Media Watch: Hugo Chavez, Barack Obama, Mark Lloyd, and Fiji's Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum
What do Hugo Chavez, Barack Obama, Mark Lloyd, and Fiji's Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum have in common?
Almost everything as it relates to their desires to CONTROL what is broadcast and who broadcasts it.
The big difference here is that Venezuela's dictator President, and Fiji's Military Coup Government appointee have actually asserted Government control over their media outlets where as the Obama Administration and its FCC Diversity Czar, Mark Lloyd are still in the planning stages of its strategy to dictate the terms of broadcasting to media outlets (especially those outlets that offer a balanced, counter-point or conservative political view of current events on the ground) here in the United States. This excerpted and edited from The Australian - Fiji strips licences from broadcasters By Rowan Callick, Asia-Pacific editor From: The Australian - November 21, 2009 12:00AM
THE military-installed Fiji government has removed all broadcasting licences and given Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum the absolute power to renew or redistribute them without any compensation to those whose licences are stripped. Television and radio stations are broadcasting this weekend on a temporary basis, as the owner, managers, staff and audiences await the determinations of Mr Sayed-Khaiyum.
He is the second-most powerful figure in the government after military commander and prime minister Frank Bainimarama.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum is also Minister for Justice, Anti-Corruption, Public Enterprises, Industry, Investment and Tourism, and Communications.
The action was carried out this week by decree - the chief tool of government since the parliament was scrapped and the constitution abrogated. ---- Anyone broadcasting in contravention to the minister's directions can be jailed for five years.
The dominant television broadcaster, Fiji TV, is owned by Yasana Holdings, which represents the 14 ethnic Fijian provinces, and which also owns the monopoly Papua New Guinea TV broadcaster EMTV.
Fiji TV established a reputation for impartial news coverage, although the military installed two officers on its board following the coup three years ago.
It, like the country's other media, is now subject to stringent military censorship.
All the country's VHF TV frequencies are in the hands of Fiji TV.
It is now expected that at least one of these frequencies will be reallocated to the government-owned Fiji Broadcasting Corporation, which operates a radio service and has expressed an intention to establish a TV network, towards which it has allocated several million dollars.
The corporation's chief executive, appointed earlier this year, is Riyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, younger brother of the Attorney-General and formerly a TV journalist.
The government broadcasts directly from 7-9pm nightly, except on Sundays, on a frequency it pays to rent from Fiji TV. Reference Here>>
So, hold on to your freedom of the press because it is about to be challenged, just as every other civic right this country has to offer is under assault and being challenged ... we are all just a short stone's throw from becoming ... Fiji!
You know, all of the Government oppression, however, with little of that island paradise.
Officials handling the multibillion dollar bailout of insurance giant American International Group Inc. mismanaged an initial rescue attempt and may have overpaid other banks to wind down AIG's business relationships, a government watchdog says. Image Credit: Mark Lennihan
Paint The Obama Administration With Halliburton Brush Coated With AIG
The facts are surfacing about the activities of Timothy Geithner and his transition into the Obama Administration and the bail-out of AIG.
These facts should have the press take out the Halliburton brush and begin painting the Obama Administration with a healthy coat of AIG.
The reference here is to compare the point of view that the Mainstream Media held with respect to the relationship the Bush Administration had with the exclusive contract bid process they used to engage Halliburton Corporation in providing services on a sub-contract basis in the war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan.
With Halliburton, however, the argument can be made that this corporation was unique in being able to provide the services required and the Government did, in fact, receive the services contracted for. The American people got what they paid for.
What did the American people get from the management of its money spent on AIG and how was this effort managed.
For his part, Barack Obama assured us all how the Government would operate in a speech just after the $787 Billion dollar Stimulus Bill was passed by Congress.
With the party-line voting on the stimulus marking a defeat for his push for bipartisanship, Obama shifted focus to something else most un-Washington: making government spending transparent.
"Washington hasn't set a very good example in recent years, and with so much on the line, it's time to begin doing things differently," he said.
"I've tasked my Cabinet and staff to set up the kind of management, oversight, and disclosure that will help ensure that."
Enter (tax-cheat) Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner ... it was revealed today in an article appearing in the Washington Post that he did not negotiate with the AIG corporate primaries, let alone the additional connected web of companies associated with AIG, a discount on the money to be paid to financial institutions to secure their sub-prime portfolio assets in order to save these institutions from collapsing. The taxpayer money committed paid 100% on the value of the assets purchased.
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York didn't even try to get a good deal for taxpayers when it caved to demands from AIG's creditors that they should be paid in full. Image Credit: Clusterstock
This excerpted and edited from the Washington Post -
Fed criticized for not negotiating harder with AIG creditors Inspector general says decisions during bailout 'came with a cost' By Brady Dennis, Washington Post Staff Writer - Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Federal Reserve officials made only a passing attempt to negotiate discounts from the creditors of American International Group last fall before directing the company to fully pay what it owed on its troubled derivatives contracts, according to a report from the special inspector general overseeing the government's financial rescue program.
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, who was then the president of the New York Fed, concurred with advisers that it would be impractical to impose losses on AIG's counterparties and that they essentially should be paid at 100 cents on the dollar, the report by special inspector general Neil Barofsky states. ---- The government extended an $85 billion loan to AIG in September 2008 as the company struggled to pay obligations related to derivatives contracts at its Financial Products unit. According to Barofsky, that initial loan came with a high interest rate, which "inadequately addressed AIG's long term liquidity concerns, thus requiring further government support."
