The email I just got from the McCain campaign: More reason to hope!

Just got this email from the campaign. I'm telling you, there's reason to be extremely hopeful! If McCain loses, it'll be a heartbreaker by a very small margin. But I really think it's possible he'll win. Dick Morris thinks so, too.

Iowa - Our numbers in Iowa have seen a tremendous surge in the past 10 days. We took Obama's lead from the double digits to a very close race. That is why you see Barack Obama visiting the state in the final days, trying to stem his losses. It is too little, too late. Like many other Midwestern states, Iowa is moving swiftly into McCain's column.

The Southwest - It is no secret that Republican candidates in the Southwest have to focus on winning over enough Latino and Hispanic voters in Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado to carry them to victory. John McCain has overcome challenges Republicans face, and has made up tremendous ground in these states with these voters. For these voters, the choice has become clear, and you have seen a big change in the numbers. John McCain is now winning enough voters to perform within the margin of error - putting these states within reach.

Colorado - Barack Obama tried to outspend our campaign in Colorado during the early weeks of October and finish off our candidate in Colorado. However, after our visit early this week, we saw a tremendous rebound in our poll position, and Colorado is back on the map.

Ohio and Pennsylvania - Everyone knows that vote rich Ohio and Pennsylvania will be key battlegrounds for this election. Between the two: 41 electoral votes and no candidate has gotten to the White House without Ohio. Senator McCain and Governor Palin have been campaigning non-stop in these key battleground states and tonight Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has pumped up our campaign at a rally in Columbus. Our position in these states is strong and undecided voters continue to have a very favorable impression of our candidate.

Now, none of this is 100% convincing. But it's pretty good.

"Dear Mr. Obama"

If I heard right, this is the number one video on You Tube right now. Hat tip to my good friend Beth who emailed it to me.

Optimism -- and a call for prayer

Some optimism. I think it's very plausible. (h/t Neo-NeoCon)

Don't lose hope, and don't believe the polls! Just go on Tuesday and VOTE for McCain/Palin!!

And keep praying!

"If my people, upon whom my name has been pronounced, humble themselves and pray, and seek my presence and turn from their evil ways, I will hear them from heaven and pardon their sins and revive their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

My suggestion, humbly submitted for your consideration:

• This weekend, go to confession, if you haven't recently.
• Keep praying the rosary, and the prayer to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal ("Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.")
• Offer up your Masses this weekend for the election, and go to Mass on Monday and Tuesday if you possibly can.
• Keep making little sacrifices of various things and offer them up.
• Some churches are having all night vigils. Contact your local parish to see if they are.
  

The only thing that will save this country is prayer, repentance, sacrifice. Hearts need to be changed: we need to turn away from sin and turn back toward God. We need to beg his mercy for the terrible sin of abortion and all the other immorality, the greed, the corruption, the pride, the sacrilege and heresy.

I am haunted by what Father Corapi (and others) have said: Where there is moral collapse, there is economic collapse, then government and military collapse.

We are on a terrible path.

God have mercy on us all.

Obama's record on Life Issues

A friend emailed this to me. If you follow the link to the site, you can email the document to your pastor for distribution at church. It's OK, really! The document doesn't advocate either for or against any candidate; it simply sets out the record of Obama's votes on life issues.

Barack Obama on the Issues of Importance to Catholics - Upload a Document to Scribd

Why won't Obama start by spreading around his own wealth?

That's easy. Because Obama is a Socialist, and Socialists only want the power to take other people's wealth so they can control who is punished and who is rewarded, or should I say who becomes dependent on them.

But still, shouldn't Obama give at least a few dollars out of his own millions to his half-brother in Kenya, who lives on a dollar a month, or his half-aunt living in poverty in Boston?

Remember what he said during that softball interview with Harry Smith, before jetting off to Hawaii to visit his ailing grandmother: "If you're not caring for your family, then you're probably not the kind of person who's going to be caring for other people."

Encouragement, hope, and prayer!

I came across this Australian blog yesterday and, I'm not ashamed to say, got tears in my eyes.

There are people all around the world praying for us!

And this is so cool:

Eduardo Verastegui, producer and lead actor of the 2007 American film Bella, met with Senator John McCain on October 17 in Miami, where they discussed the human rights at stake in this presidential election. Now Verastegui is using his star power – and more – to help McCain and Governor Sarah Palin win the votes of Latinos.

[snip]

"I [Verastegui] said more than 45 million babies have been killed by abortion in America and more than 200,000 Latino babies are killed by abortion each year. I told everyone that we need to put an end to this and, when I finished, I went to John McCain and I said, ‘Senator, thank you for your commitment to life. I’d like to give you something.’ I gave him a Miraculous Medal blessed by Pope Benedict XVI and he was amazing. He said, ‘Thank you so much! Look what I have here in my pocket.’

