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Sarah Palin is the only woman who can make Tony Romo WIN a playoff.

calendar   Wednesday - May 31, 2006

More Senate Silliness

I’ve already made note here in other posts what a dastardly deed the Senate is up to with their version of an immigration bill. Padded with all kinds of fine print and trashy amendments, it is just getting worse and worse. If you look at the roll call votes, it’s the Democrats who are padding the bill and voting for all the “extra” clauses but quite a few Republicans are betraying us too.

It has just come to my attention that one of the carefully hidden amendments in the Senate bill strikes at my field. Things have already gotten to the point where in most IT shops you can’t walk to the bathroom without passing cubicle after cubicle of Chinese or Indian workers, most of them on H-1B visas. Break rooms at lunchtime are a veritable Tower of Babel with Chinese dialects and Indian dialects filling the air. Most of them speak English very poorly because they have only been in the country a short time and don’t plan on staying.

Don’t get me wrong. Most of them are very good people, highly intelligent and well-educated. The problem I have is that I know a large portion of them are seriously underpaid, as the article below states. I talked to some of the Java programmers in a shop I recently worked in and found out that they were making about 1/3 of the typical wage that American programmers make - and they were sharing five of them in an apartment to make ends meet.

I also know quite a few American programmers who are out of work and looking for a job. My advice to all of them lately has been ... get hired by a Department Of Defense contractor like Lockheed, SAIC, CACI, Unisys, Northrup-Grumann or any of several contractors who provide IT services to the DoD. Most of those jobs require a Secret clearance at a minimum which rules out foreign citizens and H-1B’s.

The reason for all this is simple ... greed and cheap software for consumers. Companies like Microsoft hire the cheap labor and then sell you Windows XP for $200 - and the bloody software is full of bugs and security flaws - not to mention hundreds of “undocumented features” as we call them. So they go to Washington and lobby the Senate, contribute big bucks to campaigns and the Senators comply with crap like this amendment to the Immigration Bill. As for the rest of us ... all we can do is bend over and grab our ankles ...

Senate Immigration Bill Raises H-1B Limit
Annual cap would increase from 65,000 to 115,000
May 30, 2006

WASHINGTON (COMPUTERWORLD-IDG News Service)

Flying mostly under the radar in a controversial immigration reform bill that passed the U.S. Senate last week was a provision that would raise the cap on the number of high-skilled foreign workers allowed into the U.S. Some technology companies praised the wide-ranging immigration bill, which passed the Senate Thursday, because it would raise the cap on the hotly debated H-1B program, often used by U.S. technology companies to hire foreign IT workers. The bill would increase the annual H-1B cap from 65,000 to 115,000, but many Republicans in the House of Representatives have criticized other provisions in the bill, saying it’s too soft on illegal immigration.

In passing the bill, the Senate took a “critical step forward in its important work to ensure that our nation remains the global leader in technology innovation,” said Bill Gates, Microsoft Corp.’s chairman and chief software architect, in a statement. Gates and other technology leaders have called for a higher cap on H-1B visas, saying many companies cannot find enough U.S. workers with specialized tech skills. The number of applications for H-1Bs for the federal government’s fiscal year 2006 hit the cap in August 2005, a month and a half before the fiscal year began.

But a group representing U.S. IT workers questioned the need for more H-1B visas. The program is full of abuses, with many companies not paying the required prevailing wage for H-1B workers, said Ron Hira, vice president for career activities at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA (IEEE-USA). “The program is basically broken and can be easily manipulated,” Hira said. “Until it’s fixed, it makes no sense to increase the cap.”

In 2005, the U.S Office of Management and Budget said the H-1B program is “vulnerable to fraud and abuse” because the U.S. Department of Labor has limited means to check the wages paid to H-1B workers, Hira noted. IEEE-USA has also said out-of-work U.S. IT workers should get the first shot at vacant tech jobs at U.S. companies.

But the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), a trade group for technology vendors, praised the Senate for including the H-1B provisions in the larger immigration bill. The bill, which would allow illegal immigrants a way to gain U.S citizenship or legal status, is opposed by many Republican lawmakers, and its future is uncertain. Although the bill passed 62-36 in the Senate, a majority of the chamber’s Republicans opposed it.

The H-1B provisions could be a “bridge to compromise,” said Ralph Hellman, ITI’s senior vice president for government relations. Many Republicans support the H-1B increases, and those provisions could be part of a compromise package, he said. Hellman dismissed arguments that an H-1B increase isn’t needed. Opponents of the cap increase “don’t have a very strong standing in Congress,” he said. “Quite frankly, we don’t think they have the facts correct.”


