Oakland Police Dept. LOD

In Valor There is Hope

(UPDATE) On Saturday, March 22nd, 2009, four members of the Oakland California Police Department were killed in the line of duty by a parole violator.

These officers, like every other, put on their uniforms every day in this country and put their lives on the line for each and every one of us. Like our much under-appreciated military, these brave men and women put themselves into harms way to protect us.

The slain officers were identified as Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, who was killed at the first shooting. The officers killed at the second location were Sgt. Ervin Romans, 43, Sgt. Daniel Sakai, 35 and Officer John Hege, 41.

Please keep them & their families in your prayers.

Apparently, the madness continues

Well folks, it seems this little toxic tidal wave just won't lose steam.

Despite the outrage at the AIG bonuses being expressed by the citizens of this country, it is still unclear what is going to be done about them.

The nice folks over in Congress were kind enough to scream bloody murder, after their screw up in the "it's too important to read it all" Stimulus Bill became public. It's your typical Capitol Hill ploy; feign righteous indignation to divert attention from your culpability.

So, just to appear that they are doing enough for YOU. They came up with a colossal knee jerk reaction. They proposed taxing the bonuses at 90%!!! Now, after you get off you're endorphin induced rush, you have to take a step back and say "whoa....... how the heck can you guys do that?" After your initial question, ask yourself the even more important question "if they can do that now, could they do that in the future to whomever they choose?" Now that’s scary!!

However, it might be a moot point. The word is out that maybe the "bonus tax" is not going to be the path they go down anyway. Despite the fact that President Obama was "outraged" about the bonuses, it seems that maybe that was just a little late night "exaggeration." Word is now that the administration wants to soften the impact of bills speeding through Congress that would impose these new taxes on Wall Street bonuses.

Capitol Hill is now in Panic Overload............... They are committed to their indignation over the bonuses, but now our fearless leader is calling for them to take a step back and exercise a little restraint. It is so bad that Senators and staffers are refusing meetings and turning away phone calls lest they appear to be supporting the industry.

Disappoint the People, or Disappoint the President.......Ah the conundrum.

Remember this folks: You bailed out a company that committed fraud, your Congress folded to Treasury (administration) pressure and cut them a sweetheart deal in the Stimulus Bill which allowed them their play money, and your President seems to want to just let the whole mess slip quietly away.

Congressional Elections - 2010!!!!!

"Torches and Pitchforks - Protecting Americans from Politicians since 1791."

When does the madness end ? (AIG Update)

UPDATE: (AP) Connecticut's attorney general says documents turned over to his office by American International Group Inc. shows the company paid out $218 million in bonuses, higher than the $165 million previously disclosed.

The documents show that 73 people received at least $1 million apiece, and five of those got bonuses of more than $4 million.

When does this madness end folks ?

It's early Saturday morning, I don't have the stomach for this nonsense. However, I will close with this.

Lately there has been a tremendous amount of anger and animosity directed at AIG and their employees. Some of it is well founded, but let's not overlook another group which shares it's own measure of culpability. That's right, your friendly folks at the Congress and the White House (Bush & Obama).

While AIG screwed the pooch big time, it was your self serving reps who failed to take proper action. AIG may have been "too big to let fail" but "parents" don't let their "kids" dictate the rules, or the punishment, to them. At least not effective ones. The issue of bonuses has been known for at least 5 months. If the bonuses were contractual there is nothing you can do, if congress allowed YOUR money to pay this, then maybe CONGRESS should pay YOU back out of their pockets.

Let's not forget that the stimulus bill, where this wording appears, was so important, was so incredibly time sensitive, that it HAD to be approved without reading it. We need to remember that. Which one of you would have been forced into signing anything, let alone a $787 BILLION dollar stimulus package WITHOUT READING IT !!!!!!!!

OK, enough........... I am disgusted over the collective action of these friggen Weasels.

Actually, I apologize for insulting the entire Weasel population.

"Torches and Pitchforks - Protecting Americans from Politicians since 1791."

Who the hell are they working for?

Oh, the saga of AIG & the $165 million in bonuses just keeps getting better. The other day I filled you in on the outright lie being told by Senator Dodd (D. - Ct.). Now here’s a little more sunshine & happiness for you.

Last year, under the Bush Administration, AIG got bailed out to the tune of $170 Billion dollars. The U.S. government (actually, you the Taxpayer) now has an 80 percent stake in the company. AIG was hit hard by the downturn in the housing sector and by the failure of complex securities based on risky mortgages. At the time it was said that AIG was just too big to let fail.

In November 2008, Treasury officials proposed limiting annual bonuses for all employees of American International Group in November, as they were negotiating the government’s first investment in the troubled firm.

In a November 2008 e-mail to Treasury officials an outside attorney working on the transaction wrote, “We indicated that UST (United States Treasury) ... wants to put in place a limitation on annual bonuses that assure that (AIG) executives/employees will not be enriched out of TARP funds.” In response to that he went on to say that “They (AIG) were slack jawed at the idea of imposing the restriction throughout the entire population, especially worldwide.” AIG proposed that Treasury apply such limits “to a class of partners and senior partners (700).”

