Walmart Caves to Far Left Pressure and Leaves ALEC

Walmart, the largest retailer in the country, has fled ALEC in the progressive left's latest victory in its war on the organization. Jessica Wohl of Daily Finance stated "In April, ALEC said it was abandoning the committee that worked on 'public safety and elections' to focus on the economy. Despite the change, Walmart decided it was no longer focused on the same issues as the council." As I've mentioned before, in a previous post, and which was reiterated by Ben Shapiro of Breitbart.com today:

Liberal groups like Media Matters for America and its close associate, the Van Jones-run Color of Change, working in coordination with friends of the Obama Administration, launched secondary boycotts against members in ALEC this year; several major ALEC sponsors have already dropped out, prompting ALEC to announce in April that it was no longer going to focus on “public safety and elections,” and would instead direct its energies toward the economy.

These groups have ALEC targeted due to its past support of model bills related to Stand Your Ground laws and Voter ID legislation. Wohl continued in her piece stating that such legislation is opposed by groups like "ColorOfChange, a liberal advocacy group for black Americans,[that] has said the voting laws put the poor and minorities at a disadvantage." This group was co-founded by Van Jones. The ex-Special Advisor for Green Jobs advisor to the Obama White House who infamously called Republicans "assholes" that led to his premature departure from the administration.

However, this whole notion that it disadvantages the poor and minorities is absurd in the extreme.  It always amazes me how liberals seem to think people, who are missing identification for voting, are incapable of going to their local DMV and acquiring a photo ID. It's only $13.50. Let's take a look at the process in my home state of Pennsylvania.

$13.50! Holy Cow

Regardless, Maggie Sans, Walmart Vice President of Public Affairs and Government Relations, wrote this statement, addressed to ALEC's national chairman and executive director:

Previously, we expressed our concerns about ALEC's decision to weigh in on issues that stray from its core mission 'to advance the Jeffersonian principles of free markets...We feel that the divide between these activities and our purpose as a business has become too wide. To that end, we are suspending our membership in ALEC. Sans, who is also giving up her role as secretary of ALEC's private enterprise board, did not specify the issues that caused the split. Walmart has benefited from ALEC campaigns involving taxes, commerce and technology. While we are disappointed in Walmart's decision, we understand the unique pressures they are under, said spokeswoman Kaitlyn Buss.

I guess we can add Walmart to the list of victims of far left badgering.

RIP

Coca-Cola

Kaplan

Procter & Gamble

Blue Cross/Blue Shield

Pepsi

Kraft

Wendy’s

Walmart

California's High Speed Folly

More news of the stimulus's failure emerged this week with CBO's report citing how it may have cost $4.1 million per job, but the story that should be on everyone's minds concerning the Obama's agenda is California's high speed rail project. Calls for a high speed rail system by the Obama administration have been enhanced given China's successful completion of their system last summer. However, if you look at the current California project, the scale of failure is epic and our tax dollars are being poured into it.

In a rare instance, CNN gave a rather insightful report on how this proposed high speed rail is actually three times more than its estimated cost. The railroad project itself seemed sound. A line from Los Angeles to San Francisco spanning two hundred miles was a palatable initiative for Californians, which is why they voted for a $10 billion dollar bond measure back in 2008. However, the original estimate was in the ball park of about $34 billion dollars. It is now projected to cost a monstrous $198 billion dollars. Additionally, Drew Griffin, CNN Investigative Correspondent, reported that not a single rail has been laid in the four years since the initiative was passed.

This marks another stinging failure of the domestic agenda of the Obama administration. First clean energy, now high speed rail networks. It fits nicely into the description George Will aptly made about American liberalism on Charlie Rose, last August, as "an amalgamation of appetites of parochial interests". The project is now revised under the new Chairman of California's Railway Authority, Dan Richard, but it's very different original high speed blueprint. Griffin stated:

It turns out, the latest plan could be for a much slower train, not actually the high- speed futuristic cartoon California voters approved four years ago. More of a hybrid that goes slower, makes a few more stops and doesn't quite deliver the L.A. to San Francisco promise of just a few hours.


And that's not the half of it. This is about to become really political. California's high-speed rail has one huge backer -- President Barack Obama -- and that is where you come in. The administration has pledged $3.5 billion in stimulus money, also known as federal tax dollars, and that's just so far. Now, California admits it will need even more, tens of billions of dollars more from federal taxpayers to finish it.


But first, you have to start. And that's where it really gets dicey. The foundational segment, the first stretch of track, will cost at least $6 billion alone and, under the new plan, will connect Fresno to Burbank. It won't go anywhere near San Francisco. And in the process, will dissect generations-old dairy farms, nut orchards and towns that don't want it. 

That's not the worst of it.  Apparently, Barack Obama, who continues to be a staunch proponent of this project:

has pledged $3.5 billion in stimulus money, also known as federal tax dollars, and that's just so far. Now, California admits it will need even more, tens of billions of dollars more from federal taxpayers to finish it.

But first, you have to start. And that's where it really gets dicey. The foundational segment, the first stretch of track, will cost at least $6 billion alone and, under the new plan, will connect Fresno to Burbank. It won't go anywhere near San Francisco. And in the process, will dissect generations-old dairy farms, nut orchards and towns that don't want it. 

However, even with the inflated costs and objections by local farmers, Dan Richard and the rest at the Railroad Authority aren't giving up. After all, as Griffin reported, "they've already got the promised $3 billion of your tax dollars in federal stimulus. California may not get another dime from President Obama, but it has no intention of giving back the $3 billion already promised or the billions more from California voters." This Rube Goldberg project is expected to take ten years to finish. Who's lining up to get their first ticket?

NYC Plans Ban on Many Drinks

New York City is planning to enact a ban on all sugary drinks that are bigger than sixteen ounces.

Specifically targeted are sodas, but anything that has been sweetened will be included in the ban.

The most common size of bottled sodas are twenty ounces.

Diet sodas, vitamin waters, unsweetened iced teas, and any drinks with less than twenty-five calories per eight ounce serving are to be given waivers from the ban.

Restaurants, delis, movie theaters, ballparks, and even sidewalk carts would be affected, and have to change their cup sizes to follow the new law.

Mayor Bloomberg says this is part of the war on obesity.

Opponents say it is an attack on personal freedom.

Virgin Galactic Given FAA Permit

The FAA has announced that it has given a launch permit to Virgin Galactic.

Virgin Galactic is currently flying SpaceShipTwo, which would be capable of carrying six passengers and two pilots.

The one year permit grants the company permission to begin rocket-powered suborbital test flights.

For now all flights will still only be done by pilots, but expectations are for passengers to start going up sometime in 2013.

Over five hundred people have already booked flights, at the price of $200,000 a ticket.

