Raleigh, NC--Former North Carolina Governor Mike Easley's Campaign has been ordered to pay $60,000 in civil penalties and $40,000 to pay for the investigation into it's violations of Campaign Law in North Carolina. The Democratic Party of North Carolina has been ordered to pay $9,000 in civil penalties for it's part in funneling donations to the Easley Campaign in violation of North Carolina Election Law.
Here is the audio of the result of the North Carolina State Board of Elections investigation into the Easley Campaign hearing:
29 October 2009: A 45 page federal complaint unsealed Wednesday (PDF copy here), the raid on a Detroit warehouse and Detroit area residences, the shootout between mosque leader Luqman Ameen ABDULLAH, a/k/a Christopher THOMAS and law enforcement officials should be sufficient verification of the validity of our previously published investigative and surveillance findings that Islamic terror training is taking place on America soil.
On Wednesday, federal, state and local law enforcement officials raided a suburban Detroit warehouse and at least three Detroit area residences after a federal complaint was unsealed charging eleven-(11) individuals with a variety of crimes relating to Islamic terrorism. During the raid at the warehouse, ABDULLAH, 53, a “homegrown” Black Muslim terrorist and mosque leader fired on authorities as they executed the arrest warrant at that location. Before being killed by authorities, ABDULLAH shot and killed a K-9 dog.
Authorities state that six men are in custody while others remain at large. ABDULLAH, who converted to Islam while in prison, was the Imam of the Masjid Al-Haqq (mosque) in Detroit. The spiritual leader of the group is Jamil Abdullah Al-AMIN, formerly known as H. Rap BROWN, a prominent Black Panther in the late 1960s and early 1970s. BROWN is currently incarcerated for the murder of two police officers in Georgia.
American streets will become the new Islamic Jihad battleground
The information contained within the federal complaint against the Detroit suspects is clear: Islamists in the US are advocating the spread of Islam through the use of violent jihad, and they are utilizing mosques and Islamic centers as their training grounds. The Northeast Intelligence Network has warned about this very issue, and even provided evidence of such activities.
It is just a matter of time before the Islamists bring their war on Western Civilization to our soil in force. I hope that you are taking precautions in your life to be ready when it comes.
Journalism in Asheville North Carolina could, at many times, be very biased. When an insider or outsider is looking for information; they do not want to listen to reporters only tooting the horn of businesses that advertise with their publication or their friendly contacts. I believe this issue is being dealt with in the Mommy Blogging world as well. Some of these famous bloggers were being paid to put their approval on certain items that they did not necessarily believe in or even use. The outcome... hundreds and thousands of "followers" followed their advice and purchased the product. Everyone makes some money so it is right, Right?!
So called journalists many times do the same thing. Even though we hope that journalism carries a non-partial attitude when it comes to community, networking and sharing; writers who have a certain "control" when it comes to media, use this avenue many times to limit the messages of others and exclude. While some scream "community" to simply gain fans - many in the community remain excluded.
Even on your local Twitter scene. I would be a networked hireling if all I read and retweeted was what my fellow reporter friends posted. Some individuals are just as closed. They retweet any good thing or absurdity that their clique posts, and pass over a lot of great info that others may contribute for fear of losing control, seeming like they are a traitor, or to hang onto a false superiority. Weakness.
In June, state Sen. Martin Nesbitt (D-Buncombe) had something to say to his colleagues on the Senate Finance Committee.
"This is about the town of Swannanoa, and I know you don't want to know anything about it, but I'm going to tell you anyhow," he said, introducing legislation to put the General Assembly's stamp of approval on incorporating the town and to set a referendum for Nov. 3. "This will be the site of the first Tiger Woods golf course in North America," he continued (incorrectly, since most of Woods' Cliffs at High Carolina Course will be in Fairview). "For those of you who've been through it, I don't know why Swannanoa isn't bigger than the city of Asheville. It's the most beautiful place you've ever seen. It's got Interstate 40, it's got sewer and water."
Future founding father? Swannanoa incorporation task force leader Dave Alexander says incorporation is necessary to give the potential town control over its own destiny. Photo by Jonathan Welch Sen. Jerry Tillman (R-Montgomery) seconded Nesbitt's motion, and the finance committee approved the bill. The whole process, including the time senators spent laughing about the town's name and Tiger's golf course, took less than three minutes.
