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July 2016

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 03, 2016 10 Comments
In honor of the passing of Elie Wiesel, I'd like to share a personal story about how I was affected by his work. In the early 1980's I found myself at a new school in the eighth grade. My English teacher required my class to read Wiesel's major work "Night" as an assignment. Despite years of education, I didn't know much about the Holocaust.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 03, 2016 24 Comments
The day after Hillary Clinton's "voluntary interview" with the FBI, she appeared this morning on Meet the Press. From the NBC transcript of the interview:
CHUCK TODD: . . . .  Yesterday, the F.B.I. interviewed Hillary Clinton for about three and a half hours at its headquarters right here in Washington D.C. about the use of her private email server while she was secretary of State. I spoke with the former secretary late yesterday on MSNBC, her only interview since meeting with the F.B.I., and asked her whether the description of the interview as "civil and businesslike" was accurate. SEC. HILLARY CLINTON: Well, it was both. It was something I had offered to do since last August. I've been eager to do it and I was pleased to have the opportunity to assist the department in bringing its review to a conclusion.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 03, 2016 10 Comments
Governor Andrew Cuomo's "tax-free" plan to bring technology jobs to New York has long been considered a failure, and buried in Friday afternoon's holiday weekend document dump is a report that demonstrates the degree of the latest NY boondoggle's failure. When first launched in 2014, problems with misinformation and unclear advertising that cost New Yorkers million swirled around START-UP NY. Newsmax reported at the time:
New York, rated the worst state in which to set up a business, is trying to lure entrepreneurs with a seductive new TV commercial that promises: "Move here ... and pay no taxes for 10 years." . . . . But critics say the devil is in the details: the plan, which is centered on the creation of tax-free zones, contains many regulations and exceptions that will make it hard to work as promised. . . . . The program doesn't actually guarantee 100 percent tax-free status — and it only applies to a specific segment of the business world. In other words, it's a lot more complicated than 30-second media spots put forth, says a lawyer who has dissected the program.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on July 03, 2016 27 Comments
Mary recently covered the damning Benghazi report that indicates Hillary Clinton and the rest of the Obama administration focused on managing public relations instead of military assets in response to the 2012 attack in Libya. However, the mainstream media asserts the 800-page evaluation shows no new evidence of wrongdoing by then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Furthermore, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell praised Clinton as intelligent and capable the day after that report. One of our best known San Diego bloggers, Barry C. Jacobsen, is a former Green Beret and a military history expert. He is taking the time to read the full document and analyze various sections through the prism of his Special Ops experience and insight into military tactics. In other words, a blogger is doing the job the mainstream American press won't do.  Again.

Posted by Mary Chastain on July 02, 2016 7 Comments
Austria's highest court ruled for a do-over of the presidential election runoff after it found discrepancies in the mail ballots. The mail-in ballots made former Green Party chief Alexander Van der Bellen president with 50.3% of the vote over Freedom Party candidate Norbert Hofer. Constitutional Court head Gerhart Holzinger said the court noted "that the irregularities affected nearly 78,000 votes — more than twice the margin separating the two candidates." From Reuters:

