Sunday, November 07, 2010

Good night, Moon.

Incumbent Republicans will seek to discredit the past two years of the Obama administration, will try to defund the government in grandstanding for political purposes and ultimately try to defame President Obama in trials that would satisfy the Birthers.

Will the problems of the country get solved? 

No.  

Because it works in their best interest to pretend to be helpless and seek to return a majority Republican OCCUPATION of the Senate and White House in 2012.

So the Senate may just as well consider any more measures coming from the House a waste of time and simply seek to pass those that are already WAITING for attention. 

There won't be any legislation coming from the House that will solve anything. but, there will be plenty of House hearings to spend time and money on politics rather than solutions.  Oh.  I forgot.  Politics for the Republicans are solutions.

Survey reveals the world's most flirtatious women. I thought this might go over well with the Hispanic folks.

I thought I'd throw this one in here, because, it is at least as relevant as anything the newly minted House members have to say.

 Actually.  More relevant.

Spain's bronze medalist Mercedes Peris Minguet poses after the women's 50m backstroke final at the European Swimming Championships in Budapest on August 14, 2010. AFP PHOTO / DANIEL MIHAILESCU (Photo credit should read DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images)

11:45 AM Wednesday Nov 3, 2010


...Spanish women are the most likely to "make the first move" with a man, according to the social network Badoo.com, which studied "flirtation behaviour" based on 90 million romantic contacts made on its site in a month...

The vertiage is "They are going after..." The Provisions in the Health Care Bill.- COVERT COMMITTEE AGENDAS

"I think that it's a mandate for Washington to reduce the size of government and continue our fight for smaller, less costly and more accountable government," Boehner said.

Okay.  How about a pay cut to begin with.  I think all the Republicans elected to cut the cost of government can do that by taking a pay cut and paying for their own health care. 

How about that as a GREAT beginning to a Republican - Tea Bagger House?  Everyone of them can take a salary cut and pay for their own health care.  Set an example to the fiscal discipline they personally practice.

Boehner Urges American People to Help Defeat Health Care (click title to entry - thank you)

By Daniel Newhauser 

Roll Call Staff 

March 20, 2010, 6:00 a.m.

House Minority Leader John Boehner (Ohio) used the weekly GOP radio address on Saturday to continue his party's attacks on Democrats over health care reform, accusing the majority of using strong-arm tactics and imploring the American people to help defeat the effort....

? return of the bush tax cuts ?

We already know the upper crust of the country is not increasing jobs in the market place.  Why would this make a difference and the Republicans have yet to provide DATA that it would.

...Permanent cuts would bust the budget. Extending all of them would cost nearly $4 trillion over the next decade — $3.2 trillion for the so-called middle-class cuts and $700 billion for the richest Americans. There is no plausible level of spending cuts to offset the damage; the result would be chronic deficits and debilitating debt.
That is why we believe that for the sake of fiscal sanity any extensions of the Bush tax cuts must be temporary and focused on spurring consumer spending while the economy is weak. We support a one- or two-year extension of the cuts for low-, middle-, and upper-middle-income taxpayers, who spend most of their income.
Under this approach, unless you are at the top of the ladder, you will keep your Bush tax cuts in the near term. The top 2 percent of households would take a hit, but hardly a body blow. A married couple making $325,000 a year, with two school-age children, would see their taxes rise by $7,400, from $63,600 to $71,000, according to estimates by Deloitte Tax. If the couple made $1 million, their taxes would rise from $236,200 to $289,400....

Eric Cantor is overreaching...

"...the government does not need more income right now..."

The Republican Zealots are on the loose.  They actually want to do away with government to the extent it enforces the law.  That means ridding the President's Cabinet of a budget and shutting down the government.  

The same people that pursue these goals also believe in guns and militias.  If government shuts down who is going to provide protection to the President.  Oh, wait.  They don't consider the President to be important unless he is as deranged as they are.
We have seen these wackos before in the way of a Senator from Pennsylvania, Former Senator Santorum.  The House Republicans will become so bizarre it will put Christine O'Donnell to shame.

