Snow, Blizzard, Winds and Ice - Mother Nature Shuts Up Politicians

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It started snowing about 2 pm yesterday, Friday, and has not stopped snowing since. So far we have about 20 inches of new snow, some areas have over 30 inches,and it is supposed to snow for 6-7 more hours.



Incredibly the politicians of Washington, DC went silent and have not been heard from since the snows came. I think it is Mother Earth's way of protecting us from a severe political overdose.



Now there are a few unusual things about this monster storm as the media likes to hype it. First here at Coltons Point 60 miles down the Potomac River from our nation's capitol we have had a blizzard and flood warning in effect since the storm began.

That means we are supposed to be overrun by river water while suffering blinding snow, we call it white out conditions, with wind gusts up to 75 miles per hour.



Instead it rained all night meaning we got a lot more precipitation than the snow areas up north. You see every inch of rain equals 10 inches of snow and we had well over an inch of rain all night, probably two inches.

However, this morning it did start snowing and by 2 pm this afternoon we had over 12-16 inches of fresh snow on top of the 1-2 inches of rain which was on top of the remainer of the 12 inches of snow last weekend and the 24 inches of snow about 30 days ago.



So here in our little Southern Maryland outpost we have had about 50-60 inches of snow this winter, the most in history, and the magnolia trees are getting mad as hell.



I grew up in Iowa and Nebraska so this is more like a typical winter for me but these St. Mary's County natives long ago got spoiled and expect tropical winters.

Send Al Gore a message, where the heck is the global warming that has filled your bank accounts.



More than 300,000 people around here have no power and the Super Bowl is a little over 24 hours away. You can bet there will be power by then since Super Bowl commericals are the best thing on television.

I have a great many readers in Florida. Bet you are happy you fled the Northeast for the orange groves. There is also a strong contingent from New Orleans where Super Bowl fever has hit an insane pitch.



All the hotels in New Orleans are booked the nght of the Super Bowl even though the Super Bowl is in Miami about 500 miles away. Those cajuns are throwing the biggest party other than Marti Gras to celebrate the first team appearance in the Super Bowl and no matter who wins they will probably be happy.



You see, it is the first trip for the Saints but if Indianapolis wins the star of the Colts, Peyton Manning, grew up in New Orleans and his father has been with the Saints for 39 years as a player and executive.



For those of you outside the US and there are readers from over 100 countries don't believe all you hear about the storm in the media. We are quite well prepared for storms like this, even for the power outages. Many of us grew up with them.

It will make for good headlines but it will not disrupt much of our way of life because we were all going to be watching the Super Bowl anyway tomorrow.



And for those of you who are conspiracy seekers this could be a good one. The threat of a paralyzing storm emptied all the stores in the entire northeastern United States, where 55 million people live, of food, supplies and survival gear not to mention snow shovels, generators, water, etc.



I saw people so panicked they were buying shopping carts full of stuff. I mean how much food and toilet paper can you go through in a weekend? So wouldn't that threat of a huge storm help the Obama economic recovery with the burst of consumer spending in the biggest markets in America after a bad week on the stock market? What do you think Glenn Beck?

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Wake Up Washington! Are Obama & Congress Listening to the People?

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It has now been a full year since the Democrats extended their control over all of Washington. People seem to have forgotten that Nancy Pelosi has been in control of the House for three years now. We have now had four elections in this era of change, Obama, New Jersey, Virginia and Massachusetts and finally those folks in our capitol figured out people want results, not hyperbole.



Not only that but aside from Obama, who promised change but had no idea what to give us, the last three elections have shown a return to American values, not Republican and not Democrat. Over and over the people have clearly said give us a responsible president and congress who understand that deficit spending and increasing our national debt so all people benefit is the agenda.

No it is not just about jobs, although they are tied in to responsible fiscal government, it is also about reducing the debt and not increasing the deficit. It is about helping all Americans, not just Democrats, or Republicans, or liberals, or conservatives, or unions, or management. Most Americans expect the Constitution and our president and congress to work for the good of all Americans.

How did the Washington gang respond over the past year? Well, in the words of Wanda Sykes, as if all of Washington, DC was on medicinal marijuana. It seemed as if all of the politicians were on a different planet, in the Twilight Zone, dead drunk or stoned.



First Obama supported and then completed the implementation of the bank bailout bill which cost $700 billion. The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bailouts were another $100 billion. The AIG insurance bailout took another $180 billion. The auto industry bailout was $100 billion. The stimulus bill was another $789 billion but CBO said it could cost $3.27 trillion over ten years.

The president sought a cap and trade bill that would raise energy costs and taxes by billions of dollars. A secret analysis of the Obama bill prepared by the U.S. Department of Treasury says the total in new taxes would be between $100 billion to $200 billion a year. At the upper end of the administration's estimate, the cost per American household would be an extra $1,761 a year.



Stop it!

A health care reform bill was slammed together over the entire year with a price tag of $1.1 trillion and did not even include the cost of about a dozen new programs required in the legislation. Millions of dollars in new taxes and fees that would be passed on to the taxpayers would be spent every year though the benefits would not start until 2013. What kind of nonsense is that?

Stop it!

Obama also wants Climate Change at a cost of $46.7 billion, Education spending increased $81.1 trillion, and after a year in office proposed a new budget for 2011 of $3.8 trillion with a deficit of over $1.6 trillion.

Hasn't anyone been listening?



I mean Obama promised to save unions over $60 billion in taxes on luxury health benefits in his health care program. Add this to the billions of dollars the auto unions preserved in the bankruptcy of GMC and Chrysler and the unions have benefited by billions of dollars already, and over $100 billion in health care gets approved.

Yet what about jobs? The only jobs only legislation proposed, none has been approved except the supposed impact of everything else on jobs, has a price tag of just $90 billion. He proposed more money be spent saving unions than he wants to spend on all the small businesses in America who generate the jobs so desperately needed in America.

We spent trillions of dollars to save the banks so money would be available to small business. Trillions more were spent by the Federal Reserve making cheap money available to banks. Yet no money is available for credit to small business to generate the jobs.

Only a fraction of expenditures are targeted for small business from all the government deficit spending. Is anyone in our nation's capitol listening to the people? Words in Washington no longer have meaning and promises seem meant to be broken. All the while the Independent movement who expects to be heard gets angrier.

