Barack Obama's liberal base is furious over his decision to pick centrist members for his cabinet and for bringing the Clintons back to the White House.
Obama has angered the far left by retaining Robert Gates as defense secretary, and retired General Jim Jones as national security advisor. And with Hillary Clinton set to take the helm of the State Department, hope and change has taken a back seat to 'stay the course'.
Gates was the architect of the troop surge, which paved the road for what now can be called a decisive victory in the Iraq war. With that in mind, it is highly unlikely that Obama will withdraw our military within the original time frame that he outlined during the campaign.
It is also improbable that the defense budget will be slashed anytime soon, as the attention of the war on terror will now turn toward Afghanistan. This will stick in the craw of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, as well as Obama's puppet master George Soros.
Meanwhile, it is being reported that Obama has developed a chronic facial tic brought on by the stress of the presidential campaign. The Secret Service has also had to increase security due to more threats on his life than any other president-elect in history has received.
The spasmodic anomaly has supposedly left his wife Michelle very distraught.
The pressure that Obama has been under is only bound to increase with the economic downturn set to get worse before it gets better, and world tensions will take their toll as well.
One can only hope that the "messiah" doesn't develop Tourette Syndrome before Inauguration Day. That could prove interesting.
Listen to America Talks Monday through Friday at 6 pm eastern time at www.blogtalkradio.com/americatalks . Visit our website at www.americatalks.com.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2140472/posts
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
MIGRANTS HIT BY GLOBAL RECESSION
By Kathleen Moore
The global economic downturn is likely to cut the amount of cash sent by millions of migrants worldwide to their families back home, the UN and other agencies have warned, and the impact is likely to be felt keenly in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The decline in remittances to Eastern Europe and Central Asia is compounded by soaring food prices that have left many people in the region's poorest countries on the breadline.
"A number of our countries -- Tajikistan, Moldova, for example -- have very, very high dependence on remittances," says Pradeep Mitra, the World Bank's chief economist for Europe and Central Asia. "Therefore, as the world economy slows, as we expect it will -- there will be a slowdown in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine -- the poorer countries are going to be hit because the flow of remittances is going to go down."
But, he adds, governments can help alleviate the impact by better targeting subsidies at their poorer citizens.
Remittances In Numbers
Some 190 million people worldwide live outside the place of their birth, up to 40 million of them unauthorized, according to the UN. Of the total figure, Europe and Central Asia export 47.6 million migrants, or 10 percent of the region's population, according to the World Bank.
While European Union countries are a target destination for many Eastern Europeans like Moldovans, Russia is the primary destination for most Central Asian migrants and people from Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Alan note: Russia has its own "mirant" population of about 50,000 consultants in islamic iran, who send an average of $50 Million back home every month!
FULL STORY click here
The global economic downturn is likely to cut the amount of cash sent by millions of migrants worldwide to their families back home, the UN and other agencies have warned, and the impact is likely to be felt keenly in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The decline in remittances to Eastern Europe and Central Asia is compounded by soaring food prices that have left many people in the region's poorest countries on the breadline.
"A number of our countries -- Tajikistan, Moldova, for example -- have very, very high dependence on remittances," says Pradeep Mitra, the World Bank's chief economist for Europe and Central Asia. "Therefore, as the world economy slows, as we expect it will -- there will be a slowdown in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine -- the poorer countries are going to be hit because the flow of remittances is going to go down."
But, he adds, governments can help alleviate the impact by better targeting subsidies at their poorer citizens.
Remittances In Numbers
Some 190 million people worldwide live outside the place of their birth, up to 40 million of them unauthorized, according to the UN. Of the total figure, Europe and Central Asia export 47.6 million migrants, or 10 percent of the region's population, according to the World Bank.
While European Union countries are a target destination for many Eastern Europeans like Moldovans, Russia is the primary destination for most Central Asian migrants and people from Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Alan note: Russia has its own "mirant" population of about 50,000 consultants in islamic iran, who send an average of $50 Million back home every month!
FULL STORY click here
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
IRAN ROUNDUP (BILINGUAL)
Iran's Housing Crisis
November 18 -- In a special report on Iran's housing crisis, one Radio Farda listener asks, "How can one buy a house in Iran with skyrocketing prices and meager incomes?" Ahmad Alavi, a professor of economics, adds that the situation will likely get worse: "Plummeting oil revenues are likely to drive up housing prices," he says. [Read more in Persian]
Iran's Economic Crisis and Nuclear Policy
November 13 -- An expert on Iran's nuclear program tells Radio Farda that Iran's leaders may be willing to strike a deal with the U.S. and international community over the nuclear issue in order to get some economic relief. [Read more in Persian]
Iran's Power Structure
November 13 -- A prominent dissident and journalist tells Radio Farda that, because Iran's Supreme Leader ultimately controls the judiciary and police, even a reform-minded President would be unable to establish democracy in Iran. He also calls for a boycott of the upcoming presidential elections. [Read more in Persian]
Reaching Peace Through Religion
November 17 -- Radio Farda's weekly roundtable discussion, "Viewpoints," examine the potential for Arab-Israeli reconciliation through interfaith dialogue. Participants also discuss Iran's growing influence in the Middle East. [Read more in Persian]
November 18 -- In a special report on Iran's housing crisis, one Radio Farda listener asks, "How can one buy a house in Iran with skyrocketing prices and meager incomes?" Ahmad Alavi, a professor of economics, adds that the situation will likely get worse: "Plummeting oil revenues are likely to drive up housing prices," he says. [Read more in Persian]
Iran's Economic Crisis and Nuclear Policy
November 13 -- An expert on Iran's nuclear program tells Radio Farda that Iran's leaders may be willing to strike a deal with the U.S. and international community over the nuclear issue in order to get some economic relief. [Read more in Persian]
Iran's Power Structure
November 13 -- A prominent dissident and journalist tells Radio Farda that, because Iran's Supreme Leader ultimately controls the judiciary and police, even a reform-minded President would be unable to establish democracy in Iran. He also calls for a boycott of the upcoming presidential elections. [Read more in Persian]
Reaching Peace Through Religion
November 17 -- Radio Farda's weekly roundtable discussion, "Viewpoints," examine the potential for Arab-Israeli reconciliation through interfaith dialogue. Participants also discuss Iran's growing influence in the Middle East. [Read more in Persian]
Sunday, November 23, 2008
OBAMA CENSORSHIP & SPEECH SUPPRESSION ON ITS WAY
Will Obama Use ‘Localism’ to Crush Rush?
Barack Obama has said he won’t seek to reinstate the so-called Fairness Doctrine requiring broadcasters over the public airwaves to give equal time to opposing political views.
But he could instead mount a "far more dangerous attack" on free speech and conservative talk radio, a media watchdog discloses.
The tactic: Using a vague rule already on the books to threaten any radio station that airs conservative programs with the loss of it broadcast license, according to Jim Boulet Jr., founder of the Web site KeepRushontheAir.com.
The Federal Communication Commission rule in question is called “localism,” and it requires radio and TV stations to serve the interests of their local community — by covering local issues and providing an outlet for local voices — as a condition of keeping their licenses.
Writing on the American Thinker Web site, Boulet observes: “Obama needs only three votes from the five-member FCC to define localism in such a way that no radio station would dare air any syndicated conservative programming,” such as Rush Limbaugh’s top-rated show.
In September 2007, Obama submitted a statement supporting localism to an FCC hearing.
The head of his transition team is John Podesta, whose organization, the Center for American Progress, issued a report last year complaining that there is too much conservative talk on the radio because of “the absence of localism in American radio markets” and urging the FCC to “ensure greater local accountability over radio licensing.”
Podesta’s choice as head of the FCC’s transition team is Henry Rivera, whose law firm is also the former home of current FCC Chairman Kevin Martin — himself an advocate of more stringent localism requirements, Boulet points out.
He warns that a single complaint from anyone can hinder a station’s license renewal process or even lead to the loss of the license.
To protect free speech and conservative talk radio, “station owners need to become engaged in the localism issue and then take the time to educate their own congressman and senators about the dangers of the FCC’s proposals,” Boulet urges. “If broadcasters get involved, it just may be possible to block implementation of any localism rules during the few months remaining of the Bush administration. “
This delay is critical, since once it is the Obama administration leading the fight for rules which would shut down conservative talk radio, Republican congressmen and senators will find it easier to fight back.”
Editor's Note: President Obama's First Target: Close Down Rush, Hannity, O'Reilly, Savage
Barack Obama has said he won’t seek to reinstate the so-called Fairness Doctrine requiring broadcasters over the public airwaves to give equal time to opposing political views.
But he could instead mount a "far more dangerous attack" on free speech and conservative talk radio, a media watchdog discloses.
The tactic: Using a vague rule already on the books to threaten any radio station that airs conservative programs with the loss of it broadcast license, according to Jim Boulet Jr., founder of the Web site KeepRushontheAir.com.
The Federal Communication Commission rule in question is called “localism,” and it requires radio and TV stations to serve the interests of their local community — by covering local issues and providing an outlet for local voices — as a condition of keeping their licenses.
Writing on the American Thinker Web site, Boulet observes: “Obama needs only three votes from the five-member FCC to define localism in such a way that no radio station would dare air any syndicated conservative programming,” such as Rush Limbaugh’s top-rated show.
In September 2007, Obama submitted a statement supporting localism to an FCC hearing.
The head of his transition team is John Podesta, whose organization, the Center for American Progress, issued a report last year complaining that there is too much conservative talk on the radio because of “the absence of localism in American radio markets” and urging the FCC to “ensure greater local accountability over radio licensing.”
Podesta’s choice as head of the FCC’s transition team is Henry Rivera, whose law firm is also the former home of current FCC Chairman Kevin Martin — himself an advocate of more stringent localism requirements, Boulet points out.
He warns that a single complaint from anyone can hinder a station’s license renewal process or even lead to the loss of the license.
To protect free speech and conservative talk radio, “station owners need to become engaged in the localism issue and then take the time to educate their own congressman and senators about the dangers of the FCC’s proposals,” Boulet urges. “If broadcasters get involved, it just may be possible to block implementation of any localism rules during the few months remaining of the Bush administration. “
This delay is critical, since once it is the Obama administration leading the fight for rules which would shut down conservative talk radio, Republican congressmen and senators will find it easier to fight back.”
Editor's Note: President Obama's First Target: Close Down Rush, Hannity, O'Reilly, Savage
2008 DARWIN AWARDS
2008 Darwin awards (Stupidest minds award)
You've been waiting for them with bated breath, so without further ado here are the 2008 Darwin awards.
Eighth Place
In Detroit, a 41-year-old man got stuck and drowned in two feet of water after squeezing head first through an 18-inch-wide sewer grate to retrieve his car keys.
Seventh Place
A 49-year-old San Francisco stockbroker, was 'totally zoned when he, 'accidentally,' jogged off a 100-foot high cliff on his daily run.
Sixth Place
While at the beach, Daniel Jones, 21, dug an 8 foot hole for protection from the wind and had been sitting in a beach chair at the bottom! When it collapsed, burying him beneath 5 feet of sand, people on the beach used their hands and shovels trying to get him out but could not reach him. It took rescue workers using heavy equipment almost an hour to free him. Jones was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Fifth Place
Santiago Al Varado, 24, was killed as he fell through the ceiling of a bicycle shop he was burglarizing. Death was caused when the long flashlight he had placed in his mouth to keep his hands free rammed into the base of his skull as he hit the floor.
Fourth Place
Sylvester Briddell, Jr.,26, was killed as he won a bet with friends who said he would not put a revolver loaded with four bullets into his mouth and pull the trigger.
