The 'most transparent admin Evah'...has hardly appointed any watchdogs surveying them

The 'most transparent admin Evah'...has hardly appointed any watchdogs surveying them. (DS).

It has been 2,292 days since the Department of Interior has had a permanent inspector general in place to serve as a watchdog over the agency. But the Interior Department is not alone; the inspector general position is vacant in seven other agencies as well.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, held a hearing recently to address “why this White House, who claimed to wanting to be the most transparent administration in history, has taken so long to fill so many positions of inspectors general.”

Some 33 federal agencies are required by law to have presidentially appointed inspectors general to identify wasteful practices and general government misconduct.

But, according to the Project on Governmental Oversight, the Obama administration has left these positions open for, on average, 613 days, which is hundreds of days longer than even President Clinton, who was second with 453 days.


Johnson said having acting inspectors general in these roles is not the same as those who confirmed by the Senate.

“They are not truly independent, as they can be removed by the agency at any time; they are only temporary and do not drive office policy, and they are at greater risk of compromising their work to appease the agency or the president.”

The Department of Veterans Affairs has been operating with a temporary inspector general since December 2013. The Department of Interior has been without a permanent inspector general for more than six years.

But there is another problem with the acting inspectors general: They are not supposed to serve in that capacity for more than 210 days. But seven of the eight people current serving in those roles will have been in for more than a year by the end of this month. Hmmmm.....'All the President's men'

"L'etat C'est Moi" - Up to 5 Million Illegals to be Granted ‘Temporary Legal Status’ By Obama.

"L'etat C'est Moi" - Up to 5 Million Illegals to be Granted ‘Temporary Legal Status’ By Obama.HT: PJMedia.

Time Magazine is reporting that, although Obamaa is keeping his options open, it is likely he will grant relief from deportation and the temporary work authorizations to millions of illegal immigrants. Some experts believe Obama possesses this authority, although Republicans in Congress will almost certainly dispute that.

Exactly what Obama plans to do is a closely held secret. But following the meeting with the activists, Obama declared his intention to use his executive authority to reform parts of a broken immigration system that has cleaved families and hobbled the economy. After being informed by Speaker John Boehner that the Republican-controlled House would not vote on a comprehensive overhaul of U.S. immigration law this year, the President announced in a fiery speech that he was preparing “to do what Congress refuses to do, and fix as much of our immigration system as we can.”
Obama has been cautious about preempting Congress. But its failure to act has changed his thinking. The recent meeting “was really the first time we had heard from the administration that they are looking at” expanding a program to provide temporary relief from deportations and work authorization for undocumented immigrants, says Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center.
The White House won’t comment on how many undocumented immigrants could be affected. “I don’t want to put a number on it,” says a senior White House official, who says Obama’s timeline to act before the mid-term elections remains in place.
Obama has a broad menu of options at his disposal, but there are two major sets of changes he can order. The first is to provide affirmative relief from deportation to one or more groups of people. Under this mechanism, individuals identified as “low-priority” threats can come forward to seek temporary protection from deportation and work authorization. In 2012, the administration created a program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), that allowed eligible young unauthorized immigrants to apply for a two-year reprieve from deportation and a work permit.
The most aggressive option in this category would be expanding deferred action to anyone who could have gained legal status under the bipartisan bill that passed the Senate in June 2013. According to a Congressional Budget Office analysis, the Senate bill would have covered up to 8 million undocumented immigrants. It is unlikely that Obama goes that far. But even more modest steps could provide relief to a population numbering in the seven figures. “You can get to big numbers very quickly,” says Marshall Fitz, director of immigration policy at the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank.

“Obama has been cautious about preempting Congress.” Uh-huh. He was cautious 41 times when he unilaterally altered Obamacare. He was cautious when he unilaterally changed the law to allow hundreds of thousands of DREAMers legal status. He was cautious when he unilaterally halted most deportations. He was cautious when he ordered the Justice Department not to enforce DOMA. He was cautious when he made illegal recess appointments to the NLRB.

I don’t think Time has the same definition of “cautious” as you and I do.

Rep. Gutierrez believes that the number will be about 5 million. It will almost certainly include agricultural workers to make the Chamber of Commerce happy. Others on the list to be amnestied include family members of DREAMers already made legal by Obama’s other executive order.
Does anyone believe that this “temporary legal status” will actually be temporary?
No comment yet from the 1.5 million people waiting in other countries who are seeking to come to the US legally.
PAJAMAS MEDIA

US Senate confirms Jeh Johnson as new Homeland Security secretary.

US Senate confirms Jeh Johnson as new Homeland Security secretary.(TOI).

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats used their newly initiated lower threshold for defeating filibusters Monday to win Senate confirmation of President Barack Obama’s nomination of former top Pentagon lawyer Jeh C. Johnson to be secretary of homeland security.

On a 57-37 vote, Democrats broke a GOP blockade against Johnson before the Senate minutes later confirmed him on a 78-16 vote. Until Democrats unilaterally changed the Senate’s filibuster threshold on presidential nominations, it would have taken 60 votes to clear Johnson for a final vote.

Anne W. Patterson, currently the US ambassador to Egypt and formerly ambassador to Pakistan, also won confirmation Monday to become assistant secretary of state in charge of Near Eastern affairs. She also was confirmed 78-16, with all of the “no” votes coming from Republicans. A career diplomat, Patterson entered the State Department’s foreign service in 1973.

Johnson is replacing Janet Napolitano as head of the Homeland Security Department. About 40 percent of the senior leadership positions are now vacant, and Johnson said filling those posts was among his top priorities.

In a statement, Obama praised the Senate for confirming Johnson, calling him “a critical member of my national security team.”

“And he helped to shape some of our most successful national security policies and strategies,” the president added.

Obama has in the past praised Johnson’s role in overturning the ban on openly gay service members in the military.

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., questioned Johnson’s experience for heading homeland security, a department created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks from more than two dozen disparate agencies and now perhaps the most complex in Obama’s Cabinet.

“I’m not saying he’s not a good man, but he’s not a good choice for this,” Sessions said.

On Friday, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said he was also troubled because Johnson did not answer all of his questions about immigration policy during his confirmation process.

"Back to my Roots" - Russian nostalgia, Russian Babuski's to sing at Eurovision

Representives of Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012.More here.

MFS - The Other News

                      Afternoon Posting.

• Syria Live Blog - May 09. Here .(Al-Jazeera).

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity in Japan  today  no activity. More info here.

• Japan - Latest official Situation Update No. 104.
  Source : Here .

• Japan  : For the most accurate info on the nuclear disaster go to : Paul Langley's Nuclear History Blog

• Live Blog on Qsama Bin Laden  Here (Al -Jazeera).

• Obama regime continues to grab power.Senate Seeks to Create Caesar Obama.(NoisyRoom).

Senatus Populusque Romanus — Imperius Rex et Populusque Americanus.

