10.31.2010

Virginia Puts the Lie to Obama's Lameness

By Proof

Lame. [leym] lam·er, lam·est, verb, lamed, lam·ing, noun
–adjective
1. crippled or physically disabled, esp. in the foot or leg so as to limp or walk with difficulty.
2. impaired or disabled through defect or injury: a lame arm.
3. weak; inadequate; unsatisfactory; clumsy: a lame excuse.
4. Slang . out of touch with modern fads or trends; unsophisticated.

Now that we have thoroughly discussed President Obama's "drove the economy in the ditch" analogy, let's take a look at how Republican "drivers" are making out in states where they are still "behind the wheel". From the Washington Post:

President Obama and other Democrats are going around the country making the same argument as party leaders made in Virginia last year: If you elect Republicans, they'll drive the car right back into the ditch.
Virginians overwhelmingly ignored that advice, and a year later many say they have few regrets and are generally pleased - if not ecstatic - about what Republicans have done.


Excuse me, but did she say "ecstatic"??

Voters are crediting republican Gov. Robert F. McDonnell with coming up with deep budget cuts and even ending the fiscal year with a small surplus, without the tax increase that former Gov. Kaine had recommended.

..."This state hasn't gone backwards," said Steven Herborn, 55, of Chesapeake. He has supported candidates in both parties over the years but wants Republicans to take over Congress next week.

...And more than a dozen independent voters in Virginia who backed Obama in 2008 said in interviews that they didn't think the state had moved backward under McDonnell and Republicans in the past year. A few who didn't vote for him still gave him credit for working hard and focusing on the right priorities.


Sounds like a case of "Who are you going to believe? Me, or your own lying eyes?"
The Democrats' lack of traction with with their message, combined with a disastrous economy and double digit unemployment caused Virginians to look at the results of their politicians and not the rhetoric.

How bad is it for Democrats in Virginia? They're losing retired government workers!

Mary Kay Rieg, 60, a retired federal employee from Alexandria...enthusiastically backed Obama in 2008, hoping he'd bring a new brand of post-partisan politics to Washington.

She's been so disappointed that next week she plans to vote against Rep. James P. Moran Jr., a 10-term incumbent, for the first time and cast her ballot for Republican Patrick Murray instead.

"President Obama came in under very special circumstances, and those circumstances called for restraint," she said. "And Democrats have not shown restraint."


That's not to say that the election will be a cakewalk or that there are no problems to overcome. Yet, these are encouraging signs that Tuesday's election might be like the punchline to a lawyer joke:

What do you call 100 lawyers on the ocean floor?

A start.


H/T 2H9


Cross posted at Proof Positive

Righty v. Lefty



What a moment!

George Bush 41 and George Bush 43 entered the stadium together tonight to throw out the first ball at the World Series.

THE CROWD ROARED.

Then GW threw a strike to home plate catcher Nolan Ryan to start off game 4. Barbara Bush was taking photos in the stands.

What a wonderful moment.
Scott at Power Line:
What a moving study in dignity and class. What a great example.

Miss me yet? I miss them both.
Take a look at how easy this was for G.W. and then remember this and this from King Charlie.
When it was time for him to pitch the ball, he pitched it with no hesitation, no mugging for the camera, without a second thought. And it was a solid strike.


(VIDEO) Sarah Palin: “we have the tape that proves it” of the “corrupt bastards” in the media conspiring against Joe Miller

by the Left Coast Rebel

Via. Gateway Pundit, Sarah Palin on Fox News Sunday addressing the KTVA CBS controversy wherein a lamestream media 'reporter' was caught on tape conspiring against Joe Miller:



You go, Sarah! Palin is exactly right - they are corrupt bastards! Here's the transcript:

“Just last night it was revealed that the rally that I had for Joe Miller on Thursday, it was revealed and we have the tape to prove it, that the CBS reporters, the affiliate in Alaska, conspired to make up stories about Joe Miller. We have the tape Chris, and I can’t wait until it busts out all over the nation, that shows what it is that we… kinda what I put up with for two years now from the media… but what Joe Miller is faced with in someone like Lisa Murkowsky who feels so entitled to that seat, that she and some of her people including some complicit in the media will do anything, they will stop at nothing, to allow Lisa Murkowsky to get back elected.”

Exclusive: Left Coast Rebel obtains the rest of Nick McDermott's voice mail to Joe Miller

By Sam Foster

Upon the revelation that Nick McDermott of KTVA and other reporters were planning negative news stories against Joe Miller on Miller's voice mail, I checked my own voice mail. What I found, was astounding...

Apparently, prior to calling Joe Miller, Nick McDermott left me a voice mail. McDermott ever struggling with that frustrating iPhone, failed to disconnect the phone line and my voice mail kept recording. Here is a transcript of what I heard after McDermott thought he had hung up...

Female voice: Valerie Jerrett Ministry of Truth, Nick I wanted to go over your news stories for tomorrow. What have you got on Joe Miller?

Nick McDermott: We don't have much left three days before the elections. I mean, I can't understand why people don't think creating an online poll at work is riveting?

Female voice: That's because it was stupid. I followed your lead and had the MSM publish as a favor, but we need something much, much more interesting.

Nick McDermott: Like what???

Female voice: Well, how about we find someone Joe Miller dated. I mean so long as he made out with the woman we can publish something like "Joe Miller's one-night stand." That's what we did with Christine O'Donnell.

Nick: I don't know...that didn't turn out too well...

Female voice: I was only trying to make an example...here, but we've done great things with Christine O'Donnell so far. Like that bit about how Christine O'Donnell didn't know that separation of church and state is in the constitution.

Nick: But it isn't written in the constitution...it came about via court precedence nearly 200 years later.

Female voice: I know that...but no MSM reporter does. In fact, that is the only thing they think is in the constitution.

Nick: Ok, so what you are saying is that we just need to make up a story with a flashy headline that isn't true?

Female voice: Precisely. Look, I know you are the expert in AK media, but you should be looking to do something like Rand Paul supporters stomping story.

