In order to protect the United States from terrorism, as experts would agree, we need to address the many root causes behind Islamic extremism -- such as the Saudi government. of all foreign-born insurgents now in Iraq are Saudi. on 9/11 were Saudi. now in US detention facilities are Saudi. Also, documents show the Saudi government paid $5,340 to the back in 2002. So while the Bush Administration engages in tough talk about terrorism, they turn around and offer Saudi Arabia a $20 billion military arms deal.
But the $20 billion US-Saudi arms agreement will not slide through as easily as the White House had hoped. Two House Democrats have that would block the deal from going through:
Standing in front of theSaudi Consulate, Reps. Anthony Weiner, a Democrat of Brooklyn andQueens, and Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat of Manhattan and Brooklyn,yesterday condemned Saudi Arabia as a sponsor of terrorism unworthy ofAmerican military support.
"The folly of this arms deal is beyond belief," Mr. Nadler said."Saudi Arabia is the no. 1 exporter of terrorism in the world today."
He continued: "They are not our friends. We cannot trust how theywill use their arms. … We don't have to give them high-tech weaponswhich may be turned against our friends or us."
These two lawmakers need our help. The Saudis have been able to effectively lobby the US government for years. We need everyone to the House representative in their district, and tell them to block the Saudi arms deal.
If we can push this through the House, the Senate will have to debate it. And while in the Senate, we dare the Republicans to filibuster a fill that blocks arms for a state sponsor or terrorism. Nothing looks more hypocritical than a party that wants people to live in fear, yet gives arms that could be used against our own troops.
On Monday's (7/16) O'Reilly Factor Wild Willy set his gears into motion and for "advocating" far left radicalhate.
"What do you think of someone who says the following: 'The world wouldbe better off without him.' That came after Tony Snow announced his cancer hadreturned. Or this: 'The Pope is a primate' ... 'evangelicals are nut cases' ...and some attacks against coalition forces in Iraq are legitimate. All of thosethoughts were posted on a vicious far-left web site called the DailyKos, one ofthe worst examples of hatred America has to offer. That web site is having aconvention in Chicago, and only one major company has stepped up as a sponsor -JetBlue, the airline that melted down this winter. We contacted JetBlue to askwhy it would sponsor a hateful web site. There was no answer, so we sentproducer Jesse Watters to see JetBlue CEO David Barger, who said there is 'noalignment' between the business and politics, and JetBlue customers will 'drawtheir own conclusion.' It is beyond belief that a company like JetBlue wouldsponsor hate mongers like the DailyKos. There comes a time when Americanconsumers have to take a stand and this is one of those times. This isn't anideological issue - if a company was sponsoring a David Duke convention we'd dothe same story. Hate is hate, no matter where it comes from."
-Firstof all, what O'Reilly is referring to are comments left by visitors, nota "post" by (asJane Hall points out in video). Jane Hall is probably one of the few reasonably fair & balanced commentators on FNC.
O'Reilly did a follow up segment onThursday's show (7/19) '
"Earlier this week we confronted JetBlue CEODave Barger about his airline's sponsoring a conference held by the hate-filledweb site 'Daily Kos.' The hate this web site traffics in rivals KKK and Naziweb sites. Well, today the CEO sent us a statement saying 'we've asked tohave our name removed from their website to avoid confusion.' The mistakeJetBlue made was hooking up with haters. Any corporation or politician whoassociates with character assassins and/or defamers with will be scrutinized. Anumber of Democratic politicians are set to speak at the Kos convention, andwe'll report on that next week. Unfortunately, some Americans do wallow in hate,so an Internet site can do some business peddling that garbage, and there are afew radio and TV performers who make a living smearing people as well. Butcorporations and powerful people must understand their responsibility to rejectthe haters and not support them in any way. That's what JetBlue missed, but weare really glad they have re-thought the situation."