Then Sen. McCain took a medal out of his pocket that he carries everywhere and it was a Blessed Mother Teresa medal. He said, ‘Eduardo, now I am going to keep both.’

Verastegui also gave McCain’s wife, Cindy, a Miraculous Medal. He said, “I was touched when I found out that the McCains adopted one of their daughters from Mother Teresa’s orphanage in India. There is nothing more beautiful than to give children homes with families who will love them. I hope that one day that I can do the same.”

An idea to pass along: One of the moms in our homeschool group said that her family prays the St. Michael prayer every time they see an Obama sign. Sadly, I see too many signs to be able to say that prayer, but I'm able to say a very short one ... the Miraculous Medal prayer:

"Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

The Obama Bombshell Audio

This is going all around the blogosphere today. Listen to Obama talk about redistribution of wealth:

I've said all along - starting back in April! - that Obama is a Marxist. Will the rest of the country realize it in time? Or will the abomination of "voting early and often" make it all too late?

Bill Whittle has a fantastic essay here (and by the way, we better start praying for the guy who found the above audio, because the Obamanists are about to come down on him, hard), and Michele Malkin is on it, too.

A former Marxist ought to know

From a former "Marxist-feminist-postmodernist ideologue", now a priest, on why he's opposed to Obama:

I understand the party-line of the movement:

-- destroy the notion of objective truth with appeals to diversity, difference, and multi-cultism;
-- eliminate the possibility of rational discourse by elevating the affective above the rational;
-- convert all public political discourse into emotive appeals to race, gender, class, and sexuality;
-- define "freedom" as "freedom from constraint" and never as "freedom to do what is right;"
-- attack all secular opposition as "oppressive, self-centered, and fearful;"
-- attack all religious opposition as "superstitious, fundamentalist, and ignorant;"
-- use "white liberal guilt" to attack economic growth and prosperity;
-- feed over-educated narcissism with the prospect of ruling, finally, and ruling more than the meager resources of an English/women's studies department at a state university."

Why do I oppose Obama? Simple. His political positions are evil.

h/t Dad29.

Obama's connections: Almost unbelievable

Sometimes I feel that we're in the middle of a nightmare. How could it possibly happen that a guy with such unsavory associates (here comes the litany) -- Rezko, Ayers, Farrakhan, Wright, Phleger, Odinga, ACORN, Raines, Johnston -- is *this close* to being elected President?

Here's information about yet another frightening associate of Obama's:

h/t Gateway Pundit

Fr. Corapi calls for a Rosary Novena

Father Corapi was a successful businessman in LA and Hollywood, then was a homeless drug addict. Eventually he converted, turned his life around completely, and became a priest (ordained by Pope JPII). He's just an amazing guy, very inspiring. You can find out more from his website or watch his show on EWTN.

He's calling for a rosary novena from Monday, October 27 to Tuesday, November 4. Please forward this to as many people as you can. Thanks!

A Call for a Rosary Novena
By Fr. John Corapi

Among the most important titles we have in the Catholic Church for the Blessed Virgin Mary are Our Lady of Victory and Our Lady of the Rosary. These titles can be traced back to one of the most decisive times in the history of the world and Christendom. The Battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 (date of feast of Our Lady of Rosary), 1571.

This proved to be the most crucial battle for the Christian forces against the radical Muslim navy of Turkey. Pope Pius V led a procession around St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City praying the Rosary. He showed true pastoral leadership in recognizing the danger posed to Christendom by the radical Muslim forces, and in using the means necessary to defeat it.

Spiritual battles require spiritual weapons, and this more than anything was a battle that had its origins in the spiritual order―a true battle between good and evil.

Today we have a similar spiritual battle in progress―a battle between the forces of good and evil, light and darkness, truth and lies, life and death.

If we do not soon stop the genocide of abortion in the United States, we shall run the course of all those that prove by their actions that they are enemies of God―total collapse, economic, social, and national. The moral demise of a nation results in the ultimate demise of a nation. God is not a disinterested spectator to the affairs of man.

Life begins at conception. This is an unalterable formal teaching of the Catholic Church. If you do not accept this you are a heretic in plain English. A single abortion is homicide. The more than 48,000,000 abortions since Roe v. Wade in the United States constitute genocide by definition. The group singled out for death―unwanted, unborn children.

No other issue, not all other issues taken together, can constitute a proportionate reason for voting for candidates that intend to preserve and defend this holocaust of innocent human life that is abortion.

I strongly urge every one of you to make a Novena and pray the Rosary to Our Lady of Victory between October 27th and Election Day, November 4th. Pray that God’s will be done and the most innocent and utterly vulnerable of our brothers and sisters will be protected from this barbaric and grossly sinful blight on society that is abortion. No woman, and no man, has the right to choose to murder an innocent human being.

May God grant us the wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and counsel to form our conscience in accordance with authentic Catholic teaching, and then vote that well‐formed Catholic conscience.

Please copy, email, link and distribute this article freely.

