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Guests: Howard Fineman, Sue Herera, Dana Milbank, Steve Kornacki, Susan Page, Matthew Hoh, Steve
Clemons, Loretta Sanchez, Allyson Schwartz
CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST: Honeymoon in Vegas.
Let`s play HARDBALL.
Good evening. I`m Chris Matthews in Washington. Leading off tonight:
The rich and the richer. The day after Mitt Romney says he`s not concerned
about the very poor, he won the endorsement of the flauntingly rich.
Donald Trump, whose catchphrase, "You`re fired," is something Romney says
he likes doing, has announced he`s going with Mitt.
But make no mistake -- make no mistake, this isn`t a good day for
Romney. And what happened today in Vegas certainly won`t stay in Vegas.
Even conservatives have a question for Romney: What`s wrong with this guy?
And that`s the headline in the conservative "National Review" today. "The
National Review" crushed him. So did Rush Limbaugh and "The Weekly
Standard," all after his comment that he`s not concerned about the very
It was a grade A gaffe, a universal offender, panned on the left and
on the right. And it has conservatives worried and progressives hopeful
that Mitt Romney just isn`t a very good, dare we say, politician.
Also, a huge dispute today between two organizations dedicated to
women`s health. What`s behind the decision by the Susan J. Komen
Foundation, the group behind the Race for the Cure, to not fund anymore
Planned Parenthood?
And word that the U.S. could end combat operations in Afghanistan as
early as next year has brought the usual complaints from Republicans like
Mitt Romney. But exactly how long would Mitt like us to stay in
Afghanistan, until the Taliban just goes away?
And "Let Me Finish" tonight with a great day in politics, where you
can see the differences between Mitt Romney and President Obama more
clearly than ever.
We start with Donald Trump`s endorsement late today by Mitt Romney.
With me in Washington is "The Washington Post" columnist Dana Milbank and
Salon`s Steve Kornacki.
Dana, you don`t need much satire to catch the day`s elements. Here`s
Trump throwing his support behind Romney late today.
DONALD TRUMP, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: It`s my honor, real honor, and
privilege to endorse Mitt Romney. Mitt is tough. He`s smart. He`s sharp.
He`s not going to allow bad things to continue to happen to this country
that we all love. So Governor Romney, go out and get `em! You can do it.
MATTHEWS: You know, it was like announcing the Miss World winner. I
mean, it was pure Trump in the golden tower of Vegas, looking like -- he
looked great, as usual. He made his appearance there. Romney came out and
said all the right things, as if he`d just been endorsed by Boss Daley in
the old days of Chicago. He treated it like it was an actual event and not
a faux event.
DANA MILBANK, COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST: This is exactly what
Romney needed is to have a really rich guy on the stage, another really
rich guy getting behind him. I think that`s really going to solidify what
he needs to do in this race.
MATTHEWS: This guy flaunts his wealth. Fine. But he`s not in
politics. What made this guy, Romney, think he benefited from this show
MILBANK: Well, you know, there was this time during the primary...
MATTHEWS: He should have put a tiara on him.
MILBANK: I`m surprised he...
MATTHEWS: Wouldn`t it be great if he came out -- here`s a tiara.
You`re going to be my nominee, the Miss World.
MILBANK: I bet he would have done it. If Romney wants to liven up
his milquetoast reputation, he might have Trump as his campaign spokesman.
That would liven things up.
There was a time when everybody wanted the Trump endorsement, when
there -- you know, when there was a real Republican race going on. At this
point, heading into a general election, maybe not so much.
MATTHEWS: Steve Kornacki, I want to introduce you with a claim that
we can go back to reality. In a Fox News poll this past autumn, 62 percent
of those polled said an endorsement from Donald Trump would make no
difference in how they ended up voting -- they made sense -- 31 percent
said a Trump endorsement would make them less likely for the person Trump
endorsed, 6 percent, whoever these full mooners are, said they would be
more likely to vote for a candidate after a Trump endorsement.
Who are these 6 -- 1 in 16 or whatever people they are that say that
they would more likely switch to Romney after Trump said, He`s my guy?
STEVE KORNACKI, SALON.COM: Well, I think they`re sort of the heart of
the Republican Party base, of the Tea Party base of the Republican Party...
MATTHEWS: The base of the base!
KORNACKI: That`s why I read this -- I don`t read this as a general
election move at all. If this was a general election move, I think this is
the moment when Mitt Romney would pull what`s, you know, sort of known as
the Sister Souljah moment, where he would refuse the Trump endorsement
dramatically. The press would heap all this love over him, you know, and
it would sort of reassure swing voters.
But this is a campaign that struggled -- you know, the entire story of
the 2012 Republican race is Mitt Romney struggled to relate to and win over
the Tea Party base of the Republican Party. And I think his campaign
learned, if they hadn`t already learned it in South Carolina with Newt
Gingrich, that, you know, that danger is going to exist, of a Tea Party
insurrection in the primaries, until he finally clears that, you know,
magic delegate total.
So they watched Gingrich come back from the dead once before. They
think they have him right now. They probably have him right now. But you
know, Donald Trump has credibility with that Sarah Palin, Herman Cain, Rush
Limbaugh wing of the Republican Party...
KORNACKI: Those guys are all out there singing...
MATTHEWS: I respect your analysis. Let`s go further. Let`s put
together some facts here, Steve Kornacki. I`m not leaving you on this one.
Mitt Romney, if you believe in him, has one great strength. He`s what`s
called a data miner. He digs deep for facts and puts all these facts
together, like the old McNamara, the former secretary of defense of the
Vietnam days. Of course, that got us in big trouble -- Let`s put all this
data together and figure it out, so without too much pre-thought or any
OK. Fine. One of the things he might have dug for is that this guy
is a birther! He is today standing there taking the tiara, the whatever,
the crown from a guy who is a full-fledged birther. Isn`t anybody keeping
track of this stuff, Steve?
KORNACKI: Oh, no...
MATTHEWS: That`s the guy who gave him the magic wand. He`s the guy
that said, He`s my guy, a birther, a guy who believes the president of the
United States is not a citizen of the United States, wasn`t born here, and
by the way, the guy who says nobody knew him in school, nobody knew him in
college, nobody knew him growing up, who has this sort of crazy mystery
thing he does around the president.
That kind of full moon talking is what just endorsed the guy who`s the
front-runner. Why does he want this endorsement?
KORNACKI: No, no. Absolutely. That`s why I take this move as sort
of the ultimate commentary on how weak Mitt Romney has been as a Republican
front-runner because a front-runner who is more secure in winning the
Republican nomination and thinking ahead of the general election would
probably or conceivably take this opportunity to make the exact point you
just made, that, you know, Listen, I want to have the support of as many
people as possible, but there are some things I`m just not willing to do,
the -- sort of the Sister Souljah thing, when Bill Clinton went and you
know, he pitched his message to the general electorate by turning off Jesse
Jackson. That would be what a secure nominee would do in this position...
KORNACKI: ... but Mitt Romney isn`t that.
MATTHEWS: Let`s remind ourselves of a couple things. Romney takes
credit for the fact, rightly or wrongly, I guess most people give credit to
for him, always having had the same marital mate, always being married to
the same woman for many, many years, 40 or 50 years or whatever, for always
being in the same religion, although I think people should be free to
change religions. Conversion is fine with most Americans. But he says
that`s good.
Taking an endorsement from Donald Trump. Let`s take a look. Here`s
Trump. I mean, put it all together here, a birther with his history
endorsing this guy who lives a completely different life. Here`s Trump, by
the way, whacking Romney. These guys are not soul brothers! Let`s take a
look -- last year.
TRUMP: Mitt Romney is a basically small business guy, if you really
think about it. He was a hedge fund. He was a fund guy. He walked away
with some money from a very good company that he didn`t create. He worked
there. He didn`t create and...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did create (INAUDIBLE)
TRUMP: Well, he -- but -- but -- look, he would buy companies, he`d
close companies, he`d get rid of the jobs, OK? I built a great company.
MATTHEWS: You know, Trump -- I give him credit. He built a great
company. But there he is, trashing, minimalizing, stomping on the notion
that Mitt Romney`s worth anything.
MILBANK: Right. Because it`s only a few hundred million dollars.
MATTHEWS: Yes. But really trying to minimize the guy`s significance
as a political or a national player. And there he is today, putting the
tiara on his head. What happened? Why`d he do it?
MATTHEWS: ... logical question here?
MILBANK: Why did Trump do it?
MATTHEWS: A logic question.
MILBANK: Well, no, I mean, Trump wants to look like he`s the king
maker. Romney is quite clearly in everybody else`s mind out there. So he
gets out to do it. I think the bigger question is why Romney would accept
it. And it does suggest that he`s more worried about Gingrich than I think
a lot of us think he is that he still feels he needs to do this and...
MATTHEWS: Oh, I know why Romney wants it, but why does -- why does
Trump do it?
MILBANK: He wants to look like he...
MATTHEWS: I mean, we used to say this about Jack Javits, the former
senator from New York who was a real smart guy, but he was always
calculating in the middle. They used to say that things started to come
down on New Year`s Eve, that ball on Times Square -- Jack was like that.
At that split moment, he knew that it was the new year and he would say,
OK, I`m with you.
Does he now signal the fact that people like Trump are putting their
money on the fact that this guy`s the nominee? Is that what really it
MILBANK: Well, of course. Trump wants to look like the king maker.
I mean...
MATTHEWS: The king`s been crowned by the voters of Florida!
MILBANK: Exactly. But you know, people talk about Romney as a flip-
flopper. I mean, you think about Trump ran for president as a pro-choice
candidate, so...
MATTHEWS: OK, good news for one -- one bit of good news for the
Republicans here. Steve Kornacki, is it good news for the Republicans that
Trump now probably can`t run third party?
KORNACKI: Well, yes, I mean...
MATTHEWS: Having endorsed somebody else for president.
KORNACKI: He...
