Archive for April, 2008

Saluting Charles Durning–Actor/Hero

Posted on April 25, 2008. Filed under: Art, Blogroll, Films, Links, Music, Raves, Uncategorized, Video, War |

UPDATE December 29, 2012–May He Rest in Peace

Remembering Charles Durning

CHARLES DURNING DEAD DIES AT 89 TRIBUTE TO & AMERICAN ICONIC ACTOR

REUTERS/NBC NEWS/ABC NEWS/ ANNOUNCE: The loss of Charles Durning (February 28, 1923 — December 24, 2012). Charles was an American actor. With appearances in over 100 films, Durning’s memorable roles include police officers in the Oscar-winning The Sting (1973) and crime drama Dog Day Afternoon

Global National : R.I.P. Jack Klugman and Charles Durning

Charles Durning (1923-2012) – Tootsie (1982)

Sidestep – Charles Durning – The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

Fewer and fewer of the veterans of World War II are still living.

One who is– the actor and hero– Charles Durning.

He recently received France’s highest honor, the National Order of the Legion of Honor.

He is also the star of one of my favorite videos on YouTube:

Shania Twain – Dance With The One That Brought You

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LygEyxKoLzs

We salute you Charles Durning.

Congratulations.

Thank you for remembering the real heroes.

Charles Durning, Prolific Character Actor, Dies at 89

“…Charles Durning, who overcame poverty, battlefield trauma and nagging self-doubt to become an acclaimed character actor, whether on stage as Big Daddy in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” or in film as the lonely widower smitten with a cross-dressing Dustin Hoffman in “Tootsie,” died on Monday at his home in Manhattan. He was 89.

His daughter Michele Durning confirmed the death.

Charles Durning may not have been a household name, but with his pugnacious features and imposing bulk he was a familiar presence in American movies, television and theater, even if often overshadowed by the headliners.

Alongside Paul Newman and Robert Redford’s con men, Mr. Durning was a crooked cop in the 1973 movie “The Sting”; starring with Nick Nolte, he was a dedicated assistant football coach in “North Dallas Forty” (1979); in the shadow of Robert De Niro, he was a hypocritical power broker in “True Confessions” (1981).

If his ordinary-guy looks deprived him of leading-man roles, they did not leave him typecast. He could play gruff and combative or gentle and funny. In the comedy “Tootsie” (1982) he was a little of each, playing Jessica Lange’s unsuspecting father, who falls for a television actor masquerading as a woman.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Durning’s two Oscar nominations were for supporting roles, as a slippery governor in the Burt Reynolds-Dolly Parton musical “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” (1982) and as a lustful Nazi colonel in the 1983 remake of “To Be or Not to Be,” starring Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft.

His television credits were voluminous, from guest spots to substantial parts in TV movies and mini-series. He was a regular on “Evening Shade,” the 1990s sitcom that starred Burt Reynolds, and “First Monday,” a short-lived 2002 drama about the Supreme Court. He had recurring roles as a priest on “Everybody Loves Raymond” and as the ex-firefighter father of Denis Leary’s Tommy in the firehouse series “Rescue Me.” In all, Mr. Durning received nine Emmy Award nominations, although he never won.

His Big Daddy, the bullying, dying plantation owner in a 1990 Broadway revival of Tennessee Williams’s “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” brought him a Tony Award for best featured actor in a play. Frank Rich, then the chief drama critic for The New York Times, likened the performance to “a dying volcano, in final, sputtering eruption.” “Cat” was Mr. Durning’s first Broadway hit since 1972, when he drew praise as a small-town mayor seeking re-election in “That Championship Season,” Jason Miller’s Tony-winning drama about the reunion of a high school basketball team.

He went on to appear in a pair of short-lived 1973 Broadway productions — David Rabe’s “Boom Boom Room” and Hugh Leonard’s “Au Pair Man,” in which he co-starred with Julie Harris — and, three years later, in Jules Feiffer’s comedy “Knock Knock.”

Despite his success, Mr. Durning fought a lifelong battle with himself.

“I lack confidence as an actor,” he told The Toronto Star in 1988. When asked what he thought his image was, he replied: “Image? Hell, I don’t have an image.” He later told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he was “driven by fear — the fear of not being recognized by your peers.”

Charles Edward Durning was born into poverty on Feb. 28, 1923, in Highland Falls, N.Y., a Hudson River village. His father, James, an Irish immigrant, had been sickened by mustard gas and lost a leg in World War I and died when Charles was 16. Charles was the ninth of 10 children, and five of his sisters died of smallpox or scarlet fever in childhood, three of them within two weeks.

Never a good student, young Charles dropped out of school and eventually left for Pennsylvania, deciding that his mother, Louise, a laundress at the United States Military Academy at West Point, would fare better with one less mouth to feed. He worked as a farmhand and did other menial jobs before moving to Buffalo, where again he took odd jobs. One, opportunely, was as an usher in a burlesque house.

One night a frequently drunk comedian failed to show up, and Mr. Durning, who had memorized the comic’s jokes, persuaded the manager to let him go on. He “got laughs,” he later recalled, and was “hooked” on show business. He made his stage debut in Buffalo.

Then came World War II, and he enlisted in the Army. His combat experiences were harrowing. He was in the first wave of troops to land on Omaha Beach on D-Day and his unit’s lone survivor of a machine-gun ambush. In Belgium he was stabbed in hand-to-hand combat with a German soldier, whom he bludgeoned to death with a rock. Fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, he and the rest of his company were captured and forced to march through a pine forest at Malmedy, the scene of an infamous massacre in which the Germans opened fire on almost 90 prisoners. Mr. Durning was among the few to escape.

By the war’s end he had been awarded a Silver Star for valor and three Purple Hearts, having suffered gunshot and shrapnel wounds as well. He spent months in hospitals and was treated for psychological trauma.

After the war, still mentally troubled, Mr. Durning “dropped into a void for almost a decade” before deciding to study acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, he told Parade magazine in 1993. The school dismissed him within a year. “They basically said you have no talent and you couldn’t even buy a dime’s worth of it if it was for sale,” he told The Times in 1997.

He went from job to job, from doorman to dishwasher to cabdriver. He boxed professionally for a time, delivered telegrams and taught ballroom dancing, meeting his first wife, Carole, at an Arthur Murray studio. Every so often he landed a bit part in a play.

His big break came in 1962, when Joseph Papp, founder of the Public Theater and the New York Shakespeare Festival, invited him to audition. It was the start of a long association with Papp, who cast him, often as a clown, in 35 plays, many by Shakespeare.

Mr. Durning preferred the stage to movies, finding roles in “The World of Günter Grass,” Dennis J. Reardon’s “Happiness Cage” and Ernest Thompson’s “On Golden Pond,” among other plays.

His work in “That Championship Season,” first produced at the Public Theater, led the film director George Roy Hill to tap Mr. Durning for the part of a corrupt police lieutenant in “The Sting.” Two years later he played a beleaguered police hostage negotiator squaring off against Al Pacino’s manic bank robber in Sidney Lumet’s celebrated “Dog Day Afternoon.”

The 1970s and ’80s were fruitful years. Mr. Durning received Emmy nominations for supporting performances in the mini-series “Captains and the Kings” (1976), the prison drama “Attica” (1980) and a CBS production of Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” (1985), in which he played Charley, the sympathetic neighbor of Willy Loman (Dustin Hoffman). He was also nominated for his starring performance as a mailman romancing a lonely widow (Maureen Stapleton) in the 1975 CBS television movie “Queen of the Stardust Ballroom.”

In 1977 he played an American president held hostage by rogue military men in Robert Aldrich’s film “Twilight’s Last Gleaming.” His many other film roles include Chief Brandon in Warren Beatty’s colorful “Dick Tracy” (1990), Holly Hunter’s kindhearted father in “Home for the Holidays” (1995) and, in a pair of Coen brothers films, a suicidal industrialist in “The Hudsucker Proxy” (1994) and a gruff Southern governor in “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” (2000).

He tried to perform in at least one play a year. In 1996 he fought a courtroom duel with George C. Scott in the Broadway revival of “Inherit the Wind,” the drama by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee based on the Scopes “monkey trial” of 1925. Mr. Durning played the prosecutor, a character based on William Jennings Bryan, and Scott, in his last Broadway role, was the defense attorney, modeled on Clarence Darrow.

