TODAY'S NEWS NJ

A Megaload of Unintended Consequences

2012-01-31T07:16:00.001-08:00

By Bill Wilson
After an outpouring of opposition by millions of Internet users and tens of thousands of websites against the “Stop Online Piracy Act” (SOPA) and the “Protect Intellectual Property Act” (PIPA) in the House and Senate, congressional proponents of the bills have delayed votes on Capitol Hill.

That is not stopping the Obama Administration, however, which has been acting as if the proposals have already been passed. The most recent example is the shutdown of Megaupload.com, a web-based data storage company that boasted over 150 million users, by the Justice Department and New Zealand law enforcement officials.

According to the indictment, the company was accused of facilitating the distribution of pirated movies, television shows, music, and other copyrighted material. Allegedly, the company refused to process Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown requests, and falsely told copyright owners materials had been removed when members of the company took steps to keep the pirated material on their servers.
Finally, according to the indictment, the company allegedly “made payments to uploaders who were known to have uploaded infringing copies of copyrighted works” and that members of the company itself were uploading infringing works.

If true, the members of the company would certainly be in a lot of trouble. However, this case has broader implications that should be considered.

Over 150 million users worldwide — millions of whom were premium subscribers — have lost access to their data files. By some estimates, there were over 8 billion files stored on Megaupload, just a fraction of which contained infringing material according to the indictment, which only claims that “many millions” of the files were infringing. Like many alleged criminal enterprises, Megaupload carried on several legitimate business dealings.

So, whether the company is guilty or not, Megaupload had millions of users who were using its servers for legitimate purposes — and they’ve just had their data seized without cause.
Get full story here.

Woman Gets 8 Years Prison for Saying Black Men Kidnapped Her

2012-01-31T07:07:00.000-08:00

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Your Black World

You may remember Bonnie Sweeten out of Philadelphia from about a year ago. Sweeten is the woman who made a fake call to police from the trunk of a Cadillac, claiming that she’d been kidnapped along with her daughter. The truth? They’d actually taken a trip to Disneyland.

A judge put an end to Sweeten’s antics, at least for a while. She has been sentenced to 100 months in federal prison, equivalent to eight years, four months. U.S. District Judge William H. Yohn Jr. made things very clear for Sweeten.
“You’ve done great wrong, and you have to pay the price,” Yohn said. Yohn called Sweeten a “master con woman,” and guessed that she’d committed 2,000 acts of fraud over a five year period.

“I’m very ashamed of myself,” Sweeten said.

Sweeten’s actions not only initiated an unnecessary manhunt for innocent black men, she also stole over a million dollars between 2004 and 2009. Roughly $640,000 was taken out of law firm accounts, and another $280,000 was taken from the account of an elderly relative. She forged a drivers license, court order and passport, and also convinced her second husband that she’d graduated from law school.
Sweeten was finally caught in 2009 when she spent money on an expensive house, car and in-vitro fertilization.

There isn’t much to say about Bonnie Sweeten other than the fact that she is clearly a sociopath. It’s hard to imagine that she has any remorse for the harm she’s caused her human beings, and it’s very difficult to feel sorry for her. What’s also interesting is that Sweeten the con artist was smart enough to know that she lives in a society where it’s easy to convince others that a black man did something harmful to her. She’s not the first, nor the last, person to make such a claim.

Sweeten’s actions are a reminder of the collective image problem shared by black men all throughout America, as media continues to portray us as entertainers, athletes and criminals. This misrepresentation spills over to impact law-abiding, normal, hard-working black men who rarely stand a chance when compared with the presumed innocence of kind, sweet-looking white women. When it was all said and done, Bonnie Sweeten, the con artist, was able to use America’s racially-biased perceptions against it. I shudder to think about how many innocent black men throughout history have served long prison sentences because of the lies of all the Bonnie Sweetens of history.

While there is plenty of reason to be angry at what happened in the Bonnie Sweeten case, there are also plenty of reasons to celebrate. The same society that is racist enough to believe Bonnie Sweeten’s story was also the one that investigated the holes in that story and arrested her. Thirty years ago, Sweeten likely would not have gotten caught. Also, I dare say that if she were in the south, she would have gotten away with her crime with flying colors. But the fact that there are officers who truly believe that justice is color blind gives us hope that there is a better day for our justice system in the future.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

Teens Charged with Beating Black Teen for Having a White Girlfriend

2012-01-31T07:05:00.000-08:00

We might expect that decades after the notorious murder of the late Emmett Till that some of us might have become more civilized. But this wasn’t the case when a 17-year old boy was beaten for having a white girlfriend. Joshua Merritt of Chicago was beaten in a hate crime in December, 2011. Police say that the student of Brother Rice High School was attacked by three white teenagers at the same school.

The beating was allegedly motivated by Joshua’s new relationship with a white girl. The girl was a cousin of one of the perpetrators. The boys were charged on January 10th for their attack on Joshua. Matthew Herrmann, 18, was charged with misdemeanor battery, a hate crime, and unlawful restraint. Herrmann will be charged as an adult and the other two offenders will be cited with delinquency.

“The 16-year-old was also charged with aggravated assault for pulling a knife,” according to the Chicago Tribune.

Merritt was kept from being able to leave the home after he was beaten. He escaped and told his family what happened. William Merritt Jr., Joshua’s father, says the family is upset.

“He’s just hurt by it. He’s still really trying to deal with it,” Merritt told the Chicago Tribune. “He’s real cautious of who he lets be his friend.”

“I feel they were being serious, and that if I didn’t get out of the house when I did, I might not even be here,” Joshua Merritt told the newspaper. “I might be dead.”

African American Community in Dallas Boycotting Korean Businesses

2012-01-31T06:59:00.001-08:00

For a little over a month, African-Americans in Dallas have been boycotting a Korean owned gas station in a mostly black community.

It all began when an African-American customer requested that the Korean-American owner lower the minimum purchase amount since the gas prices at the Korean gas station were higher than in other areas. The gas station owner refused. In response, the customer told the Korean owner to go back to his country, to which the owner responded “go back to Africa.”

This confrontation triggered a boycott of Korean and Asian businesses by the black community. This is not the first time that tensions between Asian business owners and their African-American consumers have reached a fevered pitch. Twenty years ago, there was a massive Los Angeles riot by African American consumers over their mistreatment by Korean merchants.

At issue is always the treatment of black consumers by Asian business owners, many of whom don’t seem to respect African American consumers and are perceived as takers; people who use the black community to make a quick buck, all the while despising the very community they serve. It would seem that the real and lasting solution isn’t these on again, off-again boycotts, but to grow black businesses in black communities.

Michael Vick Says Someone Stole His Publicist’s Identity

2012-01-31T06:57:00.000-08:00

Michael Vick says he’s aware that someone’s been posing as his agent and calling around in search of New York Fashion Week tickets on his behalf. But Vick says his publicist, Chris Shigas, has not been making calls to secure Fashion Week tickets for him. The Philadelphia quarterback goes on to say that he doesn’t even have a desire to attend fashion week.

No report yet on who’s been masquerading as Vick’s rep to snag a couple of Fashion Week tickets.

Reagan and Obama: A Tale of Two Visions for America

2012-01-24T08:14:00.003-08:00

By Rick Manning

In the last State of the Union address in 1988, President Ronald Reagan used the opportunity to remind Americans and Congress of the greatness that America aspires to, not through increased government, but through increased liberty.

In 1988, he said, “I don't buy the idea that this is the last year of anything, because we're not talking here tonight about registering temporary gains but ways of making permanent our successes. And that's why our focus is the values, the principles, and ideas that made America great. Let's be clear on this point. We're for limited government, because we understand, as the Founding Fathers did, that it is the best way of ensuring personal liberty and empowering the individual so that every American of every race and region shares fully in the flowering of American prosperity and freedom.

“One other thing we Americans like — the future — like the sound of it, the idea of it, the hope of it. Where others fear trade and economic growth, we see opportunities for creating new wealth and undreamed-of opportunities for millions in our own land and beyond. Where others seek to throw up barriers, we seek to bring them down. Where others take counsel of their fears, we follow our hopes. Yes, we Americans like the future and like making the most of it.”

Just 24 years later, we will have another of the annual State of the Union addresses, this time by a President desperate for re-election trying to justify policies that have shredded liberty and economic freedom.
A President who has made class warfare the hallmark of his presidency and through his philosophical intransigence has created a debt burden on our nation unparalleled in history.
Get full story here.

Our Preview Of Obama's 2012 State Of The Union

2012-01-24T08:14:00.001-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

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Newt Gingrich is a member of the GOP establishment and a D.C. insider

2012-01-24T08:13:00.001-08:00

By Adam Bitely

If I told you that I had been the Speaker of the House of Representatives, author of numerous books on public policy, paid $1.6 million by a government sponsored enterprise Freddie Mac for my “services” and a special contributor to Fox News, would you believe it if I then said I am not a part of the D.C. establishment or a Washington insider?

Probably not.

In the past week, Newt Gingrich has probably had one of the most roller coaster experiences of his entire life. He had a come-from-behind double-digit victory in South Carolina, evaded a potentially campaign-ending interview from his ex-wife, and appears to be consolidating the anyone-but-Mitt crowd behind his campaign. In other words, Newt Gingrich had the best week of the campaign cycle so far and is beginning to turn this primary season in a direction that no one thought was possible.

Newt pulled off this miraculous feat by whining and screaming at CNN’s John King for being biased against Republicans. While Newt is probably right about that, it does nothing to change the fact that Newt is biased against limiting the powers of government. Yet it appears that many voters are ready to forgive Newt for a career of compromising the principles of limited government.

I wrote back in December that I was surprised that many considered Newt Gingrich a reasonable alternative to Mitt Romney. It made sense that voters who sought real change to the Obama administration would want someone that had a different history than Mitt. But when Newt became the poster boy for opposing Obama for a brief few days a month before the Iowa caucuses I was blown away.
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IMF admits $1 trillion not enough to bail out Europe

2012-01-24T08:12:00.000-08:00

By Bill Wilson

Sometimes, government officials tell the truth, and when they do, watch out. It might be a good idea to hold on to your wallet.

A recent example is International Monetary Fund Managing Director Chrstine Lagarde commenting on the European debt crisis in Berlin on Jan. 23. Even though the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) has already committed €440 billion, the European Central Bank (ECB) €220 billion, and the IMF €78.5 billion to propping up troubled sovereigns Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, and Spain (PIIGS) — some €738.5 billion, or almost $1 trillion in total — Lagarde said, “these moves form pieces, but pieces only, of a comprehensive solution.”

If Spain and Italy enter the equation, said Lagarde, all bets are off, saying a “larger firewall” was needed. Without it, Italy and Spain “could potentially be forced into a solvency crisis by abnormal financing costs.”

“I am convinced that we must step up the Fund’s lending capacity,” Lagarde declared, adding, “The goal here is to supplement the resources Europe will be putting on the table, but also to meet the needs of ‘innocent bystanders’ infected by contagion, anywhere in the world. A global world needs global firewalls.”

Saying the world’s financing shortfall “[i]n the coming years” could be as much as $1 trillion, the IMF chief proposed a dramatic expansion of her agency. “To play its part, the IMF would aim to raise up to $500 billion in additional lending resources,” she said, alluding to a proposal already on the table to double the Fund’s $364 billion of quotas. That includes doubling the United States’ quota in the fund to $128 billion.
Get full story here.

Will the real anti-establishment candidate please stand up?

2012-01-24T08:09:00.000-08:00

By Brian Schoeneman

Newt Gingrich is now claiming to be the “anti-establishment candidate.” That’s right, folks. The former Speaker of the House of Representatives, a 20 year veteran of Congress, is claiming to be “anti-establishment.”

What a joke.

On Meet the Press on Sunday, Newt amped up his establishment rhetoric, saying “the Establishment is right to be worried about a Gingrich nomination, because a Gingrich nomination means that we’re going to change things, we’re going to make the Establishment very uncomfortable.”

I hate the establishment vs. anti-establishment argument. In most situations, it’s complete nonsense, used only by those who are trailing in the polls, as noted by my colleague Jim Hoeft in the Daily Press last week. But for some, it seems to resonate. Despite the apparent potency of the argument for some Republican voters, at least in this situation, it’s a hollow theme.

It makes perfect sense that Newt would adopt the establishment vs. anti-establishment rhetoric – it fits completely into his playbook. That book, which is by now dogeared and cliched, has the candidate speak in semi-memorable soundbites that sound smart as you hear them but don’t stand up to more than a few seconds of serious scrutiny. This strategy was pointed out by the pure establishment, notorious RINO and flaming liberal Ann Coulter on Fox News this weekend.

Regardless of whether you think the establishment vs. anti-establishment argument is a good one – it isn’t, but folks are entitled to their opinions – Newt is the farthest from being an outsider of anybody left up on that stage. Does anybody honestly think Newt is the man to muck the stables of DC?

