ÿþ<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <title>Unknown&nbsp;News | Helen & Harry's cranky weblog of news and opinion | unknownnews@inbox.com &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</title> <META content="abuse of authority, alternative news, anarchist news, anti-bush news, anti-cheney news, anti-republican news, bad cops, bush news, cheney news, civil rights, corrupt cops news, crooked cops, freedom news, liberal news, libertarian news, maniac cops, minarchist news, police blotter, police brutality, police corruption news, police misconduct, progressive news, rumsfeld news"name=KEYWORDS> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontmicro {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 5px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fonts {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 6px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontz {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 8px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font10 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 8px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font11 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 9px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font12 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 10px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font13 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 11px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontx {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font14 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontzz {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontsm {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font15 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 13px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fonttnr {font-family: Times New Roman, Bodoni, Garamond, serif;font-size: 15px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fonttnrx {font-family: Times New Roman, Bodoni, Garamond, serif;font-size: 16px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fonty {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 15px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fontpq {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.fonta {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;}--></style> <style type="text/css"><!--.font17 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 17px;}--></style> <!-- 1-80% 2-Danger 3-Destroying 4-EBBV 5-HNMB 6-IB 7-ISN'T THERE SOMETHING 8-BHL 9-LJ 10-NSR-H 11-SOT-BTH 12-YR 13-WWJB 14-IC 15-ION 16-ION (2) 17-BHL (2) 18-LJ (2) 19-WWJB (2) 20-unknownnews 21-unknownnews 22-unknownnews 23-unknownnews 24-wwjb 25-wwjb 26-wwjb 27-wwjb 28-wwjb 29-wwjb 30-Bushisaliar 31-Bushisaliar 32-Bushisaliar--> <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> <!-- Begin // Set up the image files to be used. var theImages = new Array() // do not change this // To add more image files, continue with the // pattern below, adding to the array. theImages[0] = 'stic1.jpg' theImages[1] = 'stic2.jpg' theImages[2] = 'stic3.jpg' theImages[3] = 'stic4.jpg' theImages[4] = 'stic5.jpg' theImages[5] = 'stic6.jpg' theImages[6] = 'stic7.jpg' theImages[7] = 'stic8.jpg' theImages[8] = 'stic9.jpg' theImages[9] = 'stic10.jpg' theImages[10] = 'stic11.jpg' theImages[11] = 'stic12.jpg' theImages[12] = 'stic13.jpg' theImages[13] = 'stic14.jpg' theImages[14] = 'stic15.jpg' theImages[15] = 'stic16.jpg' theImages[16] = 'stic17.jpg' theImages[17] = 'stic18.jpg' theImages[18] = 'stic19.jpg' theImages[19] = 'stic20.jpg' theImages[20] = 'stic21.jpg' theImages[21] = 'stic22.jpg' theImages[22] = 'stic23.jpg' theImages[23] = 'stic24.jpg' theImages[24] = 'stic25.jpg' theImages[25] = 'stic26.jpg' theImages[26] = 'stic27.jpg' theImages[27] = 'stic28.jpg' theImages[28] = 'stic29.jpg' theImages[29] = 'stic30.jpg' theImages[30] = 'stic31.jpg' theImages[31] = 'stic32.jpg' // do not edit anything below this line var j = 0 var p = theImages.length; var preBuffer = new Array() for (i = 0; i < p; i++){ preBuffer[i] = new Image() preBuffer[i].src = theImages[i] } var whichImage = Math.round(Math.random()*(p-1)); function showImage(){ document.write('<img src="'+theImages[whichImage]+'">'); } // End --> </script> </head> <body> <A NAME=top></A> <table width="980" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tr> <td width="272" valign="top" align="left" class="fonty"><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/"><img src="http://www.unknownnews.org/logo.gif" alt="Welcome to UNKNOWN&nbsp;NEWS" width="271" height="56" border="0"></A></td> <td width="536" valign="center" align="center" class="fontsm">"<b><I>News that's not known, or not known enough.</I></b>"<BR> <I>Helen & Harry Highwater's cranky weblog of news and opinion.</I></td> <td width="172" align="center" valign="bottom" bgcolor="#eeeeee" class="fontx"> <TABLE CELLPADDING="3" CELLSPACING="3" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="100%" BGcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonty"> <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/stickers.html"><SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> <!-- Begin showImage(); // End --> </script></A> </TD></TR></TABLE></td></tr></table> <table width="980" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tr><td width="830" align="center" valign="top" bgcolor=white class="font14"> <TABLE CELLPADDING="4" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="32%" BGcolor="#dddddd" class="fonty"> <b>unknownnews@inbox.com</b></TD> <TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="68%" BGcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonty">&nbsp;&nbsp;|&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/"><B>Home</B></A> &nbsp;&nbsp;|&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/about.html">About us</A> &nbsp;&nbsp;|&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/contact.html">Contact us</A> &nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/!workfiles.html"><FONT COLOR=black>|</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/faq.html">FAQ</A> &nbsp;&nbsp;|&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/mysterylinks.html">Mystery links</A> &nbsp;&nbsp;|&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/stickers.html">Stickers</A> &amp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/forsale.html">stuff</A> &nbsp;&nbsp;|<BR> </TD></TR></TABLE></td><td width="150" align=center valign="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee" class="font15"><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/stickers.html"><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/buyabumpersticker.jpg" border="0" width="138" height="23"></A> </td></tr></table><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="980" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="830" BGcolor="#dddddd" class="fonty"> <iframe src="http://www.unknownnews.org/frames-new.html" height="32" width="830" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></TD><TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="center" WIDTH="150" BGcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonty"><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/donations.html"><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/makeadonation.jpg" border="0" width="138" height="23"></A> </TD></TR></TABLE><!