• While all of America is distracted and focused on the death of Osama bin Laden, our President and his minions have been fast at work laying the groundwork for S. 679: Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011 to speed through the Senate and then make its way into the House and then to the President to sign. Yes, the other hand is quickly forming into a dictatorial fist that is about to smash our Constitution.As you will recall, the beginning of the end of liberty in Rome commenced with Augustus Caesar who compromised the authority of the Senate through the force of arms and basically the Senate became a facade. America is poised with this proposed bill, to morph immediately from a Republic into an empire with the privileged eunuchs of the Senate as window dressing and a dictator – the first American Caesar – at the country’s helm.And leading the progressive charge is Chuck Schumer (D-NY). No big surprise there. Schumer is an elitist Marxist and a first class progressive who hates America almost as much as he loves power. He introduced S. 679 on March 30th, 2011. He was joined by a gaggle of progressives from the left and the right. This is something I have been warning Americans about for a long time. If we are to survive as a nation, we must rid ourselves of ALL progressives or our nation is doomed and freedom will be swept into the dustbin of history.From The Heritage Foundation, here is a succinct explanation of the bill:

"The bill reduces the number of presidential appointments that require the consent of the Senate and establishes within the executive branch a Working Group on Streamlining Paperwork for Executive Nominations. Individuals nominated to senior executive offices suffer slow and detailed background investigations and mounds of duplicative paperwork before a President sends their nominations to the Senate. After nomination, many nominees suffer time-consuming inaction or time-consuming and excruciating action as the Senate proceeds (or does not) with consideration of the nomination. The sponsors of S. 679 have identified a valid problem, but proposed the wrong solution. Congress should not enact S. 679."

In essence they want to give the President the sole power to appoint people to positions of his choosing within our government. Obama would be free to do this without the approval of the Senate. Senate approval of such positions is mandated by the U.S. Constitution in Article II, Section 2 under the “Appointments Clause”:

"… shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments. (emphasis added)"

More from The Heritage Foundation:

When the delegates of the states gathered in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787 and wrote the Constitution, they distributed the powers of the federal government among two Houses of Congress, a President, and a judiciary, and required in many cases that two of them work together to exercise a particular constitutional power. That separation of powers protects the liberties of the American people by preventing any one officer of the government from aggregating too much power.

The Framers of the Constitution did not give the President the kingly power to appoint the senior officers of the government by himself. Instead, they allowed the President to name an individual for a senior office, but then required the President to obtain the Senate’s consent before appointing the individual to office. Thus, they required the cooperation of the President and the Senate to put someone in high office.

I know Americans have not forgotten about Obama’s string of Czars. Czars that he was supposed to downsize or get rid of. Czars, which in my personal viewpoint, were and still are illegal under the Constitution. But progressives never go away, they just shift… As has done so many of Obama’s Czars. With this sweeping bill, over 200 positions will no longer require Senate approval. Obama will dictate who are his powerful lieutenants and who will control America. The Senate will merely be a sham to parrot Obama’s dictates. With this bill, checks and balances will be effectively nullified.What does that portend you say? One day, your right to own a gun will be gone, just regulated away. Businesses will be nationalized even more than they are now. Heavy regulation will ensue concerning communications and the Internet. Many, many private businesses will whither and die. You will be told what and how much to eat – food and gas rationing will become the norm. Poverty and squalor will become equal for all as wealth is redistributed to other nations. If there are elections, they will be a joke and pointless. There will be a few powerful elites and then the masses. Guess which camp you and I will be in?Our best hope at this juncture is that this abomination will be stopped in the House. We must weed out the progressives and we must win in 2012. This country will not survive another four years of progressive policies. Not as a Republic and not as a free entity anyway.The bitter irony on display here, is that the same jackals that have barked and snarled and feigned horror at “American Imperialism,” are the very ones who now howl their support for a true American empire. All hail Caesar!Hmmmm...... Finally the masks come off and Dictatorship reveals it's ugly face.Read the full story here.

• Morning Bell: Obama’s Attack on Private Industry.(TheFoundry).You might think that a U.S. company’s decision to expand its manufacturing facilities and create 1,000 new jobs here at home — rather than overseas — would be hailed by the Obama Administration as a step in the right direction, especially with nine percent unemployment. You’d be wrong. Instead, President Barack Obama’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is doing all it can to throw a wrench in the machinery of private industry.The story begins with Boeing Corporation’s decision to build a new assembly plant in Charleston, South Carolina, in order to produce the 787 Dreamliner, the company’s fastest selling airliner. (To date, Boeing has 800 planes on order.) The NLRB, which is charged with remedying unfair labor practices, got wind of the decision and last month filed a complaint against Boeing, alleging that the company decided to build the plant in South Carolina out of retaliation for union strikes at its Washington state facilities.The NLRB’s actions are drawing strong criticism from Republicans in the U.S Senate. ”It’s clearly outside of the authority of this federal government to be threatening and bullying and trying to intimidate companies like Boeing who should have the freedom to locate their plants anywhere they want. It’s intimidation,” Senator Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) said Wednesday. DeMint joined with 18 senators in writing a letter to the president last week condemning the NLRB’s complaint:

We consider this an attack on millions of workers in 22 right-to-work states, as well as a government-led act of intimidation against American companies that should have the freedom to choose to build plants in right-to-work states.

If the NLRB prevails, it will only encourage companies to make their investments in foreign nations, moving jobs and economic growth overseas. America will not win the future if Washington penalizes workers in states that have discovered winning economic strategies.

But in a White House where the cozy relationship between big labor and big government couldn’t be any closer, the NLRB’s moves are just the Obama administration’s latest effort to come to the defense of the union machine. And it’s also a direct shot at private industry’s freedom to make fundamental business decisions, which has serious consequences for the U.S. economy. Hederman and Sherk write:

If the Obama Administration succeeds, it will chill business investment. Unions raise business costs and discourage employers from investing and expanding. Studies consistently show that unionized employers create fewer jobs than non-union employers. Forcing businesses to invest in states with bad business climates will cause them to scale back their investments. It might create a few more jobs for union members, but will mean fewer jobs and higher unemployment in the economy overall.

President Obama has remained silent on the issue, with a White House official maintaining that the NLRB’s complaint is an “independent agency’s enforcement action.” Governor Nikki Haley (R-S.C.) isn’t satisfied and has a pointed question for the president, as National Review Online reports.

I want to ask him why he is allowing unelected bureaucrats to come in and do the unions’ dirty work on the backs of our businesses . . . It’s hurting the jobs in South Carolina and every other right-to-work state. He owes us an answer.”The answer to Haley’s question can be found in the Obama-big labor alliance. If the Obama NLRB prevails, it will have struck a significant blow against right-to-work states by significantly expanding labor’s ability to dictate where companies do business, all while solidifying their base of political power. The losers, unfortunately, will be private industry, job seekers and the U.S. economy.Hmmmm......The 'Chicago Mob' on steroids?Read the full story here.

• More White House/Obama/Hilary Cover Up for Assad Basher.(ZionTruth).As bloody, murderous repression continues in Syria, the Obama gang continue to cover up for Assad the Basher. Hilary gave an asinine interview to La Stampa, saying things which even a sixth grade teacher would be ashamed to tell her class, so silly and unbelievable they were. She needed an excuse as to why the USA was attacking Qaddafi in Libya but would not attack Basher Assad in Syria, or call on him to give up power. Here are main points of the interview as quoted in Corriere della Sera:The USA -- "We don't have certain data, but we know that Syria can still pass reforms. On the other hand, no one believed that Qaddafi would have done it." Thus the American secretary of state Hilary Clinton stressed the differences between the situation in Libya and that in Syria, during an interview given to the daily La Stampa. "People believe that there is a possible path [of dialogue & cooperation] with Syria. For that reason, we continue, together with our allies, to exert pressure" [on Syria, that is, on Assad's regime], the chief of America's diplomacy added, also referring to the sanctions that were passed against Damascus.To conclude: Isn't Hilary ashamed to sound so stupid --or so disingenuous? Obama has no shame, as we know. These people are a disgrace to America and very dangerous to Israel, the rest of the world, and of course to America.Hmmmm.....Why is the Obama regime appeasing Iran's henchmen and bashing Israel?Why does the Obama regime seem to hate Israel so much/Read the full story here.