MATTHEWS: I`m only talking in the crazy world where anything can
KORNACKI: Here`s the good news for Republicans, assuming, you know,
Mitt Romney ends up the nominee and can wrap up this process quickly. By
not, you know, angering Donald Trump too much, Mitt Romney probably
guarantees that Trump will not use his outsize media platform for the rest
of the campaign to trash Mitt Romney. He`ll focus his fire on Barack
Obama, probably.
MATTHEWS: OK, let`s look at President Obama today. This is the most
beautiful day in American politics because one guy`s out having his
honeymoon in Vegas with Donald Trump, OK, and here`s President Obama
talking about the poor, a la St. Francis, at the prayer breakfast today,
the National Prayer Breakfast. This is how he chose to spend his day. He
gave as his reasoning for standing (ph) for foreign aid one of the reasons,
helping the poor. Let`s listen.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It`s also about the
biblical call to care for the least of these, for the poor, for those at
the margins of our society, to answer the responsibility we`re given in
Proverbs to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the
rights of all who are destitute.
MATTHEWS: So the moral Majority is going with the guy in Vegas?
MATTHEWS: OK, let`s take a look -- here`s President Obama also doing
something that I would certainly wish I had had the chance to do, speaking
emotionally about the great, the revered, Billy Graham at that prayer
breakfast. Let`s listen.
OBAMA: ... one of the great honors of my life, which was visiting
Reverend Graham at his mountaintop retreat in North Carolina when I was on
vacation with my family.
This man who had prayed great prayers that inspired a nation, this man
who seemed larger than life greeted me and was as kind and as gentle as
could be. And when he finished praying, I felt the urge to pray for him.
I didn`t really know what to say. What do you pray for when it comes to
the man who`s prayed for so many?
MATTHEWS: Well, that was my relationship -- not my relationship, my
reaction to meeting Billy Graham. I mean, it is profound. It is profound.
And here he is talking about it, the president of the United States, at a
prayer breakfast.
MILBANK: Right, almost as if he anticipated what circus was going to
happen in Vegas in the afternoon.
MATTHEWS: So one guy`s out playing political blackjack out in Vegas,
you know...
MILBANK: No, I mean...
MATTHEWS: ... at the craps room, and he`s with the prayer breakfast
talking Billy Graham.
MILBANK: Now, I know it`ll shock you to know that there is some
politics at the National Prayer Breakfast. But of course, it was a freebie
for Obama to talk about the least of these, the day after Mitt Romney says,
I don`t care about the poor.
MATTHEWS: OK, just remember the last national bet, Steve, that Donald
Trump made was when he bet on black or red, whichever way you want to bet
it, that President Obama couldn`t come up with his birth certificate. He
did come up with it, and Donald Trump still stands. It`s a statement about
his hubris.
Thank you, Dana Milbank, and thank you, Steve Kornacki. A clear day
like this, you can see forever politically.
Coming up, the optics of today`s Trump endorsement aren`t good for
Romney, of course. It comes one day after Romney said he`s not really
concerned about the little people, the very poor. And that has some
Republicans even wondering if this guy`s got good enough chops to even be
their nominee. Do people want to be in the company of a guy that talks
like this, even at a country club?
You`re watching HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.
MATTHEWS: Speaker of the House John Boehner says he and Majority
Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia get along just fine, despite reports to the
contrary. Politico reported this morning that tension between Boehner and
Cantor had gotten so bad that the two sides had to call a truce.
Today Boehner says he and Cantor haven`t had a single disagreement in the
past year. Cantor`s often seen as the voice of the more conservative
insurgent members of the House -- in other words, the Tea Party people --
who`ve made compromise at times difficult for Speaker Boehner. And that`s
putting it lightly. This guy Boehner`s normal. Cantor`s speaking for the
We`ll be right back.
MATTHEWS: Welcome back to HARDBALL. Well, the criticism of Mitt
Romney for his incredible, I think, gaffe about poor people the other day
continued today. Conservative media figures have piled on the front-runner
for the statement he made in a CNN interview yesterday morning. Let`s
watch them go at him.
ROMNEY: I`m in this race because I care about Americans. I`m not
concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs
repair, I`ll fix it. I`m not concerned about the very rich. They`re doing
just fine. I`m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90, 95
percent of Americans who right now are struggling.
We will hear from the Democrat Party the plight of the poor. And
there`s no question, it`s not good being poor. And we have a safety net to
help those that are very poor. But my campaign is focused on middle-income
MATTHEWS: Wow. There`s so many fragments of craziness in that
statement, I don`t know where to start. But "The National Review," "The
Wall Street Journal" and Rush Limbaugh -- Rushbo himself -- have all
blasted Romney for the comment. It seems to fit a pattern with Romney, who
has ran into trouble throughout the campaign for his off-the-cuff comments
when he`s not scripted.
He`s now the clear front-runner in the race. So the question is, will
his weakness continue to haunt him now that the spotlight`s on those words?
Howard Fineman`s an MSNBC political analyst and Huffington Post Media
Group editorial director, and Susan Page is the illustrious Washington
bureau chief for "USA Today."
Susan, I want to start with you, this whole question of why would the
right care about a guy talking the way he talks?
SUSAN PAGE, "USA TODAY": Well, two things. I think, substantively,
they don`t like the idea that he says there`s a safety net, if we need to
repair it, we will. They have some questions about different programs
they`d like to do that might, they say, help the poor.
But the other thing is, are they about to nominate a guy who seems so
prone to gaffes in spontaneous situations, and gaffes that reinforce the
biggest vulnerability he has electorally, that he`s a rich guy that has --
who doesn`t relate, doesn`t understand the lives that most Americans lead?
MATTHEWS: You know, in "Blade Runner," that great movie by Ridley
Scott, when they try to find out if you`re a replicant or not, whether
you`re a real person or not, and they start asking you questions. How did
you feel when you watched that beetle die in the sun? You know, that kind
of stuff. This guy -- it`s almost like we`re all blade runners now! Are
we really going to...
You think that it`s going to sort of spontaneously combust at some point?
MATTHEWS: I mean, these questions -- like, he says things like it`s
not like he doesn`t care about the little people, the very poor. I guess I
can figure out exactly what he means. In other words, we do have Medicaid.
We do have those programs. They do exist. Nobody`s happy, and they`re
certainly not -- as Joan Walsh said they other -- they`re hardly hammocks
for people. They don`t make their lives happy. And they`re not getting
them out of poverty.
You know, when you say things like, They`re going to be there forever,
there are always going to be poor, that`s not a good statement for a
conservative to make.
FINEMAN: No, it`s not. A few things. First of all, talking to
people in the Romney campaign, they try to make the point that lots of
people, millions of people, have fallen into poverty in the last few years.
And even though Barack Obama, the president, spoke this morning about "the
least of these," he also has focused most of his rhetoric on the middle
MATTHEWS: Sure.
FINEMAN: But he doesn`t do the things that Mitt Romney did yesterday,
to say, Don`t worry about the poor, they`re over here in the corner. He
doesn`t say -- he doesn`t call -- he doesn`t say, I`m for Americans. What
Mitt Romney said, if you parse that further, he said, I`m for Americans, as
though the poor really weren`t Americans and only the middle class...
MATTHEWS: Yes, the heart of America...
FINEMAN: The heart of America.
MATTHEWS: ... does not include these poor people, who are mainly the
ones who probably deserve a little heart.
FINEMAN: To go to Susan`s point, a lot of conservatives over the last
generation have said, We have conservative answers for the problems of the
poor, starting with Jack Kemp and others who said, It`s not that we don`t
care about the poor, we don`t think that the big federal bureaucracy is the
way to do it.
MATTHEWS: But their real fear, Susan, dare I say it, is that they
fear he`s a nincompoop, that he doesn`t know how to talk like a politician,
he`s going to keep doing this. If he gets elected, should he get -- he`ll
keep talking like this every time he`s unloosened.
PAGE: Well, of course, he does some things politically very well,
right? He`s run a very disciplined campaign. It stays on message. He`s -
- he`s had a smart campaign. But he clearly has a lot of problems in kind
of the guts of politicking, which is meeting people, talking to them,
making them feel like -- like you hear them...
FINEMAN: He doesn`t. He doesn`t hear the music (ph).
PAGE: That`s not -- he`s got a tin ear.
FINEMAN: He doesn`t hear the music.
PAGE: And he`s got to tune that up a little bit if he`s going to...
MATTHEWS: Wow. You`re being kind, you guys. I don`t know why you`re
so kind today.
Today, Newt Gingrich tried to score some political points off his
rival`s comments. Let`s watch the Newtster when he said what he said.
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I really believe that we
should care about the very poor, unlike Governor Romney.
GINGRICH: But I believe we should care differently than Barack Obama.
Both Governor Romney and Barack Obama seem to believe that a -- quote --
"safety net" is all the poor need.
MATTHEWS: Well, you know, that`s smart. Once again, I jump to Newt`s
defense. But you do it. I think he made a very telling point. Jack Kemp
would say -- the late Jack Kemp would say, don`t skip the poor. Get them
out of poverty. Don`t give -- don`t throw life buoys to them. Pull them
by a rope.
FINEMAN: That`s what the generation of conservatives was claiming
they were trying to do. Whether they succeeded at all with Reagan and Bush
is a question, but they did try.
MATTHEWS: The ownership society.
FINEMAN: But these things are related. The tin ear and the lack of
ideology are related. It`s all mechanical Mitt Romney. He doesn`t hear
the music of politics. He has no peripheral vision about it. And he`s
always trying to prove now that he`s a tough guy who believes in the
markets, which is why he says let`s let the housing market bottom out.
MATTHEWS: So that we can rent to people.
FINEMAN: And corporations are people, my friend.
MATTHEWS: And I like to fire people.
And, by the way, there he was today with the chief firer. And I do
want to ask you, because you seem to be sympathetic to his situation, which
is what you have to be when you cover these guys, trying to figure out what
their situation is. Do people who like Stu Stevens and people around him
who are smart, who write novels, are they going to him afterwards and does
he get the look from them like the mother who goes to the kid, you did it
again? I just got the call from the teacher.
Do they have to tell him when he blows it?
PAGE: I think he understands that this was inartfully put yesterday.