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/31/2006 at 04:33 PM   
Filed Under: • Illegal-Aliens and ImmigrationPolitics •  
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Changing Times

What’s the Difference Between California in 1850 and Today?

A few changes detected in California ----

Do you know what happened this week back in 1850, in California?

California became a state. The State had no electricity. The State had no money. Almost everyone spoke Spanish. There were gun fights in the streets.

So basically, it was just like California is today except the women had real breasts and men didn’t hold hands.

rolleyes 


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/31/2006 at 11:54 AM   
Filed Under: • HumorSatire •  
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On the Record

John Stossel (peace be Upon Him) looks into the Congressional Record™ to see what it really means.

Consider the Congressional Record. You probably think it’s a record of what our representatives said or did. But that’s a myth.

Every night that Congress is in session, stenographers take down every historic word and ship them off to the Government Printing Office. The printing office stays open all night to be sure the official record will be on every member’s desk by the following morning. That sounds important.

But the Record isn’t a record of what was said in Congress—the politicians wouldn’t subject themselves to that. The Record is a record of what the members want you to think they said.

That’s fraud, twice over. It’s a fraud on the public, which believes the millions Congress spends on the Record are spent to document what actually happens in Congress. And it’s a fraud on those of you who think your congressman talked about you.

Damn liars....the whole bunch of them.


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Posted by Drew458   United States  on 05/31/2006 at 08:56 AM   
Filed Under: • Politics •  
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Is a Gun Just Wood and Metal?

Not to Miss Myra

Miss Myra had never been afraid of what the future held. When she was a child of eleven years, her father had handed her a revolver and instructed her to take care of her little brother and sister while he went to look for work. He never returned. For her, the future was always uncertain, but she knew it would come regardless, so she had no fear. When she reached her 89th year, she knew she could no longer live on her own, and she would have to go into a nursing home. She called me to come get the one thing she had held dear all of those years, her talisman against the dark and unknown future.

Sleep well, Miss Myra, sleep well.


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Posted by Drew458   United States  on 05/31/2006 at 07:30 AM   
Filed Under: • Philosophy •  
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Waiting On A Train

My take on this issue is pretty simple: Congress is not going to be able to pass immigration reform before the November elections. As the editorial excerpt below explains, the House and Senate are diametrically opposed on how to go about it. The House wants to take a tough stance but the Senate wants to include a ton of - shall we say - bulls**t amendments and extra crap that don’t make sense. As reported recently, the Senate bill has a lot of fine print. Here is a sample:

More minor-league athletes from other countries could get visas under the bill. More veterans could be recruited for border duty. The U.S. government would need to consult with various Mexican officials before new border fences could go in. Frequent Western Hemisphere travelers would get a new traveling card. More Canadian power-line workers could enter if they have received “significant training.”

Two-thousand Christian Iraqis in the Detroit area who now face deportation - and more in other parts of the country - could become eligible for legal permanent residency status. That provision seeks to undo a judge’s finding that religious minorities who came here seeking asylum from Saddam Hussein’s regime and got caught in an immigration backlog no longer have claims simply because the Iraqi leader was deposed.

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Steve Sack - The Minneapolis Star-Tribune

- Washington Times (May 29): “Make Or Break On Immigration”

The bitter battle over the immigration bill has become a legislative minefield in this election year, though whether it will yield heavy political casualties in November remains to be seen. To say that this issue is a wilderness of thorns, festering party divisions and brewing voter backlashes is putting it mildly. It could inflict additional wounds on George Bush’s battle-scarred presidency, shrink the GOP’s congressional majority and, possibly, hurt some vulnerable Democrats as well. Let’s take some of these pitfalls one by one.

Frankly, it is difficult at this juncture to see how the House and Senate can agree a compromise bill that can attract a majority in either chamber. Their two respective bills are diametrically opposed to one another. The House wants beefed-up, effective enforcement only and no other reforms until we’ve prevented all illegals from crossing the Mexican-U.S. border or at least significantly reduced their numbers.

The Senate generally wants that, plus other reforms, including a guest-worker program that lets migrants cross and recross the border to take jobs in the U.S. when available and would allow those who’ve been here several years to eventually become citizens after paying taxes, fines and meeting some other legal requirements. Neither side is willing to give at this point and leaders in both chambers say the other’s bill would be a nonstarter with their members.

