Coffee with Controversial Craftiness

H1N1

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:59:00 +0000

The CDC said back in the spring that H1N1 was going to hit early and hard in the fall. So why in the hell didn't they have the vaccines ready to go by end of summer? It is so assinine that they scare the public about this flu and then don't follow through on their responsiblities. Another example of why we can't have government running our healthcare system.

See...here's someone else who concurs with me regarding Obama and Rush

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 19:58:00 +0000

My husband found the following blog entry by columnist Doug Powers. Seems we are thinking along the same lines:

Dems vs. Limbaugh: Don’t You Wish…

Don’t you wish Democrats felt as threatened by Islamofascism as they are by Rush Limbaugh?

Don’t you wish Democrats recognized the right to free speech with the same enthusiasm they recognize the right to an abortion?

Don’t you wish Democrats criticized what Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hamas say half as much as they criticize what Rush Limbaugh says?

Don’t you wish Democrats wanted to balance the political makeup of university professors and mainstream media reporters as badly as they want to balance the political makeup of radio talk hosts?

Don’t you wish Democrats would be as blind to race cards as they are blind to the irony in trying to convince people that Rush Limbaugh must be silenced because he’s a threat to free speech?

Don’t you wish Democrats would stop pretending that if Obama fails it will be because Rush Limbaugh wanted him to?

Don’t you wish Democrats wouldn’t be so insecure as to have one of their first actions be to plan for their own failure by identifying a non-Democrat scapegoat just in case?

Don’t you wish Democrats considered dissent to be as patriotic on January 20th as they did on January 19th?

Don’t you wish Democrats petitioned Harry Reid to stop saying the Iraq war was “lost” with the same fervor they petition Limbaugh for saying he wants Obama to “fail”?

Don’t you wish Democrats would be asked to recite a list of all the Nazi and fascist names they would call Republican Party officials who organized a campaign designed to silence a liberal talk show host?

Don’t you wish Democrats would realize that all they’re doing is making it painfully obvious that no amount of power they achieve will ever be enough?

Don’t you wish more Congressional Republicans would have the cojones to loudly point out these things?

AMEN!!

House Poised to Pass Obama's $825B Economic Stimulus Package

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:14:00 +0000

Oh yeah, because the first bailout worked out so well. Bailing out all those companies really taught them a lesson in how not to spend so much money. After bailing out the first round of companies, we NEVER heard of any of the execs getting major bonuses or taking lavish "business" trips. Nor, was there talk of buying a new $50 million jet, despite the fact the GOVERNMENT JUST HANDED YOU A SHIT LOAD OF CASH!

Let's just hand over the money again and make sure you don't have any accountability for what is done with it because we know what great money managers they must be!

"Who has asked them (the United States) to come and interfere in the affairs of nations?" Ahmadinejad said.

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:13:00 +0000

Fine...I suppose that also includes financial assistance?

Democrats Launch Petition Against Rush Limbaugh After Firing Back at Obama

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 11:37:00 +0000

Seriously...Obama, you are the President of the United States, and you are more upset/aggravated over an American talk radio host, than the extreme Muslims and their hatred for us. Get a grip!

Democrats, express all the outrage you want against Rush Limbaugh and let's talk about the outrage Republicans feel towards most of the mainstream media outlets with their with their disgusting and disrespectful behavior towards Bush/Republican Party. It is so scary that the media/Democratic Party is trying to turn us into that country that shuts down any opposition, so as to make EVERYONE think and believe the same. Not everyone is IN LOVE with Obama and what he stands for...amazing, isn't it?

Lorian

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has launched an online petition to express outrage at conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh for saying he wanted President Obama to "fail."

"Jobs, health care, our place in the world -- the stakes for our nation are high and every American needs President Obama to succeed," the petition reads. "Stand strong against Rush Limbaugh's Attacks -- sign our petition, telling Rush what you think of his attacks on President Obama."

