Is the Occupy Movement coming apart and who prospers when the Democrats are in office?

What’s new today

Our # 1 tells us that apparently the rich do better with Democrats in office than they do with Republicans.  Perhaps that explains why Wall Street supports Obama so much.  #2 tells us that Colorado has rejected more taxes and looks to see what that might mean.  #3 relates that while most of us are aware of Solyndra and the investigation there, it is only one of 100 investigations into the DOE’s loans program.  #4 has Ann Coulter comparing being charged with sexual harassment in the 1990s to being charged with witchcraft in the 1690s.  Story #5 questions whether Obama is the worst president since before the Civil War.  #6 is an obituary for Barack Obama’s chances in 2012.  Nothing is there that gives him a fighting chance.  Article #7 is the Herman Cain scandal, if you can call it a scandal.  #8 relates the degeneration of Occupy Oakland.  The Occupy movement has been taken over by radical anarchist and unions.  #9 wonders if the Occupy movement doesn’t expose the bankruptcy of our institutions of higher learning.  #10 is an update on Fast and Furious.

1.   Wealthy Prosper Under Democrats

…During the 2008 campaign, Obama said, "THE PROJECT OF THE NEXT PRESIDENT IS FIGURING OUT HOW DO YOU CREATE BOTTOM-UP ECONOMIC GROWTH, AS OPPOSED TO THE TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMIC GROWTH THAT GEORGE BUSH HAS BEEN SO ENAMORED WITH."

But it turns out that THE RICH ACTUALLY GOT POORER UNDER PRESIDENT BUSH, and THE INCOME GAP HAS BEEN CLIMBING UNDER OBAMA.

What's more, the biggest increase in income inequality over the past three decades took place when Democrat Bill Clinton was in the White House.

THE WEALTHIEST 5% OF U.S. HOUSEHOLDS SAW INCOMES FALL 7% AFTER INFLATION IN BUSH'S EIGHT YEARS in office, according to an IBD analysis of Census Bureau data. A widely used household income inequality measure, the Gini index, was essentially flat over that span. Another inequality gauge, the Theil index, showed a decline.  

In contrast, the Gini index rose — slightly — in Obama's first two years. Another Census measure of inequality shows its climbed 5.7% since he took office.

Meanwhile, DURING CLINTON'S EIGHT YEARS, THE WEALTHIEST 5% OF AMERICAN HOUSEHOLDS SAW THEIR INCOMES JUMP 45% VS. 26% UNDER REAGAN. The Gini index shot up 6.7% under Clinton, more than any other president since 1980.

http://news.investors.com/Article/590383/201111030805/Income-Inequality-Rose-Under-Clinton-Obama.htm

Now the first excuse I would expect to come out of the left is that it has risen under Obama because he left the Bush Tax cuts in place.  But that doesn’t work since the rich actually saw their income decline under Bush.  I think Obama’s Crony Capitalism is the cause. 

2.  Colorado:  Bell Weather or a Fluke?

In the only state-wide tax increase on any state’s ballot this year, Colorado voters yesterday offered a resounding “No!".

Proposition 103 would have raised the state income tax rate from 4.63 percent to 5 percent, and the state sales tax from 2.9 percent to 3 percent, expecting to extract about $3 billion from Coloradoans over five years with the money earmarked for public education. THE MEASURE’S SUPPORTERS – PRIMARILY TEACHERS’ UNIONS – OUTRAISED (AND PRESUMABLY OUTSPENT) ITS OPPONENTS BY ABOUT 20-TO-1.

NEVERTHELESS, PROP 103 LOST BY A STUNNING MARGIN OF ALMOST 28 PERCENT, ROUGHLY 64 PERCENT AGAINST TO 36 PERCENT FOR, WITH ONLY TWO PERCENT OF THE BALLOTS LEFT TO BE COUNTED.

Although several small counties have not yet reported, at this point the measure has passed in only three of Colorado’s 64 counties, and they are exactly the three one might expect: Boulder (the center for tax-hiking liberals in the state and the home of the state senator whose baby Prop 103 was), Pitkin (location of Aspen), and San Miguel (location of Telluride.) Even in the perennially Democratic Denver, Prop 103 failed by seven percent.

The wide margin of defeat for Proposition 103 COULD ONLY HAPPEN WITH A SUBSTANTIAL MAJORITY – SOMETHING ON THE ORDER OF TWO-THIRDS – OF UNAFFILIATED (INDEPENDENT) VOTERS OPPOSING THE MEASURE, SOMETHING WHICH PORTENDS WELL FOR REPUBLICAN HOPES IN 2012 ELECTIONS….

http://rossputin.com/blog/index.php/colorado-voters-make-a-stand

Living in Colorado you hear a lot from the lefties, but the numbers don’t look good for them.  This to me is a strong indication that the people are not happy with the economy and blame it on the current administration.  It also bodes ill for tax increasing democrats. 

3.   Solyndra isn’t alone

Solyndra is being investigated by the FBI, but that may just be the tip of the shovel-ready iceberg.