The next year Mr. Durning starred with Julie Harris in a Broadway revival of “The Gin Game,” D. L. Coburn’s Pulitzer-winning play about two nursing home residents whose game of cards becomes a clash of wills. In 2000, in a retitled revival called “Gore Vidal’s ‘The Best Man,’ ” he played an ailing former president who tries to mediate a power struggle between two candidates. In 2002 he appeared with Mr. Pacino in an Off Broadway production of Bertolt Brecht’s “Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui.” At Lincoln Center in 2005 he was the senile father of a college professor (Dianne Wiest) in Wendy Wasserstein’s “Third.”

He continued to act almost until his death. “Scavenger Killers,” a crime thriller in which he stars with Eric Roberts and Robert Loggia, is scheduled to open next year.

Mr. Durning’s first marriage, to Carole Doughty, ended in divorce; he was separated from his second wife, Mary Ann Amelio. Besides his daughter Michele, he is survived by another daughter, Jeanine Durning, and a son, Douglas, all from his first marriage.

In 2008 the Screen Actors Guild gave Mr. Durning its Life Achievement Award, as if to dispel any lingering doubts he had about being recognized by his peers. And in 2007 the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, the school that he said had long ago rejected him, created a scholarship in honor of him and two other alumni, Anne Bancroft and Gena Rowlands.

Mr. Durning was also remembered for his combat service, which he avoided discussing publicly until later in life. He spoke at memorial ceremonies in Washington, and in 2008 France awarded him the National Order of the Legion of Honor.

In the Parade interview, he recalled the hand-to-hand combat. “I was crossing a field somewhere in Belgium,” he said. “A German soldier ran toward me carrying a bayonet. He couldn’t have been more than 14 or 15. I didn’t see a soldier. I saw a boy. Even though he was coming at me, I couldn’t shoot.”

They grappled, he recounted later — he was stabbed seven or eight times — until finally he grasped a rock and made it a weapon. After killing the youth, he said, he held him in his arms and wept.

Mr. Durning said the memories never left him, even when performing, even when he became, however briefly, someone else.

“There are many secrets in us, in the depths of our souls, that we don’t want anyone to know about,” he told Parade. “There’s terror and repulsion in us, the terrible spot that we don’t talk about. That place that no one knows about — horrifying things we keep secret. A lot of that is released through acting.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/26/movies/charles-durning-prolific-character-actor-dies-at-89.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

WWII hero charles durning honored by france today

France honors Charles Durning
Kevin Roderick

‘…In late June 1944, Charles was seriously wounded by a mine at Les Mare des Mares, France and spent almost 6 months recovering. When the German Ardennes offensive broke out in December 1944, he was rushed to the front lines and suffered severe bayonet wounds in hand to hand combat. On December 16th his unit was overrun and captured in Belgium by an SS Panzer Unit that was taking no prisoners. PFC Durning was one of only a few soldiers to escape and survive the subsequent notorious Malmedy massacre. With the 398th Infantry Regiment he moved into Germany where he was again seriously wounded in March 1945 and evacuated to the United States where he was discharged in January 1946.

His significant honors include Academy Award Best Supporting Actor Nominations in 1982 and 1983, six Emmy Award Nominations, a Tony Award win in 1991 in the Best Actor-Play category, and 4 Golden Globe Nominations including a win in 1991 for Best Supporting Actor. In January 2008 he was honored with the Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award. …”

http://airforcepundit.blogspot.com/

Charles Durning

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001164/

“…Served with the 1st Infantry Division in World War II. He landed at Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944 during the Normandy invasion. He was awarded several decorations, including the Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Silver Star Medal, Bronze Star Medal, and three Purple Hearts.

“…Was one of a few survivors to the infamous massacre of American POWs by German SS troops at Malmedy, Belgium, during World War II. The surrendering engineering battalion, captured behind enemy lines when the main American forces retreated, were gathered together and brought to a large field. As the German guards backed away from the prisoners, machine guns that were hidden in trucks opened fire on them. Approximately 88 US soldiers died, a good number of them by a single shot at close range through the head, indicating that those who survived the initial volley were subsequently executed. Only about 20 of the group of approximately 100 managed to escape the massacre and make their way to American lines. The incident was re-created in Battle of the Bulge (1965) starring Henry Fonda. …”

charles durning bio video

Charlie Rose March 19 1996, Interviews Charles Durning

NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT | Charles Durning | PBS

Background Articles and Videos

Charles Durning

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Durning

France says Viva Charles Durning, actor and war hero

“…His honors include Academy Award Best Supporting Actor Nominations in 1982 and 1983, eight Emmy Award Nominations, a Tony Award win in 1991 in the Best Actor-Play category, and 4 Golden Globe Nominations including a win in 1991 for Best Supporting Actor. In 2008 Mr. Durning was presented with the Screen Actors Guild prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

Add this to his amazing list of career accomplishments: He is a venerated World War II war hero, and France has honored him in a special ceremony celebrating his heroic efforts.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/news/article_1401379.php/France_says_Viva_Charles_Durning_actor_and_war_hero

Actor/Heroes from the past

http://www.valdezlink.com/pages/actor-heros.htm

What Happened to the WW II Movie Stars

http://www.strategypage.com/respect/articles/military_2007528.asp

Libertas

http://www.libertyfilmfestival.com/libertas/?p=9934

Don Deluise and Charles Durning

Charles Durning in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

From This Moment On – Shania Twain Ft. Backstreet Boys

Willie Nelson and Shania Twain, Blue eyes crying in the rain

Shania Twain – Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain 1993

[

Elvis Presley – Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain

In the twilight glow I see her
Blue eyes crying in the rain
When we kissed goodbye and parted
I knew we’d never meet again

Love is like a dying amber
Only memories remain
Through the ages I remember
Blue eyes crying in the rain

Someday when we meet up yonder
We’ll stroll hand in hand again
In a land that knows no parting
Blue eyes crying in the rain

Blue eyes crying in the rain
Blue eyes crying in the rain
Blue eyes crying in the rain

Elvis Presley – Love Me Tender

Background Articles and Videos

Background Articles and Videos

List of recessions in the United States

“…

Great Depression	1929–1939	&&&&&&&&&&&&&010.&&&&&010 years	Stock markets crashed worldwide, and a banking collapse took place in the United States. This sparked a global downturn, including a second, more minor recession in the United States, the Recession of 1937.	^[18]
Recession of 1953	1953–1954	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 year	After a post-Korean War inflationary period, more funds were transferred into national security. The Federal Reserve changed fiscal policy to be more restrictive in 1952 due to fears of further inflation.	^[19]^[20]
Recession of 1957	1957–1958	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 year	Monetary policy was tightened during the two years preceding 1957, followed by an easing of policy at the end of 1957. The budget balance resulted in a change in budget surplus of 0.8% of GDP in 1957 to a budget deficit of 0.6% of GDP in 1958, and then to 2.6% of GDP in 1959.	^[21]
1973 oil crisis	1973–1975	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 years	A quadrupling of oil prices by OPEC coupled with high government spending due to the Vietnam War lead to stagflation in the United States.	^[22]
Early 1980s recession	1980–1982	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 years	The Iranian Revolution sharply increased the price of oil around the world in 1979, causing the 1979 energy crisis. This was caused by the new regime in power in Iran, which exported oil at inconsistent intervals and at a lower volume, forcing prices to go up. Tight monetary policy in the United States to control inflation lead to another recession. The changes were made largely because of inflation that was carried over from the previous decade due to the 1973 oil crisis and the 1979 energy crisis.	^[23]^[24]
Early 1990s recession	1990–1991	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 year	Industrial production and manufacturing-trade sales decreased in early 1991.	^[25]
Early 2000s recession	2001–2003	&&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 years	The collapse of the dot-com bubble, the September 11th attacks, and accounting scandals contributed to a relatively mild contraction in the North American economy.	^[26]

…”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_recessions

The NBER�s Recession Dating Procedure

http://www.nber.org/cycles/recessions.html

Is U.S. in Recession? Discussions Begin

“…The seven-member committee won’t be announcing a starting date for a recession, if one were to occur, until it can be said definitively that a recession has started, Mr. Hall said. Economic data are too volatile to make any judgments this early. “Our ability to forecast these things is extremely poor,” he said. “Lots and lots of people have talked about recessions when they didn’t occur.”

The 87-year-old NBER, a nonprofit group of 600 academic economists, has become the unofficial arbiter of when recessions begin and end. Its definition of a recession: “A significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales.” A simple rule of thumb is two straight quarters of declining GDP, but that is not necessary for the group to declare a recession.

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2008/01/22/is-us-in-recession-discussions-begin/

Recession election: jobs, gas prices help Obama, Clinton

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rp4SAHamCI

Economic Reality

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSAeyMmanb4&feature=related

Recession? Depression? What’s the difference?