Eighteen people showed up to address Asheville City Council about contaminated water in Buncombe County. The item wasn’t on the agenda because Asheville has no jurisdiction over something like that happening outside its boundaries.
Now, I am not a scientist. There is nothing scientific about me. I did, however, get a B.S. from Lyman Briggs College, the distinguished science school at Michigan State. It was one of the innovators in a course of study now known as Science & Technology Studies (STS). The curriculum was designed to train graduates to be more than geeks, but to be savvy about the interface of science and public policy. The lesson to be learned was it was insufficient to have a good idea, one had to overcome superstition and charismatic opposition if they wanted to see it come to fruition.
The reason I mention this is, from the onset, the CTS scare has been played out like some of the scenarios from the STS courses, replete with the post hoc ergo propter hoc death list. Certain samples of well water show ever-increasing and astoundingly high levels of trichloroethylene, even though the plant accused of contaminating the groundwater has been gone for years. Both Buncombe County and the EPA are struggling to reproduce appreciable levels of contaminants.
WILKESBORO, N.C. (October 28, 2009)—MerleFest 2010, presented by Lowe’s, is proud to announce that multi-talented Grammy® and Emmy® winning actor/comedian/musician Steve Martin will perform on the Watson Stage on Saturday, May 1. “I’ve heard great things about MerleFest for years,” said Martin. “As a musician, it’s an event I’m really looking forward to playing.”
Martin is currently drawing rave reviews as he tours in support of his Rounder Records release, The Crow: New Songs for the Five-String Banjo, which spent multiple weeks at the top of the Billboard Top Bluegrass Albums Chart. Touring with Martin are the Steep Canyon Rangers, who will perform with him at MerleFest. Together they have performed at the 20th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, The View, the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, Carnegie Hall, the Ryman Auditorium, and other venues in cities including Boston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington, Toronto, Chicago, Denver, Santa Fe and Troy, NY. The tour will wrap up on November 9 at the Royal Festival Hall in London.
Jackson County Clerk of Court Ann Melton agreed Wednesday (Oct. 28) to continue foreclosure proceedings between Balsam Mountain Preserve and its lender, TriLyn.
The lending company filed a foreclosure notice with Jackson County earlier this month. Based on the foreclosure filing, BMP is apparently in default on loans totaling $19.8 million. Property the lender is foreclosing on includes one 4,200-acre tract plus several smaller tracts, according to the document on file in the Jackson County Clerk of Court’s Office.
Sylva lawyer Jay Coward, who is representing the developer, introduced the motion to continue during a hearing with Melton. Because of a receivership hearing set for Friday, Oct. 30, he requested that the hearing be pushed back to Monday, Nov. 30.
“That hearing could alter our whole defense,” he said.
Asked his objections to the latest version of the health care reform bill that has passed the Senate Finance Committee and what he would like to see included in legislation, Burr commented:
"The debate in Washington up to this point has not been about health care reform, it's been about coverage expansion. If the Finance Bill had any reform in it, the savings from the reform would pay for the expansion, but it doesn't.
The objections are not with coverage expansion-I clearly do that in my bill (referenced below). The objections are with the fact that they are using new money to pay for the expansion, and that comes in the form of increased fees and taxes that will be passed on to health care beneficiaries."
Burr, a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pension, said he does not support a government-run health care option (public option). "The fact that you've got a government entity does not assure you competition. What assures you competition is allowing companies the flexibility to offer different types of products."
By all indications, the closing of Interstate 40 due to a massive rockslide will be more than just a minor headache for many.
Through traffic heading west to Tennessee will be directed to I-26 from Asheville, where cars would have to travel 130 miles to link back up with I-40 across the state line.
Though much of Haywood County will still remain accessible off I-40, it’s feasible that widespread news of the rockslide might turn off visitors to the area.
Most likely to suffer from the road closing are the restaurants, gas stations, motels and tourist-oriented businesses that rely heavily on traffic coming through I-40.
Pilot Travel Center, a truck stop in Waynesville near exit 24, was already feeling the impact of a desolate I-40 on Monday afternoon. A few trucks were scattered here and there, but the vast majority of parking spots sat empty.
Ashley Duckett, an employee at the Pilot convenience store, said business was “dead” on Sunday, the day the rockslide occurred.
