What Did He Say Today ?

You Spin Me Right Round...Like a Record, Baby, Right Round....

2011-02-14T10:55:00.000-06:00

   British rock group Radiohead said on Monday they will release a new album online this week -- but abandoned the experiment they made with their last record when they let fans decide the price.

     In a surprise announcement on their website, the band said "The King of Limbs", their eighth album, could be downloaded for £6 ($9, 7 euros) on Saturday.

     In October 2007 Radiohead caused a major stir in the music industry when they told listeners they could pay whatever they wanted to download their album "In Rainbows".

     At the time the website said "It's up to you" in place of a price.

     A survey soon afterwards showed that about a third of people paid nothing for the downloaded album, with the average price being four pounds.

     Some industry figures criticised the band, saying the precedent of allowing fans to pay what they wanted could be dangerous for artists trying to protect their interests at a difficult time.

     Letting fans decide how much to pay was an interesting model but it was doomed because it felt too political. Anyone with a healthy common sense will be naturally distrustful if asked to pay to be principled... It didn't help much that, despite containing some very beautiful music, this was probably their worst album. I mean, say what you want about Pablo Honey but it was a financially successful record...

     The basic problem with the music industry is that they have turned music into a rather expensive product... No, bands are not entitled to charge as much as they did back when production and distribution of records was somewhat expensive, the Internet really did change all that.

     Musicians are certainly entitled to make a living off their work, but they need to understand the paying public will no longer support their lavish lifestyles, much less those of record company executives. However talented you may be as an artist, or not, it really should be live performances that earn you a living. Just as it has always been for musicians since the dawn of history.

     I'm a big fan of Radiohead's music (obviously ;)) and will likely buy the new album, just as I have every single other one they've ever produced, but it will be an exception.
     As most people who do listen to a lot of music I no longer pay for most of it (not downloading, just got a good enough connection I can use youtube as a jukebox). The age of rock stars is now gone and it's not all bad, musicians should be in it for the passion and not for financial gain. The loss for big world renowned groups has become a gain for small local scene gigs. The prevalent culture of celebrity worship may make it attractive to turn art into products, but once you've crossed that line you need to deal with the fact product prices are set by the market. And the market is saying people are no longer willing to pay so much for something they can get for free.

Just Say Nyet....

2011-01-27T14:17:00.001-06:00

     I have recently come to the conclusion that leftists reveal their innermost thoughts when attacking those with whom they disagree. For example, in President Obama's recently televised meeting with Republicans, he chastised critics who believe his policies are part of some Bolshevik plot.

     My first thought was, huh? I frequently listen to and read conservative media, and I had never heard this analysis. So it seemed that Obama was responding to an argument no one had made. Why would he do this? The answer may lie in my second thought, which was that Mr. Obama had just provided the most brilliant and succinct analysis I have heard for the motivation behind his administration's agenda. Why all these czars? Bolshevik plot. Why take over General Motors? Bolshevik plot. Why attack the banks? Bolshevik plot. Why force nationalized health care down our throats? Bolshevik plot. Why attempt to turn the National Endowment for the Arts into a propaganda ministry? Bolshevik plot. And so on and so on. Thank you, Mr. President. The previously nonexistent argument you responded to now exists, and it is a powerful one.

     Another example is the charge of racism leveled against anyone who disagrees with President Obama's way of thinking. (The most recent declaration is that anyone who calls Mr. Obama a "professor" is probably a racist.) This has given conservatives a prolonged and collective "Huh?" moment. As conservatives, we are surprised to hear that our opposition to policies connected with Caucasians like Marx, Lenin, and Stalin would suddenly be a manifestation of white hostility toward blacks. This idea is so far from our minds that we wonder how anyone could even conceive of such an accusation.

     The reason, as with President Obama and his Bolshevik plot, is that rather than accurately describing the opposition, the left is actually revealing something about itself. This was perhaps illustrated most clearly when after President Obama's recent State of the Union address. This comment is instructive because it speaks to the left's own racism and to the reason why they try to transfer their shortcomings onto us. In other words, since the left is racist, conservatives must be racist, too.

     The history of the Soviet Union is a plausible source for the account of American history. The motives that he claims are possessed by his opponents are most likely his own, given the tendency of leftists to project onto conservatives their own failings. The left are trying to bring about class warfare by fementing hatred and fear among different groups of people. If this class warfare ever is successful in establishing a communist dictatorship, then the ruling class -- which would most likely consist of privileged white leftists -- would rely on continued racial and class hatred to maintain their power. People of color, women, gays, animals, and the environment would be oppressed under this regime; only this time the oppression will be real. However, as was the case in the USSR, the regime may enjoy a measure of support for its efforts at keeping the hated class -- white people who do not give their allegiance to the party -- in check.

Jiminy Cricket: What does an actor want with a conscience, anyway?

2011-01-26T13:44:00.001-06:00

     The ledger did not appear to be adding up Tuesday night when President Barack Obama urged more spending on one hand and a spending freeze on the other.

     Here's a look at some of Obama's statements Tuesday night and how they compare with the facts:
___

     OBAMA: Tackling the deficit "means further reducing health care costs, including programs like Medicare and Medicaid, which are the single biggest contributor to our long-term deficit. Health insurance reform will slow these rising costs, which is part of why nonpartisan economists have said that repealing the health care law would add a quarter of a trillion dollars to our deficit."

     THE FACTS: The idea that Obama's health care law saves money for the government is based on some arguable assumptions.

     To be sure, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated the law will slightly reduce red ink over 10 years. But the office's analysis assumes that steep cuts in Medicare spending, as called for in the law, will actually take place. Others in the government have concluded it is unrealistic to expect such savings from Medicare.

     In recent years, for example, Congress has repeatedly overridden a law that would save the treasury billions by cutting deeply into Medicare pay for doctors. Just last month, the government once again put off the scheduled cuts for another year, at a cost of $19 billion. That money is being taken out of the health care overhaul. Congress has shown itself sensitive to pressure from seniors and their doctors, and there's little reason to think that will change.
___

     OBAMA: Vowed to veto any bills sent to him that include "earmarks," pet spending provisions pushed by individual lawmakers. "Both parties in Congress should know this: If a bill comes to my desk with earmarks inside, I will veto it."

     THE FACTS: House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has promised that no bill with earmarks will be sent to Obama in the first place. Republicans have taken the lead in battling earmarks while Obama signed plenty of earmark-laden spending bills when Democrats controlled both houses. As recently as last month, Obama was prepared to sign a catchall spending measure stuffed with earmarks, before it collapsed in the Senate after an outcry from conservatives over the bill's $8 billion-plus in home-state pet projects.

     It's a turnabout for the president; in early 2009, Obama sounded like an apologist for the practice: "Done right, earmarks have given legislators the opportunity to direct federal money to worthy projects that benefit people in their districts, and that's why I've opposed their outright elimination," he said then.
___

     OBAMA: "I'm willing to look at other ideas to bring down costs, including one that Republicans suggested last year: medical malpractice reform to rein in frivolous lawsuits."

     THE FACTS: Republicans may be forgiven if this offer makes them feel like Charlie Brown running up to kick the football, only to have it pulled away, again.

     Obama has expressed openness before to this prominent Republican proposal, but it has not come to much. It was one of several GOP ideas that were dropped or diminished in the health care law after Obama endorsed them in a televised bipartisan meeting at the height of the debate.

     Republicans want federal action to limit jury awards in medical malpractice cases; what Obama appears to be offering, by supporting state efforts, falls short of that. The president has said he agrees that fear of being sued leads to unnecessary tests and procedures that drive up health care costs. So far the administration has provided grants to test ideas aimed at reducing medical mistakes and resolving malpractice cases by negotiation, but has recommended no change in federal law.