When politicians are seeking to 'grandstand' it is my understanding they aren't governing, they are playing politics for media exploitation and populism.

...Cantor said Republicans (click title to entry - thank you) 
could achieve their goal of 22 percent spending cuts and rejected Democrats objections that spending that deep would cut such things as preschool education for poor children, research at the National Institutes for Health and a dismissal of 2,700 FBI agents....



Fiscal Responsibility. There is no one that wants the government to be fiscally irresponsible.

Quantitative easing removes urgency from austerity moves by Congress

The conservatives seem to like to rhetorically state they are more fiscally responsible than any other party in the country.  They do NOT have a corner on fiscal responsibility.  The Bush White House and their Republican majority Congress were grossly irresponsible.  They provided the impetus that led to the greatest economic collapse of the USA since the Great Depression.  That was two years ago.  You mean to tell me the God they worshiped then and the one they worship now is different?  No.

No voter in the country worried about voting for Republicans again?  Oh, wait.  I guess they did actually worry because of the 235 Republicans going to the House this January, 118 are Tea Baggers.  Oh.  Will they be fiscally responsible?  Probably not.  They'll seek to cut taxes to the bone in the belief it will create jobs.  We already know that Wall Street is not growing jobs in the USA.  It is the citizens and their small business ambitions that are growing the jobs.  We also know they are having a difficult time finding the financing they need to grow their businesses and increase those they employ.  So, to believe that cutting taxes to benefit job creation instead of supplying government funded financing to these small businesses is correct is rhetorical and not based in fact.

Fiscally responsible government is one that seeks to decrease the cost of governing at every turn while still providing services to the citizen.  To believe that government does not fuel the economy is a gross misunderstanding of government.  Government has needs and to that end it spends money that supplies jobs in the private sector.  Government encourages private sector growth.  It is a fact and people need to accept government as part of their life no different than they would tithe to their places of worship.  Evangelicals understand that tithing 10% of their income is necessary for their churches to function, but, yet they can't seem to understand their government has the same dependency.  Amazing.

Federal Reserve Subverts Fiscal Responsibility With Cash Creation Machines Fully Cranked  (click title to entry - thank you)

Nov. 5 2010 - 12:26 am 
1,270 views |
...This is yet another reason we don’t expect the House Republicans to convert to the gospel of fiscal responsibility any more than they did last time they were in the majority: They can indulge in demon spending unto oblivion and the Fed will have their back.
“If this were Greece or Ireland,” Bill Bonner wrote yesterday before the announcement, “the government would be forced to cut back. With quantitative easing ready, there is no need to face the music. If bond buyers will not finance America’s trip to bankruptcy, the Fed will provide as much brand-spanking-new money as necessary.”...

Fiscal Responsibility And Runaway Military Spending Are Not Compatible  (click here)

...On October 13, 2010, a political news went almost unnoticed. A group of 57 lawmakers from both the House and the Senate (or about 10 percent of the 535 members of Congress) urged a commission looking for ways to balance the federal budget to recommend deep cuts in Department of Defense spending. The group was initiated by a bi-partisan effort of Representative Barney Frank (D) and Representative Ron Paul (R). The group (including five Senators) is made up mainly of Democrats, and the Congressmen argue that cutting the $712 billion military budget must be part of any viable proposal for budget deficit reduction....

Small government. What exactly does that mean and who ever stated there were any benefits?



The definitions of small government takes on all kinds of connotations for citizens.  Some feel their government intrudes on their decisions while others complain of the cost and taxes. 

The purpose of government is to protect the citizen and enhance their quality of life while enforcing laws that prevent exploitation.  That may or may not be measured by size or cost.  It does however mean that EFFECTIVE government is what is being sought by citizens.

Government size is not the issue.  Sufficient government to protect citizens to insure a healthy food supply, investigate all forms of crimes, white collar or otherwise, the ability to prosecute offenders and jail them for rehabilitation is what government is suppose to do.  Supplying the country with security no matter the form it takes, military or financial is part of that spectrum.  

