Alabama Right News: Jan 5, 2011

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

AP source: Volcker leaving Obama advisory group

from Headlines from the Associated Press

AP source: Volcker leaving Obama advisory group: "WASHINGTON (AP) -- A person familiar with the situation says former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker is ending his term as chairman of President Barack Obama's economic advisory panel next month...."

Is this China's stealth fighter?

Is this China's stealth fighter?: "Images believed to be China's next generation of military air power have been buzzing around the internet, but Pentagon officials are insisting its appearance does not mean China has matched American air capabilities.

Is this China's stealth fighter?

Oops: Obama Rented an Illegal House During Hawaii Vacation…

Oops: Obama Rented an Illegal House During Hawaii Vacation…: "

President Barack Obama's two-week stay at his Hawaii Winter White House was illegal under a long-standing Honolulu ban on short-term rentals.

Obama did not break the law by staying at the house, but the property owner who rented his house to the Obamas does not have the permit that would allow a stay of fewer than 30 days.

Blue Shield of California seeks health insurance rate hike up to 59 percent for individuals

ANOTHER MYSTERY MISSILE OFF THE COAST OF TEXAS; After 9 Days of Silence from KCNA

by Resa LaRu Kirkland

ANOTHER MYSTERY MISSILE OFF THE COAST OF TEXAS; After 9 Days of Silence from KCNA: "

***Cross-posted at News Real Blog***

Early morning, January 5, 2011, I posted the following on my blog:

Well, it’s January 5, and after 9 days with NO CHANGE, the KCNA today put up December 28 and 29, then January 4. And most of the articles were about New Years’ greetings, Kim’s birthday next month, US has no face to take issue with DPRK’s nuclear activities, Die American Die, yadda yadda yadda.

Pretty Pathetic, Kim, but then, we’d go into deep shock if you ever went above nutless pathos…

I was up late every night those 9 days, waiting to see if the Korea Central News Agency would post something, torn between the dread of having to wade through the absurd rhetoric and mind-numbing childish rationalizations and the ominous foreboding I always feel when North Korea go days without any of its usual absurd rhetoric and mind-numbing childish rationalizations.

That’s because I know what the sudden silence of their only state-run propaganda-filled daily newspaper usually means. Given my writings of the past couple of months, I scrupulously watched all the Korean and Asian wires for troop movements, ships, planes, weapons, high-level meetings with Islammunist allies, etc. Anything that might tell me something about it. Most quotes attributed to North Korea at the time were soft-ball, which made my feeling worse.

That’s because it is usually the distraction, the hand the magician uses to focus your attention on so you don’t see the hand with the deception.

Abra Cadabra:

Is this a missile off the coast of Texas?

Now this could very easily have been one of ours. Thus far, we’re getting the same “Huh?” from official sources that we initially got with the LA Mystery Missile. That was, eventually, replaced with the laughable Contrail Con game.

As was this one behind the Empire State Building on November 11th, 2010:

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/category/video-on-demand-news/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5282323&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

And this one in Queens, NY, on November 12th, 2010:

http://cc.bingj.com/cache.aspx?q=missile+launch+in+queens+new+york+november+2010&d=4844431208350135&mkt=en-US&setlang=en-US&w=4cc5c9fe,402e7ca9

(I could only find it in a cached page; the original won’t come up. Guess the Contrail Cops are on the case!)

Between November 8^th and 12^th, 2010, there were three “Contrail” sightings across the United States. Now we have another one. And dead birds. And creatures of the sea dying.

Is North Korea the culprit in any of these, including this latest one? If so, they’re not doing this alone. I smell China, Russia, Venezuela, Islam, and various “embeds” all over the American continent as definite co-conspirators. The whole secret combination.

Even if this particular Mystery Missile turns out not to be of foreign origin, does it matter? All these wonders in the heavens and mysterious deaths of smaller creatures on earth don’t point to innocence, be it an enemy without, or even more chilling, an enemy within.

Keep the faith, bros, in all things courage, and no substitute for VICTORY.

Three Wise Men Following A New Star…Off the Coast of Los Angeles

The mystery missile. Could it have been fired accidentally?

After 2 days with no new posts, KOREA CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY puts up 2 days of postings in 2 hours!

