Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Pearl Harbor: December 7th, ‘A date which will live in infamy’

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese surprise attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. President Franklin D. Roosevelt dubbed the attack as 'a date which will live in infamy,' and he couldn't have predicted it better. 69 years later, Americans vividly remember what happened on that fateful day ...
Hat tip:  NYDailyNews

pearl_harbor6

pearl_harbor1

The Empire of Japan launched a surprise attack on the US naval base in Hawaii killing 2,350 people.

Remember Pearl Harbor!

Monday, November 29, 2010

The Veteran Vote

Michael Franc   November 29, 2010 4:00 A.M.

“Our nation stands at a precipice, pushed to the edge by the very forces of which MacArthur spoke. To defeat them, we will have to draw upon the character traits he identified as part of the military code. These values, one suspects, resonate most strongly in those communities where large numbers of veterans reside. It was precisely in these communities that the spirit of the Tea Party movement was strongest on Election Day.”

Read it here.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

So you think you know what’s going on in Afghanistan…

Read this.  I know it’s long, just read it…

- Free Range International - http://freerangeinternational.com/blog -

Healing Ulcer

Posted By babatim On November 14, 2010 @ 12:44 pm In Afghanistan

After only 90 days of fighting to root out the Taliban of a place they have owned for over a decade, Gen McChrystal called Marjah a bleeding ulcer [1]. That was an unbelievably stupid assessment given the nature of the enemy, the rules of engagement placed on the Marines by the General, and the paltry amount of time the Marines had invested in the fight.  Marjah is still being called “the most dangerous place in Afghanistan” [2] by embedded media which is, in my professional opinion, not true.  I’ve just returned from a three day trip into Marjah after being lucky enough to catch a ride with the CO of Regimental Combat Team 1, Col Dave Furness who was taking a road trip to visit his battalions in the field.  There is too much information from that trip to post in one sitting so the first dispatch from the trip will cover Marjah.  The other things I saw, like Senators McCain, Lieberman, Graham and Gillibrand in the Nawa District Center will have to wait.

The CO

                  of 2/6, LtCol Kyle Ellison with his boss Col Furness

                  talking to local shop owners in the Marjah Bazaar

                  during his Friday morning walk about. Note the lack of

                  body armor and helmets

The CO of 2/6, LtCol Kyle Ellison with his boss Col Dave Furness talking to local shop owners in the Marjah Bazaar during his Friday morning walk about. Note the lack of body armor and helmets

Counterinsurgency takes a lot of two things, boots on the ground and time.  The Marines have been at this task for nine months and they are winning.  But it is not easy, it is not cheap in the only currency we care about which is the blood of fellow Marines.  The only persistent bitching I heard from Marine commanders concerned their ability to rapidly employ the most potent tool in their arsenal – money.  They feel if they are the ones doing the clearing they should be doing the holding too and able to directly finance the projects they nominate.  I have a lot to say about that myself but being in the reconstruction business I’m going to (this may be a first) shut up and let that sleeping dog lie for now.  The best way to relate the current state of play in Marjah is with lots of pictures and a little bit of story telling.

The first stop in Marjah was COP Shanfield which is

                named after one of the squad leaders from 2nd platoon

                Echo 2/6 who was killed in action nearby. This is the

                COC - 2/6 is known as The Spartans

The first stop in Marjah was COP Shanfield which is named after one of the squad leaders from 2nd platoon Echo 2/6 who was killed in action nearby. This is the COC which monitors the squad sized patrols that are pushed out of this small base 24/7.

We entered Marjah on the afternoon of 11 November heading directly to one of the dozens of platoon combat outposts (COP’s) which dot the Marjah area.  We were heading for an important ceremony but not one we would wish on anyone else.  As I have said many times before war means fighting and fighting means killing.  Unfortunately the killing part of warfare cuts both ways and when the Americans lose a Marine his fellow Marines host a memorial service.  This is a painful yet important ritual designed to not just to honor the dead but also assist the living in dealing with the loss of comrades they knew intimately and loved deeply.  That is the dynamic of infantry – you know your fellow Marine better than anyone else in the world knows him  You may not always like every member of your platoon but you love all of them.  And there is not doubt in the mind of an infantry Marine that the men he is with will instantly and willingly take suicidal risks to help him if he is in trouble.  Memorials are tough and this one was especially tough for the very tight 2nd Platoon, Echo Company, 2nd Battalion 6th Marines because they were saying goodbye to their leader.

1stLt James R. Zimmerman of Aroostock, Maine was

                killed in action on the 2nd of November 2010. He

1stLt James R. Zimmerman of Aroostock, Maine was killed in action on the 2nd of November 2010. He is survived by his parents and his wife Lynel.

The universal sign of a tight platoon headed by an

                exceptional platoon commander is how the junior Marines

The universal sign of a tight platoon is how the junior Marines feel about their leader. Here a young corporal in a filthy uniform with a field haircut gathers himself to deliver a tremendous tribute to his former boss. It was an obvious emotional strain for him which is, of course, the norm for these services but it said a lot about just how good Lt Zimmerman was at leading Marines

The firing detail

The firing detail

There is nothing easy about being an infantryman in

                combat

There is nothing easy about being an infantryman in combat

This was my first visit to a Marine COP and I wished it had been for another purpose.  Marjah is rapidly healing but that doesn’t mean the Talbian has given up and slinked off to some other area in the Helmand.  Marjah was place where they all ran after getting their asses kicked out of every significant town from Naw Zad in the north to Khanishin in the south and there is very little maneuver room left for the Taliban in Helmand Province.

The 2nd Battalion 6th Marines is currently responsible for the southern, central and some of the northern portions of Marjah which is actually a series of villages organized around a gigantic grid of canals which were built by US AID back in the 60’s.  They are expanding their control block by block by spreading their Marines out into platoon and squad size outposts from which Marines foot patrol constantly.  The villains still offer battle but only on their terms which means they will fire on a patrol only when they have set up IED’s between their positions and the Marines.  When the Marines came back to Afghanistan in 2008 the Taliban had forgotten that they were not like other infantry.  The Marines maneuver when fired upon closing with and destroying those stupid enough to take them on.  After getting mauled time and again the Taliban learned to use small arms fire to augment IED blasts in an attempt to lure aggressive Marines into mine fields full of more improvised explosive devices.  Now the Marines maneuver to fix and then swarm with other units coming in from a different direction or with precision fire from drones.  To facilitate this they establish multiple small postions – partrol from them constantly and then push out to establish more small bases once the area they are working comes under their control.