Nick: Ok, let's give it a try...I'll call up Joe Miller right now!

(Nick's message to Joe Miller campaign redacted for privacy reasons.)

Nick: I can't believe a Tea Party candidate might win...here's my thought, we find a molester, any molester that might possibly show up at a Joe Miller rally and we do a title "Joe Miller is pro-molestation."

Female Voice: That’s up to you because you're the expert, but that’s what I would
do...I’d wait until you see who showed up because that indicates we already know
something...

Female voice: ...but, I think we can do better than Child molesters...

Nick: Oh yeah... can you repeat Joe Miller’s...uh... list of people, campaign
workers, which one's the molester?

[INAUDIBLE]

FEMALE VOICE: We know that out of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of
them will be a registered sex offender.

[Laughter]

MALE REPORTER: You have to find that one person...
[INAUDIBLE]

FEMALE REPORTER: And the one thing we can do is ....we won’t know....we won’t know but
if there is any sort of chaos whatsoever we can put out a twitter/facebook alert: saying what
the... ‘Hey Joe Miller punched at rally.’

FEMALE REPORTER: Kinda like Rand Paul...I like that.
[Laughter]

FEMALE REPORTER: That’s a good one.

Female voice: I mean we don't even need a foot to hit someone's face, just get close. This is perfect.

Discusssion via. Memeorandum.

Uh Oh: CBS reporter from KTVA, Nick McDermott and other local media, leave Joe Miller voice mail about how they are plotting to smear him

By Sam Foster

This, of course, will probably get ignored by the mainstream media. However, the evidence is shocking.

Joe Miller sent out a press release early this morning with proof of the local press plotting stories against him.

Anchorage, Alaska. October 30, 2010 -- In an apparent accidental voice mail message left on the cell phone of Joe Miller's spokesperson, Randy DeSoto, what is believed to be the news director for CBS Anchorage affiliate KTVA, along with assignment editor Nick McDermott, and other reporters, openly discuss creating, if not fabricating, two stories about Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, Joe Miller. The voice mail message was later authenticated by Mr. McDermott, who sent a text to DeSoto stating “Damn iPhone . . . I left you a long message. I thought I hung up. Sorry.”

In the first discussion, the KTVA reporters discuss getting a list of Miller campaign supporters in order to 'find' a “child molester.” “You have to find that one person,” says the male reporter, to laughter in the news room. The reporters at KTVA then discuss creating a “Rand Paul” incident at the then upcoming Miller Rally (held on October 28, 2010) and hoping for violence so that they can “send out a tweet” and “Facebook” that “Miller got punched” at the rally.


Here is the audio below:



Here is the transcript below.

FEMALE REPORTER: That’s up to you because you're the expert, but that’s what I would
do...I’d wait until you see who showed up because that indicates we already know
something...
[Laughter]
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE REPORTER: Child molesters...
MALE REPORTER: Oh yeah... can you repeat Joe Miller’s...uh... list of people, campaign
workers, which one's the molester?
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE VOICE: We know that out of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of
them will be a registered sex offender.
[Laughter]
MALE REPORTER: You have to find that one person...
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE REPORTER: And the one thing we can do is ....we won’t know....we won’t know but
if there is any sort of chaos whatsoever we can put out a twitter/facebook alert: saying what
the... ‘Hey Joe Miller punched at rally.’
FEMALE REPORTER: Kinda like Rand Paul...I like that.
[Laughter]
FEMALE REPORTER: That’s a good one.


The discussion about creating a sensational Rand Paul stomping story says something of both the Rand Paul coverage and the supposed "objective" reporting of Tea Party candidates.

Nothing unbelievably shocking accept that it was caught on tape. Proving what has been evident in the coverage of Tea Party candidates this year, that the media has already written the news before the events have happened.

Exit question: Will KTVA report on their own smear campaign?


More at Big Journalism


Welcome Hot Air, Legal Insurrection, and The Blaze readers. Thanks Ed, Prof. Jacobson, and Scott Baker.

10.30.2010

Wisdom, Virtues, and the Principles of Proper Governance

by: Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA



Wisdom is often found in the most simplistic values... Liberty, Limited government, and Self Reliance...

Rational Nation USAafter consideration of all alternatives  is left with the realization and stark reality the left is unyielding  and often irrational in defense of its progressive collectivist agenda.

One particular progressive (communist) blog has found it appropriate to label Rational Nation USA reactionary. Therefore I ask you, my readership the following:


What is reactionary about believing in advancing technology...
What is reactionary about believing in the value of and advancement of  scientific research...
What is reactionary about the belief in advancement  of outer space exploration...
What is reactionary about the belief in individual rights and the pursuit of individual achievement...
What is reactionary about the belief in self reliance...
What is reactionary about the belief in limited government...
What is reactionary about the belief in the nations founding principles...
What is reactionary about the belief that each individual can achieve in direct proportion to his or her own efforts...
What is reactionary about the belief the only justification for war is in response to an act of aggression against a sovereign state.
What is reactionary about the belief that the nation should operate under a balanced budget...

The answer to these rational and reasoned  questions... NOTHING!

Unless of course you are an irrational progressive collectivist such as is this site.

Remember to get out and vote November 2, 2010. Only by voting can you make a difference.

Only by voting out incumbents, specifically democrats (DemonCrats) will a real difference be made.

I find it interesting the progressive collectivists are so bent on stifling any and all thought that does not fall in line with their failed agenda.

And so I ask you.. Who are the real idiots?

Cross posted to Rational Nation USA

What's More Important Than The Constitution?


Q: In Conservative political discussion, what's even more important than the U.S. Constitution?

A: Natural Law.

Bill Whittle "chalks out the basics of Tea Party Conservatism" in this latest chapter of the Firewall series. Like all the others, this one is an entertaining and informative MUST SEE:


Are you a Natrual Law Conservative?

Please share this video!

