Saturday, June 1, 2013

How to Play the Race Card and Win

JUNE 1, 2013

Play it early and often, like they vote in Chicago
 Credits: A Clever Dude
 
Activists for years, especially immigration reform activists, have been called racists whenever they advocate border security, workplace security, deportations, et cetera. Early on we learned that the issue would not be debated on the facts, but with emotion, lies, misdirection and if all else failed, the dreaded race claim.

In the five years since Barack Obama’s first presidential election, race has figured prominently in the national discussion about almost every issue. The “great uniter” has become the “great divider” as racial animus is higher now in the country than it has been in decades because leftists in the government and their supporters in the media and elsewhere play the race card whenever they can to end an argument by silencing their opponent. God knows they can’t win on the facts.

Calling someone a racist has become so common, one wonders why it has any impact at all anymore. I remember the first time I was called a racist in public. I froze for a moment, then said to myself, “No, you are not a racist, she is just trying to shut you up.” And that was the last time I let it affect me.

Over twenty years ago an INS Supervisor gave me the words to deflect the spurious “race” claim. It is so simple and I have shared it with activists over the past two decades who have used it to their advantage. I think it can be used successfully on any issue today where “racism” is claimed.

If you are working for border security and immigration enforcement and somebody in favor of open borders and amnesty calls you a racist, respond thus,

What has race got to do with it? A person’s race doesn’t give them the right to sneak into my country illegally and work here illegally. Is that what you are saying? That a person’s race gives them the right to enter my country illegally?

Then, as they say in sales, shut up.

Let it sink in.

Two prominent open borders advocates from a well known racist organization eventually refused to debate me on national television when I began to ask, “What has race got to do with it?”

I remember a city council meeting I attended back in the early 90s where many of us were trying to kill a city sponsored hiring hall for illegal aliens. The Editorial Page Editor of the local Gannett news paper, a black woman who supported illegal aliens, approached me and said coyly, “You know Rick, I think you don’t like me because I’m black.”

I didn’t back up, bring my hand to my chest and say with a hurt look on my face, “No, no, no. Don’t misunderstand…blah, blah, blah.” I leaned down and looked her in the eye and said, “You’re race has nothing to do with it. I don’t like you because your politics stink.” It was her turn to retreat, and she never talked to me again. Without the race card, most of our opponents are mute.

I remember a decade ago when House Budget Committee hearings chaired by Barney Frank D-MA had some Republicans questioning Franklin Raines, who at the time was running Fannie Mae into ground and would eventually saddle taxpayers with $116 billion in debt when the subprime mortgage market collapsed. I remember Frank and Maxine Waters D-CA, that nitwit from southern California, accusing the Republicans of attacking Raines because he was black. Franklin Raines ran Fannie Mae like Ken Lay ran Enron, only Fannie Mae was on steroids. But, the race claim was used to chill everyone out.

Just recently, according to FOX NEWS:

The head of the Louisiana Democratic Party said on the floor of the state Senate this week that opponents of the federal health care overhaul are motivated by President Obama's race -- a remark that drew the scorn of state Republicans who now want her to apologize.

State Sen. Karen Carter Peterson, who is also chairwoman of the state Democratic Party, repeatedly invoked race as she railed against ObamaCare critics
."


People will continue to play the race card for as long as it works. For many, it is the only response they have to failures in their own lives, but others will use it because it gets the desired result -- it shuts up their opponent and ends the debate.

Create your own response from; “What does race have to do with it? A person’s race doesn’t…etc. etc.”

A response to Maxine Waters rant could have been, “What does race have to do with it? A person’s race doesn’t give them the right to waste the taxpayers’ money and make risky or shoddy investments. Is that what you are saying?”

Or to Louisiana State Senator Peterson, “What does the president’s race have to do with it? His race doesn’t give him the right to take over 1/6th of the country’s economy with a healthcare law that has never worked anywhere and will crash the private healthcare insurance industry and diminish the healthcare delivery system in our country, does it? It that what you are saying? The president’s race allows him to push flawed legislation that will wreck our healthcare system?”

And of course in response to open borders losers who cry racism to end the debate;


What does race have to do with it? A person’s race doesn’t give them the right to sneak into my country illegally and then work here illegally. Is that what you are saying? A person’s race gives them the right to be an illegal alien in my country?"

The answer to that is, of course, "No," or silence, as they choose.


Source: Washington Examiner

Bachmann opponent suddenly retires, too

JUNE 1, 2013

Minnesota Democratic congressional candidate Jim Graves plans to halt his campaign to replace Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann in Congress just days after she ruled out a re-election run, according to his top aide.

FULL STORY

Full Dimensions Of IRS Scandal Emerge

JUNE 1, 2013

The revelation that Acting IRS Commissioner Douglas Schulman visited the White House at least 157 times during the period in which conservative groups were being targeted with tax audits gives us the first real indication of the extent to which this scandal reaches into the White House.

FULL STORY

A Double-Trouble Scandal for Obama

JUNE 1, 2013

The Justice Department scandal has outraged two of the president's most reliable allies: the press and liberal activists.

CONTINUE READING>>

What the Scandals Reveal

JUNE 1, 2013

The Obama administration’s childish worldview leads directly to the abuse of power.

In each of the three major scandals that have recently rocked the Obama administration, the hunt is on for smoking guns. Armed with subpoena power in the House of Representatives, the GOP is going after the administration — for its secret seizures of journalists’ phone records, the IRS persecution of conservative nonprofit groups, and the Benghazi fiasco — and it smells blood.


READ MORE>>

Opelousas senator switches to Republican Party

JUNE 1, 2013

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Opelousas Sen. Elbert Guillory has jumped to the Republican Party, becoming Louisiana's only black state senator in the GOP.

FULL STORY

Why Benghazi Is a Crime More Evil Than Anything a President Has Done in Our Lifetimes… in 60 Seconds

JUNE 1, 2013

Charles Krauthammer didn't put it in such straightforward language, but why beat around the bush? This "scandal" will result in Obama's impeachment because it must. Fiat Justitia, Ruat Caelum.

WATCH THE VIDEO>>

Gun Violence Rocks Chicago as 8 are Shot in One Day

JUNE 1, 2013

A 15-year-old boy was killed in Chicago as gun violence continues to take a toll on the nation’s third largest city.

KEEP READING

Lou Reed recovering after liver transplant. Disses New York hospitals..

JUNE 1, 2013

Musician, 71, underwent life-saving surgery last month in Cleveland, says wife Laurie Anderson

FULL STORY

Obama Eliminates Hot Meals for Marines, Dines on Chocolate Opera Cake

JUNE 1, 2013

It’s a good thing that we dumped all that Western canon as the work of a bunch of old dead white guys or the phrase, “Let them eat cake” might have some resonance when a political leader eliminates hot meals for Marines but scarfs down Chocolate Opera Cake.

READ MORE

China Inc's Smithfield bid expected to pass Washington test

JUNE 1, 2013

(Reuters) - Washington may still be digesting news of China Inc's latest bold move into America with the nearly $5 billion takeover of Smithfield Foods Inc (SFD.N), but early indications are the deal will not inflame enough nationalistic opposition to kill it, and success could pave the way for more Chinese purchases.

FULL STORY

UK Shopkeeper Forced to Remove “Obey Our Laws” T-Shirts or Face Arrest

JUNE 1, 2013

British police forced a Newport shopkeeper to remove his “Obey Our Laws” T-shirts.

The shirts might “incite racial hatred.”

FULL STORY

DOJ to Crack Down on Excessive Criticism of Muslims

JUNE 1, 2013

Bill Killian, the US Attorney for the Eastern district of Tennessee, says that social media comments critical of Islam that the Department of Justice deems “excessive” will be subject to “enforcement action.”

READ MORE>>

SYNDICATED COLUMN: Immigration Reform is Treason

JUNE 1, 2013

Unemployment is High. Why Are We Importing Foreign Workers?

Unemployment is sky-high. Sustained long-term unemployment is at record levels. So why the hell are we importing foreign workers?

The immigration reform bill moving through Congress will throw open the door to millions of new foreigners — people who aren’t here yet — to enter the United States to work. And we’re not talking about crappy fruit-picking gigs Americans supposedly don’t want (more on that below).

“American” (you have to wonder about their loyalties) lawmakers want foreigner nationals to fill America’s high-paying tech jobs. While Americans are out of work.

At the risk of sounding like Pat Buchanan: WTF?


CONTINUE TO ARTICLE...

DEMOCRATIC SCANDAL UPDATE: Operative in Secret McConnell Recording Publicly Confesses, Compounds His Problems

JUNE 1, 2013

A Progress Kentucky volunteer who was at the center of a story involving the secret recording of Senator Mitch McConnell’s campaign meeting earlier this year has publicly admitted to making the recording, and he says that his attorney has been contacted by an assistant US Attorney about the matter.