The petition comes after Obama warned Republicans on Capitol Hill Friday that they need to quit listening to Limbaugh if they want to get along with Democrats and the new administration.

"You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done," he told top GOP leaders, whom he had invited to the White House to discuss his nearly $1 trillion stimulus package.

One White House official confirmed the comment but said he was simply trying to make a larger point about bipartisan efforts.

On Monday, Limbaugh shot back at Obama, opening his show by saying, "I'm the man you should not be listening, according to President Obama."

"I think [Obama] wants me to fail," Limbaugh said. "He's more frightened of me than he is of John Boehner, which doesn't say much for our party."

The remarks came after Limbaugh said last week on his radio show: "If I wanted Obama to succeed, I'd be happy the Republicans have laid down. I don't want this to work. So I'm thinking of replying to this guy, say 'okay, I'll send you a response, but I don't need 400 words, I need four: I hope he fails'."

The committee's online petition includes a YouTube video featuring audio clips of the radio host's recent remarks.

Today's history lesson

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:06:00 +0000

So, what have we learned in two thousand years?

The budget should be balanced, the Treasury
should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the
arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled,
and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest
Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work,
instead of living on public assistance.

Cicero - 55 BC

Evidently nothing.

Citigroup is despicable!

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 18:18:00 +0000

"Rescued" Citigroup buys $50 MILLION jet

By Jennifer Gould Keil and Chuck Bennett
NY Post
January 26, 2009

Beleaguered Citigroup is upgrading its mile-high club with a brand-new $50 million corporate jet - only this time, it's the taxpayers who are getting screwed.

Even though the bank's stock is as cheap as a gallon of gas and it's burning through a $45 billion taxpayer-funded rescue, the airhead execs pushed through the purchase of a new Dassault Falcon 7X, according to a source familiar with the deal.

The French-made luxury jet seats up to 12 in a plush interior with leather seats, sofas and a customizable entertainment center, according to Dassault's sales literature. It can cruise 5,950 miles before refueling and has a top speed of 559 mph.

There are just nine of these top-of-the-line models in the United States, with Dassault's European factory churning out three to four 7Xs a month.

Citigroup decided to get its new wings two years ago, when the financial-services giant was flush with cash, but it still intends to take possession of the jet this year despite its current woes, the source said.

"Why should I help you when what you write will be used to the detriment of our company?" replied Bill McNamee, head of CitiFlight Inc., the subsidiary that manages Citigroup's corporate fleet, when asked to comment about the new 7X.

"What relevance does it have but to hurt my company?"

It's not uncommon for large companies to pay a deposit on a new plane then cancel the order before delivery, according to a source in the corporate aviation business.

Citigroup execs are also quietly trying to unload two of their older Dassault 900EXs.

Those jets, nearly 10 years old, are worth an estimated $27 million each. They were still listed for sale yesterday on the Web site of Citigroup's aviation broker, Aviation Professionals.

A company representative said she would not comment on "brokering both sides of the deal" when asked about the incoming Falcon 7X.

The Dassaults are part of CitiFlight's Gulf Sierra fleet, which includes the two Falcon 900EXs, tail numbers N399GS and N588GS, currently for sale. FAA records show Citigroup reserved a new tail number, N488GS, possibly for the incoming 7X on Nov. 10 last year.

A woman answering the phone at CitiFlight's private hangar in White Plains said she was "not authorized to release information" about the new jet.

Dassault's US sales office declined to comment.

Citigroup spokesman Stephen Cohen declined to comment.

chuck.bennett@nypost.com

Not surprising...socialism is right around the corner...

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:41:00 +0000

...Dick Morris article

As a follow up to my previous John Thain story...

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:36:00 +0000

Merrill's John Thain to Leave BofA Immediately

John Thain, the short-tenured chief executive of Merrill Lynch who sold the brokerage giant to Bank of America (BAC: 5.76, -0.84, -12.73%) as a way to save Merrill from bankruptcy, will leave Bank of America effective immediately, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The abrupt departure of Thain was described as "mutual," according to the Journal, during a New York meeting between Bank of America's CEO Ken Lewis and Thain.

