Pirates Seize 10 People Off Coast of Cameroon

Pirates off the west coast of Africa have boarded an oil barge and seized 10 people, including 7 French nationals. Story here.

Commies Mad at Ukrainian Actress for Aiding 007 "The Killer of Hundreds of Soviets" in the Thatcher and Reagan Years.

The St. Petersburg Russia Communists party is infuriated that Olga Kurylenko stars in the next 007 film Quantum of Solace. They claim that they fed her and schooled her for free while 007 was murdering hundreds of Soviets during the years of Reagan and Thatcher. Story here.

Uhh, hey comrades. 007 is a fictional character created by Ian Fleming. He really didn't exist, and in his later years he fought Thrush, or Flush or some such.

Get a life.

P.S. If you ever go to St. Petersburg, you have to go see the Hermitage, where the Bolsheviks captured the freely elected (6 month old) government of Russia in the October Revolution (Октябрьская революция) in 1917. They have thousands of fantastic artworks on display there which were confiscated from selfish people who did not accept the "Change You Can Believe In" in 1917.

Global Warming Not Political? Satellite That Can Disprove Global Warming to Be Launched, But ONLY AFTER STRIPPING IT OF EARTH FACING SENSORS

Bet you didn't hear this on the main stream news:

"Here is the latest twist in the bizarre story about the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR). Apparently, the US Air Force is in discussions with NASA to take over the mission, with one important catch: that all the Earth observing instruments be removed.
It seems the Air Force is more interested in looking at the Sun than our warming planet and plans are being made to send the spacecraft one million miles distant – only to look the other way.

DSCOVR is unique experiment that would place a spacecraft at a gravitational parking spot one million miles away where it could continuously observe the Earth as it circles the sun.

This unique vantage point would allow us for the first time to directly measure the energy budget of our warming planet. This spacecraft would also immediately lay to rest any remaining scientific questions about the origins or seriousness of climate change. Strangely, this fully completed spacecraft remains in a box somewhere in Maryland, eight years and $100 million after it was built.

DeSmog Blog has written a series of investigative articles on the status of this strange mission. NASA has repeatedly refused to release any internal documents relating the status of DSCOVR or why the space agency refuses to launch it, even when requested through the Freedom of Information Act.

This spring, Congress submitted a bill that included a clause requiring NASA to explain to the taxpayer within 180 days why this mission remains in storage and what it plans to do with it. The bill was signed into law last week by president Bush, meaning NASA must present their plan regarding DSCOVR by April 13, 2009.

Assuming that there are senior scientists within NASA that are threatened by the novel methodology of the DSCOVR experiment, or well placed oil interests that want to keep the so-called climate debate going, this legally mandated deadline presents a problem. What to do?

The latest bizarre development with the Air Force would perversely get NASA off the hook. The spacecraft would be launched, NASA would met the strict legal requirements of resolving the mission, yet DSCOVR would return no data for which it was designed. Problem solved.

This latest twist is entirely consistent with the eight years of foot-dragging and obfuscation from the leadership of NASA. For those of us with a growing suspicion about why DSCOVR remains in a box, we can only wonder how all of this will play out."

Bookmark this blog.

Only in Florida: Nudist Colony Wants Clothing Optional Polling Site

Need I say more?

Story here.

Sorry no picture.

Gallup says Obama Up by 8 Points in Likely Voters

This is a wild turn around from 2 days ago when Gallup said they were tied. This author can't believe the wide swings in polling results. Obviously polling is not true science, but rather voodoo science.

Being within 8 points of the correct answer in a 2 person race is not anywhere at all acceptable. Statistical methods are supposed to control for raw data aberrations. 8, 10, and 15 point swings are simply not tolerable.

Course it's similar to predictions as to who will be the #1 team in March Madness (referring to a college basketball tournament here in the US for all of our overseas readers). That's why we play the game.

McCain Manages to Pull Even with Obama in Two Key Battleground States

The left leaning blog Politico reports that McCain has pulled even with McCain in two key states, Missouri and North Carolina, surprising many.

Story here.

Obama Calls Those Who Don't Want to Pay Higher Taxes "Selfish"

Hold on to your wallets. The news network web site says that Obama is calling people who don't want to pay higher taxes, "selfish".

Do I mean the right leaning Fox News? No, ABC News quotes Obama.

Read it here.

What It Will Be Like Under an Obama Regime: Reporters Kicked Off Plane If Their Paper Endorsed McCain

Drudge Report states that reporters from the NY Post, Washington Times, and Dallas Morning News were told to get off the Obama plane once their newspapers endorsed McCain.

He told you there would be change. Change you can believe in. You just didn't believe he meant a return to extremely partisan politics.

Obama has already argued to get rid of moderates out of the Democratic party. Here is what he wrote for a liberal blogsite in 2005:

"Let me be clear: I am not arguing that the Democrats should trim their sails and be more "centrist." In fact, I think the whole "centrist" versus "liberal" labels that continue to characterize the debate within the Democratic Party misses the mark. Too often, the "centrist" label seems to mean compromise for compromise sake, whereas on issues like health care, energy, education and tackling poverty, I don't think Democrats have been bold enough."

Read the whole article here.

There aren't going to be any centrist, no meeting of both sides of the aisle, no reporters from papers that don't support him.

You haven't seen nothing yet.

Story here.

Note to 60 Yr Old Thieves: Give It Up If You Have Arthritis

I don't care who you are, this is funny. From Madison Wisconsin:

By Linda Spice of the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Oct. 30, 2008 8:24 a.m.

"Inconspicuous he was not.

A 60-year-old Madison man - already a convicted felon - quickly drew attention to himself yesterday when he dropped a gun not once but twice, prompting someone to contact police in the 1000 block of Moorland Road about 3:36 p.m. Wednesday.

Madison police arrived as the man was attempting to leave a parking lot.

He was stopped, and officers found a loaded .22-caliber pistol and a second unloaded handgun in his vehicle.

Officers also found several knives, including a switchblade, as well as drugs.

The man faces counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, disorderly conduct while armed, possession of a switchblade and possession of drugs."

There is no report as to what the drugs were, but rumor has it, it was blood pressure medicine and Viagra. ;-)

Al Qaeada Wants Bush and Republicans Humiliated in This Election

Reuters reports that a top al Qaeda leader has publically come out in support of anybody running against the Republicans:

"DUBAI (Reuters) - An al Qaeda leader has called for President George W. Bush and the Republicans to be "humiliated," without endorsing any party in the upcoming U.S. presidential election, according to a video posted on the Internet.

"O God, humiliate Bush and his party, O Lord of the Worlds, degrade and defy him," Abu Yahya al-Libi said at the end of sermon marking the Muslim feast of Eid al-Fitr, in a video posted on the Internet.

Libi, one of the top al Qaeda commanders believed to be living in Afghanistan or Pakistan, called for God's wrath to be brought against Bush equating him with past tyrants in history."

Now it is very tempting for me to say that al Qaeda is supporting Obama and the Democrats, but actually I won't.

Instead I'll say that son of a gun needs to wise up and see the real picture. Here in America we elect our leaders.

We fight with each other like the dickens, and there are some shenanigans from both sides, but it is our own that decide who will be our leader.

As I have said before, some of our leaders might be crooks, but at least they are the crooks that we elected.

Global Warming??? MIT Scientists Baffled, Coldest Days in London, Sweden, Florida

Global Warming, that villain of the past before the election and the banking crisis took all the news, may be Global Cooling instead.

First off, MIT scientists studying methane in the atmosphere are baffled because methane production appears to be increasing FROM THE EARTH rather than from mankind. That is opposed to all the global warming models which say that the greenhouse gas is caused by man. Story here (but it may load slowly due to a mention on the Rush Limbaugh show. It is getting many many hits.)

And today as a Global Warming conference opened in London, London was hit with its first October snow since 1922. Hey, maybe Mother Nature is peeved because we think we know more about the climate than she does. You know, a woman scorned and all that. Story here.

Sweden also got its first snow storm of the season, hikers were caught in the Austrian alps, and Florida is experiencing record cold temperatures.

Man it's a b---- being a global warming scientist this winter.

LA Times Admits It Is WithHolding a Video of Obama Praising a Palestinian Hamas Activist

The LA Times admits it is withholding a video of Barack Obama praising Palestinian activist Rashid Khalidi at a 2003 banquet.

LA Times reported:

"A major news organization is intentionally suppressing information that could provide a clearer link between Barack Obama and Rashid Khalidi," said McCain campaign spokesman Michael Goldfarb. " . . . The election is one week away, and it's unfortunate that the press so obviously favors Barack Obama that this campaign must publicly request that the Los Angeles Times do its job -- make information public."

