News Blog -- Comments from God's Country
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Saturday, June 29, 2013
College Professor Forces Students to Promote Gay Agenda
Several students are demanding a Tennessee community college psychology professor be disciplined for persistently pushing her pro-”gay” views on her students and even forcing students to identify themselves as in favor of the LGBT agenda in a mandatory project.
The Alliance Defense Fund is representing the students who objected to the classroom tactics of Columbia State Community College professor Linda Brunton. The students say any views opposed to Brunton’s were not welcome, and any opposition to the homosexual agenda was considered to be the thinking of “uneducated bigots” who “attack homosexuals with hate.”
But one assignment in particular triggered the protests.
“She assigned the class to wear rainbow coalition ribbons in support of homosexual behavior for at least a day on campus and wherever they went off campus. Students then had to write a reaction paper from wearing those ribbons and how they were allegedly discriminated against while wearing the ribbons,” Alliance Defense Fund attorney David Hacker told WND. “Several students contacted us, just objecting to this. It’s a very clear case of a government official, a state college professor, compelling students to speak in a way they disagree with.”
Hacker said it’s fine for teachers to have students consider ideas from different perspectives, but Brunton clearly crossed the line.
“Colleges and professors can require students to play devil’s advocate in a paper or argue a position in class that they don’t necessarily agree with, as long as it’s an academic exercise,” Hacker said.
“Once the professor here, Ms. Brunton, required the students to advocate a message outside the classroom, that’s compelled speech and it’s clearly unconstitutional.”
Before seeking a legal remedy, the students brought their concerns to Brunton. But Hacker said those efforts went nowhere.
“She, unfortunately, just brushed aside their concerns and basically described their views as ignorant and uneducated, and she said that she hoped the assignment would cause them to change their beliefs,” Hacker said. “Colleges are supposed to be the marketplace of ideas, not an environment where professors are manipulating students into advancing particular political agendas.”
Alliance Defending Freedom is asking Columbia State Community College to investigate the matter, and Hacker said the school has agreed to do so. He said this sort of compelled speech must be addressed, but he said college campuses nationwide are actively promoting the pro-homosexual movement.
“We’re finding it’s very common,” he said. “A few years ago, we represented a student at Missouri State University. She was in a social work class, and the class was assigned a project to write a joint letter to the Missouri State Legislature advocating in favor of same-sex adoption and fostering. The student objected, said she didn’t want to do that because it went well beyond just an academic exercise. It was advocating a position to a legislature.
“The professor turned around and filed ethics charges against her, in fact the worst ethics charges a student can receive at the school and then required her to sign an agreement saying she won’t allow her her personal religious beliefs to get in the way of doing these sorts of assignments. I mean, just a clear violation of her religious liberty, her rights of conscience and her freedom from being compelled to speak in a way that she disagreed with.”
The Alliance Defense Fund is representing the students who objected to the classroom tactics of Columbia State Community College professor Linda Brunton. The students say any views opposed to Brunton’s were not welcome, and any opposition to the homosexual agenda was considered to be the thinking of “uneducated bigots” who “attack homosexuals with hate.”
But one assignment in particular triggered the protests.
“She assigned the class to wear rainbow coalition ribbons in support of homosexual behavior for at least a day on campus and wherever they went off campus. Students then had to write a reaction paper from wearing those ribbons and how they were allegedly discriminated against while wearing the ribbons,” Alliance Defense Fund attorney David Hacker told WND. “Several students contacted us, just objecting to this. It’s a very clear case of a government official, a state college professor, compelling students to speak in a way they disagree with.”
Hacker said it’s fine for teachers to have students consider ideas from different perspectives, but Brunton clearly crossed the line.
“Colleges and professors can require students to play devil’s advocate in a paper or argue a position in class that they don’t necessarily agree with, as long as it’s an academic exercise,” Hacker said.
“Once the professor here, Ms. Brunton, required the students to advocate a message outside the classroom, that’s compelled speech and it’s clearly unconstitutional.”
Before seeking a legal remedy, the students brought their concerns to Brunton. But Hacker said those efforts went nowhere.
“She, unfortunately, just brushed aside their concerns and basically described their views as ignorant and uneducated, and she said that she hoped the assignment would cause them to change their beliefs,” Hacker said. “Colleges are supposed to be the marketplace of ideas, not an environment where professors are manipulating students into advancing particular political agendas.”
Alliance Defending Freedom is asking Columbia State Community College to investigate the matter, and Hacker said the school has agreed to do so. He said this sort of compelled speech must be addressed, but he said college campuses nationwide are actively promoting the pro-homosexual movement.
“We’re finding it’s very common,” he said. “A few years ago, we represented a student at Missouri State University. She was in a social work class, and the class was assigned a project to write a joint letter to the Missouri State Legislature advocating in favor of same-sex adoption and fostering. The student objected, said she didn’t want to do that because it went well beyond just an academic exercise. It was advocating a position to a legislature.
“The professor turned around and filed ethics charges against her, in fact the worst ethics charges a student can receive at the school and then required her to sign an agreement saying she won’t allow her her personal religious beliefs to get in the way of doing these sorts of assignments. I mean, just a clear violation of her religious liberty, her rights of conscience and her freedom from being compelled to speak in a way that she disagreed with.”
Friday, June 28, 2013
Texas teen makes violent joke during video game, is jailed for months
by Robby Soave
The Daily Caller News Foundation
A Texas teenager who has been in jail since March faces an eight-year prison sentence because of a threatening joke he made while playing an online video game.
In February, Justin Carter was playing “League of Legends” — an online, multiplayer fantasy game — when another player wrote a comment calling him insane. Carter’s response, which he now deeply regrets, was intended as joke.
“He replied ‘Oh yeah, I’m real messed up in the head, I’m going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts,’ and the next two lines were lol and jk,” said Jack Carter, Justin’s father, in a statement to a local news channel.
The statements “lol” and “jk” — meaning “laughing out loud” and “just kidding” — indicate that Justin’s statement was entirely sarcastic, said his father.
But a Canadian woman who saw the post looked up Carter’s Austin address, determined that it was near an elementary school, and called the police. Carter was arrested one month later, and has been in jail ever since. He recently celebrated his 19th birthday behind bars.
Authorities charged him with making a terrorist threat. If convicted, he will face eight years in prison.
“These people are serious. They really want my son to go away to jail for a sarcastic comment that he made,” said the elder Carter.
Authorities noted that recent school shootings like the one in Newtown, Connecticut have caused them to evaluate all potential threats seriously. Newtown was still fresh in their minds at the time of Carter’s arrest.
“In light of recent situations, statements such as the one Justin made are taken seriously,” said an Austin police detective in a statement.
Carter’s father said his son didn’t follow the news at all.
“Justin was the kind of kid who didn’t read the newspaper,” said Jack Carter. “He didn’t watch television. He wasn’t aware of current events. These kids, they don’t realize what they’re doing. They don’t understand the implications. They don’t understand.”
Carter’s parents have launched a change.org petition to convince Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot to release their son.
“Release Justin Carter from jail,” the petition reads. “Too many teenagers are being arrested, jailed and having their lives forever altered because of anti-terrorism laws and investigations that impede their 1st Amendment right to freedom of speech.”
A hearing to review Carter’s case is scheduled for July 1.
The Daily Caller News Foundation
A Texas teenager who has been in jail since March faces an eight-year prison sentence because of a threatening joke he made while playing an online video game.
In February, Justin Carter was playing “League of Legends” — an online, multiplayer fantasy game — when another player wrote a comment calling him insane. Carter’s response, which he now deeply regrets, was intended as joke.
“He replied ‘Oh yeah, I’m real messed up in the head, I’m going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts,’ and the next two lines were lol and jk,” said Jack Carter, Justin’s father, in a statement to a local news channel.
The statements “lol” and “jk” — meaning “laughing out loud” and “just kidding” — indicate that Justin’s statement was entirely sarcastic, said his father.
But a Canadian woman who saw the post looked up Carter’s Austin address, determined that it was near an elementary school, and called the police. Carter was arrested one month later, and has been in jail ever since. He recently celebrated his 19th birthday behind bars.
Authorities charged him with making a terrorist threat. If convicted, he will face eight years in prison.
“These people are serious. They really want my son to go away to jail for a sarcastic comment that he made,” said the elder Carter.
Authorities noted that recent school shootings like the one in Newtown, Connecticut have caused them to evaluate all potential threats seriously. Newtown was still fresh in their minds at the time of Carter’s arrest.
“In light of recent situations, statements such as the one Justin made are taken seriously,” said an Austin police detective in a statement.
Carter’s father said his son didn’t follow the news at all.
“Justin was the kind of kid who didn’t read the newspaper,” said Jack Carter. “He didn’t watch television. He wasn’t aware of current events. These kids, they don’t realize what they’re doing. They don’t understand the implications. They don’t understand.”
Carter’s parents have launched a change.org petition to convince Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot to release their son.
“Release Justin Carter from jail,” the petition reads. “Too many teenagers are being arrested, jailed and having their lives forever altered because of anti-terrorism laws and investigations that impede their 1st Amendment right to freedom of speech.”
A hearing to review Carter’s case is scheduled for July 1.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Yesterday's Static
by covert panther
This entire Edward Snowden thing is BLOWN up. For a reason. The media was all over it; it was an instant hit on youtube and all the pundits had an opinion. By now, any news follower knows that anytime the media jumps on something, its for furthering an agenda that suits the 1%. People have fallen for it for years (like 9/11) and the powerful go to the tactic over and over again because, well, it works.
I dont know about you, but I see RIGHT THROUGH the transparency of this entire Snowden act. I think the US government is testing us to see if we would protest about such a huge human rights violation -- domestic spying, spying on EVERYBODY! -- and possibly for the elites to test the international waters as well.
