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Thursday, June 30, 2011

Ethanol stupidity reported on by flaming liberal in the NY Times…WOW

There must be something here that we’re not aware of. The ethanol folly is typical of liberal policies, it’s akin to the whole global warming fraud. Why is Rattner and the NY Times printing the truth here?

Steven Rattner: The Great Corn Con

Sunday, 26 June 2011 08:19 Steven Rattner, The New York Times

FEELING the need for an example of government policy run amok? Look no further than the box of cornflakes on your kitchen shelf. In its myriad corn-related interventions, Washington has managed simultaneously to help drive up food prices and add tens of billions of dollars to the deficit, while arguably increasing energy use and harming the environment.

Even in a crowd of rising food and commodity costs, corn stands out, its price having doubled in less than a year to a record $7.87 per bushel in early June. Booming global demand has overtaken stagnant supply.

But rather than ameliorate the problem, the government has exacerbated it, reducing food supply to a hungry world. Thanks to Washington, 4 of every 10 ears of corn grown in America — the source of 40 percent of the world’s production — are shunted into ethanol, a gasoline substitute that imperceptibly nicks our energy problem. Larded onto that are $11 billion a year of government subsidies to the corn complex.

Corn is hardly some minor agricultural product for breakfast cereal. It’s America’s largest crop, dwarfing wheat and soybeans. A small portion of production goes for human consumption; about 40 percent feeds cows, pigs, turkeys and chickens. Diverting 40 percent to ethanol has disagreeable consequences for food. In just a year, the price of bacon has soared by 24 percent.

To some, the contours of the ethanol story may be familiar. Almost since Iowa — our biggest corn-producing state — grabbed the lead position in the presidential sweepstakes four decades ago, support for the biofuel has been nearly a prerequisite for politicians seeking the presidency.

Those hopefuls have seen no need for a foolish consistency. John McCain and John Kerry were against ethanol subsidies, then as candidates were for them. Having lost the presidency, Mr.. McCain is now against them again. Al Gore was for ethanol before he was against it. This time, one hopeful is experimenting with counter-programming: as governor of corn-producing Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty pushed for subsidies before he embraced a “straight talk” strategy.

Eating up just a tenth of the corn crop as recently as 2004, ethanol was turbocharged by legislation in 2005 and 2007 that set specific requirements for its use in gasoline, mandating steep rises from year to year. Yet another government bureaucracy was born to enforce the quotas.

To ease the pain, Congress threw in a 45-cents-a-gallon subsidy ($6 billion a year); to add another layer of protection, it imposed a tariff on imported ethanol of 54 cents a gallon. That successfully shut off cheap imports, produced more efficiently from sugar cane, principally from Brazil.

Here is perhaps the most incredible part: Because of the subsidy, ethanol became cheaper than gasoline, and so we sent 397 million gallons of ethanol overseas last year. America is simultaneously importing costly foreign oil and subsidizing the export of its equivalent.

That’s not all. Ethanol packs less punch than gasoline and uses considerable energy in its production process. All told, each gallon of gasoline that is displaced costs the Treasury $1.78 in subsidies and lost tax revenue.

Nor does ethanol live up to its environmental promises. The Congressional Budget Office found that reducing carbon dioxide emissions by using ethanol costs at least $750 per ton of carbon dioxide, wildly more than other methods. What is more, making corn ethanol consumes vast quantities of water and increases smog.

Then there’s energy efficiency. Studies reach widely varying conclusions on that issue. While some show a small saving in fossil fuels, others calculate that ethanol consumes more energy than it produces.

Corn growers and other farmers have long exercised outsize influence, thanks in part to the Senate’s structural tilt toward rural states. The ethanol giveaway represents a 21st-century add-on to a dizzying patchwork of programs for farmers. Under one, corn growers receive “direct payments” — $1.75 billion in 2010 — whether they grow corn or not. Washington also subsidizes crop insurance, at a cost of another $1.75 billion last year. That may have made sense when low corn prices made farming a marginal business, but no longer.

At long last, the enormity of the nation’s budget deficit has added momentum to the forces of reason. While only a symbolic move, the Senate recently voted 73 to 27 to end ethanol subsidies. That alone helped push corn prices down to $7 per bushel. Incredibly, the White House criticized the action — could key farm states have been on the minds of the president’s advisers?

Even farm advocates like former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman agree that the situation must be fixed. Reports filtering out of the budget talks currently under way suggest that agriculture subsidies sit prominently on the chopping block. The time is ripe.

In rare moment of truth, Time’s Halperin calls president a ‘dick’ on live TV

Note the difference in reaction to inappropriate comments about conservative/Republicans politicians. They all would have chuckled if this had been about Bush or Palin. In this case it’s almost like terror set in…

Mark Halperin apologizes for Obama gaffe

By TIM MAK | 6/30/11 7:07 AM EDT Updated: 6/30/11 9:02 AM EDT

Mark Halperin, editor-at-large for Time, called President Obama “a dick” on Thursday on a popular MSNBC morning show and then quickly apologized.

“I thought he was a dick yesterday,” Halperin, who also is a senior political analyst for MSNBC, said on Morning Joe, referring to the President’s conduct during his press conference.

POLITICO 44

Host Joe Scarborough hoped to prevent the comment from being broadcast, saying, “Delay that. Delay that. What are you doing? I can’t believe… don’t do that. Did we delay that?”

Just minutes later, Halperin quickly apologized to the president and viewers for his choice of words. “Joking aside, this is an absolute apology. I shouldn’t have said it. I apologize to the president and the viewers who heard me say that,” Halperin said.

“We’re going to have a meeting after the show,” Scarborough said.

According to Scarborough, there had been a mishap with the seven-second delay button – a new executive producer apparently didn’t know how it worked. “You are supposed to know how to do the job,” Scarborough said of his producer. “I would tell you what I think of him, but he doesn’t know what button to push.”

Later in the show, Halperin again apologized, saying, “I can’t explain why I did it. It’s inappropriate, disrespectful. I’ve already apologized, and I will again to the President. I’m sorry, I’m sorry to the viewers…It is disrespectful, what I said was disrespectful to the president and the office but it also lowers our discourse.”

He also tweeted to his followers, “I want to offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the President and the viewers of Morning Joe. My remark was not funny. I deeply regret it.”

Scarborough and Morning Joe Executive Producer Alex Korson said they were sorry for what happened.

“Certainly (host) Mika (Brzezinski) and I also apologize to viewers,” Scarborough said. “And we hear this all the time - parents come up and say, ‘Hey, by the way, we don’t just watch the show, our kids watch the show.’”

Obama opens contacts with Muslim Brotherhood…officially

U.S. recognizes Muslim Brotherhood

In Cairo, Egypt, a boy wears a headband reading 'Muslim Brotherhood' at an electoral rally. | AP Photo

A senior U.S. official says the rise in political prominence makes contact necessary. | AP Photo Close

By TIM MAK | 6/30/11 6:22 AM EDT

The U.S. has decided to formally resume contact with Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood group - which does not recognize Israel – in a move that could further alienate some Jewish voters already skeptical of President Barack Obama, it was reporter

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

After 3 years of Obama, Kerry thinks he would have been a good president...even Elmer Fudd could make that claim!

John Kerry: "I Would Have Been A Good President, Maybe Even A Great One"

Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) tells Don Imus this morning he thought ht would have been a "good President." In fact, he added, "a great President." Transcript below:

Please Mr. Policeman, don’t turn against us like our politicians have!

The American Police State is the 'New Normal'

Jared SpurbeckJared SpurbeckSat Jun 25, 5:24 pm ET

COMMENTARY | According to The New York Times, the FBI just raided a data center in Virginia and seized many of its servers, causing websites owned by "tens of clients" to go offline -- including those belonging to people who hadn't broken a law, and were not suspected of any crime.

It may seem silly to get upset about the police taking down websites you don't use. A certain quote may come to mind, though, as we look at other ways that the police in America abuse their power.

Tasering nonviolent people to death

A 72-year-old woman named Kathryn Winkfein got tasered not too long ago after she lost her temper at the cop who pulled her over. Her offense? Shouting at him.

Luckily, she "learned her lesson" about talking back to America's authority figures. She was also awarded $40,000 in damages, which her County Constable, Richard McCain, complained was a reward for "bad behavior." Apparently putting 50,000 volts through the heart of someone's great-grandma is not bad behavior, as long as you wear a police uniform.

