Hanson on Contemporary History

Military historian, Victor Davis Hanson, discusses The Almost Elect, Palin, McCain, Biden, and the Culture Wars.

The Elect: Change

Graphic source: Michael Ramirez

In his cartoon, Michael Ramirez captures The Elect and Change.

Myth of Young, Small Donors for The Elect

The Fox News/Opinion Data exit polling showed that the vote cast by people under 30 held steady at 11% percent, the same level the organization's 2004 exit polls had found. Edison Media Research/Mitofsky International found a higher proportion of the vote cast by 18-29 year olds--18%--but, by the same methodology, the firm found the 2004 voter base was 17 percent composed of people in that age cohort. The fact is that neither polling firm found any real increase from the levels they found four years ago.

The myth of the small donor is even more instructive. Fred Lucas, CNSNews.com, reports that the Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) found that only 26% of the donors to Obama's campaign gave $200 or less, compared to 25% for Bush's campaign in 2004. Most of the money raised came from the fat cats. CFI found that he got 80% more money from large donors (over $1,000) than from those who gave less than $200.

Busta Koran

Busta Rhymes' new single, "Arab Money," has proven to be controversial. Galaxy FM suspended a DJ over the single. The title is claimed to be offensive and racist while the rapper is accused of mixing up elements of the Koran, but this is hardly the first time the Koran was mixed in a pop song. Busta has just joined Salman Rushdie, Theo van Gogh, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Geert Wilders, he is in good company.

Activist/Originalist Interpretations Constitution

Activist and Originalist interpretations of the Constitution divide the Court today.

Vieira On the Constitution

Edwin Vieira, Jr., PhD, J.D. discusses the original intent and living document interpretations of the Constitution of the United States of America. While considering Vieira's comments, he provides reliable guidance to interpreting the Constitution today.

Ex-KGB Agent Describes How to Bring Down the U.S.

Ex-KGB agent and defector, Yuri Bezmenov, in an interview of 1984, describes the perfect ‘demoralization’ of the populace which then paves the way for ‘destabilization’ of a country in the foreign affairs, national security, and economic arenas.

Samuel Adams Quote

“The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men.”

Samuel Adams

The Elect Hiding in Plain Site

One of the most effective uses of the con is to hide in plain site or to get your mark to look left when you should be looking right. Also, I learned from the monster, LBJ, that bad news or disinformation breaks on a Saturday when news is slow and sure enough, it broke again today in the Shinseki appointment. CNN took pains to point out in that story that he was born in Hawaii, just like The Elect. The idea is to plant the Hawaii birth more firmly in people's heads, to get them looking where it does not matter. And, due to the research and SCOTUS filing by Leo Donofrio, he points out that President Chester Arthur concealed that he was a British Subject at birth, thus disqualifying him from the presidency. He covered it up so that he could be president.

The Elect on the Road to Recovery

The Elect stated:

First, we will launch a massive effort to make public buildings more energy-efficient. Our government now pays the highest energy bill in the world. We need to change that. We need to upgrade our federal buildings by replacing old heating systems and installing efficient light bulbs. That won't just save you, the American taxpayer, billions of dollars each year. It will put people back to work.

Second, we will create millions of jobs by making the single largest new investment in our national infrastructure since the creation of the federal highway system in the 1950s. We'll invest your precious tax dollars in new and smarter ways, and well set a simple rule - use it or lose it. If a state doesn't act quickly to invest in roads and bridges in their communities, they'll lose the money.

Third, my economic recovery plan will launch the most sweeping effort to modernize and upgrade school buildings that this country has ever seen. We will repair broken schools, make them energy-efficient, and put new computers in our classrooms. Because to help our children compete in a 21st century economy, we need to send them to 21st century schools.

As we renew our schools and highways, well also renew our information superhighway. It is unacceptable that the United States ranks 15th in the world in broadband adoption. Here, in the country that invented the Internet, every child should have the chance to get online, and they'll get that chance when I'm President - because that's how well strengthen America's competitiveness in the world.

In addition to connecting our libraries and schools to the Internet, we must also ensure that our hospitals are connected to each other through the Internet. That is why the economic recovery plan I'm proposing will help modernize our health care system - and that won't just save jobs, it will save lives. We will make sure that every doctor's office and hospital in this country is using cutting edge technology and electronic medical records so that we can cut red tape, prevent medical mistakes, and help save billions of dollars each year.

The Elect will save billions of dollars by replacing heating systems, changing light bulbs, and he will be a life saver.

The economic road to recovery includes the creation of jobs including:

1. heating system replacer;
2. light bulb installer;
3. road and bridge construction worker;
4. school construction worker;
5. Internet installer for schools and hospitals.

I did not want to quote The Elect out of context but this is what he said, he will be saving billions of dollars and he is a life-saver.

The Elect's Economic Recovery Plan: Light Bulbs, Heating

"We need to upgrade our federal buildings by replacing old heating systems and installing efficient light bulbs. That won't just save you, the American taxpayer, billions of dollars each year. It will put people back to work."

Where exactly do you purchase those billion dollar light bulbs? And, I take it Americans will now be working as light bulb changers and heating system replacers.

I am pleased to see that The Elect has thought through and developed a rock solid economic recovery plan.

The Elect: No Idea for Jobs

The Elect announced his--no change--plan to fix the economy:

"There are no quick or easy fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making, and it's likely to get worse before it gets better. But now is the time to respond with urgent resolve to put people back to work and get our economy moving again. At the same time, this painful crisis also provides us with an opportunity to transform our economy to improve the lives of ordinary people by rebuilding roads and modernizing schools for our children, investing in clean energy solutions to break our dependence on imported oil, and making an early down payment on the long-term reforms that will grow and strengthen our economy for all Americans for years to come."

Has it not become obvious that he has no idea what to do? A future working on roads is not what young people have been dreaming to do as part of the American dream.

Iraq Order of Battle: December 2008

The agreement sets 30 June 2009, as the deadline for U.S. combat troops to withdraw from all Iraqi cities and towns; the date for all U.S. troops to leave Iraq is 31 December 2011.

No Office of the President Elect

Pay no attention to that man behind the podium, there is no "Office of the President-Elect" in the United States Constitution; furthermore, the Electoral College has not met yet so there is no President Elect just yet.

Signature? Signatures?

Is this the same signature appearing on each document? Some people consider what look like The Elect's signatures, on different documents, and have questioned whether it is from the same hand. For example, people have questioned one from an allegedly counterfeit Selective Service Registration and the other is from his Statement of Candidacy. Has anyone compared the signatures?

The Elect: No Paper Trail

The Elect has no paper trail for the past 48 years. There is no documentation, records, or paper trail.