“…Recession: The Newspaper Definition

The standard newspaper definition of a recession is a decline in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two or more consecutive quarters.

This definition is unpopular with most economists for two main reasons. First, this definition does not take into consideration changes in other variables. For example this definition ignores any changes in the unemployment rate or consumer confidence. Second, by using quarterly data this definition makes it difficult to pinpoint when a recession begins or ends. This means that a recession that lasts ten months or less may go undetected.

Recession: The BCDC Definition

The Business Cycle Dating Committee at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) provides a better way to find out if there is a recession is taking place. This committee determines the amount of business activity in the economy by looking at things like employment, industrial production, real income and wholesale-retail sales. They define a recession as the time when business activity has reached its peak and starts to fall until the time when business activity bottoms out. When the business activity starts to rise again it is called an expansionary period. By this definition, the average recession lasts about a year. …”

http://economics.about.com/cs/businesscycles/a/depressions.htm

Recession

“…In macroeconomics, a recession is a decline in a country’s real gross domestic product (GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive quarters of a year.

In the US, the judgment of the business-cycle dating committee of the National Bureau of Economic Research regarding the exact dating of recessions is generally accepted. The NBER has a more general framework for judging recessions:

A recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales. A recession begins just after the economy reaches a peak of activity and ends as the economy reaches its trough. Between trough and peak, the economy is in an expansion. Expansion is the normal state of the economy; most recessions are brief and they have been rare in recent decades …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recession

Recession Not Depression

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx1OCuevyLU

Milton Friedman – Greed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWsx1X8PV_A&feature=related

Milton Friedman Interview: Spending Money

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crAt0YlxhLA

Milton Friedman: The Purpose of the Federal Reserve

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V5OP-VmXgE&feature=related

Reason Tv on Milton Friedman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARkDbDu5FBo

Thomas Sowell – Is “Income Stagnation” an Economic Myth?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrtoSx-NbLQ

Background Articles and Videos

McCain: A Question of Temperament

By Michael Leahy
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 20, 2008; A01

“…Smith admits to not liking McCain, a point he has often made over the years to reporters. “I’ve witnessed a lot of his temper and outbursts,” Smith said. “For me, some of this stuff is relevant. It raises questions about stability. . . . It’s more than just temper. It’s this need of his to show you that he’s above you — a sneering, condescending attitude. It’s hurt his relationships in Congress. . . . I’ve seen it up-close.”

Smith, whose service in the Navy included a tour on the waters in and around Vietnam, said he stood stunned one day when McCain declared around several of their colleagues that Smith wasn’t a real Vietnam War veteran. “I was in the combat zone, off the Mekong River, for 10 months,” Smith said. “He went on to insult me several times. I wasn’t on the land; I guess that was his reasoning. . . . He suggested I was masquerading about my Vietnam service. It was very hurtful. He’s gotten to a lot of people [that way].”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/19/AR2008041902224_4.html

McCain goes MAD with ANGER about immigration questions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nan4v63TMBE

McCain Denies Having “McCain Moments” … Has “Moments”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcvSNxQqcmI&feature=related

When John McCain Hit Another Republican

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B8sbH09gew

MSNBC Countdown : McCain : Temper Temper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdHV-GR0RxQ

Fred Thompson

http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?videoId=266951ce-9450-44a7-bc2e-858a471d5748&sMPlaylistID=

JOHN MCCAIN

Dobson’s Sitting Out if McCain’s the Nominee

“…I’m deeply disappointed the Republican Party seems poised to select a nominee who did not support a Constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage, who voted for embryonic stem cell research to kill nascent human beings, who opposed tax cuts that ended the marriage penalty, and who has little regard for freedom of speech, who organized the Gang of 14 to preserve filibusters, and has a legendary temper and often uses foul and obscene language.

“I am convinced Sen. McCain is not a conservative, and in fact, has gone out of his way to stick his thumb in the eyes of those who are. He has at times sounded more like a member of the other party. McCain actually considered leaving the GOP in 2001, and approached John Kerry about being Kerry’s running mate in 2004. McCain also said publicly that Hillary Clinton would make a good president. Given these and many other concerns, a spoonful of sugar does not make the medicine go down. I cannot, and I will not vote for Sen. John McCain, as a matter of conscience. …:

http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MGY2YzViYjE2ZWZkZTFiZDdhMjE0OWUxMzYzNDVmYWM=

McCain’s Out-of-Control Anger: Does He Have the Temperament to Be President?

“…”What has struck me about McCain is that everybody underestimated the ability of his advisers and him to hypnotize the national media, because most of us in the media in Arizona thought of him as a guy who had a terrible temper, occasionally had a foul mouth, a guy who whined and pouted unless he got his way,” Murphy said. “McCain has a temper that is bombastic, volatile, and purple-faced. Sometimes he gets out of control. Do you want somebody sitting in the White House with that kind of temper?” …”

http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2006/7/5/00548.shtml

Book: McCain temper boiled over in ’92 tirade,…

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/McCain_temper_boiled_over_in_92_0407.html

McCain’s Sharp Tongue: an Achilles Heel?

“…Yet McCain’s temper hinders his efforts to make peace with his critics and rally Republicans behind his candidacy for president. That could be a big problem, because his most persistent foes _ conservative radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh and Focus on the Family founder James Dobson _ talk to tens of millions of people each day.

McCain and his advisers insist the acrimony is about matters of policy: “We have disagreements on specific issues from time to time,” McCain recently said of his critics.

In fact, the disputes often are as much about style as they are about substance.

McCain’s tone was certainly on Dobson’s mind when he issued a stinging anti-endorsement on Super Tuesday. He mentioned various issues, but Dobson also said the senator “has a legendary temper and often uses foul and obscene language.” …”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/16/mccains-sharp-tongue-an_n_87012.html

What Does It Mean?

by Thomas Sowell

“…Temperament is far more important for a President than for a candidate. A President has to be on an even keel 24/7, for four long years, despite crises that can break out anywhere in the world at any time.

John McCain trails the pack in the temperament department, with his volatile, arrogant, and abrasive know-it-all attitude. His track record in the Senate is full of the betrayals of Republican supporters that have been the party’s biggest failing over the years and its Achilles heel politically.

The elder President Bush’s betrayal of his “no new taxes” pledge was the classic example, but the current President Bush’s attempt to get amnesty for illegal aliens, with Senator McCain’s help, was more of the same. …”

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=24336

McCain win would mean war with Iran

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R88npllyNTk&feature=related

Seven Things To Know About Bill and Hillary Clinton

“…3. Rumors of Sen. John McCain’s temper have haunted his campaign. Hillary’s temper is even more widely documented, by disaffected Secret Service agents, military aides, Arkansas state troopers and others. Hillary repeatedly has been in rows with agents whom she importuned to carry her bags despite Secret Service regulations against the practice. While first lady, Hillary threw a book at the back of an agent’s head, as reported to me by White House military personnel. She repeatedly has thrown temper tantrums in front of staff, used foul language and hit her husband, as reported by security and other staff members. …:

http://www.againsthillary.com/2007/10/18/seven-things-to-know-about-bill-and-hillary-clinton/

The Foulmouthed & Lying Clintons

by Reinhold Aman, Ph.D.

http://sonic.net/maledicta/clintons.html

George Stephanopoulos Interview, describing Clinton 1 of 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iO7eAmEgmb4&feature=related

George Stephanopoulos Interview, describing Clinton 2 of 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8pC5jDwtro

Democrats praise John Mccain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H8JOMz0dNY

Anger management

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anger_management

Anger management: What are you so angry about?

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/anger-management/MH00073

Five Easy Pieces Diner Scene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wtfNE4z6a8

Jack Nicholson Bangs On About His Creepy Hillary Clinton Video

http://www.hecklerspray.com/jack-nicholson-bangs-on-about-his-creepy-hillary-clinton-video/200812861.php

Jack Nicholson Exclusive: Actor Talks About Hillary Clinton, Campaign Ad — ‘This Woman Can Do This Job’

“…MTV: One attribute Obama seems to possess over Clinton is this uncanny capacity to inspire people.

