MN Senate set to siphon stimulus money away from education

If you wanted a regulator - say of banks, for example - to issue an unbiased report on the performance of the bank, would you make it possible for the regulator to earn money from the bank’s ongoing operation? The MN legislature - dominated by elected DEMOCRATS - is redirecting money for charter schools away from the schools and districts in a flagrant conflict of interest that harms the districts, teachers, and children. Get mad.

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Sarah Palin Says McCain Campaign Lacked People She Could Pray With

In a long and stemwinding speech before the Alaskan Republicans, Governor Sarah Palin let loose with a comment that's sure to contribute to the slow erosion of the Republican Party.  According to the Huffington Post , which broke the story, Palin said of the McCain Campaign there was no one around she could hold "hands and pray with" when she needed support.

Wow.  What she's saying is she questions their Christian faith.  That's a hard blow if you think about it.  I'm going to wade through the rest of her speech soon.  It's a doozy, it seems.

State of the Franchise: Oakland Raiders

The NFLTA crew talks Tom Cable, JaMarcus Russell, and what to expect from the Raiders in '09.

This video belongs to NFL.com

Courtesy of http://www.nfl.com/videos

The White House is Open for Questions - President Obama

From The White House - The President introduces a new tool on WhiteHouse.gov, "Open for Questions," which will allow you to submit your questions on the economy and vote on those submitted by others. The President pledges to answer some of these questions during an online town hall on Thursday, March 26, 2009.

New Media: You May Not Need Cable Anymore - Paul Colligan

You've got to take time - an hour - to watch this. Paul Colligan uses New Media as his job. Colligan teaches New Media and explains how you don't need cable TV and how he did an experiment getting all of this content via the Internet -- no cable.

Here's the video description:

Google Tech Talks
June 10, 2008

ABSTRACT

The disruptive technology of new media is far more accessible than most realize. The impact of new media is far more impressive than most report. The mavericks of new media are slowly taking over - quietly, but with a shadow that dramatically changes the Internet's role in media (delivery, creation and consumption). At this point in time, these mavericks aren't effectively in anyone's index. Will that ever change?

Speaker: Paul Colligan
Paul Colligan is CEO of Colligan.com Inc. and manages several popular Internet properties that include Podcast Secrets, Automate Sales, FrontPage World, and PremiumCast.com.

Paul produces a number of Podcasts that include (but are not limited to) Marketing Online Live, Podcast Tools Weekly Update, Paul's Profitable Podcasting Podcast, Electronic Marketing Interviews, and Big Seminar Live. He is also the author of many books and magazine articles about Internet marketing and is co-author of The Business Podcasting Bible with Alex Mandossian.

Mr. Colligan has played a key role in the launch of dozens of successful Web sites and Internet marketing strategies that have seen tens of millions of visitors and millions of dollars in revenue. Previous projects have included work with Peak Potentials, Heritage House Publications, InternetMCI, the Oregon Multimedia Alliance, Rubicon International, Microsoft, the Electronics Boutique, and Pearson Education.

He is also a popular speaker on Internet technology topics and frequently speaks online, on the air, and before audiences about his passions. He has presented at events around the world that include The Podcast And New Media Expo, The European Business Podcasting Summit, Internet World, Linux World, Mac World, Commission Junction University, Big Seminar, the X-10 Seminar, and Microsoft Tech-Ed.

Paul's Blog at http://www.PaulColligan.com , is a great place to keep up with his latest efforts and current speaking schedule.

Paul lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and daughters and enjoys hiking, theater, music, fine dining, and travel.

Oprah On Lesbians Dating Straight Women: Time To Talk

More at Jezebel So apparently I missed an Oprah episode I've got a lot of say about. She talks about why some straight women date other women later in life. And for that, here's my answer: there's a growing culture that simply hates men and there's a lot of reasons for this that have built over the years, but for the first time we have a full generation of women without the idea that they need a man to succeed, even though our system is still set up to favor marriage between a man and a woman.

It seems that women and men now -- to some degree -- think that if they can more easily communicate with the same sex why not date them too.

