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Michael Wade
Podcast for 03 May 09
In this podcast, Michael, and Dale discuss the resignation of Justice Souter, California's Ballot Propositions, and the events in Pakistan.
The direct link to the podcast can be found here.
The intro and outro music is Vena Cava by 50 Foot Wave, and is available for free download here.
As a reminder, if you are an iTunes user, don't forget to subscribe to the QandO podcast, Observations, through iTunes. For those of you who don't have iTunes, you can subscribe at Podcast Alley. And, of course, for you newsreader subscriber types, our podcast RSS Feed is here. For podcasts from 2005 to 2007, they can be accessed through the RSS Archive Feed.
Newspeak Update
Remember: billions in earmarks are insignificant but, millions in bonuses are outrageous; "bi-partisan" actually means "one-party rule"; and now "bankruptcy" means "strong." From Jake Tapper's Twitter feed:
POTUS says bankruptcy "not a sign of weakness"…
Can't you just see the White House Press Corps (excepting Tapper, of course) looking like the bunch of lapdogs that they are in response to that statement?
MORE: Tom Maguire is less than impressed with the President's reasoning about shared sacrifice with respect to the Chrysler bankruptcy:
Uh, hello, how about the US taxpayer? Any props, exhortations, or acknowledgment of their role here? Sorry, MY role?
The Congress – yeah, they have to sacrifice an endless stream of donations from the UAW.
Operation Blame GOP in Full Force
Swine flu, the topic du jour, was in need of a villain (per the usual MSM narrative), and right on cue, John Nichols delivers in the Nation:
GOP Know-Nothings Fought Pandemic Preparedness
posted by John Nichols on 04/27/2009 @ 08:00am
When House Appropriations Committee chairman David Obey, the Wisconsin Democrat who has long championed investment in pandemic preparation, included roughly $900 million for that purpose in this year's emergency stimulus bill, he was ridiculed by conservative operatives and congressional Republicans.
Obey and other advocates for the spending argued, correctly, that a pandemic hitting in the midst of an economic downturn could turn a recession into something far worse — with workers ordered to remain in their homes, workplaces shuttered to avoid the spread of disease, transportation systems grinding to a halt and demand for emergency services and public health interventions skyrocketing. Indeed, they suggested, pandemic preparation was essential to any responsible plan for renewing the U.S. economy.
But former White House political czar Karl Rove and key congressional Republicans — led by Maine Senator Susan Collins — aggressively attacked the notion that there was a connection between pandemic preparation and economic recovery.
Now, as the World Health Organization says a deadly swine flu outbreak that apparently began in Mexico but has spread to the United States has the potential to develop into a pandemic, Obey's attempt to secure the money seems eerily prescient.
And his partisan attacks on his efforts seem not just creepy, but dangerous.
According to this theory, if not for GOP opposition to one particular line item in the stimulus bill, everything would be perfectly hunky-dory right now. The leftosphere, having received their marching orders, responded dutifully:
Daily Kos: Collins, Republicans, Killed Off Enhanced Pandemic Preparedness
Think Progress: In Attempt To Placate The Right Wing, Collins and Specter Endorsed Pandemic Flu Funding Cut
Christy Hardin Smith: "Pandemic preparedness? Another GOP casualty. Dude, where's my planning?"
Washington Monthly: GREAT MOMENTS IN POLITICAL INSIGHT ("On Feb. 5, the same as Collins unfortunate remarks, Karl Rove had an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal complaining about stimulus package, in part because it included money for 'pandemic flu preparations.'
Sometimes, these folks just don't think ahead.")
It's hard to know where to begin with this sort of nonsense. Competing for most ridiculous premise is the idea that a couple of remarks from Susan Collins and Karl Rove (who does not vote in Congress) were able to back off the entire Democratic Party. You know, the ones who control the House and Senate? I mean, how spineless do you have to be if you control the House, the Senate, and the White House, but you can't stand up to one little old lady from Maine and a former politico? Pretty wimpy I'd say.
We're also apparently expected to believe that pandemic flu was a big issue during the days of stimulus debate, instead of the impending financial collapse unless Congress did something (anything!). My recollection of those heady days in January and February conjures up much back-and-forth about whether the bill would save jobs, but nothing about whether we should do more to prevent a flu pandemic. Come to think of it, isn't that why it was called the "stimulus bill" in the first place, as in to stimulate the economy? And wasn't there a bunch of hullabaloo about so much pork being in the bill? Yes, I'm sure I read about that somewhere. Indeed, even Chuck Schumer was calling appropriations for pandemic preparations "porky":
He [Chuck Schumer] said the compromise hammered out between Senate Democrats and moderate Republicans – which has enough support to get it past any threat of a filibuster – was far better than that passed by the House on Jan. 29.
"All those little porky things that the House put in, the money for the [National] Mall or the sexually transmitted diseases or the flu pandemic, they're all out," Schumer said.
Clearly, beefing up the federal government's response to a flu outbreak was not the priority during the stimulus debate.
The "GOP did it" analysis also seems to suffer from that problem of time beginning on the day Obama was elected. It's further complicated by the fact that, even if Obey's appropriation had been included in the stimulus bill, it wouldn't have the government in any better of a position than it is now (a fact which the legislators seem to understand since they had exempted Obey's provision from the requirements that the money appropriated be used within 30 to 90 days (i.e. section 1103)). Regardless, the idea that the money appropriated less than two months ago would save our bacon today is unrealistic at best.
But doesn't that just beg the question: what preparations have been made for a flu pandemic? Seeing as it's so frightfully important that we are ready and eager to blame an entire political party for potential ill health, why is it that we're only hearing about it now? What took Congress so long? Well, nothing actually:
What's scarier in Washington, the prospect of a flu virus that could kill millions or the possibility that voters will toss out any politician who fails to prepare the nation for such a disaster? A pandemic could be a true global catastrophe, of course. But along the Potomac the second threat is also very real. That's a big reason why both the White House and Congress are rushing to boost America's capacity to produce vaccines and drugs against flu and other diseases.
On Oct. 18 the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee hurriedly passed a bill that would offer vaccine makers new liability protections and incentives for research. And the Administration is about to issue a flu pandemic plan expected to be extremely aggressive. "There is a sense of urgency on both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue," says Senate Budget Committee Chairman Judd Gregg (R-N.H.).
That would be an article from October 2005 when the "White House" referred to President Bush, and "Congress" referred to the Republican controlled body. Seems like the Republicans were worried about a flu outbreak after all. How worried? Enough to spend gobs of money on it which, although comparatively paltry in these post-bailout days, completely dwarfs the proposal from Rep. Obey:
In 2004, Congress approved Project BioShield, a plan that would spend $5.6 billion over 10 years to jump-start production of vaccines and drugs to counter bioterror threats.
Again, that would be a GOP-controlled Congress. Of course, the GOP hasn't always been in control. Many will recall that the Democrats swept into power in 2006. This was heralded as the harbinger of great change, and the first wave of the Democratic majority. What fun! Seeing as how important legislating against a flu pandemic is to the Democrats, surely they did something to improve upon the meager sum approved under the reign of the hated Republicans:
The fiscal 2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act working its way through Congress this week allocates only $76 million for pandemic influenza preparedness funding for the Health and Human Services Department, though the Bush administration requested a budget of $870 million for it.
The bill also chopped in half requested funding for the HHS office managing efforts to develop a national electronic health record system.
While House and Senate appropriations committees said they continue to support HHS pandemic flu preparation efforts, they indicated in the bill that they decided to cut the 2008 pandemic preparation budget because approximately $1.2 billion remains available from funds provided in previous appropriations.
Oops … I wonder how much of that $76 million is still left? It kinda makes you think that preventing and/or preparing for a flu pandemic wasn't really such a big priority for the Dems, now doesn't it? Yet somehow, in the heat of the debate over whether it was a good idea to mortgage the future of a few generations of Americans, it's Susan Collins' and the GOP's fault that a swine flu outbreak has occurred, and the federal government may not be prepared for it. Yeah, that makes sense.
Well, I guess we should just chalk it all up to another crisis that Rahm doesn't want to go to waste. Nothing like the good ole game of playing politics with people's fears of becoming deathly ill. Not that any of the leftosphere would ever approve of such tactics, seeing as how moral and sanctimonious they seem to get. [/eyeroll]
MORE: I wonder which would be more effective in dealing with the swine flu outbreak — appropriating hundreds of millions more dollars on pandemic preparations, or staffing the HHS that would be in charge of actually spending the money? I know how John Nichols and the Nation (and, therefore, the leftosphere) would answer. For them, this must just be an inconvenient distraction:
The Obama administration declared a "public health emergency" Sunday to confront the swine flu — but is heading into its first medical outbreak without a secretary of Health and Human Services or appointees in any of the department's 19 key posts.
President Barack Obama has not yet chosen a surgeon general or the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. His choice to run the Food and Drug Administration awaits confirmation.
Smoothest transition EVAH!
EVEN MORE: I'm guessing that the fact-checkers at the Nation have been sacked:
(1) It's a good point to make that Collins somehow thought pandemic preparation money was not an economic issue deserving of inclusion in the stimulus package. But Collins was for the money being included in some other form. Now, I think her reasoning is stupid — pandemic prevention is part of a recovery plan. But it's not like she was against the very idea of it.
