The Past Week: February 8-14, 2009 (Saturday Night Hard HR1 News; Chicago News [“Racial” Comments; Obama Ally Alexi Giannoulis]; “Roots Camp”; Bill Clinton Shills for the DCCC; New Sprouts in the Late Winter Garden)

~~By InsightAnalytical-GRL

It’s been a tough couple of weeks for all of us. I couldn’t do last week’s roundup, but have caught up with the posts from the missing week in the list at the end.

***

Saturday Night, Date Night…Last night FOX News decided to do some in-depth reporting on the “stimulus package” covering the health care issue among others.  Where were they last week?  I bet the ratings were HUGE on Saturday night as they rolled this information out…information that was all over the sane blogs the past few days…

***

Chicago Correspondent Leslie has come up with a couple of nuggets about what’s going on in Chi Town with regard to the local buzz about their pride and joy, Obama. She writes about Friday’s local news:

Of course,  now that The One has begun his descent into ratings hell, we are now hearing news “reports” about “negative and possibly threatening racial comments” being made by northwest side (of Chicago) police on the phone to an FBI agent.  But of course, there is only circumstantial evidence to substantiate these reports.

So I ask, Why. are. they. reporting. this. on. Prime.Time.News. on the local stations?

I promise this was just now reported. JUST NOW.

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/police-obama-threat.html

*shaking my head*

Also from Leslie  and on a more sinister note is this story from the Chicago Reader by Ling Ma about the state treasurer of Illinois, who has ties to Obama.  As Leslie says, it captures the “heart and soul” of Chicago politics, where “They scratch each other’s back. Oh, but they care about the little guy…(snark)!”

Broadway Bank is owned by the family of Alexi Giannoulis, Illinois state treasurer and a political ally of Barack Obama. Giannoulis was the bank officer who approved the loan to Loren Billings.

The full story is fascinating  just on the basis of the story about holography and what is described as the last holography museum in the U.S.  But what really is disturbing is how this elderly woman was cajoled into taking out a loan by “friends” at Giannoulis’  Broadway Bank and how her life may be ruined. Obama’s friends in Chicago really know how to do this sort of thing well…

***

Have you noticed the unfolding of the Obama machine in your neighborhood?  Over the last couple of weeks I’ve seen it in a few different forms.

First, I got this email for some reason:

Last week we witnessed something incredible as President Obama was sworn in. In his Inaugural Address, he talked about hope, change, and shared responsibility in his moving Inaugural Address. Now it’s time for each of us to take responsibility for turning hope into change through action.

RootsCamp is a great place to get started! RootsCamp is a progressive gathering where you’ll meet great people, debrief the 2008 election cycle, and get energized for the legislative session and what’s next for Colorado.  Best of all its FREE, thanks to the wonderful sponsors.

Join us in Denver this Saturday, January 31st for a great opportunity to learn, share, and get active.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet with other community organizers, progressive organizations and find ways to plug in and volunteer.

For more information and to RSVP, click on the following link:
http://www.progressnowaction.org/RootsCamp09

We’re excited to build on President Obama’s dream for America and the only way to make it happen is by getting involved.  Sign up for RootsCamp today.
Can’t wait to see you on the 31st!

Cheers,
Brittney Wilburn
Outreach Director
ProgressNow Colorado Education

“ROOTS CAMP”…has a certain ring to it…like “Boot Camp”???  Can’t you see all the “youth” marching around?  “EDUCATION”? As in “re-education”?

Just before the same weekend, I started getting calls from newly-elected CD-1 Rep. Harry Teague (Richardson’s chosen one) urging me to attend a “town gathering” on the Saturday, January 31st.  I didn’t get one call–I got 3 calls within the span of about a day and a half.

Then, in the Albuquerque Journal last week, I saw a big ad seeking “input” at a meeting on the subject of  “neighborhood/community stabilization.”

The vise is beginning to close in on us…

***

To top off this barrage of Barack, there was this mailer I got this week from the DCCC (Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee)!!  Did you get yours?  I only dropped my affiliation with the Democratic Party 7 months ago, but they won’t leave any stone unturned, I guess!