Every Friday the 2/6 CO goes for a tour of the

                central bazaar. When he started he could make it from

                his outpost to the ANP post on the far side in 20

                minutes. These days he can't make it that far due to the

                crowds of Afghans who want to stop and tell him two

                things; 1. they appreciate the Marines and what they

                have done and 2. Please don't leave and let the Taliban

                come back

Every Friday the 2/6 CO goes for a tour of the central bazaar. When he started he could make it from his outpost to the ANP post on the far side in 20 minutes. These days he can't make it that far due to the crowds of Afghans who want to stop and tell him two things; 1. they appreciate the Marines and what they have done and 2. Please don't leave and let the Taliban come back.

The CO has not gotten far when more residents stop

                to chat

The CO has not gotten far when more residents stop to chat

The crowds continue to grow and note how relaxed

                everyone is in a bazaar where this past summer we were

                dropping 2000 pound JDAMs

The crowds continue to grow and note how relaxed everyone is in a bazaar where this past summer we were dropping 2000 pound JDAMs

The

                Marines took the funds from the "Interim Security

                for Critical Infrastructure" and stood up armed

                neighborhood watch groups organized by blocks. The ISCI

                program was apparently designed to allow commanders to

                hire local "security contractors" for guarding

                critical infrastructure which is stupid. The Marines

                view the people as the most "critical

                infrastructre" they have in their AO so they spend

                those program funds on armed security of the people by

                the people. On blocks with ISCI guards there are no

                Taliban. As this car load was heading backing home they

                got a stern reminder from LtCol   Ellison
 "remember

                fellas if you are not on your block the weapons stay in

                the cars right?"

The Marines took the funds from the "Interim Security for Critical Infrastructure" and stood up armed neighborhood watch groups organized by blocks. The ISCI program was apparently designed to allow commanders to hire local "security contractors" for guarding critical infrastructure which is stupid. The Marines view the people as the most "critical infrastructre" they have in their AO so they spend those program funds on armed security of the people by the people. On blocks with ISCI guards ( identified by the arm bands) there are no Taliban. As this car load was heading backing home they got a stern reminder from LtCol Ellison "remember fellas if you are not on your block the weapons stay in the cars right?"

On the

                way back to base LtCol Ellison stops to present a

                battalion coin to an Afghan policeman telling him he

                earned it by always being at his post with his weapon

                and controlling his intersection like a professional

                which the Marines find "motivating". This is

                counterinsurgency 101 in action where small acts of

                recognition provide huge amounts of motivation

On the way back to base LtCol Ellison stops to present a battalion coin to an Afghan policeman telling him he earned it by always being at his post with his weapon and controlling his intersection like a professional which the Marines find "motivating". This is counterinsurgency 101 in action where small acts of recognition provide huge amounts of motivation

After

                the bazaar tour it was time for another memorial this

                one for Staff Sergeant Jordan B Emrick, an EOD

                technician who gave his full measure while working with

                a platoon patrol. The Platoon commander who was on point

                thought he say something in the ground and SSGT Emrick

                stepped up to assess what the Lt had spotted. It was a

                command detonated mine which went off as SSGT Emrick

                squatted to get a good look at it.took the full blast.

After the bazaar tour it was time for another memorial this one for Staff Sergeant Jordan B Emrick, an EOD technician who gave his full measure while working with a platoon patrol. The Platoon commander who was on point thought he saw something in the ground and SSGT Emrick stepped up to assess what the Lt had spotted. It was a command detonated mine which detonated as SSGT Emrick squatted to get a good look at it.

The

                afternoon started with a "strong man" show at

                the local school. Both Inchon 6 and Spartan 6 were

                invited by the District Governor

The afternoon started with a "strong man" show at the local school. Both Inchon 6 and Spartan 6 were invited by the District Governor. In this photo the Sergeants Major from RCT 1 and 2/6 are getting the kids pumped up before the big show.

Waiting for the Parwan performance

Waiting for the Parwan performance

The ANP arrive with the District Governor

The ANP arrive with the District Governor

The

                show starts with forms from both father and son

The show starts with forms from both father and son

Then some father and son brick breaking on a bed on

                nails

Then some father and son brick breaking on a bed on nails

More bed of nails work

More bed of nails work

The show concluded with the classic "run over

                the Parwan with a tractor load of police trick

The show concluded with the classic "run over the Parwan with a tractor load of police" trick

That evening we were invited to a dinner in the

                newly opened restaurant by the District Governor

That evening we were invited to a dinner in the newly opened restaurant by the District Governor so we headed downtown again on foot.

Some of the elders from blocks which have recently

                been cleared also attened the meal - they were there to

                ask for permission to stand up ISCI teams in their

                blocks which comes from the District Governors office

Some of the elders from blocks which have recently been cleared also attened the meal - they were there to ask for permission to stand up ISCI teams in their blocks which comes from the District Governors office

The

                Marine leaders make it a point to travel into Marjah

                "slick" which means without body armor and

                helmets as a show of confidence in local security

                conditions. But they're not stupid and a fully armed

                security detail travels with them. A dinner like this

                attracts things like suicide bombers but there is no way

                any unknown person would get through the layers of

                security and into the restaurant. They certainly would

                have never gotten past these two devil dogs.s

The Marine leaders make it a point to travel into Marjah "slick" which means without body armor and helmets as a show of confidence in local security conditions. But they're not stupid and a fully armed security detail travels with them. A dinner like this attracts things like suicide bombers but there is no way any unknown person would get through the layers of security and into the restaurant. They certainly would have never gotten past these two devil dogs.

Marjah is no longer the most dangerous place in Afghanistan.  That distinction belongs to Sangin where Col Paul Kennedy is leading the 2nd Regimental Combat Team is a very stiff fight to secure the population of that area.  The Marines way of conducting the counterinsurgency fight has caused some friction with our allies [3] who think they are too aggressive.  They are, without question, the most aggressive fighters in Afghanistan but they are also proving to be the most adept at holding the ground they have cleared.  The battalion which proceeded 2/6 in downtown Marjah, the 1st Battalion of the 6th Marines had a 90/10 IED find rate.  Only 10% of the IED’s targeting them detonated and the others were either detected by the Marines or (in a vast majority of the time) were pointed out to the Marines by the local population.

Colonel Furness told me there was a Corporal in 3/1 (deployed in the South around Khanishin) who had an uncanny ability to spot IED’s.  His squad wanted him on point every day.  49 times there were IED’s placed to target them and 49 times this Corporal found them first.  Know what you get when you find mines targeting your squad 49 times in a row?  Probably a lot of love and respect from your fellow Marines but you don’t get a combat action ribbon because when you find the mines every time the villains don’t shoot.  Mine blasts are used as the signal to attack with small arms and the Taliban are not known for their ability to contingency plan so when the mine doesn’t blow they slink off.   Imagine that; seven months of constant patrols in a kinetic environment but because you are so good at spotting mines you don’t get to wear the coveted combat action ribbon.  Col Furness isn’t a big fan of that order but it is an order so as 3/1 was leaving he showed up at a company formation and meritoriously promoted the kid to Sergeant.  ”It was the least I could do – the kid deserved a hell of lot more… I wish I had 100 more just like him.”