Those who represent their countries; Obama, Putin, Harper, Xi Jinping, Kim yong-Il... Any leader of any elite country - are all in on it together. The entire middle east thing is a coordinated effort by all these globalist players while citizens are told by the news and 'journalists' (paid state flunkies) who is on what side, who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.
Another thing is that these "controllers" of ours control BOTH sides of the argument in pretty much all aspects; banks/stocks, oil/auto industry/road construction, military/terrorists, police/drugs/prisons, tabcco/alcohol, movie/music industry, religion/science, secret societies/United Nations, water/food, essentially, everything you can think of in society.
SO, this brings me back to Snowden - why is there no visual or audio proof he is in Hong Kong or Russia? Why has the media blown it up since DAY 1? It's all internet speculation, there is no concrete proof about anything that has been discussed via news or his introduction video via youtube.
Furthmore, why wasnt his video deleted once it became popular on youtube? They delete many such videos.
Are we just falling into another trap where everything we see and hear we take at face value? Is this another Sandy Hook? Another Boston bombing? Has the entire planet become one big drama stage from which the elite launch their agendas? If nations like USA, China, NK, Russia, France, Isreal, Iran, Syria really opposed each other THAT much - why is it we dont see more bombs and wars going on? Like when North Korea threatened the US? Was it just a staged threat? I think we are all being played -People are too caght up in the drama to see the bigger picture!
WE ARE PAWNS. WE ARE THE ONES THE STAGE WAS SET UP FOR!
We have clearly shown by our own indifference that no Bradley Manning, no Julian Assage, no Edward Snowden is ENOUGH to change things.
Everything has become an illusion, an ARTIFICIAL playground. And most people can't see past it. They're caught in the chokehold of society with their attention focused on money, tv, Ipads, cars, movies, makeup, fashion, sex and whatever is flashed on the television screen.
We should be ashamed of ourselves and the un-willful mentality we have developed. After all, not thinking for one's self is the easy way out. Those who do see what's going on do nothing but log into the internet and whine and argue with each other.
We see the concepts, ideas, and beliefs we live by. We see the borders, the governments, the religions. We see the lies, the deceit, the destruction and killing of our own people.
We can't help but wonder if it's all worth it? All the drama and deception? And yet, what can we do about it when the majority of people can't see what is reality and what is illusion.
A day goes by, Edward Snowden is "on the run" . Another day passes and the governments of the World are that much closer into controlling every facet of our lives.
Is it worth it? Is this really what living as a human on Earth is about? Is that what is has come to?
It's not about Assage or Snowden, it's not about Iraq or 9/11, it's not about Isreal or Iran, it's not about war or money. It is about controlling the people of Earth to the point they are so numb they can't think for themselves anymore.
I wish this article could be a wake up call; but just like the Snowden affair, most likely it will become tomorrow's nothing. Just yesterday's static. Thanks for reading.
This entire Edward Snowden thing is BLOWN up. For a reason. The media was all over it; it was an instant hit on youtube and all the pundits had an opinion. By now, any news follower knows that anytime the media jumps on something, its for furthering an agenda that suits the 1%. People have fallen for it for years (like 9/11) and the powerful go to the tactic over and over again because, well, it works.
I dont know about you, but I see RIGHT THROUGH the transparency of this entire Snowden act. I think the US government is testing us to see if we would protest about such a huge human rights violation -- domestic spying, spying on EVERYBODY! -- and possibly for the elites to test the international waters as well.
Those who represent their countries; Obama, Putin, Harper, Xi Jinping, Kim yong-Il... Any leader of any elite country - are all in on it together. The entire middle east thing is a coordinated effort by all these globalist players while citizens are told by the news and 'journalists' (paid state flunkies) who is on what side, who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.
Another thing is that these "controllers" of ours control BOTH sides of the argument in pretty much all aspects; banks/stocks, oil/auto industry/road construction, military/terrorists, police/drugs/prisons, tabcco/alcohol, movie/music industry, religion/science, secret societies/United Nations, water/food, essentially, everything you can think of in society.
SO, this brings me back to Snowden - why is there no visual or audio proof he is in Hong Kong or Russia? Why has the media blown it up since DAY 1? It's all internet speculation, there is no concrete proof about anything that has been discussed via news or his introduction video via youtube.
Furthmore, why wasnt his video deleted once it became popular on youtube? They delete many such videos.
Are we just falling into another trap where everything we see and hear we take at face value? Is this another Sandy Hook? Another Boston bombing? Has the entire planet become one big drama stage from which the elite launch their agendas? If nations like USA, China, NK, Russia, France, Isreal, Iran, Syria really opposed each other THAT much - why is it we dont see more bombs and wars going on? Like when North Korea threatened the US? Was it just a staged threat? I think we are all being played -People are too caght up in the drama to see the bigger picture!
WE ARE PAWNS. WE ARE THE ONES THE STAGE WAS SET UP FOR!
We have clearly shown by our own indifference that no Bradley Manning, no Julian Assage, no Edward Snowden is ENOUGH to change things.
Everything has become an illusion, an ARTIFICIAL playground. And most people can't see past it. They're caught in the chokehold of society with their attention focused on money, tv, Ipads, cars, movies, makeup, fashion, sex and whatever is flashed on the television screen.
We should be ashamed of ourselves and the un-willful mentality we have developed. After all, not thinking for one's self is the easy way out. Those who do see what's going on do nothing but log into the internet and whine and argue with each other.
We see the concepts, ideas, and beliefs we live by. We see the borders, the governments, the religions. We see the lies, the deceit, the destruction and killing of our own people.
We can't help but wonder if it's all worth it? All the drama and deception? And yet, what can we do about it when the majority of people can't see what is reality and what is illusion.
A day goes by, Edward Snowden is "on the run" . Another day passes and the governments of the World are that much closer into controlling every facet of our lives.
Is it worth it? Is this really what living as a human on Earth is about? Is that what is has come to?
It's not about Assage or Snowden, it's not about Iraq or 9/11, it's not about Isreal or Iran, it's not about war or money. It is about controlling the people of Earth to the point they are so numb they can't think for themselves anymore.
I wish this article could be a wake up call; but just like the Snowden affair, most likely it will become tomorrow's nothing. Just yesterday's static. Thanks for reading.
Consider the Following...
Galatians 6:7-8 Be not deceived, God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shaill of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: evil communications corrupt good manners.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Know ye not that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: evil communications corrupt good manners.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Know ye not that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
When the Government Lies, a Covenant Is Broken
by Tom Ehrich
After denials and evasions, we learned that two successive administrations lied to the American public about unprecedented spying on ordinary citizens.
The latest phase of this longtime spying effort began shortly after 9/11 and accelerated steadily, as the government used existing laws and newly passed laws to demand access to supposedly private information, such as cell phone call logs and email data.
It might have begun as an effort to track foreign terrorists as they interacted with allies in the U.S. and visited the U.S. But it spun out of control as the National Security Agency decided it needed to spy on all citizens.
Pillars of the Internet world such as Google, Facebook and Microsoft were compelled to turn over vast amounts of data, as were communications firms, including Verizon and AT&T. One report said the head of the NSA thought the entire Internet should come under U.S. government control.
Meanwhile, the national intelligence director blandly denied any such program in testimony to Congress. Such apparent falsehoods could merit criminal prosecution.
Defenders of the so-called surveillance state consider such spying a necessary response to terrorism. I disagree. But the larger point is lying itself. When a government lies to its people — not just short-term omissions to protect sensitive missions, but sustained, systematic lying to prevent detection of something the citizenry would likely fear and detest — it breaks a covenant with the people.
For better or worse, the government is accountable to the people — the people whom it presumes to tax and regulate, as well as send into harm’s way.
Maybe the public doesn’t deserve to be held in the implied esteem of a democracy. We are fickle, often uninformed, and likely to shirk our own duties, such as voting. Maybe some would panic if they knew all that endangers them.
But those shortcomings call for information, not the withholding of information; guidance by the wise, not denial by the deceitful; transparency, not layers of obfuscation.
The government must trust the people. If we don’t show ourselves worthy of such trust, we need to be held accountable, but not spied on or repressed. Systematic lying merely makes us trust less and produces a downward spiral into tyranny by the arrogant, fueled by disdain.
Those who considered Barack Obama a breath of fresh air in the cynical world of Washington’s corruption are profoundly disappointed. Was he that easy for the NSA to turn? What others have found him a pushover? Has anyone been looking out for the people?
Those spying on us claim they have foiled “dozens” of terrorist attacks. Who now believes such claims? A bomb-laden Jeep in Times Square, after all, was discovered by accident, not government surveillance.
Even if they have stopped terrorists, the cost of doing so has been too high for a freedom-minded nation that only exists because diverse people have some base level of confidence in each other, in their armed law enforcers, and in their government.
When that confidence evaporates and people take safety and then vengeance into their own hands, we have chaos far worse than anything a determined terrorist could provoke.
As it is, everything comes under suspicion, from safe food to reasonable precautions against fraud. When the wealthy can buy a government, and that government preys on its own people, we have a crisis of identity and existence.
After denials and evasions, we learned that two successive administrations lied to the American public about unprecedented spying on ordinary citizens.
The latest phase of this longtime spying effort began shortly after 9/11 and accelerated steadily, as the government used existing laws and newly passed laws to demand access to supposedly private information, such as cell phone call logs and email data.
It might have begun as an effort to track foreign terrorists as they interacted with allies in the U.S. and visited the U.S. But it spun out of control as the National Security Agency decided it needed to spy on all citizens.
Pillars of the Internet world such as Google, Facebook and Microsoft were compelled to turn over vast amounts of data, as were communications firms, including Verizon and AT&T. One report said the head of the NSA thought the entire Internet should come under U.S. government control.