-- end uniform header--> <TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="980" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="10" BGcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonttnr">&nbsp;</TD> <TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="10" BGcolor=white class="fonttnr">&nbsp;</TD> <TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="630" BGcolor=white class="fonty"> <!-- =quote= --> <TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="center" WIDTH="100%" BGcolor="white" class="fonttnr"><I> "Other nations have dealt with this and survived -- Chile, Greece, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Argentina, the former Soviet Union and many others. It is a well-worn path to freedom by perseverance and courage. We will be a better people for having experienced a true struggle to free ourselves from authoritarian oppression." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#HR6"><FONT COLOR=blue><B>Herb Ruhs, MD</B></FONT></A> </I></TD></TR></TABLE> <!-- =news= --> <TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="625" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="625" background="http://www.unknownnews.org/flag-wallpaper.jpg" class="fonty"><SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: darkred"><BIG>&nbsp;<FONT COLOR="#FFCC66"><B> NEWS for SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2008</B></FONT>&nbsp;</BIG></SPAN></TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#9 --> <A NAME=aa0904></A><A HREF="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080906/ap_on_bi_ge/mortgage_giants_crisis"><B>Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac to be effectively nationalized by US government</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> The government is expected to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as soon as this weekend in a monumental move designed to protect the mortgage market from the failure of the two companies, which together hold or guarantee half of the nation's mortgage debt, a person briefed on the matter said Friday night.<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> We are awaiting details of the presumed nationalization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The government is expected to bail-out 100% the bond and preferred shareholders, and partially bail-out common shareholders.<BR><BR>Many financial institutions such as banks and insurance companies own preferred shares and bonds from the two mortgage behemoths, and failure to bail-out preferred shareholders had the potential to create another financial crisis. Failure to bail-out the bond holders had the potential to destroy the global financial system and rupture the flow of foreign imports to the United States -- countries such as China made it clear to the US government that reneging on Fannie/Freddie debt would mean The End Of The World As We Know It.<BR><BR>So...another bail-out. Lots of bail-outs ahead too, probably the FDIC and Ford, GM and Chrysler, and ultimately individual homeowners. What we see today is not the $25 billion estimated by the Congressional Budget Office, but a temporary fix to kick the can down the road until January 20th when Bush leaves office and Barack Obama can be assigned the blame for what will undoubtedly occur: trillions more in Federal debt and massive dilution of US dollar purchasing power. This is going to be HUGE...&nbsp; <nobr><i>Mr. Chuckles</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#aa0904"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR> <A HREF="http://www.libertymaven.com/2008/09/06/ron-paul-right-again-first-bear-stearns-n ow-fannie-and-freddie/1773/"><B>First Bear Stearns, now Fannie and Freddie</B></A><BR><BR><I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> Shouldn't it be obvious to people by now that that US government fails in just about everything they set out to do? The late great Libertarian Harry Browne discussed this in Reason Magazine back in 1998.<BR><BR>"Anytime you turn anything over to the government, you transform what was a commercial, medical, social, safety, financial, or military matter into a political issue -- to be decided by politicians like Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich, Teddy Kennedy, and Jesse Helms. And guess how they make their decisions?<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Harry was right. Ironically. Or tragically. Did you know that Fannie Mae's purpose was to make home ownership possible and affordable to average Americans? And what happened? The price of homes skyrocketed because loans were made available with 5%, or even zero down payments, and hyper-low interest rates...for far too long. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Mr. Chuckles</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#aa0904"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR> <A HREF="http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Purpose-and-Function-of-Fannie-Mae&id=1130413"><B>The purpose and function of Fannie Mae</B></A><BR><BR><I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> To give you a historical perspective. Fannie Mae was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Congress in 1938. At that time, there wasn't a consistent supply of mortgage funds. As a result of the Depression, millions of families risked losing their homes or couldn't become home owners.<BR><BR>So, the federal government established Fannie Mae to address this need. Its aim was to "expand the flow of mortgage funds in all communities, at all times, under all economic conditions, and to help lower the costs to buy a home."<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Meanwhile, back at the White House, the wise steward in the Oval Office announced that he is going to give $1 billion to the country of Georgia to help them rebuild after their FUBARed war with Russia. The magic piggy-bank that Alan Greenspan warned us about is still magic, I guess. The money tree is still alive!<BR><BR>Personally speaking, as always, I find the spendthrift policies of the US government alarming. Probably after the next president takes office we'll see some hairy stuff start to happen. It simply is not possible to print money and create true wealth -- or to borrow our way to national prosperity. Something has to happen. Fortunately, corporations are keeping Americans almost completely ignorant of what is going to happen, and that means the rest of us who are paying attention have a chance to make for the exits before the stampede. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Mr. Chuckles</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#aa0904"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#7iraq --> <A NAME=aa0831></A><A HREF="http://www.truthout.org/article/us-iraq-agreement-leaked"><B>US-Iraq agreement leaked</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> A leaked version of last month's draft of the proposed US-Iraq status of forces agreement (SOFA) suggests that the Iraqi parliament may not be consulted before it is signed, despite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's promises to do so. The pact would govern the future US presence in Iraq. The draft indicates no intent to set a deadline for withdrawal of "non-combat" troops from Iraq. It also grants immunity from Iraqi law to US military personnel, no matter where they are located.