Looking anything but dignified and powerful, the new United States Olympic Team uniforms look like something designed in the 80’s by a gay hipster with no talent and few ideas .
I am surprised that the progressive socialist democrats even remembered to put a flag on the uniform.
And, who picked Ralph Lifshitz (Lauren) as the designer? Perhaps he should stick to designing uniforms for the airlines.
The Cosby look …
Put the: “U.S.A.” and flag on Bill Cosby’s sweater and you have an even better design than the one turned out by this Lauren hack.
Let’s hope the team overcomes these dreadful uniforms and kicks ass! GO TEAM USA! Perhaps, this sweater is designed to sell to those overseas who are known to snap up any American memorabilia, especially UCLA Bearware.
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
California has a reputation as the mold-filled petri dish experiment that drives the public policies in the rest of the nation. Unfortunately, it is run by progressive socialist democrats who believe that the promotion of a socialist agenda takes president over the welfare of Californians.
When the central planners decided that individuals should be forced out of their private vehicles and into a mass transit solution – even though it did not make social or economic sense – they pushed ahead, diverting funds that were mean to repair or replace crumbling road infrastructure with rail projects that seemingly went nowhere useful and would pay for themselves or the billion dollars in bonds. Mostly, these projects were created to serve the interests of the progressive socialist democrats and their special interest consultants, lobbyists, land developers, builders, and of course, the unions who dictated that every project must be over-staffed, over-budget, and completed late.
Again, unfortunately, we have seen the State of California decimate much of the fertile Central Valley with their environmental nonsense that mandates small fish take precedence over the needs of humans, killing farming in the region and bringing massive unemployment to the illegal aliens promoted by the progressive socialist democrats.
JUDGE'S RULING MAY RESULT IN AN ARTIFICIALLY CREATED SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DROUGHT, BRINGING WATER RATIONING AND ECONOMIC WOES TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
On August 31, 2007, Federal Judge, Oliver Wanger of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California ruled that the rare declining fish delta smelt should be protected by imposing limits on water flows caused by huge pumps at San Joaquin-Sacramento River delta from December to June.
The decision comes in a suit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Earthjustice against the Department of Interior and water agencies, among others.
So who are these feel-good, environmental socialists who manage to make a living out of litigation involving real or imagined insults to our environment?
Earthjustice is a non-profit public interest law firm that specializes in pro-environmental litigation. It was founded in 1971, under the name "Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund," by two volunteer lawyers working with the Sierra Club.
It should be noted that the Sierra Club was originally founded by John Muir in 1892 and the organization is primarily remembered for its involvement in the establishment of the National Park Service and other good works. It is now more of a political action committee committed to left-wing and democratic causes. Which, for some, makes it the premier environmental extremist group in America.
Natural Resources Defense Council is another left-wing extremist environmental group that not only watches the habitat of endangered species, but also monitors our nation's stockpile of nuclear weapons (HUH?).
And the matter is not crystal clear...
In 2005, when a large number of the California Water Project's 40-year contracts with its customers were coming due, water managers asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to determine what effect their plans would have on the tiny fish. In a biological opinion, the federal agency concluded that water operations in the delta did not jeopardize the smelt's survival. The finding brought howls of protest from environmentalists, who promptly sued in federal court. They said the biological opinion was part of a pattern of Bush administration environmental decisions that ignored sound science. Wanger invalidated the biological opinion in May. He called the delta smelt "indisputably in jeopardy as to its survival and recovery," and castigated the federal report as "arbitrary, capricious and contrary to law."
What can YOU do?
Realize that nature is tremendously adaptive. Species come and species go -- and there is no one among us that either knows nature's grand plan or can project the effects of a "smelt down."
Realize that the leftists have co-opted our institutions and are now using our freedoms and laws against us.
Sound science appears to be convoluted junk science – paid for by a government that doesn’t want to know the truth unless it supports their political agenda.
Will the California legislature pull a “Rahm Emanuel” and exploit this crisis for political gain?
Now that the California Governor, Jerry Brown (AKA Governor Moonbeam) has declared an “official drought,” does this mean that the progressive socialist democrats will, once again, enlarge the size and scope of the dysfunctional government, provide more social support for non-productive illegal aliens who should not be here in the first place, and continue to impose artificial and draconian environmental rules and regulations that slowly crippling the State’s economy and forcing productive individuals and business to leave the state – leaving a large sucking base of non-producers to consume scarce social resources? The answer is simple: the progressive socialist democrats will say or do anything to push their radical agenda. For when the ends have been predetermined, any means, fair or foul, are acceptable to this crowd.
