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DEL.ICIO.USProperty taxes, environmental extremists, lighten up
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Not surprising that some state officials are willing to sacrifice the $428 million homeowners’ property tax break —- amounting to about $150 to $200 per year per homeowner —- to cover a revenue shortfall. Former Gov. Roy Barnes started it and state officials have never thought they got proper credit for it. Same with the sales tax exemption on food. Lots of money “spent” on tax relief —- to use the phrase of the more-government crowd —- without “buying” any gratitude. Still, House Speaker Pro Tem Mark Burkhalter (R-Johns Creek) vows that won’t happen. Taking the break away “is analogous to a tax increase, and we’re not going to do that,” said he.
Georgia needs a spending cap.
Environmental extremists oppose all efforts to add capacity —- oil, water or highway. Why? Managing shortages gives them the power to tell you where and how to live. It’s a life-control tool. When you see the word “alternatives” to more drilling, reservoirs or road capacity, it’s code for dig-in-the-heels opposition to solutions.
Obama thinks McCain had prior notice of the questions asked in their joint interview at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif. It can appear that way when the other guy’s prepared. The inexperienced Obama may not know what he believes, but he’s certain about this: He wouldn’t have nominated Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court because he doesn’t think he was “a strong enough jurist or legal thinker at the time.” What arrogance. Obama was in the U.S. Senate for two years when he announced his presidential candidacy.
Best explanatory quote of the week: “People get away with things and they mushroom,” said lawyer Jimmy Berry in explaining why Georgia Tech employee Donna Renee Gamble stole $316,000 with a state credit card. “She did it a few times; there were no checks and balances at the school, and it took off from there.” He just explained crime in America.
Good or bad, we get the behaviors we pay for. Mortgage brokers who signed up borrowers for high-interest/high-fee “liar loan” mortgages —- those requiring no verification of job, income or assets —- could make $15,000 on a $300,000 loan. A traditional loan would net $2,000 to $4,000. No surprise. Half of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac losses of $3.1 billion between April and June were due to liar loans. Invite people to rip off any business or government program, or to immigrate illegally, and they will. See Jimmy Berry on “no checks and balances. …”
An Orlando newspaper reporter notes that McCain got a better reception among veterans attending a VFW convention than Obama. That information was conveyed thusly: “But McCain was the clear favorite among the predominantly older, white male crowd. …” Perhaps the louder applause was because McCain is a fellow veteran, was deemed to be the better leader on national security issues, or because he’s an older white male?
Liberals and conservatives are alarmed about the growing national deficit —- but with liberals it’s never when proposing new entitlements. The deficit to be feared is the one caused by military spending and the one that exists because of tax breaks granted to “the rich.” The act of supreme political courage for a liberal is to agonize publicly before agreeing that, darn it, taxes have to go up to support their favored programs. Sad thing is, there’s no constituency left, or not much of one, in either party for being fiscally responsible. And when there is, the “solution” is to raise taxes. Always. And promise restraint.
Take a deep breath. Count to 10 —- and then don’t say dumb things, like the response to a report that State School Superintendent Kathy Cox will appear on the game show “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” The quote is from Tim Callahan of the Professional Association of Georgia Educators, which at one time did not act and sound like a union. Said Callahan: “The budget is in meltdown, the CRCT is a mess and you have a superintendent in Hollywood taping a game show. It gives new definition to the word ‘frivolous.’ ” Lighten up, bud.
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Comments
By TW
August 22, 2008 8:22 AM | Link to this
The next time you hear John McCain talking about ‘fit to lead,’ remember this –
John McCain thinks we ought to make room for George W. Bush on Mt. Rushmore.
No thanks.
By shibuii
August 22, 2008 8:34 AM | Link to this
TW
That would suck…when did that happen?
Show me a direct quote from McCain that says that, and I’ll buy you a spot of your favorite tea.
I am by no means a McCain supporter (I plan on voting for Bob Barr), but it incenses me when the Obamaites try to paint JMc as “Bush III” - would Obama be “Carter Jr.”?
No matter what happens this election, you will get “Change”…just what kind of change do you want?
By TW
August 22, 2008 8:51 AM | Link to this
shibuii - is Bob Barr the guy who ate the cheese made of milk from Borat’s mama’s teat?
By bearcasey
August 22, 2008 8:54 AM | Link to this
High priced gasoline is a “tax” that we cannot avoid, at least in the short run. Republicans sure understand economics. Yeah, right.
The real estate and mortgage markets, the true engines of our economy, are in a shambles. Republicans sure understand economics. Yeah, right.
We’re pouring 3 billion dollars a week into Iraq whose people don’t give a rats a$$ about Americans. Think of what we COULD do with that money…. alternative power research, health care, infrastructure repair, education, etc. Republicans sure understnd economics. Yeah, right.
The war on terror. It would be considerably cheaper and more effective to follow the Israeli model. Study what the Israeli’s did following the 1972 Munich Olympic massacre. They formed small “hit squads” and killed every single person associated with the massacre. Of course, they were not worried about the profits of huge military defense contractors.
“W” is the least intelligent president since Warren G. Harding. The Republican Party must be punished for inflicting him on us. If W’s” last name was not Bush… he would be selling used cars in Roswell.
By Ragnar Danneskjöld
August 22, 2008 8:58 AM | Link to this
Good morning all. Rep Burkhalter sounds like a good guy, Horatius at the bridge.
I not sure Georgia needs a cap so much as a diaper, to keep it from leaking out.