DA PLANE! DA PLANE! When Did We Become Fantasy Island?

TIME FOR I TOLD YOU SO; And For War…It’s Inevitable Now

Communist Agitators March British Streets

by Trevor Loudon

Communist Agitators March British Streets: "From British Communist paper the Morning Star;

Students will mark Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's birthday this Friday by marching on his party's HQ as a reminder that young people have not forgotten about his tuition fees betrayal.

A spokesman for the Education Activist Network said: 'Students will march on the Liberal Democrat HQ to present Clegg with his birthday gift. After the police repression of last term's demonstrations - with protesters dragged from wheelchairs, detained en masse for hours in freezing weather and beaten over the head to the point of brain haemorrhage - it seems only pertinent for us to get him a new kettle.'

This year's first wave of action will be followed by a national walkout from schools, colleges and universities by students on January 29 and three days later national demonstrations will be held in London and Manchester. A fresh round of occupations is also expected when universities announce their new tuition fees before the end of February.

A National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts spokesman said that students might have been on holiday but were 'still pissed off' at the withdrawal of EMA (education maintenance allowance) and the rise in fees.

'They understand they're still going to see thousands of working-class young people forced out of education. We have the organisation, activists and political will to make the movement even bigger than last year.'

Britain faces a new communist inspired 'Winter of discontent'.

Where is the new Maggie Thatcher?

Iranian Authorities Begin Rounding Up/Arresting Christians in Tehran

by Jeff Dunetz

Iranian Authorities Begin Rounding Up/Arresting Christians in Tehran: "

Like many other places in the Muslim world in Iran, the so called Religion of Peace is not a religion of tolerance. According to sources, at least 70 Christians have been arrested in the Tehran province of Iran since Christmas. The arrested Christians have been detained based on trumped up charges of planning religious and cultural attacks on the Islamic Republic.

The governor of Tehran, Morteza Tamaddon, vowed to find and detain members involved in a movement he called “deviated” and “corrupt.”

'The leaders of this movement have been arrested in Tehran province and more will be arrested in the near future,' he said, according to official news agency IRNA on Tuesday. It is unclear whether the Christians being held are Iranian or foreigners, as the government has yet to reveal their identities. But Tamaddon has described them as “tabshiri” or missionaries.

Before you start thinking 'same old Iran' remember that in the 'moderate' country of Saudi Arabia, owning a Christian Bible, or putting up a Christmas tree can earn you a visit from the Religious Police.

According to Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a U.K.-based human rights group, the detained individuals are evangelical believers and include pastors and leaders from within the house church networks of Iran.

“The government puts severe pressure on such individuals interrogating them brutally and holding them in solitary confinement in order to obtain the names of other church members, to deter them from continuing to practice their faith and to threaten them with further ramifications for Christian activities,” the group said.

The Iranian Authorities are also beginning to use propaganda to incite the Muslim populace against the Iranian Christians.

Tamaddon claimed the Christians were engaged in a “conspiracy” initiated by the British in the Islamic Republic. 'Just like the Taliban ... who have inserted themselves into Islam like a parasite, they have crafted a movement with Britain's backing in the name of Christianity,' he said.

Gee the Iranians are getting creative, usually they make up stories and blame the Jews and the Americans.

While Islam is the official religion in Iran, the constitution recognizes Christians, who account for less than one percent of the population, as a 'protected' religious minority. However, the government has severely restricted freedom of religion in the country. Over 70 Christians were reportedly arrested by officials over the Christmas period.

Many church services are continually monitored by the secret police, while active believers are often interrogated and beaten.

When you add Iran to the horrors faced by Christians in Egypt, Gaza, Iraq and Turkey for example, one realizes that the 'Religion of Peace,' is nothing of the kind.

Please email me at yidwithlid@aol.com to be put onto my mailing list.
Feel free to reproduce any article but please link back to http://yidwithlid.blogspot.com

Dodd-Frank financial 'reform' law is unconstitutional violation of separation of powers

by Hans Bader

Dodd-Frank financial 'reform' law is unconstitutional violation of separation of powers: "In the Washington Post, former White House counsel C. Boyden Gray recently argued that the sweeping Dodd-Frank financial “reform” law passed last summer is unconstitutional, since it gives the government virtually unchecked power to seize financial firms that supposedly might fail, and to legislate through regulation. For...

