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Title: Dogs Of War Stage Another Iraq At Home
Description: AMERICANS UNDER ATTACK


alive and still talking - April 13, 2007 12:36 AM (GMT)
AMERICANS UNDER ATTACK !
user posted image
mexican-american family with
tiny children is suspected
of being illegal and arrested

RESIDENTS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE HAVE WITNESSED A TREND IN
HOMELAND SECURITY MEASURES WHICH TARGET EVERYDAY
AMERICANS INSTEAD OF TERRORIST NETWORKS ABROAD.
REPUBLICANS NOW FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL BY TARGETING AMERICANS

REPUBLICAN REGIME HAS INITIATED ITS OWN BATTLE OF SURVIVAL
BY FORCEFULLY TAKING BACK CONTROL OF THE POOR WORKING
CLASS DEMOCRATIC VOTING SECTOR, STAGING SHAKEDOWNS
AT PLACES OF EMPLOYMENT, STAGING ATTACKS ON AMERICANS

AND EVEN THE PRESENCE OF OUR MILITARY AND A GREAT WALL POSTED
ALONG THE MEXICAN BORDER, IN A RIDICULOUS ATTEMPT TO INSURE THAT DEMOCRATIC NUMBERS WILL NOT INCREASE, BUT THEY ARE TOO LATE

THEY CLAIM THE GIANT WALL [ LOOKS LIKE WALL IN MIDDLE EAST ] WAS
BUILT TO PROTECT US FROM THE AL QAEDA, BUT THE REAL FUNCTION OF
THE WALL IS TO KEEP MEXICANS FROM CROSSING BACK AND FORTH
THE ONLY THING THE WALL DOES ACCOMPLISH IS TOO KILL WILDLIFE BY BLOCKING ITS ONLY WATER SOURCE.

BELIEVING THAT HARASSMENT AND TERROR WILL HELP THEM REGAIN
CONTROL OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE NEXT ELECTION. THEIR MINDSET
IS THAT THE POOR WORKING CLASS HAS NO REAL DEFENSE AGAINST
ABUSE OF POWER FROM THE WHITE HOUSE.

DEMOCRATIC CONTENDERS WHO HAVE SOMETHING TO HIDE ARE JUST AS VULNERABLE. SCANDAL TACTICS ARE CURRENTLY UNDERWAY TO UNDERMINE THE POPULARITY OF DEMOCATIC CANDIDATES

TRIED TO WATCH CNN TODAY, NOW GOT THE CURE, NEVER AGAIN.
THE ENTIRE DAY OF BROADCASTING PUMPED FULL OF REPUBLICAN
REGIME COCK n' BULL STORIES, MUCH OF IT BRAINWASHING, TARGETING
AMERICANS . JUST LIKE THE COCK N' BULL STORY ABOUT THE 911 ATTACK

EVEN A FAKE POLL ON AMERICANS: CLAIMING 68 % OF AMERICANS
WATCHING CNN TODAY WANTED TO RE-OPEN THE SAME DRAFT THAT
KILLED MILLIONS OF OUR BOYS IN VIETNAM.....

DO THEY REALLY THINK AMERICANS TODAY ARE GOING TO BELIEVE THAT?

REPUBLICANS ALMOST SUCCEEDED IN ESCALATING THE MIDDLE EAST WAR ...

IF NOT FOR THE RECENT INCREASE IN DEMOCRATIC SEATS IN LEGISLATURE,

REPUBLICANS WOULD HAVE SUCCEEDED IN BRINGING BACK THE DRAFT,

BUT AMERICANS VOTED THEM OUT OF THE LEGISLATURE "JUST IN TIME"

HISPANIC AMERICANS ARE NOW PORTRAYED AS ILLEGALS, AS

POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS, FREQUENTLY LINKED TO NARCOTICS

OFFENSES, CNN EVEN USED A FAKE VIDEO OF DRUG CARTEL

SLAYING, COMPARING IT TO THE INFAMOUS " AL QAEDA TAPES "


NO ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO CONFIRM IF TAPE MAY HAVE BEEN
GENERATED BY FEDERAL AGENTS... SUCH HAS BEEN DONE WITH
MANY AL QAEDA TAPES IN THE PAST.

THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY REPRESENTS A SOLID PRESENCE IN THE

STRENGTH OF OUR DEMOCRATIC PARTY. AFTER THEIR HELP TO GET

BUSH INTO OFFICE FOR HIS FIRST TERM...

THEY REALIZED THEIR MISTAKE

AND MADE A POINT TO VOTE A SOLID DEMOCRATIC TICKET THIS PAST

YEAR TO CORRECT THE MADDENING CONTROL WAGED BY REPUBLICANS

AFTER A RECENT FAILED ATTEMPT TO ADD DEMOCRATS TO THE STATE
LEGISLATURE IN TEXAS, HISPANICS REALIZED THAT THE OUTCOME
OF TEXAS STATE ELECTIONS HAD BEEN MANIPULATED, BECAUSE
THEY CAME OUT IN FULL SUPPORT OF DEMOCRATIC NOMINEES, ONLY
TO WATCH THE REPUBLICANS ONCE AGAIN CONTROL TEXAS LEGISLATURE
ALL WERE CONVINCED THE ELECTIONS WERE RIGGED.........

MEXICAN-AMERICANS ARE A HARD-WORKING, FAMILY ORIENTED
FAST-GROWING CULTURE IN OUR SOCIETY,
REPRESENTING ONE-THIRD THE AMERICAN POPULATION
WHICH IS HISPANIC, ALSO CONSISTING OF IMMIGRANTS FROM CUBA,
PUERTO RICO AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD
THE REPUBLICAN AND MILITARY REGIME
KNOW THEY ALL VOTE THE DEMOCRATIC TICKET
THE REGIME KNOWS IT HAS LITTLE MORE THAN A YEAR TO
GO BEFORE THE NOVEMBER ELECTION OF 2008, EVERY DESPERATE MEASURE
INCLUDING ABUSE OF POWER IS BEING UTILIZED TO CHANGE THE OUTCOME

HISPANICS ARE THE NEW "SILENT MAJORITY" MANY ARE DEVOUT CATHOLICS

[ THAT MEANS A GUARANTEE OF DEMOCRATIC VOTES IN NOVEMBER 2008 ]

THIS IS WHY REPUBLICAN-BASED MEDIA ARE NOW ATTACKING OUR

HISPANIC POPULATION.......THEY KNOW HISPANICS ARE ALL DEMOCRATS.




REAGAN ONCE MADE REFERENCE TO THE SILENT MAJORITY HERE IN THE

UNITED STATES, MOST THOUGHT HE MEANT BAPTISTS...


WELL, MOVE OVER PILGRIM... THERES A NEW BAND IN TOWN AND IT

HAS A NEW BEAT. THIS TIME, EVEN REPUBLICAN CONTROLS AND SCARE

TACTICS CAN NOT STOP THE TIDE OF DEMOCRACY.

Tim Riches - April 13, 2007 02:25 AM (GMT)
I had my final dose of CNN yesterday when they all but praised the Iraqi Black Market. The story was on the increasing number of Iraqis who turn to 'SSRI' type medication in order to cope with their shattered lives. That they were doing so was treated as natural and even inevitable, while they focusued on the kid who sold Viagra at $1 a sheet. I truly worry when stories like this promote the fallacy that you can make life better for yourself simply by popping a pill.

I turned off the set and haven't had it on since.

alive and still talking - April 13, 2007 03:50 AM (GMT)
Thanks for the comment, Tim. Have to say it all started out when I tried to
see if Rosie was going to be on the "VIEW", she must still be there, since
the entire hour was blocked out by what was called a news bulletin about
2 clerics killed by suicide bomber in Bagdad, feature went on all day long.

Tried to change channels to cable channel that had the "VIEW" scheduled
and the channel was BLANK. a grey color. Guess that was a media grey-out
not a media blackout on Rosie, so I changed it back, hoping to see Rosie
there was CNN again, this time attacking Mexican-Americans

The portrayal of the mexican-american issue is a grey area as well. They
were here LONG BEFORE European settlers came to this region. I live in Texas.
Mexican-American culture is as much a part of this country and its great
history as any other culture, perhaps even greater.

Mexico is our neighbor and great friend to the United States, in a very
troubled time, and a very troubled world. After hurricane Katrina the
Mexican army brought our people aid when our own LAME GOVERNMENT
could not even help its own people.

We as Americans by law respect the right of citizenship to any child born
in this country. Most Mexican-American people have been here for 10 or
more generations. Any family with immigration issues may only involve
one family member. To suggest an attack on a family with children would
disrupt the entire family and destroy the children, who are our future.

It is sad to think that teh Republican Regime would sink so low. They suffer
enough because of the WALL that separates them from family members living
in MEXICO, many have not been able to see relatives for over 10 years, since
the Bush regime took over. I have witnessed people crying for their loved
ones, loved ones that they will never see again, because of a WALL that looks
like it was BUILT in PALISTINE.

I try to tell them about this movement to make people aware of the TRUTH.
They are distrusting of everything due to SCARE TACTICS launched by the
Bush Regime and their MEDIA DAY AFTER DAY. More should be done to help
them visit our site, and make them aware of their VICTORY over opression,

We have the HISPANIC VOTERS to THANK for turning the TIDE for us in the
LAST NOVEMBER ELECTIONS. Without their VOICE there would not have been
a victory over Republican control. November was a great moment in our
American heritage, we have ALL Latinos to thank for saving us.

alive and still talking - April 16, 2007 09:27 PM (GMT)
TODAY ON C-SPAN, MILITARY ADVISORS, SENATORS, EXPRESS CONCERN:

SENATOR HARRY REID, BRIG. GENERAL JOHN GARD, ADMIRAL JOSEPH LOPEZ, SENATOR LEVINE, ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF GORDON SULLIVAN, USAF LT. GEN. LARRY FARRELL, USAF GEN. CHUCK WALD, US ARMY GEN PAUL KEN-us army material command,ADMIRAL SKIP BOWEN-nuclear propulsion, ADMIRAL PRUEHER-commander in chief pacific, VICE-ADMIRAL TRULY-nasa admin, naval command

THE TWO PRESS CONFERENCES WERE HELD BACK-TO-BACK BEFORE THE PRESS AND THE PUBLIC BROADCAST MEDIA TO DENOUNCE THE WAR IN IRAQ, AND SET GUIDLINES FOR PROTECTING THIS COUNTRY'S FUTURE.

SEVERAL TIMES ON THIS NETWORK, SENATORS AND MILITARY BRASS MADE REFERENCE TO PRESIDENT BUSH AS" LACKING KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT IS GOING ON AROUND HIM", ONE SPECULATION WAS MADE THAT "MAYBE HE IS TOO PROTECTED IN THE WHITE HOUSE AND HAS NOT BEEN INFORMED"


THATS A NICE WAY OF SAYING: BUSH RETARDED, BUSH HELD IN IVORY TOWER

alive and still talking - April 23, 2007 05:48 AM (GMT)
NewsroomPress Release of Senator Reid
Reid: Democrats, Military Leaders, and American People Committed to Changing Course in Iraq
user posted image

Monday, April 16, 2007



StateSide:Policy
Eye on Congress
Dems Respond to Bush: Change Course on Iraq
Flanked by Generals, Reid Calls for 'Responsible' End to War
04/16/2007 6:34 PM ET
Alex Wong/Getty
WASHINGTON - APRIL 16: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) © speaks as Army Lt. General Robert G. Gard (Ret.) (L) and Brig. General John H. Johns (Ret.) ® looks on during a news conference to call for "a change of course in Iraq" April 16, 2


"The American people, a bipartisan majority of Congress and senior military leaders, including these two distinguished officers standing next to me, have all called for a change of course in Iraq. But President Bush and Vice President Cheney refuse to listen. They are isolated in their thinking and are failing our troops and our country," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid today said today at a press conference standing next to Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr. (USA, Ret.) and Brig. General John H. Johns (USA, Ret.).

