...Today's Twittering Tweet...

Letter of Resignation Sent By Bush to Rifle Association

Following is the letter of resignation was sent by former President George Bush to the National Rifle Association on May 3, 1995: 

Dear Mr. Washington,

I was outraged when, even in the wake of the Oklahoma City tragedy, Mr. Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of N.R.A., defended his attack on federal agents as "jack-booted thugs." To attack Secret Service agents or A.T.F. people or any government law enforcement people as "wearing Nazi bucket helmets and black storm trooper uniforms" wanting to "attack law abiding citizens" is a vicious slander on good people. 

Al Whicher, who served on my [ United States Secret Service ] detail when I was Vice President and President, was killed in Oklahoma City. He was no Nazi. He was a kind man, a loving parent, a man dedicated to serving his country -- and serve it well he did.

In 1993, I attended the wake for A.T.F. agent Steve Willis, another dedicated officer who did his duty. I can assure you that this honorable man, killed by weird cultists, was no Nazi. 

John Magaw, who used to head the U.S.S.S. and now heads A.T.F., is one of the most principled, decent men I have ever known. He would be the last to condone the kind of illegal behavior your ugly letter charges. The same is true for the F.B.I.'s able Director Louis Freeh. I appointed Mr. Freeh to the Federal Bench. His integrity and honor are beyond question.

Both John Magaw and Judge Freeh were in office when I was President. They both now serve in the current administration. They both have badges. Neither of them would ever give the government's "go ahead to harass, intimidate, even murder law abiding citizens." (Your words)

I am a gun owner and an avid hunter. Over the years I have agreed with most of N.R.A.'s objectives, particularly your educational and training efforts, and your fundamental stance in favor of owning guns. 

However, your broadside against Federal agents deeply offends my own sense of decency and honor; and it offends my concept of service to country. It indirectly slanders a wide array of government law enforcement officials, who are out there, day and night, laying their lives on the line for all of us. 

You have not repudiated Mr. LaPierre's unwarranted attack. Therefore, I resign as a Life Member of N.R.A., said resignation to be effective upon your receipt of this letter. Please remove my name from your membership list. 

Sincerely, [ signed ] George Bush

Rachel Maddow offers Republican Voters 3 Minutes of Political Sanity

Definition of Vasectomy?

[vuh-SEK-tuh-mee]
noun: a 30 minutes of less surgical procedure intended to provide a permanent method of male birth control (see contraceptive)

Original photo by Peter Rimar.

etc. etc. etc.

Tax Breaks for Job Creators?

Can you say "Kool-Aid"? Really? Who came up with this talking point? Some K Street lobbyist?

According to CelebrityNetWorth.com, on July 2, 2008, Rush Limbaugh signed an eight-year contract with Clear Channel Communications for $400 million. The conservative talk show host "broadcasts his show from a $26 million ocean front home in West Palm Beach, which has 7 bedrooms, 12 bathrooms and an elevator".

Between January and May 2009, Clear Channel Communications eliminated 2,440 positions (roughly a 12% drop from its December 2008 workforce).
Read More...

Still confused?
Here's what Seattle billionaire Nick Hanauer wrote in Bloomberg's op-eds section in November, "When businesspeople take credit for creating jobs, it is like squirrels taking credit for creating evolution. In fact, it’s the other way around." Read More...

At what point will the GOP wake up and finally retire its silly "job creator" talking point?

Every person who spends money is a job creator. Every person with money deposited in a savings account is an investor.

At the end of October 2011, one month after the start of #Occupy Wall Street Protests, the Congressional Budget Office published a detailed report on the distribution of household income between 1979 and 2007. The raw numbers are alarming. 

Can you name the first time in American history that the government cut revenue as it marched off to war? Once again, President Obama needs to stop calling his proposal to raise revenue to address the budget deficit the Buffet Rule. It needs to be called the After 9-11 Tax.

4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Howard Hollem

for the Office of War Information

Corpus Christi, Texas (August 1942)

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Tea Party, when will this country do its collective Patriotic Duty and pay for these ongoing wars? Speaking of which, how many millionaires and billionaires served in Iraq or Afghanistan? 1%?
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"I Pledge of Allegiance to Grover Norquist"?

In case you missed it, according to the latest Gallup, only 12% of Americans approve of the job U.S. Congress is doing. The 86% disapproval rating for the 112th Congress is the highest since Gallup started asking the question in 1974. Read More...

Public service is NOT about being a Republican or a Democrat. It's not about being a liberal or conservative. It's about doing the right things for the right reasons. It's about being a citizen. And believe it or not, the word Compromise is NOT one of George Carlin's original seven dirty words.