Later, New York Fed officials agreed to buy tens of billions of dollars worth of complex securities that would allow Financial Products to cancel its most troublesome contracts, and staff members developed talking points that stressed to AIG's trading partners that they were benefiting from the bailouts and asked them to agree to concessions, according to Barofsky. ---- Ultimately, AIG's trading partners received more than $62 billion, which many critics have branded as "backdoor bailouts."
In a letter commenting on Barofsky's report, Fed officials called the original AIG loan "appropriate in light of the circumstances at the time." In addition, they argued that the Fed had done what it could in trying to negotiate with AIG's trading partners.
"We believe that the Federal Reserve acted appropriately in conducting these negotiations, and that our negotiating strategy, including the decision to treat all counterparties equally, was not flawed or unreasonably limited," the letter said. It said the Fed actively sought concessions from AIG's counterparties, "but was unable to obtain any such agreements." The officials added that they were wary of using their supervisory authority on behalf of AIG to impose losses on other companies. Reference Here>>
The American taxpayer got what it paid for ... through the tens of billions of dollars to AIG and its network of companies. A 'still ugly' economy with a group of financial executives that will be giving some of the money they received with their intact multi-million dollar pay bonuses, political contributions to this one-party "CONTROL" Government regime we have three more years (hopefully, only one) to endure.
President tells Jake Tapper it was important to let the investigation play itself out so the details as to how and why the rampage happened are known before he comments further [ctrl-click to launch video]. Image Credit: ABC News
Obama As Commander-In-Chief ... From A Law Professor Perspective
Yesterday, Jake Tapper of ABC News had a sit down interview with President Barack Obama at the White House that covered many of the pressing issues of the day from the economy (unemployment at 10.2%), the Congress passing its version of a Health Care system overhaul (that included a ban on Federal funding of abortion procedures), Afghanistan and a slow-paced troop build-up, and a small discussion on the mass murder rampage by Major Nidal Malik Hasan at Fort Hood and its meaning in the face of 9/11, jihad, and acts of terrorism.
One would expect that President Obama, as Commander-In-Chief over all of our American military, would have a profound and decisive response to almost any act that would be damaging to the moral, unity of purpose, and overall readiness of our armed forces. Sadly, Barack Hussein Obam(Mmmm, Mmmmm, Mmmmmm)a's response, and this in light that this Nov. 5 shooting rampage happened 4 days ago, was anything but one that had the steely resolve of a Commander-In-Chief.
No, the response from Barack Obama was one of a Chicago university law professor, ending a discussion where he wanted the students to think of the professor as one burdened with so much knowledge, that a direct and resolved answer would give away too much and spur the students to want to study more.
ABC News is out front on the Fort Hood massacre story. Correspondent Brian Ross is reporting that U.S. intelligence agencies were aware months ago that Hasan was attempting to contact associates of Al Qaeda [ctrl-click to launch video]. Image Credit: ABC News
This excerpted and edited from ABC News -
Obama: All Necessary Steps Will Be Taken to Prevent Another Tragedy Like Fort Hood By JAKE TAPPER, KAREN TRAVERS, SUNLEN MILLER and DEVIN DWYER - Nov. 9, 2009
On Tuesday, Obama will attend a memorial service at Fort Hood for the 13 killed in last week's shooting. Today he reiterated that the nation is "heartbroken" by what happened there Thursday, but said there are many questions to be answered.
The president was asked about an ABC News report that intelligence officials learned months ago that Maj. Malik Nidal Hasan had reached out via the Internet to al Qaeda affiliates, and had passed it into military intelligence, though no official actions seem to have been taken. But he wouldn't say directly whether he was concerned that the U.S. government failed to communicate with itself as was seen in the investigation into 9/11. ---- Asked what philosophically separates an act of violence from an act of terrorism, the president said, "I think the questions that we're asking now and we don't have yet complete answers to is, is this an individual who's acting in this way or is it some larger set of actors? You know, what are the motivations? Those are all questions that I think we have to ask ourselves. Until we have these answers buttoned down, I'd rather not comment on it. Reference Here>>
Obama's statement on May 31, 2009, just hours after George Tiller's death (the assassination of a renowned abortion doctor at the hands of another): "I am shocked and outraged by the murder of Dr. George Tiller as he attended church services this morning. However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence."
Why couldn't have Obama issued a statement similar just hours as opposed to days after the murderous act to the statement he issued for the Tiller murder like ... "However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as religious freedom and jihad, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence."
As Commander-In-Chief over all of our American military, President Barack Obama has an obligation to lead and protect - not to philosophize over what type of mass murder this act represents ... but to make sure it does not happen again beyond any considerations of Political Correctness.
Nancy Pelosi couldn’t have announced the new House healthcare reform bill, the Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R. 3962), with any more pomp and circumstance. It was certainly more impressive than the Senate’s mouse-like rollout, apparently intended to avoid rubbing salt in the Baucus “bipartisanship” wound. H.R. 3962 is definitely a major milestone in attempting to reform our broken system-less healthcare; it’s historic, certainly. But no, it’s not the best our legislators could do. Image Credit: Wikipedia
Obama Administration: Horse Trading For Healthcare Control
Many have said it over these last several months ... "It's the Chicago way." What pundits have been reacting to is the way Barack Obama and the Administration around him negotiate in bad faith in order to get what they want, politically, even when the outcome will create more damage to our Constitutional country than fix the problems they say they are trying to address.
