Unearthed! Barack Obama's Twisted ACORN Roots

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 mortgage loans."

MORE AT SOURCE>>

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" A Success Without MSM Help

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.
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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.

Teeny, tiny fringe, huh?
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Update: Tabitha Hale says Parks & Rec estimated 1.2 million. An ABC News correspondent says it wasn’t national ABC News network that reported 2 million figure. I take them at their word — and am checking to find out more info.

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.

Obama's Socialist Re-Branding Of 9/11 Remembrance

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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.

Moore Gaining More Through "Capitalism"

'CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY' - In Wide Release October 2nd /// "It's a crime story. But it's also a war story about class warfare. And a vampire movie, with the upper 1 percent feeding off the rest of us. And, of course, it's also a love story. Only it's about an abusive relationship. /// "It's not about an individual, like Roger Smith, or a corporation, or even an issue, like health care. This is the big enchilada. This is about the thing that dominates all our lives — the economy. I made this movie as if it was going to be the last movie I was allowed to make. /// "It's a comedy." — Michael Moore [ctrl-click to launch movie trailer]. Caption & Image Credit: mmflint

Moore Gaining More Through "Capitalism"

As much as Michael Moore hates capitalism (you know - Product, Price, Place, and Promotion), he sure keeps going back to the well to churn out more product which he can sell to his loyal, fearful, and hateful hoards.

In his latest project titled "Capitalism: A Love Story", Michael leaves no doubt how much he loves the money he makes by never straying from his basic formula. A Documentary style, smattered with dubious "FACTS" and a confrontation from Michael Moore, himself, the true love story of this latest (or any, for that matter) effort.

With Michael Moore, he is not happy unless he has a villain(s) upon which to heap disgust and insult as he sets himself up as the showman arbiter of a proper social justice. Politically, socialism is always the answer for Moore as he drags in the capitalist cash from his little, yet very profitable film enterprise!

U.S. director Michael Moore (L) and his wife Kathleen Glynn pose for photographers on the red carpet at the 66th Venice Film Festival September 6, 2009 [ctrl-click to launch movie trailer]. Image Credit: Tony Gentile

This excerpted and edited from Reuters -

Michael Moore's "Capitalism" economical with facts
By Deborah Young - Mon Sep 7, 2009 8:22pm EDT

Simplifications are Moore's stock-in-trade, and his documentaries are not known for their impeccable research and objectivity. But here his talent is evident in creating two hours of engrossing cinema by contrasting a fast-moving montage of 50s archive images extolling free enterprise with the economic disaster of the present. Given the desperate state of the world economy, this provocative film should find attentive audiences along with many angry detractors who will give it free publicity.

As in his previous films, Moore is himself the chief character, offscreen narrator and investigator. Wearing his inseparable baseball cap and T-shirt, he pretends wide-eyed surprise as his interview subjects recount personal dramas related to America's economic meltdown. These are genuinely moving stories: a couple whose farm is in foreclosure, a family that discovers the father's company has taken out a lucrative insurance policy and earned $5 million on his premature death, tearful workers whose factory is suddenly shut down, commercial airline pilots so underpaid they live on food stamps.

Moore has assembled a collection of nearly unbelievable horror stories to illustrate why capitalism and democracy do not go hand in hand.
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The second half of the film is even more chilling in suggesting, through interviews with a number of worried members of Congress, that the country's $700 billion bailout was legalized bank robbery, a "financial coup d'etat" run through Congress just before elections and engineered principally by Goldman Sachs and Henry Paulson.Though it blames all political parties, including the Democrats, for caving in with the bailout, the film is careful to spare President Barack Obama, who remains a symbol of hope for justice. His support for the workers who stage a sit-in at their factory is paralleled to Franklin D. Roosevelt's call for a new bill of rights -- never implemented -- guaranteeing universal health care.
Reference Here>>

Over the next few weeks to months, we will see how much stomach our movie-going society has for Socialism as we discuss the Public Option and Triggers when the Obama Administration and our Democrat Party led Congress tries to shove socialized universal health care down our collective tax-payer throats with impossible promises and 51 Senator "Yes" vote reconciliations.

As far as Michael Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story" ... the Paramount Vantage/Overture project opens in limited release on September 23 in New York and Los Angeles. With any luck, due to political overload caused by health care and other Obama Administration and Democrat Party leadership agendas, the movie will go straight to DVD/Blu-ray after the first week due to lack of interest!

Retrospective on Michael Moore by Cox & Forkum: "Blowing Smoke"

The importance of being Michael Moore by Mark Steyn at London Telegraph

State Run "Obama TV" Strikes Deal to Broadcast At Gas Stations!

GSTV's installation is completely painless and all-inclusive. We take care of the management, the equipment, the network, and content, including creating your product promotions. So you and your customers can sit back and enjoy the show (it is a little like how the Obama Administration would like the American people to feel as he implements his radical political agenda). Partical Caption & Image Credit: GSTV

State Run "Obama TV" Strikes Deal to Broadcast At Gas Stations!

Gas Station TV chosen to provide NBC content to 30 million on-the-go viewers.

That's right, it is not bad enough that Chris Matthews talks about a strange feeling running up his leg on his seldom viewed show on the equally unattended cable outlet MSNBC ... now we all may be treated to the same type of incisive reflections at the gas pump as we have to stand there and fill our tanks with the politically "hated" elixir.

This excerpted and edited from NACS Online -

NBC Universal and Gas Station TV Form Partnership
NACS Online (National Association of Convenience Stores) - Posted: Sep 1, 2009

NBC Everywhere and Gas Station TV announced earlier this week that they have formed an exclusive advertising and content partnership to bring NBCU content to gas stations across the country. As of yesterday, NBCU content is available to more than 30 million viewers each month during visits to gas station pumps.
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Gas Station TV is available in more than 100 U.S. DMAs (and more than 800 US cities), including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia.

