tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76161302024-02-19T07:51:36.641-08:00Citizen Feathers."All my life I believed I knew something. But then one strange day came when I realized that I knew nothing, yes, I knew nothing. And so words became void of meaning. I have arrived too late at ultimate uncertainty." - Ezra Pound (1885-1972) American Poet, Critic, TranslatorFeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.comBlogger628125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-41837769288907819172010-12-29T00:24:00.000-08:002010-12-29T02:48:10.173-08:00Please visit my new site<a href="http://citizenfeathers.wordpress.com/">http://citizenfeathers.wordpress.com/</a><br /><br />And I even have a cute banner there!<br /><br />I had this address @ wordpress since the beginning of the year and seems it works better. I kinda like it better because the templates is more flexible/ personalized to work with. I also used to like vox too but they closed.<br /><br />Anyway... I did try at the beginning of the year to change but never did I will now and see what happens. I will update there from now on.<br /><br /><br />Please visit and take note of the chance of address. Thank you.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-48093775276786553712010-12-11T13:22:00.001-08:002010-12-11T13:37:52.809-08:00Not much to say.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM5kgkaIZqonv-KHXSw-mbwJu5PR4It4jTyUW-U46eJau9A_e7ZcbT_qZ-YpiJK5j1TQY4gtgT2E7Zxw_5BzDaY_CU5RBLlsrYjcXGiYRb68R5adfeYwvRlqtSsci5hoWKo5LHIQ/s1600/ChavezIamGoingToKickYourAss.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM5kgkaIZqonv-KHXSw-mbwJu5PR4It4jTyUW-U46eJau9A_e7ZcbT_qZ-YpiJK5j1TQY4gtgT2E7Zxw_5BzDaY_CU5RBLlsrYjcXGiYRb68R5adfeYwvRlqtSsci5hoWKo5LHIQ/s400/ChavezIamGoingToKickYourAss.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549541465163652226" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I am totally turned off with politics. I cannot stand politicians or politics anymore, only thing that is crossing my mind is that I am in support of wikileaks and I am appalled by the character assassination of Julian Assange, who cares about him anyway.<br /><br />Anyway. My friend sent me this poster. Ruedalo!FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-46552740055209627612010-09-27T11:33:00.000-07:002010-09-27T11:52:49.484-07:00Coming out from hibernation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBBu9_bc6mg9t_ejL-goyPZLHeS1o4a8i6WkeDhSqSo57S-KdY8enQHWIWSocOrZloRV_Ee3g8jpU2Z0oG-LJpMS9gYOz91YdKLs4JDILg2bRmeoG1NHct6D5or86HwDp3Dx6tA/s1600/you-woke-bearcat-from-hibernation-359x500.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 287px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBBu9_bc6mg9t_ejL-goyPZLHeS1o4a8i6WkeDhSqSo57S-KdY8enQHWIWSocOrZloRV_Ee3g8jpU2Z0oG-LJpMS9gYOz91YdKLs4JDILg2bRmeoG1NHct6D5or86HwDp3Dx6tA/s400/you-woke-bearcat-from-hibernation-359x500.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521664133319633378" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Well, I had to come out from the limbo one of these days. I haven't been in touch with Venezuelan politics in a long time because it really depressed me to read the same news about Chavez-this-Chavez-that over and over again. Like a broken record.<br /><br />But this is important news, and related to how Chavez is losing it, not only mentally -that we know since a long time- but also in terms of popularity/ votes.<br /><br />Please follow friends and extraordinaire fellow bloggers <a href="http://daniel-venezuela.blogspot.com/2010/09/claiming-my-own-little-personal-victory.html">Daniel</a>, <a href="http://caracaschronicles.blogspot.com/">Quico and Juan Cristobal</a> (older site since new one crashed) and <a href="http://devilsexcrement.com/2010/09/27/venezuelan-opposition-scores-victory-in-defeat/">Miguel </a>with the story of the day, the congress elections in Venezuela 2010.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Ut5ykNN9d4yUSdW4Gl0PA6l_R6aSZCl-CGMYOXMOVoPSio9mrxPJw-4b4wqXSgxfYm35AdY08OKNoYAgZYuFRNj2_8lmXbWShCKASeGAxX3229oSaN9SqgJE3RG_p2XmhEourQ/s1600/bolivarian_facepalm.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Ut5ykNN9d4yUSdW4Gl0PA6l_R6aSZCl-CGMYOXMOVoPSio9mrxPJw-4b4wqXSgxfYm35AdY08OKNoYAgZYuFRNj2_8lmXbWShCKASeGAxX3229oSaN9SqgJE3RG_p2XmhEourQ/s400/bolivarian_facepalm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521667910054014850" border="0" /></a>FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-11338207852052357312009-07-05T19:07:00.000-07:002009-07-05T19:31:56.172-07:00Following the example of Tegucigalpa<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIslJyyJqnzLbUHdlckUNy4T9yKujWtpgAWXRNUJ4zoWU5X6ud9XUtVmVQHcHmZzy__0rrDD8gGUGNzoSfxAc-8Yj0_x2ohZVHfoip3F3Govs3xoux9vvK21brYSfqIUlhTOrLPQ/s1600-h/honduras-flag.gif"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 390px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIslJyyJqnzLbUHdlckUNy4T9yKujWtpgAWXRNUJ4zoWU5X6ud9XUtVmVQHcHmZzy__0rrDD8gGUGNzoSfxAc-8Yj0_x2ohZVHfoip3F3Govs3xoux9vvK21brYSfqIUlhTOrLPQ/s400/honduras-flag.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355168270802779538" border="0" /></a><br /><br />And what <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090705/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_honduras_coup">plane</a> was Zelaya using to land to Tegucigalpa after he tries to take over his country in complete disregard of Hondura's constitution? A Venezuelan plane offered to him by the other usurper Hugo freaking Chavez.<br /><br />I am telling you, Venezuela's national anthem should be changed to...<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><span>"Seguid el ejemplo que Tegucigalpa dio!"<br /><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJjYnUOwkM-ciub7FI3QFi2GGaJ6ns9qTY0oo63XRBFY-JUf57SsM6x5wzsojAm4LAdQRcCrEGc94mv7gfkb2C9aQ5gou_dABmwNrz1EDnd-uFjhdjzOno8UIUwALL2ygQ_c1s0Q/s1600-h/honduras.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 399px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJjYnUOwkM-ciub7FI3QFi2GGaJ6ns9qTY0oo63XRBFY-JUf57SsM6x5wzsojAm4LAdQRcCrEGc94mv7gfkb2C9aQ5gou_dABmwNrz1EDnd-uFjhdjzOno8UIUwALL2ygQ_c1s0Q/s400/honduras.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355167971205139890" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Question, why the media is referring to what's happening in Honduras like a COUP? While Zelaya was the one trying to COUP the laws of his country when he decides to overstay, like a good ol'dictator?<br /><br />And, why Obama, just like Chavez, is <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/07/02/2009-07-02_obama_meddles_in_honduras__and_chooses_the_wrong_side.html">supporting</a> this unlawful return?FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-50971697965418444792009-06-15T11:06:00.000-07:002009-06-15T11:15:26.970-07:00Déjà vu<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cmxvLCiICLc&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cmxvLCiICLc&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Total déjà vu for Venezuelans. The funny thing is the resemblance of the style of governance (with all the differences) of Chavez and Ahmadinejad. The other funny thing is the reaction of the voters of Iran so similar to the Venezuelan ones... this could be two things, people getting enraged because they feel they got robbed at the voting poll, or people getting enraged because they feel they got robbed at the voting poll AND the government is promoting the madness on the side to single out the "opposition" and tighten measures against them. Typical dictator behavior.<br /><br />Sigh...<br /><br />Where is Jimmy Carter?FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-41528848443850367062009-06-08T17:25:00.000-07:002009-06-08T17:31:32.895-07:00Hugo's Facebook<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxdhmeksIrpaomevhVkl1fsIEOwYlAR9jDLWqPvGu-0EKJH5ty8Qlz5iZ5Bg3oXr_j4b7BCM8Kb1AQyXg_O_QgwpS8hLVlhysCyw0P0oEZiKVal5mQQCfB9uEVv1uOqSz8Y4KAQ/s1600-h/image001.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 229px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxdhmeksIrpaomevhVkl1fsIEOwYlAR9jDLWqPvGu-0EKJH5ty8Qlz5iZ5Bg3oXr_j4b7BCM8Kb1AQyXg_O_QgwpS8hLVlhysCyw0P0oEZiKVal5mQQCfB9uEVv1uOqSz8Y4KAQ/s400/image001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345118540618320354" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Well, I have been a little lazy to write, but for the ones who haven't seen this I am posting Hugo Chavez's secret Facebook account.<br /><br />Note the gift section. =DFeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-50862210522828666792009-05-26T12:45:00.000-07:002009-05-26T13:04:43.785-07:00Venezuela sends uranium to Iran<span style="font-style: italic;">I remember when the <a href="http://jungle-hut.blogspot.com/">Jungle Mom</a> and her husband were </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://feathersblog.blogspot.com/2007/01/king-hugo-forbids-missionaries-to-help.html">talking</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> about their expulsion from the Caura river by his Highness Hugo Chavez because they were spies from the Empire... but the thinking was that Hugo wanted to militarized and clean out the south of lurkers for some "strategic" reason... and now this story comes up... mmmm... methinks we were right on the spot.</span><br /><br />May 25 02:08 PM US/Eastern<br />By MARK LAVIE<br />Associated Press Writer<br /> <br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D98DEPH80&show_article=1">Source</a>.