Dear President Obama, (received in an email)
Mr. Pritchett is a well known motivational speaker, business consultant and consumer advocate. Here is a paper that deserves to be seen everywhere.
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA
Dear President Obama,
You are the thirteenth President under whom I have lived and unlike any of the others, you truly scare me.
You scare me because after months of exposure, I know nothing about you.
You scare me because I do not know how you paid for your expensive Ivy League education and your upscale lifestyle and housing with no visible signs of support.
You scare me because you did not spend the formative years of youth growing up in America and culturally you are not an American.
You scare me because you have never run a company or met a payroll.
You scare me because you have never had military experience, thus don’t understand it at its core.
You scare me because you lack humility and ‘class’, always blaming others.
You scare me because for over half your life you have aligned yourself with radical extremists who hate America and you refuse to publicly denounce these radicals who wish to see America fail.
You scare me because you are a cheerleader for the ‘blame America’ crowd and deliver this message abroad.
You scare me because you want to change America to a European style country where the government sector dominates instead of the private sector.
You scare me because you want to replace our health care system with a government controlled one.
You scare me because you prefer ‘wind mills’ to responsibly capitalizing on our own vast oil, coal and shale reserves.
You scare me because you want to kill the American capitalist goose that lays the golden egg which provides the highest standard of living in the world.
You scare me because you have begun to use ‘extortion’ tactics against certain banks and corporations.
You scare me because your own political party shrinks from challenging you on your wild and irresponsible spending proposals.
You scare me because you will not openly listen to or even consider opposing points of view from intelligent people.
You scare me because you falsely believe that you are both omnipotent and omniscient.
You scare me because the media gives you a free pass on everything you do.
You scare me because you demonize and want to silence the Limbaughs, Hannitys, O’Relllys and Becks who offer opposing, conservative points of view.
You scare me because you prefer controlling over governing.
Finally, you scare me because if you serve a second term I will probably not feel safe in writing a similar letter in 8 years.
Lou Pritchett
Who is ACORN?
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 Accomplishments Program & Philosophy People’s Platform Preamble Energy Health Care Housing Work and Worker’s Rights Rural Issues Community Development Taxes Environment Neighborhood Safety Rape Drugs Community Crime Control Civil Rights Communications Education Representation ACORN’s History |
ACORN People’s Platform
Representation
I. More democracy … in the neighborhood
II. More democracy … in elections
III. More democracy … in government
IV. More democracy … in big business
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U.N. protocol used to regulate homeschoolers
U.N. protocol used to regulate homeschoolers
New Brit report: Authorities have ‘right to access of the home’
Posted: June 16, 2009
9:53 pm Eastern
By Bob Unruh
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
A British plan to allow local authorities “the right of access to the home” and “the right to speak with each child alone” in order to evaluate homeschooling families and make certain they do what the government wants is a warning about what could happen in the United States, according to the world’s largest homeschool advocacy organization.
“On June 11, 2009, a report on home education in England by Graham Badman, a former Managing Director of Children, Families and Education in the County of Kent, was accepted in full by the British Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families,” according to today’s report from the Home School Legal Defense Association.
“The report makes the case that homeschooling should be extensively regulated in England,” the HSLDA continued. “Aside from registering with the state and mandating reports by homeschoolers, the Badman report makes references to balancing the rights of parents with the rights of children. This idea is expressed in the UNCRC.”
(Story continues below)
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That is the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, a document that the HSLDA has been warning about for a number of years already.
It has been adopted in the United Kingdom, and it is on its way toward approval in the United States, lacking mainly the approval of two-thirds of the U.S. Senate.
The document, however, grants dozens of “rights” to children, sometimes running roughshod over conflicting parental rights, the organization said.
For example, under the international document parents no longer would be allowed to administer reasonable spankings to their children, children would be granted the authority by the state to choose their own religion, the “best interest of the child” would govern all decisions and give the government the authority to override any parental decision, children would have a legally enforceable “right to leisure” and parents would be required to have their children attend state-sponsored sex education courts.
There is a ParentalRights.org website that notes if approved, the treaty would supersede “the laws of all 50 states on children and parents.”