Posted by New Neo on July 02, 2016 10 Comments
Even though his official campaign for the presidency is over, Ted Cruz isn't taking a vacation. Last Tuesday Cruz began conducting a hearing:
...investigating...“Willful Blindness: Consequences of Agency Efforts To Deemphasize Radical Islam in Combating Terrorism.”... This hearing will likely focus on which figures within the federal government worked to squelch any research connecting the dots between local Muslim Brotherhood officials, these individual terrorists, and foreign terror networks. Senators on the committee now have an opportunity to expose the Muslim Brotherhood influence within DHS and the FBI, their invidious “Countering Violent Extremism” Agenda, and their hand in covering up counter-terrorism investigations. They can demonstrate how the federal government has hamstrung local law enforcement by refusing to cooperate and share information regarding jihadists living in their communities.
One question is whether anyone's listening except those already disposed to be concerned about how the Obama administration is handling the problem.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 02, 2016 5 Comments
Elie Wiesel, a beacon of light, died today at age 87 after a prolonged illness. The Times of Israel reports:
Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Holocaust survivor and human rights activist Eliezer “Elie” Wiesel died on Saturday at the age of 87 after a prolonged illness. A survivor of the Auschwitz and Buchenwald Nazi death camps, Wiesel dedicated much of his life to Holocaust education and promoting tolerance around the world. . . . .  Soon after he won the Nobel prize, Wiesel and his wife Marion founded The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity with a mission to “combat indifference, intolerance and injustice through international dialogue and youth-focused programs that promote acceptance, understanding and equality”.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 02, 2016 29 Comments
This "privilege" train has officially gone off the rails.  It's one thing for adults to argue that all white people are secretly, even unknowingly, racist and quite another to teach—systematically and purposefully—self-loathing and racist hate to 6-year-olds.  Yet that is what is happening at the progressive Bank School for Children on the Upper West Side of New York City. The New York Post reports:
An elite Manhattan school is teaching white students as young as 6 that they’re born racist and should feel guilty benefiting from “white privilege,” while heaping praise and cupcakes on their black peers. Administrators at the Bank Street School for Children on the Upper West Side claim it’s a novel approach to fighting discrimination, and that several other private New York schools are doing it, but even liberal parents aren’t buying it. They complain the K-8 school of 430 kids is separating whites in classes where they’re made to feel awful about their “whiteness,” and all the “kids of color” in other rooms where they’re taught to feel proud about their race and are rewarded with treats and other privileges.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 02, 2016 58 Comments
Hillary's long-awaited date night with the FBI apparently took place this morning in Washington D.C. and lasted for 3 1/2 hours. ABC News reports:
Hillary Clinton gave a "voluntary interview" to the FBI today regarding her email arrangements while she was secretary of state, her campaign says. "Secretary Clinton gave a voluntary interview this morning about her email arrangements while she was Secretary," spokesman Nick Merrill said. "She is pleased to have had the opportunity to assist the Department of Justice in bringing this review to a conclusion. Out of respect for the investigative process, she will not comment further on her interview." The interview occurred at FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., and lasted approximately three and a half hours, according to a Clinton aide.

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 02, 2016 1 Comment
July 4th weekend is a perfect time to reflect on our freedoms and their importance. In that spirit, Remy of Reason, who's kind of the Libertairian version of Weird Al Yankovic, has produced a parody of Toby Keith's song "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue" which enjoyed popularity after the attacks of 9/11. You can make an argument, and many conservatives have, that things like the Patriot Act haven't directly impacted the civil liberties of average American citizens, but some things have obviously gotten out of control, as exemplified in Kemberlee's horrific post about the TSA yesterday.

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 02, 2016 2 Comments
After the Benghazi Committee released findings this week, Hillary Clinton declared it was time to move on. Dorothy Woods, the widow of Tyrone Woods who died in Benghazi disagrees. Woods appeared on CNN this week and had a few things to say. Ed Morrissey of Hot Air describes the appearance:
Benghazi widow to Hillary: How dare you tell me to “move on” It’s become standard Clintonista patter to react to scandals involving Bill and Hillary to tell critics to “move on.” In fact, a group of supporters named their Clinton-apologist organization for the clichéd riposte, and still operate to this day.

Posted by Katy Grimes on July 01, 2016 34 Comments
Friday morning, July 1, 2016, California Governor Jerry Brown “gunned down the Constitution” when he signed six and vetoed four of the eleven anti-gun, pro-restriction bills passed by the Legislature only the day before. Despite the failure of California’s strict gun control laws to prevent the San Bernardino massacre, the California Legislature passed the 11 anti-gun bills to decide whether 15 or 10 bullets in a clip is or is not criminal in a bill to allow for confiscation of previously allowed magazines capable of holding more than 10 bullets. Another bill will require background checks for ammo purchases. There is even a bill to limit your ability to lend guns to family members.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on July 01, 2016 33 Comments
I hate the TSA. HATE. My disdain for the tax-payer funded, blue-gloved, theater players has been well documented throughout the years. This though... this is a new low. Last summer, 19-year old Hannah was headed home from her last brain tumor treatment when she set off a metal detector at a TSA security checkpoint in Memphis. What should have been a celebration resulted in a night in jail. Her parents have filed suit.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on July 01, 2016 18 Comments
New polling data released from Public Policy Polling indicated 13% or respondents would rather the Earth suffer a collision with a giant meteor before voting for Hillary or Trump. Apparently, "Giant Meteor" is more popular than any independent candidate actually running for president. Giant Meteor was a particular favorite among independent voters, where it polled at 27% to Clinton's 43% and Trump's 38%.
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