    Trial lawyers, major political donors to Democratic candidates, are strongly opposed to caps on jury awards. But the administration has been reluctant to support other approaches, such as the creation of specialized courts where expert judges, not juries, would decide malpractice cases. In October 2009 the Congressional Budget Office estimated that government health care programs could save $41 billion over 10 years if nationwide limits on jury awards for pain and suffering and other similar curbs were enacted.
___

     OBAMA: "Within 25 years, our goal is to give 80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail, which could allow you go places in half the time it takes to travel by car. For some trips, it will be faster than flying — without the pat-down."

     THE FACTS: High-speed rail has been most successful for trips between cities roughly 200 to 500 miles apart — planes are more efficient for longer distances and cars for shorter trips. Administration officials say it's inevitable that there will fast passenger train service between U.S. cities since projected population growth — 70 million more people in the next 25 years — will otherwise create congestion so severe that air or highway travel between nearby cities will become impractical.

     But there are many major hurdles that will have to be overcome. Congress has approved $10.5 billion to jump start selected high-speed rail projects, but some industry estimates for the cost of a truly national network with service to major cities in every region of the country range from $500 billion to $1 trillion. Also, it's doubtful that all service will be truly high-speed, often described as a minimum of 110 mph. Frequent stops could force trains to travel slower for safety even if they are capable of higher speeds.
___

     THE FACTS: Obama's fiscal commission did not simply recommend cutting excessive spending; it proposed that the deficit could only be tamed by cutting $3 for every $1 of new revenue raised — in other words, a painful mix of spending cuts and tax increases. Instead, Obama proposed an overhaul of the corporate tax system that would eliminate loopholes and tax breaks but also reduce tax rates. The net effect would be neutral; it would not reduce or raise any revenue. Obama has yet to sign on to any of the ideas, even though he promised when creating the panel that it would not be "one of those Washington gimmicks."
___

     OBAMA: "To put us on solid ground, we should also find a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for future generations."

     THE FACTS: With that comment, Obama missed another chance to embrace the tough medicine proposed by the commission for bringing down the deficit. For example, he ruled out slashing benefits or partially privatizing the program, and made no reference to raising the retirement age. That left listeners to guess how he plans to do anything to salvage the popular retirement program whose trust funds are expected to run out of money in 2037 without changes.
___

     OBAMA: As testament to the fruits of his administration's diplomatic efforts to control the spread of nuclear weapons, he said the Iranian government "faces tougher and tighter sanctions than ever before."

     THE FACTS: That is true, and it reflects Obama's promise one year ago that Iran would face "growing consequences" if it failed to heed international demands to constrain its nuclear program. But what Obama didn't say was that U.S. diplomacy has failed to persuade Tehran to negotiate over U.N. demands that it take steps to prove it is not on the path toward a bomb. Preliminary talks with Iran earlier this month broke off after the Iranians demanded U.S. sanctions be lifted.

     To summarize: Obama said stuff people think they want to hear, yet has little substance and impact, all while taking subtle jabs at the GOP for not being "bipartisan" even though the last 2 years the party in control had no intentions of it.

Yeah Right! Promises, Promises.....

2011-01-25T13:46:00.000-06:00

     Barack Obama has another opportunity tonight to build on the surprisingly quick rebound he has engineered since receiving a "shellacking" from the voters in November. Thanks to the series of compromises he forged with congressional Republicans in December, the president is now enjoying his strongest approval ratings since early last year.

     Be that as it may, false promises are not "Change We Can Believe In."
President Obama diverted the legitimate anger and energy for real change and scuttled it under what has become known as the fraudulent tent of the Democratic Party. He led millions to the cliff, and they are now falling off in droves. Those who have not quite gotten to the edge are yelling: "Wait! Give him more time!"

     Nearly everyone of us still remember Obama saying during the campaign, "America is the greatest country in the world, now help me change it." No words could have been more true.

     Over the past year Obama has laid the ground work to transform our country into something unrecognizable. Therein, Obama has completely dashed and destroyed the false hopes of nearly everyone within the Democratic Party, and the political system as it stands. Without question, Obama has filled the Democratic Party hot air balloon to the limit and it has burst. It falls like a failing parachute taking along nearly everyone within the Democratic Party.

     Remember when Obama said he will not destroy the social security system? Just another one of his many, many, many misleading promises.

     1. President Obama promised, “I’ll make our government open and transparent, so that anyone can ensure that our business is the people’s business.”

     2. President Obama promised, “As President, I’m going to make it impossible for Congressmen or lobbyists to slip pork barrel projects or corporate welfare into laws when no one’s looking…”

     3. President Obama promised, "When I’m President, meetings where laws are written will be more open to the public. No more secrecy. That is the commitment I make to you as President.”

     4. President Obama promised, “When there’s a bill that ends up on my desk as President, you the public will have five days to look online to see what's in it before I sign it."

     5. President Obama promised, “When there are meetings between lobbyists and a government agency, we’ll put as many of those meetings as possible online for every American to watch.”

     6. President Obama promised, “When there’s a tax bill being debated in Congress, you will know the names of the corporations that would benefit and how much money they would get, and we will put every corporate tax break and every pork barrel project online for every American to see. You will know who asked for them and you can decide whether your representative is actually representing you." And the list goes on and on and on and on and on.

     Obama will use the Tucson, AZ. victim's families as a shield for his political objectives. As we all know, the lone shooter had absolutely NO connection or political affiliations with the right, yet, here we have... once again... the President using these victims to promote "more civil discourse."

     The Tucson shootings have NOTHING to do with taxpayers screaming for reforms, caps on spending, creating a balanced budget, securing our borders, improving national security, lowering taxes, and creating jobs!

     We do not need civility, we need change NOW! This claim of a need for civility is really nothing more than the media, Obama, and Democrats wanting taxpayers and Tea party members and Republicans to shut up and let them continue to push a socialistic agenda!
They are shamelessly using this tragedy as a ploy to distract the country.

     Do not let the mainstream media, Democrats and others paint themselves in the blood of innocent victims of a senseless and UNRELATED tragedy and use it to avoid facing the reforms this country so desperately needs! Those of us who love this country, love our history, are patriots seeking budgetary reforms and other changes necessary to the nation's survival and are screaming for these reforms are NOT the problem. We are the solution to the problem!

     Do you think our Forefathers would have been successful if guilt mongers had silenced them? We would still be a British colony if they had silenced their objections and decided to be "more civil."

     You know you failed, when you lean to the left and the left makes jokes at your expense.
     Here are a few examples:

     The liberals are asking us to give Obama time. We agree . . . and think 25 to life      would be appropriate.
     --Jay Leno

     America needs Obama-care like Nancy Pelosi needs a Halloween mask.
     --Jay Leno

     Q: Have you heard about McDonald's' new Obama Value Meal?
     A: Order anything you like and the guy behind you has to pay for it.
     --Conan O'Brien

     Q: What does Barack Obama call lunch with a convicted felon?
     A: A fund raiser.
     --Jay Leno

     Q: What's the difference between Obama's cabinet and a penitentiary?
     A: One is filled with tax evaders, blackmailers, and threats to society. The other is      for housing prisoners.
     --David Letterman

     Q: If Nancy Pelosi and Obama were on a boat in the middle of the ocean and it started      to sink, who would be saved?
     A: America !
     --Jimmy Fallon

     Q: What's the difference between Obama and his dog, Bo?
     A: Bo has papers.
     --Jimmy Kimmel

     Q: What was the most positive result of the "Cash for Clunkers" program?
     A: It took 95% of the Obama bumper stickers off the road.
     --David Letterman

     Let's hope the SOTU

Shiver Me Timbers, There Be Pirates A'plenty......

