Saturday, September 27, 2008
First Presidential Debate
On the economy, even though you may not have expected it, I believe McCain did much better than Obama. Obama, unlike McCain, began by stating that the current fincancial crisis is the worst "since the Great Depression." In fact, it is currently better than it was in the recession of the late 1980's.
Moderator Jim Lehrer asked the candidates again and again about how they would adjust their campaign agendas given the fact that they both supported a bailout in some form. McCain finally responded conclusively, "how about a spending freeze on everything but defense, veterans and entitlements?" Obama said that "the problem with a spending freeze is using a hatchet when you need a scalpel" and started talking about early childhood education. In other words, if you clear the fog, McCain actually offered an answer to the question and Obama did not. There is no other way of looking at it. Furthermore, McCain claimed that Obama was for earmarks and Obama claimed that he had suspended his earmark requests. McCain pointed out that Obama had requested over $932 million in earmarks and that his suspension of earmark requests only began once Obama began running for president. Obama had absolutely no response other than to evade this issue.
McCain pointed out that Obama's proposed programs, such as universal health care and more, would require a large increase in taxes in a time of economic crisis. Obama had no real response other than to claim that McCain was not being honest. But Obama never once explained how with his unwillingess to specify any government program he would cut along with his insistence on the drastic expansion of government, he would not have to impose higher taxes. Obama claims in the debate that %95 of Americans would recieve a tax break. Obama never once explained how only "the rich," what he admits to be anyone making above $250,000, would alone be able to pay for the large growth of government that he proposes.
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McCain Ad Focuses On Obama Agreeing With McCain At First Presidential Debate
The ad is entitled "McCain Is Right":
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House Republicans Stand Up To White House And Democrat Congress On The Bailout
John Boehnor is a good man is all I can say.
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Friday, September 26, 2008
Iran Publishes Holocaust Denial Book As Part Of Quds (Jerusalem) Day
The following is the AFP article in its entirety, and I quoted the whole thing because it is worth reading from beginning to end:
Iranians chanted "Death to Israel" on Friday as Islamist students unveiled a book mocking the Holocaust in an Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day annual parade to show solidarity with the Palestinians. And in Gaza City, the Islamist Hamas movement that has ruled the impoverished Palestinian territory since June 2007 marked the day by calling for more suicide attacks on Israel. The book "Holocaust," published by members of Iran's Islamist Basij militia, features dozens of cartoons and sarcastic commentary.
Education Minister Alireza Ali-Ahmadi attended the official launch of the book in Tehran's Palestine Square. The cover shows a Jew with a crooked nose and dressed in traditional garb drawing outlines of dead bodies on the ground. Inside, bearded Jews are shown leaving and re-entering a gas chamber with a counter that reads the number 5,999,999. Another illustration depicts Jewish prisoners entering a furnace in a Nazi extermination camp and leaving from the other side as gun-wielding "terrorists." Yet another shows a patient draped in an Israeli flag and on life support breathing Zyklon-B, the poisonous gas used in the extermination chambers. Iran does not recognise the Jewish state, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has attracted international condemnation by repeatedly predicting Israel is doomed to disappear and branding the Holocaust a "myth." The commentary inside the book includes anti-Semitic stereotypes and revisionist arguments, casting doubt that the massacre of Jews took place and mocking Holocaust survivors who claimed reparations after World War II. One comment, in a question-and-answer format, reads: "How did the Germans emit gas into chambers while there were no holes on the ceiling?" Answer: "Shut up, you criminal anti-Semite. How dare you ask this question?" In 2006, the Islamic republic hosted a conference of Holocaust deniers and revisionists and a mass-circulation Iranian newspaper held a cartoon competition on the subject.
On Friday, tens of thousands of Iranians marched in Tehran, chanting "Death to Israel," declaring solidarity with the Palestinians and calling for Jerusalem and Israel to be handed to the Palestinians. Demonstrators carried placards bearing slogans including "Israel will be destroyed, Palestine is Victorious" and "Holy war until victory," and they also torched American and Israeli flags.