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Today the News Dominated the People, Not the People Dominated the News

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Today I watched in awe as the news dominated the world, not people dominated the news. In a way it was refreshing but it was also a stark reminder that mankind remains vulnerable to allowing their ego to become the center of the universe, especially in the world of politics, while missing much of what is important in the world.



For example, take today's stories that were not expected. After a month of the Obama administration claiming the economy and jobs situation had turned the corner toward recovery such soothsayers of good tidings were dealt a series of crushing reminders that we are not in control of our own destiny. It all started last week when Obama turned on the business sector and blasted companies for executive bonuses and taking advantage of the government.



Today came an unemployment report on job losses far worse than anticipated. Then came the next in a series of recalls from Toyota sending shocks waves through the domestic auto market and international money markets. Just last month Toyota became the number one auto seller in the world. No one is talking about it but most Toyotas sold in America are made in America so if the Japanese giant loses huge market share which is likely and probable, it will most certainly shut down the US operations first further accelerating the economic disaster for America.



The reaction to Obama's new budget this week finally surfaced, and it was a resounding dud with the record spending increases and ominous increase in our national debt. His budget says our budget deficit will reach a record $1.565 trillion this year, equal to 10.6% of the entire GDP, Gross Domestic Product, and the highest since World War II. Obama's long delayed concern for American jobs and our economy are doing little to reassure people the administration has a clue in managing the economy. The young president has stumbled through bank bailouts, insurance and auto bailouts, housing and mortgage bailouts, a non-stimulus and those incredible executive bonuses.



AIG, one of Obama's least discussed bailouts and actions, announced they were paying out another $100 million in bonuses to people who drove the company to the brink of bankruptcy, an action approved by the Obama management team. While Congress and the president twiddle their thumbs Wall Street, unions, auto companies and who knows who else pick apart the scraps left of America.



Finally came the action by Congress today to raise the national debt ceiling by $1.9 trillion to over $14 trillion, the highest in history, an emergency action to accommodate Obama's spending frenzy. It is the first time the national debt will equal the entire annual GDP of America and Obama says it will climb to $26 trillion over the next ten years.



As the world absorbed this rash of unexpected developments today the stock market wiped out all the gains over the past month dropping nearly 300 points and barely closing above 10,000 mark. Tomorrow the unemployment rate is likely to increase, not decrease as Obama projected, so the economic adjustments may be far from over.



Tomorrow begins the Tea Party national convention in Nashville, with Sarah Palin headlining the speakers this weekend, and I predict the horrible response of the media and both political parties to this independent movement will make it a far stronger force as it emerges from the convention. Right now it is a loose coalition but it could easily become a national force and stands as the greatest threat to back room politics and old time politicians, including our Ivy League president, in our nation's history.



For a year the media ignored the people's populist revolt and ever since the victories over the establishment in Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts the past few weeks the political parties, Democrats and Republicans, and President Obama have tried to claim ownership of this independent movement. How stupid? The Tea Party movement is the only thing keeping our nation from being controlled by crooks and con artists disguised as politicians and media.

Today an earthquake of 6.0 magnitude hit a few miles off the coast of Northern California following another a couple of weeks ago of 6.5 magnitude. So far they have not reached the California fault lines but they are powerful enough that it could be an indication of imminent danger. For comparison the Haiti quake was 7.0 magnitude.



If you are into natural disaster monitoring consider this. Between January 17, 2010 and today there have been 1,719 earthquakes in the Yellowstone National Park region of Wyoming ranging up to a 3.8 force. That is the second largest earthquake swarm ever recorded at Yellowstone and continues today. Underground at Yellowstone lies one of the largest magma pools of lava in the world measuring as much as a staggering 50-90 miles wide. Scientifically it is called a supervolcano and about 2.1 million years ago the area blew up and caused 2,500 times as much volcanic ash as the Mt. St. Helens eruption in 1980.



Other strange news today included the missionaries in Haiti who went to court expecting to be released and wound up being formally charged with kidnapping and conspiracy to steal children from Haiti. The guru who led a sweat lodge ceremony about a year ago in Sedona, Arizona that killed 3 and sent 18 more people to the hospital was charged with manslaughter. I have participated with Native Americans in many sweat lodge ceremonies, a spiritual ritual of the original Americans, and what he did was an insult to the culture and spirituality of Indian cultures.



The list goes on and on but that is enough for now. You get the impression that higher forces took control of events for the day to give us a break from the non-stop political nonsense we face and also to give us a warning that we are so preoccupied with what we want that we are losing sight of what really counts. Maybe we should be paying more attention to Mother Earth and Father Creator and less to our own needs and desires? If you need more read my last article on the Seven Cardinal Virtues and Seven Deadly Sins.

Seven Cardinal Virtues, Seven Deadly Sins -The Survival Guide for Politics in America

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Anyone exposed to the media and politicians in America has a real good idea that something is terribly wrong. Partisan bickering seems to dominate the media stories as if the reality we face isn't bad enough. Obama blames Bush for everything wrong. Then he blames Republicans for doing nothing when the Democrats control everything and don't even need the Republicans.

The Democrats blame the Republicans for being obstructionists while the Republicans blame the Democrats for not including them in back room deals. All the while the media grovel for stories that incite the hatred and drama so they can beat each other in the ratings. Of course Obama blames Congress for not doing enough while Congress blames the White House for never taking a stand.



What we have is a classic stalemate in chess terms. What happens in a stalemate? No one wins. That leaves it up to the people to sort through the barrage of claims and counter claims, through the greed and corruption, through the lies and half truths in order to make some sense of where we stand and where we are going. It also means the politicians in Washington, the executives on Wall Street, the bosses in the union headquarters and the media in their ivory towers are all lost in the storm.

What does a captain of a ship do when facing a storm? Preparation and patience, combined with faith, strength and hope will always help you make it through the storm and tomorrow will always be there to reward your courage, strength and faith. In times like these when the truth is elusive and our leaders are paralyzed, when ethics and morality seem gone from governing, and when self-preservation dominates the common good it helps to remember the old ways.



In the ancient teachings of the Catholic Church through the works of theologians St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas and dating all the way back to the ancient Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, long before the time of Jesus, good and evil was defined by the Seven Cardinal Virtues and the Seven Deadly Sins.



It would do us well in this time of a crisis of confidence and moral corruption to remember the Seven Cardinal Virtues and Seven Deadly Sins whether you are Catholic or not as they were an inspiration to the Christian founders of our great nation. It also would not hurt to see if you are living the virtues and rejecting the sins and apply the same standards to our candidates for public office.