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY IS INVESTIGATING MORE THAN 100 POTENTIAL INSTANCES OF CRIMINAL ABUSE OF STIMULUS LOAN MONIES, ACCORDING TO THE DEPARTMENT’S OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL.

In prepared testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Wednesday, Energy Department Inspector General Gregory Friedman said his office has launched more than 100 probes into possible criminal activities related to the 2009 stimulus funds behind the loans. …

http://dailycaller.com/2011/11/02/inspector-general-launches-criminal-probe-into-more-than-100-energy-dept-loans/#ixzz1cbiu6Tts

Now this isn’t something that will let you sleep well tonight. 

4.   Ann Coulter on Herman Cain and the Charge of Sexual Harassment

….This is why the liberal website Politico ran with A STORY ON CAIN THAT HAD EVERYTHING -- a powerful black man, a Republican presidential candidate, the hint of sexuality -- EXCEPT FACTS.

All we learned was: About a decade ago, as many as two anonymous women accused Cain of making unspecified "inappropriate" remarks and one "inappropriate" gesture in the workplace. (We had more than that on John Edwards​' mistress a year into the media's refusal to report that story.)

If the details helped liberals, we'd have the details.

TO HAVE BEEN ACCUSED OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN THE 1990S IS LIKE HAVING BEEN ACCUSED OF MOLESTING CHILDREN AT PRESCHOOLS IN THE 1980S OR ACCUSED OF BEING A WITCH IN MASSACHUSETTS IN THE 1690S.

In the 1990s, one plaintiff won a $50 million jury verdict against Wal-Mart on the grounds that a "hostile environment" was created by her supervisor's yelling at both male and female employees. In another case, a plaintiff won a $250,000 award for sexual harassment based on her complaint that a male colleague had reached for a pastry saying, "Nothing I like more in the morning than sticky buns," while "wriggl(ing)" his eyebrows.

It got so crazy that a 6-year-old boy was suspended from class for a day for kissing a classmate on the cheek, and a Goya painting had to be removed from a Penn State classroom because a professor complained that it constituted sexual harassment.

WITH NO STANDARD OTHER THAN THE SUBJECTIVE OFFENSE TAKEN BY THE ACCUSER, ABSOLUTELY ANYONE COULD BE CALLED A WITCH, I.E., A SEXUAL HARASSER. So it's striking that the only two conservative public figures accused of being witches both happened to be conservative blacks: Clarence Thomas and Herman Cain….

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=47287

What I find most offensive is that it appears the left who claims to be supporters of minorities seems to pull out what is likely the MOST racists of charges, that is, that black men are intimidating white women.  In the past, Democrats would have lynched a black man for such a charge.  Today as Clarence Thomas said, we have a high tech lynching instead, but it’s still Democrats who are doing it. 

5.   Worst President Since Before the Civil War

Three years ago, the people of the United States elected someone who has turned out to be the worst president since the pre-Civil War era. BARACK OBAMA, whether in economic matters, domestic affairs or international relations, HAS BEEN AN ABJECT FAILURE AND HAS SEVERELY JEOPARDIZED THE FUTURE OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.

This must be the focus and message of those seeking the Republican presidential nomination, who must not allow themselves to be focused on demeaning each other and sidetracked by falling for the usual tactics of the Democrat and media smear machines (epitomized by the latest specious attack on Herman Cain).

A cursory examination of Obama's overall record compared with other presidents reveals SOMEONE DRIVEN PURELY BY STATIST IDEOLOGY, WHOSE NARCISSISM RENDERS HIM INCAPABLE OF CHANGE REGARDLESS OF THE LONG-TERM CONSEQUENCES. He does not seem to care what happens to the American people…..

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/11/the_worst_president_since_before_the_civil_war.html#ixzz1cddoKCKN

An excellent article that gives you a number of factual comparisons between Obama, Reagan and FDR.  O doesn’t fare to well in the comparison.

6.  Obama fails all viability tests

LAST WEEK’S COLUMN ASSERTING THAT THE PRESIDENT IS UNELECTABLE HAS TRIGGERED STRONG RESPONSES. Democrats, in particular, seem to think my judgment is premature. It strikes them as ridiculous that anyone could make such a “bold prediction” so far in advance of the 2012 election. Hey, that’s what we do, as seasoned political professionals, as pollsters. But I must stress that I am not so much making a personal prediction as DRAWING AN INFORMED CONCLUSION BASED ON ALL THE NUMBERS AVAILABLE. I do this in each election cycle for other candidates, and it’s time to make the call on President Obama.

