FORT BLISS — As soldiers stream home from Iraq and Afghanistan, the biggest charity inside the U.S. military has been stockpiling tens of millions of dollars meant to help returning fighters get back on their feet, an Associated Press investigation found.
From 2003 to 2007 — while military families dealt with long deployments and more home foreclosures — Army Emergency Relief grew into a $345 million behemoth. During those years, the charity put $117 million into its reserves while spending only $64 million on direct aid, according to an AP analysis of its tax records.
Tax exempt and legally separate from the military, Army Emergency Relief projects a facade of independence but actually operates under close Army control. The AP investigation found that the massive nonprofit organization — funded predominantly by troops — allows superiors to squeeze soldiers for contributions; forces struggling soldiers to repay loans, sometimes delaying transfers and promotions; and has violated its own rules by rewarding donors with such things as free passes from physical training.
How embarrassing is it to be the second-to-the-bottom country in public acceptance of evolution?
How embarrassing is it that Massachusetts is moving towards segregating math classes? ...click here.
Or how about this?
It's not just North Dakota - other states are looking to grant a fetus "full personhood" status.
But there are folks with good common sense out there...they just don't seem to be in the legislature though.As part of a renewed pro-life strategy to challenge Roe v. Wade, lawmakers in seven states are working toward legislation to grant constitutional rights to human embryos.
Five states, including Maryland, North Dakota, Montana, South Carolina and Alabama, have recently introduced "personhood" bills. The bills affirm the right to life for pre-borns from the moment of conception. For some states, the bill also declares the word "persons" as applying to all human life, irrespective to biological development. - the christian post
Certainly IUD's, which prevent implantation rather than fertilization, would be illegal, as would some birth control pills. And given the lack of trust in the professional ethics of board-certified physicians evidenced in the original version of the bill, we can bet there will be legislation down the road to absolutely ensure that a terminated ectopic pregnancy – or a spontaneous abortion or a miscarriage – wasn't a plain old abortion in disguise. (doctors can be so tricky.)
In fact, the people of North Dakota have no real idea what the legislation might mean for our people and our state, other than we can be pretty sure it will take millions of taxpayer dollars to defend the bill. And there are obvious things that would be illegal: stem cell research; termination of the pregnancy of a 14-year-old victim of incest; termination of the pregnancy of a 19-year-old college student given Rohypnol and gang-raped.
What we don't know is what it will mean for the medical community and women with problem pregnancies or fertility problems. For instance, what will happen in iffy situations, such as when physicians know that pregnancy will seriously exacerbate diabetes or kidney disease in a woman but won't necessarily kill her? How can they give the advice they think is most ethical if they expect to be hauled into court to defend it?
And what about fertility treatments? If the unused normal fertilized eggs from IVF are frozen, what happens to the abnormal fertilized eggs also created by the procedures? For that matter, if the parents don't want the leftover frozen embryos, do they become wards of the state?- in forum
Let's not sweep this issue under the rug like so many other important issues. This is a human rights issue. Yes, it may come a surprise to some out there that women are human too and women must never be shuttled back into the category of being someone's property...neither should their bodies.
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Republican Senator Jim Bunning on his support of conservative judges:
" ...that's going to be in place very shortly because Ruth Bader Ginsburg…has cancer. Bad cancer. The kind you don't get better from. Even though she was operated on, usually nine months is the longest that anybody would live after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer."
Here's his non-apology for predicting Justice Ginsburg's death:
"I apologize if my comments offended Justice Ginsburg," said Bunning. "That certainly was not my intent. It is great to see her back at the Supreme Court today and I hope she recovers quickly. My thoughts and prayers are with her and her family."
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Religious people are the best people
San Diego Catholics are protesting a decision by San Diego Bishop Robert Brom to ask Pastor Richard Perozich to tone it down after he ran a rabid article entitled "100 Days or End of Days?" in the parish bulletin of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Escondido. Fr. Perozich appears to believe that Obama will be unleashing such things as "homogenital sex."
Fr. Perozich believes that with Obama "evil has acceded to power."
Supporters like Allyson Smith wote:
In his essay, Father Perozich, an exemplary shepherd, courageously and rightfully warned his flock of our nation's dire fate under the pro-abortion, pro-homosexual, pro-euthanasia, pro-socialist, pro-death administration of Barack Obama. Father Perozich truthfully wrote, 'Abominations will be forced on us by the new government, such as which our founders never had intended, and certainly opposed to the Christian life: abortion on demand, homogenital sex, lust in all its forms, euthanasia, oppression of opportunity and entrepreneurs, silencing of faith and free speech among many.' Furthermore, in his essay, Father Perozich 'named names' of powerful United States so-called 'Catholic' senators Edward Kennedy and Nancy Pelosi (who was verbally 'spanked' by Pope Benedict today for her pro-abortion views). God bless and thank him for that! Father Perozich is absolutely correct in his assessment of our evil new government. We need many more courageous priests like him who do not care about human respect but instead preach the truth 'in season and out.'"