Third Place
After stepping around a marked police patrol car parked at the front door, a man walked into H&J Leather & Firearms intent on robbing the store. The shop was full of customers and a uniformed officer was standing a the counter. Upon seeing the officer, the would-be robber announced: 'hold-up!' and fired a few wild shots from a target pistol.
The officer and a clerk promptly returned fire, and several customers also drew their guns and fired. The robber was pronounced dead at the scene by Paramedics. Crime scene investigators located 47 expended cartridge cases in the shop. The subsequent autopsy revealed 23 gunshot wounds. Ballistic identified rounds from 7 different weapons. No one else was hurt.
HONOURABLE MENTION
Paul Stiller, 47, and his wife Bonnie were bored just driving around at 2 A.M. so they lit a quarter stick of dynamite to toss out the window to see what would happen. Apparently they failed to notice the window was closed.
RUNNER UP
Kerry Bingham had been drinking with several friends when one of them said they knew a person who had bungee-jumped from a local bridge in the middle of traffic. The conversation grew more heated and the men trooped along the walkway of the bridge at 4:30 AM . Upon arrival the midpoint of the bridge they discovered that no one had brought a bungee rope.
Bingham, who had continued drinking volunteered and pointed out that a coil of lineman's cable, lay near by. They secured one end around Bingham leg and then tied the other to the bridge. His fall lasted 40 feet before the cable tightened and tore his foot off at the ankle. He miraculously survived his fall into the icy water and was rescued by two nearby fishermen. Bingham's foot was never located.
AND THE WINNER IS...
Zookeeper Friedrich Riesfeldt ( Paderborn , Germany ) fed his constipated elephant 22 doses of animal laxative and more than a bushel of berries, figs and prunes before the plugged-up pachyderm finally got relief. Investigators say ill-fated Friedrich, 46, was attempting to give the ailing elephant an olive oil enema when the relieved beast unloaded.
The sheer force of the elephant's unexpected defecation knocked Mr. Riesfeldt to the ground where he struck his head on a rock as the elephant continued to evacuate 200 pounds of dung on top of him. It seems to be just one of those freak accidents that proves... 'Shit happens'
IT ALWAYS SEEMS IMPORTANT TO THANK THESE PEOPLE FOR REMOVING THEMSELVES FROM THE GENE POOL
You've been waiting for them with bated breath, so without further ado here are the 2008 Darwin awards.
Eighth Place
In Detroit, a 41-year-old man got stuck and drowned in two feet of water after squeezing head first through an 18-inch-wide sewer grate to retrieve his car keys.
Seventh Place
A 49-year-old San Francisco stockbroker, was 'totally zoned when he, 'accidentally,' jogged off a 100-foot high cliff on his daily run.
Sixth Place
While at the beach, Daniel Jones, 21, dug an 8 foot hole for protection from the wind and had been sitting in a beach chair at the bottom! When it collapsed, burying him beneath 5 feet of sand, people on the beach used their hands and shovels trying to get him out but could not reach him. It took rescue workers using heavy equipment almost an hour to free him. Jones was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Fifth Place
Santiago Al Varado, 24, was killed as he fell through the ceiling of a bicycle shop he was burglarizing. Death was caused when the long flashlight he had placed in his mouth to keep his hands free rammed into the base of his skull as he hit the floor.
Fourth Place
Sylvester Briddell, Jr.,26, was killed as he won a bet with friends who said he would not put a revolver loaded with four bullets into his mouth and pull the trigger.
Third Place
After stepping around a marked police patrol car parked at the front door, a man walked into H&J Leather & Firearms intent on robbing the store. The shop was full of customers and a uniformed officer was standing a the counter. Upon seeing the officer, the would-be robber announced: 'hold-up!' and fired a few wild shots from a target pistol.
The officer and a clerk promptly returned fire, and several customers also drew their guns and fired. The robber was pronounced dead at the scene by Paramedics. Crime scene investigators located 47 expended cartridge cases in the shop. The subsequent autopsy revealed 23 gunshot wounds. Ballistic identified rounds from 7 different weapons. No one else was hurt.
HONOURABLE MENTION
Paul Stiller, 47, and his wife Bonnie were bored just driving around at 2 A.M. so they lit a quarter stick of dynamite to toss out the window to see what would happen. Apparently they failed to notice the window was closed.
RUNNER UP
Kerry Bingham had been drinking with several friends when one of them said they knew a person who had bungee-jumped from a local bridge in the middle of traffic. The conversation grew more heated and the men trooped along the walkway of the bridge at 4:30 AM . Upon arrival the midpoint of the bridge they discovered that no one had brought a bungee rope.
Bingham, who had continued drinking volunteered and pointed out that a coil of lineman's cable, lay near by. They secured one end around Bingham leg and then tied the other to the bridge. His fall lasted 40 feet before the cable tightened and tore his foot off at the ankle. He miraculously survived his fall into the icy water and was rescued by two nearby fishermen. Bingham's foot was never located.
AND THE WINNER IS...
Zookeeper Friedrich Riesfeldt ( Paderborn , Germany ) fed his constipated elephant 22 doses of animal laxative and more than a bushel of berries, figs and prunes before the plugged-up pachyderm finally got relief. Investigators say ill-fated Friedrich, 46, was attempting to give the ailing elephant an olive oil enema when the relieved beast unloaded.
The sheer force of the elephant's unexpected defecation knocked Mr. Riesfeldt to the ground where he struck his head on a rock as the elephant continued to evacuate 200 pounds of dung on top of him. It seems to be just one of those freak accidents that proves... 'Shit happens'
IT ALWAYS SEEMS IMPORTANT TO THANK THESE PEOPLE FOR REMOVING THEMSELVES FROM THE GENE POOL
Saturday, November 22, 2008
RANDOM NEWS VIEWS
CHINA ACCELERATES SPYING IN USA
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/china_espionage/2008/11/20/153380.html?utm_medium=RSS<http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/china_espionage/2008/11/20/153380.html?utm_medium=RSS>
=========
http://www.aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=6&id=14794<http://www.aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=6&id=14794>
U.S. Urges Vigilance against Iranian Banks in Dubai21/11/2008ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Dubai should keep a close eye on sanctions-hitIranian banks operating in the Gulf trade hub, a U.S. officialinvolved in tracking suspicious financial activity said on Wednesday.
============
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=787563<http://www.mehrnews.com/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=787563>
Iran detains a four-member terrorist groupTEHRAN,
Nov. 22 (MNA) - The Intelligence Ministry's CounterespionageDepartment director declared on Saturday that Iranian intelligenceforces have succeeded to arrest a 4-man group in western country whotried to assassinate "some persons".
==========
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6113220.html<http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6113220.html>
X-ray reveals cell phone in death row inmate's rectumInmate also had accessories hidden in Bible; lawmaker criticizes system
==========
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3487147/MI6-launches-ethnic-minority-recruitment-drive.html
MI6 launches ethnic minority recruitment drive MI6 has launched a drive to recruit more ethnic minority spies - but warnedpotential applicants not to expect to behave like James Bond. By Matthew Moore
Last Updated: 6:57AM GMT 20 Nov 2008MI6 has advertsied for ethnic minority spies, but warned it won't be likeJames Bond.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01115/quantum-460_1115102c.jpg
=========
Bahamas - Royal Bahamas Defence Force Increases its Fleet
November 19, 2008
By Matt Maura
Caribbean Net News
http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-12307--25-25--.html
=========
New Nuclear-powered Attack Submarine Ready in 2010
November 19, 2008
RIA Novosti (Russia)
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20081119/118404317.html
SEVERODVINSK, November 19 (RIA Novosti) - A new nuclear-powered attack submarine will be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2010, a Russian shipyard said on Wednesday.
Severodvinsk is the first Project 855 Yasen (Graney) series of the Severodvinsk class nuclear submarines, combining the ability to launch a variety of long-range cruise missiles (up to 3,100 miles) with nuclear warheads, and effectively engage hostile submarines and surface warships.
=========
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/china_espionage/2008/11/20/153380.html?utm_medium=RSS<http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/china_espionage/2008/11/20/153380.html?utm_medium=RSS>
=========
http://www.aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=6&id=14794<http://www.aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=6&id=14794>
U.S. Urges Vigilance against Iranian Banks in Dubai21/11/2008ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Dubai should keep a close eye on sanctions-hitIranian banks operating in the Gulf trade hub, a U.S. officialinvolved in tracking suspicious financial activity said on Wednesday.
============
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=787563<http://www.mehrnews.com/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=787563>
Iran detains a four-member terrorist groupTEHRAN,
Nov. 22 (MNA) - The Intelligence Ministry's CounterespionageDepartment director declared on Saturday that Iranian intelligenceforces have succeeded to arrest a 4-man group in western country whotried to assassinate "some persons".
==========
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6113220.html<http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6113220.html>
X-ray reveals cell phone in death row inmate's rectumInmate also had accessories hidden in Bible; lawmaker criticizes system
==========
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3487147/MI6-launches-ethnic-minority-recruitment-drive.html
MI6 launches ethnic minority recruitment drive MI6 has launched a drive to recruit more ethnic minority spies - but warnedpotential applicants not to expect to behave like James Bond. By Matthew Moore
Last Updated: 6:57AM GMT 20 Nov 2008MI6 has advertsied for ethnic minority spies, but warned it won't be likeJames Bond.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01115/quantum-460_1115102c.jpg
=========
Bahamas - Royal Bahamas Defence Force Increases its Fleet
November 19, 2008
By Matt Maura
Caribbean Net News
http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-12307--25-25--.html
=========
New Nuclear-powered Attack Submarine Ready in 2010
November 19, 2008
RIA Novosti (Russia)
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20081119/118404317.html
SEVERODVINSK, November 19 (RIA Novosti) - A new nuclear-powered attack submarine will be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2010, a Russian shipyard said on Wednesday.
Severodvinsk is the first Project 855 Yasen (Graney) series of the Severodvinsk class nuclear submarines, combining the ability to launch a variety of long-range cruise missiles (up to 3,100 miles) with nuclear warheads, and effectively engage hostile submarines and surface warships.
=========
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
VARIOUS NEWS VIEWS
CLICK ON LINKS TO READ FULL ARTICLES
Pirates Exploit Confusion About International Law The connection between human-rights scolds and the rise of crime on the highseas.By DAVID B. RIVKIN JR.<http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=DAVID+B.+RIVKIN+JR.&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND> and LEE A. CASEY<http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=LEE+A.+CASEY&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND> On Saturday, off the coast of East Africa, pirates seized their largestcatch ever: a giant Saudi-owned oil tanker called the Sirius Star. Thebrazen attack came on the heels of the capture of a Ukrainian vessel (loadedwith armaments destined for Kenya) by Somali pirates in September.Humanitarian food shipments into Somalia have had naval escort for nearly ayear -- evidence of how much the security of sea-lanes has eroded. Mediareports suggest that Somali pirates have already attacked more than 80 shipsin 2008.
========
The South Side of Chicago is what everyplace in America will be once the Democratic administration and filibuster-resistant Democratic Congress have tackled global warming, sustainability, green alternatives to coal and oil, subprime mortgage foreclosures, consumer protection, business oversight, financial regulation, health care reform, taxes on the "rich," and urban sprawl. The Democrats will have plenty of time to do all this because conservatism, if it is ever reborn, will not come again in the lifetime of anyone old enough to be rounded up by ACORN and shipped to the polling booths.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Utilities/printer_preview.asp?idArticle=15791&R=13CD8A8D0
=======
This is a serious thing, it is the loss of economic sovereignty of our nation
www.newsmax.com
http://www.newsmax.com/morris/?s=al&promo_code=719C-1
Bush Hands Over Reins of U.S. Economy to EU
========
Bloomberg.com: News
Soros-Funded Democratic Idea Factory Becomes Obama Policy Font
By Edwin Chen
Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Three blocks from the White House, on the 10th floor of a sleek glass building, young workers pound at computers, with giant flat-screen TVs overhead. It has the look and feel of a high-tech startup.