Whenever I have an incumbent client running for reelection, I insist on a viability study about a year out from the election — so, in the case of the presidential race, right about now. Anything that I do for my own, I should do for the opposition. So here goes. First, I look at THE POLLING RESULTS FROM TRADITIONAL “DESERVES REELECTION” QUESTIONS, the gold standard of viability testing. The most recent nationwide public poll I could find was one conducted by Quinnipiac University early last month. It showed 42 percent saying the president deserves reelection while 54 percent say he doesn’t. While this reelect number by itself is not necessarily a doomsday figure, IT’S THE 54 PERCENT ON THE CON SIDE THAT’S A KILLER. MOST OFTEN, THERE IS A LARGE UNDECIDED PERCENTAGE, BUT HERE IT’S ONLY 4 POINTS. VOTERS HAVE CLOSED THEIR MINDS — and the book on this president. It ensures that when Obama faces a Republican nominee, the undecided voters in early polling will eventually vote against an undeserved reelection….

http://thehill.com/opinion/columnists/david-hill/191211-obama-fails-all-viability-tests

This to me is a no brainer.  Right now Donald Duck could beat BHO.  He’s shown himself to be completely out of his league. 

7.  The Case Against Cain

… Let’s sum up the “facts” as they are known right now. MOSTLY UNNAMED PEOPLE accused Herman Cain OF UNSPECIFIED CONDUCT which some people who will not specify the people or the conduct have DEEMED “INAPPROPRIATE.” And one of the unnamed people received a piddly $35,000 SEVERANCE PACKAGE ALMOST 15 YEARS AGO FOR UNSPECIFIED CONDUCT WHICH INCLUDED CONDUCT UNRELATED TO CAIN.

That’s what’s known now. Maybe actual facts will come out proving that Cain did something wrong, but those facts are not out now…

http://legalinsurrection.com/2011/11/embarrassed-and-disgusted/

This is a cotton candy accusation.  There’s a lot less there than meets the eye. 

8.  Occupy Update:  Occupy Oakland acts up again

It was not exactly insurrection, but the rowdies gathered in Oakland for a grandiosely-named "general strike" Wednesday, FINALLY GOT THE STREET ACTION THEY WANTED AFTER NIGHTFALL, building a bonfire in a downtown street with flames 15 feet high requiring police action to prevent damage and injury to property and buildings nearby. WHEN MISSILES WERE THROWN AT POLICE AND HIT SOME, THE POLICE MOVED IN WITH TEAR GAS AND PERCUSSION GRENADES. At about 1 AM, on a street adjacent to Frank Ogawa Plaza, a group of 200 to 300 officers faced off against 150 protesters, many of whom were carrying makeshift shields and taunting officers. At one point, the officers split into two groups. Protesters followed the officers, who ordered them to disperse.

Police then went around a building, surrounded the demonstrators and began firing tear gas….

…The local Bay Area media are bending over backwards in order to find positive things to say about these miscreants. "Mostly peaceful” -- which in my book means that it was it was violent, "the feces quotient is minimal” -- how much feces is acceptable to you?, and the like. This sort of propaganda brings to mind the old joke, "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"…

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/11/occupy_oakland_builds_bonfire_trashes_whole_foods_banks_clashes_with_police_overnight.html#ixzz1cebnThDX

When I look at the comparison of how these ‘protests’ compare in media coverage with the TEA Party, I find it enlightening, but hardly surprising.  The old joke is very applicable in this case.

9.   Wall Street Protesters Prove Most Academic Degrees Worthless Today

What will it take for parents to finally realize that it's a waste of time and money to save for their children's college education? Occupy Wall Street protesters over the nation are looking for forgiveness of their nearly one trillion dollars in student loan debt yet most of them can't find a job. INTERVIEWS WITH THOSE PROTESTERS SEEM TO ILLUSTRATE THAT MANY DON'T EVEN HAVE BASIC SKILLS TO EXPRESS A COHESIVE THOUGHT. I wrote a column recently comparing the 2011 protesters to the 1960's anti-Vietnam war crowd but while those earlier ones were afraid of going to war, the OCCUPY WALL STREETERS ARE AFRAID OF HAVING TO WORK FOR A LIVING.

College costs continue to spiral upward and a recent CBS News reported that, "The College Board reports roughly 56 percent of bachelor's degree recipients at public four-year schools last year graduated with debt, averaging about $22,000. At private nonprofit universities, 65 percent had debt, averaging around $28,000."

If you're studying to be a doctor or a lawyer than there's no doubt higher education is a prerequisite but BEING IN DEBT FOR $96,000 FOR A DEGREE IN WOMEN'S STUDIES OR ART HISTORY IS JUST PLAIN STUPID. One of the signs at the park where the protesters have been camping out reads, "Even in a good economy, I'm unemployable."…

… WHAT IS SO SAD ABOUT THE OCCUPY WALL STREET PROTESTS IS THE CLUELESSNESS OF THOSE PARTICIPATING IN THEM. If their brain cells were still working they would be looking with heavy skepticism at those celebrities joining them for photo ops and video segments. Most of them belong not to the 99% but rather they are the 1% hypocrites whom they should be hanging in effigy.

