Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Email from my Dad

 
Just received this from my Dad: Here is the hostess of an Italian talk show.

Here is the hostess of an American talk show.

While there's no doubt that America is the greatest country on Earth, this is indisputable proof that our talk shows are the worst in the world.


The old man's still got it!

Hillary: don't call socialized medicine 'socialized medicine'!

 
Say Anything reports:

Hillary goes off on a reporter at the National Association of Black Journalists Presidential Forum for daring to call socialized medicine... well... socialized medicine. [Video here]

What do you think she’s angry about more, that she’s essentially being called a socialist or that a black man dared wander off the liberal plantation to question her “we liberals know what’s best for you” policies...?

...the audience question came from a freelance writer named Kiara Ashanti, who wanted to know why the Democratic White House hopeful was pushing for, what he called, “socialized medicine... Why are you still insisting upon moving that system in here when particularly it will hurt African American communities more than anyone else?”

“...Oh, man – that was a string of misrepresentations about me and the systems in other countries,” Clinton began her response. “Number one, I have never advocated socialized medicine, and I hope all the journalists hear that loudly and clearly because that has been a right-wing attack on me for 15 years, and it is wrong.”

But, it’s not wrong. The health care system Hillary Clinton and her fellow Democrats support consists of taking wealth from everyone (or, more accurately, the top 50% of wage-earners who pay all the taxes) and redistributing it to everyone in the form of medical care. Wealth redistribution, put simply. And what is socialism if not wealth redistribution?

Regarding the original version of HillaryCare, the Mises Institute wrote (July 1996):

What was the core of Clinton's "Health Security Act"? Let's look at Health Security: The President's Report to the American People. "Every American," wrote Clinton, "must have the security of comprehensive health benefits that can never be taken away.... We must--and we will--outlaw insurance company practices that discriminate against consumers and small businesses and make care available to all Americans, no matter where they live or how old or sick they are."

Is that socialism? Of course. If insurance companies aren't allowed to take into account how sick a person is, or is likely to be, there is no way to compute risk, assess profits and losses, cut costs rationally, or otherwise allow a market to work the way it should. The voluntary market system, in which medical services are delivered on a free enterprise basis, is pushed aside by a command-and-control system that ends up creating more problems...

By every reasonable definition, the initial version of HillaryCare was socialized medicine. And when Hillary denies it, she's spinning fairy tales -- again.

It's a canard, to be sure, but here's how you call tell when Hillary's lying: her lips are moving.

The Media Falsehood Hall of Fame

 
Randall Hoven, writing at the irreplaceable American Thinker, offers a fascinating list of the top media fabrications of all-time. The top ten?

1. ABC, Food Lion story (1992). Fraudulent techniques and probable fabrication. Two ABC producers lied on their resumes to get jobs at Food Lion. They each wore a wig hiding a tiny lipstick-sized camera, and each carried a concealed microphone. It's possible they shot footage of mishandled food by doing the mishandling themselves. Food Lion sued ABC and a jury awarded it $5.5 million.


2. ABC 20/20 "Exploding Fords" story (1978). Staged footage. Similar to the later NBC "exploding" GM trucks episode, ABC aired "grossly misleading crash videos and simulations, withheld the same sorts of material facts about the tests, and relied on the same dubious experts with the same ties to the plaintiffs bar... viewers were shown a crash fire and explosion without being told it had been started by an incendiary device."

3. ABC 20/20, "Buckwheat" (of the Little Rascals) story. (1990). Fell for hoax. "In 1990 the ABC program 20/20 was hoaxed into believing that Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas was alive and working as a grocery bagger in Tempe, Arizona. (Thomas actually died in 1980.) A segment broadcast October 5 with narrator Hugh Downs featured an impostor."

4. AFP/Yahoo News  (2007). Fell for hoax/lie. Ran a picture with the caption "An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr City." But the picture was of unfired cartridges, which could only have "hit her house" if they were thrown at it.

5. Mitch Albom, Detroit Free Press (2005). Lying/fabricating. In his sports column, he described alumni players at a basketball game who were not even there.


6. Stephen Ambrose, historian/author (2002). Plagiarism. He was almost a book "factory", writing eight books in five years. But that apparently came easier when parts were copied from other books, without attribution.

