tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6755316827178846132024-02-20T15:11:13.568-06:00Freedom Ain't FreeThis blog promotes freedom, liberty and justice for all peoples. It costs blood, sweat, and eternal vigilance to free unfree peoples and keep free peoples free. All who love freedom, liberty, and justice are this blog's friends. All who oppose any of these God given basic rights are by definition this blog’s enemies and whether governments, interest groups, non-governmental organizations, or individuals, such enemies may find themselves chastised, ridiculed, and otherwise opposed in this blog.Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-30184504556696153522010-11-25T20:22:00.006-06:002010-11-25T21:02:13.483-06:00A Secure Border a Country Makes<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" id="fw">This story from <a href="http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Taiwan News</span></a> shows Taiwan treating it's borders as if they were the borders of a country. Nothing here about getting Beijing's approval or help. Borders, language, and culture are considered to be minimal characteristics of a country. The native Taiwanese (85% of population) have a distinct language and culture apart from the Chinese. Treating Taiwan's border as something to be secured and making reciprocal visa-free agreements with other governments shows that the government of Taiwan is acting like the government of a country.<br /></p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" id="fw"></p><blockquote><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" id="fw"><a href="http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=1443265&lang=eng_news&cate_img=35.jpg&cate_rss=news_Business&mbn=B445F537F45CA6AFBBAEF561F38A3BD6">NIA, the gatekeeper of national borders</a></p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" id="fw">Following in footsteps of England, Ireland, New Zealand and Canada, the European Union is reported to see the visa-free treatment for Taiwan clear its floor recently, a move commonly seen as a shot in the arm for substantial exchanges between Europe and Taiwan. </p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In response to growing demand from tourists to visa-waived countries and an array of problems following the exemption, including smuggling and human-trafficking, the National Immigration Agency (NIA) has stepped up its efforts to cement the guard of national borders with a series of seminars, forums and staff training since its establishment on Jan. 2, 2007.</p><p><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=1443265&lang=eng_news&cate_img=35.jpg&cate_rss=news_Business&mbn=B445F537F45CA6AFBBAEF561F38A3BD6">Click here to read the full story.</a><br /></p><p></p></blockquote><p><br /></p>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-42062998454650797962010-01-25T00:05:00.010-06:002010-01-25T01:45:19.849-06:00My Hail Mary Message to Sen. Nelson<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">On 12/23/2009, in the midst of taking my wife and children from Pflugerville over the hills and through the woods to Grandmother's house in Birmingham, AL we stopped in Tyler at a Subway to eat a late lunch (while tornado warnings were being broadcast). I had the impending Senate Obamacare vote on my mind being quite upset with what the Obamabots were doing up there in Harry Reid's twisted chamber. So I faxed Ben Nelson a simple message that I later revised a bit and faxed to the following (including Senator Nelson) the next day (Christmas Eve):</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Michael F Bennet</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Colorado </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">DC Fax Number: 202-228-5036</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span> <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br />Sen. Ben Nelson</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Nebraska</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-0012</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Mary Landrieu</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Louisiana</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-224-9735</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Mark Pryor</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Arkansas</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-0908</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Blanche Lincoln</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Arkansas</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-1371</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Robert Byrd</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, West Virginia</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-0002</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Jim Webb</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Virginia</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-6363</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Mark Warner</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Virginia</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-224-6295</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Jon Tester</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Montana</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-224-8594</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Joe Lieberman</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Connecticut</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-224-9750</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Mark Begich</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Alaska</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-224-2354</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sen. Evan Bayh</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Indiana</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, DC Fax Number: 202-228-1377</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I named the MS Word doc file that I sent the efax from, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hail Mary.doc</span>. Here is my Hail Mary message to Sen. Nelson:</span><br /></div><br /><style><!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:"Lucida Grande"; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} p.MsoHeader, li.MsoHeader, div.MsoHeader {mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-link:"Header Char"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; tab-stops:center 3.0in right 6.0in; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} p.MsoFooter, li.MsoFooter, div.MsoFooter {mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-link:"Footer Char"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; tab-stops:center 3.0in right 6.0in; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} p.MsoAcetate, li.MsoAcetate, div.MsoAcetate {mso-style-link:"Balloon Text Char"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:"Lucida Grande"; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:"Lucida Grande"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} span.HeaderChar {mso-style-name:"Header Char"; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-locked:yes; mso-style-link:Header; mso-ansi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;} span.FooterChar {mso-style-name:"Footer Char"; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-locked:yes; mso-style-link:Footer; mso-ansi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;} span.BalloonTextChar {mso-style-name:"Balloon Text Char"; mso-style-locked:yes; mso-style-link:"Balloon Text"; mso-ansi-font-size:9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Lucida Grande"; mso-ascii-font-family:"Lucida Grande"; mso-hansi-font-family:"Lucida Grande";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-header:url(":Hail Mary (Nelson)_files:header.htm") h1; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page</style><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" >The Honorable </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" >Senator Ben Nelson<o:p></o:p></span><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="Section1"><span style="font-size:130%;">720 Hart Senate Office Building<o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">United States Senate<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-size:130%;">Washington,<br /></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">DC 20510</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-size:130%;">Tel: 1-202-224-6551 | Fax: 1-202-228-0012<o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><br /></span></div><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="Section1"><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Dear Senator Nelson,<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN<br />POLITCAL SAKE, FOR THE SAKE OF THE NATION AND ESPECIALLY FOR THE SAKE OF THE<br />UNBORN,<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><b style="">VOTE AGAINST<br />THE HEALTHCARE BILL THIS WEEK.<o:p></o:p></b></span></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">IT WILL ONLY TAKE AWAY OUR<br />FREEDOM AND WILL DISTROY THE GOOD HEALTH CARE MOST AMERICANS CURRENTLY HAVE<br />ACCESS TO.<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><b style="">AMERICANS WILL<br />NOT FORGET WHEN THEY VOTE IN THE NOV 2010 GENERAL ELECTION. REPUBLICANS WILL<br />TAKE OVER THE U.S. SENATE AND HOUSE AS A RESULT!<o:p></o:p></b></span></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:130%;">A Concerned American Citizen,<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Timothy E. Bradberry<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" >P.S. Though I am sending this FAX independently of any other citizen, my views reflect those of most Americans according to scientific polling results (Rasmussen, etc.).</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Well, Sen. Nelson didn't heed the warning and now he is paying the political price.</p><p class="MsoNormal"></p></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Click below to read John Fund's editorial, "Ben Nelson's Purgatory":</span><br /><h2 style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="subhead"><span style="font-size:180%;"><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704152804574628591826272498.html?mod=djemEditorialPage">The Nebraska senator's health-care vote has killed him politically.</a></span></h2><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And here are a few more stories illustrative of the Senator's apparent political demise:</span><br /><h2 style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;"><a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2010/01/14/nebraskans-so-disgusted-with-ben-nelson-they-cant-even-eat-around-him/">Nebraskans so disgusted with Ben Nelson they can’t even eat around him</a></h2><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/30815.html">"Cornhusker Kickback"</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> termed the biggest blunder in modern history</span> in this story:<br /><h1 style="font-style: italic;" class="post-title"><a href="http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/01/23/anatomy-of-anger/">Anatomy of Anger</a></h1><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And here is Sen. Nelson, the seller-out of the unborn, for 30 pieces of silver, so to speak:</span><br /><h1 style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://www.dailytribune.com/articles/2010/01/24/opinion/srv0000007393082.txt">Both parties must re-evaluate divisive health care reform</a></h1>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-1071579125985378432009-10-25T04:08:00.019-05:002009-10-25T05:11:23.295-05:00"Formosa Betrayed" - Coming to theaters near you (including in Austin) February 28, 2009<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I have it on good authority that </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Formosa Betrayed</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> will be shown in theaters in the Austin area beginning on February 28, 2009 (the 62nd anniversary of the 2-28 Incident in Taiwan). See press release below announcing Distribution.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqis5Fgg5yFxwSANg6A0mvW4KTAUNMzmO1uMdodVPHx1y8aEvQhHFIbxxLKO2ejk-KT0suLIUdLFjwM7la_4ZCulT3rURc1rjAEfxzQ95ZLRArf1XIKA3SFvxc02-EpPbz_Ir9gQ4i9-U/s1600-h/Distribution+PR.pdf+-+Adobe+Reader.bmp"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 372px; height: 33px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqis5Fgg5yFxwSANg6A0mvW4KTAUNMzmO1uMdodVPHx1y8aEvQhHFIbxxLKO2ejk-KT0suLIUdLFjwM7la_4ZCulT3rURc1rjAEfxzQ95ZLRArf1XIKA3SFvxc02-EpPbz_Ir9gQ4i9-U/s320/Distribution+PR.pdf+-+Adobe+Reader.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396474411834376034" border="0" /></a>1680 N. Vine St., Suite 906, Hollywood, CA 90028</div></div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">| P: 323-465-8885 | F: 323-465-8886 |</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">info@formosathemovie.com | www.formosathemovie.com<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">For Immediate Release:</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">SCREEN MEDIA FILMS PICKS UP “FORMOSA BETRAYED” HOLLYWOOD, CA – October 23, 2009 – Screen Media Films has picked up worldwide rights to <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Formosa Betrayed</span>, a political thriller set in the 1980s, which made its international debut at the Montreal World Film Festival.<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Formosa Betrayed</span> is the initial project for Formosa Films, a newly formed production company created by actor/writer/producer Will Tiao. Adam Kane (Heroes, Pushing Daisies, Mercy) directs his feature debut.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">Story is inspired by actual events. An FBI Agent investigates the murder of an Asian professor at a small college. Agent follows the fleeing killers to Taiwan, where he finds himself on a collision course with the FBI, the State Department, the Chinese Mafia, and the Government of the Republic of China.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">James Van Der Beek plays the FBI Agent and Wendy Crewson plays a US diplomat in Taiwan. John Heard, Tzi Ma, Will Tiao, Leslie Hope, and Kenneth Tsang round out supporting cast.<br />Tiao, a former international economist with the Clinton and Bush Administrations, raised the funds for the $8 million project from private equity based on concept, and has nearly 300 investors in the project. Investment bank Berthel Fisher Financial Services provided completion funds.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span> recently screened for Members of Congress in Washington DC, which was highly attended due to heightened interest in US-Taiwan-China relations. Film also recently won Best Picture and Best Actor for Van Der Beek at the San Diego Film Festival, and Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature at the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">In addition to Montreal, San Diego, Washington DC and Philadelphia, <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Formosa Betrayed</span> has also screened at Hollywood Film Festival, New York Asian American Film Festival, DC APA Film Festival, and will be screening at the Sao Paulo International Film Festival and St. Louis International Film Festival.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span> is to be released in theaters in February 2010 in 15-20 North American cities.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">Screen Media will rep worldwide rights and begin selling territories at the European Film Market in February 2010. Deal was brokered by Ben Weiss at Paradigm and Kevin Mills of Kaye & Mills LLP. In addition, Formosa Films and Berthel Fisher have announced the creation of a new $20 million fund, focused on television and film production. Formosa Films is already in prep on two film projects starting in Spring 2010 – <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">JUVY</span>, about juvenile delinquents, with Kane to direct and Tiao to produce, and <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">THE DOORMAN</span> about the underground goings-on of the Plaza Hotel, with Abel Ferrara to direct and Tiao to produce.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">Contact:<br />Formosa Films<br />Evita Huang<br />info@formosathemovie.com<br />1680 Vine St., Suite 906<br />Hollywood, CA 90028<br />(323) 465-8885<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">October 8, 2009</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">Selected <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span> Media Coverage<br /></p><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >October 8, 2009</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />Variety – <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118009713.html?categoryid=2815&cs=1">"’Moon’ Shines on Hollywood Festival"</a></span><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >October 8, 2009</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Screen Daily – <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.screendaily.com/awards/hff-announces-line-up-hollywood-movie-awards-nominees/5006595.article">“HFF Announces Line-Up, Hollywood Movie Awards Nominees”</a></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >October 5, 2009</span></div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">ABC Radio Australia – <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/connectasia/stories/200910/s2704894.htm">“New movies addresses Taiwan’s turbulent past”</a></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: italic; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">October 1, 2009</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Express Night Out – <a href="http://www.expressnightout.com/content/2009/10/asian-pacific-american-festival.php"><span style="font-weight: bold;">“Moving Pictures: Asian Pacific American Film Festival Offers Something for Everyone”</span></a></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: italic; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">September 27, 2009</span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">NBC San Diego –</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" > </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.nbcsandiego.com/around-town/events/Bang-For-Your-Viewing-Buck-62227467.html">“Bang For Your Viewing Buck”</a></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: italic; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">September 27, 2009</span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">NBC San Diego – <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.nbcsandiego.com/around-town/events/Varsity_Blues_to_Global_Blues_San_Diego.html">“Varsity Blues to Global Blues”</a></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.nbcsandiego.com/around-town/events/Varsity_Blues_to_Global_Blues_San_Diego.html"><br /></a></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-84692140378982278352009-08-09T14:45:00.009-05:002009-08-09T16:03:18.096-05:00Understanding Taiwanese Identity: Strange Threesome<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I'm on the email list of a fellow son-in-law of Taiwan, Jerome F. Keating, who happens to live there in Taipei and happens to write about the politics of the island nation. I was particularly intrigued by the title of his latest essay, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Me, Freddy Lim, Chiang Kai-shek, Art and Taiwanese Identity: </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Confessions of a Rainbow-Chaser</span>, which I am hereby sharing with the readers of my blog, few though they may be.