Norm Coleman, godly corruption

Norm Coleman, embattled former U.S. Senator, is now claiming the backing of Yahweh or some god like him.

According to Smart Politics, Coleman sat for an interview with Mike Gallagher, Gallagher being defined much too nicely as "an unyielding fiscal and religious conservative." A more correct description would be rabid, right wingnut.

Coleman was asked about the stimulus package and responded by saying he would not sign it, which is par for the course.

Then Gallagher asked Coleman how the recount was "affecting him personally," the implication being that those damn Democrats are running poor Norm into the ground with their uncalled for and egregious demands to recount ballots when everyone knows Norm should be the winner.

"Coleman said he starts every day with a prayer and that he knows 'God wants me to serve.'"

Heh. Heh.

Coleman is Jewish, and Franken is Jewish. How does Coleman know that Yahweh prefers him over Franken. I'd guess it was the opposite. I mean we know Yahweh has one hell of a sense of humor, which would pretty much sew up things for Franken, if ya know what I mean.

Furthermore, if Yahweh was rooting for Coleman, why didn't he simply arrange the votes to go Coleman's way in the first place like he usually does for Republicans when there's a question as to whether a Repub or a Dem actually got elected?

I don't get it.


Maybe Coleman is just full of bullshit. Some think he's very corrupt; click here. Others think he's a weasel; click here. A few think he's "exceptional"; click here. Click here to find out what some Jewish folks think.

And, if you're worried about Norm losing his Senate seat, well, he's already go a new job; he's working for the Jewish Republicans! Click here.

Federal Judges and the Right Wing

I thought federal judges were supposed to be above the fray, so to speak; steeped in the law; neither conservative nor liberal; thoughtful; intelligent; and above all, upholders of the Constitution.

But I forgot. They're lawyers. Oops.

Sherwood Ross, writes at LA Progressive that some of our federal judges have been "Accepting All-Expense Paid Junkets to Right-Wing Conferences."

This, according to Lawrence Velvel, dean and cofounder of the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover.

Ross refers to Velvel's 2008 book of essays which describes how federal judges have attended "corporation-sponsored conferences at posh watering holes, at times on the very subjects of cases they have pending before them."

Velvel says that at these conferences, "judges not only hear right wing views propagandized to them, but also hobnob with, speak with, drink with, play golf with, and sometimes even meet on Boards with right wing figures, right wing lawyers, and others who have pronounced right wing views.

"The conferences are paid for by rich right wing foundations -- (Sarah) Scaife, of Pittsburgh, (Charles) Kock, of Arlington, Virginia etc. -- and by wealthy, powerful companies involved regularly in litigation where there side is, at minimum, the conservative side."

Not only so, but Velvel also charges that judges "have been known to go back home and alter rulings on cases on the issues discussed at a one-sided conference."


This is, of course, corruption, pure and simple. And it is just too damn sad. But it is not surprising. The country has been in a moral and ethical free-fall for the past eight years and that free-fall has had nothing to do with abortion or homosexuality. It has evolved out of pure, unadulterated greed and taken the shape of a war the rich have been waging, silently and behind the scenes, on the poor and the middle-class.


Sherwood Ross' entire article is here.

The slithery, slippery, sneaky Sarah Palin

Which one is correct? The first Troopergate report which found that Gov. Palin did, indeed, abuse her power, or the second, which said she did not violate the state's ethics code?

Wait, the first report also said she didn't violate the state's ethics code, but did abuse her power.


Palin initiated the investigation by her State Personnel Board. The Board hired an Independent Counsel, who, after his investigation found that lo, and behold, she did not abuse her power and the first report was wrong to say that she did!

Here's part of the "official" reason for that finding: Palin is, glory be, Wonder Woman. She would never do anything wrong, and everyone knows. ...

Oops. That's wrong.

Here it is: "These findings differ from those of the Branchflower Report because Independent Counsel has concluded the wrong statute was used as a basis for the conclusions contained in the Branchflower Report, the Branchflower report misconstrued the available evidence and did not consider or obtain all of the material evidence that is required to properly reach findings."

Okay. So Branchflower somehow based his investigation on the wrong law. And then he looked at the evidence and got it wrong. But he didn't have all the "material evidence." Wait a minute. Palin refused to provide the "available evidence" and/or "material evidence," and refused to testify in the Branchflower investigation!