Gov. Brown Declares Drought Emergency for California
Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency on Friday, citing a need for conservation efforts and a fingers-crossed message that he "hopes it will rain" soon during what looks like it will be the driest year on record in the history of California.
This is “perhaps the worst drought California has ever seen since records began being kept about 100 years ago,” Brown said at a news conference on Friday. "We can’t make it rain, but we can be much better prepared for the terrible consequences that California’s drought now threatens, including dramatically less water for our farms and communities and increased fires in both urban and rural areas." <Source>
Speaking of fires … how many people know that fire is nature’s way to renew forests and to perpetuate the cycle of life. And, that most of the drastic and costly fires are exacerbated by politicians who continue to allow developers to built homes in dangerous canyons, refuse to allow fires to burn to completion to clear excessive and dangerous undergrowth, and to support the special interests such as the air-tanker rental business and unions who supply the firefighters?
And, about planning for droughts …
There is an entire ocean of water off our coast and nuclear energy provides a convenient means to power desalinization plants. In fact, Santa Barbara has such a plant that was mothballed when the last drought was over. The plant is in “long-term” storage mode that may require 2 years to reactivate. What type of planning is that?
The Charles Meyer Desalination Plant is in long-term storage mode and is not currently producing drinking water for the City. The City constructed the reverse osmosis seawater desalination facility as an emergency water supply in response to the severe drought from 1986 to 1991. Two neighboring water purveyors, Goleta and Montecito water districts, participated in the project but have since opted out of the permanent facility. Due to sufficient freshwater supplies since 1991, the facility remains in long-term storage mode for reactivation within two years in the case of prolonged and severe drought. <Source>
Enter Janet Napolitano, the corrupt and inept former administrator of the highly-politicized Department of Homeland Security …
University of California President Janet Napolitano on Thursday announced a system-wide goal of reducing per-capita water use by 20 percent by 2020. She said in a prepared statement that the UC “is prepared to play a leadership role in response to California’s current water crisis by demonstrating water sustainability solutions to the rest of the state.” <Source>
The University of California is a hotbed of radical progressive socialist democrats hell bent on subverting science and using junk science to justify their political agenda and personal ambitions. Just consider that they have forced a state-wide ban on lead bullets to save the California Condor, even though it cannot be proven that it is lead bullets – and not a mismanaged breeding program that is producing weak birds. Janet Napolitano is not an academic, nor a proven administrator, so why is this former Arizona governor heading up the prestigious University of California if not for political reasons?
Bottom line …
Nature works in cycles and it appears that the situation is never as bad as politicians made it out to be – especially when they are pursuing a radical socialist agenda.
There needs to be a time when Californians push back against the radical progressive socialist democrats and declare that man is more important that a small fish, various smelly birds, rodents, and insects. Species have always gone extinct and spending billions of dollars to thwart nature and built a monolithic political party is anti-American and anti-human. Tell these wealthy Prius-driving vegans to step off. Starting with our legislature’s useful idiots who are isolated from the consequences of their actions. Enough of the San Francisco crowd that runs Sacramento.
And, at the federal level, we need to remove the progressive socialist democrats from Congress where they eagerly adopt the worst that California has to offer.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
I have just discovered that the e-mail service that is used by One Citizen Speaking appears to be deleting embedded videos.
Therefore, I will be putting in a hard link to the video for your convenience.
These deletions appear randomly and do not appear to be an accident -- as the e-mail service formerly known as Feedburner is now owned by Google as is the video source YouTube. It may have something to do with the YouTube policy of placing commercials in the videos, but I am not sure.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
Once again, we find a progressive socialist democrat interfering in the stock market …
Senator Is Lobbying for Inquiry on Herbalife
The hedge fund manager William A. Ackman walked the halls of Congress last year, telling any lawmaker who would listen that he believed Herbalife, a nutritional supplements company, was a fraud. He finally got a break on Thursday, when Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts sent letters to federal regulators urging them to investigate the company.
The action introduced a political element into what has become a billion-dollar brawl among prominent investors. Mr. Ackman contends that Herbalife is a pyramid scheme and wagered that its stock was worthless. The company has forcefully denied Mr. Ackman’s assertions, spending millions of dollars last year to defend its reputation. And it has found champions elsewhere on Wall Street, with several of Mr. Ackman’s rivals buying the company’s shares, taking the opposite side of his bet. That helped drive the stock price skyward, creating hundreds of millions of dollars in paper losses for Mr. Ackman.