The HSLDA now is sending a very gentle “I told you so” message.
“Ever since the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly and opened to nations across the world for ratification in 1989, HSLDA has been deeply concerned about the implications of this treaty for U.S. homeschoolers, if the U.S. were to ratify the treaty,” the organization said today. “We have consistently warned that this treaty could be the vehicle opponents of home education could use to effectively ban or severely regulate homeschooling.”
If the U.S. Senate ever approves it, “the UNCRC will automatically supersede all state laws and U.S. judges will be obligated to follow the provisions of the treaty. Currently, family and education laws are state-based; however, ratification of the UNCRC would transfer the jurisdiction for making family and education law to the U.S. Congress. Congress would, in turn, be obligated to follow the U.N. mandates contained in the CRC,” the HSLDA said.
UNCRC supporters have scoffed at such concerns, saying, “There is no language in the CRC that dictates the manner in which parents are to raise and instruct their children,” the HSLDA said.
But now, with the adoption of the Badman report in Britain, “Sadly, HSLDA’s position has been proven to be correct. Contrary to what proponents like the Children’s Rights Campaign claim, UNCRC will be used to significantly restrict the freedom to homeschool in England.”
According to the report now awaiting legislative action in Britain, Badman concludes, “I am not persuaded that under the current regulatory regime that there is a correct balance between the rights of parents and the rights of the child either to an appropriate education or to be safe from harm. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) gives children and young people over 40 substantive rights which include the right to express their views freely, the right to be heard in any legal or administrative matters that affect them and the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas. Article 12 makes clear the responsibility of signatories to give children a voice:
“‘Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.’
“Yet under the current legislation and guidance, local authorities have no right of access to the child to determine or ascertain such views,” the report finds.
Therefore, authorities not only must have access to homes and private interviews with children, they should, “secure the monitoring of the effectiveness of elective home education,” Badman wrote.
“In short, the Badman report recommends that the state should have the authority to choose the curriculum for homeschoolers and he used Britain’s treaty obligations under the UNCRC to justify this intrusion,” the HSLDA report said.
“Remember, the Badman report has already been accepted by the British government. It is now only a question of time before the legislation is introduced and a vote occurs in the British Parliament. Not surprisingly, the estimated 80,000 British homeschooling families are outraged at the Badman report. The Badman report is a stark reminder of how government officials in an English-speaking democracy have interpreted the UNCRC. It’s clear that the right to homeschool in America will be negatively impacted if the U.S. Senate ever ratifies the UNCRC,” the HSLDA said.
Among Badman’s recommendations:
- At the time of registration parents/carers/guardians must provide a clear statement of their educational approach, intent and desired/planned outcomes for the child over the following 12 months.
- That the government review the current statutory definition of what constitutes a “suitable” and “efficient” education.
- That all local authorities analyze the reasons why parents or carers chose elective home education and report those findings to the Children’s Trust Board.
- Authorities should regard the move to home education as a trigger to conduct a review and satisfy themselves that the potentially changed complexity of education provided at home, still constitutes a suitable education.
Michael Farris, founder of the Home School Legal Defense Association, a college and a church and now a dedicated leader in the effort to change the U.S. Constitution through the amendment process to restore and protect parental rights, has told WND even U.S. courts in recent years have refused to acknowledge parental rights in many case.
True Story…..
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THE STATUE
This statue
Currently stands outside the Iraqi palace,
Now home to the 4th Infantry division.
It will
Eventually be shipped home
And put in the
Memorial museum in Fort Hood , TX
The statue
Was created by
an Iraqi
Artist named Kalat,
Who for years was forced by
Saddam Hussein to make the many hundreds
Of bronze busts of Saddam that dotted Baghdad ..
Kalat was so
Grateful for the Americans liberation of his country;
He melted 3 of the heads of the fallen
Saddam and made the statue as a memorial to the American soldiers
And their fallen
Warriors.
Kalat
Worked on this memorial night and day for several months.
To the left of the
Kneeling soldier is a small Iraqi girl giving the soldier comfort as he mourns the
Loss of his comrade in arms.
Do you
Know why we don’t hear about this in the news?