“It’s usually booming,” said Linda Henry, another employee at the store, adding that business will definitely hurt without truckers stopping by to fuel up, have a meal, or take a shower.
The people who did walk into the store were only interested in one thing: directions.
“Every other person coming in here is asking how do I get to Tennessee? How do I get to Knoxville? How do I get to Gatlinburg?” said Henry.
BOONE—People interested in owning their own business can learn from the experts at the 8th Annual Carole Moore McLeod Entrepreneur Summit Nov. 6 at Appalachian State University.
Multiple concurrent sessions run at 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. in the Walker College of Business in Raley Hall. A keynote speech by Matthew Szulik, chairman of Red Hat and the 2008 Ernst and Young National Entrepreneur of the Year, will begin at 11 a.m. in Valborg Theatre located adjacent to Raley Hall in Chapel Wilson Hall.
The entrepreneur summit is named for Carole Moore McLeod in recognition of her gift that provides ongoing support of the program. She is a 1981 business graduate of the Walker College of Business. “There is nothing more exciting to experience the students creativity and feel their desire to start a new business,” she said.
The entrepreneur summit is free and open to the public, however seating is limited. Parking is available in the Rivers Street parking deck and shuttle service to and from Raley Hall will be provided. For a complete schedule and list of businesses participating in the event, and to register, visit www.entrepreneurship.appstate.edu. For more information, contact Julia Rowland with Appalachian’s Center for Entrepreneurship at 828-262-8325 or rowlandja@appstate.edu.
Joshua P. Allem is one of my favorite hosts on Blog Talk Radio (there are soooo many of them that are fun to listen to....
The show starts at 4pm EDT and runs for 2 hours. The same player will also play the podcast after the show is over, so bookmark this post and return later if you can't stay for the whole show!
More Josh Goodness
Josh has a blog, and you can visit his Blog Talk Radio page to listen to, or download past shows.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With more than 23 times the power output of the Hoover Dam, the Constellation Program's Ares I-X test rocket zooms off Launch Complex 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket produces 2.96 million pounds of thrust at liftoff and reaches a speed of 100 mph in eight seconds. Liftoff of the 6-minute flight test was at 11:30 a.m. EDT Oct. 28. This was the first launch from Kennedy's pads of a vehicle other than the space shuttle since the Apollo Program's Saturn rockets were retired. The parts used to make the Ares I-X booster flew on 30 different shuttle missions ranging from STS-29 in 1989 to STS-106 in 2000. The data returned from more than 700 sensors throughout the rocket will be used to refine the design of future launch vehicles and bring NASA one step closer to reaching its exploration goals. For information on the Ares I-X vehicle and flight test, visit http://www.nasa.gov/aresIX. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller
Here are the videos of the launch from SpaceVidCast:
The Launch. Go to 5 minutes, if you just want to see the launch itself.
Replays of the launch from various angles...most with no audio.
And here is a LaunchPad Video that walks you through what NASA expected to accomplish with this test...
Yesterday's attempt didn't go so well, so here goes again...
With the countdown under way, the launch team is targeting a 6 a.m. rollback of the rotating service structure. The launch window opens at 8 a.m. and extends until noon. At present, the most likely T-0 may come between 8:15 and 8:30 a.m.
Just as yesterday, the weather will be the question of the day. The forecast is for 60 percent "no-go" once again. Overnight, weather moved through the area producing rain and lightning. There were four strikes near the launch pad, and vehicle testing is running concurrently with the count to ensure there are no issues as a result. So far, all results are good. The closest strike was .44 miles away from the pad.
The Launch. Go to 5 minutes, if you just want to see the launch itself.
Replays of the launch from various angles...most with no audio.
The video feed is provided by SpaceVidCast, who are my favorite source for watching NASA-TV on the Internet, and they have an excellent show that they do live every Thursday night. Check them out!!!
Ares I-X is the first test flight in the Ares I development program. Ares I is a launch system forhuman spaceflights being developed by NASA, the space agency of the United States. The vehicle used for the Ares I-X suborbital test flight will be similar in shape, weight and size to the planned configuration of later Ares I vehicles, but will have largely dissimilar internal hardware. Ares I-X is scheduled for launch on October 27, 2009.
Ares I vehicles are intended to launch Orion crew exploration vehicles. Along with the Ares Vlaunch system and the Altair lunar lander, Ares I and Orion are part of NASA's Constellation Program, which is developing spacecraft for U.S. human spaceflight after the Space Shuttle fleet is retired.
