U.S. looks for bombs instead of terrorists

Subject: txt gwot nsec -
Incompetent State Department consular officials and poor enforcement of visa procedures that have been in place long before the personal computer, the Xerox machine or even the jet airliner are the problem here. And we aren’t hearing a word about it.

Better the American public should be forced to endure another blizzard of press releases announcing another round of ridiculous indignities by dazzling Rube Goldberg technology rather than have our press and our government demand an accounting from the employees at a government bureaucracy who can’t even comply with their own time-tested procedures.

No, no, it’s the privacy restrictions placed on air travel screening, replies former DHS official Stewart Coffin... [snip]

1) rescinding the new TSA rules;

2) reviving the targeted screening procedures abandoned under pressure from so-called privacy advocates

3) keeping the focus on the State Department’s botched information sharing.

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It's time to revisit U.S. terror policy

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President Barack Obama came into office vowing to change the tone on terrorism and swiftly set about transforming the war on terror into a law enforcement exercise that places a greater emphasis on apprehension and prosecution than it does on deterrence [to say nothing of interdiction].

After two recent terrorist attacks on the United States -- one successful, one failed -- this is a good point at which to stop and examine whether the new strategy is working to keep Americans safe.

Obama was heavily motivated in shifting terror policy by his belief that the US had a need to improve its standing in the international community and, in his words, to return the nation to its values.

But terrorists shouldn't be allowed to use our values against us. Nor should we make appeasing America's critics a greater priority than keeping our own people safe.

We got lucky on Christmas Day. Some would say we got a Christmas miracle.

But luck and miracles are no substitute for aggressive deterrence.

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image toon gwot nsec = Death call WH re overseas contingencies

Man charged with terrorism

Subject: txt islm gwot -
A man who allegedly claimed he wanted to start a holy war in Memphis will return to court Jan. 11 on charges of threatening to blow up several businesses on Christmas Day. Mohamed Ibrahim, 35, is charged with commission of a terrorist act.

An FBI agent called to the scene recovered three cassette tapes described as "Islamic" in a police affidavit, and took the GPS from the vehicle.

Ibrahim had threatened other businesses and "stated he was a Muslim, and wanted to start jihad here in Memphis," according to the weapon charge.

[GWOT]

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Alert the PC Police: Time Calls Ft. Hood a 'Terror-Related .... Event'

Subject: txt gwot 1st nsec ms islm -
It looks like the PC Police will have to put out an APB for Time Magazine's Bobby Ghosh, his layers of editors, and his managers.

First, Ghosh had the unmitigated gall to write an item called "Domestic Terror Incidents Hit a Peak in 2009." In it, he notes that the "2009 saw an unprecedented surge in terror 'events' on U.S. soil." Clearly Ghosh doesn't understand that we're in a new era where the rest of the world reflexively loves us, thanks to our ever-apologetic president.

Ghosh compounded his error by saying that the November killings at a U.S. military base were t-t-t- .... terror-related:

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Fort Hood Co-Conspirator: CAIR

Subject: txt gwot islm -
With the FBI cutting off ties to the Council on American-Islamic Relations and now subpoenaing some 12,000 internal CAIR documents under temporary restraining order as part of the bureau’s ongoing criminal investigation of CAIR, the terrorist front group is suddenly cooperating with the FBI — or at least making a show of it.

Suddenly CAIR, an unindicted terrorist co-conspirator, is acting like a good citizen. Suddenly it’s concerned about young Muslim-American men going on jihad. Suddenly it’s concerned about “certain” passages of the Quran inspiring jihadists.

It’s all too little, too late.

Thanks to CAIR, 42 brave American soldiers were gunned down by an Islamic nut in Texas.

That’s right, thanks to CAIR...