Birther Nonsense

While I'm not a fan of Stand Up! with Pete Dominick on Sirius XM, he's always good to get the center-left angle on politics. In addition, I'm a self-diagnosed politics junkie who was stuck in the wonderful Beltway traffic so I guess you can say I didn't have a choice in the matter.

Pete's guest, John Avalon, made a critical point today stating how significant Mitt Romney's nomination really is to American politics. He is the first Mormon to be nominated by a major party and the first non-protestant to be nominated by Republicans. This comes after Mitt's pervasive hammering surrounding his not so stellar conservative credentials.

The base may have been skeptical about him, but in the end, they choose him over the other clowns who vied for the Republican nomination. However, the mainstream media is not pushing that narrative. Instead, they're focused on Donald Trump's birther nonsense.
 
Now, I know we should all focus on the economy and other key issues in this upcoming election, but this birther issue does get under my skin. First of all, it's beyond absurd. Barack Obama was born in Hawaii and is a "natural born citizen" who is eligible for the presidency. Even Andrew Breitbart thought this whole charade was a losing issue.

No one cares! No one cares because the narrative these people are trying to push is not grounded in reality. It is something akin to an Alex Jones "theory", that al-Qaeda is an arm of the U.S. intelligence network, or a person who has watched Three Days of the Condor, The Manchurian Candidate, and The Parallax View one too many times. No doubt shady stuff occurs in Washington, but birthers are so ludicrous it makes me want to hug them in empathy.

My first taste in blogging was for Western Journalism, which reports heavily on the subject. I cannot bash the folks at Western Journalism too much, since some of them are very professional and cordial, but as the months progressed; I found myself unable to be associated with an organization that peddles, excuse me, this gross propaganda concerning Obama's eligibility.

It's been three years folks. If you haven't been able to convince the base, the heavyweights in the conservative media, and the American people, you probably don't have the "explosive find" which you regard as the holy grail of political malfeasance.

Furthermore, like liberals, birthers get agitated, petulant, and downright nasty when people dismiss them and their ideas. It is a temper tantrum on steroids. An excerpt from a piece on Western Journalism detailed the open letter Breitbart's Senior Staff released surrounding their legitimate vetting of Obama which, needless to say, didn't bode well with this writer.

Andrew Breitbart was never a ‘Birther,’ and Breitbart News is a site that has never advocated the narrative of ‘Birtherism.’”
Reading this makes me want to ask in bemused wonder:  How old are you?  (I could, of course, ask the same question of Anderson Cooper, Bill O’Reilly, Mark Levine, Neal Boortz, or Glenn Beck – who are clearly much older to a man.)  But seriously, how immature – or insecure, at least – must one be to be so concerned with what the cultural elites think of them?  Young Ben Shapiro (twenty-eight, and reportedly the youngest nationally syndicated writer in the country) went to Harvard Law. One wonders if he had been president of the Law Review if we would have ever seen one of his publications…but I digress.  Joel Pollak…sure enough, went to both Harvard and Harvard Law – just as I had expected.
While I must congratulate the two on emerging from that milieu with any non-collectivist values, it seems that neither of them escaped with a penchant for identifying and confronting the Alinsky staple of marginalization…or, they accept the practice so fully that they simply can’t bear the thought of being on the receiving end thereof.  Well, grow up, boys!  If what Media Matters says about you is a concern (and it clearly is), then perhaps you should choose another line of work.

I think someone misplaced their pacifier. The real comical element about this whole movement is that there is no concrete legal definition of the term "natural born citizen". They have no cornerstone. I've always thought that the term applied to any citizens born on American soil. Indeed, I would stand corrected. Byron York wrote a great piece in The Washington Examiner since the rude resurrection of this issue thanks to Donald Trump, who Geogre Will aptly called a bloviated ignoramus last Sunday. York wrote:

The Constitution specifies that a president must be a "natural born citizen" of the United States, but it does not define the term. The Supreme Court has never clarified the issue, but there is a law, 8 U.S. Code 1401, that spells out in detail who is a citizen.
The law uses the phrase "citizens of the United States at birth" and lists categories of people who fit that description.
First, there are people born inside the United States. No question about that; their citizenship is established by the 14th Amendment.
Then there are the people who are born outside the United States to parents who are both American citizens, provided one of them has lived in the U.S. for any period of time. And then there are the people who are born outside the United States to one parent who is a U.S. citizen and the other who is an alien, provided the citizen parent lived in the United States or its possessions for at least five years, at least two of them after age 14.
Since they are all "citizens of the United States at birth," the question is, does that also mean they are "natural born citizens" in the constitutional sense?

Birthers believe a natural born citizen is a person born to two parents who were citizens of the United States at the time. Hence, the reason why birthers have Marco Rubio, the crown prince of the Tea Party movement, in their crosshairs if he should ever be Romney's running mate. Well, according to Theodore Olson, Bush's former solicitor general:

"My conclusion would be that if you are a citizen as a consequence of your birth, that's a natural-born citizen...[Olsen] defended John McCain in a 2008 lawsuit alleging McCain was ineligible to be president. McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 while his father served in the U.S. Navy there. Even though the area was under American jurisdiction and both McCain's parents were U.S. citizens, some Democrats alleged McCain was ineligible to be president. McCain won the case, if not the presidency.
The law is really quite lenient, especially for those born outside the United States. If a child were born today in, say, Kenya, to a Kenyan father and an American citizen mother who had lived in the United States for at least five years, at least two of them over the age of 14 -- that child would be a "citizen of the United States by birth" and be eligible for the White House.

However, this hasn't stopped people like Joseph Farah of World Net Daily, who vociferously pushes the birther issue and has gone on record to say Rubio is ineligible for the VP slot due to his parents not being citizens at the time.

Washington lawyer Matthew McGill, who York cites in his column, states: "I am not aware of anyone who has contended that someone could be born in the United States and be a citizen by virtue of the 14th Amendment and nevertheless still not be a natural-born American citizen...if he is born in the United States, his parentage is not of consequence." No to mention that there is incontrovertible proof that Rubio was born in Miami, Florida.

In the words of John Adams, "facts are stubborn things." Barack Obama is eligible for president, he is the president, and now we must focus all of our efforts in voting him out of office come November.

We have no time to theorize absurd notions about the "origins of his birth." This is time to get serious about the fate of our republic and our economy and we have zero time for sophomoric conspiracy theories whose footnote page is no longer than a kindergartner's book report.

However, this is a free country. You have every right to keep your opinions, no matter how insane, but I intend, along with other serious conservatives, to do everything possible in order to restore honor and dignity to the White House. It's game time and birthers have come unprepared. They're still coming down from their Paxil binge.

