There are laws about this.......

I don't know if any of you good people have read about these two "incidents" on the web. They did not make much of an impression on the "media" here in the US. The second, which I'll get to in a moment, did not make it to the TV news at all.
I am referring to two recent items where in Gobomber was verbally threatened.
The first was made by the speaker of the House of Representatives in Kansas, a Mr. Mike O'Neal. He referred to Psalm 109.8 which goes: "Let his be few and brief; and let others step forward to replace him." That verse goes on in Psalm 109.9;  "Let  his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow."  Now as this was made in reference to Gobomber, it sure appears to me that this guy is wanting Gobomber dead. How else does one wish for a mans' children to be fatherless and his wife a widow? The only way is for the man to be dead. I would think that any lawyer worth his/her law school diploma would be able to make a case of threatening the president. That is a crime folks.
Even with an apology, it was and is a crime to threaten the president. When will the FBI or some other law enforcement agency investigate this?


The second takes us to a publication; the Atlanta Jewish Times. The editor of that paper was writing about an attack on Iran and how the US appears to not be 100% 
on board" with such a folly. He goes on to suggest possible methods to get the US to be fully with the zionist entity to attack Iran and take out its nuclear plants. His third "option" is as follows; "...give the go-head for U.S. based Mossad agents to take out a president deemed unfriendly to Israel, in order for the current  vice president to take his place and forcefully dictate the United States' policy includes helping the Jewish state obliterate its enemies."
Wow! Now there you have it, in black and white on the pages of a newspaper published right here in the old US of A. A call for the assassination of the president of the United States. How much more unsubtle does one need to be? How much more direct can a person be? 
Now, of course the ADL has come out against this article and has called it "irresponsible and extremist "  It is all that and more. Very extremist in my view. How nice of the ADL to tell us all how such comments are irresponsible and extremist. As if we could not have figured that out for ourselves. Yes, that last was sarcastic. That is how I see it.
Such comments by these two people just point out the mean, nasty character of the country today. This may upset some people, but it remains true to an extent. Mush of the criticism of Gobomber has to do with his skin color. Yes, racism IS alive and well here in the USA. 


None of this excuses such comments by anybody. That an editor of a small paper puts such vile comments in print is one thing, for an elected representative to say such comments out loud and on the record is quite another. Neither are in any way excusable though.
The editor, a Mr. Andrew Adler has resigned according to a according to an item at Talking Points Memos Livewire posted at 2:34PM today, 23 January 2012. How nice of him. Yes, there I go again, being sarcastic. Well, when a person, a US resident in  both cases here, issues a threat to the president, I take the "apology" quite sarcastically/cynically. That is just my nature.
Mr. O'Neal has been given a petition signed by 30,000 citizens of Kansas asking that he resign from the state legislature. The petition drive was headed by two ministers from the Topeka, Kansas area. Thank you both and all who signed the petition. They made the following statement;   "As people of faith, we believe that scripture should never be used to justify praying for the death of anyone. Speaker O'Neal's  hateful abuse of scripture is unacceptable and a disgrace to his office, and he should immediately resign."  Again, thank you both and all those who signed. 
As many of you know, I do not belong to nor do I follow any religion. I do think that one should give credit where credit is due. In this case, to the ministers who started the petition and those who signed it. 


Now onto another question. When will these tow men be investigated by the FBI or some other law enforcement agency? The Secret Service is supposed to protect the president. They should be getting an investigation going into both of them.
There ARE limits to our freedom of speech. Advocating the overthrow of the government is among those limitations. Threats on the life of the president is also unprotected speech, as it should be. 
U.S. Code 2385 states: "Whoever  knowingly or willfully advocates, abets,advises, or teaches the duty, necessity, desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying the government of the United States .....by force or violence, or by the assassination of any officer of any such government;....
"Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both......" U.S. Code
The story of the newspaper editor has not been picked up by any TV station that I am aware of. As of now, Mr. O'Neal has yet to apologize. As I said above, Mr. Adler has given an apology and he has resigned from his position with the paper. One further comment on that, he owns the paper where his remark was published. So, he steps down as editor, he still owns the paper, how will he continue to influence that paper?
My personal view, which is what this blog has always been and will continue to be, is that Mr. Adler only made his apology because the ADL and  AJC (American Jewish Congress) him out . Both groups have expressed their revulsion to what he wrote regarding Gobomber. So, these two groups get a "congrats" from me today. Again, give credit where it is due.
Again, we all need to ask, when will the FBI and/or the Secret Service investigate these tow people? Comments like these cannot be allowed to stand unpunished. Not is we are a nation of laws. There are recognized limits to our freedom of speech. These limits are known, have been known for years. There is no excuse nor is there any apology that will do here. Both of these people should be arrested and in court on charges for the threats they made. 