[Long, Highly Recommended > ]

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image c-art gwot islm nsec = FORMER CAIR MEMBER TERRORISTS

Intel report: Iran seeking to smuggle raw uranium

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VIENNA – Iran is close to clinching a deal to clandestinely import 1,350 tons of purified uranium ore from Kazakhstan, according to an intelligence report obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press. Diplomats said the assessment was heightening international concern about Tehran's nuclear activities. Such a deal would be significant because, according to an independent research group, Tehran appears to be running out of the material, which it needs to feed its uranium enrichment program...

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Kerry's possible trip to Iran would be a boon to the regime

Subject: txt nsec gwot iran libs bdd vals -
The Wall Street Journal Reported the other day that Senator John Kerry was seeking permission from the Obama Administration to head to Tehran, perhaps to scratch his diplomatic itch.

A request to head to Iran would fit snugly with Kerry's persona as a willing dupe to America's Enemies. Just as he made his way to the Paris peace accords during Vietnam, Kerry would almost assuredly allow himself to be used by the Mullah's in Iran. After all, what's the point? As pointed out in an editorial in the Wall Street Journal, if a year of pleas from the President himself hasn't made any headway, what makes Kerry think his trip would garner much success?

If the mullahs had any sense, they'd send him a government plane. Beset by almost daily demonstrations by a democratic opposition that has been growing despite beatings and arrests since the stolen June election, Mr. Kerry would arrive from Washington to show the Iranian people that at least someone still favors the regime.

He would be the most senior American to visit Tehran in 30 years and his trip would convey legitimacy that the dictatorship is especially eager to have at the current moment.

Who knows? Perhaps he would even come back and testify before Congress just like he did in the early 70's, lambasting the United States...

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image toon - gwot nsec intl owg = Iran needs about 10 more seconds

Dooming Europe

Subject: txt owg - sclm -

"The Europe as you know it from visiting, from your parents, or friends is on the verge of collapsing."

Geert Wilders said this in a speech he made in the U.S. last year. He went on:

"We are now witnessing profound changes that will forever alter Europe's destiny and might send the continent in what Ronald Reagan called 'a thousand years of darkness.'"

This applies not just to Europe, but to America as well.

Been to Europe lately? Thought it was bad? You ain't seen nothing yet. The passage of the Lisbon Treaty, hailed by Barack Obama, nailed the coffin shut on national sovereignty in Europe. The people of Europe fought it, but they were overwhelmed by their political elites and the lack of American leadership in this age of our Marxist U.S. president.

Come January 1, 2010, a disastrous and suicidal pact called the Euro-Med Partnership (referring to Europe and the Mediterranean region) goes into effect with little fanfare or examination. It boggles the mind that such a consequential and seismic cultural shift could be mandated and put into play without so much as a murmur from the mainstream media.

Why should Americans care about this? The reason is that this global gobbledygook is coming to America, thanks to our globalist president...

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Carbon prices fall in wake of Copenhagen

Subject: txt grn intl owg -
Carbon prices plunged yesterday in the aftermath of the Copenhagen conference on climate change, dealing a blow to the credibility of the European Union's carbon-trading scheme. Prices for carbon permits for December 2010 delivery, the benchmark contract for pricing European permits, dropped nearly 10 per cent in early trading, before recovering to end the day 8.3 per cent lower at €12.41. Lower prices give companies less incentive to invest in cutting their greenhouse gas output.

[There's money involved with the climate 'crisis'?]

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IPCC chief benefits financially from his own rulings

Subject: txt 1st grn owg -
The perfect man to head up climate change panel

What business does Dr Rajendra Pachauri, a guy with a PHD in economics and no scientific training on climate have in heading up the UN's powerful Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change?

C'mon...this is the UN we're talking about here. Besides, he is an expert on one aspect of climate change; getting rich off trading carbon credits.

Christopher Booker and Richard North writing in the UK Telegraph:

Although Dr Pachauri is often presented as a scientist (he was even once described by the BBC as "the world's top climate scientist"), as a former railway engineer with a PhD in economics he has no qualifications in climate science at all.

