Feminism 2010: We're Going The Wrong Way Baby

Last Thursday, a milestone passed without much fanfare. On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote, became law. After nearly 100 years of betrayal, belittling, and sometime violent battle, women were granted the right to lend their voice to the governance of the United States.

During the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, as the Equal Right Amendment was passing Congress, newspapers and women’s magazines proudly announced, “You’ve Come A Long Way Baby.” Commercials celebrated the woman who could “bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, and never let you forget you’re a man…” Today’s Sarah Palin would have been a 70’s icon to the feminist movement; a woman who could run an entire State with a baby on her hip, between moose hunts.

Advancement in employment, education, financial and legal rights had certainly made a more level playing field, but true equality, especially in financial matters and in the workplace, eluded women. By the close of the 1970’s, the Equal Rights Amendment had failed to be ratified and many who had been at the forefront of the equality fight since the early part of the twentieth century, had died.

Those who stepped up to take the leadership roles in the fight for equality had a much different agenda than their predecessors. Many had come out of failed activist organizations in the late 1960’s and 1970’s and brought with them an entirely new set of objectives. Instead of continuing to fight for the Equal Rights Amendment which would have (among other things) guaranteed that women be paid the same salary for the same work as their male counter part, the new feminists shelved the Amendment fight and instead focused on a concept of equality for everyone, around the world.

The new crop of feminist leaders turned an attainable goal (the original Equal Rights Amendment only lacked three votes to become an Amendment to the Constitution) into a ragtag, loosely allied gaggle of radical organizations. The new feminist movement tied basic female equality to gay, lesbian and transgender issues, anti-military and anti-war efforts, anti-pornography campaigns, cruelty to animals issues, female treatment in 3rd world countries, environmental projects, minority issues, sexual abuse, and of course abortion. They changed the face of the feminist from a strong woman who didn’t want to BE a man, but instead wanted to be judged and rewarded in the same way as men, based on her skills and ability, into the angry, aggressive, masculine “feminist” model of today.

By adding all manner of fringe causes, the new feminists diluted the original goal of the equality movement to such a degree that it is almost unrecognizable. By adding controversial and divisive social issues to the mix, “feminist” has become a dirty word and the goal of true equality for women has all but slipped through our fingers.

The feminist movement was supposed to free women from the shadows and shackles of fathers and husbands, giving them the ability to follow their own paths, achieve their own goals, and nurture their own opinions and beliefs. Unfortunately, the domineering men of the past have been largely replaced by the domineering women of activist organizations and the left-leaning media, who deem ultra-liberal positions the only ones viable for women.

Unless a woman agrees with the opinions of the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Joy Behar, or Rachael Maddow, they are attacked for being “ignorant,” “racist,” or “white terrorists.” Conservative female voters are maligned and called “backward” while conservative female politicians are called “stupid” and “dangerous.”

While women in politics have always had a tough row to hoe, the past presidential campaign has certainly revealed that women are unfortunately their own worst enemy. I have no idea who envisioned the concept that ALL women should think alike, believe in the same things, and vote the same way. Clearly women have a wide variety of experiences, backgrounds, religious and spiritual foundations, social and financial spheres, goals, expectations, beliefs, and opinions. It is therefore incomprehensible that millions of people with such varied backgrounds would all be expected to believe the exact same thing and vote accordingly simply because of their gender.

Today, liberal media personalities have co-opted the term “feminist” for their own. They take the word to mean one who believes in abortion, unfettered immigration, gay marriage, and a complete cradle-to-grave welfare state. The modern feminist movement has rejected any woman who doesn’t agree with their concepts. Largely divided into two distinct camps, some feminists seem to embrace a coom-bye-ah attitude and believe that if we all just put down weapons, embrace our enemies and adopt an “if-it-feels-good-do-it” lifestyle, the world will be rainbows and unicorns. These activists lobby for amnesty for illegals, increasing social programs, and the dismantling of the military.

The rest have adopted a vitriolic, militant posture which embraces any anti-religion, anti-male, anti-tradition concept. The National Organization for Women, which, by virtue of its name, should be an organization for ALL women in the nation, campaigns tirelessly for gay, lesbian and transgender issues, and minority advancement. NOW takes an extremely aggressive position against pro-life groups, churches, and other advocates. Perhaps most ridiculous, they dedicate a considerable amount of time and energy into critiquing commercials and television shows for any hint of sexism or homophobia. Members are encouraged to “rate their outrage” at any sexy Burger King commercial, or Calvin Klein ad. The hint of any negativity against a female personality, in particular a lesbian personality, is grounds for a full on boycott.