Most annoying thing about this:  It’s from BILL CLINTON.  “Your 2009 membership card and a special message from Bill Clinton” is emblazoned on the envelope and to the left of this is a see-through “window” showing my membership card with a picture of a smiling Barack Obama staring at me!

Inside, the letter has a big “Bill Clinton” on the masthead with this inspiring text below:

Dear Fellow Democrat,

2009 is going to be an amazing year in the life of our nation – and you helped set the stage for it.

I’m so proud of the way Hillary our herself  heart and soul into helping Barack Obama and so many Democratic candidates this year.

(SNIP)

You and I both know that Barack Obama is an exceptional leader. And, by acting now to join the DCCC, you can make sure he has the support he needs in Congress and America.

(Drivel continues)

I want you to know that I sure didn’t “help set the stage” for the crap that’s going on in D.C. !! The odd thing is that the letter is dated January and was done before the Inauguration.  Someone’s timing was off…of maybe this little gem got stuck in the local post office, which is notorious for late delivery of a lot of mail.  Or maybe the Pony Express was down a rider…

Anyway, I will send them a little love note on their stamp in lieu of a donation. In light of what has gone down with HR 1, the “stimulus package,” the DCCC deserves a kick in the ass, not more money! (They “urgently” need gifts of at least $35…in their dreams!)  I’m supposed to remember that “TOGETHER WE MADE HISTORY!”…I’m sure we’ll be getting that reminder constantly for the next 4 long years.

***

This week in the high-desert garden:  The arugula and mustard is going to seed and I harvested the last of the broccoli side shoots. I planted some lettuce and mescalin which is coming up now.  I have to start pruning the grape vines which are now showing white fuzzy buds.  The peach tree in the warm corner of of the yard is already to bursting into pink flowers.  I’m planning to take out this tree as it just is not the right spot for a peach tree!  We still have lots of cold weather ahead and refuse to cover the thing like I have in the past.  The tree on the side of the house is just starting to show swelling buds which is more on the right schedule. Even the fig has tinges of green at the buds.  The chives and parsley are growing nicely and the dill is coming back with new growth.  I have to set up the trellises so I can start training the two newer grape vines. So, I’m really getting psyched to get out there and start the new spring/summer gardening year!  A few weeks ago the change in the sun started so that my indoor basil, parsley and oregano at the window really started taking off, too!

THE PAST WEEK (Actually 2 Weeks, Since We Couldn’t Do a Roundup Last Sunday)

*By American Lassie

**By Grail Guardian

***By Kenosha Marge

See What’s In the Stimulus Bill That Will Be Signed Into Law; Listen to W.A.M. Radio This Weekend to Find Out MORE…(UPDATED 1X: Corrected link to Show)

UPDATE: HOUSE PASSES HR1; SENATE VOTES LATER TODAY ON HR 1 STIMULUS PACKAGE!! SIGN THE PETITION! (More SHOCKING Info on What’s in Bill & More on the Way [Hidden Agenda]; Listen to W.A.M. Radio This Weekend for More Info)

*Lawrence Summers Needs to Study Up on Some Women’s History–Here’s a Short Course He Should Take

Health Links: Alternatives to Mainstream Medicine re: Cancer and Other Diseases; Stem Cell Research Clinic

Hidden Health Care Provisions in the “Stimulus Package”: the Ghost of Daschle Lives On and Will Haunt Us All, Especially Seniors…This is BAD NEWS!! (Link to Bill Language Here)

AP Analyzes Obama:He’s FED UP With Protests About the Stimulus Plan…Too F*cking Bad!!

The Scanner-Politics 2/9/2009 (Future Palin “Problem”; Tracking What They’re Doing in D.C.; Useful Healthcare Info for Escaping the Grip of Mainstream Medicine [Re: Cancer and Degenerative Diseases])

**We’ve Lost a Noble Warrior, But Will Not Give UP the Fight! In Memoriam: Marlene C. Utz

More Good News for Women: Synthetic, Prescription HRT Shrinks the Brain

Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-NY: “Fighting Dem”? Or Just Blowing Smoke for the Folks Back Home? (Guess…)

***Empowered or Powerless? Hillary in the Box…

Celebrate the Exit of Tom Daschle with a Smattering of Smiles….

