Chelsea Clinton will not run for Congress, her spokesman said, squelching a simmering rumor that the scion of the famous political family will follow in her parents’ footsteps and seek elected office.
“This is 100 percent false. She’s not running for Congress in the 18th District or any other,” spokesman Matt McKenna told New York’s Daily News Wednesday.
The New Rochelle, N.Y., blog “Talk of the Sound” wrote Tuesday that the young Clinton was considering a run to replace Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., in 2012. Clinton had been “approached by the right people” in the state Democratic Party to consider making a bid for Lowey’s seat, the blog wrote.
Also, Politico hinted earlier this month that Clinton was being considered to replace Lowey, 74, who represents the Westchester, N.Y., town where Bill and Hillary Clinton live.
A spokesman for Lowey denied the rumors and said the congresswoman would seek re-election.
“Nita Lowey is running for re-election,” spokesman Matthew Dennis told ABC News
Chelsea, 31, works for a global financial firm and is known for her charitable work, including fundraising for her father’s Clinton Foundation. She married Marc Mezvinsky, also the child of politicians, at a ceremony in Rhinebeck, N.Y., last year.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Patrick Henry Hughes
This is truly a beautiful story.
Every once in a while, we need someone like this to remind us that life may not be perfect, but God gives us so much more than we use for his Glory. Enjoy and I dare you not to be touched.
This guy is so incredible....also his dad, too. It reminds us to be grateful for all God has given us.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Make Mine Freedom (1948)
This Cold War-era cartoon uses humor to tout the dangers of Communism and the benefits of capitalism.
Worth watching!!!!
It's incredible that this 1948 cartoon has come this close to depicting our current day situation. It's worth your time.
EVERY PERSON IN THE USA SHOULD SEE THIS! JUST THINK, THIS WAS FORECAST 63 YEARS AGO!
What can a cartoon produced in 1948, teach us today, that's of any value?
You'd be very surprised! Pay close attention! Keep in mind this was done in '1948'. Keep telling yourself that as you view it.
This is one of the best I have ever seen. This should be viewed by every AMERICAN.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
At least 138 dead after Turkey quake
Cries of panic and horror filled the air as a magnitude-7.2 earthquake struck eastern Turkey, killing at least 138 people as buildings pancaked and crumpled into rubble. The death toll was expected to rise as rescuers sifted through the rubble and reached outlying villages.
Tens of thousands fled into the streets running, screaming or trying to reach relatives on cell phones as apartment and office buildings cracked or collapsed. As the full extent of the damage became clear, survivors dug in with shovels or even their bare hands, desperately trying to rescue the trapped and the injured.
"There are many people under the rubble," Veysel Keser, the mayor of the district of Celebibag, told NTV. "People are in agony. We can hear their screams for help."
Celebibag is near the hardest-hit area: Ercis, an eastern city of 75,000 close to the Iranian border and on one of Turkey's most earthquake-prone zones. The bustling city of Van, about 55 miles south of Ecris, also sustained substantial damage. Highways in the area caved in. The temblor struck at 1:41 p.m. (1041 GMT; 6:41 a.m. EDT), the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at least 93 people were killed in Van, 45 others died in Ercis, and about 350 were injured. Several people were still trapped under rubble, he said, without citing any estimates.
Erdogan said rescue work would continue through the night.
Up to 80 buildings collapsed in Ercis, including a dormitory, and 10 buildings collapsed in Van, the Turkish Red Crescent said. The sheer number of collapsed buildings gave rise to fears that the death toll could rise substantially.
U.S. scientists recorded over 100 aftershocks in eastern Turkey within 10 hours of the quake, including one with a magnitude of 6.0. Authorities advised people to stay away from damaged homes, warning they could collapse in the aftershocks.
Residents in Van and Ercis lit campfires, preparing to spend the night outdoors while the Red Crescent began setting up tents in a stadium. Others sought shelter with relatives in nearby villages.
Rescue efforts went deep into the night under generator-powered floodlights. Workers tied steel rods around large concrete slabs in Van, then lifted them with heavy machinery.
Residents sobbed outside the ruins of one flattened eight-story building, hoping that missing relatives would be found. Witnesses said eight people were pulled from the rubble, but frequent aftershocks hampered search efforts. By late evening, some joy emerged as a ninth, a teenage girl, was pulled out alive.
Erdogan urged residents to stay away from damaged buildings and promised assistance to all survivors.
"We won't leave anyone to fend for themselves in the cold of winter," he said.
Around 1,275 rescue teams from 38 provinces were being sent to the region, officials said, and troops were also assisting search-and-rescue efforts.
In Ercis, heavy machinery halted and people were ordered to keep silent as rescuers tried to listen for possible survivors inside a seven-story building housing 28 families, NTV reported.
Some inmates escaped a prison in Van after one of its walls collapsed. TRT television said around 150 inmates had fled, but a prison official said the number was much smaller and many later returned.
Nazmi Gur, a legislator from Van, said his nephew's funeral ceremony was cut short due to the quake and he rushed back to help.
"We managed to rescue a few people but I saw at least five bodies," Gur told the Associated Press. "It was such a powerful temblor. It lasted for such a long time."
"But now we have no electricity, there is no heating, everyone is outside in the cold," he added.
Authorities had no information yet on remote villages but the provincial governor was touring the region by helicopter and the government sent in tents, field kitchens and blankets.
The earthquake also shook buildings in neighboring Armenia and Iran.
In the Armenian capital of Yerevan, 100 miles from Ercis, people rushed into the streets in fear but no damage or injuries were reported. Armenia was the site of a devastating earthquake in 1988 that killed 25,000 people.
Sunday's quake caused panic in several Iranian towns close to the Turkish border and caused cracks in buildings in the city of Chaldoran, Iranian state TV reported.
Leaders around the world conveyed their condolences and offered assistance.
"We stand shoulder to shoulder with our Turkish ally in this difficult time, and are ready to assist," President Obama said.
Israeli President Shimon Peres telephoned Turkish President Abdullah Gul to offer assistance.
"Israel shares in your sorrow," Peres said in a statement. "Israel is ready to render any assistance that may be required anywhere in Turkey, at any time."
The offer came despite a rift in relations following an 2010 Israeli navy raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that left nine Turks dead. Greece, which has a deep dispute with Turkey over the divided island of Cyprus, also offered to send in a special earthquake rescue team.
Turkey lies in one of the world's most active seismic zones and is crossed by numerous fault lines. In 1999, two earthquakes with a magnitude of more than 7 struck northwestern Turkey, killing about 18,000 people.
More recently, a magnitude-6.0 quake in March 2010 killed 51 people in eastern Turkey, while in 2003, a magnitude-6.4 earthquake killed 177 people in the southeastern city of Bingol.
Istanbul, the country's largest city with more than 12 million people, lies in northwestern Turkey near a major fault line. Experts have warned that overcrowding and shoddy construction in Istanbul could kill tens of thousands if a major earthquake struck.
Tens of thousands fled into the streets running, screaming or trying to reach relatives on cell phones as apartment and office buildings cracked or collapsed. As the full extent of the damage became clear, survivors dug in with shovels or even their bare hands, desperately trying to rescue the trapped and the injured.
"There are many people under the rubble," Veysel Keser, the mayor of the district of Celebibag, told NTV. "People are in agony. We can hear their screams for help."
Celebibag is near the hardest-hit area: Ercis, an eastern city of 75,000 close to the Iranian border and on one of Turkey's most earthquake-prone zones. The bustling city of Van, about 55 miles south of Ecris, also sustained substantial damage. Highways in the area caved in. The temblor struck at 1:41 p.m. (1041 GMT; 6:41 a.m. EDT), the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at least 93 people were killed in Van, 45 others died in Ercis, and about 350 were injured. Several people were still trapped under rubble, he said, without citing any estimates.
Erdogan said rescue work would continue through the night.
Up to 80 buildings collapsed in Ercis, including a dormitory, and 10 buildings collapsed in Van, the Turkish Red Crescent said. The sheer number of collapsed buildings gave rise to fears that the death toll could rise substantially.
U.S. scientists recorded over 100 aftershocks in eastern Turkey within 10 hours of the quake, including one with a magnitude of 6.0. Authorities advised people to stay away from damaged homes, warning they could collapse in the aftershocks.
Residents in Van and Ercis lit campfires, preparing to spend the night outdoors while the Red Crescent began setting up tents in a stadium. Others sought shelter with relatives in nearby villages.
Rescue efforts went deep into the night under generator-powered floodlights. Workers tied steel rods around large concrete slabs in Van, then lifted them with heavy machinery.
Residents sobbed outside the ruins of one flattened eight-story building, hoping that missing relatives would be found. Witnesses said eight people were pulled from the rubble, but frequent aftershocks hampered search efforts. By late evening, some joy emerged as a ninth, a teenage girl, was pulled out alive.
Erdogan urged residents to stay away from damaged buildings and promised assistance to all survivors.
"We won't leave anyone to fend for themselves in the cold of winter," he said.