List of possible documentation:

Original, vault copy birth certificate: not released.
Certificate of Live Birth: released but counterfeited.
Obama/Dunham marriage license: not released.
Soetoro/Dunham marriage license: not released.
Soetoro adoption records: not released.
Fransiskus Assisi School: school application released stating religion: "Islam."
Punahou School records: not released.
Selective Service Registration: released but counterfeited.
Occidental College records: not released.
Passport (Pakistan): not released.
Columbia College records: not released.
Columbia thesis: not released.
Harvard College records: not released.
Harvard Law Review articles: likely none but perhaps one unsigned has been found.
Baptism certificate: none.
Medical records: not released.
Illinois State Senate records: none.
Illinois State Senate schedule: lost.
Law practice client list: not released.
University of Chicago scholarly articles: none.

The Elect: $750M

The Elect received nearly $750 million dollars during the campaign. That is more than twice what McCain raised and it's more than what Bush and Kerry combined managed to snag during 2004. The Elect opted out of taking public funds which made him the first candidate for president to opt out of public financing since the system was created in the 1970s to counter the effect of buying the election.

Gov. Richardson States: The Elect is an Immigrant

As Governor Bill Richardson stated at the Democratic National Convention in Denver Colorado on 1 September 2008: "Barack Obama is an immigrant...he is one of us...." I do not think it can be much clearer. The U.S. favors an immigrant as President.

SCOTUS Today

Nothing more released about the Donofrio case today. More information is expected early next week.

The Elect Agrees McCain A Natural Born Citizen

In April 2008, a resolution was proposed to the U.S. Senate, recognizing John McCain as a "natural born citizen." Now what is odd about this resolution is that it was introduced by the opposition party, Democrats, Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The bill was co-sponsored by whom? It was co-sponsored by political opponents, nominees, The Elect, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton.

Their sponsorship, in the midst of a contentious campaign, is to say the least odd. Why were they so interested in the subject of "natural born citizen?"

At the time, McCain was obviously their primary opponent as he turned out to be during the Fall campaign.

In any case, Senate Resolution 511 was passed on 30 April 2008 as a non-binding resolution. S.R. 511. S.R. 511 is not a law, but rather, a unanimous opinion. Obama and Clinton were determined to demonstrate that McCain qualifies as a natural born citizen.

The respective candidates addressed the question that The Elect, Obama, did not want to face directly. Are you, yourself, a natural born citizen? Obama has failed to produce documentation that he is a natural born citizen of the United States. He attempted to defer questions about his origins by deflecting doubts about McCain. McCain agreed with the arrangement so no one would be inclined to doubt the citizenship about a person who clearly loves this country and was willing to fight and suffer as a prisoner of war as he did for five and a half years.

We await definitive proof or the Supreme Court Justices will decide. Or, The Elect could simply produce a $14.00 authentic birth certificate, or his student records, or a passport before he entered the Senate, or health records stating his natural born status at birth, or any simple and easily produced documentation. So, far, no records have been transparent, only expensive legal defenses and claims of how transparent his administration will be. So far, this is not so.

Cf. S.R. 511:

Co-sponsors

o Sen. Hillary Clinton [D, NY]
o Sen. Barack Obama [D, Ill]

Committees

Introduced result Voted on by Senate
April 10, 2008 April 30, 2008

All Bill Actions

* Passed by Unanimous Consent in the Senate on Apr 30, 2008. Resolution agreed to in Senate without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.
* Apr 24, 2008: Committee on the Judiciary. Date of scheduled consideration. SD-226. 10:00 a.m.
* Apr 24, 2008: Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
* Added to calendar on Apr 24, 2008: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 715..
* Added to calendar on Apr 24, 2008: Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably..
* Apr 24, 2008: Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Leahy without amendment and with a preamble. Without written report.
* Apr 10, 2008: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
* Introduced on Apr 10, 2008.

Mainstream Plays Constitutional

Article 1, Section 6 of the Constitution states:

"No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time."

Although the language is difficult it really simply means that a lawmaker cannot fill a position if the salary for that position has increased during their term in office. It looks like Hillary can not be Secretery of State, or, is there a way that she still could be?

This constitutional issue, Hillary's, has gotten in the mainstream media although questions of whether The Elect is a natural born citizen or not has remained in the blogsphere.

When the question of compensation has happened before in the recent past lawmakers simply made an end around.

Ohio Senator William Saxbe was named President Nixon's attorney general in 1974 and again when Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen became President Clinton's Treasury secretary in 1993.

Congress voted a lower salary, or the candidate simply accepted a lower salary, it is not as if she needs the money anyway. The third is the most likely route, no one has the standing, or the right, to sue to stop her from being secretary of state.

The last is the most troubling for an administration touting transparency as their motiff.

Rove Favors "New" Team

If Karl Rove favors The Elect, then how could there be change? Indeed, the despised Republican wonk endorses the "new" security team.

Politics makes strange bedfellows indeed.

College Out of Financial Reach

CNN issued the results of a survery which reported that tuition and fees, adjusted for inflation, rose 439% from 1982 to 2007; moreover, public policy and education received an "F" in affordability in 49 states, California received a "C."

Another Natural Born Citizen Suit Filed in Cali

Dr. Orly Taitz has files a natural born citizen suit in California Supreme Court: the Docket number is S16869, Lightfoot v. Bowen. This is a “Petition for Extraordinary Writ of Mandamus for Stay.” The California Court will either issue an emergency stay of the voting of the electors, or decline to hear the case because it is a federal issue.

Iranians on The Elect

The BBC ran an interesting story about Iranian reaction to The Elect's victory. One blogger, cartoonist and blogger Nikahang Kosar who now lives in Canada, likened Obama to the reformist Mohammad Khatami in Iran. Obama's promise of 'change' reminds many Iranians of their own optimism when they elected the reformist Mohammad Khatami as president in 1997. This reflects the disillusionment Khatami's supporters felt when his attempts at reform were blocked by Iran's Islamic hardliners.

Likewise, Tehran journalist Ehsan Taqaddosi echoes this feeling, writing on demokracy.blogfa.com states: "Khatami was our Obama."

And, a third Iranian, Ehsan Taqaddosi, fears Obama cannot deliver what he promises.

Like Obama, Khatami was a pleasant talker and he introduced concepts such as the rule of the people and democracy into our political literature. But what happened in practice?

Nothing changed... Everyone says that Obama will be the same as his predecessors and in practice he may only be able to create a short, sharp shock.

Khatami also created a short, sharp shock and at the end of his tenure, we didn't witness any of the enthusiasm and determination which existed during the initial years of his government's rule.

The Iranian comments were originally in Farsi and translated by BBC Monitoring.

Elector Dead: Still Scheduled to Vote

Gary Kreep of the United States Justice Foundation has notified the state of California that a dead woman is listed as an official elector. Kreep stated:

"In the 28th Congressional District (Congressman Howard Berman), situated in Los Angeles County, Ilene Huber is listed as the presidential elector designated in that district. However, as shown in the attached certified statement of Dean C. Logan, registrar-recorder/county clerk of the county of Los Angeles, state of California, there is no Ilene Huber listed as a registered voter in the County of Los Angeles. A statewide search of public records has revealed only one Ilene Huber in the state of California, and she is deceased-a copy of her certificate of death is attached hereto as well."

