912 Patriots of Lower Bucks - Your Daily Updates ALL in ONE Place!
January 7, 2013
Quote:
"A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear. The traitor is the plague."
Quote by: Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.) Roman Statesman, Philosopher and Orator Source: Attributed. 58 BC, Speech in the Roman Senate
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Gun Control in Australia - Watch and Weep
I could see the smile on the cluless faces as well as the criminals faces when Australia banned guns. Now you know why the Founders included the 2nd Amendment. We revolted when the Brits tried to confiscate our guns in Lexington, Obviously Australia,the former Brit colony did not learn.
Carlo Grilletto
The wake of recent Mass Gun crimes Calls for an Analysis of Current Gun Legislation
It is time to address updating Firearm legislation in order to protect the 99 percenters from horrific acts of gun violence. But factual analysis (not emotional) of the most egregious mass gun violence circumstances must be carefully considered to derive a comprehensive solution.
Several commonalities of the Mass murders are evident:
In all the instances: Columbine, Newport, Aurora and Virginia Tech, the perpetrators are cowards . They only attack the defenseless. " Gun Free Zones " are the targets of choice. In most of the instances when the cowards are finally confronted by the police, they commit suicide rather than engage.
Illusionary mental unbalance and association with some cult fantasy is usually involved. In most cases Hollywood violence or interactive violent video games are associated.
Various types of firearms are used and in most cases are illegally possessed by the perpetrator either by theft or falsifying purchase documents. However in the most horrific mass murder of Oklahoma City (168 killed including 19 children under 6 + 680 injuries) no firearms were used. A fertilizer manufactured bomb was used.
Indisputable and related facts that should be considered for a realistic solution are:
Most of the 300 million known civilian owned guns are semi-automatic repeaters ( not automatics , which are essentially illegal by Federal Law). Clip fed Semi automatic weapons have been available to the civilian market from the late 1800's.
The additional time difference to discharge 2X 10 round clips, instead of one 20 round clip is only 1-2 seconds.
According to the FBI in areas where right to carry have been implemented gun crimes have been reduced and the converse is also a fact.
Schools(like the Friend's school where President Obama's children attend, in addition to the Secret Service), celebrities, politicians and other wealthy are protected by armed guards and are not attacked. Essentially the one percenters are the ones who can afford this protection.
In Israel, teachers are armed and there are no school shootings.
Without even discussing the purpose of the 2nd amendment, which by testament of the signers was to secure a free society by ensuring that the citizens could protect themselves from both individuals and government oppression, how can we prevent hideous gun crimes against the 99 percenters? The answer is obvious from the aforementioned facts. Allow an expansion of the right to carry and yes assure that a more comprehensive check for mental illness or criminal record prior to gun purchase. But the most obvious program is to allow an undisclosed properly trained and certified school employee to carry a concealed firearm, in a manner that federal Sky Marshalls and crew do on airplanes. The use of a retired police officer or if absolutely necessary a full time professional guard is another option. For a school district in an absolute dire financial situation, the reprioritizing of a non teacher salary could be considered. Then, the 99 percenters can enjoy the safety that have been a proven success for the one percenters.
Carlo Grilletto
1/3/2013
Obama's Ties to the Muslim Brotherhood
We hear the phrase bandied about that our government has been "infiltrated by the Muslim Brotherhood."
That those who have openly called for the destruction of the United States are embedded in our government.
It sounds like something out of a spy novel.
But they say truth is stranger than fiction.
Huma Abedin, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's Deputy Chief of Staff, privy to top secret information, has deep ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Valerie Jarrett, chief advisor to Obama-some say the most powerful person in the White House, even more so than Obama-made it her first piece of business in 2009 of addressing the Islamic Society of North America's (ISNA) 46th annual convention.
ISNA was found to be a co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation case, guilty of funneling millions of dollars to Hamas.
The head of ISNA, Mohamed Magid, was fêted at the White House as recently as last August, sitting next to Obama at the Iftar dinner, a place normally reserved for heads of state.
Think about it. The head of an organization found guilty of funneling money to terrorists sitting next to the President of the United States.
You can't make this stuff up.
And that is only the beginning of the Muslim Brotherhood's tentacles within our government. There have been literally hundreds of meetings with the State Department, the FBI, and the White House (just to name a few), all with Muslim Brotherhood front groups associated with the Holy Land Foundation case.
Muslim Brotherhood front groups like the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) literally went in and purged hundreds of pages of FBI training materials of terms like "jihad" and "Islamist", the rationale being that these terms "offended" Muslims.
What are we to surmise from all these facts? Is the whole world crazy?
No.
Our government has in fact been infiltrated; and the man sitting in the White House, Barack Hussein Obama, is a traitor.
It's as simple as that.
AAA warns E15 gasoline could cause car damage
Gary Strauss, USA TODAY November 30, 2012
E15, a higher blend of ethanol and gasoline, has rolled out in a handful of states. But its use in older vehicles is generating warnings from AAA, which says E15 could be harmful to pre-2012 vehicles.
The AAA says the Environmental Protection Agency and gasoline retailers should halt the sale of E15, a new ethanol blend that could damage millions of vehicles and void car warranties.
AAA, which issued its warning Friday, says just 12 million of more than 240 million cars, trucks and SUVs now in use have manufacturers' approval for E15. Flex-fuel vehicles, 2012 and newer General Motors vehicles, 2013 Fords and 2001 and later model Porsches are the exceptions, according to AAA, the nation's largest motorist group, with 53.5 million members.
"It is clear that millions of Americans are unfamiliar with E15, which means there is a strong possibility that many may improperly fill up using this gasoline and damage their vehicle," AAA President and CEO Robert Darbelnet tells USA TODAY. "Bringing E15 to the market without adequate safeguards does not responsibly meet the needs of consumers."
This month, hundreds of thousands of Americans will march on Washington, D.C., in defense of the nearly 56 million babies killed in the womb since the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion 40 years ago - and now even the millions who can't travel the nation's capital will flood the offices of President Obama, key government officials and mainstream news media with as many as 2 million empty red envelopes bearing a very clear message:
"This envelope represents one child who died in abortion. It is empty, a life taken that was unable to offer anything to the world. Responsibility and life begin at conception."
Jan. 22, 2013, is the 40th memorial of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Now that day has been designated Red Envelope Day as Americans plan to send a visual expression of moral outrage deep into the halls of Congress, beyond the marble columns of the Supreme Court and into the Oval Office.
Red Envelope Day 2013 gives participants the choice to send red envelopes to:
I know there is a lot going on and many are over whelmed. But please keep in mind that is the objective. Cloward and Piven - over load the people so they become so over whelmed they give in and give up. So just keep this in mind. A lot of what is going on is to divert our attention from the real issue. BENGHAZI.
PLEASE purchase 10 postcards. PLEASE ask EVERYONE you know and all members of your group to purchase just 10 postcards and send them to Representative Darrell Issa.
Examples of what you can put on the card are:
WE DEMAND TO KNOW WHO GAVE THE ORDER TO STAND DOWN IN BENGHAZI and PROSECUTE THEM TO THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LAW
"WE THE PEOPLE" DEMAND AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION OF BENGHAZI
"WE THE PEOPLE" DEMAND TO KNOW THE TRUTH ABOUT BENGHAZI
Use one of the statements, use them all or make up your own but please just 10 postcards from the post office or purchase Gadsden postcards from agenda21today.com. You can buy just a couple or you can buy 1000 for $85 (includes shipping in the USA).
Phone calls are also recommended. Just think if we and everyone we knew sent 10 postcards and made 1 phone call to Rep. Issa it might just make a difference.
Representative Darrell Issa
Washington DC Office * 2347 Rayburn House Office Building * Washington, DC 20515 * Phone: 202-225-3906 * Fax: 202-225-3303
The stamp for a post card is 32 cents. That is $3.20 for postage on 10 cards. My Gadsden cards ARE IN THE MAIL. Please let me know if you decide to participate. Let me know if you are getting a group together for a postcard writing campaign to Rep. Issa.
"The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government - lest it come to dominate our lives and interests"- Patrick Henry
To fix "THE SYSYEM" We must become "THE SYSTEM" - k. bracken
"The change we seek has always required great struggle and great sacrifice." - Barack Hussein Obama
"The man who speaks to you of sacrifice, speaks of slaves and masters. And intends to be the master." - Ayn Rand
Memorial Lecture
Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2013
7:30pm
The Annual Jay Michael Swartz Memorial Lecture: An Evening with Michael Medved
For Men and Women Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2013 7:30pm *Pre-lecture dinner 6:15pm At the Glazier Jewish Center | 25 N. State St.
Fee: $36 *Pre-lecture dinner with Michael Medved (includes lecture): $100
AMERICAN JEWS AND CHRISTIAN EVANGELICALS: IRRECONCILABLE ENEMIES OR INEVITABLE ALLIES?
Michael Medved is a nationally syndicated radio talk show host and bestselling author. His daily show is heard by over 3.75 million people across the country. Born in Philadelphia, Michael won admission to Yale at age 16 as a National Merit Scholar. He majored in American History and graduated with honors, before attending Yale Law School, where his classmates included Bill and Hillary Clinton. Michael wrote his first bestseller at age 26 - "What Really Happened to the Class of '65?" - a skeptical reconsideration of the "counterculture" of the 1960's that became a weekly TV series on NBC.
Many American Jews distrust and even fear the rise of the evangelical Christianity. They see this religious movement as a threat to the survival of Judaism in the United States and to the continuance of a society that values pluralism and religious liberty. On the other hand increasing numbers of American Jews view evangelicals as natural allies, not just when it comes to support of Israel, but on a range of social issues here in the U.S. In this provocative presentation, Michael Medved will explain where Jews and Christians already agree, and where they can never agree, in their participation in the ongoing battles shaping American society.
If you want to understand what is happening to our beloved country please watch this important movie. Please share it with everyone.
Yes, it's true: You can support ACT! for America-at no cost to you!An important message from Guy Rodgers, Executive Director
The next time you make an online purchase of almost anything, you could be helping ACT! for America-at no cost to you.
Sound too good to be true? It isn't.
All you have to do is sign up for "iGive"-a program that's been around since 1997.
The concept is as powerful as it is simple.
Every time an iGive member makes an online purchase at over 1,000 brand-name stores, a percentage of that purchase is donated to that person's charity of choice.
And with the holidays just around the corner, you could be helping ACT! for America with every gift you buy!
The concept isn't new. In the mid-1990s many supporters of non-profit organizations signed up with long distance telephone programs where a percentage of their bill was donated to their charity of choice.
But our investigation of iGive has convinced us that this program has an ease of use and sophistication that we find remarkable.
Imagine booking a hotel room on Orbitz-and having 1.6% of that purchase price donated to ACT! for America.
Or buying an Xbox at Best Buy-and having 1.2% of the purchase price donated to ACT! for America.
The same goes for buying merchandise at Amazon, Bath and Body Works, Advance Auto Parts, Game Stop, Kmart, Home Depot, Holiday Inn, Old Navy, NASCAR Superstore, Overstock.com, Mattel, J.C. Penney, Office Max, QVC, Radio Shack, Shoe Carnival, Pottery Barn-and on and on the list goes.
In other words, every time you make a purchase of merchandise you would buy anyway, you would be financially supporting ACT! for America!
All you have to do is log on below and follow the directions to create your account and download the iGive "button." (Note: downloading the "button" is key).
When I was first informed of iGive, I was skeptical. I've seen these ideas come and go. Often, they're too good to be true. Or there are all kinds of glitches and problems.
So I spent hours researching.
I looked at online customer reviews (which were very good). I read all of iGive's fine print, such as Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. I signed up and even emailed two tech support questions to see how good their tech support was.
And the more I dug, the more I liked what I saw. For instance, both of my tech support questions were responded to within 60 minutes. How often does THAT happen?
As you know from our Patriot Partner program, we're all about encouraging a lot of people to each do a little-to do something. When everyone does a little, together we accomplish a lot.
So consider what could happen.
If just 1% of ACT! for America members each purchased just $400 in merchandise in 2013, from all the available outlets, and the average percentage donated to ACT! was 1.5%, the total amount donated back to ACT! for America would be...
...$15,000. That's a lot of money, wouldn't you agree?
And if you were one of those ACT! for America members, it wouldn't cost you one thin dime to help ACT! for America receive $15,000.
If this idea really caught on, and eventually 5% of our members made purchases with iGive, that $15,000 could explode to $50,000, $75,000 or more!
What's more, that 1.5% figure might be low. Many of the merchants offer percentage donations that are much higher. One printer inkjet company I looked at offered 13%!
Every merchant website you visit tells you right at the top what percentage of your purchase price will be donated to ACT! for America.
Just think what we could accomplish with an extra $15,000, $50,000 or $75,000 in our fight against radical Islam!
One of the things I most wanted to know was their Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Check it out for yourself. I confirmed the terms with a company representative. And I like what I learned. As security-conscious as I am, I have no hesitation using the service-and I'm already doing so.
I know there are many people out there who would love to support ACT! for America, or give more than they're giving, but in these tough economic times they simply can't.
Well, here's a way that everyone who believes in our mission can easily support what we're doing-at no cost to them.
It doesn't get any better than that.
There are already chapter leaders who have signed up for the program, and the feedback I have been getting from them has been all positive. They love the idea and many of them are already using it.
So please, join me and these ACT! for America chapter leaders who are already signed up and using the iGive service.
Yours for a safe and free America
Guy Rodgers
Dear Fellow Conservative,
Registration for CPAC 2013 is now open! The American Conservative Union's legendary annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is scheduled for March 14-16, 2013 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center.
Register Now for CPAC 2013 Don't miss your chance to help take our country back to the right. To register now and reserve your space, visit conservative.org.
Join the Celebration In honor of CPAC's 40th Anniversary, we look forward to joining conservatives from across the nation for CPAC 2013, celebrating the accomplishments of the movement while also energizing the next generation of conservatives.
New Location CPAC 2013 boasts a new location at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. Complimentary CPAC shuttle busses to and from the Gaylord Center will be available at convenient locations across the National Capitol Region. Details will be released in the coming weeks; please visit conservative.org for updates.
CPAC Past & Present The ACU has hosted CPAC in the Nation's Capital since 1973, and it now stands as the largest annual gathering of conservatives in the country. Additionally, the ACU this year hosted two regional CPACs designed to energize and mobilize Midwest and Mountain West conservatives, giving them the tools needed to defeat the liberal agenda in 2012 while also highlighting rising conservative stars and issues in the region. Stay tuned for details on 2013 regional CPAC locations!