Why does Jodie Evans merit such face time with the president even though she acts as an agent of influence for the anti-American governments of Iran, Cuba and Venezuela, as well as Middle Eastern terrorists? Jodie Evans helped rally the Los Angeles progressive community to Obama’s side by co-hosting the first Hollywood fundraiser for Obama in February 2007 along with her partner (and ex-husband) Max Palevsky and the Dreamworks trio of Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. Jodie Evans went on to be appointed a fund raiser for Obama. Over the life of the campaign, Jodie Evans became one of Obama’s top donors, giving the maximum $2300 to his respective primary and general election funds and tens of thousands of dollars more to the Obama Victory Fund, a joint Obama-Democratic National Committee fund. Jodie Evans issued several public endorsements of Obama during the campaign targeting the progressive community. Jodie Evans and Code Pink hosted a get out the vote training effort for Obama in October 2008. That Jodie Evans is a respected power-player in the Democratic party is no surprise. She worked for Gov. Jerry Brown and managed his 1992 presidential campaign. However, the mainstream media continually gives Jodie Evans a pass, as was noted in this LA Weekly article from 2003 that chastised the Los Angeles Times for ignoring Jodie Evans’ role as a state Democratic party operative in an article on efforts to stave off the recall of her longtime colleague, Gov. Gray Davis. What is surprising, or should be, is how upfront she is about her pro-terrorist politics and how accepting Obama and her fellow Democrats are of her. That someone with Jodie Evans’ background operates at the presidential level in American politics is extremely disturbing. Last year, right before Jodie Evans attended another high dollar event for Obama, she gave a radio interview in which she sympathized with Osama bin Laden about his reasons for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that murdered nearly 3000 Americans and foreign nationals.
In my opinion, these investigative efforts are better than the dead-end Obama Birth Certificate craze.
Here is my standard answer (and challenge) to the Obama Birthers:
Even *IF* you could prove that Obama was born outside the USA, there is nothing that would be done about it.
The Supreme Court is very unlikely to act upon it. There just simply aren't enough justices who are willing to cause a Constitutional Crisis.
There are also not enough votes in either the US House or Senate to even get an impeachment rolling.
Those are the stone cold facts.
If people want to investigate something, there are plenty of people in the House of Representatives and the US Senate to investigate. There are also plenty of groups like ACORN, SEIU, Unions, Media Matters, George Soros and hundreds of other people and organizations where your time would be better spent.
And, an even better project would be organizing voters and registering conservative voters at the precinct level. Too many people who call themselves conservatives have never once darkened the door of their local party headquarters to volunteer for canvassing and other party-building activities...nor have they helped raise funds.
That is the tragedy of why people like Obama can get elected.
"We can NOT hope to win a war by talking down our country and those who do its hardest work - the men and women of the military and the intellegence services - they are the true Keepers of the Flame."
- Vice President Richard B Cheney
The Keeper of the Flame Award was inaugurated in 1990 by the Center for Security Policy to bestow recognition on those individuals who devote their public careers to the propagation of democracy and the respect for individual rights throughout the world. The Award acknowledges both the past contributions of its recipients and to remind others who share their commitment to freedom and economic opportunity of the work yet to be done.
In 2009, the Center for Security Policy is proud to honor Vice President Richard Cheney with its annual Keeper of the Flame Award.
Vice President Richard B. Cheney has had a distinguished career as a businessman and public servant, serving four Presidents and as an elected official. Throughout his service, Mr. Cheney served with duty, honor, and unwavering leadership, gaining him the respect of the American people during trying military times.
Mr. Cheney was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, on January 30, 1941 and grew up in Casper, Wyoming. He earned his bachelor's and master's of arts degrees from the University of Wyoming. His career in public service began in 1969 when he joined the Nixon Administration, serving in a number of positions at the Cost of Living Council, at the Office of Economic Opportunity, and within the White House.
When Gerald Ford assumed the Presidency in August 1974, Mr. Cheney served on the transition team and later as Deputy Assistant to the President. In November 1975, he was named Assistant to the President and White House Chief of Staff, a position he held throughout the remainder of the Ford Administration.