In Gaza, a Hamas parliamentarian called for more suicide attacks against Israel as thousands of Palestinians marched to mark Al-Quds Day. "We call on all the factions to undertake efforts to contain the enemy and halt its aggression by planning martyrdom operations," Ahmed Abu Helbiya told a crowd of more than 2,000 protesters.
Friday's Iran protest follows a fresh verbal attack on Israel by Ahmadinejad. In an address to the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, he said "the Zionist regime is on a definite slope to collapse and there is no way for it to get out of the cesspool created by itself and its supporters."
Quds Day was started by the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic republic, who called on the world's Muslims to show solidarity with Palestinians on the last Friday of the fasting month of Ramadan. The demonstration was held under an official slogan: "The Islamic world will not recognise the fake Zionist regime under any circumstances and believes that this cancerous tumour will one day be wiped off the face of the earth." 
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Thursday, September 25, 2008
Talk Radio Rants: Bill O'reilly Vs. Mark Levin
Bill O'reilly slammed right-wing radio in an angry rant on his show "The Radio Factor."
Mark Levin hit back at O'reilly and hit back hard:
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Fox News Once Again Exposing The Democrats On The Financial Mess
Just in case you think Fox News is just part of the vast right-wing conspiracy, allow me to point out that none other than former President Bill Clinton made the same point in an interview this week.
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David Letterman Rails Against John McCain For Nine Minutes
With some help from Keith Olbermann, by the way.
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Bill Clinton Says McCain Acting In "Good Faith" And Points Out That McCain Has Always Wanted More Debates With Obama
Giving Bill Clinton credit where credit is due for telling the truth when he could have employed partisan spin.
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Wednesday, September 24, 2008
John McCain Suspends Campaign To Go Back To Washington While Congress Faces The Financial Crisis
McCain is returning to Washington to push for action on the financial mess. He also calls on Obama to return to Washington to help resolve the financial crisis. McCain says that if action is not taken to deal with the financial crisis that the first presidential debate that was scheduled for Friday night should be postponed. See for yourself:
Meanwhile, President Bush spoke today and warned that "without immediate action by Congress, America could slip into a financial panic and a distressing scenario would unfold." Take a look:
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Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Sarah Palin Sits Down With First Of Nine International Leaders
Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan is first of nine major international leaders that Sarah Palin is scheduled to meet with in the span of thirty hours. Here Karzai and Palin are actually talking about Karzai's only son born in January 2007. Reporters were then asked to leave so they did not get to record the conversations about what is going on in Afghanistan.
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Katie Couric Asks McCain And Obama To "Describe A Situation When You Think It's Appropriate To Lie To The American People"
Wait a minute, you mean covering up an affair with an intern in the oval office is not a reason to lie to the American people? I thought you were allowed to lie if it was "only sex." Goes to show how much I know.
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Former U.S. Ambassador To The United Nations John Bolton On Mahmoud Ahmadenijad's Speech To The U.N.
Here is Ambassador Bolton on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad's speech at the United Nations in New York:
Here another appearance of John Bolton on Hannity & Colmes in which he discusses Sarah Palin's disinvitation from an anti-Iran rally that took place after Hillary had backed out in unwillingness to share the stage with Palin.
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Monday, September 22, 2008
SNL Makes Joke About Todd Palin Having Sex With His Daughters
The incest jokes come once at the beginning and again at the end. It has evoked outrage from many conservatives. That is understandable. In fairness to Saturday Night Live, the context was making fun of the New York Times and how out of touch they are.
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Joe Biden Says He Thought The Ad That Mocked McCain's Computer Skills "Was Terrible"
Joe Biden told Katie Couric that the Democrat advertisement "was terrible." Of course, the ad ended with "I'm Barack Obama and I approve this message." The ad mocked McCain for being old and poked fun at his computer skills. A simple google search revealed that due to McCain's Vietnam injuries he finds it painful to use a keyboard for any extended period of time. Even Joe Biden can be right some of the time. Barack Obama's ad was "terrible."
Joe Biden's moment of wisdom comes about 4 minutes into the segment.
