Wednesday - August 13, 2014

You Are Citizen Zero

Not, not the primal AIDS or Ebola patient.

You. You, the voter. The citizen. The emailer, phone caller, letter writer, soap box speaker, blogger, political opinion holder. You, the person your elected “representatives” are supposed to represent. Which means, do your bidding. Or at least work in your behalf.

Man, you are one sumbdhit sucker. Lew. Zer.

A startling new political science study concludes that corporate interests and mega wealthy individuals control U.S. policy to such a degree that “the preferences of the average American appear to have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.”

The startling study, titled “Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens,” is slated to appear in an upcoming issue of Perspectives on Politics and was authored by Princeton University Professor Martin Gilens and Northwestern University Professor Benjamin Page. An early draft can be found here.

Noted American University Historian Allan J. Lichtman, who highlighted the piece in a Tuesday article published in The Hill, calls Gilens and Page’s research “shattering” and says their scholarship “should be a loud wake-up call to the vast majority of Americans who are bypassed by their government.”

The statistical research looked at public attitudes on nearly 1,800 policy issues and determined that government almost always ignores the opinions of average citizens and adopts the policy preferences of monied business interests when shaping the contours of U.S. laws.

Plenty more right here.

But I’m telling you about a news story that tells you what you’ve already known for years. You’re just a tax paying dupe. Government is for those who can afford it. Period. Probably always has been.

Of course, if businesses were not taxed, then they’d have no legitimate leg to stand on to claim the right of payola to ensure representation. And if a simple law existed that said nobody could contribute more than $1000 per year to political candidates, parties, or causes combined, then that would give us a vastly lowered and leveled playing field.  I’m sure there are other ways of achieving the same ends, but the rich sure seem to get what they want. Always.

And you get to pay the bill. Always.

More here ; thanks to Doc Jeff for this link.

Posted by Drew458     on 08/13/2014 at 03:04 PM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
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   Tuesday - July 22, 2014

Gee, Who DIDN’T See This Coming

For the past six months, welfare beneficiaries in Colorado have repeatedly withdrawn their cash benefits at marijuana retailers and dispensaries, according to a new analysis by National Review Online. Such apparent abuses have caught the eye of Colorado’s executive and legislative powers alike, and the state has launched an effort to curb them.

At least 259 times in the first six months of legalized recreational marijuana in Colorado, beneficiaries used their electronic-benefit transfer (EBT) cards to access public assistance at weed retailers and dispensaries, withdrawing a total of $23,608.53 in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash, NRO’s examination found.

In 2012, the latest fiscal year available, Colorado used $124 million in TANF money from the federal government, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities. Withdrawals at marijuana establishments represented only a tiny fraction of the more than 500,000 total EBT transactions that have occurred since recreational weed became legal in Colorado on January 1. And it’s impossible to determine how much of that welfare money actually was used to buy pot, given that cash benefits are fungible and some of these establishments also sell groceries.

Nevertheless, welfare withdrawals at weed stores are coming under increasing scrutiny, and Colorado’s legislators and bureaucrats are beginning an effort to restrict abuses.

On July 11, the Colorado State Board of Human Services passed an emergency rule, effective immediately, restricting the use of TANF funds at marijuana shops, bars, liquor stores, gambling establishments, and other potentially inappropriate venues.

Gee, no kidding. Duh.

If you set the welfare system up so that people can get cash, then some of them will use that cash for luxury items, entertainment, and recreational drugs. We saw this with the post-Katrina emergency cash cards used to buy lap dances, we’ve seen it for years with every bodega in the country, and we’ve seen it for ages to a lesser extent with the “sub currencies” of cases of Pepsi soda in the Appalachian areas and the liquid Tide detergent in the urban areas. Give people money and they will spend it on what they feel like. Give them credit to acquire what can be exchanged for money, and they’ll do that as well.