House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert has a political rule on bringing bills to the floor: They must first be supported by a majority of the majority, that is a majority of Republicans. As of now, say party leaders, a majority does not exist and isn’t likely to if a House-Senate conference produces a blend of the two bills with any citizenship provisions.

White House political strategist Karl Rove met Wednesday with House lawmakers to encourage some give in on their position and the word from the closed-door meeting was that he got “a cold reception.” This sets up a possible scenario where the Republicans are unable to produce a bill that can win a majority of both houses and that, as much as anything, would drive Congress’ dismal poll ratings even lower --hurting the Republicans in charge of its legislative machinery and President Bush, who would be seen as ineffectual in enacting his agenda.

The House and Senate better get their collective head out of their butt real soon. I don’t care what they think the polls say. The American people, those that are here legally, demand something be done. NOW!


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/31/2006 at 04:33 AM   
Filed Under: • Illegal-Aliens and Immigration •  
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calendar   Tuesday - May 30, 2006

Through The Looking Glass

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May, 29th 2006 - Toby Keith sings one of his “bus songs” to a crowd of Soldiers from the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers at Forward Operating Base Warhorse Saturday. This was the first stop on Keith’s most recent United Service Organizations-sponsored tour.
-- Photo by Sgt. Zach Mott


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 06:45 PM   
Filed Under: • Art-PhotographyMilitary •  
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Barking Moonbat Of The Week

This barking mad dog is a real piece of work. He is Hamas’ bomb expert and is #2 on Israel’s most wanted list. If he ever sticks his head out from under cover, he is toast. His name is Jamal Abu Samhadana and he heads Hamas’ 3,000 man militia. He is know as “The Enforcer”. He has also been named to be Security Chief by the new Hamas-led Paleswinian government.

Key quote: “We are happy when any American soldier is killed anywhere in the world, because the American Army is an aggressor against all the people in the world, particularly the Arab and Muslim worlds.” This is the voice of Hamas “security” in Paleswine. Bring me his head ....

imageimageHamas Enforcer Rails Against U.S. Gov’t
May 30, 2006, 3:00 PM EDT

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (NEWSDAY-AP) - In a back-alley interview, the top Hamas enforcer in the Gaza Strip railed against the U.S. government, said he’s happy whenever American soldiers are killed and vowed not to take Hamas’ 3,000-strong militia off the streets. Jamal Abu Samhadana, a 43-year-old explosives expert, is a key target for Israel and moves stealthily, switching cars and hideouts, despite his promotion to security chief by the Hamas-led government.

In an interview Monday with The Associated Press, Abu Samhadana called the U.S. and Israeli-led boycott of the Hamas-run Palestinian Authority “cheap extortion” and said it will only serve “to make our people more attached to the government.” “The American government and people will pay a dear price for this aggressive and criminal policy against the Arab and Muslim people,” he said.

It was some of the toughest rhetoric from any Palestinian official since the Islamic Hamas movement took power in March. And it came at a time when the Palestinian government is struggling to stave off a humanitarian disaster resulting from the international aid boycott. The interview took place in a small room on the second floor of a backstreet building in the Gaza Strip town of Rafah. Abu Samhadana’s men led an AP reporting team there after a long labyrinthine drive that included various stops and an order to remove a “press” sign from a vehicle.

Sitting before a photo of an Islamic Jihad militant killed by Israel, the black-bearded Samhadana, himself one of the most renowned militants in the Palestinian territories, denied old allegations he was behind a deadly 2003 bombing of a U.S. Embassy convoy in Gaza that killed three American security guards.

Still, he saved his harshest words for the U.S. and President Bush. “We are happy when any American soldier is killed anywhere in the world, because the American Army is an aggressor against all the people in the world, particularly the Arab and Muslim worlds,” he said. “The American people are known to be peaceful, so they are asked to move to bring down this terrorist government in Washington, so that the American people are safe from any attacks or retaliation.”

Abu Samhadana, No. 2 on Israel’s wanted list, wore a loose-fitting shirt and a baseball cap instead of his trademark guerrilla-style, black-belted uniform. His right hand and arm were burned and mangled in an explosion during what he said was an attack against Israel five years ago.

He spoke softly and at times cracked jokes, making eye contact only rarely with an American reporter. Aides served hot tea and roasted pumpkin seeds. Abu Samhadana’s appointment as director general of the Hamas-led Interior Ministry infuriated both Israel and Hamas’ Fatah rivals, led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. It helped set the stage for recent Hamas-Fatah violence that has killed 10 people and raised the specter of all-out civil war.