In many ways it is. The product is ideas.
Thanks in part to funding from benefactors such as billionaire George Soros, the Center for American Progress has become in just five years an intellectual wellspring for Democratic policy proposals, including many that are shaping the agenda of the new Obama administration.
Much as the Heritage Foundation provided intellectual heft for the Republican Party in the 1980s, CAP has been an incubator for liberal thought and helped build the platform that triumphed in the 2008 campaign.
=======
As captured supertanker anchors off Somalia, pirates strike again
Xan Rice, Richard Norton-Taylor
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/nov/19/piracy-somalia-ship-hong-kong
Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden seized a Hong Kong-registered cargo ship carrying 36,000 tonnes of wheat to Iran yesterday in the latest of the near-daily attacks threatening one of the world's busiest shipping routes.
=======
Pirates Exploit Confusion About International Law The connection between human-rights scolds and the rise of crime on the highseas.By DAVID B. RIVKIN JR.<http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=DAVID+B.+RIVKIN+JR.&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND> and LEE A. CASEY<http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=LEE+A.+CASEY&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND> On Saturday, off the coast of East Africa, pirates seized their largestcatch ever: a giant Saudi-owned oil tanker called the Sirius Star. Thebrazen attack came on the heels of the capture of a Ukrainian vessel (loadedwith armaments destined for Kenya) by Somali pirates in September.Humanitarian food shipments into Somalia have had naval escort for nearly ayear -- evidence of how much the security of sea-lanes has eroded. Mediareports suggest that Somali pirates have already attacked more than 80 shipsin 2008.
========
The South Side of Chicago is what everyplace in America will be once the Democratic administration and filibuster-resistant Democratic Congress have tackled global warming, sustainability, green alternatives to coal and oil, subprime mortgage foreclosures, consumer protection, business oversight, financial regulation, health care reform, taxes on the "rich," and urban sprawl. The Democrats will have plenty of time to do all this because conservatism, if it is ever reborn, will not come again in the lifetime of anyone old enough to be rounded up by ACORN and shipped to the polling booths.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Utilities/printer_preview.asp?idArticle=15791&R=13CD8A8D0
=======
This is a serious thing, it is the loss of economic sovereignty of our nation
www.newsmax.com
http://www.newsmax.com/morris/?s=al&promo_code=719C-1
Bush Hands Over Reins of U.S. Economy to EU
========
Bloomberg.com: News
Soros-Funded Democratic Idea Factory Becomes Obama Policy Font
By Edwin Chen
Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Three blocks from the White House, on the 10th floor of a sleek glass building, young workers pound at computers, with giant flat-screen TVs overhead. It has the look and feel of a high-tech startup.
In many ways it is. The product is ideas.
Thanks in part to funding from benefactors such as billionaire George Soros, the Center for American Progress has become in just five years an intellectual wellspring for Democratic policy proposals, including many that are shaping the agenda of the new Obama administration.
Much as the Heritage Foundation provided intellectual heft for the Republican Party in the 1980s, CAP has been an incubator for liberal thought and helped build the platform that triumphed in the 2008 campaign.
=======
As captured supertanker anchors off Somalia, pirates strike again
Xan Rice, Richard Norton-Taylor
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/nov/19/piracy-somalia-ship-hong-kong
Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden seized a Hong Kong-registered cargo ship carrying 36,000 tonnes of wheat to Iran yesterday in the latest of the near-daily attacks threatening one of the world's busiest shipping routes.
=======
Monday, November 17, 2008
MULLAH LOBBY THROWS ITS WEIGHT AROUND IN AMERICA
By: Kenneth R. Timmerman
A panel of former diplomats, pro-Tehran advocates, and an advisor to the Obama transition team will issue a five point “plan” on Tuesday, urging the incoming administration to end U.S. pressure on Iran.
Echoing Sen. Obama’s frequent calls during the campaign for “talks without preconditions” with the Tehran regime, the panel is urging his administration to “open the door to direct, unconditional and comprehensive negotiations” with Tehran.
Among those who will present the proposals on Tuesday is Joseph Cirincirone, an arms control advocate identified as an “advisor to the Obama transition team,” and Trita Parsi, a pro-Tehran activist who has been lobbying Congress for several years to lift sanctions against Tehran and end U.S. support for the pro-democracy movement.
But the accuracy and validity of the group’s six-page position paper, a copy of which has been obtained by Newsmax, is being challenged by Iran experts, foreign diplomats, Iranian-Americans, and even the CIA.
It’s wisdom has been challenged by none other than Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who is being touted as the only Republican with a chance of keeping his job in the Obama administration.[...]
Iranian-American groups told Newsmax over the weekend they planned to protest the unveiling of the report on Tuesday, and have been calling the offices of Congressional sponsors Sen. Thomas Carper, D- Del., and Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., asking them to cancel the event.
“It is deeply concerning that a discredited group within the Iranian-American community, with blatantly obvious connections with the Islamic Republic, should be allowed to freely influence Washington's political circles to the detriment of the American peoples' and ultimately, the world community's interests,” the Progressive American-Iranian Committee said in an editorial published on Saturday.
“It is also shocking and difficult to explain that a group labeled by the Iranian regime as the 'Iranian lobby' could so easily penetrate the U.S. Congress,” they added, referring to Parsi’s National Iranian American Council, which is sponsoring Tuesday’s event.
http://newsmax.com/insidecover/Obama_Iran_pressure/2008/11/17/152197.html
-- Kenneth R. Timmerman
President, Middle East Data Project, Inc.
Author: Countdown to Crisis: The Coming Nuclear Showdown with Iran
Contributing editor: Newsmax.com
Reply to: timmerman.road@verizon.netWebsite: www.KenTimmerman.com
A panel of former diplomats, pro-Tehran advocates, and an advisor to the Obama transition team will issue a five point “plan” on Tuesday, urging the incoming administration to end U.S. pressure on Iran.
Echoing Sen. Obama’s frequent calls during the campaign for “talks without preconditions” with the Tehran regime, the panel is urging his administration to “open the door to direct, unconditional and comprehensive negotiations” with Tehran.
Among those who will present the proposals on Tuesday is Joseph Cirincirone, an arms control advocate identified as an “advisor to the Obama transition team,” and Trita Parsi, a pro-Tehran activist who has been lobbying Congress for several years to lift sanctions against Tehran and end U.S. support for the pro-democracy movement.
But the accuracy and validity of the group’s six-page position paper, a copy of which has been obtained by Newsmax, is being challenged by Iran experts, foreign diplomats, Iranian-Americans, and even the CIA.
It’s wisdom has been challenged by none other than Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who is being touted as the only Republican with a chance of keeping his job in the Obama administration.[...]
Iranian-American groups told Newsmax over the weekend they planned to protest the unveiling of the report on Tuesday, and have been calling the offices of Congressional sponsors Sen. Thomas Carper, D- Del., and Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., asking them to cancel the event.
“It is deeply concerning that a discredited group within the Iranian-American community, with blatantly obvious connections with the Islamic Republic, should be allowed to freely influence Washington's political circles to the detriment of the American peoples' and ultimately, the world community's interests,” the Progressive American-Iranian Committee said in an editorial published on Saturday.
“It is also shocking and difficult to explain that a group labeled by the Iranian regime as the 'Iranian lobby' could so easily penetrate the U.S. Congress,” they added, referring to Parsi’s National Iranian American Council, which is sponsoring Tuesday’s event.
http://newsmax.com/insidecover/Obama_Iran_pressure/2008/11/17/152197.html
-- Kenneth R. Timmerman
President, Middle East Data Project, Inc.
Author: Countdown to Crisis: The Coming Nuclear Showdown with Iran
Contributing editor: Newsmax.com
Reply to: timmerman.road@verizon.netWebsite: www.KenTimmerman.com
Saturday, November 15, 2008
LAWSUITS INCREASE TO VIEW ORIGINAL BIRTH DOCUMENT
More than a half-dozen legal challenges have been filed in federal and state courts demanding President-elect Barack Obama's decertification from ballots or seeking to halt elector meetings, claiming he has failed to prove his U.S. Citizenship status.
An Obama campaign spokeswoman told WND the complaints are unfounded."All I can tell you is that it is just pure garbage," she said. "There have been several lawsuits, but they have been dismissed. (NOT TRUE)
"WND is tracking the progress of many cases across the U.S., including the following:
Ohio
David M. Neal of Turtlecreek Township, Ohio, filed suit in Warren Common Pleas Court in October to force Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to request documents from the Federal Elections Commission, the Democratic National Committee, the Ohio Democratic Party and Obama to show the presidential candidate was born in Hawaii, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.Warren County Magistrate Andrew Hasselbach denied Neal's request, saying, "The onus is upon one who challenges such public officer to demonstrate an abuse of discretion by admissible evidence – not hearsay, conclusory allegations or pure speculation.
Connecticut
Connecticut resident Cort Wrotnowski challenged the authenticity of Obama's birth certificate on Oct. 31, and asked the court to order Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz to verify Obama's citizenship before allowing the candidate to appear on the state ballot.
State Supreme Court Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers threw out the case for lack of jurisdiction within a half hour of reviewing it.
"I have not seen the ruling yet," Wrotnowski told WND. "So, in reality, the case was not heard on its merits. … Currently, we are assembling information for another and better try."
Washington
As WND reported earlier, Steven Marquis of Fall City, Wash., filed suit Oct. 9 in Washington State Superior Court, calling for Secretary of State Sam Reed to determine whether Obama is a citizen before Election Day.
Marquis released a statement saying the state has the authority to "prevent the wholesale disenfranchisement of voters" who might have otherwise had the opportunity to choose a qualified candidate should records show Obama is not a natural-born U.S. Citizen.
Marquis said Obama's Hawaii birth certificate isn't evidence that the president-elect is a natural-born citizen because it doesn't reveal the hospital where Obama was born, a doctor's name or the baby's footprint, the Associated Press reported.
Superior Court Judge John Erlick dismissed the lawsuit, claiming the secretary of state does not have authority to inquire about Obama's birth certificate. He also said Marquis failed to name Obama as a party to the lawsuit.
New Jersey
Retired attorney and New Jersey resident Leo. C. Donofrio asked the U.S. Supreme Court for an emergency stay on Nov. 3 prohibiting three candidates from appearing on New Jersey's ballots: Republican candidate John McCain, Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Socialist Worker's Party candidate Roger Calero.
Donofrio claimed the candidates are not "natural born citizens" as enumerated in Article 2, Section
1, of the Constitution of the United States, which states, "No person except a natural born citizen of the United States, at the time of adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President."He wrote, Obama is not eligible for the presidency "even if it were proved he was born in Hawaii, since … Senator Obama's father was born in Kenya and therefore, having been born with split and competing loyalties, candidate Obama is not a 'natural born citizen' …"
"Republican candidate John McCain was born in Panama," the request states. "Socialist Workers Party candidate Roger Calero was born in Nicaragua. And the birthplace of Democratic candidate Barack Obama has not been verified by Respondent.