The Times on Tuesday issued a statement about its decision not to post the tape.

"The Los Angeles Times did not publish the videotape because it was provided to us by a confidential source who did so on the condition that we not release it," said the newspaper's editor, Russ Stanton. "The Times keeps its promises to sources."

Wait a minute. Aren't newspapers supposed to expose the truth? Well not if it would hurt your candidate.

Full story here.

Effigy of Palin Hanged in West Hollwood - Not a Hate Crime. Obama Effigy Hanged in Ky - Is a Hate Crime

An effigy of Sarah Palin is hanging in West Hollywood. Police investigated but said it was not a hate crime and left the effigy. Story here.

"Offensive as it may be, the Palin doll -- outfitted with beehive wig, glasses and a vintage Neiman Marcus red coat dress -- appears to violate no law, said officials of the Secret Service, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and the West Hollywood city Code Enforcement Division.

"The sheriff made this clear: This is a country that has freedom of speech, and we protect that right even when we think it's idiotic and stupid and in bad taste," said Steve Whitmore, spokesman for the Sheriff's Department."

An effigy of Obama was hanged at the University of Kentucky in Lexington and police immediately took it down and the university issued an apology.

"University President Lee Todd said he planned to apologize to the Obama family on behalf of the school and that he is "personally offended and deeply embarrassed by this disgusting episode."

Federal authorities have been notified, Todd said. He said the effigy violates the university's code of ethics and won't be tolerated.

'I am outraged because we work very hard, every day, to build bridges across the divides," Todd said. "Diversity and inclusion are among our most precious core values. Episodes like this serve only to erode our confidence in and respect for one another.'" Story here.

Go figure.

Barack Obama’s Aunt Found in Boston Slum

Barack Obama’s aunt Zeituni Onyango has been found in a Boston tenement.

Zeituni Onyango, the aunt so affectionately described in Mr Obama’s best-selling memoir Dreams from My Father, lives in a disabled-access flat on a rundown public housing estate in South Boston.

Story here.

Gallup says 2 points, Rassmussen says 3: Maybe this is Still a Horse Race!

The Drudge Report is reporting that Gallup says that Obama only leads McCain 49-47 of likely voters and that Rassmussen says that it is only a 3 point spread.

But the Pew Center shows that Obama has a 15 point lead

The Washington Post addresses the question of whether the polls are accurate:

"Could the polls be wrong?

Sen. John McCain and his allies say that they are. The country, they say, could be headed to a 2008 version of the famous 1948 upset election, with McCain in the role of Harry S. Truman and Sen. Barack Obama as Thomas E. Dewey, lulled into overconfidence by inaccurate polls.

"We believe it is a very close race, and something that is frankly very winnable," Sarah Simmons, director of strategy for the McCain campaign, said yesterday.

Few analysts outside the McCain campaign appear to share this view. ...

Still, there appears to be an undercurrent of worry among some polling professionals and academics. One reason is the wide variation in Obama leads: Just yesterday, an array of polls showed the Democrat leading by as little as two points and as much as 15 points. The latest Washington Post-ABC News tracking poll showed the race holding steady, with Obama enjoying a lead of 52 percent to 45 percent among likely voters.

Some in the McCain camp also argue that the polls showing the largest leads for Obama mistakenly assume that turnout among young voters and African Americans will be disproportionately high. The campaign is banking on a good turnout among GOP partisans, whom McCain officials say they are working hard to attract to the polls.

"I have been wondering for weeks" whether the polls are accurately gauging the state of the race, said Steven Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College in Minnesota. Borrowing from lingo popularized by former defense secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, Schier asked what are the "unknown unknowns" about polling this year: For instance, is the sizable cohort of people who don't respond to pollsters more Republican-leaning this year, perhaps because they don't want to admit to a pollster that they are not supporting the "voguish" Obama?

If so, that could mean the polls are routinely understating McCain's support. ...
...

"As other public polls begin to show Senator Obama dropping below 50% and the margin over McCain beginning to approach margin of error with a week left, all signs say we are headed to an election that may easily be too close to call by next Tuesday," McCain pollster Bill McInturff wrote in a memo released last night by the campaign. Obama officials voiced confidence in their ultimate victory but said they have always expected the election to be close.

To buttress its point of view, the McCain team points to results reported yesterday by the Gallup organization, whose daily tracking poll showed Obama up 49 percent to 47 percent using Gallup's traditional turnout model, which assumes that turnout will follow the patterns of past elections. Obama has a larger lead, seven points, using a model that allows a higher presence of first-time voters."

Read the whole story here.

It May Depend on Who Goes to Vote: Gallup Says McCain Pulls Within 2%

The Gallup daily poll might indeed be instructive on who will win the election.

Amongst REGISTERED VOTERS Obama leads McCain 50% - 43% - a whopping 7% lead.

And amongst LIKELY VOTERS EXPANDED (meaning voters who say they will probably vote), Obama's lead is still 7% at 51% - 44%.

But amongst TRADITIONAL LIKELY VOTERS (meaning those that have voted in the past) Obama's lead shrinks to 2%, 49% - 47%.

In North Carolina, WRAL-TV reported that voters were split evenly 47% - 47%. Some said that showed that McCain was really bad off since the state has voted for the Republican candidate over the last several elections, but at the same time, NC has had a Democratic governor for at least 16 years as well as a Democratic legislature and council of state despite several prominent Democratic politicians now serving time in jail for bribery, etc.

So who will show up to vote. There certainly are plenty of people who were signed up at the mall or on park benches, but will they vote. Will there be vans to pick them up and take them to the polls in return for a smoke, drink, or some other coupon?

In short, you're vote may be very important.

Zogby Poll: Obama by 49% McCain 46%

Just when I think that McCain is dead, the polls swing back. Today, the Zogby Poll shows McCain within 3%, 49% - 46%

Here is what John Zogby said in his analysis:

“There is no question that this race continues to tighten and that McCain is finding his message again,” said Pollster John Zogby. “It is after all about the economy and that is how McCain tightened it up the last time. I have said over and over again, when he focuses on extraneous issues, he screws up. In today's single day of polling, it was 49% to 46% in favor of Obama. McCain has moved his own numbers each of the three days and Obama has gone down from 54% to 50% to 49%. I have alluded before to this strange, magnetic pull that brings Obama down to 48% or 49%, a danger zone for him. McCain's gains are among white voters, where he now leads by 12 points, and with men, where he again has a healthy lead. There is still a lot of campaign to go. A lot of campaign to go.”

But the polls vary widely. RCP has Obama with a 7.6% lead, while TIPP/IBD shows that McCain only trails by 2.2%

Tina Fey Puts on Blackface and Makes Fun of Michelle Obama Growing Up Black!!!

Can you believe that Tina Fey on Saturday Night Live put on black face, and mimicked Michele Obama talking to her black friends in a beauty shop???

Well I'd like to sell you some swamp land in Florida, because if you think the main stream media woud allow Tina Fey to make fun of Michelle Obama the same way she makes fun of Sarah Palin, you are gullible.

But they sure will make fun of Pain's middle class roots and Alaska heritage. I say, what's fair for the goose is fair for the gander.

Read this great post by Patrick Buchanan here for more on the subject.

IBD/TIPP POLL: Obama Only Leads McCain by 1.1%

IBD summary results here.

"Posted: Thursday, October 23, 2008

McCain has cut into Obama's lead for a second day and is now just 1.1 points behind. The spread was 3.7 Wednesday and 6.0 Tuesday. The Republican is making headway with middle- and working- class voters, and has surged 10 points in two days among those earning between $30,000 and $75,000. He has also gone from an 11-point deficit to a 9-point lead among Catholics."

Newly Released Video of POW McCain Interviewed by French Reporter

Someone actually said this may not help McCain because he is seen smoking a cigarette in the video!!

Unbelievable.

If you can watch this whole thing without getting tears in your eyes, then you have no heart.

Where Is There An Honest Journalist?

Read this article. You won't believe these quotes from a journalist, who is also a Democrat, because he tells it like it is: Democrat journalists are not pursuing stories against Obama that they would be in a frenzy feed over if it involved McCain.

"So I ask you now: Do you have any standards at all? Do you even know what honesty means?

Is getting people to vote for Barack Obama so important that you will throw away everything that journalism is supposed to stand for?"

You have got to read this article. Here is the start of it. The rest of the story is in the link below:

"Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?
By Orson Scott Card

Editor's note: Orson Scott Card is a Democrat and a newspaper columnist, and in this opinion piece he takes on both while lamenting the current state of journalism.