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Bill Clinton On The View
Bill Clinton essentially says that it is not our place to begrudge why people vote for a specific candidate and that it is legitimate to vote for Palin because she is a women. I do not mind if someone votes for McCain-Palin so that a women is vice president, and I recognize that if Barack Obama were the first black president that would also be a major achievement in terms of breaking barriers. I do not, however, think identity politics should be the sole reason you vote for a candidate. It is shallow and it means you cannot look beneath the surface. Gender or race should not be more important than the issues and the records of the candidates. If a candidate is black or female but I disagree with them, I am certainly not going to vote for them anyway on that basis.
You have to give credit to Bill Clinton because he was given a chance to join the liberal media and political pinheads to beat up on Sarah Palin and he did not take the bait.
Here is Bill Clinton saying that Hillary is just loving her job as a U.S. Senator. Tell that to the judge. He also says Hillary did "not really" want to be Obama's VP.
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National Rifle Association Releases Four Ads Against Obama
"Way Of Life":
"Veteran":
"Hunter":
Joe Biden and "Pennsylvania Values":
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Text Of Anti-Iran Speech That Sarah Palin Did Not Have A Chance To Deliver
Sarah Palin was supposed to deliver a speech at an rally against Iran as the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad was set to visit the United Nations in New York. Hillary Clinton was also invited to speak but she backed out upon hearing that Palin would be attending. After Hillary backed out, Democrats pressured and threatened the organizers to disinvite Palin. The organizers of the rally then disinivited political figures including Palin.
It is a shame that she did not have the opportunity to deliver this great speech because of the bullying of Democrats. This is the text of the speech she was to deliver:
I am honored to be with you and with leaders from across this great country - leaders from different faiths and political parties united in a single voice of outrage.
Tomorrow, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will come to New York - to the heart of what he calls the Great Satan - and speak freely in this, a country whose demise he has called for.
Ahmadinejad may choose his words carefully, but underneath all of the rhetoric is an agenda that threatens all who seek a safer and freer world. We gather here today to highlight the Iranian dictator's intentions and to call for action to thwart him.
He must be stopped.
The world must awake to the threat this man poses to all of us. Ahmadinejad denies that the Holocaust ever took place. He dreams of being an agent in a "Final Solution" - the elimination of the Jewish people. He has called Israel a "stinking corpse" that is "on its way to annihilation."
Such talk cannot be dismissed as the ravings of a madman -not when Iran just this summer tested long-range Shahab-3 missiles capable of striking Tel Aviv, not when the Iranian nuclear program is nearing completion, and not when Iran sponsors terrorists that threaten and kill innocent people around the world.
The Iranian government wants nuclear weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency reports that Iran is running at least 3,800 centrifuges and that its uranium enrichment capacity is rapidly improving. According to news reports, U.S. intelligence agencies believe the Iranians may have enough nuclear material to produce a bomb within a year.
The world has condemned these activities. The United Nations Security Council has demanded that Iran suspend its illegal nuclear enrichment activities. It has levied three rounds of sanctions. How has Ahmadinejad responded? With the declaration that the "Iranian nation would not retreat one iota" from its nuclear program.
So, what should we do about this growing threat? First, we must succeed in Iraq. If we fail there, it will jeopardize the democracy the Iraqis have worked so hard to build, and empower the extremists in neighboring Iran. Iran has armed and trained terrorists who have killed our soldiers in Iraq, and it is Iran that would benefit from an American defeat in Iraq.
If we retreat without leaving a stable Iraq, Iran's nuclear ambitions will be bolstered. If Iran acquires nuclear weapons, they could share them tomorrow with the terrorists they finance, arm, and train today. Iranian nuclear weapons would set off a dangerous regional nuclear arms race that would make all of us less safe.
