Brilliant! I saw you on C-SPAN and you were right on the mark. One great moment was when you backed the other guy into finally admitting that he had spoken at Yearly Kos. Also, it was remarkably revealing that he knew nothing of the details behind Palin’s “ethics” investigation. He had never heard about the threats against her family. He could improve his credibility if he at least TRIED keep informed on the topics he has been using to bludgeon Palin and conservatives.

I saw Biden’s interview on MTP. I was glad to see Brokaw bring up the topic of Biden’s son being a lobbyist and how lobbyists have influenced Biden on credit industry concerns. That’s the first I’ve heard about it from the MSM. The MSM loves to claim the GOP is in bed with lobbyists, but it hasn’t been holding the Dems to the same standard. I hope they dig deeper into this hypocrisy on the part of the Dems. Still, though, so many things that SHOULD’VE been asked weren’t asked (as you stated).

Keep up the good work. You’re a breath of fresh air in a sea of blatant shamelessness.

Excellent synopsis of what Democrats/Liberals receive from MSM versus Republicans or Conservatives.  And in this case, it is a feeding frenzy as all these “unbiased” hacks try to outdo each other in attacking Sarah Palin.

What’s funny is when you put bias together with ignorance, it can be humorous, but also politically fortunate.  One can easily see when the left is scared of a person, their attack dogs (MSM media) go berserk trying to slam the person (in this case Palin).  Even the most biased person, if they have any brains, can see the blatant out of control pile on to discredit her.  Yet these idiots are too stupid to figure out that as they do this, they help the person they are attacking, and harm the campaign of those for whom they work – Obama.  Yet they can NOT see this as she gains, so they redouble their efforts to discredit her some more, while she gains some more.

Had McCain picked just a typical running mate, one could have expected after the Obama bounce that their bounce after St Paul would have perhaps brought both camps back to even again.  If the media had not gone berserk with Palin, and with her just performance in St Paul, one could expect that McCain would be a few points ahead of Obama.  But when you add the overtime work of the MSM to gang up on her, this bounce is just gaining and gaining and Obama is losing.

And as they observe this they go even more to town and it just continues to help the McCain campaign – lol.

But I agree with Kincaid, the McCain camp should be very very careful which arena they allow her to enter.  These attack dogs are out to get her, and while so far they have helped rather than hurt, in the right arena, they can and will attempt to create a scandal to hurt her and they could be successful if they try to get her to make a gaffe and then run with it.

Frankly, I would let campaign professional talking heads do the shows, keep Sarah out on the campaign trail, and not let them have the opportunity to hurt her.  Let them feed in their frenzy – as so far, the more they try to hurt the more they help.  And that goes for McCain also.  He should be very careful which arenas he enters, as he would be better to also let his pros do as much of this as possible.

Don’t you just love these liberal media idiots – the more they try to hurt the more they help.  Maybe McCain should pay them as campaign aides?? Incredible!!

As usual Cliff, you’re right on point.  Unfortunately, Palin will have to at some point run the gauntlet in the MSM but she should put it off a little longer to make sure she is ready.  I have no doubt she can handle herself well enough.  However, I would like to see her venture into more fair territory like Fox News first to get her feet wet.  I do believe the MSM will attempt to stump her with absurd questions that no one cares about.  They will try and fail. 

I do find it remarkable that Obama finally went on the Factor where we all know Oreilly will definitely ask him the tough questions the MSM will never dare to do.  I’ll be watching closely for the next 3 days to see Obama exposed even more.  I though his answers on the surge exposed is lack of humility and his answers on Pakistan were extremely naive.

Jack

I agree. If they keep Palin on the campaign trail, where she’ll be dealing with people who think she’s great, the media will be forced to hit her with ugly questions every time they stick a mike and video recorder in her face at such appearances.

The media would look like the vicious, biased slime that they are, while Palin would probably pick up sympathy votes from those who understand what’s going on.

And this “experience” nonsense? Palin has more “executive experience” than Obama, Biden, OR McCain! Interesting that only Palin gets hit with this particular topic, while Obama skates. It’s possible that the media’s blatant bias will lose the election for Obama as voters realize they’re being blatantly manipulated. Does ANYONE enjoy the feeling that they’re being blatantly manipulated? I surely don’t.

Hopefully, Palin will present McCain with the opportunity to change his mind on ANWR, which would be icing on the cake.

Perhaps McCain’s financial problems will force him to concentrate his TV buys in the month before the election…and he has lots of ammunition against this “community organizer.”

But Obama will at least get Chicago, which produces machine-politics phonies such as he.

What in the devil is wrong with that idea..If she cannot stand up to Media..how then can she stand up against the enemy or the left or anyone for that matter. do you all think she is that weak..give me a break. what you all are missing here is your need to stand with party, rather than Allmighty G-d and the laws of the land as well. It is no secret that neither one wrote their speeches. and you can bet they were checked for approval first. Notice not one word on same sex marriage, illegal immigration, except to say we are all G-d’s children. Some that will get killed in future as tho McCAin said he would hand those bills to the states..knowing all three will continue..He has flip floped again and again. Same with taxes. How many know the IRS is a man made scam, not a Constitutional one? I have yet to see him or Obama the Muslim say one thing except to show America they are for this evil and all against our Constitution. We are to follow the laws of the land, and G-d’s laws first ! Did you even care to realize what Palin did not say? NO she went along with all McCain said. No one cares to go to the gov web and see who voted on what. McCain will leave the borders open, and amnesy for all, and the same sex marriage and abortion will continue along with the road map to hell in Israel..My name will not go on any of these against my G-d…G-d tells us no one sits on the fence..you are for HIM or against HIM. It is too bad that you love your party more than G-d. Your choice…Here we have a few good honest Constitutional men and you ignore them. to our destruction…In scripture it says..will I find faith in the world? but HE lets us know that what was will be and there is nothing new under the sun and that apostasy would be in the church. Like in the days of Noah were…HOW were they?? So sinful that G-d said HE repented that HE made men. and He destroyed them with water. This time it will be with fire…NO fear of G-d tho proverbs tells us fear of G-d is the beginning of Wisdom…Not much time to change your minds..HE is coming..Not Obama not McCain once said…I will enforce the Constitution. the Declaration of Independance, or the Bill of rights..How about that…so many just don’t care enough..and someday soon they will be so sorry..as the PC mindset is all they care about..and how they feel, so dumbed down they too have forgotten their G-d…Pretty sad…how much do you have to see and hear or until it hits your door step and it will…till you change your minds..
Do I hate McCain, NO,,do I hate Bush? NO…I hate the lawlessness!!!!!!!!

It took so long for Obama to be interviewed by O’Reilly, yet Palin is being pushed to be interviewed by the likes of Charles Gibson. The liberal media have been trying so hard at the game of “gotcha” with Sarah Palin that they are becoming bores. I want to know about the candidates attitudes about issues not about their families. I want to know about Obama’s association with Bill Ayers and what exactly a community organizer does? I would want to know why exactly a man who could get a 6 figure income chose to get involved with revolutionary work with a business suit on. The more I read about Obama, the more frightened I become…not to say that McCain is some sort of saint either..but Obama is more obvious with what he is saying about what he stands for—and it’s not pretty. He indeed has plans for this country…big plans… If Obama is elected, be ready to get a new flag for the USA that has hammers and sickles all over it…

Dear Cliff:

I am so proud of you, Cliff!  You are a strong voice of TRUTH in an era of deception, lawlessness and blatant prejudice against all that is fair and decent.

Keep up the great work! We are counting on you to not let go of exposing more of the TRUTH on Obama, Biden and the liberal media bias.  We’re behind you all the way and remain extremely grateful for your effective and essential investigative reporting.  Way to go!

Best,

Joyce S.

Kim Segar – I suggest she stay away from the left wing media not because I think she can not stand up to them, after all this is a woman who kills bears and moose for sport and meat.  BUT when you have a left that is just looking to create a controversy and beat on her – why waste her time and everybody else’s time.  What’s the point?  Why hurt her chances to be VP because the leftists are looking for a way to make her stumble.  Since the MSM can not play like adults, and instead are whining little kids, ignor them, or better yet, give them a time out and have them stand in the corner.  Frankly a parents firm hand on their butts would be better but that is called child abuse now so the new PC term is a time out.

It is not surprising, but very telling, the vitriol that has been leveled at her because of her social beliefs.

I have been a believer and a worker, in my own way, for women’s equality in the workplace, under the law, etc., for many years.

It is strange now to see those who call themselves feminists denouncing a woman because she did, in fact, make choices about her life.  It seems that abortion is the yardstick by which they measure women’s issues.

Why do we pay attention to the media?  That is what surprises me.  Yes, it is decidedly liberal on social issues – but they are not always against the Republicans – who are supposed to be conservative.

The media helped this administration take this country into the war in Iraq – the media has helped this administration to encourage, and continue to aid and abet illegal immigration.  The media has not be upfront about all the damage done by our trade deals.

It doesn’t always come down on the liberal side – so why don’t we just tune them out and make our own decisions.

I, as usual, agree with you completely.  We have seen this media bias escalate for years, and has now gotten to the point of being so far over the line one can’t tell where the line is anymore with these biased media outlets.

It is refreshing, to say the least, to have someone like you who is excellent at putting together these articles, very well researched, with common sense and honesty.

Hey, if somebody, whether media types or otherwise, comes along and do to Palin what the “swiftboaters” did to Kerry, so what?  That’s how it is.  That’s how the mindless partisans have chosen to play the game. Why should one side engage in gutter politics and the other side not return the favor?  Even with the media – - until Fox News came along – - the other guys had been playing fairly nice.  But, once the Over-Hannitized Fox News starts showing their favoritism – - why would anyone expect the other guys wouldn’t?

Maybe TV favors Obama?  Radio certainly favors McCain.  Maybe blacks favor Obama?  The Christian Right certainly favors Palin.  Maybe a dozen big city newspapers favor Obama?  Hundreds of Red state, small-town newspapers favor McCain.

The membership of both political parties has allowed their minority extremists, looney lefties and rockheaded righties, to run their respective shows – - and this is what you get.  Paralyzing polarization – - where no one is open-minded, objective, fair, or truly concerned with what’s best for the vast majority of moderate Americans.

So,hey, it is all the fault of Fox News…if they had not come along we would have nothing to watch on tv but gutter media and what they consider issues.  That is really good to know…that everything was so great until Fox News came along to mess everything up for all that beautiful liberalism going on.

Standing up for something other than liberalism these days is getting more difficult because they all say the basic same things, like it has been rehearsed and memorized by all of those professing to be liberals,  and trying to talk with common sense is like talking to wallpaper.

Vox…it is my fear that they will ‘generate’ the gaffe, whether she is or is not interviewed by them. On the other hand, her popularity is such,  that any attempt by the press to sabotage this woman is going to backfire. In other words, the MSM are inadvertantly going to propel McCain/Palan into the White House. And Lady Texan, from another Texan, you are right, but it is already being done. Look at all the alternative media…I think there are more people out there getting their News far more than msm news shows or even Fox News. Forget the Newspapers, most are hanging on by a thread because their readership is so low. Do you read the Houston Chron, The S.A. Express, or Dallas (shudder) Morning News? I haven’t bought a Newspaper in years. I don’t know anyone with a subscription.

We will hear about the trashing of Palen though. And I do believe it will back-fire louder than a model T on steroids.

O’Reilly was a farce on his first facing with Obama.  I watched it specifically to see him “bully talk” his guests, as is his style…
Talk louder, talk-over them, don’t give them a chance to finish a sentence without interrupting.. LOL THAT WAS NOT O’Reilly when he spoke WITH (not OVER) Barck Hussein Obama (aka Barry Soetoro).
  O’Reilly was either marching to someone else’s drum or he was “star struck” with ‘awe’ with B.O.
  I won’t bother to watch anymore dumb-struck O’Reilly with Obama.  Seems he fits right in with the liberal crowd with Obama on his show.
  What a farce.

