“The shooter’s motivation is still unknown,” Katie Couric announced as she anchored Saturday’s CBS Evening News, but that didn’t deter CBS, nor CNN, NBC and ABC on Saturday night and into Sunday morning from forwarding attempts to blame Sarah Palin and, by implication, the Tea Party, for the Tucson shooting.
Read full story at Newsbusters.org
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Glenn Beck: Fundamental Transformation
Today, I call out to those who are tired of feeling powerless. Commit to become the person you were meant to be, not who you have allowed yourself to become; the Father, mother, sibling, friend, businessperson and American. As the old story goes:
A man decided that he would change the world.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change the country.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his community.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his street.
But, be wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his family.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change himself.
AND HE WAS SUCCESSFUL.
AND HIS FAMILY CHANGED AND THEY AFFECTED THEIR STREET.
AND THE PEOPLE ON THE STREET AFFECTED THEIR COMMUNITY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COMMUNITY AFFECTED THEIR COUNTRY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTRY AFFECTED THE WORLD.
Today, I ask you to take the first step in your success. This is part Enlightenment and part Empowerment (E1 and E3 of the E4 Solution). One of America’s premiere psychiatric minds, concerned American and good friend Dr. Keith Ablow has been working with me on a project called “The 7.” Together we have developed 7 steps that can help you change your life, I know because they are the 7 steps that I used to change my life. This book meant for those who are tired being less than happy, fulfilled and want to be a part of a life that is bigger than they can currently imagine.
In the next 12 months, I challenge each American to come to the place where they can say without equivocation “YES, I CAN.” I believe strong, educated, charitable individuals who can stand on their own two feet, because they know who they are, will be remembered by future historians as those Americans who once again answered the call and changed the world again.
Read the entire article at source: Glenn Beck: Fundamental Transformation.
A man decided that he would change the world.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change the country.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his community.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his street.
But, be wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change his family.
But, he wasn’t successful.
So he decided to change himself.
AND HE WAS SUCCESSFUL.
AND HIS FAMILY CHANGED AND THEY AFFECTED THEIR STREET.
AND THE PEOPLE ON THE STREET AFFECTED THEIR COMMUNITY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COMMUNITY AFFECTED THEIR COUNTRY.
AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTRY AFFECTED THE WORLD.
Today, I ask you to take the first step in your success. This is part Enlightenment and part Empowerment (E1 and E3 of the E4 Solution). One of America’s premiere psychiatric minds, concerned American and good friend Dr. Keith Ablow has been working with me on a project called “The 7.” Together we have developed 7 steps that can help you change your life, I know because they are the 7 steps that I used to change my life. This book meant for those who are tired being less than happy, fulfilled and want to be a part of a life that is bigger than they can currently imagine.
In the next 12 months, I challenge each American to come to the place where they can say without equivocation “YES, I CAN.” I believe strong, educated, charitable individuals who can stand on their own two feet, because they know who they are, will be remembered by future historians as those Americans who once again answered the call and changed the world again.
Read the entire article at source: Glenn Beck: Fundamental Transformation.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Glenn Beck - 9 principles and 12 values
I have reproduced below the 9 principles and 12 values of Glenn Beck... If you agree, come join us at the912project.com
9 Principles(1)
1. America Is Good.
2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George Washington’s first Inaugural address.
3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George Washington
4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a family.” Thomas Jefferson
5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas Jefferson
6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas Jefferson
7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth charity; all however, are worth of the inquiry or the deserving may suffer.” George Washington
8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
On your right to disagree “In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without thinking.” George Washington
9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
Who works for whom? “I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas Jefferson
12 values(2)
* Honesty
* Reverence
* Hope
* Thrift
* Humility
* Charity
* Sincerity
* Moderation
* Hard Work
* Courage
* Personal Responsibility
* Gratitude
Sources:
(1) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/9principles/
(2) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/12values/
9 Principles(1)
1. America Is Good.
2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George Washington’s first Inaugural address.
3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George Washington
4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a family.” Thomas Jefferson
5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas Jefferson
6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas Jefferson
7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth charity; all however, are worth of the inquiry or the deserving may suffer.” George Washington
8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
On your right to disagree “In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without thinking.” George Washington
9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
Who works for whom? “I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas Jefferson
12 values(2)
* Honesty
* Reverence
* Hope
* Thrift
* Humility
* Charity
* Sincerity
* Moderation
* Hard Work
* Courage
* Personal Responsibility
* Gratitude
Sources:
(1) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/9principles/
(2) - http://theglennbeck912project.com/12values/
Vatican Rebuffs Caroline Kennedy Ambassador Seat Over Abortion, Say Sources
Just when Caroline Kennedy was recovering from the political mess over her bid for Hillary Clinton’s Senate seat, she now has hit some more political roadblocks. And these are coming from a holier land: the Vatican.
The Massachusetts Catholic Action League and sources within the Vatican itself are protesting the idea President Obama may appoint JFK’s daugher as an ambassador to the Vatican. Why are they so angry? Because Ms. Kennedy, a Catholic, supports abortion rights.
Sen. John Kerry, D-MA, reportedly was pushing Obama to pick Kennedy, 53, for the job, but C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Massachusetts league, said her nomination is "a calculated insult to the Holy See."
"It’s inappropriate to appoint someone who pretends to be a Catholic but rejects the fundamental teachings of the Church," Doyle said. U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Raymond L. Flynn told The Boston Herald Kennedy’s nomination would be a "mistake."
Vatican sources told the Italian newspaper Il Giornale that they disapprove of several of Obama’s ambassador picks, including Kennedy, because of their stances on abortion or stem cells. But the Vatican is denying reports that they’ve opposed any of Obama’s picks over their split on abortion.
"No proposals about the new ambassador of the United States to the Holy See have reached the Vatican, and therefore it is not true that they have been rejected. The rumors circulating about this topic are not reliable," the spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, told Catholic News Service. "It’s possible names have been circulated inside the U.S. administration, and perhaps rejected for some reason or other, but not because of any Vatican veto."