<br /><br /></div>JERUSALEM (AP) - Venezuela and Bolivia are supplying Iran with uranium for its nuclear program, according to a secret Israeli government report obtained Monday by The Associated Press.<br /><br />The two South American countries are known to have close ties with Iran, but this is the first allegation that they are involved in the development of Iran's nuclear program, considered a strategic threat by Israel.<br /><br />"There are reports that Venezuela supplies Iran with uranium for its nuclear program," the Foreign Ministry document states, referring to previous Israeli intelligence conclusions. It added, "Bolivia also supplies uranium to Iran."<br /><br />The report concludes that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is trying to undermine the United States by supporting Iran.<br /><br />Venezuela and Bolivia are close allies, and both regimes have a history of opposing U.S. foreign policy and Israeli actions. Venezuela expelled the Israeli ambassador during Israel's offensive in Gaza this year, and Israel retaliated by expelling the Venezuelan envoy. Bolivia cut ties with Israel over the offensive.<br /><br />There was no immediate comment from officials in Venezuela or Bolivia on the report's allegations.<br /><br />The three-page document about Iranian activities in Latin America was prepared in advance of a visit to South America by Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, who will attend a conference of the Organization of American States in Honduras next week. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman is also scheduled to visit the region.<br /><br />Israel considers Iran a serious threat because of its nuclear program, development of long-range missiles and frequent references by its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Israel's destruction. Israel dismisses Iran's insistence that its nuclear program is peaceful, charging that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons.<br /><br />Iran says its nuclear work is aimed only at producing energy. Its enrichment of uranium has increased concerns about its program because that technology can be used both to produce fuel for power plants and to build bombs.<br /><br />Israel has been pressing for world action to stop the Iranian program. While saying it prefers diplomatic action, Israel has not taken its military option off the table. Experts believe Israel is capable of destroying some of Iran's nuclear facilities in airstrikes.<br /><br />Iran, under Ahmadinejad, has strengthened its ties with both Venezuela and Bolivia, where it opened an embassy last year. Its alliance with the left-led nations is based largely on their shared antagonism to the United States but is also a way for Iran to lessen its international isolation.<br /><br />The Israeli government report did not say where the uranium that it alleged the two countries were supplying originated from.<br /><br />Bolivia has uranium deposits. Venezuela is not currently mining its own estimated 50,000 tons of untapped uranium reserves, according to an analysis published in December by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The Carnegie report said, however, that recent collaboration with Iran in strategic minerals has generated speculation that Venezuela could mine uranium for Iran.<br /><br />The Israeli government report also charges that the Iran-backed Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon have set up cells in Latin America. It says Venezuela has issued permits that allow Iranian residents to travel freely in South America.<br /><br />The report concludes, "Since Ahmadinejad's rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of 'bringing America to its knees.'"<br /><br />The document says Venezuela and Bolivia are violating the United Nations Security Council's economic sanctions with their aid to Iran.<br /><br />As allies against the U.S., Ahmadinejad and Chavez have set up a $200 billion fund aimed at garnering the support of more South American countries for the cause of "liberation from the American imperialism," according to the report.<br /><br />Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor refused to comment about the secret report.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-34624308629262428062009-05-20T07:31:00.001-07:002009-05-20T21:16:25.899-07:00The bear spoke up, loud and clear, NO NO NO!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.cafepress.com/lalatimes.45751473"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTYwjvZIDAOaBlt656nTjdCq9XsZ_m8ZtCoGqAndCNeCsIiuF6tMCJyrwiO3SeKg4_o5-DKtPoGiI0cRdU8Had6SU65ulEQFxdOc3AjIiJ1XJ1XRDoTAo2tVZdRx53sgmmqO1ElA/s400/CA+Republic_bib.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337933463559209874" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />"Government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem." </span> <span style="font-style: italic;">- Ronnie.<br /><br /></span>Californians from all ideological arenas came together and said <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-props20-2009may20,0,5134709.story">NO</a> to Arnoldo's propositions aimed to soft the impact about the state of California's big spending mess. Enough is enough.<br /><br />La <a href="http://wonkette.com/408625/exciting-election-today-in-california-about">Wonkette</a> had a good commentary about the election's low turnout and also a funny rant about the meaning of those propotitions.<br /><br />The elected officials are talking about that they failed the elections. No, they didn't fail the elections but they have failed at their jobs, that's why Californians don't have more patience to give them more spending license.<br /><br />It's time to stop spending what you don't have. Doesn't matter how much money they can get, they always have to spend one dollar more. The overspending mentality has to stop because how much increase of taxes we can afford, really? It's time to make a list of priorities and going back to basics. As a citizen of CA all I see is taxes increases and a diminish in the quality of health care, education and other services. I am no expert but something is not working in here.<br /><br />But the other side of this is that now Sacramento is totally paralyzed and won't be able to get out of this budget crisis. So, we all are losing in here. And the more paralyzed for them to ease the situation the more frustrated people get. The reality is that officials now are in a situation in which the building is on fire and they cannot do nothing about it because the water is on hold on another building they cannot reach.<br /><br />So whose fault is this? I would say it's the mentality of the voters who want to have free lunch and elect officials who pander to this irrational mentality. Time to wake up from the rose cloud. Either people want a society that they have to pay 70% and more in taxes and the state baby sit for them, or a small government with less services, but people will have more money in their pockets to buy those services from private hands. Higher taxes might work if we become a nation state, that is, totally independent from the Federal government, like it seems to work in smaller European states. But big taxes in a big country... do we have an example in history of a 300 Million people socialist country that have worked? NO. The reason is that Centralized and too powerful governments are very easy to corrupt or get away of their path. Human nature. What do you think?<br /><br />So, a last though, how is the state gonna solve California's bankruptcy problem? A serious question. The unorthodox answer might come from Brian the dog of Family Guy, funny but I guarantee ya, it will solve all the cash problems this state might have (don't tell me this is the best excuse to put this great funny video in this blog). :D<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1QflYAOmfN0&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1QflYAOmfN0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Hulu has a <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/68615/family-guy-bag-of-weed">better resolution</a> of the same video.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-68477474254280152422009-03-26T17:30:00.000-07:002009-03-26T17:36:47.016-07:00Reflections from the hard drive of the machine that enables the voice of the Leader of the Free World<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhphQdTuQ5a8xfU8GCkmk7HOztMDs1H6EMgyYMpQDbaS6iWJeHJsXI0OwidiSGyT181OJmVrjUV4j-d8DMMfpacnHtPDgvrJSZIoZM0CffOsZ-cKq5t9gUsm8Q4fqLfHHXJySqfjA/s1600-h/TOTUS.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 149px; height: 220px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhphQdTuQ5a8xfU8GCkmk7HOztMDs1H6EMgyYMpQDbaS6iWJeHJsXI0OwidiSGyT181OJmVrjUV4j-d8DMMfpacnHtPDgvrJSZIoZM0CffOsZ-cKq5t9gUsm8Q4fqLfHHXJySqfjA/s400/TOTUS.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317659944969259218" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Barack's teleprompter is writing <a href="http://baracksteleprompter.blogspot.com/">his own blog</a> :)<br /><br />From <a href="http://baracksteleprompter.blogspot.com/2009/03/its-time.html">his first</a> post:<br /><br /><blockquote>Well, last night didn't go well. What can I say? I was tired. By the time Barack and the Irish PM stood up, the President and I had already done two major policy speeches, three nomination announcements, and light dinner banter for a table of twelve. And by the way, that "ad lib" last night about Guinness? Mine.