Discussions about anything that comes to our minds.
Labels: MENSA
Don't make it too political. You have made a big deal out of the technicality that you have not "officially" started campaigning...The article was not just a list of "don't" items.
Don't give us a list of all the ways Minnesota is No. 1. You have been doing this a lot. Granted, it is good news. But it makes people think that you are trying to gloss over our challenges and that you don't understand why so many Minnesotans are anxious about the future...
Don't explain the difference between a tax and a fee. People have heard it -- they don't believe it. They know the price of government has been rising since you took office...
Don't make any pledges -- the last one did not work out so well.
Do show people that you know the facts of life -- as they do. Show that you know that:Sadly Peter's analysis is great but the solutions are a little questionable.
• Only 23 percent of our ninth-graders become college graduates. That might be better than most states, but makes us the tallest Pygmy compared with the world-class competitive giants we face...
• Highway congestion is growing at the third-fastest rate in the country -- leaving us alone, stuck in our cars, frustrated.
Do tell us about Minnesota's possibilities. President John Kennedy wanted to go to the moon. What do you believe about Minnesota's future? After three years, we are still wondering. Consider the following as a start. (I know these are big, hairy, audacious goals -- but if leaders don't show us the way, who will?) How about:All in all it was a good letter. Maybe this will help push Pawlenty back to the right.
• Doubling the odds that our ninth-graders will become college grads -- that, more than anything else, will fire up our economic engine. + 2
• World-class health at the lowest cost in the nation; better health, better care for every Minnesotan -- that will get this job-killer off our backs. - 2 [I think this is a hidden request for universal health care, hence the point loss, but it could simply be a call for a reform in health care regulations. For that I need to see the reform proposals to add points back.]
• Reliable investment in reliable transportation/transit -- so that being stuck is not our only choice. - 3 [how about roads, roads and roads...which the Governor ran on]
• Reducing Minnesota's dependence on oil (+1), repairing damage to the environment (-2), reinforcing economic competitiveness (+2), and reversing the pollution of our lakes and streams (-1 [reversal, OK, but I fear this is a tree hugging code for more environmental regualtions].
FYI - Straw PollsI actually remember having other straw polls when I first moved to the state. Then I reread the statute he quoted and thought more about my conversations to the GOP last week. What he is talking about is the state requirement. The party is still able to require a straw poll as well...something they have chosen not to do.
MN Law on Caucuses - Straw Polls
Subd. 2a. Preference ballot. Prior to the opening of nominations for the election of permanent offices and delegates, a ballot must be distributed to permit caucus participants to indicate their preference for the offices of president of the United States or governor. The results of preference voting must be reported to the secretary of state immediately upon conclusion of the voting, in the manner provided by the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall provide the appropriate forms to the party for reporting the results.
Governor & President only!
You know the Party could also educate people on this:Yep, I will say that if the GOP candidates are not up to standard I will not vote for them. If they behave contrary to what they campaigned on (Pawlenty) I will campaign for the more conservative (Jeffers).
http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/stats/202A/16.html
Subd. 2. Agreement with party principles. Only
those persons who are in agreement with the principles of the
party as stated in the party’s constitution, and who either
voted or affiliated with the party at the last state general
election or intend to vote or affiliate with the party at the
next state general election, may vote at the precinct caucus.
Tony you have no openly vowed to work against or refuse to vote for the 2 top GOP candidates now. That could be something your fellow caucus attendees take issue with, and they could have you removed from delegate consideration and/or disallowed to vote that night.
And I can tell you from someone who is openly Pro-Kennedy, the state party is staying out of it. At every single state party function, both Kennedy & Shudlick are given time if one is. Carey has been overly careful in this matter, when the DFL is rapidly siding behind Klobuchar more every day.What the party has done is actually very slimey...to shut Shudlick out they package many of Kennedy's appearances as Congressman Kennedy. This is NOT unique to this race. Party's across the country do this to shut out opponents. Nonetheless it is underhanded.
This wait until the primary/endorsement before we get 100% officially behind Kennedy is actually hurting us. Kennedy is attacked everyday by the left in MN (and sadly by you too) and the state Party cannot defend him without someone, somewhere hyperventilating about it. And fund raising, come on, that is the most important part of it. It is suicide to expect to raise 12 plus million dollars in 2 months.What is right should be what reigns...not what is convenient. What if Ramstad decided to jump into the race? Besides, are you telling me that giving Kennedy opponents within the party equal access and treatment is THAT threatening? Especially from Shudlick?
Have you met Shudlick yet? Makes Kennedy’s early days look down right shakespearic. And this new guy, read his issues page. RINO doesn’t begin to describe him.Ah, I understand now. You MUST be conservative in order to be given fair treatment by the frontrunner and the party. Whoops, that is not true...remember how Grams' supporters (few as there were) were maligned as well. You must be the annointed in order to be allowed fair and equal treatment by the party.
NATIONAL DEBT — $8 Trillion dollars and rising
NATIONAL SECURITY – Terrorism rampant – war’s unending
REFORM – momentum for full scale reform has never been greater
MEDICAL CARE – Escalating costs, de-escalating care
SOCIAL SECURITY – the rapidly eroding safety net
ENERGY – soaring costs, declining resources, global warming – train wreck ahead
That sound very conservative to you? You complain that Kennedy isn’t right enough for you? You think a guy who is openly against everything you stand for is worth costing us momentum in an election?
Issues to EmbraceSo, why again does Uldrich's platform matter in shutting him out? If platform is what matters should you not be jumping up and down to let Shudlick have equal access as a candidate?
• More freedom for American Citizens
• Lower taxes
• Safer Streets
• Protect American jobs
• Pursue energy independence
• Secure borders
• Less government
• When it comes to trade issues, protect state and national sovereignty
• Traditional American Values
• English as official U.S. Language
• Work to defeat Terrorist, Insurgents, and Islamo-facists
• Stronger Laws to reduce voter fraud and
identity theft
• Protect farmers, laborers, and business
• Unfunded suggestions
• Better management of foreign interactions
& aid
• Control Illegal Immigration/Asylum
• Support Affordable Healthcare
Tony, this is one of those times that you should think about what is best for defeating the Democrats, not making your point that you are right.Fortunately that is Right vs Wrong. Look again at what is being requested. I need to put aside principles of equality of access and fairness, put aside my belief in a strong delegate system for the sake of partisanship. Tempting, but no.