Because it
Is heart warming
And
Praise worthy..
The media
Avoids it because it does not have the shock effect.
But we
Can do something about it.
We can
Pass this along to as many people as we can in honor of all our brave
Military who are making a difference.
Bill Cosby has a great way of “distilling” things. Looks like he’s done it again!
Bill Cosby has a great way of “distilling” things. Looks like he’s done it again!
AMERICA NEEDS A CANDIDATE WITH THIS PLATFORM!!
I HAVE DECIDED TO BECOME A WRITE-IN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT IN THE YEAR 2012..
HERE IS MY PLATFORM:
(1). Any use of the phrase: ‘Press 1 for English’ is immediately banned. English is the official language; speak it or wait outside of our borders until you can.
(2). We will immediately go into a two year isolationist attitude in order to straighten out the greedy big business posture in this country. America will allow NO imports, and we’ll do no exports. We will use the ‘Wal-Mart ‘s’ policy, ‘If we ain’t got it, you don’t need it.’ We’ll make it here and sell it here!
(3).. When imports are allowed, there will be a 100% import tax on it coming in here.
(4). All retired military personnel will be required to man one of the many observation towers located on the southern border of the United States (six month tour). They will be under strict orders not to fire on SOUTHBOUND aliens.
(5). Social Security will immediately return to its original state. If you didn’t put nuttin in, you ain’t gettin nuttin out. Neither the President nor any other politician will be able to touch it.
(6). Welfare. — Checks will be handed out on Fridays, at the end of the 40 hour school week, the successful completion of a urinalysis test for drugs, and passing grades.
(7). Professional Athletes — Steroids? The FIRST time you check positive you’re banned from sports ….. for life.
(8). Crime – We will adopt the Turkish method, i.e., the first time you steal, you lose your right hand. There is no more ‘life sentences’. If convicted of murder, you will be put to death by the same method you chose for the victim you killed: gun, knife, strangulation, etc.
(9).. One export of ours will be allowed: wheat; because the world needs to eat. However, a bushel of wheat will be the exact price of a barrel of oil.
(10). All foreign aid, using American taxpayer money, will immediately cease and the saved money will help to pay off the national debt and, ultimately, lower taxes. When disasters occur around the world, we’ll ask The American People if they want to donate to a disaster fund, and each citizen can make the decision as to whether, or not, it’s a worthy cause.
(11). The Pledge of Allegiance will be said every day at school and every day in Congress.
(12). The National Anthem will be played at all appropriate ceremonies, sporting events, outings, etc.
My apology is offered if I’ve stepped on anyone’s toes ….. nevertheless……
GOD BLESS AMERICA.
Sincerely, Bill Cosby
Please forward this to everyone you know, no matter which side of the fence they’re on.
Why your Money will be replaced by a single world currency and
Why you will loose your job, bank, home, security.
A must SEE video!
Your 401k will be given to the poor in other countries. There will be no middle class of any kind.
It is the CHANGE that was promised.
The world is being socialized so that everyone on the planet will be equal in every way and all private property will disappear.
All incentive to invent and learn will disappear.
Like the slaves of old, your children will be ignorant and live life as North Koreans or Afghans do.
Lose your car loose your home. Be reassigned a cracker box to live in and uniforms to wear.
Problem is, while Government will own you, dictate your every move, the super rich will control the government.
After all, it will be the super rich who will bankroll the politicians elections to both get and remain in power.
The movie should have been broken up into smaller files with Chapters. But it’s not, so some of the most important info effecting YOU is about 50 minutes into the show. 70 Minutes into the video is the most scaryist, obma on camera, says he will monitor your internet activities and block what he doesn’t want you to see or send. Arrest American citizens for “pre-crimes” crimes not yet committed and detain you with out trial indefinitely, like terrorists at Guantanamo.
Go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VebOTc-7shU&feature=popt00us16
Download and save this video by using YOUTUBE Downloader from altervista.org
Save the video while you can! Your right to freedom of speech and choice of news is coming to an end.
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TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film opening Thanksgiving day
Help FreedomWorks Promote Tea Party The Movie!