2011-01-21T15:21:00.000-06:00

     South Korean navy commandos on Friday stormed a ship hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean, rescuing all the 21 crew and killing eight pirates

     The SEAL special forces boarded the South Korean ship before dawn, freeing all the hostages and killing the pirates in cabin-to-cabin battles, they said. Five other pirates were captured.

    The pirates seized the 11,500-ton ship and 21 crew members -- eight South Koreans, two Indonesians and 11 from Myanmar -- on January 15 in the Arabian Sea when it was en route to Sri Lanka from the United Arab Emirates.

    Seoul ordered a destroyer on patrol in the Gulf of Aden to give chase and President Lee ordered "all possible measures" to save the crew.

    General Lee said the commandos moved in after receiving information that the "mother ship" for the pirates was leaving a Somali port.

     I'm tired of the U.S. being the wuss of the world. Everybody in the PC crowd is too worried about what others think of us and they would give up our arms in order to 'make friends.'

     Whether or not you give up the 'milk money', you will eventually get 'beaten up' if there is an opportunity. I want to keep the milk money and never give them the opportunity to be 'beaten up.'

     This is done through ongoing shows of force and not by signs of weakness. South Korea showed that they can be stronger than we are.

     The U.S. should be the first to order an advance strike team to attend to the problem of piracy on the high seas. Pirates are not just hijacking freighters carrying sneakers and t-shirts. Pirates are hijacking oil container ships, chemical carriers and other deliveries that can be turned into weapons. Some of the hijacked deliveries have been weapons.

      I have always said: If you want to scare someone, sneak-up on them.

      One of the most feared vessels on the high seas, during WWII was a submarine. Not easily detected and could inflict a whole lot of pain.

      If someone was smart, a security firm could enlist the use of decommissioned subs to shadow freighters they are hired to protect. This is no different than having a security team on board the vessel. Can you hear me "Blackwater"?

     On a side note: one of the most controversial rescues was by the Russian marines who freed 23 crew members barricaded on board a Russian tanker, the "Moscow University". The pirates were later found dead and adrift in a small boat.

Why Are Pirates, Pirates? Because They Arrrrrrrrr.....

2011-01-14T10:23:00.000-06:00

     NATO's anti-piracy force has found no crew members or pirates on board a Danish cargo ship that Somali pirates hijacked and then abandoned, officials said Friday.

     The MV Leopard was attacked on Wednesday by pirates in two skiffs but since then the ship's owner, Shipcraft shipping company, has lost contact with its crew of six.

     With the attack on the MV Leopard and the hijacking of its crew, Somali pirates currently hold 28 vessels and about 660 sailors and other crew hostage.

     Somali pirates attack vessels because of the multimillion dollar ransoms they are able to get. Piracy thrives because of Somalia's lawlessness and its coastline runs along some of the world's key waterways such as the Gulf of Aden through which an estimated 20,000 ships pass. Many of these also pass through the Arabian Sea.

     Somalia has not had an effective central government for 20 years nor does it have a naval force that can tackle piracy off its coast. The ransoms the pirates get are among the few regular sources of income for small businesses that supply the pirates food and other goods.

     This whole problem began with a few Somalis who made their fortune one way or another and then returned to Somalia to exploit a few dumb kids who don't know any better from the hordes of uneducated, unemployable thugs who crowd every port in that godforsaken country.

     People always want to make it out to seem that it's the poor Africans who suffer at the hands of inhumane scorn from the west which drives them to commit acts like these. It's ridiculousness. These kids are getting money, weapons, boats, satellite phones, GPS equipment, all the tools of the pirate trade from well-to-do Somalians living in the west who most likely made their own fortunes on the blood of their own countrymen.

     Former warlords, pimps, murderers, whatever you want to call them, that's who we ought to be looking for as the brains behind these operations. These imps can't communicate with anyone who isn't Somali and they certainly wouldn't be taking orders from them.

     My answer to all this is assign coalition submarines to the area. Seek out the pirates and when discovered, sneak up on them, surface and the first one that fires on the sub is taken out. If this is done on a daily bases, the piracy will stop.

     These ships, merchant or whatever, need to be allowed safe passage. If the Somali pirates take action against ships from all nations, then all nations should take action against the pirates.

     Piracy use to be a capital offense like horse theft. If you were caught, you were hanged. Now we pay ransoms.

     One day they will board a ship that has nuclear material (medical or industrial) and it will be enough for them to realize that now they can take the whole world hostage.

Hey, Govenor Quinn, What's All That Noise Outside.....

2011-01-13T13:13:00.001-06:00

    While many states consider boosting their economies with tax cuts, Illinois officials are betting on the opposite tactic: dramatically raising taxes to resolve a budget crisis that threatened to cripple state government.

    Neighboring states gleefully plotted Wednesday to take advantage of what they consider a major economic blunder and lure business away from Illinois.

    By going where no other state dares to tread, Illinois could prove itself to be a policy pacesetter or the opposite — a place so dysfunctional that officials created a jaw-dropping budget crisis and then tried to fix it by knee-capping the economy.

    Illinois faced a budget deficit of $15 billion in the coming year, equivalent to more than half the state's general fund. Officials warned that state government might not be able to pay its employees. It certainly would fall further behind in paying the businesses, charities and schools that provide services on the state's behalf.

    To avoid that, the Democrat-controlled General Assembly voted to temporarily raise personal income taxes 66 percent, from 3 percent to 5 percent. Corporate rates will rise, too — from 4.8 percent to 7 percent — when Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn signs the measure.

    The increase is expected to produce $6.8 billion a year for the four years it's in full effect. That should be enough to balance Illinois' annual budget and begin chipping away at a backlog of roughly $8 billion in old bills.

    Here is an over simplified version of what is and will happen:

    The people that elect the Democrat politicians are two basic types, idealists and the "freebie" crowd.

    The idealists have a Utopian socialist vision that if everyone were equal, all problems in the world will go away. They will vote for whomever they think will make the world magically better. They listen to the socialist blather from Democrats and buy in. The idealists and socialist politicians start giving a chunk of working people's money to the freebie crowd.

    The freebie crowd uses their free food stamps to eat, get free medical to breed more urchins, use the extra money from those urchins (via welfare) to buy beer and luxury items, etc. Then they use their free bus pass to go to the polling booth and vote in Democrats. Those Democrats insure that the above freebies will continue.

    Now throw an outfit like ACORN into the mix that encourages this behavior. This is destructive and problematic. For all of ACORN'S and the left wing's big words, having irresponsible people voting is bad policy. By busing lowlifes, druggies, and decent but non productive people to the polling places, the balance gets shaky.

    When the idealists plus the freebie crowd is over 50% of the voting population, the out of touch politicians are encouraged and can stay in power. All is well until the money starts drying up. The politicians then overtax the productive people to support their constituency.

    The productive people start becoming unproductive. There comes a point where they are forced to go elsewhere. They trickle out of the city or state, gradually leaving behind insolvent places like New York, Illinois, and California.

    The freebie crowd hangs around for awhile, then they are forced to move when their former states can't afford to support them any more. They start another den of insolvency elsewhere. The Idealists are left blaming the productive people for all the world's problems and wondering what the heck happened? (We are about at this point in the US.)

    It never seems to occur to either of these groups that work and productivity builds economies, not idealism and laziness.

    And let us not forget the failed policies of the crooks and mobsters of Chicago and Cook County. Why is Springfield still the capitol? Shouldn't that have been moved to Chicago since they are the ones who call the shots? And even now people are still surprised by all this. These are the people who gave us Obama, Blago and Ryan.

    All this will prove is that the politicians, unions, and corporations that agree with the politicians will continue to get richer and the people will get poorer.

Just STFU......

2011-01-12T15:47:00.000-06:00

     Arizona state lawmakers moved swiftly on Tuesday to try to block members of a Kansas-based fundamentalist church from staging anti-gay protests at the funerals of the six shooting victims in Tucson.