Nicholson: Well, why would we assume he wouldn’t continue to energize people were he not the nominee? Even his own people know it’s a bit early for him, but these are the circumstances. Believe me, the Republicans are not going to let him slide. MTV doesn’t want to hear this, but he seems youthful. His small mistakes do not get amplified. I love the inspiration of Senator Obama, but we have a representative republic for this very reason. In the original democracy in [ancient Greece], everybody voted and that was it. They realized they didn’t want the hot song of the week to take over the country. The same is true of these superdelegates. These superdelegates are there to make democracy more thoughtful. You can’t just discount super-delegates for one reason or another. These are the rules of the Democratic Party. The only thing I can say is, it’s obvious one person is more experienced. …”

http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1582690/story.jhtml

Jack and Hill

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mOa3sXjqE4&eurl=http://www.hecklerspray.com/video-jack-nicholson-endorses-sexy-hillary-clinton/200812772.php

Jack Nicholson Hillary Clinton Video (Parody)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3VEMazRvNY&feature=related

A Few Good Men: Lunch With Jessup

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrPxkAF325g&feature=related

A Few Good Men: Nicholson’s Final Words

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhGJQ6TjrCQ&feature=related

Background Articles and Videos

Barack Obama: Religion (and Guns) the Opiate of the Masses Updated and Bumped

‘…I guess I missed something somewhere. He claims he SAID that when people are bitter they “turn to what [they] can count on” like faith, family and community, but what he really said was that people “cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.”

Perhaps he doesn’t know the difference between “turning to” (as in looking to something for comfort and support) and “clinging to” (as in out of desperation and a refusal to change).

And maybe there are subtle nuances between getting “mad about illegal immigrants who are coming into this country” (as in feeling angry about people who are breaking the law to come here and continue to break the law by being here) -and- “antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment” (as in xenophobia and a hatred of all immigrants, legal or illegal).

I just think he opened his mouth and revealed some of what he REALLY thinks, which is a dangerous thing for a politician to do, especially if he wants to be elected by people whom he secretly disdains.

http://www.verumserum.com/?p=1818

Obama Woos Gun-Toting God Nuts

by Ann Coulter

“…These are the sort of well-adjusted individuals to whom Obama is offering psychological profiles of normal Americans, including their bizarre theories about how jobs being sent to foreign countries and illegal-alien labor undercutting American workers might have something to do with their own economic misfortunes.

It’s going to take a lot of “framing” for Democrats to recast Obama’s explanation to San Francisco cafe society that gun ownership and a belief in God are the byproducts of a psychological disorder brought on by economic hardship.

It is an article of faith with the Democrats that they must fool Americans by simulating agreement with normal people. The winner of the Democratic primary is always the candidate who does the best impersonation of an American. …”

“…Obama had been so careful until now, “framing” his message as “change” — rather than partial birth abortion, driver’s licenses for illegal aliens, tax hikes, socialized medicine and abandoning mandatory minimum prison sentences for federal crimes.

His message is “change” — not that his wife has not been proud to be an American for most of her life.

He is for “change” — and don’t mind the crazy racist loon who has been Obama’s spiritual mentor for two decades. …:

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=26075

Huge Backlash Against Obama Elitist Comments

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2008/04/huge_backlash_against_obama_el.html

Obama (2004) connects guns, religion, economics, and bitter

Obama: Bitter ‘White Working Class, Don’t Wanna Work, Don’t Wanna Vote For The Black Guy’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=343SXT_TgO4

Mitt Romney – Barack Obama – Bitter Elitist – Part 2

Obama Tim Russert’s last interview w/Barack Obama

Tim Russert’s last interview w/Barack Obama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFQNH_Qwbbw&feature=related

A Living Lie
Obama’s controversial statements in San Francisco are perfectly in line with his Senate record.

By Thomas Sowell

“…Like so much that Obama has said and done over the years, this is standard stuff on the far Left, where guns and religion are regarded as signs of psychological dysfunction — and where opinions different from those of the Left are ascribed to emotions (“bitter” in this case), rather than to arguments that need to be answered.

Like so many others on the Left, Obama rejects “stereotypes” when they are stereotypes he doesn’t like but blithely throws around his own stereotypes about “a typical white person” or “bitter” gun-toting, religious, and racist working-class people.

In politics, the clearer a statement is, the more certain it is to be followed by a “clarification,” when people react adversely to what was plainly said. …”

“…Obama is also part of a long tradition on the Left of being for the working class in the abstract, or as people potentially useful for the purposes of the Left, but having disdain or contempt for them as human beings.

Karl Marx said, “The working class is revolutionary or it is nothing.” In other words, they mattered only in so far as they were willing to carry out the Marxist agenda. …”

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NWZlODViYjQ0ZDBjNTZlMjM4ZjM2MmU4MjA4ZWUyOGU=

Barack Obama’s Bitter Liberalism
By George Will

“…The iconic public intellectual of liberal condescension was Columbia University historian Richard Hofstadter, who died in 1970 but whose spirit still permeated that school when Obama matriculated there in 1981. Hofstadter pioneered the rhetorical tactic that Obama has revived with his diagnosis of working-class Democrats as victims — the indispensable category in liberal theory. The tactic is to dismiss rather than refute those with whom you disagree.

Obama’s dismissal is: Americans, especially working-class conservatives, are unable, because of their false consciousness, to deconstruct their social context and embrace the liberal program. Today that program is to elect Obama, thereby making his wife at long last proud of America.

Hofstadter dismissed conservatives as victims of character flaws and psychological disorders — a “paranoid style” of politics rooted in “status anxiety,” etc. Conservatism rose on a tide of votes cast by people irritated by the liberalism of condescension.

Obama voiced such liberalism with his “bitterness” remarks to an audience of affluent San Franciscans. Perfect. …”

http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/GeorgeWill/2008/04/15/barack_obamas_bitter_liberalism?page=full&comments=true

Re: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battle over bitter comments

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edAFM7r4XDI&feature=related

Barack Obama’s ‘guns and religion’ blunder gives Hillary Clinton a chance

Hillary Clinton says her rival is exposed as an elitist with comments that look like an attack on small-town attitudes in the United States

“…Mrs Clinton was buoyed yesterday by Republican strategists who declared that Mr Obama’s remarks would become a general election “nightmare” for the Illinois senator if he became the Democratic nominee because they made him look like a liberal elitist.

Mrs Clinton activated the entire might of her campaign machine to exploit the remarks, which she called “demeaning”, “elitist” and “out of touch”. Aides handed out “I’m not bitter” stickers and surrogates took to the airwaves to fan the flames. …”

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article3740080.ece

Obama dogged by ‘bitter’ guns and religion row

“Barack Obama was Tuesday braced for another round of attacks from Democratic foe Hillary Clinton, after his comments on “bitter” working class voters sparked a political firestorm.

Clinton hoped to use the row to enlist blue collar support and as a springboard to catch Obama in the Democratic race, in the tense run-up to next week’s Pennsylvania primary.

She turned up the heat on her rival on Monday, debuting a new advertisement in Pennsylvania, featuring voters taking offense to his remark that some economically bereft Americans sought refuge in God and guns.

But Obama hit back, telling Democrats at a dinner in Philadelphia: “it’s not me who’s out of touch.”

“I know exactly what folks are going through,” he said, expressing sympathy with voters who lacked jobs and healthcare. …”

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jIUU4RhCAUdHeYNixONfYS2wsAqQ

Discussion on Obama’s Bitter Comment

John McCain – Barack Obama – Bitter Elitest

McCain Camp: Barack Obama is an “Elitist”

by Bonney Kapp

“…Schmidt said Obama’s remarks hit the “heart and soul of this country” and predicted Obama would have difficulty connecting with voters. “I think people will resent it and be very angry about it because that is not how most Americans view themselves. That’s now how most Americans view their lives in terms of practicing their faith or exercising their Second Amendment rights or having a desire to secure the borders in the country,” he explained.

When Obama later defended his remarks to voters in Indiana, a McCain spokesman fired back, “Instead of apologizing to small town Americans for dismissing their values, Barack Obama arrogantly tried to spin his way out of his outrageous San Francisco remarks. Only an elitist who attributes religious faith and gun ownership to bitterness would think that tax cuts for the rich include families who make $75,000 per year. Only an elitist would say that people vote their values only out of frustration. Barack Obama thinks he knows your hopes and fears better than you do. You can’t be more out of touch than that.” …”

http://embeds.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/04/11/mccain-camp-barack-obama-is-an-elitist/

Off-the-Record Obama
The Politics of Meaning on steroids.

By Peter Wehner

“…On a deeper level, what we saw in Obama’s comments is a glimpse into a particular worldview, one that animates his political philosophy (contemporary liberalism). Senator Obama seems to view ordinary Americans as bitter, often broken, small-minded objects of pity rather than anger, ostensibly in need of instruction from — you guessed it — Barack Obama. The words of Michelle Obama are worth recalling in this context. She has spoken about her husband pushing us out of our “comfort zones,” saying “Barack knows at some level there is a hole in our souls” and “Barack is the only person in this race who understands that before we can work on the problems as a nation, we have to fix our souls. Our souls are broken in this nation.”

