In the last few years Bernie Karl, the owner of Chena Hot Springs Resort, has pioneered technology to generate electricity from hot water.
But Chena Hot Springs is about much more than energy.
Karl uses his resort as a laboratory to grow new ideas.
His latest brainchild is a portable power generator that can be hooked up to an oil or gas well.
The mobile geothermal power plant is basically a power plant on a flat bed truck.
When it's hooked up to an oil well the hot water byproduct can generate enough power for 280 homes.
That's a lot of energy in a state like Texas where there are a lot of oil rigs.
That's why the Department of Energy and several private companies have put about $1.4 million to develop and test the prototype which will be hooked up to an oil well in Florida this fall.
The technology is not limited to oil wells.
Waste heat or geothermal energy can also be used to create hydrogen fuel which Chena Hot Springs plans to use to run its cars soon.
"Any waste heat stream. Go to anybody that's got an engine running, anybody that's manufacturing something. It's got waste heat," Karl said. "You back it up and turn it into electricity."
It's expensive to produce but if the energy is renewable it could pencil out especially for communities in rural Alaska that pay more than $6 a gallon for fuel.
"Hydrogen is just one more tool in your renewable energy tool box," said Karl. "Yet someday hydrogen will be the fuel of the future, you'll see."
Karl says we need two ingredients to find the fuels of the future.
"We have no vision. We have no passion," Karl told a group of state lawmakers who took Chena's energy tour this week.
This is what a TRUE Alaskan can do!
Alaska used to be famous for the tough innovative people who lived up here and the ingenious methods they came up with to battle the cold and get from place to place.
From Cessna planes wings held together with duct tape and the power of prayer, to native Alaskans who set out in a skin covered boat to bring in a bowhead whale to feed their village, Alaskans are the champions when it comes to problem solving.
When the state was devastated by the 1964 earthquake Alaskans did not sit holding their heads in their hands waiting to be rescued by the federal government. No, they started working to save lives and repair the damage almost before the shaking had even stopped. (As a matter of fact my grandmother told me once that some after shocks hit right after she had finally put her living room back together and she said some very unladylike words before setting out to fix it back up again.)
Before we sold out soul to Exxon Oil and British Petroleum Alaskans were some of the most independent, eclectic innovators on the planet. It seems nowadays that those Alaskans are much harder to find. Having been replaced by out of staters who came up here chasing the big money promised by the oil companies.
And that is why I am so stoked to see this article about Bernie Karl. Here is one of the Alaskans of my youth. Here is a man, not only thinking out of the box, but possibly reinventing the damn box!
We need more people of vision like this in Alaska! And we need politicians and investors that will listen to these new ideas and help Alaska to lead the way toward a more energy independent lifestyle. And we need fewer people who are bought and paid for by the big oil companies who refuse to finance or support ANYTHING which might take money out of the pocket of some CEO at Shell Oil.
Just think what Mr. Karl could do with a couple million dollars of that stimulus money. The mind reels.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
This is what grows from the seeds of hate.
Dr. George Tiller, whose Wichita, Kansas, women's clinic has been the target of anti-abortion protests for years, was shot and killed at his church Sunday morning, his attorneys said.
The 67-year-old doctor was one of the few U.S. physicians who still performed late-term abortions. He survived a 1993 shooting outside his clinic.
Wichita police said they were searching for a powder-blue Ford Taurus in connection with the killing, which took place outside Reformation Lutheran Church shortly after 10 a.m.
I hate to add fuel to the fire, but I will bet my ass that when they find this guy he will be a member in good standing of church which preaches that doctor's who perform abortions are "baby killers". In no way is this a reflection of true Christianity, but it certainly is a reflection of the kind of religious intolerance espoused by these hate filled preacher which can be found all over the south, and right here in the Anchorage Baptist Temple.
This is why we must speak out against hateful rants coming from behind the protection of the pulpit. It is time to hold these assholes accountable for the results of their ignorant diatribes and vicious half truths.
And for the information of those who may not understand WHY a doctor would perform a "late-term" abortion, the usual reason is to protect the life of the mother or because of a horrible birth defect that the mother fears she cannot handle.
I am certainly not somebody who agrees with an abortion in the third trimester except in the most extreme circumstances but, whether you agree or disagree with Dr. Tiller, it is NEVER acceptable to murder somebody over it.
Update: They caught the guy. The suspect is a 51 year old male, and he shot Dr. Teller in the foyer of his church.
Here is what my friends Shannyn Moore and Phil Munger have to say about this horrible incident.
The 67-year-old doctor was one of the few U.S. physicians who still performed late-term abortions. He survived a 1993 shooting outside his clinic.
Wichita police said they were searching for a powder-blue Ford Taurus in connection with the killing, which took place outside Reformation Lutheran Church shortly after 10 a.m.
I hate to add fuel to the fire, but I will bet my ass that when they find this guy he will be a member in good standing of church which preaches that doctor's who perform abortions are "baby killers". In no way is this a reflection of true Christianity, but it certainly is a reflection of the kind of religious intolerance espoused by these hate filled preacher which can be found all over the south, and right here in the Anchorage Baptist Temple.
This is why we must speak out against hateful rants coming from behind the protection of the pulpit. It is time to hold these assholes accountable for the results of their ignorant diatribes and vicious half truths.
And for the information of those who may not understand WHY a doctor would perform a "late-term" abortion, the usual reason is to protect the life of the mother or because of a horrible birth defect that the mother fears she cannot handle.
I am certainly not somebody who agrees with an abortion in the third trimester except in the most extreme circumstances but, whether you agree or disagree with Dr. Tiller, it is NEVER acceptable to murder somebody over it.
Update: They caught the guy. The suspect is a 51 year old male, and he shot Dr. Teller in the foyer of his church.
Here is what my friends Shannyn Moore and Phil Munger have to say about this horrible incident.
Sarah Palin you get to pick a new Supreme Court Justice! Come on down!
This will be Palin's third appointment to the state's high court, which means she will have named a majority of the five-member court in her less than three years in office. But she won't get to pick whomever she wants from the full list of 25 applicants. In an effort to take politics out of judicial appointments, the state Constitution decrees that the Alaska Judicial Council first narrow down the field and then present at least two finalists as the "most qualified" for Palin to choose from.
Palin has been keenly anticipating the decision, sending a message last week via the Internet social media Twitter (which limits messages to 140 characters) saying "Look forward to today's staff discussion re: my 3rd justice appt to highest court in 3 yrs. Supreme Court truly effects AK's future..."
Did anybody else feel that chill run up their spine?
Okay Grypehn don't panic. Remember last time out she actually picked a pro-choice advocate and moderate for this position. She might do the same again.
Or not.
Also on the list is Anchorage attorney Kevin Clarkson, who represented five state lawmakers who unsuccessfully sued to stop the Legislature's "Troopergate" investigation of Palin last fall when she was the Republican nominee for vice president. They argued the investigation was unfair but the courts declined to put a stop to the inquiry.
Uh oh.
Governor Palin has a history of putting her friends and high school classmates into positions of power. Would she consider giving Clarkson this position by way of thanks for interfering with justice during the Troopergate investigation? Damn skippy!
The judicial council must now evaluate the applicants. That process will include background investigations, a survey of members of the Alaska Bar Association, solicitation of public comment, and interviews with the applicants.
Council members will then vote in a public meeting on which names to give Palin.
Well that should keep Palin from making this a purely political gift to one of her friends. Boy those writers of the Alaskan Constitution were a smart bunch weren't they?
The judicial council has seven members. Three are public members appointed by the governor, three are attorneys, and the other is the current chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court, Dana Fabe.
So we have potentially three votes in Sarah's pocket, three unknown votes, and Chief Justice Dana Fabe, who was appointed by then Governor Tony Knowles. Sounds pretty close to fair to me.
Besides October is a long way out there. No telling WHAT could happen between now and then.
Palin has been keenly anticipating the decision, sending a message last week via the Internet social media Twitter (which limits messages to 140 characters) saying "Look forward to today's staff discussion re: my 3rd justice appt to highest court in 3 yrs. Supreme Court truly effects AK's future..."
Did anybody else feel that chill run up their spine?
Okay Grypehn don't panic. Remember last time out she actually picked a pro-choice advocate and moderate for this position. She might do the same again.
Or not.
Also on the list is Anchorage attorney Kevin Clarkson, who represented five state lawmakers who unsuccessfully sued to stop the Legislature's "Troopergate" investigation of Palin last fall when she was the Republican nominee for vice president. They argued the investigation was unfair but the courts declined to put a stop to the inquiry.
Uh oh.
Governor Palin has a history of putting her friends and high school classmates into positions of power. Would she consider giving Clarkson this position by way of thanks for interfering with justice during the Troopergate investigation? Damn skippy!
The judicial council must now evaluate the applicants. That process will include background investigations, a survey of members of the Alaska Bar Association, solicitation of public comment, and interviews with the applicants.
Council members will then vote in a public meeting on which names to give Palin.
Well that should keep Palin from making this a purely political gift to one of her friends. Boy those writers of the Alaskan Constitution were a smart bunch weren't they?
The judicial council has seven members. Three are public members appointed by the governor, three are attorneys, and the other is the current chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court, Dana Fabe.
So we have potentially three votes in Sarah's pocket, three unknown votes, and Chief Justice Dana Fabe, who was appointed by then Governor Tony Knowles. Sounds pretty close to fair to me.
Besides October is a long way out there. No telling WHAT could happen between now and then.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Sarah Palin writes news opinion columns! (Well somebody may have written it for her, but she totally signed it.)
Here is the column in its entirety:
In response to your May 27 editorial, let me explain why I vetoed $28.6 million of federal stimulus funds tied to adoption of universal energy building codes.
The feds required me to certify these codes "will be implemented" or pushed on local communities. My record is clear. I support conserving energy through weatherization and I'm an advocate for harnessing renewable sources of energy. But conditions here required more "big brother" government involvement than most Alaskans want and the new codes could cost Alaskans thousands of dollars per new home and renovation.
Alaskans have a strong history of independence and opposition to Washington, D.C., meddling in local issues. Our constitution ensures "maximum local self-government." Our communities have had the option to adopt building codes for decades. Most have not done so.
I've served as a city councilman and city mayor/manager. I've participated firsthand in the mandated building code debate. Anyone serving in local office knows strong deference to local communities leads to the best policies. That policy holds true with building codes.
My community went through a battle over building codes when our booming city desired more growth opportunities to allow job creation. The last thing we needed was a bureaucrat from Washington, D.C., telling us what the best policy was to adopt.
Strings were definitely attached to federal energy dollars. The stimulus law in section 410(a) (2), along with the Department of Energy's (DOE) official guidance, required certifying one of two options before Alaska could receive the energy conservation funds.
One option said the state "will implement" the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code for new homes and renovations; adopt a "building energy code [that meets or exceeds Standard 90.1-2007] for commercial buildings throughout the State"; and adopt and pay for a plan of "active" enforcement.
I could not certify this. The Legislature did not pass a bill adopting a statewide energy building code. In addition, the federal residential building code does not allow exemptions, such as we use in Alaska. When Alaska Housing Finance Corporation funds are used, building and energy codes can be waived due to the "high cost of implementation" in different areas of Alaska. One size does not fit all in Alaska.
The second option for Alaska was to certify that all "applicable units of local government that have authority to adopt building codes, will implement" the necessary energy codes and enforce them.
I could not certify this either. Alaska communities have the right to determine for themselves whether to adopt building codes.
I asked the feds to clarify their position. The Department of Energy finally admitted section 410 and their previous statements were "inappropriate" for some states but still wanted an agreement to push model codes on all Alaskan communities. I said no.
Beware of Washington, D.C., trying to cajole local community leaders to eliminate the choices Alaskans have when building or renovating homes and businesses. These new codes are so detailed they would dictate the kinds of lights that can be installed in a home in Akutan, and how thick window panes must be in Chignik.
We have hundreds of millions of dollars already budgeted for conservation, weatherization and renewable energy development. My administration will remain vigilant for Alaskans and oppose mandates or pressure to conform from Washington, D.C., bureaucrats.
I tell you what. For once I am going to leave off the snark. This is the letter as it appeared in the Anchorage Daily News, unsullied by negative blogger comments.
However if any of you would like to weigh in on why you think this is;
A) the dumbest thing you have ever read, or
B) a wonderful clarification that explains succinctly why Governor Palin rejected that 28.6 million dollars, I will happily publish your comments.
Have at it.
In response to your May 27 editorial, let me explain why I vetoed $28.6 million of federal stimulus funds tied to adoption of universal energy building codes.
The feds required me to certify these codes "will be implemented" or pushed on local communities. My record is clear. I support conserving energy through weatherization and I'm an advocate for harnessing renewable sources of energy. But conditions here required more "big brother" government involvement than most Alaskans want and the new codes could cost Alaskans thousands of dollars per new home and renovation.
Alaskans have a strong history of independence and opposition to Washington, D.C., meddling in local issues. Our constitution ensures "maximum local self-government." Our communities have had the option to adopt building codes for decades. Most have not done so.
I've served as a city councilman and city mayor/manager. I've participated firsthand in the mandated building code debate. Anyone serving in local office knows strong deference to local communities leads to the best policies. That policy holds true with building codes.
My community went through a battle over building codes when our booming city desired more growth opportunities to allow job creation. The last thing we needed was a bureaucrat from Washington, D.C., telling us what the best policy was to adopt.