So far, no official word from the Obama camp on what’s what. But needless to say, the split on such a controversial topic will likely make for a slightly awkward meeting between Obama and Pope Benedict XVI in Italy in July.
Source URL: http://www.wowowow.com/politics/vatican-reportedly-miffed-over-caroline-kennedy-ascending-ambassador-post-266327
The Massachusetts Catholic Action League and sources within the Vatican itself are protesting the idea President Obama may appoint JFK’s daugher as an ambassador to the Vatican. Why are they so angry? Because Ms. Kennedy, a Catholic, supports abortion rights.
Sen. John Kerry, D-MA, reportedly was pushing Obama to pick Kennedy, 53, for the job, but C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Massachusetts league, said her nomination is "a calculated insult to the Holy See."
"It’s inappropriate to appoint someone who pretends to be a Catholic but rejects the fundamental teachings of the Church," Doyle said. U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Raymond L. Flynn told The Boston Herald Kennedy’s nomination would be a "mistake."
Vatican sources told the Italian newspaper Il Giornale that they disapprove of several of Obama’s ambassador picks, including Kennedy, because of their stances on abortion or stem cells. But the Vatican is denying reports that they’ve opposed any of Obama’s picks over their split on abortion.
"No proposals about the new ambassador of the United States to the Holy See have reached the Vatican, and therefore it is not true that they have been rejected. The rumors circulating about this topic are not reliable," the spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, told Catholic News Service. "It’s possible names have been circulated inside the U.S. administration, and perhaps rejected for some reason or other, but not because of any Vatican veto."
So far, no official word from the Obama camp on what’s what. But needless to say, the split on such a controversial topic will likely make for a slightly awkward meeting between Obama and Pope Benedict XVI in Italy in July.
Source URL: http://www.wowowow.com/politics/vatican-reportedly-miffed-over-caroline-kennedy-ascending-ambassador-post-266327
Move Over, MoveOn: Tea Parties Spark Conservative Insurgency Online
Tea parties have sparked an online insurgency, with independent media sites driving coverage of the protests, suggesting that conservatives may be catching up with their liberal counterparts in building a Web-driven, grassroots campaign to push their agenda.
FOXNews.com - Monday, April 13, 2009
Conservatives may be catching up with their liberal counterparts in building a Web-driven, grassroots campaign to push their agenda.
The online insurgency-in-the-making revolves around the so-called tea parties, the anti-tax protests popping up around the country that they expect to culminate Wednesday -- tax day -- with hundreds of rallies nationwide.
The movement, which expanded over the last two months via the Web, is now relying heavily on independent media Web sites to track and cover the campaign.
The digital evolution of conservative activists comes too late to help John McCain, whose new media arm was left in the dust by President Obama's campaign. But organizers are holding out hope that this movement has juice.
"It's thoroughly viral," said Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit.com blogger who hosts an online news show for the Web site Pajamas TV.
Pajamas TV is on the frontlines of new media coverage for the tea parties. The Web site already has covered some protests and is pledging to recruit an army of citizen journalists, working without pay, to cover the hundreds of protests on April 15.
Roger L. Simon, co-founder of the blog network Pajamas Media, which includes Pajamas TV, said the site went after tea party coverage because the mainstream media didn't.
He said Pajamas TV has more than 200 people registered to report on Wednesday's tea parties. He said they'll send in text reports, as well as videos and photos, to drive what he expects to be about 12 straight hours of online coverage.
"They'll be across the country essentially," he said, calling the operation a "big experiment."
"What will the quality of these reports be? Variable of course," Simon said. "But that's the nature of the beast."
The Web site currently features extensive footage of Tea Party protests, including interviews with activists and roundtable discussions.
From here, Simon wants to use the network of volunteer reporters for future assignments. Reynolds, who is also a law professor at the University of Tennessee, said he'll cover the protest in Knoxville and then return to co-anchor an online broadcast from his home.
"I've got an HD studio in my basement," he said. "If we can cover it in a way that traditional media isn't and capitalize on that interest, then that seems like a good thing."
Pajamas TV is just one online aspect to the tea party movement. Dozens of Web sites -- some independent, some sponsored by organizations -- have sprung up in support of the anti-tax rallies. Participants have used these forums, as well as social-networking platforms like Facebook and Twitter, to connect and plan more rallies.
TeaPartyDay.com, for instance, keeps an online list of hundreds of volunteer organizers across the country, and their contact information.
"There was a claim that this had to be a vast right-wing conspiracy because it sprung up so fast," Reynolds said. "I just had to laugh."
Leslie Marshall, a nationally syndicated radio host, dismissed the tea party protests. She said the mainstream media are not covering them because they're not worthy of coverage.
"It's not sexy. It doesn't bleed," she told FOX News, suggesting the protesters were doing the American Revolutionary a disservice by operating under the "tea party" name.
"You have to look at our history. The reason these people revolted is they didn't want to pay taxes that were not presented by elected officials," she said. "Last time I checked, Obama's not taxing you to death -- he is spending to stimulate the economy and he is an elected official."
Plus she said these protests are coming too late to disrupt government actions like the Wall Street bailouts, which she opposed.
But Michael DePrimo, with the American Family Association, which is helping promote the events, said the lack of mainstream coverage hasn't hindered organizers from getting their message out.
"It's all over the Internet," he said. "I'd be very surprised if any congressmen, or the White House, don't know what's going on."
FOXNews.com's Judson Berger contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/13/pub-moveon/
FOXNews.com - Monday, April 13, 2009
Conservatives may be catching up with their liberal counterparts in building a Web-driven, grassroots campaign to push their agenda.
The online insurgency-in-the-making revolves around the so-called tea parties, the anti-tax protests popping up around the country that they expect to culminate Wednesday -- tax day -- with hundreds of rallies nationwide.
The movement, which expanded over the last two months via the Web, is now relying heavily on independent media Web sites to track and cover the campaign.
The digital evolution of conservative activists comes too late to help John McCain, whose new media arm was left in the dust by President Obama's campaign. But organizers are holding out hope that this movement has juice.
"It's thoroughly viral," said Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit.com blogger who hosts an online news show for the Web site Pajamas TV.