Some may say, with reason it seems, that these people are a symptom of the racist attitude that still inhabits the US today. There is some truth to that, sad to say. Some of the anger at Gobomber IS due to his skin color. There are those among us who despise his presidency only because he has a beer tan that they have. In my opinion, these comments are in part due to the racism of the people who made them.  Some people made comments to this effect about the "tea party" meetings where some who attended brought their guns in plain view to all assembled. 
We have candidates running for their party nomination who express racist views. The calling of the president as the "food stamp president" comes to mind. Well, the facts are that more white people receive food stamps than black people get them. It brings to mind the garbage pulled by "saint" Ronnie of Raygun and his "welfare queens" who did not exist in any number.The American voters are bombard by false statements, rumors, and out right lies. And yet, many still buy into the crap. They are too busy or disconnected to not bother to check on the factual information that would prove they are being lied to. 
It is the duty of all citizens to stay informed. We cannot ever sit back and let the media do that for us. If we fail to do that, we will end up with a government that cares not at all about  "we the people" even more than is the case today. If you think things are bad now, just wait, they CAN get worse. We need to hold our elected officials to account. We need to challenge those running for office when they spout idiotic statements. We all enjoy the freedoms we have as citizens of the US, we need to take to heart, our responsibilities as citizens.
semper fi

Afghanistan is officially finished

Today I am now 200% certain that the Afghanistan is done. It is over, finished, send the troops home, or maybe for some, off to jail. 
By now I am sure many of you, if not all of you, have at least seen the headline about some US Marines urinating on the dead bodies of some poor Afghans. 
This sort of "conduct" is beyond disgusting. It is a huge propaganda win for the Taliban and every other group, people, or country that opposes the US. 
In war you do not like your enemy, but you sure as hell had best respect that enemy. These damned fools have shown to the world that they have no respect at all for their foe. I cannot understand the sort of "leadership" that allows this to happen. Is there an NCO among these troops? If so, did he ever go to NCO school? Did the NCO or squad leader ever get any leadership training ? Do they no longer teach anything in boot camp about the UCMJ and other rules of war? Has the military gone that far down hill since my days in uniform (1968-72)?
These goddamn idiots need to be brought up on charges for this behavior. Even so, the damage is done. It is one thing to commit  so sort of outrage, but to video it is something else entirely. And of course, once they get a photo or three and some video, hat do they do? Why, they post it on the net. How else would any of us ever know that they did this "act"? We would never have known if they had not posted it on the internet. If they had done this and kept quiet, it would still be a very vile, inhuman act, but the world might never know that it happened.
No, I am NOT saying they should have kept it off the net. I AM saying they should have known that this is NOT what one does to an enemy. This is more like the very bad old days of the Mongol hoards and the Huns rampaging across the fields and hills of our distant past. I know that war is very barbaric, but this sort of "act" is not forgivable, no way, no how. 
The sad thing is, we have no way of knowing how many times an "act" like this has happened in any of the damn fool wars of choice that the US military is in.
Some will say that in war, all sorts of nasty things happen and that this one is no worse than some other "act" in some other war. That misses the point. The point is that even in war, you have to respect the enemy. You have to have certain standards, morals. 
That this happened is so sad. It shows to me that there is no real leadership in the military. At some point in these troops basic training they should have been taught that this sort of thing is a crime. They should have had a basic lecture in the UCMJ and the rules of war. 
America claims to be a "Christian" nation. And yet, we turn out troops like these goddamn assholes. Or, maybe I am just too stupid for words and this "act" is OK fine by "American Christian" standards. No matter, I just know for certain that this sort of vile behavior cannot be allowed to happen. Not only do these morons need to answer for their actions, their superiors need to be held to account also.
These damn clowns make me ashamed to have been a Marine. They make me ashamed to be an American.

When I'm on a roll.......

Yes, back again.
Man, when I get all wound up, I don't seem to stop. Well, the Energizer Bunny has no worries, I won't keep this up much longer. I'll run out of steam soon enough. Until then, here are some other things I found out and about on the old net.


A big hat tip to a good friend and frequent commenter at the corner. Thanks John. 
From the latest that he posted at his site; http://robinlea.com/wordpress comes the news that  the folks over at the five sided puzzle palace (the Pentagon) are seriously set to cut military retirement AND health care benefits for the military. Oh, but before you "cheer" any serious military cut backs, they will not stop buying more high tech weapons. No sir, got to have more and fancier toys for those generals to command all over the globe.
Now this just figures doesn't it. Cut retirement and health care for the troops. Get forced to enlist in the military as there are very few jobs available, go off to some damn fool war of choice, get wounded and now, your health care will be drastically reduced if not eliminated totally. How is this going to aid in getting more fresh recruits? Or, is this just part of the plan to further "privatize" the military and the wars? Maybe that is what the intent is, get more "contractors" actually mercenaries, to fight the wars. While the cost per mercenary is higher than for regular troops, the government will not be on the hook for their medical care. That will be up to the companies that provide said mercenaries. Or, better yet, the outfits who supply these hired guns might just claim that these gunslingers are individual, private contractors themselves and are therefore responsible for their own medical bills. Boy, the hired guns had best start getting a savings policy started so there might be some funds in the bank or under the old mattress in case they are wounded. 
How does cutting the retirement and health care for the military support the troops? This idiot government of ours keeps telling us all that we must "support the troops" and they go and do something like this. No doubt our "support" for the troops might even extend to paying the cost of their health care now. Maybe the families of the troops will now get the medical bills for their sons and daughters who are injured while in military service. This way, the government could really save as they will no longer have to provide decent hospitals and long term care and the VA can be cut way back also. The only health care the military may then provide is just the front line medics/corpsmen and possibly some sort of triage hospital. Any care needed beyond that will be billed to the troops and/or their  families. Yes sir, cost savings that can then be used to buy ever more high tech weapons/weapon systems.
No doubt the congress totally approves of this cost cutting method. Support the troops? Not so much.