     By unanimous votes, state lawmakers in both houses of the Legislature passed emergency legislation to bar such protests within 300 feet of funeral and burial services for one hour before and after the ceremonies. Violators would face a misdemeanor charge.

     The Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, has said it plans to hold demonstrations at the funerals of those gunned down on Saturday outside a Tucson supermarket.

     Church members have picketed the funerals of U.S. military personnel killed in Afghanistan and Iraq to promote their belief that America is being punished by God for tolerating homosexuals, but a nine year old girl, who never got to live life, did nothing to warrant these animals presences.

     Why would a group of people, mostly related to each other, carry on like this? Money.

     A large number of them are lawyers. They are vicious and mean but also quite intelligent. They do incredibly awful things and infuriate the people, but remember, they always have the appropriate permits to protest and they are always careful not to violate any laws.

     They almost always have police protection (even though the police despise them as much as anyone else). When people attack them or cause harm to them during their protests they accuse the city of not protecting them and they sue the city. They want to be attacked. They know how angry they make people. That's what they want.

     I say ignore them so that they have no reason to sue a city or community. Sooner or later, they will be the aggressors and they will be arrested. Do it enough times and they will run out of money for court/bail fees. Even a sibling lawyer will work pro bono just so many times before they start ignoring your calls for free counsel.

     I feel that when its their time to go, they better be cremated, for I see many pee stains on their once shinny marble head stones.

So Long, For Now....

2010-12-20T10:59:00.002-06:00

I've decided to take the next 2-3 weeks off. It's Christmas time and I'm tired.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday.

Mein God.......

2010-12-16T13:47:00.001-06:00

     German authorities hardened a crackdown on Islamic groups yesterday, raiding homes and schools that reportedly belong to adherents of fundamentalist Salafi Islam.

     German officials said the preemptive raids, conducted under German anti-Nazi laws of association, were aimed at uncovering unconstitutional or separatist acts and not part of an international terror hunt.

     The raids targeted the Islamic Cultural Center of Bremen, on the North Sea, along with a group calling itself Invitation to Paradise in two small northwest German cities. Invitation to Paradise's leader has called for sharia, or Islamic law, to prevail one day but has specifically opposed using violence to impose it.

     The German Interior Ministry said it was investigating efforts by radicals to overthrow the government on theological Islamic grounds. In a statement issued Tuesday, the ministry said that, â€œFor a well-fortified democracy, it is necessary and demanded, without waiting for the jihad to occur in the form of armed struggle, to take action against anti-constitutional organizations.â€

     A leader of Invitation to Paradise, Pierre Vogel, has been a lightening rod in Germany for some time now. He's a German convert to Islam who appears on numerous TV shows to defend the concept of sharia.

     It might be a good idea to practice compassionate will toward all people of the world without bringing in archaic principles and prayers that were invented by people nobody can even prove ever existed.

     Terrorists are cowards forcing civilized society to react in a cowering fashion. The West is vilified for accidentally killing non-combatants; Muslim killers are lionized as martyrs for their murderous atrocities committed against fellow Muslims, all because they are members of the "true" religion.

     General "Blackjack" Pershing fought these extremist in the Philippines generations ago. When he caught these fanatics he killed them. Covered the corpses in pig blood and then let one go to report on what happened. They believe that they will not gain Paradise after being defiled.

     In 1954 the Communist Control Act was passed that states in part:

     The Congress hereby finds and declares that the Communist Party of the United States, although purportedly a political party, is in fact an instrumentality of a conspiracy to overthrow the Government of the United States. It constitutes an authoritarian dictatorship within a republic, demanding for itself the rights and privileges accorded to political parties, but denying to all others the liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. Unlike political parties, which evolve their policies and programs through public means, by the reconciliation of a wide variety of individual views, and submit those policies and programs to the electorate at large for approval or disapproval, the policies and programs of the Communist Party are secretly prescribed for it by the foreign leaders of the world Communist movement. Its members have no part in determining its goals, and are not permitted to voice dissent to party objectives

Replace Communist Party with Islam.

Islam Control Act
     Sec. 2 The Congress hereby finds and declares that the religion of Islam in the United States, although purportedly a religion, is in fact an instrumentality of a conspiracy to overthrow the Government of the United States. It constitutes an authoritarian dictatorship within a republic, demanding for itself the rights and privileges accorded to religions, but denying to all others the liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. Unlike political parties, which evolve their policies and programs through public means, by the reconciliation of a wide variety of individual views, and submit those policies and programs to the electorate at large for approval or disapproval, the policies and programs of the Islamists are secretly prescribed for them by the foreign leaders of the world Islamic Um ma. The local islamists have no part in determining its goals, and are not permitted to voice dissent to world Islamic Um ma objectives.

     Sec. 3. Islamic organizations, regardless of their assumed name, whose object or purpose is to overthrow through Sharia the Government of the United States, or the government of any State, Territory, District, or possession thereof, or the government of any political subdivision therein by force and violence, are not entitled to any of the rights, privileges, and immunities attendant upon legal bodies created under the jurisdiction of the laws of the United States or any political subdivision thereof; and whatever rights, privileges, and immunities which have heretofore been granted to said religion or any subsidiary organization by reason of the laws of the United States or any political subdivision thereof, are hereby terminated:

     Sec. 4. Whoever knowingly and willfully becomes or remains a member of such organizations, or (2) any other organization having for one of its purposes or objectives the establishment, control conduct, seizure, or overthrow of the Government of the United States, or the government of any State or political subdivision thereof, by the use of force or violence, with knowledge of the purpose or objective of such organization shall be subject to all the provisions and penalties of the Internal Security Act of 1950

     A wise man once told me that " religion has destroyed more civilizations and killed more people than all the wars since the beginning of time."

Trouble In Paradise.....

2010-12-15T16:30:00.001-06:00

    Two suicide bomb attacks killed 39 people outside a mosque during a Shi'ite religious ceremony in southeastern Iran on Wednesday, a strike Jundollah rebels said was retaliation for the execution of their leader in June.

     The bombings killed many children and women, who attended a Shi'ite religious ceremony to commemorate the death of Prophet Mohammad's grandson Hussein, state television reported, adding that the death toll was expected to increase.

     Two weeks ago Iranian nuclear scientists are murdered and shot as they drove to work with their wives. The American media barely made a squeak about it. Now another suicide bombing in Iran. If this keeps up, Americans might start getting a different impression of the country the US calls the "greatest state sponsor of terrorism."

     Shia Iran supports Palestinian militants. Sunni extremists are the global, anti-American terrorists which the war on terror should be focused on. These Sunni terrorists hate Iran as much as they hate America.

      If any terrorist think blowing up women and innocent children will be your path to heaven, I pity you and hope its hotter than hell where your going, without your harem of virgins. Tell you what, I'll double your virgin allotment if you put an AK barrel in your mouth and squeeze that trigger. My afterlife promise is every bit as valid as yours is.

     "You pray with your Palms up, for that I will kill you and myself.
      You pray with your Palms down, for this I will kill you and myself."

     I don't think all religions are meant to be good. There has to be that one crazy uncle that won't take his meds and scares the crap out of the rest of the family.

     By the way. The 72 virgins we hear about: are they women, men or sexy goats in black stockings? Just asking.

What Comes Around, Goes Around....

2010-12-14T17:07:00.000-06:00

President Hugo Chavez's government has sold China oil for as little as $5 a barrel and was upset that China apparently profited by selling fuel to other countries, according to a classified U.S. document released by WikiLeaks.

     Chavez relies on oil sales to his No. 1 client, the United States, to help fund his socialist-inspired programs. But he has been building up oil sales to China, and in October said oil shipments to China had reached about 500,000 barrels a day, in spite of higher transport costs to reach Asia.