&nbsp;... "For the past seven years, the president has treated Congress like an inferior branch of government," [Steve Fox, director of the American Freedom Campaign] told TRUTHOUT. "This pending agreement with Iraq is just another example. It is clear that the agreement goes beyond the reach of a traditional SOFA and it should be approved by Congress before it goes into effect. But the president has no intention of seeking Congressional approval. In our opinion, Congress should issue a 'signing statement' of its own, declaring the agreement unconstitutional and signaling that it will fund the activities outlined in the agreement at its own discretion."</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#7iraq --> <A NAME=ANCHOR></A><A HREF="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=95744"><B>Baghdad wants to buy F-16 fighters from US</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Bush is busy with Christmas gifts. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Wig</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#aa0831"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#7iraq --> <A NAME=fp0552></A><A HREF="http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=57200"><B>Iraqi police held in foiled kidnap scam</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> The success of the Surge is resulting in "It's not what you know. It's who you know." Sounds like democracy has arrived in Iraq. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Wig</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0552"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#7con --> <A NAME=fp0411></A><A HREF="http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003845496"><B>Arrests at RNC slammed as Goodman arrest video is seen 500,000-plus times</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> In a statement released this afternoon, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) called on "police and local and federal officials to respect the First Amendment right to free speech and free press of journalists doing their job, especially as it relates to coverage of recent political conventions and the surrounding public protests. Reporters have a duty and a constitutional right to be present at sometimes volatile events and situations, and to inform the public."<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> It was these kind of tactics used at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago that were at least partially responsible for them losing the election to Nixon. People will remember this. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0411"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> I envy your optimism, but how are people going to remember this when they don't even know it happened? "The whole world was watching" in 1968 because those police riots were on live television and all over the newspapers, but this week's brutality in Minnesota has received next to no coverage in the corporate media. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Helen & Harry</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0411"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> This is true. However there are a lot more people who use the internet and alternative media. Mostly, I will grant you, in the upper classes. But that is where most of the independents are too. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0411"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#7con --> <A NAME=aa0850></A><A HREF="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26497298/"><B>Republican delegates attacked by protesters</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> Terry Butts, a former Alabama Supreme Court justice who is a convention delegate, was on a bus taking delegates to the arena when a brick through the window sprayed glass on him and two others. Butts said he wasn't hurt.<BR><BR>"It just left us a little shaken," he said. "It was sort of a frightening moment because it could have been a bomb or a Molotov cocktail."<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> It's interesting to see how differently MSM covered the convention protests. Not a whiff of any police abuse. &nbsp; <nobr><i>SirJ</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#aa0850"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr></TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#6 --> <A NAME=ANCHOR></A><A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/08/26/ccchina126.xml"><B>China forces banks to increase holdings of US dollars</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> China's central bank is in effect forcing commercial banks to build up large dollar reserves, using them as arms-length proxies in a renewed campaign of exchange rate intervention.</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5ele --> <A NAME=fp0434></A><A HREF="http://www.military.com/news/article/obama--says-iraq-surge-successful.html?col=1186032310810"><B>Obama says Iraq surge successful</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Pandering to the Right? &nbsp; <nobr><i>Wig</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0434"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Almost certainly, though it's possible A.P. has twisted his words. And what's Obama doing on THE O'REILLY FACTOR, for God's sake? &nbsp; <nobr><i>Helen & Harry</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0434"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Pandering of course. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Wig</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0434"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5ele --> <A NAME=fp0439></A><A HREF="http://redtape.msnbc.com/2008/09/partial-palin-s.html"><B>Palin family has owned 26 cars from 1994 to the present</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> The article's main topic is whether Palin's social security number was published on the web. Only the first 5 numbers were, which can be gotten with relative ease by a commercially available background check.<BR><BR>What caught my attention was this sentence: "The document also lists other personal information, such as the size of Palin's mortgages and the vehicle identification numbers for all 26 cars the Palin family has registered since 1994."<BR><BR>26 cars over that period of time is roughly 2 per year. One for the husband and one for the wife makes for a different car each year. I am grossly out of step with the rest of America. I have owned the same car since 1986. It's the only car I have as I am single. &nbsp; <nobr><i>SirJ</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0439"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Damn good news catch, thanks. Sorta adds to the Palin family's white trash image, in my mind... I wonder how many of these cars were in the front yard at any one time... &nbsp; <nobr><i>Helen & Harry</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0439"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Maybe we'll find out when <A HREF="http://cagle.com/working/080903/nicholson.jpg"><B>they appear on Jerry Springer</B></A>! &nbsp; <nobr><i>SirJ</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0439"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr></TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5ele --> <A NAME=ANCHOR></A><A HREF="http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomberg/afxhgfvhhbtc"><B>Palin's convention speech brings in cash for Obama</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> "Sarah Palin's attacks have rallied our supporters in ways we never expected," Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton said.