Now joining the fight on Mr. Ackman’s side is a freshman senator with no obvious close connection to him, but certainly some awareness.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Markey said that Mr. Ackman had met with Mr. Markey’s staff last fall to discuss Herbalife, but that Mr. Markey had not met Mr. Ackman. Staff members for Mr. Markey have also met with lobbyists who represent Mr. Ackman about Herbalife, said the senator’s spokeswoman, Giselle Barry.
Investors in Herbalife, whose stock dropped more than 10 percent on Thursday after Mr. Markey’s letters were disclosed, noted that many of the points raised in the letters — which were sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission — had appeared months earlier in documents Mr. Ackman released to discredit the company.
While federal campaign filings do not show that Mr. Ackman contributed directly to Mr. Markey’s campaign, they do show that he donated $32,400 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on April 30 — the same day Mr. Markey won the Democratic primary to fill the seat vacated by John F. Kerry. A little more than a month after Mr. Ackman made his donation, the Democratic senatorial committee gave $45,400 to Mr. Markey’s campaign, though it is not clear where the money came from.
Under financial pressure as the stock rose, Mr. Ackman made the rounds among regulators, meeting with the S.E.C., the F.T.C. and the office of the New York attorney general, in a quest to discredit the company. He released reams of documents, whose points were echoed in Mr. Markey’s letters on Thursday.
“I don’t think it’s entirely a coincidence,” said Rommel T. Dionisio, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, “that you see United States politicians making these inquiries of the F.T.C. to investigate Herbalife just months after these allegations have been put forth by Pershing Square.”
It would have been appropriate and prudent for the Senator to query the regulatory agencies in a manner that did not precipitate a major movement in the company’s stock. But, then again, politicians – especially progressive socialist democrats – are invested in denigrating the capitalist system and creating chaos in the marketplace. Even worse, many of these politicians are acting on their own self-interests and are willing to ignore constituents in favor of pandering to the special interests who provide campaign funding and voter support.
Déjà vu …
Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is no stranger to controversy and precipitating scandal …
Many remember Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the rabid democrat ideologue who would bulldoze anyone standing between him and the media. The man who helped to precipitate the crash of Indy Mac Bank in California with his self-serving letter questioning the Bank’s solvency.
The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) today closed the $32 billion IndyMac Bank, headquartered in Pasadena, California, and transferred operations to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
The OTS has determined that the current institution, IndyMac Bank, is unlikely to be able to meet continued depositors’ demands in the normal course of business and is therefore in an unsafe and unsound condition. The immediate cause of the closing was a deposit run that began and continued after the public release of a June 26 letter to the OTS and the FDIC from Senator Charles Schumer of New York. The letter expressed concerns about IndyMac’s viability. In the following 11 business days, depositors withdrew more than $1.3 billion from their accounts. Source: Schmuck Schumer helps kill IndyMac Bank
And, then there is Chuck Schumer’s involvement in precipitating the IRS scandal targeting conservatives …
Now, it appears that Chuck Schumer and his fellow travelers may have actually precipitated the IRS scandal with another letter threatening legislative action …
Hon. Douglas H. Shulman
Commissioner
Internal Revenue Service
Room 3000 IR
1111 Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Dear Commissioner Shulman:
We write to ask the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) to immediately change the administrative framework for enforcement of the tax code as it applies to groups designated as “social welfare” organizations. These groups receive tax and other advantages under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code (hereinafter, “IRC” or the “Code”), but some of them also are engaged in a substantial amount of political campaign activity. As you know, we sent a letter last month expressing concerns about the 501(c)(4) issue; an investigation this week by the New York Times has uncovered new, specific problems on how c)4)s conduct business. We wanted to address those new concerns in this letter.
IRS regulations have long maintained that political campaign activity by a 501(c)(4) entity must not be the “primary purpose” of the organization. These regulations are intended to implement the statute, which requires that such organizations be operated exclusively for the public welfare. But we think the existing IRS regulations run afoul of the law since they only require social welfare activities to be the 'primary purpose' of a nonprofit when the Code says this must be its 'exclusive' purpose. In recent years, this daylight between the law and the IRS regulations has been exploited by groups devoted chiefly to political election activities who operate behind a facade of charity work.
It is the height of hypocrisy that President Obama and his cadre of progressive socialist democrats – and Hillary Clinton – take significant contributions from Wall Street mega-banks and financial institutions while simultaneously attacking the rich, excoriating executive salaries and bonuses, and supporting the destruction of capitalism in favor of progressive socialism and communism.