God Bless You
Fr. John Corapi
www.fathercorapi.com

Best article I've read in a loooong time...

.... at least in terms of some hopefulness about the election. Instapundit links, saying they're taking a bold stand against conventional wisdom. Indeed.

Go read it all. A few 'graphs to whet your appetite:

The point is simple: Don't believe the Obama hype coming out of the mainstream media. If the media were truly objective and unbiased, they would be covering the race much differently. Instead of trying to browbeat the country into voting for Obama, they would be analyzing the issues and factors that favor and disfavor both candidates. Instead of focusing on college students and intellectuals, they would be focusing on working-class and middle-class voters, especially "Hillary Democrats." These voters may very well determine the election. Yet this huge story is being ignored by the MSM.

[snip}

Well, there is another story out there that the MSM refuses to address. A huge story. One that could, and I think will, significantly affect the outcome of this race. I'm referring to the widespread phenomenon of registered Democrats openly supporting John McCain. There are numerous "Democrats for McCain" type organizations. There are numerous websites and blogs written by Democrats touting McCain's candidacy. There are pro-McCain grassroots efforts being led by Democrats. And we all know friends or relatives who are Democrats, who voted for John Kerry in 2004, and who are no fans of President Bush - but who are going to vote for John McCain this year.

Finally, some tough questions for Biden!

h/t The Other McCain

The Resistance

First, there was the video I posted yesterday. If that doesn't make your blood run cold, nothing will.

Then yesterday, Obama said this: "I mean's there's going to be a certain wing of the Republican Party that is, you know, dug in and resistant to the notion that we need to change direction."

So does Obama agree with Ayers on what should be done to those who resist? (Watch the video again if you need to clarify.)

Yes, I think it's official: The Resistance has begun.

Chilling video: Bill Ayers, the Weather Underground, and the Revolution

h/t The Other McCain. This was the video I referenced in my previous post.

It looks like this is the documentary from which the above clip is taken.

UPDATE: I'm watching the first part of the documentary right now; it's fascinating because it was done before the fall of the Berlin Wall and the "end" of communism. But of course it really wasn't the end. We still have Bill Ayers and his "fellow travelers". Michele and Barack Obama should know.

Marquette Professor supports Bill Ayers

A quick check of this online petition in support of Bill Ayers found that one Marquette professor, Jack Winters, apparently has signed it.

I just sent him a polite email expressing my disappointment, as a Marquette alum, that a Marquette prof would sign such a petition. I also explained why the petition is fundamentally wrong in its assumptions (Bill Ayers is not being "demonized", and the issue is not one of "academic freedom").

I'll let you know if I hear back from him.

I first heard about this petition on Fox news this morning, but I see The Other McCain is all over it, too.

Be sure to read this post, play the video, follow the links. Absolutely chilling.

Video: Obama and Ayers

This was emailed to me by my cousin, whose husband used to be an FBI agent.

Don't trust the polls!

The Other McCain says it's hopeless, the election is over, Obama has won.

But Instapundit links to D.J. Drummond (I linked his name so you could browse all the articles he's written on the subject of the polls this year), who says:

The polls are wrong this year, very wrong.... I wrote earlier about the fact that of the major polling groups handling national and state polls, all of them are based deep in pro-Liberal, anti-Conservative territories....

There has been unprecedented manipulation of demographics, corrupting even the raw data to the point where effective resolution of public opinion is doubtful.

So, could I be wrong? I have to be honest and admit that I could. But in that case, we'd have to ask why the polls do not generally agree with each other, why Gallup is trying to spin three different models at the same time to get a grasp of the picture, why McCain and Obama are both so interested in Pennsylvania, yet neither is working very hard in Ohio right now. We'd have to explain why McCain-Palin rallies are now attracting thousands more people than Obama-Biden rallies, why Letterman suddenly found it cool to have McCain on his show and SNL decided they wanted Palin on theirs. We'd have to explain why there are not a lot of Obama signs visible, but we hear about his army of lawyers getting ready. We'd have to explain why McCain and Palin appear to be so relaxed while Obama and Biden look like they're worried. [emphasis mine]

A prayer for our country

O Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy, at this most critical time, we entrust the United States of America to your loving care.

Most Holy Mother, we beg you to reclaim this land for the glory of your Son. Overwhelmed with the burden of the sins of our nation, we cry to you from the depths of our hearts and seek refuge in your motherly protection.

Look down with mercy upon us and touch the hearts of our people. Open our minds to the great worth of human life and to the responsibilities that accompany human freedom.

Free us from the falsehoods that lead to the evil of abortion and threaten the sanctity of family life. Grant our country the wisdom to proclaim that God's law is the foundation on which this nation was founded, and that He alone is the True Source of our cherished rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

O Merciful Mother, give us the courage to reject the culture of death and the strength to build a new Culture of Life.

From an email sent by Stan Williams.