To add a note on the controlling environmental socialists, not only do they limit and otherwise prohibit the free market from working, they demand wasteful corporate welfare for pie-in-the-sky schemes that will mostly benefit other leftists. No energy miracles exist out there. Just let us drill, and let us build nukes.
Saddleback is a triumph for McCain and an irredeemably dead loss for Obama. Each showed the same thing he has been showing on the stump – but placed side by side without a teleprompter the differences are stark.
Actually Donna Renee Gamble is the essence of legislative spending – they do it a few times, nobody objects, and it mushrooms. Note moonbats, I am not citing democrats only – there are republican earmarkers too.
Funny thing on the mortgages, the “no doc” loans are technically not “subprime” – so how did our democrat Congress rein in the bizarre new area of losses at FNMA and FHLMC? They increased the amounts FNMA and FHLMC can lend. My regret is that republicans failed to pull the plug when they had control.
Re VFW, I think it reasonable that wrinkly white haired dudes will appreciate McCain, and hip-hop clubbers will appreciate Obama. There are two Americas, and we merely have to decide which is the more responsible group, which is more fit to run the government.
As to “deficit hawks” I agree that the Democrats will accelerate entitlement spending and starve the military, they always do. Republicans always support the military, but we see schizophrenia in the party image – we have earmark republicans, like our two Georgia senators, and we have responsible conservative republicans, like the gang of four Jim lauded in the column a couple of weeks ago. Since the democrats are unwilling to take themselves off the spending binge, it falls to republicans to elect the right type of republican going forward. Every earmark republican needs a primary challenge.
Callahan is an Obamacrat – humorless and self-serving. By any measure the “problems” in education are small potatoes compared to the self-imposed energy crisis we suffer, which can be cured only by intelligent congressional leadership. Unless we can reduce senate moonbats below 40 – not at all likely near term – we will never be able to make any real headway on the serious problem. Why is Callahan not focused on the more serious energy problem? Because he is self-serving, a one-note samba. “Frivolous” is the inability to distinguish truly serious problems like terrorism and stupid energy policy from the normal partisan sniping.
By Doug
August 22, 2008 9:16 AM | Link to this
I never know when the knee-jerk conservatives are lying or just plain ignorant. Drilling in Alaska is like selling the family silver for another bottle of booze. If you don’t, eventually you’ll be out of booze. If you do, you’ll eventually be out of booze and silver. Either way you lose. And as for adding capacity - Atlanta has been adding capacity to its roads for decades. Helped a lot, hasn’t it. Traffic is so light and free-flowing because of the wider highways.
Idiots.
By zeke
August 22, 2008 9:25 AM | Link to this
bearcasey must be a product of government schools! Does not have a factual understanding of ANYTHING! W. is extremely intelligent, he is not Clinton or Carter thank GOD! McCain may not be the ideal candidate, but, he is a thousand percent better than Obama any day! If you want the US to turn into the failed Soviet Union, vote for Obama and continue to support and vote for liberals, socialist marxist, communist, and, oh yes, progressives! The USA is NOT A DEMOCRACY. IT IS A DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC! The Founders well understood the fallacy of a populist democracy and put forth the Constitution and Ammendments to keep that from happening! Senators were to be representative of the states and their voice in national matters! Then the liberal socialist changed that so that there is direct popular election and took away the balance from the states on the feds! Now they want to change the electoral college so that they can create a populist anarchy and destroy the freedoms, rights and priviledges we have! the constant banter and agenda that everyone has a constitutional right to vote is a TOTAL LIE! There is no constitutional right to vote, and, we need to start putting qualifiications on who can vote for what! Welfare recipients and other s who receive handouts from the taxpayers shall not vote on any law, rule or policy that directly affects their handout! Non owners of property shall not vote on anything that will increase taxes or limit the use of property owners! Those who cannot read, write or comprehend new laws or rules cannot vote on them! Those under 35 cannot vote for President. Those under 30 cannot vote for Senators. Those under 25 cannot vote for Representatives! The most ridiculous of things is that you cannot legally, responsibly drink if under 21, but, you can vote for President or Congress at 18! STUPID!!!! We constantly hear that we must increase taxes on the “rich” so that they pay their fair share. What crap! The top 1% of earners pays more than 50% of the taxes now! That is definitely not fair! The death tax is another DOUBLE TAXATION illegal under the Constitution! I am not wealth and will not be! But, if Dell, Gates or Buffet have earned billions of dollars, they should be able to pass it ALL to their children, grandchildren or anyone they want without additional taxes! IT IS TIME FOR THE US TO BAN LIBERALS, SOCIALIST, COMMUNIST, MARXIST, FASCIST, MAOIST, POPULIST, UNIONS, ANARCHIST ACTIVISTS GROUPS AND ANY OTHER THAT DO NOT HAVE THE GOOD OF THE COUNTRY, OUR LANGUAGE, OUR CULTURE, OUR BORDERS OR OUR CONSTITUTION AT THEIR CORE!!!
THE FAIR TAX- THE FAIR TAX- THE FAIR TAX!!!
By zeke's mom
August 22, 2008 9:56 AM | Link to this
zeke is a bit off his meds today. the doctor warned us. sorry about that.
By Peter
August 22, 2008 10:00 AM | Link to this
The only real fair tax is on consumption period !
By Jake
August 22, 2008 10:24 AM | Link to this
zeke - Anne Cox Chambers, one of the 30 richest people in the world, pays a lower percentage of her $1B annual income than I do on my 5 figures. And she doesn’t even work, well she is almost 90, she just owns stuff. Do you think that’s fair? We need to repeal the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.