"Congress is committed to fully funding our troops, changing the course in Iraq and responsibly ending the war," Reid continued. "When Democratic leaders sit down with the President this Wednesday we will be bringing with us the concerns of the American people and the advice of military experts."

Reid's press conference came on the same day that Bush staged his own media event, surrounded by military families, reiterating his intent to veto any legislation that includes a timetable for withdrawal of US troops.


U.S. Policy | U.S. Government | U.S. Military Email This Post


NewsroomPress Release of Senator Reid
Reid: Democrats, Military Leaders, and American People Committed to Changing Course in Iraq

Washington, DC— Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada today issued the following statement at a press conference with Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr. (USA, Ret.) and Brig. General John H. Johns (USA, Ret.):
"Today, in the fifth year of this civil war, U.S. forces are suffering losses at a rate not seen since the bloody battle of Fallujah over two years ago and there is no end in sight. Yet the President and the Vice President continue to desperately cling to their failed escalation strategy and attack those who disagree with them.



"The American people, a bipartisan majority of Congress and senior military leaders, including these two distinguished officers standing next to me, have all called for a change of course in Iraq. But President Bush and Vice President Cheney refuse to listen. They are isolated in their thinking and are failing our troops and our country.


"Congress is committed to fully funding our troops, changing the course in Iraq and responsibly ending the war. When Democratic leaders sit down with the President this Wednesday we will be bringing with us the concerns of the American people and the advice of military experts.


"The President has a choice to make in the coming days - cling to the discredited policies that have led our troops further into an intractable civil war or work with a bipartisan majority of Congress to make us more secure."



###

alive and still talking - April 26, 2007 02:58 AM (GMT)
IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDINGS UNDERWAY :

THE AMERICAN PEOPLE HAVE HAD ENOUGH

DEMOCRATS CALL THE WHITE HOUSE ON LIES,

PROPAGANDA, AND SUBTRUFUGE TO START A WAR .........

c-span website

House Panel Authorizes Subpoena for Rice, RNC E-Mails April 25, 2007
by Congressional Quarterly

he Democratic-run House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on today authorized subpoenas for Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan and RNC e-mails as it ramps up a number of investigations of the Bush administration. Chairman Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif., announced that the panel would put off until Thursday expected action to compel testimony from former White House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card to consider an offer by White House counsel Fred Fielding, who earlier had declined a request for Card’s voluntary testimony. Waxman also said “substantial compliance” had eliminated the need to subpoena information about work done for Vice President Dick Cheney’s office by defense contractor MZM Inc., which was at the center of the bribery scandal that landed former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, R-Calif. (1991-2005), in a federal prison. Waxman has been trying to get Rice to testify about claims Iraq was attempting to obtain uranium, a vital element for nuclear weaponry, in the buildup to the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. The committee voted 21-10 to authorize him to issue a subpoena to Rice. In a separate matter, Waxman and other Democrats have raised concerns about whether White House officials are using private RNC e-mail accounts to conduct public business. The panel voted 20-8 to authorize a subpoena for Duncan and authorized one for RNC documents by voice vote.


alive and still talking - May 2, 2007 08:08 AM (GMT)
BUSH AND MILITARY TARGET HISPANIC FAMILIES,

Marcelino Rodriguez, 36, from Jalisco, Mexico, who has lived in the United States for 28 years, lifts his five-month-old son, Francisco, as demonstrators gather to rally downtown Los Angeles Tuesday, May 1, 2007. Immigrants demanding a path to citizenship for an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants hope that the nationwide marches will spur Congress to act before the looming presidential primaries take over the political landscape.

CHICAGO (AP) -- Magda Ortiz believes a recent raid in a largely Mexican neighborhood of Chicago made people too afraid to march in an immigration rights rally, which drew far fewer protesters than turned out last year.

Ortiz, a 27-year-old legal resident from Mexico and mother of two, pushed through crowds on the city's lakefront with a stroller bearing a sign that read: "Bush, think about the moms. Stop the raids."

But if the raids kept some people away, organizers said, they drew out others who were determined to show they wouldn't be intimidated.

"If they had fear, they turned that fear into courage to come out and march," said Elias Bermudez, president of the activist group Inmigrantes Sin Fronteras, or Immigrants Without Borders, at a demonstration in Phoenix. About 15,000 people marched there, some with signs reading "Stop the roundups" or "The sleeping giant woke up forever."

A few dozen counter-protesters turned out, including George Propheter, who held up a large handwritten sign that read "Hell No."

"I want to send them back," he said. "I've been in the city for 40 years. They've completely destroyed our city."

In Chicago, where more than 400,000 swarmed the streets last year, police put initial estimates at 150,000, by far the country's largest turnout. In Los Angeles, where several hundred thousand turned out a year earlier, about 25,000 attended a downtown rally, said police Capt. Andrew Smith.

Protests were mostly peaceful, except for an evening rally at a park in Los Angeles, where several people threw rocks and bottles at police and at least person was arrested, Officer Mike Lopez said. Police fired rubber bullets and used batons to push the crowd out of the street and onto the sidewalk. An unknown number of officers and protesters were taken to the hospital with injuries, Lopez said.

March organizers had long predicted lower turnouts, blaming stepped-up raids, frustration that Congress hasn't passed immigration reform and an effort by many groups to shift their focus from street mobilizations to citizenship and voter registration drives.

"There's no reason a pro-immigration bill can't be passed. That's one of the messages being sent today," said Chicago protester Shaun Harkin, 34, of Northern Ireland, who has lived in the United States as a legal resident for 15 years.

Though fewer in number, protesters did show up in cities from Miami to Detroit to San Antonio. Many of those waving flags, chanting, and carrying hand-painted signs said they were frustrated by what they see as little progress.

"After working 22 years here, paying taxes and being a good citizen, I think it's fair they give me residency," said Los Angeles protester Manuel Hernandez, 38-year-old Mexican who along with his wife and two children is undocumented. "It's not fair we don't have documents."

Others were more optimistic.

"This could be a tipping point, where there will be legislation recognizing that laws on the books now are a mess and don't recognize reality," said Gordon Mayer, a vice president of the Community Media Workshop, which helped organize the Chicago march.

"Last year these people were defending themselves. This time they're going on the offensive," Manuel Rendon, 19, a U.S. citizen who lives in Frisco, Texas, said at a rally in Dallas.

After last year's marches, which drew a million-plus protesters, the Senate passed a sweeping bill that would have provided a path to citizenship for many of the nation's 12 million illegal immigrants. But the bill was never reconciled with the then-Republican-controlled House, and legislation has languished since last summer. Subsequent bipartisan proposals have gotten more conservative.

Meanwhile, immigration raids and deportations are increasing.

In fiscal year 2006, federal immigration officials deported 195,024 people, compared with 173,363 the previous year, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement data. Six months into the current fiscal year, 125,405 have been deported.

The raids included one last week at a discount mall in Chicago's Little Village neighborhood that resulted in charges against 22 people.

Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean told immigrant supporters in Miami that a reform bill currently before Congress was "insane" because it would require many illegal immigrants to return home before applying for citizenship.

"This is a government that can't find a 6-foot-4 terrorist. How is it going to find 12 million people?" he told a group of more than 100 party supporters at Parrot Jungle Island.

In New York, immigrants and their supporters added names to a painting of a tree meant to symbolize the American family and the crucial role of immigrants in U.S. history. People in the crowd then attached leaves containing names of relatives.

"These people are hardworking people," said Djounedou Titi, a West African immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for eight years. "They deserve credit. And the only credit this country can give to them is citizenship."

---

Associated Press writers Michael Tarm in Chicago, Peter Prengaman in Los Angeles, Laura Wides-Munoz in Miami, Amanda Lee Myers in Phoenix, Anabelle Garay in Dallas and Deepti Hajela in New York contributed to this report.

© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy.

Purchase this AP story for reprint.



May 1, 10:10 PM EDT

Texas Officials Criticize Fence Plan

By LYNN BREZOSKY
Associated Press Writer
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U.S. Video




McALLEN, Texas (AP) -- A new map showing President Bush's planned border fence has riled Rio Grande Valley officials, who say the proposed barrier reneges on assurances that the river would remain accessible to farmers, wildlife and recreation.

City officials in the heavily populated valley had anticipated a "virtual" fence of surveillance cameras and border patrols.

Instead, a Customs and Border Protection map depicts a structure running piecemeal along a 600-mile stretch of Texas from Presidio to Brownsville, a border region where daily life is binational.

"We were given the impression that they were not going to be building walls, that there would be more cameras, surveillance, boots on the ground," said Mike Allen, head of McAllen Economic Development Corp.

"This is going to seriously affect the farmers," he said. "They will not have access to water. It's just going to create bedlam."

The map, obtained by The Associated Press, was attached to a memo addressed to "Dear Texas Homeland Security Partner." It outlines a plan to build 370 miles of fence and 200 miles of vehicle barriers, such as concrete barriers, by the end of 2008.

Of the 370 miles of fence, Texas is to have 153, Arizona 129, California 76, and New Mexico 12. Most of the vehicle barriers will be in Arizona and New Mexico.

Russ Knocke, a spokesman for Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, said that the so-called virtual fence won't work in urban areas and that the federal government has delivered a consistent message to local officials.

"We are utilizing traditional fencing at the border generally in those areas including metropolitan areas where it is easier for an alien ... to conceal themselves in a home or a business," he said.

Agents would use technology including sensors, radar and aerial drones in remote border areas, Knocke said.

Environmentalists fear the fence will block Rio Grande water access to endangered cats such as ocelots and jaguarundi and ruin key feeding and resting areas for migratory birds.

Environmental assessments are being conducted, but border security outweighs such concerns, Knocke said.

"For more than two decades this has been a problem that has been bubbling up," he said. "There's an expectation by the American people that we secure our borders."

Chertoff has already waived requirements to get permits in environmentally sensitive areas in order to expedite construction, Knocke said.

Hidalgo County Judge J.D. Salinas said the fence would damage the regional economy, which thrives on cross-border commerce.

Mexicans cross daily to make bank deposits, buy real estate, shop and work - activities Salinas said would be threatened by the ill feelings generated in Mexico by the fence.

"Irrigation, that's one concern," Salinas said. "The other is the indirect message you're sending to you neighbor to the south."

President Bush called for 700 miles of fence during his national address last May on immigration reform, and Congress approved it. Of the $1.2 billion Congress approved, at least $400 million has been released.

The new Democratic majority in Congress could modify the law or withhold funding, Texas Congressman Henry Cuellar said.

"It's going to be difficult, but we're sure going to do everything we can," he said.

Texas' senators, both Republicans, said they expected federal officials to heed local concerns.

"I would be very concerned if they are not being listened to," said Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. "We should have local input, and private property rights should be taken into account."

Sen. John Cornyn said he would "insist that local officials, property owners and stakeholders have a voice in how we ultimately secure the border."

Cornyn said he and Hutchison had tried to require local input in legislation authorizing the fence but failed.

McAllen Mayor Richard Cortez doubts a fence would be effective. He said he has seen people forming human ladders and jumping off international bridges into the United States in full daylight and within view of agents.

"No physical wall is going to keep people from coming in," he said. "The core of the problem is an economic issue. We have integrated all of the markets in North America, but we have failed to integrate the labor market. It's the market forces that are bringing people here to work."

Officials said Chertoff had assured them they would be consulted before any fence went up.

"We met with Secretary Chertoff and we were given a commitment that he would talk to the locals before building a wall, so we're surprised that this is happening," Salinas said. "We feel there is already a structure there, which is the Rio Grande river."

(This version CORRECTS that at least $400M for the fence has been released, not appropriated.)

alive and still talking - May 2, 2007 09:25 AM (GMT)
REPUBLICANS TRY "DIGGING UP DIRT" TO DISCREDIT DEMOCRATS

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Actor and former Sen. Fred Thompson says that his potential Republican opponents are trying to dig up dirt on him while he considers running for the White House.

