owned by a suspect, and the “library records” provision giving the FBI access to, among other things, medical and business records, which apparently was the sticking point for many Republicans voting no. Those three will lapse at the end of the month unless they’re extended; as with the Bush tax cuts, because the issue is contentious, Congress is in perpetual “temporary” extension mode instead of reaching a permanent resolution on any of them. Frankly, if there’s any tea party angle to all this, it’s that there wasn’t more opposition among the GOP freshmen: After months of rhetoric about government intrusion and hand-wringing on both sides about Obama’s expansion of Bush’s counterterror powers — to the point where U.S. citizens like Awlaki are now marked for death by presidential decree — they had some political cover to draw the line on extending parts of the Patriot Act further if they wanted to. (Ron Paul was among the 26 no’s, of course.) Nope.

Video: Don Rumsfield on 9/11, Iraq, Afghanistan, and More

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Some good video here:

The Story via ABC NEWS:

More than four years after leaving public life, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld continues to believe the war in Iraq was worth the effort, and has no apologies for his decision-making in leading the campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In an exclusive interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer, Rumsfeld concedes that “it’s possible” that decisions on how many troops to send into Iraq marked the biggest mistake of the war.

“In a war, many things cost lives,” Rumsfeld told Sawyer.

Pressed on the fact that President Bush has written that cutting troop levels in Iraq was “the most important failure in the execution of the war,” Rumsfeld called that “interesting.”

I do not much care for the man. He is, in my humble opinion, an ignoramus. But he does have his opinions and he is a human being.

Get the Book:

I also highly recommend George W. Bush’s book as well:

Video: A Patriot Act Update from Ron Paul

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This comes via The Daily Paul:

For the record, I never supported that so-called “law to keep us safe…”

Campaign for Liberty website.

Video: The Reality Report: Bypassing the Obama Kill Switch

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Please Note: The posting of this video does not constitute an endorsement of views presented in this video. It is simply posted for information purposes only.

—-

In this issue of the reality report: The Egyptian Revolution triggered a government shutdown of the web. Could it happen here? Is the internet kill switch back on the congressional table? If the Feds shut down the web in the United States how could “We the People” get around the internet blackout? Gary Franchi reveals what tools you need to bypass a Government sponsored internet blockade. In this edition, Ron Paul explains the how the Federal Reserve works outside of congress’ constitutional framework. We also look at Senator Chuck Schumer failing miserably while explaining the three branches of government. Beautiful words are uttered from the lips of the Florida attorney general about Obamacare. President and founder of Freedom Law School, Peymon Montehedeh, gives us the details on this years’ Freedom Conference, and we announce a new action taking place in March. We’ll take a dip into the mailbag, deliver the results of last week’s poll, a viewer brands a new Enemy of the State… and Nina returns to deliver the Headlines from the new Reality Report News Room.

http://RTR.org | http://RealityReport.TV

Video: So, is this what passes for civil discourse among the liberals?

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So, liberals — is this what you call civility?

Posted on liveleak, in case it disappears:

From the Comments section of the video:

RACISTS like this, are begging for war. Let’s give them one. It is 220,000,000 white people, against 37,000,000 blacks. You know what a genocide looks like? You don’t, because there is no one left, to remember it. Be? smart, though. Let them, make the first violent moves. Let the people, see their violence. Let them give us a reason. Be patient. Do not move, as an individual. Wait. Keep giving them rope, they need, to hang themselves. LOL!!!

A-Farking-Amen. 😡

(H/T Michelle Malkin)

The Republican Party claims to be all about the Constitution

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But where were they back in 2003?

This bunch of silly nonsense comes from The Politico:

The federal lawsuits against last year’s health care overhaul were greeted with eye-rolling and snickers from many conventional legal scholars.

Nobody’s laughing now.

A federal judge in Virginia ruled late last year that a key underpinning of the health care law stretches the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution past the breaking point, while another judge in Florida is expected to rule on Monday. Both cases are likely to proceed toward the Supreme Court.

And the challenges to the health care reform law are just the most visible sign of a broad, national flowering of state efforts to find shelter from the federal government in sometimes-neglected corners of the Constitution that touch conventional political hot buttons such as immigration and gun control, and exotic ones, such as citizenship and currency.

“This has been brewing for decades, and it just needed a catalyst to set it off. The Obama health care package happened to be that catalyst,” said Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. “It emboldened us to assert states’ rights with regard to an array of different issues in which we are feeling that the federal government has overstepped its bounds.”

The model for this revival is the transformation of the Second Amendment from a hazily interpreted legal backwater to the core of a new gun-rights movement. And while the Constitution is often invoked, and even misquoted, for all manner of conservative causes, perhaps the truest meaning of the new phrase constitutional conservatism is found in the broad, imaginative and sometimes quirky new efforts to hem in the power of the federal government.

The Supremacy Clause, which asserts the primary role of the federal courts and the Constitution, could stymie much of this activity. But it’s all part of a movement that Bruce Ackerman, a liberal constitutional scholar from Yale Law School, told POLITICO constitutes “the most serious challenge” to the current constitutional regime since it took shape in the New Deal and the Civil Rights era.

So, the Republican Party is all about the Constitution now? Seems mighty funny to me that all of the sudden that the Republican Party is all about the Constitution now; but back in 2003, when their feckless leader George W. Bush, which I did not vote for — decided to invade the sovereign nation of Iraq, that none of the Constitutional purists were around to challenge him then. They, like most Conservatives in the beltway, cheered as President George W. Bush invaded Iraq, based on what we now know to be faulty information.

I also find it to be highly ironic that during the Presidency of George W. Bush; a white American — that not one person in the Republican Party questioned his tactics, spending or actions on foreign policy.  However, now that there is a liberal and yes, black President in the White House; the Republican Party has turned into the Constitutional purist party.  They claim that they want to repeal Obama’s healthcare plan to save money. I call B.S. on this one. They want to do to protect their biggest donor — the Healthcare industry. Further more, I believe it is because a good majority of the Republicans on the hill are just straight racist, like some other people I know.

Say what you want; but I am really beginning to lose faith in the Republican Party, the whole idea of this damned Tea Party and the entire political process. It is all a big dog and pony show anymore. In other words, sometimes, I believe that Lew Rockwell and Yes, Ron Paul might just be absolutely right about the whole thing and I, yes, I, might have been wrong.  I might not agree with everything Lew Rockwell and Ron Paul says — but I think they’ve been right all along. American Politics; especially among Republicans is rotten to the core and all that the people on “The Hill” care about is their own political careers.

I hate to be the one to admit it. But it is just damned true. 😡 Steaming mad

Video: The Reality Report #78: The Homeland becomes the Fatherland

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Synopsis: In the 78th edition of the Reality Report, Gary Franchi draws the direct parallels America shares with Hitler’s Germany and provides the solution to avoiding their terrible fate. We take a look at Ron Paul’s Texas Straight Talk where he discusses what a new found interest in the Constitution could mean for America. CEO of Euro Pacific Capital, Peter Schiff tells us why the Chinese modeled their currency after the U.S. dollar. We also hear from the former U.S. military analyst who is responsible for leaking the Pentagon Papers, Daniel Ellsberg. He explains the recent war on whistle-blowers. Chris Mathews latest hypocrisy is revealed and Angie breaks down the news. As always we take a dip into the mailbag, reveal the results from last weeks viewer poll and brand a new Enemy of the State.

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Video: Ron Paul talks with John Stossel on the SOTU address

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