Fr. Perozich appears to support the campaign to get the Bishop to back down.
Fr. Perozich has previously written columns that caused controversy, such as this 2007 essay on "The Wages of Sin is Death." It is another diatribe against homosexuality and tied directly to the payment of damages to victims of sexual abuse:
What bothers me is my enemy's glee over its continuing victories over me in injustice. The injustices include an outrageous $1.6 million settlement to victims of sexual abuse. They also include the San Diego City Council's participation in an organized effort by practicing homosexuals to use Council influence to destroy marriage and give rights to sexual perversion. In part it is also a movement to silence the Catholic Church in its mission of mercy and truth by the promotion in Congress of a bill which would penalize as a hate crime criticism of sexuality outside the marriage of a man and a woman, and force us to hire sexually immature people with gender identity disorders as if they were normal.
It is an interesting (and recurring conflict) of church authority over free speech. The use of the church bulletin gives the Bishop particular authority to demand a change in tone and message. However, the Church reserves the right to punish priests for any public expression that undermines the Church's role or purpose. It is certainly not a matter of first amendment rights given the private character of the controversy and the absence of government involvement. Priests take a vow of obedience to the Church and must comply with such commands.
Story here.
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Marie Houk, a pregnant mother, was found dead by her four-year-old daughter. The killer appears to be the son of her boyfriend who will reportedly face adult murder charges — despite the fact that Jordon Brown is 11 years old. He reportedly went to school after killing Houk in a farmhouse in western Pennsylvania.
Yeah, that kid looks like someone that I'd buy a .20-gauge "youth model" shotgun for.
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Divisiveness in the name of unity!
Judging from this Politico interview, that's the philosophy behind South Carolina governor Mark Sanford's plan to reject some of the stimulus money:
Q: Gov. Schwarzenegger said that if you and other Republican governors turn down some of the stimulus money he'd be happy to take it. What's your response to that?
A: I mean, I think it misses the larger point, which is if you look at the back of a penny it says E Pluribus Unum. From many, one. And the belief of the founding fathers was that not only were we to be, you know, representatives or governors or senators from our respective corner of the country, but that we also look out for the big picture. I mean, is the course we're on sustainable? Is it not? And by anybody's measure the course we're on is not sustainable.
In other words, if the duly elected members of Congress pass a law, and the duly elected president of the United States signs it, then one governor's defiance of it at the state level is beneficial ... for the sake of national unity.
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
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That's the former leader of the free world once again pretending that he's got working class cred, going to Elliot's Hardware Store in Dallas, Texas, where he had been offered a job as a greeter. To demonstrate his vast knowledge of hardware, Bush bought flashlights, batteries, and WD-40.
By the way, apparently Bush's neighbors will need anal probes to enter their street:
The Secret Service will be running the entrance to the neighborhood. Bend over, rich Dallas socialites. You're about to be treated like America.
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So yesterday was the day that Karl Rove was supposed to appear before the House Judiciary committee to testify about the US Attorney firings. And of course, Rove didn't show.
That wasn't a surprise. After getting the deadline pushed back, Rove had already publicly indicated he didn't plan on being there, citing President Bush's claim of executive privilege. Rove's lawyer had then asked for a second postponement, a request that Judiciary chair John Conyers had declined to grant.
It's a bit unclear where things go now. The next key date is March 4th -- the new deadline for the Obama administration to weigh in on the Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten case, in which President Bush also asserted executive privilege. The new administration's stance on that case could well also determine how a judge would rule on the Rove case, should the issue go to court.
And given Rove's continuing failure to cooperate, it looks like that's where we're heading.
Thanks, Democrats. Your courage and respect for the rule of law is incedible.
"This is not a matter involving civil damages. It is a matter of high crimes, abuse of power, the subversion of our country's constitution and of our individual rights and liberties. There should be no deal cut with Karl Rove
that would provide him with any immunity whatsoever. There is too much at stake. U.S. Attorneys were fired because they wouldn't take on political cases and the DOJ was used as a political weapon to destroy people
Karl Rove wanted out of the way. For Rove not to be held accountable means others in the future will feel more free to abuse power." - Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, who was arrested and imprisoned for being a Democrat Link
"The US Attorneys, including the replacements Bush/Rove installed to be good Bushies, are being asked to stay on. I'm OK with Fitzgerald for a lot of reasons. However, this includes such notables as Mary Beth
Buchanan and Alice Martin. Not only are they not being investigated for possible prosecution (Martin's role in the the Siegelman case is one of the things Conyers wants to question Rove about, for example) but they
are not even being fired. The opportunity to pick up the remains of Carol Lamm's prosecutions are being passed by; Jerry Lewis gets a pass. Politically motivated investigations and prosecutions of Democrats are ok,
it seems. This isn't post partisan, it's pretending that Republican partisanship doesn't matter. That's delusional." - Salmo Link
This is one of those questions I wish the press would ask Obama about on live TV. Since it's standard for the new president to replace the attorneys, why isn't Obama replacing the crooked-for-sure, loyal-to-Bush attorneys from Falwell's university?