Woman Injured in Elk Attack

An Estes Park woman was attacked by an elk Tuesday. She is in serious condition at the hospital.

The attack happened outside of the apartments where the woman lives. Neighbors chased the elk off with bear mace.

It is unclear what prompted the attack, but the elk's calf was near, and that can cause the females to become very aggressive.

The Estes Park Police Department provides the following tips for safe elk viewing:

The Estes Park Police Department provides the following tips for safe elk viewing:

Elk are wild animals which must be observed from a safe distance to avoid injury or death. If an animal is carefully watching you and appears "jumpy" when you move, you are too close.
Keep pets secured on a leash and do not allow them to bark at, lunge at, or chase wildlife.
Never block traffic. Move your vehicle to a safe place completely off the roadway to watch elk.
Do not imitate an elk call, or bugle. This can endanger you and the elk.
Elk know no boundaries, but people do. Respect private property when viewing wildlife.
The Estes Park Police Department does enforce wildlife laws including laws against feeding or harassing wildlife, or allowing one's pet to harass wildlife. 

They currently are also suggesting that the public avoid elk during the rest of calving season. The season continues til the end of June.

Obama Misspeak Causes International Incident

Obama stuck his foot in his mouth yet again when he made a comment about "a Polish death camp", on Tuesday.

The President has a history of snafus, of which this is but the latest, and possibly the most offensive.

Comments such as "fifty-seven states", "Canadian president", and "intercontinental railway" have caused him much derision.

But never before has one been considered such an insult, by another nation. To put it briefly, the Poles are pissed.

In a statement, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said, "We always react in the same way when ignorance, lack of knowledge, bad intentions lead to such a distortion of history, so painful for us here in Poland, in a country which suffered like no other in Europe during World War II. We cannot accept such words even if they are spoken by the leader of a friendly power -- or perhaps especially in such situations -- since we expect diligence, care and respect from our friend on issues of such importance as World War II remembrance."

The White House issued a formal apology, trying to get the world to note that it was an accidental misspeak. They also highlighted on Obama's past of honoring Poland's struggle against the Nazis.

Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski tweeted Tuesday night, "White House apologizes for outrageous blunder. PM Tusk will take his position in the morning. It's a shame that this important ceremony was overshadowed by ignorance and incompetence."

On Wednesday Tusk said that the incident provides the US with an opportunity "to support Poland in its efforts towards historical truth, towards the correct phrasings, the right assessment of what happened during World War II on Polish territory and throughout Europe. When someone says 'Polish death camps,' it is as if there were no Nazis, no German responsibility, as if there was no Hitler; that is why our Polish sensitivity in these situations is so much more than just simply a feeling of national pride.

"Our American friends are capable of a stronger reaction than just the correction itself and the regret which we heard from the White House spokesperson. We take note of these words, but it seems that it would be even more important for the United States than for Poland to end this with class. This is how one acts with regard to tried-and-tested friends, but this is also how one acts in your own, well-defined interest."

Empire State Building Getting Ready for Israel Day

On June 3 the Empire State Building in New York City, will once again be lit up in blue and white.

This time it won't be for the Yankees, however. It will be in honor of the sixty-fourth anniversary of Israel's independence.

The tower will also be flying an Israel flag

Israel Day, will consist of a parade made up of twenty-nine floats and more than two hundred groups.

Deputy Prime Minister Silvan Shalom will be present as the head of the Israeli delegation.

The New York City celebrations are the largest outside of the state of Israel.

For the second straight year, local New York City television will air the events.

Remembering: Joan of Arc

In 1412, in the village of Domremy, France a baby girl was born. Little did her family know how she would help shape history.

The Hundred Years War had been raging between England and France, and since 1415 the English had been winning. By 1422 English forces, and their Burgundian allies, controlled most of northern France.

It was in 1429 that young Joan first heard the voices of St. Michael, St. Catherine, and St. Margaret. They commanded her to aid the French in reclaiming Rheims, and the throne of France.

She heeded their words and traveled first to Vaucouleurs, where she eventually was given passage to Chinon where the Dauphin was. When she got there, he hid himself amongst his court, but she picked him out of the crowd.

Charles VII, had her questioned by theologians. They told him to use her charismatic nature. On April 27, 1429 he granted her a small army, and she set out for Orleans. There she would help break an English siege and save the city.

Over the next weeks her army defeated the English everywhere it went. She reached Rheims on July 16, and the city opened it's gates to her. The next day Charles VII was crowned king of France.

Throughout the next ten months she would continue to lead her army to victories, but on May 23, 1430 she was captured by the Burgundians, who traded her to the English.

In March 1431 her trial began, in front of ecclesiastical authorities. Declared a heretic, she was turned over to secular authorities on May 29. On May 30, 1431 Joan of Arc was burned at the stake by British forces, in Rouen, France.

But Joan only became a martyr for the French. The tide she had helped turn, never stopped and Charles VII would reconquer all of France, except Calais, which the English eventually turned over. In 1920 the Roman Catholic church officially recognized Joan of Arc as a saint.

Obama's Rich Bashing Is Backfiring

President Obama and his team thought they could deliver a head shot to Romney with the grossly inaccurate Bain ad, that detailed how they closed GST Steel. Well, Romney left Bain in 1999 and GST Steel folded in 2001. Not to mention, Bain’s managing director, Jonathan Lavine, was still at Bain when GST closed its doors. Mr. Lavine also happens to be an Obama bundler raising between $100-200,000 for the president’s re-elect campaign. I’ve mentioned this in a previous post.

However,the president continues to push this anti-Bain narrative, which isn’t sticking and killing his chances at winning the affluent vote. Yes, bashing the rich may seem like the “cool” and “liberal” thing to do, but, as Michael Barone aptly pointed out, the last class warfare president that won was Harry Truman in 1948. The same could be said about Obama’s populist vein. The last populist president elected was Andrew Jackson. History seems to be against him.

Barone wrote:

Today there are a lot more affluent people. The 2008 exit poll told us that 26 percent of voters had household incomes over $100,000. Half of them voted for Obama. He needs those votes again. My hunch is that Obama’s attacks on Bain will strike most affluent voters as offputting and that Romney’s calm responses will strike them as reassuring.

If you want more jobs created, you don’t go around attacking job creators. Most affluent voters believe that free markets, appropriately regulated, tend to produce fair outcomes. They see investors not as vultures but as creators of jobs and promoters of innovation that increase national productivity and make everyone better off. They see class warfare as attacks on themselves.

Furthermore, Barone cites areas where the president is probably already doomed. Especially, in states he needs to win this November to continue his agenda of dependency and big government policies. Policies that have not reduced the high unemployment rate, gave us consecutive trillion dollar deficits, and added another $5 trillion dollars to the national debt.