Thain came to Merrill Lynch in late 2007 after Merrill fired its previous chief executive Stan O’Neal. Before coming to Merrill, Thain was the CEO of the NYSE Euronext (NYX: 20.61, -0.8, -3.74%) and former banker at Goldman Sachs (GS: 71.63, 1.73, 2.47%).

It was not immediately clear if Thain would get a severance package for leaving so abruptly. A Bank of America spokesman confirmed that Thain would leave the company according to reports by the Associated Press and Reuters, but did not give a reason for the departure. FOX Business is working to confirm those reports.

Merrill, which was caught with billions of subprime mortgage-derived and other toxic assets, became a victim of the mortgage and credit crisis of 2008 like many financial companies.

During that weekend in mid-September, Merrill sold itself to Bank of America for $29 a share, while then-insurance giant American International Group (AIG: 1.32, -0.14, -9.59%) required a government intervention.

The announcement came the same day that investment banking firm Lehman Brothers, which received no government help, went bankrupt.

Bank of America’s Merrill purchase was sold to shareholders as the acquisition of an iconic brokerage firm that could complete Bank of America’s dominance in the weakened financial field. The deal just closed on Jan. 1.

But massive losses on Merrill’s balance sheet -- including $15.45 billion in losses announced just last quarter -- caused Bank of America stock to fall by more than 80% from the deal’s announcement in September. Investors have said that Bank of America’s CEO Ken Lewis bit off more than the company could chew in this tough credit and economic environment.

In fact, the losses on Merrill’s balance sheet were so massive the U.S. Treasury Department announced more than $110 billion in aid last week to help Bank of America “digest” its merger of Merrill Lynch.

After the merger, Thain was asked to stay with Bank of America as head of the company's global management business, which Merrill fell under. It is unclear how Merrill and Bank of America's global management business will be structured now that Thain is gone.

2009

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 11:32:00 +0000

Seriously? Thain Spars With Board Over $10 Million Bonus at Merrill

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 19:23:00 +0000

Merrill Lynch & Co. chief John Thain has suggested to directors that he get a 2008 bonus of as much as $10 million, but the battered securities firm's compensation committee is resisting his request, according to people familiar with the situation.

The committee and full board are scheduled to meet Monday to hear Mr. Thain's formal bonus recommendations for himself and other senior executives of the New York company. No decision has been reached, and it isn't known what Mr. Thain will recommend, but the compensation committee is leaning toward denying the executives bonuses for this year, these people said.

Cartoon funnies

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:24:00 +0000

Fall is here...and it is wonderful!

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:09:00 +0000

This veteran wouldn't just make a better President than Obama, but is a better man than Obama

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 03:15:00 +0000

Texas Bumper Sticker

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:48:00 +0000

I'll keep my freedom, my guns and my money and you can keep The Change!

Bar Stool Economics

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:24:00 +0000

This is a wonderful way to relay how the Democratic way of thinking about the economics could hurt everyone!!

Bar Stool Economics

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

The fifth would pay $1.

The sixth would pay $3.

The seventh would pay $7.

The eighth would pay $12.

The ninth would pay $18.

The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20." Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men-the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share?

They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.

So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so:

The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).

The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).

The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).

The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).

The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).

The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20,"declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man, "But he got $10!"

"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I did!"

"That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!"

"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up any more. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

The Republican Fisherman

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 20:47:00 +0000

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below.

She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude."

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."

The man smiled and responded,

"You must be a Democrat."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but somehow it's my fault."

Mmmm...funny how the media doesn't report this.