Thompson said Tuesday on Fox News Channel's "Hannity and Colmes" program that he was surprised to hear opposition researchers were combing through public records in Tennessee.

"I thought it would have maybe been a little early," Thompson said. "I thought it might have come from the Democrats instead of Republicans, but that's the way it is nowadays."

Thompson said his wife had heard from a man falsely claiming to be an old boyfriend with damaging information on her from when she was 16. "Of course, it wasn't any old boyfriend," he said.

Thompson said he won't let that affect his decision on whether to run for the GOP nomination.

"It's kind of like gnats swarming around a war horse," he said. "You know, they aggravate you sometimes, but in the end ... not that important."

Asked how he knew Republicans were responsible, Thompson acknowledged that he couldn't be certain.

"Well, I could be wrong," he said. "I don't flatter myself enough to think that the Democrats right now are focusing in on me."

His spokesman did not immediately return a phone call from The Associated Press seeking more details.

---

Associated Press writer Erik Schelzig in Nashville, Tenn., contributed to this report.

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alive and still talking - May 3, 2007 05:53 AM (GMT)
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Police to review clash at LA rally

By PETER PRENGAMAN
Associated Press Writer

AP VIDEO
L.A. Rally Urges Path to Citizenship

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LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Police Chief William J. Bratton on Wednesday promised an investigation into the conduct of police who dispersed an immigration rally, after videos captured officers using force with reporters and firing rubber bullets into crowds.

Bratton said officers fired 240 "nonlethal" rounds to clear MacArthur Park late Tuesday. News images showed police hitting a television cameraman to the ground, shoving people who were walking away from officers and injuries from the rubber bullets, including a Hispanic man with welts on his abdomen and back. Lines of officers moved through the park firing the rubber rounds.

"The events of yesterday, with all (the training) that we do, should not have occurred," Bratton said at a tense news conference. "We should not be engaged in attacks on the media."

Rally organizers denounced the police action as brutal.

With Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa away in El Salvador, City Council President Eric Garcetti spoke to viewers of the televised news conference in English and Spanish, stressing the duty to protect the people's right to assemble and for "a free and unencumbered news media."

John Mack - president of the five-member Police Commission, which sets policty for the Police Department - said he was "deeply disturbed and very disappointed" by the images.

"This was not a pretty picture. This incident raises serious concern regarding the use of force by some individual officers," said Mack, who is one of Bratton's bosses. The civilian commission has opened its own investigation.

Bratton said the clash occurred over 45 minutes to an hour as the rally wound down. Police were initially trying to deal with 50 to 100 "agitators," he said.

"The individuals were there to provoke police," Bratton said. "Unfortunately, they got what they came for."

Rally organizers and reporters said the clashes started around 6 p.m., when police tried to disperse demonstrators who moved into a street. Authorities said several people threw rocks and bottles at officers, who used batons to push the crowd back to the sidewalk and then cleared the park.

Eight adults and a minor were arrested on charges ranging from public alcohol consumption to assault with a deadly weapon for throwing a rock at a police officer, Bratton said.

alive and still talking - May 3, 2007 06:11 AM (GMT)
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WASHINGTON — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who is mulling a presidential bid, said his "word choice was poor" when he equated bilingual education with "the language of living in a ghetto."

In a video statement read in Spanish, subtitled in English and posted on YouTube Wednesday, the Georgia Republican said he was not attacking the Spanish language.

"I made some comments that I recognize caused a bad feeling within the Latino community. My word choice was poor but my point was simply this: In the United States it is important to speak the English language well in order to advance and have success," he said.


alive and still talking - May 4, 2007 08:57 PM (GMT)
YOU CAN BET THEY'RE NOT DEMOCRATS
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LAPD CUT BACK FORCES AT PARK RALLY
Dozens of elite officers were removed from the site hours before melee.
By Richard Winton and Matt Lait, Times Staff Writers
May 4, 2007


The Los Angeles Police Department removed dozens of elite officers from immigration protest duty in the hours before a violent clash with marchers and reporters, sources said Thursday, raising new questions about how commanders handled the incident.

The disclosure came as the FBI opened an inquiry Thursday into the clash that left 10 people injured.

Police Chief William J. Bratton escalated his criticism of the officers' tactics and said the department's three investigations would focus on the actions not only of line officers but also of the top brass who gave the orders.

"There were mistakes made here all the way up and down the line. I want to make that clear," Bratton said. "Was there lack of supervision? Was there lack of leadership? What were [the line officers] directed to do?"

Bratton and other LAPD officials declined to discuss the deployment plan or other specific details of the investigation.

But the disclosure of the shift provides more details of how commanders managed the protest and suggests that police might have been caught off guard by its scope.

Three platoons of the highly trained Metro Division, which were originally set to be at MacArthur Park for the end of the immigration march and rally, instead were sent home or to other assignments, including one in South Los Angeles, according to sources familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity because it involves ongoing investigations. (The size of a platoon varies, but sources estimated that the total number of officers moved were 50 to 80.)

The redeployments occurred shortly before a group of agitators began throwing bottles and other debris at the remaining officers. As crowds grew and tensions rose, officers came under attack, sources said, and commanders scrambled to get some of the departed officers back.

Some arrived just as the confrontation began. The sources said it was not clear why commanders ordered the platoons to depart.

Bob Baker, president of the L.A. Police Protective League, said his organization had heard from its members about the redeployment and said some officers thought not enough officers were at the scene.

"Why would you take away assets when you know what happened at that location a year before?" Baker said, referring to similar disturbances that occurred at the end of the 2006 May Day rally at the park.

Even with the reduced staffing, several hundred LAPD officers — including many not in the Metro unit — were in the vicinity when commanders decided to clear the area. It is not clear whether extra officers might have changed the outcome.

LAPD officers fired at least 240 rounds of foam, sponge or fiber projectiles as they swept through the park about 6:15 p.m. The move came after police had clashed with a small group of protesters near the intersection of 7th and Alvarado streets.

Sources have said that neither the top commander nor captain was on the skirmish line as officers confronted the crowd. Bratton also said the LAPD's order to scatter, which was made from a police helicopter, in English, was inadequate.

On Thursday, Bratton offered a more detailed and pointed critique of the police actions, particularly those involving Telemundo anchor Pedro Sevcec, who was broadcasting from under a canopy. He was pushed to the ground while on live television as police shoved through.

"Here you have a tent clearly [for the] news media," Bratton said. The anchor "wears a suit and tie and there is clearly cameras … and the knocking over of cameras in the tent — that behavior is not under any circumstances justified."

He also said he was troubled by reports that police used force on women and children who had gone to the park to play.

"The idea that officers would be firing — some of these devices send out five or six projectiles with one shot — that is a concern," Bratton said.

Andre Birotte, the LAPD's inspector general, said part of his investigation would focus on whether there were adequate resources and training for the officers involved.

"Were there sufficient planning and resources detailed and dedicated to this event, and was LAPD's response appropriate to the actions of the crowd?" Birotte said. "If they thought they were undermanned, it could play a role in why they used the force they used. We are going to look at that issue."

The FBI said in a statement that its "preliminary inquiry" will examine "whether the civil rights of protesters taking part in the May 1st immigration rally were violated."

The FBI has opened similar probes after other recent high-profile LAPD incidents, including the fatal shooting in 2005 of a 13-year-old.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, speaking to reporters in Mexico City during a stop on his nine-day trade mission, said he would welcome the FBI's role in the investigation of Tuesday's violence. Late Thursday, the mayor said he was cutting short his trade mission and would return to Los Angeles today to deal with the May Day issue.

Mexico's consul general in Los Angeles, Ruben Beltran, said in Mexico City that he trusted Bratton to deal with the issue in an honest and candid way.

Beltran, who witnessed the melee in the park, said Bratton called him Wednesday in Mexico to say that the Police Department would reach out to the immigrant community and take its investigation seriously.

alive and still talking - May 5, 2007 03:38 PM (GMT)
Bush grandstands Cinco de Mayo celebration in a deperate attempt at damage
control. The Mexican-American voters, as well as all Latino voters have committed
to the Democratic Party permanently since Republicans have waged war against them.

sorry, no photo...his face induces nausea

.A. Mayor Condemns Rally Violence

By ANDREW GLAZER
Associated Press Writer

L.A. Mayor Expresses Concern

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa condemned the Police Department's use of force against demonstrators and reporters at an immigration rally, saying he was "deeply, personally troubled" by the clash.

The mayor returned home Friday after cutting short a trade mission to El Salvador and Mexico amid criticism for being out of town since Tuesday's melee at MacArthur Park.

"Like every Angeleno I was deeply, personally troubled by the events of May 1st," the mayor said at City Hall. "Those images hit me in the gut.

"... We don't need a long and lengthy investigation to stand up and speak to the truth. What happened on May 1st was wrong, was wrong," he said.

Police struck reporters and demonstrators with batons and fired more than 240 rubber bullets into a crowd that included children at the end of an immigration rights rally. Officers say they responded after being pelted by rocks and bottles.

Though no one was seriously hurt, images of baton-wielding officers knocking people to the ground have played repeatedly on cable TV newscasts, ramping up the pressure on Villaraigosa to return from the trade mission.

At least four investigations, including an FBI civil rights inquiry, have been opened into the police response. And Three protesters have filed a federal lawsuit, alleging police violated their constitutional rights.

State legislators, immigration activists and others returned to MacArthur Park on Friday to denounce the department's conduct.

"To say we are outraged is an understatement," said state Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles. "We want those responsible in the highest levels of the LAPD to pay consequences."

The police union criticized Nunez for what it called "police bashing.

"... Setting up the population to believe that law enforcement is the enemy is a dangerous game," union President Robert Baker wrote in a letter Friday. "It provokes a lethal us-against-them, anti-law enforcement mentality that encourages violence against police officers."

Nunez's spokesman Steve Maviglio said late Friday that the speaker's outrage "should not be misconstrued as attack on the entire LAPD but rather at the command staff and the few officers who were using excessive force ... The police union should be outraged as well since the few who did this tarnishes the reputation of the brave officers who protect and defend us."

Police Chief William J. Bratton has expressed "grave concern" about what happened and promised a full investigation. He has said the use of force began while officers were dealing with 50 to 100 "agitators" who threw objects. At the press conference, he said he was "embarrassed for this department and embarrassed for the city we serve."

Meanwhile, KTTV television news camerawoman Patti Ballaz filed a claim for unspecified damages against the city and Police Department alleging civil rights violations. The full nature of Ballaz's actual injuries was not yet clear. She suffered a fractured wrist and injuries to her ankle and was hit in the breast with a police baton, said Kathy Pinckert, a spokeswoman for Ballaz's attorneys.

There was no official tally of how many reporters were struck by police. Local media groups said they would meet this weekend to determine how to proceed.

Victor Narro, an attorney with the National Lawyers Guild who helped organize Tuesday's demonstration, said his group is reviewing videotape and considering whether to sue the department. He noted that in one tape he saw police fire a rubber round at a boy who appeared to be 10 and "toss him aside like a piece of meat."

John Mack, president of the Police Commission, the civilian overseers of the Police Department, told reporters the clash was "a terrible breakdown" and the panel wants to get to the bottom of who was in charge at the time.

"We have a responsibility to protect individuals while they're expressing themselves," Mack said.

© 2007 The Associated Press.






alive and still talking - May 10, 2007 12:05 PM (GMT)
ABUSE OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE,
ABUSE OF THE DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM A SIGN OF THE TIMES
REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN PREDICTS BUSH WILL BE IMPEACHED
SAYS U.S. IS CLOSE TO A DICTATORSHIP

user posted image
Paul Joseph Watson/Prison Planet.com | March 3 2006

Republican Congressman Ron Paul has gone on record with his prediction that the impeachment of George W. Bush is right around the corner but warned that in the meantime the US was slipping perilously close to a dictatorship.