The rich, and Americans in general, see Obama as ineffectual and totally antithetical to the values he promised to bring to Washington. This is starting to have an effect no matter how much Obama tries to pivot on the matter. Barone continues by listing how the president is losing his grip on this demographic that he needs to win again to ensure re-election.

Here’s evidence that Obama has already lost many affluent voters. The popular vote in House elections is a good proxy for presidential and party support, and voters with incomes over $100,000, evenly split in 2008, voted 58 to 40 percent for Republicans in 2010.

Northern Virginia, which Obama carried 59 to 40 percent and which provided 95 percent of his statewide popular vote margin, went 52 to 47 percent for House Republicans in 2010. Nine suburban Denver counties voted 53 to 46 percent for Obama but switched in 2010 to 54 to 42 percent Republican.

Virginia and Colorado are on everyone’s target state list. But Obama also hurt the Democratic brand among affluent voters in other states.

The four suburban counties outside Philadelphia voted 57 to 42 percent for Obama but 52 to 47 percent Republican in 2010. The six suburban counties outside Detroit voted 54 to 45 percent for Obama but 53 to 44 percent Republican in 2010. That means Pennsylvania and Michigan could be in play.

Affluent suburbs outside the South trended heavily toward Democrats in from 1992 to 2008. Now they seem to be trending Republican.

All we need is Romney, who finally clinched the nomination in last night’s Texas primary, to stay focused and hammer the president on the economy, the debt, deficit, high unemployment, and the rest of his dismal record. However, expect this 2012 election to be the dirtiest since 1824.

Englewood Police Offier Dies After Being Hit and Run

Englewood, Colorado lost it's first officer in the line of duty.

On Monday, Officer Jeremy Bitner, thirty-nine, and a man he had pulled over were both struck and sent flying by an SUV, which took off.

Bitner, died from his injuries. The other victim is in stable condition, and is recovering well.

The driver of the SUV was later arrested, and charged with a DUI and hit and run. Now vehicular manslaughter will at least be added, if not a murder charge.

Bitner, left behind two kids and a wife. He had been with Englewood PD for eight years, receiving several commendations. Before that he served in the US Army Airborne, in Bosnia.

For the Englewood PD, the loss is really hard. The department only has thirty-six officers, and they are a really close knit group.

Venus Passes in Front of The Sun on Tuesday

Next Tuesday, June 5, the planet Venus will pass in front of the sun, before sunset, and be visible for most of the United States.

The event was last visible eight years ago, but will not be so for another 105 years.

Venus travels in a pattern that makes it pass in front of the sun, from Earth's point of view in that pattern.

On the first of the two passes, it is visible to the southern hemisphere around Australia.

During the second of the set it is visible to North America.

The pattern is always the same, with the 105 years passing, then eight.

Johannes Kepler first predicted the first part of the pattern. Jeremiah Horrocks, an English astronomer found the second part.

Nine Countries Kick Out Syrian Envoys

In response to the latest massacre in Syria nine countries have given Syrian envoys seventy-two hours to leave.

The United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Bulgaria all announced the decision on Tuesday. Expectations are that more countries will join in on the expulsion.

The massacre by Syrian troops, firing artillery into a populated area, killed around one hundred. Somewhere around 15,000 have been killed since last March, when the uprising began.

Russia has continuously protected Syria, but as things continue they're finding that position harder to maintain. If Russia backs down, Syria will have no protectors left. 

Zombie/Cannibal Attack in Miami

On Saturday, Miami police were forced to shoot a man, who had attacked another man.

Officers found the man literally chewing off the victim's face.

He refused to stop, pausing only to growl at officers, with pieces of flesh hanging out of his mouth.

The first shot didn't even make him pause. They then shot him til he was dead.

His victim is in critical condition, pictures of him are beyond grotesque. Seventy-five to eighty percent of his face is gone.

Police believe the man may have been on drugs. They suspect a new form of LSD. Others suspect a virulent form of rabies.

Sixteen Year Old Solves 350 Year Old Problem

Shourryya Ray, a sixteen year old living in Germany, solved two problems first set, 350 years ago, by Sir Isaac Newton.

Ray has been awarded a research award for his work solving the two equations, that no one had been able to solve til now. Even computers had struggled to solve the equations.

His solutions allow exact calculations of a trajectory under gravity and subject to air resistance. In other words, an item's flight path can be calculated and predictions can be made about how the object will hit and bounce off a barrier.

Math experts are now throwing around the word genius in conjunction with Ray. He denies he is one, but his solving the equations definitely show that the title is earned.

Fires Continue to Burn Across The US

The Whitewater Baldy Fire in New Mexico continues to grow thanks to the help of dry, hot, windy weather. Already having burnt over 152,000 acres, it is expected to beat the record for New Mexico's largest fire, by the end of the day. That record was set just last summer by the Las Conchas fire, which burned 156,593 acres.

However firefighters are hopeful, as they've been able to prepare lines in advance of the fire. So far the fire has burned a dozen structures, most of which were summer cabins. Firefighting resources from all over the United States are being used to fight it.

Two fires are burning in Colorado. The Sunrise Mine Fire, near Paradox and the Utah border has forced evacuations of campers. Thanks to seven aircraft, six engines, and eighty fire fighters the fire is about thirty percent contained.

Another fire is burning near Pagosa Springs, Colorado. This one is not contained at all, but firefighters are preparing a fire line north of the fire. They are also lighting small fires in front of it to burn out any possible fuel.

In Michigan, the Duck Lake Fire is nearing 22,000 acres. Two hundred and thirty-two firefighters are battling that one. The fire is mostly contained, and expectations are for it to be over with soon. Michigan is learning a lesson from this fire, as they were extremely unprepared for any fires. The state had dropped from one hundred and thirty fire crews, down to seventy.

Arizona is dealing with several fires. The Sunflower Fire, near Payson, has burned over 17,500 acres.. Fifty firefighters have it eighty percent contained. Near Flagstaff, the Mormon fire is being spurred on by winds, but firefighters are hoping to knock it out today or morrow. Over 16,000 acres have been burned by the Gladiator Fire. In the middle of the Prescott National Forest, it has prompted evacuations of three communities, but it is up to sixty percent containment now. By Thursday, firefighters hope to have the Toadlena Fire completely contained. It burned about 1,000 acres in the Navajo Nation.

Thoughts on This Memorial Day

All weekend I struggled over what I should write about for Memorial Day. So many ideas came and went, but none of them felt quite right. An article reminding everyone about the importance of remembering? Yes, for far too many it's simply a day to mark the beginning of summer by eating barbeque and drinking. Could be good, but almost cliche.

I began to think of not writing one at all, just writing the other articles on my list. O, of course I would make some Facebook and Twitter status mentioning how thankful I am to everyone who has or is serving. But honestly that feels pretty hollow to me today. How can you seriously thank someone enough, in just a few words, who did things you could never understand? There's truly no way to.