Personally I think that's institutionalized silly behavior because the main challenge of men is to figure out how to communicate with women for the purpose of reproduction and vice-versa. So what are we doing, killing the process that leads to it?

Men and women need to get back to appreciating each other and wanting to mix, though i think it's still more the norm than the media lets' on. Nothing against same-sex anything, but I love women and fear if we don't encourage male-female pairings, women could wind up on a even shorter end of the economic stick in the future.

Now if you think I'm saying women should go back to just picking the richest man, not so.  I'm stating that if we continue a trend of more and more same-sex pairings, the end result will be an even greater degree of male-female income disparity than we have today.   We have the emergence of all -Gay-male firms, which gives a new reason not to hire women in the workplace.  No matter what the rationale, that's still discrimination. 

Gay men make more than their Lesbian counterparts. Without a male-female pairing the woman would not have a means to greater income, whereas in the past women simply married men. That's the kind of future same-sex advocates threaten to create for themselves. Indeed, I argue that such segregation gives men another reason to discriminate against women in the workplace.

I know some people will come away from this thinking that I voted for Prop 8 -- I did not. But the reason I take this stance is too many young women are coming out of college not knowing how to work with or deal with anyone but the meekest and most passive-agressive of men because they would see them -- mistakenly -- as non-threatening just because their testosterone level may be lower. Then they wind up hating men, which leads to all kinds of terrible results in society.

Lou Dobbs Says The Dumbest Things On CNN

 

I've got to admit Lou Dobbs finds new ways to stick his foot in his mouth everyday. Why CNN has this blowhard on is a wonder, but his presence is a good reason for the network's ratings challenges of late. Dobbs is back to his race-batting ways, airing racist comments from viewers like "I don't want Mexicans driving trucks, Americans should do it."

The trucks he was talking about carry drugs into America.

I wonder when CNN's going to show real courage and let me debate him or just take him off the air.

Vlogger's Mean Mug At SXSW Austin

SXSW People 2009, originally uploaded by stevegarfield.

I wish I'd attended SXSW but here's to hoping I can be there next year. This is an interesting montage of faces, all well-known video-bloggers: Zadi Diaz, Steve Woolf, Clintus McGintus, Lan Bui, Casy McKinnon, Bre Pettis, Jonny Golstein, Scott Stead, Schlomo Rabinowitz.

Steve Clemons and Mohammad Shtayyeh On The Unity Talks

The Unity talks are to bring together Fatah and Hamas to achieve Palestinian Government unity. According to the discussion there's a readiness to talk and the process will resume April 1st, but let's hope that's not an April Fool's joke.

It's also not to imply that the process is easy. There are some who don't want the Unity talks, but they seem to be in the minority at this point.

Maria Shriver Produces Documentary For HBO

More from Washington Whispers: “She said she was done and would not return to the media. But that didn't stop California's first lady and former NBC journo Maria Shriver from dipping her toes back in recently when it involved a topic she cared intimately about. Shriver produced a new HBO documentary series, The Alzheimer's Project, which includes four longer films and 15 short ones detailing different aspects of the disease. She also appears in one, Grandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? based on a book she wrote several years ago. For Shriver, Alzheimer's is personal. Her dad, Sargent Shriver, is suffering from the disease.”

Rep. Manzullo Unleashes Wrath Over AIG

..Rep. Manzullo just wants an "yes" or "no" answer.

Oakland Police Murders Media Misrepresent Oakland

In the wake of the Oakland Police murders, the Associated Press and CNN have given a false view of Oakland as having "tentions between police and community" and that is not true. Oakland Police are part of our family.

Paul Krugman is WRONG about The Obama TARP Plan

Economist Paul Krugman has been attacking the Obama / Geitner Troubled Assets Relief Plan (TARP) as using taxpayer money to pay investors to take the assets off bank's hands. But he offers no alternative. Paul is wrong in that he wants the "bad assets" to remain on bank statements, but for what? To continue to freeze the credit market? His blog posts in the NY Times on this matter are intellectually sloppy at best. That -- for a Nobel Prize winner -- is terrible.