What has also almost entirely escaped attention, however, is how Dr Pachauri has established an astonishing worldwide portfolio of business interests with bodies which have been investing billions of dollars in organisations dependent on the IPCC's policy recommendations... [snip]

Remarkable? Not hardly. And this is a guy who has taken climate skeptics to task for being tools of the fossil fuel industry?

In a sane world, this guy wouldn't have even gotten a smell of heading up the IPCC. But the UN is not a sane place, nor is it a moral institution. It is as corrupt a body that exists on this planet, making some third world governments seem clean by comparison.

Who is going to call for this gentleman's ouster? Not anyone that the UN will listen to.

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Get the U.N. Out of the Climate Business

Subject: txt grn owg -
In the aftermath of the Copenhagen Climate conference, it is clear that the United Nations-driven process is a bust, and that any similar process requiring economic suicide and massive wealth transfers will go nowhere.

What went on in Copenhagen was more political theater than an effort to think about realistic approaches to managing the risk of climate change. The world would be better off with a fresh start and a process that isn't run by U.N. bureaucrats for whom every problem is an excuse to expand their power.

It is long since time to drop this charade, take the question of climate change out of the hands of the U.N., and implement more reasonable, fact based policies...

[Recommended > ]

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Green Snoopers get power to enter your home without a warrant

Subject: txt grn sclm bbro lbrty -
As many as 20,000 town hall snoopers have assumed powers to enter people's homes without a warrant and search for information, a survey revealed last night.

The bureaucrats are benefiting from the 1,043 state powers of entry in primary and secondary legislation – more than 400 of which have been created by Labour. These include checking for fridges which do not have the correct eco-friendly energy rating...

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Newsweek Protests Nancy Pelosi Is Painted as a 'Far-Out Liberal,' But...

Subject: txt msm bias sclm hcare reps 2010 -
Newsweek's Eleanor Clift clearly suggests a schizophrenic approach in her year-end interview with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She insists conservatives are wrong to paint her as a "far-out liberal."

But then turns around and asks how liberals, "your people," are disappointed there wasn't a pullout from Afghanistan, a "public option," and abortion on demand.

Clift told Pelosi many liberals didn't expect bargaining and pussy-footing, but a full-speed-ahead socialist push...

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Republican Politicians Make A Social Media Push

Subject: txt gdd mny reps -
After the Senate health care bill passed this week, Rep. Duncan Hunter of California made it clear in the weekly GOP radio address that Republicans aren't happy about the direction Congress is taking.

"Let's resolve in the new year to end misguided efforts to create new laws that will cost even more jobs,"

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[+]

Insist that GOP Make Repeal of Government-Run Health Care a 2010 Issue

Conservatives need to insist that the GOP press its opposition to big-government health care right through the 2010 elections.

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Joy Behar: Sarah Palin’s ‘Base Doesn’t Even Read’

[1.6 Million hard copies and counting...

Joy who?]

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image toon 1st fnn crpt libs reps - Oyb's cross word for transparentcy

Obama says U.S. doing 'everything in our power' to prevent terror

Subject: txt gwot nsec crpt libs reps -
Romulus, Michigan (CNN) -- President Obama warned Monday that the United States would respond aggressively to terrorism such as last week's botched attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner. "Those who would slaughter innocent men, women and children must know the United States will do more than simply strengthen our defenses," Obama said.

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Illinois Congressman Says Obama Official Agreed That Moving Terrorists to U.S. Prison Would Increase Risk

Subject: txt gwot nsec crpt libs -

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We Interrupt this Socialization of Medicine to Bring You an Abdication of Our National Defense . . .

Subject: txt gwot nsec -
Quite intentionally, the Obama administration is making so many radical moves on so many different fronts simultaneously that it's difficult to stay on top of them all, much less give them the attention they deserve. But while we argue health care and Iran policy and a civilian trial for KSM and the decision to transfer enemy combatants to a U.S. prison, it's important to notice how dangerously irresponsible the administration's obsession to close Gitmo has become, and how tawdry the Justice Department is allowing itself to appear... [snip]

The original 800 included some marginal figures (to hear the Left tell it, all the detainees were shepherds indiscriminately swept up by the Northern Alliance to win bribe money from the CIA). But now we are down to a much smaller core group — detainees whose cases we've had years to study and whom we've held despite enormous pressure to release them.