There’s really only one candidate in the race left who can honestly claim to be anti-establishment, and it’s not Ron Paul. It’s Mitt Romney. The man served one term as governor of Massachusetts, never held elective office before and has not held elective office since. He’s been out of office since 2007. He’s never served one day in Washington. He was never in the Republican leadership, never ran the Republican Governors Association or had any high ranking positions in the RNC.

Ron Paul has spent 24 years in Washington – longer than anybody else on the stage, including Gingrich. While his ideas may put him outside the mainstream, that doesn’t make him anti-establishment. It just makes him really bad at legislating.

Rick Santorum is a former two term Senator and two term Congressman, with 16 years of experience in Washington under his belt. In the Senate he was Republican Conference chairman, the number 3 leadership position, behind leader and whip.

Newt is not the anti-establishment candidate. He defines establishment. He was Speaker. He ran the NRCC. He was in the leadership for much of his career. Nobody was more inside Washington than he was. He had 20 years to clean this town up, including 4 as arguably the second most powerful person in DC and he failed miserably. In fact, if anything, he made things worse, by destroying the collegial atmosphere that had characterized Washington politics outside the glare of the TV cameras and reporters notebooks for most of the previous two centuries. He made politics in Washington an “us vs. them” phenomenon and was the true originator of the “permanent campaign” mentality (frequently attributed to Karl Rove). He has caused lasting damage to the fabric of our politics. He argues that he wants to change Washington, but he already has – making it far worse than it ever was before. But that “change Washington” theme won him the Speakership and helped propel us to a majority in the House of Representatives.So it makes sense, then, that he’d try the same routine again. It’s never failed him in the past.

But it has failed America.

For those out there who like the establishment vs. anti-establishment argument, Mitt Romney, not Ron Paul or Newt Gingrich, should be your candidate.

Washington needs reform, especially after the damage the Obama Administration has caused. And much of that reform has to be in restoring competence to government, rebuilding trust between the parties, and a renewed focus on true bipartisanship – not the Democrats get what they want while Republicans get hosed style bipartisanship that has become the new definition of the word. That will take a fresh persepective and the only fresh perspective left on that stage is coming from Mitt Romney.

Red Tails Rakes In $19.1 Million Over The Weekend, Fox Exec Says ‘George Lucas Was Right’ Read more: Red Tails Rakes In $19.1 Million Over The Weekend, Fox Exec Says ‘George Lucas Was Right’

2012-01-24T07:52:00.000-08:00

Last week, George Lucas announced he was retiring from blockbuster films but he may want to rethink his decision seeing as though ‘Red Tails’ pulled in a hefty $19.1 million at the box office its opening weekend, The action movie based on the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, snagged the #2 spot behind ‘Underworld 4′, after George Lucas was very vocal about the various struggles of getting support and financing in Hollywood for the film. According to Lucas, even though he’s had success with films like Star Wars and Indian Jones, he had a hard time convincing Hollywood that their was a market for the film that features a majority black cast. After repeatedly being snubbed despite his track record, he finally decided to invest $60 million of his own money to get the film made and released.

The prequel and the sequel are already in the works, and Lucas had already said the only way that those will get off the ground would be if ‘Red Tails’ could have a $20 million opening weekend. The movie was just shy of what he hoped for, but better than the flop that most people expected, so he is now hoping to snag Spike Lee as the director of the prequel and possibly Lee Daniels for the sequel.

“If we can get over $20 million in our first weekend, we’re kind of in the game. We’re in The Help category. If it gets $30 (million) in the first weekend,” he continued, “then those guys [Spike Lee, Lee Daniels etc] get to make their movies without even thinking about it.”

After all the grief that Lucas went through to get this movie made, FOX, who marketed ‘Red Tails’ in America but outright refused to invest any cash into the film, now admits that Lucas taking a gamble on his “passion project” that no one else wanted to touch was the right thing to do.

“I couldn’t tell you how right he was,” Fox’s Chris Aronson said. “…This is why he’s George Lucas. He was right.”

Sidenote: According to reports, George Lucas decision to retire was provoked by the many complaints he received from Star War fans who were disappointed in the prequels as well as studio execs who wouldn’t even show up to the ‘Redtail’ screenings. He was quoted as telling the New York Times:

Why would I make any more when everybody yells at you all the time and says what a terrible person you are? “I’m retiring. I’m moving away from the business, from the company, from all this kind of stuff.

Another interesting tidbit: Aaron McGruder, creator of the Boondocks, assisted in writing the script.
Did you see Redtails this weekend? What were your thoughts?

George Lucas and Tristan Wilds

Spike Lee Unleashes Expletive-Filled Tirade At Sundance Screening

2012-01-24T07:44:00.000-08:00

Not too many directors are pleased with Hollywood executives when it comes to green-lighting films. Famed director Spike Lee let his feeling be known at Sundance Film Festival while screening his latest project ‘Red Hook‘.

In an expletive-laced Q&A, the veteran filmmaker said that Hollywood executives know nothing about black people and that he wanted the audience to spread the word that the film “is not a mother f—ing sequel to ‘Do the Right Thing.’”

And it was Rock who set Lee off on the night’s biggest fireworks. After Lee talked about how the movie had been shot in 19 days within a 10-block area of Brooklyn, the comedian and actor stood up and asked a question.

“OK, so you did it. You spent your own money, right?” he said. “What would you have done differently if you’d actually gotten a bunch of studio money? What else would have happened? Would you have blown up some shit?”

“We never went to the studios with this film, Chris,” he said. “I told you, we’re gonna do this motherf—ing film ourselves! The plan was to make the film, bring it to Sundance, and … “

He stopped, looked over at Sundance chief John Cooper and quickly corrected himself. “Sorry, John, we were gonna show it to you first,” he said, backtracking from the implication that Sundance would have taken anything Lee gave them.

And then he waded back into the fray. “I didn’t want to hear no motherf—ing notes from the studio telling me … about what a young 13-year-old boy and girl would do in Red Hook. F— no.

“They know nothing about black people. Nothing!”

Spotted: The Wrap

by Rahiem Shabazz

Stop Bailing Out Europe

2012-01-23T12:16:00.003-08:00

By Howard Rich

Contrary to the rhetoric of our leaders, U.S. taxpayers are still subsidizing an ongoing bailout of the flailing Eurozone. This expansive financial commitment — components of which have been cleverly disguised as currency swaps — comes at a time when our country can least afford it.

Entering 2012, the federal government’s debt stood at roughly $15.2 trillion — an amount that is projected to climb to at least $16.4 trillion in the coming year. This will be the fifth consecutive year in which the federal government has spent more than $1 trillion in money that it didn’t have – and yet lawmakers in both parties are still refusing to make long-overdue cuts. Even worse, they’re still refusing to address the unsustainable entitlement excess that's fueling this soaring debt.

In such an environment Washington simply cannot afford to pump more taxpayer money into bailouts at home or abroad — whether through loans, direct appropriations or clever “liquidity swaps” like the one exposed recently by Gerald O’Driscoll of the Cato Institute.

“The Fed is, working through the ECB, bailing out European banks and, indirectly, spendthrift European governments,” O’Driscoll wrote, noting that these swaps are nothing but thinly-veiled loans that the Federal Reserve has no authority to make.

Such opaqueness and hypocrisy is commonplace coming from this administration. Two months ago, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters that “we do not in any way believe that additional resources are required from the United States and from taxpayers” to prop up the Eurozone. Hours later, however, Barack Obama emerged from a meeting with European leaders pledging that America would “do our part to help them resolve this issue.”
“Our part?”
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The Week Ahead: European Bailouts Are An Issue As We Head Into State Of The Union

2012-01-23T12:16:00.001-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

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NDAA, EEA, SOPA, PIPA…when will the government STOP trying to control us?

2012-01-23T12:15:00.002-08:00

By Rebecca DiFede

As recently reported by NetRightDaily, both the Senate and the House passed the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA); a $662 billion Defense bill. It broadens the military’s power to arrest and detain any and all people as suspected terrorists without due process protections, whether captured here or abroad. Despite veto threats from our illustrious president, the bill passed and was signed into law.
Then, as if that wasn’t enough, another bill was introduced into Congress that threatened the safety and security of not just Americans, but nationalized residents as well. It is called The Enemy Expatriation Act or EEA (H.R.3166) and it is something out of a fascist’s playbook.

Introduced by Charles Dent [PA-15], and co-sponsored by Jason Altmire [PA-4], Robert Latta [OH-5] and Frank Wolf [VA-10], this bill allows the government to remove the nationality of anyone who participates in any terrorist activity, or activity that seems to be of a terroristic nature, or even something that only sort of has loosely to do with the subject of terrorists. As NetRightDaily also stated recently, this means that an American’s citizenship rights and the constitutional protections those rights infer can be stripped away merely based upon an allegation.

Both of these bills send shivers down the spines of the average American, and yet somehow the powers that be saw fit to draft yet another horrific piece of legislation that will haunt our dreams for generations to come. A bill that goes beyond our physical security and national status, and begins to threaten our First Amendment rights, the very foundation on which our country was built.

This bill is called the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and its Senate ugly cousin, the Protect IP Act (PIPA). SOPA and PIPA would give the government the power to obliterate the most important aspect of the internet that separates it from all other media: its freedom.

Essentially what these acts set out to do in the name of preventing copyright infringement is to target the host site itself, rather than simply removing the copyrighted content and prosecuting the illegal downloaders.
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Up in Smoke 2?

2012-01-23T12:15:00.000-08:00

By Rick Manning

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that government-owned General Motors’ showcase electric vehicle, the Chevy Volt does not have a problem with catching on fire in spite of two test vehicles becoming engulfed in flames weeks after being subjected to test crashes. With 8000 Volts out there, and at least one mysterious fire in the garage of an owner to go along with the fires in the NHTSA garages, one has to wonder if the findings have more to do with the Obama Administration’s desire to promote the Volt rather than a real concern about consumer safety.

That is the kind of question that would never exist if the government did not own more than one third of General Motors. Remember, the NHTSA is the same agency that fined Toyota millions of dollars for an alleged acceleration problem that caused accidents, only to discover months later that the problem was a trial lawyer fabrication in order to fleece the corporate giant.

During the extensive media coverage of Toyota’s “safety” problem, General Motors vehicle sales jumped as the Japanese automaker struggled to keep its reputation for making a reliable vehicle intact.

And that is ultimately one of the practical problems of the Obama General Motors bailout. Every action by a regulatory agency dealing with the company comes into question, and every action against a competitor gets scrutinized as potentially being motivated by self-interest rather than public safety.

The Chevy Volt itself should survive or fail based upon the marketplace of consumers. However, the seeming regulatory push to save the brand must have Ralph Nader spinning in his grave. Okay, Nader isn’t dead, but his silence is certainly deafening.
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Could Mitt Romney be America's first Hispanic president?

2012-01-23T12:06:00.000-08:00

Mitt, we hardly knew ye.

Or should I say, "primo!" As much as itembarrasses me to admit it, given some of his views and how he expresses them,the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and I could be distant cousins.Romney's father, George, was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, and so was mygrandfather, Roman.

first Hispanic president. Don't laugh. Technically, Romney isjust as "Mexican" as former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who wasborn of a Mexican mother and American father. When Richardson ran for the WhiteHouse in 2008, he was often touted by the media as someone who would become thenation's first Hispanic president.

Que? You didn't know that Mitt Romney was half-Mexican? It'strue. In fact, if he makes it to the White House, in addition to becoming thefirst Mormon in the Oval Office, he could also be the nation's

That changed this week when Romney -- in talking about hisfather, a self-made man who worked his way up from nothing to become head ofAmerican Motors Corporation, governor of Michigan and a Republican presidentialcandidate in 1968 -- told a crowd at the Rochester Opera House in New Hampshirethat his father was born in Mexico and came to the United States at 5.

Yet, I would imagine that a lot of Americans aren't aware ofthis branch of the Romney family tree, and that's because it is not a detailthat Romney usually talks about publicly -- and especially not on the campaigntrail.

Romney's great-grandfather, Miles Park Romney, fled theUnited States and crossed into Mexico in 1885 to escape religious persecution.He helped build the Mormon enclave of Colonia Juarez in Chihuahua.

Miles Park Romney never became a Mexican citizen, andneither did his son, Gaskell, or grandson, George. They were all denied Mexicancitizenship because statutes on the books in Mexico denied that right toAmerican settlers and their offspring.

Speaking to the crowd in New Hampshire, Mitt Romney comparedhis father's story to those of countless other immigrants who have come to thiscountry seeking economic opportunity.

My grandfather, a Mexican citizen, also came to the UnitedStates legally as a child in the early 1900s with his family, trying to escapethe chaos of the Mexican Revolution. It was during the same time that Romney'sgrandfather, Gaskell, returned to the United States with his family, alsolegally and presumably for the same reason

Now, hold on to your sombrero.