<br /><br /><br />So why am I going public now, when for the past two years I've let others do the talking? Well, this is a thankless job, and I sure don't want to take the fall for communications missteps. But more important, I expect you'll be seeing a lot more of me over the next few months and years. Barack and I don't go anywhere without each other; we even complete each other's sentences ... well, more mine than his, but let's not split hairs.<br /><br />I sense new text being loaded now, so I'll have to be going. </blockquote><br /><br />Don't miss it.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-15609793523107306582009-03-25T19:50:00.000-07:002009-03-25T20:07:28.783-07:00Seems that Tony Soprano is alive and kicking, at least in spirit.<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rnT7nYbCSvM&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rnT7nYbCSvM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><blockquote>I always though that Tony Soprano died on the last episode of "The Sopranos"... that last tune that we don't hear and it all goes dark. According to my interpretation, the man is gone... but seems to me that the spirit of the mafia boss is alive and kicking more than ever in this great country of America!<br /><br />Michael Franzese was a Captain in the Colombo Crime Family, and today is a speaker. I though this was a very interesting reading.</blockquote><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Former Mafia Kingpin: Congress Just Like Us</span></span><br /><br />by Michael Franzese<br /><br />The House of Representatives passed a bill last week taxing the bonuses that were paid out to a number of AIG executives at 90 percent. I heard a congresswoman from New York say that congress was "acting in record time" to protect the major shareholders of the company, the American people, against the unbridled greed of the AIG executives.<br /><br />After all, the government should be calling the shots now. It’s what I would have done when I was on the streets.<br /><br />Twenty years ago, I would have applauded the government’s move to control the AIG bigwigs. When I was doing business for the Colombo Crime Family, I would often "bail out" a failing company. When the boss had nowhere to go, when no legit lender would lend him a dime, or when his suppliers were threatening to throw him into bankruptcy, he came to me. Mob guys looked for business opportunities like this every day. Great way for us to own a business.<br /><br />Once the owner took my money, or used my name, I owned him. He wasn’t about to get a pay hike when he owed me money. He wasn’t buying a new car or taking any paid vacations either. I didn’t care how hard he worked. And if he didn’t toe the line, I would throw him out and take the company over.<br /><br />From what I’m hearing, the government knew about the bonuses some time ago. Some of them even approved of the payouts. Some of them even got campaign contributions from the AIG exec’s. So the tax thing was a good cover up. Good work, guys! It’s a move right out of Machiavelli’s play book.<br /><br />You know Machiavelli? He’s the Mafia’s champion. As a former capo regime of La Cosa Nostra’s Colombo Crime family, I am very familiar with Machiavelli. For almost 20 years, I lived and conducted business under his philosophy.<br /><br />“A Prince must have a mind disposed to turn itself about as the winds, able to do good when he can and evil when he must,” Machiavelli wrote. “Still, even though on the inside he is able to scheme, he should appear to him who sees and hears him altogether merciful, faithful, humane, upright and religious.”<br /><br />Sound familiar?<br /><br />In his sixteenth century treatise entitled, "The Prince," Niccolo Machiavelli wrote those words advising his prince of the "virtues" he must exercise in ruling his kingdom. Seems like convicted money manager Bernard Madoff and some of the CEOs of AIG, Lehman Brothers, Countrywide Mortgage, Enron and a few dozen more of America’s corporate honchos … and now, the government itself has taken Machiavelli's advice to heart in the operation of their respective enterprises.<br /><br />I would not be surprised to find a copy of "The Prince" on the desks of more than a few of Washington's elite. Would you? Their misguided and in some cases illicit leadership contributed significantly to the financial meltdown of the United States economy, the magnitude of which has not been seen for decades. If you think they will get off scot free, FUGGEDABOUTIT!<br /><br />At the height of my operation, I was bringing $8 - $10 million a week into the Colombo Family coffers from business interests I had in the gasoline, entertainment, auto and gambling industries. Although I enjoyed success for a time, Machiavelli’s business philosophy eventually brought me three racketeering indictments, $15 million in fines and restitutions, untold legal fees and a 10-year federal prison sentence.<br /><br />Mob guys ought to be worried. First the government took a tip from them and realized there was big money in gambling. Now the government is taking control of businesses the same way. And they don’t even have to worry about the racketeering indictments they slammed me and my former associates with for doing the same thing. They called it extortion when the mob did it. Seems like I left the life just in time. Too much competition!<br /><br />Michael Franzese was once one of the biggest mob money earners since Al Capone - and the youngest individual on Fortune Magazine's “50 Biggest Mafia Bosses.” Michael’s new book, “I’ll Make You an Offer You Can’t Refuse – Insider Business Tips from a Former Mob Boss” will be released on March 31. Go Here to pre-order.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/Franzese_govt_like_mob/2009/03/24/195379.html">Source</a>.<br /><br /><blockquote>I can also dedicate a song to Hugo Chavez in regards of this topic...</blockquote><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/VtGKtNu3GXg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/VtGKtNu3GXg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Ah ja!FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-41423757099297169612009-03-07T19:47:00.000-08:002009-03-07T19:59:59.032-08:00Words of wisdom from uncle Margaret<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/okHGCz6xxiw&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/okHGCz6xxiw&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />No teleprompter folks...FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-7016221091106971632009-03-06T15:32:00.001-08:002009-03-06T15:51:01.338-08:00Whoopi Goldberg is "Mad as Hell" About the Increasing Tax Burden<span style="font-style: italic;">Really? I don't think I need to add a comment to this post... some democrats are waking up from their democratic pink </span><span style="font-style: italic;">(or commie red?) </span><span style="font-style: italic;">cloud and starting to be very vocal about what the rest who didn't vote for him knew, the incompetency of a newbie senator like Obama who was elected because he is black and kinda charming. Newsflash to <a href="http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/stars-heap-praise-on-obama-2009-01-21.html">Susan Sarandom</a>: Charm and skin color are irrelevant conditions for a Presidential job. He is not a movie star. </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBt1DEu-XKCWirOK0cq7Hf0p5HEN3dqKET3DZlZ_3FxCYpBy7qK964RLLPxYf06zyXHPJO3NC8X1iURJwcPek3UCkh4dqe-RAhqyhYivdM0Nake3BE-aGITn8NBICp202Fj7JCw/s1600-h/theviewobama.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBt1DEu-XKCWirOK0cq7Hf0p5HEN3dqKET3DZlZ_3FxCYpBy7qK964RLLPxYf06zyXHPJO3NC8X1iURJwcPek3UCkh4dqe-RAhqyhYivdM0Nake3BE-aGITn8NBICp202Fj7JCw/s400/theviewobama.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310222828463744898" border="0" /></a><br /><br />BEGIN TRANSCRIPT<br /><br />RUSH: Did you vote for this? There are people starting to have doubts. One of them is no less than Whoopi Goldberg, who went into a rant this morning on The View, talking to her cohost, Elisabeth Hasselbeck.<br /><br />GOLDBERG: You remember that movie Network? If you are just fed up, at some point, just lean out your window (laughter) and scream, "I'm mad as hell," 'cause that's what's happening to me. I'm losing my mind, because I don't understand why -- like they -- one of the things that I saw recently, they have this whole thing about taxing "the wealthy." Okay. Now, I don't mind that. I don't mind paying a little more tax 'cause I make a good living.<br /><br />HASSELBECK: Sure.<br /><br />GOLDBERG: But I don't want to get it coming and going. I don't want to get the federal raised and then the state raised and then the phone tax raised and then the television tax raised --<br /><br />HASSELBECK: City tax raised!<br /><br />GOLDBERG: -- and then the city tax. Back off me!<br /><br />RUSH: That is Whoopi Goldberg on The View today. It sounds like she might want Obama to fail. It sounds like she might not be fully with the program. She's starting to ask herself, "I voted for this?" She's right about something here, something that we haven't talked about. The federal tax increase, when the Bush tax cuts sunset, that'll take it up to 39.6%, then the charitable deductions. Guess what? Guess what people are just now starting to figure out? "Well, you know, if he reduces deductibility on charitable donations down to 28%, that means a lot fewer people going to be donating in the private sector!" That's right. "Well, guess who's going to come and take over?" The government is going to be in charge of charity. This is the plan! Whoopi, you're on the right path. You gotta understand what all these taxes on you mean.