• FDA Claims Power To Seize Food Without Evidence Of Contamination.A few days ago, the Food and Drug Administration declared it no longer needs credible evidence to seize food that may be contaminated.Ignoring the Fourth Amendment entirely, the FDA claims that based on mere suspicion that a food product has been contaminated or mislabeled, and that serious illness or death will result, it can hold the food for 30 days while it then looks for evidence.It claims this power under the Food Safety Modernization Act, which President Monsanto, I mean, Obama, signed in January.On May 4th, the FDA stated:

Previously, the FDA’s ability to detain food products applied only when the agency had credible evidence that a food product presented was contaminated or mislabeled in a way that presented a threat of serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals.Beginning July, the FDA will be able to detain food products that it has reason to believe are adulterated or misbranded for up to 30 days, if needed, to ensure they are kept out of the marketplace. The products will be kept out of the marketplace while the agency determines whether an enforcement action such as seizure or federal injunction against distribution of the product in commerce, is necessary.Credible evidence no longer applies, it seems.

The Fourth Amendment states:

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

FDA thinks it can engage in search and seizure willy nilly. They’ve already been doing this, of course — but only at natural food facilities. Factory farms like DeCosta Eggs can sicken thousands of people over a period of years, without ever being shut down or having its product seized or destroyed.But, if you raise natural foods without pasteurizing them or adulterating them with drugs and genetically modified ingredients, even though no one becomes ill from your product, then be assured, the FDA will seize your products, your computers, your paperwork, and shut you down.Another rule announced by the FDA requires importers to declare if any nation refused their food or feed product for any reason, and to give the reason. Both rules go into effect July 3, 2011.Hmmmm........Step ,by step closer to dictatorship.Read the full story here.Read the new FDA rules here.

• Iran helping Syrian regime crack down on protesters, say diplomats.(Guardian).Claim comes as four women shot dead by security forces in first use of violence against an all-female demonstration.Iran is playing an increasingly active role in helping the Syrian regime in its crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, according to western diplomatic sources in Damascus.The claim came as Syria's security forces backed by tanks intensified operations to suppress unrest in three new flashpoint towns on Sunday and it was confirmed that four women had been shot dead in the first use of force against an all-female demonstration.A senior western diplomat in Damascus expanded on assertions, first made by White House officials last month, that Iran is advising president Bashar al-Assad's government on how to crush dissent.Human rights groups suggest more than 7,000 people have been detained since the uprising began. More than 800 people are said to have died, up to 50 during last Friday's "day of defiance". Last night two unarmed demonstrators were reportedly killed during a night rally in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor."Tehran has upped the level of technical support and personnel support from the Iranian Republican Guard to strengthen Syria's ability to deal with protesters," the diplomat said, adding that the few hundred personnel were not involved in any physical operations. "Since the start of the uprising, the Iranian regime has been worried about losing its most important ally in the Arab world and important conduit for weapons to Hezbollah [in Lebanon]," the diplomat said.The Assad family, from the Shia Muslim minority Alawite sect, is likely to be nervous about appearing to be helped by its Shia-dominated ally to crush protesters drawn from the 75% Sunni population.Regime forces backed by tanks were in action over the weekend in Homs, in the town of Tafas north of Deraa, and in the coastal city of Banias, activists said. Violence was also reported in the Damascus dormitory town of Zabadani.Along with arbitrary detentions, shootings have continued.Hmmmm.....Hillary "Assad is a reformer' yup that's pretty obvious with all the 'reforming' he's doing lately.Read the full story here.

• 64% of Palestinians would not object to Bin Laden burial in "Palestine".(PalWatch).A Palestinian polling institute surveyed Palestinians in the first week of May 2011, apparently before it was known among Palestinians that Bin Laden's body had been buried at sea, and found that:

"64% of respondents stated that they would not object to Bin Laden being buried in Palestine, were such a possibility raised."

 Other findings of the polling institute Near East Consulting as reported in the official Palestinian Authority daily:

"A survey of Palestinian public opinion on the death of Bin Laden shows that most Palestinians (85%) believe that Al-Qaeda will avenge Bin Laden's death.

86% stated that terror activities around the world will not decrease or be otherwise affected following his death...

56% of those questioned said that they were certain that he had been killed, while 44% believed that he was still alive...

42% of Palestinians still believe that Al-Qaeda will be strengthened following the death of Bin Laden, while 22% believe that it will be weakened; 36% said that its situation will not change."Hmmmm....It's nice to see that the people that the Obama regime supports are 'right behind them'.Read the full story here.

• PA says can't pay salaries in May.(Ynet). Palestinian PM Fayyad says government unable to pay wages to 150,000 workers for first time since 2007 because of Israel's decision to halt transfer of funds, which has put his government in 'very difficult' financial position.The Palestinian Authority said on Monday it had not been able to pay salaries for the first time since 2007 because of Israel's decision to halt the transfer of funds it collects on its behalf.Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said Israel's decision, a move driven by Israeli concern over a Palestinian unity deal including Hamas, had put the Ramallah-based government in a "very difficult" financial position.Fayyad said the PA had paid salaries to its 150,000 employees promptly on the fifth day of every month since mid-2007. "We are now on the ninth and we have not been able to meet this obligation," he said. The Palestinian prime minister said that the salaries would be paid as soon as Israel transferred the tax funds. He added that the PA had turned to donor countries and Arab states for help. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government decided on May 1 to halt the transfers which make up 70% of PA revenues, citing fear that the money would go to Hamas, a militant group hostile to Israel.Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz addressed the decision again on Sunday. "I decided, immediately after the announcement on the Hamas-PA merger, to temporary halt the transfer of funds until we receive clarifications. "This is also a warning that if a Hamas state is established, we won't be able to fund it as a government," he added.Fatah Central Committee member Saeb Ereket denounced the Israeli decision last week, calling it "financial piracy.""This reflects Israel's dangerous intentions," he said, adding that Jerusalem had no right to interfere with internal Palestinian affairs.Hmmmm....I thought it was a crime to finance Terrorist organisations?Read the full story here.

• British Islamist Anjem Choudary in Interview on Bin Laden's Death: Bin Laden 'Is the First... of a Whole New Generation... Who Believe Very Firmly In Their Hearts in the Concept Of Jihad' – And Obama Is 'At the Head of the Camp Of Disbelief'."This Jihad Will Not Begin and End with Sheikh Osama Bin Laden; Every Mother Will Want To Give Birth Now To a Sheikh Osama Bin Laden"(Video transcript)

(Memri).Interviewer: "Everybody knows Osama bin Laden's time as an operational figure had passed. I think that's a reasonable thing to say. To what extent did he retain his importance as a current motivating figure, or had he been in some way superseded by someone like Anwar Al-Awlaki or other religious figures. I'll refer to you, Anjem – how do you see his influence?"

Choudary: "You can see very well that when Sheikh Osama bin Laden issued a statement, the whole of the world would listen to that statement. It would be played on every single media channel. In fact the leaders of the Western and the Eastern world would have to make a comment. Now that he's passed away, his mere death has meant that all leaders, all people who are important politically, must have their say on his death despite the fact that he was in hiding and he was in fact at the back of the front – meaning there were many people in the front line, in Tora Bora, in Afghanistan and Iraq, who are actually doing the fighting, but he is such an important figure that his videos, his statements resound all around the world and people continue to play them. They hang on his every word.