Pajamas TV is on the frontlines of new media coverage for the tea parties. The Web site already has covered some protests and is pledging to recruit an army of citizen journalists, working without pay, to cover the hundreds of protests on April 15.
Roger L. Simon, co-founder of the blog network Pajamas Media, which includes Pajamas TV, said the site went after tea party coverage because the mainstream media didn't.
He said Pajamas TV has more than 200 people registered to report on Wednesday's tea parties. He said they'll send in text reports, as well as videos and photos, to drive what he expects to be about 12 straight hours of online coverage.
"They'll be across the country essentially," he said, calling the operation a "big experiment."
"What will the quality of these reports be? Variable of course," Simon said. "But that's the nature of the beast."
The Web site currently features extensive footage of Tea Party protests, including interviews with activists and roundtable discussions.
From here, Simon wants to use the network of volunteer reporters for future assignments. Reynolds, who is also a law professor at the University of Tennessee, said he'll cover the protest in Knoxville and then return to co-anchor an online broadcast from his home.
"I've got an HD studio in my basement," he said. "If we can cover it in a way that traditional media isn't and capitalize on that interest, then that seems like a good thing."
Pajamas TV is just one online aspect to the tea party movement. Dozens of Web sites -- some independent, some sponsored by organizations -- have sprung up in support of the anti-tax rallies. Participants have used these forums, as well as social-networking platforms like Facebook and Twitter, to connect and plan more rallies.
TeaPartyDay.com, for instance, keeps an online list of hundreds of volunteer organizers across the country, and their contact information.
"There was a claim that this had to be a vast right-wing conspiracy because it sprung up so fast," Reynolds said. "I just had to laugh."
Leslie Marshall, a nationally syndicated radio host, dismissed the tea party protests. She said the mainstream media are not covering them because they're not worthy of coverage.
"It's not sexy. It doesn't bleed," she told FOX News, suggesting the protesters were doing the American Revolutionary a disservice by operating under the "tea party" name.
"You have to look at our history. The reason these people revolted is they didn't want to pay taxes that were not presented by elected officials," she said. "Last time I checked, Obama's not taxing you to death -- he is spending to stimulate the economy and he is an elected official."
Plus she said these protests are coming too late to disrupt government actions like the Wall Street bailouts, which she opposed.
But Michael DePrimo, with the American Family Association, which is helping promote the events, said the lack of mainstream coverage hasn't hindered organizers from getting their message out.
"It's all over the Internet," he said. "I'd be very surprised if any congressmen, or the White House, don't know what's going on."
FOXNews.com's Judson Berger contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/13/pub-moveon/
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Charley DAniels hits the nail on the head!
2009 Soap Box Archives
It's Finally Happened
Washington has totally lost its collective mind and is drowning in a sea of make believe that transcends common sense and even political correctness.
I'm going back to Iraq later on in the year, and I can't wait to see what the young men and women in the military think about fighting the "Overseas Contingency Operation."
They actually thought they were fighting the War on Terror, but their new Commander in Chief and the bunch of politically correct, pantywaist loonies who serve under him are afraid of offending Osama bin Laden or some other scum-sucking, head-decapitating terrorist murderers, so they changed horses in mid stream.
The War on Terror is now the Overseas Contingency Operation, terrorism is now referred to as "man caused disasters" and now the White House has decided that they would no longer call the Islamic fanatics -who want to destroy our way of life- "enemy combatants," but so far the Obama administration hasn't thought of anything less offensive. May I suggest "misguided well-meaning foreign citizens"? That sounds like something the White House can run with.
If it wasn't so dangerous it would be funny. Do these people actually think that by calling something by a kinder gentler name they can make it less dangerous? This is downright stupid. Yes, I said it. It's stupid.
It's like saying, "Mr. bin Laden, we're sorry for calling you all those terrible names. We're really sorry, and if we'll stop using those awful descriptions, will you just leave us alone? Can't we all just put some flowers in our hair and live in peace? Besides it was all that awful George W. Bush's idea."
Well Mr. Obama, I might have missed it but I haven't heard you mention 9/11 once, and just in case you've forgotten these noble enemy comba… sorry, "foreign mischief-making citizens", -or whatever you end up calling them- of yours murdered over 3000 of our citizens in three different locations on American soil and your milksop definitions of these pus ball killers is just not good enough for me.
I have some suggestions for your vocabulary:
Rattlesnake - triangle-headed surface crawler
Black Widow Spider - red dotted black circle
Shark - fish with a toothy smile
Grizzly Bear - big cuddly fuzzball
Dynamite - stringed red stick
Ted Bundy - homo sapien with a slight attitude
Jeffrey Dahmer - peculiarly-appetited loner
The media in this country have their heads so far up the collective posteriors of the Obama Administration that all they can do is sit back and say, "Oh isn't he wonderful? Isn't he brilliant? He has compassion and cares about everybody's feelings!"
Folks, please don't let this bunch of new age liberal fanatics pull the wool over your eyes.
Regardless of what the White House says, we are still fighting the War on Terror. If you don't believe it, ask some of the young heroes who patrol the roads of Iraq everyday at the risk of having their Humvees blown to kingdom come by a roadside bomb, not put there by a soldier but by a citizen terrorist and that does not compute into enemy combatant, "peace-depriving individual" or any other ridiculous politically correct term they can come up with, no matter how you cut it.
The more Obama tries to placate these people, the weaker they will perceive us to be and you know what's sad? It will be the truth.
I remember watching a TV show a few years ago when there was a war going on between Israel and their Arab neighbors. I remember the rapper, Vanilla Ice, walking to the microphone, raising his fist in the air and saying, "Peace in the Middle East!"
I think that's a wonderful idea, Mr. Ice. How about you go over there and fix it for us. I'm sure you and Sean Penn could make all of the problems in the Middle East just go away.
These idealistic platitudes may make the people who say it feel good about themselves, but it does absolutely nothing to solve the situation.
The only thing to be accomplished by soft-pedaling the rhetoric will be to give our blood enemies a good laugh.
I can't help but wonder how the coverage of the trade towers bombing would be reported today, would it be something like…?