Appearing on the Alex Jones Show and addressing the port sell-out, Paul stated that, "it probably will contribute to the Republican's failure in the next election."

Asked if the Democrats would use gains in the mid-term elections to set in motion impeachment proceedings against George W. Bush, Paul responded,

"I predict that would happen."

"I think he (Bush) has numerous things that the Democrats if they get a chance, not only will they be after him for that but it will be payback for the Clinton impeachment."

Paul was inclined to believe that the port sales would go ahead anyway but took a positive perspective in pointing out that it again highlighted George W. Bush's complete abandonment of conservative principles.

user posted image
THE LITTLE DICTATOR

"At least this has awakened a lot of people and I think this is going to serve as a benefit," said Paul. "They're likely to pull this deal off but the American people are awakening now and I think there's going to be a payback period in the election."

The Congressman expressed his resignation at the passage of the Patriot Act and how it again underscores Bush's unchecked powers

"They had a few token changes which mean nothing and under the present system he (President Bush) just ignores what he doesn't like anyway."

Asked if the US was heading into a dictatorship, Paul responded,

"It's getting close to it, it's called usurpation of power and it's done in many ways with Congress just going along because they're sound asleep and this certainly is an attack on our Constitution and on our freedoms."

Charlie Brown - May 10, 2007 10:27 PM (GMT)
The one thing we need for a President is someone who supports family, supports good moral values, and who supports immigration. (Add anything else here, just wanted to list a couple of things.)

Bush is really abusing his power, to tell you the truth, I can't wait until election day 08 (Unless Bush is impeached.). I think America should just stay out of any other Countries for a while. If they haven't done anything to us, then we shouldn't need to do anything to them.

With Bush vetoing the bill, it is becoming more like a dictatorship. Congress can't stop him, the only thing that will is an impeachment, or election day 08.

Btw, read all your posts..good job doing all that research.

Although, I think grouping all Republicans into a big regime is a little bias, but other than that. Good job. B)

alive and still talking - May 11, 2007 07:55 AM (GMT)
thank you, charlie, for the good word. Im pushing 60 and totally disabled but not
bad off enough to stop fighting this Bush garbage any way I can. posting stuff I find on the web and add my own 2 cents worth so that new members like yourself can get the information you need to stay with us.

members who have been here a while think leaving URL sites is enough, but new members have to see dialogue in order to stop and read it. the information we provide is not bleached and cut by government controlled media. the first few days as a new member are critical

many are easily led off into other websites that are not part of the real movement. you dont have to worry about this one, this one started it all.

welcome to the forum-go to inbox and message me if you need any help or want to talk

alive and still talking - May 11, 2007 04:10 PM (GMT)
HOW THE REPUBLICAN REGIME STOLE THE WHITE HOUSE
REPUBLICAN STRONGHOLD AT STATE LEVELS THREATENS 2008

Powerful Government Accountability Office report confirms key 2004 stolen election findings
by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
October 26, 2005

As a legal noose appears to be tightening around the Bush/Cheney/Rove inner circle, a shocking government report shows the floor under the legitimacy of their alleged election to the White House is crumbling.

The latest critical confirmation of key indicators that the election of 2004 was stolen comes in an extremely powerful, penetrating report from the Government Accountability Office that has gotten virtually no mainstream media coverage.

The government's lead investigative agency is known for its general incorruptibility and its thorough, in-depth analyses. Its concurrence with assertions widely dismissed as "conspiracy theories" adds crucial new weight to the case that Team Bush has no legitimate business being in the White House.

Senior Judiciary Committee Democrat John Conyers (D-MI) asked the GAO to investigate electronic voting machines as they were used during the November 2, 2004 presidential election. The request came amidst widespread complaints in Ohio and elsewhere that often shocking irregularities defined their performance.

According to CNN, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee received "more than 57,000 complaints" following Bush's alleged re-election. Many such concerns were memorialized under oath in a series of sworn statements and affidavits in public hearings and investigations conducted in Ohio by the Free Press and other election protection organizations.

The United States is the only major democracy that allows private partisan corporations to secretly count and tabulate the votes with proprietary non-transparent software. Rev. Jesse Jackson, among others, has asserted that "public elections must not be conducted on privately-owned machines." The CEO of one of the most crucial suppliers of electronic voting machines, Warren O'Dell of Diebold, pledged before the 2004 campaign to deliver Ohio and thus the presidency to George W. Bush.

Bush's official margin of victory in Ohio was just 118,775 votes out of more than 5.6 million cast. Election protection advocates argue that O'Dell's statement still stands as a clear sign of an effort, apparently successful, to steal the White House.

Among other things, the GAO confirms that:

1. Some electronic voting machines "did not encrypt cast ballots or system audit logs, and it was possible to alter both without being detected." In other words, the GAO now confirms that electronic voting machines provided an open door to flip an entire vote count. More than 800,000 votes were cast in Ohio on electronic voting machines, some seven times Bush's official margin of victory.

2. "It was possible to alter the files that define how a ballot looks and works so that the votes for one candidate could be recorded for a different candidate." Numerous sworn statements and affidavits assert that this did happen in Ohio 2004.

3. "Vendors installed uncertified versions of voting system software at the local level." 3. Falsifying election results without leaving any evidence of such an action by using altered memory cards can easily be done, according to the GAO.

4. The GAO also confirms that access to the voting network was easily compromised because not all digital recording electronic voting systems (DREs) had supervisory functions password-protected, so access to one machine provided access to the whole network. This critical finding confirms that rigging the 2004 vote did not require a "widespread conspiracy" but rather the cooperation of a very small number of operatives with the power to tap into the networked machines and thus change large numbers of votes at will. With 800,000 votes cast on electronic machines in Ohio, flipping the number needed to give Bush 118,775 could be easily done by just one programmer.

5. Access to the voting network was also compromised by repeated use of the same user IDs combined with easily guessed passwords. So even relatively amateur hackers could have gained access to and altered the Ohio vote tallies.

6. The locks protecting access to the system were easily picked and keys were simple to copy, meaning, again, getting into the system was an easy matter.

7. One DRE model was shown to have been networked in such a rudimentary fashion that a power failure on one machine would cause the entire network to fail, re-emphasizing the fragility of the system on which the Presidency of the United States was decided.

8. GAO identified further problems with the security protocols and background screening practices for vendor personnel, confirming still more easy access to the system.

The GAO findings are particularly damning when set in the context of an election run in Ohio by a Secretary of State simultaneously working as co-chair of the Bush-Cheney campaign.

The exit polls showed Kerry winning in Ohio, until an unexplained last minute shift gave the election to Bush. Similar definitive shifts also occurred in Iowa, Nevada and New Mexico, a virtual statistical impossibility.

Election officials in Mahoning County now concede that at least 18 machines visibly transferred votes for Kerry to Bush. Voters who pushed Kerry's name saw Bush's name light up, again and again, all day long. Officials claim the problems were quickly solved, but sworn statements and affidavits say otherwise. They confirm similar problems in Franklin County (Columbus). Kerry's margins in both counties were suspiciously low.

A voting machine in Mahoning County recorded a negative 25 million votes for Kerry. The problem was allegedly fixed.

In Gahanna Ward 1B, at a fundamentalist church, a so-called "electronic transfer glitch" gave Bush nearly 4000 extra votes when only 638 people voted at that polling place. The tally was allegedly corrected, but remains infamous as the "loaves and fishes" vote count.

In Franklin County, dozens of voters swore under oath that their vote for Kerry faded away on the DRE without a paper trail.

In Miami County, at 1:43am after Election Day, with the county's central tabulator reporting 100% of the vote - 19,000 more votes mysteriously arrived; 13,000 were for Bush at the same percentage as prior to the additional votes, a virtual statistical impossibility.

In Cleveland, large, entirely implausible vote totals turned up for obscure third party candidates in traditional Democratic African-American wards. Vote counts in neighboring wards showed virtually no votes for those candidates, with 90% going instead for Kerry.

Prior to one of Blackwell's illegitimate "show recounts," technicians from Triad voting machine company showed up unannounced at the Hocking County Board of Elections and removed the computer hard drive.

In response to official information requests, Shelby and other counties admit to having discarded key records and equipment before any recount could take place.

In a conference call with Rev. Jackson, Attorney Cliff Arnebeck, Attorney Bob Fitrakis and others, John Kerry confirmed that he lost every precinct in New Mexico that had a touchscreen voting machine. The losses had no correlation with ethnicity, social class or traditional party affiliation---only with the fact that touchscreen machines were used.

In a public letter, Rep. Conyers has stated that "by and large, when it comes to a voting machine, the average voter is getting a lemon - the Ford Pinto of voting technology. We must demand better."

But the GAO report now confirms that electronic voting machines as deployed in 2004 were in fact perfectly engineered to allow a very small number of partisans with minimal computer skills and equipment to shift enough votes to put George W. Bush back in the White House.

With new legislation, Ohio Republicans plan holiday burial for American Democracy
by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
December 6, 2005

A law that will make democracy all but moot in Ohio is about to pass the state legislature and to be signed by its Republican governor. Despite massive corruption scandals besieging the Ohio GOP, any hope that the Democratic party could win this most crucial swing state in future presidential elections, or carry its pivotal US Senate seat in 2006, are about to end.

House Bill 3 has already passed the Ohio House of Representatives and is about to be approved by the Republican-dominated Senate, probably before the holiday recess. Republicans dominate the Ohio legislature thanks to a heavily gerrymandered crazy quilt of rigged districts, and to a moribund Ohio Democratic party. The GOP-drafted HB3 is designed to all but obliterate any possible future Democratic revival. Opposition from the Ohio Democratic Party, where it exists at all, is diffuse and ineffectual.

HB3's most publicized provision will require positive identification before casting a vote. But it also opens voter registration activists to partisan prosecution, exempts electronic voting machines from public scrutiny, quintuples the cost of citizen-requested statewide recounts and makes it illegal to challenge a presidential vote count or, indeed, any federal election result in Ohio. When added to the recently passed HB1, which allows campaign financing to be dominated by the wealthy and by corporations, and along with a Rovian wish list of GOP attacks on the ballot box, democracy in Ohio could be all but over.

The GOP is ramming similar bills through state legislatures around the US, starting with Georgia and Indiana. The ID requirements in particular have provoked widespread opposition from newspapers such as the New York Times. The Times, among others, argues that the ID requirements and the costs associated with them, constitute an unconstitutional discriminatory poll tax.

But despite significant court challenges, the Republicans are forcing changes in long-standing election laws that have allowed citizens to vote based on their signature alone. Across the US, GOP Jim Crow laws will eliminate millions of Democratic voters from the registration rolls. In swing states like Ohio, such ballots are almost certain to be crucial.

The proposed Ohio law will demand a valid photo ID or a utility bill, a bank statement, a paycheck or a government document with a current address. Thousands of Ohio citizens who are elderly, homeless, unemployed or who do not drive will be effectively disenfranchised. Many citizens, for example, rent apartments where the utilities are paid by landlords. In such cases, the number of people living in utilities-included apartment rentals could actually determine an election.

During the 2004 presidential election, Ohio's Republican Secretary of State, J. Kenneth Blackwell, also issued statewide threats against ex-felons and people whose names resembled those of ex-felons. Thousands of such threats were delivered to registered voters who were never convicted of anything, or who were eligible to vote after being released from prison. In 2004 a "Mighty Texas Strike Force" came to Columbus with a specific mandate to threaten ex-felons with arrest if they dared to vote.

HB3 will also reduce voter rolls by ordering county boards of elections to send cards to registered voters every two years. If a card comes back as undelivered, the voter must rely on a provisional ballot. But tens of thousands of provisional ballots were arbitrarily discarded in 2004, and some 16,000 are known to remain uncounted to this day.

HB3 also imposes severe restrictions on voter registration drives. It allows the state attorney-general and local prosecutors wide powers to prosecute vaguely defined charges of fraud against those working to sign up voters. The restrictions are clearly meant to chill the kind of Democratic registration drives that brought hundreds of thousands of new voters to the polls in 2004 (even though many were turned away in Democratic wards due to a lack of voting machines).