These are the worst of the worst. We have an absolute right under the laws of war to hold them, and when one of them gets sprung it's cause for grave concern....

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Two airplane bomb plotters released from GItmo

Yes, but at least everyone likes us now

Two of the four leaders allegedly behind the al Qaeda plot to blow up a Northwest Airlines passenger jet over Detroit were released by the U.S. from the Guantanamo prison in November, 2007, ABC News is reporting, quoting American officials and citing Department of Defense documents.

American officials agreed to send the two terrorists to Saudi Arabia where they entered into an "art therapy rehabilitation program" and were set free, according to U.S. and Saudi officials, ABC News reported.

Guantanamo prisoner #333, Muhamad Attik al-Harbi, and prisoner #372, Said Ali Shari, were sent to Saudi Arabia on Nov. 9, 2007, according to the Defense Department log of detainees who were released from American custody.

Al-Harbi has since changed his name to Muhamad al-Awfi.

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Napolitano set to meet Israeli officials

Subject: txt gwot nsec israel -
[Good. Ask them how they keep their skies safe {completely surrounded by murderous lunatics}.

A: They don't profile objects - that's a losing formula as we're behind the evolutionary arms-race.

They profile passengers, the constant in terrorism, to KNOWN Terrorists profiles...]

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Politicizing the terror attack

More concerned with sticking it to Fox News than in informing the country

Perhaps all of President Barack Obama's (D) czars and czarinas were too busy stashing their Christmas loot into offshore accounts untouched by the IRS so there weren't enough to appear on all the major networks to inform the American public on the terror attack in the skies above Detroit.

But then again, maybe not. At Front Page Magazine, Liz Blaine describes how the administration politicized this major event which affects all Americans by ignoring one network. You know which one.

Taking his vendetta with Fox News to a new low, President Obama sent an administration spokesperson to appear on every network but Fox to discuss the Northwest Airlines flight 253 terror attack.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs appeared on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos, NBC's Meet the Press and CBS' Face the Nation. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano appeared on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos, NBC's Meet the Press, and CNN's State of the Nation.

Communicating to the American people the facts and status of an attempted terror attack should be of paramount importance to a President plunging in the polls, but Obama appears more obsessed with ostracizing Fox News than keeping the American people informed of the war on terror.

The sounds of silence didn't seem to affect Fox's coverage though; perhaps even enhanced it as they didn't have to cope with the phony administration reassurances that all is fine with the flying public as long as you don't use the bathroom in the last segment of your trip.

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image c-art msm bias oby fnn = Oby-baby re Fox touching him

Making Jihadists

Bewildered by what fanatic Muslims do, some conclude that Muslims are brainwashed. The reality is far worse

Islam is a powerful magnet for the masses that are unable to deal with the uncertainties of life and death on their own. It is from this population, many already thoroughly indoctrinated from birth, that the majority of diehard jihadists emerge... [snip]

America must come to terms with the reality that orthodox Islam requires unceasing jihad. Eradication of jihadism is a daunting task. Massive education efforts, combined with resolute confrontation of all sources and people that support and promote this deadly philosophy, hold the best promise of dealing effectively with this affliction of humanity.

In the monumental task of dealing with jihadism, every individual, group and government must combine their resources and energies to prevail. The destiny of the civilized life hangs in the balance.

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Honor” Horror

Subject: txt islm -

“Mum, don’t untie me. I want to die.”

These heart-rending words from beyond the grave helped last week to convict Britain’s latest “honor” murderer, Mehmet Goren, 49. The father of four brutally killed his 15-year-old daughter, Tulay, ten years ago for having fallen in love.

A week after Tulay’s disappearance, Unal himself became the target of an honor murder. Mehmet Gornon tried to kill him in an axe attack that put Unal in hospital with a serious neck injury. Gornon and his two brothers were also charged for that assault.