The Cardinal Virtues



Four virtues play a pivotal role and accordingly are called "cardinal"; all the others are grouped around them. They are: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. "If anyone loves righteousness, [Wisdom's] labors are virtues; for she teaches temperance and prudence, justice, and courage." These virtues are praised under other names in many passages of Scripture.

Prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it; "the prudent man looks where he is going. Keep sane and sober for your prayers." Prudence is "right reason in action," writes St. Thomas Aquinas, following Aristotle. It is not to be confused with timidity or fear, nor with duplicity or dissimulation. It is called auriga virtutum (the charioteer of the virtues); it guides the other virtues by setting rule and measure. It is prudence that immediately guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment. With the help of this virtue we apply moral principles to particular cases without error and overcome doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.

Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven."

Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions. It disposes one even to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just cause. "The Lord is my strength and my song. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Temperance is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will's mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable. The temperate person directs the sensitive appetites toward what is good and maintains a healthy discretion: "Do not follow your inclination and strength, walking according to the desires of your heart." Temperance is often praised in the Old Testament: "Do not follow your base desires, but restrain your appetites." In the New Testament it is called "moderation" or "sobriety." We ought "to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world."



The Theological Virtues

The human virtues are rooted in the theological virtues, which adapt man's faculties for participation in the divine nature: for the theological virtues relate directly to God. They dispose Christians to live in a relationship with the Holy Trinity. They have the One and Triune God for their origin, motive, and object.

The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being. There are three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity.

Faith

Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself. By faith "man freely commits his entire self to God." For this reason the believer seeks to know and do God's will. "The righteous shall live by faith." Living faith "work[s] through charity."
The gift of faith remains in one who has not sinned against it. But "faith apart from works is dead": when it is deprived of hope and love, faith does not fully unite the believer to Christ and does not make him a living member of his Body.

The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live on it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it: "All however must be prepared to confess Christ before men and to follow him along the way of the Cross, amidst the persecutions which the Church never lacks." Service of and witness to the faith are necessary for salvation: "So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven."

Hope

Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. The Holy Spirit, he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life."

The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men's activities and purifies them so as to order them to the Kingdom of heaven; it keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during times of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude. Buoyed up by hope, he is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity.

Christian hope takes up and fulfills the hope of the chosen people which has its origin and model in the hope of Abraham, who was blessed abundantly by the promises of God fulfilled in Isaac, and who was purified by the test of the sacrifice. "Hoping against hope, he believed, and thus became the father of many nations."

Christian hope unfolds from the beginning of Jesus' preaching in the proclamation of the beatitudes. The beatitudes raise our hope toward heaven as the new Promised Land; they trace the path that leads through the trials that await the disciples of Jesus. But through the merits of Jesus Christ and of his Passion, God keeps us in the "hope that does not disappoint." Hope is the "sure and steadfast anchor of the soul . . . that enters . . . where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf." Hope is also a weapon that protects us in the struggle of salvation: "Let us . . . put on the breastplate of faith and charity, and for a helmet the hope of salvation." It affords us joy even under trial: "Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation." Hope is expressed and nourished in prayer, especially in the Our Father, the summary of everything that hope leads us to desire.

We can therefore hope in the glory of heaven promised by God to those who love him and do his will. In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere "to the end" and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God's eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ. In hope, the Church prays for "all men to be saved." She longs to be united with Christ, her Bridegroom, in the glory of heaven:

Hope, O my soul, hope. You know neither the day nor the hour. Watch carefully, for everything passes quickly, even though your impatience makes doubtful what is certain, and turns a very short time into a long one. Dream that the more you struggle, the more you prove the love that you bear your God, and the more you will rejoice one day with your Beloved, in a happiness and rapture that can never end.

Charity

Charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God.

Jesus makes charity the new commandment. By loving his own "to the end," he makes manifest the Father's love which he receives. By loving one another, the disciples imitate the love of Jesus which they themselves receive. Whence Jesus says: "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love." And again: "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."

Fruit of the Spirit and fullness of the Law, charity keeps the commandments of God and his Christ: "Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love."

Christ died out of love for us, while we were still "enemies." The Lord asks us to love as he does, even our enemies, to make ourselves the neighbor of those farthest away, and to love children and the poor as Christ himself.

The Apostle Paul has given an incomparable depiction of charity: "charity is patient and kind, charity is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Charity does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Charity bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."102

"If I . . . have not charity," says the Apostle, "I am nothing." Whatever my privilege, service, or even virtue, "if I . . . have not charity, I gain nothing." Charity is superior to all the virtues. It is the first of the theological virtues: "So faith, hope, charity abide, these three. But the greatest of these is charity."

The practice of all the virtues is animated and inspired by charity, which "binds everything together in perfect harmony"; it is the form of the virtues; it articulates and orders them among themselves; it is the source and the goal of their Christian practice. Charity upholds and purifies our human ability to love, and raises it to the supernatural perfection of divine love.

The practice of the moral life animated by charity gives to the Christian the spiritual freedom of the children of God. He no longer stands before God as a slave, in servile fear, or as a mercenary looking for wages, but as a son responding to the love of him who "first loved us":

If we turn away from evil out of fear of punishment, we are in the position of slaves. If we pursue the enticement of wages, . . . we resemble mercenaries. Finally if we obey for the sake of the good itself and out of love for him who commands . . . we are in the position of children.

The fruits of charity are joy, peace, and mercy; charity demands beneficence and fraternal correction; it is benevolence; it fosters reciprocity and remains disinterested and generous; it is friendship and communion: Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works. There is the goal; that is why we run: we run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest.

The Gifts and Fruits of The Holy Spirit

The moral life of Christians is sustained by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These are permanent dispositions which make man docile in following the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. They belong in their fullness to Christ, Son of David. They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the faithful docile in readily obeying divine inspirations.

Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God . . . If children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.

The fruits of the Spirit are perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory. The tradition of the Church lists twelve of them: "charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity."