READ MORE>>

Lawsuit Argues High-Speed Rail Authority Breaking Promises To Voters

JUNE 1, 2013

SACRAMENTO (AP) – California’s high-speed rail authority is breaking the promises made to voters when they approved $10 billion in bonds to build the nation’s first bullet train line, attorneys who represent Central Valley landowners argued Friday.

FULL STORY

ACT NOW to Oppose the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty

JUNE 1, 2013


We already full-well know that President Obama has tried to severely restrict Americans’ constitutional right to bear arms. Not only has he been pushing gun control at the national level, but he has also been working at the international level. On June 3, Obama plans to sign the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). He aims to cede American sovereignty to the corrupt United Nations, made up of many countries openly hostile to the U.S. How would you like your Second Amendment rights to be dependent on the likes of Venezuela or Iran? YOU CAN ACT NOW TO STOP OBAMA’S ATTACK ON THE RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS BY CLICKING HERE. The treaty is already opposed by Senate Republicans and some Democratic senators.

This arms treaty attacks the very heart of the freedoms granted Americans by the Second Amendment, according to the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR):

KEEP READING>>

Former IRS commissioner Shulman’s wife works for liberal group fighting open campaign spending

JUNE 1, 2013

Former Internal Revenue Service commissioner Douglas H. Shulman, a frequent White House guest during the period when the IRS was targeting conservative nonprofits, is married to the senior program advisor for Public Campaign, an “organization dedicated to sweeping campaign reform that aims to dramatically reduce the role of big special interest money in American politics.”

FULL STORY

First on CNN: IRS collects docs from 88 employees in investigation

JUNE 1, 2013

Washington (CNN) – The Internal Revenue Service has told House GOP investigators they have identified 88 IRS employees who may have documents relevant to the congressional investigation into targeting of conservative groups, according to a congressional source familiar with the investigation.

FULL STORY

Westland considers carnival ban due to recent violence

JUNE 1, 2013

Violence at recent carnival-like events in Metro Detroit has Westland leaders considering ban

READ MORE

Irony: Couple Cuffed For Engaging In Free Speech In Front Of Independence Hall

June 1, 2013

A video that runs approximately 13:00 minutes records an ironic incident that took place on Saturday May 18 documents the incident of Mark and Barb, a couple who were engaged in handing out flyers and talking about ending the Federal Reserve system in the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were detained and hand-cuffed for passing out flyers and engaging in free speech.

WATCH THE VIDEO




Friday, May 31, 2013

Fla. illegal on welfare for 20 years shows others how to milk system

May 31, 2013

(BizPac Review) - Illegal immigrant Marita Nelson, 50, is a single mother of seven who collects $240 in food stamps, receives child support, and “government funded housing, medication and $700 a month in social security.” And she has been getting assistance for the last 20 years. Twenty years. Now Nelson wants others in her situation to know they can get the same help.



VIDEO HERE

Hat tip: Capitalist Preservation

Under Obamacare, cancer patients could pay thousands of dollars a month out of pocket for treatment

MAY 31, 2013

(NaturalNews) The affordable component of the so-called Affordable Care Act may not be all that affordable after all, as many of the most sickly patients covered under the Obama scheme will still likely have to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket for their treatments, according to new reports. In California, for instance, cancer patients could be required to pay up to 30 percent of the costs associated with chemotherapy drugs and other conventional treatments, and the situation could be much the same in many other states as Obamacare comes into effect next January.

The primary reason for this, say industry analysts, is that many more people with debilitating diseases who are currently uninsured will suddenly have Obamacare coverage at the beginning of next year, and the money to pay for this massive influx of people with preexisting health conditions has to come from somewhere. In other words, when the other shoe finally drops, insurers will be forced to either drastically increase premiums across the board, or simply charge patients high deductibles and copays for expensive medicines.

"To try to keep premiums low, some states are allowing insurers to charge patients a hefty share of the cost for expensive medications used to treat cancer, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and other life-altering chronic diseases," says the Associated Press (AP). "Insurers are forecasting double-digit premium increases for individual policies, as people with health problems flock to buy coverage previously denied them."

What this all means, of course, is that "affordable" coverage for all will fall primarily on the backs of people who already have health insurance coverage, and whose premiums will rise dramatically when the health care system becomes that much more socialized in 2014. Either that or all patients will "affordable" coverage will be forced to simply pay more for their treatments, which contradicts the very basis upon which Obamacare was forced through Congress.

According to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the drugs that will cost patients the most out of pocket include so-called "specialty" drugs like Gleevec (imatinib mesylate), a Novartis drug commonly used to treat a rare type of blood cancer known as chronic myeloid leukemia. The group says patients with Obamacare coverage could still be required to pay $2,000 or more every month to access the high-cost drug, as well as others with similarly-high recurring costs.

"Forget about cost savings," says a Washington Times editorial highlighting the major gap between what was promised with Obamacare and what is actually set to take place. "The IRS now estimates that the least expensive of the government-sanctioned health plans will cost the average family of four $20,000 a year -- an increase of about $4,000."

Rats in Congress scurry away from mandate they forced on the rest of America


This is one of the many reasons why many Democrats in Congress who advocated for Obamacare's passage are now jumping ship, or at the very least trying to create their own personal exemptions to the sick care debacle. According to a recent piece by Politico.com, key Obamacare architects like Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), as well as enabling political hacks like House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), are currently discussing ways to personally exempt themselves from the unconstitutional mandate.

However, as mentioned in a previous NaturalNews article, the IRS will not actually have the necessary legal instruments at its disposal to force people who refuse the Obamacare mandate to pay any fines, which means the "law" itself is technically void. Add to this the fact that Obamacare was hatched in the Senate rather than in the House -- any laws that impose new taxes must originate in the House, according to the Constitution -- and what we have is a completely unenforceable hoax of a law that Americans have full right to ignore and disregard.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.foxnews.com

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100731024

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/apr/26/retreat-on-obamacare/

http://www.politico.com

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com

http://garrett.house.gov/top-ten-reasons-obamacare-unconstitutional

VOTER FRAUD ALERT – DID YOU KNOW THAT 25 PERCENT OF OHIO VOTERS DON’T ACTUALLY EXIST?

MAY 31, 2013

In the eight months since Human Events and The Columbus Dispatch reported that several counties in the major Swing State have voter rolls that boast literally 110 percent voter registration, the Obama-Holder Justice Department has yet to investigate the widespread voter fraud that is occurring in particularly Left-leaning districts.

KEEP READING

Rate Shock: In California, Obamacare to Increase Individual Health Insurance Premiums by 64-146%

MAY 31, 2013

One of the most serious flaws with Obamacare is that its blizzard of regulations and mandates drives up the cost of insurance for people who buy it on their own. This problem will be especially acute when the law’s main provisions kick in on January 1, 2014, leading many to worry about health insurance “rate shock.”

source


American Voters 4:1 in Favor of Special Prosecutor for IRS Scandal

MAY 31, 2013

American voters are getting the whiff of corruption emanating out of Washington D.C.. Quinnipiac surveyed voters and found a whopping 76%-17% in favor of a special prosecutor to investigate the IRS scandal.

Even more surprising, Democrats favored 63%-30% further investigating the IRS’ targeting of pro-Constitution, Conservative, Christian and tea party groups. Furthermore, in the May 30th released poll, President Obama was given a negative 45%-49% job approval, which was just above water at 48%-45% on May 1st. Independent voters were at 37%-57% approval of President Obama.

Americans are divided 49%-47% in favor of President Obama being honest and trustworthy, compared to 58%-37% in September 2011, when Quinnipiac last surveyed this question.

Just stop and ponder these poll results: even though it seemed like nothing could ever break through and get Democrats to concede something is wrong in the nation’s capital, over two-thirds think a branch of the federal government is worth investigating. Such Democrats can start here: the former head of the IRS Doug Shulman visited the White House more than any other public official.

source: ijreview

Tyrannical State Dept: We May Not Comply With Congress' Benghazi Subpoena

MAY 31, 2013

Is the battle between the State Department and Congress over Benghazi about to escalate? It appears so, after a spokesperson for State suggested the Department may not comply with the Congressional subpoena.

As reported by Breitbart.com, Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) sent a five-page letter to Sate Tuesday explaining why he as chair of the Oversight Committee issued the subpoena and what documents he expects to be delivered by June 7th.

Asked about the State Department’s response to the letter, Spokesperson Jen Psaki praised the “unprecedented degree of cooperation with Congress” on the issue of Benghazi. Psaki added that the Department is “taking stock” and “determining the next appropriate steps.”

“You haven’t yet decided whether or not the State Department will be providing the documents that are in the subpoena?” a reporter asked Psaki. “That’s correct,” she responded.

Read the Partial Transcript>>


Disturbing Pattern: Obama Puts Our Enemies above Us

MAY 31, 2013

We are witnessing a disturbing pattern. President Obama always puts the best interest, well-being, and rights of our enemies above providing protection and justice for the American people.