The modern “feminist,” whether they are the “dippy hippy” or the angry lesbian variety seem genuinely confused when conservative, female politicians and voters refer to themselves as feminists. Outraged that any woman would disagree with their positions, the modern feminist movement has marginalized itself and outside of the media, largely become impotent at best and a caricature at worst. Any woman who embraces a traditional role of mother or homemaker is villanized. Any liberal politician (Sotomayor, Kagen, Pelosi, etc.) who is questioned about her positions and ideology is the victim of sexism. Any conservative politician is a Nazi or white supremacist. And the original goal of equality for women further dissipates.

Women have a tremendous amount of information, experience, and ideas to bring to the governance of the country. Unfortunately, much of their potential contribution is minimized by the very people who claim to speak for women. Until women in positions of power and in particular those in the media accept that women are not all carbon copies of each other sharing sex organs and an opinion, women will never occupy a position of equality in the United States. Women make up half of the electorate power in the United States. However, as long as there are women in the public eye who continue to demand fealty and require all that women agree with their very liberal opinions, the oppression of women will continue and women will be marginalized in politics and in government.

And while the iconic 1970’s woman had, as the commercial suggested, “come a long way, baby” thanks to the ultra-liberal activists who have raped and pillaged the feminist movement and co-opted it for their own radical agendas, in 2010 the best that women can say is, “we’re going the wrong way, baby.”

Mecca Time to Replace Greenwich MeanTime?

With the economy tanking, oil washing up on the beaches of New Jersey, troops leaving Iraq to the Taliban, Iran going nuclear, and Obama and Pelosi praising a plan to build a Mosque on America’s hallowed ground, you could be forgiven for missing a little news story out of Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

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Seems that it isn’t enough for the Saudi’s to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into building and supporting thousands of Mosques in the United States or forcing Sharia law into our courts, they now want to control time itself.

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As part of the King Abdul Aziz Endowment Project which is investing hundreds of millions of dollars into expanding and modernizing area around the Two Holy Mosques, in Mecca, a new $800 million dollar clock is being unveiled. The purpose? To replace Greenwich Mean Time with “Mecca” Time.

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Islamic religious and political leaders claim that Mecca is the “center of the Earth” and should therefore also be the center of time. Of course this is unwelcome news to the rest of the world which has used the 0 longitude, known as the prime meridian, to mark the start of each day. The 0 longitude runs through the Royal Observatory of Greenwich England, a research center for time, astronomy, and maritime studies for hundreds of years, which lends its name to Greenwich Mean Time or GMT. However, the Saudi’s seek to compel the 1.5 billion Muslims to set their clocks ahead three hours to establish Mecca as the time keeper of the world.

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The Saudi’s will unveil the world’s largest clock, just in time for Christmas. Perched atop the Abraj Al Bait Towers, the tallest building in the world, the massive, four-sided clock is a modern marvel. Five times the size of Big Ben’s clock face, each of the Mecca Royal Clock (as it is called) faces feature almost 100 million pieces of mosaic glass and 2 millions LED lights which will render the Saudi Royal Crest, the words “Allah is Greatest” in Arabic, and the time, visible for nearly 20 miles.

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Situated adjacent to the Kaaba, the most holy site in Islam and the building that Muslims face when they pray, the clock will be the crown jewel in the Saudi’s newly expanded Grand Mosque area in Mecca. Complete with a seven-star hotel, a four story shopping mall, and thousands of high end residences, the Abraj Al Bait Towers complex is has the largest square footage of any building in the world.

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Of course the Saudi’s are not relying on hope alone to force a worldwide change in time keeping. The spin machine has already begun. Egyptian cleric and television star Yusuf al-Qaradawi who hosts the popular TV show “Sharia and Life,” has been preaching the “correctness” of adopting Mecca as the new location of the prime meridian.