     While Venezuela says it produces about 3 million barrels of oil a day, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates the amount at 2.2 million barrels a day in 2009, down about 190,000 barrels from 2008.

     The U.S. Embassy predicted that Venezuela's declining oil output and years of inadequate investment will eventually force "hard economic choices." It said "President Chavez will react when he can no longer ignore the problems in the oil sector."

     We're too stupid to drill our own oil and too stupid to get cheap oil from Mexico. If you look at what a gallon of gas costs in Mexico it would make you sick.

     High gas prices is the lefts way of pushing green initiatives based on the global warming fantasy. so what if the U.S. is losing thousands of jobs and people can't afford to keep warm in the winter.

     Chavez is smarter than we are. He knows how to drill off his shores. We won't because it's much more important to keep the liberal base happy than to be energy independent.

POP! Goes The Weasel('s head).....

2010-12-13T15:19:00.000-06:00

     A Middle Eastern man killed in a blast in Stockholm was wearing a bomb belt and
ready to attack a train station or department store when the device went off
prematurely.

     The attack, the first of its kind in Sweden, has heightened fears about attacks in
Europe during the Christmas holidays.

     The incident began when a car containing gas cylinders blew up in a shopping area
in central Stockholm on Saturday. Minutes later a blast nearby killed the bomber and
hurt two people.

     Police were all but certain the attacker was Taymour Abdulwahab, who emigrated to
Sweden in 1992 but mostly lived in Britain with his wife and two children. An entry by
Abdulwahab on a Muslim dating website gave his birthplace as Iraq.

     What? A Muslim man that is married posting on a dating website and he wasn't killed for adultery? Just another example of the hypocrisy of the Middle Eastern people. A Muslim women would have been stoned or drug thru the streets.

    The so-called “members of other faiths” alluded to by Muslims are nearly always just
nominal members who have NO active involvement. They are neither inspired by, nor do
they credit religion as Muslim terrorists do, and this is what makes it a very different
matter.

    Islam is associated with Islamic terrorism because that is the association that the
terrorists themselves CHOOSE to make.

    Muslims who compare crime committed by people who happen to be nominal members of
other religions to religious terror committed EXPLICITLY in the name of Islam are
comparing apples to oranges.

    Yes, some of the abortion clinic bombers were religious (as Muslims pointing out),
but consider the scope of the problem. There were FIVE deadly attacks over a 35 year
period in the U.S. Seven people died. This is an average of one death every five years.
I will say again…ONE!!

    By contrast, Islamic terrorists have staged over 16,000 deadly attacks in just the
nine years following September 11th, 2001. If one goes back to 1971, when Muslim armies
in Bangladesh began the mass slaughter of Hindus, through the years of Jihad in the
Sudan, Kashmir and Algeria, and the present-day Sunni-Shia violence in Iraq, the number
of innocents killed in the name of Islam probably exceeds 7,000,000 over this same
period.

    In the last 9 years, there have been perhaps a dozen or so religiously-inspired
killings by people of all other faiths COMBINED. You will have a hard time finding a
single DAY where ISLAM doesn't rear its ugly head like in Stockholm!

    No other religion produces the killing sprees that Islam does nearly every day of
the year. Neither do they have verses in their holy texts that arguably support i, nor
do they have large groups across the globe dedicated to the mass murder of people who
worship a different god and don’t wish to “submit and surrender” to the moon-god-Allah.

     I would suggest that we take a long hard look at whether those who profess any
religion or culture that condones such actions should or can be tolerated or accorded
the title of "civilized."

     People who run around blowing themselves and others up in the name of anyone, much
less a "God" figure, demonstrate their complete and total lack of understanding much
less respect of their fellow humans.

     Mad men blow themselves up to demonstrate their religious commitment and fervor.
Sane, civilized men respect their fellow humans if they intend to be a part of any
society or civilization.

    Perhaps the solution is not to allow these folks refuge in any country but those
that would condone and tolerate such madness. Let them blow each other up in the name of
their "God." The option is to wage total and complete war against those who would allow
such insane actions within our midst.

     Let these zealots create their own country so they can have their own laws and
government: Then, when they are established, give them 15 minutes warning and turn their
whole country into glass.

...And It's One, Two, Three, What Are We Fightin' For....

2010-12-10T08:56:00.000-06:00

     Internet activists defied efforts to end their online assaults against institutions seen as enemies of WikiLeaks on Thursday, promising more cyber attacks on targets starting with PayPal.

     The campaign to avenge WikiLeaks against those who have obstructed its operations, calling itself Operation Payback, has already temporarily brought down the websites of credit-card giants Visa and MasterCard, and of the Swedish government.

     Some of the motivation for the cyber campaign appears to stem from anger at the arrest in Britain of Julian Assange , WikiLeaks co-owner, over alleged sex crimes committed in Sweden. He is in jail in London, awaiting an extradition hearing.

     Assange said last week he had expected clampdowns in countries such as the United States that championed free speech, and had deliberately picked providers like Amazon to host its data to test that theory.

     Assange may have orchestrated these circumstances just to throw off the prosecution because he couldn't bribe his accusers. I don't see how attacking the public at large does much more than discredit Assange whose "free speech" issues are being worked through the courts. By attacking civil institutions and the public at large it would underline that Assange is the advocate not hero of criminal behaviour and anti-free speech and commerce.

     People who think this is a war over 'freedom of speech' have it wrong. Freedom of speech is about one's right to articulate their thinking without the fear of persecution or prosecution.

     Stealing classified information and publishing it on the Internet is not an example of freedom of speech. It is an example of an individual or individuals self-centered goals to be destructive.

     Bear in mind that our freedoms are not inherent; freedom requires that some background information is kept out of the hands of the public. Irrespective of your beliefs in what the government does clandestinely, you and I enjoy a freedom that many others do not. It is not the best scenario, but given what goes on in other countries, we have it better than most.

     The bigger issue is how do we turn this country around and fix the economic issues. Without a strong economic base, the USA is nothing. Just look at how in the past 20 years China has lifted hundreds of millions of its people out of poverty and into the middle class. And yet, their citizens DO NOT enjoy freedom of speech.

     People like Assange and his loser fanboys are an annoyance to our country. They would see the USA brought down with the things they do. Maybe they need to spend a year in China or worse in Iran. Then maybe they would be part of the solution instead of being part of the problem.

From Weiner to Dick in 11 minutes.....

2010-12-09T11:48:00.003-06:00

     In a eleven minute segment that started as a discussion of President Obama’s deal on tax cuts, a very testy Dem. Rep. Anthony Weiner criticized the president for “not fighting hard enough.”

     But as the conversation drifted to the estate tax, Weiner seemed to have no patience for Kelly herself, interrupting, sighing, looking away, clapping his hands and clearly crossing the line into condescension:

Here's a quick rundown if you can't watch the whole video.

    KELLY: You mentioned the estate tax twice, so I do want to ask you about it. The argument from the other side is that it’s a morally corrupt tax. I don’t have a five million dollar estate–I’d like to some day–but if I work all my life and I pay my taxes on my income and then I die and I want to pass on what would be great if it were a five million dollar estate to my kids, why should I pay the government again? Why should there be a 35 or 45 or 55 percent tax on that again?

    WEINER: You aren’t paying anything in that case because you’ll be dead.

    KELLY: The estate is, and that’s less for my children.

    WEINER: The only question is… look.

    KELLY: No, you’re not… Answer my question. How is that fair?

    WEINER: Megyn, Megyn… Megyn, you’re going to have to let me answer the question. We’re going to have a conversation that gets us anywhere.

    KELLY: Go ahead.