There are no surprises here. And making some kind of effort to keep the EBT machines away from the stoner shops is a waste of money. Do you think these folks can’t walk half a block down the street from the grocery store? Give me a break. If you want a screw-proof system, then make the cards usable for an issue package. By which I mean, given the universal computerization and government access to everything, that your EBT card is good for a monthly allocation of 6 2lb packages of hamburger, 4 4 roll packages of toilet paper, 12 1lb loaves of whole wheat bread, 1 1.25lb chuck steak, 5 13oz boxes of regular Cheerios, 8 gallons of whole milk in either quarts, halves, or gallons, etc. Pretty much it becomes a shopping list, and everyone on it has to eat the same foods. It’s your issue, your distribution. No money comes out, and you can’t buy enough of any one item to be able to use it as trade stock for anything else. Any other way of doing it, and somebody is going to figure out how to play the system, to get their lap dances and their bong hits. So do it right. Or shut up.

Posted by Drew458     on 07/22/2014 at 09:00 AM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed • No Shit, Sherlock •  
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   Friday - June 27, 2014

What On Earth??

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will spend more than $1 million on hotel accommodations for an “Environmental Justice” conference this fall.

The agency posted its intention to contract with the Renaissance Arlington Local Capital View Hotel for its upcoming public meeting, for which it will need to book 195 rooms for 24 days.

“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), Office of Enforcement and Compliance, Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) intends to award a fixed-price Purchase Order … to the Renaissance Arlington Local Capital View Hotel,” the solicitation said. “The purpose of this acquisition is to cover the cost of 195 sleeping room nights from Sept. 9 [to] Oct 2, 2014, at government rate for the 50th public meeting of the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC), a federal advisory committee of the EPA.”

Rooms at the Renaissance Arlington run for roughly $349 a night. At 24 nights, the cost of 195 rooms will reach $1,633,320, or $8,376 per room.

The government per diem rate for lodging is $219 for September. If the EPA receives the per diem rate, the cost will come to $1,024,920 for the duration of their stay.

The NEJAC was established in 1993 to “obtain independent, consensus advice and recommendations from a broad spectrum of stakeholders involved in environmental justice.”

The council meets twice a year, bringing together members from community organizations, businesses, academic institutions, and state and local governments for “discussions about integrating environmental justice into EPA priorities and initiatives.”

The EPA defines “Environmental Justice” as the “fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.”

Really? Sounds like not just a total crock of horse manure, but an entire Olympic-size swimming pool full of it.  Sounds like a load of malarky you couldn’t pole vault over. Sounds to me like an excuse for various minority government managers to screw the taxpayer out of an extra 3 weeks of vacation.

And it’s been going on for more than 20 years. In all that time, have they created as much as one positive thing? No, not a document or an un-lost email. I mean a real, verifiable project that vastly improved the lives of a significant group of Americans identifiable by group characteristic, as their charter intends. For example, show me where some open coastal water usage bill was amended so that it improved the lives of Irish-Americans in the Southie district of Boston.

Hey EPA, I got your “environmental justice” right here: you owe us taxpayers ... 20 years X $1.6 million = $32 million plus the careers and pensions of every employee you ever allowed attend. Plus the Vig. Or else ...  hey, I know an environment, some brackish wetlands that would be justly improved by the addition of nearly 200 large deposits of protein and lipid dense fertilizer. Right here in New Jersey. And hey, you can even see the football stadium from there. Tell Jimmy H. we all said “hi”.

PS - you did notice that this will be teh 50th public meeting of a BS group that’s only been around 21 years at most, right? Which means that they’ve been sucking the sugar titty more than twice a year on average; they do 2 or 3 of these get togethers every year. That can add up to 10 weeks in some years, assuming all the conferences run the same 3 weeks plus like this one. 10 weeks of partying down, living it up in swanky hotels, with generous per diems, and a regular fat paycheck to boot. She-it, you’d need 4, maybe 5 weeks of regular vacation just to recover from that. Not to mention 10 or 15 sick days.

Somebody and his special bros got one hell of a motha effin’ scam going.

Posted by Drew458     on 06/27/2014 at 10:47 PM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Environment • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
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   Friday - April 11, 2014

Obama’s Priorities?

Let’s not secure the borders and make America safe from hostile invaders. Let’s make the desert scrub safe for a tortoise while we persecute a family who has ranched here since the 1870s.

