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Politics : GOPwinger Lies/Distortions/Omissions/Perversions of Truth -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (165590)	4/15/2010 10:42:51 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	1 Recommendation Respond to of 173976

What a bunch of morons Jobs On Aisle Three Posted 06:54 PM ET Stimulus: A group of ministers wants a big-box retailer to create jobs in a desolate area of President Obama's hometown. In a largely jobless recovery, why are the labor unions and political bosses fighting the clergy? Unemployment in the Chicago area was 11.3% in February. Joblessness on Chicago's South Side was and is probably much higher, according to Omar McRoberts, a University of Chicago sociology professor who studies urban poverty. So you'd think that if there was a chance to bring hundreds of jobs to an area that badly needs them, there would be little resistance. And you'd think that job creation not far from the president's old stomping grounds would be a high priority for both the city and the administration. It is a high priority for the Rev. Larry Roberts Sr., a former unionized beverage truck driver who's leading a group of black ministers who favor building two Wal-Mart stores in the area. They've waged a six-year battle against a nanny state that seems more interested in power than prosperity. At one location, with a Wal-Mart Supercenter as its anchor, Roberts hopes to see the site of an abandoned steel plant transformed into a 230-acre retail development that would include about 800 new homes, a hotel and a new community recreation center. The store alone would employ 400 workers. There are few mom-and-pop stores in this blighted area. Yet for the past six years, Wal-Mart and its allies have fought opponents who charge that such "big box" stores exploit workers, depress wages and drive out community businesses. They want to force Wal-Mart to agree to pay what liberal activists call a "living wage," forgetting that in such depressed areas zero is not a living wage. The average wage for nonmanagers at Chicago's single existing Wal-Mart is $11.30 an hour. When that store opened, nearly 16,000 people — 98% of them from the neighborhood — applied for its 450 jobs. On the eve of a scheduled Thursday Planning Commission vote, Chicago Alderman Freddrenna Lyle introduced a living-wage ordinance that would require stores that employ more than 50 workers and benefit directly or indirectly from city subsidies to pay its workers what the city mandates. Even if the commission approves, the project must still run the gantlet of the City Council zoning committee and the full council. "The idea that (these ministers) are going to go after the alderman ... that's almost laughable," says Delmarie Cobb, a veteran political consultant and spokeswoman for the ironically named Good Jobs Chicago, a coalition of unions and activists opposed to the new Wal-Marts. "I can tell you that in 20 years, I haven't seen these ministers get anyone elected." It is ironic that Wal-Mart critics, who complain that its employees live paycheck to paycheck, forget that many of its customers also live paycheck to paycheck, and seek quality merchandise at decent prices. How can they oppose "low" wages for Wal-Mart employees while in effect supporting higher prices for Wal-Mart customers? It's also ironic that as the administration has wasted hundreds of billions of dollars on a failed stimulus program, Wal-Mart's effort to do a little stimulus of its own is being rebuffed not far from where President Obama cut his political teeth. Wal-Mart gives people what they want at a price they can afford. It believes a fair wage is one agreed upon between employee and employer. It is efficient, innovative, successful and nonunion — and is opposed for all these reasons. It's the poster child for roll-up-your-sleeves capitalism. Founded 50 years ago as a single five-and-dime store in a small Arkansas town, its success story mirrors America's. Blocking this project could mirror America's decline.

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (165590)	4/15/2010 10:43:29 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	1 Recommendation Respond to of 173976