Interested in Sponsoring CPAC 2013? National and local partners are critical to achieving a successful event. CPAC 2013 provides an excellent platform to promote your message and network with the leaders and activists who are on the frontlines of the conservative movement. We invite you to review the special opportunities available to join the action at CPAC 2013 by visiting conservative.org.
This email was sent by: American Conservative Union 1331 H. St., NW Washington, DC, 20005,
The Great Betrayal: Obama's Wars and the War in Iraq
Jul 18th, 2012
Daniel Greenfield's new Freedom Center pamphlet,The Great Betrayal: Obama's Wars and the War in Iraq, is an effort to understand the politics of the "war on terror" which has now reached a final punctuation point with the U.S. decision to speed its withdrawal from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan (where success was once deemed so crucial to national security), and to practice an incoherent form of regime change in Libya while ignoring more serious threats in Syria and Iran.
The war on terror began, Greenfield shows, as an admirable bipartisan commitment soon after the tragedy of 9/11-an effort to transcend party lines not only to punish those who attacked our country but also to interrupt planning for further attacks and try to stop the international spread of the Islamic jihad behind the attacks. But the Democratic Party, with the honorable exception of a few individuals like Richard Gephardt and Joe Lieberman, turned its back on a war soon after authorizing it, and did so at a time when American troops were facing hostile enemy fire.
Although Senate Democrats on the intelligence oversight committee had been granted access to every piece of data available to the White House, they now accused President Bush of tricking them to secure their approval. In fact, their own about-face was entirely dictated by political considerations when a Sixties antiwar activist, Howard Dean, surged ahead in the Democratic primary polls and it appeared for a moment that Americans were on the side of retreat and capitulation.
Although regime change in Iraq had been official U.S. policy since Bill Clinton signed the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998, Democratic senators such as John Kerry who only months earlier had supported the war effort now launched demoralizing attacks on the American commander-in-chief and his troops in the field, stigmatizing it as "the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time." If the truth was the first casualty of their war against the Bush administration, the second casualty was the principle of bi-partisanship that had guided foreign policy debates throughout the Cold War, the principle that "politics stops at the water's edge." Now partisan politics trumped security.
The unrestrained attacks on the Iraq War as illegal and unjustified went largely unanswered by Republicans who failed to call the Democratic saboteurs of the nation's war effort to account or to decry the risk their cynical attacks posed to American servicemen and women on the battlefield. As Greenfield demonstrates, the Democrats' partisanship had consequences not only in Iraq but elsewhere in the region: the paralysis that resulted from their "anti-war" campaign led straight to the destruction of Lebanon and the installation of a terrorist army, Hezbollah, there as a regime within a regime. And it emboldened an overtly Islamofascist regime in Iran not only to supply the IEDs responsible for most of our troop fatalities in Iraq but also to proceed with a nuclear program aimed directly at Israel and the West.
The Great Betrayal shows that Barack Obama's abandonment of Iraq is a betrayal of all the Americans and Iraqis who gave their lives to establish freedom in that country. And the result of his policies in Afghanistan has been as disastrous. While the President presented his rationale for pursuing war there as the pursuit of al-Qaeda, after abandoning his "surge" (which resulted in two thirds of all America's Afghan casualties there and the resurgence of the Taliban allies of al-Qaeda), he blithely prepared for withdrawal as if national objectives had been met.
Order your copy of The Great Betrayal today by clicking here.
Individuals sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood's sinister agenda have infiltrated the Obama Administration.
Brainwashed by the Muslim Students Association and then propelled in to the position of Deputy Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the David Horowitz Freedom Center tracks the path of Huma Abedin and other Muslim sympathizers who have navigated their way into positions of great influence in the Obama Administration. Everything is revealed in the explosive new Freedom Center pamphlet, "The Muslim Brotherhood in the Obama Administration," written by Frank Gaffney, national security expert who served as Assistant Secretary of Defense under Ronald Reagan.
The David Horowitz Freedom Center is committed to educating the public on the Muslim Brotherhood's sinister Agenda. That is why we are giving away this pamphlet for FREE.
Monday 3-4pm "Bordering on Insanity" - Sue Payne and Frosty Wooldridge
Tuesday 3-4pm "American Freedom Watch" - Karen Schoen with contributors John Estabrooks and Dr. Ronald Myers
Wednesday 3-4pm "Patriots Watch" - Billy Baer and Dan Haggerty
Thursday 3-4pm "America's Black Shield" - Ted Hayes and Terrance Lang
Friday 10-11pm "Veterans' Weekly Forum" - Rich Davis and David Bellavia
Bill Would Make PA Gun Restrictions National
State Rep. Todd Stephens of Horsham plans to introduce legislation that would require the Pennsylvania State Police to upload information about people not legally permitted to buy guns in Pennsylvania into a national database.
By Theresa Katalinas
January 4, 2013
As it stands now, anyone from Pennsylvania who has been involuntarily committed, or found to be mentally deficient - and thus ineligible to buy firearms - could travel to another state and buy a gun.
State Rep. Todd Stephens (R-151) of Horsham is looking to prevent what he calls a "loophole" pertaining to the inclusion of mental health records in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
"What I'm proposing is already the law in 17 other states," Stephens said. "I've been working on this initiative for a year and a half urging the state police to add this data to the national database."
Keith Rothfus Speaks at the 2012 Republican National Convention
December 4, 2013, 6 AM
Dear Members and Friends,
While Governor Mitt Romney did not defeat President Obama (although he
performed much better in PA than John McCain did four years ago) and Tom Smith (R-PA) did not defeat Senator Casey (although he performed much better than Rick Santorum did six years ago), our PAC not only helped to re-elect every single Republican Congressional incumbent in the tri-state region--we helped elect a new conservative Republican Congressman in Pennsylvania--Keith Rothfus.
We received the following letter from newly elected Congressman Keith Rothfus (R-12). Congressman Rothfus was sworn-in, yesterday, along with all of our 2012 endorsed NJ and PA Republican Congressional incumbents.
November 20, 2012
Dear Independence Hall Tea Party PAC,
Thank you very much for your recent contribution.
With your help I was able to achieve victory and win the congressional seat for Pennsylvania 12th District.
The road ahead is bound to be rough, but I am ready to fight in order to Re-light America.
I am not going to Washington to manage the decline of America, but rather fight for a prosperous future for generations to come.
Thank you again for your help, and I look forward to serving in the people's House.
Sincerely,
Keith Rothfus
(Congressman Rothfus thanks you and our board thanks you! Your donations helped make this happen!)
We congratulate Keith Rothfus and the entire tri-state Republican delegation on yesterday's inauguration and official admission to the 113th Congress!
And while we opposed Thursday's re-election of Congressman John Boehner (R-OH) as speaker of the House, we acknowledge his victory and pray he has learned valuable lessons from his first two years serving in that capacity.
We do have a piece of advice for Speaker Boehner. Going forward, please control your emotions and stop shedding tears. Your weepy displays are unseemly, inappropriate, and embarrassing--a definite sign of weakness.
Such behavior, repeatedly caught on camera, does not instill confidence in your leadership which is critical for carrying forth staunch opposition to one of the most tenacious and radical collectivist presidents in our nation's history.
On a positive note, the PAC Board would like to thank Treasurer Carol Reighn for her tremendous hard work during this past election cycle! As Treasurer, Carol bears an enormous responsibility and our PAC Board is extremely grateful for her dedication.
On behalf of the PAC Board of Delegates,
Don Adams
Paid for by Independence Hall Tea Party PAC. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. Visit: www.IndependenceHallTeaPartyPAC.com.
Atta Boys to Rothfus and Perry
On the day after they were sworn in as Pennsylvania's two newest Republican Congressmen, Keith Rothfus and Scott Perry signaled that they are willing to buck John Boehner and the mainstream GOP establishment in order to achieve meaningful spending reductions. Both voted against sending $9.7 billion to the National Flood Insurance Program, joining 65 other fiscal conservatives who insisted that any additional funds be matched with cuts in federal spending.
It is not easy to vote against something called "$9.7 billion of flood insurance for victims of hurricane Sandy." But when these Congressmen ran they committed to do something about the outrageous debt and they kept that commitment on Friday by voting against this bill. It was disappointing that they were the only two PA Congressmen to vote against this.
In a press release, Rothfus stated "... I came to Washington to control spending in a sensible manner. The bill passed today costs almost $10 billion and adds to the deficit. My concern is that we in Congress should have worked to find a way to pay for this now." . .
Scott Perry stated "The federal government is broke. We have obligations to our citizenry," but not for "pork-barrel projects," Perry said.
The next shoe to drop in the so-called Sandy relief efforts are attempts next week to pass an additional $51 billion in mostly stimulus and pork barrel funding.
The larger bill, Perry said, still contains items he opposes, including funding for an Alaskan fishery, roofs in Washington D.C., and for President Barack Obama's healthcare plan. If those items are still there, Perry said he will likely vote nay again.
"I'm hoping (Friday's vote was) a chance to show the administration that that stuff is not going to fly in this Congress," Perry said
Bold actions such as this should be rewarded with strong support from supporters of limited government. Please call or email these two patriots and thank them for standing tall on our behalf.
Call Congressman Rothfus at 202-225-2065 (Be prepared to leave a message for the Congressman.) Email form is at: https://rothfus.house.gov/contact/email-me (note that you need to be in his District to leave an email)
Call Congressman Perry at 202-225-2565 (Be prepared to leave a message for the Congressman.) Email form is at: http://perry.house.gov/contact (note that you need to be in his District to leave an email)
More details for your use: Congressman Perry and Rothfus along with 65 other Republican Congressmen had the courage to vote NO for $9.7 billion in Sandy insurance funding!
Why vote NO? (1) This legislation proposes to increase the program's borrowing authority by $9.7 billion. It would be irresponsible to raise an insolvent program's debt ceiling without making the necessary reforms.
(2) It is not the duty of the Federal government to be in the flood insurance business. (Look at Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution) Flood insurance should be a product of the private market.
(3) Why are we borrowing money from China (on the backs of the next generation) to subsidy housing in flood plains? Like all insurance markets its premiums should support its claims. If we the people want to subsidize the poor it should be done via credits and "insurance stamps" and not a Federal program.
Extra information: We need a debate on how to deal with NFIP's indebtedness in the new Congress. Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), the new chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said the NFIP's debt shows it's not sustainable, and that he would explore ways to reform the program.
"I wish to inform all members in this Congress, our committee will take up legislation to transition to a private, innovative, competitive, sustainable flood insurance market, one that serves the needs of all of our countrymen, but ends the unsustainable taxpayer bailouts once and for all," he said.
Hensarling said he regrets that there was not enough time to identify spending offsets to pay for the $9.7 billion increase in new debt the NFIP will be able to incur.
"Emergency bills like this should not come to the floor without offsets to pay for it, or structural reforms to ensure that taxpayer bailouts are never needed again," he said. "Regrettably, less than 24 hours into a new Congress, there is simply not time for this."
RedState Morning Briefing
For January 7, 2013
1.The Trouble For Conservatives
Jim Bridenstine may get a primary challenge. You may not know who he is, but Jim Bridenstine is a brand new member of Congress, a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy Reserves, a fighter pilot from the Iran and Afghan Wars, and a strong fiscal conservative.
He should be a hero to any and all Republicans. He's a genuine bad ass. And on Day 1, he decided not to vote for John Boehner for Speaker. Bridenstine is happy to play on the team, but unhappy to go along to get alone when we are looking at $16 trillion in debt.
His office is silent, but friends of his in Congress say the House Republican Leaders already have him on a list of incumbents they may just want to do away with. But he is exactly the type of guy we need in Congress.
This presents a problem for House conservatives. There are more and more signs that the GOP Establishment intends 2014 as an election season to seek revenge on conservatives. Conservatives are going to have to hang together or they will absolutely hang separately.. . . please click here for the rest of the post →
2. Whether the Semi-Automatic Weapons Ban Passes Depends on What Happens to the Senate Rules
It was reported yesterday that Vice President Joe Biden "guaranteed" to ailing Boston Mayor Tom Menino that sweeping gun control legislation would be passed by the end of January.
How sweeping?
A quick look at Feinstein's semi-auto ban legislation suggests that up to 75% of all handguns currently in circulation would be banned, along with 50% of all long guns.
Depending on its configuration, the AR-15 you already have would probably be treated like a machine gun.You would have to be fingerprinted, background checked by the FBI, and undergo a six-month license application process to keep it.And when you die, the government will seize it.
If you don't get an NFA license, you can expect the SWAT teams to descend on your house.
But, you ask, how could such rabidly anti-gun legislation ever get past Congress?
"The White House is weighing a far broader and more comprehensive approach to curbing the nation's gun violence than simply reinstating an expired ban on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition, according to multiple people involved in the administration's discussions." . . . please click here for the rest of the post →
4.Climate Change, Climate Skeptics and Climate Fools
Under the title "An Antidote for Climate Contrarianism" at the New York Times Green Blog, Justin Gillis reviews an updated primer on the subject by MIT climate scientist Kerry Emanuel, focusing on the book's value in clarifying the climate change argument. But under eleven grafs of organic compost Gillis buries his discomfiting lede: Emanuel believes that unless we're willing to get serious about nuclear energy, it's all just talk. . . . please click here for the rest of the post →
Cocooning Is the Wrong Solution for Conservatives James G. Wiles Should conservatives and persons of faith simply withdraw from the public square, live our lives, and quietly await the inevitable collapse of what the indispensible Walter Russell Mead calls Blue State America? In fact, we could do nothing worse. More
What to Do About a Coup Shoshana Bryen As Venezuela hurtles toward a probable constitutional crisis if Hugo Chavez dies, the signs are very ominous about an Obama administration response. More
Who (or What) Are They Looking For? Michael Geer With the Benghazi official account breaking down like cheap cement with too much sand in the mix, we now know with near certainty that our very own Department of State has been recruiting and arming Al-Qaeda. S who are TSA and DHS looking for? More
Who's 'Dangerous'? Cynthia V. Ward It is not true that all murderers -- even all mass murderers -- suffer from diagnosable mental illness. More
Why Exceptionalism Matters Jeffrey Folks America is exceptional, despite what our current president may think. It's not hard -- at least not for non-liberals -- to understand why. More
Who Would Dare Veto the Sandy Bill? Cindy Simpson Instead of attacking his own party, perhaps Chris Christie should step back and think about the proper role of federal vs. local government. More
Framing the Issues January 7, 2013 Democrats are framing the issues in a way that will allow them to retake the House in 2014. More
Rainbows and Unicorns January 7, 2013 When did the citizens of the United States begin to believe that Utopia was achievable? More
Chris Christie Bloviates January 6, 2013 The New Jersey governor seems to think that government mismanagement is the best way to make a show of helping his constituents (with other people's money). More
Stark Evidence of US, British Naval Decline January 6, 2013 Is it actually possible that, as you read this, the United States Navy has only one supercarrier battle group at sea? Read on - and be amazed. More
The looming debt ceiling fight could allow Republicans to soundly defeat Obama's overspending. Republicans could use the debt ceiling vote to stymie the president's spending plans....»