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Eric Cantor sudenly all smiles when face to face with President Obama
Remember Eric Cantor? This Eric Cantor? And this one? And ...This one, who opposed the housing bill before it was even released? Oh, and let's not forget this Eric Cantor, the one who alienated Aerosmith.
Well look at him now: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7DTTs1KsnU&eurl=http://thepoliticalcarnival.blogspot.com/
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In addition to the $150 billion already handed over to AIG - $60 billion more in write-downs will be announced.
Oh, and GM and Chrysler, who have already received 17 billion and have moved plants to other countries and shut ones down in the US are back at the trough asking for another $22 billion.
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Maru on Sarah Palin's latest whine fest about the media being unfair to her:
Howard "Screamin'" Dean, Al "I invented the internet" Gore, serial rapist Bill Xlintoon and his murdering lesbian wife Hitlary could not be reached for comment. Socialist commie B. HUSSEIN Osama and his Muslim baby-mama were too busy terrist fistjabbing to make a statement.
The defense rests.
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"How long can this go on?" Al Franken, wondering when Norm Coleman will allow Minnesotans to get the senator they voted for Link
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It's interesting to see Republicans running ads against the recovery act saying that if we spent a million dollars a day since Jesus was born that it would be less spending than what Obama is spending. The same argument would apply to the Iraq war or the tax cuts for the rich. In fact it would be closer to 10 million a day to pay for the combined deficits under Republican presidents. Republicans apparently think Christians are suckers and that if you use "Jesus" then people will accept it without thinking it through.
But what offends me more is that they used the name of Jesus to take a cheap and deceptive political shot. Even as an Atheist I find it offensive that if you really believe in Jesus that you would defile him by using his name as part of a deception. It sends a message to Atheists like myself that believers don't really believe in Jesus, And that if you don't really believe in Jesus then why should I?
Marc Perkel
San Bruno, CA.
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What is 17.6% of the entire US economy? http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2009/2/24/82819/7071
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Remember who brought you the "self-reporting" food manufacturers! Go, GOP!
Giant Food and Stop & Shop have pulled 20 oz. bags of Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns, Simply Potatoes Homestyle Slices and Simply Potatoes Red Potato Wedges.
The products may be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria that can cause flu-like symptoms, such as high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea. The bacteria can be very damaging for pregnant women or those with weakened immune systems.
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"Publicly funded family planning prevents nearly 2 million unintended pregnancies and more than 800,000 abortions in the United States each year," according to a new report by the Guttmacher Institute. The report also found that every dollar spent on family planning "saves taxpayers $4 in costs associated with unintended births to mothers eligible for Medicaid-funded natal care."
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George of the Bungle's lieberry is not generating any buzz on the Google
Donny Sullivan, editor-in-chief of Search Engine World, said the site -- just like the former president himself -- is "below average" and is probably failing in efforts to raise money because of its low ranking, low subject matter, and low interest in multiple well-thumbed and stained copies of "My Pet Goat."
The lieberry's mission statement, is in part:
[To advance] the ideals of freedom, opportunity, responsibility and compassion through study of the Bush presidency and ongoing research, discussion and scholarship. The Bush Presidential Center uniquely integrates the records of a Presidential Library and Museum, the intellectual capital of a policy institute and the resources of an independent foundation.
To which someone commented:
In other words, it will be a monument dedicated to WHAT NOT TO DO!
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4,250 soldiers killed in Iraq; 656 in Afghanistan.
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During the fiscal responsibility summit yesterday, Walnuts asked President Obama about defense procurements and, more specifically, the expensive fleet of presidential helicopters that were ordered during the Bush years but will be assigned during the current presidency.
"Your helicopter is now going to cost as much as Air Force One. I don't think that there's anymore graphic demonstration of how good ideas have cost taxpayers enormous amount of money."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/23/mccain-grills-obama-on-ma_n_169267.html
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Rare cheetah caught on film: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/4786794/Rare-cheetah-caught-on-camera-trap-in-Sahara.html
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