A day of silence to honor them? Ooops, too late for that, and there's already too much silence about it. Silence is all that those who don't care have, and I already dismissed doing nothing. Silence, whilst golden, is also one of the evils of the world. If our soldiers had remained silent, what form of tyranny would we be under? And so I started writing my thoughts.

All this led me to thinking of my family that's served. Past my grandparents, a lot is just stories handed down. I don't know many specifics about who, when, or where; but as far back as can be remembered ancestors bled mostly fighting against and possibly whilst wearing British colors. We were present during the Revolution, the Texas war for independence, and in the south during the Civil War.

My dad's dad was Royal Canadian Air Force, career. He served before, during, and after World War II, Korea, and the beginning of Vietnam. I never got to meet him, not from war loss, but from death caused by smoking his whole life. From what I've been told John Sangster ended up the highest level of Chief Warrant Officer, the highest level of non commissioned officer there is. No one but high ranking officers actually told him what to do. O, others could, but they didn't. Grandpa ran bases, nothing happened without his okay. Officers checked with him before they did things. He was the power behind the Colonel, or sometimes General.

Mum's dad served in the US Army during WWII. He fought in the Pacific, on islands such as Okinawa. Bill Dodson would earn his stripes before being honorably discharged. I grew up with his stories, at first when we lived next door, and then later whenever we got to visit. Those stories taught me so much, and I treasure them. This past fall, I was able to do a road trip, the focus of which was a weekend with him at the family reunion. I'll be forever grateful for that trip, as he would die three weeks later at the age of 91.

During Vietnam, my mum's brother and dad's brother both served. My dad volunteered, but was rejected by the USAF, based on his Canadian citizenship. Garth Sangster fought in the USMC at the beginning of the conflict. He was there at the very start, when they weren't even allowed to carry their weapons. Dennis Dodson served as a mechanic in the Army. Though I've not had the chance to hear many of their stories, they both have shared stories of being under fire without ways to fight back.

I've friends who served as far back as Nam, and others who currently do. I'm thankful beyond measure for their sacrifices. Their stories are as varied as their backgrounds, but the one thing that is the same between them all, they fought for their country. Most in the hopes, that they could keep the world's troubles far from the shores of the USA. Some simply because they were drafted, and had no other choice.

I was not allowed to serve, a rare genetic liver disorder, that's on the military's lists, keeps me out. But that does not mean that I'm not grateful for everything that our soldiers, as well those of our allies, have done. Given the chance I would've fought by their sides, but that was not meant to be. Instead I'm left with writing about them.

In their eyes you can see the pain, and sorrow. Innocence lost, friends to mourn. They suffered, saw greater yet, and still feel the pain in the memories of what happened and was seen. Some is too painful even to share. Regrets they may have, wishes to change things here and there definitely.

And let us not forget all those who have died in service. So many have died, in so many far away places. Our country still scours the earth for those lost in wars over the last century. Their families have not gotten back someone at all. Often receiving only a box and a flag. It is called the ultimate sacrifice for a reason.

Soldiers doing what needed to be done, fighting for in many cases simply survival, are what has kept us from having to fight ourselves. They are the reasons we get to have a day in the summer where we can simply sit around and eat that barbeque and drink. Their struggles have maintained our freedoms.

Don't just remember them, honor them.

Oil Throughout The Americas

Companies from all around the world are putting money and resources into the search for oil in Argentina. They're finding so much, that the country could become one of the world's top producers of oil.
However, production is being hampered ever since last month when President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's government took control of the largest energy company, YPF. A company which had not just been a public one before then, but owned by a Spanish company.

Since then, production is actually down, despite all the new finds. Companies continue to be willing to search for the oil, but very few are willing to work the fields and risk having Argentina take over their sites. Argentina had already been a slightly unfavorable place for energy companies due to price controls and restrictions on imports and exports.

Analysts warn that Argentina may be headed the way of Mexico and Venezuela. Both of those countries had started to see booms in oil production, but they nationalized any successful finds. That led to a pull out by all foreign oil companies, and their money, which all but ended the industry. Some point with hope to the Mexican presidential election on July 1, as well as the illness of the Venezuelan leader.

Canada, Brazil, and Colombia seen as bright spots for oil production in the Americas. All of them are encouraging the growth of the industry. Companies are much more willing to produce there, where there's no threat of nationalization. Colombia has some security issues, but with more money coming in, stability seems to be following.

The Falkland Islands is another area being searched heavily for it's possible oil resources. Unfortunately, Argentina has seen that as reason to start up their old threats against the Islands, which are part of the United Kingdom. Thirty years ago the two countries fought a war over them, after Argentina invaded. British soldiers won back the islands.

Many questions surround the United States, and what it will do with it's own oil resources. The Obama government has repeatedly blocked companies from using the fields, which may very well be the largest in the world. In fact, several states alone could have more than Saudi Arabia.

Perhaps the most famous blocking of oil was the Keystone XL pipeline, which would have brought oil from Canada and North Dakota down throughout the US to Texas. The Obama administration blocked it and the project died. Or maybe not, as several states have gone ahead with the sections that go through their own lands.

Other states are going their own ways as well. North Dakota continues to increase production, despite efforts by the national government to stop it. Colorado, another state that has huge amounts of oil and natural gas available, is working on ways to encourage production within it's borders.

All of this, combined, leads to a possible future where the Americas replace the Middle East as the center for oil production. Companies want to promote this, as the Western Hemisphere is a much more stable region. And with all the finds through out, it would seem that the resources of the West dwarf those of the Middle East.

Syrian Forces Use Artillery to Massacre Civilians

Saturday saw at least ninety people were killed in the village of Taldo, Syria when government troops opened fire and shelled for hours. It is possibly the single most deadly event during the fourteen month uprising in.

The shelling only goes to prove how ineffective the UN cease fire is. All UN observers could do was confirm that the attack took place.

Iranian state news, while not mentioning the bombardment, said that Al Qaeda linked terrorists were responsible for the deaths. SANA went on to call them horrible massacres.

A UN release stated, "This appalling and brutal crime involving indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force is a flagrant violation of international law and of the commitments of the Syrian Government to cease the use of heavy weapons in population centers and violence in all its forms. Those responsible for perpetrating this crime must be held to account."

Reports also have come that government infantry opened fire on crowds as they left mosques after Friday prayers. Armed civilians fired back, killing several soldiers.

New Mexico Wildfire Covers Neighboring States in Smoke

Firefighters in New Mexico are battling a huge fire, in the south west of the state.

The fire is a result of the combination of two fires, that were created by lightning strikes.

