Tuesday, November 8, 2011

The Cain scandal, the OWS Scandal, the Fast and Furious Scandal

What’s new today

Our # 1 story is about Herman Cain’s first accuser.  The question is whether or not she is credible. We learn in story #2 that Clint Eastwood is a fan of Herman Cain.   #3 through #5 are about the Occupy Movement.  #3 and #4 are about misdeeds by the Occupiers, but #5 is the most interesting as it talks about how the Occupiers are protesting the wrong group. It appears the old saying that every time you point a finger at someone three of them are pointing back at yourself is true in this case.  #6 is the latest version of the Gallup Poll that tells how people self-identify.  Conservatives outnumber liberals by a two to one ratio.  #7 details out the jobs programs that have gone over to the Senate but have not been taken up by the Democratic leadership.  It seems Obama is waiting on his own party and not the Republicans to help the working men and women in the country.  Story 8 tells us that Attorney General Holder is holding on to his story that ‘Fast and Furious” had nothing to do with the deaths of federal agents.  The final story is another one about China and it’s problems. 

 

1.  Herman Cain’s Accuser

The Cain Encounter ...

THEY HUGGED EACH OTHER BACKSTAGE IN A FULL EMBRACE LIKE OLD FRIENDS.

She grabbed his arm and whispered in his left ear.

She kept talking as he bent to listen, and he kept saying “Uh, huh. Uh, huh.”

Huh?

“I don’t know if what she was giving him was a sucker punch, but he didn’t put his arm down while she was talking to him,” said the Sneed source….

…“I HAD TURNED ON TV TO FIND OUT WHO WAS CAIN’S ACCUSER, AND I ALMOST FELL OVER WHEN I SAW IT WAS SHARON BIALEK ACCUSING CAIN OF GROPING HER GENITALS.”


“I was waiting for Herman Cain’s ‘Accuser No. 4’ to surface — and up pops Sharon!”

“I couldn’t believe it. I was shocked.”…



This to me doesn’t make any sense, but everyone is different.  Why would someone be that friendly to someone who sexual harassed her?  What do you think? 



2.  Clint Eastwood: Libertarian supporter of Herman Cain



….Eastwood was far more open about his own politics. HAVING STARTED VOTING FOR GOP PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDERS IN 1952 WITH DWIGHT EISENHOWER, EASTWOOD SAID HE WAS TEMPTED TO BREAK RANKS ONLY ONCE — IN 1992, FOR ROSS PEROT. “I liked him,” Eastwood said. “I guess because I like rebels.”


THE ONLY DEMOCRAT HE CAN REMEMBER VOTING FOR IS GRAY DAVIS when he was elected governor of California in 1998. Yet Eastwood is also a big admirer of the current governor, Jerry Brown, and what Eastwood likes about Brown is revealing. He sees him as a kindred spirit, a free-thinking libertarian willing to take unpopular or unorthodox positions on key issues. Eastwood says he contributed to Brown’s campaign to establish several charter schools in Oakland when Brown was mayor there, seeing them as an important example of new thinking on education.


“I’VE ALWAYS BEEN VERY LIBERAL WHEN IT COMES TO PEOPLE THINKING FOR THEMSELVES,” said Eastwood, who supports gay marriage, abortion rights and environmental protection. “But I’m a big hawk on cutting the deficit. I was against the stimulus thing too. We shouldn’t be bailing out the banks and car companies. IF A CEO CAN’T FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE HIS COMPANY PROFITABLE, THEN HE SHOULDN’T BE THE CEO.”


When it comes to the current crop of Republican presidential candidates, if Eastwood is enthusiastic about anyone, it’s Herman Cain. “I LOVE CAIN’S STORY,” HE SAYS. “HE’S A GUY WHO CAME FROM NOWHERE AND DID WELL, OBVIOUSLY AGAINST HEAVY ODDS. HE’S A DOER AND A STRAIGHT-TALKER, WHICH I DON’T SEE ENOUGH OF FROM EITHER PARTY.”…

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2011/11/clint-eastwood-talks-politics-whos-the-one-democrat-that-he-voted-for.html

An interesting look at Clint Eastwood.  Don’t miss his picture on J. Edgar coming out soon. 