To a.J. Post #12:

Dirty, gutter politics always existed – - but they increased to a new level during Clinton’s presidency and the Republican’s impeachment efforts against him – - made boldface by the nasty Bush II campaign against McCain during the 2000 primary season – - and drastically worsened by the draft-dodging and Swiftboating-type crap during the 2004 campaign.  Dirty politics begets dirty politics.  Simple enough.

Fox News first came on the scene during the second Clinton administration – - and – - to get and keep an audience – - they followed a contrarian route to the existing network and cable news channels.  So – - if you want to call the existing TV media at that time “liberal” – - then the “contrarian” position would be opposite, or “conservative” – - and that’s the way Fox News chose to go!  It’s all about using controversy and conflict to gain viewership and, ultimately, profit!  (And, of course, you really don’t want to try to sell the same stuff every other guy is selling, do you?)

So – - it’s “pick your poison”!  But, until Fox News came along – - the others were all pretty similar in their perspectives, whether “liberal” or not.  Once Fox came along and actively took the contrarian “conservative” perspective – - the others had to begin to redefine themselves and relocate a “niche” that they believed would engender greater viewership – - and profit!  MSNBC became the “anti-Fox” – - and the others found niches in-between. 

The result:  Now, any individual’s TV media choices can be matched up with the level and direction of his own personal biases and partisanship.

Like too many other things – - when Fox and MSNBC came onto the scene – - the pie had to be cut into too many pieces for business to go on as usual – - so, like with dirty politics, generating and reporting controversy and conflict became the TV media’s road to success – - rather than carrying on like before.

It’s all about the money – - and partisan media are clearly an outgrowth of the increasingly slimy, provocative, often misrepresentative and propagandistic crap being passed off as “politics” or “campaign politics” by the two major political parties.  Personally, I do believe the Republican Party and Fox News are more responsible than the Democratic Party and other media outlets for pushing at least the leading edge of pissy partisanship – - for profit, of course!

So, pick the medium you like and like the medium you pick!  (I’m totally an American League and Yankees guy, myself – - and I wouldn’t be caught dead watching a National League game – - ever!)

I agree with you about how O’Reilly has been hosting his program the past year. I have been getting tired of watching and hearing these things go on during this program.  O’Reilly appears to be all gaga about Barack Obama for some reason – I guess he wants him on his show and finally got it – but my thoughts are big deal.  O’Reilly constantly excuses everything that anyone says that may even seem like it might be criticism of Obama and talks like he personally knows the man and what he thinks and why he does and says anything.  That is irksome and tiresome as well as his interruptions and arguments with anyone who tries to have a differing opinion…and his buddy system going with that Doocy character is beyond my understanding as well…some things are better left unknown I guess.  I have not and will not watch Obama on the Factor.  I have heard and seen all I want to out of this person and have no desire to watch this drivel.

TK, the liberal MSM has turned the term swiftboating into a pejorative yet for all intents and purposes the swiftboaters were right about Sen. Kerry. As a matter of fact, the worst about Kerry was never brought up just as the worst about Pres. Clinton wasn’t brought up in his impeachment. Now a fair term is Borking, one that I’m sure you’ll disagree with.

I’ve seen partisan liberal Democratic demagogues call Gov. Palin a whore because she didn’t abort her Down Syndrome child, didn’t insist her daughter get an abortion, didn’t stay home with her children but served in public office, and that her youngest child was actually her daughter’s. And for all the foregoing she’s also called a traitor to women. Yet I haven’t heard of one of the major news denizens who accused her of the latter apologize now that the truth is known. I guess that’s not in the liberal lexicon.

Furthermore, nothing was said about Sen. Biden’s taking 2 hour train rides to work leaving his children behind after his wife was killed in a tragic car accident, which by the way I actually respect him for as he provided for his children and served his country in the Senate. So, is there a double standard with liberals?

To carolyn richardson, Post #14:

You gotta’ be kiddin’?!?!

I happen to be a fan of O’Reilly’s views on the “Culture War” – - but he’s generally a bombastic, egomaniacal, self-important, self-aggrandizing and disrespectful blowhard most of the time – - and he was actually testier with Obama in the first 7-8 minutes of the interview shown on Thursday than he usually is – - and I thought, at times, he was clearly disrespectful, or at least, very impolite, towards Obama who is, afterall, whether you personallu like him or not, a candidate for President who received 18,000,000 votes during the primary process!

If O’Reilly had done exactly, exactly the same to the Princess of the North – - you would have been fit to be tied!

Mindless partisanship.

To T. K. – response to your response to my post:
Of course you would think that about Fox News…yes, you are right in it’s all about the money statements of all of them…but we did – like it or not – need to have a news media with a voice that did not sway to liberals or conservatives as a lifestyle like so many of them do now, especially.
And I wouldn’t be caught watching any other team but the Atlanta Braves.  Go Braves!
It is nice that we do have choices about what we want to watch or not to watch and we have the privilege of being able to have our own opinions and beliefs and are able to express them like this.

OK, yes Fox News found a niche – Republican (I won’t say conservative because the Republican party is not conservative), viewpoint and it worked.

Many of us were so tired of having liberal social issues pushed down our throats, we thought this was just great.

I even used to listen, religiously, to Rush.  I was so thrilled that someone was pointing out the fallacies of government, when the Clinton’s were in office. 

My brother told me not to be to carried away by him that he was just a Republican mouthpiece.  I found that out when Pres. Bush was elected and he was such a big cheerleader. 

I don’t think it is about money – at least I don’t think the politicians are divided on the money.  Of course, each one would like to be top dog, but push comes to shove and it’s time to vote with their corporate buddies – they can’t wait to sell this country and it’s people down the drain.

The only reason we have such divided politics is because that way they can keep us all locked into our respective ‘parties’.  Just look at much of the talk, ‘yeah, I know McCain is not a good choice, but you don’t want Obama or a Democrat’

Or the Democrats will say, ‘yes, Obama, may have some murky connections, but do you really want some right wing fanatics or Republican in there.’

We are evenly divided, that way the corporations and globalists can be sure their people will get back in office – no matter the party.  Does anyone really think corporations don’t take measures to be sure their people get in office?

So then Americans go to the polls and vote for one or the other, no choice really, and for pretty much the same lawmakers, and they continue on their way doing exactly with the globalists and corporations want done.

That’s why the media pounced on Ron Paul with both feet as well as the other poltiicians.  He had a real message and God forbid that his ideas got heard.  God forbid a third party actually got launched.  It would upset their applecart – big time.

Does anyone really, really think that Obama is going to stop the movement of jobs overseas? 

Does anyone really, really think that McCain is going to stop illegal immigration.

Does anyone think Obama is going to stop the war in Iraq?

Does anyone really think McCain would stop abortion, even if he could?

The answer is no to all of them.  There is too much money riding on all of them for any major change – except amnesty, maybe.

No, we no longer subscribe to the Dallas Morning News.  My husband loves the puzzle, it was a part of his morning, coffee/cigarette/puzzle ritual on the front porch.  When they named the ‘illegal alien (sorry, immigrant)’ as Man of the Year, I have forbidden it to come into the house.  He sometimes goes to the coffeeshop and buys his copy, works the puzzle and leaves it there.  He does read it as well, but it doesn’t make him as angry as it does me.

One thing we need to note, small town newspapers are quite often corporate owned as well.  Yes, they might espouse Republican leanings, but make no mistake, they are going to push coporate leanings above all.

A small town newspaper I know was family owned for 3 generations.  A corporation made an offer and the local paper did not want to sell.  The corporation then opened an office, began giving free advertising, free papers, and even threw free papers to everyone in the city.  The writing was on the wall, and the local owners sold out.

There is a large corporation headquartered in the city, it was a local business grown huge.  They employ a lot of illegals.  I visit there regularly and for two weeks running, the ‘man on the street’ question showed 3 out of 5 of the interviewees as illegal aliens.

Even the ‘citizen of the week’ one week,  was an illegal alien.

Now that is subtle corporatism.

respond to a.J. Post #12
You are right on.  I’ve been around since post-Depression, FDR days and this is the dirtiest politics from the liberals I’ve ever seen.  I wish
all would go to a site I came across:

  http://americandaily.com/article/23030

Subject: Democrat Operatives Vow to Cause Palin to Resign   Article by Sher Zieve, 3 Sep 08.

I see it didn’t light up, but I typed it in the TO: address line and got it.  It is quite a scary
article, and I called Palin’s office and gave them the site, to warn her.
  What I don’t understand is why the Federal Election Commission still allows ACORN to do ANY
voter registration, since they’ve had a long history (with indictments/jail time for offenders)
of voter registration fraud.  How can they still be allowed to engage in any voter-registration?
  If it hasn’t been scrubbed from search engines,
I looked up ACORN voter registration fraud, and
ACORN, CSI ties. You can look along those words and find some scary stuff.
  I used to be in th 3-6% approval rating of Congress, but after researching Barack Hussein Obama, aka Barry Soetoro… I go with McCain.  Well, I really leaned toward him, even being independent, since Duncan Hunter and Ron Paul got no press and dropped out.
  But I DO admire the Republicans for down dropping down to the scum level of such dirty
politics.  That shows integrity and class.

TK you are amazing. Anothers point of view in the eyes of TK

Mindless Partisanship

Paralyzing Polarization

So Fox News came along and upset the applecart. They gave a ‘gasp’ another view and confused the masses and made the sky fall down in big chunks on to everyones head because suddenly the folks watching the news saw they had been getting the Newscasters interpretation of the News instead of just the News, and heaven forbid should the indoctrination be interrupted by other points of view as well as JUST THE NEWS. They also got the News that the News casters had previously determined wasn’t News the public should hear.  OMG! and it wreaked havoc with the World causing mindless partisanship and paralyzing polarization! 

Now we have the rest of the story according to TK.

kim Segar, you sound like one of the super Christians I know who wants a Party of God to rule America. Personally, as a conservative Christian I’m not in favor of a Christian controlled America, but rather a Christian influenced America. I doubt you’ll understand the difference though. While there’s no “wall of separation of church and state” in the Constitution, we do have a prohibition of the government respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise of religion; yet I get the impression you’d favor a religiously run government.

As for the IRS being man made, you’re right, and so is the Constitution man made. And while I view the IRS as the Infernal Retribution Sackers, it is constitutional according to Article 2 Section 2 which gives the president the authority to set up the treasury department along with the IRS and the Sixteenth Amendment. Yes, I’m aware of all the arguments against the Sixteenth Amendment just as I’ aware of the fact that the arguments have been rejected by every court hearing them. And while I believe the latter should be repealed, it’s binding until repealed. Neither situation is in violation of Biblical tenets; therefore Christians are required to obey the tax laws. But in our form of government we also have the right to change our laws and it’s one I believe needs changing.

But there is a Biblical admonition that I believe you have ignored. That is the one against bearing false witness. McCain and Palin have said they are against same sex marriage; McCain is against open borders but in favor of controlled immigration and legalizing those here illegally, and McCain did take an explicit oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies both foreign and domestic when he took the oath of commissioning as a US military officer. Also, you break that commandment, or is it a suggestion for you, when you call Obama a Muslim. That he has a Muslim father, a Muslim name, and was taught in his early years in a public school populated mostly by Muslims in a Muslim nation doesn’t change the fact that he accepted Jesus Christ as his savior. Maybe you believe one is born into a religion and can’t change. Is that according to God’s word or do you think you’re exempt from bearing false witness?

You make quite an expression about God, but do you really believe in His word? You certainly show no love or compassion, just judgment against all who don’t agree with your political agenda. There are a few political questions such as abortion, marriage, and integrity that are clear cut in God’s word, but you’d seemingly damn others for subjects that are not so clearly delineated. I think you need to take stock of your faith.

McCain may not be for ‘open borders’, anyone who is for rewarding illegal lawbreakers with citizenship is an open border advocate.

He did take an oath to uphold the consitution – that means the legal laws of this nation.  Why hasn’t he been speaking out for their enforcement all along? 

