The Howling

Another reason Democrats make me sick. They take a tragedy and try to spin it for their own political gain.

DC Mayor Blames Sequester For Navy Yard Deaths

In case you haven't heard...

The recent Colorado flood was also cause by sequestration. 

Remember as you read this it was Bill Clinton who outlawed military bases from carrying arms. 

The military? 

WTF!!!

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/11/end-clinton-era-military-base-gun-ban/

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Washington, D.C., Mayor Vincent Gray says sequestration budget cuts might have played a role in Monday's shootings at the Navy Yard.

"We're continuing this investigation," he told CNN Tuesday. "But certainly, as I look at, for example, sequestration, which is about saving money in the federal government being spent, that we somehow skimped on what would be available for projects like this, and then we put people at risk. Obviously, 12 people have paid the ultimate price for whatever—you know, whatever was done to have this man on the base."

It was perhaps inevitable that Democrats would invoke the sequester at some point. It's what they have done repeatedly since the across-the-board federal budget cuts began in March. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell has cited sequester cuts in discussing wildfires out West. House Majority Whip Steny Hoyer blamed them after the Boston Marathon bombings. The liberal media is playing along, of course. A recent National Public Radio segment said that the sequester has led to an uptick in suicides on Indian reservations.

Opponents of the sequester would have you believe that the government operates at peak efficiency—that there's no fat to trim and so any reduction in spending threatens some critical program or service. The reality, as GOP Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma has pointed out, is that there is plenty of government waste out there that's being funded by taxpayers. The other reality is that without the sequester cuts, government spending would not be trending downward. "Mr. Obama has inadvertently chained himself to fiscal restraints that could flatten federal spending for the rest of his presidency," my Wall Street Journal colleague Stephen Moore wrote recently.

The political left doesn't want to check outlays or even prioritized them because they believe that government spending per se is a social and economic good. Their problem with the sequester is not that they think it's causing wildfires and mass shootings, though they are happy to exploit such events.

The Howling

Fugitive Snowden in running for European rights prize

Why not? 

Hillary got a medal for getting 4 people killed in Benghazi.

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Fugitive US intelligence analyst Edward Snowden is in the running for a European human rights prize whose past winners include Nelson Mandela and Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Snowden, who is in hiding in Russia, is one of seven nominations made by members of the European Parliament for the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought, a move likely to upset Washington which wants to try him on espionage charges.

Snowden was nominated by the Greens in the European Parliament who said he had done an "enormous service" for human rights and European citizens by disclosing secret US Internet and telephone surveillance programs.

"Edward Snowden has risked his freedom to help us protect ours and he deserves to be honoured for shedding light on the systematic infringements of civil liberties by U.S. and European secret services," Rebecca Harms and Dany Cohn-Bendit, the leaders of the left-leaning Greens, said in a statement.

Revelations that the U.S. National Security Agency monitors vast quantities of email and telephone data of both Americans and foreigners, and a report that Washington spied on the European Union has caused outrage in European capitals.

The other nominees include Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban last year for demanding education for girls, and Russian former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a critic of President Vladimir Putin who has been convicted of money-laundering, tax evasion and fraud.

The European Parliament's committees vote on a shortlist of three finalists on September 30. The winner will be chosen by parliamentary leaders on October 10.

Fugitive Snowden in running for European rights prize

Lip gloss-not Revlon

Workplace violence?...no really... this time it's true!




Newtown shooting - Barry almost in tears.

Trayvon Martin - Barry files adoption papers.

Navy yard shooting ...barley a whimper.

Barry's press conference gave it like 45 seconds...

Aaron Alexis

...open your bedroom window in the dead of night...whata ya here?

Lip gloss-not Revlon

Emails show IRS’ Lois Lerner specifically targeted tea party

"I have done nothing wrong"

Has turned into...I have done nothing right!

The new revelations:

- In February 2011, Lerner warned that the "Tea Party matter" could be "the vehicle" for a campaign finance law challenge, and shouldn't be left to the Cincinatti IRS office.

So much for "low level rogue employees in Cincinnati" 

- On July 10, 2012, after aide Sharon Light sent Lerner an article about Democrats wanting more disclosure of donors from the FEC -- worried that conservatives were making better use of 501 laws to hide money -- Lerner responded, "perhaps the FEC will save the day."