Latest Natural Born News

16 states are holding a hearing of some sort regarding The Elect's natural born status and two hearings are scheduled before the SCOTUS.

Berg Writ Update

The Philip J. Berg petition for writ of certiorari from The Elect was ignored by him and the Democratic National Committee. The Elect has not produced a legitimate, original birth certificate. Berg is now filing a motion to stop Obama from taking office in January. Berg is asking the SCOTUS to stop state certification of electors to keep the Electoral College from meeting 15 December and casting votes for Obama. He is also seeking to postpone the official vote count Jan. 6 until the court reaches a decision on his appeal.

Donofrio and Wrotnowski Update

The Donofrio situation can be summarized but there are more as well.

SCOTUS updates today include the Cort Wrotnowski situation, an emergency application. Wrotnowski's Docket now shows that the renewed application to Justice Scalia is dated Nov. 29. That’s the date Cort express mailed the original papers.

Donofrio to Full Court: 5 Dec. '08

Donofrio v. Wells was distributed for conference on 5 December 2008 by the full Court after a prior referral of the application by Justice Thomas.

Troops Quartered in America

The U.S. military expects to have 20,000 uniformed troops inside the United States by 2011 according to Pentagon officials. The justification for the combat troops is said to help state and local officials respond to a nuclear terrorist attack or other domestic catastrophe.

There are, and should be, strenuous opponents to this plan from both the left, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the right, the libertarian Cato Institute. Both ends of the political spectrum should be alarmed by this unwarranted expansion of executive authority.

The Constitution was written with the intention of having civilians in control of the military, not the other way around. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 12 placed a two-year limit on spending for the army as a measure to insure civilian control of the military.

This tradition persisted throughout American history.

Any new law alters the two-centuries-old Insurrection Act, which Congress passed in 1807 to limit the president’s power to deploy troops within the United States. That law has long allowed the president to mobilize troops only “to suppress, in a State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy.”

Along these lines, the Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385) passed on June 16, 1878 after the end of Reconstruction. The Act prohibits the federal uniformed services (the Army, Air Force, and State National Guard forces except when they are impressed into federal service) from exercising nominally state law enforcement, police, or peace officer powers that maintain "law and order" on non-federal property (states and their counties and municipal divisions) in the former Confederate states.

The National Defense Act of 1916 made each State's militia (volunteer army) a part of the National Guard. Each State's National Guard is under the command of that State's governor; but Congress has given the President the power to call those units into federal service under exceptional circumstances, such as during the Los Angeles riots in 1992, when necessary (Article 1, Section 8, Clauses 15 and 16). I also read the 3rd Amendment, the quartering of troops amongst civilians, as another indication that the Founders were wary about having combat troops amongst the general populace. The U.S. has had a long-standing tradition of being wary of the use of standing armies to keep the peace.

The unprecedented nature of the 20,000 troops combat troops should be clear. Troops returning from urban warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan are being re-deployed in America.

The question is why?

There is no insurrection currently and the National Guard along with law enforcement agencies have traditionally provided security. Why does the U.S. government feel compelled to place so many combat troops in the general population?

Domestic deployment appears to be an expansion in presidential and military authority. Cato Vice President Gene Healy warned of "a creeping militarization" of homeland security.

The troops are here already. The first reaction force is built around the Army's 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team, which returned in April after 15 months in Iraq. The team includes operations, aviation and medical task forces that are to be ready to deploy at home or overseas within 48 hours, with units specializing in chemical decontamination, bomb disposal, emergency care and logistics. The troops are on a one-year domestic mission.

Although some Pentagon leaders initially expected to build the next two response units around combat teams, they are likely to be drawn mainly from reserves and the National Guard, such as the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade from South Carolina, which returned in May after more than a year in Afghanistan.

Since 1 October 2008, the US Army announced that the 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team (BCT) will be under the day-to-day control of U.S. Army North, the Army service component of Northern Command (NORTHCOM), as an on-call federal response force for natural or man-made emergencies and disasters, including terrorist attacks.

This marks the first time an active U.S. Army unit will be given a dedicated assignment to NORTHCOM, where it is stated they may be "called upon to help with civil unrest and crowd control or to deal with potentially horrific scenarios such as massive poisoning and chaos in response to a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or high-yield explosive (CBRNE) attack." These soldiers will also learn how to use non-lethal weapons designed to "subdue unruly or dangerous individuals" without killing them, and also includes equipment to stand up a hasty road block; spike strips for slowing, stopping or controlling traffic; shields and batons; and beanbag bullets. However, the "non-lethal crowd control package [...] is intended for use on deployments to the war zone, not in the U.S.

Uh huh.

Even government officials are noting the extreme measures. Before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, dedicating 20,000 troops to domestic response--a nearly sevenfold increase in five years--"would have been extraordinary to the point of unbelievable," stated Paul McHale, assistant defense secretary for homeland defense. Even McHale stated that this was "a fundamental change in military culture."

The Pentagon's plan calls for three rapid-reaction forces to be ready for emergency response by September 2011. The first 4,700-person unit, built around an active-duty combat brigade based at Fort Stewart, Ga., was available as of Oct. 1, said Gen. Victor E. Renuart Jr., commander of the U.S. Northern Command.

If funding continues, two additional teams will join nearly 80 smaller National Guard and reserve units made up of about 6,000 troops in supporting local and state officials nationwide. All would be trained to respond to a domestic chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or high-yield explosive attack, or CBRNE event, as the military calls it.

Military preparations for a domestic weapon-of-mass-destruction attack have been underway since at least 1996, when the Marine Corps activated a 350-member chemical and biological incident response force and later based it in Indian Head, Md., a Washington suburb. Such efforts accelerated after the Sept. 11 attacks, and at the time Iraq was invaded in 2003, a Pentagon joint task force drew on 3,000 civil support personnel across the United States.

In 2005, a new Pentagon homeland defense strategy emphasized "preparing for multiple, simultaneous mass casualty incidents."

In late 2007, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England signed a directive approving more than $556 million over five years to set up the three response teams, known as CBRNE Consequence Management Response Forces.

Last month, McHale said, authorities agreed to begin a $1.8 million pilot project funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency through which civilian authorities in five states could tap military planners to develop disaster response plans. Hawaii, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Washington and West Virginia will each focus on a particular threat--pandemic flu, a terrorist attack, hurricane, earthquake and catastrophic chemical release, respectively.

Last Monday, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, seemingly now retained by The Elect, ordered defense officials to review whether the military, Guard and reserves can respond adequately to domestic disasters.Gates ordered defense officials to review whether the military, Guard and reserves can respond adequately to domestic disasters.

Gates gave commanders 25 days to propose changes and cost estimates. He cited the work of a congressionally chartered commission, which concluded in January that the Guard and reserve forces are not ready and that they lack equipment and training.

