News Juxtaposition

In todays news

Journalists from three major newspapers that endorsed John McCain -- the Washington Times, the New York Post and the Dallas Morning News -- have been booted from Barack Obama's campaign plane for the final leg of the presidential race.

and

A Delta baggage worker got a bit of a fright before Halloween when she opened a jetliner's cargo door and found a cheetah running loose amid the luggage

Might there be some form of connection? Inquiring minds want to know.

Maybe Not the Manchurian Candidate

I blogged about this issue last week, but in response to some discussions at an online board I continued to look for information about this whole issue. Eventually I found this site, What's Your Evidence?', which has a great deal of information apparently debunking Berg's claims regarding Obama's citizenship.

After reading this page, and the referenced documents here and here, I've come to the conclusion that the claim that Obama lost his citizenship when his mother remarried and moved to Indonesia is almost certainly false.

The one question remaining is whether he was really born in Hawaii. If he was born in Kenya, then he may not be a natural born citizen. However, the site referenced above accepts the proffered birth certificate as valid and says there is no real credible evidence to support claims that Obama was born in Kenya.

The more I read and look into things the more I think the Barry is a natural born citizen. Part of me wishes I was wrong, but it probably doesn't matter anyway. Any contrary evidence, if it did exist, is long gone and at this point the electorate does not care.

Obama is still not getting my vote. Whether you put "American", "Kenyan" or "Indonesian" in front of it he's still a "liberal socialist".

p.s. It should be noted that "What's Your Evidence?" is just an Internet site. It may be biased, but I've not seen it, yet; and it may contain factual errors, but have not found any, yet. In the end YMMV.

Another Obama Revelation (or shall I say revolution)

Don't let Biden and others tell you what Obama meant when he told Joe the Plumber he wanted to "spread the wealth". Here's what he meant in his own words:

Can anyone with a brain listen to to this and still claim the Obama is not a socialist, at least economically?

Cold Feet Equals Hot Foot

I've heard of the groom (or bride) getting cold feet, but giving the hotel the hot foot, that's bizarre:

A Japanese man set fire to the hotel where he was due to get married at the weekend, rather than go through with the ceremony later the same day...Tatsuhiko Kawata, 39, had gone along with wedding plans despite already having a wife.

Then again, the thought of having two wifes might just do it for anyone. I love my DW, but having two; that'd be too much for me too.

Obama's Continued Dissimulation

I've written about this before, but a quote I read in an article from yesterday has energized me to revisit this issue. Previously I had examined his statements relative to his past actions. Today I'd like to compare his campaign rhetoric to his published issue positions.

Here's what the Obamanator said recently as reported in "Working for the Working Class Vote":

“I just want to be absolutely clear, O.K.? I just don’t want any misunderstanding when you all go home and you talk with your buddies, and they say, ‘Oh, he wants to take my gun away.’ You heard it here, and I’m on television, so everybody knows. I believe in the Second Amendment. I believe in people’s lawful right to bear arms. I will not take your shotgun away. I will not take your rifle away. I won’t take your handgun away.

Here is what his official issue position says on the same topic:

As president, Barack Obama would repeal the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts the ability of local law enforcement to access important gun trace information, and give police officers across the nation the tools they need to solve gun crimes and fight the illegal arms trade. Obama and Biden also favor commonsense measures that respect the Second Amendment rights of gun owners, while keeping guns away from children and from criminals who shouldn't have them. They support closing the gun show loophole and making guns in this country childproof. They also support making the expired federal Assault Weapons Ban permanent, as such weapons belong on foreign battlefields and not on our streets.

This is gun control bigger, better, more wonderful. A new AWB would be much more encompassing than the old one as its proponents have vowed to close the kind of loopholes that were in the old one. "Childproof" is an gun-ban code word for various proposed smart locks and individually coded interlocks that are fundamentally flawed in various ways. No such guns exist in the marketplace nor will they given their flaws. Closing the gun show loophole effectively means the end of private party sales driving up prices and enabling further gun control via dealer regulation.

His Tihart amendment position is flat out based on falsehood. Law enforcement does have access to all the gun trace information they need to trace guns used in crimes. What they, and this is primarily the BATF, do not have now is access to gun trace information for the purposes of harassing law abiding citizens, confiscation, dealer and manufacturer lawsuits and other anti-2A purposes.

I will grant that nothing in his position statement absolutely states that existing guns will be taken away from people, but making guns child-proof and reinstating the AWB would make the possession of certain guns illegal. The unanswered question is whether all of his gun control measures would contain grandfather clauses to "protect" existing owners. Without "grandfather" clauses his proposed legislation would make criminals of existing gun owners. I'm not willing to bet on that, particularly with regard to the AWB.

What is worse is what he does not say. According to his stated position American would no longer be able to buy many types of handguns, rifles and even shotguns that can currently be bought. People who have guns now likely would be able to keep them, but few new ones could be bought. Imagine a country where our children will be subject to a declining and increasing expensive number of firearms to protect themselves and their rights. And of course, criminals will always be able to get guns because they do not abide by the laws intended to restrict their acquisition of guns.