Here is another story you don’t hear every day.  Today one of the squad patrols from 2/6 was stopped by a local man who wanted to turn in his son for being Taliban.  He had told the kid over and over he did not want him fighting for the Taliban who he believes to be immoral and unislamic.  The father and one of his other sons went to the district center and to have their statements video tapped and his son is now in custody.

Counterinsurgency takes time and it is not cheap for the men and women doing the fighting.  The question is not if we can prevail but will we be allowed to do what it takes to prevail and that question can only be answered by our Commander in Chief.  The President can only “vote present” on Afghanistan for so long.  He needs to tell the American people and our allies what we are trying to accomplish in order to define an endstate.   The “July 2011 draw down” of forces is not a plan or an endstate or even a good idea.  It is an abdication of leadership for a meaningless date which is predicated on nothing more than political calculation.   Our president is rumored to be a very smart man.  It is time for him to prove it.


Article printed from Free Range International: http://freerangeinternational.com/blog

URL to article: http://freerangeinternational.com/blog/?p=3734

URLs in this post:

[1] Marjah a bleeding ulcer: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/05/24/94740/mcchrystal-calls-marjah-a-bleeding.html

[2] the most dangerous place in Afghanistan”: http://www.katu.com/news/local/107051228.html

[3] some friction with our allies: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/03/AR2010090306195.html

Click here to print.

Copyright © 2009 Free Range International. All rights reserved.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Don’t Touch My Junk

Charles Krauthammer

The junk man’s revolt marks the point at which a docile public declares that it will tolerate only so much idiocy.

Hurrah!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Welcome Senate Conservatives

by Jim DeMint

Congratulations to all the tea party-backed candidates who overcame a determined, partisan opposition to win their elections. The next campaign begins today. Because you must now overcome determined party insiders if this nation is going to be spared from fiscal disaster.

Many of the people who will be welcoming the new class of Senate conservatives to Washington never wanted you here in the first place. The establishment is much more likely to try to buy off your votes than to buy into your limited-government philosophy. Consider what former GOP senator-turned-lobbyist Trent Lott told the Washington Post earlier this year: “As soon as they get here, we need to co-opt them.”

Don’t let them. Co-option is coercion. Washington operates on a favor-based economy and for every earmark, committee assignment or fancy title that’s given, payback is expected in return. The chits come due when the roll call votes begin. This is how big-spending bills that everyone always decries in public always manage to pass with just enough votes.

But someone can’t be bribed if they aren’t for sale. Here is some humble advice on how to recognize and refuse such offers.

First, don’t request earmarks. If you do, you’ll vote for legislation based on what’s in it for your state, not what’s best for the country. You will lose the ability to criticize wasteful spending. And, if you dare to oppose other pork-barrel projects, the earmarkers will retaliate against you.

In 2005, Sen. Tom Coburn (R., Okla.) offered a measure to kill funding for the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere.” Before the vote, Sen. Patty Murray (D., Wash.), an appropriator, issued a warning on the Senate floor.

“If we start cutting funding for individual projects, your project may be next,” she said. “When Members come down to the floor to vote on this amendment, they need to know if they support stripping out this project, Senator Bond [a Republican appropriator] and I are likely to be taking a long, serious look at their projects to determine whether they should be preserved during our upcoming conference negotiations.”

The threat worked. Hardly anyone wanted to risk losing earmarks. The Senate voted 82-15 to protect funding for the Bridge to Nowhere.

Second, hire conservative staff. The old saying “personnel is policy” is true. You don’t need Beltway strategists and consultants running your office. Find people who share your values and believe in advancing the same policy reforms. Staff who are driven by conservative instincts can protect you from unwanted, outside influences when the pressure is on.

Third, beware of committees. Committee assignments can be used as bait to make senators compromise on other matters. Rookie senators are often told they must be a member of a particular committee to advance a certain piece of legislation. This may be true in the House, but a senator can legislate on any matter from the Senate floor.

Fourth, don’t seek titles. The word “Senator” before your name carries plenty of clout. All senators have the power to object to bad legislation, speak on the floor and offer amendments, regardless of how they are ranked in party hierarchy.

Lastly, don’t let your re-election become more important than your job. You’ve campaigned long and hard for the opportunity to go to Washington and restore freedom in America. People will try to convince you to moderate conservative positions and break campaign promises, all in the name of winning the next race. Resist the temptation to do so. There are worse things than losing an election—like breaking your word to voters.

At your swearing-in ceremony, you will, as all senators do, take an oath to “support and defend the Constitution.” Most will fail to keep their oath. Doing these five things will help you maintain a focus on national priorities and be one who does.

Congress will never fix entitlements, simplify the tax code or balance the budget as long as members are more concerned with their own narrow, parochial interests. Time spent securing earmarks and serving personal ambitions is time that should be spent working on big-picture reforms.

When you are in Washington, remember what the voters back home want—less government and more freedom. Millions of people are out of work, the government is going bankrupt and the country is trillions in debt. Americans have watched in disgust as billions of their tax dollars have been wasted on failed jobs plans, bailouts and takeovers. It’s up to us to stop the spending spree and make sure we have a government that benefits America instead of being a burden to it.

Tea party Republicans were elected to go to Washington and save the country—not be co-opted by the club. So put on your boxing gloves. The fight begins today.

Mr. DeMint is a Republican senator from South Carolina. This first appeared in The Wall Street Journal.

Read More :: http://www.conservative.org/acuf/issue-168/issue168news3/#ixzz15YqHZas4

Friday, November 12, 2010

Why I Quit...

A Desert Storm veteran explains his decision to leave Air Force after 22 years

by Mike Banzet in 'Belief'

He says it well.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Veterans Day 2010

InStone

“These are the times that try men's souls.  The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.  Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, more glorious the triumph.” 

- Thomas Payne, ‘The American Crisis’ #1, 19 December 1776

Veterans Day in Kabul

By Colonel Rick Waddell, U.S. Army Reserve

When I come out of my hootch complex every morning, I pass through the armored vehicles of the Macedonian contingent that guards the headquarters of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul. Forty-seven nations have troops here on the frontiers of civilization as we enter the 10th year of war. Of the six regional commands in Afghanistan, the Italians command the West, the Germans command the North, the Turks command the Capitol Region around Kabul. The British just gave up command of the South.  The British have 9500 troops here; the French, Italians, and Germans each have between 3000 and 5000; the Canadians and Poles have 2800 and 2600 respectively.  Some of the nations - the British, Canadians, Australians, New Zealand - have been fighting here since almost the beginning in October 2001.