I ask you to please tone it down. When the DFL wonks quote you, and you take pride in it, that makes me question exactly what you are trying to accomplish.The party is run by partisans and partisans too often forget their principles. I am trying to get the party to remember the principles that they claim to stand for. Equality, fairness and integrity...none of which are being displayed in this scenario. Yep, that the DFL is paying enough attention to quote me is something to take note of...because they are actually standing up (for their own partisan reasons) for equality. I am driven by principles...and as a recovering scum-bag it is a long road...and NOT by the very blinded vision of partisanship. Partisanship as a driving force leads to mistakes like electing Judi Dutcher as a GOP Auditor. Partisanship leads to the hypocrisy that surrounds the apologists for the possible money laundering by Tom DeLay. Partisanship leads to the hypocrisy of the right in whole Harriet Miers ordeal (telling Democrats the President gets to appoint whomever he wants for 6 years and then reversing course when Miers was nominated). Partisanship leads to hypocrisy regardless of party and I will not be led by it. Keep in mind that partisanship would have had Reagan remain a Democrat. Partisanship for the sake of the party is a horrible principle to be led by.
Sure I’ve been known to get off the reservation from time to time, but I never really meant serious harm. I am a bit afraid that you’d be willing to accept losses in November, just to prove your point.I'm willing to accept losses in November for what is RIGHT. I will not put partisanship above principles and beliefs. If I am off the reservation for expecting the party to walk the "equal access" walk then I stand off the reservation proudly and firmly. And if by standing up for what is right the reservation leaves me entirely I am fine with that.
As much as I love to call myself a Minnesotan, and as proud as I am of the state I live in, I was completely ashamed of the Minnesota Timberwolves fans who boo'ed a man as he was being wheeled out of Target Center last night by paramedics.I can't disagree.
The man had been hit in the face by a basket ball purposely tossed into the stands by all-star forward Kevin Garnett, who was then ejected from the game. To his credit, Garnett appologized to the dizzy fan and his hysterical little girl. To his discredit, Garnett's discussion of the incident to the media was laced with profanity.
So there's the man sitting with his special little girl. One moment, having a great time, treating his daughter to game. She had probably been looking forward to it for weeks. He looks up just in time to see a hard basketball hit him in the nose. In a split second, the entire target center is focused on him. His cage clearly rattled, paramedics rush to him, as his emotional daughter cries aloud, wondering if her dad will be alright.
Rather than expressing sympathetic concern to man and his little girl, Timberwolves fans passed immediate judgement.
"The ball wasn't thrown that hard," they thought.
"They guy is faking."
"It's his fault Garnett was ejected."
"He's setting himself up for a lawsuit."
"Boo!"
Being clocked in the head by a basketball, even one tossed lovingly and gently by K.G., can in fact inflict a serious injury. Perhaps it didn't look very bad from way up there in the cheap seats, but it certainly may have been serious. Study up on head injuries, and you'll learn that they all need to be taken seriously and that that symptoms can appear hours or even days after the injury.
It's a sad day for me to finally have to acknowledge that perhaps Minnesotans really are not as nice as we would delude ourselves into believing. But there it was: so-called fans booing one of their own while a scared little girl bawled her eyes out for the father she loved.
Shame on Timberwolves fans for their cynical, childish, and downright mean behavior last night. Shame, shame, shame.
Labels: MENSA
Michele Bachmann: info@michelebachmann.comNow, the event itself is a remote broadcast desinged to give the candidates meet-and-greet time without the pressure of watching every phrase. This was a chance to show potential delegates and voters that they are people, not just politicians.
Jay Esmay: JayEsmay@cs.com
Jim Knoblach: info@jimknoblachforcongress.com
Phil Krinkie: info@krinkieforcongress.com
"I double checked on the Feb. 26 event and Phil has another commitment so will not be able to attend that date. I am still checking on his calendar for the 19th."Today in mid-afternoon (less than 24 hours from the event) I received phone calls from Knoblach's campaign indicating that "something else came up" and calls from Bachmann's campaign that she was going to speak at a church in Wyoming about gay marriage.
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
It’s not like turning over any port operations to anyone even remotely tied to terrorism sounds like a Peachy Keen Doris kind of idea, but in the end, the opposition to the deal is acting on a knee-jerk reaction to the fact that the country is Arab (a little xenophobic if you ask us), and in the interest of their own pet projects—particularly the private businesses that are paying for their flights to Hawaii. Until someone comes up with a better reason for opposing this deal than “two of the 9/11 hijackers came from UAE,” like say, a business-or-security-related one, we’re totally hanging with George,More from the WSJ article:
The Wall Street Journal is on the case for us:Some of us are scratching our heads all right, but we're wondering why Mr. Graham and others believe Dubai Ports World has been insufficiently vetted for the task at hand. So far, none of the critics have provided any evidence that the Administration hasn't done its due diligence. The deal has been blessed by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, a multiagency panel that includes representatives from the departments of Treasury, Defense and Homeland Security.Why, indeed? Well, the two basic contentions are, UAE is a “terrorist-supporting nation” and “we can’t turn over control to a foreign business!” both of which are ill-supported, and would not serve to deter a rationally-minded person from engaging in the deal.
Besides, the notion that the Bush Administration is farming out port "security" to hostile Arab nations is alarmist nonsense. Dubai Ports World would be managing the commercial activities of these U.S. ports, not securing them. There's a difference. Port security falls to Coast Guard and U.S. Customs officials. "Nothing changes with respect to security under the contract," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday. "The Coast Guard is in charge of security, not the corporation."So far the reactionaries are losing my support and I'm leaning towards supporting Bush on this one.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Kristie Clemens of U.S. Customs and Border Protection elaborated that "Customs and Border Protection has the sole responsibility for the cargo processing and cargo security, incoming and outgoing. The port authority sets the guidelines for the entire port, and port operators have to follow those guidelines." Again, nothing in the pending deal would affect that arrangement.