Understanding the latest political games being played out in Washington D.C. is not complicated. Power is crack. Money buys crack. Perhaps it's time for this country to take a serious look at enacting a 28th Amendment to the Constitution which overturns the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case (perhaps the worst decision in America's judicial history since Dred Scott).

"94% of elections in America are won by the candidate with the most money. Is this how we want to pick our leaders?" ~ Buddy Roemer

...contrasting imagery...

Dirty Blue Jeans in Broken Window, Changsha, PRC (December 2008)
Photo by Peter Rimar

President Obama is a "Snob"?

Is civility dead in 2012?

If someone called your mother or grandmother a "slut" or implied that your daughter or sister was a "prostitute", how would you feel?

Facebook Quote: "I drove behind a car with an Obama sticker on it, which means I'm a follower of an Obama follower, so I'm a gobless Commie, according to the real America. Right?"

"They (Republicans) want to bomb Iran, but they're afraid of Rush Limbaugh." 
~ George Will
ABC News' This Week

Campaign Humor?

Sadly, this bit of YouTube political satire sounds less crazy than the candidate's actual quotes on the campaign trail...

Worst Political Joke of the Week?
Gynecologist to patient: Ma'am, I think I see your problem. There are too many Republicans in your vagina.

Grand Obstructionist Party?

"The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president."
~ Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), in an interview with the National Journal, describing his goal in retaking the Senate.

One of the main political talking points of Republicans is that President Obama got everything he wanted his first two years in office:


"A lie told often enough becomes the truth"?

If one individual uses a specific grouping of words to express an idea at a particular time and place, and it's then cited by others (for example the Wall Street Journal), it's called a quote. If one or more individuals employ the same phraseology over and over again to support a specific political agenda, it's called a message. To put it another way, a slogan is a slogan is a slogan. It's how ideological soap is bought and sold in the political marketplace (see Echo Chamber).

Clearly, any video which includes Rachel Maddow must be pure liberal propaganda. So, what is the truth? Instead of accepting this politically partisan video at face value, this blogger went directly to the source: The U.S. Senate. Read More...

The public record is the public record. Numbers don't lie. Can you say Grand Obstructionist Party? This blogger has a theory. The partisan goal is simple: stop and/or delay every action of government in order to create a climate of economic uncertainty.


GOP Senator won’t seek re-election, cites Washington’s increasing polarization?
Read More...

Suggested Reading List:
Glass-Steagall Act
Cost of Wars

Political Quote of the Week?

"Well, I thought you'd be interested in knowing, that running for President of the United States is really one series of humiliations after another. But it's also an educational experience. I learned three things when I was running for President. First of all, I learned where John Wayne was born. That's very important. And then second, I learned the day that Elvis Presley was born. These are vital issues to our Republic. And third I learned, never forget the three things that you learn. Very important when you're running for President."
~ Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann
CPAC 2012 (February 9, 2012)

"I don't think Newt Gingrich got into this race, originally, thinking he was going to be President. I think he was doing it for personal publicity. Ron Paul is a message candidate. He's just out there to get his Libertarian message out there. I think he's quite sure that he's not going to become the President of the United States. Mitt Romney is the only one that ever had a real chance once Pawlenty dropped out and Rick Perry imploded. He's the only one with a real chance to win this thing." 
~ Ron Reagan on MSNBC Live
February 6, 2012

Karl Rove's Answering Machine?

Rick Perry: Hey Karl. This is Rick again. After our Vail meeting with the Koch Brothers back in June, this whole running for President sounded like a sure thing. Heck, waiting until after the debt ceiling crisis to announce the campaign was outstanding advice.

[PAUSE]

I'm not sure why no one is answering my calls. I've left a dozen messages with the folks over at Faux News, but they keep telling me you're out. Anyhow, it'd be great buddy if you could call me back. The wife's cooked up your favorite brisket and potato salad...

[BEEP]

Hello? Karl? You there? Hello?

[CLICK]

Astroturfing versus Occupy?
Wikipedia: The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies. Can you say corporate greed in bed with an unresponsive government?

Bilingual Sign in Burger King Parking Lot, Socorro, New Mexico (September 2009).
Burger King Deluxe Latex Mask

Bloomberg Markets Magazine
Koch Brothers Flout Law Getting Richer
With Secret Iran Sales
By Asjylyn Loder and David Evans - Oct 3, 2011
Read More...