Krugman sets up straw person examples to prove the idea that the investor spends little of his or her own money -- but that is the idea. I do not know why he comes up with these half-baked statements at all. Perhaps he is just angry that Obama did not pick him to be economic advisor.

Personal Injury Law In A Recession: Robert Schock

Bob Schock is Oakland's best personal injury lawyer. We talk about lawsuits in a recession and how businesses can protect themselves and why people file lawsuits. Contact Bob at 510-839-7722.

Obama's rules deflate lobbyists as he leads by example

Under the recently issued Obama administration rules (which some were hoping wouldn't appear) lobbyists seeking an administration member's time to discuss a "Recovery Act" project must submit their requests in writing to be posted online... Openness will restore confidence - both here and abroad - that the U.S. now practices what we preach on economic and moral issues. Economic viability will come only through repudiating the unfounded faith many Republicans have exhibited in trickle-down voodoo and unregulated capitalism, paired with self-serving definitions of sound-bite terms such as educational choice. We need a return to an ethic of service, work, and strong family values such as the first family demonstrates. It's so good to have a President who walks the walk despite tough times.

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Oakland Parkway Theater Closes Today: Evicted By Landlord

The landlord of the Parkway Theater at 18th Street and Park Blvd in Oakland evicted the Parkway Theater after severely raising the rent. It's last day was today, March 22nd, 2009, but the theater can be saved.

As an employee reports in this video, the closure was fast; the employees got the notice just four days ago, giving them little time to make adjustments and throwing lives into chaos. Apparently, the theater just had not drawn a lot of people -- or at least enough to pay the rent -- to maintain itself. In the words of the persons I talked to -- some on the video -- the movie house was not showing what the public wanted to see.

I think a larger issue was marketing, or the lack of it. A new approach should include having ways that bloggers can put a Parkway widget on their blogs. Also having the Parkway on as many social networks -- like Twitter -- as possible would really keep its name out there.

The bottom line is the place Kyle and Catherine Fisher raised $140,000 to start in 1996 and opened the following year can be saved. But the landlord has to really have a different strategy and be more a part of the business than it appears they are not. A closed Parkway is a blight on that neighborhood at a time when people need reasons to feel good about what's happening in their lives.

As Michael Cabon over at "An Oakland Citizen" points out, the Parkway has been an interesting place. (You have to read his post.)

It's watch time. Which business institution will fall next? Which landlord will prove not to realize that there's not a lot of money out there and thus can't increase rents?

Will the Parkway employees find other means of work? Will the City of Oakland, which just purchased a $7 million building with redevelopment funds step in?

The Parkway was a friend to then-Oakland Councilmember John Russo, who's now City Attorney. They even named a sandwich after him for his support of the facility. (It's not on the menu anymore.) Will Russo step in?

So many questions, which only mean that this whole issue is far from...closed.

Suzzane Agasi , Founder of ClothingSwap.org Talks

Suzanne Agasi is founder of the popular ClothingSwap events. Here she talks about, well, ClothingSwap and what it is. Visit the site at http://www.clothingswap.org

10 Lessons We've Learned From Games

To play any kind of game, you've got to go through some kind of learning process. The A button jumps. The trigger shoots. WASD moves around. Once you understand that, you can better blast, smash, and drop kick your way through whatever challenges a game throws at you.

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Psycho-Thriller ‘Blank’ Premieres For Free on BitTorrent

Today a brand new movie has premiered but this is not the usual Hollywood-style launch. ‘Blank’, described as an intense psycho-thriller by director Rick L. Winters, will debut on DVD but you can get it for free on BitTorrent too - with the blessing of the entire cast and crew.

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Facebook Copying FriendFeed, Which Originally Copied Twitter

Facebook is counting on the same relative inertia that Twitter has so carefully cultivated. The calculation is that 175 million people are less likely to move away from something than they are to wait and see what is going to happen.

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Social Web sites face transparency questions

Properly balancing the interests of various constituencies — and retaining their loyalty, perhaps through improved channels of communications — will prove key to whether the sites can grow into vibrant, moneymaking operations for years to come.