Around 1,275 rescue teams from 38 provinces were being sent to the region, officials said, and troops were also assisting search-and-rescue efforts.
In Ercis, heavy machinery halted and people were ordered to keep silent as rescuers tried to listen for possible survivors inside a seven-story building housing 28 families, NTV reported.
Some inmates escaped a prison in Van after one of its walls collapsed. TRT television said around 150 inmates had fled, but a prison official said the number was much smaller and many later returned.
Nazmi Gur, a legislator from Van, said his nephew's funeral ceremony was cut short due to the quake and he rushed back to help.
"We managed to rescue a few people but I saw at least five bodies," Gur told the Associated Press. "It was such a powerful temblor. It lasted for such a long time."
"But now we have no electricity, there is no heating, everyone is outside in the cold," he added.
Authorities had no information yet on remote villages but the provincial governor was touring the region by helicopter and the government sent in tents, field kitchens and blankets.
The earthquake also shook buildings in neighboring Armenia and Iran.
In the Armenian capital of Yerevan, 100 miles from Ercis, people rushed into the streets in fear but no damage or injuries were reported. Armenia was the site of a devastating earthquake in 1988 that killed 25,000 people.
Sunday's quake caused panic in several Iranian towns close to the Turkish border and caused cracks in buildings in the city of Chaldoran, Iranian state TV reported.
Leaders around the world conveyed their condolences and offered assistance.
"We stand shoulder to shoulder with our Turkish ally in this difficult time, and are ready to assist," President Obama said.
Israeli President Shimon Peres telephoned Turkish President Abdullah Gul to offer assistance.
"Israel shares in your sorrow," Peres said in a statement. "Israel is ready to render any assistance that may be required anywhere in Turkey, at any time."
The offer came despite a rift in relations following an 2010 Israeli navy raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that left nine Turks dead. Greece, which has a deep dispute with Turkey over the divided island of Cyprus, also offered to send in a special earthquake rescue team.
Turkey lies in one of the world's most active seismic zones and is crossed by numerous fault lines. In 1999, two earthquakes with a magnitude of more than 7 struck northwestern Turkey, killing about 18,000 people.
More recently, a magnitude-6.0 quake in March 2010 killed 51 people in eastern Turkey, while in 2003, a magnitude-6.4 earthquake killed 177 people in the southeastern city of Bingol.
Istanbul, the country's largest city with more than 12 million people, lies in northwestern Turkey near a major fault line. Experts have warned that overcrowding and shoddy construction in Istanbul could kill tens of thousands if a major earthquake struck.
Steve Jobs Biography by Walter Isaacson
Steve Jobs Biography by Walter Isaacson
Hardcover: 656 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (October 24, 2011)
Summary
At a time when America is seeking ways to sustain its innovative edge, and when societies around the world are trying to build digital-age economies, Jobs stands as the ultimate icon of inventiveness and applied imagination. He knew that the best way to create value in the twenty-first century was to connect creativity with technology. He built a company where leaps of the imagination were combined with remarkable feats of engineering.
Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off-limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.
Driven by demons, Jobs could drive those around him to fury and despair. But his personality and products were interrelated, just as Apple’s hardware and software tended to be, as if part of an integrated system. His tale is instructive and cautionary, filled with lessons about innovation, character, leadership, and values.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Jobs to Obama: You risk being a one-termer
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Apple founder Steve Jobs told President Obama he risks re-election because of a bad relationship with the business community, says a soon-to-be-published biography of the computer visionary.
"You're headed for a one-term presidency," Jobs told Obama in the fall of 2010, according to the biography by author Walter Isaacson that will be in bookstores next week.
The Huffington Post, which obtained an early copy of the bio, also reports that Jobs offered to do ads for Obama's 2012 re-election campaign.
"He had made the same offer in 2008, but he'd become annoyed when Obama's strategist David Axelrod wasn't totally deferential," writes biographer Isaacson.
From The Huffington Post account of the book:
Jobs, who was known for his prickly, stubborn personality, almost missed meeting President Obama in the fall of 2010 because he insisted that the president personally ask him for a meeting. Though his wife told him that Obama "was really psyched to meet with you," Jobs insisted on the personal invitation, and the standoff lasted for five days. When he finally relented and they met at the Westin San Francisco Airport, Jobs was characteristically blunt. He seemed to have transformed from a liberal into a conservative.
"You're headed for a one-term presidency," he told Obama at the start of their meeting, insisting that the administration needed to be more business-friendly. As an example, Jobs described the ease with which companies can build factories in China compared to the United States, where "regulations and unnecessary costs" make it difficult for them.
Jobs also criticized America's education system, saying it was "crippled by union work rules," noted Isaacson. "Until the teachers' unions were broken, there was almost no hope for education reform." Jobs proposed allowing principals to hire and fire teachers based on merit, that schools stay open until 6 p.m. and that they be open 11 months a year.
Jobs suggested that Obama meet six or seven other CEOs who could express the needs of innovative businesses -- but when White House aides added more names to the list, Jobs insisted that it was growing too big and that "he had no intention of coming." In preparation for the dinner, Jobs exhibited his notorious attention to detail, telling venture capitalist John Doerr that the menu of shrimp, cod and lentil salad was "far too fancy" and objecting to a chocolate truffle dessert. But he was overruled by the White House, which cited the president's fondness for cream pie.
Though Jobs was not that impressed by Obama, later telling Isaacson that his focus on the reasons that things can't get done "infuriates" him, they kept in touch and talked by phone a few more times. Jobs even offered to help create Obama's political ads for the 2012 campaign. "He had made the same offer in 2008, but he'd become annoyed when Obama's strategist David Axelrod wasn't totally deferential," writes Isaacson. Jobs later told the author that he wanted to do for Obama what the legendary "morning in America" ads did for Ronald Reagan.
Apple iPhone 4S' Siri says the craziest things
The new Apple iPhone 4S can do more than just check e-mail and make phone calls. It's also turning into a new — sometimes sassy, often entertaining —digital friend for millions of consumers.
The most touted new feature, the Siri personal digital assistant, has, hidden in the software, dozens of humorous responses to silly questions.
Consumers are asking Siri for dates, marriage, sexual advice, math equations and even crazy stuff like where to hide a dead body.
To their surprise: Siri usually has an answer.
Comedian Stephen Colbert opened his Colbert Report Tuesday night on Comedy Central asking Siri, in jest, to write his show for him. Musician Jonathan Mann wrote an online duet this week with Siri, which has burned up the YouTube charts so far with more than 400,000 views.
Apple declined to comment. But Apple engineers apparently thought of every possible answer in programming Siri. "If you mention sex in any way, it takes you to an escort service," says Mann, who used about every potential Siri answer to comedic effect in his Duet with Siri. Pretty funny.
Tim Bajarin, an analyst with Creative Strategies, figures Siri has "tens of thousands" of answers to choose from. "Siri is linked to a very powerful set of databases," he says.
The response from consumers to Siri was to be expected, he adds. "I would have been shocked if they didn't respond this way. People are curious, and they say curious things."
USA TODAY told Siri it loved her. The answer: "Oh stop."
Meanwhile, availability for the new iPhone 4S is still elusive. Apple sold 4 million of the phones worldwide last weekend, but phones have been hard to come by since. Availability through Apple's online store promises a wait of one to two weeks for delivery. The wait is much longer with the wireless carriers. Verizon has waits that range from Oct. 28 to Nov. 4 for iPhones, while AT&T promises delivery in 21 to 28 days. Sprint is totally sold out of the 16-GB model, which sells for $199 with a two-year contract, but promises delivery of the more expensive 32-GB model for $299 in two weeks.
Getting to know Siri
All sorts of questions, and more, were hurled this week at Siri, the talking personal digital assistant for the Apple iPhone 4S. The consensus: Siri is a little bit Hal from the epic movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, mixed with humor from Apple engineers.
Phone users went beyond the usual requests for weather forecasts, setting up meetings and dictating text messages. Many just had fun with Siri, asking silly questions simply to see the responses. We asked USA TODAY readers to chime in with some of their Siri stories. Here's what they had to say.
Riddle me this
"I asked Siri how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if it could chuck wood, and it answered," says Ryan Fettig, 25, of Bismarck, N.D. "It was hilarious." Said Siri: "A woodchuck would chuck as much as a woodchuck could chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood."
Entertaining conversation
"If I'm bored and sitting in traffic, I can goof around and have a conversation with something that's not a person, something witty that can keep me entertained," says Charles Badics, a South Lyon, Mich., software engineer. "I asked what it was wearing, and it said 'aluminum body with a glass front and back.' "
Auto-read
David Hulings, a Michigan-based motivational speaker, says he uses Siri while driving. It "answers e-mails in paragraph form. The accuracy after you learn it is amazing."
Deep stuff
Amit Ghandi asked Siri the age-old question: "What is the meaning of life?" Answer: "Try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try to live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations."
