Open Conflict of Interest: Lipstick on a porkbarrel

In Office, Palin Hired Friends and Hit Critics

By JO BECKER, PETER S. GOODMAN AND MICHAEL POWELL

Published: September 13, 2008

This article is by Jo Becker, Peter S. Goodman and Michael Powell.

WASILLA, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin lives by the maxim that all politics is local, not to mention personal.

So when there was a vacancy at the top of the State Division of Agriculture, she appointed a high school classmate, Franci Havemeister, to the $95,000-a-year directorship. A former real estate agent, Ms. Havemeister cited her childhood love of cows as one of her qualifications for running the roughly $2 million agency.

Ms. Havemeister was one of at least five schoolmates Ms. Palin hired, often at salaries far exceeding their private sector wages.

When Ms. Palin had to cut her first state budget, she avoided the legion of frustrated legislators and mayors. Instead, she huddled with her budget director and her husband, Todd, an oil field worker who is not a state employee, and vetoed millions of dollars of legislative projects.

And four months ago, a Wasilla blogger, Sherry Whitstine, who chronicles the governor’s career with an astringent eye, answered her phone to hear an assistant to the governor on the line, she said.

“You should be ashamed!” Ivy Frye, the assistant, told her. “Stop blogging. Stop blogging right now!”

Read all of the extensive article...

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Open need for change!

The solution to the failed drug war

By Jack A. Cole September 13, 2008

. . .

There are more black men in US prisons today than there were slaves in 1840, and they are being used for the same purpose; working for private corporations at 16 to 20 cents an hour. Half the states have private, for-profit prisons whose lobbyists are demanding longer mandatory-minimum prison sentences. Indeed, American blacks are incarcerated at nearly eight times the level of South African blacks during the height of apartheid.

. . .

Inner-city communities are devastated not by drug use but by the same turf-war street violence that accompanied alcohol prohibition and that dramatically decreased once that drug was legalized and regulated. Almost one in seven African-Americans are denied voting rights largely because of drug arrests, and countless minorities are denied intact families, college loans, driver's licenses, and jobs because of selective enforcement of a prohibition that, even fairly enforced, prevents no one from using drugs.

. . .

I represent Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, an international organization of sworn antidrug warriors who know that we must end this prohibition in order to legalize and regulate all drugs, thus wresting control from the cartels and street thugs who prey on children.

Ending this prohibition is a singularly potent civil rights issue. It is a remarkable movement, led by both white and minority law enforcement officials.

In an election infused with racial overtones, we wonder which politicians will be brave enough to follow.

Jack A. Cole is executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.

It is time for very real changes ... very soon!

[h/t to wirearchy]

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Open Tagging

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Open Tragedy of Errors - Microsoft's version of Dumb & Dumber (The Bill & Jerry Show)

-Ben Worthen in the Wall Street Journal said...

The next installment of Microsoft’s controversial ad campaign featuring Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates is out. And you know what? It’s pretty good.

My view is just slightly different - IT IS CRAP! (<- YouTube link, 4:30 of your life you will never get back. I only watched the first 30 seconds. So I didn't lose 4:00 minutes of my life.)

[Updated: After reading some of the comments offered by the readers I realize that whether this ad campaign is good or bad is irrelevant. Microsoft is running these ads for the same reason McCain nominated Palin; to garner media news cycles.]

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Open Enjoyment: Day by Day

There is a little link ... Day By Day ... (in the left hand column) Go hover over it.

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Open Wal-mart: The failing of extreme capitalism.

Did you ever notice that there is nothing really special at Wal-mart? In fact it is entirely possible that every Wal-mart store offers exactly the same things. Now while strong branding and uniformity of product is seen as a strong market position Wal-mart has taken this approach to the extreme. To their detriment as well.

