Confidence In Palin Pick -- Update Confirmation From McCain Camp

Many of the talking heads in Washington are not thrilled with Senator John McCain's choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin for his VP, but I have to say I think it is a very good move.

Some grouse that this removes the experience issue from McCain's quiver and that may in fact be true -- although this comparison by Red State of the Governor's record next to Obama's is somewhat devastating to the Senator.

 But here is the key;  In 2008 change trumps experience hands down.

The adds practically write themselves:

Open with the Hillary statement of McCain being qualified on day one and "Obama has a speech he gave in 2002"

Voice over -- that hot lady's voice (that hasn't been Palin all along has it?)
"One team has a record of "-- fill in the issues,  or "One Candidate picked a VP from outside The Washington system and she has a record of,"

• "Confronting and defeating corrupt political machines regardless of party affiliation."   -- Show some of the many headlines of Governor Palin addressing the corruption in her own party in Alaska and McCain addressing spending and corruption in Washington (Republicans spending like drunken sailers anyone)
  

Hillary's Voice over in the background slightly echo/muted  --
"And Senator Obama has a speech he gave in 2002" while showing headlines of his ties to Rezko and the corrupt Chicago Machine and his admission to the boneheaded move that he profited from, and his picking Biden who has been in the Senate since Palin was 9.

End with the, "don't hope for change, vote for it!" line or an even stronger line about one team with a proven track record of change.

Pick an issue -- you want change, one team has a record of accomplishing real meaningful change.  Hit the Maverick line hard, after all the press gave him the label, rub their noses in it!

Do an entire series hitting hard on energy policy,  foreign policy, and the economy, but throw in education, Obama's death of aborted babies argument, you  name it they can dig it up.

Gee' didn't Bill Clinton just propose this in his candidate X candidate Y scenario last week:

Suppose, for example, you’re a voter, and you have candidate X and you have candidate Y. Candidate X agrees with you on everything but you don’t think that person can deliver on anything. Candidate Y disagrees with you on half the issues, but you believe that, on the other half, the candidate will be able to deliver.

This is the kind of question that I predict - and this has nothing to do with what’s going on now - but I am just saying if you look at five, 10, 15 years from now, you may actually see this delivery issue become a serious issue in Democratic debates because it is so hard to figure out how to turn good intentions into real changes in the lives of the people we represent.

This type of attack would again put Obama on the defense and reduce the impact of the McCain/Bush talking point that Obama camp has been pushing so very hard.

As a matter of fact, here is another really good one that would put a huge dent in that meme:

Open with the Hillary statement of McCain being qualified on day one and "Obama has a speech he gave in 2002"

Voice over -- that hot lady's voice,

"One team has a proven record of fighting for the surge that was necessary for victory in Iraq," -- clippings or video of McCain's repeated calls for a surge.

Hillary's Voice over in the background slightly echo/muted  --
"And Senator Obama has a speech he gave in 2002" then show the interview of Obama saying his policies in Iraq were not much different then the Bush administration!


"Don't hope for change, vote for it -- McCain/Palin!" 

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Update --

Last Sunday, 24 hours after Mr. Obama announced his running mate, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, Mr. McCain met with his senior campaign team at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Phoenix. By then, campaign advisers said, the group had long decided that Mr. McCain’s “experience versus change” argument against Mr. Obama had run its course, to the extent that it had worked at all…
In any case, one campaign adviser said, Mr. McCain hated running as the wizened old hand of experience. Despite his embrace this year of President Bush and many of the administration’s policies, Mr. McCain, a campaign adviser said, still saw himself as the maverick who delighted in occasionally throwing political grenades at his own Party.

NYTimes via Hot Air
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McCain Picks Palin

Instapundit has a rundown on the early reactions.

It is quite interesting to me that I have yet to hear a Republican say the dreaded line I heard over and over for the last week about Biden, "I think Hillary would have been a better choice but Biden is ...."
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Want To Know How An Obama Administration Would Run, Just Watch His Home State -- Illinois, The State With No Ethics, Hope OR Change!

The Illinois Legislature passed a comprehensive reform measure to bring ethics to all areas of state government. For the most part, it ends pay to pay politics, which has caused all manner of corruption in Illinois.

The governor vetoed it putting an executive order in place instead.  The problem:

The executive order won’t take effect until AFTER the election, and it won’t cover state departments or branches that are not under the governor’s control.

Plus, there are no penalties for breaking this order. So, the governor couild ignore his own ethics executive order and he could not be punished. Nor could anyone else. Plus, executive orders aren’t laws, they can be changed or abolished by whim.

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Sweeny Report

Biden Doesn't Compliment The Obama Brand, He Alters It -- Forced By Poll Numbers?

Obama has built up a brand.  Biden does not fit that brand.  He alters it.

I don't know if worldwide events influenced his selection of if poll numbers did, but he doesn't seem to fit.  Just not quite right.
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Update -- As if to prove my point:

Biden has accepted $5,133,072 in contributions from lawyers and lobbyists since 2003. Obama does not accept contributions from federally registered lobbyists.

And he has one other weakness that hasn’t received much attention to date. One of Biden’s sons, Hunter, is a registered Washington lobbyist in a year in which Obama has been excoriating lobbyists and the culture of corruption in Washington. The younger Biden is a name partner at the firm Oldaker, Biden & Belair, LLP, and seems to have specialized in lobbying for just the kind of earmark spending by Congress that Obama has vowed to slash. Republican insiders say the party is likely to make an issue of Biden’s family lobbying ties.

Also expect to hear more about Biden’s close ties with credit card companies. His largest contributor (based on total contributions by employees) over the past five years has been MBNA, the Delaware-based bank aquired in 2005 by Bank of America than until then was the world’s largest independent credit card issuer and a major supporter of the 2005 bankruptcy bill that Biden crossed the aisle to support.

Hot Air

Obama Chooses Biden!

Obama picks Biden for veep
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Double Down On Democrat Win -- Democrats Major Sponsor George Soros Enriched By Democrats Energy Policy

Billionaire investor George Soros bought an $811 million stake in Petroleo Brasileiro (Petrobras) in the second quarter, making the Brazilian state-controlled oil company his investment fund's largest holding.

As of June 30, the stake in Petrobras, as the Rio de Janeiro-based oil producer is known, made up 22 per cent of the $3.68 billion of stocks and American depositary receipts held by Soros Fund Management, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Petrobras has since slumped 28 per cent.

Soros has increased his mining and commodities holdings, a move that accelerated in the first quarter with purchases of such companies as Cia. Vale do Rio Doce, the world's largest iron-ore producer, and Talisman Energy, a Canadian oil and gas company. In November, Petrobras announced the discovery of Tupi, a field with as much as 8 billion barrels of reserves, making it the largest find in the Americas since 1976.

"Petrobras has something that other oil companies don't have: oil - lots of it and they're going to find more," said Ricardo Kob-ayashi, equity fund manager with UBS Pactual in Rio de Janeiro.

"If you can buy now and hang on, if you have the staying power, it's great."

Tupi is part of a new deepwater offshore region known as the pre-salt that may contain as much as 50 billion barrels, according to Peter Wells, oil analyst with the UK's Neftex Petroleum Consultants.

 Fine, Soros can invest in evil oil, I don't have a single problem with that!  I appreciate that, it reduces the cost of my gas!

Here's what I have a problem with:

• Soros has already been convicted in France of insider trading -- INSIDER TRADING, AKA; buying a security with info not available to the general public so that you can cash in on the security.
• Soros has invested in a Brazilian company that drills for oil off of Brazil.  They have made huge discoveries in oil that no one suspected might be there!  That company makes more money when the price of oil goes up and stays up.
  
• Soros is funding the Democrats to the tune of millions and the Democrats have dug in their heels on the "All Of The Above," energy plan because it includes drilling.  
• Because of this the price of oil goes up and stays up because we aren't allowed to drill off our own shores or in many places in the US.  
• Circle complete -- Money for money!  International insider trading to the max!  The man knows how to run an investment!
  