Just this last week, President Obama was able to come to the microphones Friday and tout the fact that he has received the endorsements of some pretty recognizable health care and special interest advocacy groups in the run up to the close approval of the House of Representatives Bill for the radical overhaul of America's health care insurance industry - HR-3962.
This excerpted and edited from The Doc Is In -
Health Care Reform 2009: Why Did the AMA & AARP Back Obamacare? by Dick Morris & Eileen McGann
Here are the deals:
* The American Medical Association (AMA) was facing a 21 percent cut in physicians’ reimbursements under the current law.
Obama promised to kill the cut if they backed his bill. The cuts are the fruit of a law requiring annual 5-6 percent reductions in doctor reimbursements for treating Medicare patients. Bravely, each year Congress has rolled the cuts over, suspending them but not repealing them. So each year, the accumulated cuts threaten doctors and as of this point in time, they have risen to 21 percent. With this leverage as blackmail, Obama compelled the AMA to support his bill … or else!
* The AARP got a financial windfall in return for its support of the healthcare bill.
Over the past decade, the AARP has morphed from an advocacy group to an insurance company (through its subsidiary company). It is one of the main suppliers of Medi-gap insurance, a high-cost, privately purchased coverage that picks up where Medicare leaves off. But President Bush-43 passed the Medicare Advantage program, which offered a subsidized, lower-cost alternative to Medi-gap. Under Medicare Advantage, the elderly get all the extra coverage they need plus coordinated, well-managed care, usually by the same physician. So more than 10 million seniors went with Medicare Advantage, cutting into AARP Medi-gap revenues.
Presto! Obama solved their problem. He eliminates subsidies for Medicare Advantage. The elderly will have to pay more for coverage under Medigap, but the AARP — which supposedly represents them — will make more money. (If this galls you, join the American Seniors Association, the alternative group; contact sbarton@americanseniors.org. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it).
* The drug industry backed ObamaCare and, in return, got a 10-year limit of $80 billion on cuts in prescription drug costs.
This represents chump-change to HR-3962's almost $3 trillion projected costs over the next decade. They also got administration assurances that it will continue to bar lower-cost Canadian drugs from coming into the U.S. All it had to do was put its formidable advertising budget at the disposal of the administration.
* Insurance companies get access to 36-40 million potential new customers.
When the Senate Finance Committee lowered the fine that would be imposed on those who don’t buy insurance from $3,500 to $1,500, the insurance companies jumped ship and opposed the bill, albeit for the worst of motives - so the fine stood.
The only industry that refused to knuckle under was the Medical Device Makers (MDM). They stood on principle and wouldn’t go along with Obama’s blackmail strategy for an endorsement. The Senate Finance Committee reacted to this stance by imposing a tax on the MDM marketplace targeting medical devices such as automated wheelchairs, pacemakers, arterial stents, prosthetic limbs, artificial knees and hips and other necessary accouterments and consumables of healthcare. Reference Here>>
So, these endorsements were not freely given, but were bought and paid for by an administration that is intent on passing its "Control of Healthcare" program at any cost. This is not the American way, you know, for the good of the country ...
Bachmann "House Call" Delivers Viral Response To A Sick Government
Rep. Michele Bachmann's message for conservatives traveling to Washington to attend her Capitol Hill House Call event today is simple: "Go into the Capitol and find members of Congress," she told activists Wednesday night. "Don't bring your pitchforks, bring your video cameras. And get them on record saying how they're going to vote and why. And tell them, 'Take your hands off my health care!' "
Image Credit: anthropocon03
Bachmann (R-Minn.) gave the marching orders on a conference call of top activists, many of whom planned to board buses in New Jersey and North Carolina Thursday morning to attend the event that the congresswoman thought up last week. "Nothing is more influential than an eyeball-to-eyeball meeting between a freedom-loving constituent and a member of Congress," she explained. "Nothing scares a member of Congress more than freedom-loving Americans."
Image Credit: anthropocon03
Bachmann said the idea came to her as she lamented the speed with which the Democrats' health care reform bills were moving through Congress. "I was near despair," she said. "I was thinking, 'It looks like this bill is going to go through.' But then I thought, 'This is it. This is the Super Bowl of Freedom.' "
Image Credit: anthropocon03
Initial reports of THOUSANDS of people are flooding in ... it may well be over 20,000 by the time Google turns back on its cameras that cover the streets of the Capital Mall! (confirmed on the Sean Hannity radio program)
One hour into the gathering, #housecall just made a "TRENDING TOPIC" on Twitter!
10:30am PT - Twitter is reporting that Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO.) had his constituents arrested when they showed up at his office and asked to meet with him!
The Speaker at the podium has just announced to have the gathered crowd to locate their representative and ask them where they stand on Socialized Health Care.
POTUS just made a "quick-hit" update speech on Obama-Care at the WH press briefing then turned and left without taking any questions.
Representative Greg Wilson (R-OR.) is reported on Twitter to have said "The Pelosi anthem is -'Leave No Child A Dime'"
10:57am PT - On Breitbart TV, Michelle Bachmann tells the gathering that they have two copies of the bill and that each attendee take a page ... or a half-a-page and ask their representative to read and explain what he just read.
This from FOX News - Republican Rep. Joe Wilson proposed an amendment Wednesday that would force all members of Congress to receive health insurance coverage through the government-run plan proposed in the House's reform bill.