After he returned to his home state of Wyoming in 1977, Mr. Cheney was elected to serve as the state's sole Congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was re-elected five times and elected by his colleagues to serve as Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee from 1981 to 1987. He was elected Chairman of the House Republican Conference in 1987 and elected House Minority Whip in 1988. During his tenure in the House, Mr. Cheney earned a reputation as a man of knowledge, character, and accessibility.
Mr. Cheney also served a crucial role when America needed him most. As Secretary of Defense from March 1989 to January 1993, Mr. Cheney directed two of the largest military campaigns in recent history - Operation Just Cause in Panama and Operation Desert Storm in the Middle East. He was responsible for shaping the future of the U.S. military in an age of profound and rapid change as the Cold War ended. For his leadership in the Gulf War, Secretary Cheney was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George Bush on July 3, 1991. He served as Vice President of the United States under President George W. Bush from 2001-2009.
Mr. Cheney married his high school sweetheart, Lynne Ann Vincent, in 1964, and they have grown daughters, Elizabeth and Mary, three granddaughters and three grandsons.
When Congressman John McHugh resigned as the Representative from NY-23 to become Secretary of the Army for the Obama Administration, a curious chain of events was set into motion that has led to an exposure of one of the things has been so wrong about the Republican Party for so long...
The Establishment, Eisenhower, or Country Club type of Republicans have always courted the conservative vote when it comes time to running for office, but ignore conservatives once in office.
John McCain and Lindsey Graham are perfect examples of this phenomena.
This race will be an early indicator as to whether or not the recent Tea Party Movement has developed enough of a following to make a dent in Congressional Districts that aren't already safe districts for one party or the other.
One of the pillars of my effort in communicating the danger that Progressives pose to America has been by showing you the degree to which their agenda matches the agenda by avowed Socialist and Communists, which are one and the same when it comes to their desire to destroy American Capitalism and replace it with a command and control economy.
There is a Socialist Conference going on in San Fransisco (no surprise there) next Saturday that can shed some light for us regarding the Socialist Agenda for America. Here is the schedule of speakers:
9:30 to 11:00am - Plenary: Capitalism as Organized Crime
Tamara Khoury, PSL activist, Students Fight Back!
Eugene Puryear, PSL 2008 Vice Presidential Candidate
Brian Becker, National Coordinator ANSWER Coalition, member - PSL National Committee
Discussion period
11:10am to 12:40pm - Workshop Session I
Workshop 1: Revolution in Latin America
Presenters:
Gloria La Riva, PSL 2008 Presidential Candidate, Coordinator-National Committee to Free the Cuban Five
Carlos Alvarez, PSL 2010 Candidate for Governor of California
Discussion of the anti-imperialist struggles in Latin America, Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution, the role of socialist Cuba and the role of revolutionaries in the U.S.
Workshop 2: Socialism: What it really is, Why we need it
Nathalie Hrizi, PSL 2008 Candidate for Congress
Peta Lindsay, Students Fight Back, Los Angeles
Discussion of the differences between capitalism and socialism, is socialism possible in the U.S., and why only socialism can solve the growing crisis in society.
12:40 to 1:30pm - Lunch
1:30 to 3:00pm - Workshop Session II
Workshop 1: Organizing against racism and bigotry
Cristina Gutierrez, Coordinator - Barrio Unido for Full and Unconditional Amnesty
Stewart Stout, Organizer - Equal Rights Initiative
Peta Lindsay, Students Fight Back
Discussion of the struggle against racist oppression, for LGBT equality and immigrant rights.
Workshop 2: The struggle against U.S. imperialism
Eugene Puryear, PSL National Committee
Sarah Carlson, ANSWER Coalition activist - San Francisco
Carlito Rovira, Puerto Rican community activist and PSL National Committee
Discussion of U.S. imperialist aims and the people’s struggle for liberation.
3:10 to 4:00pm - Closing Plenary: Capitalist Crisis and the Need for Revolutionary Change
Frank Lara, PSL San Francisco organizer
Brian Becker
Peta Lindsay
Discussion period
What kind of people are those speaking at this event? What have they said in public before? Here is your chance to hear it and read it for yourself. And while you do so, remind yourself at how very close the talking points these people use are to what you hear out of your typical Progressive Democrat. Most of the time, all that separates these Socialists/Communists from Progressives is what they chose to call themselves. Also, consider how closely their talking points about our battle against radical Islam is to what you hear out of the typical Ron Paul Supporter...food for thought, eh?