He is the perfect example of the culmination of every socialist society so far.  The rich and powerful take advantage of the system for their own enrichment.

So what if you can't afford food or gas, he has important things to do with his money like getting guns off the street and electing Barack and he needs that oil to continue his good works!

Soros  is the major sponsor of the nutroots who bragged that the Democratic party was theirs because they had bought and paid for it!  Every time they block an all of the above energy plan they pay him dividends on that investment!

This man is really a slimy individual!
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Gulfnews

New Ice Age Prediction -- Repeat After Me, "We Really Don't Know Enough About What We Are Doing To Risk Destroying It All!"

An expert from the National Autonomous University of Mexico predicted that in about ten years the Earth will enter a "little ice age" which will last from 60 to 80 years and may be caused by the decrease in solar activity.

Victor Manuel Velasco Herrera, a researcher at the Institute of Geophysics of the UNAM, as argued earlier during a conference that teaches at the Center for Applied Sciences and Technological Development.
...
Velasco Herrera described as erroneous predictions of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), pursuant to which the planet is experiencing a gradual increase in temperature, the so-called global warming.

The models and forecasts of the IPCC "is incorrect because only are based on mathematical models and presented results at scenarios that do not include, for example, solar activity," said the specialist also in image processing and signs and prevention of natural disasters.

The phenomenon of climate change, he added, should include other kinds of factors, both internal, such as volcanoes and the very human activity, and external, such as solar activity.

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Milenio (translation)

Obama Spent As Much Just In Ads As McCain Spent Total For July -- Yet Poll Numbers Dropping -- The More You Know Him...

Barack Obama spent more on advertising last month than Republican rival John McCain spent on his campaign, new Federal Election Commission filings show.

Obama spent $57.2 million in July, including $33 million on advertising. McCain spent $32.4 million, with $18.7 million going for ads.

McCain entered August with slightly more money than Obama when funds in the bank accounts of the Republican and Democratic party committees are included.

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Bloomberg

Media Can't Be Bothered With That -- They Are Too Busy Diggin Up Divorce Papers Or Something!

THE OBAMA / BILL AYERS / ANNENBERG STORY has broken out into the Legacy Media now. Tom Maguire comments: "Hard to believe that with our aggressive national media covering a Presidential campaign that Obama and Daley could mange this cover-up in plain sight. Yeah, real hard."
I caution those who are excited about getting into the archives, though: It probably won't happen, and by now I'm sure that the files have been vacuumed of any seriously embarrassing matter anyway. This is Chicago.
UPDATE: What leaked out.

It really is amazing that the very same media that cleared the way for Obama's Senate win by suing to force the release of his opponent's sealed divorce documents just can't seem to care about the extent of Obama's ties to an unrepentent domestic terrorist.
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Instapundit

Wiki info on Barack's Senate race:

Barack Obama's backers emailed reporters about the divorce controversy, but refrained from on-the-record commentary about the divorce files.^[7] On March 29, 2004, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Schnider ruled that several of the Ryans' divorce records should be opened to the public, and ruled that a court-appointed referee would later decide which custody files should remain sealed to protect the interests of Ryan's young child.^[8] The following week, on April 2, 2004, Barack Obama changed his position about the Ryans' soon-to-be-released divorce records, and called on Democrats to not inject them into the campaign.^[7] The Ryan campaign characterized Obama's shift as hypocritical, because Obama's backers had been emailing reports about the divorce records prior to Judge Schnider's decision.^[7]

Ryan dropped out less then a week after the records were released.

And who demanded those documents to be released:

Ryan married actress Jeri Ryan in 1991; together they have a son, Alex Ryan. They divorced in 1999 in California, and the records of the divorce were sealed at their mutual request. Five years later, when Ryan's Senate campaign began, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and WLS-TV, the local ABC affiliate, sought to have the records released. Both Ryan and his wife agreed to make their divorce records public, but not make the custody records public, claiming that the custody records could be harmful to their son if released.

Answers.com
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Yea, But He Does A Great Motor Boat Impression! "Um, Um, bu, bu, but, um um!"

According to several Democrat political consultants presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Barack Obama spent part of his Hawaiian vacation working on weaning himself from a heavy dependence on teleprompters. Even in what are staged as "town hall" events for Obama, remarks are scripted or formatted into bullet points that scroll on teleprompter screens. Obama has had several embarrassing events where the teleprompter either malfunctioned or the screens were not fully visible.

"He just locks down and can't get the words out," says one political consultant. "For such a fine speaker, it's really quite remarkable that he's had issues."

Obama's troubles with unscripted moments contributed to his campaign's refusal to participate in town hall format debates or discussions with Sen. John McCain, who feels much more comfortable in the unscripted moments.

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American Spectator -- Washington Prowler

Red State Update: Thank You John Edwards

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Yet The Democrats Won't Let Us Drill Under The Wasteland Of The Caribou!

Urban drilling bonanza pits neighbor against neighbor

Bishop Kenneth Spears always thought gifts from God came from above. He never imagined that the gifts would be hiding under his church in Fort Worth, Texas.

"The Bible says, 'Every place the sole of your foot should tread upon, I'll give it to you,' " said Spears, of the First St. John Missionary Baptist Church. "I walked and believed that if I prayed over that ground, if I walked over that ground, something good would come of it."

In 2006, he learned that all 15 acres of the church's property are on one of the largest natural gas fields in the country, known as the Barnett Shale.

Spears' church and thousands of residents around the Fort Worth area are cashing in on a unique urban drilling bonanza.

With the development of horizontal drilling technology and with gas prices sky-high, energy companies are racing to tap into the Barnett Shale natural gas field.

The Barnett Shale is the most-productive natural gas field in such a highly populated area spanning 5,000 square miles. The drilling here is being watched closely in Louisiana and Pennsylvania, which also have natural gas fields under urban areas

Energy companies are going door to door and negotiating mineral rights with the residents who get an initial payment and monthly royalties if  the Gas is found and used.  Some are not at all happy about the drilling, one Fort Worth blogger says, "It's a divide and conquer strategy by going around and giving everybody enough money to keep them quiet. Hush money is what I call it."  (FWCanDo.org).

Others would call it paying the owners for the minerals they own -- after all they don't have the ability to extract it themselves and it wasn't doing them any one any good where it was.  Wonder if the blogger feels the same about the money we send the Canadians, Mexicans, or Saudis each year.

Yet the Democrats won't allow us to drill under the friggin caribou!  Nice energy policy you got there Nancy!
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CNN

"Well, ya know, Obama is a 'Post Turtle'"

While suturing a cut on the hand of a 75 year old rancher,

who's hand was caught in the gate while working cattle, the doctor struck up a conversation with the old man. Eventually the topic got around to Obama and his bid to be our president.

The old rancher said, "Well, ya know, Obama is a 'Post Turtle'".

Not being familiar with the term, the doctor asked him what a 'post turtle' was. The old rancher said, "When your driving down a country road on you come across a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a 'post turtle".

The old rancher saw the puzzled look on the doctor's face so he continued to explain. "You know he didn't get up there by himself, he doesn't belong up there, and he doesn't know what to do while he's up there, and you just wonder what kind of dumb ass put him up there to begin with".

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Flicker: DrMadjack
Via Curmudgeonly & Skeptical

What Really Brought Down The Third Reich And Why Is Twitter Service Sporatic?

I have seen this clip used in other parodies but this one was a good one.
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Via Dvice

Knowing And Acknowledging What We Don't Know About Planetary Climate

And here's the mystery. Even allowing for the greenhouse effect Venus is hotter then it should be.

And if our current theories can't even explain what happened to our sister planet, how can we possibly be sure about the future of earth!

Janet Sumner,
Earth Scientist, Open University of England
Science Channel -- Venus Unveiled

Wow, I thought we were told we had that greenhouse global warming thing all locked up -- you know, the debate is over and all that stuff!
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More Manufacturing Jobs Being Imported From China -- I Blame Bush!

A Washington-based brake drum manufacturer is relocating some of its machining work from China to Rockford, echoing a trend that’s becoming more common in North American factories.