An open letter to the local daily paper — almost every local daily paper in America:

I remember reading All the President's Men and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know.

This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration.

It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans.

What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely not to be able to repay.

The goal of this rule change was to help the poor — which especially would help members of minority groups. But how does it help these people to give them a loan that they can't repay? They get into a house, yes, but when they can't make the payments, they lose the house — along with their credit rating.

They end up worse off than before.

This was completely foreseeable and in fact many people did foresee it. One political party, in Congress and in the executive branch, tried repeatedly to tighten up the rules. The other party blocked every such attempt and tried to loosen them.

Furthermore, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were making political contributions to the very members of Congress who were allowing them to make irresponsible loans. (Though why quasi-federal agencies were allowed to do so baffles me. It's as if the Pentagon were allowed to contribute to the political campaigns of Congressmen who support increasing their budget.)

Isn't there a story here? Doesn't journalism require that you who produce our daily paper tell the truth about who brought us to a position where the only way to keep confidence in our economy was a $700 billion bailout? Aren't you supposed to follow the money and see which politicians were benefiting personally from the deregulation of mortgage lending?

I have no doubt that if these facts had pointed to the Republican Party or to John McCain as the guilty parties, you would be treating it as a vast scandal. "Housing-gate," no doubt. Or "Fannie-gate."

Instead, it was Senator Christopher Dodd and Congressman Barney Frank, both Democrats, who denied that there were any problems, who refused Bush administration requests to set up a regulatory agency to watch over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and who were still pushing for these agencies to go even further in promoting sub-prime mortgage loans almost up to the minute they failed."

Read more here. This is good. It is a must read.

What is Going on? Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Poll: Obama by a Landslide. AP Poll: They're Tied!!

What is going on with this election? A Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll says that Obama will win by a landslide 51.6% to 42%.

But as reported by the Drudge Report, there is an AP poll that says they're tied 44%-43%.

The Investors Business Daily says:

Contrary to other polls, some of which show Obama ahead by double digits, the IBD/TIPP Poll shows a sudden tightening of Obama's lead to 3.7 from 6.0. McCain has picked up 3 points in the West and with independents, married women and those with some college. He's also gaining momentum in the suburbs, where he's gone from dead even a week ago to a 20-point lead. Obama padded gains in urban areas and with lower-class households, but he slipped 4 points with parents.

The Wall Street Journal has a great article on why polls might be incorrect here. In part they say:

[T]he exit polls in almost all the primaries this year showed Mr. Obama doing better than he actually did. The same respondent bias -- the greater willingness of Obama voters to be polled -- which apparently occurred on primary days could also occur in the exit poll on Election Day, and in the phone polls of early and absentee voters that Edison/Mitofsky will conduct to supplement it.


Under the WSJ theory, Obama supporters are very excited to be polled and declare their support for him, while McCain supporters don't want to be bothered with answering a pollster's questions on the phone in the evening. (I certainly understand. I have turned down survey people most of the time when they call.)

The Financial Times of London offers this explanation for the difference in polls:

For a poll to be useful, its sample must match as closely as possible the demographic make-up of the voting population. This year, however, the traditional rules have been thrown into confusion by Mr Obama’s efforts to mobilise two groups that have been under-represented in previous elections: young people and African-Americans.

An aggressive registration drive by the Obama campaign and its allies has added millions to the electoral roll, but it remains uncertain how many will take part in the election.

Those polls giving Mr Obama his biggest lead, such as the CBS/New York Times polls that have shown him with a 13-14 point margin over the past two weeks, tend to be based on the most generous assumptions of higher Democratic turnout.

Polls that depict a tighter race, such as Reuters/Zogby and Rasmussen, which have consistently put Mr Obama’s lead in the low to mid-single digits, tend to be based on more conservative models that assume less change from previous elections.

Gallup, one of the most respected pollsters, has acknowledged the uncertainty by offering two separate estimates of likely voters in its daily tracking poll.

One takes into account past voting behaviour; the other uses estimates of an “expanded” turnout, so adding to Mr Obama’s lead.

One thing is sure. Polls don't decide who wins an election, voters do. That's why they play the game! Get out and vote.

Obama Caught on Tape Arguing Against Providing Medical Care to Aborted Babies That Are Still Alive

Link:

From the Land of Fruits and Nuts...Prostitution (Legal, almost)

As if Castro Street with its gay life, marijuana shops next to grocery chains, same sex marriages, homeless people running for city council so they can get the $8,000 of city campaign money and what not comes a new proposition: legalized prostitution!

Well almost. Prostitution would still be illegal under state law, but San Francisco is considering withholding all funds from police to stop enforcement.

Breitbart reports:

San Francisco would become the first major U.S. city to decriminalize prostitution if voters next month approve Proposition K—a measure that forbids local authorities from investigating, arresting or prosecuting anyone for selling sex.

The ballot question technically would not legalize prostitution since state law still prohibits it, but the measure would eliminate the power of local law enforcement officials to go after prostitutes.

Proponents say the measure will free up $11 million the police spend each year arresting prostitutes and allow them to form collectives.

"It will allow workers to organize for our rights and for our safety," said Patricia West, 22, who said she has been selling sex for about a year by placing ads on the Internet. She moved to San Francisco in May from Texas to work on Proposition K.

Payback Time! 3 Oil Countries Face Hard Times from Oil Price Drop

I'm lovin' it.

Venezuela, Russia, and Iran have been able to spout off at the mouth to the US because they had petro-dollars ut the wazoo.

Hugo Chavez has been stealing the freedoms of his countrymen while shaking his stick at the US.

Putin in Russia was able to invade Georgia and send a destroyer to Venezuela.

And Ahmadinejad in Iran has continued to be a body part that I won't mention here.

But their plans counted on oil at high prices. Now oil is in the mid-$70's and these countries are hurting. (They were hurting before, but with lots of bucks, they paved things over.)

The British International Herald Tribune says that these countries may be in the soup now.

Unfortunately, our new president will probably send them aid to pay their terrorist bills until the price of oil rises.

Get Out and Vote; Because These People Will Vote - Perhaps Many Times if ACORN Gets Their Wish

Get out and vote. Dont't let the polls convince you that your vote doesn't mean anything.



Because if ACORN has its way, these people will vote in your place.

North Korea to Make An Important Announcement Monday: Could It Be that Dear Leader is Dead?

As reported in this blog earlier, here and here, we suspect either that Kim Jong Il is either dying or already dead. Now reports are coming out of North Korea that the government is telling its diplomats around the world to expect an announcement of importance on Monday.

We think that the military command in North Korea has decided that can keep the secret of Dear Leader's death no more and have decided to use the world's financial turmoil as cover for their announcement.

h/t to Newsbusters.org

Developing...

All Those Who Have Won The Presidential Election, Please Step Forward... Errr, Obama, Not So Fast.

Zogby Poll: McCain Pulls within 2.7% of Obama

Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Poll: Obama 47.8%, McCain 45.1%

Zogby states:

"McCain now trails Obama by 2.7 points, down from the 3.9 point deficit he faced 24 hours earlier.

Seven-point-one percent of the likely voters surveyed said they remain undecided.

Obama lost five-tenths of a point from yesterday's report, while McCain gained another six-tenths of a point. It was the third consecutive day in which Obama's numbers slipped and McCain's numbers increased."

Whoa!!!!!! I thought the election was over. I thought Obama was picking his cabinet already. The main stream media has already crowned him. Europe is ready for the coronation.

But the American people are not so sure.

Others are now noticing that Obama's ship may have a leak. The Financial Times of London ran a commentary called: Will a funny thing happen on the way to Washington?

Reuters says that there are "Red Flags" being raised because of Obama's sinking lead.

Ann Coulter: Polls Since 1976 Always Wrongly Favored Democratic Candidate in Last Month of Election

Could polls be skewed to convince the American public that one candidate will surely win (so therefore all of you for the other candidate might as well stay home)?

Well you may remember the suspicious election day exit poll of the last election that said that Kerry was going to win Ohio big and therefore the entire race. It was "accidentally released" mid day. The effect might have been to keep Bush supporters home. In fact, Bush won Ohio, significantly, and therefore the race. The poll was dead wrong.

Ann Coulter has discovered the pattern has been consistent since 1976 - in favor of the Democratic candidate. In my opinion, it smells like the same thing is happening this year. The polls said that Biden beat Palin, yet the debate was the most watched VP debate ever, and had 7 million more viewers than the presidential debates. After the last debate, the NYT said that Obama was ahead by 10 points, but Gallup and Rassmussen said it was only 3 and 4 points. That's a huge - read statistically significant - difference.