"So he is someone phenomenally important to the struggle. But then again, we can say the same thing about Sheikh Abu Mus'ab Al-Zarqawi, and as well about Abd Al-Aziz Al-Muqrin, Abu-Hajer, who are former leaders of the jihad on various fronts, so he would be one of many people who have been in the struggle and that have passed away, and other generations have come forward. I do believe that in terms of Al-Qaeda, he is the first generation, and behind him are second, third, fourth, and fifth generations. This struggle to liberate Muslim land is only beginning. I think the Americans have tasted what it means to be at war with Islam and Muslims with leaders like Sheikh Osama bin Laden [unclear] left behind, and the people who will now come forward, I think, will be the biggest nightmare for America because no longer would they have this... if you like... running roughshod over the Muslims and dictating to them, because now the Muslims have a point to prove – that this jihad will not begin and end with Sheikh Osama bin Laden.

"Every mother will want to give birth now to a Sheikh Osama bin Laden so he can be on the front line as well like this great man and people can remember them for years to come."Man No. 4: "Of course. I mean, someone who stands up against injustice and oppression... obviously, everyone is going to come towards him, and everyone is going to follow him, and do what he did. "At the end of the day, if you have evil, you will always have someone good to fight against that evil. Allah – He would never put someone evil on this earth to take over the whole earth. He will always put someone to stand against that evil person, and we see that He was [unclear] with Sheikh Osama bin Laden, and there will be more coming after him."Hmmmm........“Violence does not build up the kingdom of God, the kingdom of humanity. On the contrary, it is a favorite instrument of the Antichrist, however idealistic its religious motivation may be,” Pope Benedict XVI .Read the full story here.

• "The Great Patriotic War" or as we know it World War II remembered in Russia.(RaiNovosti).Victory Day celebrations in Moscow will culminate on Monday with a grand fireworks display consisting of 30 salvoes from 18 guns and 72 launchers.Read the full story here.Picture gallery here.

• Bin Laden dead before U.S. raid - Iranian Intelligence Minister.(RaiNovosti).Iranian Intelligence Minister Heidar Moslehi said Tehran has evidence that al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden had died of disease long before the United States' alleged raid on the terrorist, FARS Iranian news agency said.Bin Laden was killed on May 2 in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad, north of the capital Islamabad, during a raid by U.S. Navy Seals."We have accurate information that bin Laden died of illness some time ago," Moslehi said.Bin Laden's body was buried at sea less than 24 hours after the operation."If the US military and intelligence apparatus have really arrested or killed bin Laden, why don't they show him (his dead body) why have they thrown his corpse into the sea?" Moslehi continued.A DNA test proved that the corpse of the dead man belonged to bin Laden, who has topped the FBI's most wanted list for the past decade.White House spokesman, Jay Carney said on Wednesday that Washington would not release bin Laden's postmortem photos to avoid instigating propaganda and possible violence.Read the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                          Morning Posting.

• HT:TheRubinReport.U.S.Intelligence at Work: Iranian Warships? Yeah, I Heard Something about That.By Barry Rubin. Following on the theme that the Muslim Brotherhood is a secular organization and that U.S. intelligence gets its breaking information from CNN, we have this remarkable statement in the State Department briefing by Assistant Secretary of State Philip Crowley:"I believe there are two Iranian warships or, I mean, I don't know what kind of ships they are. There are two ships in the Red Sea. What their intention is, what their destination is, I don’t – I can’t say. Look, there are reports that there are a couple of ships in the Red Sea. What they do, where they go, we’ll follow this with some curiosity."Curiosity indeed! I'm sure you readers understand the strategic significance of this move by Iran to file a claim as the region's leading power. Yet it was not the United States but Israel that told the Egyptian government (that is, the army) that letting these warships through the Suez Canal would be deemed to be an unfriendly act. The Egyptians refused passage. That's the military government. What would an elected Egyptian government do a year from now?So here we have a major move by Iran that the United States ignores, not even understanding the significance of this flotilla. On the wider stage, the U.S. government is largely ignoring the advances of the Iran-Syria-Hamas-Hizballah-Turkish government-Lebanese government-Iraqi insurgent alliance. Notice how the list of those on the other side keeps getting longer and the list of allies on the U.S. side in the Middle East keeps getting shorter. Perhaps the U.S. government will follow the loss of its whole position in the Middle East "with some curiosity."It is hard to believe the kinds of things being said by U.S. government officials nowadays. So much of it reads like satire. Of course, it is not only funny but scary. Very very scary. If the Obama Administration played the Ahmadinejad team in the international affairs Superbowl, I'd put my money on Iran by two touchdowns. Hmmmm......."I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."?Read the full story here.

• Egypt Agrees to Let Two Iranian Ships Through Suez Canal.CAIRO-- State media say Egypt has agreed to let two Iranian naval vessels transit the Suez Canal, a move that comes despite expressions of concern by Israeli officials.State-run news agency MENA said Friday that authorities approved a request from Iranian diplomats who offered assurances that the two ships won't have weapons or nuclear or chemical material.The move had been widely expected and Iranian officials have insisted the request is in line with international regulations. They say the two vessels are headed to Syria for training.Read the full story here.

• Jews in Turkey fear attacks.After Hezbollah's threats shut down missions, Jewish residents of Istanbul afraid to leave homes. Turkish Jews expressed fear Thursday of a retaliation scheme by Hezbollah, which has threatened to avenge the death of one of its commanders, Imad Mughniyeh, on the third anniversary of his death.Earlier this week Israel temporarily shut down a number of its diplomatic missions in the world due to fears of an attack, and a local Turkish paper revealed Thursday that these included the Israeli consulate in Istanbul and the embassy in Ankara. But local Jews still harbor anxiety, especially since Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's rise to power. "As we speak now, we are being heard because there is wire-tapping here," a Jewish merchant from Istanbul told Ynet over the phone, asking to remain anonymous."In Turkey there is no knowing what will happen tomorrow. So much goes on here. What guaranteed the separation between religion and state was the army, but unfortunately the generals who maintained this in the past are no longer around.""Turkey is a dictatorship. They attack newspapers and there are raids against anyone who dares speak out against the government. Those who talk too much find themselves under investigation," he said. "Friendships are being developed here with states hostile to Israel. This concerns us, because we don't know if we will be protected as before. Though police guard all Jewish institutions, we still don’t really feel safe." "It's better to keep a low profile. Anything I say can make me a target, so I prefer to stay silent. There has always been a threat here, but apparently it has gotten worse because of the lack of cooperation between Israel and Turkey," he said. Hmmmmm........Turkey....Erdogan.....Obama's friend.Read the full story here.

• London insurers' private fleet to fight Somali pirates.Insurers in the City of London are finalising plans to set up a private fleet of armed patrol boats in the Gulf of Aden, in a new drive to stamp out Somali piracy. The naval protection force was conceived by leading figures in the Lloyd's of London market. They have been working with ship owners, freight operators and governments for months, marshalling support for their plan.The goal of the Convoy Escort Programme is to provide protection for tankers trying to navigate the seas off war-torn Somalia while also reducing the soaring costs of insuring vessels, cargo and crews against increasingly vicious attacks by pirates.Key representatives of the shipping industry, including the Baltic and International Maritime Council (Bimco) have agreed to explore the idea further. Giles Noakes, the chief maritime security officer of Bimco, said that he would be briefing American politicians in Washington on the plan next week.It is understood that the industry-led project is being monitored by the Royal Navy and its counterparts. The Times understands that the Navy would regard the escorts as a trial which, if successful, would allow naval vessels to hunt pirates in other areas. If the fleet can secure funding and win the support of the shipping community, it could be up and running within six months. There are also plans to explore using former Nimrod maritime patrol air crews to provide aerial surveillance.Under the plan, which has been developed over two years, a non-profit association involving private and public sector members would be set up. It would control a fleet of 18 vessels, each with a fixed gun position and an armed crew authorised to engage the pirates in battle.Each vessel would carry eight armed security personnel and four additional crew as well as inflatable speedboats, known as "Ribs", which could be dispatched into combat if the tankers they were protecting came under attack.Although it would be managed separately, the fleet would be under the operational control of the relevant national navy and the crew would have to conform to international rules on combat and engagement.One of the key architects of the CEP is Sean Woollerson, a partner in the marine, oil and gas division at Jardine Lloyd Thompson, a leading Lloyd's broker for companies seeking insurance protection, particularly for war risks and kidnap and ransom. KLT is organising the fleet through BGN Risk, a global security consultancy.Mr Woollerson estimates that the programme would need about $US27.5 million to pay for 18 second-hand vessels, believed to be Swedish patrol boats. It is understood that the plan is to try to tap a $US200 million anti-piracy fund managed by the EU.Hmmmmm........Arrr!"Time t' blow them t' kin'dom come?"Read the full story here.