    WEINER: The only question here is not whether or not there should be a tax on that, the question is where the limit should be and how much should…

    KELLY: No, I’ll ask the question and you’re not answering. Just tell me how it’s fair.

Weiner, who never did answer that question, opted to pause, look around the Capitol and clap his hands before returning to camera and asking, “Ready?”

You get the feeling Weiner might’ve walked off after the interview and kicked a garbage can. And yet through it all, Kelly kept cooler than most of us can even get on vacation.

     Ok, I watched Weiner twice because I wanted to make sure I understood what his points were. Here’s the two biggies…

     1. Rich people are to be treated as lower than dirt citizens because they happen to have more money than the average person. Therefore, they must give up more of the money they earn than everyone else. (Its his logic not mine)

     2. The money you earned throughout your life does not matter because you will be dead. Therefore, the money you worked so hard for should go to the government. (once again, his logic)

     His other argument is so full of crap its not even funny. He says that by not taking more money from rich people, we are adding to the deficit.

     Bullshit! its all the SPENDING he’s voted for that has caused the deficit!!! Oh my God. I'm nowhere close to being a business major, but I can see that if you want more tax money, you have to put people back to work. How do you do that? Let the people who own businesses get a break on taxes so they can hire more people. More people working, more income taxes go to the government. BY getting more people off welfare and back to making a decent living more people will spend more money. You can't tax them so much that being on welfare is more profitable than having a job. The more people make and spend, the more the government can cover their collective IOU's.

     For the record… I don’t have anything against rich people. They have the exact same rights that I do. The only big advantage they have over the average guy is being able to afford better legal council when they get themselves in deep trouble. The only way to stop all this nonsense is to push our reps to finally do something about destroying the tax code (the IRS first) and start over with a Fair Tax. I prefer we do it one of two ways. First… Every single income in the country, and yes this includes the poor, get’s taxed the EXACT SAME RATE. Or… We go to a straight consumption tax on everything we purchase with ZERO exclusions!

     I don’t feel like explaining every reason why I like those ideas, so you just got the short versions. And no thank you, I don’t want to get into a long drawn out argument about taxes. I said my piece, take it or leave it.

Running On Empty.....

2010-12-08T09:31:00.001-06:00

     Oil prices on Tuesday jumped above $90 a barrel for the first time in more than two years, a key milestone for Wall Street analysts who say tightening supplies will eventually drive prices above the $100 mark next year.

     The recent surge in oil pushed gasoline and other fuel prices higher as well. Average heating oil and diesel prices are expected to increase year-over-year for the first time since 2008, and the Oil Price Information Service said gasoline prices may hit a national average of $3 per gallon before Christmas day.

     In the 1970's we were asked to be charged with a small Tax increment to build the Alaska pipe line. Most voted to allow it. The selling point was that our nation would be able to supply most of our own energy for the next 120 or so years. It did put a bunch of people to work granted, but our extra taxes paid for most of the project.

     What most people don't know is the oil coming out of Alaska is called sweet crude. What that mean is that it has a small amount of sulfur in it as compared to oil coming from Mexico or such and the price is much higher because it takes less refinement. Remember that this line belongs to the people of the nation.

     Some how in the late 80's or early 90's a deal was cut with BP to take control of our line and now runs it and has taken most of the profit. In the interim there have been numerous major leaks and a bunch of equipment failures.

    The logic seems to be if you have less demand, then raise the price and also raise the tax. The Fed did that last month. What bugs me is the cost of diesel and bunker fuels. The nation uses these fuels to transport most of our goods across the country. Just a few years back the diesel price ran along at about $0.50 to $0.75 gal and Gas ran for $1.75 to $2.00 gal.

     The FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) Did a special investigation in the 1980's that predicted all of what is happening today. Their report also included a method of raising the tax (supposedly to be reinvested into our infrastructure. That is how it was sold to the public).The reinvestment never happened. Instead of repairing the roads and bridges (over 4,000 bridges should be condemned right now ) the money went to the FED slush funds.

     Diesel and bunker fuel are the least refined and more abundant than pump gas. The automotive industry has been tasked with building better engines for economy. Yes we are up to 32 mpg on some models, but some cars, like a friend of mine's old 1980 240 Volvo diesel, got 42 mpg uphill or down. What happened ??

     The refinement processes have been optimized thus lowering the cost of production in the past 30 years. The profit margin has raised and production cost has been lowered for the producers. Wonder why the price gets lower when Election time comes around and gets higher when we have a few days off on holidays?

      Oh yeah, and how about the electric car. This puts another producer in control of our lives to bow down to. Electricity has to be produced somehow. Hydro-dams? Solar or wind power? These are great ideas, but far too few to make a difference. Gas or coal plants? Nukes? Where do you put the by-product? I'm sure the government can find plenty of Indian reservations to contaminate for the next 10,000 years.

     Hy-breed cars are cool because they use the best of both worlds right now. But I'm sure the all electric nut's will scream bloody murder when they start getting $1,000 electric bills.

     We should go back to regulating the energy industry again. Deregulation was the biggest mistake of all time next to NAFTA...

     Now, in related news: A California man found a small oil stain on his driveway. The major oil speculators declared a world-wide shortage and raised prices again.

December 7th, Not Necessarily A Day That Will Live In Infamy.....

2010-12-07T10:14:00.002-06:00

     Today is a special day for me. Not only is it Pearl Harbor Day, but coincidentally it's my birthday, also. Why do I say coincidentally? Well, it's because when I think about my birthday I also think of my father who was a Pearl Harbor survivor.

     As a kid growing up I didn't think much about the attack on that day. I was too caught up in what I would get for birthday presents. Back then we didn't have much, so birthday presents were a big deal.

     I never thought once about the terror that a 17year old farm boy from Missouri went thru on that day in 1941. Seeing the Pacific paradise that is Hawaii turned into a battlefield of bombs and blood. 2 hours of relentless shelling and death all around.

     Luckily for him (and me) he was able to survive the beginning hours of the war in the Pacific.

     He was stationed on the USS Pennsylvania that was in dry dock for maintenance. I'm sure the Japanese looked at it as a sitting duck. My father was on shore leave that morning. When the bombing started, he made his way back to the ship. The first thing he did was to grab a rifle and ammo and started firing at anything that was flying. Realizing he wasn't doing much good he worked his way to the top deck and helped a gunner, with an anti-aircraft gun, take down a number of Zero's. He never told me how many. He just said several. I guess the focus of tunnel vision prevented him from being distracted.

     He retired from the service and settled back in Missouri, but years of drinking and smoking unfiltered cigarettes took a toll on his body.

     I lost my father when he was 47 (I was 21). I never had a chance to tell him how proud I was of him. My parents divorced when I was 2 and him being a career Navy man, he wasn't "home" much.

     We had different ideas of what kind of a man I should be. Him: God and country. Me: Sex, drugs and rock'n' roll. This didn't mix well with us. But in the end we became good friends.

     I miss you, Dad, and I'm proud to be your son.

What's Wrong With This Picture?.....

2010-12-06T14:21:00.001-06:00

     Dowling Duncan — a graphic design firm with offices in San Francisco and Newark, England — thinks that American currency needs a new look, so its designers have submitted an entry in the "Dollar Rede$ign Project," which bills itself as a movement to "rebuild financial confidence and revive our failing economy" by re branding the U.S. dollar.

     Dowling Duncan's submission is a rendering that appears quite European-ish, and envisions current President Barack Obama replacing George Washington on the dollar bill. Fast Company's Suzanne LaBarre praised the Dowling Duncan design, writing, "The Obama bill anchors their sweeping concept for redesigning U.S. banknotes ... The impetus: The greenback has an image problem. It has come to represent everything that's wrong with the American economy, and worse, with its cartoonish graphics and vaguely sinister styling, it actually looks the part."

