WILL BUSH-BASHING REMAIN OUR PRESS' NATIONAL PASTTIME?

Even as Barak Obama and his slobbering fans prepare for his coronation, the Bush haters cannot let up one iota. I expect to see Chris Matthews begin to shake—this time from Bush-withdrawal syndrome rather than from arousal caused by Barak Obama. Earlier this week, the Bushes were slammed for spending money (from a private fund set up for that purpose) on new State china. The economy is bad, so this cost is extravagant. Did I hear anything about toning down the inauguration because of its extravagance?

This morning I watched sections of CBS’s Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood. One segment dealt with inauguration speeches. Presidents from George Washington forward were mentioned for their good or bad speeches, their brief or lengthy speeches, their memorable or forgotten lines or for any other number of reasons. Neither picture nor mention was made of George W. Bush. Another segment dealt with how presidents age in office as they deal with the stress. Guess who was omitted. To CBS, President George W. Bush doesn’t exist, and the sooner CBS can deny his contributions in any way, the better.

The press has been having at blast at delivering parting shots. George W. Bush cannot even say that there are things he would have done differently without getting slammed! His farewell address was torn apart by these ravenous dogs. Editorial pages are filled with opinions on President Bush's "failed" presidency. He's been called the worst president in history.

Called the messiah by at least one famous idiot, Barak Obama, I suppose, will never take a wrong turn leading us out of the wilderness. He’s not the Moses some have compared him too; he's better. Moses made mistakes and never got to the Promised Land. Nor is Obama the Lincoln he compares himself to. Lincoln's focus was on preserving the Union; Obama’s is to alter it.

Sunday Morning even tossed some comments about the transition team President Bush organized to make sure Obama does not come into the White House as he did. Remember? He came into a White House trashed by the departing Administration. Not only did Clinton and Hilary take “souvenirs” but also their staffs wrecked computers and removed the letter w from keyboards, carved messages into the desks, and left graffiti. Taxpayers paid for the damages, and the departing First Couple got a pass.

President Bush made sure that President-elect Obama was fully briefed on what is going on around the world. His staff was given “worse case scenarios” and went through the procedures, etc. that would be followed in a variety of situations. Even as Mr. Obama talks about dismantling much of our intelligent gathering possibilities, President Bush leaves him a country that has not been attacked since the horrific events of 9/11. President Bush should be applauded and recognized for his actions. Let’s pray Obama continues to safeguard us.

While members of the media continue to deride President Bush, partly I fear to give our new President a cushy landing, I’m wondering when the honeymoon will end. Will it be when the truth about some of his appointees becomes more apparent? (Treasury Secretary Geithner’s failure to pay $34,000 in taxes is, in Obama’s words an “innocent mistake.” Attorney General Erik Holder’s supporting pardons for FALN terrorists and financial swindler Marc Rich doesn’t seem to bother him either.) Will it be when so many of his unkept and always unkeepable promises dash the hope of those who voted for him? Will it be when the country wakes up to the biggest pork barrel (nicknamed the stimulus package) ever rolled out of Congress without any Republican input but pushed by Pelosi, supported by Reid and branded ok by Obama? Is the press just too stupid to get it and the American public too mesmerized to demand it?

I’ll be glad when I no longer get anti-Bush “jokes” in my email. I will not miss the constant unfair criticism and disrespect. I will love not having Americans go abroad to knock my president or my country. I also wish Obama to succeed in keeping America safe and great. I want him treated with the respect the office deserves. I have my fingers crossed, but honestly, I don’t have much hope.

politics politicians opinion "political+opinion" election 2008 inauguration Obama Bush presidents "Bush-bashing"

JUDGING DEMOCRATS: ONE MORE BLUNDER AS BILL RICHARDSON TRIPS UP AND OUT

The news about Bill Richardson's withdrawal as the Secretary of Transportation calls for some serious thinking about how to judge Democrats.

1. Remember the transistion from Bill Clinton to George W. Bush. The Clintons themselves ransacked the White House taking with them everything they wanted that wasn't nailed down. Their staff wrecked the computers, stealing the W keys, and carving obsene messages in the desks. The offices were a mess and had to be redone--AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE.

George W. Bush, on the other hand, created a Transition Coordinating Committee. Security Clearance was started months ago so that key positions could be filled ASAP. Remember that as late as 9/11, some Bush appointees had not been cleared. Apparently President Bush will conclude his terms as President with the respect the office deserves. Character counts when we judge a person.