My wife ranted, "It is as if Obama is desensitizing us to the suffering of our people in these terrorist attacks."

The Benghazi scandal perfectly illustrates her point. The Obama administration has paid lip service expressing its regrets that four Americans died. But are you feelin' the love -- a vibe of real compassion or concern -- coming from the administration about the torture and deaths of Ambassador Chris Stevens, information officer Sean Smith, and former navy SEALs Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty? Absolutely not! As a matter of fact, U.S. assets in the area ready to come to the defense of Ambassador Stevens were ordered to stand down by someone of power in the Obama administration.

Obama and company have lied and done everything in their power to cover up what happened in Benghazi, and to stonewall anyone trying to find out the truth.

Now get this, folks: the FBI has enough evidence for our military to seize five suspects believed responsible for murdering Ambassador Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty. The suspects have not been arrested because the Obama administration insists on trying them in civilian court and does not believe it has enough evidence for a conviction. Why is Obama bending over backwards for terrorists, seeking to give them a platform and taxpayer-funded attorneys in civilian court? Meanwhile, in case you have not noticed, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty are now referred to in the media only as "three other Americans."

Here is another example of Obama protecting our enemy while telling Americans to just deal with it.

Americans were enjoying a beautiful day watching family and friends running in the Boston marathon. Moments later, lives were brutality changed forever: loved ones gone (dead), limbs blown off, and hundreds severely injured. The first response of Obama was to make sure no one blamed Islamic terrorists. Upon arresting an Islamic terrorist for the bombing, Obama's Justice Department immediately ran to make sure Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was read his Miranda rights and provided with high-powered elite attorneys, again paid for by us taxpayers. Tsarnaev stopped talking. Why would Obama provide cover for Tsarnaev to not answer questions vital to the safety of the American people?

This next example should get your blood boiling.

Retired Sgt. Alonzo Lunsford, shot seven times in the Ft. Hood terrorist attack, is stuck with paying his own medical bills. The shooter, Nidal Hasan, has been paid $278,000 while awaiting trial.

Because the Obama administration insists on classifying the shooting as "workplace violence" rather than a "terrorist attack," Sgt. Lunsford and other shooting victims are denied combat-related pay. They are not eligible for Purple Heart retirement or medical benefits.

The Ft Hood shooting was unquestionably a terrorist attack. Before shooting, Hasan yelled, "Allahu Akbar!" Once again, our enemy, Hasan, is well-taken care of by the Obama administration, while Sgt. Lunsford and fellow great American good guys get the shaft.

Another example of Obama's obsession with coddling our enemies while putting Americans at risk is Obama's desire to close Guantánamo Bay. Guantánamo detainees are the worst of the worst, caught on the battlefield trying to kill Americans. They receive first-rate medical care, special diets respecting their religion, special concessions for their religious needs, and cable TV. Upon their release, many former detainees return to the battlefield to kill Americans. With gas and food prices continuing to soar, extremely high unemployment, millions of American homes financially underwater, the first U.S. Ambassador killed in 30 years, global jihad, and three major scandals on his administration's plate, why is releasing our enemies apparently Obama's number-one priority?

Despite the Ft. Hood shooting, the attack on our consulate in Benghazi, and the Boston bombing by Islamic terrorists, Obama persists in playing the role of defense attorney for those seeking our demise. In a recent speech, Obama ignored the facts and continued to proclaim that the War on Terror is over and Al-Qaeda is on the run.

In The Art of War, Sun Tzu advises that one know his enemy.

President Obama's denial of our enemy puts America at great risk while providing cover for our enemy. Are you noticing a very disturbing pattern?

Source: American Thinker

Who's Tracking Your Children?

MAY 31, 2013

The school year may be over for most American students, but parents must remain as vigilant as ever when it comes to protecting their children's privacy. Look no further than the shocking, invasive conduct of the Polk County, Fla., educational district last week. It's a surveillance-state sign of the times.

READ MORE

Man, 83, becomes first Briton to choose Dignitas assisted suicide because he had dementia

MAY 31, 2013

Pensioner's family are said to have backed his decision '100 per cent'

Man's death at Swiss clinic has been publicised by 'Dr Death' Michael Irwin


Between 150 and 200 Britons have been helped to die at Dignitas



KEEP READING>>

California Senate approves tax penalty bill aimed at Boy Scouts

MAY 31, 2013

The state Senate approved legislation Wednesday that would strip tax-exempt status from nonprofit groups including the Boy Scouts of America that deny participation of people based on sexual orientation or religion.

FULL STORY

Engineers Union: Immigration Bill 'a Cruel Betrayal of American Workers'

MAY 31, 2013

The union representing technical and professional engineers today announced its opposition to the immigration bill, S. 744, warning that it sells American workers and students "down the river."

In a letter to the Senate, the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) calls the bill "a cruel betrayal of American workers":

FULL STORY

Department of Injustice Employees Asked to Verbally Affirm Homosexuality

MAY 31, 2013

The Department of Justice has been accused of religious intolerance and viewpoint discrimination after workers were sent an email directing them to verbally affirm homosexuality, according to a law firm specializing in religious liberty and now representing a DOJ whistleblower.

Liberty Counsel said DOJ employees were emailed a brochure called “LGBT Inclusion at Work: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Managers.” The brochure was created as a resource from DOJ Pride, an association of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees of the DOJ. …

Among the directives in the brochure is an order for workers to vocally affirm homosexuality.

“Don’t judge or remain silent,” the brochure read. “Silence will be interpreted as disapproval.”

CONTINUE TO ARTICLE..

Exxon’s $100m Algae Investment Falls Flat

MAY 31, 2013

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) is cutting its losses on algae biofuels after investing over $100 million only to find that it couldn’t achieve commercial viability.

READ MORE>>

Group fails in bid to recall Ariz. sheriff

MAY 31, 2013

PHOENIX (AP) — A campaign to force a recall election against the polarizing sheriff of metropolitan Phoenix has failed.

FULL STORY

White House: No special prosecutor for IRS scandal, despite public support

MAY 31, 2013

SUPRISE: The White House will not be pushing for a special prosecutor to handle the IRS scandal involving the targeting of conservative groups, even as three-fourths of Americans are calling for one.

KEEP READING

Guantanamo guard converts to Islam, demands release of detainees

May 31, 2013

Terry Holdbrooks was deployed to the Guantanamo Bay detention center to guard detainees. The Phoenix, Ariz., resident has become a devout Muslim and an unlikely advocate for the prisoners’ rights.

FULL STORY

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Here's pretty much a "tell all" that the mainstream media and the public school agenda has destroyed the American society we once knew

May 30, 2013

Lost are the days when people helped each other. Especially where a child is involved. Kids are brainwashed into fearing the world and taught to be scared to death of adults that they do not know. And a grown up offering help to a child that is a stranger? You'd have to be insane!

Luring report in Penn Manor district later determined to be no threat

What was first thought to be a child-luring attempt in Millersville on Wednesday night turned out to be a false alarm, police said.

Around 7 p.m., a man was preparing a field at Leaman and Manor avenues for an upcoming community yard sale, borough police Detective Sgt. Jeff Margevich said.

"He is an older gentleman with some health problems," Margevich said. "He asked a 13-year-old boy if he would help him paint lines on the field."

The man — who had almost passed out in the heat — offered the Millersville boy money to help him finish the job, Margevich said.

The boy thought the incident was suspicious because the man was a stranger, so he rode away on his bike.

On Thursday morning, the boy reported the incident to police, who alerted Penn Manor School District.

The district put an alert on its website warning parents of the possible safety threat. The alert included a description of the man and his vehicle.

As soon as the alert was issued, police got calls reporting the vehicle was still in the same area, Margevich said.

They responded, found the man and learned he had not intended to lure the child.


source

72,600,000: Record Number on Medicaid; Outnumbers Populations of France and UK

MAY 30, 2013


A record 72,600,000 were enrolled in Medicaid for at least one month in fiscal 2012, up from 71,700,000 in fiscal 2011, according to the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), which provides an annual statistical report to Congress on Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.

The 72,600,000 enrolled in Medicaid in the United States in 2012 was more than the 65,630,692 people who lived in France last year, according to data published by the Census Bureau, or the 63,047,162 people who lived in the United Kingdom.

In fact, if Medicaid was a country rather than a U.S. government program it would be the twentieth most populous nation in the world, ranking just ahead of Thailand, which had 67,091,089 people in 2012, and just behind the Congo, which had 73,599,190 people in 2012.

Funded by both the federal and state governments, Medicaid was created in 1965 by the same law that created Medicare. It is designed to provide health-care coverage to low-income Americans.

In fiscal 2008, the last full year before President Barack Obama took office, there were 58,794,000 Medicaid enrollees. Since then, Medicaid enrollment has expanded by more than 23 percent.