3.   Occupy Movement showing its True Colors

Defenders and sympathizers of the OWS movement have claimed that conservatives have cherry-picked isolated incidents out of context in order to besmirch a legitimate effort on the part of citizens to express their discontent with the economy and the political situation. It must be admitted that when it was just a matter of stray signs or utterances that might have been true, though it must also be said this was exactly the tactic used by liberals in the media to try to demonize the Tea Party movement. BUT WITH THE SORT OF GROUP VIOLENCE WE SAW LAST WEEK IN OAKLAND AND THE ATTEMPT TO INTERFERE WITH THE RIGHT OF CONSERVATIVES TO FREE SPEECH AND ASSEMBLY IN WASHINGTON THIS PAST WEEKEND, IT IS NO LONGER POSSIBLE TO PRETEND THAT A SPIRIT OF HOOLIGANISM IS NOT INTEGRAL TO OWS. Nor, after the march in Boston, is it possible for OWS’s Jewish defenders to assert that the sort of anti-Zionism that raised its head in Boston is an aberration.

It bears repeating that despite all of the huffing and puffing by the chattering classes about the threat to democracy that the Tea Party was alleged to pose, nothing like any of this ever happened at Tea Party rallies or their protests against members of Congress at Town Hall meetings. The Tea Party protesters may have occasionally been rude to a member of Congress or a senator, but they did not block traffic, attempt to stop those who disagreed with them from holding meetings or attempt to shut down an Israeli consulate.

This is not an accident….


Violence seems to be part of the left’s political actions. 





4.  Occupy San Diego

A PAIR OF SOUTHLAND STREET CART VENDORS WHO WERE FORCED TO SHUT DOWN THEIR BUSINESSES AFTER “OCCUPY” PROTESTERS VANDALIZED THEIR CARTS are hoping to get some help from local residents.



KNX 1070′s Tom Reopelle reports a fundraiser in the Gas Lamp district in San Diego on Monday night is aimed at helping two vendors get back on their feet.



The coffee and hot dog carts were located in Civic Center Plaza, the same location as the Occupy San Diego protesters.



That group first settled in to the plaza Oct. 7 and set up a tent city which has since twice been taken down by police.



COFFEE CART OWNER LINDA JENSON AND HOT DOG CART OPERATORS LETTY AND PETE SOTO SAID THEY INITIALLY PROVIDED FREE FOOD AND DRINK TO DEMONSTRATORS, BUT WHEN THEY STOPPED, THE PROTESTERS BECAME VIOLENT.



And according to one city councilman, bodily fluids were used in the attacks.



“Both carts have had items stolen, have had their covers vandalized with markings and graffiti, as well as one of the carts had urine and blood splattered on it,” said Councilman Carl DeMaio…




Let’s see, a group protesting against “greed” decides that these cart entrepreneurs were too greedy by not giving them free food and drink so they retaliated.  





5.  Occupy Movement has the Wrong Target

…These people make up the Occupier generation. THEY ASPIRE TO JOIN THE VIRTUEOCRACY – THE CLASS OF PEOPLE WHO EXPECT TO FIND SELF-FULFILLMENT (AND A COMFORTABLE LIVING) IN NON-PROFIT OR GOVERNMENT WORK, by saving the planet, rescuing the poor and regulating the rest of us. They are what the social critic Christopher Lasch called the “new class” of "therapeutic cops in the new bureaucracy."

The trouble is, this social model no longer works. As blogger Kenneth Anderson writes, “THE MACHINE BY WHICH UNIVERSITIES TRAIN YOUNG PEOPLE TO BECOME MINOR REGULATORS AND THEN DELIVERED THEM INTO WHITE-COLLAR POSITIONS on the basis of credentials in history, political science, literature, ethnic and women’s studies – with or without the benefit of law school – HAS BROKEN DOWN. THE SUPPLY IS UNINTERRUPTED, BUT THE DEMAND HAS DRIED UP.”