Barbara Boxer: Family Profits From Fake Indian Tribe She Helped Create

By Proof

Funny thing! I wasn't even going to write about this, I was just going to post a link to it in the Saturday Linkaround and let people read or not read it as they will. Then, getting ready to post the link, I went to The Hill and found this:

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Although, if you look, the comments below the "page not found" reference this story. But, I guess it could have been a "broken link", so I took their advice and searched "Barbara Boxer Indian", was taken to this page:
Image and video hosting by TinyPic

And when I clicked on the link guess where it took me? (Bonus points if you guessed "page not found"). Here's from a helpful email from the Fiorina camp:

The Hill’s Pundits Blog: Barb Boxer’s Indian tribe take
By Rick Manning
October 30, 2010
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/lawmaker-news/126619-barb-boxers-indian-tribe-take


For the past 10 years Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) has been playing a game that would make Jack Abramoff blush, a game that can best be described using the language of “Get Smart’s” Maxwell Smart as “the ole family-profiting-off-of-the-Indian-tribe-that-you-created trick.”


Here’s the story.


In 1998, Lynn Woolsey introduced legislation reinstating an Indian tribe in the wine country of Northern California that had been declared defunct by the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1958. None of the Indians of the tribe objected at that time; they received a payment and went about their lives. The Woolsey bill would reinstate the tribe but specifically prohibited them from starting a casino. The legislation ran into trouble when the Bureau of Indian Affairs opposed the legislation because it had not seen any evidence that the tribe was significantly tied to the terminated tribe.


In 2000, Boxer helpfully picked up the Woolsey bill, but changed the prohibition against gaming, and designated any land that the group owned to be considered as a reservation.


In the same year, Boxer got her language into the Omnibus Indian Advancement Act of 2000, and with the changes unbeknownst to either fellow Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) or House sponsor Woolsey (D), the bill was signed into law by then-President Clinton.


With us so far? A defunct tribe of Indians gets reinstated and Boxer inserts language that states in essence, any land they purchase becomes a "reservation". Neat, huh? Get around all those federal and local laws and taxes with the stroke of a pen. But as they say on the infomercials, Wait! There's more!

Shortly after passage, the newly minted Indian tribe declared that after much soul-searching, the only thing it could do was open a casino on the outskirts of San Francisco in the town of Rohnert Park.


The tribe turned its fortunes over to two firms to make its dreams of wealth come true — Platinum Advisers, a political consulting/lobbying firm, and Kenwood Investments 2. Amazingly, and I’m certain quite coincidentally, Barbara Boxer’s son, Doug, was a partner in each firm.


To avoid immediate citizen concern about a casino popping up in their posh neighborhood, Doug Boxer’s Kenwood Investments 2 kindly fronted for the casino interests in purchasing a tract of land in Rohnert Park, as well as helpfully taking options on adjoining parcels of land for themselves to sweeten the pot. (Can I say pot and Sonoma County, Calif., in the same breath?)


Then Platinum Advisers sprang into action to try to gain community support for the casino. They apparently didn’t do a very good job, because the casino still is not built 10 years later.


According to Reference.com, Doug Boxer’s take from the project was a very Abramoff-like $8 million.


What makes the story timely is that the federal government just a couple of weeks ago was compelled to declare the land that Boxer’s son had purchased on behalf of the Indian casino a reservation, effectively killing the local zoning and lawsuits that had tied the project up in knots for most of the past decade.


The Santa Rosa Press Democrat rightly pinned the federal decision right on the Senate Ethics* Committee chairwoman’s doorstep by pointing out that since she used the word shall, rather than may, in the legislation that birthed this tribe, the federal government had no choice but to declare the property that the tribe subsequently purchased to be tribal lands.


The rest of the post goes on to examine the, shall we say, less than stellar (or convincing) bona fides of this "tribe." Read the whole thing if it ever goes back up.

Both Boxer and Harry Reid have done very well by their children, by steering millions of dollars their way. Now if someone could only remind them to do right by the people who elected them and the taxpayers of this country.

Could you remind them for me next Tuesday?

*"Senate Ethics" - under Boxer, an oxymoron. (See: "Obama Justice Department")

Cross posted at Proof Positive

Update: Welcome Red Staters! Moe Lane has written on this as well here.

Update x2: The Hill article that was taken down can be viewed, cached, here.

10.29.2010

Pre-Gawker Smear Poll Shows Christine O'Donnell Closing Gap Against Coons


by the Left Coast Rebel

Shiver me timbers, get a load of this from NPR, of all places:

Christine O'Donnell is surging and not just in terms of web hits owing to the controversial Gawker story about her Halloween date three years ago.

A new Monmouth University poll has the Republican now just ten points behind Democrat Chris Coons in the U.S. Senate race.

Two weeks ago, Coons' lead was about 20-percentage points over O'Donnell whose candidacy was increasingly seen as doomed by many.

It still may be. A ten-point lead in a statewide race is still substantial only days before an election.

But to have so much movement towards O'Donnell in a race that had appeared settled is extraordinary if this poll is capturing public sentiment accurately.

I gleaned this little beauty from NPR's piece too:

The Gawker story, which again, hit the Web before this latest poll, appears to be creating something of a sympathy backlash for O'Donnell. So, theoretically, it could even add to her momentum, making the race even closer.
Hmm....check out these details taken from the Monmouth University Poll that NPR cites:

O’Donnell has actually pulled into a 49% to 43% lead in the southern part of the state (i.e. Kent and Sussex counties). Two weeks ago, this region of the state was divided at 47% for O’Donnell and 46% for Coons.

The Democrat continues to hold a sizable advantage in New Castle County, but the current 56% to 36% margin is down from the 63% to 33% edge he held earlier this month.

O’Donnell has also made gains among independent voters, now leading Coons 47% to 42% among this voting bloc.

Two weeks ago, she trailed in the independent vote by 51% to 41%.“While Coons still has the advantage, it has to be uncomfortable knowing that O’Donnell was able to shave 9 points off his lead in just two weeks. The interesting thing is that while her vote total has risen, the majority of Delaware voters still say she is unqualified for the post,” said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.