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Now, we in the West may scoff at the audacity of the Saudi’s attempt to rebrand time under the crescent moon. But 1.5 billion people, dozens of countries, and perhaps millions of businesses simultaneously advancing time by three hours and adopting different latitude and longitude boundaries would seriously disrupt commerce and transportation worldwide.

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Here in the US, as in many European countries, the government has bowed down to every whim of the minority Muslim population to the point of some judges actually using Sharia law in court to excuse the domestic abuse, rape, and even murder of women and children when the crimes were perpetrated by Muslim immigrants. Will Muslims in America successfully be able to challenge accepted time-keeping on the basis of religious freedom? Will Obama dictate Mecca Time be adopted here? We can all say that it will never happen….but who would have thought that a Mosque would go up steps from Ground Zero?

Alexandrea Merrell

Obama Stands Alone On Infrastructure Failure

For years, when faced with any challenge or failure, Obama and his Dem background singers have sung the now familiar refrain of “it’s all Bush’s fault.” Afghanistan, Iraq, Gitmo, the economy, and illegal immigration, Obama has been largely successful in sidestepping responsibility and fault by diverting blame to previous administrations and current Republican politicians. While his poll numbers continue to fall, with the help of the mainstream media, liberal politicians, and pundits who have a vested interest in Obama success, the “inherited problems” have not specifically stuck to the current President.

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This is about to change. One problem honestly inherited and compounded administration after administration is poised to derail Obama. What’s more, it will be virtually impossible for him to pass the blame.

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America’s infrastructure, once unrivaled globally for quality and sheer magnitude has disintegrated into a failing patchwork of antiquated electrical and water grids, crumbling roads and bridges, leaky damns, asbestos filled schools and hospitals, and outdated transportation instillations. While America’s infrastructure has suffered from disrepair and neglect thanks largely to lack of funding for decades, Obama is in the direct line of fire thanks to his colossal “stimulus plan.”

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Unlike other issues in which the failures can be attributed to previous administrations, support for Obama’s “stimulus plan” was largely extorted out of politicians who were stuck between staggering deficits in their own state and Obama’s promise of millions for job creating infrastructure rebuilding programs. However, despite unprecedented debt, increasing unemployment figures, and a general feeling of depression and woe in America, Obama’s “stimulus” has failed to stimulate much of anything.

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To be fair, the problem isn’t that states didn’t receive at least some money to rebuild roads and shore up dams and levees. Faced with bankruptcy thanks largely to unsustainable debt from social programs (welfare generations, illegal immigration, and an aging population) many states used the stimulus money that they received to pay entitlements and stave off bankruptcy.

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The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates that it would take $2.2 trillion dollars over a period of five years to repair, replace, and upgrade America’s infrastructure which currently receives only a D rating in quality and safety. However, if Obama were truly interested in stimulating the economy, focusing on these necessary infrastructure projects would result in not only hundreds of thousands of jobs, but would result in a regeneration of the American middle and working classes through local business creation and expansion. This of course provides an increased tax base and ultimately brings prosperity to both the states and the country as a whole.

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However, while limited funding has made its way to the states, the stimulus bill money has largely gone to projects that neither create jobs nor stimulate economic growth. Massive amounts of money have been spent on upgrading computer systems and create web based programs, a pet project of Obama. The Social Security Administration has received $13 billion for computer and internet projects which seem a tremendous amount of money until you compare it to the $28 billion that Health and Human Services has received for the same thing. Millions have been spent on wage increases for government employees, bail outs for union pension funds, while billions have simply “disappeared” into pseudo-ACORN group coffers.

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Were it not for the wildly unpopular Obama “stimulus” plan, failing dams and levees, leaking oil wells, and electric grid outages could be passed on as failures in state government or blamed on past administrations. However, when Obama pledged to the country and to politicians (many who face daunting challenges to their positions) that the money would be used to rebuild infrastructure and create jobs, neither of which has happened, he will be hard pressed to side-step blame.

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To make matters worse, millions spent on signs announcing that the stimulus plan is working and putting people to work have outraged even Obama supporters who contend that it would be more cost effective and honorable to actually use the money spent on signs to fix the problems and hire workers.

