And so it begins

As this article points out, there is more to the Federal Reserve's recent announcement that they are going to stop reporting M3 data than meets the eye. What is M3 data? (for those who can't be bothered to read the link) M3 reports the total US dollars in circulation.

Why would the FedRes do that and who cares? Anyone remember their history lessons in school concerning the Great Depression? Remember your teachers telling you how people in Germany used to paper their walls with money because paper money was worthless? Did your Grandmother (like mine) or great-grandmother ever tell you how important gold was back then? The reason was because in order to fight inflation, the governments of the world printed off lots of money. With so much paper currency in the world, the value of money became negligible and only gold had any real value.

So listen up, because when the FedRes stops reporting on the amount of paper currency floating about there's a Really Good Reason Why.


That reason is because they don't want to let on that they are putting more and more currency into the market. The Feds have pumped up the money supply by 8% in the last year. They do this to fight inflation. But anyone with a knowledge of economic history knows where this road leads to. Depression. That is why savvy investors are liquidating and buying gold. Gold is the one hedge against a massive depression like we had in the 30's. So what has this done to the price of gold?

They've soared.

Gold is going through the roof. And now, with the price of gasoline going through the roof, inflation is about to explode. Making all those paper dollars worthless. Which in turn, drives up the price of gold even further.

And so it begins again. Welcome to economic hell. Hope you didn't have a future planned.

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H.R. 550: The poison pill that will kill Democracy

H.R. 550 is the bill put forth by Rep. Rush Holt that mandates a paper trail on our voting machines. Now, being as against Diebold and their ilk as I am, you're probably wondering about right now, how the fuck could such a good idea as making a paper trail for our electronic voting machines be the poison pill that will finally kill what little remains of our democracy?

Because this bill is flawed. Dangerously flawed.



The bill requires a Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). That's good. We need that.

It sets a minimum audit requirement. 2%. That's not so good. We need 100% audit requirement. Currently, we have 0% requirement.

Requires the source code be made public. Well of course it should. WE pay for it. Plus it is critical to OUR freedom. Fuck Diebold and any other company that wants to keep their source code secret.

It requires the Election Comittee to open up the bidding process to the public. This is good too.

So with so much good, how can this be THAT BAD? Let's go back to how this all got started. It began with a cheap labor conservative plan called the "Help America Vote Act" (HAVA). Typical doublespeak name from the CLC bastards right? It was written up in Bob Ney's office. This little Act created the Electronic Assistance Commission (EAC) and started all the paperless electronic voting machines. The lobbying firm that made this all possible representing the computerized voting machine makers such as Diebold was none other than Greenberg Traurig. While you might not have heard of them before, perhaps you've heard of their employee? Jack Abramoff.

Yeah, THOSE guys wanted the EAC created by HAVA and THOSE guys made it possible for Diebold to put us in this mess in the first place.

And H.R. 550 seeks to make the EAC a permanent entity with broadened powers. The bill gives the EAC "blanket authority" to conduct recounts in any state of their choosing and, if the state give permission, to conduct state and local recounts!!!

Do you think for one instant, for one fraction of an instant, that someone like Christine Gregoire would have won her election had the EAC been in charge of the recount? Do you think any state the Republicans control won't instantly INSIST upon a recount by the EAC INSTEAD of a local, state run, INDEPENDENT recount?

Then think about this: The EAC is an Executive commission. That's right. As in, it's members are all chosen by the President of the United States.

Now, if you'll recall, we have this little thing called the Constitution of the United States. It's seen better days, to be sure. But it still carries weight with some of us and it expressly grants the states the right to manage their own election systems. You see, the founding fathers didn't want a dictator to control our elections.

But that is PRECISELY what H.R. 550 will do. Give our election process over to the President of the United States. And when that happens, it's Officially Over. No more America. Kiss it goodbye.

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Hilton Hotels should be ASHAMED

Chances are, if you've ever eaten at Fran O'Briens Stadium Steak House on a Friday night in the last two and a half years you're a wounded soldier or you know and love someone who is. That's because that's how long the O'Briens, bless them, have been giving out FREE meals to wounded soldiers every Friday night. They intend to keep doing so until the last wounded soldier is released from Bethesda and Walter Reed.