Twenty nations of the total were once dominated by the Soviets or their clients. The Polish admiral that works in the office is quite open about the harsh conditions of his youth, when basic food was rationed, and the only candy they had was made out of the precious, meager rations of milk and sugar. These nations remember what it was like not being free, and they remember the role that NATO and the US in particular had in their freedom.

Most of the forty-seven nations also maintained troops in Iraq until the Iraqis took charge of their own security in early 2009.

As we approach Veterans Day, we should remember that the Commonwealth nations - the members of the former British Empire - observe this date as Remembrance Day in memory of the millions of their citizens that died on the battlefields of World War I. For the Poles, their nation was re-born when the Western Allies won World War I, and 11 November is their Independence Day. Here in ISAF HQ, the Commonwealth soldiers walk around with red poppies pinned to their uniform in the week prior to the day, as do their citizens back home. The tradition is said to come from a 1915 poem written by Canadian Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae upon witnessing the death of a friend:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.


We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.


Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

War is always the supreme human folly, and our world has seen much war in the past 100 years.

Yet, the militarists, fascists, and communists were defeated. The victories were costly, but free nations were born and liberty spread. In the darkest days of the four-decade-long Cold War, who could have predicted the eventual stunning victory? Accommodation with and acquiescence to the totalitarians were often the counsel of the faint of heart; perseverance was hard and unpopular. The current war is no easier and certainly no more popular, and it would be easy to believe that defeat out here on the frontier would be manageable because we could hold the line somewhere else, closer to our homes.

A year ago, a friend of mine, a colonel closing in on 30 years of service, wrote from Afghanistan about the death of a sergeant who was the son of another colonel, noting that more than 130 general officers have children in uniform, as do many more senior officers and noncommissioned officers. As my friend put it, "We give all we have to give. Then we send our kids." His own son is here now.  As fate would have it, I am serving alongside the lost sergeant's father, whose pain can only be understandable by those suffering a similar loss, but he continues to hold high the torch thrown from the failing hands of his son, a dedication that surpasses common understanding.

Poppies blow in the fields of Helmand and Kandahar, too, but more importantly they adorn the uniforms of those in Afghanistan who remember the sacrifices of their forebears. They keep the faith by serving in Iraq and Afghanistan alongside the America that did so much in generations past to help their countries.

On Remembrance Day, let us remember these allies, even as we honor our own veterans that "lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow" and did so much in so many places to make a better world.

Hat tip to Mr. Wolf at BlackFive and Dennis Lowery

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Happy Birthday, Marines

In order to wish our beloved Marine Corps "happy birthday," I thought we could honor our friends by posting our favorite Marine Corps  quote. To start:

"Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a difference.
The Marines don't have that problem."

- Ronald Reagan

The Commandant's message remembers all Marines, but focuses special attention on the Marine who fought in Korea. 

 

VET THE STAFF

Now that elections are over, we are happy that the Tea Parties helped elect a majority in the house.

Here is one question I never hear asked. Who are the staff members that work for the Congress and Senate? What are their backgrounds? Are they radicals, conservatives, marxists? They are the people who write the bills for the congress and senate, yet I'll bet no voter knows their names or who they are.

Is there somewhere we can get a list of the staff members that work for our congress and senate? Yes, I know they are not elected, they are appointed, but they are not vetted! How can the citizens find out who is running the offices in Washington?

If they write the bills, are their names on the rough drafts and the final bills?

Don't you think voters and taxpayers have a right to know?

I'll bet if you write or call your elected representative and ask about the backgrounds of their staff, you'll be told it's none of your business or they'll hang up on you.

Try it! Ask your representative. I'll bet we would all get some interesting responses!

Monday, November 8, 2010

Star Freshmen

In one of the largest freshman classes in history, these twelve congressmen-elect stand out.

Feeling pretty good about the election results? Read this and feel even better.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Notes From Nov 3rd Mentor 9-12 Project Discussion Panel

Election Recap

Current US House  178 (R)  -  257 (D)  -  New US House  -  240 (R)  -  185 (D)  with 10 races undecided.  The most Republicans in the House since 1948 when they had 246 seats.

More Ohio congressional incumbents lost than in any other state.  (5)  NY and PA tied when you include open seats.

George Soros funded Secretary of State Project Supported 7 candidates – 2 won, 5 lost

African-American GOP Winners – Allen West in Florida and Tim Scott South Carolina.  Fourteen black Republicans were on House ballots nationwide, almost double the number in 2008.

In New Mexico, Susana Martinez was elected as the nation's first female Hispanic governor. Nikki Haley, whose parents were born in India, will be the first woman governor in South Carolina, and Brian Sandoval became Nevada's first Hispanic governor.

Dan Webster crushed the obnoxious Alan Grayson in the 8th District of Florida.  Grayson said on the House floor that the GOP health care plan was to "die quickly," and ran the "Taliban Dan" ad. 

18 state legislators switched to Republican control.

"I hope he fails."  With those famous four words, uttered January 16, 2009 -- only days before Barack Obama was to be inaugurated -- Rush Limbaugh drew a line in the sand.  And as a result, this morning it is Rush Limbaugh who is the undisputed winner of the 2010 election.   American Spectator

South Dakota Republican challenger Kristi Noem, riding a wave of voter discontent with President Obama's administration, defeated Democrat U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin in Tuesday's election.

Republican Mark Kirk has defeated Democrat Alexi Giannoulias in the U.S. Senate race.  Kirk has captured the Senate seat once held by the president, dealing an embarrassing blow to Democrats

Congressman Bob Etheridge Loses To Republican Renee Ellmers in North Carolina.  The race drew national attention earlier this year, when Congressman Etheridge was shown in a video to be apparently assaulting a young man who questioned him about his political record on a Washington DC sidewalk.  Etheridge served for 14 years in Congress and Ellmers is a registered nurse in Dunn.

Illinois Congressman Phil Hare who didn’t worry about the Constitution, loses district to Bobby Schilling.  The 28-year hold Democrats have had on the 17th U.S. Congressional District has come to an end.

The House races were largely fought on Republican-leaning turf, but the key Senate fights were in deep blue states.

