Sunday, October 28, 2012 4:56:01 AM
Lubbock sign vandals caught red-handed
Vandals caught red-handed.
More coverage:
http://lubbockonline.com/crime-and-courts/crime/2012-10-24/group-men-filmed-vandalizing-democratic-political-signs
http://everythinglubbock.com/fulltext?nxd_id=127412
http://www.kcbd.com/story/19907747/political-sign-vandals-caught-on-camera
http://lubbockonline.com/filed-online/2012-10-26/lubbock-police-return-video-men-vandalizing-political-signs-democratic-party
http://lubbockonline.com/election/2012-10-21/vandalizing-political-signs-crossing-hateful-line
http://www.myfoxlubbock.com/news/local/story/lubbock-democratic-signs-vandalism-kenny-ketner/E3GZN00haUC0Bz2VXL0-wQ.cspx
http://everythinglubbock.com/fulltext?nxd_id=126762
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tXZMTBc4v0
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Campaign Sign Vandals Caught on Video
A Lubbock Texas Democratic volunteer was assaulted while capturing campaign sign vandals on video. WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzBHHtL5jZk
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Lubbock County Democratic Party responds to recent vandalism and theft and hate crime
There have been several thefts within the city of Obama signs and just last night, there was an incident where two signs were stolen, but returned with a racial slur written all on them and sprayed with mustard. This is an ongoing problem and it will not be tolerated.
The N word was writen all over the Obama signs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCjmHzX9QwQ
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Tea Party Billboard In Indiana Sparks Protest
08/14/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/14/tea-party-billboard-indiana_n_1776265.html [with comments]
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Obama 'Threat' Sign Stirs Controversy In Georgia
10/02/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/02/obama-threat-sign-_n_1932764.html [with comments]
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OFFICIAL Preacher Phil Snider gives interesting gay rights speech
*WATCH ENTIRE VIDEO*
City council heard from the public as they debated a new rule adding LGBT people to the list of minorities protected from discrimination.
This other link ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnuwFx0mpns [next below]) has 45 minutes of people who are actually arguing against the bill and comparing gay people to rapists and pedophiles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8JsRx2lois
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Craziest speeches of Springfield city council public forum on gay non-discrimination amendment
City council meeting on 8/13/2012 to hear public comment on adding sexual orientation to list of people protected by our cities non-discrimination rules. The christian community and one great troll preacher turned out to voice their opposition to this amendment, while many pro-lgbt supporters spoke in favor of the bill. This video shows some of the most ridiculous quotes from that night.
*Please don't click "thumbs down" just because these people are saying stupid things. The point of this video is to show everyone how ridiculous these people are*
My favorite speech- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8JsRx2lois [the item just above]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnuwFx0mpns
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No, You're the Racist, or Blogging About Obama Phones
Sep 28, 2012
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2012/09/no-youre-racist-or-blogging-about-obama-phones/57421/ [with comments]
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Michelle Obama 'Doesn't Look Or Act' Like A First Lady, Says Virginia Voter Bobbie Lussier
09/28/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/28/michelle-obama-look-like-a-first-lady-bobbie-lussier_n_1922236.html [with comments]
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Bleach Balloons Launched At Minority Students At University of Texas
10/04/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/04/bleach-balloons-university-of-texas_n_1939170.html [with comments]
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Strident Anti-Obama Messages Flood Key States
A billboard in Florida shows President Obama bowing to a Saudi king and blames him for soaring gasoline prices.
American Principles SuperPAC
A 10-year-old future president with his father.
Obama for America, via Associated Press
Frank Marshall Davis, the subject of the film "Dreams From My Real Father."
Ed Greevy, via Associated Press
By JEREMY W. PETERS
Published: October 23, 2012
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — To turn on the television, open the mail or drive down the highway here is to watch conservatives test the boundaries of how far they can go to disqualify President Obama [ http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/candidates/barack-obama ].
Along the Interstate that connects the beach towns of Florida’s east coast, giant billboards [ http://apsuperpac.org/articles/friends-dont-let-friends-get-nuked-billboard-campaign-goes-live/ ] show the president, whom some on the far right have falsely accused of being Muslim, bowing to a Saudi king. Another blares “Stop Obama!” and shows a nuclear warhead with “Iran” painted on it aimed at Israel, a particularly potent message with this area’s many Jewish voters.
In one commercial [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnX7TNFIELg ({linked in} http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80854460 ) (next below)]
And a new anti-Obama DVD is dropping into voters’ mailboxes, claiming that the president is the love child of an illicit relationship between his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, and Frank Marshall Davis, a Communist Party loyalist. The back story of the DVD offers the latest example of how secretive forces outside the presidential campaigns can sweep into battleground states days before the election.