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I've met<span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> </span></span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://heavymetal.about.com/od/interviews/a/chthonic.htm"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Freddy Lim</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> (and he's one of my </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://www.facebook.com/people/Freddy-Lim/535120474">Facebook friends</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">) and I've visited </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall</span> before it was renamed to </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Democracy Hal</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">l</span>, which name it seems now was only temporary. Too bad it's name has been changed back to <span style="font-weight: bold;">CKS Memorial Hall</span>. I would have liked to have visited a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Democracy Hall</span> in Taiwan.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Which reminds me of my personal attempt to use art to inform the discussion of Taiwanese Identity and Taiwan Independence. I'm speaking of the independent film<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">,<span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> </span></span></span><a href="http://www.formosathemovie.com/"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">Formosa Betrayed</span></a> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">in which I am invested, in part to memorize my late son, Daniel Maximus-Ping Bradberry and his late Taiwanese Grandfather, Mr. Chung, who lived though the White Terror period (1949-1987) in Taiwan when CKS, his son Chiang Ching-kuo</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, and the the rest of the Kuomintang (KMT) met their needs at the expense of the majority of the Island, i.e. at the expense of the native Taiwanese people.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">You can watch the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KbAGhECVZE"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> </span>trailer on YouTube by clicking </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KbAGhECVZE">here</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Back to Freddy. I will never understand his music and have no desire to listen to it, but I do understand his passion to display his and his fellow countrymen's Taiwanese Identity and commitment to keep Taiwan free and independent. If you are into black metal music there is no other artist I could steer you to and certainly no more loyal partiot of Taiwan that is trying to use his art to reach out to world with the message that Taiwan is for the Taiwanese and freedom loving people, period.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">You can check </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">out the wiki page for Freddy's band,</span> </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chthonic_%28band%29"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Chthonic</span>,</a></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chthonic_%28band%29">here</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);font-size:130%;" >Me, Freddy Lim, Chiang Kai-shek, Art and Taiwanese Identity: Confessions of a Rainbow-Chaser</span><br /><br />by Jerome F. Keating Ph.D.<br /><br /><br />Taiwanese will not find their true identity as an island nation until they fully realize the indoctrination and brain-washing they endured under Chiang Kai-shek (CKS). They will not find their true identity until they realize that he had nothing to do with them except to take advantage of them in their hour of need and to exploit them in his hour of need. It is for this reason that one of the saddest and most disappointing things to recently happen in Taiwan has been the changing of the name of Democracy Hall back to that of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. This move is a step backwards for democracy in Taiwan and symptomatic of Ma Ying-jeou’s attempts to fabricate past credibility for his Sino-centric (not Taiwan-centric) government.<br /><br />Allegedly there was to be a discussion of the matter of this name change (read that a move typical of Ma’s lip service hypocrisy). However, totally lacking was any detailed record or publication of this discussion and its proportion, i.e. who specifically was for the re-naming and who was against it, what polls were taken, what percentage of the people supported it etc. No, before Taiwan knew it and while the Kaohsiung World Games distracted the country, the name was changed back. Perhaps Ma felt a discussion with Taiwan-basher Kuo Kuan-ying was sufficient.<br /><br />For this reason I found myself drawn into a strange but real threesome, between myself, Freddy Lim and Chiang Kai-shek. Strange? Here was I a university professor, writer, and former Manager of Technology Transfer on Taipei and Kaohsiung’s Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Systems, Freddy Lim the lead singer of Chthonic a popular Taiwanese black metal band, and CKS the dead dictator responsible for bringing the latest group of beggars that wanted to take over the temple of Taiwan (乞丐趕廟公).<br /><br />It was during this same name restoration that I imagined Freddy stole a thought from my mind. For when I first heard that the name of the dead dictator (CKS) was going to be restored to the memorial, I pondered. If Taiwanese could not stop this name from being forced down their throats, then how could they protest it? What could they do particularly with the huge statue of CKS there?<br /><br />First I imagined that teams of loyal followers of Su Beng would periodically and symbolically douse the walls of that white marble mausoleum with red paint to symbolize the numerous deaths that CKS was responsible for in both 2-28 and the subsequent white terror period. This constant red stain on the marble walls would be a steady reminder of the barbarism of that man. If a more dramatic action was desired, I pictured some loyal Taiwanese getting a bazooka or shoulder missile launcher and from a distance placing a shot right through the chest of the statue of CKS. A statue with its guts blown out; now that could be a possible solution.<br /><br />Then symbolic expressions flitted through my mind. What would be the way for a more symbolic criticism? The statue is gigantic; it could not be removed by simply lifting it by crane. When installed, the memorial had been built around it. In Kaohsiung, which had a smaller statute, it had to be cut up and taken away in pieces.<br /><br />But what if the statue did not need to be removed entirely? What if the head were simply cut off and the body of the statue left there decapitated. That would be a more practical solution and yet highly symbolic. A large sign could be put in the lap of the statue stating “Let this be the end of all dictators and enemies of Taiwan’s democracy.” What could be a more fitting sign of Taiwan’s developing democracy coming to terms with its past than the headless statue of a past dictator?<br /><br />It was at this point that in reading the news, I found out that Freddy Lim had already stolen my thoughts. Stole them? Well alright, this heavy metal singer didn’t really steal my thoughts; he probably doesn’t even know who I am. Instead, he simply beat me to their expression. Recently Freddy and the band had produced a new video cum song featuring the beheading of CKS and the burning of appropriate flags to boot.<br /><br />This was a blending of art and reality. I knew Freddy and Chthonic from various sources and had heard them at the Free Tibet concert in Taipei this past July. They put their money where their mouth or where their music is. Heavy metal may not be your cup of tea, but whether one is into heavy metal or not, one cannot dispute Chthonic’s loyalty to Taiwan and making it a part of their art. There are no current Taiwanese musicians who feel and simultaneously express their sense of Taiwanese identity more stridently than Freddy and his band. Many singers and musicians may be Taiwanese at heart but not wanting to offend the China market they will keep their thoughts to themselves or play them low key.<br /><br />Chthonic’s music on the other hand expresses the myths and history of the country. They see it as a nation with its own identity. They even make it part of their art. True, art does not always need to make such protest statements. Art can and often exists without them, but in these troubled and tumultuous times, Taiwan needs more artists like Freddy and Chthonic.<br /><br /><br />Other writings can be found at <a href="http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome">http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome </a><br /></blockquote></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-25688197836567281962009-07-18T16:49:00.007-05:002009-07-26T20:11:39.899-05:00About the Movie, Fomosa Betrayed<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Last year I found the story below on the <a href="http://www.forumosa.com/taiwan/">www.forumosa.com</a> website but I probably read it first in my hard copy of the <a href="http://www.formosafoundation.org/">Formosa Foundation</a> Newsletter (to download the particular issue, <a href="http://www.formosafoundation.org/documents/FFNewsSummer08.pdf">click here</a>). I've been wanting to post it to this blog for a long time, forgetting that it had come from the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Formosa Foundation Newsletter</span>. However, the folks at Forumosa (not a Taiwanese friendly site, to say the least) insisted that they would do nothing about an offensive video loop and comments I did not want to subject my referrals to, that was next to the Forumosa post of interest. The video loop is an icon for a Forumosa.com user called "cake", who apparently is a Night Market Cop., in case you want to look him up. "Cake" copied the text from F<span style="font-weight: bold;">ormosa Foundation Newsletter</span> without attribution. In this post I'm making proper attribution and avoiding that offensive video. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The story below is actually a portion of a five page story titled, <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Hollywood Goes Taiwanese: </span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Major Motion Picture Formosa Stars James Van Der Beek</span>.<br /><br />The movie is now called <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Fromosa Betrayed</span>. Formosa Films, LLC considered changing the name to Formosa, but that was short lived. See </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://www.formosafoundation.org/documents/FFNewsSummer08.pdf">Formosa Foundation, Volumi III, Summer 2008</a></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> for the story below in its context. See the official website for the movie Formosa Betrayed here </span><a class="postlink" href="http://www.formosathemovie.com/">http://www.formosathemovie.com/</a><!-- m --> .<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">History:</span><br /><br />Many Hollywood films have tried to shine a light on Chinese culture and politics for American audiences, though none has yet to do so from Taiwan’s unique political perspective. While films such as <span style="font-style: italic;">Red Corner</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Last Emperor</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon</span>, are among the most well-known American films dealing with Chinese culture, those movies did not deal specifically with the political and social issues facing Taiwan and America.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span> will enlighten a global audience on the real story behind Taiwan’s political history, by focusing on the tragic murder of a Taiwanese professor who was killed solely for his courage to speak out for an independent and democratic Taiwan.<br /><br />Based on actual events which happened to Taiwanese professors and graduate students throughout the United States in the 1970s and 80s, <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Formosa Betrayed</span> will expose for the first time the brutal techniques that the Nationalist Chinese Government on Taiwan used to quell dissent in their desire to reunite Taiwan with mainland China.<br /><br />Most people outside of Taiwan and China are unaware of the history surrounding Taiwan’s political status. <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Formosa Betrayed</span> will be the first opportunity for a mass audience to get a glimpse into the human story behind Taiwan’s struggle for identity on a world stage.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Story:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Formosa Betrayed</span> is a feature film detailing the murder investigation of a Taiwanese-American professor at a Midwestern college in the early 1980s. The detective assigned to the case is a young FBI agent looking forward to an exciting career serving the United States government. However, he must solve the case before he can move on.<br /><br />In his search for the murderers and their accomplices, the agent learns that there is a student spy network which focuses on the political and social activities of Chinese and Taiwanese-American students on the campus. He discovers that these “student spies” are ubiquitous on college campuses in the United States where there are Chinese and Taiwanese students.<br /><br />His search for the killers takes him to Taiwan, where he learns that the suspects are members of the Chinese Mafia who have been hired by the Nationalist Chinese Government in Taiwan to silence political dissidents. He discovers that the true reason for the professor's murder was to silence an outspoken advocate of Taiwanese democracy and independence, and thus he was seen as a threat to the legitimacy of the government on Taiwan – a key U.S. ally. The hit was sanctioned by those at the highest level of power.<br /><br />In his efforts to bring the killers and their accomplices to justice, he finds himself on a collision course with the U.S. State Department, the Chinese Mafia, and ultimately the highest levels of the Nationalist Chinese Government in Taiwan. In the meantime, he is aided by a mysterious woman who is tied to the Taiwanese Independence Movement and by others with competing agendas.<br /><br />In the end, the detective begins to understand the complex nature of politics, identity, and power in Taiwan-U.S.-China relations – and how this relationship affects the lives and destinies of the citizens of all three countries – including his own.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Links to Reviews, et al:</span><br /><a href="http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/454752/Formosa-Betrayed/overview"><br />New York Times Online Reviews</a><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1121786/"><br />IMDb Listing</a><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMNsTFLJTcM">The Movie Trailer on YouTube</a><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/tag/formosa-betrayed">Formosa Betrayed Tagged Page</a><br /><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-13396244659148600222009-07-02T22:18:00.005-05:002009-07-02T22:33:48.346-05:00The Cost of Freedom<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">After almost three months of no posts I finally break the silence with this.<br /><br />Eric Odom sent the story below in a message to members of the Facebook Group "American Liberty Alliance." All I did was give it a title. The text is attributed to an unnamed sender of an email message to Eric.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >The Cost of Freedom = Lives, Fortunes, and Sacred Honor</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:130%;">Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over his home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The Redcoats jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates. Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." They gave you and me a free and independent America.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">The history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just the British. We were British subjects at that time and we fought our own government! Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't. So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Remember: freedom is never free!<br /><br /></span></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-47132705315915247742009-04-13T22:56:00.003-05:002009-04-13T23:09:51.353-05:00Why Taiwan Matters<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The following speech was given by Gordon Chang (author of <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Coming Collapse of China </span></span>(2001) and of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes On the World</span> (2006), being delivered last Friday on Capitol Hill at the conclusion of the <span style="font-style: italic;">March for Taiwan</span>.</span> It explains why Taiwan really matters to free countries; that is to what's left of free countries and their freedoms.<br /><br /></div></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Will Taiwan Prevail?</span><br />By Gordon G. Chang </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Speech given at</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;">March for Taiwan</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;"></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;">Rayburn House Office Building</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;"></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;">Washington, D.C. </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;">April 10, 2009</span><br /></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">By car, by bus, and by foot, you have come here. And there is one reason why you have done so. You have done so because Taiwan is important. It is important to you, it is important to me, it is important to others.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">It is, for instance, important to the world’s most powerful—and most important—democracy. The United States needs to defend each and every free society from the world’s authoritarian states. And why do we need to do that? Because autocrats see themselves threatened by the presence of free people anywhere. Unfortunately, they cannot just live and let live. They cannot tolerate people who govern themselves. So the United States cannot defend itself and it allies without also defending the free people of Taiwan.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Taiwan is especially important because that small nation, by its mere existence, bedevils the most important dictatorial government of our time. The nine old men who sit on the Politburo Standing Committee rule the People’s Republic of China, a nation of 1.5 billion souls, but they feel mortally threatened by Taiwan, a country of just 23 million. These 23 million prove that people, some of whom are Chinese, can govern themselves. By governing themselves, they make everything the Communist Party says about itself an obvious lie. Taiwan is important first and foremost because it is an inspiration to people everywhere, proving that a small nation can stand up to a large regime. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Yet today those 23 million people face their most dangerous moment, and we must ask ourselves just one question: Will their young democracy survive?</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">These days, Taiwan looks weak, and China appears mighty as Beijing goes from strength to strength and from victory to victory. Things are going so well for Beijing that we are told that this is “China’s Century.” What place does Taiwan have in a century belonging to China? Not much of one. If all the experts are right, then an independent Taiwan is doomed. If they have correctly analyzed historical trends, then you, free Taiwanese, have no future. You will be colonized by the People’s Republic. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">This imbalance means that we are at a point in history when almost anything can happen. </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">For many of us, it is inconceivable that a vibrant young democracy would willingly agree to join the world’s largest authoritarian state. Yet some tell us that is exactly what will happen—and that it should occur soon. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Why? Many in the pro-China camp say that Taiwan cannot compete with Chinese industry and therefore should integrate with it. From this point, they then say Taipei should reconcile with the Mainland’s leaders so that the island’s business community can participate in the booming economy across the Strait. Political integration with Beijing is Taipei’s only option, and, should Taiwan fail to unite with the People’s Republic, it will be left with nothing. According to this view, the people of Taiwan have no real choice.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Recent statistics, they argue, prove their point. Taiwan’s economy contracted a stunning 8.4 percent in the last quarter of 2008. This year, exports tumbled 35.7 percent in March,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">28.6 percent in February, and 44.1 percent in January. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">We are told that, in view of the precipitous fall in the economy, Taiwan needs to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement, or ECFA, with China. In short, the prevailing belief is that Taiwan needs China.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">But these experts have it wrong. Taiwan does not need China. And tying Taiwan’s economy to China will be a disaster. Forgive me if the following discussion of the Chinese economy is too detailed, but this is the issue on which almost everything turns.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">As bad as the Taiwanese economy appears, China’s is worse. China, at this moment, has the world’s fastest slowing economy. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">According to official statistics, gross domestic product, the best measure of national economic performance, skyrocketed 13.0 percent in 2007, and it was, in all probability, higher than that. Poor sampling procedures did not properly take into account the output of small manufacturers, then the most productive part of the economy. So, if you want a figure, China’s economic growth in 2007 was about 15 percent.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Now, although Beijing doesn’t admit it, economic output is contracting. No economy has fallen further or faster than China’s. Not even Taiwan’s.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The reason for the dramatic collapse in China is clear. China has an export-dominated economy, and its exports are in freefall. They have declined every month since November. In January, they fell 17.5 percent. In February, they were down a staggering 25.7 percent. The Chinese government has indicated there was another double-digit fall in March.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And the prospect for the coming months is bleak. Orders for Chinese factories appear to be down by a third to a half this spring, the beginning of high season for the export sector. That’s not surprising because even the optimistic World Bank predicts the global economy will contract this year for the first time since World War II and international trade will decline the most in eighty years. The downturn is resulting in declining consumer demand not only in developed economies but also in emerging ones. That’s especially bad news for a China that is extraordinarily dependent on foreign markets. An exceptionally high 38 percent of its economy is attributable to exports. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In good times, an export economy is a blessing. In bad ones, however, it is a curse. As we saw in the Great Depression, it was the current-account-surplus countries that had the hardest time adjusting to deteriorating economic conditions and, consequently, suffered the most. That is proving to be the case now as well. China’s economic model, which delivered prosperity in a period of seemingly unending globalization, is particularly ill-suited to current conditions.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So Taiwan cannot rely on China to rescue it from this crisis. There is no realistic possibility of exporting more to China to feed China’s export machine because China’s export machine is itself faltering. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Some might argue that Taiwan can tap into the Chinese consumer market. That argument does not hold much water because Chinese consumers, reacting to negative news both from home and abroad, are pulling back at this time. We know that because China’s imports are also falling. They were down 43.1 percent in January and 24.1 percent in February. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Those atrocious numbers are a warning of not only further export falls but also—and more importantly—future declines in consumer spending. Another sign of weak consumer sentiment is the 1.6 percent drop in the consumer price index for February. That was the first fall in more than six years. Deflation is on the way.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Unfortunately for China, in the coming months exports will continue to plunge and consumer spending will decline. Beijing in November announced a $586 billion spending program to stimulate investment, the third leg of the Chinese economy. The plan, however, won’t work to create sustainable prosperity. It will undoubtedly create a “sugar high” in the next few months, but that will be temporary because the spending will be creating a bigger state economy and a smaller private one. In any event, technocrats in the Chinese capital are not going to be using their cash to benefit foreigners, even Taiwanese. That state money is going to state-owned enterprises and state projects.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So China has the world’s worst performing economy, and the prospects this year are dreadful. Further tying Taiwan’s economy to China’s is, quite simply, horrible strategy. It is absolutely the worst thing Taipei can do at this moment.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Yet Taiwan is not the only country that is making a mistake by contemplating a closer relationship with China. So is the United States. There are those in Washington who, in the desire to establish an informal alliance with Beijing, would like to see China absorb Taiwan in order to remove a potential source of disagreement. As Dennis Blair, then an admiral and now director of national intelligence, said in 1999, Taiwan is “the turd in the punchbowl.” Such a view, in addition to being morally repugnant, is also strategically short-sighted. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">It is short-sighted for six reasons. First, it is highly debatable that the U.S. can maintain stable relations with a communist superstate that believes it should push aside America and dominate the international system. The Washington-New York axis may buy into the notion of a grand alliance with Beijing, but such an arrangement would go against ingrained American values and would not survive popular opinion in the U.S. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Second, Taiwan is an important country in its own right. It is economically powerful, and it is embedded into global supply chains. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Third, because Taiwan has become an inspiring symbol of the success of representative governance and free markets, to help it fail means gutting our own values and bolstering China’s model of authoritarianism and rigged markets. Unfortunately, many in Washington don’t believe in supporting democracy. They have forgotten every crucial lesson of the 20th century.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Fourth, our Asian policy is anchored on defending Japan. As a quick glance of a map will reveal, the main island of Taiwan and its various outlying islands protect the southern approaches to our Japanese ally. It would, therefore, be difficult for America to defend Japan if Taiwan became the 34th province of the People’s Republic. If we can’t defend Japan, South Korea would become surrounded and would surely fall into Beijing’s lap as well. With its two formal alliances gone, the United States would be out of Asia. The only thing that holds the Chinese in check is America, and Taiwan is the key to keeping the United States in the game.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Fifth, ceding Taiwan would undoubtedly embolden a territorially hungry Beijing. China asserts sovereignty over Japanese islands and the continental shelves of five southeast Asian countries. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Incredibly, it appears to maintain that the entire South China Sea is an internal Chinese lake, thereby impinging on the right of free passage on, under, and over international waters. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And the United States, even though far from Asia, is now becoming China’s target as we saw last month with Chinese ships harassing the Victorious and Impeccable, two unarmed information-gathering vessels.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Giving up Taiwan would only embolden China to press its claims with even more confidence and vigor—and it would bolster Beijing’s weak legal positions by inheriting Taipei’s territorial rights. So the place to stop the Chinese from pursuing their aggressive ambitions is Taiwan. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sixth, abandoning Taiwan would send a horrible message to American allies, friends, and foes in the region. If we pushed Taiwan into the arms of China, no nation would ever want to help the United States in Asia—or elsewhere—in the future.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In short, America needs something it has not had in decades, a strong Taiwan policy. Instead, we have had the uninspiring equivocation of the Bush administration, which has been continued by Obama’s. Washington policy of “strategic ambiguity” has just encouraged the Chinese to test American resolve. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">We have not been able to develop a sound Taiwan policy, even though it is so important for us to do so, largely because of our perceptions of China and our hopes for its future. We are trying to engage Beijing so that it becomes a “responsible stakeholder” in the international system. Yet over time, the Chinese, as they have become more powerful, have become more aggressive. So in pursuit of an unattainable goal—making the Chinese regime our friend—Washington is undermining its own strategic objectives. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">It’s time for we Americans to demonstrate that we keep commitments to free peoples. We need to do that especially at this moment because hardline governments are on the march. So defending Taiwan is defending America.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So, let’s do all we can for Taiwan so that it can meet its challenges. And I am confident that it will do so. Why? For one thing, an arrogant China will overstep with one provocation too many. Hardline governments always create their own enemies. But there is a more fundamental reason why Taiwan will prevail. That’s because of you.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">For all that you have done in the past and for all that you will do in the days and years ahead, I admire you, I support you, and I salute you.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Let freedom ring. Long live a free Taiwan!</span><br /><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-23926978155848328782009-03-02T15:02:00.004-06:002009-03-02T15:09:57.209-06:00"Hey Kid" (囡仔) 全曲試聽 - Taiwanese hip hop<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">See below for unofficial hanji (Chinese) and English</span> versions of lyrics.<br /><br /><object style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FoDap2doavA&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FoDap2doavA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br />歌詞:</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">續來戒嚴三十八年白色恐怖</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">管你外省本省客家河洛還是原住民</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">黨看你不爽 你就馬上無去</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">林義雄老母二個查某子 全部殺死</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">雷震批評蔣介石 被關十年</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">殷海光寫冊 被監視逼死</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">宋楚瑜全面禁止台語節目</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">連布袋戲歌仔戲也要講北京話</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">勇敢的台灣人 打拼追求民主自由</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">政治改革的美麗島 農民抗爭的五二零</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">關的關 死的死 鄭南榕為言論自由</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">點起的那把火還未燒完</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">囡仔 你就要會記</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">他們的流血流汗艱苦犧牲給你自由的空氣</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">不可忘記 民主革命才開始</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">無經過寒冬的風雪 看不到春天的花蕊</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">囡仔 你就要會記</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">歷史教咱錯誤可以原諒但是不能忘記</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">轉頭回來了解你對叼位來</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">才有法度知道要對叼位去</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">囡仔 你就要會記</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">歷史有講別人的意見有時候會給你生氣</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">互相了解互相尊重鬥陣才會出頭</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">鴨霸剝削有一工就換你無底躲</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我祝福你可以好勢</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我祈求你會曉分別</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我希望你可以改變以後的社會</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我祝福你可以好勢</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我祈求你會曉分別</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">我希望你可以改變不義的一切</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">多一個勇健的台灣囡仔</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">台灣就多一塊敲不破的活氣磚角</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">所以每工要運動 喝八大杯煮過的水</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">不要吃煙毒 喝茶不喝咖啡</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">一禮拜要看一本冊 知識就是力量</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">認識越多 自己做主的信心越強</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">學校上課要專心 聽無就要問先生</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"Hey Kid" (囡仔) 全曲試聽:</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">http://www.myspace.com/juichuanchang</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Lyrics (English):</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">What ensued was thirty-eight years of the martial-law era called "White Terror"</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Doesn't matter if you're a Mainlander, Formosan, Hakka, Holo, or Aborigine</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you mess with the Party, you'll vanish in no time</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Or be butchered like the mother and two daughters of Lin Yi-hsiung (林義雄)</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Lei Jhen (雷震) was imprisoned for ten years for criticizing Chiang Kai-shek</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Yin Hai-guang (殷海光) was under surveillance for his political articles until he died </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">James Soong (宋楚瑜) banned all the Taiwanese TV shows</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Even puppet shows and Taiwanese Operas must be aired in Chinese</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Brave Taiwanese souls fought and struggled for democracy and freedom</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Beautiful Island Incident for political reform, 520 Farmer Protest</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Jail after jail, kill after kill </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Jheng Nan-rong (鄭南榕) burst into flames that'll last forever for free speech</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hey, kid, you must remember</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Their blood and sweat, torment and sacrifice, gave you the air you're breathing</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Don't forget the revolution for democracy has just begun </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">You won't see the spring buds if you don't go through the winter snow</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hey kid, you must remember</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">History teaches us to forgive mistakes, not forget them</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">You have to turn around, see where you've come from</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you want to figure out where you should go</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hey kid, you must remember</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">History says that people may disagree with you, anger you</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Understand and respect each other, work it out together</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you oppress and exploit them, one day the tables will turn and you'll have nowhere to hide</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I wish you all the best</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I pray you can distinguish</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I hope you'll change society in the future</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I wish you all the best</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I pray you can distinguish</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I hope you'll fight injustice and oppression</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">One more strong Taiwanese kid</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">One more unbreakable brick of the Taiwanese spirit</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So you must exercise every day and drink eight glasses of boiled water</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">No cigarettes and drugs. Drink tea, not coffee</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Read a book every week because knowledge is power</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you know more you'll have more control of your life</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Pay attention in school. Ask questions . . .</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">*Listen to the complete track of "Hey Kid" (囡仔) here:</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br />http://www.myspace.com/juichuanchang</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></span>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-67760684833376414792009-02-20T23:23:00.003-06:002009-02-20T23:40:30.334-06:00Joy Behar vs. Ann Coulter<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">What a riot this interview is. Conservative Ann Coulter cleans Liberal Joy Behar's clock.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Must view video for all conservatives.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Warning:</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Some language not appropriate for my ears, but I got through it alright :-)</span><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-NqbO-K5j_k&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-NqbO-K5j_k&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-8-CW3dStKc&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-8-CW3dStKc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YKV2Paw90HI&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YKV2Paw90HI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-48992635188587559552009-02-18T09:50:00.005-06:002009-02-20T21:18:58.008-06:00Ma’s Policies Make Taiwan's Recession Deeper and Wider<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">Taiwan's GDP is projected to contract for three more quarters --- 6.51 percent in the first quarter, another 6.85 percent in the second quarter, and 2.67 percent in the third -- before swinging back to a rise of 4.50 percent in the fourth quarter.