But Iran is not only a regional threat; it threatens the entire world. It is the no. 1 state sponsor of terrorism. It sponsors the world's most vicious terrorist groups, Hamas and Hezbollah. Together, Iran and its terrorists are responsible for the deaths of Americans in Lebanon in the 1980s, in Saudi Arabia in the 1990s, and in Iraq today. They have murdered Iraqis, Lebanese, Palestinians, and other Muslims who have resisted Iran's desire to dominate the region. They have persecuted countless people simply because they are Jewish.
Iran is responsible for attacks not only on Israelis, but on Jews living as far away as Argentina. Anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial are part of Iran's official ideology and murder is part of its official policy. Not even Iranian citizens are safe from their government's threat to those who want to live, work, and worship in peace. Politically-motivated abductions, torture, death by stoning, flogging, and amputations are just some of its state-sanctioned punishments.
It is said that the measure of a country is the treatment of its most vulnerable citizens. By that standard, the Iranian government is both oppressive and barbaric. Under Ahmadinejad's rule, Iranian women are some of the most vulnerable citizens.
If an Iranian woman shows too much hair in public, she risks being beaten or killed. If she walks down a public street in clothing that violates the state dress code, she could be arrested.
But in the face of this harsh regime, the Iranian women have shown courage. Despite threats to their lives and their families, Iranian women have sought better treatment through the "One Million Signatures Campaign Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws." The authorities have reacted with predictable barbarism. Last year, women's rights activist Delaram Ali was sentenced to 20 lashes and 10 months in prison for committing the crime of "propaganda against the system." After international protests, the judiciary reduced her sentence to "only" 10 lashes and 36 months in prison and then temporarily suspended her sentence. She still faces the threat of imprisonment.
Earlier this year, Senator Clinton said that "Iran is seeking nuclear weapons, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is in the forefront of that" effort. Senator Clinton argued that part of our response must include stronger sanctions, including the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization. John McCain and I could not agree more.
Senator Clinton understands the nature of this threat and what we must do to confront it. This is an issue that should unite all Americans. Iran should not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. Period. And in a single voice, we must be loud enough for the whole world to hear: Stop Iran!
Only by working together, across national, religious, and political differences, can we alter this regime's dangerous behavior. Iran has many vulnerabilities, including a regime weakened by sanctions and a population eager to embrace opportunities with the West. We must increase economic pressure to change Iran's behavior.
Tomorrow, Ahmadinejad will come to New York. On our soil, he will exercise the right of freedom of speech - a right he denies his own people. He will share his hateful agenda with the world. Our task is to focus the world on what can be done to stop him.
We must rally the world to press for truly tough sanctions at the U.N. or with our allies if Iran's allies continue to block action in the U.N. We must start with restrictions on Iran's refined petroleum imports. We must reduce our dependency on foreign oil to weaken Iran's economic influence. We must target the regime's assets abroad; bank accounts, investments, and trading partners.
President Ahmadinejad should be held accountable for inciting genocide, a crime under international law.
We must sanction Iran's Central Bank and the Revolutionary Guard Corps -which no one should doubt is a terrorist organization. Together, we can stop Iran's nuclear program.
Senator McCain has made a solemn commitment that I strongly endorse: Never again will we risk another Holocaust. And this is not a wish, a request, or a plea to Israel's enemies. This is a promise that the United States and Israel will honor, against any enemy who cares to test us. It is John McCain's promise and it is my promise.
Thank you.
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Jerusalem Terror Attack Wounds 10
The Jerusalem Post reports:
"Ten people were wounded - one seriously, two moderately and seven lightly - on Monday night in a terror attack at a busy Jerusalem intersection...The driver was shot and killed by citizens, according to Israel Radio and rescue services...
Monday's attack was the third of its kind since July - where a terrorist used a vehicle as a weapon rather than a gun or a bomb. In late July, an Arab bulldozer driver from east Jerusalem rammed his construction vehicle into a city bus and several cars on a central thoroughfare in the capital, wounding 15 people before being shot dead by a Druse border police officer and a civilian passerby."