The Sins

Beginning in the early 14th-century, the popularity of depicting the Seven Deadly Sins by artists of the time ingrained them in western popular consciousness. The Italian poet ante Alighieri (1265-1321 C.E.), wrote three epic poems (known collectively as the Divine Comedy) titled Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. In his book Inferno, Dante recounts the visions he has in a dream in which he enters and descends into Hell. According to Dante, he is told by his guide that a soul's location in Hell is based upon the sins that they commit when they are alive. In each 'ring' of hell, a specific punishment is doled out. As they descend lower and lower, the punishments (and consequently sins) become worse and worse until he reaches the bottom and discovers Satan. In Inferno, Dante encounters these sins in the following order (canto number): Lust (5), Gluttony (6), Avarice (7), Wrath (7-8), Heresy (10), Violence (12-17), Blasphemy (14), Fraud (18-30), and Treachery (32-34).

The Seven Deadly sins are listed today as follows:

Lust (Latin, luxuria)

Lust (fornication, perversion) —
Obsessive, unlawful depraved thought, or unnatural desire for sexual excitement, such as desiring sex with a person outside marriage or engaging in unnatural sexual appetites. Rape and sodomy are considered to be extreme lust and are said to be mortal sins. Dante's criterion was "excessive love of others," thereby detracting from the love due to God. Lust prevents clarity of thought and rational behavior.

Gluttony (Latin, gula)

Gluttony (waste, overindulgence) —
Thoughtless waste of everything, overindulgence, misplaced sensuality, uncleanliness, and maliciously depriving others. Marked by refusal to share and unreasonable consumption of more than is necessary, especially food or water. Destruction, especially for sport. Substance abuse or binge drinking. Dante explains it as "excessive love of pleasure".

Avarice (Latin, avaritia)

Greed (treachery, avarice) —
A strong desire to gain, especially in money or power. Disloyalty, deliberate betrayal, or treason, especially for personal gain or when compensated. Scavenging and hoarding of materials or objects. Theft and robbery by violence. Simony is the evolution of avarice because it fills you with the urge to make money by selling things within the confines of the church. This sin is abhorred by the Catholic Church and is seen as a sin of malice. Dante included this sin in his first novel. Simony can be viewed as betrayal. Thomas Aquinas on greed: "it is a sin against God, just as all mortal sins, in as much as man condemns things eternal for the sake of temporal things."

Sloth (Latin, acedia)

Sloth (apathy, indifference) —
Apathy, idleness, and wastefulness of time. Laziness is particularly condemned because others must work harder to make up for it. Cowardice or irresponsibility. Abandonment, especially of God. Dante wrote that sloth is the "failure to love God with all one's heart, all one's mind and all one's soul".

Wrath (Latin, ira)

Wrath (anger, hatred) —
Inappropriate (unrighteous) feelings of hatred and anger. Denial of the truth to others or self. Impatience or revenge outside of justice. Wishing to do evil or harm to others. Self-righteousness. Wrath is the root of murder and assault. Dante described wrath as "love of justice perverted to revenge and spite".

Envy (Latin, invidia)

Envy (jealousy, malice) —
Grieving spite and resentment of material objects, accomplishments, or character traits of others, or wishing others to fail or come to harm. Envy is the root of theft and self-loathing. Dante defined this as "love of one's own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs".

Pride (Latin, superbia)

Pride (vanity, narcissism) —
A desire to be more important or attractive to others, failing to give credit due to others, or excessive love of self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God). Dante's definition was "love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one's neighbor". In Jacob Bidermann's medieval miracle play, Cenodoxus, superbia is the deadliest of all the sins and leads directly to the damnation of the famed Doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus. Pride was what sparked the fall of Lucifer from Heaven. Vanity and narcissism are good examples of these sins and they often lead to the destruction of the sinner, for instance by the wanton squandering of money and time on themselves without caring about others. Pride can be seen as the misplacement of morals.

Interpretation

In the original classification, Pride was considered to be the 'deadliest' of all sins, and was the father of all sins. This relates directly to Christian philosophy and the story of Lucifer as told in the Bible. Lucifer, the highest angel in heaven, surrendered to the sin of pride and demanded that the other angels worship him. This being a violation of God's will, Lucifer and his followers were cast from heaven.

Summary

Our forefathers talked of the need for all Christians to continually work to master the Cardinal Virtues and to eliminate the Deadly Sins. It was a lifelong dedication. The results of such perseverance were the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. Would we not do well to do the same? These are the standards that created America, they are the foundation to preserve America. Live them and demand the same from our elected officials.

Thanks to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and New World Encyclopedia for guidance in this article.

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Obama Prima Ballerina Blasted by Sarah Palin - Rahm Emanuel Regrets Remark

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In a rare episode in American politics the leader of the Chicago gang in the White House got caught using the F___ word and a derogatory characterization of America's special needs children, "retarded", and was immediately called on the carpet by Sarah Palin.



Damage control by the White House was swift as they already had practice at covering up such derogatory blasphemy since President Obama had earlier stepped on his tongue when making fun of the Special Olympics.

Why is it that the liberal community remained silent on the Emanuel lip slip when special needs is a cause of concern to liberals? There is a hypocritical silence by the liberals when anyone in the Obama administration mocks liberal causes but Sarah Palin came to their rescue blasting Emanuel and calling for his firing as a leader of the American government.



Emanuel was quoted in the Wall Street Journal last week making the comment in an August meeting with some liberal activists who were threatening to run TV ads against conservative Democrats hesitant to embrace President Obama's approach to health care reform.

After the Journal story was published, Emanuel called Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Timothy Shriver to apologize. The Special Olympics announced Tuesday evening that members of the disabilities rights community will meet Wednesday afternoon with White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, after the fiery Chicagoan admitted to having referred to some liberal activists as "f---ing retarded."



The Special Olympics said in a statement: "The meeting will be a face-to-face discussion with Rahm Emanuel about the suffering and pain of people with intellectual disabilities that is perpetuated by the use of the terms 'retard' and 'retarded' as well as the damage that can be done by the casual use of the R-word – even if it is not directed toward people with intellectual disabilities."

This was a well rehearsed performance of damage control at the White House since Shriver seems to be the designated Democratic cover for big mouths. His father started the Special Olympics program and Timothy continues the family commitment. A relative of the Kennedys, his father was once vice presidential candidate for the Democrats. Oh yes, and Special Olympics CEO Shriver is a contributor to the Obama campaign.



Last March Obama got in hot water when he appeared on the Jay Leno show and when asked about the bowling alley in the White House, Obama joked to Jay that his average score of 129 "was like the Special Olympics or something."

Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver, who said Obama called him that time from Air Force One to apologize for the comment, talked about it on ABC's "Good Morning America" March 20.



