Update
Post-election weather dreary here. Money talked in the
Supreme Court race, but the media doesn't complain when it talks for
progressives. On the other hand, we passed a constitutional amendment to have
the Chief Justice elected by the court, not based on age as is currently the
case. This will mean the flow of business will depend on the majority,
currently considered to be 5-4 conservative, rather than senility
seniority. In the local mayor's race, I voted for the far-left Mayor-for-Life
Paul Soglin. His opponent was further left...~Bob
General News and Comment
Alas for Wisconsin
http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/elections/justice-ann-walsh-bradley-wins-re-election-to-supreme-court/article_b4383b6f-e59a-5e79-ad6e-c97ca6fa5154.html
http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/elections/justice-ann-walsh-bradley-wins-re-election-to-supreme-court/article_b4383b6f-e59a-5e79-ad6e-c97ca6fa5154.html
Excerpt: Justice Ann Walsh Bradley was re-elected to the
Wisconsin Supreme Court Tuesday, holding off an attempt to expand the court's
four-member conservative majority. Bradley defeated Rock County Circuit Judge
James Daley, a self-described conservative, to win her third 10-year term
on the court. (Necrophiliacs
everywhere cheered--she was the dissenting vote in a case the court
allowed to go forward against two slugs who dug up a women's corpse to have sex
with it. She raised three times as much money as Daley. He worked tirelessly,
but in a state wide race, you cannot win on retail politics alone as you can in
a local race. You need the cash for TV ads. Where were the evil Koch brothers
when we needed them? ~Bob
Taxpayer money fuels big labor’s political machine.
By Jason Hart
Excerpt: America ’s
four largest labor unions spent more than $179 million last year
promoting big government, and did so using taxpayer money. Public-sector
unions were crucial to the passage of Obamacare, and in 2014
they helped push progressive priorities including minimum-wage hikes
and amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Rand Paul Enters 2016
Race: “We’ve Come To Take Our Country Back.” By Daniel Doherty
Excerpt: Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has officially entered the
fray. His presidential announcement has been in the works for weeks, and thus
no one is surprised by what
he said. On Tuesday, at an event in Louisville ,
Kentucky , Sen. Paul made the case for his
candidacy, underscoring a cutting message which was emblazoned across the
podium before he spoke: “Defeat the Washington
machine.”
10 Rand Paul myths. By Jennifer Rubin
Excerpt: Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) kicks off his presidential
campaign today. As a freshman senator with no significant legislative
accomplishment and a history of association
with ideological extremists (his father, for one) and who is
thin-skinned and oblivious
to the threat from Iran, he bears an uncanny resemblance to the junior
senator from Illinois who ran for president in 2008. And like President Obama,
he benefits from lackadaisical reporting and sloppy analysis. Let’s take a look
at 10 things pundits get wrong about Paul:
Excerpt: Humans are extremely adaptable creatures; so we
tend to quickly acclimate ourselves to our circumstances until they become the
"new normal." However, sometimes when you have a hole in the bottom
of your boat, it's a better idea to try to address it than to just keep bailing
water all day long. For example, here in America we seem to believe that...
Russian nuclear
submarine 'on fire' in Arctic dock
Excerpt: A Russian nuclear submarine has caught fire at an
Arctic naval shipyard, Russian media report. Reports say that the fire on the Orel has been contained.
Its reactor is not believed to have been at risk.
Gay Woman Who Donated $20 to Christian-Owned Indiana
Pizzeria Reveals Why She Took Bold Stand. By Jason Howerton
Excerpt: A gay woman who donated $20 to Memories Pizza in Walkerton , Indiana
British Jews
Overwhelmingly Support Conservative Party in Upcoming Elections
Excerpt: British Jews overwhelmingly support the
Conservative Party and U.K.
Prime Minister David Cameron in the upcoming national elections next month. According
to a poll conducted by the Jewish Chronicle, 69 percent of Jewish voters said
they would support the Conservative Party, while only 22 percent said they
would vote for the Labour Party. Only two percent of Jewish voters said they
would vote for the Liberal Democrats or the U.K. Independence Party (UKIP).
Jews are increasingly
supporting the GOP. By T. Belman.
Excerpt: The NYT tries to suggest that Jewish money is
inducing the GOP to be more pro-Israel. It titled this article “G.O.P.’s
Israel Support Deepens as Political Contributions Shift”. This is the chicken
and the egg controversy. They way I see it, after the Republicans demonstrated
their support for Israel
Jewish money supported them.
Should have used Billery's "secure" home server: How the U.S.
