Tuesday, August 31, 2010
U.S. Auto Sales May Hit 28-Year Low as Discounts Flop
U.S. Auto Sales May Hit 28-Year Low as Discounts Flop - Bloomberg
"U.S. auto sales in August probably
were the slowest for the month in 28 years as model-year
closeout deals failed to entice consumers concerned the economy
is worsening and they may lose their jobs."
Monday, August 30, 2010
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
All-time record heat wave is official!
The temperature soared to 90° between 12:30 and 1pm in Jacksonville Saturday afternoon making it the 45th straight day of 90+, an all-time record.
Murkowski makes the case for Senate seniority
Article source
- She got her job from daddy. Now she wants to remain in power for decades more. And Murkowski is arrogant about it. She figures the voters can't touch her. And she's probably right. Incumbents in Washington get reelected at a 80 to 95% rate. They have nothing to fear, with very few exceptions, from the American people. Or do they? Congress is running America into the ground. So it's up to you to do something about it.
Corporate CEOs Dance the Economic Catch-22 Boogie
Article source: Crooks and Liars
Economics 101: Healthy economies include low unemployment rates. Low unemployment rates mean consumers are consuming/buying goods. Consumers buying goods stimulates the economy, creates growth.
...Makes sense, right? Well, yes, until you read this Washington Post article where they interview corporate CEOs about why it might be that they're sitting on piles of cash and not hiring. Then it just gets really, really weird.
Sweden Withdraws Arrest Warrant for WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange
This one definitely doesn't pass the smell test. How flimsy did the charges against Julian Assange have to be for them to be withdrawn in 24 hours?
Video of Mob Beating 2 Brothers to Death as Police Watch Sparks Outrage in Pakistan
The Pakistani men took turns savagely beating the two teenage brothers with sticks, drawing blood before dragging and hanging their dead bodies from a nearby metal pole. None of the dozens of people watching tried to stop the attack, not even several police. The boys may have been mistaken for robbers.
Iowa Farms in Egg Recall Have Close Ties
Two Iowa farms that together recalled more than half a billion potentially tainted eggs in connection with a nationwide salmonella outbreak share close ties, including suppliers of chickens and feed.
Both farms are linked to businessman Austin "Jack" DeCoster, who has been cited for numerous health, safety and employment violations over the last 20 years.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Somalia rebels looking increasingly like Taliban
Article link here
- Somalia once again a problem for the U.S.
Congressional candidate robbed at gunpoint on campaign trail
Source: MiamiHerald.com
- It's usually Congress that is robbing the public. Here we have the shoe on the other foot. Maybe now this candidate knows what is like for the public to have a gun at it's proverbial head by politicians running this country.
NY Gov. Candidate: Prison Dorms for Welfare Recipients
Source: Talk Left
- Can you believe it? Paladino wants to treat people on welfare like prisoners.
WikiLeaks Founder Suspected of Rape in Sweden
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is suspected of rape in Sweden, where authorities have issued a warrant for his arrest, officials said Saturday.
6 Afghan police found dead in station house
Six Afghan policemen were found dead Saturday in their station house in southern Afghanistan, where international troops are ramping up operations to take control of Taliban strongholds, an official said.
Pentagon Releases Final Report on Fort Hood
The 23-page Defense Department report released Friday addresses the remaining Pentagon recommendations - including a greater focus on predicting and preventing internal threats. It also says policy changes will improve communications between government agencies and military installations, and expand military bases' emergency response capabilities.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Pakistan: Lack of terror convictions hurts fight
Pakistan: Lack of terror convictions hurts fight
Pakistani courts have yet to convict a single person in any of the country's biggest terrorist attacks of the past three years, a symptom of a dysfunctional legal system that's hurting the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaida at a critical time.
Do Baseball Fans Care About Indictment Of Roger Clemens?
Do Baseball Fans Care About Indictment Of Roger Clemens?
- They should care. Steroid use cheats baseball fans.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
US Chamber of Commerce Apologizes, But Don’t Be Fooled
US Chamber of Commerce Apologizes, But Don’t Be Fooled
After getting roundly whacked by basically the entire internet, the US Chamber has officially apologized for its blog post yesterday that suggested women seeking equal pay have a “fetish for money” and suggested women should “choose the right partner at home.” But don’t let it fool you: the US Chamber has for decades advocated in private the very sentiments posted to its public blog yesterday. We just got a look behind the curtain.
Sen. Al Franken: We Have a Free Speech Problem
Sen. Al Franken: We Have a Free Speech Problem
Sen. Al Franken (D.-Minn.) warned a packed house Thursday night in Minneapolis that the corporate takeover of our media, and the government's failure to stop it, is one of the most important issues of our time.
- Why is Franken one of the very few sounding the alarm? This is a paramount issue. We are losing are democracy because of the lack of diversity in media because of it's concentration in a few hands.