There is absolutely one thing TRUE about 'insufficient' government as was supplied by the Bush/Cheney White House; it resolves to corruption at the local level.  If federal statutes are not enforced, the State will slack off in its enforcement of federal laws.  If the State statutes are not enforced, the local government will slack off in its enforcement of State laws.  If local government seeks to enforce a cultural government whether it be religious or criminal, there is absolutely nothing to stop them if the State and Federal governments are in sufficiently staffed and funded.

SMALL GOVERNMENT as it is advocated by the Evangelicals and the Republicans is costly to the citizen by exploitation of anarchy.  Small government is dangerous and a social experiment.  Small government breeds corruption with absolutely nothing stopping it.

What citizens of the USA are seeking is JUST and SUFFICIENT government and to 'buy into' this rhetoric are only hurting themselves.  Small government victimizes, especially women and minorities.  It doesn't supply ample enforcement of laws that benefit women and minorities and they suffer financial and status losses because of it.

Pro-Family is a deceptive term for more bigotry.

...Worldview - A fresh perspective (click title to entry - thank you) on the historical application of Scripture to public policy-making with a deeper look into what the Bible says about current issues....

...This seemed to be true especially among conservative God-fearing legislators and leaders as they faced the particularly difficult issues confronting the family and traditional values....

There is separation of church and state in the USA.  There is also no retribution for practicing a faith.  The entire 'idea' that a coalition has to be organized to support legislators that practice a faith is hideous, UNLESS, that coalition is seeking political favors in return for support of those legislators.

The average Middle Class person is Pro-Family.  They don't like children to be exposed to offensive material.  Oddly however, that offensive material does not include blatant violence.  Children are still exposed to considerable violent content in any given day.  

The Pro-Family Movement that is affiliated with the Evangelical constituency are bigots.  They are seeking legislators that will legislate morality to benefit their churches and their bottom line.  The more people that belong to a faith and attend church the more monies that church and hierarchy have at their disposal.  They are seeking to legislate morality as they practice it and shun diversity in the community.  It is this Pro-Family constituency that overtly hates Muslims and ridicules them whenever possible, scapegoating them for fear mongering.

There isn't a decent American alive that isn't Pro-Family, but, NOT the way the Evangelicals define it.  Don't get caught up in the deception.

Pro - Life is the same as Anti-Abortion. It is a socio-econoimic issue and it has no place in government REGULATION.

...Rigorous U.S. scientific studies (click title to entry - thank you) have not substantiated the claim that abortion, compared with its alternatives, causes an increased incidence of mental health problems. The same conclusion was reached in 2008 by an American Psychological Association task force, which I chaired, as well as by an independent team of scholars at Johns Hopkins University. As recently as September, Oregon State University researchers announced the results of a national study showing that teenagers who have an abortion are no more likely to become depressed or to have low self-esteem one year or five years later, compared with their peers who deliver....

...A substantial amount of research shows that women who deliver babies are, on average, more likely to have planned and wanted their pregnancies and to feel emotionally and financially capable of becoming a mother. In contrast, women who seek abortions are, on average, less likely to be married or involved in an intimate relationship, more likely to be poor, and more likely to have suffered physical or psychological abuse. All of these latter qualities are risk factors for poor mental health.... 

What is so astounding about the 'Pro-Life' stand of the evangelical Christians is that it is a CULTURAL issue.  The Evangelicals would have the USA dominated by their culture and its dogma while they deny Muslims the sanity of their own SAFE practice of their faith.  They hatefully stand to stop the building of a Mosque where the Imam is seeking peace and inclusion, but, they will force adverse economic choices on women alone and in economic hardship.  The Evangelicals that are behind this movement are bigoted.  Sarah Palin, their icon is as bigoted as they are.  She seeks no understanding of the issue of abortion, only stands in ridicule of it.  Palin and the Evangelicals that surround her and her movement are ignorant.

