First They Came For The Enemy Combatants

She continued: "That is perhaps only a nuance, but it demonstrates that we want to move away from the politics of fear toward a policy of being prepared for all risks that can occur."

You know when they use the word "nuance" that they're trying so very hard to be politically correct.
Yeah, let's not make those terrorists mad--being called terrorists is what sets them off.
Dolt.

"Man-caused disasters" is a pretty broad category. Does it include the sub-prime mortgage crisis, the bank and auto firm bailouts, and the massive decline in the Dow that has resulted from O!bama's relentless denigration of the US economy?

How about the collapse of the mainstream media, California's fiscal implosion, and the impending Kevorkianization of the US economy at the hands of O!bama's plan for regulating and taxing carbon?

I think it would also be fair to characterize the Liberals' performance in the last election as another "man-caused disaster".

Incidentally, does this mean that the Pelosi-driven "stimulus" package is a "woman-caused disaster"?

This is what happens when idiots are allowed to decide what words mean.

" man caused disasters..." ??

Is the NDP running Homeland Security !?

What will they call a bomb? - 'an unfortunate noise and shrapnel propelling device' ?

"Our policies will be guided by authoritative information. We also have assets at our disposal now that we did not have prior to 9/11. For example, we are much better able to keep track of travellers coming into the US than we were before." Oh.....would those be, for example, the things that Bush put in place after 9/11 but which the Democrats incessantly howled were "infringements on civil liberties"? Apparently they are no longer "infringements on civil liberties". The Obama administration is a laughing stock....already.

Maureen DOWD, the very queen of DemocRat shills, is p.o.ed at Obama?

Oh, this guy is SO screwed.

We now move into Obama's PC world of Newspeak, where we put natural disasters on the same moral and effectual level as 'man-caused' disasters.

Not even 'man-made' but 'man-caused' which is an even more tortuous distortion of language.

Intentionality is completely removed, for, like the natural world, such disasters are pure accidents of physical realities. We remove the agenda of hatred, the intention to destroy, the desire to obliterate other human beings. We remain with only one focus, on the result; destruction and obliteration.

Not only is intentionality removed but human agency is reduced to accidental presence. Man-made suggests work put into the making of the disaster; man-caused removes the work..which could, after all, be done by someone else such as the Evil Corporation or the Evil USA. Man-caused focuses only on the hapless hopeless embattled nonentity who pressed the suicide button.

Obama's pathological world, like his personal world, is totally and completely fictional.

Next time, just elect the goddamn teleprompter and be done with it!

*
looks like aig execs weren't the only folks who got a bonus.

*

Obama's 'outrage' at AIG's bonuses which are in the millions - is a political stance; he's doing it as part of his Performance.

These contracts are private contracts made over a year ago and which a government constitutionally cannot interefere with. But Obama's 'faux outrage', as Maureen Dowd points out, diverts attention from the billions, not millions, of taxpayer monies that AIG handed over, in a kind of money-laundering process, to firms such as Goldman Sachs, which are already receiving monies, and quite a few European banks.

The contradiction between Obama's rhetoric and his actions is becoming as wide as a 12 lane highway.

ET - I've been rereading 1984 and thinking the same thing (re: Newspeak, etc). I wonder how long before history will be rewritten and students are taught that 9/11 was an unfortunate accident.

So when does Obama's new dictionary come out?

In related news, Obama is gradually moving to disarming pilots: http://hotair.com/archives/2009/03/18/are-we-disarming-pilots/

ET,

It's no longer a "private contract" when the taxpayer shovels in 180 billion dollars of other people's money and owns 80% of the company.

At that point, you lose the right to "private" anything.

No, it's a public contract. Chris Dodd (I believe) wrote protection for those bonuses into the stimulus bill.

Kate:

Chris Dodd was interviewed on CNN this morning and claims he had nothing to do with allowing the bonuses. Dodd received campaign donations from AIG.

The reporter pleaded to anybody who was in the room at the time to contact CNN, so the guilty party could be flushed out.

Pressure is building, no question.

Technically, Obama so far has been a disaster, and he was voted in, therefore, couldnt we call him a "man-caused disaster"? Or would that be too critical of the teleprompter?

warwick - I acknowledge your point, but these contracts were made before the public 'shovelling', so to speak and therefore, are legal.