Wal-mart employs a buy-low-sell-at-the-lowest-price-the-market-will-bear policy. Wal-mart, under the auspices of 'saving you money', is lowering the overall standard of product quality offered in favor of meager profit margins. Effectively Wal-mart has trained consumers to accept large volumes of low quality commodities.

Wal-mart marries this buy-low-sell-low practice with the understanding of the American consumers belief in one stop shopping. Once in the door the customer belongs to Wal-mart. Wal-mart, not the customer, decides what will be available to the purchasing public. Wal-mart is training their customers in what is an acceptable standard of living.

A side note worthy of mention is Wal-mart's practice of importing low cost, low quality goods in order to meet the lowered expectations of their well trained customers. Sadly, when the goods are imported American money leaves the country to pay the substandard wages of workers who have undercut the American job market. That's right, we have perpetuated our own worsening employment circumstances by allowing Wal-mart to flourish.

So, when facing the prospect of union representation for its employees Wal-mart quickly realizes that its extreme capitalism practices are built on a less than firm foundation. Wal-mart recognizes that its one real cost, the low wages it pays employees, cannot be outsourced. In order to continue to show the degree of profitability when having to pay union scale will mean that prices will have to rise.

This in turn will show their customers that in a truely competative market place that price vs. quality is the real value of the transaction. Simply offering the lowest priced lowest quality goods will quickly be seen for what it is - usuary profiteering of the worst order.

Wal-mart is affraid of unionization because it knows that Sam Walton's sand castle will crumble when the playing field is leveled.

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Open Fortune (Stolen from Linux)

It now costs more to amuse a child than it once did to educate his father.

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Open Notice: A lie is still just a pig with lipstick.

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Open Lipstick on a McPig

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Open Nationalization: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Bush

Having no faith in free market economic forces the U.S. government nationalized Mae & Mac. American tax payers will be expected to pay "tens of billions of dollars" for the questionable business decisions made by real estate profiteers.

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Open Noise, distraction and more NOISE

Executing the perfect political ploy John McCain has successfully introduced noise and distraction into an otherwise forgone conclusion of a presidential race. From the very moment of her theatrical introduction McCain's choice for a VP running mate has served to pull focus away from his short-comings. With one convenient PR brush stroke the American public is no longer worried about any of the real-life issues of the day. Mr. & Mrs. Joe and Jane Q. Public are now consumed with the tawdry details of Alaska's politico-soap opera starring an evangelical extremist and her family-values clan.

But wait, there's more ... I predict that the master of political wet-work will pull yet another grandiose theatrical rabbit out of the hat.

Imagine how the continuing discomfort of the Republicans grates on the party faithful. Imagine how this Alaskan albatross appears to continue the (Troopergate) slow (Bridge to Nowhere) death (Wasilla Pork Barrel) spiral of public opinion against McCain. Poor, poor put upon John.

Then, all of a sudden, Sara Palin has a change of heart. She claims she must honor God's plan, she must support family values and most of all she must uphold her sworn duty and responsibility to her beloved Alaska, she must, for the good of all Republicans everywhere, step aside.

Poor, poor John McCain. What is a fellow to do?

Quick, quick, have those signs printed that say "McCain & Lieberman". Rejoice, rejoice, the prodigal son returns.

Executing the perfect political ploy John McCain again successfully introduces MORE noise and MORE distraction into an otherwise forgone conclusion of a presidential race. From the very moment of his theatrical introduction McCain's choice for a VP running mate serves to pull focus away from his short-comings. With one convenient PR brush stroke the American public is no longer worried about any of the real-life issues of the day.

Republicans collectively heave a huge sigh of relief ...

[Ronnie Bennett: I apologize for not reading your link before going off on my rant - Palin as Political Distraction
From Sylvia Kirkwood of The View From Over the Hill : The Requirements of Liberty]

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Open Approval Ratings

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Open Message: Says it all

Jesus of Nazareth was a community organizer.
Pontius Pilate was a governor.

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Open Organizers

4 more years? No, we won't!

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