Katie Couric Interviews Sarah Palin - V.P. Material?

Watch Katie Coric's interview with Sarah Palin.  I believe that this was her second official interview on TV.   Ask yourself one question.  Is this Presidential material?

This next part will really have you scratching your head.  

Great Quotes

Do they think if we destroy our freedoms for the terrorists they will no longer have a reason to attack us?

~Ron Paul

History teaches that war begins when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap.

~Ronald Reagan

Terror is a tactic. We can not wage "war" against a tactic.

~Ron Paul

The defense policy of the United States is based on a simple premise: The United States does not start fights.  We will never be an aggressor.

~Ronald Reagan

American Military Casualties in Iraq

Event       Date	Total	In Combat
Since war began       3/19/03:	4174	3388
Since "Mission Accomplished"        5/1/03      ( list ):	4035	3272
Since Capture of Saddam       12/13/03:	3713	3074
Since Handover      6/29/04:	3308	2755
Since Election       1/31/05:	2728	2493
American Wounded:	Official 30662	Estimated 100000
Latest Fatality Sept. 27, 2008
Page last updated 09/27/08 9:07 pm EDT

Faces of the Fallen

WaMu CEO: 3 Weeks Work, $18 MILLION

Help me with this.  Tax payers are bailing out these institutional boat anchors for what reason?

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Alan H. Fishman, the CEO of Washington Mutual, will likely be unemployed after only a few weeks on the job.  But don't cry for Fishman.  He's set to walk away with about $18 million in bonuses after his three week stint at the failed savings and loan giant.  His "golden parachute" is raising eyebrows, particularly because of his short tenure at WaMu. 

Washington Mutual was the nation's largest savings and loan. It was taken over Thursday night by federal bank regulators and then sold to JP Morgan Chase for $1.9 billion. This, as lawmakers continued to work on a $700 billion bailout for bad debt in the financial industry.    Source

Fishman replaced WaMu CEO Killinger who retired with no extra severance benefits, the paper reported. He currently had $5.2 million in common stock, $14.9 million in deferred compensation and $3.5 million in pension benefits.

Wamu's shares had lost 90% of their value in the last year, and Killinger has said that the company could sustain losses of between $12 billion and $19 billion, according to the Journal.   The thrift does a lot of business in states that have seen housing prices fall sharply, and holds over $50 billion in risky option adjustable-rate mortgages.

Fiscal Conservative !!!

I think that this graphic is in error.  Don't we need to add another $700 BILLION to Bush's already historic $482 BILLION DEBT, for a total of $1.182 TRILLION ?  Now that's what I call being a FISCAL CONSERVATIVE ?  

Humor: Boy runs away from home

Now this one is funny.  Loving parents watch as their young son runs away from home.  

The Most Spine Chilling McCain Video You Will Ever See.

You MUST watch this video clip.  If there is the only clip you watch, definitely view this one.  

Barack's Story

This is the story and background of Barack Obama.  It's well worth watching if you did not see it when he spoke at the Democratic National Convention.  

  

McCain's Mailing Leaves Florida Voters Confused

All Things Considered,September 19, 2008 · A new mailing from the Republican National Committee and the McCain campaign to Florida voters has Democrats saying they're the victim of dirty tricks. They say that at the very least, the mailing is meant to confuse voters in this battleground state. Republicans say Democrats are making much ado abut nothing.

Lifelong Democrat Marilyn DiMauro of Naples was surprised to get a letter recently from Republican presidential contender John McCain.

"I thought, well that's strange, because I'm a Democrat. And when I opened the envelope, there was a card that said I was listed as a Republican with my registration number. So I immediately got my Democratic card, and the registration number was not the same," she says.

She thought the mailing — labeled "Party Affiliation Voter Registration Card" — was a little fishy — especially when she found out two of her friends who are Democrats had received the same thing but a Republican friend had not.

"So I just felt that there was some diabolical reason for doing this mailing," she says. "Why would you spend the money?"

That's what Jim Reynolds, another lifelong Democrat in Naples, wants to know.  He happens to be a former U.S. attorney from Iowa.  And he has filed a mail-fraud complaint with the postal service. Reynolds thinks Republicans are trying to confuse Democratic voters into thinking there's a problem with their registrations.

"They're just doing everything to try to suppress a certain segment that they feel are not going to be favorable to them," he says.