Some questions OK; others, not
Asking "When does Daylight Savings Time begin?" results in Siri's voice giving the exact day, date and time, says Tom Eisenman, 58, of Springfield, Mass. But ask: "When does Daylight Savings Time end?" Siri's answer: "You don't have anything on your calendar for Daylight Savings Time." Eisenman's verdict: "Siri can be a time waster because you never know whether you'll get a useful response, even when the question is similar to something she has answered helpfully before."
Trouble with dialects
"She doesn't like me," says Gareth McCusker, a New York bartender originally from Northern Ireland. "It won't pick up my accent. It's a bit annoying."
Herman Cain tweaks 9-9-9 tax plan
GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain tweaked his 9-9-9 tax plan, eliminating the tax burden on people living in poverty and creating "opportunity zones" to boost economically depressed areas.
Cain's changes to the plan come amid growing criticism that the proposal -- calling for a 9% income tax, 9% national sales tax and 9% corporate tax rate -- would raise taxes on low- and middle-income people while helping the wealthy.
The former Godfather's Pizza CEO proposed people living at or below the poverty line would pay no income taxes. He touted his plan for opportunity zones in front of a vacant train depot in Detroit.
Cain said his plan for those living at or below poverty level is now "9-0-9."
"Say amen, y'all," Cain said. "In other words if you are at or below the poverty level based on family size, then you don't pay that middle 9 tax on your income. This is how we help the poor."
Cain's changes to the 9-9-9 plan include exemptions from zoning and building codes in areas that need economic boosts and new tax brackets for different income levels. He also says some minimum wage laws could be waived.
Independent analysts at the Tax Foundation and Urban Institute have said Cain's original 9-9-9 plan is regressive and creates a larger tax burden for those at lower income levels.
Cain has surged to the top of national polls and is essentially tied with Mitt Romney for the GOP nomination. His GOP rivals assailed the plan earlier this week during the presidential debate in Las Vegas.
Obama: Full withdrawal from Iraq by Jan. 1
President Barack Obama on Friday declared an end to the Iraq war, announcing that all U.S. troops will be withdrawing from the country by year's end as promised in a deal struck before he took office
All U.S. troops will leave Iraq by Jan. 1, formally ending the war that began more than eight-and-a-half years ago and has taken more than 4,400 American lives, President Obama said today.
"After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," Obama said at the White House.
Obama delivered his statement after speaking with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki via a secure video conference.
The war started with a U.S. invasion of Iraq in March 2003 that ousted longtime Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. The initial enthusiasm surrounding Hussein's overthrow quickly gave way to fighting between rival ethnic and religious groups and a long guerrilla war against U.S. forces that reached its peak in 2007, when then-president George W. Bush ordered more than 30,000 extra troops for a "surge" that helped turn the tide.
Although the United States has signed an agreement to withdraw all combat troops from Iraq by the end of this year, officials from both countries had discussed maintaining a small U.S. residual force of 3,000 to 5,000 American troops to train Iraqi forces.
The United States has balked at updating the agreement, however, because Iraq has refused to grant American troops legal immunity in Iraqi courts.
Publicly, al-Maliki had remained neutral on whether to ask residual forces to remain behind. But he faced fierce internal political pressure and recently told Obama administration officials that it was impossible for him to win support for immunity for U.S. troops from the Iraqi parliament, the Associated Press reported.
In making the announcement, Obama stressed that the Iraqis are ready for the transition. At the height of sectarian strife that pushed Iraq to the precipice of civil war in 2005-06, there were more than 1,500 security incidents each week. Presently, there are about 100 security incidents per week.
As a presidential candidate in 2008, Obama vowed to end the war. He noted in his remarks to reporters that he was following through with his promise and that it was now time to turn the country's full attention to bolstering the American economy.
"After a decade of war the nation that we need to build and the nation that we will build is our own, an America that sees its economic strength restored just as we've restored our leadership around the globe," Obama said.
There are presently about 40,000 troops in Iraq. The complete withdrawal from Iraq marks a follow-through under a deal brokered between the countries in 2008 by President George W. Bush.
The decision to end the war was applauded by Obama allies.
"The United States is fulfilling our agreement with an Iraqi government that wants to shape its own future," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. "The president is also following through on his commitment to end both the conflict in Iraq and our military presence."
Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, supported keeping a residual force behind in Iraq, but said the decision to end the U.S. presence was the right one considering the Iraqis refused to give U.S. troops immunity.
"I was prepared to support a continued presence of U.S. trainers in Iraq beyond the end of this year," Levin said. "But in light of Iraq's refusal to eliminate the possibility that U.S. troops would face prosecutions in Iraqi courts, President Obama has made the right decision."
House Speaker John Boehner commended U.S. troops for their sacrifice and credited the Bush administration.
"The continued drawdown of American troops that began under the previous administration wouldn't be possible if not for the hard work and sacrifice of our servicemembers, diplomats and their families.
Some conservatives, however, condemned the decision.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney questioned the motives behind Obama's decision. "The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government," said Romney, a former Massachusetts governor. "The American people deserve to hear the recommendations that were made by our military commanders in Iraq."
Rep. Michelle Bachmann of Minnesota, a GOP presidential candidate, said the United States was being "ejected" from Iraq and called on the administration to demand the Iraqi government compensate the U.S. government for the cost of liberating the country.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said that all of the U.S. commanders he has spoken with told him that a continued U.S. military presence was needed beyond 2011.
"I am confident that no U.S. commander of any stature who has served in Iraq recommended the course of action that has now been taken," McCain said.
Fred Kagan, one of the architects of the 2006-07 troop surge that helped turn around the war, also warned that Obama risks squandering hard-fought progress and will sharpen neighboring Iran's influence inside Iraq and increase the chances that the Iraqi government will fail.
"It makes a mockery, moreover, of the notion that the United States is somehow isolating Iran and increasing pressure on the Islamic Republic mere days after the revelation of an elaborate Iranian plot to conduct attacks on American soil," Kagan wrote in a blog posting for the American Enterprise Institute. "What sort of sanctions regime can we maintain if Iraq is effectively a free-trade corridor with Iran?"
Deputy National Security Adviser Denis McDonough deflected suggestions that the United States was withdrawing too quickly.
"What the president preferred was for the best relationship for the United States and Iraq going forward," McDonough said. "That's exactly what we have now."
Dating back to his time in the Illinois state Senate, Obama was a tough critic of the war, and his opposition was a central aspect of his campaign for the presidency. But today, he centered his comments on what U.S. troops have achieved and how the Iraqi military and political cultural has grown.
"Over the next two months, our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear and board convoys for the journey home," Obama said. "The last American soldiers will cross the border out of Iraq with their heads held high, proud of their success and knowing that the American people stand united in our support for our troops."
White House officials downplayed concerns that the Iraqi forces may not be capable of managing the country's security and discounted there will be an uptick in violence as the final U.S. troops leave the country. McDonough stressed it was time to recognize that recognize Iraq is "secure, stable and self-reliant."
Anthony Blinken, national security adviser to Vice President Biden, noted that whenever the U.S. military has reduced its presence — the withdrawal of additional troops sent as part of Bush's 2007 troop surge; U.S. forces exiting Iraqi cities and cutting the American presence to 50,000 servicmembers last year — violence has actually declined.
But the two demurred when asked whether the U.S. sacrifice — more than 4,400 troops killed and nearly $1 trillion in American taxpayer money — was worth it.
"History is going to judge that," Blinken said. "I don't think any of us can say that now."
Celebration, Caution after Gadhafi's death
Libyans and supporters of the country's revolution were celebrating now that ousted dictator Moammar Gadhafi is dead. World leaders were backing the country's new leadership, but cautious about the future.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Libya's Moammar Gadhafi dies in hometown battle
With the death Thursday of Moammar Gadhafi, Libya's de facto leaders now face the challenge of preserving the fragile unity they enjoyed while the deposed dictator was on the run as they begin transforming their war-battered nation into a democracy after 42 years of tyrannical one-man rule.
The task is daunting. The National Transitional Council, the top revolutionary authority, confronts a vast array of problems: bringing the rag-tag militias that ousted Gadhafi under control; recovering looted arms; halting revenge attacks on Gadhafi loyalists; caring for thousands of casualties; restoring oil production; repairing war damage; and keeping a lid on regional tensions and radical Islam.
At the same time, the self-appointed group of former officials, academics, military officers and others, who are riven by personal and ideological differences, must proceed with an ambitious democratization plan. It includes holding Libya's first free elections within eight months of what is expected to be a declaration Saturday of "liberation" from Gadhafi's rule.
"The Libyan people now have a great responsibility: to build an inclusive and tolerant and democratic Libya that stands as the ultimate rebuke to Gadhafi's dictatorship," President Barack Obama declared hours after a wounded Gadhafi was captured and likely killed by opposition forces after a nearly six-week siege of his hometown of Sirte.
Libya begins its new era with advantages over other former authoritarian-ruled states for which the period between civil war and the establishment of the first elected government is historically the most dangerous.
Libya's infrastructure remains relatively intact, some government offices continue functioning and where they don't, self-organized civic groups have taken over. There is little prospect of the sectarian or ethnic turmoil that convulsed Iraq. The National Transitional Council enjoys respect among Libya's 6.4 million people as well as international recognition, and it soon is expected to win access to some $110 billion in assets frozen by sanctions on Gadhafi's regime.