"He expressed his disappointment and he apologized in a way that was very moving. He expressed that he did not intend to humiliate this population," Shriver said, adding that Obama said he would like to have some Special Olympic athletes visit the White House to bowl or play basketball.

Shriver added that despite the apology, "I think it's important to see that words hurt and words do matter. And these words that in some respect can be seem as humiliating or a put-down to people with special needs do cause pain and they do result in stereotypes."



Perhaps the incidents would be a little more sincere if a Democratic campaign contributor had not been the first and only call by the President and Chief of Staff. There are a lot of special needs children, 40 million families are affected, and there are a lot of good organizations besides the Special Olympics.

However, managing damage control for the tasteless jokes and stinging rebukes by White House staff, not to mention the periodic blunders by Vice President Biden, is about the only sign of leadership and taking responsibility by this White House. If only they applied the same leadership to running the government.

Oscar Gold - The Winners Are???

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Today the Oscar nominations were announced and there were a few surprises but not many. Since picking the winners, in other words reading the minds of the Academy voters, is an inexact science I have decided to make it even harder because I will be the first member of the entertainment media to pick the winners without seeing a single nominated movie.





The interesting nominations, the movies Avatar directed by James Cameron and The Hurt Locker directed by Kathryn Bieglow pits an ex-husband and wife, Cameron and Bieglow against each other. One was a $200 million blockbuster and the other an independent costing a few million.



Here are my picks:



Best Picture - The Hurt Locker

Best Picture nominees

Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

Best Director - Kathryn Bieglow



Best Director nominees

James Cameron: Avatar
Kathryn Bigelow: The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino: Inglourious Basterds
Lee Daniels - Precious
Jason Reitman: Up in the Air



Best Actor - Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart



Best Actor nominees

Jeff Bridges: Crazy Heart
George Clooney: Up in the Air
Colin Firth: A Single Man
Morgan Freeman: Invictus
Jeremy Renner: The Hurt Locker



Best Actress - Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side



Best Actress nomiees

Sandra Bullock: The Blind Side
Helen Mirran: The Last Station
Carey Mulligan: An Education
Gabourey Sidibe: Precious
Meryl Streep: Julie & Julia



Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actor nominees

Matt Damon: Invictus
Woody Harrelson: The Messenger
Christopher Plummer: The Last Station
Stanley Tucci: The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz: Inglourious Basterds



Best Supporting Actress - Mo’Nique - Preciuos

Best Supporting Actress nominees

Penelope Cruz: Nine
Vera Farmiga: Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal: Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick: Up in the Air
Mo’Nique: Precious



Best Original Screenplay - Inglourious Basterds

Best Adapted Screenplay - Precious

That's enough.

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White House Aides Hit Airways as Obama Budget Hits America

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You always know when the president or congress are trying to pull a fast one on the public. There are two tactics that indicate a major deception is underway. One is if they release information Friday night, after the work week, after the news deadlines, after the people are out for the evening, and when the top reporters have the night off. A second is if they send a herd of babbling politicians and spokespeople out to blanket the news media to super-pitch a new idea, policy, strategy or something to the public.



My common sense rule is if they need to send out the pitchmen then something in the deal smells. If an idea can't stand on it's own merit, if it needs a constant explanation from politicians, if the public just can't get it, then something must be wrong with it. You've heard Obama and his White House gang lament over and over how health care is too complicated for the public, they didn't understand it enough, or they were misled by misinformation from the opposing side.



In Iowa vernacular, that is defined as hogwash. For those of you not growing up in Iowa the definition of hogwash is a noun 1. refuse given to hogs; swill, 2. any worthless stuff, 3. meaningless or insincere talk, writing, etc.; nonsense; bunk.

The Obama budget is a masterpiece in worthless junk and probably doesn't even make a good doorstop. Let me cut through the crap and give you a capsule overview. The Obama budget is the death knell of our nation as we know it.



The assumptions are from the same prognosticators who told us a year ago the unemployment rate would remain below 8%. The same voodoo high priests who told us the Obama stimulus bill would actually stimulate something. The same fortune tellers who said the bank, insurance, auto and Wall Street bailouts were in the public interest.



Near as I can tell the Obama budget may or may not say the nation will be bankrupt in about 10 years. It might say record setting deficit spending, all Bush's fault mind you, will set a record about every six months and the national debt will most likely have to be updated every day. Here is what it looks like updated in real time. Copy and paste the following link for a real scare.

http://www.usdebtclock.org/#

While entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare make up much of the budget there will be no proposals to reduce the cost, eliminate fraud and reduce overhead unless we agree to spend another trillion dollars on health care. If they know we have $5 billion in legal fees for paying off attorneys and another $500 million a year in fraud why not get rid of the problems?



There will be no revenue streams for new money for the government yet we could become energy independent and make money for the government if we drilled for oil and natural gas reserves and encouraged new, more efficient ways to extract them from our land, not foreign countries.



While we have incentives for new energy systems in cars, which work but the car will cost about $60,000 -$100,000, there are no incentives for car companies to make the current internal combustion engine more efficient. We already know the current oil powered engine can be 80% more efficient, thus extending the life of available oil reserves by possibly over 100 years. That would make it long after the current deficit crisis is over and we would continue to have tax revenues from oil. If Obama gets us to convert to non-oil sources how will he make up the billions more in lost tax revenue? Under the Obama cap and trade program the private, Wall Street investors will make the money, not the government. Gored by Gore again.



Anyway, it is great to hear so many Administration non-economists and professional apologists hit the airways and be interviewed by a news media with less expertise, understanding or comprehension of the disastrous consequences of increasing deficits and national debt. White House aides Axelrod or Gibbs being interviewed by a news media White House correspondent is like asking Julia Child for help with football strategy. And anyone in their right mind even thinking of interviewing VP Joe Biden, the godfather of the credit card industry, on the fairness of Obamanomics is, well, insane. Just ask MSNBC.



Let's face it, Obama's Treasury Secretary did not even know Goldman Sachs and a bevy of tainted banks would get $60 billion from AIG when the White House bailed them out. If they can't even keep track of $60 billion how can they know about trillions? Or did they really know about the $60 billion? Come to think of it, when Congress held the hearings spanking the little butts of the big banks for stealing all that money from us, why didn't anyone ask if the president knew about the deal?

This budget cannot even be financed, the deficit side that is, when China and Russia are the largest purchasers of our debt and the Obama administration has infuriated both of them with our haphazard approach to foreign policy.