Bert B. Tussing, director of homeland defense and security issues at the U.S. Army War College's Center for Strategic Leadership, said the new Pentagon approach "breaks the mold" by assigning an active-duty combat brigade to the Northern Command for the first time.

Is it happening to America?

"An evil exists that threatens every man, woman, and child of this great nation. We must take steps to ensure our domestic security and protect our homeland."

Adolph Hitler

How GPS Works

GPS works by using the 29 satellites orbiting the Earth 12,000 miles up. Five of them are redundant. The U.S. military began launching them in 1978, and it took until 1994 to get the required 24 in orbit which was enough to calculate a position anywhere in the world. These 2,000- to 4,000-pound satellites are 17 feet wide. They traverse six separate orbits with each orbit having four satellites chasing one another.

The satellites are positioned so that any ground-based GPS receiver can always receive data from at least four of them. A master control station in Colorado Springs and five unstaffed monitor stations around the world track each satellite's orbit precisely. The controls are correcting in that if a satellite is out of position, they command its booster rockets to nudge it back on track.

Using a 50-watt radio transmitter each orbiting GPS satellite continuously broadcasts signals containing a pseudorandom code that provides its identity and position and the time maintained by an atomic clock. An accurate data location requires at least three satellites and incrementally four is much better, and six or seven provide even more accurate results. A GPS receiver uses relatively simple geometric calculations to determine its own latitude, longitude, and altitude. By comparing successive readings as compared with time, it can also calculate ground speed and direction.

Errors persist since many people have noticed that GPS data is never totally accurate. Radio waves travel at the speed of light or 186,000 miles/second. And in a vacuum, the Earth's atmosphere slows waves down. Further delays occur when signals bounce off intervening obstacles such as buildings, elevated geography, and trees. Until 2000, the public GPS was purposely made less accurate because GPS was originally designed for military use and the U.S. government didn't want enemy forces to possess better position information. Thus, the U.S. military introduced deliberate errors into the system. This process resulted in GPS calculations that could be off by 100 meters.

Differential GPS (DGPS) now corrects for measurement errors by comparing the GPS positions recorded at designated reference stations with the accurately known positions (determined through careful surveys) of those stations. The improved calculations result in accuracy within a yard or two.

Worried About the Elect's Stress Tic? Foreign Policy Decline Imminent

As the recent Barbara Walter's interview illustrated, The Elect has a discernable spasm under his right eye. As the middle-aged smoker that he is, it would have been fortuitous if he had released his medical records so that the American people would know what his health problems are. However, the tic is an indication that the stress of the transition has begun to wear on him.

The Elect is leading the U.S. down a treacherous foreign policy path by deciding on Clinton. As the U.S. unipolar strength is receding the international world is transitioning to a multipolar situation per the NIC. Foreign policy will be dysfunctionally multilateralist as the U.S. is now committed to international interests. This provides a vulnerability to foreign entities who may inject their agenda into U.S. national interests. This increasing dependency is a high risk strategy for the American people. Clinton will only be able to obtain international agreements without validating the assumptions of U.S. recovery and linking U.S. national interests. International interests will begin to predominate foreign policy discussions and will likely end up controlling our economy and negatively impacting our national security. Russia has forged such an agreement with Europe because of its energy intimidation. Russia has already begun to move in Venuzuela.

In addition, the U.S. foreign policy will not recover from it's original economic status using The Elect's domestic recovery plan involving the building of bridges, roads, the renovation of schools, and promoting green energy. The Elect will need to discover that government projects do not create revenue, they deplete it.

The Almost Elect Needs to Remember the Promise You Made

In the `you can fool some of the people some of the time' department, comes a statement

that suggests that `you can't fool all the people all the time.' Cf. Edited song: "Remember the Promise," by Cock Robin

Sign the petition for the public release of Barack Hussein Obama's birth certificate at: http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=81550

Get informed:

The natural born citizen site has been censored for political reasons and has been a victim of cyber attacks. I wonder why.

A general summary of the controversy can be found at an Oklahoma newspaper site.

Another site, Atlas Shrugs, has updated information although they too have been censored, by Google. After breaking information on the site, and readers questioned Google, hits dropped to zero.

Google employees donated quite a bit to The Elect's campaign: $487,355.

Finally, Google CEO Eric Schmidt might well be occupying the newly-formed tech adviser position to The Elect. Obama created this position just shortly before visiting the Google headquarters during his campaign.

Atlas was helpful for me as well; I found out that Google censored my site but ensuring that my blog does not appear in searches.

There is a service called, Google Ranking Diagnostics, that helps bloggers self-diagnose their website.

The self-diagnosing revealed that Google has applied a non-searching feature:

"Please note that this page is using NOINDEX, NOARCHIVE, NOFOLLOW to prevent it from being indexed."

There is no violation of the Terms of Service, the usual explanation for censoring, it is simply political.

The Hillbuzz site has updated information that includes an open letter to The Elect that will run in Chicago.

The Freedom March site features interviews with the principals.

The People's Passions site is contacting the Electors for action.

Mainstream Media Picks Up Eligibility Issue Story

A number of factual errors exist Pete Williams' article but at least it is a signal that the mainstream media is picking up the question of The Elect's ineligibility to be president since he is not a natural born citizen.

Note on Ehrman, Misquoting Jesus

This is a well-written brief review of the accepted textual problems found in the New Testament. The book was written to assist laypeople in their understanding of how the textual tradition of the NT has been modified over time. None of it is really controversial yet as Ehrman explains there are no books which attempt to explain academic pursuits in regards to the reliability of the NT text. He explains that as a devout young person he innocently believed that the words of the text were inerrant however as an academic he began to understand that we did not have the actual words of Scripture. His academic interests led him to more fully understand the complexity of the transmission and he faithfully surveys the history of scholarship regarding the textual tradition. Along the way he demonstrates how specific Scriptural passages are not well attested, or have been modified for theological reasons or for the sake of clarity.

"His Will Be Done"

The Elect Messiah is inspiring songs of praise: "His Will Be Done."

The Elect's Cronies Advocate End of Natural Born Citizen Requirement: Curious

Who is it that is trying to amend the natural born citizen requirement? Sarah P. Herlihy is advocating an amendment because the requirement is seen as an obstacle to globalization. Ms. Herlihy is employed by Kirkland & Ellis LLP. The law firm is based in Chicago. Indeed, one of the partners, Bruce I. Ettelson, P.C., is a Member of finance committees of U.S. Senators Barack Obama and Richard Durbin (temID=7845, viewed towards the bottom of the page). In addition, Jack S. Levin, P.C., is another partner who was presented the "Illinois Venture Capital Association's lifetime achievement award for service to the private equity/venture capital community" by none other than The Elect.

Grandma States The Elect Was Born in Kenya

The audio of a telephone conversation with Sarah Hussein Obama, with the transcript following along with the audio, where she says she was there when Obama was born, is available to hear.

The introduction and the full tape is available as well.