Obama Administration Pays Google and Bing To Direct "ObamaCare" Searches To Their Personal Spin Sites, And Guess Who Paid? George Soros
Wai

by Ace

Obama Administration Pays Google and Bing To Direct "ObamaCare" Searches To Their Personal Spin Sites, And Guess Who Paid? George Soros Wait Did I Say "George Soros?" I Meant You're Paying For This: "Darrell Issa? Can we get with you on this? In case you don't know, Google's revenue comes from selling advertising in the form of search-term priority. If you pay 'em, you get your link put at the tippy-top of a..."

Hey, Maybe Republicans Are Serious About This Constitution Thing

by Just A Grunt

Hey, Maybe Republicans Are Serious About This Constitution Thing: "While all of the attention today has been on the passing of gavel from disgraced and ostracized former speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi to John Boehner, the Republicans held their first vote with a big tip of the hat towards the constitution. They voted to strip full floor voting rights from the delegates which represent our territories and the District of Columbia.Republicans have long argued"

Palin effective again: Death panels removed from medicare regulation

by Jennifer Caballero

Palin effective again: Death panels removed from medicare regulation: "

I seem to recall some conservatives and all liberals lambaste and ridicule Sarah Palin for the use of the words “death panels.”

When Obama administration revealed it was going back into the bill, the words “death panel” was revived and the administration killed the provision again.

Rush hits back at Lefty hatred of Constitution

by therightscoop

Rush hits back at Lefty hatred of Constitution: "From the Washington Post to Joy Behar, they are openly mocking the Constitution as well as the new focus that the Republicans are placing on it. And Rush exposes them and takes them on: ***"

World food prices spike to all time high

by Editor usactionnews.com

World food prices spike to all time high: "

World food prices continue to climb with sugar leading the way at 20% increase over last year. – UN

Climbing commodity prices are mostly due to the pricing in dollars which Obama and Bernanke continue to devalue by ‘printing’ and buying US debt with computer accounting entries.

United Nations Data

FAO Food Price Index Data

Inflation is a sneaky tax

What’s Next? Buckle Up

Death of the Dollar

The Creature From Jekyll Island

The Fed is lying about inflation

Dollar fall sparks stability warnings

Fed Wants to Hoodwink Public, Only Fools Itself: Caroline Baum

For Orderly Dissolution Of The Fed, Before It Does Us Even More Harm

Will the Fed Burn More of Your Money?

The Disgraceful State of Our Government

A good audio interview with Rick Santelli

Is Keynesianism a socialist Maneuver?

Economic Forecasts and Why They Should Not be Trusted

Gold at $8,250?

Three Horrifying Facts About the US Debt “Situation”

Obama and Ben Bernanke Have Us Facing the Abyss

Bernanke Tells the Truth: The United States is on the Brink of Financial Disaster

Greenspan Says U.S. Creating `Scary’ Deficit as Borrowing Rises

Interview with Garland Tucker on “The High Tide of American Conservatism”

Fed Officials Mull Inflation as a Fix

The Psychopathology of Government and its Agents

A fair warning of where we are headed

Illinois Deficit Forecast Grows as Financial Ills Deepen, Comptroller Says

The Feds’ Disease: Spending! (Part 1)

IMF Warns Western Economies Mired in ‘Near Depression’

With Obama taxes are about ideology not economics

Understanding the roots of Obama’s rage

Government-run, taxpayer-funded, anti-poverty programs do not work

Shocker: CNN report on state budget deficits discover bloated governments

by The blogprof

Shocker: CNN report on state budget deficits discover bloated governments: "Liberals seem to be having a Lieutenant Renault moment here:

They're shocked, SHOCKED! that governments at all levels are bloated with people getting paid lots of money and unsustainable benefits to do a bad job:

Darrell Issa is speaking up on the issue at least on the national level: Issa: Tough Oversight Starts With Axing Government Waste, Job-Killing Hyper-Regulation

Issa & Boehner also announced an Oversight Committee Transparency Project:

Wikileaks Cable Releases Prove That Israeli Policy On Gaza Makes Sense

by Jeff Dunetz

Wikileaks Cable Releases Prove That Israeli Policy On Gaza Makes Sense: "

By Barry Rubin

A new Wikileaks document is being spun by some media to imply something critical about Israel's policy in the Gaza Strip. In fact, the secret cable shows the exact opposite. It also shows that what I've been writing on the subject was 100 percent accurate.