Well, 2012 sure has got a fast start. So much outrage that even old, broken me has so much to rant about. And today is only the 6th of January. If the rest of the year is like this, I'll be totally wore out before the election in November, assuming we get one.


Another story  has the elephant gang up in arms over an "unprecedented" power grab by Gobomber (aka Mr. Hopey/Changey).  You see, he made a recess appointment of a certain Mr. Cordray to head the Consumer  Financial Protection Bureau. The claim is that congress, or at least the Senate, WAS still in session. From the bit on the Daily Show that they were in session is up for debate. Still, it is a bit odd that they are angry that Gobomber finally made an appointment to that job  that congress created two years ago. Actually, by finally getting the top spot in the CFPB in just two years is fast by the D.C. standards.  How many jobs that were vacant when Gobomber took office are still open? I have no idea, but I am certain that more than a few are still open. Well, getting that "piece prize" and fighting all them that wars be hard work ya know. 

A couple of other items caught my attention, if only briefly. Old McCrazy is really starting to show some early signs of senility. While he was giving a speech to endorse Mittens, he said that Gobomber would turn the country around. One of the handlers had to tell him more than once that he was supposed to say Mittens would turn the country around. Getting old is not for the faint hearted folks. 
The other item was where the folks at  Freddie Mac said they do not care at all if Newt tells us about the terms of the contract he had with that outfit. Seems that Newt was asked about the contract and he had said he could not discuss it, the folks at Freddie Mac didn't want that made public. Poor Newt, caught in his own mess, again. Any bets that he is working on another mistress to replace wife number three yet? Yes, I know that was rude, mean, etc of me. Oh well, he earned it. Dump you wife as she is recovering from cancer and I'll rip you also. Talk about bad timing, or was it just that he is a pure mean spirited jackass? 


America, what a country
semper fi

A funny thing happened on the way to the caucus.

Well, the first "test" of the 2012 election year is now history. The Iowa caucus is over. As of this morning, 3 January, 2012, it looks like Mittens came out on top with the nutty Santorum a very close second. From the early reports, Mittens won by eight, yes 8, votes. Talk about your close calls. Ron PAul came in third. The "surprise" is Newt. From what I can gather, old Newt finished a rather distant fourth. Yes, he came in 4th.
Why is that a topic here? Well, it seems that Newt is the first "victim" of the nasty bit of judicial ruling, aka, Citizens United. You remember that one, the decision by the Supreme Court that allows for corporations to stoke the election campaigns with unlimited monies and they do not have to report how much they give or who the give it to.
The "super PAC" that supports old Mittens pumped tons of money into the campaign leading up to the Iowa caucus this week. In short, Mitt and his supporters way out spent Newt and every other candidate. My irony meter may not be operating 100%, but to me it is rather amusing that the first politician to "suffer" from that court ruling would not just be a member of the elephant gang, but in fact, one of the biggest members. That Newt is that "victim" has a very nice ring to it for my opinion. Imagine, Newt falling "victim" to a nasty bit of legal opinion that had been pushed by the elephant gang and clowns just like Newt. I would not be at all surprised to find out that Newt himself was behind that move and no doubt he cheered the ruling. Poor little feller, he should have learned long ago to be careful what he wishes for.
Yes, there is a rather delicious flavor to Newt being done in by a right wing bit of garbage.
The unfortunate thing is that some very worthy people will also be done in by that court ruling. This is just the start of the election cycle. No doubt the super PAC that helped Mitt to his "win" will be out to shoot down other candidates and when we get to the general  election this fall, expect more of these super PAC's to be out in force buying the election.
America, what a country.
semper fi.


p.s. Hold the presses! I just checked at Think Progress and they have a report that claims that the nut, Santorum, actually won in Iowa. The claim is that a typo gave Mitt 20 extra votes. Well, no matter, the money did help Newt to end up fourth any way. I did not care who "won" the Iowa caucus. As you know if you stop by here very often, I have no use for either wing of the war/greed party. I support neither the donkey nor the elephant gang. 

Extras

Back again.
I have added another link on the old corner. It is one I should have added long ago, but I'm old, disabled, and lazy. Some days, all at the same time. The old part is more or less constant. Can't seem to escape that, but none of us seem to do it. The disabled part is a constant that I'd be happy to be rid of. If only it were a tradable commodity. The lazy is the part that comes and goes. I hope to get it to go more in the future.
The link is for an excellent site and monthly report by Mr. William Blum. Many of you probably already stop by his site and/or subscribe to his excellent Anti Empire Report. If you have not visited his site please do and sign up for the report while you are there. So far I have not found much to disagree with him on anything he has written in his reports. You might even want to buy  a book he has written. Highly recommended by me.