<br /><br />"This is likely to be the longest recession in Taiwan's history so far," Shih Su-mei, [Minister of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics], told reporters.</blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">From </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Agence France-Presse (AFP)</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> story:</span><br /><a href="http://ca.news.finance.yahoo.com/s/18022009/24/f-afp-taiwan-recession-economy-contracts-record-8-36-pct.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); font-weight: bold;">Taiwan in recession as economy contracts record 8.36 pct</span></a></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Wed Feb 18, 7:53 AM</span></blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Commentary</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br />Ma Ying-jeou’s government has tried hard to make a “disabled” Ma look “good.” </span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >First, Ma’s government, making all kinds of policies only to show off “homework done” without any deliberate planning, has not and never will confess any wrong doing or wrong policies that have pushed Taiwan toward a deeper and longer recession. With the recession so clear and near, Ma’s government is still using “+5.8% growth” as the basis for its 2009 budget while everyone has warned that Taiwan will actually have a negative growth for the next few years.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Besides that, to make Ma look “superb”, his government lowers the income level of poverty, so the numbers of the poor suddenly drop as the numbers of families who can’t afford to take care of the ill and handicapped increase dramatically. In fact, businesses are facing financial difficulty just as Ma tells people to be as frugal as "he is" and as the government raises each of the three utility bills.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >The KMT makes the Taiwanese. i.e. the DPP and on former President Chen Shui-bian "Abian", who have little power or are in jail, respectively, the easy scapegoats. As soon as Ma steps up, the economy in Taiwan steps down. To make use of the United States, as the KMT always does, the KMT people in Taiwan are blaming this recession on the US market. That indeed is part of the problem but connecting at the hip with China, as Ma has been so eager for Taiwan to do, is at least equally causitive. </span></div>FormosanHousewifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03967916879996027012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-21364022347828334862008-12-01T19:28:00.006-06:002008-12-01T20:29:32.514-06:00Taipei Times Editorial: Eroding Justice (in Taiwan)<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); text-align: justify;" class="head"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The following Open Letter No. 2 to Taiwan's Minister of Justice was published in the Taipei Times Tuesday, December 2, 2008 as an Editorial. I have lightly edited it for spelling and format, have not changed anything else except what is enclosed in brackets,, thus [ ], and have highlighted in bold font the text that was shown in bold and enlarged text on the upper right of the letter as published. I also used the Wiki link tool to generate a linked version of the text before copying it to this blog. I made no attempt to make the wiki links non-trivial or to create my own additional wiki links, though some might be useful.</span><br /></span></p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;" class="head"><a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/12/02/2003430120"><span style="font-size:130%;">Eroding justice: Open letter No. 2</span></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Tuesday, Dec 02, 2008, Page 8</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Honorable Wang Ching-feng</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Minister of Justice</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Taipei, Taiwan</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Dear Minister Wang [王清峰],</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> In an open letter to the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taipei%20Times">Taipei Times</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> published on Nov. 25, you responded to our joint statement regarding the erosion of justice in </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan.</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> We appreciate your acknowledgment of the sincerity of our concerns, and are grateful to receive a prompt and serious reply.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Based [on] the information available to us, however, we remain concerned about choices made by prosecutors in applying existing legal authority and strongly believe in the need for reform. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Please">Please</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> allow us to highlight a number of specific points:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 1. The procedure of “preventive detention”: This procedure is obviously intended for serious criminal cases in which the suspect is likely to flee the country. In his Nov. 13 article in the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=South%20China%20Morning%20Post">South China Morning Post,</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Professor%20Jerome%20Cohen">Professor Jerome Cohen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> states that “it ought to be invoked rarely.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Yet, during the past weeks, it has been used across the board, and it has been used only against present and former members of </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Democratic%20Progressive%20Party">Democratic Progressive Party</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [DPP] governments. This casts severe doubts on the impartiality of the judicial system. We also wish to point out that the people involved were detained under deplorable circumstances, and that they were not even allowed to see relatives.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 2. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Your">Your</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> open letter contains the argument that when they were detained, the present and former </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=DPP">DPP</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> government officials “were all informed of the charges that had been brought against them.” This is simply not correct. When they were detained, they were subjected to lengthy interrogations — in some cases for up to 20 hours — which bore the character of a “fishing expedition,” and do not represent a formal indictment in any legal sense. In most cases the prosecutors had had months to collect information; if they did have sufficient evidence of wrongdoing, they should have formally charged the persons and let them have their day in a scrupulously impartial court of law. That would be the desirable procedure under the rule of law in a democratic society.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 3. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Your">Your</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> open letter also states that the persons involved had “the right and ability to communicate with their attorneys to seek legal assistance.” It neglects to mention, however, that in all cases where people were detained, the discussions with the lawyers were recorded and videotaped while a guard took notes. This information was then immediately transmitted to the respective prosecutors. We don’t need to point out that this is a grave infringement on international norms regarding lawyer-client privilege and makes mounting an adequate defense problematic at best.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 4. On the issue of leaks to the press, your letter states that, under the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Code%20of%20Criminal%20Procedure">Code of Criminal Procedure,</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> information from ongoing investigations can only be disclosed by spokespersons of the prosecutor’s offices and that unauthorized disclosure is subject to criminal prosecution. The fact of the matter is that during the past weeks, the media have been filled with information on the ongoing investigations that could only have come from the prosecutors. We may point out one example, but there are numerous others:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Only few hours after former minister of foreign affairs </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mark%20Chen">Mark Chen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [陳唐山] was questioned on Nov. 3, </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan%E2%80%99s%20Apple%20Daily">Taiwan’s Apple Daily</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> newspaper ran an article saying that “the prosecutors are thinking of charging </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dr%20Chen">Dr Chen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> in relation to the case.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> The issue of violation of the principle of secret investigation was also raised by </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shilin%20District%20Court%20Judge%20Hung%20Ying-hua">Shilin District Court Judge Hung Ying-hua</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [洪英花], who strongly criticized the present situation and procedures followed by your ministry in a </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Liberty%20Times">Liberty Times</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> article on Nov. 17.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> We may also mention that we find it highly peculiar that no steps whatsoever have been taken against the various prosecutors who leaked information, while we just learned that the Ministry of </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Justice">Justice</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> is now taking steps against </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mr%20Cheng%20Wen-long">Mr Cheng Wen-long</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [鄭文龍], the lawyer for former president </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chen%20Shui-bian">Chen Shui-bian</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [陳水扁], who supposedly “leaked” information to the press. The ministry sent a formal request to the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taipei%20District%20Prosecutor%E2%80%99s%20Office">Taipei District Prosecutor’s Office</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> asking the office to investigate and prosecute, and sent a formal request to the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan%20Lawyers%20Association">Taiwan Lawyers Association</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> that asked the association to review the case and see whether </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cheng">Cheng</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> should have his license revoked.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> It is our understanding that the statements </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mr%20Cheng">Mr Cheng</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> made were in relation to former president </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chen%E2%80%99s">Chen’s</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> views on </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan%E2%80%99s">Taiwan’s</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> situation and its future, and an expression of love for his wife, but did not have any bearing on the case against him. We hope you realize that if the ministry proceeds along these lines, this will be perceived as a direct confirmation of the strong political bias of the judicial system.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 5. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Your">Your</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> letter states that it is untrue that </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan%E2%80%99s">Taiwan’s</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> judicial system is susceptible to political manipulation. If this is the case, how can it be explained that in the past weeks, only </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=DPP">DPP</a> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">officials have detained and given inhumane treatment such as handcuffing and lengthy questioning, while obvious cases of corruption by members of the</span> <a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=KMT">KMT</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> — including in the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Legislative%20Yuan">Legislative Yuan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> — are left untouched by the prosecutors or at best are stalled in the judicial process?</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> We may also refer to expressions of concern by </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Professor%20Cohen">Professor Cohen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> and by lawyer </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nigel%20Li">Nigel Li</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [李念祖], who expressed his deep concerns about preventive detentions in the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=China%20Times%E2%80%99">China Times’</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> editorial for Nov. 9. In the editorial, </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mr%20Li">Mr Li</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> praised remarks made by prosecutor </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eric%20Chen">Eric Chen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> [陳瑞仁], who was part of the legal team prosecuting the special fund cases, that the prosecutors’ offices should “avoid the appearance of targeting only one particular political group.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> The fact that the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special%20Investigation%20Task%20Force">Special Investigation Task Force</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> was set up under the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=DPP">DPP</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> administration or that the prosecutor general was nominated by former president </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chen">Chen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> is not at issue here. The problem is that the present system is being used in a very partial fashion.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> We may add that the fact that you yourself have publicly discussed the content of the cases does create a serious imbalance in the playing field, and undermines the basic dictum that a person should be considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Under">Under</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;"> the present circumstances it is hard to see how the persons involved — including former president </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chen">Chen</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;"> — can have a fair trial in Taiwan.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> 6. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lastly">Lastly,</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> a statement by the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=US">US</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> State </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Department">Department</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> is interpreted in your letter as an “endorsement” of </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan%E2%80%99s">Taiwan’s</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> legal system and the procedures followed. It should be noted that in international diplomatic language, the term “we have every expectation” means “we are concerned and we will watch the situation closely.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> For the past two decades, </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> has faced a difficult situation internationally. </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=What">What</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> has given </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> important credibility in democratic countries around the world has been its democratization. We fear that the current judicial procedures being used in </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> endanger this democratization, and endanger the goodwill that </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> has developed internationally.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> In conclusion, we do remain deeply disturbed by the erosion of justice in </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan,</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> and express the sincere hope and expectation that your government will maintain fair and impartial judicial practices and quickly correct the present injustices. As an editorial in the Nov. 20 issue of the </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=London-based%20Economist">London-based Economist</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> indicated, </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> is “hungry for justice,” and we also hope that your government will be willing to initiate judicial reform that would move </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taiwan">Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> toward a fully fair and impartial judicial system that earns the respect and admiration of democratic countries around the world.