In 2004, scores of Ohio voters reported, under oath, that they had pressed John Kerry's name on touchscreen machines, only to see George W. Bush's name light up. A board of elections technician in Mahoning County (Youngstown) has admitted that at least 18 machines there suffered such problems. Sworn testimony in Columbus indicates that votes for Kerry faded off the screen on touchscreen machines there. Other charges of mis-programming, re-programming, recalibrating, mishandling and manipulation of electronic voting software, hardware and memory cards have since arisen throughout Ohio 2004.

The federal General Accountability Office (GAO) has recently issued a major report confirming that tampering with and manipulating such machines can be easily done by a very small number of people. Charges are widespread that this is precisely what gave George W. Bush Ohio's electoral votes, and thus the presidency, in 2004, not to mention the suspicious referenda outcomes in 2005.

HB3 will make it virtually impossible for any challenge to be mounted involving any votes cast or counted on electronic machines or tabulators---meaning virtually every vote cast in Ohio.

With the electoral process in Ohio all but disemboweled, those hoping for a change of party in upcoming state and national elections are kidding themselves.

HB3 will solidify the GOP's iron grip on the electronic voting process and all that surrounds it. Unless they break that grip, Democrats who believe they can carry any part of Ohio in 2006 or 2008 are kidding themselves.

When it comes to 2008, can you say "Jeb Bush"?

Roxdog - May 11, 2007 05:09 PM (GMT)
QUOTE
THE REAL FUNCTION OF
THE WALL IS TO KEEP MEXICANS FROM CROSSING BACK AND FORTH

Oh, heaven forbid...

QUOTE
BUSH AND MILITARY TARGET HISPANIC FAMILIES,

THE NEW DEMOCRATIC BASE IN THE UNITED STATES

CREATING CHAOS AND FEAR ON THE WESTERN FRONT

What utter crap....it is a Bush connected PR firm that is behind all these mass rallies in the first place. If "democracy" means I have to give up any of my rights in the name of the collective then you got a hell of a fight coming...

alive and still talking - May 12, 2007 05:12 AM (GMT)
Those mass rallys consist of hispanic americans who have had enough of watching
friends and relatives being treated like Palistinians. If they were part of this movement, we would have something, namely one third the american population
backing us up

bring it on--Bush regime thinks they're an easy target, collectively represent 1/3 the voting population, new legislation at the state level designed to keep voters out without multiple documentation, taxing the elderly, disabled, and bilingual
(not to mention the POOR-) effectively eliminating a large chunk of the democratic voting structure.

poll stations are also being staffed with arrest officers to threaten people. one would have an easier time voting in IRAQ. over there, the only thing
you have to worry about is getting SHOT

prison is a much larger threat. there are worse things than DEATH living in the slammer for trying to vote is one of them

the only reason IRAQ was a target by the administration, is because they knew
there would be little or no resistance. you dont see them invading a country capable of fighting back.........

same principal here. republicans at state level are practicing subtrifuge, believing
that RACIST CLUCKS would care LESS about their plight

do you know the potential danger of being confused for an x-convict just because
your name is the same? by arian jerkomen who look at your face and cant tell the difference between one person aand another since we all look the same to him ?

arresting officers will have a list of names for reference. try to vote and if your race does not suit them , you could end up in the slammer just for trying to exersize your constitutional right

maybe instead of calling themselves Republicans they should change their party name to the FOURTH REICH

alive and still talking - May 12, 2007 06:13 AM (GMT)
ELIMINATE THE POOR-DEMOCRATIC VOTING BASE
BUSH ADMINISTRATION NEGLIGENCE IN NEW ORLEANS

george washington's blog
(I've compiled, in one place, evidence from mainstream news sources and credible witnesses showing how bad the federal government's response to the New Orleans disaster really is. This article will be updated daily to include the latest developments.

I focus solely on the response to the flooding, which is separate and apart from the fact that the flood would not have occurred in the first place if the administration hadn't slashed funding for levee repairs in order to fund its adventure in Iraq. )

High-level former FEMA officials stated that government disaster officials had an action plan if a major hurricane hit New Orleans, but the plan was not executed when Hurricane Katrina struck

The head of Homeland Security, whose job it was to coordinate the flood rescue efforts, did absolutely nothing for 3 days

According to the Mayor of New Orleans, the government allowed a pumping station to be destroyed and drinking water supplies to be disrupted, even after he explained how both crises could be prevented

The Mayor also stated that helicopters were scheduled to pick up and drop massive 3,000-pound sandbags in the 17th Street Canal breach, but were diverted by the military on rescue missions (saving thousands of people by fixing the levee would have been better than saving a handful of people in the short-run)

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) deliberately cut the city's emergency communications lines, according to Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard in an interview on Meet the Press

According to a former high-level government official, FEMA withheld aid, cut emergency communication lines, and otherwise blocked an efficient rescue effort

Navy helicopter pilots were REPRIMANDED for saving people, are were instead ordered to watch animals in a kennel; and see this article

According to Fox News' reporters, people were locked in the Superdome and Convention Center and officials prevented them from leaving and simply walking over the bridge to safety, but instead forced them to suffer and even die in inhumane conditions. The reporters also said there was plenty of food and personnel in New Orleans, but people weren't receiving help, for unknown reasons (it is not yet clear whether it was federal or local law enforcement who prevented escape from these death-traps; but it should be remembered that the federal government took control away from the state and local governments, and is thus ultimately responsible)

alive and still talking - May 14, 2007 01:36 AM (GMT)
WHAT'S WITH THE BORDER THING, ANYWAY ?
I tend to look at things from a third-person point of view, each ethnic group has both good and bad. one bad example ruins it for the rest trying to find acceptance. Living close to the border has taught me a great deal. principal holds true in every country.

Many of my friends have shown me documentation that proves their lineage goes back farther than most europeans. when the U.S. bought the territory west of the Louisiana purchase, mexican-americans (back then called Texicans)essentially lost their land all the way to the pacific for the price of a used truck,$13,500. over 80% of the fighters who won independence from mexico for texas were hispanic, especially at the Alamo. after texas joined the union, govt carpetbaggers came in and divided up privately owned land. much was done at the state level

Santa Ana's aid kept a personal diary and carefully detailed the capture of David Crockett, torture, and a prostitute who was responsible for santa ana's capture. there was no battle of san jacinto. sam houston and a handful of men found what was left of the mexican army drunk , the rest deserted out of fear of what they witnessed from Crockett's torture, they concluded he was super-human. they were convinced the rest of the settlers were too. santa ana's point in torturing crockett back-fired.

desperate measures were taken to end the conflict there. horrible attrocities were committed at the border to persuade anyone attemptiing to cross over to fear for their lives. bodies were left all along the border to send a message.killers and thugs were hired at the border by texas rangers to keep the mexicans out after the treaty of guadalupe, for fear that the army and peasants would try to take their land back.

federal carpet baggers and state lawmakers essentially divided up the land among themselves. explains why much of the land west of the texas border became federal. many who had spanish land grants were rendered homeless, as well as servants and employees of landholders

our history books were re-written to cover up the land grab, jefferson was architect of the whole thing, david crockett was sent down to texas by jefferson to help facilitate the plan : capture santa ana alive for ransome. otherwise our southern border would be over 1000 miles north of where it is now.

when I see a giant wall at the border, it amazes me how history has a way of repeating itself. americans are clueless as to why desperate measures are being taken, bush regime's excuse is "WE HAVE TO KEEP OUT THE AL QAEDA" If that were realy true then how do they intend to protect the nation by sea ? would be much easierto get in that way.

attrocities go on down here which are very similar.multiple murders and mass graves are constantly discovered. often blamed on druglords, but the locals here know what is really happening: thugs from an arian group have been secretly hired to commit these acts. it is common knowledge among locals and immigrants, but the media never covers it.

real reason is they are trying to stop mexican-american trade, using propaganda to paint the people as something they are not, is to get votes in the next election. they are convinced that desperate measures which accomplish nothing but strain relations with our (oil-rich ) neighbors to the south, while providing a good exercise for troops to train in harsh desert conditions, will make the american people think they have addressed the immigration issue.

a show of force where your country borders with friendly neighbors is poor judgement, like all other choices that have been made. from a historian's point of view, they are trying to stop a trend of migration which started over 300 years ago, seems they are a little too late. great wall has nothing to do with 911, only votes.

alive and still talking - May 14, 2007 06:45 PM (GMT)
CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS have been a target for years, the LDS Church in Utah is being bombarded by the military, govt subtrifuge.....

Now that prominent members of the mormon church are involved in spearheading
legislation to end the war and investigating 911, not to mention oversight hearings to IMPEACH for neglegence and criminal activity, a movie has been released called "SEPTEMBER DAWN" another attack on the church, now that millions of members have SWITCHED TO VOTING FOR DEMOCRATS

HISTORY OF ATTACKS BY GOVT:

NUCLEAR TESTING 1927-1947

OUR GOVT and the military originally tested nukes in UTAH targeting mormon church, because they knew the rest of the country would not do anything if they found out, religious bigotry and ignorance abounded back then.

DUGWAY AFB-ANTHRAX

Anthrax was also tested by the military IN UTAH. Since testing was in the desert of Utah, and mormons are EASY TARGETS for the recent anthrax scare on our legislators, they are now a target of attacks, claiming church is involved.

ANTHRAX was delivered by mail to DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL MEMBERS ONLY, by mail as a scare tactic prior to the invasion in Iraq. democrats were ready to fight legislation AGAINST INVADING IRAQ,democrats were targeted using biological warfare.

ANTHRAX tainted envelopes were mailed to members of the DEMOCRATIC PARTY only, supporters of Bush Regime involved, they also tried to pin it on the Al Qaeda. politicians were told by supporters of the Bush Regime to take anthrax innoculations prior to mailing of anthrax, as a precaution

TOTAL 411INFO

There is a website, attacking the mormon church, another attempt at subtrifuge, DIRECTED AT THE DEMOCRATIC BASE by trying to blame distorted reports of massacre in early american history as a link to 911.Since disinfo links attempt to distort facts of pioneer massacre and then link them to 911, purpose of website is obvious.

THE MOVIE

"September Dawn" is another attempt to undermine Democratic voters within a very large church organization, consisting of millions of americans. The movie is packed with lies, a warped account of pioneer history developed by a segment of the movie industry which targets opposition to the Bush administration, namely the LDS mormon church.

Prominent LDS leaders and church members are DEMOCRATS, and are involved in spearheading the effort to site corruption and other crimes by the Bush regime, also IMPEACHMENT the church has been targeted to blame for the anthrax scare, now 911

ANYONE promoting total411info is part of that effort now TARGETING VOTERS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, staged by the BUSH REGIME

THIS REACTION FROM A MEMBER showed up on my message board:

What the heck? How can these people claim that Brigham Young ordered the massacre? Everyone that ever lived back then is dead, lol, and all the other records are irrelevant, because almost all the U.S wanted to kill them, they are gonna make up any crap to make the Mormons look bad. Sad excuse for a movie.

alive and still talking - May 15, 2007 10:39 PM (GMT)
THE POOR OF KATRINA LIVING IN TRAVEL TRAILERS
MAJORITY OF POOR ARE MINORITIES, DEMOCRATIC BASE

That’s because while billions in federal dollars are being handed out to directly help rebuild single-family homes, almost none has been made available so far to replenish rental housing in the hurricane zone. In Hancock County 20 months after the storm, not a single nail has yet been pounded to replace any of the hundreds of multi-family subsidized and market-rate rental units that were lost to the hurricane.

As a result, thousands of renters remain in FEMA trailers or other temporary housing as they do elsewhere in Mississippi and Louisiana. To add insult to injury, rents are skyrocketing on the few units that have been renovated. Others, like Theresa James’ apartment, are being turned into condominiums that their former tenants have no hopes of buying.