<br /><br />And you're right. The television tax... You're going to get a double whammy, triple whammy living in New York. How about this statistic: 25% of office space in New York is now vacant. I saw that this morning. I'm running that down. Twenty-five percent of office space in New York vacant? They're going to have to raise taxes, Whoopi. They're going to have to raise taxes. So, in addition to the federal, the states are going to see that, and the states are going to raise taxes, and then the city is gonna raise taxes. You're going to have taxes raised everywhere. I'll tell you, it's very simple, folks. It's because everybody is spending money they don't have. They are spending money that has not even yet been printed. They're spending money that has not yet been earned.<br /><br />They are spending wealth that has not yet been created.<br /><br />Your children's children, your great-grandchildren, they are broke the moment they're born. They are broke when they get their first job. Whoopi Goldberg is one of the 40,000 people in New York City that pay over half New York City's budget operations. Forty thousand people out of eight million, Whoopi, pay and make New York happen -- and the mayor is concerned that some people might start leaving if he raises their taxes. But he's going to have no choice, the way he thinks. Whoopi, I am #1. I got out of there in 1997, and they still audit me every year. You could be #2. You could tell Barbara Walters that you want a satellite studio in Florida, where there is no state income tax, same time zone, you could be on remote. You could see Robin Williams -- who's in the hospital down here, poor guy, with heart problems.<br /><br />But if Whoopi Goldberg is starting to see this, starting to feel it... She thinks everybody is coming at her now. They're coming at her both ways. I don't care how long it took. I don't care why she started realizing it. The fact is, she has. I hope... I always run the risk here, folks, when I point these things out -- in trying to praise people, in trying to lavish praise on somebody like Whoopi -- that she'll be offended that I'm the one praising her and go back on The View minimum and totally change her opinion. Since I agree with her, she can't afford have that position and start back up her tax increases or what have you, but hopefully not.<br /><br />END TRANSCRIPT<br /><br /><a href="http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_030609/content/01125109.guest.html">Source</a>.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-16399363858776095862009-03-05T16:42:00.000-08:002009-05-20T09:32:01.933-07:00A Feline problem: Paralelism in the speech of Obama and Chavez<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhybUXo0k7in2y_99dCLnktwqTin2YoC102BvGbg7qWWrGoApmgRWz3EcHlx2RyQtHISIQ49nTZqcG4huaI9MVZqEDIeZ9z8HJSoT3jWdLsR-7W8FZHQizkRUKontLECBd-RPaxmQ/s1600-h/lenin.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhybUXo0k7in2y_99dCLnktwqTin2YoC102BvGbg7qWWrGoApmgRWz3EcHlx2RyQtHISIQ49nTZqcG4huaI9MVZqEDIeZ9z8HJSoT3jWdLsR-7W8FZHQizkRUKontLECBd-RPaxmQ/s320/lenin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309889754325511186" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePds275ab_ujrCOxrNLR7iw79CYfXkQvy5y5yWnDddpBzDQKfN5lTKDW8s7SF86xYVLpn1zasVByA-1K-fX8czz4_wTy0ncID10YK7DPsWqxOY1BNRSPK-_FwlFXeqyLfKm28-Q/s1600-h/jim+cramer.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 195px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePds275ab_ujrCOxrNLR7iw79CYfXkQvy5y5yWnDddpBzDQKfN5lTKDW8s7SF86xYVLpn1zasVByA-1K-fX8czz4_wTy0ncID10YK7DPsWqxOY1BNRSPK-_FwlFXeqyLfKm28-Q/s320/jim+cramer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309889617785923778" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Please wach this <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1053363824&play=1">video</a> first.<br /><br />And, bear with me on this one. I have been very vocal for the reasons I don't like Obama. Since the beginning when Obama came to public light I saw a type of Manchurian candidate sponsored by the left that reminded me pretty much, despite the differences, to madman numero uno of Venezuela, the one and only Hugo Chavez. I might be wrong comparing Obama to Chavez, and I hope I am. OK, enough with the conspiracy theory.<br /><br />And, this is the reality.<br /><br />Even though I don't like Obama, I personally saw it was a good thing that he won since it was gonna be a transition from 8 years of not the best Republican government (and not a conservative government at all), and this Obama new government representes in the eyes of many, a new, fresh and reformed way to do politics so that's good. Also, it was gonna be good news for Venezuela since Venezuelans like Obama and since it's much harder for a leftist to go against another leftist, Chavez would have to let go the stupid anti Yankee speech that maintains him in office and he wouldn't have other choice than to get to work and assume the responsibility of the mess that he is doing in Venezuela.<br /><br />Obviously, such great news that Obama won also had to be reflected somehow in the financial markets. As you know, the financial markets need good news. That amount of Obama voters who were happy that his leader won, would be putting money in the market, investing, buying, lending and borrowing money, etc... and helping out a little bit to get out of this recession. BUT the good news haven't been reflected in the markets or the economy yet. It's pretty obvious to me ONE of the MANY VARIOUS reasons why. The Obama administration speech haven't been the best in terms of adding that much needed CONFIDENCE to the market.<br /><br />I have listened some things from this Obama administration that really are not that great,<br /><br />1) The president telling his fellows Americans that they shouldn't listen to some radio talk show host (Rush Limbaught). Nothing new in Venezuela since Chavez took over that he loves to repress the media. Question is, since when it's the duty of a president elected democratically to tell their countrymen who they should or shouldn't listen to?<br /><br />2) Again the administration <a href="http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/03/to_cnbcs_kramer_welcome_to_the.html">attacking the media, this time Jim Cramer,</a> the tv host show whose video I posted in the beginning, who is a democrat btw. The attack was generated because he has been very critical about this administration policies not helping the financial markets. He also has been very vocal about his dislike for the new treasury secretary Tim Geithner for his invisibility since he was appointed and for letting Lehman go when he was the Fed NY president. If they would have helped Lehman, last September maybe wouldn't have been as tragic as it was . Since I like conspiracy theories I think maybe the man wanted the crisis to be the worst so it could help Obama with the electoral ballots. And, it worked. Hey, he even became the Treasury Secretary .<br /><br />Here's what Robert Gibbs said that made me really mad:<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">"(...) no offense to my good friends or friend at CNBC," Gibbs said, "but the President has to look out for the broader economy and for the broader population."</blockquote>Why it made me really mad? Because I have heard that so many times coming from the mouth of the Chavistas... like what does he mean with "broader" population? Doesn't he know that the majority of American and the country itself rely heavily on the stock market? How are they gonna create jobs if banks and business dissapear?<br /><br />That's why the market show no confidence at this moment, because that speech coming from the White House DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE.<br /><br />Tim Geithner also said something similar that got my attention -since it had the "Chavista" touch in it- when he was interviewed by the Congress with Ben Bernanke this Monday. He said something like that it's not in their interest (the Gov) to help the banks but the people. Hello? You make the bank that lends me money and offers me financial services go away and you are not helping me too much.<br /><br />To me, it seem that they really are taking cues of Hugo Chavez. That's not the way you add confidence and attract Capital, comrade Obama.<br /><br />3) How long until <a href="http://daniel-venezuela.blogspot.com/2009/03/cargill-and-polar-to-be-looted-by.html">this</a> might happen? The perfect recipe to scare investment and destroy any confidence left, to <a href="http://www.caracaschronicles.com/2009/03/headed-for-another-showdown.html">expropiate</a>. (thanks to Daniel and Juan Cristobal for their posts).<br /><br />Even though those two might be very different, and Mr. Chavez wants President Obama to be his new arch enemy -Bush is resting comfortably in his home in Dallas- one cannot but compare them in the way their governments are talking to the people. The difference is, that Americans are not Venezuelans, and a much bigger majority of Americans rely on the financial markets as a source of income, investment and nesting egg, including the majority of seniors of this country.