L.A.'s Big Freeze Posted 06:54 PM ET Redistribution: Is the Los Angeles city council hellbent on sticking it to the little guy yet again, this time by cutting the housing stock? It couldn't come up with a better blueprint for that than its new scheme to freeze rents. Wednesday, Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon introduced a motion to freeze rents, solely, he claims, because he cares about "fairness." According to him, "a one-year hold on increases in rent (will) help our working families, and give the council time to consider longer-term fixes to ensure fairness in our rent control ordinance." As if they needed a year to get a clue. Alarcon's plan, which sounds wonderful at first hearing, will in fact stiff ordinary people as landlords lose their incentive to stay in the housing business. And freezing rents will do just that. Landlords will lose revenue as their costs continue to rise. The basic market reality is each unit rented represents a contract between a willing buyer and a willing seller who agree on price. When the city council interferes, based on the idea that landlords only raise costs out of malice, the result is a less willing seller. From there, it just gets worse. Units not subject to the law will go up in price to make up for those rented below market rates. Investment in apartments will fall. Not only will it mean it's harder for a tenant to get a sink repaired, but capital improvements on buildings will decline. America's second city will look shabby. The longer the freeze stays, the worse it gets. History shows that "temporary" freezes are never temporary. L.A. will eventually achieve the Beirut-like effect of the South Bronx during its Fort Apache days in the 1980s. That area got blown out because New York instituted "temporary" rent control measures during World War II that, somehow, never got lifted. Abandoned units became commonplace, robbers tore out their metal pipes to sell for scrap and squatters moved in. Disregard for an unworkable law also led to a rise of illegal units, as housing got hard to find. Ever wonder why places like Cairo and Rio de Janeiro are ringed with shantytowns? A big reason is rent control. As if that's not bad enough, a rent freeze will also cut city tax revenues, too. According to the Cato Institute, rent control leads to a decline in property value assessments. That, in turn, means less tax revenue for city coffers. Not a smart move for a city that's already hundreds of millions in the hole. It all shows that Alarcon's real scheme isn't to relieve working families, but to create a special interest group that will defend its privilege of paying below-market rents. Two-thirds of L.A.'s population pays rent, and 13 of the 15 city council members are Democrats. That provides a nice setup for a way to get re-elected, even if your political popularity is waning fast. The result will be less mobility and dynamism in a city that uniquely thrives on temporary deal-making. The only place for this economically foolish plan is the cutting room floor.

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (165590)	4/20/2010 10:25:08 AM
From: longnshort	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 173976

Arizona House OKs Birther Bill House votes to check candidates' citizenship Published : Monday, 19 Apr 2010 myfoxphoenix.com PHOENIX (AP) -- The Arizona House on Monday voted for a provision that would require President Barack Obama to show his birth certificate if he hopes to be on the state's ballot when he runs for re-election. The House voted 31-22 to add the provision to a separate bill. The measure still faces a formal vote. It would require U.S. presidential candidates who want to appear on the ballot in Arizona to submit documents proving they meet the constitutional requirements to be president. Phoenix Democratic Rep. Kyrsten Sinema says the bill is one of several measures that are making Arizona "the laughing stalk of the nation." Mesa Republican Rep. Cecil Ash says he has no reason to doubt Obama's citizenship but supports the measure because it could help end doubt. Statement from Rep. Sinema Republicans continue to take Arizona down the wrong track by wasting taxpayers time on frivolous legislation instead of working on important issues like health care for kids and seniors and education. Republican Rep. Judy Burges amendment to Senate Bill 1024 today would require the Arizona secretary of state to verify a presidential candidate's birth certificate before the candidate's name is allowed on a ballot in Arizona. A presidential candidate already is required to prove that he or she is a naturally born citizen before they can run for that office. This bill is nothing more than a waste of taxpayers time when the legislature should be working to fix more important issues like the fact that it eliminated KidsCare, which forfeits all federal health care dollars for kids and seniors in Arizona.