“Gas Station TV continues to be sought out by the top advertisers due to our reach and ability to conduct both national and local campaigns,” said Gas Station TV CEO David Leider. “We chose NBC as our partner as they are the only major network truly committed to giving their loyal viewers the quality programming they enjoy — and now expect — when they are away from the home.”

Each GSTV screen features a four-and-a-half minute combination of local and national NBCU content, as well as content from ESPN and AccuWeather. Gas Station TV’s technology allows geo-targeting down to the station and daypart, appealing capabilities for advertisers.
Reference Here>>

Our Administration does not have an energy policy other than the recent appointment of a Politically-Radical Green Jobs Czar, Van Jones ... and there lies the rub. General Electric, as a company, views the green initiates put forward by the Obama Administration as THE way to save a dying company from itself.

Jeffrey R. Immelt, chairman and chief executive of General Electric leads a discussion with business leaders at an Ecomagination news conference at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, California May 24, 2007. Image Credit: Fred Prouser

Ever since Jeffery Immelt became the CEO of the multinational conglomerate, General Electric, it has lost profits, and its rather large media holdings, NBC Universal, have given its viewing public a 24/7 barrage on the "greening" of America in order to pursuade and propagandize the public into supporting Barack Obama's Cap & Trade plan. If Cap & Trade were to become law it would mean hyper-large Government contracts for alternative power generating technologies of which General Electric would be first in line to benefit from ... Profit From!

Of course, this new deal now indemnifies Gas Station TV from scrutiny by the newly appointed Radically-Political FCC Diversity Czar, Mark Lloyd (officially - diversity officer of the Federal Communications Commission) ... we are sensing a theme here. Yes, this is the same Mark Lloyd who was very fond of Hugo Chaves and his political take-over and control of Venezuela. Mark Lloyd stated while participating in a 2008 conference on "media reform," what a wonderful leader Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, was, and wincing at an unpleasantness the dictator had to deal with, the uppity owners of media, people who had some objections to the outright take-over of their property in mind.

He spoke of Chavez's "incredible revolution, a democratic revolution," and of the "property owners and the folks who then controlled the media in Venezuela" who "rebelled" and who "worked to oust him." Still, said Lloyd, Chavez "came back with another revolution, and then ... began to take very seriously the media in his country."

NBC Universal media properties list in alphabetical order [ctrl-click photo to enlarge]. Image Credit: NBCU

We, at MAXINE, know Quid Pro Quo is the order of the day, and Gas Station TV just became another cog in the wheel of the state run outfit headed by the very compliant NBC Universal aka "Obama TV"!

Pssst, Bush Volunteered For Viet Nam Theater Duty, Really!

Dan Rather - The "Poster Boy" for the cover of the scheduled release of "Media Bias For Dummies"! ... it's not happening, just kidding. Image Credit: liberalities.com

Pssst, Bush Volunteered For Viet Nam Theater Duty, Really!

An outside panel CBS brought into to get to the bottom of the so-called “Rathergate” mess says on Page #130 on an online report resource that George W. Bush had volunteered for fighter pilot service in the Viet Nam theater.

This little known information discovery was first brought forward on "The O'Reilly Factor" Tuesday night in an interview between Bill O'Reilly and Bernie Goldberg. What is interesting about this uncovered piece of information is that it shows to what lengths the producers and tellers of this story, that aired just 55 days before an election, went to hide an important fact about George W. Bush and his military service (beyond the phony documents).

This edited and excerpted from Bernie Goldberg's Between Manhattan and Malibu -

A "Lost" Fact in the "Rathergate" Mess
By Bernard Goldberg - Tuesday, August 25th, 2009 at 7:58 pm

What seems like a long, long time ago Dan Rather was a very powerful force in American journalism. He not only was the anchorman of the CBS Evening News, he was also the face of the network’s renowned news division — the “Tiffany” network of bigger-than-life legends like Ed Murrow, Walter Cronkite, Eric Sevareid, Mike Wallace and many, many others.

That was then.

Now Dan Rather is suing the network that employed him for 44 years, asking for $70 million dollars in damages. Technically, the lawsuit is about a dry legal issue — breach of contract. But it is also about something much more personal to Rather: his legacy. It is a lawsuit, fundamentally, about saving Dan Rather’s reputation.

That reputation took a turn for the worse back in 2004. As has been widely reported, just 55 days before a very close presidential election, Dan Rather and his producer Mary Mapes put a story on the weekday edition of 60 Minutes that brought on the media equivalent of World War III. There were accusations that Rather, Mapes, and maybe the entire CBS News Division had set out to deliberately destroy George W. Bush and get John Kerry elected President of the United States – a charge everyone at CBS vehemently denies.

The story was about how the young George Bush got preferential treatment during the Vietnam War; how he wangled his way into the Texas Air National Guard back in the 1960s to avoid service in Vietnam; and how he was able to do it because his father was a big-shot, a United States Congressman from Houston. The story portrayed the Bush as a slacker. Others have said it portrayed him as a “cowardly draft dodger.”

And to bolster their story, Rather and Mapes got their hands on “never-before-seen” documents (as Rather put it in his story) that supposedly backed up their months (and in Mapes’ case, years) of reporting. But in no time flat the documents came under attack, mainly by conservatives on the web who examined the typeface of the memos and concluded they were fakes.
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In 2007, Rather filed his $70 million lawsuit against his old company saying he wasn’t allowed to defend his story because the top management of CBS’ parent company, Viacom, wanted to appease the Bush Administration and protect its business interests.