This is the Politics of Meaning on steroids. If one views Americans as fundamentally needy children rather than competent citizens, one embraces the precepts of the nanny state — the state that (in Margaret Thatcher’s memorable phrase) takes too much from you in order to do too much for you. This provides an enormous opening for Senator McCain, who can frame this election as pitting a candidate who believes in self-government, against a candidate who believes in the nanny state.Increasingly, Barack Obama appears to be the Candidate of Illusion. He presents himself as post-racial — which is harder to accept than it once was, given his intimate, longtime relationship with a pastor and church that harbor deep and obvious racial anger toward whites. Obama presents himself as post-partisan — even though in his time in the Senate he has done nothing to bridge the partisan divide, which explains why he has been endorsed by the rabidly partisan MoveOn.org. Obama presents himself as post-ideological — even though he was named the Senate’s most liberal member in 2007 by the respected National Journal. Obama is a public critic of free trade — yet his chief economic adviser is quoted by a Canadian official as saying that Obama’s position on NAFTA is politically motivated and insincere. Obama speaks about the importance of religious faith in his life and the life of the nation — yet when speaking to a group of rich liberals, he implicitly denigrates people of faith, pairing them with people who have “antipathy to people who aren’t like them” and who harbor “anti-immigrant sentiment[s].” He paints religious believers as folks clinging to crutches to better deal with their desperate lives — only to insist last night that his words were actually a tribute to people of religious faith. So sayeth Barack Obama, “healer of broken souls.” …”

http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=MTliNjljYTU2NDZiNWE3ZWE2NTdjNTRmZGI0ZWI3YzU=

LOL

Photoshop of the week: Typical liberal snob; Update: New Obama spin – “I didn’t say it as well as I could have”

http://michellemalkin.com/2008/04/11/photoshop-of-the-week-typical-liberal-snob/

Red State Update: Obama Bashes Small Town America

Claude Monet Videos for 100th Post on Pronk Palisades

Posted on April 12, 2008. Filed under: Art, Blogroll, Links, Music, Quotations, Raves, Video | Tags: Art, Claude Monet, French Impressionism, Impressionism, Monet, Paintings, Videos |

Everyone discusses my art and pretends to understand, as if it were necessary to understand, when it is simply necessary to love.

~Claude Monet

The Studio Boat, 1874

Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment

~Claude Monet

I just added three videos of the art works of Claude Monet on YouTube to celebrate my 100th post on Pronk Palisades:

Monet Part 1

Monet Part 2

Monet Part 3

I hope you all enjoy them, as I did making them.

The music is from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 Pastoral.

Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life.

~Ludwig van Beethoven

I am following Nature without being able to grasp her, I perhaps owe having becoming a painter to flowers.

~Claude Monet

Water Lilies, 1915-1917

The Stroll Camille Monet and Her Son, 1875

No one is an artist unless he carries his picture in his head before painting it, and is sure of his method and composition.

~Claude Monet

Background Articles and Videos

The Impressionists BBC (Part 1)

The Impressionists BBC (Part 2)

The Impressionists BBC (Part 3)

Background Articles and Videos

Actor Charlton Heston dies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZAsRjFcVoc&NR=1

Remembering Charlton Heston

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1psFUAJBBOs&feature=related

Charlton Heston

“Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923 – April 5, 2008)^[1]^[2]^[3] was an American Academy Award–winning actor of film, theater and television.^[4] Heston is known for having played heroic roles, such as Moses in The Ten Commandments, Colonel George Taylor in Planet of the Apes and Judah Ben-Hur in Ben-Hur, the role for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. In the 1950s and 1960s he was one of a handful of Hollywood actors to speak openly against racism and was an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. Initially a liberal Democrat, he later supported conservative politics and was president of the National Rifle Association from 1998 to 2003. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlton_Heston

Obituary: Charlton Heston

“…Heston once said of himself, “I have played three presidents, three saints and two geniuses in my career. If that doesn’t create an ego problem, nothing does.”

But, while his screen giants gave him the stature to champion his causes, Charlton Heston, along with many critics, felt his best film performance was as the shy, awkward ranch hand in Will Penny.

And while Charlton Heston will always be identified with heroes who lived before the birth of his country, it was perhaps the American pioneer who was closest to his heart. ”

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/2496037.stm

Remembering Charlton Heston aka Charles Carter

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DX_J0Ya3Sw

Charlton Heston, Much More Than a Great Actor

http://americanelephant.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/charlton-heston-much-more-than-a-great-actor/

Charlton Heston, a star who defied the Hollywood liberals, dies at 83

“…He served as president of the Screen Actors Guild and marched with Martin Luther King against segregation. “That guy Heston has to watch it,” remarked Frank Sinatra. “If he’s not careful, he’ll get actors a good name.”

During the 1972 American presidential election, Heston declared his support for Richard Nixon, the Republican candidate, having campaigned previously for John Kennedy.

In subsequent years he became known for his conservatism, resigning from Actors Equity over what he saw as the “obscenely racist” refusal of the union to allow a white actor to play a Eurasian role.

In a speech in 1997 Heston argued that a liberal culture war was being waged against “the God-fearing, law-abiding, Caucasian, middle-class Protestant, or even worse, evangelical Christian, Midwestern or Southern, or even worse, rural, apparently straight, or even worse, admitted heterosexual, gun-owning, or even worse, NRA card-carrying, average working stiff, or even worse, male, working stiff because, not only don’t you count, you are a downright obstacle to social progress.” …”

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article3695075.ece

Charlton Heston Tribute

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gI2abQ-ects&NR=1

Charlton Heston 1923 – 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPg6Q-VUqtc

A Tribute to Charlton Heston

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYvLsCuEUN4&feature=related

Sunday meditation: Tribute to Charlton Heston

By Michelle Malkin

http://michellemalkin.com/2008/04/06/sunday-meditation-tribute-to-charlton-heston/

Red State Update’s Tribute To Charlton Heston

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEYVxKS07Mw

Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 2 so far )

Fathers, Mothers and Babies for Senator John McCain!

Posted on April 5, 2008. Filed under: Blogroll, Economics, Links, Politics, Rants, Raves, Religion, Science, Technology, Video |

Paul Anka Having my baby

Babies are a blessing not a punishment Senator Obama.

Suggest you select another pastor and church to learn the value of human life.

Assuming you win the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States, you will never win the Presidential election in November.

You are an impressive speaker with a reprehensible and revolting message.

Obama- Punished with Babies and STDs

Barack Obama : ” Punished with a baby ”

Rev. Wright’s Greatest Hits!

All style no substance.

You are finished.

Time to turn the page on Obama.

Queen – Another One Bites The Dust

Looks like Senator McCain will be getting the majority of mother and father votes!

Spice Girls–Mama

Eric Clapton – Tears in Heaven

Background Articles and Videos

wonderful tonight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F44BcGjIbAA&feature=related

Alan Keyes on Obama’s support for infanticide

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNbp2-Tm9z4

NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC Endorses Sen. Barack Obama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2elXcVySElc

NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC endorses Sen. Barack Obama for President!

Sen. Obama is fully pro-choice. In his own words:

“A woman’s ability to decide how many children to have and when, without interference from the government, is one of the most fundamental rights we possess. It is not just an issue of choice, but equality and opportunity for all women.

“I have consistently advocated for reproductive choice and will make preserving women’s rights under Roe v. Wade a priority as President. I oppose any constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court’s ruling in this case.

“I believe we must work together to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies. I support legislation to expand access to contraception, health information, and preventative services to help reduce unintended pregnancies. That is why I co-sponsored the Prevention First Act of 2007, which will increase funding for family planning and comprehensive sex education that teaches both abstinence and safe sex methods. It will also end insurance discrimination against contraception, improve awareness about emergency contraception, and provide compassionate assistance to rape victims.

http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/elections/statements/obama.html

Obama More Pro-Choice Than NARAL

by Amanda B. Carpenter

“Sen. Barack Obama (D.-Ill.) portrays himself as a thoughtful Democrat who carefully considers both sides of controversial issues, but his radical stance on abortion puts him further left on that issue than even NARAL Pro-Choice America.

In 2002, as an Illinois legislator, Obama voted against the Induced Infant Liability Act, which would have protected babies that survived late-term abortions. That same year a similar federal law, the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, was signed by President Bush. Only 15 members of the U.S. House opposed it, and it passed the Senate unanimously on a voice vote.