THE MOST POWERLESS GROUP

“Rental Katrina victims are essentially the most powerless group of all in trying to fashion a recovery,” says Reilly Morse, an attorney with Mississippi Center for Justice, which advocates for racial and economic justice along the coast. “They have to depend entirely on landowners and land developers to make something happen.”

The loss was staggering. In a state where nearly 30 percent of the residents are renters, 72,116 renter-occupied units were damaged or destroyed by Katrina, according to Gov. Haley Barbour’s office.

In Hancock County, where the pre-Katrina number of renters ranged from 20 percent in the county as a whole to more than 35 percent in Bay St. Louis, there are no precise figures on how much rental housing was lost. All 176 public housing units in Waveland and Bay St. Louis were destroyed or damaged beyond repair. Hundreds of other apartment units were knocked out of commission either permanently or temporarily. An untold number of additional rental units were among the thousands of single-family homes that were destroyed.

Of the $5.5 billion in federal Community Development Block Grants that the state is handing out to spur post-Katrina rebuilding, a huge share has so far gone to homeowners. According to the state’s latest figures, $869 million was distributed to 12,413 families in a first round of grants. Another 10,000 homeowners will receive funds in a second round that will also distribute hundreds of millions.

When it comes to rentals, however, just $100 million has so far been allocated from the grant pool. It is going to five public housing authorities along the Gulf Coast, including the agencies in Waveland and Bay St. Louis that have been combined since the storm.

But that money, less than 2 percent of the $5.5 billion in federal grants, falls short of the $111 million in losses suffered by the housing authorities. And it will likely be many months or years before construction on replacement public housing units actually gets under way. Precise timetables were unavailable from officials with the new Waveland-Bay St. Louis Housing Authority, who said they were too busy consolidating offices to meet with reporters.

Charlie Brown - May 16, 2007 03:42 AM (GMT)
Nothing I can do but to agree, I don't see much debate around these forums that I can participate in. As I don't have any experience with a whole lot of science, I'll just have to stick to the political stuff.

Oh well.

alive and still talking - May 16, 2007 06:17 PM (GMT)
as a new member >your opinion on all issues is more valuable than you know
represents the the true wealth of this nation...free thinking

alive and still talking - May 19, 2007 04:30 AM (GMT)
SENATOR CLINTON VISITS NEW ORLEANS
TELLS IT LIKE IT IS......

This is upside and backwards," Clinton said, referring to the President's handling of recovery. "If the resources and services aren't back, people won't come back."

Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and the Mississippi coast on Aug. 29, 2005, flooding 80 percent of the city and devastating the area. Hurricane Rita struck about a month later in southwest Louisiana. The region's recovery from the storms have been sluggish, and local residents widely blame government ineffectiveness.

Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would form a Katrina/Rita recovery census to take stock of the damage and determine the most effective ways to rebuild. Another proposal would eliminate the 10 percent funding match requirement state and local governments must front to receive federal aid.

Clinton said she would also appoint a board to conduct a "stem-to-stern" review of the levee work done by the Army Corps of Engineers. The effort, she said, would seek to reassure city residents that they would be protected if there is a hurricane even stronger than Katrina. She said she would also convene a federal-state-local summit to help speed up the disbursement of stalled Road Home funds.

Lastly, Clinton said she would create a "Gulf Coast Corps," fashioned after the Peace Corps, that would bring teachers, doctors and other professionals to the region, with the hope that many would be former residents who still want to return.

Nearly two years after the storm, about 40 percent of the city's population remains displaced. Tens of thousands of residents cannot return, in part because housing and apartment stocks took a heavy blow from the storm.

"I will not let New Orleans dissipate," Clinton said. "We got to make sure New Orleans is here for our country."

In addition to touring New Orleans and attending a Friday evening fundraiser, Clinton was scheduled to deliver the commencement address Saturday morning at Dillard University and receive an honorary degree. Dillard, a private, predominantly black university in the hard-hit Gentilly neighborhood, was heavily damaged by Katrina.


alive and still talking - May 20, 2007 01:35 AM (GMT)
LIKE NIXON LONG AGO, BUSH GETS A "GOP" REALITY CHECK

Posted by William Neikirk at 12:15 p.m. CDT

Karl Rove was furious, or so it was reported. He called up to administer a tongue-lashing to Republican lawmakers who had dared leak out details of their hush-hush meeting with President Bush on Tuesday.

In that meeting, the GOP members bluntly told the president their support for the war was fading and could end if conditions in Iraq didn't improve by September.

Some analysts noted this incident sounded like another famous visit by members of Congress to an embattled president. A look at history is in order. On Aug. 7, 1974, with the Watergate scandal raging, three GOP members, veteran Sen. Barry Goldwater, Senate Majority Leader Hugh Scott, and House Majority Leader John Rhodes, went to see President Nixon and tell him like it was.





alive and still talking - May 20, 2007 03:28 PM (GMT)
PROMISE OF AMNESTY FALSE-FLAG TERRORISM WILL TRIGGER MASS MIGRATION
MILITARIZATION OF MEXICAN BORDER STILL THREATENS MEXICAN-AMERICAN BORDER RELATIONS AND THE IMMINENT PERIL OF AMERICAN-BORN CHILDREN
user posted image
speaker Pelosi says--if the president
brings me 70 votes, I will present the bill ...

AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney said guest worker programs frequently amount to "virtual servitude," allowing employers to import temporary workers to do permanent jobs.

"All workers will suffer because employers will have available a ready pool of labor they can exploit to drive down wages, benefits, health and safety protections and other workplace standards," Sweeney said in a statement.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said the bill started out being about how to deal with illegal immigration "and wound up being about what it means to be an American. ... I think we've got a deal that reflects who we are as Americans."

He added, "From the Ph.D. to the landscaper, there's a chance for you to participate in the American dream on our terms in a way that makes this country better."

Graham predicted the bill would find "overwhelming" support among lawmakers.

But Republican Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said the bill is not a done deal.

"I believe (Thursday's) announcement is somewhat premature because specific legislative text has yet to be drafted on a number of key details," Cornyn said in a statement. "Until I have the opportunity to review this text, I will withhold from making more detailed comments."

Should the bill get through the Senate, it will proceed to the House, where Speaker Nancy Pelosi has told the White House that she's not going to bring the issue to the floor unless the president can deliver at least 70 Republican votes.

The 380-page bill, which comes after nearly three months of negotiations, would give immediate work authorization to undocumented workers who arrived in the United States before January 1, 2007.

Heads of household would have to return to their home country within eight years, leaving american-born children at risk if they stay behind, face risk of peril in another country if they go with parents. New registration card guarantees their return...

IF they survive uncertainties of a country in ararchy.

Applicants would also have to pay a $5,000 penalty.

Additionally, the number of Border Patrol agents would be increased, border fencing would be strengthened and employers who hire undocumented workers would face fines. unsightly wall now constructed, looks like the same wall used to separate Palistinians from Israel.

alive and still talking - May 20, 2007 06:38 PM (GMT)
MUST-SEE VIDEO FOR THE L.C. MOVEMENT TODAY ON C-SPAN
ARTURO SARAUKHAN, MEXICAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S.
SPEAKS TO THE U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
user posted image
This very eloquent diplomat spoke openly about the failures of U.S. foreign policy of the past and present, the tragedy of 911, Mexico's efforts to protect the United States from any threat from terrorists by land,and how future U.S. decisions on diplomacy and trade will have had a profound effect on allies and neighbors
of the United States, especially Mexico.

When his speech was over, the audience applauded loudly and at great length, but failed to offer questions to the ambassador when given the opportunity, which was a very uncomfortable moment at this meeting, and a blight of mis-representation by this country. Perhaps they were stunned by his insight and intelligence, perhaps they were WISHING that he was our leader.

The audience attending this luncheon was no doubt accustomed to BLUNDERING
AND INFLAMMATORY PARTISAN MUD-SLINGING SPEECHES BY OUR OWN LEADERSHIP, WITH FAILURE AND NO APPARENT VISION, or they were

STUNNED AND CAUGHT OFF-GUARD by this man's ELITE PRESENCE signified by his demonstration of INTERNATIONAL GRACE, INTELLINGE, VISION, and PROFOUND ABILITY TO LEAD A NATION when addressing his observations of our own internal problems.

He repeatedly pointed out that with the new president of Mexico about to take office, the only thing standing in the way of RESOLVING IMMIGRATION MIGRATION and other problems, was improved TRADE AND DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS .

Arturo Sarukhán

Arturo Sarukhán Casamitjana is a Mexican diplomat. He is the current Ambassador of Mexico to the United States. He is a former General Consul of Mexico at New York City and served as foreign policy coordinator in Felipe Calderón's presidential campaign and transition team (February – November 2006).

Sarukhan graduated from El Colegio de México with a bachelor's degree in International Relations and received a master's degree in U.S. Foreign Policy at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) of Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C.

He has served in different posts at the Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Affairs and has represented Mexico at the Organization for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL).

As an academic, he has taught several courses at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), at the National Defense College of Mexico, at the Inter-American Defense College and at the National Defense University of the United States.[1]

On 3 February 2006, he left his post at the General Consulate of Mexico at New York City to join Felipe Calderón's presidential campaign as coordinator of foreign affairs and foreign policy.[1]

On November 20, 2006 he was appointed Ambassador of Mexico to the United States.






alive and still talking - May 20, 2007 08:19 PM (GMT)
AP-Mark Stodola, Omar Fayad, Arturo Sarukhan

Little Rock, Ark., Mayor Mark Stodola, right, and Omar Fayad, municipal president of the city of Pachuca, Hidalgo in Mexico, left, sign a sister city agreement at the opening of the Mexican Consulate in Little Rock, Ark., as Arturo Sarukhan, Mexican ambassador to the United States, center, looks on Wednesday, April 25, 2007. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston) (Danny Johnston)

11 December 2006
Arturo Sarukhan On Beachheads

Arturo Sarukhan, former Mexican consul in New York City, is a man to watch in the new Felipe Calderon administration, epecially as it concerns U.S.-Mexican relations.

Sarukhan was foreign policy coordinator for Calderon�s campaign and transition team, and was expected to be named Foreign Minister. But instead, the Foreign Minister portfolio has been given to Patricia Espinosa.

Sarukhan has been designated as the man responsible for managing Mexico�s relationship with the United States.

In a recent interview Sarukhan had this to say about his proposed strategy:

�Certainly the only way in which Mexico can advance a comprehensive agenda with the United States is if we use the (Mexican) embassy and the network of consulates as �beachheads� of lobbying for the image, the interests and the agenda of Mexico in all of U.S. territory and with all sectors of American society.�

Sarukhan plans to insist on an amnesty for illegal Mexicans working in the U.S. and also work for a guest worker program. In order to accomplish this, Sarukhan plans to work with the U.S. Congress, American governors and local assemblies.



alive and still talking - May 21, 2007 07:29 AM (GMT)
CODE
Inside The Reign Of Terror-propaganda Uses Natlgeo, REPUB. CAMPAIGN BRAINWASHING : NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC IS FEATURING TWO MINI-SERIES ONE CURRENTLY ON TV IS "INSIDE 911" BUSH VERSION OF THE ATTACK. PORTRAYS ALL MUSLIMS IN AMERICA AS PART OF THE TERRORIST MOVEMENT.