Strings were definitely attached to federal energy dollars. The stimulus law in section 410(a) (2), along with the Department of Energy's (DOE) official guidance, required certifying one of two options before Alaska could receive the energy conservation funds.
One option said the state "will implement" the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code for new homes and renovations; adopt a "building energy code [that meets or exceeds Standard 90.1-2007] for commercial buildings throughout the State"; and adopt and pay for a plan of "active" enforcement.
I could not certify this. The Legislature did not pass a bill adopting a statewide energy building code. In addition, the federal residential building code does not allow exemptions, such as we use in Alaska. When Alaska Housing Finance Corporation funds are used, building and energy codes can be waived due to the "high cost of implementation" in different areas of Alaska. One size does not fit all in Alaska.
The second option for Alaska was to certify that all "applicable units of local government that have authority to adopt building codes, will implement" the necessary energy codes and enforce them.
I could not certify this either. Alaska communities have the right to determine for themselves whether to adopt building codes.
I asked the feds to clarify their position. The Department of Energy finally admitted section 410 and their previous statements were "inappropriate" for some states but still wanted an agreement to push model codes on all Alaskan communities. I said no.
Beware of Washington, D.C., trying to cajole local community leaders to eliminate the choices Alaskans have when building or renovating homes and businesses. These new codes are so detailed they would dictate the kinds of lights that can be installed in a home in Akutan, and how thick window panes must be in Chignik.
We have hundreds of millions of dollars already budgeted for conservation, weatherization and renewable energy development. My administration will remain vigilant for Alaskans and oppose mandates or pressure to conform from Washington, D.C., bureaucrats.
I tell you what. For once I am going to leave off the snark. This is the letter as it appeared in the Anchorage Daily News, unsullied by negative blogger comments.
However if any of you would like to weigh in on why you think this is;
A) the dumbest thing you have ever read, or
B) a wonderful clarification that explains succinctly why Governor Palin rejected that 28.6 million dollars, I will happily publish your comments.
Have at it.
Fear and Loathing in Alaska.
Nazis, Japs, Charlie, niggers, towel heads, Hadji's, chinks, wetbacks, etc., etc., etc..
The list of people we are given permission to hate and the reasons that it is, or at least was, acceptable could fill thousands of pages.
"We are at war, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not look like us, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not speak our language, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not believe in our God, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not love like we do, so go ahead and hate them."
It seems that for many people in this world they are just looking for permission to go ahead and hate somebody. "I feel the need to hate, or discriminate against, or revile somebody today. Who am I allowed to victimize?"
But sadly for many of these hate filled people we have moved forward as a society.
You can no longer openly discriminate against African-Americans. Or women. Or the mentally challenged. Or Asians. Or Hispanics. Or even Muslims.
So what is a hate filled person to do? Who is left to discriminate against?
Fags!
Oh yeah you can still revile, and discriminate against, and hate, fags!
And it is totally fine because permission to hate the gays comes from GOD himself! Wow! Nobody can argue with that, now can they?
Just look it up for yourself. It is right there in......um....what chapter and verse was that again?
Well there is Genesis 19:1-2, in which Lot offered an angry crowd the sexual use of his two virgin daughters to keep the two angels in his home from being raped.
But anybody who has done time in prison can tell you that rape is not about homosexuality, it is about domination. (And by the way, what kind of bastard would sacrifice his own two daughters to be ravaged by a crowd of angry men to protect ANYBODY? I would have volunteered myself rather than have somebody touch one hair on my daughters head.)
Then there is Judges 19:22-30, which contained this uplifting passage:
22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him."
23 The owner of the house went outside and said to them, "No, my friends, don't be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don't do this disgraceful thing. 24 Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But to this man, don't do such a disgraceful thing."
25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go.
26At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
27 When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28 He said to her, "Get up; let's go." But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
29 When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel.
So once again the virgin daughter is offered up to keep men from giving his house guest a good "rogering", but instead they take the concubine, rape her, and leave her immobilized on his doorstep. He then rewards her sacrifice by cutting her up into pieces and scattering her across the dunes. So in this instance, according to the bible, homosexual sex is much worse than rape, murder, and disembowelment. Very interesting priorities here.
There are a few less brutal passages in the bible that address homosexuality as well. Like Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13 (This one even gives permission to kill teh gay), Romans 1:24-28, Corinthians 6:9-10, Timothy 1:8-11,and Peter 2:6-10. There may be a few more (I am not a biblical scholar), but you get the drift. If you want to believe that homosexuality is bad, and that it is okay to hate them, the bible will give you permission. But not everybody is sure that these passages have been interpreted correctly.
However I would be negligent if I did not point out that ALL of these examples come from the Old Testament.
Today's Christians have ignored many of the more ignorant and punitive rules from the Old Testament. When was the last time anybody was stoned for adultery for instance, or killed for conducting business on the Sabbath, or expect to be killed by God for masturbating?
Nobody seems to care if you wear wool and linen together, or if a woman wears pants instead of a dress, but the rules against this were clearly defined by the Old Testament.
So why pray tell do the Christians, who have clearly shown they are capable of disregarding ignorant rules from thousands of years ago, still cling to this hatred and fear of homosexuality?
I mean why does a church like Westboro even exist in this day and age?
How is it possible for local homophobe Jerry Prevo to put a website like this on the internet using donations from his congregation and suffer hardly any backlash at all? How is that possible in 2009?
Because people fear what they do not understand. That is why.
When there were few blacks in this country that were not slaves, white people feared them. When women wanted to take part in democracy and choices that affected them, men feared them. Now that gays are asking to be treated like everybody else, ignorant people fear them.
And that fear is being fanned by people who stand behind a pulpit and make up falsehoods that their dumb downed congregation gobble up like "truth berries". Never doubting that this "man of God" is telling them the truth. After all he speaks for God.
No he doesn't!
Nor does he speak for Jesus Christ, who said absolutely NOTHING about homosexuality. Not one single word!
Let's face it, the reason that there is so much hate directed at the gay community is because of the permission given by so called "Christian" ministers and priests, to vilify and discriminate against them. They have used their position of trust to inflict their own hate filled agenda on the people who look to them for salvation.
And that is a sin written down on the stone tablets of Moses himself. Perhaps you remember it? 'You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.' You see "using the Lord's name in vain" is not about saying a simple swear word. It is about misrepresenting the word of God and pursuing your own agenda while using him as cover. THAT is what is meant by using his name in vain.
So the next time you sit in your church and the man standing before you tells you that your God wants you to hate or discriminate against anybody, you stand up and tell him that he does not speak for YOUR God and that YOUR God is a god of love and compassion, and storm out.
If enough people were to do this, than maybe the REAL Christians can wrest control of their church back from these people who have hijacked it for their own hateful purposes.
And if you are living in Anchorage you can tell our assembly members for yourself on June 9th how you feel about this segment of our population continuing to be discriminated against. You can bet I and my fellow progressive bloggers will be there and we invite you to join us.
It is time to wrest control of our city from the hate-mongers and work to protect ALL of our precious citizens.
The list of people we are given permission to hate and the reasons that it is, or at least was, acceptable could fill thousands of pages.
"We are at war, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not look like us, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not speak our language, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not believe in our God, so go ahead and hate them."
"They do not love like we do, so go ahead and hate them."
It seems that for many people in this world they are just looking for permission to go ahead and hate somebody. "I feel the need to hate, or discriminate against, or revile somebody today. Who am I allowed to victimize?"
But sadly for many of these hate filled people we have moved forward as a society.
You can no longer openly discriminate against African-Americans. Or women. Or the mentally challenged. Or Asians. Or Hispanics. Or even Muslims.
So what is a hate filled person to do? Who is left to discriminate against?
Fags!
Oh yeah you can still revile, and discriminate against, and hate, fags!
And it is totally fine because permission to hate the gays comes from GOD himself! Wow! Nobody can argue with that, now can they?
Just look it up for yourself. It is right there in......um....what chapter and verse was that again?
Well there is Genesis 19:1-2, in which Lot offered an angry crowd the sexual use of his two virgin daughters to keep the two angels in his home from being raped.
But anybody who has done time in prison can tell you that rape is not about homosexuality, it is about domination. (And by the way, what kind of bastard would sacrifice his own two daughters to be ravaged by a crowd of angry men to protect ANYBODY? I would have volunteered myself rather than have somebody touch one hair on my daughters head.)
Then there is Judges 19:22-30, which contained this uplifting passage:
22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him."
23 The owner of the house went outside and said to them, "No, my friends, don't be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don't do this disgraceful thing. 24 Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But to this man, don't do such a disgraceful thing."
25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go.
26At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
27 When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28 He said to her, "Get up; let's go." But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
29 When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel.
So once again the virgin daughter is offered up to keep men from giving his house guest a good "rogering", but instead they take the concubine, rape her, and leave her immobilized on his doorstep. He then rewards her sacrifice by cutting her up into pieces and scattering her across the dunes. So in this instance, according to the bible, homosexual sex is much worse than rape, murder, and disembowelment. Very interesting priorities here.
There are a few less brutal passages in the bible that address homosexuality as well. Like Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13 (This one even gives permission to kill teh gay), Romans 1:24-28, Corinthians 6:9-10, Timothy 1:8-11,and Peter 2:6-10. There may be a few more (I am not a biblical scholar), but you get the drift. If you want to believe that homosexuality is bad, and that it is okay to hate them, the bible will give you permission. But not everybody is sure that these passages have been interpreted correctly.
However I would be negligent if I did not point out that ALL of these examples come from the Old Testament.
Today's Christians have ignored many of the more ignorant and punitive rules from the Old Testament. When was the last time anybody was stoned for adultery for instance, or killed for conducting business on the Sabbath, or expect to be killed by God for masturbating?
Nobody seems to care if you wear wool and linen together, or if a woman wears pants instead of a dress, but the rules against this were clearly defined by the Old Testament.
So why pray tell do the Christians, who have clearly shown they are capable of disregarding ignorant rules from thousands of years ago, still cling to this hatred and fear of homosexuality?
I mean why does a church like Westboro even exist in this day and age?
How is it possible for local homophobe Jerry Prevo to put a website like this on the internet using donations from his congregation and suffer hardly any backlash at all? How is that possible in 2009?
Because people fear what they do not understand. That is why.
When there were few blacks in this country that were not slaves, white people feared them. When women wanted to take part in democracy and choices that affected them, men feared them. Now that gays are asking to be treated like everybody else, ignorant people fear them.
And that fear is being fanned by people who stand behind a pulpit and make up falsehoods that their dumb downed congregation gobble up like "truth berries". Never doubting that this "man of God" is telling them the truth. After all he speaks for God.
No he doesn't!
Nor does he speak for Jesus Christ, who said absolutely NOTHING about homosexuality. Not one single word!
Let's face it, the reason that there is so much hate directed at the gay community is because of the permission given by so called "Christian" ministers and priests, to vilify and discriminate against them. They have used their position of trust to inflict their own hate filled agenda on the people who look to them for salvation.
And that is a sin written down on the stone tablets of Moses himself. Perhaps you remember it? 'You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.' You see "using the Lord's name in vain" is not about saying a simple swear word. It is about misrepresenting the word of God and pursuing your own agenda while using him as cover. THAT is what is meant by using his name in vain.
So the next time you sit in your church and the man standing before you tells you that your God wants you to hate or discriminate against anybody, you stand up and tell him that he does not speak for YOUR God and that YOUR God is a god of love and compassion, and storm out.
If enough people were to do this, than maybe the REAL Christians can wrest control of their church back from these people who have hijacked it for their own hateful purposes.
And if you are living in Anchorage you can tell our assembly members for yourself on June 9th how you feel about this segment of our population continuing to be discriminated against. You can bet I and my fellow progressive bloggers will be there and we invite you to join us.
It is time to wrest control of our city from the hate-mongers and work to protect ALL of our precious citizens.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Progressive bloggers catch Palinista John Ziegler bragging that his films are much superior to Michael Moor's films. I just threw up in my mouth.
Republican propagandist John Ziegler rips filmmaker Michael Moore from Dennis Zaki on Vimeo.
For all of you who may have not had the displeasure of viewing any of this moron's work, just go to this website and prepare to be underwhelmed.
It is beyond comprehension to me that this guy truly believes that he is a superior documentary maker to Michael Moore. If you want to put that to the test then go ahead and watch this "Media Malpractice: How Obama got elected and Palin was targeted", if you can stomach it, and then sit down to watch "Sicko" by Michael Moore. There is simply NO comparison.
This guy is a self aggrandizing hack, who constantly projects his own multiple faults on to other people and than attacks them.
I applaud my friends Phil Munger and Dennis Zaki for getting this guy's bullshit on film for all of the world to see.
Great work guys! I am very sorry I could not make it last night, but it looks like you guys did not need me anyhow.
Once again I am so proud to be a progressive Alaskan blogger.
Update: You can see a few more of Ziegler interview clips over at Progressive Alaska.
Here is the GQ article on Levi Johnston.
There is a lot in the article about hunting and Levi's homophobic tendencies. (Not uncommon in men his age in Alaska, especially if they come from the Valley.)
It also contains the now famous quote about Todd offering Bristol a car if she would dump Levi, however it is not explained at what stage of their relationship this offer was made.