• HT:TheHeritage.Lead Lawyer Challenging Obamacare Under Cyber Attack.While politicians are still talking about restoring civility, liberal thugs are waging an all out attack on the website of David Rivkin, lead counsel in the multi-state lawsuit against Obamacare, rather than engage in a civilized debate that they can’t win. And what do the ACLU and other left-leaning civil rights groups have to say about these attempts to silence a leading voice for freedom and liberty? Not a thing.Rivkin represents 26 States, the National Federation of Independent Business, and two individuals in the most prominent and successful challenge to Obamacare. He’s been a prominent critic of the law’s individual mandate from the beginning, and is used to engaging in intellectual battle—it comes with the territory. But this is something far different.One week after federal district judge Roger Vinson held that the mandate was unconstitutional and struck down the entire law, Rivkin’s website came under attack by a highly organized group of cyber-terrorists seeking to silence him and knock his views off the Internet.Just like the recent attacks by Wikileaks supporters on Amazon.com, MasterCard, and PayPal—attacks that have led to international investigations that remain ongoing and several arrests—unknown hacktivists from IP addresses located overseas took aim at Rivkin’s website, bombarding it with fake traffic and intrusion attempts. They managed to destroy entire sections of the site dedicated to his advocacy on behalf of the states in the health care law suit.The ongoing criminal attacks have been reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is charged with investigating denial of service cyber attacks.Perhaps the most amazing aspect of this episode is the complete disregard of this attack by the mainstream media and left-wing civil liberties groups. Imagine, for example, a similar attack on the website of the plaintiffs in the challenge to California’s Proposition 8, which struck down same-sex marriage in the state. Imagine the outrage, finger-pointing, and howls of indignation that would follow. The media, as well as the ACLU and others, would be quick to condemn conservatives, and many prominent conservatives, no doubt, would disassociate themselves from the cyber-attack. And rightly so—conservatives don’t need to cheat or break the law to win the war of ideas.Rivkin’s sober and scholarly advocacy in favor of Americans’ fundamental rights is clearly a threat to someone, and they have decided to attack him for it. Even on the Internet, thugs shouldn’t get a “heckler’s veto” over speech with which they disagree. One would think that’s a point on which conservatives and left-leaning civil libertarians could agree. But all we’ve heard so far from the left is silence.Hmmmm......Democracy or Dictatorship?Read the full story here.

• Alaska: Governor Refusing to Implement ObamaCare After Judge Ruled it Unconstitutional…Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell said Thursday that he will not implement the federal health care overhaul passed by Congress last year after a judge in Florida struck down the law as unconstitutional.It’s not immediately clear what practical impact the unusual, rather bold move would have on Alaskans, an estimated 14 percent of whom are uninsured year-round.A major expansion of the federal law is still pending, and a legal expert and health care consumer advocate say any refusal by the states to participate in the law is an invitation to the federal government to step in and implement it for them — a point Parnell disputes.The Republican governor, who sought the advice of his attorney general amid concerns implementing the law would violate his oath of office, told the Juneau Chamber of Commerce the state would pursue lawful, market-based solutions to making insurance affordable and accessible to Alaskans.He said the Florida judge’s ruling is the law of the land, as it pertains to Alaska, barring implementation of the federal law here. He said the state will not pursue “unlawful activity” to implement a regime deemed unconstitutional.He said the state, instead, will pursue options of its own.Alaska was one of 26 states that were party to the Florida lawsuit; however, in other cases, two federal judges have upheld the law and one judge ruled a provision requiring citizens to buy health insurance or face penalties — a major point of contention in the Florida case — is unconstitutional but did not strike down the rest of the law.Hmmmm.....No Mama bear...but a Papa bear,Palin must be having a great day.Read the full story here.

• Military to secure Qaradawi’s access to Tahrir Square. Banned Qaradawi returns to lead Friday prayers in Egypt.For the first time since he was banned from leading weekly friday prayers in Egypt 30 years ago, prominent Muslim scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi will lead thousands in the weekly prayers from Cairo’s Tahrir Square on Friday.Sources told Al Arabiya that a military force will accompany the head of the International Union of Muslim Scholars from his home to Tahrir Square, provide security for the prayers and accompany him back to his residence.Al-Qaradawi last delivered a Friday prayer sermon in Egypt in 1981 after the assassination of former President Anwar el-Sadat.Sheikh Qaradawi confirmed in a telephone call with the German Press Agency that he would lead tomorrow's prayers in Tahrir, with hundreds of thousands expected to attend. Some of Qaradawi's sons and daughters took part the Tahrir demonstrations leading up to the overthrow of the Mubarak.Hmmmm........Thank you Mr president?Read the full story here.

• Pakistan judge orders arrest of US car's driver.A judge on Friday ordered the arrest of the driver of a U.S. vehicle that struck and killed a Pakistani while rushing to help an American detained in a pair of fatal shootings, a lawyer for the victim's family said.The arrest warrant could add to the tensions surrounding the case of the shooter, Raymond Allen Davis. The U.S. insists he was acting in self-defense against robbers and qualifies for diplomatic immunity because he worked for the embassy.The odds of Pakistani police detaining the people in the U.S. car are low. Authorities say they do not know who was in the vehicle, and the Americans have said little on the matter, other than admitting the car was driven by U.S. Embassy staff.The judge's order could be a means of pressuring the U.S. to produce the driver, who has not been identified. But it's highly unlikely that any Americans involved in the traffic accident are still in Pakistan. Employees of the U.S. mission who get into trouble are typically on the first plane out of the country.It's also possible the driver was a Pakistani. U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Courtney Beale on Friday declined to comment on the order other than saying the vehicular incident "is under investigation."Lawyer Asad Manzoor Butt said the family of the struck bystander, Ibadur Rehman, filed a petition with the Lahore High Court seeking to bring attention to his death, which has received far less scrutiny than the deaths of the two men shot earlier Jan. 27 in Lahore.The court's chief justice, Ijaz Chaudhry issued the arrest order, Butt said. On Thursday, the same court gave Pakistan's government three more weeks to determine if Davis has diplomatic immunity as America claims.Hmmmm......Yup senator Kerry's visit solved everything.Read the full story here.

• HT:Rightspeak.Geithner Admits: Obligations in President's Budget "Unsustainable".Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner today admitted under questioning from Sen. Jeff Sessions that the president's own budget, submitted Monday, calls for interest payments and obligations that are "excessively high" and "unsustainable." The president's plan accumulates $13 trillion in new gross debt, with interest payments on the debt rising to $844 billion a year by 2021. Additionally, the president's budget ignores the recommendations of his own fiscal commission, causing the Democrat Co-Chair of the Commission, Erskin Bowles, to remark that the budget "goes nowhere near where they will have to go to resolve our fiscal nightmare."Hmmmmm.......Next he'll say "It's a Zionist plan,because they don't trust me"?Read the full story here.