Meanwhile, the national intelligence director blandly denied any such program in testimony to Congress. Such apparent falsehoods could merit criminal prosecution.
Defenders of the so-called surveillance state consider such spying a necessary response to terrorism. I disagree. But the larger point is lying itself. When a government lies to its people — not just short-term omissions to protect sensitive missions, but sustained, systematic lying to prevent detection of something the citizenry would likely fear and detest — it breaks a covenant with the people.
For better or worse, the government is accountable to the people — the people whom it presumes to tax and regulate, as well as send into harm’s way.
Maybe the public doesn’t deserve to be held in the implied esteem of a democracy. We are fickle, often uninformed, and likely to shirk our own duties, such as voting. Maybe some would panic if they knew all that endangers them.
But those shortcomings call for information, not the withholding of information; guidance by the wise, not denial by the deceitful; transparency, not layers of obfuscation.
The government must trust the people. If we don’t show ourselves worthy of such trust, we need to be held accountable, but not spied on or repressed. Systematic lying merely makes us trust less and produces a downward spiral into tyranny by the arrogant, fueled by disdain.
Those who considered Barack Obama a breath of fresh air in the cynical world of Washington’s corruption are profoundly disappointed. Was he that easy for the NSA to turn? What others have found him a pushover? Has anyone been looking out for the people?
Those spying on us claim they have foiled “dozens” of terrorist attacks. Who now believes such claims? A bomb-laden Jeep in Times Square, after all, was discovered by accident, not government surveillance.
Even if they have stopped terrorists, the cost of doing so has been too high for a freedom-minded nation that only exists because diverse people have some base level of confidence in each other, in their armed law enforcers, and in their government.
When that confidence evaporates and people take safety and then vengeance into their own hands, we have chaos far worse than anything a determined terrorist could provoke.
As it is, everything comes under suspicion, from safe food to reasonable precautions against fraud. When the wealthy can buy a government, and that government preys on its own people, we have a crisis of identity and existence.
There is a concerted effort to redefine marriage as any union between people, regardless of sex, possibly even regardless of the number of participants in that union and possible even regardless of the blood relationship between them.
America continues to abort unborn babies by the millions, and now has moved further in the direction of euthanasia on both ends of the life spectrum - possibly even making it a matter of national, state-controlled health-care mandates.
American foreign policy seems directionless, no longer with the primary concern being national security, but in fostering and fomenting change for the sake of change and breaking down the barriers of national sovereignty.
Government seems determined to enforce a monopoly on force by making it more difficult for Americans to excerise their constitutonally protected right to procure and bear firearms.
Government and cultural institutions are breaking down the pillars and principles upon which self-government has been built.
The people are responding, predictably, by doing what's right in their own eyes, as the people of ancient Israel did before their judgment.
These are just some of the overwhelming problems our nation faces.
Government is broken. No longer does Washington see itself as a servant of the people but rather as their master.
So where do we turn? How can we save America? What would our founders do faced with such predicaments? Those of us who understand the challenges we face for the very survival of America as we have known it throughout most of its history - a shining city on a hill, one nation under God - must start planning now to do something radical. A nationwide day of prayer and repentance can have an enormous impact on restoring our country.
Imagine thousands of churches opening their doors to millions of worshippers who heartily confess their sins, seek forgiveness and pray for salvation and redemption and the restoration of our country.
Will you make a note on your calendar now to join us in that commitment? Will you help spread the word to the remnant of Americans who understand what we’re up against? Will you talk to your pastors and Bible study leaders and get them on board? Will you sign up here to register your expression of support and your intention to participate?
This is a matter between God and His people.
We’ve got our instructions. God is waiting on us to act – His people. He’s not waiting on the whole world to act. He’s not waiting on a majority of Americans to act. He’s waiting on us. Will we follow His command and accept His promise to forgive our sin and heal our land?
Mark the date – Sept. 11, 2013.
Paradise Man Charged with Online Solicitation of a Minor
Last Friday, Christopher Ashmore, 20, of Paradise was arrested just before noon by the Wise County Sheriff's Office. Investigator Josh Reynolds posed (online) as a juvenile female and caught Ashmore in the act of soliciting sex via e-mail and text messages. Ashmore arranged a meeting, but was surprised to learn he had been communicating with Reynolds. According to the Sheriff's Office report, investigators believe there may be more victims.
Why People Tolerate a Total State
by Wendy McElroy
“Why do so many people not realize America has become a total state?”
Anyone who points out the politically obvious and is accused of panic-mongering has considered this question. The NSA's massive spying, the TSA frisking their children, the IRS targeting people politically, the longest war in American history, the militarization of law enforcement, the indefinite detention of prisoners at Gitmo...nothing, nothing seems to budge some people from the belief that the US is the freest, grandest nation on earth. It is an article of faith as deeply held as any belief in God.
But why?
Libertarian Class Analysis
There is no one answer but a good place to start is with a libertarian theory of class analysis. Karl Marx is usually credited with originating class analysis and the Marxist version is the one that most commonly comes to mind. Namely, people are classified based on their relationship to the means of production. Are you a worker or a capitalist?
But class analysis as an analytic tool did not originate with Marx. It was produced by 19th century radical liberal (that is, libertarian) historians who wrote in post-Napoleonic France: Charles Comte, Augustin Thierry and Charles Dunoyer. Their mentor was the great classical liberal economist J.B. Say. Perhaps the best presentation of this version of class analysis occurs in Franz Oppenheimer's book The State. Here he presents the two antagonistic principles upon which most societies operate: the economic and the political means. Or Society and the State.
Oppenheimer wrote, “I mean by Society, the totality of concepts of all purely natural relations and institutions between man and man.” It consists collectively of all voluntary exchanges of labor and goods, including intangible 'goods' like culture. It is a productive and peaceful means that brings mutual benefit to all involved or no exchange would occur.
Oppenheimer wrote, “I mean by it [the State] that summation of privileges and dominating positions which are brought into being by extra-economic power.” It consists of the systematic appropriation of labor and goods, including intangible ones like freedom of speech. It is a non-productive and violent means that benefits the thieves and harms the productive.
This one insight is the basis of libertarian class analysis: Society and the State were in basic and constant conflict with each other. The analysis classifies people based on their relationship to productivity. Are you part of an industrious Society or do you belong to the parasitic State?
Oppenheimer explained the social dynamics set in motion by the political means. Parasites naturally multiply and drain ever more resources. As the political means comes to dominate, however those who produce means see an ever diminishing return from their productivity and, so, they have little incentive to labor beyond subsistence. Society stagnates, which means there is less for the parasite to drain. And, yet, the State is now bloated and it needs an increasing amount of resources. Since it no longer has the consent and cooperation of the productive section, it must use conquest. The American State is at the stage of attempting to conquer American Society.
The Political Means Dominates America
The State is not merely the politicians and officials who run the visible structure of government. It includes every civil servant and bureaucrat. The largest employer in America is the federal government. According to the Office of Personnel Management, there were approximately 2.79 million civil servants as of December 2011. But this number is for “civilian” personnel only and does not include uniformed civil servants, such as law enforcement. Of course, every state, county and city ratchets up the civil servant count with their own employees.
The State also includes the people whose political support is purchased by the stolen labor and goods, such as disability recipients. The ranks of these recipients is swelling as the individual states aggressively encourage the unemployed to pursue disability (a federal expense). For example, in New Mexico, the number of disability recipients jumped 58.7% in nine years. NPR recently (03/22/13) ran an in-depth analysis that estimated the total number of people on disability to be “about 14 million Americans who don't have jobs and who don't show up in any of the unemployment measures we use.” Disability is only one 'welfare' program among dozens and dozens.
The State includes people ostensibly in the private sector whose job is to facilitate the theft of labor and goods – for example, lawyers who hit productive businesses with dubious suits based on Nanny State laws. Employees in the military-industrial complex, suppliers to the military, subsidized banks and corporations, the list of those who survive on tax money goes on and on.
This is the first reason why so many people will never recognize that America is deteriorating; it is not deteriorating for them because they are the beneficiaries of the political means, and the police state works to their advantage. They benefit through money and pensions but many also benefit through acquiring status or power over others. A vast number of government employees could never earn these advantages based on merit in the private sector. They have a deep vested interest in not seeing themselves as the enemies of Society. Nor are their families likely to turn against the source of food on their tables.
The Tipping Point Theory
But why are people who are not tax consumers seemingly blind to the danger of the present State? Among the many explanations, I think three are commonplace.
They may not be blind but merely silent.
Or they may not be discontented. The Austrian economist Murray Rothbard once told me how his parents lived far better during the Great Depression than they had before it. They both held onto decent jobs and prices were very low. Such people are not fertile for a discussion about the economic calamity being inflicted by a State under which they prospered.
Equally, people who have never experienced the direct violence of the state are inclined to dismiss disturbing reports from those who have. As long as they live in relative comfort, these people allow the State to process their lives. They go about the business of living instead of focusing on matters they do not control. For many, it will take a tipping within their own lives or within society at large for the business of living to include a recognition of how dangerous the State can be.
A tipping point is the critical point at which an accumulation of minor changes triggers a major and often irreversible one. The build up to a social tipping point occurs on an individual basis. The Arab Spring is an example. Enough people became individually dissatisfied to form a mass protest movement. And it happened with sudden ease. The key is “enough individuals” need to become dissatisfied for a tipping point to occur. Before it happens, however, the people who simply want to live will tend to ignore political problems out of a feeling of isolation or helplessness. Afterward, some will awaken. Perhaps they will be appalled at the brutality the State heaps upon those who challenge it, perhaps a family member will become involved in a protest, perhaps they will simply cease to feel helpless..