This summer, a group of well-financed conservative activists had an idea for what they hoped would be a last-minute game changer in the presidential race. They would put out a DVD that made a compelling case against Mr. Obama in battleground states, sending it to voters through a carefully targeted direct mail campaign or as an insert in Sunday newspapers in the weeks before Election Day.
They went to the unusual length of arranging a focus group to test anti-Obama films. Conducted by Frank Luntz, the well-known Republican research analyst, a 30-person focus group looked at three choices: Dinesh D’Souza’s “2016: Obama’s America,” which theorizes that the president’s political beliefs were shaped by the radical “anticolonial” views of his Kenyan father; “The Hope and the Change,” a softer critique of the president that features interviews with disaffected former Obama supporters; and “Dreams From My Real Father,” which posits the implausible theory that the president’s real father is Mr. Davis, and that Mr. Davis indoctrinated him with Marxist views early on.
Republicans have struggled in this election with two powerful and competing impulses: to hammer a president they dislike intensely with a strong indictment of his record, but to be restrained enough to win over independent voters, who generally like Mr. Obama. Those who commissioned Mr. Luntz’s research, according to people with firsthand knowledge of their motives, wanted to determine whether any of these films would do the trick and be worth backing. Mr. Luntz declined to say who commissioned his research.
“The Hope and the Change,” directed by Stephen K. Bannon and produced by Citizens United, the conservative political advocacy group, tested highest with focus groups and is running on local cable stations. It was shown here just before Monday’s debate.
Many conservatives also loved Mr. D’Souza’s film and wanted it to have wider distribution. It tested poorly, however, and Mr. Luntz warned his clients that it could undermine their cause.
Focus groups were revolted by “Dreams From My Real Father,” with its conspiracy theory paranoia and dubious evidence. It compares photos of the president and Mr. Davis, noting that they have similar noses and freckles. It also purports to have uncovered nude photos of Mr. Obama’s mother in a bondage magazine.
Mr. Luntz’s clients were not surprised. Their thinking was, “I want to know if it’s as bad as I think it is,” Mr. Luntz said.
But even though no major Republican activists stepped forward to finance its distribution, voters in Ohio and Florida have reported receiving the DVD.
The film is the work of Joel Gilbert, whose previous claims include having tracked down Elvis Presley in the witness protection program and discovering that Paul McCartney is in fact dead.
Mr. Gilbert will not say where he received the money to distribute his movie — he claims to have sent out four million copies. “It’s a private company, so we don’t disclose who’s part of it,” he said. He also blamed the mainstream media for not looking deeper into the story he uncovered, telling The New York Times, “I hope you’re not angry or jealous that I beat you to it and might win the Pulitzer Prize.”
His work has already received a lot of attention in corners of the conservative media, including on the radio programs of Monica Crowley and Michael Savage.
One voter from Stuart, Fla., who received the “Dreams From My Real Father” DVD in the mail last week said she was appalled, confirming Republicans’ worst fears about the film.
“I thought, well, I’ll take a look and see what it is,” said the voter, Judy Cindrick. The DVD was addressed to her husband, who was not affiliated with either party on his state voter registration. “But then it got to the part about the president’s mother, and I was like, O.K., I can’t even watch this anymore. This is just something a bunch of crackpots put together.”