First, the speakers who are listed as speaking in a plenary entitled: Capitalism as Organized Crime.
Speaker: Tamara Khoury
An article of hers defending Palestinian Terrorist Groups:
Who are the al-Aqsa Martyr Brigades?
All modern states maintain armed bodies for the purpose of both domestic policing and national security, but the Palestinians have long been denied the right to formal statehood. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent acceptance of a Palestinian “state” came with the important condition that it be demilitarized (and thus not a “state” at all).
The Palestinian political-military organizations play a dual role: fighting the Israeli occupation as a basic tenet of self-determination and self-defense and functioning as the state apparatus long denied to the Palestinian people. Even now that Fatah’s current leader and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has steered the party into an alliance with Israel and the United States, the al-Aqsa brigades still exist as a resistance force.
Eugene Puryear was the 2008 vice-presidential candidate of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, despite being 22 years old and ineligible for the office. He was born February 28, 1986.
Puryear is an active anti-war and social justice organizer in Washington, D.C. He is a volunteer organizer in the anti-war coalition ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism).
Puryear is an organizer in the movement to Free the Jena 6. Puryear spoke at the 1,500-strong rally for the Jena 6 at Howard University, the first major national protest to bring attention to the case.
Born in Charlottesville, Va., Puryear has been an organizer in the anti-war movement since high school, when he led a walkout of over 800 students. He has chaired and participated in numerous rallies and marches—including the Sept. 24, 2005, anti-war march of 350,000 people, the 2005 counter-inaugural protest, and the Sept. 15, 2007, mass die-in and anti-war protest at the White House.
Puryear has been profiled by the Washington Post, and interviewed by outlets such as WPFW, WOL-AM, WBAI, the Final Call newspaper, Blackamericaweb.com, WTOP and the Associated Press. He is a regular contributor to Socialism and Liberation magazine and Liberation, the newspaper of the Party for Socialism and Liberation. He is a member of the National Committee of the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
Here is an article written by Puryear after the election of Barack Obama as our 44th President:
While the capitalists, the mass media and many in the progressive movement hope for a lengthy honeymoon period for President-elect Obama, the deteriorating economic situation on the ground floor of society is likely to lead to an increase in independent political organizing in communities across America, especially in the most oppressed communities, where the pain is being felt the most.
What does Obama have in store
for the workers who turned to him
hoping for change?
Since the Nov. 4 election of Barack Obama, the question has been raised repeatedly: "How will he govern?" With right-wing elements raising the bogeyman of an "ultra-liberal" agenda, Obama has responded with appointments and rumored appointments that point more towards continuity than change.
The president-elect’s first appointment was Rahm Emmanuel, a former Clinton White House staffer. Emmanuel has been a central strategist of the pro-war and pro-capitalist policies pursued by Democrats in the post-2006 election Congress.
In the face of the spiraling economic crisis, the president-elect faces a unique contradiction. On the one hand, he has been entrusted by the most powerful people in the country with the duty of managing the capitalist state. On the other hand, Obama rose in the political establishment in part by promising the people that he would bring about change. In the past few months, "change" has come to mean—in the minds of workers and many others in the country—relief from the economic crisis.
At the same time the corporations intensify their attacks on working people to hold onto and maximize their profits during the recession, working people will be suffering from unemployment, lower wages, attacks on benefits, lack of health care, education cuts and a broad assault meant to force workers to bear the brunt of the crisis. The ruling class will expect Obama, as president, to lead this assault and at the same time defuse mass resistance to it.
The video below is from a show called Conversations" with Harold Hudson Channer that is almost an hour long, and is very informative about his history and positions...
Brian Becker is a Marxist to the core, and here are just a few tidbits of his evil ideology of anti-Capitalism and anti-Americanism...
Becker is a member of the Secretariat of the WWP of the United States, which is a staunch supporter of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il. As Chairman of the "U.S. Troops out of Korea Committee," Becker has accused the United States of conducting a campaign of genocide against North Korea.
This article below is in opposition to the liberation of Communist East Europe...
Much more is at stake than the fate of one leader, or even of the Serbian Socialist Party and the Party of the United Left.
The consequences of capitalist counter-revolution are unambiguous. In Russia between 1989 and 1996, the report says, wages fell 48 percent. Income derived from rent, meaning landlords' profits, jumped to 23 percent.