News like this leads me to believe that polls in California are probably a lot tighter than the government/media complex would leave you to believe.

Check out how awesome this image is from the start page of the Christine O'Donnell for Senate site (click to embiggen):

Now that is effective campaigning!


Reason.com: Attack Ads, Circa 1800

by the Left Coast Rebel

Team Gillespie, Welch, Cavanaugh, et al. are just too awesome:



Via Memeorandum, Reason:

Have this year's negative political ads really "taken dirty to a whole new level, as CNN's Anderson Cooper frets? Is a "return to civility...a relic of a bygone era," as President Barack Obama laments?

Er, not exactly.

If anonymous political speech, the other widely decried villain of this political season, helped found the United States, attack ads are as American as apple pie. If you fancy yourself a patriot or a history buff, you will most certainly approve this message, which is taken from statements made by, for, and against the nation's founders. For historical sources, go here.

The Collapse of the Democrat Party One Fail at a Time: John Kerry pays for broadside insulting his constituency

By Sam Foster

I’ve already begun detailing the unraveling of the Democrat Party; yes, they’ve started to realize it 16 months late. This will be the first in a whole series of posts leading up to the election on Tuesday. My plan is to point out the various Democrat fails from the leftist politicos as that stinging reality of their collapse hits them.

Some examples so far include:

Joe Sestak’s dog crap ad: Because nothing says “leave the future of this state in these hands” like an ad that screams “these hands are holding dog crap!”

Robert Reich’s self-defeating article about how Tea Parties are bad, because they are not corporation friendly.

Democrat Scott Murphy recently released an attack ad against challenger Chris Gibson. Because nothing says “I’ve worked hard for NY-20 jobs” like an ad with your opponent riding a crocodile. Murphy just found out that he went from leading 17 points to down by 9!

JWF has uncovered another great moment in Democrat fail. In frustration over his parties near certain collapse, John Kerry paid for a broadside to mock his constituency, calling them “know-nothings.”

Quote John Kerry:

"It's absurd. We've lost our minds," said a clearly exasperated Kerry. "We're in a period of know-nothingism in the country, where truth and science and facts don't weigh in. It's all short-order, lowest common denominator, cheap-seat politics."


That a-boy John! Insult the voters. That’s the way to get votes and save your Party.

PJTV: All Aboard the Van Tran Train

by the Left Coast Rebel

Last week I met the Los Angeles PJTV crew to film an interview with Orange County Republican, CD-47's Van Tran and PJTV has the video up (as of yesterday), please click the image to view the segment. If you don't have a PJTV subscription, that's ok - just sign up for the free service and view away! :

The segment really turned out well, despite my impression of my performance. I was nervous as hell as it was my first showing of any kind on camera. I totally bombed my memorized introduction due to nerves. I was able to relax during the chat and Q&A with Assemblyman Van Tran, however, and that is what the PJTV guys used for the final edit.

Advice for citizen activists to appear on camera:

  • Know your material but do not depend on memorization. Memorized material tends to fly out the window when nerves kick in.
  • Once I relaxed a bit, I was able to converse well with Van Tran. This was due to the fact that I knew his candidacy inside and out and didn't memorize my questions for him.
  • When the camera was rolling I focused on the candidate. I filtered out the room that was fixated on the interview. It was almost like climbing at an incredible height. The equivalent, "don't look down," to a rock-climb or such came into my mind and it helped a lot.
  • Have fun! It's a lot of fun, actually. Loosen up and don't take it too seriously. I'm sure the second time around is easier too.

Somewhat related - Via Memeorandum, check out Paul Krugman's piece today, you won't regret it if you do. Kruggie sees ghosts of the Apocalypse and the writing on the wall for the socialist agenda on Tuesday and I couldn't be any happier.

Christopher Manion over at Lew Rockwell critiques Krugman, too:

In a postmodern twist on ancient myth, Paul Krugman warns against chaos if Obamanites do not enjoy unfettered rule next year.

This calls to mind the pre-philosophical myth, in its countless variants, that warned of chaos if the harmony of the cosmos was shattered.

For Krugman, the god “BiPartisan” scowls from its totem perch, demanding obedience. Funny, he only turns up in non-Left-Wing years. Must have something to do with winding the clock at Stonehenge.

Krugman’s adolescent pre-analytical skills regarding politics remind me of Bill Clinton’s clownish efforts at Georgetown, constantly trying to get elected to some student office. Eliade examines the “Myth of the Eternal Return” (to the origin of cosmic order). Krugman represents the sad fact of eternal adolescence.

al Qaeda in Yemen Terrorist Plot - Chicago Synagogues on Red Alert After Reports Of Bombs on Cargo Planes

by the Left Coast Rebel

Scary stuff, here's a report from ABC News:




An intelligence report that al Qaeda in Yemen may have shipped an explosive device to Chicago has led to an international search of cargo planes carrying packages to the United States from Yemen today.

Authorities in Newark and Philadelphia searched UPS and FedEx cargo jets. US fighter jets also escorted Emirates Air flight 201 from Dubai into John F. Kennedy airport in New York City this afternoon. According to a statement from NORAD, the plane was determined to be "an aircraft of interest."

American law enforcement officials said no explosive devices had been found.

The initial report came late Thursday night and involved two separate packages shipped from Sanaa, Yemen to Chicago, according to law enforcement officials. One of the packages was shipped by FedEx, the other by UPS. Officials said both packages were stopped midway on their trip to Chicago, one at the East Midlands cargo airfield outside London and the other at the airport in Dubai.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that as a result of the discovery of the packages, "additional measures were taken regarding . . . flights at Newark Liberty and Philadelphia International Airports." Gibbs said President Obama was notified of a potential terrorist threat Thursday night by John Brennan, the deputy national security advisor for counterterrorism. "The president directed U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and the Department of Homeland Security, to take steps to ensure the safety and security of the American people, and to determine whether these threats are a part of any additional terrorist plotting."