By getalife "whiners"
August 22, 2008 10:26 AM | Link to this
START EACH DAY WITH A POSITIVE OUTLOOK: 1. Open a new file in your computer. 2. Name it ‘George W. Bush’. 3. Send it to the Recycle Bin. 4. Empty the Recycle Bin. 5. Your PC will ask you:’Do you really want to get rid of ‘George W. Bush’? 6. Firmly Click ‘Yes.’ 7. Feel better?
GOOD. Tomorrow we’ll do Dick Cheney!
By Dennis
August 22, 2008 10:30 AM | Link to this
Mr. Wooten writes, “Environmental extremists oppose all efforts to add capacity —- oil, water or highway. Why? Managing shortages gives them the power to tell you where and how to live. It’s a life-control tool. When you see the word “alternatives” to more drilling, reservoirs or road capacity, it’s code for dig-in-the-heels opposition to solutions.”
He should say developmental extreamist support all efforts to add capacity —- oil, water or highway. Why? Managing shortages gives them the power to tell you where and how to live. It’s a life-control tool.
When you see the words “more development needed” it’s code for dig-in-the-heels to all opposition to rip-off the public and make more money for special interests.
You don’t have to be a blind conservative not to see it, just an ignorant one to deny it.
By @@
August 22, 2008 10:50 AM | Link to this
Hi’ya Jim. It’s FUN for FREE? Alrighty then….
Sacrificing the property tax break? I’m curious — if they did, where would I find the “judicial fee at?” Capping it off with the politician’s creed “What’s yours is mine, and what’s mine is mine.”
Environmental extremists? Never take away an environmentalist’s dream. It’s really all they’ve got. Instead, take away the public’s at large.
OBlahMa, the victim of a RWC. OBlahMa, the intolerant of success.
Georgia Tech employee? And then sometimes people are mushrooms. They thrive in crap.
Subprime loans? Bush 41 placed way too much trust in people. First, Saddam Hussein….then the American consumer.
McCain - Veterans - The Media? The MSM sees no reason to invest in either regardless of the return. ‘Tis better to “be warriors” for OBlahMa.
The protectiveness that reporters showed during the early primaries made it difficult for his rivals to effectively criticize him.
If the media did not actually win the Democratic nomination for Barack Obama, they surely made it a whole lot easier.
Democratic fools watching, and taking minutes….
Alarmed about the deficit? How right you are Jim. The only deficit that concerns politicians is the absence of snacks on their buffet table.
Callahan, Professional Assoc. of GA Educators? Looks like he took the test without an eraser on his pencil Jim.
“The budget is in meltdown, the CRCT is a mess…????
Uh Yeah! And……………?
By @@
August 22, 2008 10:56 AM | Link to this
Whoops!
Democratic fools are watching, and taking minutes….
IHB
By BWG
August 22, 2008 10:59 AM | Link to this
I was going to write a long rebuttle to this column, but why bother? It is chock full of the lies that Republicans have been spreading for years. The simple truth is the United States was once a great nation, with high morals, ideals, and prosperity but has now become a debtor nation which no one in the world looks up to anymore. 12 Billion dollars a month going to a war that we should not even be fighting. Education that is so bad the entire world is doing better. The only industrialized country in the world that doesn’t provide health care for its citizens. I could go on and on…
By The Inconvenient Hypocritical Truth About Worthless Leftist SCUM!!
August 22, 2008 11:00 AM | Link to this
Why haven’t the Left got Georgia on their minds?
Pity I was away last week. I must have missed the march through London against the Russian invasion of Georgia. What a magnificent sight it must have been - half a million protesters standing firm against tyranny and supporting freedom and democracy.
I’d have loved to have heard Red Ken LIvingstone denouncing the bloodthirsty gangster regime in Moscow, George Galloway comparing Vladimir Putin to Hitler and Tony Benn declaring it was all about oil.
What’s that you say? There was no such rally? I suppose they must all have been too busy demonstrating against Chinese oppression in Tibet and demanding a boycott of the Beijing Olympics.
Or perhaps not. Funny how the Not In My Name crowd always overlooks aggression by Communist or ‘former’ Communist regimes.
There’s no such reticence when it comes to portraying George W. Bush as the new Hitler or daubing swastikas on the Israeli flag. Look at the protests against the wars in Iraq and Lebanon.
The same people who can’t wait to burn the American flag in Trafalgar Square are only too happy to ignore Russian, Chinese and Iraqi genocide.
Where were all the marchers when the Russians were crushing Chechnya? Why so silent on Tibet? They must have been looking the other way when Saddam slaughtered the Kurds.
It hasn’t been difficult to find apologists for the invasion of Georgia. We’re told that the ‘American-educated’ Mikhail Saakashvili provoked the Russians beyond all reason. What did we expect encouraging the spread of democracy in former Soviet satellite states?
No wonder Moscow feels threatened when independent countries it once ruled by military might become members of the European Union and apply to join Nato.
Putting a Western missile defence system in Poland is like waving a red rag at a bull, the sophisticates say. Putin has no option but to retaliate.
I don’t remember them demanding the withdrawal of Soviet nukes pointing at Western capitals from East Germany. Back then, the Guardianistas were all for one-sided disarmament on our part.
The Left has always been picky about their protests. While they rightly denounce white racism in South Africa, they stay silent on black racism in Zimbabwe.
They bang on about American cultural imperialism, but have nothing to say about Russian or Chinese military imperialism.
America is constantly denounced for its ‘yuman rites’ abuses, but you never hear a dicky bird about the denial of basic freedoms in China or throughout the Muslim world.