"Donofrio said Panama has never been considered U.S. Soil, and that McCain is merely a citizen at birth by statute, and not a "natural born citizen."
With three ineligible presidential candidates on ballots, Donofrio warned, New Jersey voters will "witness firsthand the fraud their electoral process has become."
Justice David Souter denied Donofrio's application on Nov. 6.
However, his case is still pending as an emergency stay application.
Donofrio is resubmitting his request for an emergency stay of the national election results and Electoral College meeting to Justice Clarence Thomas.
Pennsylvania
As WND reported earlier, prominent Pennsylvania Democrat and attorney Philip J. Berg filed suit in U.S. District Court three months ago claiming Obama is not a natural-born U.S. citizen.
Berg claimed that by failing to respond Obama has legally "admitted" to the lawsuit's accusations, including the charge that the Democratic candidate was born in Mombosa, Kenya.
U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick dismissed Berg's argument on Oct, 24, ruling that he lacked standing to bring the case. He said Berg's allegations were "too vague and too attenuated."
"This is a question of who has standing to uphold our Constitution," Berg told Jeff Schreiber of America's Right blog.
"If I don't have standing, if you don't have standing, if your neighbor doesn't have standing to question the eligibility of an individual to be president of the United States – the commander in chief, the most powerful person in the world – then who does?"
Berg filed a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court on Oct.30, to force Obama to produce his birth certificate. Justice David Souter rejected an emergency appeal on Nov. 3, for the court to halt the tabulation of the 2008 presidential election results until Obama documented his eligibility to run for office.
However, Souter set a schedule for a response from Obama, the DNC and all co-defendants on or before Dec. 1.
"I look forward to receiving Defendant Obama's response to the Writ and am hopeful the U.S. Supreme Court will review Berg v. Obama," Berg wrote in a Nov. 7 statement.
"I believe Mr. Obama is not a consitutionally-qualified natural-born citizen and is ineligible to assume the office of the President of the United States."
Georgia
Rev. Tom Terry of Atlanta, Ga., appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court the day before the election to determine authenticity of Obama's original birth certificate and his qualifications to be president.
"I bear no personal ill will against Barack Obama," Terry, an independent, said in a statement. "In fact, his election solely on the basis as the first African-American president-elect is a very positive thing for our nation.
However, as an American, I have very grave concerns about Mr. Obama's possible divided loyalties since he has strenuously and vigorously fought every request and every legal effort to force him to release his original birth certificate for public review and scrutiny. I think that is significant."
On Oct 24, Georgia Superior Court Judge Jerry W. Baxter denied Terry's request for an injunction against Secretary of State Karen Handel.
"I don't think you have standing to bring this suit," he said. "I think that the attorney general has argued the law. I think he is correct. I think you are not a lawyer."
Terry is appealing his suit even though Obama didn't win Georgia because he said he wants to set an example for other states.
He is asking the court to direct Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel to decertify all votes for Obama.
"Hopefully, this action will be noticed by other states and they will also take a serious look at the meaning of Georgia's Supreme Court's actions," he said. "It is apropos that the Latin motto in the Georgia Supreme Court is interpreted: 'Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.'
I think if the Court rules in my favor, that motto will come alive with meaning and impact."
Hawaii
On Oct. 17, Andy Martin filed a writ of mandamus in Hawaii's Supreme Court to compel Gov. Linda Lingle to release a certified copy of Obama's vital statistics record. His request to expedite the circuit court was denied on Oct. 22.
Martin now has a pending case seeking access to Obama's original 1961 typewritten birth certificate. The circuit court hearing is set to begin Nov. 18.
The saga continues …Several unconfirmed reports also indicate that citizens of Utah, Wyoming, Florida, New York, North Carolina, Texas, California and Virginia have also filed lawsuits or requested court orders to verify Obama's citizenship status.
As reported earlier, WND senior investigative reporter Jerome Corsi traveled both to Kenya and Hawaii to investigate issues surrounding Obama's birth.
But his discoveries only raised more questions.
The governor's office in Hawaii said he had a valid certificate but rejected requests for access and left ambiguous its origin – leaving some to wonder if the certificate on file with the Department of Health indicates a Hawaiian birth or whether it was generated after the Obama family registered a Kenyan birth in Hawaii.
The Obama campaign posted a certification of live birth, a document stating the baby was born on Aug. 4, 1961.
However, according to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, there is a difference between the two documents.
A certification of live birth is not an authentication of Hawaiian birth, and critics say the procedure could have allowed Obama's mother to have the baby elsewhere, return to the U.S. and obtain the document in Hawaii.
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands makes a distinction between the two:
In order to process your application, DHHL utilizes information that is found only on the original Certificate of Live Birth, which is either black or green.
This is a more complete record of your birth than the Certification of Live Birth (a computer-generated printout).
Submitting the original Certificate of Live Birth will save you time and money since the computer-generated Certification requires additional verification by DHHL.
However, Andy Martin has specifically requested verification of the original 1961 type-written certificate of live birth – or, as the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands describes it, the "more complete record" of Obama's birth.
Further adding to complications, Obama's half-sister, Maya Soetoro, has named two different Hawaii hospitals where Obama could have been born.
In a November 2004 interview with the Rainbow Newsletter, Maya told reporters her half-brother Sen. Barack Obama was born on Aug. 4, 1961, at Queens Medical Center in Honolulu;
then in February 2008, Maya told reporters for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin that Obama was at the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children.
But a video posted on YouTube features Obama's Kenyan grandmother Sarah claiming to have witnessed Obama's birth in Kenya.
Seeking to settle the issue, Hawaii Department of Health Director Director Chiyome Fukino released an Oct. 31 statement saying, "State law (Hawai'i Revised Statutes §338-18) prohibits the release of a certified birth certificate to persons who do not have a tangible interest in the vital record.
Therefore, I as Director of Health for the State of Hawai'i, along with the Registrar of Vital Statistics who has statutory authority to oversee and maintain these type of vital records, have personally seen and verified that the Hawai'i State Department of Health has Sen. Obama's original birth certificate on record in accordance with state policies and procedures."
The statement does not clarify whether "the record" is a certification of live birth or a Hawaiian certificate of live birth.
Before the election, WND retained a top private investigator in Hawaii with extensive FBI training and tasked him with visiting both the Queens Medical Center and the Kaliolani Medical Center to investigate claims that Obama birth certificates existed at either hospital.
However, the private investigator reported that sheriff's deputies were stationed at both hospitals to fend off press inquiries about Obama's birth certificate.
When WND asked the Obama campaign spokeswoman why Obama simply hasn't released the original 1961 certificate of live birth to make the lawsuits go away, she replied,
"I have no idea. I think they released what they chose to release, and Hawaii has confirmed that he was born in Hawaii, so I don't know what else you want."
An Obama campaign spokeswoman told WND the complaints are unfounded."All I can tell you is that it is just pure garbage," she said. "There have been several lawsuits, but they have been dismissed. (NOT TRUE)
"WND is tracking the progress of many cases across the U.S., including the following:
Ohio
David M. Neal of Turtlecreek Township, Ohio, filed suit in Warren Common Pleas Court in October to force Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to request documents from the Federal Elections Commission, the Democratic National Committee, the Ohio Democratic Party and Obama to show the presidential candidate was born in Hawaii, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.Warren County Magistrate Andrew Hasselbach denied Neal's request, saying, "The onus is upon one who challenges such public officer to demonstrate an abuse of discretion by admissible evidence – not hearsay, conclusory allegations or pure speculation.
Connecticut
Connecticut resident Cort Wrotnowski challenged the authenticity of Obama's birth certificate on Oct. 31, and asked the court to order Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz to verify Obama's citizenship before allowing the candidate to appear on the state ballot.
State Supreme Court Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers threw out the case for lack of jurisdiction within a half hour of reviewing it.
"I have not seen the ruling yet," Wrotnowski told WND. "So, in reality, the case was not heard on its merits. … Currently, we are assembling information for another and better try."
Washington
As WND reported earlier, Steven Marquis of Fall City, Wash., filed suit Oct. 9 in Washington State Superior Court, calling for Secretary of State Sam Reed to determine whether Obama is a citizen before Election Day.
Marquis released a statement saying the state has the authority to "prevent the wholesale disenfranchisement of voters" who might have otherwise had the opportunity to choose a qualified candidate should records show Obama is not a natural-born U.S. Citizen.
Marquis said Obama's Hawaii birth certificate isn't evidence that the president-elect is a natural-born citizen because it doesn't reveal the hospital where Obama was born, a doctor's name or the baby's footprint, the Associated Press reported.
Superior Court Judge John Erlick dismissed the lawsuit, claiming the secretary of state does not have authority to inquire about Obama's birth certificate. He also said Marquis failed to name Obama as a party to the lawsuit.
New Jersey
Retired attorney and New Jersey resident Leo. C. Donofrio asked the U.S. Supreme Court for an emergency stay on Nov. 3 prohibiting three candidates from appearing on New Jersey's ballots: Republican candidate John McCain, Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Socialist Worker's Party candidate Roger Calero.
Donofrio claimed the candidates are not "natural born citizens" as enumerated in Article 2, Section
1, of the Constitution of the United States, which states, "No person except a natural born citizen of the United States, at the time of adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President."He wrote, Obama is not eligible for the presidency "even if it were proved he was born in Hawaii, since … Senator Obama's father was born in Kenya and therefore, having been born with split and competing loyalties, candidate Obama is not a 'natural born citizen' …"
"Republican candidate John McCain was born in Panama," the request states. "Socialist Workers Party candidate Roger Calero was born in Nicaragua. And the birthplace of Democratic candidate Barack Obama has not been verified by Respondent.
"Donofrio said Panama has never been considered U.S. Soil, and that McCain is merely a citizen at birth by statute, and not a "natural born citizen."
With three ineligible presidential candidates on ballots, Donofrio warned, New Jersey voters will "witness firsthand the fraud their electoral process has become."
Justice David Souter denied Donofrio's application on Nov. 6.
However, his case is still pending as an emergency stay application.
Donofrio is resubmitting his request for an emergency stay of the national election results and Electoral College meeting to Justice Clarence Thomas.
Pennsylvania
As WND reported earlier, prominent Pennsylvania Democrat and attorney Philip J. Berg filed suit in U.S. District Court three months ago claiming Obama is not a natural-born U.S. citizen.
Berg claimed that by failing to respond Obama has legally "admitted" to the lawsuit's accusations, including the charge that the Democratic candidate was born in Mombosa, Kenya.
U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick dismissed Berg's argument on Oct, 24, ruling that he lacked standing to bring the case. He said Berg's allegations were "too vague and too attenuated."
"This is a question of who has standing to uphold our Constitution," Berg told Jeff Schreiber of America's Right blog.
"If I don't have standing, if you don't have standing, if your neighbor doesn't have standing to question the eligibility of an individual to be president of the United States – the commander in chief, the most powerful person in the world – then who does?"
Berg filed a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court on Oct.30, to force Obama to produce his birth certificate. Justice David Souter rejected an emergency appeal on Nov. 3, for the court to halt the tabulation of the 2008 presidential election results until Obama documented his eligibility to run for office.
However, Souter set a schedule for a response from Obama, the DNC and all co-defendants on or before Dec. 1.
"I look forward to receiving Defendant Obama's response to the Writ and am hopeful the U.S. Supreme Court will review Berg v. Obama," Berg wrote in a Nov. 7 statement.
"I believe Mr. Obama is not a consitutionally-qualified natural-born citizen and is ineligible to assume the office of the President of the United States."