This caught my attention today as I surfed the old net. There are two companion bills floating through the congress now. They are; HR3166 and S1698. These vile pieces of bovine excrement would allow dear leader and/or the "appropriate authorities" to strip the nationality (citizenship) from anybody caught "engaging in or supporting hostilities against the US. That includes US nationals would lose their US citizenship if they are found to be doing such things. YES, a natural citizen, that is born here in the US of A, would lose his/her citizenship if he/she is deemed to have engaged in or supported hostilities against the USA. This then makes it SO much easier to be sent off for indefinite detention in some dank, dark hole of a prison. And here I was thinking that after the vile crap of the recently signed NDAA, things had hit bottom. Well, it looks like the government is doing what I have done at times when I have been depressed. When they hit bottom, they grab a damn shovel and start digging to see how much deeper they can get. 
It never fails. Every time I think we have seen the absolute worst that this government can do, they come along and stoop even lower. Folks, there is NO depth to which they will not stoop.


A personal not; it has been with extreme care that I have kept my language on the polite side for this post. My brain is screaming the most vile obscenities at this sack of garbage that is being passed off as |"legislation". Mind you, these bills are just now in committee and have not even been voted on by either house. Of course, we have seen this sort of garbage get voted on and passed, then signed into law before, so we need to keep a close eye on these bills. 
America, what a country.
semper fi

Happy, we all hope, New Year

Greetings good people. 
I hope that the New Year is a better one than last year for all of us. Yes, we will be hearing way more than we ever care to hear on the Mayan "apocalypse" and the end of the world coming to a location near you on December 21/22  of 2012. Oh joy. Well, fear not my friends, according to some really smart folks, scientists even, the "galactic alignment" that will be a major factor in this coming "end of the world" scenario is exactly what we just went through 12 days ago. Yes, you see, according to astronomers, every year at the winter solstice the earth is in alignment with the galactic center. The same alignment will occur on December 21/22 of this new year(2012) just as it was so aligned this past December 21/22 and has done so since , well damn near forever, at least since the earth formed and started its near endless journey around our sun. No doubt there are those who will shoot down any explanation I may offer to "debunk" the "end of the world" scenario they are pushing. Well, if you can put away any conspiracy theories, just go over to the NASA web site and search 2012. Yes, I know, it is a government web site. They still give you the truth about the solar system as far as I am concerned. I trust that the science there is honest and not any part of a conspiracy. You see, some agencies of the government DO tell the honest truth. 
For those who have a problem with any government web sites, so be it. Try one of the observatory web sites of maybe some science museum web site and check what they have to say regards 2012 and the Mayan calendar. Basically, there will be no "world ending" event heading our way, no "mystery" planet entering earth orbit to destroy us all. IF, and it is a very, very big if, there were some "rogue" planet that was going to impact earth this coming December, many astronomers would have seen evidence of it by now. In fact there would have been evidence of it quite some time ago. No way would any group or government be able to silence every astronomer IF such a planet existed. If you still think that the mysterious Niburu is headed our way, well, so be it. Enjoy your ideas, but I don't buy it. 


On a "lighter" note, we have just under 12 months left until the campaign for president in 2016 begins. WAIT!!  Hold ON you say, what about the 2012 election? It has not happened yet. Yes, I am totally aware of that. Way too aware in fact. On some web sites and TV channels it is about all they talk about. I just figured since the candidates for president seem to start their campaigns the day after, if not the very day of, the current election. Look for the folks who will be running in 2016 to come out in early November of this year. Sorry to be the one to bring up this bad news, but it sure seems like we here in the US are in a basically unending election cycle. As more than one observer of the current campaign put it, Mitt has been running since 2008, if not longer. Ah yes, what money can buy for you. Not for me, probably not for most of you good folks who stop by this old corner either, but if one is rich.  Yes, if one is rich, then the "world is your oyster" seems fairly accurate. 
Well, we are at the start of another year, many things await us. New laws and of course new challenges, and more than a few old ones carried over from 2011. An example of a new law; Indiana has proposed a new law that would punish those who "sing the national anthem" inappropriately.  If this becomes law, woe unto those who mess up while singing the "Star Spangled Banner". If you do make a mistake singing that song, you would be fined $25.00.  Schools would be required to keep recordings of each performance for two years. Wow, they take that song seriously in Indiana. Or, do they? Really? How will they judge if the mistake was an honest one? How do you decide? True, it may be easy to point out a blatant butchering of the song, but being nervous singing to a large group, say a full sports stadium, and flubbing a word or line should not be punished. Maybe they will only allow "professional" singers with a long track record of singing the national anthem to sing it at large public events.
Pop quiz, (The first ever on the old corner) How many know the second and third verses of the "Star Spangled Banner"? OK, I will be the first to admit I do NOT know them. Does that mean I am in violation of the Indiana law?  I wonder how many law makers at any level of government know all three verses. Bets that you can count them on one hand and have a few fingers left over. But that just may be me, being sarcastic again. Yeah, I'll buy that.