US officials told ABC News that the contents of the two suspicious packages appeared to contain components that could be combined to construct an improvised explosive device.


Updated: Ed Morrissey at Hot Air (no surprise) has the best coverage on the terrorist plot.

Wow, I Agree With Bearded Marxist Coons and NOW

by the Left Coast Rebel

Politics makes for strange bedfellows, at least once in a while this afternoon.

For once, I agree with a Marxist named Coons.

Here's why:

Delaware Democrat Chris Coons on Friday denounced as “cowardly” an anonymous Gawker post from a man claiming a drunken encounter with Republican Christine O’Donnell

“The Gawker item is despicable, cowardly and has absolutely no value at all to any Delaware voters,” Coons spokesman Daniel McElhatton told POLITICO. “We denounce it with great vigor.”

Also, every clock is right, at least once a day in a blue moon:

Sexist, misogynist attacks against women have no place in the electoral process, regardless of a particular candidate’s political ideology.

Today the tabloid website Gawker published an anonymous piece titled “I Had A One-Night Stand With Christine O’Donnell” that takes the routine sexual degradation of women candidates to a disgusting new low. NOW repudiates Gawker’s decision to run this piece. It operates as public sexual harassment. And like all sexual harassment, it targets not only O’Donnell, but all women contemplating stepping into the public sphere.

I don't think that the Gawker piece is 'sexual harassment,' but rather, crass and crude, incredibly shoddy journalism, fit for print on the cover of the National Enquirer and not even worthy of discussion.

Even more, it's just such a stupid piece of slander filth that no one would be talking about and would never be directed at, much less discussed; if the object of slander were anything but a woman right of center.

That, is the sexism of the leftwing.

More discussion over at Last Tradition.

Live by the Sword, Die by.......

by the Left Coast Rebel

"Write-in" Lisa Murkowski is being hoist on her own petard in Alaska's senate race.

Journolister Ben Smith has the details:

Just hours before the final deadline, more than 100 Alaskans came out Thursday to file as write-in candidates in an effort to thwart Sen. Lisa Murkowski's bid to retain her Senate seat.

At the urging of a local talk radio host, scores of people signed up to be write-in candidates with the Alaska Division of Elections before registration closed. ...

Alaska Division of Elections Director Gail Fenumiai confirmed that at least 100 people filed as write-in candidates. Fenumiai said early Friday morning that she could not give a specific number yet of how many candidates signed up with a name similar to "Lisa Murkowski" because she had not seen all of their names yet.

Dan Fagan, who hosts a popular conservative radio talk show in Anchorage, said that after one listener called in to say he was registering as a write-in candidate, he encouraged others to do the same.

That's pretty funny! As my title here alludes, live by the sword, die by the sword. Man, oh man, how I want Joe Miller to win this race. I found the list that Journolister-Smith mentions, heralded as a last minute effort to "thwart" Murkowski's rejection of Alaska primary voter's will and protect her ruling class status.

There's got to be over a hundred! Here's one in particular. Do you really think that Lisa M.'s last name is "Lackey"? :

Lisa M. Lackey (Republican) - Write-in
Check out the list here. Via Memeorandum.

Boo! Leslie Eastman has a Great Pre-election Halloween Post up


by the Left Coast Rebel

I'm not a huge fan of Halloween although I enjoy some of the costumes, candy and (occassionally attended by your truly) festivities around the event. I loved the day as a kid, though - as I am sure you did, too.

Leslie Eastman over at Temple of Mut has a great pre-election Halloween special up with some great tips and things to watch for election day, especially for California residents:

PHONE BANK!!! Pick a candidate or cause, and spend 30 minutes dialing! My personal choice is YES ON 23! It would be especially helpful if other scientists or environmental professionals could join me. Here is the link: YES ON 23! ACTION FIRST CALL CENTER.

IGNORE THE POLLS!For example, I have a source in the media business who reports that the polls in California are over-representing the Latino vote. The only poll to pay attention to is NOV. 2ND! It is also good to know internal polls indicate that some Tea Party favorites are doing better than the elite media cares to report: GREAT MERCIFUL ZEUS: Christine O’Donnell is going to win in Delaware.

STAY INFORMED: Tim Daniel does his first PJTV interview, with CA47 candidate Van Tran. THE LIBERATOR TODAY HAS A FABULOUS LIST OF BALLOT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CALIFORNIANS MAKING THEIR CHOICES THIS WEEKEND!!!

SCARE OUR OPPOSITION: While Jon Stewart and elites party in DC this weekend, there is a lot we to challenge those who view us as “the enemy” and want us to go to the “back of the bus”. This includes donating. Here are my picks for money-sending.

Scott Bielat (challenging Fannie-Mae-scandal-meister Barney Frank).
Nick Popaditch (CA-51st, against Blue-Dog-Dem-hater Bob Filner)
Van Tran (CA-47th, against race-baiter Loretta Sanchez)
Ruth McClung (rocket scientists in AZ-7, running against another race baiter, who called for a boycott of his OWN state after SB1070 passed)

Here is a list of more candidates from LEFT COAST REBEL: TOP TEN CANDIDATES TO DONATE TO!

Be sure to check out the rest at Temple of Mut, including some great graphics. Happy Halloween!


http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_bstXBEDnG9w/TMsTg34-CpI/AAAAAAAAD18/bB7x1kqtUBE/s1600/Obama+jack+o+lantern.jpg
No more pre-Halloween tricks socialism
for you, Obama!

Polling Turning Against Proposition 19 but New National Record 46% of Americans Agree with Legalization


by the Left Coast Rebel

California's Marijuana legalization initiative, Proposition 19, seems to be failing in statewide polling but that doesn't mean that more and more Americans don't agree with the idea of pot being legal. Gallup has results that clearly show a new 'high' for support, 46% of Americans think that it should be legal:

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The Gallup graphic above certainly shows a clear trendline, from the late 1990s to today. Here's more from Gallup:

Across numerous subgroups, liberals' support, at 72%, is by far the highest. There is widespread support for legalization among 18- to 29-year-olds (61%) as well.