Winkfein was lucky. In what Digby calls the "Taser Atrocity Of The Day," a man who took groceries without having paid for them was tasered continuously for 37 seconds, after he became "aggressive and was communicating loudly." He died in the hospital.

The police officer who killed him was suspended for five days.

Stealing your cellphone (and its data)

Recordings of government workers performing their duty are, by law, in the public domain. So if you think a police officer is going to do something untoward, try filming him so you have evidence. Right?

Not so fast. Prepare to have your cellphone taken from you and stomped on. The Miami Beach, Fla., police in particular have a history of doing this, and they aren't alone. But the people who have their phones stolen and vandalized by the police are lucky; a man named Michael Allison faces up to 75 years in prison for trying to record a judge, and was arrested without any warning.

Meanwhile, the Michigan State Police is taking people's cellphones when they pull them over for traffic violations, and using "extraction" devices on the phones. The ACLU is trying to find out why they're doing that, but the police department placed a price tag of over $500,000 on their Freedom of Information request. How much justice can you afford?

Arresting nonviolent activists

Want to feed homeless people free meals in the park? Prepare to be arrested. Or how about dancing in front of the Jefferson Memorial? Prepare to get tied up and beat up.

Our country's police has a long history of suppressing nonviolent activists, and it hasn't stopped with the Civil Rights Era. Environmental activists like Tim DeChristopher are served 10-year prison sentences for civil disobedience, that harms no one but impedes oil companies' profits. Meanwhile, the FBI labels nonviolent activists as "domestic terrorists."

They were recently granted more power to go through your trash and your data, so expect things to only get worse. Actually, expect things to get worse in general. The police state is the new normal.

Class Warfare: Obama, taking time from golfing, rips congress for vacations while making plans for Martha's Vineyard vacation...targets corporate jets, again

OBAMA LAUNCHES INTO CLASS WARFARE...

Obama rips Congress for taking vacations during crisis...

'Amused' when people say he should be involved in debt talks...

No surprise, fraudulent president holds unlawful events at the White House

This is the immoral, narcissist lawless usurper; forged birth certificate, fraudulent SSAN, drug use, homosexual escapades, willful destroyer of America…

 

President Hosted Unscheduled 'DNC Event' at WH, Visitor Logs Reveal

Chicago woman believes beach violence covered up to the save tourism and reputations of the city's new mayor and police superintendent.

City officials say incidents handled promptly

By Dick Johnson
|  Wednesday, Jun 29, 2011  |  Updated 7:03 AM CDT

View more videos at: http://nbcchicago.com.

A Chicago woman speaks out about what she saw at North Avenue Beach on the day it was shut down.

advertisement

A Chicago woman who played witness to a beach melee on Memorial Day weekend wants Chicago police and officials to come clean about what happened along the lakefront in May.

City officials said they closed North Avenue Beach on May 30 because of excessive heat, but Amy Schwartz says no one is talking about the excessive violence that prompted her to call 911 that day.

"There's a fight breaking out on the beach because there's nothing but animals covering this beach today," Schwartz phoned into the police. "What the hell is going on?"

Schwartz  said she was walking from Oak Street Beach toward North Avenue Beach on Memorial Day when she witnessed a woman being beaten by a gang of people on the beach.

"They were being rude and abusive and throwing trash around and defecating," Schwartz said. "The crowd became very animated. They were cheering on the beating and more people joined in, so I kept walking forward. I was afraid I could be next."

Schwartz believes the story of what really happened that day is being purposely downplayed in the name of saving Chicago's summer tourist business and the reputations of the city's new mayor and police superintendent.

Both Garry McCarthy and Rahm Emanuel have said the people suffering from heat exhaustion was the only reason for closing the beach. A city spokesman says the violence calls were handled promptly, and deny there's any attempt to spin the facts.

But they haven't convinced everyone.

"There were other calls that I heard on the tapes reporting the same incident I saw," Schwartz said. "I know we didn’t all have the same hallucination. Denial is not protecting anyone. I expect them to acknowledge the truth and do something about it."

Police presence has been boosted significantly at the beach since Memorial Day.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Exploratory Committee 2012 Election; Like, Share, and Recommend!

Exploratory Committee 2012 Election

Exploratory Committee 2012 Election

Like · Basic Information

This is an Exploratory Committee

Description

An Exploratory Committee is set up to determine if there are enough people who like a certain candidate before the candidate runs for office. This exploratory committee involves several candidates so it is a slate. It consists of a variety of people from all walks of life, having diverse backgrounds with a variety of educational and life experiences. We want to restore our republic. Please LIKE this group and recommend telling your friends and family to LIKE this group and so on and so on. We are the salt of this earth.
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An Exploratory Committee is set up to determine if there are enough people who like a certain candidate before the candidate runs for office. This exploratory committee involves several candidates so it is a slate. It consists of a variety of people from all walks of life, having diverse backgrounds with a variety of educational and life experiences. We want to restore our republic. Please LIKE this group and recommend telling your friends and family to LIKE this group and so on and so on.... (read more)

Mission

President
- Ted Hayes
Vice President
- Chelene Nightingale
Chief of Staff
- Shirley Moore
Department of Education
- Robert Harlam
Health and Human Services
- Christina Illsley
- Deborah McLean
- Wade Nelson
- Josie Perez
Media Operations
- B. J. Davis
- Gail Fry
Department of Justice
- Zena Crenshaw
Deputy to Department of Justice
- Andrew Jackson
Homeland Security
- Julia Davis
- Sheriff Mack
Whistle Blower Committee
- Sibel Edmonds
- Coleen Rowley
Secretary of State
- Bettina Viviano
Veterans Affairs
- Nathaniel Ali
- John Garfield
Housing
- Matilda Gray
- Carmen Powell
- Mark Young
Dept of Agriculture
- Anne Bellis
- Felicia Luna
White House Host Committee
- Betty Brown
- Donna Dymally
- Myrna Fernandez
- Deborah McClean
Clergy
- Patience Summers
- Robert Voight
Public Relations
- Gloria Helmen
- Katherine Moore
Latino Affairs
- David Hernandez
- Victor Diaz
FBI Chief
- Kwame Gyamfi
Assistant to the FBI
- Greg Fischer
- JJ Isreal
- Wade Nelson
- Glen Sacks
American Indian Affairs
- Bill Largent
Secretary of Commerce
- David Carlin
- Karin Huffer
- Justice Joe
Secretary of Labor
- Jill Soberman
- Kristi Rohlfing
National Security Advisor
- Lilly S. Collette
- Leonard Henderson
- Barbara Johnson
FCC Director
- Nesheba Esprite
- Brian Hill
- Scotty Reid
Secretary of Defense
- Brian Carpenter
Director over Transportation
- Deborah Barclay
- Kriss Cooley
- Virgil Woolfork
Department of Defense
- Kerry Bentivolio
Secretary of Interior
Federal Reserve
Department for Constitution Implementation
- Chuck Baldwin
2nd Amendment Constitutional Carry
- Larry Pratt
Surgeon General
- Dr. Joshua Smith

The ‘civil’ left hatefully confront Glenn Beck and his family in NY park

Tearful Glenn Beck Describes How He And His Family Were Attacked In New York Park

video

by Jon Bershad | 12:35 pm, June 28th, 2011

“These people were some of the most hateful people I have ever seen,” said a distraught Glenn Beck this morning as he described an altercation he and his family had last night while watching a screening of Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps in New York’s Bryant Park. Explaining that a group of people yelled at his family, took pictures of them, and kicked a cup of wine onto his wife, Beck said that his security team feels that, had he reacted poorly, things might have “gone off.”

“I swear to you I think, if I had suggested, and I almost did, “Wow, does anybody have a rope? Because there’s trees here. You could just lynch me.’ And I think there would have been a couple in the crowd that would have.”

Beck took particular exception with Gawker (he didn’t name the website although he clearly described this post) for posting pictures of his family.

Watch the segment via GlennBeck.com below:

 

Tax the rich: Repressive tax policies costs US billions

Tax the rich and they’ll find loopholes, tighten the loopholes and they’ll move offshore. Make the taxes sensible and they won’t have to. They’re just like normal people who move from NY to FL because of the taxes! Give them a break and they’ll give us a break!

Biggest Tax Avoiders Would Win On Tax Holiday, Most Gaming $1 Trillion U.S. Tax Break

Obama E. Newman





No ‘green jobs’ boom is the fault of a ‘vast right wing conspiracy’?