The KIC Group is contracting with a new local company, Rockford Automated Machining, to make raw brake drum casings once manufactured in China. Rockford Automated Machining, created by the owners of FAC Consolidated Industries, will employ about 40 people at its 840 Airport Drive location.

John Schneider, vice president of sales for KIC, said multiple factors have eroded the Asian competitive advantage — increased ocean freight charges, the rising price of raw iron ore and the strengthening of the Chinese currency against the U.S. dollar.

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Business Rockford

Chinese Corporation Solar Cell Assembly Plant In The Works For Rockford

Wanxiang Group, the second-largest privately held Chinese corporation, wants to build a photovoltaic solar panel assembly plant at or near Chicago Rockford International Airport. The proposed 40,000-square-foot facility could be operational next year and employ 60 to start. President and CEO Lu Weiding signed an agreement with Rockford, Winnebago County and airport officials today to work out a development deal for the project. Wanxiang officials said they want to move fast, starting construction as soon as possible.
(...)
Wanxiang Group conducted a nationwide search for the site of its assembly plant, said Janyce Fadden, president of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council. 

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RRStar

Beat To Heck -- Update

Hey, following tests I had a change in meds and I have been beat to heck.  Hopefully I will be back to regular posting tomorrow.
DKK

Winnebago County Stands Out Front In The Lead To Restore Gun Rights In Illinois -- Popular Revolt By Vote Possible!

Voters in Ogle County may soon join a growing number of Illinoisans who can cast a vote for president this November and, on the same ballot, decide whether their neighbor can pack a pistol.

An Ogle County Board committee approved a request from Winnebago County officials to place an advisory referendum on the November ballot asking Ogle voters whether they want to see concealed carry legislation in Illinois.

The request was one of the 101 unsolicited letters that Winnebago County Board Chairman Scott Christiansen’s office sent to every county in the state about a week ago, putting Winnebago County on the front lines of a statewide concealed carry debate.
...
Representatives from other Illinois counties, including Effingham and LaSalle counties, also have looked favorably on Winnebago County’s referendum request in recent weeks.

For those not from the area, Winnebago County is the top center county on the map with Ogle directly below it.  Rockford, Illinois' third largest city is in Winnebago County.  To the East is Boone County which is set to take up the issue next month.

Illinois and Wisconsin are the only two states without some form of concealed carry and Winnebago County is considering a county law that would allow people to carry if they received a permit from the Sheriff, but a state law would be a far better alternative

For the history of Winnebago County's excellent leadership on the restoration of rights and the releasing the state from the death grip of Chicago see the concealed carry label here.

DKK
RRStar

Welcome, and thanks to Glen Reynolds and Instapundit readers!

Regular Periodic Medical Testing This Week -- Light Posting

'Chef '-- Isaac Hayes has died at 65

Soul singer and arranger Isaac Hayes, who won Grammy awards and an Oscar for the theme from the 1971 action film "Shaft," has died, sheriff's officials in Memphis, Tennessee, say. Relatives found Hayes unconscious in his home next to a still-running treadmill. Hayes also voiced "Chef" for the animated series "South Park."

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CNN

Bernie Mac Dies At Age 50

CHICAGO —  DEVELOPING STORY:
Bernie Mac's publicist says the actor and comedian has died. He was 50 years old.
Mac was recovering from pneumonia at the time of his death.

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Fox News

McCain Practices The Art Of War -- Obama Arrogance Opens Up Death By A Thousand Cuts

McCain is old!

We know he is old, he has admitted he is old, and he has even joked about it!   The comedians have told us how old he is, even the media has slipped it into their stories as sly comments when they don't outright state it.

McCain embraces his joke line!  It is a smart strategy similar to using the honey pot theory (understanding the Honey Pot Theory), sucking the comedians, media, and his opponent into a known flaw that most Americans don't consider a game ender.

Obama, either out of fear or out of arrogance, has gone out of his way to deny every single perceived error or flaw he may have.  Doing so makes it appear that he really thinks he is a perfect and flawless god.

He lost the ability to pick the laugh line -- how he was defined!  Democratic president candidates always make this same error, either out of fear of appearing less then perfect or, as it looks more and more every year, out of arrogance of actually believing their own press.  They refuse to allow any area open for attack by the Republicans thus opening all areas for attack.  Eventually some of the game changers actually do stick.

The comedians were short on material for jokes (while they had tons of old people jokes for McCain) leaving them struggling for something -- McCain gave it to them, Obama is an arrogant, empty 'celebrity'.

Because Obama is unable to laugh at himself, and because he was unwilling to embrace a benign flaw early, he set himself up for a death by a thousand cuts as everyone struggles for a way of describing him. 

He has appeared arrogant and has demonstrated that he has a glass jaw and in a weakened candidate who can't laugh at himself that often leads to unforced errors.

This has made him vulnerable to a knock out punch.  A punch at a time when he is vulnerable and lacking the ability to laugh it off because by that time doing so would be so out of his carefully crafted character that the general public won't believe a word of it.
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Bejing Olympics Open To Stunning Ceremony

Reuters

Here are some stunningly beautiful photo's.
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Reagan/Carter -- McCain/Obama -- Nuance As A Default Position Is A Losing Position!

"Russia should immediately and unconditionally cease its military operations and withdraw all forces from sovereign Georgian territory,” McCain said in a statement to reporters shortly after his campaign plane landed in Iowa.

“The consequences of Euro Atlantic stability and security are grave,” he added.

He also called for “a truly independent” international peacekeeping force for South Ossetia, and said the United States should work with the European Union and the OSCE to pressure Russia to halt its military efforts.

McCain has been a sharp critic of the policies of the Russian government headed by Vladimir Putin.

In a statement sent to reporters, Barack Obama called for an end to the violence, but stopped short of assigning blame, or making strong demands on Moscow. “I strongly condemn the outbreak of violence in Georgia, and urge an immediate end to armed conflict," he said.

"Now is the time for Georgia and Russia to show restraint, and to avoid an escalation to full scale war. Georgia’s territorial integrity must be respected. All sides should enter into direct talks on behalf of stability in Georgia, and the United States, the United Nations Security Council, and the international community should fully support a peaceful resolution to this crisis.”

Russia sent troops into the region Friday to defend South Ossetia from Georgian troops battling separatist forces there.

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CNN

Edwards Admits Affair -- Stabs Media And Wife In The Back -- Media Forced To Finally Cover Story!

Former Sen. John Edwards has admitted having an extramarital affair in 2006. In a written statement today, the former Democratic presidential candidate said he "made a serious error in judgment and conducted myself in a way that was disloyal to my family and to my core beliefs." 

National Enquirer was right and the media covered it up, until they couldn't any longer.   This was really a disgraceful display by the media.
CNN

Update:  Hot Air -- David Shuster: You know who else deserves an apology from Edwards? The media

After all they did to suppress the story for him, it’s really the least he can do. Tip via TV Newser, which neglects to mention the punchline here: Upon pronouncing the media a hapless victim whose blind trust was so cruelly exploited by Edwards’s aides, Shuster then turned around and pulled rank on the one press outfit that actually bothered to do some reporting. This one’s for you, Kaus.

If David Schuster knows politics more then all the people at MSNBC then they are really in trouble!
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Pump Up Your Tires, Save The Planet -- How 'Bout You Try Doing What Americans Want For A Change?

RASMUSSEN: "Americans overwhelmingly believe there is an urgent national need to find new sources of energy, and this need is more important that reducing current energy usage, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. With energy issues taking center stage in the presidential campaign, 81% of Americans see development of new energy sources as an urgent priority. Only 9% disagree. For nearly two-thirds (65%), finding new sources of energy is more important that reducing the amount of energy Americans now consume. Twenty-eight percent (28%) think reducing current usage is more important."

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Instapundit

Russia Invades Breakaway Georgian Region -- Georgia Says It Is At War!

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said today his country is under "continuous Russian bombardments" and that Russian tanks are moving in. He accused Russia of targeting civilian populations as tensions over the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia appeared to boil over into full-blown conflict.

