USSR part II?

I am not an expert in Russian politics....

When President Bush first met, then President, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin early in his first year in office he stated:

"I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy. We had a very good dialogue. I was able to get a sense of his soul; a man deeply committed to his country and the best interests of his country."

Oddly enough I agree with Hillery Clinton - he is former KGB and probably does not have a soul. The minute he took office he started to consolidate political power. I could argue that purging the Kremlin of nearly anyone related to Boris Yeltsin was important house cleaning or that condensing the number of governors and political territories was need to better manage the country - many of the events of the past years point to less benevolent reasons. Let me be clear: this is a man who spent much of his life working his way through the KGB - starting in the Fifth Directorate (irc) which is charged with quelling descent of the government. I do believe that he has the best interests of his country at heart; it just so happens that it is always in the country's best interest to have him near the top of power. Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's current president, has served under Putin since the fall of Communism in the early nineties and it is believed by many that hey his mealy Putin's proxy in office. The political party they share (and Putin is the current leader of) is generally considered a nationalist/center-right (the European definition of right). One of its main planks is to limit "radicalism". Additionally it has been reported (I don't recall where I saw it) that a push is being made to lessen the power of the rich oligarchs that run most of the countries manufacturing, transport, and natural resource concerns - possibly leading to the nationalization these industries. Now the PM and the President are pushing for a constitutional change to allow the president to serve a 6 year term instead of the current four. As a package it looks less than fair for a real Russian Democracy - I hope I'm wrong.

Two articles I've read in the last week spawned this quick reminder of who runs Russia today. The first was this one discussing the heavy handed break up of opposition protests. Many people are extremely unhappy with the current political situation in Russia and this has been exasperated by the lack of foreign investment and the current global financial mess. The investment issue is a major one and worthy of a book or two.

The second article is much more frightening. I thank God they we have the Bill of Rights. Voicing a descending view is treason... that very thought frightens me until I remember the old adage: "the 2nd Amendment protects all of the others." Read the article. This is a basis for a totalitarian state. I pray something occurs to heel Russia's current course or I fear a return of the USSR, though resembling Germany circa 1938 to a degree.

edit: This is what may happen in an extreme, but it is in the back of my head when ever I read someing like this.

More minor points...

They are making a Ghostbusters game. Whether it very good or very bad doesn't matter: it'll be funny and I'll buy it.


This is the best summary of Islamo-fascist terrorism I have ever seen:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Mumbai Tragedy

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Plexico Burris is a colossal moron. Apparently the thug culture, that apparently urban people perpetuate, ignores basic safety and throws common sense out the window.

Problem one: He carried a gun in NYC illegally. Do I think NY's laws are asinine? Hell yeah, but I obey them just the same. He shouldn't have had it with him in the first place. Hell, clubs/bars and guns don't mix for a myriad of reasons. Guns and alcohol don't mix in any situation or quantity.

Problem two: He stuffed a loaded Glock in the waist band of his sweat pants. I have never found a pair of sweatpants that would support a couple of pounds of stainless steel, plastic, and ammo. In fact, I purchased a heavy duty gun belt to wear when I carry to support the weight of my sidearm - no pair of pants would do it by it self. In addition to this being unsafe and insecure; I have a major problem with pointing a loaded gun at my junk and at my femoral artery when sitting. In the worst case scenario the gun goes off taking my boys off and severing the major artery in my leg. The shame of becoming androgynous will be short lived since I'll probably bleed out in less than minute.

Problem three: He was sans holster. Nearly all holsters cover the trigger guard preventing accidental contact with the trigger and thus helping to prevent a negligent discharge. Most holsters also have belt clip that will prevent the gun from sliding down your pants leg.
Problem four: It should be a rule - don't try and grab a falling gun!

Who wears sweatpants in public anyway? Many people do when it makes sense to do so (jogging for example) - but to a club? Isn't that a sign you've given up on life and plan on spending your days in a recliner, chugging cheap booze, channel surfing and hoping not to wind up like half the people on COPS. I think this was a basis for an episode of Seinfeld.


And again whe turn to Americas best source for news an commentary to help put this in the proper perspective:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jon Stewart Touches Kids - Plaxico Burress

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

A Journalist gets it!

I found the following quote, in this article, from the photographer who managed to get a shot of on of the Mumbai terrorists:

"I told some policemen the gunmen had moved towards the rear of the station but they refused to follow them. What is the point if having policemen with guns if they refuse to use them? I only wish I had a gun rather than a camera."