Closing in on 100,000 acres, and being spread by winds, the fire is nowhere near contained.

Winds are spreading ash and sparks from the fire, more than thirty miles ahead of the current lines, making fighting it nearly impossible.

Smoke from the fire has spread to cover not just New Mexico, but Arizona, Colorado, and parts of several other states.

Health officials are warning people in the smoke affected areas to limit their outside activities due to the potential health risks.

US State Department Joins Al Qaeda Sites

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton bragged that the State Department had begun campaigning on Al Qaeda websites.

They specifically targeted Al Qaeda websites in Yemen, that were heavy with anti American messages.

Joining the sites was simple, and they even listed themselves as members of the US government.

After doing so they began posting message after message showing all the damage that Al Qaeda had caused in Yemen.

The State Department's Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications was begun at the beginning of 2010, but this is their first big mission.

Hopes are high for them to continue success in combating Al Qaeda, in their own forums, all around the world.

Most notable about this group is that they are non hackers, nor ever will be. Hacking is the domain of intelligence agencies.

Okay Quebec Student/Faculty Protesters; Enough is Enough!

Student protests, in Quebec, began on February 13, 2012, over 100 days ago. At the time they were over the increases to university tuition. The current tuition cost is $2,168 and is to be raised to $3,793 by 2017. This averages to an increase of $325 per year. Quebec (23.6% of the Canadian population) has the lowest rate for tuition in Canada and is a "have-not" province which means it receives equalization payments from the Federal Government, money paid by the "have" provinces.

Where do these students think the money is going to come from to cover the costs? The Province of Quebec is currently on a spending spree (subsidized daycare, etc.) and there is only so much money to go around. Education is a privilege not a right; no one is forcing them to go. They go to university to get the degree to get the better paying jobs.

So why do students assume that they should not have to pay slightly more for this education? How long do they think that things can continue the way they are before the province would have to increase the fees? Students pay nowhere near what the cost of the education really is. Do they expect staff to cover these costs if they don’t pay the increase? Do they expect other provinces to pony up more money for Quebec transfer payments? If they expect the 1 percenter's to pay more taxes to help pay for this, do they not realize that with their university degrees, many of them have the possibility of becoming a 1 percenter (making over $360,000) themselves.

Many students, who are not involved in the strikes, are having their education stalled and basically have become tuition hostages, if they could not complete their programs. Quebec passed the bill titled "An Act to enable students to receive instruction from the post-secondary institutions they attend", which restricts freedom of assembly, protest, or picketing on or near university grounds, and anywhere in Quebec without prior police approval.

The bill also places restrictions upon the right of education employees to strike. Many of the students and faculty were angry about the passing of this bill. They vowed to disregard the law and continue protesting. Wednesday, May 23rd saw 518 arrests, the most in one day (as of May 25th, there have been 23 injuries and 2,500 arrests).

Businesses in the area have been affected as people have been steering clear, also there are concerns coming this summer with tourist events, conventions, etc. would be cancelled further hurting these businesses. No one wants to venture into areas where there is a potential for rioting.

How long are the police/politicians going to let it go on? If they give in to the protesters where do things stop? The next group will just step things up to get what they want in a faster timeline. Riots will happen at a more increasing rate if they believe this will further their cause. The Government of Quebec needs to get a serious game plan and get it now before they set the template for further strikes, etc.

WaPo's Useless Racism Analysis

Obama lost around 40% of the vote in primaries held in Kentucky, Arkansas, and West Virginia. Of course, The Washington Compost posted a story providing useless and utterly inane analysis surrounding the reasons why the president did so poorly as the incumbent candidate. Chris Cillizza wrote:

that we know beyond a shadow of a doubt is that Appalachia and portions of the South — particularly those states without large African American populations — have long been hostile to President Obama.
There are any number of data points that make that point plainly.
During the 2008 Democratic presidential primary campaign, Obama lost Kentucky by 35 points and West Virginia by 41(!) points to then Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton even though both states voted late enough in the process that it was already clear Obama would be the nominee.
In the 2008 general election, only five states voted more Republican than they had four years earlier. Those five states were: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee and West Virginia. (In Oklahoma and West Virginia, Obama and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry got the same percentage of the vote but Obama got less raw votes.)
And, since a picture is worth a thousand words, here’s an amazing graphic, courtesy of the New York Times, that shows the counties that voted more Republican in 2008 than they did in 2004.

I'll save you some time with the link:

However, it may surprise some liberals that a significant amount of Democrats have conservative leanings, especially in the region Mr. Cillizza is referring to in this post.  Furthermore, Cillizza quotes

Tom Cole, a Republican House Member, dismissed the idea of race as a major factor in opposition to Obama out of hand.
Said Cole:
Obama fares poorly in states like Oklahoma, Kentucky and Arkansas because he has nothing in common with them. They are rural, he is urban. They are populist, he is elitist. And in case anyone hadn’t noticed, they are conservative while he is liberal. That isn’t just true of Republicans in these states. It is true of Democrats as well.

Well, there you have it Chris.  I can say the same for my home state of Pennsylvania, which is aptly described as Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Alabama in-between concerning the political disposition of its electorate.  In a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans by 1.2 million, the PA GOP were able to clinch eleven more courthouses,  thus controlling fifty-one  of the sixty-seven counties.  That is up from 40 in 2007.  As Executive Director Mike Barley noted:

Nine of these wins occurred in “blue” counties where Democrats have a registration advantage – Cambria, Carbon, Centre, Clinton, Elk, Lawrence, Mercer, Monroe and Westmoreland...in all of these counties we witnessed Republicans, Independents and even Democrats rejecting Democratic candidates, their big government agenda and President Obama, proving that great Republican candidates can compete and win even in the Democratic counties in the Commonwealth. The story lines are even more intriguing when looking at each race county-by-county and case-by-case. Consider Westmoreland County, where Democrats out-register Republicans 53% to 38%, yet Republicans won the courthouse for the first time in more than 50 years, winning two commissioners and sweeping all of the row offices... in these cases, we see conservative “Reagan Democrats” coming out in droves for Republican candidates. While each county in Pennsylvania is unique, a universal distaste for President Obama’s failed policies was found everywhere and Republicans were successful in large part because we related the ongoing national debates surrounding spending and taxes to issues at the local level.

These rather embarrassing results for the president is not attributed to his race, but his failed record and liberal policies that are destroying the socio-economic health of the country.  The American people are saying "no thanks" to the president's agenda.  What's more amusing about Mr. Cillizza's piece is when he admits that race cannot be gauged in any shape or form.

simply labeling the 42 percent of Kentuckians who supported “uncommitted” over Obama or the 41 percent of Arkansas who backed Tennessee lawyer John Wolfe over the incumbent as “racists” is a major oversimplification.
Untangling or decoupling how people feel about Obama’s race from how they feel about the policies he has pursued in office and his general beliefs about the size and necessity of government is impossible. No poll or election result can divine voters’ motivations.