I don`t think there is anybody that needs to tell him that.
I think there are some people around him who are blunt. I think Chris
Christie for one is someone who has become a blunt adviser behind the
MATTHEWS: Calls him up and says get your act together.
PAGE: And speaks in the way Chris Christie does to all of us, which
is pretty unmistakable.
MATTHEWS: None of your business.
PAGE: The other thing, you were showing the clip with Newt Gingrich.
Newt Gingrich had a great image right after the clip that you showed, which
was, I don`t want a safety net. I want a trampoline for the poor, which is
a great image and one that would put Democrats on the spot.
MATTHEWS: It would say a lot of the old neighborhoods have been poor
for a long time. And you Democrats have been so-called representatives of
those districts. And you haven`t improved a lot of those people in those
PAGE: Right. There`s an argument you can make.
FINEMAN: Chris Christie notwithstanding, most of the people around
Mitt Romney are telling him it`s the media, watch out. In other words,
what one of them told me yesterday is that he had said this before. Why
are you guys making such a big deal of it now?
MATTHEWS: OK. Blame the messenger.
Let`s take a look at some of the very strong reaction on the right in
the conservative media. In an article entitled "What Is Wrong With This
Guy?" "The National Review"`s Jonah Goldberg wrote -- quote -- "The
underemphasized dynamic in this race isn`t that Romney isn`t conservative
enough. It`s that he`s simply not a good enough politician. He may be the
most electable on paper, but every time he seems to get into his groove and
pull away, he says things that make people think he doesn`t know how to
play the game."
Well, that`s pretty cynical, but he made his point. "The Wall Street
Journal" wrote in an editorial today -- quote -- "Like Twain said of
Wagner`s music, Mr. Romney is better than he sounds."
MATTHEWS: Well, on the conservative blog RedState, Erick Erickson
wrote: "I`m not sure I will waste my time. Sure, I will vote for him. But
I think I will focus on House and Senate races, so when the buyer`s remorse
sets in on those who did back Romney, we`re not completely screwed down the
Well, this doesn`t surprise me from him. He`s pretty far over.
FINEMAN: Here`s the thinking among those people, some of whom I know
quite well.
They are thinking, we don`t love Mitt Romney. OK? He may be a
Massachusetts moderate. He doesn`t understand the conservative movement.
He`s trying to make himself a conservative.
MATTHEWS: Well, Newt calls him a liberal now.
FINEMAN: OK. But if we`re going to take him, let`s at least have a
good politician. Let`s have a guy who is good at being a politician. So
if he`s not with them ideologically, and he`s bad technically, on what
grounds are the conservatives going to accept him?
That`s what Jonah Goldberg and the others are saying. Laura Ingraham,
who I know well, who I just spoke to, I said, hey, is he hopeless?
FINEMAN: She said, no, he`s not hopeless, but he`s not there yet.
MATTHEWS: Look at his rap sheet, guys. "I should also tell my story.
I`m also unemployed. We could raise taxes on people. Corporations are
people, my friend."
FINEMAN: "My friend," I like that.
MATTHEWS: Let`s take look at it all. Let`s take look at it on tape.
I didn`t know we had it on tape.
MATTHEWS: Here it is, some of his sort of chain of infamy here.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I should also tell my story.
I`m also unemployed.
ROMNEY: We could raise taxes on people. That`s not the right...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Corporations!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Corporations!
ROMNEY: Corporations are people, my friend.
Rick, I will tell you what, $10,000, $10,000 bet?
GOV. RICK PERRY (R), TEXAS: I`m not in the betting business.
I know what it`s like to worry whether you`re going to fired. There
were a couple of times I wondered whether I was going to get a pink slip.
It also means that if you don`t like what they do, you can fire them.
I like being able to fire people who provide services to me.
I`m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there.
If it needs repair, I will fix it. I`m not concerned about the very rich.
They`re doing just fine.
MATTHEWS: Looks like a good ad for Obama.
PAGE: So that`s terrible string of things. And you think that`s
catastrophic. But Rick Perry is a really good politician. Where`s he?
He`s out of the race.
Other great politicians have been in this field. And somehow Mitt
Romney is the one who has emerged as the likely nominee. So, clearly, he
has something going for him. But agreed, this is a weakness he needs to
try to deal with.
MATTHEWS: Wow, the best there is. This is as good as it gets.
Anyway, thank you, Susan.
And, Howard Fineman.
Up next, another awkward moment for the Mittster. The "Sideshow" is
coming up next.
You`re watching HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.
MATTHEWS: Well, back to HARDBALL. And now to the "Sideshow."
First up: old pals. A novelist and old college buddy of former
President Bill Clinton appeared on "MORNING JOE" earlier today to discuss
his newest book. Little did he know that his longtime friend would be
dialing in.
Want to know what the former president was like as an 18-year-old
college freshman?
Well, here`s Bill Clinton and his old friend Thomas Caplan talking
about the Georgetown days.
THOMAS CAPLAN, AUTHOR: We became friends really as an accident of the
alphabet, because though the university said that they placed you with
students from diverse backgrounds and far parts all over the country, we
later discovered that everybody on our corridor went from Bastion to Duffy.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have been
friends since we were 18 years old.
When I met him, he was sitting in a rocking chair at 18, as I
remember, listening to the music from "Gone With the Wind."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was he as loquacious? Did he like to hold court
and talk to people back then for long periods of time?
CAPLAN: Loquacious in the best way, gregarious. I think half the
people I knew at Georgetown, I knew because I knew Bill Clinton.
MATTHEWS: Well, that`s well said. There`s a friendship there that`s
really stood the test of time, obviously.
But think Clinton hung up on the phone before the subject turned to
presidential politics? Hardly. Here`s what he had to say about some of
today`s candidates and how they seem to lack one of his own greatest
strengths, relating to people.
He`s one to cut them some slack. Let`s listen.
CLINTON: If you go back to the history of the country, to be fair,
though, we have had a number of presidents, some of whom did some
remarkable things, who cared about people in general, but had a hard time
relating to them in particular.
Programs like this bring it all home to people. It`s harder to pull
off. But we have had a lot of presidents that were awkward and with people
individually, but cared a great deal about what happened to the country.
Because of the immediacy of the modern media, we need to make sure we`re
raising people who do that.
MATTHEWS: Yes, I think he`s talking about people like Woodrow Wilson,
who people said liked everybody, but nobody in particular, something that
was no problem for Clinton himself.
Next up, party crasher -- Mitt Romney had an unwelcomed guest to
contend with during an event in Minnesota yesterday, a protester who
unexpectedly showered him with glitter. It wasn`t the first time one of
the candidates has been glitter-bombed. But Romney`s follow-up stands
Here`s how he responded to that protester.
ROMNEY: There`s the guy. Wave your hand over here who threw the
glitter. There he goes. Hi there. How are you? Hi there. How are you?
Good to see you. There we go. Oh, I have got glitter in my hair. That`s
not all that`s in my hair. I`ll tell you that. I glue it on every
morning, whether I need to or not.
MATTHEWS: I have no idea what that means.
Anyway, the collection of awkward jokes just keeps getting better from
the front-runner.
Up next: a big controversy between two groups dedicated to women`s
health. Why has the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the group behind the Race
for the Cure, decided to stop funding Planned Parenthood?
You`re watching HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.
SUE HERERA, CNBC CORRESPONDENT: I`m Sue Herera with your CNBC "Market
The Dow slipped about 11 points today, the S&P up 1, the Nasdaq up 11.
Ahead of Friday`s employment report, applications for first-time jobless
benefits fell by 12,000 to 367,000, holding below that key 400,000 level
for eight of the last 10 weeks.
And January retail sales were kind of mixed, a rough day though for
Abercrombie & Fitch, which says deep discounts and high cotton costs would
dent its earnings. Its shares lost nearly 14 percent.
And that`s it from CNBC. We`re first in business worldwide -- and now
back to Chris and HARDBALL.
MATTHEWS: We are back.
The end to an unpopular war seems to be a little closer in view right
now. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta told reporters yesterday that the
U.S. -- that`s our country -- was looking to transition from a combat role
in Afghanistan to a training and advisory role by next year. That`s a year
ahead of when NATO has agreed to end its mission in Afghanistan and pull
out all combat troops from the country.
There`s still 90,000 American troops over there fighting that war,
even as polls show the American public is overwhelmingly uneasy with how
things are going.
So what does all this mean and how successful have we been in
combating the Taliban? Matthew Hoh is a senior fellow at the Center for
National Policy. He`s a former Marine -- I think you`re always a Marine --
and State Department officer. And Steve Clemons is Washington editor at
large at "The Atlantic."
Gentlemen, it`s great to have expertise on.
I don`t want to have a big argument here. I want to have an
understanding. And the understanding, Matthew first and then to Steve, the
significance of this leak, if you will, the statement by the secretary of
defense about us pulling out by next year?
MATTHEW HOH, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It`s a big change in
policy. We were going to do combat until the end of 2014. And we moved it
up for 18 months. So it`s a big change. And it`s a good thing. It`s the
right thing to do. Escalating the war...
MATTHEWS: What caused him to make the announcement?
HOH: Because escalating the war has failed.
MATTHEWS: The surge has not worked.
HOH: The surge has not worked. The Taliban is larger than they were
two years ago. Karzai is weaker than he was two years ago. We have got
worse relationships with the Pakistanis than we have ever had before. And
al Qaeda is not there.
So, Chris, we had 5,500 Americans killed and wounded in Afghanistan
last year, and for what?
MATTHEWS: OK. Here`s my fundamental question. It`s about life and
MATTHEWS: Before we went to Afghanistan in 2001, after 9/11, rightly
or wrongly, we went in there and we overthrew the Taliban. Before we went
then, the Taliban was in charge. How will it be any different once we
leave? Won`t the Taliban be in charge again? In other words, without our
presence, they ran the show. Without our presence again, won`t they end up
running the show?
I`m not saying it should happen, but won`t it happen?