I'm an American, born in the United States to parents whowere born in the United States. In fact, three of my four grandparents wereborn in the United States. And yet, growing up, people in my hometown inCentral California referred to me and other Mexican-Americans like me as"Mexican." That was the shorthand. But comparing bloodlines, youcould say that Romney is more "Mexican" than I am. After all, Romneyis just one generation removed from our ancestral homeland; I'm two.

This is ironic given that I've spent the last 20 yearscriticizing politicians who twist the facts, propose simple solutions and pickon those who don't have a voice.

And Romney has spent the last several months doing preciselythat, just like he did during his failed 2008 presidential bid. He has usedillegal immigration as a weapon against Republican opponents who proposereasonable solutions and in the process portrayed illegal immigrants, most ofwhom come from Mexico, as takers who come to the United States for free publicbenefits and ought not be rewarded with "amnesty."

We can expect Romney to continue that theme over the nextweek as he campaigns in South Carolina, where Republican primary voters willcast ballots on January 21 and where illegal immigration is a bigger issue thanin Iowa or New Hampshire.

Lawmakers in the Palmetto State recently passed a toughArizona-style immigration law that requires local and state police to determinethe immigration status of anyone they suspect to be an illegal immigrant (read:Latinos).

It's an approach that is wildly unpopular with Latinos andwhich has the blessing of most of the Republicans running for president,including Mitt Romney.

And that's one reason why Romney, even if he is the GOPnominee for president, doesn't have much of a chance with Latino voters.Political experts say that a Republican would have to earn at least 30% of theLatino vote to win the White House. Given how he behaved in the primaries,Romney will be lucky to get 20%.

In fact, a recent poll of Latino voters by the Pew HispanicCenter put the figure at 23%. While it found a high level of anger withPresident Barack Obama among Latinos over his aggressive deportation policies,the poll also found that -- in a Obama-Romney matchup -- the Democrat wouldeasily beat the Republican, 68% to 23%. That's saying something given that,according to the survey, Obama's job approval rating with Latinos is just 49%.The takeaway: You want to make Obama more popular with Latinos? Easy. Pit himagainst Romney.

Listen to Lionel Sosa, a San Antonio-based advertisingexecutive and Republican strategist who has advised George W. Bush and JohnMcCain. A few months ago, Sosa told The New York Times that Romney had blownhis chance with Latinos.

"(Romney) can make as many trips to Florida and NewMexico and Colorado and other swing states that have a large Latinopopulation," said Sosa, "but he can write off the Latino vote."

It was Romney who recently promised to veto the Dream Act ifhe's elected president and if Congress passes the bill. The legislation, whichwould allow undocumented students to stay in the country legally if theycomplete a college degree or join the military, is extremely popular withLatinos.

It was Romney who first attacked Texas Gov. Rick Perry forsigning a law that allows illegal immigrants who live in Texas to pay in-statetuition at public colleges and universities. And it was Romney who laterattacked former House Speaker Newt Gingrich for declaring that the GOPshouldn't support splitting up families and proposing a pathway for theundocumented to work legally in the United States.

It was Romney who, in the debates, came across as naive bysuggesting that the illegal immigration problem could be solved by simplyputting more "boots on the ground" and as dishonest by notacknowledging the contributions that illegal immigrants make to the local,state and national economies.

And it was Romney whose campaign put up, in New Hampshire,anoffensive television ad that attacked Perry by linking him to Mexico andformer Mexican President Vicente Fox, because Fox happened to agree with theTexas governor on letting illegal immigrants pay in-state tuition.

So the candidate who winds up vilifying Mexico is the sameone whose father was born in Mexico? Who can make sense of this?

Listen up, Primo Mitt. You've made your bed. You're personanon grata with Latino voters, and it's your own fault. You can't win withoutthem, but they can help make sure you lose.

We don't care where your family's from. What matters iswhere your heart is.

Posted 5 hours ago by carlos perez

Rand Paul blocked at airport after refusing TSA pat-down

2012-01-23T12:03:00.000-08:00

by admin on January 23, 2012

Sen. Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican and son of GOP presidential candidate Ron Paul, was blocked at Nashville airport Monday after refusing a TSA pat-down, his spokeswoman said.

“Just got a call from @SenRandPaul,” his spokeswoman, Moira Bagley, wrote on Twitter Monday. “He’s currently being detained by TSA in Nashville.”

In a telephone interview with the Associated Press, Paul said that the incident occurred after an alarm went off when he passed through a scanner at Nashville Airport Monday. Paul said the alarm had apparently been triggered by his knee, though “the senator said he has no screws or medical hardware around the joint,” the AP said.

TSA agents refused his request to walk through the scanner again to reconcile the anomaly, and he refused their demand for a pat-down, Paul said.

The Kentucky Senator said that “he asked for another scan but refused to submit to a pat down by airport security,” the AP reported. Paul “said he was ‘detained’ at a small cubicle and couldn’t make his flight to Washington for a Senate vote scheduled later in the day.”

Tell Congress: End DHS Police State Measures! The Department of Homeland Security and the Transportation Security Administration are targeting innocent American citizens and destroying our freedom — select here to send messages to Congress and sign the petition.

This article was written by the Associated Press; full article at Yahoo! News …

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Gaddafi loyalists attack Libyan town

2012-01-23T11:59:00.000-08:00

File photo

Forces loyal to Libya's late leader Muammar Gaddafi attacked the former regime stronghold of Bani Walid today, killing at least four fighters from the new government, officials and residents said.

The fierce clashes in the town, 90 miles south east of Tripoli, came as Libya's new leaders struggle to stamp out lingering resistance from pro-Gaddafi forces and unify a deeply fractured country after eight months of civil war and more than 40 years of authoritarian rule.

Mahmoud al-Warfali, a spokesman for the new regime in Bani Walid, said up to 150 pro-Gaddafi fighters raised his old green Libyan flag at the northern gate of the town and were battling revolutionary forces in the streets with rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47s.

"These are Gaddafi remnants who tried to take over the city," Mr al-Warfali said. "They have tried to do this before and take over the interim government's office, but thank God we have been able to fight them off."
He said four revolutionary fighters were killed. He did not know how many people were wounded.
Bani Walid resident Moussa al-Warfali said the clashes began when Gaddafi loyalists angry over the arrest of one of their men attacked revolutionary fighters in the town.

The fighting was centred around the revolutionary brigade's base, but has since spread to other parts of the town.

The clashes are considered serious enough that dozens of revolutionary fighters from Tripoli have been dispatched to Bani Walid to help, said brigade commander Saddam Abdel-Zein.

Revolutionary commanders in Tripoli also said "sleeper cells" loyal to Gaddafi opened fire in the capital in an attempt to take advantage of the fighting in Bani Walid. There was no word of casualties.

Abdel-Rahman al-Soghayar, a commander from the new regime in the capital, said shooting took place in several neighbourhoods of Tripoli, forcing people to remain indoors and stores to close early.

There were also reports of shooting in the western Nafusa mountains, according to Mr al-Soghayar, who was in touch with fellow fighters there. No further details were available.

The outbreak of violence prompted revolutionary fighters in the western city of Misrata and the eastern city of Benghazi to declare a high alert, setting up checkpoints and securing entrance points to the cities, according to Benghazi military officials and Misrata's revolutionary brigade spokesman, Walid Khashif.
The main flashpoint remained Bani Walid, where pro-Gaddafi fighters have long tormented Libya's revolutionaries.

After the fall of Tripoli to anti-Gaddafi fighters in August, loyalists of the ousted regime took refuge in the town and held off revolutionary forces for weeks, using the surrounding mountains and valleys to pick off revolutionary forces.

Even after Gaddafi's capture and killing in October, the city and its surrounding region have troubled Libya's new leaders.

In November, 15 soldiers were killed in an ambush by Gaddafi loyalists just outside the town. Revolutionary fighters in Bani Walid have complained that the country's interim government has done little to help secure the city.

Iran warns region against “dangerous” stance on Hormuz

2012-01-19T09:10:00.001-08:00

Posted by Abdul Alim
(Reuters) – Iran’s foreign minister warned Arab neighbors on Thursday not to put themselves in a “dangerous position” by aligning themselves too closely with the United States in the escalating dispute over Tehran’s nuclear activity.

Iran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, used for a third of the world’s seaborne oil trade, if pending Western moves to ban Iranian crude exports cripple its lifeblood energy sector, fanning fears of a descent into wider Middle East war.

Tehran, which denies suspicions it is seeking nuclear weapons, was riled earlier this week when Saudi Arabia asserted it could swiftly raise oil output for key customers if needed, a scenario that could transpire if Iranian exports were embargoed.

“We want peace and tranquility in the region. But some of the countries in our region, they want to direct other countries 12,000 miles away from this region,” Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said in English during a visit to Turkey.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry ends GOP Presidential race, endorses Newt

2012-01-19T09:08:00.000-08:00

Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended his campaign for president Thursday morning. “This mission is greater than any one man,” Perry said at a South Carolina press conference announcing the decision. Perry immediately endorsed Newt Gingrich, calling him “a conservative visionary who can transform our country.”

Breaking News: Marines urinating on dead Taliban identified

2012-01-13T12:56:00.000-08:00

Washington: Two of the soldiers appearing in a shocking video showing marines urinating on corpses of the Taliban militants have been identified, even as top US officials strongly deplored the incident.

"Two of the culprits and their unit involved in the shameful act have been identified," CNN reported quoting a Pentagon spokesman.

"We cannot release the names of the unit as well as the culprits at this time as the matter is being investigated," a Marine spokesman told CNN referring to the video which has gone viral sparking outrage and unrest in Afghanistan and the wider Muslim world.
The unit was deployed to Afghanistan mainly in Helmand province in early 2011 and had returned home in September or October, the TV channel said.

The US cable network quoted a Marine officer saying that the military was "confident that troops involved in the inflammatory video were from the third Battalion of the second Marine regiment based at Camp Leteune, North Carolina."

The video appeared to show four servicemen urinating on three bloodied corpses and one of them apparently aware that they were being filmed saying "Have a great day buddy", referring to one of the dead.
Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has said those found engaged in such conduct will be held accountable to the fullest extent.

"This conduct is entirely inappropriate for the US military and does not reflect the standards of values our armed forces are sworn to uphold," he said in a statement.

Earlier, the White House deplored the video.

"We find this - we've seen the video, and what it depicts is - or what it apparently depicts is deplorable, reprehensible and unacceptable," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said.

The video, posted on YouTube and other websites, is a big embarrassment for the Obama Administration, especially at a critical time of holding peace talks with the Taliban.

The Department of Defence has ordered a probe into the authenticity of the video as well as those who were responsible for this.

"The alleged action is obviously under investigation," Carney said in response to a question.
He referred to the telephone call made by Defence Secretary Panetta to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in this regard, in which he vowed to hold accountable to all those responsible for this, if the video is found to be authentic.

"I don't know whether or not the President has actually seen the video. He is certainly aware of it and shares the sentiment expressed by Secretary Panetta," Carney said.

"Certainly what is apparently occurring in that video is deplorable and does not live up to the very high standards set for the US Marines or, broadly, the US military," he said.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined Panetta in deploring the video, saying "it is absolutely inconsistent with American values, with the standards of behaviour that we expect from our military personnel."

In a statement Gen Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he is deeply disturbed by the actions in this video.

"Actions like those are not only illegal but are contrary to the values of a professional military and serve to erode the reputation of our joint force. The Marine Corps has asked NCIS for a thorough investigation and I am confident that there will be accountability, as appropriate," Dempsey said.video platform video management video solutions video player

Natalee Holloway justice? Joran Van der Sloot gets 28 years

2012-01-13T12:48:00.000-08:00

Natalee Holloway is a name likely to haunt a generation of U.S. parents. The teenager from Mountain Brook, Ala., went to Aruba in 2005 as part of a senior high school trip to celebrate her graduation — and was never heard from again. Many believe she was killed by Dutch national Joran Van der Sloot or, at the very least, that he knows what happened to her.

Van der Sloot was sentenced Friday in Peru to serve 28 years in a prison for fatally beating another young woman, Stephany Flores, 21, in his hotel room in Lima. It’s unusual for such a murder case in a foreign land to make headlines in America. But U.S. media have covered this case because it gives a bittersweet measure of solace to the grieving Holloway family — and to all parents who can feel their suffering.

Flores and Holloway’s parents never met. But Flores possibly met her end while trying to help Natalee Holloway’s family.

Investigators have long believed that Van der Sloot violently turned on the Flores after she found something, perhaps a clue, related to Holloway on his computer.

Flores’ murder took place May 30, 2010. That’s precisely five years to the day that Holloway was seen leaving a nightclub in Aruba with Van der Sloot and two other men on May 30, 2005.
After that night, Holloway vanished.

Her disappearance made international headlines and triggered a massive, multiagency search that included sifting the bottom of the ocean floor off Aruba in a bid for clues.

Over the years, Van der Sloot has told law enforcement officials, as well as the media, conflicting stories about Holloway. In one scenario, he politely dropped Holloway off at her hotel. In another, he left her, alone, on the beach after she collapsed. He also claimed at one point that he sold her into sexual slavery. And, of course, he has said that he had nothing at all to do with Holloway’s disappearance.