© 2012 The New York Times Company
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/24/us/politics/strident-anti-obama-messages-flood-key-states.html [and see (linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80909126 and preceding (and any future following),
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80917351 and preceding and following, and
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80917664 and following]
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Major Cable Provider In Ohio Offering Anti-Obama Film For Free
Oct 23, 2012
http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/10/23/1078081/major-cable-provider-in-ohio-offering-anti-obama-film-for-free/ [with comments]
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'Kill Obama' sign gets Colorado man a visit from Secret Service
October 24, 2012
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-colorado-kill-obama-sign-20121024,0,1992427.story [with comments]
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Two Kentucky men acquitted in landmark gay hate crime case
The victim, Kevin Pennington
October 24, 2012
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57539770/two-kentucky-men-acquitted-in-landmark-gay-hate-crime-case/ [with comments]
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Obama Effigy Brings Secret Service to Moreno Valley Home
The Secret Service visited Eddie Million's Moreno Valley home Tuesday night because of a Halloween party prop that, well, seemed like a good idea at the time, he says. Check out more details on http://www.pe.com [ http://www.pe.com/local-news/riverside-county/moreno-valley/moreno-valley-headlines-index/20121023-moreno-valley-obama-effigy-called-misunderstanding.ece ]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjV_igcv1GM
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Sheldon Adelson Gives $1.5 Million To Pro-George Allen Super PAC
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/sheldon-adelson-george-allen_n_2011470.html [with comments]
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How GOP voter suppression could win Florida for Romney
How many Florida Democrats will be disenfranchised by the GOP's war on voting? Enough to swing the election
Oct 25, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/25/how_gop_voter_suppression_could_win_florida_and_the_white_house_for_romney/ [with comments]
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Gwen Moore, Congresswoman And Rape Survivor, Reacts To Richard Mourdock's Abortion Remarks
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/gwen-moore-richard-mourdock-rape_n_2017170.html [with embedded video, and comments]
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Pennsylvania Bill Includes Provision Requiring Women To Prove They Were Raped
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/pennsylvania-welfare-benefits-rape_n_2012417.html [with embedded video, and comments]
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Dear Republican friends: Your Romney vote disrespects my marriage
A Pulitzer-winning playwright's Facebook post goes viral, calling out moderate GOP friends backing Mitt
Oct 25, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/26/my_taxes_mean_more_than_your_fundamental_civil_rights/ [with comments]
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Romney rejected new birth certificates for gay parents
October 25, 2012
http://bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2012/10/24/mitt-romney-overruled-state-agency-and-rejected-new-birth-certificates-for-children-born-gay-parents/TqOHBb99V98H6nGQqUQrjO/story.html [with comments]
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Romney: 'Some Gays Are Actually Having Children. It's Not Right on Paper. It's Not Right in Fact.'
10/26/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michelangelo-signorile/romney-some-gays-are-actu_b_2022314.html [with comments]
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Birther Thrifty Car: Buffalo Rental Cars Sport 'Vote For The American' Bumper Stickers
10/26/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/26/buffalo-thrifty-car-rental-birther_n_2025021.html [with comments]
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Here’s a Memo From the Boss: Vote This Way
David A. Siegel, in charge of Westgate Resorts, wrote an anti-Obama letter to 7,000 employees.
David Manning/Reuters
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE
Published: October 26, 2012
Imagine getting a letter from the boss, telling you how to vote.
Until 2010, federal law barred companies from using corporate money to endorse and campaign for political candidates — and that included urging employees to support specific politicians.
But the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision [ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/22/us/politics/22scotus.html ] has freed companies from those restrictions, and now several major companies, including Georgia-Pacific and Cintas, have sent letters or information packets to their employees suggesting — and sometimes explicitly recommending — how they should vote this fall.
In these letters, the executives complain about the costs of overregulation, the health care overhaul [ http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/health_insurance_and_managed_care/health_care_reform/index.html ] and possible tax increases. Some letters warn that if President Obama is re-elected, the company could be harmed, potentially jeopardizing jobs.
David A. Siegel, 77, chief executive of Westgate Resorts, a major time-share company, wrote to his 7,000 employees, saying that if Mr. Obama won, the prospect of higher taxes could hurt the company’s future.
“The economy doesn’t currently pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job, however, is another four years of the same presidential administration,” Mr. Siegel wrote. “If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current president plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company.”
In an interview, Mr. Siegel said he was not ordering his employees to vote his way. “There’s no way I can pressure anybody,” he said. “I’m not in the voting booth with them.”
Mr. Siegel added: “I really wanted them to know how I felt four more years under President Obama was going to affect them. It would be no different from telling your children: ‘Eat your spinach. It’s good for you.’ ”
Dave Robertson, the president of Koch Industries, sent an information packet and letter this month to more than 30,000 employees of a subsidiary, Georgia-Pacific, a paper and pulp company. The letter attacked government subsidies for “a few favored cronies” as well as “unprecedented regulatory burdens on businesses.”
The letter added, “Many of our more than 50,000 U.S. employees and contractors may suffer the consequences, including higher gasoline prices, runaway inflation and other ills.”
The Georgia-Pacific letter, first reported by In These Times, included a flier listing several candidates endorsed by the Koch brothers, the conservative billionaires, beginning with Mitt Romney, as well as opinion articles that the brothers had written.
Travis McKinney, a forklift driver for Georgia-Pacific in Portland, Ore., said the company’s political packet had spurred widespread discussion. “It leaves a bad taste,” Mr. McKinney said. “I won’t even wear my Obama pin to work because of the mailer.”
In a statement, Koch Industries said its mailing contained pieces of information “we believe are important for our employees to know about.” The company said the letter was in no way intimidation: “We make it clear that any decision about which candidates to support belongs solely to our employees.”