One way it is done is by the underlying assumptions. Most polls assume that there is a ratio in America of Democrats to Republicans which is something like 3:2. Therefore when they get the raw data, if they have more Republicans answer than a 3:2 ratio to Democrats, they adjust the Republic opinions to make them a smaller factor in the poll.

But in this election season (read the spring primaries) was there a reason for so many more Democrats registering to vote than Republicans? Sure, Obama v. Clinton on the Dems side and McCain versus nobody on the Republican side. I didn't even vote in my primary - I was out of town and didn't get an absentee ballot. But I am interested in the general election.

The other big difference is between registered voters and "likely" voters. Republicans, conservatives, and middle aged people are more likely to vote than Democrats, liberals, and young. This isn't an insult, it is just a fact. This will effect who will win an election. Go to a college cafeteria and take a poll and you're going to get a vast majority of Democratic Obama supporters. Take a poll at the factory, or in the office and you're going to find more Republican McCain supporters. But the percentage of people who will actually vote is higher in the factory or office than in the college cafeteria.

Here are some of Ann Coulter's findings:

"Reviewing the polls printed in The New York Times and The Washington Post in the last month of every presidential election since 1976, I found the polls were never wrong in a friendly way to Republicans. When the polls were wrong, which was often, they overestimated support for the Democrat, usually by about 6 to 10 points.

In 1976, Jimmy Carter narrowly beat Gerald Ford 50.1 percent to 48 percent. And yet, on Sept. 1, Carter led Ford by 15 points. Just weeks before the election, on Oct. 16, 1976, Carter led Ford in the Gallup Poll by 6 percentage points -- down from his 33-point Gallup Poll lead in August.

Reading newspaper coverage of presidential elections in 1980 and 1984, I found myself paralyzed by the fear that Reagan was going to lose.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan beat Carter by nearly 10 points, 51 percent to 41 percent. In a Gallup Poll released days before the election on Oct. 27, it was Carter who led Reagan 45 percent to 42 percent.

In 1984, Reagan walloped Walter Mondale 58.8 percent to 40 percent, -- the largest electoral landslide in U.S. history. But on Oct. 15, The New York Daily News published a poll showing Mondale with only a 4-point deficit to Reagan, 45 percent to 41 percent. A Harris Poll about the same time showed Reagan with only a 9-point lead. The Oct. 19 New York Times/CBS News Poll had Mr. Reagan ahead of Mondale by 13 points. All these polls underestimated Reagan's actual margin of victory by 6 to 15 points.

In 1988, George H.W. Bush beat Michael Dukakis by a whopping 53.4 percent to 45.6 percent. A New York Times/CBS News Poll on Oct. 5 had Bush leading the Greek homunculus by a statistically insignificant 2 points -- 45 percent to 43 percent. (For the kids out there: Before it became a clearinghouse for anti-Bush conspiracy theories, CBS News was considered a credible journalistic entity.)

A week later -- or one tank ride later, depending on who's telling the story -- on Oct. 13, Bush was leading Dukakis in The New York Times Poll by a mere 5 points.

Admittedly, a 3- to 6-point error is not as crazily wrong as the 6- to 15-point error in 1984. But it's striking that even small "margin of error" mistakes never seem to benefit Republicans.

In 1992, Bill Clinton beat the first President Bush 43 percent to 37.7 percent. (Ross Perot got 18.9 percent of Bush's voters that year.) On Oct. 18, a Newsweek Poll had Clinton winning 46 percent to 31 percent, and a CBS News Poll showed Clinton winning 47 percent to 35 percent.

So in 1992, the polls had Clinton 12 to 15 points ahead, but he won by only 5.3 points.

In 1996, Bill Clinton beat Bob Dole 49 percent to 40 percent. And yet on Oct. 22, 1996, The New York Times/CBS News Poll showed Clinton leading by a massive 22 points, 55 percent to 33 percent.

In 2000, which I seem to recall as being fairly close, the October polls accurately described the election as a virtual tie, with either Bush or Al Gore 1 or 2 points ahead in various polls. But in one of the latest polls to give either candidate a clear advantage, The New York Times/CBS News Poll on Oct. 3, 2000, showed Gore winning by 45 percent to 39 percent. "

Read the entire article here.

This discrepancy could be in play again this year with some polls saying that there is only a 3 point difference while other polls say 10 point. And some major media is saying the Dems will have a super majority in Congress. I don't know what the truth is. The economic crisis on Wall Street is not going to help the Republicans but then again, 18 days is a long time in American politics.

McCain Appears on Letterman, and Letterman Has His Largest Audience in Years

Not only are the polls showing that McCain has pulled within 2, 3, or 4 points of Obama, he appeared on the Letterman show and Letterman had his largest audience in the last several year. Story here.

Warren Buffet: Now Is the Time to Buy American Stocks

Warren Buffett says now is the time to buy American stocks:

Buffett, at times the nation's richest man (back and forth with Bill Gates of Microsoft) says prices are low and a better value than holding cash or cash equivalents. He says the stock market will go back up...maybe not in a month, but in the next 5 or 10 years.

Buffett said:

"THE financial world is a mess, both in the United States and abroad. Its problems, moreover, have been leaking into the general economy, and the leaks are now turning into a gusher. In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary.

So ... I’ve been buying American stocks. This is my personal account I’m talking about, in which I previously owned nothing but United States government bonds. (This description leaves aside my Berkshire Hathaway holdings, which are all committed to philanthropy.) If prices keep looking attractive, my non-Berkshire net worth will soon be 100 percent in United States equities.

Why?

A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. And most certainly, fear is now widespread, gripping even seasoned investors. To be sure, investors are right to be wary of highly leveraged entities or businesses in weak competitive positions. But fears regarding the long-term prosperity of the nation’s many sound companies make no sense. These businesses will indeed suffer earnings hiccups, as they always have. But most major companies will be setting new profit records 5, 10 and 20 years from now."

Read the rest here.

OMG: McCain Pulls Within 3 Pts of Obama: Gallup Obama 49% McCain 46%

Drudge Report is reporting that Gallup says amongst likely voters McCain has pulled within 3 points of Obama. Most polls are of registered voters but polls of likely voters is generally a more accurate reflection of how the election might turn out.

Rassmussen reports that there is only a 4 point spread between the candidates.

Conservatives Win Election in Canada

After years of being led by the liberal party, the Conservative party has won the election in Canada. A conservative rules in France. A conservative rules in Germany.

Does this mean that a conservative should be elected in the US?

Where is Sarah Palin and her running mate, what's his name, John McCain?

Voter Fraud in Louisiana under Investigation by La. Sec. of State

Fraud, fraud, fraud. This time 8,600 in one parish by a group dedicated to the re-election of the Democratic Senator in Louisiana.

ACORN started the fraud this summer but when election officials craked down on them a "new" group, called Voting is Power started up and has now turned in 8600 voter registrations, most of which are listed to non-existent addresses.

Gee, do you think Voting is Power is at all related to ACORN.

Old idea: communism, new idea: community organizers who defraud the election process.

What will they think of next? A community organizer for president?

Some people want to steal this election.

KSLA in Shreveport reports:

More Fraud: Out of State Group Dedicated to Bringing Democrats 10,000 More Votes in Ohio Fraudlently Registered to Vote in Ohio

From Michele Malkin:

Something smells at 2885 Brownlee Avenue in Columbus, Ohio.

I strongly recommend that the Ohio Republican Party get on the case before it’s too late. Today’s the last day to challenge voters who registered early in Ohio before the run up to Election Day.

Here’s the stench: An entire houseful of young, non-Ohioan Democrat activists have used the Brownlee Avenue address to register themselves to vote in the Buckeye State and secure absentee ballots under extremely shady circumstances — all while mobilizing a large effort to register thousands of others for absentee and early voting. The activists are leaders of a group called “Vote From Home ‘08.” The group is self-identified as having “extensive experience with political organizing, election administration, and Democratic politics.” They were hailed as the “Justice League” by a Daily Kos blogger. Their Facebook page brags: “Want to turn the Presidential election blue in a key swing state? Vote from Home is a political organization that was founded by a team of young people for the purpose of assisting, aiding, and tracking voters to elect progressive candidates to the White House. Encouraged by the excitement of the 2008 elections and the movement around the Democratic candidates, Vote From Home will be in Ohio seeking to deliver 10,000 votes to Democratic candidates statewide.”

Read the rest of the story here.

This Mouse is Registered to Vote!

ACORN registered Mickey Mouse to vote in Florida.

Is there fraud going on at ACORN?

Soros funded and Obama trained, ACORN has now registered the entire Dallas Cowboys team in Nevada, 4,000 dead people in Houston, and Mickey Mouse in Florida. They are under investigation in 11 states.