Policemen who will not stop an armed gunman from slaughtering unarmed citizens... It makes my stomach turn.

Happy Thanksgiving

Just a few random thoughts.

Arrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Somali pirates have been thriving - capturing a Saudi oil tanker and a Russian cargo ship laden with military cargo amongst others. That takes balls by any measure. What is amazing is that they have been allowed to thrive. The reactionary nature of the nations patrolling the Indian Ocean have emboldened the Pirates who live in luxury in a Barbary state. Somalia has not been a truly sovereign nation for sometime. The meddling by foreign groups - including Clinton's abortion of an operation in the '90s - have created a poor, fractured country in a state of perpetual civil war. The international community, sadly, frowns on arming the crews for the defense of their ship. As an American I fins this fundamentally wrong. The pirates have no real fear of loss and this emboldens them. Only one way has been proven to stop piracy: sink their ships, hell their ports, and hang the captains. The US Navy was formed to battle the Barbary Pirates. The Marines Hymn enshrines the "...shores of Tripoli...". You must be more ruthless then them; history prove s this. Sink captured vessels to deny them ransom and cargo - though that gets expensive in a hurry. Shell/bomb safe havens - a perfect job for a BB - if we still used them. If you make piracy have a significant cost you will curtail it.

Obama's Appointments and Such...

I just have to laugh. The man worked his way up through the Chicago political machine. Patronage is an important component of that. If anyone really thought he would do things differently they are a diluted fool. Even the Huffington Post is crying about this. You are getting exactly what you voted for. Those of you on the left are only seeing the beginnings of what many on the right had predicted would be the shape of his administration. If you are unwillinhg to take a critical look at your canidate before an election; don't act surpised when he does thinks you don't expect or disagree with.

On a somewhat related note... something that I had noticed during the summer, but never mentioned (I wasn't in a writing mood much of the summer): Doesn't the Oboma 'Hope' graphic look a little like the common Che Guevara image? I think it does, and it is quite telling of his belief system.


Money...

Here is an interesting artical in the Finacial Times. Apparently the Germans get it. It is a real shame that politicas and class warfare have gotten in the way of solving problems.

ah... All The News that is 'Fit' to Print

I've seen Pravda listed as impartial news source on several occasions so none of this surprises me. Pravda is, by the way, the official paper of the Communist party and founded by Lenin; It rarely tries to hide its bias and past. The continual drop in circulation does not surprise me at all. Many media outlets seem to forget that (at least in PA) 50% of the population can't vote in the Democratic Primary, and therefore, don't care what Hillery or Obamba say at this point.

I will say that studies, including the Harvard one linked above, are very limited in scope. The talk radio references are an example. Rudi is the apparent front runner for the GOP nomination. He gets ripped all of the time on his social record as mayor of NYC - which is to be expected, considering talk radios conservative bias. I think that is important to point out that, in my opinion, talk radio is conservative because most of the media is so liberal. It is reasonable to assume that if the major news outlets were not so biased their would be the void that talk radio, and to a lesser extent Fox News, fill. Air America fail because it was redundant: People already had what they offered in damn near ever TV show, newspaper and NPR.

Bernstein has a point here too.
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Things like this make me fell less regretful about not going to college, though they have appeared to back tracked. This is pure Bolshevism if I have ever seen it. I though that institutions of higher learning were places of free thought and free speech; I guess I was wrong.

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I thought that we were doing this already, but then aren't we supposed to not do things unilaterally? I'm confused...

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An interesting list....

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Grr... Who supports this guy again?

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I haven't read it, but on the surface it looks Ok...

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Screw those who appose tightening the boarder..... Here's why.

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WHOIS?

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News and other ramblings

Press releases like this is why many call these groups "environmentalist wacko". It is shameful to to use the misfortunes of those who have lost their homes for ideological gains. I have stated that I don't think that it should be major - front page above the fold - news story, but I don't think that it right to exploit victims of any disaster. Additionally, blaming Bush for causing the fire through inaction is laughable on it face. It can, however, be argued that environmental regulations have forced inaction that has made preventing and fighting wild fires more difficult. Bush is not setting fires - others are. Incidentally, the warmest and worst fire season on record in S.CA is 1936.

I will have to see if they will protest China's atrocious air quality? I'm sure that many do, but I'd wager that most of these groups give the Chinese a pass.

It is hard to compete with near slave labor.

I smell a siege...

Stop the flow then deal with the ones that are here, that is to unreasonable; in fact it is the only way any reform will actually work! Perhaps then the issue will be less caustic for those who oppose vast majority of the population.