Both the Illinois and the federal bill sought equal treatment for babies who survived premature inducement for the purpose of abortion and wanted babies who were born prematurely and given live-saving medical attention. …”

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=18647

Reaction to Obama — babies are God’s gift, not a ‘punishment’

Rusty Pugh and Jody Brown

“…Many a woman has come to understand that despite the circumstances of a baby’s conception and birth, her little one is a precious miracle that she loves and cherishes unconditionally,” Crouse adds. “We are diminished as a nation when we view babies as anything less than God’s gift.”

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Election2008/Default.aspx?id=74609

Sunday meditation: Obama and the punishment of unborn life

http://michellemalkin.com/2008/03/30/sunday-meditation-obama-and-the-punishment-of-unborn-life/

Barack Obama Addresses Planned Parenthood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUl99id2SvM

Obama’s abortion strategy

Ned Barnett

“…There’s a savvy strategy at work here. Senator Obama became the first candidate to go beyond the traditional pro-abortion cant: “Safe, legal and rare” and took it to the next step – a blatant, open advocacy for convenience-driven abortion-on-demand policy that applies to minors. This has got to appeal to pro-abortion feminists who have to put up with that “Safe, legal and rare” formulation for political purposes, but who really want unquestioned abortion-on-demand – and while Senator Clinton has aped her husband’s formulation, Obama has given the feminists what they want. …”

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2008/04/obamas_abortion_strategy_1.html

Doublethink and the Liberal Mind

By Ed Kaitz

“…George Orwell claimed that there was something more calculated at work when politicians begin to claim for example that “Slavery is Freedom” or that “Hate is Love,” or in Mao Tse Tung’s words, that “Compulsion is Voluntary.” The new and improved Democratic Party version seems to be that “Diversity is Unity.” Orwell called this “doublethink” and he claimed that it was a condition endemic to the totalitarian mind. It meant the ability “to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory” and “to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies.” For example, a liberal socialist political platform usually involves “liberating” us from our attachments to property, families and nation in the name of “freedom.” When the State chooses for us, however, the result is slavery. Doublethink in Mr. Obama’s case (“Diversity is Unity!”) gives him the luxury of defending not only the divisive and intolerant Reverend Wright and his party’s divisive policies over the years, but it also allows him to be seen as the savior who will finally make America whole.

“…By fomenting conflict not only between children and their parents but between women and men Mao hoped to destroy the nuclear family and thus usher in the State as savior and dictator. To do this however Mao had to destroy the entire Chinese cosmology of Yin and Yang, which includes not the opposition but the natural complement between not only children (Yin) and their parents (Yang), but women (Yin) with men (Yang). Since Chinese philosophy could not help him out here, Mao had to turn to Marxism — a western theory of conflict and opposition, not cooperation. This can explain the 50 Million brutal deaths during Mao’s reign: many Chinese people revolted against what they considered to be an unnatural Western theory of conflict that violated the Chinese natural law of complementarity between Yin and Yang….”

“…The bottom line is that when the Left in this country embraced Marxism they committed themselves to conflict and division, not cooperation. Obama, unlike Hillary however is smart enough to understand that fostering division is a poor strategy for winning elections. In the words of Eric Hoffer:

Those who would transform a nation or the world cannot do so by breeding or captaining discontent. . . They must know how to kindle and fan an extravagant hope.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/04/doublethink_and_the_liberal_mi.html

Networks Ignore Revealing Obama ‘Baby’ Gaffe
Candidate doesn’t want daughters “punished with a baby.”

By Brian Fitzpatrick

“…Speaking off the cuff to a Johnstown, Pennsylvania audience, Obama said:

When it comes specifically to HIV/AIDS, the most important prevention is education, which should include abstinence education and teaching children that sex is not something casual. But it should also include other information about contraception because, look, I’ve got two daughters, nine years old and six years old. I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals. But if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby. I don’t want them punished with an STD at the age of 16.

Despite intensive coverage of the fight for the Democratic nomination, and condemnations of the remark from growing numbers of religious and pro-life organizations, we haven’t found a word about Obama’s colossal gaffe on ABC, NBC or CBS’s morning and evening news broadcasts as of the afternoon of April 2. …”

http://www.cultureandmediainstitute.org/articles/2008/20080402175415.aspx

Louis Farrakhan on Barack Obama, Churches and Satan’s Rule

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38I55mZuSOY&feature=related

Minister Farrakhan Speaks About Barack Obama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7QUftErt_M&feature=related

Hillary vs. Partial Birth Abortion

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWwqXUivpgo

Obama on Abortion He Considers Babies To Be a Punishment

http://dirtyelection.com/obama-on-abortion-he-considers-babies-to-be-a-punishment/obama/

Coulter – Hillary Enjoys Torture, Obama Like Hitler

http://youtube.com/watch?v=m3Evm6aw7i4

The Best of Dennis Miller on the O’Reilly Factor

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ri_JQa6Erm4

Dennis Miller on Rudy Giulanni and Barack Obama

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0U2BeOKg34E

McCain Flip Flops on Abortion

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQU0TF18ZfI&feature=related

Charlie Rose: June 12, 1996

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7sC9_u-3UE

McCain Pro-Life?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ec0ICW-Efw&feature=related

Mike Savage – Barack Obama – Baby Killer & Gay Agenda Part1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dFRkNDxHm8