Other companies whose top executives have sent out anti-Obama letters include Rite-Hite, a manufacturer of industrial equipment based in Milwaukee, and ASG Software Solutions, based in Naples, Fla.
Many corporate executives say they have stepped up their political activities to counter organized labor’s efforts on behalf of Mr. Obama and other Democrats. Even before Citizens United, unions were allowed to promote candidates to their members. Democrats and Republicans alike acknowledged the effectiveness of labor’s political efforts.
Mr. Romney has himself urged business owners to appeal to their employees. In a conference call in June organized by the National Federation of Independent Business, he said, “I hope you make it very clear to your employees what you believe is in the best interest of your enterprise and therefore their job and their future in the upcoming elections.”
Larry Gold, associate general counsel of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., said some of the recent employer letters, by hinting at the possible loss of employees’ jobs, appeared to cross the line into improper coercion. Federal law and the laws of several states bar anyone from coercing or intimidating voters into voting a certain way.
But Bradley A. Smith, a Republican former member of the Federal Election Commission and a professor at Capital University Law School, disagreed, saying letters like those sent by the companies were not firm threats to fire anyone if Mr. Obama won.
According to the Citizens United ruling, companies may recommend candidates to employees, said Eugene Volokh, a law professor at University of California, Los Angeles.
“If the employer wants to say, ‘This candidate is good or bad for our business and therefore good or bad for you, the employee, that’s permissible — that’s protected by the First Amendment,” Professor Volokh said. “But if the employer threatens to fire you based on how you vote, that’s not protected.”
But many liberal legal experts fear that employees could be discouraged from exercising their rights to free speech.
“The concern here is there is an unavoidable power disparity between management and employees,” said Adam Skaggs, senior counsel at the liberal Brennan Center for Justice. “Put yourself in the shoes of an employee at any of those companies. Are you going to be comfortable putting an Obama bumper sticker on your car and driving into the company parking lot? If you’re in a small community with a big employer, will you feel uncomfortable about putting up a yard sign for a candidate your boss doesn’t favor?”
Richard Lacks, chief executive of Lacks Enterprises, an auto parts company based in Grand Rapids, Mich., wrote to his 2,300 employees this month warning that an Obama victory would mean higher health care costs and higher taxes that would eat into their paychecks. “It is important that in November you vote to improve your standard of living and that will be through smaller government and less government,” he wrote.
Scott D. Farmer, chief executive of Cintas, the uniform supply company, sent a letter to his company’s 30,000 employees on Oct. 19, denouncing the Affordable Care Act and saying it “amounts to the single largest tax on Americans and business in history.” He warned employees that “the overregulation that business is facing today from the various administrative agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency” and the National Labor Relations Board “is suffocating many companies.”
Mr. Farmer added, “This uncertainty felt by many of our customers about their ability to run and grow their businesses prevents them from adding jobs which hurts our ability to grow and add jobs.”
Asked about Mr. Farmer’s letter, Greg Hart, Cintas’s vice president for government affairs, responded, “The communication was not an attempt to suggest to employees how to vote, but rather it was sent to help partners make an informed decision.”
Election law experts did not point to any corporate efforts this year to urge employees to back Mr. Obama, although corporations have at times politicked for Democratic candidates. In 2010, Harrah’s, the casino company, urged its employees to go to the polls to re-elect Nevada’s senior senator, contending that “waking up to the defeat of Harry Reid Nov. 3 will be devastating.”
© 2012 The New York Times Company
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/us/politics/bosses-offering-timely-advice-how-to-vote.html [ http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/us/politics/bosses-offering-timely-advice-how-to-vote.html?pagewanted=all ] [with comments]
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Karl Rove-style dirty tricks in Ohio
Voter intimidation, sketchy voting machines, misinformation: Are Karl Rove & Co. up to no good?
Oct 26, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/26/karl_rove_style_dirty_tricks_in_ohio/ [with comments]
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Killed for having black friends?
The FBI may investigate the racially-charged murder of Michael Luke Darby, a 24-year-old white man
Oct 27, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/27/killed_for_having_black_friends/ [with comments]; http://www.splcenter.org/blog/2012/10/25/fbi-may-investigate-apparent-hate-murder-of-white-with-black-friends/ [with comments]
Published on Oct 26, 2012 by lubbockleft
Vandals caught red-handed.