The timing of this sudden uproar is also a tad suspicious. A bidding war for the British-owned P&O has been going on since last autumn, and the P&O board accepted Dubai's latest offer last month. The story only blew up last week, as a Florida firm that is a partner with P&O in Miami, Continental Stevedoring and Terminals Inc., filed a suit to block the purchase. Miami's mayor also sent a letter of protest to Mr. Bush. It wouldn't be the first time if certain politicians were acting here on behalf of private American commercial interests.
Critics also forget, or conveniently ignore, that the UAE government has been among the most helpful Arab countries in the war on terror. It was one of the first countries to join the U.S. container security initiative, which seeks to inspect cargo in foreign ports. The UAE has assisted in training security forces in Iraq, and at home it has worked hard to stem terrorist financing and WMD proliferation. UAE leaders are as much an al Qaeda target as Tony Blair.
This year, the leaders want to create a law that would allow the state temporarily to continue paying bills at the previous year's level even if they fail to pass a new budget. Federal lawmakers and many states already have such laws, generally known as continuing resolutions.I mentioned already why I like this. Pawlenty gets points for this reform effort that is also fiscally straight (+1--I will give more if he actully gets out and pushes for this forcefully instead of lobbing out ideas).
House Speaker Steve Sviggum said he's got some doubts about the worth of a state continuing resolution law.Forced decisions, as I have already mentioned, lead to bad decisions. Legislators are not responsible enough to handle forced decisions...they panic to easily with generally bad results.
"It's not the answer to everything," said the Kenyon Republican. "What it says is: You don't have to make a decision. There is no pressure — there's no force to make a decision."
The local union representing the staff of Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar is asking its parent group, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, not to endorse her in her bid for the U.S. Senate.At least that organization understands what an endorsement is: the vouching for a person to help people (and members) understand quickly what that person is like. It has been abused by some (AFSCME state, for example) as a rubber stamp to assert party identification.
Jim Appleby, an assistant Hennepin County attorney and local union president, said in a letter to union leaders this month that Klobuchar had denigrated lawyers at her office publicly and privately, taken credit for their work and "created a hostile work environment."
The two-page letter said Klobuchar's management style had resulted in increased grievances and that she used successfully prosecuted cases to give the public the false impression that she was actively involved in those cases.
Klobuchar said the focus of the discontent seemed to be last year's contract negotiations and the charge that she did not support a wage increase for those employees.And Appleby replied:
"It's about how our people are treated in the workplace," he said.Now ask yourself this: How can someone be taken seriously when they advocate for "worker's issues" when their very own subordinates are first hand witness to the lack of respect for the workers?
He said the union also asked that Klobuchar be denied endorsement in 2002, when she was running for re-election. That request was ignored, he said.
Mike Furnstahl, a veteran prosecutor with the violent-crimes unit, said the purpose of the letter was not to "derail" Klobuchar's campaign.
"This isn't by any stretch of the imagination an anti-Amy campaign. This is about concerns investigators have had over the last seven years," he said.
Eliot Seide, executive director of AFSCME Council 5, said he was taking the local's concerns "very seriously" and planned to meet with members. But there are larger issues in a U.S. Senate race than employer-employee relationship.See, what the endorsement is saying is character, principle and honesty do not matter. They are willing to endorse anyone as long as there is the "D" after the candidate's name. They have no standards for their endorsement and as a result their endorsement should be discarded by all not only for this race but for future races as well.
"The next U.S. senator will not be a direct employer of our people. But that person will make policy decisions on whether to invest or disinvest in health care, education, transportation, child care -- things Americans need," Seide said.
There was immediate speculation about what Mrs. Wetterling would do after she withdrew from the Senate race. The state's Democratic attorney general, and the frontrunner for the party's nomination for governor in 2006, asked her to be his running mate. When she had withdrawn from the congressional race almost a year before, she had also promised Mr. Tinklenberg unequivocally that she would not be a candidate for Congress. Much to the surprise of many Democrats, including friends and supporters, however, she announced she would re-enter the 6th District race. Her Republican opponents were delighted, as was the state Republican Party. Mr. Tinklenberg and his supporters are outraged, having worked months to build support and raise funds for his candidacy. He immediately declared he would stay in the race and made Mrs. Wetterling agree to abide by the party endorsing convention.I think her decision to run in the 6th is a bad move and I hope it backfires for a number of reasons.
The result has been a profound deflation of Patty Wetterling's political reputation. Mr. Tinklenberg stated that "she is now just another politician." Republicans were even stronger in their criticism, and Democratic strategists in Minnesota and Washington are appalled at what could become a lost opportunity. Having contributed to her Senate campaign, Mr. Tinklenberg only half-jokingly pointed out that he may be the only candidate this year who is having his own money being used against him.
Pawlenty on Tuesday reiterated a position he staked out previously: He would prefer Hennepin County voters get the opportunity to accept or reject a ballpark sales tax in a referendum, but he will not insist on it.There is a requirement to allow the people to decide whether their taxes should go up or not. The Republicans always champion the rhetoric of letting the people decide on their own tax hikes...and here is the chance for them to put their money where their mouth is.
"It's not a deal-breaker if the Legislature puts the bill on my desk without it," he said of a ballot issue.
...
The referendum is undeniably the sticking point for passage of the bill. The Twins and the Hennepin County Board — the team's partner in the $508-million project — seek to skirt a ballot issue on the 0.15 percent county sales tax (3 cents on a $20 purchase) that would pay for three-quarters of the stadium in the Warehouse District of Minneapolis.
State law calls for a referendum on new local sales, but it allows exclusions, which have been obtained in the past by St. Paul and Minneapolis for city projects. Ballpark supporters want the exclusion because they contend a ballot issue would create delays and greater expense, while opponents say supporters' real fear is that residents would vote it down.
Labels: MENSA
With Kennedy holding $2,660,518 cash on hand compared to Shudlick’s whopping $125 and the GOP deciding not to hold any straw poll during the March caucuses, it’s unlikely Shudlick’s effort to be the race’s insurgent is going to gain any traction.Please correct the record if this is not true. This is, in my view, 100% unethical and a great way to slap the delegates in the face. Who determined that the GOP would not hold a straw poll? THAT person I want to have on the radio show for intense scrutiny...if they dare.
