SHOWS A LACK OF CHARACTER.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Bush Wrongly Credits McCain For 'Working Hard' on GI BIll
as Bush acknowledged the House and Senate members who came together to support the bill, he slipped in the name of one who labored to obstruct the bill -- Senator John McCain. McCain was given the same credit as those who had steered the passage of the bill from day one even though McCain repeatedly spoke out against the bill.
read more | digg story
Lt. General Robert G. Gard Jr. (USA, Ret.): Defending Wes Cl
Gen. Clark has been taken out of context regarding his comments about Sen. McCain by the media and others since he made the comments Sunday. This is a great defense of Clark and why questioning the link between military service and executive experience is appropriate and relevant to this election. (hint: judgment matters and McCain is often wrong)
read more | digg story
border="0" alt="Stop the Iran War">Quote for the Day
The peace and welfare of this and coming generations of Americans will be secure only as we cling to the watchword of true patriotism: "Our country -- when right to be kept right; when wrong to be put right." - Carl Schurz
McCain Launches "Truth Squad" With Swift Boat Vet
McCain publicly deplored the Swift Boat ads back in 2004, saying they were reminiscent of the smear campaigns launched against him during his initial White House run in 2000.
read more | digg story
Amid policy disputes, Al Qaeda grows in Pakistan
Proof that we are more concerned with Iraq than fighting real terrorists.
read more | digg story
Sunday, June 29, 2008
The McCains save $360k from his tax plan; $6k under Obama's
The mainstream media hounded John Edwards about his wealth, and questioned the validity of his economic policies. Yet this week the Washington Post led with a story about how much everybody stands to save under McCain's tax policy while ignoring the fact that McCain and his ultra-wealthy spouse would save up to $400,000 PER YEAR under his proposal.
read more | digg story
Saturday, June 28, 2008
McCain Defaulted on Home Taxes for the Past Four Years
San Diego County officials, it turns out, have been sending out tax notices on the La Jolla property, an oceanfront condo, for four years without receiving a response. County records show the bills, which were mailed to a Phoenix address associated with Mrs. McCain's trust, were returned by the post office.
read more | digg story
Former Bush Deputy Assistant Says Dobson Out of Line
I am a conservative evangelical, and even I am offended by James Dobson's dishonest critique of Barack Obama's theology.
read more | digg story
Obama Will Make Visits to Middle East and Europe
Senator Barack Obama will make his first foreign trip as a presidential candidate next month, his campaign announced Saturday.
read more | digg story
Thursday, June 26, 2008
More BAD NEWS on the Economy
FoxBusiness has this report on the stock market, click link for entire article
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Dow Plunges 358 as Perfect Storm Slams StocksA fresh batch of scary headlines pushed Wall Street into full selloff mode on Thursday, pushing the Dow more than 350 points into the red and to its lowest level since September 2006.
The ugly day was sparked by a spike in crude oil prices to a record $140 a barrel, a series of downgrades from Goldman Sachs and more gloomy economy data.
Today's Market
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 358.41 points, or 3.03% to 11453.42, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index declined 38.82 points, or 2.94%, to 1283.15 and the Nasdaq Composite Index lost 79.89 points, or 3.33%, to 2321.37 The consumer-friendly FOX 50 fell 27.56 points, or 2.98% to 898.65.
Sometimes I wonder if Mexico will ever work with us 100%
I am disgusted that they have not cooperated with bring this murderer to justice. I found this on AZCentral.com, I am sure other sites have covered it and I truly hope that more attention will be paid to this. Please click the link to take you to the entire article. Here is a bit:
Mexico frees suspect in U.S. agent's death
by Sean Holstege - Jun. 26, 2008 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
U.S. officials say they are outraged that a judge in Mexico has released a man suspected of killing a Yuma border agent this year by ramming a Humvee into the agent's all-terrain vehicle.
The release of 22-year-old Jesus Navarro Montes comes as U.S. Border Patrol agents grapple with an increase in vehicle-ramming attacks along the Mexican border in recent years.
Since Oct. 1, the Border Patrol in Arizona has logged 24 truck assaults on agents or their barricades along the border. The number hit a record 44 the previous year, which was before work crews built dozens of miles of vehicle barriers along the Arizona-Sonora line.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement says its agents also have seen a steady increase in vehicle attacks in recent months, although ICE does not keep statistics.
Along with their recent endorsement, the AFL-CIO
has unveiled a Meet Barack Obama Banner. I guess it wasn't a lukewarm endorsement.
700 California Wildfires: Where the Hell Are the Resources?
Right now, there are 700 wildfires burning in California -- many unattended. Fire departments are working with skeleton crews. Residents are literally being told they're on their own. Where are the resources to save homes and lives?
read more | digg story
McCain on tape: "No, I don't want clean national elections."
Late 2007- reporter asks McCain about Public FinacingQ: "You got clean elections in Arizona, do you want to see that on a national level?"McCain: "Ahhhh, you mean the –" Q: "Public financing? "McCain: "No, I don’t think that’s what we want to do. I think we ought to let the BCRA see how it plays out first, but I’m very worried about the 527s."
read more | digg story
McCain Caught: Supported Average Citizen Net Fundraising.
McCain in 2004: "I think it's wonderful that Howard Dean was able to use the Internet...That's what we want it to be all about. We want average citizens to contribute small amounts of money, and that's a commitment to a campaign. So I'm for that. I think it's a great thing. I think the Internet is going to change American politics for the better."
read more | digg story
US Supreme Court rules on Gun Ban
I've found myself being fascinated with recent court rulings. Some I agree with, some I disagree with but learning about the law is always interesting. Via Times Online this ruling concerning Gun Ownership came down today. Any opinions? Click link for entire article. Here is a bit:
From Times Online
June 26, 2008
US Supreme Court strikes down Washington DC's gun ban
Tom Baldwin in Washington
The Supreme Court today declared for the first time that the US constitution grants individual citizens the right to possess firearms, a ruling which threatens to unpick much of America’s patchwork gun control laws.
By striking down Washington DC’s 32-year-old ban on handguns - one of the most restrictive pieces of legislation anywhere in America - the court has opened up to legal challenge similar laws elsewhere in the country.
The case hung on the interpretation of the Second Amendment which states: “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”
In more than 200 years since the amendment’s ratification, the Supreme Court has never before ruled decisively on the subject. Lower courts have usually interpreted the Second Amendment as a right tied to service in a state militia such as the National Guard.
A Taliban viewpoint/article worth sharing
Via Charleston, please click link for entire article
Distrust is aiding Taliban
Thursday, June 26, 2008
For the first time, the number of coalition soldiers killed in action in Afghanistan exceeds the current rate of military losses in Iraq. According to The Associated Press, 36 allied troops have been killed this month in Afghanistan, while 23 have died in Iraq. That is a clear indication that the focus of the war on terrorism is shifting from Iraq to Afghanistan and, specifically, to the turbulent border with Pakistan.