The therapuetic value of these Friday nights for the soldiers is immesurable. Every staff member has gotten special training to deal with the needs of these returning heroes. If a man has lost his jaw, the cook can prepare a special puree so the steak tastes great and the soldier enjoys it. As Margaret, the banquet director, explains, "I've been working here for a long time. We're all like family here. When someone missing their lower jaw finally gets to enjoy a steak, we all cry,"

Fran's is located at the bottom of the Hilton Hotel in Washington D.C. But that's about to change because the Hilton is kicking them out on the street. Not because of giving away free food. Not because they don't pay their bills. No, the Hilton's cruel, heartless action is being done because the hotel chain refuses to abide by the Americans with Disabilities Act.


You see, the Hilton is more concerned about their liability with so many disabled people on their premises than they are about supporting our troops. Supporting our troops is just a catchphrase to rally the flag around the cause, don't you see, and silence all dissent. It doesn't really MEAN that the rich, elite have to actually, you know, SUPPORT our troops. THEY have to worry about more important matters, like making obscene profits.

And damn it all if one of those pesky liberal Big Government Regulations doesn't just stand in their way of doing their patriotic duty to make obscene profits. The Americans with Disabilities Act. You see, THIS is the deal:

The escalator that leads down into Fran O'Briens has been broken since 1998. The O'Briens have been fighting for six years to get that fixed. Hilton promised for years to do so but finally just boarded it up. At that point, the O'Briens asked if a lift could be put in to assist those disabled veterans in wheel chairs. That's when they got the eviction notice.

So how DOES a disabled vet get to eat at the steakhouse now? As 8ackgr0und N015e tells us:

1) You have to go to the lobby of the Capitol Hilton.
2) Then you have to go to the security desk.
3) Then you have to be escorted by the security guard on duty to a coat room.
4) The security guard punches in a code on the key pad and escorts you through the coat room.
5) Then he takes you to "the back of the house," as they call the service area in hotels.
6) Then they escort you to the lift and take you down to the basement.
7) When you get to the bottom, someone from the restaurant has to meet you and then escort you to the restaurant at the other end of the building.

Now you can eat.

A) When you finish your meal, someone from the restaurant has to contact the security desk.
B) Then they have to escort you to the elevator.
C) Then they have to wait until someone from security arrives.
D) Then the person from the security desk escorts you back up to the main floor.
E) Then they take you back through the coat room, again keying in the security codes.

Now you can leave.

A simple question: What if there's a fire?

This clearly is not "equal access" as demanded by the Americans with Disabilities Act. But rather than do the RIGHT thing, rather than do what is required by LAW, Hilton is going to evict the O'Briens, turn their backs on our troops and SAVE A BUCK.

The Hilton management should be ASHAMED.

Friends who DO support our troops would like you to help. This is their plea:

Marty and Hal need our help. For over six months they have been asking the Hilton Management for the terms for renewal of their lease. For over 5 months they were told not to worry they would have the renewal lease in a few weeks. About a month ago the Hilton folks stopped responding to their emails and voice messages for a status report and last week Hal and Marty received a one page eviction notice. No explanation was given. We suspect that at least part of the reason is the Friday night dinner Hal and Marty have been hosting for the last two and a half years. It may be that the Hilton folks are concerned about the increased liability of having so many severely injured and disabled soldiers in their basement each Friday (several have taken falls on the steep stairs at the entrance to Fran's (but no law suits or problems have ensued). It may be that there is very limited and problematic wheelchair access to the restaurant (although no ADA complaints have been filed). The truth
is that we don't know for sure but what we do know is that this is unfair. Unless we can change the minds of the folks at the Hilton Hotel Fran's will be out of business on May 1st and we will not have any place to hold our Friday night dinner for the injured soldiers and marines of Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval Hospitals. If you are so inclined I would like to ask you to call and/or email the following two officials at the Hilton and voice your support for Hal and Marty and express your concern for the reasoning behind this seemingly arbitrary decision.