STEVEN CLEMONS, "THE ATLANTIC": They are going to try to leave some
residual force there to shape what the choices are for the Taliban and
other political players. And as Vice President Biden said last time we had
a shift in strategy, we`re no longer out to beat the Taliban. We`re out to
shape choices. That means they will try to prevent anyone from being able
to overthrow the regime in Kabul.
But you`re going to have a mix of warlords, you`re going to have a mix
of Taliban-run operations. And the invisible hand that`s really behind
this, I think...
MATTHEWS: ... Lebanon?
CLEMONS: Yes, it will be a little bit like Lebanon.
But you also have something going on. You had the Pakistani foreign
minister come out and endorse these so-called peace talks that are going
on. My bet is that this is not just a shift in strategy, that this is a
posturing statement, confidence-building with Taliban.
MATTHEWS: What will do to Karzai`s government? Now they know they
are not going to have big brother there. And I don`t mean that
derogatorily, because our guys have served and paid in life and blood for
this thing and a lot of lives.
But here`s the question. Once we leave, once it`s clear the clock is
ticking, will Karzai now say, they are not going to be here a year-and-a-
half from now, they`re going to be gone next year some time, I have to
start dealing with the guys who are out to kill me?
Can he deal with the Taliban, or will they take over -- try to take
HOH: That`s absolutely what is going to happen. And he has to.
And this is what -- this is why the U.S. saying we are leaving is a
good thing for negotiations, because it makes the conflict go to its next
phase. The conflict has been going on for 30, 35 years.
MATTHEWS: And I raise that point because Mitt Romney said that`s the
wrong thing to do. By -- signaling that we`re leaving by a date certain
gives the enemy the information. But as you`re pointing out, it also gives
our allies the information.
HOH: Absolutely.
When I was there working with the Karzai government, they had no
interest in reconciling with -- because we were propping up and we were
making them rich, too. So this pushes Karzai to have to deal with the
It also -- what it also does, too, is, it takes away that big unifying
factor for the insurgency. The Taliban is a -- it`s a discredited
religious movement that`s now an army of national liberation because
there`s 140,000 foreign troops in Afghanistan.
You take away those foreign troops and you can take away some of that
support for the Taliban.
MATTHEWS: Do you buy the Taliban is weaker?
STEVE CLEMONS, THE ATLANTIC: I -- it`s not a question of weaker.
The question is, we`re in a silo talking about Afghanistan here. What I
think what is right about what the president and Leon Panetta are doing, is
this is the first time we`ve seen in a long time of a strategic play as
opposed to being stuck in a silo. When you ask the question, if we were
for five years or 10 years more, what it would be like? My answer is,
America`s strategic strength would be sapped even more, that Iran and China
would be convinced that we`re militarily overextended.
MATTHEWS: That`s my question, let me put it to you.
CLEMONS: Yes?
MATTHEWS: If you`re a more conservative president, more right wing
if you will, and said, no, keep the troops there more. My question to that
person --
CLEMONS: Is it Iran --
MATTHEWS: -- five more years would do what for us? Or what would 10
more years do? Twenty more years do?
CLEMONS: Ten more years -- it would fuel the ambitions of Iran.
Make China feel that America was militarily overextended and was stuck in a
What you need to do, and what America is doing, and you have seen it
in General Dempsey`s statement, and the repositioning towards Asia, is
we`ve seen a rebalancing, a strategic rebalancing of U.S. forces. Getting
out of things that are convincing the world that we`re weak and it may look
like we`re stepping back a little bit.
It`s not the question of Afghanistan makes America weak or strong.
The question is, if you`re stuck militarily overdeployed, spending $120
billion a year on a country with $14 billion of GDP, that`s not a sign of
MATTHEWS: Are we shifting our resources to the Far East?
CLEMONS: Yes.
HOH: Yes.
MATTHEWS: We are. So we`re confronting what we see as a strategic
threat from China? Is that going to get us into a deeper problem with
Chinese who think we are out to harness them, to limit them?
HOH: Well, we see them already getting back to Afghanistan and
Pakistan. We made an announcement to have a relationship with India, which
is Pakistan`s chief rival.
MATTHEWS: Yes.
HOH: So, you see how it influences us with.
MATTHEWS: You both think this is smart move by the president?
HOH: Absolutely.
CLEMONS: I think it`s a smart move by the president because Iran and
other in a very tough neighborhood need to see that U.S. has resources and
latitude to shape the region. And being stuck deeply in Afghanistan,
dependent on Pakistan -- one of the colleagues, Jeff Goldberg (ph), would
call that the "ally from hell" -- we are dependent on very difficult
MATTHEWS: I like when presidents make decision, not the military
commanders, because the military commanders make decisions entirely for
different reasons, for different reasons entirely.
Thank you, Matthew Hoh. Thank you for your service.
HOH: Thanks, Chris.
MATTHEWS: And thanks for Steve Clemons.
Up next, let`s get to the roof of that fight -- the root of that
fight between Susan G. Komen Foundation which does the Race for the Cure,
and Planned Parenthood. This is hard.
This is HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.
MATTHEWS: Washington state is set to be the next state to allow same
sex marriage. The state senate voted 28 to 21 last night to legalize
marriage between same sex partners. The measure now moves to the lower
house where it has majority support already. So, the governor, Governor
Gregoire, says she`ll sign it into law when the time comes.
Same sex marriage is already legal in six states: Connecticut, Iowa,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont, and also here in
Washington, D.C.
We`ll be right back.
MATHEWS: Welcome back to HARDBALL.
A battle is brewing definitely this week among two prominent women`s
health organizations after the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the group behind
Race for the Cure, announced they`ll no longer fund grants for breast exams
at Planned Parenthood. Well, the Komen Foundation says the change is the
result of a new grant criteria which includes no longer funding
organizations being investigated.
Planned Parenthood is currently under investigation in Capitol Hill
by a pro-life congressman.
Supporters of Planned Parenthood believe politics is at play here and
that the Komen Foundation bowed under pressure from the right.
With me now are two Democratic Congress people, Congresswoman Loretta
Sanchez of California and Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz from Pennsylvania.
Congresswoman Schwartz, give us a layout on exactly what just
happened, because a lot of people were completely caught off guard by what
seemed to be a good relationship between the Susan G. Komen Foundation and
Planned Parenthood, that`s just come apart here.
REP. ALLYSON SCHWARTZ (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Yes. Well, I can tell you,
many of us are very disappointed and pretty outraged that the action that
was just taken. But the Komen Foundation made a decision and announced a
decision to no longer give funding that they do and have apparently doing
for years to Planned Parenthood. What they fund are breast exams to help
detect cancer and do wonderful work in terms of breast cancer screenings.
And they`ve said because -- the reason they gave is because Planned
Parenthood is under investigation by a subcommittee in Congress, they are
not going to fund Planned Parenthood to do this very important women`s
health work.
And, you know, nothing has been found. We don`t even know if what
happens with the investigation, but the Komen Foundation has made the
decision. And a lot of women in this country are pretty outraged about it.
MATTHEWS: It seems like a bogus case, Congresswoman Sanchez because
an investigation by Congress. Congress investigates all the time. And
they are not investigating for real criminal behavior. They`re
investigating them over questions of going over the border, they`re dealing
with, or giving abortions or whatever.
I mean, it seems to me using money for abortions, this seems to me
this under investigation thing has a very dirty sound to it, when in fact
it`s hardly a reason to cut the funding here.
REP. LORETTA SANCHEZ (D), CALIFORNIA: Well, Planned Parenthood, of
course, has always been very strict about how it spends the money that it
receives from the federal government. And it is, you know, one of the most
sought-after resources by -- especially young women because, you know, so
many women do not have health care. It`s sort of their primary doctor in
the sense that they`ll go into a Planned Parenthood clinic and get their
yearly exam, et cetera.
And so, to cut this off -- for the Komen Foundation to cut these
moneys off I think is really sad because what you`re talking about is not
just finding the cure, which is a great reason to be. There`s been a lot
of money raised on that and a lot matched from the federal government to
help try to find a cure for breast cancer. But when you do to make sure
that you never even get to that spot, make sure that you have annual exams.
MATTHEWS: Right.
SANCHEZ: So these went hand in hand and it seems a shame that out of
nowhere -- well, most of us think it was because of this new vice president
that started over at the foundation, the Komen Foundation, who is very, of
course, anti-Planned Parenthood and vowed when she ran for the governorship
of Georgia -- of course, she lost -- saying that she would shut -- that she
would stop all funding, all of these types of grants to Planned Parenthood
if she were in office.
MATTHEWS: Well, one thing I think the men out there aren`t aware of
this ought to know right now. Or maybe you two can tell them, I`ll tell
them what I`ve learned today is that it`s an inexpensive way to get a
breast examination. If you don`t get it early, you`re gong to have
problems, horrible problems in some cases.
So, you want to get a breast exam very early in this game and
hopefully you are safe. But if you have to deal with it, you deal with it.
And anybody doesn`t think that`s good for the country must not be paying
Here`s an interview with Andrea Mitchell today, the head of the women
foundation, Ambassador Nancy Brinker. Here she is talking on the Hill
about the investigation as being the only factor in their decision to stop
funding Planned Parenthood.
NANCY BRINKER, SUSAN G. KOMEN FOUNDATION: Investigation isn`t the
only issue. In 2010, we set about creating excellence in our grants, not
just in our community grants but in our science grants, putting metrics,
outcomes and measures to them, so that we can translate all of the science
we funded over 30 years. Many of the grants we were doing with Planned
Parenthood do not meet new standards of criteria for how we can measure our
results and effectiveness in communities.
MATTHEWS: Well, that seemed like gobbledygook, Congresswoman
Schwartz. I mean, it didn`t seem like the way you communicate a thought
because it didn`t communicate a thought.
SCHWARTZ: Yes. I mean, really, what we all know and I hope we agree
is that making sure that women, young women, women of all ages, have access
to the kind of health screenings, the health care that we need. And as
Congresswoman Sanchez pointed out, that many women, thousands of women in
our communities, go to Planned Parenthood for regular health screenings.
