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.