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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (30938)	6/14/2008 10:41:05 AM
From: TideGlider	Respond to of 224750

On far too many issues, Obama's poetry doesn't rhyme Syndicated Columnist Barack Obama is such a stand-up guy that he'll stand up twice — once for each side of an issue. The poetry reading on change and hope is over. Now that he has to talk about real policy, there's little rhyme in the rhythm. Take James Johnson, who was Obama's adviser on picking a vice president until his resignation Wednesday. Nothing wrong with rich businessmen. They can be smart and help solve America's problems. But Johnson's chief specialty has been in helping himself. He has apparently been a "friend of Angelo" — that is, Angelo Mozilo, the former head of the infamous mortgage monger Countrywide Financial. Like other well-connected "friends," Johnson received mega mortgages from Countrywide at rates considerably below that offered the average toiler. But that's not the worst part. Johnson was CEO of Fannie Mae, a giant corporation that buys mortgages from private lenders. Fannie mortgages enjoy a taxpayer subsidy in the form of an implied government guarantee. Thus, Fannie Mae was of enormous use to Countrywide. In 1995, Mozilo let Wall Street know that he was "working very closely" with Johnson. That's still not the worst part. The least appetizing entry on the Johnson résumé reads "Santa Claus of the executive suite." While sitting on the UnitedHealth Group board of directors, Johnson agreed to grant then-CEO William McGuire a legendary $1.4 billion in stock options. For his services, Johnson was soon made head of the compensation committee at UnitedHealth — and at four other companies, where he made sure that the top men were generously rewarded. And he didn't do badly himself. UnitedHealth, for one, gave him $175 million in stock options on top of his annual director's fee of $400,000. Bluntly put, Johnson had participated in the looting of the American health-care system. In one ugly example, UnitedHealth tried two years ago to dump St. Joseph Health Services, of Rhode Island, from its network after the Catholic nonprofit objected to the insurer's ludicrously low reimbursement levels. It was noted at the time that McGuire's most recent stock option cash-out ($124 million, modest by the standards of "Dollar Bill") was 150 percent of what St. Joseph's 2,000 employees made put together. And to think that Obama last year introduced a Senate bill to rein in executive compensation. On nuclear energy: Last December in Iowa, a young woman asked Obama, "Are you truly comfortable with the safety of nuclear energy?" He responded, "Let me tell you that I start off with the premise that nuclear energy is not optimal; so I am not a nuclear-energy proponent." Then last month in Miami, he told a largely Hispanic audience, "We'll assess the opportunities and risks of nuclear power in the hemisphere by sitting down with Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Chile." He called for a Department of Energy program to "share technology" with the countries. Barron's energy columnist Jim McTague heard dueling statements and asked Obama's spokesman for a clarification. The response was, "I think you are reading too much into the speech." O-kay. On Jerusalem: Obama told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee last week that "Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided." Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and others protested, and the campaign issued a statement the next day that Obama "did not rule out Palestinian sovereignty over parts of Jerusalem." Whatever. The ultimate disposition of Jerusalem should be up to the Israelis and Palestinians, with the United States serving coffee while they hash it out. But if Obama wants to stake a position, is it too much to ask that he hold it a week? What does Obama really believe on these issues? Beats me. Providence Journal columnist Froma Harrop's column appears regularly on editorial pages of The Times. Her e-mail address is fharrop@projo.com 2008, The Providence Journal Co. seattletimes.nwsource.com

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (30938)	6/14/2008 12:07:35 PM
From: tonto	Respond to of 224750

Kenneth, you are being masochistic again...

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (30938)	6/19/2008 12:32:28 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Respond to of 224750

Gore's Home Still Guzzling Energy Tuesday, June 17, 2008 10:48 PM In the year since Al Gore took steps to make his home more energy-efficient, the former vice president’s home energy use surged more than 10 percent, according to the Tennessee Center for Policy Research. “A man’s commitment to his beliefs is best measured by what he does behind the closed doors of his own home,” said Drew Johnson, President of the Tennessee Center for Policy Research. “Al Gore is a hypocrite and a fraud when it comes to his commitment to the environment, judging by his home energy consumption.” In the past year, Gore’s home burned through 213,210 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, enough to power 232 average American households for a month. In February 2007, "An Inconvenient Truth," a film based on a climate change speech developed by Gore, won an Academy Award for best documentary feature. The next day, the Tennessee Center for Policy Research uncovered that Gore’s Nashville home guzzled 20 times more electricity than the average American household. After the Tennessee Center for Policy Research exposed Gore’s massive home energy use, the former Vice President scurried to make his home more energy-efficient. Despite adding solar panels, installing a geothermal system, replacing existing light bulbs with more efficient models, and overhauling the home’s windows and ductwork, Gore now consumes more electricity than before the “green” overhaul. Since taking steps to make his home more environmentally-friendly last June, Gore devours an average of 17,768 kWh per month –1,638 kWh more energy per month than before the renovations – at a cost of $16,533. By comparison, the average American household consumes 11,040 kWh in an entire year, according to the Energy Information Administration. In the wake of becoming the most well-known global warming alarmist, Gore won an Oscar, a Grammy and the Nobel Peace Prize. In addition, Gore saw his personal wealth increase by an estimated $100 million thanks largely to speaking fees and investments related to global warming hysteria. “Actions speak louder than words, and Gore’s actions prove that he views climate change not as a serious problem, but as a money-making opportunity,” Johnson said. “Gore is exploiting the public’s concern about the environment to line his pockets and enhance his profile.” The Tennessee Center for Policy Research, a Nashville-based free market think tank and watchdog organization, obtained information about Gore’s home energy use through a public records request to the Nashville Electric Service.