And cancer is a worry for everyone. But certainly breast cancer is a
worry for just about every woman in this country. And making sure that
they have access to the proper screenings and information and knowing how
best to take care of themselves is so important and has been a part of what
Planned Parenthood has done in our communities across this country.
So, the Komen Foundation has been funding these breast cancer
screenings at Planned Parenthood. I understand it was a great
relationship. And all of a sudden, this afternoon they said the reason was
because of this investigation, which is a pretty scary thought that any
member of Congress can call for an investigation, start an investigation,
and that somehow snowballs just because of a false accusation.
Look, there are members of Congress who were willing to shut down the
government over the discussion about Planned Parenthood and we didn`t let
that happen. And Americans, really millions of Americans spoke up about
how outrageous it was, because they want to see access to women`s health
care across this country and Planned Parenthood is a part of that.
SANCHEZ: You know, Chris --
MATTHEWS: Well, I think -- go ahead. We only have 10 to 15 seconds
here. Go ahead, Congresswoman.
SANCHEZ: Well, you know, in some cases, the Planned Parenthood
clinic is the only medical clinic available for people who don`t have the
means, who don`t have a doctor, who don`t have health insurance in so many
areas, where places have closed down. So, it`s very important to keep them
open and to have those screenings happen because the sooner we detect, the
easier it is -- the more life there is left to a person.
MATTHEWS: And I`ve been hearing that people are very comfortable
with women going into the Planned Parenthood organization, institutions and
facilities. It`s a very popular organization. This is a sad story for
Anyway, thank you, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez.
SANCHEZ: Thank you, Chris.
SCHWARTZ: Thank you.
MATTHEWS: And Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, who does a good job
representing my old neighborhood of Somerton.
When we return, "Let Me Finish" with the stark -- 58th Ward -- with
the stark contrast between Mitt Romney and President Obama. What a day you
could see forever in American politics -- you could see the whole situation
develop today from Vegas to across the country.
You`re watching HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.
MATTHEWS: "Let Me Finish" tonight with this:
It was a great day in American politics -- in other words, one of
those clear days when you can see forever, when the differences between the
two parties stands right up there for all to see.
Did you see Donald Trump out there with his new prize candidate? Did
you see Mitt Romney standing up there like he`d just won the Miss World
contest? The latest prize figure in the world of Donald Trump -- a world
of golden buildings and high-rise casinos where it`s hard to find the
elevators where you can see -- all you can see are the endless rows of slot
machines, blackjack croupiers and roulette wheels.
But we Americans just want to make it to the elevators, Donald. Why
are you trying to hook us into the latest games that, you know, and that`s
why you built this place, all favor the house. No, life isn`t a casino and
most can`t afford to do business with Trump.
And like those very poor that never come through that door, even
though some people leave those casinos in that category of very poor.
Those very poor are not on Romney`s radar. He says he`s not even thinking
about them. They`ve got their safety net, he argues, and don`t need our
attention. They aren`t going to be part of the "we the people" under his
presidency. We, those people, are going to be the folks a bit better off,
of course.
Now, Mitt`s looking for the upscale crowd to put him into office.
That hidden crowd way back behind the scenes who pay for all those millions
of dollars of dirtball TV ads he used to stop Newt Gingrich with in places
like Des Moines and Daytona. They are the folks he`s going to pay
attention to and their need to get a great tax deal and even better deal
than one that has gotten him paying below 15 percent in taxes on $20
million a year, that allows him to his money in the Caymans. They are the
folks he likes.
President Obama, where was he today? Well, on Mitt and Donald`s big
day in Vegas, he was having a prayer breakfast here in D.C., talking about
our duty to the poor, about the wonders of that good man Billy Graham.
Yes, that`s where the president of all the people was, where we want
him to be. Not in Vegas with Trump. Not in the Caymans making his latest
deposit. Not hiding from the very poor out of sheer hope they won`t be
counting on a president like him to be looking out for poor people like
As I said, what a great day in American politics, when you can see
all the way to Vegas where Donald makes his money and those islands in the
Caribbean where his new best friend Mitt Romney hides his money from Uncle
Sam and, of course, the American people he says he wants to lead.
That`s HARDBALL for now. Thanks for being with us.
"POLITICS NATION" with Al Sharpton starts right now.
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text:
Best Buy has failed in the United Kingdom and now plans to close the 11 stores it opened.
Originally planning to open 100 stores in Great Britain, Best Buy has decided to close the 11 that it managed to get open to this point.
Roger Taylor, CEO of the Carphone Warehouse Group (a group partnered with Best Buy in the U.K. venture) said, "The eleven Best Buy UK "Big Box" stores have performed exceptionally at the level of customer satisfaction, but they do not have the national reach to achieve scale and brand economics. Due to the lack of visibility of an acceptable rate of return on historical and future potential investment, we have decided against rolling out more "Big Box" stores and we will be closing our existing stores, subject to consultation with our employees."
Last year's loss was reportedly $74.86 million, up from $46.17 million the year before. The cost of the closures is expected to be somewhere in the range of $105-120 million.
Source: GeekoSystem
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subset: commoncrawl


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College Profile: DeVry University - Philadelphia
At DeVry University, education works.
For more than 75 years, the faculty and staff of DeVry University have been firmly grounded in the knowledge that knowledge alone is not enough. We help you prepare for the real challenges you'll face in the workplace by bringing the real world into the classroom. And it works.
An education that's reputable.
Like other top schools, DeVry University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association, www.ncahlc.org. Choose from associate, bachelor's, or master's degree programs within five distinguished colleges - the College of Business & Management, College of Engineering & Information Sciences, College of Health Sciences, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, and College of Media Arts & Technology. Then enjoy the confidence that comes from earning your degree from a reputable university that's respected by top employers.
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text:
The summer event that will fit YOU to a T
Tea isn't just for parties anymore, you can cook with it, use it in your garden and sleep soundly with it. This is why I am so excited to tell you about the Ribbon Cutting and Grand Opening at Sugar and Spice Tea Company!
The ribbon cutting will be an open house for the public with delicious samples of several house blend teas and a mix of the new menu dessert offerings. I have to tell you that the baked goods are to die for and I just happened to learn that one of the most popular teas of the shop is the Dr. Blue Who (local whovians clamor for it) AND they were the total inspiration for the real life Tardis bathroom that has become a tourist photo hot spot.
At the event you will also be able to meet the awesome Mayor of Poulsbo. They will cut the glorious ribbon at 5pm with photo opportunities available. The public is welcome and encouraged to tour the new tea room, sample the new menu items and meet the proprietors, staff and vendors of the tea shop.
Sugar and Spice Tea Company was founded with high standards and expectations of achievement. Their primary initiatives are helping the community by educating everyone about the health benefits of tea, showcasing local artists, offering locally grown and prepared foods and hosting fun family (free popcorn) event nights.
Sugar and Spice Tea Company proprietors believe that every partner and customer should have an equal opportunity to flourish, be healthy and social.
The tea shop has also been very instrumental in providing a new, fresh community atmosphere that helps new residents network and meet new people.
I hope that you will mark your calendar for the greatest event of the summer. See you there!
What: Ribbon Cutting, Free Desserts, Tea Education, Local Artists, Vintage Items, Free Tea & Community Mayor Networking Fun.
Where: 18928 Front Street in Historic Downtown Poulsbo
When: August 8th 2013 at 5PM
LIKE Sugar & Spice Tea Company on Facebook
Designs of the Times -What Inspires You?
Design is everywhere. It can be in the food we eat, the art we buy or the Jewelry we wear. The Designs of the Times Blog is about the people, places and things that help us a enjoy the abundance of creativity all around us. Join us as we showcase the rich designs of our surroundings that make up this great area we call home- Kitsap County! We hope to bring inspiration, joy, and creativity to all who read our Blog.
Lisa Jachimowicz
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader"


text:
Submitted by Jim Quinn of The Burning Platform
Is There No Shame?
"Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion against injustice and lying and greed. If people all over the world…would do this, it would change the earth. " - William Faulkner
I wish I could believe William Faulkner's advice was possible in the world we live in today. But sadly, I am losing hope in our civilization. We seem to have entered a death spiral with little likelihood of pulling out. Our society has become so degraded and our populace so apathetic and willfully ignorant, that I think we are too far gone to recover. Honesty, truth and compassion have been soundly defeated by injustice, lying and greed. Our technologically advanced society has become a stinking cesspool, devoid of humanity, common sense and morality. Those with the power and wealth who control our country do not concern themselves with quaint concepts like good and evil, right and wrong, or moral and immoral. Sociopaths see no obligation to society, humanity, or posterity. They only care about themselves, their wealth, their status, their reputation, and their control of others. They are incapable of feeling shame or remorse. They blindly march forward towards their own and society's self-destruction.
Joe Paterno was fired by the Penn State Board of Trustees on Wednesday night as head football coach of Penn State. It was the first good decision that has been made in the last two decades by the leaders of Penn State. The man was told that his Defensive coordinator was seen in the locker room shower raping a 10 year old boy in 2002. He did not call the police and report this crime. He and the other top officials at Penn State brushed this crime under the rug, allowing at least seven more young boys to be raped by this monster. The 28 year old graduate assistant not only did nothing to stop the crime he witnessed, but he accepted a position as an assistant coach, knowing that Paterno and the Athletic Director never did anything to hold Sandusky accountable for his crime. Sandusky was still on campus working out as of last week. The actions of all the players in this disgusting example of how far our society has degenerated are enough to make someone lose all hope for humanity:
- Jerry Sandusky creates a charitable organization so he can gain access to little boys. Multiple incidents are witnessed on campus from 1994 through 2002. A mother reports Sandusky to the Penn State police in 1998 and nothing is done by the men in the Administration. The investigation is dropped, but Tim Curley forces Sandusky to retire in 1999. It is clear that everyone in the top echelon of Penn State knew Sandusky was a deviant pedophile. But letting it become public would have been a black mark on the football program and could have reduced the huge profits generated by Paterno's kingdom.