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Even if a single term Obama can manage to scrape by another two years without major infrastructure collapse, he will legitimately be associated with any disaster for decades to come thanks to his stimulus con job. Politicians from all parties will blame their crumbling roads; asbestos laced schools, and busted dams on Obama’s financial trick. However, with an ever increasing mess in the Gulf, dams bursting in Iowa, and electric grid taxing heat waves across New England and the East Coast, Obama may not have the luxury of being out of office when it all comes crashing down around our heads.

Stealing the Silver While the Titanic Sinks

There were three types of people on the Titanic on that fateful night in 1912 when the “unsinkable” great ship slipped into the dark, icy waters; those who tried to save others, those who raced to save themselves, and those who tried to steal the silver before heading for the life boats.

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Today, as America sinks further into economic depression, a rash of unpopular, career politicians from both parties are using their final months in office to grab as much in cash and prizes as they can possibly carry to the lifeboats.

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In the “good old days” a high level politician like Connecticut Senator Thomas Dodd (Chris Dodd’s father) would simply pilfer their campaign funds and sail off into the sunset, a whole lot richer. With a little luck, any corruption whispers (or even convictions) would disappear over time and the “respected public representative” could eventually expect to have a school, park or even a stadium named after him.

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While Senator Chris Dodd followed in his father’s footsteps into political prominence, the way to play the game today has changed. Why risk reputation and potential pesky legal complications by stealing when, with a little advanced planning, you can repay political and financial allies with public funds and create cushy, lucrative board positions for your retirement (and the rest of your family) in the process?

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Dodd has excelled at this type of advanced planning. Whether he is repaying hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from AIG bigwigs, buying pardons for disgraced business partners, or providing “favorable environments” for mortgage companies like Countrywide, Dodd hasn’t been shy in insuring that he gets a lot of personal bang for tax payer’s bucks.

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Now that his personal ship is sinking, Dodd is quickly grabbing up whatever loot he can and tying up loose ends in some impressively complex, cyclical schemes that both pay off political backers and create crony jobs and future board, lobbyist, and consultant positions for himself.

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One of the most interesting schemes came to light (in part) this week, when Dodd political backers, The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, landed a much decried $54 million preferred loan. Mainstream media reported the loan was to be used to build a tribal library and community center, on the tax payer dime. But the headlines only gave part of the story.

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Under Obama’s “stimulus” package, the US Department of Agriculture was allotted $168 million to fund rural development programs across the country. Designed to provide loans to farming and mining communities of under 20,000 residents, with the means to fund employment and regeneration projects, the preferred loans were to be awarded only when other means of financing were unavailable.

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It was therefore a shock to find that one of the most profitable gambling companies on the planet, one which cleared over $1.3 billion in profits last year alone, had the audacity to apply for and had incredibly been awarded, over 1/3rd of ALL of the USDA Rural Development program funds. But thanks to the lobbying efforts of Chris Dodd and his former aide, Charles Burnell (the current Chief of Staff for the tribe) The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority was awarded not the $54 million reported, but a total of $74 million from the USDA program and over $2 billion from other “stimulus” programs combined.

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So, what project could be so beneficial to a small community to warrant 1/3rd of the national budget for rural development? Surely it would be a project of far reaching economic significance, creating thousands of sustainable jobs for the region, right? Well… The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority will use the money to build a $54 million tribal executive office building, complete with a gym and library to be used by the tribal elders and the 300 tribal government employees who are already housed down the road at the tribes Crow Hill facilities.

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The latest $54 million award comes on the heals of a previous $20 million awarded to fund the temporary jobs of 100 construction and plumbing union workers who had been contracted to the building project before it was put on hold. All in, this $74 million dollars will be used to build a replacement office building for one of the most successful and profitable gambling companies in the world; a company that already benefits from preferential treatment by both the state and federal governments due to Native American Indian sovereignty and just happens to be a major contributor to….Chris Dodd.

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I appreciate that I don’t have a degree in mathematics, but I fail to see how spending $54 million to replace an office building that houses 300 people is a good financial bet. I have to guess that there are probably construction companies that could do the job for a little less than $200,000.00 per construction worker. Actually, why do the 1,700 recognized members of the Mohegan tribe NEED 300 employees to manage their affairs? All of this seems like a rather shady situation and certainly a bad return on investment to me. And apparently the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority agree, otherwise they would fund their own office building.

