Some Administration officials thought America would find no resistance in Iraq . They were wrong .
Do you agree ?.

I was delighted to see Sen. Chuck Grassley investigating the mega-church robbers who sheer their sheep to live lives of comfort and even in some cases opulence. Since no good deed goes unpunished Grassley is now being punished by his own party. Now, I don't care so much about the idiots who send money to these people but I do care that the so called pastors and their related businesses are enjoying tax exempt status.

Imagine what would happen if tomorrow we started taxing every church. Bet that would fund schools, health care and a number of other valuable programs. After all, many of these so called pastors are heavily involved in politics, are receiving federal tax dollars with their through Bush's faith bases initiatives and and are profiting from businesses like theme parks and youth camps.

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Iowa GOP denies Sen. Grassley delegate slot over his televangelist investigation
• Republicans

The religious right in Iowa, which has a stranglehold on the state GOP, has decided to punish one of its main supporters—Sen. Charles Grassley—for spearheading an investigation into fraudulent practices of prominent televangelists. The party has denied the conservative senator a spot as a delegate to the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, MN. Americans United for Separation of Church and State:

You’d think Grassley, who has served in the Senate since 1980, would be a favorite of the Religious Right. Last year, he scored 100 percent on a scorecard put out by Family Research Council Action and Focus on the Family Action, two of the most militant Religious Right groups. Plus, Grassley is a conservative Baptist.

So what’s the problem? Grassley has led an investigation into the possible misuse of tax-exempt donations by mega-bucks television ministries. He says non-profits are not supposed to divert money to the personal enrichment of non-profit executives and their families, and that rule applies just as much to TV preachers as it does to everyone else.

But that investigation has not sat well with the mega-bucks religious broadcasters who run the Religious Right. Not being ones to turn the other cheek, Religious Right honchos in Iowa denied Grassley a voting slot at the GOP convention.

Mighty Christian of them, huh?

Paula White, Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, Eddie Long, Kenneth Copeland, and Benny Hinn all came under the microscope of Grassley’s Senate Finance Committee investigation.

What’s interesting is that this is clearly a move of desperation by the Iowa GOP, as the party’s fortunes are suffering because of the fundie influence.

“The Republican Party of Iowa is moving significantly to the right on social issues,” the just-ousted Iowa Republican National Committee member Steve Roberts told The Washington Times. “It hurts John McCain’s chances to win this state.”

Other party officials said money for the party is drying up because of past mismanagement and current religious dominance, which has turned traditional Republican politics upside down.

yea right...and don't confuse you with the facts...LOL

So let him run in Germany...

Yes...I'm sure pompous fools would love to shut up any dissent....

Thanks for making my point that it's the COUNTER culture that Americans have to fear...that's all.

I'd really like to let some know what they can do with their PHONEY compassion & long windedness too.

No...I don't think we have to fear Bush...HE kept us safe...HE had to clean up the mess sick willie left behind.... but according to those who claim to scream about freedom of speech issues & the patriot act etc etc, you would be the first to try to shut up your opponents. Some legacy... LOL

On Iraq: Wiping Out the Legend
Wednesday 23 July 2008

by: Maya Schenwar, t r u t h o u t | Book Review


More than five years into the Iraq war, it's time to figure out how to prevent future wars like it, according to the authors of "Lessons From Iraq." (Photo: Rick Loomis / The Los Angeles Times)
A new book from Foreign Policy in Focus explains what made the Iraq war possible, and how we can stop the factors that precipitated it before they breed.

"We can't move on. The damage done by this war has to be examined if it is to be repaired."- Miriam Pemberton, editor of "Lessons From Iraq: Avoiding the Next War"

A silent mythos is enveloping the liberal consciousness in the waning days of the Bush presidency.

It spins like this: When it comes to Iraq, Americans' one reassurance is that this war can't possibly be repeated, not now that we've watched its consequences play out and caught a glimpse of the deception that caused it. As a result of Iraq, the logic goes, we will likely elect a new leader who railed against the war from its inception. We'll then shift toward a foreign policy that disavows offensive interventionism. We will make new friendships and repair old ones. We will live in peace.

However, in the forward to "Lessons From Iraq: Avoiding the Next War," a collection of essays from the progressive think tank Foreign Policy in Focus, editor Miriam Pemberton warns against such now-we-know-better thinking. She cautions against the oft-uttered mantra surrounding large-scale deeds of evildoing, "Never Again."

"The lessons in this book will not be a guarantee against the next war, even supposing they all took hold," Pemberton writes. "There will be a next war."

I winced as I read that line. I wanted to close the book. But because I also wanted to review it, and because the contributors to "Lessons From Iraq" are smart people, and because - despite all pacifist inclinations - I know that, throughout history, there has always, always been a next war, I kept reading.

If you too are riding the "hope" wave into 2009, holding your breath for a war vaccine, you too should keep reading, and not because your bubble needs bursting. You should keep reading because "Lessons From Iraq" delineates a realistic path along which we can direct our hope. It also teaches us to recognize those other, pernicious species of bubble, to ensure that, when they evolve again, we can burst them before they get too big.