ON THE OTHER HAND...

2. Barak Obama, haunted, if only by saavy voters, by his associations, continues to be shielded by the media as his appointees and past label him a political opportunist. Fighting his lack of experience, he choses Bill Richardson as Transportation Secretary. Here's a double whammy: experience and Hispanic. BUT Richardson is embroiled in a Federal investigation of his own, and the press has once again chosen sides.

There is no widespread reporting that the company that donated $100,000 normally donated to Republicans so was less likely to suddenly shift to donate to Bill Richardson-affiliated organizations. Nor are there reports that the multi-million state contracts went to this company--Los Angeles based. I'm sure the taxpayers of New Mexico are pleased with that.

3. Perhaps we should consider ourselves lucky because more important than this Federal Investigation is that Richardson was in the running for President. Once again a politician has publicly proven that personal gain is far more important than public good.

4. Harry Reid, our leading Senator, doesn't like the smell of tourists in the summer. He represents us smelling, nosy, folk!

5. Harry Reid, our leading Senator, publicly states that the Senate can seat (or not seat) anyone it chooses for no stated reason even if the person meets the Constitutional requirements. How's that for Chutzpah! We'll see how he reacts to Roland Burris.
politics commentary Demorcrats Bush Obama Clinton transition "political+appointee" Richardson Reid Burris Senate Congress government president

ALL THE NEWS (THEY DECIDE) THAT'S FIT TO PRINT

If you watch TV news, you may have missed this horrendous event. On Wed., Sept., 18, there was an attack on the U.S. embassy in Yemen that left 16 people dead including a newlywed from New York there for an arranged wedding.

This is the same Yemen where 17 American sailors lost their lives in the Oct. 12, 2000 suicide bombing of the U.S.S. Cole.

The AP reported that the militants who launched this latest attack in Yemen are linked to al-Qaida, BUT most news outlets, if they ran the story at all, gave it a necessary inclusion and then let it drop. No follow up. Not even extensive "human interest" coverage of the American woman killed in the bombing. No further discussion of the role of al-Qaida.

We don’t hear much about the war on terror in the news these days. We still hear each time an armed services member dies, but thankfully those numbers are substanially diminishing as the Iraqis take over security their country. We are almost never reminded of that change in military. It's better for the liberals to focus on loss of life and imply it is for a non-cause.

Nor are we reminded that almost all of Congress’ “benchmarks” for Iraq have been achieved. We’re led to believe, through lies of omission, that the War in Iraq continues as it was and that the Iraqi government and people are incapable of governing themselves. There are people out there who want us to become familiar with the word "quagmire" despite its inappropriateness.

How many of you know that Kuwait is no considered a combat zone and those military personnel there can wear civilian clothing and no longer carry weapons?

There is a motive behind this blatant withholding of news. It is the presidential elections. A biased and liberal media wants Americans believing the worst as the presidential election approaches. It keeps us ignorant of the truth. It marginalizes Obama’s steadfast refusal to admit that he was wrong in many of his votes concerning the war despite his agreement that the surge worked “beyond our wildest dreams,” a statement I disagree with as Petraeus & Co. certainly aimed for the results the surge achieved. The withholding of war allows McCain’s steadfast understanding and support of our efforts to fade into the background.

You might say today's top story is the economic picture, and you may have a point, but when the news is full of Caylee Anthony’s disappearance, O.J. Simpson’s trial, Lindsay Lohan's political views while ignoring the fact that Dem. Mark Foley will not be prosecuted for sending sexual emails to teenagers or that Dem. Charles Rangel is still Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee while he doesn’t file taxes, etc., you’ve got to wonder. Could it be that we’re expected to think that corruption only exists on the other side of the aisle? Let’s compare Larry Craig’s (R) wide stance advances to Mark Foley’s (D) coming on to teenage boys.

It’s getting more and more difficult to vote intelligently because of the news “filters” we have. As my magnetized NOBAMA and McCAIN FOR PRESIDENT bumper stickers were stolen off my car, I’ve replaced them with one I bought at the Mark Twain home in Hartford, CT. Twain said it all! The bumper sticker proclaims: MARK TWAIN FOR PRESIDENT (with picture of Twain): IT’S BETTER TO BE POPULAR THAN RIGHT.

al-qaida politics politicians Iraq Yemen Kuwait military war surge news commentary opinion "U.S.+Embassy" bombing suicide sailors "New+York" Americans Obama McCain AP "news+service" congress benchmarks Rangel Foley Craig sex taxes "House+Ways+and+Means" committees "combat+zones" Petraeus Democrats Republicans "Mark+Twain" quotes CT

OBAMA BOMBS AMERICA IN EUROPE

There are so many things about Barak Obama I don’t like that as he continues and the negatives add up, I’ve begun sighing deeply in exasperation.