I'll be totally upfront and honest with you all. I do not do prognostications. No, what I think will happen in the US and/or the world. I am not now, nor ever was or wanted to be, any sort of prophet.  I have no great insight into what may happen. In fact, I cannot even predict whether or not I'll make it out of bed tomorrow. At least not with 100% accuracy. Also, most every site on the net has done or is doing their predictions for 2012. Yes, that includes many who are pushing the Mayan "end of the world" deal.
What I hope happens is, that OWS and the occupy movement continues and grows stronger. I hope that more and more people wake up to the crap the government and both wings of the war/greed party are pushing. Yes, that is the "new" and "improved" name for the donkey and elephant gangs; the war/greed party, of which the two animal gangs are just the two wings of.
I have decided to add the greed part to the description of the war party. Maybe this year will see the rise of a truly independent third party. True, it may be almost too late now for such a party to have much of a real chance at winning. Still, as far as I am aware, it is still legal to dream/hope in the US of A. I did not see anything about dreams/hope in the miserable NDAA that Gobomber just recently signed. 
Which brings me to the first real rant of 2012. The above "rant" on the Mayan apocalypse does not count as a "real" rant, just my opinion. 
An excellent report on 2011 is over at EFF web site. The following is well worth your time; www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/12/2011-review-year-secrecy-jumped-shark. Among the outrageous items listed in their review, one really caught my attention. It is disgusting and at the same time absurd, almost what I would expect from Monty Python or maybe Catch 22. I refer you to the following; "President Obama accepts a transparency award.......behind closed doors. And some of you good people think the government is getting(?) too secret? Naw, no way that Gobomber is "obsessed" with secrecy. Not much, when he only accepts a "transparency" award behind closed doors. As others before me have said, you can't make this stuff up.  I believe it was Will Rogers, I may be wrong, who said he didn't have to write his material, all he had to do was read the newspapers. I think Mort Sahl may have said either that or something quite close to it. Not that I am in their class, no way, they were masters, I'm still working towards my journeyman status. One last item from this list; The government attorneys insisted in court they CAN censor a book which was already published and available for free on the internet! Yes, the list has many such outrageous items on it. Well with the time to check it out. You will not be happy, but you will have a better idea of where the government is headed. This will not get better this year. In fact, here goes a "prediction" form me, it will get worse. No great "prophecy" that, as you all can see that the government is getting much more secret every day.
Back to that vile piece of legislation; the National Defense Authorization Act that Gobomber recently signed. As you are aware, he issued a "signing statement" as/after he signed the damn thing. He made noises about how he would not detain an American citizen captured on US soil without a trial. Oh? Really? Well, even IF, another of those very, very big if's, He may well decide to actually DO allow a US citizen captured on US soil to have an actual trial and not just be sent indefinitely to Gitmo. What, if anything, would stop the next president, the one who gets elected in 2016, from just tossing Gobomber's signing statement in the trash bin? Answer, not one damn thing. Nope, nothing about ANY presidential signing statement is binding on the next person to hold that office. In fact, there is nothing binding on Gobomber himself to abide by his own signing statement. Yeah, he can just "forget" this signing statement any time he feels like it and "no harm, no foul" and we all get screwed, again. 


Now some folks may say that I am ungrateful to Gobomber for his signing statement. Well, they just could be right. He said he would not allow for the indefinite detention of a US citizen without a trial. OK, fine, as far as it goes. But, and it is a kind of big but, he DID kill a US citizen AND his 16 year old son. Neither of them got any trial, not even the kangaroo/faux military tribunal like they run at Gitmo. Nope, Mr. Anwar al-Awlaki and his son were killed simply because Gobomber (and probably his close advisors) thought that Mr. al-Awlaki was some sort of terrorist. Now, how "secure" do you feel with his signing statement?  Yeah, I thought so. Me too.When that drone flies over me and fires a missile of some other weapon, hey, no problem. But, he won't detain me indefinitely without a trial. And.............if he doesn't want to waste all that time on so many trials, well......easy solution, just kill off any suspected terrorist/terrorist sympathizers. See, it is so simple even a president can figure it out. Yes sir, ain't 'Merikkka just grand?


For some extra insight into the minds(?) of senior US military types, I highly recommend an article at the Counterpunch web site, the weekend edition of Dec 30-Jan 1. Here is the link;
www.counterpunch.org/2011/12/30/cross-border-incident/. The author Brian Cloughley is a former military officer. He knows Pakistan and its military very well and he has a wealth of information and knowledge on the country, its military, and that general area of the world. I have read all of his articles that have been posted on the Counterpunch web site since about 2004. I count him as a friend and an excellent source of information.  Brian writes about the "incident" where the US/NATO attacked a Pakistan Army outpost on the border of Pakistan/Afghanistan and killed 24 Pakistani troops. Odd that this happened as the US military has the exact location of EVERY Pakistani border outpost. Read Brian's excellent article and find out more on the minds(?) of some US military officers and one particular US general. The stupid, it hurts. Sorry, that just needed to come out. I am not sure if it is stupidity, hubris, arrogance, or what that some US military officers think, or even IF they think at all. Brain shows one for what he really is.