     First of all, America just overthrew a dictator who put his picture on his currency. In my opinion, no living human should be placed on any form of currency. It could almost be viewed as a form of worshiping a human. Second, these "small" changes which have been taking place concerning our currency is a way to ease the public into accepting a global currency.

     The federal government does not print its own money. Our currency is printed by the Federal Reserve. A Federal Reserve Note, which is any dollar bill, is simply a receipt for the gold and silver given to the Federal Reserve by our government, which is why you are seeing this new "gold rush" over the past 6 or 7 years.

     Whoever controls the money controls the nation and the United States does not control its money. Its money is controlled and produced by the Federal Reserve which lends the money to the United States. Since it is a loan, the United States is required to pay it back which means the burden of repayment is placed on the taxpayers. This is why our wages are taxed and why the I.R.S. was formed, which is an illegal entity.

     The Constitution clearly states that our monetary system is based on gold and silver and only corporation’s wages are to be taxed. Any taxpayer who earns wages for working is not required by any law under the Constitution to pay one cent to the government for wages earned by an individual. It is illegal for the I.R.S. to demand payment for "due taxes" or to deduct them from your check when you get paid. Your tax money does not go toward infrastructural needs in the United States. Your tax money goes directly into the pockets of the Federal Reserve and the members of its board. The Federal Reserve is owned by the World Bank and, essentially, that is where your tax money goes. In laymen’s terms, your money and the money of the United States is being out-sourced.

     The Federal Reserve is no more federal than Federal Express. It has never been audited. It is a corporation who does not have to abide by any laws set forth by this country regarding corporate activity. What it comes down to is the few members who run and own the Federal Reserve basically own and run the United States, a country which is now being run as if it were a large corporation. The United States answers to the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve answers to the World Bank. The World Bank answers to no one. It simply supplies money to different nations, nations which oppose us and are opposed by us.

     The World Bank runs countries like a business and the biggest and most profitable business is war, which is why we see these corporations whose businesses are weapons, military, or war based profiting even though the rest of the country has problems placing food on the table or keeping a roof over their heads.

     The Federal Reserve and the World Bank are the base roots of the many reasons why World War I and World War II happened so closely together. These world wars were planed as a trilogy. The changing of the money is necessary for two reasons. The first is to move toward a cashless society where monetary exchanges are made electronically.

     The objective is to implant a scanible microchip inside the human body. The second is to bring about the third world war. Ultimately, this entire process is to bring about a system of control. By forcing Americans to pay taxes so the government can pay the Federal Reserve, Americans became unwittingly trapped in a system of control. It is modern slavery. This is why we are seeing so many changes to United States currency.

Meet Our New Overlords.....

2010-12-03T08:52:00.000-06:00

     Bacteria that thrive on arsenic have been scooped from a California lake, a discovery that redefines the building blocks of life and offers new hope in the search for other organisms on Earth and beyond.

     Not only do the bacteria survive, they grow by swapping phosphorus for arsenic in their DNA and cell membranes, said the study funded by the US space agency NASA and published Thursday in the journal Science.

     The findings add a new dimension to what biologists consider the necessary elements for life, currently viewed as six elements: carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur.

     "This is going to open up a whole new line of inquiry. First of all this can't be the only arsenic organism on the planet, there is going to be a lot more, so this is a whole new domain of microbiology." one of the scientist said.

     I guess they'd need to agree on the definition of life before we can decide where it exists. Many explanations share the common theme of "ability to reproduce", but that fails because if you get a vasectomy it doesn't mean you're dead.

     If everything in the universe is made up of matter then everything is basically the same, just in a different order, so therefore organic organisms would be the same as rocks or dirt.

     Perhaps everything is "alive" If you put the requirement of being "self aware" in the equation. That would mean all politicians are dead. Hmmmm...finally a theory that makes sense.

I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me.....

2010-12-02T15:18:00.000-06:00

404 File Not found

It's all a conspiracy.
We're hiding everything from you...
or maybe the file doesn't actually exist.
hmmm....

     WikiLeaks' release of secret government communications is a warning to the world's biggest companies.

     Computer experts have warned for years about the threat posed by disgruntled insiders and by poorly crafted security policies, which give too much access to confidential data. And there is nothing about WikiLeaks' release of U.S. diplomatic documents to suggest that the group can't — or won't — use the same methods to reveal the secrets of powerful corporations.

     Add to that the complications of companies off-shoring support of their servers and data to countries which generally don't have the expertise to "lock down" security.

    Some off-shoring companies are attempting to introduce security measures as they send more and more jobs overseas, but those workers either don't care about them, don't have to follow the same rules as U.S. workers - or are simply too inexperienced or incompetent to understand the dangers of what they are doing.

     If I were one of the bad guys, I'd recruit the best and brightest hackers to work in an off-shore data center and develop as many bugs, viruses, "Trojan horses", etc and see what happens. Imagine if all lights went GREEN during rush hour - the death toll could make 9/11 look like a walk in the park. Or what if a major firm that has its data server off-shore and has its corporate customer list along with credit card and bank account numbers stolen.

      These are scenarios that we hope will happen later, not sooner.

     So my advice to corporate America: Do the Right Thing and Fear not!

     But pull stupid stunts and/or screw over your employees........We'll see you on WikiLeaks.........

Stop Fighting And Do SOMETHING..........

2010-12-01T17:46:00.000-06:00

     Senate Republicans threatened Wednesday to block virtually all legislation until expiring tax cuts are extended and a bill is passed to fund the federal government, vastly complicating Democratic attempts to leave their own mark on the final days of the post-election Congress.

     In a letter to Harry Reid, the GOP wrote: "While there are other items that might ultimately be worthy of the Senate's attention, they cannot agree to prioritize any matters above the critical issues of funding the government and preventing a job-killing tax hike."

     Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans really want to vote on this. Both sides want all of the cuts to expire because they think that will bring in more revenue for them to mismanage and fritter away on pork. Both sides are simply positioning themselves to blame the other for blocking the extension of the tax cuts so that they are the ones controlling the purse strings when the dust settles.

     The problem is not taxes. It is, and always has been, OVER SPENDING. I would not mind paying a higher tax rate, if the money was used to reduce the deficit so that our children and grand-children are not paying for their mistakes.

Listen...Do You Want To Know A Secret?...Do You Promise Not To Tell?

2010-11-30T10:05:00.002-06:00

     On Sunday, five international news outlets published a selection of more than 250,000 U.S. diplomatic cables, provided by the website WikiLeaks. The disclosure of the cables, most of them from the past three years, offers a rare unfiltered view of the secretive world of high-level diplomacy. As such, it could complicate relations with a host of friendly and unfriendly nations.
Here are the top 10.

     1. Many Middle Eastern nations are far more concerned about Iran's nuclear program than they've publicly admitted. According to one cable, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has repeatedly asked the U.S. to "cut off the head of the snake" -- meaning, it appears, to bomb Iran's nuclear program. Leaders of Qatar, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern nations expressed similar views.

     2. The U.S. ambassador to Seoul told Washington in February that the right business deals might get China to acquiesce to a reunified Korea, if the newly unified power were allied with the United States. American and South Korean officials have discussed such a reunification in the event that North Korea collapses under the weight of its economic and political problems.

     3. The Obama administration offered sweeteners to try to get other countries to take Guantanamo detainees, as part of its (as yet unsuccessful) effort to close the prison. Slovenia, for instance, was offered a meeting with President Obama, while the island nation of Kiribati was offered incentives worth millions.

     4. Afghan Vice President Ahmed Zia Massoud took $52 million in cash when he visited the United Arab Emirates last year, according to one cable. The Afghan government has been plagued by allegations of corruption. Massoud has denied taking the money out of the country.