Europe’s Leftists define themselves by their hatred of the U.S., yet cheerfully tolerate all kinds of tyranny elsewhere. They’re against ‘torture’ at Guantanamo Bay, but take a relaxed view of Chinese and Russian death squads.
There are still plenty of ‘comrades’ in the Labour Party and the trades union movement who regret the day the Berlin Wall came tumbling down. They’re only too willing to give succour to the enemies of freedom and democracy around the world.
So the official line is that the war in Iraq was nothing to do with Saddam boasting that he had weapons of mass destruction and defying a whole slew of United Nations resolutions to which he agreed after the liberation of Kuwait. It was all about oil.
Yet the invasion of Georgia was justified because Russia was ‘provoked’. So we can assume that Putin never gave a moment’s thought to Georgia’s pipeline to the West?
What about the announcement last week by a Russian general that Poland was now a prime target for a nuclear strike because it had the audacity to agree to site a Nato defence shield within its borders?
I must have missed the CND press release on that one.
A new survey says that British attitudes towards the United States are governed by ignorance of the facts.
For instance, most people here and in Europe believe America sold Saddam most of his arsenal. The truth is that just 0.46per cent of Iraq’s weapons came from the U.S. Russia supplied 57 per cent, China 12 per cent and the cheese-eating surrender monkeys across the Channel were responsible for 13 per cent.
The U.S. is routinely portrayed as anti-Islamic. But in 11 out of 12 of the most recent conflicts between Muslims and non-Muslims, America has sided with the Muslims.
Other widespread myths such as Americans being denied medical care if they don’t have health insurance are simply not true. Filthy, unregulated Russian and Chinese factories and power stations spew out poisonous gases, but America is branded the world’s biggest polluter, even though it has done more to cut carbon emissions since the year 2000 than any other country.
The ‘liberal’ media has a vested interest in perpetuating such lies. The Left seems to be gripped with some kind of political penis envy of America, which can be assuaged only by sucking up to tyrants and dictators.
If we are entering a new Cold War, you can guarantee that the Left will once again be on the wrong side.
There’s nothing new in this. Forty years ago this summer, the big demonstrations in London were against America’s war against communist North Vietnam, not the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia.
So no change there, then.
By The Inconvenient Hypocritical Truth About Worthless Leftist SCUM!!
August 22, 2008 11:06 AM | Link to this
Why haven’t the Left got Georgia on their minds?
Pity I was away last week. I must have missed the march through London against the Russian invasion of Georgia. What a magnificent sight it must have been - half a million protesters standing firm against tyranny and supporting freedom and democracy.
I’d have loved to have heard Red Ken LIvingstone denouncing the bloodthirsty gangster regime in Moscow, George Galloway comparing Vladimir Putin to Hitler and Tony Benn declaring it was all about oil.
What’s that you say? There was no such rally? I suppose they must all have been too busy demonstrating against Chinese oppression in Tibet and demanding a boycott of the Beijing Olympics.
Or perhaps not. Funny how the Not In My Name crowd always overlooks aggression by Communist or ‘former’ Communist regimes.
There’s no such reticence when it comes to portraying George W. Bush as the new Hitler or daubing swastikas on the Israeli flag. Look at the protests against the wars in Iraq and Lebanon.
The same people who can’t wait to burn the American flag in Trafalgar Square are only too happy to ignore Russian, Chinese and Iraqi genocide.
Where were all the marchers when the Russians were crushing Chechnya? Why so silent on Tibet? They must have been looking the other way when Saddam slaughtered the Kurds.
It hasn’t been difficult to find apologists for the invasion of Georgia. We’re told that the ‘American-educated’ Mikhail Saakashvili provoked the Russians beyond all reason. What did we expect encouraging the spread of democracy in former Soviet satellite states?
No wonder Moscow feels threatened when independent countries it once ruled by military might become members of the European Union and apply to join Nato.
Putting a Western missile defence system in Poland is like waving a red rag at a bull, the sophisticates say. Putin has no option but to retaliate.
I don’t remember them demanding the withdrawal of Soviet nukes pointing at Western capitals from East Germany. Back then, the Guardianistas were all for one-sided disarmament on our part.
The Left has always been picky about their protests. While they rightly denounce white racism in South Africa, they stay silent on black racism in Zimbabwe.
They bang on about American cultural imperialism, but have nothing to say about Russian or Chinese military imperialism.
America is constantly denounced for its ‘yuman rites’ abuses, but you never hear a dicky bird about the denial of basic freedoms in China or throughout the Muslim world.
Europe’s Leftists define themselves by their hatred of the U.S., yet cheerfully tolerate all kinds of tyranny elsewhere. They’re against ‘torture’ at Guantanamo Bay, but take a relaxed view of Chinese and Russian death squads.
There are still plenty of ‘comrades’ in the Labour Party and the trades union movement who regret the day the Berlin Wall came tumbling down. They’re only too willing to give succour to the enemies of freedom and democracy around the world.
So the official line is that the war in Iraq was nothing to do with Saddam boasting that he had weapons of mass destruction and defying a whole slew of United Nations resolutions to which he agreed after the liberation of Kuwait. It was all about oil.
Yet the invasion of Georgia was justified because Russia was ‘provoked’. So we can assume that Putin never gave a moment’s thought to Georgia’s pipeline to the West?
What about the announcement last week by a Russian general that Poland was now a prime target for a nuclear strike because it had the audacity to agree to site a Nato defence shield within its borders?
I must have missed the CND press release on that one.
A new survey says that British attitudes towards the United States are governed by ignorance of the facts.