- After his forced retirement he is still given access to the campus and locker room facilities. He is caught having anal sex with a 10 year old boy in the locker room shower by a 28 year old man, who chooses not to intervene and save the boy. Joe Paterno does the absolute minimum when informed of this horrific crime. After this crime is covered up by all the key men running the show at Penn State, it just becomes business as usual for Joe and his cronies.
- Sandusky continues to rape little boys for the next eight years because of the cowardice and complete lack of morality exhibited by the men in high places at Penn State.
- With the issuance of the grand jury report last week, the psychotic nature of these men was on display for the world to witness. In a stunning display of arrogance and hubris, Paterno and the President of Penn State announced their full support for the Athletic Director and VP of Finance who were arrested. These men did not think they did anything wrong. They clung to the fact that they adhered to the laws created by other men. In a despicable display, Joe Paterno led a cheer at a pep rally in front of his house with his arms raised in victory. At least eight boys had their lives ruined and Joe Paterno leads a cheer.
- The Board of Trustees summoned the courage to fire Paterno and the President last night. In another display that makes me wonder about the future of our country, thousands of students rioted in support of Joe Paterno, breaking windows, turning over news vans, and starting fires. Are these young people incapable of critical thinking and are just driven by emotion and mindless rage? Can't they distinguish between facts and lies? Do they care more about football than innocent children being raped?
I have been blind with rage for the last week as I've watched the powerful men of Penn State attempt to retain their power and reputations at the expense of truth, honesty, and accepting responsibility for their actions and willful inaction. As I've watched this tragedy unfold I was struck by the thought process of rich men in positions of power. They have huge egos and believe they are above the law. They think so highly of themselves they believe they can make the rules and ignore the laws which the little people must follow. They have no moral compass whatsoever. They cannot be shamed. The most despicable behavior by prominent men has been willfully overlooked because these men generate $50 million of profit per year for the university. Their sociopathic desire to protect their reputations and power has led to a scandal of such epic proportions that it will haunt Penn State forever and has permanently damaged the institution.
This is an institutional cancer that eats away at the fabric of our society. It is not isolated to Penn State. It is a societal sickness that threatens to overwhelm every facet of our lives. There is a constant thread that runs through every incident that comes to light. In 99% of the cases it is men protecting men. Money and greed always trump morality and truth. The exact circumstances can be observed in the priest abuse scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church in the last five years. Pedophile priests have existed within the Catholic Church for decades. The Penn State situation shows that pedophiles exist everywhere in our society. The bottom line is that they are sick men and need to be locked up and kept away from little boys. There is no more heinous criminal act than a grown man raping a little boy. Anyone who does this is pure evil and must be punished.
The Catholic Church's wealth is almost beyond measurement. There are 1.2 billion Catholics in the world. The pope is one of the most powerful men on earth. Cardinals and bishops throughout the world wield tremendous influence over their flocks. As young Catholic boys you are taught that priests represent Jesus Christ on earth. They are treated with reverence and fear by little Catholic boys. Little Catholic boys would never question the motives of a priest. They are taught to obey, because a priest is the same as Jesus Christ. These beliefs allowed pedophile priests to prey on thousands of little boys around the world for decades with little or no backlash. Those crimes were horrific enough by themselves, but the actions of the bishops, cardinals and even the popes who have known about these crimes make it ten times worse. Again, powerful men will ignore rules, regulations, laws and simple human decency in order to protect their wealth, power, and reputations. Cardinals and bishops knew that priests were raping little boys and their solution was to transfer them to another parish where they could find fresh meat. The thought never entered their minds to turn these perverts in to the police. Their only concern was how a scandal would impact their beloved institution. Little boys were sacrificed at the altar of the Catholic Church by evil men.
The cover-up continues to this day. The Catholic Church uses the statute of limitations as their defense against the continuous stream of cases that continue to mount. They secretly pay out hundreds of millions to the victims as long as they promise to keep quiet. They use bankruptcy laws to close down parishes and avoid paying civil penalties for the crimes committed by its hierarchy. They hire public relations firms to create false and misleading stories designed to obscure the truth about the biggest criminal conspiracy in history. The powerful sociopathic men who were supposed to represent Christian teachings have destroyed the lives of thousands of boys in order to protect their institution. The end result is that in addition to the thousands of lives destroyed by the pedophile priests, hundreds of thousands of Catholics have lost faith in the leadership and have abandoned the church. The wealth these sociopaths attempted to protect has been eroded as donations have dried up and lawsuit payouts have mounted.
Not only have our educational and religious institutions failed us, but our financial and political institutions have spectacularly self-destructed over the last decade. Shockingly, these institutions have been run predominantly by men. At one time banks were stodgy institutions that abhorred risk and methodically made profits year after year by lending to people and businesses capable of paying them back. Investment firms were partnerships. If any one partner was to take an excessive risk, they could wipe out the personal wealth of the other partners. Therefore, they never took excessive risks or used excessive leverage. Their boring business model generated modest profits year after year. The officers of banks and investment houses were well compensated, but not excessively so. The leaders of these firms were children of the Great Depression. They understood bad times.
During the 1990's they were displaced by a new generation of leaders. This has not turned out well for our country. These psychopathic CEOs were given the green light by their fellow psychopaths in Congress and at the Federal Reserve to loot and pillage to their heart's delight. This conspiracy of thieves broke down the barriers between traditional banking and gambling using excessive leverage. They captured the regulatory agencies that were supposed to police them and leveraged their bets 30 to 1. They created fraudulent mortgage instruments designed to lure the stupid and crooked. They marketed debt to anyone with a breath and ability to scratch an X on a piece of paper. They designed derivatives so complex that even their own Harvard MBAs couldn't figure out how they worked. They bribed rating agencies into stamping a AAA credit rating on crap so toxic that they joked about the idiots they were selling it to. They shorted the very same derivatives they were selling to their clients. These psychopaths raked in hundreds of billions in fees, salaries and bonuses, while detonating a nuclear bomb on the worldwide financial system.
When their bets came up craps, they had the gall to hold the American people hostage for trillions in bailouts. Their fellow psychopaths in Congress gladly forked over the money. Rather than mend their ways, these evil men have returned to their excessive risk taking and continue to pay themselves billions in compensation, while the American middle class is smothered to death under mountains of debt. These evil Wall Street geniuses have shown no remorse as seven million people have lost their jobs and millions more have lost their homes due to the greed and avarice displayed on an epic scale.
Wall Street bankers exhibit the epitome of psychopathic behavior, showing lack of empathy and remorse, shallow emotions, egocentricity, and deceptiveness. Psychopaths are highly prone to antisocial behavior and abusive treatment of others. Though lacking empathy and emotional depth, they often manage to pass themselves off as average individuals by feigning emotions. These Wall Street bankers will never willingly accept responsibility for their actions. They continue to use their wealth and power to control the politicians in Washington DC and the misinformation propagated by the corporate media they control. They own and control the Federal Reserve and will print money until the whole system collapses in a spectacular implosion that destroys our financial system. They only care about their own wealth, influence and status. They have no shame.
When I consider all that is wrong in our society, I become despondent, angry and despairing for the future of our country. It seems that everyone in positions of power across the spectrum of education, religion, finance, and politics are psychopaths, bent upon self-destruction no matter the cost to society or unborn generations. Our nation has degenerated into an egocentric, self-loathing, vain, shallow excuse for a civilization. There is anger flaring up, but it is just as likely to be misdirected and misinformed. The lack of critical thinking skills and the overwhelming effects of media propaganda has so degraded the intelligence of the populace that when the system breaks down in the next few years, the masses will clamor for a savior rather than seeking truthful answers and willingly making the sacrifices required to get our nation back on track. This country will get what it deserves – a despotic ruler and a brutish civilization governed on the basest of principles. This is what happens when a society rewards lying and greed over honesty and compassion. There are consequences to actions and inactions alike. We've made our choice.


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Paul Laurence Dunbar#44 on top 500 poets
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The Old Homestead
'Tis an old deserted homestead
On the outskirts of the town,
Where the roof is all moss-covered,
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Whole Foods hurt by SandyNovember 8, 2012: 1:51 PM ET
Whole Foods (WFM) warned shareholders that it will take a one-time charge for losses related to Hurricane Sandy. Investors raced out of the stock, causing it to drop more than 5% Thursday.
The Sandy-related worries forced investors to ignore an otherwise solid quarter in which sales spiked 24%. Sales at stores open for more than one year jumped 8.5%, and profits rose 49%. Whole Foods CEO John Mackey said the retailer's pace of opening new stores continues to increase.
With today as a glaring exception, investors have generally been as giddy about the grocer's stock as many consumers are at its perpetually packed salad bars. The stock is up more than 30% this year.
Some traders on StockTwits were willing to overlook Sandy's short-term effects and focus instead on long-term positive trends for the organic retailer.
retail_guru: Still, hard to argue much has changed in Whole Foods story - if expenses are initial cost of accelerating growth, that's a good thing $WFM
fraggle1023: $WFM have signed 45 new leases this year - will open a record number of new stores this year
As people in the New York area restock their refrigerators, some traders even think Sandy could help boost sales this quarter.
retail_guru: Whole Foods comps over last 2 days up 11% company-wide & 20%(!) in Northeast as consumers re-stock after #Sandy. $WFM
Still the question of just how much people will be willing to fork over for more expensive, organic food worries some traders.
Bullbear123: $WFM with inflation hitting everywhere, people will slow down on expensive food costs. seeing it all over the place
FZucchi: $WFM seeing increased $50+ baskets - that means people are now buying 3 bananas instead of 2
We haven't seen $15 bananas at Whole Foods ... yet.


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Remember how much everyone loved to hate AOL at the turn of the century? AOL offered bloated software, piles of unwanted installation discs, a walled garden of content, an overloaded newbie network, and a pricey dial-up service.
AOL has changed a lot since then, even though it's still here to kick around. But who needs to pick on AOL when we have Apple's iTunes?
(You might also be interested in ".")
The status of Apple's iTunes today bears an uncanny resemblance to the dominance, influence, and nagging problems that AOL had in early 2000, when the ISP boasted 26.7 million paying subscribers and Steve Case was the Internet star of the moment.