More coverage:
http://lubbockonline.com/crime-and-courts/crime/2012-10-24/group-men-filmed-vandalizing-democratic-political-signs
http://everythinglubbock.com/fulltext?nxd_id=127412
http://www.kcbd.com/story/19907747/political-sign-vandals-caught-on-camera
http://lubbockonline.com/filed-online/2012-10-26/lubbock-police-return-video-men-vandalizing-political-signs-democratic-party
http://lubbockonline.com/election/2012-10-21/vandalizing-political-signs-crossing-hateful-line
http://www.myfoxlubbock.com/news/local/story/lubbock-democratic-signs-vandalism-kenny-ketner/E3GZN00haUC0Bz2VXL0-wQ.cspx
http://everythinglubbock.com/fulltext?nxd_id=126762
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tXZMTBc4v0
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Campaign Sign Vandals Caught on Video
Published on Oct 26, 2012 by thetexastribune
A Lubbock Texas Democratic volunteer was assaulted while capturing campaign sign vandals on video. WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzBHHtL5jZk
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Lubbock County Democratic Party responds to recent vandalism and theft and hate crime
Published on Oct 21, 2012 by lflr0
There have been several thefts within the city of Obama signs and just last night, there was an incident where two signs were stolen, but returned with a racial slur written all on them and sprayed with mustard. This is an ongoing problem and it will not be tolerated.
The N word was writen all over the Obama signs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCjmHzX9QwQ
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Tea Party Billboard In Indiana Sparks Protest
08/14/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/14/tea-party-billboard-indiana_n_1776265.html [with comments]
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Obama 'Threat' Sign Stirs Controversy In Georgia
10/02/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/02/obama-threat-sign-_n_1932764.html [with comments]
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OFFICIAL Preacher Phil Snider gives interesting gay rights speech
Published on Aug 20, 2012 by Weequay2
*WATCH ENTIRE VIDEO*
City council heard from the public as they debated a new rule adding LGBT people to the list of minorities protected from discrimination.
This other link ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnuwFx0mpns [next below]) has 45 minutes of people who are actually arguing against the bill and comparing gay people to rapists and pedophiles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8JsRx2lois
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Craziest speeches of Springfield city council public forum on gay non-discrimination amendment
Published on Aug 16, 2012 by Weequay2
City council meeting on 8/13/2012 to hear public comment on adding sexual orientation to list of people protected by our cities non-discrimination rules. The christian community and one great troll preacher turned out to voice their opposition to this amendment, while many pro-lgbt supporters spoke in favor of the bill. This video shows some of the most ridiculous quotes from that night.
*Please don't click "thumbs down" just because these people are saying stupid things. The point of this video is to show everyone how ridiculous these people are*
My favorite speech- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8JsRx2lois [the item just above]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnuwFx0mpns
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No, You're the Racist, or Blogging About Obama Phones
Sep 28, 2012
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2012/09/no-youre-racist-or-blogging-about-obama-phones/57421/ [with comments]
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Michelle Obama 'Doesn't Look Or Act' Like A First Lady, Says Virginia Voter Bobbie Lussier
09/28/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/28/michelle-obama-look-like-a-first-lady-bobbie-lussier_n_1922236.html [with comments]
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Bleach Balloons Launched At Minority Students At University of Texas
10/04/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/04/bleach-balloons-university-of-texas_n_1939170.html [with comments]
===
Strident Anti-Obama Messages Flood Key States
A billboard in Florida shows President Obama bowing to a Saudi king and blames him for soaring gasoline prices.
American Principles SuperPAC
A 10-year-old future president with his father.
Obama for America, via Associated Press
Frank Marshall Davis, the subject of the film "Dreams From My Real Father."
Ed Greevy, via Associated Press
By JEREMY W. PETERS
Published: October 23, 2012
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — To turn on the television, open the mail or drive down the highway here is to watch conservatives test the boundaries of how far they can go to disqualify President Obama [ http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/candidates/barack-obama ].
Along the Interstate that connects the beach towns of Florida’s east coast, giant billboards [ http://apsuperpac.org/articles/friends-dont-let-friends-get-nuked-billboard-campaign-goes-live/ ] show the president, whom some on the far right have falsely accused of being Muslim, bowing to a Saudi king. Another blares “Stop Obama!” and shows a nuclear warhead with “Iran” painted on it aimed at Israel, a particularly potent message with this area’s many Jewish voters.
In one commercial [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnX7TNFIELg ({linked in} http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80854460 ) (next below)]
that started running this month, a wealthy businessman and Hungarian immigrant named Thomas Peterffy laments how socialism shackled his native country. “And that’s what I see happening here,” he says. “That’s why I’m voting Republican and putting this ad on television.”