Georgia
Rev. Tom Terry of Atlanta, Ga., appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court the day before the election to determine authenticity of Obama's original birth certificate and his qualifications to be president.
"I bear no personal ill will against Barack Obama," Terry, an independent, said in a statement. "In fact, his election solely on the basis as the first African-American president-elect is a very positive thing for our nation.
However, as an American, I have very grave concerns about Mr. Obama's possible divided loyalties since he has strenuously and vigorously fought every request and every legal effort to force him to release his original birth certificate for public review and scrutiny. I think that is significant."
On Oct 24, Georgia Superior Court Judge Jerry W. Baxter denied Terry's request for an injunction against Secretary of State Karen Handel.
"I don't think you have standing to bring this suit," he said. "I think that the attorney general has argued the law. I think he is correct. I think you are not a lawyer."
Terry is appealing his suit even though Obama didn't win Georgia because he said he wants to set an example for other states.
He is asking the court to direct Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel to decertify all votes for Obama.
"Hopefully, this action will be noticed by other states and they will also take a serious look at the meaning of Georgia's Supreme Court's actions," he said. "It is apropos that the Latin motto in the Georgia Supreme Court is interpreted: 'Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.'
I think if the Court rules in my favor, that motto will come alive with meaning and impact."
Hawaii
On Oct. 17, Andy Martin filed a writ of mandamus in Hawaii's Supreme Court to compel Gov. Linda Lingle to release a certified copy of Obama's vital statistics record. His request to expedite the circuit court was denied on Oct. 22.
Martin now has a pending case seeking access to Obama's original 1961 typewritten birth certificate. The circuit court hearing is set to begin Nov. 18.
The saga continues …Several unconfirmed reports also indicate that citizens of Utah, Wyoming, Florida, New York, North Carolina, Texas, California and Virginia have also filed lawsuits or requested court orders to verify Obama's citizenship status.
As reported earlier, WND senior investigative reporter Jerome Corsi traveled both to Kenya and Hawaii to investigate issues surrounding Obama's birth.
But his discoveries only raised more questions.
The governor's office in Hawaii said he had a valid certificate but rejected requests for access and left ambiguous its origin – leaving some to wonder if the certificate on file with the Department of Health indicates a Hawaiian birth or whether it was generated after the Obama family registered a Kenyan birth in Hawaii.
The Obama campaign posted a certification of live birth, a document stating the baby was born on Aug. 4, 1961.
However, according to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, there is a difference between the two documents.
A certification of live birth is not an authentication of Hawaiian birth, and critics say the procedure could have allowed Obama's mother to have the baby elsewhere, return to the U.S. and obtain the document in Hawaii.
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands makes a distinction between the two:
In order to process your application, DHHL utilizes information that is found only on the original Certificate of Live Birth, which is either black or green.
This is a more complete record of your birth than the Certification of Live Birth (a computer-generated printout).
Submitting the original Certificate of Live Birth will save you time and money since the computer-generated Certification requires additional verification by DHHL.
However, Andy Martin has specifically requested verification of the original 1961 type-written certificate of live birth – or, as the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands describes it, the "more complete record" of Obama's birth.
Further adding to complications, Obama's half-sister, Maya Soetoro, has named two different Hawaii hospitals where Obama could have been born.
In a November 2004 interview with the Rainbow Newsletter, Maya told reporters her half-brother Sen. Barack Obama was born on Aug. 4, 1961, at Queens Medical Center in Honolulu;
then in February 2008, Maya told reporters for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin that Obama was at the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children.
But a video posted on YouTube features Obama's Kenyan grandmother Sarah claiming to have witnessed Obama's birth in Kenya.
Seeking to settle the issue, Hawaii Department of Health Director Director Chiyome Fukino released an Oct. 31 statement saying, "State law (Hawai'i Revised Statutes §338-18) prohibits the release of a certified birth certificate to persons who do not have a tangible interest in the vital record.
Therefore, I as Director of Health for the State of Hawai'i, along with the Registrar of Vital Statistics who has statutory authority to oversee and maintain these type of vital records, have personally seen and verified that the Hawai'i State Department of Health has Sen. Obama's original birth certificate on record in accordance with state policies and procedures."
The statement does not clarify whether "the record" is a certification of live birth or a Hawaiian certificate of live birth.
Before the election, WND retained a top private investigator in Hawaii with extensive FBI training and tasked him with visiting both the Queens Medical Center and the Kaliolani Medical Center to investigate claims that Obama birth certificates existed at either hospital.
However, the private investigator reported that sheriff's deputies were stationed at both hospitals to fend off press inquiries about Obama's birth certificate.
When WND asked the Obama campaign spokeswoman why Obama simply hasn't released the original 1961 certificate of live birth to make the lawsuits go away, she replied,
"I have no idea. I think they released what they chose to release, and Hawaii has confirmed that he was born in Hawaii, so I don't know what else you want."
Thursday, November 13, 2008
HEADS UP FROM KEN TIMMERMAN
Dear friends,
NIAC is at it again.
Now they are working together with pro-Tehran regime policy analysts, to propose a disastrous “new” policy for the incoming Obama administration toward Iran.
According to a report from the Associated Press today, they will present their proposals next Tuesday in Congress. Key among the proposals: back off on economic and military threats.
"Threats are not cowing Iran and the current regime in Tehran is not in imminent peril," according to a copy of the report obtained by The Associated Press.
The NIAC-sponsored report, written by former U.S. ambassadors Thomas Pickering and James F. Dobbins, Columbia University scholar Gary G. Sick and 17 other "experts", calls on the new administration to "open the door to direct, unconditional and comprehensive negotiations at the senior diplomatic level,” the AP reported.
Recall that Pickering and Dobbins have been working with another pro-regime lobbyist, Hooshang Amirahmadi, and his discredited American-Iranian Council. As for Gary Sick, he worked on Iran policy in the White House of Jimmy Carter – a credential that ought to disqualify him from uttering the name of “Iran” ever again.
Amirahmadi was recently humiliated during several trips to Tehran by regime government ministers who ridiculed him for trying to curry favor in Washington and Tehran.
URGENT ACTION: CALL MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO PROTEST THIS GATHERING.
Suggested script:
I am calling to urge you to oppose a new plan being proposed to the Obama administration next Tuesday, that calls for negotiations without preconditions with the clerical dictatorship in Iran.
This plan is being proposed to you by a group of well-known pro-Tehran lobbyists, with no claim of representing the Iranian people or their aspirations.
The Foundation for Democracy in Iran and other pro-democracy groups strongly reject negotiations with the Tehran regime. Negotiations will only embolden the regime to continue its support for terrorism abroad and repression at home.
Negotiations are the wrong policy at the wrong time.[And if you have more time, you can include this]:Instead of loosening sanctions, as NIAC and the pro-regime lobbyists are urging, I urge you to support stronger, multilateral sanctions at the UN Security Council, and continued financial sanctions through the U.S. Department of Treasury.
A senior French government official, recently visiting Washington, urged the new administration to abandon the folly of negotiations with Tehran.
“We’ve been negotiating with the Iranians since 2003,” said French nuclear advisor Therese Delpech. “We came to the conclusion that they are not interested at all in negotiating, but in buying time for their military (nuclear) program.”
The full story of Ms. Delpech’s comments is here
http://www.newsmax.com/timmerman/france_negotiate_iran/2008/10/10/139274.htmlPLEASE
CALL:The Good Guys:
Call these members to urge them to intervene with their colleagues to cancel this meeting:
• Sen. Joe Lieberman (D, Conn). Since the report will be presented by law professor Richard Parker of the University of Connecticut, Sen. Lieberman needs to be kept in the loop and can help. Tel: 202 224-4041. Key staffer on Iran: Joe Goffman and Vance Serchuk.
• Rep. Eric Cantor (R, Va). 202-225-2815. Chief of staff, Rob Collins.
• Rep. Trent Franks (R, Az). 202-225-4576 Key staffer: Rebeccah Heinrichs.
• Rep. Brad Sherman (D, Ca). 202-225-5911. Key staffer for Iran: Don MacDonald.
• Rep. Steve Rothman (D, NJ). 202-225-5061. Key staffers: Bob Decheine and Shelly Stoneman
• Rep Steve Israel (D, NY). 202-225-3335. Key staffer, Michael Ryan.
• Rep. Roy Blunt (R, Mo). 202-225-6536. Retiring as minority whip but staying in the House. Key staffer: Brian Diffell.
• Rep. Paul Broun (R, Ga). 202-225-4101
The Bad Guys:
Call these members to shame them for supporting a radical, terrorist regime that continues to murder Americans in Iraq, that represses its own women, jails its journalists, and murders its children.
•Sen. Chuck Hagel (R, NE). Hagel is retiring after this term, but has been a strong NIAC supporter.202-225-4224.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D, MD). Van Hollen has helped NIAC in the past and is the chair of the DCCC. Tel: 202-225-5341. Chief of Staff: Karen Robb.
• Rep. Jim Moran (D, Va). Moran is arguably NIAC’s biggest supporter. He needs to be shamed.202-225-4376. Chief of Staff: Phil Sunderland
On the Fence:
Call these members to urge them to get involved.
• Rep. Howard Berman (D, CA). Rep. Berman is chairman of the House Foreign Affairs committee. 202-225-5021 Key staffer for Iran: Alan Makovsky.
To read more about NIAC and its efforts to undermine U.S. National security and serve the policy objectives of the Islamic Republic, go to www.iran.org .
NIAC is at it again.
Now they are working together with pro-Tehran regime policy analysts, to propose a disastrous “new” policy for the incoming Obama administration toward Iran.
According to a report from the Associated Press today, they will present their proposals next Tuesday in Congress. Key among the proposals: back off on economic and military threats.
"Threats are not cowing Iran and the current regime in Tehran is not in imminent peril," according to a copy of the report obtained by The Associated Press.
The NIAC-sponsored report, written by former U.S. ambassadors Thomas Pickering and James F. Dobbins, Columbia University scholar Gary G. Sick and 17 other "experts", calls on the new administration to "open the door to direct, unconditional and comprehensive negotiations at the senior diplomatic level,” the AP reported.
Recall that Pickering and Dobbins have been working with another pro-regime lobbyist, Hooshang Amirahmadi, and his discredited American-Iranian Council. As for Gary Sick, he worked on Iran policy in the White House of Jimmy Carter – a credential that ought to disqualify him from uttering the name of “Iran” ever again.
Amirahmadi was recently humiliated during several trips to Tehran by regime government ministers who ridiculed him for trying to curry favor in Washington and Tehran.
URGENT ACTION: CALL MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO PROTEST THIS GATHERING.
Suggested script:
I am calling to urge you to oppose a new plan being proposed to the Obama administration next Tuesday, that calls for negotiations without preconditions with the clerical dictatorship in Iran.
This plan is being proposed to you by a group of well-known pro-Tehran lobbyists, with no claim of representing the Iranian people or their aspirations.
The Foundation for Democracy in Iran and other pro-democracy groups strongly reject negotiations with the Tehran regime. Negotiations will only embolden the regime to continue its support for terrorism abroad and repression at home.
Negotiations are the wrong policy at the wrong time.[And if you have more time, you can include this]:Instead of loosening sanctions, as NIAC and the pro-regime lobbyists are urging, I urge you to support stronger, multilateral sanctions at the UN Security Council, and continued financial sanctions through the U.S. Department of Treasury.
A senior French government official, recently visiting Washington, urged the new administration to abandon the folly of negotiations with Tehran.
“We’ve been negotiating with the Iranians since 2003,” said French nuclear advisor Therese Delpech. “We came to the conclusion that they are not interested at all in negotiating, but in buying time for their military (nuclear) program.”