Excerpt: Russian hackers behind the damaging cyber
intrusion of the State Department in recent months used that perch to
penetrate sensitive parts of the White House computer system, according to U.S. officials
briefed on the investigation.
Democratic Senate
Candidate Invests In Companies That Outsource Jobs, Hide Money Offshore. By
Patrick Howley
Excerpt: Since entering the Illinois Senate race last week,
Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth has been running a protectionist campaign,
railing against her Republican opponent’s alleged support for outsourcing jobs
and overseas tax havens. But financial records obtained by The Daily Caller
show that Duckworth has investments in companies that use offshore tax havens
and ship jobs overseas.
Export-Import Bank Won’t Respond to Information Requests
About Ties to Clinton-Backed Consulting Firm. By Melissa Quinn
Excerpt: The Export-Import Bank’s relationship with a
politically connected consulting firm has come under scrutiny as its clients
benefited from millions of dollars in financing from the bank.
However, a Freedom of Information Act request filed by a
government watchdog has been pending for more than 500 days, highlighting the
Export-Import Bank’s issues with transparency.
Excerpt: Chinese leaders are in a panic these days. Their
economic growth rate may shrink to 6 percent. The U.S. would invade a foreign country
to get that kind of growth rate. Our current 2 percent growth rate won't even
service our current government obligations. Forbes just reported last month
that, if we don't get our GDP growth above 5 percent there's going to be some
serious societal upheaval as baby boomers retire and begin collecting social
security and making Medicare their prime source for health care.
Gun News
Fatal Home Invasion
Shooting in Boyd County
Excerpt: Troopers say Gregory W. Coddington, 45, of Sarasota , Florida
Police: Suspect shot
and killed during home invasion
Excerpt: Police say detectives determined Markese Lee forced
his way into the home and exchanged gunfire with a resident inside the house.
Lee was shot and taken to Martin
General Hospital
Dad opens fire on
home invaders in northeast Harris County
Excerpt: Deputies in northeast Harris County
Race Card News
Book author Joan
Walsh Anglund says of Angelou stamp: ‘That’s my quote’
Excerpt: But Monday night, after being told that
Anglund confirmed the quote as hers, Saunders wrote in an e-mail, “Had we known
about this issue beforehand, we would have used one of [Angelou’s] many other
works. . . . " Emily Anglund, Anglund’s granddaughter, said she had
no idea that the quote has been attributed to Angelou for several years, or
that it is featured on her forever stamp. ...Last year, in remarks at the
presentation of the 2013 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal,
President Obama attributed the quote to Angelou: “The late, great Maya Angelou
once said, ‘A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it
has a song.’ (USPS and Regime plagiarized Anglund's book of poems, "A Cup
Of Sun" http://www.joanwalshanglund.com/about.htm to
promote idea "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings" to promote black
liberation on federal stamp. Nudge, nudge; what laws of copyright? Who cares? Oh,
she's white. --Barb)
Excerpt: A white police officer in North Charleston , S.C.
The decision to charge the officer, Michael Thomas Slager,
came after graphic video footage emerged depicting Slager firing a volley of
bullets into the back of Walter Scott, who was running away.
Obamacare/Government Healthcare News
What good is health
insurance no one can afford? By Logan
Excerpt: But focusing on one goal to the exclusion of all
others can lead to unexpected pitfalls, and now, as ObamaCare turns five, we
are seeing that universal coverage is meaningless without taking into account the
price and quality of the – now mandatory –insurance
policies.
Undocumented Democrat News
Obama’s Illegal
Immigration Amnesty Could Mean Life or Death for Unions. By Connor Wolf
http://freedomforce.com/2761/obamas-illegal-immigration-amnesty-could-mean-life-or-death-for-unions/
Excerpt: According
to Pew Research, about 3.9 million immigrants are estimated to have been
eligible for President Obama’s amnesty. The amnesty, which was done by an
executive order, was met with praise from the left and criticism by the right. “As
American workers increasingly reject unionization, we’ve seen Big Labor make a
deliberate effort to target immigrants to bolster their forced unionism ranks,
with union bosses spending American worker’s forced dues to do it,” Patrick
Semmens, the vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation, told The
Daily Caller News Foundation. (Actually, after the coming fiscal and economic
collapse, followed by social and political collapse, unions and much else will
be irrelevant. ~Bob)
Mexican police killed
during ambush in Jalisco
Excerpt: Fifteen police officers have been killed and five
others wounded in an ambush in the Mexican state of Jalisco, prosecutors have
said. Gunmen targeted the police convoy as it travelled along a highway towards
the state capital of Guadalajara
on Monday.