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:17:00 +0000

Great example of how the democrats were turning their heads to what Fannie and Freddie were doing and look at the mess that got us in! The democrats are too blame for this debacle due to their erroneous thought process in believing everyone is entitled to own a house! Please! This is not an American right! I am so sick of this socialist mentality. Let's work hard and earn the house rather than have it given to us even though we can't afford it. After listening to this, it is quite apparent that many democrats, including Obama, were getting cash in their pocket to turn their heads to any type of regulation.

Obama is so intimidated by Palin...

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 16:43:00 +0000

...it is as if he is running against her for President. This guy doesn't have a lick of experience to run the county, especially given the fact that he helped run one of the most corrupt cities in the country...seriously, people want him to run the country? Amazing. This video is classic as Obama is so clueless in his comparisons:

Here's the video of the alligator found in our yard!

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 19:11:00 +0000

This 30-40 year old alligator was found by a guy walking by our house on 09-10-08, which was two days before Hurricane Ike hit. Some were saying she was looking for higher ground due to the impending hurricane. She was 7 1/2 feet long and was taken to a reserve south of where we live, which is exactly where the hurricane hit hard. Anyway, we are thankful that guy saw it before our kids found it!

I love Sarah Palin!

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:56:00 +0000

Video streaming by Ustream

Mr. Chairman, delegates, and fellow citizens: I am honored to be considered for the nomination for Vice President of the United States...

I accept the call to help our nominee for president to serve and defend America.

I accept the challenge of a tough fight in this election... against confident opponents ... at a crucial hour for our country.

And I accept the privilege of serving with a man who has come through much harder missions ... and met far graver challenges ... and knows how tough fights are won - the next president of the United States, John S. McCain.

It was just a year ago when all the experts in Washington counted out our nominee because he refused to hedge his commitment to the security of the country he loves.

With their usual certitude, they told us that all was lost - there was no hope for this candidate who said that he would rather lose an election than see his country lose a war.

But the pollsters and pundits overlooked just one thing when they wrote him off.

They overlooked the caliber of the man himself - the determination, resolve, and sheer guts of Senator John McCain. The voters knew better.

And maybe that's because they realize there is a time for politics and a time for leadership ... a time to campaign and a time to put our country first.

Our nominee for president is a true profile in courage, and people like that are hard to come by.

He's a man who wore the uniform of this country for 22 years, and refused to break faith with those troops in Iraq who have now brought victory within sight.

And as the mother of one of those troops, that is exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief. I'm just one of many moms who'll say an extra prayer each night for our sons and daughters going into harm's way.

Our son Track is 19.

And one week from tomorrow - September 11th - he'll deploy to Iraq with the Army infantry in the service of his country.

My nephew Kasey also enlisted, and serves on a carrier in the Persian Gulf.

My family is proud of both of them and of all the fine men and women serving the country in uniform. Track is the eldest of our five children.

In our family, it's two boys and three girls in between - my strong and kind-hearted daughters Bristol, Willow, and Piper.

And in April, my husband Todd and I welcomed our littlest one into the world, a perfectly beautiful baby boy named Trig. From the inside, no family ever seems typical.

That's how it is with us.

Our family has the same ups and downs as any other ... the same challenges and the same joys.

Sometimes even the greatest joys bring challenge.

And children with special needs inspire a special love.

To the families of special-needs children all across this country, I have a message: For years, you sought to make America a more welcoming place for your sons and daughters.

I pledge to you that if we are elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House. Todd is a story all by himself.

He's a lifelong commercial fisherman ... a production operator in the oil fields of Alaska's North Slope ... a proud member of the United Steel Workers' Union ... and world champion snow machine racer.

Throw in his Yup'ik Eskimo ancestry, and it all makes for quite a package.

We met in high school, and two decades and five children later he's still my guy. My Mom and Dad both worked at the elementary school in our small town.

And among the many things I owe them is one simple lesson: that this is America, and every woman can walk through every door of opportunity.

My parents are here tonight, and I am so proud to be the daughter of Chuck and Sally Heath. Long ago, a young farmer and habber-dasher from Missouri followed an unlikely path to the vice presidency.