The team without a home or owner might also not have a name.Good for Bygone Sports. I mean, I think the practice of guessing names of coming sports teams is scummy, but hey, it is legal and there is a risk that the invested-upon name will not be used after all. For that risk should be reward.
According to a report in The New York Times on Tuesday, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted a request for federal trademark registration on the name Washington Nationals to Bygone Sports last week. The Cincinnati-based company, which specializes in historic trademarks and sports apparel, applied for the trademark in September 2002.
According to the Times, Major League Baseball, aware of Bygone Sports' claim to the Washington Nationals name, thought it had reached an agreement with the company for the name's rights when the franchise was moved from Montreal in 2004.So far I have to say I am on Bygone's side...and I believe their version of the story also.
"We believe we own the name and the rights," John McHale Jr., a baseball executive vice president, told the Times. "We struck a deal prior to the announcement with the people who claimed they owned the name, and we've been fighting to get that agreement enforced. They didn't live up to the agreement."
However, Roger Kaplan, an attorney for Bygone Sports, told the Times that although baseball contends an oral agreement was reached Nov. 12, 2004 -- 10 days before the team was renamed -- the sides had actually only reached a preliminary agreement.
"All the terms and conditions had not been fully discussed," he said.
Kaplan also contends that baseball and Bygone Sports had not put the agreement in writing and had agreed not to be bound by an agreement until it was in writing.
Both baseball and Bygone Sports sued, and the case landed in federal court, where it will be determined if there is an enforceable agreement. If the lawsuit goes forward, a trial is scheduled to begin April 3 -- the day the Nationals open their second season in Washington.Well, if Bygone is correct I see no reason why they should not be entitled to raise the asking price...they should demand royalties on the merchandise already sold!!
Neither baseball nor Bygone Sports dispute that the company raised its asking price for the rights from $130,000 to $1.5 million. Bygone Sports also asked for four tickets to the Nationals' opener last season and a $10,000 advertising credit on MLB.com.
"For two weeks after the team was named, Bygone was prepared to move forward on the original amount," Kaplan told the Times.What? Undeserved profit? What makes it undeserved? Is there something wrong with a quick profit? Well, as long as it is legal, I mean.
But negotiations collapsed, and both sides filed suit.
Baseball sued in June, claiming that although Bygone Sports had applied for the rights two years prior to the team's move, the company wanted to "turn a quick, undeserved profit" by seeking trademark registration rights. In its countersuit in July, Bygone Sports accused baseball of not researching the name to know that someone else had claimed it.
If the case proceeds and the judge rules for Bygone Sports, baseball would then have to decide whether to rename the team, because it would not be able to sell apparel and other paraphernalia with the Nationals name on it.Like I said, unless they come to an agreement if the courts rule for Bygone Sports (which I think is the fair thing) they should sue also for royalties.
"You wouldn't be able to go to the ballpark and buy a shirt or cap with the team name on it," Kaplan told the Times.
"I think it's likely that we would change if we're not correct," McHale told the Times.
I don't think being a minority makes you a victim of anything except numbers.OK, I agree with most of it...I'm not on board with the wrestling thing.
The only things I can think of that are truly discriminatory are things like the United Negro College Fund, Jet Magazine, Black Entertainment Television, and Miss Black America. Try to have things like the United Caucasian College Fund, Cloud Magazine, White Entertainment Television, or Miss White America; and see what happens...Jesse Jackson will be knocking down your door.
Guns do not make you a killer. I think killing makes you a killer. You can kill someone with a baseball bat or a car, but no one is trying to ban you from driving to the ball game.
I believe they are called the Boy Scouts for a reason, that is why there are no girls allowed. Girls belong in the Girl Scouts! ARE YOU LISTENING MARTHA BURKE?
I think that if you feel homosexuality is wrong, it is not a phobia, it is an opinion.
I have the right "NOT" to be tolerant of others because they are different, weird, or tick me off.
When 70% of the people who get arrested are black, in cities where 70% of the population is black, that is not racial profiling, it is the Law of Probability.
I believe that if you are selling me a milkshake, a pack of cigarettes, a newspaper or a hotel room, you must do it in English! As a matter of fact, if you want to be an American citizen, you should have to speak English!
My father and grandfather didn't die in vain so you can leave the countries you were born in to come over and disrespect ours.
I think the police should have every right to shoot your sorry a-- if you threaten them after they tell you to stop. If you can't understand the word "freeze" or "stop" in English, see the above lines.
I don't think just because you were not born in this country, you are qualified for any special loan programs, government sponsored bank loans or tax breaks, etc., so you can open a hotel, coffee shop, trinket store, or any other business.
We did not go to the aid of certain foreign countries and risk our lives in wars to defend their freedoms, so that decades later they could come over here and tell us our constitution is a living document; and open to their interpretations.
I don't hate the rich. I don't pity the poor.
I know pro wrestling is fake, but so are movies and television. That doesn't stop you from watching them.
I think Bill Gates has every right to keep every penny he made and continue to make more.
If it ticks you off, go and invent the next operating system that's better, and put your name on the building.
It doesn't take a whole village to raise a child right, but it does take a parent to stand up to the kid; and smack their little behinds when necessary, and say "NO!"
I think tattoos and piercing are fine if you want them, but please don't pretend they are a political statement. And, please, stay home until that new lip ring heals. I don't want to look at your ugly infected mouth as you serve me French fries!
I am sick of "Political Correctness." I know a lot of black people, and not a single one of them was born in Africa; so how can they be "African-Americans"?
Besides, Africa is a continent. I don't go around saying I am a European-American because my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather was from Europe.
I am proud to be from America and nowhere else
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
Peter Idusogie today announced his intention to run for the US Senate seat being vacated by Mark Dayton.Yeah, he fits perfectly in the radical wing of the Democrat party but two weeks ago treated Ford Bell's attack against "kingmaking" as ridiculous expectations. Basically Idusogie said Bell should not be surprised by the kingmaking and should accept it. So it is no surprise that Idusogie is running as an "independent".