Please call them and feel free to share this with anyone else who might be willing to call.

Here are the people to call:

*Dan Boyle (212) 838-1558

daniel_a_boyle@hilton.com

Brian Kellaher (202) 393-1000*
-------------------------------

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Fucking Aye!

Sometimes there's just nothing else you can add to what's been said except to say "Fucking Aye!" This post by Kimberley is one of those times.

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Who are the Terrorists we are supposed to be killing?

War is about killing the enemy. As Patton pointed out, a soldier in war is not supposed to die for his country, he's supposed to make the other poor bastard die for HIS. In the so-called War On Terror, therefore, it is our patriotic duty to kill or apprehend the terrorists that threaten our country. The problem is, the terrorists aren't who most people think they are.

Angel of Mercy eloquently points out here and here, that there isn't really a war on terror against the muslims and there never was. Just the other day We got that hard evidence here to back that up.

But there IS a War on Terror going on right now. It's just that the terrorists aren't who most people think they are and we aren't fighting the right people if we want to stop terrorism, as you'll see on the flip side.



As AOM points out, the Sham War On Terror began with Ronald Reagan in the 80's.

The War on Terror™, Chomsky notes, is not a spanking new, turn-of-the-milleniumm invention, cooked up in secret by Beelzebub Cheney and his band of subservient demons. No, it was first declared at the very outset of the ruinous administration of Ronald Ray-Gun. Amongst flimsy allegations of Soviet "state-sponsored terrorism" along with dangerous strategic proximity to US borders, ol' Ronnie declared a state of national emergency because "the policies and actions of the government of Nicaragua constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the...United States." The degree of fear-mongering, absurdity and deceit in that one statement alone set a whole new standard. (Which has since been surpassed in hearts and spades...but he gets an A+ for effort. In truth, Nicaragua is somewhat smaller than North Carolina--with a mountainous central highlands--and had, at the time, about half its population. "Extraordinary threat." Have I got a bridge for you..!)

Bad Actor and his Secretary of State, George Schultz, maintained a steady stream of inflammatory rhetoric, claiming repeatedly that the war against international terrorism would form the core of their foreign policy as, indeed it turned out to do. (One of the ways they achieved this was by training and funding an extraordinary terrorist network which carried out massive atrocities in many countries; I'm referring to the Mujahedeen which became alQuaida...you may have heard of them.) The campaign against Nicaragua was waged from within--by sending money and munitions to the Contra terrorist army--and from without, by mining harbors and blowing fuel dumps to Kingdom come. This campaign left tens of thousands dead which is more of the population, in per capita terms, than the number of Americans killed in the Civil War and all wars of the 20th century COMBINED. Think about that. Official orders, which emanated from the White House, were given to attack "soft" or civilian, targets. You know, like markets, public utilities...and hospitals. As a result of this barbaric and multi-pronged assault, the country is ruined perhaps beyond recovery and it remains to this day, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.

Nicaragua's response was not to return violence for violence, but rather appeal to the World Court. They prepared and presented their case and the Court issued a summary judgement condemning US terrorism against what had been essentially a peaceful, plentiful sovereign nation and demanding an immediate cessation of military action and a payment of reparations. The US did nothing, not even acknowledge the decision. Nicaragua then approached the Security Council of the United Nations where a binding resolution to uphold international law was brought to the floor. The US vetoed it, along with Israel...and the war against Nicaragua was escalated. To this day, America remains the only nation on the planet to have been convicted of international terrorism by the World Court.

You get all that? A Republican President was found guilty of terrorism all the while claiming tiny little Nicaragua was the evil terrorists. Boy, what an excellent formula for gross miscarriage of justice they'd conceived of.

Have they continued to use this formula for their own ends? Look at post 9-11. Or as AOM says:

The shuck and jive our blighted administration has been handing the electorate ever since we invaded Afghanistan on Oct. 7, 2001 has been "much ado;" flash and distraction and misdirection so we don't notice how much cash they're stealing and how our civil liberties are being spirited away from us. These rotters have squandered American blood and treasure for no purpose other than to secure physical control over petroleum reserves and critical pipelines for their delivery. Just ask yourself: Where's Usama Bin Laden RIGHT NOW..?