More hope! Plus, we always have the OTHER Joe (Biden, that is)

The National Review Online points to this Battleground Poll: Obama, 48, McCain, 47.

I don't hear the fat lady yet, do you?

But I do hear Joe Biden running his mouth, saying wonderful things to help McCain.

"Mark my words. It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy. The world is looking," Biden said.

"Remember I said it standing here. if you don't remember anything else I said. Watch, we're gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy. And he's gonna have to make some really tough -- I don't know what the decision's gonna be, but I promise you it will occur. As a student of history and having served with seven presidents, I guarantee you it's gonna happen," Biden continued.

Thank you, Senator Biden, for subtly reminding everyone that if that happens, and if Obama wins, we'll have a guy in the Oval Office who is completely inexperienced and naive.

Whew! Thank you, Drudge!

This morning I got another dose of downer along with my cup of Joe. (In honor of Joe the Plumber, I henceforth shall refer to coffee as Joe, capital J.)

The downer? Drudge reported that the Nickolodean kids' vote was in favor of Obama, 51% to 49%.

Ugh. Is that a harbinger of things to come? Kids, after all, usually reflect what they hear their parents talking about at the dinner table, right?

So I spent the next half hour talking myself down off the ledge, metaphorically speaking. And then I checked Drudge again:

[NICKELODEON KIDS PICKED KERRY WITH 57%]

Ha!! So the kids aren't always right!

I'm waiting for the Weekly Reader kids' vote, due out next Wednesday, October 29. They were right last time; in fact they've been right 12 out of the last 13 elections.

Never give up hope. Keep praying. And if you can, get out and work for McCain! I just signed up yesterday to work the few hours I have available.

If you missed SNL last night...

For my friends and relatives who didn't stay up to watch, here's Sarah Palin's appearance on Saturday Night Live.

I think she did really well. And let's see if her rallies start to include a call-and-response cheer: "Obama?" "AYERS!"

Always be hopeful

This race is not over, no matter what the media wants you to think about it.

Consider this, regarding the accuracy of polls:

In 1976, Jimmy Carter narrowly beat Gerald Ford 50.1 percent to 48 percent. And yet, on Sept. 1, Carter led Ford by 15 points. Just weeks before the election, on Oct. 16, 1976, Carter led Ford in the Gallup Poll by 6 percentage points -- down from his 33-point Gallup Poll lead in August.

Reading newspaper coverage of presidential elections in 1980 and 1984, I found myself paralyzed by the fear that Reagan was going to lose.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan beat Carter by nearly 10 points, 51 percent to 41 percent. In a Gallup Poll released days before the election on Oct. 27, it was Carter who led Reagan 45 percent to 42 percent.

In 1984, Reagan walloped Walter Mondale 58.8 percent to 40 percent, -- the largest electoral landslide in U.S. history. But on Oct. 15, The New York Daily News published a poll showing Mondale with only a 4-point deficit to Reagan, 45 percent to 41 percent. A Harris Poll about the same time showed Reagan with only a 9-point lead. The Oct. 19 New York Times/CBS News Poll had Mr. Reagan ahead of Mondale by 13 points. All these polls underestimated Reagan's actual margin of victory by 6 to 15 points.

From Ann Coulter's column of October 15, 2008.

Today's laugh: Must-See video!

Who knew John McCain was so funny?

Part Two (you really have to watch to the very end; it made me laugh out loud!)

And another great ad: Joe the Plumber!

Poor Joe the Plumber. Daily Kos has posted his address online (I refuse to link to them), and the Democratic Underground has begun a huge smear campaign against him. Nice.

At least the truth about Obama is starting to come out, finally, and slowly, but hopefully not too late. (Probably not too late at all: Drudge just had a headline of "SHOCKER! Gallup has Obama at 49%, McCain at 47% with likely voters" - within the margin of error.)

This ad is one step in the right direction.

Obama: Not ready for the oval office

The sad state of affairs

I agree:

You have to pinch yourself – a Marxisant radical who all his life has been mentored by, sat at the feet of, worshipped with, befriended, endorsed the philosophy of, funded and been in turn funded, politically promoted and supported by a nexus comprising black power anti-white racists, Jew-haters, revolutionary Marxists, unrepentant former terrorists and Chicago mobsters, is on the verge of becoming President of the United States. And apparently it’s considered impolite to say so.

h/t Crossing Ninevah.

Treacher has some great advice!

H/T the Anchoress. Feeling sick about the election? Here's what Dr. Jim prescribes:

Read a book. Rake some leaves. Watch that Netflix DVD that's been sitting on top of the TV for a week. Get some actual work done. If you're really jonesing, you can even resort to talking face-to-face with another human being. (If it drifts into politics, though... split!) The important thing is to avoid all of this crap for one whole day. It'll still be here when you get back.

You can do it. You have to do it. Doctor's orders.