• ‘Maddie is in America’: Club security man says he has been tracking paedophile ring with links to the UK.Madeleine McCann was kidnapped by a paedophile ring with connections in Britain and could now be in America, a club security man has claimed.Marcelino Italiano believes Maddie may have been kidnapped by the gang and smuggled out of Portugal, where the three-year-old went missing during a family holiday in 2007.The bouncer who worked in the Algarve has reportedly spoken to police and named two suspects. He told the Sun: ‘I know these people were involved and I have been told that Madeleine may now be in America. ‘I can't say how, but I have known these people and believe they can get away with anything.'He also claims to have been attacked by members of the paedophile gang, after he threatened to reveal their identity. Mr Italiano, originally from Angola, is said to have named a London-based associate of the paedophile ring's leader and claimed the ring also targeted orphanages. ‘I think there have been over a dozen children kidnapped. They prey on the weak and vulnerable,’ he told the Sun.'They are ruthless. I have been attacked twice twice for trying to investigate it and even lost my front tooth in one attack.'Mr Italiano, a 6ft 4in bouncer, recently fled Portugal and handed his dossier of claims about Madeleine's disappearance to police in Huelva, Spain, on Monday. He has vowed to stop at nothing to expose the ring.Sightings of Maddie have been reported in North America, Tasmania and Dubai since her disappearance and now Portuguese police and private investigators are looking into his claims.Mr Italiano said the ring was based in the Algarve and his claims have similarities to the Casa Pia ring, six members were jailed for sexually abusing more than 30 children living in Portugese state-run orphanages.A Spanish police source told the Daily Mirror: 'He says he believes the believes Madeleine was taken to the U.S. some time ago that the gang has the capacity to do this.'He is positive they have taken many more children from the area and is convinced they are behind Madeleine's abduction.'The Spanish police has passed the evidence to officers in Portugal.Madeleine was nearly four when she vanished from her family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in the Algarve on May 3, 2007 as her parents dined with friends nearby.Read the full story here.

• Judge Rules Against Obama Administration on Off-Shore Oil Drilling...Again.While President Obama's focus of late has settled on clean energy, his past actions on off-shore oil drilling continue to be debated in both legal and political circles.The latest snag came when a federal judge ruled that the administration has to decide within thirty days whether or not it will grant five deepwater drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman of the Eastern District of Louisiana ruled "the government is under a duty to act by either granting or denying a permit application within a reasonable time. Not acting at all is not a lawful option," he said.After the infamous BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico last year, the Obama administration took an on-again, off-again approach to drilling and has put new off-shore drilling permits on hold due to increased scrutiny over safety. The government's approval process typically takes weeks, but it has amounted to months of waiting for the five applicants in the Louisiana case.Administration lawyers have not yet decided what action to take. "Our attorneys are reviewing the ruling," Justice Department spokesman Wyn Hornbuckle told Fox.The political blowback from Gulf Coast politicians was swift, "I applaud this ruling today. It confirms what [Democratic Louisiana Senator] Landrieu and I have been saying along with virtually every other Louisianian: President Obama's continuing de facto moratorium in the Gulf is inexcusable," said Republican Louisiana Senator David Vitter. "This ruling says it's not only inexcusable but that it violates the law."Earlier this month, the same federal judge held the Interior Department in contempt of court for instituting what many say has amounted to an off-shore drilling moratorium despite his previous ruling against such a moratorium.The delicate drilling issue continues to surface for Mr. Obama and it is now complicated by the fact that the clock is ticking.Hmmmm........Democracy versus Dictatorship?Read the full story here.

• Ahmadinejad: Obama can't spell his own name.Ahead of pro-government rally, Iranian leader says US president 'can't control his emotions'. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attacked Barack Obama on Friday, saying the American president "doesn't even know how to spell his own name properly."During a visit to Bushehr ahead of a scheduled rally in support of his regime, the Iranian leader said, "Obama wants to rule the world, but he can't even control his own emotions."Thousands of Iranians are expected to take to the streets after Friday prayers to show their support for the regime in Tehran and protest against opposition leaders Mir Hussein Moussavi Mehdi Karroubi.A statement issued by the regime in Tehran said, "The public will unite and express hatred toward the barbaric crimes of the incitement leaders and their hypocritical allies." Iranian lawmakers called for opposition leaders to be tried and executed as punishment for the protests that took place in Tehran on Monday and after the disputed 2009 presidential elections.Read the full story here.

• HT:WindsofJihad.Turkish “Council of Europe” Tells Euro Dhimmies Not to Expel Mohammedan Invaders.Who the hell is Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu to tell Europeans “there must be no mass expulsion….?” How come Turkey refuses to accept fellow Muslims from Africa?Europe’s top rights body said Italy must not expel thousands of illegal migrants who arrived in recent days, mainly from Tunisia, but should take responsibility for them.The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe called on Italy to involve UN and other aid agencies in dealing with the migrants, about 5,000 of whom have arrived on its small island of Lampedusa in the past week.“Notwithstanding the need for action, there must be no mass expulsion,” assembly president Mevlut Cavusoglu said in a statement, adding that “those in need of protection must receive it”.“It is necessary to understand why these persons are leaving and to tackle the causes, including the criminal networks which are exploiting the uncertainties in Tunisia,” he said.The migrants who have crossed the Mediterranean from Tunisia are seeking employment in Europe, with their own country unstable a month after the fall of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.Cavusoglu said it was also “absolutely necessary that Europe share the responsibility for these people”.Hmmmm......How about Muslim countries accepting them?Like for example Turkey's friend Iran?Get Turkey out of Europe and  NATO!Read the full story here.

• HT:BigPeace.With Friends Like These…If you’ve been a longtime, stalwart ally of the United States, you’d better run for your life.Since Barack Obama has been president, he has managed to diss each one of our allies, in varying degrees of seriousness from merely insulting to full-on betrayal.Most recently, Obama threw our ally of three decades, now-former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, under the bus in record time. Crowds of indeterminate nature in the streets? See ya, Mubarak! Nice knowin’ ya. Now scram.When he first entered the White House, Obama dissed our greatest ally, the British, by returning a bust of Winston Churchill, the savior of Western civilization. The bust was a gift from the British, but the Bama needed to make room for all of those photos of Michelle with her buff arms, so something had to go. He also dissed the British by giving the Prime Minister DVDs that he was unable to watch on European players, and to the Queen, an iPod….loaded with his own speeches. Her Majesty was all, “WTF?”Not to mention handing over to Russia British nuclear secrets that the British begged Obama not to divulge. Yo, Vlad: the Brits have 6 nuclear subs fitted with 30 nuclear warheads each. Liz: don’t sweat it. it’s just your top secret national security stuff.He dissed the French by arriving in Paris only to turn down a dinner invitation from French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Seriously: no one does that. Not only is that a breach of presidential protocol, but it’s stupid. Have the Obamas ever tasted French food??And he has royally dissed our great Israeli allies, by publicly and relentlessly demanding an end to settlement construction—without demanding reciprocal concessions from the Palestinian side. Now we hear that Team Obama is taking the diss a step further and will support a U.N. Security Council statement rebuking Israel over the settlements issue. The Middle East is aflame, Israel’s enemies are on the march, there may not be an Israeli-Egyptian peace much longer, Iran is now on all sides of Israel in the form of Hamas and Hezbollah, and Iran itself is working feverishly on a nuclear weapon with which to destroy Israel, and Obama thinks now would be a good time to turn our back on her.This is how he treats our friends. But if you’re an enemy of the United States, no problem! Let’s talk, Iran! Let’s negotiate, Russia! Let’s deal, North Korea! Sit down for a splashy state dinner, China! What up, Hugo Chavez!You can’t treat allies like this and expect them to be allies for long. Maybe that’s the point. Maybe the point is to poison our strongest and best relationships and reward our enemies. Maybe the point is to weaken the United States and our place in the world in order to create….a new world order….in which we have been taken down and the bad guys have been elevated. The actions of the American president have followed enough of a pattern for enough time that it’s clear he’s more comfortable in bed with the bad guys than with our friends.Obama has taken us into the years of living dangerously.Hmmmm.....If you wanted to destroy America would you do anything different?Read the full story here.