Posted by Christopher     on 04/11/2014 at 04:37 PM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Government • Corruption and Greed • Illegal-Aliens and Immigration • Jack Booted Thugs • Obama, The One • Oppression • Outrageous • Scary Stuff • Self-Defense • Tyrants and Dictators •  
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   Wednesday - February 12, 2014

The Chocolate Crook

A jury convicted former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin Wednesday on 20 of 21 federal corruption counts, including bribery, marking a stunning fall for the feisty official who gained a national profile following Hurricane Katrina.

The 57-year-old Democrat, who led his city through the aftermath of the 2005 storm, was found guilty of charges that he accepted bribes, free trips and other gratuities from contractors in exchange for helping them secure millions of dollars in city work while he was in office.

He will remain free on bond while he awaits sentencing. Each of the charges carries a sentence from three to 20 years, but how long he would serve was unclear and will depend on a pre-sentence investigation and various sentencing guidelines. No sentencing date was set.

Nagin, who left office in 2010 after eight years, was indicted in January 2013 on charges he accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes and truckloads of free granite for his family business in exchange for promoting the interests of local businessman Frank Fradella.

He also was charged with accepting thousands of dollars in in payoffs from another businessman, Rodney Williams, for his help in securing city contracts.

Nagin is best remembered for his impassioned pleas for help after levees broke during Hurricane Katrina, flooding much of New Orleans and plunging the city into chaos.
...
The charges against Nagin included one overarching conspiracy count along with six counts of bribery, nine counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering conspiracy and four counts of filing false tax returns. He was acquitted of one of the bribery counts.
...
...the corruption spanned the time before and after Hurricane Katrina struck in August 2005.

The charges resulted from a City Hall corruption investigation that had resulted in several convictions or guilty pleas by former Nagin associates by the time trial started on Jan. 27.

Fradella and Williams, both awaiting sentencing for their roles in separate bribery schemes alleged in the case, each testified that they bribed Nagin.

Nagin’s former technology chief, Greg Meffert, who also is awaiting sentencing after a plea deal, told jurors he helped another businessman, Mark St. Pierre, bribe Nagin with lavish vacation trips. St. Pierre did not testify. He was convicted in the case in 2011.

Sorry Ray-Ray ... nobody left to rescue you this time. Not even Obama; if he threw you under one of your own buses, you’d drown.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/12/2014 at 07:40 PM   
Filed Under: • Crime • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
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   Friday - December 13, 2013

More Waste in Shitholitstan

Why are we buying Afghanistan an air force? Even if it’s a transport force. If they want one, let them buy it. Besides, they’ll only use it to ship heroin and bomb each other.

Somehow I’m feeling a fuckup like this is no accident. What do you think, Yossarian?

Probe launched over $500M spent on Afghanistan planes now sitting idle

The U.S. military spent nearly a half-billion dollars on providing refurbished aircraft to the Afghan Air Force, only to abandon the contract and leave the planes collecting dust on airfields in Kabul and Germany.

With the planes potentially heading for the trash heap of the Afghanistan war, the chief military watchdog overseeing Afghanistan spending is launching a review into the terminated program.

“I’m very troubled with the fact we may have wasted a half-billion dollars on planes that don’t work, will never be flown and will probably be scrapped,” Special Inspector General John F. Sopko told FoxNews.com in a statement. “We intend to get to the bottom of this and hold people accountable.”

...

He recently reopened an investigation into a $34 million military facility in southwestern Afghanistan that he’s described as entirely unnecessary.

The story of the G222 aircraft program bares similar themes.

According to the inspector general’s office, the Defense Department in 2008 launched a program to give 20 G222s (C-27A)—military transport aircraft built in Italy—to the Afghans. The department contracted with Alenia Aermacchi North America.

But despite spending at least $486 million on the program, officials determined that those in charge did a poor job getting the spare parts needed to keep the planes working.

Further, a Pentagon watchdog reported that the planes flew only 234 of the 4,500 “required hours” between January and September of last year, and another $200 million potentially would be needed to buy the outstanding spare parts. Some of those parts were described as “unavailable.”

In December 2012, the Air Force ended the contract. Several months later, officials ended the program altogether and opted to go with an “alternate aircraft” in the long term.

