Scotty's Place

Shutting Down The Ports

2011-12-14T10:45:00.001-05:00

An interesting interview with an OWSer on Neil Cavuto's show.

Psychology 101 - Food For Thought

2011-12-11T22:57:00.001-05:00

If you start with a cage containing five monkeys and inside the cage, hang a banana on a string from the top and then you place a set of stairs under the banana, before long a monkey will go to the stairs and climb toward the banana.

As soon as he touches the stairs, you spray all the other monkeys with cold water. After a while another monkey makes an attempt with same result ... all the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water.

Pretty soon when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it. Now, put the cold water away. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and attempts to climb the stairs. To his shock, all of the other monkeys beat the crap out of him. After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs he will be assaulted.

Next, remove another of the original five monkeys, replacing it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment . . . with enthusiasm.

Then, replace a third original monkey with a new one, followed by a fourth, then the fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs he is attacked. Most of the monkeys that are beating him up have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs. Neither do they know why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.

Finally, having replaced all of the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys will have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, none of the monkeys will try to climb the stairway for the banana. Why, you ask? Because in their minds...that is the way it has always been!

This, my friends, is how the Congress and Senate operates... and is why, from time to time, all of the monkeys need to be REPLACED AT THE SAME TIME!

Newt Gringrich

2011-12-04T17:19:00.000-05:00

A brilliant speech! It's a bit long maybe but, well worth a listen. It's words like these that help me to forgive/forget Newt's past weaknesses and misspeaks. I hope that he can maintain and not step into "it" like he has so many times before.

So many times he has appeared to be just another "big government" republican. I hope that he can change that view I have of him......

Christie's Thoughts On The Super Committee

2011-11-29T20:22:00.001-05:00

I certainly cannot argue Governor Christie's logic on this one!