For instance, most people here and in Europe believe America sold Saddam most of his arsenal. The truth is that just 0.46per cent of Iraq’s weapons came from the U.S. Russia supplied 57 per cent, China 12 per cent and the cheese-eating surrender monkeys across the Channel were responsible for 13 per cent.
The U.S. is routinely portrayed as anti-Islamic. But in 11 out of 12 of the most recent conflicts between Muslims and non-Muslims, America has sided with the Muslims.
Other widespread myths such as Americans being denied medical care if they don’t have health insurance are simply not true. Filthy, unregulated Russian and Chinese factories and power stations spew out poisonous gases, but America is branded the world’s biggest polluter, even though it has done more to cut carbon emissions since the year 2000 than any other country.
The ‘liberal’ media has a vested interest in perpetuating such lies. The Left seems to be gripped with some kind of political penis envy of America, which can be assuaged only by sucking up to tyrants and dictators.
If we are entering a new Cold War, you can guarantee that the Left will once again be on the wrong side.
There’s nothing new in this. Forty years ago this summer, the big demonstrations in London were against America’s war against communist North Vietnam, not the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia.
So no change there, then.
By Hillbily Deluxe
August 22, 2008 11:14 AM | Link to this
The people who made $15K commissions on $300K liar loans got to keep their commissions. There’s your problem.
By CommunistAJC
August 22, 2008 11:28 AM | Link to this
The Inconvenient Hypocritical Truth About Worthless Leftist SCUM!!, It’s an easy question to answer. Democrats and Liberals are communists. They love communism. Just ask Barack Hussein. His biggest mentor was a communist professor. They hate Bush but love Che, Castro, Kim Jong Il, Saddam, Putin and they absolutely love Stalin. They hate the idea of freedom because they themselves can not handle the idea of individualism. Most liberals can not make it in the real world and end up living in their parents basement complaining about how the man is keeping them down. IT does truly suck to be a liberal. Whining and complaining about how everything sucks in life. The more I hear Hussien Obama speak the more and more I like Mccain. At least this guy fought against oppression instead of fighting for it like Hussien.
By Common Sense
August 22, 2008 11:30 AM | Link to this
Regardless of what we think who is at fault for the mortgage mess we are not including real estate agents who were taught the loans and told several clients about these products. Consumers wanted big houses like their friends and they accepted everything to get into those house!
Governor Perdue knew tax receipts would be low but did not prepared for them. Georgians who do you keep voting in politicians who have not present or future insight?
Cox should be fired a.s.a.p.
By BWG
August 22, 2008 11:40 AM | Link to this
It’s truly amazing to me that you people can be so incredibly ignorant! I am a former Republican who is now a Democrat because I got tired of being lied to and I can tell you without a doubt that we don’t lay around complaining and we don’t believe in communism. Barack Obama doesn’t either. If you want to continue to drink the right-wing coolaid and get drunk on it, then do us a favor, remain ignorant!!!
By Do the Math
August 22, 2008 11:49 AM | Link to this
Environmental extremist oppose capacity?
Developer extremists oppose paying their own way. Why should the tax payer pay for roads and bridges to no where?
The only fair tax is a FLAT TAX. Put the recently out of work lawyers, tax professionals and their lobbyist to work building roads!
By Political Foreskin
August 22, 2008 11:57 AM | Link to this
I wonder how many liar loans McCain used to finance all those houses.
Obama 08: Truth to power
CNN reports that the USA men’s and women’s olympic relay team had been practicing with chopsticks in their warmups before they both dropped the batons in the races. Apparently the chinese had hid their practice batons knowing what would happen. The chinese have cheated this entire olympic event in all sports, and I demand an investigation.
By Bob Cesca
August 22, 2008 12:03 PM | Link to this
It’s probably time for the Republicans to panic.
Reason the first: despite all of the McCain campaign attacks of the last six weeks and, naturally, Senator McCain’s whiteness and military service, the McCain campaign can’t, as Pat Buchanan likes to say, “close the deal.” He can’t overtake Senator Obama in the polls given the roster of assaults on Obama’s patriotism and character as well as the continued accusations that Obama, according to the McCain campaign and the barbecue media, is a skinny, exotic, infanticidal, egg-headed evildoer.
Reason the second, and more importantly: Senator McCain appears to be losing his shpadoinkle. When he admitted that he doesn’t know how many houses he and his heiress wife own, it might not have been because he owns too many houses to count. Instead, it could be that he simply couldn’t remember how many houses he owns.
Brit Hume once called this kind of glitch “a senior moment,” but how many senior moments can a guy have before we seriously begin to question whether, for example, in the middle of an international crisis, he’s going to forget who the president of Russia is and then bomb Berlin thinking that Putin is the president of Germany. Oh. Wait.
Ask any homeowner how many houses they own and they’ll probably answer correctly — or, if they’re crazy rich, they’ll at least answer within the margin of error (+/- one house). Ask Senator Obama and he’ll probably answer correctly (one). Yet Senator McCain simply couldn’t remember. Slipped his mind. Even if he had answered, but answered incorrectly, it still would’ve been a problem, but nowhere near this level.
“I think — I’ll have my staff get to you. It’s condominiums where — I’ll have them get to you.” He could’ve totally invented a number like Grandpa Simpson, “I got ‘dickety’ houses! Why ‘dickety’? Because the Kaiser stole the word ‘eight’!” But McCain blanked. “It’s condominiums,” was the extent of the information he could muster. That’s sort of like asking your bank for your checking account balance and they reply, “Errrm. It’s dollars.”
SIt’s no wonder he’s considering Senator Lieberman to be his running mate. He’ll need someone around who can remind him of important facts — such as when he forgets that Bin Laden is a Sunni, and that Iran is predominantly Shi’ite.