And a new anti-Obama DVD is dropping into voters’ mailboxes, claiming that the president is the love child of an illicit relationship between his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, and Frank Marshall Davis, a Communist Party loyalist. The back story of the DVD offers the latest example of how secretive forces outside the presidential campaigns can sweep into battleground states days before the election.
This summer, a group of well-financed conservative activists had an idea for what they hoped would be a last-minute game changer in the presidential race. They would put out a DVD that made a compelling case against Mr. Obama in battleground states, sending it to voters through a carefully targeted direct mail campaign or as an insert in Sunday newspapers in the weeks before Election Day.
They went to the unusual length of arranging a focus group to test anti-Obama films. Conducted by Frank Luntz, the well-known Republican research analyst, a 30-person focus group looked at three choices: Dinesh D’Souza’s “2016: Obama’s America,” which theorizes that the president’s political beliefs were shaped by the radical “anticolonial” views of his Kenyan father; “The Hope and the Change,” a softer critique of the president that features interviews with disaffected former Obama supporters; and “Dreams From My Real Father,” which posits the implausible theory that the president’s real father is Mr. Davis, and that Mr. Davis indoctrinated him with Marxist views early on.
Republicans have struggled in this election with two powerful and competing impulses: to hammer a president they dislike intensely with a strong indictment of his record, but to be restrained enough to win over independent voters, who generally like Mr. Obama. Those who commissioned Mr. Luntz’s research, according to people with firsthand knowledge of their motives, wanted to determine whether any of these films would do the trick and be worth backing. Mr. Luntz declined to say who commissioned his research.
“The Hope and the Change,” directed by Stephen K. Bannon and produced by Citizens United, the conservative political advocacy group, tested highest with focus groups and is running on local cable stations. It was shown here just before Monday’s debate.
Many conservatives also loved Mr. D’Souza’s film and wanted it to have wider distribution. It tested poorly, however, and Mr. Luntz warned his clients that it could undermine their cause.
Focus groups were revolted by “Dreams From My Real Father,” with its conspiracy theory paranoia and dubious evidence. It compares photos of the president and Mr. Davis, noting that they have similar noses and freckles. It also purports to have uncovered nude photos of Mr. Obama’s mother in a bondage magazine.
Mr. Luntz’s clients were not surprised. Their thinking was, “I want to know if it’s as bad as I think it is,” Mr. Luntz said.
But even though no major Republican activists stepped forward to finance its distribution, voters in Ohio and Florida have reported receiving the DVD.
The film is the work of Joel Gilbert, whose previous claims include having tracked down Elvis Presley in the witness protection program and discovering that Paul McCartney is in fact dead.
Mr. Gilbert will not say where he received the money to distribute his movie — he claims to have sent out four million copies. “It’s a private company, so we don’t disclose who’s part of it,” he said. He also blamed the mainstream media for not looking deeper into the story he uncovered, telling The New York Times, “I hope you’re not angry or jealous that I beat you to it and might win the Pulitzer Prize.”
His work has already received a lot of attention in corners of the conservative media, including on the radio programs of Monica Crowley and Michael Savage.
One voter from Stuart, Fla., who received the “Dreams From My Real Father” DVD in the mail last week said she was appalled, confirming Republicans’ worst fears about the film.
“I thought, well, I’ll take a look and see what it is,” said the voter, Judy Cindrick. The DVD was addressed to her husband, who was not affiliated with either party on his state voter registration. “But then it got to the part about the president’s mother, and I was like, O.K., I can’t even watch this anymore. This is just something a bunch of crackpots put together.”