333 And Still Counting!

2011-11-26T10:51:00.002-05:00

NY: 10/1/2011 — Police Arrest More Than 700 Protesters on Brooklyn Bridge
Madison, WI: 10-27-2011 — Madison Occupiers Lose Permit Due to Public Masturbation
Phoenix: 10/28/2011 — Flier at Occupy Phoenix Asks, “When Should You Shoot a Cop?”
NY: 10/18/2011 — Thieves Preying on Fellow Protesters
NY: 10/9/2011 — Stinking up Wall Street: Protesters Accused of Living in Filth as Shocking Pictures Show One Demonstrator Defecating on a POLICE CAR
NY: 10/7/2011 — Occupiers Rush Police … More
Cleveland: 10/18/2011 — ‘Occupy Cleveland’ Protester Alleges She Was Raped
NY: 10/10/2011 — ‘Increasingly Debauched’: Are Sex, Drugs & Poor Sanitation Eclipsing Occupy Wall Street?
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — Man Accused of Exposing Self to Children Arrested
10/12/2011 — Iran Supports ‘Occupy Wall Street’
Portland: 10/16/2011 –#OccupyPortland Protester Desecrates Memorial To U.S. War Dead
Portland: 10/15/2011 — #OccupyPortland Protesters Sing “F*** The USA”
Chicago: 10/17/2011 — COMMUNIST LEADER Cheered at Occupy Chicago
10/15/2011 — American Nazi Party Endorses Occupy Wall Street‘s ’Courage,‘ Tells Members to Support Protests and Fight ’Judeo-Capitalist Banksters’
Boston: 10/14/2011 — Coast Guard member spit on near Occupy Boston tents
Boston: 10/11/2011 — Boston Police Arrest Over 100 from Occupy Boston
New York: 10/11/2011 — “You Can Have Sex with Animals.”
New York: 10/15/2011 — Harassing Police with Accusations of Phony Injuries
New York: 10/9/2011 — ‘Occupy Wallstreet’ Protesters Steal from Local Businesses
New York: 10/25/2011 — Three Men Threatened to Kill 24-Year-Old Occupy Wall Street Protester for Reporting Rape
Baltimore: 10/18/2011 — #OccupyBaltimore Discourages Sexual Assault Victims from Contacting Police
Portland: 10/27/2011 — Occupy Portland’s Attempt At Wealth Redistribution Ends In Theft
Los Angeles: 10/14/2011 – Anti-Semitic Protester at Occupy Wall Street
10/27/2011 — A Death Threat From an Occupy Wall Street Protester
10/27/2011 – Anti-Semitic Tweet From Occupier or Sympathizer
Boston: 10/20/2011 — Occupy Boston Doesn’t Want Police Involved in Rape
New York: 10/5/2011: Anti-Semitic Occupier Screams About Jews, Israel
New York: 10/4/2011 — Occupier Taunts Jewish Man
Boston: 10/2011 — Occupiers Block Street
New York: 10/2011 — Occupier Tries to Steal Police Officer’s Gun
New York: 10/27/2011 — Occupiers Block Traffic, Get Arrested
Oakland: 10/27/2011 — Occupiers Throw Garbage at Police
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — Abusive #OccupyOakland Protesters Ban Media from Tent City
Eugene, OR: 10/19/2011 — Occupiers Displace Farmers’ Market Threatening Hundreds of Jobs
Portland, OR: 10/18/2011 — Capitalist Offering Jobs at Occupy Portland Finds Few Takers
NY: 10/20/2011 — #OccupyWallStreet Threatens Businesses, Patrons
NY: 10/14/2011 — Violence Breaks Out During #OccupyWallStreet March Toward Stock Exchange
NY: 10/14/2011 — Protesters March On Wall Street, Scuffle With Cops
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — #OccupyOakland Protesters Threaten Reporter
Oakland: 10/26/2011 — Occupiers Scuffle with Police
Oakland: 10/24/2011 — Protesters Storm, Vandalize, Shut Down Chase Bank
Dayton, OH: 10/22/2011 — Protester: ‘F*ck The Military, F*ck Your Flag, And F*ck The Police’
Chicago: 10/14/2011 — Protesters’ Message At #OccupyChicago Rally: ‘Destroy Israel’
NY: 10/23/2011 — #OccupyWallStreet Supporter Rants Against Israel, Jews
NY: 10/22/2011 — #Occupy Kid: ‘Burn Wall Street, Burn!’
NY: 10/21/2011 — New Yorkers Fed Up With Noisy, Defecating Protesters
Oakland: 10/21/2011 — Occupy Oakland Evicted After Reports Of Crime And Intimidation
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — #OccupyOakland Out of Control: Rats, Graffiti, Vandalism, Sexual Harassment, Public Sex and Urination
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Occupiers Under Investigation by FBI for Links to Terrorism
Cleveland: 10/29/2011 — Rape Reported at Occupy Cleveland
Dallas: 10/24/2011 — Police Investigating Possible Sexual Assault Of Teen At Occupy Dallas
Bloomington, IN: 10/26/2011 — Man Claims Occupy Bloomington Protesters Drugged, Handcuffed Him
NY: 10/10/2011 — Sex, Drugs and Hiding from the Law at Wall Street Protests
Glasgow: 10/26/2011 — Woman Gang-Raped
Boston: 10/23/2011 — Occupy Boston Protesters Arrested For Dealing Heroin – With 6 Year-Old in Tent
Portland: 10/16/2011 — Sex Offender Registers Occupy Portland Camp as Address
Denver: 10/15/2011 — Occupy Denver Demonstrator Accused of Groping TV Photographer
Lawrence, KS: 10/25/2011 — Sexual Assault Reported at Occupy Camp
Minneapolis, MN: Bricks, Rocks, ‘Riot Supplies’ Discovered by Police
Phoenix, AZ: 10/27/2011 — Neo-Nazis Patrol “Occupy Phoenix” With AR-15′s
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Occupy Chicago Invades City Hall
10/26/2011 — ACORN, Occupy Email Talks About Assault on Banks
10/26/2011 — OccupyWallStreet Strategy for Reports of Violence Against Cops
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Unrepentant Domestic Terrorist Bill Ayers Wows Occupiers
Chicago: 10/25/2011 — Ayers Coaches #OccupyChicago, Callsg for School ‘Occupations’
10/26/2011/ — Occupy Protests Have Jewish Leaders Concerned
Wash DC: 10/27/2011 — OccupyDC Leftists Provoke Police – Hang Flag on Top of DC Statue
Albuquerque, NM: 10/26/2011 — Occupy Squatters Riot With Police
San Diego: 10/25/2011 — Flag Used as Chew Toy by Occupier’s Dog
Oakland: 10/25/2011 — Occupiers Throw Bottles at Police
NY: 10/27/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Protesters: Rush Limbaugh Is Bigger Threat Than Al-Qaeda
10/27/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Launching First Nationwide General Strike in America Since 1946
NY: 10/28/2011 — Fox 5 News Reporter Assaulted at OWS
10/28/2001 — Total Occupy Arrests Made Thus Far: 2750
Nashville: 10/28/2011 — 30 Arrests Made at Wall St. Protest
NY: 10/20/2011 — Former Marine Tries to Taunt Police into Violence
NY: 1023/2011 — Islamist Group Joins with Occupy Wall Street
Los Angeles: 10/13/2011 — Roundup of Overt Occupy anti-Semitism
NY: 10/12/2011 — There are No Anti-Semites at Occupy Wall Street. Except for This Guy
Missoula, MT: 10/20/2011 — Drunk 11-Year-Old At Occupy Missoula, Adult Arrested
Oakland: 10/28/2011 — Bounty Out On Police Officer?
Manchester, NH: 10/28/2011 — Woman charged with pimping teen recruited at Occupy NH rally
San Diego: 10/28/2011 — 40 Occupiers arrested
Boston: 10/24/2011 — Occupy Boston Vandalism of Banks
Boston: 10/25/2011 — Store Owner Suffers 4 Break Ins Since Occupy Boston Began
Portland: 10/28/2011 — Portland Police: Buckets of Excrement Scattered Around #OccupyPortland Camp
Seattle: 10/20/2011 — Two Possible Occupiers Charged With Assault
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — Armed Felon Arrested at Occupy Seattle
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — A Tent Fight and (At Least) One Arrest at Occupy Seattle
Seattle: 10/17/2011 — Over 50 Cops Clear Westlake Occupation, Make Eight Arrests
Seattle: 10/13/2011 — Cops Arrest Several Occupy Protesters
Seattle: 10/13/2011 — Chanting Protesters Surround Police After Officers Arrest Two
Denver: 10/29/2011 — Protesters Clash with Police at OWS Denver
Austin: 10/13/2011 — Occupy Austin protesters arrested for blocking cleaning Crews
Calgary, CN: 10/28/2011 — Occupiers do $40,000 in Property Damage
Cincinnati, OH: 10/21/2011 — 23 Arrested, Remains of protests fill two dumpsters
Sacramento: 10/19/2011 — 9 arrested in ‘Occupy Sacramento’ protest
Sacramento: 10/13/2011 — Four More Occupy Sacramento Demonstrators Arrested
Austin, TX: 10/22/2011 — Man Arrested After Knife Incident at Occupy Austin Camp
Nashville: 10/29/2011 — Tenn. Protesters Arrested For 2nd Straight Night
Austin, TX: 10/30/2011 — Austin Police arrest 38 Occupy Austin Protesters
NY: 10/30/2011 — Woman Assaulted in Her tent
Orlando, FL: 10/28/2011 — Occupy Orlando, police clash over use of downtown park
Orlando, FL: 10/26/2011 — 2 Occupy Orlando protesters arrested for trespass
Orlando, FL: 10/22/2011 — Police arrest 19 Orlando protesters on trespass charges
Asheville, NC: 10/30/2011 — Occupiers Clash with Homeless in Asheville
Nationwide: 10/27/2011 — Pro-Occupy Site claims 2511 Arrests Thus Far
Fort Worth, TX: 10/16/2011 — Arrests at Occupy Fort Worth Protest
NY: 10/29/2011 — Three Incidents of Anti-Semitism
San Francisco: 10/29/2011 — Anti-Semitic, Folsom Street Fair Types & Che Guevara Lovin
Oklahoma City: 10/30/2011 — Death of Street Poet at #OccupyOKC Treated as Homicide
Baltimore: 10/31/2011 — Woman Claims She was Raped at #OccupyBaltimore
Boston: 10/31/2001 — Alleged Heroin Dealer Joined Occupy Movement
Ottawa: 10/31/2011 — #OccupyOttawa Violent & Sexual Assaults Not Reported to Police
Santa Barbara, CA: 10/5/2011 — Occupiers Defy Police
Santa Barbara, CA: 10/6/2011 — 8 Occupiers Arrested
Denver, CO: 10/31/2011 — Occupiers Taunt Police, Knock Motorcycle Cop to Ground
Dallas, TX: 10/24/2011 — 23 Occupy Dallas Protesters Arrested After Bank Demonstration
Richmond, VA: 10/31/2011 — Arrests of Occupiers in Richmond
Dallas, TX: 1v1/1/2011: Man Arrested for Child Sex assault at Occupy Dallas Camp
NY: 11/1/2011 — Protesters Flock to STD-Test Clinics After Occupier ‘Free Love’
Iowa: 11/1/2011 — Occupiers Intend to Disrupt Iowa Caucus
NY: 11/1/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Costs Main Street Workers Their Jobs
San Diego: 10/29/2011 — Businesswoman Closes Shop After Threats By Occupiers
Palm Desert, CA: 11/1/2011 — Occupiers Arrested
Tampa, FL: 10/24/2011 — Six Occupiers Arrested
Tampa, FL: 10/27/2011 — Two More Arrested In Connection to Occupy Tampa Movement
Tampa, FL: 10/29/2011 — Occupy Tampa Protesters Arrested After Scuffle With Police
Oakland, CA: 11/3/2011 — Rallies Turn Violent
Seattle, WA: 11/2/2011 — Cops, Protesters Clash
Oakland, CA: 11/3/2011 — Protests Degenerate Into Chaos
Tulsa, OK: 11/2/2011 — Occupiers Clash With Police
Sacramento, CA: 11/2/2011 — Occupiers Smash County Vehicle Windows
Philadelphia: 11/2/2011 — Occupiers Arrested
Charlottesville, VA: 11/1/2011 — Underage Drinking at Occupy Charlottesville Site
Portland: 11/2/2011 — Occupier Shoves Police Officer into Moving Bus
Oakland: 11/2/2011 — Malkin’s Collection of Vandalism and Menacing Signs
NYC: 11/3/2011 — Occupier Busted In Tent Grope, Suspected In Rape
NYC: 11/4/2011 — 16 OWS Protesters Arrested at Goldman Sachs HQ
Oakland, CA: 11-3-2011 — Occupy-Friendly Business Vandalized
Asheville, NC: 11/3/2011 — 24 Occupiers Arrested
Raleigh, NC: 10/28/2011 — Eight at Occupy Raleigh Arrested After Standoff
NYC: 11/4/2011 — Deranged Homeless Man Goes on Violent Rampage In Zuccotti Park
Dallas, TX: CPS Seizes Baby From ‘Occupy Dallas’ Site
Wash DC: 11/4/2011 — Occupier Uses Child as Human Shield — Video
Wash DC: 11/4/2011 — Occupiers Try to Storm Americans for Prosperity Event — Video
Omaha, NE: 11/3/2011 — Three Occupiers Arrested
Atlanta: 11/3/2011 — Protester Turns On Fellow Protester With Knife
Los Angeles: 10/28/2011 — Drug Use and Property Damage
Boston, MA: 11/4/2011 — 3 Charged With Dealing Crack; Occupy Boston ‘Deteriorating’
Boston, MA: 11/4/2011 — Occupiers Storm Israeli Consulate; Anti-Israel Chants — Video
Vancouver, CN: 11/5/2011 — Occupy Vancouver Death Dooms Protest Camp
Fort Collins, CO: 11/4/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Setting Fire to Condo Complex … $10M Damage
Chula Vista, CA: 11/6/2011 — Underage Girl Missing From Occupy Protests
Los Angeles, CA: 11/5/2011 – Two Assaults Raise Concerns About Crime at Occupy L.A.
Dallas, TX: 11/5/2011 — Eight Arrests at Dallas Bank Protest
Olympia, WA: 11/5/2011 – Two Occupy Protesters Arrested
Seattle, WA: 11/3/2011 — Occupiers Cost City $426,000; Most of it Police Overtime
Olympia, WA: 11/2/2011 — 3 Occupiers Arrested for Suspected of Robbing Local Wine Merchant
Worcester, MA: 11/6/2011 — 25 Occupiers Arrested
Milwaukee, WI: 11/2/2011 — Photojournalist, Two others Arrested at Protest … Video
Milwaukee, WI: 10/20/2011 — Police Confront Occupier –Video … Arrested
Wash. DC: 11/5/2011 — Rampaging Occupiers Attack 78 Year-Old Woman — Video
Rochester, NY: 11/3/2011 — 161 Occupiers Arrested at Park
NYC: 11/5/2011 — Police Clash With Occupiers, 20 Arrested at Courthouse Protest
NYC: 11/5/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Vandalizing McDonald’s; Wanted Free Food
Asheville, NC: 11/5/2011 — Four Occupiers Arrested
Honolulu, HI: 11/6/2011 — Police Arrest Half-Dozen Occupiers
Waikiki, HI: 11/7/2011 — Two Dozen Occupiers Arrested
Portland, OR: 11/7/2011 — Occupiers Arrested for Threatening Restaurant Employees
Portland, OR: 11/7/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Threatening Security Staff with Hammer
Augusta, GA: 10/28/2011 — Occupier Arrested in Knife Threat
Portland OR: 11/9/2011 — Police Suspect Occupiers in Molotov Cocktail Attack
Sacramento, CA: 11/7/2011 — Homeless Clash With Occupy Protesters At Park
New Orleans: 11/8/2011 — Man Dead for Two Days Found in Occupy Encampment
San Diego: 11/7/2011 — Occupiers Splatter Vendor Food Carts with Blood, Urine
Los Angeles: 11/7/2011 — Occupiers Shut Down Burger King — Video
Atlanta, GA: 11/6/2011 — Occupiers Arrested After Attacking Police
St. Louis, MO: 11/9/2011 — Occupiers Hack Into Mayor’s Website
Oakland, CA: 11/8/2011 — “Dangerous” Occupiers Hurting Small Business Owners
Vancouver, CN: 11/8/2011 — Occupiers Bite Two Police Officers
Wash DC: 11/8/2011 — Occupiers Use Children to Block Traffic — Video
Portland, OR: 11/9/2011 — Occupiers Threaten Citizen-Journalist – Video
Wash DC: 11/8/2011 — Occupiers Use Racial Taunts Against Black Security Guard — Video
Eureka, CA: 11/9/2011 — Occupier Defecates in Bank – Video
Wash DC: 11/5/2011 – Occupiers Menace Children, Female Reporter – Video
Portland, OR: 11/8/2011 — Occupiers Menace News Crew – Video
NYC: 11/8/2011 — Occupier: ‘I Wouldn’t Give a F**k if 9/11 Happened 911 More Times’
NYC: 11/8/2011 — Small Business Owner Threatened, Terrorized By Occupiers
San Francisco, CA: 11/10/2011 — Occupier Threatens Park Ranger
Burlington, VT: 11/10/2011 — Veteran Shoots Self at Encampment
Oakland, CA: 11/3/2011 — ‘Occupy Oakland’ Goes After Cop
NYC: 11/10/2011 — EMT Assaulted at Occupy Wall Street
San Diego, CA: 11/10/2011 — Occupier Attacks Woman with Camera
Berekely, CA: 11/10/2011 — 39 Occupiers Arrested
Westwood, CA: 11/9/2011 — 11 Occupiers Arrested for Blocking Traffic
Fresno, CA: 11/9/2011 — 40 Occupiers Arrested
Toledo, OH: 11/1/2011 — 2 Occupiers Arrested
Houston, TX: 11/9/2011 — 10 Occupiers Arrested
NYC: 11/8/2011 — Hobbyist Photographer Describes Assault in Zuccotti Park
Oakland, CA: 11/10/2011: Fatal Shooting Over Drugs
Oakland: CA: 11/10/2011 — Protesters Attack News Crew Covering Fatal Shooting
Pasadena, CA: 11/10/2011 — Occupiers Announce Plans to Disrupt Rose Bowl Parade
Tampa, FL 11/10/2011 — Three Occupiers Arrested
Portland, OR: 11/10/2011 — Occupiers Billed for Police Car Vandalism
Olympia, WA: 11/11/2011 — Occupiers Asked to Pack Up After Assault, Drug Arrests
Denver, CO: 11/11/2011 — Occupiers Storm BlogCon 11 … One Arrest
Salt Lake City, UT: 11/12/2011 — Protest Shut Down After Body Discovered In Tent
San Francisco: 11/8/2011 — Shoplifting, Fights On The Rise Around Encampment
San Francisco: 11/10/2011 — Occupiers Accused of Ferry Building Thefts, Filth
San Francisco: 11/10/2011 — Protester Busted For Gun Violation Arrested Again
Mobile, AL: 11/9/2011 — 18 Occupy Protesters Arrested
New Orleans: 11/11/2011 — Death at Campsite Attributed To Alcohol Abuse
San Francisco: 11/12/2011 — Occupier Slashes Police Officer With Razor, Another Injured
Portland: 11/13/2011 — Three Arrested with Mortars, Fireworks
Chapel Hill, NC: 11/13/2011 — Eight Occupiers for Trespassing
Norfolk, VA: Six Occupiers Arrested
Philadelphia, PA: 11/13/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Rape
Portland, OR: 10/27/2011 — Sexual Assault: ‘nobody should contact the police’ — Video
NYC: 11/12/2011 — Occupiers Plan Mass Trespassing Campaign
Oakland, CA: 11/8/2011 — Occupiers Plan Mass Trespassing Campaign
Salt Lake City, UT: 11/12/2011 — 19 Occupiers Arrested
St. Louis, MO: 11/13/2011 — 27 Occupiers Arrested
St. Louis, MO: 11/12/2011 — Occupier Arrested
NYC: 11/13/2011 — Occupier Slugs Police Officer
Oakland, CA: 11/10/2011 — Occupiers Withdraw Resolution to Remain Peaceful
Portland, OR: 11/9/2011 — Occupier Requires Life-Saving CPR After Drug Overdose
Portland, OR: 11/9/2011 — 4 Reports of Substance Abuse
Olympia, WA: 11/12/2011: Growing Number of Drug, Violence Complaints
Atlanta, GA: 11/10/2011 — TB Breaks Out at Occupy Home Base
NYC: 11/13/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Costs Local Businesses $479,400
Nationwide: 11/11/2011 — Occupy Death Toll Hits 7
Seattle, WA: 11-14-2011 — Occupier Defecates on Public Sidewalk
Hartford, CT: 10/16/2011 — Occupier Charged After Pulling Knife
Dallas, TX: 11/14/2011 — 9-Month-Old Baby Removed From Camp Due to Health Concerns, Neglect
Albuquerque, NM: 10/27/2011 — 2 Occupiers Arrested
Albuquerque, NM: 10/26/2011 — More Than a Dozen Occupiers Arrested
Albuquerque, NM: 10/22/2011 — Knife Attack at Occupy Camp
Albuquerque, NM: 10/27/2011 — Police Forced to Remove Occupiers From Park Again, 37 Arrested
Albuquerque, NM: 10/8/2011 — Occupier Arrested
University of New Mexico: 11/8/2011 — Sordid Story of Lawlessness, Dozens of Arrests, Spitting on Walmart Customer
Albuquerque, NM: 10/16/2011 — Occupier Cited for Blocking Traffic
Portland, OR: 11/14/2011 — 51 Occupiers Arrested
Portland, OR: 11/14/2011 — Occupiers Smash Bank Windows
Albany, NY: 11/15/2011 — 20 Occupiers Arrested
Near Salem, OR: 11/13/2011 — Three Occupiers Arrested With Explosives
Wash DC: 11/11/2011 — Occupy’ Mom ‘Won’t Stop’ Putting Protest Above Her Kids’ Safety
NYC: 11/15/2011: — Hundreds of Occupiers Arrested, Chaos, Resisting Arrest, Object Thrown at Police
Houston, TX: 11/15/2011 — Occupier Arrested
Minnesota: 11/15/2011 — Occupy Minnesota Costs Taxpayers $10,000+ Each Day
Austin, TX: 11/15/2011 — Occupier Accused of Masturbating in Front of 16 Year-old Girl
San Francisco, CA: 11/15/2011 — Deadly Dog Disease Spreads at Occupy Camp
Philadelphia, PA: 11/15/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Assaulting Woman
Philadelphia, PA: 11/15/2011 — Occupiers Vandalize Dilworth Plaza With Graffiti and Feces – Video
Santa Cruz, CA: 11/15/2011 — Ringworm, Scabies Outbreak at Occupy Camp
Oakland, CA: 11/14/2011 — Occupiers Cost Taxpayers $2.4 Million
Wash DC: 11/16/2011 — Suspected White House Shooter Spent Time with OccupyDC.
Pittsburgh, PA: 11/15/2011 — Five Occupiers Arrested for Disorderly Conduct, Blocking Traffic
San Francisco, CA: 11/17/2011 – Occupiers Storm Bank, 95 Arrested
Chicago, IL: 11/16/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Child Porn
NYC: 11/16/2011 — Dozens Of Hypodermic Needles Found In Zuccotti Park
NYC: 11/16/2011 – Occupier Arrested for Making Terror Threats – Video … More.
Dallas, TX: 11/17/2011 — 18 Occupiers Arrested
Charlotte, NC: 11/14/2011 — Two Occupiers Arrested
Charlotte, NC: 11/15/2011 — 8 Occupiers Arrested
Ottawa, CN: 10/29/2011 — Feces, Urine, and Blood Covered Blanket Hung Over Tent
Los Angeles, CA: 11/15/2011 – Occupier Charged With Masturbating In Front of Children
Los Angeles, CA: 11/15/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Attempting to Light Food Vendor On Fire
NYC: 11/15/2011 — City Claims Occupy Wall Street Protesters Were Stockpiling Weapons
Wash DC: 11/15/2011 — Occupiers Block Traffic, Three Injuries
NYC: 11/16/2011 — 150 Trashmen Needed to Clean Occupy Park Filth
Los Angeles: 11/17/2011 – Occupiers Block Freeways, 26 Arrested
NYC: 11/17/2011 – Mob of Occupiers Taunt, Bully Small School Children
San Francisco, CA: 11/17/2011 — Lice, Fleas, Disease Spread in Camp
NYC: 11/17/2011 — Occupiers Create Citywide Mayhem, 275 Arrested
West Jordan, UT: 11/17/2011 — Occupier Hurls Molotov Cocktail at Bank
NYC: 11/17/2011 — Police Officer Slashed, Others Attacked
NYC: 11/17/2011 — Occupiers Throw Vinegar In Eyes of Police Officers
Lincoln, NE: 11/5/2011 — 4 Occupiers Arrested at Bank Protest
San Diego, CA: 1/17/2011 — Occupiers Hold Moment of Silence In ‘Solidarity’ With Accused Obama Would-Be Assassin – Video
Melbourne, AU: 11/18/2011 — Children as Young as 12 Given Drugs, Alcohol
Los Angeles, CA: 11/17/2011 — Dozens of Occupiers Arrested at Bank Protest
Denver, CO: 11/16/2011 — Residents Complain Police Response Slowed Due to Occupiers
Denver, CO: 11/17/2011 — Occupiers Block Traffic
Denver, CO: 11/18/2011 — Occupiers Charged With Inciting a Riot, Assaulting Police Officer
Columbus, OH: 11/15/2011 — 7 Occupiers Arrested for Refusing to Leave Bank
St. Louis, MO: 11/18/2011 — Woman Sexually Assaulted
Portland, OR: 11/18/2011 — Occupier Punches Police Horse – Video
Missoula, MT: 10/26/2011 – Occupier Charged With Getting 11-Year-Old Drunk
Portland, OR: 11/17/2011 — Occupier Brags About Urinating In Public — Video
Chicago, IL: 11/17/2011 — 58% Believe Violence Against Government Sometimes Necessary
Portland, OR: 11/18/2011 – Ocupier Uses Infant as Human Shield — Video
NYC: 11/18/2011 — Mob Calls For Revolutio,n Screams “F*ck cops! F*ck police!” – Video
Portland, ME: 11/19/2011 — Two Occupiers Arrested for Brutal Assaults
Orlando, FL: 11/14/2011 — Two Occupiers Fight, One Injured By Knife
Pensacola, FL: 11/18/2011 — Occupier Charged With Burglary, Brought Furniture to Occupy Camp
NYC: 11/19/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Blocking Traffic Also Wanted in Indiana
Philadelphia, PA: 11/17/2011 — Occupiers Arrested During Protest
Seattle, WA: 11/17/2011 — Hundreds of Occupiers Snarl Traffic Around Medical Center
Columbia, SC: 11/16/2011 — At Least 15 Occupiers Arrested
Mobile, AL: 11/17/2011 — Occupier Arrested in Government Building
Dallas, TX: 11/2011 — Media List of Occupy Arrests, Infractions
Santa Cruz, CA: 11/19/2011 — County Officials Release List of 93 Acts of Lawlessness In and Around Occupy Camp
Santa Cruz, CA: 11/19/2011: Occupiers Suspected of Dumping 200 Pounds of Human Feces Near Veterans Building
Berkeley, CA: 11/18/2011 — Woman Assaulted for Refusing to Join Occupy
Des Moines, IA: 11/20/2011 — Occupy Leader Arrested on Drug Charges
NYC: 11/20/2011 — Occupier Arrested With Handgun, Ammo
Eugene, OR: 11/19/2011 — Heroin Overdose at Occupy Camp
Seattle, WA: 11/19/2011 — 70 Occupiers Trespass on Foreclosed Home
Portland, ME: 11/19/2011 — Three Occupiers Charged, Including a Hammer Attack
NYC: 11/18/2011 — ‘Runaway Mom’ Arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Hartford, CT: 11/17/2011 — Occupiers Arrested for Blocking Traffic
Austin, TX: 11/18/2011 — Five Occupiers Arrested for Trespassing
Minneapolis, MN: 11/20/2011 — Occupiers Arrested for Burglary, Blocking Police Car — Video
Oakland, CA; 11/20/2011 — Occupiers Defy Legal Eviction, Return to Camp
Wash DC: 11/19/2011 — 11 Occupiers Arrested for Trespassing
San Francisco, CA: 11/18/2011 — Camp Declared Public Health Nuisance; Eviction Deadline Passes
Oakland, CA: 11/19/2011 — Occupiers Plan to Shut Down all Ports on West Coast
NYC: 11/19/2011 — Occupier Arrested for Forcibly Touching Woman
NYC: 11/21/2011 — Occupiers Pledge to Stick It to Taxpayers
Houston, TX: 11/22/2011 — 15 Rounds fired Into Occupy Camp, Gunmen Shot & Arrested
London: 11/21/2011 — Occupiers Defecate in St. Paul’s Cathedral
Oakland, CA: 11/21/2011 – Occupy Oakland Hosts Gay Porn Movie Shoot
Oakland, CA: 11/22/2011 — Domestic Terror Group, Weather Underground, Joins #Occupy
Columbia, SC: 11/21/2011 – Occupiers Defy Curfew
NYC: 11/21/2011 — Three Occupiers Arrested After Rowdy Demonstration Outside Mayor’s Home
Phoenix, AZ:; 11/21/2011 — Eight Occupiers Arrested
Albany, NY: 11/20/2011 — 48 Occupiers Arrested
Pensacola, FL: 11/21/2011 — City Hall Vandalized After Occupy Protest
Fort Meyers, FL: 11/20/2011 — Occupier Arrested On Bomb Threat Charges – Video
Milwaukee, WI: 10/20/2011 — Occupier Arrested at Bank Protest – Video
Nationwide: 11/23/2011 — Occupiers Cost Taxpayers $13 million, So Far
Toronto, CN: 11/23/2011 — 8 Occupiers Arrested