Consider their supporter billionaire Russell Simmons. He is basically A BANKER WHO PROMOTES HIS RUSH CARD FOR 9.95 A MONTH WHICH IS ALMOST DOUBLE THE $5 THAT BANK OF AMERICA WANTED TO CHARGE FOR THEIR DEBIT CARDS AND WHICH WAS LOUDLY BLASTED FOR THAT PLAN BY OWS….

http://www.irishexaminerusa.com/mt/2011/11/01/wall_street_protesters_prove_m.html

The Occupy Movement reminds me of a passage in James Michener’s book Centennial where he describes a dinosaur.  Michener didn’t think much of the dinosaur’s intellectual capacity, but talked of it having a sense of danger.  The actual protesters in the Occupy Movement don’t really know what they are against other than greed.  Much like that dinosaur in Michener’s book, they have a sense of danger, but aren’t sure what it is.  

10.                    Obama Scandal Update:  Fast and Furious

…Today, BABEU'S OFFICE CONFIRMED TWO GUNS FOUND DURING A MASSIVE DRUG SMUGGLING BUST AGAINST THE SINALOA CARTEL IN PINAL COUNTY, WERE PROVIDED THROUGH OPERATION FAST AND FURIOUS.

"I am outraged our Federal Government has armed one of the largest and most dangerous of the Mexican drug cartels with as many as 2,000 high powered weapons. This is the same cartel we have been investigating for the past fifteen months for various crimes including a murder in my County. We have arrested 76 suspects and seized 108 weapons. We have now have learned two of the weapons we seized are in fact linked to Operation Fast and Furious. U.S. BORDER PATROL AGENT BRIAN TERRY WAS ONLY DOING HIS JOB WHEN HE WAS VICIOUSLY MURDERED BY MEXICAN BANDITS WITH FAST AND FURIOUS WEAPONS. Thankfully none of our members were murdered this time," Babeu tells Townhall….

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2011/11/02/more_guns_provided_through_fast_and_furious_found_in_arizona_raid

In addition to this story, we now have 34 members of Congress as well as Governor Jan Brewer calling for Eric Holder’s resignation. 

Is Michelle Obama Barack's secret weapon?

What’s new today

Our # 1 talks about Michelle Obama and her role in the coming election.  She appears to be just a clueless as her husband is and represent an easy target with her high spending ways. #2 sets the record straight about Occupy Oakland.  It was called a police riot by the people on Joe Scarborough’s show on MSNBC.  It appears the protesters were are fault according to some left wing sources.  #3 looks at what happens when you include the entire world to the size of the one percenters who live in America.   Article #4 talks about the education bubble.  #5 goes over the looks at the MSM and finds the Washington Post may be the most biased rag in America. 

1.   Michelle Obama’s role in the coming election

….Now she’s back on the campaign trail, and for some reason is returning to the same hardball politics. The other day, she thundered, “WILL WE BE A COUNTRY THAT TELLS FOLKS WHO’VE DONE EVERYTHING RIGHT BUT ARE STRUGGLING TO GET BY, ‘TOUGH LUCK, YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN’? Is that who we are?”

GIVEN THAT THE FEDERAL BUDGET HAS INCREASED BY $2 TRILLION IN JUST A DECADE, ENTITLEMENTS ARE AT RECORD LEVELS, AND THIS ADMINISTRATION IS NOW RUNNING $1.5 TRILLION ANNUAL DEFICITS, IT IS HARD TO IMAGINE THAT ANY GOVERNMENT HAS TOLD ANYONE “TOUGH LUCK.” And it is even harder to suggest that nine months of a Republican-controlled House — voted in as part of the largest midterm correction since 1938 — has had much effect on the Obama employment agenda of nearly three years, the majority of which time Obama controlled both houses of Congress and borrowed nearly $5 trillion in sending unemployment over 9 percent.

And when Ms. Obama charges, “Will we be a country where opportunity is limited to just the few at the top? Who are we?” one wonders, why, then, in the past three years of hard times, did she insist on vacationing, in iconic fashion, at Vail, Martha’s Vineyard, and Costa del Sol, the tony haunts of “the few at the top”? In these rough times, surely a smaller staff, less travel, and budgetary economies would have enhanced her populist message of some at the top enjoying perks at the expense of others.

In short, even if she does not revert to 2008 style and restart her lamentations about life in her country being unfair, I THINK IT A MISTAKE FOR ANY PRESIDENT TO PUT THE FIRST LADY OUT, IN HIGHLY PARTISAN FASHION, ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL TO ATTACK HER HUSBAND’S POLITICAL RIVALS. And, I think, the public unease with it will soon prove the point.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/281634/michelle-obama-and-few-top-victor-davis-hanson

Obama is trying anything and everything he can to separate himself from his record.  Running as an outsider who is trying to put people first and will protect the poor just isn’t very credible with Michelle Obama’s spending and his raising money with fat cats in Hollywood, New York and anywhere else he can find money.

2.   Occupy Oakland:  The Protesters started it

As reported on Thursday by Newsbusters' Mark Finkelstein, Joe Scarborough and some members of his MSNBC Morning Joe crew shot their mouths off about what MIKE BARNICLE DESCRIBED AS A "POLICE RIOT" AT THE OCCUPY OAKLAND PROTESTS BEFORE WAITING FOR ALL THE FACTS. And now it appears that the Morning Joe folks have shot themselves in the foot as well since REPORTS FROM THE SCENE SHOW THAT IT WAS THE POLICE WHO WERE CLEARLY PROVOKED BY THE OCCUPY OAKLAND DEMONSTRATORS.