What is their involvement?

- 15 days later, Lerner pre-spun some negative attention coming around to the delays of tax-exempt applications.

I submit to you Barry knew all about the IRS scandal because in all likelihood he orchestrated it. In the multitude of scandals since Barry took office no one has been fired, let alone put in jail, because in this administration there is no punitive action for the crime of loyalty to their Ruler. 

Emails show IRS’ Lois Lerner specifically targeted tea party

Hillary Clinton heckled on Benghazi during award ceremony

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton fielded hecklers who hounded her on Benghazi at the tail end of an award acceptance speech she delivered at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening.“When we fail to make progress on the challenges facing our people at home, our standing in the world suffers,” she said, Breitbart.com reported.

Mrs. Clinton was accepting the 2013 Liberty Medal, an honor to recognize her career in public service and advocacy for women’s rights, CBS reported. She told the crowd of hundreds of the U.S. need to balance national security with human rights issues in Syria, and called for American politicians to cross party aisles and strike a chord of unity.

The mostly bland speech received an energy boost at the tail end, when a protester in the midst of the crowd starting chanting: “Benghanzi! Benghazi! Benghazi!”

The Washington Free Beacon reported that Mrs. Clinton did not mention the attacks on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, during her remarks. The attacks took place a year ago today — Sept. 11, 2012 — and left four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, dead.

This whole affair is a fascade. The timing incredible!

The administration, including then-Secretary of State Clinton, vowed to investigate and bring to justice the guilty parties, but the issue has since fallen to the wayside.

Hillary Clinton heckled on Benghazi during award ceremony

What Putin Has to Say to Americans About Syria - NY Times

Why do you think he chose the NY Times to write an op-ed? 

Or maybe a better question is…Why did the NY Times choose him? 

Is this murdering thug, who's mentor is Stalin, now the  president of a one country and the de-facto president of another?

 Check paragraph No.9

Didn't he just say the other day Assad was going to hand over his chemical weapons. Wasn't that the whole gist of calling off the attack? 

Assad and Putin have now proven they are hardcore liars. 
Not to say we don't have one of our own.

When you're finished reading lean back in your chair and stare into space and contemplate where we would be right now if Reagan were president.

WARNING:

Before you read the last sentence get a pail.

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A Plea for Caution From Russia

By VLADIMIR V. PUTIN

Published: September 11, 2013 

MOSCOW — RECENT events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders. It is important to do so at a time of insufficient communication between our societies.

Relations between us have passed through different stages. We stood against each other during the cold war. But we were also allies once, and defeated the Nazis together. The universal international organization — the United Nations — was then established to prevent such devastation from ever happening again.

The United Nations' founders understood that decisions affecting war and peace should happen only by consensus, and with America's consent the veto by Security Council permanent members was enshrined in the United Nations Charter. The profound wisdom of this has underpinned the stability of international relations for decades.

No one wants the United Nations to suffer the fate of the League of Nations, which collapsed because it lacked real leverage. This is possible if influential countries bypass the United Nations and take military action without Security Council authorization.

The potential strike by the United States against Syria, despite strong opposition from many countries and major political and religious leaders, including the pope, will result in more innocent victims and escalation, potentially spreading the conflict far beyond Syria's borders. A strike would increase violence and unleash a new wave of terrorism. It could undermine multilateral efforts to resolve the Iranian nuclear problem and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and further destabilize the Middle East and North Africa. It could throw the entire system of international law and order out of balance.

Syria is not witnessing a battle for democracy, but an armed conflict between government and opposition in a multireligious country. There are few champions of democracy in Syria. But there are more than enough Qaeda fighters and extremists of all stripes battling the government. The United States State Department has designated Al Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, fighting with the opposition, as terrorist organizations. This internal conflict, fueled by foreign weapons supplied to the opposition, is one of the bloodiest in the world.

Mercenaries from Arab countries fighting there, and hundreds of militants from Western countries and even Russia, are an issue of our deep concern. Might they not return to our countries with experience acquired in Syria? After all, after fighting in Libya, extremists moved on to Mali. This threatens us all.