A writer observed: "We grow good people in our small towns, with honesty, sincerity, and dignity." I know just the kind of people that writer had in mind when he praised Harry Truman.

I grew up with those people.

They are the ones who do some of the hardest work in America ... who grow our food, run our factories, and fight our wars.

They love their country, in good times and bad, and they're always proud of America. I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town.

I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids' public education better.

When I ran for city council, I didn't need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too.

Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown.

And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves.

I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities. I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening.

We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

As for my running mate, you can be certain that wherever he goes, and whoever is listening, John McCain is the same man. I'm not a member of the permanent political establishment.< br> And I've learned quickly, these past few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone.

But here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country. Americans expect us to go to Washington for the right reasons, and not just to mingle with the right people.

Politics isn't just a game of clashing parties and competing interests.

The right reason is to challenge the status quo, to serve the common good, and to leave this nation better than we found it.

No one expects us to agree on everything.

But we are expected to govern with integrity, good will, clear convictions, and ... a servant's heart.

I pledge to all Americans that I will carry myself in this spirit as vice president of the United States. This was the spirit that brought me to the governor's office, when I took on the old politics as usual in Juneau ... when I stood up to the special interests, the lobbyists, big oil companies, and the good-ol' boys network.

Sudden and relentless reform never sits well with entrenched interests and power brokers. That's why true reform is so hard to achieve.

But with the support of the citizens of Alaska, we shook things up.

And in short order we put the government of our state back on the side of the people.

I came to office promising major ethics reform, to end the culture of self-dealing. And today, that ethics reform is the law.

While I was at it, I got rid of a few things in the governor's office that I didn't believe our citizens should have to pay for.

That luxury jet was over the top. I put it on eBay.

I also drive myself to work.

And I thought we could muddle through without the governor's personal chef - although I've got to admit that sometimes my kids sure miss her. I came to office promising to control spending - by request if possible and by veto if necessary.

Senator McCain also promises to use the power of veto in defense of the public interest - and as a chief executive, I can assure you it works.

Our state budget is under control.

We have a surplus.

And I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending: nearly half a billion dollars in vetoes.

I suspended the state fuel tax, and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress.

I told the Congress "thanks, but no thanks," for that Bridge to Nowhere.

If our state wanted a bridge, we'd build it ourselves. When oil and gas prices went up dramatically, and filled up the state treasury, I sent a large share of that revenue back where it belonged - directly to the people of Alaska.

And despite fierce opposition from oil company lobbyists, who kind of liked things the way they were, we broke their monopoly on power and resources.

As governor, I insisted on competition and basic fairness to end their control of our state and return it to the people.

I fought to bring about the largest private-sector infrastructure project in North American history.

And when that deal was struck, we began a nearly forty billion dollar natural gas pipeline to help lead America to energy independence.

That pipeline, when the last section is laid and its valves are opened, will lead America one step farther away from dependence on dangerous foreign powers that do not have our interests at heart.

The stakes for our nation could not be higher.

When a hurricane strikes in the Gulf of Mexico, this country should not be so dependent on imported oil that we are forced to draw from our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

And families cannot throw away more and more of their paychecks on gas and heating oil.

With Russia wanting to control a vital pipeline in the Caucasus, and to divide and intimidate our European allies by using energy as a weapon, we cannot leave ourselves at the mercy of foreign suppliers.

To confront the threat that Iran might seek to cut off nearly a fifth of world energy supplies ... or that terrorists might strike again at the Abqaiq facility in Saudi Arabia ... or that Venezuela might shut off its oil deliveries ... we Americans need to produce more of our own oil and gas.

And take it from a gal who knows the North Slope of Alaska: we've got lots of both.

Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling will not solve all of America's energy problems - as if we all didn't know that already.

But the fact that drilling won't solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all.

Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we're going to lay more pipelines ... build more new-clear plants ... create jobs with clean coal ... and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal, and other alternative sources.

We need American energy resources, brought to you by American ingenuity, and produced by American workers. I've noticed a pattern with our opponent.

Maybe you have, too.

We've all heard his dramatic speeches before devoted followers.

And there is much to like and admire about our opponent.

But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform - not even in the state senate.

This is a man who can give an entire speech about the wars America is fighting, and never use the word "victory" except when he's talking about his own campaign. But when the cloud of rhetoric has passed ... when the roar of the crowd fades away ... when the stadium lights go out, and those Styrofoam Greek columns are hauled back to some studio lot - what exactly is our opponent's plan? What does he actually seek to accomplish, after he's done turning back the waters and healing the planet? The answer is to make government bigger ... take more of your money ... give you more orders from Washington ... and to reduce the strength of America in a dangerous world. America needs more energy ... our opponent is against producing it.

Victory in Iraq is finally in sight ... he wants to forfeit.

Terrorist states are seeking new-clear weapons without delay ... he wants to meet them without preconditions.

Al Qaeda terrorists still plot to inflict catastrophic harm on America ... he's worried that someone won't read them their rights? Government is too big ... he wants to grow it.

Congress spends too much ... he promises more.

Taxes are too high ... he wants to raise them. His tax increases are the fine print in his economic plan, and let me be specific.

The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes ... raise payroll taxes ... raise investment income taxes ... raise the death tax ... raise business taxes ... and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars. My sister Heather and her husband have just built a service station that's now opened for business - like millions of others who run small businesses.

How are they going to be any better off if taxes go up? Or maybe you're trying to keep your job at a plant in Michigan or Ohio ... or create jobs with clean coal from Pennsylvania or West Virginia ... or keep a small farm in the family right here in Minnesota.

How are you going to be better off if our opponent adds a massive tax burden to the American economy? Here's how I look at the choice Americans face in this election.

In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers.

And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.

They're the ones whose names appear on laws and landmark reforms, not just on buttons and banners, or on self-designed presidential seals.

Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speechmaking, in which crowds are stirringly summoned to support great things.

And then there is the idealism of those leaders, like John McCain, who actually do great things. They're the ones who are good for more than talk ... the ones we have always been able to count on to serve and defend America. Senator McCain's record of actual achievement and reform helps explain why so many special interests, lobbyists, and comfortable committee chairmen in Congress have fought the prospect of a McCain presidency - from the primary election of 2000 to this very day.

Our nominee doesn't run with the Washington herd.

He's a man who's there to serve his country, and not just his party.

A leader who's not looking for a fight, but is not afraid of one either. Harry Reid, the Majority Leader of the current do-nothing Senate, not long ago summed up his feelings about our nominee.

He said, quote, "I can't stand John McCain." Ladies and gentlemen, perhaps no accolade we hear this week is better proof that we've chosen the right man. Clearly what the Majority Leader was driving at is that he can't stand up to John McCain. That is only one more reason to take the maverick of the Senate and put him in the White House. My fellow citizens, the American presidency is not supposed to be a journey of "personal discovery." This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn't just need an organizer.

And though both Senator Obama and Senator Biden have been going on lately about how they are always, quote, "fighting for you," let us face the matter squarely.

There is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you ... in places where winning means survival and defeat means death ... and that man is John McCain. In our day, politicians have readily shared much lesser tales of adversity than the nightmare world in which this man, and others equally brave, served and suffered for their country.

It's a long way from the fear and pain and squalor of a six-by-four cell in Hanoi to the Oval Office.

But if Senator McCain is elected president, that is the journey he will have made.

It's the journey of an upright and honorable man - the kind of fellow whose name you will find on war memorials in small towns across this country, only he was among those who came home.