I continue to conclude that Obamarama is a liar in intent if not in letter. We've seen Joe The Plumber take him on regarding taxes. Now we need a Billy The Hunter to ask the same kind of hard question regarding the 2nd Amendment.

Call 9-Waa-Waa

From "Working for the Working-Class Vote":

“I am convinced that if there were no Fox News, I might be two or three points higher in the polls,” Obama told me. “If I were watching Fox News, I wouldn’t vote for me, right? Because the way I’m portrayed 24/7 is as a freak! I am the latte-sipping, New York Times-reading, Volvo-driving, no-gun-owning, effete, politically correct, arrogant liberal. Who wants somebody like that?

Call him a waambulance. The truth hurts don't it.

p.s. Here's some reports on the subject from various sources; the last one, from FoxNews is of course most interesting;

• Obama angry at FOX for tarnishing halo effect
• Obama: "If I Were Watching Fox News, I Wouldn't Vote For Me"
  
• Obama: Fox News to Blame for Elitist Perception
  
• Sen. Obama's Attack FOX Strategy: A Key to Victory?

Clueless, With a Capital "C"

From Curmudgeonly & Skeptical:

Good One NERepub!

Go here and read the story associated with this picture. It's short, to the point and quite humorous:

Beam Me Up Scotty!

Today's humor:

Sneak Peek #1 of Boston Legal: Dances with Wolves

Yes yes I know, the show actually makes the Shatner character into a caricature but this clip is still hilarious.

The Manchurian Candidate

Interesting interview.

Don't take this video, or media reports, or the verbal affirmations and denials at face value: Do some research and make up you own mind.

You can guess what I think.

UPDATE: Due to new info I've pretty much changed my mind. Details above.

Around the Blogsphere

From New England Republican:

FromThe Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiller:

Now, what might that professional, infinitely wise and knowledgeable journalist write to accompany such a photo? We’re glad you asked:

Hey, is that even the right way to hold a rifle? Can’t you shoot your foot off like that?

Just wondering.

From Curmudgeonly & Sceptical:

Steven M. Warshawsky in this American Thinker piece analyzes the polls in a straightforward and compelling manner. His conclusion comports with my own less analytical, but based on the historical record, conclusion that polling data are manipulated to give a desired result. The article is short but concise, so please do read it.

“

Moreover, the idea – implicit in the daily fluctuations of the polls – that large numbers of American voters are regularly switching back and forth between McCain and Obama makes no sense. Who knows any real people who are going through such mental and political gymnastics? In short, the polls do not show that Obama is "winning" the race, anymore than they show that McCain is "winning" the race. What they show is that the contest is very close, and will not be decided until election day -- when the American people actually go to the polls and cast their votes. For the reasons I've stated before, I predict that more votes will be cast for McCain than for Obama.

”

Is It Halloween Yet?

This,

Illinois: Three NP*-members won Democratic primaries last Spring and face off against Republican opponents on election day: Danny Davis (U.S. House), Barack Obama (State Senate) and Patricia Martin (Cook County Judiciary).

this,

New Party* member Barack Obama was uncontested for a State Senate seat from Chicago.

and this

Secondly, the NP's* '96 Political Program has been enormously successful with 3 of 4 endorsed candidates winning electoral primaries. All four candidates attended the NP membership meeting on April 11th to express their gratitude. Danny Davis, winner in the 7th Congressional District, invited NPers to join his Campaign Steering Committee. Patricia Martin, who won the race for Judge in 7th Subcircuit Court, explained that due to the NP she was able to network and get experienced advice from progressives like Davis. Barack Obama, victor in the 13th State Senate District, encouraged NPers to join in his task forces on Voter Education and Voter Registration.

All found via Politically Drunk on Power via No Looking Backwards.

Scary!

*NP = New Party = "a loose confederation of unions, socialists, communists, and black activists who shared common values, but often had different goals."

Should You Vote for Obama? NOT!

http://barackobamatest.com/

"You DISAGREED with the Barack Obama position on 48 of the 48 test questions. This means you disagree with the Obama position 100% of the time."

The Guileful, Duplicitous "Maestro"

I'm shocked I tell you, shocked!
Lawmaker Accused of Fannie Mae Conflict of Interest

Unqualified home buyers were not the only ones who benefitted from Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank’s efforts to deregulate Fannie Mae throughout the 1990s.

So did Frank’s partner, a Fannie Mae executive at the forefront of the agency’s push to relax lending restrictions.

Now that Fannie Mae is at the epicenter of a financial meltdown that threatens the U.S. economy, some are raising new questions about Frank's relationship with Herb Moses, who was Fannie’s assistant director for product initiatives. Moses worked at the government-sponsored enterprise from 1991 to 1998, while Frank was on the House Banking Committee, which had jurisdiction over Fannie.

He makes me sick.