Yet another top American official, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned that if there is a second terrorist strike on the United States it will originate in the border tribal lands. He told reporters: "If we get struck, I think the origins and planning will come from there. Clearly, the planning is taking place."
McCain Caught: Supported Average Citizen Net Fundraising.
McCain in 2004: "I think it's wonderful that Howard Dean was able to use the Internet...That's what we want it to be all about. We want average citizens to contribute small amounts of money, and that's a commitment to a campaign. So I'm for that. I think it's a great thing. I think the Internet is going to change American politics for the better."
read more | digg story
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Tom Tancredo's Open Letter to John McCain
| Tancredo Criticizes McCain Amnesty Meeting |
| Tuesday, 24 June 2008 | |
| Sends open letter urging Senator to keep border security promise WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Littleton) today sent a letter to Senator John McCain (R-AZ) criticizing his recent meeting with Hispanic leaders where he reportedly pushed his amnesty agenda.A copy of the letter is below: Dear Senator McCain: |
So What Happens When the Department of Justice breaks th law
To be honest has anyone kept track of all the law breaking by the government over the past few years?
via ABCNEWS:
Audit: DOJ Played Politics, Broke Law in Hiring
Internal Review Finds Officials Disqualified Summer, Entry-Level Applicants for Liberal Ties
Sadly I'm not suprised
via Washington Post, please click link for entire article
Hate Groups' Newest Target
White Supremacists Report an Increase in Visits to Their Web Sites
By Eli SaslowWashington Post Staff WriterSunday, June 22, 2008; Page A06
Sen. Barack Obama's historic victory in the Democratic primaries, celebrated in America and across much of the world as a symbol of racial progress and cultural unity, has also sparked an increase in racist and white supremacist activity, mainly on the Internet, according to leaders of hate groups and the organizations that track them.
Israel in the News
via Duluth News Tribune I've read where the Truce in Israel is being threatened. I do commend Israel for not retaliating and really hope that somehow there can be lasting peace in that region from all sides.
Truce shaken after rockets fired from Gaza and Israeli raid kills 2 militants
By JOSEF FEDERMAN Associated Press Writer
The Associated Press - Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Per AFP, it seems I'm not the only one concerned about the region which is a good thing. It seems that the "Major Powers" are also concerned about the Israeli settlements.
Major powers fret over Israeli settlements, shaky Gaza truce
BERLIN (AFP) — The United States and other peace brokers fretted Tuesday over the fragility of the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks by calling for a truce in Hamas-run Gaza to last and Israel to freeze settlements.
The appeal from the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and United States followed international pledges of 242 million dollars to bolster the Palestinian police and justice system to help pave the way to a viable state.
Following a series of meetings here, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters that a peace agreement could still be framed before President George W. Bush leaves office in January.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Another Guantanamo Bay Ruling
I think we need to do a better job making sure we get the "right" people or our credibility will be harmed greatly. Anyway, this just came across the CNN website. The complete story is at this link
Court rules in favor of Chinese Muslim held at Gitmo
From Bill Mears
CNN
CNN
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A federal appeals court ruled Monday that a Chinese Muslim held by the U.S. military was improperly labeled an "enemy combatant" by the Pentagon.
It's the first time a Guantanamo Bay detainee has been given an opportunity in a civilian court to try to secure his release.
The decision throws into serious doubt the underlying reasons for keeping Hazaifa Parhat in custody for more than six years.
A brief one-page order from the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington directed military officials to either "release or transfer Parhat, or to expeditiously hold a new [military] tribunal."
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Maybe McCain should research "earmarks" more
I too do not like waste. I understand that there is a lot of government (and non-government) waste but believe it or not many special requests for funds are actually NEEDED. There has to be a better way to fund necessary projects while also keeping unnecessary ones in check Of course the term "necessary" is defined in many different ways. Anyway, a recent article in the DesMoinesRegister spoke about the difference funding projects can make. It is worth a look and you can check the entire article out at the Des Moines register website by clicking this link. Here is just a small bit.
McCain earmark opposition assailed
Washington, D.C. - Republican presidential candidate John McCain opposed legislation last year that included money for flood control in Des Moines, which shows he is wrong to push for reforms to the congressional earmark system, a Democratic lawmaker charged Thursday.
State Sen. Jack Hatch of Des Moines said the earmarked money was needed to relieve water problems on the city's north side, which were magnified over the weekend when a levee break forced an evacuation of the Birdland area and ruined several dozen homes and businesses
Another Suicide Bombing in Iraq
Complete articled printed on CNN.COM, please click link to read it. Here is an excerpt.
Female bomber kills 16 near government complex
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A female suicide bomber killed 16 people and wounded 40 Sunday when she detonated her explosives in a crowded area of central Baquba, police there said.Police, women and children were among the casualties, according to the Diyala Military Operations command.
The attack happened near the main government complex in Baquba on a street that security officials had sealed off last week. Only official vehicles were being allowed in the area; civilian vehicles without special clearance were prohibited.
More than 20 female suicide bombers have carried out attacks in Iraq this year, a number much higher than in previous years. According to the U.S. military, women carried out eight bombings in 2007.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Bloomberg Defends Obama against rumors
I was glad to see this covered by the New York Times yesterday on their website. Here is a bit what Mayor Bloomberg said
Speaking before a crucial constituency in the coming election, Jewish voters, in the pivotal state of Florida, Mr. Bloomberg said that rumors of Mr. Obama secretly being a Muslim represent “wedge politics at its worst, and we have to reject it — loudly, clearly and unequivocally.”
“Let’s call those rumors what they are: lies,” said Mr. Bloomberg, who has been mentioned as a potential running mate for both Mr. Obama and Senator John McCain, the likely Republican nominee.
I ALSO LIKED THAT HE DID DISCUSS THE MOTIVATION BEHIND THE RUMORS. HERE IS A BIT OF THATMr. Bloomberg is Jewish, but he rarely discusses his faith in public. On Friday, he broke with that tradition. He joked about sitting through long Jewish holiday services (“I thought Yom Kippur was the longest day of the year”) and referred to “our people.”
Mr. Bloomberg, an outspoken supporter of Israel, said that fears about Mr. Obama’s faith “are cloaked in concern for Israel, but the real concern is about partisan politics.”
“Israel is just being used as a pawn, which is not that surprising, since some people are willing to stoop to any level to win an election,” he said.
Jewish voters, he added, “have a particular obligation” to fight such false claims.
Latest news from Afghanistan
5 foreign soldiers killed in Afghanistan
Five soldiers from the U.S.-led international force in Afghanistan have been killed in two separate attacks.