In the interview, Abu Samhadana accused Israel and the U.S. of fomenting unrest among the Palestinians, but predicted new talks among the Palestinian factions would succeed in calming the situation. “We are certain that there are American and Israeli plans to provoke a civil war here like what is happening in Iraq,” he said.

After Hamas’ victory in Jan. 25 legislative elections, the moderate Abbas—who was elected separately—moved to take control of most of the Palestinian security forces. In response, Hamas deployed its 3,000-strong militia, whose rifle-toting black-clad members guard streets throughout Gaza, at times staring down Fatah rivals on opposite corners.

- There’s even more of this mad dog’s barking here ...


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 04:53 PM   
Filed Under: • Paleswine •  
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HANG HIM!

He has already been convicted and sentenced to death in Virginia. Now a Maryland jury agrees. Does this mean we can execute him, bring him back to life and execute him again? I hate to sound vindictive but I almost wish we could. Lethal injection just doesn’t cut it in this madman’s case. Electrocution is way too nice. Firing squad is too quick. Hanging might work as long as the neck wasn’t broken and he was left to dangle for a few days.

Damn! I’m in a real bad mood today. When are we going to stop “playing nice” when there are savage animals still out there preying on us? To every thing there is a season ... and we’re not in the season of utopia yet. We’d better keep fighting evil like this with absolute, painful punishment. Cruel and unusual? Yeah, that works too. The crueler the better. Why not let the punishment fit the crime? Set him free and set a few Army snipers loose to follow him around. Let him sweat and wonder when the bullet will come. Just make sure it’s a gut shot. Slow and painful death. Argh!

imageimageMuhammad Found Guilty on All Counts
Tuesday, May 30, 2006; 2:30 PM

(WASHINGTON POST) - A jury today convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad on six counts of first degree murder, holding him accountable for six slayings in Montgomery County. The verdict, reached after four and a half hours of deliberation, is Muhammad’s second conviction in the case. He has already been convicted in Virginia, where he is awaiting execution.

As the foreperson of the jury announced the verdict, saying the word “guilty” after each of the victims’ names, some among the relatives in the courtroom wept. Many on the jury of five men and seven women had said before they were seated that they had strong opinions about Muhammad’s guilt, but could put them aside and assess the case solely on the evidence presented in court.

Maryland prosecutors spent nearly three weeks painstakingly outlining evidence that tied Muhammad and his accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, to 10 homicides and three non-fatal shootings committed in the Washington area in October 2002 with a high-powered rifle. The high point of the trial—which included testimony and evidence similar to that presented in the snipers’ trials in Virginia—came last week when Malvo agreed to plead guilty and took the stand against his Muhammad.

Malvo, 21, testified that Muhammad was the mastermind of the scheme and said the older sniper pulled the trigger in most of the shootings. Malvo was convicted in a sniper slaying in Virginia and was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Muhammad, who fired his public defenders and represented himself at trial, implied that his case had been the product of a sweeping law enforcement conspiracy to frame an innocent man.

He seemed to enjoy his role as a trial lawyer at times, but toward the end of the trial often appeared flustered, confused and angry. He complained that he would not receive a fair trial in Montgomery—the community that saw the most carnage during the attacks—and fought unsuccessfully to subpoena witnesses who live outside of Maryland.

Relatives of the six Montgomery victims attended sporadically, sometimes tearing up during gripping testimony. Muhammad was convicted in the slayings of James Martin, James “Sonny” Buchanan, Premkumar Walekar, Sarah Ramos, Lori Ann Lewis-Rivera and Conrad Johnson. He is expected to be sentenced in Maryland in coming weeks, but to return to Virginia shortly thereafter, where most of his appeals have been exhausted.


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 03:00 PM   
Filed Under: • Crime •  
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Deranged Dutch

When it comes to living way out there in LooneyLand, the Dutch are a prime example. They already have legalized marijuana use, prostitution and gay marriage. They are also home to the Euro-Peon “Supreme Court” at The Hague. In fact the literal translation of “Netherlands” is “land at the bottom, or lowest”. Some would say that is because, like New Orleans, the country is below sea level. Other might conclude (after reading this news release) that there are other reasons ...

Dutch Pedophiles To Launch Political Party
Tue May 30, 8:55 AM ET

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch pedophiles are launching a political party to push for a cut in the legal age for sexual relations to 12 from 16 and the legalization of child pornography and sex with animals. The Charity, Freedom and Diversity (NVD) party said on its Web site it would be officially registered Wednesday, proclaiming: “We are going to shake The Hague awake!”