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Respectfully yours,</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> (in alphabetical order)</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Nat Bellocchi</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Former American Institute in Taiwan chairman</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Coen Blaauw</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Formosan Association for Public Affairs, Washington</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Gordon G. Chang</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Author, “The Coming</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Collapse of China”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Assoc. Prof. Stéphane Corcuff</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Lyon</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. June Teufel Dreyer</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Miami</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Edward Friedman</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Wisconsin</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Dr. Mark Harrison</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Tasmania</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Bruce Jacobs</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Monash University</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Richard C. Kagan</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Professor Emeritus,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Hamline University</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Jerome Keating</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Author and former</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> associate professor,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> National Taipei University</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Assoc. Prof. Daniel Lynch</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Southern California</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Victor H. Mair</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Pennsylvania</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Assoc. Prof. Donald Rodgers</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Austin College, Texas</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Terence Russell</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Manitoba</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Scott Simon</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Ottawa</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Michael Stainton</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, York Center for Asia Research, Toronto</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Peter Tague</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Georgetown University</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> John J. Tkacik Jr</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Senior Research Fellow,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> The Heritage Foundation</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Arthur Waldron</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Pennsylvania</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Prof. Vincent Wei-cheng Wang</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Richmond</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Gerrit van der Wees</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Editor, “Taiwan Communiqué”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Assoc. Prof. David Curtis Wright</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, University of Calgary</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Stephen Yates</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, President of </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=DC%20Asia%20Advisory">DC Asia Advisory</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> and former deputy assistant to the vice president for national security affairs </span></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-78998232748286906922008-11-29T13:27:00.007-06:002008-11-30T00:06:55.287-06:00Spinning Taiwan-China for Obama<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In his editorial,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="fullstory" id="fullstory"> </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=799944&lang=eng_news"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">For America, a welcome thaw between China and Taiwan</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Syd Goldsmith, </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="fullstory" id="fullstory">former director of the American Institute in Taiwan's Kaohsiung Office,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> seems to see the Taiwan-China relationship through "Ma colored" (ostensibly blue) glasses. For him to write, "Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou offered to move the process [</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="fullstory" id="fullstory">i.e. agreements providing for direct air, shipping, and postal links, and food safety] </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">forward after taking office in May, and there has been a palpable reduction in paranoia about sovereignty on both sides", is for him to ignore the 34.9% of Taiwanese who indicated in polls last year that immediate or eventual independence, or indefinite extension of the status quo was their preferred resolution of the sovereignty issue.<br /><br />For this slice of Taiwan's population there is not palpable reduction in paranoia these days. What instead has been palpable (painfully so for those unfortunate people who didn't get the word about the prohibition on free speech--on showing the colors, wearing T-sheets with pro-Taiwan nation messages, and playing Taiwanese music anywhere near the visiting and venerated ARATS official) has been the batons of Ma's police, the forceful removal of the colors (ROC flags), and CDs, from the citizen's possession, and the beatings by Ma's police of some.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Also palpable is the sense that time seems to be going backwards in Taiwan, back to the White Terror period, where the KMT's one party grip on power was maintained by the Chiang family's </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">paranoia and military police iron fists</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, a paranoia fed by the acquisition of dictatorial power (ostensibly to "take back China") and the requisite intolerance of even a single opposition party. Ma's recent jailing of some members of the opposition DPP party is supportive of this narrative, though certainly the scale is tiny in comparison with the arrests and assassinations in the historical White Terror period. However, modern media offers Ma something that the Chiangs did not have (in it's full form). With the arrest and detention of the big fish, former President </span><span class="fullstory" id="fullstory">Chen Shui-bien</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Ma, taking the role of high priest of the Chinese compatriots on Taiwan, has one man on which he can place the sins of the Taiwanese people against the Chinease people. Now that he has Chen Ma can simply let the media do the dirty work of flogging and driving nails. By making an example of Chen, blaming him for all that "evil talk" of independence and for the state of enmity built up between China and Taiwan </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">from 2000 to 2008</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Ma can cover over the sins of the "misguided" 35% of the Taiwanese that Mr. </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Goldsmith doesn't know about or disregards.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"As the ARATS chairman's recent visit shows, we are witnessing a maturing relationship in which the antagonists have agreed to put aside the issue that has divided them for 60 years in favor of getting practical benefits that they want," writes the former AIT director. Hm, "the issue that has divided them for 60 years"?....oh yes, the civil war between those Nationalists, like Ma, comprising maybe 15% of the population of Taiwan and the Chinese Communists. More than eight-five percent of the population were dragged into the war against their will. I thought that that issue, as far as Taiwan is concerned, was put to bed by the 1992 Consensus. Of course since 1992 China has built up a cache of over 1000 missiles targeting Taiwan. So I guess the consensus was a bit one sided. Oh, maybe he means the SOVEREIGNTY issue (that's what the war was really about). Well, if a maturing relationship means China gets its way with Taiwan on the sovereignty question, then my advice to Taiwan is "</span>if it’s inevitable, then relax and enjoy it<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">" cause it's going to last a long long time.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Goldsmith</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> continues, "</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Beijing's leaders have long acted on the premise that China can bring Taiwan back to the motherland with a gentle but powerful economic embrace that will eventually convince the people of Taiwan where their interests lie. This has been complemented by the never-abandoned threat to take the 'renegade province' back by force if Taipei declares independence."<br /><br />Kind of gives you goose bumps, doesn't it? "A gentle but powerful embrace" sounds like what I was saying: TAIWAN, YOU ARE BEING FORCED TO HAVE INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">. </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span>If it’s inevitable, then relax and enjoy it. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">As Goldsmith channels past and present day Chinese Communists, it's as if they are saying, "Taiwan, you will either make love to me freely or I will force you to do so. Either way you're mine." A mature relationship? Sure, in a macabre kind of way.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Goldsmith covers more ground than I wish to comment on here but getting to his main objective in writing the op ed. As the title of the blog alludes to, Goldsmith is putting a spin on the Taiwan-China issue for the comming Obama Administaion. He is trying to make the case that Obama may in fact get a free ride across the Taiwan Strait--that the recent Ma-induced thaw between China and Taiwan might mean that diplomatic capital can be redirected to other hot spots on the globe.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I don't think so. In case they've read Goldsmith's op ed and are reading my blog (yeah, right), let me give Obama and Hilary a little bit of advice. Firstly to Secretary of State apparent, Ms. Clinton, please understand that the eye must always be kept on the ball, no matter what the conditions on the field. And in case you don't already know, the "ball", in terms of our interests, is the democracy, Taiwan, not the communist dictatorship, China. And for you, President-Elect Obama, please note that the bureaucrats in the State Department hold the line between China and Taiwan, not the President of the United States. The ship of State is not easily turned/directed.</span><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-71122279205900999652008-11-28T00:58:00.004-06:002008-12-06T19:08:57.919-06:00Awakening China: Chinese people do not need a pro-Taiwan “white” man opinion on the development of mainland relationship and possibly, future integration with Taiwan<div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The <span style="font-style: italic;">China Watcher</span> blogger who posted </span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);" href="http://alt-china.blogspot.com/2008/11/chinese-people-do-not-need-pro-taiwan.html">Awakening China: Chinese people do not need a pro-Taiwan “white” man opinion on the development of mainland relationship and possibly, future integration with Taiwan</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> claims not to be a racist and yet uses the term "white" man to describe her/his antagonist. BTW, is the name "China Watcher" a "he" or a "she" name (of course, my blog ID, "Freedom Ain't Free", is similarly gender neutral, so for the record, I'm a white man, like China Watcher's antagonist, not only in terms of race and sex but also similar in political viewpoints regarding Taiwan and China)?</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In the mind of those Taiwanese who would agree with "white man", such as my Taiwanese wife, the ethnocentricity of the non-racist "China Watcher" glosses over the viewpoints of a lot more than 30% of the population of Taiwan. That 30% number was in response to a question about whether talking to China would benefit Taiwan. In polls taken before last Spring's Taiwan Presidential election (and tracked over a period of 13 years prior) a strong majority of Taiwanese leaned toward some form of independence, with maintaining the status quo (de facto independence) and deciding the matter in the future being the preference of 37% of the population and unification now or eventually garnering only 11.6% support, which was somewhat higher than the 7.7% that wanted independence now. If you add up all those favoring de facto or de jure independence, you get a whopping 76.9% of the Taiwanese, a super-majority.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Also, <span style="font-style: italic;">China Watcher</span>, holding in low regard Western style democracy would not see any problem disregarding the rights of the minority of the 30% (6.9 million people), much less perhaps, the rights of the super-majority of 76.7% (up to 17.7 million people). After all, it is the "Mandate of Heaven" that keeps the minority lording rule over on the majority and that constitutes Chinese dynastic governance of Chinese and non-Chinese peoples to antiquity.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The reason that I must say "up to 17.7 million people" is because the survey data was of Taiwanese respondents, being based on ethnicity only 85% of the population. It would be interesting to know the make-up of the population included in the survey that <span style="font-style: italic;">China Watcher </span>cites.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Never before, have so many common folks like <span style="font-style: italic;">China Watcher</span> participated so willingly in spreading the emperor's propaganda so far around the world.</span><br /><br /><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);" href="http://alt-china.blogspot.com/2008/11/chinese-people-do-not-need-pro-taiwan.html">Awakening China: Chinese people do not need a pro-Taiwan “white” man opinion on the development of mainland relationship and possibly, future integration with Taiwan</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Source of Taiwanese polling data cited by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"Freedom Ain't Free" </span><br /><a href="http://esc.nccu.edu.tw/eng/data/data03-3.htm"><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;" class="style3">Trends in Core Political Attitudes among Taiwanese</span></a> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;" >from <span style="font-style: italic;">Election Study Center, N.C.C.U.,</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> Center</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" >, important political attitude trend distribution</span><br /><a href="http://alt-china.blogspot.com/2008/11/chinese-people-do-not-need-pro-taiwan.html"><br /></a></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-48685403874200996892008-11-19T21:10:00.002-06:002008-11-19T21:16:27.261-06:00Ma's Taiwan = Police State<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVYyQ7fp_JU8HaJNMVWVM6-nNyfckTusinVvLz-eskGFSsyDdDVe4LNt17fGjsJIQQiqmjTt-z-CWbI6OyorxNoej4ENBBsFjXTSg_QpIFEEVYdv66iIjnMYyMKtD8h-Fj10fyLEos3c/s1600-h/Freddy+1.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 572px; height: 844px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVYyQ7fp_JU8HaJNMVWVM6-nNyfckTusinVvLz-eskGFSsyDdDVe4LNt17fGjsJIQQiqmjTt-z-CWbI6OyorxNoej4ENBBsFjXTSg_QpIFEEVYdv66iIjnMYyMKtD8h-Fj10fyLEos3c/s400/Freddy+1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269840869602407570" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXM7IKOJ9uKHxGdwEpXGVo_uCKoCorxLZ3LNWsfmzpkcl54dehbx6F3x1FNJRS0M-bfu1w1foEKqSy0xQUUp_pVJXJzzwb97-5xRwIWKaZq-KnnqWV-xMSggS1Zf2pwns_NPmZ8B_sw_4/s1600-h/Freddy+2.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 568px; height: 844px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXM7IKOJ9uKHxGdwEpXGVo_uCKoCorxLZ3LNWsfmzpkcl54dehbx6F3x1FNJRS0M-bfu1w1foEKqSy0xQUUp_pVJXJzzwb97-5xRwIWKaZq-KnnqWV-xMSggS1Zf2pwns_NPmZ8B_sw_4/s400/Freddy+2.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5270570922514053666" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgYEw_BI0JJCFOpEHTYvoW3lC6E-fUszNjKAGbM_5ca_woAlSwOORf-EfSkk0KyfrO54fjPGjp3-4Y8YEVNXae2AEzhcpriHtL8NqUsA8N32pSKrGnsKj-_S4s0rmGc2kDMhJBFBGggBM/s1600-h/P01-081107-a3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 572px; height: 764px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgYEw_BI0JJCFOpEHTYvoW3lC6E-fUszNjKAGbM_5ca_woAlSwOORf-EfSkk0KyfrO54fjPGjp3-4Y8YEVNXae2AEzhcpriHtL8NqUsA8N32pSKrGnsKj-_S4s0rmGc2kDMhJBFBGggBM/s400/P01-081107-a3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5270569558375826178" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="textmiddle">PHOTO: LIAO CHEN-HUEI, TAIPEI TIMES<br /></span></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" class="textbold">Two police officers remove an injured protester from a street demonstration after protesters broke through a police blockade in Taipei yesterday (11/06/2008).</span> <div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">SOURCE: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/photo/2008/11/07/2008032082</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div></div> </div> <embed style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" src="http://blip.tv/play/AdmVeZD9Cg" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="306" width="384"></embed><br /><br /><embed src="http://blip.tv/play/AdmUJ5D9Cg" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="306" width="384"></embed>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-68393107712584435282008-11-12T23:14:00.011-06:002008-11-20T00:13:41.157-06:00China & Taiwan crime fighting partnership?: Give me a break!<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><div style="text-align: left;">In reaction to this story, <a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=787320"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Taiwan, China to engage in joint crime-fighting: MAC chief</span></a>, I sent comments to the editor of the government controlled Internet "news" organ eTaiwannews.com. I've edited those comments and posted them below for all to read--since I do not expect eTaiwannews.com to publish them.<br /></div> <br />Dear eTaiwanNews Editor, <br /><br />Give me a break!<br /><br />Just exactly what activities will come under the umbrella of "crime" that the PRC and Taiwan will "cooperate" to fight? Will the recent protests related to the visit of the ARATS official be classified as crimes? Will free speech and displaying the national colors in public, within the site of a CCP member, be classified as crime? Will the playing of Taiwanese nationalistic music and the wearing of pro-Taiwan independence T-shirts be considered a crime? Will those who promote Taiwan independence be considered criminals?<br /><br />The recent events in Taiwan in which police did treat all of the activities mentioned above as crimes brings to my mind China's so-called "Anti-Secession law" which was "promulgated" on March 14th, 2005.<br /><br />Let's review that "law" in light of the Ma Administration and recent events in Taiwan. Note that the titles for the various articles of the "law" reproduced below have been added by me, as a literary device.<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 1 - THE JUSTIFICATION<br /><br />"This Law is formulated, in accordance with the Constitution, for the purpose of opposing and checking Taiwan's secession from China by secessionists in the name of "Taiwan independence", promoting peaceful national reunification, maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits, preserving China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and safeguarding the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation."</span></blockquote>It is obvious from Article 1 that 85% of the population of Taiwan, that is the Taiwanese, do not have their fundamental interests safeguarded by this "law".<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 2 - THE MANDATE OF HEAVEN<br /><br />"There is only one China in the world. Both the mainland and Taiwan belong to one China. China's sovereignty and territorial integrity brook no division. Safeguarding China's sovereignty and territorial integrity is the common obligation of all Chinese people, the Taiwan compatriots included.<br /><br />Taiwan is part of China. The state shall never allow the "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces to make Taiwan secede from China under any name or by any means."