© 2012 The New York Times Company
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/24/us/politics/strident-anti-obama-messages-flood-key-states.html [and see (linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80909126 and preceding (and any future following),
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80917351 and preceding and following, and
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=80917664 and following]
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Major Cable Provider In Ohio Offering Anti-Obama Film For Free
Oct 23, 2012
http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/10/23/1078081/major-cable-provider-in-ohio-offering-anti-obama-film-for-free/ [with comments]
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'Kill Obama' sign gets Colorado man a visit from Secret Service
October 24, 2012
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-colorado-kill-obama-sign-20121024,0,1992427.story [with comments]
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Two Kentucky men acquitted in landmark gay hate crime case
The victim, Kevin Pennington
October 24, 2012
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57539770/two-kentucky-men-acquitted-in-landmark-gay-hate-crime-case/ [with comments]
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Obama Effigy Brings Secret Service to Moreno Valley Home
Published on Oct 24, 2012 by pe
The Secret Service visited Eddie Million's Moreno Valley home Tuesday night because of a Halloween party prop that, well, seemed like a good idea at the time, he says. Check out more details on http://www.pe.com [ http://www.pe.com/local-news/riverside-county/moreno-valley/moreno-valley-headlines-index/20121023-moreno-valley-obama-effigy-called-misunderstanding.ece ]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjV_igcv1GM
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Sheldon Adelson Gives $1.5 Million To Pro-George Allen Super PAC
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/sheldon-adelson-george-allen_n_2011470.html [with comments]
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How GOP voter suppression could win Florida for Romney
How many Florida Democrats will be disenfranchised by the GOP's war on voting? Enough to swing the election
Oct 25, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/25/how_gop_voter_suppression_could_win_florida_and_the_white_house_for_romney/ [with comments]
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Gwen Moore, Congresswoman And Rape Survivor, Reacts To Richard Mourdock's Abortion Remarks
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/gwen-moore-richard-mourdock-rape_n_2017170.html [with embedded video, and comments]
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Pennsylvania Bill Includes Provision Requiring Women To Prove They Were Raped
10/25/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/pennsylvania-welfare-benefits-rape_n_2012417.html [with embedded video, and comments]
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Dear Republican friends: Your Romney vote disrespects my marriage
A Pulitzer-winning playwright's Facebook post goes viral, calling out moderate GOP friends backing Mitt
Oct 25, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/26/my_taxes_mean_more_than_your_fundamental_civil_rights/ [with comments]
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Romney rejected new birth certificates for gay parents
October 25, 2012
http://bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2012/10/24/mitt-romney-overruled-state-agency-and-rejected-new-birth-certificates-for-children-born-gay-parents/TqOHBb99V98H6nGQqUQrjO/story.html [with comments]
--
Romney: 'Some Gays Are Actually Having Children. It's Not Right on Paper. It's Not Right in Fact.'
10/26/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michelangelo-signorile/romney-some-gays-are-actu_b_2022314.html [with comments]
===
Birther Thrifty Car: Buffalo Rental Cars Sport 'Vote For The American' Bumper Stickers
10/26/2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/26/buffalo-thrifty-car-rental-birther_n_2025021.html [with comments]
===
Here’s a Memo From the Boss: Vote This Way
David A. Siegel, in charge of Westgate Resorts, wrote an anti-Obama letter to 7,000 employees.
David Manning/Reuters
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE
Published: October 26, 2012
Imagine getting a letter from the boss, telling you how to vote.
Until 2010, federal law barred companies from using corporate money to endorse and campaign for political candidates — and that included urging employees to support specific politicians.
But the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision [ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/22/us/politics/22scotus.html ] has freed companies from those restrictions, and now several major companies, including Georgia-Pacific and Cintas, have sent letters or information packets to their employees suggesting — and sometimes explicitly recommending — how they should vote this fall.
In these letters, the executives complain about the costs of overregulation, the health care overhaul [ http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/health_insurance_and_managed_care/health_care_reform/index.html ] and possible tax increases. Some letters warn that if President Obama is re-elected, the company could be harmed, potentially jeopardizing jobs.
David A. Siegel, 77, chief executive of Westgate Resorts, a major time-share company, wrote to his 7,000 employees, saying that if Mr. Obama won, the prospect of higher taxes could hurt the company’s future.
“The economy doesn’t currently pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job, however, is another four years of the same presidential administration,” Mr. Siegel wrote. “If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current president plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company.”
In an interview, Mr. Siegel said he was not ordering his employees to vote his way. “There’s no way I can pressure anybody,” he said. “I’m not in the voting booth with them.”
Mr. Siegel added: “I really wanted them to know how I felt four more years under President Obama was going to affect them. It would be no different from telling your children: ‘Eat your spinach. It’s good for you.’ ”
Dave Robertson, the president of Koch Industries, sent an information packet and letter this month to more than 30,000 employees of a subsidiary, Georgia-Pacific, a paper and pulp company. The letter attacked government subsidies for “a few favored cronies” as well as “unprecedented regulatory burdens on businesses.”
The letter added, “Many of our more than 50,000 U.S. employees and contractors may suffer the consequences, including higher gasoline prices, runaway inflation and other ills.”
The Georgia-Pacific letter, first reported by In These Times, included a flier listing several candidates endorsed by the Koch brothers, the conservative billionaires, beginning with Mitt Romney, as well as opinion articles that the brothers had written.
Travis McKinney, a forklift driver for Georgia-Pacific in Portland, Ore., said the company’s political packet had spurred widespread discussion. “It leaves a bad taste,” Mr. McKinney said. “I won’t even wear my Obama pin to work because of the mailer.”