In an exclusive interview with Wendy Wilde on Inside Minnesota Politics, Idusogie said he will run as an independent candidate "independent of the Democratic Party, independent of the Republican Party, and independent of the Independence party".
Inside Minnesota Politics Producer Mike McIntee issued the following statement:I have been blasting this little show for two reasons. First their brazen efforts to shut down debate, especially to take them to task, through threatening phone calls and lawsuit threats. Second, they claim to be "fair and balanced" but are far from that. They are, in essence, lying to the listeners intentionally with the purpose of political advantage.
"To avoid even the appearance of any conflict of interest, Peter and I have decided it is best that he no longer host Inside Minnesota Politics. However, the podcast will continue with its mission to report on Minnesota politics including interviewing candidates, and tackling those tough issues we face today in our democracy.
"Like any other US Senate candidate, Peter will be welcome as an occasional guest at the Inside Minnesota Politics microphone.
"I'm happy to report that long-time radio talk show host Wendy Wilde has agreed to help out with hosting the show. Wendy most recently was the morning host on Air America Minnesota and before that worked for WCCO-AM.
"I thank Peter for the inspiration he has brought our podcast listeners and me. I look forward to maintaining the high level of quality Peter has brought to Inside Minnesota Politics with the help of the incredibly knowledgeable and talented Wendy Wilde."
ABC News obtained the tapes from Bill Tierney, a former member of a United Nations inspection team who translated them for the FBI. "Because of my experience being in the inspections and being in the military, I knew the significance of these tapes when I heard them," says Tierney. U.S. officials have confirmed the tapes are authentic, and that they are among hundreds of hours of tapes Saddam recorded in his palace office.Now, is it not true that the Left has been droning on about there being NO weapons of mass destruction in Iraq? Me personally I have been saying that the amount of time wasted at the United Nations gave Iraq plenty of time to hide, destroy or ship to friendly nations anything they had. (Has anyone yet found out what was in those three freighters that left Iraq just before we went in?)
...
The tapes also reveal Iraq's persistent efforts to hide information about weapons of mass destruction programs from U.N. inspectors well into the 1990s. In one pivotal tape-recorded meeting, which occurred in late April or May of 1995, Saddam and his senior aides discuss the fact that U.N. inspectors had uncovered evidence of Iraq's biological weapons program — a program whose existence Iraq had previously denied.
At one point Hussein Kamel, Saddam's son-in-law and the man who was in charge of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction efforts can be heard on the tapes, speaking openly about hiding information from the U.N.
"We did not reveal all that we have," Kamel says in the meeting. "Not the type of weapons, not the volume of the materials we imported, not the volume of the production we told them about, not the volume of use. None of this was correct."
A spokeswoman for John Negroponte, director of national intelligence, said information contained in the transcriptions of the tapes was already known to intelligence officials.Hmm, you mean the intelligence community knows things that the general public does not know? Interesting. I thought it was not possible for the public to know less than the White House, CIA, FBI, etc. I mean, how else could the Left continue saying with such confidence that there were NO weapons of mass destruction and continue on about "faulty intelligence"? Is it not at least within the realm of possibility that the rap of "faulty intelligence" is accepted so that the good intelligence (and its sources) can be kept secret?
Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, says the tapes are authentic and show that "Saddam had a fixation on weapons of mass destruction and he had a fixation on hiding what he was doing from the U.N. inspectors." Hoeckstra says there are more than 35,000 boxes of such tapes and documents that the U.S. government has not analyzed nor made public that should also be translated and studied on an urgent basis.Yep, it does show a fixation. And why would some who lived with such blatant disregard for the UN be expected to not pursue fixing the fixation?
"Intelligence community analysts from the CIA, and the DIA reviewed the translations and found that, while fascinating, from a historical perspective the tapes do not reveal anything that changes their post-war analysis of Iraq's weapons programs nor do they change the findings contained in the comprehensive Iraq Survey group report," she said in a statement.Fair enough point...but I think that is a lazy answer as it does not address the fixation. It also does not address the repeated violations previously.
Charles Duelfer, who led the official U.S. search for weapons of mass destruction after the war, says the tapes show extensive deception but don't prove that weapons were still hidden in Iraq at the time of the U.S.-led war in 2003. "What they do is support the conclusion in the report, which we made in the last couple of years, that the regime had the intention of building and rebuilding weapons of mass destruction, when circumstances permitted."A couple of key things there. The Left ignores the "intetion of building and rebuilding" part. They also fail to answer WHERE did these weapons suddenly disappear to? There is no denying that Iraq had them, where did they go? (And what the hell was on those freighters?) The Right seems to glance over the fact that these weapons were not found. Now the WMD assertion was NOT the only reason given for going into Iraq (a lie that the Left intentionally perpetuates) so it is not highly relevant, but it is nonetheless a fact. (Can we please check those freighters?)
"Now that he feels forced to talk, he wants to restrict the discussion to a friendly news outlet, guaranteeing no hard questions from the press corps," Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., said in a statement.Shut up already, please. Is this really any different from other politicians who pick and choose where they will be interviewed? No.
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
c-69-180-175-3.hsd1.mn.comcast.net (Comcast Cable Communications Holdings Inc)Sigh, the sham of IMP continues, I guess.
Minnesota, Eagan, United States,
February 7th 2006 06:09:19 PM Race To The Right
No referring link
February 7th 2006 06:10:12 PM Always Right, Usually Correct
www.blogger.com/profile/5297459
February 9th 2006 07:30:53 PM Always Right, Usually Correct: More evidence...IMP are hacks
www.mnspeak.com/mnspeak/aggregator/index-chron.cfm
February 10th 2006 08:20:37 AM Race To The Right
No referring link
February 10th 2006 08:21:16 AM Always Right, Usually Correct
No referring link
February 11th 2006 04:20:15 PM Always Right, Usually Correct
No referring link
February 14th 2006 08:19:17 AM Always Right, Usually Correct
No referring link
February 14th 2006 08:19:51 AM Race To The Right
No referring link
February 14th 2006 08:20:36 AM Always Right, Usually Correct: Angry Democrats trying to spin away the image
www.r2tr.blogspot.com/
Labels: MENSA
Gore told the largely Saudi audience, many of them educated at U.S. universities, that Arabs in the United States had been "indiscriminately rounded up, often on minor charges of overstaying a visa or not having a green card in proper order, and held in conditions that were just unforgivable."Indiscriminately? You mean the authorities just grabbed any Arab off the streets and locked them up? Can I get some of the sources for this claim? I mean, seriously, how irresponsible is this claim? Indiscriminately rounded up Arabs is quite a claim and knowing how much the media hates all things Bush I am surprised this was not broadcast somehow...especially on CBS.