7. Pham Xuan An, Time (1960's). Communist spy reporter. Pham Xuan An was a "Viet Cong colonel who worked as a reporter for U.S. news organizations during the Vietnam War while also spying for the communists... He was the first Vietnamese to be a full-time staff correspondent for a major U.S. publication, working primarily for Time magazine... his job as a spy was to uncover and report the plans of the South Vietnamese and U.S. military... he was considered the best Vietnamese reporter in the press corps." He died in Viet Nam in 2006, where he had been "promoted to major general and was named a Hero of the People's Armed Forces, with four military-exploit medals."


8. Peter Arnett, CNN, NBC, National Geographic (1999-2003). Lying, bias, treasonous behavior. CNN fired him in 1999 for his reporting the Operation Tailwind story (see below). NBC and National Geographic fired him in March 2003 for being interviewed on Iraqi TV during war, in which he stated that the U.S. war plan had failed. "It was wrong for Mr. Arnett to grant an interview to state-controlled Iraqi TV, especially at a time of war," said NBC.

9. Associated Press (AP) (2005). Fell for hoax and phony photo. The AP ran a story, with a photo, about a soldier held hostage in Iraq. The photo turned out to be that of an action figure doll; there was no such soldier.

10. Doug Bandow, columnist (2005). Failure to disclose potential conflict of interest. "The Copley News Service revealed it had suspended syndicated columnist Doug Bandow for allegedly accepting payments from Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff to write positive stories about Abramoff's clients." Bandow said, "It was a lapse of judgment on my part, and I take full responsibility for it."

Read it all.

Hoven's headline -- Media Dishonesty Matters -- is perfect.

Monday, October 08, 2007

Movie Extravaganza: Sandy Berger and the She-Clinton!

 
Sandy Berger -- the former Clinton national security adviser who admitted to the theft and destruction of 9/11 documents -- is now an adviser to Hillary Clinton's campaign. Hillary's aides are unapologetic about Berger's advisory role. I figure it's time for a movie about Sandy.



Disgusted? Enraged? Just multiply that by four years if you know who gets elected.

Sunday, October 07, 2007

SCHIP for Dummies and Self-Employed Woodworkers

 
I know, I know, SCHIP isn't a very interesting topic. It's the childrens' healthcare program that Congress wants to expand using an additional $35 billion of our money. SCHIP, if memory serves, stands for Socialized Childrens' Healthcare Insurance Program. President Bush vetoed the expansion on Wednesday, stating that it would grow the program beyond low-income families into a subtle form of socialized medicine for the middle-class.

For yesterday's response to President Bush's radio address, the Democrats trotted out 12 year old Graeme Frost. Frost was badly injured an an auto accident and, thanks to SCHIP, was able to recuperate.

Using complex tools available only to real journalists (or perhaps it was just Google), freeper Icwhatudo discovered some intriguing background information on the Frost family.

The Frosts live in a 3,000 square foot home; the parents own their own design firm, and the kids are attending private school at $20 grand apiece. In addition, the family appears to not only own their home but also the building in which their business is located. But somehow they qualify for SCHIP?

Mark Steyn has the definitive linkage and savages Paul Krugman in a manner reminiscent of, --er-- well, Genghis Kahn. Gonna put some ice on that, Paul?

Thurber's Thoughts explains why SCHIP makes about as much sense as naming Hillary Clinton as Senate Ethicist.

Congress has chosen a source to pay for the bulk of their proposed $35 billion increase in the State Children's Health Insurance Program - cigarette taxes.

According to numerous reports, expansion of the program (which would allow families with income up to $82,000 to qualify) would be financed with a 156 percent increase in the federal cigarette tax, taking it to $1 per pack from the current 39 cents.

And this tax will impact recipients of the SCHIP program more than others. Low-income people smoke more heavily than do wealthier people in the United States, making cigarette taxes a regressive form of revenue. Nearly one-third of all U.S. adults living in poverty are smokers, compared with 23.5 percent of those above the poverty level...

So we allow expansion of the program to those who are not 'low income' or in poverty by imposing a tax that impacts low income and the poor more than others. Where's the logic in that? [Ed: it's a Democratic idea. 'Nuff said?] ...Rep. Jack Kingston [said] during the House debate,

"...in order to get enough money to pay for this, it would require 22 million new smokers"

In other words, Democrats want to pay for a childrens' healthcare program by expanding the percentage of poverty-stricken smokers.

In a word, brilliant!

Update: Gauis offers his plea - Why my family needs SCHIP!

Hat tips: Bizzyblog and Larwyn

Media Matters: now featuring Hillary's bag-men!