As I study this maze of governmental gobbledygook it reminds me of the annual National Enquirer report on fortune tellers and psychics telling us everything that will happen in the next year as far as the enlightened ones are concerned. Our White House and Congress seemed to be filled with soothsaying enlightened ones and I say it is time to turn out the lights!



Finally, if I were an advocate of conspiracy theories I would say Obama, the Rothschild's very own Chosen One, has finally figured out a way to make America subservient to the New World Order as bankrupting our nation would make us hostages to the international shadow world ending a 200 year quest by the Illuminati to get control of the US Treasury.

I guess this is really what we should expect when we get a new administration with all that experience. But then conspiracy theories are not real, are they?

The Miracle at Massachusetts - Scott Brown

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Politics is such an entertaining sport and all the more when the public and the real revolutionaries, those who think government should serve the people, not the politicians, join forces. This silly season we have already seen three cases where the president, congress, media, Democrats and Republicans have all blown it because they refuse to understand the people have a right to be heard.

New Jersey, Virginia and Massachusetts have all demonstrated that the experts, the pundits, the media and the politicians are clueless. I have written over and over that the Washington and Wall Street establishment have grossly under estimated the people, the anger of the people, and the will of the people to throw them out.

Cathe Chiomento, a faithful reader of the CPT and belle of Philly high society helps to keep me informed of the people's revolt against the crooks so I thank her for sending this video showing an advertisement run by Scott Brown during his greatly perplexing victory in Massachusetts, perplexing to those beltway bandits who have been robbing us blind.



The ad speaks for itself. The change America wanted is not Democrat or Republican, it is a change back to the core values that made America great. It is a call to arms of the people who are fed up with Washington, Wall Street, politicians and anyone else who no longer represent the people.



Let us hope the avalanche of dissent continues to sweep the choices of the back room politicians, fat cats, our capitol and our White House out of office so the voice of the people will be heard once again. We must save America before it is too late!!!

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Barack Obama and Roger Ailes - Great Political Peacemakers

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In a stunning turn of events Roger Ailes, the genius behind Fox News network and the Godfather of the conservative movement in America journeyed to the ABC This Week news round table Sunday, a program hosted by Barbara Walters of The View fame and keeper of the faith for liberals in America.



As you may recall, President Obama journeyed to the Lion's den just last week to meet with Republican lawmakers without Nancy Pelosi or the White House gang and his appearance caused quite a stir. We ran a story on the meeting last week.

This time it was Ailes who journeyed to the bowels of liberaldom to confront the enemies of reality, the masters of deception, the pyramids of the pariah and the fountain of negativity and nitpicking. Well, maybe that gives Barbara Wawa a bit too much credit since she seems to be shying away from awful controversy she began hosting the View with the wall of liberal defenders.



Still, she was able to draw the Big Bear Ailes from his mountaintop, she describes him as a friend, one of her millions I guess, and it was still a memorable experience. It was the Sunday after the President's State of the Union and the Ailes interview dominated the media Sunday which is just what Roger expects Fox to do. I'm sure the White House staff were disappointed that Ailes knocked the president out of the lead stories but Fox seems to make a habit of doing that.



Waiting for him at the table was The Huffington Post's Arianna Huffington, a more worthy protector of the liberal line could not be found. A few fireworks began to ignite when she interrogated Ailes but his legendary wit and brutal honesty were no match for the leftists.



She challenged him on having an extremist like Glenn Beck on Fox and Roger simply responded we are after the ratings and we are number one.



When she asked how he could possibly have someone like, ugh, Sarah Palin as a network news commentator he replied I was the only network to have the only Democratic VP candidate, Geraldine Ferraro, on TV for ten years and now I am the only network to have the only Republican VP candidate on the air. We are Fair and Balanced.



Huffington huffed a few times but got none of the adoration she gets from all the liberal shows where she normally appears and the series of exchanges finally gave us a break from all the politicians polluting the airways.

I must say when she was challenging the Fox efforts to polarize the public Ailes calmly mentioned that her very own blog has used equally inflammatory language about him, she promptly claimed it was a comment from a reader, but a fact check showed it was in a Huffington story. Chalk another one up to Roger. Perhaps that is why Fox buries the liberal media in popularity.



Now if these peacekeeping efforts by Obama meeting the Republicans and Ailes meeting the liberals are a sign of things to come then there is an outside chance civility may return to the political scene. However, it is not something I would count on as it takes more than words to mend fences.



Besides, we have a long ways to go before we have thrown out all the rascals in politics and since they have no guilt over stretching the truth to defend their horrid records then tough talk may be the only way to get them out of office where they belong.

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2010 Grammy Round up - A Wall of Sound

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Just watched the Grammy awards and saw Beyonce win six (most by a female at one show in history) and Taylor Swift win four awards (including youngest female to ever win album of the year). It was a weird night with some pretty good performances. My favorites were Lady Gaga and Elton John, Pink sailing above the crowd in a quite pleasing performance, Green Day with the Cast of a new Musical performing their song 21 Guns, and Bon Jovi from New Jersey proving that the Jersey talent continues to run deep.



Perhaps the reason album sales in America have collapsed the last decade is because so many songs are so over-produced they simply engulf the listener in a wall of sound that makes the words impossible to understand and the instrumental mix a clutter of competing sounds. Maybe the lyrics are over-powered by the music because the story line is inferior. Crisp lyrics, strong arrangements, diverse orchestration and a mix that made you appreciate each of these factors made music much more enjoyable in the past.



In 2000 there were 785 million albums sold in America. In 2009 there were just 374 million sold, a loss of over 52% in record sales during the decade. Record labels say it is because of the Internet and theft from downloading but I believe it is because the record buying public thinks so much material is terrible they won't waste their money.



Back to the Grammy awards, the worst performance was by Taylor Swift, whose album Fearless was named Best Album of the Year. Her duet with Stevie Nicks was hard to listen to as the young pop princess again proved singing live is her Achilles heel. Don't take it from me, here is what the expert critics said.



Los Angeles Times - Ann Powers

The most telling statement of the night, in fact, came from comic Stephen Colbert, who told the crowd that the Grammys were "the highest honor that the music industry can bestow, other than your song being covered by the cast of 'Glee,' " the popular TV show about a high school choir. Today's most powerful songs often reach listeners as ads -- the specialty of the Peas -- in YouTube video tributes, as with Beyonce's "Single Ladies," which won song of the year, or in other "nonmusical" contexts.