The following comment was posted by an anonymous reader regarding Bloomberg's featured exposé on Koch Industries:

"As a Kock employee I know for a fact that if you call their compliance line to report anything that violates their code of coduct that you will end up being fired. I've seen it happen with several former employees, and they are in the process of trying to fire a person who just reported illegal activities.

So maybe you should look up the facts first. I live the horror of the Koch brothers everyday. They only believe in liberalism for themselves and their billionaire friends. The rest of us are just ants that need to be squashed."


"The culture of investment banks was conveyed to commercial banks and everyone got involved in the high-risk gambling mentality. That mentality was core to the problem that we're facing now." 
~ Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize-winning economist (September 19, 2008)

Suggested Reading Links:
Glass-Steagall Act
Astroturfing
Echo Chamber
Nation of Whiners?
Health Care Reform Fact Checker

Ron Paul Wins Iowa?

Even though the GOP's establishment is carpet bombing Iowa with millions of dollars in anti-Newt campaign ads, once again, the candidate's worst political enemy appears to be the candidate himself. Seriously, Newt's mouth is like a "human hand grenade".


Believe it or not, during 2011, at one point or another, SIX different Republicans (to include Sarah Palin) have lead in the polls in Iowa. Since "7" is a lucky number, it just stands to reason that Congressman Ron Paul will narrowly win the Iowa Caucus.

Ron Paul Campaign Update: (12/23/2011)
Despite the latest media frenzy over the candidate's questionable affiliation with a series of racially charged comments printed in newsletters bearing his name, it's still possible for Paul to win the upcoming Iowa Caucus. Ironically, the newsletter controversy itself only reinforces a conspiracy theory held by many of his most ardent supporters. Basically, the so-called mainstream media (which includes Faux News) wants to derail his candidacy and silence his Revolutionary ideas.

Honestly, this blogger has never believed that Ron Paul could, would or should be elected President. Also, despite Ron Paul being upset that his integrity is being questioned, in 2011, it's fair game for reporters to ask questions regarding the comments contained within these newsletters.
Read More...

Political Quote of the Week:
"Trying to negotiate with Speaker Boehner is like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall."
~ Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)

Election 2012 Update:
Mitt Romney wins Iowa with exactly six less votes than in 2008:

Newt Gringrich for President?

Seriously? Really? Could General Ripper's conspiracy theory linking "fluoridated water" with a Communist plot to weaken American society be true? Every time this blogger reads about the candidate's recent surge in the polls, a single rhetorical cliché best describes my thoughts regarding Newt's book selling run for the White House:

Can you say "Lipstick on a Pig"?

Despite Newt's well-documented, extremely checkered political record, a growing number of Republicans actually believe he's the best candidate to beat President Obama in 2012.

Good luck with that one!

Perhaps Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who's NOT known for her intellectual prowess or problem solving skills, put it best. On CBS' Face the Nation, Bachmann stated, "He's the 'King of K Street. For a person who's been influence peddling for over 30 years in Washington, D.C. - to think that Newt Gingrich is somehow an outsider, when he is the consummate establishment insider?"

Hopefully, between now and the Iowa Caucuses and the New Hampshire Primary, GOP voters will WAKE UP and take another look at Jon Huntsman and Buddy Roemer. Otherwise, Republican voters should be prepared for the GOP to suffer its biggest Presidential defeat in its long, proud history. In terms of Jon Huntsman, he has an extremely strong foreign policy background (which during the Cold War actually meant something with Republican voters). As far as supporting a candidate like Buddy Roemer, well, GOP voters could walk away from a 2012 defeat with dignity and some glimmer of hope for the Party's political future.

Political Quote of the Week:
"If a corporation is a person, I can't wait until they get drafted in the next war."
~ Buddy Roemer on MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Show
December 8, 2011



Photo Credit: Peter Rimar's wife in a gallery located in Beijing's 798 Art District (May 2008).
Reference Links:
Lipstick on a Pig
Dr. Strangelove

Donald Trump? Kingmaker?

Hollywood insider rumors that CBS is negotiating with Mr. Karl "527" Rove to appear with the host of Celebrity Apprentice on an upcoming season of Survivor: #Occupy Wall Street are untrue?

Question of the Week:
When did the GOP become
the Grand Obstructionists Party?

...perspective...

"Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh." ~ George Bernard Shaw

Stimulated Numbers?

Compare: This FY (fiscal year), DoD will receive approximately $126 billion for sustaining military operations in Iraq & Afghanistan. How does this dollar amount compare to added domestic spending under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009?