While U.S. authorities did not have the jurisdiction to charge him in Holloway’s disappearance, they have not given up hope that he will someday be forced to face charges in a U.S. courtroom.

In another turn of events, Van der Sloot allegedly contacted Holloway’s mother, Beth, and promised to reveal everything about his daughter’s disappearance — in exchange for $250,000.

The FBI, which became involved in the alleged 2010 extortion plot, set up a sting to capture Van der Sloot. But he fled to Peru with a down payment of several thousand dollars that was wired to him as part of the negotiations.

In a sad coincidence, Holloway’s family was in court this week for a previously scheduled hearing. The matter? A formal declaration of her death, necessary so that her parents can tend to matters related to the teen’s meager estate.

John Edwards Has Life-Threatening Heart Condition

2012-01-13T12:44:00.000-08:00

Just in from CNN:

A federal judge disclosed that former presidential candidate John Edwards has a life-threatening heart condition, a court source tells CNN.
Edwards had sought a delay in his criminal corruption trial, scheduled to begin later this month.

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Mitt Romney May Suffer the Same Fate as Monty Python’s ‘Black Knight’

2012-01-11T16:20:00.000-08:00

By Richard A. Lee

In one of the most memorable scenes from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, a character known only as the Black Knight engages King Arthur in a swordfight and quickly loses his arm in the duel. Undaunted, he continues the battle, even as the king chops off his other arm and then each of his legs. The Black Knight survives, but is reduced to a bloody stump of a man.

I found the scene from this 1974 British comedy replaying in my head this week as I followed the New Hampshire Republican primary. Although former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the contest and strengthened his frontrunner status, he suffered plenty of bumps and bruises in the Granite State. Unlike the Black Knight, he did not lose any limbs, but his victory did not come without a price.

Romney’s GOP opponents raised questions and concerns about his record at Bain Capital, charging that he actually cost Americans jobs while leading the Boston-based asset management and financial services company. The charges not only weakened Romney’s ability to tout his business experience in the campaign; they also provided Democrats with ammunition to use against him in the general election. Romney also suffered self-inflicted damage through his poor word choices at campaign events in New Hampshire.

Nevertheless, barring an unforeseen development, Romney likely will win the Republican nomination and run as the GOP candidate for president in the fall. He may have won Iowa by just eight votes, but a win is a win. Likewise, as a former Massachusetts governor, he went into neighboring New Hampshire with an advantage and was expected to win. And he did win -- by double digits and despite sharp attacks from his fellow Republicans, as well as the damage he did to himself.

The problem confronting Romney is his inability to deliver a knockout punch to the rest of the GOP presidential field. Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum and a re-energized Jon Huntsman all will be back for South Carolina’s January 21 primary, which is shaping up as the most brutal contest in the early stages of the campaign. And all five of Romney’s opponents could very well still be in the hunt when Florida holds its primary on January 31.

Like the Black Knight, Romney will survive through Florida and beyond, but he will continue to get beat up every step of the way and could end up as a virtual bloody stump of a candidate by the time the Republican National Convention takes place in Tampa this August.

Such a scenario has Democrats salivating, but it’s unlikely to happen. As the primary campaign continues, Romney holds a distinct advantage over every candidate in the Republican field. By far, his campaign is better funded and organized than any of the others. He has the ability to outlast every other candidate ; he just needs to do so with all of his limbs intact.

# # #

Richard A. Lee, who has more than 30 years of professional experience in journalism, government and politics, is an assistant professor in the Russell J. Jandoli School of Journalism and Mass Communication at St. Bonaventure University. Read more of Rich's columns at richleeonline and follow him on Twitter @richleeonline.

93-Page FBI File on Rapper Ol’ Dirty Bastard Released; Allegations Include Violent Crimes

2012-01-11T08:43:00.000-08:00

By Danny Fenster

It appears some detectives in New York have been paying attention to their hip hop.

Newly released files on Wu-Tang Clan rapper Ol’ Dirty Bastard reveal a thick FBI profile of the Staten Island, New York MC. ‎”The detectives have documented, in their case files, that the [Wu Tang Clan] is heavily involved in the sale of drugs, illegal guns, weapons possession, murder, car jackings, and other types of violent crimes,” the files say. All of which might more or less be gleaned from listening to a Wu-Tang Clan album or two.

The 93-page file shows more than 15 arrests for the rapper, legally named Russell Tyrone Jones, with charges ranging from resisting arrest to assault, attempted police murder, refusal to pay child support and the illegal possession of body armor, the Guardian newspaper reports. The files connect Jones to at least two specific murders and an involvement with the Bloods street gang.

Rich Jones of the website Gun.io filed a FOIA request for the files, which was responded to within a week.
To read more click here. To read the file click here.

Has New Hampshire launched Ron Paul as the leading ‘Anti-Romney’ GOP candidate?

2012-01-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

By Adam Bitely
As attention turns away from New Hampshire to South Carolina, Ron Paul is on the move.

Not Rick Santorum. Nor Jon Huntsman. But it is now Paul who stands in the best position to become the only candidate that can challenge Mitt Romney. Paul consistently has had support in the double digits in each state that the GOP nomination contests have been held.

The results from New Hampshire show Ron Paul broke 20 percent of the vote for the second straight time, decisively winning second place. In Iowa, Paul finished strongly in third place with 21.4 percent of the vote behind Santorum and Mitt Romney who were virtually tied. And a recent poll shows Paul and Romney narrowly beating Obama nationally.

With another strong finish by Paul, a clear picture of who the leading “anti-Romney” candidate is may have emerged. And the rest of the “anyone-but-Romney” field will continue to seesaw back and forth in the upcoming contests.

Voters searching for a “conservative” alternative to Romney have been bouncing around for months with various candidates. From Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich and Santorum, it is becoming increasingly clear that Paul is the most organized and prepared candidate to oppose Romney in the long haul of the GOP nomination contests.

Santorum does not have a sustainable campaign operation in place. He will become the 2012 version of Mike Huckabee with his fifth place finish in New Hampshire leaving him to fight for the life of his campaign in South Carolina (click here for the most recent polling data) and possibly Florida (click here for the most recent polling data).

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Does The New Hampshire Primary Count More Than South Carolina?

2012-01-11T08:39:00.001-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

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Cost of Obamacare Regulations Underestimated by Billions of Dollars

2012-01-11T08:35:00.003-08:00

By John Vinci

The Obama Administration underestimated the costs of Obamacare regulations by billions of dollars says the non-partisan Mercatus Center at George Mason University in a working paper it issued on Monday. The study examines eight Obamacare regulations issued in 2010 that became law before public comment was allowed because of the brief timeline Obamacare gave for their implementation.

Mercatus carefully studied the required cost/benefit analysis used by the Administration. And it found that the Administration’s cost estimates tended to be underestimated while its benefit estimates tended to be overestimated. The result is that the cost of implementing these eight regulations may be billions of dollars more than the Obama Administration is willing to admit.

For example, Mercatus says that, “For the ‘Early Retiree Reinsurance Program’ rule, costs were underestimated by $9-$10 billion over four years. More accurately calculated benefits might have been about one-third as high as estimated.”

This comes as no surprise to us at Americans for Limited Government. We’ve caught the Obama administration artificially inflating Obamacare’s benefits before.

For instance, on September 7, 2010 we submitted a public comment that criticized the Obama Administration for “describ[ing] [the preventive services regulation] as having a cost-savings benefit while supplying insufficient evidence to back such a claim and ignoring evidence to the contrary.”

The Mercatus study confirms our criticism: “The selective review of the literature provided in the RIA gives the uninformed reader a false impression of the extent to which preventive health services are cost-saving. Literature reviews consistently have concluded that most clinical preventive services typically are not cost-saving.”

While the Mercatus Center’s working paper does not scrutinize the paperwork burden analysis of these regulations (we hope they will consider doing so in the future), we’ve found that the Administration also underestimates how much it will cost Americans to comply with the paperwork these regulations generate.
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Hatch report reveals massive public pension underfunding

2012-01-11T08:35:00.001-08:00

By Rick Manning
U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch released a shocking report on Jan. 10 on the outstanding public debt that threatens to sink our state and local governments in a sea of red ink.

Hatch, who serves as the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee rings alarm bells over the public pension debt shortfalls that beset state and local governments which may exceed $4 trillion. Perhaps as stunning as the overall public pension shortfall is the fact that a key member of the U.S. Senate cannot definitively report on exactly how much debt is owed because there is little transparency for public employee pension plans.

Adam Bitely of Americans for Limited Government reported in July of 2011 how the Commonwealth of Virginia was manipulating their budget to appear to have a surplus while underfunding the public employee pension fund writing, “Each year, the General Assembly is supposed to make payments to the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), a pension fund for state employees. For the past two years, the General Assembly, along with Governor McDonnell, have neglected making these payments in full, allowing VRS to be underfunded. Currently, the state owes around $620 million to the VRS.

Conveniently, the payments are being skipped until 2013, the year that Governor McDonnell leaves office.
As Virginia political blogger Doug Mataconis put it, “Here in Virginia we have a ‘surplus’ of $311 million. That money will go, by law, in to education funding and into the state’s ‘rainy day’ fund. In reality, though, is what we’ve got a cooked set of books that says ‘+$311,000,000’ with a little entry at the bottom of the page that says ‘I.O.U. $620,000,000.00.’”

But Virginia is hardly alone in facing a future public employee pension funding crisis as the Hatch report states that 31 states have underfunded plans and eleven states are projected to have exhausted all of their pension assets by 2020.

To make matters worse, the report finds that there is an acute risk of these pension debts leading to the insolvency of large states like California or Illinois that, “could damage the fiscal health of the United States.”
Get full story here.

NC panel: Sterilization victims should get $50K

2012-01-11T08:32:00.000-08:00

As many as 2,000 people forcibly sterilized decades ago in North Carolina should get $50,000 each, a task force said Tuesday, marking the first time a state has moved to compensate victims of eugenics programs that weeded out the “feeble-minded” and others deemed undesirable.

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The payout, which could amount to as much as $100 million, still needs approval from the Legislature. But the prospects for passage of some sort of compensation are promising, since the governor immediately embraced the recommendation, and the House speaker has come out in favor of payments.

While dozens of states had programs in the 20th century that allowed people to be sterilized against their will in the name of improving the human race, none of the others has offered anything more than apologies.

Compensation “sends a clear message that we in North Carolina are people who pay for our mistakes and that we do not tolerate bureaucracies that trample on basic human rights,” said panel chairwoman Dr. Laura Gerald, a pediatrician.

From 1929 to 1974, more than 7,600 people in North Carolina were surgically rendered unable to reproduce under state laws and practices that singled out epileptics and others considered mentally defective. Many were poor, black women deemed unfit to be parents.

A task force report last year said 1,500 to 2,000 of the victims were still alive, though the state has verified only 72 so far.

Last year, Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue created the five-person task force to decide how to compensate victims. It consisted of a judge, a doctor, a former journalist, a historian and a lawyer.
The panel had discussed amounts between $20,000 and $50,000, and some victims and family members had bitterly complained that was too little. The panel also weighed whether to compensate victims’ family members or descendants — some people were sterilized after giving birth — but decided against it.
On Tuesday, some victims said they were just looking forward to seeing the issue resolved.

Elaine Riddick, 57, was sterilized at 14 after she gave birth to a son who was the product of a rape.

“I was a victim twice: once by the rapist and one by the state of North Carolina. Normally, if you commit a crime, you pay for it. They committed the biggest crime. They committed a crime against God. They committed a crime against humanity,” she said, wiping tears from her face. “And this is all I can do is just accept what they said today and go on with my life.”

While taking away someone’s ability to have children sounds barbaric today, eugenics programs gained popularity in the U.S. and other countries in the early 1900s, promoted as a means of raising the health and intellectual level of the human race.

More than 30 states enacted laws allowing surgical sterilization for certain people, though not all of them carried out such procedures. More than 60,000 people were forcibly sterilized under such programs, and some historians think the same thing was done to thousands more in other states under the authority of doctors or local officials.

Most states abandoned those efforts after World War II when such practices became closely associated with Nazi Germany’s attempts to achieve racial purity, though North Carolina stood out because it actually ramped up its program after the war. Sterilizations in North Carolina peaked in the 1950s, according to state records.

People as young as 10 were sterilized, in some cases for not getting along with schoolmates or for being promiscuous. Although officials obtained consent from patients or their guardians, many did not comprehend what they were signing.

North Carolina is among about a half-dozen states to apologize.

Melissa Hyatt, whose stepfather was sterilized, said the task force “did what was reasonable as far as budgets and economy.”

“It’s not really about the money,” she said. “It’s about the suffering and the pain.”

Mike Marion, whose 59-year-old aunt was sterilized at 18 because she was seen as mildly disabled mentally, said estates or descendants should get some compensation, too.