Happy Prairie Dog Day!! (Updated 1X–Peekie Boo Prairie Dog Sees Shadow [Pic]

The Past Week: January 25-31, 2009 (Two Ex-Presidents Acting Like Misogynistic Jerks; Coins; Grammy Awards Sound Truck Stops by for a Visit [Pics!])

The Past Week: December 28, 2008-January 3, 2009 (Court Dates; Barnicle on Bloggers; Burris-Delmarie Cobb Connection [Clinton Supporter]; Economic Collapse; The Feeding Machine)

~~By InsightAnalytical-GRL

As we regroup for the REAL onslaught of Obama et al in a couple of weeks, let’s catch up on a few items of unfinished business.

First of all, if you’ve lost track of the court cases involving Obama’s eligibility to be President, check out this section of the January 1 post  from Truth Is Gold entitled New Years Blessings:

On the political front, much history continues to be made, despite media’s refusal to report any of it. Rather than report that 54% of the American people now believe there is reason to be concerned about Barack Obama’s eligibility to occupy the Oval Office, http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=84990 or that Supreme Court of the United States has now scheduled two conferences on Philip Berg’s cases, Jan. 9th and 16th; [Mr. Berg has now entered an interpleader naming Barry Soetoro himself as a defendant, thus shifting the burden of proof to Soetoro/Obama, also naming a member of the military as a plaintiff, which satisfies the standing issue]; or that, although Congress is scheduled to count the electoral college votes which were due by December 15, 2008, [December 24th was the deadline for receipt of electoral votes at NARA], Public Law 110-430 changed the date of the electoral vote in Congress in 2009 from January 6 to January 8, [again for the first and only time in history], and that a presidential candidate has only 180 electoral votes, with 26 states not yet reporting despite the fact that the deadline for receiving votes was over two weeks ago. http://larrymwalkerjr.blogspot.com/2008/12/electoral-college-update.html , http://archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/2008/ Some of the states have not yet responded and some have refused to vote for Soetoro/Obama. In any event, he is still one hundred votes from the 270 required to get elected. [It has been touch and go from the beginning, so why should it be any different now? Don’t blame us, we tried to warn everyone that he was unelectable!] It is surely the first time in history that our country has been faced with a candidate about whom nothing is known except for the fact that he is most certainly not eligible to be president because he is not a natural born American citizen, and yet all we hear about is Barry’s fondness for wearing his hat backwards and playing with his Blackberry while complaining about his security detail as Middle East conflicts continue to escalate.

In short, we are facing a number of historical firsts, NONE of which main stream media has seen fit to report.

And what’s this about a Kenyan birth certificate?

***

Speaking of the “main stream media,” one of its stellar representatives, the delightful Mike Barnicle (the guy who told Joe Scarborough a few weeks ago that Obama wasn’t vetted by the media because we all “knew him” and that it was all about having a “feeling” about him) –THAT Mike Barnicle– paid homage to the blogosphere the other day by uttering this astute analysis:

“I’m sure, and I know, that there are some terrific bloggers, and some legitimatge bloggers. But I think by and large, a huge percentage of people who are blogging, are doing it for self-therapy.”

What this barnacle affixed to the bottom of the media garbage scow, of course, fails to mention that any such need for “self-therapy,” if it even exists, is there because of the pain caused by watching the media bend over to enable the creepiest candidate in my lifetime, Barack Obama.

***

Meanwhile, as the Blagojevich-Burris saga remains alive the folks at The Chicago Reader give Blago the win so far (Thanks to our Chicago Correspondent Leslie for this item)…

Meet Senator Burris

by Mick Dumke on December 30th 2008 – 7:48 p.m.

(SNIP)

The governor has an obvious gift for helping other politicians look decisive, thoughtful, and bright, even some of those who are currently sitting in jail. But I’m afraid I’m with those who think he won this round of politics.

“I think it was a very smart decision on the part of Rod Blagojevich—it was ingenious,” political consultant Delmarie Cobb said in an interview this afternoon. “Who better than Roland could rise above what’s going on? His integrity is unassailable…. If there’s anybody you could put in who doesn’t draw lightning, it’s him. I think Roland can ride it out.”