The Silent Scream Parts 1 – 5 / Pro-Life Anti-Abortion Video

“…The Silent Scream Complete Version – Abortion as Infanticide

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjNo_0cW-ek&feature=related

WHAT WE PAY FOR IN A GALLON OF REGULAR GASOLINE

Mo/Year	Retail Price (Cents per gallon)	Refining (percentage)	Distribution & Marketing (percentage)	Taxes (percentage)	Crude Oil (percentage)
Jan-00	128.9	7.8	13.0	32.1	47.1
Feb-00	137.7	17.9	7.5	30.1	44.6
Mar-00	151.7	15.4	12.8	27.3	44.6
Apr-00	146.5	10.1	20.2	28.3	41.4
May-00	148.5	20.2	9.2	27.9	42.7
Jun-00	163.3	22.2	8.8	25.8	43.1
Jul-00	155.1	13.2	15.8	27.2	43.8
Aug-00	146.5	15.8	7.5	28.8	47.8
Sep-00	155.0	15.4	9.0	27.2	48.3
Oct-00	153.2	13.7	10.1	27.5	48.6
Nov-00	151.7	10.4	11.8	27.8	50.0
Dec-00	144.3	8.0	17.9	29.2	44.8
Jan-01	144.7	17.8	10.4	29.2	42.7
Feb-01	145.0	17.3	11.0	29.1	42.6
Mar-01	140.9	18.8	9.7	30.0	41.5
Apr-01	155.2	31.6	4.6	27.1	36.7
May-01	170.2	26.4	14.0	24.7	35.0
Jun-01	161.6	13.2	24.1	26.0	36.7
Jul-01	142.1	10.0	20.0	30.0	40.0
Aug-01	142.1	20.0	9.0	30.0	41.0
Sep-01	152.2	18.0	17.0	28.0	37.0
Oct-01	131.5	10.0	20.8	31.9	37.2
Nov-01	117.1	10.0	18.0	36.0	36.0
Dec-01	108.6	11.7	12.7	38.7	36.9
Jan-02	110.7	13.0	11.8	37.9	37.2
Feb-02	111.4	12.1	11.2	37.7	39.1
Mar-02	124.9	19.4	6.1	33.6	40.9
Apr-02	139.7	15.5	13.0	30.1	41.4
May-02	139.2	11.9	14.2	30.2	43.7
Jun-02	138.2	15.0	13.0	30.4	41.6
Jul-02	139.7	15.0	12.6	30.1	42.3
Aug-02	139.6	11.4	13.4	30.0	45.0
Sep-02	140.0	10.8	12.6	30.0	46.7
Oct-02	144.5	13.9	11.7	29.1	45.3
Nov-02	141.9	11.1	18.0	29.6	41.3
Dec-02	138.6	11.7	12.3	30.3	45.7
Jan-03	145.8	11.5	10.3	28.8	49.4
Feb-03	161.3	15.0	9.5	26.0	49.5
Mar-03	169.3	14.8	14.8	24.8	45.5
Apr-03	158.9	13.2	19.8	26.4	40.5
May-03	149.7	15.3	16.3	28.1	40.4
Jun-03	149.3	15.1	12.3	28.1	44.5
Jul-03	151.3	15.3	11.9	27.8	44.9
Aug-03	162.0	22.5	8.2	25.9	43.3
Sept-03	167.9	13.9	22.7	25.0	38.3
Oct-03	156.4	14.9	16.1	26.9	42.2
Nov-03	151.2	11.7	15.3	27.8	45.2
Dec-03	147.9	11.5	12.6	28.4	47.5
Jan-04	157.2	15.9	9.9	26.7	47.5
Feb-04	164.8	19.1	9.2	25.5	46.2
Mar-04	173.6	19.0	11.3	24.2	45.5
Apr-04	179.8	22.0	9.9	23.4	44.6
May-04	198.3	30.6	7.8	21.2	40.4
Jun-04	196.9	21.3	16.7	21.3	40.7
Jul-04	191.1	20.9	11.3	21.9	45.8
Aug-04	187.8	13.9	12.2	22.4	51.5
Sep-04	187.0	14.8	9.1	22.5	53.6
Oct-04	200.0	13.0	9.3	21.0	56.7
Nov-04	197.9	10.7	14.6	21.2	53.6
Dec-04	184.1	8.9	18.1	23.9	49.1
Jan-05	183.1	17.7	7.3	24.0	50.9
Feb-05	191.0	16.1	9.3	23.0	51.6
Mar-05	207.9	19.3	6.2	21.2	53.4
Apr-05	224.3	20.9	9.6	19.6	49.8
May-05	216.1	17.9	12.8	20.4	49.0
Jun-05	215.6	18.5	6.9	20.4	54.2
Jul-05	229.0	17.9	8.0	19.2	54.9
Aug-05	248.6	24.3	2.1	17.7	55.9
Sep-05	290.3	27.3	7.5	15.2	50.0
Oct-05	271.7	15.1	17.8	16.2	50.9
Nov-05	225.7	8.3	13.1	19.5	57.1
Dec-05	218.5	13.5	7.9	20.1	58.4
Jan-06	231.6	13.4	6.6	19.8	60.1
Feb-06	228.0	9.8	11.4	20.1	58.6
Mar-06	242.5	21.7	4.5	18.9	54.8
Apr-06	274.2	25.8	3.1	16.7	54.2
May-06	290.7	21.9	8.8	15.8	53.4
Jun-06	288.5	22.0	7.9	15.9	54.1
Jul-06	298.1	26.3	6.3	15.4	52.0
Aug-06	295.2	15.2	13.5	15.9	55.4
Sep-06	255.5	6.3	18.8	18.3	56.7
Oct-06	224.5	10.9	10.6	20.8	57.7
Nov-06	222.9	14.6	7.5	20.4	57.5
Dec-06	231.3	12.9	9.4	19.7	58.0
Jan-07	224.0	10.6	15.2	20.3	53.9
Feb-07	227.8	18.0	5.8	20.0	56.3
Mar-07	256.3	23.6	8.5	15.5	52.3
Apr-07	284.5	28.1	7.6	14.0	50.3
May-07	314.6	27.9	13.3	12.7	46.1
June-07	305.6	22.7	13.7	13.0	50.5
Jul-07	296.5	18.4	11.4	13.4	56.8
Aug-07	278.6	13.5	11.8	14.3	60.4
Sep-07	280.3	12.8	8.6	14.2	64.3
Oct-07	280.3	10.1	8.1	14.2	67.6
Nov-07	308.0	10.0	8.7	13.0	68.3
Dec-07	301.8	8.1	10.5	13.2	68.1
Jan-08	304.3	7.8	11.1	13.1	67.9
Feb-08	302.8	9.9	7.2	13.2	69.7

Background Articles and Videos

Where Exxon and Friends Spend Big Profits

By Marianne Lavelle

Posted February 1, 2008

“…The oil industry points out that over the years it has reinvested essentially all of its profits into the future—through capital expenditures that would lead to more oil or even renewable energy. (It may seem strange to hear that an industry could invest all of its profit in capital expenditures year after year, but remember, the companies have cash flow in addition to net income—gained, for example, when they sell assets or issue debt or stock.)

With the increase in oil prices over the past five years, it does appear that the oil industry’s investments have gone up. For the top five oil companies, new investments were $91.4 billion in 2006, up 60 percent over 2001, according to an Ernst & Young analysis commissioned by the oil industry last year. But as a percentage of the staggering profits they are making, the figure fell significantly from the 1990s—when the oil industry was spending about 200 percent of net income on such investments. Since 2000, the average has been about 100 percent of income, and in 2006 it was 76 percent. …”

http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/economy/2008/02/01/where-exxon-and-friends-spend-big-profits.html

Big Oil” at the Public Trough?

An Examination of Petroleum Subsidies

by Ronald J. Sutherland

Executive Summary

“…Critics of the oil industry allege that the

industry receives large and unwarranted government

subsidies and that rival technologies, such

as those for ethanol, renewable energy, and energy

efficiency, deserve compensating government

preferences. The evidence indicates that, on balance,

the oil industry is not a net beneficiary of

government subsidies. The facts point in the

opposite direction. The oil industry is more

harmed than helped by government intervention

in energy markets.

Special tax deductions, direct expenditures,

net excise taxes, and research and development

expenditures are constantly targeted by oil critics.

However, those subsidies are a small share of

oil revenues and far less generous than the preferences

and subsidies provided for rival businesses

and technologies such as mass transit and

alternative fuels. Moreover, most energy subsidies

are wealth transfers that do not significantly

distort energy prices or affect energy markets.

The contention that oil consumers do not pay

their fair share of the environmental and national

defense costs they impose on society is dubious.

There is little evidence to suggest that the environmental

externalities imposed by oil consumption

exceed the taxes and regulatory costs paid by

consumers. The contention that national defense

costs would be lower if domestic oil consumption

were taxed is also not supported by the evidence….”

http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa390.pdf

Disinformation

“Disinformation is the deliberate dissemination of false information. It may include the distribution of forged documents, manuscripts, and photographs, or propagation of malicious rumours and fabricated intelligence. In the context of espionage or military intelligence, it is the deliberate spreading of false information to mislead an enemy as to one’s position or course of action. It also includes the distortion of true information in such a way as to render it useless.

Disinformation techniques may also be found in commerce and government, used by one group to try to undermine the position of a competitor. It in fact is the act of deception and blatant false statements to convince someone of an untruth. Cooking-the-books might be considered a disinformation strategy that led to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Unlike traditional propaganda and Big Lie techniques designed to engage emotional support, disinformation is designed to manipulate the audience at the rational level by either discrediting conflicting information or supporting false conclusions.

Another technique of concealing facts, or censorship, is also used if the group can affect such control. When channels of information cannot be completely closed, they can be rendered useless by filling them with disinformation, effectively lowering their signal-to-noise ratio. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disinformation

New Study Explodes Human-Global Warming Story

“…Writing in the International Journal of Climatology of the Royal Meteorological Society, professor David H. Douglass (of the University of Rochester), professor John R. Christy (of the University of Alabama), Benjamin D. Pearson and professor S. Fred Singer (of the University of Virginia) report that observed patterns of temperature changes (“fingerprints”) over the last 30 years disagree with what greenhouse models predict and can better be explained by natural factors, such as solar variability.

The conclusion is that climate change is “unstoppable” and cannot be affected or modified by controlling the emission of greenhouse gases, such as CO2, as is proposed in current legislation. …”

“…The mechanism for producing such cyclical climate changes is still under discussion; but they are most likely caused by variations in the solar wind and associated magnetic fields that affect the flux of cosmic rays incident on the earth’s atmosphere.

“In turn, such cosmic rays are believed to influence cloudiness and thereby control the amount of sunlight reaching the earth’s surface and thus the climate.

“…Our research demonstrates that the ongoing rise of atmospheric CO2 has only a minor influence on climate change. We must conclude, therefore, that attempts to control CO2 emissions are ineffective and pointless — but very costly.”

http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/global_warming/2007/12/10/55974.html

NO ‘Consensus’ on “Man-Made” Global Warming

Lawrence Solomon, Financial Post

Published: Saturday, June 02, 2007

National Post’s Deniers series:
“Scientists who challenge the climate change debate
Somewhere along the way, I stopped believing that a scientific consensus exists on climate change. Certainly there is no consensus at the very top echelons of scientists — the ranks from which I have been drawing my subjects — and certainly there is no consensus among astrophysicists and other solar scientists, several of whom I have profiled. If anything, the majority view among these subsets of the scientific community may run in the opposite direction. Not only do most of my interviewees either discount or disparage the conventional wisdom as represented by the IPCC, many say their peers generally consider it to have little or no credibility. In one case, a top scientist told me that, to his knowledge, no respected scientist in his field accepts the IPCC position.