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CNN

Was Blair The First Obama Supporter In 1975 Or Are Obama-maniacs Saying 'Suck It'?

(I)f a Los Angeles creative agency gets its way, Sen. Barack Obama will see fans meet him with his own salute like the one above. "Our goal is to see a crowd of 75,000 people at Obama's nomination speech holding their hands above their heads, fingers laced together in support of a new direction for this country, a renewed hope, and acceptance of responsibility for our future," says Rick Husong,

Isn't that is just cult creepy and reminiscent of bad things in history?

That was a nasty gesture when I was in high school -- saying to the person it was aimed at to suck it! (As it is shown it would be as if someone up front were telling someone behind them to suck it).

However, I did find what could be one of the first photo's of Obama's O' sign from way back in 1975!  Former Prime Minister Tony Blair at college! 

Okay, maybe both Blair and Obama are just saying "Suck It," but I believe it is all for Obama man!
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US News
Just One Minute -- Working for the big "O" 

Daily Trek -- August 8, 2008

What'd I miss?

Everything you need to know to stay informed each day in 5 minutes or less!  Read your regular news and include this and you will be able to participate in most any current events discussion.
---------------------------
Governor Blagojevich says he is considering speed cameras on the interstates to ticket speeders.  The money is to be used to assist crime fighting measures in Chicago.  Interestingly enough just yesterday I saw a photo showing a speed camera ticket of a car being towed for service over the speed limit.  I am fundamentally opposed to traffic cameras of any kind.

A man was arrested for planning to assassinate Barack Obama.  He had also made threats against President Bush but you wouldn't see that in CNN's report.

In Los Angeles there is a proposal to require any big box home-improvement stores to build a heated and cooled shelter, and toilet, for day laborers who often hang looking for work.

"Suddenly being green is not cool any more -- As the credit crunch bites, environmental policies are being ditched. But oddly we are doing better at saving the planet."

A seven year old gets it -- tells Michelle Obama we should finish what we started in Iraq. Barack, there is your hope for America.

OBAMA GETS MORE DONATIONS FROM EXXON THAN MCCAIN.

"You Read it Here First: We Won the War"

 Mathew Sheffield reported today that Liberals are more than 12 times likely to use profanity than conservatives on the Web.

"Islamic Group Warns Muslims to Keep Children Away From Olympics (Video) -- 'Do not stay on the same bus, on the same train, on the same plane, in the same buildings, or any place the Chinese are.;"

 It seems that in the last two weeks John McCain has taken the lead in YouTube hits
 ---------------------------
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Senate Republicans Getting Into The Act -- Demand Harry Reid Allow A Vote On Energy Plan!

House Republicans have attracted most of the attention the last week in the rebellion that erupted after Nancy Pelosi adjourned the session without taking a vote on drilling.  Their colleagues in the upper chamber want to press the case as well.  Fifteen Republican Senators have a new video demanding that Harry Reid allow debate and a vote on a “balanced energy plan”

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Hot Air -- Video: Senate GOP calls for “balanced energy plan”

House Republicans Continue Protest Fighting For Energy Relief For Americans!

“Republicans will not rest until we have an honest, up-or-down vote on the American Energy Act,” Boehner wrote in the memo written by Republican leaders. “To that end, we request that you contact the Whip’s Office and indicate any time you may have available to come to Capitol in the coming weeks. We specifically request that you indicate your availability for any days during the next two weeks, August 11th through 22nd, as soon as possible.”

Republicans began their protest on Friday, as the House went into its August recess. Through a handful of members, Republicans have been able to continue rounds of speeches on the House floor ever since.

The plan now seems to be to continue taking to the House floor every weekday until at least the start of the Democratic Convention, which kicks off on Aug. 25.

I still don't know if Congressman Manzullo stayed in DC or came home, but he did update his campaignM site with nice links to reports on this strong Republican reaction to a do nothing party that would rather you and I suffer just so they can get elected.

Several Republican members of Congress are asking constituents to send in their gas receipts, which will be presented to the vacationing Democrat leadership see the full report at Michelle Malkin.
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Hot Air -- House Oil Party rockin’ to the Democratic Convention

Move On And The Far Left Really Are Ideologically Suicidal!

A series of new MoveOn.org radio advertisements looks like they could backfire, big-time.

The liberal group is up with ads against six House Republicans attacking them for their support of offshore drilling. Problem is: most of the targets represent energy-rich districts where drilling is viewed favorably, to put it mildly.

One target, Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas), represents a west Texas district where the discovery of oil in the 1940s created wealth throughout the region, and the energy industry has since dominated the region’s economy.
...
“We wholeheartedly endorse this colossal waste of funds,” said NRCC spokesman Ken Spain. “Not only is MoveOn.org’s anti-drilling position out of step with 70 percent of Americans, but a member like Mike Conaway who represents the Texas oil patch will probably see his approval rating surge upward as a result of these ads."

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Politico -- The Scorecard

Why Are You Running For President Mr. Obama? Well, America Is No Longer What It Once Was...

“America is …, uh, is no longer, uh … what it could be, what it once was. And I say to myself, I don’t want that future for my children.”

Here he is in 2004 discussing his book:

"The Basic Outline of the government we possess and our civic religion as a people is such that potentially at least, we could create a society that is a model for the world, it isn't right now."

I wonder when he was proud of America, remember his wife is finally proud for the first time.  How about pre Civil War?  How about when schools and buses were segregated?

Someone needs to ask this man that question because I have done so to liberals who make this same claim and they cannot point out a time that meets their standards!  I addressed this in 2004 and came to the conclusion on Kerry that:

This man is anti-American and so is his party! Here is the key - they don't think they are anti-American because their idea of America is their utopian dream - not the reality of where America is (and the American people are)! In other words - they are in favor of what they want America to be - but they are definitely against everything America is currently. This is where they have been since the 60's!

This is how they can, with a straight face, demand apologies from anyone who would dare to question their patriotism. It is also why this is such a sensitive issue for them - see deep down they understand that this is really an un-American position.

Because of their hatred for the REAL America they would trust a murdering dictator over a Republican President. They would turn over control of our economy, our security, and our health to an international body that has a history of support for dictators and genocide but rabid hatred for democracies like Israel and America.

They are willing to sacrifice soldiers, civilians, national reputation, and national security in order to bring America down a peg or two because this is the only way they think they can accomplish their return to power. They believe that with that power they can remake the world in their Utopian image. 
...
Where on earth does this come from, this demand for utopia? This failure to accept the reality of where we are today?

I think it can be traced to this a dramatic perversion of this quote from the closest thing to a God the left has:

There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?
Robert F. Kennedy

Now, just as Islam has been perverted by terrorists (who demand the destruction of civilization and the murdering of innocents as a means of accomplishing their conversion of the world) I believe this statement by RFK was also twisted from it's original meaning. A meaning that hearkened back to his brother John F. Kennedy where he admonished us:

And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.
John F. Kennedy

Instead of hunkering down and changing the world for the better the left has decided that there is nothing worth salvaging and that we must abandon all that is good about America and start from scratch. With America in a subservient position their goals will have been accomplished. These goals, according to the Lie-N-Hype'ers, are noble and patriotic!

Hot Air has a copy of Rush Limbaugh's response today:

LIMBAUGH: Alright, now here’s he’s brought it home. He had trashed his country in Germany, he has seen the result of that in his plummeting poll numbers. And now he does it again in Elkhart, IN. A 7 year old little girl. You’re running for President Sen. Obama, a little girl asks you a question, “Why did you start running for President?”

It’s a 7 year old Senator. Ya tell her because you love the country. You tell her because this is the greatest place on Earth. That we’ve got challenges, but you want to help the country through it. You don’t tell a 7 year old that her country isn’t what it once was. You do not lie to 7 year olds and tell them that your country sucks. You just don’t do it Senator.

America’s no longer what it could be? What it once was? How the Hell would you know Sir? Your experience has only been in one part of America. Elite, leftist academia.

Ace responded this way:

Unfortunately for Obama America has a fairly long history of rejecting African America, arrogant and liberal candidates who run down their country. Just ask Jimmy Carter how he enjoyed his second term or Walter Mondale, Michale Dukakis and John Kerry how they liked being President at all.