So were these reports from the usual "rightwing" suspects? Nope. The REPORTS CONFIRMING THE PROVOCATIONS FROM THE DEMONSTRATORS CAME FROM THE LEFTWING MOTHER JONES MAGAZINE AND WERE SUPPORTED BY THE VERY LIBERAL SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE. Here is the initial report from the scene by James West of Mother Jones:

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/pj-gladnick/2011/10/29/even-mother-jones-confirms-police-provoked-occupy-oakland-demonstrators#ixzz1cGlSE0LG

I’ve left the rest for you to read.  It isn’t pretty.  It appears the left has a difficult time with the peaceful part of any protest.

3.   Who are the one percenters?

…The recent Occupy Wall Street protests have aimed their message at the income disparity between the 1% richest Americans and the rest of the country. BUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU EXPAND THAT AND LOOK AT THE 1% RICHEST OF THE ENTIRE WORLD? Some really interesting numbers emerge. If there were a global Occupy Wall Street protest, people as well off as Linda Frakes might actually be the target.

In America, the top 1% earn more than $380,000 per year. We are, however, AMONG THE RICHEST NATIONS ON EARTH. HOW MUCH DO YOU NEED TO EARN TO BE AMONG THE TOP 1% OF THE WORLD?

$34,000.

That was the finding World Bank economist Branko Milanovic presented in his 2010 book The Haves and the Have-Nots. Going down the distribution ladder may be just as surprising. To be in the top half of the globe, you need to earn just $1,225 a year. For the top 20%, it's $5,000 per year. Enter the top 10% with $12,000 a year. TO BE INCLUDED IN THE TOP 0.1% REQUIRES AN ANNUAL INCOME OF $70,000….

http://news.yahoo.com/attention-protestors-youre-probably-part-1-153806044.html

This is a new and interesting way to look at what is going on.  It appears most of the protesters across America are really in the top 1% worldwide.  Does this mean we should raise their taxes and possible have the third world “Eat” them? 

4.   The Education Bubble

It’s officially a crisis. STUDENT LOAN DEBT HAS HIT THE $1 TRILLION MARK, exceeding Americans’ total credit card indebtedness. Unemployed graduates with huge loan balances are camping out in “Occupy” camps -- the Hoovervilles of our age -- around the nation. And President Obama, perhaps afraid those camps will be dubbed “Obamavilles,” as indeed they have already been by some, has unveiled a new proposal that promises to help graduates who are drowning in debt.

Unfortunately, “promises” is the correct word. THOUGH UNVEILED WITH MUCH FANFARE, THE OBAMA PROPOSAL DOESN’T REALLY DO MUCH. First, as the Chronicle of Higher Education pointed out in an article characterizing it as mostly political, “The benefit is available only to current students. Those jobless college graduates who are protesting on Wall Street and at similar events elsewhere won’t qualify.”

Second, even for those who do qualify, THE BENEFIT DOESN’T AMOUNT TO MUCH. Daniel Indiviglio of The Atlantic Monthly calculated that the president’s plan will save the average grad less than $10 a month. (Even those with $100K in debt will save only $28.50 a month). You can make that sound like more -- and the White House tried -- by touting total savings over the life of the loan, but this isn’t going to rescue anyone who’s financially underwater. It’s a beer and a slice a month, more or less.

At best, it’s a band-aid solution. The real problem is that we’ve been running a higher education bubble, one that -- like the real-estate bubble -- has been pumped up by cheap government money. SINCE 1999, STUDENT LOAN DEBT HAS INCREASED BY 511%, WHILE DISPOSABLE INCOME HAS INCREASED BY ONLY 73%....

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/screw_CKEwwrXk088RBqt3yMU8fK#ixzz1cGuMTX22

The left first creates or facilitates the problem and then they want to come in on their white horse to solve the problem.  The irony is that they are much better at creating problems than solving them and their solutions normally cost a lot of money and don’t work.

5.   Washington Post Holds To the Party (Democratic) Line

BARACK OBAMA HAS MADE A BIG WHOOP-DE-DOO ABOUT NOT TAKING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM LOBBYISTS. But he’s raised lots and lots of money from those with lobbyist connections, as the Examiner’s Tim Carney reported in a piece logged in at the web yesterday, October 27, at 5:06pm. CARNEY’S LEAD: “PRESIDENT OBAMA DOESN'T TAKE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM LOBBYISTS -- UNLESS YOU COUNT THE OWNERS AND CEOS OF LOBBYING FIRMS, CORPORATE VICE PRESIDENTS FOR GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, OR MANAGING DIRECTORS FOR PUBLIC POLICY.” And his article goes on to provide chapter and verse.

ERIC LICHTBLAU WROTE  A SIMILAR STORY  FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES, His lead: "Despite a pledge not to take money from lobbyists, President Obama has relied on prominent supporters who are active in the lobbying industry to raise millions of dollars for his re-election bid.” The web version of Lichtblau’s story is dated October 27, but it seems it appeared in the October 28 print edition of the Times.