The Elect's Salvation Interview

In an interview in 1995, The Elect seemed to make little sense while he was working out his salvation and divided America into groups. Some will have things taken away, and others will be given things: redistribution.

Unfolding Mumbai Story

Click image to view an interactive graphic showing the attacks in Mumbai. Created by The New York Times.

I would think it is about time that the civilized world would begin to organize against the terrorists.

The Elect Messiah Flip Flops On Change, Again

"Understand where the vision for change comes from, first and foremost," Obama said. "It comes from me. That's my job, is to provide a vision in terms of where we are going, and to make sure, then, that my team is implementing."

In his consistent double-talk the Elect Messiah tapped more no-change appointments, as he has reliably done, in appointing more old Washington cronies-—former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, as a top economic adviser-—and he is prepared to name his former rival, Hillary Clinton, as secretary of state next week.

Promising change, The Elect has raised questions about how much he can deliver on that promise given the long list of beltway insiders he's named, or signaled that he will name, to run his government. This is business as usual:

—Former Clinton White House adviser Rahm Emanuel as White House chief of staff.

—Former Clinton Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers as chairman of the National Economic Council .

—Former Clinton lawyer Greg Craig as White House counsel.

—Former Treasury Department official and current New York Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary.

—Former Clinton Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder as attorney general.

Others may not have been in the Clinton administration but offer the same Washington cronyism. Volcker was Federal Reserve Chairman during the presidencies of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. Tom Daschle, The Elect's apparent choice to head the Department of Health and Human Services, is a former Senate majority leader who voted to commit troops to Iraq.

Consider this nonsenical comment: The Elect noted that Volcker "hasn't been in Washington for quite some time. And that's part of the reason he can provide a fresh perspective." I see; if he leaves for a while he comes back with fresh ideas. That makes no sense whatsoever.

The Elect stated: "The last Democratic administration that we had was the Clinton administration. And so it would be surprising if I selected a Treasury secretary who had had no connection with the last Democratic administration. Because that would mean that the person had no experience in Washington whatsoever." The lack of experience sounds like The Elect himself. The lack of qualifications did not stop him from running.

The Elect stressed that, "what we are going to do is combine experience with fresh thinking." Right, ok, that is exactly what his opponent offered.

"What we don't want to do is get caught up in a spiral where people pull back from the economy, businesses then pull back, jobs are reduced and we get into a downward spiral." Right, he might as well say the fundamentals of the economy are strong. Wait, that is what his opponent said as well.

This is a guy who is a total puff piece. He has nothing of substance to say.

Terrorists Continue Rampage

Mumbai attacks continue, death toll stands at 160, and at least 327 injured.

The Elect Lies About Kennedy Connection

The Elect traced his "very existence" to the generosity of the Kennedy family, which he said paid for his Kenyan father to travel to America on a student scholarship and thus meet his Kansan mother. Or, so he says. One problem with this account is: it is a lie.

Contrary to The Elect's claims the Kennedy family didn't fund a September 1959 airlift of 81 Kenyan students to the United States that included Obama's father.

The Kennedys were first approached for support for the program nearly a year later, in July 1960.

An Obama spokesman, Bill Burton, acknowledged that the senator spoke in error.

Although the airlift occurred before Kennedy became president, Obama said that Kennedy was involved.

What actually happened though is less dramatic. A Kenyan nationalist leader, Tom Mboya, traveled to the United States in 1959 and 1960 to persuade thousands of Americans to support his efforts to educate a new African elite.

Mboya raised money for Obama Sr.

Stephen Plotkin, an archivist at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston, said a search of the records did not turn up any evidence that the Kennedys supported the airlift.

Gitmo Sobering Records

Records of the High-Value operatives incarcerated at Gitmo make for sobering reading and listening. I would hope these ne'r do wells remain sequestered and they throw away the keys. If these individuals are ever released they will continue their delayed jihad, the type of actions that Mombai is experiencing currently. I talked to an Indian employee at Subway's, he would not have released the enemy combatants at Gitmo: common sense.

India, Mumbai Hit Again

Graphic source: BBC News, from Microsoft

There are only early reports so far but terrorists have targeted numerous targets in Mumbai.

Al-Shabaab: American Jihad Site

Al-Shabaab, an Islamist group in Somalia, produced the first American jihadist who has been convicted. Their goal is to recruit more jihadists. The estimated number of visits for www.kataaib.net 5,037 visits is per day.

For any one who would like to protest housing jihadist sites in the U.S. the following information should be helpful.

Al-Shabaab in Somalia is Al-Qaeda, Al-Shabaab's website http://kataaib.net/shuhadada%2028-01-2008.html
Dotster web hosting; DOTSTER INC
8100 NE Parkway Dr #300
Vancouver, WA 98662, USA
Abuse: abuse@dotster.com
legal@dotster.com
Phone 1-360-449-5985 or 1-360-449-5900

West, Strongest Tribe

Bing West seems to have written one of the better accounts of the Iraqi conflict.

In The Strongest Tribe, he summarizes the mistakes made by the U.S. government and the incredible turnaround worked out by the American military. Most of this story in unknown and unappreciated as the American people lost interest in the service of their sisters and brothers, and the American mainstream media failed to accurately report the news.

Bing West was assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs under President Ronald Reagan. He served in the Marine infantry in Vietnam. Later, as an analyst at the RAND Corporation, he wrote the Vietnam classic The Village, that war colleges use as a primer in counterinsurgency. As a correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, West has covered the war for five years. His books on Iraq - No True Glory: A Frontline Account of the Battle for Fallujah and The March Up: Taking Baghdad with the United States Marines (co-authored with MajGen Ray Smith)–have won the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s General Wallace M. Greene Jr. Award for nonfiction, the Colby Award for military nonfiction, and the Veteran of Foreign Wars Media Award. West is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations; his articles appear in The New York Times, The Wall St. Journal, and other major newspapers. He appears on National Public Radio and The Newshour with Jim Lehrer.

Deputy WH Press Secretary Avoids the Bait

Today's press briefing by Deputy White House Press Secretary Tony Fratto ended without him taking the bait and answering questions regarding The Elect's birth certificate.

Lester Kinsolving:

Q: Good. The CEO of WorldNetDaily has called on the President-elect to release a birth certificate listing the hospital and names of parents. The White House believes that this would fully satisfy the constitutional requirement, don't you?

MR. FRATTO: I don't think I have anything to say on that, Lester, and I think we're going to end it right there.

Fratto did not have an answer and the briefing ended at that point.

Summary of Analyzing The Elect's Forged Certificate

Because of threats to his safety the actual identity of "Dr. Ron Polarik" is not revealed but he does provide a summary of analyzing The Elect's Certificate of Live Birth. He has written his research in a longer essay as well.

SCOTUS Set to Consider Donofrio: 5 Dec. 2008

A graphic of the Leo Donofrio petition states the Supreme Court is set to discuss The Elect's eligibility on 5 December 2009.