In fact she has voted for a number of bills that included pandemic prevention in the past, including the war funding bill of 2007. This undermines her point about which basket the funding is in, but also proves that she's not against the idea of it.
(2) Relatedly, this money is actually the tail end of money ($7.1 billion worth) that President George W. Bush pushed for in 2005. So this is actually Bush money! To pin all this on the GOP is, thus, a little silly.
(4) Importantly, the vast majority of the pandemic prevention money was passed in March's omnibus bill, which passed the Senate by (uncounted) voice vote.
And that's from a Kosmonaut [via: MM].
Podcast for 26 Apr 09
In this podcast, Michael, and Dale discuss the torture memos and their possible legal consequences, and the possible securities law violations that the treasury committed in administering the TARP program.
The direct link to the podcast can be found here.
The intro and outro music is Vena Cava by 50 Foot Wave, and is available for free download here.
As a reminder, if you are an iTunes user, don't forget to subscribe to the QandO podcast, Observations, through iTunes. For those of you who don't have iTunes, you can subscribe at Podcast Alley. And, of course, for you newsreader subscriber types, our podcast RSS Feed is here. For podcasts from 2005 to 2007, they can be accessed through the RSS Archive Feed.
Cap & Trade: Even More Expensive Than Thought
Sometimes math is actually pretty easy. For example, when someone, say some MIT professors, writes a report claiming that a tax on certain businesses will raise a specific amount of revenue for the government ($366 Billion to be exact), and that revenue is divided by an estimated number of American households (117 Million), there isn't any doubt about how much money per household that tax represents ($366 b./117 m. = $3,128.21). Unless, that is, there are politics involved. Then the math becomes Bistromathic, which allows one of the progenitors of the original numbers to declare "you're doing it wrong!" and almost everyone will believe him. Unfortunately for them, real math operates on real facts, and thus reality is destined to intrude upon their fantasy.
That, in a nutshell, is basically how the argument over costs of the Obama Administration's cap and trade policy has unfolded. MIT's John Reilly co-authored the original study, Republicans used the numbers to derive a cost per taxpayer, Reilly balked, and the media/leftosphere went into paroxysms of outrage about how the GOP were all a bunch of liars. But that was just the main course. For dessert, there will be crow (my emphasis):
During a lengthy email exchange last week with THE WEEKLY STANDARD, MIT professor John Reilly admitted that his original estimate of cap and trade's cost was inaccurate. The annual cost would be "$800 per household", he wrote. "I made a boneheaded mistake in an excel spread sheet. I have sent a new letter to Republicans correcting my error (and to others)."
While $800 is significantly more than Reilly's original estimate of $215 (not to mention more than Obama's middle-class tax cut), it turns out that Reilly is still low-balling the cost of cap and trade by using some fuzzy logic. In reality, cap and trade could cost the average household more than $3,900 per year.
The $800 paid annually per household is merely the "cost to the economy [that] involves all those actions people have to take to reduce their use of fossil fuels or find ways to use them without releasing [Green House Gases]," Reilly wrote. "So that might involve spending money on insulating your home, or buying a more expensive hybrid vehicle to drive, or electric utilities substituting gas (or wind, nuclear, or solar) instead of coal in power generation, or industry investing in more efficient motors or production processes, etc. with all of these things ending up reflected in the costs of good and services in the economy."
In other words, Reilly estimates that "the amount of tax collected" through companies would equal $3,128 per household–and "Those costs do get passed to consumers and income earners in one way or another"–but those costs have "nothing to do with the real cost" to the economy. Reilly assumes that the $3,128 will be "returned" to each household. Without that assumption, Reilly wrote, "the cost would then be the Republican estimate [$3,128] plus the cost I estimate [$800]."
In Reilly's view, the $3,128 taken through taxes will be "returned" to each household whether or not the government cuts a $3,128 rebate check to each household.
In short, Reilly's claim of "you're doing it wrong!" amounts to parsing of direct vs. indirect costs. Yes, the cap and trade taxes will be passed onto the consumers in some way, but those aren't the "real costs" to the economy. Only those direct expenditures made necessary by the policy (the "but for" costs) are "real costs." As long as the federal government provides a benefit to the taxpayers with the cap and trade taxes, then those higher utility bills are a wash:
In Reilly's view, the $3,128 taken through taxes will be "returned" to each household whether or not the government cuts a $3,128 rebate check to each household.
He wrote in an email:
It is not really a matter of returning it or not, no matter what happens this revenue gets recycled into the economy some way. In that regard, whether the money is specifically returned to households with a check that says "your share of GHG auction revenue", used to cut someone's taxes, used to pay for some government services that provide benefit to the public, or simply used to offset the deficit (therefore meaning lower Government debt and lower taxes sometime in the future when that debt comes due) is largely irrelevant in the calculation of the "average" household. Each of those ways of using the revenue has different implications for specific households but the "average" affect is still the same. […] The only way that money does not get recycled to the "average" household is if it is spent on something that provides no useful service for anyone–that it is true government waste.
He added later: "I am simply saying that once [the tax funds are] collected they are not worthless, they have value."
Essentially, Reilly is making the pernicious claim that a dollar in the taxpayer's hand is the same as one in the government treasury. But we all know that's not true, including (I'll bet) Mr. Reilly.
No matter how efficient the government is, it will never be able to take $X from me and return exactly $X of benefit. Indeed, at least some portion of that $X will be needed just to support the system of taking the money and providing the benefit. Already the taxpayer is at a loss.
Moreover, there is an implicit assumption in Reilly's explanation that, in exchange for this de facto tax, the government benefits provided would be returned in proportion to their costs. But that would defy all historical precedence when it comes to the federal government which, once the money is received, tends to dole it back out to suit its own purposes. As Merv aptly states:
I really doubt the government will return any cost of cap and trade dollar for dollar. If they did it would be just an expensive money swap. To the extent the government does return any money you can bet that it will be based on conduct they want from people and not unconditionally. They will be imposing their choices on American families and their lifestyles.
To be fair, Reilly tacitly acknowledges this fact when he explains what use of his numbers would be acceptable to him:
"If the Republicans were to focus on that revenue, and their message was to rally the public to make sure all this money was returned in a check to each household rather than spent on other public services then I would have no problem with their use of our number."
The fact is, cap and trade is going to cost taxpayers significantly more than the measly $13/week tax cut that the Democrats and the left are so excited about. While the $3,900 cost cited by John McCormack above is an accurate accounting of what Reilly's study portends, even that is probably an unrealistically low estimate. Consider how the same policy has affected Europe:
Europe's experiment with cap and trade has turned into a bureaucratic mess that has failed to live up to its initial expectations. A report by the GAO reveals that the supply of carbon permits has exceeded the demand causing allowance prices to fall substantially. This policy failure has caused the European economy to suffer and expectations to reduce CO2 emissions have been lowered.
Additionally, Europe's cap and trade experiment has led to decreased employment opportunities and higher energy prices across the continent. In France manufacturers have packed up and left for Morocco. In the Netherlands factories are forced to close early to meet emissions standards. In Germany energy prices have risen 5% each year sparking widespread outrage. All across Europe evidence shows that cap and trade has hurt the economy. If the United States implements a European style cap and trade system, estimates show that it could wipe out between 1.2-1.8 million American jobs by 2020.
So the 95% of you who received a "tax cut" from Obama had better start saving that extra money up. You're going to need every penny to service the debt required to pay for your costs of cap and trade.
NYT: Spectacularly Wrong … Yet Again
Will someone please buy these people a subscription to Google or something? In trying to compare TANF and TARP spending, Nancy Folbre makes a rather glaringly error:
Robert Rector and Katharine Bradley of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative research organization, estimate that federal welfare spending amounted to $491 billion in fiscal 2008. (They don't explain what specific programs they included in this estimate, and I'll try to unpack it in a future post.) Even their extremely high estimate remains far below estimates of the total of $2.5 trillion spent on financial bailouts this year. The libertarian Cato Institute often emphasizes the issue of corporate welfare, but it's remained remarkably quiet so far on the topic of bailouts.
David Boaz begs to differ:
Excuse me?
Since she linked to one of our papers on corporate welfare, we assume she's visited our site. How, then, could she get such an impression? Cato scholars have been deploring bailouts since last September. (Actually, since the Chrysler bailout of 1979, but we'll skip forward to the recent avalanche of Bush-Obama bailouts.) Just recently, for instance, in — ahem — the New York Times, senior fellow William Poole implored, "Stop the Bailouts." I wonder if our commentaries started with my blog post "Bailout Nation?" last September 8? Or maybe with Thomas Humphrey and Richard Timberlake's "The Imperial Fed," deploring the Federal Reserve's help for Bear Stearns, on April 14 of last year?
Boaz goes onto reproduce a video compilation of Cato scholars denouncing bailouts on "more than 90 radio and television programs." He also produces an impressive list of papers, articles and media appearances which seriously challenge Folbre's notion of "remarkably quiet."
Folbre doubles down here:
You're right. The Cato Institute website has not been silent. It just didn't meet my expectations of adequate noise.