The look on Sec. Rice's face is priceless. Is it a 'what the hell is this look' or 'will anyone blame me for hitting her' look.

If you didn't see this coming than you haven't been paying attention.

This doesn't sound all that bad until you realize that the changes coincide with the sunsetting of the Bush tax cuts (i.e. a tax increase). Here is the GOP response to this. I am, by no measure, rich, but I ask why should I make a 100 grand a year if I have to give most of it to government. I make money to spend it on ME and those whom I want to spend money on. The only real tax reforms I could support is a flat tax or an elimination of the income tax I'll have to read the bill before I can really comment, but have to ask if it is really necessary since tax revenue has increased significantly in the last several years.

Today is St. Crispin's Day. The only reason I know this is because of Shakespeare, though it is better in the original Klingon.

The Simpsons did it...

The premise seems interesting, but who decides what is valuable and what is not?

"Pull the grenade and throw the pin..."

The Aristocrats!

I hate it when this happens...

Also the quote of the week: "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what's for dinner. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote." --Benjamin Franklin

Other things

Funny quote of the day: "The United States is a nation of laws: badly written and randomly enforced." - Frank Zappa

I like baseball, because things like this can happen. It is also maddening to see the Phillies go three and out in the post season, but hey there is always next season.

Delaying the deployment of our missile shield in Europe is probably a good thing right now. Our ties with Russia are strained and there needs to be pressure on Iran from all quarters not just from us and our allies. I am sure however that Israel will do something if we don't. Remember, it's not paranoia if everybody IS trying to kill you.

I have to ask... Why the hell is Nutter anointed by the press to be the next mayor of Philadelphia? I'm not sure that the Inquirer will report when the Republicans pick a candidate. Every story I've seen mentioning Nutter just stops short of calling him the mayor elect. It is almost never 'Democratic candidate for mayor, Micheal Nutter'. No media bias my ass.

Global warming = doomsday guy on the side of the road... I love it!

A change may be what is needed with the Eagles and I'm not sure that Andy Reid can change with the times. He is also limited by the players at hand...

This is funny.

You've got to love the Boy Scouts

Star Wars

Why don't we have weapons in orbit 'cus the ChiComs certainly don't care about the pact we signed with the UK and the USSR. I know that they've signed it too, but I really can't trust them and I think that they will push the envelope as much as they can and cross the line if they think that they can get away with it. The Chinese have based much of their war planing on fighting the US. They know that our military is very information driven and somewhat dependent on satellites for much of that information - mainly GPS and communications. The new cold war is with China and no one has made any real effort to push back.

On the other hand, it is nice to say that we are working with others on peaceful research and have moved past such things.

News and such.

Well communists never did like sharing power with anybody, especially with religion. In a communist country the state is the religion and thusly there is no room for competition from the church. So this does not surprise me one minute.

This and this are not compatible with this.

Drudge is no more biased than the NY Times. In fact, I'd say that Drudge is less so since he writes few of his own articles.

Fires in CA, during the dry season, in an area that has copious amounts of pine fuel. Houses in Malibu are in danger - so what. They built those houses in a potential tinder box and should have expected this to happen since it has happened in the past a number of times before. I feel bad for people who have lost their homes, but How is this a major news story? It sounds a little callus, but I'll say the same things to those living in 'hurricane alley', or flood victims along the Mississippi. Their are risks in any place you might live. In choosing to live in places were natural disasters occur you have to accept those risks.

Bill Maher got angry at hecklers. Those people are nuts! Apparently these people have never seen an implosion on TV and have no idea about the amount of prep that requires. As much as I disagree with Maher's politics and rhetoric, these people make many of your run of the mill kooks look normal.

What has caused the fall of the dollar? Was it really over valued, as some say? Some people should realize that foreign currencies have strengthened in the last years, that manufacturing has been driven out of this country, and out trade deficit have all contributed in part to this. People should focus on things like this and less on social BS that government has no business doing anyway. It also amazes me that there is talk, in Europe, about weakening the Euro. An purpose of the Euro was to better compete with the dollar. No you can't have it both ways Europe.

In the old days this would have caused a war.

This sounds familiar.

News & Updates

Safety and security is the reason most want the border tightened. Here is yet another example. How can this be allowed to happen?

Politics and ambition can not take priority over national security and our allies, Ms. Pelosi

As a bonus the UN doesn't like the idea of Turkish military action in northern Iraq. I see blue helmets in our future.