We need your help to spread the word about the definitive tea party movie: TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film releases direct to DVD and via download from the Apple Appstore this Thanksgiving Day at www.TeaPartyMovie.com.
The film follows the struggles of five grassroots individuals and their transformation from home town rally goers and rally organizers to national activists taking part in the 912 Taxpayer March on Washington. In the process, they reveal what is at the heart of this nationwide surge of civic engagement – a call for a return to constitutionally limited government, personal responsibility, and fiscal restraint at the Federal level.
Can’t wait until Thanksgiving to see it? Then host a cinematic tea party with a “Tea Time Sneak Peek”: To help spread the word for the TEA PARTY film we are asking activists to host a sneak peek of a portion of the movie between Nov 2nd and Nov 26th. These “Tea Time Sneak Peeks” will raise significant awareness for the film amongst the media and throughout grassroots America. You can host a sneak peek at a private home, church, school, club or other venue. For more information on hosting a cinematic tea party click here and find out about how you can take part in special weekly strategy conference calls on Tuesdays at 7PM, or contact Joel Aaron Foster at 678-910-3101 or info@teapartymovie.com.
FreedomWorks,
Chairman
FreedomWorks.org
P.S. If you haven’t done so already, be sure to purchase a copy of our official 912 Taxpayer March on Washington panoramic picture online here. This is a great reminder of the power the grassroots have when we come together.
Maybe he is wrong. What if he is right? Two trillion dollars! Where’d it go?
| Take the three minutes to read this. |
Maybe he is wrong.
What if he is right?
David Kaiser is a respected historian whose published works have covered a broad range of topics, from European Warfare to American League Baseball. Born in 1947, the son of a diplomat, Kaiser spent his childhood in three capital cities: Washington D.C. , Albany, New York , and Dakar, Senegal .. He attended Harvard University , graduating there in 1969 with a B.A. in history. He then spent several years more at Harvard, gaining a PhD in history, which he obtained in 1976. He served in the Army Reserve from 1970 to 1976.
He is a professor in the Strategy and Policy Department of theUnited States Naval War College. He has previously taught atCarnegie Mellon, Williams College and Harvard University . Kaiser’s latest book, The Road to Dallas, about the Kennedy assassination, was just published by Harvard UniversityPress.
Dr. David Kaiser
History Unfolding
I am a student of history. Professionally, I have written 15 books on history that have been published in six languages, and I have studied history all my life. I have come to think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is simply a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus.
Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten to fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two.
We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?
We learned just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has “loaned” two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money. Yours and mine. And that is three times the $700 billion we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of “we the people,” who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not.
We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy.. Why?
We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, school boards continue to back mediocrity.. Why?
We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it simply wants marriage to remain defined as between one man and one woman. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?) We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose?
Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is Medicare and our entire government. Our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and I know precisely what I am talking about) – the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth.. It is potentially 1929 x ten…And we are at war with an enemy we cannot even name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who, in turn, cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so.
And finally, we have elected a man that no one really knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla, Alaska . All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh, of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin’s pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe are more important.)
Mr. Obama’s winning platform can be boiled down to one word: Change. Why?
I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now.
This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again.
And that is only the beginning..
As a serious student of history, I thought I would never come to experience what the ordinary, moral German must have felt in the mid-1930s In those times, the “savior” was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they should have known was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory. Conservative “losers” read it right now.
And there were the promises. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and frowned and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his “brown shirts” would bully and beat them into submission. Which they did – regularly. And then, he was duly elected to office, while a full-throttled economic crisis bloomed at hand – theGreat Depression. Slowly, but surely he seized the controls of government power, person by person, department by department, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The children of German citizens were at first, encouraged to join a Youth Movement in his name where they were taught exactly what to think.. Later, they were required to do so. No Jews of course,
How did he get people on his side? He did it by promising jobs to the jobless, money to the money-less, and rewards for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe , and across the world. He did it with a compliant media – did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and …. change. And the people surely got what they voted for.
If you think I am exaggerating, look it up. It’s all there in the history books.
So read your history books. Many people of conscience objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and ridiculed. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though. And the world came to regret that he was not listened to.