DKK

Sick Of Him Yet -- The Danger Of 24/7 Media Love Fest, Public Tires Of Obama!

From the Pew Research Center:

While John McCain closed the gap in campaign news coverage last week, equaling the attention garnered by his opponent, Barack Obama remains the far more visible candidate in the eyes of the public. When asked which presidential candidate they have heard the most about in the news over the last week or so, 76% of the public names Barack Obama while just one-in-ten (11%) recalls John McCain.

But the Democratic candidate’s media dominance may not be working in his favor: Nearly half (48%) of the public says they have been hearing “too much” about Obama lately. And by a slight, but statistically significant margin – 22% to 16% – people say that recently they have a less rather than more favorable view of the putative Democratic nominee. Not surprisingly, a very large number of Republicans say they have heard too much about Obama lately. But 51% of independents share this opinion, as do as many as a third of Democrats.

DKK
The Corner On National Review

Obama's Failing Poll Numbers Clearly An Emergency Situation!

Oil at $133 a barrel: Obama opposes releasing the oil reserves, saying it should be kept for “a genuine emergency.”

Oil at $117 a barrel: Obama says release the oil reserves.

DKK
Don Surber

When Mathematicians Actually Check The Numbers The Global Warming Evidence Proves Flimsy -- Wonder Why No One Bothered To Look Before, Oh Yea, The Debate Is Over Already!

“…I was well convinced, as were most technically trained people, that the IPCC’s case for Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) is very tight. However, upon taking the time to get into the details of the science, I was appalled at how flimsy the case really is.”

Watts up with that has the whole post, it's worth reading!

You can a reaction to this gentleman to be proportional to Gore's Law!
DKK
Watts Up With That -- APS Fellow supports Monckton's position

'The Emperors New Clothes' -- Obama Just Makes It Up As He Goes And That Is Dangerous!

On May 19 Senator Obama proclaimed Iran to be just "a tiny country." That's a tiny country with seventy million people, half of it covered with mountains that you can tunnel under for your nuclear hidey holes. A half-million men in the army plus the fanatical martyrs of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, a domestic terror apparatus to keep the people down, a growing nuclear and missile program, enough oil to finance it all, a strategic position at the head and the tiny choke-point of the Persian Gulf, a long, long imperial tradition, and an Islamofascist suicide ideology, thanks to Jimmy Carter's good friend Ayatollah Khomeini. The regime of this tiny country had a habit of sending hundreds of young boys to blow up mine fields with their bodies, wearing green plastic "Keys to Paradise" around their necks. It controls the "Shiite Crescent" from Lebanon to the Gulf using its powerful alliance with Syria and Hezb'allah, supplied by our good friends the Russians and Chinese. The regime has a habit of blowing up American soldiers in Iraq with state-of-the-art shaped-charge explosives. Iran has performed high-altitude missile tests that could only be used to set off a nuclear EMP explosion, designed to cripple any modern nation by zapping its electrical and communication grids. It's just a "tiny threat," said Obama --- until his staff told him that wasn't quite right, and he quickly changed his tune.

DKK
Powerline Blog

Musharraf To Face Impeachment

Pakistan's ruling coalition parties say they will begin impeachment proceedings against President Pervez Musharraf.

Party leaders Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif made the announcement after three days of talks. They would need a two-thirds majority to impeach.

In the past Musharraf has said he would resign rather then face impeachment.
DKK
BBC News

More from CNN:

If Musharraf does not request a vote of confidence, the National Assembly will meet on Monday to consider impeachment proceedings, PPP spokesman Capt. Wasif Syed told CNN. Speaking a short time before Thursday's announcement, Syed said there are enough votes in parliament right now to impeach the president.

But Musharraf may still have one card up his sleeve: he could move to dissolve parliament and dismiss the prime minister.

DKK

House Republican Protests Continue With A Boost From Gingrich -- Dem's Policy Of Filling Tires Sends $700 Billion Of American Money To Dictators Every Year!

Did Nancy Pelosi think it was more important to go on a book tour then vote on energy?  Bad investment, her book hasn't even charted! (Drudge reports only 2737 sold first week)

Gingrich makes some good points in this video -- one recommendation he makes is for Dem's to ignore Pelosi's advice to stand up for drilling in the hope that she can block it just so they can get elected as there will more likely be a vote and they will be stuck on the record!

I haven't been able to find a list of the 15 or 20 Republicans still holding out on the floor but if I do I will post it.  I hope Manzullo is one of them, energy is so vital to the Rockford area -- it is the lifeblood for the farming and what manufacturing we have managed to keep in the area!
DKK

Daily Trek -- August 7, 2008

What'd I miss?

Everything you need to know to stay informed each day in 5 minutes or less!  Read your regular news and include this and you will be able to participate in most any current events discussion.
---------------------------
A U.S. Border Patrol agent was held at gunpoint Sunday night by members of the Mexican military who had crossed the border into Arizona, but the soldiers returned to Mexico without incident when backup agents responded to assist.


A young man, his father, and a friend were charged with wide ranging crimes related to a possible plot to assassinate the President. Maps of Camp David and the motorcade route were found along with weapons,  pipe bombs, and instructions on killing at 200 yards.

Newt Gingrich says Republicans should shut down the government over the drilling issue, Pelosi did say there were Parlimentary tricks the Republcians could use to force a vote if they can get the support.  This would be one of them.  Of course Gingrich's didn't have much success with government shut downs when he was in charge, miscalculating who would be blamed. 

George Clooney has a fundraiser planned for Obama in Switzerland, but after the recent beating he has taken over his Rainbow Tour Hugh Hewitt wonders if that will be the next thing to end up under the buss!

Democrat Congressman Tom Allen of Maine, who is running against Susan Collins for the Senate, called on the President to call Congress back into session.  Problem is he voted for the adjournment just last week!

More fact checking of Obama's tire inflation claims.  Did you know that about two thirds of us already inflate our tires?  Not that much savings left to squeeze out of that remaining third is there?

The Washington Post doesn't think much of Obama's windfall oil tax, seems even they can figure out that it is just a shell game, "robing Peter to pay Peter"!

At leat one of the Presidential candidates has a sense of humor -- John McCain Suggests That His Wife Would Make A Good Entrant In Sturgis Topless Beauty Contest.

Al Gore has a new house boat -- BS One, well actually it is 'Bio-Solar One' but, if the boat fits sail it!

There is a spot in So Cal where the ground is 812 degrees! Some geological anomaly!

Germany gets it -- they are delaying or halting the decommissioning of some of their nuclear plants.  They get about 40% of their natural gas from Russia and they have quite a bit of coal.
-------------------------------
DKK

Is Obama Being Tough Or Is The Stress Getting To Him?

RALSTON: I guess what the American people want to know though Senator, is what is the real difference between you and John McCain. You are running this ad tying him to the industry saying that he has taken all of these contributions, but as you well know there is a story out today about how you supported the Dick Cheney bill and he opposed it. That bill gave subsidies to the oil and gas companies, John McCain opposed the bill saying those are tax breaks for those companies, Barack Obama favored it.

SEN. OBAMA: Hold on a second Jon, I thought I was talking to you instead of debating John McCain, but I am happy to let you serve as his proxy. The fact of the matter is that I supported that energy bill saying at the time that those tax breaks were wrong but also recognizing that this was the largest investment in alternative energy in history. And that it was important for us, for the solar industry to get off the ground in places like Nevada, for to get wind kicked off the ground, that that was something that we had to do and I immediately said during that time and subsequently that we should strip out those tax breaks for oil companies. I would point out that in December of last year, we had a vote to strip out those tax breaks for oil companies, there was one Senator that did not vote on that measure, and that was John McCain.

DKK
Hot Air -- Obama really doesn’t like a debate

What McCain Needs To Do Next -- Rove Offers His Two Cents!

But to win, Mr. McCain must also make a compelling case for electing John McCain. Voters trust him on terrorism and Iraq and they see him as a patriot who puts country first. But they want to know for what purpose?