If at first you can't sell "green jobs," try, try again

By: Philip Klein | Senior editorial writer Follow Him @Philipaklein | 06/28/11 1:29 PM

Slate's Dave Weigel reports from the Aspen Ideas Festival, where the new head of the group Green for All is still trying to perpetuate the idea of "green jobs" as our economic savoir:

Its new president, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, spread the gospel to a room of captivated festival-goers. Midway through her talk, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson walked in the room and took a seat.

"Get to know her!" said Ellis-Lamkins. "She's the most fierce member of the cabinet. She's on Capitol Hill more often than some members of Congress."

In Ellis-Lamkins's telling, the case for green jobs was as obvious as ever. The stimulus had "created a million jobs in two years." States were buying in to these ideas; even Mississippi was buying in.

"You need folks who have a debate about whether global warming is real," she said, "but they won't deny that they need jobs in their state."

That, of course, is the PR strategy of the "green jobs" movement, to frame environmentalism as spurring economic progress as opposed to creating an obstacle to it. In reality, the $5 billion spent on the movement as part of the economic stimulus package hasn't produced much in the way of measurable results.

As the Politco reported earlier this month:

Nearly three years into Obama's presidency, the White House can't point to much solid evidence that significant numbers of Americans are scoring the green jobs the president has been touting.

Monthly Labor Department employment reports say nothing about the new clean energy workforce, while an effort to document how many Americans actually make a living in the "green collar" field may not be done by November 2012.

Ellis-Lamkins, meanwhile, thinks it's the vast right-wing conspiracy that's given green jobs a bad name:

"There's been an organized attack on green jobs," she said. "It's been from the Heritage Foundation, the Cato Institute, some anchors on Fox News, Americans for Prosperity. It's not like it's some secret conspiracy we can't talk about. Most of the groups that fund the work against us right now are funded by oil companies. There's not one study yet to date that hasn't been funded by oil companies."

Media hyperventilates over Bachman’s John Wayne birthplace trivial gaffe while ignoring Obama’s huge Medal of Honor awful mistake

Mainstream media covers up horrifying Obama mistake

By: Michael Barone | Senior Political Analyst Follow Him @MichaelBarone | 06/28/11 12:17 PM

No one in mainstream media seems inclined to mention Barack Obama’s horrifying mistake last Thursday when, speaking at Fort Drum,  he said that SFC Jared Monti was “the first person who I was able to award the Medal of Honor to who actually came back and wasn’t receiving it posthumously.” Alas, he was mistaken. He awarded the Medal of Honor to Jared Monti posthumously in 2009 and awarded the Medal of Honor in person to SSG Sal Giunta in person in 2011. Obama later apologized for this mistake, but it’s really dismaying that a president who spoke movingly and even eloquently in awarding the Medal of Honor made a mistake of this magnitude.

“It shouldn’t take a teleprompter for the C-in-C to get it right,” writes military blogger Black Five. It’s interesting that mainstream media journalists who are so eager to zing Michele Bachmann for getting John Wayne’s birthplace wrong, have not been interested in asking whether this was a mistake Obama made in ad libbing or whether the White House speechwriters and fact-checkers fell down on the job. You might think that their chief motive is to make Obama look good and to suppress facts that make him look bad.

Central bank reserve managers now see the dollar losing global reserve status

The global elites, through puppet Obama, have almost succeeded in destroying their major obstacle to a world government; the American economy

DOLLAR TO 'LOSE RESERVE STATUS'

By Jack Farchy in London

The US dollar will lose its status as the global reserve currency over the next 25 years, according to a survey of central bank reserve managers who collectively control more than $8,000bn.

More than half the managers, who were polled by UBS, predicted that the dollar would be replaced by a portfolio of currencies within the next 25 years.

That marks a departure from previous years, when the central bank reserve managers have said the dollar would retain its status as the sole reserve currency.

Rogue government: TARP, stimulus, bailouts, Obamacare all were opposed by the public, now Obama Issues an Executive Order to ram the DREAM Act down our throats and films campaign ad in White House…this is tyranny!

Not only are they unresponsive to the public’s will, they have no fear of consequences. We have a ruling class, not a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. What are our options?

Report: Obama Films Campaign Ad In White House, Violating FEC Laws...

Monday, June 27, 2011

Mayor declares state of emergency in suburb after five unrelated nonfatal shootings in three days, 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew for at least 10 days for adults and juveniles

This is a little story, or is it? A state of emergency is a suspension of constitutional rights. If this can be done under such flimsy circumstances…well you can see the implications.

I don’t trust this president. What’s to stop him from declaring a state of emergency, followed by martial law, come election time on equally clumsy circumstances. Circumstances which he himself initiates…

With State Of Emergency In Place, A Calm Night In Darby Borough

June 25, 2011 9:43 AM

Darby SOE

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Darby Borough, Delaware County is under a State of Emergency due to a recent uptick of gun violence.

Five shootings in three days led to the announcement Friday night.

Mayor Helen Thomas announced the state of emergency telling residents the gun violence had to stop.

“I Mayor Helen R Thomas declare a state of emergency.”

Officials say the shootings were not fatal and they seem unrelated, but something had to be done to curb the violence (see related story).

An 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew is in effect for adults and juveniles for at least 10 days.

Anyone outside during that time can be stopped and questioned by police, though Police Chief Bob Smythe says they’re more concerned about groups loitering or causing trouble.

“You’re in a group of more than three people and you are causing a disturbance. You’re going to be stopped and you’re going to be cited,” says Smythe.

A larger police presence is expected on the streets and Mayor Thomas says after the 10 days, officials will re-evaluate and go from there.

Broke Americans are obligated to pay $500,000+ for Michelle’s African vacation

When the government spends a dollar they get that dollar from you and me. They are not a business, they don’t earn their own money so they take ours. I can’t afford a vacation, why should I foot the bill for her vacation.

What our government has done is to make us all slaves. We don’t pick cotton, we pay taxes.

Mrs. Obama’s South Africa Trip Cost Taxpayers Over $500,000

by Keith Koffler on June 27, 2011, 1:01 pm

First Lady Michelle Obama’s trip to South Africa and Botswana last week cost taxpayers well over half a million dollars, possibly in the range of $700,000 or $800,000, according to an analysis by White House Dossier.

Many of the trip’s expenses cannot be obtained with specificity, including the cost of local transportation for the first lady, Secret Service protection, the care and feeding of staffers, and pre-trip advance work done by administration officials in South Africa.

But it is possible to estimate some of these costs and put a price tag on one of the major expenses – her transportation to and from southern Africa and her trips between cities there.

While the goals of her journey – “youth leadership, education, health and wellness” in southern Africa, according to the White House – are laudable, many may question whether such an expensive outreach overseas by the president’s wife is worthwhile given the threat of the ballooning federal debt to the economy.

This is particularly true given that the trip, while featuring many official events, also included tourist components such as visits to historical landmarks and museums, a nonworking chance to meet Nelson Mandela that Mrs. Obama described as “surreal,” and a safari. Mrs. Obama also brought along her mother, her daughters and two of their cousins – the children of her brother Craig Robinson.

In a conversation last week with a South African online newspaper, U.S. Embassy Spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau made clear that the trip was partially a personal pilgrimage for the first lady.

“She’s coming on this trip to talk about women’s development and youth development, and South Africa is a leader in that, not only on the continent but globally,” said Trudeau. “A visit to South Africa is important for them as a family. She’ll be visiting many Struggle-era landmarks, including the Apartheid Museum (and) the Hector Pieterson Memorial.”

Based on the plane’s tail number and a description of it in a press pool report, it’s clear Mrs. Obama flew over and back on a C-32, a specially configured military version of the Boeing 757 that also ferries the vice president on occasion and is sometimes known as “Air Force Two.”

According to publicly available Defense Department figures, DOD charges other federal agencies $12,723 an hour to cover expenses for the use of a C-32. Based on the distance traveled and the flight speed of the plane, this adds up to about $430,000 for use of the aircraft alone.

Perhaps the best estimate of the other costs involved in such a trip comes not from official sources but from a reporter, Dana Milbank of the Washington Post. In a 2002 article, he wrote that his reporting had found that a single presidential fundraising trip within the United States by then-President George W. Bush could cost close to $100,000 for items like staff, Secret Service and advance work.

While the first lady would certainly have a smaller retinue than a president, it seems very safe to say that a weeklong trip by Mrs. Obama to a high-crime country like South Africa would involve at least the expense of a single domestic trip by a president ten years ago, and probably much more.