And more than ever, today's biggest stars are those who embody powerful archetypes so well that a misplaced note or two may be kindly overlooked.
That last situation applies to Taylor Swift, who continued her winning streak by taking home album of the year for "Fearless," a recording that has seemingly won every available prize in the last year. Swift, 20, is a songwriter; she thanked her record label for "letting me write every song on my album" while accepting one of her awards.

But as well-crafted as her platinum-selling tales of suburban high school life are, it's Swift's persona that really sells. This smart young woman comes across as a perky, living American Girl doll, and that appealing version of traditional young womanhood, not her music, is at the heart of her stardom.

Her singing certainly can't be credited. Appealing enough on record, it always seems to let her down live. Swift gave a strikingly bad vocal performance at Staples Center on Sunday, sounding tinny and rhythmically flat-footed as she shared the microphone with the distinctive Stevie Nicks. Swift's inability to match or support Nicks as they worked through a medley of each woman's hits stood in stark contrast to the evening's other pairings, particularly soul man Maxwell's sensitive response to Roberta Flack and Lady Gaga's bravado turn with Elton John.



The Envelope - Randy Lewis

Beyoncé and Swift's combined 10 awards honored recordings that sold in numbers last year that defied the beleaguered music industry's downward trend in recent years, saluting broad-based success at a particularly difficult time in the record business.

"For me, genres have really become something that I don't think people focus on anymore," Swift said backstage. "Country music is my love. [But] when you're making music, I think the healthiest thing to do is remove titles or stereotypes from what you're trying to do. It's not country versus rap . . . it's not anything you don't make it. It's about trying to make an album you hope is good enough to win album of the year."

MLive.com - Jessica Nunez

Taylor Swift with Stevie Nicks
Poor Stevie Nicks. She's long proved herself in the music world and delivered once again last night on a trio of Taylor Swift songs. But Swift, who won four Grammys including Album of the Year, proved once again that the stage is not her friend. Nicks' raspy voice combined with Swift's pitchy performance was almost cringe-worthy. Taylor Swift is cute and her songs are catchy, but it's just plain hard to watch her live.



Green Day

One of the better performances was by Green Day and the Cast of a new Broadway musical of their album American Idiot. Check it out. This punk band trio from California has matured and evolved into a versatile singer/songwriter group.



Susan Boyle missing in action

Snubbed by the Grammys but loved by the world is Susan Boyle of Scotland. Her debut album, I Dreamed A Dream, was beat out by Taylor Swift by 100,000 sales for best seller of 2009 but wait a minute, all is not as it seems. Taylor Swift released Fearless in November, 2008. Boyle released Dream on November 23, 2009. Swift's was on the market over a year and one month while Boyle's just five weeks and still they almost tied.

Does that seem fair? By the end of January Boyle had caught up to Swift and worldwide has sold an amazing 8 million copies, in just 9 weeks. Still she was snubbed with no Grammy nomination. What is it about this strange 48 year old from Scotland? I say Boyle is the Sarah Palin of the music industry, a fan favorite while being snubbed by the critics.



Ironically Boyle has no regrets about the Grammy snub and as a lifelong Catholic her goal this year is to appear before the Pope when he comes to Scotland this fall. Of course she will also be taking America by storm with her first world tour.

This is what Laura Ferrerro had to say about Boyle on the PopEater blog.

Scottish songstress Susan Boyle seems poised to conquer the world. The unassuming 'Britain's Got Talent' star has already sold more than 1.8 million copies of her debut album 'I Dreamed a Dream' in its first three weeks of release in the U.S. (not to mention the millions she's sold worldwide). She also set an impressive record for the best first-week sales of any woman since SoundScan started tracking in 1991. If Boyle continues to sell albums at this pace, she'll likely steal Taylor Swift's crown as top selling artist of 2009.

So what is it about this homespun 47-year-old charity worker who lives alone with her cat that has us running to our nearest record store to pick up her debut album? We at PopEater checked in with some renowned pop music critics to see what all the fuss is about.

It's Boyle's "every woman" quality that's so appealing believes Aidin Vaziri, San Francisco Chronicle's Pop Music Critic. "She's ordinary. She's like us. People can relate to her," he says. "When she got onstage to face Simon Cowell she brought a million office workers' daydreams to life. I think everyone who saw the ('Britain's Got Talent') video felt moved by it wanted to be part of the story and make sure it had a happy ending."



It's Boyle's "underdog" status combined with our obsession with reality show sagas that has us rooting for her says Gaylord Fields, Senior Editor of AOL Music. "Susan Boyle's story is a classic underdog tale -- yet one that played out in front of the entire world," said Fields. "It embodies a couple of popular reality-show trends in one: it's a music competition coupled with a makeover story, with a hint of medical program savant syndrome thrown in."



"Shows such as 'American Idol' and 'Britain's Got Talent' are as interested in a potential star's looks as much as their talent," said pop music critic Stephen Humphries. "Boyle managed to up-end all that. Dowdy and close to age 50, she seemed to have no right to be trying out for a market most interested in youth and sex appeal. But her voice trumped all that. I think the fact that Boyle isn't a particularly self-confident or precocious person only added to her underdog appeal."

Fields concurs that it is these personal attributes that make Boyle so relatable. "The juxtaposition of Boyle's one-in-a-million voice with her modest looks and her seeming simplicity and innocence add up to something unique -- and ultimately relatable," he says.

Obama Faces the Lions - The GOP - Now Must Tame Three Wild Beasts

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What am I trying to say you might ask? Let me tell you, I have not been particularly kind to the Obama administration although I do have the utmost respect for the president. On the other hand, I have been as pointed toward the White House staff under Obama and the Democratic leadership in Congress as I was with the Bush advisors and Congress.



It is now clear after listening to Obama have a question and answer session with the Republicans in Congress, a first for his presidency, that he really has his hands full. Politics, and nasty politics runs deep in our nation's capitol. A sad but true situation. It is fueled by the news media and lobbyists who take sides with their mouths and money.



Obama has been criticized for being too much of a teacher and not enough of a leader. Yet my many articles over the years have pointed out that the problem in Washington is so deep that it encompasses both political parties, both houses of congress, the news media, the political commentators, and especially the White House staff.



This was the Republican chance to show that unlike the White House staff and Democratic Leaders in Congress they were willing to listen to the people and make a sincere effort to work on a bi-partisan agenda with the president and the Democrats for the good of the nation.