 
Yesterday, Conservative Belle scooped the entire blogosphere and the mainstream media. Her detective work links the Democratic front-group Media Matters directly with Clinton Staffers Rick Ridder and Craig Hughes.

This is the same Media Matters that claims tax-exempt status as a non-partisan IRS 501(c)(3) organization. Because they are so obviously partisan, many observers believe they are clearly in violation of the tax code.

...when I did a record search on Media Matters in the business center section of the Colorado SOS's site, I found something curious. They have registered under ID 20061240245 with a statement of foreign entity authority and according to the filing results, their 'registered agent' is listed as Ridder-Braden, Inc. in Denver, CO. Next, I looked up Ridder-Braden, Inc and found who they are (emphasis mine).

Rick Ridder - President and Co-Founder; He has served as a senior consultant for three presidential campaigns (including both Clinton/Gore campaigns)

Craig Hughes - Director of Research; Craig came to RBI after working as Eastern Political Director in the Clinton White House from 1998-2000. In that position, he supervised political activities for the President, First Lady, Vice President, and Mrs. Gore in twelve Eastern states. Craig was one of the earliest staff members hired for the Clinton for President Campaign in 1991, and subsequently worked for both Clinton/Gore campaigns as well as the Democratic National Committee.

Belle also has concerns that Media Matters may be violating Maryland law.

If attorney Mark Levin is right, It's only a matter of time before Media Matters is shuttered as a "criminal enterprise".

Illustration: the invaluable Ramirez

If MorOn.org had been around in 1944

 

General Eisenhower's fatally flawed "invasion" plans on June 6th of this year resulted in an unknown number of casualties. Military officials believe 2,500 died in a single day with a total of 10,000 casualties. But no one knows for sure.

The pro-war Roosevelt administration tries to call anyone who criticizes their policy 'anti-troop,' but 'supporting the troops' does not mean supporting an endless war. The voices of veterans and military families are missing from the debate in Washington. Together we can make sure they become a vital part of the national dialogue around ending this mismanaged war.

Congress should use its funding authority to force President Roosevelt to end the war, and start immediately bringing American troops home. Call your representatives now and demand they bring the troops home NOW!

Official MorOn.org Logo

 
The new MorOn.org logo is now available for your blog posts and emails.

Shhhh. No one tell the socialists liberals progressives.

The real problem for America: Phony Democrats

 
Congressional Democrats have offered covering fire for MorOn.org's gaffes by attacking Rush Limbaugh. Rush's "phony soldiers" remark should be of little concern to Democratic centrists worried about reclaiming the party from the Soros-funded left. Instead, they should worry about phony Democrats. Consider...

John F. Kennedy:

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty... This much we pledge—and more.

Harry S. Truman:

Let there be no mistake... we shall completely destroy [the enemy]'s power to make war. If they do not now accept our terms, they may expect a rain of ruin from the air the like of which has never been seen on this earth.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt:

No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory. With confidence in our armed forces -- with the unbounded determination of our people -- we will gain the inevitable triumph -- so help us God.

* * *

Compare and contrast with the Soros-funded MorOn.org Democrats:

* “I believe myself that the secretary of state, secretary of defense and — you have to make your own decisions as to what the president knows — (know) this war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything…” -- Senator Harry Reid

* “If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans [Soldiers] had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime — Pol Pot or others — that had no concern for human beings.” -- Senator Dick Durbin

* “There was no firefight, there was no IED that killed these innocent people. Our troops [Haditha Marines] overreacted because of the pressure on them, and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood. They actually went into the houses and killed women and children. ” -- Representative John Murtha

* “Shamefully we now learn that Saddam’s torture chambers reopened under new management, U.S. management.” -- Senator Ted Kennedy

* "And there is no reason… that young American Soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children, you know, women, breaking sort of the customs of the – of – the historical customs, religious customs.” -- Senator John Kerry (in a manner reminiscent of Genghis Kahn)

* “The War on Terror is a slogan designed only for politics, not a strategy to make America safe. It’s a bumper sticker, not a plan.” – Former Senator, Former Vice Presidential candidate, Presidential Candidate John Edwards

It's safe to say that FDR, Truman, and JFK wouldn't even recognize their party in its current state. You can thank the puppet-master -- foreign billionaire George Soros -- for that.

Saturday, October 06, 2007

LinkedIn: Yahia Megahed

 
Remember the case of the two South Florida students who were detained near a military base in South Carolina after pipe bombs were found in their car?