Majority support is also found among Democrats, independents, men, and political moderates.

A large majority of those living in the West, which encompasses California, are in favor of making the drug legal. Support is significantly lower in the South and Midwest.

Political conservatives and Republicans are the least supportive of legalizing marijuana. Seniors express a similarly low level of support.

Women are 10 percentage points less likely than men to favor legalizing the drug.

These demographic, political, and ideological differences in support are much the same as they were in 2009.


Bottom Line

Arguments for and against legalizing marijuana -- for personal or medical use -- are likely to continue for years to come. Even if Proposition 19 wins in California on Nov. 2, as state law it will still come up against federal law, which bans the growth and sale of marijuana.

Support for making the drug legal in general, however, is growing among Americans. The public is almost evenly split this year, with 46% in favor and 50% opposed. If the trend of the past decade continues at a similar pace, majority support could be a reality within the next few years.

Robert B Reich must have missed the Moveon.org memo


By Sam Foster

Nothing says defeat like a flailing narrative.

Just as Moveon.org is spending millions on an ad campaign deeming Republicans = Republicorp. Robert B Reich has come out with on Op-Ed saying…the exact opposite.

Wall Street may be furious with the Obama administration but at least Mr. Obama (and his predecessor) bailed it out. By contrast, tea party activists consider the Troubled Asset Relief Program a betrayal of America. In the Bloomberg poll, nearly 70% of tea partiers said that they're less likely to support a candidate who voted for the bank rescue.

Underlying all of this is a deep tea party suspicion that big government is in cahoots with big business and Wall Street, against the rest of America. This has been the conventional view among leftist conspiracy theorists for years but it's now emerging full-throttle on the right.

So, what we have is a Democrat Party telling voters that the Republican Party is both anti- and pro-corporatism. This makes for a noticeable mishmash of messaging. It probably sounds clever to Reich, but it flies in the face of about every single Democrat campaign ad running on TV over the last few months.

I suspect that Reich is off the reservation on this one. Something tells me the progressive echo chamber will not pleased and if they are, then all the better. I'm fine with the left propagandizing against the left.

Via Memeorandum

Exit Note: This is just a sign that the left is absolutely falling to pieces. Expect to see much, much more self-defeating narratives pop up over the next few days. Tweet (@LCRSamFoster) me with examples and I'll compile a list.

Obama Gets His History Wrong...Again!

By Proof



Ever get the feeling that this guy not only slept through twenty years in Jeremiah Wright's church, but slept through all his history and civics classes, too?

Listen to the bone headed blunder he makes about Social Security. Originally intended for widows and orphans??? Please! It was sold as a retirement plan, complete with Al Gore's "lock box" (full of I.O.U.s ever since Congress figured out they could raid those funds with impunity.)

BTW, is it safe to assume from his halting, near stuttering delivery and inaccuracy that he was not only off script, but off prompter as well?

More at theblogprof

Cross posted at Proof Positive

Latest Mason-Dixon Poll Shows Sharron Angle Ahead

by the Left Coast Rebel

I don't have much time to blog this morning but will be back this evening. Hopefully Sam Foster will pick up the slack while I am away.

For now, here's some good news out of Nevada from Mason-Dixon Research.

Tuesday will be exciting but surely feature some dissapointments. Hopefully I will be celebrating with my San Diego tea party friends, along with patriot Mason Weaver at 4th and B in San Diego on election night.

The twin victories of Sharron Angle and Rand Paul will be oh-so-sweet for me.

Stayin' Alive In The Wall

Apropos of nothing, a very retro mashup for your Friday morning:


h/t: Polemicon

Bonus points for concocting a Tea Party or Election Day connection to this video!

10.28.2010

Scientists uncover genetic defect that leads to liberalism



The title of this post may not be entirely fair or scientific, but this is interesting news:
People with left wing views may have their political opinions controlled by a "liberal gene", according to scientists.

The research suggests that some people have an inherent bias against conservative thinking, that is independent of their education or upbringing.

The effect is caused by a [receptor] in the brain called DRD4 which could be stimulated by the novelty value of left of centre opinions, say US researchers.

In people who are naturally outgoing, the feature encourages them to seek out companions with unconventional views as they grow up.

This in turn means they tend to form less conventional political viewpoints as adults, according to the study by the University of California and Harvard.
Novelty junkies who become liberals were noted to be carriers of the 7R variant of the DRD4 gene. Perhaps it should be no surprise that this genetic variation has also been linked with ADHD:
Associations have been reported of the 7-repeat (7R) allele of the human dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) gene with both the personality trait of novelty seeking and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
That liberals often value novelty more than common sense or traditional values is not a new observation. James Taranto takes note:
The liberal elites cannot comprehend common sense, and, incredibly, they think that's a virtue. After all, common sense is so common.

The British philosopher Roger Scruton has coined a term to describe this attitude: oikophobia. Xenophobia is fear of the alien; oikophobia is fear of the familiar: "the disposition, in any conflict, to side with 'them' against 'us', and the felt need to denigrate the customs, culture and institutions that are identifiably 'ours.' "
How does this addiction to novelty play out in real-world political discourse? The Brit who coined the term "oikophobia" provides some interesting insights from across the pond:
The oik repudiates national loyalties and defines his goals and ideals against the nation, promoting transnational institutions over national governments, accepting and endorsing laws that are imposed on us from on high by the EU or the UN, though without troubling to consider Terence's question, and defining his political vision in terms of universal values that have been purified of all reference to the particular attachments of a real historical community.

The oik is, in his own eyes, a defender of enlightened universalism against local chauvinism.
So the liberal sometimes struggles to grasp the importance of time-tested moral values. The failure to appreciate the significance of values such as group loyalty and traditional conceptualizations of sanctity and purity may, in fact, be progressivism's achilles heel.