"Today misguided well-meaning foreign citizens from the Overseas Contingency Operation inflicted a Man Caused Disaster at the World Trade Center depriving some three thousand people -who probably shouldn't have been there anyway- of their livingness, and besides, we're sure they had a good excuse for doing it."
Film at eleven.
What do you think?
Pray for our troops
God Bless America
Charlie Daniels
©Copyright The Charlie Daniels Band
Source: http://tinyurl.com/d7276u
It's Finally Happened
Washington has totally lost its collective mind and is drowning in a sea of make believe that transcends common sense and even political correctness.
I'm going back to Iraq later on in the year, and I can't wait to see what the young men and women in the military think about fighting the "Overseas Contingency Operation."
They actually thought they were fighting the War on Terror, but their new Commander in Chief and the bunch of politically correct, pantywaist loonies who serve under him are afraid of offending Osama bin Laden or some other scum-sucking, head-decapitating terrorist murderers, so they changed horses in mid stream.
The War on Terror is now the Overseas Contingency Operation, terrorism is now referred to as "man caused disasters" and now the White House has decided that they would no longer call the Islamic fanatics -who want to destroy our way of life- "enemy combatants," but so far the Obama administration hasn't thought of anything less offensive. May I suggest "misguided well-meaning foreign citizens"? That sounds like something the White House can run with.
If it wasn't so dangerous it would be funny. Do these people actually think that by calling something by a kinder gentler name they can make it less dangerous? This is downright stupid. Yes, I said it. It's stupid.
It's like saying, "Mr. bin Laden, we're sorry for calling you all those terrible names. We're really sorry, and if we'll stop using those awful descriptions, will you just leave us alone? Can't we all just put some flowers in our hair and live in peace? Besides it was all that awful George W. Bush's idea."
Well Mr. Obama, I might have missed it but I haven't heard you mention 9/11 once, and just in case you've forgotten these noble enemy comba… sorry, "foreign mischief-making citizens", -or whatever you end up calling them- of yours murdered over 3000 of our citizens in three different locations on American soil and your milksop definitions of these pus ball killers is just not good enough for me.
I have some suggestions for your vocabulary:
Rattlesnake - triangle-headed surface crawler
Black Widow Spider - red dotted black circle
Shark - fish with a toothy smile
Grizzly Bear - big cuddly fuzzball
Dynamite - stringed red stick
Ted Bundy - homo sapien with a slight attitude
Jeffrey Dahmer - peculiarly-appetited loner
The media in this country have their heads so far up the collective posteriors of the Obama Administration that all they can do is sit back and say, "Oh isn't he wonderful? Isn't he brilliant? He has compassion and cares about everybody's feelings!"
Folks, please don't let this bunch of new age liberal fanatics pull the wool over your eyes.
Regardless of what the White House says, we are still fighting the War on Terror. If you don't believe it, ask some of the young heroes who patrol the roads of Iraq everyday at the risk of having their Humvees blown to kingdom come by a roadside bomb, not put there by a soldier but by a citizen terrorist and that does not compute into enemy combatant, "peace-depriving individual" or any other ridiculous politically correct term they can come up with, no matter how you cut it.
The more Obama tries to placate these people, the weaker they will perceive us to be and you know what's sad? It will be the truth.
I remember watching a TV show a few years ago when there was a war going on between Israel and their Arab neighbors. I remember the rapper, Vanilla Ice, walking to the microphone, raising his fist in the air and saying, "Peace in the Middle East!"
I think that's a wonderful idea, Mr. Ice. How about you go over there and fix it for us. I'm sure you and Sean Penn could make all of the problems in the Middle East just go away.
These idealistic platitudes may make the people who say it feel good about themselves, but it does absolutely nothing to solve the situation.
The only thing to be accomplished by soft-pedaling the rhetoric will be to give our blood enemies a good laugh.
I can't help but wonder how the coverage of the trade towers bombing would be reported today, would it be something like…?
"Today misguided well-meaning foreign citizens from the Overseas Contingency Operation inflicted a Man Caused Disaster at the World Trade Center depriving some three thousand people -who probably shouldn't have been there anyway- of their livingness, and besides, we're sure they had a good excuse for doing it."
Film at eleven.
What do you think?
Pray for our troops
God Bless America
Charlie Daniels
©Copyright The Charlie Daniels Band
Source: http://tinyurl.com/d7276u
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
The Media Promote Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Pulling Heartstrings and Straining Credibility: The Media Promote Embryonic Stem Cell Research - By Colleen Raezler
Media outlets preyed upon people's emotions this week in its reporting of President Barack Obama's decision to overturn the Bush Administration ban on federally-funded embryonic stem cell research.
Embryonic stem cell research is a hot topic among pro-life advocates because it involves the destruction of human embryos in order to obtain the stem cells needed.
CBS' Chip Reid said of embryonic stem-cells during the March 6 Evening News "Scientists believe that by turning them into cells damaged by injury or disease, they can treat or even cure everything from spine cord injuries to Alzheimer's disease to diabetes."
Typical of ABC's Lisa Stark's weekend reporting on the issue was her explanation during the March 6 World News with Charles Gibson: "The president's move will free up federal dollars for more widespread research on embryonic stem cells, the so-called master cells of the body. Supporters say it may lead to cures for diseases, such as diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimers."
What these reports ignore is that embryonic stem cell research has not produced any positive results Daniel S. McConchie, vice-president of government affairs for Americans United for Life, wrote [1], "Ten years after the first isolation of embryonic stem cells, there is not a single disease that these cells can cure." He adds, "Scientists have been conducting research on mouse embryonic stem cells for over 25 years and are yet unable to cure mice."
Also, reporters didn't mention the report [2] last month that fetal stem cells caused a tumor in an Israeli boy who was given an experimental treatment for a rare brain disease.
But why let the facts get in the way of a good story?
One-Sided Reporting at its Worst
Or a sad story. The networks made sure to feature people who felt that the federal funding ban contributed to their personal tragedies.