The truth is plainly before our faces. Since the fear of 9-11, Bush has tossed the Constitution in the toilet. He holds people in jail indefinately without charges by simply calling them "enemy combatants". The Patriot Act wipes away our political freedoms in exchange for "security" (ie, safety from sudden death due to terrorist attack). Yet, if we are so keen to keep our country secure, then why did this happen outside a nuclear power plant:

State police said the men drove up to the Beaver Valley Power Station in a tractor-trailer on Tuesday night to pick up two large containers of tools for a contractor for whom they worked. Security guards stopped the men for a routine inspection, but they drove away, police said.

The guards became suspicious and called police, who pulled the truck over about a mile from the plant. A state trooper got a warrant to search the vehicle and found a duffel bag, which he said contained $504,230 in mostly small bills.

The driver denied knowing anything about the money or who gave it to him, so the trooper seized it, police said.

A spokesman for the FBI confirmed that the Joint Terrorism Task Force responded to the situation in conjunction with state police, but he said they don't think terrorism is involved. He would not give any other details.

The men, who are from Houston, said they picked up the bag in Chicago and had no knowledge of its contents, according to police.

Investigators think the cash may have a drug connection. A police dog picked up the scent of drugs in the sleeper cab of the truck where the bag was found, police said.

Both men were detained and later released. No charges have been filed.

The men were released? Why? Who were they? Well the post-gazette is a bit more enlightening:

Police broadcast a description of the truck and Sgt. Davis pulled it over after spotting it on Route 168 south, near the Shippingport Bridge. He said the truckers were polite, but the passenger had no identification and said it had been stolen from the truck the night before.

"Your ID is stolen but not that bag of cash? Red flags were popping up all over," Sgt. Davis said.

So let's get this straight: A guy with no ID comes up to a nuclear plant with a duffel bag of half a million dollars and the police let him go because "they hadn't broken any laws." But regular citizens like you and I can be held indefinately, without charges, simply because the government wants to? And we are supposed to believe there really IS a War on Terror? Well alright then, just who are these supposed terrorists?

Let's take a look at the official military definition of terrorism:

It is the calculated use of violence or the threat of violence to obtain political or religious ideological goals through intimidation, coersion or the instilling of fear.

On 9-11, what political or religious ideological goal was acheived? Or should I ask who's ideological and religious political goals were obtained? Not Al Queda's.

Or to put it another way: Since 9-11, WHO has been stripped of their rights through intimidation, coersion and the instilling of fear? That's right, you and I.

So who's been terrorizing whom? Just who are the terrorists we are supposed to be killing?

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It's not Big Government the right distrusts.

Greenwald points out something very interesting about the right. They claim to distrust Big Government - at least, that's their excuse for backing legislation that reduces government oversite of Big Business - but in fact, they trust Big Government implicitly. As he points out:

As much as any policy prescriptions, conservatism has always been based, more than anything else, on a fundamental distrust of the power of the federal government and a corresponding belief that that power ought to be as restrained as possible, particularly when it comes to its application by the Government to American citizens. It was that deeply rooted distrust that led to conservatives’ vigorous advocacy of states’ rights over centralized power in the federal government, accompanied by demands that the intrusion of the Federal Government in the lives of American citizens be minimized.

Is there anything more antithetical to that ethos than the rabid, power-hungry appetites of Bush followers? There is not an iota of distrust of the Federal Government among them. Quite the contrary. Whereas distrust of the government was quite recently a hallmark of conservatism, expressing distrust of George Bush and the expansive governmental powers he is pursuing subjects one to accusations of being a leftist, subversive loon.

Why is this? Simple. Right wingers, as usual, are LYING when they say they distrust Big Government. They don't and the way they defend Bush proves it. They distrust LIBERAL Government. Big Republican Government is just fine by them.

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