Read more about oikophobia at the Wall Street Journal.
Here's a link to the The Journal of Politics article on the DRD4-7R allele.
Discussion: Memeorandum

If that new Alaska Poll on Joe Miller were true…

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Sinking Democrat Sandcastles...

By Sam Foster


Unable to defeat the Republican Tsunami only 5 days away, the left is clinging to the very last bastion of desperation. Today's AK poll on Joe Miller is more like sandcastle building than smoke and mirrors. With smoke and mirrors, nothing is really there. Sandcastle building requires setting up a narrative that is squishy, like AK Senate Democrate candidate McAdams.

Today's example of sandcastle building is in a poll released on AK's senate race showing Joe Miller placing third in the race.

Jeanne Devon of AK Muckraker writes
:

>A new poll conducted by Hays Research confirms what we already intuitively know. Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Joe Miller's candidacy is in big trouble.

The result? Scott McAdams surging ahead of Joe Miller with 29 percent, Joe Miller with 23 percent, and the write-in candidate (most of which are presumably Lisa Murkowski) with a small gain bringing her to 34 percent, and undecided voters still at 13 percent. This is the first time that McAdams has polled better than Miller, and he did it by six points, comfortably outside the margin of error of 4.8 percent -- a watershed moment for the McAdams campaign.

The problem with this poll?

Jim Geraghty at NRO, someone who actually understands that all polls are not created equal, points out that this particular pollster is consistently way off and skews unjustifiably towards Democrats.

However, one can go much further than Jim. The poll results themselves are curious.

For example, 60 percent view Joe Miller "Very Negatively" and 8 percent "negatively." That's some feat for any candidate in any race. To give you a perspective, Rush Limbaugh's favorable/unfavorables are better when polling just Democrats only!

Not only are Joe Miller's negatives questionably high, but according to the poll, Joe Miller supporters are flocking…to…the democrat?

This all begs the question, if Miller is hemorrhaging voters, where are they going? The numbers seem to bear out the anti-incumbency sentiment, and voter frustration with the "establishment," because Miller's supporters seem to be jumping ship mostly for McAdams.

Sounds oddly like the Pat Buchanan voters switching to Al Gore in 2000, doesn't it?

I've already covered the ridiculousness that is the Joe Miller Office Scandal. Of course, as Geraghty points out this poll could be accurate. However, the real joke is on the left. Why, with Joe Miller at a 60% "very unfavorable" rating, can't McAdams do better then a 6 point lead over Miller? You'd have to be a pretty poor candidate if that was all the wind you could blow into those sails.

Via Memeorandum

2010 Pre-midterm Election Poll: Obama, You're Fired


by the Left Coast Rebel

Damning news on Obama, right before the midterm from USNews:

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, rapped by the White House for pledging to make Barack Obama a one-term president, seems to have the support of a majority of Americans. A new poll provided to Whispers says that 56 percent of likely voters want the president fired.

According to pollster Doug Schoen, whose new poll shows vast support for the Tea Party movement among voters, the president is still liked by about half the nation. In fact, more like him personally than like his policies. Some 48 percent think he's a nice guy, while just 42 percent approve of his job performance.

But that personal favorability doesn't translate into re-election support when voters are asked if Obama deserves a second term. Says Schoen: "Despite voters feelings toward Obama personally, 56 percent say he does not deserve to be re-elected, while 38 percent say he does deserve to be re-elected president." Worse, Schoen adds, "43 percent say that Barack Obama has been a better president than George W. Bush, while 48 percent say Bush was a better president than Obama has been."

Interesting information on the tea party movement, too:

Still, the president has a shot at re-election according to the poll of 1,000 likely voters taken October 18-24. Schoen found that a slight majority, 51 percent, favor a third party in American politics and if that were the Tea Party, then Obama would win in a three-way race in 2012. According to Schoen, if the race pitted Obama, Republican Mitt Romney and Tea Party favorite Sarah Palin in 2012, Obama would top the others with 40 percent; Romney gets 32 percent and Palin 17 percent. And, in a bit of bad news for Palin, if the Tea Party candidate were Mike Huckabee, he and Romney would split the non-Obama vote 24 percent-24 percent.

Other highlights in Schoen's poll presentation:

-- 54 percent say the Tea Party has been a good thing for American politics.

-- Voters favor Republicans over Democrats on a generic ballot 48 percent to 39 percent.

-- The Democratic attack on special interest money helping Republicans isn't having much of an impact.

The conservative, limited government movement must be unified in 2012. A "Ross Perot factor" must be avoided at all costs. All costs other than jettisoning Jeffersonian ideals, that is.

Via Memeorandum.

Presidential: Obama on the Daily Show

by the Left Coast Rebel

Why is anyone surprised that the Great Divider showed up on Jon Stewart's Daily Show? I mean, after all, he put in a stomach-churning (and defensive) MTV appearance recently. Here's video of the first segment of Obama's Daily show appearance (I confess that I do like what Stewart says at 4:20):


Surprisingly, there's a whole lot of scathing, teeth gnashing on the left in regards to Obama's Daily Show appearance, especially the "Dude" heard around the world.

You know that Obama's lost a good portion of the professional left when you see this level of (faux?) distress. An example, an attempt at noblesse oblige from Dana Milibank at WaPo:

On Comedy Central, the joke was on President Obama Wednesday night.

The president had come, on the eve of what will almost certainly be the loss of his governing majority, to plead his case before Jon Stewart, gatekeeper of the disillusioned left. But instead of displaying the sizzle that won him an army of youthful supporters two years ago, Obama had a Brownie moment.

The Daily Show host was giving Obama a tough time about hiring the conventional and Clintonian Larry Summers as his top economic advisor.

"In fairness," the president replied defensively, "Larry Summers did a heckuva job."

"You don't want to use that phrase, dude," Stewart recommended with a laugh.

Dude. The indignity of a comedy show host calling the commander in chief "dude" pretty well captured the moment for Obama. He was making this first-ever appearance by a president on the Daily Show as part of a long-shot effort to rekindle the spirit of '08. In the Daily Show, Obama had a friendly host and an even friendlier crowd.