“If you’re going to admit wrong, admit wrong in its whole capacity,” he said. “By offering compensation to only the living, that’s taking partial responsibility.”

Despite the potentially high price tag in this economy, there is bipartisan support for some compensation. The governor issued a statement endorsing the task force recommendation.

GOP House Speaker Thom Tillis said he will review it. But he said previously that he wants the Legislature to vote this year on a compensation plan.

Republican Sen. Richard Stevens, one of the Senate’s chief budget-writers, said $50,000 per person “seems like a small amount to pay for what they had to endure, but $100 million is a large sum for the state of North Carolina.”

“Somewhere in there there’s got to be fairness to the individuals but mindful of the realities of the state’s budget,” he said.

Gerald urged passage: “Any state or group of people can make a mistake, but it takes courage and strength of character to acknowledge wrongs and try to right them.” (AP)

Iran Car Explosion Kills Nuclear Scientist in Tehran

2012-01-11T08:19:00.000-08:00

Via: BBC:

A university lecturer and nuclear scientist has been killed in a car explosion in north Tehran, reports say.

Iranian media sources named the casualty as Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan, an academic who also worked at the Natanz uranium enrichment facility.

The blast happened after a motorcyclist stuck an apparent bomb to the car, said Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency.

Several Iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated in recent years, with Iran blaming Israel and the US.

Both countries deny the accusations.

Iran’s Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi told state television that the attack against Mr Ahmadi-Roshan would not stop “progress” in the country’s nuclear programme.

He called the killing “evidence of [foreign] government-sponsored terrorism”.

Local sources said Wednesday’s blast took place at a faculty of Iran’s Allameh Tabatai university.
Two others were reportedly also injured in the blast, which took place near Gol Nabi Street, in the north of the capital.

Body Found In River Is Son Of Packers Coach

2012-01-10T10:26:00.000-08:00

OSHKOSH, Wis. -- Oshkosh police confirm that the body pulled from the Fox River on Monday is that of the son of Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin.

Oshkosh police started searching for Michael Philbin on Sunday night after he disappeared early Sunday morning.
Oshkosh Police Chief Scott Greuel said the cause of death has not been determined, but foul play is not suspected.Police said Philibin was with friends at University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, which is about 50 miles from Green Bay.

Police said around the time Philbin went missing, a nearby security guard heard someone struggling in that same area of the water

.Police said a non-distress cell phone communication was sent from Michael Philbin’s phone near the area of the Fox River at 2:10 a.m. Sunday.Greuel said an autopsy will be performed in Madison Tuesday.Michael Philbin was a junior at Ripon College on the dean's list.

The school is struggling with these latest events.“Clearly, to learn that one of our students is missing, and then hearing the circumstances and the possibilities, it's of grave concern to all of us,” Ripon College Dean of Students Chris Ogle said.Oshkosh police would like to talk to anyone who may have been in the area near the Fox River early Sunday morning or was with Philbin that night.

Anyone who has any information about what happened is ask to call police at 920-236-5723.Packers General Manager Ted Thompson released a statement Tuesday morning about Michael's death."Our thoughts and prayers are with Joe, his wife, Diane, and the Philbin family as they cope with their loss. This is an emotional and difficult time for them, and we ask that everyone respect their privacy. All of us in the Packers family share in their grief."

What Did We Learn from the Iowa Caucuses?

2012-01-04T13:05:00.000-08:00

By Richard A. Lee

Nowthat the Iowa caucuses are over, what do we know about the 2012 presidentialcontest that we didn't know before voters in the Hawkeye State took part in thefirst major electoral event of the campaign?

Thetruth is we don’t know a whole lot more than we did before the caucuses. Atbest, the Iowa contest confirmed what we already suspected about Mitt Romney: Despitehis frontrunner status, the former Massachusetts governor has yet to energizethe Republican Party. He won Iowa by a mere eight votes and received just 24.6percent of the total votes cast. These are not the types of numbers that buildmomentum.

Slightas the victory was, Romney can take some solace in the fact that he emerged asthe winner after having trailed Newt Gingrich in most of the polls leading upto the caucuses. But Gingrich’s poor showing on Tuesday probably had more to dowith the attack ads launched against him than with increased enthusiasm forRomney’s candidacy.

Thecaucuses also confirmed that the far right wing of the Republican Party willcontinue to play a significant role throughout the primary season. RickSantorum has little chance of winning the GOP nomination, but the fact that acandidate with his conservative credentials, operating on a shoestring budget,managed to come within eight votes of winning Iowa illustrates the strength thefar right has built with GOP voters. In Iowa, Santorum, Gingrich and othercandidates who are more conservative than Romney received 73 percent of thevote among them. That can’t be comforting news for Romney with his meager 24.6percent victory.

Onthe other side of the spectrum, although Democrats still have their work cutout for them if President Obama is to win re-election in November, the resultsfrom Iowa contained some encouraging signs. For starters, even though the caucuseswere of little consequence for Obama, Democrats are boasting that 25,000 membersof the party faithful turned out throughout Iowa Tuesday night to rally andplan for the upcoming campaign.

Ofgreater significance for both parties is the ideological gap between Romney andthe more conservative wing of the Republican Party. In the general election, Romneywould be a more formidable candidate than Santorum or Gingrich since hismoderate positions would make him more attractive to independent voters. But towin the GOP nomination and build enthusiasm that can carry over into thegeneral election, Romney may have to move further to the right to appease themore conservative members of his party. While this would help him win theprimary, it could hurt his chances in November.

Thenew year, however, is just a few days old, and the road to the White House is along one with many twists, turns and detours. The Iowa caucuses are animportant part of the election cycle, but we must be careful not to read toomuch into them. Four years ago, Mike Huckabee won Iowa, and John McCain, theeventual GOP nominee, finished a distant fourth. The New Hampshire primary isjust a few days away, so we may be talking a whole new ballgame next week.

Staytuned. It’s sure to be an exciting and entertaining ride.

# # #

RichardA. Lee, who has more than 30 years of professional experience in journalism,government and politics, is an assistant professor in the Russell J. JandoliSchool of Journalism and Mass Communication at St. Bonaventure University. Readmore of Rich's columns at richleeonlineand follow him on Twitter @richleeonline.

Obama's FEMA Camps

2012-01-04T10:51:00.000-08:00

President Obama

By Scott Lazarowitz and Today's News NJ

According to this article and this article, Obama’s FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) is getting camps ready for not only the post-economic collapse, but for political dissidents and critics of government criminality. This will be made possible by Congress’s just having codified into law Obama’s dictatorship by giving him the power to treasonously turn the military against the American people. Thanks to the imbeciles and criminals of Congress, Obama can have anyone apprehended and detained indefinitely, merely by labeling someone a "terrorist," at his discretion, without any evidence presented against the accused, without any charges or trial.

Now, those two linked articles go to Infowars.com. Some people have smeared Infowars as a "conspiracy theory" website, but Alex Jones and his crew are very responsible and conscientious researchers and reporters, and they present and link to information that documents and gives evidence to their assertions of government "conspiracies." So, they are not ‘theorists," they are conspiracy factualists. And you can see various things by Gov. Jesse Ventura as well. While Ventura actually calls his show "Conspiracy Theory," he goes out on location and investigates such theories and allegations of possible government wrongdoing, and, especially from this unbelievable video posted just recently (especially starting at about 25 minutes into it), you can decide for yourself whether Ventura is just a "theorist" or a factualist.

In that linked video, Ventura exposes a large "residential" center, with locked front doors and surrounded by high fences with barbed wire facing inward. While it looks exactly like a prison, there were children playing on swings in one area within the grounds. Thanks to the emotionally frantic, post-9/11 dupes for the Bush/Obama’s police state, we seem to be on the road to Soviet-Nazi tyranny — unless someone actually takes action such as arresting Obama and those aforementioned senators and congressmen and charging these government officials with treason.

Yes, I know there are many people who are in denial, and so trusting of their beloved government, especially their federal government, regardless of how much the government abuses them. "They would never do anything of a criminal nature to us." But just look at Katrina, and the BP-government police state with that oil spill last year. Look at what our military people have done to the people of Iraq and Afghanistan, and Pakistan. As I pointed out in this article, look at what our military people have been doing to their own fellow comrades. Being in denial will not help you when you are a target of military aggression, let alone a target of your local police.

Jacob Hornberger noted here and here how dangerous a government’s military could be.

And, regarding this new law codifying Obama’s dictatorship and his merely labeling someone a "terrorist" without evidence shown, only someone extremely naive could think that Obama or any political ruler or prospective one such as Romney wouldn’t have his goons nab someone who challenges their power grabs and who openly presents views that could convince others to withdraw support of the Regime.

Unfortunately, the naive and gullible dupes for police statism cry,"But we have to allow officials to sweep up those ‘terrorists’ based on the judgment of military personnel or police (and without evidence) because we can’t wait for the process of a trial with a jury to prove someone’s guilt and then imprison him, we have to risk rounding up innocents!"

One thing that Gov. Ventura noted in the video was that, with all this stuff, we’re headed for either tyranny or liberty.

See also: US Government Preparing For Civil Unrest In America

One container is large enough for 3-4 bodies.

FEMA COFFINS! PROOF OF FEMA CAMP PLANS!

Multi Functional Cremation Container For
Alex Jones Bombshell: FEMA Camps Confirmed Click here

Scott Lazarowitz [send him mail] is a commentator and cartoonist, visit his blog.

Iran test-fires missiles in Strait of Hormuz exercises

2012-01-02T16:04:00.000-08:00

Iran’s Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said Sunday that the country’s naval forces will launch various types of home-built missiles during the remaining days of the ongoing navy drills, the local satellite press TV reported.

Sayyari announced that in the course of Sunday and Monday’s maneuvers, a variety of domestically-manufactured missiles, including torpedoes and surface-to-surface, coast-to-sea and shoulder-launched missiles, would be fired at mock enemy targets, said the report.

Deputy commander of Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Seyyed Mahmoud Mousavi said Sunday that for the first time, Iran test fired anti- radar mid-range missile “successfully” in the ongoing naval drills in its southern waters, the official IRNA news agency reported.

The homemade surface-to-air missile “Mehrab” is equipped with anti-radar and smart systems which enable it to evade interference on its way forward, Mousavi told reporters.

On Dec. 24, the Iranian navy launched a 10-day exercise, dubbed Velayat 90, which covers a length of 2,000 km stretching from the east of the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Aden.

Saudi Arabian State Terror

2011-12-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

• •

Despotism in Saudi Arabia

Written by Stephen Lendman
Date: December 31, 2011
Subject: Police State
Saudi Arabian State Terror - Stephen Lendman
Annually, the State Department publishes human rights reports for over 190 countries. Its latest April 8, 2011 Saudi Arabia assessment discusses "significant human rights abuses and the inability of citizens to change its absolute monarchal rule. Abuses include:
• "torture and physical abuse;

• poor prison and detention center conditions;

• arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention;

• denial of fair and public trials and lack of due process in the judicial system;

• political prisoners;

• restrictions on civil liberties such as freedom of speech (including the Internet);

• assembly, association, movement, and severe restrictions on religious freedom; and

• corruption and lack of transparency."

Also mentioned were inequality and violence against women, human trafficking, no labor rights, discrimination on the basis of gender, religion, sect and ethnicity, and violations of children's rights.
Saudi's absolute monarchal rule is despotic, lawless and brutal. It's a police state practicing state terrorism internally and regionally. It's also Washington's main Middle East ally after Israel.
In early December, Amnesty International (AI) published a report on the kingdom titled, "Saudi Arabia: Repression in the Name of Security."

Largely unnoticed in the West like the State Department's April assessment, major media scoundrels suppressed its ugly findings.

AI quoted Khaled al-Johani addressing reporters in Riyadh on the March 11, 2011 "Day of Rage," saying:
"I am here to say we need democracy. We need freedom. We need to speak freely. We need no one to stop us from expressing our opinions."

Shortly afterward he was arrested and charged with "communicating with the foreign media." He's now held incommunicado in Saudi's notoriously repressive prison system.

On March 5, Press TV reported the arrest and detention of senior Saudi cleric Sheikh Tawfiq al-Amer. At issue was his call for constitutional monarchal rule.

On March 23, Press TV reported 100 Shia protesters arrested after participating in anti-government demonstrations for political reforms and immediate political prisoner releases.

More recently on December 5, Press TV reported large anti-government protests in Saudi Arabia's oil-rich Eastern Province and another one on December 9 in Awamiyah, an Eastern Persian Gulf village.

Last April, Saudi's Interior Ministry said 5,831 people were arrested for being associated with a "deviant group," allegedly Al Qaeda. About 600 were sentenced. Another 600 awaited trials. Unsubstantiated terrorist related charges assures long, repressive prison terms.

A more recent high-profile case involved 16 men, including nine prominent reformists. They were sentenced to up to 30 years for allegedly trying to seize power by financing terrorism with laundered money. Their charges and trial had no legitimacy whatever. They were victimized for advocating political change and human rights.