The 16 bite-size essays that make up "Lessons From Iraq" are divided into three sections: Purposes, Ways and Means and Collateral Damage. Some of the freshest essays lie in the Purposes section. In Neta C. Crawford's "The Dangerous Leap: Preventive War," the author distinguishes between "preemptive" and "preventive" wars. A preemptive war is one that defends against an immediate, certain threat. (Picture Saddam with his finger poised over the nuclear button at the point the US stormed Baghdad.) A preventive war is initiated based on an amorphous, ambivalent, might-be threat. (Picture what really happened: an attack based on shaky intelligence and overconfident statements about a potential - not actual - risk.) An attack motivated by only the possibility of a threat turns war into a self-fulfilling prophecy, according to Crawford.

Much of the rest of the book addresses these problems: the unwise reasons for and disastrous consequences of preventive war. In "American Imperialism," Chalmers Johnson looks at the transformation of US foreign policy into an agenda that is both imperialist (regarding the "East") and isolationist (regarding Europe). It's an archaic model, according to Chalmers - one used by provincial-thinking presidents of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, for whom far-off lands were "pure abstractions" waiting to be conquered.

http://www.truthout.org/article/on-iraq-wiping-out-legend

This is not the whole article, there is more. I think this book maybe an interesting read.

Does Satan have a flag too ?.

OPRAH...er um...Obama...

So the flag now is replaced by the guy who wants Americans to vote for him huh?

American flag disappears from Obama campaign jet
Candidate's trademark 'O' replaces stars and stripes


By Aaron Klein
© 2008 WorldNetDaily



The U.S. flag no longer appears on the tail of the plane that will be used by presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama (Courtesy Sun-Times

As part of a month-long aircraft makeover, a painted American flag was removed from the tail of Sen. Barack Obama's official campaign airplane and was replaced with the presidential candidate's trademark "O" symbol.

The refurbished 757 was unveiled to members of the press today, 41 of whom boarded the craft and took off to meet Obama in Amman, Jordan, where the presidential candidate will stop as part of a Middle Eastern and European tour.

Obama traveled to the Mideast earlier this week on board a separate airplane.

Fox News blogger Bonny Kapp, traveling on Obama's new airplane, reported:

"The North American jet that flew Obama and his traveling crew around for much of the primary season was refurbished with new seats and power for each passenger a must on the campaign trail. And the plane that once had an American flag on its tail now sports the Obama 'O.'"


http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=70236

Does the religion of a candidate have an effect on your vote ?.

Having had the great luck to learn several languages, I want to say that it is not only a pleasure, but has enabled me to do many wonderful things that would not otherwise have been possible.

I know that there are a lot of bad language teachers are out there. So not everyone has had a positive experience.

Spanish is one of the easiest languages in the world to learn. Even President Bush learned some, and it is clear that he enjoys speaking it.

But there are a lot of other fine languages: Russian, Chinese, Arabic, French...all promise a rich variety of ways to see the world and to communicate.

I too don't think that it must be mandatory -- and Obama did not suggest that it should be despite the strange tone of outrage of the OP -- but I do think that all parents owe it to their kids to encourage them to learn multiple languages, and that includes learning to speak and write in English well.

Oceans

I think what is going on here is that Americans are upset that many Latin folks don't want to learn English. I am not saying all but there are communities where only Spanish is spoken.

I live in Miami and the majority of the people only speak Spanish. You can't order a sandwich without having the cashier speak in Spanish to you.

Of course this would be a shock for Americans who have been living here for many many generations and as their ancestors came they had to learn English to get through life.

Today it doesn't seem like that this is happening as many Spanish speaking folks don't even put in the effort to try to speak English.

Although I am a European my vote or opinion probably doesn't count, but I must agree that one should have options of various languages to learn from, yet it maybe necessary at this rate that if the ongoing rising population of Latin folks come into this country that the importance of Spanish is envitable and may have to become a priority to learn in this country unless immigration laws will somehow resolve the dispute.

A great book to read is by Pat Buchanon called "Emergency State". It talks about the issue alot.

Either way I think that those who come into the country should at least try to learn English and those who are born in this country should also put more effort in learning a language. Knowledge goes far and the more you know the better off you are.

Peace

If you had one solid chance to write of utter most importance in every single newspaper and magazine including internet the world had and it would go each to the front page for 3 days, what would you write concerning the topic (politics) that you think would be of dramatic importance to change the views of people for the better for the people?

Now really put some thought into this and take the situation seriously as if you actually are given the power to do this in reality!

thanks

How does he defy a congressional subpoena?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20080722/cm_thenation/4338398_1

Regardless of this oil though we still need to find a viable alternative.
A cleaner greener source.

I cant see destroying our coastlines like the Republicans are suddenly pushing, and I cant see a reason for them trying to make such a big deal of it on the news!
There has to be something in it for them.....
I think it might have to do with market share!!

So then why is the NY Post & Wall St. Journal doing so well?