"Unfortunately there have been terrible abuses and it's wrong," Gore said. "I do want you to know that it does not represent the desires or wishes or feelings of the majority of the citizens of my country."
"The thoughtless way in which visas are now handled, that is a mistake," Gore said during the Jiddah Economic Forum. "The worst thing we can possibly do is to cut off the channels of friendship and mutual understanding between Saudi Arabia and the United States."WAIT A DAMN MINUTE!! It has been the idiots like Michael Moore who have blasted Bush for maintaining relations with Saudi Arabia...going so far as to even fabricate ties to the terrorists simply because everyone involved was Saudi. Now we have Gore saying there is not ENOUGH being done to foster the friendship?
Baron de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympics, searched for a reason for the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871). He thought the reason was that the French had not received proper physical education, and sought to improve this. In 1890 he attended the Wenlock Olympian Society. Coubertin also thought of a way to bring nations closer together, to have the youth of the world compete in sports, rather than fight in war. In his eyes, the recovery of the Olympic Games would achieve both of these goals.---Wikipedia
[Baseball and softball] lost votes for reconsideration. They will be Olympic sports for the last time at Beijing in 2008.OK, so they become the first votes eliminated in quite some time.
Needing 45 votes of 88 cast, baseball got 42. Softball needed 46 votes of 90 but got only 43.
The election gave a significant victory to International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, who had considered the original vote final last July in Singapore.
The decision, made during a secret vote in Singapore, is effective for the 2012 London Games, meaning the two sports will have a final fling at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The sports, the first eliminated since polo in 1936, are eligible to reapply for the 2016 Games.It has been 70 years since a sport was eliminated. They have "sports" like ball room dancing but are booting baseball and softball. I wonder why.
"I didn't say this in Singapore," said Don Porter, president of the International Softball Federation, "but it's an anti-American thing."Say it ain't so.
U.S. women won all three gold medals since softball joined the Olympics, at the 1996 Atlanta, 2000 Sydney and 2004 Athens Games. American pitcher Lisa Fernandez, a three-time gold medalist, blamed the decision on IOC president Jacques Rogge.Is there really any other reason the IOC would end baseball/softball? They kept basketball even though for decades the United States dominated. In fact, they have won the Gold in every Olympics except 1972 when they were robbed, 1980 when the Jimmy Carter did not allow the United States to participate in the Games and 2004 when we sent a bunch of losers. 2004 was the first legimate non-gold medal Olympics for the United States. And they still kept basketball.
“Rogge has basically conspired against the sports to get them removed. We had done our job as a sport world wide to show we belong,” she said. “I feel one person, the president of the IOC, a person from Europe, has taken it upon himself to ruin the lives of millions, actually billions of women.”
Crystl Bustos, who hit a record five homers during the 2004 Olympics, said the one-sidedness of the softball tournament should not have been used as a factor. The Americans outscored opponents 51-1.
“If that did play a role in the decision, then that’s pretty pathetic,” she said. “I don’t mean to cut anybody down, but it’s supposed to be the best of the best, and if you get knocked for your excellence, then that’s just not right.”
Two-time gold medal-winning infielder Dot Richardson said the Olympic dream “was ripped away from the 126 countries that play the sport of softball, that just vanished.”
Labels: MENSA
The president filled in details on Thursday.How could we foil this if we were not tapping the incoming calls from known terrorists? And go to a court? Think about this. If "America loving" people like Harry Reid cannot keep their mouth shut in matters of intelligence because they want political gain why should we believe that some judges are also beyond the human nature of talking too much? Going to get a warrant for these foreign intelligence matters means having sensitive information be known to even more people. More people means more possibility of leaks. And now that the enemy knows their calls were being monitored we have lost that avenue for keeping tabs on the enemy.
He said that Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks who was captured in 2003, had already begun planning the West Coast operation in October, just after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. One of Mohammed's key planners was Hambali, the alleged operations chief of the al-Qaida related terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah. Instead of recruiting Arab hijackers, Hambali found Southeast Asian men who would be less likely to arouse suspicion and who were sent to meet with Osama bin Laden, Bush said.
Under the plot, the hijackers were to use shoe bombs to blow open the cockpit door of a commercial jetliner, take control of the plane and crash it into the Library Tower in Los Angeles, since renamed the US Bank Tower, Bush said.
Labels: MENSA
The Republican national chairman created a furor this week when he suggested Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is too "angry" to win the White House in 2008. And to hear Republicans tell it, Clinton is just one of many Democrats with an anger management problem.Everyone has opined on this already. Yet it continues on because the Democrats are against the ropes with this reality being articulated.
In recent months, GOP operatives and officeholders have cast the Democrats as the anger party, long on emotion and short on ideas. Analysts say the strategy has been effective, trivializing Democrats' differences with the GOP as temperamental rather than substantive.Actually, no, it has not been recent months...it has been years. And it is not the GOP operatives, it has been everyone not Democrat...they have not 'cast the Democrats', they have been pointing out a reality.
Political history is dotted with failed presidential candidates perceived by the voters as too angry - think of Howard Dean's famous scream in 2004, or Bob Dole admonishing George H.W. Bush in 1988 to "stop lying about my record." Both parties' most revered figures in recent years, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, projected optimism and hope.FDR served 3 1/2 TERMS based on optimism. Reagan got 8 years on optimism...even while angry he inspired hope. The big bear commercial of the 1984 campaign injected reality-based fear about the USSR and that Reagan was the hope. Even the "there you go again" line was anger followed by rational justification. Clinton was optimisim in the face of adversity. He got 8 years out of it. Even "W" was about a plan..."here is who I am and what I want to do." It turns out that he had the fortunate circumstance of terrorism creating a renewed understanding for he need for defense. JFK got 2 1/2 years because of optimism.