But if we redefine marriage for one group, there's no logical reason to deny other nonconformist advocates their right to do so, especially if they successfully argue their version of marriage on utilitarian grounds....»
The Middle East that is descending in an inchoate free fall back down onto the familiar ground of religious fundamentalism, primitive tribal society, and internecine warfare which that region of the world is so accustomed to....»
Beck's New Year's Resolution Anyone Who Mentions Obama Is Fired
Obama $7 Million vacation and Sandy Aid Pork
Firestorm of Criticism for Cabinet Nominee Chuck Hagel
A century and a half ago, something happened that affects us today. So why was the abolition of slavery in the United States (if that isn't a big deal, what is?) worthy of almost no attention when it marked its sesquicentennial on January first, 2013?...»
I have the uneasy feeling that taxpayers -- more accurately, their descendants -- will be paying for my rollercoaster, and no one in New Jersey or in the media anywhere seems remotely troubled by it....»
The side that controls the language of an argument controls the argument, and the side that takes and maintains the offensive controls the entire conflict. Time for freedom-lovers to get in the game....»
The American Left, which thoroughly dominates the mainstream media, no longer believes, if it ever did, in the concept of reasonable and respectable people disagreeing in good faith on core issues....»
For four years, Barack Obama has worked diligently to disparage success. He hascultivated class envy using the false premise that the wealthy destroyed the nation and are deserving of monetary castigation...»
Mark Steyn on 'Kilmeade & Friends' Fox News Radio 1/2/13
Jan 2
Hobby Lobby responds to Affordable Healthcare Act mandate on abortion-inducing drugs
Al-Jazeera, once considered the voice of Osama bin-Laden has announced the purchase of Al Gore's Current TV, I n a transparent attempt to buy access to the U.S. media market for operatives of the pro-terrorist Muslim Brotherhood.
The head of CAIR vows to complain to U.S. DHS officials after they blocked a radical Saudi cleric from entering the country this week to attend a national Islamist conference in Chicago.
Following significant military successes and diplomatic gains by Syria's anti-Bashar Assad Sunni Muslim insurgency over recent weeks, Moscow announced its preparations for an evacuation of Russian citizens living in Syria.
It's a Golden Pass for liberal millionaires and billionaires who support higher Obama taxes for everyone but themselves. Meet the Democratic tax evaders of the year
The following letter, written by U.S. Marine was posted in the CNN iReport with the included note from the producer and photo. It has struck a nerve with many...
Did you know that if everyone who visited our FSM website this year donated just $1, we would easily exceed our annual budget?
Your gift will be an investment in freedom.
As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, The Family Security Foundation relies upon the thoughtfulness and (tax-deductible!) generosity of visitors like you.
"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." ~ Ronald Reagan
Hitler, Stalin, and Mao all understood that the most effective way to perpetuate their ideologies was to control what was taught to the children. After all, what children learn greatly influences what they will think and do as adults.
This is why our "sister" organization, ACT! for America Education, spent two years researching how 6th through 12th grade American textbooks treat the subject of Islam.
A recent column in WorldNetDaily (below, highlights added) is the latest reminder of the problem of Islamic bias and indoctrination uncovered in the ACT! for America Education report.
Some of our chapter leaders in Texas brought this to our attention last year, and are actively working behind the scenes to expose and oppose this new Texas curriculum.
Tomorrow the national college football championship will be decided in a game that will be watched by millions of people. The combatants will be Notre Dame and Alabama. Millions of Catholics around the country will be rooting for the "Fighting Irish" but I won't be one of them. I find it hard to support frauds whether they are in or out of politics. Notre Dame is a consummate fraud and has been for many years.
The formerly Catholic school has always held itself up as the pinnacle of Catholic higher education. The "Fighting Irish" were born with a chip on their shoulder and a devotion to Norte Dame "Our Lady," but those days are over. These days Catholic doctrine obviously embarrasses Norte Dame.
This week the Taliban said the transfer of U.S. and NATO led security operations to Afghan security forces was similar to America's retreat from Vietnam by the "declaring victory and run" strategy. The Taliban just needed to learn a little American history to know about the Vietnamization Strategy where the US would train the Afghans to fight their own battles and allow American and NATO to withdrawal with honor. Like the North Vietnamese, the Taliban can already declare victory. Who can blame them with this Administration too busy kowtowing to the Muslim Brotherhood and doing nothing to Iran? Taliban leadership believe that history and time are on their side. (1)
History
American now is repeating the same mistakes the Soviet Union made during their incursion into Afghanistan and, as with the Soviets, no matter the effort expended to modernize the tribal nation it will always fail. Unless the Afghans themselves embrace the West ... Continue Reading:The sad state called Afghanistan
Though "Coach is Right" rarely posts pieces not original with its staff writers, this letter from Marine Corporal Joshua Boston to California Senator Diane Feinstein concerning her proposed "assault weapons" ban must be the exception. For in just 200 words, Corporal Boston has captured both the essence of our nation's existence and the courage which will be required of determined Americans if our nation is to endure.
Senator Dianne Feinstein,
I will not register my weapons should this bill be passed, as I do not believe it is the government's right to know what I own. Nor do I think it prudent to tell you what I own so that it may be taken from me by a group of people who enjoy armed protection yet decry me having the same a crime. You ma'am have overstepped a line that is not your domain. I am a Marine Corps Veteran of 8 years, and I will ... Continue Reading:An American patriot reveals Diane Feinstein to be an un-American hypocrite
As Florida becomes the first state to register one million concealed carry permits and the Illinois' legislature proposes the nations' most draconian gun regulations, the US government is quietly using $1.6 billion in borrowed money to amass ammunition for the domestic operations of Homeland Security.
A 91 page standard transaction form filled out by the Department of Homeland Security Training Center in Glynco, GA reveals a staggering amount of ammunition purchased (in unit price in the thousands) by the Department. The .223 Rem Caliber 62/64 Grain JHP was purchased in quantity of 1,100; the .40 S&W Caliber 180 Grain JHP buy quantity was 2,824; 209 9 MM Luger 115 Grain JHP along with even buckshot is on this order form now hard to google. (1)
The purchase of 1.6 BILLION rounds of ammo and other weaponry, which may or may not include bullets banned by the Geneva Convention, leaves many Americans wondering why ... Continue Reading:Our government arms itself while disarming the American people!
By NBC News' Jim Miklaszewski and wire reports January 4, 2013
The first American military forces have "put boots on the ground" in Turkey to man Patriot missile batteries along the border with war-wracked Syria, defense officials told NBC News on Friday.
The officials said that 27 out of an eventual total of 400 American service members tasked with operating and supporting two Patriot missile batteries were already in Turkey. The Patriots are a defensive weapon used to intercept and shoot down incoming enemy combat aircraft and missiles.
"We are deploying two Patriot batteries here to Turkey along with the troops that are necessary to man those batteries, so that we can help Turkey have the kind of missile defense it may very well need in dealing with threats that come out of Syria," Panetta told troops at Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey in December.
Abid Naseer, 26, was extradited from Britain to the United States on Thursday. (Dave's Comment: This guy looks like a Che Guevara wanna-bee)
By Reuters January 4, 2013
LONDON -- A Pakistani man accused by U.K. authorities of being an al-Qaida operative who took part in a plot to bomb U.S. and British targets was extradited to the United States on Thursday to face terrorism charges. Abid Naseer, 26, was one of a dozen men arrested in April 2009 on suspicion of preparing to cause mass casualties by bombing Manchester city center in northern England. He and the other suspects were never charged, but Britain said in addition to the alleged Manchester plot, Naseer was part of a wider al-Qaida cell bent on staging attacks in the United States and Norway.
On Thursday, he was taken by counter-terrorism police from a high security prison in east London to Luton airport, north of the British capital, and handed over to U.S. officials.He is wanted for trial in the United States for his alleged role in planned suicide bomb attacks on New York City subways in 2009, for which a number of men have already been convicted. He faces three charges: providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization; conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization; and conspiracy to use a destructive device.
Naseer and 11 others, mostly students from Pakistan, were arrested in daylight raids in 2009 after Britain's most senior counter-terrorism officer was photographed openly carrying details about the operation.
"Let it be told to the future world, that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive, the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet and to repulse it." --Thomas Paine (The American Crisis, No. 1, 1776)
Happy New Year!
We enjoyed a week of rest and recovery with our families, but we enter this year locked and loaded.
Thus, your Patriot Team has resolved for 2013 that we will continue to do what we have done with every breath since our inception -- defend Liberty -- and with every ounce of vigor we can muster. And we vow to recruit more American Patriots to our cause this year than ever before.
We have redoubled our commitment to our mission, and we stand firm in our oaths to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic," as summed up in our motto: "Pro Deo et Constitutione -- Libertas aut Mors, Semper Fortis Vigilate Paratus et Fidelis!" (For God and Constitution -- Liberty or Death, Always Strong, Vigilant, Prepared and Faithful!)
We will remain steadfast in that resolve until our last breath, and we know that tens of millions of you will do likewise.
We enter this New Year with two ominous threats to Liberty that affirm just how critical our mission really is.
A government drawn from a minority of the population cannot attempt to exterminate the majority, so it must try to find a modus vivendi. The majority can in fact exterminate a minority. That is why a majority government represents an existential threat to the minority, and that is why minorities fight to the death.
When the crime experts are baffled, I'm here to help. The Los Angeles Times reported last week that crime in the city of Los Angeles has dropped for the tenth straight year. An expert consulted by the Times was perplexed. I'm not.
In a broken society where the ordinary rules are being challenged and brought down day by day, you can ban everything. Or you can ban nothing. It won't matter. Whatever you ban today is jungle taped to beat the ban tomorrow. Those who respect the ban will become victims, either of the state, or of the predators who do not respect the ban.
No wonder every kid grows up wanting to be a superhero. The comic books make it sound awesome: your life is exciting, and being a hero is part of the description of what you do on a regular basis! Well, maybe YOU wouldn't once you realized that in practice, it would be about as much fun as being Mark Sanchez's quarterback coach.
After accusing Breitbart News of "terrible reporting" on the intrigue surrounding John Boehner's re-election as Speaker of the House, Politico ran a detailed article repeating most of the same facts found in our reporting.
When editors proofed Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan's article titled "Conservatives rebel against Boehner" there must have been a sense of déjà vu, as point after point reported at Breitbart was re-confirmed, this time with the stamp of approval from the Beltway Journo-list's favorite rag.
Using his weekly address to praise Congress� last-minute deal to avert the �fiscal cliff,� President Obama said it�s �just one more step� in the larger effort to boost the economy and reduce federal deficits. Mr. Obama also said he�s willing to consider more spending cuts to lower the deficit, as long as they�re coupled with more tax reforms. Get the whole storyHERE.
Since the news broke earlier this week about the sale of Al Gore�s ultra-liberal Current TV, much has been said about who bought the channel (Al Jazeera) and who tried � but was rejected (Glenn Beck). Beyond that story, the media deal brings many questions to light. Learn about the real owners of Al JazeeraHERE.
A Georgia mother and her two young children are unharmed after a man broke into their house with a crowbar on Friday, cornering them in an attic crawlspace. According to WSB-TV, the woman was at home with her nine-year-old twins when the doorbell rang. When they didn�t answer, the man reportedly went back to his car and returned with a crowbar. What mom did next has her husband and many others calling her a "hero." Watch the full news reportHERE.
A single bluefin tuna sold for a record $1.76 million at a Tokyo auction Saturday, blasting last year�s record of $736,000 out of the water. See the astounding price-per-pound that was paid for this highly desired fishHERE.
This intense, focused, brief book (easily read in about an hour) is an inspiring crash course on engaging and maximizing every minute of your life. Robert D. Smith's ideas can be put into action instantly, such as his take on motivation: "Increase your productivity and the motivation will follow." Begin your 2013 with a bang right HERE.
On Friday night's Jay Leno Show, Jay jokingly asked Current TV's Joy Behar whether Osama bin Laden would be her new boss. She replied: �To me it�s like �Al Gore, Al Jazeera, Al Pacino.� It�s all the same thing to me.� Watch the segment and see how Ms. Behar characterized the possibility of working for Glenn BeckHERE.
While out on the town on New Year�s Eve, 27-year-old musician Nadav Nirenberg lost his iPhone in the back of a cab. How the man managed to locate the phone and convince the thief to return it to him will surprise you. See Nadav's innovative solutionHERE. READ THIS |
January 1, 2013 brought a host of new taxes, fees, and charges to the American people. Some of them were anticipated. Others, like the Medical Device Excise Tax (MDET), were not � at least not in this way. See where the tax popped up and learn more about this curious new tax on medical devicesHERE.
According to former burglars, the New York newspaper that published a map of names and addresses of gun owners only made it easier for crooks to choose which houses to break into, seemingly putting unarmed residents in greater danger. Get the full reportHERE.
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee's �Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day� brought hundreds of thousands of supporters out to take a stand in favor of the embattled evangelical-led fast food company. Huckabee is following up on the success of his Chick-fil-A endeavor by promoting a new initiative -- �Hobby Lobby Appreciation Day.� You can learn more about today's event HERE.
Every issue of TheBlaze Magazine contains exclusive content not found anywhere else�online or in print. The January-February 2013 cover story by Tiffany Gabbay takes a look at the busybodies in government who attest they know exactly what Americans should and shouldn�t eat and how they are working to make sure everyone follows their rules. Read the excerpts and learn how you can get a special subscription packageHERE.
On Friday, Nancy Pelosi had to do some political tap dancing to explain the photo showing four House members of the 113th Congress who were not in the original picture. Learn the reason they were they tacked into the top row and hear the former Speaker justify the digital editingHERE.