Four soldiers were killed when insurgents opened fire on their convoy following a roadside blast on the west side of Kandahar city around 8 a.m. local time Saturday, officials said.
Two other soldiers were seriously injured in the attack.
Military officials did not reveal their nationalities, but CBC News has been told that no Canadians were among the casualties
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MORE ON THIS STORY FROM THE CBC WEBSITE CAN BE FOUND BY CLICKING THIS LINK
Friday, June 20, 2008
Fair question to ask
Fact: No political party has a monopoly on religion nor patriotism. It is the truth. Being a Republican does not make you more moral nor patriotic than a Democrat nor a Green Party Member, nor an Independent, nor a.....
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Bringing attention to Darfur
I see more news about the Darfur situation has made it to the mainstream media. Complete story at CNN.com, here is a bit. Keep praying and get active. Rape should never be accepted.
Rape is a way of life for Darfur's women
ZAM ZAM DISPLACEMENT CAMP, Sudan (CNN) -- Sudan's Darfur crisis has exploded on many fronts -- violence, hunger, displacement and looting -- but United Nations peacekeepers say the biggest issue now affecting the region is the systematic rape of women and children.
Thousands of women as young as 4 caught in the middle of the struggle between rebel forces and government-backed militias have become victims of rape, they say, with some aid groups claiming that it is being used as a weapon of ethnic cleansing."That is one of the biggest issues in Darfur: the rapes, and crimes against women and children," said Michael Fryer, police commissioner of UNAMID, the United Nations peacekeeping force deployed to try to tackle the violence.
Relief workers say they are powerless to stop the attacks and say that if they do speak out, they fear that the Sudanese government will tell them to leave the country.
AGAIN PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ ABOUT THIS SITUATION. YOU CAN FIND THE COMPLETE STORY AT THIS LINK.
Quote for the Day
Loving the wrong thing? You'll be waiting to exhale 'til your butt explode! - Pastor Cecil L. Murray
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
51 Killed in Baghdad Blast
Here's a bit from The New York Times, please click link to read entire article
At Least 51 Are Killed in Blast at Busy Market in Baghdad
By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. and ALI HAMID
Published: June 18, 2008
BAGHDAD — A car bomb set to explode during the busiest time of day killed at least 51 people and wounded 75 Tuesday evening as shoppers were strolling through a Shiite neighborhood market in Baghdad. It was the deadliest attack in the Iraqi capital in more than three months.
The blast struck a crowded bus terminal near a market in Huriya, a northwest Baghdad district that once had a large population of Sunnis but after the American-led invasion saw horrific ethnic cleansing by Shiite militias and death squads, who killed or drove thousands of Sunnis out.
Survivors and relatives of the victims in the Tuesday blast were enraged and on edge. One man lost 11 relatives, including five female cousins. At a courtyard in front of the Kadhimiya Hospital morgue, people screamed, wept and shrieked. Some cursed the government for allowing the blast to happen while others called on God for revenge.
Warning Labels orderd on Antipsychotic drugs
source: Washington Post
FDA Orders Warning Label on Older Antipsychotics
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay ReporterMonday, June 16, 2008; 12:00 AM
MONDAY, June 16 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is cautioning physicians that certain types of antipsychotic drugs can boost the death risk of seniors with dementia.
Doctors sometimes use antipsychotics to help treat behavioral problems in demented patients.
But from now on these older, so-called "conventional" antipsychotics -- which include drugs such as thorazine and prolixin -- will carry a new black box warning alerting physicians of the danger, FDA officials announced Monday.
CHECK OUT ENTIRE ARTICLE ON WASHINGTON POST AT THIS LINK
Quote for the Day
"Everyone who got to where they are had to begin where they were." Richard Paul Evans
Monday, June 16, 2008
Al Gore Endorses Barack Obama
I knew it would come so I wasn't surprised when I saw this via FOXNEWS (click link for story)
Gore Endorses Obama
by Associated Press
Monday, June 16, 2008
FLINT, Mich. — Al Gore says he is backing Barack Obama and will do whatever he can to help him get to the White House.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
An Op-Ed for those still in denial about the Economy
This Op-Ed by Bob Herbert really brings it home. It is from the NY Times and can be found in its entirety at this link.
I've included a bit because I do think it is important:
June 14, 2008
Op-Ed Columnist
Letters From Vermont
By BOB HERBERT
Despite the focus on the housing crisis, gasoline prices and the economy in general, the press has not done a good job capturing the intense economic anxiety — and even dread, in some cases — that has gripped tens of millions of working Americans, including many who consider themselves solidly middle class.
Working families are not just changing their travel plans and tightening up on purchases at the mall. There is real fear and a great deal of suffering out there.
A man who described himself as a conscientious worker who has always pinched his pennies wrote the following to Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont:
“This winter, after keeping the heat just high enough to keep my pipes from bursting (the bedrooms are not heated and never got above 30 degrees) I began selling off my woodworking tools, snowblower, (pennies on the dollar) and furniture that had been handed down in my family from the early 1800s, just to keep the heat on.
“Today I am sad, broken, and very discouraged. I am thankful that the winter cold is behind us for a while, but now gas prices are rising yet again. I just can’t keep up.”
The people we have heard the least from in this epic campaign season have been the voters — ordinary Americans. We get plenty of polling data and alleged trends, but we don’t hear the voices of real people.
Senator Sanders asked his constituents to write to him about their experiences in a difficult economy. He was blown away by both the volume of responses and “the depth of the pain” of many of those who wrote.
A 55-year-old man who said his economic condition was “very scary,” wrote: “I don’t live from paycheck to paycheck. I live day to day.” He has no savings, he said. His gas tank is never more than a quarter full, and he can’t afford to buy the “food items” he would like.
His sense of his own mortality was evident in every sentence, and he wondered how long he could continue. “I am concerned as gas prices climb daily,” he said. “I am just tired. The harder that I work, the harder it gets. I work 12 to 14 hours daily, and it just doesn’t help.”
A working mother with two young children wrote: “Some nights we eat cereal and toast for dinner because that’s all I have.”
Another woman said she and her husband, both 65, “only eat two meals a day to conserve.”
A woman who has been trying to sell her house for two years and described herself as “stretched to the breaking point,” told the senator, “I don’t go to church many Sundays because the gasoline is too expensive to drive there.”
Many of the letters touched on the extremely harsh winter that pounded Vermont and exacerbated the economic distress. With fuel prices sky-high, many residents turned to wood to heat their homes. A woman with a 9-year-old son wrote:
“By February, we ran out of wood and I burned my mother’s dining room furniture. ... I’d like to order one of your flags and hang it upside down at the Capitol building. ... We are certainly a country in distress.”