The Haves And The Have Nots!

2011-11-17T20:28:00.000-05:00

I found this bit from The Daily Show hysterical!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

OWS

2011-10-30T10:40:00.001-04:00

I've been amused by the many comparisons of the OWS movement to the TEA Party movement. Tripped across this tidbit from an article on Big Journalism, Andrew Breitbart's site HERE.

Occupy Wall street rap sheet to date:

NY: 10/1/2011 — Police Arrest More Than 700 Protesters on Brooklyn Bridge
Madison, WI: 10-27-2011 — Madison Occupiers Lose Permit Due to Public Masturbation
Phoenix: 10/28/2011 — Flier at Occupy Phoenix Asks, “When Should You Shoot a Cop?”
NY: 10/18/2011 — Thieves Preying on Fellow Protesters
NY: 10/9/2011 — Stinking up Wall Street: Protesters Accused of Living in Filth as Shocking Pictures Show One Demonstrator Defecating on a POLICE CAR
NY: 10/7/2011 — Occupiers Rush Police … More
Cleveland: 10/18/2011 — ‘Occupy Cleveland’ Protester Alleges She Was Raped
NY: 10/10/2011 — ‘Increasingly Debauched’: Are Sex, Drugs & Poor Sanitation Eclipsing Occupy Wall Street?
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — Man Accused of Exposing Self to Children Arrested
10/12/2011 — Iran Supports ‘Occupy Wall Street’
Portland: 10/16/2011 – #OccupyPortland Protester Desecrates Memorial To U.S. War Dead
Portland: 10/15/2011 — #OccupyPortland Protesters Sing “F*** The USA”
Chicago: 10/17/2011 — COMMUNIST LEADER Cheered at Occupy Chicago
10/15/2011 — American Nazi Party Endorses Occupy Wall Street‘s ’Courage,‘ Tells Members to Support Protests and Fight ’Judeo-Capitalist Banksters’
Boston: 10/14/2011 — Coast Guard member spit on near Occupy Boston tents
Boston: 10/11/2011 — Boston Police Arrest Over 100 from Occupy Boston
New York: 10/11/2011 — “You Can Have Sex with Animals.”
New York: 10/15/2011 — Harassing Police with Accusations of Phony Injuries
New York: 10/9/2011 — ‘Occupy Wallstreet’ Protesters Steal from Local Businesses
New York: 10/25/2011 — Three Men Threatened to Kill 24-Year-Old Occupy Wall Street Protester for Reporting Rape
Baltimore: 10/18/2011 — #OccupyBaltimore Discourages Sexual Assault Victims from Contacting Police
Portland: 10/27/2011 — Occupy Portland’s Attempt At Wealth Redistribution Ends In Theft
Los Angeles: 10/14/2011 – Anti-Semitic Protester at Occupy Wall Street
10/27/2011 — A Death Threat From an Occupy Wall Street Protester
10/27/2011 – Anti-Semitic Tweet From Occupier or Sympathizer
Boston: 10/20/2011 — Occupy Boston Doesn’t Want Police Involved in Rape
New York: 10/5/2011: Anti-Semitic Occupier Screams About Jews, Israel
New York: 10/4/2011 — Occupier Taunts Jewish Man
Boston: 10/2011 — Occupiers Block Street
New York: 10/2011 — Occupier Tries to Steal Police Officer’s Gun
New York: 10/27/2011 — Occupiers Block Traffic, Get Arrested
Oakland: 10/27/2011 — Occupiers Throw Garbage at Police
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — Abusive #OccupyOakland Protesters Ban Media from Tent City
Eugene, OR: 10/19/2011 — Occupiers Displace Farmers’ Market Threatening Hundreds of Jobs
Portland, OR: 10/18/2011 — Capitalist Offering Jobs at Occupy Portland Finds Few Takers
NY: 10/20/2011 — #OccupyWallStreet Threatens Businesses, Patrons
NY: 10/14/2011 — Violence Breaks Out During #OccupyWallStreet March Toward Stock Exchange
NY: 10/14/2011 — Protesters March On Wall Street, Scuffle With Cops
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — #OccupyOakland Protesters Threaten Reporter
Oakland: 10/26/2011 — Occupiers Scuffle with Police
Oakland: 10/24/2011 — Protesters Storm, Vandalize, Shut Down Chase Bank
Dayton, OH: 10/22/2011 — Protester: ‘F*ck The Military, F*ck Your Flag, And F*ck The Police’
Chicago: 10/14/2011 — Protesters’ Message At #OccupyChicago Rally: ‘Destroy Israel’
NY: 10/23/2011 — #OccupyWallStreet Supporter Rants Against Israel, Jews
NY: 10/22/2011 — #Occupy Kid: ‘Burn Wall Street, Burn!’
NY: 10/21/2011 — New Yorkers Fed Up With Noisy, Defecating Protesters
Oakland: 10/21/2011 — Occupy Oakland Evicted After Reports Of Crime And Intimidation
Oakland: 10/19/2011 — #OccupyOakland Out of Control: Rats, Graffiti, Vandalism, Sexual Harassment, Public Sex and Urination
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Occupiers Under Investigation by FBI for Links to Terrorism
Cleveland: 10/29/2011 — Rape Reported at Occupy Cleveland
Dallas: 10/24/2011 — Police Investigating Possible Sexual Assault Of Teen At Occupy Dallas
Bloomington, IN: 10/26/2011 — Man Claims Occupy Bloomington Protesters Drugged, Handcuffed Him
NY: 10/10/2011 — Sex, Drugs and Hiding from the Law at Wall Street Protests
Glasgow: 10/26/2011 — Woman Gang-Raped
Boston: 10/23/2011 — Occupy Boston Protesters Arrested For Dealing Heroin – With 6 Year-Old in Tent
Portland: 10/16/2011 — Sex Offender Registers Occupy Portland Camp as Address
Denver: 10/15/2011 — Occupy Denver Demonstrator Accused of Groping TV Photographer
Lawrence, KS: 10/25/2011 — Sexual Assault Reported at Occupy Camp
Minneapolis, MN: Bricks, Rocks, ‘Riot Supplies’ Discovered by Police
Phoenix, AZ: 10/27/2011 — Neo-Nazis Patrol “Occupy Phoenix” With AR-15′s
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Occupy Chicago Invades City Hall
10/26/2011 — ACORN, Occupy Email Talks About Assault on Banks
10/26/2011 — OccupyWallStreet Strategy for Reports of Violence Against Cops
Chicago: 10/26/2011 — Unrepentant Domestic Terrorist Bill Ayers Wows Occupiers
Chicago: 10/25/2011 — Ayers Coaches #OccupyChicago, Callsg for School ‘Occupations’
10/26/2011/ — Occupy Protests Have Jewish Leaders Concerned
Wash DC: 10/27/2011 — OccupyDC Leftists Provoke Police – Hang Flag on Top of DC Statue
Albuquerque, NM: 10/26/2011 — Occupy Squatters Riot With Police
San Diego: 10/25/2011 — Flag Used as Chew Toy by Occupier’s Dog
Oakland: 10/25/2011 — Occupiers Throw Bottles at Police
NY: 10/27/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Protesters: Rush Limbaugh Is Bigger Threat Than Al-Qaeda
10/27/2011 — Occupy Wall Street Launching First Nationwide General Strike in America Since 1946
NY: 10/28/2011 — Fox 5 News Reporter Assaulted at OWS
10/28/2001 — Total Occupy Arrests Made Thus Far: 2750
Nashville: 10/28/2011 — 30 Arrests Made at Wall St. Protest
NY: 10/20/2011 — Former Marine Tries to Taunt Police into Violence
NY: 1023/2011 — Islamist Group Joins with Occupy Wall Street
Los Angeles: 10/13/2011 — Roundup of Overt Occupy anti-Semitism
NY: 10/12/2011 — There are No Anti-Semites at Occupy Wall Street. Except for This Guy
Missoula, MT: 10/20/2011 — Drunk 11-Year-Old At Occupy Missoula, Adult Arrested
Oakland: 10/28/2011 — Bounty Out On Police Officer?
Manchester, NH: 10/28/2011 — Woman charged with pimping teen recruited at Occupy NH rally
San Diego: 10/28/2011 — 40 Occupiers arrested
Boston: 10/24/2011 — Occupy Boston Vandalism of Banks
Boston: 10/25/2011 — Store Owner Suffers 4 Break Ins Since Occupy Boston Began
Portland: 10/28/2011 — Portland Police: Buckets of Excrement Scattered Around #OccupyPortland Camp
Seattle: 10/20/2011 — Two Possible Occupiers Charged With Assault
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — Armed Felon Arrested at Occupy Seattle
Seattle: 10/18/2011 — A Tent Fight and (At Least) One Arrest at Occupy Seattle
Seattle: 10/17/2011 — Over 50 Cops Clear Westlake Occupation, Make Eight Arrests
Seattle: 10/13/2011 — Cops Arrest Several Occupy Protesters
Seattle: 10/13/2011 — Chanting Protesters Surround Police After Officers Arrest Two
Denver: 10/29/2011 — Protesters Clash with Police at OWS Denver
Austin: 10/13/2011 — Occupy Austin protesters arrested for blocking cleaning Crews
Calgary, CN: 10/28/2011 — Occupiers do $40,000 in Property Damage
Cincinnati, OH: 10/21/2011 — 23 Arrested, Remains of protests fill two dumpsters
Sacramento: 10/19/2011 — 9 arrested in ‘Occupy Sacramento’ protest
Sacramento: 10/13/2011 — Four More Occupy Sacramento Demonstrators Arrested
Austin, TX: 10/22/2011 — Man Arrested After Knife Incident at Occupy Austin Camp
Nashville: 10/29/2011 — Tenn. Protesters Arrested For 2nd Straight Night

Recently, President Obama said that the Occupiers are just like the Tea Party.