It'simportant to point out that O'Reilly (in his own words) "you have to policeyour site, we do"...so in essence they go through the messages or previewbefore posting the comments by the "Members" (the only way toparticipate in O'Reilly's message boards, or to listen to his Radio Factor is to pay for a ). Censorship on a blog, message board, discussion forum orcomment section in my opinion is basically fear of opinion. O'Reilly's choice ofpointing out a far right radical hater is a pretty poor choice, of the WestboroBaptist Church and their website isn't even taken seriously by most. Wild Bill could have chosen , , etc. as afar right hater site.
You may ask "why watch O'Reilly...it's a waste of time", well I look at it this way, if I had two children and one was self efficient, reliable and truthful, and one that was an evil dangerous lier, I would most likely keep my eye on the latter.
Another interesting point where the Daily Kos asks why O'Reilly doesn't go after AOL. Read the hate thats spewed on AOL's discussion boards
Bill O'Reilly-Jane Hall Jet Blue
Bill O Bashing Jet Blue
Bill O does mention him with a list of things they do for the military, and he does post them on his site, however after listing six of the things they do, his last bullet point is "...and more" (and MORE?, well list them). No Spinning in a Fair and Balanced world? ...not Fox and certainly not O'Reilly.
Anyone that doesn't believe the Bush Administration supports the troopsin Iraq, shame on YOU! They provide a number of wonderful ways to support them,for instance...
(heart-burn to follow)
Meanwhile, the armed forces' PX system (AAFES) is into charging our GIs inIraq $9 for a 12-inch pizza. A similar pizza is $8.99 at a pizzeria nearGreenwich, Conn., where prices compete with Beverly Hills. The manager told methat about half of this price was gross profit. Lt. Col. Debra Pressley of theAAFES insists the $9 price is "fair and competitive with commercialoutlets, including locations in Greenwich."
(after Military.com blew the whistle on the $3.00charge)
The powers that be sure planned to make a profit by charging $3 per head forwatching movies in Iraq - at least until we blew the whistle. But once we brokethe story, I got e-mails and phone calls from generals and colonels denying thatthe $3 charge had been scheduled, even though on July 3, 2004, the deputycommander in Balad, Iraq, put out this communication: "CG (CommandingGeneral) has directed that we begin charging movie fees beginning on 7 July 2004in the amount of $3.00 per show."
(a little expensive, but hey! they're in the desert and we don't charge thetroops for their bullets)
Tom Evslin’s has posted an explosive piece about the way AT&T is handlingtheir exclusive contract to install payphones in Iraq and how much they’recharging American soldiers to call home. Would you believe twenty one cents perminute??
As Tom points out with the going wholesale cost of voice minutes under apenny per minute, this seems very, very wrong. Tom also notes that the totalamount of money we’re talking about here is a drop in the bucket for a companylike AT&T. It’s mind-boggling to me that the execs at AT&T don’trealize that the poison PR they could suffer over this is not even close tobeing worth the cash they’re making. If the issue gets more mainstreamcoverage I wouldn’t even be surprised if it comes into play as regulatorsconsider the BellSouth acquisition.
So now's not the time to get your panties in a ruffle just because the BushAdministration "STRONGLY OPPOSES" a bigger raise for our troops.
With President Bush’s popularity scraping bottom in opinion polls, withU.S. casualties rising in Iraq in a force surge that has stretched soldier toursto 15 months, the Bush administration July 10 said it “strongly opposes†keymilitary pay and benefit gains tossed into their fiscal 2008 defense bill. ...
Now might be a good time to dig up that air sicknessbag you've been saving from your last vacation.
Who is public enemy number one to the US government and its elected leaders? It's not Osama Bin Laden. It's not WMDs. It's not even members of the Liberal Media. Who is it?
It's Larry Flynt.
Flynt has already claimed responsibility for the outing of and swears that more are on the way.
Flynt said he was indignant over what he called hypocrisy represented by Vitter, 46, a social conservative.
"I don't want a man like that legislating for me, especially in the areas of morality," he said.