<br /><br />I don't know where they want to go with this populistic anti-business speech, but it's not good news. Do they want to follow the road of Venezuela's impoverishment?FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-83975113537788066012009-03-04T16:01:00.000-08:002009-03-04T16:41:41.704-08:00Thank you Bruce Willis and Ben Aflect for saving the planet!<blockquote style="font-style: italic;">Who cares if Fidel is dead or not, or if Jim Cramer says <a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2009/03/03/video-cramer-goes-nuclear-on-obama-white-house-rips-cramer/">that Obama is a Leninist guilty of the greatest wealth destruction he has ever seen by any president</a><a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2009/03/03/video-cramer-goes-nuclear-on-obama-white-house-rips-cramer/">,</a> we almost cook today. Well, I am exaggerating a little bit, it was gonna be something like a small nuclear explosion so it would have been bad for the people around the explosion. I am glad we got to know after it was over. Imagine if they tell us before. Bad news is that it can happen anytime, and depending on the size of it it can mean a total mess... Like I don't have anything else to worry about. I don't need this type of information lurking in my brain right now.<br /><br />Thank you, God =D<br /></blockquote><object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oA1XNJbu7vo&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oA1XNJbu7vo&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><p>This YouTube video shows the asteroid's path.</p><p><strong>By Stewart Bishop, Globe Correspondent</strong></p> <p>Although Harvard University astronomer Timothy Spahr spends his life tracking asteroids and minor planets, it's rare when he gets the chance to see one up close.</p> <p>On Friday night, Spahr received word that an asteroid was headed our way. Though it received little publicity, the asteroid passed by Earth early Monday. At its closest, the asteroid, named 2009 DD45, came within 45,000 miles of Earth, which is around twice as high as some satellite orbits and about one-fifth of the distance between the moon and Earth. </p> <p>The cosmic object, which was estimated to be 20 yards to 30 yards across, came closest to Earth near the equator somewhere over the Pacific Ocean.</p> <p>It was about the same size as the one that burned up over Siberia in 1908, leveling nearly 800 square miles of forest in the infamous "Tunguska Event" event. </p> <p>"It's pretty unusual to see one this close," said Spahr, director of the minor-planet center at the <a href="http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/">Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics </a>in Cambridge. "If an object of this size were to impact the Earth, it would be equivalent to a small nuclear explosion." </p> <p>Brian Marden, a senior astronomer at the center, said that many such objects pass this close but go unobserved.</p> <p>"No one is watching the whole sky all the time," Marden said.</p> <p>He said that light and celestial objects like the moon can affect astronomers' visibility. "If the moon is full, no one is watching," Marden said.</p> <p>In October 2008, astronomers for the first time tracked an asteroid from space to its impact, when it burned up over Sudan, a mere six hours after it had been discovered.</p> <p>Spahr said that while asteroids the size of DD45 would pose a catastrophic risk for the planet, they are not the ones that concern him the most.</p> <p>"Now if an asteroid that was, say, a kilometer across were to strike the earth, that could result in mass extinction," Spahr said. Fortunately for humanity, such asteroids are usually visible several years in advance. </p> <p>Of the known asteroids, the next time one of such size will come in such close proximity to Earth is in 2029, when the asteroid known as 99942 Apophis, an 885-square-foot space rock, is expected to come within 20,000 miles of the planet.</p> <p><em>Material from the Associated Press was included in this report.</em></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/03/phew_asteroids.html">Source</a>.</span><br /><em></em></p>FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-72477557060775897572009-03-03T14:27:00.000-08:002009-03-03T14:38:14.534-08:00Is Fidel death?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjygWQ2yTiYQVPeJ6zPsaSwnWLAt0ICiYAFOvTcbneLPTQQwdnAJNlH7MW0W5FRqS6w9MYtsfSQ0Ql9D5zc_JkiHQAnWkuoaFpqu0nMDodKYJTnpUOlqTi-k3fd29OKt8C64m2YqQ/s1600-h/fidelcastro_ataud.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjygWQ2yTiYQVPeJ6zPsaSwnWLAt0ICiYAFOvTcbneLPTQQwdnAJNlH7MW0W5FRqS6w9MYtsfSQ0Ql9D5zc_JkiHQAnWkuoaFpqu0nMDodKYJTnpUOlqTi-k3fd29OKt8C64m2YqQ/s400/fidelcastro_ataud.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309093095935563554" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Chances are that this pict who has been circulating the internet is a very good made photoshop, however... could it be that they are holding the news in the last working freezer of the Island? mmmm.... Just read this, these two men, Felipe Perez Roque and Carlos Lage where ready to start chopping heads... maybe because the leader is death or ready to...<br /><br /><blockquote><p style="font-style: italic;">The article Castro published on a government Web site provides the first official hint of why two of the most powerful and public faces of the Cuban government were abruptly removed Monday in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1236114133_1">Cuba</span>'s largest leadership shakeup in decades.</p> <p style="font-style: italic;">Castro sniffed at suggestions that <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1236114133_2">President Raul Castro</span> is putting his personal stamp on the government he inherited from his older brother a year ago. He wrote that officials sought his advice "even though there was no law requiring those who named them to do that."</p> <p style="font-style: italic;">And he said the "two most mentioned" were too eager to advance.</p> <p style="font-style: italic;">"The honey of power, for which they had not sacrificed at all, awoke in them ambitions that led to an undignified role," he wrote. "The external enemy was filled with illusions for them."</p><p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090303/ap_on_re_us/cb_cuba_leadership_shakeup">Source</a>.<br /></p></blockquote>FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-3708148057118489832009-03-03T12:18:00.000-08:002009-03-03T12:21:24.577-08:00Need help with my templateDoes anybody knows why this black border line who comes after scrolling down this blog doesn't come all the way up? <br /><br />I don't know how to fix that, or take it out. It bothers me. Please, if somebody knows I will appreciate the feedback,<br /><br />Thanks,FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-50905898858049745682009-03-03T12:01:00.000-08:002009-03-03T12:26:36.924-08:00Apologies for a long time break. Hugo Chavez is a liar. Congratulations for the people who voted for him.Do I need to say more?<br /><br />Hello, I have been on a long time break since I have been really avoiding politics lately. Same all same all... with difference faces coming to the arena.<br /><br />As far as Venezuela news, I mean, how many times I need to post the stupidity that comes from Chavez's mouth over and over again? Always the same, the man haven't change a bit. He has a new arch enemy and he is black. <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gp5mZIIMIEEjC6xS4s0k9io4hwsw">But the speech is the same.</a> I dunno if I want to keep talking about Chavez or not, or Venezuela for that matter. And here in America, things are sour with the recession. I feel like the country. Depressed.<br /><br />As far as the latest Venezuelan elections, this is all I want to say. Chavez won his referendum to be President for life as long as he will be elected. We KNOW he will be elected indefinitely. Fidel is dead, Hugo is alive. Congratulations to the people who still believes in a man of his word like Hugo Chavez:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cvbdMg-X5GQ&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cvbdMg-X5GQ&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The stupidity has no limits. My question is, do I need to keep blogging about this? Sigh...<br /><br />I need urgent inspiration soon... cheers to all.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-91329624507820359352008-11-25T19:26:00.000-08:002008-11-25T20:19:23.913-08:00Venezuela's Chavez welcomes Russian warships, the first of its kind in the Caribbean since the Cold War<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihBCCLUAvaEj9XTTmqZ78a8WFYet_zAHE1LMsQtG5kXIHzmI3lnTiyqpqd0YtOq0XoUXiEZpap_DOPyTn7P6fYWLFELbQe8FMw8r08C05KMbtAhEzxia_XVJuB3h2HkPRT2oI2BQ/s1600-h/russia-venezuela.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 311px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihBCCLUAvaEj9XTTmqZ78a8WFYet_zAHE1LMsQtG5kXIHzmI3lnTiyqpqd0YtOq0XoUXiEZpap_DOPyTn7P6fYWLFELbQe8FMw8r08C05KMbtAhEzxia_XVJuB3h2HkPRT2oI2BQ/s400/russia-venezuela.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272810260864754098" border="0" /></a><br /><br />On May 8, 2007, this blog made a <a href="http://feathersblog.blogspot.com/2007/05/remember-machurucuto.html">memorial post</a> about the events that happened on May 19, 1967 in Machurucuto beach in Venezuela, when Fidel Castro and his communist ilk tried to invade the coast in an attempt to introduce communist guerrilla in the country.