Funny that the Air Force would do such a thing. They themselves flew this plan in South America in the 90s, doing drug interdiction and aid delivery, and then dumped the plane because of maintenance and parts availability issues. So it seems pretty odd they’d get behind a plan to spend tons of money to buy these dogs for somebody else, just 8 years after their own decade long negative experience ended.

The C-27a/G222 was originally a contender for the Air Force’s push to replace the smaller, slower C-7 Caribou of the Vietnam era with something that could fly twice as fast with twice the cargo, yet fit the same physical footprint and use the same short, rough, back country runways.  No surprise: most of the specs could be met, but they couldn’t fly STOL with a plane of double the mass and the same wing size. So, FAIL. But it was a decent little airplane under regular circumstances, so I guess a bunch got bought anyway.

Also, it’s a bit interesting that a probe is being opened now: the program started up in 2007 or earlier, $348 million was spent back in 2008, 5 years ago, to buy the planes. When the program was canceled back in January it appeared that a dozen planes had been reconfigured and sent to Afghanistan, including 2 rigged up as VIP craft (gotta spoil the tinpot dictators, right?), when the Air Force only had requirements for 6. Of course, that same article says $600 million had been spent (nearly a year ago), $114 million more than this new investigation is looking at, yet even then, another $60 million was needed to keep things running smoothly.

Around $600 million has now been spent on the program, and the industry official believes that spending another $60 million would ensure the type’s continued operation. This would cost less than introducing a new type such as the C-130, according to the industry official, who says such a move would require the retraining of personnel on a more complex system.
...
The NATO Training Mission and the Air Force will suspend C-27A flight operations in Afghanistan in the coming weeks, but no decision has been made on the final disposition of the aircraft and the associated support equipment and spare parts.

Let’s just pour out a billion to give a cargo air force to a bunch of primitive nomad dope smugglers. Or 3/4 billion. Whatever. Who cares? It’s only taxpayer’s money. It’s not like the military or the administration is accountable, no matter who is at the helm.

Posted by Drew458     on 12/13/2013 at 12:16 PM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed • Middle-East • Military •  
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   Sunday - November 24, 2013

inflammatory remarks about one minority community by a senior politician

I don’t know if it’ll make much difference, but this was a surprise coming from a senior politician.

I guess he isn’t running for elected office, but the pc crowd who always search out and find offense is sure to lock on to this one.

Pakistanis in UK fuelling corruption, says law chief: Attorney General warns politicians to ‘wake up’ to the threat posed by minority communities

Dominic Grieve made inflammatory remarks in a newspaper interview
He said minority communities have ‘endemic’ corruption
‘It’s mainly the Pakistani community, not the Indian community’, he claimed
Also said corruption could be found in ‘white Anglo Saxon community’
The senior law officer said that the authorities should take action to combat electoral fraud in areas with high migrant populations

By Gerri Peev

Corruption is rife in Britain’s Pakistani community, the country’s most senior law officer has warned.

Dominic Grieve said politicians needed to ‘wake up’ to the threat of corruption posed by minority communities using a ‘favour culture’.

In remarks that will inflame already sensitive diplomatic relations with Pakistan, the attorney general said he was referring to ‘mainly the Pakistani community’.

He said electoral corruption was a problem in constituencies such as Slough in Berkshire. Tory councillor Eshaq Khan was found guilty of fraud involving postal ballots in 2008.

Khan and five others were jailed in 2009 for using ‘ghost’ voters to win a local council ballot to oust longstanding Labour councillor Lydia Simmons from her seat on Slough Borough Council.

The audacious scam in 2007 was described by the Crown Prosecution Service as part of an ‘epidemic’ which threatens to destroy democracy in the UK.

Father-of 10 Khan received a three-and-a-half year prison sentence for conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and perjury.

The Electoral Commission is planning to introduce tougher identity checks at the ballot box in Tower Hamlets in East London, another area that has suffered from electoral fraud.

David Cameron sparked outrage earlier in his premiership when he accused Pakistan of ‘exporting terrorism’ while on a visit to India.

Mr Grieve told the Daily Telegraph that corruption could also be found in the ‘white Anglo-Saxon community’ as well as among other groups.