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To add insult to tax payer injury, the entire office building plan had been shelved and was no longer considered to be a desirable project by the tribe. According to Lynn Malerba who was the chairwoman for the Mohegan Tribal Council, “Our preference would have been to stop the project, but the USDA financing was available now.” Malerba has since been rewarded with promotion to Chief For Life of the Mohegan tribe.

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Chris Dodd, when asked why he would push for such a ridiculous use of tax payer money explained that the project would create 1,300 jobs. The USDA, when pressed for justification of such an abuse of their funds and bastardization of their purpose responded that the project would create 1,270 permanent, tribal jobs. However, when these figures were queried of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, Malerba clarified that they project would create only 114 permanent jobs. Whether the USDA and Dodd had been misinformed or had simply fudged the numbers to fit their agenda or cover their own backsides is currently unclear.

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What is clear however is that while The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority members claim to “need” stimulus money to build their office, they don’t seem to need any help in funding their new $600 million casino just up the road in Palmer, Massachusetts or to cover the $50 million proposed state license fee to secure the gambling rights. Just last week the state Senate unveiled its plan to establish gambling regions in Massachusetts. The new state divisions would mean that the Mohegan Casino would be the only party bidding on the Western Massachusetts region, assuring that they are in effect, the only gambling operation in the area. It would also protect their Connecticut casino from having competition in its own backyard.

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It is also clear that those whom this office building would benefit are not members of the groups that the USDA money was intended to assist. Aside from the $1.3 billion in 2009 profits that the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority reaped, each individual member of the tribe receives $30,000 annually in profit sharing. They also benefit substantially by virtue of their ethnic status. Since Obama’s “stimulus” came into effect, the 564 recognized tribes have shared in over $2 billion in federal cash and prizes.

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This is not to insinuate that all tribes benefit in the same way. While 300 of the 564 recognized tribes own casinos, only 20 generate enough income to support their tribe. In fact, most tribes are struggling with desperate poverty and associated social, medical, and employment issues. So this tax payer funded 2.8% interest, 30-year loan for an executive office building to benefit one of the wealthiest casino owners in the world should be a huge insult, not only to tax payers in general, but specifically to the Indian community.

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So what’s going on here? Of the 145 projects in 37 states that applied for funding through the USDA Rural Development loan program, why would the Federal Government deem a wealthy casino group seeking to build an office building not only deserving of funding, but deserving of the majority of the available funding?

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Like so many questions concerning the activities and motivations of the Obama administration, the answer to this question exposes yet another effort to by-pass the Constitution in order to change fundamental American values and rights and move us one giant step closer to socialism, a borderless country, and a New World Order.

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Doubt it? Call me a reactionary Right-Winger? Maybe, but the real question isn’t why did the Mohegan’s get millions, but instead, what do the Mohegan Indian payout, the Tohono O’odham Indian Tribe on the Arizona/Mexico border, blanket illegal immigration amnesty, $400 billion missing from the Federal coffers, and Obama’s campaign pledge to issue reparations to blacks all have in common? And who besides Dodd is running for the silver as the Titanic heads for the iceberg?

More tomorrow in:

Part 2 – Obama Holds the Indian Nations Hostage

Alexandrea Merrell

DNC Introdcues Obama "lite"

Poor Vic Rawl, the four-term South Carolina Senator and ex Judge can’t catch a break.

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After being called out of retirement by the Democrat Party to run against Jim DeMint, an extremely popular, Republican incumbent, it soon became clear to Vic that his role was to be that of sacrificial lamb.

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Even before the ink was dry on the filing application forms, the Democratic Party bailed on Rawl. By the day of the primary, Rawl had amassed less than $186,000 towards his Senatorial run, while DeMint had raised over $3.5 million.

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Whether Rawl entertained some fantasy in which he could win against DeMint or he simply wanted to make a good showing, he used what little was made available to him to send thousands of emails and robo calls and clocked up over 15,000 miles on the odometer as he crisscrossed the state shaking hands and kissing babies in an effort to garner as many votes as possible.

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So certain was Rawl of being awarded the Democrat nomination in the primaries that he had already organized a fund raiser for later in the week.

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Willing to play a supporting role in the made for TV movie that is the Jim DeMint story, Rawl was certainly not prepared when a completely unknown understudy shoved his way into the spotlight, stealing the show. Enter Alvin Greene, stage left.