There are about a dozen reported honor murders every year now in England. How many remain unreported is unknown. After each new act of such savagery, though, the English are left asking what is happening to their once civilized country that gave the world the Magna Carta and parliamentary democracy.

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Citizenship fair reaches out to Muslims

California [HT:FC]

MISSION VIEJO- Citizenship officials are reaching out to the Muslim community in Orange County this month, partnering up with various Muslim organizations to hold informational sessions in Anaheim and Mission Viejo.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services staff will be on hand to discuss the steps needed for the naturalization process and provide information about eligibility and residency requirements.

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[READ MORE]

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'Heroes' of Discovery Channel Show Use Lasers on Japanese Whalers

Subject: txt grn edu msm bias bdd intl -

The Discovery Channel program "Whale Wars" portrays the radical activists of the left-wing Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as heroes going up against Japanese whaling ships, instead of the pirate-like harassers they really are.

According to Ecorazzi.com, a self-proclaimed "green" gossip site, the group revealed it was using a "photonic disruptor" against the whaling crew. According to WickedLasers.com says that particular laser has been featured on another Discovery Channel program - "Future Weapons" - and it can "temporarily overwhelm a threat's visual senses."

Both Discovery and Ecorazzi paint the Sea Shepherd crew as heroes in the fight against evil whalers rather than expose the groups' extremist viewpoints. The "Whale Wars" Web page describes them as the only group standing between "a 750-ton whale-killing machine and its prey. Whale Wars follows the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as they seek to end Japanese whaling once and for all."

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The 'Global Imbalances' Myth

Subject: txt intl mny owg -
As the economic crisis has eased in recent months, a questionable international consensus has emerged: The global economy needs to be rebalanced. "We cannot follow the same policies that led to such imbalanced growth," President Barack Obama said during his Asia trip last month. European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet declared in September that "imbalances have been at the roots of the present difficulties. If we don't correct them, we'll have the recipe for the next major crisis."

These global "imbalances" supposedly include excessive American consumption, too much trade flowing from Asia to the West and not enough from the U.S. to Asia, and too much saving combined with insufficient spending by Chinese consumers. But what if the whole notion of global imbalances is a myth, and that policies to reverse them only make things worse?

The blunt fact is that at no point in the past century has there been anything resembling a global economic equilibrium...

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Seattle Times Publishes Erroneous Editorial on Cuba Trade Facts

Subject: txt sclm msm intl -
Oops!

It seems that the Seattle Times couldn't be bothered to do even a bit of simple research. If they had, they might have spared themselves from publishing an editorial that got the facts about American trade with Cuba completely wrong:

SEN. Maria Cantwell calls our attention to a law, signed by President Obama, allowing Cuba to buy U.S. farm produce and pay after the goods are shipped. The law reverses a Treasury ruling during the Bush years that Cuba had to pay in advance — a ruling that stopped the trade altogether.

As Humberto Fontova of the Babalu Blog colorfully pointed out:

$720 million just last year in U.S. exports to Cuba! We're Cuba's BIGGEST food supplier for almost a decade!...and YET..?!

...And YET the editorial staff of an eminently prestigious big-city newspaper was incapable of the ONE Google search that now makes COMPLETE JACKASSES of them ALL!!!

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Taxpayer-Funded Wind Farms: Jobs for China

Subject: txt intl grn engry sclm bbro -
(CNSNews.com) – Wind-power projects funded in part by the $787-billion Recovery Act (stimulus law) are coming under scrutiny at a time when President Obama and other Democrats have promoted alternative forms of energy production. Two New York Democrats – Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Eric Massa – are among the lawmakers criticizing specific wind-power projects that are getting hundreds of millions in taxpayer subsidies.

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POLL: Most Americans Worry Government Will Do Too Much

Subject: txt sclm bbro hcare mny =
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 35% are more concerned that the government will not do enough. Thirteen percent (13%) are not sure.

These numbers are roughly the same as a month ago.