According to the Census Bureau, the total population of the United States was 314,332,190 in September 2012, the last month of fiscal 2012. That means the 72,600,000 who were enrolled in Medicaid at some time during the year equaled about 23 percent of the population--or almost one out of every four people.

Source: CNS News

Russia sides with Islam,Chechen lawyer must flee Russia after threat

MAY 30, 2013

Chechen lawyer Dagir Khasavov fled Russia after receiving death threats following his calls for Sharia law to be introduced in the country.

The Russian Political Immigrants society announced on Friday that he swiftly left the country, BBC reported.

The lawyer left for “a European country” after receiving threats. His son, Arlsan Khasavov, wrote in his blog that his father was provoked, possibly by Chechen authorities, to make him a “ritual sacrifice” before the inauguration.

Khasanov gave an interview to Ren TV on April 24, where he said that Muslims in Russia do not want to go to secular courts and Russia must use Sharia law.

“Muslims do not want to get involved in the multilayered court system, it is alien to them. You think that we come here to Russia like to some alien place. But we think that we are at home. Maybe you are alien, and we are at home. And we will set the rules, the rules that suit us, whether you want it or not. Any attempts to change it will end in blood, it will be the second Dead Sea. We will flood the city with blood.”

Khasavov told Interfax on Wednesday that his words were distorted. He said when he was talking about Sharia law, he meant inter-family cases, and not criminal. He also said he was not aware that the comments would be filmed by the crew.

Prosecutors see extremism

The Prosecutor’s Office saw the lawyer’s statement as extremist based on an investigation by The Russian Institute of Culture. Experts found that the speech was aimed at exciting hatred and animosity based on religion (Islam), and could be considered a call for extremist activity, a Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman told Interfax.

The materials were sent to the Investigative Committee.

Russian communications watchdog Roskomnadzor is also examining the interview.

Calls to strip Khasavov of attorney status

A number of organisations call for Khasavov’s lawyer credentials to be annulled. The All-Russia Officers of Russia public organisation asked the head of Moscow Bar Association, Genry Reznik, to start a disciplinary investigation and to deny Khasavov the status of attorney, Interfax reported.

“The appeal notes in particular that such statements from a lawyer are damaging to the credibility of all Russian lawyers,” head of Officers of Russia, Anton Tsevtkov, told Interfax.

“Khasavov, using the media as his platform, basically expressed threats of violence on a religious basis.”

Reznik, however, replied that no action will be taken until the police examine the evidence.

Moscow news

Iran 'in Latin America terror plot' - Argentina prosecutor

MAY 30, 2013

An Argentine prosecutor has accused Iran of trying to infiltrate countries in Latin America to sponsor and carry out "terrorist activities".

Alberto Nisman said Iran was attempting to set up intelligence-gathering stations in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and other countries in the region.

Mr Nisman is investigating a bomb attack that killed 85 people in a Jewish centre in Buenos Aires in 1994.

Iran has always denied involvement in the attack.

But in an indictment handed to a federal judge in Buenos Aires on Wednesday, Mr Nisman repeated the often-made claim that Iran sponsored the bombing.

And he accused Iran of a nefarious project in the wider region.

"I legally accuse Iran of infiltrating several South American countries to install intelligence stations - in other words espionage bases - destined to commit, encourage and sponsor terror attacks like the one that took place against Amia," Mr Nisman was quoted as saying, referring to the Jewish centre bombed nearly 20 years ago.

He said the countries targeted included Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Surinam.

And he claimed that Mohsen Rabbani - the Iranian former cultural attache in Buenos Aires who Argentina blames for the Amia attack - was co-ordinating the alleged infiltration operation.

In February Argentine legislators approved an agreement with Iran to set up an international truth commission to investigate the Amia attack.

The Argentine government proposed this commission as a way to reactivate investigations into the bombing, but the opposition and some Jewish groups in Argentina have criticised it.

Argentina has issued arrest warrants for several Iranian nationals and a Lebanese national in connection with the bombing.

BBC

Helping Syrian rebels a dangerous risk

MAY 30, 2013

Editor's note: Rand Paul, a Republican, is a U.S. senator from Kentucky.

(CNN) -- The United States has a history of often picking sides in Middle East conflicts to its own detriment.

In the 1980s, former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld met with Saddam Hussein to establish a relationship that helped the dictator gain access to American arms during Iraq's war with Iran. In the 1990s, the U.S. would drive former ally Hussein from Kuwait and impose a decade of sanctions that were devastating for Iraqis, but had little effect on the dictator. In 2003, we went to Iraq, overthrew Hussein, and became part of nation-building effort from which we only recently saw most of our soldiers return home.

Arguably one of the greatest beneficiaries of the Iraq war was Iran, which now enjoys more power and influence with the elimination of its historic enemy. President George H.W. Bush did not pursue Hussein directly during Operation Desert Storm precisely because he feared the destabilizing effects it might have on the region, or as his Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney explained in 1994, "Once you got to Iraq and took it over, took down Saddam Hussein's government, then what are you going to put in its place?" Today, Iraq is unstable and its future uncertain.

Moammar Gadhafi eventually accepted responsibility in the 1988 bombing of an airplane over Lockerbie, Scotland, that killed hundreds of people, including American schoolchildren.

President Reagan called Gadhafi the "mad dog of the Middle East."

Fast forward to 2008, when Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice traveled to Libya to meet with Gadhafi to offer American support.

In 2009, members of the U.S. Senate -- Republicans Lindsey Graham and John McCain and an independent, Joe Lieberman -- would travel to Libya to meet with Gadhafi to offer further aid. Sen. McCain said: "We discussed the possibility of moving ahead with the provision of nonlethal defense equipment to the government of Libya." President Obama would eventually meet with Gadhafi to reconfirm the same relationship established during the Bush administration.

By 2011, President Obama was arming Libyan rebels and ordering airstrikes to overthrow Gadhafi. Some of the president's most vocal supporters were the same Republicans who traveled to Libya two years before to help Libya's strongman acquire military equipment. Sen. McCain said of the Libyan rebels: "I have met with these brave fighters, and they are not al Qaeda. ... To the contrary: They are Libyan patriots who want to liberate their nation. We should help them do it."

We did help them, something I opposed on the Senate floor as an unconstitutional overreach by the executive branch. We now have reason to believe that the Libyan rebels did contain elements of al Qaeda and other Islamic extremists.

Now we see the same enthusiasm for another U.S. intervention, this time in Syria. The Syria Transition Support Act approved last week by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, of which I am a member, has the potential to create more problems for the United States than it would solve. It is unclear what national security interests we have in the civil war in Syria. It is very clear that any attempt to aid the Syrian rebels would be complicated and dangerous, precisely because we don't know who these people are.

The situation in Syria is certainly dire. At least 70,000 people have died, and al Qaeda is making confirmed inroads into the country. No one wants to see Syria become a bastion of extremism. But like other American interventions in the past, U.S. involvement could actually help the extremists.

There is also the quandary of nearly 2 million Christians who are uncertain of what to do. The Christian community in Syria has traditionally sided with, and been protected by, Bashar al-Assad's regime. It is troubling to think that American arms may be given to Islamic fighters who may in turn be firing them at Christians.

This month, it was reported that the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front in Syria executed 11 men who were part of al-Assad's forces. Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad is no friend to the U.S. -- but neither is al Qaeda. To aid members of al Qaeda in any way, directly or indirectly, is an insult to our brave men and women who've been fighting these terrorists since 9/11.

Perhaps the most dangerous aspect of this "transition support act" is that it would commit the United States to a leadership position in the restoration of Syria, and is very vague about what that looks like.

The language of "capacity building" contained in this act is an open-ended term that if logically followed, could eventually mean U.S. troops on the ground in Syria.

We "capacity built" in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Those who insist this language could never mean U.S. boots on the ground in Syria belong to the same Washington clique eager to support Hussein, Ghadafi and later, the Libyan rebels. Washington is not exempt from the law of unintended consequences.

Empowering Islamic extremists to achieve questionable short-term goals does not serve America's long-term security or interests. Nor does it serve the interests of nearly 2 million Christians in Syria who fear they could suffer the same fate as Iraqi Christians who were abused and expelled from that country as radical Islamic forces gained influence and power.

These Christians are natural allies of the United States, and if we're going to seriously discuss any American interests in Syria, the welfare of these Christians is more important than arming Islamic extremists.

History's primary lesson is that we must learn from the past. Although there are some well-intentioned reasons for wanting to intervene in Syria, there are far more well-documented reasons not to.

CNN

'No One Can Rely on the U.S. Right Now'

MAY 30, 2013

The Jews of the United States need to strengthen themselves before they can strengthen Israel, Rabbi David Algaze told Arutz Sheva.