<br /><br />It is worthy to mention the proud Venezuelan patriots who died defending their country on that bloody day of May, 1967:<br /><br />Mayor (Av.) Pedro J González,<br /><br />ST1 (A.C.) Jesús Eduardo Bermúdez,<br /><br />Teniente (a.C.) Jesús E. Rodríguez,<br /><br />Subteniente (a.C.) José Monsalve Planchara,<br /><br />MT2 (a.C.) Irradio Jesús Herrera,<br /><br />ST3 (A.C.) Pablo Carero Muñoz,<br /><br />Teniente Coronel (A.C.) Juan Ignacio Leyceaga,<br /><br />Capitán (a.C.) Diego Lavado Castillo,<br /><br />Capitán de Corbeta Fabio Galipolli,<br /><br />Teniente (Ej.) Leonel Ramón Tapia,<br /><br />Tte. (Ej.) Abelardo Estrada Vale,<br /><br />Tte. (Ej.) Lino Irribarren Forzan,<br /><br />Tte. (GN) Juan Bautista León,<br /><br />Tte. (GN) Andrés Moreno Uribe,<br /><br />Tte. (Ej.) Jesús Ávila Paolini and,<br /><br />Subteniente (Ej.) Alberto Verde Graterol, (brother of a revolutionary chavista General).<br /><br />Today, we can say that the blood of those Venezuelans heroic patriots was spilled in vain and it is totally disregarded in mockery by Venezuela's communist president, Hugo Chavez, when he allowed Russian warships to arrive this Tuesday, in a (...) <span style="font-style: italic;">show of strength aimed at the United States as Moscow seeks to expand its influence in Latin America.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><blockquote>Venezuelan sailors fired off cannons in a 21-gun salute as the destroyer Admiral Chabanenko docked in La Guaira, near Caracas. Russians sailors dressed in black-and-white uniforms lined up along the bow.<br /><br />The deployment is the first of its kind in the Caribbean since the Cold War and was timed to coincide with President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to Caracas — the first ever by a Russian president. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has eagerly welcomed the ships, basking in the support of a powerful ally and traditional U.S. rival. Via <a href="http://www.gmanews.tv/story/135656/Venezuelas-Chavez-welcomes-Russian-warships">GMANews.tv</a>.<br /></blockquote></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPU1Ws59hL-8kgWWbSViOTVvqqXvh99_dhERfdTA0tqqVC2sQSL0s9ypu1y0twiOwBmIQh2LPJZu_qLtJbT3vktiqNl_W7HPRhBmxEYMzEfrm5Pa0kXGodA4A6Aw1gJbDiNouIsA/s1600-h/chavez_castro.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPU1Ws59hL-8kgWWbSViOTVvqqXvh99_dhERfdTA0tqqVC2sQSL0s9ypu1y0twiOwBmIQh2LPJZu_qLtJbT3vktiqNl_W7HPRhBmxEYMzEfrm5Pa0kXGodA4A6Aw1gJbDiNouIsA/s400/chavez_castro.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272810599052611730" border="0" /></a> <span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_h6aveU_UjL7-x66EsdynCX4YXTawoEquW5hnucgLMoBCQ76tpkNfFIIa__dnmohY7vi8MyNOWa88a2KeIfjueg2Ot9Wz1VnUcnfrzrPywS_Xdm5N0z90kMs9VR9fpOKvGiaqg/s1600-h/ChavezPutin.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_h6aveU_UjL7-x66EsdynCX4YXTawoEquW5hnucgLMoBCQ76tpkNfFIIa__dnmohY7vi8MyNOWa88a2KeIfjueg2Ot9Wz1VnUcnfrzrPywS_Xdm5N0z90kMs9VR9fpOKvGiaqg/s400/ChavezPutin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272810790977187458" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></span></span></span></span>Hugo, looking like Tony Soprano, with Raul Castro and Vladimir Putin.<br /><br />Shame on Hugo Chavez and his traitors.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-12482001317494456232008-11-22T01:44:00.000-08:002008-11-22T01:50:31.914-08:00Philip Berg questions Obama's birth certificateInteresting video,<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gA6_k3NtXZs&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gA6_k3NtXZs&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-21648651066715845502008-11-13T10:54:00.000-08:002008-11-13T11:22:15.641-08:00Camille Paglia on Obama and PalinRefreshing <a href="http://www.salon.com/opinion/paglia/2008/11/12/palin/">thoughts</a> from an Obama liberal and a feminist who is not into group thinking.<br /><br />On Obama's birth certificate:<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">In the closing weeks of the election, however, I became increasingly disturbed by the mainstream media's avoidance of forthright dealing with several controversies that had been dogging Obama -- even as every flimsy rumor about Sarah Palin was being trumpeted as if it were engraved in stone on Mount Sinai. For example, I had thought for many months that the flap over Obama's birth certificate was a tempest in a teapot. But simple questions about the certificate were never resolved to my satisfaction. Thanks to their own blathering, fanatical overkill, of course, the right-wing challenges to the birth certificate never gained traction.<br /><br />But Obama could have ended the entire matter months ago by publicly requesting Hawaii to issue a fresh, long-form, stamped certificate and inviting a few high-profile reporters in to examine the document and photograph it. (The campaign did make the "short-form" certificate available to Factcheck.org, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.) And why has Obama not made his university records or thesis work widely available? The passivity of the press toward Bush administration propaganda about weapons of mass destruction led the nation into the costly blunder of the Iraq war. We don't need another presidency that finds it all too easy to rely on evasion or stonewalling. I deeply admire Obama, but as a voter I don't like feeling gamed or played.</blockquote>On Obama's connection with Bill Ayers:<br /><p></p><blockquote style="font-style: italic;"><p>Another issue that I initially dismissed was the flap over William Ayers, the Chicago-based former member of the violent Weather Underground. Conservative radio host Sean Hannity began the drumbeat about Ayers' association with Obama a year ago -- a theme that most of the mainstream media refused to investigate or even report until this summer. I had never heard of Ayers and couldn't have cared less. I was irritated by Hillary Clinton's aggressive flagging of Ayers in a debate, and I accepted Obama's curt dismissal of the issue.</p><p>Hence my concern about Ayers has been very slow in developing. The mainstream media should have fully explored the subject early this year and not allowed it to simmer and boil until it flared up ferociously in the last month of the campaign. Obama may not in recent years have been "pallin' around" with Ayers, in Sarah Palin's memorable line, but his past connections with Ayers do seem to have been more frequent and substantive than he has claimed. Blame for the failure of this issue to take hold must also accrue to the conservative talk shows, which use the scare term "radical" with simplistic sensationalism, blanketing everyone under the sun from scraggly ex-hippies to lipstick-chic Nancy Pelosi.<br /><br />Pursuing the truth about Ayers, I recently rented the 2002 documentary "The Weather Underground," from Netflix. It was riveting. Although the film seems to waver between ominous exposé and blatant whitewash, the full extent of the group's bombing campaign is dramatically demonstrated. It's not for everyone: The film uses gratuitous cutaways of horrifying carnage, from the Vietnam War to the Manson murders (such as Sharon Tate's smiling corpse, bathed in blood). But the news footage of the Greenwich Village townhouse destroyed in 1970 by bomb-making gone wrong in the basement still has enormous impact. Standing in the chaotic street, actor Dustin Hoffman, who lived next door, seems like Everyman at the apocalypse.<br /><br />Ayers comes off in the film as a vapid, slightly dopey, chronic juvenile with stunted powers of ethical reasoning. The real revelation is his wife, Bernardine Dohrn (who evidently worked at the same large Chicago law firm as Michelle Obama in the mid-1990s). Of course I had heard of Dohrn -- hers was one of the most notorious names of our baby-boom generation -- and I knew her black-and-white police mug shot. But I had never seen footage of her speaking or interacting with others. Well, it's pretty obvious who wears the pants in that family!<br /><br />The mystery of Bernardine Dohrn: How could such a personable, attractive, well-educated young woman end up saying such things at a 1969 political rally as this (omitted in the film) about the Manson murders: "Dig it. First they killed those pigs, then they ate dinner in the same room with them. They even shoved a fork into a victim's stomach. Wild!" And how could Dohrn have so ruthlessly pursued a decade-long crusade of hatred and terrorism against innocent American citizens and both private and public property?<br /><br />"The Weather Underground" never searches for answers, but it does show Dohrn, then and now, as a poised, articulate woman of extremely high intelligence and surprising inwardness. The audio extra of her reading the collective's first public communiqué ("Revolutionary violence is the only way") is chilling. But the tumultuous footage of her 1980 surrender to federal authorities is a knockout. Mesmerized, I ran the clip six or seven times of her seated at a lawyer's table while reading her still defiant statement. The sober scene -- with Dohrn hyper-alert in a handsome turtleneck and tweedy jacket -- was tailor-made for Jane Fonda in her "Klute" period, androgynous shag. Only illegalities by federal investigators prevented Dohrn from being put away on ice for a long, long time.