"You're Greener than Gore" News
"Settled
Science" Quote
The only certainty is that nothing
is certain.. Pliny the Elder
Energy Production on
Standby Until Crude Oil Export Ban is Lifted
Excerpt: Energy booms, whether from oil or gas, will continue as
both technology develops and more resources are discovered. However, each
energy boom puts a strain on our existing energy infrastructure. For instance,
oil can be transported by truck, ship, rail and pipeline. Pipeline is the
safest and most reliable way to transport oil. Even with 185,000 miles of
liquid petroleum pipeline across the United States , there is just not
enough to transport the huge volume in the current boom. The lack of pipeline
has increased transportation by rail and rail accidents during this time, says
NCPA senior research fellow Lloyd Bentsen. The recent increase in
transportation of oil by rail has increased the number of rail accidents. In
2014, 70 percent of petroleum products and crude oil were shipped by
pipeline, while 3 percent was shipped by rail. A recent study by
Fraser affirms their safety by reporting transporting oil by pipeline is 30
times less harmful than by train.
Amid a Drought, Cue
the Almond Shaming. By Justin Fox
Excerpt: It takes a gallon of water to produce an almond.
That’s one remarkable fact. Here’s another: 82 percent of
the world’s almonds are grown in California ,
almost all of them in its agricultural heartland, the Central
Valley . Here’s another: Almond growers use about 10
percent of the state’s water supply every year. And here’s yet
another: California’s mountain snowpack, the main source of the Central
Valley’s water, is at 5 percent of
its historical average for this time of year.
WH starts initiative
to battle health problems from climate change
The White House argued Tuesday that climate change
is hazardous to the public's health, prompting critics of new EPA emission
rules to call the argument "scare tactics" that ignore the economic
impact of new regulations....But the new initiative distracts the public from
the economic impact of new climate regulations on existing power plants,
critics say. They argue that the power plant rules at the center of the
administration's climate agenda would harm the very people the administration's
climate-health initiative seeks to protect. (Chemtrails continued unabated
yesterday here. After they got through with parallel lines, they started
crosshatching and making X's; continued past sunset into overnight; seen by
moonlight. Shades of "Star Trek's 'Tholian Web.'" So, in attempt to
"cool" the earth by spraying particles of ???? (reportedly noted to
include aluminum, particalized heavy metals and in some places, bacteria and
viruses), globally populations are being inundated, lung diseases and
respiratory illnesses increasing, early onset dementia on the rise (discounted
as increase in elderly population), and who knows what else? Who pays for the
Sky Spiders? What is the agenda? Why do most "folks" drive on by with
their daily routines and NOT look up and notice this is NOT normal aviation
traffic? This does not include Regime assaults on coal/energy, fracking and oil
drilling. We are to live in mud/dung huts, eat bugs and join the global
community. Then all will be "redistributed." If you live.... As with
Communism in practice, this does not apply to those in the upper echelons of
the Party of Power, (i.e. with "the mark"). --Barb. Can't say
Chemtrails are high on my list of concerns. ~Bob)
Indian Police Shoot
and Kill 20 Said to Be Illegally Cutting Down Trees. By Hari Kumarapril
Excerpt: The Indian police and forestry officials on Tuesday
fatally shot 20 loggers whom they suspected of illegally cutting down
endangered red sandalwood trees, whose wood can be sold in China and Japan for hundreds of thousands of
dollars a ton. Government officials offered varying explanations of the
killings, which were condemned by activists and political figures as an
excessive use of force.
Top Five
Environmentalist Myths About Fracking. By Michael Bastasch
Excerpt: The Environmental Protection Agency’s comprehensive
study on environmental effects of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is set to
be released in the near future,
and environmentalists are groaning that it’s tainted with oil and gas
industry influence. Why the complaining? It’s likely environmental groups know
something about the report the general public doesn’t– namely, it probably
takes a more favorable view
of fracking than activists would like.