To put it frankly, Senator McCain is showing the signs of being too old for the gig, and his recent history of forgetting things (whether simple details like the number of houses he owns, or more complicated facts like Sunni vs. Shia) ought to be the source of some serious panic inside the Republican loop — far more panic, by the way, than is being generated by the prospect of a pro-choice running mate.
The numbers agree. A Gallup poll from last year indicated that Americans are only slightly more comfortable with a 72-year-old president than they are with a gay president. (72 years of age: 57, 42. A homosexual: 55, 43.)
Of course, we’re all well-aware of the Republican Party’s proud record of homophobia, so when Senator McCain underscores his soon-to-be 72 years by forgetting how many mansions he owns, it’s really no wonder why he can’t seem to “close the deal.” Never mind that he owns more houses than most of us will own in a lifetime — so many houses that it’s impossible for him to remember the exact number — and this during an economic and housing foreclosure crisis no less. Never mind that he ostensibly needed his hired help to count his many, many mansions for him. And while we’re here, never mind that even though he couldn’t remember how many mansions he owns, and needed a cue card to remember the price of milk, he boldly claimed to know the exact metaphysical instant when an eternal soul enters a zygote — an awesome display of televised omnipotence that exceeded the holy powers of the Pope himself.
Speaking of holy powers, for the last eight years we’ve suffered the antics of a super-rich president who’s repeatedly demonstrated his contempt for basic rationality and reason (for the sake of contrast, President Bush owns just one multi-million-dollar estate). And take a look around at the consequences. We’ve had a president who, despite his intellectual shortcomings and the speculative evidence of some form of neurological infirmity (what was that jaw twitching thing from 2005?), has overcompensated by making ludicrous decisions based on his gut.
Now imagine more of the same thing, but this time from a president who’s caught in the grips of some kind forgetful dementia — in addition to his spastic hair-trigger rage. In other words, the most dangerous combination of character traits possible.
And yet it’s only August, 2008. Senator McCain hasn’t even had to endure the stresses the office yet — the mental and physical rigors that go along with being the nation’s chief executive. What would he be like a year from now? Two years from now? For someone in his condition, nuance and diplomacy is likely an abandoned set of options. The easiest approach is for bellicosity. For attack. It’s the most basic, instinctive, direct approach — one that’s easily grasped by men of limited capacity. So I suppose the more important question is: what would America be like a year from now, or two years from now if McCain and the Republicans end up winning this thing anyway? How many more wars will you fight, Senator McCain?
Oh. Sorry. Didn’t mean to ask a tricky numbers question.
By Common Sense
August 22, 2008 12:10 PM | Link to this
It’s amazing we have people who think the world still revolve around winning a war. It’s about energy and who has the resources. Unless the US is going to take energy resources from other countries we will have to toll the line.
That is why McClain comments to Russia was so redicules and so was President Bush response. Someone please tell me what can we do? We act like Russia does not have nuclear weapons? How foolish are we thinking these days!
Our economy is sinking, a federal deficit increasing at an alarming rate! 1 million plus foreclosures,Major financial institution collapsing,unemployment rising and you want to vote for a person who wants to win I guess the 2nd war.
Here is statement about Senator McClain:
More experience might be of value, but in a situation where we needed a change from the status quo a relative Washington outsider such as Obama might have been the best choice. I would sure rather have someone like Obama who knows his stuff, and who even reads, as opposed to someone like John McCain who has far more experience but is totally lacking in substance.
By A-6 my foot
August 22, 2008 12:10 PM | Link to this
Boy you right wingers really are robots..
As far as the “Faith Forum”.. I’d like to ask (Mr.) Wooten, how can one be prepared for what is supposed to be a “conversation” on faith and politics? While smart people could see that this was an obvious bait and switch; that it was intended to be turned into a debate (just of a different format), I can tell you how McCain could be so “well-prepared”.. HEAR THE FIRST 30 MIN. OF QUESTIONS ASKED.
But I’m sure from your superior moral position on the “right” you view McCain as being of nothing but the highest integrity. Sorry I forgot he was a POW and all. That really fills you with integrity. Sometimes I forget he actually CHOSE to be shot down and captured.
Forgive me Jim.
By Political Foreskin
August 22, 2008 12:17 PM | Link to this
CNN just reported that the Statue of Liberty dropped her Torch today in the 100 year race to Iraq. Liar-loan McCain, who lost count of his wives and his houses, wants to stay the entire 100 years.
Liar-loan McCain 08: He’ll lie, but his wife is a babe, so who cares?
By Liar-loan McCain
August 22, 2008 12:26 PM | Link to this
Liar-loan McCain, who has many homes and wives, lied today about lying over his involvement in the neocon conspiracy to invade Iraq before 911, the liar.
Liar-loan McCain is not wanted in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. If you see his picture, tear it down. He’s a liar.
Obama 08: America found. America sound.
By Liar-loan McCain
August 22, 2008 12:31 PM | Link to this
Liar-loan McCain, who apparently lied about lying to his wife about lying about his many wives, and homes, just in case she wouldn’t sign a prenupt.
Liar-loan Mccain is a liar. He lies about everything. Even lying.
Liar-loan McCain 08: His whole campaign’s a lie.
Obama 08: Truth to Power.
By Liar-loan McCain
August 22, 2008 12:47 PM | Link to this
Stay tuned for a CNN interview with Liar-loan McCain.
Liar-loan McCain: White lies, black heart.