Here's what they are saying about it:

Michelle Malkin:

"Like I said last week: When it rains, it pours. We’re drowning in a flash flood of ACORN voter fraud horror stories. Barack Obama and his followers remain in denial. How many thousands of bogus applications do they need to see before they put down their race card and acknowledge this massive illegal racket?"

Investors Business Daily:

"As far back as Harvard Law School, Obama dreamed of transforming America in the image of community organizations such as ACORN with whom and for whom he trained.

In the May 3, 1990, edition of Chicago's Daily Herald newspaper, there's an article in which Obama, while attending Harvard Law School, gives his skewed view of American society and his plans for it. "I'm interested in organizations, not movements," the young Obama said, "because movements dissipate but organizations don't."

Through these organizations, Obama hoped that "more and more people will begin to feel their story is somehow part of this larger story of how we're going to reshape America in a way that is less mean-spirited and more generous."

The Wall Street Journal:

"Acorn -- the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now -- has been around since 1970 and boasts 350,000 members. We've written about them for years, but Acorn is now getting more attention as John McCain's campaign makes an issue of the fraud reports and Acorn's ties to Mr. Obama. It's about time someone exposed this shady outfit that uses government dollars to lobby for larger government.

Acorn uses various affiliated groups to agitate for "a living wage," for "affordable housing," for "tax justice" and union and environmental goals, as well as against school choice and welfare reform. It was a major contributor to the subprime meltdown by pushing lenders to make home loans on easy terms, conducting "strikes" against banks so they'd lower credit standards.

But the organization's real genius is getting American taxpayers to foot the bill. According to a 2006 report from the Employment Policies Institute (EPI), Acorn has been on the federal take since 1977. For instance, Acorn's American Institute for Social Justice claimed $240,000 in tax money between fiscal years 2002 and 2003. Its American Environmental Justice Project received 100% of its revenue from government grants in the same years. EPI estimates the Acorn Housing Corporation alone received some $16 million in federal dollars from 1997-2007. Only recently, Democrats tried and failed to stuff an "affordable housing" provision into the $700 billion bank rescue package that would have let politicians give even more to Acorn.

All this money gives Acorn the ability to pursue its other great hobby: electing liberals. Acorn is spending $16 million this year to register new Democrats and is already boasting it has put 1.3 million new voters on the rolls. The big question is how many of these registrations are real.

The Michigan Secretary of State told the press in September that Acorn had submitted "a sizeable number of duplicate and fraudulent applications." Earlier this month, Nevada's Democratic Secretary of State Ross Miller requested a raid on Acorn's offices, following complaints of false names and fictional addresses (including the starting lineup of the Dallas Cowboys). Nevada's Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax said he saw rampant fraud in 2,000 to 3,000 applications Acorn submitted weekly.

Officials in Ohio are investigating voter fraud connected with Acorn, and Florida's Seminole County is withholding Acorn registrations that appear fraudulent. New Mexico, North Carolina and Missouri are looking into hundreds of dubious Acorn registrations. Wisconsin is investigating Acorn employees for, according to an election official, "making people up or registering people that were still in prison."

Then there's Lake County, Indiana, which has already found more than 2,100 bogus applications among the 5,000 Acorn dumped right before the deadline. "All the signatures looked exactly the same," said Ruthann Hoagland, of the county election board. Bridgeport, Connecticut estimates about 20% of Acorn's registrations were faulty. As of July, the city of Houston had rejected or put on hold about 40% of the 27,000 registration cards submitted by Acorn."

(Say with a Scandinavian Lilt): What do Minnesotans Do When Winter Comes and the Twins Are Gone?

Why they get drunk and steal a combine and go for a joy ride and crash into houses and bridges.

Unfortunately, it is against the law in Minnesota to drive a combine while drunk, not to mention any decent gopher would not want to drive a combine right into somebody's house and all.

But what else is there to do in the winter? Story Here.

Who's Number 1, Who's Number 1?

Usually the cheer is "We're number 1, we're number 1" but this year, the question each week is "Who's number 1, who's number 1?"

College football is great this year and once again I can undeniably announce that the BCS polls are wrong. [Actually the BCS poll hasn't come out yet this year, but whomever they chose, it will be wrong].

There has not been one set of fans who have yelled "We're number one" for two weeks in a row. Teams like USC, Ohio, Oklahoma, LSU, Missouri and even East Carolina all where either number 1 or felt like they had a chance. All have lost.

Clemson, which started out number 9 and had high hopes of running the table, fell to 3-3 and they have fired their coach Tommy Bowden.

But wait, who has snuck in at number 24 in the AP Top 25 Poll?

Is that Ball State?

Ball State [motto: Dave Letterman is the only alumni you know!] is located in the great state of...Ball?

Where's that?

Well it's in Indiana, but heck, I grew up there and I still don't know where it is. [Actually it's in Muncie]. It is the home of "Ball U" t-shirts.

Yet these guys are 7-0. Are they have to do is wait on the sidelines, and let every other team kill each other, and they might just sneak into a BCS bowl.

OMG, the moon is turning into the color of blood.

Go Ball U, we're number 1, we're number 1!

College Sports, don't you love it. Just like a bad pro team, without the spoiled millionaires.

The Market Breathes a Sigh of Relief. Dow Up 936 Points

[George Soros is the creepy guy in the picture]

Update at bottom***********************

The market breathed a sigh of relief as the Dow was up over 900 points and world markets rebounded. The relief was based on the central banks of the Western world meeting and their plans to rescue the various banks and markets across the world.

This is good news but the storm may not have passed. Great Britain has nationalized it's three largest banks and George Soros is floating a plan for the US to buy equity [read controlling interest] in all of the American banks.

Of course, I don't trust George Soros. When he's happy about the government buying into banks, my warning system goes off.

Wait a minute...can you see Nancy Pelosi dictating who the banks should give loans to? OMG. It was Obama's advisors who ran Fannie Mae into the ground. [Click here for Washington Story.] Besides them, it was the Dems who pushed for open lending so everybody could get a loan. They ignored the Republicans warnings in 2006 that the system was broken. It was Mass. Rep. Barney Frank, head of the Congressional Banking Committee, who said in this past summer that going forward Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were doing fine.

My mind boggles.

Imagine the new Soros planned US Government owned bank loan application:

1. Purpose of Loan: Never mind!
2. Do you wholeheartedly believe in Global Warming? If yes, go to #3
3. Do you support same sex marriages? If yes, go to #4
4. Do you support putting more and more animals on the endangered species list? if yes, go to #5
5. Do you support more and more taxes?

If you answered no to any of these questions, LOAN REJECTED!

I'm having a nightmare while awake.

Next thing you know, they'll put some community organizer with no leadership experience in charge just because of hope, or change, or some such drivel.

Oh yeah, they're trying to do that now. His name is Obama.

Update: It appears the US is already planning to buy equity shares in the top nine US banks.

Tired of Politics and the Banking Crisis? Let's Talk BaseBrawl!

When will this election be over? I can't stand another story about the bailout crisis.

It's October. Let's talk baseball, or should I say basebrawl.

Manny Ramirez, who for years played for Boston, got traded mid-season to the Dodgers and his presence seemed to turn things around. The below .500 Dodgers started winning and won their division. Manny was on fire at the bat and fired up the club.

Now in the National League Championship series, the Dodgers had dropped the first two games, which were played at Philadelphia.

Phily's not noted for the kindness of their fans, while the Dodgers are used to the wine and cheese crowds of LA, San Francisco, San Diego, etc. I think it shocked a few Dodgers to be booed and heckeld at Philly.

Well Manny used to play in NY against the Yankees and the stuff their fans can dish out makes the Philly fans look like amateurs.

Well leave it t Manny to stir up his teammates.

In game 2, Phillies pitcher Brett Myers threw behind Manny's head. That's a no-no and a definite message from the Phillies that they didn't respect Manny or the Dodgers.

Usually, the opposing pitcher will retaliate, but no one from LA did.

After Game 2, Manny said he wished the Dodgers had someone like Brett Myers on their team.

That was calling out the Dodger's pitchers from their cheese tasting party at the marina.

The Dodgers' pitcher heard and answered the call.

In Game 3, at the bottom of the first, the Dodgers' hitters jumped all over the Phillies and grabbed a 5 run lead.

In the top of the third Los Angeles starter Hiroki Kuroda threw a pitch at Shane Victorino's head. Victorino barked about throwing at his ribs but not at his head. He did not charge the mound, however.