But he said the rise of corruption was ‘because we have minority communities in this country which come from backgrounds where corruption is endemic.

‘It is something we as politicians have to wake to up to’.

Qassim Afzal, the Lib Dem chairman of the party’s Friends of Pakistan group, criticised what he called Mr Grieve’s “loose language”.

He told BBC Radio 5Live: ‘I’m profoundly disturbed at a statement from such a senior Conservative MP against the British Pakistani community.

‘This doesn’t help bring communities together.’

Baroness Warsi, the Foreign Office minister, has previously said the Conservatives lost three seats at the general election because of voter fraud in the Asian community.

Mr Grieve, whose Beaconsfield constituency in Buckinghamshire has a sizeable Asian community, said: ‘I can see many of them have come because of the opportunities that they get.

‘But they also come from societies where they have been brought up to believe you can only get certain things through a favour culture.

‘One of the things you have to make absolutely clear is that that is not the case and it’s not acceptable.’

Asked if he was referring to the Pakistani community, Mr Grieve said: ‘Yes, it’s mainly the Pakistani community, not the Indian community. I wouldn’t draw it down to one. I’d be wary of saying it’s just a Pakistani problem.’

He added: ‘I happen to be very optimistic about the future of the UK. We have managed integration of minority communities better than most countries in Europe.’

Mr Grieve also admitted that the ‘volume’ of potential immigrants from Romania and Bulgaria next year when movement controls were lifted ‘may pose serious infrastructure problems’.

source

Posted by peiper     on 11/24/2013 at 04:16 AM   
Filed Under: • Corruption and Greed • Politically-Incorrect • Politics •  
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   Tuesday - October 08, 2013

Today’s Reading Assignments 10/8/2013

Back in the ‘old days’, when the Skipper was alive and friends with Vilmar, Vilmar used to post a list of interesting news, opinion, and just plain fun stuff each morning. I’m not going to do that. But, during the current crisis, in which Barackade Obama is trying to become a Hugo Chavez clone (Don’t want to waste a good crisis), I thought I’d try to post links to important news and opinions. Important to me, anyway. You read and decide.

Vindictive Shutdown Theater

Why the Left Hates the Old

5 Examples of How the Government Thinks it Owns Everything

So, are these the people you want running your health care?

PRIDE: People Rejecting Ideas Deemed Evangelical

I’ll try to update this list as the day goes on.

BTW, Vilmar now blogs at ANTZ-IN-PANTZ

Posted by Christopher     on 10/08/2013 at 06:06 AM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Government • Corruption and Greed • Jack Booted Thugs • Obama, The One •  
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   Friday - September 27, 2013

What, only 100?

The federal fingerprint in efforts to fix Detroit is growing larger as the Obama administration has found millions of dollars in grant money to help the bankrupt city hire more police and firefighters, and clear out blighted neighborhoods.

But considering the Motor City is at least $18 billion in debt, it will take a far larger infusion of cash or historic deals with bond holders, insurance companies and other creditors to correct the problem.

Four high-ranking White House officials will discuss federal efforts and other opportunities Friday during a closed-door meeting at Wayne State University with Gov. Rick Snyder, state-appointed emergency manager Kevyn Orr, Mayor Dave Bing and community and business leaders.

The federal money being directed Detroit’s way by the U.S. government totals more than $100 million and will be augmented by millions of dollars more in resources from foundations and Detroit businesses, but it falls far short of a the wider bailout some in the city had sought.

A little gibs be betta den no gibs a tall.

“Something is better than nothing,” said Bridgette Shephard, 47, a social worker who lives in Detroit. “A bailout would have been better, but if we can sustain some of our needs with grants that would be a start. Let’s take it. Whatever kind of money it is to benefit the city, I’m all for it.”

Das wha I jus sayd!

But this is barely a drop in the bucket, and the bucket has some big rusty holes in it.

Detroit has had a poor record in making sure grant money is used properly and even spent at all.

In 2011, Mayor Dave Bing fired the director of the city’s Human Services Department after an internal investigation revealed $200,000 intended for poor residents was spent on office furniture for staff members.