To be sure, Burris has been involved with his own business and political dealings, and Cobb, who was one of his top advisers during his 1998 and 2002 runs for governor, clearly remains a fan. But after talking with several other elected officials, I think she’s right: Burris may just make it into the U.S. Senate.

The above piece fails to mention that Delmarie Cobb was a Clinton supporter. But, if you click on her name  in the above excerpt, you’ll come to a a story from April 2008 entitled “Race in the Race.”   Interestingly, Cobb had no problems with Jeremiah Wright. But she really was very strong on taking issue with the tactics of the Obama campaign.  She pretty much nailed him to the wall back then. Pity that Clinton “pulled her punches and that we didn’t see Cobb on TV at the time.  According to correspondent Leslie, she was a delegate for Clinton at the convention and was “threatened” because of it, which was not unusual. (When I hear the current blabbing about how “good” it was of Obama to appoint Clinton as SOS, it makes me want to gag all the more.)

Cobb has long and strong ties to Burris… you have to wonder if Clinton is enjoying Cobb’s praise of Burris!! This is an excerpt from a long interview which is well worth reading in it’s entirety, as it touches on so many of the issues that still bother us today. (Note: Italics are mine.)

Race in the race

by Mick Dumke on April 2nd 2008 – 7:08 p.m.

Democratic consultant Delmarie Cobb is a veteran–in 1996 she was the press secretary for the Democratic National Convention, and over the years she’s managed campaigns and dispensed advice to a long list of local and national politicians, including Jesse Jackson, former Illinois gubernatorial candidates Roland Burris and Dawn Clark Netsch, and congressmen Jesse Jackson Jr. and Bobby Rush.

(SNIP)

What [the media has] decided is that [Obama] is a new black person who doesn’t make race an issue. This is someone we can accept. But this is a fight in the black community—it’s between the black people who’ve been fighting their whole lives for civil rights and the people who’ve been the beneficiaries of that fight.  (MORE)

In the full interview,  Cobb makes some very strong statements about the treatment of Hillary Clinton and other female candidates and use of the term “bitch” to describe strong women as well as other interesting comments about other aspects of the primary race.

***

OF SPECIAL NOTE: Watch for a piece on Monday by American Lassie on the Burris appointment!

***

Trot on over to Logistics Monster if you want to worry more about the economy:

America’s Economic Collapse: An Intricate Web Of Money, Power, and Political Agendas, Part I

America’s Economic Collapse: An Intricate Web of Money, Power and Political Agendas, Part 2

***

As I finish compiling this post, Chaplin’s Modern Times has just ended.  That “feeding machine” for the worker on the assembly line reminds me of how we’ve all been force-fed Obama for the last year…What AGITA!!

***

THE PAST WEEK

*By Kenosha Marge

*The Squirrel in the Driveway

Why Chris Matthews Has Nothing to Worry About…

7. The Man Who Paints Street Numbers…(Final Installment in Our “Season of the Heart” Series)

December 31st–World Healing Day: Locate a Labyrinth or Find Your Place, Wherever You Are

Revisited: Seeds Planted in 2004, a Suicide in 2008 (And a Few Other Stops Along the Obama Way)

A Party Held HOSTAGE: Michelle Obama Wasn’t Alone in Her Hostility at the Rainbow/PUSH Conference in 2004–Protests Against Jesse Jackson, Threats Against Democrats/Kerry By Ministers in an Eerie Preview of the Rev. Wright Episode

BREAKING: El Paso Man Commits Suicide, Leaves Note to Obama “Take Care of My Family”; Other NM News–VOTING Problems, Giuliani in So. NM Tonight (Saturday)

*On Being “Disagreeable”

The Past Week(s): December 14-27, Recaps and Random Thoughts (”Heart” Series; Betty Currie Returns; “Money as Debt”; FDA Caves to Pressure, Antibiotics Back IN Food Animals as of 11/30)

Find the Sexism in the Picture, Learn “The Code”

~~By InsightAnalytical-GRL

Hey, you guys want to push for the ERA?  According to BettyJean Kling over at FreeUsNow,  it’s still viable and only 3 more states are need to ratify!  (Ironically, one is Illinois, home of Barky. Sounds like a constructive thing to pursue…if nothing else, as an opportunity to retrace some history for young women who have no clue about what was gained with a lot of fighting…and what is slipping away.