IT’S NOT THE GREEDY WALL STREET BANKERS WHO DESTROYED THESE PEOPLE’S HOPES. IT’S THE VIRTUEOCRACY ITSELF. It’s the people who constructed a benefit-heavy entitlement system whose costs can no longer be sustained. It’s the politicians and union leaders who made reckless pension promises that are now bankrupting cities and states. It’s the socially progressive policy-makers in the U.S. who declared that everyone, even those with no visible means of support, should be able to own a home with no money down, courtesy of their government. In Canada, it’s the social progressives who assure us we can keep on consuming all the health care we want, even as the costs squeeze out other public goods.

The Occupiers are right when they say our system of wealth redistribution is broken. But they’re wrong about what broke it. The richest 1 per cent are not exactly starving out the working poor. (In the U.S., half all income sent to Washington is redistributed to the elderly, sick and disabled, or to those who serve them, and nearly half the country lives in a household that’s getting some sort of government benefit.) THE PROBLEM IS, OUR SYSTEM REDISTRIBUTES THE WEALTH FROM YOUNG TO OLD, AND FROM MIDDLE-CLASS WORKERS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR TO INEFFICIENT AND EXPENSIVE UNIONS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR.

Among the biggest beneficiaries of this redistribution is the higher-education industry. In Canada, we subsidize it directly. IN THE U.S., IT’S SUBSIDIZED BY A VAST SYSTEM OF STUDENT LOANS, WHICH HAVE ALLOWED COLLEGES TO JACK UP TUITION TO SKY-HIGH LEVELS. U.S. student debt has hit the trillion-dollar mark. BOTH SYSTEMS CRANK OUT TOO MANY SOCIOLOGISTS AND TOO FEW MECHANICAL ENGINEERS. These days, even law-school graduates are having trouble finding work. That’s because the supply has increased far faster than the demand.

The voices of Occupy Wall Street, argues Mr. Anderson and others, are THE VOICES OF THE DOWNWARDLY MOBILE WHO ARE ACUTELY AWARE OF THEIR THREATENED SOCIAL STATUS AND NEED SOMEONE TO BLAME. These are people who weren’t interested in just any white-collar work. They wanted to do transformational, world-saving work – which would presumably be underwritten by taxing the rich. They now face the worst job market in a generation. But THEIR PREDICAMENT IS AT LEAST IN PART OF THEIR OWN MAKING. AND NONE OF THE SOLUTIONS THEY PROPOSE WILL ADDRESS THEIR PROBLEM




A devastating indictment of the groups OWS is not protesting. 






6.  Conservatives grow slightly in Latest Gallup Poll

Self-professed CONSERVATIVES NOW OUTNUMBER SELF-PROFESSED LIBERALS IN THE UNITED STATES, 42 PERCENT TO 21 PERCENT, according to a Gallup poll published Monday. Another 37 percent described themselves as moderates.

The percentages are based on Gallup's daily tracking polls conducted from June 1 to Aug. 31 of this year….

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/gallup-poll-conservatives-42-liberals-21

2 to 1 is the ratio of Conservatives to Liberals.  This is the reason the liberals basically have to lie -- to get elected. 







7.   The Forgotten Fifteen

No matter how loud or how often Obama says: “We can’t wait  for Congress to act,” it’s really an act on his part in his melodrama for reelection. HE CONTINUES TO DEMAND HIS STALE $475 BILLION “JOBS” PLAN.

The fact is: DEMOCRATS ARE BLOCKING REAL JOBS-PRODUCING BILLS THAT REPUBLICANS HAVE PASSED. They have urged Senate Democrats and President Obama to support THE HOUSE-PASSED JOBS BILLS THEY CALL THE “FORGOTTEN 15,” which GOP lawmakers say would mightily boost job growth.

Senate Democrat Leader Harry Reid is blocking bipartisan jobs legislation for his usual bumbledom partisan reasons.