"Democrats want a leader who shares their frustration - even anger - about Republican failures," Democratic strategist Dan Newman said. "Anger at terrorists is expected, outrage about corruption is a plus."First, of course they smell "a whiff of sexism"...they smell '-ism' in everything whether it exists or not. Why? To make it an issue...and as they run with this they will be the ones who both started the discussion about sex and condemn the fact that sex was brought up as an issue.
Some Democrats, in fact, complained that Clinton doesn't get angry enough. Some also denounced Mehlman as mean-spirited, and smelled more than a whiff of sexism in his remarks.
RNC spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt dismissed the charge of sexism, saying the anger strategy was fully justified when Democrats launch personal attacks. She cited Dean's description of Republicans as "brain dead" last year, and Reid's calling President Bush a "loser."The problem is that ANY criticism against a Democrat gets labeled as any kind of -ism. Why? To stifle actual debate. The fact is, on this issue there is NO relevance of sex to the discussion. The whole party is about anger. Men, women and other...they are all about anger. They are anti-everything-not-Democrat and offering little. This has nothing to do with Clinton being (reportedly) a woman.
"Whether she's a man or a woman is completely irrelevant. If some Democrats want to fall back on the gender card, that's their prerogative," Schmitt said.
Once again, the Taxpayers have been sold a bill of goods.I am all of these candidate's mailing lists and I normally do not post the stuff that comes from them. However, the Northstar rail is something that I feel very strongly AGAINST. This is one position by the 4 candidates that will weigh heavily to me. To ME these choo-choo train projects have no return on investment thus they highlight two positions: unnecessary pork vs responsible fiscal management. What I would like to know about the candidates: what were their positions on the Hiawatha boondoggle?
First, it was recently reported that unexpected costs have added an additional $24 million to the already expensive price tag for the Northstar Commuter-rail line; a wasteful boondoggle that only Congressional candidate, Phil Krinkie, has consistently voted against.
As with protecting the taxpayer against expensive stadium proposals and other wasteful pork barrel spending, Representative Krinkie is the go-to-guy as the most ardent defender of the taxpayer.
"I am sure that this is just one of what will be many cost increases if this project is indeed built," Krinkie said.
Now we learn, from a report by our State Auditor Pat Anderson, that there are a number of new, potentially scandalous problems with this project that both Jim Knoblach and Michele Bachmann have voted to fund.
"The State Auditors Office found that the Executive Director of the Northstar Project charged more than $8,000 on meals on at least 222 separate occasions from January 1, 2003 to May 2005. This number averages out to approximately one meal for every three working days over that time period. . .
And perhaps worse:
"The contracts and invoices the State Auditors Office reviewed for three contractors gave the impression that NCDA and ACRRA were each paying separate retainer fees for the same services relating to the development of the Northstar Corridor. . . Contracts paid four consulting companies nearly $3.4 million, and according to the Auditor the duplicate costs mask the actual cost of the project.
Whether it is the Hiawatha light rail line, or the Northstar Commuter-rail, it is clear that the costs sold to the taxpayer when Phil's Republican opponents voted for these sorts of wasteful rail lines is no where near what we will all end up paying.
Police killed four people Wednesday as Afghans enraged over drawings of the Prophet Muhammad marched on a U.S. military base in a volatile southern province, directing their anger not against Europe but America.We occupy your pissant country because you harbor our enemies. And at the rate you are going now you actually may STILL be an enemy.
The U.S. base was targeted because the United States "is the leader of Europe and the leading infidel in the world," said Sher Mohammed, a 40-year-old farmer who suffered a gunshot wound while taking part in the demonstration in the city of Qalat.
"They are all the enemy of Islam. They are occupiers in our country and must be driven out," Mohammed said.
Muslims around the world have demonstrated over the images - including one depicting the prophet wearing a turban shaped as a bomb - printed in Western media. Islam is interpreted to forbid any illustrations of the prophet.Let's call it for what it is. These are not "demonstrations" these are riots. There is a difference between demonstrations and riots, protests and criminal or terroristic activity, and some of the leaders in Iraq understand.
In Baghdad, Iraq's top Shiite political leader criticized attacks on foreign embassies by Muslims.Thank goodness they understand the difference.
"We value and appreciate peaceful Islamic protests," said Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. "But we are against the idea of attacking embassies and other official sites."
Two Pakistanis arrested for allegedly firing at police were being questioned to see whether they were linked to al-Qaida, Malakhail said. Some officials accuse al-Qaida of inciting three days of bloody riots across Afghanistan that have left 11 dead.Ah, there is the key.
Protesters also burned three fuel tankers waiting to deliver gasoline to the base, said Malakhail. He said U.S. troops fired warning shots into the air.
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
Labels: MENSA
A Louisiana man claims in a lawsuit that Apple's iPod music player can cause hearing loss in people who use it.I think a person can also buy speakers for their I-Pod, right. So the volume feature is not JUST for headphones. And to the stupid people who turn up their volume to dangerous levels I say: "Your own fault. Pity for you." What do they deserve? NOTHING. What should they get? NOTHING.
Apple has sold more than 42 million of the devices since they went on sale in 2001, including 14 million in the fourth quarter last year. The devices can produce sounds of more than 115 decibels, a volume that can damage the hearing of a person exposed to the sound for more than 28 seconds per day, according to the complaint.
The iPod players are "inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss," according to the complaint, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Calif., on behalf of John Kiel Patterson of Louisiana.Enough with the stupid labels, please. There are enough labels on stuff. We don't need labels, we need natural selection to be allowed to run its course. And again, it is not a desing flaw it is a user-mentality-deficiency.
The suit, which Patterson wants certified as a class-action, seeks compensation for unspecified damages and upgrades that will make iPods safer. Patterson's suit said he bought an iPod last year, but does not specify whether he suffered hearing loss from the device.Not only is this yokel suing for stupid people, but now the damage is POTENTIAL.