CBS' Bill Plante highlighted the story of Henry Stongin-Goldberg during his March 9 report on The Early Show. Stongin-Goldberg died at the age of seven from a rare blood disease that his parents believed could have been cured by embryonic stem-cells. Henry's mother, Lori Strongin, told Plante, "it is too late for us to have helped Henry, obviously, at this point, but it is not too late for us to stand up by the president's side and applaud this incredibly wonderful thing."
Strongin and her husband Allen Goldberg attended the March 9 signing ceremony.
During ABC's March 7 Good Morning America, Kate Snow interviewed journalist David Iverson, who produced the documentary, "My Father, My Brother and Me" about his family's experience with Parkinson's disease. Iverson and his brother currently suffer from the disease and it caused the death of their father. Iverson told Snow that if frozen human embryos "can be used for some benefit, for people with Parkinson's or many other diseases, as your report noted coming into this segment, then, I think you can look at this as actually a pro-life position."
ABC's Stark featured the Ryan family in her March 6 and 7 reports. Tim Ryan and his two children have Type 1 diabetes. Ryan told Stark, "We've lost eight years already. We're just excited to see that the research will finally get a chance to prove itself or not."
Stark also featured Roman Reed, a paralyzed man, on her March 8 World News Sunday segment. Reed stated, "President Obama cares. He's taking a stance on suffering. He's taking a stand for cures." Stark concluded her piece with the emotional appeal of "Roman Reed is convinced, one day, that stem cell research will allow him to walk again. The first step, he says, will come tomorrow at the White House."
None of the reports on ABC or CBS mentioned the fact that researchers have found 73 different diseases [3] that can be helped by adult stem cells, including Type 1 diabetes, spinal cord injuries and Parkinson's disease. And again, embryonic stem cells haven't produced a single positive result.
Ideology Trumping Objectivity?
The stem cell episode again proves there is no statement Obama can make too outrageous for the media not to swallow and propagate. Along with the executive order, Obama issued a memorandum claiming it was his intent to insulate "scientific decisions across the federal government from political influence," according to the Washinton Post.
With their talking points and their marching orders, media outlets used Obama's decision to once again decry George W. Bush for daring to allow morality to inform public policy. ABC's Diane Sawyer introduced senior White House correspondent Jake Tapper's March 9 Good Morning America segment with, "After eight years of highly inflamed debate as we know in the Bush Administration, President Obama is expected to lift the eight-year-old Bush Administration ban on federal embryonic stem cell research." With Bush and his "politics" out of the way, maybe the debate will only be slightly inflamed. Or just kind of red and sore.
Sawyer perfectly set up Tapper's segment, which devoted more time to discussing opponents to Bush's ban on federal funds for embryonic stem cell research than it did to Obama's new policy. Tapper included a 2004 clip of Nancy Reagan saying, "Congress has presented us with a hope called stem cell research, which may provide our scientists with many answers. I just don't see how we can turn our backs on this."
Tapper also featured a 2006 clip of actor Michael J. Fox saying, "I care deeply about stem cell research."
Sawyer ended the segment with a statement by Fox:
Today is a new day. I'm thrilled to see President Obama has honored his commitment to get politics out of science. The last few years have been incredibly frustrating for patients and researchers who believe that embryonic stem cell research has the potential to bring better treatment to many of the patients. I commend the president for recognizing the inherent value of research freedom and creating an environment in which it can flourish.
ABC also heavily depended on Dr. George Daley of the Children's Hospital Boston for commentary:
* March 6, World News with Charles Gibson: "This is one of the fastest moving areas of science and yet we've been restricted. We've been operating with one hand tied behind our back."
* March 7, Good Morning America: "It's allowing scientists to use all of the tools available, all of their creativity, to move as quickly as possible towards cures."
* March 8, World News Sunday: "The new Obama decision is really putting patients first. It's putting patients over ideology. It's going to allow the science to move forward as quickly as possible."
A March 9 Washington Post headline [4] screamed, "Obama Aims to Shield Science From Politics." Staff writer Rob Stein wrote in the article:
The decision by President George W. Bush to restrict funding for stem cell research has been seen by critics as part of a pattern of allowing political ideology to influence scientific decisions across an array of issues, including climate change, and whether to approve the morning-after pill Plan B for over-the-counter sales.
Harold Varmus, co-chair of Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, told Stein, "We view what happened with stem cell research in the last administration as one manifestation of failure to think carefully about how federal support of science and the use of scientific advice occurs. This is consistent with the president's determination to use sound scientific practice, responsible practice of science and evidence, instead of dogma in developing federal policy."
Stein failed to quote any opponents of embryonic stem-cell research in his article and depended solely upon Melody C. Barnes, director of Obama's Domestic Policy Council and Varmus for commentary. Thank goodness there's no ideology or politics involved.
USA Today's March 9 article [5], "Obama Links Scientific Research to Protecting ‘Free Thinking'" followed the same track as Stein's, and refused to cite any opposition to the decision.
ABC and CBS did quote Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Center in various reports. However, the quotes they used sounded like so many more shots in the culture wars rather than statements in a reasonable debate about the merits of embryonic stem cell research vs. adult stem cell research.
Far from rejecting stem cell research, Perkins reasonably stated in a March 6 press release, "We should be increasing funding for adult stem cell treatments, which have been used to treat patients for over 70 diseases and conditions, and we should fund the historic achievements in reprogramming ordinary skin cells into embryonic-like stem cells without compromising ethics by destroying life."
Yet, these are the statements used by CBS and ABC:
* Reid on the March 6 Evening News: "The Family Research Council, a leading anti-abortion group, released this statement, arguing that "taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for experiments that require the destruction of human life."
* Snow on the March 7 Good Morning America: "The Family Research Council last night called this decision, quote, "a slap in the face to Americans who believe in the dignity of human life."
* Perkins on the March 9 Good Morning America: "At best it's ethically and morally challenged. And at worst it's a complete misuse of taxpayer dollars in leading America down the wrong path."
Once again, the media painted pro-life conservatives as knee-jerk ideologues that bring nothing to the debate over stem-cell research.
What is it called when people only provide one side to the story in order to play on people's sympathies regarding a particular topic?
Propaganda.