In the News: Rich Avoiding Taxes
via ABCNEWS
They Earn $200,000 and Pay No Taxes
Find Out How These Rich Folks Avoided Paying Any Income Taxes
By KEVIN McCOY
June 15, 2008—
Death is inevitable, but federal income taxes aren't for an increased number of high-income earners.
New IRS statistics show 7,389 federal tax returns with $200,000 or more in adjusted gross income reported no federal income taxes in 2005. That's a 161% jump from the 2,833 comparable returns filed in 2004.
Additionally, 4,224 of the over-$200,000 earners reported no worldwide income tax liability on their 2005 returns, the IRS data show. That represents a 75% increase from the 2,420 comparable returns filed in 2004.
The data are the most recent available from the IRS. It shows a rising number of high-income earners have avoided the alternative minimum tax, which was intended to ensure that tax shelters, deductions and loopholes wouldn't exempt wealthy Americans from paying at least some federal income tax.
"It's an interesting case study on how people find ways to avoid paying taxes," said Howard Gleckman, a senior research associate and tax blog editor at The Tax Policy Center, a joint venture of the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution.
The increases stem in part from two tax law changes, according to the IRS Spring 2008 Statistics of Income Bulletin.
Responding to Hurricane Katrina, Washington exempted charitable contributions between Aug. 27, 2005, and Jan. 1, 2006, from the overall limit on itemized tax deductions and the 50% of adjusted gross income limit for such giving. The one-time change wasn't limited to hurricane-related contributions.
REST OF THE STORY ON ABCNEWS.COM AT THIS LINK
In the News: Taliban
source: The Age
General admits Taliban revival
Ann Scott Tyson, Washington
June 16, 2008
Page 1 of 2 | Single Page View
THE outgoing top US military commander in Afghanistan has described the Taliban as "resurgent" after a week when 890 prisoners — including nearly 400 Taliban fighters — were freed in a jailbreak in Kandahar.
In the worst single attack on coalition forces in Afghanistan this year, four US marines were killed by a roadside bomb on Saturday. A fifth marine was wounded in the attack.
In a sober assessment, General Dan McNeill, who departed on June 3 after 16 months commanding NATO's International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF, said although record levels of foreign and Afghan troops had constrained repeated Taliban offensives, stabilising Afghanistan would be impossible without a more robust military campaign against insurgent havens in Pakistan.
The Taliban were "resurgent in the region", particularly in sanctuaries in Pakistan, and as a result "it's going to be difficult to take on this insurgent group … in the broader sort of way", General McNeill said at a Pentagon news conference.
Comprehensive data released by the NATO-led command shows a steady escalation in violence since NATO took charge of the Afghanistan mission in 2006, spurred in part by more aggressive operations by the alliance and most recently by US Marine battalions in the heavily contested southern province of Helmand.
ENTIRE ARTICLE AT THE AGE WEBSITE WHICH YOU CAN REACH AT THIS LINK
In the News: Drug Deaths
source: New York Times
Legal Drugs Kill Far More Than Illegal, Florida Says
By DAMIEN CAVE
Published: June 14, 2008
MIAMI — From “Scarface” to “Miami Vice,” Florida’s drug problem has been portrayed as the story of a single narcotic: cocaine. But for Floridians, prescription drugs are increasingly a far more lethal habit.
An analysis of autopsies in 2007 released this week by the Florida Medical Examiners Commission found that the rate of deaths caused by prescription drugs was three times the rate of deaths caused by all illicit drugs combined.
Law enforcement officials said that the shift toward prescription-drug abuse, which began here about eight years ago, showed no sign of letting up and that the state must do more to control it.
“You have health care providers involved, you have doctor shoppers, and then there are crimes like robbing drug shipments,” said Jeff Beasley, a drug intelligence inspector for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which co-sponsored the study. “There is a multitude of ways to get these drugs, and that’s what makes things complicated.”
The report’s findings track with similar studies by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which has found that roughly seven million Americans are abusing prescription drugs. If accurate, that would be an increase of 80 percent in six years and more than the total abusing cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, Ecstasy and inhalants.
The Florida report analyzed 168,900 deaths statewide. Cocaine, heroin and all methamphetamines caused 989 deaths, it found, while legal opioids — strong painkillers in brand-name drugs like Vicodin and OxyContin — caused 2,328.
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READ ENTIRE ARTICLE AT NEW YORK TIMES WEBSITE
Friday, June 13, 2008
In the News: Foreclosures/Economy
source ABCNEWS
US Foreclosure Filings Surge 48 Percent in May
Nationwide, 261,255 Homes Received at Least One Foreclosure Filing in May
By ALAN ZIBEL AP
Business Writer
WASHINGTON June 13, 2008 (AP)
The number of U.S. homeowners swept up in the housing crisis rose further last month, with foreclosure filings up nearly 50 percent compared with a year earlier, a foreclosure listing company said Friday.
Nationwide, 261,255 homes received at least one foreclosure-related filing in May, up 48 percent from 176,137 in the same month last year and up 7 percent from April, RealtyTrac Inc. said.
One in every 483 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing in May, the highest number since RealtyTrac started the report in 2005 and the second-straight monthly record.
READ ENTIRE ARTICLE AT ABCNEWS
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Another Guantanamo Ruling
source: Rhinelander Daily News
Last Updated: Thursday, June 12, 2008 10:45 AM CDT
High Court sides with Guantanamo detainees again
By MARK SHERMAN
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay have rights under the Constitution to challenge their detention in U.S. civilian courts.
In its third rebuke of the Bush administration's treatment of prisoners, the court ruled 5-4 that the government is violating the rights of prisoners being held indefinitely and without charges at the U.S. naval base in Cuba. The court's liberal justices were in the majority.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the court, said, "The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times."
Kennedy said federal judges could ultimately order some detainees to be released, but that such orders would depend on security concerns and other circumstances.
MORE ON THIS STORY VIA RHINLANDER DAILY NEWS
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Who is Funding the Campaigns
VIA PHOENIX BUSINESS JOURNAL
Wednesday, June 11, 2008 - 12:24 PM MST
Business execs on tap for McCain fundraisers
Phoenix Business Journal - by Mike Sunnucks
U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is getting some deep-pocketed help from CEOs and business executives for his presidential campaign.
McCain has upcoming fundraisers set for Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Chicago, Minneapolis, Cleveland and Cincinnati.
The list of high-profile donors includes:
* Houston investment banker, money manager and art collector Fayez Sarofim.
* Texas car dealer Red McCombs.
* Cleveland Indians baseball team owner Lawrence Dolan.