In addition, a military cargo plane typically accompanies a first lady on overseas trips to bring cars and other gear. It is not clear if a cargo plane also went along on this trip, but if it did – as is likely – it could easily have added another $200,000 to the cost, based on Defense Department rates for cargo planes.

Mrs. Obama’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Does this 95 year old grandma look like a terrorist to you? Apparently she does to Napolitano’s TSA or it’s a tactic to have Americans submit to more and more government control

In order for the new world order to arise the peoples of the world must be induced to submit to it. The Patriot Act, FEMA, and DHS are a big part of this conditioning of the American people for increasing government intrusion and control!

TSA stands by officers after pat-down of elderly woman in Florida

By the CNN Wire Staff

June 27, 2011 6:18 a.m. EDT

Click to play

Adult diaper removed for TSA

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • A 95-year-old woman was held up by TSA officers at a Florida airport, her daughter says
  • The agents forced the cancer-stricken woman to take off her adult diaper, she adds
  • The TSA insists its officers "acted professionally and according to proper procedure"
  • The woman's daughter says those procedures should be changed

(CNN) -- The Transportation Security Administration stood by its security officers Sunday after a Florida woman complained that her cancer-stricken, 95-year-old mother was patted down and forced to remove her adult diaper while going through security.

Reports of the incident took hold in social media, with scores of comments on the topic and reposts appearing hourly on Twitter Sunday afternoon.

The TSA released a statement Sunday defending its agents' actions at the Northwest Florida Regional Airport.

"While every person and item must be screened before entering the secure boarding area, TSA works with passengers to resolve security alarms in a respectful and sensitive manner," the federal agency said. "We have reviewed the circumstances involving this screening and determined that our officers acted professionally and according to proper procedure."

Jean Weber told CNN's Fredricka Whitfield on Sunday that the security officers may have been procedurally correct, but she still does not believe they were justified, especially given her mother's frail condition.

"If this is your procedure -- which I do understand -- I also feel that your procedure needs to be changed," she said.

Weber said the two were traveling June 18 from northwest Florida to Michigan, so her mother could move in with relatives before eventually going to an assisted living facility.

"My mother is very ill, she has a form of leukemia," Weber said. "She had a blood transfusion the week before, just to bolster up her strength for this travel."

While going through security, the 95-year-old was taken by a TSA officer into a glassed-in area, where a pat-down was performed, Weber said. An agent told Weber "they felt something suspicious on (her mother's) leg and they couldn't determine what it was" -- leading them to take her into a private, closed room.

Soon after, Weber said, a TSA agent came out and told her that her mother's Depend undergarment was "wet and it was firm, and they couldn't check it thoroughly." The mother and daughter left to find a bathroom, at the TSA officer's request, to take off the adult diaper.

Weber said she burst into tears during the ordeal, forcing her own pat-down and other measures in accordance with TSA protocol. But she said her mother, a nurse for 65 years, "was very calm" despite being bothered by the fact that she had to go through the airport without underwear.

Eventually, Weber said she asked for her mother to be whisked away to the boarding gate without her, because their plane was scheduled to leave in two minutes and Weber was still going through security.

By this weekend, the 95-year-old woman -- who was not identified by name -- was doing "fine" in Michigan, where her niece and her family "was treating her like royalty because they love her so much."

"My mother is a trouper," Weber said.

This is not the first time that the TSA's pat-downs of passengers have come under fire, nor the first time that the agency has rallied behind its officers and policy.

Last year, the administration announced it was ramping up the use of full-body scanning and pat-downs to stop nonmetallic threats, including explosives, from getting on planes. The goal is to head off attacks such as the one allegedly attempted in Christmas 2009 by Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, who allegedly had a bomb sewn into his underwear on a flight from the Netherlands to Michigan.

The TSA estimates that only 3% of passengers are subjected to pat-downs -- and then only after they have set off a metal detector or declined to step into a full-body scanner. Yet the new policy has triggered an uproar online and in airports, from a relatively small but vocal number of travelers who feel their rights and privacy were being violated.

But the federal safety agency hasn't backed down, making some adjustments but no major changes to its policy.

"Every traveler is a critical partner in TSA's efforts to keep our skies safe," Administrator John Pistole, who ordered the new approach, said last fall. "And I know and appreciate that the vast majority of Americans recognize and respect the important work we do."

More recently, outrage erupted over a video-recorded pat-down of a 6-year-old passenger last April at New Orleans' airport. The video, which was posted on YouTube, shows the girl protesting the search by a female security officer at first, though she complies quietly while it is underway.

Pistole addressed this controversy at a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee meeting last week, explaining the pat-down was ordered because the child had moved while passing through a body imaging machine. He told committee members that "we have changed the policy (so) that there'll be repeated efforts made to resolve that without a pat-down."

The next day, TSA spokesman Greg Soule said that the new policy -- which will apply to children age 12 and younger -- is in the process of being rolled out. It will give security officers "more options," but does not eliminate pat-downs as one of them.

"This decision will ultimately reduce -- though not eliminate -- pat-downs," Soule said.

Dadgummit, this is wrong: TSA orders woman, 95, to remove adult diaper during 45-minute search

How in @#$% do freedom loving Americans put up with this $%#@? If we allow this kind of stuff to continue we are not freedom loving!!!

Elderly woman asked to remove adult diaper during TSA search

June 25, 2011 12:41:00 PM

LAUREN SAGE REINLIE / Florida Freedom Newspapers

A woman has filed a complaint with federal authorities over how her elderly mother was treated at Northwest Florida Regional Airport last weekend.

Jean Weber of Destin filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security after her 95-year-old mother was detained and extensively searched last Saturday while trying to board a plane to fly to Michigan to be with family members during the final stages of her battle with leukemia.

Her mother, who was in a wheelchair, was asked to remove an adult diaper in order to complete a pat-down search.

“It’s something I couldn’t imagine happening on American soil,” Weber said Friday. “Here is my mother, 95 years old, 105 pounds, barely able to stand, and then this.”

Sari Koshetz, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration in Miami, said she could not comment on specific cases to protect the privacy of those involved.

“The TSA works with passengers to resolve any security alarms in a respectful and sensitive manner,” she said.

Weber’s mother entered the airport’s security checkpoint in a wheelchair because she was not stable enough to walk through, Weber said.

Wheelchairs trigger certain protocols, including pat-downs and possible swabbing for explosives, Koshetz said.

“During any part of the process, if there is an alarm, then we have to resolve that alarm,” she said.

Weber said she did not know whether her mother had triggered an alarm during the 45 minutes they were detained.

She said her mother was first pulled aside into a glass-partitioned area and patted down. Then she was taken to another room to protect her privacy during a more extensive search, Weber said.

Weber said she sat outside the room during the search.

She said security personnel then came out and told her they would need for her mother to remove her Depends diaper because it was soiled and was impeding their search.

Weber wheeled her mother into a bathroom, removed her diaper and returned. Her mother did not have another clean diaper with her, Weber said.

Weber said she wished there were less invasive search methods for an elderly person who is unable to walk through security gates.

“I don’t understand why they have to put them through that kind of procedure,” she said.

Koshetz said the procedures are the same for everyone to ensure national security.

“TSA cannot exempt any group from screening because we know from intelligence that there are terrorists out there that would then exploit that vulnerability,” she said.

Weber filed a complaint through Northwest Florida Regional’s website. She said she received a response from a Homeland Security representative at the airport on Tuesday and spoke to that person on the phone Wednesday.

The representative told her that personnel had followed procedures during the search, Weber said.

“Then I thought, if you’re just following rules and regulations, then the rules and regulations need to be changed,” she said.

Weber said she plans to file additional complaints next week.

“I’m not one to make waves, but dadgummit, this is wrong. People need to know. Next time it could be you.”

Sunday, June 26, 2011

The same old liberal playbook…Obama: We Can't Just Cut Way to Prosperity

Well, spending sure as heck hasn’t worked!

Didn’t they say the same thing about dependence on foreign oil. We can’t drill our way out of this…If we had done so way back then we would be in a heck of a better shape than we are today!

Obama: We Can't Just Cut Way to Prosperity...

Black mobs in Peoria: Obama’s regime seems to have worsened race relations, not made them better.