Flynt has offered to pay to anyone who can show he or she had a sexual encounter with a member of Congress or a high-ranking government official. He said the offer has produced promising tips.
"We've got 20-some investigations that all look good," Flynt said during a news conference at his Beverly Hills office.
"We have got some high-ranking Republican and Democratic members of the Senate and the House," he told reporters. "If I get just a couple of those phonies out of there, maybe it will be a step forward."
Although I personally believe that sexual orientation and practices should be kept private, regardless of occupation, Flynt is specifically targeting outspoken "moral" politicians; politicians that take a polarizing stance on "family values." Politicians who are telling their continuants to abstain from the very acts they themselves are taking part in.
So I say "Bravo" to Mr. Flynt, and anyone else who attempts to expose the hypocrisy in these politicians. Activists like Mike Rogers and his work with exposing members of the government. He claims to have a list of politicians involved in "alternative lifestyles," but only outs those who combat gay rights from their bully pulpits, regardless of party.
No one can be naive enough to think that these investigations will end hypocrisy in DC, but as Mr. Flynt put it, "If I get just a couple of those phonies out of there, maybe it will be a step forward."
The main point of this post is all the lying coming from The Hill.
Graham: "The military part of the surge isworking beyond my expectations," Graham said. "We literally have theenemy on the run. The Sunni part of Iraq has really rejected al-Qaidaall over the country. We're getting more information about al-Qaidaoperations than we've ever received."
In response to Lindsey Graham's Troop Surge "WorkingBeyond my expectations" Before I get into the "meat and pataths",lets first take a quick peek at Graham's service to our country (I didn't say"Military Service" because as you will see it was ALWAYS aboutpolitics)
: Graham has served in the United States Air Force since1982, serving on active duty until 1988, and then in the South Carolina AirNational Guard and as an Air Force reservist. During the Gulf War, he wasrecalled to active duty, serving as a Judge Advocate at McIntire Air NationalGuard Station in Eastover, South Carolina, where he helped brief departingpilots on the laws of war. In 2004, Graham received a promotion to Colonel inthe U.S. Air Force Reserves at a White House ceremony officiated by PresidentGeorge W. Bush.
While in the Air Force Standby Reserve, Graham served as an appellate judgeon the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. In September 2006 the United StatesCourt of Appeals for the Armed Forces ruled that it was a violation of theIncompatibility Clause of the Constitution, which states that "no Personholding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either Houseduring his Continuance in Office", for Graham to have been a judge on thecriminal appeals court.
I won't take away his service to our country, however I will take away anyknowledge of knowing what it's like crapping yourself in a combat zone when abullet whizzes by your Kevlar (helmet) or a roadside bomb goes off 20 feet awayfrom you . His military service reads like a campaign trail, and it does looklike he "knew someone".
Before I move on to the videos, here are acouple of articles that to "Flag Waving Right" (such as MelanieMorgan) would consider unpatriotic.
: MIKE HOFFMAN would not be the guy his buddies would expect to seeleading a protest movement. The son of a steelworker and a high school janitorfrom Allentown, Pennsylvania, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1999 as anartilleryman to “blow things up.†His transformation into an activist camethe hard way—on the streets of Baghdad.
When Hoffman arrived in Kuwait in February 2003, his unit’s highest-rankingenlisted man laid out the mission in stark terms. “You’re not going to makeIraq safe for democracy,†the sergeant said. “You are going for one reasonalone: oil. But you’re still going to go, because you signed a contract. Andyou’re going to go to bring your friends home.†Hoffman, who had his owndoubts about the war, was relieved—he’d never expected to hear such a candidassessment from a superior. But it was only when he had been in Iraq for severalmonths that the full meaning of the sergeant’s words began to sink in. ...