The inning ended shortly thereafter with Kuroda fielding a throw from 1st baseman Nomar Garciaparra in a 3-1 put out (the ball was hit to the first baseman who was standing back by the outfiled grass, Kuroda ran to first to field a throw from Nomar and the put-out).

Lopes, the Phillies first base coach stepped out on the field to talk to Kuroda - who by the way, doesn't speak English very well and probably didn't fully understand him.

But in the wonderful language of baseball - played in Osaka, Japan where Kuroda is from, he understood what Lopes was saying.

So did Manny and the rest of the Dodgers who cleared the benches, as did the Phillies.

And in the time honored tradition of baseball, I explained to my boys (father-son talks about baseball mean the world is still okay) that in baseball, one doesn't really fight. Fighting is for MMA (mixed martial arts) or maybe basketball, but not baseball.

I explained, in baseball, one must appear to be storming the mound, but you NEVER hit a guy in the face. That wouldn't be baseball. One must either tackle the pitcher, take a slow round-house punch that could be ducked by your grandmother, or one must "hold back" a player who is going to "really do some damage if you don't hold me back".

Heck, there's more real punches in WWF (World Wrestling Federation) than there is in baseball.

That's not to say that the Dodgers let the one guy who has turned their team around be anywhere near a suspension or a punch. As the newscasters said: "The Dodgers are making sure their meal ticket is off the field."

The Dodgers went on to win.

Ahh, baseball. Next to God, it is the thing that assures you that the world is all right again.

Look for another round of brush back pitches in the next game.

Read more here and here.

Tip to Robbers: Make Sure Your Get Away Guy Knows Where He is Going

Here's a big key for all you readers that are thinking of going into robbery: DON'T ASK THE COPS FOR DIRECTIONS! Unbelievable but true. Read story here.

But crooks have been idiots for years.

When I was an intern for a US Magistrate, they brought in two guys for robbing a federal bank. The robbers had taken extreme efforts to not give up their identities. They wore leg hose over their heads so they couldn't be seen, they communicated with each other by hand signals so they wouldn't accidentally use their names or give a voice print.

They even wrote a note to the teller saying they were robbing the bank and wanted all the money.

So how'd they get caught?

They wrote the note on the back of an envelope that had been mailed to their house. When the cops went to the address on the envelope, they found the fellas counting the money from the heist.

4,000 Dead People Found on Voter Rolls in Houston

Fraud in voter registration appears to be growing as the election nears.

Black Muslim Leader Farrakhan: Obama is the Messiah

Louis Farrakhan, the Black Mulim leader has said when Obama talks, the Messiah is speaking:

Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, another powerful Chicago-based political figure associated with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and other long-time associates of Democratic Party presidential candidate Barack Obama, is leaving no doubt about what he thinks of the leader in the campaign for the White House.

He says when Obama talks "the Messiah is absolutely speaking."

See full story here.

Obama's $800,000 Tie to ACORN

As reported here and elsewhere, George Soros backs ACORN which commits fraud in registering voters (11 investigations so far, offices raided in Las Vegas). Well guess who hired Obama ... for $800,000? That would be ACORN.

This McCain ad sets it forth. It is only a minute and a half long. Play it.

Oil Drops to $78 a Barrel from High of $144

The media is saying that oil is down because the market is down, but more trusted sources say that the stockpiling that occurred earlier this summer, driving the price up to $144 a barrel, is now flooding out into the market.

OPEC is calling an emergency meeting to see if they can stabilize oil prices.

Although the market is tanking, it will return - as it did after the great depression, after the Dot Com crisis, and after 9/11, it will return. In the meantime there is sweet justice in the fact that oil has dropped almost 50% (gas is $3.03 a gallon in the town I'm staying in tonight) and that the stocks that the sheiks had invested in are also down.

Obama's Associate: Bill Ayers - Then and Now

Is the right making too much of the fact that Obama associated and worked with Bill Ayers, a terrorist with the Weather Underground?

Does the right make too much of anti-American billionaire George Soros' donations to Obama?

Does the right make too much of the 20 years Obama sat in the pews of Black Liberation Minister Jeremiah Wright?

Does the right have the right to question Obama's presence at the million man march led by Louis Farrakhan, the racist leader of the Black Muslims?

Maybe, but when we used to live in the country, we'd check the dogs for ticks before we let them in the house.

Who will Obama bring with him if he is elected?

(By the way, the picture on the right is Bill Ayers now, standing on an American Flag).

Somalian Pirates May Receive $8 Million to Bailout of Ship Filled with Tanks: Wall Street says: Amateurs!

Somalian pirates who captured a Ukrainian cargo ship that had Russian T-34 tanks and other ammunitions, may get an $8 million dollar ransom. Story here.

CEOs on Wall Street, who have just received billions in bailouts called the Somalian pirates "amateurs".

Spoiled Child Screams for Attention: Top Scientist Claims Global Warming Will be Affected by Economic Crisis

Crying like a spoiled child who is not the center of attention, atmospheric scientist Paul J Crutzen came up with some lame brain connection between the economic crisis and global warming.

See having the focus on global warming means big bucks to guys like Crutzen. If we're not thinking about global warming, we may not fund his next grant.

Crutzen - take a time out and go sit in the corner. We don't want to hear about your stupid global warming right now.

What Does America's Leading Feminist Think of Sarah Palin? You Might Be Surprised to Know that It is Quite Favorable

Camille Pagliais a noted feminist, Yale PHD and writes for one of the biggest left leaning blogs in the nation, Salon.com.

So why would she have a good opinion of Sarah Palin? Paglia has been honest in pointing out that the left only thinks a woman is a feminist if she espouses the standard leftist causes: pro-abortion, secular humanism, anti-marriage, etc. But Paglia says that the feminist movement is about empowering women to be who THEY want to be, not want the left wants them to be.

I've had strong females in my family all my life. My wife has been a broadcaster, a business owner, a school teacher, a realtor and a care-giver. All this while boosting me up and raising 2 tough kids. My mother and grandmother were both in the business world and worked long, hard hours. My paternal grandmother outlived 2 husbands, ran a farm, and raised 7 kids. These women were strong, but they didn't and don't believe in the things the left believes in.

Anyway, here is part of what Camille Pagilia says. I encourage you to read the rest at her site.

Yes, both Todd and Sarah Palin, whom most people in the U.S. and abroad had never even heard of until six weeks ago, have emerged as powerful new symbols of a revived contemporary feminism. That the macho Todd, with his champion athleticism and working-class cred, can so amiably cradle babies and care for children is a huge step forward in American sexual symbolism.

Although nothing will sway my vote for Obama, I continue to enjoy Sarah Palin's performance on the national stage. During her vice-presidential debate last week with Joe Biden (whose conspiratorial smiles with moderator Gwen Ifill were outrageous and condescending toward his opponent), I laughed heartily at Palin's digs and slams and marveled at the way she slowly took over the entire event. I was sorry when it ended! But Biden wasn't -- judging by his Gore-like sighs and his slow sinking like a punctured blimp. Of course Biden won on points, but TV (a visual medium) never cares about that.

The mountain of rubbish poured out about Palin over the past month would rival Everest. What a disgrace for our jabbering army of liberal journalists and commentators, too many of whom behaved like snippy jackasses. The bourgeois conventionalism and rank snobbery of these alleged humanitarians stank up the place. As for Palin's brutally edited interviews with Charlie Gibson and that viper, Katie Couric, don't we all know that the best bits ended up on the cutting-room floor? Something has gone seriously wrong with Democratic ideology, which seems to have become a candied set of holier-than-thou bromides attached like tutti-frutti to a quivering green Jell-O mold of adolescent sentimentality.

And where is all that lurid sexual fantasy coming from? When I watch Sarah Palin, I don't think sex -- I think Amazon warrior! I admire her competitive spirit and her exuberant vitality, which borders on the supernormal. The question that keeps popping up for me is whether Palin, who was born in Idaho, could possibly be part Native American (as we know her husband is), which sometimes seems suggested by her strong facial contours. I have felt that same extraordinary energy and hyper-alertness billowing out from other women with Native American ancestry -- including two overpowering celebrity icons with whom I have worked.

One of the most idiotic allegations batting around out there among urban media insiders is that Palin is "dumb." Are they kidding? What level of stupidity is now par for the course in those musty circles? (The value of Ivy League degrees, like sub-prime mortgages, has certainly been plummeting. As a Yale Ph.D., I have a perfect right to my scorn.) People who can't see how smart Palin is are trapped in their own narrow parochialism -- the tedious, hackneyed forms of their upper-middle-class syntax and vocabulary.

Continue reading.

A tip of the hat to all the tough women we know and love. We wouldn't have made it without them.