War Zone? (Peoria Mob Yells 'Kill all the White People')
Peoria Pundit ^ | 6/26/11 | Peoria Chronicle and Paul Wilkinson, author

Posted on Sunday, June 26, 2011 1:17:53 PM by Nachum

This is a reprint from the Peoria Chronicle’s web site. It was posted by CJ, the sites owner and written by Paul Wilkinson. Paul is the President of the Altamont Park Neighborhood Association. I know Paul and he is the most straight forward person I’ve met. He has no need to embellish or to lie. That means this is true and it’s an outrage. I hope Mr. Jackson of the local NAACP reads this and responds. That will be interesting. This is nothing more than hate and race war against whites.

Here is the posted letter:

Tonight, around 11 p.m., a group of at least 60-70 African American youth marched down one of the side streets (W. Thrush) to the 4 lane main drag (Sheridan). They were yelling threats to white residents. Things such as we need to kill alll the white people around here. They were physically intimidating anyone calling for help from the police. They were surrounding cars. Cars on the main drag had to slam on their brakes to either avoid the youth blocking not only all four lanes, but a large section of the side street as well. fights were breaking out among them. They were rushing residents who looked out their doors, going on to porches, yelling threats to people calling the police for help.

Cars were doing U turns on the streets just to avoid the mob, mostly male. One youth stated his grandfather was white and several assaulted him on the spot. One police officer answered the call. The youth split into two large groups, one heading north, the other south. They were also yelling racial threats to the police officer but he was outnumbered. Another police car did not show up until after the youth finally dispersed and the patty wagon (van) also eventually showed up.

Residents are very shaken, both black and white alike. This is the fifth large mob action in about a month with smaller groups of 10-12 are out threatening children and adults a few evenings a week or later into the night. The times vary, even occuring during the day. In talking to the police officer, they are short staffed. Residents were advised to simply keep inside and to lock their doors. In other words buckle down, it’s not even safe to sit on your porch or go into your yards.

My take? These are the same youths that run our schools and these are the same that make our schools unsafe, can’t make state standards, and assault teachers and staff. Why? Because there are no repercussions for their actions. At District 150, many are slapped on the wrist or told they suffer econmic let down or whatever and must need help. Even the Chief of Police who tried to correct this type of mob action on the south side streets by issuing J-Walking tickets a few years back, slapped them by removing the tickets. Why? Because the NAACP bitched up a storm. These were poor mis-understood children.

Time has come for us to step up. Us, I mean law abiding citizens and no, I don’t mean grab the rifles and pitchforks. Two wrongs don’t make a right. No, I mean it’s time we citizens hold our elected leaders responsible and make, no, demand they take action and end this shit once and for all. I don’t care if they have to stuff 10 to a cell, but if they are doing this type of crap in our streets, then lock them up.

Aw, but our City Leaders are too damn busy balancing the budget, raising our taxes, making up new fees, paying developers for hotels so Peoria can join the cliché and have walkways to the Civic Center. They do this by laying off cops, fireman, and city street workers.

If we were smart, we would band together, rent a real nice bus from Peoria Charter coach, put some Rap videos on the tvs on the bus, pull up to Thrush and Sheridan and load these poor mis directed youth onto them and drive them deep into the 5th District and let them out near Picture Ridge. Watch how fast this is taken care of then.

Credit: To the Peoria Chronicle and Paul Wilkinson, author

Friday, June 24, 2011

Hezbollah has ties to the CIA; word on the street is that so does Al Qaeda

Hassan Nasrallah: Hezbollah men 'spied for CIA'

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah gestures as he delivers a message broadcast on 24 June, 2011 Hassan Nasrallah said the US embassy in Beirut was used as a spy recruitment centre for Israel

The head of Hezbollah has said two of the Lebanese Islamist group's members have confessed to working for the CIA.

Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said a third man was under investigation, accused of spying for the US intelligence agency.

The three men, who have been detained, had not compromised Hezbollah or its military capabilities, he said.

The US, which lists Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation, insisted there was no truth in Sheikh Nasrallah's claims.

Embassy 'spying centre'?

In a video message aired on Friday, Mr Nasrallah accused the US of working on Israel's behalf.

"The Israelis failed to penetrate the structure of Hezbollah so they have turned to the CIA for help," he said.

"The information that those CIA officers requested from the (members) does not interest the American administration, it is military details that interests Israel in any war.

"This confirms that the American embassy (in Beirut) is a centre for spying for Israel."

A US embassy spokesman said there was no substance to the accusations.

"These are the same kind of empty accusations that we have heard repeatedly from Hezbollah," the spokesman said.

Hezbollah has two ministers and many other allies in the recently formed Lebanese government.

Michelle let’s the cat out of the bag on CNN: "Fortunately We Have Help From The Media"

I’ll bet they start making her use a teleprompter!

Michelle Obama: "Fortunately We Have Help From The Media” (Video)

In an interview with CNN, First Lady Michelle Obama thanks the media for their "support" and "kindness."
CNN reporter: "How's the family ready for this [the election]? It's going to be quite vicious, isn't it? How do you prepare for that?"

First Lady Michelle Obama: "You know, it's … we're ready, you know. Our children, you know, could care less about what we're doing. We work hard to do that.

Fortunately we have help from the media. I have to say this: I'm very grateful for the support and kindness that we've gotten. People have respected their privacy and in that way, I think, you know, no matter what people may feel about my husband's policies or what have you, they care about children and that's been good to see."

Ike warned about the military-industrial complex, how about the intelligence contracting complex

A sinister cyber-surveillance scheme exposed

Hacked emails from security contractor HBGary Federal reveal a disturbing public-private partnership to spy on web users

A hacker's silhouette

In February 2011, the hackers' collective Anonymous released 70,000 emails from security contractor HBGary Federal, which revealed that CEO Aaron Barr had offered the firm's services to mount cyber-attacks against WikiLeaks and others on behalf of corporate clients. Photograph: Getty Images

When President Eisenhower left office in 1960, he provided the American people with a warning.

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist."

Sixty years later, the military-industrial complex has been joined by another unprecedented centre of what has increasingly proven to be "misplaced power": the dozens of secretive firms known collectively as the intelligence contracting industry.

Last February, three of these firms – HBGary Federal, Palantir and Berico, known collectively as Team Themis – were discovered to have conspired to hire out their information war capabilities to corporations which hoped to strike back at perceived enemies, including US activist groups, WikiLeaks and journalist Glenn Greenwald. That such a dangerous new dynamic was now in play was only revealed due to a raid by hackers associated with the Anonymous collective, resulting in the dissemination of more than 70,000 emails to and from executives at HBGary Federal and affiliated company HBGary.

After having spent several months studying those emails and otherwise investigating the industry depicted therein, I have revealed my summary of a classified US intelligence programme known as Romas/COIN, as well as its upcoming replacement, known as Odyssey. The programme appears to allow for the large-scale monitoring of social networks by way of such things as natural language processing, semantic analysis, latent semantic indexing and IT intrusion. At the same time, it also entails the dissemination of some unknown degree of information to a given population through a variety of means – without any hint that the actual source is US intelligence. Scattered discussions of Arab translation services may indicate that the programme targets the Middle East.

Despite the details I have provided in the document – which is also now in the possession of several major news outlets and which may be published in whole or in part by any party that cares to do so – there remains a great deal that is unclear about Romas/COIN and the capabilities it comprises. The information with which I've worked consists almost entirely of email correspondence between executives of several firms that together sought to win the contract to provide the programme's technical requirements, and because many of the discussions occurred in meetings and phone conversations, the information remaining deals largely with prospective partners, the utility of one capability over another, and other clues spread out over hundreds of email exchanges between a large number of participants.

The significance of this programme to the public is not limited to its potential for abuse by facets of the US intelligence community, which has long been proverbial for misusing other of its capabilities. Perhaps the most astonishing aspect is the fact that the partnership of contracting firms and other corporate entities that worked to obtain the contract was put into motion in large part by Aaron Barr, the disgraced former CEO of HBGary Federal who was at the centre of Team Themis's conspiracy to put high-end intelligence capabilities at the disposal of private institutions. As I explain further in the linked report, this fact alone should prompt increased investigation into the manner in which this industry operates and the threats it represents to democratic institutions.

Altogether, the existence and nature of Romas/COIN should confirm what many had already come to realise over the past few years, in particular: the US and other states have no intention of allowing populations to conduct their affairs without scrutiny. Such states ought not complain when they find themselves subjected to similar scrutiny – as will increasingly become the case over the next several years.