Though Republicans oppose the so-called "public option," the South Carolina gadfly -- who gained notoriety for shouting "you lie" at President Obama during his address to Congress two months ago -- is proposing the requirement to draw attention to what he sees as the plan's flaws.
"They know the government-run option will not be in the interest of the American people, either individually or for the American citizens at large," Wilson said Wednesday, arguing that's the reason Congress does not require its members to sign up.
The current House health care legislation states that members of Congress "may enroll" in the public plan. Wilson wants that changed to "must enroll."
Activist organization, "Flip This House" located HERE>>
11:32am PT - Protesters roaming the halls of Congress were heard chanting in unison - "KILL THE BILL"!
House Republicans offer alternative healthcare proposal - Their modest, incremental approach focuses on controlling costs through market-oriented measures. But its larger purpose is to show that they're not just the 'party of no.'It is about time and only 219 pages, compared to the 1,990 pages that the Pelosi plan is. Plus this one addresses TORT Reform and breaking the red tape that would allow us to purchase insurance across state lines.
TOP 10 REASONS TO OPPOSE NANCY PELOSI’S TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE.
Tea Party Express II kick-off at Tuna Park, San Diego located next to the USS Midway. Image Credit: Neil Turner
Tea Party Express II: Bakersfield & Fresno: You're Next!
Get ready folks, because the second edition of the Tea Party Express is coming to a grassroots, "Take My Country Back" town near you!
The tour entitled "Countdown To Judgment Day" is scheduled to stop at 38 Cities/Towns across the United States starting yesterday, October 25, 2009 and November 12, 2009.
After two very well attended stops at the USS Midway, in San Diego and Griffith Park here in Los Angeles (thousands in attendance at both venues), the Tea Party Express II - "Countdown To Judgment Day" will be continuing on to Bakersfield and Fresno in the San Joaquin Valley (The Big Valley) through central California today.
Kieth Olberman slams the second edition of the Tea Party Express on his extremely low rated, "Countdown, with Kieth Olberman" ... named this way just in case you did not know the vile nature of the presenter. Video Credit: OurCountryPAC
This Excerpted and edited from Tea Party Express, The Blog -
To our fellow patriots in Bakersfield, CA & Fresno, CA - you're up next!
On Monday we'll have these two rallies. Please bring a friend or two, and let's continue the great turnout we've enjoyed so far for the Tea Party Express II: Countdown to Judgment Day!
MONDAY, OCTOBER 26th
9:00 AM - Bakersfield Rally Heritage Park2320 Mt. Vernon Ave. Bakersfield, CA
1:30 PM - Fresno Rally Eaton Plaza2400 Fresno St. Fresno, CA
There were no signs earlier in the day so I didn't stay. I followed the directions but I never found the spot the TP was supposed to be at. By the way the traffic jam is due to a rock concert in Pasadena. YOu need to put up signs in these types of areas as I am sure a lot of people were early and just turned away I was there around 1 pm. October 25, 2009 6:59 PM
The comment was left by a potential spammer. There was a concert, but the U2 Concert that was to be held a few hours later was at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena ... about 12 miles East of Griffith Park.
I saw a local report on the TV news and there were thousands of people in attendance at the Tea Party Express II event in Griffith Park.
Follow the trek of the Tea Party Express II: Countdown to Judgment Day! over the next 18 days as it winds its way across the US, to end up in Orlando, Florida all in an effort to stop the out-of-control spending efforts of our current political leadership in Washington DC.
Hop on board, the attitude is fine!
UPDATE: You can see a slideshow of photos taken at the San Diego kick-off by local supporter Neil Turner - VIEW SLIDESHOW HERE.
In his weekly address, the president has asked Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and SBA administrator Karen Mills, to convene a conference of regulators, congressional leaders, lenders, and entrepreneurs to come up with additional steps to improve the flow of credit to small businesses looking to expand. Image Credit: cf News13
Obama's Weekly Address: Small Businesses Are Next Money Target Of Attention
That'll work.
These people, these uneducated in economics, Maoist/Marxist true believers ... really do not have a clue how jobs are created and sustained. They honestly think it is about the object, "Money", and not the concept and process of "Needs Satisfaction" that actually causes people to spend the representation of their labors in exchange for something.
We're sunk!
HOPE placards from Barack Obama's presidential inauguration. A scribble on a placard is about all that our nation can "hope" for. Image Credit: TwitPic
This excerpted and edited from Bloomberg -
Obama Says Small Businesses Must Be at Forefront of Recovery By Catherine Dodge and Julianna Goldman - Oct. 24 (Bloomberg)
President Barack Obama called small businesses the “engine” of the U.S. economy and said too many are still struggling to get the credit they need to operate.
In his weekly address on the radio and Internet, Obama said the nation’s banks, supported by taxpayers in the economic crisis, now need “to stand by the creditworthy small businesses.” ---- The president this week announced measures to open up credit for small business, such as capital injections for community banks to spur lending. Obama also asked Congress to raise the limits for Small Business Administration loans from $2 million to $5 million and as much as $5.5 million for manufacturing.
“The goal here is to get credit where it’s needed most -- to businesses that support families, sustain communities, and create the jobs that power our economy,” Obama said. Reference Here>>
Two Words: T-A-X C-U-T
But oh, no ... he went on to say:
“It’s time for those banks to fulfill their responsibility to help ensure a wider recovery,” Obama said. “We’re going to take every appropriate step to encourage them to meet those responsibilities.”