So why insinuate that racism was a possibility?  Yes, there are some people in America who are racist and will not vote for Obama because of his African-American roots.  However, this is not a new revelation.  And for most of them to be located in the southern and Appalachian regions; I'm stunned! Although I'm sure you can find, regrettably, plenty of like minded individuals all over the country. Think Boston in the 1970s when local schools were desegregated which led to the forced busing fiasco.

In all, for liberals, it is almost unbelievable that people don't support the president.  It is unbelievable that people don't support his policies and his far left vision for America.  If you're against him, you must be racist. That's their default position to silence the opposition.

However, as demonstrated in key battleground states like Pennsylvania, voters, especially the blue dog, conservative wing of the Democratic Party are beginning to sour on Barry for his failure to get America back on track.  Unemployment has remained above 8% for over thirty-eight months, the national debt has increased by $ 5 trillion dollars, we've ran our third consecutive trillion dollar deficit under this administration. These aren't things that drive the faithful to the polls.  His record is dismal and the people are calling him out on it. It really isn't that difficult left wingers.  A study session isn't needed for everything.

Unintended Consequences To Good Intentions

Baby Boomers, and on, have a lot of explaining to do! When did it become acceptable to expect everything to be handed over on a silver platter? What may have started as a “good intention” has evolved into “unintended consequences”. The intentions were “to not have their children have to struggle so much to get ahead in life”.

As each generation has come, more and more was being done for the children to the point where certain “wants” have become perceived rights. Things are to be given freely to them without having to do anything for it. “Society owes them” entitlement attitude is fully imbedded in today’s culture.

The more insulated from perceived harm/struggle, the less prepared for life in the real world they become. Self-esteem has replaced substance. We have created “bubble wrap” children who have no true idea of boundaries as their parents and society has insulated them. Everything is now to make sure that there is absolutely no way for a child to get any bumps or bruises, nothing to make a child feel better than any other child – everyone HAS to be the same. No keeping score (even though any child can tell what the score of their games is, even when the adults are not keeping score), you wouldn’t want little Johnny to feel inadequate because he is not as skilled as another child. Instead of getting ribbons for coming in first, second, or third place; you now get a ribbon for participating. There is no incentive for a child to become better at whatever they’re skilled at.

How many children were promoted to the next grade even though they hadn’t met the basic requirements to move to the next grade? How have we done them any favors by being more concerned about their self-esteem than giving them the tools needed to succeed in life? How many entered university without adequate educational skills to complete university? How many young people then join the workforce expecting an $80k plus job when their skill level/experience is nowhere near the market level? Flipping burgers is beneath them even it means an adequate roof over their head and food in their bellies.

It seems each generation is becoming more reliant on others for their survival. We adults have done a piss poor job at educating the younger generation. Our society has become more and more unwilling or unable to think on its own and to not swallow hook, line and sinker, what is being fed to them.

But all is not lost, there are those young people who are still able to think outside the box, not take what is said as truth without doing their own investigation and buck what society tells them. They are the young bloggers, entrepreneurs, advocates, and yes, even politicians that know what giving everything away truly costs. They are the ones holding us older folks to account for our actions or in-actions. They stand up for what they believe and are not ashamed to be public in their beliefs. They are a small force that continues to grow and inspire us all.

Remembering: Star Wars

May 25, 1977 Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope hits theaters and the world would never be the same.

It came with the newest forms of special effects and the superb soundtrack composed by John Williams. Those and the story line brought about an opening of imaginations throughout the world.

Though only released in forty-two theaters, the movie would make what was then, huge dollar amounts. Adjusting for inflation it is still the second biggest grosser in history.

A New Hope would be nominated for ten Oscars, winning six of them.

Star Wars is credited with reviving a sci fi genre that had all but died out, and was til then totally unprofitable.

Combined with Jaws, it began a new idea of the summer blockbuster, that is such a huge part of today's Hollywood.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in For Bad Boys 3

Will Smith has confirmed that he and Martin Lawrence will both return for Bad Boys 3.

At this point they're going over screen plays, looking for the right one.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has released that Smith has had a big hand in developing the film.

Director Michael Bay is set to return to the film series as well.

No release date has been announced yet.

Police Attacked in Northern Ireland

Bricks, stones, and petrol bombs were thrown at police in Newry, Northern Ireland on Thursday.

One officer was injured by the blasts. He has been released from the hospital.

For awhile part of the town was shut down, as police did a controlled explosion on a suspicious device.

Chief Inspector David Beck said a "small criminal element" was "intent on bringing mayhem and disruption".

Local assembly member Micky Brady complained about the police disruption of the town's day. "Once again we have seen Newry brought to a standstill while a suspicious device is investigated. Local people, like myself, are sick and tired of these pointless exercises."

Facebook Camera For iPhone and iPod Touch

Facebook has announced a new app for iPhone and iPod touch.

Facebook Camera works much in the same way as Instagram does, except for that it is completely linked to Facebook itself.

This linking makes it a whole lot easier to see, use, edit, and share pictures.

Sometime Thursday evening, the free app is supposed to be available.

Questions are abounding as to whether or not the app will become available for Droid phones, and when.

Another big question is what this means for Facebook and Instagram. The app comes less than two months after Facebook announced it was buying Instagram for $1 billion. That deal has yet to go through.

Iran Nuclear Talks Stall

Talks over Iran's nuclear program stalled when Iran demanded that EU sanctions be cancelled. The sanctions are set to go in place June 1, and are the toughest ever handed down by Europe. A new set of talks are set for June 18-19 in Moscow.

This unsuccessful set of talks, in Baghdad took place between Iran and the P5+1. The P5 are the five permanent members of the UN Security Council: the US, France, Great Britain, Russia, and China. The +1 denotes the addition of Germany.

Iran vows to not halt any kind of nuclear production until the sanctions be cancelled. The other nations stated that sanctions would only be cancelled once Iran has proven it is halting production.

Many countries have accused Iran of working towards nuclear weapons. Whilst Iran says it is all for energy research. But Iran's own released statistics show that they are enriching uranium far beyond what is necessary for energy production.

Israel accuses Iran of holding the talks simply to stall for time so that nuclear weapons can be achieved. The delay of almost a full month before talks resume would give credence to such worries.

Solar Impulse on First Transcontinental Flight

Solar Impulse took off on it's first transcontinental flight, Thursday morning. Accomplishing the mission would set it as the first solar powered aircraft to do so.

Andre Borschberg is flying the experimental solar powered airplane to Madrid, Spain. Bertrand Piccard will then fly for the second leg of the trip, to Rabat, Morocco.