I the reporting of the Faith and Freedom Coalition somewhat  interesting about the 118 new Tea Party House members.  While claiming to be Republicans, 36 to 38 are Moderates and THREE are LIBERALS.  I do not believe the Evangelicals have a corner on ANYTHING except arrogance.

Oklahoma bans Sharia law - No clue. What was a voter suppose to do ignore it? Maybe. (click title to entry - thank you)

Islamic Sharia Law to Be Banned in, ah, Oklahoma

Oklahoma Calls Ban on Islamic Law a 'Preemptive Strike'



Muslim group challenges Oklahoma sharia law ban

Council on American-Islamic Relations argues the preemptive law is unconstitutional


It all got pretty strange.  In Oklahoma someone got the idea that taking Anti-Islam to the next level was a good idea in order to instill fear so voters would vote Anti-Obama to insure there would be way the President could legislate Muslim principles into our laws.

Is that amazing or what?  Talk about hate.

But, this measure opens up Pandora's Box.  If Sharia Law is outlawed then what does that mean for any 'philosophy' that is based in religious theory or precepts?  The laws of the United States of America are founded from an understanding that human life is precious as noted in faiths such as Judaism, Buddism and Christianity, among others.  The implications of such a law is very dangerous.

It was an act of hate, as Sharia Law dictates there is no such thing as an abortion and the people espousing this mess of legislation are Anti-Abortion.  So if Sharia Law is outlawed in Oklahoma does that mean abortion clinics can open freely without any restrictions including any current precedent?
This is hate mongering that is dangerous.  It victimizes an entire religion and puts at risk the culture and social content of any Muslims that are practicing such aspects of their faith, including head scarves.  It changes the relationship women have with their husbands and their right to own property without including their spouses.  The entire mess is counter to any form of decency in the USA and is an example of ignorance and bigotry.

This is from the website of The Faith and Freedom Coalition. It would seem they are everywhere, including Canada.

Evangelical voters turn out in record numbers

November 5, 2010 at 7:40 am
By: edmondsun.com
EDMOND — State Question 755, the president’s rocky relationship with Israel and his position on the so-called “ground zero mosque” were some of the issues that drove a record number of evangelical voters, observers said.
Edmond has a large, active faith community, evidenced by various ministries and high attendance at numerous churches of various denominations.
Generally speaking, evangelicals are individuals who believe in the Bible’s inerrancy and stress the need for personal conversion and sharing of the Christian gospel.
Nationwide, the largest single voter block in Tuesday’s midterm election was self-identified evangelicals who made up 29 percent of the vote, and cast 79 percent of their ballots for Republican candidates, according to a post-election survey conducted by Public Opinion Strategies for the Faith and Freedom Coalition.
“I think that’s clearly an eye-popping number,” said Gregg Keller, the coalition’s national executive director.
In fact, the evangelical turnout, a 5 percent increase over 2006, was the largest ever recorded in a midterm election, the survey found.
Additionally, Roman Catholic voters constituted 12 percent of the vote and cast 58 percent of their ballots for Republican candidates, as opposed to 40 percent for Democrats, according to CNN exit polling.

Does Polling Data Reveal ‘Teavangelicals?’

November 4, 2010 at 1:49 pm

By: CBN
The latest polling data shows that Tea Party members and conservative evangelicals came out in force at the ballot box.
Polls show that 29 percent of voters identified themselves as evangelicals. The pollster Public Opinion Strategies says that made them the largest single group of the election. Seventy-eight percent of them voted Republican.
Fifty-two percent of those who identified themselves as part of the Tea Party also consider themselves conservative evangelicals.
“The socially conservative faith-based vote was the fuel and engine of the biggest midterm victory in our history,” the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s Ralph Reed said on Wednesday. Reed’s group commissioned the post-election survey data.
Polls also show that a bloc of religious voters who usually vote for the Democrats switched sides in this election.
Fifty-four percent of Catholics voted for Republican candidates.