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Sunday, September 21, 2008
NY Times Article On Amazing Successes Of The Surge
"Back in Iraq, Jarred by the Calm," by Dexter Filkins, September 20, 2008:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/weekinreview/21filkins.html?ref=world&pagewanted=all
Even the New York Times is recognizing the amazing effects the surge has had on Iraq. The article is long, but it is well worth reading.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden voted against this surge. John McCain and George Bush were behind it from the beginning. Obama is right that good judgment counts. He is wrong that he has displayed any.
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Fake News Alert: Obama Campaigns On Platform Of "Shi**y Jobs For America"
Warning: Excessive use of the word Sh*t
Obama Promises To Stop America's Shitty Jobs From Going Overseas
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Ralph Nader Interviewed By Triumph The Comic Insult Dog
Give Nader credit for having a sense of humor:
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Palin Disinvited As Speaker At Anti-Ahmadenijad Rally After Pressure And Threats From Democrats Against The Rally Organizers
This story is disgusting and outrageous, the Democrats have no more shame left. Simply because Hillary Clinton was also invited to the rally but refused to speak because she did not want to share a stage with Sarah Palin, the Democrats went in full swing using any and every tactic to make sure Palin would not be on that stage. They even threatened to have the IRS look into the nonpartisan group organizing the rally, to investigate their tax exempt status if Palin was not disinvited. This is so obviously wrong that even Democrats are embarrassed. We have a right to know which thugs were the ones that threatened the nonpartisan group. This political gangsterism must not go unanswered. These bullies need to be exposed and shamed before the American people. This is inexcusable.
New York's CBS 2 reports that say the "decision to disinvite Palin from the high profile rally after Clinton pulled out in a huff came as the result of intense pressure from Democrats. 'This is insulting. This is embarrassing, especially to Gov. Palin, to me and I think it should be to every single New Yorker,' Assemblyman Dov Hikind, D-Brooklyn, told CBS 2 HD. Sources say the axes were out for Palin as soon as Sen. Clinton pulled out because she did not want to attend the same event as the Republican vice presidential candidate...
The groups sponsoring the rally against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaking at the UN were reportedly told, 'it could jeopardize their tax exempt status' if they had Palin and not Clinton or Democratic VP candidate Joe Biden on hand. So all politicians were disinvited, most prominently, Palin. 'It's an absolute shame that this has happened,' Hikind said. 'To threaten organizations … to threaten the Conference of Presidents that if you don't withdraw the invitation to Gov. Palin we're going to look into your tax exempt status … that's McCarthyism.' Another Jewish group tried to step into the breach by inviting Palin to a different protest a day earlier. 'I'm absolutely appalled at the behavior of the Democrats," said Bob Kunst of Defenders.net. 'I'm a Democrat and for the first time in my life I'm going to vote Republican. I can't take it anymore.'...
As for Sen. Clinton, she brushed right past CBS 2 HD's Lou Young when he tried to ask her about the issue on Thursday night. "
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Democratic Senate Candidate And "Comedian" Al Franken Helps Create Anti-McCain Opening 'SNL' Skit
Al Franken, the Democrat candidate running against Senator Norm Coleman in Minnesota, helped craft an anti-McCain opening segment for Saturday Night Live this week. Politico reports that Franken helped create "the opening sketch mocking John McCain that kicked off the NBC comedy show Saturday, according to two well-placed sources inside the network. Franken, who hasn’t been a staff writer on the show for 13 years, 'phoned in' a spoof of McCain recording campaign ads in an edit booth, said an NBC source. Seth Meyers, the show’s current head writer, wrote it, but the sketch was hatched by Franken, a longtime liberal satirist and comedian." Franken's spokeswoman "admitted Franken had a role in Saturday's program."
The skit is not even funny, it is a biased and partisan smear on John McCain that ignores that Barack Obama is running ads every bit as nasty. Did they miss the Spanish ad this week in which Obama took Rush Limbaugh's words very far out of context and then unbelievably linked them to John McCain with the clear message that he was a racist against Hispanics? Yet McCain is the one running ads that use race as an issue? Did they miss the ad attacking McCain for being old and not using e-mail? Give me a break. Apparently the prophet from Chicago can do no wrong. This skit has the mark of Al Franken all over it.
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