Tank Jones gets quite an interesting write up as well, though it seems the writer focuses more on Tank's impressive physique rather than his good humor and penchant for expletives and double talk. (When I first met Tank there was a lot of verbal jousting and puffing out of chests until we both realized that neither one of us was very intimidating to the other, and after that our communications have been very relaxed and quite pleasant. Tank is only one of the sources I have been working, but he is also the toughest and refuses to give me anything until he gets Levi a good deal.)
Here are a few notable quotes from the article:
......You can feel the Palins. From my budget hotel on Lake Lucille, I can see the big wooden wall that surrounds their house, and a roof beyond it. They are of this place, they belong here, but their power has disturbed an equilibrium. At the gun shop, where the owners have known the family forever, the men at the counter say they believe deep down that when she puts her head on her pillow at night, she wishes she had never said yes to McCain. (Personally I believe that when Sarah Palin finally puts her head down on her pillow at night she just hopes that she can keep a lid on the lies for another day and that soon she will be able to get the hell out of Wasilla and move on with her life.)
.....Levi’s unemployed. That makes helping take care of his son, Tripp, tricky. He has been on The Tyra Banks Show, where he met Nick Lachey, but he has very little money. Sarah Palin’s father has called him a deadbeat dad in the paper. Levi then responded, saying he’s tried to get a job but his notoriety makes it impossible. No crew boss wants paparazzi following his men around, I suppose. And they are mainly Palin people around here. Levi’s known to be on the outs. (I doubted this at first, and even had a job lined up for Levi, but that was before I saw the media frenzy that surrounds Levi these days.)
......The previous year he’d (Levi) been in a homeschool scenario. Alaska boasts the most lax homeschooling rules of any state in the union, in the sense that they have literally almost no rules. Levi was doing his learning online, through a Brigham Young University program. Unsupervised, at the Palins’ house, where Bristol Palin was homeschooling, too.
(This HAD to have been during the 2007-2008 school year. If you ask yourself WHY the Governor would have left her teenage daughter and her boyfriend alone and unsupervised to "study" for almost a year, I think the reason becomes fairly obvious.)
“May I ask if that’s how Tripp came into the world?”
He did not kiss and tell. He did however shrug and smile.
......Levi wanted to text Bristol. Tank thought he should. Of course I said he should, spreading vulturous wings. “Screw it,” he said. “I’m doing it.” He texted her while Tank and I watched over his shoulder. “You looked great on TV,” he typed with his thumbs. A few blocks on she texted back, “Thanks. You too! I tried to call you on your birthday.” They went back and forth some more. Tank and I gave them their privacy.
(According to one member of his family Bristol is just playing with Levi's emotions but that Levi still has genuine feelings for Bristol.)
.....In Alaska you heard two competing takes on the Bristol-Levi affair. One was the “under the bus” narrative, held to by the Levi camp. In this story, Levi loves a girl, she gets pregnant, he gives up high school and hockey so he can provide for her and the baby. When it suits their political purposes, the family embraces him and essentially puts him forward as a son-in-law. When his meager political value is spent, they do what most normal parents would do and discourage the daughter from marrying him, in hopes that she can get back on with her future. He’s frozen out of the family. They won’t let him see the baby except for a few hours at a time. They won’t let the baby sleep at his house. His visits at the Palins’ are awkward. He can’t bond with the baby. He’d said to me,
Just going over there makes me pretty damn uncomfortable. I would call and say, “Can I pick him up?” It was, “No, you can’t have him, but you can come see him.” Just going over there, and Todd and Sarah sitting there staring at me, doesn’t do it for me. Todd never says anything, really. Sarah, I don’t know. She’s a politician. She knows how to throw in a fake smile and look happy. They’re pretty good at that.
(Now this sounds EXACTLY like the Sarah Palin that I have come to know.)
.....“Did she dump you, or did you dump her?”
He gives me the thing about how it was mutual. “Mutual” means nothing. Levi, whathappened?
I would have to say, like, right when we got back from the [Republican] convention, things got crazy. When the convention was going on, I think it was probably like… I think that’s when we all felt the most comfortable together. We spent a lot of time together down there. It was going great. Then we came back. And when it really hit the fan, I think, is when Sarah lost, and they came back and everything was just kind of…just getting weird.
(There are a lot of clues contained in this sentence. This completely flies in the face of the warm and fuzzy picture that Sarah and Bristol were painting of her relationship with Levi and how they cared for the (newborn?) baby Tripp together.)
....Did you get the sense that her parents were pressuring her?
I know that her parents didn’t want us together. I really don’t think they did. So they probably put a little pressure on her. But at the same time, they told us they wanted us to get married when they found out Bristol was pregnant. Whether they put pressure on her for the breakup—I don’t know what the deal was.
Did you love her? (Yes)
I think we were in love. I wasn’t one to stick with a girl for three years (Did you catch that? Three years!) if I wasn’t. I’m pretty sure you can call it love, but it’s just amazing how fast it can change like that. We were together every day. The feeling we got when we were with each other, it was just totally gone.
The article is quite long, but it IS informative. If you are like me you will have to read every single word. If you do, and find any other notable quotes that I may have missed feel free to let me know.
I have set aside time today to follow up on a couple of leads and I finally tracked down a very elusive source so I hope to have more later this weekend.
Fingers crossed folks.
It also contains the now famous quote about Todd offering Bristol a car if she would dump Levi, however it is not explained at what stage of their relationship this offer was made.
Tank Jones gets quite an interesting write up as well, though it seems the writer focuses more on Tank's impressive physique rather than his good humor and penchant for expletives and double talk. (When I first met Tank there was a lot of verbal jousting and puffing out of chests until we both realized that neither one of us was very intimidating to the other, and after that our communications have been very relaxed and quite pleasant. Tank is only one of the sources I have been working, but he is also the toughest and refuses to give me anything until he gets Levi a good deal.)
Here are a few notable quotes from the article:
......You can feel the Palins. From my budget hotel on Lake Lucille, I can see the big wooden wall that surrounds their house, and a roof beyond it. They are of this place, they belong here, but their power has disturbed an equilibrium. At the gun shop, where the owners have known the family forever, the men at the counter say they believe deep down that when she puts her head on her pillow at night, she wishes she had never said yes to McCain. (Personally I believe that when Sarah Palin finally puts her head down on her pillow at night she just hopes that she can keep a lid on the lies for another day and that soon she will be able to get the hell out of Wasilla and move on with her life.)
.....Levi’s unemployed. That makes helping take care of his son, Tripp, tricky. He has been on The Tyra Banks Show, where he met Nick Lachey, but he has very little money. Sarah Palin’s father has called him a deadbeat dad in the paper. Levi then responded, saying he’s tried to get a job but his notoriety makes it impossible. No crew boss wants paparazzi following his men around, I suppose. And they are mainly Palin people around here. Levi’s known to be on the outs. (I doubted this at first, and even had a job lined up for Levi, but that was before I saw the media frenzy that surrounds Levi these days.)
......The previous year he’d (Levi) been in a homeschool scenario. Alaska boasts the most lax homeschooling rules of any state in the union, in the sense that they have literally almost no rules. Levi was doing his learning online, through a Brigham Young University program. Unsupervised, at the Palins’ house, where Bristol Palin was homeschooling, too.
(This HAD to have been during the 2007-2008 school year. If you ask yourself WHY the Governor would have left her teenage daughter and her boyfriend alone and unsupervised to "study" for almost a year, I think the reason becomes fairly obvious.)
“May I ask if that’s how Tripp came into the world?”
He did not kiss and tell. He did however shrug and smile.
......Levi wanted to text Bristol. Tank thought he should. Of course I said he should, spreading vulturous wings. “Screw it,” he said. “I’m doing it.” He texted her while Tank and I watched over his shoulder. “You looked great on TV,” he typed with his thumbs. A few blocks on she texted back, “Thanks. You too! I tried to call you on your birthday.” They went back and forth some more. Tank and I gave them their privacy.
(According to one member of his family Bristol is just playing with Levi's emotions but that Levi still has genuine feelings for Bristol.)
.....In Alaska you heard two competing takes on the Bristol-Levi affair. One was the “under the bus” narrative, held to by the Levi camp. In this story, Levi loves a girl, she gets pregnant, he gives up high school and hockey so he can provide for her and the baby. When it suits their political purposes, the family embraces him and essentially puts him forward as a son-in-law. When his meager political value is spent, they do what most normal parents would do and discourage the daughter from marrying him, in hopes that she can get back on with her future. He’s frozen out of the family. They won’t let him see the baby except for a few hours at a time. They won’t let the baby sleep at his house. His visits at the Palins’ are awkward. He can’t bond with the baby. He’d said to me,
Just going over there makes me pretty damn uncomfortable. I would call and say, “Can I pick him up?” It was, “No, you can’t have him, but you can come see him.” Just going over there, and Todd and Sarah sitting there staring at me, doesn’t do it for me. Todd never says anything, really. Sarah, I don’t know. She’s a politician. She knows how to throw in a fake smile and look happy. They’re pretty good at that.
(Now this sounds EXACTLY like the Sarah Palin that I have come to know.)
.....“Did she dump you, or did you dump her?”
He gives me the thing about how it was mutual. “Mutual” means nothing. Levi, whathappened?
I would have to say, like, right when we got back from the [Republican] convention, things got crazy. When the convention was going on, I think it was probably like… I think that’s when we all felt the most comfortable together. We spent a lot of time together down there. It was going great. Then we came back. And when it really hit the fan, I think, is when Sarah lost, and they came back and everything was just kind of…just getting weird.
(There are a lot of clues contained in this sentence. This completely flies in the face of the warm and fuzzy picture that Sarah and Bristol were painting of her relationship with Levi and how they cared for the (newborn?) baby Tripp together.)
....Did you get the sense that her parents were pressuring her?
I know that her parents didn’t want us together. I really don’t think they did. So they probably put a little pressure on her. But at the same time, they told us they wanted us to get married when they found out Bristol was pregnant. Whether they put pressure on her for the breakup—I don’t know what the deal was.
Did you love her? (Yes)
I think we were in love. I wasn’t one to stick with a girl for three years (Did you catch that? Three years!) if I wasn’t. I’m pretty sure you can call it love, but it’s just amazing how fast it can change like that. We were together every day. The feeling we got when we were with each other, it was just totally gone.
The article is quite long, but it IS informative. If you are like me you will have to read every single word. If you do, and find any other notable quotes that I may have missed feel free to let me know.
I have set aside time today to follow up on a couple of leads and I finally tracked down a very elusive source so I hope to have more later this weekend.
Fingers crossed folks.
Here is a video of one of the amazing benefits of living in Alaska. This should sweeten your morning.
Seeing moose in an around Anchorage is one of the most common things you can imagine.
When I back my car out of the driveway I check the rear view mirror for both oncoming cars and moose.
However seeing baby moose as cute as these two is a rare treat indeed.
When I back my car out of the driveway I check the rear view mirror for both oncoming cars and moose.
However seeing baby moose as cute as these two is a rare treat indeed.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Alaskan Democrats starting to mobilize in anticipation of gubernatorial run in 2010.
Ethan Berkowitz sounds like he’s getting ready to run for governor.
“We’re taking an extremely close look at it, it’s something I’m very interested in doing,” Berkowitz told me earlier today.
Berkowitz is starting to attract national attention as a potential Democratic challenger to Republican Gov. Sarah Palin, telling CQ politics (which rates the race as “Republican favored”) that “my sights are now on the governor’s race.”
No, no, no, no!
I absolutely do not want Ethan running for Governor. If he was unable to defeat Don Young (the most reviled politician in Alaska) for the House seat, what makes him think he has a snowballs chance in hell of getting the nomination away from Bob Poe?
This is simply his bruised ego forcing him to jump into this race, but he faces yet another defeat, and if he were smart he would simply move on from politics and find another line of work. I have not forgotten how let down I felt after the 2008 election.
It also sounds like Hollis French is considering a run for Governor as well. I really like and respect Hollis, but I am also not enamored of his chances this time around.
This is not about Sarah Palin, who I don't even believe is even going to run this time, it is about getting the very best person into this job. Just like needing a Barack Obama to repair the damage done to our country by eight years of George Bush, we are going to need a very capable, intelligent leader to get our state back on track after the Palinator has laid waste to it during her one disastrous term.
The really irritating thing about this is that it splits the progressives (just like during the disastrous mayoral race) into different camps and waters down our fundraising efforts and ability to organize. The thing that may have helped Dan Sullivan the most during the mayoral run was that he faced no competition to take the conservative slot.
If the progressives do not quickly get their act together this time it is conceivable that we could suffer yet another defeat by some as yet unnamed conservative opponent.
As of today I am a Bob Poe supporter and will help his campaign as much as I can.
However I am a good liberal and will throw my support behind whoever the people choose as their Democratic candidate. Especially if it is Bob Poe. I am just saying.
“We’re taking an extremely close look at it, it’s something I’m very interested in doing,” Berkowitz told me earlier today.
Berkowitz is starting to attract national attention as a potential Democratic challenger to Republican Gov. Sarah Palin, telling CQ politics (which rates the race as “Republican favored”) that “my sights are now on the governor’s race.”
No, no, no, no!
I absolutely do not want Ethan running for Governor. If he was unable to defeat Don Young (the most reviled politician in Alaska) for the House seat, what makes him think he has a snowballs chance in hell of getting the nomination away from Bob Poe?
This is simply his bruised ego forcing him to jump into this race, but he faces yet another defeat, and if he were smart he would simply move on from politics and find another line of work. I have not forgotten how let down I felt after the 2008 election.