And indeed, Florida election officials have reported dozens of worried calls from voters. A copy of the mailing obtained by NPR shows that it includes an official-looking card, listing the recipient's name, address, congressional district, party affiliation and something called a voter ID number. In an attached letter, McCain asks recipients to update the enclosed card — and to contribute to his campaign.

RNC Mailing Sent To Voters Of All Ages

Florida Democrats initially charged that the letters were directed at elderly voters, but when Reynolds borrowed a phone at an office in Collier County to call NPR, he found a younger worker there, Gloria Hernandez, who had also received the letter.

Hernandez says she thought there was a mistake with her registration when she got the mail.

"I just come in with my family and I say, look, I receive a letter. They say that I am a Republican. And my kids say, 'Are you, Mom?' And I say, 'Of course no,' " she says.

The McCain campaign referred questions about the mailing to the Republican National Committee, whose spokeswoman Amber Wilkerson says it was a routine fundraiser — similar to ones used in the past — and that it was intended for Republicans.

"In the event that it was sent to Democrats, we correct our internal file to ensure that that doesn't happen in the future," she says.

Wilkerson says the uproar over the mailing is part of a national Democratic strategy to undermine confidence in Republicans.

"This is a desperate attempt to try to confuse voters who are hearing John McCain's message and haven't necessarily connected with Barack Obama thus far," she adds.

But most of the confusion so far does seem to be coming from the RNC mailing. Jerry Holland, the Republican supervisor of elections in Duval County, received so many calls from worried voters that he released a statement last week assuring them that only a voter can change his or her own registration.

"Whoever designed the piece obviously created something, knowingly or unknowingly, confusing to some voters, because obviously they were concerned that maybe someone had changed their party," says Holland.

Purpose Of The Mailer?

Some Democrats have said they are also concerned that the mailing might be used to challenge voters at the polls, if letters are returned as undeliverable. But postal officials say that with this kind of mailing, any undeliverable mail is destroyed, not returned to the sender — in this case the RNC.

This all comes as both parties are mounting major legal campaigns to protect against what they see as voting procedures that could hurt them in November. Democrats this week filed a lawsuit to stop Michigan Republicans from challenging voters at the polls using home foreclosure lists — something Republicans insist they don't intend to do. In Ohio, Republicans are challenging an absentee voting rule that they say will hurt McCain.

Source of story

McSAME - The Fundamentals of our Economy are Strong

Obama - Plan for a Change Ad

Movie Recommendation - TransAmerica

TransAmerica (2005)

Staring:  Felicity Huffman

This movie has won a ton of awards, including her Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress.   

Plot:  A pre-operative mail-to-female transsexual takes an unexpected journey when she learns that she fathered a son, now a teenage runaway hustling on the streets of New York.  The story line is funny and not what you might expect.   It's really about the bond between parent and child.  Rent it.   You won't regret it.

The REAL McCain

You decide.  Can we trust what McCain says?  See it for yourself.

Watch the video.

Journey to the Tail of the Dragon

Once you've owned and ridden a motorcycle, it's in your blood.  For me, it started with I was 13 riding a friends Honda Step-through 50.  It could take a beating.  After owning 2 bikes beginning at age 15 1/2, I took a sabbatical, got married, had kids and always wanted that feeling again.  

In 1999, that all changed when I bought a Honda 750 ACE Classic.  You can see this bike, as well as the others at this link.  The Honda was a pretty bike, and one that eased me back into riding - but I quickly realized that it was too small for the road.  I then bought what I felt was my dream bike - a 2001 Harley ElectraGlide (FLHT).  It was only 11 months old and had only 3500 miles on it.  It was owned by a Harley Davidson employee - an engineer in fact.  I put 42,000 miles on.   

Several months ago, I sold that bike, which did hold it's value very well, but I wanted something a bit more suited for long runs.  When riding that girl on long trips, the motor noises were those of tappets making sounds louder than they should have been.  It wasn't smooth sounding, but then again, long time Harley riders say it's normal and to get use to it.  Well, I didn't buy it and felt that the motor itself, by it's design, was prone to excessive vibration, which causes wear over time.  That said, I wanted to experience something different, so I put the bike up for sale.   

The Harley sold in 10 days.  I got good money and she looked great.  