Get ready to see some unpatriotic Americans that aren'tas smart as Graham
Perry Jefferies is a representative for. A non-partisan non-profit founded in 2004 with tens ofthousands of members in all 50 US states, IAVA is America’s first and largestIraq and Afghanistan Veterans group. Perry served as a First Sergeant with theArmy’s 4th Infantry Division in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Afterdeploying to Iraq and traveling with the cavalry through the Sunni Triangle, hisunit moved to the Iran – Iraq border and set up Camp Caldwell, future home ofthe New Iraqi Army. Often frustrated by the absence of priority on planning andbasic Soldier needs, he has spoken out about the lack of basic necessities suchas food, water, and repair parts. Previously a prison guard in Texas, he saysthat in many cases, Soldiers are treated worse than the convicts he used toguard.
After enlisting in the Texas National Guard, he joined the Army and served inKorea, Germany, and the United States before deploying to Iraq. He has served ininfantry, armor, and cavalry units and was an instructor at the Armor School atFort Knox. He retired in 2004 and was awarded the Bronze Star and the Legion ofMerit. He is a member of the Order of Saint George for service to Armor andCavalry.
Perry Jefferies hails from Waco, Texas but settled in Copperas Cove, nearFort Hood, where he lives with his wife. He works for a large contractor withthe blood program at Fort Hood and rides motorcycles in his spare time
Countdown: Impeach Bush, Save the Troops? Part 1
Countdown: Impeach Bush, Save the Troops? Part 2
The faces of knowledge, service to our country and patriotism
Senator Peter Domenici (R-NM) is jumping President Bush's "supportthe Iraqi War" Ship. Although technically I supposeit's a good thing, I however do not believe it was a decision from the heart and for the people. Domenici is a "party loyalist and formerstaunch war supporter," and thus "one of the most significant GOPlosses to date." So why the change of mind? How about he's next year for starters?
Sen. Peter Domenici, a New Mexico Republican who is up for reelection nextyear, broke with President Bush on the Iraq war. Domenici's move is beingtreated as a significant development, indicative of Bush's increasingly weakposition within his own party. The says Domenici is a "party loyalist and former staunch warsupporter," and thus "one of the most significant GOP losses todate." The timing of Domenici's announcement is interesting. As the reports, "a showdown is likely" in coming weeks"over a Democratic amendment to the main Defense Department spending billdemanding that US troops begin leaving Iraq within 120 days." The notes that is "an idea Mr. Bush has alreadyvetoed," and in fact Domenici "made it clear Thursday that he did notsupport such measures either, saying, 'I'm not calling for an immediatewithdrawal from Iraq or a reduction in funding for our troops, but I am callingfor a new strategy that will move our troops out of combat operations and on thepath to continuing home.'" Instead, reports, Domenici "supports a bipartisan bill that embracesfindings of the Iraq Study Group, which said combat troops could be out by March2008 if certain steps were taken."
: The notes Domenici "said he has not talked to the administration about wantinga strategy shift," and the reports the senator's comments "drew a measuredresponse from the White House, which has been trying to maintain Republicansupport for the president's 6-month-old strategy of using additional Americanforces, primarily in Baghdad, to control sectarian violence." ABC WorldNews said the White House is worried over Domenici's defection, but"officials are taking some comfort by the fact that he said he wasn't readyto cut off funding, wasn't ready to call for a complete withdrawal oftroops." ...
In my opinion this is another example of "what'sbest for me?" self gain; more votes; campaign slogans; and whatever elsecomes along with decisions made for personal reasons and not for the people. Icould be wrong, but I need to see his true change if he does win the reelection. And if I know me, I'll dig this up after the elections and give him an "atta-boy" or a "you self promoting, self gain useless piece of crap" post.
In my opinion here is another fine example of government officials BS'ing thepublic. Forty Two thousand gallons of crude oil is happily cruising down a rivertowards a lake that supplies drinking water. The officials say "they're notsure of the extent of contamination" and a spokeswoman for the Dept. of EnvironmentalQuality says "the spill isn't expected tohave an impact on the water-supply intakes located below the surface at thesouth end of the lake. She says oil tends to float on the surface of the water,so the quality of water taken from below the surface of the lake should not beaffected." Personally I don't think you can put forty two thousand gallonsOF water in a river and it not have an impact of some sort.