A further comment on the current election/campaign. I ran across a quote that I must pass along. Somebody was describing Newt Gingrich and came up with this; "Newt is a dumb person's idea of what a smart person sounds like". I forget who said that, but it captures the "essence" of Newt quite well. Hmmm......essence of Newt, eye of toad, pinch of Mittens, dash of Bachmann, slice of Perry, tea spoon of Santorum, dusting of Paul? Yep, sounds like a "devils brew" to me.If I missed any of them, well, tough beans and hard cheese. I find it quite difficult to take any of them very seriously. Although, even Glen Greenwald has some kind words to say about Dr. Ron Paul. Having read his article on the Dr. I have to agree with Mr. Greenwald here. Ron Paul IS talking about things that NEED to be brought into this campaign. No, I will not vote for him though. He holds too many views that run counter to my way of thinking. No, I will not vote for Gobomber, nor did I vote for either war/greed party candidate in 2008. The LAST time any candidate from either wing of the war/greed party got my vote was in 1980. I voted for Carter. Dad was very much against "saint" Ronnie. He had been a disaster as the governor of California and Dad did not want him as our president. Unfortunately, Dad died the Saturday after "saint" Ronnie won that election. For years we used to say that Reagan killed Dad.


I am going to end this rant with another quote. This is for all of us to consider as we support, however we can, the occupy movement. It is by James Baldwin and I think it applies to all who are working to make this a better world for everybody. 
"People don't have any mercy. They tear you limb from limb in the name of love. Then, when they've killed you by what they made you go through, they say you didn't have any character. They weep big, bitter tears---not for you. For themselves, because they've lost their toy."
Something to think about.
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We are headed into uncharted waters

How to start this post. I wanted to start with something that would catch your attention, a "hook" if you will. Unfortunately I don'e seem to be able to do that. No "witty" phrase of such comes to mind. I am just deeply sickened that the USA has dropped to such lows that it is almost unbelievable. Most unfortunately, it IS believable. The Senate has passed the vile, disgusting piece of legislative crap and Gobomber is now set to sign this bloody excuse into law.
I refer you to the "National Defense Authorization Act" and all of its implications. This is the very same piece of bovine excrement that "dear ;eager" WAS on record as saying he would veto.  I suppose that "dear ;eager" has had a "change of heart". Must be that, or did he get some message from a "higher" authority? Yes, maybe that is it, he may have changed his mind after a phone call from Bibi Nutty-yahoo. That would be the "higher" authority.
Oh dear, it sure looks like I might wind up on some damn list as a "security threat" for being so damn sarcastic. Folks may very well tell me to go straight to hell even. Big deal, I have had countless "offers" for such a journey that I just might take up that offer. Hey, when so many tell me that I should go to a certain place, I figure it is only the decent thing to go and see what all the fuss about the place is like. Yeah, you survive the Marine Corps and time in the Vietnam war zone and not much can scare you. Just ask the troops who have made it back from Iraq or Afghanistan. After surviving a war, not much else they can do to you to frighten you. 
Also, I want to share this quote I came across on the internet. I have not seen who is supposed to have said it, no origin was given, but I think it fits our times. Here goes; "When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty".  Ah yes, words to ponder. Words to take to heart even. I'll resist as long as I can. True, my physical disabilities might crack without too much undo pressures, but I doubt my spirit will crack very easily, if ever. Maybe that attitude of mine is something I can thank the Marines for. Works for me.
The White House announced after the Senate passed the NDAA that yes, the president WILL sign this bill into law. This means that Gobomber is on record as being openly supportive of denying American citizens basic due process rights, such as the right to trial by peers, the right to legal representation. 
This new law allows the military to detain without trialAmerican terror suspects arrested on US soil. These people can even be shipped off to sunny Cuba. Yes, those people could be sent to Gitmo to be held indefinitely, without trial. This was NOT reported in the New York Times.  The donkey gang has NOT spoken out about this outrage.
The US supreme court ruled in 2004 in Hamdan vs Rumsfeld that the use of military tribunals for terror suspects CLEARLY violate basic protections under the Geneva Conventions. Being that the USA ratified the Geneva Conventions means that the supreme court said that the use of military tribunals for terror suspects violate US law. Yes folks, any treaty that is ratified by the congress of the USA IS law. Don't believe me? Check out the Constitution of the United States of America. This from Article VI of the US Constitution states that; "This Constitution and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and all Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding." The US Constitution makes the Geneva Conventions the "Law of the Land". 
Of course that does not seem to phase our "dear leader" very much. The same can be said of the majority of BOTH houses of our(??) congress and also of past (recent even) occupants of the White House. One of our most recent occupants of "our" White House is said to have referred to the Constitution as that "goddamn piece of paper". Well, sorry to let you down there bud, but it IS the law, like it or not.
The trouble is, how do we, as common citizens of this country go about enforcing the Constitution? OWS surely has got the attention of the folks in congress and even the banksters have taken notice. Then again, they had the police out to destroy the encampments of OWS in more than one city. New York and Oakland seem to have suffered the most abuse by the riot cops. I may not be 100% correct in that, but from my readings on the net, those cities seem to have had the most violent abuse from "authority". 
I know that my "attitude" gets me in deep manure from both sides of the political mess. The "right" thinks a former Marine should wave the flag and support every damn fool war the government gets us into. The "left" cannot stand that I am critical of Gobomber and the donkey gang. Well, too damn bad. I stand by my positions and will change them only when presented with a good enough argument to get me to change my views. 
I ran across some more quotes that I want to share here. First off, Dwight Eisenhower said; "May we never confuse honest dissent  with disloyal subversion."  I stand by my own honest dissent. 
Now for Theodore Roosevelt; "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president.....is morally treasonable to the American public." 
I wonder how much honest dissent or criticism Gobomber and congress can manage. No doubt I have made it onto a list or three, big deal. I fail to see how a disabled war veteran could be to the powers that run this show. Well, after this vile "act" is law I might find out how much, or better yet, how little dissent is still legal here in the "land of the free and the home of the brave". 
As the state motto of New Hampshire goes; "Live Free or Die"
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New "security" bill in the Senate