Patterson does not know if the device has damaged his hearing, said his attorney, Steve W. Berman, of Seattle. But that's beside the point of the lawsuit, which takes issue with the potential the iPod has to cause irreparable hearing loss, Berman said.
"We have numerous products in the marketplace that have the potential to damage hearing," said Deanna Meinke, an audiology professor at the University of Northern Colorado. "The risk is there but the risk lies with the user and where they set the volume."A little much needed sanity.
Backed by abortion rights groups, three Massachusetts women sued Wal-Mart on Wednesday, accusing the retail giant of violating a state regulation by failing to stock emergency contraception pills in its pharmacies.This is (a) not emergency contraception and (b) not "commonly prescribed medicine". The real roots behind this are (1) hatred by the Left of Wal-Mart for being successful and ununionized, (2) hatred by the Left of all things indicating actual private ownership and self-determination, and (3) the effort to force all thing abortion-related down the throats of everyone. In this case they are trying to shove it down the throat of a private business.
The lawsuit, filed in state court, seeks to force the company to carry the morning-after pill in its 44 Wal-Marts and four Sam Club stores in Massachusetts.
The plaintiffs argued that state policy requires pharmacies to provide all "commonly prescribed medicines."
...
Fogleman said the company "chooses not to carry many products for business reasons." He would not elaborate. But in a letter to a lawyer for the plaintiffs, a Wal-Mart attorney said the store chain does not regard the drug as "commonly prescribed."
In a Victoria's Secret store, surrounded by frilly bras and blown-up images of barely covered models, Lori Rueger says she was told to find somewhere else to breast feed.SO WHAT?
Rueger's story -- told during a hearing in support of a state bill to ensure breast feeding is allowed in public places -- so angered a state lawmaker that he's urging women to form a national Mothers Against Victoria's Secret movement.
"It's really kind of subhuman behavior. And subhuman behavior warrants some kind of strong response other than just a little law that we pass in South Carolina," Rep. Walt McLeod, D-Little Mountain, said Wednesday.
Rueger was one of more than a couple of dozen mothers, doctors, lawyers and other breast-feeding advocates who were on hand to urge passage of the bill.
The 29-year-old Charleston mother testified that she was in a Victoria's Secret store in suburban Mount Pleasant and was told by an employee that she could not breast feed her baby in a dressing room and was encouraged to use a restroom in a nearby store instead.
Labels: MENSA
Dear Representative John Kline,Notice, now that she is feigning civility the word "Nazi" was not used. There is a deliberate purpose to this. The whole game plan was to downplay this as another thing "blown out of proportion". By leaving out the real intent of the picture, the "Nazi" part, the impact appears to the average idiot believing her apology to be minimal.
I sincerely apologize for having offended you with the picture that was posted on my blog. I assure you that was not the intent. More importantly, superimposing your face on the Colonel Klink character from the "Hogan's Heroes" sitcom is something that does not belong on a congressional campaign website. I apologize to you, as well as any other offended person, for this error in professionalism.
Please know that in no way did I intend to disparage your name, nor your honorable military service to our country. [This is a fresh steaming pile of, well, you know.]
These are critical times, and the people of MN's 2nd District deserve a campaign about ideas and substance, not doctored photos [or fabricated implications]. For that reason, I further apologize to the voters for shifting the focus to such superficial matters. [Shifting? Your campaign STARTED there. It has yet to be about serious and honest debate.]
Looking forward to November [I think you better worry about September, first.], this episode illustrates the need for civility and serious debate above all else. [Too bad you threw that out the window from day one with your smear campaign.] Towards that end, I will do everything in my power to ensure this type of material does not emanate from my campaign again.
Sincerely,
Coleen Rowley
Labels: MENSA
Hollywood has always worn its liberal politics on its sleeve, from 1976's "All the President's Men" and 1979's "Norma Rae" to 2002's "Bowling for Columbine." With Tuesday's crop of Oscar contenders, though, politics have never been more front and centre.Yep, that is a fact, Jack. And that is their perrogative. Pity they scream bloody murder if they get evicted from any event because of their politics (Tim Robbins, Hall of Fame and the Bull Durham event comes to mind...you know, the "cold chill sweeping America" pulp) but cannot allow other's to have their politics infused into Hollywood (how they treated Mel Gibson after Passion comes to mind; Disney's disdain for religion also comes to mind).
"What all these films have in common is they're about the human condition," said Oscar-nominated "Crash" co-writer Bobby Moresco. "The pendulum has swung back to movies about politics. People want films that have something to say; they're tired of fluff."Uh, not really. 2005 represents the first time since 1998 that there were less than 20 $100 million grossing films. Translation: fewer box offices biggies. That number, btw, is the second down year in that regard.
"What all these films have in common is they're about the human condition," said Oscar-nominated "Crash" co-writer Bobby Moresco. "The pendulum has swung back to movies about politics. People want films that have something to say; they're tired of fluff."Simply hilarious.
Hugo Chavez, an arm around Sheehan’s shoulders, told a group of activists that she had told him “she is going to put up her tent again in front of Mr. Danger’s ranch” in April.Hmm, does that sound like a battle cry from other people...like Al-Qaeda.
In some of his strongest recent comments aimed at Washington, Chavez condemned the Bush administration and said his audience should work toward ending U.S. dominance.
“Enough already with the imperialist aggression!” Chavez said, listing countries from Panama to Iraq where the U.S. military has intervened. “Down with the U.S. empire! It must be said, in the entire world: Down with the empire!”
...Elma Beatriz Rosado, the widow of slain Puerto Rican nationalist Filiberto Ojeda Rios. Holding back tears as she stood at Chavez’s side, Rosado accused the United States of killing her husband, a 72-year-old militant independence activist.So let's recap, shall we. Sheehan is hanging out with human rights violator Hugo Chavez and widow of a bank robber/militant. Hmm, good company. And their mantra matches that of the people responsible for 9/11. Hmm, good company.
Rios was slain in a September FBI raid on a Puerto Rican farmhouse where he was living in hiding while being wanted for the 1983 robbery of $7.2 million from a Wells Fargo armored truck depot in Connecticut — funds intended for the independence cause.