What could the government have done? It could have stipulated when it handed over the money that contract obligations would have to come from other non-public monies (admittedly a difficult task for the monies aren't coated in special ink). But constitutionally, the govt can't interfere in private contracts.

Furthermore, as Ed Morrisey points out:

"AIG has no more right to abrogate those contracts than any other employer would with its union contracts. Whether or not the compensation agreements reflect wisdom and managerial brilliance, they exist — and as a matter of law, AIG has to honor the commitments. Screeching about the bonuses now is not just futile, but a demonstration of the arrogance involved in these bailouts. If the government wants to tear up all the contracts, it will have to nationalize AIG and get Congress to approve it."

Since the Obama govt CHOSE to bailout AIG, rather than allowing it to move into bankruptcy, then, since it didn't stipulate anything about these contracts - which are hardly novel and are normal in financial operations - then it is specious to move into outrage, and I suggest a fake outrage, over their payment.

The outrage ought to be on the money laundering to firms such as Goldman Sachs and European banks. Again, Obama is using his well-honed triad: manipulating and misinforming the public and blaming others.

Gorky's description of Russia's crisis of 1917-18; hooliganism among the youth, public drunkenness, homeless children , declining public health, crude struggles of political power and economic collapse.

Wow, seems a lot ain't changed.
,

a Teleprompter meltdown in Obama's White House is no laughing matter

No kiddin', all it's showing is that we have a really big muppet as the ruler of the free world. I find little comfort in this at all.

Right - it is NOW a public contract but those bonus contracts were signed BEFORE - and, as has been pointed out, Chris Dodd, who is now spluttering and fuming in his 'faux outrage' about these bonsuses, actually wrote in their protection into the Bill. And Obama, equally spluttering and fuming, signed it. Oh..didn't he read it?

As David Fredesso writes,
"But why is Obama so outraged and surprised? Today we learn that he signed the very bill that quite clearly made those bonuses legal — the $787 billion stimulus package he had traveled around the nation promoting. The bill includes restrictions on executive compensation, but creates an exception for bonuses contractually obligated before February 11 of this year. The provision, and the exception, were inserted into the bill by the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, Chris Dodd (D, Conn.), who has received more than $100,000 from AIG employees in the last 20 years, had written and inserted the relevant provision, with the relevant loophole. How can he, the president, or anyone else who voted for the stimulus, suddenly act surprised? Don't tell us they didn't read the bill."

So, Obama signed this bill, which ACCEPTED bonuses contractually viable before Feb 11th of this year. He SIGNED it. And Chris Dodd WROTE it.

And, he continues
"Here is the loophole, from the section of the stimulus package that deals with compensation rules for TARP recipients:

The prohibition required under clause (i) shall not be construed to prohibit any bonus payment required to be paid pursuant to a written employment contract executed on or before February 11, 2009, as such valid employment contracts are determined by the Secretary or the designee of the Secretary.

Frankly, it's hard to imagine how the government could prevent such contracts from being honored. But the presence of this loophole, in black and white, certainly gives the lie to all of this phony outrage — by the senator who created the loophole, by the president who signed it into law, and by everyone else who voted for the stimulus package."

Again, those two, Obama and Dodd, KNEW about this loophole, KNEW that the bonuses were legal, and their faked outrage now, is pure manipulation of the people. Yet again - Obama does his Triad of Misinformation, Manipulation and Blaming Others.

"When you were Arizona's governor, ... Your comment on the idea of a border fence was, "Show me a 50-foot fence, and I'll show you a 51-foot ladder."

juxtapose!

Napolitano: ..... "You have to avoid over-simplification"

The media has also failed to report or complain about Obama using the teleprompter during Press Confernces . . . he has his hacks off stage sending him the answers.

The MSM also facilitates the scam because they continue to use a close shot on Obama excludes the teleprompters going up and down and being ever present.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to hack his teleprompter . . .

From Maureen:

The president needs to brush back the arrogant, greedy creeps who kneecapped capitalism, rather than cosseting Wall Street for fear of looking like an avatar of socialism.

No, the government should have allowed mismanaged banks & companies to go bankrupt.