Inside the Beltway

November 4, 2010 at 9:58 am

By Jennifer Harper – The Washington Times
Oh, ye of big faith. Like, really big faith. The largest single constituency in the electorate in the midterm elections was “self-identified evangelicals,” who comprised 29 percent of the vote and cast a hefty 78 percent of their ballots for Republican candidates, according to new findings from the Faith and Freedom Coalition. Turnout by conservative folks of faith was up by 5 percent over 2006 – the largest ever recorded in a midterm election, the group says. The survey also found that 52 percent of all “tea party” members are conservative evangelicals; 57 percent also say both lawmakers and political leaders are “ignoring our religious heritage.” The survey of 1,000 voters was conducted Nov. 2.
“People of faith turned out in the highest numbers in a midterm election we have ever seen, and they made an invaluable contribution to the historic results,” says Ralph Reed, chairman of the 400,000-member group. “This survey, along with numerous exit polls, makes clear that those who ignore or disregard social conservative voters and their issues do so at their own peril.”

[video] Ralph Reed on Parker Spitzer

November 4, 2010 at 9:21 am

Ralph Reed and Glen Bolger was recorded by C-Span (click title to entry - thank you)

The Faith and Freedom Coalition released the results of their nationwide survey of participation in the previous day's 2010 midterm elections. The poll, conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, covered voter attitudes on major issues and the political parties, President Obama, the tea party movement, and the pro-family movement. Ralph Reed and Glen Bolger responded to questions from members of the press at the National Press Club.

The two gentlemen went on and on about their incredible victory.  They stated the electorate they seek in their canvasing believed in Jesus Christ.  But, it wasn't just that they believe in Jesus Christ, it was that it transended their entire lives in that they were Pro-Life, Pro-Family, Fiscal Conservatives and believed in small government.  Now, I don't know about you, but, I never heard any revelation from Jesus Christ about fiscal conservatism or small government.  For real.  These guys are something.
I hope this coalition is tracked because they were directly responsible for the spending that was noted from the plutocracy.  They stated all their campaigns went well, but, Nevada occurred because of 'the ground game.'  Ralph Reed stated his coalition workers knocked on 72,000 doors in Las Vegas and they were being 'lapped.'  In other words, the Reid campaign volunteers were canvasing in larger numbers than his and he attributed that to the success of Senator and Majority Leader Reid.

Ralph Reed stated the media was cheap to purchase in Nevada.  He stated the 'media game' got to the point where 72% of voters were no longer watching television for the barrage of ads.  He felt the two campaigns neutralized any effect of the media campaign.

Ralph Reed and Glen Bolger believed in every candidate they ran as the best for the country.  Wow.  Sharon Angle has problems working with peers on serious issues, she would have been a disaster in Washington, DC.  

Hearing Ralph Reed and Glen Bolger speak I got a chill down my spine that these men didn't care about the country so much as their own glory no matter the character it took on.  Ruthless doesn't even begin to define this past year's campaign and these are the men responsible.  I can't imagine they are proud of that.  At any rate, I want to examine 'the values' of this coalition and what they really mean.

Meet Ralph Reed. one time politician and since June of 2009 founder and chairman of "The Faith and Freedom Coalition."

Ric Feld/Associated Press
Ralph Reed, with his family, conceding the Republican nomination for Georgia lieutenant governor Tuesday night. 

Mr. Reed is one of two men claiming success during the recent elections of 2010.  He also claims responsibility for the elections of Massachusetts and Virginia.  Quote, "We won in Massachusetts and Virginia and they (The DNC) never took us seriously and that is why we won as we did this year."

Ralph Reed is responsible for the media circus surrounding this election.  There is an interesting fact about him though.
Jack Abramoff, Norquist and Reed formed what was known as the "Abramoff-Norquist-Reed triumvirate."   Abramoff promoted Reed in 1983, appointing him to succeed Norquist as Executive Director of the CRNC. Norquist would later serve as President of Americans for Tax Reform, an anti-tax nonprofit lobbying firm in Washington, D.C.


A U.S. District Court judge in Washington has granted Ney’s request for a U.S. passport. The same judge had ordered the passport revoked in 2007, shortly after the former five-term Congressman pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge. 