</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5ele --> <A NAME=fp0417></A><A HREF="http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2008/09/the_death_of_a.html"><B>Republicans use 9/11 video for propaganda</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> One of the most enduring taboos in American politics, the airing of graphic images from the September 11 attacks in a partisan context, died today. It was nearly seven years old.<BR><BR>The informal prohibition, which had been occasionally threatened by political ads in recent years, was pronounced dead at approximately 7:40 CST, when a video aired before delegates at the Republican National Convention included slow-motion footage of a plane striking the World Trade Center, the towers' subsequent collapse, and smoke emerging from the Pentagon.<BR><BR>The September 11 precedent was one of the few surviving campaign-season taboos. It is survived by direct comparisons of one's opponents to Hitler.<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> I would never compare McCain or Palin to Hitler. Hitler's staff had some intelligence. These people are as dumb as a stump. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0417"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr><BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Republican leaders are fearmongers, because fear is all they have to sell, and because it sells very well to the average utter coward Republican. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Helen & Harry </i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0417"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5 --> <A NAME=fp0451></A><A HREF="http://blog.cleveland.com/business/2008/09/continental_adds_15_fee_for_fi.html"><B>Continental adds $15 fee for first checked bag</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> It only applies to the peasants. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Wig</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0451"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5 --> <A NAME=fp0414></A><A HREF="http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2008/09/republicans_are_1.html"><B>This just in: Republicans are mean</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> I sat through Rudy Giuliani and the debut of Sarah Palin -- and I've come to only one conclusion. Republicans are mean. No whining here. I'm no Phil Gramm. Just an objective statement of fact based on first-person observation. Nasty. Snarky. Mocking. Sarcastic. Punch you in the nose first and then laugh at you because your face is full of blood and you look kinda funny now. And then kick you while you're still down -- don't forget that one. Jesus says so. And then holler "USA! USA! USA!" and "Drill, Baby, Drill!" Nice people. And distressingly enough, on the second/third/whatever night of the Republican Convention, the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul was filled with them. And they sure don't seem interested in winning my vote.<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Only mean? How about arrogant, self centered, selfish, self serving, self righteous, condescending, cruel, cold hearted. Need I go on? And this is just scratching the surface. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0414"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5 --> <A NAME=fp0520></A><A HREF="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/greg-mitchell/what-peggy-noonan-wrote-t_b_123671.html"><B>Noonan raved about Palin in column written before her "live mic" comments</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Peggy Noonan has always been a propagandist, since her days writing speeches for Ronald Reagan. She says one thing when she thinks the microphone is off, but it's a completely different story when she's writing her column, because like any sharp propagandist she doesn't believe the garbage she spews. I wish I wondered why the corporate media would employ a propagandist to write propaganda, but of course, I don't wonder at all and neither do you. We all know why. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Helen & Harry</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0520"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#5 --> <A NAME=fp0526></A><A HREF="http://mediamatters.org/items/200809050001"><B>Cable news channels dedicate more coverage to RNC's<BR>scheduled programming during peak hours than to DNC's</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> I thought I noticed this myself, but of course I wasn't keeping close enough tabs on things to be sure. &nbsp; <nobr><i><A HREF="http://www.jrmooneyham.com/">JR Mooneyham</A></i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0526"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#4 --> <A NAME=ANCHOR></A><A HREF="http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/sentletsediakanyo/2008/09/05/reasons-for-doing-business-with-hugo-chavez-and-not-the-us="><B>Reasons for doing business with Hugo Chavez</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> The US has perfected the art of deceit and peddling lies to UN Security Council about leaders who appear to defy and undermine its authority. Venezuela has been one of those countries. It is not surprising that there has been a relentless campaign against Hugo Chavez since his ascendancy to power, to characterize him as a ruthless dictator and a ruffian. The US undermines and wants to cripple the democratically elected government of Latin America's leading oil power. "In Venezuela, a demagogue awash in oil money is undermining democracy and seeking to destabilize the region," a statement released by the US said.&nbsp;...<BR><BR>Washington's open contempt for Chavez and its underhanded attempts to cut down the democratically-elected leader contradict the ideals of democracy that the US claims to protect and promote throughout the world. It is a demonstration of hypocrisy of the highest degree.</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!--#3 --> <A NAME=fp0554></A><A HREF="http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-09/cp-itt082808.php"><B>Infectious, test tube-produced prions can jump the 'species barrier'</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Just what we need: a way to create infinite varieties of 'mad cow' plague bioweapons. Those sorts of plagues might well be impossible to defend against or contain, as there's no practical way to sterilize rooms or equipment which get contaminated (that's a different reference). &nbsp; <nobr><i><A HREF="http://www.jrmooneyham.com/">JR Mooneyham</A></i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#fp0554"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <!-- =nuggets= --> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/9/4/163948/5565/25/586794"><B>"When you've lost my mother, you've lost America"</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-palin_planesep05,0,3470364.story"><B>Palin claim on eBay plane sale doesn't fly</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/05/national/main4418856.shtml"><B>Republican insults aimed at community organizers rile activists</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/shared-blogs/ajc/politicalinsider/entries/2008/09/04/barack_and_michelle_obama_are.html"><B>Westmoreland (R-Georgia) says Obama is "uppity"</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/story/516641.html"><B>Palin is stonewalling the Troopergate investigation</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#9a --> <A HREF="http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/05/mccain-campaign-plans-to-keep-palin-away-from-the-press/"><B>McCain strategy is to keep Palin away from the press</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#7 --> <A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/09/science/09obdrug.html?ref=science"><B>Marijuana ingredient may fight bacteria</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#7 --> <A HREF="http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/97606/"><B>New drug survey demolishes more of Drug Czar's claims</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#6 --> <A HREF="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/51753.html"><B>Judge sentences Republican crook Abramoff to four years in prison</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#6 --> <A HREF="http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/09/05/tom-ridge-john-bush-err-john-mccain-is-his-own-man/"><B>Tom Ridge: "John Bush, err, John McCain is his own man"</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#6 --> <A HREF="http://www.alternet.org/workplace/97645/why_mccain_and_the_gop_are_so_afraid_of_discussing_the_economy/"><B>Whether rich, poor or somewhere in between, Americans<BR>always do better economically under Democrats</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#4 --> <A HREF="http://www.military.com/news/article/army-suicide-rate-may-set-record-again-.html?col=1186032310810"><B>Army suicide rate may set record again</B></A><BR><BR> <!--#3 --> <A HREF="http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24298545-5005961,00.html"><B>'Slave master' ex-cop on child porn charges</B></A><BR><BR> <!-- =dialogue= --> <TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="625" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="625" background="http://www.unknownnews.org/flag-wallpaper.jpg" class="fonty"><SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: darkred"><BIG>&nbsp;<FONT COLOR="#FFCC66"><B> COMMENTS for SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2008</B></FONT>&nbsp;</BIG></SPAN></TD></TR></TABLE> <A NAME=HR6></A><BR><BIG><B>Remember, it is always darkest just before dawn</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Herb Ruhs, MD</B><BR><BR> In light of the horrors that have played out during the Republican National Convention, any city, county or state that invites the Republicans to their town for any possible future convention will have to expect the same or worse. Of course the issue may be moot in that it seems more likely by the day that the national electoral farce may soon come to an end as the charade is likely to be replaced by simple authoritarian, totalitarian rule.<BR><BR>Personally when such happens it will be a relief. Living through this false spectacle of democratic rule has been annoying to the extreme. Better for people to realize that the reality is that they are dealing with straight up totalitarian oppression.<BR><BR>Other nations have dealt with this and survived -- Chile, Greece, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Argentina, the former Soviet Union and many others. It is a well-worn path to freedom by perseverance and courage. We will be a better people for having experienced a true struggle to free ourselves from authoritarian oppression. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Herb Ruhs, MD</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#HR6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=JL6></A><BR><BIG><B>Sarah Palin's alleged affair</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Janice Lester</B><BR><BR> Near as I can ascertain, the story of Sarah Palin's alleged affair has been wiped from the National Enquirer website. Which either means there's nothing to it, or the editor there wants to live to see Christmas. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Janice Lester</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#JL6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=JRM6></A><BR><BIG><B>Hypocrisy is never off-limits</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>JR Mooneyham</B><BR><BR> I know you think Palin's daughter's illegitimate child and various other family matters shouldn't be reported -- but that flies in the face of massive and concerted Republican efforts to meddle in everyone else's family lives in all manner of ways, as well as use such against anyone they dislike. If we can't at least expose their own heights of hypocrisy in such matters, we might as well just sit back and let them have the election. Recall it's the REPUBLICANS who perpetually claim personal and family lifestyles should be examined and determined in excruciating detail by government and media meddling -- not the other way around. Why should Republicans alone be immune to what they force onto the rest of us? <DIV align="right"><BR><i>JR Mooneyham &nbsp;(<A HREF="http://www.jrmooneyham.com/"><B>www.jrmooneyham.com/</B></A>)</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#JRM6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> That was my immediate reaction when the story of the teenaged daughter's pregnancy first broke, but believe me, my opinion has changed. I'm generally reluctant to stoop to the level of Republicans and other savage bottom-dwellers, but in light of Sarah Palin's hard-line position against women's rights and the McCain campaign itself using this teenaged girl and her impregnator as a family-values prop, it's all fair game. </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=CD6></A><BR><BIG><B>Boxers in a bunch over Georgia, Russia, and bull</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Chris D.</B><BR><BR> Remember when I accused Congress of <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/080419-sd18F-CD.html"><B>out-evilling Evil</B></A>? They've done it again by means of charity. It takes a special kind of asshole to pull that off.<BR><BR> According to Reuters the US has promised at LEAST $1 billion in aid over the next several years to Georgia, purportedly to help them 'rebuild' after their war with Russia... The war that lasted about a couple of weeks and was centered on tank columns trying to beat a hasty retreat from the country they just got kicked out of. Swearing blind they weren't trying to fund yet another goddamned proxy war US officials said that it was 'too soon' to provide Georgia with military aid.