“Unfortunately, many Jews in America, instead of strengthening their sense of belonging to Israel, are joining forces with the enemies of Israel,” Rabbi Algaze, President of the World Committee For The Land Of Israel, said. He cited examples of Jewish institutions in the U.S. inviting people such as author Alice Walker and members of the PLO, who are clearly against Israel, for public appearances.

“We’ve forgotten our history and we’ve forgotten the efforts of our people to return to the land of Israel, and I think that the first thing that we can do is educate our people about our principles and history, and thus also to send to Israel that message,” he said.

Asked whether Israel can count on the support of the United States if and when the time comes to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, Rabbi Algaze said that, right now, no country can rely on the United States to support it.

“President Obama is in a new policy of retreat and disengagement,” he said. “He’s uninterested in participating in any kind of conflict. Perhaps the only people who are interested are supporting Israel are the Arab nations that will probably be the targets of Iran, like Saudi Arabia.”

“I think Israel needs to consider its own actions. I know that it’s dangerous, that the Iranians’ response could cause a tragedy and victims in Israel, but if we allow the Iranians to have a nuclear bomb, the tragedy will be many times worse,” he added.

Source: INN

National parliaments eclipsed by EU powers

MAY 30, 2013

BRUSSELS - The EU financial crisis has prompted centralisation of economic and budgetary powers in Brussels, while national parliaments struggle to fulfil their role as democratic watchdogs.

FULL STORY

Retiring ombudsman wants more transparent EU

MAY 30, 2013

Diamandouros: 'infinite transparency means no privacy and infinite privacy means no transparency, so you need ... balance'

Keep Reading>>

UPDATE 2-Buffett pays $5.6 bln for Vegas utility, bulks up in West

MAY 30, 2013

(Reuters) - A Berkshire Hathaway Inc unit will pay $5.6 billion for NV Energy Inc, the electric utility serving Las Vegas and its power-hungry casinos, in yet another large energy deal for Warren Buffett in the western United States.

Berkshire's MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co said on Wednesday it will buy NV Energy for $23.75 per share, a 23 percent premium to NV's Wednesday closing price. NV Energy shares rose to $23.90 in after-hours trading on Wednesday.

It is not uncommon for shares in Buffett's target companies to trade slightly above the offer price, even where there are no competing bids and Buffett has said explicitly the offer is his best and final one.

"Berkshire has a lot of cash earning very little. If this is a $5.6 billion cash deal, then Berkshire turns low-yielding cash into $330 million of earnings," said Steve Check, president of Check Capital Management, an investment advisory firm, referring to NV Energy's earnings over the last 12 months.

"Nevada has historically been a fairly fast growth area," Check said. "Add it all up, and I'm sure this will be another good, safe investment for Berkshire."

NV Energy, which is based in Las Vegas and serves about 2.4 million people in Nevada, said last month it would accelerate the retirement of its coal-fired power generating facilities and the construction of natural gas and renewable power plants.

"We are pleased to make a long-term investment in Nevada's economy," Buffett, the billionaire investor who is Berkshire Hathaway's chairman, said in a statement.

In 2006, MidAmerican paid $5.1 billion for PacifiCorp, which serves California, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

The deal is also complementary to recent MidAmerican investments in renewable energy, including some big bets next door in California. MidAmerican is building the world's largest photovoltaic solar power plant in San Luis Obispo County, as well as a 160-megawatt geothermal plant near the Salton Sea.

NV Energy has just passed 1 gigawatt of renewable energy, with a target of 25 percent renewables by 2025, and is the largest user of geothermal energy in the United States.

Once the NV Energy deal is complete, MidAmerican will have assets of about $66 billion and its regulated electric and gas utilities will serve 8.4 million customers.

According to a filing with U.S. financial regulators, NV Energy will have to pay MidAmerican $170 million if it terminates the merger under certain circumstances.

The deal is expected to close in the 2014 first quarter.

Lazard served NV Energy as financial adviser, while Sidley Austin LLP, Hogan Lovells and Reno-based Woodburn and Wedge were its legal advisers.

source

Nullifying Obama: State governments revive a Jefferson-Madison theory

MAY 30, 2013

If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is nullification — the idea that states can limit the enforcement of federal laws within their borders.

Supporters of nullification see it as a necessary and effective tool to protect states and citizens from the ever-growing power of the federal government. Detractors think this debate was settled by the Civil War, painting proponents of the idea as “neo-Confederates.” In fact, nullification is a growing movement with support on both sides of the political aisle.

Continue Reading..

Islam’s Rule of Numbers

MAY 30, 2013

In London last week, two Muslim men shouting jihad’s ancient war-cry, “Allahu Akbar” beheaded a British soldier with a cleaver—in a busy intersection and in broad daylight. They boasted of their crime in front of passersby and asked to be videotaped.

As surreal as this event may seem, Islamic beheadings are not uncommon in the West, including the U.S.

In 2011, a Pakistani-American who helped develop “Bridges TV”—a station “designed to counter negative stereotypes of Muslims”—beheaded his wife.

In Germany in 2012, another Muslim man beheaded his wife in front of their six children—again while hollering “Allahu Akbar.

Beheading non-Muslim “infidels” in the Islamic world is especially commonplace:

In Yemen a “sorceress” was beheaded by the “Supporters of Sharia”;

In Indonesia, three Christian girls on their way to school were beheaded; in Syria last Christmas, U.S.-supported rebels beheaded a Christian man and fed his body to the dogs;

In Africa—Somalia, Tanzania, Mali—Christians are regularly decapitated. (For a comprehensive picture of Christian suffering under Islam, see my new book, “Crucified Again: Exposing Islam’s New War on Christians.”)

Most recently, a disturbing video surfaced from “liberated” Libya of a machete-wielding masked man hacking at the head of a captive—again, to cries of “Allahu Akbar!”

But the greater lesson of the London beheading concerns its audacity—done in broad daylight with the attackers boasting in front of cameras, as often happens in the Islamic world.

It reflects what I call “Islam’s Rule of Numbers,” a rule that expresses itself with remarkable consistency: The more Muslims grow in numbers, the more Islamic phenomena intrinsic to the Muslim world—in this case, brazen violence against “infidels”—appear.

In the U.S., where Muslims are less than 1% of the population, London-style attacks are uncommon. Islamic assertiveness is limited to political activism dedicated to portraying Islam as a “religion of peace,” and sporadic, but clandestine, acts of terror.

In Europe, where Muslims make for much larger minorities, open violence is common. But because they are still a vulnerable minority, Islamic violence is always placed in the context of “grievances,” a word that pacifies Westerners.

With an approximate 10% Muslim population, London’s butchers acted brazenly, yes, but they still invoked grievances. Standing with bloodied hands, the murderer declared: “We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone…. The only reason we have done this is because Muslims are dying by British soldiers every day.”

Grievances disappear when Muslims become at least 35-40% of a nation and feel capable of waging an all-out jihad, as in Nigeria, where the Muslim-majority north has been terrorizing Christians—bombing hundreds of churches and beheading hundreds of infidels.

Sudan was an earlier paradigm, when the Khartoum government slaughtered millions to cleanse Sudan of Christians and polytheists. Historically Christian-majority Lebanon plunged into a deadly civil war as the Muslim population grew restive.

Once extremists become the majority, the violence ironically wanes, but that’s because there are fewer infidels to persecute. And what infidels remain lead paranoid, low-key existences—as dhimmis—always careful to “know their place.”

With an 85% Muslim majority, Egypt is increasingly representative of this paradigm. Christian Copts are under attack, but not in an all-out jihad. Rather, under the Muslim Brotherhood their oppression is becoming institutionalized, including through new “blasphemy” laws which have seen many Christians attacked and imprisoned.

Attacks on infidels finally end when Muslims become 100% of the population, as in Saudi Arabia—where all its citizens are Muslim, and churches and other non-Islamic expressions are totally banned.

Hat tip: Raymond Ibrahim

Pack of Somali Lone Wolves wanted in Minnesota

MAY 30, 2013

It looks like we may have another pack of lone wolves on the loose.

Via CBS Minnesota:


Police are looking for as many as six or seven Somali men after two joggers were randomly attacked in Fridley.

Authorities said two joggers were the victims of what are being labeled as random attacks on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and 3:50 p.m. The joggers, both men, were on a path near East River Road and 37th Avenue NE when the attacks took place.

Police said one man suffered a bloody nose in the attack and the other has a sore throat. Authorities said these attacks were not robbery attempts and that the suspects randomly approached them and assaulted them.

This can only be one of two things. Either the joggers found themselves at the confluence of where several lone wolves met or they were attacked by a pack of lone wolves who had absolutely nothing in common.

Unless…

Source: Shoebat

The U.S. Helps Reconstruct the Ottoman Empire

MAY 30, 2013


WASHINGTON — Senator John McCain’s office is pushing back against reports that while visiting Syria this week he posed in a photo with rebels who kidnapped 11 Lebanese Shi’ite pilgrims.