• Editor's note: The headline and photo caption in this article originally alluded to HBGary. HBGary Federal is the company in question, which is a distinct entity from HBGary Inc. The article has been amended to make that clarification at 9am (BST) on 23 June 2011

Was this speech at Jeremiah’s Wright’s church? Close, it was at Father Pfleger’s

McCarthy…recalling a crime scene investigation…"Sarah Palin"… Why wasn't she at the crime scene with me?"

Duh, maybe because she’s not a part of the Chicago PD!

McCarthy: NRA, Palin a part of 'government-sponsored racism'

garry-mccarthy-newark-aclu.jpg
Posted 6/24/11 7:36 a.m.

WLSAM.com's Adam Zielinski Reports
CHICAGO (WLS)
- Chicago's new top cop says the accessibility to firearms in America is an extension "of government-sponsored racism" that goes back to the days of slavery and Jim Crow.

Speaking to parishoners at St. Sabina Church earlier this month, Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy took to the microphone after Father Michael Pfleger spoke about gun control.

McCarthy said the topic of race is a sensitive issue "because everybody's afraid of race" but that he wasn't afraid to broach to subject.

"So here’s what I want to tell you. See, let’s see if we can make a connection here. Slavery. Segregation. Black codes. Jim Crow. What, what did they all have in common? Anybody getting’ scared? Government sponsored racism."

"Now I want you to connect one more dot on that chain of the African American history in this country, and tell me if I’m crazy. Federal gun laws that facilitate the flow of illegal firearms, into our urban centers across this country, that are killing our black and brown children," he said.

"The NRA does not like me, and I’m okay with that. We’ve got to get the gun debate back to center, and it’s got to come with the recognition of who’s paying the price for the gun manufacturers being rich and living in gated communities," McCarthy said.

McCarthy illustrated his point by recalling a crime scene investigation while he was a police official in Newark, New Jersey where five children were shot, two of whom were killed. McCarthy said when he got home, he turned on his television to unwind and found an episode of "Sarah Palin's Alaska" showing.

"She was caribou hunting and talking about the right to bear arms. Why wasn't she at the crime scene with me?"

Spooky Dude plots election theft through controlling election boards

How on earth did he funny man, Al Franken,  get into the senate? The head of the elections board got involved. Soros is out to control the states top elections officials.

Soros and liberal groups seeking top election posts in battleground states

Billionaire hedge-fund operator George Soros is among wealthy liberal activists who have contributed to the Secretary of State Project, a 527 organization that works to put progressive Democrats in office overseeing elections in battleground states. (Associated Press)Billionaire hedge-fund operator George Soros is among wealthy liberal activists who have contributed to the Secretary of State Project, a 527 organization that works to put progressive Democrats in office overseeing elections in battleground states. (Associated Press)

By Chuck Neubauer

The Washington Times

9:00 p.m., Thursday, June 23, 2011

A small tax-exempt political group with ties to wealthy liberals like billionaire financier George Soros has quietly helped elect 11 reform-minded progressive Democrats as secretaries of state to oversee the election process in battleground states and keep Republican “political operatives from deciding who can vote and how those votes are counted.”

Known as the Secretary of State Project (SOSP), the organization was formed by liberal activists in 2006 to put Democrats in charge of state election offices, where key decisions often are made in close races on which ballots are counted and which are not.

The group’s website said it wants to stop Republicans from “manipulating” election results.

“Any serious commitment to wresting control of the country from the Republican Party must include removing their political operatives from deciding who can vote and whose votes will count,” the group said on its website, accusing some Republican secretaries of state of making “partisan decisions.”

SOSP has sought donations by describing the contributions as a “modest political investment” to elect “clean candidates” to the secretary of state posts.

Named after Section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code, so-called 527 political groups — such as SOSP — have no upper limit on contributions and no restrictions on who may contribute in seeking to influence the selection, nomination, election, appointment or defeat of candidates to federal, state or local public office. They generally are not regulated by the Federal Election Commission (FEC), creating a soft-money loophole.

While FEC regulations limit individual donations to a maximum of $2,500 per candidate and $5,000 to a PAC, a number of 527 groups have poured tens of millions of unregulated dollars into various political efforts.

SOSP has backed 11 winning candidates in 18 races, including such key states as Ohio, Nevada, Iowa, New Mexico and Minnesota.

“Supporting secretary of state candidates with integrity is one of the most cost-efficient ways progressives can ensure they have a fair chance of winning elections,” SOSP said on its website, adding that “a relatively small influx of money — often as little as $30,000 to $50,000 — can change the outcome of a race.”

SOSP was formed in the wake of the ballot-counting confusion in Florida during the 2000 presidential election and a repeat of that chaos in Ohio in the 2004 presidential election. Democrats accused Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris and Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, both Republicans, of manipulating the elections in favor of GOP candidates — charges Mrs. Harris and Mr. Blackwell denied.

“Does anyone doubt that these two secretaries of state … made damaging partisan decisions about purging voter rolls, registration of new voters, voting machine security, the location of precincts, the allocation of voting machines, and dozens of other critical matters?” SOSP asked on its website.

SOSP said it raised more than $500,000 in 2006 to help elect five Democratic secretaries of states in seven races.

The Commission on Federal Election Reform, co-chaired by former President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, recommended in 2005 taking away the administration of elections from secretaries of state and giving it to nonpartisan election officers.

“Partisan officials should not be in charge of elections,” said Robert Pastor, co-director of the Center for Democracy and Election Management at American University. “Both Democrats and Republicans not only compete for power, they try to manipulate the rules to get an advantage.

“We want to make sure that those counting votes don’t have a dog in that game,” said Mr. Pastor, who served as executive director and a member of the commission.

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Gives $75K to House 'Super PAC'...

Google: The gay pride hide

Critics: Google hides Gay Pride feature

By John D. Sutter, CNN  June 24, 20

If you Google terms like "gay" or "homosexuality" this month, a rainbow pops up by the search bar.

If you Google terms like "gay" or "homosexuality" this month, a rainbow pops up by the search bar.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • Google creates Gay Pride feature, which critics say is hidden away
  • Users who search "lesbian," "gay" and other "pride-related" terms see a tiny rainbow
  • Some criticize the company for not doing a Gay Pride doodle on Google.com

(CNN) -- Google creates "doodles" for all kinds of random occasions.

The search engine changed -- or doodled -- the logo on its home page in celebration of the painter Paul Cezanne's 172nd birthday; Robert Louis Stevenson's 160th birthday; the first day of school in Poland; and Pac-Man's 30th anniversary. All of these, with the exception of Poland, which appeared only in that country, were automatically visible to everyone who visited Google.com.

But for Gay Pride Month -- which, in case you didn't notice the parade in the city center, is happening now -- the company took a much less visible approach.

It's one that's stirred up criticism from the gay community.

There's never been an actual Google Doodle in honor of Gay Pride. Instead, during June, a little rainbow pops up next to Google's search bar only when users search for certain "pride-related" terms, including, "gay," "lesbian," "homosexuality," "LGBT," "marriage equality," "bisexual" and "transgender."

"During the month of June, Google is celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Pride," the company said in an e-mail. "For some Pride-related search queries, we are showing a rainbow at the end of the search bar."

So why hide this feature beneath specific searches?

A company spokeswoman did not provide specifics.

"We enjoy celebrating holidays and special events at Google. As you may imagine, it's difficult for us to choose which events to celebrate on our site, and have a long list of those we'd like to celebrate in the future," a statement said.

Critics say Google is hiding the feature to avoid criticism from anti-gay groups, whose members may be less likely to search "pride-related" terms.

The hidden doodle "should keep the six-color rainbow, a symbol universally associated with gay pride ever since San Francisco artist Gilbert Baker created it 33 years ago, from appearing on the pages of those who are still opposed to gay rights. And keep Google from having to deal with any backlash," writes Nicholas Jackson on The Atlantic's tech site.

Jackson, who is gay, calls the fact that Google hasn't created a full-blown doodle in honor of Gay Pride "disappointing."

"Instead of boldly declaring its support of Gay and Lesbian Pride Month, Google added a tiny rainbow to the end of its search bar," he writes.

Instinct Magazine says Google "should be commended" for doing anything:

"Google has lead the tech industry in supporting our community, and the latest addition to its arsenal of inclusion is a welcome boost in the right direction."