The full story of Ms. Delpech’s comments is here
http://www.newsmax.com/timmerman/france_negotiate_iran/2008/10/10/139274.htmlPLEASE
CALL:The Good Guys:
Call these members to urge them to intervene with their colleagues to cancel this meeting:
• Sen. Joe Lieberman (D, Conn). Since the report will be presented by law professor Richard Parker of the University of Connecticut, Sen. Lieberman needs to be kept in the loop and can help. Tel: 202 224-4041. Key staffer on Iran: Joe Goffman and Vance Serchuk.
• Rep. Eric Cantor (R, Va). 202-225-2815. Chief of staff, Rob Collins.
• Rep. Trent Franks (R, Az). 202-225-4576 Key staffer: Rebeccah Heinrichs.
• Rep. Brad Sherman (D, Ca). 202-225-5911. Key staffer for Iran: Don MacDonald.
• Rep. Steve Rothman (D, NJ). 202-225-5061. Key staffers: Bob Decheine and Shelly Stoneman
• Rep Steve Israel (D, NY). 202-225-3335. Key staffer, Michael Ryan.
• Rep. Roy Blunt (R, Mo). 202-225-6536. Retiring as minority whip but staying in the House. Key staffer: Brian Diffell.
• Rep. Paul Broun (R, Ga). 202-225-4101
The Bad Guys:
Call these members to shame them for supporting a radical, terrorist regime that continues to murder Americans in Iraq, that represses its own women, jails its journalists, and murders its children.
•Sen. Chuck Hagel (R, NE). Hagel is retiring after this term, but has been a strong NIAC supporter.202-225-4224.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D, MD). Van Hollen has helped NIAC in the past and is the chair of the DCCC. Tel: 202-225-5341. Chief of Staff: Karen Robb.
• Rep. Jim Moran (D, Va). Moran is arguably NIAC’s biggest supporter. He needs to be shamed.202-225-4376. Chief of Staff: Phil Sunderland
On the Fence:
Call these members to urge them to get involved.
• Rep. Howard Berman (D, CA). Rep. Berman is chairman of the House Foreign Affairs committee. 202-225-5021 Key staffer for Iran: Alan Makovsky.
To read more about NIAC and its efforts to undermine U.S. National security and serve the policy objectives of the Islamic Republic, go to www.iran.org .
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
OBAMA NOT ACCEPTABLE AS POTUS
Today I unpacked my winter clothes in preparation for a long winter, and a long winter is coming if not of the thermometer, then of the soul.
A man that represents not simply an opposing view but the view of those who oppose America and all it stands for, will sit in the Oval Office. Worse still he did not get there through a democratic election but through fraud, voter intimidation and every dirty trick culminating in a campaign that had little in common with conventional American politics and a great deal in common with the cults of personality cultivated by totalitarian dictators.
Our disappointment has come tonight. The disappointment of those Democratic party voters who are still of the party of Jefferson rather than the party of Ayers will come later and it will be far darker because we were innocent of it, while they will be complicit in all that he does.
But we are not simply "Don't Blame Me" voters. We did our best to fight against this and while that may be small comfort against what comes, it is important to remember that, just as it is remembered in every age the people who stood against the rise of evil and took no part in the mass madness that brings tyrants to power and overturns nations.
But we are a long way from surrender. The battle is over, the war begins.
The United States government now falls into the hands of the enemies of this country and civilization for a time or forever. And that is part of what the war is about. The country has been in the hands of people we disagreed with, but never in the hands of people whose views are as diametrically opposed to ours as anything in the Third Reich or the Kremlin.
In their hands Federal power becomes enemy power. The more ineffective and tied up they are, the less damage they can do.The battle against them must be twofold, first to limit the damage they can do while in power, and secondly to plan and prepare to retake Congress and then the White House in a coherent and orderly manner without the chaos and backbiting that has characterized the last year of this campaign.
It will be all too easy to fall into the blame game and to let it devour us, too much of the conservative movement and the anti-jihad blogsphere is already fractured.
The goal now must be to heal those fractures, to create unity around a single purpose, to liberate America again.
It will not be an easy struggle. The Obama years will make the worst of the Clinton and Carter years look mild by comparison.
We have seen the thuggish abuses of power that brought Obama into office, but that is only a taste of what an Obama administration in control of the Federal government will be able to do.
We have seen only a shadow of the ruthless methods that were used to bring him to power, and even that shadow is mostly dismissed as conspiracy theories. But that is also our best hope.
Obama's only real calling card has been an empty promise.
Now he will have power and responsibility and we know he will abuse them. Arrogance was and remains his Achilles heel and the Achilles heel of his backers. And when their revolution runs into the reality of voter expectations, there will be the opening to begin the political downfall of this government.
For my own part I do not recognize Obama as my President, nor will I refer to him as such. He has no legal right to serve in office nor has he won a legal election.
Nor do his cronies have any right to serve in any position they are appointed to.We have a long journey through dark lands ahead of us. Let us hope to soon once again emerge into the light.
http://sultanknish.blogspot.com/2008/11/battle-is-over-war-begins.html
A man that represents not simply an opposing view but the view of those who oppose America and all it stands for, will sit in the Oval Office. Worse still he did not get there through a democratic election but through fraud, voter intimidation and every dirty trick culminating in a campaign that had little in common with conventional American politics and a great deal in common with the cults of personality cultivated by totalitarian dictators.
Our disappointment has come tonight. The disappointment of those Democratic party voters who are still of the party of Jefferson rather than the party of Ayers will come later and it will be far darker because we were innocent of it, while they will be complicit in all that he does.
But we are not simply "Don't Blame Me" voters. We did our best to fight against this and while that may be small comfort against what comes, it is important to remember that, just as it is remembered in every age the people who stood against the rise of evil and took no part in the mass madness that brings tyrants to power and overturns nations.
But we are a long way from surrender. The battle is over, the war begins.
The United States government now falls into the hands of the enemies of this country and civilization for a time or forever. And that is part of what the war is about. The country has been in the hands of people we disagreed with, but never in the hands of people whose views are as diametrically opposed to ours as anything in the Third Reich or the Kremlin.
In their hands Federal power becomes enemy power. The more ineffective and tied up they are, the less damage they can do.The battle against them must be twofold, first to limit the damage they can do while in power, and secondly to plan and prepare to retake Congress and then the White House in a coherent and orderly manner without the chaos and backbiting that has characterized the last year of this campaign.
It will be all too easy to fall into the blame game and to let it devour us, too much of the conservative movement and the anti-jihad blogsphere is already fractured.
The goal now must be to heal those fractures, to create unity around a single purpose, to liberate America again.
It will not be an easy struggle. The Obama years will make the worst of the Clinton and Carter years look mild by comparison.
We have seen the thuggish abuses of power that brought Obama into office, but that is only a taste of what an Obama administration in control of the Federal government will be able to do.
We have seen only a shadow of the ruthless methods that were used to bring him to power, and even that shadow is mostly dismissed as conspiracy theories. But that is also our best hope.
Obama's only real calling card has been an empty promise.
Now he will have power and responsibility and we know he will abuse them. Arrogance was and remains his Achilles heel and the Achilles heel of his backers. And when their revolution runs into the reality of voter expectations, there will be the opening to begin the political downfall of this government.
For my own part I do not recognize Obama as my President, nor will I refer to him as such. He has no legal right to serve in office nor has he won a legal election.
Nor do his cronies have any right to serve in any position they are appointed to.We have a long journey through dark lands ahead of us. Let us hope to soon once again emerge into the light.
http://sultanknish.blogspot.com/2008/11/battle-is-over-war-begins.html
Saturday, November 08, 2008
MANDATING EQUALITY BY FORCE - VIVA THE USSA (UNITED SOCIALIST STATES OF AMERICA)
Democratic leaders in the U.S. House discuss confiscating 401(k), IRAs
By Karen McMahan
RALEIGH — Democrats in the U.S. House have been conducting hearings on proposals to confiscate workers’ personal retirement accounts — including 401(k)s and IRAs — and convert them to accounts managed by the Social Security Administration.
Triggered by the financial crisis the past two months, the hearings reportedly were meant to stem losses incurred by many workers and retirees whose 401(k) and IRA balances have been shrinking rapidly.
The testimony of Teresa Ghilarducci, professor of economic policy analysis at the New School for Social Research in New York, in hearings Oct. 7 drew the most attention and criticism. Testifying for the House Committee on Education and Labor, Ghilarducci proposed that the government eliminate tax breaks for 401(k) and similar retirement accounts, such as IRAs, and confiscate workers’ retirement plan accounts and convert them to universal Guaranteed Retirement Accounts (GRAs) managed by the Social Security Administration.
Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, in prepared remarks for the hearing on “The Impact of the Financial Crisis on Workers’ Retirement Security,” blamed Wall Street for the financial crisis and said his committee will “strengthen and protect Americans’ 401(k)s, pensions, and other retirement plans” and the “Democratic Congress will continue to conduct this much-needed oversight on behalf of the American people.”
Currently, 401(k) plans allow Americans to invest pretax money and their employers match up to a defined percentage, which not only increases workers’ retirement savings but also reduces their annual income tax. The balances are fully inheritable, subject to income tax, meaning workers pass on their wealth to their heirs, unlike Social Security.
Even when they leave an employer and go to one that doesn’t offer a 401(k) or pension, workers can transfer their balances to a qualified IRA.
Mandating Equality
Ghilarducci’s plan first appeared in a paper for the Economic Policy Institute: Agenda for Shared Prosperity on Nov. 20, 2007, in which she said GRAs will rescue the flawed American retirement income system
(www.sharedprosperity.org/bp204/bp204.PDF).
The current retirement system, Ghilarducci said, “exacerbates income and wealth inequalities” because tax breaks for voluntary retirement accounts are “skewed to the wealthy because it is easier for them to save, and because they receive bigger tax breaks when they do.”
Lauding GRAs as a way to effectively increase retirement savings, Ghilarducci wrote that savings incentives are unequal for rich and poor families because tax deferrals “provide a much larger ‘carrot’ to wealthy families than to middle-class families — and none whatsoever for families too poor to owe taxes.”
GRAs would guarantee a fixed 3 percent annual rate of return, although later in her article Ghilarducci explained that participants would not “earn a 3% real return in perpetuity.”
In place of tax breaks workers now receive for contributions and thus a lower tax rate, workers would receive $600 annually from the government, inflation-adjusted.
For low-income workers whose annual contributions are less than $600, the government would deposit whatever amount it would take to equal the minimum $600 for all participants.
In a radio interview with Kirby Wilbur in Seattle on Oct. 27, 2008, Ghilarducci explained that her proposal doesn’t eliminate the tax breaks, rather, “I’m just rearranging the tax breaks that are available now for 401(k)s and spreading — spreading the wealth.”
All workers would have 5 percent of their annual pay deducted from their paychecks and deposited to the GRA. They would still be paying Social Security and Medicare taxes, as would the employers.
The GRA contribution would be shared equally by the worker and the employee. Employers no longer would be able to write off their contributions. Any capital gains would be taxable year-on-year.
Analysts point to another disturbing part of the plan. With a GRA, workers could bequeath only half of their account balances to their heirs, unlike full balances from existing 401(k) and IRA accounts.
For workers who die after retiring, they could bequeath just their own contributions plus the interest but minus any benefits received and minus the employer contributions.
Another justification for Ghilarducci’s plan is to eliminate investment risk. In her testimony, Ghilarducci said, “humans often lack the foresight, discipline, and investing skills required to sustain a savings plan.”