     5. The United States has been working to remove highly enriched uranium from a Pakistani nuclear reactor, out of concern that it could be used to build an illicit nuclear device. The effort, which began in 2007, continues.

     6. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton ordered diplomats to assemble information on their foreign counterparts. Documents in the WikiLeaks cache also indicate that Clinton may have asked diplomats to gather intelligence on U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's plans for Iran, and information on Sudan (including Darfur), Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Iran and North Korea.

     7. The State Department labeled Qatar the worst country in the region for counterterrorism efforts. The country's security services were "hesitant to act against known terrorists out of concern for appearing to be aligned with the U.S. and provoking reprisals," according to one cable.

     8. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi are tighter than was previously known. Putin has given the high-living Berlusconi "lavish gifts" and lucrative energy contracts, and Berlusconi "appears increasingly to be the mouthpiece of Putin" in Europe, according to one cable.

     9. Hezbollah continues to enjoy the weapons patronage of Syria. A week after Syrian president Bashar Assad promised the United States he wouldn't send "new" arms to the Lebanese militant group, the United States said it had information that Syria was continuing to provide the group with increasingly sophisticated weapons.

     10. Some cables reveal decidedly less than diplomatic opinions of foreign leaders. Putin is said to be an "alpha-dog" and Afghan President Hamid Karzai to be "driven by paranoia." German Chancellor Angela Merkel "avoids risk and is rarely creative." Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi travels with a "voluptuous blonde" Ukrainian nurse.

     If this is the worst thing from this newest leak, then it was all a setup from the beginning for publicity for WikiLeaks.

     There are some examples of lies and mistrust, but for the most part it's all common knowledge or at the very least; assumed.

     Maommar Gadhafi has not been any problem in a number of years, and now the reason comes out...he's got a voluptuous blonde squeeze.
Solution: Give all of these horny leaders BLONDES.

     Start by giving Lady Gaga to old poker-face Kim Jong Il. Paris Hilton could play tickle-me with Hamid Karzai and make an embarrassing sex-tape. Dye all of the Kardashians blonde for distribution to Hugo Chavez. Send Brigitte Neilsen to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (I hear he's into tall MANLY blondes.) And, there are always plenty of blond men, for those leaders who want a blonde of a different persuasion, which I believe is quite prevalent in the middle east, considering the way they treat their women.

     So, there you have it. World peace...simplified!!!

     As far as what to do with the soldier that gathered the information: Treason is treason whether the information did the enemy any good or not

Tattle Tales......

2010-11-29T10:56:00.000-06:00

     The weekend release of documents by Wikileaks reflecting, in some cases, unflattering assessments of world leaders has caused embarrassment to the Obama administration.

     The documents contained raw comments normally muffled by diplomatic politesse: i.e. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah pressing the U.S. to "cut off the head of the snake" by taking action against Iran's nuclear program, for instance.

     Publication of the secret memos and documents on Sunday amplified widespread global alarm about Iran's nuclear ambitions. It also unveiled occasional U.S. pressure tactics aimed at hot spots in Afghanistan, Pakistan and North Korea. The leaks disclosed bluntly candid impressions from both diplomats and other world leaders about America's allies and foes.

     Wikileaks claimed the administration was trying to cover up alleged evidence of serious "human rights abuse and other criminal behavior" by the U.S. government. Wikileaks posted the documents just hours after it claimed its website had been hit by a cyber-attack that made the site inaccessible for much of the day. But extracts of the more than 250,000 documents posted online by news outlets that had been given advance copies of the documents showed deep U.S. concerns about Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs along with fears about regime collapse in Pyongyang.

     Its amazing that a person would even be able to gain access to documents of such sensitive nature and exploit them online without the government first being able to intervene. The person or persons responsible for this need to be brought to justice and dealt with as any other terrorist would be. To compromise and intend to damage foreign relations in such a manner is extremely dangerous. Politicians have always been known to think one thing and say another. History would continue to allow it, for it is how we build ally relations.

     Wikileak has gone too far in exposing a false goal. Human rights abuse and criminal behavior? Free speech and freedom of the press are given rights, but how far do they extend? Should we all be allowed to release information that may endanger another man's life or safety of their person?

     Wikileaks must be held accountable and reprimanded to set a precedent for this behavior.

     Terrorism comes in many forms. This should be treated just like any other act of terrorism. Either we protect our country from any threat to our security or we accept the fact that we have weak leadership and security policy and procedure.

Spoilt Brat With A Loaded Gun.....

2010-11-26T11:41:00.000-06:00

     North Korea staged an artillery drill Friday within earshot of a South Korean island shelled earlier this week, and warned that an upcoming US-South Korean naval exercise heightens the risk of war.

     Seoul named a former military chief as its new defence minister to try to restore confidence in the armed forces, after their allegedly feeble response to Tuesday's deadly bombardment of Yeonpyeong island.

     China, the North's sole major ally, warned Friday against military activity in its exclusive economic zone, echoing remarks it made a day earlier opposing the war games.

     China doesn't want a war. Because their economy is so tied up with the west that disengaging with us is unthinkable. At the same time they must be seen to be standing up for NK. They can't stand by while we turn NK to glass even though they might want to: It would be too unpopular. It would be like allowing Mexico to seize California (officially, that is!).

     Let's hope somehow we can get things squared away with China so the NK thing can be resolved. If Pyongyang believe China isn't right behind them they'll toe the line anyway. Whatever, it's going to be messy.

"Why You No Rike Me?"......

2010-11-24T09:53:00.002-06:00

    The United States and Japan urged China to do more to rein in North Korea after the reclusive nation fired scores of artillery shells on Tuesday at a South Korean island near the maritime boundary between the two sides.

    China has long propped up the Pyongyang leadership, worried that a collapse of the North could bring instability to its own borders and also wary of a unified Korea that would be dominated by the United States, the key ally of the South.

    The way I see it, missile launching, and Internet security breaching, its all an attempt to build their military up with technological advances.

    Will China stand idly by should the United States consider going to war with North Korea? I don’t think so. North Korea and China have strong historical and economic ties. Also, China wants to avoid a situation where millions of North Korean refugees cross into its territory fleeing war.

    The United States regards North Korea as a member of the "axis of evil." You might wonder why some countries end up on a list such as that, and not others. It is not unusual for the United States to support regimes that are much worse than North Korea. Such foreign policy might seem somewhat contradictory and inconsistent.

    The United States has supported ruthless, repressive, and undemocratic governments all around the world. This is not news. As long as those governments permitted the U.S. corporations access to their markets, raw materials, and cheap labor—the U.S. was inclined to overlook their deplorable human rights records or any other shortcomings. In the final analysis, it’s primarily about free trade and open markets.

    Case in point: Historically, the United States officially detested Communist China and the former Soviet Union. However, once they began to adopt free trade policies and embrace Western-style capitalism, they became our “friends”. Now, Russia is largely run by corrupt oligarchs, and China is still Communist.

    So, what influences the public’s perceptions of a particular nation? Usually, it depends upon how the politicians and the media portray certain countries. However, if you know history, and take the time to conduct your own in depth research, then you are better able to put things in a proper perspective.

    I can present two examples of blatant contradictions in U.S. policies and practices. How many governments of democratically elected leaders has the United States de-stabilized or outright invaded, especially where the leaders attempt to do more for its citizens? And why has the United States moved so much of its manufacturing capabilities to Communist China, not knowing they are actually turning a paper tiger into a ferocious lion?

    Back in 2001, the Word Trade Organization (WTO) granted membership to Communist China. As a precondition, it should have required that China adopt and enforce fair currency valuation practices. Since then, the member states have thrown empty threats and warnings at China because of its unfair devaluation schemes.

    There will be no war, just more saber rattling and he said/she said(s). Besides, as you can see from the picture above, he still likes his beer and porn.