In the picture above, Jack Abramoff, Ralph Reed, David Safavian and former Congressman Bob Ney enjoy a leisurely golf outing in Scotland. Of the four individuals pictured, only one --Ralph Reed-- hasn't been to jail.

Why did Bernanke's release of $600 billion to Wall Street spell so bad?  This is the 'old gang' back again.  You'll never convince me that Bernanke didn't act out of political venturism.  

To begin, he would fear for his job with a change in tide of leadership if he didn't express his appreciation.  But, it was also very obvious this was a political priority.  He stated he didn't consider inflation to be a threat.  

I guess not.  

At least not today.  

Corruption runs very deep among Republicans.  It is a matter of loyalty and expressing it in appropriate ways that matters.  Bush's old speech writer violated 'the code of conduct' and he was sent packing from his job.  It is just the way it is.  Did anyone ever ask Reed how Jack was doing?

 
It's Sunday Night

"Modern Day Witch Hunt" by Aus Rotten


Right wing theocracy maintaining inequality
Have oragnized politically to uphold traditional hierarchies
Between rich and poor, black and white
Wanting homosexuals out of sight
And conventional marriage between woman and man
Increasing political pressure until abortion is banned
Because killing is bad but guns are good
For slaying docters just like Jesus would
Or arming Christian soliders for the next crusade
Killing all of the heathens that won't be saved
Protecting us from immigrants and perverted sexual deviants
A world of mindless Christians is what they want
Carrying out their modern day witch-hunt
Falwell, Robertson and Kennedy are defining immortality
They're bashing sexuality and cashing in on bigotry
Modern day witch-hunt
The Christian Reconstructionists are acting as the catalysts
Grooming young activists to become Christian fundamentalists
Convincing eith every medium that can lend a hand
That the youth should serve god's divine plan
So that "biblical law" can be set in place
And their bigoted morals must be embraced
[ Find more Lyrics on http://mp3lyrics.org/qP3 ]
That's the Christian coalition's resolution
To transform every home into god's institution
With a kitchen for women and a closet for gays
And a man in charge to make sure that's where they stay
And if they don't comply there's always domestic violence
To keep women subordinate, scared and silent
Making everything the way that god would want
Contributing to this modern day witch-hunt
Falwell, Robertson and Kennedy are defining immortality
They're bashing sexuality and cashing in on bigotry
Modern day witch-hunt
Demonizing feminism
Indoctrinated sexism
National chauvinism promotes authoritarianism
Empowered women threaten the Christian's plan
Of being an obedient dog and serving man
Like the gays, lesbaisn and transgendered
Roles that don't reflect Christian principal
Living your life by what the bible says
But your god is a myth and Christ is dead
Letting the bible do your thinking is so absurd
Because your malfunctioned god never wrote a word
Those who actually wrote the bible on your shelves
Were straight, bigoted men just like yourselves
Your word of god is just a front
That justifies this modern day witch-hunt
Your bigoted religion is what you trust
But your sick god doesn't govern us

Aus Rotten-The System Works for Them

Burma holds elections with some groups stating the event wasn't completely free.

Voting has ended (click title to entry - thank you) in military-ruled Burma's first elections in two decades.  Critics say the results were engineered long ago.  The military is widely expected to remain in power, though some analysts say the polls could allow for gradual progress.  Outside journalists are banned from Burma....

...The military-drafted constitution gives it 25 percent of seats in parliament, even before votes are counted.

And the two largest parties, the Union Solidarity and Development Party and the National Unity Party, support the military.

A group of protesters demonstrated against the elections Sunday on the side of a busy highway in Mae Sot, Thailand, on the border with Burma.

Zaw Htunn is one of the protest organizers.

He says the elections held by what he calls the repressive regime are absolutely unfair and not free.  He says the protesters totally reject the results because the USDP is led and controlled by military generals who recently exchanged their military uniforms for civilian suits....

Protester holds opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's poster outside a public park in Mae Sot, Thailand, 07 Nov 2010