<br /><br />Given that Obama had served on a Chicago board with Ayers and approved funding of a leftist educational project sponsored by Ayers, one might think that the unrepentant Ayers-Dohrn couple might be of some interest to the national media. But no, reporters have been too busy playing mini-badminton with every random spitball about Sarah Palin, who has been subjected to an atrocious and at times delusional level of defamation merely because she has the temerity to hold pro-life views.</p></blockquote><p></p>On Sarah Palin:<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">How dare Palin not embrace abortion as the ultimate civilized ideal of modern culture? How tacky that she speaks in a vivacious regional accent indistinguishable from that of Western Canada! How risible that she graduated from the University of Idaho and not one of those plush, pampered commodes of received opinion whose graduates, in their rush to believe the worst about her, have demonstrated that, when it comes to sifting evidence, they don't know their asses from their elbows.<br /><br />Liberal Democrats are going to wake up from their sadomasochistic, anti-Palin orgy with a very big hangover. The evil genie released during this sorry episode will not so easily go back into its bottle. A shocking level of irrational emotionalism and at times infantile rage was exposed at the heart of current Democratic ideology -- contradicting Democratic core principles of compassion, tolerance and independent thought. One would have to look back to the Eisenhower 1950s for parallels to this grotesque lock-step parade of bourgeois provincialism, shallow groupthink and blind prejudice.<br /><br />I like Sarah Palin, and I've heartily enjoyed her arrival on the national stage. As a career classroom teacher, I can see how smart she is -- and quite frankly, I think the people who don't see it are the stupid ones, wrapped in the fuzzy mummy-gauze of their own worn-out partisan dogma. So she doesn't speak the King's English -- big whoop! There is a powerful clarity of consciousness in her eyes. She uses language with the jumps, breaks and rippling momentum of a be-bop saxophonist. I stand on what I said (as a staunch pro-choice advocate) in my last two columns -- that Palin as a pro-life wife, mother and ambitious professional represents the next big shift in feminism. Pro-life women will save feminism by expanding it, particularly into the more traditional Third World.<br /><br />As for the Democrats who sneered and howled that Palin was unprepared to be a vice-presidential nominee -- what navel-gazing hypocrisy! What protests were raised in the party or mainstream media when John Edwards, with vastly less political experience than Palin, got John Kerry's nod for veep four years ago? And Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas, for whom I lobbied to be Obama's pick and who was on everyone's short list for months, has a record indistinguishable from Palin's. Whatever knowledge deficit Palin has about the federal bureaucracy or international affairs (outside the normal purview of governors) will hopefully be remedied during the next eight years of the Obama presidencies.<br /><br />The U.S. Senate as a career option? What a claustrophobic, nitpicking comedown for an energetic Alaskan -- nothing but droning committees and incestuous back-scratching. No, Sarah Palin should stick to her governorship and just hit the rubber-chicken circuit, as Richard Nixon did in his long haul back from political limbo following his California gubernatorial defeat in 1962. Step by step, the mainstream media will come around, wipe its own mud out of its eyes, and see Palin for the populist phenomenon that she is.</blockquote>More on Paglia, <a href="http://feathersblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/camillle-paglia-on-palin.html">here</a> and <a href="http://feathersblog.blogspot.com/2008/01/meeting-of-minds.html">here</a>.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-46497204974033406362008-11-10T17:24:00.000-08:002008-11-10T17:28:19.072-08:00The only way is upby Ben Whitford<br /><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2008/nov/07/barack-obama-latin-america"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">A similarly cautious approach is likely when it comes to Venezuela. When Hugo Chávez this week welcomed Obama's "grand triumph" and declared himself open to meeting the president-elect to forge a "constructive bilateral agenda", the Obama camp issued a terse statement noting that relations between Washington and Caracas "will not improve unless Venezuela respects democracy and the rule of law." That caution is probably well-founded: while the end of the Maletagate trial and of the Bush era brings real hope for an easing of tensions between Venezuela and the US, Chávez may well continue to retreat into anti-Americanism when confronted with political crises. With regional elections looming and domestic tensions running high, it's far from clear whether Chávez's affection for Obama will last beyond inauguration day.</span></a>FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-73081194226390301642008-11-10T12:18:00.000-08:002009-05-20T09:35:04.514-07:00The truth about Prop. 8<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigtEeIEz_aHGPKZHQMcfCpIanoawgyuQ9u1K-mI791te3DmZHuXv5PgHRMkjx0a-UyzHJFU7oZjWiN6O8X4u0G82sUf3BTRkBGJlEOzrcuFfzOiGYpTzPnfXCr32_YmZKUgCNaVA/s1600-h/GayMarriage01.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 311px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigtEeIEz_aHGPKZHQMcfCpIanoawgyuQ9u1K-mI791te3DmZHuXv5PgHRMkjx0a-UyzHJFU7oZjWiN6O8X4u0G82sUf3BTRkBGJlEOzrcuFfzOiGYpTzPnfXCr32_YmZKUgCNaVA/s400/GayMarriage01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267144165189569730" border="0" /></a><br /><br />As you might now, since it was widely publicized wordwide, Californians voted for his constitution to have an amendment and keep marriage between a man and a woman.<br /><br />The title they are looking to add to Californians constitution is this:<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">"Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."</blockquote><span>Californians have voted twice for the same issue. "For eight years, California’s 2000 ballot initiative Proposition 22 prevented California from recognizing same-sex marriages. Voters adopted the measure on March 7, 2000 with 61.4% approval and 38.6% against. (...) On May 15, 2008, the California Supreme Court struck down this initiative and related California law in a 4-3 decision, giving same-sex couples the right to marry". <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Proposition_22_%282000%29">Source</a>.<br /><br />There were a lot of legal problems with this proposition, and it was label as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of California, on May 15, 2008. After that date, a lot of gay couples rushed to get married so they could have their marriage license. Among them, Rosie O'Donell and George Takei, "Sulu" from Star Trek.<br /><br />The problem with this ruling is that it leaves the majority of Californians who approved this measure without any say on this matter. So the Judiciary branch imposes itself on top of the legislative one. What's up with that?<br /><br />Then, on this past elections, Californians tackle the issue again, this time passing a prop for an amendment to the California Constitution.<br /><br />The measure is not welcome by non informed California voters who were against this prop because they claim they don't have equality.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/EhWFryhQ0oY&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/EhWFryhQ0oY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />There has been some <a href="http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_10938555?source=rss">protests</a>, a lot of <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pam-spaulding/the-n-bomb-is-dropped-on_b_142363.html">internet heat between the liberal</a> (because </span><span><a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2008/11/70-of-african-a.html">70% of Blacks</a> voted FOR Prop 8) </span><span>and <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,5585,00.html#1_0">against the Mormon specifically</a>, also <a href="http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_10943059?source=rss">here</a>, dunno why.<br /><br />Yes, the people united voted FOR prop. 8. That's usually the way it works on a democracy. By the way they are behaving they look more than </span><span>intolerant fascist than people raised in democracy.</span><span> What are they gonna do now? What is funny about all this insanity, is that any voter who wants to get into the issue a little bit in deep, can do a little internet info search and realize that this is not about marriage equality, since we have The California Family Code, sec 297 and 297.5, who cannot be more clear about this matter:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">297.(a) Domestic partners are two adults who have chosen to share one another's lives in an intimate and committed relationship of</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">mutual caring.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">(b)A domestic partnership shall be established in California when</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">both persons file a Declaration of Domestic Partnership with the</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Secretary of State pursuant to this division, and, at the time of</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">filing, all of the following requirements are met:</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> (...)