Do not forget that Germany was the most educated, the most cultured country in Europe . It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And yet, in less than six years (a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency) it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors.. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them.
As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me..
I choose to believe the evidence. No doubt some people will scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. To some degree, perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe-and why I believe it.
I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am. Perhaps the only hope is our vote in the next elections.
David Kaiser
Jamestown , Rhode Island
United States
It is claimed that comic Robin Williams wrote these ideas to save America
‘I see a lot of people yelling for peace but I have not heard of a plan for peace. So, here’s one plan.’
1) ‘The US / UK ? Canada , AUSTRALIA will apologize to the world for our ‘interference’ in their affairs, past & present. You know, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Tojo, Noriega, Milosevic, Hussein, and the rest of those ‘good ‘ole’ boys’, we will never ‘interfere’ again.
2) We will withdraw our troops from all over the world, starting with Germany , South Korea , the Middle East , and the Philippines . They don’t want us there. We would station troops at our borders. No one allowed sneaking through holes in the fence.
3) All illegal aliens have 90 days to get their affairs together and leave We’ll give them a free trip home. After 90 days the remainder will be gathered up and deported immediately, regardless of whom or where they are from. They’re illegal!!! France will welcome them..
4) All future visitors will be thoroughly checked and limited to 90 days unless given a special permit!!!! No one from a terrorist nation will be allowed in. If you don’t like it there, change it yourself and don’t hide here. Asylum would never be available to anyone. We don’t need any more cab drivers or 7-11 cashiers.
5) No foreign ‘students’ over age 21. The older ones are the bombers. If they don’t attend classes, they get a ‘D’ and it’s back home baby.
6) The US / UK Canada , Australia will make a strong effort to become self-sufficient energy wise. This will include developing nonpolluting sources of energy but will require a temporary drilling of oil in the Alaskan wilderness. The caribou will have to cope for a while
7) Offer Saudi Arabia and other oil producing countries $10 a barrel for their oil. If they don’t like it, we go someplace else. They can go somewhere else to sell their production. (About a week of the wells filling up the storage sites would be enough.)
8.) If there is a famine or other natural catastrophe in the world, we will not ‘interfere.’ They can pray to Allah or whomever, for seeds, rain, cement or whatever they need. Besides most of what we give them is stolen or given to the army. The people who need it most get very little, if anything.
9) Ship the UN Headquarters to an isolated island someplace. We don’t need the spies and fair weather friends here. Besides, the building would make a good homeless shelter or lockup for illegal aliens.
10) All Americans must go to charm and beauty school. That way, no one can call us ‘Ugly Americans’ any longer. The Language we speak is ENGLISH..learn it…or LEAVE…Now, isn’t that a winner of a plan?
‘The Statue of Liberty is no longer saying ‘Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses.’ She’s got a baseball bat and she’s yelling, ‘you want a piece of me?’ ‘
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Obama’s Ethics Counsel Faces Tough Crowd at ABA Conference
Daniel Newhauser
The National Law Journal
October 23, 2009
President Barack Obama’s special counsel for ethics and government regulation Thursday afternoon gave an American Bar Association crowd an insider’s perspective into the administration’s thought path as it first embarked on, and now continues to pursue, lobbying reform in Washington. But his remarks did not go unchallenged.
Many thought Obama’s promise of reform was just empty campaign rhetoric, said Norman Eisen, but the president in fact has “a deeply held personal view that political systems are susceptible to special interests” and he “speaks of it often.” “The president will hold every government servant to the highest standard of fidelity to the public interest,” Eisen told a crowd of about 40 at the ABA Administrative Law Conference luncheon. “We think it is no accident that we have had one of the most scandal-free starts of any administration in modern history.”
Though Eisen refrained from outlining future steps, he said Obama’s initial lobbying reform, particularly an executive order scribed by Eisen and signed on Jan. 21 by the president, served to “send a message to everybody that we were serious about the change.” The order restricted registered lobbyists from government employment in areas they lobbied, among other things. Eisen said there have been only three waivers in some 2000 posts filled.