When President Obama took office in January, 48% worried about too much government while 40% feared that the government wouldn’t do enough.

Thirty percent (30%) of voters now believe the $787-billion economic stimulus plan has helped the economy. But 38% say the stimulus plan has hurt the economy, marking the first time since the legislation passed in February that a plurality has held a negative view of its impact. The week after the president signed the bill, 34% said it would help the economy, while 32% said it would hurt.

Sixty percent (60%) of Democrats worry more than the government will not do enough to help the economy. Sixty-seven percent (67%) of Republicans and 71% of voters not affiliated with either party have the opposite concern and fear the government will do too much. [unusual split - typo?]

Sixty-six percent (66%) of all voters prefer a smaller government with fewer services and lower taxes over a more active government with more services and higher taxes.

[But most voted for Obama. How explain? {hint: M, S, M...}]

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Another Senator refuses to say where authority to mandate health insurance stems

Subject: txt bbro sclm legal crpt hcare -
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) declined to say where Congress gets the constitutional authority to require every American to have health insurance, as both the Senate and House health care bills mandate. At the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Dec. 22, CNSNews.com asked Senator Lautenberg, ''Specifically where in the Constitution does Congress get the authority to mandate that individuals have health insurance?''

Lautenberg said, ''I am not going to answer that,'' and then walked away...

[Not going to say where they've the authority?

We're losing control.]

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It’s Not Socialism, It’s Communism

[HT:WP]
If you felt a frisson of fear on news that the Senate had passed Obamacare the day before Christmas, then you now know what it was and is like to live in a dictatorship. The voice of the people was ignored in a demonstration of raw political power.

There was a time when Americans took Communism seriously.

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2009: A year of new lows

Subject: txt lbrty crpt reps libs bdd sclm bbro -
What a difference a year makes! Last year, it was all about “hope and change.” This year, it is all about “smoke and mirrors.” Last year was “post-partisan”; this year is “post-partisan depression.”

Last year we had a Constitution; this year we don’t.

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Relief Without Limits: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Get Blank Checks; NYT Provides Blank Coverage

Subject: txt mny msm -
On Thursday, the Treasury Department issued a press release, called "Update on Status of Support for Housing Programs." Its fourth paragraph reads as follows:

At the time the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship in September 2008, Treasury established Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs) to ensure that each firm maintained a positive net worth. Treasury is now amending the PSPAs to allow the cap on Treasury's funding commitment under these agreements to increase as necessary to accommodate any cumulative reduction in net worth over the next three years. At the conclusion of the three year period, the remaining commitment will then be fully available to be drawn per the terms of the agreements.

Translation: No matter how badly things further deteriorate at these former government sponsored enterprises, both of which since last year in essence become government-controlled enterprises, Uncle Sam (i.e., current and future generations of taxpayers) will cover their losses.

Here is how three different news outlets headlined this Treasury/Obama administration move:

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Obama feigns outrage over bonuses, then approvesbigger bailout for bonus-givers Fannie and Freddie

Subject: txt mny crpt libs reps bdd -
This deserves -- and will get -- much more than the passing reference of a weekend blog post, but it is significant to see this news go down the Christmas news dump:

“The Obama administration pledged Thursday to provide unlimited financial assistance to mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, an eleventh-hour move that allows the government to exceed the current $400 billion cap on emergency aid without seeking permission from a bailout-weary Congress."

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Blank check sends Fannie, Freddie soaring

Subject: txt mny sclm bbro crpt -
New York - Shares of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soared Monday after the Treasury Department announced what essentially amounts to a blank check for their bailouts.

[We refuse to learn.]

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image toon - mny = Market rise = bail out bubble

S.C. AG: Nelson deal 'corruption'

Subject: txt hcare crpt -
South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster said Monday that the deal Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) struck with Senate leadership in exchange for his vote on health care reform “represents corruption.” McMaster is one of 10 Republican state attorneys general who are questioning the constitutionality of the Medicaid deal which would exempt Nebraska from paying its share of the program’s expansion in the state — an estimated $100 million cost over the next 10 years.