This strategy will only keep these businesses alive. Small businesses need to have a strong purchasing environment to succeed and the current leadership has saddled the economy with way too much debt (Stimulus & Omnibus) and uncertainty (Cap & Trade and Obamacare) for operating cash loans to really keep businesses in business.
We have a socialist, black hole economy, and it will get worse when the Bush tax cuts get repealed by the current Democrat Congress Leadership.
This concept of Obama's (Banks lending operating Capital) is like priming a pump that has no water in the well!
This is a bit like the "Sub-Prime" mortgage mess we are trying to come out of, in that, the Government is doing everything it can by throwing money into a place it will do the least good.
Throwing Loans to people who can not qualify or pay for them (Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Government money) or throwing loans to small businesses to keep them alive (TARP money from the Government and lowered interest rates from the Government to the Banks) even though nobody has a job or the money to purchase the goods and services they produce.
The Government needs to back away and STOP MEDDLING in our free market economy. Everything they do, no matter how well intentioned or evil intentioned, is the exact opposite of what it takes to get a free market economy back on the tracks ... the one they threw off of the tracks in the first place through social engineering programs and regulatory inaction.
Magda Wierzycka, the CEO of Sygnia Asset Management, writes on Moneyweb’s blog about Generation Y and their characteristics. Generation Y are those born between 1982 and 1995 of Generation X and Baby Boomer parents. /// She describes this generation as growing up amidst ‘unprecedented prosperity’ with access to ‘better, more rounded education’. Furthermore they are: ‘extreme[ly] technology savvy’, ‘very family orientated’, ‘demanding and outspoken employees’ with an ‘overdeveloped sense of entitlement’, they ’struggle to deal with failure or criticism’ and ‘flounder if left unmanaged or unsupervised’. Caption & Image Credit: dirkvisser/Brightest Young Minds
Auto-Culture & Decision Making In A Gen Y World
In a study released today by AutoPacific - a future-oriented automotive marketing research and product-consulting firm, some interesting and surprising characteristics and purchasing traits reveal themselves and may be useful to those who desire to appeal to an increasingly important market segment.
Many assumptions like the popular belief that the Gen Y crowd exclusively prefers compact and energy efficient cars are somewhat dispelled through the study. Over half of Gen Y are considering the purchase of a mid-size car or mid-size crossover SUV. They expect that technology will improve fuel economy and environmental friendliness and allow them to purchase a vehicle that is sized to meet their personal needs.
“Don’t be fooled by the growth of certain segments over the years,” said George Peterson, president of AutoPacific, the research firm that conducted the study. “The Compact Car segment shows sales growth, yet a new Toyota Corolla is similar in size to an older Toyota Camry. Vehicles have gotten larger over time but segments have not been redefined. Ultimately, Generation Y consumers are purchasing vehicles that are sized appropriately to their needs and lifestyle.”
The study entitled “The Generation Y Opportunity”, which come from data gathered from AutoPacific’s annual survey of over 32,000 new car and light truck buyers in the United States, looks closely at Gen Y recent buyers of new vehicles and how they compare to older generations. In many ways, Gen Y is following in the footsteps of their Baby Boomer parents, but in more extreme ways. The study details current Gen Y new car buyers and the future market.
$1.5M Russian SUV Features Diamonds, Whale Penis Leather - That's all you really need to know about the $1.5 million Dartz Prombron Monaco Red Diamond Edition. Yes, the diamond-encrusted white gold gauges and gold-plated bulletproof windows are impressive, but seriously, whale penis leather interior. /// The already bulletproof and wildly over-the-top 8.1 liter GM V8-powered Dartz Kombat T98 is getting a name change to Prombron and along with it will come a complete and brain-maimingly bourgeoisie upgrade with the Monaco Red Diamond Edition. The world's most expensive ultra-luxury SUV will debut at the 2010 Top Marques Monaco show with luxe features crazy enough to make a Maybach blush. Caption & Image Credit: Jolopnik
This excerpted and edited from a press release issued by AutoPacific -
GENERATION Y OPEN TO NEW BRANDS, NEW TECHNOLOGY AND HYBRIDS Survey Shows Generation Y Frequently Multitasking While Driving AutoPacific, “The Generation Y Opportunity”, released for publication - October 21, 2009
Willing to embrace new brands, new technology and alternative powertrains, Generation Y will redefine the automotive market. A just released study on Generation Y new vehicle buyers in the United States shows Generation Y consumers are more likely than the generations before them to consider purchasing a Chinese or Indian branded vehicle, more willing to accept hybrid powertrains, and more likely to want the latest entertainment technology in their vehicle.
As the largest generation since the Baby Boomers continues to gain spending power and enter the new car market, which automakers will win their confidence? AutoPacific’s study underscores the opportunities for automakers to reach Generation Y consumers as they move through their Teen, Young Adult and Young Family life-stages.
“Growing up with continuously evolving technology and electronics has given Generation Y a unique ability to adapt easily to change, a willingness to accept new brands, and an expectation that their vehicle provide the best of what is available,” said George Peterson, president of AutoPacific.