She cited the 2004 HSBC global survey on the Future of Retirement, in which she claimed that “a third of Americans wanted the government to force them to save more for retirement.”What the survey actually reported was that 33 percent of Americans wanted the government to “enforce additional private savings,” a vastly different meaning than mandatory government-run savings.
Of the four potential sources of retirement support, which were government, employer, family, and self, the majority of Americans said “self” was the most important contributor, followed by “government.” When broken out by family income, low-income U.S. households said the “government” was the most important retirement support, whereas high-income families ranked “government” last and “self” first (www.hsbc.com/retirement).
On Oct. 22, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Argentinean government had seized all private pension and retirement accounts to fund government programs and to address a ballooning deficit.
Fearing an economic collapse, foreign investors quickly pulled out, forcing the Argentinean stock market to shut down several times. More than 10 years ago, nationalization of private savings sent Argentina’s economy into a long-term downward spiral.
Income and Wealth RedistributionThe majority of witness testimony during recent hearings before the House Committee on Education and Labor showed that congressional Democrats intend to address income and wealth inequality through redistribution.
On July 31, 2008, Robert Greenstein, executive director of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, testified before the subcommittee on workforce protections that “from the standpoint of equal treatment of people with different incomes, there is a fundamental flaw” in tax code incentives because they are “provided in the form of deductions, exemptions, and exclusions rather than in the form of refundable tax credits.”
Even people who don’t pay taxes should get money from the government, paid for by higher-income Americans, he said. “There is no obvious reason why lower-income taxpayers or people who do not file income taxes should get smaller incentives (or no tax incentives at all),”
Greenstein said.“Moving to refundable tax credits for promoting socially worthwhile activities would be an important step toward enhancing progressivity in the tax code in a way that would improve economic efficiency and performance at the same time,” Greenstein said, and “reducing barriers to labor organizing, preserving the real value of the minimum wage, and the other workforce security concerns . . . would contribute to an economy with less glaring and sharply widening inequality.”
When asked whether committee members seriously were considering Ghilarducci’s proposal for GSAs, Aaron Albright, press secretary for the Committee on Education and Labor, said Miller and other members were listening to all ideas.Miller’s biggest priority has been on legislation aimed at greater transparency in 401(k)s and other retirement plan administration, specifically regarding fees, Albright said, and he sent a link to a Fox News interview of Miller on Oct. 24, 2008, to show that the congressman had not made a decision.
After repeated questions asked by Neil Cavuto of Fox News, Miller said he would not be in favor of “killing the 401(k)” or of “killing the tax advantages for 401(k)s.”Arguing against liberal prescriptions, William Beach, director of the Center for Data Analysis at the Heritage Foundation, testified on Oct. 24 that the “roots of the current crisis are firmly planted in public policy mistakes” by the Federal Reserve and Congress.
He cautioned Congress against raising taxes, increasing burdensome regulations, or withdrawing from international product or capital markets. “Congress can ill afford to repeat the awesome errors of its predecessor in the early days of the Great Depression,” Beach said.
Instead, Beach said, Congress could best address the financial crisis by making the tax reductions of 2001 and 2003 permanent, stopping dependence on demand-side stimulus, lowering the corporate profits tax, and reducing or eliminating taxes on capital gains and dividends.
Testifying before the same committee in early October, Jerry Bramlett, president and CEO of BenefitStreet, Inc., an independent 401(k) plan administrator, said one of the best ways to ensure retirement security would be to have the U.S. Department of Labor develop educational materials for workers so they could make better investment decisions, not exchange equity investments in retirement accounts for Treasury bills, as proposed in the GSAs.
Now that Sen. Barack Obama has won the presidency, congressional Democrats will have stronger support for their “spreading the wealth” agenda. On Oct. 27, the American Thinker posted a video of an interview with Obama on public radio station WBEZ-FM from 2001.
In the interview, Obama said, “The Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society.” The Constitution says only what “the states can’t do to you. Says what the Federal government can’t do to you,” and Obama added that the Warren Court wasn’t that radical.
Although in 2001 Obama said he was not “optimistic about bringing major redistributive change through the courts,” as president, he would likely have the opportunity to appoint one or more Supreme Court justices.“
The real tragedy of the civil rights movement was, um, because the civil rights movement became so court focused that I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change,” Obama said.
By Karen McMahan
RALEIGH — Democrats in the U.S. House have been conducting hearings on proposals to confiscate workers’ personal retirement accounts — including 401(k)s and IRAs — and convert them to accounts managed by the Social Security Administration.
Triggered by the financial crisis the past two months, the hearings reportedly were meant to stem losses incurred by many workers and retirees whose 401(k) and IRA balances have been shrinking rapidly.
The testimony of Teresa Ghilarducci, professor of economic policy analysis at the New School for Social Research in New York, in hearings Oct. 7 drew the most attention and criticism. Testifying for the House Committee on Education and Labor, Ghilarducci proposed that the government eliminate tax breaks for 401(k) and similar retirement accounts, such as IRAs, and confiscate workers’ retirement plan accounts and convert them to universal Guaranteed Retirement Accounts (GRAs) managed by the Social Security Administration.
Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, in prepared remarks for the hearing on “The Impact of the Financial Crisis on Workers’ Retirement Security,” blamed Wall Street for the financial crisis and said his committee will “strengthen and protect Americans’ 401(k)s, pensions, and other retirement plans” and the “Democratic Congress will continue to conduct this much-needed oversight on behalf of the American people.”
Currently, 401(k) plans allow Americans to invest pretax money and their employers match up to a defined percentage, which not only increases workers’ retirement savings but also reduces their annual income tax. The balances are fully inheritable, subject to income tax, meaning workers pass on their wealth to their heirs, unlike Social Security.
Even when they leave an employer and go to one that doesn’t offer a 401(k) or pension, workers can transfer their balances to a qualified IRA.
Mandating Equality
Ghilarducci’s plan first appeared in a paper for the Economic Policy Institute: Agenda for Shared Prosperity on Nov. 20, 2007, in which she said GRAs will rescue the flawed American retirement income system
(www.sharedprosperity.org/bp204/bp204.PDF).
The current retirement system, Ghilarducci said, “exacerbates income and wealth inequalities” because tax breaks for voluntary retirement accounts are “skewed to the wealthy because it is easier for them to save, and because they receive bigger tax breaks when they do.”
Lauding GRAs as a way to effectively increase retirement savings, Ghilarducci wrote that savings incentives are unequal for rich and poor families because tax deferrals “provide a much larger ‘carrot’ to wealthy families than to middle-class families — and none whatsoever for families too poor to owe taxes.”
GRAs would guarantee a fixed 3 percent annual rate of return, although later in her article Ghilarducci explained that participants would not “earn a 3% real return in perpetuity.”
In place of tax breaks workers now receive for contributions and thus a lower tax rate, workers would receive $600 annually from the government, inflation-adjusted.
For low-income workers whose annual contributions are less than $600, the government would deposit whatever amount it would take to equal the minimum $600 for all participants.
In a radio interview with Kirby Wilbur in Seattle on Oct. 27, 2008, Ghilarducci explained that her proposal doesn’t eliminate the tax breaks, rather, “I’m just rearranging the tax breaks that are available now for 401(k)s and spreading — spreading the wealth.”
All workers would have 5 percent of their annual pay deducted from their paychecks and deposited to the GRA. They would still be paying Social Security and Medicare taxes, as would the employers.
The GRA contribution would be shared equally by the worker and the employee. Employers no longer would be able to write off their contributions. Any capital gains would be taxable year-on-year.
Analysts point to another disturbing part of the plan. With a GRA, workers could bequeath only half of their account balances to their heirs, unlike full balances from existing 401(k) and IRA accounts.
For workers who die after retiring, they could bequeath just their own contributions plus the interest but minus any benefits received and minus the employer contributions.
Another justification for Ghilarducci’s plan is to eliminate investment risk. In her testimony, Ghilarducci said, “humans often lack the foresight, discipline, and investing skills required to sustain a savings plan.”
She cited the 2004 HSBC global survey on the Future of Retirement, in which she claimed that “a third of Americans wanted the government to force them to save more for retirement.”What the survey actually reported was that 33 percent of Americans wanted the government to “enforce additional private savings,” a vastly different meaning than mandatory government-run savings.
Of the four potential sources of retirement support, which were government, employer, family, and self, the majority of Americans said “self” was the most important contributor, followed by “government.” When broken out by family income, low-income U.S. households said the “government” was the most important retirement support, whereas high-income families ranked “government” last and “self” first (www.hsbc.com/retirement).
On Oct. 22, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Argentinean government had seized all private pension and retirement accounts to fund government programs and to address a ballooning deficit.
Fearing an economic collapse, foreign investors quickly pulled out, forcing the Argentinean stock market to shut down several times. More than 10 years ago, nationalization of private savings sent Argentina’s economy into a long-term downward spiral.
Income and Wealth RedistributionThe majority of witness testimony during recent hearings before the House Committee on Education and Labor showed that congressional Democrats intend to address income and wealth inequality through redistribution.
On July 31, 2008, Robert Greenstein, executive director of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, testified before the subcommittee on workforce protections that “from the standpoint of equal treatment of people with different incomes, there is a fundamental flaw” in tax code incentives because they are “provided in the form of deductions, exemptions, and exclusions rather than in the form of refundable tax credits.”
Even people who don’t pay taxes should get money from the government, paid for by higher-income Americans, he said. “There is no obvious reason why lower-income taxpayers or people who do not file income taxes should get smaller incentives (or no tax incentives at all),”
Greenstein said.“Moving to refundable tax credits for promoting socially worthwhile activities would be an important step toward enhancing progressivity in the tax code in a way that would improve economic efficiency and performance at the same time,” Greenstein said, and “reducing barriers to labor organizing, preserving the real value of the minimum wage, and the other workforce security concerns . . . would contribute to an economy with less glaring and sharply widening inequality.”
When asked whether committee members seriously were considering Ghilarducci’s proposal for GSAs, Aaron Albright, press secretary for the Committee on Education and Labor, said Miller and other members were listening to all ideas.Miller’s biggest priority has been on legislation aimed at greater transparency in 401(k)s and other retirement plan administration, specifically regarding fees, Albright said, and he sent a link to a Fox News interview of Miller on Oct. 24, 2008, to show that the congressman had not made a decision.
After repeated questions asked by Neil Cavuto of Fox News, Miller said he would not be in favor of “killing the 401(k)” or of “killing the tax advantages for 401(k)s.”Arguing against liberal prescriptions, William Beach, director of the Center for Data Analysis at the Heritage Foundation, testified on Oct. 24 that the “roots of the current crisis are firmly planted in public policy mistakes” by the Federal Reserve and Congress.
He cautioned Congress against raising taxes, increasing burdensome regulations, or withdrawing from international product or capital markets. “Congress can ill afford to repeat the awesome errors of its predecessor in the early days of the Great Depression,” Beach said.
Instead, Beach said, Congress could best address the financial crisis by making the tax reductions of 2001 and 2003 permanent, stopping dependence on demand-side stimulus, lowering the corporate profits tax, and reducing or eliminating taxes on capital gains and dividends.
Testifying before the same committee in early October, Jerry Bramlett, president and CEO of BenefitStreet, Inc., an independent 401(k) plan administrator, said one of the best ways to ensure retirement security would be to have the U.S. Department of Labor develop educational materials for workers so they could make better investment decisions, not exchange equity investments in retirement accounts for Treasury bills, as proposed in the GSAs.