Here are a couple of items to spur your interest. Thanks to  our Chicago Correspondent Leslie and frequent commentor, Northwest Rain….

First, Leslie sent along these pre-election cartoons from The Chicago Reader, the in-the-tank publication that we featured in a background piece,  “What Makes Obama Run?” from The Chicago Reader, December 1995.

Note the challenge to Obama…and the not-so-subtle sexism delivered in a cartoon which doesn’t even feature a woman!!

Message to Obama:

Message to McCain:

Gee, I wonder why they asked McCain to “not die?”

***

Then, we just had to re-post a typical exchange that was going on just after the election…(and is still ongoing in different places and forms…)

Here’s a whole series of comments from a thread from a No Quarter piece, Truth v. Fiction, Cheating v. Honor.

Northwest Rain provided IA with the setup…and the great line about “experience” :

The comment that triggers my outrage — is listed first. And in looking back
through the archives and remembering conversations — males have been saying
that Palin doesn’t have “experience” — and yet they would defend O-zero’s non
experience as “experience”. That WORD experience kept coming up. So when I read
the comment below — I exploded. Of COURSE — “experience” means Sarah Palin and
Hillary Clinton don’t have experience because they don’t have a penis.

Below copied from NQ:

Comment by mtc | 2008-11-07 01:37:53

If the Republicans really want to get back into the game, then they should take
a page from Axelrod. Find a charismatic and physically attractive candidate
(like Palin but with a better education and more experience) from a
traditionally disempowered group, groom her, screw public financing and collect
massive amounts of money from people who will be ready by 2012 or 2016 to dump
Obama. It obviously doesn’t really matter who is qualified to run. Just make sure that
the candidate has a stable temperament, fabulous rhetorical skills, and the
ability to make the public think that she is more talented. If I were they, I
would start now.
Reply to this comment

Comment by Northwest rain | 2008-11-07 02:01:47

Sexist pig – sexist pig.

Palin has a very good education — she is extremely smart — she just has a
vagina.

And she has a HELL of a lot more experience that O-fartfart

Right now I have no tolerance for sexist pigs.

You are one of the worst.
Reply to this comment

Comment by Northwest rain | 2008-11-07 02:06:12

Oh I get it — “experience” is the code word for — need penis to apply
— creatures who pee sitting down scare the hell out of pathetic liberals-or
progressives or whatever the hell you sexists pigs are calling yourselves today.
Reply to this comment

Comment by wodiej | 2008-11-07 02:29:14

I agree…I am just so sick of all this sexist shit I could SCREAM. If Palin had been a man they couldn’t have fawned over her enough.
She was extremely qualified and even more so than any of the other 3. IMO, she
was the one most qualified. I asked a friend’s boyfriend why he didn’t think
Palin was qualified to be VP, he said “I don’t know”. I know…she doesn’t have a penis.
Reply to this comment

Comment by fluffy bunny | 2008-11-07 02:27:12

yep
Reply to this comment

Comment by Newly Independent | 2008-11-07 03:39:33

If the Republicans really want to get back into the game

Republicans have won presidencies for decades. They don’t need Axelrod to fix
– er, win elections.

McCain knew what it took to beat Obama. He just wasn’t willing to stoop that
low to win.

Find a charismatic and physically attractive candidate (like Palin but with
a better education and more experience)

CODE FOR: Not a woman.

Sexist trash.