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U.S. Postal Service to Offer 150,000 Buyouts

Battered by the economy, the post office is offering early retirement to 150,000 workers, cutting management and closing offices, the agency said Friday. The Postal Service lost $2.8 billion last year and is facing even larger losses this year, despite a rate increase — to 44 cents for first-class mail — scheduled to take effect May 11.

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India has 'proof' of Pakistan role in Mumbai attacks

India's government says it has "overwhelming evidence" that "official agencies" of Pakistan were involved in the Islamist militant attacks on Mumbai that left 165 people dead.Home Minister P. Chidambaram also accused Pakistan in a TV interview to be aired Sunday of doing nothing to dismantle "the infrastructure of terrorism" on its soil amid height

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Coming Soon: Declassified Bush-Era Torture Memos

Over objections from the U.S. intelligence community, the White House is moving to declassify—and publicly release—three internal memos that will lay out, for the first time, details of the "enhanced" interrogation techniques approved by the Bush administration for use against "high value" Qaeda detainees.

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A Quiet Revolution Grows in the Muslim World

Across the Muslim world, a new generation of activists, bloggers and preachers is discovering ways to synthesize Islam and modernity

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Police kill man holding box cutter, THEN DELETE VIDEO OF IT

More than 50 people witnessed the shooting. Some say there was no need for police to pull the trigger. Luis Zamor, who witnessed the scene said "Police are supposed to come out and arrest the guy, stop the guy, but he just come straight out and shoot the guy.

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Mom Given Ticket While Reviving Her Dying Son

Batkin incurred the ticket by illegally stopping her car on the pavement to resuscitate her son. To make matters worse, Batkin said, the Richmond Council's parking office later refused to rescind the ticket even after she explained what had happened.

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Internet Explorer 8: How not to launch a new browser

Explorer 8 shapes up to be a complete train wreck as far as customer adoption is concerned.

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More Women Needing Cash Go from Jobless to Topless

As a bartender and trainer at a national restaurant chain, Rebecca Brown earned a couple thousand dollars in a really good week. Now, as a dancer at Chicago's Pink Monkey gentleman's club, she makes almost that much in one good night.

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People running Bank of America are "a bunch of idiots."

So says Virginia Hammerness. But Hammerness is not just another angry stockholder. Her grandfather was A.P. Giannini, the founder of Bank of America... A Time When Bankers Were Heroes to Public.

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Breaking : 17 Are Dead in Plane Crash in Montana

A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman says 17 people are dead in a plane crash in Montana.

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Obama fires back at Cheney on 60 Minutes

Dick Cheney and the anti-terror policies of the Bush years have not "made us safer," according to President Barack Obama. -=W/ VIDEO=-

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One in four government websites illegal (UK)

One in four Government databases are illegal under human rights or data protection and should be scrapped immediately, a panel of experts have warned.

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Three police sergeants dead, suspect killed in East Oakland gun battles - Inside Bay Area

More at Trib: “OAKLAND — In the most horrific day in Oakland Police Department history, a parolee shot to death three police sergeants within two hours of one another Saturday afternoon.
When officers tracked down the suspect, a fourth officer was shot and was in critical condition Saturday night.
The three veteran officers killed were sergeants: Mark Dunakin, 40, of Tracy, a traffic officer with the department since 1991; Erv Romans, 43, of Danville, a 13-year veteran with the force; and Dan Sakai, 35, a nine-year veteran, police said.”

Zennie62.com - The Facebook Page

Now, Zennie62.com is on Facebook! Here is the page: Zennie62 on Facebook   Become a fan!

What Is New Media To You? - WISE-SF Panel Intro From 2008

I created this video to open the panel discussion on "Blogs, New Media, and You: Managing Your Digital Identity" at the WISE-SF Panel Discussion held a year ago Monday, March 30th 2008 at The Hotel Kabuki, at 1625 Post St. San Francisco, CA.

It's interesting to look back and review the video. What strikes me is that the basic theme is "expression" in that New Media allows one to express a view.