Contrast: It included $53.6 billion in direct financial aid for local school districts to prevent massive layoffs & cutbacks, with the flexibility to use Stimulus Funds for school modernization and repairs (State Fiscal Stabilization Fund). Basically, it was the Federal Government's 50 State BAIL OUT in order to keep PUBLIC SCHOOLS across this country OPEN for business.
READ MORE...

In 2009, while GOP candidates hammered the Obama administration on the auto industry bail out, ZIP was said regarding the school district BAIL OUT. IF you're a school teacher or auto worker, ask yourself, "does the GOP really care about protecting my job?"
READ MORE...

Economics 101
Until Americans start voting with their wallets, it'll be almost impossible to create new manufacturing jobs in a tight global marketplace.

Toyota BUILT a billion dollar Tundra assembly plant in San Antonio, Texas because market research shows a large segment of the American truck buying public actually values where a product is manufactured.

Corporations like IBM, Microsoft, GE, Apple, GM, BP & Exxon-Mobil ONLY salute one flag: PROFITS!

It's time for Americans to start making informed decisions about the products they buy. IF consumers value products "Made in the USA", corporations like Target & Wal-Mart will respond to the economic benefits of stocking more home grown products. Small changes in individual buying habits will eventually send a loud dollars & cents message to the world's multi-national corporations.

Once again, IF American consumers don't value the country of origin of a product or service, why should a corporation? Free Market? What Free Market? Read More...

Photo of Portable Toilet by Peter Rimar, Baghdad, Iraq (March 2004).
A Year Without "Made in China":
One Family's True Life Adventure in the Global Economy (Paperback)

Rick Perry's New Campaign Slogan?

"Please STOP touching me!"

Another brick in the wall?

Bricks on the Great Wall of China

March 2008

Badaling, PRC

Dragon Rising: An Inside Look at China Today (Hardcover)

#Occupy North Dakota

First Amendment to the United States Constitution



"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

“The Tea Party is very different. The Tea Party were individuals that were attempting to redress their grievances from the government that they elected. It’s not pitting one part of our country against another.”
~ House Majority Leader Eric Cantor

REALLY?

Bob, the man in the following video, attended a Tea Party Rally in Columbus, Ohio in 2010. He is 60 years old and was first diagnosed with Parkinsons 15 years ago. He has two masters degrees and a Ph.D. from Cornell. He taught at the University of Michigan and worked as a nuclear engineer:



“When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross.” ~ Sinclair Lewis



Note to Reader: Judging this blogger's political views based on this specific POST is like reading a single page in the middle of a book. For the record, I'm an Independent. I believe the two-party system no longer serves the interests of a vast majority of Americans. Indeed, in my view, a candidate's political affiliation and party should be left off an election ballot.

When your house is on FIRE, it's absurd to argue with your wife about how to rearrange the furniture?

IF the American consumer doesn't value the country of origin of a product or service, why should international corporations?
Until Americans start voting with their wallets, it'll be almost impossible to create new jobs in a tight global marketplace.

"We need conservative ideas to modernize the U.S. economy and reform American government. But what we have instead are policies that don't reform but just cut and starve government — a strategy that pays little attention to history or best practices from around the world and is based instead on a theory. It turns out that conservatives are the woolly-headed professors after all." ~ Fareed Zakaria 
Read More...

Definition of Political Hypocrisy [hi-pok-ruh-see]?

Tea Party Bus

Fargo, North Dakota

(August 20th, 2010)

A "Made in Canada" bus rolling down the highway on "Spanish Tires" so American Voters could sign it with "Made In China" markers, then departing Fargo to drink even more IMPORTED OIL definitely sent a powerful political message. A Hollywood script writer couldn't even make this stuff up.

Zippo "Made In USA" Pocket Lighter

$1,000,000 Peccadilloes Bounty?

Larry Flynt (aka Mr. Hustler) has offered a seven figure payday for anyone with sexually unsavory information involving the current GOP front runner for El Presidente. The following is a digital copy of a full-page paid advertisement which appeared in the Austin Chronicle (August 19th, 2011):

If the Koch Brothers can quietly spend over $100,000,000 marketing a repackaged brand of Libertarian soap, this blogger has no problem with Mr. Flynt offering $1,000,000 of his own money to uncover hidden dirt on the Texas Governor.

Why?

Honestly, I'm less concern with Perry's private life and more alarmed by the cozy business connections he's fostered as Governor of Texas. For this blogger, while most journalists focused on Perry's poor performance during the recent debates, considering Gary Johnson was allowed to join the GOP's Florida Beach Party, I questioned why Buddy Roemer was once again kept off stage:



Until the voters in this country demand real campaign finance reform, laws which actually limit the power of corporate money and influence, the politically-motivated pornographic paralysis being played out in Washington D.C. will continue.