It also sounds like Hollis French is considering a run for Governor as well. I really like and respect Hollis, but I am also not enamored of his chances this time around.
This is not about Sarah Palin, who I don't even believe is even going to run this time, it is about getting the very best person into this job. Just like needing a Barack Obama to repair the damage done to our country by eight years of George Bush, we are going to need a very capable, intelligent leader to get our state back on track after the Palinator has laid waste to it during her one disastrous term.
The really irritating thing about this is that it splits the progressives (just like during the disastrous mayoral race) into different camps and waters down our fundraising efforts and ability to organize. The thing that may have helped Dan Sullivan the most during the mayoral run was that he faced no competition to take the conservative slot.
If the progressives do not quickly get their act together this time it is conceivable that we could suffer yet another defeat by some as yet unnamed conservative opponent.
As of today I am a Bob Poe supporter and will help his campaign as much as I can.
However I am a good liberal and will throw my support behind whoever the people choose as their Democratic candidate. Especially if it is Bob Poe. I am just saying.
The cost of having an unethical Governor is proving to be much more than anyone expected. Remember this the next time you vote for a pretty face.
The Alaska Personnel Board, clearly frustrated with the pile of ethics complaints filed against Gov. Sarah Palin, wants to publicize the cost of dealing with them.
The personnel board members decided at a Wednesday meeting to work with the attorney general's office on how to make public the cost of addressing each ethics complaint, without violating the board's confidentiality rules.
"We've spent pretty close to about a third of a million dollars, and it's getting to be really expensive," said Al Tamagni, a member of the board.
Also Wednesday, the three-member board dismissed another complaint, this one involving Palin and her political action committee, and heard testimony from a woman who asserted fear of retaliation has prevented her from filing a complaint against the governor.
The governor's office said it is the 13th ethics complaint against Palin or her staff that has been resolved without finding of an executive ethics act violation. But Palin has agreed to reimburse the state in order to settle an ethics complaint over 10 state-paid trips taken by her children. A "few more" complaints are pending a decision by the personnel board, the governor's office said.
Andree McLeod, an Anchorage activist who has filed multiple ethics complaints against Palin and her staff, said after the meeting that the board is trying to squash accountability by saying it costs too much.
It was right about here that I was going to make a snarky but obvious statement. However I don't have to because Andree McLoed, Palin's least favorite person in the world, has done it for me.
"The whole way to mitigate all this is for Palin to behave ethically," said McLeod, who filed the complaint that was dismissed by the board on Wednesday.
Of course that is the fact that seems to be lost on a lot of people.
They simply want to paint our Governor as the victim of an organized smear campaign but that is simply untrue. Our Governor is the victim of her own unethical actions.
And what is more is that the ethics complaints are being dismissed out of hand, without being given the kind of respect and attention that I feel they deserve. I am confident that if these were being vetted by a less Palin-cozy group than this personnel board the complaints would not be getting swatted away like so many errant tennis balls. (And perhaps a simple request for government e-mails would not cost a private citizen a whopping $65,000.)
It appears from my point of view that the personnel board is running interference for the Governor and sending a message to others who may dare to call Sarah Palin on her unethical behaviors not to bother.
(Oh crap! It looks like I am more or less in agreement with Dan Fagan on this issue, how did that happen? Oh well in the interest of fairness here is a link to his post on the subject.)
The personnel board members decided at a Wednesday meeting to work with the attorney general's office on how to make public the cost of addressing each ethics complaint, without violating the board's confidentiality rules.
"We've spent pretty close to about a third of a million dollars, and it's getting to be really expensive," said Al Tamagni, a member of the board.
Also Wednesday, the three-member board dismissed another complaint, this one involving Palin and her political action committee, and heard testimony from a woman who asserted fear of retaliation has prevented her from filing a complaint against the governor.
The governor's office said it is the 13th ethics complaint against Palin or her staff that has been resolved without finding of an executive ethics act violation. But Palin has agreed to reimburse the state in order to settle an ethics complaint over 10 state-paid trips taken by her children. A "few more" complaints are pending a decision by the personnel board, the governor's office said.
Andree McLeod, an Anchorage activist who has filed multiple ethics complaints against Palin and her staff, said after the meeting that the board is trying to squash accountability by saying it costs too much.
It was right about here that I was going to make a snarky but obvious statement. However I don't have to because Andree McLoed, Palin's least favorite person in the world, has done it for me.
"The whole way to mitigate all this is for Palin to behave ethically," said McLeod, who filed the complaint that was dismissed by the board on Wednesday.
Of course that is the fact that seems to be lost on a lot of people.
They simply want to paint our Governor as the victim of an organized smear campaign but that is simply untrue. Our Governor is the victim of her own unethical actions.
And what is more is that the ethics complaints are being dismissed out of hand, without being given the kind of respect and attention that I feel they deserve. I am confident that if these were being vetted by a less Palin-cozy group than this personnel board the complaints would not be getting swatted away like so many errant tennis balls. (And perhaps a simple request for government e-mails would not cost a private citizen a whopping $65,000.)
It appears from my point of view that the personnel board is running interference for the Governor and sending a message to others who may dare to call Sarah Palin on her unethical behaviors not to bother.
(Oh crap! It looks like I am more or less in agreement with Dan Fagan on this issue, how did that happen? Oh well in the interest of fairness here is a link to his post on the subject.)
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
You lost the Miss USA contest and angered the gay community what can you possibly do to damage your reputation even more? Fox and Friends it is!
California courts upheld the ban against gay marriage so Miss Projean proclaims "So I am not the bad guy!"
No you are not "the bad guy" for thinking that marriage should be between and man and a woman, but you totally are for saying in an interview with James Dobson, of Focus on the Family, that Satan made Perez Hilton ask you that question and that God himself told you to answer the way that you did.
THAT not only makes you a "bad guy" it also makes you a "crazy ass whackjob". Which I guess we could have surmised by seeing you on Fox and Friends which is literally a clearing house for "crazy ass whackjobs".
One thing that does bother me about Miss Projean is she says at one point, when it is mentioned that the 18,000 same sex couples who were already married will still be considered married, that she "thinks that is great, I do". So if it is "great" that those couples can still show their commitment to their partner by being married to them, why would it NOT be great if ALL same sex couples could do the same? How is one great and the other....not?
Does anybody else feel like a genius by comparison when watching this show? I swear I feel like Einstein compared to these knuckledraggers. Hmm maybe I should watch more often.
Todd palin offered Bristol a car to break up with Levi. Just imagine what might have been if she had taken it.
In GQ's upcoming funny, sympathetic story on Levi Johnston, we learn a lot more about the young father we've come to know as Sex on Skates. For one, he is capable of sentences and even words that consist of more than a couple of syllables, something you'd likely not know from watching his appearances on television shows like Larry King Live and Tyra. For another, he estimates that he has "as much fishing, camping, and hunting experience of anybody [his] age in the country, if not more." In fact, he estimates, he's "never done anything but hunt and fish and camp." Of course, that's not true — he also dated Bristol Palin; fathered a child with her; joined her mother, Sarah, onstage at the Republican National Convention; and played a moderate-size role in a Republican melodrama that was acted out in headlines and news clips across the country.
In person, Levi is quiet, with occasional bursts of bravado and humor, according to the story, a copy of which we obtained. He pals around mostly with an enormous black private eye named Tank, who is sort of the Johnston family body man, because a lot of his friends have been selling him out to the tabloids. He may or may not be seeking work, but things are getting better between him and Bristol, who has taken to dropping off their son, Tripp, herself to see him. After dueling television appearances earlier this month (Bristol was talking about teen pregnancy for Candie's, Levi was basically saying the opposite of whatever she said), GQ writer John Jeremiah Sullivan watched them exchange flirty text messages. (WTF?)That led to a warmth between them, and now they're in regular contact — though we imagine that relations with Todd and Sarah Palin, the former of whom on several occasions offered to buy Bristol a car if she'd dump Levi, are still strained. (Hmm interesting to know that Papa Palin believes love is something that can be bought off is the price is right. I guess for some people there is a price for everything.)
I heard about this interview over a month ago. My sources say that there is not going to be any real revelations contained within, but you will see a softer side of Levi which is the goal of these interviews, especially after Sarah and her clan demonized Levi and Sherry to the press.
In person, Levi is quiet, with occasional bursts of bravado and humor, according to the story, a copy of which we obtained. He pals around mostly with an enormous black private eye named Tank, who is sort of the Johnston family body man, because a lot of his friends have been selling him out to the tabloids. He may or may not be seeking work, but things are getting better between him and Bristol, who has taken to dropping off their son, Tripp, herself to see him. After dueling television appearances earlier this month (Bristol was talking about teen pregnancy for Candie's, Levi was basically saying the opposite of whatever she said), GQ writer John Jeremiah Sullivan watched them exchange flirty text messages. (WTF?)That led to a warmth between them, and now they're in regular contact — though we imagine that relations with Todd and Sarah Palin, the former of whom on several occasions offered to buy Bristol a car if she'd dump Levi, are still strained. (Hmm interesting to know that Papa Palin believes love is something that can be bought off is the price is right. I guess for some people there is a price for everything.)
I heard about this interview over a month ago. My sources say that there is not going to be any real revelations contained within, but you will see a softer side of Levi which is the goal of these interviews, especially after Sarah and her clan demonized Levi and Sherry to the press.
The Dick Cheney talking point that torture saved American lives is refuted by a military interrogator who saw the result first hand.
A 14-year military interrogator has undercut one of the key arguments posited by Vice President Dick Cheney in favor of the Bush Administration’s torture techniques and alleged that the use of torture has cost “hundreds if not thousands” of American lives.
The interrogator, who uses the name “Matthew Alexander,” says he oversaw more than 1,000 interrogations, conducting more than 300 in Iraq personally. His statements are captured in a new video by Brave New Films (below).
“Torture does not save lives,” Alexander said in his interview. “And the reason why is that our enemies use it, number one, as a recruiting tool…These same foreign fighters who came to Iraq to fight because of torture and abuse….literally cost us hundreds if not thousands of American lives.”
Moreover, Alexander avers that many — as many as 90 percent — of those captured in Iraq said they joined the fight against the United States because of the torture conducted at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay.
“At the prison where I conducted interrogations,” Alexander said, “we heard day in and day out, foreign fighters who had been captured state that the number one reason that they had come to fight in Iraq was because of torture and abuse, what had happened at Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib.”
“Cheney,’ said Alexander, ‘fundamentally misunderstands the way America is viewed around the world,” a reporter who reviewed the video wrote Tuesday. “The American principles of freedom and democracy are cherished in the Muslim world and the idea, at least, of America is still a seductive one. But it is the behavior of the Bush administration at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and secret prisons around the globe that undercuts that image, allowing Al Qaeda to make the argument that America isn’t what it stands for.”
“One of Al Qaeda’s goals, it’s not just to attack the United States, it’s to prove that we’re hypocrites, that we don’t live up to American principles,” Alexander said. “So when we use torture and abuse, we’re playing directly into one of their stated goals.”
I think that most intelligent people have already come to realize that the opinions of Dick Cheney are not to be believed on this subject, but hearing just how much damage the policies that he, and his cohorts, implemented caused to our fighting men and women is still very difficult to hear.
It is time for ALL of the documents from the Bush administration to be made public and for charges of treason to be leveled against every single one of them. And Dick Cheney should be the FIRST to face an investigation, with Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, and George Bush to follow closely behind.
The interrogator, who uses the name “Matthew Alexander,” says he oversaw more than 1,000 interrogations, conducting more than 300 in Iraq personally. His statements are captured in a new video by Brave New Films (below).
“Torture does not save lives,” Alexander said in his interview. “And the reason why is that our enemies use it, number one, as a recruiting tool…These same foreign fighters who came to Iraq to fight because of torture and abuse….literally cost us hundreds if not thousands of American lives.”
Moreover, Alexander avers that many — as many as 90 percent — of those captured in Iraq said they joined the fight against the United States because of the torture conducted at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay.
“At the prison where I conducted interrogations,” Alexander said, “we heard day in and day out, foreign fighters who had been captured state that the number one reason that they had come to fight in Iraq was because of torture and abuse, what had happened at Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib.”
“Cheney,’ said Alexander, ‘fundamentally misunderstands the way America is viewed around the world,” a reporter who reviewed the video wrote Tuesday. “The American principles of freedom and democracy are cherished in the Muslim world and the idea, at least, of America is still a seductive one. But it is the behavior of the Bush administration at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and secret prisons around the globe that undercuts that image, allowing Al Qaeda to make the argument that America isn’t what it stands for.”
“One of Al Qaeda’s goals, it’s not just to attack the United States, it’s to prove that we’re hypocrites, that we don’t live up to American principles,” Alexander said. “So when we use torture and abuse, we’re playing directly into one of their stated goals.”
I think that most intelligent people have already come to realize that the opinions of Dick Cheney are not to be believed on this subject, but hearing just how much damage the policies that he, and his cohorts, implemented caused to our fighting men and women is still very difficult to hear.
It is time for ALL of the documents from the Bush administration to be made public and for charges of treason to be leveled against every single one of them. And Dick Cheney should be the FIRST to face an investigation, with Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, and George Bush to follow closely behind.
Waterboarding IS good for something. It teaches arrogant right wing radio guys that they have no idea what they are talking about.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
When last I posted about this incident I made fun of "Mancow" (and with a name like that who can blame me), but at least he has not bowed to pressure and gone back on his assertion that waterboarding is in fact torture.