Until now, the controversy over the Rather/Mapes story has centered almost entirely on one issue: the legitimacy of the documents – a very important issue, indeed. But it turns out that there was another very important issue, one that goes to the very heart of what the story was about – and one that has gone virtually unnoticed. This is it: Mary Mapes knew before she put the story on the air that George W. Bush, the alleged slacker, had in fact volunteered to go to Vietnam.

Who says? The outside panel CBS brought into to get to the bottom of the so-called “Rathergate” mess says. I recently re-examined the panel’s report after a source, Deep Throat style, told me to “Go to page 130.” When I did, here’s the startling piece of information I found:

Mapes had information prior to the airing of the September 8 [2004] Segment that President Bush, while in the TexANG [Texas Air National Guard] did volunteer for service in Vietnam but was turned down in favor of more experienced pilots. For example, a flight instructor who served in the TexANG with Lieutenant Bush advised Mapes in 1999 that Lieutenant Bush “did want to go to Vietnam but others went first.” Similarly, several others advised Mapes in 1999, and again in 2004 before September 8, that Lieutenant Bush had volunteered to go to Vietnam but did not have enough flight hours to qualify.

This information, despite the fact that it has been available since the CBS report came out four years ago, has remained a secret to almost everybody both in and out of the media — one lonely fact in a 234- page report loaded with thousands of facts, and overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the documents.

I made an online check and discovered that while a few websites noted the CBS finding, the story got no ink (that I could find) on the news pages of any big mainstream paper. I did manage to find two opinion pieces about the CBS mess – one in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, the other in the Miami Herald — that briefly, and only in passing, mentioned the “Bush volunteered” angle. But that was it! A check of network newscasts turned up nothing. And when I questioned two journalists with intimate knowledge of the story, both said Mapes never shared her information with them.

For the record: George W. Bush has always maintained that he joined the National Guard not to avoid service in Vietnam but because he wanted to be a fighter pilot.
Reference Here>>

Right there on Page #130 on an online resource it clearly states that George W. Bush had volunteered for fighter pilot service in the Viet Nam theater.

We, at MAXINE felt, the 43rd President of the United States may have been one of the most confounding Presidents this nation has ever seen given border security and Government spending ... at least until the current Administration took over, but George W. Bush did not join the Air National Guard to escape having to be put in harm's way in Viet Nam ... he actually volunteered for combat duty and this information was purposely suppressed because it just did not fit the direction of the intent of the 60 minutes piece!

HR615: Congress Should Live Under Health Care Plan They Create

Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) - As Rep. Fleming says, “If it’s so great for the rest of America, why can’t congress be a part of it as well?” Image Credit: House of Representatives

HR615: Congress Should Live Under Health Care Plan They Create

Has anyone noticed how the one-party leadership running the American government enjoys forcing their ideas on everyone else while not having to personally live with the consequences of those ideas themselves?

The socialized health care plan being debated in congress right now is no exception. They want to force Americans into their inefficient, costly, freedom-robbing plan while they continue living high on the taxpayer-funded hog of a different, privately managed plan.

This excerpted and edited from dakotavoice.com -

"Rep. John Flemming (R-LA) proposes to make all the animals on the “Animal Farm” truly equal. He has proposed HR 615 which says

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Members who vote in favor of the establishment of a public, federal government run health insurance option are urged to forgo their right to participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and agree to enroll under that public option.

As Rep. Fleming says, “If it’s so great for the rest of America, why can’t congress be a part of it as well?”

He has 43 Republican co-sponsors,yet despite reaching out to Democrats to sign on, not a single Democrat has joined as a sponsor. What’s good for the goose is apparently not at all acceptable to the gander.

He says that if Members of Congress believe so strongly that government-run health care is the best solution for hard working American families,it’s only fitting that Americans see them lead the way. Public servants should always be accountable and responsible for what they advocate and pass for the public, so they should have to live with the consequences, too."

SOURCE>>

"Madoffing America" - The Marketing Of ObamaCare

Barack Obama - President Obama asks supporters to declare their support for his three core principles for health care reform, and to share their personal stories to help build support for the reforms that are so desperately needed. [ctrl-click to launch video] Learn more at http://my.barackobama.com/healthcare

"Madoffing America" - The Marketing Of ObamaCare

The atmosphere here in America is laden heavy with the feel of Caveat Emptor ... let the buyer beware.

We are being told almost daily, that the Government needs to get what the Obama Administration wants to get done in terms of (name program here) legislation immediately, otherwise (name imperative here) will befall all of us and people are suffering.

Further, the Obama Administration is responding to the information that is leaking out about some programs they are fighting for with plastered over non-truths in order to be able to give the patina of cover for the Congress as they go back to their districts during the summer recess.

Linda Douglass - In this video, Linda Douglass, the communications director for the White Houses Health Reform Office, addresses a story that makes it look like the President intends to eliminate private coverage, when the reality couldn't be further from the truth. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0XCl6OHgiM

The Obama healthcare agenda, ObamaCare, is rife with misrepresentations and lies that are designed to have people believe that what this Administration is proposing is not a single payer, a one-size fits all healhcare system, that will push out and eliminate free market solutions that exist today.

Just like Bernie Madoff, who induced investors to give his company money with promises of unbelievable returns, the Obama Administration, with the help of the Democrat Political Party leadership in Congress, are promising something they can not, and do not intend to deliver.

The principles, as outlined on the wbsite - http://my.barackobama.com/healthcare - claims the following so that we citizens can feel comfortable about the proposed Government take-over of one-sixth of our economy - the healthcare system.