In a statement, Koch Industries said its mailing contained pieces of information “we believe are important for our employees to know about.” The company said the letter was in no way intimidation: “We make it clear that any decision about which candidates to support belongs solely to our employees.”
Other companies whose top executives have sent out anti-Obama letters include Rite-Hite, a manufacturer of industrial equipment based in Milwaukee, and ASG Software Solutions, based in Naples, Fla.
Many corporate executives say they have stepped up their political activities to counter organized labor’s efforts on behalf of Mr. Obama and other Democrats. Even before Citizens United, unions were allowed to promote candidates to their members. Democrats and Republicans alike acknowledged the effectiveness of labor’s political efforts.
Mr. Romney has himself urged business owners to appeal to their employees. In a conference call in June organized by the National Federation of Independent Business, he said, “I hope you make it very clear to your employees what you believe is in the best interest of your enterprise and therefore their job and their future in the upcoming elections.”
Larry Gold, associate general counsel of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., said some of the recent employer letters, by hinting at the possible loss of employees’ jobs, appeared to cross the line into improper coercion. Federal law and the laws of several states bar anyone from coercing or intimidating voters into voting a certain way.
But Bradley A. Smith, a Republican former member of the Federal Election Commission and a professor at Capital University Law School, disagreed, saying letters like those sent by the companies were not firm threats to fire anyone if Mr. Obama won.
According to the Citizens United ruling, companies may recommend candidates to employees, said Eugene Volokh, a law professor at University of California, Los Angeles.
“If the employer wants to say, ‘This candidate is good or bad for our business and therefore good or bad for you, the employee, that’s permissible — that’s protected by the First Amendment,” Professor Volokh said. “But if the employer threatens to fire you based on how you vote, that’s not protected.”
But many liberal legal experts fear that employees could be discouraged from exercising their rights to free speech.
“The concern here is there is an unavoidable power disparity between management and employees,” said Adam Skaggs, senior counsel at the liberal Brennan Center for Justice. “Put yourself in the shoes of an employee at any of those companies. Are you going to be comfortable putting an Obama bumper sticker on your car and driving into the company parking lot? If you’re in a small community with a big employer, will you feel uncomfortable about putting up a yard sign for a candidate your boss doesn’t favor?”
Richard Lacks, chief executive of Lacks Enterprises, an auto parts company based in Grand Rapids, Mich., wrote to his 2,300 employees this month warning that an Obama victory would mean higher health care costs and higher taxes that would eat into their paychecks. “It is important that in November you vote to improve your standard of living and that will be through smaller government and less government,” he wrote.
Scott D. Farmer, chief executive of Cintas, the uniform supply company, sent a letter to his company’s 30,000 employees on Oct. 19, denouncing the Affordable Care Act and saying it “amounts to the single largest tax on Americans and business in history.” He warned employees that “the overregulation that business is facing today from the various administrative agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency” and the National Labor Relations Board “is suffocating many companies.”
Mr. Farmer added, “This uncertainty felt by many of our customers about their ability to run and grow their businesses prevents them from adding jobs which hurts our ability to grow and add jobs.”
Asked about Mr. Farmer’s letter, Greg Hart, Cintas’s vice president for government affairs, responded, “The communication was not an attempt to suggest to employees how to vote, but rather it was sent to help partners make an informed decision.”
Election law experts did not point to any corporate efforts this year to urge employees to back Mr. Obama, although corporations have at times politicked for Democratic candidates. In 2010, Harrah’s, the casino company, urged its employees to go to the polls to re-elect Nevada’s senior senator, contending that “waking up to the defeat of Harry Reid Nov. 3 will be devastating.”
© 2012 The New York Times Company
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/us/politics/bosses-offering-timely-advice-how-to-vote.html [ http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/us/politics/bosses-offering-timely-advice-how-to-vote.html?pagewanted=all ] [with comments]
===
Karl Rove-style dirty tricks in Ohio
Voter intimidation, sketchy voting machines, misinformation: Are Karl Rove & Co. up to no good?
Oct 26, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/26/karl_rove_style_dirty_tricks_in_ohio/ [with comments]
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Killed for having black friends?
The FBI may investigate the racially-charged murder of Michael Luke Darby, a 24-year-old white man
Oct 27, 2012
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/27/killed_for_having_black_friends/ [with comments]; http://www.splcenter.org/blog/2012/10/25/fbi-may-investigate-apparent-hate-murder-of-white-with-black-friends/ [with comments]
Greensburg, KS - 5/4/07
"Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty."
from John Philpot Curran, Speech
upon the Right of Election, 1790
F6
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