"When I was in Tripoli last month, the water was on, the electricity was on, the police were on the streets and the garbage was being picked up," said Daniel Serwer, a former U.S. diplomat who teaches at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Relations in Washington. "I walked around at night without fear and I ran in the morning without problems. You still can't do that in Baghdad to this day."
"They not only have oil in the ground, but money in accounts outside the country. The government is still paying social security payments and bread is still subsidized," he said.
Serwer gave considerable credit to Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, the transitional council chairman. Abdul-Jalil resigned as justice minister in February to protest Gadhafi's brutal efforts to crush a popular uprising that was triggered by the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt and grew into a full-fledged civil war that left the dictator a fugitive after the fall of Tripoli in August.
"People have confidence in Jalil," Serwer said. "He lives in a modest house in (the eastern city of) Benghazi. He and the rest of the NTC have announced they won't run for office. He's gone around the country to each liberated city saying this is one Libya and it will have its capital in Tripoli."
Serwer and other experts, however, agreed that things could still go very wrong.
"The days ahead will not be easy," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "The Middle East revolutions remind us that creating a free and tolerant political order is a more difficult challenge than removing a dictator."
One of the National Transitional Council's gravest problems will be disbanding the militias that arose to fight Gadhafi with weapons that flooded out of looted military bases as the armed forces splintered between pro- and anti-regime units, experts said.
"There are an uncountable number of militias roaming the country, and these militias are really taking the law into their own hands," said Diana Eltahway, an expert on Libya with Amnesty International. "Among the biggest challenges will be trying to absorb them in whatever becomes the police force and national army or disarming them."
"They are conducting their own arrests and ill-treating people. They are not held accountable at all," she said.
"Some cities have encouraged the police to go back to work. But the only people in Libya who don't have guns are the police," she said, adding that there are an estimated 7,000 detainees - former Gadhafi officials, fighters, other loyalists and suspected African mercenaries - being held around the country.
Some militias come from western areas that put up the toughest resistance and played key roles in capturing Tripoli. Their leaders have been unwilling to withdraw from the capital, unsure about the power-sharing intentions of the transitional council. It has been headquartered in Benghazi and dominated by members from the surrounding Cyrenaica region, where the uprising erupted.
One of the strongest militias is from the western city of Misrata, which withstood months of devastating siege by pro-Gadhafi forces. The contingent led the offensive on Sirte, captured Gadhafi, took his bloodied corpse back to the city and paraded it through the shell-pitted streets.
The power-sharing concerns reflect lingering historical differences that Gadhafi exploited between Cyrenaica, which was the center of anti-regime activism and also saw a rise in Islamic fundamentalism, and the western Tripolitania region, which the dictator favored economically and politically. He also favored some tribes over others.
"There have been these cleavages in Libyan society for a very long time," said Nader Hashimi, a professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic politics at the University of Denver. "The dangers of these cleavages, whether they are tribal, regional or ideological, are there."
Some experts are concerned that militia leaders affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, an international movement that promotes Islamic rule, or previously were members of the al-Qaida-linked Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, like Abdul Hakim Belhaj, the leader of revolutionary forces in Tripoli, could move to dominate the secular politicians.
A key test will be the National Transitional Council's ability to implement the democratization plan it unveiled in August, which calls for the group to move from Benghazi to Tripoli and form a transitional government within 30 days of the liberation declaration. The group until now has been unable to agree on the transitional government members.
The transitional government would have three months to arrange national elections for a 200-member Public National Conference, which would select an interim prime minister and a committee that would draft Libya's first democratic constitution, followed by the holding of the first free and fair general elections.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Who Is Rick Perry?
He is a fifth generation Texan, the son of hardscrabble west Texas tenant farmers – Democrats but conservatives through and through. He grew up in a farm town too small to be on the state map. Life was so hard that he was six years old before his house had indoor plumbing. His mother sewed his clothes, including the underwear he wore to college.
He is an Eagle Scout. After Paint Creek High School , he attended Texas A&M, graduated, and was commissioned into the Air Force where he became a C-130 pilot.
Now 61 years old, he has won nine elections to four different offices in Texas state government. In the first three elections he ran as a Democrat then switched to the Republican Party. He is currently the 47th governor of Texas – a position he has held for 11 years, the longest tenure of any governor in the nation.
He has never lost an election.
Rick Perry was the Lieutenant Governor to whom Governor George Bush handed over the office after winning the 2000 Presidential election. Since then, Perry won gubernatorial elections in 2002, 2004, and 2010, the last time by 55% against a field consisting of a Democrat, a Libertarian, a Green Party, and an Independent.
Since he became its Governor, Texas – a right to work state that taxes neither personal income nor capital gains – has added more jobs than the other 49 states combined. In the last two years, low taxes and little regulation led his state to create 47% of all jobs created in the entire nation. Five of the top ten cities with the highest job growth in the nation are in Texas . People follow jobs, so in the last four years for which data are available, Texas led every state in net interstate migration growth.
Perry signed ground-breaking “loser pays” tort reform and medical litigation rules that caused malpractice insurance rates to fall. Some 20,000 doctors have since moved to Texas .
Texas boasts 58 of the Fortune 500 companies – more than any other state. Since May 2011 Texas resumed its pre-recession employment levels. Only two other states and the District of Columbia have done that.
Texas ships 16% of the nation’s export value. California trails at 11%. Of the 70 companies that have fled California so far in 2011, 14 relocated in Texas .
In this year’s Texas legislative season, Perry got most of what he wanted. With no new taxes, a fiscally lean state budget was passed leaving $6 billion in a rainy day fund even as other states around the country struggled to balance budgets and avoid more deficit borrowing. A voter ID bill passed that was designed to prevent ballot box fraud and illegal voting. A bill passed that makes plaintiffs pay court costs and attorney fees if their suits are deemed frivolous.
Perry scored points even in his legislative failures. He failed to get sanctuary cities banned – Texas towns in which police cannot question detainees about their immigration status. The blame fell on the legislature. Perry also failed to get a so-called “anti-groping” bill passed that would put Transportation Security Administration agents in prison if they touch the genitals, anus, or breasts of passengers in a pat down. Federal officials threatened to halt all flights out of Texas airports and the bill died in special session. That endeared Texans even more to TSA employees living in Texas .
Perry jogs daily in the morning. He has no bodyguard with him, but his daughter’s dog runs by his side and he carries a laser-guided automatic pistol in his belt. Last year while jogging in an undeveloped area, a coyote paralleled his jogging route, eyeing his dog. He drew his pistol and killed the animal with one shot, leaving it where it fell. “He became mulch," Perry said. Animal rights groups protested, but Perry shrugged it off. “Don’t come after my dog,” he warned them.
Recently, Obama asked Perry to delay the July 7 execution of Humberto Leal in order to comply with the International Court of Justice in The Hague and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Perry refused. Therefore Obama asked the US Supreme Court to delay the execution because it would damage US foreign relations. The Court refused 5-4 and Perry ordered the execution to go forward as scheduled. Over the howls of diplomats, politicians, and the UN, Leal was administered a lethal injection at 6:20 p.m. Before he died, he admitted his guilt and asked for forgiveness.
The case has special implications for Perry, who is running for the presidency in 2012. Even his critics resent federal interference in a Texas execution, which is related to a state, not a federal, crime – an alcohol and drug-fueled rape and murder 17 years ago by an illegal whose family brought him into the country 35 years ago as a child. The interference hinges not on the man’s guilt, which Leal’s advocates acknowledged, but on a technicality – failure to inform Leal that he could have gotten legal representation from the Mexican consulate in lieu of the court-appointed attorneys who represented him. Independent Texans saw Obama’s interference as another intrusion of federal power into the affairs of a state, which could cost Obama support in other states.
Needless to say, Perry is a hard-edged conservative and a ferocious defender of 10th Amendments rights (“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”) – an explicit restriction of the federal government to only those powers granted in the Constitution. Perry accuses the federal government, especially the Obama administration, of illegal overreach.
Perry said “no thanks” to the feds whose stimulus offered taxpayer dollars for education and unemployment assistance. The strings on “free money” from Washington , he said, would restrict Texas in managing its own affairs. Perry even depleted all state funds to fight recent wildfires before asking Washington for disaster relief. His request has been ignored, which comes across as an unvarnished federal power play, further pitting Perry and Texans against the federal government.
Anita Hill still looking to make a difference
When Sandra Kent began working on bringing Anita Hill to Detroit, she was shocked that her 17-year-old granddaughter didn't know who Hill was.
"My granddaughter is an honor student ," Kent said. "She has been to Europe twice. She is a smart, accomplished young woman and she asked me, 'Grandma, who is Anita Hill?'"
Twenty years ago this month, Hill's story became national news and she unwittingly emerged as an international champion for women's rights who was both applauded and castigated for waking up the nation to the realities of sexual harassment in the workplace.