There will be 18 states subject to reapportionment. The Republicans will control a majority of those — at least ten and maybe a dozen or more. More significantly, a minimum of seventeen state legislative houses have flipped to the Republican Party.
The North Carolina Legislature is Republican for the first time since 1870. Yes, that is Eighteen Seventy.
The Alabama Legislature is Republican for the first time since 1876.
For those saying this is nothing because it is the South, consider these:
The entire Wisconsin and New Hampshire legislatures have flipped to the GOP by wide margins.
The State Houses in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Iowa, Montana, and Colorado flipped to the GOP.
The Maine and Minnesota Senates flipped to the GOP.   
The Texas and Tennessee Houses went from virtually tied to massive Republican gains. The gains in Texas were so big that the Republicans no longer need the Democrats to get state constitutional amendments out of the state legislature.

According to the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at Rutgers University, 298 women indicated their intent by filing to run for House and Senate seats in the 2010 midterm elections --  (36 Senate, 262 House.)

What makes the 2010 election year stand out is the surge in the number of Republican women running for Congress -- a fact lauded by conservatives and highlighted by mainstream media.

With a record number of female GOP candidates throwing their hats into the ring (145 total, 17 Senate and 128 House), pundits soon began declaring 2010 as "the Year of the Republican Women." (In comparison, 153 Democratic women filed to run for Congress in 2010 - 19 for the Senate and 134 for the House.)

Friday, October 29, 2010

Voter Fraud Watch: A Primer on What to Watch For

From our friends at Pajamas Media, by J. Christian Adams

There’s been lots of talk about voter fraud this election season. Already machines have purportedly preselected candidates and in other places, documents demonstrate non-citizens are registered to vote. Anyone who says voter fraud doesn’t exist has no credibility. I’ve covered elections for over 10 years. I’ve seen it over and over again with my own eyes. I’ve proved it in federal court. It is significantly more common than Sasquatch.

But what does voter fraud look like? What can citizens be on the lookout for when they participate in their election? Let me share some examples:

Commands to vote

I’ve seen election judges telling voters for whom to vote. In Philadelphia, I have repeatedly seen the people who sign you in and check off your name give instructions to voters for whom to vote. It isn’t supposed to work that way, and if you see it, get the name of the election official and report it to their boss. Better yet, try to get the name of the voter.

Mass illegal assistance

One of the most outrageous behaviors is campaigns of illegal assistance. I’ve seen lone soldiers of a political machine march dozens of voters into the booth and vote for them. In some instances the voter provided little or no input. Remember that disabled citizens have a right under federal law to have anyone assist them, as long as it is not an employer or union representative. Illiteracy and inability to speak English well also trigger this right. So just because someone is in the booth with a voter doesn’t mean something illegal is happening. But if you see van loads of voters being “voted” without expressing their own input, get the tag number of the van and remember what illegal assistant looked like.

Phony voters

I’ve watched people in states without voter ID seek to vote who were clearly not the people they said they were. During one election, I saw a young man give a name. It caused the women working the polls who knew him to laugh at him and tell him to stop fooling them. He insisted, even under watchful eyes, that he was this person everyone knew him not to be. Everyone was laughing, but the poll workers relented and reluctantly gave him a ballot, somewhat perturbed that he pushed the issue. For a brief moment, he was someone else. And since voter ID was not the law in this state, he voted a regular ballot.

Read the rest of the article here.

Also be sure to  Join PJM/PJTV's Voter Fraud Watch

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Streets Are Paved With Gold

Immigrants coming to this country around the beginning of the last century came because they heard the streets were paved with gold! Obviously the streets were not physically made of gold. It was the opportunities that were golden. They came here because they heard everyone had the opportunity to become wealthy if you were honest and worked hard. Many did become wealthy and most made a better life for their children. My grandparents came through Ellis Island. They didn't come here for the benefits, they came here because they wanted a job and FREEDOM! My grandparents were Polish who escaped from Russia to take advantage of the freedom and opportunities in this country.

What's my point?

Progressive candidates have been promoting class warfare for years. They say some people make too much money. They want to tax successful people. They want to limit or eliminate success and many people agree with them.

Step back and think about it. Do you want to take those opportunities away from your sons and daughters, brothers or sisters? What if your son or daughter wanted to start a busines? What if they became successful and made more than $250,000 a year? Would you penalize them? I don't think so.

America is free, but freedom is expensive. Sometimes you will even have to sacrifice your life, your fortune and your sacred honor. Please don't limit our opportunities!

The other side of the White House white board

This is a great video, so be sure to take the time to watch it.  You will learn a lot!

Here's another view on CEA Chairman Austan Goolsbee's recent White House white board presentation on the U.S. employment situation.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Extremists Extremely Shocked At Public's Extreme Disdain For Extremism

From Jim Geraghty

Of the many great ads we've seen this year, perhaps one of the best is this one minute and twenty second one from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, taking on one of the Democrats favorite sneers -- "extreme" -- and showcasing just how frequently the Democrats find themselves on the wrong side of public opinion, sometimes by a wide margin.

 

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Nick Popaditch

Sit back and enjoy all of his ads. See them here.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Arkansas Teen Scores Touchdown in Wheelchair

From The Blaze

In a story of true sportsmanship, two competing high school football teams in Arkansas came together last Friday night to help one fellow student’s dream come true.

Manila High School trailed top-ranked Rivercrest High 47-0 when Rivercrest forfeited a perfect game to allow Manila senior Dylan Galloway to score, carrying the pig skin over the goal line in his wheelchair. Dylan was born with cerebral palsy and thanks to a pre-arranged moment between opposing coaches, he was able to realize his dream of playing varsity football.

While most of us focus on the scoreboard each game, I found that heartwarming stories like this are more common than we might think.

Earlier this fall, two teams came together in a similar fashion during a match-up in Wisconsin.  An agreement between the coaches of Menomonie and Superior High Schools gave Sam Kolden, a Menomonie senior who struggles with autism, the chance to shine during his team’s 52-14 victory. From the Superior Spartans Facebook page, one fan who sat in the stands that night wrote:

Both teams played hard though over time the score tipped in Menomonie’s favor. Our team has one player who, due to special needs, is only occasionally able to be on the field. On this particular night, after a conversation between head coaches, our special player took to the field in his wide receiver position. Teams lined up, ball was snapped, a gentle pass found its way into his hands, and with great care and energy Superior players lunged in pursuit knowing well the dream they granted was more important than the six points it placed on the Menomonie score board.

Read the rest plus another heart warming story here.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

"I Want Your Money" Official HD Movie Trailer

For more information about I Want Your Money please visit www.IWantYourMoney.net. Movie will be in theaters 10-15-10.