To the most powerful office on earth, he would bring the compassion that comes from having once been powerless ... the wisdom that comes even to the captives, by the grace of God ... the special confidence of those who have seen evil, and seen how evil is overcome. A fellow prisoner of war, a man named Tom Moe of Lancaster, Ohio, recalls looking through a pin-hole in his cell door as Lieutenant Commander John McCain was led down the hallway, by the guards, day after day.

As the story is told, "When McCain shuffled back from torturous interrogations, he would turn toward Moe's door and flash a grin and thumbs up" - as if to say, "We're going to pull through this." My fellow Americans, that is the kind of man America needs to see us through these next four years.

For a season, a gifted speaker can inspire with his words.

For a lifetime, John McCain has inspired with his deeds.

If character is the measure in this election ... and hope the theme ... and change the goal we share, then I ask you to join our cause. Join our cause and help America elect a great man as the next president of the United States.

Thank you all, and may God bless America.

How fast can you type?

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:04:00 +0000

84 words

Speedtest

Add Jon Voight to the list of celebrity conservatives

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:23:00 +0000

Way to go Jon!

Monday, July 28, 2008

VOIGHT: My concerns for America

OP-ED Washington Times

We, as parents, are well aware of the importance of our teachers who teach and program our children. We also know how important it is for our children to play with good-thinking children growing up.

Sen. Barack Obama has grown up with the teaching of very angry, militant white and black people: the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan, William Ayers and Rev. Michael Pfleger. We cannot say we are not affected by teachers who are militant and angry. We know too well that we become like them, and Mr. Obama will run this country in their mindset.

The Democratic Party, in its quest for power, has managed a propaganda campaign with subliminal messages, creating a God-like figure in a man who falls short in every way. It seems to me that if Mr. Obama wins the presidential election, then Messrs. Farrakhan, Wright, Ayers and Pfleger will gain power for their need to demoralize this country and help create a socialist America.

The Democrats have targeted young people, knowing how easy it is to bring forth whatever is needed to program their minds. I know this process well. I was caught up in the hysteria during the Vietnam era, which was brought about through Marxist propaganda underlying the so-called peace movement. The radicals of that era were successful in giving the communists power to bring forth the killing fields and slaughter 2.5 million people in Cambodia and South Vietnam. Did they stop the war, or did they bring the war to those innocent people? In the end, they turned their backs on all the horror and suffering they helped create and walked away.

Those same leaders who were in the streets in the '60s are very powerful today in their work to bring down the Iraq war and to attack our president, and they have found their way into our schools. William Ayers is a good example of that.

Thank God, today, we have a strong generation of young soldiers who know exactly who they are and what they must do to protect our freedom and our democracy. And we have the leadership of Gen. David Petraeus, who has brought hope and stability to Iraq and prevented the terrorists from establishing a base in that country. Our soldiers are lifting us to an example of patriotism at a time when we've almost forgotten who we are and what is at stake.

If Mr. Obama had his way, he would have pulled our troops from Iraq years ago and initiated an unprecedented bloodbath, turning over that country to the barbarianism of our enemies. With what he has openly stated about his plans for our military, and his lack of understanding about the true nature of our enemies, there's not a cell in my body that can accept the idea that Mr. Obama can keep us safe from the terrorists around the world, and from Iran, which is making great strides toward getting the atomic bomb. And while a misleading portrait of Mr. Obama is being perpetrated by a media controlled by the Democrats, the Obama camp has sent out people to attack the greatness of Sen. John McCain, whose suffering and courage in a Hanoi prison camp is an American legend.

Gen. Wesley Clark, who himself has shame upon him, having been relieved of his command, has done their bidding and become a lying fool in his need to demean a fellow soldier and a true hero.

This is a perilous time, and more than ever, the world needs a united and strong America. If, God forbid, we live to see Mr. Obama president, we will live through a socialist era that America has not seen before, and our country will be weakened in every way.

Jon Voight is an Academy Award-winning actor who is well-known for his humanitarian work.

More kudos to Louisiana!!