About half of those asking questions did that to some degree. The rest fell back into the same old sniping and politicking that has disgusted the public and makes all politicians look bad. So when a question was asked to make political hay the president shot back to set the record straight.



There is a lot the GOP and president agree upon. Even those present had to agree. But if Obama is honest and really sees the light and need for bi-partisan work, he has really got his work cut out. He is surrounded by ideologues on the left and right, Democratic and Republican partisans, media maniacs, conservative and liberal fanatics and political jerks in the White House.



I am beginning to believe none of them really want him to succeed. Even the Democratic leadership has done everything to inflame relations between the president and Republicans. His own staff cannot help offering a daily dose of negative nitpicking about conservatives, Republicans, Sarah Palin, Fox News or who knows what else.



Obama will have to be the best teacher in history to pull off teaching this class. Bringing peace to these polarized barbarians will be like converting cannibals to vegetarians. I'm beginning to think Coltons Point, where I live should not secede from the Union but should lead a national referendum to force Washington, DC to secede and take with it all the White House staff, Democratic and Republican politicians, media, lobbyists and special interests.

If we really wanted to defeat the terrorists we would send the Democrats and Republicans in Congress and the White House staff and Washington media to the war zone and you can bet every terrorist in Afghanistan and Pakistan would be consumed by the bickering, badgering and bullsh-- spewed across the landscape. Maybe it is a good thing Obama is like a teacher although it might even be more important to be a psychiatrist, wizard and sorcerer to try and tame this crowd.

Today Obama justifiably got a little testy at some of the pointed questions and nonsensical commentary before questions were asked. His White House staff said in advance that he was going to teach the Republicans a lesson. A typically stupid move. Give him an A for trying, a B for listening, a C for his comments and an M for martyr for entering the Coliseum to face the lions nearly naked.



All of Washington has demonstrated over and over again that they intend to ignore the people and they have disenfranchised the voters in the process. Many of these old politicians will be retired this fall and that is a good thing. Many more should be. It is a real shame we can't vote on the media and White House staff because then the needed housecleaning would be thorough and complete.

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UFO Video from Dublin, Ireland

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For those of you interested and open minded there has long been a fascination with UFOs in America, ever since the ancient Indian petrogliths depicted strange creatures and space ships thousands of years ago. The Rosewell incident in the summer of 1947 heightened the interest and the USA space program has added to the mystery.



In my work with the Hopi Indians over the years numerous elders and wisdom keepers made casual reference to me of these Blue People who came many centuries ago and have helped the Hopi over the centuries. In fact there is a grave of one such person I was shown in Arizona. The wisdom of the Hopi, the truth of the spiritual leaders, and the ancient prophecies of the Hopi give far more truth to what they say than our government.



Last fall I was shooting photos of the unusual circle formation at the top of this story from my porch at Coltons Point. I then zoomed in on the contrail cutting across the circle and got the two shots showing some kind of a sphere crossing the circle. At the same time I took a photo of another contrail showing a plane and the aircraft were clearly distinguishable from spheres.

Ironically one of the greatest series of sightings in American history took part in the Washington, DC area in the 1950's, confirmed by officers at Andrews Air Force base, and spheres were reported in the sklies south of our nation's capitol. Coltons Point is south of Washington, DC.



About ten years ago I was at a base in the frontier outside of Moscow, Russia reviewing secret KGB film archives and came across many Soviet government photos of ufos. Interviews with former Soviet officials indicated the existence of ufos was accepted by the Soviet Union and encounters were well documented.



In my years in various US government offices I interviewed many people from the armed services and associated with Project Bluebook, the alleged government cover up of ufo activity. The private acknowledgement of the officials was in sharp contrast to the official denial of ufos.

This past week a video was shot in Dublin, Ireland with night vision and it showed the following.



As a reporter one must remain open to truth. Signs and symbols seem to indicate there is a great deal more truth to the statement we are not alone than many might suspect and there is reason to believe such truths may be proven in the very near future. You might want to consider the possibility.

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UFO Video from Dublin, Ireland

Al Gore Finally Gets Unlikely Ally for Global Warming Crusade - Osama Bin Laden

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After jet setting around the world for eight years in his private jet, former vice presidential candidate Al Gore finally found a sympathetic voice for his lonely cause to awaken the people to the end of the world. The world's most famous terrorist and architect of 9-11, the legendary and somewhat mythical Osama Bin Laden, joined Gore today in saying America is responsible for global warming.



Certainly Osama has done more than anyone to stop the American economy, the machine behind global warming according to Bin Laden and Gore, than any other person as his attack on New York sent the world into a decade long economic collapse. While Gore was making a hundred million dollars for himself Obama was spending a hundred million to stop America and global warming.



Other than the hundred million there is not much similarity between these odd allies. Bin Laden has been on a survival diet while Gore seems to have been on a Big Mac diet. Gore lives in million dollar mansions and flies in private jets. Bin Laden lives in caves and travels by horseback. Gore has partners on Wall Street like Goldman Sachs while Bin Laden tries to destroy Gore's partners on Wall Street like Goldman Sachs. Gore sells alarmist books while Bin Laden sends out underwear bombers.



Still there are a few similarities. While Gore warns of the end of the world Osama does his best to bring it about. Gore wants global warming to be a war while Osama already made it a war. Both used to be on the government payroll, Gore in Congress and the White House and Osama for the CIA. I suppose that makes them both eligible for Obama's health care and government pensions.



Most important both figured out a way to use the sinister action by Clinton officials at the end of his term, action that led to the housing, oil and economic crisis that nearly destroyed the world, to advance their causes. Gore rode the ushering in of a decade of greed to a personal gain of $100 million and billions more in potential income from Obama's cap and trade while Osama rode the decade of greed into undermining the world economy.



If it all sounds like a surreal movie then reality follows fiction more than we might think. Maybe the Nobel Peace prize committee in Oslo will decide that Osama has just as much potential to bring about world peace as Barack Obama, and Al Gore, two former winners of the world's strangest awards show, and give it to Osama to encourage him like they did our president.



In the meantime the newest winner of the Nobel Peace prize, President Barack Obama, will continue his massive military build up in Afghanistan with 100,000 US soldiers now committed to killing Osama Bin Laden. Somehow it would only be appropriate to give it to Bin Laden. I mean look at all Gore and Obama have done to advance the cause of peace.



It is times like this when I think we really do live in an alternate universe, like Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, where nothing is as it seems.



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