IN CONTRAST, THE OCTOBER 28 EDITION OF THE WASHINGTON POST MISSED THIS STORY ALTOGETHER. It has a page A3 story headlined in the print edition “Romney leads the Republican pack in donations from lobbyists” and in the web version “Lobbyists play key role in 2012 fundraising” by reporters Dan Eggen and T. W. Farnam. The lead: “K Street is playing an increasingly central role in the 2012 presidential race, as hundreds of lobbyists representing some of the world’s largest corporations and trade groups POUR MONEY INTO REPUBLICAN COFFERS.”

http://campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/examiner-first-story-nyt-second-wapo-whiffs

The real tragedy is that many leftists actual believe that it is only the Republicans who are getting money from lobbyists.

Occupy Wall Street: a distaster in the making

What’s new today

Our #1 tells us the story of a New York Times stringer who was covering the OWS movement who became a part of the movement.  #2 says a Green Party Candidate for President is claiming OWS for them saying that Obama is no better than the Republicans.  Elizabeth Warren in story #3 claims to be the intellectual mother of the OWS.  She’s planning on running against Scott Brown for the Senate Seat in Massachusetts.  #4 talks about how Occupy Oakland is becoming a fascist movement and #5 tells how the Mayor of Oakland evicted the protesters.  Obama shows how tone deaf he is by hiring not only a lobbyists for his campaign in #6, but one that lobbied for JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Fannie and Freddie.  #7 tells us why Obama’s fighter strategy won’t work for a Democrat (it could for a Republican).  Story #8 tells you that Obama did lose his magic touch, he never had it.  #9 has an interview by an OWS protester by someone who came to this country from the Soviet Union.  And finally story #10 demonstrates how civil the left can be as a Hollywood actor calls for some liberal to assassinate Sarah Palin.

1.  Another New York Times Activist

Journalism: IS THE NEW YORK TIMES A NEWS ORGANIZATION OR A FRONT FOR LEFT-WING ACTIVISTS? Reporter Natasha Lennard was filmed leading an Occupy Wall Street panel, offering radicals tips on keeping their identities secret. Openly.

In a video that appeared on BigGovernment.com, Lennard, a Times freelance reporter who was arrested with 700 other leftists for shutting down the Brooklyn Bridge this month, REVEALED HERSELF TO BE WITHIN THE ACTUAL LEADERSHIP OF THE OCCUPY WALL STREET PROTEST MOVEMENT.

Along with four other "comrades," she addressed a roomful of people at a bookstore in Manhattan, officiously advising the fractious movement on how to win.

"Because BEING AN OUTRIGHT ANTI-AUTHORITARIAN OR AN ANARCHIST IS NOT REALLY SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE LIKE TO BE LIVE-STREAMED AROUND THE WORLD ... there is a silencing that's sort of gone ... because to address it would be to 'out' oneself," she told a questioner.

http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/589191/201110241856/Another-New-York-Times-Activist.htm

Let’s see, a NYT reporter gives the Occupy movement advice to hide and lie about who they are.  Certainly that all the news that is fit to print.

2.  Green Party Candidate for President claims OWS alliance

Lexington doctor Jill Stein launched a bid to become the Green Party’s presidential nominee today, saying the OCCUPY WALL STREET MOVEMENT SHOWS VOTERS ARE FRUSTRATED WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA’S STEWARDSHIP OF THE ECONOMY.

“We are hearing the need for this race in every park and plaza where there’s an encampment around this country,” Stein said at a press conference with about two dozen supporters on the steps of the Massachusetts State House. “THERE’S AN ENORMOUS NEED FOR ALTERNATIVES, AND WE SEE THAT BREAKING OUT ALL OVER.”

Stein said that, while she is not officially aligned with Occupy Wall Street protesters, “We are proud to give that movement an electoral voice.” …

….DEMOCRATS, POINTING TO THE ROLE RALPH NADER PLAYED IN THE 2000 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN FLORIDA, have warned that Green Party candidates siphon votes away from the Democratic nominee, thereby helping to elect Republicans.

Stein rejected that argument, saying there was little difference between Obama and his Republican challengers. BOTH, SHE SAID, REPRESENT THE INTERESTS OF WALL STREET AND WOULD DEEPEN THE “BUSH/OBAMA RECESSION.”…

http://www.boston.com/Boston/politicalintelligence/2011/10/jill-stein-launches-bid-for-green-party-presidential-nomination/OpdxKAo0I7PVj9NcPj8pqI/index.html?p1=Local_Links

Here’s a time when both sides are correct.  She would siphon votes away from Obama and from the Green’s point of view, there isn’t a lot of difference between Obama and the Republicans (although there is a great deal of difference if you are a Republican). 

3.   Elizabeth Warren says she ‘created intellectual foundation’ for Occupy Wall Street movement

Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren claims much of the credit for the Occupy Wall Street protests sweeping the nation.