COFFEYVILLE, Kan. (AP) - Forty-two thousandsgallons of thick crude oil are nearing an Oklahoma lake that supplies water fordrinking and recreation.
The oil spilled from the Coffeyville Resourcesrefinery in Kansas on Sunday into the Verdigris River. It has been floatingdownstream toward Oologah (OO'-luh-gah) Lake, about 30 miles northeast of Tulsa
Officials say a lot of the oil slick remainson the surface and is visible. They're not sure of the extent of contamination.
A spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Department ofEnvironmental Quality says the spill isn't expected to have an impact on thewater-supply intakes located below the surface at the south end of the lake. Shesays oil tends to float on the surface of the water, so the quality of watertaken from below the surface of the lake should not be affected. ... (but this is all there is at this link.)
Then we can go down the list of all the things NOT to worry about:
None of the oil reached Oklahoma's Lake Oologah, a source of drinking water for Tulsa and other communities, Oklahoma environmental officials said Wednesday.
Some workers at the refinery and the fertilizer facility already are returning to work. Others have been told to remain at home until contacted by their supervisors to return.
Lipinski says the company is working closely with city, state and federal agencies engaged in mitigating the environmental impact of the loss and is actively reaching out to those people affected.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, was helping the Coffeyville Police Department to conduct air quality tests for potential hazards
At least 1,000 people have been displaced from their homes throughout southeast Kansas, says the Kansas adjutant general's department
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment, KDHE, is distributing tetanus vaccine to prevent the illness in people who have come in contact with the floodwaters
Health officials are warning residents to stay out of the flood waters due to sewage, hazardous materials, and other contaminants. Individuals should contact their nearest health department for a tetanus vaccine if they have had a recent, significant injury or if they have entered the water and have not had a tetanus vaccination in the past 10 years.
The EPA advises people returning to property that may be contaminated with oil and other contaminants to wear work boots, open doors and windows for ventilation, and avoid taking oil-contaminated items to non-contaminated locations. ...
We all know accidents can happen, but when you look at the list of all the"agencies" working on this one, it is similar to Katrina's crack teamsof crack heads. And when fish, birds and other wildlife start popping up dead,or with more eyes and legs then they really need, then they will create afew more committees to investigate the new situation.
A few more emergencies like this and "we're in big troublemister"...ya see, all our federal funds are a little tied up right nowhelping democratize the world.
And besides, what's the worse that could happen? I ain't no tree hugger!
Back in May MSNBC did an on the to our troops, and compared it to a different armor called , which many believe is superior to the armor currently being used. Oneof those that believe Dragon Skin is better was the developer of InterceptorBody Armor which is the armor used today, Ret. Marine Lt. Colonel Jim Magee.
Magee, who has no financial stake whatsoever in Dragon Skin, told us, “Ifyou would ask me today, ‘Jim we’re sending you to Iraq tomorrow. What wouldyou wear?’ I would buy Dragon Skin and I would wear it.â€
The Army said Dragon Skin failed their tests, and what they currently issueis the best out there (ahem).
After the body armor issue made its rounds, and congress started pokingaround a bit, the wonderful Army "desk sitters" decided to takeaction. They are now looking into better body armor.
Military.com reported ''
The Army has issued an industry-wide request for a new kind of body armorthat can defeat even more powerful rounds than the current ceramic plate and hasopened the door for the new armor construction that includes flexible systemsmany say are more comfortable than today's vests.
The new armor insert, dubbed "XSAPI," is intended to stoparmor-piercing rounds more deadly than the ones the current "enhanced smallarms protective insert" can defeat, will weigh less than a pound more thantoday's ESAPI and could have more coverage than the rigid ceramic platescurrently fielded to U.S. troops in combat.