Academic scientists say oil from gulf spill is not going away quickly
Academic scientists say oil from gulf spill is not going away quickly
Academic scientists are challenging the Obama administration's assertion that most of BP's oil in the Gulf of Mexico is either gone or rapidly disappearing -- with one group Thursday announcing the discovery of a 22-mile "plume" of oil that showed little sign of vanishing.
Russia: Israel need not fear reactor
Russia: Israel need not fear reactor
Israelis should not be concerned about the uranium fueling of a Russian-built nuclear reactor in the southern Iranian city of Bushehr that is set to take place on Saturday, diplomatic officials at the Russian Embassy in Tel Aviv told The Jerusalem Post.
The reactor’s fueling will be marked at a ceremony in Bushehr that will be attended by Sergei Kiriyenko, who heads Russia’s state nuclear agency, which has been building the power plant in Iran since the mid-1990s.
Muslim prayers welcome at Pentagon chapel
Muslim prayers welcome at Pentagon chapel
- Why isn't this an affront to the families of 9/11 victims?
New senators want to change way Senate works
New senators want to change way Senate works
Those who hold the Senate in low esteem can get a sympathetic ear from some of the chamber's newer members. These lawmakers also are fed up with the Senate's ways and would like to change them.
- This is why we need term limits. Reform doesn't come from career incumbents.
Radioactive Boars on the Rise in Germany
Radioactive boars on the rise in Germany
Almost a quarter century after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear meltdown in Ukraine, its fallout is still a hot topic in some German regions, where thousands of boars shot by hunters still turn up with excessive levels of radioactivity. In fact, the numbers are higher than ever before.
Human rights group knocks 'abusive' Taliban officials
Human rights group knocks 'abusive' Taliban officials - CNN.com
"Abusive" Taliban officials, like the one who ordered the stoning of a young man and woman in northern Afghanistan, shouldn't have positions of authority after a peace deal, a Human Rights Watch official said Thursday.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Video: F*ck Tea Movement Won't Play Nice With Tea Party
F*ck Tea Movement Won't Play Nice With Tea Party - CBS News Video
As November's mid-term election approach, Progressives have taken off the gloves with an aggressive campaign called the, "F*ck Tea Movement" aimed to stop the momentum of the Tea Party. The Agenda Project's Founder Erica Payne spoke with CBS News' Jan Crawford about their mission.
Howard Dean: "Mosque" should move - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com
Howard Dean: "Mosque" should move
- Another prominent Democrat that sells out our Constitution. And Howard Dean quite takes courageous positions. But even he can't resist the march towards intolerance. Now both parties are guilty of giving in to hate.
Poll: 1 in 5 Americans thinks Obama is a Muslim
Poll: 1 in 5 Americans thinks Obama is a Muslim
- This is sad and frightening. We can thank principally the media, especially FOXNews for the disinformation. America is being dumbed-down by a press that prefers to report every outlandish claim about Obama than reporting the facts. The politicians only try to take advantage of a misinformed nation. The problem here is ignorance. And an ignorant nation cannot be great.
Plastic surgeon was texting in car before fatal crash
Plastic surgeon was texting in car before fatal crash
- Hopefully people will learn. Also, the laws need to be tightened. And is Oprah the only media person speaking out?
Transcript: 'Countdown' with Keith Olbermann (8-17-10)
Full Transcript here. Excerpt below:
Many colonists, like those who settled in Jamestown in Virginia, traveled in search of fortune, betting that the cultivation of cash crops, such as tobacco, would allow them to realize the promise in a promised land. But others, like those who landed at Plymouth Rock, hope for a different reward, sailing to the new world on the Mayflower to escape religious persecution.
Our fifth story: put aside the ginned up faux controversy surrounding the building of an Islamist community center somewhere near Ground Zero -- the non-news that Republicans want you to talk about instead of focusing upon unemployment, the Gulf oil disaster, health care.
The real actual controversy might be this: the threat to religious freedom, a threat already being faced by other Muslim Americans nationwide, and a freedom upon which this nation was founded. Those who oppose the Islamic community center near Ground Zero, being many of the same people who love to wrap themselves in the yellow parchment of our founding documents with little to no understanding of what those documents represent.
Muslim and interfaith leaders today are expressing concern that the question of religious freedom is not contained to Lower Manhattan, calling for the protection of community centers, of mosques, of other houses of worship, of Muslim Americans, and of other worshippers around the country, their fears not unfounded. Recent weeks and months witnessing an alarming rise in incidents.
Mosques now facing zoning challenges in Tennessee, in California, in Georgia, in Kentucky, in Wisconsin and in Illinois; standing room-only in a courthouse when a proposed facility in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was discussed -- as well as only miles from Ground Zero, itself, in Midland Beach in Staten Island, and Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn.
Then there`s the unmasked hatred and violence. Last week, Christians protestors confronting worshippers outside a mosque in Bridgeport, Connecticut, before Friday evening prayer services during Ramadan just because. Screaming, among other things, "Jesus hates Muslims" and calling the children murderers.
In Jacksonville, in Florida in May, the pipe bombing of the mosque -- the FBI is investigating it as a possible domestic terrorist incident.