People, we are entering very dangerous times. A bill now in the US Senate would allow the president to send anybody, including American citizens to Gitmo to be held indefinitely without any recourse to legal representation. In short, the president could send anybody he thinks is a security threat to the US to be held as long as he wants to hold them with no lawyers allowed to represent him/her.
All that would be required for any of us to be held indefinitely is for the president to say that any of us is a "security threat" to the US. There is NO requirement for the president to say just how the person represents such a threat. In short, it is entirely the whim of the president. This is extremely frightening. No president has ever had such powers. The bill apparently also includes the authorization to allow the president to us the US military troops to be used as law enforcement. The last time that was done was during the Reconstruction period after the US War Between the States. WHen Reconstruction ended in 1876, the Congress at that time passed a law that prevented all presidents from that time until now from using the military as law enforcement.
Consider a USA where the president can us military troops as a police force and he alone can designate any of us as a "security threat" and have us locked up in some dank prison indefinitely with no legal representation.
You think this cannot happen in America? Think again my friends, this bill now in the US Senate would allow all of this and no doubt much more.
I wonder, if this vile piece of legislation passes, will the next Occupy action result in the protesters being carted away to Gitmo for indefinite detention? Who among us would trust anybody with such power? I would not even trust myself with that amount of unlimited power, let alone some Wall Street tool as Gobomber.
Now, our president has said that he will veto this bill if it passes the Senate. Do you really believe this guy? Remember, he promised during the campaign in 2008 to shut down Gitmo by the end of his first year in office. He has been on the job almost three years now and Gitmo is still operating as usual. Now, do you still trust this guy? Hell, I just might be on his "hit" list for my rants here on the old, corner. Well, hell, if you don't hear much from me in the next few weeks, no doubt I might be in sunny Cuba in one of those "nice" cells at Gitmo. 
I'm going to close this rant with a few quotes that I have run across recently. I may have read them before, but this week I came across them again, and decided to share them.
Steve Biko said "The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed." 
These next two I have no idea who said them, they came off different web articles. As to the OWS making no list of demands, one of the protesters said; "OWS has made no demands. Terrorists make demands. OWS are NOT terrorists." How very true, they ARE patriots who are asking for the broken system to be replaced with one that is fair to ALL of us.
The last one is; "Bailing out banks to save us from socialism is like fucking to save virginity." Excuse my language but that is the BEST way to describe things in my opinion. Short and to the point.
We are entering very dangerous times people. I have no idea where this is going or how it will end. I know that the system IS broken and we need real change. I hope it does not devolve into armed revolution with blood running in the streets. We can do this peacefully, but that means the top 1% has to listen to the people and put aside their greed for ever more and more. At some point even the very rich must have to ask themselves, how much is finally enough. The people have had more than enough of the greed of Wall Street and the war industries. End the damn fool wars of choice. Close all those military bases in foreign countries. Rebuild America and let the rest of the world alone to sort out their troubles without the US interfering. ENOUGH! Enough of the damn fool wars of choice. Enough of the greedy banksters and their pals on Wall Street and in the war industries. 
America, what a country.
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Books must be very dangerous

In Amerikkka, books are very dangerous things. Why do I say this? Consider that when the New York police raided the OWS folks at Zuccotti Park last week they threw ALL the books from the temporary library into a dumpster. Most of the books were damaged beyond repair. Why did the police toss those books into the trash bins? Well, to me it is obvious. Books are dangerous. Books contain ideas. Ideas can be very, very dangerous. In particular, ideas that say that we are all human beings, we ALL have the same basic needs, that ALL humans have the same basic desires. Yes, those ARE very dangerous ideas folks. ALL human beings need food, clothing, and shelter. ALL human beings want to be able to provide a decent standard of living to their families, they all want their children to have at least as good a life as they have, hopefully a better life than they have. In the Amerikkka of today, we are facing the very real prospect that our children will NOT have a better life than we have. They may not even have as good a life as we have or have had. For the first time since the Great Depression, Amerikkka faces the very real prospect that the next generation will have less than their parents.
This truth is a very dangerous thing. Those at the top do not want this to be widely known. They want to suppress this fact as they want the masses to continue to believe in the fairy tale that "things will get better, trust us". They continue to try and push the "American dream". That dream has turned into a very real nightmare for many people. The bad loans, liar loans, and the foreclosures have turned the "dream" on its head. 
The top 1% continue to prosper while the 99% try their best to "make due" with the crumbs. The "saint" Ronnie of Raygun trickle down at work here folks. Big time.
The old "rich get richer while the poor get poorer" is no longer just a saying, it is reality. Another idea that is very dangerous as it becomes fact. Those at the top of this heap don't want the masses to know this. Too bad, the truth IS out and the people are angry.
OWS has started something and it will not just go quietly away. 
The "media" has tried to brush the OWS aside by claiming that they have "made no demands". True, but consider a reply by some in the OWS movement to that statement; "Terrorists make demands. OWS are NOT terrorists". Try that on for size "media".
The powers that be may silence some of the people, but they can never kill an idea.  
Keep reading people. Keep the protest alive. We, the 99%, have the numbers.
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This is the new America, may the gods have pity on us all