Hill, a professor and senior adviser to the provost at Brandeis University near Boston, will visit Detroit on Nov. 3-4 to talk about her latest book, "Reimagining Equality: Stories of Gender, Race, and Finding Home."
And as much as Hill probably would like to focus on her new book -- part family story, part examination of the detrimental impact of the housing crisis on women and people of color -- it's her old story that continues to captivate people.
"Twenty years ago I might have thought myself powerless, now I feel differently," said Hill, 55. "I now know that one voice can make a difference. So now the question is how do I use my voice to make a difference not only in my life, but in the lives of others?"
Hill didn't write the script for her life story. It was written for her.
Senate investigators subpoenaed her to testify about rumors that then-U.S. Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas had sexually harassed women who worked for him.
Hill, a University of Oklahoma law professor at the time, told the Senate Judiciary Committee that she had repeatedly been the victim of sexual harassment by Thomas, her former boss at the U.S. Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Thomas vehemently denied the charges.
The televised hearings riveted the nation.
When they were over, Thomas was confirmed a Supreme Court justice. Hill was disappointed, but not defeated.
And much to her surprise, her testimony helped women throughout America find their voice.
A once-taboo subject -- sexual harassment -- became the hot topic at office water coolers and on factory floors. Women, in record numbers, filed complaints rather than keep quiet about their own experiences. Laws on sexual harassment were strengthened. Workplace regulations combating sexual harassment became commonplace. Academic studies increased.
"Her standing up was a powerful step forward in improving the way sexual harassment was discussed and dealt with in the workplace," said law professor Jocelyn Benson, associate director of the Damon Keith Center for Civil Rights at Wayne State University's School of Law.
"She forever changed the way we talk about sexual harassment in the work place. A lot of women were not speaking up because of fear of losing their job or fear of retaliation. Her willingness to put herself forward made it easier for other women to speak up. Yes, it didn't stop Thomas' appointment, but it emboldened women to step up and speak out."
"If you look at EEOC statistics, you'll find clear evidence that complaints of sexual harassment sky-rocketed after Anita Hill's testimony," said Lilia Cortina, a University of Michigan researcher and professor of women's studies.
According to a book coauthored by Cortina, the EEOC received one complaint of sexual harassment in 1980. In 1991, the year Hill testified, there were 6,870 complaints filed with the EEOC. The following year, in 1992, some 10,532 were filed, and the numbers continued to grow significantly before tapering off in more recent years.
Hill said she initially was angry and disappointed when Thomas was confirmed.
"I felt it was a rejection of my experience, and I felt they didn't understand the relevance of my testimony to Thomas' respect for the law. He did these things while he was in charge of enforcing sexual harassment laws."
She was vilified by critics who attempted to cast her as a liar and male-hating feminist. The drama re-ignited last year when Thomas' wife, Virginia, left a message on Hill's Brandeis voice mail asking her to apologize for what she'd said at the confirmation hearings. Hill reported the call to campus police who turned it over to the FBI.
Hill has no plans to apologize.
"When someone tells the truth, there's no need to apologize," said Hill. "I knew I'd done the right thing. Once you have that in the back of your mind, it allows you to deal with the consequences."
In the years since the hearings, Hill found comfort and strength in the impact of the hearings, noting that there were legal, cultural and political changes after the hearings. "The conversations men and women began having with their sons and daughters about sexual harassment changed. Those are not defeats, those are triumphs."
Hill also found sustenance in thousands of letters she received and continues to receive since the hearings. Women, she discovered, were finding their voice to speak out not only about sexual harassment but a variety of concerns. And one concern that especially touched Hill was the impact of the foreclosure crisis.
It led her to examine anew her own home and family roots. She is the youngest daughter of 13 children, born to parents who owned and farmed the land they lived on in Oklahoma.
The book that resulted examines the historical significance of home ownership and shows the disproportionately negative impact the housing crisis is having on women and people of color. It also challenges the nation's leaders to do more to make America home for all its citizens.
"The American dream has been severely jeopardized," Hill said. "What does that mean economically and socially as we attempt to advance toward equality? The hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis has been single women and communities of color."
But even as Hill focuses on how the housing crisis threatens equality, the story that drew her into the public spotlight dominates discussions during her book tour.
It is part of what led Sandra Kent, president of the Women's Economic Empowerment Group, to help bring Hill to Detroit, with assistance from the Michigan Women's Foundation.
Kent recalls being the victim of sexual harassment in the early 1970s when she was a pharmaceutical sales rep in Detroit.
When she went to one doctor's office to deliver supplies, the doctor attempted to give her a chocolate penis tied with a red ribbon. Horrified, Kent reported the incident to her boss, who visited the doctor's office. Kent said her boss seemed more concerned about keeping the doctor's account than addressing the harassment.
"People could say and do all kinds of insulting things to you, and you felt you couldn't do anything," Kent said. Until Anita Hill.
During Hill's visit, Kent has arranged a special meeting between Hill and girls at the Detroit International Academy for Young Women, an all-female public school, which has a club named Anita's Aspiring Attorneys, that promotes leadership among young women.
The girls in the 20-member club are reading Hill's books.
"She is very brave," said Sierra Johnson, 17. "I like how she had the courage to step up and tell everybody what happened to her. A lot of people wouldn't say anything."
Khadijah Shabazz, 17, said Hill's first book, "Speaking Truth to Power," is an inspiration. "Her example teaches me to believe in myself and not put boundaries around myself or let anyone put boundaries around me."
Hill said she hasn't yet decided what she will say to the young women. But she knows a few things she hopes they will learn from her.
"I want them to believe in themselves. I want them to know that they will be challenged in life. That's what happens. But I hope they come away feeling they have personal power and authority to control their life and to make the right choices. And I want them to know they deserve to have good, and happy and productive lives."
Friday, October 14, 2011
Herman Cain's Impressive Resume
Herman Cain is looking better and better everyday. I firmly believe that he would have the best chance to beat Obama and get the Black vote. In the debates, he is probably the only one who has continually zeroed in on the issues rather than continually attack other Republican candidates. This says much for this man.
Herman Cain is running for president. He’s not a career politician (in fact he has never held political office). He’s known as a pizza guy, but there’s a lot more to him. He’s also a computer guy, a banker guy, and a rocket scientist guy.
Here’s his bio:
1. Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics.
2. Master’s degree in Computer Science.
3. Mathematician for the Navy, where he worked on missile ballistics (making him a rocket scientist).
4. Computer systems analyst for Coca-Cola.
5. VP of Corporate Data Systems and Services for Pillsbury (this is the top of the ladder in the computer world, being in charge of information systems for a major corporation).
All achieved before reaching the age of 35. Since he reached the top of the information systems world, he changed careers!
1. Business Manager. Took charge of Pillsbury’s 400 Burger King restaurants in the Philadelphia area, which were the company’s poorest performers in the country. Spent the first nine months learning the business from the ground up, cooking hamburger and yes, cleaning toilets. After three years he had turned them into the company’s best performers.
2. Godfather’s Pizza CEO. Was asked by Pillsbury to take charge of their Godfather’s Pizza chain (which was on the verge of bankruptcy). He made it profitable in 14 months.
3. In 1988 he led a buyout of the Godfather’s Pizza chain from Pillsbury. He was now the owner of a restaurant chain. Again he reached the top of the ladder of another industry.
4. He was also chairman of the National Restaurant Association during this time. This is a group that interacts with government on behalf of the restaurant industry, and it gave him political experience from the non-politician side.
Having reached the top of a second industry, he changed careers again!
1. Adviser to the Federal Reserve System. Herman Cain went to work for the Federal Reserve Banking System advising them on how monetary policy changes would affect American businesses.
2. Chairman of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank. He worked his way up to the chairmanship of a regional Federal Reserve bank. This is only one step below the chairmanship of the entire Federal Reserve System (the top banking position in the country). This position allowed him to see how monetary policy is made from the inside, and understand the political forces that impact the monetary system.
After reaching the top of the banking industry, he changed careers for a fourth time!
1. Writer and public speaker. He then started to write and speak on leadership. His books include Speak as a Leader, CEO of Self,Leadership is Common Sense, and They Think You’re Stupid.
2. Radio Host. Around 2007—after a remarkable 40 year career—he started hosting a radio show on WSB in Atlanta (the largest talk radio station in the country).
He did all this starting from rock bottom (his father was a chauffeur and his mother was a maid). When you add up his accomplishments in his life—including reaching the top of three unrelated industries: information systems, business management, and banking—Herman Cain may have the most impressive resume of anyone that has run for the presidency in the last half century.
Christian persecution is a Muslim problem
Mecca, we have a problem.
It is not America, nor Europe, and no, it is certainly not Israel.
The problem is Christian persecution. Some 14 centuries after the prophet Mohammed wrote, "Christians are my citizens, and by God, I hold out against anything that displeases them," Christian persecution has become the norm in too many Muslim-majority nations.