During an interview on Fox News Friday, Hurricane Sandy victim Scott McGrath went off on President Barack Obama and politicians in Washington who have allowed the nation to rack up debt while neglecting its own citizens. He reminded them �we run this country, not you� in an epic segment. Watch the videoHERE.
The attached article is a crosspost by Sam Ro that originally appeared on Business Insider under the title �CHART OF THE DAY: THE SCARIEST JOBS CHART EVER.� We suggest that you fasten your seat belt before clicking HERE.
In the past year, TheBlaze has regularly featured entertaining videos from inventor Joerg Sprave. If the first week of the new year is any indicator, 2013 will also be filled with fun clips from Mr. Sprave. The host of the "Slingshot Channel" kicks off the new year with a delightful series of videos showing his homemade slingshot launching lit fireworks into bricks of gelatin. Watch the funHERE.
He has no regard for my tax dollars, and I am angry... Related posts: MSNBC Host Calls Christine Odonnell A "Freak Show" ... Continue to Post... Can The Military Handle Latest Photo Scandal? The outrage over pictures taken by soldiers in the 82nd...
Jan 05, 2013 01:37 pm There's more than a touch of hypocrisy in the recent exploitation of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy by the MSM, Obama, and the Democrats. All the wanton murders due to Fast and Furious (estimated at 300 or more) do not appear equal to one life lost at Sandy Hook. The administration paid criminals to [...]
Video: Jerome Corsi: Obama Deliberately Destroying U.S. Economy
Jan 05, 2013 01:31 pm
Obama is using The Cloward-Piven Strategy to implement socialist revolution... Related posts: Jerome Corsi: People Of Interest In Obama's Forged Selective Service Card Dr Corsi is uncovering new information every day in the... Jerome Corsi On The Implications Of Allen Hulton's Testimony Dr. Jerome Corsi is doing the most important investigative work...
Jan 05, 2013 01:28 pm WASHINGTON (Official Wire) - Congress made the obvious official on Friday. President Barack Obama has been re-elected. In a joint session, Congress formally certified that Obama and Vice President Joe Biden were the winners in the November election with 332 electoral votes, well more than the 270 required. Republican Mitt Romney and his running mate, [...]
Video: Mark Levin: Time To Politically Sabotage Obama Administration
Jan 05, 2013 01:22 pm
Mark Levin here is rather blunt... Related posts: Mark Levin: Why I Cannot Vote For Ron Paul Mark Levin explains why most conservatives prefer Newt Gingrich over... Mark Levin: Obama Re-election Would Be 'National Suicide' So many of Obama's voters were ignorant and uninformed about...
Hit The Nail On The Head With A Federal Assault Hammer Ban
Jan 05, 2013 01:14 pm Self-defense advocates aren't surprised by these statistics from the FBI'S 2011 Crime In The United States report. Attacks with hammers outnumber those committed by rifles, of which the famed "assault" variety is a talisman of the Left. Inspired by shrill liberals, like concealed-carry permittee US Senator Dianne Feinstein, I hereby call for a federal ban [...]
Are we a nation ruled by laws, or has our government been taken over by a group of modern-day marquis and baronettes who simply pretend to govern while robbing us blind? Related posts: Ann Barnhardt: All The "Rat Bastards" In DC Know Obama Is Not Eligible Ann Barnhardt broke into the news with her understanding [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:58 pm That was the almost pornographic headline in my local "progressive" paper. It also carried a huge photo of an enraged Gov. Chris Christie railing over the House failure to pass a relief bill for the needy victims of Superstorm Sandy. True enough, but as much as I'm disappointed with the Republican leadership, you have to [...]
Video: DHS Buys 200,000 More Rounds Of Ammo, Over 1.6 Billion Total
Jan 05, 2013 12:53 pm
While the Obama administration sets out to eviscerate the gun rights of American citizens in the aftermath of Sandy Hook, earlier this week it was announced that the Department of Homeland Security has awarded a company a contract worth over $45,000 dollars to provide the DHS with 200,000 more rounds of bullets. Related posts: DHS [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:46 pm Herewith is a modest, and altogether dangerous, attempt to predict key trends for 2013. 1. Economic Hardship Slow GDP growth. The consensus forecast for 2013 GDP growth hovers around 2%. The growth in the deficit is growing faster, resulting in a higher debt burden on the economy. Higher debt burdens impede growth, increase unemployment, and [...]
Video: 'We Shootin' White People In This Movie ... There Can Be No Happier Movie Than That!'
Jan 05, 2013 12:43 pm
Actor/comedian Donnell Rawlings gave his review of Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained" to TMZ: Related posts: Jamie Foxx: "It's Great To Kill All White People!" Jamie "Obama is our Lord and Savior" Foxx is at... Finally, A Movie About American Values From Actor Kirk Cameron comes the documentary Monumental; Cameron screened...
Evolution: Why It's Wrong And Why It Matters (Part 1)
Jan 05, 2013 12:40 pm I am not a scientist. But that's okay, because evolution isn't really science anyway. When you think of science, you probably picture people in white coats looking at test tubes in a laboratory, searching for answers to the big questions in life. Searching for truth, reality, and a way of unlocking all the mysteries of [...]
Obama Accepts Unlimited Corporate Contributions For Inaugural Events; Isn't Saying How Much
Jan 05, 2013 12:29 pm (CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama's inaugural committee on late Friday released a list of individuals and corporations contributing money to fund events surrounding the president's Jan. 20 inauguration but did not reveal how much they contributed, the Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group reported on Friday evening. In 2009, the group notes, Obama's inaugural committee did not accept corporate [...]
60 Facts That Prove The American Middle Class Is Being Wiped Out
Jan 05, 2013 12:28 pm The middle class in the United States is being systematically destroyed, and nobody is doing much of anything to stop it. Our incomes are shrinking, our share of the income pie is at an all-time low, our jobs are being sent overseas, debt burdens have soared to unprecedented heights and millions of formerly middle class [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:25 pm Gasoline prices, which hit a 2012 low of $3.22 a gallon Dec. 19, are up 8 cents in the past two weeks and will likely continue climbing through April. Experts say the 2013 national average will likely top out at about $3.95 a gallon. That early winter break you've been getting at the gasoline pump? [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:23 pm The Congressional spenders and the President are thieves. They pass laws to take our money in the form of a progressive income tax and redistribute it to people who don't lift a finger to earn it. They print money to dilute the value of our investment accounts. They implement debt-ridden programs in order to buy [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:17 pm WASHINGTON, Jan. 5 (UPI) - U.S. President Barack Obama will nominate former Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., as secretary of defense, multiple sources in Washington said. Although Hagel has not yet been officially nominated to succeed Leon Panetta, opposition to him has already surfaced from members of both parties, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Obama's [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:14 pm DES MOINES, Iowa (Official Wire) - Republicans in Congress who took the risky step of voting to raise taxes are now finding themselves trying to fend off potential primary challenges next year from angry conservatives. These lawmakers are wasting little time in trying to deliver an explanation that would be acceptable to the tea party [...]
Jan 05, 2013 12:10 pm This week, the Taliban said that the transfer of U.S. and NATO-led security operations to Afghan security forces was similar to America's retreat from Vietnam by the "declaring victory and run" strategy. The Taliban just needed to learn a little American history to know about the Vietnamization Strategy, where the US would train the Afghans [...]
Jan 05, 2013 11:52 am LOGANVILLE, Ga. - A woman hiding in her attic with children shot an intruder multiple times before fleeing to safety Friday. The incident happened at a home on Henderson Ridge Lane in Loganville around 1 p.m. The woman was working in an upstairs office when she spotted a strange man outside a window, according to Walton [...]
Video: Obama's BFF: 'Jews Descended From Apes And Pigs'
Jan 04, 2013 01:29 pm
Obama was beside himself with glee when long-time American and Israeli ally Hosni Mubarak stepped down as President of Egypt and Muslim Brotherhood hack Mohammed Morsi stepped into his shoes. This is the same Muslim Brotherhood that has vowed to destroy the United States: The Ikhwan [Muslim Brotherhood] must understand that their work in America [...]
Is Obama Black Enough To Call Out Black Parents Like Cosby Did?
Jan 04, 2013 01:24 pm The fallout from the Connecticut school shooting and the ludicrous concept that reinstating the so-called assault weapons ban would stop future incidents has occupied this column for the past two weeks. As I said last week, I hate writing about the same thing two weeks in a row; but this subject is multi-faceted and in [...]
Video: MN. Dem Elections Manager Hides 2012 Election Records To Cover Up Voter Fraud
Jan 04, 2013 01:17 pm
In this January 3rd, 2013 edition of the Minnesota Majority Report, Sue Jeffers and Dan McGrath discuss Ramsey County Election Manager Joe Mansky's recent refusal to provide public access to 2012 election records, even though he has made them available for previous elections and they are vital to detect and prove voter fraud. Related posts: [...]
An American Patriot Reveals Diane Feinstein To Be An Un-American Hypocrite
Jan 04, 2013 01:10 pm Editor's note: this letter is from Marine Corporal Joshua Boston to California Senator Diane Feinstein concerning her proposed "assault weapons" ban. In just 200 words, Corporal Boston has captured both the essence of our nation's existence and the courage that will be required of determined Americans if our nation is to endure. Senator Dianne [...]
Video: Biden To Newly Sworn In Female Senator: 'Spread Your Legs, You're Going To Be Frisked'
Jan 04, 2013 12:59 pm
Geez, borderline sexual harassment from someone in the White House? Related posts: Cruz Sworn In As Texas' First Hispanic US Senator AUSTIN, Texas (CBS/AP) - Tea party darling Ted Cruz has been... Enlightened Liberals Spread Vicious Anti-Black Stereotypes Against Herman Cain by Floyd and Mary Beth Brown Herman Cain, as a...
Our Government Arms Itself While Disarming The American People!
Jan 04, 2013 12:56 pm As Florida becomes the first state to register one million concealed carry permits and the Illinois' legislature proposes the nation's most draconian gun regulations, the US government is quietly using $1.6 billion in borrowed money to amass ammunition for the domestic operations of Homeland Security. A 91 page standard transaction form filled out by the Department of Homeland Security Training [...]
He placed his mouth in gear before he placed his brain in gear... Related posts: ForgeryGate: Dear John.... An Open Letter To Senator John McCain (AZ) Dear John, Yep, that salutation means exactly what it implies,... Rush: Why Would Romney Want To Be Seen With John McCain? ... Continue to Post...
Jan 04, 2013 12:46 pm Mostly with Democratic votes, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives on Tuesday voted for what the Obama Administration said was "the most progressive income tax code in decades." It was Karl Marx who called for a "heavy progressive or graduated income tax" system in order to redistribute the wealth and establish a socialist state. The bill was [...]
Video: Are Recent Shootings Really The Work Of "Lone Wolf" Gunmen?
Jan 04, 2013 12:41 pm
Ben Swann's Full Disclosure looks at eyewitness accounts from the scenes of the Colorado theater shooting, the Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting, and the Connecticut elementary school shooting that indicate more than one shooter may have been involved in all three shootings... Related posts: Gunman Kills 20 Children, 6 Adults At Connecticut Elementary School URGENT: Twenty-seven people, [...]
Jan 04, 2013 12:39 pm Ever since I can remember, I've been getting those Hostess powdered sugar donuts and a coffee on my way to work, stopping at the gas station and filling the tank up if if was on empty. As I was wandering around the convenience store, the clerk asked me if I needed help finding something. I [...]
Video: Hannity: Media 'Dysfunctional And Illiterate'
Jan 04, 2013 12:35 pm Conservative radio host Sean Hannity on Wednesday said the "god-awful" fiscal cliff deal illustrates how the media is "dysfunctional and illiterate." Related posts: Hannity: Obama Exploiting CT Shooting To Get Fiscal Cliff Compromise Sean Hannity tore into President Obama last night for using... 'Hannity' Debate On Gun Control Turns Into Screaming Match The murder-suicide concerning [...]
Jan 04, 2013 12:33 pm This wildly creative late 70s-80s group had an interesting premise: modern man was devolving due to pollution, radiation, mutation, and social pathology. As a kid, I thought the future would be somewhere between Granddad's Buck Rogers cartoon strip and the original Star Trek TV series. Little did I know that Mad Max or Escape from [...]
Video: Liberal Chick - "The State Is My Shepherd, I Shall Not Want (Psalm 666)."
Jan 04, 2013 12:25 pm
Hippie chick recites the Left's mantra ... "The State is My Shepherd, I Shall Not Want (Ps.666)." Related posts: Tick-Off A Liberal: Take A Boy Scout To Chick-fil-A Forget about Bert and Ernie. I always thought Kermit the... Support 'National Eat At Chick-fil-A Day': July 25th In response to attacks by the powerful and offensive [...]
Taxpayer Bill For Obama's Hawaii Vacations: $20 Million
Jan 04, 2013 12:22 pm Michelle Obama recently revealed that she and President Obama don't give Christmas gifts to each other. They merely say, "We're in Hawaii," and that's Christmas gift enough. But actually the present is from taxpayers, and it's an expensive one. The total cost to taxpayers of Obama's vacations to Hawaii since becoming president is likely in [...]
Video: Defiant County Official Refuses To Hand Over List Of Gun Owners To Newspaper
Jan 04, 2013 12:11 pm Dennis Sant 'not backing down'; I say good for him! Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com Related posts: Okla. Gov Refuses To Carry Out Key Elements Of ObamaCare Okla. Gov. Mary Fallin explains why she will refuse to... Energy Secretary Refuses To Apologize For Solyndra Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com... Continue to Post...
Jan 04, 2013 11:58 am He was banned from a Pentagon prayer service because of Muslim complaints about his beliefs, and he later charged that Barack Obama has "shaken his fist" at God by endorsing same-sex marriage, so no one would expect mild platitudes from the strong-willed Franklin Graham. But to liken America's current situation to the status of the [...]
Video: "Fiscal Cliff" Budget Act Favors Special Businesses
Jan 04, 2013 11:56 am
Folks, if you thought Barack Obama and his pals hate business, think again. Related posts: Fiscal Cliff Tax Hikes On Small Businesses Will Result In More Unemployment Small business committee testimony reminds Washington that tax increases will... 'Fiscal Cliff' Only One Of America's Future Problems Whether Barack Obama's policies are popular or not is immaterial....