That’s a lie.

Occupy Wall Street kitchen staff protesting fixing food for freeloaders!

2011-10-27T11:46:00.001-04:00

From the New York Post HERE

"The Occupy Wall Street volunteer kitchen staff launched a “counter” revolution yesterday -- because they’re angry about working 18-hour days to provide food for “professional homeless” people and ex-cons masquerading as protesters.

For three days beginning tomorrow, the cooks will serve only brown rice and other spartan grub instead of the usual menu of organic chicken and vegetables, spaghetti bolognese, and roasted beet and sheep’s-milk-cheese salad.

They will also provide directions to local soup kitchens for the vagrants, criminals and other freeloaders who have been descending on Zuccotti Park in increasing numbers every day."

Just a wee bit of irony, eh?

Car Company Gets U.S. Loan, Builds Cars In Finland(UPDATE)

2011-10-21T16:22:00.003-04:00

An interesting tidbit on our current administrations effort to create more green jobs. From ABC's The Blotter HERE, problem is, they're in Finland!

"With the approval of the Obama administration, an electric car company that received a $529 million federal government loan guarantee is assembling its first line of cars in Finland, saying it could not find a facility in the United States capable of doing the work."

Another 500 mil down the tubes as far as the United States is concerned. But we can always count on our vice president coming in with the usual great lines in selling this new investment.

"Vice President Joseph Biden heralded the Energy Department's $529 million loan to the start-up electric car company called Fisker as a bright new path to thousands of American manufacturing jobs.

And we bought that?

But two years after the loan was announced, the company's manufacturing jobs are still limited to the assembly of the flashy electric Fisker Karma sports car in Finland."

"There was no contract manufacturer in the U.S. that could actually produce our vehicle," the car company's founder and namesake told ABC News. "They don't exist here."

Does anyone wonder why that is. Hell, China is making the batteries for the Chevy Volt, what does that say. Another curious fact. It wouldn't possibly be because of the over regulation that most of the plants, that deal with type of technology, here in the United States have to put up with, would it.

Not even a whimper from the U.A.W.

"Henrik Fisker said the U.S. money has been spent on engineering and design work that stayed in the U.S., not on the 500 manufacturing jobs that went to a rural Finnish firm, Valmet Automotive."

If one is to buy into that line, I've got a used car that I'd like to sell ya!

"We're not in the business of failing; we're in the business of winning. So we make the right decision for the business," Fisker said. "That's why we went to Finland."

The words in that last line I underlined speak volumes!

UPDATE

From Forbes HERE

"As I calculated in my earlier Forbes article, one needs to multiply the EPA MPGe by .365 to get a number that truly compares fossil fuel use of an electric car with a traditional gasoline engine car on an apples to apples basis. In the case of the Fisker Karma, we get a true MPGe of 19. This makes it worse than even the city rating of a Ford Explorer SUV.

Congrats to the Fisker Karma, which now joins corn ethanol in the ranks of heavily subsidized supposedly green technologies that are actually worse for the environment than current solutions."

Making it all a so much better deal for all of us. I read elsewhere that only two of these cars have been sold to the public.

That's what happens when the government is allowed to try and pick winners. I have no doubt that this all has to do and boils down to campaign contributions......that's how it ALWAYS works!!

Interviews

2011-10-19T12:13:00.000-04:00

The BEST Harry Belafonte interview to date!!

Founders

2011-10-03T10:08:00.000-04:00

"If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the General Welfare, the Government is no longer a limited one, possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one, subject to particular exceptions."

–James Madison, letter to Edmund Pendleton, 1792

Hmmmmm.......

2011-10-01T09:19:00.000-04:00

Now it seems that even Warren Buffet is backing away from President Obama's new tax plan......

Medal Of Honor

2011-09-15T22:19:00.003-04:00

The Medal Of Honor has been awared to a young Marine. He will be the first LIVING Marine to get the honor in 33 years!

recommended for MoH

By Dan Lamothe
Army Times Staff writer
Wednesday Sep 14, 2011

Army Capt. Will Swenson has been recommended by the top U.S. general in Afghanistan for the Medal of Honor after widespread speculation about why his heroism had gone unrecognized, according to a published report.

Swenson braved enemy fire on Sept. 8, 2009, with Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer, who will receive the nation’s top valor award Thursday at the White House. Meyer, now a sergeant in the Individual Ready Reserve, told Marine Corps Times recently that it was “ridiculous” Swenson already hadn’t received some form of valor award.

“I’ll put it this way,” the outspoken Meyer said in an interview. “If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be alive today.”

Marine Gen. John Allen, the top commander in Afghanistan, took a personal interest in the fierce firefight in Ganjgal, Afghanistan, that led to Meyer’s award, according to a report published on The Wall Street Journal’s website Wednesday night. The record of the battle was reopened last month, and “given the four-star general’s personal interest, sworn statements attesting to Capt. Swenson’s valor were quickly found.”
“Gen. Allen has since forwarded a Medal of Honor recommendation, saying it was the right thing to do despite a lapse of two years,” the report said.

It was not clear what caused the delay, or where the recommendation was in the approval process. Any recommendation would need to be approved by the Army, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and President Obama.

Swenson worked with Meyer under heavy enemy fire to recover the bodies and gear of four U.S. military trainers who had gone missing in the battle. Uncertain whether they were all dead, Meyer charged through enemy fire alone and on foot to find them. He found them shot to death and in a hillside trench at the outskirts of the village, in volatile Kunar province’s Sarkani district. Swenson assisted him in carrying the bodies and gear back to their Humvee.

Meyer and Swenson already had braved enemy fire repeatedly in the battle while working to save other U.S. and Afghan forces, even after Army officers at a nearby tactical operations center repeatedly denied fire support they requested. On the last trip into the village to get the bodies, they rode a Humvee under fire with Marine 1st Lt. Ademola Fabayo and Marine Staff Sgt. Juan Rodriguez-Chavez, both of whom received the Navy Cross in June for their actions that day.

Swenson, who left the Army in February, could not be reached for comment.
He was then a member of 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, out of Fort Riley, Kan., and deployed to oversee the training of Afghan border police in Sarkani. A Ranger School graduate with previous deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, he had participated in the planning of the mission, and was assured fire support would be available if things turned ugly.

Interviewed for the subsequent investigation, he unloaded on the rules of engagement used in Afghanistan, the leadership of officers who didn’t send help and the second-guessing he experienced requesting fire support, according to military documents. His name is redacted, but Military Times determined which statements he made based on the actions and roles described in interview transcripts.

“When I’m being second-guessed by higher or somebody that’s sitting in an air-conditioned TOC, why [the] hell am I even out there in the first place?” Swenson told investigators. “Let’s sit back and play Nintendo. I am the ground commander I want that f—er, and I am willing to accept the consequences of that f—er.”
Swenson added that he had been second-guessed on previous occasions, and was frustrated by a complicated process to clear fires, even under duress.

“I always get these crazy messages saying that, ‘Hey, brigade is saying that you can’t see the target,’” Swenson told investigators. “Brigade, you’re in Jalalabad. F— you, you know? I am staring at the target. ... I just get the craziest things on the radio sometimes. Just people second guessing. If I am willing to put my initials on it, I understand the importance of making sure the rounds hit where they are supposed to hit. I understand the consequences of civilian casualties.”

An Army source with knowledge of the awards process previously said Swenson is “up for some kind of valor award,” but he did not say whether it could be a prestigious award like the Medal of Honor. By policy, the military does not discuss pending military awards, said Bill Costello, a spokesman with Army Human Resources Command, out of Fort Knox, Ky.

The firefight lasted at least six hours, beginning shortly after dawn. At least two officers — with Task Force Chosin, a unit comprising soldiers from 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, out of Fort Drum, N.Y. — were later cited following the investigation for “negligent” leadership leading “directly to the loss of life” on the battlefield.

Killed in the battle were four members of Marine Embedded Training Team 2-8. They are 1st Lt. Michael Johnson, Gunnery Sgt. Edwin Johnson, Staff Sgt. Aaron Kenefick and Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class James Layton. At least eight Afghan troops and an interpreter also were killed in the battle. Three Americans survived wounds sustained that day, but one of them — Army Sgt 1st Class Kenneth Westbrook — died a month later at Walter Reed Army Medical Center of complications from his injuries.

Founders Quotes

2011-09-15T09:05:00.000-04:00

"We are either a United people, or we are not. If the former, let us, in all maters of general concern act as a nation, which have national objects to promote, and a national character to support. If we are not, let us no longer act a farce by pretending to it."

–George Washington, letter to James Madison, 1785

Character

2011-08-31T21:15:00.000-04:00

People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of their character.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

HUH?

2011-08-28T10:43:00.000-04:00

I have to admit I thought the video was somebody's warped sense of humor. But NOW, I'm thinkin' she's serious!!

Marco Rubio At The Reagan Library

2011-08-26T22:25:00.000-04:00

The transcripts of Marco Rubio's speech at the Reagan Library are HERE. A few things he said stood out to me.

"I tell people all the time that I was born and raised in Ronald Reagan’s America. I was raised in Ronald Reagan’s America. He was elected when I was in fourth grade and he left - he left office when I was in high school. Those are very important years, fourth grade through high school they were the years that formed so much of what today what I believe and know to be true about the world and about our nation."

That statement in itself says much about Marco Rubio. At a young age to have been effected so by President Reagan impresses me.

For him to say something like that says a lot, when one considers, how many Republicans there are still serving in the Senate and the House that had the opportunity to rub elbows with President Reagan and to this day are still trying to distance themselves from much of what President Reagan stood for and the good things he did while in office.

President Reagan defined what Republican party was. As I watch many in the party now, I see NO definition.

"There was something else though that defined the Reagan Presidency and that was defining the proper role of government. He did that better than any American has done ever before. And I stand before you, it has always been important for Americans and America to do that, but I stand here before you today all of us gathered here today at a time when defining the proper role of government is as important as it has ever been."

How good is THAT statement!!

"The answer to what the proper role of government is really lies in what kind of country we want to have. And I think the vast majority of Americans share a common vision for what they want our nation to be. They want our nation to be two things at the same time.

Number one: they want it to be free and prosperous, a place where your economic hopes and dreams can be accomplished and brought up to fruition. That through hard work and sacrifice you can be who God meant you to be. No matter who your parents were, no matter where you were born, no matter how much misfortune you may have met in your life, if you have a good idea, you can be anything if you work hard and play by the rules. Most, if not all, Americans share that vision of a free and prosperous America.

But they also want us to be a compassionate America, a place where people are not left behind. We are a nation that is not going to tolerate those who cannot take care of themselves being left to fend for themselves. We’re not going to tolerate our children being punished for the errors of their parents and society.

So, we are a nation that aspires to two things – prosperity and compassion. And Ronald Reagan understood that. Perhaps better, again, than any voice I’ve ever heard speak on it.

Now America’s leaders during the last century set out to accomplish that, but they reached a conclusion that has placed us on this path, except for the Reagan Administration to be quite frank. Both Republicans and Democrats established a role for government in America that said, yes, we’ll have a free economy, but we will also have a strong government, who through regulations and taxes will control the free economy and through a series of government programs, will take care of those in our society who are falling behind.

That was a vision crafted in the twentieth century by our leaders and though it was well intentioned, it was doomed to fail from the start. It was doomed to fail from the start first and foremost because it forgot that the strength of our nation begins with its people and that these programs actually weakened us as a people. You see, almost in forever, it was institutions and society that assumed the role of taking care of one another. If someone was sick in your family, you took care of them. If a neighbor met misfortune, you took care of them. You saved for your retirement and your future because you had to.