It is splitting hairs to say he is not pro illegal. 

Vote for John McCain because you are afraid not to – but don’t delude yourself.  That’s the problem and that is what bothers me about partisan politics.  We work really hard to convince ourselves – and others – that there is something good about these people.

Simply admit that we have been pushed into a corner with the only choice is terrible and worse.

LadyTexan, A small candle of light ye be. You put The Constitution of this Nation first and foremost above the Scammers. God Bless you.

Politicians are like the puppets in a shadow play.  They are controlled by invisible agents—in a shadow play, by human beings, who move the puppets and speak for them; in politics by huge corporations, which buy them off, by contributing to their PAC or campaign funds.

Americans are too stupid the understand the fact that the puppet is only a puppet.

hey kim: better get those medication levels checked.
you are getting even kookier than the rest of the inmates around here…

To Julie O., Post #22:

Anyone who doesn’t see mindless partisanship and paralyzing polarization on the outer fringes of both major political parties is simply not looking or is incapable of being honest.  This country is just about equally divided into two camps – - and you might just as well call them Red and Blue – - and any election advantage one side or the other may get is usually infinitesimal.  Rarely are there any “mandate” elections anymore, e.g., Johnson beating Goldwater 64% – 36% in 1964.  The interests of the great middle, moderate, majority are no longer the focus of either party.  Both parties are controlled by their own extremist minorities within – - maybe 20% of each party’s membership.  Consequently, we Independents are stuck having to pick between the lesser of two evils – - or voting for a minor party candidate – - or writing in a name – - or skipping voting altogether.  Party politics, as currently constituted, have made themselves useless to, probably, somewhere between 40% and 60% of the electorate.

And, as far a Fox News goes – - I generally watch O’Reilly every night and usually even catch part of his radio program daily.  Otherwise, I find most of their personnel too personally goofy, geeky or eccentric for my taste – - and I find Hannity to be one of the most dislikable, distasteful and self-righteous people I’ve ever seen or heard on TV or radio – - regardless of politics.  Period.  If Fox chooses to take a conservative or Republican perspective on everything, that’s find with me.  Everybody and every organization is as free as the next to peddle as much malarkey as they see fit.  And, besides, I can usually detect media bullshit when it’s being passed out – - so, regardless where it’s coming from – - it’s only worth a grain of salt.

For me – - I try to listen directly to as many of the candidates’ speeches as possible – - and I try to find out, on my own, as much as I can about the candidates’ backgrounds – - and I look most closely at the one who comes closest to representing my own political philosophy and with whom I might be most comfortable with on a personal and professional level.  I couldn’t care less for what the talking heads are selling personally – - since they’re all doing what they do for money – - not principle!

As far as media commentators go – - if I HAD to pick one and stick to him (or her) – - my choice would be Lou Dobbs.

But – - I switch around – - listen to all of them – - and feel disappointment that our citizens are, for the most part, unfortunately subjected to mindless partisanship and paralyzing polarization in wherever direction they should happen to turn.

We’ve become the “Divided” States of America because of it.

The one thing I haven’t seen addressed is any of the commentaries—in blogs, articles, or even reader comments (is it self-evident?)—is the idea that the appearance of Sarah Palin reads kind of like a “return of the repressed.” If you ever doubted that the Republican party really had such a troglodyte up their sleeve, or that the “family values” platform masks an irrational fear of sex, there she is: lacquered, conventionally feminine, “sexy” yet authoritarian, provocative and castrating at exactly the same time. The “desirable” woman is the one who encourages “abstinence training?” Why wasn’t she dressed as a dominatrix, which would’ve really brought the point home? This is precisely what she offers—what she stands for—the desire for/and negation of libidinal satisfaction. No wonder there was so much convention hysteria. Those people eat that stuff up. She is, in reality, “the return of repressed repression,” since we haven’t seen something like this in years. And of course, where are the suppressed libidinal impulses supposed to go? To war.

Fred,

You are too kind.

Eowyn,

Puppets is right – and they are really controlled by the same puppetmasters. 

They always remind me of professional wrestlers.  They go in front of the cameras and bombast and talk about how wonderful they are or how bad their opponents are.  Yes, they would all like to be top dog, that’s for sure, but when it’s time for the charade to begin, they all play the parts assigned them by the one who pays the money.

TK,

It isn’t the extreme fringes that are causing this.  There really is no difference in these people.

Think of the things that are destroying this country – outsourcing (globalization, so called free trade), illegal immigration, increasing size of government and growing government control over our lives, welfare as a way of life, and I will add involvement in the affairs of other countries.

All these things have been moving right along since Nixon went to China, before I’m sure, but I’m tracing what I remember.  It hasn’t mattered what party has the WH, controls the congress, or if it is split, the agenda has moved right along.

Some of the things that some think are liberal or Democratic issues are really not.  Think civil rights.  That allowed the government to grow tremendously and to take more and more control of our lives, businesses, and education.

Think the war on drugs, same thing –

Welfare, we think that is a liberal issue, and that Democrats want to give money to the poor and the Republicans want to give to the rich.  Actually, welfare (food stamps, government healthcare, free lunches, subsidized housing, etc), all takes money from taxpayers, but it ultimately ends up in the hands of corporations.  The money for food stamps ends up with big agribusiness and corporation grocers.  The money for housing ends up with construction companies and those who build low rent housing or own rent houses.  Healthcare ends up in the hands of healthcare corporations and big pharmaceuticals, etc. Surely we see the fallacy of the charge that illegal immigration is a liberal issue.

This is truly a bi-partisan effort to take our money and put it ultimately in the hands of corporate donors – that donate to both parties.

Yes, we get our attention focused on women’s rights, equal rights, Presidential sex urges, etc., but that is just a diversion.  That’s for our benefit and has nothing to do with what they are working on behind the scenes to keep the agenda of globalization and the destruction of the sovereignty of this country.

Oh David,

I’m thinking she pretty much personifies what women have wanted all along – the right to make their own choices about their own lives.  But if her choices don’t mesh with the popular ‘feminists’ ideals, then surely something is wrong with her.

To say that sex comes with responsibilities and that one should refrain from sex until you are able and ready to take on those responsibilities, seems truly right to me.

Does abstinence always work – every time it is used.  Nothing works if not used.  Sex education in schools hasn’t been a stellar success, either.

No matter what the media, music, entertainment industry tries to tell you, there are consequences for our actions.  Also, no matter what one might think, sex isn’t going away if you don’t partake of it early and often.

How many kids does she have?  Doesn’t sound too repressed or sexless to me.

Could it be that some men are going to feel threatened by a truly liberated woman who makes choices for herself and tries to teach other women? 

My goodness, think of the reprecussions to men if suddenly women decided they thought enough of themselves to not have sex willy-nilly, or with men who were not responsible, or outside marriage.  That would mean a lot of males would have to grow up and become men. 

Fred,

You are too kind.

Eowyn,

Puppets is right – and they are really controlled by the same puppetmasters. 

They always remind me of professional wrestlers.  They go in front of the cameras and bombast and talk about how wonderful they are or how bad their opponents are.  Yes, they would all like to be top dog, that’s for sure, but when it’s time for the charade to begin, they all play the parts assigned them by the one who pays the money.

TK,

It isn’t the extreme fringes that are causing this.  There really is no difference in these people.

Think of the things that are destroying this country – outsourcing (globalization, so called free trade), illegal immigration, increasing size of government and growing government control over our lives, welfare as a way of life, and I will add involvement in the affairs of other countries.

All these things have been moving right along since Nixon went to China, before I’m sure, but I’m tracing what I remember.  It hasn’t mattered what party has the WH, controls the congress, or if it is split, the agenda has moved right along.

Yes, we get our attention focused on women’s rights, equal rights, Presidential sex urges, etc., but that is just a diversion.  That’s for our benefit and has nothing to do with what they are working on behind the scenes to keep the agenda of globalization and the destruction of the sovereignty of this country on time.

David Goodis:

Keep it up child, because your rabid hate for a woman that does not think like a dyke from the Dail KOS – IS what will put her and John McCain in the White House.  You absolutely intolerant liberals just do not have anything going for yourselves upstairs because everything you know has been planted in your pea brain through indoctrination.

It must make it a lot easier in life to be able to go through this world never having to think for yourselves – let Obama and his surrogates and minions tell you just what to say.

The problem is David, they were educated in the same indoctrination camps as you – the US public school system.  And ever since Sarah Palin was announced as the McCain VP pick, your game plan has been the same – and guess what – it isn’t working, dude!

Obama has gone from 6 points up to nearly 6 points down, and that is over a very very short period of time – and why?  Because you can’t figure it out – people in America think very little of you when you attack someone when she has done nothing to harm you.  You spend your time trying to dig up dirt and when you can’t find any, you smear and lie, just as you did in your rant above.

People in America, that do not come from the sick mindset that is all the liberal movement can muster now – see you as being absolutely against EVERYTHING you say you support.  You are supposed to be tolerant – you are not.  You are supposed to be for diversity – you are not.  You are supposed to be for women’s equal rights – you are not.  Pelosi has 5 kids but not one peep about whether she can raise kids and be in politics.  She had a daughter who got pregnant outside wedlock – not a peep.  Yet, you sound like rabid dogs in your attacks upon her.

The filth that comes out of your mouths is completely against everything you say you are for as liberals – yet all we here from Obama and company, and you morons that follow him like blind sheep is hate and the most despicable filthy language in your attempts to discredit Palin.

Hey fools, you will lose this election because you can not figure out that your very actions turn those that would have supported you – against you.  Obama drops the race card repeatedly – yet nothing about his race comes from the right, it all comes from you on the left.  Anyone you disagree with you trounce on with a sick twisted glee, and lose more votes.
You say leave peoples children out of this, but you are the only ones who attack kids.  You say leave candidates wives (spouses) out of this, but the attacks on Palin’s husband abound.  You say leave religion out of it, yet you attack her as some religious nut, and your own Obama belongs to a racist hateful church that preachs hate toward white people and for black power over whites.  The trash out of Obama’s preacher’s mouth is unprintable – and you people attack OTHER people’s beliefs?

So David, keep up the good work, as every single day you keep up what you are doing, will be the days that McCain continues to gain in the polls.  Heck, McCain can probably quit campaigning, and just let you guys do it for him, he does better every time you open your hateful mouths.  But, especially keep up the attacks on Palin and her family – the ad agency people will probably look you up so you can teach them the reverse way to get their message out.

Ladytexan, Perhaps You should replace Sarah as V.P. as you speak with eyes wide open penetrating the deceptions projected from both sides of the isle. You’d get my vote.

Fred,

I’m going to get the bighead here.

I had a time in my life when I thought party made a difference, but then I began to see the shape this country is in and truly began trying to see where to put the blame.  The inescapable truth is, both so called parties have been working together to do these things.

With all of the fire and brimstone from Cliff Kincaid about Obama’s link to anti-American leftists, why isn’t there even a peep from him about Palin’s link to the anti-American Alaska Independence Party.  Could there be (gasp!) a hypocritical double standard at play?  Or do y’all believe the AIP is not anti-American?  Hmmm?

David Goodis, it sounds like you can’t deal with a real woman. You must desire bimbos who’ll compliantly get an abortion should they get “knocked up” by you. That you can’t stand a woman with convictions, a willingness to be different, and an unwillingness to stay on the liberal Democratic reservation is quite telling. After all, no doubt you believe a woman should be promiscuous, willing to abort biological tissue, believe that all is relative, believe that individuals who own guns are bitter and dangerous, and that religion is for the weak. You make the perfect liberal man.

I tried to contact Pastor in Alaska but because I live in Australia my Email was mot accepted. Our LORD told us the world would hate HIS followers. World includes Media. This hatred will be expressed more & more as time goes by. Our LORD said we are to “Hate the sin with all our heart but still the sinner love” (with the Divine LOVE of YAHWEH) We are to hate the sin even as HE does. USA is on knife edge in its decision for next 4 years. Australia follows what USA does. There is a saying Only in America but Australia eventually follows what USA does. Greater the sin sooner it happens. We can support Palin when we can.