A few days ago, 25 Christians were killed in Egypt after state television falsely accused them of creating violence — while they peacefully protested violence against their churches. Rather than fight for the rights of Christians, the Muslim mob attacked them. Yes, the Quran commands Muslims to protect churches from attack, but tell that to the state media that incited violence against their Christian minority. And though Islam requires equal rights and protection for minorities, be careful about saying that out loud — as the minority voice, you may be attacked.
Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of five, sits on death row in a putrid Pakistani prison — literally tortured for her alleged blasphemy of the prophet Mohammed. Yes, the Quran forbids punishment for blasphemy, but tell that to the Muslim clergy. And though Islam does not sanction any sort of priesthood, be careful about saying that out loud — you may be charged with blasphemy.
Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, a Christian father of two, sits on death row, inhumanely incarcerated in Iran for his "crime" of converting to Christianity from Islam. Yes, the Quran forbids punishment for apostasy, but tell that to the Iranian government. And though Islam does not sanction the mixing of mosque and state, be careful about saying that out loud — you may be charged with apostasy.
Earlier this week, a human rights group reported that a 12-year-old Christian girl in Pakistan was kidnapped, raped, forcibly converted to "Islam," and forcibly married to a Muslim before she escaped. When her parents went to the police, they were advised to "return the girl to her rightful husband." Yes, the Quran protects the rights of women and children, condemns rape, forbids inheriting women (let alone children) against their will, and forbids compulsion in religion. And though Islam demands absolute justice in all affairs, be careful about saying that out loud — if you cannot be bribed in Pakistan, you might find yourself buried six feet under.
A Muslim problem demands a Muslim solution.
More than a century ago, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad— who claimed to be the long-awaited Messiah — planted the seeds for what has blossomed into the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Now globally established with tens of millions of adherents, it is at the forefront of taking Islam back from the corruption of such "Muslim" nations.
Ahmadi Muslims believe in absolute justice, reject religious compulsion, are loyal to their nations of residence, uphold the absolute sanctity and equality of human life, believe in gender equity and spiritual equality, condemn religious aggression, and champion universal religious freedom.
Countless Muslims — regardless of background — share these over-riding principles of justice, equality, and pluralism. Consider a few:
•Arsalan Iftikhar of the United States, a prolific international human rights advocate.
•Ali Dayan Hasan of Human Rights Watch, a vociferous supporter of minority rights in Pakistan.
• Azizah al-Hibri, U.S. Commissioner on International Religious Freedom and Founder of Karamah: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights.
Advocates and scholars of all walks are working tirelessly to revive Islam's aforementioned founding principles.
The prophet Mohammed's charter with Christians worldwide concludes, "We defend Christians. … No Muslim is to disobey this covenant until the Last Day." Muslims who hold fast to this covenant happily oblige and grow by the day.
And as such Muslims multiply worldwide, Egypt, Pakistan, and Iran should take note: You have a problem.
Qasim Rashid is a national spokesperson for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, USA.
Arizona cheerleaders to sell 'save your bumps' T-shirts nationwide
Cheerleaders here who created a controversial breast-cancer T-shirt that their high school banned have decided to sell the shirts nationwide to raise money for research into the disease.
The shirts, with the slogan "Feel for lumps, save your bumps" on the back, were originally bought for the 56 freshman, junior varsity and varsity cheerleaders at Gilbert High School to wear during two home football games. The girls planned to collect money for the Susan B. Komen March for the Cure during October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, while wearing the shirts.
But Principal J. Charles Santa Cruz took exception to the slogan and said the shirts never were approved by school administrators. He told Gayleen Skowronek, the cheer booster club president, on Oct. 7 that the shirts would not be allowed on campus.
Skowronek said she has received dozens of phone calls from people across the country, including from North Carolina and Wisconsin, who want to help their cause. Many were interested in buying the shirt, so Skowronek started an e-mail address, saveyourbumps(AT)yahoo.com, and has started collecting orders for the $15 shirts.
The first batch of 40 shirts was ordered Friday.
"The reason for doing this whole entire thing is to raise money for breast cancer, so we thought, 'Let's go with it,' " said Skowronek, 47. "I'm overwhelmed that so many are passionate about wanting to help, especially those who don't live in Gilbert."
LogoWear Express of Chandler, Ariz., is making the shirts at cost, and owner Rick Parker is donating his services to help the cheerleaders.
Skowronek asked Parker and his graphic artist to come up with the design and slogan and thought the shirts were fun and appropriate to bring awareness to breast cancer.
"I don't have any issue with his (Santa Cruz's) opinion, being a parent. But if it was me as a principal, I wouldn't be causing all this ruckus," said Parker, whose daughter is a cheerleader at a Chandler high school. "I respect other people's beliefs. I have seen edgier sayings at my daughter's school. But I can see both sides."
Skowronek said that when the shirt and saying were chosen, she never intended to create problems.
"I never intended nor did I think it would ever get this big," said Skowronek, who was interviewed by all the local television stations Thursday. "But I'm glad it's hitting a new generation by getting the kids more aware."
Some cheerleaders said they were going to protest Friday's football game by not cheering and wearing the shirts outside the stadium while collecting money. But Skowronek said the girls decided they will lead cheers, out of respect for their coach, and not wear the shirts.
She added that some students and the parents will be wearing the controversial shirts though.
"The cheer coach had nothing to do with this," Skowronek said. "This is something the girls have taken upon themselves. We are still backing the coach up, who has backed administration this entire time."
Both Skowronek and Parker agree that the shirt's message saves just one person, all of the angst has been worth it.
"If one teenage girl decides to check herself and make sure her breasts are free of lumps and it saves one life, all of this stuff (controversy) is kind of stupid," Parker said.
The shirts, with the slogan "Feel for lumps, save your bumps" on the back, were originally bought for the 56 freshman, junior varsity and varsity cheerleaders at Gilbert High School to wear during two home football games. The girls planned to collect money for the Susan B. Komen March for the Cure during October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, while wearing the shirts.
But Principal J. Charles Santa Cruz took exception to the slogan and said the shirts never were approved by school administrators. He told Gayleen Skowronek, the cheer booster club president, on Oct. 7 that the shirts would not be allowed on campus.
Skowronek said she has received dozens of phone calls from people across the country, including from North Carolina and Wisconsin, who want to help their cause. Many were interested in buying the shirt, so Skowronek started an e-mail address, saveyourbumps(AT)yahoo.com, and has started collecting orders for the $15 shirts.
The first batch of 40 shirts was ordered Friday.
"The reason for doing this whole entire thing is to raise money for breast cancer, so we thought, 'Let's go with it,' " said Skowronek, 47. "I'm overwhelmed that so many are passionate about wanting to help, especially those who don't live in Gilbert."
LogoWear Express of Chandler, Ariz., is making the shirts at cost, and owner Rick Parker is donating his services to help the cheerleaders.
Skowronek asked Parker and his graphic artist to come up with the design and slogan and thought the shirts were fun and appropriate to bring awareness to breast cancer.
"I don't have any issue with his (Santa Cruz's) opinion, being a parent. But if it was me as a principal, I wouldn't be causing all this ruckus," said Parker, whose daughter is a cheerleader at a Chandler high school. "I respect other people's beliefs. I have seen edgier sayings at my daughter's school. But I can see both sides."
Skowronek said that when the shirt and saying were chosen, she never intended to create problems.
"I never intended nor did I think it would ever get this big," said Skowronek, who was interviewed by all the local television stations Thursday. "But I'm glad it's hitting a new generation by getting the kids more aware."
Some cheerleaders said they were going to protest Friday's football game by not cheering and wearing the shirts outside the stadium while collecting money. But Skowronek said the girls decided they will lead cheers, out of respect for their coach, and not wear the shirts.
She added that some students and the parents will be wearing the controversial shirts though.
"The cheer coach had nothing to do with this," Skowronek said. "This is something the girls have taken upon themselves. We are still backing the coach up, who has backed administration this entire time."
Both Skowronek and Parker agree that the shirt's message saves just one person, all of the angst has been worth it.
"If one teenage girl decides to check herself and make sure her breasts are free of lumps and it saves one life, all of this stuff (controversy) is kind of stupid," Parker said.
Rick Ross - Out of the Hospital, Booking It to Memphis
Rick Ross just posted a video online to prove he's okay after this morning's medical emergency -- insisting he's gonna perform in Memphis tonight come hell or high water.
Rick shot the video moments before take-off in Florida -- from inside his private jet -- and by the looks of it, he means business.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
What would Herman Cain's '9-9-9' tax plan really do?
Many find the GOP presidential candidate's proposal appealing in its simplicity – but at least one analyst says it would shift more of the burden from the wealthy to the middle class and poor.
Herman Cain signs "9-9-9" hands symbolizing his proposed tax overhaul during a book signing last week in The Villages, Fla.
Presidential candidate Herman Cain has made a splash with his "9-9-9" tax plan, which drew the focus of much of this week's Republican debate on the strength of its catchy simplicity.
The plan — were it to surmount dead-on-arrival predictions — would amount to a dramatic benefit to wealthy Americans and a greater burden on the poor and middle class, according to one analysis.