Just who of those currently putting themselves up for the office of president is saying anything close to that.

We took these things upon ourselves and our communities and our families and our homes and our churches and our synagogues. But all that changed when the government began to assume those responsibilities. All of the sudden, for an increasing number of people in our nation, it was no longer necessary to worry about saving for security because that was the government’s job. For those who met misfortune, that wasn’t our obligation to take care of them, that was the government’s job. And as government crowded out the institutions in our society that did these things traditionally, it weakened our people in a way that undermined our ability to maintain our prosperity."

AMEN!!

I could go on but, read the speech for yourself in the link above. He's sounding very presidential to me. One can only hope that he maintains and doesn't cave to the pressure of party politics, like we've seen so many times before.

Memory

2011-08-23T17:23:00.000-04:00

Nothing is so admirable in politics as a short memory.

John Kenneth Galbraith (1908 - 2006)

And, So It Begins......

2011-08-22T10:57:00.000-04:00

From the Washington Times HERE

"Yet many groups with the most at stake didn't have to change their plans. Some members of the supercommittee received more campaign contributions in July from political action committees controlled by corporations, unions and other lawmakers than anyone else in Congress, disclosures filed this weekend show…"

Did anybody else really think that things would be any different? Did anybody really think that the "Super Committee" would be anything but a joke.

If you are not offended by the fact that the politicians think you're stupid enough to believe that this committee would really do anything worthwhile, I'll be the first one to question your intelligence!

Duties

2011-08-22T10:43:00.000-04:00

It is the duty of every citizen according to his best capacities to give validity to his convictions in political affairs.

Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

Just A Pretty Girl

2011-08-19T12:07:00.000-04:00

It's a fun video to watch as Laura puts the wood to Charlie!!

Freedom

2011-08-19T10:46:00.000-04:00

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.

Ronald Reagan

Archie Has A Few Things To Say!!

2011-08-14T10:49:00.000-04:00

Pawlenty Comes Out Swingin'!!

2011-08-09T20:56:00.000-04:00

The Founders

2011-08-06T21:32:00.002-04:00

"The principle of spending money to be paid by posterity, under the name of funding, is but swindling futurity on a large scale." --Thomas Jefferson

The Founders

2011-08-06T13:13:00.000-04:00

"The aim of every political constitution is, or ought to be, first to obtain for rulers men who possess most wisdom to discern, and most virtue to pursue, the common good of the society; and in the next place, to take the most effectual precautions for keeping them virtuous whilst they continue to hold their public trust."

–James Madison, Federalist No. 57, 1788

Interesting!

2011-08-04T10:23:00.000-04:00

"It is time to reawaken this industrial giant, to get government back within its means, and to lighten our punitive tax burden. And these will be our first priorities, and on these principles
there will be NO COMPROMISE." - Ronald Reagan

President Reagan said so many great things. This statement, I believe, is one of the greatest and it STILL applies today.

As we look at the lineup for the various positions, be it the job of president, the Senate or Congress, is there anyone out there saying anything close to what President Reagan said in the above?

President Reagan had the ability to instill a sense of pride in what America is and didn't dwell on what America isn't, I think, because he knew if the first part was enacted, the latter would take care of itself.

Is there anyone out there that remotely has these qualities?

Marco Rubio

2011-07-31T10:32:00.000-04:00

“If my house was on fire, I can’t compromise about which part of the house I am going to save. You save the whole house, or it will all burn down.”

New NASA Data Blow Gaping Hole In Global Warming Alarmism

2011-07-28T16:09:00.001-04:00

Isn't interesting that this isn't making any headlines, at least not in MY neck of the woods.

From the article HERE. NASA satellite data from the years 2000 through 2011 show the Earth's atmosphere is allowing far more heat to be released into space than alarmist computer models have predicted, reports a new study in the peer-reviewed science journal Remote Sensing. The study indicates far less future global warming will occur than United Nations computer models have predicted, and supports prior studies indicating increases in atmospheric carbon dioxidetrap far less heat than alarmists have claimed.

I was amazed to find it on Yahoo News of all places. Let the whining begin........

"The satellite observations suggest there is much more energy lost to space during and after warming than the climate models show," Spencer said in a July 26 University of Alabama press release. "There is a huge discrepancy between the data and the forecasts that is especially big over the oceans."

It wasn't that long ago that NASA was on the "Global Warming" band wagon. Personally I believe in an effort to maintain their funding. Nothing to lose now, eh?

The new findings are extremely important and should dramatically alter the global warming debate.

Personally, I thought the debate was over when the last lie was exposed!!

When objective NASA satellite data, reported in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, show a "huge discrepancy" between alarmist climate models and real-world facts, climate scientists, the media and our elected officials would be wise to take notice. Whether or not they do so will tell us a great deal about how honest the purveyors of global warming alarmism truly are.

Peer-reviewed scientific journal??? You mean people other than the "Al Gore" types???!

Couple Sees Jesus In Walmart Receipt

2011-07-16T11:26:00.001-04:00

Ya know, it was only a matter of time before Jesus would finally show up at Walmart! Read the article HERE.

I've often wondered how people seem to know what Jesus looks like. I looked REALLY hard at that picture and I thought I saw Che Guevara! I guess that goes to show one how really lost I must be.....mebbe.

Act 1:10 While he was going up, they kept on looking at the sky. Suddenly two men dressed in white clothing stood beside them.

Act 1:11 "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking at the sky? Jesus has been taken away from you into heaven. But he will come back in the same way you saw him go."

So, just to prove to all, just how much of a heathen I may be, I'll keep looking up, instead of trying to see Jesus in a piece of toast, a slice of cheese or perhaps on Walmart receipts.

End Times

2011-07-13T16:10:00.000-04:00

"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."

Winston Churchill

God And Politics

2011-07-11T11:37:00.000-04:00

Washington (CNN) – Veteran Democratic Rep. Charlie Rangel made an impassioned plea to religious leaders Friday, calling on them to lobby members of Congress and the Obama administration to remember the “lesser of my brothers and sisters” during this weekend’s debt negotiations.

“What would Jesus do this weekend? Or Moses. Or Allah. Or anyone else,” the New York congressman said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. “I don’t want this book (debt negotiations) closed without the clergy having an opportunity to forcefully express themselves as well as I know they can do.”

I find this statement amusing. While Rangel muses on what Jesus or anyone else would do about the budget crisis, I find it interesting that they don't ask that same question when it comes to abortion......

T.S.A.

2011-07-11T11:16:00.000-04:00

As I read that a 6 year old was singled out for a T.S.A. pat down, it's nice to know that the T.S.A. is right on top of it all. Maybe, just maybe, a memo should be put out on just what a terrorist looks like..........

Hey Buddy, Can You Spare A Square

2011-07-04T11:11:00.001-04:00

Another one I would file, "You Can't Make This Stuff Up!" From the New York Times, HERE

Hey buddy, can you spare a square?

The city is so hard up for cash that it's rationing toilet paper in women's public restrooms -- to the point where bathroom attendants are doling out a few measly squares per patron -- along the world-famous Coney Island boardwalk.

The Post witnessed stone-faced Parks Department employees leave toilet-paper dispensers empty last week and instead force astonished female beachgoers to form "ration lines" in the bathrooms.

It seems that a city employee is paid to ration out the toilet paper. My only question is, how much is this person paid to pass out the squares? Is it more than the original toilet paper budget?

Independence Day

2011-07-04T10:38:00.000-04:00

I had a high school teacher, that for a punishment, would often force us to write out the Declaration Of Independence. Just in case you haven't seen it lately, here it is. Looking back, I appreciate the times that this teacher made me do it........

The Declaration of Independence

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The Fourth

2011-07-02T11:12:00.001-04:00

What are we celebrating on Monday? Here's your answer......

Things That Make You Say Hmmmmmmm.....

2011-06-25T10:01:00.000-04:00

A week ago:

President Obama explained to NBC News that the reason companies aren’t hiring is not because of his policies, it’s because the economy is so automated. … “There are some structural issues with our economy where a lot of businesses have learned to become much more efficient with a lot fewer workers. You see it when you go to a bank and you use an ATM, you don’t go to a bank teller, or you go to the airport and you’re using a kiosk instead of checking in at the gate.”

And then a week later.......

President Barack Obama says technological innovations such as robots can help pump jobs into the economy and spur growth in clean energy and advanced manufacturing.

In his radio and Internet address Saturday, the president echoed a plan he unveiled Friday in Pittsburgh to join the federal government, universities and corporations and re-ignite American manufacturing with an emphasis on cutting-edge research and new technologies.

“Their mission is to come up with a way to get ideas from the drawing board to the manufacturing floor to the marketplace as swiftly as possible, which will help create quality jobs, and make our businesses more competitive,” Obama said in his address.

So......which is it!!??

Libya

2011-06-21T10:56:00.000-04:00

From the beginning I believed we, The United States, should not have stepped into the mess that is Libya. Allen West gives the reasons why more eloquently than I can.

Logic? Mebbe......

2011-06-04T07:54:00.000-04:00

Discussing things with liberals, I've found, is often like trying to make a noodle in your soup to be self supporting and have it stand up straight.

I offer this example!

Don't Mess With A Vet!!

2011-06-04T07:38:00.000-04:00

The Sargent schooled this bank robber!

Achmed, The Marine!

2011-05-15T11:36:00.002-04:00

Stolen Valor

2011-05-10T22:13:00.001-04:00

Newville pastor admits his tale of being a Navy SEAL was just 'an ego-builder' From the pennlive.com HERE

I’ve heard some rumblings and some validation from some folks during a Veteran’s Reunion I attended this past week. Navy SEALS are coming out of the woodwork now. People who try to impersonate others, to rob them of valor and place it on their own shoulders are despicable.

Not only did Reverend Moats claim to be a Navy SEAL, he also claimed to be a Vietnam Veteran. He was neither.

We Vietnam Veterans have certainly had our share of imposters that have tried to infiltrate our ranks. Some are better actors than others making them hard to spot, even for experienced Veterans.

From the article:

The Patriot-News regularly interviews veterans to tell their stories. We do not regularly ask those we interview for proof of their service, believing these men and women would not lie and dishonor those who have fought bravely defending our country.

Maybe, just maybe, it’s high time that they did ask for proof!! I think it to be lazy journalism if they don't validate the facts they post. As most veterans I know, I can produce my DD-214 in minutes.

For those that are not familiar with that terminology, a DD-214 is that last paper work you would receive from the military. It list one’s areas of service, where they served and when. Also on that paper work is schools attended and the list the every medal one received while in the military. It’s proof of who and what we are, as Veterans.

I think I can speak for many Veterans; I would not be offended if somebody asked me for my DD-214, to prove who I was. Especially in the scenario like the story speaks about.

I used to own a motor home and one of the bumper stickers I had on the back of it said:

I Was A Vietnam Veteran Before It Was Popular

Maybe I need to find another one and place it on the back of my vehicles again!

Inconsistencies

2011-05-08T10:57:00.001-04:00

I’ve made known my amusement about how the present administration has no problem with putting a bullet into somebodies head yet, has a problem with water boarding…….Enjoy the stumbling in this video as Chris Wallace presses Whitehouse Security Adviser, Tom Donilon, for an explanation also!

It's Settled!!!!

2011-05-05T16:07:00.001-04:00

From The Blaze, HERE . It's nice to know that everything has finally been cleared up! Now all the speculation can be put to rest!

1) There was a firefight.
2) There was no firefight.
3) Bin Laden was “resisting.”
4) Bin Laden wasn’t armed. (Makes the concept of “resisting” interesting.)
[4.a) And the newest one: the SEALS thought bin Laden was reaching for a weapon.]
5) He used his wife as a shield.
6) His wife was killed too.
7) He didn’t use his wife as a shield. She ran at a SEAL who shot her in the leg, but she’s fine.
8 ) Some other woman — the maid? — was used as a shield. By somebody. Downstairs.
9) That other woman — downstairs — was killed.
10) Maybe not. She was killed unless she wasn’t — and who was she, anyway?
11) Bin Laden’s son was killed.
12) Unless it was some other guy.
13) Bin Laden’s daughter saw him get killed. She’s undoubtedly traumatized, poor dear.
14) They were going to capture Bin Laden until the problem with the helicopter, which was:
A) It had mechanical trouble
B) It did a hard landing
C) It crashed
D) It clipped a wall with a tail rotor, effectively a crash

15.) They were never going to try to capture him; it was always a kill mission.
16.) No, it wasn’t.
17) The chopper blew up.
18) The SEALs blew it up.
19.) Panetta said yesterday the world needed proof and the photo would be released.
20.) Obama said today in an interview he taped with Steve Kroft for “60 Minutes” to be broadcast Sunday that it won’t be released. It’s too gruesome, would offend Muslim sensibilities (something he worries about a lot — I personally do not give a warm fart on a wet Wednesday about Muslim sensibilities), and how would Americans feel if Muslims released pictures of dead Americans?
21.) Kroft — who’s not a total idiot — pointed out that ever since “Black Hawk Down” days, Muslims have been doing precisely that, filming American bodies being dragged through the streets, filming Daniel Pearl’s head being cut off, filming any and everything.
22) Obama gets pissed at CBS, the tape gets cleaned up, that question disappears. (Inside info.)
23.) We got a “treasure trove” of stuff from hard drives, etc.
24.) There were no phone lines, and no internet access at the “mansion,” they didn’t even have TV — what “treasure trove?”
25.) There is obviously in the pictures of the place a large satellite dish. I guess they used it for making salads.
26.) And now, just today: apparently the idea was to capture him, but only if he was naked. There was a suspicion he might be wearing a suicide bomber type explosive vest, or belt. So if he’s not naked and you can’t see if he has a vest on or not – shoot him.