I believe that from now on ANYBODY who makes the charge that this technique is not torture must be subjected to it until they admit they were wrong.
It seems to me that the individuals who endanger America the most today are the ones who defend the tactics of the administration that damaged it the most in the recent past. They are in fact the traitors that America needs to bring to justice.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Wasilla, where crazy is the new black, will host the next wingnut teabagging protest.
Once again the right wing leaps to attack the Obama administration over policies that have been implemented to repair the horrendous damage done to our country and our financial institutions by the Bushies. The ability to see that their President was ultimately responsible for this crisis seems to be denied to these simple, simple people.
But now they have taken it to even more bat-shit crazy heights. Just check out this "We the People Stimulus Package" that is featured on the Alaska Tea Party official website:
1. No legislator shall be in office for more than two (2) years term limits. (Go on.)
2. All legislators must pay into the Social Security yearly from their wages.
3. No legislator shall be able to give themselves raises, the American people will vote for these raises on the legislator’s record. (This way well organized voting blocs, like the ones put together in churches, could manipulate politicians by keeping them from earning more money if they did not jump through their particular hoops.)
4. All legislation shall be posted on the internet for five (5) days, the legislator has forty eight (48) hours to read said legislation before voting and a three (3) day cooling off period after legislation has been signed to recall said legislation before moving to the President for signing.
5. Any government official whether the President or the Janitor does not comply, honor, pledge the Constitution of the United States will be thrown out of office and newly elected will replace them. (I am curious as to WHO determines this.)
6. Any legislator that breaks the law, ex: (tax evasion, lobbying, conflict of interest) will not be rewarded with monies or committees. (Well I agree with this one as it will have the effect of keeping the Republicans from getting the huge amounts of money from the special interests that they use to outspend their Democratic opponents at every turn.)
7. The American people would have the right to throw any legislator out of office if anyone of them does not read legislation before voting on them. (Once again who determines this, and how?)
8. No government official shall start a war if they do not intend to win a war. (Somebody get George Bush to read this immediately!)
9. We need to abolish the Electoral College and the American people would determine who will be the President. (Damn I actually agree with this one. Oh well, I guess they ALL can't be crazy.)
10. All candidates for government service must go through a mandatory universal service either in the Armed Service or through Community involvement before being vetted for candidacy. (Well this is a silly and unnecessary requirement for public service.)
11. English would be our main language in the United States. (Sorry No hablo inglés.)
12. No more amnesty programs for illegal immigrants. All will abide by United States immigration laws or will be arrested and deported back to their countries. (It looks like Lou Dobbs had a hand in this document.)
13. Any immigrants in this country or coming to this country will abide by the laws of the United States of America. (Is that not the case now?)
14. The words “In God We Trust” would never be abolished from our monies, schools, government installations. (Ah now we get a little red meat for the Christianistas.)
15. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag will be restored back in our schools. (Pledges do not make people more patriotic. And for a group of people who seem determined to keep government OFF of their backs, the idea of having the government force their children to pay allegiance to them seems counter intuitive. Or am I missing something?)
16. Our constitution would never be amended; the founding structure would be forever the same. (Yeah why should we be allowed to bear arms anyway? Or have freedom of religion? Or a free press? Or allow women to vote? Or have the right to a speedy trial by a jury of our peers? No the Constitution was just perfect the way it was originally written. Are these idiots serious?)
17. The fair Tax would be instrumented to everyone.
18. Our military personnel active or veteran status would be afforded complete health care with no stipulations. (I would support this too.)
19. Christianity will again be restored as our main religious entity. (Okay now you lost me. Freedom of religion is the very foundation that this country was built on and it is completely unconstitutional for ANYBODY to insist that one religion be considered more important than any other.)
20.Big government will not be allowed, no handouts and accountability and transparency will be the law of the land. (Once again this is something that should have been addressed when George Bush was President and created numerous unnecessary agencies as well as increasing the size of our government to levels never seen in this country before. The problems they are talking about are NOT the result of the new administration, no matter how much they may want to believe that.)
The funny thing about this document is that if you take the time to read it you will find that it contradicts itself a number of times and essentially makes no good sense whatsoever. But hey, it was good enough for the Alaska Tea Party website and I am sure it will be good enough for the low hanging fruit that attends this rally.
After all, it is only Wasilla.
P.S. I believe it is important to point out that not ALL Wasillians are crazy. Just most of them. For instance my friend Phil Munger, of Progressive Alaska, is decidedly NOT crazy. Of course, as he will often point out, he does not live in Wasilla proper.
But now they have taken it to even more bat-shit crazy heights. Just check out this "We the People Stimulus Package" that is featured on the Alaska Tea Party official website:
1. No legislator shall be in office for more than two (2) years term limits. (Go on.)
2. All legislators must pay into the Social Security yearly from their wages.
3. No legislator shall be able to give themselves raises, the American people will vote for these raises on the legislator’s record. (This way well organized voting blocs, like the ones put together in churches, could manipulate politicians by keeping them from earning more money if they did not jump through their particular hoops.)
4. All legislation shall be posted on the internet for five (5) days, the legislator has forty eight (48) hours to read said legislation before voting and a three (3) day cooling off period after legislation has been signed to recall said legislation before moving to the President for signing.
5. Any government official whether the President or the Janitor does not comply, honor, pledge the Constitution of the United States will be thrown out of office and newly elected will replace them. (I am curious as to WHO determines this.)
6. Any legislator that breaks the law, ex: (tax evasion, lobbying, conflict of interest) will not be rewarded with monies or committees. (Well I agree with this one as it will have the effect of keeping the Republicans from getting the huge amounts of money from the special interests that they use to outspend their Democratic opponents at every turn.)
7. The American people would have the right to throw any legislator out of office if anyone of them does not read legislation before voting on them. (Once again who determines this, and how?)
8. No government official shall start a war if they do not intend to win a war. (Somebody get George Bush to read this immediately!)
9. We need to abolish the Electoral College and the American people would determine who will be the President. (Damn I actually agree with this one. Oh well, I guess they ALL can't be crazy.)
10. All candidates for government service must go through a mandatory universal service either in the Armed Service or through Community involvement before being vetted for candidacy. (Well this is a silly and unnecessary requirement for public service.)
11. English would be our main language in the United States. (Sorry No hablo inglés.)
12. No more amnesty programs for illegal immigrants. All will abide by United States immigration laws or will be arrested and deported back to their countries. (It looks like Lou Dobbs had a hand in this document.)
13. Any immigrants in this country or coming to this country will abide by the laws of the United States of America. (Is that not the case now?)
14. The words “In God We Trust” would never be abolished from our monies, schools, government installations. (Ah now we get a little red meat for the Christianistas.)
15. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag will be restored back in our schools. (Pledges do not make people more patriotic. And for a group of people who seem determined to keep government OFF of their backs, the idea of having the government force their children to pay allegiance to them seems counter intuitive. Or am I missing something?)
16. Our constitution would never be amended; the founding structure would be forever the same. (Yeah why should we be allowed to bear arms anyway? Or have freedom of religion? Or a free press? Or allow women to vote? Or have the right to a speedy trial by a jury of our peers? No the Constitution was just perfect the way it was originally written. Are these idiots serious?)
17. The fair Tax would be instrumented to everyone.
18. Our military personnel active or veteran status would be afforded complete health care with no stipulations. (I would support this too.)
19. Christianity will again be restored as our main religious entity. (Okay now you lost me. Freedom of religion is the very foundation that this country was built on and it is completely unconstitutional for ANYBODY to insist that one religion be considered more important than any other.)
20.Big government will not be allowed, no handouts and accountability and transparency will be the law of the land. (Once again this is something that should have been addressed when George Bush was President and created numerous unnecessary agencies as well as increasing the size of our government to levels never seen in this country before. The problems they are talking about are NOT the result of the new administration, no matter how much they may want to believe that.)
The funny thing about this document is that if you take the time to read it you will find that it contradicts itself a number of times and essentially makes no good sense whatsoever. But hey, it was good enough for the Alaska Tea Party website and I am sure it will be good enough for the low hanging fruit that attends this rally.
After all, it is only Wasilla.
P.S. I believe it is important to point out that not ALL Wasillians are crazy. Just most of them. For instance my friend Phil Munger, of Progressive Alaska, is decidedly NOT crazy. Of course, as he will often point out, he does not live in Wasilla proper.
President Obama to pick first Hispanic woman to the Supreme Court. That banging sound you hear is Lou Dobbs beating his head against his desk.
President Barack Obama tapped federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court on Tuesday, officials said, making her the first Hispanic in history picked to wear the robes of a justice.If confirmed by the Senate, Sotomayor, 54, would succeed retiring Justice David Souter. Two officials described Obama's decision on condition of anonymity because no formal announcement had been made.
Administration officials say Sotomayor would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any justice confirmed in the past 70 years.
A formal announcement was expected at midmorning.
Wow a liberal, female, Hispanic Supreme Court pick! This is going to drive the conservatives up a freaking wall!
Batten down the hatches kids this is going to be a bumpy ride!
Update: It look like David Letterman is already having fun with this choice.
WARNING! Positive Sarah Palin story is featured in this post! And no my blog has not been taken over by FOX News!
Gov. Sarah Palin is requesting a federal disaster declaration because of the flooding of the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers this spring. Palin sent a letter to the federal government officially requesting the disaster declaration.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency sent preliminary damage assessment teams into the area last week to get a firsthand look at the flooding damage. The teams are working their way down the rivers, village by village.
Palin said hundreds of Alaskans have been displaced and many have lost their homes.
"The next step in a state's rebuilding process after a natural disaster is to request our federal government's assistance," the governor said in a statement Monday.
Good for Governor Palin for getting this request into the hands of the Federal government!
For only the second time in many months can I say that MY Governor is doing the job she was elected to do.
I cannot help but notice that in both instances it was in response to a flooding emergency. Does Sarah Palin only think that floods are disasters?
I am sorry that was a critical comment and I am trying to make this a positive post.
Good for you Governor Palin, for doing the minimum requirements of your job!
The Federal Emergency Management Agency sent preliminary damage assessment teams into the area last week to get a firsthand look at the flooding damage. The teams are working their way down the rivers, village by village.
Palin said hundreds of Alaskans have been displaced and many have lost their homes.
"The next step in a state's rebuilding process after a natural disaster is to request our federal government's assistance," the governor said in a statement Monday.
Good for Governor Palin for getting this request into the hands of the Federal government!
For only the second time in many months can I say that MY Governor is doing the job she was elected to do.
I cannot help but notice that in both instances it was in response to a flooding emergency. Does Sarah Palin only think that floods are disasters?
I am sorry that was a critical comment and I am trying to make this a positive post.
Good for you Governor Palin, for doing the minimum requirements of your job!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Hah! I knew it! (So off topic that you may in fact believe that you are on a totally different blog.)
The findings, by an international team of researchers, suggest muscular strength is as important as staying slim and eating healthily when it comes to protecting the body against deadly tumours.
The scientists who came up with the findings are recommending men weight train at least twice a week, exercising muscle groups in both the upper and lower body.
In recent years, experts have recommended a healthy diet and lifestyle - including regular aerobic exercise such as jogging or cycling to reduce the risks of the disease.
But the latest study, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, suggests it may be just as important to build up muscle strength.
Okay so in my mind's eye I can see all of you shaking your heads and wondering how THIS has anything to do with the usual subjects covered on this blog. It doesn't.
However it does have much to do with my personal life, my past as a gym rat, and my defensiveness about my body.
You see though I usually think of myself as a geeky political junkie, who over thinks everything, and is constantly searching for new information and perspectives, I do not exactly look the part.
You see I am somewhat of an exercise freak.
I go to the gym to work out at least four times a week, and sometimes even six times a week, if my schedule allows it.
Because of this I have often had to defend myself to my more cerebral friends who find that kind of attention to the physical self to be kind of... well pathetic.
However I long ago discovered that exercise is the key to good health and longevity. I much prefer it as a lifestyle choice over the American tradition of lethargy and prescription drug use.
Now don't get me wrong I am not exactly a hulking behemoth or anything but I am also not the tweed jacket with patches on the elbows type either. My preferred clothing choices are tank tops and sweatpants or shorts. Disappointing I know.
But what is proving most gratifying is finding out that science is FINALLY learning that resistance training and a challenging cardio program result in a potpourri of beneficial results. Including resistance to heart disease, diabetes, erectile dysfunction, digestive problems, sleep problems, back problems, etc., etc. etc.
I have more energy and strength than almost all of my younger friends, and have not had to sacrifice a single brain cell to attain it. If anything the increased blood flow and oxygenation that results from my strong heart and lungs actually increases my ability to retain information and use my intellect more effectively.
(And just between you and me, it is not exactly terrible when people learn how old I am and simply refuse to believe it either.)
The scientists who came up with the findings are recommending men weight train at least twice a week, exercising muscle groups in both the upper and lower body.
In recent years, experts have recommended a healthy diet and lifestyle - including regular aerobic exercise such as jogging or cycling to reduce the risks of the disease.
But the latest study, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, suggests it may be just as important to build up muscle strength.
Okay so in my mind's eye I can see all of you shaking your heads and wondering how THIS has anything to do with the usual subjects covered on this blog. It doesn't.
However it does have much to do with my personal life, my past as a gym rat, and my defensiveness about my body.