The NY Times proudly admits it has employed an illegal alien who committed several felonies for years

The Reckless Folly of the "Undocumented Immigrant"

Michelle Malkin

by  Michelle Malkin

06/24/2011

With great fanfare and elite media sympathy, Jose Antonio Vargas publicly declared himself an "undocumented immigrant" this week. "Undocumented" my you-know-what. In the felony-friendly pages of The New York Crimes -- er, Times -- the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist turned illegal-alien activist spilled the beans on all the illegal IDs he amassed over the years. He had documents coming out of his ears.

The Times featured full-color photos of Vargas' fake document trove -- including a fake passport with a fake name, a fake green card and a Social Security card his grandfather doctored for him at a Kinko's. He committed perjury repeatedly on federal I-9 employment eligibility forms. In 2002, while pursuing his journalism career goals, an immigration lawyer told him he needed to accept the consequences of his law-breaking and return to his native Philippines.
Following the rules would have meant a 10-year bar to reentry into America. Making false claims of citizenship is a felony offense. Document fraud is a felony offense.

Vargas, who frames himself as a helpless victim, freely chose instead to secure yet more dummy documents. He used a friend's address to obtain an Oregon driver's license under false pretenses. It gave him an eight-year golden ticket to travel by car, board trains and airplanes, work at prestigious newspapers, and even gain access to the White House -- where crack Secret Service agents allowed him to attend a state dinner using his bogus Social Security number.

At least Vargas tells the truth when he says he's not alone. Go visit a 7-11 in the D.C. suburbs. Or the countless vendors in MacArthur Park in East L.A. Or any of the 19 cities in 11 states from Massachusetts to Ohio to Kentucky where a massive, Mexico-based "highly sophisticated and violent" fraudulent-document trafficking ring operated until February 2011. "Undocumented workers" and "undocumented immigrants" have plenty of documents.
The persistent use of these open-borders euphemisms to describe Vargas and countless millions like him is a perfect illumination of the agenda-driven, dominant progressive media.

They're as activist inside their newsrooms as Vargas is out in the open now. Bleeding-heart editors were hoaxed by a prominent colleague, exposed to liability, and yet still champion his serial subversion of the law. San Francisco Chronicle editor Phil Bronstein bragged that he was "duped" by Vargas, but endorses his "subterfuge" because Vargas' lobbying campaign for the illegal-alien student bailout known as the DREAM Act "just might lubricate the politically tarred-up wheels of government and help craft sane immigration policy."

Who's insane? The Vargas deceit is not an object lesson about America's failure to show compassion. It's another stark reminder of America's dangerous failure to learn from 9/11.

Time and again, security experts have warned about how jihadists have exploited lax immigration and ID enforcement. Driver's licenses are gateways into the American mainstream. They allow residents to establish an identity and gain a foothold into their communities. They help you open bank accounts, enter secure facilities, board planes, and do things like drive tractor-trailers carrying hazardous materials.

It's been nearly 10 years since several of the 19 9/11 hijackers operated in the country using hundreds of illicitly obtained fake driver's licenses and IDs. Most states tightened licensing rules, yet Vargas easily obtained a driver's license not only in Oregon, but more recently in Washington State. He again used a friend's residence to pass muster. Washington State's licensing bureaucracy still does not check citizenship. The man sitting in the White House campaigned to keep driver's license laws as loose as possible for the open-borders lobby. He appointed illegal-alien lobbyists to top federal immigration positions. His head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement just signed a memo pushing the DREAM Act through by administrative fiat. And the privacy of illegal aliens still trumps national security.
I ask again: Who's insane?

Vargas believes his sob story is an argument for giving up on immigration enforcement and passing a mass amnesty. It's a sob story, all right. Homeland security officials across the country should be weeping at the open mockery Vargas and his enablers have made of the law.

Schizophrenia: House votes not to continue war in Libya but votes ‘no’ to defunding it!

Who said you can’t have it both ways?

House votes 'no' on continuing Obama's war in Libya

  • Votes against de-funding
  • House votes against defunding Libyan war

    By DONNA CASSATA, Associated Press Donna Cassata, Associated Press 30 mins ago

    WASHINGTON – The House has turned back a Republican-led effort to cut off money for military hostilities in the Libyan war.

    The vote was 238-180. It came after the House had overwhelmingly rejected a largely symbolic measure to give President Barack Obama the authority to continue U.S. involvement in the military operation against Moammar Gadhafi's forces.

    The funding measure would have barred drone attacks and airstrikes but allowed the United States to continue actions in support of NATO.

    THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

    The House on Friday overwhelmingly rejected a measure giving President Barack Obama the authority to continue the U.S. military operation against Libya, a major repudiation of the commander in chief.

    The vote was 295-123, with Obama losing the support of 70 of his Democrats one day after Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made a last-minute plea for the mission.

    While the congressional action has no immediate effect on American involvement in the NATO-led mission, it was an embarrassment to a sitting president and certain to have reverberations in Tripoli and NATO capitals.

    The vote marked the first time since 1999 that either House has voted against a president's authority to carry out a military operation. The last time was to limit President Bill Clinton's authority to use ground forces in Kosovo.

    The House planned a second vote on legislation to cut off money for the military hostilities in the operation.

    House Republican leaders pushed for the vote, with rank-and-file members saying the president broke the law by failing to seek congressional approval for the 3-month-old war.

    Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said he supported the president's authority as commander in chief. "But when the president chooses to challenge the powers of the Congress, I as speaker of the House will defend the constitutional authority of the legislature," he said.

    Some Democrats accused the GOP of playing politics with national security. They said the vote would send the wrong message to Gadhafi.

    Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, said the vote would essentially "stop the mission in Libya and empower Moammar Gadhafi."

    Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, White House spokesman Jay Carney expressed disappointment.

    "We think now is not the time to send the kind of mixed message that it sends when we're working with our allies to achieve the goals that we believe that are widely shared in Congress: protecting civilians in Libya, enforcing a no-fly zone, enforcing an arms embargo and further putting pressure on Gadhafi," Carney said. "The writing's on the wall for Colonel Gadhafi and now is not the time to let up."

    Carney also dismissed the action as just one House vote.

    The defeated resolution mirrors a Senate measure sponsored by Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., and John McCain, R-Ariz., that Obama has indicated he would welcome. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will consider the resolution on Tuesday.

    The second vote to eliminate money for the Libya operation would make an exception for search and rescue efforts, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, aerial refueling and operational planning to continue the NATO effort in Libya. That measure has no chance in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

    House Republicans and Democrats are furious with Obama for failing to seek congressional authorization as required under the War Powers Resolution. The 1973 law, often ignored by Republican and Democratic presidents, says the commander in chief must seek congressional consent for military actions within 60 days. That deadline has long passed.

    Obama stirred congressional unrest last week when he told lawmakers he didn't need authorization because the operation was not full-blown hostilities. NATO commands the Libya operation, but the United States still plays a significant support role that includes aerial refueling of warplanes and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance work as well as drone attacks and bombings.

    A New York Times report that said Obama overruled some of his legal advisers further incensed members of Congress.

    In a last-ditch effort Thursday, Clinton met with rank-and-file Democrats to explain the mission and discuss the implications if the House votes to cut off funds. The administration requested the closed-door meeting.

    Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., said Clinton apologized for not coming to Congress earlier. But he said she warned about the implications of a House vote to cut off money.

    "The secretary expressed her deep concern that you're probably not on the right track when Gadhafi supports your efforts," Walz said.

    Rep. Howard Berman of California, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said such a vote "ensures the failure of the whole mission."

    Earlier this week Clinton said lawmakers were free to raise questions, but she asked, "Are you on Gadhafi's side, or are you on the side of the aspirations of the Libyan people and the international coalition that has been bringing them support?"

    In the Senate, backers of a resolution to authorize the operation wondered whether the administration had waited too long to address the concerns of House members.

    "It's way late," said McCain, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee. "This is one of the reasons why they're having this veritable uprising in the House, because of a lack of communication. And then the icing on the cake was probably for them when he (Obama) said that we're not engaged in hostilities. That obviously is foolishness."

    He added, however, "That is not a reason to pass a resolution that would encourage Moammar Gadhafi to stay in power."

    Earlier this month, the House voted 268-145 to rebuke Obama for failing to provide a "compelling rationale" for the Libyan mission and for launching U.S. military forces without congressional approval.

Duh, Gingrich Says Media Loyal to Obama

Is the media loyal to Obama, is the pope the Anti-Christ? Well, maybe the false prophet, but the media ‘is’ loyal to Obama!