This European tour is one more bad example of how he would lead our country. It’s bad enough that he panders here at home, but abroad he is slick, oily, and unfortunately attractive because he feeds every negative Europeans have of us.

He got the biggest applause in Germany when he apologized for us. The crowd went wild at the mention of torture. For Obama anything more than the milk & cookies approach is torture. He also pointed out how we haven’t lived up to our ideals. Perhaps he should read that our aim is to “create a more perfect union.” What direction is the country moving because of his candidacy? It is moving in the “more perfect” direction.

In Germany we thwarted their national goals in two devastating wars and then had The Marshall Plan to rebuild them into a major power. We gallantly fed them when they were boxed in by the Soviet Union and then flexed our muscles just enough to see the Berlin Wall reduced to rubble and East Germany reunited with the west, Obama somehow envisions Germany a model? Huh? That is the same country experiencing a resurgence of skinheads and neo-Nazis, isn’t it? Aren’t they having problems with the influx of illegal immigrants? Haven’t terrorist cells been located there? Still doing business with Iran? They helped us when we needed it, right? Nein. Is this the model Obama sees for us?

We twice saved France from Germany’s national goals and then waited outside Paris so that de Gaulle could lead a triumphant march back to the Eiffel Tower. In “gratitude” he later threatened to break the U.S. dollar. Obama cozied up to Sarkozy, the man who demands a second referendum in Ireland (he didn't like the outcome of the first) because the people there don’t want the limitations of the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty; they know what bowing to the socialist-leaning EU will do to curtail the Celtic Tiger’s economy. That is the same France with double-digit unemployment compared to our slightly more than 5% rate. That is the same France beleaguered with riots by their immigrants. That is the same France rife with but unwilling to deal with anti-Semitic crimes. That is the same France that cannot stand the fact that English is the international language. France loves to do business with Iran. Is this the model Obama sees for us?

At the same time Obama sucked up to these people, he couldn’t bring himself to see our troops in the hospital in Germany. I received an email, too, but won’t print it because it is uncorroborated that stated he snubbed the troops in Afghanistan and went straightaway with the General. I don’t recall seeing any photos of him with our troops. Did you?

Speaking about war, by the way, Obama grudgingly admits the surge is working. But he’d still vote against it. Tail between his legs, Obama would run. Says he’d listen to the generals on the ground but still would vote against the surge. They’re the ones who suggested a change in tactics and the surge. Obama’s statement makes no sense to me.

The press said Obama looked presidential. He’s a good looking guy. Dress me up and I will look presidential too. And I bet I know a heck of a lot more about America and what it stands for and its history than he does. I bet I wouldn’t sell us short to people who want to see us cut off at the knees. That’s just what Obama will do if he gets the chance. Not with my vote.

Obama politics politicians "political+blogs" commentary viewpoint opinion France Germany Europe EU immigrants torture US America elections vote military war soldiers Ireland "Celtic+Tiger" surge press

CONGRESS CONTINUES TO RUN AMUCK WITH OUR TAX MONEY

The Senate's vote on Wed to TRIPLE spending for a much acclaimed program to protect against AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis is a sign that the U.S.A. remains a leader in helping those around the world. We actually deliver what we pledge unlike many other countries in the world. It is the most ambitious health program ever in the history of the United States.

Unfortuately, this $48 billion dollar package DOES NOT HELP ANYONE HERE. It all goes to Africa--granted the continent is being decimated by these diseases, internal wars, external wars, corrupt governments, sectarian fighting, genocide, racial strife and practically every other man-made and natural disaster there is. BUT...

1. This is the same Congress that does not pass spending bills to keep our military safe and well-equipped. Replacement truck parts in Iraq, for instance, may be a year in waiting because vendors are unpaid; the newspapers are full of reports of faulty electrical work and shoddy electrical equipment resulting in military deaths and injuries, and Congress keeps screaming about the expense of the Iraq war.