Rep. Bobby Schilling (R-IL) in a Republican Saturday radio address said there’s been some bipartisan progress to boost hiring. He praised the bipartisan House passage of legislation to kill the requirement that governments at all levels withhold 3 percent of payments to government contractors, a bill with White House support. But he added that many jobs bills the House has passed are stuck in the Democratic-controlled Senate, which he referred to as the “forgotten 15.”

Schilling portrayed Obama and Democrats as out of touch with the needs of small business as he touted the GOP agenda and the 15 bills in particular. THE BILLS WERE WRITTEN AFTER TALKING WITH MANUFACTURERS, FARMERS, AND SMALL BUSINESSPEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY. But the Senate won’t let these bills come to a vote. The president hasn’t called for action because he’s too busy painting a profoundly false picture of a stalling GOP….


These 15 bills had an average margin of passage of 91 votes (242 for 151 against).  The closest was the bill to stop the NLRB from stopping Boeing from opening their new plant in North Carolina (52 vote margin). 





8.  Holder Refuse to Apologize for Agent’s Death

CORNYN: "Would you like to apologize today for this program that went so wrong that took the life of a United States law enforcement agent?"

HOLDER: "I CERTAINLY REGRET WHAT HAPPENED TO AGENT BRIAN TERRY. I can only imagine the pain that his family has had to deal with, in particular his mother. I am a father of three children myself. We are not programmed to bury our kids. It pains me whenever there is a death of a law enforcement official, especially under the circumstances that this occurred. IT IS NOT FAIR, HOWEVER, TO ASSUME THAT THE MISTAKES THAT HAPPENED IN FAST & FURIOUS DIRECTLY LED TO THE DEATH OF AGENT TERRY. Again my feelings of sympathy and regret go out to the Terry family AND I HOPE THAT THE STEPS THAT WE HAVE PUT IN PLACE, THE MEASURES THAT I HAVE CALLED FOR WILL PREVENT OTHER FEDERAL AGENTS, LOCAL, STATE AGENTS FROM BEING THE SUBJECT OF THIS KIND OF VIOLENCE as well as civilians, both in the United States and in Mexico."


This seems to be “I didn’t do it, you can’t prove it, and I won’t do it again” defense. 

 

9.  The Most Important Story of the Day: China

Hold on to your seats; according to THE CONFERENCE BOARD, PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT BUSINESS ORIENTED FORECASTING GROUP IN THE WORLD, REVOLUTION IS COMING TO CHINA.

That’s not what the group’s latest global forecast says literally, but this or something like it is the clear meaning of the forecast that China’s growth is likely to slow to 8.7 percent next year, 6.6 percent in each of the four years after that, and then average 3.5 percent per year between 2017 and 2025. IT HAS LONG BEEN AN ARTICLE OF FAITH INSIDE CHINA AND AMONG MOST CHINA WATCHERS THAT THE COUNTRY NEEDS 9 PERCENT GROWTH PER YEAR TO AVOID WIDESPREAD INSTABILITY.

If China’s growth decelerates that fast, that far, the biggest question in world politics won’t be how the rest of us will accommodate China’s rise. THE QUESTION WILL SHIFT TO WHETHER CHINA CAN LAST.

The report, well covered in the Wall Street Journal, is a sober read. OVERALL, WORLD GROWTH IS EXPECTED TO DECLINE, WITH BOTH CHINA AND INDIA LEADING THE DECLINE.


I like to put stories in that point to future trends and events.  Last year I was talking about how the Republicans would take control of the House and had a shot at the Senate.  I’ve been talking about how Obama is toast and will be a one term president.  The information that is available makes that clear.  But this is a story that I’m seeing more and more of.  China has the largest middle class in the world (larger than the total population of the USA), but they also have a huge percentage of the population that live in poverty.  Growth keeps the lid on this much like the border between the USA and Mexico and the Mexicans coming across the border keeps the lid on Mexico’s problems.  A drop in growth will lead to upheavals in China. 




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