Obama 08: The Black Truth, the White House
By Hank
August 22, 2008 12:51 PM | Link to this
Has there ever been a Democrat who’s solution to every problem wasn’t higher taxes? I’m thinking we might have to go back to Andrew Jackson to find one.
By Liar-loan McCain
August 22, 2008 12:56 PM | Link to this
An interview with Liar-loan McCain.
Q: Why doesn’t anyone believe a word you say?
Liar-loan McCain: “Thats a lie. I have a solid constituency who all have many wives and homes like me, and they listen.”
Q: Isn’t a vote for you just a vote for 4 more Bush years, which is like 100 years in Dogs-of-War years?
Liar-loan McCain: “That’s another lie, you liar. The formula for Dogs of War years is not 25 to one, it’s more like ten to one. You’re a liar.”
Q: Is Bush agreeing to a time horizon for Troop Withdrawals playing into the terrorist’s hands?
Liar-loan McCain: “That’s a lie. Bush is not cutting and running. The Iraq-Pakistani border, where Osama Bin Laden is hiding in caves, is where those troops will be sent, and that’s not a surrender. One more lie and this interview is over.”
Q: Did Saddam pilot all four planes into the Trade Towers on 911 and then escape with Osama bin Laden’s driver in a volvo packed with C4 and antrax?
Liar-loan McCain: “Comeon, that’s old news, of course, that’s true, and thanx for not lying about it. I think we can continue this interview.”
Q: Do you think you’re going to get away with wet starting that jet on the Forrestal and causing the biggest naval catastrophe of the Vietnam War?
Liar-loan McCain: “that’s a lie. Interview over. I have to go wet start my wife, (wink).”
Q: Thank you Liar-loan McCain.
Liar-loan McCain: “And quit calling me Liar-loan McCain, moron.”
Q: one more question: Were you disappointed about the Bigfoot Hoax?
Liar-loan McCain: No, I remember Piltdown Man and that hoax ruined the whole Bigfoot thing for me.
Q: Piltdown Man? That was 1880. How old are you?
Liar-loan McCain: 73….what?
By Chaz
August 22, 2008 12:57 PM | Link to this
You became a Democrat to get away from lies? Hoo-boy.
By BWG
August 22, 2008 12:57 PM | Link to this
It’s truly amazing to me that you people can be so incredibly ignorant! I am a former Republican who is now a Democrat because I got tired of being lied to and I can tell you without a doubt that we don’t lay around complaining and we don’t believe in communism. Barack Obama doesn’t either. If you want to continue to drink the right-wing coolaid and get drunk on it, then do us a favor, remain ignorant!!!
By Willie
August 22, 2008 1:04 PM | Link to this
By The Inconvenient Hypocritical Truth About Worthless Leftist SCUM!! August 22, 2008 11:00 AM | Wow!! I love it…Hey liberals what do you say about those truths….you can’t handle the truth…huh…I would like to make another point about liberal scum and how the liberal extreme environmentalist got a foot hold. It was the banning of DDT. The person use the pretense that DDT was bad and birds eggs would be too thin to hatch. Years later her facts were proven way off base. So 2 million people die of malaria each year. That is ok because eggs are worth more than humans. Now we have the Nile virus in our midst. Hmmm I hope only liberals catch it…but would even a mosquito have any thing to do with a liberal extremist?
By Steve
August 22, 2008 1:07 PM | Link to this
Wow, that Liar-loan McCain bit has legs. The moniker is gold. It just rolls off the tongue, and creates a character that lives and springs off the page.
Liar-loan McCain works because McCain stepped in the housing crisis. He’s such a fool, really. This one gaff alone disqualifies him as much as if he himself dropped the baton in a relay race.
Liar-loan McCain, hi ho silver (tongue), and AWAY!!! Who was that truth-masked man? I dont know, but he left this silver suppository as a remembrance…..ew..(is silver supposed to tarnish like that…..that’s not tarnish…….ew)
morons.
By Common Sense
August 22, 2008 1:20 PM | Link to this
Hank: Did Bill Clinton raise taxes?
Mr. CLinton wanted to balance to budget and shore up social security but the REPLUBICAN CONGRESS VOTED AGAINST those measure to serve their own self-interest.
You actually have a candidate who is not totally entrenched in Washington and probably gives the best chance to get this country strong economically and you want a person who has been in Congress for 26 years. S
State after 26 years I do not know much about the economy. After 26 years a SENATOR CAN MAKE THAT COMMENT AND YOU STILL WILL VOTE FOR HIM.
THAT’s like a CEO stating after being with the company for 25 years in the steel industry stating I don’t know much about how to make steel.
I bet McClain knows about Charles Keating and the deals he made with McClain wife and father-law.
Keating cause the SAVING and LOANS debacle but we did not blame McClain why I guess it’s o.k. to bail-out other rich folks!
By tcoach
August 22, 2008 1:32 PM | Link to this
why will you not put my post up, there is no foul language or anything I have tried twice.
By red herring
August 22, 2008 1:34 PM | Link to this
“Aug. 22 (Bloomberg) — Two U.S. cities will become virtual fortresses during the Democratic and Republican nominating conventions, protected by airplanes, helicopters, barriers, fences and thousands of police officers, National Guard troops and Secret Service agents.”
“In Denver, where Democrats assemble next week, police are spending $18 million on equipment alone and will be bolstered by National Guard troops and hundreds of officers from surrounding suburbs. In St. Paul, Minnesota, site of the Sept. 1-4 Republican nominating convention, police are calling on 80 law- enforcement agencies to provide 3,000 officers to supplement the city’s 500-person force.”