This is the same Congress that complains about a "recession," "bad economy," and the plight of Americans who can't afford to buy the things they need WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING SUBSTANATIVE to control the situation.

This is the same Congress that talks about energy and reducing oil independence to bring down prices but which doesn't legislate consistent tax breaks for people to afford solar or wind energy or who add doors, window, etc. to lessen their individual use of resources or for companies to afford technological development. (Remember that Kennedy and Kerry opposed wind farms that might mar their Massachusetts views of the Atlantic ocean)

This is the same Congress led by that despicable Nancy Pelosi who damns the President with his low approval rating while leading a do-nothing Congress with an approval rating 20 points below President Bush's.

This is the same Congress that WILL BREAK FOR SUMMER RECESS WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING about any of the problems that beset us.

WHAT A WASTE THESE MEN AND WOMEN ARE!!!!

This bill, this latest assault on our wallets, is their own "feel good," global way of looking busy. It goes along with their interest in any possible sports irregularities such as steroid useage--obviously problems of vital national interest. Ha Ha It goes along with their constant supoenas issued to presidential aides, etc., to get headlines for their party while ignoring, with the media's complicity, the wrongdoing of such members as Charlie Rangel with his four rent-subsidized apts.--three to create a spacious home for himself and one as an office, or Chris Dodd's special treatment in getting mortgages, etc. Or my own Senator, Chuck Schumer (photo upChuck) whose comments may have contributed to IndyMac's bank failure. According to NPR,

"Twelve days earlier, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, had written to bank regulators warning that "a significant move by IndyMac's depositors to redeem their deposits could leave the firm in a disastrous financial situation." Once those letters became public, Schumer's worst fears were realized.

More ironically is that Schumer, when blamed, quickly pointed out that those pointing fingers at him were using "Bush tactics." DUH!

I know I'm rambling a bit, but launching the biggest health initiative ever--in Africa--at a time when we can't balance our budget, don't adequately fund the military (including Veteran hospitals, etc.), need to develop an energy policy (which will be expensive), seek to lessen the tax burden for our citizens, protect the Homeland (also expensive), rebuild failing infrastructure, and help those damaged by floods, fires, and other recent natural disasters is another example of Congress' misguided thinking, its inability to focus and accomplish anything positive for our country, its self-congratulatory smugness, and its damaging partisanship that puts party above country. Would that we could toss the whole lot out!
Congress politics politicians "political+blogs" Africa AIDS malaria tuberculosis health USA military Iraq recession economy energy Kennedy Kerry Massachusetts Bush Pelosi senate Schumer IndyMac

IF THIS WERE BUSH...OMIGOSH...BUT IT'S OBAMA

This morning CNN made a big deal and a lot of fun about John McCain saying he would "veto any 'beer,' I mean bill that contains earmarks...." (GOOD FOR HIM) They're going to pounce on everything he says that doesn't quite work as a reason not to vote for him.

Well, if you want to see what happens when Obama doesn't have a script or teleprompter, look at these two. Not quite the smooth, savvy guy some in our country like to think they know.

http://www.youtube.com/7ujhytg2oo0
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxBX8sz3tO8

Let me make myself clear. Uttering an incorrect word or getting flustered and tongue-tied shouldn't matter one iota, but Democrats and liberals use these examples all the time. "Misspeaking" enabled them to label Dan Quayle a moron--and the public bought it. George W. Bush mispronounced "nuclear," and it made headlines. We're still hearing about his alleged studpidity. John McCain once mixed up Iraq and Iran (two wholey dissimilar words?) and it was attributed to age. These videos of Obama then, take the cake! If Obama were a Republican, there would be a Congressional move to have him institutionalized!!!! Just take a gander--because what's good for the goose, IS good for the gander.

Obama Bush utube video politics election politicians McCain CNN Democrats Republicans congress Quayle "political+blogs" "political+opinion" convervative youtube

DON'T LET THE MEDIA CHOOSE OUR CANDIDATES

Don't let the press choose our candidates for us. The press has taken sides and has chosen its favorites. Now the journalists just sit back and hope we'll follow their lead.

It's no secret that journalists covering Barak Obama are smitten. His charm and the likeablity factor that alludes Hillary are intricate parts of his personality. But what they aren't covering are the details of his positions. He's allowed to make statements without ever offering a plan to implement them. But he's still a golden boy. Beware.