But, more troubling, is the appearance of corruption of key progressive socialist democrats who appear to initiate market-changing events with their perfectly-timed releases of adverse market information. Considering that Congress has exempted themselves from profiting from trading on insider information – unlike ordinary individuals who would be prosecuted go to jail – one wonders if somebody in the government profited on this artificial manipulation of the marketplace.
The progressive socialist democrats represent a clear and present danger to America and Americans. And, it is time to remove the progressive socialist democrats from Congress – increasing the checks and balances put in place by our Founding Fathers to prevent a tyrannical government.
Time for a change.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
What is happening in England could very well happen in the United States under the current regulatory climate that is promoted by progressive socialist democrats …
HSBC imposes restrictions on large cash withdrawals
Some HSBC customers have been prevented from withdrawing large amounts of cash because they could not provide evidence of why they wanted it, the BBC has learnt.
Listeners have told Radio 4's Money Box they were stopped from withdrawing amounts ranging from £5,000 to £10,000. HSBC admitted it has not informed customers of the change in policy, which was implemented in November. The bank says it has now changed its guidance to staff.
Stephen Cotton went to his local HSBC branch this month to withdraw £7,000 from his instant access savings account to pay back a loan from his mother.
A year before, he had withdrawn a larger sum in cash from HSBC without a problem. But this time it was different, as he told Money Box: "When we presented them with the withdrawal slip, they declined to give us the money because we could not provide them with a satisfactory explanation for what the money was for. They wanted a letter from the person involved."
HSBC has said that following customer feedback, it was changing its policy: "We ask our customers about the purpose of large cash withdrawals when they are unusual and out of keeping with the normal running of their account. Since last November, in some instances we may have also asked these customers to show us evidence of what the cash is required for."
"The reason being we have an obligation to protect our customers, and to minimise the opportunity for financial crime. However, following feedback, we are immediately updating guidance to our customer facing staff to reiterate that it is not mandatory for customers to provide documentary evidence for large cash withdrawals, and on its own, failure to show evidence is not a reason to refuse a withdrawal. We are writing to apologise to any customer who has been given incorrect information and inconvenienced."
We can see a time where our government, a nanny state run by progressive socialist democrats might also impose these restrictions on senior citizens under the guise of preventing criminal financial elder abuse.
Sometimes, we need to keep an eye out for the egregious actions of financial institutions and their regulators lest we be blindsided with the soft tyranny that comes from those who believe that they know best and how we should live our lives.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
Just when you thought that the GOP was apathetic and out-of-touch, they surprise you by publicly recognizing what any unbiased observer already knew: John McCain is a RINO (Republican In Name Only) who openly promotes the agenda of the progressive socialist democrats.
McCain-Feingold – campaign finance reform that was partly unconstitutional and gave the progressive socialist democrats even more dark money to fund their anti-America campaigns
McCain-Kennedy – amnesty for illegal aliens that would have given the progressive socialist democrats and even larger entitlement constituency.
McCain-Lieberman – the global warming solution that sought to nationalize our entire economy and promote massive wealth re-distribution to socialist/communist causes.
Hooray for the Arizona GOP, Hooray for America …
Arizona GOP censures McCain for ‘liberal’ record
The Arizona Republican Party formally censured Sen. John McCain on Saturday, citing a voting record they say is insufficiently conservative. The resolution to censure McCain was approved by a voice-vote during a meeting of state committee members in Tempe, state party spokesman Tim Sifert said. It needed signatures from at least 20 percent of state committee members to reach the floor for debate.
According to the resolution, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee has campaigned as a conservative but has lent his support to issues “associated with liberal Democrats,” such as immigration reform and funding the federal health care law. Source:Arizona GOP censures McCain for ‘liberal’ record - The Washington Post
The actual text of the precursor Maricopa County censure …
Senator John McCain Censured by Arizona’s Republican Leadership
As leaders in the Republican Party, we are obligated to fully support our Party, platform, and its candidates. Only in times of great crisis or betrayal is it necessary to publicly censure our leaders. Today we are faced with both. For too long we have waited, hoping Senator McCain would return to our Party’s values on his own. That has not happened. So with sadness and humility we rise and declare:
Whereas Senator McCain has amassed a long and terrible record of drafting, co-sponsoring and voting for legislation best associated with liberal Democrats, such as Amnesty, funding for ObamaCare, the debt ceiling, assaults on the Constitution and 2nd amendment, and has continued to support liberal nominees;
Whereas this record has been disastrous and harmful to Arizona and the United States; and,
Whereas Senator McCain has campaigned as a conservative and made promises during his re-election campaigns, such as the needed and welcomed promise to secure our borders and finish the border fence, only to quickly flip-flop on those promises; and
Whereas McCain has abandoned our core values and has been eerily silent against Liberals, yet publicly reprimands Conservatives in his own Party, therefore
BE IT HEREBY RESOLVED that the Maricopa County Republican leadership censures Senator McCain for his continued disservice to our State and Nation, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that until he consistently champions our Party’s Platform and values, we, the Republican leadership in Arizona will no longer support, campaign for or endorse John McCain as our U.S. Senator.