Set against the backdrop of today's headline - 67% of Americans don't approve of Obama's economic policies, the film takes a provocative look at our deeply depressed economy using the words and actions of Presidents Reagan and Obama and shows the marked contrast between Reaganomics and Obamanomics. The film contrasts two views of the role that the federal government should play in our daily lives using the words and actions of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Two versions of the American dream now stand in sharp contrast. One views the money you earned as yours and best allocated by you; the other believes that the elite in Washington know how to best allocate your wealth. One champions the traditional American dream, which has played out millions of times through generations of Americans, of improving one's lot in life and even daring to dream and build big. The other holds that there is no end to the "good" the government can do by taking and spending other peoples' money in an ever-burgeoning list of programs. The documentary film I Want Your Money exposes the high cost in lost freedom and in lost opportunity to support a Leviathan-like bureaucratic state.

 

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Chris Coons the Taxman

Watch the great new Christine O'Donnell ad.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Gov. Christie: It Is "Put Up Or Shut Up Time" For GOP

"We lost our way a number of years ago. We did. We became tax-and-spend light," Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) said in Iowa last night.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Take a Seat

Check out this cool website – 40 Seats

We need to win 40 Seats to take back the House from Nancy Pelosi and her "tax and spend" crowd.  40 Seats targets districts where the critical races are occurring today.  Click on a highlighted district on the map to find how you can help "Take a Seat".

 

40 Seats

Friday, October 8, 2010

Burn your VFW cards; See VFW – PAC Endorsements!

From our good friends at BlackFive comes this unbelievable revelation;

Last night, we received an interesting email from Bev Perlson, who heads the Band of Mothers group.  She's got an awesome email list that is good for keeping up on what's going on around the country.

What was so disturbing was the email listed someone we all know- LTC(r) Allen West, and how the VFW, of all people, THE VEE-EFF-FRICKING-W, was ENDORSING HIS OPPONENT.

You read that right.

His opponent?  Democrat Ron Klein.  WHO HAS NEVER SERVED IN UNIFORM.

You read THAT right, too.

People, I've been pissed before.  Mad, even.  Upset.  But this?  THIS is treasonous to me.  For a 'so called' veterans organization to pick a NON-SERVING, NON-VETERAN over one of the MOST PROMISING veterans running in politics is heinous.  Disturbing.  And shows just how far off-track the VFW has become.

As you may recall, when I returned from Iraq one of the first things I did was join VFW and Legion as 'life members'.  Now, it seems, the time has come to rip, burn, and toss my Lifetime Membership for the VFW.  I feel like they have completely left us at the station here.  Over at the Farm Team, Jonn Lilyea lays out just who the VFW has announced they are supporting:

Barbara Boxer, Alcee Hastings, Barbara Lee, Steny Hoyer, Barbara Mikulsky, Chris VanHollen, John Dingell, Chuckie Schumer, Pat Leahy and Patty Murray

In addition, they support Perlmutter over Bailey (former USAF) Frazier (former Navy) for Colorado; to their credit, they do support Mike Coffman (Marine) in his race in CO.  But the rest of the list is disgusting.  To me, it reads they are 'supporting' or 'endorsing' only those they see as WINNING.  It appears they don't give a RATS ASS who supports vets or who WAS a vet.

I am asking all of you to join me in contacting the VFW to protest this development; supporting a non-vet over LTC West was the last straw.

Call the VFW at 1-202-544-5868.  Email them at: vfwpac@vfw.org.

Oh yeah, and before I forget- Remember when Obama wanted to charge wounded troops for medical care?  VFW supported him on that, too.  READ IT HERE.

VFW- we are done here.  Fix it, or be gone as a veterans organization.

UPDATE 1:  Keep hitting them- word is they are getting calls.  Write.  HIT THEM HARD.  Given the climate that's out there, and what they are doing to veterans behind our backs, this should not stand.  I suggest the following in any statements you send/make:

I, my membership, my money (the money I set aside to give to PACs) and every friend I can bring along are switching to the Legion.  And I will be doing my damnedest to convince every veteran I know to do likewise.

I hate this- I know there are locals that do great things.  But, if they are willing to sit by, and let their national organization do this over their objections, then they are complicit in it.  I'd like to see the locals boot the national guys out.  Really would.

UPDATE:  Getting questions and emails on whether we realize there is a difference between VFW and VFW-PAC.  Well, there is and there isn't.  Let me just say this- if the local VFW chapters, to include the states, are willing to let National allow their PAC to push this type of agenda and these types of candidates, well, bad on them for just standing by.  They should be rioting over it.  Holding their dues payments where they can.  Put pressure on National to adhere to what the LOCALS want, not what National may think 'is best'.  Because to do otherwise is utter bullshiite.

To us, this is not an issue of VFW-PAC vs. VFW.  They are the same- don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

 

In Ohio, the VFW-PAC is endorsing: Boccieri, John (D), Fudge, Marcia (D), Kaptur, Marcy (D), Space, Zack (D) and Sutton, Betty (D) just to name a few.  If you are a VFW member, please call your local unit and the national office today.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

"Vegetative State" Patients May Soon Be Able to Communicate

An absolutely incredible announcement and one of hope for many families.

Read here. (You may have to hit Control while clicking.)

Monday, October 4, 2010

And another wheel on the Obmacare bus falls off. — GP

 

Early in the summer I had checked out the website through which one can get insurance despite a pre-existing condition. I have since referred to it as the shiny and flashy object sparkling from the sunshine in the cool blue water, from the viewpoint of the fish. Too attractive not to grab. But once the truth is discovered, it’s too late. You’re hooked.

Apparently a lot of hope filled people are greatly disappointed. Insurance you can get isn’t much good if you can’t afford it.   http://www.nationalreview.com/the-feed/248625/obamacares-pre-existing-condition-insurance-plan-isnt-living-expectations

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Even MSM Doesn‘t Buy ’One Nation’ Claim That 10/2 Rally Attendance Topped Restoring Honor Rally

From The Blaze

comparison-color

The Restoring Honor Rally on 8/28 is pictured on the left.  The “Left Leaning” One Nation socialist Rally held on 10/2 is pictured on the right.

I wonder which one drew a larger crowd?

Friday, October 1, 2010

John Ashbrook: Lycurgus of the Tea Party?

 

 ashbrookcenter

by: Jay Hartz

With the final round of major primaries now complete, candidates have been selected for this November’s general election. The impact Tea Party candidates will have on the general election and on policy following that election is a question worthy of thought and debate by conservatives. While the nuts-and-bolts questions of which party will control Congress and the possibility of implementing a "refudiate socialism" agenda are important, there is also an interesting discussion to be had concerning "what does this all mean?"

It is worth noting that today’s Tea Party movement has a historical if not a philosophical connection to John M. Ashbrook’s primary challenge to Richard Nixon in 1972. While it will be for someone else to argue Ashbrook was the proto-Tea Party candidate, the extent to which Ashbrook was vilified by the party apparatus for challenging the "establishment" candidate has seen several parallels during this year’s election cycle.