In the San Francisco Bay Area in California, Muslim man beaten in broad daylight by attackers who called him a terrorist.
And mother and son reported assaulted after a softball game in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Why? The Iraqi immigrant who moved her family here to escape violence tried to defend her adult son when he was called "raghead," "terrorist" and "camel jockey` by members of the opposing team. Also, the man`s jaw is broken, now wired shut. The police is saying the incident seemed to be trash talking that got out of hand.
The attackers in these cases are calling their victims terrorists. The attackers meanwhile claiming they, themselves, oppose violence, while they were assaulting others.
Glenn Beck's plans for rally on a hallowed date and spot spurs countermarches
Glenn Beck's plans for rally on a hallowed date and spot spurs countermarches
Social activists and civil rights leaders, among them the Rev. Al Sharpton, are planning marches and demonstrations -- including the unveiling of a nearly four-story-tall original sculpture on the Mall -- on Aug. 28 to coincide with a rally organized by Fox News personality Glenn Beck.
Liberal Writer: Democrats Cowards for not Standing up to GOP Bigotry
The Mosque and the Democrats - The Daily Beast
Think the GOP was shameless on the "Ground Zero" mosque? The Democrats, beginning with Obama, have been utter cowards.
AP Poll: Obama at new low for handling economy
AP Poll: Obama at new low for handling economy
President Barack Obama earned his lowest marks ever on his handling of the economy in a new Associated Press-GfK poll, which also found that an overwhelming majority of Americans now describe the nation's financial outlook as poor.
In Flooded Pakistan, a Lack of Basic Supplies
In Flooded Pakistan, a Lack of Basic Supplies - NYTimes.com
With disastrous flooding threatening to spread, the United Nations acknowledged Wednesday that the shortage of the most basic supplies — shelter, food and drinking water — presented the biggest challenge for aid workers in Pakistan.
Exclusive: Mary Cheney gave $500 to anti-gay-marriage Senate hopeful
Exclusive: Mary Cheney gave $500 to anti-gay-marriage Senate hopeful
Mary Cheney, the openly gay first daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, gave hundreds of dollars in campaign contributions to a Senate candidate who opposes same-sex marriage, records show.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Time to give political analysis a rest
Time to give political analysis a rest - CNN.com
It might be time to give this kind of coverage a rest. While providing a close examination of elections is a good thing for democracy, trying to fit each contest into a dramatic tale does not strengthen our understanding of the issues shaping the nation. Rather, it produces a skewed interpretation that doesn't necessarily fit the facts.
The obsession with the horse race also takes attention away from other aspects of politics -- such as public policy concerns and long-term demographic changes -- that lack the same drama but might have much more to tell us about where the nation is headed.
Gang Leader Executed for Murdering 2 Girls
Gang Leader Executed for Murdering 2 Girls
The leader of a former gang of Houston teenagers who raped and murdered two young girls walking home from a neighborhood party 17 years ago was executed Tuesday in Texas.
- Good Riddance.
Republican Supports Mosque Then Opposes After Democat Opponent Comes out Against it
Then is becoming really bizarre and sickening. The politicians are flip-flopping all over the place over this phony controversy. Both parties are acting irresponsibly:
Republican congressional candidate Richard Hanna reversed himself Monday on the planned Lower Manhattan mosque, saying he opposed the project one week after he’d said he supported it.
Hanna’s new position came hours after U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, said he doesn’t believe the mosque should be built two blocks from the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
Israel Has Until Week's End to Strike Iran Nuclear Facility, Bolton Says
Israel Has Until Week's End to Strike Iran Nuclear Facility, Bolton Says
- If a world war breaksout it will be Israeli recklessness that precipitate it. The scenario: Israel kills Russians or Chinese citizens, accidentally. Which leads to retaliation. Then the U.S. comes to Israel's assistance.
Video: Jon Stewart Mocks Obama's Flip-Flop on the 'Ground Zero Mosque'
Stewart ('The Daily Show') puts this whole issue in perspective in a way only he and this show can do. No other commentator is more effective in putting to shame those who oppose the mosque.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Mosque-Erade | ||||
| ||||
Obama rallies for Sen. Murray as voters hit polls
Obama rallies for Sen. Murray as voters hit polls
FOXNews Show: "Would Bed Bugs Vote for Obama?"
Would Bed Bugs Vote for Obama?
- I find this headline offensive. Do you? It is reminiscent of the "Dead Monkey" article in the Murdoch owned NY Post. It is part of a pattern by FOX to demonize President Obama.
U.N.: Millions without Aid in Pakistan Floods
U.N.: Millions without Aid in Pakistan Floods - CBS News
The World Bank said Tuesday it will redirect $900 million of its existing loans to Pakistan to help in flood recovery, as the U.N. warned that many of the 20 million people affected by the disaster have yet to receive any emergency aid.
What Would George W. Bush Do About Ground Zero Mosque?
What Would George W. Bush Do About Ground Zero Mosque?