Jan 04, 2013 11:50 am NEW YORK (Official Wire) - A New York county clerk justified his refusal to release the names and addresses of handgun permit holders to a newspaper, saying it would give stalkers and thieves a convenient roadmap to target potential victims - and determine whether they have a gun. "This certainly puts my public in danger," [...]
Ex-Rep. Barney Frank On Senate Seat: Put Me In, Governor
Jan 04, 2013 11:47 am BOSTON (Official Wire) - Newly retired Rep. Barney Frank revealed on Friday that he would like to serve as a temporary successor to Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, the secretary of state nominee. Frank told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that he had asked Gov. Deval Patrick to appoint him to serve as the state's interim senator until [...]
Jan 04, 2013 11:44 am Should Congress begin debate on legislation to enact federal controls on hammers, bats and other readily available tools as a way to "end the violence"? According to the most recent statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, more Americans commit murders with hammers than with "assault rifles" or other long guns. FBI crime statistics show that in 2005, [...]
Jan 04, 2013 11:28 am AUSTIN, Texas (CBS/AP) - Tea party darling Ted Cruz has been sworn in as U.S. senator and says his first order of business will be introducing a bill he knows will never pass. Cruz is a Cuban-American and former state solicitor general. On Thursday, he became the first Hispanic to represent Texas in the Senate. He has pledged [...]
Surprise: Middle-earners Hit Hardest By Fiscal Deal
Jan 04, 2013 11:25 am Middle-class workers will take a bigger hit to their income proportionately than those earning between $200,000 and $500,000 under the new fiscal cliff deal, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. Earners in the latter group will pay an average 1.3 percent more - or an additional $2,711 - in taxes this year, while workers [...]
The White House is weighing a far broader and more comprehensive approach to curbing the nation's gun violence than simply reinstating an expired ban on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition, according to multiple people involved in ...(more)
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has reportedly told President Barack Obama that he would back the president overriding congressional authority and unilaterally raising the debt ceiling.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was more forceful: "I've made my view very clear ...(more)
Democrat Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston says that Vice President Joe Biden "guaranteed" him that by the end of January, President Obama would put a vast gun control scheme on the table. Said Menino, "He said, 'Tommy, I guarantee you, we'll get it done by the end of January.' They're going to get it done." ...(more)
While the Obama administration sets out to eviscerate the gun rights of American citizens in the aftermath of Sandy Hook, earlier this week it was announced that the Department of Homeland Security has awarded a company a contract worth over $45,000 dollars to provide the DHS with 200,000 ...(more)
Americans are getting a bit of advice from a columnist in Pravda, which long was considered the voice in front of the massive power of the Soviet Union: Keep your guns.
These days, there are few few things to admire about the socialist, bankrupt and culturally ...(more)
Lawmakers in Connecticut - still stunned from the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting - are moving forward with legislation that could make public the names and addresses of 170,000 handgun permit holders ...(more)
With the left looking for its next big cause, Congressional Democrats have latched onto the Sandy Hook massacre as an opportunity to push gun control. Yesterday alone, eight new bills were introduced relating to gun control. Two conservative bills were introduced relating to ending "gun free zones" ...(more)
The White House in any modern administration has an official photographer whose duty is to take pictures all day long of official and unofficial activities of the President. Sometimes those events are obviously momentous, while others only become so in retrospect. The White House releases some into ... (more)
An Egyptian magazine claims that six American Islamist activists who work with the Obama administration are Muslim Brotherhood operatives who enjoy strong influence ...(more)
A letter written by an 8-year Marine veteran to U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, the architect of the comprehensive 2013 Assault Weapons Ban, has gone viral
The author of the letter, Cpl. Joshua Boston who was deployed to Afghanistan between 2004-05, ...(more)
Tea party darling Ted Cruz has been sworn in as U.S. senator and says his first order of business will be introducing a bill he knows will never pass.
Cruz is a Cuban-American and former state solicitor general. On Thursday, he became the first ...(more)
"To sit back hoping that someday, someway, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last--but eat you he will." ~ Ronald Reagan
A Man Is Known By The Company He Keeps
The First Muslim President WorldNetDaily
It started when Bill Clinton was famously called "the first black president"--not because of his skin color, of course, but because he supposedly exemplified so many "black" qualities and attitudes.
The $13.6-Trillion Man: Geithner Sets All-Time Record for Spending by Treasury Secretary By Terence P. Jeffrey CNSNews.com
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who reportedly will leave office at the end of this month, is already responsible for spending and borrowing more money than any of his predecessors as secretary of the Treasury.
Audit the Fed Bill Re-introduced by Congressman Broun RightSideNews.com
U.S. Congressman Paul Broun, M.D. (GA-10) today released the following statement after reintroducing H.R. 24, the "Audit the Fed" legislation originally authored and championed by former Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX).
Gore's $70M Take from Current TV Designed to Avoid Obama Tax Hikes Newsmax.com
Al Gore, who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his fight against global warming, may gross about $70 million from the sale of his Current TV network to Al Jazeera, the cable channel funded in part by oil-rich Qatar.
Posted by Daniel Greenfield @ the Sultan Knish blog
There was a time when the United States government ran on hooch. Hard up for cash, taxes on whiskey and beer funded the Civil War. With 40 percent of government revenues coming from liquor taxes, alcohol made the dramatic post-war expansion of government possible so that by the 20th Century, the Federal government would have been unrecognizable in scope and function to a man of the 1800s, but would have been all too familiar to us.
The Department of Education was created in 1867, the Department of Justice in 1870, the Department of Agriculture in 1862 and the Department of Commerce and Labor in 1903. Within that time, the Federal government had become concerned with every aspect of life throughout the country. After the Civil War, the same whiskey taxes that had paid for cannons, aerial balloons and widows' pensions began paying for the transformation of the government into a booming engine of social change.
During the same period that the government was being unrecognizably reshaped, the major cities were being transformed by a tremendous immigration boom. Immigration had made it possible for the Union to win the war by providing an endless supply of fresh bodies to throw into the fight. German, Irish and Jewish immigrants came by the hundreds of thousands and made the Union victory possible.
Republican Progressives had looked forward to freeing the slaves, but were far less enthusiastic about filling the country with Catholics and Jews, who were not only bound for Democratic precincts, but did not share their faith. Germany had produced a liberal variant of Judaism that was rather close to Unitarianism and had prospered nicely among upper class Jews in the United States, but the Jewish immigrants who were arriving were members of a more traditional faith in Russia and Eastern Europe. But it was the Catholics who truly worried them.
Posted by Daniel Greenfield @ the Sultan Knish blog
THIS IS NOT A GUN PROBLEM, IT'S A PEOPLE PROBLEM
Chicago, where Obama delivered his victory speech, has homicide numbers that match all of Japan and are higher than Spain, Poland and pre-war Syria. Chicago's murder rate of 15.65 per 100,000 people looks nothing like the American 4.2 rate, the Midwestern 4.5 or the Illinois' 5.6 rates, but it does look like the murder rates in failed countries like Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe.
New Orleans' murder rate is ten times higher than the national average. If New Orleans were a country, it would have the 2nd highest murder rate in the world, beating out El Salvador. Louisiana went red for Romney 58 to 40, but Orleans Parish went blue for Obama 80 to 17.
St. Louis has a murder rate just a little lower than Belize. Baltimore has a worse murder rate than South Africa and Detroit has a worse murder rate than Colombia. Obama won both St. Louis and Baltimore by comfortable margins. He won Detroit's Wayne County 73 to 26.
Homicide rates like these show that something is broken, but it isn't broken among the Romney voters rushing to stock up on assault rifles every time Obama begins threatening their right to buy them; it's broken among Obama's base.
...and then we break down what really drives the national murder rate
A breakdown of the Chicago killing fields shows that 83% of those murdered in Chicago last year had criminal records. In Philly, it's 75%. In Milwaukee it's 77% percent. In New Orleans, it's 64%. In Baltimore, it's 91%. Many were felons who had served time. And as many as 80% of the homicides were gang related.
America's murder rate isn't the work of the suburban and rural homeowners who shop for guns at sporting goods stores and at gun shows, and whom news shows profile after every shooting, but by the gangs embedded in the urban areas controlled by the Democratic machine.
I am already reading so many pundits and other talking heads analyzing the disaster that was this year's elections. I am adding my own ten cents. Here goes:
1. We are outnumbered
We accurately foresaw the enthusiasm, the passion, the commitment, the determination, and the turnout. Married women, men, independents, Catholics, evangelicals - they all went for Romney in percentages as high or higher than the groups which voted for McCain in 2008. It wasn't enough. What we saw in the election on Tuesday was a tipping point: we are now at a place where there are legitimately fewer Americans who desire a free republic with a free people than there are those who think the government should give them stuff. There are fewer of us who believe in the value of free exchange and free enterprise. There are fewer of us who do not wish to demonize successful people in order to justify taking from them. We are outnumbered. For the moment. It's just that simple.
2. It wasn't the candidate(s) Some are already saying, "Romney was the wrong guy"; "He should have picked Marco Rubio to get Florida/Rob Portman to get Ohio/Chris Christie to get [someplace else]." With all due respect, these assessments are incorrect. Romney ran a strategic and well-organized campaign. Yes, he could have hit harder on Benghazi. But for those who would have loved that, there are those who would have found it distasteful. No matter what tactic you could point to that Romney could have done better, it would have been spun in a way that was detrimental to his chances. Romney would have been an excellent president, and Ryan was an inspired choice. No matter who we ran this year, they would have lost. See #1, above.
3. It's the culture, stupid. We have been trying to fight this battle every four years at the voting booth. It is long past time we admit that that is not where the battle really is. We abdicated control of the culture - starting back in the 1960s. And now our largest primary social institutions - education, the media, Hollywood (entertainment) have become really nothing more than an assembly line for cranking out reliable little Leftists. Furthermore, we have allowed the government to undermine the institutions that instill good character - marriage, the family, communities, schools, our churches. So, here we are, at least two full generations later - we are reaping what we have sown. It took nearly fifty years to get here; it will take another fifty years to get back. But it starts with the determination to reclaim education, the media, and the entertainment business. If we fail to do that, we can kiss every election goodbye from here on out. And much more.
PJTV: How the Obama Administration Is Dumbing Down Education
Friday, January 4, 2013
To: Friends & Supporters
From: Gary L. Bauer
Thank You!
You did it, my friends! American Values has just finished the final tallies of our 2012 year-end receipts -- and we met our fundraising goal. I can't thank you enough for your tremendous generosity!
As I mentioned in our appeals, donations were running way behind last year's figures. But once again you have come through in a big way! THANK YOU! We couldn't do our work without you!
Cabinet Shuffle
News broke yesterday that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner plans to step down at the end of the month. That sent many liberal Washington pundits into a near panic. Geithner has been Obama's point man on a number of key fiscal issues.
As Reuters put it, Geithner's departure "puts Obama in a tough spot." Negotiations over the debt ceiling will come to a head within days after he leaves. At the same time, Obama is losing Hillary Clinton at State, Leon Panetta at Defense and Lisa Jackson at EPA. There is widespread speculation that Attorney General Eric Holder will step down soon as well.
By the way, while it is assumed that John Kerry's nomination for Secretary of State will sail through the Senate, it should not. Kerry's foreign policy views deserve thorough scrutiny. After all, do we really want someone as Secretary of State who accused our soldiers of terrorizing women and children and who suggested they were stupid?
I think America can do better. I also believe we can do better than Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense. Obama has not yet formally nominated Hagel, and the bi-partisan opposition to his possible appointment only continues to grow. So much so, in fact, that MSNBC'sChuck Todd predicted this morning that Obama would ultimately drop him. That said, there is also a report today that Obama may send Hagel's nomination to the Senate as early as Monday.
Far be it from me to give Barack Obama advice on his cabinet. But I would respectfully suggest that if the president is truly interested in appointing well-respected leaders who could quickly secure bi-partisan support, perhaps he should consider former Senator Joseph Lieberman for either Secretary of State or Defense.
He Said What?
You never know what will come out of Joe Biden's mouth, and yesterday was a good example. During the swearing in ceremonies for new senators, Biden said things that would normally have the hypersensitive media demanding an immediate resignation.
As Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota's first female senator, was having her picture taken, Biden joked, "Spread your legs, you're going to be frisked." Can you imagine the media's reaction if Dick Cheney had said something like that to a female senator?
When it was time for Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), the Senate's only black member, to pose with the vice president, Biden seemingly developed an awkward accent as he introduced himself to members of Scott's family.
How Democrats get away with these patronizing accents is unbelievable. That wasn't Biden's first time mocking minorities. But being a good liberal, Biden gets a free pass yet again.
Perspective
As liberals frantically prepare legislation to limit Second Amendment rights, FBI crime statistics tell us that hammers and clubs are far greater dangers than rifles.
Kudos to Matt Drudge for his January 2nd tweet pointing out the daily carnage of abortion and our culture's callous response. Drudge wrote the following:
"There will be over 3,500 killed in USA today from abortion. No flags lowered, no presidents crying. No media hyperventilating. Normal day."
Look what comes AFTER devastating solar storm
There's been plenty of talk lately about the impact of a solar storm, but most people remain unaware of what comes after it hits.
According to the editor in chief of an independent news organization, you are reading the No. 2 "most trustworthy news source" for 2012 when you come to WND.
Together, the top two named news "masterpieces" form a "a powerhouse for thought-provoking news."
Since last month's horrifying school massacre in Newtown, Conn., politicians and the leftist press have been totally obsessed with firearms.
But the media haven't said a peep about another VERY LIKELY factor, despite the fact it was mentioned directly to CBS News by a friend of the shooter's family.
You won't think so after you've seen the antics this judge has used to ignore the law he is supposed to apply and his efforts to keep evidence out of court ...
If the First Amendment wasn't meant to protect this woman's letter to the editor, then the Bill of Rights has been vastly oversold.
Here's what happens when political correctness, religious bigotry, arrogant public-university officials and judges who aren't paying attention all come together.
U.S. energy independence might be a blow to the bottom line of the Arab oil states that export to America, but for this country it could mean nuclear annihilation ...
During the signing of a bill this week that authorizes indefinite detention of American citizens, Obama made it clear he's not going to let Congress' efforts to protect religion-based values -- much less the First Amendment -- get in his way.
Maybe it's time to pray ... before an executive order makes it illegal.
If you're "lucky" enough to live in THIS state, your legislators are considering a new law that will label millions as bigots and potentially subject them to prosecution for human rights violations.
Remember the good old days when they said they just wanted their rights?