Though many Generation Y consumers would choose a trip around the world over a luxury vehicle, Generation Y does expect that the vehicle they buy will be more than just basic transportation. “Generation Y is more likely than older generations to own portable electronics, more likely to research their vehicle options on the Internet, and an astonishing 29% of those surveyed are more likely to frequently multi-task while driving," continues Peterson. "They know what’s out there, they know the economical and environmental problems we face, and their vehicle expectations reflect that knowledge.” ---- The AutoPacific Generation Y Opportunity is conducted annually to determine who Generation Y buyers are and what they want from their future cars, including size, engine, transmission and attributes like entertainment features, luxury features, in-vehicle communications, comfort, and convenience features. Reference Here>>
Maybe the Russian-made Dartz Prombron isn't exactly the chief target in the luxury car segment for Gen Y'ers, but, we at MAXINE believe ... at this price ( $1.5 million) it had better have bluetooth iPOD compatibility, integrated hands-free cellphone technology, and a mount to hold the Apple MAC that is accessing the internet via a MiFi internet hotspot so that they can be plugged into Twitter while cruising down to Glamis for a week-end of radical Dune-ing!
Anti-ACORN Guerrilla Art goes viral in Los Angeles. Here is an example, stencil spray painted on the side of a signal control box on a typical LA street corner. Image Credit: Publius
Unearthed! Barack Obama's Twisted ACORN Roots
Many of the citizens here in the lower 48 (otherwise known in Canada as Americans), have been treated to a fair amount of change in the political landscape over the last week or so.
It really all started with the fact that a whole lot of people showed up at, and filled the mall park that runs between the Capitol Dome building and the Washington Monument (about one mile long and 1/4 mile wide).
ABC News posted a story dated September 12, 2009 quoting a DC fire department official as estimating the crowd at 70,000 people but upon further investigation, the very first comment was logged at 1:59AM (the actual times have since been scrubbed from the log of comments), the very early morning before the gathering even got started. Maybe ABC News got confused in that the estimate of the crowd may have been for people sleeping in the mall area waiting for the gathering to begin some six hours later!
Then, at the beginning of the week, investigative tapes began to be broadcast by FOX News and Andrew Brietbat's new website "BigGovernment.Com" catching the largest names in media flat-footed. The first tape showed ACORN advisers instructing two young people, one posing as a pimp, and the other, a hooker, on how to fill out the paperwork so that the house they wanted to use as a brothel would qualify for Government/Taxpayer money. This tape, combined with the successful prosecutions of ACORN on the charges of voter fraud, caused the Census Bureau to drop the organization from the list of agencies they planned to use to collect information for them from citizens.
Four more tapes were shown throughout the week and it has become apparent the ACORN suffers from a "culture of corruption", so much so that both houses of Congress decided to vote to de-fund the organization from any Federal monies it may receive and to be placed on a list to never do business with them ever again.
For The Record: The “De-fund ACORN Act” passed the House Thursday, September 17th, 2009 by an overwhelming margin of 345-75. The House vote comes just days after the Senate voted 83-7 to block ACORN from receiving federal housing grants. With these votes, 80% of the members of Congress have weighed in to block ACORN from receiving any more taxpayer dollars.
The President of the United States, Barack Obama, insists that his ties to the organization, ACORN, were minimal but here is some information that might be useful to those who would like to have a complete understanding of the ties that bind this President to an organization that has grown and thrived by building itself on a "culture of corruption".
Anti-ACORN Guerrilla Art goes viral in Los Angeles where Obama “Hope” poster artist, Shepard Fairey, studio wall was targeted with the stencil spray painted image. Image Credit: Publius
This excerpted and edited from WorldNetDaily -
While ACORN remains riddled in scandal, lawmakers have voted to cut off federal funding to the group, the U.S. Census Bureau has severed ties to the organization – and the White House has blasted its behavior as "unacceptable."
But just how extensive are President Obama's personal ties to ACORN?
The following is a timeline outlining some of the purported connections between the president and ACORN through the years:
1990s: Obama meets ACORN
ACORN, or the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, first noticed Obama when he was organizing on the far south side of the city with the Developing Communities Project. A March 2, 2008, Los Angeles Times article by Letta Tayler and Keith Herbert, titled "Obama Forged Path As Chicago Community Organizer," explored Obama's pre-law school days as a community organizer in Chicago and his efforts to build a partnership with Chicago's "Friends of the Parks."
"Obama's task was to help far South Side residents press for improvement," the Times article explained.
National Review Online noted, "Part of Obama's work, it would appear, was to organize demonstrations, much in the mold of radical groups like ACORN."
The Times article reveals that Madeleine Talbot, who at the time was a leader at Chicago ACORN, was thoroughly impressed with Obama because "he got people to vote with their feet."
"At the time, Talbot worked at the social action group ACORN and initially considered Obama a competitor," the article stated. "But she became so impressed with his work that she invited him to help train her staff."
Talbott personally led Chicago ACORN's campaign to intimidate banks into making high-risk loans to low-credit customers, Stanley Kurtz reported.
"Long the director of Chicago ACORN, Talbott is a specialist in 'direct action' – organizers' term for their militant tactics of intimidation and disruption," Kurtz writes. "Perhaps her most famous stunt was leading a group of ACORN protesters breaking into a meeting of the Chicago City Council to push for a 'living wage' law, shouting in defiance as she was arrested for mob action and disorderly conduct. But her real legacy may be her drive to push banks into making risky mortgageloans."
I recovered the copy of the comment that was made by the original ABC News article (referenced at the top) on the attendance to the 9/12 Tea Party Rally on the Washington DC mall:
"The time stamp of the very first comment says it all - it was stamped in advance of the rally, way in advance - comment and stamp here:
obama gave his speech to congress on wednesday, not tuesday as the article states twice. Posted by: ericgwitte 1:59 AM" Link>>
9/12 "Million MOB March" - Image Credit: Mary Kathrine Ham
9/12 "Million MOB March" A Success Without MSM Help
Here, in the beginning stages of the 44th Presidency, many thought that life would carry on in a business as usual, politics as usual kind of approach.