Takeoff was delayed for two hours by fog in their home field of Payerne, Switzerland; showing the weakness of such a craft.

With a cruising speed of around forty-three miles per hour, the aircraft with a wingspan of just over 200 feet, hopes to reach Morocco Friday evening.

In 2010, the plane was flown for twenty-six hours straight, to show that it's 12,000 solar cells could absorb enough energy to last through the night.

The pilots hope to take a new and improved plane in an around the world flight, in 2014.

G I Joe Retaliation Pushed Back 9 Months

Paramount has announced that they will be moving back the release for the second G I Joe movie.

G I Joe Retaliation was to hit theaters June 29, 2012. It is now scheduled for March 29, 2013.

The theaters made the decision as they are moving to a 3D format.

It is unlikely that the movie will be hurt by the move. Paramount hopes that it will double it's gross gain internationally.

South Korea and Australia About to Hold Naval Drills

Starting on Monday Australia and South Korea will hold joint naval drills.

This is the first time that the two countries have held joint drills.

The two day drills will take place north east of Jeju Island.

Government officials have stated that the focus of the drills of will be detecting and tracking enemy submarines and torpedoes.

Officials continued to say that they made the decision to hold the drills due to concern that North Korea is planning a nuclear test.

33 Years of Prison for Doctor Who Helped Find Bin Laden

Shakil Afridi, a Pakistani doctor, has been sentenced to thirty-three years in prison by the Pakistani government. His crime? Aiding the US in locating Osama bin Laden.

"The doctor was never asked to spy on Pakistan. He was asked only to help locate al Qaeda terrorists, who threaten Pakistan and the US," said a senior U.S. official with knowledge of counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda in Pakistan. "He helped save Pakistani and American lives. His activities weren't treasonous, they were heroic and patriotic."

But Pakistan sees it differently. As tensions with the US increase, over drone strikes and other incidents, Pakistan is arresting various people who have helped the US in it's war on terror. Pakistani officials sentenced the doctor in a secret trial in the Khyber region.

The US State Department has been pressing for Dr. Afridi's release, since his arrest last year. They pledge to continue to do so until he is released.

Obama Struggles in Primaries

On Tuesday primaries took place in Arkansas and Kentucky.

President Obama, running unopposed in Kentucky only managed to get 57.9% of the vote. Forty-two percent of Kentucky Democrats, who voted, listed themselves as uncommitted.

In Arkansas, he's not faring much better. Only fifty-nine percent have gone for Obama. Forty-one percent went for his opponent there, who promises to repeal Obamacare.

These states follow West Virginia's primary, of two weeks ago. In that state, a Texas inmate took forty-one percent of the vote away from Obama.

Tuesday's primaries were disappointing for Romney as well. Kentucky gave him sixty-seven percent, and Arkansas sixty-nine.

Both states saw many votes still going for Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul; none of whom are actively campaigning.

Dissident Republicans Arrested in Northern Ireland

MI5, in conjunction with police, have arrested seven people in Northern Ireland on various charges of terrorist activities.

All seven are charged with being members of the Real IRA, a splinter group, that is opposed to the peace treaty of 1998.

Charges include: intent to endanger life, conspiracy to commit murder, planned attempts to cause explosions, directing terrorism, and possession of a firearm.

The arrests come after a major investigation. Police and MI5 wanted to be sure they would attain convictions for everyone they arrested.

SpaceX's Falcon 9's Succeeds in Second Launch Attempt

After the first attempt failed on Saturday, SpaceX's Falcon 9 successfully launched early Tuesday morning.

Falcon 9 carried the Dragon Capsule into space, which is set to dock with International Space Station, on Friday.

The docking of the Dragon Capsule, which is carrying supplies to astronauts aboard the station, will mark the first time a commercial vehicle will be used for such a mission.

SpaceX, and other companies will be replacing the now retired NASA space shuttles, with their own reusable space craft.

Reports show that SpaceX is able to get into space for a third the price of what it cost NASA, an extremely marked improvement.

NASA plans to devote all it's own resources to deep space exploration.

Obama's Divisionary Policies Drop Kick Judeo-Christian America

Since the time I wrote Obama and American Jews' movement from Left to Right in July 2011, there has been further disillusion of the Obama administration by not only the Jews but many Americans including many Catholics. Obama's policies are dividing our nation.

Senator Marco Rubio, in a speech in North Carolina on May 19, 2012, said (about mark 38:10 of video below) of President Obama "We have not seen such a divisive figure in modern American history as we have over the last three and a half years." Obama is dividing the nation and forcing, not only the Jews but all of America, to choose sides in his class warfare, his first step in creating a completely socialist nation with him as it's leader. Divide and conquer. Slowly the nation is waking up to what Obama is doing and the path he is leading us down.

Rubio's speech is worth watching in its entirety.

If you are time limited, watch from time stamp 37 minutes.

While there are, and will always be staunch leftist/liberal/Progressive/Democratic die hard Jews, there are those who are moving from the far left towards the right moving toward the center and even right of center.

According to Public Religion Research Institute poll Jewish support of Obama is down from 78% in 2008 to 62% currently. That's a 16% drop. Many are seeing the failed policies of the Obama administration destroy America and her economy. They see the direction President Obama is taking, towards a socialist society, is not working. In their disillusionment many Jews, like other Americans, are moving away from socialist ideas and even away from the lesser progressive ideas and toward more centrist and conservative viewpoint. Some are simply moving away from Obama.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan

Not only is Obama chasing away the Jews, but the Catholics as well. 12 federal lawsuits by 43 Catholic institutions across the country in response to Obama’s contraception mandate Cardinal Timothy Dolan is leading the fight and has stated that the mandate is contrary to the “deeply held and constitutionally-protected religious beliefs” of Catholic organizations. Dolan is prepared to take the fight all the way to the Supreme Court.

Never in my lifetime do I remember the federal government being sued on such a large scale.

President Obama's approval rating has been gradually declining according to Rasmussen Reports

Even many those who remain liberal/leftist/Democratic are becoming disillusioned with Obama and will not vote for him. Many will be voting for the GOP candidate, who is likely to be Romney. Other's will be writing in or voting for a myriad of others. Some will abstain from voting altogether.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday, May 22, 2012 shows Romney gaining on President Obama with Obama earning 46% of the vote and Romney attracting 44% support. Four percent (4%) would vote for a third party candidate, while another six percent (6%) are undecided. The decline in Jewish and Catholic support will likely translate to fewer votes for Obama.

The Catholic vote was an important factor in his winning the 2008 election, losing it could mean the loss of some states, especially the swing states such as Florida. The Jewish vote could further help determine some of the swing states. It doesn't look good for the president that the states will swing his way.