Yeah. Too bad her post didn't meet reality's expectations for factual.
North Dakota's "Secessionist" Resolution
What to make of this trend? I think Oklahoma got the 10th Amendment push-back ball rolling, Montana advanced the ball several yards, Texas got into the game recently (albeit, too glibly), several other states are getting their shots in, and now North Dakota takes it's turn.
The resolution in the North Dakota legislature asking the federal government to begin recognizing the 10th amendment and to stop overreach into state matters, the one the Fargo Forum wrote off as being part of a "secessionist movement, has passed in the Senate. By a strictly party-line vote, unfortunately, meaning not one Democrat in the legislature had enough respect for the sovereignty of North Dakota to vote for it.
The resolution now goes to the House, where I expect it will also pass. Also, I'm guessing, by a strictly party-line vote. Which, if it happens, would be a small bright spot in an otherwise dim legislative session. It takes a certain level of conviction for politicians to vote for a resolution like this one. Would that the Republicans voting for it now had the courage of those convictions when faced with legislation that grows spending and government in the state.
At Say Anything, Rob Port has a copy of a state Senator Joe Miller's speech in support of the resolution from the Senate floor. I recommend you go there and read it.
Combined with some Governors rejecting portions of the stimulus funds, and the Tea Parties breaking out all over the country, I'd say it's a good sign that people are finally telling Washington to take a hike. Personally, I would say that both Porkbusters and the Sunlight Foundation are owed some credit as well, but either way it's about time that the federal government was reminded of its place. Granted, it's a fairly small reminder, but maybe one that can be built upon.
So where does all of this lead anyway. Is there any hope that all of this momentum will lead to less federal government interference? How about some support for repealing the 17th Amendment? I'd like to think that it will end up reducing the size of government (i.e. electing fiscally conservative representatives who will cut taxes and greatly slash spending), but once that horse left the barn, the barn was burned to the ground and a giant spending dance was done on the smoldering ashes. Nevertheless, is there some small ray of hope that the states will rein in our profligate Congress?
The AIPAC and Harman Scandal
The blogosphere is abuzz after this Jeff Stein piece in CQ Politics, essentially regurgitating old news:
Rep. Jane Harman , the California Democrat with a longtime involvement in intelligence issues, was overheard on an NSA wiretap telling a suspected Israeli agent that she would lobby the Justice Department reduce espionage-related charges against two officials of the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee, the most powerful pro-Israel organization in Washington.
Harman was recorded saying she would "waddle into" the AIPAC case "if you think it'll make a difference," according to two former senior national security officials familiar with the NSA transcript … In exchange for Harman's help, the sources said, the suspected Israeli agent pledged to help lobby Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif., then-House minority leader, to appoint Harman chair of the Intelligence Committee after the 2006 elections, which the Democrats were heavily favored to win.
Seemingly wary of what she had just agreed to, according to an official who read the NSA transcript, Harman hung up after saying, "This conversation doesn't exist."
The fact that Harman was recorded via an NSA wiretap has some in the blogosphere declaring a victory for irony:
There's a large poetic justice factor here in that Harman has been a big defender of potentially abusive surveillance so she doesn't, personally, have much to stand on as an opponent of abusive surveillance when applied to her.
Thinking about that further reenforces (sic) the point that selective, unaccountable surveillance is very dangerous. A president could do a great deal to gin up pretexts to wiretap members of congress and blackmail them even without the members doing anything unusually egregious. But it's also a reminder that we have a political system that's substantially powered by a kind of systematic, quasi-legalized bribery.
Matthew Yglesias' self-righteousness is supposedly justified by the fact that Rep. Harman backed the Bush Administration's terrorist surveillance program, fondly remembered by the left as the inappropriately named "domestic warrantless wiretapping" program. However, Harman was not caught on tape by that program, but instead via a regular, old court-approved wiretap:
It's true that allegations of pro-Israel lobbyists trying to help Harman get the chairmanship of the intelligence panel by lobbying and raising money for Pelosi aren't new.
They were widely reported in 2006, along with allegations that the FBI launched an investigation of Harman that was eventually dropped for a "lack of evidence."
What is new is that Harman is said to have been picked up on a court-approved NSA tap directed at alleged Israel covert action operations in Washington.
Nevertheless, thanks to Harman's transgressions against the anti-war/anti-Bush left, in the form of her support of anti-terrorism activities, she is not getting any sympathy from Democrats. Which is a shame because it doesn't necessarily appear that she's done anything wrong here.
Because the article provides a paucity of specific information, I'm hard-pressed to figure out what Harman's illegal action could have been. All the allegations are to unnamed sources, and there is no indication of what the supposed illegal activity was. The insinuation is that, based on earlier reports, Harman would help out AIPAC in return for the lobbying group raising money for Pelosi, who would then show her appreciation by promoting Harman to the Chairmanship of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Yet the facts as alleged don't even support that theory.
First of all, there is nothing wrong with Harman "waddling into" the AIPAC case merely to advocate for a lighter sentence for the Israeli defendant accused of spying. It may not have been smart, nor exactly savory, but it would not have been illegal as far as I know. If instead Harman had tried to use her official powers to alter the outcome someway (which is not alleged), I could see wher there may some problems. Merely making a case for a lighter sentence does not even begin to rise to that level, however.
Furthermore, I'm not so sure that there is any real quid pro quo here. If after Harman "waddled into" the spy case, AIPAC went to Nancy Pelosi and said "that Harman chick is one swell gal! You should promote to the head of Senate intelligence panel, or something," what would be the problem? Does AIPAC not have the freedom of speech to say they like one congressman over another? Some might think that AIPAC is a foreign lobbyist firm (it's not), and thus should be restricted from certain activities with respect to supporting political appointments, but that's not true. Foreign lobbyists are more restricted when it comes to elections, but no lobbyist is prevented from advocating for the appointment of an already elected official to committee assignment or the like. So, again, based on the information provided, I'm just not sure what the charge is here.
Interestingly enough, if there is anyone who should be worried about this latest report (assuming any of it is true), it is Alberto Gonzales. According to Stein's article, other than the fact that Harman was caught on tape, the only other new news here is that "contrary to reports that the Harman investigation was dropped for 'lack of evidence,' it was Alberto R. Gonzales, President Bush's top counsel and then attorney general, who intervened to stop the Harman probe."
Why? Because, according to three top former national security officials, Gonzales wanted Harman to be able to help defend the administration's warrantless wiretapping program, which was about break in The New York Times and engulf the White House.
As for there being "no evidence" to support the FBI probe, a source with first-hand knowledge of the wiretaps called that "bull****."
The identity of the "suspected Israeli agent" could not be determined with certainty, and officials were extremely skittish about going beyond Harman's involvement to discuss other aspects of the NSA eavesdropping operation against Israeli targets, which remain highly classified.
But according to the former officials familiar with the transcripts, the alleged Israeli agent asked Harman if she could use any influence she had with Gonzales, who became attorney general in 2005, to get the charges against the AIPAC officials reduced to lesser felonies.
Harman responded that Gonzales would be a difficult task, because he "just follows White House orders," but that she might be able to influence lesser officials, according to an official who read the transcript.
According to the rest of the story, the Justice Department and the CIA were ready to conduct a full scale investigation of Harman because of the transcripts, but Gonzales stepped in and stopped it because he needed her help:
According to two officials privy to the events, Gonzales said he "needed Jane" to help support the administration's warrantless wiretapping program, which was about to be exposed by the New York Times.
Harman, he told Goss, had helped persuade the newspaper to hold the wiretap story before, on the eve of the 2004 elections. And although it was too late to stop the Times from publishing now, she could be counted on again to help defend the program
He was right.
On Dec. 21, 2005, in the midst of a firestorm of criticism about the wiretaps, Harman issued a statement defending the operation and slamming the Times, saying, "I believe it essential to U.S. national security, and that its disclosure has damaged critical intelligence capabilities."
Pelosi and Hastert never did get the briefing.
And thanks to grateful Bush administration officials, the investigation of Harman was effectively dead.
The problem with this version of the story is that it fails to allege what wrongdoing Harman was being accused of. Lots of "sources familiar with the transcript" are quoted, although none are named, and not a single person identified which statute or regulation Harman allegedly violated. Why is that?
Of course, regardless of whether Harman had actually committed any crime, if Gonzales called the dogs off for political reasons (as the story asserts), then he has a problem. I don't think it would be obstruction of justice per se since, after all, he was head of the DoJ. Short-circuiting a criminal investigation for political gain, however, is exactly the sort of use of public office that Harman appears to be accused of in the Stein story.
At this point it is difficult, if not impossible, to tell exactly what happened. There are tiny whiffs of spice conjured up here there, but no real meat on any of the bones. Stein even admits at the end of his story that none of the supposed gains bargained for were actually realized:
Ironically, however, nothing much was gained by it.
The Justice Department did not back away from charging AIPAC officials Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman for trafficking in classified information.
Gonzales was engulfed by the NSA warrantless wiretapping scandal.
And Jane Harman was relegated to chairing a House Homeland Security subcommittee.