The party said it wanted to cut the legal age for sexual relations to 12 and eventually scrap the limit altogether. “A ban just makes children curious,” Ad van den Berg, one of the party’s founders, told the Algemeen Dagblad (AD) newspaper.

“We want to make pedophilia the subject of discussion,” he said, adding that the subject had been a taboo since the 1996 Marc Dutroux child abuse scandal in neighboring Belgium. “We have been hushed up. The only way is through parliament.” The Netherlands already has liberal policies on soft drugs, prostitution, and gay marriage, but the NVD is unlikely to win much support, the AD quoted experts as saying.

“They make out as if they want more rights for children. But their position that children should be allowed sexual contact from age 12 is of course just in their own interest,” anti-pedophile campaigner Ireen van Engelen told the daily. The party said private possession of child pornography should be allowed although it favors banning the trade of such materials. The broadcast of pornography should be allowed on daytime television, with only violent pornography limited to the late evening, according to the party.

Toddlers should be given sex education and youths aged 16 and up should be allowed to appear in pornographic films and prostitute themselves. Sex with animals should be allowed although abuse of animals should remain illegal, the NVD said. The party also said everybody should be allowed to go naked in public. The party’s program also includes ideas for other areas of public policy including legalizing all soft and hard drugs and free train travel for all.


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 12:49 PM   
Filed Under: • EUro-peonsOutrageous •  
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Who Needs Morons?

This student protestor may not need oil but he sure as hell needs a clue.

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This one takes the prize though. Not even a clue will help her.

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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 10:48 AM   
Filed Under: • Stoopid-People •  
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Moonbat Media Apology

NY Times Publisher: “No agenda here. Nuh-unh. Move along.” It never ceases to amaze me how the mainstream media covers everything overseas in a “fair and balanced” manner, i.e., giving interviews to terrorists to balance reports from the US government or military.

When it comes to internal affairs within the country, these same “neutral observers” become rabid, raving Moonbats for the Left and have absolutely no shame in doing so. The NY Slimes is nothing more than the propaganda arm of the Democratic Party. And they wonder why subscriptions are declining and advertisers are abandoning them ... ?

imageimageNY Times Publisher Apologizes for
Failure to Enact Liberalism


(MEDIA RESEARCH CENTER) - C-SPAN on Saturday night (May 27) aired the Sunday, May 21 commencement remarks, by New York Times Publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr., at the State University of New York at New Paltz where he was honored with a Doctorate of Humane Letters.

Sulzberger delivered a left wing rant in which he presumed liberal policy goals are more noble than conservative ones as he offered an “apology” for the nation his generation has left to the next generation ...

I’ll start with an apology.

When I graduated from college in 1974, my fellow students and I had just ended the war in Vietnam and ousted President Nixon [light cheering]. Okay, okay, that’s not quite true. I mean yes, the war did end and yes, President Nixon did resign in disgrace but maybe there were larger forces at play.

Either way, we entered the real world committed to making it a better, safer, cleaner, more equal place. We were determined not to repeat the mistakes of our predecessors. We had seen the horrors and futility of war and smelled the stench of corruption in government.

Our children, we vowed, would never know that.

So, well, sorry [pause and applause]. It wasn’t supposed to be this way.

You weren’t supposed to be graduating into an America fighting a misbegotten war in a foreign land [louder applause].

You weren’t supposed to be graduating into a world where we are still fighting for fundamental human rights, whether it’s the rights of immigrants to start a new life; or the rights of gays to marry; or the rights of women to choose [applause].

You weren’t supposed to be graduating into a world where oil still drove policy and environmentalists have to fight relentlessly for every gain.

You weren’t. But you are. And for that I’m sorry.


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 09:28 AM   
Filed Under: • Media-Bias •  
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The Party Of No Ideas

Everything seems to be going wrong for the administration and the Republican party - at least that’s what the mainstream media keeps telling us. Democrats are howling with glee, convinced they will retake control in November.

So far their main campaign slogan seems to be “We’re Not Republicans”. As far as offering alternatives or better plans, the Donks remain clueless. I expect this campaign season to be nothing more than mud-slinging and name-calling.

Republicans will preach “stay the course” and Democrats will preach “BushChimpHitler”. Where is the Bull Moose Party when you really need it ... ?

Analysis: Democrats Wary Of November Vote
Mon May 29, 10:00 PM ET

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans are three steps from a November shellacking — each a grim possibility if habitually divided Democrats get their acts together.