Now, Steve Jobs is the much-admired digital maestro, with his iTunes media store and software that allows users to manage their iPods, iPhones, and Apple TV. But just as AOL reached great heights and subsequently made dismaying missteps, Apple is showing signs that it could be on a parallel trajectory.
First, similar to AOL at its peak, iTunes has gazillions of users. Although Apple won't release a figure for that, it does brag that it has sold 100 million iPods, which likely puts the number of iTunes users in the stratosphere since that number doesn't even include iPhone users.
Recent iTunes troubles include last month's iPhone 3G activation nightmares, not to mention complaints of buggy software downloaded from the iTunes App Store. These issues followed reports from users about problems syncing first-generation iPhones.
iTunes is to digital media today what AOL was for the Internet circa the year 2000. Here are seven reasons why.
1. Bloat
Apple originally released iTunes as a tool for managing your iPod and a music store — that's it. The most recent release of iTunes (version 7.7) comes with too many other features and functions. You can use the software not only to manage and buy songs for your iPod but also to download games, grab movies, buy ring tones, manage your iPhone, and stream online Web radio stations. The list goes on.
I don't know about you, but when I want to update my iPod with new music, I find it obnoxious that iTunes is pushing "Top Music Videos" from the Pussycat Dolls and trying to convince me to buy episodes of the AMC TV series Mad Men.
Over the years AOL similarly weighted itself down with features such as the AOL Shopping Assistant toolbar for your browser, the AOL media player, AOL Wallet, and AOL SpyZapper (thanks, but no thanks). AOL also pitched products, many times not its own, which got the company into hot water on occasion.
Trying to use the basic functions of iTunes makes me feel the same way I do about using the basic functions of AOL: Getting involved with either of them seems like taking a trip through Times Square — too many ads and unwanted distractions.


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Go City Cards provide admission to multiple attractions for one low price. Pay nothing at the gate! The more you do the more you save - up to 55%.
Passes are delivered via email along with a digital guidebook. Print your pass or present it right on your mobile device to get into each attraction.
Whether you're going for a day or a week, know the attractions you plan to visit or want to decide on the fly, there's a Pass that's perfect for you.


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Smart, economical, flexible. The Modular Conveyor Platform, the Interroll Crossbelt Sorter and the Interroll Belt Curve belong to our best sellers.
Smart, economical, flexible. Interroll's new generation conveyor modules are the most versatile and durable systems available, assuring highest availability and scalability for future growth.
Interroll is expanding the range of applications of Modular Conveyor Platform MCP: Deep-freeze logistics will now benefit from efficient, ZPA material flow down to minus 30 degrees Celsius.
Top performance for the modern variety of goods: With the new High-Performance Crossbelt Sorter, even larger and even heavier goods can be sorted even faster.
Non driven, 24/48 V drive, 400 V drive.
24/48 V drive, 400 V drive.
Supports, Sensor kit, Mounting brackets, Side guide, Actuator etc.
High Performance Divert (HPD), Transfer, Pusher, Lifts, Lift-Up Gate
The Belt Curve has been specifically designed to provide trouble-free performance for many years in a variety of applications.
Learn why airports worldwide rely on the Interroll Belt Curve!
Interroll Sorters' proven mechanical design and patented discharge mechanism assures highest availability and accurate sorting for timely deliveries, even for sensitive goods.
The Interroll Crossbelt Sorter is an extraordinary product for anyone looking for a high-quality solution for sorting documents, parcels, boxes and goods of all shapes and sizes, or handle returns.
South African retail leader Edcon would always go for the Interroll Crossbelt Sorter again.


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Eleven days after he was announced as the associate head coach at Fordham, Van Macon is heading south to join the Rutgers men's basketball staff as the No. 2 assistant.
Gannett New Jersey has confirmed an internet report that Macon has been tapped to fill the final assistant spot on Mike Rice's staff, joining David Cox and Jimmy Martelli.
Macon served as an assistant at Hofstra for the past nine seasons, the last three as associate head coach under Tom Pecora, before making the move to Fordham with Pecora. Prior coaching stops included Lafayette and Marist.
For more information on Macon, see this press release by Fordham: Macon named to Fordham staff. News of Macon's hiring at Rutgers was first reported by Jeff Goodman of Fox Sports.


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B.J. Penn (16-7-1 MMA, 12-6-1 UFC) and Jon Fitch (23-3 MMA, 13-1 UFC) have been in the fight game for a minute. They share 33 UFC appearances. Fitch has 13 wins inside the octagon; Penn has 12. Penn has 11 title fights under his belt, while Fitch has one. Penn has held two belts; Fitch has held none.
Fitch has had a long, slow and hard road to the top of his weight class. Penn has bounced between two weight classes at the top of the UFC heap. They've at times clashed with their employer about the trajectory of their respective careers.
But they've been around long enough to know that today's title eliminator is tomorrow's "in the mix," especially when a fighter doesn't deliver a memorable performance. So they're proceeding as if nothing is on the line in hopes that a win and a good show will make the case for big future opportunities, whatever those may be.
"UFC 127: Fitch vs. Penn" takes place Feb. 27 at Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia. The pay-per-view card airs in the U.S. in the UFC's traditional Saturday-night slot due to the time difference.
Additionally, three of the event's preliminary bouts are scheduled to air live on ION Television, and two prelims will stream live on Facebook.
It's the second UFC event to take place in Australia following the promotion's first trip down under one year ago with UFC 110.
UFC 127 is sold-out, and UFC president Dana White has announced its headliner as a welterweight title eliminator. But Fitch and Penn are focused on each other, not the next guy in line.
"As of now, I'm not even thinking about that," said Penn when asked about the bout's status. "I'm not thinking about titles. I'm just happy to fight an opponent of Fitch's level and Fitch's stature."
"I'm in the same position," Fitch added. "I don't really want to waste any time thinking about anything other than fighting B.J. right now. He's just a dangerous opponent and he's been around for so long. If I don't give him full attention and full focus, that would be a huge mistake."
Penn would rather end the fight early to negate a significant size disadvantage against Fitch. That means Fitch is getting ready for an early onslaught and working on weathering the storm so he can wear the former champion down in later rounds, which is one of his specialties.
"[Penn] brings a certain type of skillset that if you make a mistake he's able to capitalize and put you away, and that transfers into any weight class," Fitch said. "As a welterweight coming into this fight, I have certain advantages with size. But it's not going to be enough.
"I've had to work a lot on speed and explosiveness and keeping everything tight to make sure there are no mistakes in this fight."
Fitch has not lost a fight since he took on Georges St-Pierre at UFC 87 for the welterweight title. He most recently dispatched Thiago Alves at UFC 117 in a rematch announced as a title eliminator. After a workmanlike decision win, that opportunity disappeared.
Penn, meanwhile, is on the upward ramp once again after a two-fight skid that saw him lose his lightweight belt to Frankie Edgar and fail to regain it in an immediate rematch. In his most recent appearance, he returned to the welterweight division and knocked out former nemesis Matt Hughes to close their rubber match series up two to one.
Rivera to Bisping: Now go away or I will taunt you a second time
Give Jorge Rivera (18-7 MMA, 8-5 UFC) a YouTube account and a taste for troll and there's nothing he can't accomplish. When his second bout with Alessio Sakara was canceled, he hatched a plan to get a big-time fight. So he picked one with a guy with a big name and a sensitive streak: Michael Bisping (20-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC).
Rivera primed the pump by promising to [expletive] Bisping up just moments after the Sakara cancellation this past November at UFC 122. Then his manager got in on the action and questioned Bisping's manhood. Not long after, the Brit signed the fight. Phase one completed.
Phase two took a while to emerge, but when it did, it certainly did the trick. A series of YouTube videos poking fun at Bisping surfaced and ricocheted around the Internet before landing square in his inbox. Mildly amused, but mostly infuriated, the middleweight and winner of "The Ultimate Fighter 3" fired back in several interviews including one with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) in which he accused Rivera of being racist toward the English. Phase two completed.
Phase three: deny, deny, then keep doing it. Cut to the UFC 127 pre-fight press conference, and Rivera is stoically sitting at the podium, as calm as a Buddha, as Bisping steams on the other side of the lectern. Bisping takes shots at Rivera, who's already admitted the whole thing was a game to get inside Bisping's head.
And it's working; despite the admission, Bisping is still hopping mad and mean-mugs the Massachusetts native in the pre-fight staredown for photographers.
If Bisping's anger is real and not a counter-troll, you can pat Rivera on the back because it will allow him to take advantage of the fight. If Bisping charges forward more than he normally would during a fight, Rivera will be able to tie things up in the clinch and rough Bisping up before getting a takedown. Bisping is not terrific on his back and hasn't spent a ton of time there. That leaves Rivera to pound out a TKO win. Of course, Bisping could ignore all the slings and arrows thrown his way and out-kickbox the aging Rivera. In that scenario, he should win by decision. Will it excite? No. But it could work for the Brit.
It all depends on who's trolling who.
In other main-card action, a lightweight matchup between George Sotiropoulos (14-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and Dennis Siver (17-7 MMA, 6-4 UFC) could carry big title implications for the division. Because it's such an important fight, the grappling savvy Sotiropoulos will want to get explosive striker Siver to the mat and take and arm or leg before catching one on the chin.
Additionally, Brian Ebersole (44-15 MMA, 0-0 UFC) steps in on short notice for an injured Carlos Condit to take on Chris Lytle (30-17-5 MMA, 9-9 UFC), who's taking one last shot at the welterweight belt before calling it a day on his dreams of being champion.
Also, "The Ultimate Fighter 11" veteran Chris Camozzi (14-3 MMA, 2-0 UFC) attempts to build on a decision win over Dong Yi Yang at UFC 121 this past October with over Kyle Noke (18-4-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) , who's coming off a submission win over Rob Kimmons at UFC 122.