No, Obama doesn't just look like an avatar of socialism. He is an avatar of socialism.

You know in the USA most of the sports stadiums are built with government money. Therefore all athletes who play in these government funded venues should have their salaries capped at $250,000. Most jurisdictions including British Columbia give massive tax breaks to the movie industry not available to any other business including our hockey teams. Therefore all movie stars should have their salaries limited to $250,000. Besides its greedy to want more than others so I am sure all the athletes and entertainers who supported Obozo will be happy to limit their salaries.

On a related note if you are wondering why Obozo has no time to read the bills he signs its becuase of March Madness - President fills out NCAA Brackect for ESPN.com - Reveals his final four

The world is getting friendlier and friendlier with each passing day. Obama's Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says "I did not use the word 'terrorism,' I referred to 'man-caused' disasters." When Aqsa Parvez was strangled by her father, CTV's Lloyd Robertson reported: "Her neck was compressed, to the point she couldn't breathe..."

The possibilities are endless: "For the last several years Hamas has been delighting Israeli citizens with a series of noisemakers that light up the evening sky with spectacular and pleasing shades of orange and red..."

"A grizzly bear in Waterton National Park played hide-and-seek with a hiker yesterday. The grizzly won, and subsequently began tickling the..."

What am I missing?

AIG is an insurance company.
It went broke.
The gubmint gives $180 billion to AIG.

AIG uses the money to payout its obligations on insurance claims.

The Obama Washington Wizards are choked to find out that the money has gone to banks making bad bets and to offshore companies.

What exactly did they expect?
That AIG had a shoebox that they would put the money in?

See, this is exactly why gubmints should never get involved in business.

*
"ebd says... CTV's Lloyd Robertson reported: 'Her neck was compressed...'"

just another ctv moonbat moment...

"'Neck compression' - makes it sound like some kind of yoga exercise."

*

Buck$tOp O.
...-

*"Obama said, "The buck stops with me.""*

"2. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., $101,332"**
...-

*http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2209216/posts

**http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=7110145

Posted by: ET at March 18, 2009 10:19 AM

"Obama's pathological world, like his personal world, is totally and completely fictional."

What you are witnessing is the most competent display of incompetence ever exhibited.

All will improve when there are congressional investigations held, testimony taken, and the teleprompter operator is identified, fired and fined.

It would appear despite the MSM failure to report it.....that the internet is.....the fact that the USA elected Mili Vanili as president.

Test

This is quickly earning the category of
-unmitigated disaster of a huge OWE$ factor x 3.

"Sufferings 'unmitigated' by any hope of early relief."

The AIG Cover-Up continues. CNN has a long report, with the new CEO of AIG, Liddy, asking any AIG employee who received a bonus of over 100,000 to 'return at least half of it'. That's ridiculous. We are talking about millions, yes, but it's less than .01% of the billions that the taxpayer has already given AIG - and not a whisper is being said about the wherewithall of these billions.
Instead, a red herring is being set up - those bonus payments.

What's missing in the CNN report? The truth.

First, these bonus payments were contracts, the norm in financial institutions, and were made before - got that, before - any government bailout. They are legal; the government cannot overturn them. It cannot demand retoractive payment.

Second - if the government didn't like the notion of these pre-existing contracts, then, His Supreme Majesty, Obama, shouldn't have signed the Stimulus Bill, with its specific, very specific motion inserted, by His Assistant Supreme Majesty, Senator Chris Dodd, that ANY and ALL pre-existing bonus contracts must be honoured.

But Dodd did insert that addendum, even though he is now parading himself in a huff of stunned fury. And Obama, equally parading around in shocked fury, also knew about this Motion. Or, did he? He is actually going to declare that he didn't read the d** stimulus bill before he signed it? That he hadn't a clue what was in it?

Now, the White House is claiming that no-one knew about this clause. Heh. That's a claim of either gross incompetence or malicious manipulation. Which is it?

Oh, and Barney Frank, who is chairing the huffing and puffing fury, admits that the government cannot legally cancel the contracts, but he's telling us that the govt can 'sue AIG', claiming that the money went to people who 'didn't deserve it'. Heh. Try that in a legal court. Who decides what 'deserve' means?