Which brings us to an interesting question: What thoughts and suggestions might Ashbrook offer to conservatives during an election in which the major issues track so closely those he championed during his political career. Luckily, we have a source to consult.

In 1986, just a few years after the untimely death of Ashbrook, Randy McNutt published a slim volume entitled No Left Turns: A Handbook for Conservatives Based on the Writings of John M. Ashbrook. McNutt, then a reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, was able to secure a heartfelt foreword from Congressman Jack Kemp and assembled several of Ashbrook’s speeches, newsletters, newspaper editorials and letters to constituents. From these pages leaps the mind of Ashbrook. Not only his firm grasp of domestic issues, but a foreign policy based on his opposition to totalitarianism in the form of communism and an understanding that a strong America is freedom’s last best chance for success.

Read the rest here.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Want Some Good News For a Change? Go Brits!

From the UK Telegraph

Every evening in Afghanistan, small, heavily armed units of SAS soldiers are taking part in "kill or capture" missions against the Taliban. The majority of the raids – which are guided by the latest intelligence reports provided to Nato headquarters in Kabul – are targeted directly at senior Taliban commanders, those responsible for planting the deadly roadside bombs that have accounted for so many British casualties.

The SAS raids are part of a special forces operation on an "industrial scale", devised by General David Petraeus, the US commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan, to destroy the Taliban's war-fighting capability. And the strategy is proving to be a resounding success.

Over a 90-day period this summer, 365 key Taliban commanders were either killed or captured in a total of 3,000 night raids carried out by British and American special forces units, operating predominantly in southern Afghanistan. Another 1,031 "rank and file" fighters were killed, and 1,355 taken into custody.

Not surprisingly, this unprecedented level of special forces activity is having a devastating impact on the Taliban's effectiveness and morale. British commanders have reported a significant drop in their casualty rates, while the number of roadside bombs has fallen by a quarter.

Equally important, the high attrition rate has led many potential Taliban recruits to have second thoughts about risking their lives for the cause. "When the average life expectancy of a commander is around six months, it certainly concentrates the minds of those who are thinking about joining the insurgency," says a senior British officer working with SAS units in Afghanistan. "Suddenly there is an awareness that there is a price to be paid for planting roadside bombs. Families are less keen to let their sons volunteer."

It would be tempting fate to say that we are finally winning the war against the Taliban, especially as the overall casualty rate for Nato forces this year is the highest since Western troops first deployed in late 2001. But these recent successes do suggest that the mission is heading in the right direction at last, with all the implications that might have for its future success.

If, by virtue of the special forces' relentless onslaught, the Taliban can be persuaded that they are fighting a war they can never win, then the more moderate elements within the leadership might be persuaded to opt for political reconciliation with the Afghan government, which is the fundamental objective of Gen Petraeus's counter-insurgency strategy.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Votes from Beyond the Grave

Everyone knows about it. everyone shrugs shoulders and says. “That’s the way it is.”

Who is going to address it?  Read here

 

Sunday, September 12, 2010

WE THE PEOPLE or FREE THE PEOPLE

Election is coming soon. Are you comfortable with our selection of candidates? Are you worried that the two parties will still prevail? Will those that are elected really make changes or will this be more Hope and Change?
Have we been too easy on candidates at Town Hall meetings? I haven’t heard any “tough” questions at the few meetings I’ve been to. Here are a few questions I would have liked to hear…..

Federal Congressmen or Congresswomen Are you aware of House Rule XIII, (d)(1) that requires “a statement citing the specific powers granted to Congress in the Constitution to enact the law proposed by the bill or joint resolution.” If you are aware of this rule, why isn’t it followed? Why haven’t the you challenged any proposed law based on this rule?
Will you actively support the 9th and 10th amendments?
Will you sponsor or vote for any bill that repeals Obamacare? Will you vote to defund Obamacare?

State Senators and RepresentativesWill you actively support the two amendments now circulating in the State (State Sovereignty and Health Care Freedom Amendment)?
The property tax method of funding schools has been ruled unconstitutional for many years, but that rule has been completely avoided. What is your SPECIFIC solution for school funding? Please, NO GENERALITIES!

If your candidates won’t answer these questions OR they give you a political answer (which is no answer), do you trust them? If they won’t commit to Constitutional solutions, will you vote for them?

REMEMBER, the fight is not over on November 2nd! The career politicians are banking on the fact that you will be tired of fighting. You will have to be a career citizen, 912er, Tea Party advocate and student of the Constitution. This will be our second career till the day we leave this earth. We can’t leave our country in this condition for our children and grandchildren. Freedom is not free!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

9-11 ~ Nine Years Later

We say we will “never forget” but have we?

Notes about this video:

Warning this video contains people falling or jumping from the world trade center. A lot of questions been coming in about the man on the phone. Yes he was in tower 2 on the 105 floor top right corner of the video when it falls.  Also the Music in this video is Requiem For A Dream by Lux Aterna

Let us truly NEVER FORGET.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Chris Christie Schools Another Snide Union Defending Teacher

From EyeBlastTV Blog:

I’ve never been this jealous of New Jersey before in my life. In fact, as a native Pennsylvanian, for a long time I was one of the many who favored blowing up the whole of Jersey so we could finally get some beaches in PA. I mean Jersey has always been a haven for liberal idiocy but now Christie is in office and the man is a on fire.

At this point its only going to take a few more rhetorical smack downs of snooty little union drones before I pack up my car and move to New Jersey. Go ahead and check out his latest masterpiece from a town hall in Raritan, New Jersey yesterday:

Thursday, September 9, 2010

FREE ENTERPRISE

Progressives are teaching our kids that Free Enterprise is evil while in China, they are extolling the virtues of Free Enterprise. Here is a slightly modified OPED I read from James R. Cook.

Most government employees and those who enforce regulations, are fiercely anti-business. They have little or no knowledge of how the market system works. They see business as greed driven, and profits as an evil that government should control. These people don't understand that profits come from meeting the needs of others by providing products and services that improve living standards. They don't realize that consumers are the rulers of the free market because their buying choices determine the success or failure of the companies competing to serve them.

They are unaware that to serve one's self-interest, the entrepreneur must first serve the self-interest of others. This is the moral underpinning of free enterprise. But rather than notice the unassailable high moral ground of free market capitalism, they prefer to see greed and inequality.

One of the reasons many immigrants came to the U.S. from Europe was to avail themselves of the opportunity to better their standard of living and to make as much money as their talent would allow them!