“Congress earmarked $100 million for security at the two meetings, where federal and local authorities are trying to guard against any dangers to candidates or convention-goers.”
You just have to love all those “peaceful” left wing econazi, Code Pinko, and other radical liberal groups who show up at political events and try and disrupt it. Liberals doth protest too much. Conservatives don’t protest nearly as much, and definitely do so more subtly. Conservatives of course have jobs and lives and families too, but that goes without saying. That’s why we are generally happier than liberals.
By getalife "whiners"
August 22, 2008 1:53 PM | Link to this
w signed the surrender in Iraq.
Did somebody inform McDraft on how many houses he owns?
I see dangling house keys rattling at the dem convention.
Keep in mind, the worst president in our history endorsed McDraft.
By JR
August 22, 2008 2:10 PM | Link to this
getalife “whiners” Just when did Jimmy carter endorse McCain? Prove it!
By Jim is an ostrich
August 22, 2008 2:56 PM | Link to this
Good try, JR. But getalife was clearly referring to our new worst president ever, the man who set the bar low and continues to drop it even lower in his “Splat to the Finish”, the one, the only Dubya.
By JR
August 22, 2008 3:14 PM | Link to this
Jim is an ostrich; Appropriate Name, You evidently had your head in the sand during the Carter years if you think Bush is worse than Carter.
By Jim is an ostrich
August 22, 2008 3:32 PM | Link to this
I’m sure I’m not alone in that position, but at any rate, they are a close 1-2.
By JR
August 22, 2008 3:50 PM | Link to this
I don’t care where Bush is rated but I still don’t think he was even close to Carter. Do you member the high unemployment, The runaway inflation, The home interest rates in the upper teens, and those great gas lines. I loved pushing my car up to a pump only to be told the storage tank was empty and it would be hours before the gas tanker truck arrived. Yea, Those were the good old days under Carter!
By Steve
August 22, 2008 4:04 PM | Link to this
An interview with Liar-loan McCain.
Q: Why doesn’t anyone believe a word you say?
Liar-loan McCain: “Thats a lie. I have a solid constituency who all have many wives and homes like me, and they listen.”
Q: Isn’t a vote for you just a vote for 4 more Bush years, which is like 100 years in Dogs-of-War years?
Liar-loan McCain: “That’s another lie, you liar. The formula for Dogs of War years is not 25 to one, it’s more like ten to one. You’re a liar.”
Q: Is Bush agreeing to a time horizon for Troop Withdrawals playing into the terrorist’s hands?
Liar-loan McCain: “That’s a lie. Bush is not cutting and running. The Iraq-Pakistani border, where Osama Bin Laden is hiding in caves, is where those troops will be sent, and that’s not a surrender. One more lie and this interview is over.”
Q: Did Saddam pilot all four planes into the Trade Towers on 911 and then escape with Osama bin Laden’s driver in a volvo packed with C4 and anthrax?
Liar-loan McCain: “Duh”.
Q: Do you think you’re going to get away with wet starting that jet on the Forrestal and causing the biggest naval catastrophe of the Vietnam War?
Liar-loan McCain: “that’s a lie. Interview over. I have to go wet start my wife, (wink).”
Q: Thank you Liar-loan McCain.
Liar-loan McCain: “And quit calling me Liar-loan McCain, moron.”
Q: one more question: Were you disappointed about the Bigfoot Hoax?
Liar-loan McCain: No, I remember Piltdown Man and that hoax ruined the whole Bigfoot thing for me.
Q: Piltdown Man? That was 1880. How old are you?
Liar-loan McCain: 73….what?
By Jim is an ostrich
August 22, 2008 4:05 PM | Link to this
Well, we having rising unemployment, rising inflation, rising energy prices, a collapsing housing market with attendant losses of financial institutions and foreclosures, record deficits, etc. And he still has a few more months to go. He’s still competing, apparently.
By Common Sense
August 22, 2008 4:18 PM | Link to this
Does anyone think McClain team sent the powder to one of his offices?
Republicans continue to use scare tactics on Americans. Wake-up America it’s time to go in a different direction.
It is amazing how many people will cheat when it comes to money. A person at Georgia Tech stole $316,000 what is wrong with our society where we have some many people who are money hungry!
By Pee'er Pressure
August 22, 2008 4:19 PM | Link to this
I really like Liar-loan McCain.
That one should stick to him like stank on a stankho.
By JR
August 22, 2008 4:19 PM | Link to this
Jim is an ostrich, I’d rather pay 4.00 per gallon for gas than not have any. Also, under the Great Carter I bought a small condo and the payments were close to the house payment I have now. You have to be a strong Democrat to defend Carter. Oh, and I was a democrat and voted for Carter. Once!
By Ragnar Danneskjöld
August 22, 2008 5:41 PM | Link to this
Dear JR @ 4:19, I am with you. President W is no Reagan, but he is the second best president since Eisenhower.
By jim
August 22, 2008 6:08 PM | Link to this
WASHINGTON - A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.
The study concluded that the statements “were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion.
By Ragnar Danneskjöld
August 23, 2008 9:52 AM | Link to this
Two studies by a for-profit genius attorney determined that nonprofit journalism organizations have biased studies, favoring socialism generally and large government exclusively.
By Joe
September 5, 2008 8:44 AM | Link to this
I am in the GA school system(Gwinnett) and i have seen our education system go downhill fast since K.Cox got into office.Class sizes are growing, in our school we have 30 kids in one class, teachers are been driven away because of policy, text book are a joke, the text book have more picture an words, most of the teaches try their best, but the system is works against them, i hope more teachers would speak out, this will help our children.