The Army's latest solicitation - dated June 20 - marks yet another chapter inthe ongoing debate over allegations that the Army has ignored armor technologythat could yield more protection and comfort than its current"Interceptor" vest. In May, an NBC investigative report raisedquestions over whether a certain type of body armor called "DragonSkin" was stronger than the Interceptor - which is worn by most Americantroops in the field. ...
"The Army has issued an industry-wide request for a new kind of body armor"It seemed they had one knock on their door which they ignored until Congresscalled them on the carpet and wanted an investigation on the matter.
Here we are in July, in true support of the troops this should be getting pushed,shoved and rammed through whatever bureaucratic process it needsto go through! And some of the pushing, shoving and ramming should see somethroat and ass action along the way.
History Channel's 'Mail Call' testing Dragon Skin ()
The removal of was a mistake, which became months ago when Paul Bremer (former administrator ofthe Coalition Provisional Authority) (CPA) testified at a congressional hearingback in February.
Bremer said he was wrong to temporarily stop paying salaries andpensions to former Iraqi army officers. He added that Iraqis went too far withhis order to purge members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party from the government.
"I acknowledge I made mistakes," Bremer said. "But on thewhole, I believe we made great progress under some of the most difficultconditions imaginable." ...
Removal of The Baathists is considered one of .
“It is one of the darkest aspects of Iraq,†Iyad Allawi, the former PrimeMinister, said yesterday. “It has caused mass emigration from the country anddeprived the Establishment of trained manpower.â€
After all these months, and all of the "experts" acknowledging thefact it was a mistake, a "draft bill" was finally approved thatwould give thousands of Baathists jobs. ("draft" operative word)
BAGHDAD -- Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki's cabinet approved a U.S.-backeddraft oil law and the Parliament is expected to start discussing it next week,government officials said Monday.
The U.S. has pressed Mr. Maliki's government to pass the oil law and severalother pieces of benchmark legislation to spur reconciliation among the country'ssectarian and ethnic groups. The oil law is especially important to Sunni Arabs,who populate regions of Iraq that are largely without oil resources. ...
I personally do not believe The U.S. pressed anything, I think theyare just running out of ideas and this was the smart move by default. The administration didn't listen to anyone, commanders were fired because they didn't "agree" with the admin., conservative talking heads claimed them "incompetent". It's all a bunch of crap!
Many conservatives are uneasy about Rudolph Giuliani's stances on . To try and win the hearts of these particular voters, the Giuliani Campaign unveiled what it calls -- reminiscent of the :
1. I will keep America on offense in the Terrorists’ War on Us. 2. I will end illegal immigration, secure our borders, and identify every non-citizen in our nation. 3. I will restore fiscal discipline and cut wasteful Washington spending. 4. I will cut taxes and reform the tax code. 5. I will impose accountability on Washington. 6. I will lead America towards energy independence. 7. I will give Americans more control over, and access to, healthcare with affordable and portable free-market solutions. 8. I will increase adoptions, decrease abortions, and protect the quality of life for our children. 9. I will reform the legal system and appoint strict constructionist judges. 10. I will ensure that every community in America is prepared for terrorist attacks and natural disasters. 11. I will provide access to a quality education to every child in America by giving real school choice to parents. 12. I will expand America’s involvement in the global economy and strengthen our reputation around the world.
Maybe it was smart for Giuliani to write his own commandments. If he went by the Christian ones, he has already violated a few -- in particular, the one about :
Giuliani informed his second wife, Donna Hanover, of his intention toseek a separation in a 2000 press conference. The announcement wasprecipitated by a tabloid frenzy after Giuliani marched with histhen-mistress, Judith Nathan, in New York's St. Patrick's Day parade,an acknowledgement of infidelity so audacious that Daily News columnistJim Dwyer compared it with "groping in the window at Macy's." In theacrid divorce proceedings that followed, Hanover accused Giuliani ofserial adultery, alleging that Nathan was just the latest in a stringof mistresses, following an affair the mayor had had with his formercommunications director.
At least Giuliani is not as hypocritical as Newt Gingrich, who while he backing Clinton's impeachment.
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