But before you go. Really, truly, seriously. If you think that they're right? That this is all over? Listen: They are trying to psyche you out. Don't be too proud to admit it's not your idea.

A question for Mr. Obama:

If you want to make sure "the next guy" has an equal chance, and if you believe in "spreading the wealth around", then why don't you share some of your vast wealth with your half-brother in Kenya who lives on a dollar a month?

Obama campaigned for his genocidal, Marxist cousin in Kenya

It's not enough that Obama is a Marxist who hangs out with domestic terrorists (Ayers), America-haters (Wright), and convicts (Rezko), but he also campaigned for his genocidal Marxist cousin, Raila Odinga, in Kenya.

Read this from the Washington Post. It's chilling. (h/t/ The Other McCain)

By mid-February 2008, more than 1,500 Kenyans were killed. Many were slain by machete-armed attackers. More than 500,000 were displaced by the religious strife. Villages lay in ruin. Many of the atrocities were perpetrated by Muslims against Christians.

The violence was led by supporters of Raila Odinga, the opposition leader who lost the Dec. 27, 2007, presidential election by more than 230,000 votes. Odinga supporters began the genocide hours after the final election results were announced Dec. 30. Mr. Odinga was a member of Parliament representing an area in western Kenya, heavily populated by the Luo tribe, and the birthplace of Barack Obama's father. ...

Initially, Mr. Odinga was not the favored opposition candidate to stand in the 2007 election against President Mwai Kibaki, who was seeking his second term. However, he received a tremendous boost when Sen. Barack Obama arrived in Kenya in August 2006 to campaign on his behalf. Mr. Obama denies that supporting Mr. Odinga was the intention of his trip, but his actions and local media reports tell otherwise. ...

Mr. Obama's judgment is seriously called into question when he backs an official with troubling ties to Muslim extremists and whose supporters practice ethnic cleansing and genocide. It was Islamic extremists in Kenya who bombed the U.S. Embassy in 1998, killing more than 200 and injuring thousands. None of this has dissuaded Mr. Obama from maintaining disturbing loyalties. [emphasis mine]

God save us. Please, pray for this country!

ACORN Fraud and Obama

Does it make your blood boil to know that ACORN has gotten tax money so it can subvert the American system?

How about this story, that all of ACORN's registrations in Lake County, Indiana, were fraudulent? ALL of them?

And what about Obama's campaign giving ACORN $800,000, and initially lying about it to the FEC?

Do you like this video of Obama saying that he will let ACORN and groups like it "shape his agenda"?

Obama was ACORN's lawyer, a trainer for them, and a big supporter. He's been funneling money to them, making promises. And now that this is finally starting to get some media coverage, guess what? He's throwing them under the bus, just like he did Rev. Wright and Bill Ayers.

But all this goes far beyond just an indictment of Obama's poor judgment and dishonesty. It threatens to undermine our system. It threatens to undo the confidence we have in our elections, the knowledge they are fair and honest, and that no matter what happens, there will be a peaceful and orderly transfer of power.

Will it continue? I'm not alone in worrying. The Anchoress:

The ACORN disgrace is not being “covered” right now. It’s being “spun.” The press - whose charge it is to report on events without prejudice - cannot bring itself to seriously look at the fact that ACORN has utterly corrupted voter registration in some states - in Pennsylvania, a former State Supreme Court Justice says she is “not confident we can get a fair election” in the state come November.”

I don’t know about you, but I find that pretty chilling. There is some indication that we’ve come to an end of our long and admirable history of peaceful transitions, decided by the electorate of the nation. What is happening, state-by-state in this election (and has been happening more and more each election cycle) is the gradual dissolution that right which we hold most dear: our right to self-determination. And it is happening, “from the inside,” as we see in Ohio, which - as I write this - has just received permission from the sixth circuit court of appeals to make voter fraud easier, instead of more difficult. There goes Ohio. [emphasis mine]

The Ayers Issue: A video

H/T The Other McCain

Effective, I think, though it doesn't even address the radical goals of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, founded by Ayers, chaired by Obama.

More evidence of Obama's Marxist bent

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his need." Karl Marx.

Obama says he wants to "spread the wealth around"; he told a plumber, "I don't want to punish your success; I just want to make sure everybody who gets behind you, that they have a chance of success, too".

Wealth
Uploaded by luvnews

Apparently Obama believes not in equal opportunity but equal results, and he thinks the best way to do that is to take from the rich and give to the poor.

The Wikipedia article linked above says that the inspiration for Marx's line is the example of the early Christians. The difference, of course, is that in one case it's forced by the government (which never works out well), and in the other case, it's voluntary and done out of love for the sake of Christ.

I'm going to start a thread called "the death of capitalism". This is Exhibit One.

And now for something positive

Let's look away from the vile stuff going on out there -- the voter fraud, the media lies about the McCain, the media coverups about Obama's associations with Rezko, Ayers, Raines, Wright, and all the rest, the seething hatred against Bush and Palin, not to mention the economic collapse and worldwide financial woes -- let's take a look at something good, true, and hopeful.