Allen West

2011-04-22T10:30:00.000-04:00

He makes me proud to be a Floridian!!

War

2011-04-20T11:31:00.003-04:00

When our men and women serve our country, more often than not, so far away from our own battles that come with life, it's easy to lose perspective of what our men and women do in defense of our country. It often takes only a few words to shake us into the reality of what others may endure and make what we are dealing with seem SO small!

Burial at Sea
by Lt. Col. George Goodson, USMC (Ret.)

In my 76th year, the events of my life appear to me, from time to time, as a series of vignettes. Some were significant; most were trivial.

War is the seminal event in the life of everyone that has endured it. Though I fought in Korea and the Dominican Republic and was wounded there, Vietnam was my war.

Now 42 years have passed and, thankfully, I rarely think of those days in Cambodia , Laos, and the panhandle of North Vietnam where small teams of Americans and Montangards fought much larger elements of the North Vietnamese Army. Instead I see vignettes: some exotic, some mundane:

The smell of Nuc Mam.

The heat, dust, and humidity.

The blue exhaust of cycles clogging the streets.

Elephants moving silently through the tall grass.

Hard eyes behind the servile smiles of the villagers.

Standing on a mountain in Laos and hearing a tiger roar.

A young girl squeezing my hand as my medic delivered her baby.

The flowing Ao Dais of the young women biking down Tran Hung Dao.

My two years as Casualty Notification Officer in North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland .

It was late 1967, I had just returned after 18 months in Vietnam. Casualties were increasing. I moved my family from Indianapolis to Norfolk, rented a house, enrolled my children in their fifth or sixth new school, and bought a second car.

A week later, I put on my uniform and drove 10 miles to Little Creek, Virginia. I hesitated before entering my new office. Appearance is important to career Marines. I was no longer, if ever, a poster Marine. I had returned from my third tour in Vietnam only 30 days before. At 5'9", I now weighed 128 pounds--37 pounds below my normal weight. My uniforms fit ludicrously, my skin was yellow from malaria medication, and I think I had a twitch or two.

I straightened my shoulders, walked into the office, looked at the nameplate on a Staff Sergeant's desk and said, "Sergeant Jolly, I'm Lieutenant Colonel Goodson. Here are my orders and my Qualification Jacket."

Sergeant Jolly stood, looked carefully at me, took my orders, stuck out his hand; we shook and he asked, "How long were you there, Colonel?" I replied "18 months this time." Jolly breathed, "You must be a slow learner, Colonel." I smiled.

Jolly said, "Colonel, I'll show you to your office and bring in the Sergeant Major. I said, "No, let's just go straight to his office." Jolly nodded, hesitated and lowered his voice, "Colonel, the Sergeant Major. He's been in this job two years. He's packed pretty tight. I'm worried about him." I nodded.

Jolly escorted me into the Sergeant Major's office. "Sergeant Major, this is Colonel Goodson, the new Commanding Office. The Sergeant Major stood, extended his hand and said, "Good to see you again, Colonel." I responded, "Hello Walt, how are you?" Jolly looked at me, raised an eyebrow, walked out and closed the door.

I sat down with the Sergeant Major. We had the obligatory cup of coffee and talked about mutual acquaintances. Walt's stress was palpable. Finally, I said, "Walt, what's the hell's wrong?" He turned his chair, looked out the window and said, "George, you're going to wish you were back in 'Nam before you leave here. I've been in the Marine Corps since 1939. I was in the Pacific 36 months, Korea for 14 months, and Vietnam for 12 months. Now I come here to bury these kids. I'm putting my letter in. I can't take it anymore." I said: "OK, Walt. If that's what you want, I'll endorse your request for retirement and do what I can to push it through Headquarters Marine Corps."

Sergeant Major Walt ------- retired 12 weeks later. He had been a good Marine for 28 years, but he had seen too much death and too much suffering. He was used up.

Over the next 16 months, I made 28 death notifications, conducted 28 military funerals, and made 30 notifications to the families of Marines that were severely wounded or missing in action. Most of the details of those casualty notifications have now, thankfully, faded from memory. Four, however, remain.

MY FIRST NOTIFICATION

My third or fourth day in Norfolk , I was notified of the death of a 19 year old Marine. This notification came by telephone from Headquarters Marine Corps. The information detailed:

Name, rank, and serial number.

Name, address, and phone number of next of kin.

Date of and limited details about the Marine's death.

Approximate date the body would arrive at the Norfolk Naval Air Station.

A strong recommendation on whether the casket should be opened or closed.

The boy's family lived over the border in North Carolina, about 60 miles away. I drove there in a Marine Corps staff car. Crossing the state line into North Carolina, I stopped at a small country store/service station/Post Office. I went in to ask directions.

Three people were in the store.. A man and woman approached the small Post Office window. The man held a package. The storeowner walked up and addressed them by name, "Hello John. Good morning, Mrs. Cooper."

I was stunned. My casualty's next-of-kin's name was John Cooper!

I hesitated, then stepped forward and said, "I beg your pardon. Are you Mr. and Mrs. John Cooper of (address.)

The father looked at me--I was in uniform--and, shaking, bent at the waist and vomited. His wife looked horrified at him and then at me. Understanding came into her eyes and she collapsed in slow motion. I think I caught her before she hit the floor.

The owner took a bottle of whiskey out of a drawer and handed it to Mr. Cooper, who drank from it. I answered their questions for a few minutes, then drove them home in my staff car. The storeowner locked up the store and followed in their truck. We stayed an hour or so until the family began arriving.

I returned the storeowner to his business. He thanked me and said, "Mister, I wouldn't have your job for a million dollars." I shook his hand and said; "Neither would I."

I vaguely remember the drive back to Norfolk . Violating about five Marine Corps regulations, I drove the staff car straight to my house. I sat with my family while they ate dinner, went into the den, closed the door, and sat there all night, alone.

My Marines steered clear of me for days. I had made my first death notification.

THE FUNERALS

Weeks passed with more notifications and more funerals. I borrowed Marines from the local Marine Corps Reserve and taught them to conduct a military funeral: how to carry a casket, how to fire the volleys and how to fold the flag.

When I presented the flag to the mother, wife, or father, I always said, "All Marines share in your grief." I had been instructed to say, "On behalf of a grateful nation. . . ." I didn't think the nation was grateful, so I didn't say that.

Sometimes, my emotions got the best of me and I couldn't speak. When that happened, I just handed them the flag and touched a shoulder. They would look at me and nod. Once a mother said to me, "I'm so sorry you have this terrible job." My eyes filled with tears and I leaned over and kissed her.

ANOTHER NOTIFICATION

Six weeks after my first notification, I had to make another. This time it was a young PFC. I drove to his mother's house. As always, I was in uniform and driving a Marine Corps staff car. I parked in front of the house, took a deep breath, and walked toward the house. Suddenly the door flew open, a middle-aged woman rushed out. She looked at me and ran across the yard, screaming "NO! NO! NO! NO!"

I hesitated. Neighbors came out. I ran to her, grabbed her, and whispered stupid things to reassure her. She collapsed. I picked her up and carried her into the house. Eight or nine neighbors followed. Ten or fifteen later, the father came in followed by ambulance personnel. I have no recollection of leaving.

The funeral took place about two weeks later. We went through the drill. The mother never looked at me. The father looked at me once and shook his head sadly.

ANOTHER NOTIFICATION

One morning, as I walked in the office, the phone was ringing. Sergeant Jolly held the phone up and said, "You've got another one, Colonel." I nodded, walked into my office, picked up the phone, took notes, thanked the officer making the call, I have no idea why, and hung up. Jolly, who had listened, came in with a special Telephone Directory that translates telephone numbers into the person's address and place of employment.

The father of this casualty was a Longshoreman. He lived a mile from my office. I called the Longshoreman's Union Office and asked for the Business Manager. He answered the phone, I told him who I was, and asked for the father's schedule.

The Business Manager asked, "Is it his son?" I said nothing. After a moment, he said, in a low voice, "Tom is at home today." I said, "Don't call him. I'll take care of that." The Business Manager said, "Aye, Aye Sir," and then explained, "Tom and I were Marines in WWII."

I got in my staff car and drove to the house. I was in uniform. I knocked and a woman in her early forties answered the door. I saw instantly that she was clueless. I asked, "Is Mr. Smith home?" She smiled pleasantly and responded, "Yes, but he's eating breakfast now. Can you come back later?" I said, "I'm sorry. It's important. I need to see him now."

She nodded, stepped back into the beach house and said, "Tom, it's for you."

A moment later, a ruddy man in his late forties, appeared at the door. He looked at me, turned absolutely pale, steadied himself, and said, "Jesus Christ man, he's only been there three weeks!"

Months passed. More notifications and more funerals. Then one day while I was running, Sergeant Jolly stepped outside the building and gave a loud whistle, two fingers in his mouth--I never could do that--and held an imaginary phone to his ear.

Another call from Headquarters Marine Corps. I took notes, said, "Got it." and hung up. I had stopped saying "Thank You" long ago.

Jolly: "Where?"

Me: "Eastern Shore of Maryland. The father is a retired Chief Petty Officer. His brother will accompany the body back from Vietnam."

Jolly shook his head slowly, straightened, and then said, "This time of day, it'll take three hours to get there and back. I'll call the Naval Air Station and borrow a helicopter. And I'll have Captain Tolliver get one of his men to meet you and drive you to the Chief's home."

He did, and 40 minutes later, I was knocking on the father's door. He opened it, looked at me, then looked at the Marine standing at parade rest beside the car, and asked, "Which one of my boys was it, Colonel?"

I stayed a couple of hours, gave him all the information, my office and home phone number and told him to call me any time.

He called me that evening about 2300 (11 PM). "I've gone through my boy's papers and found his will. He asked to be buried at sea. Can you make that happen?" I said, "Yes I can, Chief. I can and I will."

My wife who had been listening said, "Can you do that?" I told her, "I have no idea. But I'm going to bust my ass trying."

I called Lt. Gen. Alpha Bowser, Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force Atlantic, at home about 2330, explained the situation, and asked, "General, can you get me a quick appointment with the Admiral at Atlantic Fleet Headquarters?" General Bowser said," George, you be there tomorrow at 0900. He will see you.

I was and the Admiral did. He said coldly, "How can the Navy help the Marine Corps, Colonel." I told him the story. He turned to his Chief of Staff and said, "Which is the sharpest destroyer in port?" The Chief of Staff responded with a name.

The Admiral called the ship, "Captain, you're going to do a burial at sea. You'll report to a Marine Lieutenant Colonel Goodson until this mission is completed."

He hung up, looked at me, and said, "The next time you need a ship, Colonel, call me. You don't have to sic Al Bowser on my ass." I responded, "Aye Aye, Sir" and got the hell out of his office.

I went to the ship and met with the Captain, Executive Officer, and the Senior Chief. Sergeant Jolly and I trained the ship's crew for four days. Then Jolly raised a question none of us had thought of. He said, "These government caskets are air tight. How do we keep it from floating?"

All the high priced help including me sat there looking dumb. Then the Senior Chief stood and said, "Come on Jolly. I know a bar where the retired guys from World War II hang out."

They returned a couple of hours later, slightly the worse for wear, and said, "It's simple; we cut four 12-inch holes in the outer shell of the casket on each side and insert a couple hundred pounds of lead in the foot it. We can handle that, no sweat.."

The day arrived. The ship and the sailors looked razor sharp. General Bowser, the Admiral, a U.S. Senator, and a Navy Band were on board. The sealed casket was brought aboard and taken below for modification. The ship got under way and steamed out to where the depth was 12 fathoms.

The sun was hot. The ocean flat. The casket was brought aft and placed on a catafalque. The Chaplin spoke.. The volleys were fired. The flag was removed, folded, and I gave it to the father. The band played "Eternal Father Strong to Save." The casket was raised slightly at the head and it slid into the sea.

The heavy casket plunged straight down about six feet. The incoming water collided with air pockets in the outer shell and the casket stopped abruptly, rose straight out of the water about three feet, stopped, and slowly slipped back into the sea. The air bubbles rising from the sinking casket sparkled in the in the sunlight as it disappeared from sight.

The next morning I called a personal friend, Lt. Gen. Oscar Peatross, at Headquarters Marine Corps and said, "General, get me out of here. I can't take this anymore." I was transferred two weeks later.

I was a good Marine, but after 17 years I had seen too much death and too much suffering. I was used up.

Vacating the house, my family and I drove to the office in a two-car convoy. I said my goodbyes. Sergeant Jolly walked out with me. He waved at my family, looked at me with tears in his eyes, came to attention, saluted, and said, "Well Done, Colonel. Well Done."

I felt as if I had received the Medal of Honor.

A veteran is someone who, at one point, wrote a blank
check made payable to 'The United States of America '
for an amount of ‘up to and including their life.' That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.