All of which calls the veracity of the story into question. I don't know what actually went down, and apparently neither does anyone else whose willing to be named. Until there are some solid facts produced and names put behind them, this whole "scandal" looks pretty contrived in my opinion. Which really just leaves two questions: (1) Why this old story now, and (2) Cui bono? Your guess is as good as mine.
Podcast for 19 Apr 09
In this podcast, Bruce, Michael, Bryan, and Dale discuss the use of torture on terror suspects, and the week's Tea Parties.
The direct link to the podcast can be found here.
The intro and outro music is Vena Cava by 50 Foot Wave, and is available for free download here.
As a reminder, if you are an iTunes user, don't forget to subscribe to the QandO podcast, Observations, through iTunes. For those of you who don't have iTunes, you can subscribe at Podcast Alley. And, of course, for you newsreader subscriber types, our podcast RSS Feed is here. For podcasts from 2005 to 2007, they can be accessed through the RSS Archive Feed.
Torture: What Is It Good For?
Paralleling the song, the answer should be "absolutely nothing" with a testosterone laced "Huhn!" thrown in for good measure. Personally, I have my doubts.
This is not a new topic here at QandO, as my esteemed brethren have weighed in on numerous occasions, each time settling on an emphatic "No! Torture is not acceptable." While it would be difficult, if not impossible, to put into words the esteem that I hold for my blog brothers, I have to say that I disagree. That may be because I have never been in the military, nor been subjected to anything close to the sort of forced life-or-death decision making that breeds a camaraderie distinct unto itself. And it may be because I have the luxury (thanks to said camaraderie) to simply ponder these things at my leisure. Just the same, I cannot say that I am opposed to torture of our nation's enemies, nor can I honestly say that any experience will change my opinion.
First, the reason I even broach the subject: release of "secret torture memos" (link added):
President Barack Obama's administration said it would Thursday release four memos, with sections blacked out, covering the Bush administration's justification for CIA interrogations of terror suspects … The memos were authored by Jay Bybee and Steven Bradbury, who at the time were lawyers for the then-president George W. Bush's Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel.
The memos provided the legal framework for a program of interrogations of "war on terror" detainees that included techniques widely regarded as torture such as waterboarding, in which a detainee is made to feel like he is drowning.
I have not read the memos, and I probably won't. The sole reason being that I've slogged through enough of these legal documents to have a pretty good idea of what's in there, and to know that there is plenty of qualifying language to mitigate whatever damning quotes are eventually culled therefrom. In point of fact, these "memos" are little more than legal research projects specifically drafted so as to provide both the underlying judicial framework for the issue at hand, and the best guess at how the current policy might fit into that framework under certain factual parameters. They are merely legalese for "this is what the law says, and this is how the policy may not run afoul of that law."
Leaving aside definitional problems (does being confined with an insect constitute "torture"?), let's just assume that what the memos described was not only policy, but a policy that was carried out. Why is that a bad thing?
Tom Maguire provides some thoughts:
IN OUR NAME: The newly released torture memos are cold-blooded and clearly client-driven – the lawyers knew the answers they wanted and reasoned backwards. Quick thoughts:
1. The US concern about actually harming someone comes through on every page. In fact, at one point (p. 36 of .pdf) the legal team wonders whether it would be illegal for the interrogators to threaten or imply that conditions for the prisoner could get even worse unless they cooperate. I suppose these memos will provide welcome reassurance of our underlying civility to both the world community and the terrorists in it.
2. There are some fascinating legal gymnastics on display. My favorite might be on p. 39, where we learn that Article 16 of the Geneva Convention does not apply because the CIA is operating in areas not under US jurisdiction. Nor do the protections of the US Constitution extend to aliens being held prisoner under US control but abroad outside of US jurisdiction.
However, another contender for the "It Would Take A Lawyer To Think Of This" prize is the argument that waterboarding does not constitute a threat of imminent death because, even though the prisoner thinks they are drowning, they are not, and anyway, the mental effect is transitory and does not result in long term mental harm – call it the "Psych!" defense. (The absence of long term harm comes from the experience of US sailors and soldiers passing through SERE school in the service of their country; whether a jihadist waterboarded by the Great Satan would also rebound psychologically is not explored here). I would think that a game of Russian Roulette played with a fake bullet might pass all these requirements other than the SERE experience.
Tom's comparison to Russian Roulette intrigues me because I think it is the perfect analogy. I've written before that, in my opinion, waterboarding crosses the legal line because of the way the law is written. I've never been convinced that the technique crosses any moral boundary because I'm not so sure that it's any different than placing a caterpillar in the same cell as a man who's deathly afraid of caterpillars. Playing on the mind's fears is part and parcel of both manipulation and torture, but does not mean that the two are equivalent. Morally speaking, therefore, I have doubts that techniques akin to waterboarding amount to "torture" per se.
But assuming that they do, again, what exactly is the problem? Aficionados of the subject will say that torture is ineffectual. Yet, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed would appear to be a test case in contrast to that wisdom, as would the fact that our own soldiers are routinely informed that "everyone breaks eventually." Moreover, if it really is ineffectual, why does it continue to happen? Clearly, somebody somewhere is getting results.
Even leaving aside the efficacy vel non of torture, does it hold such moral deficiency as to abandon it altogether? Here I plead ignorance because, in my mind, I view enemies to my country as enemies to my family. By that I mean, if anyone were to hurt, or even threaten to hurt, a member of my family, I can't even begin to express the unholy hell I would visit upon such a cretin. When I view A Time To Kill I can't help but think that that the murderous, rapist scum got off too lightly (which, of course, was the point of Grisham's characterization). Other than the fear of anything nefarious happening to my children, my greatest fear is of what I would try to do to those who hurt them or even suggested that they might do so. I have the same feeling when it comes to anyone who seeks to destroy my country and her citizens with whom I've (gratefully) cast my lot. My morality directs me to say that what any of you visit upon the least of my fellow countrymen, I will repay you a thousandfold and more. That may be my Irish bravado speaking, but it speaks as honestly as any man possibly can.
So I am left with the conundrum of how my actions in response to an attack on my family should be any different than an attack on my country, and why I should feel any differently about the perpetrators of such actions, whether they have followed through with their plans or not. I understand that my response — i.e. the sanctioning of "torture" — may not be entirely rational. Indeed, if a firetruck runs over my child while rushing to save an orphanage, I would feel no less grief, and probably wish an equal amount of horror upon the transgressors as I would upon 19 hijackers who murdered 3,000 of of my fellow citizens. In fact, probably more. There is nothing particularly rational in such a response. But I have little confidence that, should I have the chance to avoid either disaster, I would refrain from running the perpetrators' minds through a psychological cheese grater if there was even a small chance that the disaster could be avoided. That may be little more than a testament to my weakness as a moral human being, but I think that I'm not alone.
Torture, however defined, is not a pretty thing. I make no bones about having zero regard for my enemies (i.e. those who want to destroy my country a la 9/11). If subjecting them to extreme psychological and/or physical discomfort, or the threat of such, will prevent further attacks, then I confess that I am happy to reward those monsters with the penalty they richly deserve. I accept that I may be wrong in such thinking, but I don't find that case has been successfully made as of yet. Indeed, I defy you to take this test and declare that "torture" can never be acceptable.
The ultimate point is, torture is a horrible thing and should be avoided if at all humanly possible. But, unfortunately, we live in a world where the "humanly possible" has limits. In those cases, why is it that torture should be off limits? Is there a rational reason? I'm willing to be convinced, but I have my doubts.


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By Shellee Vandeventer Players from the Everett and Monroe Lacrosse clubs (with some Snohomish, Stanwood and Overlake players) converged on Kasch Park in Everett Friday, Aug. 23, in hopes of beating t [...]Read More
Runners kick off inaugural 12K for K-12 race
Runners took off from the starting line on Saturday, Aug.17, for the inaugural 12K for K-12 Fun Run, a project of the Sultan-Monroe #160 Masonic Lodge. The run consisted of a 6-kilometer route and a 1 [...]Read More
Bearcats get face time with Seahawk Russell Wilson
By Chris Hendrickson, Monitor The Monroe Bearcats 7-on-7 team got to spend some time with Seattle Seahawks on Wednesday! As special guests of Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll, the team attended practice at [...]Read More
Lake Tye Triathlon includes sprint, Olympic lengths
[...]Read More
Morgan Horse Show raises funds for charity
Megan Johnson, 15, of Snohomish wipes the brow of Jazztime Just Jamaica, her mount in the C-Fair Charity Morgan Horse Show on Sunday at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe. The Morgan horse owne [...]Read More
Motocross draws many competitors over the weekend
R. Pearson hustles his Yamaha motocross bike down a short chute in the fast and furious first lap of the "250 Intermediate / 250 Junior Moto" event, part of the Cycle Barn Bonus Motocross [...]Read More
Tykes take to the track
Dakota Wilkinson leads a restart on his way to victory in the Jr. Honda E Main event at the Quarter Midget Racing facilities Sunday in Monroe. The local club is working toward its regional race [...]Read More
Northwest Wakesurf Association holds 5th annual contest on Lake Tye
For the fourth time this summer, wake riders converged on Lake Tye last weekend to compete on what organizers called "one of the premier locations for professional wakeboard events in the [...]Read More
Drift racing draws big crowds to speedway for relatively new sport
By Chris Hendrickson, Monitor There is nothing quite like a summer day at the racetrack. Engines so loud you can feel the rumble in your chest, the smell of burning rubber, the sound of squeali [...]Read More
King of Wake draws large crowd to Lake Tye
By Polly Keary, Editor, with Elana Pigeon, intern As wakeboarders from around the world gathered to compete in Monroe over the weekend, thousands of local spectators gathered on the shore of Lake Tye [...]Read More

subset: commoncrawl


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Welcome prepare2blossomblog.com
There are many things that you can do when you are bored. Many people choose to watch television, others choose to go outside and play games, while others spend their time inside playing games. The options for things to do if you get bored are endless which means we really have no reason at all in the first place to even be bored.