The following year, his office had to scramble to use about $20 million in grants that had been left sitting for demolitions of thousands of vacant houses. The city’s Police Department also allowed a $400,000 grant to lapse for a new armored vehicle.

Corruption, much? Followed closely by lazy and stupid? Like I said, big rusty holes.

The Obama administration is trying to show its support without trying to send any message about a bailout, said Peter Henning, a Wayne State Law School professor.

Officials, especially those from HUD and Transportation, can commit funds for infrastructure projects, while Holder can chip in resources for fight Detroit’s high violent crime rate, Henning said.

“So these are back door ways to provide federal funding and support without having to seek a bailout, which would be dead on arrival from both parties,” he said. “The goal is to strengthen Detroit, but only indirectly. This is at best a muted commitment because what Detroit really needs is dollars and not just support that might be beneficial in three to five years. But any hope of that is a pipe dream.”

Well, yeah. Why should any of us give you a cent, considering how you’ve wasted everything that’s come your way before? The horse is dead. I don’t want to get the bill for giving it a new set of horseshoes.

Posted by Drew458     on 09/27/2013 at 09:16 AM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
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   Friday - August 09, 2013

Special People Have Extra Special Privileges

So much for justice. So much for equal treatment under the law. And so much for accountability, ethics, and responsibility in government. “I’ll reward my friends, and punish my enemies” was Fearless Reader’s line, wasn’t it?

Confidential tax records of several political candidates and campaign donors were improperly accessed by government officials, but the Justice Department declined to prosecute any of the officials involved, even in one “willful” violation of the law, an IRS watchdog reported.

In a July 3 letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa), the Treasury inspector general for tax administration (TIGTA) J. Russell George acknowledged that government officials had illegally accessed tax records of candidates and donors in four instances since 2006.

TIGTA determined that in three of the cases the access was “inadvertent.”

“In the fourth case, we presented evidence of a willful unauthorized access to the Department of Justice, but the case was declined for prosecution,” George wrote.

Grassley has sent a letter to the Justice Department asking why it declined to prosecute in the case of willful unauthorized access.

“Any agency with access to tax records is required to act with neutrality and professionalism, not political bias,” Grassley said in a statement. “The Justice Department should answer completely and not hide behind taxpayer confidentiality laws to avoid accountability for its decision not to prosecute a violation of taxpayer confidentiality laws.”

What a bunch of pond scum.

Posted by Drew458     on 08/09/2013 at 10:00 AM   
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   Wednesday - August 07, 2013

Get your drone hunting license!

This is too good!

Deer Trail, a small Colorado town, is considering an ordinance that would allow its residents to hunt for federal drones and shoot them down.

The ordinance states, “the Town of Deer Trail shall issue a reward of $100 to any shooter who presents a valid hunting license and the following identifiable parts of an unmanned aerial vehicle whose markings and configuration are consistent with those used on any similar craft known to be owned or operated by the United States federal government.”

If passed by the town board, Deer Trail would charge $25 for drone hunting licenses and they would be valid for one year.

The Feds and Obama better wake up. The country is in almost total revolt over ObamaCare, drones, NSA spying, Moochelle’s school lunches, etc. 

Posted by Christopher     on 08/07/2013 at 07:28 PM   
Filed Under: • Big Brother • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Government • Corruption and Greed • Nanny State • Obama, The One •  
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   Saturday - July 20, 2013

Well No Kidding

Retiring IRS lawyer implicates Obama appointee

Retiring IRS lawyer Carter C. Hull’s testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, in which he implicated an Obama appointee, will ensure that the IRS proceedings last through the summer, according to insiders close to the situation.

Hull has already implicated Obama-appointed IRS chief counsel William Wilkins and Washington-based IRS official Lois Lerner in his testimony.

“In April of 2010, I was assigned by my supervisor to work on two applications of tea party groups. In that same month, I became aware that a group of tea party applications were being held by EO determinations in Cincinnati,” Hull testified in his opening statement before California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa’s committee.