The media has not been reporting this week. It's been pushing liberal propaganda as absolute truth.
Why are they so afraid to report the other side?
Source URL: http://tinyurl.com/bzw5lr
Media outlets preyed upon people's emotions this week in its reporting of President Barack Obama's decision to overturn the Bush Administration ban on federally-funded embryonic stem cell research.
Embryonic stem cell research is a hot topic among pro-life advocates because it involves the destruction of human embryos in order to obtain the stem cells needed.
CBS' Chip Reid said of embryonic stem-cells during the March 6 Evening News "Scientists believe that by turning them into cells damaged by injury or disease, they can treat or even cure everything from spine cord injuries to Alzheimer's disease to diabetes."
Typical of ABC's Lisa Stark's weekend reporting on the issue was her explanation during the March 6 World News with Charles Gibson: "The president's move will free up federal dollars for more widespread research on embryonic stem cells, the so-called master cells of the body. Supporters say it may lead to cures for diseases, such as diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimers."
What these reports ignore is that embryonic stem cell research has not produced any positive results Daniel S. McConchie, vice-president of government affairs for Americans United for Life, wrote [1], "Ten years after the first isolation of embryonic stem cells, there is not a single disease that these cells can cure." He adds, "Scientists have been conducting research on mouse embryonic stem cells for over 25 years and are yet unable to cure mice."
Also, reporters didn't mention the report [2] last month that fetal stem cells caused a tumor in an Israeli boy who was given an experimental treatment for a rare brain disease.
But why let the facts get in the way of a good story?
One-Sided Reporting at its Worst
Or a sad story. The networks made sure to feature people who felt that the federal funding ban contributed to their personal tragedies.
CBS' Bill Plante highlighted the story of Henry Stongin-Goldberg during his March 9 report on The Early Show. Stongin-Goldberg died at the age of seven from a rare blood disease that his parents believed could have been cured by embryonic stem-cells. Henry's mother, Lori Strongin, told Plante, "it is too late for us to have helped Henry, obviously, at this point, but it is not too late for us to stand up by the president's side and applaud this incredibly wonderful thing."
Strongin and her husband Allen Goldberg attended the March 9 signing ceremony.
During ABC's March 7 Good Morning America, Kate Snow interviewed journalist David Iverson, who produced the documentary, "My Father, My Brother and Me" about his family's experience with Parkinson's disease. Iverson and his brother currently suffer from the disease and it caused the death of their father. Iverson told Snow that if frozen human embryos "can be used for some benefit, for people with Parkinson's or many other diseases, as your report noted coming into this segment, then, I think you can look at this as actually a pro-life position."
ABC's Stark featured the Ryan family in her March 6 and 7 reports. Tim Ryan and his two children have Type 1 diabetes. Ryan told Stark, "We've lost eight years already. We're just excited to see that the research will finally get a chance to prove itself or not."
Stark also featured Roman Reed, a paralyzed man, on her March 8 World News Sunday segment. Reed stated, "President Obama cares. He's taking a stance on suffering. He's taking a stand for cures." Stark concluded her piece with the emotional appeal of "Roman Reed is convinced, one day, that stem cell research will allow him to walk again. The first step, he says, will come tomorrow at the White House."
None of the reports on ABC or CBS mentioned the fact that researchers have found 73 different diseases [3] that can be helped by adult stem cells, including Type 1 diabetes, spinal cord injuries and Parkinson's disease. And again, embryonic stem cells haven't produced a single positive result.
Ideology Trumping Objectivity?
The stem cell episode again proves there is no statement Obama can make too outrageous for the media not to swallow and propagate. Along with the executive order, Obama issued a memorandum claiming it was his intent to insulate "scientific decisions across the federal government from political influence," according to the Washinton Post.
With their talking points and their marching orders, media outlets used Obama's decision to once again decry George W. Bush for daring to allow morality to inform public policy. ABC's Diane Sawyer introduced senior White House correspondent Jake Tapper's March 9 Good Morning America segment with, "After eight years of highly inflamed debate as we know in the Bush Administration, President Obama is expected to lift the eight-year-old Bush Administration ban on federal embryonic stem cell research." With Bush and his "politics" out of the way, maybe the debate will only be slightly inflamed. Or just kind of red and sore.
Sawyer perfectly set up Tapper's segment, which devoted more time to discussing opponents to Bush's ban on federal funds for embryonic stem cell research than it did to Obama's new policy. Tapper included a 2004 clip of Nancy Reagan saying, "Congress has presented us with a hope called stem cell research, which may provide our scientists with many answers. I just don't see how we can turn our backs on this."
Tapper also featured a 2006 clip of actor Michael J. Fox saying, "I care deeply about stem cell research."
Sawyer ended the segment with a statement by Fox:
Today is a new day. I'm thrilled to see President Obama has honored his commitment to get politics out of science. The last few years have been incredibly frustrating for patients and researchers who believe that embryonic stem cell research has the potential to bring better treatment to many of the patients. I commend the president for recognizing the inherent value of research freedom and creating an environment in which it can flourish.
ABC also heavily depended on Dr. George Daley of the Children's Hospital Boston for commentary:
* March 6, World News with Charles Gibson: "This is one of the fastest moving areas of science and yet we've been restricted. We've been operating with one hand tied behind our back."
* March 7, Good Morning America: "It's allowing scientists to use all of the tools available, all of their creativity, to move as quickly as possible towards cures."
* March 8, World News Sunday: "The new Obama decision is really putting patients first. It's putting patients over ideology. It's going to allow the science to move forward as quickly as possible."
A March 9 Washington Post headline [4] screamed, "Obama Aims to Shield Science From Politics." Staff writer Rob Stein wrote in the article:
The decision by President George W. Bush to restrict funding for stem cell research has been seen by critics as part of a pattern of allowing political ideology to influence scientific decisions across an array of issues, including climate change, and whether to approve the morning-after pill Plan B for over-the-counter sales.
Harold Varmus, co-chair of Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, told Stein, "We view what happened with stem cell research in the last administration as one manifestation of failure to think carefully about how federal support of science and the use of scientific advice occurs. This is consistent with the president's determination to use sound scientific practice, responsible practice of science and evidence, instead of dogma in developing federal policy."