In the coming weeks, he needs to lay out a bold domestic reform program. He gave a taste on energy, but with a few missteps. He should appear in front of manufacturing plants where jobs depend on affordable energy, small businesses affected by fuel prices, and farms hurt by skyrocketing fertilizer costs -- and not in front of oil rigs. He needs to describe the consequences of specific domestic policy decisions. He must explain how his proposals on energy, health care, jobs and education will make a difference for ordinary families.

Mr. McCain also needs to elevate his arguments. It's not only that he opposes tax increases and Mr. Obama favors them. Mr. McCain must also make the principled case that there should be a limit to what government can take from its citizens. This argument will appeal to a large majority of voters. The top income tax rate is 35% and, according to the Tax Foundation, 89% of Americans believe that government should take no more than 30% from anyone's paycheck.

Go read the whole thing!
DKK
WSJ -- Rove -- What McCain Should Do Next!

Ouch -- Washington Post Caught With Pants Down As They Post Inaccurate Obama Propaganda!

OKAY, I MENTIONED IT IN PASSING EARLIER, but this Washington Post correction is worth quoting in full: "An earlier version of this story about campaign donations that Florida businessman Harry Sargeant III raised for Sen. John McCain, former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton incorrectly identified three individuals as being among the donors Sargeant solicited on behalf of McCain. Those donors -- Rite Aid manager Ibrahim Marabeh, and lounge owners Nadia and Shawn Abdalla -- wrote checks to Giuliani and Clinton, not McCain. Also, the first name of Faisal Abdullah, a McCain donor, was misspelled in some versions of the story."

Next time, do some research to confirm what the Obama operatives email you, before you run the story on Page One. It'll work out to be less embarrassing in the end . . . .

DKK
Instapundit

McCain Trusted More Then Obama On 9 Of 14 Key Issues, Gains On Obama On The Other 5

John McCain is now trusted more than Barack Obama on nine out of 14 electoral issues tracked by Rasmussen Reports. The latest national telephone surveys find that McCain has the biggest advantage on the war in Iraq, by a 51% to 39% margin.

Perhaps the most interesting finding of these polls is that McCain has expanded his leads on nearly every issue he had previously had the advantage on, while Obama’s leads have diminished over the past two weeks.

Iraq war, energy, immigration, national security, social security, federal budget,

The economy is the top issue for the majority of voters this election season. Voters have consistently trusted the Democratic Party more on this issue, but the two presidential candidates are tied at 45% as to who voters trust more. A week prior, Obama had a statistically insignificant one percentage point lead on the issue.

DKK
Rasmussen Reports

Harry Reid Under Pressure As Well -- And I don't Mean His Tires!

Des Moines, IA – American Future Fund (AFF) today launched its latest radio ad, “Bargain,” which calls on Harry Reid to end his vacation and instead focus on the needs of Americans by scheduling a vote on S. 3202 to address high gas prices.
Reid adjourned the Senate last week, sending all 100 members on a five-week vacation, without holding a vote on this important piece of legislation.
The ad can be heard here: www.youtube.com/americanfuturefund.
“Weeks ago, AFF was calling on the Senate to stay until the job was finished, forgo their August vacation, and put in place a cohesive domestic energy policy,” said AFF Communications Director Tim Albrecht. “Unfortunately, the desire Americans have for the Senate to have a vote on this issue has fallen on deaf ears as Sen. Reid thought his vacation was more important than lowering gas prices.”
The ad buy runs statewide for two weeks in Nevada.
“Senator Reid’s refusal to do any work on this issue is a disservice to his constituents, and to every hard-working American family that finds themselves burdened with high energy prices,” said Albrecht.

DKK
Michelle Malkin

Republicans Call Pelosi's Bluff -- Calls For Democrats Who Want Drilling To Put Up Or Shut Up!

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement in response to an article in today’s Politico that suggests Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has secretly signaled to rank-and-file House Democratic lawmakers that they should feel free to portray themselves publicly as pro-drilling if it helps them politically:

“My message to Democratic lawmakers is this: if you’re really for increased American energy production, then prove it by putting it in writing. Sign the discharge petitions House Republicans are circulating that will force votes on energy legislation Speaker Pelosi refuses to bring to the floor. And sign onto the American Energy Act, our ‘all of the above’ plan to increase conservation, innovation, and American energy production, instead of doing the Speaker’s bidding by voting against bringing it to a vote. If you aren’t willing to put it in writing, you’re fooling no one. You’re siding with the Speaker of the Drill-Nothing Congress and radical special interests that favor higher gas prices, at the expense of energy-strapped American families.”

“This cynical strategy is disgustingly dishonest. Without any real solutions to help Americans who are struggling with record-high gas prices, it appears the Democratic leadership has hit on a new plan: deceive. Deceive the press, deceive its members, and deceive the American people. Democratic members have a ‘pass’ from their leaders to talk about drilling at home, while the liberal Democratic leadership – which is beholden to special interests that want higher gas prices – plays ‘rope-a-dope’ back in Washington, ensuring there is no vote to help the American people before November. It’s cynical, dishonest, and wrong – and it won’t work.”

 DKK
Hot Air -- Boehner calls bluff of “pro-drilling” Dems: Prove you’re not liars by joining with us now; Update: New grassroots website supporting House protest launches

Daily Trek -- August 6, 2008

What'd I miss?

Everything you need to know to stay informed each day in 5 minutes or less!  Read your regular news and include this and you will be able to participate in most any current events discussion.
---------------------------
High energy prices are causing an increase in the purchase of alternative heating systems that burn stuff, coal, wood, trash, pellets.  So, Nancy, how is that, "saving the planet," going.  Better get back to DC to pass a law preventing people from keeping their families warm since won't allow any drilling!

Texas carried out the execution of a Mexican national who raped and murdered two teen girls (then bragged about it and gave one of their watches to his girlfriend) over the objection of the world court.  Don't mess with Texas!

“It sounds like Paris Hilton supports John McCain’s ‘all of the above’ approach to America’s energy crisis - including both alternatives and drilling. Paris Hilton might not be as big a celebrity as Barack Obama, but she obviously has a better energy plan.” Paris Hilton trying to strike back at McCain ends up endorsing his plan!

"O'Hanlon and Pollack, along with Stephen Biddle, have now returend from another visit to Iraq. In this New York Times op-ed, they argue that John McCain is right, and Barack Obama wrong, about the wisdom of a total withdrawal of combat troops by 2010." To win the peace, we must enforce it.

Englands NHS Hospitals are infested with vermin, rats, mice, cockroaches, maggots.  Health care costs money, national health care costs lives!

"BUSH GOTS SEOUL!!... Pro-American Protesters Give Bush a HUGE Korea Welcome!!"

Former Presidential candidate Mike Gravel suggests supporters of a terrorist on trial get the address of the prosecutor and even the school address of the prosecutor's children. 

Did Obama endorse rolling blackouts?

Alaska Gov. Palin Sues Over Polar Bear Listing-- AP Misreports

Colorado Governor, with more executive experience then Obama, says he isn't experienced enough to be Obama's VP!

The talk of drilling and recession has dropped oil to $118 barrel.  I said as much here.  Imagine what would happen if we could get the Democrats on board with expanding the economy instead of stagnation! 
------------------------
DKK

Health care costs money, national health care costs lives!

Vacationing 'Son Of A Beach!'

DKK

If Obama Meets With Iranian Leaders Would It Cause A Singularity?

Libya's Gaddafi is warning Iran that they are arrogant and that it can only end badly for them.

Strange that even he gets it but Obama still plans on sitting down with them!

I am concerned about the physics of such a meeting -- is it possible that the combining of the arrogance of, "The One," and the Iranians could rip apart time and space itself?

Another reason to vote for McCain -- you could be saving the very fabric of the universe itself!
DKK

Time And Factcheck Puff Up Obama's Air Pressure Claims -- Unfortunately They Need To Check Their Assumptions, They Are Half Full!