Conclusion
I suspect America is close to a social tipping point. If so, it will be caused by a bloated State consuming more and more from a Society that is already half on its knees.
How many individuals need to feel the tipping point within themselves for it occur in a general manner? The nineteenth century libertarian Benjamin Tucker estimated the figure at 10%. If 10% of society said “no” to a law, then the law would become unenforceable. The number or percentage is impossible to measure, of course, but it is almost certain to be far, far less than 50%. Fortunately, history has rarely required a majority for social change to occur.
Whether or not the outcome of such a tip would be Society or more of the State depends as much upon how many people become reluctant to say “yes” as much as it does upon the 10% who say “no.”
Wendy McElroy is a frequent Dollar Vigilante contributor and renowned individualist anarchist and individualist feminist. She was a co-founder along with Carl Watner and George H. Smith of The Voluntaryist in 1982, and is the author/editor of twelve books, the latest of which is "The Art of Being Free". Follow her work at http://www.wendymcelroy.com.
by Wendy McElroy
“Why do so many people not realize America has become a total state?”
Anyone who points out the politically obvious and is accused of panic-mongering has considered this question. The NSA's massive spying, the TSA frisking their children, the IRS targeting people politically, the longest war in American history, the militarization of law enforcement, the indefinite detention of prisoners at Gitmo...nothing, nothing seems to budge some people from the belief that the US is the freest, grandest nation on earth. It is an article of faith as deeply held as any belief in God.
But why?
Libertarian Class Analysis
There is no one answer but a good place to start is with a libertarian theory of class analysis. Karl Marx is usually credited with originating class analysis and the Marxist version is the one that most commonly comes to mind. Namely, people are classified based on their relationship to the means of production. Are you a worker or a capitalist?
But class analysis as an analytic tool did not originate with Marx. It was produced by 19th century radical liberal (that is, libertarian) historians who wrote in post-Napoleonic France: Charles Comte, Augustin Thierry and Charles Dunoyer. Their mentor was the great classical liberal economist J.B. Say. Perhaps the best presentation of this version of class analysis occurs in Franz Oppenheimer's book The State. Here he presents the two antagonistic principles upon which most societies operate: the economic and the political means. Or Society and the State.
Oppenheimer wrote, “I mean by Society, the totality of concepts of all purely natural relations and institutions between man and man.” It consists collectively of all voluntary exchanges of labor and goods, including intangible 'goods' like culture. It is a productive and peaceful means that brings mutual benefit to all involved or no exchange would occur.
Oppenheimer wrote, “I mean by it [the State] that summation of privileges and dominating positions which are brought into being by extra-economic power.” It consists of the systematic appropriation of labor and goods, including intangible ones like freedom of speech. It is a non-productive and violent means that benefits the thieves and harms the productive.
This one insight is the basis of libertarian class analysis: Society and the State were in basic and constant conflict with each other. The analysis classifies people based on their relationship to productivity. Are you part of an industrious Society or do you belong to the parasitic State?
Oppenheimer explained the social dynamics set in motion by the political means. Parasites naturally multiply and drain ever more resources. As the political means comes to dominate, however those who produce means see an ever diminishing return from their productivity and, so, they have little incentive to labor beyond subsistence. Society stagnates, which means there is less for the parasite to drain. And, yet, the State is now bloated and it needs an increasing amount of resources. Since it no longer has the consent and cooperation of the productive section, it must use conquest. The American State is at the stage of attempting to conquer American Society.
The Political Means Dominates America
The State is not merely the politicians and officials who run the visible structure of government. It includes every civil servant and bureaucrat. The largest employer in America is the federal government. According to the Office of Personnel Management, there were approximately 2.79 million civil servants as of December 2011. But this number is for “civilian” personnel only and does not include uniformed civil servants, such as law enforcement. Of course, every state, county and city ratchets up the civil servant count with their own employees.
The State also includes the people whose political support is purchased by the stolen labor and goods, such as disability recipients. The ranks of these recipients is swelling as the individual states aggressively encourage the unemployed to pursue disability (a federal expense). For example, in New Mexico, the number of disability recipients jumped 58.7% in nine years. NPR recently (03/22/13) ran an in-depth analysis that estimated the total number of people on disability to be “about 14 million Americans who don't have jobs and who don't show up in any of the unemployment measures we use.” Disability is only one 'welfare' program among dozens and dozens.
The State includes people ostensibly in the private sector whose job is to facilitate the theft of labor and goods – for example, lawyers who hit productive businesses with dubious suits based on Nanny State laws. Employees in the military-industrial complex, suppliers to the military, subsidized banks and corporations, the list of those who survive on tax money goes on and on.
This is the first reason why so many people will never recognize that America is deteriorating; it is not deteriorating for them because they are the beneficiaries of the political means, and the police state works to their advantage. They benefit through money and pensions but many also benefit through acquiring status or power over others. A vast number of government employees could never earn these advantages based on merit in the private sector. They have a deep vested interest in not seeing themselves as the enemies of Society. Nor are their families likely to turn against the source of food on their tables.
The Tipping Point Theory
But why are people who are not tax consumers seemingly blind to the danger of the present State? Among the many explanations, I think three are commonplace.
They may not be blind but merely silent.
Or they may not be discontented. The Austrian economist Murray Rothbard once told me how his parents lived far better during the Great Depression than they had before it. They both held onto decent jobs and prices were very low. Such people are not fertile for a discussion about the economic calamity being inflicted by a State under which they prospered.
Equally, people who have never experienced the direct violence of the state are inclined to dismiss disturbing reports from those who have. As long as they live in relative comfort, these people allow the State to process their lives. They go about the business of living instead of focusing on matters they do not control. For many, it will take a tipping within their own lives or within society at large for the business of living to include a recognition of how dangerous the State can be.
A tipping point is the critical point at which an accumulation of minor changes triggers a major and often irreversible one. The build up to a social tipping point occurs on an individual basis. The Arab Spring is an example. Enough people became individually dissatisfied to form a mass protest movement. And it happened with sudden ease. The key is “enough individuals” need to become dissatisfied for a tipping point to occur. Before it happens, however, the people who simply want to live will tend to ignore political problems out of a feeling of isolation or helplessness. Afterward, some will awaken. Perhaps they will be appalled at the brutality the State heaps upon those who challenge it, perhaps a family member will become involved in a protest, perhaps they will simply cease to feel helpless..
Conclusion
I suspect America is close to a social tipping point. If so, it will be caused by a bloated State consuming more and more from a Society that is already half on its knees.
How many individuals need to feel the tipping point within themselves for it occur in a general manner? The nineteenth century libertarian Benjamin Tucker estimated the figure at 10%. If 10% of society said “no” to a law, then the law would become unenforceable. The number or percentage is impossible to measure, of course, but it is almost certain to be far, far less than 50%. Fortunately, history has rarely required a majority for social change to occur.
Whether or not the outcome of such a tip would be Society or more of the State depends as much upon how many people become reluctant to say “yes” as much as it does upon the 10% who say “no.”
Wendy McElroy is a frequent Dollar Vigilante contributor and renowned individualist anarchist and individualist feminist. She was a co-founder along with Carl Watner and George H. Smith of The Voluntaryist in 1982, and is the author/editor of twelve books, the latest of which is "The Art of Being Free". Follow her work at http://www.wendymcelroy.com.
Monday, June 24, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Texas Gun Owner Targeted with 'No-Knock' Raid
A Texas citizen is asking a state appeals court to decide whether police are justified in launching a no-knock raid on a home they want to search simply because they believe there is a gun inside.
“Whatever the issue might be, whether it’s mass surveillance, no-knock raids, or the right to freely express one’s views about the government, we’ve moved into a new age in which the rights of the citizenry are being treated as a secondary concern by the White House, Congress, the courts and their vast holding of employees, including law enforcement officials,” said John W. Whitehead, president of the Rutherford Institute, which is defending John Gerard Quinn.
The controversy arose after police officers in Texas executed a no-knock raid on Quinn’s home, based on their belief there was an AK-47 rifle inside.
In its appeal to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Rutherford Institute pointed out that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a no-knock entry is justified only with a specific warrant or if officers believe someone might be hurt or evidence might be lost.
“Here, the police based their no-knock entry solely upon their suspicion that the occupants of the residence may have been in possession of a rifle,” the appeal explains. “That the suspected possession of weapons was the only ‘justification’ for use of a no-knock entry in this case is undisputed.”
The petition asks that the court establish that an individual’s exercise of his Second Amendment right to possess a firearm in his residence does not deprive him of his Fourth Amendment protection against “no-knock” searches.
Quinn’s home had been “stormed by a SWAT team that failed to knock and announce its entry in keeping with police protocol for non-violent situations,” Rutherford said.
“Although the SWAT team had been granted a search warrant on the basis of leads provided by informants that Quinn’s son may have been involved in drug activity, the warrant did not authorize police to enter the residence without knocking and announcing their entry.”
The SWAT team forcibly broke into Quinn’s home after he had gone to bed and proceeded to carry out a search of the premises. The raid resulted in police finding less than one gram of cocaine, which Quinn was charged with possessing.
The appeal also raises other constitutional issues, including a defective answer from a judge to the jury deliberating the case and the inappropriate use of evidence that should have been suppressed.
But on the issue of the gun in the home, the brief argues that the Supreme Court never has held that suspected possession of firearms is sufficient cause, without more, to justify a no-knock entry.
The brief also criticizes earlier court comments about the AK-47.
“The [court] seems to think than an ‘AK-47′ rifle is some sort of ‘exceptionally’ dangerous weapon. Actually, despite the faux mystique surrounding that particular type of rifle fostered by popular media, the AK-47 is not uniquely dangerous,” a footnote in the brief explains. “It is the most-used rifle in the world because there are 100 million of them, it is cheap to make and easy to repair, and because it can be chambered for a wide variety of calibers.