Stein failed to quote any opponents of embryonic stem-cell research in his article and depended solely upon Melody C. Barnes, director of Obama's Domestic Policy Council and Varmus for commentary. Thank goodness there's no ideology or politics involved.
USA Today's March 9 article [5], "Obama Links Scientific Research to Protecting ‘Free Thinking'" followed the same track as Stein's, and refused to cite any opposition to the decision.
ABC and CBS did quote Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Center in various reports. However, the quotes they used sounded like so many more shots in the culture wars rather than statements in a reasonable debate about the merits of embryonic stem cell research vs. adult stem cell research.
Far from rejecting stem cell research, Perkins reasonably stated in a March 6 press release, "We should be increasing funding for adult stem cell treatments, which have been used to treat patients for over 70 diseases and conditions, and we should fund the historic achievements in reprogramming ordinary skin cells into embryonic-like stem cells without compromising ethics by destroying life."
Yet, these are the statements used by CBS and ABC:
* Reid on the March 6 Evening News: "The Family Research Council, a leading anti-abortion group, released this statement, arguing that "taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for experiments that require the destruction of human life."
* Snow on the March 7 Good Morning America: "The Family Research Council last night called this decision, quote, "a slap in the face to Americans who believe in the dignity of human life."
* Perkins on the March 9 Good Morning America: "At best it's ethically and morally challenged. And at worst it's a complete misuse of taxpayer dollars in leading America down the wrong path."
Once again, the media painted pro-life conservatives as knee-jerk ideologues that bring nothing to the debate over stem-cell research.
What is it called when people only provide one side to the story in order to play on people's sympathies regarding a particular topic?
Propaganda.
The media has not been reporting this week. It's been pushing liberal propaganda as absolute truth.
Why are they so afraid to report the other side?
Source URL: http://tinyurl.com/bzw5lr
Friday, March 6, 2009
Hitler Youth! Obama Kids! This is a SPOT THE DIFFERENCE game!!!!
Can YOU spot ANY difference?
Sinister similarities aren't there folks? This video was released in Oct 2008... A prediction... And some of you watching it might have thought... "this is silly, Obama is never that extreme"... Well now...
He's been in office for a bit and the Dow sunk like the Titanic struck by 3 icebergs at once... He's spent more money than any other person on earth throughout ALL history... Not his money... Of course not, he's a damn socialist, he spent YOUR money! And the economy is still sinking... His economic policy is doing what drilling holes in the hull of Titanic ship did to save it from sinking once it hit that iceberg...
Yes we can? Change we can believe in? I don't think so!
What say you?
Sinister similarities aren't there folks? This video was released in Oct 2008... A prediction... And some of you watching it might have thought... "this is silly, Obama is never that extreme"... Well now...
He's been in office for a bit and the Dow sunk like the Titanic struck by 3 icebergs at once... He's spent more money than any other person on earth throughout ALL history... Not his money... Of course not, he's a damn socialist, he spent YOUR money! And the economy is still sinking... His economic policy is doing what drilling holes in the hull of Titanic ship did to save it from sinking once it hit that iceberg...
Yes we can? Change we can believe in? I don't think so!
What say you?
Study: Dow's Decline Is Fastest for a New President in Nearly a Century.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen faster under President Obama than under any new president in at least 90 years, according to a review conducted by Bloomberg.
Bloomberg reports that since Inauguration Day, the Dow has fallen 20 percent, leading at least one investor to dub this the "Obama bear market." The Dow has also dropped 31 percent since Election Day.
Despite a string of government bailout offers and Obama's advice earlier this week that Americans should be buying stock while shares are low, the Dow has continued to freefall.
Bloomberg reported that Obama is at risk of breaking a historical trend -- in which the Dow soars an average of close to 10 percent in the first year after a Democrat wins the presidency.
Source: here
Bloomberg reports that since Inauguration Day, the Dow has fallen 20 percent, leading at least one investor to dub this the "Obama bear market." The Dow has also dropped 31 percent since Election Day.
Despite a string of government bailout offers and Obama's advice earlier this week that Americans should be buying stock while shares are low, the Dow has continued to freefall.
Bloomberg reported that Obama is at risk of breaking a historical trend -- in which the Dow soars an average of close to 10 percent in the first year after a Democrat wins the presidency.
Source: here
Jobless Rate Soars to 8.1 Percent, Highest Since 1983
Obama's economic plan - the reality!
WASHINGTON -- The nation's unemployment rate bolted to 8.1 percent in February, the highest since late 1983, as cost-cutting employers slashed 651,000 jobs amid a deepening recession.
Both figures were worse than analysts expected and the Labor Department's report shows America's workers being clobbered by a wave of layoffs unlikely to ease in the coming months.
"There is no light at the end of the tunnel with these numbers," said Nigel Gault, economist at IHS Global Insight. "Job losses were everywhere and there's no hope for a turnaround any time soon."
Since the recession began in December 2007, just two months after the Dow Jones industrial average hit a record high of 14,000 and the unemployment rate stood at 4.7 percent, the economy has lost 4.4 million jobs, more than half of which occurred in the past four months.
The net loss of 651,000 jobs in February came after even deeper payroll reductions in the prior two months, according to revised figures released Friday. The economy lost 681,000 jobs in December and another 655,000 in January.
Employers are shrinking their work forces and turning to other ways to slash costs -- including trimming workers' hours, freezing wages or cutting pay -- because the recession has eaten into their sales and profits. Customers at home and abroad are cutting back as other countries cope with their own economic problems.
With employers showing no appetite to hire, the unemployment jumped to 8.1 percent from 7.6 percent in January. That was the highest since December 1983, when the jobless rate was 8.3 percent.
All told, the number of unemployed people climbed to 12.5 million. In addition, the number of people forced to work part time for "economic reasons" rose by a sharp 787,000 to 8.6 million. That's people who would like to work full time but whose hours were cut back or were unable to find full-time work.
If part-time, discouraged workers and others are factored in, the unemployment rate would have been 14.8 percent in February, the highest on record.