If you are sick of TV and cannot go outside because of the weather or some other reason, then you may decide to turn to indoor games. Among your choices are various board games, which are great if you are not alone or video games of some sort. For those who do not have someone else to play with them, a computer game would be a great choice.
Lucky for them, there are many options for online games available. One of the most popular games people are now choosing to play is free bingo online. Even if you have never played bingo before, you can still have a lot of fun playing games like Cheeky Bingo or Posh bingo.
If you are interested in playing bingo online, but are not sure where to start, check out online casino reviews to find out if there is a perfect game out there just for you and your style of play. Maybe you have heard of ITV Bingo, but are not sure that it is for you. Do a search for reviews of this particular game to see what others may like and not like about it.
While looking at reviews you may find out that others really love this game and learn more about how to play it. This would be especially helpful to someone who has never played bingo before, let alone online bingo. While having a bingo game to start off loving is a great thing, you may also find other bingo games that you like just as much. Once you know how to play one game, the others will become easier. Before you know it, you will wonder where all of your bored time went, because like many online games, playing bingo online can be addictive!


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What type are the bearings? Are they the enclosed ones or the open classic ones? Eventually I'll be servicing the bearings myself during winter. Would the Park Tool's PolyLube 1000 lubricant work well re-greasing the bearings after cleaning them?
Thank you in advance.
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Good spyware detection, extensive configurability
Pop-ups still exist after a cleanup, some malware sends the program into a loop of block requests
Bottom Line
Power users will like the configurability and drill-down options, but most consumers should opt for Spy Sweeper.
Lavasoft's Ad-aware, which once shared our Editors' Choice for this category, has been noticeably outpaced by the newest version of Spy Sweeper, although it remains an average solution.
Of the versions in the Ad-aware family, the SE Plus edition is the one that makes the most sense for consumers, as it has real-time blocking (with its Ad-Watch module), which is not available in the free Personal edition. The Professional edition ($39.95), with its command-line and log-file support, is better suited to corporate use.
Ad-aware's interface hasn't changed much since we last reviewed the app. It still offers both a summary view and a detailed view of detected pests, along with extensive information about them. Right-clicking on a threat brings up options for quarantining, deleting, or ignoring it. The program even lets you open up a Registry editor to examine a find in detail.
Ad-aware SE offers full scans as well as real-time blocking. The program did pretty well at full adware and spyware scanning. But Spy Sweeper caught both keyloggersand far more spyware overallwhile Ad-aware wasn't aware of either keylogger. Less dangerous than missing keyloggers, but still irritating, was how Ad-aware allowed pop-ups to appear after our cleanup, even when we weren't browsing. This is a clear sign that adware is lurking.
We have praised Ad-Watch's real-time blocking in the past, but we've upped the rigor of our testing since then. Ad-Watch seemed to handle our new setup well, with frequent alerts that the program was preventing malware from installing on the system. But after our infection stage, more than a few of the apps it had detected and supposedly prevented were still present, along with some others the program didn't catch.
Perhaps the most annoying problem with Ad-aware is the way its real-time blocking deals with problems that outsmart it. With the common adware program Istbar, for example, Ad-aware goes into an infinite loop of repeatedly asking if you want to block it. To recover use of the system we had to accept Istbar. Worse, our subsequent full scan wouldn't get rid of it afterwards, so we were forced to turn to a free toolSpybot Search & Destroyto delete it.
Still, not every machine is as mucked up as our latest test bed, and there are plenty of users who will be pleased with Ad-aware's decent performance. We just have to point out that on the constantly changing spyware battleground, Spy Sweeper and several others came out noticeably ahead this time around.


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We make many different signs - house signs, home sign and name plates, door numbers, memorial plaques, business signs and wheel covers. If you need advice with any of the signs, plaques, business signage or gifts do call us 01769 561186 / 561355 between 9.30 am and 4pm
Our main workshops are based in North Devon, but we send our signs all over the world. Have a look through the links below - we do offer a huge variety of signage! You can place orders by phone, email or via our online shopping cart. You can pay by online banking, sending a cheque or card (online or by phone) Also order online via Klarna and pay after delivery
Home & House Signs Door Numbers
Stone and Slate Signs
Wooden House Signs
Cast Metal Name Plates
Sign Boards
Traditional Framed Signs
Vinyl Signs, Lettering, Stickers & Wall Quotes
Notices Boards, Poster Cases, A-Boards, Blackboards
Stable Door Name Plates
Bronze Memorial Plaques Cast Bronze Signs
Black and White Signs
Clear Acrylic Name Plates
Metal Signage
Stone-Like Corian
We can make all kinds of wedding signs along other wedding paraphernalia. The rustic slate place name settings are very popular indeed. We also have directional signage, banners, sand blasted jars, picnic benches, magnetic signs and more.
Safety Signage
4x4 Wheel Covers
Printed Banners
Personalised Gifts
We are giving away Personalised Cheese Boards!
To be in with a chance, just click the Facebook Like link below.
If you win one we will contact you on Facebook - Good Luck
|Call us 9.30am - 4pm
01769 561186 / 561355
Meet the team
Didn't find what you were looking for?
Click on full colour Site Map
or use search engine below
From our Customers
We receive lots of lovely thank you emails from our customers - here are some of the latest.
To see more go to our Blog or see Customer Photos on Pinterest
Date: Mon, Aug 10, 2015 at 11:09 PM
Hi Caroline, just to to let you know the sign came through & is great so just a quick email to say many thanks ;0)
All the best
Date: Tue, Aug 11, 2015 at 11:32 AM
Subject: - Ref:1507.SS.048
Hi, thankyou so much,received our sign yesterday and we love it, brilliant service, brilliant team. Dawn
Date: Thu, Aug 6, 2015 at 10:21 AM
Subject: Thank you.
Good morning,
Thank you very much for the memorial post. The helpfulness of the telephone receptionists, the attention to detail by the designer, including the provision of 4 proof designs to ensure what ended up on the post was what we had in our heads, plus the quality of workmanship of the finished work impressed us both.
Liz and Bob Ledwidge
Date: Tue, Aug 4, 2015 at 9:32 AM
Hello Anne,
We received the sign yesterday and are delighted with it – looks amazing so thank you.
Karen Kuderovitch
Kindest regards.
Date: 31 July 2015 at 19:24
Subject: Signs for Holly Lodge
Dear Claire, This is just to let you know the signs have arrived and many residents have already complimented Sign-Maker on the quality. Thank you for doing a superb job. Your Company deserves all the success it has achieved. Please thank all the staff.
Best Regards
Date: Fri, Jul 31, 2015 at 9:53 AM
I have just got the sign, opened the parcel and........
Please thank everyone involved, especially the guys in the foundry! Craftsmanship is alive and well in there! BRAVO ! Sorry about the paw, we have a pair of BIG Maine Coones, we call them the " Gray Twins", all 18 lbs of them, at 17months. All new things must be investigated immediately!
Date: 17 July 2015 at 10:57
Just a quick note to say how delighted we are with the sign you
created for us. It is now hanging beautifully outside our front driveway.
Many thanks it arrived in perfect condition.
Here is the message sent from the visitor:
Thank you for the wonderful house name sign . The artist did a fantastic job on the personalised image , it was not an easy image to paint . Again thank you very much.
Thank you for using Banckle.Chat.
Best Regards,
The Banckle Team
Date: 16 July 2015 at 14:10
Dear The Sign Maker Team,
My name is Sophie Pendry, myself and my friends ordered a plaque from you a couple of weeks ago in memory of our friend Dan Hougham who was tragically lost in a car accident 7 weeks ago.
I wanted to take the time out to personally write you a letter of thanks, We were absolutely over whelmed by the finished result as it's exactly what we were after. I can assure you so many tears were shed upon only showing Dan's Friends before our event on the 31st July to unveil it's new home to the family and the rest of Dan's Friends. I physically can't thank you enough for getting every detail spot on with this and it's meant the world to all of us.
The process from start to finish was as simple as anything due to your wonderful team. Your service is impeccable and i didn't have any doubts when ordering this. It's been extremely hard for all of us losing Dan as he was essentially a brother to us all. Thank you for every phone call, every email and every proof it's all perfection.
I know it's not much but from the bottom of all of our hearts we thank you all for making our dreams come true and giving us something Dan deserves more than anything through his honour that we can visit forever more.
We can never be more grateful.