Example:

The Principles

President Obama has announced three bedrock requirements for real health insurance reform:

* Reduce Costs — Rising health care costs are crushing the budgets of governments, businesses, individuals and families and they must be brought under control

* Guarantee Choice — Every American must have the freedom to choose their plan and doctor – including the choice of a public insurance option

* Ensure Quality Care for All — All Americans must have quality and affordable health care

All of the above principles are not only untrue ... they are impossible promises to deliver given the text of H.R 3200, America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 (currently 1,018 pages) passed through the House Energy and Commerce Committee on a 31-28 vote last Friday.

Obama to Jane Sturm: Hey, take a pill - Jane asks the President if her 100 year old mother (now 105) would have gotten a pacemaker under his plan. Well now that's a tough one ... that costs a lot and maybe we will have to say, just take a pill. Priceless. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-dQfb8WQvo

This excerpted and edited from the Charlotte Conservative Examiner and About.com -

Obamacare: death and taxes
Hailey Wilson - Charlotte Conservative Examiner - August 4, 12:13 AM

House Democrats have narrowly pushed Obama’s Healthcare bill - H.R 3200, America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 - through a key congressional committee this past Friday.
----
The official vote [by all of Congress] should be sometime in September, leaving little time for representatives and Americans to learn what the bill is really about.

Here is a start:

This new healthcare plan will take the independence you have in deciding where and how you get your healthcare and put those decisions into bureaucratic hands.

Think about it this way: going to your doctor will be like going to your DMV—long waiting lines, substandard service and inefficient care.

There is one very important difference, however: you or your loved one will be sick, hurt or dying. The inevitable delays in government-funded healthcare mean death, pain or a worsened condition. And what is worse, the government will decide what quality of healthcare is acceptable.

Here are some of the provisions in Obama’s Healthcare bill:

Page 29: Health care will be rationed.

Page 30: A government committee will decide what treatments and benefits you get (and, unlike an insurer, there will be no appeals process)

Page 42: The "Health Choices Commissioner" will decide health benefits for you. You will have no choice. None.

Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with free healthcare services.
----
About.com:
Page 57, under section 163, there is something that would give the government power to reach into benefits recipients' bank accounts. It is called "Administrative Simplification," and Subsection 1173A of this measure, "Standardize Electronic Transactions" has a provision (a)(2)(B) that ensures that this new governmental power:

"be authoritative, permitting no additions or constraints for electronic transactions ..." (C) "be comprehensive, efficient and robust, requiring minimal augmentation by paper transactions or clarification by further communications;" and, finally, (D) enable the real-time (or near real-time) determination of an individual’s financial responsibility at the point of service and, to the extent possible, prior to service, including whether the individual is eligible for a specific service with a specific physician at a specific facility, which may include utilization of a machine-readable health plan beneficiary identification card;" ... (E) "enable, where feasible, near real-time adjudication of claims ..." (Emphasis added)
----
Page 58: Every person will be issued a National ID Healthcard.

Page 72: All private healthcare plans must conform to government rules to participate in a Healthcare Exchange.

Page 84: All private healthcare plans must participate in the Healthcare Exchange (i.e., total government control of private plans)

Page 95: The Government will pay ACORN and Americorps to sign up individuals for Government-run Health Care plan.

Page 102: Those eligible for Medicaid will be automatically enrolled: you have no choice in the matter.

Page 124: No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No "judicial review" is permitted against the government monopoly. Put simply, private insurers will be crushed.

Page 127: The AMA sold doctors out: the government will set wages.

Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into the government-run public plan. No alternatives.

Page 126: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part-time employees AND their families.

Page 167: Any individual who doesn’t have acceptable healthcare (according to the government) will be taxed 2.5% of income.

Page 170: Any NON-RESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes (Americans will pay for them).

Page 195: Officers and employees of Government Healthcare Bureaucracy will have access to ALL American financial and personal records.

Page 239: Bill will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors and the poor most affected."

Page 241: Doctors: no matter what speciality you have, you'll all be paid the same (thanks, AMA!)

Page 253: Government sets value of doctors' time, their professional judgment, etc.

Page 265: Government mandates and controls productivity for private healthcare industries.

Page 272: Cancer patients: welcome to the wonderful world of rationing!

Page 280: Hospitals will be penalized for what the government deems preventable re-admissions.

Page 298: Doctors: if you treat a patient during an initial admission that results in a readmission, you will be penalized by the government.

Page 317: Doctors: you are now prohibited for owning and investing in healthcare companies!

Page 318: Prohibition on hospital expansion. Hospitals cannot expand without government approval.

Page 335: Government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures: i.e., rationing.

Page 341: Government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans, HMOs, etc.

Page 354: Government will restrict enrollment of SPECIAL NEEDS individuals.

Page 425: More bureaucracy: Advance Care Planning Consult: Senior Citizens, assisted suicide, euthanasia.

Page 425: Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. Mandatory. Appears to lock in estate taxes ahead of time.
Reference Here and Here>>

There is more ... a lot more (and will be updated here from time to time) and it is not pretty.

Single Payer as articulated by now President Barack Obama at an AFL-CIO union meeting.

People are up in arms, showing up in record numbers at politician summer recess community meetings and having their voices heard. Last weekend, 10,000 people showed up at one of these gatherings in Ohio and the press reported that only 200 citizens were in attendance.

The Democrat Political Party leadership have drafted up some talking points to confront this display by condemning it as a manufactured response organized by "Big Insurance" companies, yet AARP, one of the biggest insurance marketers, is on record in supporting the Obama Administration's efforts - no matter what.

We, at MAXINE, are reminded of an anthem song produced by Bob Marley and the Wailers - "Get Up, Stand Up ... Stand Up For Your Right! [ctrl-click to launch music video] - don't give up the fight!" The time is now to not be duped by the efforts of our one-party leadership scheme and its efforts to nationalize healthcare, no matter how minimal their intrusion. Medicare and Medicaid are government programs that have failed, and all the Democrat leadership wants to do is give all of us this type of program as our only option.