During the days of the Soviet Union, rent was restricted to no more than 5 percent of a worker's wage. The money went into social funds administered by the state. There was no such thing as landlords.
The report goes on: “There are [other] serious human deprivations. Between 1989 and 1996 male life expectancy [in Russia] declined by more than four years, to 60.”
Throughout Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union “the transition from centrally planned to market economies was accompanied by large changes in the distribution of national wealth and income. Data on income inequality indicate that these changes were the fastest ever recorded.”
Next, the speakers who are listed as speaking in a workshop entitled: Revolution in Latin America. Speaker: Gloria La Riva Here is a video of her speaking at an anti-American war protest sponsored by the ANSWER Coalition...
Gloria La Riva's political positions are delineated in detail on the On The Issues webpage.
She supports:
Rational social & economic planning, rather than "market"
Pay reparations, with interest, for slavery.
Capitalist system creates war, poverty and racism
Free trade enriches capitalists and displaces humans
Create a universal healthcare system
Full rights and equality for all undocumented immigrants
Another Communist who ran for Mayor of Los Angeles and for Governor of California, and is on record as supporting a minimum wage of $15 an hour, full rights for all illegal immigrants, free abortion on demand and other issues near and dear to the heart of every progressive.
Listen to him speak at a panel during the recent election below...
I'll leave you with this socialist/progressive laundry list from his recent campaign for Governor of California:
FIGHTING CALIFORNIA'S CORPORATE BOSSES
Full employment—no layoffs. Create good, high paying jobs for all. Job training for youth & unemployed.
No cutbacks for social services. No layoffs for city workers.
Housing is a right for all—Immediate moratorium on all foreclosures & evictions. Stop gentrification & build affordable housing now.
Free, high quality education from pre-school through college for everyone.
Free, quality healthcare for all California residents.
Raise California's minimum wage to $15/hour.
Stop union-busting, expand the right to organize & card-check recognition.
Stop environmental destruction—Make the polluters pay.
Steep taxes on all big banks, corporations and developers.
EQUAL RIGHTS FOR ALL: NO TO RACISM & BIGOTRY
Stop racist police brutality and mass incarceration.
Community control over the police.
Full rights for all immigrants.
Repeal all anti-gang injunctions that criminalize young people of color.
Defend women’s reproductive rights. Free abortion on demand for all.
Invalidate Prop. 8. Legalize same-sex marriage & LGBT equality now.
Full equality for disabled people.
Lower the voting age to 16-year-olds.
SOCIALISM—NOT EXPLOITATION
End the rule of billionaires & militarists—fight for workers democracy.
We need an economy based on people’s needs, not making the rich richer.
Here is the second workshop, entitled, "What Socialism Really is, and Why we need it"
Speaker: Christina Gutierrez
As you can see from the video above, those who support amnesty for illegal aliens are often in support of the terrorist groups fighting against Israel. She ends her speech above by calling for the end of Israel, and the establishment of one state, Palestine.
I have found no writings by her posted on the Internet, nor even a website that has been established by her website. The activities I have found listed for the group almost always coincide with events where the ANSWER Coalition and the Party for Socialism and Liberation are invloved, so I surmise that her group is just another front for the PSL.
Speaker Stewart Stout
I can find no videos of him speaking, but his facebook page lists him as a fan of Fidel Castro and Frances Villar, both socialists. He is active in the homosexual rights community.
Speaker: Peta Lindsay
Below is a video of the Howard University student at an anti-Israel rally in 2006...
I can find no writings by her on the Internet, beyond her facebook page, which lists the usual socialists as heroes and a support for Palestine.
The next workshop is entitled: "The struggle against U.S. imperialism" and I can imagine this is one workshop that her cousins in the struggle against the USA, the supporters of Ron paul, would feel comfortable attending.
Speaker: Sarah Carlson
I could find no videos of her speaking, just few anti-America and anti-Israel articles written in various newspapers. Here is a typical snippet of one...
In June, the Obama Administration expressed its lukewarm sentiment for the Palestinian struggle when Obama himself addressed America’s relationship with Muslim communities around the world in a carefully crafted speech in Cairo, Egypt. After addressing the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Obama raised the “second major source of tension”—Israel/Palestine.