The U.S. State Department cable dated November 3, 2008, says that the goal of Israel's sanctions on the Gaza Strip was to keep Gaza's economy functioning at the lowest possible level without causing a humanitarian crisis.

Precisely:

1. Israel wanted to keep the economy weak in order to reduce public support for the Hamas regime to the minimum possible level.

2. Israel wanted to keep the economy weak in order to keep Hamas as weak as possible so that it could not easily stage war on Israel or expand its influence into the West Bank or Egypt.

3. Israel did not want the people of Gaza to face hunger or serious deprivation based on existing living standards.

That all makes sense. It is in line with centuries of precedent and the policies of all democratic nations facing adversaries in a wartime situation.

Moreover since Hamas is a repressive, terrorist, genocidal-intended group that is a client of Iran and seeks to subvert almost all Arab governments, that policy does a service for the people of Gaza, Arab governments (notably the Palestinian Authority and Egypt), and Western interests.

BUT now that the sanctions have been minimized due to Western pressure and the urgings of well-intentioned but badly informed people:

--Hamas will be in power forever in Gaza.

--It will repress women, chase out Christians, and teach young people to grow up to be terrorists and suicide bombers.

--It will siphon off money for revolutionary subversive activities.

--It will block any possible negotiations for Israel-Palestinian peace.

--It is better able to subvert and perhaps some day take over the West Bank.

--It is better able to help revolutionary Islamists and terrorists in Egypt.

--The Hamas regime gives Iran a client state on the Mediterranean.

This is a step forward? A humanitarian victory? Don't think so.

So far, every single Wikileaks document--released by people who hate Israel (at least one of the Wikileaks staffer being a known extremist antisemitic nut)--has made Israel look good and has proven that its analysis of regional politics has been correct.

Barry Rubin is director of the Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA) Journal. His latest books are Lebanon: Liberation, Conflict, and Crisis (Palgrave Macmillan), Conflict and Insurgency in the Contemporary Middle East and editor of the (seventh edition) (Viking-Penguin), The Israel-Arab Reader the paperback edition of The Truth About Syria(Palgrave-Macmillan), A Chronological History of Terrorism (Sharpe), and The Long War for Freedom: The Arab Struggle for Democracy in the Middle East (Wiley).

Please email me at yidwithlid@aol.com to be put onto my mailing list.
Feel free to reproduce any article but please link back to http://yidwithlid.blogspot.com

John Boehner Takes Up The Gavel And Throws Down The Gauntlet

by Lady Liberty

John Boehner Takes Up The Gavel And Throws Down The Gauntlet: "

Representative John Boehner (R) of the 8th District of Ohio accepts the gavel from Nancy Pelosi and is sworn in as the 61st Speaker of the House of the 112th Congress.

Congratulations Speaker Boehner!

When it was time to hand over the gavel Pelosi droned on and on, reciting her “accomplishments”. Boehner reminded her that “we are dust” and “to dust we shall return”.

Ezra Klein at The Washington Post reported that “it was a very smart speech by Speaker Boehner.

If you spent the afternoon watching C-SPAN, as I did, you heard applause. A lot of it. Over and over again. And when John Boehner took the podium to be sworn in as Speaker of the House of Representatives, it swelled back up, and stayed there. No one Republican member of Congress wants to be the first to stop applauding the new speaker.

Luckily, Boehner did it for them. “It’s still just me,” he said with a smile.

[...]

Boehner promised almost nothing at all. He certainly didn’t set himself up as a foil to President Obama, or anoint himself leader of a new conservative moment in American politics. Rather, his speech had two themes: Humility, and comity. He called his chamber “the people’s house,” and said “we are carrying out their instructions.