I doubt it. The old adage it true: the more you say something the more it become the truth. Their are economic issues that need to be addressed, but we are not in a recession...

And this may or my not be good. It depends on your perspective.

Grrr... communists.

This will get conservative votes.

Today in History...

BOOM!!

Also today....

And they wonder why circulation is down at the NY Times... here's a clue.

A Treasonious - WTF pt. II

That's right Congress let's piss of one of the few truly moderate, democratic, Muslim countries that has been an ally in Iraq. Here's the article from ABCNews:

Turkey, which is a key supply route to U.S. troops in Iraq, recalled its ambassador to Washington on Thursday and warned of serious repercussions if Congress labels the killing of Armenians by Turks a century ago as genocide.

Ordered after a House committee endorsed the genocide measure, the summons of the ambassador for consultations was a further sign of the deteriorating relations between two longtime allies and the potential for new turmoil in an already troubled region.

Here is another from CNN:

The House Foreign Affairs committee voted 27-21 Wednesday to approve the nonbinding resolution, which declares that the deportation of nearly 2 million Armenians from the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1923 -- resulting in the deaths of 1.5 million -- was "systematic" and "deliberate," amounting to "genocide."... The Pentagon says 70 percent of the military's cargo heading into Iraq either flies into or over Turkey.

But House Democrats view the resolution as part of their mandate to restore America's moral authority around the world.

70% of all military cargo think about that for a minute. The Ottoman Empire - which no longer exists due in no small part to their defeat in WWI - think about that for a minute.

"As long as there is genocide, there is need to speak out against it," she added. (Speaker Pelosi)

Where was her call to condemn Darfur?

"The Turkish government will not act against the United States because that would be against their own interests," he told CNN. "I'm convinced of this."

Lantos, the only member of the House who is a Holocaust survivor, says passage of the resolution would also help to bring a moral dimension back to U.S. foreign policy.

"One of the problems we have diplomatically globally is that we have lost our moral authority which we used to have in great abundance," Lantos said. "People around the globe who are familiar with these events will appreciate the fact that the United States is speaking out against a historic injustice. This would be like sweeping slavery under the rug and saying slavery never occurred."

How deluded is this? Turk has few trade and political ties with the US. Does Turkey's desire to join NATO and the EU supered there historical dislike of the Kurds?

Turkey has had a minor problem with Kurdish fighters crossing the boarder and has stated an intention to follow them with military forces akin to the Punitive Expedition against Poncho Villa at the turn of the 20th century. In fact, if I recall correctly, this was one of the reasons we turned down proposals that Turkey occupy northern Iraq before we had even invaded.

This resolution is absurd.

If Turkey decides to invade northern Iraq, one of the few stable areas, after the Kurds or decided to limit overflight and other support it would make thinks difficult for our military, its mission, and our allies. The withdraw of Turkey from the fold will, more than likely, cost lives. Any military action in N. Iraq, by Turkey, would undoubtedly cause an influx of refugees to the center and southern parts of the country that we are starting to get under control.

This move by the majority in Congress is strictly a political move for their personal gain at the expense of this country and its men and women in uniform.

What's next - a resolution condemning France, under Napoleon, for the invasion of Austria?
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13 Oct: Here's more....
15 Oct: More...

The Dali Lama, et ctera

China hates the Dali Lama because it is not under the direct control of the Chinese Communist Party. Anything that provides to further legitimize him is a threat to their total domination of the Chinese people. Look at the history of Russia's Communist Party. It is a group that is 100% intolerant of anything marginally different, let alone something as opposite, than its own ridged ideology. If they could kill him and imprison his supporters without a massive international outcry they would. The Olympics could be interesting, except that most news agencies seem to ignore the bad in China most of the time.

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Two words: Flat Tax or even better NO INCOME TAX and STOP SPENDING OUR MONEY! Mr. Rangel you, sir, are a fool! The policy you present here has never worked. Why should I aspire to make more money if the Fed. is going to punish me by taking half of it away?

Here is a point of comparison.

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The weaker dollar isn't all bad.

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Using a child who made use of the SCHIP program as an example of why it needs to be expanded as a government entitlement is just wrong.

V. Fox

Here's the link.

This quote was at the top of the artical: "The xenophobics, the racists, those who feel they are a superior race ... they are deciding the future of this nation," he said, without naming names, in an interview with The Associated Press.

Ummm.... NO! Certainly there are people who hate Mexicans for raciest reasons, but they are of a small number consisting of people to tend to hate everybody. The vast majority of the immigration debate focuses on SECURITY, safety, cultural integration, jobs, and sovereignty.