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CNN: 'Might the Republicans Blame in Part Themselves' for Senate Sweetheart Deals?

[Meanwhile, in our professional media...]

On CNN's American Morning today, anchor Carol Costello advanced a theory on who's responsible for the Let's Make a Deal environment permeating the Senate as it stumbles to completion of a health care bill. Here is part of her exchange with CNN political analyst and GOP strategist Ed Rollins:

COSTELLO: Might (the) Republicans blame in part themselves for this, because none of them were going to vote? Didn't they sort of force Senator Reid's hand in making some of these sweetheart deals?

Yes, if only those intransigent Senate Republicans has been more accommodating, the Cornhusker Kickback, the Louisiana Purchase, expanded Medicare coverage to “individuals exposed to environmental health hazards recognized as a public health emergency in a declaration issued by the federal government on June 17," and other special considerations wouldn't have been necessary.

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image toon - crpt hcare reps libs bdd = SENATE whores

Clearing the Air on the Clean Air Act and Climate Change

Green believers give no indication of slowing their quest for carbon dioxide control

On December 9, news reports said "the Obama administration is warning Congress that if it doesn't move to regulate greenhouse gases, the Environmental Protection Agency will take a 'command-and-control' role over the process in a way that could hurt business." The threat is to use the Clean Air Act.

This ploy is basically extortion. As an experienced lawyer, I bristle at this brutish tactic to induce business to plead for the mercy of the regulatory guillotine instead of being drawn and quartered.

Most Americans do not understand the chokehold carbon dioxide control would give government over almost everything we do. Giving government the power to allot carbon dioxide gives it essential control over most means of production. This is "the road to serfdom" that the great F.A. Hayek warned about.

Whether global warming is occurring at a significantly increased and dangerous pace over normal variations because of mankind is the issue. Very credible data show and numerous scientists contend that there is little effect on climate from carbon dioxide emissions, and that mankind's contribution of carbon dioxide to the alleged problem is not predominant to boot. I recommend to all the report "Climate Change Reconsidered" on the web at NIPCC.

If Waxman-Markey passes, the federal government will supervise all forms of industrial, residential, and commercial energy use. That bill will charge for carbon, impose a "cap-and-trade" system, and mandate renewable energy standards and energy efficiency requirements for American business and industry. There will be a tight nationwide system of federal supervision and regulation of energy use and climate control efforts reaching down to local building codes and housing inspectors. The 1,427 pages of the bill are a monument to the ambition of some to have rules for everything.

Indeed, even some of the most ardent alarmists say that the bill will do little to change the future climate. However, it will cost staggering sums and countless wasted man-hours. Furthermore, the emphasis on "green energy" in the bill is an engineering pipe dream because the "green" sources relied on and subsidized are inherently inadequate for the task on a national scale, and emphasis on them also would cause hardship in the third world.

The threat to use the Clean Air Act to control carbon dioxide has a somewhat hollow ring to me. I would call the administration's bluff... [snip]

This is the fight that will define the twenty-first century as either a time when mankind advances due to honest enterprise, quality science, and technical achievement...or we are subjugated by government micro-regulation from manipulative control freaks based on false and slanted data from grant recipients with no scruples...

[Recommended > ]

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Natural gas and capitalism to the rescue

Subject: txt engry lbrty gdd -
Last week's announcement by ExxonMobil that it would acquire XTO Energy in an all-stock transaction (with debt assumption) valued at $41B marks the most significant energy-related news event of the year for Americans. With Copenhagen hypocrites humbled but not destroyed, and cap-and-trade legislation still lurking in Congress, we needed something to cheer about.

This domestic transaction is the largest Exxon has made since its merger with Mobil Oil in 1999. By acquiring XTO, ExxonMobil is declaring to the world just how highly it values domestic natural gas assets and the expertise to extract it from non-traditional sources. Natural gas already contributes 24% to the country's total energy usage and heating half of our homes.