Barack Obama's suggestion that we can't drill our way out of the current energy shortage, but we can solve the problem through tire inflation, has been the source of much hilarity. We did the math here, and found that it would take approximately 11,308 years of tire inflation to equal the energy we can obtain by developing our own petroleum resources.

Now, remarkably, Time magazine has rushed to the defense of its candidate, arguing that "Obama is right."

The author of the article, Michael Grunwald, mixes apple-and-orange statistics to try to create the false impression that there is more to be gained by inflating tires than through offshore drilling:

The Bush Administration estimates that expanded offshore drilling could increase oil production by 200,000 bbl. per day by 2030. We use about 20 million bbl. per day, so that would meet about 1% of our demand two decades from now. Meanwhile, efficiency experts say that keeping tires inflated can improve gas mileage 3%, and regular maintenance can add another 4%. Many drivers already follow their advice, but if everyone did, we could immediately reduce demand several percentage points. In other words: Obama is right.

Grunwald is trying, through sleight of hand, to conceal certain basic facts: Obama said that tire inflation could save energy equal to "all the oil that they're talking about getting off drilling,"

(...)

That's right: the EIA, writing in early 2007, assumed that oil prices would decline from their 2006 peak; that in 2008, the price of crude oil would be around $60 a barrel; that it would continue to decline until around 2013 to a low of about $50 a barrel; and that the price would then gradually increase to a little under $60 a barrel by 2030. Those were the assumptions on which EIA concluded that it would not be economically profitable to get most OCS oil out of the ground.

Earth to Michael Grunwald: that isn't what happened. The EIA was wrong. Currently crude oil is at around $120 per barrel, not $60. At the elevated prices we are now experiencing and are expected to experience in the future, vastly greater quantities of OCS oil (or ANWR oil, or shale oil) can profitably be exploited, and those resources can make a vastly greater contribution to our economic well-being.

When we read wildly inaccurate reporting in the mainstream media, it's often hard to tell whether the reporter is incompetent, or is deliberately trying to deceive. You can make your own guess. For now, suffice it to say that Time's attempt to rehabilitate Obama's tire-inflation gaffe is a failure.

To repeat what McCain and I have both said, great -- fill up your tires!  But we are still going to need the energy!  Obama's claim has nothing to do with an energy plan and does not discount the need to drill.
DKK
Powerline Blog -- Time Tries To Salvage Obama's Gaffe

"A Vote For A Democrat Is A Vote For Nancy Pelosi And Her Marie Antoinette Policies"

Hugh Hewitt on Hannity and Colmes last night

DKK

-- Can't clip it because FNS helped close down Redlasso, too bad, it might have convinced you to start watching.

Winnebago County Crafting Details For Countywide Concealed -- Considers Protecting Those Who Exercies The Right From Liberal Media Retribution!

A public database of who has a concealed carry permit might be out, while bringing a firearm to a county caucus meeting could be in.

Those are a couple of the changes members of a Winnebago County subcommittee suggested Tuesday night as they draft a proposed county law that would allow Winnebago County residents to carry firearms.

“We’re talking about a concealed carry law,” said Winnebago County Board member John Sweeney, R-14, stressing the word “concealed.”

“I think making a list of everyone who has a permit with their name, age and address kind of defeats the purpose.”

Sweeney said that a list should be maintained and available to law enforcement authorities, but not the public at large.

“It would actually be a benefit to people who don’t have a permit because then people won’t know (who has a gun and who doesn’t),” he said. “If there’s a list, someone could just find out who doesn’t have one.”

RRStar

Interestingly over the past couple of years there have been numerous newspapers in newly minted concealed carry states that have databased the list of concealed carry permit holders and published that list.  Colorado has banned the publication of the names and in Oregon the paper sued to get the list! (Link, just start at the top and work your way down this Google search.)

All in the name of public records! 

What they end up doing is endangering not only average citizens but they publish the names and addresses of victims of abuse who have gotten a permit and a weapon to protect their families from a known threat! 

But they didn't think about that, did they?  They just wanted to make sure everyone knew where the wackos lived!  After all, wackos are the only ones who would get a permit in their eyes!  Abused spouses can be tossed under that anti gun bus if it means eliminating those evil guns!

I am proud of our County Board and the stand they are making!  Keep it up, it is likely to get ugly as the date of the vote approaches.
DKK

Conventional Wisdom And History Destined To Collide On Bush

A Truman for our times:

The received wisdom is that President Bush has been a foreign policy disaster, and that America is threatened by the rise of Asia. Both claims are wrong—Bush has successfully rolled back jihadism, and the US will benefit from Asian growth.

DKK
Prospect Magazine -- A Truman for our times

Democrats Willing To Force A Recession For Political Gain -- Hope For Bigger Majorities So They Can Vote For Energy Driven Depression!

Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats are holding Americans hostage on energy prices all so they can run out the clock in the hopes that they will have a larger majority next year that will allow them to pass an energy plan that will be, "heavy on conservation and alternative fuels."

Here is what that means for each and every voter:

You are currently being forced to pay higher gas prices all for the hopes of political gain by the Democrats!

Even worse then the prices is the fact that any plan with conservation as it's centerpiece requires, by it's very definition, that there be restraint or forced suppression and since energy drives the economy that is what will be suppressed!  That is a recipe for a forced depression!

So, if Pelosi gets her wish for more power then next January you can look forward a huge lack of control over your own life -- less choices in cars, homes, heating, air conditioning, food, medicine, employment and every other aspect of your life that is impacted by energy.

That power Pelosi wants will come directly from each and every voter in America!  As government becomes more powerful the citizens become less powerful!

Shortages, rationing, and long lines are all historically part of systems that are centrally planned by governments --  and fool hardy politicians that strive for power on the backs of Americans are nothing but slime.

Nancy, Harry, and Barack need a good lesson in arrogance and playing Americans for fools!
DKK

Daily Trek -- August 5, 2008

What'd I miss?

Everything you need to know to stay informed each day in 5 minutes or less!  Read your regular news and include this and you will be able to participate in most any current events discussion.
---------------------------
Robert Novak has announced that he will retire effective immediately due to the recent discovery of a brain tumor.  His prognosis has been described as grim.  Novak had the longest running political column in US history.

Academy Award winning actor Morgan Freeman was involved in a serious car accident Sunday night in north Mississippi.  He has been hospitalized.

"But ... a question. Why in the world isn't anyone connecting the increase in the jobless rate last month to the increase in the minimum wage? At the beginning of the last month the minimum wage went up by 70 cents. When employers are forced to pay people more than they are worth .. they get kicked to the curb."  Neal Boortz

Protesters have signed an agreement with the City of Denver preventing them from carrying poo and some other items that it was earlier reported they planned on using to protest the Democrats at their convention.

"The number of pilots killed constitutes approximately 1.4 percent of all the pilots who ever flew the F-102. In other words, George Bush. It is fair to ask liberals, 'Precisely what risk was Bush avoiding by flying the F-102?'"  This was reported in 2004 but as is often the case it conflicted with the inaccurate conventional wisdom so it was never picked up. 

Studies of old British naval logs dating back to the 1600's have proven very useful in studying climate history and change including temperature and pressure readings, "our data shows climate science is complex. It is wrong to take particular events and link them to carbon dioxide emissions. These records will give us a much clearer picture of what is really happening"

Obama seems to be getting donations from men from Gaza in violation of the law.

The Brits made a secret deal with Iraqi militias to stay out of Basra and that may have prevented their responding when Maliki started his successful offensive says the Times of London.

MoveOn plans to ‘push back hard’ against House GOP

Eco-wacko's are at it again, this time firebombing researchers homes.
----------------------------
DKK

Lawyers, Obama, And Oil, Oh My! -- And Still They Don't Get It!

Over the next five years, we should also lease more of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska for oil and gas production.

But, as Obama no doubt knows, much of the NPR has already been leased, yet those leases have not generated any oil production. Why is this? Not because there aren't enough leases, but rather, as we pointed out here, because the necessary infrastructure doesn't exist: the Corps of Engineers has not been able to get a permit to build a pipeline. Further, the projects that oil companies have already proposed in NPR have been tied up in litigation initiated by the Sierra Club and other environmental groups. Leasing more acres won't solve these problems, it will only lead to more litigation. Of course, the Democrats have always been better at producing lawsuits than producing oil.