Sovereignty should be an obvious one. If we can't control our border then how sovereign are we?

Job's should also be obvious. Immigrants dominate farm, landscaping, and other difficult, dirty jobs because most Americans won't do them for the low wages Mexicans will work for. Fox made a comment a few years ago to the effect of 'Black won't do these jobs but Mexicans will...they are harder working' I will have to find the quote. I will admit that there are some people who need a kick in the pants, but that if the worker were offered a decent wage they might consider doing it. This leads to two offshoots of the jobs issue: benefits and economic. There is little debate that cities with large illegal immigrant populations they are a major drain on hospitals an other services. There are some who want to extend social security and other benefits to them and that is patently INSANE for (what should be) obvious reasons. Additionally, often illegals don't contribute to the local economy as much as others. They do spend money on necessities, but on little else. Many of them send the money they earn back to Mexico to support families and friends there.


Integration is another major issue. Duel language forms are a new out side the State Department, the INS, etc. The only other points of comparison I have were I live are Russians and Indians. The major difference that I see with those two groups is that they put down roots. They open businesses, buy homes and start families. Most importantly they learn English! I'm not saying that there aren't any Latinos that do this just in much smaller numbers.


Safety is a growing concern. Stories about MS13 and other more violent gangs are cropping up more often. Cocaine is becoming a problem again in areas due to our inability to control the border. Most recently the issue has been the NAFTA Highway through Texas and the safety of Mexican trucks and drivers. Canadian drivers, the only point of comparison, are bonded before they enter the US. Additionally this will make inspection of vehicles more difficult for the Border Patrol and Customs.

All of this culminates in security. If millions of people enter this country illegally across our southern border who's to say they are all good. If we can't stop migrent workers how can we stop drugs, criminals and terrorist?

No one is pushing a moratorium on legal immigration - In fact quite the opposite is being lobbied. This is a nation of immigrants. This is a nation with strong, though at times strained, immigrant traditions. The major differences between other groups and a large number of Latinos is the desire to to become Americans and adopt our language, laws, and customs while integrating their own. Perhaps I am being xenophobic on some of these points - it is perfectly natural to fear change and the unknown - but the safety, security, and sovereignty issues are objective and quantifiable to any reasonable person.

Look at Europe to see what unchecked immigration has brought them.

However, the differences between the US and Europe are worth note. First, is the availability of work and the industrious nature of many of the migrants. Second, is Socialism - more specifically socialized programs with limited status requirements. Illegals here have limited access to emergency medicine and other benefits here vs. many European countries which try to to provide for your every need stressing those systems. (The attempt to buy potential votes by offering a simpler path to citizenship and all of the socialized government benefits quite loathsome and dispicable.) I'm to entirely sure what the percentage of legal to illegal immigration in the EU is. Third, is the demographic and religious make-up of those new immigrants. Europe (especially France and the UK) has had a major problem in the last few years trying to integrate what are as a majority North African Muslims with their very different cultures and traditions (note here to women) that have been documented in the (foreign) press and as such I will not detail them here.

The News of the Day

Who says the surge isn't working?

Shouldn't this be the main focus? I agree with arresting and deporting as many as possible, but felony criminals should get a ticket on the 'A' bus back where they came from. I take great offense to cities such as LA and SF that bar the police from telling the INS when they've arrested a person and discovered that they are in the country illegally.


WTF!?!? This shouldn't be that hard.


The truth is in actions. I never have and probably never will have a reasonable belief that Congress with the President will ever reasonably limit any increase in spending, let alone cutting it!


What's the saying? "Lawyers, politicians, insurance companies... will bring about the end of the world." Something else that some Ins. Co.s do is simply write a check to the customer for the initial estimate and hope that he doesn't get it fixed. This can at times make getting a supplement done a real bear. Normally the Ins. Co. will write a check to the cust. and the shop doing the work. In the case of Allstate, which owns a chain of body shops, it is all handled internally. I have no problem with Ins. Co.s making a profit, especially since that is were claims are paid from, but not at the expense of their customers.

Great! I don't have mine any more. It figures that it useful after all.

Pay with cash when ever possible!

Here's a reason for nukes.

I for one welcome our new crow overlords!