McCain, now 77, will stand for re-election in 2016 at the age of 80.
It appears that former Senator Jon Kyle, now a lobbyist, was quick to declare that the censure was “wacky” and claimed that John McCain is a conservative. But, then again, John Kyl was also considered by his fellow Republicans to be a RINO – but nowhere as supportive of progressive socialist democrat agenda as John McCain.
McCain is an untrustworthy chameleon …
While McCain should be thanked for his military service, he was never the military hero portrayed in the media, in fact, he was a collaborator with the North Vietnamese – something that might be forgiven under horrific torture – but then again, stories of those who served with McCain have painted a far different picture.
But, one cannot forgive McCain’s subsequent actions to kill any hopes of recovering additional soldiers missing in action by promoting legislation that would classify the debriefings of returning soldiers and keep civilian groups from searching for loved ones. Perhaps he never wanted to see his own debrief and actual record come to light?
McCain and the POW Cover-Up -- The “war hero” candidate buried information about POWs left behind in Vietnam.
John McCain, who has risen to political prominence on his image as a Vietnam POW war hero, has, inexplicably, worked very hard to hide from the public stunning information about American prisoners in Vietnam who, unlike him, didn’t return home. Throughout his Senate career, McCain has quietly sponsored and pushed into federal law a set of prohibitions that keep the most revealing information about these men buried as classified documents. Thus the war hero who people would logically imagine as a determined crusader for the interests of POWs and their families became instead the strange champion of hiding the evidence and closing the books. <Source>
Bottom line …
Getty Images published a photo captioned "U.S. Senator for Arizona John McCain (L) talks with Soros Fund Management Chairman George Soros at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 23, 2014." I wonder what a "conservative" like John McCain had to say to someone who is commited to destroying capitalism in the United States and promoting a progressive socialist agenda?
Perhaps there is hope for a GOP awakening. Now if the GOP had the cojones to go after Barack Obama and his cadre of progressive socialist democrats.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
UPDATE: JANUARY 6, 2016 -- WEATHERLY QUITTING NCIS AFTER CURRENT SEASON ...
Longtime cast member Michael Weatherly has announced that he’s leaving the show, news that comes roughly two months after the actor’s DUI arrest.
Weatherly, who played Special Agent Tony DiNozzo for 13 years, will remain on series until the end of the current season.
Weatherly was charged with two counts of DUI in November, reports TMZ. He was pulled over in Hollywood when his blood alcohol level was above the legal limit and he subsequently spent 15 hours in jail.
Weatherly recently pleaded no contest and was sentenced to three years probation. He was also ordered to complete both a 3-month alcohol program and a MADD program, adds the site. <Source>
Original Post ...
Promoting your progressive political beliefs with a profanity-laden sketch meant to attract all those young, hip, and edgy progressive voters who believe there is a “war on women” is one thing. Spoofing NCIS and the men and women who put their lives on the line is something quite different.
Watch the foul-mouthed rant for yourself …
Who is Michael Weatherly … and is he playing to the feminists?
Michael Manning Weatherly, Jr. (born July 8, 1968) is an American actor and director, best known for his roles as Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo on the television series NCIS, and Logan Cale on the television series Dark Angel.
According to [Producer Donald] Bellisario, Tony was often criticized by the female audience at the beginning of the show's run for his chauvinism. This softened after Weatherly decided to tone down that aspect of his portrayal, and afterwards the character was more well received. <Source>
In real life …
Weatherly married internist Dr. Bojana Janković in September 2009. The couple live in Los Angeles with two German Shepherd dogs, Oriana and Quantum. They have two children, a daughter, Olivia, born April 10, 2012, and a son, Liam, born October 29, 2013. <Source>
Bottom line …
So why would a “good guy” actor go political and alienate a portion of his audience and fan base? To answer that you need to be a progressive socialist democrat in Hollywood where political activism is just another way to keep yourself relevant and before an audience. Just ask the principal actress/comedian Sarah Silverman.
Silverman, unbelievable ignorant when it comes to the Constitution, apparently failing to realize that the Constitution prevents the establishment of a state religion, not that religion cannot serve as a moral base for legislation.