“When chambered for .223 caliber … it is no more dangerous than any other .223 caliber rifle such as the AR-15 – the most widely used hunting rifle in the U.S. today,” the footnote says.
“As a gun collector who prudently kept his legally owned collection safely secured in gun vaults, it was altogether possible that Mr. Quinn could have had a large number of guns in his home and no ammunition. The point here is not to argue that ‘possession’ of guns does not roughly or usually equate to possession of ‘working’ guns. The point is: an AK-47 is no more powerful – and is indeed less powerful – than many common hunting rifles.
“The police, being weapons experts, obviously knew this – but testified about the ‘dangerous’ nature of this particular gun because they knew the jury would have heard of it in the media and would know about its mystique as the weapon of choice for terrorists around the world. Clever, but misleading.”
“Whatever the issue might be, whether it’s mass surveillance, no-knock raids, or the right to freely express one’s views about the government, we’ve moved into a new age in which the rights of the citizenry are being treated as a secondary concern by the White House, Congress, the courts and their vast holding of employees, including law enforcement officials,” said John W. Whitehead, president of the Rutherford Institute, which is defending John Gerard Quinn.
The controversy arose after police officers in Texas executed a no-knock raid on Quinn’s home, based on their belief there was an AK-47 rifle inside.
In its appeal to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Rutherford Institute pointed out that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a no-knock entry is justified only with a specific warrant or if officers believe someone might be hurt or evidence might be lost.
“Here, the police based their no-knock entry solely upon their suspicion that the occupants of the residence may have been in possession of a rifle,” the appeal explains. “That the suspected possession of weapons was the only ‘justification’ for use of a no-knock entry in this case is undisputed.”
The petition asks that the court establish that an individual’s exercise of his Second Amendment right to possess a firearm in his residence does not deprive him of his Fourth Amendment protection against “no-knock” searches.
Quinn’s home had been “stormed by a SWAT team that failed to knock and announce its entry in keeping with police protocol for non-violent situations,” Rutherford said.
“Although the SWAT team had been granted a search warrant on the basis of leads provided by informants that Quinn’s son may have been involved in drug activity, the warrant did not authorize police to enter the residence without knocking and announcing their entry.”
The SWAT team forcibly broke into Quinn’s home after he had gone to bed and proceeded to carry out a search of the premises. The raid resulted in police finding less than one gram of cocaine, which Quinn was charged with possessing.
The appeal also raises other constitutional issues, including a defective answer from a judge to the jury deliberating the case and the inappropriate use of evidence that should have been suppressed.
But on the issue of the gun in the home, the brief argues that the Supreme Court never has held that suspected possession of firearms is sufficient cause, without more, to justify a no-knock entry.
The brief also criticizes earlier court comments about the AK-47.
“The [court] seems to think than an ‘AK-47′ rifle is some sort of ‘exceptionally’ dangerous weapon. Actually, despite the faux mystique surrounding that particular type of rifle fostered by popular media, the AK-47 is not uniquely dangerous,” a footnote in the brief explains. “It is the most-used rifle in the world because there are 100 million of them, it is cheap to make and easy to repair, and because it can be chambered for a wide variety of calibers.
“When chambered for .223 caliber … it is no more dangerous than any other .223 caliber rifle such as the AR-15 – the most widely used hunting rifle in the U.S. today,” the footnote says.
“As a gun collector who prudently kept his legally owned collection safely secured in gun vaults, it was altogether possible that Mr. Quinn could have had a large number of guns in his home and no ammunition. The point here is not to argue that ‘possession’ of guns does not roughly or usually equate to possession of ‘working’ guns. The point is: an AK-47 is no more powerful – and is indeed less powerful – than many common hunting rifles.
“The police, being weapons experts, obviously knew this – but testified about the ‘dangerous’ nature of this particular gun because they knew the jury would have heard of it in the media and would know about its mystique as the weapon of choice for terrorists around the world. Clever, but misleading.”
Friday, June 21, 2013
Another One Bites the Dust
BY TIM SCHMIDT - USCCA FOUNDER
"People who own guns are essentially a sickness on our soul."
This quote is from Colorado State Senate President John Morse, D-Colorado Springs. John Morse is being recalled by voters. That's right. The man who helped push through bad gun laws this spring is being recalled by more constituents than actually even voted in his election! An election to replace him should take place in September or October, and while the legal battle over this is yet to play out, one thing is certain: Patriots in Colorado have had enough. They are no longer laying down for dangerous gun laws and the foolish lawmakers who craft them.
I don't need to spell out for you how important this is. Think about it. If just one or two people hadn't been proactive in creating the petition that is taking John Morse out of office, then where would they be today?
This event is proof that YOU have the power to get rid of lawmakers who trample on your rights. I implore you: If you have state and local elected officials who are threatening your ability to legally and justifiably protect your family from harm, you need to do something about it.
If they can do it in Colorado, you can do it where you live. Nothing is impossible.
"People who own guns are essentially a sickness on our soul."
This quote is from Colorado State Senate President John Morse, D-Colorado Springs. John Morse is being recalled by voters. That's right. The man who helped push through bad gun laws this spring is being recalled by more constituents than actually even voted in his election! An election to replace him should take place in September or October, and while the legal battle over this is yet to play out, one thing is certain: Patriots in Colorado have had enough. They are no longer laying down for dangerous gun laws and the foolish lawmakers who craft them.
I don't need to spell out for you how important this is. Think about it. If just one or two people hadn't been proactive in creating the petition that is taking John Morse out of office, then where would they be today?
This event is proof that YOU have the power to get rid of lawmakers who trample on your rights. I implore you: If you have state and local elected officials who are threatening your ability to legally and justifiably protect your family from harm, you need to do something about it.
If they can do it in Colorado, you can do it where you live. Nothing is impossible.
15-Year-Old With Pellet Gun Shot to Death at School by Texas Police Officers
Teenager was allegedly pointing a pellet gun at his own temple when shot.
BROWNSVILLE, Texas (CN) - Brownsville police "came in guns blazing" and shot a middle-school student to death at school; he was carrying a pellet gun, his parents claim in court. Read full article here.
BROWNSVILLE, Texas (CN) - Brownsville police "came in guns blazing" and shot a middle-school student to death at school; he was carrying a pellet gun, his parents claim in court. Read full article here.
It's All About Power, Not Logic, Not Morality
Fr. Frank Pavone Pens Excoriating Open Letter to Nancy Pelosi Lambasting Her Abortion Stance: Renounce Catholicism or Comply With It
Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi is openly pro-choice, a stance that, quite obviously, contradicts Catholic teaching. After she recently rebuffed a reporter and used her faith to defend her policy views on abortion, it seems at least one priest is calling for her to either comply with — or renounce Catholicism.
In an open letter, Fr. Frank Pavone, national director for Priests for Life, a pro-life organization, made known his discontent with Pelosi’s most recent comments about abortion.
“Last Thursday, June 13, you were asked a question in a press briefing that you declined to answer. The question was, ‘What is the moral difference between what Dr. Gosnell did to a baby born alive at 23 weeks and aborting her moments before birth?,’” Pavone wrote. “Instead of even attempting to answer the question, you resorted to judgmental ad hominem attacks on the reporter who asked it, saying, ‘You obviously have an agenda. You’re not interested in having an answer.’”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) delivers remarks during a dedication ceremony for the new Frederick Douglass Statue in Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center, at the U.S. Capitol, on June 19, 2013 in Washington, DC. The 7 foot bronze statue of Douglass joins fellow black Americans Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. and Sojourner Truth on permanent display in the Capitol’s Emancipation Hall.
The priest said, though, that it is Pelosi’s stance on the matter that is problematic, as she isn’t interested in “giving an answer.”
But that wasn’t the harshest of his rebukes. Pavone went on to charge that Pelosi made a “mockery of the Catholic faith” during the press conference and that she offended millions of Americans who follow church doctrine. Here, he was referring to her claim to be a “practicing and respectful Catholic” who believes that the abortion discussion is “sacred ground.”
“You speak here of Catholic faith as if it is supposed to hide us from reality instead of lead us to face reality, as if it is supposed to confuse basic moral truths instead of clarify them, and as if it is supposed to help us escape the hard moral questions of life rather than help us confront them,” he continued.
“Whatever Catholic faith you claim to respect and practice, it is not the faith that the Catholic Church teaches. And I speak for countless Catholics when I say that it’s time for you to stop speaking as if it were,” added the priest.
U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) (2nd L) and Deborah Dingell, wife of Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) (L), gesture as they dance during a celebration recognizing Rep. Dingell as the longest-serving member in the history of the United States Congress June 13, 2013 at the Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. Rep. Dingell surpassed the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) to become the longest-serving member on June 7, 2013. He first entered Congress on December 13, 1955.
At the heart of his gripe is the notion that, in his view, Pelosi has been allowed to spout ideas that are contrary to Catholic teaching, but that she seems to claim correspond with the theology.
As TheBlaze’s Becket Adams previously reported, The Weekly Standard’s John McCormack caught Pelosi in some uncomfortable comments last week about late-term abortion. These curiosities are what inspired Pavone’s response.
After she decried what happened in Philadelphia concerning Dr. Kermit Gosnell and his “house of horrors” abortion clinic, Pelosi told McCormack, “For [the drafters of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act] to decide to disrespect a judgment a woman makes about her reproductive health is reprehensible.”