"The face of terror is not the true faith of Islam," Bush said at the Islamic Center of Washington in a speech that set the tenor for when he later sent U.S. troops to fight on Muslim soil in Afghanistan and later Iraq. "That's not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace. These terrorists don't represent peace. They represent evil and war."
He went on to say, in words that Democrats who disagreed with Bush on nearly every issue now recall fondly, that despite raw emotions, millions of American Muslims "need to be treated with respect. In our anger and emotion, our fellow Americans must treat each other with respect."
Monday, August 16, 2010
Scarborough: 'Screw' GOP if they kick me out for defending mosque
Scarborough: 'Screw' GOP if they kick me out for defending mosque
At least two prominent Republicans are going against the bulk of their party to say that Muslims have every right to build an Islamic cultural center near Ground Zero.
Monday Morning, Conservative MSNBC host Joe Scarborough found himself agreeing with former Bush advisor Mark MicKinnon that Muslims have a right to build the controversial mosque.
Senator Reid opposes NY Muslim center site
Senator Reid opposes NY Muslim center site
The U.S. Senate's senior Democrat broke with President Barack Obama on Monday over the proposed Muslim cultural center and mosque in New York City, with Senator Harry Reid saying it should be built elsewhere.
- This is shameful. It is a perfect example of what's wrong with Congress. They have no shame. Reid, involved in a tough election campaign, will say and do whatever it takes to get re-elected. It is why we need to impose voter term limits on him and every other career incumbent. If the people of Nevada know what's good for them, they should remove this slime from office. If he is willing to sell out the Constitution he will continue to sell you out, Nevadans.
Ga. scientists: Gulf oil not gone, 80 pct remains
Ga. scientists: Gulf oil not gone, 80 pct remains
Georgia scientists say their analysis shows that most of that BP oil the government said was gone from the Gulf of Mexico is still there.
NAHB spent $600,000 lobbying in second quarter
NAHB spent $600,000 lobbying in second quarter
The homebuilding industry's main trade association spent $600,000 in the second quarter lobbying Congress, the White House and several government agencies on housing, taxes, construction lending and other issues, according to a disclosure report.
Chris Christie warns GOP on mosque
Chris Christie warns GOP on mosque
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a new national icon for the Republican Party thanks in part to his push for pension reforms, on Monday became the most prominent GOP figure to warn against "overreacting" to the threat of terror and painting "all of Islam" with the brush of terrorism amid the swirling controversy about the Ground Zero-area mosque.
- A Republican politician with some decency. But then again he's not a member of Congress or running for office in November.
$110K grant kept Rev. Al Sharpton quiet about Mayor Bloomberg changing term limits
$110K grant kept Rev. Al Sharpton quiet about Mayor Bloomberg changing term limits
Two years earlier, though, Sharpton stayed mum while Bloomberg rammed through a law to extend term limits so he could run again.
Why?
Perhaps because, as the city was convulsed over term limits, Sharpton's National Action Network got a $110,000 grant from a brand-new nonprofit funded by Bloomberg.
In fact, on the very day Bloomberg announced he wanted to run again, the first $50,000 of the grant was transferred to the National Action Network.
NYTimes: The Making of Andrew Cuomo
NYTimes: The Making of Andrew Cuomo
- Governing in America has become a birthright. If you have money and/or pedigree, you are entitled. This is not why we fought for independence 200 years ago. We are a aristocracy, not a democratic republic.
Insults abound in 2010 campaigns
Insults abound in 2010 campaigns
Name-calling is a winner this campaign season. By a landslide.
Taliban 'kill adulterous Afghan couple' in marketplace
Taliban 'kill adulterous Afghan couple' in marketplace
A man and a woman who allegedly had an adulterous affair have been stoned and killed in the northern Afghan province of Kunduz.
China Overtakes Japan in 2Q as No. 2 Economy
China Overtakes Japan in 2Q as No. 2 Economy
The figures underscore China's emergence as an economic power that is changing everything from the global balance of military and financial power to how cars are designed. It is already the biggest exporter, auto buyer and steel producer, and its global influence is expanding.
- Achieved largely by exporting to the United States. Taking advantage of policies that tolerate products made with cheap and repressed labor, by companies that outsourced to China.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
GOP strategist: RNC Chairman Michael Steele has ‘failed miserably’
GOP strategist: RNC Chairman Michael Steele has ‘failed miserably’ | Raw Story
Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele is under fire from his own party once again.
But this time, he may not be getting another chance at redemption in the eyes of senior GOP leaders.
Appearing on CBS's Face the Nation on Sunday, Republican strategist Ed Rollins was asked to comment on the so-called "shadow RNC" that has sprung up to bypass Steele as the Republican party's core management. Rollins has in recent months emerged as a strong Republican critic of chairman Steele, after calling for his resignation in April.
Offspring of sperm donors seek changes so they can find their fathers more Easily
Offspring of sperm donors seek changes so they can find their fathers more easily
- This is a natural consequence of sperm donation and adoption that is never discussed. The offspring have rights. It is almost always the case that children born without not knowing who their biological parents are, want to know who they were. They should be allowed the choice to know.