Gateway Pundit provides us with this fascinating video related directly to the prosecution of the case.


Credit: Fox News Tampa

Unaware of the hidden camera, Yahia Megahed -- the brother of accused terrorist Yousef Megahed -- flashes coded hand signals during a prison visit. Here's Yahia Megahed's public LinkedIn profile:

Part of the summary reads:

...lots of energy, willing to tear down walls, build bridges, light fires and redefine everthing [sic]. Have unparalled [sic] vision and an addiction to success...

Based upon his recent actions, Yahia may not be kidding about the "tearing down walls" and "lighting fires" bit.

The Great, Enlightened Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

 
The group Friends of Saudi Arabia (FSA) is concerned about the depiction of Saudis in the movie The Kingdom. Here is a real sign from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Imagine the uproar if Israel posted this sign:

Virulent racism, sexism, and intolerance are all alive in the Middle East. But the United Nations seems to be concerned with only one country.

Read more: Gateway Pundit and Robert Spencer. Hat tips: Atlas, Gates of Vienna and Larwyn.

Scientists discover purpose of human appendix

 
The AP reports that scientists may have discovered the true purpose of the human appendix:

...For generations the appendix has been dismissed as superfluous. Doctors figured it had no function, surgeons removed them routinely, and people live fine without them... [but] when infected the appendix can turn deadly...

The function of the appendix seems related to the massive amount of bacteria populating the human digestive system, according to the study in the Journal of Theoretical Biology. There are more bacteria than human cells in the typical body. Most of it is good and helps digest food.

But sometimes the flora of bacteria in the intestines die or are purged. Diseases such as cholera or amoebic dysentery would clear the gut of useful bacteria. The appendix's job is to reboot the digestive system in that case.

The appendix "acts as a... safe house for bacteria," said Duke surgery professor Bill Parker, a study co-author. Its location — just below the normal one-way flow of food and germs in the large intestine in a sort of gut cul-de-sac — helps support the theory, he said... Also, the worm-shaped organ outgrowth acts like a bacteria factory...

....before dense populations in modern times and during epidemics of cholera that affected a whole region, it wasn't as easy to grow back that bacteria and the appendix came in handy...

In unrelated news, Ted Kennedy was named Appendix of the Senate.

Recently, officials have grown concerned that the Appendix of the Senate is ready to burst.

Job Creation Streak: best since 1939

 
Suitably Flip points us to this stunning graph.

Government statistics show "not only a September payroll increase of 110,000, but it revised the August estimate from a decrease of 4,000 to an increase of 89,000.  At 49 months (assuming future revisions don't reverse September's gains), the [job creation] streak now stands alone as the longest unbroken period of job creation since we started tracking it in 1939."

I blame Bush.

Flip goes on to note Hillary Clinton's ridiculous assertions from two weeks ago: "...speaking at the Women Impacting Public Policy's annual meeting, cherrypicking September's preliminary estimate to suggest the economy is not creating jobs."

We could close this gap, create more employment at a time when our economy desperately needs more employment, and create millions of new jobs that will get us over this, you know, barrier that we're not creating jobs. We lost 4,000 jobs in our economy last month. We're not seeing the job creation.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Another day, another Hillary fabrication.

Ahmadinejad at Columbia: "A big win for Iran"

 
Baztab reports that the visit by Ahmadinejad to Columbia is a "big win for Iran." Thanks to Columbia, the entire globe has "received the message of the Iranian revolution and its dead maniacs."

All nations worldwide have received message of Iranian revolution and its martyrs. [Ed: Oops. Did I say 'dead maniacs', above? My mistake.]

On Wednesday, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the US' failed plot at Columbia University has secured a big win for the Iranian nation in thwarting the US and Zionist conspiracies...

The US has mistakenly thought that they can impede progress of the great Iranian nation but to no avail, Ahmadinejad said in an address to a group of the bereaved families of martyrs... The president said the Islamic Revolution is inspired by prophets' movements, so no power can undermine it.

...The enemies try all means and plots to halt progress Iranians [sic] but they will never reach their satanic objectives... They are angry with the Islamic Revolution of Iran, because the revolution has put an end to their 300-year-old arrogance in the world, he said...

Coumbia officials referred inquiries to President Lee Bollinger.

Bollinger downplayed the significance of the speaking engagement, stating, "we were hoping for another speaker, but Hitler didn't return our calls."