You see though I usually think of myself as a geeky political junkie, who over thinks everything, and is constantly searching for new information and perspectives, I do not exactly look the part.
You see I am somewhat of an exercise freak.
I go to the gym to work out at least four times a week, and sometimes even six times a week, if my schedule allows it.
Because of this I have often had to defend myself to my more cerebral friends who find that kind of attention to the physical self to be kind of... well pathetic.
However I long ago discovered that exercise is the key to good health and longevity. I much prefer it as a lifestyle choice over the American tradition of lethargy and prescription drug use.
Now don't get me wrong I am not exactly a hulking behemoth or anything but I am also not the tweed jacket with patches on the elbows type either. My preferred clothing choices are tank tops and sweatpants or shorts. Disappointing I know.
But what is proving most gratifying is finding out that science is FINALLY learning that resistance training and a challenging cardio program result in a potpourri of beneficial results. Including resistance to heart disease, diabetes, erectile dysfunction, digestive problems, sleep problems, back problems, etc., etc. etc.
I have more energy and strength than almost all of my younger friends, and have not had to sacrifice a single brain cell to attain it. If anything the increased blood flow and oxygenation that results from my strong heart and lungs actually increases my ability to retain information and use my intellect more effectively.
(And just between you and me, it is not exactly terrible when people learn how old I am and simply refuse to believe it either.)
Greta Van Susteren a little pissy about allegations she and her husband are Palin-bots. Gee I wonder who would accuse them of something like that?
On her Fox News prime-time show, she covers murder trials one minute and bailout money the next. On her popular blog, she posts almost hourly on most days and chats with viewers via Skype.
She responds to seemingly every perceived blemish — and lately there have been plenty. Her critics have questioned her husband’s advising of Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska and portrayed Ms. Van Susteren as a spokeswoman of sorts for the governor and the governor’s husband, Todd. (But only because she is.)
Ms. Van Susteren has interviewed Ms. Palin three times, the first time during the candidate’s vice presidential campaign last fall. The weekend after the election, Ms. Van Susteren and her husband, John Coale, met the Palins at their home in Alaska for a widely promoted interview. Viewers also saw her on a snowmobiling ride with Ms. Palin’s husband. ("Hit more of those bumpy things Mr. Palin, I LOVE the bumpy things!")
While there, Mr. Coale, a prominent trial lawyer who helped lead the tobacco litigation of the 1990s, talked to Ms. Palin about her legal bills and advised her to start a political action committee. “I started the PAC for her over the next month or two, and helped start a legal defense fund for her. That’s about it,” Mr. Coale said last week. “I never advised her on any politics or anything like that.” ("Gee I just set up a method for her to get tons of money to use anyway she sees fit and helped set up a legal fund to help her keep Levi Johnston from seeing his baby or going public with the dirt he has on the Palins. How is that very much help really?")
Mr. Coale’s assistance to Ms. Palin, first reported by The Washington Post in March, prompted questions about the couple’s combination of journalistic and political work.
Many news organizations have policies that discourage or prohibit staff members from covering events to which their spouses are connected. (But that is only for REAL news organizations, and how could that possibly include FOX News?) Last week, the news Web site Politico said that Mr. Coale had also suggested to Ms. Palin that she forge an alliance with Hillary Rodham Clinton by using the PAC to help pay down Mrs. Clinton’s campaign debts. (And right after that Mr. Coale decided to teach pigs to fly!)
In an interview, Ms. Van Susteren defended her husband’s work, calling him “almost a quintessential citizen” who had encouraged politicians to “reach across the aisle.” She said she had had only one private conversation with Ms. Palin. “I don’t have a relationship with her,” she said. “It’s not like people think (know) it is.”
She said that conversation occurred three weeks ago when the governor called to cancel her trip to Washington for the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. On the recommendation of an executive at Fox, Ms. Van Susteren had invited the Palins, a hot booking for the celebrity-studded dinner.
Mr. Palin still traveled to Washington and worked the party circuit with Ms. Van Susteren, prompting Politico to call her his “handler” after she told a reporter that his presence at a garden party was off the record. (She felt it was good manners to intercede because it was a social event, she said.) (Yeah a famous "social event" which included virtually every reporter in Washington. Why would she expect them to want to ask Todd Palin any questions?)
Bill Shine, the executive vice president for programming, expressed little concern about the ties. “There are always some sort of, let’s just say, unique relationships that happen when you live in Washington,” he said in a telephone interview. “It’s the culture of that town.”
He said Ms. Van Susteren did “not necessarily” have to disclose on television that her husband had worked with Ms. Palin.
Some critics have accused Ms. Van Susteren of playing favorites with Ms. Palin. David Zurawik, a longtime television critic for The Baltimore Sun, wrote that she had conducted “cotton-candy interviews” of Ms. Palin. ("Cotton-candy interviews". Oh I love that term!)
In an interview, he called Mr. Coale’s work “an extension of what Greta’s doing on the air.”
“They’re her champions or her defense attorneys,” Mr. Zurawik said.
Okay let's cut through the bullshit shall we? There is absolutely NO doubt that Greta and her husband are covering for, and promoting, Sarah Palin and her family. From the "cotton-candy" interviews she has conducted with Sarah and Bristol, to the bulldog like defense of Palin whenever she perceives her idol is under some attack, it should be clear to EVERYBODY that the Susteren/Coates team are completely smitten with the Palins.
Add to that Mr. Coales fawning attention over Sarah, and the fact that you can actually see Greta's granny panties getting moist every time she is near Todd, and you have the makings for one of the creepiest parasitic relationships in political history.
She responds to seemingly every perceived blemish — and lately there have been plenty. Her critics have questioned her husband’s advising of Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska and portrayed Ms. Van Susteren as a spokeswoman of sorts for the governor and the governor’s husband, Todd. (But only because she is.)
Ms. Van Susteren has interviewed Ms. Palin three times, the first time during the candidate’s vice presidential campaign last fall. The weekend after the election, Ms. Van Susteren and her husband, John Coale, met the Palins at their home in Alaska for a widely promoted interview. Viewers also saw her on a snowmobiling ride with Ms. Palin’s husband. ("Hit more of those bumpy things Mr. Palin, I LOVE the bumpy things!")
While there, Mr. Coale, a prominent trial lawyer who helped lead the tobacco litigation of the 1990s, talked to Ms. Palin about her legal bills and advised her to start a political action committee. “I started the PAC for her over the next month or two, and helped start a legal defense fund for her. That’s about it,” Mr. Coale said last week. “I never advised her on any politics or anything like that.” ("Gee I just set up a method for her to get tons of money to use anyway she sees fit and helped set up a legal fund to help her keep Levi Johnston from seeing his baby or going public with the dirt he has on the Palins. How is that very much help really?")
Mr. Coale’s assistance to Ms. Palin, first reported by The Washington Post in March, prompted questions about the couple’s combination of journalistic and political work.
Many news organizations have policies that discourage or prohibit staff members from covering events to which their spouses are connected. (But that is only for REAL news organizations, and how could that possibly include FOX News?) Last week, the news Web site Politico said that Mr. Coale had also suggested to Ms. Palin that she forge an alliance with Hillary Rodham Clinton by using the PAC to help pay down Mrs. Clinton’s campaign debts. (And right after that Mr. Coale decided to teach pigs to fly!)
In an interview, Ms. Van Susteren defended her husband’s work, calling him “almost a quintessential citizen” who had encouraged politicians to “reach across the aisle.” She said she had had only one private conversation with Ms. Palin. “I don’t have a relationship with her,” she said. “It’s not like people think (know) it is.”
She said that conversation occurred three weeks ago when the governor called to cancel her trip to Washington for the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. On the recommendation of an executive at Fox, Ms. Van Susteren had invited the Palins, a hot booking for the celebrity-studded dinner.
Mr. Palin still traveled to Washington and worked the party circuit with Ms. Van Susteren, prompting Politico to call her his “handler” after she told a reporter that his presence at a garden party was off the record. (She felt it was good manners to intercede because it was a social event, she said.) (Yeah a famous "social event" which included virtually every reporter in Washington. Why would she expect them to want to ask Todd Palin any questions?)
Bill Shine, the executive vice president for programming, expressed little concern about the ties. “There are always some sort of, let’s just say, unique relationships that happen when you live in Washington,” he said in a telephone interview. “It’s the culture of that town.”
He said Ms. Van Susteren did “not necessarily” have to disclose on television that her husband had worked with Ms. Palin.
Some critics have accused Ms. Van Susteren of playing favorites with Ms. Palin. David Zurawik, a longtime television critic for The Baltimore Sun, wrote that she had conducted “cotton-candy interviews” of Ms. Palin. ("Cotton-candy interviews". Oh I love that term!)
In an interview, he called Mr. Coale’s work “an extension of what Greta’s doing on the air.”
“They’re her champions or her defense attorneys,” Mr. Zurawik said.
Okay let's cut through the bullshit shall we? There is absolutely NO doubt that Greta and her husband are covering for, and promoting, Sarah Palin and her family. From the "cotton-candy" interviews she has conducted with Sarah and Bristol, to the bulldog like defense of Palin whenever she perceives her idol is under some attack, it should be clear to EVERYBODY that the Susteren/Coates team are completely smitten with the Palins.
Add to that Mr. Coales fawning attention over Sarah, and the fact that you can actually see Greta's granny panties getting moist every time she is near Todd, and you have the makings for one of the creepiest parasitic relationships in political history.
Obama's Memorial Day address.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Don't you just hate it when you visit one of your favorite blogs and the guy running things has not bothered to update it since sometime yesterday? Yeah me too.
I had kind of a weird morning where I was just very unmotivated to post anything.
I watched the President on television visiting the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier", and listened to his speech, and heard about North Korea's nuclear testing and just kind of felt exhausted by it all.
So I went outside and did some gardening (yeah "gardening" and I am neither gay nor British, imagine that), mowed my yard, and went for a walk in the sun.
Now I feel much better and am looking forward to tomorrow where, after an extended break, I will be back on the hunt for truth.
Beware miscreants Gryphen is rested, relaxed, and rejuvenated!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Jerry Prevo shows the whole world his ignorance and intolerance. Thanks for saving us the trouble buddy!
Here is a recent letter to the editor received from Jerry Prevo, our local Moral Majority assclown, concerning the idea of introducing an ordinance (which you can read for yourself here) that protects Alaskans from discrimination based on their sexuality.
Here are just some of the reasons I am against the homosexual ordinance. (Believe me, he did not call it the "homosexual ordinance" by accident. Your homophobia is already showing Jerry.)
It would allow any man to dress like a woman and use any public women's restroom. Ladies, do you want that to happen? If not then you should contact the Anchorage Assembly and show up at the June 9 public hearing. (This is false and has NOTHING to do with the ordinance. It is just an attempt to define people with a different sexual orientation as deviants and is nothing more than fear mongering.)
A man in a highly visible sales job could come to work dressed like a woman. (Also not true. Employers can insist on a certain type of uniform or dress code as part of their guidelines for ALL of their employees. All this ordinance says is that they may not discriminate against an employee because of his/her sexual orientation.)
A person of either sex who indulges a taste for extreme sexual promiscuity and pornography during working hours could not be stopped or fired even though it damages the company's image. (This is so ignorant that I almost cannot believe that a thinking person wrote it. Using work computers to watch porn is against the rules at probably every single business in Alaska, as is using work computers for online gambling, downloading illegal movies files, and sending spam to other computers. Nothing in this ordinance would force anybody to allow their workers to use the company internet access for non-work related activities, such as these. Once again Prevo is trying to tie sexual orientation with his idea of deviant behaviors.)
Maybe, worst of all, this ordinance would allow a man who teaches a second grade class or any grade to show up as a woman in the classroom and the School District could do nothing because of this ordinance. (The school district already has a non-sexual discrimination policy which can be found here: And which says the following: It is prohibited to harass, discriminate against, or grant a discriminatory advantage based on race, creed, gender, national origin, age, marital status, political or religious beliefs, physical or mental conditions, family, social, or cultural background, or sexual orientation. As far as I am aware, though this policy was adopted back in 2003, it has NEVER resulted in a male teacher coming to school dressed as a woman, with the possible exception of a Halloween party.)
This is a poorly written ordinance. For more of my explanation can be found at www.SOSanchorage.org
Now before you visit the website that Prevo is pimping above I should warn you that it is absolutely disgusting and will insult the intelligence of any rational person who visits there. But in the interest of fairness, and allowing Prevo to hang himself with his own intolerant rope, I have included it for your perusal. But remember you were warned.
Jerry Prevo is an especially disagreeable human being who spends much of his time dabbling in politics, and telling his congregation what to think, which movies to watch, how to vote, and that the devil will snatch them up if they don't listen to his every word.
The Anchorage Baptist Temple is the epitome of the fundamentalist religion that now permeates and undermines the Republican party today. This kind of backward thinking gives Christianity a bad name. Could any of you imagine Jesus Christ saying that homosexuals should not be treated fairly? If you want to know exactly what Jesus had to say about homosexuality just click here. That is right he said NOTHING. But if he had do you really think he would have said they should be shunned? Or hated? Or kept away from the kind of life enjoyed by their friends and family? No I think not.
What Jerry Prevo has done is use his pulpit to poison the minds of the people who listen to him using the venom of his own ignorant prejudices.
And do you know what? On June 9th he will have his people crammed into the assembly room desperately trying to force their agenda of hate onto the people of our fair city. But that is just fine because I will be there too, and so will many loving open hearted people willing to extend the privileges of non-discrimination that they enjoy to ALL of the people of this city.