“I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they do,” the Harvard Law School professor and former Obama administration consumer advocate told Samuel P. Jacobs of The Daily Beast. “I SUPPORT WHAT THEY DO.”

The National Republican Senatorial Committee, charged with helped Senator Scott Brown win reelection, jumped on the comment.

“Warren’s decision to not only embrace, but take credit for this movement is notable considering THE BOSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT WAS RECENTLY FORCED TO ARREST AT LEAST 141 OF HER OCCUPY ACOLYTES IN BOSTON THE OTHER DAY…

http://www.boston.com/Boston/politicalintelligence/2011/10/elizabeth-warren-says-she-created-intellectual-foundation-for-occupy-wall-street-movement/eXimmRDbpeHoNBkKRmOsBL/index.html?p1=News_links

Massachusetts is a very liberal state.  But this can’t really be a help to her even there. 

4.   Occupy Oakland:  A Fascist State is born

Much ado has been made about recent media reports describing Occupy Oakland as a cross between Lord of the Flies and Animal House. The leftist magazine Mother Jones was furious about the negative coverage, deeming it “The Right-Wing Media Assault on Occupy Oakland,” and attempting to debunk the bad press. But Big Journalism lashed back with an article entitled MotherJones: Truth To Unflattering reports on OWS.

Out of curiosity, I decided to check out the scene for myself to settle the matter….

…..FROM ANARCHISM TO FASCISM

One thing quickly became apparent to me: OCCUPY OAKLAND AT FIRST TRIED TO CREATE A COMPLETELY ANARCHISTIC RULE-FREE SOCIAL UTOPIA — but as the days and weeks pass, the occupiers are inescapably re-creating society from scratch, and BEFORE LONG WILL HAVE ALL THE SAME RULES AND CUSTOMS AND PROBLEMS THAT THEY TRIED TO ABANDON. (All of this is entirely predictable, I might add.)….

….DISGUSTINGNESS

THE CITY OF OAKLAND ISSUED AN EVICTION NOTICE THE DAY BEFORE THE RALLY, CITING SANITATION ISSUES, GARBAGE, RATS AND OTHER HYGIENE PROBLEMS AT THE ENCAMPMENT. The protesters announced that they simply wouldn’t budge, and the city temporarily caved in, so for now the standoff continues, though the eviction notices are still taped up around the plaza. But as far as I could tell — yes, the city has a very good point. The place was pretty disgusting.


PARADISE FOR RATS.

Even more disturbingly, all over the camp were signs that said “Not a toilet,” because some occupiers basically relieve themselves wherever and whenever they feel the urge. Disgusted campers started putting up signs so that their particular tents wouldn’t be on the receiving end of any effluvia.

INTIMIDATING “INTERNAL SECURITY” TEAMS


Occupy Oakland has agreed by consensus to not cooperate with the Oakland Police Department under any circumstances. But as the law-breaking and nuisance behavior within the encampment started to grow, THE EVOLVING MINI-SOCIETY FOUND IT NECESSARY TO APPOINT ITS OWN ERSATZ POLICE FORCE. BASICALLY, THE SCARIEST LOOKING GUYS, AND/OR THOSE GUYS WITH WITH STRONGEST AUTHORITARIAN URGE, HAVE ASSUMED THE ROLE OF INTERNAL POLICEMEN. As many reporters have discovered, these guys really really do not appreciate having their picture taken, so I could only get a few surreptitious shots. In this scene, someone had found a large Bowie knife in the camp and turned it into these two Occupolice, who set about scanning the crowd for the potential owner, ready to wreak justice on anyone who broke the “no weapons” law consensus agreement. They communicate with walkie-talkies.


There also seemed to be a possibly separate “rally security force” consisting of guys wearing Black Panther buttons on their berets.

People have often cited Lord of the Flies in reference to Occupy Oakland, and I tend to agree — but in a good way. In the original novel about boys stranded on a desert island, it’s not just that they descend into barbarism, but more interestingly they start to re-create society from first principles, instituting hierarchies and rules and customs where none had existed before. And IT’S QUITE OBVIOUS THAT, LEFT ON THEIR OWN FOR A SUFFICIENT AMOUNT OF TIME, THE BOOK’S CHARACTERS WOULD NATURALLY HAVE DEVELOPED A NEW SOCIETY NOT MUCH DIFFERENT FROM THE ONE THEY LEFT BEHIND….

http://pjmedia.com/zombie/2011/10/24/is-occupy-oakland-as-bad-as-they-say/

This is definitely not your kid’s TEA Party.  It’s more like your kid’s Kristalnacht.  This is much the same way fascism rose up from leftist ideas. 

 

5.   Occupy Oakland:  A Fascist state dies

Police swept through Occupy Oakland's encampment in a plaza outside City Hall and a second, smaller camp nearby early today, arresting 85 people who were protesting as part of a nationwide movement against economic inequality and corporate greed.

City officials said they had been forced to clear the encampments because of sanitary and public safety concerns.

Several hundred officers from numerous law enforcement agencies began making arrests shortly before 5 a.m. and removing tents and makeshift shelters at the Occupy Oakland protest at Frank Ogawa Plaza near 14th Street and Broadway.