Smoking

I read in two separate articles (USAToday, UK Independent) explaining plans in CA to ban smoking in apartments. That's right - no smoking in YOUR HOME! Now, I'm a non-smoker (except for the occasional cigar), yet I fully support a person's God given right to kill him self over the course of 40+ years with tobacco. The government has no right to regulate what goes on in your privet space - so long as it does not put others at risk or is the sight of some felonious activity. You can smoke whatever you want, drink your self stupid, have an orgy, hang your self, etc.; so long as it doesn't endanger anyone (especially kids), or pose a major nuisance - It isn't any of my or anyone else's business!

Update 10 OCT:

They did it! This is Communism!

This guy is in the right.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57960

...If not for any reason other than flying the flag in that manner is illegal and offensive. (and it take a lot to really offend me) Imagen if this happened any place else... some countries the person would have been shot for showing such a preference for another nations banner. I'm actually surprised that anything did anything about it beyond bitching.

In other news it appears the terrorists do agree with liberals. It is probably a smart move on her part not to go considering the Muslim view and (apparently typical extremist) reaction to her lifestyle.

This is mildly amusing...Because the last time this happened things went so well.

And of course the Phillies lost to the Rockies 4-2. It is a five game series so I'm not scared yet.

Revolution

This is just wrong and Stallone agrees! The pictures alone make me mad and sad.

For a comparison; tomorrow is the anniversary of the Battle of Gonzales. I don't expect the monks to take up arms, but the general population seems like a place for a little un-official CIA assistance.
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In other new the AFL-CIO is pandering to illegals. I can only assume that this is to encourage them to join unions and fill their dwindling rolls. Of course this is in San Fransisco so they will probably get their way.

SF is the city that gives the middle finger to the military every chance they get yet allow public gay (not that there is anything wrong with that) pride that borders on soft core porn. I say this never having been to that festival but after seeing two guys in bondage gear whipping each other and doing... other things on a public street on two different news channels. I support the right to do that; just not were a 4 year old can see it. At least in NY they call it what it is.

Some one should tell those hippies that illegals are bad for the environment!
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I don't see the problem requiring this like most other employers.
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Is the two party system in trouble? Probably not, since, as a general rule, people vote for a third party that siphons votes for the party that they would otherwise vote for (if at all) leading to that party's failure in a general election. That failure often brings about unwelcome changes that forces those voting for the third party to rethink voting for them in the next election. Just look at the effect the Reform party had in'92 and the Greens in 2000 and 'o4. To be fair G.w. Bush had lost the aura of Regan by the end of his term and the the Dems had pretty sad candidates in the last two. I should write more on this...
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I'm not sure if this is funny, sad, or scary. It shows some real pie-in-the-sky naïveté about the world around us and the people in it! As an interesting side note the NY Times wort in the linked article: "approach of the fifth anniversary of the Congressional vote authorizing military action in Iraq" Does this mean that they've stopped mentioning that the war in Iraq wasn't authorized?
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I don't know enough about Russian politics or government to properly comment on this, but it seems unusual for a head of state to step immediately on to the office of head of government after his term ends.
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If you need further proof that Bloomberg is a commie look here and here. Welcome to 1984 New York.
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I have some mixed feelings on this, but not many.
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This is called testing you enemy's defenses and response times or simply playing a game of 'I don't give a damn'. This may also turn into a an elaborate 'the boy who cried wolf' scenario...
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If I have to explain why this is bad you still would not get it.
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This is funny...
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Normal people use a .357 magnum for bears not a sword! It's not news... It's Fark
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The Israeli raid on Syria apparently has had unintended consequences. It looks like a lot of countries will be stuck with their old Soviet-era crap limiting the ability of those countries to upgrade to newer (though not necessarily better) equipment from Russia, China, Iran and N. Korea.

And as a bonus...
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The surge is working, imagine that!
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This is fascinating.
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This is just wrong.
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I'm sure this is going to work as well as Clinton's agreement in the '90s. If your kid is being bad do you bribe him ice cream and then continue to not pay attention?
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The death of languages isn't a bad thing think the Tower of Babel
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Mad as a hatter!

Here's a surefire way to kill the economy.

This makes you wonder... doesn't it?


This may or may not be a good thing but, at the very least the socialist should stop bitching.


Go home or enter legally of you want the right to sue! This is a bloody joke and the punch line is that some yuppy judge will let it through.

This isn't unexpected but, this site also has a story about UFOs attacking the Ukraine. It is a good video....

Something is going to happen sooner or later. If Iran keeps oushing, eventually someone will push back and it might not be us.

WTF. I say that not knowing all of the facts.

Well the women there are already making bad decisions (Obamba, etc.); why can't one of them be me?