Some excerpts from his speech:

“We gather here today at a time of great challenges. Nearly one in ten of our neighbors are looking for work. Health care costs are still rising for families and small businesses. Our spending has caught up with us, and our debt will soon eclipse the size of our entire economy. Hard work and tough decisions will be required of the 112th Congress. No longer can we fall short. No longer can we kick the can down the road. The people voted to end business as usual, and today we begin carrying out their instructions.”

“The American people have humbled us. They have refreshed our memories as to just how temporary the privilege to serve is. They have reminded us that everything here is on loan from them. That includes this gavel, which I accept cheerfully and gratefully, knowing I am but its caretaker. After all, this is the people’s House. This is their Congress. It’s about them, not us. What they want is a government that is honest, accountable and responsive to their needs. A government that respects individual liberty, honors our heritage, and bows before the public it serves.”

“Our aim will be to give government back to the people. In seeking this goal, we will part with some of the rituals that have come to characterize this institution under majorities Republican and Democratic alike. We will dispense with the conventional wisdom that bigger bills are always better; that fast legislating is good legislating; that allowing additional amendments and open debate makes the legislative process ‘less efficient’ than our forefathers intended. These misconceptions have been the basis for the rituals of modern Washington. The American people have not been well served by them.”

“We will not always get it right. We will not always agree on what is right. A great deal of scar tissue has built up on both sides of the aisle. We cannot ignore that, nor should we. My belief has always been, we can disagree without being disagreeable to each other. That’s why it is critical this institution operate in a manner that permits a free exchange of ideas, and resolves our honest differences through a fair debate and a fair vote. We may have different – sometimes, very different – ideas for how to go about achieving the common good, but it is our shared goal. It is why we serve.”

This is indeed a great day!

Everyone Must Sacrifice… White House Staff Brings Surfboards to Hawaii

by Jim Hoft

Everyone Must Sacrifice… White House Staff Brings Surfboards to Hawaii: "

In January 2009, before the president signed his failed $787 billion stimulus bill into law, Barack Obama lectured America saying,

“Everyone must sacrifice for the greater good… Everyone must have some skin in the game.”

Everyone but Barack and Michelle Obama or their staffers.

Surfboard-toting staffers, Obama family return from Hawaii vacation

Four Myths about the Filibuster

There are four myths about the filibuster that you will hear over and over again. These myths are needed to justify any attempt to change the Senate's rules with a simple majority vote. This is a power grab, pure and simple.

The fact of the matter is that the explicit words of the Constitution, the Senate's written rules, and the history of the Senate show that the filibuster was created for good reason. Extended debate and unlimited amendment is part of the fabric of the institution.

Myth #1: The filibuster is unconstitutional.

The Constitution empowers the House and Senate to establish rules of procedure. Article I, Section 5 of the Constitution states that "each house may determine the rule of its proceedings." This provision in the Constitution empowers the Senate to make rules governing debate. The Senate in 1917 established the cloture rule requiring a two-thirds vote of all Senators present to shut down debate. Senate Rule 22 today states that "invoking cloture on a proposal to amend the Senate's standing rules requires the support of two-thirds of the Senators present and voting." The clear letter of the Senate's rules mandate a supermajority vote to shut down debate on any change to the Senate's rules.

Myth #2: The filibuster was created by accident.

On numerous occasions, the early Senate rejected rules changes that would have limited debate. According to John Quincy Adams's memoir, Vice President Aaron Burr advised the Senate in 1806 that the rule was not necessary for the Senate. The Senate nonetheless adopted the rule after a discussion of the issue by the Vice President. The opponents of the filibuster would like to characterize this as an oversight by the Senate, yet future attempts to eliminate the filibuster were resisted by Senators. According do Senator Robert C. Byrd's The Senate, 1789–1989, "Henry Clay, in 1841, proposed the introduction of the 'previous question' but abandoned the idea in the face of opposition." Byrd also wrote that "when Senator Stephen Douglas proposed permitting the use of the 'previous question' in 1850, the idea encountered substantial opposition and was dropped." According to Byrd, "An effort to reinstitute the 'previous question,' on March 19, 1873, failed by a vote of 25–30." Byrd cited the following: "Between 1884 and 1890, fifteen different resolutions were offered to amend the rules regarding limitations of debate, all of which failed of adoption." It is clear from the early history of the Senate that the filibuster was not merely an accident of history; it was a design by early Senators. Senators had numerous opportunities to change the rule. They did not.