Here are just some of the reasons I am against the homosexual ordinance. (Believe me, he did not call it the "homosexual ordinance" by accident. Your homophobia is already showing Jerry.)
It would allow any man to dress like a woman and use any public women's restroom. Ladies, do you want that to happen? If not then you should contact the Anchorage Assembly and show up at the June 9 public hearing. (This is false and has NOTHING to do with the ordinance. It is just an attempt to define people with a different sexual orientation as deviants and is nothing more than fear mongering.)
A man in a highly visible sales job could come to work dressed like a woman. (Also not true. Employers can insist on a certain type of uniform or dress code as part of their guidelines for ALL of their employees. All this ordinance says is that they may not discriminate against an employee because of his/her sexual orientation.)
A person of either sex who indulges a taste for extreme sexual promiscuity and pornography during working hours could not be stopped or fired even though it damages the company's image. (This is so ignorant that I almost cannot believe that a thinking person wrote it. Using work computers to watch porn is against the rules at probably every single business in Alaska, as is using work computers for online gambling, downloading illegal movies files, and sending spam to other computers. Nothing in this ordinance would force anybody to allow their workers to use the company internet access for non-work related activities, such as these. Once again Prevo is trying to tie sexual orientation with his idea of deviant behaviors.)
Maybe, worst of all, this ordinance would allow a man who teaches a second grade class or any grade to show up as a woman in the classroom and the School District could do nothing because of this ordinance. (The school district already has a non-sexual discrimination policy which can be found here: And which says the following: It is prohibited to harass, discriminate against, or grant a discriminatory advantage based on race, creed, gender, national origin, age, marital status, political or religious beliefs, physical or mental conditions, family, social, or cultural background, or sexual orientation. As far as I am aware, though this policy was adopted back in 2003, it has NEVER resulted in a male teacher coming to school dressed as a woman, with the possible exception of a Halloween party.)
This is a poorly written ordinance. For more of my explanation can be found at www.SOSanchorage.org
Now before you visit the website that Prevo is pimping above I should warn you that it is absolutely disgusting and will insult the intelligence of any rational person who visits there. But in the interest of fairness, and allowing Prevo to hang himself with his own intolerant rope, I have included it for your perusal. But remember you were warned.
Jerry Prevo is an especially disagreeable human being who spends much of his time dabbling in politics, and telling his congregation what to think, which movies to watch, how to vote, and that the devil will snatch them up if they don't listen to his every word.
The Anchorage Baptist Temple is the epitome of the fundamentalist religion that now permeates and undermines the Republican party today. This kind of backward thinking gives Christianity a bad name. Could any of you imagine Jesus Christ saying that homosexuals should not be treated fairly? If you want to know exactly what Jesus had to say about homosexuality just click here. That is right he said NOTHING. But if he had do you really think he would have said they should be shunned? Or hated? Or kept away from the kind of life enjoyed by their friends and family? No I think not.
What Jerry Prevo has done is use his pulpit to poison the minds of the people who listen to him using the venom of his own ignorant prejudices.
And do you know what? On June 9th he will have his people crammed into the assembly room desperately trying to force their agenda of hate onto the people of our fair city. But that is just fine because I will be there too, and so will many loving open hearted people willing to extend the privileges of non-discrimination that they enjoy to ALL of the people of this city.
Will corruption investigations in Alaska continue to move forward? Or has Uncle Ted's "victory" scared justice into hiding?
Does the mess that befell the prosecution of Sen. Ted Stevens create such a cloud over the long-running Alaska corruption investigation that it's all but over?
That's a question heard with some frequency since April, when the Stevens case was thrown out and the FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors who were part of the broader Alaska corruption inquiry were themselves put under investigation.
The Justice Department continues to say the investigation is moving forward, though as recently as last week a spokeswoman would provide no details. Aside from assigning new prosecutors to its only Alaska case awaiting trial, the department has not demonstrated much activity in public. Before the Stevens case was dismissed, its record in the corruption prosecutions was a perfect 11-for-11.
Most legal experts who discussed the situation said that the team involved in the Alaska cases since the investigation became public in 2006 has been so tainted that they will be unable to play a significant role in any other case arising from the investigation.
But neither that restriction, nor the embarrassment and demoralization from such a public failure, is reason to stop now, said Ken Boehm, chairman of the National Legal and Policy Center in Washington, D.C., a conservative-leaning watchdog group.
"I can see they're a little singed around the edges, but at the same time, they all take the oath to pursue the evidence of crime wherever it leads, and they do have a duty to the public to the degree that there's people out there that are selling their office in one way or another -- they owe it to the public to follow up," Boehm said.
Vic Koehring, Pete Kott, John Cowdery, Beverly Masek, Tom Anderson, the list of corrupt Alaskan politicians convicted thus far is sobering to say the least, but Alaskans know full well that not all of the villains have been brought to justice yet.
The very fact that the FBI had to come in and do the job that our own state investigators were too timid, or corrupt, to do themselves brings shame to our state, but allowing this housecleaning to end before ALL of the corruption has been expunged is inexcusable.
Ted Stevens was NOT found innocent. The fact that his conviction was thrown out had nothing to do with anything except the incompetence of the prosecutors who brought his case to trial. Ted Stevens has many reasons to face justice, but with him out of the Senate he is yesterday's news.
Today's news is his son Ben Stevens and of course Don Young.
Once these two have been convicted I will feel that justice has finally been served in Alaska.
Ben Stevens was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in "consulting fees", which we all know was a bribe from VECO to get certain laws passed and others suppressed.
And as for Don Young? Well I don't know of any single Alaskan who is not convinced that Rep. Young is guilty of a variety of criminal activities and his million dollar legal bill can attest to that fact as well, even though we are not yet certain what he paid all of that money to fight.
So here is what I suggest. Perhaps the FBI believes that Alaskans have lost the will to see any more of their lawmakers brought to justice. Maybe they feel that after what happened with Ted Stevens that we have lost confidence in them. Well in my opinion nothing could be further from the truth. I have great confidence in the FBI and blame the Stevens screw up on the Bush Justice Department.
So I am going to e-mail the FBI and ask them to please continue ferreting out corruption in Alaska. I want them to keep pursuing justice in our name, and to bring Ben Stevens and Don Young to trial just as soon as they possibly can. And hey, if you find some corrupt Democrats during your investigation, then bust their ass as well. I am certainly not partisan when it comes to ridding my state of criminal activities.
If you would like to e-mail the Alaska Federal Bureau of Investigation as well here is their e-mail address: anchoragefbi@ak.net.
And even though this is not a post about Sarah Palin, I have to admit I have also talked to an agent about investigating some of the strange happenings around her as well. If any of you are so inclined the FBI might also benefit from hearing your concerns on THAT matter also. I am just saying.
That's a question heard with some frequency since April, when the Stevens case was thrown out and the FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors who were part of the broader Alaska corruption inquiry were themselves put under investigation.
The Justice Department continues to say the investigation is moving forward, though as recently as last week a spokeswoman would provide no details. Aside from assigning new prosecutors to its only Alaska case awaiting trial, the department has not demonstrated much activity in public. Before the Stevens case was dismissed, its record in the corruption prosecutions was a perfect 11-for-11.
Most legal experts who discussed the situation said that the team involved in the Alaska cases since the investigation became public in 2006 has been so tainted that they will be unable to play a significant role in any other case arising from the investigation.
But neither that restriction, nor the embarrassment and demoralization from such a public failure, is reason to stop now, said Ken Boehm, chairman of the National Legal and Policy Center in Washington, D.C., a conservative-leaning watchdog group.
"I can see they're a little singed around the edges, but at the same time, they all take the oath to pursue the evidence of crime wherever it leads, and they do have a duty to the public to the degree that there's people out there that are selling their office in one way or another -- they owe it to the public to follow up," Boehm said.
Vic Koehring, Pete Kott, John Cowdery, Beverly Masek, Tom Anderson, the list of corrupt Alaskan politicians convicted thus far is sobering to say the least, but Alaskans know full well that not all of the villains have been brought to justice yet.
The very fact that the FBI had to come in and do the job that our own state investigators were too timid, or corrupt, to do themselves brings shame to our state, but allowing this housecleaning to end before ALL of the corruption has been expunged is inexcusable.
Ted Stevens was NOT found innocent. The fact that his conviction was thrown out had nothing to do with anything except the incompetence of the prosecutors who brought his case to trial. Ted Stevens has many reasons to face justice, but with him out of the Senate he is yesterday's news.
Today's news is his son Ben Stevens and of course Don Young.
Once these two have been convicted I will feel that justice has finally been served in Alaska.
Ben Stevens was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in "consulting fees", which we all know was a bribe from VECO to get certain laws passed and others suppressed.
And as for Don Young? Well I don't know of any single Alaskan who is not convinced that Rep. Young is guilty of a variety of criminal activities and his million dollar legal bill can attest to that fact as well, even though we are not yet certain what he paid all of that money to fight.
So here is what I suggest. Perhaps the FBI believes that Alaskans have lost the will to see any more of their lawmakers brought to justice. Maybe they feel that after what happened with Ted Stevens that we have lost confidence in them. Well in my opinion nothing could be further from the truth. I have great confidence in the FBI and blame the Stevens screw up on the Bush Justice Department.
So I am going to e-mail the FBI and ask them to please continue ferreting out corruption in Alaska. I want them to keep pursuing justice in our name, and to bring Ben Stevens and Don Young to trial just as soon as they possibly can. And hey, if you find some corrupt Democrats during your investigation, then bust their ass as well. I am certainly not partisan when it comes to ridding my state of criminal activities.
If you would like to e-mail the Alaska Federal Bureau of Investigation as well here is their e-mail address: anchoragefbi@ak.net.
And even though this is not a post about Sarah Palin, I have to admit I have also talked to an agent about investigating some of the strange happenings around her as well. If any of you are so inclined the FBI might also benefit from hearing your concerns on THAT matter also. I am just saying.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Keith Olbermann's Special Comment from May 21st.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
I am very glad to have Keith weighing in on Dick Cheney's duplicity.
Every time Cheney mentions 9-11 it makes me want to scream. And sometimes I do.
I usually get these Special Comment (which I love) up a little faster, but I have been extremely busy and have had little time to keep up with the blog lately.
However things have loosened up and I should soon have many more hours a day to dig up facts and make posts. Well at least that is my current plan.
Picture of the Johnston family (and Tank Jones), arriving at Palmer courthouse on Thursday.
If Tank were standing side by side with Levi, then Levi would be staring at Tank's chest. The man is huge. Thanks for permission to use the picture Dennis.
Conservative radio host has "come to Jesus moment" after being waterboarded. "It is torture!" he says.
Apparently this doofus from Chicago, who calls himself "Mancow", has been making remarks on his radio show that waterboarding is not really torture, and decided to prove it by allowing himself to experience it first hand.
Well long story short, the guy turned out to be more "cow" than "man" and he lasted a pathetic 8 seconds even though the average person can last 14 seconds. However the experience seems to have suddenly given him the ability to realize what most of us more intelligent Americans have already come to understand, and that is that waterboarding is indeed torture.
Did you see how quickly he jumped up and ripped the rag off of his face? For the detainees at Gitmo, that was not an option. The only way to stop the torture was to tell their tormentors whatever they wanted to hear. Such as the "fact" that Iraq was involved in 9-11, which was the REAL purpose of their waterboarding.
So my question is "must ALL conservative torture deniers have to be waterboarded to get them to understand that this is indeed torture, or can they figure it out based on the response by this radio host and conservative writer Christopher Hitchens before him?"
I think that it is time to get FOX News to force Sean Hannity to go through this experience and to once and for all put this ridiculous debate behind us. If a man as used to sucking the air out of the room as Sean Hannity is, can withstand having his oxygen cut off and water poured up his nose, than we can all agree that waterboarding is NOT torture.
However I am pretty confident that Sean Hannity will probably start screaming and crying the minute a drop of water slides up one of his flared nostrils. The guy is a bullshit artist, NOT a tough guy by any stretch of the imagination.
(And by the way, good for Mancow to contact Keith Olbermann about his stunt. Olbermann has now donated $10,000 dollars to Veterans of Valor.)
Well long story short, the guy turned out to be more "cow" than "man" and he lasted a pathetic 8 seconds even though the average person can last 14 seconds. However the experience seems to have suddenly given him the ability to realize what most of us more intelligent Americans have already come to understand, and that is that waterboarding is indeed torture.
Did you see how quickly he jumped up and ripped the rag off of his face? For the detainees at Gitmo, that was not an option. The only way to stop the torture was to tell their tormentors whatever they wanted to hear. Such as the "fact" that Iraq was involved in 9-11, which was the REAL purpose of their waterboarding.
So my question is "must ALL conservative torture deniers have to be waterboarded to get them to understand that this is indeed torture, or can they figure it out based on the response by this radio host and conservative writer Christopher Hitchens before him?"
I think that it is time to get FOX News to force Sean Hannity to go through this experience and to once and for all put this ridiculous debate behind us. If a man as used to sucking the air out of the room as Sean Hannity is, can withstand having his oxygen cut off and water poured up his nose, than we can all agree that waterboarding is NOT torture.
However I am pretty confident that Sean Hannity will probably start screaming and crying the minute a drop of water slides up one of his flared nostrils. The guy is a bullshit artist, NOT a tough guy by any stretch of the imagination.