Be very aware of the efforts of the one-party leadership represented by the Obama Administration and the Democrat Political Party led Congress to convince us to invest in their healthcare (big, bigger, biggest government control) ponzi scheme ... their Madoffing of America.

The Killing Of Innovation In Obamaworld

President Barack Obama (ahead), Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Sergeant James Crowley walk from the Oval Office to the Rose Garden of the White House, July 30, 2009 to join in on the President;s invitation to the "Beer Summit". Notice that it is Officer Crowley who is interested in the needs of the hobbled Professor Gates ... and not the friend and President. Image Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza

The Killing Of Innovation In Obamaworld

American exceptionalism and what the expression actually means are key to how the United States became the most powerful and successful country in the history of mankind.

Now that six full months of the one-party rule leadership regime of Carter's Second Term are in full effect, Barack Obama decided that the "Spirit of Innovation" is the key to the future and the country's economic prosperity.

To quote President Obama, "Innovation has been essential to our prosperity in the past, and it will be essential to our prosperity in the future."

Little does President Obama and the Democrat Political Party vote-locked led Congress understand that they have already snuffed the spark that ignites the flame of innovation which would be the payoff that risk offers the innovator.

Basically, by increasing the size and scope of Government in everyone's life, the mother's milk of innovation created through investment and the level of return on an investment that is judged by the risk involved ... has been turned upside down.

Increased taxes and fees, Federal takeover of major sectors of a once free enterprise business, laying waste to contract law precedents that helped to structure the confidence of the investor through business uncertainty, and the pursuit of policies that would actually kill off some of the energy producing sectors of our economy have done everything but produce an atmosphere in which innovation could grow yet survive.

Obama said he will discuss the foundation he wants when he makes a second visit to Elkhart, Ind., on Wednesday (8-5-2009). Layoffs in the recreational vehicle industry account for much of the job loss in northern Indiana, which is struggling with an unemployment rate near 17 percent.

If people do not have money to spend or invest in, bright, educated, and talented people to create and innovate, they will not have an environment that fosters creativity and return on the risk for their investment.

President Obama evokes the scepter of innovation after over 3 minutes of excuses and descriptions of how bad the economy is doing ... oh!, and did we mention that we inherited this recession? Video Credit: whitehouse.gov

This excerpted and edited from Yahoo News! -

Obama: 'Spirit of innovation' key to the future
By DARLENE SUPERVILLE, Associated Press Writer - 8-1-2009

President Barack Obama, citing fresh evidence the recession is winding down, says the country's future economic prosperity depends on building a new, stronger foundation and recapturing the "spirit of innovation."
----
The president cited Friday's Commerce Department report showing that in the last few months the economy overall has done "measurably better than expected." He credited his $787 billion economic stimulus program for much of that progress.

"This and the other difficult but important steps that we have taken over the last six months have helped put the brakes on this recession," Obama said.
----
"Even as we rescue this economy, we must work to rebuild it stronger than before," he said. "We've got to build a new foundation strong enough to withstand future economic storms and support lasting prosperity.

That means having the best-educated, highest-skilled workers in the world, a health care system that fosters innovation by holding the line on costs, building a clean energy economy and investing in research and development," Obama said.

"It is only by building a new foundation that we will once again harness that incredible generative capacity of the American people," the president said. "All it takes are the policies to tap that potential — to ignite that spark of creativity and ingenuity — which has always been at the heart of who we are and how we succeed.
Reference Here>>

President Obama believes that innovation and growth are fostered through Government programs and directed Government spending. Never, in the history of man has innovation been the product of an over-reaching managed effort put forth by any Government.

This approach will only lead to a killing of innovation in an Obama led world. This was not the approach that made the rise of the United States exceptional in the first place.

We, At MAXINE, believe that this template is the opposite of what it really takes to create an environment of innovation. Personal freedom is the key and smaller Government in all areas of a citizens life is the only way to recapture what made America great and exceptional in the first place.

Restore the growth of personal freedoms through self-reliance and innovation will naturally follow.

Reset America by resetting what made America the land of opportunity in the first place. It is time to re-read and apply the Constitution of the United States and grow to a program of Federal Government minimalism!

The New Name For Stupid? - "MAHER", Bill Maher

Comedian Bill Maher told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that the United States is stupid. How so, Bill? Because this country can elect someone like Sarah Palin, Maher replied. Blitzer gave Maher a few chances to backpedal, but the comedian stood his ground [ctrl-click to launch video]. Image Credit: faithcenter.wordpress.com

The New Name For Stupid? - "MAHER", Bill Maher

Humankind has a fun habit for naming things, traits and events in this world. They love to attribute a trait or quality of something by honoring it with the name of a person that holds this trait or quality so that they never forget their response. Then this person shares their story for this thing, trait or quality of something with everyone else for their approval. If the story fits ... the name sticks ... like a Brand Name.

A few common examples of this would be:

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del., on left), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a candidate for his party's 1988 presidential nomination, said today that he had "made a mistake" by announcing his opposition to the nomination of appeals court Judge Robert H. Bork (pictured on right) to the Supreme Court before giving an in-depth explanation of his rationale. But in a speech here today to the Association of State Democratic Chairs, Biden reiterated that opposition and said the Senate has a constitutional responsibility to play an equal role with the president in choosing Supreme Court justices. Caption Credit: The Washington Post, July 19, 1987 - Image Credit: Terry Ashe/Time Life Pictures

"BORK", as in attempts to BORK Clarence Thomas were unsuccessful. - To totally mis-characterize someone, trash their record and character so that they would not be able to be taken seriously for anything. This naming came from a tactic employed by elected officials from the Democrat Political Party when they were in opposition to the nomination of appeals court Judge Robert H. Bork to the Supreme Court back in 1987. Under the Constitution, the President has the power to nominate people to various offices. The Senate's role is to give "advice and consent." But in the case of Robert Bork, the Senate did a whole lot more. It unleashed a public relations campaign viciously attacking Judge Bork.