</span></blockquote>No wiggle room here. Screw the historical facts and recent democratic developments on Taiwan. The Chinese have the <span style="font-style: italic;">Mandate of Heaven</span>, created by telling the lie, not thousands, but millions of times--and by suborning perjury of countless presidents and state department spokespersons around the globe to say likewise--that Taiwan belongs to China.<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 3 - THE FIRST NON SEQUITUR<br /><br />"The Taiwan question is one that is left over from China's civil war of the late 1940s.<br /><br />Solving the Taiwan question and achieving national reunification is China's internal affair, which subjects to no interference by any outside forces."</span></blockquote>Damn Lie. The Nationalist squatted, in part, on Taiwan in 1945 at the bequest of the Allied Forces and then, in full, in 1949 to save their ass from Mao's Communist forces. But the island was by peace treaty Japanese territory from 1895 to 1952 because the final peace treaty with Japan was not signed until September 8, 1951 and did not come into effect until April 28, 1952. By that time the Chinese Civil War was essentially over and effectively a lost cause for Chiang Kai-shek's Chinese Nationalists. How could the Taiwan question have anything to do with the Chinese Civil War of the 1940s. That is simply a fabrication by both the Communist and the Nationalist Chinese promulgated on the unsuspecting public all over the world in almost every story derived from Chinese written press release after press release ad nauseam.<br /><span style="font-size:85%;"></span><blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;">Article 4 - THE SACRED DUTY</span> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;">"Accomplishing the great task of reunifying the motherland is the sacred duty of all Chinese people, the Taiwan compatriots included."</span><br /></span></blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Here we see the explicit statement of the Mandate of Heaven (i.e. "sacred duty"). "Taiwan compatriots" is a overused paternalistic Chinese Communist reference to those whom they identify with on Taiwan. I wonder if they mean everyone in Taiwan who has a little Mainland derived blood (98%) or just the less than 15% of the population that extracted itself directly from twentieth century China vis-à-vis the late 1949 Chinese emigrants to Taiwan, and their direct decedents. According to recent polls, if they took a vote on unification in the near term in Taiwan they would find that the number of compatriots might be less than 10%. How can that be a Mandate from anywhere or anyone, much less from a Heaven that the aethist Chinese don't even believe in?</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:85%;" >Article 5 - THE SECOND NON SEQUITUR<br /><br />"Upholding the principle of one China is the basis of peaceful reunification of the country.<br /><br />To reunify the country through peaceful means best serves the fundamental interests of the compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. The state shall do its utmost with maximum sincerity to achieve a peaceful reunification.<br /><br />After the country is reunified peacefully, Taiwan may practice systems different from those on the mainland and enjoy a high degree of autonomy."</span><br /></blockquote>There they go again, throwing logic into the wind. In order to "reunify the country", it has to have been unified at sometime in the past. Tell me a time in the past 113 years when China and Taiwan/Formosa were unified......just one time will do......I thought not.<br /><br />The next article sounds rather familiar when comparison with the policies and procedures of the Ma Ying-jeou Administration.<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 6 - CROSS-STRAIT INTERCOURSE<br /><br />"The state shall take the following measures to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and promote cross-Straits relations:<br /><br />(1) to encourage and facilitate personnel exchanges across the Straits for greater mutual understanding and mutual trust;<br /><br />(2) to encourage and facilitate economic exchanges and cooperation, realize direct links of trade, mail and air and shipping services, and bring about closer economic ties between the two sides of the Straits to their mutual benefit;<br /><br />(3) to encourage and facilitate cross-Straits exchanges in education, science, technology, culture, health and sports, and work together to carry forward the proud Chinese cultural traditions;<br /><br />(4) to encourage and facilitate cross-Straits cooperation in combating crimes; and<br /><br />(5) to encourage and facilitate other activities that are conducive to peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and stronger cross-Straits relations.</span><br /></blockquote>The state protects the rights and interests of the Taiwan compatriots in accordance with law."<br /><br />Yeah, right...protect the RIGHTS and INTEREST of Taiwan COMPATRIOTS (remember they're less than 10% of the population if we mean though longing fornear term unification with a society not even close to having freedom and human rights)!!!<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 7 - CROSS-EYED NEGOTIATIONS<br /><br />"The state stands for the achievement of peaceful reunification through consultations and negotiations on an equal footing between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits. These consultations and negotiations may be conducted in steps and phases and with flexible and varied modalities.<br /><br />The two sides of the Taiwan Straits may consult and negotiate on the following matters:<br /><br />(1) officially ending the state of hostility between the two sides;<br /><br />(2) mapping out the development of cross-Straits relations;<br /><br />(3) steps and arrangements for peaceful national reunification;<br /><br />(4) the political status of the Taiwan authorities;<br /><br />(5) the Taiwan region's room of international operation that is compatible with its status; and<br /><br />(6) other matters concerning the achievement of peaceful national reunification."</span><br /></blockquote>The negotiation points listed in this Article are also strangely familiar for they sound exactly like the things Ma is currently "negotiating" with his Chinese Communist friends. How sweet, Mister Ma. Only problem is that the "equal footing" must have been tilted in China's favor and "Taiwan region" does not sound like a free and democratic place.<br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"></span><blockquote style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Article 8 - THE NUCLEAR OPTION</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">"In the event that the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces should act under any name or by any means to cause the fact of Taiwan's secession from China, or that major incidents entailing Taiwan's secession from China should occur, or that possibilities for a peaceful reunification should be completely exhausted, the state shall employ non-peaceful means and other necessary measures to protect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.</span> <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">The State Council and the Central Military Commission shall decide on and execute the non-peaceful means and other necessary measures as provided for in the preceding paragraph and shall promptly report to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress."</span></span><br /></blockquote>TRANSLATION: If, according to our timetable, we do not coerce the people of Taiwan to surrender their sovereignty over their territory to us, we will blow them all to Hell (though we're atheists who don't believe in such a place), seize their territory and we couldn't care less about the United States and their so-called "Taiwan Relations Act" because we have calculated that they won't have the will to do a darn thing in the face of our military action.<br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Article 9 - THE INDEMNIFICATION<br /><br />In the event of employing and executing non-peaceful means and other necessary measures as provided for in this Law, the state shall exert its utmost to protect the lives, property and other legitimate rights and interests of Taiwan civilians and foreign nationals in Taiwan, and to minimize losses. At the same time, the state shall protect the rights and interests of the Taiwan compatriots in other parts of China in accordance with law.</span><br /></blockquote>TRANSLATION: If you're one of us, we'll do our darnedest to steer our armaments away from you, but if you're one of those obstinate freedom loving Taiwan patriots, you're toast and we will hunt you and your relations down and either make you confess your sins against the Chinese People and submit to reeducation or we make damn sure that your DNA is wiped from the human stream.<br /><br />CLOSING STATEMENT<br /><br />How can a free and democratic country and a communist authoritarian dictatorship cooperate on fighting crime when the latter defines free expression of democratic ideas criminal and runs tanks over those who practice such crimes? What a joke! Or, as one TV reporter was known to exclaim in the face of nonsense, "Give me a break!".<br /><br />Timothy E. Bradberry<br />Pflugerville,TX<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-76005955520037723342008-11-01T22:32:00.010-05:002008-11-02T00:26:26.772-05:00Republican Activist Booted from Valero Gas Station<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Saturday afternoon, donning a McCain-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Palin</span></span> T-shirt bearing a McCain-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Palin</span></span> button, a Michael Williams button, and my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">CTRA</span></span> President name tag, and wearing a hat bearing a Ronald Reagan for Governor button, a McCain-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Palin</span></span> button, and a Constable Bob <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Vann</span></span> pin, I was walking around a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Valero</span></span> gas station politely asking customers if they had voted yet (i.e. early voted).<br /><br />If they said yes, I would genuinely thank them for exercising their right to vote (even if they voted for Obama). They seemed to warm to that expression of gratitude. If they said they were not registered to vote or were not a citizen, and thus could not vote, I thanked not voting explaining that some people vote illegally. If they were registered to vote and indicated that they had not yet voted, I would urge them to vote on Tuesday, November 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">th</span></span>, offer them some literature about, and my personal knowledge of, the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Republicans</span> that were on the Travis County ballot and try to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">persuade</span> them to vote Republican in at least some of those races.<br /><br />Even if they said they were voting for Obama I would suggest that if they were not planning to vote a straight Democrat ballot they might consider some of the down ballot candidates on the R team. Then, depending on my perception of their <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">receptivity</span>, I would mentioned the Supreme Court candidates and why we needed to keep those Rs in office (i.e. to keep the court <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">functioning</span> in a non-activist manner, to interpret and apply law so that lawmaking would be left to the legislature, where as a representative body of the people it rightly belongs), and then move on to Jerry <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Mikus</span></span> (if they lived in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">HD</span></span> 50).<br /><br />It was quite enjoyable and they seemed very appreciative of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">conversation</span> and information, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">especially</span> the Republicans. :-)<br /><br />I started out in the morning at a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Velero</span></span> station in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Pflugerville</span></span> at which I bought a tank of gas and later a Diet Coke. During my very enjoyable interaction with customers at that station one customer I spoke with asked me to visit a car wash where his son Danny worked, and to give information to his son Danny. After a little while I did just that. I went to the car wash, found Danny, gave him the literature, and got my car washed and waxed while there. Of course, I took the opportunity to talk to more people and hand out more campaign literature. It was a different situation than at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Velero</span></span>. There were fewer and a much more <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">sedentary</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">clientele</span> (i.e. they hung around for a long time). I decided that the gas station was a better place to do what I was trying to do (exercise my free speech rights).<br /><br />In the afternoon, as I mentioned at the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">beginning</span> of this report, I went to the other <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Velero</span></span> station, near US183 and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Spicewood</span></span> Springs Road, in Austin. After spending about 90 minutes there, during which time my only purchase was a Diet Coke, a clerk came out to me as I was asking yet another customer if he had voted yet. She informed me that "they" could not have me doing what I was doing at their store, claiming that I was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">harassing</span> their customers. She said I had to leave. I told her that everyone I had talked to (and I filtered out no one based on outward appearance or even presence of a non-R bumper sticker) did not seem to be bothered by my conversation with them and that I was in no way trying to harass anyone. I asked her if any customers had complained about my activities, to which she would not answer yes or no.<br /><br />Earlier I had been in the story and talked to another clerk, a young man, who said he does not vote, did not want to vote, and was just "along for the ride" in this society. I don't remember seeing the young female clerk at that time. I talked with the male clerk out in back of the store later on and right before I left. He did not seem to be bothered by our conversation. Before I left, I went back into the store and asked if the manager was in. The clerk said no and then I asked for her name and the manager's name. She said her name is Angela and the manager's name is Dora. She did not tell me her or her manager's last names. I was not angry, but I told her that it seemed like she was harassing me rather than me harassing anyone. She simply said "may I help you" a couple of times and then asked me to leave because she had a customer to attend to whom I did not see walk up behind me. So, I left.<br /><br />My guess is that she was on the other team (a Democrat) and that she wanted me to leave <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">because</span> I was a Republican who was hurting her team. I could be wrong. I do not think I was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">harassing</span> anyone, unless perhaps I asked an illegal alien (whom of course would not have "illegal alien" written across his or her forehead) if he or she had voted yet. Like I said, I did not discriminate in my selection of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">customers</span> to approach....maybe I should have.<br /><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-65502312887995689942008-10-31T01:23:00.007-05:002008-10-31T02:09:47.834-05:00Michelle Ma Belle - Obama's Greatest Liability<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" ><strong></strong><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:georgia;">With Philip J. Berg, Esquire </span><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://www.rightsidenews.com/200810302407/editorial/berg-filing-injunction-to-stay-presidential-ellection.html">having taken his case against Obama to the US Supreme Court</a><span style="font-family:georgia;"> and with other similar law suits challenging Senator Obama's "qualifications" to serve as President of the United States having been filed, it appears that Obama's greatest liability, a liability that may very well undo his bid for the White House, is his wife Michelle's hot temper and loose tongue.</span></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><strong style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><br /></strong></span><a href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/shocking-development-mrs-obama-decides-enough-is-enough-my-husband-was-born-in-hawaii-and-adopted-by-his-step-father-does-that-make-him-unpatriotic-she-asks-on-a-direct-telephone-to-api/">Shocking development: Mrs Obama decides enough is enough: "My husband was born in Hawaii and adopted by his step father, does that make him unpatriotic; she asks", on a direct telephone to API.</a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><strong style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><a title="API and Fox News Network (USA) in a final agreement on the airing days/time." href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/29/the-michelle-obama-tapes-to-be-aired-any-daytime-from-now-api-and-fox-news-network-usa-in-a-final-agreement-on-the-airing-daystime/"><strong><span style="color: rgb(108, 12, 145);">The Michelle Obama tapes to be aired any day/time from now: API and Fox News Network (USA) in a final agreement on the airing days/time.</span></strong></a></strong><br /><br /><br /><strong style="font-family: georgia;"><a title="Raila Odinga, Kenya’s Prime Minister is in the Priority list of the First guests to the White House if Obama wins the US Presidency." href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/25/michelle-obama-tapes-reveals-raila-odinga-kenyas-prime-minister-is-in-the-priority-list-of-the-first-guests-to-the-white-house-if-obama-wins-the-us-presidency/"><strong><span style="color: rgb(108, 12, 145);">Michelle Obama tapes Reveals: Raila Odinga, Kenya’s Prime Minister is in the Priority list of the First guests to the White House if Obama wins the US Presidency.</span></strong></a></strong><br /><br /><br /><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/the-intended-release-of-michelle-obama-tapes-stirs-trouble-in-many-circles/" title="The intended release of Michelle Obama tapes stirs trouble in many circles">The intended release of Michelle Obama tapes stirs trouble in many circles.</a><br /><br /><br /><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/apifox-news-deal-sean-hannity-show-and-greta-van-susterens-show-on-the-record-to-air-the-michelle-obama-tape-in-less-than-24-hours-from-now/" title="API/Fox News deal: Sean Hannity show and Greta Van Susteren’s show “On the Record” to air the Michelle Obama tape in less than 24 hours.">API/Fox News deal: Sean Hannity show and Greta Van Susteren’s show “On the Record” to air the Michelle Obama tape in less than 24 hours.</a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Related Stories</span><br /><br /></span><a href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/29/news-flash-obamas-campaign-manager-offers-3-million-dollars-to-api-in-connection-with-michelle-obama-tape-planned-to-be-aired-by-fox-news-network/" title="Obama’s campaign manager offers 3 million dollars to API in connection with Michelle Obama tape to be aired by Fox News Network">Obama’s campaign manager offers 3 million dollars to API in connection with Michelle Obama tape to be aired by Fox News Network</a><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/obamas-grandmother-banned-by-the-kenya-police-from-giving-interviews-that-may-jeopardise-obamas-presidential-victory-on-november-4th/" title="Obama’s grandmother banned by The Kenya Police from giving interviews that may jeopardise Obama’s Presidential victory on November 4th.">Obama’s grandmother banned by The Kenya Police from giving interviews that may jeopardise Obama’s Presidential victory on November 4th.