Well, if you ride a Harley, and then sell it, you're suppose to get another Harley.  I, on the other hand, went over to the dark side.  With the proceeds of the sale of the Harley, I traded it buck for buck for the 2004 BMW R1150RT.  Not a 2003, or 2005 or newer, but specfically, a 2004.  This is in my judgement, the best motor BMW ever made, and many in the Beemer world, consider this the finest touring bike they made.  It had a mere 9800 miles on her - still in the  break-in period.  Purchased new in March, 2005, the bike still had a full year remaining on the factory 3 year warrantee.  Click here to view pictures of the bike, and under the skins. 

I outfitted the bike with those things that fit the new owner.  Riding pegs, a better windshield, an accessories deck for instruments, a GPS, a Corbin leather seat (used, but in great condition), a radio and a mount for the iPod.  You can't ride without a good tunes.

After outfitting the bike, I wanted to see how she would perform.  I rode it up to the Smokey Mountains.  Wow.  You can ride that thing all day at 90 mph if you wanted.  The engine is smooth, and powerful.  Though the motor is 1150 cc's, compared to the Harley's 1450 cc's, the BMW is considerably more powerful and way more nimble.  The suspension is amazing, but the brakes are what really grab you  :-).  The bike has 3 massive rotors and the brakes are power-assisted, ABS power-assisted disk brakes.  When you brake, both wheels are always braked - and neither will skid with ABS activated.

During that week, I put more than 2600 miles on the bike.  It was a delight.  Would I sell the BMW?  Do I have regrets about selling my Harley?  The answer to both is a resounding NO.  

Candice drove up with friends and I picked her up at their home.  We rode for days in and around Maggie Valley, and after several days, I took her to see her parents in West Union, S.C., and then from there, we took her to the airport, while I rode the bike home.  Here are pictures of that trip.

I thought I'd leave you with a video clip of Candice and I riding on the famous "Tail of the Dragon" with it's 318 curves in 11 miles in June, 2008.  

Enjoy.

The Most Spine Chilling McCain Video You Will Ever See.

Religious Extremism

A few days ago, Barack Obama came to a poltical rally here in nearby Coral Springs, Florida.   In listening to the coverage later that day on NPR, I was stunned the hear that Obama had been heckled by a group of 20 black people.   They held up signs of protest, tried to shout Obama down, and were quickly shouted down by Obama loyalist and forcibly escorted out of the venue.

Talk about being confused.   Why would black people be protesting the first black presidential candidate in U.S. history?  

• Were they demanding more welfare programs?  
• Were they demanding more focus on their issues? 
• Was he not being black enough?
• What?
  

This was the second event that I heard that Obama had been heckled by groups of black men.  

I couldn't begin to think why this might be the case, and more important, what was their real options for a presidential contender.  Just consider the  alternative?  Could they be active McCain supporters?  Considering that of the 2,380 Republican delegates at the recent Republican National Convention, only 36 were black, a 78 percent drop from the GOP's 2004 convention and the lowest number in 40 years, according to the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.  Thirty Six.  That was it.  This didn't seem like the obvious choice. 

As I continued to listen intently to the NPR coverage on the topic, the reporter was able to locate and talk to one of those removed from the hall.  With anger in this young man's voice, he chanted, "How could anyone support a presidential candidate who is in any way for abortion - regardless of why?  How can you support a man who is for gay marriage?   THESE ARE NOT THE TEACHINGS OF MOHAMED."   

Ding, ding, ding, ding !!!!   Suddenly, things became very clear.    

This group of black men were heckling Obama were ultra conservative Muslims.     

These men sounded and acted exactly like the Evangelical Christians - except they pray to a different god.  They to want to DENY a woman's right to choice, i.e. take away her "freedom of choice".   These  same people want to deny a gay couple the legal right to visit one another in the emergency room at a hospital.   Be they ultra conservative Evangelicals, or Muslims, it all seems about controlling others to follower their views and ways.   This is the same kind of control that the Taliban wanted to exert over the entire population of Afghanistan prior to our invading that country.      

But wait !!  Don't the Evangelical Christians want to take away our freedoms?  Don't they want to impose their religious views on this nation?  What about my religious freedom?  My rights?  My views?  My belief system?

Take a minute before you vote and thank about this for a minute.  VOTE for what is right.

Phil