* Oil executives Mercer Reynolds and William DeWitt, who were involved in a merger with an energy company headed by President George W. Bush
* Minnesota-based Life Time Fitness Inc. CEO Bahram Akradi
* Craig Duchossois of Illinois, CEO of Duchossois Industries Inc. which owns Churchill Downs Inc., home of the Kentucky Derby.
Both Sarofim and McCombs show up on Forbes' and other lists of the wealthiest Americans.
You mean FoxNews doesn't check their facts....
Duh.... Let's be honest most "news" stations do not practice professional journalism. They are so interested in ratings and getting their point of view across that they rarely do research. Fox News is one of the worst because as long as the guest is on their side they won't even ask obvious questions.
Anyway via Ohio.Com
you can check out the entire blurb at this link:
Unprofessional, not libel
A federal judge threw out a school superintendent's lawsuit against Fox News, saying the cable news channel acted unprofessionally but without malice when anchors on Fox and Friends reported a parody story as fact last year.
The case was an outgrowth of an April 2007 prank in which a middle school student tossed a slab of leftover Easter ham onto a table surrounded by Somali Muslim youngsters, knowing the Muslims would be offended. Muslims consider pork unclean.
A few days later, a parody story was posted online, attributing numerous made-up quotes to Superintendent Leon Levesque, including the need to teach kids that ''ham is not a toy'' and references to developing an ''anti-ham response plan.'' The spoof was reported as fact on Fox and Friends on April 23.
In his slander suit, Levesque who sought $75,000 in damages, said he was ridiculed and overwhelmed for days with phone calls and hate mail, including threatening calls to his home.
U.S. District Judge D. Brock Hornby concluded Tuesday that Fox News was unprofessional, but did not act out of malice.
Fox co-hosts Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade ''were certainly gullible,'' Hornby wrote, adding that portions of the fake story were ''so absurd that they should have raised the defendants' truth-seeking antennae and caused them to question the accuracy of the article.''
So many people drop the ball - REPEATEDLY
source CNN
FEMA gives away $85 million of supplies for Katrina victims
From Abbie Boudreau and Scott Zamost
CNN Special Investigations Unit
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- FEMA gave away about $85 million in household goods meant for Hurricane Katrina victims, a CNN investigation has found.
The material -- from basic kitchen goods to sleeping necessities -- sat in warehouses for two years before the Federal Emergency Management Agency's giveaway to federal and state agencies this year.
James McIntyre, FEMA's acting press secretary, told CNN that FEMA was spending more than $1 million a year to store the material and that another agency wanted the warehouses torn down, so "we needed to vacate them."
"Upon review of our assets and our need to continue to store them, we determined that they were excess to FEMA's needs; therefore, they are being excessed from FEMA's inventory," McIntyre wrote in an e-mail.
He declined a request for an on-camera interview, telling CNN the giveaway was "not news."
Photos from one of the facilities in Fort Worth, Texas, show pallet after pallet of cots, cleansers, first-aid kits, coffee makers, camp stoves and other items stacked to the ceiling.
FEMA said some of the items were donations from companies after Katrina, but most were purchased in the field as "starter kits" for people living in trailers provided by the agency. And even though the stocks were offered to state agencies after FEMA decided to get rid of them, one of the states that passed was Louisiana.
Martha Kegel, the head of a New Orleans nonprofit agency that helps find homes for those still displaced by the storm, said she was shocked to learn about the existence of the goods and the government giveaway.
"These are exactly the items that we are desperately seeking donations of right now -- basic kitchen household supplies," said Kegel, executive director of Unity of Greater New Orleans. "These are the very things that we are seeking right now. FEMA, in fact, refers homeless clients to us to house them. How can we house them if we don't have basic supplies?"
Kegel's group works with FEMA and other local organizations to rehouse victims of Katrina, the 2005 hurricane that flooded New Orleans and killed more than 1,800 people along the Gulf Coast. Community groups say thousands of people are still living in abandoned buildings in the city, though fewer than 100 people remain housed in tents.
MORE FROM THIS STORY AT CNN'S WEBSITE
Someone quick - find McCain a song by an artist that likes him
source: The Independent
No, Johnny, No: Chuck Berry joins chorus of musicians snubbing McCain's campaign
By Leonard Doyle in Washington
Wednesday, 11 June 2008
For a US presidential candidate, there is nothing better than a rocking anthem to pump up the crowds and project the sort of imagery that could help win the keys to the White House.
The Republican hopeful John McCain may be pushing 72, but his "town hall" events can be as noisy as the stadiums where Barack Obama appears on stage to the strains of U2's "Beautiful Day." But the McCain camp is having trouble settling on a suitable campaign anthem. After searching for months, it finally picked "Johnny B Goode" – Chuck Berry's rock 'n' roll classic from 1958. The high-power guitar licks and "Go, Johnny, go" chorus put a spring in Mr McCain's step. When asked why he chose it, he quipped: "It might be because it is the only one [the artist] hasn't complained about us using."
Berry, 81, may not have complained about his song being appropriated by Mr McCain, but he has made it clear he would prefer Barack Obama in the White House. "America has finally come to this point where you can pick a man of colour and that not be a drawback," Berry said. "It's no question, myself being a man of colour. I mean, you have to feel good about it."
The anointment of Mr Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate was, he added, "definitely a proud and successful moment for all the people of this country – not just black people, but Americans in general".
Berry, known as the "father of rock 'n' roll", recounted: "In the Fifties there were certain places we couldn't ride on the bus, and now there is a possibility of a black man being in White House." "Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, free at last," he added, quoting Martin Luther King.
There was a groan at McCain headquarters as it suffered yet another musical derailment. An attempt to use Abba's "Take A Chance On Me" also bombed. "We played it a couple times and it's my understanding [Abba] went berserk," Mr McCain said.
Mr McCain is not the first political candidate to stumble into a musical minefield, only to discover their theme song is not what was originally imagined. Objections often come in the form of letters to "cease and desist" by offended songwriters or musicians. Sometimes the lyrics are discovered to be off message. The McCain team had earlier alighted on John Cougar Mellencamp's "Pink Houses". The Mellencamp back-story as a hard-living rocker who had cleaned up his act seemed to perfectly project Mr McCain's maverick image as a rule-breaking but deeply conservative sonofabitch.
rest of the article at The Independent's website
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Halliburton/Iraq via BBC - Profiting on War???
source BBC NEWS
BBC uncovers lost Iraq billions
By Jane Corbin
BBC News
A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (£11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.
For the first time, the extent to which some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding has been researched by the BBC's Panorama using US and Iraqi government sources.
A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.
The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.
War profiteering
While George Bush remains in the White House, it is unlikely the gagging orders will be lifted.
To date, no major US contractor faces trial for fraud or mismanagement in Iraq.
The president's Democrat opponents are keeping up the pressure over war profiteering in Iraq.