(And by the way, good for Mancow to contact Keith Olbermann about his stunt. Olbermann has now donated $10,000 dollars to Veterans of Valor.)
Friday, May 22, 2009
Meet the woman who is going to write the Sarah Palin memoirs. Does this signal the end of another promising career?
After last week’s announcement that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin would pen a memoir to set the record straight about her personal and political life, HarperCollins revealed Thursday that WORLD Magazine Features Editor Lynn Vincent has been signed on as Palin’s collaborator.The book, not yet titled, will be co-published by HarperCollins imprint Harper and HarperCollins-owned Zondervan and is scheduled for release in the spring of 2010.
During her 10 years as a senior writer and features editor for WORLD, Vincent has covered politics, culture, and hot-button social issues such as abortion for the biweekly news magazine. She has also specialized in narrative journalism.
“Lynn has been WORLD’s best writer of action stories ranging from shots fired in a Texas church to raging fires on California hillsides,” said WORLD Editor in Chief Marvin Olasky. “She combines guts and grace, as does Sarah Palin, so the book should be outstanding.” (I just threw up in my mouth a little.)
“Having worked for more than a decade with Lynn Vincent in what is often a man’s world, I know she brings a rare kind of strong-mindedness and tender-heartedness to every assignment,” said WORLD Editor Mindy Belz. “Lynn is a tenacious reporter and an exacting writer—and I'm not sure when she sleeps.”
Only time will tell if Ms. Vincent's career will slam up against that Palin iceberg and sink forever into the icy depths of obscurity, but I can say with some certainty that this story is NOT going to have a happy ending.
Actually if things work out the way I am hoping Lynn Vincent will have to make a choice of either writing a book featuring a glowing pile of horseshit, or to use her reporter skills to write an expose that will reveal the truths about Sarah Palin that are just now beginning to surface.
One of my jobs is ending today for an extended break and I should have much more time to dedicate to following up on my old leads and pursuing some of the new ones I have received in recent days. The wall I spoke about earlier turned out to be more of a speed bump and I am now able to move forward again.
I am not going to predict when this story will break because I have recently learned that despite agreements and promises there are too many factors that I simply have no control over. However progress is once again being made.
For those of you who have cautioned me to be careful and go slowly to make sure I have the true facts, I thank you as that is exactly what I am trying to do. And for others who are understandably impatient I apologize, but please realize that you are not alone.
Even some of my most trusted friends have reached out to confirm that I was not being taken for a ride or that I was simply full of shit. The verdict so far is that I am still in good standing and I have their blessing. So like I said, you are definitely not alone in your frustration.
Sherry Johnston enters guilty plea in exchange for reduced sentence.
Sherry Johnston will plead guilty in July to a single felony count of possessing the prescription painkiller OxyContin with the intent to sell it, her attorney, Rex Butler, said Thursday.
In exchange for her plea, the state has agreed to drop five other drug-related charges against the 42-year-old Wasilla woman, who is the other grandmother to Gov. Sarah Palin's grandson Tripp.
The plea agreement was made public at a court hearing in Palmer.
The deal could include a reduced sentence, Palmer assistant district attorney Alison Collins said in court Thursday.
Butler said he is asking for a reduced sentence because of the small amount of drugs involved.
This is good news for the Johnston family and it is good news for the seekers of truth.
In exchange for her plea, the state has agreed to drop five other drug-related charges against the 42-year-old Wasilla woman, who is the other grandmother to Gov. Sarah Palin's grandson Tripp.
The plea agreement was made public at a court hearing in Palmer.
The deal could include a reduced sentence, Palmer assistant district attorney Alison Collins said in court Thursday.
Butler said he is asking for a reduced sentence because of the small amount of drugs involved.
This is good news for the Johnston family and it is good news for the seekers of truth.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Sarah Palin vetoes State Legislators acceptance of Federal Stimulus money.
Gov. Sarah Palin announced today she is vetoing the state Legislature's decision to accept $28.6 million in federal economic stimulus money for energy relief.
Palin also vetoed nearly $12 million from the state budget for construction projects. The biggest project she targeted was the improvement of the Anchorage courthouse. She also cut Southeast Alaska projects funded with cruise ship tax money.
State legislators and U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, immediately criticized Palin for turning down the federal stimulus money. The money could have been used for weatherization and renewable energy projects
Palin argued that taking the stimulus money would require the state to entice local communities to adopt building codes. "There isn't a lot of support for the federal government to coerce Alaska communities to adopt building codes, but lawmakers can always exercise checks and balances by overriding my veto," Palin said in a written statement.
Anchorage Republican Rep. Mike Hawker said Palin is wrong about the building code requirement.
"We've researched this thoroughly, the governor's folks now have received a letter from the (U.S. Department of Energy) basically saying you don't have to come up with all these building codes," said Hawker, co-chairman of the House Finance committee.
Okay to all of the people who say that I am a "Palin-hater" or that I am being unfair to her highness, let me ask you what would you do if your Governor was this unbelievably stupid?
She is keeping MY state from receiving much needed funds to help people around Alaska save money on their heating bills and move us toward being more energy efficient overall.
And the reason she is doing it is because she is too fucking stupid to realize that she is working under a flawed assumption. Where are her advisers? Can't they read that letter to her from the US Department of Energy?
I am so frustrated I could just spit. I have been busting my ass to get the information to finally get her out of office and I have hit this damn wall. In the meantime she just keeps screwing my fellow Alaskans out of the financial support that they desperately need.
Not a good day for blogging in the Last Frontier, that is for damn sure.
(Here is Shannyn Moore's take on this ignorant move by Governor Sarah. And if you read Les Gara's follow up you will see it is even worse than we thought.)
Palin also vetoed nearly $12 million from the state budget for construction projects. The biggest project she targeted was the improvement of the Anchorage courthouse. She also cut Southeast Alaska projects funded with cruise ship tax money.
State legislators and U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, immediately criticized Palin for turning down the federal stimulus money. The money could have been used for weatherization and renewable energy projects
Palin argued that taking the stimulus money would require the state to entice local communities to adopt building codes. "There isn't a lot of support for the federal government to coerce Alaska communities to adopt building codes, but lawmakers can always exercise checks and balances by overriding my veto," Palin said in a written statement.
Anchorage Republican Rep. Mike Hawker said Palin is wrong about the building code requirement.
"We've researched this thoroughly, the governor's folks now have received a letter from the (U.S. Department of Energy) basically saying you don't have to come up with all these building codes," said Hawker, co-chairman of the House Finance committee.
Okay to all of the people who say that I am a "Palin-hater" or that I am being unfair to her highness, let me ask you what would you do if your Governor was this unbelievably stupid?
She is keeping MY state from receiving much needed funds to help people around Alaska save money on their heating bills and move us toward being more energy efficient overall.
And the reason she is doing it is because she is too fucking stupid to realize that she is working under a flawed assumption. Where are her advisers? Can't they read that letter to her from the US Department of Energy?
I am so frustrated I could just spit. I have been busting my ass to get the information to finally get her out of office and I have hit this damn wall. In the meantime she just keeps screwing my fellow Alaskans out of the financial support that they desperately need.
Not a good day for blogging in the Last Frontier, that is for damn sure.
(Here is Shannyn Moore's take on this ignorant move by Governor Sarah. And if you read Les Gara's follow up you will see it is even worse than we thought.)
I simply cannot bring myself to say I will miss George W. Bush's presidency, but I will miss some of these comedic moments.
Can you believe we let that moron run our country for EIGHT YEARS?
Glenn Beck goes on The View and gets his ass handed to him.
Now I must confess that I rarely watch Glenn Beck.
I do see his show with the sound turned off sometimes while I am doing cardio at the gym. But the only time I both see and hear him is when somebody else is making fun of him, which seems to happen with amazing frequency. The guy is a constant subject of well deserved ridicule.
However whenever I do see him it seems that he is always doing one of three things, lying, crying, or both lying AND crying.
To be blunt Glenn Beck may have more estrogen in his body than ALL of the View ladies combined. He is a simpering sob sister who constantly makes crap up and than acts all broken up about his lies. He is simply pathetic.
And watching him get spanked by both Whoopi and Barbara Walters is, to me, an absolute thing of beauty. I can not think of a more deserving moron.
(Even though I saw this on Countdown yesterday, I am going to give a hat tip to my friend Phil Munger over at Progressive Alaska which I was reminded of this segment while I was visiting his wonderful blog this morning .)
The Immoral Minority presents last night's Daily Show for those of you without basic cable.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Gay Marriage Is Bad for Small Business | ||||
| ||||
A few years ago I came to believe that I had a fan who was a writer for the Daily Show. This was because there were a few times when Jon Stewart would do bits that were strangely similar to something I had written. I have no problem with this, if in fact it happened, because I LOVE the Daily Show.
Anyhow you can read my post from Saturday and tell me if it is just a coincidence that we came to the same conclusions, or if I am actually a lucky contributor to the Daily Show.
And oh my God this next segment absolutely slayed me. The banter between Jon Stewart and John Oliver is hysterical!
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Scamalot | ||||
| ||||
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
New ad from the National Organization of Marriage looks ready made for parody.
"Our kids will be taught a new way of thinking."
Wouldn't that be great if children taught that the bible is the only source of truth were suddenly allowed to expand their minds to learn that there are many paths to truth and understanding? How could that possibly be a bad thing?
And just think of how accepting of diversity those future generations would be if this bill were passed now while they are still young and their minds are open to new ways of looking at the world.
Damn it almost makes me wish that I could vote for this bill myself!
Update: it looks like the bill failed. This round goes to the intolerant and prejudice. Hopefully there will be better luck next time.
Sarah Palin attacks President Obama for trying to fix the problems left by the Bush administration and praises Michael Steele for...hell I don't know.
Here is a statement issued by Sarah Palin concerning her opinion that President Obama is bad for Alaskans, but RNC Chairman Michale Steele is our "friend". WTF?
"The transition from Candidate Obama to President Obama has been as predictable as Alaska's winter snow," (Oooh poetry!) Palin said in a statement issued through her political action committee, SarahPac. "'Change' in this administration has meant rapid movement toward massive government growth, huge tax burdens on future generations, and an unprecedented reliance upon foreign countries." (I imagine if somebody brings up the massive debt accrued for our children's children to pay off by the Bush administration Palin just puts her fingers in her ears and goes "Lalalala, I can't heeeear you")
Palin then switched gears to praise Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele as a "man who understands what Alaskans believe." (What? How does she figure that? Micheal Steele cannot even figure out what other African Americans want, or other members of his party want, how could he possibly understand what Alaskans want? It is a safe bet that Sarah Palin couldn't have told hm, that much is for sure.)
"We have a friend in RNC Chairman Michael Steele and his bold and courageous speech defines his leadership goals that will guide us all through this most difficult time for our nation," Palin said.
What speech is she talking about? THIS Speech?
Is that not perhaps one of the dumbest speeches you have ever heard? The only thing courageous about it is that he had the guts to show his face after giving it. He makes the comment that "Republicans will no longer look backward" and then only minutes later refers to Ronald Reagan. How does somebody "look forward" with his head shoved that far up his own ass?
How Sarah Palin decides that this guy is a better friend to Alaska then the guy that just sent us 930 million dollars is absolutely beyond my ability to comprehend. Exactly what is Michael Steele going to DO for Alaska?
Not a goddamn thing, that's what!
Governor Sarah is simply backing the Chairman, and attacking the President, because she believes it is the politically smart thing to do. Wrong again Sarah!
I think it is clear that when it comes to aligning yourself with the most helpful political ally, that Sarah Palin has the worst instincts on the planet. Well with the obvious exception of one John McCain of course.
"The transition from Candidate Obama to President Obama has been as predictable as Alaska's winter snow," (Oooh poetry!) Palin said in a statement issued through her political action committee, SarahPac. "'Change' in this administration has meant rapid movement toward massive government growth, huge tax burdens on future generations, and an unprecedented reliance upon foreign countries." (I imagine if somebody brings up the massive debt accrued for our children's children to pay off by the Bush administration Palin just puts her fingers in her ears and goes "Lalalala, I can't heeeear you")
Palin then switched gears to praise Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele as a "man who understands what Alaskans believe." (What? How does she figure that? Micheal Steele cannot even figure out what other African Americans want, or other members of his party want, how could he possibly understand what Alaskans want? It is a safe bet that Sarah Palin couldn't have told hm, that much is for sure.)
"We have a friend in RNC Chairman Michael Steele and his bold and courageous speech defines his leadership goals that will guide us all through this most difficult time for our nation," Palin said.
What speech is she talking about? THIS Speech?
Is that not perhaps one of the dumbest speeches you have ever heard? The only thing courageous about it is that he had the guts to show his face after giving it. He makes the comment that "Republicans will no longer look backward" and then only minutes later refers to Ronald Reagan. How does somebody "look forward" with his head shoved that far up his own ass?
How Sarah Palin decides that this guy is a better friend to Alaska then the guy that just sent us 930 million dollars is absolutely beyond my ability to comprehend. Exactly what is Michael Steele going to DO for Alaska?
Not a goddamn thing, that's what!
Governor Sarah is simply backing the Chairman, and attacking the President, because she believes it is the politically smart thing to do. Wrong again Sarah!
I think it is clear that when it comes to aligning yourself with the most helpful political ally, that Sarah Palin has the worst instincts on the planet. Well with the obvious exception of one John McCain of course.
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