</a><br /><br /><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://africanpress.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/a-black-woman-crying-to-the-american-people-please-give-me-barack-hussein-obama-as-the-next-president-it-is-our-time-to-rule-you-she-seems-to-be-saying/" title="A Black woman crying to the American people: Please give me Barack Hussein Obama as the next President - it is our time to rule you, she seems to be saying.">A Black woman crying to the American people: Please give me Barack Hussein Obama as the next President - it is our time to rule you, she seems to be saying.</a><br /><br /></span>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-23000607176623916592008-10-22T22:02:00.004-05:002008-10-22T22:17:22.668-05:00A Clarion Call for Honest Reporters<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Like a breath of fresh air is a man who is committed to proclaiming truth. The article below was written by one such man; by a Democrat, and God bless him for so proclaiming, even at the risk of being ostracized those of his own party.</span><br /><strong><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span></strong></p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" align="left"><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><span style=";font-family:arial;" >Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?</span></strong></span><br /> <span style="font-size:100%;"><em style="font-family: georgia;">By Orson Scott Card </em></span></p> <span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span><p style=";font-family:georgia;color:blue;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><em>Editor's note: Orson Scott Card is a Democrat and a newspaper columnist, and in this opinion piece he takes on both while lamenting the current state of journalism. </em></span></p> <span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">An open letter to the local daily paper — almost every local daily paper in America: </span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"> <span style="font-size:100%;"> </span></div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">I remember reading <em>All the President's Men </em> and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know. </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration. </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans. </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > </span><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely <em>not </em> to be able to repay.<br /></span></p><p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://www.ldsmag.com/ideas/081017light.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">Click here to read the full article</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">.</span></a><br /></p>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-51432582800852613212008-10-17T21:49:00.007-05:002008-10-19T00:53:50.201-05:00A Letter Report on Barack "Barry" Hussein Obama, Jr.<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Editorial Note: </span><span style="font-style: italic;">Peggy Bower's original letter report did not include the hyperlinks provided below, had different paragraph break locations, and no section titles. Additionally, minor editorial revisions and one substantive correction to the text has been applied. I have linked names, places, organizations, book titles, etc. to their Wikipedia entries, which may or may not be accurate and/or up to date.<br /><br />- Timothy E. Bradberry<br /><br /><br /></span></span></div>October, 2008<br /><br /></div> <div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">My 2008 Election Letter</span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span></div><div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">by Peggy M. Bower<br /><br /></span></div> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I am not in the habit of buying or reading liberal books, but every once in a while I just have to “see for myself.” So I bought one of the most liberal books on the planet—Saul Alinsky’s </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_for_Radicals"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Rules for Radicals</span></a>. I had heard about the “dedication” page—couldn’t quite believe it, but here it is:</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span> <blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Lest we forget at least an over-the-shoulder acknowledgment to the very first radical; from all our legends, mythology, and history (and who is to know where mythology leaves off and history begins—or which is which), the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom—Lucifer.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">—</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Saul Alinsky</span> </blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Saul Alinsky's Book</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hillary Rodham wrote her senior thesis about Alinsky when she was a student at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellesley_College"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Wellesley College</span></a>. As soon as her husband became President, the White House requested that the thesis be locked away from public availability. Wellesley complied. After Clinton left office the ban was lifted. Today, a person may enter the archives room to “view” the thesis, but no one can make photocopies.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Barack Obama, as a student at Columbia University, became an admirer of Alinsky, and his first job was to follow in his steps as a “community organizer” in Chicago (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Association_of_Community_Organizations_for_Reform_Now"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;">ACORN</span></a>—Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">—</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">hired Obama to train its staff).</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Saul Alinsky (1909-1972), was a Jew who had enough religious training to quote <span style="font-style: italic;">Scripture</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> </span>when it suited him, while at the same time he claimed to be agnostic. From his book dedication it is obvious that he forsook the faith of his forefathers, and came down on the “dark side” of his religious questions.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">According to Alinsky, the history of the world is a series of cycles in which groups of people called the Have-Nots find ways of overcoming groups of people called the Haves—so that the Have-Nots can become the Haves. Then the cycle starts over again. The Haves always become evil and they try to keep the Have-Nots down. Overcoming the Haves is therefore a noble cause.<br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Alinsky</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> was often accused of being a Communist. In an interview with <span style="font-style: italic;">Playboy</span> in 1972, he said, “I’ve never joined any organization—not even the ones I have organized myself....Anybody who tells you he was active in progressive causes in those days and never worked with the Reds is a *&^#%* liar. Their platform stood for all the right things, and unlike many liberals, they were willing to put their bodies on the line.” He wasn’t referring to "Red State" Republicans.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In order to support “change” and the overthrow of the Haves, Alinsky wrote a couple of books, and started training community organizers who would serve as the change agents.<br /><br />The job of an organizer is to go into a town, or section of town, where the Have-Nots dwell. The job is easier if the Have-Nots are already dissatisfied, and they invite the organizer in to help them overthrow their “suppressors” and obtain power. If the people have not yet realized what their complaints should be, the organizer talks with the people, identifies the problems, and verbalizes the problems in their own vernacular. He wins the confidence of the suppressed, suggests inventive ways of using whatever resources they have at hand, leads them to victory, and becomes their hero. Alinsky doesn’t state that last part, but it is certainly implied and is the obvious net result of the sequence of events.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Barack the Community Organizer</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Barack Hussein Obama has made himself the ultimate community organizer hero by expanding his community to the entire United States of America. His vague message of change involves throwing off some of the foundational supports of our blessed nation.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In September, as reported by <a href="http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=302396723240343"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Investor’s Business Daily</span></a>, Obama said, </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br />In 1992, Obama helped form an organization, <a href="http://www.publicallies.org/site/c.liKUL3PNLvF/b.2634379/"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Public Allies</span></a>, that he plans to use as a model for this national service corps, which he calls “<a href="http://www.barackobama.com/issues/service/"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Universal Voluntary Public Service</span></a>.” Public Allies (PA) strives to place young adults into paid one-year “community leadership positions” with non-profit or government agencies. They are required to attend weekly training workshops and three retreats. The training methods mimic Saul Alinsky’s training for community organizers, and its real mission is to radicalize American youth, and use them to bring about “social change.” PA boasts in one of their own documents, “Our alumni are more than twice as likely as other 18-34 year olds to engage in protest activities.” One recruit enthusiastically reported, “I get to practice being an activist and get paid for it.” Our government now funds about one half of PA expenses through Clinton’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AmeriCorps"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">AmeriCorps</span></a>. Obama wants to expand it to a fully tax-payer funded “boot-camp” for radicals that would preempt military service. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Obama's Social Associations</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Obama never seems to have spent much time with “normal folks.” His mother, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ann_Dunham"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Anne Dunham</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"> </span></a>was a rebellious child who gave her parents a difficult time, and never repented. She had two failed marriages—one to Barack’s father, Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., who had a Muslim background but did not practice any religion and claimed to be an agnostic (Sound familiar?); and, the other to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lolo_Soetoro"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Lolo Soetoro</span></a>, an Indonesian who was a practicing Muslim and who took Barack (Barry) to mosque with him. After several years in Indonesia, Barack was sent back to Hawaii to live with his grandparents. He says in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreams_from_My_Father"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Dreams from My Father</span></a> that he felt abandoned.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">He felt less abandoned when he drew close to his first real mentor—poet, former publisher, and writer for newspapers, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Marshall_Davis"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Frank Marshall Davis</span></a>—an admitted Communist and member of the Communist Party USA.<br /><br />Davis was black, and his second wife was a white socialite. They moved from Chicago to Hawaii. Barack’s grandfather sought out Davis to befriend and mentor the boy because he thought that Davis’ mixed race family would be a comfort to him. Davis had many discussions with the boy </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">—</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">not only about race, but about politics. Davis and Barack’s unemployed grandfather enjoyed smoking marijuana</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> together. That may have been why Barack felt free to be open about his own use of drugs in high school and college. And Davis’ talk of his work in Chicago may have played a part in Obama being drawn to Chicago to become a “community organizer” right after college.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> A former school mate at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punahou_School"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Punahou High School</span></a> said that Barack hung out with a group of “druggies.” Obama says in <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Dreams from My Father</span>, “I had learned not to care, I blew a few smoke rings. . . . Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it. Not smack though.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_paid_for_obama%27s_education"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Dr. Khalid Abdullah Tariq Al-Mansour</span></a> (born Donald Warden), who was a mentor to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Panther_Party"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Black Panther</span></a> founder Huey Newton, asked former Manhattan Borough President, </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Sutton"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Percy Sutton</span></span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, who is also a former lawyer for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_X"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Malcom X</span></a><a href="http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/obama_sutton_saudi/2008/09/03/127490.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;"></span></a>, to write for Obama a letter of recommendation </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">to Harvard Law School</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">. Dr. Al-Mansour told Sutton that he was raising money for Obama’s graduate school education. In the same conversation he told Sutton that he (Al-Mansour) represented top members of the Saudi Royal family seeking to do business and exert influence in the U.S. The 88-year old Sutton babbled on about these connections in an interview on a New York all-news cable station early in 2008 (as reported by <a href="http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=305508174916939&kw=sutton"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Investor’s Business Daily, September 5, 2008</span></a>).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Obama and Tony </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Rezko</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Rezko"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Tony Rezko</span></a> was born in Syria, but has operated restaurants and developed real estate in Chicago. He was actually a slum lord in Chicago. Obama was finishing law school at Harvard when Rezko sought him out to offer him a job. Though Obama did not accept the offered position, he went to work for the rather sleazy law firm where Rezko was a client, and whose senior partner soon left to become Rezko’s business partner. Why would Obama go to work for such a firm when he had been President of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_Law_Review"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-style: italic;">Harvard Law Review</span></a>, and could have had a plum job with a prestigious law firm, or probably could have clerked for the U.S. Supreme Court? Rezko helped the Obamas with the financial aspects of buying a large and expensive house right across the street from him. Rezko is now in prison for using his connections to state boards to demand kickbacks from companies that wanted to do business with the state.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Obama and Bill Ayres</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Obama has long been friends with unrepentant terrorists <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Ayers"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Bill Ayres</span></a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernardine_Dohrn"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Bernadine Dohrn </span></a>(they are a “couple”), who bombed several government buildings, including the Pentagon, back in the sixties. They escaped going to prison on technicalities. In 2001, Ayers said that he had no regrets for his actions and wished he could have done more.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Ayers and Dohrn hosted a fundraiser in their home when Obama first ran for Illinois State Senator. Obama has served on several boards with Ayres, including the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woods_Fund_of_Chicago"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Woods Fund</span></a>, which made $40,000 and $35,000 grants to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_American_Action_Network"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Arab American Action Network</span></a>, headed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashid_Khalidi"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Rashid Khalidi</span></a>. (Khalidi has made statements supportive of Palestinian terror, and is a harsh critic of Israel. Khalidi also held a political fund-raising event in his home for Obama in 2000.) Obama and Ayers also funneled money to ACORN through the Woods Fund. (ACORN is now under investigation for voter registration fraud in a dozen key states for this election.) Obama dismisses Ayer’s behavior because the actions took place “a long time ago,” and Ayers is now a “respected professor of education at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chicago"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">University of Chicago</span></a>."<br /><br />Actually Ayers is simply following one of Saul Alinsky’s teachings—that to be more effective in bringing about “change,” you might have to cut your hair and put on a suit. Ayers is still the same radical that he was back in the sixties, but instead of evoking ire from the public by bombing buildings, he is just teaching his radical ideas to college students and public school teachers! He and Obama have worked together on “projects” for Chicago’s schools, and are of the same ilk.</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Obama and the Church</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Obama had never attended a church until he became a community organizer in Chicago. He was advised by a liberal Catholic priest that most blacks were associated in some way with a church, and that joining a church would be of benefit to being accepted in the community. He said in a TV interview that I watched that he decided to join the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Church_of_Christ"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">United Church of Christ</span></a> (perhaps a misnomer) because he didn’t have to change any of his beliefs to join. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremiah_Wright"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Jeremiah Wright</span></a>, his “pastor” of 20 years, used his pulpit to preach <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_liberation_theology"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Black Liberation Theology</span></a>, and frequently made complimentary mentions of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Farrakhan"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Louis Farrakhan</span></a>. He claimed that whites in America created the virus that causes AIDS in order to kill off blacks. After 9/11 Wright said that America deserved such a strike. You probably saw on TV a clip of the sermon in which he raved, “. . . No, no, no, not God Bless America—God *&^#%* America!” </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Obama and the Current US Financial Crisis</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">At least <a href="http://texashillblog.wordpress.com/2008/10/01/who-are-franklin-raines-tim-howard-and-jim-johnson/"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">three financial advisors to Obama’s Presidential campaign</span></a> (snopes.com <a href="http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/fanniemae.asp"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">says it ain't true</span></a>, but some say snopes is covering for Obama) are tied directly to our financial crisis. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Raines"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Franklin Raines</span></a>, Chairman and CEO at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fannie_Mae"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Fannie Mae</span></a>, was forced to retire when auditing discovered severe irregularities in accounting. He left with a “golden parachute" valued at $240 million. The Court ordered that he return $50 million. <a href="http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2003_May_20/ai_102052979?tag=rel.res2"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Tim Howard, Chief Financial Officer of Fannie Mae</span></a>, “cooked the books,” and “<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2004/12/22/AR2005033108869.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">resigned under pressure</span></a>” taking only $20 million with him. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_A._Johnson_%28businessman%29"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Jim Johnson</span></a> was a former executive at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lehman_Brothers"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Lehman Bros.</span></a>, and later forced from his position as Fannie Mae CEO when it was discovered that his compensation was not accurately reported—it was $21 million, not $6 million. He left with a bonus of $28 million. In addition to being a financial adviser to Obama, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/11/AR2008061103562_pf.html"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">he ran his Vice-Presidential Search Committee</span></a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >His Liberalness</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" > Barack Hussein Obama</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Obama has the distinction of being THE MOST LIBERAL MEMBER OF THE UNITED STATES SENATE. His percentage of liberal votes beats those of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Kennedy"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Ted Kennedy</span></a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Frank"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Barney Frank</span></a>. When he was in the Illinois State Senate he actually voted twice against a bill to give medical care to babies who were born alive after a botched abortion. (Such babies were being left alone in a room to die.) He testified that giving assistance to such babies would weaken Roe v. Wade.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Conclusion</span></span><br /><br />It sickens me to think that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Barack Hussein Obama</span></a> might be elected President of our country. If we elect him, then we deserve the consequences that will follow. May Americans be alert, attentive, dedicated, and patriotic. May we not be mesmerized by a mellow voice enticing the masses and calling for change—just for the sake of change.<br /><br /><br /></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span> </div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-251361878927699282008-10-16T22:02:00.002-05:002008-10-16T22:08:30.379-05:00Media Ignore Obama’s Radical Abortion Record<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(128, 0, 0);font-family:Microsoft Sans Serif;font-size:180%;" ><a href="http://store.indoctrinate-u.com/affiliate/r.php?action=clickthrough&campaign=default&asset=banner&aff=P8HSH"><img src="http://store.indoctrinate-u.com/affiliate/asset.php?campaign=default&asset=banner&aff=P8HSH" border="0" /></a><br /><strong></strong></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Microsoft Sans Serif;font-size:100%;" ><strong><!-- Begin Description --><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Democratic presidential candidate has voted to protect partial birth abortion, and to deny care to infants who survive botched abortion attempts.</span><!-- End Description --> </strong> </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Microsoft Sans Serif;font-size:85%;" > <!--Begin Printer Friendly--> <!--End Printer Friendly--> <strong> By <!-- Begin Author --> Matthew Balan <!-- End Author --> </strong></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Microsoft Sans Serif;font-size:85%;" ><strong> <!-- Begin Organization --> Media Research Center <!-- End Organization --> </strong></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Microsoft Sans Serif;font-size:85%;" ><strong> <!-- Begin PubDate--> October 14, 2008 <!-- End PubDate --> </strong> </span><br /><br /><!-- Begin Content --> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">The liberal news media has subjected Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin to intense scrutiny concerning her overall pro-life view on abortion, among other issues. On the other hand, they have been all but silent on Barack Obama’s intensely liberal record on the abortion issue, particularly his support of partial-birth abortion and his opposition to legislation that would have protected infant abortion survivors from dying of neglect.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:100%;" >In MRC’s October 9 Media Reality Check, </span><a href="http://www.mrc.org/realitycheck/2008/fax20081009.asp"><span style=";font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:100%;" >"Media Silence on Abortion Aids Radical Obama,"</span></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"> Rich Noyes and I outlined how the news media have been out to lunch on examining Barack Obama’s radical pro-abortion stance during the Democratic campaign for the presidential nomination. The report found that the network evening newscasts "barely mentioned Obama’s pro-abortion stance during the primaries — from the launch of his candidacy in January 2007 through the end of the primaries in June 2008, just six out of 1,289 network evening news stories about Obama (0.46%) mentioned his position on abortion; none discussed it in any detail." The media as a whole also punted on Obama’s August 16, 2008 attack on pro-lifers, who in his view, were "lying" about his record as an Illinois state senator of opposing legislation, identical to a federal law, which would have protected infant survivors of abortion. Only a day later, Obama’s own campaign backtracked and admitted that he had indeed voted against this legislation...</span></span><a href="http://www.cultureandmediainstitute.org/articles/2008/20081014171442.aspx"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Click here to read complete story.</span></a><br /></p>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-60374643920167249422008-10-12T22:11:00.009-05:002008-10-12T22:31:28.916-05:00Indoctrinate U - The Deleted Segment on Bill Ayers and the Weather Underground<a href="http://store.indoctrinate-u.com/affiliate/r.php?action=clickthrough&campaign=default&asset=banner&aff=P8HSH"><img src="http://store.indoctrinate-u.com/affiliate/asset.php?campaign=default&asset=banner&aff=P8HSH" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">From the Indoctrinate U Team</span></span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a href="http://indoctrinate-u.com/pages/inside.html#terror-profs">TERRORIST PROFESSORS</a><br /><br />A man named Bill Ayers has been in the news lately as Senator Barack Obama's connections to the 1960s-era domestic terrorist have become an issue in the presidential campaign. It reminded us of a segment cut from an earlier edit of "Indoctrinate U," one that we've just released.<br /><br />In this deleted scene, we told the story of how 1960s campus radicals morphed into today's academics. Three of those radicals were Ayers, his now-wife Bernardine Dohrn, and Mark Rudd. Together, they led the Weather Underground, a group committed to the violent overthrow the U.S. Government.<br /><br />To bring about their hoped-for communist utopia, the Weathermen bombed dozens of targets around the country including the U.S. Capitol, the Pentagon and military recruiting stations. The Weathermen murdered two police officers and a security guard while robbing an armored car. They targeted the families of judges, celebrated the Manson murders, and through legal technicalities, most of them avoided jail.<br /><br />Decades later, they're still unapologetic. In an interview published on September 11th, 2001, Ayers told The New York Times, "I don't regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough."<br /><br />What does all of this have to do with higher education? Watch the <a href="http://indoctrinate-u.com/pages/inside.html#terror-profs">video</a> to find out.<br /><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-31311644425963693462008-10-04T11:24:00.001-05:002008-10-04T11:25:42.182-05:00The Travis Monitor: Three men who brought down wall street<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Old news to some, perhaps, but this story about Obama's corrupt advisers who "brought down Wall Street" needs to be shouted from the rooftops of Main Street.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://travismonitor.blogspot.com/2008/10/three-men-who-brought-down-wall-street.html#links">The Travis Monitor: Three men who brought down wall street</a>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-4881112764661442902008-10-03T06:30:00.005-05:002008-10-03T06:42:30.483-05:00Honk to Save Our HomesFrom Newsmax.com<br /><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Demand Congress Protect Taxpayers Not Speculators</span></span><br /><a href="https://secure.responseenterprises.com/ameripac_bailout/?a=1799"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">FAX All Congressmen - Tell Them No Bailout – Prosecute Offenders! </span></a><br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">How did we get here? </span><br /><br />FOLLOW THE MONEY AND CORRUPTION! A Lending Policy created by democrats for democrats run by democrats monitored by democrats enforced by community organizer democrats and profited from by democrats.<br /><br />The following information is condensed from an article by Stanley Kurtz. O's Dangerous Pals.<br /><br />Fannie and Freddie acted in response to Clinton administration pressure to boost homeownership rates among minorities and the poor. However compassionate the motive, the result of this systematic disregard for normal credit standards has been financial disaster. ONE key pioneer of ACORN's subprime-loan shakedown racket was Madeline Talbott - an activist with extensive ties to Barack Obama. She was also in on the ground floor of the disastrous turn in Fannie Mae's mortgage policies.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Obama Trains ACORN Staff in Shakedown Tactics </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4EdLmcj6B38MmV6RnJb6N9m6ufEtD4a7PXbZBptCUsRlOIvHJFMf9jHX5uHeziwmgQ5__2ghV98TRPoQEwYpFnKqDmI4U20lgg7PbFOb4IVGh1wEEL2BW4vfy6e0vCeg5sVj1vMRBGuk/s1600-h/honktosavehomes.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4EdLmcj6B38MmV6RnJb6N9m6ufEtD4a7PXbZBptCUsRlOIvHJFMf9jHX5uHeziwmgQ5__2ghV98TRPoQEwYpFnKqDmI4U20lgg7PbFOb4IVGh1wEEL2BW4vfy6e0vCeg5sVj1vMRBGuk/s400/honktosavehomes.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252890308087540482" border="0" /></a>It would be tough to find an "on the ground" community organizer more closely tied to the subprime-mortgage fiasco than Madeline Talbott. And no one has been more supportive of Madeline Talbott than Barack Obama.<br /><br />When Obama was just a budding community organizer in Chicago , Talbott was so impressed that she asked him to train her personal staff.<br /><br />He returned to Chicago in the early '90s, just as Talbott was starting her pressure campaign on local banks. In those years, he also conducted leadership-training seminars for ACORN's up-and-coming organizers. That is, Obama was training the army of ACORN organizers who participated in Madeline Talbott's drive against Chicago 's banks.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Obama Funds ACORN </span><br /><br />More than that, Obama was funding them. As he rose to a leadership role at Chicago 's Woods Fund, he became the most powerful voice on the foundation's board for supporting ACORN and other community organizers. In 1995, the Woods Fund substantially expanded its funding of community organizers - and Obama chaired the committee that urged and managed the shift.<br /><br />That committee's report on strategies for funding groups like ACORN features all the key names in Obama's organizer network. The report quotes Talbott more than any other figure; Sandra Maxwell, Talbott's ACORN ally in the bank battle, was also among the organizers consulted.<br /><br />More, the Obama-supervised Woods Fund report acknowledges the problem of getting donors and foundations to contribute to radical groups like ACORN - whose confrontational tactics often scare off even liberal donors and foundations.<br /><br />Indeed, the report brags about pulling the wool over the public's eye. The Woods Fund's claim to be "nonideological," it says, has "enabled the Trustees to make grants to organizations that use confrontational tactics against the business and government 'establishments' without undue risk of being criticized for partisanship."<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Obama Aware of Intimidation Tactics </span><br /><br />The Woods Fund report makes it clear Obama was fully aware of the intimidation tactics used by ACORN's Madeline Talbott in her pioneering efforts to force banks to suspend their usual credit standards. Yet he supported Talbott in every conceivable way. He trained her personal staff and other aspiring ACORN leaders, he consulted with her extensively, and he arranged a major boost in foundation funding for her efforts.<br /><br />And, as the leader of another charity, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, Obama channeled more funding Talbott's way - ostensibly for education projects but surely supportive of ACORN's overall efforts.<br /><br />In return, Talbott proudly announced her support of Obama's first campaign for state Senate, saying, "We accept and respect him as a kindred spirit, a fellow organizer."<br /><br />In short, to understand the roots of the subprime mortgage crisis, look to ACORN's Madeline Talbott. And to see how Talbott was able to work her mischief, look to Barack Obama.<br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-84793835342618471402008-09-12T07:55:00.004-05:002008-09-12T08:26:17.084-05:00Tale of a Busted Commentator<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Below are some heart felt comments I attempted to post to The Huffington Post (THP)on this anniversary of 9/11 regarding this story: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/11/obama-digs-bush-let-us-re_n_125601.html#comment_15589713"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Obama References Bush Failings On 9/11: "Let Us Remember That The Terrorists Responsible For 9/11 Are Still At Large"</span></a></span><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-weight: bold;">The Illinois senator added: "Let us remember that the terrorists responsible for 9/11 are still at large, and must be brought to justice."<br /><br />Excuse me, Senator Obama..sir, the terriorists most directly responsible for the attacks of 9/11 are burning in Hell along with their collaborators and compatriots all around the world; having been killed in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere where, due to the leadership and initiative of Georgia W. Bush and the United States military, elements of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban are being systematically hunted down and killed, thus enhancing the security of freedom loving and peaceful people everywhere.<br /><br />That is the kind of justice that is needed on this anniversary of 9/11. That is the kind of justice that the next administration needs to provide. That is the kind of policy that a McCain-Palin administration would have the courage to pursue. What about a Obama-Biden administration? What kind of justice would you pursue? A long jail sentence?</blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">When I attempted to post my comments in the comment section to the article on the THF website I got the following response:</span><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">This comment is pending approval and won't be displayed until it is approved.</blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hey, that's cool. I can appreciate that there needs to be some community standards and controls so that obscene material is not published in their blog, even in the comment section of their articles.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Guess what? Those blowhards at The Huffington Post chose not to publish my comments.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Nice censorship job. And on top of that, while I was searching to see if my comment had been approved I was found out by Huffington Post “Security Forces” and in place of my name and a live “post” button, those stinking Stalinists put the following:</span><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">Post a comment</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sorry, but you have been banned from commenting</span></span></blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I guess I must have violated community standards, or something. Perhaps in the terms of service it says something like, “you will speak no ill of terrorists and Democratic candidates and you will only use the word H-E-L-L as an expletive, not as a place name.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Oh well, looks like I’m busted.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">How nice and opened minded of those Huff ‘n Puffers. I guess this experience is an example of how free speech will be curtailed and what kind of speech we can expect the Left to censor should, God forbid, Obama win in November.</span><br /><br /></div>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-675531682717884613.post-23315420472394307902008-09-09T12:30:00.001-05:002008-09-09T12:33:30.632-05:00Palin, a Rare Woman<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;" >Saw a bumper sticker yesterday that read,<br /></span> <blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"> "Well behaved women rarely make history"</span></blockquote> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;" >I guess that means Vice-Presidential Candidate Sarah Heath Palin is a rare woman in</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;" >deed</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;" >.</span>Freedom Ain't Freehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093883001808491584noreply@blogger.com0