Following that order, the administration mandated disclosure of lobbying or competitive grants for stimulus dollars to keep the process transparent and opened up the White House visitor logs to the public. “We did full transparency,” he said. “We’ll let the public decide who among them is a lobbyist or not.”
The current and unfinished leg of Obama’s regulatory pursuit—purging lobbyists from administration boards and commissions—is being undertaken to bring fresh voices into policy-making discussions, Eisen continued, saying: “We do not feel there is a monopoly on wisdom and talent within the beltway.”
Still, critics like Thomas Susman, the ABA’s government affairs office director, who joked when introducing Eisen to the crowd that he was responsible for “vilifying and emasculating” lobbyists, questioned Eisen as to why, if indeed these regulations are intended for the public interest, no distinction is made between corporate lobbyists and those who lobby for public interest causes. Eisen responded by saying that the administration did consider parsing types of lobbying, but in the end, “felt that as a matter of principle, we needed to be consistent in that regulation to have credibility.”
Sharing the stage Eisen and Susman, William Luneburg Jr., chair of the the ABA’s administrative law and regulatory practice section, which sponsored the event, told Eisen that the definition of, “lobbyist,” should be more consistent because some who don’t register as lobbyists still fit the role and slip through the cracks into government positions. Eisen responded, saying: “We thought it would be too burdensome to establish another regulatory regime” and “we felt that as a matter of workability, that was just too tough.”
An audience member also harangued Eisen for not consulting with lobbyists before undertaking reform. Eisen said that in fact the administration did, though only with those whose contribution would have had a valuable impact.
PANEL DISCUSSION CONTINUES CRITIQUES OF REGULATION
The criticism didn’t stop at lunch. Immediately after Eisen’s remarks, a panel discussion assembled down the hall in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Panelist Nick Allard, of Patton Boggs, quipped that he was “shocked” to hear Obama’s “fig-leaf counsel” complain about lobbyists because shutting lobbyists out of government is forcing them to cut corners, including unregistering.
“Right now it’s popular to make a show of turning lobbyists away from the front door while sending them around the back,” he said. “The dirty little secret is the wink-wink policy toward lobbying encourages people to do things the wrong way.” He urged the lobbying community to self-regulate and hold itself to a higher standard of conduct so the government wouldn’t feel the need to intrude.
Melanie Sloan, Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (a group that Eisen co-founded), contended that the administration wasn’t doing enough to take the money out of politics. She advocated publicly financed elections, but admitted it seems a political impossibility right now. But small measures, like restricting bundling or forcing disclosure in so-called “Astroturf” lobbying groups would help, she said.
Finally, former U.S. Solicitor General and current Harvard Professor Charles Fried addressed the constitutional implications of shutting lobbyists out from government: He said there are none. “The constitutional issue about the Obama executive order that we keep hearing about seems to me a true nothing burger,” he said. “You have the right to petition, you don’t have the right to be heard.”
But Fried said stonewalling lobbyists makes little sense and ignores the real problem: Too much money in politics. He too advocated for publicly financed elections. “There is something odd about denying access to lobbyists when a lobbyist is really an advocate and is probably a really knowledgeable advocate,” he said. “The solution obviously has to do with the money.”
Religious groups fear law could criminalize conservative speech
Hate crimes bill goes to Obama for signature from CNN
• Story Highlights
• NEW: Senate approves bill expanding hate crimes law
• Measure would make it a crime to assault person because of sexual orientation
• Religious groups fear law could criminalize conservative speech
• Attorney general says it will be used only to prosecute violence
updated 4:41 a.m. EDT, Fri October 23, 2009
WASHINGTON (CNN) — The Senate passed groundbreaking legislation Thursday that would make it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.
President Obama has said the country must make significant changes to ensure equal rights.
The expanded federal hate crimes law now goes to President Obama’s desk. Obama has pledged to sign the measure, which was added to a $680 billion defense authorization bill.
President George W. Bush had threatened to veto a similar measure.
The bill is named for Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager who died after being kidnapped and severely beaten in October 1998, and James Byrd Jr., an African-American man dragged to death in Texas the same year.