Gingrich Says Media Loyal to Obama

Friday, 24 Jun 2011 12:40 PM

Newt Gingrich, speaking Wednesday at a Maryland Republican Party dinner in Baltimore, accused the media of being in bed with President Barack Obama as they focus solely on the 2012 presidential contender’s campaign challenges rather than his “substance,” reports The Daily Caller.
His audience cheered when Gingrich said the media are “trying to protect Barack Obama.”
The candidate confirmed he would still be in the race during the Iowa caucuses, and tackled the issue of recent defections from his campaign staff.
“This was always a misnomer,” he said. “Of all the people who were with me before the campaign started, only one left. The people who decided they didn’t like what we were doing were professional consultants who were outsiders who didn’t understand my style.”

Read more on Newsmax.com: Gingrich Says Media Loyal to Obama
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Did he forget that Bush is out of office: Dem rep: President an 'absolute monarch

I’m puzzled by Nadler taking this position, he’s almost as arrogant and obnoxious as Weiner and Schumer. Must be some kind of reverse psychology or something.

President 'becoming an absolute monarch' on war powers, Dem says

By Pete Kasperowicz - 06/24/11 09:56 AM ET

A House Democrat warned Friday that the U.S. president is becoming an "absolute monarch" on matters related to the authority to start a war.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said Congress must act to limit funding for military operations in Libya in order to correct that trend.

"We have been sliding for 70 years to a situation where Congress has nothing to do with the decision about whether to go to war or not, and the president is becoming an absolute monarch," Nadler said on the floor. "And we must put a stop to that right now, if we don't want to become an empire instead of a republic."

Nadler stressed that he is not talking exclusively about "this president," meaning President Obama. But he said nonetheless that Congress needs to reassert its authority to declare war, and said this should be done even over concerns that it would damage U.S. credibility with its NATO allies.

"I think that the nation's credibility, that is to say its promise to go to war as backed by the president, not by the Congress, ought to be damaged," he said.

"And if foreign countries learn that they cannot depend on American military intervention unless Congress is aboard for the ride, good," he added. "That's a good thing."

Members of the House early Friday morning were debating a rule allowing for consideration of H.J.Res. 68, which would authorize continued operations in Libya, and H.R. 2278, which would limit funding for those operations.

Members of Congress have been clashing with the White House over the Libya mission. Many Republicans and some Democrats argue that President Obama does not have the authority to continue involving the U.S. in the NATO-led mission without congressional authorization.

The White House argues the U.S. role in Libya does not constitute "hostilities" and is therefore not covered under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which requires the president to seek authorization from Congress 60 days after notifying lawmakers of a military action. 

H.R. 2278 is seen as tough and is expected to pass. However, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) stressed repeatedly that the exceptions in H.R. 2278 would essentially allow the U.S. military to continue the operations it is already involved in, and recommended a vote against both bills.

Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), the ranking member of the House Rules Committee, said in the debate that it is "shameful" the way House Republicans have rushed through both bills. She said much more debate was allowed decades earlier when Congress considered launching the Persian Gulf War, and even apologized to future generations for the rushed consideration regarding Libya.

"We avoid the robust debates that preceded us here today," she said. "Indeed, the way in which today's measures are being debated shames the dignity, history and tradition of this body.

"I really regret the shameful way this important debate has been rushed through Congress and I apologize to future generations who will look back on the work that we are doing today to try to understand the time," she added.

New Mexico man to fight judges order to take down anti-abortion billboard

Judge Tells Ex-Boyfriend to Remove Abortion Billboard

Published June 23, 2011

Abortion Billboard_DeMa.jpg

AP Photo/Alamogordo Daily News

FILE: A New Mexico man was ordered by a judge to take down a billboard that implies his ex-girlfriend had an abortion.

ALMOGORDO, N.M. –  A state district judge Thursday ordered an Alamogordo man to immediately take down a billboard that implies his ex-girlfriend had an abortion.

State District Judge James Counts issued the ruling as part of protective order the woman sought after Greg Fultz, 35, took out the sign on the city's main thoroughfare in mid-May.

The billboard shows Fultz holding the outline of an infant. The text reads, "This Would Have Been A Picture Of My 2-Month Old Baby If The Mother Had Decided To Not KILL Our Child!"

Fultz's ex-girlfriend has taken him to court for harassment and violation of privacy. A domestic court official had recommended the billboard be removed.

But Fultz's attorney said his client is adamant about protecting his free speech rights and will appeal.

"He said he is prepared to go to jail for this," attorney Todd Holmes said.

"His position is that this billboard is not really about her. It's about his statement of fathers' rights."

It was unclear if the woman had an abortion or a miscarriage.

Her attorney, Ellen Jessen, said earlier this month that she has not discussed the pregnancy with her client because that was not the point. The central issue is her client's privacy and the fact that the billboard has caused severe emotional distress, she said.

Jessen didn't immediately respond Thursday to a call and email seeking comment.

Community Organizer-in-Chief 'Misspeaks' About Soldier Killed

The least we can do for our honored dead is to remember them. Even a fool is counted among the wise when he uses a teleprompter!

Commander In Chief Misspeaks About Soldier Killed in Afghanistan

During his remarks to troops at Fort Drum today, the President was reminiscing about the times he has spent with the US Army's 10th Mountain Division, when he got something wrong.

"Throughout my service, first as a senator and then as a presidential candidate and then as a President, I’ve always run into you guys.  And for some reason it’s always in some rough spots.

  First time I saw 10th Mountain Division, you guys were in southern Iraq.  When I went back to visit Afghanistan, you guys were the first ones there.  I had the great honor of seeing some of you because a comrade of yours, Jared Monti, was the first person who I was able to award the Medal of Honor to who actually came back and wasn’t receiving it posthumously."

The problem is, Jared Monti was killed in action in Afghanistan, on June 21, 2006.  He was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously, September 17, 2009.  President Obama handed the framed medal to his parents, Paul and Janet Monti.  He and the First Lady comforted them in the Oval Office following the ceremony.

I contacted the White House to see what happened.  I'm told the President didn't have prepared remarks.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said, "“At Fort Drum, the President misspoke when discussing the first Medal of Honor he presented posthumously to Jared Monti, who was a member of the 10th Mountain Division.  The President paid tribute to Monti in his remarks to troops in Afghanistan in March 2010.  Last year, the President presented the Medal of Honor to Salvatore Giunta, who was the first living recipient of the Medal who served in Afghanistan.”

The gaffe comes one day after the President announced his plan to bring troops home from Afghanistan at a faster pace.  He deliberately spoke at Fort Drum because of the 10th Mountain Division's multiple deployments to Afghanistan.

Dazed and confused: Video - Obama flubs at 10th Mountain meet-and-greet [UPDATE]

June 23rd, 2011 | Outside the wire | Posted by Joe Gould

As President Obama addressed troops at a Fort Drum, N.Y. DFAC, he reminisced about how as a senator and as president, in Iraq and Afghanistan, “I’ve always run into you guys.  And for some reason it’s always in some rough spots.”

“I had the great honor of seeing some of you because a comrade of yours, Jared Monti, was the first person who I was able to award the Medal of Honor to who actually came back and wasn’t receiving it posthumously,” Obama said, according to the White House official transcript.

Except that Monti was receiving it posthumously. At a White House ceremony in 2009, Obama presented Sgt. 1st Class Monti’s parents with the medal for his heroic actions in Afghanistan. Monti, 30, was leading a scouting mission along the Pakistan border when a resupply helicopter blew the unit’s cover; Monti twice ran into gunfire to retrieve a wounded comrade before he was killed by an enemy grenade.

Obama appeared to have confused Monti with the only living Medal of Honor recipient, Sal Giunta. The president’s got plenty on his plate, to be sure. But if he’s sincere when he says that it’s his greatest honor to be the commander-in-chief, you’d think he’d be able to remember the lone recipient of the military’s highest honor.

The least we can do for our honored dead is to remember them.

UPDATE:

The Christian Broadcasting Network contacted the White House to see what happened and was told the President didn’t have prepared remarks. They quoted White House Press Secretary Jay Carney as saying, ”At Fort Drum, the President misspoke when discussing the first Medal of Honor he presented posthumously to Jared Monti, who was a member of the 10th Mountain Division.  The President paid tribute to Monti in his remarks to troops in Afghanistan in March 2010.  Last year, the President presented the Medal of Honor to Salvatore Giunta, who was the first living recipient of the Medal who served in Afghanistan