My input is not spam Kenneth

Easy,

I don’t know a lot obout the movement for Alaskan independence.  Didn’t one of the leaders of that movement get murdered some years back. 

I will say, though, if the federal government would remove all it’s illegals, that might not be a bad idea for Texas.  Right now we are a state invaded and occupied by foreign nationals and I’m not sure there aren’t too many for us to handle.

We could put the Texas Rangers and NG on the border.

Doesn’t Hawaii have something like that going on as well?

Anti-American?  I’m thinking more anti-government-as-we-now-have-it.

ladytexan, I had the opportunity to talk one on one with Joseph Vogler, the founder of the AIP, in the mid 70s in Fairbanks, AK. While a lot of quotes on the internet are intended to paint him as a fanatical anti-American nut, he didn’t seem so to me. He was quite pleasant, well versed, and made quite a few good points as to why Alaska, and even Hawaii, should secede from the Union.

He struck me a very strong libertarian and classical liberal who was convinced that the current American Federal government had seriously gone astray and wasn’t the government our Founding Fathers had designed. In particular, he felt the government had seriously deviated from Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution and from the Bill of Rights. I would defy anyone to dispute that without getting very creative with the English language. He was very pro-Constitution as written and believed that changes should be thru the amendment process and not thru activist judges.

While I viewed his proposals as impractical as such concepts would seriously weaken the concept of a Union I had to admit his criticisms against the Federal government even in the 70s were quite valid. Furthermore, I dare say that the Left would have agreed with much of what he said about government authoritarianism, Federal ownership of land (then about 70% and about 60% now), Federal dictates on petroleum exploration and usage, and control of transportation resources.

By the way, Vogler advocated secession from the Union but with a continued relationship with the US somewhat like Guam. The US would have been able to lease the military bases that it had in Alaska but would have had to relinquish its property claims with the exception of limited national parks.

Mr. Vogler disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 1993 and many, including myself, believed that he had met his fate at the hands of federal “men in black” as this movement was gaining steam, although I doubt it would ever have succeeded. It’s now said that a cconvicted thief by the name of Manfried West confessed to murdering him over a plastic explosives sale that went south. It conveniently fits in with the accepted view that Vogler was a fanatic, too conveniently for my taste. In the 70s he didn’t strike me as a fanatical nut on the loose, but then a lot can happen in twenty years, just as Obama might have changed after his long associations from about ten with communists, socialists, criminals, and domestic terrorists.

TK….cause and effect. My mother always told me that going out in the cold and getting chilled would cause me to have a cold. Well, she was wrong. Cold does not cause colds..we all know the answer to that by now, well maybe not all.

I have been wide awake all these years. I remember well when the politics of destruction began. It wasn’t because we were finally allowed to hear the other side. I believe we had some people arrive on the political scene that loved that little trick. It worked well for them, and it has caught on. To lay the blame on Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Hannity or even not my fave, Mr. Bloviator O’Reilly is really a narrow minded view of looking at life, as well as dangerous. Think about it TK. The left left left leaning Politicians such a Hinkey (sp), Waters, etc want to wipe out all Conservative speech by voting in The Fairness Doctrine. They want to go even further than that and make Conservative speech illegal. If you want the 1st Amendment wiped out completely by continuing to confuse cause and effect, then beware. What you want now will bite you in the butt later. The Constitution was written for all of us.

Actually, I don’t see any one of you dismantling my argument about what she represents. And if there are any “pretaped” answers, ideas thoroughly vetted and processed by the media, they’re the ones I’ve found here. All you can do is repeat the same things said by every other conservative analyst. The thing I’ve pointed out about her appearance won’t be mentioned by MSNBC, or CNN, or Fox News; but everything you say will. So who’s been conditioned by the media?

And by the way, one word about “feminists.” Sarah Palin would not be running for VP, much less have the ability to vote, were it not for feminist thought in the 19th and 20th century. So, keep on repeating, robots. Eventually—maybe not with this election, but someday—your tape will run out.

O, and by the way. The Left does what it does because it knows the other side has its Sarah Palins somewhere behind the scenes. Thanks for finally proving us right. It would’ve been a shame, all that reading for nothing.

“… The media has not be upfront about all the damage done by our trade deals.
…
It doesn’t always come down on the liberal side – so why don’t we just tune them out and make our own decisions.
…
It is splitting hairs to say he is not pro illegal. …” – the ever irrational ladytexan

You’re forgetting that anti-trade and protectionism is the Democrats’ position. You’re ignoring and obfuscating the fact that global trade CREATES wealth. You’re forgetting and obfuscating the fact that protectionism and opposition to immigration are in effect a call to tribalism, Balkinization, and INCREASED racism, conflict, and “ethnocentric self-identification” (hyphenated Americans).

Pro immigration is not pro illegal, no matter what your narrow tribalistic corner of your mind spawned that emission.

“The mind is a processing organ; so is the stomach. If a stomach fails in its function, it throws up; its unprocessed material is vomit.

So is the unprocessed material emitted by a mind.” – Ayn Rand

Learn to process things with your mind and REASON ladytexan. Please quit spewing vomit.

BS returns.

To anonymous, Post 42:

RE:  “Learn to process things with your mind and REASON ladytexan.” – - and – - “The mind is a processing organ; so is the stomach. If a stomach fails in its function, it throws up; its unprocessed material is vomit. So is the unprocessed material emitted by a mind.” – Ayn Rand

Shades of “Who is John Galt?” (have you reverted to “anonymity” Mr. Galt?) – - and the parroting of the mind and reasoning of an esoteric, eccentric, displaced Russian-born author of the 1950s – - whose primary focus, as I recall, was on SELF.  And, doesn’t wholly-assuming the thoughts and philosophies of another as your own just make you another run-of-the-mill “dittohead”?

I may not agree with everything ladytexan has to say here – - but what she says at least appears to be her own original perspective on things.  And, of course, a “synthesis of thought” – - learning from the writings or teachings of MANY rather than ONE – - is probably preferable to totally relying on the “teachings” of a single, self-selected “guru”.

If you want to depend on the ruminations of Ayn Rand as your mental opiate or crutch, you’re free to do so.  But, refrain from being so presumptious as to insist others must do the same simply because you say so – - because you believe you have the singular and unique ability to select the only author or “teacher” of ostensibly “correct” semi-political thought that others should follow. 

Personally, as far as the discussion here is concerned, I kind of go for Jefferson and Jackson!

Roberto,

Yes, thanks.  It was Vogler.  I couldn’t remember the name, but I do remember the story.

I remember there was some doubt as to the guilt of the man they implicated.  He was an artist of some kind, wasn’t he?

He didn’t strike me as a fanatic, although perhaps the media was attempting to do that.
I grew up in rural Texas in the 40’s and 50’s, most everyone was just that independent and wanted to stay independent of government.

The Union might be weakened by the withdrawal of some states, but the union is already pretty weakened if the government no longer serves the people – but other interests.  In fact, you could say when that happened, the union as formed, no longer existed.

I don’t know your age or where you were raised but I do know that those factors do have something to do with the perception of things – political and otherwise.  That isn’t a putdown, but just what I have observed with my children (age) and now with a very nice SIL who was raised in the North (geographical).

So, I will say that Mr. Vogler did strike me somewhat as a libertarian, but not a liberal.  He was more of an old-time conservative.  My Grandparents were staunch Texas Republicans.  The Republicans of that time were nothing like what we have calling themselves Republicans today. To be against government interference in state’s rights, in business and personal things, to believe strongly in the constitution,  was the main thought back then.

Of course, to be fair, the Democrats of that day are not like the Democrats today, either.  The Democrats in Texas were way more conservative than the any so called rightwing Republicans today.

While we tend to think the hippies had a tremendous affect on our government, they were just allowed to draw the lightning and the poltiicians did what they wanted in the first place.

The idea back then was, the government had gone astray, but they also believed that government should fix everything.  While acting as if they were anti-government, they actually were demanding the government take more and more control of this country.  The action of the so called liberals from the late 60’s on, with the help of the so called conservatives, has grown this government into a behemoth that is just too big and multi-headed to ever be ‘of, for and by the people’ again.  It is almost self-perpetuating and seems to have a life of its own.

Julie,

The politics of destruction are older thann that.  I am not a fan of John Kennedy, although in today’s light he looks better,  but I remember when he was running and there was a lot of ugly stuff going around about his religion and how the Pope would be running America if he got elected.  It was pretty nasty.

Certainly Nixon was the recipient of it – some deserved, but he is still touted as the most crooked President – after all we have seen since him.

I also feel LBJ was another politicians we TExans are shamed with, but thanks to the media, he went from the ‘most powerful man in Washington’ when he was in Congress, to a joke when he was President.

Fox News did give another version and it was a welcome addition.  The thing we need to realize is, though, it is not just a ‘conservative’ media, it is a Republican and a Corporate media.

When I had TV, I watched all manner of news programs, even FSTV, and can’t remember the other one.  If you watch and listen to enough different views, you can quite often pick the truth out of all the garbage both sides are throwing out there.  You have to wade through a lot, but the truth does get put out.  You have to let the spin go over your head and latch on the nuggets of truth that are buried on all reports.

On FSTV, I learned that the Federal government had given a license to some illegals to operate a radio station.  It was a small area station, but why should illegals be allowed to construct and operate a radio station? What’s that all about? How many do they operate around this country? Of course, they portrayed it as a wonderful thing, I saw it as strange and somehow frightening.

The media is forming our opinions in many cases and it is also dictating our speech.  We are bombarded 24/7 with news, slanted one way or the other – but always slanted toward corporatism, and government.

It reminds me of the SciFi story about the time the government demanded everyone have a TV and that it remain on all the time.  Also, a lot like the loudspeakers constantly pumping out propaganda to brainwash people.

David,

Yes, I’d say the fallacies have been pointed out more than once.

No one said that the feminist movement did not allow her to get where she is. In fact, I believe I did say that. She is practicing exactly the feminism I worked for in the 50’s and 60’s – the right to make choices in her life.  To work or not to work outside the home.  To do a job she was qualifed to do, even if it was historically ‘a man’s job’. To be paid as much as a man, for comparable work.  Due to the work done years ago, she is doing exactly what we fought for the right for her to do.

Now the modern day feminists seem to want to again put restriction on a woman.  If she is truly able to make choices in her life and have a family, have a job, and do them well, it bothers the feminist of today.  That attitude is as bad as the ones we faced in the 50’s.  The -  ‘Oh, no, Honey, that’s a man’s job.’ They are saying, ‘Oh, no, Honey, that’s not a feminist choice.’

We, and countless before us worked for her right to do just what she is – make choices.  I am not too surprised, but the modern feminists are truly showing their hypocrisy.

anonymous,

You missed my point, and it’s certainly possible I failed to make it clear – but then it could also be reading as you want it to be – not as written.

As for the trade deals and the media – I was trying to make the point that the media is NOT liberal.  It is liberal on social issues, to be sure.  It is corporatist actually.  The fact that social issues truly do favor the corporations much of the time, although it is presented differently.

Massive government programs, voted in by both sides, and supported by the media, takes money from taxpayers, funnels it through the recipients ,usually,  although not always, the poor.  That money ultimately ends up in the hands of corporations – through housing, food, medical, etc.  So though people say the media is liberal – they are wrong.  It is all about money and corporations. 

Once again, the corporations have the money, they are not about to let anyone get up there that isn’t going to toe the line for them.  They didn’t grow as large as they have and get the power they have, by not ‘buttering their bread on both sides’, as one CEO said in an interview.

Fair global trade creates wealth – what we have is not fair trade and yes, it creates wealth for some, while it destroys far more individuals and it is destroying this country.

We should not put the name on it that politicians spin – like isolationist and protectionist.