Perhaps Sarah should comment on Bill Clinton's treatment of women as a serial abuser of women, or Hillary Clinton's treatment of women as she managed a campaign of personal destruction against those who would accuse her husband of sexual improprieties. No conservative has ever disgraced the Presidency by having oral sex with an intern in the oval office.
I am just sorry that they included a decent program like NCIS in this progressive socialist democrat political/religious hit piece.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
If a financial institution is in need of cash and/or wants to remove the risk of dodgy mortgages from their portfolio, it helps to consider the greater fool theory – that someone else is stupid enough to gamble on a package of high-yield securities to pump up their annual returns and attract more investment money. Pretty much why Bill Clinton signed the Commodities Modernization Act of which prevented state restrictions on gaming (gambling) from the securities law.
The CFMA continued an existing 1992 preemption of state laws enacted in the Futures Trading Practices Act of 1992 which prevented the law from treating eligible OTC derivatives transactions as gambling or otherwise illegal.It also extended that preemption to security-based derivatives that had previously been excluded from the CEA and its preemption of state law. <Source>
Package dodgy mortgages, mix in a credit default swap, set high return rates, ask the ratings agencies to rate a portion of the crap pile as AAA – investment grade – and offload to some willing counterparty that wants to gamble with their client’s money. Of course, the counterparty is only purchasing the investment grade securities and leaving the worst of the worst for some other entity. This is what happened before and it is going to happen again.
Freddie Mac to securitize once-troubled mortgages - FHFA wants the GSEs to reduce size, is this the answer?
Even troubled mortgages deserve a second chance, according to the latest Securitized Products Weekly report from Barclays.
According to structured finance analysts, "as part of an initiative to enhance the liquidity of its retained portfolio, Freddie Mac is starting securitization programs for current modified loans and re-instated loans." The Barclays analysts note, between the government-sponsored enterprises, there remains $500 billion in illiquid loans, most held by Fannie Mae. $200 billion is classified as troubled debt restructuring, but not seriously delinquent. "These are loans for which a concession has been granted to the borrower and generally include modifications, repayment plans and forbearance agreements," the report states.
The GSEs accumulated this debt primarily through the repurchase requirements from pass-throughs they guaranteed. Many of the loans have already been subject to various levels of loss mitigation in order to become reperforming. Source: Freddie Mac to securitize once-troubled mortgages | 2014-01-24 | HousingWire
We saw the consequences of the mortgage meltdown and how the use of securitization spread the contagion into the broader economy. We saw how financial institutions forged documents or created them out of thin air where nobody could prove that they actually owned the mortgage underlying the collateralized assets – and those with only a piece of the mortgage income pool found they had no recourse to the collateral.
So why do we think that the government regulatory agencies, the quasi-governmental mortgage agencies, and the financial institutions have learned their lesson. What they apparently learned is that the government refuses to recognize so-called “too big to fail” financial institutions as insolvent … and the Federal Reserve will create money out of thin air to repurchase dodgy paper from the financial institutions while, at the same time, screwing depositors and investors with an artificially low interest rate (ZIRP – Zero Interest Rate Program) so the banks can recapitalize. And, let us not forget the executives who get egregious bonuses based on guaranteed profits made possible by interference in the marketplace by regulators, and the government.
Bottom line …
To allow people who cannot afford a car, let alone a $200,000 mortgage, continue to obtain credit is crazy. To allow zero- or low-down payment deals where the borrower can easily walk-away from the property is crazy. And, to think that you can fix the consequences of previous bad behavior with additional bad behavior is INSANE.
We are so screwed. The progressive socialist democrats who believe that housing policy is an instrument of social policy and a way to attract their core constituency of the poor, minorities, and women, continue to manipulate the housing marketplace. One, to keep prices high; and two, to buy votes.
We have radical progressive socialist democrats at the regulatory agencies and in most of the major financial institutions. And, we are about to be plucked again!
We need to remove this clear and present danger to our economy by removing progressive socialist democrats from Congress and the regulatory agencies. Period!
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
Is Eric Holder and the Department of Justice trying to distract the voter’s attention away from the job-killing and health-killing Obamacare and the numerous scandals swirling about the Administration by highlighting a potential $5 Billion dollar lawsuit against one of those hated financial institutions? More class warfare and blame the rich for the problems created by corrupt politicians shilling for their special interest sponsors?
The government believes that S&P is a bad actor …
In carrying out the scheme to defraud, S&P falsely represented that its credit ratings of RMBS [Residential Mortgage Backed Securities] and CDO [Collateral Debt Obligations] tranches were objective, independent, uninfluenced by any conflicts of interest that might compromise S&P' s analytic judgment, and reflected S&P's true current opinion regarding the credit risks the rated RMBS and CDO tranches posed to investors.