Learning From Enemies

In what looks to be a propaganda video recently narrated by al-Qaeda leader al-Zawahiri, The Elect is mocked taunted for not being a leader like Malcolm X. Yet, he is identified as "son of a Muslim father."

The stark contrast is the side-by-side images of Obama being guided by an orthodox Jew to the Kotel in Jerusalem with the Muslim prayer of Malcolm X. al-Zawahiri appears to be chiding The Elect as a direct contrast to Malcolm juxtaposing the "house negro" and the "field negro." Al-Zawahiri seems to be alluding to the murky origins of The Elect and one that seems designed to probe The Elect's psyche.

Al-Zawahiri obviously identifies The Elect as a Muslim: "you pray the prayers of Jews and claim to be a Christian to climb the rungs of leadership in America."

Zawahiri seems to be calling on The Elect as a covert Muslim who should return to his roots and his higher calling, a black nationalist as Malcolm X.

Foreign Policy Lists the Ten Worst FP Ideas of The Elect

The prestigious journal Foreign Policy recently listed the ten worst FP ideas of The Elect.

Cf. http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4461&print=1

The Elect is in Good Company

The Elect is thick as thieves with the company he keeps.

The Elect Beering Fruit

This Elect's beer is for you!

The Elect as Internationalist

At the very least, can we not agree that

foreign influence in the latest election is the most that we have ever seen?

Kenya To Erect Monument for the Birthplace of Obama

WRIF Michigan Radio Talk Show, Mike in the Morning, asked about a marker to be put up at Obama's birthplace. The Kenyan Ambassador, His Excellency Peter Ogego, states that a marker to the birthplace of Obama is planned.

Government To Bail Out The Elect's Sharia Compliant Bank: Citi

The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve are discussing how to save Citigroup. One option being considered is taking some of the risky assets held by Citigroup off its balance sheet, a move that would give the company more breathing room and put it in a better position to raise capital.

Citi donated to The Elect's presidential campaign and is Sharia-compliant.

The Elect Promises Everything to Everybody

In his second gaffe with foreign leaders The Elect promised Afghan President Hamid Karzai that the United States would send more aid and pay more attention to his war-torn country. Later of course, The Elect's aides declined to confirm that their discussion had included specific promises. Isn't the facade is a bit too thin, twice in a row, to separate world leaders geographically dispered? First he made promises to Poland, which were later rescinded, and now to Afghanistan as well. The Elect is promising everything to everybody privately and then denying it in public.

Elect Exploits Net to Censor Americans

The Elect's shameless exploitation of the Net continues today as Obama does not allow comments, or annotations, on his YouTube statements. This is a dangerous precedent which needlessly censors democratic interactivity by participants.

The statement is a one-way message. You can not comment, interact, or object to anything presented. This is Big Brother.

Oppose this anti-Internet, anti-freedom politician by registering your objection at change.gov.

Rep. Sherman States Congress Threatened With Martial Law by Obama-Bush Gang

Representative Brad Sherman (D-California) reported live on C-SPAN that members of the House were told if they did not vote for the bailout bill martial law would be declared in the U.S. This bill was rammed down the throats of our Representatives and the people.

Representative Michael Burgess (R-Texas) confirmed the same point.

Martin's Case Dismissed

The Hawai'i Court blocked the release of Obama's birth certificate. Andy Martin's case was dismissed and he will most likely appeal to the next highest court. It is a strange day in this country when a person whose name and nationality is a mystery and a simple request to release an original birth certificate is ignored.

This is a simple twist of fate. Judge Bert Ayabe upheld arguments from Governor Linda Lingle's administration that Martin had no standing under state law to obtain a copy of the document. Ayabe ruled that Martin provided "insufficient evidence to indicate that the public interest supports" release of the record. Yet, state Health Department director Dr. Chiyome Fukino has stated that her office has been barraged by requests for copies of the birth certificate.

So which is it? Is there public interest or not? Inquiring minds want to know. The Hawaiian officials are doing some double-talking.

Martin Denied Standing for Obama Certificate

Judge Bert Ayabe, Circuit Court judge, upheld arguments from Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle's administration that Andy Martin, an attorney, had no standing under state law to obtain a copy of Obama's Hawai'i birth certificate. I understand the issue of standing but if citizens do not have standing then who does?

Media Ban on Negative Obama Images

This is strange; once I had found all of one negative, smoking picture of Obama, I wondered how many photos like that had found themselves on the net. And, after searching a bit, I only found one more picture posted with Obama smoking. You mean to tell me that with all the paparazzi and politicos around, only two pictures have been taken during a media blitzed political campaign with a smoker, smoking? The web has nothing but positive images of Obama. As the Beatles sang, "Nothing is real, nothing to get upset about."

In fact, upon searching for negative images of Obama, I found more negative pictures posted of McCain and Palen. There were, of course, some posters and political

statements about Obama commenting on his politics.

Or, there were negative posters about the Democrats, or,

negative political statements about Obama,

but every image or photograph available about Obama is heroic, positive, presidential, or statesman's-like. It is as if there is a media ban on rational discussion, or ordinary discourse about Obama.

Note on Bittle, Where Does The Money Go?

The authors do not readily identify Treasury securities which are government bonds issued by the United States Department of the Treasury through the Bureau of the Public Debt. They are the debt financing instruments of the U.S. Federal government, and they are often referred to simply as Treasuries or Treasurys.

Alarmingly, the Chinese now hold the second highest total of bonds, not far behind our close ally Japan.

Major Foreign Holders Of Treasury Securities
(in billions of dollars)
Holdings At End Of Period:
Aug 2008
Japan
585.9
China, Mainland
541.0

If China decided to bank elsewhere and take their money out of the U.S., our economy would be in an even more precarious position.

Since 1970, the U.S. has operated under a deficit. In 31 of the past 35 years we have spent more than we have taken in. This is unsustainable. There are really only three options to fix the problem: raise taxes, nibble at the deficit, which the authors show is easier said than done and will not address the $9 trillion debt, or, balance the budget. In short, we can not afford our politicians who have acted so irresponsibly.

Fixing the deficit issue is difficult. A standard mantra is stop government waste, which is admirable, but this is not enough. Another tactic might be to heavily tax the "sin" taxes areas: drugs, cigarettes, etc., but the writers show also that this is an area that only effects 3% of the budget which is only make a slight dent in the problem. Even seemingly good ideas backfire which the authors demonstrate with the yacht tax. The idea was to just heavily tax yacht owners which seems like an idea that would only harm the wealthy. Unwittingly though, the little person was hurt as well. There are many more people who repair boats, sell them, maintain them and generally keep the industry as a whole afloat. They were harmed as well in the yacht tax. The federal budget is more of a conundrum that is ordinarily thought.

One good example is to examine how when even less popular or controversial programs are cut the problem remains. If all spending for the arts, space, foreign aid, and welfare were cut, only 4.08% of the federal budget would be effected. Even making deep cuts won't substantially address the budget problem.