One of the few constitutionally given powers of the government is to regulate trade and make deals and isn’t the idea implicit that the deals should favor, or at least be in the best interest, of this country and it’s people?  That’s not protectionism!  That’s what the government should do.  How did we get to the point, that we repeat the spin that doing what is best for this country and it’s people is somehow wrong? 

How is making trade fair and keeping it from siphoning off jobs and money from this country, considered isolationism?  How is keeping this country sovereign and not allowing dangerous access by foreign companies – isolationism?  It isn’t. 

Tribalism, racism, balkanism, isolationism, protectionism – don’t let political spinners put words in your mind and then regurgitate them.  Think for yourself –

If any of my posts ever said immigration, rather than anti-illegal, it was just a typo. I do, however, think our legal immigration situation is totally messed up and needs to be seriously revamped.

While I welcome discussion and debate, yours didn’t address much of my ideas – rather it was just a repeat of the mantra of politicians.

“… One of the few constitutionally given powers of the government is to regulate trade and make deals and isn’t the idea implicit that the deals should favor, or at least be in the best interest, of this country and it’s people? …”

Ah, but there lies the problem: regulation that protects the rights of individuals to freely trade with each other is not the same as trade that furthers the “politics of pull” and favors one corporation or industry over its competitors. It is not the government’s job to determine or regulate what each party to an exchange of value consider “fair.”

What we have now is not fair trade or Capitalism: what we have is crony capitalism and corruption of politicians. What we have is a perversion of the economy by excessive intervention, control, and regulation by the government. What we have is closer to Fascism or Communism than to Capitalism.

anonymous,

I’m not talking about regulating free trade with individuals, as in my buying something from you.  I’m talking about large corporations, with more money than God and untold power, purchasing politicians to further they goals. 

I’m talking about making sweet deals with China so corporations can make billions, even though it hurts this country, compromises our security, and weakens our sovereignty.

No, what we now have is not fair trade, nor capitalism.  What we have is corporatism.  The corporations are running the world now, like it or not.

Yet, I have read on many occasions about how these corporations are not making a profit and we should get all warm and fuzzy about these ‘American Companies’, and not be upset that they are gouging us, selling us dangerous products, and importing workers to replace Americans.  After all, they deserve to make a profit.

That is one of the better instances of total brainwashing I have seen.

These are not American Companies.  They are huge global entities.  They are larger, have more money, and more power than many countries of the world and have no allegiance to this country.

They buy politicians and own the parties to make sure their goals are achieved.  Our government is not the only one they own, either.

The sad thing is they have been able to delude us into helping them and continuing to vote in their lackeys.

I repeat,”“” One of the few constitutionally given powers of the government is to regulate trade and make deals and isn’t the idea implicit that the deals should favor, or at least be in the best interest, of this country and it’s people? …””“”

The only problem there is that they are not doing that.

ladytexan, I get your point. But if I understand the forumations of Third Wave feminism right—and there’s a chance I don’t, of course—they seem to express much the same thing you do. Women should be able to choose any identity they want. The main question they pose, however, is this: “What does it mean to use your choice by embracing a traditional identity? Does it mean the loss of anything that has been gained?” It seems to be a very complex problem, one that might be solved anytime soon.

On a related topic I think part of what’s happening in the Sarah Palin coverage is that Republican pundits are applying language historically associated with oppressed or marginalized people, which is something very weird. She’s represented as having the courage to “make choices”—which appropriates a politically charged term like “choice” and ties it to a politically regressive scheme. She’s giving American women the “choice” of not being able to “choose?” It makes no sense. The astonishing thing is that anyone finds such obfuscation convincing. Further, the conservative self-represention as group “oppressed” by a godless Left bears a little more examination. A state that allows women the right to an abortion is not an “oppressive state,” but, to those opposed to it, it is, rather, an “offensive” one, and conservative commentary continually chides the Left for its sensitivity to offence.

Re:  Alaska Independence Party.  We are, after all, talking about a party founded by a man who said, “I’m an Alaskan, not an American. I’ve got no use for America or her damned institutions.” The same man, AIP founder Joe Vogler, also said, “[T]he fires of Hell are glaciers compared to my hate for the American government.”

Destruction of the Union is the most anti-American act possible.

To Easy, Post #49:

Obviously, if Palin is found to have ever been associated with this organization (AIP) or its founder – - it certainly matches up with the GOP criticisms of Obama for his supposed associations with William Ayers.

Frankly, I really don’t think Alaska and Alaskans are relevantly connected socially, culturally or politically to the lower 48.

TO; ladytexan

I am gettin MANY responses to whatever you
wrote.  Makes me wonder who is getting Mine??

David,

I’m not too concerned with her as a candidate, I truly know very little.  My responses are really to the action of the feminists – so called feminist.  The election will be what it is.  Mine is the absolute frenzy by the media and the revealing of the hyprocrisy of the new feminists.

I don’t know from Third Wave feminism, but I do know that what I worked for was exactly what this woman is doing.  It was so women would have the ability to make choices, to be treated equally in law and in the workplace.  That is exactly what is happening here.

I worked so –

women could have the choice to work or not work,

make as much money as a man doing the same job,

have equality under the law,

to be able to support their children should the man not step up to the plate, and not have to remain in a bad situation,

to be able to decide for herself whether or not to create life – certainly the ability to destroy their unborn was never something I worked for or would work for – just the opposite. 

Abortion should not be a part of feminism.  It isn’t a woman’s issue.  It is a human issue, a moral issue and a legal issue.  For some it is the lynchpen.  It is the criteria for being a feminist. As a woman, a strong woman, a successful woman, a mother, she is making the choice to take a stand against the destruction of unborn babies.  What is wrong with that.

I am decidedly anti-abortion, no pro-life for me, I’m clear on my stance.  I defy anyone to question my feminist credentials.

Evidently, they want choices as long as it is
‘their choices’.  That’s not choice, that’s not freedom, that’s not equality. That’s true oppression.

The new feminism doesn’t have a corner on the word choice – there are many choices to be made. Euphemisms bother me.  It is pro-abortion and anti-abortion.  The worst thing the anti-abortion people ever did was play into the trap of coming up with a euphemism. 

God gave us choice in everything, the law didn’t. The law just allowed them to do it without legal penalties.

“”” A state that allows women the right to an abortion is not an “oppressive state,” “””

Unless, of course, you are unborn children, then it’s rather oppressive, wouldn’t you say?

Any government that can deem a group a ‘non person’ and therefore can be destroyed, legally, can deem other groups ‘non persons’ as well. 

Farfetched?  It has been done before.  There was a time in this country that legalized abortion was just as farfetched.

They can parse it anyway they want, they can squeal and rage, but the fact is, these feminists are not for women’s rights – they are for abortion rights.  That above all else and that is very, very frightening.

god bless our country, and our party, and that “New” candidate Ms. Sara, for VP.

this country will be better off when she wins, we need to stop these commie, atheists, who seek to destroy our america.  I dont care if they call her the queen of pork, and i dont care if it is true. She is a true God fearing american, and knows as we all do that God will make that pipeline happen in Alaska,just like he made that Jet get sold, even if it wasnt on EBAY, and it was bought by her campaign manager, another good republican and god loving american. what a stupid detail anyway, to make people look at some detail, not crucial, like our jobs, or our economy. God help the banks who are robbing us blind, if that terrible obama gets in. Good by Mr. obama.

To my friend Roberto: attacking ME rather than my position is called an ad hominem fallacy, and wouldn’t fly in a freshman course on logic. Aside from that, the list of traits you associate with me or anyone making an argument will only ever be a caricature. The only thing you did get right is my belief in the relativism of values. That is, the idea that every society decides how to code all the activities of life in a different way. A glance across world civilizations will tell you this. You would have to be excessively blinkered not to get it. The only prohibition that all researched societies have in place is the prohibition against incest. That’s it; and even that might reflect an awareness of the systemic (genetic) damage produced by such a practice.

Relativism is built into the very fabric of reality. As Einstein demonstrated a hundred years ago, time itself is relative to the position of all observers (this has since been proven by physicists). There is no single privileged point of observation of the physical world. This fact has enormous consequences for philosophy, religion, politics and culture. Special relativity is not the creation of the liberal media, and cannot be banished by the teaching of creationism, banning a book, or asserting some alternative “truth.” Given the relativity of the observations of the physical world—where all positions are subject to the equalizing power of spacetime—how can any one human political or religious system (which is based on observation) claim to be superior to all others? When you sneer at a notion like relativism, understand you’re sneering at one of the most basic elements that constitute reality.

That said, there is only the religious or political “influencing” of cultural codes. The only thing that can actually intervene on the behalf of people is ethics, along with the creation of laws. Ethics in fact has to play a decisive role here, since all discourses are entangled with expressions of politics, religion and simply the will to power.

Actually ladytexan, you and I don’t have much to argue about. But I think you’d be interested in a lot of Third Wave feminism. There are plenty of anti-abortion feminist visions that argue that abortion mainly frees men of their responsibility, and assert that a real legal space has not yet been created for mothers in the culture. That seems to me to be a way out of this particular bind. And the unfortunate caricatures of feminism that you see in the media.

ladytexan:

I believe you’re confusing the symptoms for the disease. The disease is government control over commerce, the symptom is the corruption of politicians.

Our politicians through their arrogated control of commerce, production, distribution and profit margins of goods believe (with good reason) that they “own” business and commerce. The politicians have created the conditions and incentives for businessmen to corrupt them in order to get regulations and controls that favor their business over their competitors, or even to get “permission” to do business at all.

Exhibit 1 is the current Democrat posturing over removing offshore drilling bans. They are now saying that they “may” allow “some” offshore drilling provided that they (the Feds, not the states) get sufficient unspecified royalties and the oil companies hand over even more of their profits to the Feds in taxes (the unvoiced demand is political contributions and other under-the-table bribes).

If any “brainwashing” is in effect here, in my opinion, you’re the victim of it, not me. In my opinion, you need to do more reading and study to formulate rational judgment versus “feeling.”

Globalization is a fact: isolationism and nationalism are the antithesis of individual rights. They are the hallmarks of tribalism.

“… Any government that can deem a group a ‘non person’ and therefore can be destroyed, legally, can deem other groups ‘non persons’ as well. …”

Well, in fact governments have over the centuries only acknowledged the “personhood” of an individual when that government issues a Certificate of Live Birth.

TK post #44:

Providing a direct quote of someone whose words express an idea succinctly is not “parroting.” It’s scholarship.

I’m sure you’ve quoted or paraphrased Jefferson or Jackson at one point or another, haven’t you? Does that “just make you another run-of-the-mill “dittohead”?

By the way, Rand wasn’t “displaced Russian-born author of the 1950s.” She chose to immigrate to the United States in 1926 and spent nearly 60 years here writing and speaking. In my opinion, her best writing was done after Atlas Shrugged was published in 1957.

Yes Julie O, BS has returned, and now he is called David Goodis.  I find it ironic these criminals think us so “ignorant” that we can not see through their deceptions – they really think they are superior to us idiots – what egotism!

Easy – Destruction of the Union is the most anti-American act possible?  Do tell!  You mean all those forefathers and foremothers were the most anti-British (English) when they “chose” to answer tyranny by overthrowing their oppressors?  You mean that all that our Declaration says is just worthless words with no meaning?  Patriots such as Jefferson said that it is the right of man to overthrow that which oppresses, and 54 of our founders, representing all 13 Colonies, signed that they agreed such, but after more than 230 years, now you, Easy, are telling us – they were wrong?  Have ytou thought of re-reading the Preamble to the U S Constitution, Easy?  I suspect you would find that Americans after the Revolution, and Independence won, still believed that free peoples still have the right to overthrow those that would be their masters.

rightamerican – Hahahahahha – such a card – acting like you are a hayseed that just climbed down from a tater truck!  Yes, I get the pun!  Your acting like you be one of dem ignorant racist righters, and God be for all that hate America cuz the righties hate America and luv ta steal from you all.  The ignorance fool, is that you have such a warped mind that you see those that are Conservative as anti-American, and guess what?  It is not us that changed America to the mess it is, we fought you liberals every step of the way, and you have what you wanted, a slowly decaying America, that is almost rotten to the core because of your “changes.”  You are just PISSED that for eight years now, you have had us in your way from changing us even faster.  Yes, Bush is certainly a problem even to us that have to stomach some of his changes we disagree with, but Conservatives know what your change is – America’s destruction, and you want to speed it up big time, and we be in your way.  America declined when the Democrats last controlled the government, then we slowed you down a bit, and with Clinton you wanted to speed it up again, but we mostly stopped it, and even with Bush we have seen further leftist decline, because the leftist liberal disease infects American government to the core.