Henry Waxman who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said: "The money that's gone into waste, fraud and abuse under these contracts is just so outrageous, its egregious.
"It may well turn out to be the largest war profiteering in history."
In the run-up to the invasion one of the most senior officials in charge of procurement in the Pentagon objected to a contract potentially worth seven billion that was given to Halliburton, a Texan company, which used to be run by Dick Cheney before he became vice-president.
Unusually only Halliburton got to bid - and won.
Missing billions
The search for the missing billions also led the programme to a house in Acton in West London where Hazem Shalaan lived until he was appointed to the new Iraqi government as minister of defence in 2004.
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PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ THIS ENTIRE ARTICLE AT THE BBC NEWS WEBSITE
John McCain needs to do his homework
Even I knew about this and truly I'm not too up on things. - AThinking Mind
via: The Hill's Briefing Room
June 4, 2008
McCain Unaware of Obama's Iran Divestment Bill
@ 4:01 pm by Chris Good
John McCain, who called for a worldwide divestment campaign against Iran Monday, said today he was unaware of a bill Obama introduced in 2007 authorizing similar divestment efforts in the U.S.
McCain was asked about the bill at a press conference and said he was "not familiar with it at all," according to a transcript circulated by the Obama campaign.
"No, I am not familiar with it at all. I do not know if it passed the senate or had any hearing or anything else," McCain said according to the transcript. "I had, so, literally thousands and thousands pieces of legislation are proposed every year. I know what he did. He voted against the Iranian revolutionary guard being declared a terrorist organization."
McCain's campaign accused Obama of being "weak" on Iran for not backing a resolution that would designate its revolutionary guard as a terrorist organization. McCain has sought to bring Obama's positions on Iran to the forefront today as Obama addressed the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's (AIPAC) conference in Washington, DC along with Hillary Clinton.
The bill passed the House 408-6 last summer and now sits in the Senate Banking Committee. The Obama campaign today accused Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), the committee's ranking member, of blocking the bill.
Obama's bill would authorize state and local governments to strip finances from U.S. companies with investments of $20,000,000 or more in Iran's energy sector.
Monday, June 9, 2008
In The News - Pakistan/Taliban connection?
via International Herald Tribune/Associated Press
US think tank: Pakistan helped train Taliban, gave info on US troops
The Associated PressPublished: June 10, 2008
KABUL, Afghanistan: Pakistani intelligence agents and paramilitary forces have helped train Taliban insurgents and have given them information about American troop movements in Afghanistan, said a report published by a U.S. think tank.
The study published Monday by the RAND Corp. also warned that the U.S. will face "crippling, long-term consequences" in Afghanistan if Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan are not eliminated.
It echoes recent statements by American generals, who have increased their warnings that militant safe havens in Pakistan are threatening efforts in Afghanistan. The study was funded by the U.S. Defense Department.
"Every successful insurgency in Afghanistan since 1979 enjoyed safe haven in neighboring countries, and the current insurgency is no different," said the report's author, Seth Jones. "Right now, the Taliban and other groups are getting help from individuals within Pakistan's government, and until that ends, the region's long-term security is in jeopardy."
Pakistan's top military spokesman rejected the findings.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
John McCain & Katrina
I'm personally tired of him using the line about being against pork spending when he votes against things. I too hate wasteful spending but to always say that is the reason is just an excuse and isn't very honest.
via factcheck.org:
For the complete factcheck on McCain and Katrina you can read the entire findings at this link.
Why Vote Against It?
McCain suggested that he was merely voting against wasteful spending. He told the Louisiana reporter that he voted against "one of the bills" because it was riddled with pork.
McCain: I also voted against one of the bills that came down that was loaded with pork barrel projects that had nothing to do with New Orleans too. It had billions for projects and programs that had nothing to do with the recovery of the city of New Orleans.The Clinton amendments, however, would have provided $3 million for the investigation but no funds for anything else.
------------------------
a bit more from the factcheck page:
Defending the White House
McCain lined up with his party at a time when the White House was being accused on all sides of withholding information from the Senate.
Before the second vote, on Feb. 2, 2006, Clinton charged: "We are seeing the administration withholding documents, testimony, and information from the ongoing investigations by the House and Senate."
Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who co-chaired a Senate investigation into Katrina by the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, argued against the measure, saying her committee "has been conducting a thoroughly comprehensive, bipartisan, and thorough investigation into the preparation for and response to Hurricane Katrina." But about a week earlier Collins had been telling reporters that it was "completely inappropriate" for the White House to forbid government officials from talking to the committee and that "the White House has gone too far in restricting basic information about who called whom on what day."
The other co-chair of that Senate investigation, Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, more forcefully chastised the White House and other federal agencies for withholding documents, refusing interviews and derailing the Senate's work.
Lieberman, Jan. 24, 2006: There has been a near-total lack of cooperation that has made it impossible, in my opinion, for us to do the thorough investigation we have a responsibility to do.Lieberman voted for the creation of an independent commission, both times. He was later defeated for his party's nomination in 2006 but won reelection to the Senate as an independent and is now backing McCain.
We don't know whether an independent commission would have gotten more information from the Bush White House, and we take no position on whether creating such a commission was appropriate or needed. But McCain's statement that he "supported every investigation" is false. The record shows McCain lined up with his party as it circled the wagons to defend the Bush administration against a more aggressive probe of what went wrong before and after Katrina.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Gene Sperling has written an interesting opinion piece
found at Bloomberg at this link
A Snippet:
McCain Emerges as Master Economic Flip-Flopper: Gene Sperling
Commentary by Gene Sperling
une 6 (Bloomberg) -- Back in 2005, a friend asked if I should be careful about praising John McCain for his votes against George W. Bush's upper-income tax cuts in 2001 and 2003. After all, he warned, he might become the next Republican presidential nominee.My reply was, suppose McCain maintained his position that, as he put it in 2001: ``I cannot in good conscience support a tax cut in which so many of the benefits go to the most fortunate among us, at the expense of middle-class Americans who most need tax relief.''
Suppose he did hold to his 2003 opposition to increasing the deficit through tax cuts during a time of war. On what grounds could I criticize him?
In spite of the advice from my friends, I went ahead and applauded McCain for both stands in my 2005 book ``The Pro-Growth Progressive.''
This is now a non-issue. McCain, who would like us to see him as holding a consistent and principled stance on tax cuts and fiscal discipline, is engaging in the mother of all economic policy flip-flops.
If McCain's opposition to Bush's tax cuts was based on the unseemliness of letting deficits balloon for the benefit of top earners in a time of war, then his opposition should have grown stronger. Instead, it grew weaker and then collapsed. Since McCain's votes, we have witnessed budget surpluses turn into projected $400 billion annual deficits.
How do those intervening developments lead McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, to now support permanently extending more than $100 billion in high-income tax cuts he once opposed?