Thanks to Dad29 for the tip.

"Insane Rage"? Give me a break.

We all know that mainstream media cannot be trusted.

Now they're trying to create the impression that McCain supporters are just an angry mob (and you can bet they're playing a subtle race card there; what kind of angry mob would they mean, do you think? Disgusting.)

The whole anger meme is just not true. Mary, the blogger at Freedom Eden (a blog I just discovered yesterday) knows that AP is lying about anger at the Waukesha rally; she was there.

Michele Malkin has the whole rundown on the truly angry folks out there.

"For Obama, All Roads Lead to ACORN"

Good article. (h/t my friend E.Y.)

Tony Rezko sings to Fitzgerald; is Obama going down?

Wow, straight out of The Sopranos.

Read this for a good primer on Chicago-style politics, and how Obama is a product of it.

I cannot believe all the sleazy people and groups that Obama associates with. Franklin Raines, Jim Johnson, ACORN, Bill Ayers, and Tony Rezko.

Lovely. Just lovely.

As my husband said today, Obama probably wouldn't even pass a security screening to get a federal job or work in a nuclear power plant, and yet he's running for President.

It's not just the stock market that's "fall"-ing

Be careful out there!

H/T Neo-Neocon

Perhaps the most important reason to care about the Obama - Ayers connection

It's not just that Bill Ayers was a bomb-setting domestic terrorist in the '60's. In the '90's, he continued his attempt to destroy the American system by radicalizing education, which in turn also destroys education itself.

Despite having authored two autobiographies, Barack Obama has never written about his most important executive experience. From 1995 to 1999, he led an education foundation called the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), and remained on the board until 2001. The group poured more than $100 million into the hands of community organizers and radical education activists.

The CAC was the brainchild of Bill Ayers, a founder of the Weather Underground in the 1960s. Among other feats, Mr. Ayers and his cohorts bombed the Pentagon, and he has never expressed regret for his actions. Barack Obama's first run for the Illinois State Senate was launched at a 1995 gathering at Mr. Ayers's home.

More from the same article by Stanley Kurtz:

In works like "City Kids, City Teachers" and "Teaching the Personal and the Political," Mr. Ayers wrote that teachers should be community organizers dedicated to provoking resistance to American racism and oppression. His preferred alternative? "I'm a radical, Leftist, small 'c' communist," Mr. Ayers said in an interview in Ron Chepesiuk's, "Sixties Radicals," at about the same time Mr. Ayers was forming CAC.

CAC translated Mr. Ayers's radicalism into practice. Instead of funding schools directly, it required schools to affiliate with "external partners," which actually got the money. Proposals from groups focused on math/science achievement were turned down. Instead CAC disbursed money through various far-left community organizers, such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (or Acorn).

[snip]

CAC's in-house evaluators comprehensively studied the effects of its grants on the test scores of Chicago public-school students. They found no evidence of educational improvement. [emphasis mine]

Obama's connection to Ayers shows that Obama has radical political views and uses very poor judgement.

The fact that Obama has lied about his association with Ayers isn't surprising. Why would Obama want to tell the truth about this? He knows it would hurt him.

The beginning of Great Depression II

I am convinced that the drop in the Dow is not just a normal, cyclical market correction, but that it's the beginning of a decades-long economic downturn.

I started a post the other day in which I said this was the beginning of the end of capitalism, but then decided it was too extreme. However, I guess I wasn't alone in that prediction:

The freeze-up of the financial system — and government's seeming inability to thaw it out — are a main concern, no doubt. But more people are also starting to look across the valley, as they say, at what's in store once this crisis passes.

And right now it looks like the U.S., which built the mightiest, most prosperous economy the world has ever known, is about to turn its back on the free-enterprise system that made it all possible.

Why? Because it looks like we're about to elect our first Marxist president.

The editorial then discusses Obama's anti-capitalist agenda:

It starts with a tax system right out of Marx: A massive redistribution of income — from each according to his ability, to each according to his need — all in the name of "neighborliness," "patriotism," "fairness" and "justice."

It continues with a call for a new world order that turns its back on free trade, has no problem with government controlling the means of production, imposes global taxes to support continents where our interests are negligible, signs on to climate treaties that will sap billions more in U.S. productivity and wealth, and institutes an authoritarian health care system that will strip Americans' freedoms and run up costs.

All the while, it ensures that nothing — absolutely nothing — will be done to secure a sufficient, terror-proof supply of our economic lifeblood — oil — a resource we'll need much more of in the years ahead.

This is what I was getting at in this post.

Go read every word of this Investor's Business Daily editorial. Then start asking your parents or grandparents how they survived the Depression because you're going to need some advice on that.

Yes, Mr. McCain, we DO care about the old terrorist Ayers

Yesterday, I saw two different clips of McCain saying the same thing, one from the now-famous rally in Waukesha, and one from an interview with Charlie Gibson.