By 5:05 a.m., the bulk of the arrests had been completed, and arrestees were led away in plastic handcuffs. Most were arrested for unlawful assembly and illegal lodging, police said….


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/25/BAUB1LLTC9.DTL#ixzz1bpHB7ZMY

85 people were arrested.  It went peaceful with the police being called some names.  Some of the protesters said they would be back, but the city was erecting metal barricades around the park.  The Mayor said it was done because of escalating violence and illegal activities going on among the protesters. 

6.   Obama defies base, hires Wall Street lobbyist

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA’S NEW SENIOR CAMPAIGN ADVISER IS A LONGTIME WALL STREET LOBBYIST, and has the potential to damage the president’s aspirations to appeal to the protesters currently “occupying” New York City’s Zuccotti Park.

Obama’s new adviser, Broderick Johnson, has an extensive history of lobbying for big banks and corporations, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. In 2007, he lobbied for JP Morgan Chase and in 2008 Johnson lobbied for Bank of America and Fannie Mae. From 2008 through 2010, he lobbied for Comcast and in 2011 he lobbied for Microsoft.


http://dailycaller.com/2011/10/25/obama-defies-base-hires-wall-street-lobbyist-for-re-election-campaign/#ixzz1bnZ5tfxM

I thought Obama’s policy was to not have lobbyists in his campaign or his administration.  I guess either I was wrong or Obama doesn’t stay true to his word.

7.   The Fighter Fallacy

The elemental question in American politics is: DO VOTERS TRUST THEIR GOVERNMENT? During the middle of the 20th century, more than 70 percent of Americans said that they trusted government to do the right thing most of the time.

During the 1970s, that fell. BY THE IRAQ WAR, ONLY 25 PERCENT TRUSTED GOVERNment. Now, amid the economic slowdown, public trust has hit an all-time low. According to a CNN/ORC INTERNATIONAL POLL, ONLY 15 PERCENT OF AMERICANS ASKED SAID THAT THEY TRUST THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO DO THE RIGHT THING MOST OF THE TIME.

This is a problem for Democrats. But Democrats can win elections in this climate if they defuse the Big Government/Small Government ideological debate. With his Third Way approach, Bill Clinton established that he was not a Big Government liberal. Once he crossed that threshold, he could get voters to think about his individual policies, which were actually quite popular….

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/25/opinion/brooks-the-fighter-fallacy.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1319548286-p6KlbmEM9YdjkR/QYp+13g



This is an interesting op-ed by David Brooks.  What he alludes to here is what I dubbed the “Lemonade Stand Theory” on this blog on September 6, 2011.  The lesson from the Lemonade Stand Theory is the problem for the left that the people don’t believe them. And they don’t believe them because of their experience with government.  Basically if government is trying to protect citizenry by shutting down kids’ lemonade stands, government is out of touch and  untrustworthy.

The Democrats are the party of government and although people may like what the individual policies the Democrats talk about, they don’t believe the Democrats will actually deliver what they promise.  The last two and one half years under Obama is a big reinforcement of how the rhetoric and the results differ widely. 



Brooks basic lesson is that Obama’s latest strategy, that of the fighter, won’t work because he is a democrat.  What he needs to do is to be Bill Clinton and come up with a Grand Bargain with the Republicans. 

#8  The Magic Touch

Last year, President Barack Obama  issued a warning to Republicans. They had been “politicking”instead of “governing,” he said. “Well, we can politick for three months,” he said. “They forgot I’m pretty good at politicking.”

That was in August 2010. At the end of those three months, Republicans controlled the most seats in the U.S. House since the 1940s. Republicans did well for a lot of reasons. One of them was that the president is wrong: He isn’t all that good at politics….

… But take a closer look at Obama’s rise and a hole in his resume quickly becomes apparent: Obama never had to fight for and win the votes of people who don’t agree with him. Both his biggest political setback and his biggest political accomplishment -- his defeat by Bobby Rush in a 2000 U.S. House primary and his victory over Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008 -- came during struggles within a liberal universe….

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-24/obama-s-mythical-political-skills-won-t-save-him-ramesh-ponnuru.html

This is an interesting piece talking about the lack of political instincts Obama seems to have.   This doesn’t seem to hurt his self-image of himself.   He thinks he is a political genius.

#9  Socialism vs Capitalism at OWS—see the video

http://jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com/2011/10/former-soviet-citizien-explains.html

If you are expecting intelligence from the Occupy movement, you won’t find it here.  It’s amazing how the woman describes North Korea. 

#10  Actor Calls for Liberals to Kill Sarah Palin

ACTOR ORLANDO JONES on Saturday celebrated the death of Libya's Moammar Gaddafi by taking to his Twitter account and calling for American liberals to kill Sarah Palin.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2011/10/25/actor-orlando-jones-liberals-need-kill-sarah-palin#ixzz1bp1HHBSY

Once again we see where the intolerance and lack of civility resides.  It isn’t with the right and the TEA Party.