<BR><BR> Now the Russians haven't been angels over the decades, but the entire Georgia situation has my boxers in a bunch. From where I stand Russia's done little if anything wrong, in light of a sudden and violent violation of a decade-long cease-fire forged from a brutal war of independence under the guise of unifying the country.<BR><BR> With several peacekeepers and holders of dual citizenship dead, Russia's response was shockingly limited, especially in comparison to America's pre-emptive strikes and ongoing occupations. The counteroffensive stopped outside Georgia's political capitol and really only a tiny portion of the country was under what could be described as martial law/occupation. The Russians didn't attempt to enact policy or install a new government of any kind. They made comments about not being willing to officially rekindle diplomatic relations with the Georgian government until their current President resigns, but that's about it. Hell, when people accused Russian President Dmitry Medvedev of attempting to instigate regime change I think it actually hurt his feelings.<BR><BR> Considering Mr. Bush's stance on Georgia's attack on Ossetia, I'm going to have to ask just when exactly it is he plans to return to English rule. The Other Butcher of Baghdad considers seeking independence of a government that only held authority in the region due to conquest by a separate and now defunct empire as treason punishable years after the fact by military incursion, so I'm afraid he'll have to replace the Stars and Stripes in his office with a Union Jack, issue a posthumous pardon to Benedict Arnold and condemn the general George Washington.<BR><BR> While he's at it he might as well cancel all his golf games with his buddies who believe the South will rise again. I have a feeling things could get awkward between them. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Chris D.</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#CD6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> What can I say but yup and a half? I was honestly taken aback, confused for a few days by how quickly the official story changed on all this. Georgia struck first, but it seemed almost immediately that Russia was portrayed as the aggressor. I hate relying on corporate media that I trust less and less, but whatever Russia's crimes in this matter, they're jaywalking compared to America's crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <A NAME=GeorgiaRussia></A> <BR><TABLE CELLPADDING="5" CELLSPACING="5" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="100%" bgcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonty"> <I>Comments:</I><BR> <A NAME=ap0943></A><BR><B>SirJ replies &nbsp; 9/7/2008:</B><BR> <A HREF="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4635843.ece"><B>Russia plans to consume South Ossetia</B></A><BR><BR>I'd say that constitutes more than doing "little if anything wrong." It also eliminates any claim that Russia was trying to preserve South Ossetian independence. As in most conflicts, neither side holds the moral high ground. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>SirJ</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#ap0943"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <!-- REPLY --></TD></TR></TABLE> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=HB6></A><BR><BIG><B>Huckabee and THE DAILY SHOW</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Hazel Burke</B><BR><BR> You may remember how the media roasted Al Gore for blimping up after [allegedly --H&amp;HH] losing the election of 2000. Well, Mike Huckabee appeared on The Daily Show (Thu, Sep-4) and it was obvious that he is off his diet. If you recall, he had lost vast amounts of flesh to prepare for running the US but now he is draped in an artfully tailored suit -- and he is, once again, a Big Guy. Which I think is unfortunate for him, health-wise, and a little sad, and otherwise I don't give a shit, but...<BR><BR>Also on The Daily Show, Samantha B was hilarious at the RNC. She was asking conventioneers about Sarah Palin's daughter and trying to get ONE delegate to say the word "choice". Eventually she succeeded and then she summed it up with "She made the choice that she doesn't want other people to have." There was one delegate who stammered and stuttered over the question, starting and stopping four times trying to NOT say "choice". That looked to be like what happens when the Orwellian Thought Police try to brainwash citizens -- the people lose the ability to think logically when parts of their symbol sets are deleted. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Hazel Burke</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#HB6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> Sounds delightful... I've seen THE DAILY SHOW twice, in hotel rooms over the years. Sigh. And I can't watch the on-line clips since they redesigned their website a few months back. Wish we had cable... </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <BR>Another funny bit was about the Repugs making cynical remarks about Obama being a "community organizer". Stewart's climax joke was him mimicking the R's saying that (you) community organizers are "A thousand points of bullshit." -- which is a takeoff on Bush Sr's. 1000 points of light.<BR><BR>So they approve of "faith-based" initiatives and "service" but only if you are a Repugnant One -- because Obama's job as an organizer was run out of a church! Yeah. So Stewart was dead on reaming them. They make me sick with their petty bullshit. Just total crap all the time to cover up their horrible record.<DIV align="right"><BR><i>Hazel Burke</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#HB"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> I am perpetually astounded and infuriated at the level of lying that's now allowed in national politics. I couldn't watch two minutes of Republicans talking at their convention without hearing at least one lie, and their candidates' speeches were nothing but collections of lies and smears, lies and bad ideas, and lies and more lies.<BR><BR>Without hyperbole I would state under oath that I haven't seen a Republican Presidential ad on TV that didn't include at least one big fat lie since Bob Dole ran in 1996. Basically it's a lie, a smear, another couple of lies, and "I'm John McCain and I approve this message." And this is a fairly recent development, something that Republicans wouldn't have tried as recently as the early 1990s, when America still had a functional fourth estate that would call them on it when they got something dead wrong.<BR><BR>And for all the Democrats' annoying faults, Obama's ads aren't generally telling blatant lies. He buys into some of the prominent misconceptions and wrongheaded framing of political issues, but within that context he seems to be telling the truth. </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <A NAME=cabletv></A> <BR><TABLE CELLPADDING="5" CELLSPACING="5" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="100%" bgcolor="#eeeeee" class="fonty"> <I>Comments:</I><BR> <A NAME=ap0916></A><BR><B>Siskiyousis replies &nbsp; 9/7/2008:</B><BR> I wish you could get it on satellite (or cable), Helen. It is one of the only spots of relief in a dreary landscape. There are other good channels, like Discovery. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Siskiyousis</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#ap0916"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> I appreciate the kind thoughts, and as the problems of life go it's a fairly trivial problem, but yeah, I could use a few moments of escape from the drearies. We don't watch much TV because there's not much of it that's worth watching, so we've gotten by on rabbit ears for years. But Rachel Maddow and Comedy Central are the shows we want, and we're prepared to pay around $30 a month. I can justify that as a dollar a day. Problem is, all the options are substantially more expensive than that, and I don't think we can afford the $50 range all the blood-sucking corporations want us to pay... </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV><BR> Hal figures we are paying about a buck and a half a day for Direct TV. With the Music Channels we listen more than the TV, it is worth it. So far.... <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Siskiyousis</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#ua0850"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> Sounds like you're on DirecTV's $52.99 p/month plan. I'm getting pretty fluent in the price and channel selection offerings of the big three, DirecTV, Dish Network, and our local cable provider, Charter. The cable option is the most expensive of the three, which is OK because we wouldn't want to go with Charter anyway -- they're our internet service provider on those days when they provide internet service, and they suck. Dish Network is a little cheaper ($44.99 p/month + $5 for local channels) but getting a straight answer from Dish Network to even the simplest question was like, well, like talking to tech support at Charter. I get the impression Dish Network is run by scum, and if we're going to pay $50 it's probably worth three bucks more to not deal with scum.<BR><BR>I just don't know. All this really is more than a bit beyond our budget, but I want those "spots of relief in a dreary landscape" that you mentioned, and for me they're Rachel Maddow, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert. </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <!-- REPLY --></TD></TR></TABLE> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=CM6></A><BR><BIG><B>McCain at 12</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Chris M.</B><BR><BR> Another bumper sticker:<BR><BR>McCain / Palin<BR>The road to nowhere <BR><BR><CENTER><BIG><B><FONT COLOR=gray>*** &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; *** &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ***</FONT></B></BIG></CENTER> It would seem that Josh Marshall at TPM has <A HREF="http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/213806.php"><B>solved the mystery</B></A> of McCain's green background.<BR><BR>It's the lawn of a Middle School in Ca. Seems strangely fitting since he and his Republican cadre apparently have never matured past the age of 12. <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#CM6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <!-- REPLY --><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <A NAME=FR6></A><BR><BIG><B>Power corrupts?</B></BIG><BR><BR>by <B>Fat Radish</B><BR><BR> I enjoy your website, check it regularly, and occasionally steal an idea or two.<BR><BR> Found your "<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/about.html"><B>http://www.unknownnews.org/about.html</B></A>" and listed under "We hold these truths to be self-evident", found the quote, "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."<BR><BR> With the very greatest of respect, this is, as "<A HREF="http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/List_of_misquotations"><B>http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/List_of_misquotations</B></A>" explains, "probably the single most misquoted statement in the English language."<BR><BR> Many sources report the original quote as "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely".<BR><BR> This is not quite true, as it follows that anyone with any power would be corrupt. But it is certainly true that power does tend to corrupt, or at the very least reveal the true tendencies of an individual.<BR><BR>In fact, some sources claim that the original quote reads, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely", which if true, would be an accurate statement.<BR><BR> After all, if absolute power corrupts, where does that leave God?<BR><BR> I trust you don't receive this as criticism, just a friendly observation.<BR><BR> BTW, Thanks for the tip on RSS feeds. I am in the middle of doing the same thing and it was very helpful.<BR><BR> Best wishes for your ongoing successful web presence,<BR><BR> <DIV align="right"><BR><i>Fat Radish &nbsp;(<A HREF="http://www.fatradish.com/"><B>www.fatradish.com/</B></A>)</i> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-06.html#FR6"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;&nbsp;</SPAN></div> <BLOCKQUOTE><i> OK, first the compliments. I like your webpage and I'll be returning to it, and I think I like you. I certainly don't take your correction as a criticism, and I'll concede that you're absolutely right about what Lord Acton wrote.<BR><BR>But we weren't quoting Lord Acton, we were quoting the cliché. Our intent was rhetorical, not historical -- we're using a few very familiar words as a short cut to reach that part of the reader's brain where they store ideas they agree with. And for most folks, if they're already agreed with the concept, they've got it filed under "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely".<BR><BR> I also like your line, "After all, if absolute power corrupts, where does that leave God?", and I'll try to remember to give you credit when I quote you. But I think you intended it as a further nudge for correcting the quote, while I take it as a great weapon for my next debate with a Jehovah's Witless at our front door, where I generally argue the agnostic line. </i></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> (<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com"><B>unknownnews at inbox.com</B></A>)</DIV> <BR><i>PS. Your note is interesting and we love to publish interesting notes, but in a quick on-line search I can't find anywhere you've publicly said who "Fat Radish" is, so we'll edit your name out.</i><!-- REPLY --><BR><BR><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR> <BR>Also:<BR> &bull; &nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-05.html#fp0400"><B>Herb Ruhs, MD replies to Helen & Harry</B></A> on the ANDERSON VALLEY ADVERTISER<BR> &bull; &nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-05.html#aa0811"><B>Herb Ruhs, MD replies to Helen & Harry</B></A> on vacations and Chicago<BR> &bull; &nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-05.html#fp0425"><B>Kenneth L. replies to Helen & Harry</B></A> on Georgia and Russia<BR> &bull; &nbsp;&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-05.html#fp0443"><B>SirJ replies to Helen & Harry</B></A> on the Republican Party<BR><BR> <!