But it is proving a hit with voters who say they're fed up with loopholes and tax breaks for corporations, and with many tea party activists who want government out of their affairs. The allure of Cain's plan is similar to that of previous proposals like the flat tax, which appeals to people like John Nolte.
"The tax system, as it is, is so byzantine, so intentionally complicated," said Nolte, a conservative blogger in North Carolina. "Americans understand that the simplest solutions are usually the best solutions."
Cain's plan would scrap the current tax system and levy a flat 9% tax on businesses, income and sales. It would eliminate the capital gains tax and the inheritance tax and require some lower-income people who pay minimal — if any — income taxes to fork over 9%, the same rate that would be paid by the richest Americans, whose incomes are currently taxed at 35%.
"9-9-9 is bold, and the American people want a bold solution, not just what's going to kick the can down … the road," Cain said during the debate.
Though they also advocate tax reform — a popular topic this campaign season — many GOP presidential hopefuls ridicule Cain's plan as another way to levy more taxes on Americans.
During Tuesday's GOP debate, Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota warned that a flat sales tax could give Congress another way to take money from taxpayers. Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania accused Cain of "giving Washington a huge new tax burden."
"We need something that's doable, doable, doable," said former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who has put forward a proposal to lower the income tax rate on the top bracket of earners to 25% from 35% and phase out corporate subsidies. "And what I have put forward is a tax program that is doable."
Other candidates have tried to simplify the tax code before, most notably businessman Steve Forbes in two presidential campaigns in 1996 and 2000. His solution — a flat tax on income — ultimately fizzled. No one has been able to achieve extensive tax reform on the national level since President Reagan in 1986.
But some analysts say that current discontent with the economy is making Cain's plan more popular among voters — even if isn't likely to pass.
"The difference between now and 1996 is that we are in horrible economic shape," said K.B. Forbes, a GOP strategist who worked on the Steve Forbes campaign. "Bush at the tail end of his presidency and Obama bailed out Wall Street, and the American people feel that they have gotten the short end of the stick."
Nearly three-fourths of people surveyed in a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll said that the country was headed in the wrong direction, up from about 50% in 2009. In the same poll, 27% of likely Republican voters picked Cain as their top candidate, up from 5% six weeks ago.
"There's more interest in going to a lower, flatter, simpler tax code now than in recent history," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, who is nonetheless concerned about Cain's plan because he thinks it could make it easier for the government to raise taxes.
There's an economic argument for simplicity too, said Alan Auerbach, director of the Robert D. Burch Center for Tax Policy and Public Finance at UC Berkeley. Scrapping the current tax system would make it easier for taxpayers to comply with the Internal Revenue Service, and harder for them to avoid paying taxes.
By lowering the tax burden on the wealthy, the plan would encourage more investment and spending, and ultimately boost the economy in the long term, Auerbach said.
Still, Americans might ultimately find that simplicity is misleading, said Edward Kleinbard, a professor of law at USC, who calls the plan "a terrific example of fiscal hocus pocus."
Cain's plan would shift the tax burden from the wealthy to the poor and middle class, according to Kleinbard's analysis. A family of four making $120,000, for example, would pay $800 more in taxes under the plan. Lower-income taxpayers would be even worse off.
"Everyone with income below $120,000 will pay a lot more under the Cain system," Kleinbard said.
Kleinbard, who served as the chief of staff of Congress' Joint Committee on Taxation, said he understood the appeal of simplicity. But Congress has historically used the tax code to give subsidies to struggling industries, and to try to mete out fairness in the economy.
"We could make things simpler, except that when people look at what that means, they don't actually want it," he said. "They like the idea of simplicity; they don't like losing their tax subsidies."
Presidential candidate Herman Cain has made a splash with his "9-9-9" tax plan, which drew the focus of much of this week's Republican debate on the strength of its catchy simplicity.
The plan — were it to surmount dead-on-arrival predictions — would amount to a dramatic benefit to wealthy Americans and a greater burden on the poor and middle class, according to one analysis.
But it is proving a hit with voters who say they're fed up with loopholes and tax breaks for corporations, and with many tea party activists who want government out of their affairs. The allure of Cain's plan is similar to that of previous proposals like the flat tax, which appeals to people like John Nolte.
"The tax system, as it is, is so byzantine, so intentionally complicated," said Nolte, a conservative blogger in North Carolina. "Americans understand that the simplest solutions are usually the best solutions."
Cain's plan would scrap the current tax system and levy a flat 9% tax on businesses, income and sales. It would eliminate the capital gains tax and the inheritance tax and require some lower-income people who pay minimal — if any — income taxes to fork over 9%, the same rate that would be paid by the richest Americans, whose incomes are currently taxed at 35%.
"9-9-9 is bold, and the American people want a bold solution, not just what's going to kick the can down … the road," Cain said during the debate.
Though they also advocate tax reform — a popular topic this campaign season — many GOP presidential hopefuls ridicule Cain's plan as another way to levy more taxes on Americans.
During Tuesday's GOP debate, Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota warned that a flat sales tax could give Congress another way to take money from taxpayers. Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania accused Cain of "giving Washington a huge new tax burden."
"We need something that's doable, doable, doable," said former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who has put forward a proposal to lower the income tax rate on the top bracket of earners to 25% from 35% and phase out corporate subsidies. "And what I have put forward is a tax program that is doable."
Other candidates have tried to simplify the tax code before, most notably businessman Steve Forbes in two presidential campaigns in 1996 and 2000. His solution — a flat tax on income — ultimately fizzled. No one has been able to achieve extensive tax reform on the national level since President Reagan in 1986.
But some analysts say that current discontent with the economy is making Cain's plan more popular among voters — even if isn't likely to pass.
"The difference between now and 1996 is that we are in horrible economic shape," said K.B. Forbes, a GOP strategist who worked on the Steve Forbes campaign. "Bush at the tail end of his presidency and Obama bailed out Wall Street, and the American people feel that they have gotten the short end of the stick."
Nearly three-fourths of people surveyed in a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll said that the country was headed in the wrong direction, up from about 50% in 2009. In the same poll, 27% of likely Republican voters picked Cain as their top candidate, up from 5% six weeks ago.
"There's more interest in going to a lower, flatter, simpler tax code now than in recent history," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, who is nonetheless concerned about Cain's plan because he thinks it could make it easier for the government to raise taxes.
There's an economic argument for simplicity too, said Alan Auerbach, director of the Robert D. Burch Center for Tax Policy and Public Finance at UC Berkeley. Scrapping the current tax system would make it easier for taxpayers to comply with the Internal Revenue Service, and harder for them to avoid paying taxes.
By lowering the tax burden on the wealthy, the plan would encourage more investment and spending, and ultimately boost the economy in the long term, Auerbach said.
Still, Americans might ultimately find that simplicity is misleading, said Edward Kleinbard, a professor of law at USC, who calls the plan "a terrific example of fiscal hocus pocus."
Cain's plan would shift the tax burden from the wealthy to the poor and middle class, according to Kleinbard's analysis. A family of four making $120,000, for example, would pay $800 more in taxes under the plan. Lower-income taxpayers would be even worse off.
"Everyone with income below $120,000 will pay a lot more under the Cain system," Kleinbard said.
Kleinbard, who served as the chief of staff of Congress' Joint Committee on Taxation, said he understood the appeal of simplicity. But Congress has historically used the tax code to give subsidies to struggling industries, and to try to mete out fairness in the economy.
"We could make things simpler, except that when people look at what that means, they don't actually want it," he said. "They like the idea of simplicity; they don't like losing their tax subsidies."
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
New iPhone 4S camera sharp
The camera features of Apple's new iPhone 4S are one of the two standouts that differentiate the new model, along with the voice-activated personal assistant, Siri.
But are the pictures and videos so much better that they'd make you want to upgrade?
They are substantially better, especially the video. Whether that's worth investing in the iPhone 4S and a new service contract is up to you. It's certainly a big improvement over what was already a pretty nice point-and-shoot camera in the iPhone 4.
Here's a closer look:
•The iPhone 4S has an 8-megapixel image sensor, up from the 5-megapixel camera of the iPhone 4. The extra resolution means you can make larger blow-ups for your prints and crop more liberally.
•The lens has a wider 2.4 F-stop opening to let in more light. That will produce much better photos in low light and indoor situations.
•Also, the image processor for the iPhone 4S is the same chip that's used for the iPad 2. Apple says that means the camera operations will run faster.
•You now have the ability to move the camera in more for close-up macro shots.
•Snapping photos can now also be done on the volume-up button, which allows for steadier shots.
•Video resolution has improved to 1080p high-definition, up from 720p.
Eight megapixels is a step up, but the average point-and-shoot camera now has 14 megapixels, says Chris Chute, an analyst at researcher IDC.
Two more features you'll miss if you opt for an iPhone 4S instead of a point-and-shoot: There's no optical zoom, which is a flaw that needs to be addressed in future models, and the flash is greatly inferior to what you'll find on a stand-alone camera.
The reality about camera phones is that most have produced lousy images over the years. People still use them because they always have their phone.
So this souped-up camera in the iPhone is most welcome.