“Knowing that the president will sign it, unlike his predecessor, has made all the hard work this year to pass it worthwhile,” said Judy Shepard, board president of the Matthew Shepard Foundation named for her son. “Hate crimes continue to affect far too many Americans who are simply trying to live their lives honestly, and they need to know that their government will protect them from violence, and provide appropriate justice for victims and their families.”
Several religious groups have expressed concern that a hate-crimes law could be used to criminalize conservative speech relating to subjects such as abortion or homosexuality.
Attorney General Eric Holder has asserted that any federal hate-crimes law would be used only to prosecute violent acts based on bias, as opposed to the prosecution of speech based on controversial racial or religious beliefs.
Holder called Thursday’s 68-29 Senate vote to approve the defense spending bill that included the hate crimes measure “a milestone in helping protect Americans from the most heinous bias-motivated violence.” Watch survivor of attack discuss legislation »
“The passage of this legislation will give the Justice Department and our state and local law enforcement partners the tools we need to deter and prosecute these acts of violence,” he said in a statement.
Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, called the measure “our nation’s first major piece of civil rights legislation for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.”
“Too many in our community have been devastated by hate violence,” Solmonese said in a statement. “We now can begin the important steps to erasing hate in our country.”
This month, Obama told the Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest gay rights group, that the nation still needs to make significant changes to ensure equal rights for gays and lesbians.
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“Despite the progress we’ve made, there are still laws to change and hearts to open,” he said during his address at the dinner for the Human Rights Campaign. “This fight continues now, and I’m here with the simple message: I’m here with you in that fight.”
Among other things, Obama has called for the repeal of the ban on gays serving openly in the military, the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. He also has urged Congress to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and pass the Domestic Partners Benefit and Obligations Act.
The Defense of Marriage Act defines marriage, for federal purposes, as a legal union between a man and a woman. It allows states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages. The Domestic Partners Benefit and Obligations Act would extend family benefits now available to heterosexual federal employees to gay and lesbian federal workers.
More than 77,000 hate-crime incidents were reported by the FBI between 1998 and 2007, or “nearly one hate crime for every hour of every day over the span of a decade,” Holder told the Senate Judiciary Committee in June.
The FBI, Holder added, reported 7,624 hate-crime incidents in 2007, the most current year with complete data.
Alerting you to the dangers I see
Alerting you to the dangers I see, of loosing the rights and freedom’s and things that made AMERICA strong!
A Super Power and defender of Truth, Justice and Freedom for all. I am 60 years old and have seen America erode over time. These truths are but now only a past dream.
I grew up daily Pledging Allegiance to the American Flag, and praying in school. Singing patriotic songs and loving America. TV was off the air at 11pm and signed off with the flag and the national anthem. No foul language or moral decay. My favorite show’s are only on TV LAND.
I got my ass spanked when I needed it and sometimes more.
I got discipline and it was good!
The selfishness and materialism of the baby boomer generation that I am a part of, lead to a decay in morality and a gross lack of parenting.
Anything goes kid, just leave me alone, seemed to be what my generation was saying to their kids, grand kids and their government.
Now, we all pay the price for “liberal” “progressive” ideas.
Nothing is free, you sold your soul for a pot of porridge.
This man in office, would never pass a Secret Security Clearance. I have, twice.
This man never DID Anything except taking taking taking free public money to go to school and learn how to be an eloquent speaker and lull you to sleep. Sleep to the part of your mind that does critical thinking. Candy Candy Candy. He promises candy if you’ll vote for him. Candy if you’ll go along with his ideas. The Pied Piper will leave a trail of Candy all the way to the cliff’s edge.
Military get’s it up the ass from obama (literally true) 10/22/09
Military get’s it up the ass from obama (literally true) 10/22/09
For there to be open gays in the military, they must repeal an old law.
Here is an article I found on Oct. 22, 2009. Please read my comments at the bottom.
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“Blue-Ribbon Commission Urges Repeal of Military’s Ban on Sodomy
Tresa Baldas, The National Law Journal, October 22, 2009
A military law commission is calling for the end of the U.S. armed services’ decades-old sodomy prohibition, finding that the ban invites arbitrary enforcement and may be unconstitutional.