Hull, 72, implicated the IRS Chief Counsel’s office, headed by Obama appointee William J. Wilkins, and Lois Lerner, the embattled head of the IRS’s exempt organizations office, in the IRS targeting scandal and made clear that the targeting started in Washington, according to leaked interviews that Hull granted to the Oversight Committee in advance of Thursday’s hearing.

All the way to the top. Or just one leaf down from the end of the highest branch. So far.

No kidding. Tell us what we didn’t reflexively understand two months ago.

Hull’s testimony set off a storm of controversy among figures close to the case.

“This is one of the most extremely disturbing revelations yet,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice, which represents more than 40 tea party plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the IRS.

“It is now clear that the IRS Chief Counsel, appointed by President Obama in 2009, was involved in examining and reviewing applications from Tea Party groups – many that were basically shut out of the 2010 election process because of delays in handling of their applications. This development raises significant questions about what the White House knew and when. In a politically charged run-up to the 2010 election, why was one of President Obama’s most trusted and partisan appointees involved in examining the applications for Tea Party groups? We look forward to tomorrow’s testimony and further information about the origins of this unlawful and unconstitutional scheme that violated the First Amendment rights of our clients,” Sekulow said.

Posted by Drew458     on 07/20/2013 at 03:37 PM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
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   Wednesday - June 05, 2013

Don’t Worry, Nobody Ever Comes Here

A warehouse maintained by contractors for the Environmental Protection Agency contained secret rooms full of exercise equipment, televisions and couches, according to an internal audit.

EPA’s inspector general found contractors used partitions, screens and piled up boxes to hide the rooms from security cameras in the 70,000 square-foot building located in Landover, Md. The warehouse—used for inventory storage—is owned by the General Services Administration and leased to the EPA for about $750,000 per year.

The EPA has issued a stop work order to Apex Logistics LLC, the responsible contractor, ensuring the company’s workers no longer have access to the site—EPA security officials escorted contractor personnel off the premises on May 17—and ending all payments on the contract.

Since awarding the contract in May 2007, EPA has paid Apex Logistics about $5.3 million, most of which went to labor costs. Conditions at the facility “raise questions about time charges made by warehouse employees under the contract,” the report said.

“The warehouse contained multiple unauthorized and hidden personal spaces created by and for the workers that included televisions, refrigerators, radios, microwaves, chairs and couches,” the IG report said. “These spaces contained personal items, including photos, pin ups, calendars, clothing, books, magazines and videos.”

The agency has completed an inventory of the warehouse’s contents and segregated all surplus furniture. EPA has committed to conducting an agency-wide review of all warehouse and storage facility operations.

In addition to the secret rooms, the IG found an incomplete and inaccurate recordkeeping system; numerous potential security and safety hazards, including an open box of passports; and “deplorable conditions”—such as corrosion, vermin feces and “pervasive” mold.

A little By The Way: Apex Logistics LLC is owned by China. So why were they even hired by the EPA to run a warehouse in Maryland??

[From the EPA’s own report]:

Our initial research at the EPA’s Landover warehouse raised significant concerns with the lack of agency oversight of personal property and warehouse space at the facility. In particular:
 The warehouse recordkeeping system was incomplete and inaccurate.  The warehouse was filled with considerable valuable amounts of unusable, inoperable and obsolete furniture and other items.  The warehouse contained multiple unauthorized and hidden personal spaces that included such items as televisions and exercise equipment.
 Numerous potential security and safety hazards existed at the warehouse, including unsecured personally identifiable information (such as passports).
 Deplorable conditions existed at the warehouse; corrosion, vermin feces, mold and other problems were pervasive.
As a result of the conditions noted, EPA property at the warehouse was vulnerable to theft and abuse (including personally identifiable information), EPA property was not properly maintained, the EPA may not have received sufficient value for the funds it paid for the warehouse’s operation, and warehouse workers were subjected to unsafe conditions for which the EPA could be held liable.
Agency Corrective Actions
Subsequent to our briefing to the agency on the conditions noted at the warehouse, the agency issued a stop work order to the contractor, ensuring there will be no further access to the site by contractor personnel and that no further costs will be incurred under the contract. Further, the agency has taken the following additional actions:
 Completed an inventory of the warehouse and is seeking an appraisal of
inventoried items.
 Identified and segregated all surplus furniture.
 Reviewed background investigations on warehouse employees.
 Removed flammable materials from the warehouse.
 Performed a health and safety review.
 Reviewed security footage.
The agency also agreed to initiate action addressing personally identifiable information, completing standard operating procedures for the warehouse, developing security plans, and conducting an agencywide review of all warehouse and storage facility operations.