•The added oomph from the wider lens opening produces better color and a brighter image. This is more noticeable for inside photos rather than outside ones in lots of light.
•Despite Apple claims to the contrary, there is still shutter lag. How could a point-and-shoot not have it? If you're hoping to take pictures of your kids running through the backyard, making an important baseball pitch, jumping off a diving board — odds are you could miss the perfect shot.
Bottom line: The iPhone 4S is not the first phone to offer an 8-megapixel sensor. The Motorola Droid Bionic and Samsung Galaxy S II both already have it. Nor is it the first to have 1080p HD video such as that available from the Samsung Galaxy S. But then again, neither of those devices is the beloved iPhone, the most popular and coveted smartphone in the world.
That said, the images on the new iPhone are substantially better, but I wouldn't want to leave my point-and-shoot or DSLR camera at home for an important occasion, such as a vacation.
Overall, the biggest improvement is in the video. The footage it captures looks crisper and sharper, thanks to the wider lens opening, improvements in the lens itself and image stabilization. If you watch the video, which I shot in Hermosa Beach on roller blades, you'll see that it looks almost as though it was made on a steadicam. I'm impressed. This is the best video quality I've seen on a point-and-shoot.
Eight killed in California salon shooting
A gunman opened fire Wednesday in a busy hair salon, killing eight people and critically wounding another while leaving bodies scattered throughout the business in a normally sedate Southern California beach community.
The gunman got into a car and drove away from Salon Meritage after opening fire about 1:30 p.m. He was stopped by officers about a half-mile away and surrendered without incident, said police Sgt. Steve Bowles.
His name was not immediately released.
Police were struggling to determine the motive for the killings.
"There may be something to the motive as to a relationship with somebody in the salon, that is our assumption," Bowles said.
Seal Beach has seen just one other homicide in the past four years.
Police responding to a report of shots fired found six people dead and three wounded. Two of those three died at a hospital. The other person was listed in critical condition.
Bowles said bodies of the victims were scattered throughout the salon, along with two of the wounded. The other wounded person, a man, was found outside the building. It wasn't clear if he was trying to flee when he was shot or if he was the one survivor.
"We're unsure at this point if he shot from the entrance and people, as they were shot, ran in seeking cover or seeking shelter, but we have fatalities throughout the salon," Bowles told reporters at a news conference outside the business.
"From my observation, it did look like people were seeking shelter at the time," he said.
He said the salon was busy at the time, with every hair-dressing station in operation.
He didn't know what type of weapon was used or if the man used more than one.
Salon employee Lorainne Bruielle, who wasn't working Wednesday, told the Long Beach Press-Telegram the gunman was the husband of another employee.
Bruielle said she talked to the husband of one of the employees involved, who said one employee locked herself in the salon's facial room and was unharmed while another man locked himself in a bathroom but was wounded.
The suspect was cooperative when officers, following a description of the shooter, stopped him nearby. He told them he had multiple weapons in his car, Bowles said.
TV news video showed the man, in handcuffs, being placed in a patrol car and taken away about two-and-a-half hours after the shooting. A new white pickup truck that was believed to be his was parked on the modest residential street with its doors open.
The killings stunned this normally quiet community of about 25,000 that boasts on its website that it has "retained its quaint, small-town atmosphere" since it was founded in 1915.
Several visibly distressed people stood near the scene talking on cellphones or to police shortly after the shootings. They declined to be interviewed.
"All I heard was a siren and then after that one of my co-workers got a phone call from her nephew. He was outdoors when the suspect got into his truck and took off," said Cindy Spinosa, 51, who works at a nearby business.
"It's a little disarming," she said. "This is such a quiet community. We don't expect things like this."
Relatives of victims in the salon shooting were being taken to a nearby spiritual center.
"Obviously, a crime of this magnitude is something that Seal Beach is not familiar with," Bowles told reporters.
The quiet beachfront city is home to Leisure World, a gated senior citizen community of 9,000 people, as well as the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station military complex. Two-thirds of the city's 13.23 square miles are occupied by the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge.
The most common crime reported in Seal Beach last year was larceny, with 368 cases reported. There were four rapes reported in 2010, up from two the previous year. There were six robberies, up from 11 the previous year, and 71 assaults, down from 89 the previous year.
Blackberry outage sends MPs and Hill staffers ‘back to 1985’
Across the country Wednesday, Blackberry-challenged politicians and their aides were forced to innovate, which meant using a telephone or just staying quiet.
It was so last century.
“It complicates things though, doesn’t it?” said Rodger Cuzner, a Cape Breton Liberal MP, about the global service disruption.
Mr. Cuzner, who was interviewed by phone just after he got off an airplane, joked he was expecting the service to be restored during his flight.
“I was just waiting for the notice to come forward,” Mr. Cuzner said. “Somebody had tweeted that Raitt was going to put back-to-work legislation in place to make sure they were up and running. So I thought it would be resolved by now.”
He was referring to Labour Minister Lisa Raitt, who has threatened back-to-work legislation in Air Canada’s dispute with its flight attendants.
Toronto NDP Olivia Chow, meanwhile, was also travelling in Nova Scotia while Commons is on a break week. She is a bit of a Blackberry addict, noting that she uses the device for “almost everything.”
“It’s not the most convenient thing,” she said of the service disruption. “When it doesn’t work it’s pretty devastating.”
Ms. Chow, however, travels with some insurance – her iPad. And so, she was able to receive email through a Gmail account.
In Ottawa, NDP strategist Brad Lavigne – whose thumbs bear the callouses from constant Blackberry use – said he’s using the phone a lot more.
“Reminds me of 1999,” he said. “Despite the frustrations I am confident the RIM team will have Canada’s best-known export back on track soon.”
Dean Del Mastro, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary, joked that politicians and staffers are having to communicate the “good old-fashioned way,” which is to pick up a telephone. In fact, Mr. Del Mastro prefers the phone to the Blackberry.
“What I understand is that people are actually at their desks in Ottawa today, which is a novel concept,” he said. “They are working the phones. We’re back to 1985.”
Monday, October 10, 2011
Former Miss Iceland tipped FBI to fugitive 'Whitey' Bulger
Bulger, 82, and his girlfriend Catherine Greig, 60, had been living a quiet life in recent years in an apartment building in Santa Monica, Calif.
SEE: Photos of Bjornsdottir now and in 1974
Bulger is charged with killing 19 people as one of South Boston's most notorious gangsters.
The Globe, in a fascinating, detailed article by reporters Shelley Murphy and Maria Cramer, says Anna Bjornsdottir, a former model, actress and Miss Iceland 1974, lived in the Santa Monica area part time and had befriended the normally guarded couple because of Greig's habit of feeding an abandoned cat in front of her apartment every day.
The Globe says Bjornsdottir learned the couple's true identity when she was visiting her home in Iceland and saw a CNN report about the gangster Bulger and his girlfriend.
She realized immediately that the couple she had known as Charlie and Carol Gasko were actually fugitives.
Although Bjornsdottir declined to speak to The Globe, the newspaper says the 57-year-old yoga instructor and graphic designer eventually collected $2 million in reward money for tipping the FBI.
Phoenix Jones Releases Video Of Pepper Spray Incident
Phoenix Jones Stops Assault from Ryan McNamee on Vimeo.
Phoenix Jones Stops Assault from Ryan McNamee on Vimeo.Phoenix Jones has posted a fourteen minute video—titled “Phoenix Jones Stops Assault”—on his Facebook page, showing the incident which led to his arrest early Sunday morning.
Phoenix Jones Stops Assault from Ryan McNamee on Vimeo.
The video begins moments before Jones rushes under the viaduct and pepper sprays a group of men and women. The shaky video does not clearly show anyone fighting in the street before Jones’ arrival.
The men and women who reported the incident to police told officers they had left a club and were “dancing and having a good time” in the street before Jones approached them.
Following the pepper spraying, the video shows Jones and his crew in an altercation with a woman and several men on the street. Jones flees into a ferry terminal nearby while he waits for police to arrive.
When police arrive on scene, an officer apparently tells Jones “We’re about to arrest the whole bunch of you and clean things up. We’re tired of this game.”
In a (all-caps) statement posted online this morning, Jones said:
MY WIFE AND I HAVE DECIDED TO POST THE VIDEO OF THE RECENT INCIDENT THAT HAS BEEN IN THE NEWS THE VIDEO WILL BE POSTED IN ITS ENTIRETY UNEDITED RAW FOOTAGE THERE WILL BE SCREEN SHOTS TO BETTER VIEW THE CRIME I WITNESSED AND STOPPED ALSO IF YOU KNOW THE PERSON INVOLVED IN THE HIT AND RUN/ATTEMPTED MURDER OF THE MAN I SAVED PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL POLICE (I HAVE A SCREEN SHOT OF THE LICENSE PLATE AND WILL PROVIDE IT TO THE POLICE ALONG WITH YOUR STATEMENT)
Jones also noted in a post several hours earlier that he “would never assault or hurt another person if they were not causing harm to another human being.”
We’ve contacted Jones’ spokesman for comment on the video.
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