Segue to the present day. It’s a new administration and the issue of the stimulus bill comes up. Somehow a provision gets submitted that allows for the bonuses to go through. The provision added to the stimulus bill was a broad measure that applied to all companies receiving bailout money.

Senator Chris Dodd says his original bill did not have the language in it and that it was the administration that must have added it. Two days later, he is forced to recant that (read: admitted he lied) and says he in fact did add the wording, but he was under pressure from Treasury. Hmmmmm the executive branch bullying the legislative branch.

Now President Obama says that he was “stunned” to hear about the $165 million in bonuses that were paid to employees of troubled insurer AIG, promising to do everything he could to “get these bonuses back.” He then went on to defend Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who has been sharply criticized for his handling of the AIG controversy.

I’m not a career politician folks, I don’t speak “D.C. Double Talk”……….. As I read this my blood is boiling. Our government is being dictated the rules of a bailout by the failure, our representatives are lying to our face, and the President claims to be “stunned”, yet the same Treasury he defends is the one who supposedly added the language. I assume that since he is “stunned” we are to be convinced he knew nothing of it. This really scares the crap out of me, because HE is supposed to be in charge!!!!!!!!!!!

I’m sorry, I’m calling BS………. All those who were counting on “Hope and Change” here’s a newsflash, YOU GOT HOSED!!!!!!!!!!!!

But hey folks, it’s only $165 million of YOUR money we are talking about, right……..

Oh just for the record, the top two recipients of 2008 AIG Campaign donations: Senator Dodd (1) and then Senator Obama (2). How's that for Sunshine & Happiness ?

"Torches and Pitchforks - Protecting Americans from Politicians since 1791."

Gas Prices.......... WTF?

OK, here is a pet peeve of mine.............. yeah, stop snickering I have a lot of them

Maybe someone more intelligent than I can explain this to me.

On Tuesday (3/17), I drove by my local gas station and was amazed to see gas selling for $1.64. I made a mental note to fill up, but since I have so much on my mind (namely the friggen mess this country is in) I forgot. And no, my forgetting had nothing to do with it being St. Patrick's Day.

Today (3/19), while I went to the post office I looked down and thought, "Oh crap, gas.." So I pulled into the gas station and screamed liked a girl. $1.99............... WTF ? Seriously we are talking 48 hours to the hour.

Now, you all know me, I can't let this pass without trying to find out what the hell happened. Was there a catastrophic refinery fire in Texas, did a deep sea earthquake knock-out an oil platform or two, did the middle east implode (again) ?

Well, here's what I can tell you.

NEW YORK (AP) - Oil prices slumped Wednesday on a government report showing that crude and gasoline inventories are bulging with surplus supply. Benchmark crude for April delivery fell $1.02 to settle at $48.14 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Yes you read that correctly, bulging surplus & oil prices fell............... so can someone explain what triggered a $.35 INCREASE at the pump ?

I guess it's Just another day of getting hosed in the United States.

Liar? Liar!

Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), is no stranger to the murky abyss that has become Washington, D.C. Many of you might remember his name being mentioned in an earlier blog. Seems he was ensnared with the whole Fannie Mae debacle and was the #1 reciepeant of campaign contributions from that train wreck. Well Senator Dodd is once again back in the news.

In a dramatic reversal, Senator Dodd., has now confessed to adding language to the stimulus bill last month that exempted all bonuses that bailed-out companies had promised to employees before Feb. 11, 2009.

WTF?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Yes, you heard it here, this alleged representative of the people, added wording that allowed almost 200 million of YOU’RE money to be doled out to those incompetent nit-wits at AIG.

Now, if you are as morally outraged at that as I am, I suggest you sit down, grab a beer, grey goose, jack & coke, or a Costco size bottle of Advil…….. It gets better.

You see, Senator Dodd stated just one day earlier that he didn't add the exemption. He went so far as to state that "When the language went to the conference and came back, there was different language," he then said "I can tell you this much, when my language left the Senate, it did not include it. When it came back, it did."

Wait a minute…………… Tuesday the man says he didn’t write the language, Wednesday he admits he did. Are you people (especially in Connecticut) following me here? This man who was elected to represent the people of this country has admitted to lying to you.

I guess the heat in the AIG Bailout / Bonus Fiasco Kitchen was getting a little too warm.

Want to know the excuse he used? It seems Treasury officials forced him to make the change.

I guess “the dog ate the original draft” seemed too unbelievable.

Senator Dodd tried to explain that "As many know, the administration was, among others, not happy with the language. They wanted some modifications to it," he said. "They came to us, our staff, and asked for changes, and the changes at the time did not seem that obnoxious or onerous."

Just for the record, CONGRESS, which is comprised of the Senate & House of Representatives, is there to SERVE THE PEOPLE. They are the LEGISLATIVE BRANCH while the Administration is the EXECUTIVE BRANCH.

When this pompous buffoon was questioned as to how administration officials have this kind of leverage over members of Congress, Dodd said, "The administration has veto power. ... No one suggested a veto to me, I don't want to imply that to you. But certainly that's not an insignificant tool."