Misogynist and violent Islam, gaining hold, requires passionate opposition

BY DIANE MEDVED

Why isn't the poison gassing of Afghan girls simply for attending school generating international outrage? Blood tests have verified that a main ingredient of chemical weapons was the cause of the severe sicknesses suffered by hundreds of girls in two schools in Kabul this last week--just the latest in a series of nine poisonings spanning the last two years.  Many of the girls rushing to escape the scene fainted; some collapsed hours later.  Scores were hospitalized, requiring oxygen and intravenous drugs.

And yet, the still-ailing girls resolutely resume their educations. "One 12th grader, 18-year-old Khalida Bashir Ahmed, said she was determined to return to school even though she still felt dizzy; she still had a medical tube dangling from her right wrist," reports the New York Times. "As she recounted her ordeal, she fainted and fell to the ground."


The attacks were more than a week ago, but only now, with blood tests revealing the nerve gas ingredient organophosphates, earn any attention:  "Many local officials had dismissed the cases as episodes of mass hysteria provoked by acid and arson attacks on school girls by Taliban fighters and others who objected to their education," the article notes.  Those pesky Taliban.


Where are the feminists?  Where are those vocal for "women's rights" to abortions, who now seem painfully quiet about girls' rights to learn to read without biological attack?  It's not enough that the custom of female genital mutilation continues, affecting 140 million women worldwide, most in Africa, though The London Observer reported a few weeks ago that in England this very summer, 500-2,000 girls have undergone the horrifying procedure designed to preclude any sexual pleasure.


Muslim women are regularly beaten by husbands, with little international protest--and complicit support by local authorities.  "Wife beating in Islamic countries is more prevalent than one can imagine," writes Brigitte Gabriel in They Must Be Stopped: Why We Must Defeat Radical Islam and How We Can Do It.  Stories of "honor killings" abound internationally, and Muzzammil Hassan, the Muslim head of the "Bridges" TV outlet, formed to reconcile Muslim and American feeling, beheaded his wife last year in Orchard Park--a murder widely attributed to his religious bent.


And it seems things are getting worse.  "In a world where education for females was generally accepted only a generation or two ago, women are again being infantilized, writes journalist Jan Goodwin in The Price of Honor: Muslim Women Lift the Veil of Silence on the Islamic World.  "In the name of religion, they are being banned from traveling, working, studying, divorcing, voting, holding positions of power, in effect, from making their own decisions about major and minor aspects of their lives."

Full article here.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

New Conservative Entertainment Network Launches

From: The Blaze

Emmy-winning Actor and conservative Kelsey Grammer is lending his distinctly familiar voice in promoting RightNetwork, a new online and cable on-demand programming channel offering alternative programming with a decidedly right-of-center spin.  ”We’re not out to vilify or accuse or identify anybody as an enemy,” Grammer has said. “We’re out there to encourage people to open their minds and take a look at some things that we as a group of people believe is the right direction for the country.”

With a growing base of outspoken conservatives drawn out of political slumber by the rising tea party movement and an entertainment industry continually pushing the bar away from family-friendly wholesome entertainment, Grammer and fellow investors–including Ed Snider, chairman of Comcast-Spectacor and owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and Flyers–saw a growing demand for a RightNetwork.  Programming is available at RightNetwork.com and to Verizon FiOS customers.  Wireless company Nokia also offers on-the-go access.

“We’re middle-of-the road people who have a fairly conservative approach to government, that’s all. Less government,” Grammer says. “It’s not some insidious group of people who are plotting some horrible takeover.”

The on-demand programming caters to new trends in at-home television viewing, where families select programs from their DVR lists or from cable companies’ on-demand offerings.  Best of all, RightNetwork’s programming casts a wide net of interests for potential viewers:

Sunday, September 5, 2010

The President’s Stem-Cell Dollars and the Judge’s Rebuke

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/245641/president-s-stem-cell-dollars-and-judge-s-rebuke-robert-p-george?page=2

“… But it is the president who fails to be open to the inconvenient truth about the human embryo, namely, that from the single-cell stage of development onward, the human embryo is a distinct, determinate, self-directing, integrated human organism — a living member of the human species who, if given a suitable environment, will move along the seamless trajectory of biological development toward maturity. At the so-called “blastocyst stage,” when the embryo might be destroyed to derive embryonic stem cells, he or she is already a living individuated organism. The very same organism — the very same human being — who, unless deprived of the conditions of survival, will soon be crawling, then walking, and then a few years later asking mom and dad for the car keys. …”

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Let the death panels commence

Peter Heck - Guest Columnist  www.OneNewsNow.com

On Friday, August 7, 2009, Sarah Palin wrote on her Facebook page: "The Democrats promise that a government healthcare system will reduce the cost of healthcare, but [it] will not...it will simply refuse to pay the cost.  The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide...whether they are worthy of healthcare.  Such a system is downright evil."

The response of Democrats and the media to Palin's assertion can only be described as outrage.  Howard Dean went on ABC and called it "totally erroneous," concluding, "She just made that up."  Even David Brooks, the closest thing to a conservative the New York Times can bring themselves to hire, proclaimed on Meet the Press, "That's crazy...the crazies are attacking the plan because it'll cut off granny, and that – that's simply not true.  That simply is not going to happen."


And even last week, Newsweek magazine ranked the idea that there would be bureaucratic boards making life-and-death decisions for people as one of the "Dumb Things Americans Believe."


The only problem for Dean, Brooks, Newsweek and the whole lot is that it now appears that under ObamaCare there are bureaucratic boards making life-and-death decisions for people.

Read the rest here.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Our distracted commander in chief

By Charles Krauthammer

Friday, September 3, 2010

Many have charged that President Obama's decision to begin withdrawing from Afghanistan 10 months from now is hampering our war effort. But now it's official. In a stunning statement last week, Marine Corps Commandant James Conway admitted that the July 2011 date is "probably giving our enemy sustenance."

A remarkably bold charge for an active military officer. It stops just short of suggesting aiding and abetting the enemy. Yet the observation is obvious: It is surely harder to prevail in a war that hinges on the allegiance of the locals when they hear the U.S. president talk of beginning a withdrawal that will ultimately leave them to the mercies of the Taliban.

The whole story here.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Restoring Honor Rally Video

This is a great video featuring scenes from Glenn Beck’s Restoring Honor Rally. 

We took 2 buses with 112 people to the Rally and this video closely mirrors the exact path we took.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Glenn Beck’s - The Blaze

Check out Glenn’s new News website, The Blaze.

The Blaze

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Restoring Honor Rally 8-28-10

You can watch or re-watch the C-SPAN coverage of Glenn Beck’s Restoring Honor Rally here:

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/295231-1

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

When You're Holding a Hammer

The political song that lampoons the progressive agenda of the Obama/Pelosi/Reid administration, and encourages us to set things straight in November!

Enjoy!

Sunday, August 22, 2010