***

There ya go…all you need to know about where we, as women stand…somewhere in the landfill with all those old, rusting appliances…

I Found This Tidbit When I Wasn’t Watching the Debate….RE: Ayers/Obama Early Relationship

~~Posted by InsightAnalytical-GRL

I get nervous watching debates, so instead I roamed around some of the debate threads and somehow wound up at the Audacity of Hypocrisy site, which is now “offically” called Audacity of Deception and Hypocrisy…

Anyway, this was posted yesterday (October 7) and I think it’s an interesting nugget:

Breaking: William Ayers Mentioned Obama in his “A Kind and Just Parent” Book

Posted by admin

October 7, 2008

Ayers had to know Obama at a very close level to mention him in his book along with Muhammad Ali and Louis Farrakhan. The book came out in 1998. It takes about 2-3 years to write and publish a book, so this friendship can be placed going back to at least 1995. The evidence comes straight from William Ayers. Read the page at Google Book.

Unfortunately, page 82 can’t be copied, so here’s transcript of the page:

…erful university and its allied neighborhood association have worked to manipulate boundaries and borders to assure “stability” and separation.  Our neighbors include Muhammad Ali, former mayor Eugene Sawyer, poets Gwendolyn Brooks and Elizabeth Alexander, and writer Barack Obama. Minister Louis Farrakhan lives lives a block from our home and, we think, a unique dimension to the idea of “safe neighborhood watch”: the Fruit of Islam, his security force, has its eye on things twenty-four-hours a day. I pass Farrakhan’s mansion, offer a cheery wave to the Fruit, get a formal nod in response, and turn north two blocks across 47th Street, into the lap of urban blight.

***

Publication Details:

224 pages

A Kind and Just Parent: The Children of Juvenile Court

By William Ayers

Published by Beacon Press, 1998

ISBN 0807044032, 9780807044032

Ayers’ book was published by the Beacon Press, which “is a department of the Unitarian Universalist Association” which is based in Boston.  According to the mission statement,

Beacon Press is an independent publisher of serious non-fiction and fiction. Our books often change the way readers think about fundamental issues; they promote such values as freedom of speech and thought; diversity, religious pluralism, and anti-racism; and respect for diversity in all areas of life.

I don’t know exactly how long it takes to publish a “serious” book, but judging from several scholarly acquaintances who have published, the 2-3 year time frame that the folks at the Audacity site have proposed seems entirely reasonable to me.

Back in February of this year, Politico was among the first to delve into William Ayers history. The opening paragraphs of the story, titled “Obama Once Visited ’60’s Radicals” read:

In 1995, State Senator Alice Palmer introduced her chosen successor, Barack Obama, to a few of the district’s influential liberals at the home of two well known figures on the local left: William Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn.

While Ayers and Dohrn may be thought of in Hyde Park as local activists, they’re better known nationally as two of the most notorious — and unrepentant — figures from the violent fringe of the 1960s anti-war movement.

Now, as Obama runs for president, what two guests recall as an unremarkable gathering on the road to a minor elected office stands as a symbol of how swiftly he has risen from a man in the Hyde Park left to one closing in fast on the Democratic nomination for president.

“I can remember being one of a small group of people who came to Bill Ayers’ house to learn that Alice Palmer was stepping down from the senate and running for Congress,” said Dr. Quentin Young, a prominent Chicago physician and advocate for single-payer health care, of the informal gathering at the home of Ayers and his wife, Dohrn. “[Palmer] identified [Obama] as her successor.”

Obama and Palmer “were both there,” he said.

The publication date of the book–1998–with a mention of Obama seems to reinforce the early date of their first meeting, reported as 1995.

For more insight into what was going on with Barack Obama in 1995, see my earlier post “What Makes Obama Run?” from The Chicago Reader, December 1995.

The Past Week: Recaps and Random Thoughts, August 31-September 6 (A REAL Political Pregnancy Scandal; Free Don Siegelman; Don’t Show Off, Obama!, Canadian Election, GREEN CHILE!)

Wow, what a week! The Palin selection and the outrageous response from the media and Obama sycophants took up most of our attention…Here are some other things which caught my eye.