Boiling the conflict down to two bickering sides, he appealed to the Palestinians to “abandon violence” and described the December/January U.S.-funded massacre of nearly 1,500 people in Gaza as simply “the humanitarian crisis.” He added, “It is a sign of neither courage nor power to shoot rockets at sleeping children, or to blow up old women on a bus.”
Israeli attacks on UN schools, hospitals and homes, as well as Israel's use of illegal weapons including white phosphorus on civilians went unmentioned. Instead, Obama delivered a slim ray of hope through his objections to some settlements in the West Bank: “The United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements. This construction violates previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. It is time for these settlements to stop.”
For the many people who have engaged in the struggle for Puerto Rico’s independence, July 25 has a special significance. On that date in 1898, U.S. troops invaded Puerto Rico, beginning a period of U.S. colonial domination on the island that continues to this day.
The United States invaded Puerto Rico, along with the Philippines, Guam and Cuba, in the setting of the Spanish-American War. That war was the opening of what would be the menacing role and predatory nature of the U.S. capitalist class in the Caribbean, Latin America and the entire world.
The seizure of Puerto Rico, Cuba, Guam and the Philippines by the United States signaled the quest of the U.S. capitalist class to become a world power. European powers had pursued a policy of colonial acquisitions since the end of the 15th century.
But only in the late 19th century had the mature and developed capitalist powers virtually colonized the entire planet. The projection of U.S. power outside of the North American mainland signified a rush not to be left behind in this global division of markets.
Imperialism was transforming from a policy into a global system. No capitalist power could stand on the sidelines. Eventually this scramble and competition for colonies led to the first “world war” in human history, from 1914 to 1918, involving all the major capitalist powers.
V.I. Lenin noted this trend in the very first sentence of his classic 1916 work “Imperialism the Highest Stage of Capitalism.” “During the last 15 to 20 years, especially since the Spanish-American War (1898) and the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), the economic and also the political literature of the two hemispheres has more and more adopted the term ‘imperialism’ to describe the present era.”
Carlito seems to specialize in race-based agitation for socialism and anti-Americanism.
Speaker: Frank Lara
This guy is another one who hasn't an extant video on You Tube and very little published on the Internet.
Here is an article by him regarding the drought in Mexico and his opposition to a free market solution...
The government has cut water services by 30 percent and imposed large fines for hosing down sidewalks and watering lawns during daytime hours.
The most needy and impoverished citizens are the most heavily impacted by the water emergency. Upper-class areas have much more access to water than those in poorer "barrios." For example, the wealthy who live in the western hills of Chapultepec and Lomas in Mexico City receive 1,000 liters per day while working-class neighborhoods, such as Iztapalapa to the east, receive only 200.
Ruling-class politicians have proposed false "solutions" to the water crisis that generally focus on privatization and reducing subsidies. Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard, representing these voices, is pushing for privatization of water services in Mexico City. Such action has already been taken in other Mexico cities like Cancun, Saltillo and Aguascalientes, where the switch has led to a steep rise in the cost of water services. Other politicians have proposed the elimination of water subsidies, raising water prices for all but disproportionately affecting the poor and working-class neighborhoods. They falsely claim that raising prices would encourage water conservation and punish those who waste it.
Privatization and increased fees will only increase the plight of impoverished workers and farmers in Mexico while benefiting the capitalist owners.
I hope that it has become evident to you that Socialists, Progressives and Communists are all working for the same thing, a fundamental reorganization of American Society and an end to Capitalism. Progressives want the same thing as the Socialists and the Communists, but have couched their desires in language and an approach that they hope will get them more votes as they promise us "Hope and Change".
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With more than 23 times the power output of the Hoover Dam, the Constellation Program's Ares I-X test rocket zooms off Launch Complex 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket produces 2.96 million pounds of thrust at liftoff and reaches a speed of 100 mph in eight seconds. Liftoff of the 6-minute flight test was at 11:30 a.m. EDT Oct. 28. This was the first launch from Kennedy's pads of a vehicle other than the space shuttle since the Apollo Program's Saturn rockets were retired. The parts used to make the Ares I-X booster flew on 30 different shuttle missions ranging from STS-29 in 1989 to STS-106 in 2000. The data returned from more than 700 sensors throughout the rocket will be used to refine the design of future launch vehicles and bring NASA one step closer to reaching its exploration goals. For information on the Ares I-X vehicle and flight test, visit http://www.nasa.gov/aresIX. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller
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