The photo, released by McCain’s office, shows McCain with a group of rebels. Among them are two men identified in the Lebanese press as Mohamed Nour and Abu Ibrahim, two of the kidnappers of the group from Lebanon.

A McCain spokesman said that no one who met with McCain identified themselves by either of those names.

“In coordination with the Syrian Emergency Task Force, Senator John McCain traveled to and from Syria with General Salim Idris, the chief of staff of the Supreme Military Council of the Syrian opposition, to meet with two senior Free Syrian Army commanders,” said McCain spokesman Brian Rogers on Wednesday in an email to BuzzFeed. “None of the individuals the Senator planned to meet with was named Mohamad Nour or Abu Ibrahim. A number of other Syrian commanders joined the meeting, but none of them identified himself as Mohamad Nour or Abu Ibrahim.”

“As the Syrian Emergency Task Force has said: ‘Senator McCain did not go to Syria to meet with anyone named Mohamad Nour or Abu Ibrahim. Two members of our organization were present in the meeting, and no one called himself by either name.’”

Rogers said that if the man in the photo turns out to actually be Mohamed Nour, that is “regrettable.”

“A number of the Syrians who greeted Senator McCain upon his arrival in Syria asked to take pictures with him, and as always, the Senator complied,” Rogers said. “If the individual photographed with Senator McCain is in fact Mohamed Nour, that is regrettable. But it would be ludicrous to suggest that the Senator in any way condones the kidnapping of Lebanese Shia pilgrims or has any communication with those responsible. Senator McCain condemns such heinous actions in the strongest possible terms,” Rogers said.

Rogers also suggested that the story had been slanted by pro-Assad forces: “It’s not surprising that the pro-Hezbollah forces supporting the Assad regime who originally promoted this distortion would seek to smear anything and anyone supporting the Syrian opposition.”

source: Buzzfeed

Reporters Grill Jay Carney About Holder’s Inconsistent Testimony on DOJ Scandal: ‘We Know He Was Involved’

MAY 30, 2013

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney listens to a question during the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, May 29, 2013. Credit: AP

Reporters grilled White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on Wednesday over Attorney General Eric Holder’s seemingly misleading testimony on the Justice Department’s monitoring of members of the press.

Referring to Holder’s testimony before the House Judiciary Committee on May 15, Fox News reporter Ed Henry pointed out that the attorney general claimed he was unaware of any “potential prosecution of the press for the disclosure of material.”

It was later discovered that Holder personally signed off on the search warrant to obtain James Rosen’s personal emails, Henry explained.

“Even if the attorney general ruled out that he was going to prosecute Rosen…We know he was involved in it at the very least,” he told Carney. “Was he not telling the truth on that point?”

“Involved in what?” Carney asked.

“He signed off on the search warrant,” Henry shot back. “You’re not involved after signing a search warrant?”

Carney, unable to give a direct answer, again referred reporters to the Justice Department.

“You guys are conflating, you know, the subpoena with prosecution,” he told reporters.

After another journalist accused him of holding on to a “technical accuracy” regarding Holder’s testimony, Carney replied: “I’m not…I don’t see the conflict, but I would refer you to the Justice Department.”

Carney also said the White House was satisfied with IRS officials’ response to questions about the scandal plaguing the agency.


Source: Video and article available at The Blaze

Developer guilty of illegal contributions to Reid

MAY 30, 2013

RENO, Nev. (AP) -- A Nevada powerbroker who headed a billion-dollar real estate company and pulled the strings of state politics as a prominent lobbyist for more than a decade was convicted Wednesday of making illegal campaign contributions to U.S. Sen. Harry Reid.

FULL STORY

California Senate approves 8 gun control bills, including ammo registry (VIDEO)

May 30, 2013

Although it can’t be positively confirmed, though maybe it’s just self-evident, a majority of state senators in the Golden State are itching to push through their pro-gun control agenda, approving at least seven bills on Wednesday that further restrict the rights of law-abiding gun owners, including one bill that would set up an ammo registry.

That’s correct, under Senate Bill 53, responsible gun owners would be required to submit personal information to the state, undergo a background check and pay a $50 fee before being allowed to buy ammunition. Their information would be stored in a state database controlled by the Justice Department and the individual would have to present photo ID at a gun store upon making an ammo purchase.

Additionally, gun dealers and ammo vendors would be required to obtain special permits to sell ammunition. Those gun owners or gun dealers/ammo vendors who fail to follow the law would face misdemeanor charges.

READ: Excerpt from SB 53

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

And now let's play "Name That Party": Legislators call on Redskins to drop 'R-word', claim it's as offensive as "Nigger" or "Wetback"

MAY 29, 2013

Letter calls team name a 'racial, derogatory slur'

Members of Congress are turning up the heat on Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder in an attempt to get him change the team's nickname.

Snyder, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, the other 31 team owners and FexEx president and CEO Frederick Smith, whose company has naming rights to the Redskins' stadium, were sent a letter from 10 U.S. representatives requesting the team abandon a name that "Native Americans throughout the country consider the 'R-word' a racial, derogatory slur akin to the 'N-word' among African Americans or the 'W-word' among Latinos."

"Such offensive epithets would no doubt draw widespread disapproval among the NFL's fan base," the letter stated. "Yet the national coverage of Washington's NFL football team profits from a term that is equally disparaging to Native Americans."

The representatives who authored the letter were Eni F.H. Faleomavaega from American Samoa, Tom Cole of Oklahoma, Betty McCollum of Minnesota, Raul M. Grijalva of Arizona, Gwen Moore of Wisconsin, Donna M. Christensen of the Virginia Islands, Zoe Lofgren, Michael M. Honda and Barbara Lee of California, and Eleanor Holmes Norton of the District of Columbia.

Snyder has vowed never to change the name.

The team had no comment on Tuesday, but Redskins general manager Bruce Allen said last week, "I think it's a non-issue and it's been a non-issue for decades. We really don't get the talk that other people get because we hear from our fans. And our fans will always be our fans of the Washington Redskins."

The letter went on to say, "In this day and age, it is imperative that you uphold your moral responsibility to disavow the usage of racial slurs. The usage of the (R-word) is especially harmful to Native American youth, tending to lower their sense of dignity and self-esteem. It also diminishes feelings of community worth among the Native American tribes and dampens the aspirations of their people."



source

Microsoft's new Xbox will track EVERYTHING you watch on TV - but will reward you for watching the ads

MAY 29, 2013

Application submitted to the US Patent and Trademark office shows Microsoft's plans for tracking viewing habits of Xbox owners

The company plans to reward viewers who watch adverts or shows with credits and achievements

The new Kinect sensor can follow eye movements, track your reaction to shows using heart-rate monitors and see you in the dark

FULL STORY

Did Eric Holder Lie Under Oath? An Early Investigation of an Investigation

MAY 29, 2013

The House Judiciary Committee is investigating whether or not Attorney General Eric Holder lied under oath during his testimony to them two weeks ago, as reported by The Hill. If the committee determines that he did, Holder could face five years in prison. It very well may. He almost certainly won't.

KEEP READING

Report: Holder Went Judge Shopping To Obtain Fox News Subpoena

MAY 29, 2013

The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza, a bulldog on the DOJ/Fox News secret subpoena story, reports that the effort by the Justice Department to obtain the controversial court order was arduous, contentious and unsuccessful until finally a third judge acquiesced.

FULL STORY

Loans subsidize ObamaCare

MAY 29, 2013

Recent speeches by Tennessee Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander highlight a connection that has yet to be reported in the media and is yet to be understood by the young people struggling with high interest rates in the hopes of financing their college education.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, $8.7 billion of the money collected in student loan interest payments actually goes to pay for ObamaCare. The CBO estimates that the interest rate on these loans could be reduced from 6.8 percent to only 5.3 percent were the funds not used to subsidize the healthcare reform law and other federal programs.

CONTINUE TO ARTICLE

CONFIRMED: IRS Gave Preferential Treatment to Malik Obama’s Charity – Now Found Linked to Genocidal Regime

MAY 29, 2013

In light of the recent revelations that the IRS has been unfairly targeting conservative groups, President Obama’s half-brother “got a sweetheart deal” from the IRS. According to the Daily Caller, Lois Lerner, the senior IRS official at the center of the decision to target tea party groups for burdensome tax scrutiny, signed paperwork granting tax-exempt status to the Barack H. Obama Foundation, a shady charity headed by the president’s half-brother that operated illegally for years. Lerner approved the foundation’s tax status within a month of filing.

But now there is evidence that the Barack H. Obama Foundation is linked to terrorism and genocide.

FULL STORY

The Impeachable Offense

MAY 29, 2013

The Muslim Brotherhood in the White House! White House tours apparently compromised their free run of the place! Where is the impeachable offense?

Arif Alikhan – Assistant Secretary for Policy Development for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Mohammed Elibiary – Homeland Security Adviser.

Rashad Hussain – Special Envoy to the (OIC) Organization of the Islamic Conference.