Myth #3: The Senate is not a continuing body.

The Senate's rules memorialize the fact that the Senate is a continuing body. Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson's (D–TX) compromise proposal in 1959 memorialized the idea that the Senate is a continuing body. Rule XXII was amended to reduce the required vote for cloture to "two-thirds of the Senators present and voting," and, in order to assuage the worries of Senators who opposed the constitutional option, a new clause would be added to the Senate Standing Rules: "The rules of the Senate shall continue from one Congress to the next Congress unless they are changed as provided in these rules." The Senate's rules confirm that the Senate is a continuing body and that it takes a two-thirds vote to shut off debate on a rules change. A strong case can be made that the actions of liberals in the Senate to do away with the filibuster are unconstitutional.

Myth #4: The Senate can change rules only on the first day of the new session by a simple majority vote

The Senate can change rules with a simple majority vote but only after shutting debate down on a rules change by a two-thirds vote. As the Senate Web site explains: "To foster values such as deliberation, reflection, continuity, and stability in the Senate, the framers made several important decisions. First, they set the senatorial term of office at six years even though the duration of a Congress is two years. The Senate, in brief, was to be a 'continuing body' with one-third of its membership up for election at any one time." Senator Leverett Saltonstall (R–MA) argued in 1957 that "there never is a new Senate; there is merely a change in one third-of its members." The Senate's Rule 5 states, "The rules of the Senate shall continue from one Congress to the next Congress unless they are changed as provided in these rules." The left claims that new rules are not adopted until the Senate operates under new rules. This claim is simply not true, because the Senate is a continuing body.

A Simple Power Grab

We are going to hear many convoluted arguments to justify the extraordinary actions of Senators to change the filibuster rule with a simple majority vote. But don't buy it. This is a power grab, because the act ignores the constitutionally authorized strict rules of the Senate.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/01/05/four-myths-about-the-filibuster/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Morning Bell: Tea Party Congress Returns to Constitution

Shortly after noon today, all 435 Members of the House of Representatives will raise their right hands and take the following oath:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

This constitutionally mandated oath plays two important roles. First, by requiring all Members of Congress—as well as state legislators and all executive and judicial officers—to support the Constitution, the "Oaths Clause" obliges them to observe the limits of their authority and act in accordance with the powers delegated to them by the Constitution. Second, contrary to what leftist legal reporters believe, the oath serves as a solemn reminder that the duty to uphold the Constitution is not the final responsibility of the courts but is shared by Congress and the President as co-equal branches of the United States government.

To help Members better fulfill their oath, the House will not only read the Constitution aloud on Thursday but also adopt a rule requiring that every bill cite what specific provisions of the Constitution empower Congress to enact it. Hopefully these measures will force some Members to re-familiarize themselves with our nation's governing document, because as the last two years demonstrated, the last Congress sorely needed the lesson:

In September 2009, then-Majority Whip James Clyburn (D–SC) told Fox News: "There's nothing in the Constitution that says that the federal government has anything to do with most of the stuff we do."
In October 2009, a reporter asked then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D–CA): "Madam Speaker, where specifically does the Constitution grant Congress the authority to enact an individual health insurance mandate?" Speaker Pelosi shook her head dismissing the question: "Are you serious? Are you serious?"
In April 2010, then-Representative Phil Hare (D–IL) responded to constituents asking about Obamacare: "I don't worry about the Constitution on this to be honest."
In August 2010, Representative Pete Stark (D–CA) told constituents asking if the Constitution limits Congress in any way: "The federal government can, yes, do most anything in this country."

There are many reasons the American people soundly rejected the 111th Congress at the polls last November, but the flippant attitude that many in the last Congress took toward fulfilling their oath to defend the Constitution is perhaps the most troubling.

The 112th Congress has a lot of work to do. Shortly after the November elections, The Heritage Foundation released A Checklist for Congress calling on the 112th to honor the voters who elected them to Congress by (1) freezing and cutting spending, (2) repealing Obamacare, (3) stopping the Obama tax increases, (4) protecting America, and (5) getting control of government. That last item is perhaps the most significant, and it is exactly why the 112th's return to the Constitution is so important. Our Constitution is a document of limited, enumerated powers, forming the architecture of our liberty. It is the way "We the people" control the government.