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 10:47:00 +0000

Apparently Louisiana prosecutors have asked the Supreme Court to revisit their decision regarding the death penalty for CHILD rape. The prosecutors point out that no one considered the fact that there was a change to the federal law in 2006 that authorizes the death penalty for anyone in the military convicted of child rape.

Granting such a request is very rare, but the prosecutors contend that the justices wrote in their decision that they based their decision on the absence of any executions for rape and the small number of states that allow such executions.

I will keep following this story and report on any further changes.

See my previous blogs on the subject.

Global warming???

lorian1017@gmail.com (Lorian) — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 10:32:00 +0000

Gloomy summer headed toward infamy

CHILLY: Anchorage could hit 65 degrees for fewest days on record.

Anchorage Daily News
By GEORGE BRYSON
gbryson@adn.com
Published: July 24th, 2008 12:10 AM
Last Modified: July 24th, 2008 04:56 PM

The coldest summer ever? You might be looking at it, weather folks say.

Right now the so-called summer of '08 is on pace to produce the fewest days ever recorded in which the temperature in Anchorage managed to reach 65 degrees.

That unhappy record was set in 1970, when we only made it to the 65-degree mark, which many Alaskans consider a nice temperature, 16 days out of 365.

This year, however -- with the summer more than half over -- there have been only seven 65-degree days so far. And that's with just a month of potential "balmy" days remaining and the forecast looking gloomy.

National Weather Service meteorologist Sam Albanese, a storm warning coordinator for Alaska, says the outlook is for Anchorage to remain cool and cloudy through the rest of July.

"There's no real warm feature moving in," Albanese said. "And that's just been the pattern we've been stuck in for a couple weeks now."

In the Matanuska Valley on Wednesday snow dusted the Chugach. On the Kenai Peninsula, rain was raising Six-Mile River to flood levels and rafting trips had to be canceled.

So if the cold and drizzle are going to continue anyway, why not shoot for a record? The mark is well within reach, Albanese said:

"It's probably going to go down as the summer with the least number of 65-degree days."

MEASURING THE MISERY

In terms of "coldest summer ever," however, a better measure might be the number of days Anchorage fails to even reach 60.

There too, 2008 is a contender, having so far notched only 35 such days -- far below the summer-long average of 88.

Unless we get 10 more days of 60-degree or warmer temperatures, we're going to break the dismal 1971 record of only 46 such days, a possibility too awful to contemplate.

Still, according to a series of charts cobbled together Tuesday evening by a night-shift meteorologist in the weather service's Anchorage office, the current summer clearly has broken company with the record-setting warmth of recent years. Consider:

• 70-degree days. So far this summer there have been two. Usually there are 15. Last year there were 21. In 2004 there were 49.

• 75-degree days. So far this summer there've been zero. Usually there are four. It may be hard to remember, but last year there were 21. In 2004 there were 23.

So are all bets off on global warming? Hardly, scientists say. Climate change is a function of long-term trends, not single summers or individual hurricanes.

Last year the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded that it's "unequivocal" the world is warming, considering how 11 of the warmest years on record have occurred in the past 13 years.

So what's going on in Alaska, which also posted a fairly frigid winter?

LA NINA

Federal meteorologists trace a lot of the cool weather to ocean temperatures in the South Pacific.

When the seas off the coast of Peru are 2 to 4 degrees cooler than normal, a La Nina weather pattern develops, which brings cooler-than- normal weather to Alaska.

For most of the past year, La Nina (the opposite of El Nino, in which warmer-than-normal ocean temperatures occur off Peru) has prevailed. But that's now beginning to change.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web site, water temperatures in the eastern South Pacific began to warm this summer -- and the weather should eventually follow.

The current three-month outlook posted by the national Climate Prediction Center in Camp Springs, Md., calls for below-normal temperatures for the south coast of Alaska from August through October -- turning to above-normal temperatures from October through December.