And now you want Obama to drive the final dagger into Lady Liberty, and make us slaves to your change – which is oppression.  And yes, we are still fighting you – and patriotic Americans will continue to fight you.  And if you push it far enough, we will be TRUE Americans and overthrow our oppressors.  We want liberty, you want enslavement of the American people.  Our forefathers and foremothers overthrew the rule of Britain for far less than what liberals have crammed down our throats so far – so we are being actually – moderate – as Washington, Adams, and Jefferson would see it.

“Yes Julie O, BS has returned, and now he is called David Goodis.  I find it ironic these criminals think us so ‘ignorant’ that we can not see through their deceptions – they really think they are superior to us idiots – what egotism!”

Sorry to let you know—I’m actually a brand new participant. Is talking about physics a criminal act here?

“You mean all those forefathers and foremothers were the most anti-British (English) when they “chose” to answer tyranny by overthrowing their oppressors?”

Yes, absolutely, as was their right to be anti-British, as reflected in our rightous Declaration of Independence.  But it was still anti-British.  Every secessionist move is “anti” mother country.

When Spanish colonies declared their independence, it was anti-Spanish.  When the breakaway provinces of Georgia declared their independence, it was anti-Georgian.  When the Confederate States declared their independence, it was anti-USA.

Some secessionist movements are justified, some are not.  But every secessionist movement is against (“anti”) their mother country, by definition.

I am receiving many responses that don’t belong to my posting.
  ladytexan
  mike c
  julie O
  TK
  David

and many who did not refer to a poster.. couldn’t identify what post they were responding to.  Any one else having this problem?

I am getting responses that don’t refer to my post.  Most don’t show who they are responding to, but I have gotten responses to:
  ladytexas (multiple)
  mike c
  julie o
  TK
  David

anyone else having this problem?

And Mark, yes it is your right to have your opinion, BUT those forefathers and foremothers saw themselves as exercising their rights AS British Citizens.  They saw that the “mother” country was being anti, and them as NOT being anti.  You can twist it around, as is your right, but if Americans were to rise up against oppression, they will see it as them being the America lovers, and those that are the oppressors as the America haters.  Might DOES NOT make right!

I just left a Youtube site that was rife with goofs from Obama.  I was able to get to the site by typing in the following:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LDou1bUzzA&feature=related

You want to click on the Michelle Obama Whitey
Remark: A ticking time bomb?

It really doesn’t much mention anything about any remark she made. It lasts about 4 minutes or so and it is FULL of Obama’s really bad/stupid goofs:

Iran is a tiny nation; they don’t spend 1/100th that we do on our military….then a couple days later Iran poses a great threat, they support terrorism…..
In Selma, talking about they met (parents) and here he is…. problem? He was born in 1961, the Selma march was 1965.
Really..be prepared and get a pencil & paper and
write them down for future reference. If it were not so serious that a Presidential nominee can’t keep his story straight from one audience to the next, even if it’s the NEXT DAY… if it weren’t for that, it would be hilarious.

Carolyn:  I got 31 notices from AIM that there were postings to various threads, ALL between 1250 to 1255 PM Eastern time on Sunday.  And when I came on site most were not even on the site here but just in my email.  AIM is checking into it, but I suspect the left is hacking into the site since all the posts were nasty rants from the left, from the two you-know-whos.  Payback for cutting off comments for about 10 days, I would imagine?  And BS’s IP was cut off, so he has probably gone to a different computer and is getting liberal revenge?  We can’t expect anything different from little whiny children!

Accuracy in media—McCain fact checked:

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/factchecking_mccain.html

TO Jack H Hansen:
Well, write down that site, or copy/paste it..
you might be able to get through.  It IS worth
the try. Oh, if only the MSM would show that one thing…But, we e-mailers will have to be “the daily news”..informing them.
  Thanks for the heads up.  Yeah, mine notice
“someone responded to your (whatever) came in my in-box, to: Outlook Express.

Just received an email, from a returning troop.
It is a ‘commercial’ for John McCain.  Great.
The site is:

http://www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=TG4fe9GlWS8 

That didn’t light up, but I typed it my address bar to make sure and I got right to the troops video.

Watch it, then pass it along to others.  That’s how I got it.  IT WORKS.

Interesting perspective, Jack. However, the American Hertitage dictionary defines “Anti-American” as “Opposed or hostile to the government, official policies, or people of the United States.”

Do you contend that Joe Vogler or his AIP do not meet this definition?

I am also receiving a lot of notices, while they are overall interesting, are not responses to my input.

One more item on O’Reilly from me:  I watched tonight since (as far as I know right now-I tuned in a little later) Obama Rama wasn’t on there and I was more than disgusted with that display of his so-called patriots and pinheads segment.  If he isn’t in the tank for Obama now, I would like to know who is.  That was a total insult to anyone’s intelligence, and a total insult to the woman from “The View.”  That is a major disappointment but I saw it coming some time ago.  That is my last time watching The Factor.  What a waste of time.

Mark, re-read the definition of Anti-American that you looked up in the dictionary?  Opposed to people of the United States?  If a government becomes oppressive to the people of the US, is that NOT anti-American?

And you say interesting perspective?  My opinions may be a perspective, but the printed words of the founders is what they believed when they were printed, and that is not MY persepective, that is what they said!!!!

I’m not too sure how this works, but I don’t think I’m getting any unusual replies to my posts.

I am getting a host of emails from ‘Bob’ who is apparently a religious person or organization.

Nobody,

“”“”“Well, in fact governments have over the centuries only acknowledged the “personhood” of an individual when that government issues a Certificate of Live Birth.”“”“”“”“

No, I don’t think that is strictly true.  Abortion was once illegal as it was considered a life.  Now we are probably splitting hairs here – so let’s just say the government is declaring a group as a ‘non-life’ or maybe just ‘not worthy of living’.

However you would like to phrase it, a government that can decide any group is not worthy of life,  can decide another group is not worthy of life.

Anonymous,

Now, I’m not confusing anything.  Our government does not control corporations – it’s the other way around.  It does have the ability to do that, but it seldom uses it.  Sometimes it pretends it does to make the people think the government is on the job – but if you find out the facts, it’s usually a slap on the wrist.  As one man said to me concerning some EPA fines.  “It’s cheaper to pay the fines than fix the problems.”  The media, however, portrayed the government as being so tough on this industry and really doing its job.

Money is power and they have the money.

The government is supposed to have some control over commerce – as in foreign trade and in trade between the states.  Yes, they have abused that power by declaring many things under the umbrella of trade that isn’t – such as gun control.

Once again, politicians do not control business, never has to any extent and certainly doesn’t now.  Yes, there certainly is the idea that government can favor one over the other and I’m pretty sure I have seen that happen.  That only proves that government is controlled by corporations.  I’m not saying all corporations, just the big guys – but they are calling the shots all around the world, not just here.

There were some things, such as civil rights legislation, etc., that did, but that’s pretty much gone.

We really need to be realistic about things like drilling.  Look at how big the oil industry is – and how powerful.  I don’t just mean our oil industry, if we have any left, I mean worldwide.  Realize we are fighting a war over oil right now (yes, it is), and that we have oil men in the two top positions in this country and many more in congress.

Do you think, for a nano second, if those oil companies, and this President, had really wanted to drill in Alaska, or offshore, that it wouldn’t have happened?  The oil industry, which includes the peripheral industries (Halliburton, etc), have the money, the power.  If any Democrats had been able or had thwarted their desire to drill, those people would not be in office the next time.  Oil is big money, getting a friendly congresscritter elected is small potatoes in comparison.

No, I am not brainwashed.  Just look around, corporations are humongeous entities with holdings around the world.  Do you actually think a few little US congresscritters are going to be allowed to stand in their way?

Again, corporations are no longer US corporations , they are global corporations.  Some people still talk about them like they were the corner grocery store.

Again with the ‘isms’.

I don’t know exactly what isolationism is,  as you use it, but, it’s a label and a label others have put on something and I’m thinking the true meaning has been lost.

When did we reach the point that doing what was best for one’s country and its people is wrong and something to be denounced?  How did we arrive at that thinking?

The Bible says ‘when right shall be wrong and wrong shall be right’.  I’m pretty sure it was speaking to spiritual things, but it fits this as well.

No, doing what is best for this country and its peole is not against individualism. 

They called Ron Paul an isolationist – that’s just something they called him – like they called him a kook.

No, my brain is working just fine and it’s not filled with labels and ‘isms’ planted there by those either in the media, or the propaganda field, or those who have had their thought process wired by some college professor.

Just because I don’t take on the language of the media and popular jargon (‘isms’, etc.), doesn’t mean I don’t read and keep up with things. 

This is something I have watched develop for decades.

David,

I do think abortion has made both men and women think they are free of obligations and reponsibilities – the man more so. 

I agree that the role of Mother in society has been so demeaned and that is so sad.  I remember when the mantra was that women had to have a career to be ‘whole’ and they had to find themselves in their work and they were wasting their abilities staying home and rearing children.

Sadly, women believed that.  Mothers went into the work force in droves.  It is almost unseemly to stay at home now.  I see women working today and their jobs are actually costing the family money.  I have talked with them and we have gone over the additional expenses of the mother working, child care, clothing, take out food because everyone’s tired, etc., and in the end, they are in the hole.  Even though they could see it, they simply believed they had to work.

As to the Alaska secession idea –

I don’t know that I would be quite as forceful in my condemnation of our government and some of our country’s institutions, but I’m not very happy with them, either.

I’m thinking anyone who is happy with them and cannot see the faults is probably not giving it much thought.

As others have pointed out, I’m very glad that some people years ago were unhappy with the British rule and did something about it – one of my ancestors was involved.

I’m also glad that some people here in Texas were unhappy and did something about it.  Although, I suspect a little machinations from the US government there.

I just watched 2 on youtube worth watching. might have to hunt a bit;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxNLLAK9gek&NR=1

(on the right side column you’ll see another showing a copy of the cert. of live birth & video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLrGQaPzz6c&feature=related.

Go to page 3, then in the search window, type Michelle Obama Whitey tape   & when you get to that page, look for Michelle Ob Whitey…a ticking time bomb.

Hope they haven’t been scrubbed.  They were much harder to find this time!

I just cannot under WHY he has not been investiagted to the fullest extent to prove his
legal eligibility.  The Senate investigate McCain, HE PASSED: THEY PASSED OVER ANY SUCH INVESTIGATION OF OBAMA?  WHY”
  Why has the FBI, CIA, Homeland Security of other investigative arms demand or supeona the
state of Hawaii to show a valid birth ceriticate, even leaving out SSN, mother’s dob, etc..leaving enough intact to show it belongs to Barack Hussein Obama (Jr?)  Who can vote for someone who’s eligibility is in question?

Jack:

“Anti-American” is defined as opposed or hostile to the government, official policies, OR people of the United States.

Would you agree that Vogler’s AIP is opposed or hostile to the GOVERNMENT of the United States?

Mark, I haven’t looked up or studied this Vogler guy at all.  I have seen a few on this site mentioning him, and understand he has or was leading some movement (AIP-Alaska Independence Party) in Alaska – but that is about it.  So I do not have the knowledge to state anything further, except that various state’s have other third parties besides D and R?  The state I live in has an Independence Party, though I doubt it is at all related to the Alaska one, and they are not suggesting that secession is an answer, and have not even suggested such that I know of.