Now that Sen. Barack Obama has won the presidency, congressional Democrats will have stronger support for their “spreading the wealth” agenda. On Oct. 27, the American Thinker posted a video of an interview with Obama on public radio station WBEZ-FM from 2001.
In the interview, Obama said, “The Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society.” The Constitution says only what “the states can’t do to you. Says what the Federal government can’t do to you,” and Obama added that the Warren Court wasn’t that radical.
Although in 2001 Obama said he was not “optimistic about bringing major redistributive change through the courts,” as president, he would likely have the opportunity to appoint one or more Supreme Court justices.“
The real tragedy of the civil rights movement was, um, because the civil rights movement became so court focused that I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change,” Obama said.
NEW RECRUITS FOR TERROR
Prisoner Radicalization: Assessing the Threat in U.S. Correctional Institutions
by Mark S. Hamm, Ph.D.
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/journals/261/prisoner-radicalization.htm
Years from now when criminologists write their textbooks on American terrorism, the name Kevin Lamar James may appear alongside such infamous figures as Timothy McVeigh, Ramzi Yousef and Osama bin Laden.
Kevin James is scheduled to be sentenced in February 2009 for conspiring to wage war against the United States. James pleaded guilty to the charge after he and three other men were indicted in 2005 for plotting to attack U.S. military facilities, Israeli government facilities and Jewish synagogues in Los Angeles.
At the time of the indictments, the FBI described the plot as the most operationally advanced since Sept. 11. Even more troubling is that James designed the plot while serving time in a California state prison.
Prisoners — especially those in gangs — have long recruited other inmates to act as their collaborators upon release. James, however, was the first gang member to radicalize inmates into joining a prison gang with a terrorist agenda.
A recent study funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and conducted by this author took a closer look at the Kevin James case as part of a larger study on radicalization in prison.
My study examined trends in prisoner radicalization — or the process by which prisoners adopt extreme views, including beliefs that violent measures must be taken for political or religious purposes — in U.S. correctional institutions.
=======
by Mark S. Hamm, Ph.D.
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/journals/261/prisoner-radicalization.htm
Years from now when criminologists write their textbooks on American terrorism, the name Kevin Lamar James may appear alongside such infamous figures as Timothy McVeigh, Ramzi Yousef and Osama bin Laden.
Kevin James is scheduled to be sentenced in February 2009 for conspiring to wage war against the United States. James pleaded guilty to the charge after he and three other men were indicted in 2005 for plotting to attack U.S. military facilities, Israeli government facilities and Jewish synagogues in Los Angeles.
At the time of the indictments, the FBI described the plot as the most operationally advanced since Sept. 11. Even more troubling is that James designed the plot while serving time in a California state prison.
Prisoners — especially those in gangs — have long recruited other inmates to act as their collaborators upon release. James, however, was the first gang member to radicalize inmates into joining a prison gang with a terrorist agenda.
A recent study funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and conducted by this author took a closer look at the Kevin James case as part of a larger study on radicalization in prison.
My study examined trends in prisoner radicalization — or the process by which prisoners adopt extreme views, including beliefs that violent measures must be taken for political or religious purposes — in U.S. correctional institutions.
=======
Sunday, November 02, 2008
DETAILS OF THE OBAMA "AGITATOR" YOUTH CAMPS
By Joseph Farah
The pieces are coming together.
We're getting a more complete picture of Barack Obama's Draconian plans to create a domestic army of radical extremists promoting bigger and more intrusive government.
The plan is to create a boot camp for community agitators – paid for by you, the U.S. Taxpayer.
Investor's Business Daily deserves credit for putting together the elaborate jigsaw puzzle.
I merely saw the smoke. IBD discovered the fire. But for reference, you will want to read about what I found previously regarding Obama's calls for a "civilian national security force."
It seems Obama was a founding member of a group called Public Allies in 1992.
In 1993, he resigned before his wife, Michelle, took over as executive director of the Chicago chapter.
This little-known, but well-funded, band of taxpayer-supported social misfits will, according to IBD, serve as the centerpiece of his "Universal Voluntary Public Service" program.
"Universal voluntary?" Isn't that an oxymoron?
Yes, but just consider the moron who is advocating it.
"Big Brother had nothing on the Obamas," write the editorialists for IBD. "They plan to herd American youth into government-funded re-education camps where they'll be brainwashed into thinking America is a racist, oppressive place in need of 'social change.
'"The "Obama Youth" will get a monthly stipend of $1,800, plus paid health and child care, plus a $4,725 grant after their "service" for future education or school loan payoffs.
But this isn't just a make-work program.
IBD says the "real mission is to radicalize American youth and use them to bring about 'social change' through threats, pressure, tension and confrontation – the tactics used by the father of community organizing, Saul 'The Red' Alinsky.
"The group boasts that graduates of the program are more than twice as likely as other young people to "engage in protest activities." Isn't that wonderful?
That's the real purpose – using your tax dollars to foment extremist political clashes, furthering the reach of Big Government into the lives of all of us.
The government already pays about half the bill for Public Allies through Bill Clinton's AmeriCorps program.
Obama seeks to fund it at levels equal to the U.S. Defense Department – close to $500 billion annually.
This is what he meant when he said: "We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded" as the military."
IBD concludes: "The gall of it: The Obamas want to create a boot camp for radicals who hate the military – and stick American taxpayers with the bill."What else is there to say?
Such a program would fundamentally change the character of America – possibly forever.Someone should ask Obama, who claims to be a legal scholar, where he finds such a program authorized among the enumerated powers of the Constitution.
Now that would be an entertaining question and answer for some intrepid member of the press.
Personally, I won't hold my breath waiting for anyone with access to be so bold.
Remember what programs like this are about. They are about empowering government to take more control over your life. They are about limiting your freedom. They are about picking your pocket. They are about changing the way you think by coercion. They are about making you uncomfortable being an American. They are about total power – and never letting go.
We've seen programs like this before – in Hitler's Germany, Mussolini's Italy, Stalin's Soviet Union and Mao's China.
Never again.
The pieces are coming together.
We're getting a more complete picture of Barack Obama's Draconian plans to create a domestic army of radical extremists promoting bigger and more intrusive government.
The plan is to create a boot camp for community agitators – paid for by you, the U.S. Taxpayer.
Investor's Business Daily deserves credit for putting together the elaborate jigsaw puzzle.
I merely saw the smoke. IBD discovered the fire. But for reference, you will want to read about what I found previously regarding Obama's calls for a "civilian national security force."
It seems Obama was a founding member of a group called Public Allies in 1992.
In 1993, he resigned before his wife, Michelle, took over as executive director of the Chicago chapter.
This little-known, but well-funded, band of taxpayer-supported social misfits will, according to IBD, serve as the centerpiece of his "Universal Voluntary Public Service" program.
"Universal voluntary?" Isn't that an oxymoron?
Yes, but just consider the moron who is advocating it.
"Big Brother had nothing on the Obamas," write the editorialists for IBD. "They plan to herd American youth into government-funded re-education camps where they'll be brainwashed into thinking America is a racist, oppressive place in need of 'social change.
'"The "Obama Youth" will get a monthly stipend of $1,800, plus paid health and child care, plus a $4,725 grant after their "service" for future education or school loan payoffs.
But this isn't just a make-work program.
IBD says the "real mission is to radicalize American youth and use them to bring about 'social change' through threats, pressure, tension and confrontation – the tactics used by the father of community organizing, Saul 'The Red' Alinsky.
"The group boasts that graduates of the program are more than twice as likely as other young people to "engage in protest activities." Isn't that wonderful?
That's the real purpose – using your tax dollars to foment extremist political clashes, furthering the reach of Big Government into the lives of all of us.
The government already pays about half the bill for Public Allies through Bill Clinton's AmeriCorps program.
Obama seeks to fund it at levels equal to the U.S. Defense Department – close to $500 billion annually.
This is what he meant when he said: "We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded" as the military."
IBD concludes: "The gall of it: The Obamas want to create a boot camp for radicals who hate the military – and stick American taxpayers with the bill."What else is there to say?
Such a program would fundamentally change the character of America – possibly forever.Someone should ask Obama, who claims to be a legal scholar, where he finds such a program authorized among the enumerated powers of the Constitution.
Now that would be an entertaining question and answer for some intrepid member of the press.
Personally, I won't hold my breath waiting for anyone with access to be so bold.
Remember what programs like this are about. They are about empowering government to take more control over your life. They are about limiting your freedom. They are about picking your pocket. They are about changing the way you think by coercion. They are about making you uncomfortable being an American. They are about total power – and never letting go.
We've seen programs like this before – in Hitler's Germany, Mussolini's Italy, Stalin's Soviet Union and Mao's China.
Never again.
Saturday, November 01, 2008
MORE ON FRIENDLY, GENTLE ISLAM
A girl stoned to death in Somalia this week was 13 years old, not 23, contrary to earlier news reports. She had been accused of adultery in breach of Islamic law.
Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was killed on Monday 27 October, by a group of 50 men in a stadium in the southern port of Kismayu, in front of around 1,000 spectators. Somali journalists who had reported she was 23 have told Amnesty International that they judged her age by her physical appearance.
Inside the stadium, militia members opened fire when some of the witnesses to the killing attempted to save her life, and shot dead a boy who was a bystander. An al-Shabab spokeperson was later reported to have apologized for the death of the child, and said the militia member would be punished.
At one point during the stoning, Amnesty International has been told by numerous eyewitnesses that nurses were instructed to check whether Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was still alive when buried in the ground. They removed her from the ground, declared that she was, and she was replaced in the hole where she had been buried for the stoning to continue.
Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was accused of adultery, but sources told Amnesty International that she had in fact been raped by three men, and had attempted to report this rape to the al-Shabab militia who control Kismayo.
It was this act that resulted in her being accused of adultery and detained.
None of men she accused of rape were arrested.
She was detained by militia of the Kismayo authorities, a coalition of Al-shabab and clan militias. During this time, she was reportedly extremely distressed, with some individuals stating she had become mentally unstable.
Amnesty International has campaigned to end the use of the punishment of stoning, calling it gruesome and horrific.
This killing of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow demonstrates the cruelty and the inherent discrimination against women of this punishment.
========
Alan note: More NewsViews and Terror News going up on Sunday
Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was killed on Monday 27 October, by a group of 50 men in a stadium in the southern port of Kismayu, in front of around 1,000 spectators. Somali journalists who had reported she was 23 have told Amnesty International that they judged her age by her physical appearance.
Inside the stadium, militia members opened fire when some of the witnesses to the killing attempted to save her life, and shot dead a boy who was a bystander. An al-Shabab spokeperson was later reported to have apologized for the death of the child, and said the militia member would be punished.
At one point during the stoning, Amnesty International has been told by numerous eyewitnesses that nurses were instructed to check whether Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was still alive when buried in the ground. They removed her from the ground, declared that she was, and she was replaced in the hole where she had been buried for the stoning to continue.
Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was accused of adultery, but sources told Amnesty International that she had in fact been raped by three men, and had attempted to report this rape to the al-Shabab militia who control Kismayo.
It was this act that resulted in her being accused of adultery and detained.
None of men she accused of rape were arrested.
She was detained by militia of the Kismayo authorities, a coalition of Al-shabab and clan militias. During this time, she was reportedly extremely distressed, with some individuals stating she had become mentally unstable.
Amnesty International has campaigned to end the use of the punishment of stoning, calling it gruesome and horrific.
This killing of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow demonstrates the cruelty and the inherent discrimination against women of this punishment.
========
Alan note: More NewsViews and Terror News going up on Sunday
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