BART Shooting: Rockridge BART Protest 3-19-09

I exited Rockridge BART Station and walked into a protest of the New Year's Day shooting of Oscar Grant by BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle. I talked with onlooker, protesters, and BART Spokesperson Linton Johnson. According to the protester I talked to in the video, there are a series of these events pre-scheduled at http://nojusticenobart.blogspot.com

President Obama On The Tonight Show

I missed this but thanks to YouTube, I'm able to see his performance. I give him an A- minus and that is only for a comment I almost missed on the Special Olympics, but it was a throw away line. He did not disparage it, or say anything against it, and really it was just the two words regarding what was a self-deprecating comment. Now, I'm surprised no one got after him about his Hollywood comment. I do think people tend to really micro-manage stuff, and Gov. Palin has so many gaffes she's got no reason to talk at all. Can you imagine if she were Vice President? Yikes!

Obama Chic: Inside the White House Cocktail Parties

FOXNews.com - Obama Chic: Inside the White House Cocktail Parties - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment

I love a good cocktail party. The idea is to get to know people, which then tends to make other endevors that much easier. What the problem with the Obama party is, I do not know at all. Makes no sense to me. I'll take a Manhattan!

Barack Obama Interview With Jay Leno On The Tonight Show (Teaser)

The President's Message to the Iranian People

From the White House - [with Persian captions] President Obama's special video message for all those celebrating Nowruz, or "New Day." This year, the President wanted to send a special message to the people and government of Iran, acknowledging the strain in our relations over the last few decades. After committing his administration to a future of honest and respectful diplomacy, he addresses Iran's leaders directly. (this video is public domain)

President Obama offers new start with Iran

france24english - IN THE FIELD: Iran has welcomed US President Barack Obama's offer for a fresh start, while calling for concrete action. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana voiced hope that Obama's video message will mark a "new chapter" in relations with Tehran.

Newspaper Managers Don't Understand New Media

Newspaper Managers don't understand New Media at all. It's the key reason why papers all over America are failing. As more media outlets - webs, blogs, video - have been established, there's less money to go around per outlet. That coupled with the credit crunch and newspaper manager's failure to understand New Media is what contributed to this problem, and it's a big one.

I remember 2006, when I approached my friend Oakland Tribune Columnist Monte Poole with an idea of something called "The Monte Poole Show" -- http://themontepooleshow.blogspot.com/ -- which combined the sports columnist's columns with video presentations and then took that video and used it for television. So Monte would be on TV, in print, and in online video, expanding sponsor exposure. But Tribune Editor Martin Reynolds was having none of the idea, even as the head of KOFY TV 20 San Francisco was interested in it. Martin claimed "Monte's under contract with the Tribune" which had nothing to do with the issue at hand.

That is but one example of how the Mainstream Media does not "get" New Media and is at a loss to work effectively in it. Newspapers will continue to fail if this happens again and again.

The Financial Times Launches Newssift

More at TC: “The Financial Times Group, which is owned by the British publisher Pearson, is not exactly the place you’d expect to find the latest search engine. But a startup deep within the bowels of the organization called FT Search is launching one at 8PM ET tonight called Newssift. It is a semantic search engine that sifts through business news, and it is not half bad, especially for bigger companies and broader topics.”

Natasha Richardson Accident - Richardson Passed Away Tonight

From CBS: Actress Natasha Richardson and wife of Liam Neeson is reportedly in critical condition after suffering a head injury in a skiing accident at a Canadian ski resort. Randall Pinkston reports.

I later learned that the actress passed away this evening at the age of 45 years old.

Natasha Richardson Accident - Richardson Passed Away Tonight

From CBS: Actress Natasha Richardson and wife of Liam Neeson is reportedly in critical condition after suffering a head injury in a skiing accident at a Canadian ski resort. Randall Pinkston reports.

I later learned that the actress passed away this evening at the age of 45 years old.

Obama Angered By 'Excess' In AIG Bailout Matter

President Barack Obama says "The buck stops with me" in discussing the AIG matter. You've got to credit him for immediately getting out in front of the issue with the press statement right as the news of the $165 million in bonuses was paid by AIG using Troubled Assets Recovery Program (TARP) funds.