In a report released Oct. 20, the Commission on Military Justice — a panel of former judges, law professors and military experts — called the ban on consensual sodomy unnecessary and recommended repealing it. The commission was created in January by the National Institute of Military Justice and the American Bar Association to assess military justice in the United States.
It concluded that new military laws — which took effect in 2007 — provide an “adequate basis to prosecute any criminal sexual misconduct.” Moreover, it noted, the U.S. Supreme Court spoke on the issue in 2003, holding in Lawrence v. Texas that the right to privacy protects the right of adults to engage in private, consensual sexual activity.
“Given that background and given that Congress has passed new laws, we just felt like [the sodomy ban] should be repealed,” said Walter Cox III, chairman of the commission. He added, “I definitely think it’s outdated.”
Cox, of counsel to the Charleston office of Columbia, S.C.-based Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, is all too familiar with the military prohibition. He is a former chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, who oversaw several cases in which the ban was cited, most often in rape allegations involving male and female service members.
“Some of its applications we do think would be unconstitutional, such as a husband and wife having consensual oral sex, a boyfriend and a girlfriend, or a boyfriend and a boyfriend,” Cox said. He said the commission isn’t “cheering any particular side on….We just want the military justice system to be modern, fair and totally acceptable by the civilian and military community alike.”
An earlier military law commission, also chaired by Cox, also recommended repealing the ban back in 2001.
Professor Scott Silliman, executive director of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security at Duke Law School, who served on the commission, made similar points. The former Air Force judge advocate noted that consensual sodomy remains a crime in the military because Congress has not changed the law.
“All things, as far as I’m concerned, suggest that this is something that Congress ought to look very strongly at,” Silliman said. “This is a subject for congressional hearings. Just like they intend to look at the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy.”
Other commission members included William Wilkins, former chief judge of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; retired Rear Adm. Donald Guter, former judge advocate general of the Navy; and Mary Cheh, a member of the District of Columbia Council and professor at George Washington University Law School..”
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Will [God loving/fearing] Christians be willing to serve in a military, where the gays are screwing in the lower bunk bed? Would there be any trust to put your life in the hands of another?
How long before serviceman and women decide that the pay isn’t good enough and start selling secrets to the enemy?
Why would they do that? For the same reason obama has sold out this country, no Respect for tried and true principles. Will medical marijuana make it into the military?
It’s all about CHANGE. Yes, he really does stand for CHANGE and he utters that a hundred times a day.
I can buy a fountain pen and place it in my shirt pocket for $40. So what, you say? Well this pen is also a color spy camera that records both voice and video for hours.
How do you guard against that?
Less than 30% of Americans claim to be Republicans. I’m one of them. I am disgusted with both parties. But I fear that this imbalance will lead to a dictatorship. The D & R are like + & — , you can’t have balance if your missing one.
Gee, those old laws have served this country well for 200+ years, making it the strongest nation in the world. We will no long be a super power.
Having done all the pioneering of everything, at our own expenses; The world now takes our technology in every field and exploits it without any payment to America. Their economy exists only because the got the technology and ideas from western culture. Before car imports, the world rode camels, horses, donkeys and bikes.
One simple global example is the GPS. Even our enemy’s use it against us.
The 700 Club had a broadcast over a month ago. They claim in the name of Homeland Security, obama has declared that he and he alone, can decide what you see and hear and read on the internet. The only thing you will have access to is the stuff he wants you to see. Much like communist China. He doesn’t have to worry about the TV news, he already own all but Fox News. He even plans on eliminating his rivals on talk radio.
If he and he alone can have this power and create Czars with ungodly powers, where is the purpose of the three branches of government? The Executive, Congress, Senate and Judicial ? Look for it to all go away.
Tell me how Hitler came to power?
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Hello world!
Welcome to PAUL REVERE’s Post
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Portrait of Paul Revere by John Singleton Copley, c.1768–70
Paul Revere (bap. January 1, 1735 [O.S. December 22, 1734] – May 10, 1818)[1] was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution.
He was glorified after his death for his role as a messenger in the battles of Lexington and Concord, and Revere’s name and his “midnight ride” are well-known in the United States as a patriotic symbol.
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