***

I got an email early in the week from “Free Don Siegelman” which is sponsored by Friends of Don Siegelman. In case you don’t remember, Siegelman was targeted in the infamous “fired attorneys scandal” engineered by then Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Karl Rove.  Siegelman, then governor of Alabama, was targeted for 5 years and then imprisoned for 9 months on a conviction of bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud in a case that raised serious questions about the politicization of the the Justice Department.  Now out of prison and on appeal, Siegelman is trying to raise money for his legal defense fund. I’ll be writing more about this next week. In the meantime, check out his site and find out how Karl Rove has blown off a subpoena and could get away scott free if the full House doesn’t vote on the contempt citation passed by the House Judiciary Committee before this Congressional session is over.  And guess who might let him get away?  The Democratic leadership…Siegelman was at the Democratic Convention, trying to rally House members for a vote this fall and politely NAILED the leadership.

***

With all the crap in the media and the stuff coming from the Obamacrats about Sarah Palin, you might have missed this tidbit:

Palin’s hubby and son not Republicans

Democrats may be blasting Sarah Palin as a doctrinaire conservative, and Republicans may be embracing her for the same reason, but her husband and oldest son are independents.

Or, more precisely, their party affiliation is listed as “undeclared” on voter registration records retrieved from the Alaska Division of Elections.

Todd Palin, husband of the Alaska governor, hasn’t been affiliated with a party since he first registered to vote while he was in his early 20s, in 1989 — the year after he married Sarah Palin. And Track Palin, their 19-year-old son, registered as undeclared when he became eligible to vote last year.

***

Not sure when the media and the Obama crew will move off Sarah Palin’s pregnant daughter onto the next “scandal,” but in the meantime, here’s something they can sink their teeth into:

French minister’s pregnancy scandal

AFP Video – Friday, September 5, 2008 at 9:01 EDT

High profile justice minister Rachida Dati confirmed she is expecting but refused to reveal the name of the father.  Video report here.

The 42-year old, Muslim-born minister, who is single, hasn’t named the father, but the rumor is that he is the former prime minister of Spain, Jose Aznar.  Now, THERE’s a scandal!

***

I saw this great video called “Don’t Show Off Before the Fight” which may be a perfect visual for how the arrogant Obama might overplay his hand.  Enjoy!

***

It looks like Canada might be having its own election only a couple of weeks before our own. The Toronto Star has reported that the election may be called for October 14.

***

In local news:

The Toad Rescue resumed this week after a very heavy night of rain.  First, I rescued a baby toad, and the next day a big, fat one, swimming wildly in the water bowl. I was really surprised to seem them…most are underground…didn’t hear any chorus of mating toads this time.  This week I’ve seen the latest addition to the squirrel colony on the other side of the wall. An adorable baby…who knows how many there are!

In the garden, the peppers, tomatoes, and lima beans are going nuts.  The pimiento peppers are getting huge, but the eggplant are slowing down a bit. I should be planting my fall crops, but with so much still producing, I hate to pull everything up!

Tomorrow I pick up 25 lbs. of fresh roasted, organic green chile, so it will be a long day in the kitchen as I clean and seed them and then pack them away in the freezer!

LAST WEEK’S POSTS

*Posted by kenosha Marge

*From Family Fun to Family Feud: Obama Crashes the Dinner Party…

If You Don’t Take Care of Women in Your Party (and Don’t Respect Those in the Other Party), How Can You Be Trusted with Issues Affecting Women–Or Anything Else, For That Matter? (It’s the Loss of Credibility, Stupid!)

OK, So Let’s Talk Religion…Palin and God (Crossposted from Texas Hill Country)

A Short Comment about Sarah Palin’s Speech…Anyone Who Can Erase Guiliani from Memory Must be Good…

“What Makes Obama Run?” from The Chicago Reader, December 1995

The Direction of This Blog in the Wake of the Democratic Party’s Fiasco

What’s Wrong with This Story?–WSJ: Obama Says Palin’s Family is “Off Limits”

Help the Animals in New Orleans and Mississippi ….Info Here (UPDATE 1X–”Hurricane Safe” Mail Address for Donations)

My Interview with The Pakistani Spectator…

THE PAST WEEK: Recaps & Rambling Thoughts–August 24-30 (Steny Hoyer Parties on Behalf of CHANGE; The ORANGE Site Spreads Unfounded Rumors re: A Palin Pregnancy; Obama & The New Black Panther Party; My Interview with The Pakistani Spectator; “Holy Smoke”; Animator vs. Animation)