-- REPLY --><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/grayline.jpg" border="0" width="630" height="3"><BR><BR> <!-- =quote= --> <TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="center" WIDTH="100%" BGcolor="white" class="fonttnr"><I> "Mrs. Palin needs to be reminded that Jesus Christ was a community organizer and Pontius Pilate was a governor." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <A HREF="http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0908/Democrat_reader_email_of_the_day_so_far.html?showall"><B>Jonathan Martin</B></A> </I></TD></TR></TABLE> <!-- =news= --> <TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="625" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="center" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="625" background="http://www.unknownnews.org/flag-wallpaper.jpg" class="fonty"><SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: darkred"><BIG>&nbsp;<FONT COLOR="#FFCC66"><B> NEWS for FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2008</B></FONT>&nbsp;</BIG></SPAN></TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A HREF="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/51668.html"><B>Feds spend millions advertising enhanced frustrations at US border crossings</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> US travelers going to Mexico, the Caribbean, Bermuda or Canada by land or sea will have to carry one of six government-approved IDs as of June 1, and government officials want to make sure they know about it.&nbsp;...<BR><BR>"It's a new way of doing business on the borders," said Thomas Winkowski, an assistant commissioner of Customs and Border Protection. "We've already seen a willingness of the public to go along with the new requirements."</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="46%" class="fonty"> <A NAME=tp0140p></A><A HREF="http://www.minnesotaindependent.com/7439/palins-convention-speech-pretty-woman-for-christians"><B>Palin's prime-time debut<BR>was annoyingly good</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> The Democrats would also do well to remember, and stress, that the real issue in the matter of Sarah Palin is the judgment of John McCain. The "process" that delivered her to us was utterly haphazard in the time-honored McCain fashion, and it provides an opening to go after the impulsive and erratic way Johnny Mac has always made decisions. "Goes with his gut" is often just a nicer way of saying "capricious nut," and here is a great case in point.<BR><BR><A HREF="http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/attytood/Sad.html"><B>Palin delivers "speech to nowhere"</B></A><BR><BR><I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> It was a Speech to Nowhere when Palin said that "I told the Congress 'Thanks but no thanks' on that Bridge to Nowhere, because that was a lie, and the worst kind of lie in American politics, a blatant falsehood that showed utter contempt for the American people that Palin pledged to serve, assuming we are too stupid to look up or know that truth, that she pushed for those funds in Congress and while she got great political mileage out of announcing that she was killing the project, she still has not returned the funds to American people.<BR><BR>It was a Speech to Nowhere because Palin also boasted seconds before that other lie of fighting against wasteful earmarks in Congress, even though she pushed for and accepted $27 million of such grants when she was mayor of Wasilla.<BR><BR>It was a Speech to Nowhere because Palin said that "we've got lots" of oil and gas this country, and while one supposes that all depends upon what you definition of the words "lots" is, the production of oil in the United States has been irrevocably on the decline since 1970, and with her words she showed this nation that she and John McCain will perpetrate the dangerous myths that began with Ronald Reagan at his acceptance speech in 1980, that sunny optimism is the solution to all our energy woes, and not a posture that put energy research on a war footing, or requires moral leadership on conservation, mass transit, or any other common sense answers whatsoever.<BR><BR><i>Comment:&nbsp;</i> Attytood nails it. Palin is just a pretty face with a bad attitude. A perfect Republican in the same mold as Dr. Laura and Ann Coulter.<BR><BR>She does a disservice to women seeking public office by trying to come off as a macho male. This may be Ok in Alaska, but is a major turn-off in the Lower 48. Her extreme views are only embraced by the Bush, Cheney, Rove wing of the Republican Party. More than a few centrists are appalled by her. And for good reason. There is a fine line between "maverick" and psychosis, and she and McCain are on the wrong side. &nbsp; <nobr><i>Chris M.</i> &nbsp; <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" class="font11">&nbsp;<A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/0809-05.html#tp0140p"><FONT COLOR=blue>PERMANENT&nbsp;LINK</FONT></A>&nbsp;</SPAN></nobr> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A HREF="http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2008_09/014555.php"><B>Republicans lie that teleprompter<BR>failed but Palin "winged it"</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> I was sitting in the press section next to the stage, within easy eyeshot of the teleprompter. I frequently looked up at the machine, and there was no serious malfunction. A top convention-planner confirms this morning that there were no major problems.</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A HREF="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/51665.html"><B>Palin has never issued an order<BR>to Alaska National Guard</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> Last year, during Palin's first year as governor, there wasn't much action, [spokesman Jeremy] Zidek said. "Thankfully, we didn't have any major disasters."</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A HREF="http://www.democracynow.org/2008/9/2/report_secretive_right_wing_group_vetted"><B>Secretive right-wing group vetted<BR>McCain's VP candidate Sarah Palin</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> Max Blumenthal of The Nation reports last week, while the media focused almost obsessively on the DNC's spectacle in Denver, the country's most influential conservatives met quietly at a hotel in downtown Minneapolis to get to know Sarah Palin. The assembled were members of the Council for National Policy, an ultra-secretive cabal that networks wealthy right-wing donors together with top conservative operatives to plan long-term movement strategy.</TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A NAME=t0718a></A><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/03/AR2008090303210.html?hpid=topnews"><B>Palin e-mails show intense<BR>interest in trooper's penalty</B></A><TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="25" class="fonty">&nbsp;</TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" class="fonty"><BR> <I>Excerpt:&nbsp;</I> The second e-mail Monegan produced came from Palin's Yahoo address on July 17, 2007, after the local newspaper publicized a legislative proposal that would keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill.<BR><BR>Her f