From the outset, Russia has advocated peaceful dialogue enabling Syrians to develop a compromise plan for their own future. We are not protecting the Syrian government, but international law. We need to use the United Nations Security Council and believe that preserving law and order in today's complex and turbulent world is one of the few ways to keep international relations from sliding into chaos. The law is still the law, and we must follow it whether we like it or not. Under current international law, force is permitted only in self-defense or by the decision of the Security Council. Anything else is unacceptable under the United Nations Charter and would constitute an act of aggression.

No one doubts that poison gas was used in Syria. But there is every reason to believe it was used not by the Syrian Army, but by opposition forces, to provoke intervention by their powerful foreign patrons, who would be siding with the fundamentalists. Reports that militants are preparing another attack — this time against Israel — cannot be ignored.

It is alarming that military intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become commonplace for the United States. Is it in America's long-term interest? I doubt it. Millions around the world increasingly see America not as a model of democracy but as relying solely on brute force, cobbling coalitions together under the slogan "you're either with us or against us."

But force has proved ineffective and pointless. Afghanistan is reeling, and no one can say what will happen after international forces withdraw. Libya is divided into tribes and clans. In Iraq the civil war continues, with dozens killed each day. In the United States, many draw an analogy between Iraq and Syria, and ask why their government would want to repeat recent mistakes.

No matter how targeted the strikes or how sophisticated the weapons, civilian casualties are inevitable, including the elderly and children, whom the strikes are meant to protect.

The world reacts by asking: if you cannot count on international law, then you must find other ways to ensure your security. Thus a growing number of countries seek to acquire weapons of mass destruction. This is logical: if you have the bomb, no one will touch you. We are left with talk of the need to strengthen nonproliferation, when in reality this is being eroded.

We must stop using the language of force and return to the path of civilized diplomatic and political settlement.

A new opportunity to avoid military action has emerged in the past few days. The United States, Russia and all members of the international community must take advantage of the Syrian government's willingness to place its chemical arsenal under international control for subsequent destruction. Judging by the statements of President Obama, the United States sees this as an alternative to military action.

I welcome the president's interest in continuing the dialogue with Russia on Syria. We must work together to keep this hope alive, as we agreed to at the Group of 8 meeting in Lough Erne in Northern Ireland in June, and steer the discussion back toward negotiations.

If we can avoid force against Syria, this will improve the atmosphere in international affairs and strengthen mutual trust. It will be our shared success and open the door to cooperation on other critical issues.

My working and personal relationship with President Obama is marked by growing trust. I appreciate this. I carefully studied his address to the nation on Tuesday. And I would rather disagree with a case he made on American exceptionalism, stating that the United States' policy is "what makes America different. It's what makes us exceptional." It is extremely dangerous to encourage people to see themselves as exceptional, whatever the motivation. There are big countries and small countries, rich and poor, those with long democratic traditions and those still finding their way to democracy. Their policies differ, too. We are all different, but when we ask for the Lord's blessings, we must not forget that God created us equal.

What Putin Has to Say to Americans About Syria - NY Times

Harry's back on top

Florida's foreclosure rate drops to No. 2 behind Nevada

Florida fell to the No. 2 spot in the nation for foreclosure activity in August behind Nevada after three consecutive months on top, according to RealtyTrac.

In August, one in every 383 residences in Florida received some type of foreclosure filing.

A total of 23,372 Florida properties received foreclosure filings in August, down 14 percent from July and down 15 percent from a year earlier, according to the Irvine, Calif.-based data firm.

Foreclosure activity includes new case filings, scheduled auctions and repossessions.

"That annual decrease in overall Florida foreclosure activity came on the heels of three consecutive months with annual increases and 16 of the last 19 months with annual increases,'' RealtyTrac said.

The year-over-year decrease in Florida foreclosure activity primarily reflects a 65 percent decrease in new filings, which hit their lowest level since RealtyTrac began issuing its state report in April 2005.

At the same time, activity in the later stages of the foreclosure process climbed in Florida, with scheduled auctions increasing 39 percent and bank repossessions rising 48 percent from a year earlier.

In Miami-Dade County, one in every 264 residences received some type of foreclosure filing in August, as foreclosure activity fell 19.88 percent from a year earlier and declined 14.13 percent from July, according to RealtyTrac.