As S&P knew, these representations were materially false, and concealed material facts, in that S&P' s desire for increased revenue and market share in the RMBS and CDO ratings markets led S&P to downplay and disregard the true extent of the credit risks posed by RMBS and CDO tranches in order to favor the interests of large investment banks and others involved in the issuance of RMBS and CDOs who selected S&P to provide credit ratings for those tranches. <Source: Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 1 Filed 02/04/13>
We are talking big money here …
From in or about September 2004 through in or about October 2007, S&P issued credit ratings on over $2.8 trillion worth of RMBS and nearly $1.2 trillion worth of CDOs.
In 2005, 2006, and 2007, [S&P] Global CDO generated revenues of approximately $96 million, $182 million, and $203 million, respectively. In 2006 and 2007, [S&P] Global ABS generated revenues of more than $278 million and $243 million, respectively. <Source: Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 1 Filed 02/04/13>
The real question is whether S&P shaded or colored the truth about securities risk in order to sell its ratings services to the issuers of securities. I believe that the answer is probably – but it is no different from what others were doing at the time. Unfortunately, blaming bad conduct on other bad conduct does not appear to be a viable affirmative defense.
In my limited world view, I saw individual loan officers re-drawing mortgage loan documents multiple times, not to correct data entry errors, but to juggle the numbers in order to make the loan acceptable to an investor who would ultimately purchase and pool the loan. Of course, such activities were flagged and reported to compliance officers. So why should anybody be surprised if securitizers juggled the contents of loan pools to make them more acceptable to the ratings agencies, and ultimately to the institutional investors in these debt obligations? Or, that ratings agencies accepted representations by management as part of their loan rating process?
Trust us, but not really?On one hand, the company is claiming, or at least implying, that they are a reliable source of accurate investment information, but on the other hand, they say don’t believe everything you read …
S&P avers that S&P Ratings’ credit ratings are not indicators of investment merit, are not recommendations to buy, sell or hold any security, and should not be relied upon as investment or financial advice. <Source:Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 51 Filed 09/03/13>
What the advertising giveth, the small print taketh away! All providers of investment information claim that they are providing guidance based on their “best efforts” and that the client should consider other information sources and make their decision based on their own informed analysis. Unfortunately, most clients are incapable of performing sophisticated analysis on their own and must rely on the work of others.
S&P states, you can’t blame us because everybody got it wrong …
S&P Ratings’ ratings opinions were independent and based upon a good faith assessment of, among other things, the performance of residential mortgages during a tumultuous time in the market. Like nearly every other market participant, analyst, and interested government entity, S&P Ratings did not anticipate the full speed, severity, and breadth of the collapse of the housing market and its impact on the economy as whole. <Source:Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 51 Filed 09/03/13>
S&P asks, so why are you picking on us?
S&P Ratings was not alone. Other rating agencies that have not been charged with fraud or misconduct by the United States issued ratings similar to and often identical with those of S&P Ratings. Indeed, every CDO tranche cited in the Complaint received identical ratings from S&P Ratings and at least one other rating agency. <Source:Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 51 Filed 09/03/13>
Some media pundits are suggesting that the Department of Justice may be retaliating against S&P for the first historic downgrade of debts owned by the United States, thus embarrassing our historic first black president prior to his reelection bid.
Standard & Poor’s Chairman Harold W. McGraw III
In his court statement, McGraw, 65, said Geithner called him on Aug. 8, 2011, after S&P was the only credit ratings company to downgrade the U.S. debt. Geithner, McGraw said, told him that S&P would be held accountable for the downgrade. Government officials have said the downgrade was based on an error by S&P.
“S&P’s conduct would be looked at very carefully,” Geithner told McGraw according to the filing. “Such behavior would not occur, he said, without a response from the government.”
The Justice Department last year accused S&P of lying about its ratings being free of conflicts of interest and may seek as much as $5 billion in civil penalties for losses to federally insured financial institutions that relied on the company’s investment-grade ratings for mortgage-backed securities and collateralized-debt obligations, or CDOs. The government alleged in its Feb. 4, 2013, complaint that S&P knowingly downplayed the risk on securities before the credit crisis to win business from investment banks seeking the highest possible ratings to help them sell the instruments. <Source: Bloomberg News> Bloomberg did a great analysis of the situation and that can be found at: Is S&P Being Sued Because It Downgraded the U.S.?