Meanwhile, Obama, Geithner, Dodd, Frank..they are all utterly silent about where, not the millions, but the billions went. To Goldman Sachs, to European banks..to...

And utterly silent on the facts. That Dodd, the Democrat Senator, wrote in that addendum to make these bonuses legal and Obama signed it. Signed it. Signed it. None of the Senators read it. And obviously, Obama didn't read it either.

This whole thing, sordid as it is, is a red herring, covering up the crashing incompetence of the Obama administration to deal with the fiscal situation.

Newspeak term for terrorism: 'man-made disaster' You know this is about global warming.

I think this is the time on Sprocket when we juxtapose:

http://motls.blogspot.com/2009/03/european-parliament-bans-speaking-to.html

It seems that European Parliment just banned the term "Man made", along with words like "Male Nurse" and "Mrs" as being sexist. I guess we are at war with Oceania now.

Newspeak term for terrorism: 'man-made disaster' You know this is about global warming.

I think this is the time on Sprocket when we juxtapose:

http://motls.blogspot.com/2009/03/european-parliament-bans-speaking-to.html

It seems that European Parliment just banned the term "Man made", along with words like "Male Nurse" and "Mrs" as being sexist. I guess we are at war with Oceania now.

Why doesn't Obama do what McGuinty did after the last election and even though there were signed contracts to allow building on the Oak Hills Moraine and for the 407 owners to increase their rates he had the courage to stop these travesties.

Oh, he didn't, he couldn't, oh well never mind then...but Obama will..he can't, he didn't even read the document..well that's just not fair..

Tim in vermont - If 'Mrs' is sexist, then, what is 'Madame' or 'Frau'?

Meanwhile, the AIG Red Herring continues. Ed Morissey and Michelle Malkin are reporting are reporting that Fannie Mae, also a recipient of government bailouts, also - like all financial institutions - has bonus payments. But, the MSM and the White House and Congress are silent on Fannie Mae. And Freddie Mac as well. Why?

And slipping in, through this outrage is something far more worrisome and insidious. ACORN, that leftist organization of Obama's, is being given contracts to carry out next year's census. What bets do we have that it won't be done properly but with an agenda of increasing the vote count for 'estimated citizens' rather than actual head counts of real people.

And since we are all focused on the red herring, no-one is asking questions about the 60 billion, that's billion not million, that AID laundered through to foreign banks.

Remember, not one Republican in the House voted for this bill and only three Republicans in the Senate. It's all on the Democrats.

Frank is asking for the names of those who received the bonuses. That's outrageous; they'll be attacked on the street. Remember, these bonuses were not only part of a legal contract but, as such, were approved within the bailout 'stimulus package'. They were specifically added in by Chris Dodd, Democrat Senator. And ALL Democrats in both the House and Senate supported this bill. And, Obama signed it.

They have no right to pillory the recipients of the bonuses when they, themselves, allowed them to be part of the money package.

And when will we move on to Obama's next move, which is to deny public funded health care to the military wounded in war - and instead insist that their private insurance pay for it. Hmm ..he signs a bill giving public funds as bonuses to a failing financial firm, and wants to deny public funds to the military, wounded in defense of America. Ahh, Obama does have his priorities, doesn't he?

""Obama said, "The buck stops with me.""*
...-

"Dodd to give back AIG contributions

When it comes to donating to politicians and filling their coffers, bonus-and-bail-out embattled American International Group Inc.'s Financial Products unit in Wilton has a stimulus record of its own, providing Sen. Christopher Dodd's presidential campaign with more than $103,000 during the 2008 election cycle.

AIG's contributions to Dodd outpace the financial firm's $101,000 contribution to President Barack Obama's election bid."
http://www.connpost.com/breakingnews/ci_11941706

*http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2209216/posts

"Tim in vermont - If 'Mrs' is sexist, then, what is 'Madame' or 'Frau'"

Read the link, all forbidden.

Tim in Vermont - pure sophistry. They can ban all they want. I hope people will stand up and speak and think what they want. There is such a thing as freedom of speech.

Banning 'man-made'? Ridiculous. What about a man-made trail through the woods - are they going to say it must be called a 'synthetic or artificial' trail?
Man-made fire?

Ah well.

Am I the only one who see Ron Burgundy in the White House?