What?? Zogby Poll: McCain Within 2% of Obama

Zogby: Obama 47% McCain 45%

It's a race again.

Presidential Debate: Boring

I was watching the debate and thinking: "Can we have a do over on the primaries?"

The big issues tonight were 1) Tom Brokaw griping because the candidates did not keep to 1 minute answers; 2) Tom Brokaw griping because the candidates were standing in front of his teleprompter; and 3) zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I'm not the only one who thought it was a snoozer. Michele Malkin agreed.

...What's this on TV? Sarah Palin is on the news for a visit in Greenville NC. The auditorium was packed with college age kids. Everyone screaming and cheering.

Could we replace the rest of the presidential debates with VP debates?

George Soros Backed Organization ACORN Raided in Las Vegas for Possible Voter Fraud

ACORN, the Association for Communities Organizations for Reform Now, a group started by George Soros, which has already been fined for obtaining fraudulent voter registrations, has been raided by Nevada authorities for more fraudulent registration - this time apparently including the Dallas Cowboys.

USA Today reports:

"Secretary of State Ross Miller said fraudulent registrations included forms for the starting lineup of the Dallas Cowboys.

"Tony Romo is not registered to vote in the state of Nevada, and anybody trying to pose as Terrell Owens won't be able to cast a ballot on Nov. 4," Miller said, according to the Associated Press. He said others used false names or information, or had duplicated information on multiple forms."

Apparently Soros' motto is win the election at all costs.

h/t to my Orange County friend.

Anti-Obama Author Detained in Kenya Before a Press Conference to Announce Obama Links To Kenyan Leader

Jerome Corsi, who authored the book "Unfit for Command - Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry" and this years best seller, "The Obama Nation" was in Kenya, the land of Obama's father to investigate links between Obama and the Kenya Prime Minister Raila Odinga was about to hold a press conference about his findings when he was taken into custody.

A Corsi friendly web site reported:

Obama has a long history of connections in Kenya, where his father worked as a government economist. Corsi documented this history in his book and went to Kenya to find answers to lingering questions – particularly about the links between the presidential candidate and Kenya Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

Corsi had promised a news conference today that would "expose details of deep secret ties between U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and a section of Kenya government leaders, their connection to certain sectoral groups in Kenya and subsequent plot to be executed in Kenya should Senator Obama win the American presidency."

Meanwhile, the management of the hotel where Corsi was scheduled to hold the press conference has repudiated its plans to provide the facility.

In a press release, the hotel said: "We would like to assure our business partners and the public at large that Laico Regency Hotel is a law-abiding institution and does not condone any smear campaigns. The management cannot allow such activities to take place."

Corsi told WND he has been assured he will be released soon. He had planned to leave the country tomorrow, arriving in London first and the U.S. Friday.

A hotel worker in Nairobi told Reuters Corsi was picked up as soon as he walked into the hotel for the scheduled press conference: "He was walking in and then some immigration officers who were following him snatched him. It happened so fast, they just vanished with him."

"Obama is revered in Kenya for his paternal roots here and as a flagbearer for Africa on the international stage," explained the Reuters dispatch.

Other news sites have reported the same here and here.

CBS Poll: Race Has Tightened Again After VP Debate

Sarah Palin pulls one out again as a new CBS poll shows McCain-Palin pulls within 4 points 47% - 43% amongst registered voters. Before the VP debate, Obama led McCain by 9 points. So I guess all that baloney about polls showing that people thought Biden did better than Palin at the debate was fabricated by the main stream media.

McCain still has an uphill battle as he gave up the lead he had by hiding Palin after she accepted the nomination. His task is also made difficult by the financial markets meltdown.

Has McCain Finally Let Palin Off Her Leash?

Bloomberg News is reporting that Palin is now out on the stump criticizing Obama's association with terrorist and Weatherman founder Bill Ayers.

It's about time. McCain and everybody else ought to get a clear idea of who is exciting in this campaign.

I personally don't trust these main stream media polls that say America thought Biden did better at the debate. Why? Because pollsters often lie (remember last election exit pollsters announced Kerry would win Ohio by a landslide, when in fact Bush took it big.)

If they don't lie, it might be the way the question was asked:
1. Who do you think won? or
2. After watching the debate, which politician seemed to have more experience with debates?

The reason I say that, is the numbers. Almost 70 million people turned into the VP debate. [Post here.] That's 33% more than the number of people who turned into the presidential debate.

Why were these people turning in? To see Joe Biden? Of course not. They were turning in to see Sarah Palin. That means 23 million more people turned into see the VP debate than turned into see Obama and McCain go at it.

That was almost twice as many as the 38.4 million who watched Obama's acceptance speech, the 38.9 million that watched McCain's speech and the 37 milion that watched Palin's acceptance speech.

That tells me that Joe SixPack and Hockey Mom were watching the debate. And I don't think they were disappointed (Tina Fey and Saturday Night Live notwithstanding. The video of Fey is funny. Watch it below.)

Now I think the bailout will hurt McCain more than Obama. I think McCain's only chance is to let Palin off her chain and go on attack mode.

This is our election John, let her out of the cage to say the things you should have been saying all along.

LA Times story on how Palin says Obama pals around with terrorist.

Is Eva Longoria Related to Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays? (With Pic of Eva)

Is Eva Longoria Related to Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays?

The answer is no according to SI.com and Wikipedia here and here.

You might ask what does either Eva Longoria or Evan Longoria have to do with this blog?

Well, I am learning how to drive traffic to this site. A couple of weeks ago I posted a sarcastic post about a statement Pamela Anderson made about Sarah Palin.

I have software that monitors where my hits come from. I noticed a number of hits from overseas. Some hits were obvious: South Korean defense installation IP address checking stories about the death of "Dear Leader", a London Business School IP address looking at my posts on the bailout and how the FDIC works, and an English language German paper ID checking a posting that had linked to it.

But a significant number of hits came in to look at the Pam Anderson posting. At first I thought it was due to my wit, but then I realized that the reader was probably searching for pictures of Pamela Anderson and came across my entry in their search engine results.

The nice thing is that some of these searchers stayed and read a few other posts.

So when my wife casually said she thought Eva and Evan Longoria might be related, I looked it up on google and found that they weren't. But I also found that there are a ton of hits on Eva Longorio and many on Evan Longorio as a misspelling.

So I thought I'd put their names in the title and a pic of her, to see how many hits come into this site for this blog. I'll let you know.

Palin - Biden Debate Has Almost 70 Million Viewers

From the Live Feed

Final: 69,989,000 viewers -- Palin-Biden the most-watched vp debate ever

UPDATED: Thursday's highly anticipated face-off between Alaska governor Sarah Palin and Delaware senator Joe Biden was the most-watched vp debate of all time.
Last night's event was seen by nearly 70 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.
That's the most-viewed debate -- presidential or vp -- since at least the second round between Bill Clinton, Ross Perot and George Bush in 1992.

Thursday's debate was...
-- 33% higher than Friday's top-of-the-ticket debate between John McCain and Barack Obama (52.4 million).

-- 61% higher than the 2004 vp debate between Dick Cheney and John Edwards (43.6 million).

-- 23% higher than the 1984 match up between George Bush and Geraldine Ferrarro (56.7 million), the former title-holder for the most-watched vp debate

O'Reilly Blasts Mass. Rep. and Banking Chairman Barney Frank as a Liar and Coward on Oversight of Fannie Mae

Right before this clip, O'Reilly had played an audio clip of Barney Frank in July of 2008 saying that while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had had troubles, going forward, it would be swell. As you know, in September, the Feds had to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.



H/t to the Drudge Report for the tip.

33% MORE People Watched the VP Debate Than Watched the McCain/Obama Debate

Who do you think THE PEOPLE were tuning in to see? We've heard all week about how the VP candidates don't make a difference, only the main candidates. Then why did so many people tune in?

Do you think they were tuning in to see Joe Biden?

Come on, McCain, let our Hockey Mom out of her cage and do what she does best.

See the early numbers post on The Live Feed.

Who Won? Palin or Biden?

I personally think that Sarah Palin beat out Joe Biden in the debate, but I was impressed with how smooth Joe Biden was. Neither side scored a knock-out punch, but I thought Sarah did a great job of "answering the questions that the Joe Six-Packs and Hockey Moms want to have answered instead of the ones Joe [Biden] or the moderator wanted answered" [Note: Palin did say something like this but the quote is from my memory not my notes so she probably said it in a different manner but the essence was the same.]

From Tom Brokaw's comments afterwards, it appears that he thought Palin did very well (although a fellow political junkie from the left coast called me then to discuss it so I don't know how he finished his analysis).