Religion of Peace News
Report: Internal
French Document Shows Troubling Discrepancies With US on Iran
Excerpt: U.S.
and Iranian officials have described last week's framework for a deal to slow Iran 's nuclear
weapons program with disturbingly different details. According to a Times
of Israel report Tuesday, the U.S. account also differs significantly
with a key ally – France. ... That timeline, however, dovetails with an
acknowledgment President Obama made this week in an interview with National Public Radio. Iran 's
"break-out" time to make a bomb could shrink "almost down to
zero" by year 13 after any final deal is negotiated, Obama said. (Sunni
Arab states like Saudi Arabia
and Egypt
are not going to allow Shi'a, Persian Iran to get nukes without trying like
hell to get them themselves. They have zero trust in Washington now. ~Bob)
Flashback 2012: Obama's Crystal-Clear Promise to Stop
Iran
Excerpt: I'm in the camp of people, however, who take him at
his word, in part because he's repeated himself on the subject so many times
and in part because he
has laid out such an effective argument against containment and for
disruption, by force, if necessary. With the help of Armin Rosen, of The
Atlantic's International Channel, I've posted below a partial accounting of
Obama's statements on the subject. Of course, it is possible that in a second
term, should he win his bid for reelection, he will change his mind on the
subject, and it is possible, of course, that Iran will somehow manage to
defy his demands. But the record is the record: Given the number of times he's
told the American public, and the world, that he will stop Iran from going nuclear, it is hard
to believe that he will suddenly change his mind and back out of his promise.
Now: Obama says Iran
Excerpt: Iran
could be able to obtain a nuclear weapon much more quickly after the first 13
years of the emerging nuclear deal, President Barack Obama acknowledged
Tuesday. (This is the nightmare scenario, the culmination of more than a decade
of progressives and foreign-policy wonks convincing themselves that Iran isn’t
really what it appears to be, and that a long, lasting peace can be reached
with apocalyptic mullahs with a long history of using terrorism to achieve
their goals. The foreign-policy “smart set” averts their eyes from Iranian
leaders’ rambling about magical green auras and world leaders’ not blinking in
their presence, chanting “Death to America!” and Israel every Friday,
pledging to wipe other countries off the map, and the Iranian regime using children to clear minefields. -- Jim Geraghty, Morning Jolt
http://www.nationalreview.com/newsletters After ten years if Iran
Flashback 1994: That Time
Bill Clinton Said North Korea
Excerpt: Unsurprisingly, the Obama administration has been
highly receptive over what’s been hashed out between Iran and the West. “I'm convinced
that if this framework leads to a final comprehensive deal, it will make our
country, our allies and our world safer,” said President
Obama. Let’s go back in time when then-President Bill Clinton
praised the nuclear deal his administration made with North Korea in
1994
The Ticket to Prosperity. Walter E. Williams
Excerpt: In the case of Palestinians, the first order of
business is to recognize that they cannot militarily force Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and East Jerusalem and meet other territorial demands.
Therefore, they should cease all military and terrorist actions against Israel . If
there were peaceful coexistence, there would be reciprocity and accommodation
on Israel 's
behalf. The major accession would be for Israel
to end its military blockade of Gaza 's
port and border. The most important first step for Palestinian people is to
recognize that they have been betrayed by their leadership and that their
destiny truly lies in their hands. A real-world example that Gaza
might follow is that of Hong Kong
Why? DHS Secretary: At Least 40 Americans Who Fought
With ISIS Overseas Are Back in the US
Excerpt: At least 40 American citizens that have left to
join the fight in Iraq and Syria are now back in the U.S. , according to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson,
raising serious questions about the United States ’ counterterrorism
strategy here at home. “As I understand it, of the 180 Americans who have gone
overseas to fight in Iraq
and Syria ,
40 have come back. I assume you're keeping close tabs on those 40?” 60 Minutes’
correspondent Lesley Stahl asked
Johnson in an interview that aired Sunday. (Why are we letting them back
in? Why are we not jailing them for treason? We are fighting ISIS, they gave ISIS "aid and comfort." ~Bob)
Excerpt: A suicide bombing has killed at least 15 people and
injured over 40 in the southern Russian city of Volgograd ,
raising concerns about terrorism just over a month before Russia hosts
the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. A female bomber carried out the blast in a Volgograd train station, 400 miles from the site of the
upcoming Olympics in the Russian resort town of Sochi , Russian authorities said. The Sochi
2014 Olympic Games are scheduled to begin on Feb. 7.
Excerpt: The US Treasury Department added the Al Furqan
Foundation Welfare Trust to the list of terrorist entities today. Al Furqan,
which is based in Pakistan
and Afghanistan ,
funds al Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and the Taliban, and has been directly linked
to a notorious jihadist who is a leader in both al Qaeda and the Taliban. Treasury
added Al Furqan to the US
list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. A
State Department press release on the designation noted that the move
was made along with the Saudi government, which listed the group “under its Law
of Terrorism Crimes and Financing and the Royal Decree A/44.”