With Hillary, no one challenges her past. The media certainly does not. When she calls Bill's eight years in the White House her experience and adds another eight as a do-nothing NY Senator, what is she taking about--the travel agency debacle, the failed and embarrassing stab at health care reform, the lost records that sat on her coffee table and mysteriously disappeared? The press doesn't deal with those things, and hope we've forgotten. Search high and low for the positive contributions of her senate year, but it will be like searching for WMDs in an Iraqi desert.

Duncan Hunter was a blip on the journalistic screen. The press ignored him, and he quietly went away. Guiliani was counted out by the press as was Fred Thompson. And did you know that by suspending rather than stopping his campaign, John Edwards is still eligible for government campaign funding? Is he angling for a position in the next White House? The press hasn't covered that possibility.

The press is definitely anti-Huckabee, and keeps asking when he's going to give up and go home. Huckabee has to keep repeating that he's in this thing for the long haul. Defending his run has superseded talking about issues--his tax reforms, for instance.

According to the media, John McCain is the Republican candidate of choice. He's far from conservative stances, and his rebellion against the Republicans is glossed over. His dalliances with some of the most liberal Democrats in the Senate like Ted Kennedy please the press, so the media is all for him. They didn't call him on his lies about Mitt Romney's war position, and they apparently want to push him to the forefront. The press keeps suggesting that it's time for Romney to call it a day as a presidential candidate. They've left him on his own.

It's bad enough the the press can't or won't treat the candidates neutrally. It's worse that we tend to listen and follow their suggestions. If it's inevitable that McCain will get the nomination, we think, then why not vote for him in the primary? If the Clintons have an unbeatable machine, why not vote for her now?

The fact that we are treated as stupid doesn't mean we have to act that way. Use your own reasons for voting for a candidate. Most important--VOTE for the person who is closest to your personal choices.
politics primaries "Super+Tuesday" Hillary Obama Huckabee McCain Romney Edwards Guiliani Thompson Hunter "political+commentary" analysis media candidates press journalist "Not+With+A+Whimper" "political+blogs"

HAMAS' DESTRUCTION IN GAZA CAUSES OUTCRY; WHERE ARE THE CRIES FOR SDEROT?

While today's news outlets are loaded with reports about the Palestinians breaking through Egypt's tight borders with the Gaza Strip and bemoaning the fate of the impoverished Gaza population, Hamas sits back and continues its destruction of the area and its people. Hamas can afford to sit back, arms crossed militantly and arrogantly across its chest because the world sits back and ignores the fact that Hamas has caused the hardships in Gaza. Meanwhile, across the Israeli border, the city of Sderot prepares itself for another barrage of Kassam rockets that Hamas fires at it up to forty times a day.

We don't much read about those attacks on Sderot, and we rarely see photos of the concrete barriers residents have seven seconds to reach once the sirens alarm them to another attack. We don't see schoolchildren or office workers huddled in hallways, their heads covered to protect them from flying debris. We don't see pictures of Israeli women crying or Israeli children being hurt. We don't hear about newly made widows or newly made orphans in Israel. Let me quote Masha Rifkin, an American volunteer in Sderot who witnesses these attacks: "As I write this, Kassams are hitting Sderot. Children are screaming, mothers are collapsing in despair, and doctors are pulling shrapnel out of the bodies of Jews." We don't get news reports of this.

What the AP feeds us constantly in its uncompromisingly partisan coverage is that "a militant leader in Gaza" was killed in an Israeli attack. Usually there is a photo of a screaming Palestinian woman to show us how relentless the Israelis are. Forget the ceaseless attacks in Israel because Israeli lives do not matter in the AP's political agenda.

The AP is upset that the Gaza citizens, victims of Hamas and not of Israel (because the borders are closed to protect Israelis from Hamas), are heading toward Egypt, another of the Arab states that have left them to suffer since the Arabs refused a state of their own back in 1948. While Israel flourished and grew, no Arab state offered help to those who chose to leave. What the press likes to call "refugee camps" are full-blown cities--duh--we're talking 1948! But that's another story.

Just remember when you're reading about Gaza and Hamas, when you see photos of crying women and funerals that all of this can be avoided if Israel could stop defending itself against attacks from Hamas. Remember, too, that Jews die the same way other people do when their city is hit by random barrages of Kassam rockets. Hamas doesn't care who they target!

press media AP news politics "Middle+East" Sderot Egypt "Kassam+rockets" Hamas Gaza Israel