But, as in his MTV appearance a couple of weeks ago, Obama didn't try to connect with his youthful audience. He was serious and defensive, pointing a finger at his host several times as he quarreled with the premise of a question.

Stewart, who struggled to suppress a laugh as Obama defended Summers, turned out to be an able inquisitor on behalf of aggrieved liberals. He spoke for the millions who had been led to believe that Obama was some sort of a messianic figure. Obama has only himself to blame for their letdown. By raising expectations impossibly high, playing the transformational figure to Hillary Clinton's status-quo drone, he gave his followers an unrealistic hope.

Related: Must read by Bryan Preston over at PJM, "Your Midterm Mandate is Clear, Repulicans: Stop Obama."

Discussion over at Memeorandum.

New Piece at Pajamas Media: "Something Stinks in California's 47th Congressional District

by the Left Coast Rebel

Last night I wrapped up an article for Pajamas Media on California's CD-47. I focused on a funny bit of news related to the Van Tran campaign, here's the opener:

"Away from the face-off between the two candidates, something smells as bad as trash-truck juice on a Death Valley summer day in California’s 47th.

In search of the olfactory offense, I point the reader to a Van Tran mailer masquerading as a fragrance sampler, making its way to the mail boxes of likely voters in Garden Grove, Santa Ana, and Anaheim.

Don’t judge this book by its cover; it’s no ordinary fragrance sampler:


"Note that the mailer says: “Open for a Free Sample Fragrance of: Loretta, The Scent of Washington.

You have to read the rest to see what happens when the mailer is opened! Later on in the piece I describe Van Tran campaign HQ, it's a pretty neat story:

"The folks in the Van Tran campaign were a pleasant bunch. After meeting them I could sense that they are having fun (easily evidenced by the humorous mailer too), working hard, and ready to win. At the same time, I gathered that they were perfectly able and willing to go back to normal life if the election doesn’t go their way on Tuesday.

Central command for Van Tran is set up in a foreclosed Blockbuster building in Garden Grove, a city of 175,000 in northern Orange County. The building was essentially stripped of most things that one would associate with the past life of movie rentals such as shelving and other interior structures. Although the sign had been removed, the outline of the letters B-L-O-C-K-B-U-S-T-E-R were still clearly discernible on the building’s stucco exterior.

It was somewhat dirty inside, a proverbial makeshift campaign war room with folding tables set up for walk-in volunteer phone bank folks. Van Tran signs were strewn graciously and haphazardly across the walls, and there was a constant buzz of activity. The accommodations were functional but not flashy."

Please read the rest, comment, Facebook 'like' it and pass it along to friends - especially those of you that live in California. And please, above all, support Van Tran and other conservative candidates in the closing days of the 2010 midterm election.

Nothing short of the future of the nation is at stake.

(VIDEO) Scuba Diver Scott MacNichol's Close Encounter with Maine Shark Updated: Information on Porbeagle Shark, Pictures of Porbeagle Sharks

by the Left Coast Rebel

Video of Scuba Diver Scott MacNichol's (too close for comfort) close encounter with a cold water porbeagle shark:



More on the story from AOLNews:
A scuba diver is glad he had his camera with him. Scott MacNichol, 30, used the camera to fend off a porbeagle shark, and he has the scary video to prove it.

The coldwater shark bared its teeth as it apparently mistook the camera for food, MacNichol says. The incident happened off the eastern tip of Maine, near Eastport.

A commercial diver, MacNichol estimates the shark was 8 feet long and weighed about 300 pounds.

MacNichol was filming the ocean floor as part of an environmental assessment for Cooke Aquaculture. He says he saw the shark swimming above him as he shot footage of empty salmon pens, and then the animal came at him.In the video, teeth fill the frame before the creature swims away.

"He took a couple of bites at the camera. When he did that I was pretty much petrified," MacNichol says. "If you watch the video, you can hear me screaming underwater."

Porbeagle sharks look like mako or great white sharks, and typically dine on herring and mackerel. Shark attacks are rare in New England, though sightings of great whites off Cape Cod this summer caused officials to temporarily close some beaches.
Just what is a porbeagle shark? Wikipedia:

The porbeagle (Lamna nasus) is a species of mackerel shark in the family Lamnidae, distributed widely in the cold and temperate marine waters of the North Atlantic and Southern Hemisphere. In the North Pacific, its ecological equivalent is the closely related salmon shark (L. ditropis). The porbeagle typically reaches 2.5 m (8.2 ft) in length and a weight of 135 kg (300 lb); North Atlantic sharks grow larger than Southern Hemisphere sharks and differ in coloration and aspects of life history. Gray above and white below, the porbeagle has a very stout midsection that tapers towards the long, pointed snout and the narrow base of the tail. It has large pectoral and first dorsal fins, tiny pelvic, second dorsal, and anal fins, and a crescent-shaped caudal fin. The most distinctive features of this species are its three-cusped teeth, the white blotch on the back of its first dorsal fin, and the two pairs of lateral keels on its tail.

Preying mainly on bony fishes and cephalopods, the porbeagle is an opportunistic hunter that regularly moves up and down in the water column, catching prey in midwater as well as off the bottom. It is most commonly found over food-rich banks on the outer continental shelf, but does make occasional forays close to shore or into the open ocean, down to a depth of 1,360 m (4,460 ft). It also conducts long-distance seasonal migrations, generally shifting between shallower and deeper water. The porbeagle is fast and highly active, with physiological adaptations that enable it to maintain a higher body temperature than the surrounding water. It can be solitary or gregarious, and has been known to perform seemingly playful behavior. This shark is aplacental viviparous with oophagy, meaning that the developing embryos are retained within the mother's uterus and subsist on non-viable eggs. Females typically bear four pups every year.

Pictures of porbeagle sharks or 'porgies' as local anglers call them (click to embiggen):





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