AI said Saudi authorities "launched a new wave of repression in the name of security." Human rights protesters have been brutally oppressed. At the same time, a new anti-terror law exacerbates the absence of civil and human rights.

Last June, AI got a leaked copy. Provisions in it include:

• prosecuting peaceful dissent as terrorism and "harming the reputation of the state or its position;"

• a minimum of 10 years imprisonment for anyone questioning the integrity of the king or crown prince;

• authorities will have carte blanche power to detain alleged security suspects indefinitely without charge or trial; and

• terrorism's definition is expanded to include endangering "national unity" and/or questioning the integrity of the king or regime.

Overall, abusive practices will be legalized, including an anything goes policy of crushing dissent.
Saudi Arabia's Repressive Government

Saudi state power rests solely with the king and ruling Al Saud family. He especially wields absolute power to rule despotically. The nation's Constitution affords ordinary citizens and other residents no rights. Women are especially marginalized and denied.

The Constitution gives sole power to the ruling monarchy. Saudi Basic Law, adopted in 1992, declared the kingdom a monarchy ruled by the sons and grandsons of King Abd Al Aziz Al Saud. It also proclaimed Sharia (Islamic) law supreme.

Political parties and national elections are prohibited. Saudi kings appoint a Council of Ministers, including a prime minister, first and second deputies, 20 ministers, various advisors, and heads of major autonomous organizations.

Thirteen provinces comprise the kingdom. The ruling monarch appoints their governors. They're either princes or close royal family relatives. In 1993, ministers became subject to four-year term limitations. In 1997, a Consultative Council was expanded from 60 to 90 members.

Legislation is by Council of Ministers resolution, subject to royal approval. Democracy is a dirty word. Saudi's 27 million residents have no rights whatever. The media are severely constrained. Anyone dissenting is subject to arbitrary arrest and detention, including political critics, bloggers, academics, foreign nationals, and others.

On September 25, King Abdullah said women, beginning in 2015, will be allowed to run in municipal elections, and be appointed to the Shura Council monarchal advisory body.

Nonetheless, they're severely restricted. They can't travel, drive, engage in paid work or higher education. They also can't marry without male custodian permission.

Rage Bubbling Up Against the Regime
Perhaps mindful of other regional protests, Saudis have begun rallying publicly for change. They demand human rights be respected. They want social and political reforms, including free, open and fair elections. They also want political prisoners released.

In response, severe crackdowns followed. Hundreds of peaceful protesters were arrested and detained without trial. Others were charged with "vague security-related and other offenses. (AI) considers many of (them) prisoners of conscience, held solely for peacefully expressing their rights to freedom of expression and assembly."
In recent years, thousands have been detained on security grounds and remain imprisoned under horrific conditions. Victims include clerics, alleged Al Qaeda members, anyone with alleged connections or sympathies, and others suspected of anti-regime sentiment or its ties to Washington and other Western states.

Everyone arrested for security reasons faces torture and other forms of abuse. It's commonplace "because interrogators know that they can commit their crimes without fear of punishment."
Abuse is also encouraged by the "ready acceptance by courts of 'confessions' forced (from) detainees (by) beatings, electric shocks, and other forms of torture and ill-treatment."

Many detainees are untried. Others brought to court face grossly unfair proceedings, including secret ones with no right of appeal. Since established in October 2008, Saudi's Specialized Criminal Court hears them.

Victims are mostly human rights defenders, political reform activists, members of religious minorities, and many others guilty of no internationally recognized offense.

In the past, sporadic political violence occurred against state institutions, oil installations and Western nationals. Severe crackdowns followed. AI's report focused mainly on 2011 developments. Philip Luther, AI's Middle East/North Africa director said:

"Peaceful protesters and supporters of political reform in the country have been targeted for arrest in an attempt to stamp out the kinds of call for reform that have echoed across the region."
Many arrested are charged with "disrupting order." Some are forced to sign pledges to never again protest. In addition, they're forbidden to travel. Others face secret kangaroo proceedings. Those affected are guilty by accusation.

A Final Comment

Washington has close ties to despotic regional regimes, including Saudi Arabia. It uses them advantageously to advance its Greater Middle East project for unchallenged dominance.
Wars are waged to replace independent regimes with client ones. Saudi and other regional governments rule despotically. They're also US proxies when called on, including against Gaddafi's Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Syria.

As a result, they're rewarded for partnering with Washington's worst crimes. Who said it didn't pay!
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
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China push to put astronaut on the moon

2011-12-30T13:25:00.001-08:00

News Link • China

12-30-2011 • www.ft.com

While Chinese scientists have previously discussed the possibility of a manned lunar mission, a government white paper published on Thursday is the first public government document to enshrine it as a policy goal.

China will “conduct studies on the preliminary plan for a human lunar landing”, the white paper said.Although a manned moon mission is still some time off – Chineseexperts say after 2020 – the statement highlights Beijing’s soaringambitions just five months after the US retired its space shuttle programme. “Chinese people are the same as people around the world,” Zhang Wei,an official with China’s National Space Administration, said at abriefing. “When looking up at the starry sky, we are full of longing and yearning for the vast universe.”
According to the white paper, which serves as a blueprint for thenext five years, China will develop new satellites, accelerate effortsto build a space station and strengthen its research in space. Layingthe foundation for a mission to the moon, the government also plans tolaunch unmanned lunar probes and make “new technological breakthroughs”in human space flights by 2016.

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Reported by Donna Hancock

Was It Worth It?

2011-12-30T13:23:00.000-08:00

News Link • Iraq

12-30-2011 • www.lewrockwell.com/Laurence Vance

Would you sacrifice your firstborn son to establish a democracy in country that had a dictatorship? How about giving up your son to effect a regime change? What about exchanging your son to end the oppression of minorities? How about trading your son in return for a country holding elections?

I don’t know of any American mother or father that would do such a thing. I wouldn’t give a finger from one of my sons to do any of these things. Some Americans, however, wouldn’t mind it if some other American’s son came back from some foreign war in a box with only a finger that was recognizable – just as long as it wasn’t their son.

Now that the war in Iraq is officially over, I keep hearing from apologists for the war about how it was worth it. I keep hearing that because Saddam Hussein is gone, Iraq has a Constitution, Iraqis have freedom, and Iraq holds elections that all the death and destruction was worth it. "We are leaving behind a sovereign, stable and self-reliant Iraq, with a representative government that was elected by its people," President Obama told the troops at Fort Bragg. "I think the price has been worth it, to establish a stable government in a very important region of the world," said Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. Of course, none of Panetta’s three sons died in Iraq.

Okay, suppose it’s all true – and then some. Suppose it’s even better than anyone could have imagined. What if Iraq is now a model democracy for the rest of the world? What if Iraq now has a constitution that rivals our own? What if there is now no more sectarian violence in Iraq? What if Iraq now has a free market? What if Iraq is now an American ally? What if Iraq is now a friend of Israel? What if Iraqis now have freedom of speech and freedom of religion? What if Iraq now respects the rights of women and minorities? What if all Iraqi children are now in school? What if Baghdad is really the best city on earth instead of the worst?

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Reported by Donna Hancock

The Compassion of Dr. Ron Paul...

2011-12-30T13:19:00.000-08:00

To help air a broadcast version of this ad in early primary states, donate here http://revolutionpac.com/compassion **PLEASE DO NOT RE-UPLOAD**James Williams of Matagorda County, Texas recounts a touching true story. Living in a still prejudice Texas In 1972, his wife had a complication with her pregnancy. No doctors would care for her or deliver their bi-racial child. In fact one of the hospital nurses called the police on James.Dr. Ron Paul was notified and took her in, delivering their stillborn baby. Because of the compassion of Dr. Ron Paul, the Williams' never received a hospital bill for the delivery.Ron Paul views every human being as a unique individual, afforded the rights endowed by our creator and codified in the Bill of Rights.

The black community faced political losses in 2011

2011-12-28T13:36:00.000-08:00

by Kwadjo Campbell

Looking Back

When I look at the economic indicators of unemployment, homeownership, and education, I can see that 2011 wasn't a good year for the African-American community.

The unemployment numbers for African Americans in South Carolina are at 20 percent, according to the most recent U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics data, significantly higher than the state's current rate of 9.9 percent and Charleston's rate of 7.8 percent.

Meanwhile state Sen. Robert Ford has said that the mortgage crisis has hit African Americans the hardest — and many in the black community would agree with him.

The graduation rates remain at a dismal 50 percent for African-American males. Failing schools produce unskilled workers, and that's not going to cut it in a 21st-century economy. Can we let another year go by without addressing the gap? Perhaps our leaders can help these students get the technology they are missing at home and, unfortunately, in many of their schools.

The political landscape wasn't better, as we lost political power in the City of Charleston as the result of continued gentrification and redistricting. The continued migration of African Americans from the peninsula results in the loss of federal resources available to low-income census tracts. This money is used to develop homeownership and job creation programs. African Americans also failed to seize city council seats in North Charleston, where there's a black majority. This was a missed opportunity to guide the city as it grapples with port expansion, rail access, and economic development issues.

Mayors Joseph P. Riley Jr. and Keith Summey were re-elected as expected and their black opposition rejected. Riley received at least 50 percent of the African-American vote in this year's election; that 50 percent represents the older generation of African Americans, which continues to see Joe as a symbolic bridge between Jim Crow and post-segregation politics. The other half represents a younger generation ill prepared to face new-world realities like a tough and competitive global economy. This group, justly or unjustly, blames Mayor Riley. It goes with being the incumbent, but he has one more term to change their minds.

Mayor Summey received an even greater share of the black vote in his re-election bid. The mayor of North Charleston has built up a strong reserve of social capital through community churches and civic leaders. Those who underestimate the power of social capital got crushed when Summey cashed it in on Election Day. He won decisively despite accusations of racial profiling and discrimination at the hands of the North Charleston Police Department. It did not bother voters that the mayor's position on rail access is not in their best interests. Mayor Summey will have to be responsive to the issues raised concerning the African-American community over the next four years, and if not, the community cannot wait until the next election to hold him accountable. Educate the voters now. Demand action now. Get prepared now.

Meanwhile, the election of Keith Waring to Charleston City Council is a very important development in the African-American community. First, Keith is the son of Louis Waring and literally and figuratively represents the passing of the leadership baton from one generation to the next. More importantly, however, is what Keith's election means for economic development in the African-American community. While this is Waring's first elected office, he has served as a de facto leader of black Charleston's business and professional class, which often seeks his advice on political matters. Waring has also served in a leadership capacity within the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. I believe all of this gives him the tools to develop effective economic policies that will help create a self-sustainable environment where minority-owned businesses can thrive. I believe he is also key to developing the necessary unity among council members representing underdeveloped communities. Waring will play a major role in helping Mayor Riley make substantial and long-lasting contributions to the African-American community during his final term in office.

Kirsten West Savali: Is Paula Patton a Black Trophy Wife?

2011-12-28T13:23:00.000-08:00

By: Kirsten West Savali, Your Black World

If I were Paula Patton, I would be embarrassed.
In an exclusive interview with Essence Magazine, the Mission Impossible 4 actress’s husband of six years, Robin Thicke, managed to not only divulge intimate details of their sex life, but to paint his wife as nothing more than a hyper-sexual, replacement mommy-figure who introduced him to the world of Blackness.

Patton, through no malicious—but still very purposeful—intent of her husband’s, was cast as the Black Trophy Wife, valued because she grants him an authenticity, an entree’ into the world of soul, funk and R&B that he would not have been granted otherwise. He maneuvers her from her rightful place at his side, and pushes her to the front of his agenda to seduce the Black community into accepting him as our own —that is, when his “mojo and swag” aren’t being occupied giving Patton “double-digit” orgasms.

He also reveals in the interview that she calls him ‘Daddy’ and he calls her ‘Mama’ because their respective parents didn’t play important roles in their lives, so they became each other’s replacement. For some reason, he doesn’t seem to realize that when compounded by race in a traumatized society his words are toxic. Their twisted dynamic is eerily reminiscent of a slave-owner/Mammie dichotomy and co-dependency—exacerbated by racial stereotypes—is neither attractive, nor romantic.

I enjoy Robin Thicke’s music, but I have no illusions that he will ever be Donny Hathaway or Marvin Gaye, or even Eric Benet or Rapheal Saadiq. Then again, neither does he, because according to him, his contemporaries are “Drizzy Drake and Chris Brown.” He doesn’t even take himself seriously.

Breaking News: Heavy D Cause of Death Revealed

2011-12-28T13:21:00.000-08:00

The Los Angeles County Corner’s Office has finally released Heavy D‘s official cause of death.
After collapsing on November 9 in from his home, the rapper-actor, born Dwight Arrington Myers, was rushed to the hospital where it was speculated that he died from pneumonia. That has now been ruled out and the cause of death is officially a pulmonary embolism — a blood clot in his lungs. Other factors that could have contributed to the “Overweight Lover’s” death, are a pre-existing heart disease and deep leg vein thrombosis.