Just the Beginning
And that is only the beginning. With the public debt expanding, corporate profits near records, and family incomes down since 2001, McCain has made his signature economic proposal a corporate tax-relief package that will cost $2 trillion to $3 trillion over 10 years.
In the New York Times on June 1, former Bush economic adviser Greg Mankiw defended this indefensible fiscal policy by pointing to two purely theoretical studies to posit that lowering the corporate-tax rate by a third is really about helping typical workers.
He didn't mention that the Congressional Budget Office, Treasury Department, and Joint Committee on Taxation all assume that the owners of capital get the benefit of a corporate-tax cut. He also neglects to mention that the CBO estimates that a whopping 59 percent of the benefits of such a reduction would go to the top 1 percent of earners.
Distorted Picture
This is more regressive than the policies that led McCain in 2000 to blast Bush for having ``38 percent of his tax cut go to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.''
------------
I highly recommend you reading the entire piece
Current Happenings in Iraq
So what is really going on over there. I guess time will tell but we should definitely keep on top of current happenings
via Reuters
Iraq says it wants to restrict movement of U.S. troops
By Michael Georgy
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq said on Friday it would not grant U.S. troops freedom of movement for military operations in a new agreement being negotiated on extending the presence of American troops on its soil.
Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih said the United States wanted its forces to operate with no restrictions, but this was not acceptable to Iraq.
The United States is negotiating an agreement with Iraq aimed at giving a legal basis for U.S. troops to stay in Iraq after December 31, when their United Nations mandate expires.
The negotiations are the subject of heated debate both in the United States and Iraq, where thousands have answered anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's call for weekly protests after Friday Muslim prayers.
While the Iraqi government has confirmed there are major differences between the two sides in the negotiations, few details of the sticking points have been made public.
"What I can confirm now, with no hesitation, is that there will not be freedom of movement for American (forces) in Iraq," Salih told Arabiya television.
complete article at this link
Friday, June 6, 2008
Unemployment - 5.5%
This is real. People and families are impacted from all areas.
via CNNMoney
Unemployment soars to 5.5%
Increase in the jobless rate is the biggest since 1986 as payrolls decline for the fifth straight month.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The unemployment rate took its biggest jump in more than two decades in May as employers once again cut jobs, according to a government report Friday.
The unemployment rate soared to 5.5% from 5% in April. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had only forecast that the closely watched rate would rise to 5.1%.
It was the biggest one-month jump in unemployment since February 1986, and the 5.5% rate is the highest level seen since October 2004.
A jump of this magnitude, even over a period of several months, is considered a warning sign of a recession. The unemployment rate is now a full percentage point higher than a year ago.
John Silvia, chief economist with Wachovia, said the unemployment rate was distorted by a big jump in teenage unemployment in May, to 18.7% from 15.4%, as the school year ended and teenagers started searching for jobs. And the Labor Department figures were probably underestimating unemployment in the months leading up to Friday's report, he said.
"This report reflects what we should have seen over the last two to three months," said Silvia.
The Labor Department also reported a net loss of 49,000 jobs in May, compared to a revised loss of 28,000 jobs in April. That was a touch better than economists' forecast of a loss of 60,000 jobs, but it marked the fifth straight month that the economy has lost jobs.
Overall, the economy has shed 324,000 jobs this year, the worst start to a year since 2002, when the nation was still struggling with the aftereffects of a recession.
The job losses in the payroll report were widespread, as the battered construction industry lost 34,000 jobs and manufacturers cut 26,000 jobs out of the nation's factories. But the service sector also saw job losses in many sectors, as retailers trimmed 27,000 jobs. The catch-all business and professional services categories took a 39,000 job hit.
"The business and professional has to be a focus of concern. The job losses have broadened out," Silvia said. "Those are generally good-paying jobs. This is a clear sign the weakness is spreading beyond the construction and manufacturing."
Part of that business and professional services decline came from a 30,000 cut in temporary jobs, bringing losses in that sector to 106,000 so far this year. Tig Gilliam, chief executive of Adecco Group North America, the unit of the world's largest employment firm, said that cut is another indicator about widespread concern among employers.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Via factcheck.org
read at http://www.factcheck.org/askfactcheck/did_clinton_win_the_popular_vote.html
Q:
Did Clinton win the popular vote?
Did Hillary Clinton actually end up with more popular votes than Barack Obama? Given that there is some discussion on whether to count the popular votes of Michigan and Florida, as well as how to count caucus votes, who did end up with the higher count?
A:
Obama won more votes unless you count Michigan, where he wasn't on the ballot.
After the primary season wrapped up on Tuesday, Clinton commended her supporters and claimed once again that she had won the popular vote: "Nearly 18 million of you cast your votes for our campaign, carrying the popular vote with more votes than any primary candidate in history."
Did she? Now that all the primaries and caucuses are over we can take one, final look.
Obama won more total votes than Clinton in the contests where they both appeared on the ballot. Clinton won the popular vote only if you count votes from Michigan, where Obama's name did not appear on the ballot.
Any way you cut it, the candidates' vote totals are within less than 1 percent of each other. Both candidates got roughly 18 million votes, but since four states don't list official counts, the precise totals can't be known.
The political Web site Real Clear Politics has an excellent tally, with links to official reports from state election authorities. Those show that even counting Clinton's win in Florida, where the two were on the ballot but did not campaign due to the state's violation of party rules, Obama beat Clinton in the popular vote by 41,622 votes – a small margin, only 0.1 percent. Obama's margin grows to 151,844 votes, or 0.4 percent, when estimates are included for Iowa, Nevada, Maine and Washington, which did not release official totals of popular votes.
Only by counting Michigan, where Clinton's name was on the ballot but Obama's was not, can Clinton claim to have won more votes. Counting only officially reported results, Michigan puts Clinton's total ahead nationally by 286,687 votes or 0.8 percent. Once estimated votes from the four non-reporting states are included, the margin becomes less significant: 176,465 votes, or 0.5 percent. And if Michigan's "uncommited" votes were accorded to Obama, he'd have a 61,703-vote lead (0.2 percent), counting estimates from the non-reporting states.
For the record, Clinton hasn't always been so eager to count Michigan votes. On Oct. 11, 2007, she said of the state, "It's clear, this election they're having isn't going to count for anything." But that was when she was wooing New Hampshire voters, who cherish their first-in-the-nation primary and who were upset that Michigan was violating party rules designed to protect it. She was responding to an interviewer for New Hampshire Public Radio who asked, "So, if you value the DNC calendar, why not just pull out of Michigan? Why not just say, 'Hey Michigan, I'm off the ballot?' " Clinton went on to win the New Hampshire primary.