• House GOP Passes Budget Amendment Blocking Funding for Obama’s Army of “Czars”…The House GOP approved an amendment to a government-spending bill that would block funding for the Obama administration’s so-called policy “czars,” appointed advisers to the president that have been much-criticized by Republicans.The amendment, offered by Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), specifically targets Obama’s “climate czar” by blocking funding for the assistant to the president for energy and climate change, the position’s official title. The amendment would block funding for the ‘czars’ through the end of the fiscal year, when the spending bill would run out. The underlying bill also includes a provision to block funding for the position.“I think this sends a strong signal to the president that we are tired of him running this shadow government, where they have got these czars that are literally circumventing the accountability and scrutiny that goes with Senate confirmation,” Scalise said after the vote.Carol Browner, who currently holds the position, announced last month that she will resign, leaving the future of the office is very much in doubt.Hmmmm......What would be the chances that he mobilises his Oprichniki now and sends us all to the Gulag?Read the full story here.

• HT:EmergingCorruption.Teachers Union Thugs Comparing People to Hitler, Shutting Down Schools, Losing Their Argument.One cannot be a leftist without being a hypocrite. It really is just that simple. The last several days in Wisconsin has again born that truism out, too, as teachers union thugs in the Badger State have indulged every manner of behavior that they have constantly condemned the right for engaging in — even as no one on the right has actually done the things the left charges them with doing. With the protests that swept down upon the State Capitol in Madison we are seeing the sort of behavior that is the antithesis of democracy. These teacher thugs are flooding into the capitol disrupting the state senate chambers, these teacher thugs are sporting signs with Governor Walker depicted as Hitler, these teacher thugs are attempting to thwart the will of the voters that put a Republican Governor into office to do exactly what he is trying to do, these teacher thugs are even making a pig sty out of the capitol grounds with piles and piles of garbage.So what is all this about? Simply that the State of Wisconsin is out of money and can no longer afford to pay public employees more in wages, benefits, and pensions than anyone in the private sector can make. Newly elected Governor Scott Walker ran on a platform of reigning in the greedy, overpaid unions and he is now making good on that campaign issue.Worse, these teacher thugs have shut down the schools and taken the kids from the schools to the state capitol to whine for the union agenda. Imagine how up in arms the left would be if conservatives had taken kids out of school to take them to a political rally!In fact, Walker’s goal, he has said, is to avoid laying off public employees. He hopes that by asking union members to pay a tiny bit more into their own pensions and healthcare will take pressure off the bankrupt state’s coffers. He hopes that the hike in premiums will help keep the employees at work. If he cannot get these concessions, though, he’ll be forced to begin massive layoffs.Sadly, instead of seeing reality writing on the wall, unions are doubling down on their anti-democratic, greedy, unsustainable demands. They realize that they are fast losing the complete lock on power they once had and instead of making logical concessions they are making it war to the hilt.The American people are about sick of these union thugs. Prepare for the teachers to lose all sympathy from the voters.Read the full story here.More here from Michelle Malkin.

• HT:Familysecuritymatters.The Gypper And The Gipper.Identity Theft and the Obama Presidency.In one of the most bizarre political gambits in our history, President Obama and his dwindling band of cheerleaders—nervously eyeing the big game in 2012—have been trying to cast an over-inflated community organizer as the reincarnation of the Gipper.It ain’t working.No matter how often Obama drops President Reagan’s name or how shamelessly his flaks attempt to link this shrinking, spineless president to the bold, visionary giant who turned a broken nation around, nobody’s buying this preposterous propaganda.Comparing Barack Obama to Ronald Reagan is like comparing Bernie Madoff to Warren Buffett: Hustling your clients isn’t heroism, and fraud’s not a formula for enduring success.At a press conference last Tuesday, Obama couldn’t restrain himself from invoking Reagan’s name yet again, associating him with Tip O’Neill (another disgraceful linkage). But you only had to listen to that presser or read the transcript to grasp the immense distance between Obama/Hamlet, forever wringing his hands and wondering, “To be, or not to be?” and Reagan/Henry V embracing a battle the Washington court heralds insisted he could not win.Obama isn’t another Ronald Reagan. He’s Jimmy Carter Lite, a deer in the headlights of history, overwhelmed by international crises he doesn’t understand and that don’t make any sense in the politically correct world-view he brought to the Oval Office. This is a president who can’t even stand up to Pakistan, let alone lead the free world through the present Valley of the Shadow.And he still blames George W. Bush for everything from excessive spending to the Black Death.Reagan understood that our nation’s borders stood for something. Obama thinks we should be ashamed of them. Reagan fought illegal drugs. Obama enjoyed them. Reagan took a bullet and shrugged it off as part of the job. Obama can’t take hard questions from reporters.Nonetheless, get ready for Obama on horseback, wearing a ten-gallon hat and popping jelly beans.It’s “Mourning In America.”Hmmmmm........Amen.Read the full story here.

• HT:RedState.The Battle is in Front of You: What are YOU going to do about it?Get Connected. Get Engaged. Get Activated...Or Get Crushed.At this very moment, the battle for America’s future is happening in states all around the country as newly-elected governors try to wrest control from tax-eating unions. Today’s battle is just the beginning of what America will be facing through 2012 and beyond. It is a battle that, if lost, will likely have catastrophic consequences on the fiscal well being of many of the states and, as a result, the nation as a whole.Nowhere is the fight the loudest than in Wisconsin, where over 10,000 union supporters protested Madison’s Capitol Square on Tuesday and about 1,000 protesters demonstrated outside Governor Scott Walker’s private home Tuesday night. Hundreds of union protesters also packed Ohio’s statehouse on Tuesday to condemn Governor Kasich’s efforts to stem the union bosses’ power and reign in out of control spending. In Indiana, hundreds of Steelworkers descended on the Hoosier’ statehouse to protest unemployment reform as well. Even in New York, with a Democrat governor, unions are spending millions on fighting reform.Make no mistake, this is a battle for America’s economic future. It is one that will ultimately decide whether Americans will be enslaved by debt created by a government beholden to public-sector union bosses, or whether some sort of fiscal sanity can be restored before the system collapses due to the weight from years of cronyism.Read the full story here.

• HT:WindsOfJihad."The war on Christianity".Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia: “We don’t need the Torah, or Gospels, or any other book. … their role has ended, and there is no longer any place for them. The Qur’an has become dominant over them, and a substitute for all of them…”.The mask comes off. The Islamic replacement theology reveals its ugly face:[see Qur’an 3:62; 11:49; and 12:1-3].