All our love
The Guildford Lot
Date: 6 July 2015 at 20:24
Hi Anne
Our sign arrived on Friday and I just wanted to say a HUGE Thank You for getting it to us in good time for our Royal Visit tomorrow.
It looks great and we are really pleased with it. I think we have even managed to sort out suitable screws – I didn't realise that they would be such a problem!
Thank you for all your help.
Kindest regards.
Date: 26 June 2015 at 12:42
I just wanted to say how delighted we are with the slate memorial for our parents that you have produced. It is perfect, and the lettering is extremely clear to read. We can now look forward to the interment service on Monday and will lay the memorial with pride.
Many thanks,
Elisabeth Slater
Date: Wed, Jun 24, 2015 at 9:37 PM
Hi Caroline
Just to inform you I have received my plaque. I am so happy with it, it's perfect.
My daughter passed away very suddenly in January she was only 34 and had
just recently got married and was very happy. She had a child at a very
young age which sadly died - I don't have anything but my grandsons grave to
which I can place a memorial, I wanted something different and you have helped
accomplish this. I thank you and your family team members very much.
Best wishes to you all.
Date: Wed, Jun 17, 2015 at 2:05 PM
The design is as requested and I hereby re-confirm the order. I look forward to delivery in the near future. Many thanks for the simplicity of the ordering process and also for the helpful telephone conversation I had.
Yours sincerely,
Tony Hhaywood
Date: Mon, Jan 26, 2015 at 8:29 AM
Dear Caroline, Laura and team,
Just to say many thanks for arranging the remake so swiftly, I'm really delighted with my house number. I'll e-mail a photo when it's on the wall!
Kind regards,
Michelle (Dodd)
Date: 4 February 2015 at 11:35
Hi at Sign Maker
I have received my order today, check it and all seems good. I like it and hope it serves my purpose for many years.
Can I thank all involved with the process, as I found you all very 'Business Like' in your approach etc. The process through was aided by the contact with you for advice that I needed.
Thank You all.
Sent from:
And with, Kind Regards.
Chris Gleed
Date: 11 February 2015 at 13:30
I have just received my sign and just wanted to say I am very pleased with it.
Also the packing was excellent.
Thank you
Margaret Terry
Sent from my iPad
Date: 20 February 2015 at 13:22
Subject: Christmas Gift
I just wanted to say a big thank you for helping me find the perfect gift for my parents! Your customer service was excellent and you were very helpful at all stages. Even though I had left the ordering a little late for Christmas, you did everything you could to ensure the present got to me in time, actually being delivered at 1pm on Christmas Eve!!!!
I have attached a couple of pictures of my parent's new shed and their new sign that they are very proud owners of!!!
Thank you again and I would definitely recommend you to family/friends and anyone needing a bespoke designed sign.
Kind regards,
Sylvia Mills
Date: 23 February 2015 at 15:10
Subject: A big THANK YOU
Hello Tina and all of the Sign Maker Team,
I would just like to thank you for the superb Edelweiss house sign you made for us. It was a Christmas present for my eldest son who has a sort of Alpine themed house. He was really pleased with the house sign; it really was beautifully made. You also dealt with all the requests and modifications we made very patiently and I am so glad we listened to your advice; it is a wonderful addition to my son's home.
It was very impressive, and no doubt a tremendous relief to you, that you got all of those signs out just before Christmas!
Many thanks to all all the team.
Kind regards,
Tara (Lifton)
Date: Wed, Mar 4, 2015 at 10:57 AM
Subject: Rose Cottage
Kindest regards,
Date: 6 March 2015 at 13:52
Hi Anne
The sign arrived this morning!
It is really lovely - my family are extremely pleased with it
Thank you so very much
With regards
Felicity Siviter
Sent from my iPad
Date: 15 March 2015 at 23:29
Many thanks again for our plaque. Our tree planting went very well on Friday and the family were all impressed with the plaque. I appreciate you rushing it through so it could make it in time.
Best wishes, Davina Hanley
Sent from my iPad
Date: 16 March 2015 at 14:03
Hi Anne,
My friend received it this morning. Thank you very much for all your work to make it happen quickly!
Kind Regards,
Date: 17 March 2015 at 18:26
Dear Felicity et al,
I would like to confirm receipt of the completed custom wheel cover today; it arrived in perfect condition and within one day of shipping.
On behalf of my wife (the vehicle owner) and I, we would like to say a big "thank you" for an excellent product. The quality of the picture could not be better and my wife is very pleased indeed.
Your customer support during the design and proofing process was first class. Please ensure that our appreciation goes to the whole team.
Chris Hamer.
Date: Fri, Mar 20, 2015 at 12:44 PM
I have received the goods referred to below today and feel that I must congratulate you on the the quality of the cross that you have provided.
You have captured exactly what I wanted. No small task given that everything was done through your website. Please pass on my thanks and
appreciation to all the people who may have been involved.
Mel Parker
Date: Tue, Mar 24, 2015 at 10:29 AM
Good morning Caroline
This is Ron Boyd here I would just like to thank you for such a quick response for my plaque I am really pleased with it is a brilliant job I would recommend you to anybody in the future.
Kind regards
Sent from my iPad
Date: Tue, Mar 24, 2015 at 12:00 PM
Hi Caroline,
Just to say the sign arrived today, and it's lovely. Thank you.
Phil & Judith Ward
I just received my sign. I can't tell you how impressed and altogether pleased I am about it. When ordering I wasn't at all sure if it would be of a quality I expected but I was positively surprised. Thank you so much for this piece of art. If ever I should need another sign I will get back to you.
Yours sincerely
Tiku Astin
Date: 30 March 2015 at 11:42
Thank you so much, it arrived today and is brilliant.
Linda Dean
Date: Wed, Apr 8, 2015 at 6:46 PM
Very happy to confirm that the new sign arrived yesterday and would thank you for your
excellent service of dealing with this problem..
Yours sincerely
M Greening
Date: Thu, Apr 9, 2015 at 9:05 AM
Dear Laura
Thank you for your e-mail - yes the parcel finally arrived late yesterday afternoon, probably because my husband (P Collier) made yet another call to make the point a bit more forceful than I did!
The sign is absolutely fantastic - excellent quality wood - so looking forward to it being put up today!
I would definitely have no hesitation in recommending your company.
With many thanks & regards,
Date: 29 March 2015 at 10:49
Thank you very much for doing the wheel cover for my car it looks
fantastic and very professional for my business
Date: Fri, Apr 10, 2015 at 3:35 PM
Hi Team
I have just taken delivery of the above order and want to thank you for providing such a high quality product.
Ordering anything online without really being able to see it is a little worrying but your web site is excellent and the plaques are even better than I expected.
You also got the order done very quickly when you knew I had a deadline.
I will certainly recommend you
Thanks again
Kind Regards
Ros Anson
Date: Fri, Apr 17, 2015 at 5:55 AM
Hi Guys
Sign arrived safe.
Beautifully made, well done, we love it,
Date: Mon, Apr 20, 2015 at 3:45 PM
Thank you Laura and Danielle,
I received the completed address sign in the mail on Saturday.
It is perfect; just what I was looking for when I placed the order.
I think it is the only UK manufactured sign on our street.
Thanks for the good work!
Peter Johnson
Florida, USA
Date: 21 April 2015 at 11:23
Subject: Plaque
Just to let you know that the plaque arrived safely today and it is perfect.
Many thanks to Caroline & Anne for their patience whilst trying to meet my requirements.
Kindest regards
Avril Daniels
Sent from Samsung Mobile
Date: Tue, Apr 21, 2015 at 7:46 PM
Hi Caroline - our 'Keystone' sign arrived today ... and is perfect! Many thanks to you all for such a great job :-)
Kind regards
On 4 May 2015 at 09:04, Joint Manager wrote:
Hello Anna, Danielle and the sign maker team,
Just a quick e-mail to thank you all for the casket and plaque you made for my late father. The circumstances were made so much more straightforward with your help and assistance, including the shipping to Ireland. Great web site and service.
thank again.
Date: Sat, May 2, 2015 at 7:43 AM
Many thanks ..sign already on the wall.. Thanks for efficient service
Malcolm Greenaway
Date: 13 May 2015 at 12:09
My order arrived today in perfect condition and on the day I needed it. I would like to thank you for the care and attention you have shown in dealing with this. Gwen
Sent from my ASUS
Date: 15 May 2015 at 12:51
I am just writing to inform you that I have just received the most splendid piece that was ordered.
My family and myself are absolutely delighted with the final result and would like to thank you so much for your warm manner and an absolutely outstanding piece xxx
Thank you very much
Kind Regards
Heather Taylor
Sent from my Sony Xperia™ smartphone
Date: 18 May 2015 at 15:26
Dear Sign Maker Team
I realise that it is a long time ago that you dispatched the XI Squadron commemoration plaque.
However, I just wanted to let you know that it was presented to the Squadron at RAF Coningsby last week as part of the Squadron's 100th Anniversary celebrations. All agreed that the plaque was FANTASTIC and it will serve as a longtime reminder of a memorable occasion.
Many thanks to you all.
With best regards
Doug Aylward
Date: 20 May 2015 at 14:12
Just to say that the signs arrived today. They are brilliant- we are so pleased, thank you.