Teen's Suspected Killer Beaten in Harris County Jail
Street justice should not be tolerated in a democracy, but you have to feel sympathy for the attackers of this animal. He deserves his day in court -- then execute him. That would be true justice.
A Harris County jail inmate awaiting trial for murder beat up a young illegal immigrant accused of robbing and fatally shooting a 14-year-old girl in the back as she was walking home Aug. 6.
Melvin Alvarado, 22, one of two men charged with capital murder in the death of Shatavia Anderson, was beaten Thursday evening, sustaining serious enough injuries that he required a trip to a hospital and stitches, said Alan Bernstein, with the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
Alvarado is in the U.S. illegally and has been twice deported.
Vows for Justice in NJ child Rape Falling Short
Vows for justice in NJ child rape falling short
Nearly five months later, vows for legal vengeance are falling short and officials aren't talking. Calls for justice have quieted and defense attorneys are raising questions about what happened - or didn't happen - that day.
"The case is falling apart and I think it's time to address that," said Bruce Throckmorton, the attorney for one of the juvenile defendants.
Wall St. Banker: Obama has Declared "War" on Us
President Obama and the business community have been at odds for months. But in July the chairman and cofounder of the Blackstone Group, one of the world’s largest private-equity firms, amped up the rhetoric. Stephen Schwarzman—the leading John McCain supporter in a firm that, in 2008, gave more money to Obama—was addressing board members of a nonprofit organization when he let loose. “It’s a war,” Schwarzman said of the struggle with the administration over increasing taxes on private-equity firms. “It’s like when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939.”
John Cornyn Jumps On Alvin Greene Obscenity Charges
John Cornyn Jumps On Alvin Greene Obscenity Charges
Senior Democratic operatives have long grumbled that the vast amount of media attention paid to the mercurial candidacy of South Carolina Democrat Alvin Greene is both unjustifiable and detrimental to the party. Greene, after all, had no chance of winning even before he managed to snag the Senate nomination. And yet, the homeless veteran -- who never did any formal campaigning -- has been the most covered candidate of any running for office this cycle.
On Friday, Greene was indicted on a felony charge of showing pornography to a South Carolina college student. And to the extent that voters are not aware of how odd both he and his campaign truly are, the impression can be left that it is a high-profile Democrat (not some mysterious eccentric) whose skeletons are being dragged out of the closet.
Right Wing Bloggers Name Their 25 Worst Figures In America
Right Wing Bloggers Name Their 25 Worst Figures In America
- They rank Obama above Timothy McVeigh and Aldrich Ames, as the worst.
ABC's 'This Week' Transcript: - Economic Panel (8-15-10)
Sen. Bob Corker, Martin Regalia, Laura Tyson and Jon Corzine. Plus, the 'This Week' roundtable:
AMANPOUR: Good morning. This was supposed to be the summer of recovery, but the effects of the so-called Great Recession continue to cloud this nation and much of the world. The number of U.S. workers seeking unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly to 484,000. It's the worst in almost six months. And in the housing sector, banks foreclosed on more than 90,000 properties in July, the second-highest total since the crisis began.
And these pictures speak to the desperation this week in Atlanta. Thirty thousand people waited for hours in sweltering heat to apply for 655 available spots of government-subsidized housing.
And I'm joined by four top voices on the economy. From Berkeley, California, member of the president's Economic Recovery Advisory Board Laura Tyson. From Chattanooga, Tennessee, Republican Senator Bob Corker of the Banking Committee. In New York, the former New Jersey governor and CEO of MF Global, Jon Corzine. And joining us here in Washington, chief economist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Martin Regalia.
Thank you all for joining me. You've heard the figures. You've read about the figures. You can also probably palpably feel the concern and worry amongst the American people. And I want to read you something that was written about this joblessness, about the younger generation in the Atlantic recently. Look at what was written about unemployment.
"There is unemployment -- a brief and relatively routine transitional state that results from the rise and fall of companies in any economy, and there is unemployment -- chronic, all-consuming. The former is a necessary lubricant in any engine of economic growth. The latter is a pestilence that slowly eats away at people, families, and, if it spreads widely enough, the fabric of society. Indeed, history suggests that this is perhaps society's most noxious ill."
Let me turn to you right now, Martin Regalia. Do you agree with that? And do you think that that's what this country is in right now?
Petraeus cites Bush-era shortcomings in Afghanistan
Petraeus cites Bush-era shortcomings in Afghanistan
U.S. military leaders inherited a faulty strategy for the war in Afghanistan at the end of the Bush administration and are still working to “refine the concepts,” the U.S. commander said in an interview airing Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
In his first interview since taking over as head of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus told NBC’s David Gregory that when “a lot of us came out of Iraq in late 2008 and started looking intently at Afghanistan, we realized that we did not have the organizations that are required for the conduct and the comprehensive civil/military counterinsurgency campaign.”