Salam al-Marayati – Obama Advisor and founder Muslim Public Affairs Council (and its current executive director.)

Imam Mohamed Magid – Obama’s Sharia Czar – Islamic Society of North America

Eboo Patel – Advisory Council on Faith-Based Neighborhood Partnerships

Some of these terrorists go back to the first month of BHO’s first reign of terror, er … first (mis)-administration … all very bad guys.

Let’s not forget Hillary’s significant other in the State Department – Huma Abedin and her ties to the Egyptian MB where Christians are being persecuted and murdered.

This is where the impeachable offense comes in. The man and his minions solemnly swore to protect and defend the Constitution. He has been actively enabling the imposition of Sharia Law to replace the Constitution that anchors our freedom. With Sharia must come conversion to Islam as the religion of the United States and the world. Some already have an idea who would be the coveted Supreme Caliph.

Accompanying him to impeachment should be every judge that has ruled for the imposition of Sharia on a local basis, for every public, military, and diplomatic official who is actively forcing this other half of the culture of death on us. This should include any official who swore on an early version of the Constitution that preceded the Bill of Rights. They have spent American blood and treasure to remove “inconvenient” Muslim dictators who tolerated Christians and Jews while abandoning the people in the Middle East who looked to us to set them free.

The culture of death has two halves: Islam is a theocracy embracing imposed death or slavery for infidels, and “progressivism” with its complete disdain for the sanctity of human life at all stages, even to sexuality. These too are ultimately incompatible with a predictable outcome.

Statesmen in 1950 were taking into account that the temporal power of Islam may return on a broad scale (and with it, the menace that it may shake off a West that has ceased to be Christian and affirm itself as a great anti-Christian world power.)

I used to think Iran getting a nuclear weapon was the “100th egg.” Today, I’m almost convinced the “100th egg” is the United States of America under Islamic rule. Who else could lay waste to the world in the hands of evil men and women?

source

Food stamp ban for pedophiles, murders, rapists deemed racist

MAY 29, 2013

An amendment to the Senate farm bill banning convicted murderers, rapists, and pedophiles from receiving food stamps discriminates against African Americans, according to a critic of the effort.

CONTINUE READING

Ohio Democrat and Obama Supporter Melowese Richardson Convicted of Felony Voter Fraud

MAY 29, 2013

Democrat Melowese Richardson candidly admitted to Cincinnati’s Channel 9 in February that she voted twice in the 2012 election. “I’ll fight it for Mr. Obama and Mr. Obama’s right to sit as president of the United States,” she proclaimed in the interview.

FULL STORY

Gosnell Sister-in-Law Ground Up Baby Parts in Disposal, Gets Probation

MAY 29, 2013

Abortion practitioner Kermit Gosnell’s sister-in-law was sentenced in court today for her role in the House of Horrors abortion clinic that eventually resulted in Gosnell’s conviction on multiple murder counts.

READ MORE

Babies Gosnell Killed in Abortion, Infanticide Taken to State Landfills

MAY 29, 2013

What became of many of the babies abortion practitioner Kermit Gosnell killed in horrific abortions and infanticides? One researcher has the answers.

Michael Marcavage of Stop Stericycle, a campaign to get the waste management company out of the abortion business, released a report showing many of the bodies of the babies killed eventually made their way to Pennsylvania landfills.

FULL STORY

School 'forgets' to teach required course

MAY 29, 2013

With graduation only days away, students at a high school in Gothenburg are outraged after learning they must complete a required course in religion that the school somehow neglected to teach them.

FULL STORY

FEAR: Coke leaves Muhammad out of Sweden PR drive

MAY 29, 2013

Coca-Cola said it would have been "too provocative" to include Muhammad in a Swedish publicity campaign in which the US beverage giant replaced its curlicue logo with some of the most common names of young Swedes.

FULL STORY

Helping 'moderate' Islamists will backfire on EU - experts

MAY 29, 2013

The supplies of French and British weapons to Syrian rebels will not only lead to the expansion of the conflict all over the region. Sooner or later these weapons will fire at Europe.

KEEP READING>>


Immigration-reform deal could pass by August: Pelosi

MAY 29, 2013

WASHINGTON — House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who hits Chicago this week along with President Barack Obama for fund-raising events to benefit Illinois House Democrats, told me Monday that there is enough “general agreement” on bipartisan immigration reform for a measure to pass — and she laid out an aggressive timetable, saying a bill could be sent to Obama to sign by August.

FULL STORY

NEW YORK MAGAZINE: Is Obama Really As Bad As Nixon When It Comes to Targeting the Press?

MAY 29, 2013

With the AP and Fox News stories, it seems like Obama's record on leakers is finally becoming a mainstream issue. Why did it take until now?

Continue to article>>

Turkey said to eye Saudi tanks sale

MAY 29, 2013

Turkish military vehicles firm Otokar Otomotiv ve Savunma Sanayi could sell hundreds of tanks to Saudi Arabia, according to a report in Turkey’s press.

READ MORE

Egypt's youth: 'What has the revolution done for us?'

MAY 29, 2013

Egypt's young people are increasingly disillusioned with post-revolutionary life

FULL STORY

Rep. Michele Bachmann says she will not run for re-election in 2014

MAY 29, 2013

Congresswoman Michele Bachmann says she will not run for re-election in 2014, ending her tenure as the representative from Minnesota's sixth congressional district after four terms.

FULL STORY

Obamacare "Navigators": Another Sebelius Snitch Brigade?

MAY 29, 2013

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius controls a $54 million slush fund to hire thousands of "navigators," "in-person assisters" and counselors who will propagandize and enroll Obamacare recipients in government-run health insurance exchanges. This nanny-state navigator corps is the Mother of all Community Organizing Boondoggles. It's also yet another Obama threat to Americans' privacy.

FULL STORY

HEADLINE: NFL Murders Former Quarterback.

May 29, 2013

Coming to a media outlet near you. EXPECT IT!

Former NFL quarterback Cullen Finnerty was found dead Tuesday night in northwestern Michigan after a solo fishing trip over the holiday long weekend.

"We were walking a good line," Scott Boyd, who was part of one search party that found the body, told the Detroit Free Press. "I squatted down. We had seen some trail. And a girl shouted. She walked right up on it. I thought, 'Oh no.'"

Finnerty, who briefly played for the Baltimore Ravens and Denver Broncos in 2007-08, had been missing since Sunday night, Lake County Sheriff Robert Hilts said. He confirmed the death at a news conference.

Around 100 current and former players and coaches from his alma mater, Grand Valley State, searched through the swampy woods northeast of Baldwin, Mich., Tuesday afternoon.

Hilts said the 30-year-old ran into the forest after having a "nervous episode" and hadn't been seen since.

"He phoned his wife and explained he was afraid," Hilts told USA Today. "He left his equipment and ran off into the woods."

Finnerty's wife and in-laws immediately drove to his location but all they found was his small pontoon boat.

"We found a fishing pole and that's all," Lake County Undersheriff Dennis Robinson said. "No waders and no fishing equipment."

Finnerty led Grand Valley State to an NCAA Division II championships in 2003, '04 and '06.


source

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Column: A nation of co-existing, conflicted values

MAY 28, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration kills four U.S. citizens in counterterrorism drone strikes overseas. It helps pay for the New York Police Department's controversial surveillance program against Muslim Americans. It says a journalist seeking national security information may have been a criminal "co-conspirator."

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CAIR pushes ‘hijab friendly’ policy in American prisons

MAY 28, 2013


The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is working to make American prisons more “hijab-friendly,” according to a report from Al Arabiya.

“I’m working on several pending cases in different states… and I’m in touch with an attorney for the Department of Justice’s Office of Civil Rights,” Nadhira al-Khalili, legal counsel for CAIR, told the Saudi-owned news outlet.

The goal for CAIR is to make the hijab a permissible, official staple of Muslim women’s attire, including for photos, in prisons nationwide.

FULL STORY

What’s wrong with MSNBC?

MAY 28, 2013

MSNBC is having ratings troubles. It came in fourth in April, after Fox, CNN, and HLN. Things have not improved in May. May 13-17 was MSNBC’s lowest-rated week since summer of 2006. So what’s wrong?

KEEP READING

Kickbacks as 'a natural part of business' at Fannie Mae alleged

May 28, 2013


Investigators are looking into assertions by an ex-Fannie Mae worker that kickbacks were 'a natural part of business' at the federal housing finance company.

FULL STORY

An IRS Scandal Inseparable from Obamacare

May 28, 2013


The IRS attempts to save Obamacare by unilaterally declaring that it will disregard the law.

Continue Reading>>

Sequester is fed speak for Now Hiring; government posts 27,000 high-paying job openings

May 28, 2013

The budget cuts known as sequestration were supposed to wreak havoc, forcing the shrinking of critical workforces including airport security officers and food inspectors.