The story of Thomas Crapper and his achievements has been somewhat confused by Wallace Reyburn's 1969 book Flushed With Pride: The Story of Thomas Crapper, a heavily fictionalized satirical biography in the style of scholarship. Caption and Image Credit: Wikipedia

"CRAP", as in someone is full of CRAP ..., or, I feel like taking a CRAP! - This expression was derived from the last name of an enterprising person who decided to go into business. He founded the Thomas Crapper & Co. Ltd. in London and popularized the use of the flush toilet. Further, he developed some important related inventions, such as the ballcock. He was noted for the quality of his products and received several Royal Warrants. For this, he was honored with the slang term ... "CRAP"!

"MAHER", as in I'm so MAHER that I took a CRAP on the United States! - Actually, the term - MAHER - could qualify as a two-fer! After seeing the video of his statements made from his questioning by Wolf Blitzer on CNN's Situation Room, Bill Maher redefined both words of Stupid and Hateful, for claiming all Americans ... and America is a stupid country, and the example he cites is that he believed that this country would actually vote for Sara Palin as President and that made this country "Stupid" - that is hateful, not funny.

I have a question, if the United States is such a stupid country, why doesn't Bill Maher move to another country?

Answer - This country is so "MAHER", that it is willing to give stupid and hateful Bill Maher a television show ... when no other country would.

I guess this should sum it all up:

Basically, Maher "BORKS" the United States and Sarah Palin on CNN in one fell swoop ... and that makes his statements a load of CRAP! It's just Bill Maher being MAHER!

TDF Stage 21 - The Finale - Contador, Schleck, Armstrong, & The Rising Sun

From left: Astana teammates Lance Armstrong, Sergio Paulinho and Tour champion Alberto Contador drink champagne during the final ride into Paris. Caption and Image Credit: Getty via Universal Sports

TDF Stage 21 - The Finale - Contador, Schleck, Armstrong, & The Rising Sun

The Stage 21 template is set, Team Astana will have two riders, Team Saxo Bank with one rider in the Peloton that will be on the final Podium in Paris - Alberto Contador as winner of the Tour de France with Andy Schleck of Team Saxo Bank, 2nd, and Lance Armstrong placing 3rd.

One story that might be missed by most who were following the happenings of this epic athletic test over 21 days of competition in the month of july in France, Spain, Andorra, and Switzerland, is the fact that riders from the nation of Japan have competed and completed the Tour de France for the first time ever this year. There have been two other riders from Japan to start the Tour in its 96 year history, but this is the absolute first time that any rider (let alone two) has competed and completed this epic event and ride the final eight laps on the cobblestone pavement of the Champs Élysées in Paris.

Yukiya Arashiro riding for Team Bbox Bouygues Telecom (France) - In 2005 he was the Japanese U23 National Time Trial and Road Race Champion and in 2007 he was National Road Race Champion. Caption Credit: Wikipedia Image Credit: Universal Sports


Fumiyuki Beppu riding for Team Skil-Shimano (Netherlands) - In June 2006, Beppu was crowned the Japanese National Champion of both the Individual Time-Trial and the Road Race, he turned professional with Team Discovery Channel, with whom he stayed until 2007. Caption Credit: Wikipedia Image Credit: Universal Sports

Lance Armstrong can credit his podium finish over rider Bradley Wiggins of Team Garmin-Slipstream to the day he had in Stage 3 - http://my.nowpublic.com/sports/tdf-stage-3-lance-armstrong-makes-wind-aided-big-move - of the Tour de France.

The Peloton - On an unassuming Monday afternoon heading to the luxuriant coastal town of La Grande-Motte, the Columbia-HTC team decided to take the Tour de France on and hit it for six. /// Before the 96th Tour began, many commented on the apparent strength of Astana which boasts general classification contenders Alberto Contador, Lance Armstrong and Levi Leipheimer in their midst. But combined and riding as one today was not Astana, but the American-owned team who last week picked up a new sponsor, HTC. Columbia-HTC proved most powerful team during stage 3. Caption Credit: CyclingNews Image Credit: Roberto Bettini (2009)

General Classification Standings After Stage 2:
1 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank 04:49:34 (38.77km/h)
2 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana +:00:-18
3 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream +:00:-19
4 Andreas Klöden (Ger) Astana +:00:-22
5 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto +:00:-23
6 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Astana +:00:-30
7 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas +:00:-32
8 Tony Martin (Ger) Team Columbia - High Road +:00:-33
9 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas +:00:-37
10 Lance Armstrong (USA) Astana +:00:-40

Team Columbia with George Hincapie decided that if the teams wih sprinters were not going to take the race to the smaller, original four rider breakaway, then this team was going to place their rider, Mark Cavendish, in a position to take the stage. Team Columbia took advantage of an echolon move, where the nine riders of the team block the wind by riding in an angle, in kind of a half-chevron, to shield from the wind which caused another breakaway which eventually caught up with the smaller breakaway and on to the end to have this lead group gain 39 seconds against the rest of the field. Lanch Armstrong saw what Team Columbia was attempting to do and along with two other Team Astana teammates Yaroslav Popovych and Haimar Zubeldia, rode with this wind aided break to move at the end of the day from a 10th overall position to 3rd in the overall classification.