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Now the Democrats seem to have a problem.

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How do you get rid of a black candidate who would appear to be the Democrat’s political wholly grail (black, homeless, unemployed, and unknown) in favor of the very type of candidate that they have been rallying against for decades: old, white, establishment?

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Clearly the Alvin Greene story is intriguing.

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In the hypothetical Hallmark channel made for TV movie version, Greene is an “every man” who, perhaps inspired by Obama’s run, began saving his money in order to pay the nearly $11,000.00 filing fee to get his name on the ballot. A “simple” man of few words, Greene served his country for twelve years before seeking to serve his fellow man in the political arena. Can you hear the collective awwwwww?

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Turn the channel however and Greene is a political pawn, a “planted candidate” being manipulated by forces unknown. In this hypothetical HBO version, Greene, who can barely string a handful of words together into a coherent sentence, claims to have saved the filing fee over a two year period…while homeless and unemployed. Of course it is difficult to find a job if you are spending your time hanging out at the local university computer lab trying to show teenage girls internet porn.

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Neither version seems to set well with Democrats. In the first, the Democrat Party is virtually impotent. How could an unknown, unfunded, unsophisticated political no-body possibly win a primary without their help and influence? The second version is worse for the DNC. The South Carolina Republican ticket is so strong; there would be no benefit to planting a hand pick opponent. That only leaves non-Republican opponents to either the SC Democrat power structure or to Vic Rawl himself.

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Rawl, a white, moderate Democrat who had been elected 4 times to the Senate and has served as Judge and prosecutor would seem to be the perfect candidate. Long term marriage, no major scandals, he has spent his career keeping his head down and voting the party line.

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Now the DNC is playing perplexed. Carol Fowler, the SC Democratic Party Chairperson suggested that Greene had been successful in winning the primary because his name appeared first on the ballot. House Majority Whip Clyburn claims that Greene is a Republican plant. Even Rawls is using campaign money to launch and investigation into what he calls “voter irregularities.” The one group that hasn’t waded into the melee is the DNC itself.

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It appears that the Dems have lost the use of their most valuable “Ace in the Hole” play, the Race Card. Or have they?

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Clearly the DNC can’t come out in support of “white bread” Rawl against a black man without alienating the minority votes that they have counted on (successfully) for decades.

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But an interesting thing is taking place. We are talking about it. The news is covering it. The pundits are speculating about it. And now, a race that DeMint had all but sewn up is back in the news.

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In what may turn out to be the greatest Race Card play since Obama received 98% of the black vote, Alvin Greene is becoming a household name and the unofficial poster child of the black, poor, and disenfranchised. While the DNC half heartedly says “gee don’t run, you aren’t ready, we will give you your filing fee back,” major Democratic donors and personalities are lining up to offer Greene assistance. And black voters in South Carolina are paying attention too.

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Where Obama had to overcome a perceived, elitist, intellectual, arrogance in order to appear “common” and appeal to some black voters, Greene has no such mantle to remove. His lack of sophistication has clearly been noted by voters throughout the state, where it seems to be viewed as a plus. Even black politicians in South Carolina aren’t convinced that Greene is fit to serve, Rep Rutherford, who met with Greene for the first time last week said, "I got the impression that maybe he doesn’t know what he’s dealing with."

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South Carolina had been a virtually forgone conclusion as a Republican win. A favorite with Republicans and Tea Party members alike, certainly there were no Democrat candidates in the woodwork that could have come out and challenged DeMint in any effective way. So the DNC looks to the past. How do we get rid of a popular candidate when we have no one to challenge?

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The DNC doesn’t have to look back far. When Democrat voter favorite Hillary Clinton was flexing her political muscle pre-primary, a Clinton win was almost a certainty. The powers that be at the DNC made no bones about their dislike of her and supported her as little as possible, yet the Clinton machine powered on. The only chance that the DNC had to regain control was to find a challenger who would be even more compelling to Democrats than the Clinton name. They had to find someone who would be more historic, gain more press coverage, and get out more voters. And they found him.

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In what is fast becoming the DNC’s favorite play, Greene, is becoming South Carolina’s Obama “lite.” Greene’s background in both the Army and Air Force must have reassured the DNC that he wouldn’t have any of those pesky radical associations and missing years. Clearly being homeless and unemployed shows that he isn’t getting funding from some secretive source. But perhaps most importantly, Greene is getting news coverage across America in a race that was set to be a snooze fest as far as the national media was concerned.