ANOTHER SERIES CALLED "INSIDE GREEN BERETS" PREMIERING JUNE 3RD AT 9:00, PROPAGANDA IN FULL SWING WONDER -WHO- IS PAYING FOR THE AIRTIME?
THERE IS ANOTHER ONE FOLLOWING 911 CALLED "REIGN OF TERROR SADDAM HUSSEIN"

THE GOVERNMENT IS PULLING OUT ALL THE STOPS USING THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL, A CHANNEL COMMONLY USED FOR FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT

WATCHING 911 PRESENTATION NOW, NO EMOTION DURING NARRATION WHEN SUPPOSED RELATIVES AND LOVED ONES TALK ABOUT LOSS OF LOVED ONES,
NO GENUINE EMOTION AT ALL. SEEMS TO BE DRAMATIZATION


NOW, THEY ARE TRYING TO EXPLAIN HOW STRUCTURALLY, THE BUILDINGS COLLAPSED. THE AFTERMATH, YOU CAN SEE THE DIAGONAL CUTS ON THE STEEL BEAMS. COUPLE OF YEARS LATER, FBI OP SAYS , GUESS WE ARE GOING TO NEED ANOTHER 911

THEY WERE USING A BIN LADEN DRAMATIZATION ACTOR FOR LACK OF ACTUAL FOOTAGE, REAL FOOTAGE OF LESS THAN A FEW MINUTES, REPEATED MANY TIMES

THE WEST NAMELY THE REAGAN ADMIN. SUPPLIES SADDAM WITH CHEMICAL WEAPONS, EUROPEAN ALLIES DO THE SAME. SADDAM USES THESE AGENTS ON THE CURDS TO THE NORTH, THIS STUFF IS UNFIT FOR CHILDREN TO WATCH

NOW PARENTS OF MINOR CHILDREN WILL HAVE TO PROGRAM OUT CABLE
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC. ALSO CONSTANT SCHEDULING OF APOCALYPTIC STUDIES BY NOSTRODAMUS, MERLIN, MOTHER SHIPTON, REVELATIONS
ON THE HISTORY CHANNEL MAKING DIRECT REFERENCE TO CURRENT EVENTS  
 

alive and still talking - May 24, 2007 02:19 AM (GMT)
SENATE SLASHES GUEST WORKER PROGRAM
user posted image
Utah Group Issues Brochure With Tips for Illegal Immigrants in Case They Are Caught
Monday, May 07, 2007

E-MAIL STORY PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION
SALT LAKE CITY — An advocacy group has written a brochure that gives tips and phone numbers for illegal immigrants who fear being caught and deported.

Among the advice: Carry a valid identification and not false documents. Keep names and phone numbers of family and friends.

Proyecto Latino de Utah, an advocacy group in Salt Lake City, plans to distribute 10,000 copies at stores, churches and community centers. It is written in Spanish but will be translated into English and Portuguese.

"By the time immigration has decided to deport them, it's almost next to impossible to stop deportation," said Tony Yapias, who leads the group. "We want to make sure the families are prepared."

He said the brochure, which has a picture of handcuffs on the cover, was made after recent arrests in Park City. A meat-packing plant near Logan was the scene of more than 100 arrests in December.

The brochure lists phone numbers for the Mexican Consulate in Salt Lake City, Utah Legal Services and Catholic Community Services.

The brochure also is intended to help people who are in the United States with expired visas.

"They think, I'm not Mexican, so I don't have to worry about it," Yapias said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aware of groups in various cities providing information like the Utah brochure.

"ICE will continue to do their job. Their job is to enforce immigration law," spokeswoman Lori Haley said. "If you're in the country illegally, you're subject to arrest."

WASHINGTON - The Senate voted Wednesday to slash the number of foreign workers who could come to the U.S. on temporary visas as lawmakers in both parties sought major revisions in a broad bipartisan immigration bill.

A new guest worker program would be capped at 200,000 a year under the Democratic proposal, which passed 74-24 over strong opposition by the Bush administration.

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said the change, proposed by Sen. Jeff Bingaman (news, bio, voting record), D-N.M., would interfere with a "central component" of the White House-backed immigration measure. That plan provided for 400,000 worker visas annually, plus an option to increase that number to 600,000 if market conditions demand it.

"The Bingaman amendment would eliminate this critical flexibility and cut the size of the temporary worker program in half," Gutierrez said in a statement.

Senators also endorsed a move by Republican Sen. Judd Gregg (news, bio, voting record) of New Hampshire to toughen the bill's so-called triggers, which condition the temporary worker program and the granting of legal status to illegal immigrants to strict border security and workplace enforcement measures. They also adopted a proposal by Sen. Lindsey Graham (news, bio, voting record), R-S.C., to crack down with mandatory prison sentences on illegal immigrants who re-enter the U.S.

The changes came as the administration urged the Senate to approve the immigration legislation despite fresh criticism from presidential hopefuls and lawmakers in both parties.

"The proposal offers a much-needed solution for our nation's broken immigration system," the White House budget office said in a statement. "This proposal would deliver an immigration system that is secure, productive, orderly and fair."

But in a reminder of the widespread distaste for the measure within President Bush's party, House GOP leader John Boehner (news, bio, voting record) of Ohio was quoted describing the bill with a common four-letter expletive during a closed-door meeting Tuesday.

His office said the comment, first reported on National Journal's "Hotline" blog, was "nothing but an off-the-cuff wisecrack made jokingly during a private gathering," but noted that Boehner has "serious concerns" about the Senate measure.

The measure would grant an estimated 12 million unlawful immigrants quick legal status and toughen border security. It also would create a new workplace verification system to bar undocumented workers from getting jobs.

It would set up a point system for future immigration applicants that would place less emphasis on family connections and more on education and skills in demand by U.S. businesses.

Sen. Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) of Illinois, a Democratic presidential hopeful, announced plans to challenge the point system, saying it devalued family.

The scheme "constitutes at minimum a radical experiment in social engineering and a departure from our tradition of having family and employers invite immigrants to come," Obama said, adding that he would work to phase it out.

A 2008 rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would seek to exempt the spouses and minor children of legal permanent residents from visa caps.

Republicans sought to respond to conservative critics by trying to bolster security provisions and make it more difficult for illegal immigrants to get on a path to citizenship.

The Senate was also considering a proposal by Sen. Charles Grassley (news, bio, voting record), R-Iowa, that would allow visas to be revoked without court review.

Sen. John Cornyn (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas, was seeking to bar unlawful immigrants who have been ordered deported from gaining legal status. His proposal would also ensure that terrorists, gang members, sex offenders, gun smugglers or repeat drunken drivers are barred.

Democrats heard objections from labor unions and immigrant groups about the guest worker program and focused on shrinking or altering it.

The temporary worker plan would bring in laborers to stay for up to three two-year stints, provided they left the United States for a year between each stay. A Democratic attempt to strip the program altogether failed Tuesday in the first major test of the fragile immigration compromise, but further attempts to limit it were expected.

The conservatives, liberals and centrists who reached the deal are struggling to keep it intact by working to defeat proposed changes they consider unacceptable.

Senate leaders have postponed a final vote until June.

Charlie Brown - May 24, 2007 02:50 AM (GMT)
QUOTE (alive and still talking @ May 23 2007, 09:19 PM)
SENATE SLASHES GUEST WORKER PROGRAM
user posted image
Utah Group Issues Brochure With Tips for Illegal Immigrants in Case They Are Caught
Monday, May 07, 2007

E-MAIL STORY PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION
SALT LAKE CITY — An advocacy group has written a brochure that gives tips and phone numbers for illegal immigrants who fear being caught and deported.

Among the advice: Carry a valid identification and not false documents. Keep names and phone numbers of family and friends.

Proyecto Latino de Utah, an advocacy group in Salt Lake City, plans to distribute 10,000 copies at stores, churches and community centers. It is written in Spanish but will be translated into English and Portuguese.

"By the time immigration has decided to deport them, it's almost next to impossible to stop deportation," said Tony Yapias, who leads the group. "We want to make sure the families are prepared."

He said the brochure, which has a picture of handcuffs on the cover, was made after recent arrests in Park City. A meat-packing plant near Logan was the scene of more than 100 arrests in December.

The brochure lists phone numbers for the Mexican Consulate in Salt Lake City, Utah Legal Services and Catholic Community Services.

The brochure also is intended to help people who are in the United States with expired visas.

"They think, I'm not Mexican, so I don't have to worry about it," Yapias said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aware of groups in various cities providing information like the Utah brochure.

"ICE will continue to do their job. Their job is to enforce immigration law," spokeswoman Lori Haley said. "If you're in the country illegally, you're subject to arrest."

WASHINGTON - The Senate voted Wednesday to slash the number of foreign workers who could come to the U.S. on temporary visas as lawmakers in both parties sought major revisions in a broad bipartisan immigration bill.

A new guest worker program would be capped at 200,000 a year under the Democratic proposal, which passed 74-24 over strong opposition by the Bush administration.

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said the change, proposed by Sen. Jeff Bingaman (news, bio, voting record), D-N.M., would interfere with a "central component" of the White House-backed immigration measure. That plan provided for 400,000 worker visas annually, plus an option to increase that number to 600,000 if market conditions demand it.

"The Bingaman amendment would eliminate this critical flexibility and cut the size of the temporary worker program in half," Gutierrez said in a statement.

Senators also endorsed a move by Republican Sen. Judd Gregg (news, bio, voting record) of New Hampshire to toughen the bill's so-called triggers, which condition the temporary worker program and the granting of legal status to illegal immigrants to strict border security and workplace enforcement measures. They also adopted a proposal by Sen. Lindsey Graham (news, bio, voting record), R-S.C., to crack down with mandatory prison sentences on illegal immigrants who re-enter the U.S.

The changes came as the administration urged the Senate to approve the immigration legislation despite fresh criticism from presidential hopefuls and lawmakers in both parties.

"The proposal offers a much-needed solution for our nation's broken immigration system," the White House budget office said in a statement. "This proposal would deliver an immigration system that is secure, productive, orderly and fair."

But in a reminder of the widespread distaste for the measure within President Bush's party, House GOP leader John Boehner (news, bio, voting record) of Ohio was quoted describing the bill with a common four-letter expletive during a closed-door meeting Tuesday.

His office said the comment, first reported on National Journal's "Hotline" blog, was "nothing but an off-the-cuff wisecrack made jokingly during a private gathering," but noted that Boehner has "serious concerns" about the Senate measure.

The measure would grant an estimated 12 million unlawful immigrants quick legal status and toughen border security. It also would create a new workplace verification system to bar undocumented workers from getting jobs.

It would set up a point system for future immigration applicants that would place less emphasis on family connections and more on education and skills in demand by U.S. businesses.

Sen. Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) of Illinois, a Democratic presidential hopeful, announced plans to challenge the point system, saying it devalued family.

The scheme "constitutes at minimum a radical experiment in social engineering and a departure from our tradition of having family and employers invite immigrants to come," Obama said, adding that he would work to phase it out.

A 2008 rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would seek to exempt the spouses and minor children of legal permanent residents from visa caps.

Republicans sought to respond to conservative critics by trying to bolster security provisions and make it more difficult for illegal immigrants to get on a path to citizenship.

The Senate was also considering a proposal by Sen. Charles Grassley (news, bio, voting record), R-Iowa, that would allow visas to be revoked without court review.

Sen. John Cornyn (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas, was seeking to bar unlawful immigrants who have been ordered deported from gaining legal status. His proposal would also ensure that terrorists, gang members, sex offenders, gun smugglers or repeat drunken drivers are barred.

Democrats heard objections from labor unions and immigrant groups about the guest worker program and focused on shrinking or altering it.

The temporary worker plan would bring in laborers to stay for up to three two-year stints, provided they left the United States for a year between each stay. A Democratic attempt to strip the program altogether failed Tuesday in the first major test of the fragile immigration compromise, but further attempts to limit it were expected.

The conservatives, liberals and centrists who reached the deal are struggling to keep it intact by working to defeat proposed changes they consider unacceptable.

Senate leaders have postponed a final vote until June.

They are looking over the amendments here, but not when they passed the Patriot Act? Whats wrong with them?

alive and still talking - May 24, 2007 04:30 AM (GMT)
There are three hot items which will determine who wins the next presidential election, fuel prices,immigration, and the middle east. Parties which would not normally pass favorable legislation to solve these problems are now under the gun. One party forcing the other to pass bills in order to get bipartisan cooperation they need on other bills.