Hot Stove Talk

Hot Stove NFL talk 3/19/09-By Dr. Bill Chachkes Football Reporters Online


The Giants have made some really good free agency moves so far. It's clear that Mr. Mara and Mr. Tisch told Mr. Reese to spend some of that PSL money on players. DT's Bernard, Canty, and LB Boley are all good pick ups. Hopefully there is enough left over to get some more offensive skill players. I'm not in a rush to see a running back signed so quickly, even though Derek Ward signed with Tampa a few weeks ago (5 years, 17 million dollars). I would prefer to see them draft a younger player like Javarris Williams (Tenn. St.) or Josh Vaughn (Richmond) and play Ahmad Bradshaw and Danny Ware behind Jacobs. The Giants have 9 selections coming into this draft, but the feeling is that some of those picks will be used in a package to trade with another team to move up in one of the first two rounds to get a player at a "need" position they weren't able to fill in free agency.

If you need to be reminded that the sport of football is still a business behind it all, just take a look at Albert Haynesworth. "It's not about the money," Haynesworth said, when the Titans were trying to figure out how to keep him happy and in Nashville. It didn't take long for that tune to change when Redskins owner Dan Sndyer came calling with a 100 million dollar check. Now Big Al gets himself in a bit of "dui" trouble and wants us to understand how sorry he is. With all that Cash Al, get someone to drive you around will ya please.

At least Ray Lewis was honest. "Why should i take a Hometown Discount? I'm not playing with less emotion or intensity," he said. Ozzie Newsome got Lewis to stay by giving Lewis the deal he deserved to keep him a "Raven for life."

The Jets made some decent headway regarding the improvment of their defense. They resigned Ahmad Carroll, who will help out the secondary as well as keep the special teams special. Now we hear talk of disgruntled Broncos QB Jay Cutler coming to NY to wear the Green and White. I just hope his skin thickens up a little if he does. The other issue here is that Jets owner Woody Johnson is starting to remind me of George Steinbrenner when he ran the Yankees. NFL.com's Pat Kirwan told a group of us at the end of the 2006 draft that Clemens had the best spiral of any of the QB's in that class. So then why won't they give him a chance to prove he can lead the team? Maybe they are trying to Jump-start "phase 2" of the PSL sales plan.

So mr. Owens shuffled off to Orchard Park, but the real test is when the Bills make the playoffs and have to play a home game in January with the breeze coming off the lake. Terrell will have wished he told his agent Drew Rosenhaus to just wait a little longer and see if someone else makes an offer, even for less money.

So we have a new Executive director of the NFLPA. What will make DeMaurice Smith different from Gene Upshaw? He's already caught the player reps' ears with a smooth presentation coming into what could become a hostile fight with the owners to reach a deal on a new CBA. Lets see if he can get it done sooner rather then later.

It's just 5 weeks to the 2009 NFL Draft, and we are already in high gear(but I'm always geared up for football).

You can also find us at www.footballreportersonline.com
To order our 2009 Guide to the NFL draft please visit www.gridirondraftguide.com
Our blogs are at nflbiz.blogspot.com & nfldraftmag.blogspot.com.
You can e-mail us a question for our weekly radio show at askdrfootball@gmail.com, or call our toll free number at 1-866-478-5982.
To listen each Thursday night from 9-10:30 eastern go to www.blogtalkradio.com/Football-Reporters

Socialist Leader: "Obama's No Socialist. I Should Know"

As yet another confirmation that conservatives throwing around the word "socialist" have absolutely no clue what socialism really is, the editor of the Socialist Party's monthly magazine assures Americans and Republican obstructionists/revisionists that President Obama is far, far from being a socialist. He may not even be a true liberal.

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Drug-Legalizing Cop Wins Back His Free Speech Rights

SEATTLE, WA -- A Mountlake Terrace police sergeant who was fired after publicly criticizing the "war on drugs" has reached an $812,500 settlement in a lawsuit he filed against the city and police department, among others.

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