If you wonder how America can survive eight years of Obama, you'll want to know what Franklin Graham has to say about how Old Testament Judah survived fifty-five years of wicked King Manasseh ...
It is hard to exaggerate the political importance of the Democratic Party's control over the news media. The steady drip-drip of pro-Democrat and anti-Republican propaganda is perhaps the dominant fact of American political life in the 21st century. One place where we see this is in headlines, which are important because they are what low-information voters mostly see. Here are just two examples of the impressions voters will get from yesterday's headlines:
This one is a classic: the AP, probably the most important source of news media bias, packs multiple attacks on the GOP into a single headline. In the world of news media, only Republicans are ever "angry." Democrats, no matter how numerous the death threats and wishes against, say, the NRA, are never angry. Likewise with "divided." The Democrats have just come off an ideological battle that resulted in their raising taxes on all working Americans, via a 2% increase in the Social Security payroll tax. There is an interesting story there, but the news media kept it a secret because it did not reflect well on Democrats. And note that Republicans being "angry" and "divided" is nothing new: they are as divided and angry as ever! Which is news, I guess.
Then we have this, from Yahoo News:
This one made me laugh out loud, but really, it isn't funny. Yahoo News headlines are seen by more people, I would guess, than those in any newspaper. This one, too, kills several GOP birds with one stone. Why can't those grumpy Republicans ever be happy? That's one theme-even though sociological research has shown over and over that Republicans are happier people than Democrats. Then we have the implication that in the current series of battles over the budget, the Republicans can never be satisfied. They got everything they could possibly want in the fiscal cliff negotiations, right? So why can't they be satisfied and cave in to the Democrats in the debt limit negotiations? And yet it is the Democrats who, last week, got all the tax increases they have always said they wanted, and now tell us they want more. Never will you see a headline suggesting that the Democrats should be satisfied and stop trying to tax and spend more.
As I have said before, I do not think we can even imagine what it would be like to live in a country without a left-wing news media.
The Telegraph previews a report on an investigation into the Stafford Hospital scandal in the U.K.:
The Sunday Telegraph understands that the report on Stafford hospital, where up to 1,200 people died needlessly in appalling conditions, will call for an overhaul of regulation to ensure poor managers are weeded out, and better training for nurses and healthcare assistants.
The chairman, Robert Francis QC, is set to deliver a damning verdict on the whole of the health service. He will warn of a "culture of fear" from Whitehall down to the wards, in which pressure is heaped on staff to put management demands before patients.
Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, said the events at Stafford, and a series of failings at other hospitals, represented "the most shocking betrayal of NHS founding values in its history". Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Hunt said five hospitals, including Stafford, had reported failings in recent years "that are simply not worthy of a civilised society".
So it isn't just Stafford. On the contrary, the report apparently will indict the entire National Health Service:
It can be disclosed that:
Mr. Francis will say radical changes to the supervision and regulation of health care are required to protect patients and to respond to a "tide of public anger" about the scandal, which has drained confidence in the rest of the health service;
His report will warn that the scandal demonstrated "systemic" failings in NHS regulation, meaning that equally terrible care could be happening in other hospitals, without being uncovered.
He will paint a picture of the NHS gripped by a "culture of fear" as managers became fixated on meeting targets and protecting ministers from political criticism over Labour's stewardship of the service.
But of course: that is the essence of government medicine. It is intended to benefit politicians and bureaucrats, not patients. So what can the U.K. do to try to reform its broken system? It appears that the forthcoming report will call for more effective regulation, but the problems that have been exposed in recent years are the result of failures of regulation and are inherent to socialism, which doesn't work any better in the health care industry than anywhere else. The real solution is to restore competition to the health care sector, but once competition has been destroyed by government monopoly, restoring it is not easy. In the meantime, like everything else run by the government, health care is politicized:
The report, which will go first to Mr Hunt and is set to be published days later, will provide an excoriating account of a highly politicised system.
As you would expect in a politicized system, the litany of horrors goes on:
James Paget University Foundation Trust was threatened with prosecution in September 2011 after regulators found patients were not being helped to eat and drink. A month later, Queen's Hospital in Romford, Essex, was accused of a "culture of abuse" by regulators after a string of deaths of women and newborns.
At East Surrey Hospital, secret filming exposed the bullying of a dying man with Parkinson's disease in December 2010. Last July, regulators found University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Foundation Trust subjected patients to a litany of failures, dating back to 2008 when a baby, Joshua Titcombe, bled to death.
This is what the Democratic Party is determined to inflict on you and your family.
(and Destiny, Crystal, Bambi...) That's the headline on this New York Post expose of the food stamp/TANF program in New York. Federal welfare spending has exploded under the Obama administration, now accounting for nearly as much as defense spending. The food stamp and TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, i.e., cash) programs are among the largest. EBT (electronic benefit transfer) cards are issued to participants in these federal programs; EBT cards can be used to purchase food and other products under the food stamp program, and to obtain cash from ATMs under the TANF program. Not all ATMs will dispense cash to the user of an EBT card, but where establishments want to cater to recipients of TANF benefits, they may install EBT-enabled ATMs on their premises. This is what the Post investigated:
Welfare recipients took out cash at bars, liquor stores, X-rated video shops, hookah parlors and even strip clubs - where they presumably spent their taxpayer money on lap dances rather than diapers, a Post investigation found.
A database of 200 million Electronic Benefit Transfer records from January 2011 to July 2012, obtained by The Post through a Freedom of Information request, showed welfare recipients using their EBT cards to make dozens of cash withdrawals at ATMs inside Hank's Saloon in Brooklyn; the Blue Door Video porn shop in the East Village; The Anchor, a sleek SoHo lounge; the Patriot Saloon in TriBeCa; and Drinks Galore, a liquor distributor in The Bronx.
The state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA), which oversees the "cash assistance program," even lists some of these welfare-ready ATMs on its Web site.
One EBT machine is stationed inside Club Eleven, an infamous Hunts Point jiggle joint known as much for its violent history as its girls in pink thongs. ...
Club Heat, another Bronx strip club that dispenses EBT cash, is also no stranger to violence. A 33-year-old woman was fatally shot in the head outside the club in December 2011.
The Post explains how welfare recipients can use taxpayer money to pay for booze, cigarettes, drugs and strippers:
Welfare recipients receive food stamps and cash assistance under the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. Both benefits are accessed through an EBT card, but only cash assistance - meant for housing, utilities and household necessities - can be accessed at ATMs.
A single-person household could receive a maximum $200 in monthly food stamps plus $158 in cash assistance. A family of four could get as much as $668 in food stamps and $433 in cash.
The food-stamp program prohibits the purchase of booze, tobacco and lottery tickets with an EBT card. But with the cash-assistance program, users can blow money on strippers or a six-pack and to tap welfare dollars from liquor stores, casinos and adult-oriented establishments.
The Post found dozens of pubs, nightclubs and tobacco shops where welfare dough was dispensed - and presumably spent.
All of this is apparently entirely legal. The government just doesn't care that your money is being wasted:
The Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act, signed by President Obama last February, requires states to prohibit sinful welfare spending by 2014. If they don't, they'll forfeit federal cash.
But so far, the State of New York is unimpressed:
State Sen. Tom Libous (R-Binghamton) passed a bill in his chamber in June that would outlaw welfare withdrawals at gambling dens, strip clubs and other venues of vice, but the measure is gathering dust in the Democratic-controlled Assembly.
In the meantime, your tax dollars are being spent at Club Eleven:
And The Anchor:
And Blue Door Video, where the specialty is group gay sex in the basement. No photo of this one.
All of the above is being subsidized by taxpayers. Why? Because the federal government, and in this case the State of New York, just don't care. It isn't their money, so who cares if it is thrown away? The explosion in welfare spending that has occurred during the Age of Obama is a great place to start as we look for places to cut the federal budget.
Now that we're past the "fiscal cliff" (note I didn't say "safely" past), we really ought to try to promote a term that is more accurate to our real predicament, which is much worse. How about "fiscal abyss"? This is the term of art we ought to use as we approach the political sequel to the fiscal cliff, which will come with the expiration of the debt ceiling sometime in the next 60 days. I'll leave it to another day to discuss strategy and tactics for this next cage match with Obama (though I commend as an opening bid Pete Wehner's thoughts on this). For now, it I worth taking in Churchill's discussion of the political problems facing democratic governments at the beginning of the Great Depression, in his essay "Fifty Years Hence" that applies with equal perspicacity to our current situation:
Democratic governments drift along the line of least resistance, taking short views, paying their way with sops and doles, and smoothing their path with pleasant-sounding platitudes. Never was there less continuity or design in their affairs, and yet towards them are coming swiftly changes which will revolutionize for good or ill not only the whole economic structure of the world but the social habits and moral outlook of every family.
One mark of the pervasive media bias of our time is how easily the risible thesis of Chris Mooney's book The Republican War on Science gained traction with the mainstream media. It's become a "goes-without-saying" axiom of political discourse today. Jonathan Adler had the most sober takedown of Mooney's moonbattery at Regulation magazine back in 2007 (updated and downloadable from SSRN). Here's Jon's able summary of the problem of the wider "war on science" argument:
First, Mooney has a penchant for characterizing some legitimate science-related policy positions with which he disagrees as "abuses" of science. Second, he exhibits a blind spot to the misuse and politicization of science by those who espouse political agendas with which he agrees. Third and most important, Mooney pays little attention to the larger institutional context that generates political pressures on science. Without consideration of this broader institutional context, Republican War ultimately fails in its diagnosis and prescriptions.
Dan Sarewitz
Okay, why dredge up this old argument about a six-year old book by a partisan liberal hack? Because it's one thing if the media buys into this silliness, but quite another thing if the scientific community does, too. Dan Sarewitz, whom I've mentioned on Power Line before, has an important column just out in Nature magazine where he cautions that the scientific community is making a big political mistake to align itself as an adjunct of the Democratic Party:
To prevent science from continuing its worrying slide towards politicization, here's a New Year's resolution for scientists, especially in the United States: gain the confidence of people and politicians across the political spectrum by demonstrating that science is bipartisan. . .
For the third presidential election in a row, dozens of Nobel prizewinners in physics, chemistry and medicine signed a letter endorsing the Democratic candidate. . .
If [scientists] are speaking on behalf of science, then science is revealing itself, like the unions, the civil service, environmentalists and tort lawyers, to be a Democratic interest, not a democratic one.
This is dangerous for science and for the nation. The claim that Republicans are anti-science is a staple of Democratic political rhetoric, but bipartisan support among politicians for national investment in science, especially basic research, is still strong. For more than 40 years, US government science spending has commanded a remarkably stable 10% of the annual expenditure for non-defence discretionary programmes. In good economic times, science budgets have gone up; in bad times, they have gone down. There have been more good times than bad, and science has prospered.
In the current period of dire fiscal stress, one way to undermine this stable funding and bipartisan support would be to convince Republicans, who control the House of Representatives, that science is a Democratic special interest. . . The US scientific community must decide if it wants to be a Democratic interest group or if it wants to reassert its value as an independent national asset.
Sarewitz isn't the first such prominent voice in the scientific community to make this point. It's worth revisiting the similar caution of MIT's Kerry Emanuel, a climate scientist who largely subscribes to the climate "consensus," who caused a bit of a stir when he "came out of the closet" as a Republican a couple of years ago:
Scientists are most effective when they provide sound, impartial advice, but their reputation for impartiality is severely compromised by the shocking lack of political diversity among American academics, who suffer from the kind of group-think that develops in cloistered cultures. Until this profound and well-documented intellectual homogeneity changes, scientists will be suspected of constituting a leftist think tank.
An approach that critiques the president when he is a Republican and cheer-leads when he is a Democrat lends itself to more than just cynicism - it contributes to the politicization of science policy issues which by their nature can be problematic regardless of who is in office.
I have often marveled on this blog at how issues of scientific integrity - which were so important to scientists and science connoisseurs during the Bush Administration - largely disappeared in social media science policy discussions, and only occasionally appeared in the conventional media.
For those who care about scientific integrity, the selective attention of the scientific community is problematic because it reduces the issue to a matter of electoral politics rather than the nitty-gritty details of actual policy implementation.
This morning Brian Ward and I recorded Episode 40 of the Hinderaker-Ward Experience. This is how Brian described the show on Ricochet:
This week on the The Hinderaker-Ward Experience, Powerline's John Hinderaker and Fraters Libertas' Brian Ward discuss the fiscal cliff negotiations, Al Gore becomes Al-Jazeera, NR's Kevin Williamson stops by to talk about the economy and where the Republican party should go from here, and Ricochet member Jeff Petraska reveals next week's secret phrase.
Leave this week's secret phrase in the comments on this post and YOU could be the next Ricochet member to appear on HWX.
You can listen to the podcast by playing it right here, or you can go to Ricochet to download or subscribe to the podcast in various ways, or you can hit the subscribe button in the graphic above to subscribe on iTunes or elsewhere. Or you can use Stitcher. There are many ways to experience the Hinderaker-Ward Experience, but I think the best is by subscribing on iTunes. That way, you never have to worry about missing an episode.
At the journal Earth System Dynamics, M. Beenstock, Y. Reingewertz, and N. Paldor have published a paper titled "Polynomial cointegration tests of anthropogenic impact on global warming" which Anthony Watts describes as a potential bombshell. The authors conducted an exhaustive statistical analysis of data from 1850 through 2007, applying the technique of cointegration, which the authors describe as follows:
Cointegration theory is based on the simple notion that time series might be highly correlated even though there is no causal relation between them. For the relation to be genuine, the residuals from a regression between these time series must be stationary, in which case the time series are "cointegrated". Since stationary residuals mean-revert to zero, there must be a genuine long-term relationship between the series, which move together over time because they share a common trend. If on the other hand, the residuals are nonstationary, the residuals do not mean-revert to zero, the time series do not share a common trend, and the relationship between them is spurious because the time series are not cointegrated.
You can follow the link for the statistical details, but here is the authors' conclusion:
We have shown that anthropogenic forcings do not polynomially cointegrate with global temperature and solar irradiance. Therefore, data for 1880-2007 do not support the anthropogenic interpretation of global warming during this period. This key result is shown graphically in Fig. 3 where the vertical axis measures the component of global temperature that is unexplained by solar irradiance according to our estimates. In panel a the horizontal axis measures the anomaly in the anthropogenic trend when the latter is derived from forcings of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. In panel b the horizontal axis measures this anthropogenic anomaly when apart from these greenhouse gas forcings, it includes tropospheric aerosols and black carbon. Panels a and b both show that there is no relationship between temperature and the anthropogenic anomaly, once the warming effect of solar irradiance is taken into consideration.