She was referring to legislation that would ban most abortions after the five-month period.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) holds up a photograph of slain Sandy Hook Elementary school teacher Lauren Rousseau while speaking during an event marking the six month anniversary of the Newtown, Connecticut shooting at the U.S. Capitol June 13, 2013 in Washington, DC. Friends and family members of the shooting victims joined members of Congress for a day long event to honor the 26 children and educators killed in the December shooting, and to renew calls for gun reform legislation.
“So what’s the moral difference? I just asked a simple question. … What’s the moral difference then between 26 weeks elective abortion and killing of that same infant born alive?,” the journalist pressed in response.
“As a practicing and respectful Catholic, this is sacred ground to me when we talk about this. This shouldn’t have anything to do with politics,” Pelosi then responded.
Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi is openly pro-choice, a stance that, quite obviously, contradicts Catholic teaching. After she recently rebuffed a reporter and used her faith to defend her policy views on abortion, it seems at least one priest is calling for her to either comply with — or renounce Catholicism.
In an open letter, Fr. Frank Pavone, national director for Priests for Life, a pro-life organization, made known his discontent with Pelosi’s most recent comments about abortion.
“Last Thursday, June 13, you were asked a question in a press briefing that you declined to answer. The question was, ‘What is the moral difference between what Dr. Gosnell did to a baby born alive at 23 weeks and aborting her moments before birth?,’” Pavone wrote. “Instead of even attempting to answer the question, you resorted to judgmental ad hominem attacks on the reporter who asked it, saying, ‘You obviously have an agenda. You’re not interested in having an answer.’”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) delivers remarks during a dedication ceremony for the new Frederick Douglass Statue in Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center, at the U.S. Capitol, on June 19, 2013 in Washington, DC. The 7 foot bronze statue of Douglass joins fellow black Americans Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. and Sojourner Truth on permanent display in the Capitol’s Emancipation Hall.
The priest said, though, that it is Pelosi’s stance on the matter that is problematic, as she isn’t interested in “giving an answer.”
But that wasn’t the harshest of his rebukes. Pavone went on to charge that Pelosi made a “mockery of the Catholic faith” during the press conference and that she offended millions of Americans who follow church doctrine. Here, he was referring to her claim to be a “practicing and respectful Catholic” who believes that the abortion discussion is “sacred ground.”
“You speak here of Catholic faith as if it is supposed to hide us from reality instead of lead us to face reality, as if it is supposed to confuse basic moral truths instead of clarify them, and as if it is supposed to help us escape the hard moral questions of life rather than help us confront them,” he continued.
“Whatever Catholic faith you claim to respect and practice, it is not the faith that the Catholic Church teaches. And I speak for countless Catholics when I say that it’s time for you to stop speaking as if it were,” added the priest.
U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) (2nd L) and Deborah Dingell, wife of Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) (L), gesture as they dance during a celebration recognizing Rep. Dingell as the longest-serving member in the history of the United States Congress June 13, 2013 at the Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. Rep. Dingell surpassed the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) to become the longest-serving member on June 7, 2013. He first entered Congress on December 13, 1955.
At the heart of his gripe is the notion that, in his view, Pelosi has been allowed to spout ideas that are contrary to Catholic teaching, but that she seems to claim correspond with the theology.
As TheBlaze’s Becket Adams previously reported, The Weekly Standard’s John McCormack caught Pelosi in some uncomfortable comments last week about late-term abortion. These curiosities are what inspired Pavone’s response.
After she decried what happened in Philadelphia concerning Dr. Kermit Gosnell and his “house of horrors” abortion clinic, Pelosi told McCormack, “For [the drafters of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act] to decide to disrespect a judgment a woman makes about her reproductive health is reprehensible.”
She was referring to legislation that would ban most abortions after the five-month period.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) holds up a photograph of slain Sandy Hook Elementary school teacher Lauren Rousseau while speaking during an event marking the six month anniversary of the Newtown, Connecticut shooting at the U.S. Capitol June 13, 2013 in Washington, DC. Friends and family members of the shooting victims joined members of Congress for a day long event to honor the 26 children and educators killed in the December shooting, and to renew calls for gun reform legislation.
“So what’s the moral difference? I just asked a simple question. … What’s the moral difference then between 26 weeks elective abortion and killing of that same infant born alive?,” the journalist pressed in response.
“As a practicing and respectful Catholic, this is sacred ground to me when we talk about this. This shouldn’t have anything to do with politics,” Pelosi then responded.
Michigan Student Wins Free-Speech Lawsuit Against Teacher for Anti-Homosexual Stand
Howell, Michigan -- A judge says the free speech rights of a Michigan teenager were violated when he expressed an opinion against homosexuality and was removed from class during an anti-bullying day.
Detroit federal Judge Patrick Duggan on Wednesday ruled in favor of Daniel Glowacki and ordered Howell High School teacher Johnson "Jay" McDowell to pay $1.
McDowell admits that he ejected Glowacki from class in 2010 when the student said he doesn't accept gays because of his religion. McDowell had played a short video about someone who committed suicide after being bullied about his sexual orientation.
The judge says Glowacki was protected by the First Amendment, and the teacher was "primarily motivated' by his disagreement with the student's views.
McDowell was reprimanded by the Howell district. Glowacki graduated in 2012.
Detroit federal Judge Patrick Duggan on Wednesday ruled in favor of Daniel Glowacki and ordered Howell High School teacher Johnson "Jay" McDowell to pay $1.
McDowell admits that he ejected Glowacki from class in 2010 when the student said he doesn't accept gays because of his religion. McDowell had played a short video about someone who committed suicide after being bullied about his sexual orientation.
The judge says Glowacki was protected by the First Amendment, and the teacher was "primarily motivated' by his disagreement with the student's views.
McDowell was reprimanded by the Howell district. Glowacki graduated in 2012.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Power Outages in Chico, Alvord
People in Alvord and Chico may experience lengthy power outages as a result of a fire at an Oncor substation near Chico.
Oncor area manager Sabrina Easley reported that there is no estimated time of restoration of power. Additionally, the cause of the fire remains unknown.
Chico is using the community center at City Hall as a cooling station for anyone affected by the power outages.
Oncor area manager Sabrina Easley reported that there is no estimated time of restoration of power. Additionally, the cause of the fire remains unknown.
Chico is using the community center at City Hall as a cooling station for anyone affected by the power outages.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Court Reporter Arrested
271st District Court Reporter Jeff Goodwyn, 56, of Decatur was arrested for possession of a controlled substance early Friday morning. Goodwyn was arrested at 1:50 a.m. at a motel in Decatur after delivering illegal drugs to an undercover DPS agent. Following Goodwyn’s arrest officers searched his home and found drug paraphernalia in the basement. According to police, there were no other arrests, but the investigation is continuing. Computers were also confiscated during the raid. Additionally, the investigation has been ongoing for several weeks. Goodwyn earns $86,000 a year as a court reporter in the 271st District Court. Jeff attends First Baptist Church of Decatur. Our prayers go out to Jeff and his family during this troubled time in his life and our hope is that this incident will give him the impetus to turn his life around.
Rand Paul Talks about War on Christianity
Rand Paul says there is a war on Christianity waged by liberals in the US and worldwide. Read about it here.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
US Going Back to War
Obama has decided to support the Syrian rebels in their efforts to overthrow the Syrian government. Now, I've never cared for President Assad or his anti-Israeli policies, but do you know who is fighting with the rebels? Al Qaeda, that's who. Read about it here.
DHS Continues to Prepare for Domestic Unrest
It's not about terrorism anymore. It's about freedom -- us vs. them. Read about it here.
Slaton TX Cops Will Pay for This One
Police arrest woman after request to see warrant
Slaton, Texas is a few miles northeast of Lubbock and apparently is well-known for its police corruption.
Slaton police came to this woman's house, who wishes to remain anonymous, to arrest her son. But by asking one simple question, she found herself behind bars instead.
"I told him, 'I will release my son to you upon viewing those orders.' Those were exactly my words," The complainant said. "He said, 'This is how you want to play?' He took two steps back, turned around to the officer and said, 'Take her.' They turned me around, handcuffed me, and took me in."
The complainant said she was aware police would be coming to apprehend her 11-year-old son based on a criminal complaint, and that she just wanted to see the warrant. As it turns out, that warrant didn't exist. She spent the night in jail while her son was left at home.
"He told me it was their duty to come pick up my son," She said. "Yet, I had someone stay the night at my house. They never came back that evening, they never came to pick up my son, or do what they told me they were there to do in the beginning."
"This occurred on May 29 when they went out to apprehend this young man," Dwight McDonald, the family's attorney, said. "The directive to apprehend was not signed until May 30, which is another indication that they didn't have the authority to go out and arrest him or apprehend this young man."
The Slaton Police Department is willing to issue an apology, but McDonald said that's not enough.
"If she moves out of Slaton and tries to find a job elsewhere, you can Google her name, and at that point, the arrest, my guess is, is going to show up," McDonald said.
"I will accept an apology, but what is that going to do?" The complainant said. "It's not going to take my picture off the internet sites that have been posted, from being published in the newspaper, from where I work. I've never been in trouble, in 32 years of my life, from anything, and to get thrown in jail because I asked a question is not right."
McDonald said the Slaton Police Department will issue an apology as long as the mother agrees not to file a lawsuit. He said unless she is compensated for her expenses and the trauma she's been through, a lawsuit won't be out of the question.
We attempted to contact Slaton's city attorney and city manager. Due to the possibility of litigation, both declined to comment.
Slaton, Texas is a few miles northeast of Lubbock and apparently is well-known for its police corruption.
Slaton police came to this woman's house, who wishes to remain anonymous, to arrest her son. But by asking one simple question, she found herself behind bars instead.
"I told him, 'I will release my son to you upon viewing those orders.' Those were exactly my words," The complainant said. "He said, 'This is how you want to play?' He took two steps back, turned around to the officer and said, 'Take her.' They turned me around, handcuffed me, and took me in."