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All the while, poor ol Vic Rawl, mouth gaping like a Wall-eye, wonders just what the hell happened. The press is treating him like a sore loser and the DNC isn’t returning his calls.

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Americans be warned, if the Dems can pull this off again, there won’t be an underpass, homeless shelter, or insane asylum in a contested state, free from DNC recruiters. And you thought Washington was bad now…..

Alexandrea Merrell

Helen Thomas & “Superior Opinion Syndrome” Destroy the 1st Amendment

Helen Thomas, a reporter since the Eisenhower administration and White House bureau chief for UPI, has resigned. After years of raising eyebrows (and ire) for her anti-Israeli statements, her tirade against Israel and Jews in general has ended a six decade long career.

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Her career wasn’t historic simply because its longevity, Thomas, the daughter of Lebanese immigrants, was the first woman to be admitted to the White House Correspondents Association and later served as its first female President of the organization. She also broke gender barriers as the first woman officer of the National Press Club and the Gridiron Club.

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But while she mastered arguably one of the most prestigious gigs for a reporter, she failed to understand the most basic job requirement. A reporter (no matter how high up the career ladder) is supposed to…report.

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Thomas stopped reporting the news and events that shaped White House policy and practice and instead used her position to not only push her opinions, but bludgeon those who didn’t agree. Helen Thomas has long suffered from “Superior Opinion Syndrome” and she isn’t alone.

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Now, don’t get me wrong. Sharing opinions is very valuable. Evaluating the informed opinions of educated and/or experienced people is a great way to understand different perspectives on issues and to develop our own opinions. As a political commentator, I express my opinions on a daily basis. But let’s be clear, at issue isn’t Helen Thomas’ personal opinions, she (like everyone else) is entitled to have personal opinions even if those opinions are offensive, ignorant, or just plain nuts. The problem is that her paid position as a reporter and White House correspondent required her to leave her personal opinions at home and report ONLY the facts.

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But, Helen Thomas is like an ever increasing number of people across the country, who despite occupational requirements to be unbiased, to follow the letter of the law, or report facts alone, are turning their paid positions into pulpits and preaching their opinions as facts. These sufferers of “Superior Opinion Syndrome” believe that their opinions are so on-point, so important, so superior, that they can disregard the tenants of their occupations and use their positions and power to “correct” perceived inequities in society or steer policy and practice.

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In classrooms, courthouses, and news rooms nationwide, the sufferers of “Superior Opinion Syndrome” supplant fact with radically distorted views of the world and our role in it. The evidence of their illness is all around us. It’s in the YouYube videos of public school teachers forcing grade school children to reveal who their parents support politically and then calling them racists for not supporting Obama. It’s in the court room when a pedophile is released yet again by a Judge who blames the child rapist’s upbringing. And it’s in print media and the evening news when the likes of Helen Thomas and Chris Mathews edit the facts in order to suit their agenda and beliefs.

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Perhaps most frightening, because we expect those who teach, dispense justice, or inform us to be unbiased and professional, millions of people around the world simply accept the masqueraded opinions of those in positions of authority, believing skewed views to be factual and their own tainted positions to be centrist. This happens in the media on a daily basis and misinformation, slanted views, and outright lies are being regurgitated as truth, honesty, and sincerity. This powerful indoctrination force villianized one President and elevated another from obscurity. It reinvents history, makes victims into aggressors, and terrorists into martyrs.

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And that’s the real crime. Helen Thomas has a right to her opinion. She even has a right to express her opinion. But when she puts on her reporter hat, she has an obligation and professional and ethical duty to report only the events. If she wants to express her opinion, because of her professional role, she must absolutely declare that what she is saying or writing is ONLY opinion. People in positions of power and influence must differentiate between their personal opinions, beliefs, and agendas and actual events. To do otherwise, to clothe opinion as fact and disseminate it among news outlets, further damages an already wounded news media.