-Brooks Jackson, with Jess Henig
So Much for McCain's Straight Talk
Full analysis on FactChecker.Org.
Soft on Iran
June 5, 2008
McCain misrepresents Obama's stand on naming Revolutionary Guard as terrorists.
Summary
John McCain is attacking Barack Obama's opposition to the Kyl-Lieberman amendment, which (among other things) called for labeling Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization. McCain claims that Obama's opposition means that he also opposed calling the IRGC terrorists. We find otherwise.
* Obama cosponsored an earlier bill that also called for designating the IRGC as a terrorist organization.
* The Kyl-Lieberman amendment did more than just label the IRGC terrorists. Obama stated at the time that he opposed the bill on the grounds that it constituted "saber-rattling."
* McCain claims that Obama must oppose calling the IRGC a terrorist group because Obama's Web site doesn't say anything about the IRGC. McCain's argument is a glaring example of the logical fallacy of argumentum ad ignorantiam.
Analysis
For the past two weeks, presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain and Democratic front-runner (and now presumptive nominee) Barack Obama have engaged in a war of words over their respective positions on Iran. In a June 2 speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, McCain upped the ante, criticizing Obama's failure to support an amendment that called for designating Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, a charge that McCain repeats on his Web site. It's true that Obama opposed the amendment in question. But McCain is wrong to suggest that Obama's opposition had anything to do with the IRGC's designation. And McCain fails to mention that Obama cosponsored an earlier bill that would have named the IRGC a terrorist organization.
Nothing Rush Limbaugh says or does suprise me
via WorldNetDaily, check out their site for complete article
Rush Limbaugh: Keep chaos alive
'Mrs. Clinton did everything last night but thank me for helping to make this current situation possible'
Posted: June 04, 2008
6:40 pm Eastern
By Joe Kovacs
© 2008 WorldNetDaily
Even though Barack Obama is claiming the Democratic nomination for the presidency, radio host Rush Limbaugh is urging people to contact Hillary Clinton about staying in the race.
Limbaugh has been running his "Operation Chaos," an effort designed to cause havoc among Democrats by suggesting Republicans temporarily register as Democrats to vote for Clinton and prolong the process.
During today's analysis of the primary season's conclusion, the broadcaster urged listeners to go to Hillary's website and offer their personal advice, after Clinton herself requested such during her own speech last night.
"Now, I want you to be polite," said Limbaugh. "I don't want any snide comments, and I know that people have already done that, but I want those of you who are part of this audience to say whatever is in your heart to Mrs. Clinton about her effort to continue here, within the spirit of Operation Chaos, keeping chaos alive. Mrs. Clinton did everything last night but thank me for helping to make this current situation possible."
Offering his own opinion, Limbaugh suggested the former first lady will not be pulling out of contention.
"These are the Clintons," he said. "They are never going away, folks. No matter what happens here, they aren't going away."
The New York senator made reference to her future plans last night, but did not get specific, stating, "The question is, 'Where do we go from here?' and given how far we've come, and where we need to go as a party, it's a question I don't take lightly. This has been a long campaign, and I will be making no decisions tonight."
It is ALWAYS sad to see jobs being lost
It doesn't just impact individuals, it impacts families and communities. I pray for those impacted by these latest job cuts. With prices of necessities steadily rising it is just sad.
source: NY Times
Continental Cuts Jobs and Grounds Jets
By MICHELINE MAYNARD
Published: June 6, 2008
Continental Airlines said Thursday that it would cut 3,000 jobs and retire 67 Boeing aircraft, becoming the latest airline to announce capacity reductions in the face of high prices for jet fuel.
Continental’s announcement came a day after United Airlines said it was discontinuing Ted, its low-fare airline, cutting 1,100 more jobs on top of previously announced cuts and retiring a total of 100 aircraft. Delta Air Lines and American Airlines have announced similar steps.
Continental’s move, which equals a 16 percent reduction in its capacity, had been rumored in industry circles on Wednesday. The details came in a message to employees from Continental’s chief executive Lawrence W. Kellner and its president, Jeffery A. Smisek.
The airline, based in Houston, said Mr. Kellner and Mr. Smisek would not accept their salaries for the rest of 2008. Continental’s shares were up 6 percent in afternoon trading.
Whoopi said it well
Thanks to ahaaja for uploading the video and providing the transcript.
Transcript:
-- I didn't like her speech because with all the greatness that this woman has in her, that she couldn't say "You know what -- we have run an insanely brilliant campaign, and since he's got what he needs to become the nominee, we as a party have to get ourselves together" -- that is what I needed from her.
-- And whether she said "Everybody go to him" or not last night wasn't the issue, but for me I just felt that it was like, "Well you know I'm not sure what I'm gonna do, and I want you all to e-mail me and tell me what you think." Because it was like, "Well I'm not sure what I'm gonna do because maybe we'll go to McCain! I don't know!"
-- I didn't like it.
-- I did not like the speech because I felt for the first time that [for Hillary] it wasn't about the country -- that it was about her -- and it pissed me off!
Jay McDonough brought up a great point
So many times you hear the voice of a few and must remind yourself that they do not necessarily represent everyone's point of view. Read his entire summary at this link.
via Examiner
The snippet that I found interesting:
It's probably important to keep in mind those folks are few and far between. The media loved to interview them because the were loud and controversial. And we sure saw alot of them in the final days of the primary campaign. But their wide exposure painted an unbalanced and, frankly, unfair portrait of the average Clinton supporter.
Hillary Rosen is a well known Democratic Party operative and a loyal Clinton supporter. She reflected today on her disappointment over Senator Clinton's address last night:
She had a chance to surprise her party and the nation after the day-long denials about expecting any concession and send Obama off on the campaign trail of the general election with the best possible platform. I wrote before how she had a chance for her "Al Gore moment." And if she had done so, the whole country ALL would be talking today about how great she is and give her her due.Loyal Clinton supporter, Rep. Charles Rangel said this today:
Instead she left her supporters empty, Obama's angry, and party leaders trashing her. She said she was stepping back to think about her options. She is waiting to figure out how she would "use" her 18 million voters.
But not my vote. I will enthusiastically support Barack Obama's campaign. Because I am not a bargaining chip. I am a Democrat.
"I would agree that after the math was in before her speech, that she could have been far more generous in terms of being more specific and saying that she wants a Democratic victory," Rangel said in an interview on MSNBC.Senator Clinton has a responsibility not to hold those 18 million Democratic supporters hostage, hoping to negotiate some special deal for herself, but to do the right thing and convince them to vote for the Democratic Party nominee in November.
"I don't see what they're talking about in prolonging this," Rangel added. "There's nothing to prolong if you're not going to take the fight to the convention floor…I don't know why she could not have been more open in terms of doing up front what she intends to do later."
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