The complainant said she was aware police would be coming to apprehend her 11-year-old son based on a criminal complaint, and that she just wanted to see the warrant. As it turns out, that warrant didn't exist. She spent the night in jail while her son was left at home.
"He told me it was their duty to come pick up my son," She said. "Yet, I had someone stay the night at my house. They never came back that evening, they never came to pick up my son, or do what they told me they were there to do in the beginning."
"This occurred on May 29 when they went out to apprehend this young man," Dwight McDonald, the family's attorney, said. "The directive to apprehend was not signed until May 30, which is another indication that they didn't have the authority to go out and arrest him or apprehend this young man."
The Slaton Police Department is willing to issue an apology, but McDonald said that's not enough.
"If she moves out of Slaton and tries to find a job elsewhere, you can Google her name, and at that point, the arrest, my guess is, is going to show up," McDonald said.
"I will accept an apology, but what is that going to do?" The complainant said. "It's not going to take my picture off the internet sites that have been posted, from being published in the newspaper, from where I work. I've never been in trouble, in 32 years of my life, from anything, and to get thrown in jail because I asked a question is not right."
McDonald said the Slaton Police Department will issue an apology as long as the mother agrees not to file a lawsuit. He said unless she is compensated for her expenses and the trauma she's been through, a lawsuit won't be out of the question.
We attempted to contact Slaton's city attorney and city manager. Due to the possibility of litigation, both declined to comment.
History Program at WC
The Bridgeport Historical Society hosts a program by Dr. Scott Tarnowieckyi at 12:15 p.m. Monday, June 17 in the lecture hall at the Weatherford College Wise County campus. Tarnowieckyi will discuss the history of Fort Wolters in Mineral Wells. Call Ken Sprecher at (940) 683-5389 for more questions.
NSA Snooping Excludes Mosques, Missed Boston Bombers
Taken fm Investor's Business Daily
Homeland Insecurity: The White House assures that tracking our every phone call and keystroke is to stop terrorists, and yet it won't snoop in mosques, where the terrorists are.
That's right, the government's sweeping surveillance of our most private communications excludes the jihad factories where homegrown terrorists are radicalized.
Since October 2011, mosques have been off-limits to FBI agents. No more surveillance or undercover string operations without high-level approval from a special oversight body at the Justice Department dubbed the Sensitive Operations Review Committee.
Who makes up this body, and how do they decide requests? Nobody knows; the names of the chairman, members and staff are kept secret.
We do know the panel was set up under pressure from Islamist groups who complained about FBI stings at mosques. Just months before the panel's formation, the Council on American-Islamic Relations teamed up with the ACLU to sue the FBI for allegedly violating the civil rights of Muslims in Los Angeles by hiring an undercover agent to infiltrate and monitor mosques there.
Before mosques were excluded from the otherwise wide domestic spy net the administration has cast, the FBI launched dozens of successful sting operations against homegrown jihadists — inside mosques — and disrupted dozens of plots against the homeland.
If only they were allowed to continue, perhaps the many victims of the Boston Marathon bombings would not have lost their lives and limbs. The FBI never canvassed Boston mosques until four days after the April 15 attacks, and it did not check out the radical Boston mosque where the Muslim bombers worshipped.
The bureau didn't even contact mosque leaders for help in identifying their images after those images were captured on closed-circuit TV cameras and cellphones.
One of the Muslim bombers made extremist outbursts during worship, yet because the mosque wasn't monitored, red flags didn't go off inside the FBI about his increasing radicalization before the attacks.
This is particularly disturbing in light of recent independent surveys of American mosques, which reveal some 80% of them preach violent jihad or distribute violent literature to worshippers.
What other five-alarm jihadists are counterterrorism officials missing right now, thanks to restrictions on monitoring the one area they should be monitoring?
Homeland Insecurity: The White House assures that tracking our every phone call and keystroke is to stop terrorists, and yet it won't snoop in mosques, where the terrorists are.
That's right, the government's sweeping surveillance of our most private communications excludes the jihad factories where homegrown terrorists are radicalized.
Since October 2011, mosques have been off-limits to FBI agents. No more surveillance or undercover string operations without high-level approval from a special oversight body at the Justice Department dubbed the Sensitive Operations Review Committee.
Who makes up this body, and how do they decide requests? Nobody knows; the names of the chairman, members and staff are kept secret.
We do know the panel was set up under pressure from Islamist groups who complained about FBI stings at mosques. Just months before the panel's formation, the Council on American-Islamic Relations teamed up with the ACLU to sue the FBI for allegedly violating the civil rights of Muslims in Los Angeles by hiring an undercover agent to infiltrate and monitor mosques there.
Before mosques were excluded from the otherwise wide domestic spy net the administration has cast, the FBI launched dozens of successful sting operations against homegrown jihadists — inside mosques — and disrupted dozens of plots against the homeland.
If only they were allowed to continue, perhaps the many victims of the Boston Marathon bombings would not have lost their lives and limbs. The FBI never canvassed Boston mosques until four days after the April 15 attacks, and it did not check out the radical Boston mosque where the Muslim bombers worshipped.
The bureau didn't even contact mosque leaders for help in identifying their images after those images were captured on closed-circuit TV cameras and cellphones.
One of the Muslim bombers made extremist outbursts during worship, yet because the mosque wasn't monitored, red flags didn't go off inside the FBI about his increasing radicalization before the attacks.
This is particularly disturbing in light of recent independent surveys of American mosques, which reveal some 80% of them preach violent jihad or distribute violent literature to worshippers.
What other five-alarm jihadists are counterterrorism officials missing right now, thanks to restrictions on monitoring the one area they should be monitoring?
Obama ‘Strongly Objects’ to Religious Liberty Amendment
The Obama Administration “strongly objects” to a proposed amendment to
the National Defense Authorization Act on Wednesday that would have
protected the religious rights of soldiers – including evangelical
Christian service members who are facing growing hostility towards their
religion. Read more here.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Feds Disappoint Texans (Again)
FEMA denies funds to rebuild West, Texas after fertilizer plant explosion. Why? Read about it here.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Troll The NSA
Operation 'troll the NSA' starts up online with a plan to jam spy scanners by sending same 'terrorist' message over and over again. Sounds like fun. Read about it here. If you need more info, go to the website here. Or, simply read below.
At 7:00 PM EST on Wednesday, June 12 a large group of online activists are encouraging as many people as possible to send out a form email filled with a variety of NSA trigger words, to clog up the system and make life as difficult as possible for big brother.
Here's the message (will work either in phone conversation or email):
Hey! How’s it going? I’m all right. My job is so shitty I wish could overthrow my boss. It’s like this oppressive regime where only true believers in his management techniques will stay around. I work marathon-length hours and he’s made all these changes that have made it the worst architecture firm to work at in Manhattan. Like he moved the office to the Financial District and fired my assistant. She was the only one who knew where the blueprints were! I need access to those blueprints to complete my job! F my life, right? And he keeps trying to start all these new initiatives to boost revenue, but seriously we just need to stick to what we do best. There’s only one true profit center. I seriously feel ready to go on strike at any second. I just read this article about how these free radical particles can cause the downfall of good health and accelerate aging. These could actually cause death to millions of Americans. If these particles are flying around undetected everywhere, does that mean we’re all radicalized? Have you seen the second season of Breaking Bad? I just finished it. I couldn’t believe that episode where they poison the guy with ricin! That was the bomb! I won’t say any more because I don’t want to reveal the earth-shattering events to come. Oh! So I’ve been planning a big trip for the summer. I’m thinking of visiting all of the most famous suspension bridges in the United States. So probably like the Golden Gate Bridge, The Brooklyn Bridge, and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. I’m gonna bring my younger brother and I know he’ll want to go to bars, so I’m thinking of getting him a fake drivers license, but I hope that doesn’t blow up in my face. Okay, I gotta run! I’m late for flight school. I missed the last class where we learn how to land, so I really can’t miss another one. Talk to you later!
At 7:00 PM EST on Wednesday, June 12 a large group of online activists are encouraging as many people as possible to send out a form email filled with a variety of NSA trigger words, to clog up the system and make life as difficult as possible for big brother.
Here's the message (will work either in phone conversation or email):
Hey! How’s it going? I’m all right. My job is so shitty I wish could overthrow my boss. It’s like this oppressive regime where only true believers in his management techniques will stay around. I work marathon-length hours and he’s made all these changes that have made it the worst architecture firm to work at in Manhattan. Like he moved the office to the Financial District and fired my assistant. She was the only one who knew where the blueprints were! I need access to those blueprints to complete my job! F my life, right? And he keeps trying to start all these new initiatives to boost revenue, but seriously we just need to stick to what we do best. There’s only one true profit center. I seriously feel ready to go on strike at any second. I just read this article about how these free radical particles can cause the downfall of good health and accelerate aging. These could actually cause death to millions of Americans. If these particles are flying around undetected everywhere, does that mean we’re all radicalized? Have you seen the second season of Breaking Bad? I just finished it. I couldn’t believe that episode where they poison the guy with ricin! That was the bomb! I won’t say any more because I don’t want to reveal the earth-shattering events to come. Oh! So I’ve been planning a big trip for the summer. I’m thinking of visiting all of the most famous suspension bridges in the United States. So probably like the Golden Gate Bridge, The Brooklyn Bridge, and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. I’m gonna bring my younger brother and I know he’ll want to go to bars, so I’m thinking of getting him a fake drivers license, but I hope that doesn’t blow up in my face. Okay, I gotta run! I’m late for flight school. I missed the last class where we learn how to land, so I really can’t miss another one. Talk to you later!