The full UFC 127 card includes:
MAIN CARD (pay-per-view)
- Jon Fitch vs. B.J. Penn
- Michael Bisping vs. Jorge Rivera
- Dennis Siver vs. George Sotiropoulos
- Chris Lytle vs. Brian Ebersole
- Chris Camozzi vs. Kyle Noke
(ION Television)
- Spencer Fisher vs. Ross Pearson
- Alexander Gustafsson vs. James Te Huna
- Riki Fukuda vs. Nick Ring
- Jason Reinhardt vs. Tiequan Zhang
- Tom Blackledge vs. Anthony Perosh
- Mark Hunt vs. Chris Tuchscherer
- Maciej Jewtuszko vs. Curt Warburton
For more on UFC 127, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.
(Pictured: B.J. Penn)


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The paper-piecing skills were honed even more piecing this modernish Dresden for Emily. Her quilt will consist of different colored wheels – I love the idea. I can't wait to see the other colored blocks. I'll try and find out if there's an available pattern for piecing this block.
Finally, this is my last block in Jackie's Blogger's Block of the Month. This block was designed by Sarah Fielke and you can find the instructions here. There are lots of great blocks in this series, and of course, it's never to late to join in – the block tutorials will always be available.
I bought that background fabric this summer at Pins and Needles in New York. It comes from Atsuko Matsuyama's 30's Collection for Lecien.
Kerri has one of my favorite selections of Japanese import fabrics (love those mushrooms and bunnies!) and vintage inspired prints. I love using them in my i-spy quilts – they give them that cute, retro look. Thanks, Kerri!
And now, it feels good to be caught up on Bee blocks. On to Christmas sewing!
I forgot to mention, I had a little sewing 'adventure' over the past holiday weekend – I sewed a sewing machine needle through my left pointer finger! My husband thought I was crazy when I told him to take a picture of it before I had him pull it out. I won't share the picture here, but I did share it on my Facebook page if you're a thrill seeker and you'd like to see a needle sticking through one side of my finger and out the other.
Between rotary cutters, needles, swallowing pins, I think we sewers definitely qualify as 'living on the edge' extreme sports enthusiasts.


text: TROY -- The 4th annual "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes" community march against sexual assault had the largest turnout in the event's history, with organizers estimating $34,000 raised for the Sexual & Crime Victims Assistance Program for Rensselaer County at Samaritan Hospital. Some 342 participants, many of them men, strapped on high heel s, go-go boots and sandals for the mile-long march held Saturday to raise awareness of sexual violence. "You've heard the saying that you can't understand how another person feels until you've walked a mile in their shoes," said Lisa Smith, director of the program. "We're taking that concept and applying it to help end sexual violence. We want this to be a community effort, so everyone can come out, learned what we can do to avoid becoming a victim and learn how each of us can help prevent this type of violence from happening in the first place." The Victims Assistance Program provides counseling, medical and legal escorts and other services for victims of sexual assault. Susan Sisto, an organizer of Saturday's event, said that with grants drying up, fundraisers like the community march are even more important to ensure the continuance of services for victims. "We're with them from start to finish," said Sisto. "We help them to understand that their feelings are normal and valid, and help them learn skills to lead a more self-sufficient person. Many victims of sexual assault don't realize how an early trauma can affect them later on in life." Some of those marching came as families or individuals, but many came out in groups from various organizations, companies and area schools. A new group this year was one of about 30 students from Hudson Valley Community College, who got involved through the schools' criminal justice club. "My sister is a volunteer at Northeast Health, so I've marched before, and this year I brought a group out,' said Ian Lloyd, who was joined by Chad Coumbes, Stephen LaFountain and Severin Kameni, all of HVCC, as well as a campus peace officer, Tom Towsley. The students all said that they are excited to participate again next year, and bring out even more to participate. For many of the men participating, the one-mile march was a painful one. Kameni, who came out to the event despite a case of bronchitis, said he couldn't decide whether his feet or his chest hurt more after the walk. Still, many described the event as "fantastic," as well as an important day to bring attention to the issue of sexual assault. Services offered by the Sexual Assault & Crime Victims Assistance Program are free and confidential, and there is a 24-hour hotline for individuals in need at 271-3257. Cecelia Martinez can be contacted at 270-1294 or by e-mail email@example.com


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Worldwide Demand for iPhone 3GS Outstripping Supply
Demand exceeding supply for the Apple iPhone 3GS is one of the big takeaways from Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster's earnings preview for Apple's September quarter and it obviously bodes well for the company's investors. Munster sees Apple (AAPL) beating the Street's estimates thanks to increased sales of both Macs and iPhones.
As the analyst notes, NPD data for the first two months of the September quarter show Mac sales up about seven percent year over year. iPhone sales are even more robust.
"Our checks indicate that worldwide demand for the iPhone 3GS is outstripping supply," Munster writes. "This strong level of demand, we believe, will support unit sell-through of about 7.5m units in the Sept. quarter."
Continuing, Munster notes that "PJC Wireless Analyst Mike Walkley's checks for the first two months of the Sept. quarter indicated constraints at retail for the iPhone 3GS. We have also seen signs of constraints in international markets. Media reports indicate that the CEO of wireless carrier 3 Italia indicated that the company is selling 20k iPhones per month, but could sell more than double that amount if it had adequate supply."
If this is problem, Munster asserts, it's a fleeting one: "While supply constraint is a issue near-term, we see it as a long term positive, as worldwide demand appears to be very strong for the iPhone 3GS."
In quarters past, Apple has guided revenue four percent below Street expectations on average and earnings-per-share 12 percent below Street expectations. But the company's actual results have typically beaten those estimates by an average of three percent on revenue and by 24 percent on earnings per share. Munster expects this to be the case again when Apple reports earnings on Monday.
Over at RBC Capital Markets, analyst Mike Abramsky sees Apple's forthcoming earnings report playing out in much the same way for largely the same reasons. "Checks show that the iPhone 3GS is the most popular Smartphone at AT&T and other global carriers (e.g., O2 UK, Rogers)," he wrote in a note to investors today.
"Despite launch in June," Abramsky added, "some models of the iPhone 3GS were stocked out at Apple retail stores and carrier stores through Q4; however, checks show retail availability appears to have improved early September. While sell-through of the prior-gen iPhone 3G has been slow at AT&T since the launch of the iPhone 3GS, we believe the $99 iPhone 3G is gaining traction outside North America given lower upfront cost (important where prepaid is high)."


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|This page is about the clothing maker. For the "Semi" car engine, see PMP 600.
SEMI is a clothing manufacturer first introduced in Grand Theft Auto III, then later seen on Mules in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, then seen again in Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars.
They mainly manufacture sportswear. There are no standalone SEMI stores in San Andreas; they sell their clothing (t-shirts and shoes) in Sub Urban stores. A SEMI store can also be found in Belleville Park near the Liberty City Memorial Stadium.
In Grand Theft Auto IV there is a SEMI store located on Folsom Way, Fortside, Bohan, but the store is boarded up so it possibly has been closed down.
In GTA Chinatown Wars, in the mission By Myriads of Swords, where the player has to search the wallets of the men killed, one of the cards that can be found in their wallets is the SEMI card, with the slogan "Bend the Rules".
The company identity is based largely around penis references. In 1992, SEMI used a logo that resembles a semi-erect penis. They changed it sometime before 2001, then reverted to the old logo around 2008. The word "semi" is also slang for a half erected penis, with the slogan "Bend The Rules" implying the same concept. Their other slogan, "Play Hard", implies a full erection.


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No other industry sector has more innovation per square foot than technology. And for most of 2012, Apple along with the rest of the technology sector was outperforming. But not anymore.
One of the stock market's most beloved leaders is now a laggard: Apple. The mood has quickly turned from optimism and euphoria to anxiety and fear.
When Apple broke below $564 on Nov. 7 everything changed. It marked an official 20% bear market decline in the stock from its $705 high and "Apple-mania" began to fade.
Just a few months prior to Apple's fall, here were the rosy headlines:
"Wall Street Analysts Increasingly Bullish as Apple Hits Fresh Highs." — Wall Street Journal, 8/27/12.
"Apple seen as 'trillion dollar baby'" — MarketWatch, 8/21/12
"Apple could be worth a trillion in one year" — The Atlantic Wire, 9/23/12
Tech Impact
News headlines from our friends in the media turned out to be a great contrarian indicator. Is the run in technology stocks over?
Sector leadership (or lack of it) is an important factor for the broader stock market. In 2000-02, the technology sector (QQQ) led the market lower. During the 2008-09 credit crisis, bank and financial stocks (XLF) sank the market.
What's the point? Industry sectors that contain stocks with large market capitalizations (size) always dominate the performance and volatility of major indexes. Today, the 78 technology stocks within the S&P 500 (IVV) represent a jumbo sized 22% of the index.
And if we drill down into the top 10 holdings of popular technology ETFs like the Technology Sector SPDR (XLK), the concentration in just a handful of stocks (65% of the fund) gets extreme. Market concentration is wonderful when stocks are rising, but when they fall—the damage is felt.
What about the market's mood?
Investor sentiment, especially toward old tech giants has soured considerably. Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) shares hit 10-year lows, Dell is at three-year lows and Intel's share price is down close to 20% since mid-2012. From a contrarian perspective, opportunistic investors like Warren Buffett have been adding to their tech positions. Buffett owns shares in both IBM and Intel.
Because technology is such a large sector component, it will be difficult for major indexes to stage a sustainable rally without its participation. Smart advisors do the opposite of the crowd by building positions when everyone has seemingly left the building. That could be the story with tech this time around.


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EDAL case summaries
Country of Decision: Poland
Country of Applicant: Pakistan
Keywords: Burden of proof, Child Specific Considerations, Detention, Effective remedy (right to), Individual assessment, Manifestly unfounded application, Material reception conditions, Medical Reports/Medico-legal Reports, Reception conditions, Relevant Documentation, Relevant Facts, Standard of proof
The application of S.C. and her minor children Z.C. and F.C. related to the cassation of an Appeal Court judgement regarding compensation for the harm they suffered as a result of an indisputably unjust decision to place the Applicants in a Guarded Detention Centre for Foreigners. The Supreme Court reversed the challenged judgement and passed the case to the Appeal Court for re-consideration.
Date: 02-03-2017
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