South Florida Tax Day Tea Party

2011-04-18T21:08:00.000-04:00

Designing Could Be Hazardous To Your Health

2011-04-02T10:43:00.000-04:00

From the St. Petersburg Times HERE

But no deregulation proposal has generated more controversy in Florida than the one targeting interior design.

Ninety people signed up to speak at Wednesday's hearing about HB 5005, including dozens of interior design students who fought back sobs as they talked about worrying they had wasted time and money on degrees.

Others highlighted the potential for bad design to result in materials being used for weapons in prisons, flooring that causes falls and fabrics that lead to death.

They may have a point. My wife often watches the house design shows on many of the satellite networks that come into my house. All I can say is, I watch them with her sometimes and I know that some of these TV designers have made be feel a bit suicidal at times. So yes, maybe there are lives on the line!!

Your Tax Dollars At Work

2011-04-01T10:52:00.001-04:00

From US News HERE

A $600,000 frog sculpture that lights up, gurgles "sounds of nature" and carries a 10-foot fairy girl on its back could soon be greeting Defense Department employees who plan to start working at the $700 million Mark Center in Alexandria, Va. this fall. That is unless a new controversy over the price tag of the public art doesn't torpedo the idea.

I would be interested in what other goodies where added on to the price tag of this new facility.

The Good-O-Meter

2011-03-20T20:29:00.003-04:00

Voltage

2011-03-18T07:50:00.000-04:00

I remember hearing our President singing the praises of the new Chevy Volt. It seems they're not exactly flying off the shelves at GM. One would think the vehicle would be a bargain, especially when one considers that we, the taxpayer, are subsidizing the battery powered wonder!

With that, I offer this tidbit from Hot Air:

Another reason they aren’t exactly flying off the lots is because, well, they have some problems. In a telling attempt to preserve battery power, the heater is exceedingly weak. Consumer Reports averaged a paltry 25 miles of electric-only running, in part because it was testing in cold Connecticut. (My engineer at the Auto Show said cold weather would have little effect.)

It will be interesting to see what the range is on a hot, traffic-jammed summer day, when the air conditioner will really tax the batteries. When the gas engine came on, Consumer Reports got about 30 miles to the gallon of premium fuel; which, in terms of additional cost of high-test gas, drives the effective mileage closer to 27 mpg. A conventional Honda ( HMC – news – people ) Accord, which seats 5 (instead of the Volt’s 4), gets 34 mpg on the highway, and costs less than half of what CR paid, even with the tax break.

Here is the article that was referenced from the paragraph above: HERE

AFGANISTAN

2011-03-13T13:00:00.000-04:00

ASADABAD, Afghanistan (AFP) – An emotional Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Saturday told international troops to "stop their operations in our land", his strongest remarks yet over mistaken killings of civilians.

Karzai's comments came after a week in which a relative of his was killed in a raid by foreign forces and he rejected an apology by the US commander of troops General David Petraeus for the deaths of nine children in a NATO strike.

OK, Karzai has said it. What are we waiting for. It's time to pull our men and women out of Afghanistan. Personally, if we leave, I'll be shocked if Karzai is alive six months after we're gone.......

The rest of the story: HERE

It Takes Two Flushes For Me Too!!!

2011-03-11T11:12:00.000-05:00

Ya just gotta love the Paul clan!! Abeit, they are a little too on the fringe for my taste but, they DO come up with some GREAT lines!!

Reality

2011-02-16T22:36:00.000-05:00

I would love to see a debate between our president and Governor Christie. Why can't most politicians just 'say it like it is'?

Civility

2011-02-03T10:42:00.002-05:00

Log this one under "You Just Can't Make This Stuff Up"!!

Observations

2011-02-01T10:40:00.002-05:00

Is it just me? Doesn't it seem odd that we see so many of the protest signs being shown us, via our many media outlets, in English...I mean, I'm being shown what are images from Egypt, right?

Think about this for a moment. If you were to protest something going on here in the United States, would you take the time to translate some of your signs into French, Italian or into Arabic? It just seems a bit surreal to me...

Sen. Rand Paul: State of the Union Response

2011-01-27T10:54:00.000-05:00

Personally, I thought Rand Paul gave the better counterpoint to President Obama's State Of The Union Address.

Mourning

2011-01-12T21:15:00.000-05:00

Depending on who you read, the average murder rate each day in the United States is between 40 to 50. I start with that for a reason.

I started to watch the memorial services and had to stop after twenty minutes or so of it. I started to think, who mourns for those 40 to 50 people that die each day? I hate being a curmudgeon but, people are going to walk away from these services and say how beautiful it all was, we’ll hear the press, tomorrow, sing the praises of who said what and what who said……

Why does it seem that when a dignitary is almost killed, with many others killed, the nation seems to stop and take notice. Why do we not do the same thing for those 40 to 50 people? Are their lives somehow more important? Are they somehow worth more than those others? Do the pile of bodies have to be in one location for anybody to notice or become enraged??

I listen to the bile that people puke out and think……..are these deaths all politically motivated too? What is the difference? Why aren’t you showing that same concern for those people?

As I listen to the applause coming from the other room as Obama talks about heroism, why don’t we applaud the heroes we have on battlefields, right now, with the gusto I hear tonight? It’s most generally a just a line three or four pages into a newspaper.

Or maybe……I just think too much……..

Craziness

2011-01-11T12:42:00.000-05:00

We can’t allow the smearing that the left seems to be doing, over the tragedy that occurred this past weekend, towards conservatives/Republicans. It only goes to show just how out of touch and out of power the left is.

We can’t allow them to set the terms and create the labels that they are so good at doing, even when they are in the minority.

We can’t allow them to label disagreement as vitriol.

In the past, when we've had the majority, we allowed them to run roughshod over us with their rhetoric. This cannot stand any longer as the message the public sent the last election attests to that.

We can’t allow them to try to curb our anger and contempt for what they are trying to do by the labels they dictate in attempt to silence us. They redefine the language to make it something it is not.

We do not need to turn down the tone about the issues we have for that latest legislation. If we do, we have lost before the battle has begun!

We cannot allow them to call us hateful when the real hateful speech seems to always come from the left!

Part Two, Geert Wilders

2010-12-26T12:57:00.002-05:00

Gerrt Widers' Warning to America Pt.1

2010-12-19T22:39:00.000-05:00

He's called a racist, a Zionist scumbag and of course Islamophobic. Should we take him serious? He certainly has been painted ugly but, what do you think?

Chris Christie

2010-11-21T11:14:00.000-05:00

Governor Christie is becoming my hero more and more with each passing day!

Airport Security

2010-11-18T11:12:00.003-05:00

Now I don’t say this often but, Ron Paul is right!! All this being done for two reasons.

First off God forbid if we happen to profile a certain sector of the world that has a proclivity to want to use airplanes as weapons. I mean just because those that have attempted to and have succeeded in implementing acts of terror on U.S. soil were Muslim men between the ages of 18-33 years old, we shouldn't profile these folks?! But lets keep frisking those elderly white folks and others that don’t fit that profile!

If we are going through all these security scans/frisk/sniffs, for the sake of not offending a certain sector of society, then we are giving up one of the most basic freedoms of all, the freedom of movement. To go anywhere we want without scrutiny or explanation.

I have come to certain conclusions. After reading the Koran a couple of times, read various analysis of what the Koran says and means and have watched the actions of Muslims, I don’t believe there is such a thing as a “moderate” Muslim. If I am to take the Koran at face value then one is either Muslim or they are not. There isn’t a middle ground.

I am also a firm believer that all religions should be judged based on their orthodoxy. With that being said, it’s not very hard to understand the why’s of the violence done under the name of Islam.

Having said all that…….it’s time to start profiling, I don’t see how we cannot do this and then say we are concerned for the safety and security of the American people.

Secondly, friends of friends of the right people are making a boat load of money from selling this security technology and promoting it.

Listen, before you jump to conclusions, I am unashamedly a capitalist! But I DO have a problem with crony capitalism. If you don’t know what crony capitalism is, I don’t have the time right now to explain it in detail so, maybe you should look up what it means if you don’t know.

I think the private sector could do a better job at airport security as long as the Congress and Senate keeps their noses out of it.

An Interesting Video

2010-10-22T10:48:00.000-04:00

Healthcare

2010-10-13T09:32:00.000-04:00

Is THIS the direction we're headed?

Greek Health System Opts for Amputation as Money-Saver

By Pericles K, special to The Daily Caller | Published: 8:51 AM 10/11/2010

This Saturday, one of Greece’s most respected newspapers, To Vima, reported that the nation’s largest government health insurance provider would no longer pay for special footwear for diabetes patients. Amputation is cheaper, says the Benefits Division of the state insurance provider.

The new policy was announced in a letter to the Pan-Hellenic Federation of People with Diabetes. The Federation disputes the science behind the decision of the Benefits Division. In a statement, the group argues that the decision is contrary to evidence as presented in the international scientific literature.

Greece’s National Healthcare System was created in the early 1980s, during the tenure of Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou. Papandreou, an academic, won election under the slogan, Αλλαγή, which is the Greek word for Change.

2010-10-06T15:28:00.000-04:00

I was proud of the people that walked out of the assembly after Ahmadinejad started his tirade while he spoke at the U.N.

This is a transcript of Benjamin Netanyahu´s Speech at the UN General Assembly in September, not long after the president of Iran spewed his garbage from the podium at the U.N.

I think it’s compelling!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Nearly 62 years ago, the United Nations recognized the right of the Jews, an ancient people 3,500 years-old,
to a state of their own in their ancestral homeland. I stand here today as the Prime Minister of Israel,
the Jewish state, and I speak to you on behalf of my country and my people.

The United Nations was founded after the carnage of World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust.
It was charged with preventing the recurrence of such horrendous events. Nothing has undermined t
hat central mission more than the systematic assault on the truth. Yesterday the President of Iran stood
at this very podium, spewing his latest anti-Semitic rants. Just a few days earlier, he again claimed that the Holocaust is a lie.

Last month, I went to a villa in a suburb of Berlin called Wannsee. There, on January 20, 1942, after a hearty meal, senior Nazi

officials met and decided how to exterminate the Jewish people. The detailed minutes of that meeting have been preserved by
successive German governments. Here is a copy of those minutes, in which the Nazis issued precise instructions on how to carry
out the extermination of the Jews. Is this a lie?

A day before I was in Wannsee, I was given in Berlin the original construction plans for the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
Those plans are signed by Hitler's deputy, Heinrich Himmler himself. Here is a copy of the plans for Auschwitz-Birkenau,
where one million Jews were murdered. Is this too a lie?

This June, President Obama visited the Buchenwald concentration camp. Did President Obama pay tribute
to a lie?

And what of the Auschwitz survivors whose arms still bear the tattooed numbers branded on them by the
Nazis? Are those tattoos a lie? One-third of all Jews perished in the conflagration. Nearly every Jewish
family was affected, including my own. My wife's grandparents, her father's two sisters and three
brothers, and all the aunts, uncles and cousins were all murdered by the Nazis. Is that also a lie?

Yesterday, the man who calls the Holocaust a lie spoke from this podium. To those who refused to
come here and to those who left this room in protest, I commend you. You stood up for moral clarity and you
brought honor to your countries. But to those who gave this Holocaust-denier a hearing, I say on behalf of my
people, the Jewish people, and decent people everywhere: Have you no shame? Have you no decency?

A mere six decades after the Holocaust, you give legitimacy to a man who denies that the murder of six
million Jews took place and pledges to wipe out the Jewish state.

What a disgrace! What a mockery of the charter of the United Nations! Perhaps some of you think that this
man and his odious regime threaten only the Jews. You're wrong.

History has shown us time and again that what starts with attacks on the Jews eventually ends up engulfing
many others. This Iranian regime is fueled by an extreme fundamentalism that burst onto the world scene three
decades ago after lying dormant for centuries. In the past thirty years, this fanaticism has swept the globe with a
murderous violence and cold-blooded impartiality in its choice of victims. It has callously
slaughtered Moslems and Christians, Jews and Hindus, and many others. Though it is comprised of
different offshoots, the adherents of this unforgiving creed seek to return humanity to medieval times.

Wherever they can, they impose a backward regimented society where women, minorities, gays or
anyone not deemed to be a true believer is brutally subjugated. The struggle against this fanaticism does
not pit faith against faith nor civilization against civilization. It pits civilization against barbarism, the 21st century
against the 9th century, those who sanctify life against those who glorify death.

The primitivism of the 9th century ought to be no match for the progress of the 21st century. The allure
of freedom, the power of technology, the reach of communications should surely win the day.
Ultimately, the past cannot triumph over the future. And the future offers all nations magnificent bounties
of hope. The pace of progress is growing exponentially.

It took us centuries to get from the printing press to the telephone, decades to get from the telephone to
the personal computer, and only a few years to get from the personal computer to the internet.

What seemed impossible a few years ago is already outdated, and we can scarcely fathom the changes
that are yet to come. We will crack the genetic code. We will cure the incurable. We will lengthen our lives.
We will find a cheap alternative to fossil fuels and clean up the planet.

I am proud that my country Israel is at the forefront of these advances - by leading innovations in science
and technology, medicine and biology, agriculture and water, energy and the environment. These
innovations the world over offer humanity a sunlit future of unimagined promise.

But if the most primitive fanaticism can acquire the most deadly weapons, the march of history could be
reversed for a time. And like the belated victory over the Nazis, the forces of progress and freedom will
prevail only after an horrific toll of blood and fortune has been exacted from mankind. That is why the
greatest threat facing the world today is the marriage between religious fanaticism and the weapons of mass
destruction.