Bradley Wiggins, however, did not recognize what was happening and got caught out and ended up finishing with the Peloton, finishing in the pack, losing 1min. 40 sec. to Lance Armstrong.

General Classification Standings After Stage 3:
1 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank 09:50:58 (19.96km/h)
2 Tony Martin (Ger) Team Columbia - High Road +0:00:33
3 Lance Armstrong (USA) Astana +0:00:40
4 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana +0:00:59
5 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream +0:01:00
6 Andreas Klöden (Ger) Astana +0:01:03
7 Linus Gerdemann (Ger) Team Milram +0:01:03
8 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto +0:01:04
9 Maxime Monfort (Bel) Team Columbia - High Road +0:01:10
10 Levi Leipheimer (USA) Astana +0:01:11

Bradley Wiggings will finish 4th in the General Classification at a mere 37 seconds behind 3rd place Podium finisher after 21 days of racing through Spain, Andorra, Switzerland, and France!

This final 15km excerpted and edited from VeloNews -

1:14
CPelkey: As we said, today's stage will be a easy ride into Paris, with riders taking a somewhat relaxed approach to these final kilometers in what has been a long Tour de France.

Here's a quick shot of the peloton as they prepare to head to Paris.

5:21
CPelkey: With 15km remaining, the gap is down to 20 seconds.

5:21
[Comment From Doug from Wyoming ]
Do you think Columbia is holding off on catching the break-away to prevent the counter attacks?
5:22
CPelkey: Yeah, they have to know someone is going to counter as soon as the catch happens.
5:23
CPelkey: With 14km to go, the gap is down to 16 seconds. They have some serious horsepower on Columbia.
5:23
CPelkey: Two laps to go, 13km
5:23
CPelkey: The gap is now just 15 seconds.
5:25
CPelkey: With 12km to go, the gap is 11 seconds and the counter attacks are starting.
5:25
CPelkey: Garmin is moving up on the side of the peloton. Gonna try something?
5:26
CPelkey: With 10.5km to go, the gap is 13 seconds.
5:28
CPelkey: With 9.5km to go, the gap is 11 seconds.
5:28
CPelkey:

Michael Rogers has flatted. Bad news for Columbia
5:29
CPelkey: Our leaders are breaking apart... we have three up front, heading for the last lap.
5:29
CPelkey: One of them is Beppu.
5:30
CPelkey: Nice. Okay, we'll show our bias. Beppu! Beppu! Beppu!

It would be cool to see a Japanese winner.
5:30
CPelkey: Three leaders, Beppu, Veikkannen and Wegmann are now one lap from the end, and lead by 10 seconds. The others have been caught.
5:31
CPelkey: Ding Ding Ding.... one lap and it's nine seconds.
5:32
CPelkey: With 6km to go, the three leaders are 10 seconds ahead of the field.
5:32
CPelkey: Here comes Garmin....
5:32
CPelkey:

Caught...
5:33
CPelkey: Columbia is leading the charge with 5km to go.
5:33
CPelkey: Cavendish is the picture of concentration.
5:34
CPelkey: With 4km to go, the peloton is still together.
5:34
CPelkey:

Garmin sets up it's lead-out crew.
5:35
CPelkey:

Vande Velde is powering at the front.
5:35
CPelkey: 3km to go... Contador has won the Tour... we're in the safe zone.
5:35
CPelkey: Garmin up front. Columbia is fighting to organize.
5:36
CPelkey:

Vande Velde and Millar are doing hard work up front.
5:36
CPelkey: Into the tunnel
5:36
CPelkey: 1.8km to go
5:36
CPelkey: Garmin leads the way
5:37
CPelkey: Hincapie Counters with 1km to go.
5:37
CPelkey: It's a drag race
5:37
CPelkey:

Final turn....
5:37
CPelkey:

Renshaw gives the lead out...
5:38
CPelkey: Cav' gets it!
5:39
CPelkey: Number six.... wowie... he just flew off the front. Long, long sprint, but Cavendish and Renshaw had a huge gap on the rest of the field. Renshaw takes second.
5:40
CPelkey: Contador is celebrating his overall win. He crossed the line with his arms raised in victory.

As expected, there were no changes in GC.
5:41
[Comment From Breck ]
Safe zone?
5:43
CPelkey: Yeah, I knew that would elicit a question ... or 10.

I was referring to the UCI rule that awards field time to anyone who crashes or suffers some sort of mishap in the final three kilometers of a stage ... but with things happening as fast as they were, it would have taken a bit to type all of that in, eh?
5:44
CPelkey: It looks like Hushovd finished close enough to protect his hold on the green jersey.
5:45
[Comment From Bikeman ]
I thought the safe zone was 1km, when did it become 3?
5:45
CPelkey: I think in '05 or '06. I am old and my memory is beginning to fade.

Help, I've fallen and I can't get up.
5:47
CPelkey: Preliminary Stage Results:

# 1. Mark Cavendish Team Columbia - Htc
# 2. Mark Renshaw Team Columbia - Htc
# 3. Tyler Farrar Garmin - Slipstream at 00:00
# 4. Gerald Ciolek Team Milram at s.t.
# 5. Yauheni Hutarovich Francaise Des Jeux at s.t.
# 6. Thor Hushovd Cervelo Test Team at s.t.
# 7. Joaquin Rojas Jose Caisse D’epargne at s.t.
# 8. Marco Bandiera Lampre - N.g.c at s.t.
# 9. Daniele Bennati Liquigas at s.t.
# 10. William Bonnet Bbox Bouygues Telecom at s.t.
# 11. Lloyd Mondory Ag2r La Mondiale at s.t.
# 12. Geoffroy Lequatre Agritubel at s.t.
# 13. Nicolaï Trussov Team Katusha at s.t.
# 14. Cyril Lemoine Skil-Shimano at s.t.
# 15. Leonardo Duque Cofidis Le Credit En Ligne at s.t.
# 16. Sebastian Lang Silence - Lotto at s.t.
# 17. Matteo Tosatto Quick Step at s.t.
# 18. Steven De Jongh Quick Step at s.t.
# 19. Fabian Cancellara Team Saxo Bank at s.t.
# 20. Yukiya Arashiro Bbox Bouygues Telecom at s.t.
# 21. Saïd Haddou Bbox Bouygues Telecom at s.t.