Noted bloggist Michele Malkin thought that Palin not only won, she rocked:

SARAH ROCKS!
By Michelle Malkin • October 2, 2008 10:50 PM

First, I would like to see all the Sarah doubters and detractors in the Beltway/Manhattan corridor eat their words.

Eat them.

Sarah Palin is the real deal. Five weeks on the campaign trail, thrust onto the national stage, she rocked tonight’s debate.

She was warm, fresh, funny, confident, energetic, personable, relentless, and on message. She roasted Obama’s flip-flops on the surge and tea-with-dictators declarations, dinged Biden’s bash-Bush rhetoric, challenged the blame-America defeatism of the Left, and exuded the sunny optimism that energized the base in the first place.

McCain has not done many things right. But Sarah Palin proved tonight that the VP risk he took was worth it.

Her performance also underscored the underhandedness of the hatchet job editors at ABC News and CBS News, which failed to capture her solid competence on the whole array of foreign and domestic policy issues on the debate table tonight. (I didn’t care for all the “greed” rhetoric, but I understand they are trying to appeal to independents and Dems. They’re trying to win the election.)

Pause to reflect on this: She matched — and trumped several times — a man who has spent his entire adult life on the political stage, run for president twice, and as he mentioned several times, chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Sarah Palin looked presidential.

Joe Biden looked tired.

Sarah made history.

Biden is history.
***
Prediction: Watch for a whole new, severe strain of Palin Derangement Syndrome to begin tonight.
They hated her before tonight. They are going to pour on more unfathomable hate at a level we have never seen before.

Sarah, we’re praying for you.

GOD'S BANK AIN'T BUSTED YET: An Old Poem from the Great Depression Times

By Mrs. Bessie Tichelaar

The bank had closed; my earthly store had vanished from my hand;
I felt there was no sadder one than I in all the land.
My washerwoman, too, had lost her little mite with mine,
And she was singing as she hung the clothes upon the line.
"How can you be so gay?" I asked. "Your loss, don't you regret?"
"Yes, ma'am, but what's the use to fret?
"God's bank ain't busted yet."

I felt my burden lighter grow, her faith I seemed to share;
In prayer I went to God's great throne and laid my burden there.
The sun burst from behind the clowds in golden splendor set;
I thanked God for her simple words:
"God's bank ain't busted yet."

And now I draw rich dividends, more than my hands can hold,
Of faith and hope, and love and trust, and peace of mind untold.
I thank the Giver of it all, but still I can't forget
My washerwoman's simple words:
"God's bank ain't busted yet."

Oh, weary one upon life's road, when everything seems drear,
And losses loom on every side, and skies are not so clear;
Throw back your shoulders, lift your head and cease to chafe and fret.
Your dividends will be declared;
"God's bank ain't busted yet"

What Does the FDIC Do? Part One - Insure Deposits

I just heard a clip from the Clark Howard show while driving home from the store. If you don't know who Clark Howard is, he's a radio talk show host whose forte is the common man's economic adviser. His shows will discuss when the best time is to buy Christmas gifts to get the best deals, or what web site to look at to determine which auto or life insurance is rated the best or most sound. He gives advice about how to contact a VP of a company when the "no-service" department won't help you. He warns about Nigerian email scams and how a 529 College Savings Plan works and which state gives the best deal.

I turned on the radio after the caller had asked her question, but Clark's answer made it clear that he was explaining why the FDIC had to insure deposits. When he explained that the bank does not keep your exact money in a drawer in a vault but lent it out to other borrowers, the caller - who sounded like a woman in her 60s - audibly gasped "Oh my!".

It was obvious that she didn't know what banks do with her money and she had called into the station upset about the bailout and increased FDIC limits.

I was so shocked that she thought that banks kept her money separate from everybody else until she needed it, that I decided that I needed to write and explain what the FDIC does.

What Happens to Your Money

A woman, let's say Sarah, gets her paycheck for $1000. She works for Sam, who manufactures hardware parts for wholesale to hardware stores. The paycheck is written on Bank of Z (hereafter "BoZ") but she's going to open up an account at Bank of A ("BoA"). In fact, it turns out that she will be the very first customer of BoA.

She opens her account by depositing the full $1000 check. In a another post we'll talk about the check, but for now she has a checking account with a balance of $1000.

Bob just opened the local hardware store. He goes to BoA to get a loan to buy inventory from Sam the hardware manufacturer that Sarah works for. BoA only has $1,000 in it's accounts. By law, set by the Federal Reserve, BoA must keep 20% of their deposits in hand to give customers petty cash, and so forth. So they can lend $800 out.

They need to lend some money out because they have to make money to pay their employees and pay for the checking operations center they had to set up to handle Sarah's check. So they lend $800 to Bob for 10%. They will make $80 on the loan and maybe Bob will be successful and deposit more money there.

Bob deposits the $800 in his account. The bank now has $1800 of deposits. Sarah's $1,000 and Bob's $800. They can now lend out another $640 - 80% of 800 to another customer. The total of all customer's accounts is $1800 BUT THERE IS ACTUALLY ONLY $1000 IN THE ACCOUNTS OF BOA!

Now let's make this real, real simple.

Let's assume there is no FDIC insurance for BoA. That afternoon, both Sarah and Bob hear a rumor that BoA is going to fail. They both race to the bank. Bob gets there first and takes out his $800 because he's already ordered inventory from Sam and he needs to be able to pay him.

When Sarah gets there to withdraw her $1,000, the bank says "We're sorry, all we have is $200". She's says I need $750 today or I'll default on my mortgage. Sarah is very upset and calls all her friends and relatives and tells them her terrible story about how she lost $800. She tells them they had better take their money out of their accounts too. They say, "Well, we don't bank at BoA!" But what she says scares them, so they call each other and say "Maybe we'd better take our money out of BoZ". Soon the rumor spreads that there is a run on BoZ and everybody had better get their money now.

But at least Sarah still has her job at Sam's the Hardware manufacturer. Next week, she'll cash her check and pay the mortgage and a late fee and will be okay.

But by the next day, there has been a terrible run on BoZ by Sarah's family, friends, and their families and friends. BoZ has given out all their money and closed it's doors. Many, many people have lost a lot of money.

In fact, Sam was supposed to deliver $800 of inventory to Bob. He has $400 of inventory on hand but he needs to purchase more raw material to make the other inventory that he has promised to sell. But with the closure of BoZ, Sam doesn't have enough money to purchase the raw materials.

In fact, he has to lay Sarah off and tell her he can't give her a paycheck this week. He asks her if she would like to take some wire spools, plywood, or left over hammers to make up for no paycheck. She rightly says, "what am I going to do with those?"

Meanwhile, Bob opens his business with the $400 of inventory he did get. Unfortunately, so many people have lost their money and jobs that his business is poor and he shuts his doors.

With the FDIC Insurance

This is the way it was for years in the 1800's and up until the FDIC was created in 1933 and 1934. Now all banks pay an insurance premium to cover their accounts up to $100,000 per person.

In the above scenario, this would have happened:

Bob and Sarah would have heard the rumors of BoA's insolvency and probably ignored them because they were insured by FDIC.

But if they had made a run on the bank, the FDIC would have come in and taken over the bank. They would have "sold" the good parts of the bank to say BoZ. BoZ wanted new depositors and the lending business that BoA had.

This is important and a little more complicated.

BoZ would have paid a premium for the good assets of BoA. Let's say for the 2 accounts of Sarah and Bob - a total of $1800, and $1800 from the FDIC, they would have paid $100 premium. Since BoA only has $1000 in it, the FDIC has to chip in $800 (less the $100 premium they get from BoZ) to transfer the accounts to BoZ.

So far, it only cost the FDIC $700 and Sarah, Bob and BoZ are all happy and the other bank didn't fail and Sam bought the extra raw material and made the parts for Bob who the sold them to the people who still had their jobs, who bought from Bob's hardware, who hired some help, etc., etc.

(Not discussed is any bad loans that BoA has. BoZ can refuse to take them and the FDIC will probably pay BoZ to service them or they will sell them at pennies on the dollar to a loan wholesaler who will try to collect on them, so the FDIC will pay more than $700 but you get the idea.)

CONSERVATIVES: HERE'S MY POINT: THE FDIC IS LIKE AN ANTIBIOTIC SHOT WHEN YOU GET SICK. The fat cats generally get fired. It is not bailing them out, it is bailing Sarah, Bob, Sam, your neighbors and you out. Our economy only works when it is flowing. When it stops, people who want to work and do right, can't.

Otherwise we go back to keeping gold coins buried in the yard and hope that thieves don't steal our life savings.

NYT story on new deposit limits here.