Sure, Barack Obama made history by becoming the first man with African DNA in his blood to be elected as President of the United States, and sure, he ran and campaigned on being the one man who could reach across the divides in this country by being the first "post-racial" and "post-partisan" chief executive to hold the office ... but that was not meant to be.
Under his leadership (and the leadership of the Democrat-Party controlled Congress), the debt has quadrupled with the passage of two large spending bills (Stimulus and Omnibus), a further executive spending initiative known by TARP, started by the previous Administration (Bush) but expanded and used as a tool to take-over two of the three domestic automobile manufacturers in the United States and change the ownership matrix away from investors and place labor unions in the majority ownership position, along with the Federal Government. A serious attempt to take-over about one-sixth of our economy and bring into a single-payer Government program of CONTROL making all decisions about ones health the power of government boards (death panels) while driving out free enterprise. And lastly, an energy policy that would make some forms of common energy (coal and petroleum) virtually unavailable if not very expensive and scarce.
9/12 "Million MOB March" - View of Capitol Dome from adjacent grounds packed with small government, lower taxes activists - Image Credit: Twitpiv via Prisminc
Enter the Tea Party movement.
Named after the uprising and revolt that eventually led to the formation of this country after, as a colony of England, the territory occupied by people who, for the most part left England to start a life free from excessive Monarchical control over their lives from the King of England, had large taxes places on many goods and services produced or imported in the country. A revolt in Boston led to the dumping of bales of tea being imported into the country but this tea had new taxes placed on its sale and so, in a show of defiance, the tea was dumped into the harbor and the Boston Tea Party was born into the lore of the United States.
9/12 "Million MOB March" - View of Tea Party Movement protest rally from the Capitol Building Dome down the mall to the Washington Monument tower ... one mile away - Image Credit: Hutch123
Today, people (53% and rising) are not happy that their elected representatives are not listening to them. The representatives are voting on, and passing legislation into law without reading the bills that they are voting on. The government is not even allowing any time or the ability for the people to see and read proposed legislation so that they understand what the representatives are committing WE THE PEOPLE to pay for and to do!
September 10, 2001, our country was safe and life was good. September 11, 2001, our country was viciously attacked by a group of 19 islamo-fascist terrorist that wanted to take away the freedoms we enjoy in this country. The day, September, 12 of any year has stood as a response that our freedoms will never die and we will all stand up as Americans to proclaim this to be true.
September 12, 2009, a perfect storm of grass-roots protest came together in Washington DC and it did not have the sponsorship of any political party, no support from special interest groups and/or unions, and absolutely no help from the established "Fourth Estate" known in this country as the Main Stream Media (MSM).
This excerpted and edited from Michelle Malkin -
Celebrating the 9/12 rallies; Turnout estimated at 2 million By Michelle Malkin • September 12, 2009 10:06 AM
It’s been an unprecedented year for limited government activism. It would never have been possible without the early initiative of grass-roots leaders in the #tcot community on Twitter, Smart Girl Politics #DontGo — and concerned women like Keli Carender and Amanda Grosserode who stood up in their communities against reckless spending in Washington before anyone was listening. Before the cable news was paying attention. Before it became fashionable for politicians to latch on.
Activists were derided as amateurs who couldn’t turn out a crowd. Then they were smeared as corporate shills. They were criticized for not having a coherent message. Then they were mocked for ideological single-mindedness. They are resented by professional strategists who accuse them of organizing empty protests that won’t translate into electoral gains. But the movement has given birth to a new generation of movers and shakers who have rejected establishment partisan politics for nimble, Internet-facilitated, issues-based advocacy. ---- The Tea Party Express blog is here.
12:34pm Eastern: Police estimate 1.2 million in attendance. ABC News reporting crowd at 2 million — tweets Tabitha Hale from D.C.
So, how many were there? Allah looks at the numbers reports here. Reference Here>>
9/12 "Million MOB March" - Taking it to the streets in Washington DC - Image Credit: Twitpiv via Brooks Bayne
COMMENT (on attendance article made at a social media portal): ABC News, citing the DC fire department, reported that between 60,000 and 70,000 people had attended the tea party rally at the Capitol. By the time this figure reached Michelle Malkin, however, it had been blown up to 2,000,000. There is a big difference, obviously, between 70,000 and 2,000,000. That's not a twofold or threefold exaggeration -- it's roughly a thirtyfold exaggeration.
The way this false estimate came into being is relatively simple: Matt Kibbe, the president of FreedomWorks, lied, claiming that ABC News had reported numbers of between 1.0 and 1.5 million when they never did anything of the sort. A few tweets later, the numbers had been exaggerated still further to 2 million. Kibbe wasn't "in error", as Malkin gently puts it. He lied. He did the equivalent of telling people that his penis is 53 inches long.
Malkin, who to her credit later corrected the error, frets that it might be used to by liberals to "discredit the undeniably massive turnout". She's right to be worried -- it absolutely will be used that way. If you don't want to be discredited, then don't, as Kibbe did, tell a ridiculous (and easily disprovable) lie.
RESPONSE (to comment by blog author on attendance article made at a social media portal): The photos do not lie but maybe the MSM did a little pumping up so that people who still support this style of leadership could make the counter-argument that you are making.