The blood clot was “most likely formed during an extended airplane ride,” said county officials. Myers had just returned from Wales, England performing in a tribute concert to “The King of Pop,” Michael Jackson.

The beloved star was laid to rest in a star-studded ceremony in Mount Vernon, New York. Guests included Sean “Diddy” Combs, Mary J. Blige, and Rev. Al Sharpton, who joked that “James Brown made us black and proud, but Hev made us fat and proud.

Dr. Boyce: Taxation Without Representation – How the Child Support System Should Be Changed

2011-12-28T13:15:00.001-08:00

by Dr. Boyce Watkins – Scholarship in Action

I was on 1380 WAOK in Atlanta for an interesting interview this morning. The conversation revolved around child support payments and the “Financial Abortions” concept that my Senior Editor, Kirsten West-Savali, brought to my attention just a couple of months ago. The conversation expanded to child support in general, and I can say that I am clearly concerned about deadbeat parents who choose not to support their kids. I don’t care if he’s buying diapers and visiting your child every weekend; he should also be using a chunk of his paycheck to help you pay the bills related to taking care of that child.

Continue reading on The Boyce Blog

U.S. Transportation Department and Environmental Protection Agency guess at 2025 car sales

2011-12-28T13:06:00.001-08:00

By Rick Manning

If Congress is seriously interested in finding people to cut perhaps they just need to look at those responsible for producing automobile company sales projections for the year 2025. That’s right, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation spent your tax dollars to make up sales projections for a model year that is thirteen years from now.

Of course, this should not be surprising for the EPA which regularly creates regulations based upon speculative global warming models that project weather patterns fifty to one hundred years in the future. So, automotive industry sales projections for the year 2025 must have seemed like legitimate economic analysis after dealing in the politically driven climate guessing world for the past few years.

Not shockingly, the analysis is based upon the automakers current line-up of vehicles and their dependence upon vehicles which are likely to no longer exist if the Transportation Department’s rule increasing the average gas mileage for a company’s fleet of vehicles to 54.5 miles per gallon in 2025 becomes the law of the land.

The projections were created as part of the CAFÉ standard rulemaking process, and Automotive News quotes Jeff Schuster, senior vice president of forecasting at LMC Automotive as indicting the guesswork on two fronts noting that the report relied upon 2008 sales data making it, “a bit dated, especially given all the changes in the automotive industry over the last few years.”
Get full story here.

11 Big Gov't Busts of '11: #2-Our National Finances

2011-12-28T13:05:00.002-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

Get permalink here.

Scandal and insanity at Penn State, Durban and the IPCC

2011-12-28T13:05:00.000-08:00

By Paul Driessen

In a repeat of Copenhagen, on the eve of the Durban climate change gabfest, someone released another horde of emails from alarmist climate researchers, including Dr. Michael Mann, whose infamous “hockey stick” was headlined in the 2001 IPCC report to justify the Kyoto agreement and demands that nations slash fossil fuel use and economic growth.

Meanwhile, back on Dr. Mann’s campus, Pennsylvania State University was confronting the sordid Jerry Sandusky affair. Sports Illustrated summarized the Augean Stables task in an article titled “Missteps at every turn: Efforts to clean up Penn State reveal how deep the institutional problems lie.”

As SI noted, a key judge in the case, Pennsylvania’s governor, Penn State’s new athletic director and even the attorney appointed to head up a “full and complete” internal investigation all have deep and longstanding ties to the university and/or its big-money football team. Noting these and other “blatant conflicts of interest,” the magazine quoted new PSU president Rodney Erickson as saying, “Penn State is committed to transparency to the fullest extent possible” [emphasis added] – in view of relevant financial, personal and other considerations, and special exemptions that Penn State enjoys from disclosure laws.

SI ended the article by asking, “Is Penn State cleaning house? Or simply rearranging the furniture?”

The same question applies to Dr. Mann. In the wake of Climategate 2009, Penn State hurriedly exonerated him and his department of any wrongdoing, as did NOAA and the National Science Foundation. The blatant whitewashes reflect the desperation of organizations intent on preserving their money train and perpetuating the Hollywood façade of manmade catastrophic climate change.
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GOP Elimination match round 2

2011-12-28T13:04:00.001-08:00

By Rebecca DiFede
Gingrich, Bachmann, Romney and Santorum survived round one of Americans for Limited Government’s presidential brackets, and now you can vote for your favorite today!

It’s down to Gingrich, Bachmann, Romney and Santorum.

In the epic battle to win the title of GOP Presidential nominee, these four must face-off this week to see who will get ever closer to being the people’s choice.

Last week’s exclusive internet polling results are in and the final four in Americans for Limited Government’s exclusive NCAA-style Republican nominee bracket is down to Gingrich v. Bachmann and Romney v. Santorum match-ups.

Heading into the Iowa caucus, you get to vote on whether master debater Newt Gingrich or tea party fave Michelle Bachmann move into the finals. These media-frenzy favorites will go head-to-head in a fight that is sure to be a ruthless one. Both are constantly in the public eye and have landed more than a few unfavorable quips in the papers.

Both are constantly in the public eye and each has found themself at some time in the race as the alternative to Romney’s nomination leadership. Which one will make it to the finals?

You decide.
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Ex-U.S. Atty. Accuses FBI and Prosecutors of Illegally Obtaining Documents and Lying About It

2011-12-27T10:58:00.000-08:00

Former U.S. Atty. Roscoe C. Howard Jr.

By Allan Lengel

A former D.C. U.S. Attorney is accusing the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office of illegally obtaining documents in a major bank fraud trial in Brooklyn involving a Democratic fundraiser, and then lying about it. He’s also accusing the government of allegedly introducing bogus documents that an FBI informant created.
Roscoe C. Howard Jr., the former U.S. Attorney, who is representing Democratic fundraiser Courtney Dupree, raised the allegations in a Dec. 21 letter filed in court and addressed to presiding U.S. District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto. Trial began Dec. 5 and the defense is presenting its case this week.

Howard, a D.C. lawyer with the firm Andrews Kurth, who served as U.S. Attorney under President Bush, is asking that the Brooklyn judge to suppress evidence illegally obtained.

The FBI in New York and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn did not immediately return phone calls Tuesday morning from ticklethewire.com for comment.

The allegations of wrongdoing have flown under the radar of the New York media, which has showed more interest in ex-Green Bay Packer running back Dorsey Levens testifying in trial as a character witness for Dupree. Robert Holland, ex-CEO of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, also testified as a character witness.
At the heart of the case is the Long Island-, GDC Acquisitions, a holding of company, of which Dupree is the CEO. Dupree is charged with grossly overstating the billings to fraudulently obtain a $21 million loan from Amalgamated Bank.

The case began to take form when an employee of GDC, Emilio Serrano, went to the FBI to complain about financial shenanigans. The FBI claims that Serrano came in hand with all the documents for the case.
Howard contends in his letter to the judge, that after Serrano’s initial meeting with FBI agent Gavin Shea in May 2010, the agent directed him to collect more documents from the company. Howard contends that the since Serrano was then acting as an agent for the FBI, the FBI needed to obtain a search warrant after the initial meeting. No search warrant was obtained.

The FBI has contended that Serrano came with all the documents and did not collect anything after that first meeting.

Howard claims in the letter that the government is lying.

In fact, he writes that Serrano testified during cross examination that he collected documents after his first meeting with the FBI , an admission which “contradicts the government’s repeated representations to the Court and defense counsel that Serrano had obrained all the documents before he approached the FBI.”
“Further cross-examination (of Serrano) revealed that not only had Serrano taken documents from GDC after meeting with Agent Shea, he actually created false financial records, which the government has introduced at trial, in an effort to curry favor with the government,” Howard wrote.

Missing Girl Found Dead, Babysitter Charged in Case FBI Was Involved In

2011-12-27T10:57:00.000-08:00

By Danny Fenster

A missing 9-year-old girl has been found dead, the Associated Press reports, and the girl’s babysitter was arrested on murder charges Monday night. The FBI had been helping in the search.

Aliahna Lemmon’s body was found in northeast Indiana, near her family’s mobile home park, investigators say. They aren’t releasing where exactly the remains were found, sheriff’s spokesman Cpl. Jeremy Tinkel told the AP.

The babysitter, Mike Plumadore, was taken into custody after being interviewed by police late Monday. The 39-year-old, who was watching Lemmon and her sisters’ at the time of the disappearance, faces a murder charge.

“He was a trusted family friend,” the girl’s step-grandfather, David Story, told the AP.
To read more click here.

Ron Paul goes big time

2011-12-27T10:54:00.000-08:00

By Adam Bitely
Most recent polls indicate that Ron Paul is in the lead in Iowa. Other polls around the nation indicate a growing level of support. After years of being painted as a kooky Congressman from Texas, it seems that Ron Paul may have finally hit the mainstream.

Since late summer, GOP primary voters have flipped back and forth on who they deem the conservative choice against Mitt Romney. First it was Michele Bachmann. Then it was Rick Perry. And then it was Herman Cain. And then came Newt. And now Paul, it seems, is getting his shot at being the anti-Romney choice.

How far things have come since Paul was treated as the red-headed step-child of the GOP in 2008 when he was relegated to the back of the line and treated as some sort of radioactive creature that needed to be disposed of immediately.

All the while, he stayed true to the principles of limited government.
At no point in Paul’s recent rise has anyone had to point out that his positions are recently taken. Unlike Newt and Mitt, Ron Paul has been consistent with his platform. He has not had to explain why he changed his mind to oppose health care individual mandates or why we don’t need the government to enforce climate change policies. Paul has been a consistent opponent of anything that will increase the size of the federal government.
But here is where things will get as dicey as they can possibly get. If Paul wins in Iowa, he will have to fight for the life of his campaign as he heads on to the ensuing contests.

His Iowa victory will be belittled. Those in the media will claim that the Iowa results were meaningless. Keep that in mind as they try to mention who finished second behind Paul, as they will claim that the second place result will somehow have meaning…

Already, Republican and Conservative elites have come out and announced that if Paul wins Iowa, the results of the caucuses should be ignored. So much for democracy.
Whether you support him or not, at least Ron Paul has been a consistent candidate. And that consistency is helping him gain support.
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11 Big Gov't Busts of '11: #3-Solyndra

2011-12-27T10:53:00.001-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

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Congress Drops the Ball

2011-12-27T10:52:00.002-08:00

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Thou shalt not question UN ‘experts’

2011-12-27T10:52:00.000-08:00

By Kelvin Kemm
British Viscount Christopher Monckton of Brenchley parachuted with me into Durban, South Africa, to challenge UN climate crisis claims, attracting numerous journalists and onlookers. A 20-foot banner across our press conference table gave the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow further opportunities to present realistic perspectives on the science and economics of climate change.

CFACT played by the rules, obtained the necessary permits beforehand, and ensured that its message was heard throughout the seventeenth annual climate conference (COP-17). Greenpeace, on the other hand, got no permits before staging an Occupy Durban protest in the hallway outside the plenary session – and got kicked out of the conference.

Shortly thereafter, however, Lord Monckton and another CFACT representative were summarily (though temporarily) ejected from the Durban conference, for preposterous reasons that dramatize how thin-skinned and arrogant the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has become.

As a South African and delegate at the COP-17 conference, I witnessed more amazing and absurd exhibitions than one would find at a Believe It Or Not circus sideshow. Along with thousands of government delegates, scientists and journalists, we witnessed music and dance groups, Women for Climate Justice, the Alliance for Climate Protection, APEs (Artists Protect the Earth) and others pleading for “planetary salvation.”

It took a truly nimble mind, and abiding sense of humor, to appreciate their often competing messages. One large official poster proclaimed “More climate change means less water,” while the one next to it said “More climate change means more floods.”

A socialist group sloganeered “One planet living is the new aspiration.” I could only conclude that they were neo-Malthusians worried sick about speculative climate chaos and resource depletion – and promoting a roll-back of energy use and living standards, so that people can share “more equitably” in sustained poverty and misery, enforced by UN edicts.
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Sears, Kmart to Close 100-120 Stores

2011-12-27T10:15:00.000-08:00

Sears Holdings Corporation, the tenth largest retailer by annual revenue in the US, announced Tuesday that it would close between 100 and 120 Sears and Kmart stores because of poor holiday sales.

“Given our performance and the difficult economic environment, especially for big-ticket items, we intend to implement a series of actions to reduce on-going expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model,” chief executive Lou D’Ambrosio is quoted as saying by the AFP.

D’Ambrosio estimates the store closings will generate $140 to $170 million in cash in inventory sales and added that Sears expects to make even more money when it sells or subleases the properties.

According to the Washington Post, same-store revenue fell 5.2 percent to date for the quarter at both Sears and Kmart stores.

While Kmart’s declining sales were blamed on diminished layaways and a drop in clothing and consumer electronics sales, Sears’ cited lackluster consumer electronics and home appliance sales for their drop.