That said, many have said that with the defeat of the Confederate States, the question of whether secession was an option for the various states, had been settled, and that it was now not an option.  Yes, the CSA lost, BUT I do not believe that a states secession from the union is against the Constitution.  Remember our government is a compact between the federal government, and the citizens of the various states where they are represented by their elected government leaders.  It is the reason that we even have the electoral college in choosing Presidents, and why small states got the same number of Senators as large states, but the large states got represented in the House by their population, and the Senate is the Senior deliberatative body.  And originally, the representatives of the citizens in the various states CHOSE US Senators, and they were actually a sort of liason from the various State Legislatures to represent them in the federal compact, and they have six year terms versus two for mere representatives. 

While the founders did not want the states to leave the federal compact, and would certainly be hesitant to back such a movement as it could have been used to keep the federal government concept weak and they were looking for strength after the failed Articles of Confederation government, I would say that if pushed it was definitely their belief that state entities could leave the compact as easily as they entered it, by a vote of the citizens elected representatives.  We have 50 seperate legal government entities that are members of the federal compact, the Constitution, and some of those entities were actually nations before entering the compact as a member state.

So in that sense Mark, I would not see it as anti-American for a member state to hold a vote to secede from the union, and if successful, to leave the union.  But like the founders, I would be really hesitant to agree on such a proposition as one of the strengths of our government is that states do not come and go like members of some club.  So in that sense, I have always believed that when the remaining states in the Union made war on the seceded southern states in the Civil War, they were committing an act of war against a foreign nation, as those former states, had now commenced a new government where they entered a different compact, and their allegiance to the old compact was legally and rightfully severed.  It was wrong and illegal to use the force of arms to force them back into the old compact.

But, I am glad that they were brought back into the union, as with that secession had it been successful, I believe that other sections of the country would have also broken off, and the very strength of the union would have been lost forever, and we would today be an area of land with many different nations all fighting against each other and the US would never have become the power that she is because of the union.

And no, I am not a southern man, but a very northern man, and am descendant from abolitionists that felt strongly about ending slavery, and family members actually gave their lives to stop that secession and to end slavery – but I still believe that secession by a member state or states is a legal option.

RE: Post #53 – -

Wow!

Geez!

To many of you:
I am no longer much concerned about the AIM website. Both its nonsensical op-ed pieces and most of the comments that follow are so detached from reality that they aren’t even amusing. Instead, they inspire only my pity. The paranoia and conspiracy-theory mentality that permeate both strongly suggest deep fear of a future which is rushing inexorably toward all of us. As always, we humans are advancing into the unknown. But the influence of technology, medicine and ever-greater amounts of wealth generated by the global economy have combined to speed up historical change and make its impact ever more powerful with each passing year.
So, an amount of trepidation is hardly unwarranted. What saddens and disturbs me, however, is that the worries I read about on this website are so insignificant. Fear of a multi-racial, multi-cultural American society, fear of an African-American president, fear of conspiracies and manipulations by powerful but invisible elites, fear of ideologies long since are dead and burried are all irrelevant to the really serious questions facing us. What are those?
Without attempting to put them in any order, they include 1) a previously unimaginable increase in the human lifespan sometime in the next thirty-fifty years; 2) the development of artificial intelligence both superior to that of human beings and capable of creativity; 3) human genetically-engineered evolution (as opposed to natural selection) leading to a man made successor to Homo Sapiens; 4) the possibility – only now dimly foreseen – of travel faster than the speed of light; 5) the philosophical implications of present and near-future discoveries in astrophysics; 6) the development of non-nuclear explosives more powerful than thermonuclear weapons, most likely from the application of anti-matter; 7) simultaneously, the harnessing of anti-matter to provide previously unimaginable amounts of cheap energy; radical changes in climate and weather patterns, far beyond what has already happened; 9) the creation of so much wealth and plenty as to eliminate global poverty, hunger and deprivation of any other kind; 10) the total elimination of physical labor through robotics.
These are only some of the matters that should concern you. Instead, so many of you are walking into the future backwards, while you look behind into a past rapidly receding into the mists of time. Because you are unaware of what lies ahead of you, you are about to be smashed on your head – metaphorically – by a rod of iron. 
And yet you worry about me blogging under a pseudonym, as if you and this website is of any import – save as useful for a psychological experiment of mine some weeks ago. (You see, I once was involved in the development of what the military calls psyops. I continue to consult on that. So, I dabble in it from time to time.)

May God have mercy on you in your pathetic ignorance.

Brian R. Sullivan

Re: anonymous – Post #56:

With all due respect – - here we go again with the John Galt/Ayn Rand stuff.

If one simply looks at the current reality – - another of your famous “lectures” on the Ayn Rand theory of the world’s workings simply rings hollow.

Once in a while, you might try to offer some current-day, “real world solutions”-type suggestions instead of endlessly re-hashing an early Cold War Russian author’s “theory” of how things “could” or “should” work.  50-year-old conjecturing, at that.

Rather than ladytexan being off the chart as you insinuate, you seem more likely to be, as you say, “brainwashed” – - maybe “fixated” is a better word – - by your apparently singular and narrowly-focused “reading” and “study” of your Ayn Rand book collection.

You and your would-be-mentor Ayn Rand are certainly not the final authority – - the end-all and be-all of political thought – - so, gather a little intellectual honesty and get off your holier-than-thou high horse.  Please.

Fear of a multi-racial, multi-cultural American society,….Got one already,and it has been here for a long long time. Just asking for immigration to be legal not illegal. True assimilation should take place as it always has to be successful. No fear here BS

fear of an African-American president…Where are you getting that BS? I would love to see a President Michael Steele. I would also follow Herman Cain to the ends of the earth. Who you callin racist bro? I don’t like Obama. Nothing to it other than that.

fear of conspiracies and manipulations by powerful but invisible elites….Soros is far from invisible BS…He is a scary man.

That has been put to bed here and documented like crazy…… We have all been to CPUSA website and know what Congress people all belong. Go spout that lie somewhere else. It is tiresome.

The other items on your list have not been discussed as possible fears nor have they been a topic. Everything you listed has been of great concern for me for a very long time. You have been on a forum that has been conversing about the topic at hand. You want to perform some kind of sick experiment and bother others with your self-agrandizement. The only thing we thought of you was that you had more bats in your belfry than an Austin bat cave. Sorry BS, but we really love it that you have grown tired of aim and the posters here. Go to the daily Kos…good place for a mind like yours to psyops all day long. You will fit right in. Buh bye.

Dear Mr/Ms TK:

So sorry to offend your “feelings” of what is appropriate to write about or that fits your “feelings” of what is a “real world solution.”

You seem to have “fixated” on taking issue with Rand and/or Objectivism, or perhaps just my writing. You’re so much holier-than-me I guess I’ll just have to do some penance and go sit in the corner for a while.

You and Jack Hansen are quite a pair! Perhaps you should volunteer to be the REAL moderators of this site so you can just delete postings that offend your “sensibility.”

Seig Heil!

RE:  anonymous – Post #81

Baloney!

TK post 82:

HAHAHAAHA—that was a really well-thought, succinct and relevant response as well as a quite accurate summation of your posts.

TK:

Old Hickory indeed! Your inspiration is the extermination and displacement of thousands of aboriginals, theft of their lands, and the summary theft of Spanish colonies. And you take issue with Rand???

As you said: Baloney!

Julie,

Are you by chance, from Texas also???

Jack,

Some good thoughts, there.

I certainly see good reasons for some states to secede, I also see that it would weaken the Union.

Secession wouldn’t mean that the people of the state hated America, just that their needs would be better served by independence.  It certainly wouldn’t mean they hated American people.

It might be a good thing, however, if states did have that option – might keep Washington in line.

It has been said that Texas reserved the right, but I’m not sure.

Interesting topic -

Re: anonymous, Posts #83 and #84

Hope you’re not injuring yourself bouncing off all those walls.  How long do you think it’ll be before they let you out?

To your health – - and best wishes, always!

Jack said “Mark, I haven’t looked up or studied this Vogler guy at all.  I have seen a few on this site mentioning him, and understand he has or was leading some movement (AIP-Alaska Independence Party) in Alaska – but that is about it.  So I do not have the knowledge to state anything further, except that various state’s have other third parties besides D and R?  “

Why would you need to look it up or study?  His categorical hatred of America is more explicit than that of Reverend Wright.

We are, after all, talking about a party founded by a man who said, “I’m an Alaskan, not an American. I’ve got no use for America or her damned institutions.” The same man, AIP founder Joe Vogler, also said, “[T]he fires of Hell are glaciers compared to my hate for the American government.” – CBS News

If true, this information alone should be sufficient for an objective person to determine Vogler’s AIP is “opposed or hostile to the GOVERNMENT of the United States.”  If so, then Vogler’s AIP meets the definition of “anti-American.”  The logic is bulletproof.  This argument can only be refuted by invalidating the quote or invalidating the definition.

Julie O – I knew it, I am the one he labels paranoid when I say that BS is posting under other names, and now the old goat has – Fessed Up!  So I guess I was not paranoid – I was right.
I knew David Goodis and BS were the same, it has become just so easy to spot the academic superiority in his rantings. Only dave and BS were the nasty mouthed ones, but the I’m smart and you all are ignorant always showed through to reveal the light.

But he still has the twisted thinking of the true liberal always there.  Their mantra that Republicans and Conservatives are scared of a black President – only they harp on this subject, just as Obama does.  Yes, I am scared of this Black Man becoming President – but I do not fear a black man OR woman as President – this is a sickness in only the minds of liberals – maybe, just maybe it is because the liberals in their snake oil salesmanship want to get the black vote, have in their actions taken a strong, self-reliant racial group in this country that overcame the prejudices against them of the past, and transformed far to many of them into just needy government-owned slaves to hand outs from those they voted for.  The black people of America have had a nasty master in theirbeing controlled by the left, and MAYBE intellectuals like BS hold a whole lot of guilt in them.  You are the racists BS, we are not.  You can keep harping on something that is not a part of this site, and say it is true, but the comments say differently.

Hey, and breaking news BS!  America has ALWAYS been a “melting pot” of those of different nationalities and races.  There has always been a new guy on the block – and they have with time assimulated.  But like Julie O, I do not have a problem with immigration, just illegal immigration, BUT also out of control immigration.  It takes time to assimulate people into our culture, and you academics wish to destroy our culture, so your answer has been so much out of control new numbers of people that it has torn the culture asunder, and Americans are hurting because of your shameful way fo forcing your will down our throats.  Now, manageable immigration is what we have always wanted and what we ALWAYS had before you social experimenters screwed with things.  And by your very admission BS, you ARE definitely a sicko that loves to socially experiment with others minds.

Except your own very biases cloud your thinking.  While you are so-called experimenting you are coming to the conclusions that you already believed you would get because of your twisted thinking, even though every single response DOES NOT hold up to your pre-conceived believes and prejudices.

And anonymous – Old Hickory.  You explain the fallacy of your arguments in your very statement.  Americans took Spanish colonies??  No, no and no.  The Spanish took Florida from the aborigines without treaty and without any form of payment.  The US BOUGHT Florida from the Spanish.  So no we did not take, we paid them when they SOLD it to us.  And Spanish land in the midwest along the Mississippi was turned over to France when Spain lost in war, and then France SOLD that land to Jefferson and the US.  As for SW America.  I have already explained about Texas, but when Texas became a US state in 1845, the Mexicans that had lost it 9 years before, in the name of the tyrant Santa Ana decided to invade the US (no longer the Republic of Texas), and in war SW America was lost to Mexico, but in the treaty to end the war that the Mexicans signed, we PAID them for that land.  So the Spanish had that land taken by the Mexicans, and in the end either by war (for Texas), and by being PAID Mexico sold that land when they lost in the war in which they invaded.