Immigration, a touchy subject, has been forced on the Democratic Party in an effort to push military funding in Iraq. Human lives, mostly that of children, are being bartered as leverage to achieve a political objective, force the opposition to make a stand that is not popular with voters in their party, in exchange for a milestone initiative to bring our soldiers home. Lives for lives, pure and simple.

Until the true humanity of the situation is realized by the American public, politicians will spoil or prove themselves by how they handle issues over the next several months. Whole families will be torn apart in the interum as they struggle against a regime so dispicable, that anyone targeted for processing will have little or no defense. Americans on the whole, are not expected to take a stand.

Americans stood by after the "new pearl harbor " tragedy, not even questioning the unnatural way the collosal twin towers dissintigrated in perfect fashion.

Americans stood by when Bush turned his eye to Iraq in the middle east, as if he alone had the power to invade a country without the blessing of the U.N.. thus making the war illegal.

Americans stood by when thousands of men, women, and children in New Orleans died of exposure, lack of food, water, and medicine waiting 5 days in 100 degree weather for help to arrive, ushered like cattle into a sportsdome,

labelled as criminals by roving media,for desperately trying to find food and water from abandoned stores, just to stay alive,

turned away from crossing over freeway ramps to safety, held at gunpoint, arbitrarilly sentenced to death because perpetrators knew the American people would do nothing.

Charlie Brown - May 24, 2007 01:49 PM (GMT)
QUOTE
labelled as criminals by roving media,for desperately trying to find food and water from abandoned stores, just to stay alive,


Yeah, thats what surprised me. Trying to stay alive is a bad thing now.

QUOTE
turned away from crossing over freeway ramps to safety, held at gunpoint, arbitrarilly sentenced to death because perpetrators knew the American people would do nothing.


Wasn't aware of that.

Agree with everything else. :D

alive and still talking - May 24, 2007 03:13 PM (GMT)
STINKIN BUSH IS NOW WAGING WAR ON FAMILIES --TRYING TO ESCALATE WAR


staging press conference declaring "catch and release policy is over " addressing immigration.

stating off-the-wall responses to quesions about what he will do about iraq and iran
claims he is "sympathitic with people of iran" THE MAN IS CLEARLY INSANE

last night, Hillary Clinton called the pentagon yesterday, advising them to prepare for quick withdrawal

BUSH'S WAR IS OVER AND HE DOESNT EVEN KNOW IT. CONGRESS WILL HAVE TO INTERVENE AND TAKE BUSH AND CHENEY OUT OF OFFICE

THIS MAN IS CLEARLY INSANE, RANTING AT A PRESS CONFERENCE,
RANDOM BROKEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS POSED TO HIM,
EXPOSING THE FACT THAT HE IS LOOSING IT

HE'S A BLITHERING IDIOT

IN THE PAST, WE TOOK OUR TIME TO REMOVE ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR FROM OFFICE, BACK THEN IT WAS OUR PROBLEM, NOW OUR MISTAKES ARE AFFECTING
PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD

alive and still talking - May 25, 2007 01:07 AM (GMT)
COMMERCE WITH OUR NEIGHBORS IS GOOD FOR AMERICA

the mexican people were here before we were, america bought the mexican territory from louisiana border to california for 13,500, the price of a used truck. federal carpet baggers then took the land away from hispanic landowners and divided it up among themselves. thats why so much of the southwest was federal land, then given to settlers. much of it still remains federal

THE GREAT WALL
that wall manned by our military is no different than the original wall, a line of dead bodies strung along the rio grande by thugs (enlisted by the texas rangers ) after the land purchase, to scare people out of crossing over.

local neocons secretly kill people and then dispose of the bodies. local media will occasionally touch on it, trying to link killings to drug lords, not always the case. often the work of nazi skin-heads from up north, hired by locals near the border

THE BENEFITS OF COMMERCE
when people are starving, a wall is not going to keep them out, jobs and prosperity will give them a reason to stay in their country the real solution is to create jobs over there. when job creation is in full swing, and oil trade begins (mexico oil reserves greater than ours) everybody will be happy. There's an old saying in this country, "Only a mad dog bites the hand that feeds it. "

Alot of americans love to vacation in mexico, recently mexico abolished certain laws, simply because they realized that it didnt make sense to have a law, if you cant enforce it. that's what is wrong with this country today, we have so many laws, we cant even drive down the street without breaking 100 of them. many laws are designed to bleed money from the working man anyway. bad for economic growth and development, bad for the working class

THE DAY WILL COME
The day will come when democracies to the SOUTH will seem more attractive than the one we have allowed corrupt leaders to fashion for themselves here on U.S. SOIL. Already, other countries like mexico, panama, puerto rico, and costa rica have been attracting american investors and american retirees, who are able to live elsewhere, while still claiming citizenship to the U.S. ASK THEM WHY THEY ARE THERE, AND THEY WILL GIVE YOU A HUNDRED DIFFERENT REASONS.

For those who remember their history lesson, these developments pose an interesting trend : HUNDREDS OF YEARS AGO, the American Indian (original american) was systematically wiped off the face of the earth by federal troops, systematically exterminated. In modern days, such an act is often referred to as genocide. Now the same people have taken back the land of their forefathers without even drawing a gun. All they know how to do is work hard and raise their children in the American dream.

For those who have understanding , stand back and watch

For those who lack understanding , let them bite the bullet

alive and still talking - May 29, 2007 03:31 AM (GMT)
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICE SURVEY REVEALS TERRORISM CLAIM A HOAX
WAR ON AL QAEDA NOT THE REASON FOR TROOP PRESENCE AT THE BORDER

Found this on cnn.com, media is finally coming around slowly to respond to
unpopularity of the war, appealing to readers with little tidbits of the truth


Group asserts terrorism claims by administration are exaggerated
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Claims of terrorism represented only a tiny fraction of the charges filed in recent years in immigration courts by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, according to a report issued Sunday by an independent research group.

This, despite the fact the Bush administration has repeatedly asserted that fighting terrorism is the central mission of DHS. Transactional Records Action Clearinghouse said it analyzed millions of previously undisclosed records obtained from the immigration courts under the Freedom of Information Act.

Of the 814,073 people charged by DHS in immigration courts during the past three years, only 12 faced charges of terrorism, TRAC said. The dozen cases of terrorism represents only 0.0015 percent of the total number of cases filed.

DHS spokesman Russ Knocke called the TRAC report "ill-conceived" and said the group "lacked a grasp of the DHS mission." Knocke said that by clamping down on all forms of immigration, DHS has made it difficult for terrorists to come to the United States. --From Senior Investigative Producer Scott Bronstein (Posted 11:21 p.m.)

alive and still talking - May 29, 2007 06:39 AM (GMT)
CHURCHES IN 5 CITIES OFFER SANCTUARY TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
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Elvira Arellano sits with son Saul Arellano on a pew inside Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago.
LOS ANGELES —

Beginning Wednesday afternoon, a Catholic church in downtown Los Angeles and a Lutheran church in North Hollywood each intend to shelter one person as part of the "New Sanctuary Movement."

A handful of churches in other U.S. cities plan similar efforts in the months ahead to spotlight the plight of illegal immigrants.

"We want to put a human face to very complex immigration laws and awaken the consciousness of the human spirit," said Father Richard Estrada of Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church in Los Angeles, where one illegal immigrant will live.

Organizers don't believe immigration agents will make arrests inside the churches.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has not tried to arrest Elvira Arellano, an illegal immigrant who has taken shelter at a Methodist church in Chicago since August.

Congress, White House Try to Work Out Deal on Immigration Reform Legislation Local Immigration Laws Bring High Costs to Small Cities Son of Illegal Immigrant Who Took Refuge in Church Heading to Mexico to Seek Support ICE

spokeswoman Virginia Kice declined to say if agents would attempt to arrest others who take sanctuary in churches, although she did say agents have "the authority to arrest those who are in violation of our immigration laws anywhere in the United States."

Participating churches in San Diego, Seattle, Chicago and New York won't initially house illegal immigrants. Instead, leaders will provide legal council, accompany people to court hearings and prepare plans to house them in churches if authorities try to deport them.

In New York, religious leaders gathered at the Roman Catholic Church of St. Paul the Apostle and said their promise of sanctuary could include financial assistance, legal help and physical protection, if necessary.

"For us, sanctuary is an act of radical hospitality, the welcoming of the stranger who is like ourselves, the stranger in our midst, our neighbors, our friends," said Rabbi Michael Feinberg of the Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition.

Two families facing deportation stood with the religious leaders. Jani, a U.S. citizen who did not give her last name, said her Haitian-born husband Jean is facing deportation because of a 1989 drug conviction in the U.S. that put him in prison for 11 years.

She said the family would take refuge in a church, if necessary, rather than be separated. Anti-illegal immigration groups called the sanctuary effort misguided.

The faith groups "don't seem to realize that they are being charitable with someone else's resources, and that's not charity," said Ira Mehlman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which favors limits on immigration.

"We are talking about illegal immigrants taking someone else's job, filling up the classroom of someone else's child," he said.

The sanctuary effort is loosely based on a movement in the 1980s, when churches harbored Central American refugees fleeing wars in their home countries.
Organizers of the current movement include members of the Jewish, Muslim, Catholic and other faiths.

The plans come as immigration reform legislation has been stalled since last summer, and tens of thousands of illegal immigrants have been detained and deported in stepped up immigration raids in recent months.

The first to receive refuge in Los Angeles will be a single father from Mexico who has two children who are U.S. citizens, said Rev. Alexia Salvatierra, executive director of Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice, an interfaith association spearheading the national plans.

The man, whose name was not released, worked 17 years as a cook at Los Angeles International Airport before getting injured on the job more than a year ago, she said. He has been unable to work and is facing deportation.

"If he goes back to Mexico, the family will literally not have enough food to eat," she said.

The other church will shelter an unidentified Guatemalan man who runs a small gardening business and has two U.S. citizen children. He fled Guatemala in the 1990s during its civil war. He has been denied political asylum and is facing deportation.

The churches put out calls for immigrants who were willing and wanted to take part in the sanctuary movement. Immigrants were screened to make sure they paid taxes and didn't have criminal backgrounds, Salvatierra said.



alive and still talking - May 29, 2007 10:07 PM (GMT)
REPUBLICAN MIT ROMNEY WILL DONATE SALARY, MEMBER OF MORMON CHURCH
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Republican Mitt Romney said Tuesday he would likely donate his salary to charity if elected president, a financial freedom he described as a byproduct of a successful business career.

"I never anticipated that I'd be as financially successful as I was, and then my business went far better than I expected it would," Romney told a woman at a Liberty Mutual office in Dover, N.H., when she asked if millionaire candidates could resolve government problems in Washington.


"I wouldn't disqualify somebody by virtue of their financial wealth or their financial poverty," Romney added. "I would instead look at their record, what they've done with their life and whether they can make a difference, whether the things they have learned will enable them to be an effective leader."

A former venture capitalist who headed the 2002 Winter Olympics and served one term as Massachusetts governor from 2003 to 2007, Romney is the wealthiest of all the candidates, Democrats and Republicans. His assets are estimated at $190 million to $250 million.

Later, speaking with reporters, Romney said he would likely accept the presidential salary of $400,000 annually but donate the money. While governor, Romney declined his $135,000 annual salary.

"I haven't really thought ahead that far," Romney said initially. "There are some questions I haven't forecasted, perhaps because that would seem presumptuous of me."

Then, he added: "I presume I would take the salary and then I would donate at least that amount or more to charity."

Romney is expected to report more precise figures on his assets in the coming weeks when he files a financial disclosure report required of all presidential candidates. He sought an extension from a mid-May filing deadline but provided a broad estimate of his wealth.

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Romney and his fellow Mormons are expected to donate 10 percent of their salaries to remain members in good standing of the church.

Charlie Brown - May 29, 2007 10:28 PM (GMT)
I wouldn't call it donate, its something called tithing.




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