This is an ambiguous statement, Geithner could have been simply saying “check your numbers again.” But considering the tales of Treasury Department strong-arming under Bush, who really knows?
According to S&P, Even the government hotshots got it wrong …
Moreover senior officials of the United States who were reviewing the same data that S&P Ratings was reviewing throughout 2007 proved no more prescient than S&P Ratings. When Ben S. Bernanke, then Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, stated in March 2007, that “the central scenario that housing will stabilize sometime during the middle of the year remains intact,” his views (and those of other Governors) were similar to those of S&P Ratings. Similarly, when Secretary of the Treasury Henry M. Paulson stated in April 2007 that “subprime is obviously an outgrowth of the housing market,” that “in terms of the systemic risks, the economic risks, you know, the macro risk, I don’t see it posing a serious problem” and that “I think it’s going to be largely contained,” his views were consistent with those of S&P. And when Mr. Bernanke, looking back with several years of hindsight in December 2009 said, “I did not anticipate a crisis of this magnitude and this severity,” that was also true of S&P Ratings. <Source:Case 2:13-cv-00779-DOC-JCG Document 51 Filed 09/03/13>
Is this another distraction from all of the scandals swirling about the Obama Administration and that seem to be connected to the Department of Justice stonewalling legitimate congressional oversight attempts to secure documents in Fast and Furious, Benghazi, IRS targeting of conservatives, and Targeting of reporters?
What about Moody’s and Fitch …
I have to wonder why the original Department of Justice investigation that was focused on all three major ratings agencies, S&P, Moody’s and Fitch, was apparently redirected to focus solely on S&P. Could it be that Fitch is relatively small potatoes and that a major share of Moody’s is owned by President Obama’s pal Warren Buffett, the recipient of a number of sweetheart deals with the Administration? Again, they are all equally guilty of screwing the pooch, so why is the DOJ focusing on the only ratings agency to embarrass the Administration?
How will it end?
If things go as they have gone before, it is likely that the company will settle the lawsuit by paying a “record fine” and neither admitting nor denying the allegations. The real winners will be the attorneys who get paid win, lose or draw. The losers will be the shareholders who will see reduced dividends and net worth, the clients who may be forced to pay higher prices, the taxpayers who will have to pay more for ratings on municipal- and state-issued securities, and insurance companies who may pick up the a portion of the tab for any fines or judgments.
The hypocrisy of the progressive socialist democrats …
We should not be amazed that both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton engage in progressive socialist democrat rhetoric while simultaneously soliciting campaign funds from the fat cat special interests they openly disparage. And, amazingly, these idiots provide the funds to the politicians that attack them. Something stinks! Of course, if you consider fines to be an acceptable cost of business, paying out millions to ventures that make hundreds of millions, it all begins to make sense. The politicians have been bought by the financial industry special interests and are using their campaign funds to purchase voter support.
Bottom line …
There is enough blame to go around, starting with the major financial players such as Goldman Sachs, and of course an inept government. I believe key government officials should be investigated and prosecuted – including those who corruptly subverted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The only way to reduce corruption, lawlessness, and the abuse of the United States Constitution, is to remove corrupt politicians and restrict the financial influence of the special interests and their lobbyists. Downsizing the government -- scrutinizing and rejecting sweetheart deals between the government and the special interests.
Time to clean up the cesspool … removing progressive socialist democrats from the House and Senate and restoring constitutional checks and balances.
-- steve
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it! "Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar
“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS
It seems that it is not only the illegal aliens who drive without license and insurance are getting a pass …
According to published reports, Justin Bieber, a legal alien from Canada, does not have a valid California Driver’s license, although he has been stopped and cited for driving without a license. Where are his cars registered and does he carry insurance are two additional questions that need to be answered?
Justin Bieber — arrested in Miami Beach early Thursday after an alleged street-racing incident — has never had a California driver's license and hasn't had a valid license anywhere in at least six months, according to state DMV records and Florida police.
Bieber has a driver's license from Georgia that expired on June 24, 2013.
In California, Bieber applied for a license on May 7, 2012, and had a year to complete the necessary requirements but he never did, according to the DMV. In July of that year, he was cited and eventually convicted of driving at an unsafe speed.
Last May, former USC and NFL star Keyshawn Johnson confronted the singer outside his home after Johnson claimed Bieber was speeding through the neighborhood while children were outside.
That June, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department investigated Bieber for a possible hit-and-run outside the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, where a paparazzo accused the singer of hitting him with his car. No charges were filed.
In August, Bieber was cited by a sheriff’s deputy for running a stop sign and driving without a license. A friend drove the car the rest of the way home, The Times reported.