Radical Islamist
Group Claims to Influence UK
Excerpt: Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND), a United
Kingdom-based radical Islamist front organization, is openly bragging about its
close relationship with both the Tory and Labour political parties, the
UK's Telegraph reports. The group's chief executive, Sufyan Islamil,
characterizes MEND as "kingmaker" in the May election, claiming to
influence up to 30 seats.
Excerpt: Gentiloni said, "Responding to terrorism
inevitably implies military consequences. This may shock some people but these
groups must also be dealt with on a military footing. I won't use the word
'combat' to avoid being painted as a crusader." The Italian
military, Gentiloni said, is currently training local forces in Somalia to
address the Islamist Al-Shabaab militants who are linked to the
Al-Qaeda terrorist network.
Excerpt: At least 100 Islamist teachers and teaching
assistants implicated in last year's "Trojan Horse" teaching scandal
in Birmingham , England
Former Gitmo detainee
held in Uganda
Excerpt: Ugandan authorities arrested a man who was once
detained at Guantanamo Bay Kampala , Uganda suburb,
Ugandan police spokesman Fred Enanga told The Associated Press.... Kagezi
was shot twice by gunmen after she left her car — in which she was traveling
with two of her children on the way home from work — to buy groceries in a
Kampala suburb.
Important: U.S.
expedites arms shipments to coalition bombing Yemen
Excerpt: The United States
is speeding up arms supplies and bolstering intelligence sharing with a
Saudi-led alliance bombing a militia aligned with Iran
in neighboring Yemen , a
senior U.S.
diplomat said on Tuesday. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken said
the U.S. , a key ally of
oil-rich Saudi Arabia , had
also set up a coordination center in the Sunni Muslim kingdom, whose forces
have led an air campaign against the Shi'ite Houthi group which rules most of Yemen . (Here's
the run down on Obama's current foreign policy. We are helping Sunnis kill
Iran-backed Shi'a in Yemen
but also kill the Al Qaeda Sunnis. Yemen is one of Obama's success
stories. We are helping Iran-backed Shi'a kill Sunnis in Iraq . We are
helping some Sunnis kill Iran 's
Shi'a-offshoot Alawites in Syria ,
except for the Sunni ISIS and Al Qaeda factions, which we are trying to kill as
are the Alawites. And we are ignoring Libya where Obama's lead from
behind war created a terrorist hell hole, though we are arming the Sunni Egyptians
who are bombing the Libyan ISIS-allied terrorists. Got it? ~Bob)
Palestinian Stabs 2
Israeli Soldiers and Is Killed. By Isabel Kershner
Excerpt: A Palestinian man stabbed two
Israeli soldiers in the West Bank on
Wednesday, seriously injuring one and lightly wounding the other, before being
shot to death by security forces at the scene, according to the Israeli
military. The attack took place on a main route north of Ramallah, near the
Palestinian village
of Sinjil
Obama's Emphasis on
Internal Threats Infuriates Gulf Allies
Excerpt: President Obama's view that internal strife
threatens the stability of America's Persian Gulf allies more than a threat
from Iran are sparking angry reactions, Gulfnews reports. In an interview with the New York
Times published Sunday, Obama said Gulf States do face external threats, but
their internal problems may be more significant. They come from
"populations that, in some cases, are alienated, youth that are
underemployed, an ideology that is destructive and nihilistic, and in some
cases, just a belief that there are no legitimate political outlets for
grievances…I think the biggest threats that they face may not be coming from
Iran invading. It is going to be from dissatisfaction inside their own
countries." These remarks are not being well received by Gulf citizens.
Mass grave sites in
Iraq may contain 1,700 corpses, exhumation begins
Excerpt: The mass killings last June of Shi`ite soldiers
from Camp Speicher, a former U.S. base outside the Sunni city of Tikrit, has
become a symbol of the brutality of Islamic State fighters and their hatred for
Iraq`s Shi`ite majority. The deaths showed Iraqis that the Islamic State
fighters, who have also attacked ethnic and religious minorities as well as
fellow Sunni Muslims opposing them, were a threatening new kind of foe.
*****
Robert A. Hall is a Marine Vietnam Veteran who served five
terms in the Massachusetts State Senate. He is the author of The Coming Collapse of the American Republic.
http://www.amazon.com/Coming-Collapse-American-Republic-prevent/dp/1461122538/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304815980&sr=1-5
For a free PDF of Collapse, e-mail him at tartanmarine(at)gmail.com. Hall’s
eleven books are listed here:
http://tartanmarine.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-book-published.html.
His blog of political news and conservative comment is www.tartanmarine.blogspot.com.
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