So far, users of hydro-fracing have escaped the wrath of the Clean Water Act because the affected shale deposits are much deeper than aquifers and the industry has a generally excellent record in sealing wells from contact with groundwater. But that exclusion could be in jeopardy.

Democrats led by Edward Markey will hold hearings next year to determine if hydro-fracing merits this ongoing exclusion. Exxon is sufficiently concerned to have inserted an escape clause in their XTO acquisition terms to allow it to scuttle the deal if any new laws make hydro-fracing commercially impractical...

[Ever looking for new ways to commit energy suicide, while the rest of the world laughs at us (most especially our enemies, who's efforts against us we finance...]

[Highly Recommended > ]

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Cheap natural gas and its enemies

Subject: txt engry -
A vast reservoir of clean-burning natural gas could be available at reasonable cost in the coming years, freeing us from some of our dependence on imported energy. Yet, there are those who see such a development as a threat. A small group of billionaires (and mere multi-millionaires), formed under the aegis of the Democracy Alliance

But why would the politically active Sandlers suddenly enter the media world? Perhaps it's because they realize the political and financial benefits that can flow from influencing the news. We may be seeing a sample of this type of handiwork now.

Among the first "exposés" Pro Publica undertook was an attack on energy companies for developing the Marcellus Shale, a vast natural gas reservoir stretching across several states. The "exposé" focused on putative environmental effects that might result from tapping these reserves. The technology used to unleash this natural gas from the shale in which it is trapped is called "fracking." Energy companies inject water, sand, and drilling fluids into the rock to "crack" it and release the natural gas. The potential for this technology is huge: America is a vast storehouse of this type of gas. Much of this is located not just in the Marcellus formation, but throughout the Rocky Mountain states. Also, the Barnett Shale region of Texas and the Bakken Shale region of North Dakota are rich with this type of natural gas.

Fracking is a proven technology. Energy experts are now predicting this technology will help free us from dependency on foreign sources of natural gas. The quantity is so vast that there is even potential for substituting natural gas for petroleum in cars and trucks. Natural gas is a clean-burning fuel that can replace coal in electric power plants. Already, the impact of this technology is beneficial. The prospect of this huge resource being tapped for years to come has brought down the price of natural gas, both in the spot market (where it is priced now) and in the futures market (where it is priced for future delivery). Indeed, the price has come down so much that the publicly held exploration and production companies that focus on natural gas have seen their share prices weaken.

Exxon Mobil was so entranced with the prospects of this technology that it has offered $31 billion dollars for XTO Energy, an energy company that has vast reserves of shale gas that can be tapped at a relatively small cost through fracking.

But there is one potential snag in the deal: Exxon can walk away if laws are passed that restrict the use of fracking...

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What bias?

Subject: txt msm bias libs fnn -
As the lone journalist on Sunday's Meet the Press roundtable (with Newt Gingrich, Michael Bloomberg and Deval Patrick), NBC's Andrea Mitchell insisted the “Obama Doctrine” has “borne fruit,” but “it is not perceived yet” -- though the President has already “united the world behind the United States.”

Citing all those who “camped out” for the Sarah Palin book signings, Mitchell denigrated her appeal as evidence of how

“they are so hungry for a symbol for anyone who can give them answers” it shows “there's an anger out there” she hasn't seen since George Wallace in 1968. And that, she maintained, “is the angry populism which is not fact-based, it's just furious at everybody; angry at Democrats, at Republicans.”

Apparently, favoring conservative policies and rejecting liberal big government spending is “not fact-based.”

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Mich. Muslims join Jews for Christmas Day Mitzvah

DETROIT -- Many Jews consider Christmas Day an opportunity to serve their community while Christian neighbors celebrate their holiday. This year, what's also known as Mitzvah Day in southeast Michigan is getting an added boost from Muslims. For the first time, about 40 Muslims are expected to join 900 Jews for what they call their largest annual day of volunteering. Leaders say it's a small but significant step in defusing tensions and promoting good will...

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