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After decades of indoctrination and manipulation, after broken promises, next day revelations, and double talk, many Americans know that they are being deceived; they simply don’t know who to believe. The body which once held businesses and the government accountable no longer functions properly and whether it is Chris Mathews and his tingly leg, Obama taking the stage at a free rock concert and later claiming that the tens of thousands gathered were there to see him, or Reuters editing out weapons to paint a sympathetic picture of murdering “activists,” journalism has become more about leading the masses and less about informing them.

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Now Obama is poised to use America’s mistrust and anger at the biased media against the very organizations that made his meteoric rise possible. Obama’s love fest with some of the mainstream media has come to a rather abrupt halt, thanks in large part to his failure to run a transparent government as promised and failures in environmental and social reforms. While liberal owned media outlets continue to promote an Obama agenda, many are backing away from supporting Obama personally and are instead focusing on other liberal politicians to carry the flag.

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This must have come as quite a shock to Obama who benefited enormously throughout his campaign as sufferers of “Superior Opinion Syndrome” in the media excused inaccuracies, covered up scandals, and dismissed genuine questions about his background, beliefs, associations, and financing.

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His response to media disloyalty? Federalize the media. Yes Obama and the Federal Trade Commission are working on a plan to “reinvent journalism” and are using the very mistrust that Americans feel for the media in order to whip up support. In an effort to control what is reported and the way in which it reaches the masses, the Obama administration seeks to put all media under the control of the government and to end internet and independent media all together.

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Not only would the Obama administration tax ISP addresses essentially taxing internet use by private citizens, the FTC proposal would require media outlets and journalists to be licensed and regulated AND facts and articles to be approved by….the government. As goes the First Amendment, so goes the Constitution.

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Helen Thomas was a journalistic attack dog, calling out administrations and policies on both sides of the political spectrum for decades. To consider her one of the nodding, media, leftists who have salivated at the knee of Obama would be disingenuous. Thomas asked the tough questions of the President and has been critical of his failure on governmental transparency, the environment, and social and world policy issues. When she did her job, that of unbiased reporter sniffing out a story and pinning down a quote, she was terrific. But suffering from “Superior Opinion Syndrome” cost her her credibility as a journalist and destroyed her career. Now Obama is using her own failure to be a reporter and not an opinionista as proof that the media needs his control.

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Hopefully those like Thomas, those suffering from “Superior Opinion Syndrome” will harken back to the professional and ethical standards that their jobs dictate and either clearly differentiate their opinions from facts or leave their opinions at home. Short of a return to integrity, the destruction of the First Amendment’s protection of the press falls on their shoulders.

Alexandrea Merrell

Teamsters Look To Obama For Pension Bailout

They never had this problem when Jimmy Hoffa was in charge….

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Central States Teamsters Union, the infamous Chicago branch once called “the mobs bank” for its funding of mob activity and loan sharking has a little problem. Their member’s pensions are missing over 40% of its value. In fact nearly a half a million workers are looking at an average 41.6% shortfall in their pension.

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But, Dem Bob Casey from Pennsylvania has a plan to save the day! He has proposed a $165 billion bailout to fund the mismanaged Union pensions. In addition to covering the pension shortfall of Unions nationwide, Casey’s bill would also repay Teamster loyalty to Democrat politicians (Obama specifically) by increasing their annual pension payouts by near $7,000.00 a year.

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While Casey has embarked on a campaign to try and convince the press that his proposal shouldn’t technically be called a bailout, the $165 billion price tag is only an “early estimate.” Conservative estimates suggest that 86% of all union pensions nationwide are in trouble. In fact, if Casey’s proposal passes, the Pension Benefit Guarantee agency would be on the hook to subsidize or even fund outright the pensions of the over 15 million Union members in the US, for the entirety of their lives. Of course this is all on tax payer’s dime.

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I certainly appreciate that discovering your pension has been raped or is missing would be horrific. I also understand that people contribute to a pension believing that their retirement will be protected. But surely the American people can not be expected to support millions more people from retirement to death simply because the unions have long out lived their usefulness and defrauded workers.

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Instead of bailing out the unions…again. The time has come to end the union’s strangle hold on businesses, employees, and communities. I am sorry for those whose pensions may be worth less or even worthless. But millions of non-unionized Americans are facing their own retirement Armageddon thanks to the Obama administration. We can’t afford to support those who have spent years (even decades) being paid at an artificially high rate thanks to the incestuous relationship between government and the unions.