Though the company, which has more than 4,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada, would not reveal which Sears and Kmart locations would close or how many jobs would be cut as a result of the shut-downs, it did say the closings list would be posted at http://www.searsmedia.com once it was completed.

Lakers fall to 0-2 after loss at Kings

2011-12-27T10:12:00.001-08:00

foxsports.com: Marcus Thornton scored 12 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter and the Sacramento Kings opened the season in grand fashion, beating the Los Angeles Lakers at home for the first time in more than three years, 100-91 on Monday night. Tyreke Evans added 20 points, John Salmons had 13 and DeMarcus Cousins had... read full article

Breaking News: Kobe’s Wife Estimates that He Slept with Over 100 Women During Their Marriage

2011-12-23T08:40:00.000-08:00

According to the National Enquirer, the real reason Vanessa is dissolving the marriage is that she suspected 33 year old Kobe was cheating on her and a private detective confirm her suspicions. “[Vanessa] estimated that he was averaging at least 10 affairs a year with different women over the course of their marriage and puts his number of conquests at 105,” a friend told the tabloid. “The lies and deceit hurt, of course, but racking up those kinds of numbers is mind-blowing and left her devastated. And when she discovered he was cheating during the recent NBA lockout, that was the final straw. her private detective caught him redhanded with incriminating photos.”

Not even former teammate Shaquille O’Neal had those kind of numbers. Tiger Woods, on the other hand, had Kobe beat. Vanessa is apparently telling friends she believes Kobe had a jumpoff in “every NBA city.”

One of his alleged jumpoffs, whom he was seeing since 2008, sat court side at games and openly flirted with Kobe. Vanessa was livid and reportedly told Kobe to dump the chic. Kobe allegedly was also having an affair with an 18-year-old Lakers cheerleader and they reportedly sexted intimated photos of one another.

That evidence is in Vanessa’s divorce lawyer’s possession, too. SMDH! When Vanessa confronted him about these two women, Kobe reportedly confessed and promised her he would change his ways and sought forgiveness by showering Vanessa with jewelry, cars and other expensive gifts.

But after Vanessa’s private investigator hit her with the incriminating photos, she decided it was time to bail and that’s when she filed for divorce. Kobe reportedly begged and pleaded for her to give him another shot, but Vanessa was tired of being humiliated, according to the friend. Now she’s going to walk away with half of his $300 million fortune because they had no prenup and California is a community property state. The divorce is pretty much finalized and Vanessa is gonna get her money.

Source.

Man Who Gagged/Bound His Daughter in Facebook Picture is Now in Jail

2011-12-23T08:35:00.001-08:00

Andre Curry is in big trouble after these pictures appeared on his Facebook page.
Click to read

Mead Johnson stock down after Wal-Mart pulls baby formula

2011-12-23T08:10:00.001-08:00

(AP) — Shares of Mead Johnson fell 10 percent Thursday after Wal-Mart Stores Inc. pulled a batch of its infant formula from more than 3,000 stores when it learned about the death of a newborn.

There is no known link between the death and the formula and the government has not ordered a recall of any Enfamil, the brand of powdered formula that the child consumed. Glenview-based Mead Johnson makes Enfamil.

The retailer said Wednesday that preliminary tests indicate the newborn Missouri boy died from a rare bacterial infection, though Mead said its records showed the lot of formula from which the child was fed tested negative for the bacterium before it was shipped.

Wal-Mart said the formula, lot number ZP1K7G, was pulled "out of an abundance of caution."
Mead Johnson spokesman Christopher Perille said all the company's infant formula products are put through a battery of tests as they are produced, packaged and sealed.

Public health investigators seeking the source of 10-day-old Avery Cornett's infection will also look at environmental factors, such as the water used in preparing the powdered formula, and at anything else the baby might have ingested, Perille said.

Shares of Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. dropped $7.72 to close at $68.76. Over the past year, the stock has traded in a range of $55.12 to $76.91.

Putin’s time is running out: Russian protest leader (Reuters)

2011-12-23T08:07:00.000-08:00

December 23, 20

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Up to 1 million Russians are ready to take to the streets to protest against a disputed election and Vladimir Putin’s “corrupt regime” is unlikely to hold on to power for more than two years, protest leader Alexei Navalny said on Friday.
Navalny, an anti-corruption blogger who has emerged a leading light of the disparate opposition, said the public mood had turned against Russia’s paramount leader and large crowds would join a protest rally in Moscow on Saturday.

“I am absolutely sure that up to 1 million people are ready to take part in such rallies … I see the people’s mood,” Navalny told Reuters in an interview on the eve of the rally against alleged fraud in an election Putin’s party won on December 4.

“They stole about 1 million votes. And that’s only in Moscow. I think that these people are completely dissatisfied with what happened and are ready to defend their rights, including going out on to the streets,” he said by telephone.

The 35-year-old lawyer has become the voice of the opposition since protests began over the election, in which Putin’s United Russia won a slim majority in the lower house.
“I don’t think Putin’s regime of absolute power, which prevails in this country, will last for more than two years – that’s the maximum,” he said.

Navalny will address Saturday’s rally on Moscow’s Sakharov Avenue a few days after being released from jail after serving a 15-day sentence for obstruction of justice during one of the earlier protests.
He has gained a large following, particularly among young professionals and Internet users, by using his small shareholdings in various Russian companies to expose high-level corruption and to campaign for greater transparency.

The Internet has been vital for organizing protests in the country of more than 140 million, where state television is tightly controlled and has paid little attention to the biggest opposition rallies since Putin rose to power in 1999.

CARRYING ON TILL DEMANDS ARE MET
Opposition leaders have said they hope at least 50,000 people will attend Saturday’s rally in Moscow, which will also be addressed by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. More than 40,000 people have pledged online to show up.

“One meeting, another meeting. One day the people will go out on the street, and they will not return. There is only one scenario. We have to carry on until they meet our demands,” Navalny said.
The demands include annulling the election and holding a new one, registering opposition parties, dismissing the election commission head and freeing people the protesters consider political prisoners.
Calls by some opposition leaders for another demand to be added to the list – Putin’s resignation – have been resisted by some of the organizers who say the main aim of the demonstration is to demand an election rerun.

But Navalny called on Russians to unite against Putin as soon as he was freed from jail early on Wednesday and his influence has risen since the protests began.

Navalny’s politics, which mix scorn for the ruling elite and rhetoric on illegal immigration, have gained traction with the middle class. But his chances of becoming a genuine threat to Putin’s tightly controlled political system could depend on whether he can mobilize large numbers of protesters.

Although his popularity has fallen, Putin is still widely seen as Russia’s most popular politician and is regarded as the ultimate arbiter by the clans which own swathes of the world’s biggest energy producer.
Even so, Navalny has increasingly pitted himself against Putin, who is almost certain to extend his 12-year rule by returning to the presidency in an election in March.

“I don’t think we need to demand the resignation of Putin. we only need to demand free elections … The country needs a decent, legitimate president,” he said.

Navalny has repeatedly said he is not afraid of reprisals for speaking out against what he has called a corrupt government, and he has warned that authorities have more to lose than protesters from a show of force.
“I think that they (the authorities) have simply realized a simple fact … it has become more and more obvious that they would lose very quickly, lose everything, if they met us with force. These people are not stupid,” he said.

(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova, writing by Thomas Grove; editing by Timothy Heritage and Matthew Jones)

‘Obama’s Economic Humbug’

2011-12-23T07:59:00.001-08:00

By Robert Romano
“This is nothing more than Obama’s economic humbug, just in time for the holidays,” remarked Americans for Limited Government (ALG) President Bill Wilson in response to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ downward revision of economic growth in the third quarter.

“First at 2.5 percent, then 2 percent, and now revised downward to an anemic 1.8 percent, the economy in the third quarter has once again fallen way short of the government’s rosy projections,” Wilson said.
That means the Bureau had “initially exaggerated the actual growth number by 38 percent,” which Wilson warned would have serious ramifications on the government’s projected revenues over the next decade.
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has said that revenues will more than double the next decade, from their current level of $2.1 trillion to more than $4.8 trillion by 2021.

Much of that hinges on the robust growth that is projected. In 2011, OMB had said growth would top 3.1 percent. In 2012, it claims it will rise as high as 4 percent.

It will be very telling how OMB takes current economic data into account when it publishes its next budget in February. If it does, then it will likely show revenues growing by a much slower rate, and, particularly, that the debt growing much faster.

But, it being an election year in 2012, and in essence being a White House operation, in reality one should expect next year’s numbers to be as exaggerated as this year’s numbers.

Which tells the American people everything they need to know about what government statistics have become — they are nothing more than a propaganda tool to prop up elected administrations.
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11 Big Gov't Busts of '11: #4-The Super Committee

2011-12-23T07:58:00.003-08:00

Video by Frank McCaffrey

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State Legislatures Take on ‘Judicial Hellholes’ that Undermine Business

2011-12-23T07:58:00.001-08:00

By Kevin Mooney

Some state legislatures are taking a stand against abusive litigation practices that drive up costs for consumers and discourage business, according to a new report from the American Tort Reform Foundation (ATRF). Even as it identified “judicial hellholes” where judges apply the law against defendants in a manner that is considered unfair and unbalanced, ATRF called attention to “points of light” throughout the country where state lawmakers are taking a stand against runaway litigation practices.

“State legislatures enacted nearly 50 civil justice reforms in 2011,” the report says. “These included comprehensive tort reform packages in Wisconsin, Tennessee, Alabama, and North Carolina, and more targeted reforms in Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, North and South Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas.”
Some of these reforms include new measures that guard against the use of “junk science” in court and limiting liability to landowners in cases where those who are injured were trespassing. ATRF also highlighted encouraging court rulings in jurisdictions that are typically weighted against civil defendants.

Even so, the nation has a long way to go before abusive litigation practices are brought to heal as the report makes clear. The following areas have been identified as the top “judicial hellholes” for 2011: the states of California and West Virginia, along with local jurisdictions, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, South Florida, Madison and St. Claire Counties in Illinois, and New York City and Albany, New York.

Americans for Limited Government president Bill Wilson notes that, “job creation and investment in a state is often dictated by the litigation climate within that state. Simply put, those states which give the trial lawyers free rein to drum up nuisance law suits struggle to compete for business investment with those who have reasonable tort liability rules.”

Beyond the states and localities named as “judicial hellholes,” some other jurisdictions were named as being just on edge of falling off into the abyss.
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Steelers' Hines Ward had a 'blast' with 'Dark Knight' role - USA TODAY

2011-12-21T10:40:00.000-08:00

The latest trailer for The Dark Knight Rises is out, and (surprise!) Hines Ward is involved.
We did a little digging, and found out that other Pittsburgh Steelers greats including Ben Roethlisberger and ex-coach Bill Cowher are in the movie too.

Apparently they're on some XFL franken-team called the Gotham Rogues.

The scene — which was filmed at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field — features Ward running toward the endzone while the field explodes and gobbles up defenders behind him.

It looks pretty cool, but Hines Ward out-running an NFL-caliber defensive back at age 35 might be the most unrealistic plot point in the history of cinema.

Here's the trailer (the Ward bit comes at 1:18 or so):

Breaking News: Floyd Mayweather enters plea in 2 cases

2011-12-21T09:29:00.000-08:00

LAS VEGAS -- Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. plans to plead guilty toreduced misdemeanor charges in a plea deal resolving felony allegationsthat he battered his ex-girlfriend, court officials said Tuesday.

Mayweather, 34, will face $3,000 in finesand could be sentenced to between two days and 18 months in the ClarkCounty jail after pleading Wednesday to one count of battery domesticviolence and two harassment charges, said Tess Driver, an aide to ClarkCounty District Attorney David Roger.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal first reported the plea deal Tuesday.

Italso includes an agreement for Mayweather to plead no contest next weekto misdemeanor battery and pay a $1,000 fine for poking a 21-year-oldhomeowner association security guard in the face during a November 2010argument about parking tickets on vehicles outside the boxer's home inan exclusive, suburban Las Vegas community.

Roger and Mayweather's lawyers did not immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press.
Mayweatherhad been facing an evidence hearing Wednesday and a decision by LasVegas Justice of the Peace Melissa Saragosa whether to send him totrial on felony grand larceny, coercion and robbery charges, andmisdemeanor domestic battery and harassment counts involvingex-girlfriend Josie Harris.

He could have faced 34 years in state prison if he was convicted of all those charges.

Thefelony case stemmed from accusations that Mayweather hit and threatenedhis ex-girlfriend, stole her cell phone and threatened two of theirchildren, then ages 10 and 9, during a September 2010 argument aboutthe woman dating another man.

Mayweather, who uses the nickname"Money," was acquitted by a Las Vegas judge in October of othermisdemeanor harassment charges alleging he threatened the lives of twoother homeowner association security guards in another argument aboutparking tickets.

Mayweather is undefeated in the boxing ring, with a record of 42-0 with 26 knockouts.

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press