After cutting taxes in 2001 and then spending $1.3 trillion for two ongoing wars, the GOP threatened to shut down the government over $3.65 billion designated for disaster relief? Playing politics with people struggling to rebuild their lives is just plain WRONG!

Observation: It appears that Karl Rove's GOP campaign strategy for the 2012 Election is to STOP the government from functioning while slowly driving the economy off yet ANOTHER financial cliff.
Read More...

Class Warfare against the Ruling Class?

On Faux News Sunday (September 18, 2011), Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) spoke with Chris Wallace about President Obama's plan to reduce the budget deficit and fund the proposed American Jobs Act.

"Class warfare Chris may make for good politics but it makes for rotten economics. We don't need a system that divides people." ~ Rep. Paul Ryan

Considering the GOP has been waging a non-stop war against the right of workers to engage in collective bargaining, for this blogger, this Wisconsin Representative's comments framing the latest tax battle as class warfare sounded a bit like Rick Santorum lecturing Senator John McCain about the benefits of water boarding.

Who is Paul Ryan?

Representative Ryan is the quintessential, professional Beltway Baby.

How much money has he earned working in the public sector? Based on the Congressional Pay Table, since being elected to Congress in 1998 (at the age of 28), he has earned $2,078,100 (base salary). This figure does not include yearly travel expenses or the random $50 special interest group luncheon.

Prior to earning his own Congressional Franking Privileges, Ryan worked for Wisconsin Sen. Bob Kasten and Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback. 

From battling paper cuts as a Congressional mail room intern, to joining the staffs of two Senators, to eventually being elected to Congress himself, Representative Ryan has spent the majority of his adult life walking the corridors of Capital Hill (as well as collecting a government paycheck). So, when this Beltway Baby gives a supply side economics tax lecture about the Millionaire Club, please forgive this blogger for laughing.

Considering he's already banked over $2,000,000 as a public servant, taken advantage of 12 years of government sponsored health care, did not serve in Afghanistan or Iraq and has already qualified for the Congressional retirement package (not including Social Security), how on earth did this Washington Insider become the so-called Poster Child for the Tea Party Movement? 

All politicians sell SOAP. In the case of Representative Ryan, he is the SOAP. He is an actual product created by and for the Washington Beltway.

It's easy for a member of the GOP to go on Faux News. It's quite another to give an extended interview with someone like Rachael Maddox. As I've already written, there is no silver bullet for fixing this economy. Should the tax code be simplified? Yes. But with more than 12,000 lobbyists knocking on Congressional doors, I seriously doubt any reform package (which tackles tax loopholes and exemptions) will survive the Tsunami of special interest money.

Class Warfare? Please. The Koch Brothers have already spent more than $100,000,000 selling their Libertarian brand of corporate soap. Power is crack. Money buys crack. Tax reform without serious political reform still leaves a majority of Americans sitting on the sidelines. Confused? What political reforms? Read More...

REPOST: Can you name the first time in American history that the government cut taxes and decreased revenue as it marched off to war?

How many millionaires and billionaires served in Afghanistan or Iraq? How many of these same folks made money off these wars? Anyhow, the term Job Creators has a nicer ring to it than Campaign Contributors.



IF Ryan wants to talk about Class Warfare, bringing back compulsory military service (with a public service option for conscientious objectors) would be a great place to start the conversation.

During this latest debt ceiling debate, President Obama made a serious linguistic blunder. Instead of calling the expiration of Bush-era tax cuts - for the wealthiest Americans - the Buffett Rule, he should have named it the Two War Rule. In 2003, the Bush Administration projected the cost of military operations for Iraq between $50 billion to $60 billion dollars. Where was Ryan when the Congressional Budget Office was crunching those numbers for funding Dick's Halliburton War? Ryan voted for both wars and the Bush-era Tax cuts. 10 years & $1.3 trillion dollars later, this Congressman (now supported by the Tea Party) still refuses to pay the bills for Afghanistan & Iraq. Read Here & Here...

Sadly, even if the President had chosen a different package of words to sell his latest proposal, at the end of the day, Congressman Ryan would still have called it Class Warfare. And you know something, maybe he's right. Being born and raised inside the Washington Beltway gives a person a special interest perspective of this world.  

Photos by Peter Rimar
Total Lobbying: What Lobbyists Want (and How They Try to Get It) 
(See all Political Lobbying Books)