Oh, OK……………. So rather than risk a potential showdown with the agents of the Messiah, erh…... excuse me, The administration, you sold out the people of this country to the tune of almost 200 hundred million dollars and then had the cajones to lie to them about it. Then again, when you are blowing trillions of dollars of our money, what’s a few hundred million, right Chris?

Ladies & Gentlemen, I present you’re government……….. May you remember their lies and deceit come the next Election.

Patriotic Illegal Immigrants

In the classic movie, the Wizard of Oz, the character of Dorothy turns to her little dog and says “Gee Toto, I don’t think we are in Kansas anymore.”

This morning, as I sit here watching “Dear Speaker” Pelosi I am sitting in disbelief. I am simultaneously enraged and dumbfounded. The only thing that comes to mind is “Gee Citizens, I don’t believe we are in America anymore.”

Last night, Pelosi told a gathering of legal and illegal immigrants at St. Anthony's Church in San Francisco that enforcement of existing immigration laws, as currently practiced, are "un-American."

Excuse Me? The enforcement of laws is Un-American?

Welcome to the New United States folks.

Pelosi was invited to the church by Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill. (Chicago), who is on a 17-city, cross-country tour called United Families. Apparently, when Rep. Gutierrez is not trying to outlaw firearms legally possessed by the citizens of the United States, he is trying to STOP the enforcement of immigration laws against NON-citizens of the United States. Now Dear Speaker has loaned her massive ego to this great cause.

Making sense to anyone yet?

Here are some of the highlights, just in case you think I had a horrible dream and I am somehow making this up:

In speaking of work site enforcement actions by ICE agents:

"It must be stopped....What value system is that? I think it's un-American. I think it's un-American."

"We have to have a change in policy and practice and again ... I can't say enough, the raids must end. The raids must end.

"You are special people. You're here on a Saturday night to take responsibility for our country's future. That makes you very, very patriotic."

I love that last quote “………to take responsibility for our country's future.”

Note to Dear Speaker, you need to be a citizen of the country first.

Now please don’t get me wrong. I have absolutely no problem with people wanting to immigrate to this country. We are a nation of immigrants. The fact that so many want to come here, I think, is a testament to how great this country is. They come for the possibilities that exist here and no place else. But we have, and have had for a very long time, a system in place to allow for the legal immigration.

What I have a problem with is those who choose to come here illegally and then find comfort and support from the politicians we elect. When our politicians are decrying the enforcement of laws (which they enacted by the way) by a duly authorized enforcement agency of the United States Government, we are in a truly bad place.

Recently the Attorney General, Eric (Nation of Cowards) Holder, stated that the U.S. needs to enact a new, more restrictive, assault weapons ban because Mexico (a sovereign country) is having too many problems.

This is the same Mexican government that is corrupt, that has been wholly ineffective in addressing drug issues, a country that has become a kidnapping and sex trade Mecca, which takes no action to curtail illegal immigration, and then has the audacity to complain about the Citizens of the United States being upset about illegal immigration.

Now, all along it seems that it is the legally possessed guns of the American Citizen that are causing the Mexican government to de-stabilize. If we could just take away those pesky legally owned guns, all the worlds’ problems with be solved.

Yeah and once that’s done then we can simply nullify the existing immigration laws, tear down the border crossings, reassign all the ICE agents to our airports to intercept illegal shipments of “Shamrock Seeds” (yes, apparently it is illegal to bring in Shamrock seeds into the country) and provide a safe haven for these very patriotic criminals.

Maybe someone in our beloved Dear Speaker’s office should look at the annual report listing the assaults against members of the Border Patrol. These assaults increase every year. On the southwest border, there were 384 total assaults recorded during fiscal year 2004. In fiscal year 2005, there were 687 attacks. During fiscal year 2006 there were 752 assaults and in fiscal year 2007 there were 987.

Better yet, maybe they would love to get a first hand look at those very patriotic potential immigrants shooting at CBP helicopters, assaulting our agents with softball-size rocks, fireworks and Molotov cocktails, and leaving agents with burns, bruises and head wounds.

Recently, March 2009, an agent noticed a breach in the International Border Fence. When the agent went to get a closer look, an unidentified person on the Mexican side dropped a large piece of cinder block onto his head.

Oh yeah, about the Mexican government? Their really not too interested in doing much on their side. According to the Border Patrol, each time an assault occurs in the border environment, local Border Patrol authorities notify their counterparts in Mexico. Many times, though, there is little or no response.

Yet here we arrest and imprison OUR decorated border agents and provide immunity in exchange for testimony against them from a DRUG DEALER. Anyone who has not heard the story of Agent’s Compean and Ramos, owe it to yourself to learn what your government does.

Or maybe, our Dear Speaker should visit the widow and children of Border Patrol Agent Luis Aguilar who was killed by a drug smuggler who ran him over and then fled back into Mexico.

As for me I wish this was Oz……………. so I could at least look forward to the house falling on this witch !