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (165590)	4/27/2010 11:04:41 AM
From: longnshort	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 173976

who's the party of hate ? Hate-filled wingnut recordings call about Geico's firing of moonbat DC Douglas. This is the "civility" crowd: Stop the Haters: FreedomWorks responds (Read WP posts from Tabitha Hale) \| (Read MT posts from Tabitha Hale) \| rssIn light of GeicoGate and the recent accusations from the media regarding the violent rhetoric of the conservative movement, I've taken the liberty of editing together the voicemails and emails we've received as a result of DC Douglas' call to contact FreedomWorks. Here's the result. WARNING: This is intense. Violent language is an understatement. I haven't censored - only edited to remove names and phone numbers. Now, just for kicks, go check out DC’s video of messages left by Tea Party members the day we posted his voicemail on BigGovernment.com. Any comparison? No. Feel free to post this. Spread it far and wide. Let the world hear the peaceful, tolerant Left in all their glory. rightwingnews.com

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (165590)	4/27/2010 12:02:59 PM
From: longnshort	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 173976

No More Beer Summits: Tea Party ‘N-Word’ Incident Didn’t Happen, And the Congressional Black Caucus Owes America an Apology Posted by Andrew Breitbart Apr 26th 2010 at 11:01 am in Featured Story, Mainstream Media, Racism, Tea Parties \| Comments (110) Rep. Andre Carson wants to change the subject. I don’t blame him. On April 13, 2010 he told AP reporter Jesse Washington, “I think we need to move toward a dialogue that explores why this kind of divisive and reprehensible language is still making it into our political debate.” The “divisive and reprehensible language” that Rep. Carson is referring to is his claim that while he left the Cannon office building on March 20 with Rep. John Lewis, they were verbally assaulted by health care protesters hurling the “N-word” at them. He said the scene was so hostile he “expected rocks to come” when he was coming out of Cannon. I wanted to see the evidence. I wanted the truth. In the course of our search we have actually uncovered further video evidence that casts serious doubt on Rep.Carson’s claims: Now this story is much more important than the accusation of fifteen racists among the thousands of protesters that day. This is now about the accusers. It’s not just that Congressmen Carson’s accusation of an extraordinary racist verbal assault by the tea party participants on March 20 doesn’t appear to have occurred, it’s that the accusers have now gone into the bunker and, having raised the incendiary subject, are doing everything they can to avoid the discussion. Why? What’s changed? When the accusation was made, the mainstream media made it the number one topic on every news show. The Democratic Party was leading the discussion. But when confronted on the baseless accusation, without even a modicum of evidence that it actually happened, other than an assertion, the Democratic Party, and its symbiotic allies the mainstream media, want to have another “beer summit.” No. The Democratic Party and the political left cannot use the race card to shut up its opponents based upon pure fabrication any longer. This failed tactic ultimately serves to mitigate accusations of real racism — which we are not saying doesn’t exist. When I offered a reward of $100,000 to be donated to the United Negro College Fund if anyone produced video and audio evidence that this occurred, I was accused of a publicity stunt (because everyone knows that the best way to get publicity in America is to accuse a civil rights icon of lying about racism). Rep. Carson himself suggested that my challenge was “a veiled attempt to justify actions that are simply unjustifiable.” Get it? He calls protesters racist and if you ask him to prove it, you’re a racist, too. Needless to say, no one has claimed the $100,000. But, I have taken my search one step further. I’ve asked some of the contributors to Big Government to also actively search for video. We have spent the last three weeks searching for any evidence that might support the allegations, without any help from the accusers. The primary accuser, Congressman Carson, who audaciously claimed the crowd screamed the “N-word fifteen times,” would not return our call. So we have gone part way to try and piece together the events of March 20. Not only is the audio devoid of any racial slur, but the scene at Cannon clearly shows the congressmen coming down the steps completely unobstructed, and with a clear path to the Capitol. And, when we juxtapose the audio accusation Rep.Carson made moments after the alleged event occurred with actual video footage of the moment Rep. Carson claims he first heard the racial slur, it is as plain as day that Congressman Carson was not isolated by a mob and facing a racist throng that could conceivably hurl rocks at him. As you can see for yourself. How many more “Duke Lacrosse” faked events should America endure? The list from Madonna Constantine at Columbia University all the way back to Al Sharpton’s unforgivably grotesque Tawana Brawley case, the media plays its role to divide this country on its most sensitive schism: race. bigjournalism.com