Meanwhile, the average work week in February stayed at 33.3 hours, matching the record low set in December.
Job losses were widespread last month.
Construction companies eliminated 104,000 jobs. Factories axed 168,000. Retailers cut nearly 40,000. Professional and business services got rid of 180,000, with 78,000 jobs lost at temporary-help agencies. Financial companies reduced payrolls by 44,000. Leisure and hospitality firms chopped 33,000 positions.
The few areas spared: education and health services, as well as government, which boosted employment last month.
Disappearing jobs and evaporating wealth from tanking home values, 401(k)s and other investments have forced consumers to retrench, driving companies to lay off workers. It's a vicious cycle in which all the economy's negative problems feed on each other, worsening the downward spiral.
A new wave of layoffs hit this week.
General Dynamics Corp. said Thursday it will lay off 1,200 workers due partly to plummeting sales of business and personal jets that forced it to cut production. Defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp., and Tyco Electronics Ltd., which makes electronic components, undersea telecommunications systems and wireless equipment, also are trimming payrolls.
The country is getting bloodied by fallout from the housing, credit and financial crises-- the worst since the 1930s. And there's no easy fix for a quick turnaround, economists said.
President Obama is counting on a multipronged assault to lift the country out of recession: a $787 billion stimulus package of increased federal spending and tax cuts; a revamped, multibillion-dollar bailout program for the nation's troubled banks; and a $75 billion effort to stem home foreclosures.
Even in the best-case scenario that the relief efforts work and the recession ends later in 2009, the unemployment rate is expected to keep climbing, hitting 9 percent or higher this year. In fact, the Federal Reserve thinks the unemployment rate will stay elevated into 2011. Economists say the job market may not get back to normal -- meaning a 5 percent unemployment rate -- until 2013.
Businesses won't be inclined to ramp up hiring until they are sure any economic recovery has staying power.
The economy contracted at a staggering 6.2 percent in the final three months of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century, and it will probably continue to shrink during the first six months of this year.
Given Friday's grim figures, Gault predicted the economy would probably shrink in the first quarter at a pace of at least 6 percent.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress earlier this week that recent economic barometers "show little sign of improvement" and suggest that "labor market conditions may have worsened further in recent weeks."
Source: here
WASHINGTON -- The nation's unemployment rate bolted to 8.1 percent in February, the highest since late 1983, as cost-cutting employers slashed 651,000 jobs amid a deepening recession.
Both figures were worse than analysts expected and the Labor Department's report shows America's workers being clobbered by a wave of layoffs unlikely to ease in the coming months.
"There is no light at the end of the tunnel with these numbers," said Nigel Gault, economist at IHS Global Insight. "Job losses were everywhere and there's no hope for a turnaround any time soon."
Since the recession began in December 2007, just two months after the Dow Jones industrial average hit a record high of 14,000 and the unemployment rate stood at 4.7 percent, the economy has lost 4.4 million jobs, more than half of which occurred in the past four months.
The net loss of 651,000 jobs in February came after even deeper payroll reductions in the prior two months, according to revised figures released Friday. The economy lost 681,000 jobs in December and another 655,000 in January.
Employers are shrinking their work forces and turning to other ways to slash costs -- including trimming workers' hours, freezing wages or cutting pay -- because the recession has eaten into their sales and profits. Customers at home and abroad are cutting back as other countries cope with their own economic problems.
With employers showing no appetite to hire, the unemployment jumped to 8.1 percent from 7.6 percent in January. That was the highest since December 1983, when the jobless rate was 8.3 percent.
All told, the number of unemployed people climbed to 12.5 million. In addition, the number of people forced to work part time for "economic reasons" rose by a sharp 787,000 to 8.6 million. That's people who would like to work full time but whose hours were cut back or were unable to find full-time work.
If part-time, discouraged workers and others are factored in, the unemployment rate would have been 14.8 percent in February, the highest on record.
Meanwhile, the average work week in February stayed at 33.3 hours, matching the record low set in December.
Job losses were widespread last month.
Construction companies eliminated 104,000 jobs. Factories axed 168,000. Retailers cut nearly 40,000. Professional and business services got rid of 180,000, with 78,000 jobs lost at temporary-help agencies. Financial companies reduced payrolls by 44,000. Leisure and hospitality firms chopped 33,000 positions.
The few areas spared: education and health services, as well as government, which boosted employment last month.
Disappearing jobs and evaporating wealth from tanking home values, 401(k)s and other investments have forced consumers to retrench, driving companies to lay off workers. It's a vicious cycle in which all the economy's negative problems feed on each other, worsening the downward spiral.
A new wave of layoffs hit this week.
General Dynamics Corp. said Thursday it will lay off 1,200 workers due partly to plummeting sales of business and personal jets that forced it to cut production. Defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp., and Tyco Electronics Ltd., which makes electronic components, undersea telecommunications systems and wireless equipment, also are trimming payrolls.
The country is getting bloodied by fallout from the housing, credit and financial crises-- the worst since the 1930s. And there's no easy fix for a quick turnaround, economists said.
President Obama is counting on a multipronged assault to lift the country out of recession: a $787 billion stimulus package of increased federal spending and tax cuts; a revamped, multibillion-dollar bailout program for the nation's troubled banks; and a $75 billion effort to stem home foreclosures.
Even in the best-case scenario that the relief efforts work and the recession ends later in 2009, the unemployment rate is expected to keep climbing, hitting 9 percent or higher this year. In fact, the Federal Reserve thinks the unemployment rate will stay elevated into 2011. Economists say the job market may not get back to normal -- meaning a 5 percent unemployment rate -- until 2013.
Businesses won't be inclined to ramp up hiring until they are sure any economic recovery has staying power.
The economy contracted at a staggering 6.2 percent in the final three months of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century, and it will probably continue to shrink during the first six months of this year.
Given Friday's grim figures, Gault predicted the economy would probably shrink in the first quarter at a pace of at least 6 percent.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress earlier this week that recent economic barometers "show little sign of improvement" and suggest that "labor market conditions may have worsened further in recent weeks."
Source: here
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