North Jersey opposition threatens Christie plan for Atlantic City
North Jersey opposition threatens Christie plan for Atlantic City
In 2014, the Meadowlands complex in East Rutherford, N.J., will host the Super Bowl.
By then, if North Jersey lawmakers have their way in Trenton, it could also house a new world-class casino - something South Jersey lawmakers and Atlantic City's struggling gambling halls are adamantly against.
Growing vitriol between North and South over where to put casinos threatens to derail Gov. Christie's plan to overhaul Atlantic City and salvage New Jersey's hemorrhaging gaming industry.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Hunt for 'new Bonnie and Clyde' goes global
Is pop music sexualising our children?
Is pop music sexualising our children?
The debate: music journalist Victoria Segal and feminist blogger Laurie Penny debate the effects of pop music on children, in the wake of record producer Mike Stock's comment that most R&B videos are like soft porn.
'Sharon was Kahane killer's target'
'Sharon was Kahane killer's target'
The man who killed Meir Kahane in 1990 claims he did not carry out the shooting alone, as previously thought, but was part of a three-man terrorist cell with links to al-Qaida. Its original target was future prime minister Ariel Sharon, according to a newly-leaked US government document.
Taliban takes hold in once-peaceful northern Afghanistan
Taliban takes hold in once-peaceful northern Afghanistan
In squads of roaring dirt bikes, armed to the teeth, Taliban fighters are spreading like a brush fire into remote and defenseless villages across northern Afghanistan.
The fighters swarm into town, assemble the villagers and announce Taliban control, often at night and without any resistance.
With most Afghan and NATO troops stationed in the country's south and east, villagers who stand in the path of the Taliban advance into the once-peaceful north say they are powerless and terrified, confused by the government's inability to prevail -- and ready to side with the insurgents to save their own lives.
"How did the Taliban get into every village?" asked Israel Arbah, from his mud hut in the Shah Qassim village of Faryab province. "They are everywhere. And they are moving very fast. To tell you honestly, I am really, really afraid."
N.Y. flight attendant wants to return to air
N.Y. flight attendant wants to return to air
- This is a great example of media overkill and sensationalism. Anything out of the ordinary (boy bites dog story) becomes a major news event. Our country is on the verge of collapse and we are debating something as trivial as a flight attendant acting up.
Video: Record-Breaking Heat Brings Storms, Floods
The embed code for this ABC video says "video is no longer available." You can see it at this link.
- This ABC video reports that 2010 is on track to become the hottest year on record in 2010.
Obama Strongly Backs Islam Center Near 9/11 Site
Obama Strongly Backs Islam Center Near 9/11 Site
- Finally, he takes a principled position on an issue.
U.N. says no aid yet for 6 million flood victims in Pakistan
U.N. says no aid yet for 6 million flood victims in Pakistan
United Nations aid agencies have provided assistance to hundreds of thousands of victims of Pakistan's worst floods in decades but relief operations have yet to reach an estimated six million people.
Spending dips at most retailers in July
Spending dips at most retailers in July
Americans spent less at most retail stores in July and inflation remained tame as high unemployment and weak job growth fueled fears of a slowing economic recovery.
In weekly address, Obama returns to campaign chestnut: Warning of threat to Social Security
In weekly address, Obama returns to campaign chestnut: Warning of threat to Social Security
Reviving a scare tactic that Democrats have used before, President Obama said in his radio address Saturday that "some Republican leaders in Congress" want to privatize Social Security.
But GOP leaders are not pressing for privatization. The idea proved so unpopular when President George W. Bush proposed it in 2004 that Congress, then led by Republicans, never took it up. The concept lives on in a budget proposal by Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.), the senior Republican on the House Budget Committee, but only a handful of GOP lawmakers have signed on to that measure. And, in the aftermath of the worst shock to the financial system since the Great Depression, many Republican lawmakers would just as soon see the idea forgotten.
Radio Host Convicted of Threatening Judges
Radio Host Convicted of Threatening Judges
A right-wing Internet radio host was convicted on Friday by a federal jury in Brooklyn of threatening three federal judges who had issued a ruling he disagreed with.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Drug Industry Weighs Allegiance
Drug Industry Weighs Allegiance
- It's all about lobbies. They rule Washington.
Details on stabbing suspect's capture
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/13/michigan.serial.stabbing.arrest/
- If he had been Arab there would have been media outrage, especially from Fox
Transcript: 'Morning Joe' (8-12-10)
Full transcript. Excerpt below:
SCARBOROUGH: By the way, this will shock you, Barnicle. Paul Krugman, the Nobel Prize winner, "New York Times" columnist weighed in on this last night and he described, this is going to shock you. He described Robert Gibbs actions as, quote, "stupid."
BARNICLE: I`ve never heard him say that word about anything or anyone that`s so unlike Professor Krugman.
SCARBOROUGH: I scanned it and say where he is going to say stupid, stupid, stupid. It was the fifth paragraph.
BARNICLE: Stupid, scan the page and it pops up.