Branchflower must be pretty dumb. You think? Not!

Something smells!

Still, how could the Personnel Board reach the conclusion that Palin had not abused her power, when the Branchflower report clearly showed she did?

Well, it might have something to do with the fact that Palin oversees the State Personnel Board, which consists of three members. Two of those members are hold-overs from the current administration, but the third was appointed by Palin. AND THEY ALL CAN BE FIRED BY PALIN!

Aha! And we're supposed to believe that the State Personnel Board, of which 1/3 of the members were appointed by Palin and of which all members serve at her pleasure, was in no way intimidated or coerced to conclude Palin was innocent?

Please!

But, it ain't over yet. Walter Monegan may have the last word!

All of this does, however, pretty much put to the lie Palin's claim of being the great Alaskan uprooter of corruption. Under the Palin administration, it's business as usual in Alaska!

Sarah Palin should withdraw from the McCain ticket

No one represents the Republican "culture of corruption" in Alaska more than the reprehensible Senator Ted Stevens.

Sarah Palin has long been a friend and supporter of Ted Stevens.

Contrary to the portrait Palin paints of herself, she has also been very much part of Alaska's "culture of corruption." As National Affairs says, Palin "...not only owes her governorship to Stevens' throaty endorsement, but as recently as 2005 served as the director of 'Ted Stevens Excellence in Public Service' 527 group.

The Anchorage Daily News has a video which includes a "last-minute 2006 campaign commercial in which Stevens passes the baton to Palin's 'new generation' of leadership, asking his fellow Alaskans to 'help Sarah become governor, which we all want to see.'"

Another later segment of the video includes Steven's saying "Hell, I don't know if you know it but when Frank Murkowski was first elected, this lady and I ... traveled around the state for two weeks. We've know each other a long time. Worked together a long time."

Further along yet, Palin says "I have great respect for the senator.... His voice, his experience, his passion needs to be heard across America. So that Alaska can contribute more. So that we can be producers. So that we can help lead the rest of the U.S. ..."


Fast-forward to late October 2008.

Palin is calling upon Stevens to resign his Senate seat. "After being found guilty on seven felony counts, I had hoped Senator Stevens would take the opportunity to do the statesmen-like thing and erase the cloud that is covering his Senate seat. He has not done so."

She went on to say that even if the voters re-elect him next week, he should "step aside to allow a special election to give Alaskans a real choice of who will serve them in Congress."


Well, now. Stevens was convicted of lying about gifts and services he received from VECO, an Alaskan oil services company. Palin had the gall to say that the company's influence "was part of the culture of corruption that I was elected to fight." Hmm. Seems to me that Palin herself, along with her cronies, have accepted money from VECO in the past.

Not only so, but Palin has just been judged to have abused her power as the governor of Alaska, and she is currently under investigation for additional, similar charges. She is known to have extended the so-called "culture of corruption" by hiring friends and cronies for state office in spite of the fact they were not qualified for the positions involved.


It is therefore obvious that, Sarah Palin, who pals around with convicted felons, and is herself convicted of abuse of power, ought to resign the McCain ticket so that Republicans, at least, will have a "real choice" as to who they want as a vice presidential candidate!

The real Sarah Palin

[AP photo by Brian Wallace]

"According to Lucille, the waitress serving her table at the time and who asked that her last name not be used, Gov. Palin was eating lunch with five or six people when the subject of the Democrat's primary battle came up. The governor, seemingly not caring that people at nearby tables would hear her, uttered the slur ['So Sambo beat the bitch!'] and then laughed loudly as her meal mates joined in appreciatively. ...

"Besides insulting Obama with a Step-N-'Fetch-It, 'darkie musical' swipe, people who know her says she refers regularly to Alaska's Aboriginal people as 'Arctic Arabs' - efficient, lumping two apparently undesirable groups into one ugly description - as well as the more colourful 'mukluks' along with the totally unimaginative 'f**king Eskimos,' according to a number of Alaskans and Wasillians interviewed for this article."

"[A]n insurance agent in Anchorage who knows the Palin family, said 'The GOP is kind of like organized crime up here. It's corrupt and arrogant. They're all rich because they do sweetheart deals with the oil companies, and they can destroy anyone. And they will, if they have to.'"

There's much more here.

Also, check out the blog, The Immoral Minority here for additional info about Alaska and Ms. Palin.