Not to worry, your government is on the ball (finally) and taking action:

In addition to the efforts to secure the facility on or before Friday May 17, 2013, the EPA took key actions within the agency to address information security issues identified by OIG. OIT A contacted the Department of State to determine an interim standard operating procedure for the decommissioning of expired or no longer needed government passports for agency personnel. Beginning immediately, the EPA will send expired or unneeded government passports to the Department of State for destruction, until such time as the agency can put in place a passport decommissioning process with the appropriate safeguards. OEI determined that the presence of documents containing personally identifiable information at the warehouse, when considered in light of the other conditions at the warehouse, warranted referring the matter to the EPA’s Breach Evaluation Team.

So the entire crate of passports that they shouldn’t have had in the first place - and which may have been expired (the pictured ones have punch holes in them, but still) - has been taken the the State Department shredder.

And all the propane tanks - propane tanks??? - that Apex brought in have been removed.

Actions Taken by the EPA on Saturday, May 18,2013, and Sunday, May 19,2013 EPA personnel worked at the warehouse with new contract employees during the weekend of May 1819, 2013 , to continue to evaluate and secure the site . The EPA initiated a health and safety review of the warehouse. The agency removed all propane tanks that had been brought onsite by Apex employees and secured those tanks outside of the building.

And what of Apex? What kind of punishment are they looking at for misusing government funds, fudging payrolls, breaching security, and leaving the place a grossed out mess? Oh, something SEVERE, that’s for sure! A short term Time Out. Maybe. Maybe not. That’s all.

The EPA also continued to take actions and evaluate possible actions with regard to Apex Logistics, the contractor at the facility. While the EPA’s stop-work order would prevent Apex from conducting additional work through the current end date of the contract of May 28, 2013, the agency began a legal analysis to determine whether the EPA could terminate the contract for cause before May 28, 2013. OARM ‘ s Office of Grant s and Debarment and Office of Acquisitions Management continued to work with OGC and OIG to determine whether suspension or debarment of Apex from future government
contracts can be supported by the facts available.

It’s not just that we can’t trust the government working for us. The government itself can’t trust the people working for them.

Where’s that Reset Button? I had it here the other day ...

Posted by Drew458     on 06/05/2013 at 12:38 PM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed •  
• Comments (2) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

Put Another Log On The Fire

How many more of these will we need until the cold fact that the entire federal government takes it’s orders from the top can no longer be ignored?

It’s not just the IRS.

A second federal agency is facing a probe and accusations of political bias over its alleged targeting of conservative groups.

The allegations concern the Environmental Protection Agency, which is being accused of trying to charge conservative groups fees while largely exempting liberal groups. The fees applied to Freedom of Information Act requests—allegedly, the EPA waived them for liberal groups far more often than it did for conservative ones.

The allegations are under investigation by the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which is also holding hearings on the Internal Revenue Service targeting of conservative groups.

“I don’t think it is fair at all. It is not fair to the American taxpayer—the American taxpayer should expect and demand that the EPA treats everyone equally in regard to these requests,” said Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Tim Murphy, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee. “This cannot be tolerated. As we see more federal agencies with this kind of bias, it is and should be a concern for all of us.”

Research by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a conservative Washington, D.C., think tank, claims that the political bias is routine when it comes to deciding which groups are charged fees. Christopher Horner, senior fellow at CEI, said liberal groups have their fees for documents waived about 90 percent of the time, in contrast with conservative groups that it claims are denied fee waivers about 90 percent of the time.

...

The EPA has denied any favoritism.

“We’re gonna punish our enemies and we’re gonna reward our friends”

I guess there’s a new definition in DC for “going green”. 

Posted by Drew458     on 06/05/2013 at 08:32 AM   
Filed Under: • Government • Corruption and Greed • Obama, The One •  
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