JANSING: Which roughly describes apparently how most of America feels about every single person in Washington.
SCARBOROUGH: The polls yesterday that came out.
JANSING: Unbelievable. I don`t remember anything like this. The new NBC News/"Wall Street Journal" polls showing things, let`s say, not looking good for the president, for Republicans, for Democrats, Congress as a whole.
When asked as a country is better off since Barack Obama became president, just 31 percent thought the country is faring better and 68 percent said it was worse off or the same.
When asked what issues the president has fallen short on the top answers were reducing government spending, cutting the budget deficit, the economy.
Americans were split on Obama`s overall job performance, 47 percent approving and 48 percent disapproving. The Democratic Party also hit a record high in their negative ratings, 44 percent to 33 percent positive.
It`s even worse for the Republicans, 46 percent of the country has a negative view of the GOP, 24 percent a positive view. As for the job Congress is doing, an overwhelming majority, 72 percent disapproved, only 21 percent say Congress is doing a good job.
SCARBOROUGH: Chris, I don`t know where to start, Halpern and I were talking about this yesterday. Willie, usually it`s a zero sum game. If you have the party in power, the Republicans are in the White House.
Their approval ratings go down, Democrat numbers go up. But the Democratic Party`s numbers have gone down and the Republican Party`s numbers have gone down even more.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a messed up scale where both sides are going down. The question is what does that mean for the presumption that Democrats are going to get wiped out in the fall? If the Republicans are as unpopular as they are, what does that mean for the elections?
SCARBOROUGH: That`s the big question, and, Mike, that`s is what we are trying to figure out and nobody knows because this is unchartered territory.
Halpern here yesterday was saying they could lose 50, 55 seats. If so, right now, according to the American people, Republicans would be beating something with nothing.
Transcript: 'Countdown' (8-12-10)
Olbermann destroy's Gingrich's argument on unemployed insurance being for lazy people:
OLBERMANN: But now, as we mentioned, Republicans have targeted one individual American who`s struggling to make ends meet and held him up as part of the problem. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich writing yesterday, quote, "The extension of unemployment benefits has given people a perverse incentive to stay on unemployment rather than accept a job."
He continued "`The Wall Street Journal` quotes an engineer who admits he turned down more than a dozen offers because the salary would have been less than he made on welfare. This story encapsulates the problem of the long-term unemployed, the depth and length of this recession is at risk of creating a permanent pool of unemployed Americans who get so used to being unproductive that they are willing to accept welfare indefinitely instead of taking a job."
The man who turned down those offers will tell his own side of the story in just a minute and the reasons for turning down a job are not always as simple as Mr. Gingrich is.
"The Journal" interviewed Rick Helliwell about his company`s difficulty finding people, quote, "The jobs require a little more than a high school diploma and fluency in English. They include free accommodation of medical care and starting pay of about $30,000 a year. Mr. Helliwell speculates that Americans might be hesitant to move to Dubai where the jobs are based."
Speculates -- you might add other possible reasons for giving up a job, such as -- saving the country, or because Republicans thought you unfit to work.
This as "The New York Times" reports that yet another Republican politician, South Carolina`s Governor Mark Sanford, has been approved by the Department of Labor to accept stimulus money targeted to expanding that state`s unemployment benefits -- an expansion Governor Sanford once predicted would cause tax increases, but which now appears to have embraced wholeheartedly -- he now appears to have done so -- signing the bill two months ago, expanding those unemployment benefits for his state to the tune of $98 million.
Governor Sanford joining the ranks of other Republican governors who once denounced such stimulus spending before they embraced it, such as Dave Heineman of Nebraska and Georgia`s Sonny Perdue.
But despite the rush of Republicans to embrace the stimulus, most of America seems to have forgotten that it was their party, not President Obama`s, that bailed out Wall Street banks. A new poll finding that more Americans, 47 percent, think President Obama signed the Troubled Asset Relief Program, TARP, into law, only 34 percent know it was actually, shh, President Bush who did it.
And now, as promised, COUNTDOWN exclusive, the man singled out by former Speaker Gingrich, because he in Gingrich`s words, admits he turned down more than a dozen offers because the salary would have been less than he made on welfare, Mike Hatchell joining us from his home in Lumberton, North Carolina, along with his wife, Sara.
Pentagon Cautions WikiLeaks Over 'New Documents'
Pentagon Cautions WikiLeaks Over 'New Documents'
The Pentagon has told WikiLeaks it would be the "height of irresponsibility" if it went through with a new threat to publish outstanding documents it had on the Afghan war.
Amid news reports that WikiLeaks plans to soon release about 15,000 documents it had held back last month, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell repeated a U.S. demand for the whistleblower site to expunge all classified material from the Internet and return the material it had to the U.S. government.
Video: Dr. Laura Apologizes for Using N-word
"Talk radio host Dr. Laura Schlessinger has issued an apology for saying the N-word several times during an on-air conversation with a caller this week."