Most Americans Support Being Spied on by NSA
“Good German” syndrome runs rampant as government becomes tyrannical. Read about it here.
Monday, June 10, 2013
American Public Demanding The Immediate Resignation of Obama
"We Demand President Obama ResignPresident Richard Nixon resigned after wiretapping a handful of journalists, sparing the nation the ordeal of impeachment. We call on Obama to do the same. His administration vetted the NSA's surveillance of millions of Americans and seriously violated the Fourth Amendment. He confiscated the personal records of reporters, thus violating the First Amendment, and the IRS under his watch harassed political organizations opposed to his policies. Moreover, his administration has lied under oath to Congress. In addition to violating Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution by invading Libya, his administration engaged in torture and conducted a covert drone war. Due to the severity of these crimes, we call for the immediate resignation of Barack Obama."
Sign the petition here.
The IRS scandal, the NSA scandal, Benghazi Gate, running guns to Mexican drug cartels, and a whole host of other criminal actions, should give the American public enough evidence to impeach or demand the resignation of this illegitimate, bastard child president.
Sign the petition here.
The IRS scandal, the NSA scandal, Benghazi Gate, running guns to Mexican drug cartels, and a whole host of other criminal actions, should give the American public enough evidence to impeach or demand the resignation of this illegitimate, bastard child president.
NSA Document Leak Proves Conspiracy To Create Big Brother Styled World Control System
Yes, we know; all the pundits are saying it's not such a big deal. But, it is. It's a huge deal and it proves many of those so-called conspiracy theories were correct all along. Don't be a foll. Fight for your freedom before it's too late. Read about it here.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Phony Jobs Report
Another Phony Jobs Report From A Government That Lies About Everything – Paul Craig Roberts. See full article here.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Bible is Best-Seller in Norway
A sudden burst of interest in God's word has meant that the Bible has become a best-seller in Norway, overtaking Fifty Shades Of Grey.
In a surprising move in what is one of the most secular nations in Europe, a new Norwegian language version of the Scriptures has become the country's best-selling book.
The country's fascination with God's message has also spread to the stage, with a six-hour play called 'Bibelen,' Norwegian for 'the Bible,' drawing crowds of 16,000 in a three-month run that recently ended at one of Oslo's most prominent theatres.
Read more here.
In a surprising move in what is one of the most secular nations in Europe, a new Norwegian language version of the Scriptures has become the country's best-selling book.
The country's fascination with God's message has also spread to the stage, with a six-hour play called 'Bibelen,' Norwegian for 'the Bible,' drawing crowds of 16,000 in a three-month run that recently ended at one of Oslo's most prominent theatres.
Read more here.
Friday, June 7, 2013
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Allen West compares Eric Holder to Al Qaeda
By BREANNA EDWARDS | 6/5/13 5:30 PM EDT
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is scarier than Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al Qaeda — according to former Rep. Allen West.
In a fundraising email from Allen West Guardian Fund, West calls Holder the “bigger threat to our Republic.”
“Al Qaeda is a very serious and persistent threat, but I trust the U.S. military to protect us from future attacks. I cannot say the same about President Obama and his Justice Department,” West writes in the email, quoting ancient philosopher Cicero, who posited that a nation “cannot survive treason from within.”
West accuses Holder of abusing his power position as attorney general and using it to “implement Obama’s radical transformation of America.” He said that the recent scandals involving the IRS and the AP and Fox News, as well as Benghazi, were proof of this.
“I can’t emphasize enough how critical your support is. I’ve been warning for a long time that there may be a day we wake up and America is no longer America. The more time Eric Holder spends as Barack Obama’s right hand man, the closer we are to this day. We must stop this dangerous duo today,” West added.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is scarier than Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al Qaeda — according to former Rep. Allen West.
In a fundraising email from Allen West Guardian Fund, West calls Holder the “bigger threat to our Republic.”
“Al Qaeda is a very serious and persistent threat, but I trust the U.S. military to protect us from future attacks. I cannot say the same about President Obama and his Justice Department,” West writes in the email, quoting ancient philosopher Cicero, who posited that a nation “cannot survive treason from within.”
West accuses Holder of abusing his power position as attorney general and using it to “implement Obama’s radical transformation of America.” He said that the recent scandals involving the IRS and the AP and Fox News, as well as Benghazi, were proof of this.
“I can’t emphasize enough how critical your support is. I’ve been warning for a long time that there may be a day we wake up and America is no longer America. The more time Eric Holder spends as Barack Obama’s right hand man, the closer we are to this day. We must stop this dangerous duo today,” West added.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Benghazi Liar Appointed as National Security Advisor
Susan Rice rewarded for lying about Benghazi
Jun 5, 7:28 AM (ET)
By JULIE PACE
(AP) U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice speaks at a news conference after the U.N. Security Council held...
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama's top national security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning and will be replaced by U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, marking a significant shakeup to the White House foreign policy team.
A White House official confirmed the personnel changes Wednesday morning ahead of a planned announcement by the president later in the day.
Donilon has been a key foreign policy adviser to Obama since he first took office. But the 58-year-old had been expected to depart sometime this year, with Rice seen as the likely candidate to replace him.
Rice, a close Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. Rice, relying on talking points from the intelligence community, said in television interviews that the attacks were likely spontaneous, which was later proven incorrect.
Obama considered nominating Rice as his second-term secretary of state, but she withdrew amid the GOP criticism, saying she didn't want her confirmation fight to be a distraction for the White House.
Her new post as national security adviser does not require Senate confirmation.
The White House official said Donilon is expected to stay on the job until early July, after Obama wraps up two overseas trips and a summit later this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The official insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the personnel changes before they were publicly announced.
Jun 5, 7:28 AM (ET)
By JULIE PACE
(AP) U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice speaks at a news conference after the U.N. Security Council held...
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama's top national security adviser Tom Donilon is resigning and will be replaced by U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, marking a significant shakeup to the White House foreign policy team.
A White House official confirmed the personnel changes Wednesday morning ahead of a planned announcement by the president later in the day.
Donilon has been a key foreign policy adviser to Obama since he first took office. But the 58-year-old had been expected to depart sometime this year, with Rice seen as the likely candidate to replace him.
Rice, a close Obama confidante, came under withering criticism from Republicans as part of the investigations into the deadly attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. Rice, relying on talking points from the intelligence community, said in television interviews that the attacks were likely spontaneous, which was later proven incorrect.
Obama considered nominating Rice as his second-term secretary of state, but she withdrew amid the GOP criticism, saying she didn't want her confirmation fight to be a distraction for the White House.
Her new post as national security adviser does not require Senate confirmation.
The White House official said Donilon is expected to stay on the job until early July, after Obama wraps up two overseas trips and a summit later this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The official insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the personnel changes before they were publicly announced.
Abolish IRS?
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) believes the IRS should be abolished after the institution of a simpler flat tax.
fm Breitbart
by Tony Lee
He said the tax code invites agents to abuse and use the machinery of government to target political enemies and said doing so was wrong whether the president was Barack Obama or Richard Nixon. "I think we ought to abolish the IRS and instead move to a simple flat tax," Cruz said on Fox News over the weekend.
He said the tax code should be simple enough for the average American to fill out on a postcard. Cruz said such a system would take much of the bureaucracy out of Washington and should get bipartisan support because it is about "empowering the people," and that "ought to be a bipartisan" value.
fm Breitbart
by Tony Lee
He said the tax code invites agents to abuse and use the machinery of government to target political enemies and said doing so was wrong whether the president was Barack Obama or Richard Nixon. "I think we ought to abolish the IRS and instead move to a simple flat tax," Cruz said on Fox News over the weekend.
He said the tax code should be simple enough for the average American to fill out on a postcard. Cruz said such a system would take much of the bureaucracy out of Washington and should get bipartisan support because it is about "empowering the people," and that "ought to be a bipartisan" value.
Tornado Relief Drive
The public is invited to take donated items for
tornado victims in Moore and Oklahoma City, Okla. to 1st Choice Truck Lube in Decatur. All donations
except clothes are accepted, including towels, sheets and furniture. 1st Choice Truck Lube is located at 1300 W. Farm Road 1810.
Donations accepted from 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-noon Saturday. The drive will take place until next Thursday.
Monday, June 3, 2013
Sunday, June 2, 2013
While Reform Languishes in Washington, Gov. Perry Moves to Protect Texans' Email
Assuming that Texas Governor Rick Perry does not veto it, the Lone Star State appears set to enact the nation’s strongest e-mail privacy bill. The proposed legislation requires state law enforcement agencies to get a warrant for all e-mails regardless of the age of the e-mail.
On Tuesday, the Texas bill (HB 2268) was sent to Gov. Perry’s desk, and he has until June 16, 2013 to sign it or veto it. If he does neither, it will pass automatically and take effect on September 1, 2013. The bill would give Texans more privacy over their inbox to shield against state-level snooping, but the bill would not protect against federal investigations. The bill passed both houses of the state legislature earlier this year without a single "nay" vote.
Read more here.
Connecticutt Law Would Prevent Public Access to Sandy Hook Shooting Records
A plan by Connecticut officials to withhold some Newtown school shooting records from the public would be another blow to government transparency, which has taken hits in other states in recent years, advocates for freedom of information laws say. Read more here.
The Advocate can only ask, why, if there is nothing to hide? The only explantion is that they are hiding something and, if you've been keeping track, you know what it is.
This is deep and troubling information pointing to tyranny and a police state in existence all around us. God help us to regain our freedom and our constitutional rights.
The Advocate can only ask, why, if there is nothing to hide? The only explantion is that they are hiding something and, if you've been keeping track, you know what it is.
This is deep and troubling information pointing to tyranny and a police state in existence all around us. God help us to regain our freedom and our constitutional rights.
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