But since sequestration kicked in March 4, the government has posted openings for 4,300 federal job titles to hire some 10,300 people. The median position has a salary topping out at $76,000, and one-fourth of positions pay $113,000 or more, according to an analysis by The Washington Times of federal job listings.

Altogether, the jobs will pay up to $792 million per year. Including job postings that have been open since before sequestration, the government is in the market for 27,000 employees who will make up to $1.8 billion a year.

The jobs posted since sequestration include 2,800 positions at the Department of Veterans Affairs, 519 at the Indian Health Service and 50 at the Smithsonian Institution.

They also include service jobs seemingly designed to ensure that existing government employees live well.

The Defense Department is recruiting 71 bartenders and 123 waiters. If they worked full-time, these employees would earn more than $3.4 million a year. Nearly half of these positions were first posted after sequestration kicked in.


Nearly 200 positions related to Army-run bowling alleys are open.

“Golf, horseback riding, swimming, bowling, arts & crafts, and sport shooting are just some of things our employees call a job!” say some advertisements for positions open to U.S. citizens and noncitizens alike. One position in Hawaii pays up to $110,000 — plus a 12 percent cost-of-living adjustment — to oversee such recreation facilities.

At the Transportation Security Administration, which said sequestration would result in widespread flight delays, 436 positions, almost all for security officers, have been posted since March 4.

TSA also is hiring for quality assurance, logistics management, information technology and program analyst roles. Each of these jobs can pay more than $137,000 a year.

An email from one federal agency indicated that it was intentionally placing the brunt of the cuts on critical and high-profile positions instead of low-priority jobs to lend credence to the dire warnings it had proffered to Congress in a plea for more funding.

“We have gone on record with a notification to Congress and whoever else that ‘[the Agriculture Department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service] would eliminate assistance to producers in 24 states in managing wildlife damage to the aquaculture industry, unless they provide funding to cover the costs.’ So it is our opinion that however you manage that reduction, you need to make sure you are not contradicting what we said the impact would be,” leaders said.

The Agriculture Department's Forest Service is hiring numerous people at nearly 800 locations, but could not specify how many it would hire in all.

Where agencies said they were hiring “a few” or “many” people for a position, The Times estimated those values at five and 15, respectively, except for Forest Service positions being sought at hundreds of locations.

“As a result of sequestration, the Forest Service does anticipate hiring possibly 1,000 fewer seasonal jobs this year,” spokeswoman Tiffany Holloway said in an email.

Story Continues →

How Republican institutions empower extremists

MAY 28, 2013

Politics in the U.S. is steadily devolving into a form of consumer entertainment. The corrosion of basic civic interest has hit the Republican Party particularly hard because of institutional factors that leave the organization bent toward extremes. It will be difficult to stop the GOP from nominating cartoon characters like E.W. Jackson without examining and addressing the institutional characteristics that have made the Party America’s choice for the politically weird.

A glance across the aisle at the Democrats might yield some insights. Ideology is a secondary concern in Democratic politics. Since the mid-19th century, the party has been organized around the skillful manipulation of patronage.

That style of organization has been a weakness at times, blocking efforts to update the party’s policy priorities (think of the Civil Rights battles or the ’68 convention). However, it breeds a rock-hard pragmatism that acts as a persistent check on the extremes.

That structural difference between the Republican and Democratic organizations helps explain why the GOP has been more severely damaged by the crazy wave. In structural terms the Democratic Party is inherently more conservative in the sense that it is more protective of the status quo than the GOP.

Extra-political groups form the backbone of Democratic Party politics. The term refers to organizations with strong political interests, like a state teachers’ union, whose main purpose is not inherently political. These groups cannot live on activism alone. They have jobs to do, jobs which depend on effective government.

In the Democratic Party, you can push ideology all you want until it bumps up against patronage demands. If the machinery of government stops working the impact will be deeply felt among the people who control the party’s ground operations. Government effectiveness matters to interests at the core of Democratic politics.

The difference this makes can be seen by comparing the styles of two predominantly Democratic organizations, Planned Parenthood and the National Organization for Women. NOW is an issue advocacy group. Its grass-roots activities consist mostly of tracking legislation of concern and mobilizing members to voice support or opposition.

Planned Parenthood operates women’s health clinics all over the country. Those clinics rely heavily on public funding and often provide abortion services in areas that are deeply hostile to Democratic politics. While NOW’s structure requires it to motivate a base to action, Planned Parenthood must do more than influence politics. It has to perform a function in the day to day world that depends heavily on public support.

Groups like NOW can afford to be as unreasonable as their most generous donors will tolerate. The organization itself is not threatened by any failure to accomplish a practical objective. Advocacy groups feed on controversy. Achieving their policy goals would be like a dog catching the car.

NOW, for example, took a hard line on the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Alito, threatening to campaign against otherwise choice-friendly Senators from both parties who refused to obstruct his nomination. Planned Parenthood recognized the obnoxious irresponsibility of subverting the democratic process purely to activate a political base.

They backed down from a filibuster of the Alito nomination, angering activists on the extremes but preserving their vital policy influence on Capitol Hill. Planned Parenthood is no more “moderate” on the issues than NOW, but they are forced to be vastly more pragmatic.

The dominating presence of extra-political organizations like unions, Planned Parenthood, and other groups performing public functions checks the pressure from Democratic activists to pursue irrational extremes. The GOP political universe, by contrast, is made up of dozens of major advocacy groups comparable to NOW, but Republicans have almost nothing like Planned Parenthood or the unions.

There are hardly any traditional Republican interests, apart from perhaps Chambers of Commerce, who have a vested material interest in government effectiveness. That leaves no structural force to press back against the entertainers who would motivate turnout in primaries and caucuses with appeals to rabid Id.

There are sensible people involved in Republican politics who sacrifice time they could devote to family or work to participate in politics out of a sense of civic duty. The game is rigged against them. They are outgunned and constantly on the retreat. They have been walking away from day to day engagement for decades when they aren’t being actively chased to the margins.

We can talk about solving the problem by encouraging greater grassroots participation by “moderates,” but that is a fantasy. The kind of people who care about rational, pragmatic political outcomes are in large part the same people who are busy taking care of their families, their businesses, and the increasingly intense demands of successful American life.

Even if they, somewhat heroically, chose to carve out time from their jobs and their kids to battle for months for the opportunity to spend all day at Virginia’s GOP nominating convention, would they ever choose to do it again? How many of the sensible people who form the backbone of American life would consistently volunteer to spend weekends in the crowd that nominated E.W. Jackson?

This has created a rift between the Republican activist base and the Republican electoral base. If the mechanics of Republican politics continues to favor people with more time than sense, we’ll nominate fewer and fewer candidates that general election voters will accept. Worse, the traditional core values of the conservative movement will be swamped beneath layers of paranoid muck.

Replicating the Democrats’ emphasis on patronage is not the answer. In fact, that tactic is already losing its punch, likely exposing the Democratic Party very soon to the same forces of weirdness that have ravaged the GOP. The best structural response lies in adapting Republican nominating and decision-making practices to make them open to broader involvement by otherwise busy successful people ― the GOP’s alienated, traditional electoral base.

Here are a few ideas that might help.

1) Abandon the sanctity of the nominating process

There is little hope for meaningful improvement in the Republican Party until pragmatic conservatives openly reject the extremes. That means organizing internal institutions that will allow rationalists to coordinate general election challenges to outrageous nominees. It is a decade too late to work this out behind the scenes in conventions or in local party meetings. We have to leverage the frustration of general election voters to force a change.

2) Forge new institutions that support pragmatic goals

Rational conservatives need organizations that allow them coordinate their activities and lend material support to candidates who would challenge the extremes. Jon Huntsman just launched one such effort. We need hundreds more.

3) Drain the influence from deeply anti-representative organs like caucuses and conventions

After weakening the hold of extremists by taking decisions directly to general election voters, use the influence gained from the process to strip power from unrepresentative processes. Caucuses are crazy-factories. They require far more investment of personal time than most reasonably competent people in the prime of life can afford. Our emphasis on in-person institutions is constructing a Republic of the Bizarre. We must blunt their influence.

4) End the practice of primary runoffs

A primary is already a low-turnout process. Primary runoffs are a cruel joke. Without the anti-representative dynamics of a runoff, David Dewhurst would be Texas’s Senator.

5) Explore communications technology to expand participation

There is a quality to in-person political involvement that cannot be replicated online. That said, this is not the 19th century. People do not have months of downtime waiting for the harvest season. Our in-person grassroots institutions are no longer the engines of quality representation that Tocqueville observed. We need to explore alternatives enabled by communications technology that can keep people connected with a smaller investment of personal time.

Solving the GOP’s nutjob problem is more than a partisan issue. The techniques that succeed in restoring the Republican Party’s sanity may provide the key to adapting representative government to succeed in a new century.

Source: Washington Times