5:48
[Comment From Daniel in PDX ]
Off to my ride. Thanks for the great coverage -- and humor!!
5:49
CPelkey: Oh man, we should all spend the next month riding our bikes during those times we spent here in July.
5:51
CPelkey:

The final top 10:
# 1. Alberto Contador Astana, 85:48:35
# 2. Andy Schleck Team Saxo Bank, at 4:11
# 3. Lance Armstrong Astana at 05:24
# 4. Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream at 06:01
# 5. Frank Schleck Team Saxo Bank at 06:04
# 6. Andréas KlÖden Astana at 06:42
# 7. Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas at 07:35
# 8. Christian Vande Velde Garmin - Slipstream at 12:04
# 9. Roman Kreuziger Liquigas at 14:16
# 10. Christophe Le Mevel Francaise Des Jeux at 14:25

5:56
CPelkey: Nice to see that Yukiya Arashiro (Bbox Bouygues) not only finished today, but made top-20 in the stage. Two Japanese rider become the first from their country to finish the Tour de France. Terrific work and congratulations to both.
5:56
[Comment From Ken Stevens ]
KOM?
5:57
CPelkey: Pellizotti had a lock on it today. All he had to do was finish and he did.
5:59
CPelkey: Hushovd is on the podium now. He's getting the green jersey.
6:00
CPelkey: And Franco Pellizotti is on the stage with his son. How cool would that be, being able to share a moment like that with your kid?
6:01
CPelkey: Best young rider... Andy Schleck, the white jersey winner from last year. Good work.
6:02
[Comment From Dave ]
What is the age limit for the White jersey?
6:02
CPelkey:

Under 25.
6:03
[Comment From Wow ]
I want to kiss a podium girl
6:03
CPelkey: You can! Just win a stage at the Tour de France.
6:04
[Comment From guest ]
did cav's dq made a difference?
6:05
CPelkey: The relegation cost Cavendish 13 points. The final difference was 10 points, but who knows how it would have shaken out if the race would have been closer.

Hushovd's march through the mountains sure made a statement.

# 1. Thor Hushovd Cervelo Test Team 280 points
# 2. Mark Cavendish Team Columbia - Htc 270 points
# 3. Gerald Ciolek Team Milram 172 points
# 4. Joaquin Rojas Jose Caisse D’epargne 145 points
# 5. Tyler Farrar Garmin - Slipstream 136 points
# 6. Nicolas Roche Ag2r La Mondiale 122 points
# 7. Oscar Freire Rabobank 119 points
# 8. Franco Pellizotti Liquigas 104 points
# 9. Alberto Contador Astana 101 points
# 10. Andréas Kloden Astana 89 points

Team Astana teammates Alberto Contador (left) and Lance Armstrong greet each other on the final podium as they assume positions 1 and 3 respectively. Image Credit: Reuters via Universal Sports

This article excerpted and edited from VeloNews -

'Old Fart' Armstrong secures his spot on the podium
By Andrew Hood, VeloNews - Published: Jul. 25, 2009

Maybe Lance Armstrong will like Mont Ventoux a little more now.

Armstrong hung tough on the mountain that’s always given him trouble to fend off attacks from the Schleck brothers and secure a podium spot with third place going into Sunday’s finale at the 2009 Tour de France.

“I cannot complain for an old fart coming here,” Armstrong said after the stage. “Getting third on these young guys is not so bad.”

During his seven-year Tour reign, Mont Ventoux proved elusive. In 2000, he “gifted” the stage to Italian rival Marco Pantani in a gesture that backfired. In 2002, Richard Virenque won out of a breakaway ahead of the chasing Armstrong, who crossed the line third.

On Saturday, the stakes were dramatically different and Armstrong was riding to defend his hold on third-place.

Some 38 seconds separated Armstrong from sixth-place rival Frank Schleck, with Bradley Wiggins (Garmin-Slipstream) and Andreas Kloden (Astana) sandwiched in between for a four-way battle for third.

The Saxo Bank tandem needed to dislodge Armstrong, Wiggins and Kloden if they wanted to move Frank Schleck from sixth to third to join Andy Schleck on the final podium in Paris.
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Astana sport director Alain Gallopin said the longer, steeper slopes of the unrelenting Mont Ventoux climb better-suited Armstrong’s style.

“We are very pleased with the confirmation of Armstrong to finish on the Tour. First and third is not bad for us! It was impressive what Armstrong could do today, but we were confident,” Gallopin said. “Arcalis and Verbier were shorter and faster than a climb like Ventoux, so we expected him to be able to fend off the attacks. He's better on the longer climbs like Alpe d'Huez.”
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Armstrong settled into third place at 5:24 back, a remarkable achievement following his three-year retirement.

At 37, Armstrong is one of the oldest podium finishers ever. His experience and race savvy proved decisive throughout the race, most evident in key moments when he snuck into the front group when the pack split in stage 3 to Le Grande Motte.

With new sponsor RadioShack, Armstrong promises to be back next year even stronger.

“I will race next year with my team and I think I will be even stronger,” Armstrong said. “We will have a strong team. I am already looking forward to next year.”
Reference Here>>

Total ReCap of the 23 days of the 2009 Tour de France>>