How about bringing the troops home from Iraq? Will that work? Nope, sorry that is no solution either (p. 94). Bush moved the war funding from supplemental to the regular budget, but ending war funding won't close the deficit. The move only helped the funding become more transparent.

Another looming issue is the non-feasibility of continuing Social Security and Medicare. Until now, the programs have been pay-as-you-go arrangements which worked, until now (p. 97). The politicians had their hands in the pockets of working Americans since the money raised through these payments appeared to be a trust fund for Americans. However, the politicians treated the funds as free for the taking and they borrowed those funds to use. As boomers retire, money was available, but as more retire the question will be is there enough to pay the later retirees (p. 104). The illustrative graphs make it clearer just how severe the problem is (p. 105).

The only way out is to cut programs, raise taxes, or borrow more.

The politicians who attempted to level with the American people, even bipartisan stabs at the issue, failed. Gore considered the "lock box" notion a try to hold funds in reserve, and Bush as governor of Texas tried something along the same lines, but they were mocked by comedians and the ideas were abandoned.

By 2040, according to the authors, we will only have three seriously bad choices (p. 107).

They end the work on a more positive note but for the budget ideas to take hold they will need politicians who are honest, serious, and upfront about cutting the budget. I am more pessimistic about our chances.

Times Publishes Current Intelligence Assessment

Source: Cf. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/21/world/21intel.html?_r=1&ref=world

Global Forecast by American Intelligence Expects Al Qaeda’s Appeal to Falter

By SCOTT SHANE
Published: November 20, 2008

WASHINGTON — A new study of the global future by American intelligence agencies suggests that Al Qaeda could soon be on the decline, having alienated Muslim supporters with indiscriminate killing and inattention to the practical problems of poverty, unemployment and education.

While not contradicting intelligence assessments suggesting that Al Qaeda remains a major threat with a strong presence in the tribal areas of Pakistan, the report says that the group “may decay sooner” than many experts have assumed because of severe weaknesses: “unachievable strategic objectives, inability to attract broad-based support and self-destructive actions.”

“The appeal of terrorism is waning,” said Mathew J. Burrows, head of long-range analysis in the office of the director of national intelligence and a lead author of “Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World.” Mr. Burrows said polls and anecdotal evidence strongly suggested disillusionment among Muslims with Al Qaeda and its methods and goals since the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The predicted decline of Al Qaeda is one of the few bright spots in the generally gloomy report, which describes a decline in the United States’ world dominance as China, India and other powers assert themselves.

“Although the United States is likely to remain the single most powerful actor, the United States’ relative strength — even in the military realm — will decline and U.S. leverage will become more constrained,” the report said.

By 2025, it predicted, “the U.S. will find itself as one of a number of important actors on the world stage,” playing “a prominent role in global events” but not a decisive one as in the past.

The report said the global shift from West to East in terms of wealth and economic power “is without precedent in modern history.” Of a projected population increase of 1.2 billion worldwide by 2025, Western countries would account for only 3 percent, it said.

“We’re projecting a multipolar world,” C. Thomas Fingar, chairman of the National Intelligence Council and the government’s top intelligence analyst, said Thursday at a briefing on the report. “The unipolar moment is over, or certainly will be over by 2025.”

The previous report in the Global Trends series, completed in 2004, anticipated continued American dominance through 2020, though it recognized that the emergence of China and India as powers would transform the geopolitical landscape.

The new report describes a world riven by increased conflict over scarce food and water supplies and threatened by so-called rogue states and terrorists, widening gaps between rich and poor and an uneven impact of global warming. It said the chance of the use of nuclear weapons, while remaining “very low,” would rise in the next two decades as nuclear technology spreads.

The report said Russia’s emergence as a world power was “clouded” by persistent corruption and lagging investment in its critical energy industry. It also noted, without naming a specific country, that a government in Eastern Europe “could be effectively taken over and run by organized crime.”

Mr. Fingar acknowledged that the report, in the works for months, did not fully reflect the severity of the global economic crisis. But he said intelligence officials chose not to delay the report, judging that the long-term impact of the economic downturn would not be clear for months.

The Global Trends reports are produced every four years by the National Intelligence Council, which represents all 16 American intelligence agencies, in part to inform long-term thinking by new administrations. The reports project various possible sequences of events in the future; the new publication notes, between dire forecasts, that “bad outcomes are not inevitable.”

Even if Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups gradually lose support, the remaining violent extremists may have access to increasingly lethal technology, including biological weapons, the report found.

The comments on Al Qaeda’s future are based in part on the work of David C. Rapoport, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, who has studied the cycles of terrorist activity in the past, including those associated with anarchism, Marxism and nationalism.

The report said the global Islamic terrorist movement was likely to outlast Al Qaeda itself, with other groups likely to emerge and supplant it. But it expects a future of frustration and attrition for Al Qaeda, which Osama bin Laden built during the 1990s.

The intelligence agencies noted that Al Qaeda had focused almost exclusively on terrorism, a contrast with groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, which have transformed themselves into political movements.

“Al Qaeda has not achieved broad support in the Islamic world,” the report said. “Its harsh pan-Islamist ideology and policies appeal only to a tiny minority of Muslims.”

The Elect to Outsource More American Jobs

The Elect's top gun to be secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano, has been a strong advocate of increasing H-1B visas, a position that means more foreign IT workers can fill jobs that otherwise would go to Americans. Napolitano has urged an increasing for the H-1B visa cap to address what she has argued is a shortage of skilled workers. In September 2007, Napolitano was one of 12 governors who sent a letter to congressional leaders stating:

"Until we are able to address this workforce shortage, we must recognize that foreign talent has a role to play in our ability to keep companies located in our state and country; and therefore, need to ensure the increase availability of temporary H-1B visas and permanent residency visas (green cards)."

The governors urged hiring more foreign talent rather than Americans.

Napolitano "is as rabid a supporter of H-1B as you are likely to find," said Rob Sanchez of Chandler, Ariz., a software engineer who publishes the Job Destruction Newsletter, which is focused on technology-related labor issues.

"Napolitano has publicly and repeatedly called for major H-1B expansion," said Ron Hira, an assistant professor of public policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology and author of Outsourcing America, and "in that respect she is no friend of American IT workers."

The Elect is recruiting an administration that has forcefully advocated for increasing the use of foreign tech workers. The recession has not blunted that advocacy.

The major benefactor in the increase of visas are of course the companies based in the U.S. that benefit from hiring cheap labor.

The major contributors to The Elect's campaign include Google, Microsoft, and IBM.

Supremes Get Serious

Cf. SUPREME COURT PRACTICE, 8th Edition, the ultimate SCOTUS resource.

As reported on earlier here, the Leo C. Donofrio suit may have legal legs to stand on. The Supreme Court has taken an extraordinary expedited action in fast tracking the New Jersey Citizen's suit challenging the presidential election.