The most urgent challenge facing this body is to prevent the tyrants of Tehran from acquiring nuclear
weapons. Are the member states of the United Nations up to that challenge? Will the international
community confront a despotism that terrorizes its own people as they bravely stand up for freedom?
Will it take action against the dictators who stole an election in broad daylight and gunned down Iranian
protesters who died in the streets choking in their own blood? Will the international community thwart
the world's most pernicious sponsors and practitioners of terrorism?

Above all, will the international community stop the terrorist regime of Iran from developing atomic
weapons, thereby endangering the peace of the entire world?

The people of Iran are courageously standing up to this regime. People of goodwill around the world
stand with them, as do the thousands who have been protesting outside this hall. Will the United Nations
stand by their side?

Ladies and Gentlemen, The jury is still out on the United Nations, and recent signs are not encouraging. Rather
than condemning the terrorists and their Iranian patrons, some here have condemned their victims.
That is exactly what a recent UN report on Gaza did, falsely equating the terrorists with those they targeted.
For eight long years, Hamas fired from Gaza thousands of missiles, mortars and rockets on nearby
Israeli cities. Year after year, as these missiles were deliberately hurled at our civilians, not a single UN
resolution was passed condemning those criminal attacks. We heard nothing - absolutely nothing - from
the UN Human Rights Council, a misnamed institution if there ever was one. In 2005, hoping to advance peace,
Israel unilaterally withdrew from every inch of Gaza . It dismantled 21 settlements and uprooted over 8,000 Israelis.
We didn't get peace. Instead we got an Iranian backed terror base fifty miles from Tel Aviv. Life in Israeli towns and
cities next to Gaza became a nightmare. You see, the Hamas rocket attacks not only continued, they increased tenfold.
Again, the UN was silent. Finally, after eight years of this unremitting assault, Israel was finally forced to respond.
But how should we have responded? Well, there is only one example in history of thousands of rockets being fired on
a country's civilian population. It happened when the Nazis rocketed British cities during World War II. During that war,
the allies leveled German cities, causing hundreds of thousands of casualties. Israel chose to respond differently. Faced with an enemy
committing a double war crime of firing on civilians while hiding behind civilians - Israel sought to
conduct surgical strikes against the rocket launchers.

That was no easy task because the terrorists were firing missiles from homes and schools, using
mosques as weapons depots and ferreting explosives in ambulances. Israel , by contrast, tried to minimize
casualties by urging Palestinian civilians to vacate the targeted areas.

We dropped countless flyers over their homes, sent thousands of text messages and called thousands of
cell phones asking people to leave. Never has a country gone to such extraordinary lengths to remove
the enemy's civilian population from harm's way.

Yet faced with such a clear case of aggressor and victim, who did the UN Human Rights Council decide
to condemn? Israel . A democracy legitimately defending itself against terror is morally hanged,
drawn and quartered, and given an unfair trial to boot.

By these twisted standards, the UN Human Rights Council would have dragged Roosevelt and Churchill
to the dock as war criminals. What a perversion of truth. What a perversion of justice.

Delegates of the United Nations, Will you accept this farce? Because if you do, the United Nations would
revert to its darkest days, when the worst violators of human rights sat in judgment against the law-abiding
democracies, when Zionism was equated with racism and when an automatic majority could declare that
the earth is flat.

If this body does not reject this report, it would send a message to terrorists everywhere: Terror pays; if you
launch your attacks from densely populated areas, you will win immunity. And in condemning Israel ,
this body would also deal a mortal blow to peace.
Here's why.

When Israel left Gaza , many hoped that the missile attacks would stop. Others believed that at the very
least, Israel would have international legitimacy to exercise its right of self-defense. What legitimacy?
What self-defense?

The same UN that cheered Israel as it left Gaza and promised to back our right of self-defense now
accuses us -my people, my country - of war crimes? And for what? For acting responsibly in self-defense.
What a travesty! Israel justly defended itself against terror. This biased and unjust report is a clear-cut test
for all governments. Will you stand with Israel or will you stand with the terrorists?

We must know the answer to that question now. Now and not later. Because if Israel is again asked to take
more risks for peace, we must know today that you will stand with us tomorrow. Only if we have the
confidence that we can defend ourselves can we take further risks for peace.

Ladies and Gentlemen, All of Israel wants peace. Any time an Arab leader genuinely wanted peace with
us, we made peace. We made peace with Egypt led by Anwar Sadat. We made peace with Jordan led by
King Hussein. And if the Palestinians truly want peace, I and my government, and the people of Israel , will
make peace. But we want a genuine peace, a defensible peace, a permanent peace. In 1947, this
body voted to establish two states for two peoples - a Jewish state and an Arab state. The Jews accepted
that resolution. The Arabs rejected it.

We ask the Palestinians to finally do what they have refused to do for 62 years: Say yes to a Jewish state.
Just as we are asked to recognize a nation-state for the Palestinian people, the Palestinians must be asked
to recognize the nation state of the Jewish people. The Jewish people are not foreign conquerors in the Land
of Israel . This is the land of our forefathers. Inscribed on the walls outside this building is the
great Biblical vision of peace: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation. They shall learn war no more."
These words were spoken by the Jewish prophet Isaiah 2,800 years ago as he walked in my country, in
my city, in the hills of Judea and in the streets of Jerusalem .

We are not strangers to this land. It is our homeland.
As deeply connected as we are to this land, we recognize that the Palestinians also live there and
want a home of their own. We want to live side by side with them, two free peoples living in peace, prosperity
and dignity.

But we must have security. The Palestinians should have all the powers to govern themselves except those
handful of powers that could endanger Israel .

That is why a Palestinian state must be effectively demilitarized. We don't want another Gaza , another
Iranian backed terror base abutting Jerusalem and perched on the hills a few kilometers from Tel Aviv.
We want peace.

I believe such a peace can be achieved. But only if we roll back the forces of terror, led by Iran , that seek to
destroy peace, eliminate Israel and overthrow the world order. The question facing the international
community is whether it is prepared to confront those forces or accommodate them.

Over seventy years ago, Winston Churchill lamented what he called the "confirmed unteachability of
mankind," the unfortunate habit of civilized societies to sleep until danger nearly overtakes them.
Churchill bemoaned what he called the "want of foresight, the unwillingness to act when action will be
simple and effective, the lack of clear thinking, the confusion of counsel until emergency comes, until
self-preservation strikes its jarring gong."

I speak here today in the hope that Churchill's assessment of the "unteachability of mankind" is for
once proven wrong.

I speak here today in the hope that we can learn from history -- that we can prevent danger in time.

In the spirit of the timeless words spoken to Joshua over 3,000 years ago, let us be strong and of good
courage. Let us confront this peril, secure our future and, God willing, forge an enduring peace for
generations to come.

To The Republican Party

2010-09-25T22:44:00.003-04:00

I’ve watched the Tea Party folks for quite some time now and, until now, I have reserved my opinions. They have impressed me and the power they have is becoming more and more apparent. Certainly the results of the recent primaries is testimony to that fact.

Like many, I too have grown weary of the same old lines that Washington gives us time and time again. Never, more than recently, have I become more and more offended by Washington’s talking down to me, leaving me with only one opinion, they think I’m REALLY stupid!!

When I say Washington, I’m talking about both parties, democrat and republican alike. In all this, I hold the republicans to a higher standard. At 60, I’m certainly old enough to remember the Republican Party of old. I’m old enough to remember that the term republican was synonymous with conservatism. I’m losing that view, as I’m told that the party has to become more moderate to win elections.

I was there and cheered the merits of the “Contract With America”. That contract embodied conservative thought with eight main reforms promised, by republicans, to be brought to the House floor and passed:

1.require all laws that apply to the rest of the country also apply to Congress;

2.select a major, independent auditing firm to conduct a comprehensive audit of Congress for waste, fraud or abuse;

3.cut the number of House committees, and cut committee staff by one-third;

4.limit the terms of all committee chairs;

5.ban the casting of proxy votes in committee;

6.require committee meetings to be open to the public;

7.require a three-fifths majority vote to pass a tax increase;

8.guarantee an honest accounting of the Federal Budget by implementing zero base-line budgeting.

While some of it’s elements were passed with variations, he we are, some fourteen years later being offered another “Contract With America” aka “Pledge To America Term limit minus“. Only after the party had it’s butt handed to them with the defeat of their “anointed ones” by Tea Party/everyday folk/non-professional/ no experience/ non-anoited folks.

We’re being offered the “Pledge To America” and after reading the pledge it’s merely repeating something that the Republican Party should have been doing all along, there shouldn’t have been a need to write it out. I mean, who did you write it out for, me? Have you lost your way so badly that you have to write it all out to get it straight in your own heads? I have believed those things since I first registered to vote some forty sumthin' years ago!

To the Republican Party……I don’t believe what you tell me anymore! Nor do I believe you’re going to do what you say you’ll do in the PTA. Why? As I said, it’s something you should have been striving for all along.

While you told the voters of Delaware that Castle was the only viable candidate they were listening very close to what you were saying and they rejected you, via O’Donnell.

You offered politics as usual, they wanted change, not a RINO/moderate that would vote with progressive/liberals. And now you bring out PTA and we’re supposed to accept that you are changing? When the “blue bloods” and snobs of the party, that seem to wield the power, give their blessings to those they deem worthy of running for a particular office not caring about us, the little folk the “un-washed” the ones that don’t seem to have the intellect to understand the mysteries of politics.

I’m siding with the Tea Party. I have now learned I don’t have to accept what you offer me. I’m not going to hold my nose any longer voting for the candidate you tell me is worthy/electable/ anointed by the party elders.

And it saddens me, as a conservative, to say I don’t believe you have my best interest in mind. In light of what has happen these past few months, with the surprises you were given in the form of Miller, O’Donnell, Rubio and others, the best you have to offer me is the Pledge To America……I just shake my head, I now realize just how tone deaf you really all are!!

Commentary: Beck, Barbour and the art of rewriting history

2010-09-22T09:58:00.001-04:00

By Leonard Pitts Jr. | The Miami Herald

"I wish I was in the land of cotton, old times there are not forgotten...'' — lyric from Dixie.

Actually, old times there are forgotten quite a bit.

For 145 years, ever since a grim-faced Robert E. Lee rode away from Wilmer McLean's house in Appomattox, Va., where he had surrendered his army, apologists for the South have been trying to induce the rest of us to forget the causes of the Civil War, to imbue an act of treachery and treason with a nobility of purpose it did not, in fact, possess.

"State's rights," they say. "State's rights to maintain a system of human slavery," they do not say.

It is the social and political equivalent of an extreme makeover. The thinking seems to be: when history collides with cherished self image, change history.

Something very similar seems to be afoot with regard to a related event much closer to us in time: the civil rights movement of the '50s and '60s.

Just a few months ago, we saw conservative activist Glenn Beck claim ownership of that movement, in defiance of historical memory. "...[W]e were the people that did it in the first place!" he cried.

Last week, in an essay in the Washington Post, University of Virginia Professor Gerard Alexander analyzed voting trends from the civil rights era to bolster his thesis that social conservatism is not intolerant. Somehow, he never got around to explaining how it is, then, that social conservatives were always the ones standing in schoolhouse doors, blockading polling places, burning buses, and cracking skulls.

And now, here's Haley Barbour. The governor of Mississippi raised eyebrows and blood pressures a few weeks ago when, in an interview with Human Events, a conservative website and magazine, he credited his generation of white Southerners with leading the South into a new era of integration. It was, he said, "my generation, who went to integrated schools. I went to integrated college -- never thought twice about it."

Barber is 62. In the Mississippi of his youth, he legally could not have gone to integrated schools. As for college: he attended Ole Miss in 1965; three years before, the attempt by a single black man, James Meredith, to enroll there required negotiations between the attorney general and the governor and ultimately, the intercession of U.S. marshals; a riot ensued in which over 100 marshals were injured and two people killed.

Pressed on this in a later interview, Barbour doubled down. Those years of forced integration were, he said, "a very pleasant experience." He singled out a black classmate, Verna Bailey, with whom he said he developed a friendly rapport. They sat next to each other, she let him copy her notes. "I still love her," he said.

So Margaret Talev of McClatchy Newspapers called Bailey, now an educator in Oregon. "I don't remember him at all, no," said Bailey, "because during that time that certainly wasn't a pleasant experience for me. My interactions with white people were very, very limited. Very, very few reached out at all."

While she didn't remember Barbour, Bailey did remember days when "I thought my life was going to end." She did remember being pelted with coins and beer. She did remember "this mass of anger and hostility." Bailey completed four years of course work in three -- not because she was a great student, she said, but because she couldn't wait to get out of there.

Memory is a funny thing, isn't it?

It softens rough places.

It absolves our sins.

Memory forgives us.

But sometimes, it is morally necessary to forgo that salve, to embrace the rough places and lack of absolution, for the lessons they have to teach.

Apparently, some conservatives still can't bring themselves to do that, even now.

That's truly sad. When history collides with self-image, it is not history a principled person seeks to change.

ABOUT THE WRITER

Leonard Pitts Jr., winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, is a columnist for the Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, Fla. 33132. Readers may write to him via e-mail at lpitts@miamiherald.com. He chats with readers every Wednesday from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. EDT at Ask Leonard.