First step: Voters must focus on the national landscape on Nov. 7 rather than local issues and personalities that usually dominate midterm elections. That would sting Republicans, who trail badly in national polls.

Second step: Voters must be so angry at Washington and politics in general that an anti-incumbent, throw-the-bums-out mentality sweeps the nation. That would wound Republicans, the majority party.

Third step: Americans must view the elections as a referendum on President Bush and the GOP-led Congress, siding with Democrats in a symbolic vote against the
Iraq war, rising gas prices, economic insecurity and the nagging sense that the nation is on the wrong track. That would destroy Republicans, sweeping them from power in one or both chambers and making Bush a lame duck.

Less than six months out, most Democratic and Republican strategists say the first two elements are in place for now — a national, anti-incumbent mind-set — and all signs point to the third. Still, many Democrats worry that their party has not closed the deal.

“The fear I have as a Democrat is that if we are making this solely a referendum on the Republicans, we are not giving people a reason to turn out,” said Democratic strategist Chris Lehane of California.

- More on this story here ...


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 01:30 AM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists •  
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After The Thaw

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Rob Rogers - The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

- BBC: “Gore In Hay Climate Change Plea

Mr Gore was the key note speaker of the 19th Hay Festival on the mid-Wales border. Five years ago Bill Clinton spoke at Hay on his many roles in conflict resolution. But Mr Gore, fresh from an appearance at the Cannes film festival, delivered a starker message that the world was now facing a ”danger which could bring the end of civilisation.”

“The sky is falling! The sky is falling!”


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/30/2006 at 01:15 AM   
Filed Under: • EnvironmentHumor •  
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calendar   Monday - May 29, 2006

Respect for Americas Fallen Heroes Act

I just got a hot tip from Jay at StopTheACLU regarding a breaking news story about this legislation. Congressman Mike Rogers (R-MI) sponsored the bill (H.R. 5037), it was passed in the House on May 9 by a vote of 408-3 and agreed in the Senate by unanimous consent on May 24. It finally made its way to Bush’s pen today. Of course you know how the ACLU will react. Keep an eye over at StopTheACLU in the coming weeks. Odds are the ACLU is already preparing a lawsuit challenging the law. For the time being at least, Reverend Fred Phelps and his Spawn Of Satan will have to stand clear.

imageimageBush Signs Funeral Protest Ban
May 29, 2006

WASHINGTON (KWTX) - President Bush marked Memorial Day by signing a bill that keeps demonstrators from disrupting military funerals. Before heading to Arlington National Cemetery for a wreath laying and speech, Mr. Bush signed the “Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act.”

It was passed mainly in response to a Kansas church group that has staged protests at military funerals around the country. The group says the deaths in Iraq and elsewhere show that God is angry over U.S. tolerance of gays. The law prevents protests within 300 feet of the entrance of a national cemetery.

Even as Mr. Bush signed the bill, members of the Kansas group stood about 300 feet from the entrance to Arlington. They held signs that read, “Thank God for dead soldiers,” and “‘Bush killed them.” A conservative group supporting the troops stood across the highway, holding a large sign calling troops “American heroes.”

Gov. Rick Perry signed a bill earlier this month that authorizes an immediate ban on protests at military funerals in Texas. It was also drafted with members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. in mind. Church members protested earlier this year at the funeral for a solider in Temple.

“There is a time and place for protests, but it is not at funerals and burials for U.S. soldiers who died to protect the freedoms we hold so dear,” Perry said as he signed the measure. The bill makes it a Class B misdemeanor to protest within 500 feet of the site of a funeral service.

The ban is in effect from one hour before to one hour after a site is used for a service. Oklahoma and Iowa have enacted laws to make such protests illegal in their states. The Texas legislature took up the bill after Gov. Rick Perry expanded the call of the special session, which ended earlier this month.

Photo: Andrew Councill For The New York Times


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Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 05/29/2006 at 04:22 PM   
Filed Under: • Judges-Courts-LawyersMilitary •  
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On: 03/20/21 07:00

meaningless marching orders for a thousand travellers ... strife ahead ..
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Tracked at Casual Blog
[...] RTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPL [...]
On: 07/17/17 04:28

a small explanation
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Tracked at yerba mate gourd
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On: 07/09/17 03:07



DISCLAIMER
Allanspacer

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
  1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
  2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
  3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
  4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.


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GNU Terry Pratchett


Oh, and here's some kind of visitor flag counter thingy. Hey, all the cool blogs have one, so I should too. The Visitors Online thingy up at the top doesn't count anything, but it looks neat. It had better, since I paid actual money for it.
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