What of the one claim that we hear over and over again, that 2,000 or 2,500 of the world’s top scientists endorse the IPCC position? I asked the IPCC for their names, to gauge their views. “The 2,500 or so scientists you are referring to are reviewers from countries all over the world,” the IPCC Secretariat responded. “The list with their names and contacts will be attached to future IPCC publications, which will hopefully be on-line in the second half of 2007.”

“…More than six months ago, I began writing this series, The Deniers. When I began, I accepted the prevailing view that scientists overwhelmingly believe that climate change threatens the planet. I doubted only claims that the dissenters were either kooks on the margins of science or sell-outs in the pockets of the oil companies. …”

The series

“…Somewhere along the way, I stopped believing that a scientific consensus exists on climate change. Certainly there is no consensus at the very top echelons of scientists — the ranks from which I have been drawing my subjects — and certainly there is no consensus among astrophysicists and other solar scientists, several of whom I have profiled. If anything, the majority view among these subsets of the scientific community may run in the opposite direction. Not only do most of my interviewees either discount or disparage the conventional wisdom as represented by the IPCC, many say their peers generally consider it to have little or no credibility. In one case, a top scientist told me that, to his knowledge, no respected scientist in his field accepts the IPCC position.

http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=c47c1209-233b-412c-b6d1-5c755457a8af

“Professor Bob Carter uses the scientific method on the popular theory with global warming being linked to CO2 levels.

He examnines the hypothesis and it fails the test. Does this surprise you?…”

Climate Change – Is CO2 the cause? – Pt 1 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOLkze-9GcI

Climate change – Is CO2 the cause? – Pt 2 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN06JSi-SW8

Climate Change – Is CO2 the cause? – pt 3 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCXDISLXTaY

Climate Change – Is CO2 the cause?- pt 4 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpQQGFZHSno

Prof Bob Carter is a geologist at James Cook University, Queensland, engaged in paleoclimate research

There IS a problem with global warming… it stopped in 1998
By Bob Carter

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2006/04/09/do0907.xml

Global Warming: Hot Air or Cool Science?

Professor Bob Carter

James Cook University

http://www.unisa.edu.au/nbe/research/seminars/carter.pdf

Global Warming – Doomsday Called Off (1/5)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr5O1HsTVgA

Global Warming – Doomsday Called Off (2/5)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD6VBLlWmCI

Global Warming – Doomsday Called Off (3/5)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZS2eIRkcR0

Global Warming – Doomsday Called Off (4/5)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIbTJ6mhCqk

Global Warming – Doomsday Called Off (5/5)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2XALmrq3ro

The Great Global Warming Swindle

http://en.sevenload.com/videos/ha4PoKY/The-Great-Global-Warming-Swindle

Past & Future Climate change – Pt 1of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDX2ExKYyqw

Past & Future Climate Change – Pt 2 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP4mYcrd_18

Past & Future Climate change pt 3 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAUdDLTLXGU

Past & Future Climate Change – pt 4 of 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDiJyr0TK6E

John Stossel – The Global Warming Debate 10/20/07

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FI0U5JOtoo

John Stossel Exposes Global Warming Myths

“…In a release from ABC previewing Stossel’s report on Friday’s “20/20,” the veteran newsman and Newsmax pundit – who won 19 Emmys exposing scammers and con artists – says:

“This week on ‘20/20’ (in our new 8 p.m. Eastern time slot) I say ‘Give Me a Break!’ to our Nobel Prize-winning Vice President.

“Mr. Gore says ‘The debate is over,’ and those who disagree with his take on global warming have been ‘purchased’ in order to create ‘the illusion of a debate.’ Nonsense. It’s as if the Vice President and his allies in the environmental movement plan to win the debate through intimidation. I interview some scientists who won’t be intimidated, even though one has had his life threatened for speaking up.

“The Vice President’s much-applauded movie, ‘An Inconvenient Truth,’ claims warming is man’s fault and a coming crisis! While the earth has certainly warmed over the last century, plenty of independent scientists say scientists cannot be sure that man caused the warming or that warming will be a crisis.

“They say the computer models that are used to predict the disasters don’t include important variables because scientists don’t fully understand them. For example, warming may cause cloud formations that reflect sun and cool the earth. The computer models cannot know. These scientists call global warming activism more of a religious movement than science.”

Gore’s film is filled with “misleading messages,” says Stossel. …”

….

“…I suspect that next year’s government boondoggle will be massive spending on carbon-reducing technology.

“It reminds me of George Mason University Economics Department Chairman Don Boudreax’s suggestion that such schemes really mean ‘government seizing enormous amounts of additional power in order to embark upon schemes of social engineering – schemes whose pursuit gratifies the abstract fantasies of the theory class and, simultaneously, lines the very real pockets of politically powerful corporations, organizations, and “experts.”’

“He is so right. The abstract fantasies of the theory class will soon send huge chunks of your money to politicians, friends, activist scientists, and politically savvy corporations.

“The debate is over? That makes me say GIVE ME A BREAK!”
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/global_warming/2007/10/17/41855.html

LOL

WE can’t stop Global Warming…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNWAZNeVV38

Archive for April, 2008

CHARLES DURNING DEAD DIES AT 89 TRIBUTE TO & AMERICAN ICONIC ACTOR

Shania Twain – Dance With The One That Brought You

WWII hero charles durning honored by france today

France honors Charles Durning Kevin Roderick

Charles Durning

charles durning bio video

Charlie Rose March 19 1996, Interviews Charles Durning

NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT | Charles Durning | PBS

Background Articles and Videos

Charles Durning

France says Viva Charles Durning, actor and war hero

Actor/Heroes from the past

Libertas

Don Deluise and Charles Durning

Charles Durning in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

From This Moment On – Shania Twain Ft. Backstreet Boys

Willie Nelson and Shania Twain, Blue eyes crying in the rain

Shania Twain – Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain 1993

Elvis Presley – Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain

Elvis Presley – Love Me Tender

Related Post on Pronk Palisades

Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows.

~William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”

William F. Buckley commenting upon Senators Clinton and McCain

Election 2008 Clinton McCain Ticket – Are You Kidding?

Ann Coulter I will support Hillary if McCain gets nomination

Rush Limbaugh: Operation Chaos continues despite lies by Hillary

Sweet Home GoreObama

Gore / Obama Supporter – Gore Endorse Obama?

Security and Opportunity for the Twenty-first Century

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Worst Debate Ever! (Hillary threatens Iran, no one notices)

Disloyal Democrat 2: Clinton puts McCain above Obama…again

Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran

McCain: War with Iran is more reality than hypothetical

McCain win would mean war with Iran

Clinton warns Iran of U.S. nuclear response

Senator: ‘Massive retaliation’ for attack on Israel would likely include NATO

Sen. John McCain on Iraq and Iran intelligence from Sentinel

Hillary Clinton – Keith Olbermann – Countdown – Part 1

Hillary Clinton – Keith Olbermann – Countdown – Part 2

Hillary Clinton – Keith Olbermann – Countdown – Part 3

Chris Matthews – Bomb Iran? That’s the Plan? – Buchanan

Hillary Clinton calls Barack Obama a Fraud 3/3/08

Out of touch, Hillary Clinton and John McCain

The John McCain for President, Hillary Clinton for Vice President War Party Fusion Ticket

Background Articles and Videos

Karl Rove on the Dems vs John McCain who does best?

What Are The Weak Spots For McCain, Clinton and Obama?

John McCain – The Company I Keep

McCain and Graham tell conservatives to shut up

Glenn Beck interviews Ann Coulter, April 3, 2008

Ann Coulter *Hillary being treated like Republican by media*

Limbaugh wants Republicans to vote for Hillary in Texas

Al Gore–Ball of Fire!

Finally Someone Says This (Al Gore)

McCain / Clinton–’08

Re: “Very Close” Mccain and Clinton are the same!

Related Posts On Pronk Palisades

Scaring People

Recession: The Movie

the Sky is falling! the Sky is falling!!

Scaring people with Hot Dogs

Recession Fears Widespread

George Soros Part 1

George Soros Part 2

Economy In Trouble – Early Report of Recession 01/2008

Economy May Be Worse Than It Appears

Japan’s historical economic meltdown. Some US parallels.

John McCain Sheds Light on the Economy

Hillary – McCain Will Continue Bush’s Recession

Freefall

Hillary Clinton: America’s Pilot

Bill Clinton on Recession

Obama: Recession started 7 years ago.

Background Articles and Videos

List of recessions in the United States

The NBER�s Recession Dating Procedure

Is U.S. in Recession? Discussions Begin

France honors Charles Durning
Kevin Roderick

Ann Coulter Hillary being treated like Republican by media

By Michael Leahy
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 20, 2008; A01