The truth is that the New York Times, the Washington Post and many other MSM print outlets are embargoing (not mentioning) the fact that a march ever took place. The photos confirm that one of the largest gatherings EVER in the mall at the nation's capitol took place.
Just because official estimates have been done away with through policy after the much hyped "Million Man March" (remember that socialist and race-focused fiasco? ... 200,000 at best) was such a bust, let us just half the estimate of a few broadcast MSM outlets and call it a solid million people ... and report it as a very successful protest against the policies of a One-Party rule government.
President Obama, the First Lady and White House staff observe a moment of silence. Image Credit: White House Photo, Chuck Kennedy, 9/11/09
Obama's Socialist Re-Branding Of 9/11 Remembrance
On the morning of September 11, 2001, four passenger jets were hijacked by islamo-fascist terrorists in a plot devised by al Qaeda to disrupt the economic security of our country and to bring our society down.
Today, eight years later, Barack Obama and his executive Administration are attempting to dilute and hijack the importance of this day that, at best, was an act of war and recast the remembrance of "9/11" into something completely different ... something unrecognizable from its original intent.
This excerpted and edited from Thaindian News-
Obama proclaims 9/11 as “Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance” September 11th, 2009 - 2:29 am ICT by BNO News
I call upon all Americans to join in service and honor the lives we lost, the heroes who responded in our hour of need, and the brave men and women in uniform who continue to protect our country at home and abroad. In April, I was proud to sign the bipartisan Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which recognizes September 11 as a National Day of Service and Remembrance. Originated by the family members of those who lost loved ones on 9/11, the National Day of Service and Remembrance is an opportunity to salute the heroes of 9/11, recapture the spirit of unity and compassion that inspired our Nation following the attacks, and rededicate ourselves to sustained service to our communities. ---- Working together, we can usher in a new era in which volunteering and service is a way of life for all Americans. Deriving strength from tragedy, we can write the next great chapter in our Nation’s history and ensure that future generations continue to enjoy the promise of America.
By a joint resolution approved December 18, 2001 (Public Law 107-89), the Congress has designated September 11 of each year as Patriot Day, and by Public Law 111-13, approved April 21, 2009, has requested the observance of September 11 as an annually recognized National Day of Service and Remembrance.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim September 11, 2009, as Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance. ---- I invite the Governors of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and interested organizations and individuals to join in this observance. I call upon the people of the United States to participate in community service in honor of those our Nation lost, to observe this day with other ceremonies and activities, including remembrance services, and to observe a moment of silence beginning at 8:46 a.m. eastern daylight time to honor the innocent victims who perished as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Reference Here>>
What this recast ... re-branding of the original proclamation for a Patriot Day really means can be found in this following description of an activity that happened only one month ago.
This excerpted and edited from The American Spectator-
Obama's Plan to Desecrate 9/11 By Matthew Vadum on 8.24.09 @ 6:08AM
This effort to reshape the American psyche has nothing to do with healing the nation and everything to do with easing the nation along in the ongoing radical transformation of America that President Obama promised during last year's election campaign. The president signed into law a measure in April that designated Sept. 11 as a National Day of Service, but it's not likely many lawmakers thought this meant that day was going to be turned into a celebration of ethanol, carbon emission controls, and radical community organizing. ---- The administration's plans were outlined in an Aug. 11 White House-sponsored teleconference call run by Obama ally Lennox Yearwood, president of the Hip Hop Caucus, and Liv Havstad, the group's senior vice president of strategic partnerships and programs. ---- The plan is to turn a "day of fear" that helps Republicans into a day of activism called the National Day of Service that helps the left. In other words, nihilistic liberals are planning to drain 9/11 of all meaning.
"They think it needs to be taken back from the right," said the source. "They're taking that day and they're breaking it because it gives Republicans an advantage. To them, that day is a fearful day."
A coalition including the unsavory left-wing pressure group Color of Change and about 60 far-left, environmentalist, labor, and corporate shakedown groups participated in the call. Groups on the call included: ACORN, AFL-CIO, Apollo Alliance, Community Action Partnership, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, 80 Million Strong for Young American Jobs, Friends of the Earth, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Mobilize.org, National Black Police Association, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, National Council of Negro Women, National Wildlife Federation, RainbowPUSH Coalition, Urban League, and Young Democrats of America. Reference Here>>
Basically, the new "brown shirt" leagues of the Obama Administration will do anything to hijack any vestige of what would pass for an American culture and patriotism and co-opt the effort to capture private efforts and turn them into service to, and for, the state envisioned by Barack Obama.
The largest insult from all of this activity, is that it assumes that Americans are not giving ... especially not giving to their communities and their neighbors. This assumption shows the depravity of understanding of self-reliant human beings and the cynical political philosophy of the person we have elected to become the 44th President of these United States.
However subtle, this re-branding proclamation of April 21, 2009 and series of conference calls by organizations aligned with the politically radical (communist) left in this country poses a far greater threat to freedom-loving life in this country than anything al Qaeda could muster up at this time. Barack Obama wants to consume and end this Constitutional country from within.
Please, REMEMBER 9/11 for what it really was, an act of war ... and REMEMBER the culture that made this country great.
Mr Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Anti-corruption, Public enterprises, Industry, Tourism, Trade and Communications, Fiji (left); and Dr Hamadoun Touré, ITU (International Telecommunications Union) Secretary-General (right). Image Credit: ITU / V. Martin 