Today I saw a TV ad for what to me is the lowest of lows. I had not seen this before. Somehow my TV viewing habits may have allowed me to skip this until now. I have no idea how long this ad has been running on the tube. According to the web page for this "product" they advertise on A&E, The Military Channel, The History Channel, CMT, CNBC, MTB, VH1, and Spike.
OK, you say to the old guy ranting away (me). Just what has got you so riled up?
The "product" is a two coin "commemorative" set, one gold coin and one silver coin that "celebrate" the assassination of bin Laden. YES, no kidding at all here. You can buy a two coin set and join in "celebrating" that assassination. No capture, no trial by jury, no waiting around for a jury to decide anything at all. No sir, just a good old fashioned assassination.
Along with the two coins, you will also get two acrylic capsules to hold these "precious" coins, two certificates of authenticity, the Navy seal creed, a military briefing package that includes maps, photos, and operational details. also in this package is a gold lapel pin. This total package, so the web site and TV commercial tell us, is a $260.00 value. Oh, but you can have it all for the amazingly low price of, wait for it, yes, $19.95. Plus shipping and handling as usual.
If you think I have made this up, here is the web site for this entire package. Check it out if your stomach is strong enough. www.justicecoin.com/index.dtm

YES, they actually call these coins, justice coins. I am not fibbing folks. Check the link above. 
What sort of "justice" was given to bin Laden? An assassins bullet is what he got. No capture, no lawyers, no trial, no jury, no waiting for a jury to decide guilt. No sir, none of that "old school" crap. This is the 21st century. Amerikkka rules. USA uber alles. 


Yes, I know that "we", the USA has done this sort of thing for decades. The thing is, we didn't hear of assassinations shortly after they happened. Back in my youth, the CIA and other arms of the US government kept these sorts of things very quiet. Oh sure, on rare occasions they were made known as a "warning" to other leaders around the globe to be very careful. Still, for the most part, the dirty work of our special ops and CIA agents were low key and kept more or less secret. The public didn't hear of them until much later and only after some serious digging by real journalists who worked very hard to get to the truth of things.
Now, we not only hear of some of these operations as soon as they are done, we now "celebrate" the assassinations of supposed terrorists with goddamn "commemorative" coin sets! How low can this country stoop? How bloody damn sick is this? Please excuse me for my language.It is extremely difficult to keep my words polite in regards to this abomination. 


LOL, let me have a moment to reflect on that last sentence. "Abomination", yes, BUT since the USA is now the Obamanation, in some small way, it all fits. Yes, I know, I have a sick sense of humor at times. I just couldn't resist that one. Yes, it IS a bad pun. Most likely a very bad pun.
Still, it does fit. 


With the news on "advisors" going to Uganda, Southern Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, this TV ad just struck me as being about the absolute lowest of things.Throw in the killing of old Gaddafi and the news is quite depressing. This advertizement is just like the straw that broke the camels' back.It is one damn thing too much.


Are we, as a nation now so brutish that we now want "commemorative" coin sets to "celebrate" the unlawful killings of supposed enemies? What next? Commemorative coins to "celebrate" the death by drones of US citizens like Anwar al-Awlaki and his son? Why not? Why, such coin sets could give the drone "pilots" a morale boost. Those "pilots" are not given, as far as I am aware, any battle ribbons for their "work". Some Air Force general was quoted some time ago on the subject of how they could reward the "bravery" of these drone pilots. Seriously. I forget what web site I ran across that comment, I remember it being back in 2009, or about then. It was after the use of drones became news and there were, maybe still are, questions of how to award any sort of medals to the drone "pilots" for, again, their "bravery". This when the "most dangerous" part of their day is the drive home after their shift is finished for the day. Hey, we need to keep the morale high you know. 
I had started work on a rant about Gaddafi and the newest African odyssey of "dear leader" Gobomber. Taking a show break from reading, I saw that TV commercial and just about went ballistic. My first, and still current, thought on this coin set is; just how bloody low will we go? How deep will some dig to "celebrate" an assassination? What has happened to the rule of law? Where has any shred of human decency in this sort of "product"? How low will some go for obscene profits? People in the USA still try to claim the country is a "christian nation". How does a "product" like this square with that sentiment? How can we, the American people, claim to be a civilized country, when we have this sort of absolute garbage for sale on our TV sets and the internet? We look down on supposed savages, but now, with this coin set, I really have to wonder just who the real savages are today.
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