So anonymous, Old Hickory IS and remains a hero in American history despite your twisting of what really happened in history to fit your beliefs.

In fact, check through history anonymous, you will find that only Americans have ever paid for their land, and other nationalities have always just taken without compensation.

Buh-bye BS, glad you are tired of us.  THOUGH, I will believe it when I quit seeing posts from you or the many numbers of manifestations that your paranoid split personality deems to inflict upon us.  Just like a liberal – always blaming others for the very things that they are.  So in the end BS, you were the psychotic while always calling us the sick ones.  Figures!

But you are a liberal, and a psychotic (you call it social experimenting) by your own admission, so when I quit seeing your intellectually dishonest and manipulative rants through all the characters you portray, then I will believe it.

And I knew when AIM said they would ban your IP that you would be back anyway – it is the sickness of the liberal mind.

Mark – what part of no is it that you do not understand?  Until this Vogler guy was mentioned on this site – I HAVE NEVER EVEN HEARD OF HIM.  I cannot make a decision about a man based on knowing absolutely nothing.  All I know is what you and the commenters on this site have said when you talked about him – and I am surely not able to make decisions based on that – and as I said I have not looked up the guy to study what he has said.

Now having said that, you mentioned that he said: “I am an Alaskan, not an American.” Almost all Americans, before the Civil War, said they were a/an……..(name of State they lived in and were from).  They did not see themselves (most of the people) as Americans.  Given that Alaska did not even become a state until 1959?? 1949? (Sorry, having a brain fart), that he said he was an Alaskan, and not an American, is not some big enlightening moment.  I would imagine that it is not improbable that many in that state see themselves as Alaskans rather than Americans.  Besides, let’s look at it another way.  If you went to Hawaii and asked the people living there – they would say they are Hawaiians.  If you went to Puerto Rico, they would say they are Puerto Rican, or Latino, or whatever.  But both are Americans.

Is this website promoting accuracy in reporting? bogus!.. one look at this site shows its bias towards the Grand Old Elephant

Lady Texan

This is for you…and yep I am from where the beautiful river flows through the “hills” and home of some of the most wonderful summer camps in the United States…from http://www.texasrepublic.org

The major media outlets have referred to the Republic of Texas as a “movement. ” The truth is that the Republic of Texas is a NATION, and has been such since 1836 when it was established by the People of Texas, who won independence from Mexico. The “movement ” that exists is the People of Texas working to lawfully reclaim the soil of Texas from the United States which has held Texas as a captured nation since 1865.

The congress of the United States failed from 1836 until 1845 to annex Texas to the U.S. as a state because they did not have the authority under their constitution to do so. They finally passed a resolution (an agreement which is only a statement of intent and has no force of law) to annex Texas. In 1861, the People of Texas, by popular vote, exercised their right under the resolution to withdraw from the agreement. They, as a separate and independent nation, formed an alliance with the southern States of the United States. They did not become a confederate state, but were merely allied with them. After the civil war, the Union Army came to the Southern States and also to Texas and took over by military force and rule. There was never another document done to lawfully bring Texas into the Union of States. It was simply taken over and run by the military.

On March 30, 1870, the congress of the United States passed a special act allowing Texas to be represented in congress. This is the deception that has led everyone to believe that Texas was indeed part of the United States. The fact that Texas is not, and never has been, lawfully a part of the United States is one that is not palatable to many because of our emotional ties to the beliefs we have held all our lives. But belief does not change fact! When we come to learn the facts of how the People of Texas have had their freedoms eroded by involuntary servitude to unlawful governments, and when we realize that we have the chance once again to be truly free to own property and exercise our rights to ” Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness,” we can begin to overcome those emotional ties in favor of the excitement of the possibility of being truly FREE as God and our forefathers intended.

As you review the information on this website, you will see the work that has been done to proclaim to the world that we have found out who we are – Free people of a Sovereign Nation – and you will also see what has been done to reclaim our sovereignty and independence.

Thats why we are so ornery and raise a lot of goats. ]o)

Trevor:  You mean we have a liberal here that actually could figure out that this is a Conservative leaning site mostly?  And I’ll bet if you go to the Daily KOS you will see that they are rapibly leftist and really really nasty about it.  The only nastiness you get here is when liberals come on site and trash the commenters, and then normal site commenters respond.

Julie – I have always liked your comments, and am a bit disappointed in what I just read, in fact, when I came on site and saw that it was you, I was surprised, and perhaps a bit shocked.  I certainly have no problem with you being a proud Texan – bravo.  I do not even have a problem with you seeing yourself as a Texan rather than an American.

BUT, what you just explained to lady Texan is just not true.  The Republic of Texas existed for only 9 years between 1836 and 1845, and for a very brief period in Jan-Feb 1861.  The people of Texas VOTED to become a state of the Union in 1845.  Yes, it was different that Texas had been an independent nation before becoming a state, and all other states before that were either formed from the original 13, and lands won either in the Revolution, or from lands purchased by the United States from foreign nations.  But Texas is NOT unique in that as there was the California Republic and Hawaii was a nation before becoming a state.

Yes, Texas seceded from the Union in early 1861, and shortly thereafter agreed to the Confederation under the name Confederate States of America, and I believe that was a lawful secession, and in the short period between secession and attaching herself to the Confederacy, Texas did go by the Republic of Texas once again.  But Texas entered that Confederation as every other southern state entered it.  There were no special agreements before Texas joined the Confederacy, nothing different than the same as the other southern states agreed to.

Now yes, as an American that believes that secession is legal, the north (or the balance of the states that had not seceded) then INVADED a sovereign nation (including my forefathers and foremothers), the Confederate States of America, and made war on her for a little over 4 years, and the south lost that war and surrendered.

It could be argued, and I agree with the argument, that Texas was forcibly returned to the Union, BUT it is Texas that made application to re-enter the Union, and when it was approved by the stinkers in the US Congress in 1870, Texas cheerfully then re-sent representatives to the U S Congress, just as they did before the war.

I won’t apologize for Reconstruction – it was wrong and created anamosities that should never have happened.  Military occupation for 5 years by the Union armies from 1865-1870 was the wrong way to do it, and the previously seceded states should have just immediately been re-admitted and let the horror of defeat, the incredible loss of life on both sides, and the anamosities to end quicker than without the 5 years of more hell.  And had Abraham Lincoln not been assassinated, I believe that would have happened, or at least he would have fought Congress on that, and would never have supported Reconstruction.

But none the less, Texas was re-admitted as a state in 1870, and has been a legal state since that time.  Now I surely have no problem with you being an unreconstructed Confederate, the rebel in me, supports that.  And I have no problem believing that with the defeat of the Confederacy, that Texas again was a Republic again between 1865-1870 when re-admitted, though a Republic under Military occupation by a foreign power.  But when Texas was re-admitted and sent representatives to Congress, they consented upon the re-admission.

Now, having said all that, we need Texas, a mostly reliable red state.  This will be another close election, with all the dead and buried people voting for Obama, along with all the names the ACORN scam gave them to use as voters for them, and all of Texas’ electoral votes are needed to stop Obama.  So welcome to the Union, Julie O, though it is not as illustrious as it once was, but us Conservatives love Texans. lol

Jack you dawg………..

Why didn’t you go to the blue thingy I put in before I copied the quote onto the page. It was done by a group much like the truther gang that is still out there saying Texas ain’t really a part of the U.S. so there!!!!!!!!! I thought it was kind of funny. I could have done the answer with Wiki, but I have a big mad on with those folks because they are so left, and it is the most undependable site online.

Geez I am so bad. For an old fart I can really stir up a cauldron. Sorry Lady Texan, I was just having fun.

Re:  Eowyn, Post #26;

I agree with your take on “huge corporations control politics” – - and very wealthy individuals also, e.g., GOP Boone Pickens financing the whole “Swiftboating” episode in the 2004 election; DEM George Soros financing “The Daily Kos”, etc.  And, of course, the corporate money is given with the return promise that the politicians will do everything they can to provide corporate tax breaks and incentives, as well as eliminating any and all regulations that might be affecting corporate operations.

And – - now – - we have a Republican administration, for all intents and purposes, “nationalizing” (bailing out with taxpayer money) giant and supposedly “free enterprise” operations like Bear-Stearns, Indy Mac, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac – - so the fat cats can pocket the profits (inspite of their “unregulated” bad management) – - and the taxpayers are forced to pay off the losses.  “SOCIALISM” in action, if you ask me, and the GOPs are always accusing “liberals” and “Democrats” of being “Commies” and “Socialists”.

It seems to me our government is really being operated by (and if not “by”, then certainly “for”) Wall Street and Big Business special interests.

The only way I can’t think of to end it is for a committed and activist populist revolution to elect independent representatives and senators who will put a stop to it by regulation – - and, I guess, that assumes there has to be some new way to finance political parties and campaigns.

Or, maybe, again by congressional action, take the centralized political power that currently exists in Washington – - and decentralize it by redistributing it to the states (where it probably belongs)!

???

Re: Easy, Post #35:

From what I understand about Palin and the Alaskan Independence Party – - her husband was a full-fledged member for a seven year period preceding her first taking a state government job.

Kincaid NOT doing the same hatchet job on Palin as he’s done on Obama, obviously, displays his extremist partisanship.  The Lord knows that for every negative thing that can be conjured up about Obama – - a equal number of negatives can be found for Palin – - and – - when these guys can’t find something “real” – - they make something up!  (I get a kick out of Palin’s “mayoralty” and how they all claim that was such a significant job!  She won the mayoral election with a total of 619 votes – - about 1/2 the number of votes I got running for my high school student council presidency 48 years ago!)

Jack:

A little history refresher for you.

Jackson seized Spanish Florida in 1817. He did so under orders to prevent Spanish Florida from becoming a refuge for runaway slaves, although the main thrust of his orders were to wage war on the Seminole and Creek Indians in Georgia and to force those Indians out of areas where gold had been discovered.

It wasn’t until 1819 that a treaty with Spain settled the Florida issue and the border dispute between the US and Spain over the Louisiana Purchase that had been going on since 1803. Money was paid under that treaty to Spanish settlers, not the Spanish government.

The area of the Louisiana Purchase (purchased from France in 1803) was returned to French control from Spanish control in 1800. The Mexican war for independence from Spain lasted from 1810 – 1821.

The Texas Revolution in which American settlers in Mexican territory declared independence from Mexico took place in 1836.

After Jackson was elected in 1828, he pushed through the Indian Removal Act of 1830 which authorized the forcible displacement of Indian tribes east of the Mississippi and resulted in the deaths of several thousand Cherokees.

My characterization of him is accurate, even if you find it harsh.

Hahahahahahaha – Jack, you dawg…

Sorry, no I did not go to the blue thingy, and sorry I did not think you were just quoting them, but actually believed that – and it was a big joke on me. lol

Yes, I agree on wiki being leftist, but usually it is only so when it comes to slamming Conservatives, Republicans, and others that are not liberals, and dealing with political things.

Actually when it comes to historical things regarding events (not politival events) and biographies, wiki is actually pretty good.

And I just entered the denizens of the old farts today – I can now officially get a senior citizen discount at McDonalds. lol

RE: Roberto Benitez, Post #17;

I think “swiftboating” has been turned into a “pejorative” because, as with most of language and word useage – - the greater American public has perceived and understood it to be synonymous with “screw job”!  That’s how it works will all words and definitions – - popular useage.

As regards the nasty things you say you’ve heard about Palin – - I have no idea.  I haven’t heard nor read anything like the comments you repeated – - although, not unlike some of the extreme nastinesses common on this rightwing website, I’m sure there’s some equally nasty stuff on extremist leftwing websites.

And, I think Biden commuting back-and-forth from home in Delaware on every one of his senatorial working days – - instead of spending those nights in D.C. – - is certainly a big “PLUS” insofar as “family values” go.  Palin has nothing on him in that regard.  In fact, Biden didn’t remarry for several years – - whereas Palin has always had a “Mr. Mom” (her husband) always available to tend to her kids.