Regards David Quarmby
Sent from my iPhone
Date: Wed, Jun 3, 2015 at 12:16 AM
Dear Signmaker Team,
The sign for our house arrived today and looks great - thank you so much
Best wishes,
Prudence Hobbs
Date: 8 June 2015 at 11:21
HI Anne
Just a quick email to say thank you for the quick turnaround, I have received the plaque this morning and I am really happy with it, so thank you.
Kind regards
Jill Edge
Franchise Sales Manager
Date: 10 June 2015 at 10:18
I received the new "GWENHALDEN" signboard this morning at 9.00 a.m. and I am delighted with the product. The service you have provided from first enquiry to completion has been highly efficient and remarkable and I will be very happy to tell any enquirers who they should contact to upgrade their own outworn signboards.
David Dabbs
Date: Fri, Jun 12, 2015 at 5:17 PM
Our sign arrived on the 10th, we would just like you to know that we are very pleased with it
Doreen Hester
Date: Fri, Jun 19, 2015 at 7:36 PM
Hi Laura
We are so pleased with our house name plate, which is now in place, so we have attached a photo of it for your records
Kind Regards
Brian and Wendy Thorn
Click here to see lots more reviews on our Blog or see Customer Photos on Pinterest
The Sign Maker would like to thank the support from the EU / Defra / HotSW LEP and DCC in our recent expansion which included
the new vinyl workshop and the purchase of CNC router. For more information please visit:-
The EU Commission's Rural Development Page


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Interviews are something I have been meaning to make a part of this little blog for some time. If the opportunity presented itself to ask a few questions to someone who contributed to the awesomeness of the 80s, I wanted to share those answers with you right here. Again, lucky for me (and hopefully you), I do get to share a little more awesomeness with you.
For this issue, that awesomeness is Joyce Hyser Robinson. I had the privilege of an interview with the gorgeous actress who I will always remember for her starring role in the 1985 film Just One of the Guys. I fully admit that it is one of my favorite teen comedies of the 80s. I did not see it in the theater, but saw it dozens of times on cable TV and since then have owned it on both VHS and DVD. I remember raving about it to friends back then when it seemed many had not even heard of the movie, but it has unexpectedly gained popularity and almost a cult status over the years.
Just One of the Guys is rather compelling and this has a lot to do with the performance of Joyce Hyser as "Terri Griffith." After feeling she is a victim of gender discrimination, the "aspiring journalist learns the hard way that there's more to being a dude than just stuffing a tube sock down your pants" when she decides to pose as a boy at a different school to prove her point. The story has some holes, but if you suspend your disbelief for a little while you will be entertained by a well-meaning film that deals with some real issues. The movie was nominated for Young Artists Awards including Best Family Motion Picture and (for Joyce Hyser) Best Starring Performance By a Young Actress. Here is the trailer for Just One of the Guys…
Now on to the interview with Joyce Hyser which begins with several questions about Just One of the Guys…
Q: What was your initial take on the film? Did you see it as just a teen comedy or making a deeper more important statement on sexism/feminism and social status.
Joyce: Although it may be cloaked in a silly teenage romp I was ABSOLUTELY drawn to this project because of its subversive gender identity messages (for both young women, and young men.) The film actually operates on so many different levels and deals with so many teenage issues from homophobia to the pressure that is put on kids to conform to a certain ideal, that it always surprised me that at the time of its release it was not really judged for the sum of all its parts. I always did get a good laugh over one criticism that I saw repeatedly, and that was that I was not really "believable as a guy." Really? Are you kidding? I WASN'T a guy. I was never meant to be a guy. I was always just a girl in high school PRETENDING to be a guy. It was a fine line I had to play, because I was supposed to be a teenage girl, not an actress playing the part of a boy.
I had my questions about the script when I first read it, but as soon as I met Lisa (Gottlieb, the director) and we started talking about the character and her ideas for the film I knew we had the opportunity to make a movie that had a little more gravitas than your normal teen comedy. The film is definitely dated, but it's chockfull of interesting subtext that resonates to this day.
Q: Do you remember the audition process for the role of Terri Griffith? You were gorgeous, yet someone thought you could pull off playing the role of a boy. You were in your mid-20s and playing a high school student. It turned out that you were perfect for the role, but did you realize what you were getting in to at the time?
Joyce: Actually I think I was 26 when we made the movie and I had to screen test for it. There were 3 women who tested and one of them was Jennifer Jason Leigh. Going into it I was a little nervous about Jennifer because she got a part over me once before, but once the test was over I felt pretty confident. I did not think that anyone could play that part as well as I could.
Q: I have to ask about two physical things. First is the hair cut. How did you feel about having to cut your hair? Did you wear a wig for the early scenes when your hair was long? How long did it take you to grow it back out after the film?
Joyce: I actually had long hair before the movie and they had to cut it off and make a wig for the long hair, which by the way I hated!!! They spent a fortune on that wig and it was just g-d awful! My hair grows VERY fast so it didn't take that long for it to grow back in. It's funny that I never had short hair again after that, because it was actually very flattering.
Q: Second is the topless scene. The scene when you reveal yourself as a girl is quite memorable. Was that in the original script and did you have any reservations about the nudity? What reaction to the scene did you get after the film was released and even today?
Joyce: I had a NO nudity clause in my contract and I was quite adamant about not doing the reveal scene. Lisa (Gottlieb, the director) recently reminded me of a story that at the time had absolutely cemented my decision to not show the real deal. I had discussed the script and the scene with a very close friend, another actor, who had advised me against it. Her argument went something like this….. "Honey, with those breasts if you go topless in that scene, no one you meet will ever look into your eyes again." That just freaked me out!
The crazy thing about my decision to actually shoot it the way we did, was that this was long before the internet. Had I known then that one shot would end up on porn sites one day – there is not a chance in hell I would have ever done it. In the end I agreed to shoot it both ways if, and only if, the decision would be totally mine on which way we would go. After watching it both ways it was undeniable to me that this was in no way gratuitous and in fact it was essential to the unfolding of the story.
After the movie was released I did find that I had to remind many a young boy that they might get a better response from me if they actually looked at my face when they talked to me because the breasts have no voice!
Q: What do most people tell you they remember best from the movie (other than the scene mentioned above)? I actually was able to impress a girl in high school with the "pencil eraser as a replacement earring back" trick. I will always remember Buddy's emphatic statement that "all balls itch!" What was your favorite?
Joyce: The ball scratching scene is definitely a fan favorite, but my favorite scene is when I come home drunk and Kevin is there and then I tell my brother that there's a naked girl in my room "feeding pizza to the fish."
Q: Buddy (played by Billy Jayne) and your character had great chemistry as brother as sister on screen and the scenes when you would go back & forth are some of my favorites in the film. Did that just come natural? Was any of that ad-libbed or was it all in the script?
Joyce: Billy and I had GREAT time together. He was a mature 15 and I was an immature 26 so the age difference wasn't much of an issue. Our banter although pretty raunchy at times was designed to be a little throw back to old school screwball comedy. There was definitely some make it up as you go, but most of it was scripted.
Q: How was it working with Billy Zabka (who played "Greg Tolan")? There was no one better than him at playing the bully role in an 80s movie and this was no exception. He could make you dislike him within seconds of being introduced to his character. How was he off the screen?
Joyce: Billy Zabka is a total sweetie pie off screen. Seriously, absolutely nothing like most of the characters he played.
Q: Can you believe it has been 25 years since the film was released? I can't. Do you keep in touch with director Lisa Gottlieb, Zabka, Clayton Rohner (Rick Morehouse), Billy Jayne (Buddy) or any of the other cast members?
Joyce: Most of us are on Facebook together, and I've seen Clayton and Lisa in the past year.
Joyce had some other contributions to the 80s as well. Here are some questions not about Just One of the Guys…
Q: Prior to Just One of the Guys, you had roles in films directed by Sylvester Stallone (1983's Staying Alive), Rob Reiner (1984's This Is Spinal Tap) and Martha Coolidge (1983's Valley Girl). What memories do you have from being around any of them?
Joyce: I loved Sly and I loved John Travolta who I had known prior to being cast in the film. I ran into Sly not that long ago and he couldn't have been sweeter.
Rob Reiner was also a doll. Sweet as could be, very funny and super talented!! That movie was a ton of fun to make and I just wish that my stuff had not been totally cut out of the film! All my scenes were with Chris Guest, Harry Shearer, Michael McKean and Vicki Blue. Vicki and I play 2 groupies Chris and Harry pick up on the road and we go out on tour with them. Those guys are all comic geniuses and it was an honor to work with them.
Q: How did you end up being in the video for the 1984 hit single "I Can Dream About You" by the late Dan Hartman? Do you like the song more or less now because of your connection to it?
Joyce: I knew Dan's manager and he asked me if I would do it. We shot at the Hard Rock in London. I honestly remember very little about it, but Dan was very nice and I absolutely love that song. I did another music video for ZZ Top's song "Pin Cushion" which I really like. It was directed by Julian Temple.