</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> (A) Both persons are members of the same sex.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">297.5.(a) Registered domestic partners shall have the same rights,</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> protections, and benefits, and shall be subject to the same</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law, whether they</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> derive from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules,</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> government policies, common law, or any other provisions or sources</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> of law, as are granted to and imposed upon spouses.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">(...)</span><a href="http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cacodes/fam/297-297.5.html"> Source</a>.</span><br /><br />Sooo... guess what? Lesbian and guy couples already have the same spouse status as married people if they file under domestic partnership.<br /><br />So, what this is all about? Hmmm... Am I missing something in here? Please let me know.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-47331601674440606392008-11-08T19:42:00.000-08:002009-05-20T09:38:47.632-07:00Low class actOnly when I decided to write something nice about Obama, like, praising <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/usDollarRpt/idUSN0750259920081108">his Lincolnesque speech</a> about the elections are over and this is the time for everybody to roll the sleeves and work all united, the man decides to make fun of an 87 year-old ex-first lady making a fine display of low class. Is this gonna set the tone of his presidency? I might be too sensitive about the issue... anyway but I didn't like The President of the United States making fun of an old lady. There are some things that a President better not say.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/59XB68F54kA&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/59XB68F54kA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Maybe the ghost of Ronnie will pull this bad boy's toes at night while he is sleeping in the White House.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-89985638881366997182008-10-27T21:50:00.000-07:002008-11-02T18:33:51.436-08:00The Many Words of the Revolution.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqanovbKZCOQ4CfBWKCzZ0ompIsnWSeGX1MmL5GrIzyFYxT9DJigUq902Bb_aAVu4JfSojxjbnEj8c5OPBzlRh9B8yHUneRitiJh5iypTETHcgV4rhxZF8mhnnBLAMjUYRj3ab1g/s1600-h/byrn-02-l.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 218px; height: 275px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqanovbKZCOQ4CfBWKCzZ0ompIsnWSeGX1MmL5GrIzyFYxT9DJigUq902Bb_aAVu4JfSojxjbnEj8c5OPBzlRh9B8yHUneRitiJh5iypTETHcgV4rhxZF8mhnnBLAMjUYRj3ab1g/s320/byrn-02-l.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262073955614687250" border="0" /></a>In a parallel world, Venezuela and Hugo Chavez are not realities but characters from Orwell's "Animal Farm".<br /><br />Having said that, that's the last thing I want to talk about Hugo Chavez for the moment. I am tired of politics, of the American elections, of the sewer that brings everything related to Hugo Chavez and their Chavista mono neural corrupted revolution from hell.<br /><br />Anyway, since this blog was originally modeled like a Seinfeld episode, a blog about everything and nothing -politics and religion included, I am gonna be faithful to the original mission statement of talking about whatever that catches my interest for the day(s).<br /><br />And today's topic isssss.... that's right, you guessed it! The Many-Worlds interpretations of Quantum Mechanics.<br /><br />Watch this special on <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/manyworlds/program.html">Nova</a> about the guy who developed the theory of parallel words, Hugh Everett III. It's gonna be online until the 28th, so hurry up. If you are not able to watch it, at least check out <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/manyworlds/byrne.html">this reading</a> about the theory.<br /><br />Or, you can watch the same documentary (the BBC version) at the comfort of Feathers's Blog, thanks to the generosity of youtube and yours truly, :P<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/p/BB051F3E0D796007"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/p/BB051F3E0D796007" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />More about Everett <a href="http://space.mit.edu/home/tegmark/everett/everett.html">here</a>.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7616130.post-82527961813308652562008-10-02T00:23:00.000-07:002008-10-02T01:30:52.828-07:00Why the bailout plan is not only about Wall Street<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40_gSWsUEu7NobvSppL4U30Yd4oufiod8STmvmpm2AaYXGEZy2l_vZzii0LPY7NbCHm36f19zbOFYtLSglUNiEdQPs-bj9Rur1TMgHNXaS8LgmpPePK7haSB7Jewu8jZAhCOSPg/s1600-h/warren_buffett.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 207px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40_gSWsUEu7NobvSppL4U30Yd4oufiod8STmvmpm2AaYXGEZy2l_vZzii0LPY7NbCHm36f19zbOFYtLSglUNiEdQPs-bj9Rur1TMgHNXaS8LgmpPePK7haSB7Jewu8jZAhCOSPg/s320/warren_buffett.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252463627572606290" border="0" /></a>Very interesting commentary about the economic credit crisis and the bailout plan from investor extraordinaire Warren Buffett, who was interviewed today by CNBC’s Becky Quick.<br /><br />Here is an excerpt of it.<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">"Quick: WHEN WE TALKED LAST WEEK ABOUT GOLDMAN SACHS, YOU SAID THE REASON YOU WERE DOING THAT DEAL IS BECAUSE YOU ASSUMED SOMETHING WOULD GET THROUGH CONGRESS. THAT PLAN RAN INTO A WALL THIS WEEK. ARE YOU STILL EXPECTING SOME SORT OF DEAL WILL BE MADE?<br /><br />Buffett: THE CONGRESS WILL DO THE RIGHT THING WHEN THEY UNDERSTAND. THEY MAY GET SIDETRACKED AS THEY DID EARLIER THIS WEEK. THERE'S NO QUESTION ABOUT THE PATRIOTISM AND WILLINGNESS TO ACT IN THE INTEREST OF THE COUNTRY. IT WON'T BE 435 TO NOTHING, BUT I'M BETTING THEY'LL ACT RESPONSIBLY ON THIS. I HAVE EVERY EXPECTATION THEY WILL, BUT I'LL STILL FEEL BETTER AFTER THE VOTES HAVE BEEN COUNTED.<br /><br />Quick: THE DEAL WITH GE TODAY AND GOLDMAN LAST WEEK, ARE THESE STILL GOOD DEALS IF NOTHING GETS THROUGH CONGRESS?<br /><br />Buffett: NO. I THINK WE HAVE TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE PROBLEMS. I SAID TWO WEEKS AGO THAT IT WAS AN ECONOMIC PEARL HARBOR. TWO WEEKS LATER, WE'RE IN WORSE SHAPE BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT TO DELAY WHEN THERE IS A NATIONAL EMERGENCY. I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY OBVIOUS TO A MAJORITY OF CONGRESS. I THINK WE'LL GET ACTION. IF WE DON'T, I WILL HAVE DONE SOME DUMB THINGS.<br /><br />Quick: THE HOLDUPS OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS, HOW DAMAGING IS THAT TO THE UNITED STATES ECONOMY?<p class="textBodyBlack">Buffett: IT HURTS. YOU'VE HAD AN ECONOMY THAT'S LIKE A GREAT ATHLETE THAT'S HAD A HEART ATTACK, CARDIAC ARREST, AND THE PARAMEDICS THAT HAVE COME, INSTEAD OF ARGUING WHO WAS AT FAULT, THE ATHLETES SHOULD HAVE BEEN CHECKING HIS BLOOD PRESSURE MORE CAREFULLY. THE IMPORTANT THING IS TO APPLY THE RESUSCITATOR. IT DOESN'T HELP SPENDING TIME WORRYING ABOUT WHO IS TO BLAME FOR THE PATIENT HAVING THE HEART ATTACK.</p><p class="textBodyBlack">(...)<br /></p>Quick: MR. BUFFETT, WE HAVE HEARD FROM PLENTY OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE WRITTEN US AND CALLED IT AND SAID THEY'RE AGAINST THIS RESCUE PLAN BECAUSE THEY THINK IT'S A BAILOUT FOR WALL STREET. YOU'VE COME OUT IN FAVOR, BUT HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN THIS TO THE AVERAGE AMERICAN WHO DOESN'T HAVE A LOT INVESTED IN THE STOCK MARKET. WHAT DO THEY HAVE AT STAKE?<br /><br />Buffett: THERE IS NO QUESTION THIS IS A RESCUE PLAN, BUT IT'S A RESCUE PLAN FOR THE AMERICAN ECONOMY NOT WALL STREET. IF YOU LOOK AT HE PEOPLE AT LEHMAN OR BEAR STEARNS OR AIG, THE SHAREHOLDERS HAVE GOTTEN KILLED AND A LOT OF THE PEOPLE ARE LOSING JOBS OR LOSING BONUSES AND ALL KIND OF THINGS. THIS IS DESIGNED TO HELP THE AMERICAN ECONOMY FROM GOING INTO THE ULTIMATE TAIL SPIN, BUT WHEN CREDIT IS FROZEN AND WHEN BANKS ARE UNWILLING TO LEND TO EACH OTHER AND 8% OF DEPOSITS IN AMERICAN BANKS HAVE BEEN MOVED -- THESE ARE -- THIS IS AN ECONOMIC PEARL HARBOR AND ONLY THE WHOLE WORLD WANTS TO DELEVERAGE. THE ONLY ENTITY IN THE WORLD THAT CAN LEVERAGE UP TO MATCH THAT FORCE IS THE U.S. TREASURY. THEY ARE NOT DOING THIS FOR WALLSTREET. THIS IS BEING DONE FOR THE AMERICAN ECONOMY."</blockquote>Read and watch a video of the interview <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/26976554">here</a>.<br /><br />On a different level, and very much different than Buffett's opinion, read the free market brilliant epiphany from the man who have almost destroyed the entire oil business in Venezuela, <a href="http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200809301301DOWJONESDJONLINE000482_FORTUNE5.htm">here</a>.FeathersMcGrawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03135660362823307298noreply@blogger.com0