In Broward County, one in every 372 residences got a foreclosure filing in August. That reflected a 12.23 percent decline in foreclosure activity from a year earlier and a 27.28 percent decline from July.

In both Miami-Dade and Broward, new foreclosures filings were down in August from a year earlier, while auction notices and bank repossessions rose.

Among the 20 largest metropolitan areas, Miami posted the highest foreclosure rate, and Tampa came in second.

Harry's back on top

A Day of Respect

For those who died on that fateful day 9-11-01 our prayers are still with you.

National Weather Service meteorologist Gary Conte:

It felt like the first day of fall, the kind of day for which the word "lovely" was made, the clear, autumnal sky at once flat and deep, stretched taut over the city.

At 7 am, the temperature was 67 degrees. At 8 am, it was 70. By 9 am, it had risen to 73. But by then, no one was thinking about the weather.

Sadly on this same day one year ago our government in an unforgivable act left 4 Americans to die in Benghazi.

 Chris Stevens    Sean Smith    Tyrone S. Woods    Glen A. Doherty

There's nothing phony about 4 dead Americans!

A Day of Respect

Accidental Diplomacy? Kerry now claims credit for Syria weapons proposal

OK...My head is spinning.

 Assuming we didn't know this already... Assad and Putin have now proven they are hardcore liars.

But you got to give the devil his due. In a brilliant strategic move Russia has now taken control of the situation. They even provided Barry with a way out from his red line rhetoric. It wasn’t long ago both Assad and Putin vehemently denied Syria was using chemical weapons. Now they are going turn over the very weapons they supposedly never had!

Pure and simple Putin outfoxed Barry, then took the ball and ran with it making us look like inept fools in the process. Putin with years in the game ran circles around him and Barry's lack of experience is clearly visible... but what can you expect from the former community organizer? Since they now admit Assad has chemical weapons (Russia probably sold it to him estimates are in the 1000 tons range) are we naive enough to believe they are going to turn ALL of them over? BTW...How are we going to verify this without boots on the ground? What’s the next step for Barry when Assad uses them again?

Can't wait to hear Barry spin this tonight putting himself in a favorable light.

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Secretary of State John Kerry's seemingly casual proposal for the Assad regime to turn over its chemical weapons has within 24 hours become the de facto policy of the Obama administration, and is now being heralded by Kerry as the "ideal way" to defuse the stand-off between the United States and Syria. 

But a look at the administration's statements shows that the plan has undergone an incredible evolution. 

Just one day ago, Kerry mentioned the idea in response to a question about what Bashar Assad could do to avert an attack 

"He could turn over every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international community in the next week," Kerry said. He then immediately splashed water on the notion: "But he isn't about to do it, and it can't be done, obviously." 

His aides swiftly set about to walking the remark back, describing Kerry's comment as merely a "rhetorical argument." 

Yet on Tuesday morning -- after the Russians had co-opted the idea and formally presented it to the Syrian government -- Kerry was claiming full credit for the plan during testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. 

"Yesterday, we challenged the regime to turn (its chemical weapons) over to the secure control of the international community so that they can be destroyed," Kerry said. 

He added, "Nothing focuses the mind like the prospect of a hanging," claiming the "credible threat" of military action is what brought the Assad regime to its knees. 

Several U.S. officials echoed Kerry on that point, claiming Assad would not be willing to negotiate if it weren't for the imminent threat of a U.S. missile strike. 

But the notion that Kerry had deliberately opened the door to the chemical weapons turn-over plan raised doubts. 

"We still don't know exactly how this plan came about," Fox News contributor Byron York said. 

Whatever the origin of the plan, it was taking off on Tuesday even as Kerry and others pressed Congress to continue debating a resolution authorizing military force, and even as President Obama prepared to address the nation Tuesday night. 

After the Russian government proposed having the Assad regime turn over its chemical weapons, the Syrian foreign minister said his government would accept the plan. 

U.S. officials continue to voice doubts about the idea, but are opening the door to pursuing the "diplomatic track." 

"We're waiting for that proposal, but we're not waiting for long," Kerry said Tuesday. 

He said Obama would take a "hard look" at the plan. 

"It has to be swift. It has to be real. It has to be verifiable," Kerry said. 