"I Can Dream About You" was from the soundtrack for the film Streets of Fire and would reach #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Joyce appears in the video as the beautiful patron that the bartender played by Hartman is pining for. Here is the video for "I Can Dream About You" by Dan Hartman…
Q: You had the recurring role of Jimmy Smits' girlfriend "Allison Gottlieb" on L.A. Law (from 1989-1990). Anything particularly memorable about your time on what I consider to be one of the best TV dramas of the 80s?
Joyce: I'm very proud of my work on L.A. Law. I love Jimmy Smits and he was an absolute dream to work with. I was originally hired to do one guest spot as a video director who was shooting a video with Arnie Becker (played by Corbin Bernsen) and it turned into a 2 year recurring role. I was brought on to the show by a wonderful writer by the name of Judith Parker who had wanted me for a pilot she had created for NBC prior to her stint on L.A. Law. She was definitely a champion of mine and I will always be grateful to her for her belief in me.
My most memorable L.A. Law moment came off the set when I was home one night watching Nightline with Ted Koppel, which I watched religiously. In those days, his set was a desk in front of a huge bank of monitors. The opening music comes up and the monitors are filled with the same image of me and Jimmy Smits in our first love scene playing on a loop. Then Ted says, "Sex in television. Has it gone too far?" I must say that may have been one of my proudest moments. LOL!!
Q: It is reported that you dated Bruce Springsteen back in the 80s. Can you confirm and do you have any interesting Springsteen stories?
Joyce: Bruce and I were together for almost 5 years. I grew up with him. We are friends to this day.
Q: Were there any 80s roles that you auditioned for or were considered for that would be interesting or surprising?
Joyce: Nothing really notable in the 80s that I really cared about. I tested for Volunteers and lost to Rita Wilson. I turned down a role in Eddie and the Cruisers. My biggest career disappointment was The Sopranos. I tested for Dr. Melfi. It was between me and Lorraine Bracco. Oh well!
Q: The last role that I see that you had was in 2003. What have you been up to since then?
Joyce: I fell in love with writing and that's what I'm doing now. I have an amazing writing partner and you may see something from us soon on the small and the big screen. I have not turned my back on acting, just taking a good long break from it that was much needed.
I can't tell you enough what a pleasure and honor it was for me that Joyce took the time to answer my questions so I could share them with you here. As I said earlier, I have been a big fan of Joyce and Just One of the Guys since the first time I saw them, but after this I am an even bigger admirer of Joyce Hyser Robinson. She undoubtedly made contributions to 80s pop culture through film, music video and television. I certainly thank her for those and look forward to what she might bring to the screen next as a writer.
That's all for this special issue of Kickin' it Old School. Thanks as always for reading and hope you are enjoying the new interview feature. If you are interested in reading any of my other 80s related issues, please click there for a summary of those. You can also always click on the Archives in the upper left hand column or use the Google Search Box at the top of the right hand column to find any other issues you may have missed. If you are a fan of Kickin' it, PLEASE CLICK ON THE FACEBOOK LOGO in the upper right hand column. This will take you to the Fan Page where I ask you to then click on the "Like" button. Even if you are not a Facebook member yet, please consider joining and registering as a fan at that page. You can also follow Old School on Twitter by clicking on the FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER LOGO also in the upper right hand column. This will take you the page and you can just click on the box that says "Follow". I am sending daily 80s tweets, so sign up to get those. Let other 80s fans know about it as well! Peace and much love.
Check this out: I really find Jimmy Fallon to be pretty funny more often than not. Here is an older clip where he performed a routine on Conan. You really can sing almost any 80s song to the tune of "U Can't Touch This"…
Quote of the day: "Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being." -Goethe


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The Washington Post Highlights Saudi Ruling Against Terrorism and Terror Financing
Saudi Arabia's senior religious council's recent religious decree [fatwa] denouncing terrorism and terror financing was highlighted on June 13 in a Washington Post editorial by David Ignatius entitled, "Saudis act aggressively to denounce terrorism." The article emphasized the strength of the condemnation by Saudi scholars. The article also stated that the Maljis Al-Shura (Consultative Council) is drafting a counterterrorism finance law, an effort which is being led by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz.
The article reported the details of the fatwa, stating that it began with a definition of terrorism, which was described as, "a crime aiming at destabilizing security." It also states that the fatwa specifically condemns the financing of terrorism and cites punishments equal to those of the actual terrorist. In an interview with Asharq al-Awsat on May 23, 2010, Fahd al-Majid, the secretary general of the Senior Ulema Council stated, "The financier of terrorism is more often than not more dangerous than the actual terrorist, since without funds, schemes fail and things do not take place."
The article hypothesizes that the increasing volume with which the Saudis are condemning terrorism indicates that they still view themselves as prime targets of Al-Qaeda. The reporter notes the recent assassination attempt of Prince Mohammed bin Nayef as an example to support this theory.
This condemnation leaves no wiggle room for terrorist organizations. "There is no gray area here," said a senior Saudi official. "Once it has come out like this, from the most senior religious body in the kingdom, it's hard for a lesser religious authority to justify violence." In Saudi Arabia the Senior Ulema have become another one of the many authority figures who are speaking out against terrorism and for moderation and acceptance.
Top Headlines
- Saudi FM: Iran helps U.S. war against terrorism
- Saudi Religious Scholars Condemn Terrorism and Terror Financing
- Maryam Rajavi: US government must respect the rule of law and justice, remove PMOI from terror list
- Saudi dragged to frontline of US led war against terrorism/Jamie Barton
- Terrorism? Really, Saudi Arabia? Women driving activists sent to "terrorism court"


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New 'corporate action' contracts that enable trading on the earnings per share (EPS) of major corporations correctly gave traders an opportunity to predict today's earning miss by Google, the HedgeStreet Exchange reports. The new EPS contracts traded on HedgeStreet, the
The full article is available to registered visitors.
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CURRENT ISSUEFall 2015


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The beautiful early evening sky in the Okavango Delta.
Linked to Skywatch Friday and Foto Friday Heavenly.
This looks amazing!
Beautiful capture, wonderful composition and lovely skies!! Thanks for sharing!!
Now that's a beautiful scene!
Good shot.
Looks like a beautiful painting ~ Wonderful photo for SWF!
That is absolutely gorgeous.
Wow – this is beautiful!
Lovely shot. Bonus points for the zebras!
Thank you!
I love the trees and the zebras! Gorgeous scene and photo.
I love the Okavango Delta: one of my favorite places in Africa.
Very nice image, Debbie.
This year was my first time there. I agree with you, it is beautiful and the Batswana are so friendly.
So beautiful!
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BATMAN 3 RUMOR next Villian??
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August 11 2008, 05:17 AM
Johnny Rico
Rear Admiral
Location: Gemenon
Re: BATMAN 3 RUMOR next Villian??
Samurai8472 wrote:
We should be getting a wide range of rumors until we get concrete info about part 3. So get ready for "Rachael Mcadams cast as selina kyle?" "Justin Timberlake is Blackmask?" "Random Wrestler cast as Bane?"
Wait!!!! I got it!!! Kane as Bane!!!
OK, what do I win? Shouldn't I win at least a cookie for that?
Now then, I hate to be somewhat of a spoiler sport, but I haven't seen TDK, but I thought Two-Face was supposed to be the next villian? Did Harvey buy it in the end?
13th Amendment to Free Slaves - 100% GOP support, 22% Dem support
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This site does not currently take bookings here on Pitchup.com.
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Overlooking the picturesque St Helens marshland, this family run campsite is situated on the B3330 just half a mile from the village of St Helens.
Relaxed atmosphere in the main campfied with no marked pitches. Electric hook up pitches available to pre book.
We have plenty of space for children to play, (fly kites and ball games! ) including a childrens enclosed play area,
Close to beaches and rolling countryside, cycle tracks and water sports. Overlooking a SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), RSPB Nature Reserve, and ideally situated for all local holiday attractions.
The old railway line, now disused, close by, is a beautiful walk that will take you from St Helens to either Bembridge or Brading passing through the Nature Reserve.
With an abundance of local pubs and restaurants nearby, there is a large choice of places to eat at prices to suit all budgets.
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Open from 1 Jan to 31 Dec
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Use the 'Special requests' box on the booking page to ask to be sited together when booking multiple pitches: the campsite or park will try to grant your request.
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Suggested serving size for 100 calories: 2 kebabs let us get out of the clichéd notion that tasty snacks are fat-laden. Here is a low-fat version of the famous rajma kebab made within minutes in your own kitchen with minimal oil. With green chillies, ginger and garam masala to impart a lip-smacking flavour, this toothsome kebab of energy-rich potatoes and protein-packed rajma is a delight to savour.
Preparation Time: 25 mins   Cooking Time: 15 mins
Makes 8 kebabs
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Awesome..perfect crunch and munch..
Protein rich rajma rolled up with basic Indian masalas in this healthy snack... But remember to serve it hot.
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Find accommodations in Ramsey with the hotel list provided below. Find discounted hotel accommodations in or close to Ramsey, NJ for your upcoming personal or group trip. Discover the most popular Ramsey New Jersey hotel/motel rooms. Review the Ramsey hotel list below to find the perfect lodging. We also have a map of the Ramsey hotels. Planning a group? Lock in Ramsey Group Hotel Discounts
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