DKK
Powerline blog -- The Dishonesty Of Barack Obama Part II

 

If Obama Compares Himself To Paris Hilton, How Can The Left Still Complain When McCain Does The Same Thing?

"Andy Warhol said we all get our 15 minutes of fame," says Barack Obama. "I've already had an hour and a half. I mean, I'm so overexposed, I'm making Paris Hilton look like a recluse."

It's almost as if the McCain camp really has been paying attention!
DKK
Gateway Pundit -- Obama Played the Paris Hilton Card Before Playing the Paris Hilton Card Was Racist

Obama's McCain/Oil Ad Bogus Says Factcheck.org

In his new TV ad in which he accuses Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., of being "in the pocket of big oil," Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, said that McCain's campaign took $2 million from "Big Oil."

"The truth is that McCain's campaign has received $1.33 million from individuals employed in the oil and gas industry, not $2 million," rules Factcheck.org. "We find the $2 million figure is based on a mistaken calculation."
Strange thing is that, as everyone might remember from the last time Obama tired to pull this stunt, oil companies can't legally donate money.  However that doesn't stop their employees from doing so and that is where this money is from.

ABC News Political Punch

But, as was also noted earlier, Obama has himself gotten funds from oil company employees:

Obama has taken $213,884 from the oil and gas industry as of Feb. 29th, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Sen. Hillary Clinton has taken $306,813 in that same period.

Two of Obama's campaign bundlers are also CEOs for oil and gas companies, per a list released on his campaign Web site.

Robert Cavnar, listed as a bundler who has raised between $50,000 to $100,000 for the campaign, is the chairman and CEO of Mission Resources Corp., a Houston-based firm. George Kaiser, also listed in the same $50,000 to $100,000 category, is the CEO of Tulsa-based Kaiser-Francis Oil Company."It's unfortunate that Senator Obama is using false advertising to explain why he can be trusted to do something about energy prices," Clinton spokesman Phil Singer said. "Senator Obama says he doesn't take campaign contributions from oil companies but the reality is that Exxon, Shell, and others are among his donors.

MSNBC -- Fact Check: Obama and Oil

As I have said before, he has the one strategy and it worked on Clinton -- hopefully McCain's team watched as Obama neutered the Clintons with racial charges, attacks on attacks (with attacks thrown in for good measure), and the systematic removal of all tools from the Clinton tool belt.
DKK

Drilling Is Winning And It Is Pissing The Hard Left Off -- Even The Messiah Get's It!

Well it looks like someone in the Obama camp finally got the message ... the American people want to drill. So naturally, when it is politically convenient, Barack Obama has now changed his stance on drilling. Is he just pandering to the voters? Probably. But boy did this policy change get the liberals' boxers in a bunch. Seems that the Messiah may be trying too hard to paint himself as a moderate ... don't worry all you Daily Kos kids ... Obama really is far more liberal in his policies. Once he is elected, he'll be back to his same liberal agenda. So just hang tight.

Here's what Obama said in a speech last Friday in Florida, "My interest is in making sure we've got the kind of comprehensive energy policy that can bring down gas prices ... If, in order to get that passed, we have to compromise in terms of a careful, well thought-out drilling strategy that was carefully circumscribed to avoid significant environmental damage - I don't want to be so rigid that we can't get something done."

This is definitely a different tune than Obama has been singing ... he used to be opposed to more coastline drilling and complained that oil companies are not exploring the areas that are currently open for drilling.

Hey .. the goal is his election. His true slogan is not "yes we can." It is "whatever it takes."

Neal Boortz

Alexander Solzhenitsyn Dies At 89

Russian novelist and historian Alexander Solzhenitsyn, whose works detailed the horrors of Stalin's Soviet labor camps, has died at 89, Russian news agencies reported Monday.

His son, Stepan Solzhenitsyn, told The Associated Press his father died of heart failure late Sunday at his home near Moscow, Russia.

Awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1970 for "The First Circle," Alexander Solzhenitsyn was considered a moral voice for Russia. His works centered on issues of good and evil, materialism and salvation.

His three-volume "Gulag Archipelago" unveiled the horrors of the Soviet labor camps, where he himself was imprisoned for eight years.

DKK
CNN

House Republican Protest Of The Democrats 'Vacation While American Suffer' To Continue Today -- Even Local Democrats Prefer Wearing Blinders When It Comes To Energy Policies

Washington, Aug 3 - House Republicans will be back on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives again Monday to continue the unprecedented protest that began last Friday, when dozens of Republicans joined hundreds of American citizens on the House floor to protest Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) decision to send Congress home for the rest of the summer without a vote on legislation to lower gas prices and move America toward energy independence.

In an urgent memo sent to GOP Members and staff Saturday (“A Call to Action on American Energy”), Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO) hailed Friday’s action, which was led by Reps. Mike Pence (R-IN), Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA), Tom Price (R-GA), and others, and encouraged House Republicans to return to the Capitol beginning Monday morning to help keep the historic effort going.

“It’s not a request we make lightly. But the American people are suffering,” Boehner and Blunt said in the memo. “The consequences of continued congressional inaction on gas prices are unacceptable. We’ve called on the Speaker to call Congress back into an emergency session this month and schedule a vote on the American Energy Act. We must continue to make a stand until the Speaker complies.” (Hot Air)

At least 30 Republican members are set to show for the protest, I hope Congressman Manzullo is on that list.

Look, the Democrats have absolutely no sense of the real world on this issue and their political arrogance is doing actual harm to the economy -- all so Nancy Pelosi can save the world and Harry Reid can keep Obama from having to actually go on the record with an actual vote!

It appears todays protest was prompted by Barack Obama's recent flip on drilling -- something Congressman Manzullo's opponent, Robert Abboud still opposes (according to the energy policy page on his campaign site).  He would rather demonize the oil companies and push for only long term alternatives like additional nuclear power.

Great, I am all for additional nuclear energy!  But nuclear plants take a long time to get approval and come online, and it is even longer when you consider the legal challenges the greens throw in the way.

Here is a great example of the blinders Democrats have donned when it comes to energy policy, candidate Abboud says:

Of course we need to address both the near term issues as well as the long term outlook. Putting this plan in place provides immediate relief on energy prices because oil is priced speculatively in the market place. The moment the policy is enacted, world oil prices will collapse below 1992 levels because the medium and long term outlook for US oil demand collapses as this plan moves forward.

Sounds good, problem is it doesn't actually address the near term issue!

But you could if you increased the supply, and it would happen far faster and with more certainty then under a demand reduction program because the rest of the world isn't going to cut back!  They know that  doing so would damage their economies!

We need a long term and a short term program, oil will be around and in demand for years!

Mr. Abboud seems to think that we can all afford to just go out and buy new hybrid car or an E-85 vehicle (both parts of his short sighted and limited plan) this year?  What about all the used cars and used car dealers?  What about the farmers and their equiptment?  The Semi's that deliver most things today?

Intentionally blinding yourself to the reality of life in the America today while dreaming of an energy utopia is either like whistling past the graveyard or saying, "let them eat cake!"  The result is the same we all suffer sitting on oil we need but can't get, while the rest of the world drills, grows, and gets pissed at us for being selfish -- and for once they would be right thanks to the Democrats in Congress! (Until the U.S. opens its offshore waters to oil drilling, it will be seen as the world’s worst energy hypocrite.)

Representative Manzullo's and the Republican's plan, includes everything Abboud talks about AND includes getting our own oil to ensure economic growth while the alternatives come online!

Which do you think makes more sense, doing everything or not?
DKK

(By the way, Abboud's site is pdf after pdf which just sucks if your not somewhere you can download and view pdf's.  I assume they can figure out how to make the pages html by just cutting and pasting, right?  Since Manzullo has also had his own problems with his site it makes you wonder what these guys are thinking when it comes to an elections in 2008.  I know the public is looking online for the information, they hit here from Google everyday!)