This is Fig. 3a:
Interestingly, the authors also conclude that the data admit the possibility that CO2 and other "greenhouse gases" could contribute to to a temporary increase in global temperatures:
However, we find that greenhouse gas forcings might have a temporary effect on global temperature. This result is illustrated in panel c of Fig. 3 in which the horizontal axis measures the change in the estimated anthropogenic trend. Panel c clearly shows that there is a positive relationship between temperature and the change in the anthropogenic anomaly once the warming effect of solar irradiance is taken into consideration.
Other scientists will weigh in on these findings, as the debate over climate continues to rage. Still, it is increasingly clear that the most reliable and sophisticated scientific work tends to show that the anthropogenic global warming hypothesis is wrong. In that sense, it is fair to say that a consensus is emerging.
As a person who, like Scott, has occasionally flirted with joining the minority group known as "Hefto-Americans," I tend to follow news about obesity and nutrition. And like Scott, I've become a huge fan of Gary Taubes-though a little less "huge" than I was a few years ago because of Taubes's advice.
But the news reported in the New York Times the other day that overweight people might actually have lower mortality risk than skinny people caused an extra arch in my brow. Couple this with other recent research suggesting there are early limits to the benefits of exercise for middle-aged people, and it's starting to look like we're coming around to Woody Allen's point of view in Sleeper (35 seconds of must-see video):
Hmm, could there be a deeper story behind this sudden revisionism? James Taranto perhaps identifies the backstory in his Best of the Web column today, pointing to a Scientific American article that finds the Food Stamp program, whose PMI (Policy Mass Index-my term of art) under Obama has soared, is driving an increase in obesity:
Participants in the U.S. Food Stamp Program have, on average, a body mass index (BMI) more than one point higher than nonusers, according to research published in the current issue of Economics and Human Biology. This difference was especially high for women: those buying their food with stamps carried around an average of 5.8 pounds more body weight. The researchers also found that BMI rose higher the longer participants received the stamps. . .
"Every way we looked at the data, it was clear that the use of food stamps was associated with weight gain," Jay Zagorsky, co-author of the study and research scientist at The Ohio State University's Center for Human Resource Research, said in a prepared statement.
Actually I'm surprised it has taken this long to start to figure out that fat government would lead to fat citizens eventually. So, will Mayor Bloomberg and other food nannies now propose to reduce Food Stamps along with 16-oz sodas and trans-fats? In other words, should we cut down on government as well as sugar? Are you kidding? More Bloomberg and the nannies will grab on to this new research about how obesity is overrated and say, "Never mind." So when can I have my super-size soda back?
I think the following items will be of interest to Power Line readers. I'd like to bring them to your attention without much comment.
While our attention was turned elsewhere this past October, the space shuttle Endeavour made its final journey: it traveled 12-miles from Los Angeles International Airport, through Inglewood, to the California Science Center in Exposition Park. Reader Zack Russ writes that he came across this wonderful time-lapse Los Angeles Times video that is, according to Mr. Russ, "a tribute to the greatness of the American space program and the continuing reverence that people of all walks have for it." Footnote: "Look for the Randy's Donuts statue, immortalized in The Simpsons as Lard Lad." Please don't miss this one.
Victor Davis Hanson and Jay Nordlinger seek to administer justice to two good men: Hanson to George W. Bush and Nordlinger to Mitt Romney. Hanson's column pursues themes that have been a mainstay of his meditations on the Age of Obama. Jay's indignation toward conservatives in this special edition of Impromptus is uncharacteristic, and bracing.
In case you missed it, the invaluable Middle East Media Research Institute recently posted excerpts of two 2010 interviews of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi. Morsi described Zionists as "bloodsuckers" and descendants of apes and pigs, urged "military resistance" against Israel, and called sever all ties with the Jewish state. The footage was found, translated, reposted and transcribed this week by MEMRI.
Reporting on the MEMRI video, the Times of Israel writes that "[s]ince winning Egypt's first democratic elections last June, after the ousting of longtime president Hosni Mubarak, Morsi has significantly toned down his anti-Israel rhetoric." The video, however, provides a window into Morsi's thinking at a time when he was free to express his views in full.
Jose Rodridguez Jr. is a 31-year veteran of the CIA and the author of the memoir Hard Measures: How Aggressive CIA Actions After 9/11 Saved American Lives, written with former CIA spokesman Bill Harlow. As Spencer Ackerman angrily recalls, Rodriguez is of course the CIA official who CIA, Rodriguez destroyed the video recordings of interrogations including those of Abu Zubaydah Khalid Shaikh Mohammed. Now why would he do something like that? Rodriguez explains his conduct in the book, but it is regrettable.
Ackerman and others discussing Zero Dark Thirty freely invoke "torture" as the technique employed to interrogate high-value al Qaeda detainees as depicted in the film. Who better to weigh in on Zero Dark Thirty than Rodriguez and his co-author? The Washington Post has posted their essay "A CIA veteran on what 'Zero Dark Thirty' gets wrong about the bin Laden manhunt."
We've been critical of the cliff deal that Congress enacted in a big hurry this week. NR senior editor Ramesh Ponnuru takes to the pages of the Weekly Standard to argue the virtue of the deal from a conservative perspective in "Starve the beast..." It's a well argued piece. I hope he's right, but see also the Wall Street Journal editorial "The stealth tax hike."
What to do about the conflict between state and federal law in the matter of marijuana - legal under recently adopted state statutes in Colorado and Washington, illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act of 1970? In an interview with Barbara Walters, President Obama explained that he has "bigger fish to fry" than enforcing our nation's marijuana laws, noting that countering Colorado's and Washington's defiance is not a "top priority" for his administration. This is a particularly "tough problem," he said, because as the head of the executive branch, he's "supposed to be carrying out the laws." Also in the Weekly Standard, Brett Talley explains why Obama's I'm OK-You're OK approach is not OK. Talley characterizes it as a "a crisis of federalism."
The strangest aspect of post-Sandy Hook hysteria is the controversy over a New York newspaper that published a map showing the names and addresses of people who own guns. The paper's purpose was unclear; apparently it thought that the gun owners would be embarrassed, or that those who do not yet own firearms might be deterred from buying one by the fear that they too could be "outed." In some contexts, such concerns could be well founded. Via InstaPundit, we learn that prison inmates are using the Journal News map to threaten guards and their families:
Rockland County Sheriff Louis Falco, who spoke at a news conference flanked by other county officials, said the Journal News' decision to post an online map of names and addresses of handgun owners Dec. 23 has put law enforcement officers in danger.
"They have inmates coming up to them and telling them exactly where they live. That's not acceptable to me," Falco said, according to Newsday.
Of course, there are advantages to having your home identified as one occupied by a gun owner, too: it serves as a warning to burglars and other would-be criminals to go elsewhere. This is one reason why I have been happy to describe my own experiences with firearms and occasionally post photos of some of my better efforts at the range. One of my neighbors is a big game hunter whose living room is decorated with the heads of African animals. He owns firearms that make "assault rifles" look like toys. Personally, I would consider it a good thing if the criminal element believed that my whole neighborhood is heavily armed.
But here's the thing: can you imagine another context in which anyone would think it appropriate to publish a map showing the names and addresses of residents, along with any information about them? Suppose a newspaper published a map that identified all the homes where no adult male lives, so that thieves and rapists would know just where to go. Or a map showing how many television sets belong to each homeowner. Or how about automobiles? The Department of Motor Vehicles collects information about the automobiles that belong to each household. Can you imagine the outcry if a newspaper obtained that information from the DMV and published an online map identifying by name and address the occupants of each house, and describing by make and model all of their motor vehicles? That, too, could be of great value to thieves, but beyond that, is there anyone who wouldn't consider such an act an outrageous invasion of privacy?
And yet somehow, the liberals who publish the Journal News thought it was perfectly acceptable to publish a map identifying local gun owners, with names and addresses. The fact that anyone tries to defend this action illustrates how the mere thought of a firearm sends some people around the bend.
Meanwhile, every day brings new reminders that, no matter what newspaper editorial boards may believe, you are better off if your family is one of the ones protected by firearms. From Loganville, Georgia:
A woman hiding in her attic with children shot an intruder multiple times before fleeing to safety Friday.
The incident happened at a home on Henderson Ridge Lane in Loganville around 1 p.m.
It's interesting: I always think of break-ins as occurring in the middle of the night, but it is amazing how many take place in the middle of the day.
The woman was working in an upstairs office when she spotted a strange man outside a window, according to Walton County Sheriff Joe Chapman. He said she took her 9-year-old twins to a crawlspace before the man broke in using a crowbar.
But the man eventually found the family.
"The perpetrator opens that door. Of course, at that time he's staring at her, her two children and a .38 revolver," Chapman told Channel 2's Kerry Kavanaugh.
The woman then shot him five times, but he survived, Chapman said. He said the woman ran out of bullets but threatened to shoot the intruder if he moved.
If she had been using a semiautomatic pistol with a decent sized magazine, she wouldn't have run out of bullets. But the story ended happily anyway. The key always is, not just to possess a gun, but to know how to use it.
UPDATE: Former burglars confirm that the Journal News did criminals a great service:
"That was the most asinine article I've ever seen," said Walter T. Shaw, 65, a former burglar and jewel thief who the FBI blames for more than 3,000 break-ins that netted some $70 million in the 1960s and 1970s. "Having a list of who has a gun is like gold - why rob that house when you can hit the one next door, where there are no guns? ...
"They just created an opportunity for some crimes to be committed and I think it's exceptionally stupid," said Bob Portenier, 65, a former burglar and armed house robber turned crime prevention consultant.
Professional burglars are always looking for an edge, and like most folks, they read the paper, said Portenier. ...
While some burglars may use the newspaper's information to avoid guns, Portenier said others will target homes with guns. The newspaper's decision could even lead to legally-owned guns proliferating on the street, he said.
"That's one of the first things we'd check out-guns are on the top of the list of what you want to steal," he said. "They can walk out with a shotgun and a couple of handguns and sell them on the street for $300 or $400 a pop. They can sell them to a gangbanger who ends up killing someone."
Frank Abagnale, who was portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2002 film "Catch Me if You Can," and is perhaps the most famous reformed thief to ever earn a legitimate living by offering the public insight into the criminal mind, called the newspaper's actions "reprehensible."
"It is unbelievable that a newspaper or so called journalist would publish the names and addresses of legal gun owners, including federal agents, law enforcement officers and the like," said Abagnale, who noted that he grew up in the suburban New York area served by the Journal-News. "This would be equivalent to publishing the names of individuals who keep substantial sums of money, jewelry and valuables in their home."
A man whose burglary of a St. Paul home was foiled by two women and a pink-handled handgun was sentenced Friday, Jan. 4, to nearly 11 years in prison.
Described by his own attorney as a "career criminal," Marty Mark Childs has at least nine prior felony convictions, including residential burglary, theft and attempted escape. ...
[Rebecca Larson, 56] went in the house to get something and saw Childs in the kitchen standing next to her open purse. "What the hell are you doing in my home?" she said, according to the criminal complaint against Childs.
He held a wad of crumpled cash toward her, saying, "Here's your money back. The cops sent me." He tried to leave, pushing Larson's chest to get away, but she pushed him back and locked the door.
She then yelled to her daughter, "Get your gun."
Hickman picked up her Taurus 9 mm handgun, which had pink grips, and came into the kitchen. She saw her mother struggling with Childs. Larson forced him to the floor "where he remained at gunpoint until police arrived and arrested him," the complaint said.
Childs told police that one of the women put her foot behind his neck and kneeled on his back when he was on the floor - pinning him down. ... The victims, who sat in court wearing pink tops, said through a statement read by a prosecutor that the incident robbed them of their sense of safety in their home.
As I say, a heartwarming story for the holiday season. And note that, as in the vast majority of cases, it wasn't necessary to fire the gun for it to be an effective tool of self-defense.
The very first newspaper op-ed article I ever published, way back in 1984, was about All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California, which has long had a reputation as a leading "progressive" parish. I wrote about attending a meeting where a group of parishioners were reporting back on a recent visit to the newest workers' paradise, Nic . . .-now just wait for it!!-yes, indeed, it was Nicaragua (or "KNEE-car-AHHH-gua," if you're really au courant). Since this article was published in the pre-Internet age, I can't link to it, so here's the lede from my hard-copy archive:
When Karl Marx wrote that religion was an opiate, he never foresaw the ironic way his words would be confirmed. In Pasadena, California, at All Saints Episcopal Church, the congregation recently witnessed a "political pilgrimage"-the phrase coined by Professor Paul Hollander to describe those earnest travelers who visit the latest revolutionary "experiment" and return with glowing reports of peace, harmony, and progress.
It got worse from there, of course. Those loveable Sandinistas-why they were all "deeply devout Christians" practicing brotherly love. Naturally everything wrong in Nicaragua, even late garbage pickup, was the fault of American intervention and CIA skullduggery. This was the heyday of "Liberation Theology," fruit of the fad at the time known as the "Christian-Marxist dialogue," though I always thought the idea of "Christian Marxism" made about as much sense as Jewish Nazism, while "Liberation Theology" was best described as "Marxism with Salsa."
Well, the old Sandinistas are long gone, or at least aren't trendy any more, but not to worry, All Saints has it covered. Guess who they're all cozy with today? The Muslim Brotherhood, naturally. FrontPageMagazine reports:
On December 15, All Saints Episcopal Church of Pasadena hosted the annual convention of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, a group with Muslim Brotherhood origins and a controversial past. The question of why All Saints would collaborate with this specific group persisted. The answer came during the event when Reverend Ed Bacon listed "acts of evil" committed by Christians and included "evangelical Zionism."
There's much more in Ryan Mauro's comprehensive report, but this is quite enough. Good to know All Saints hasn't lost its touch for being "trendier than thou," in the late great Paul Seabury's famous phrase.
UPDATE: How could I miss passing along this three-minute video, an ode to womens' ordination, passed along by Fr. Y in northern California, who assures me that this is NOT a parody:
The word is that President Obama is set to nominate Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense. Reportedly, the nomination could come as early as Monday.
Hagel's nomination would be a victory for clarity. As has widely been observed, Hagel has no natural constituency, except perhaps for those who want a foreign and defense policy that is tougher on Israel and softer on Iran. Unfortunately, as I have observed, Obama belongs to that constituency.