McCain used the same line both times, saying, "Look, we don’t care about an old washed-up terrorist and his wife who still, at least on Sept. 11, 2001, said he still wanted to bomb more." He then went on to say that what mattered was that Obama wasn't telling the truth about their relationship.

But he's got it completely backwards! We do care about Obama's long-term, close association with Bill Ayers, unrepentant domestic terrorist. Ace gets it, and Malkin, too. My husband gets it, my Mom gets it, my kids get it.

But McCain? Apparently not.

What, a politician lies? Stop the presses. *Yawn.*

But, a man running for President of the United States makes a lifetime habit of hanging around with domestic terrorists (Ayers and his wife Bernadette Dorhn), America-haters (Rev. Wright), and Marxist radicals (Alinsky)?? That's a serious issue and that's exactly what we're so angry about.

McCain, I'm now convinced, is completely tone-deaf on this issue. He's so in love with his record of "reaching across the aisle" that he has no clue as to what is driving true conservatives insane about this race.

He's forgotten that none of us conservatives were ever thrilled with all that aisle-reaching in the first place. What did that get us? Oh yeah, McCain-Feingold (horrible law with terrible results) and a whole lot of nothing else.

But wait, he's probably not tone-deaf, but he's afraid. He's afraid that people are getting so angry about this stuff that he won't be able to keep up his "Maverick" label, that he'll actually have to act like a conservative Republican, God forbid.

He's also afraid he's losing control of his supporters. Just saw a clip of him telling a crowd "not to be scared" of a President Obama, and the crowd basically shouted him down.

I'm losing the affection I'd started to feel for this guy. He's back to just being an annoying politician, which is how I always viewed him in years past when the media was oh-so-in-love with him but hated every truly conservative Republican. I'd rather vote for half the people in the audience at his rallies than for him, but that's really not an option.

So, yes, I'm still going to vote for McCain rather than the Marxist, unlike Christopher Buckley who apparently has lost his mind, but I'm not going to be real happy about it.

Oh, and by the way, Chris Buckley: Do you really believe Obama wrote his two autobiographies himself? Really?

The man who hasn't written one. single. thing. for a law review or any other publications, as far as anyone can tell? But he wrote two books about himself?

Really!??

Try this theory on for size.

This needs to be seen by everyone in America

About that so-called "debate" last night.

I was IM'ing a friend last night while catching up on email and watching the debate from my hotel room.

Talk about multi-tasking. But you know what? It was a no-brainer to do those three things at once, because the most interesting, engaging, and thought-provoking parts of it were IM'ing my friend and emailing my daughter.

At the end of the debate, my IM friend asked what I thought. Told her I thought it was boring, but maybe I just wasn't paying enough attention.

Then checked Drudge and his headline was: B - O - R - I - N - G! No kidding.

Guess I wasn't paying attention precisely because it was boring.

That seems to be most people's reaction. Not a townhall meeting, not interesting.

You know, it makes me start to wonder. How can both of these guys dance around the truth the way they are? The truth is that are systems of government and commerce are coming apart at the seams and nobody seems to know when it will end or what to do about it.

Another truth: Abortion is destroying our country and so far it hasn't even been mentioned in a single debate or campaign ad, far as I can recall. Wait, that's not true: There were a few ads focusing on Obama's opposition to the "Born Alive Protection Act".

But I wonder, if we still hadn't killed 40,000,000 Americans through abortion, and if we hadn't wiped out their chance to be born, grow up, and start families of their own, would we be stronger economically?

How many great inventors, statesmen, entrepreneurs, doctors, nurses, teachers, priests, nuns, plumbers, electricians, and carpenters have been killed in the womb?

Would there be buyers for all those excess houses on the market right now?

Didn't Mother Theresa say that any country that permits abortion is planting the seeds of its own destruction?

And yet we don't talk about it. That's very scary.

Here in Boston

I'm on a sad errand: representing my Dad's branch of the family for his younger brother's funeral. He was a very good guy, my uncle; a faithful Catholic here in the land of Kerry and Kennedy, an excellent and honest businessman, a tireless volunteer for his parish and a local senior center. He and my aunt had ten children, all of whom are married and raising good families of their own.

I have many fond memories of visiting with my aunt and uncle and their family; they were a shining example of the virtues of hospitality and the love of extended family. Their hug-filled greetings and good-byes, the laughter and conversation, the knowledge that you were among kin, and they knew it, and we knew it, and we all valued it ... it was a joy.

At dinner the other night, my husband recalled our trip east in 2000 for my cousin's wedding. After a grueling drive, with four kids ages 10 and under, through traffic and winding Boston roads, getting lost at least once, we finally pulled up to their house, bedraggled, hungry, and in serious need of some downtime.