But not everyone sees it this way. The New York Times editorializes this morning: "There is a similar air of vacuous fundamentalism in requiring that every bill cite the Constitutional power given to Congress to enact it." We'll let President Abraham Lincoln respond:

Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe, that prattles on her lap—let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs;—let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation; and let the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues, and colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars.

Quick Hits:

House Republicans have slashed spending on committee and legislative offices by 5 percent and the Appropriations Committee in particular by 9 percent.
According to a USA Today analysis, almost one in three highway dollars earmarked since 1991—about $13 billion—remains unspent because of simple, sloppy mistakes.
The first clear pictures of what appears to be a Chinese stealth fighter prototype have been published online, highlighting China's military buildup just days before U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates heads to Beijing.
One of Pakistan's most openly secular politicians was gunned down Tuesday, apparently at the hands of one of his own guards.
Two federal district attorneys have opened criminal investigations into allegations that government union members conspired to paralyze New York during last week's blizzard.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/01/05/morning-bell-tea-party-congress-returns-to-constitution/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Ouch: Ahmadinejad Slapped in The Face by Iranian General For Being ‘Too Liberal’

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinjad was reportedly slapped in the face by Revolutionary Guard Chief of Staff Mohammed Ali Jafari, according to a recently released cable obtained by WikiLeaks.

According to the cable, Ahmadinejad took a "liberal" position on Iran's opposition protests which surprised the security council. According to the cable, the Iranian president warned that the country's people felt "suffocated" and that more personal freedoms — including more freedom for the press — may help to defuse tensions in Tehran.

But the talk of freedoms apparently angered Chief of Staff Jafari. The Feb. 11, 2010, cable reads:

According to source, Ahmedinejad's statements infuriated Revolutionary Guard Chief of Staff Mohammed Ali Jafari, who exclaimed "You are wrong! (In fact) it is YOU who created this mess! And now you say give more freedom to the press?!" Source said that Jafarli then slapped Ahmedinejad in the face, causing an uproar and an immediate call for a break in the meeting, which was never resumed.

Source said that SNSC did not meet again for another two weeks, after Ayatollah Janati succesfully acted as a "peacemaker" between Jafarli and Ahmedinejad. Source added that the break in the SNSC meeting, but not the slap that caused it, has made its way on to some Iranian blogs.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/ouch-ahmadinejad-slapped-in-the-face-by-iranian-general-for-being-too-liberal/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Hackers Use ‘White House’ Christmas Card to Steal Data

WASHINGTON (AP) — It looked like an innocent e-mail Christmas card from the White House.

But the holiday greeting that surfaced just before Christmas was a ruse by cybercriminals to steal documents and other data from law enforcement, military and government workers — particularly those involved in computer crime investigations.

Analysts who have studied the malicious software said Tuesday that hackers were able to use the e-mail to collect sensitive law enforcement data. But so far there has been no evidence that any classified information was compromised.

The targeted e-mail attack comes as the federal government is desperately trying to beef up its cybersecurity after the release of thousands of State Department cables and military documents by the WikiLeaks website. Federal authorities want to improve technology systems and crack down on employees to prevent the theft or loss of classified and sensitive information.

The red holiday e-mail card, with its brightly decorated Christmas tree, prompted recipients to click on a link, which would then download the ZueS malware — a well-known malicious code that is often used to steal passwords and other online credentials, primarily to poach Internet banking information. The malware was created several years ago and is widely available for criminals to acquire and adapt. It has been used to steal millions of dollars.

In this case, however, the code downloaded a second payload that is designed to steal documents from the recipient's computer, accessing Microsoft Word and Excel files.

Don Jackson, director of threat intelligence for Atlanta-based SecureWorks, a computer security consulting company, said the attack was somewhat small and targeted to a limited number of groups with law enforcement, military and government affiliations.

It was small enough, he said, to suggest that is was sent out manually and not by a large network of infected computers. He said it was not large enough to be picked up by cybersecurity spam traps or sensors.