Hence, the clarity his nomination would bring. Israel would be clear that Obama views the Jewish state with hostility. Iran would be clear that it has nothing serious to fear from the Obama administration.
Actually, these are the lessons of the past four years. But, if the rumors about Hagel are true, they are about to be driven home.
Nothing else can explain this odd nomination. Team Obama tried to couch it as a bipartisan act, inasmuch as Hagel was a Republican Senator. But key Republican Senators have made it clear that they don't want Hagel at the Pentagon. Key Democrats have also failed to express enthusiasm over that prospect. Even Barney Frank opposes Hagel. If there's a bipartisan consensus around Hagel, it's that Obama should nominate someone else.
Under these circumstances, nominating Hagel would make sense only if he brought something special to the table. And he does - his animus towards Israel and his desire to appease Iran, views that fall well outside the foreign policy and defense mainstream from which Defense Secretaries normally are selected.
Certainly, there is nothing else special about Hagel. His Senate career was distinguished only by grandstanding and nastiness. As Bill Kristol says:
His backers can cite no significant legislation for which Hagel was responsible in his two terms in the Senate. They can quote no memorable speeches that Hagel delivered and can cite no profound passages from the book he authored. They can summarize no perceptive Hagelian analysis of defense or foreign policy, and can appeal to no acts of management or leadership by the man they'd have as our next secretary of defense.
The fact is that those legislative achievements, intellectual insights, or management triumphs don't exist. A long and comprehensive history of the Senate during Chuck Hagel's tenure there could be written that would barely mention him. A long and comprehensive account of American foreign and defense policy in the last thirty years would hardly note his existence.
It was to be expected that, in a second term, Obama would show more clearly his true colors. In fact, he promised the Russians to do so.
And there is something to be said for the kind of clarity Hegal's selection will bring. Perhaps with Israel shedding the last of its illusions about Obama's willingness to stop Iran from obtaining nukes it will become more likely to attack Iran, as Alan Dershowitz believes. Perhaps that would be a good development; perhaps not.
But the world is a dangerous place. And a well-run Pentagon headed by a Secretary who provides the White House with sound advice helps us cope with the danger. A Pentagon headed by a grandstander whose biases are contrary to our security interests will, in the end, only make the world more dangerous.
Working Americans have just experienced a pay cut they didn't expect - the cut resulting from the expiration of the reduction in the payroll tax rate. Like most Americans, some of the folks who post at the Democratic Underground are not amused.
As Mollie Hemmingway says, it's almost as if everyone's taxes went up and the media forgot to mention it.
Actually, the resumption of prior payroll tax deductions is one of the few good things to come up of the "fiscal cliff" deal, in my opinion. The real cliff America faces is the debt cliff, a big part of which results from entitlements we will be unable to pay for. Social security is such an entitlement.
The reduced payroll tax was making the debt cliff even steeper. And its purpose - to stimulate the economy during a downturn - no longer applies, at least not if one accepts the Obama administration's view that the downturn ended a while ago. Thus, it was high time to restore the old payroll tax rate.
How will the restoration play out politically? If it has any impact, it will hurt the Democrats. After all, President Obama pledged to address the debt by raising taxes on the rich. He didn't say anything about raising them on everyone who works for a living. But coming almost two years before the next national elections, this January surprise will be of no real political consequence.
Now that the election is over, most of us don't wait quite as breathlessly for the monthly job reports; nor is the media's urge to spin them quite as strong. But the reports remain consequential and the temptation to spin remains strong.
Today's report shows that employers added 155,000 jobs in December 2012. The unemployment rate for December was 7.8 percent, unchanged from November (the November rate originally was 7.7 percent, but was revised to 7.8). Also unchanged (at 14.4 percent) is a broader measure of unemployment that includes those working part time who want a full-time job and those who have given up looking for work out of frustration.
The Washington Post characterized the addition of 155,000 jobs as "steady gains." That's fair in the sense that the number represent a gain in jobs that is nearly identical to overall 2012 pace of 153,000 per month. However, that pace is meager compared to the levels of job creation associated with past recoveries.
It is also meagre compared to the level of job creation needed to bring down, or even maintain, the high unemployment rate. As the Post acknowledged, the number of people who entered the labor force exceeded the number of people who found jobs. If that pattern were to continue, it would eventually push the jobless rate up.
The White House, of course, attempted shamelessly to spin the latest report. Broken-record Alan Krueger, the chief White House economist, said the report provides further evidence that the U.S. economy "is continuing to heal from the wounds inflicted by the worst downturn since the Great Depression." Actually, the downturn of 2008 is comparable to, though arguably a bit worse than, that experienced in the early 1980s, and not at all comparable to the Great Depression.
As always, James Pethokoukis provides insight into the latest report, which he calls "dismal."
When we last heard from Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez, he was declaiming: "It is absolutely necessary, absolutely essential, that I undergo a new surgical intervention." Flanked by ashen-faced ministers, he added: "With God's will, like on the previous occasions, we will come out of this victorious. I have complete faith in that." And then he departed for Havana to avail himself of the best Cuban medicine had to offer.
Say what you will about Fidel Castro, one of the most vicious bastards of the Western world, Castro has never invoked God's will to handle his case and he had the sense to hightail it to Spain for his own medical treatment.
Sources at the hospital in Cuba where he is being treated this week told a Spanish newspaper in an induced coma being kept alive by life support he was showing 'very weak' vital signs, adding that doctors could decide to switch off the machines 'at any moment'.
Vice President Nicolas Maduro, whom Chavez last month designated as his heir apparent, said in an interview from Havana that Chavez had recognized the complexity of his post-operative condition.
Maduro said he was returning to Venezuela after several days visiting with Chavez and his relatives, which may quell rumors his trip to Cuba signaled the president was in his final days.
The president's son-in-law and Science Minister Jorge Arreaza, who is in Havana, said via his Twitter account on Wednesday that the medical team told him Chavez's condition 'remains stable' but that his health is still delicate.
'Commander Chavez is fighting hard and he sends his love to the people. Dedication and patience!!!' he tweeted.
I'll believe it when we hear it from Chavez himself. In the meantime, I'm sticking with Weekend at Bernie's.
It's a new year and a new Congress!
The 112th Congress adjourned for the last time on Thursday -- and the 113th Congress was sworn in to office.
Bills from the 112th Congress
Since taking office in 2011, the Members of the 112th Congress introduced 12,296 bills and resolutions. On POPVOX, every bill from the 112th Congress -- along with all user comments and organization statements on those bills -- will be archived and available at the same URL. Our users will no longer be able to send messages to Congress for or against these bills. Instead, you'll be able to support re-introduction of these bills -- if you feel the bill should be considered by this Congress. See the Top 25 Bills of the 112th Congress:http://www.popvox.com/blog/2013/top-bills-112th-congress/
The New Congress
Already hundreds of bills and resolutions have been introduced in the 113th Congress. See the New Bills list:https://www.popvox.com/newbills (and bookmark it!)
During the transition to the 113th Congress, POPVOX will be temporarily pausing message delivery into Congress to ensure that constituent messages aren't lost in the shuffle as Congressional offices get their correspondence systems in place. We're committed to message delivery -- guaranteed -- and will deliver messages ASAP. All POPVOX users are being "redistricted" -- and your letters will be sent to your new Representative based on the address associated with your account. (Learn more.)
Issue Spotlight: Firearms and Gun Control
Tens of thousands of POPVOX users are connecting with Congress about what legislative action, if any, is appropriate in response to the school shooting in Newtown, CT. Already a dozen bills have been introduced in the new Congress on firearms and gun control. Congress needs to hear from their constituents on this issue at this critical time. Weigh in at http://www.popvox.com/blog/2013/issue-spotlight-firearms-113th/
Life is good when you're in the majority-and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) seems to believe he'll be there forever.
Reid has already effectively shut down the opportunity for minority Senators to offer amendments to bills. Now he is angling to change the Senate's rules so that minority members cannot filibuster a bill.
The way the Senate is set up, every Senator has the ability to debate legislation. But as Heritage senior legal fellow Hans von Spakovsky notes, "If members lose these abilities, the majority party will have the unchecked capability to shut off debate and pass legislation without opposition."
The filibuster-famously depicted in the movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington-actually doesn't happen that often. As Senator Jim DeMint wrote for Heritage in November, "The last person to engage in a genuine filibuster was the ultraliberal Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. In 2010, He spoke on the Senate floor for eight hours straight in an attempt to defeat legislation to extend tax rates."
In recent years, Republicans have not filibustered legislation, despite Reid's current crusade. DeMint notes that "filibusters have not prevented the Democrat-led Senate from passing a budget over the past three years, preventing the so-called 'fiscal cliff,' or taking steps to reduce our $16 trillion and rising debt. Harry Reid has."
To shut down debate takes a vote of three-fifths of the Senate. But Reid wants to change longstanding Senate rules so that a simple majority of 51 Senators could end any debate. This has been called the "nuclear option."
Of course, Reid seems to assume that his party will never lose the majority, and this rule change would work forever in his favor. Both Reid and President Obama have previously argued against changing the rules when it wouldn't benefit them.
what [the American people] don't expect, is for one party, be it Republican or Democrat, to change the rules in the middle of the game so that they can make all the decisions while the other party is told to sit down and keep quiet...everyone in this chamber knows that if the majority chooses to end the filibuster-if they choose to change the rules and put an end to democratic debate-then the fighting and the bitterness and the gridlock will only get worse.
Reid isn't the only one looking to change the Senate rules. Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Carl Levin (D-MI) are now claiming that their plan for a bipartisan "reform" of Senate procedures is a better idea. But von Spakovsky explains that it would "create a new category of super senators who will be empowered to participate in the legislative process to the exclusion of rank-and-file members." It would concentrate power in the hands of only four Senators, excluding the other 96 from being able to offer amendments to legislation.
"This proposal may be worse than Reid's because it would empower the leadership of both parties to the detriment of open debate and a free amendment process available to all members," von Spakovsky writes.
The Senate's rules were set up for very good reasons. Von Spakovsky reminds us that "George Washington told Jefferson that the Senate was intended to 'cool' House legislation in the same way that a saucer was used to cool hot tea." Unlike the House, in the Senate, every state has equal representation, and every Senator should have a voice. If the rules change every time the majority party changes, the Senate will lose its ability to deliberate in the way it was designed.
Prediction for 2013: Obama Will Lie Under Oath By Terence P. Jeffrey Looking back over the last four years, it is now obvious that the greatest symbolic moment of President Barack Obama' first term was the very first moment -- when he placed his left hand on Abraham Lincoln's Bible, raised his right hand, and followed the lead of Chief Justice John Roberts in attempting to recite the oath of office. Both Obama and Roberts mangled the oath, a poignant precursor of their subsequent exertions to mangle the Constitution itself.
Murdoch's KGB-Friendly Series By L. Brent Bozell III "The Americans" isn't about Americans. It's about heroic defenders of expansionist communist tyranny. The "heroes" are those who killed tens of millions. That's morally sick. But at FX, sickness sells.
The Republicans -- After Dunkirk By Patrick J. Buchanan With the GOP splintering, with Democrats running the Senate and White House, conservatives must realize: They cannot make policy. So let the Democrats take the lead, drive the car, propose the tax hikes, refuse to make the spending cuts and answer for where we are in 2016, because, right now, it looks as though we are headed for an even bigger cliff.
A Meritocracy By Rich Galen Turns out that running the House, the Senate or the nation is a lot like raising your kids: You don't know if you've done it right until after you've finished doing it.
Glenn discusses preventing another Sandy Hook with Dave Grossman
Last night on the TheBlaze TV, Glenn had a riveting interview with Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, a leading expert on gun violence. The guns aren't pulling their own triggers, yet they continue to get the blame. What is the real problem at the root of shootings happening across the country and in our schools? WATCH
Shocking tape of OH teens bragging about gang rape
Glenn reacts to the shocking video of a few Ohio teens who taped themselves joking about gang raping a young female classmate. It's another sad illustration of how morally depraved society is truly becoming. Glenn talks about the problem and how to solve it on radio today.
5pm ET -The Glenn Beck Program: Paul Young, author of The Shack, joins me tonight at 5pm ET on TheBlaze TV. Whether you loved or hated the book, this is a must-see interview.
6pm ET - Real News: Catch up on the news of the day and the stories you care about tonight on Real News from TheBlaze.
7pm ET - Wilkow!: Translating values into votes. How can conservatives turn "I agree" into "I will vote"?
Stuart Varney rips Al Gore's "gross hypocrisy" over Current sale to Al Jazeera
Stuart Varney appeared on Fox & Friends to talk about the $500m Al Gorezeera sale of Current TV. He replayed a clip from November of this year when Gore preached on the need for all wealthy people to pay more in taxes. Quite ironic since Gore tried to rush his sale through in order to pay the Bush tax rate vs. the new higher Obama tax rate. See Gore's tax hypocrisy HERE.
We're changing the media in 2013, make it your New Year's resolution to join the movement!Start a 14-day FREE trial of TheBlaze TV today for access to our innovative, new programming coming up in the new year! AND catch up on great shows, live events, documentaries and much more from 2012 on demand!
Take a sneak peek at the American Dream Labs
The future of Glenn's company & the future of the media rests behind these doors - take a sneak peek at the American Dream Labs HERE.
Watch Glenn on DISH! TheBlaze, Glenn's TV channel, is available on DISH channel 212. Click HERE for more details.
Pat tries to get 'More-On Trivia' caller to mention "that guy"
The most amazing radio trivia game in the history of talk radio programs hosted by someone named Glenn Beck has returned. More-On Trivia returned today but with a twist - what happens if a caller mentions 'that guy'? Check out the highlights HERE.
Glenn's e-book thriller series: Great news! The sixth episode in the WRATH & RIGHTEOUSNESS e-book series has been released! There are ten episodes in total (about 5-6 full books worth of content), and we're releasing them over the course of about one year. Download episodes 1-5 to catch up, then get the latest installment in the series HERE. Have a question or comment about the series? Visit our FAQ page.
New Green Car from Government Motors (GM)
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In a press release, Rothfus stated "... I came to Washington to control spending in a sensible manner. The bill passed today costs almost $10 billion and adds to the deficit. My concern is that we in Congress should have worked to find a way to pay for this now." 
Scott Perry stated 
If you're unhappy because things didn't go your way in 2012, you're not thinking positively.
Glenn discusses preventing another Sandy Hook with Dave Grossman