And it was like being welcomed into Heaven. Not to overstate the case, but seriously, it was wonderful. My aunt and uncle poured Tom "a good, stiff drink", as he puts it, the delicious smells of dinner in the oven enticed us, we settled into comfy chairs and began chatting, my cousin's fiance started entertaining our two-year old son with an explanation of muskets and other firearms, and the tension of the trip began to unwind immediately.

My uncle was the youngest of the three "Mueller boys", as they were known all their lives. My dad is the middle son, and my godfather, Bob, is the oldest. There was quite a gap between them -- 12 years from the oldest to the youngest -- but they were close to each other in things that matter.

My godfather and his wife will be here, along with quite a few of their ten children.

It tugs at the heartstrings; the circle of life with all its joys and sorrows.

If you have a moment today, please say a prayer for the soul of my Uncle Dick, and a little prayer for his widow and children. They have the consolation of faith, but still could use a few prayers for strength. Thank you.

A laugh out loud skit... but the truth hurts, too

Michele Malkin has the full transcript of the Saturday Night Live skit that skewered the Dems, the President, greedy and/or stupid home buyers, and actually named George Soros as probably being behind the whole thing. (Which husband and I have been suspecting.)

So go read the transcript. It's funny because, like all good comedy, it's based on truth. Unbelievable that SNL is the only entity brave enough to tell the truth about what's happening, but then of course the skit gets "disappeared" from the web.

This made me laugh out loud (among other parts):

Jerome: Well, I was talked into a balloon mortgage. Where you move into the house. And then you get to live in it. And you don’t have to, like, pay money or anything to the bank. But then later, you do.

Jerome: Yeah, what up with dat?

Michael: I mean, you could say I’m a double victim, since I never had a job and now I don’t have a home!

Jerome: Well, I’m a triple victim, because now I’ve been charged with arson for allegedly setting fire to the house they evicted me from.

And now, for today's laugh

The news is so unrelentingly grim these days (Obama is ahead in the polls, stocks are down, the financial forecast is horrible, Obama is ahead in the polls...) that it was a huge joy to find this video again today, on my friend Maureen's blog.

I've seen it several times before but I still laugh until I cry, and some of those tears are the tears of recognizing a Truth when you see it.

Enjoy!

Obama and the Freedom of Choice Act

Obama has promised Planned Parenthood that the first thing he'll do as President is sign the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). Here's the video of him making the promise.

FOCA is a pro-abortion bill that would undo decades of painstaking work by the pro-life community, including parental notification rules (under FOCA a 15 year old could get an abortion without her parents even knowing), waiting periods (to discourage impulsive or coerced abortions), federal funding restrictions (so we would all have to pay for abortions with our tax dollars), and more. Basically it would make abortions much more frequent and more supported by the government.

Of course, Planned Parenthood would love for FOCA to be signed into law, as they make millions of dollars by providing abortions.

But I don't think this is the kind of policy that we want; polls show that most Americans do not support unrestricted abortion on demand, and they certainly want parental notification and similar laws. Here's just one example of that.

A chilling prophecy from last night's debate

I think Sarah Palin was prophetic last night when she said this:

It was Ronald Reagan who said that freedom is always just one generation away from extinction. We don't pass it to our children in the bloodstream; we have to fight for it and protect it, and then hand it to them so that they shall do the same, or we're going to find ourselves spending our sunset years telling our children and our children's children about a time in America, back in the day, when men and women were free.

This is my deepest fear. It looks like we're about to elect a radical Marxist president.

What will happen to freedom, then?

Maybe Sarah Palin is the October Surprise

This is such a good lesson in how mainstream media corrupts and pollutes and distorts.

Even I had begun to think that Sarah Palin was a bad choice for VP. I'd started to drink the mainstream Kool-Aid; the relentless attacks had taken their toll. I, too, was wondering, "Where is she? Why are they hiding her? Have they discovered that she is a disaster?"

And then tonight she came out and won the most important debate of this election.

She was fantastic. She's qualified. She's smart.

I pray that it's enough to turn the tide for McCain.

They tried to ban that video

The video I'd posted below was taken down, but it's back up (with different music; I'm guessing Time-Warner didn't like his use of music they owned, even though I'm sure it fell under the Fair Use Laws).

So now you can watch it again. Be sure to keep your mouse on the "pause" button, because there's a lot there you won't want to miss.

How dare they blame the Republicans!

If you've been following this financial mess, you already know how deeply Chris Dodd, Barack Obama, Barney Frank, Jim Johnson, Franklin Raines and other Democrats are twisted up in it.

They, along with Bill Clinton who signed the "Community Redevelopment Act", are responsible for this mess. They caused it, they profited from it -- and now they have the unmitigated gall to blame Republicans for it!

Unbelievable, isn't it?

So you may know all this, but perhaps you have friends and relatives who don't. Send them a link to this video so they, too, can be informed. (Thanks to my dear cousin in Virginia who emailed it to me this morning!)