The philosopher Maimonides, a Jew who lived for a time in Muslim Spain and then fled that supposedly tolerant and pluralistic land, remarked, “You know, my brethren, that on account of our sins God has cast us into the midst of this people, the nation of Ishmael, who persecute us severely, and who devise ways to harm us and to debase us.…No nation has ever done more harm to Israel. None has matched it in debasing and humiliating us. None has been able to reduce us as they have.…We have borne their imposed degradation, their lies, and absurdities, which are beyond human power to bear.”

Notably, Maimonides directed that Jews could teach rabbinic law to Christians, but not to Muslims. For Muslims, he said, will interpret what they are taught “according to their erroneous principles and they will oppress us. [F]or this reason … they hate all [non-Muslims] who live among them.” But the Christians, he said, “admit that the text of the Torah, such as we have it, is intact”—as opposed to the Islamic view that the Jews and Christians have corrupted their scriptures. Christians, continued Maimonides, “do not find in their religious law any contradiction with ours.” Source.Read the full story here.

• House Passes Amendment to Block Funds for Net Neutrality Order.The House passed an amendment Thursday that would bar the Federal Communications Commission from using any funding to implement the network-neutrality order it approved in December.The amendment, approved on a 244-181 vote, was offered by Energy and Commerce Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., to legislation that would fund government agencies for the rest of fiscal year 2011.Walden and other critics of the FCC's net-neutrality order argue it will stifle innovation and investment in broadband. The order aims to bar broadband providers from discriminating against Internet content, services, or applications."If left unchallenged, this claim of authority would allow the FCC to regulate any matter it discussed in the national broadband plan," Walden said.If the defunding effort fails, Republicans are pursuing a second route to try to block the FCC's open-Internet order. Walden and other Republicans in both the House and the Senate introduced on Wednesday a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act, which would give lawmakers a limited amount of time to try to block the FCC's net-neutrality rules.President Obama, who supports the FCC's net neutrality order, has threatened to veto the spending measure if it cuts government programs too deeply.Hmmmm......Of course we can't have democracy in my world.Read the full story here.

• Iran accuses opposition chiefs of treason.TEHRAN — Iran on Thursday accused opposition leaders of treason and vowed to block their ability to communicate with their supporters on the eve of a pro-regime "hatred" rally against them in Tehran.But in a defiant move, opposition websites posted calls for fresh nationwide rallies on Sunday to mourn the deaths of two people slain in Monday's anti-government protests, while opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi reportedly reiterated he was ready to face a public trial.Karroubi and fellow opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi are under de facto house arrest but have regularly issued messages to their supporters through their websites, including one which led to anti-government protests on Monday that left two people dead and several wounded.The protests angered regime-backers and prompted furious MPs to demand the execution of the pair, who were once pillars of the Islamic establishment."The treason committed by the movement of sedition leaders is not hidden from anyone," Iran's chief of judiciary Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA."This group which has rebelled against the religious government should know that while maintaining Islamic compassion we will not tolerate the establishment being compromised."Larijani said steps were being taken by the judiciary against the two and that the authorities were targeting their communication networks.Despite the angry outbursts from regime backers, Karroubi issued an Internet statement on Wednesday saying he was "ready to pay any price," while Mousavi in a similar way stated that Monday's protests were a "glorious achievement."And on Thursday, Mojtaba Vahidi, an aide to Karroubi, said that the cleric had reiterated to him that he was "ready for a public trial", according to Karroubi's website, Sahamnews.org.Prior to Karroubi's latest remark, an opposition group vowing allegiance to the two leaders, used the Internet again to issue a call for new nationwide rallies on Sunday to mourn the deaths of the two people at Monday's protests."We invite the noble Iranian nation to attend gatherings in Tehran and other cities on Sunday ... to commemorate the seventh day of martyrdom of the beloved," the Council for Coordination of the Green Movement Hope said in a statement on Kaleme.com, website of Mousavi and on Sahamnews.org.It said the Sunday rallies were also intended to show "decisive support" to the stance taken by Mousavi and Karroubi in "continuing on the difficult path of freedom and human dignity."It will "also show solidarity with our Kurdish countrymen in honouring the blood of these two dear Sunni and Shiite Iranians which was spilled while fighting religious tyranny."Sane'e Zhale, a Sunni Kurd, and Mohammad Mokhtari, a Shiite, were killed in Monday's protest.With regime-backers baying for blood, the Islamic Propagation Coordination Council, the body organising regime-backed programmes, has called for a rally against the opposition on Friday.Those joining the rally, the council said, will "scream out their hatred, wrath and disgust against the savage crimes and evil movements of sedition leaders, their Monafeghin (hypocrites) and their monarchist allies."Read the full story here.

• Iran 'hatred' rally demands opposition chiefs be hanged.Tens of thousands of regime loyalists poured into the streets of Tehran on Friday to demand that opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi be hanged for their “rebellion.”“Death to Mousavi! Death to Karroubi! Mousavi, Karroubi should be hanged!” worshippers chanted as they emerged from Friday prayers at Tehran University to join crowds of loyalists marching toward the prominent Enghelab (Revolution) Square.Many among the vast crowds were carrying posters of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and chanting “Allahu Akbar!” or “God is great” as they railed against Mousavi and Karroubi, both former pillars of the Islamic regime.In his Friday prayer sermon, the hard-line cleric Ayatollah Ahmad Janati, the head of the powerful Guardians Council, demanded the total isolation of Mousavi and Karroubi as worshippers chanted “American servants, shame on you!”Janati said the judiciary must “cut access [of Mousavi and Karroubi] with the people completely, the doors of their homes must be shut... so that they can’t receive and give messages, their phones... Internet must be cut and they [must] be imprisoned in their homes.The supporters of Mousavi and Karroubi remain defiant and have mobilized supporters through the Internet, calling for nationwide rallies Sunday to mourn the deaths of the two slain in Monday’s protests.The Sunday rallies are also intended to show “decisive support” to Mousavi and Karroubi for “continuing on the difficult path of freedom and human dignity,” the Council for Coordination of the Green Movement Hope said in a statement on Kaleme.com and Sahamnews.org, the websites of Mousavi and Karroubi.Hmmmm.......No word from Pres Obama probably too busy organising his Motown party?Read the full story here.

• Big Brother going NANO? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's the army's latest $4million spy drone disguised as a hummingbird, measuring just 16 centimetres.A pocket-sized spy drone disguised as a hummingbird has been unveiled by a major Pentagon contractor measuring just 16 centimetres and weighing less than an AA battery.The mini spy plane can fly up to 11 miles an hour and took five years to develop at a cost of $4million.Army chiefs hope to use the drone’s tiny camera to spy on enemy positions in war zones without arousing detection and eventually deploy it into both rural and urban environments.Around 86 per cent of its orders come from the Government, meaning last year it was paid a whopping $215million from the Department of Defense.The company, based in California with 732 full-time employees, expects to sell even more drones to the Government once rules are relaxed to allow spying within America.The unveiling of the Hummingbird comes just weeks after the same company launched its $30million Global Observer with a wingspan similar to a Boeing 747 which can survey an area as large as Afghanistan.Chris Fisher, project manager at AeroVironment explained: ‘It gives the guy on the ground the opportunity to see what’s on the other side of the hill. There’s only so much you can see with binoculars. A small [drone] can get up and go over the hill. That gives the ground soldier a capability that is huge.He added: ‘One of the things we benefit from is the average young person in the military has hours and hours of video games experience. They are attuned to holding these things in their hands; moving the joysticks around with their thumbs and that’s how our planes are flown. To an 18-year-old it’s extremely simple.Hmmmm.....Hummingbirds are restricted to the Americas from southern Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, including the Caribbean. The majority of species occur in tropical and subtropical Central and South America."To spy on enemy positions in war zones"?Read the full story here.