Alex Cox, principle research analyst for NetWitness, a cybersecurity firm in northern Virginia, said the e-mail was sent out just a day or so before Christmas, delivered by a control server in Belarus. He and Jackson said they believe this ZueS version was created by the same people who launched a similar but much larger attack last February.

Cox, who discovered the ZueS-infected malware last year when it infected at least 74,000 computers, said it's hard to determine how many people were affected or how many documents were stolen in this latest attack.

Jackson said at the hackers stole at least several gigabytes of data.

Analysts learned of the e-mail attack last week and have spoken with federal authorities about it.

Homeland Security Department spokeswoman Amy Kudwa said officials are aware of the ZueS e-mail and are monitoring it along with other similar malware attacks that have been tracked for some time.

Cox and Jackson would not disclose details on who was attacked or what documents may have been compromised but agreed that the hackers probably were after the documents, rather than any banking or financial passwords.

One theory, said Jackson, is that the hackers were looking for information about law enforcement cases and investigative techniques related to cybercrime so that they could sell it to other criminals.

The e-mail attack, however, underscores the continuing vulnerability of government workers and their computer systems to versions of the ZueS malware. Hackers can easily tweak the code each time so that it does not trigger antivirus software.

"Criminals have found that if they change the files in small ways it can slip past antivirus software," said Jackson.

While ZueS-related attacks are fairly common, this latest one stood out because of the use of the White House connection to lure recipients in and the targeted way it went after law enforcement, analysts said.

One U.S. official said that the code was rather poorly written. The hackers could only get easily accessible documents and not those filed deep within layers of folders on the hard drive, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing investigations.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/hackers-use-white-house-christmas-card-to-steal-data/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Obama Admin. Kills ‘End-of-Life-Counseling’

WASHINGTON (AP) — Reversing a potentially controversial decision, the Obama administration will drop references to end-of-life counseling from the ground rules for Medicare's new annual checkup, a White House official said Wednesday.

The latest shift on the sensitive subject comes ahead of a vote next week in the new GOP-led House to repeal President Barack Obama's landmark health care overhaul. The decision is not likely to have much impact on patients and doctors already discussing options for care in the last stages of life.

Medicare coverage for voluntary end-of-life planning was part of the original House version of the overhaul legislation in 2009, but it was dropped after Sarah Palin and other Republicans raised the specter of "death panels" deciding the fate of vulnerable seniors. Those charges were later debunked by several non-partisan fact-checking groups.

End-of-life counseling unexpectedly surfaced again late last year in a Medicare regulation that spelled out what would be covered in a new annual checkup, or wellness visit, authorized by the health care law. The regulation said such voluntary doctor-patient discussions could be part of the annual visit.

The White House official said the administration is now pulling back the language because there wasn't enough chance for all sides to comment on the change. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss what has turned into an embarrassing episode for the administration.

End-of-life planning is already an accepted part of care for people facing terminal illness, and the administration's reversal is unlikely to have much impact on that. Longstanding federal rules already require hospital patients to be informed of their right to spell out in a living will or similar document their wishes about being kept alive by machinery if there's no hope for a cure.

However, many doctors and public health advocates believe the government should take a more direct role in encouraging people to plan ahead. They say it would save families the ordeal of having to make agonizing decisions when a loved one is incapacitated.

Opponents counter that such decisions are highly personal, and government should stay out. They worry that explicitly including end-of-life counseling in Medicare rules could send an indirect message that people facing serious illness should be nudged toward hospice care, giving up on seeking a cure.

The new regulation was first reported by The New York Times.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/obam-admin-kills-end-of-life-counseling/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Union Boss Trumka Admits Main Goal is Using Unions To Fundamentally Change America into His Progress

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/union-boss-trumka-admits-main-goal-is-using-unions-to-fundamentally-change-america-into-his-progressive-vision-not-negotiate-members-salaries/

Sent with MobileRSS for iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Do these people ever actually read the Constitution?

Mark Tapscott Great piece up today by Conn Carroll on the Heritage Foundation's Foundry blog that makes an obscure but extremely vital question - the president and member of Congress are just as responsible as the federal judiciary for upholding the Constitution. How do we...