Hispanic Voters Must Be the “Professional Left” Too
From FireDogLake:
When White House press secretary Robert Gibbs excoriated government critics (“the professional left”) for being ungrateful SOB’s considering all that this administration has done for them, he wasn’t acting as a lone wolf. It’s a refrain that has oft been uttered by this White House, from Rahm Emanuel’s “f*#@ing r&#tards” to “top Obama advisors” who vent to Politico about an “elite group of commentators on the left.”
Roger Simon defends Gibbs this morning, and I have no doubt he’s right when he says he believes “the president agrees with Gibbs and was neither angered nor disappointed by Gibbs’s statements, which came not in the heat of his daily briefing but in the cool of his West Wing office.“
But with the public’s approval ratings of Congress at near-historic lows and not budging, it’s hard to see how this could be the fault of a couple of bloggers nobody has heard of. More likely, it’s the result of constituencies who aren’t happy with symbolic gestures while the government’s priority is to battle for the dollars of big corporate donors.
According to Gallup, Obama’s approval ratings among Hispanics has dropped 20 points this year. They note that “the two major drops in Hispanics’ approval of Obama this year — in February and May — coincide with two periods when the president was under fire for not doing enough to promote comprehensive immigration reform in Congress.”
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Narco-Blogger Beats Mexico Drug War news Blackout
Proof of the role blogging can play in society:
An anonymous, twentysomething blogger is giving Mexicans what they can't get elsewhere — an inside view of their country's raging drug war.
Operating from behind a thick curtain of computer security, Blog del Narco in less than six months has become Mexico's go-to Internet site at a time when mainstream media are feeling pressure and threats to stay away from the story.
Showcase Afghan Army Mission Turns Into Debacle
http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?r3056857095&f=378
- What else would you expect. The whole war is a debacle. The Taliban is just bidding it's time.
NRA Instructor Shoots Student: What Can We Learn?
This article exposes the myths about the need for handguns in America:
When an NRA safety instructor accidentally shoots a student in one of his classes, is it a teachable moment about guns in America?
But as to guns in the home, we know that for every time they are used in a self-defense shooting, there are four unintentional shootings (as well as seven criminal assaults and eleven attempted or completed suicides). For those who carry guns in public, the benefits are demonstrably not worth the risk. A recent study shows that individuals in actual possession of a gun are over four times more likely to be shot in an assault than persons not in possession of a gun. The research also reveals no evidence that making it easier for people to carry concealed guns reduces crime; indeed, its effect has been to increase aggravated assault.
Obama, Republicans, and polls -- bad numbers all around
Time for real change in America. Here's your chance. Don't vote for career incumbents. 10 and out!
There's some bad news for President Obama in a new poll, but also some bad news for his Republican opponents.
According to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 52% of Americans disapprove of Obama's handling of the economy. By a 45-44% margin, they now disapprove of his handling of the Afghanistan war. Also, 40% say the country is worse off since he became president, while only 31% think we're better off.
The Rand Paul Kidnapping Story Deflates
The Rand Paul Kidnapping Story Deflates
Now, Paul's alleged victim is speaking out and any allegations of kidnapping seem pretty far fetched. In an interview with the Washington Post, the woman said "The whole thing has been blown out of proportion... They didn't force me, they didn't make me... I went along because they were my friends." Her clarification didn't make a huge splash but some took notice:
- The media went along with a smear of a political candidate who is politically incorrect. The establishment views Paul as a threat. And I'm no fan of his or his dad.
New jobless claims near a six-month high
New jobless claims near a six-month high
New applications for unemployment insurance rose last week to their highest level in almost six months, the latest evidence that some employers are still cutting their staffs.
First-time claims for jobless benefits edged up by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 484,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts had expected a drop. That's the highest total since February.
Term Limits Back to Voters
The politicians want to return what they stole from us. What's to stop them in the future? NYers should vote out every council member that voted to overthrow the will of the people in the last election.
New York City voters will have the opportunity on Election Day in November to restore a law that prohibits elected officials from serving more than two four-year terms, the city's Charter Revision Commission decided Wednesday night.
But in a move that may infuriate the public, the commission voted to approve a so-called grandfather clause to allow all sitting council members to serve a maximum of three terms, even if the electorate decides this fall to restore a cap on two terms.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Dollar Drops to 15-Year Low Against the Yen
http://feeds.foxnews.com/~r/foxnews/national/~3/P2BI7mh-R0Q/
- On the road to becoming a third world nation.
Gunmen kill 8-year-old Chicago girl as she plays
Gunmen kill 8-year-old Chicago girl as she plays
Another shooting of a child in Chicago. And still nothing from Chicagoan Barack Obama.
'The Daily Show' Video: No Mosques in My Neighborhood
Jon Stewart exposes the stupidity of the anti-Mosque movement in America, including New York. He shows the ignorance of the argument by those opposing building a Mosque on 'hallowed ground.' And how the nation of freedom of religion is trying to deny that right Muslims in America. No one has done a better job than putting this issue in context than TDS...using humor, in the process.
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