Friday, October 05, 2007

How liberals and conservatives differ

 
Here's one important way: liberals progressives believe Hillary's cackle is "utterly endearing" -- and that it's "helped her."

Listen for yourself with your eyes closed. And imagine four years. Four loooooooong years.

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Barack Obama won't wear a US flag lapel pin

 
On the campaign trail in Waterloo, Iowa, the AP reports that B. Hussein Obama has had it with U.S. flag lapel pins:

"...The truth is that right after 9/11 I had a pin," Obama said. "Shortly after 9/11, particularly because as we're talking about the Iraq war, that became a substitute for I think true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security.

"I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest," he said in the interview...

It turns out that Obama hasn't given up pins altogether, though. Using the almost unbelievable resolution of our brand-spanking new electron Blogoscope, we've got a close-up of Obama's new lapel pin.

Oops. Not enough. Let's zoom in to maximum resolution.

Let me just adjust the -err- focus to make the pin look more realistic more legible.

Just before leaving the speaking engagement, Obama sprayed the the American flags draped behind him with lighter fluid, flicked open a Zippo, and told stunned reporters, "Go ahead, punk. Make my day."

Hillary Clinton could not be reached for comment, possibly because she had burst into a cackling, conniption fit of laughter.

Progressives lied. Nielsen ratings died.

 
At Newsbusters, Mark Finkelstein catches the Clinton-Soros left in yet another fabrication.

At the 2007 YearlyKos konvention, Hillary claimed she'd helped found the Soros-funded Media Matters front group.

Yesterday, on MSNBC, Tucker Carlson interviewed Paul Waldman, who is a "Senior Fellow and Director of Special Projects" of Media Matters. Pressing Waldman on Hillary's claim, Under close questioning by Carlson, Waldman wound up contradicting Hillary's claim.

CARLSON: ...What does Hillary Clinton mean that she "helped start" Media Matters?

WALDMAN: Well, I think she's supportive of what we do, and a lot of people have encouraged us.

CARLSON: Did she help start it?

WALDMAN [pictured in the midst of this moment]: Uh, uh, no. I think she's been somebody who encouraged it and was supportive like a lot of progressives.

So who's lying? Given their track records, Waldman and Hillary are both fibbing, if that's possible.

Having seen PMSNBC's ratings, though, I'm surprised anyone even taped the show.

Al. Gored.

 
Fifteen years ago, before he dreamed of making billions in carbon offset trading, Al Gore was a neo-con. LGF points us to a:

...1992 Al Gore speech rescued from the memory hole, in which he blasts George H. W. Bush for ignoring Saddam Hussein’s connections to terrorism and his quest for weapons of mass destruction.

Undeniable proof that the current Democrat position is a cynical political stance, a grab for power and nothing more, with no concern whatsoever for the security of their own nation.


Indeed. That's why the term "national security Democrats" is the ultimate oxymoron, with emphasis on the moron.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Marines denied permission to film an ad in SF

 
ABC reports that the city of San Francisco has turned away the U.S. Marines. City leaders would only permit the Marines' production crew to film a recruitment ad on a single street -- provided there were no Marines in the picture.

Many see this is as just the latest insult to our military by San Francisco. Earlier, the city blocked the battleship USS Iowa from docking and attempted to ban the annual Blue Angels air show.

In the end, the Marines' ad wasn't filmed in San Francisco. The crew received permission from the National Park Service to shoot in Marin.

Is it just me, or would it be really cool to see the Marines invade San Francisco and repopulate it with Americans?

Democrats worry about Hillary heading the ticket

 
Evans & Novak (hat tip: Larwyn):

Democrats: Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-N.Y.) first place in the fundraising race strengthened the appearance that this is her race to lose, which has brought out some Democratic worries about her as the nominee...

*... Obama has begun to become more pointed in his critiques of her, specifically assailing her vote in favor of the Iraq War. Because Iraq was a key motivator for Democratic voters in 2006, this is Obama's best opening. The questions are: (a) Will Obama hit hard enough? and (b) Can he come across as knowledgeable and beat the rap of being too wet behind the ears on serious issues?

*... The New York Times has recently run a handful articles and columns criticizing Clinton or worrying about her as the party's nominee. Veteran Democrats fear she is too polarizing with too high negatives and that she could actually lose in a year that, by all rights, should be tilted heavily towards the Democrats.

I really don't know what they're worried about. All of Hillary's controversies are behind her.