It is unclear whether the stay application has now been accepted in lieu of a more formal full petition for certiorari (and/or mandamus or prohibition). It would be unusual if this was the case since it is rare but it was used in Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 at 98 (2000):

"The court ordered all manual recounts to begin at once. Governor Bush and Richard Cheney, Republican Candidates for the Presidency and Vice Presidency, filed an emergency application for a stay of this mandate. On December 9, we granted the application, treated the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari, and granted certiorari." (Emphasis added.)

The case has certainly been "DISTRIBUTED for Conference", a process usually reserved for full petitions of certiorari. Stays are usually dealt with in a different manner.

The stay application was originally denied by Justice Souter but under Rule 22.4, Donofrio renewed it to Justice Thomas who did not deny it.

A renewed application is rare.

Justice Thomas has referred the case to the full court.

That much is clear from looking at the docket.

In any case, although it is unclear whether the full court has set this for Conference, or Justice Thomas has done it on his own, the action signifies an affirmative action inside the US Supreme Court testifying to the serious issues raised by this law suit.

Mission Failed

You can fool some of the people, some of the time, but you can't fool all the young people

all the time.

Bishops Warn The Elect

BISHOPS WARN OBAMA ON ABORTION; CATHOLIC LEFT REBUKED

November 12, 2008

In a statement released today, Francis Cardinal George, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, made it clear that the bishops will fight any expansion of abortion rights that may occur under the next administration. Specifically, the bishops are objecting to the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA), a bill so sweeping and draconian that it would not only repeal every single state restriction on abortion, it would seriously jeopardize the right of Catholic hospitals and doctors to opt out of performing abortions.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue released the following remarks:

“Cardinal George is right to label FOCA ‘an evil law that would further divide the country.’ At stake are two issues: a) the rights of the unborn and, b) religious liberty.

“First, those who admit that abortion should be rare unwittingly acknowledge that there is a reason to limit its frequency: as Cardinal George said, ‘abortion kills.’ By contrast, no one maintains that root canals should be rare, and that is because this medical procedure—unlike abortion—does not result in the total denial of someone else’s rights.

“Second, religious liberty is enshrined in the First Amendment and cannot be trespassed upon lightly, and certainly not by abortion zealots. Those who support FOCA must realize that if Catholic hospitals are ever required to perform abortions, the bishops will close every one of them; no one would be hurt more than the poor.

“Cardinal George explicitly rejected the ‘common good’ mantra of the Catholic Left that justifies legal abortion while pursuing ameliorative social policies that may reduce abortions. At stake, he said, is the ‘legal protection of the unborn,’ something which is rejected by Catholics United, Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good and Catholic Democrats. We hope they amend their ways and fall in line with Catholic thought on this grave matter. If they do not, they will become indistinguishable from Catholics for Choice, a fully discredited organization.”

Cf. http://www.catholicleague.org/release.php?id=1515

2004 Dems Cover Up Problems Leading to Economic Crisis

C-SPAN coverage from 2004 reveals clearly that the Democrats were aware of and dismissed allegations that the Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Scams crisis would harm the country.

My Favorite Photo of The Elect

Zawahiri Blasts The Elect for Abandoning Islam

In a new video AQ promises to heap injury on The Elect as someone who has abandoned Islam.

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the al-Qaeda deputy, stated:

"You were born to a Muslim father, but you chose to stand in the ranks of the enemies of the Muslims, and pray the prayer of the Jews, although you claim to be Christian, in order to climb the rungs of leadership in America."

The Elect was not an "honourable black American" like Malcolm X, he said, but an "abeed al-beit," a house slave or a "house negro" in the message's English subtitles.

Telepresence (Read Free) Alternatives

In the challenged confines of SMBs no one should question that full-on teleconferencing with big screens showing life-size images are preferable but if these are not are there any options? In other words, are there free alternatives?

It turns out that there are options.

High-resolution video teleconferencing is available from Ekiga. Another possibility is to be found in shared whiteboards by Access Grid. And, last but not least is a 3-D graphics virtual world teleconferencing option from OpenSim.

Obama Birth Controversy Solved: The Elect Was Born in 1776

With the blogosphere controversy around The Elect swirling, I decided to settle the matter once and for all. The Elect must have been born in 1776 along with our Founders as dual citizens of the British Empire and America. Obama was born in Kenya, or Hawaii, or Jupiter or somewhere but it really does not matter. His father was a British citizen thus the Elect has dual citizenship.

And, what does the Constitution say about the issue? The Founders allowed for their eligibility to be President, but naturally they did not want subsequent generations to be governed by a Commander In Chief with dual or split loyalties to foreign powers. The Founders grandfathered themselves in for eligibility. But they would be turning over in their graves knowing that an individual with dual or split international loyalties succeeded them. We had a Revolution for liberty; we had a Revolution for America. Unless The Elect can produce a valid birth certificate verifying he should be grandfathered in as the Founders were I believe we have a coup on our hands. We should return to demanding a government of laws and not of men.

Sharia Compliant Citi Losing 52,000 Employees

Sharia compliant Citigroup is staggering under the loss of losing 52,000 employees over the next few months, the largest reduction by a company since IBM's layoffs of 60,000 employees in 1993, and the 50,000 cuts by Sears that same year. Citigroup's latest round comes on top of the 17,000 cuts that the company has already made. Unless Citi has a Savior in Washington, D.C. Citi seems done for.

Attorney General Nod, Bananas, and Dead Civilians

In a recent report Human Rights Watch recommended that the U.S. Department of Justice end the ties between the Colombian government and paramilitary death squads. Little information will flow now that Eric Holder has relinquished his weighty law practice at Covington & Burling in favor of the U.S. Attorney General nod. Holder has a conflict of interest since he is a defense lawyer for Chiquita Brands in which Colombian plaintiffs seek damages for the murders carried out by the AUC paramilitaries, a terrorist organization. Chiquita has already admitted in a criminal case that it paid the AUC around $1.7 million in a 7-year period and that it provided the AUC with a cache of machine guns as well.

In the Clinton Administration, Holder helped to negotiate Chiquita's plea bargaining with the Justice Department in the criminal case against Chiquita. Subsequently, no Chiquita official received jail time. Moreover, the identity of the key corporoate officials involved in the shenanigans are sealed.

Mario Iguaran, the Attorney General of Colombia, is on record noting that Chiquita's payments to the AUC paramilitaries led to the murder of 4000 civilians.

Memo to the Elect

Here is a memo to the Elect.

As Japan Is, Could Iraq Become?

In the we can all dream department comes a statement from the head of al-Anbar Sahwa (Awakening) council, Abu Resha, who said that it is now the time for Iraq to become a strategic ally of the U.S. Resha added:

“President Bush and other U.S. officials confirmed to me during my last visit to Washington DC that they want to pull out troops from Iraq, after it becomes strong, free and immune to external interventions, especially from Syria and Iran.”

If it were possible to dream, Iraq could become in the Middle East what Japan became in East Asia: a formerly occupied nation, defeated in war, yet developed into a prosperous, balanced economy, and a strategic ally and military power in the region.