The deliberation comes as Congress considers a resolution to authorize the use of force. Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid postponed a test vote originally expected for Wednesday, but Congress could still consider it later in the week. 

Kerry urged lawmakers to keep debating, claiming that Washington needs to keep the pressure on Syria while the new proposal is considered.

Accidental Diplomacy? Kerry now claims credit for Syria weapons proposal

Mr Flip-Flop issues ultimatum to al-Assad

Update: 

Who saw this coming? Before this story went to press an unbelievable turn of events. If this administration owned a website it would be Stumbleupon. Assad who has proclaimed all along he didn't use chemical weapons now admits he has them and will turn them over to Russia to avert war. This is too funny. Kerry makes an asinine comment and they stumble into this? There's more to this story then meets the eye... rest assured.

Is the war over?

Maybe not.

Secretary of State John Kerry executed a 180-degree turn in comments to the London media, suggesting President Obama's 'red line' on the use of chemical weapons could now be erased if Assad gives them up.

Kerry had announced in London that the Obama administration would not launch a military strike against Syria if dictator Bashar al-Assad were to 'turn over every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international community in the next week.'


'He isn't about to do it,' Kerry quickly predicted, 'and it can't be done, obviously.'

The secretary of state issued his 'ultimatum' on the latest leg of a European tour seeking support for intervention. At the same time he said that if any strikes did take place they would be 'unbelievably small.'

The State Department muddied the waters after Kerry's remarks, confirming in a statement that he was merely making a rhetorical argument and didn't seriously expect Assad to relinquish his chemical weapons.


Can you understand this thought process?

Another case in point is my concern over Kerry. When Bush had videos of Saddam gassing the Kurds Dem’s weren’t convinced. Now we’re supposed to jump because of Kerry’s “proof” of chemical weapons. Remember when we were downgraded from the triple AAA credit rating to a double AA by S&P? The first thing out of Kerry's mouth was "it's a Teaparty downgrade"  even though it was the then Senator Kerry and his colleagues that began ratcheting up the enormous debt. The Teaparty never spent a penny of taxpayer money or contributed to the national debt in any way yet he tried to sluff off the blame on them. 

So I should believe him now?

The fact of the matter is I do...warily. I believe Assad used chemical weapons not the so-called rebels. But I have no way to back that up 100%. To me this really isn't the issue. The matter in question is distinguishing friend from foe. 

We have no clear cut resolute solution to the Syrian dilemma. 

Barry's calling for "a shot across the bow" while Kerry maintains, "any strikes that take place would be unbelievably small."

Seems like a lukewarm, half-assed, approach to me.

Then this:

It wasn’t too long ago a video was discovered showing a Syrian rebel chopping off a Priest’s head with a sword.

Beck followed with another video where a rebel gutted his enemy and ate his heart and liver.

 The NYT’s came up with this picture recently of Syrian rebels reminiscent of the Nazi treatment of Jews during WW ll.

And we’re taking the side of these people?

Lets face it. Assad, and especially his wife, are scum. His entire family could be wiped out tomorrow and I could care less. But is it possible some new regime in Syria could be worse then Assad?  Certainly looks like it from what I've seen.


From the Daily Beast of all places:

‘These images ought to be a wakeup call for those who think Syria is headed for a better future under the rebels.’

Mr Flip-Flop issues ultimatum to al-Assad

Going from "What difference does it make" to General George S. Patton

Where was this same fiery rhetoric when 4 Americans were killed in Benghazi? Why have reporters in the media been able to find the culprits but our government has held no one accountable except a guy who shot a meaningless video? Weren't we told by Barry and Clinton they were going to get to the bottom of it?

Well... we're still waiting!

I wonder what the mother's of Chis Stevens, Sean Smith and the two security officers who were former Navy Seals, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty all of whom were killed in Benghazi thought after hearing Hillary's new bravado  over Syria? 

What an absolute diametric change.

Proof everything is about politics

Keep in mind nothing happened in Benghazi that was inhuman.

How anyone, no matter what your political stance, can believe the crap coming out of her mouth is beyond me!

(If video won't load click post title)

Video 53

(Evidently when 4 Americans are killed it demands no response)

Going from "What difference does it make" to General George S. Patton