Today is Saturday, February 04, 2012

Trust

Facebook, Twitter, WSJ.com, Politico.com, DailyCaller.com violate your privacy

Facebook privacy continues to be a problem on WSJ.com, Politico, Daily Caller and other sites. When you recommend an article via FB, you get an opt-in request that says if you use the FB connection, you give WSJ.com or whatever site access to the names of your friends, your profile info and more. The sites sell this info to marketers and spammers.

If you click "don't allow" the connection is cancelled. I don't use the FB connection on WSJ.com because I don't trust News Corp., which owns The Wall Street Journal, Barron's and Fox News. The WSJ.com comment section also is programmed to invade your privacy and often requires a new log in even though you're logged into wsj.com. It's all very frustrating to me.

Similarly, I don't use Yahoo.com's Facebook connection.

FB and the sites that want you to recommend their articles to your FB friends say that they're not violating our privacy because our Friends and profile info are available to anyone who checks us out on FB. I believe only we should know who our FB and Twitter friends are. Our friends' names should be confidential, imho.

I haven't signed up for Google+ because it wants access to all of my info and the right to sell that info just like FB and Twitter do. 

Al Gore’s global warming alarmists attack a skeptic

Global warming skeptics know that Al Gore's global warming alarmists use bad data, rigged computer models and poor science to convince gullible politicians like George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman that humans play significant roles in warming earth.

Roy Spencer recently published an article that may totally undermine the propaganda spready by Gorean alarmists. So they're attacking his integrity and science with the kind of vicious and sensless posts on his blog that you would expect to find in the comments sections of the NY Times and Washington Post.

LINKS:

Editor in chief of Remote Sensing resigns from fallout over our paper, by Roy W. Spencer.

When nobody believes Obama, why should they believe the TSA?

After Barack Obama's two years in power and his almost two years of campaigning for the White House, Americans know President Obama very well.

One thing that became clear during the campaign and has since become obvious to the gullibles who voted for him in 2008 is that he distrusts Americans so much that he feels free and compelled to lie, distort and play blame games. Thus, it is no surprise that Americans who don't trust Obama also don't trust or believe his secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, or the stubborn and politically tone deaf head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), John Pistole.

Mark Udall, Michael Bennet still AWOL on TSA groping, molestation, dangerous body scanners

We're still waiting for Colorado's Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet to speak out against the TSA's sexual molestation and use of dangerous body scanners at the nation's airports. The TSA's scanning and molestation scandal  is turning into a war that is pitting the Left's  insistence on political correctness and universal screening against Americans' demands for profiling, personal privacy and liberty.

In addition to the AWOL Udall and Bennet, we have yet to hear from Diana DeGette, Ed Perlmutter, Jared Polis, John Salazar, Mike Coffman and Doug Lamborn. I just checked the web sites of the incumbents who will be in the 112th Congress. None have issued press releases on the TSA scandal. They're hunkering down. These big government types appear to be hoping the controversy will just go away.

It won't. It will only grow as more Americans experience what cya politicians and bureaucrats have dreamed up for them. What the Obama administration is telling us that more terrorists' attacks are expected.

If they aren't stopped, it won't be because the politicians didn't try to stop them. If you're worried about being blown out of the air, don't fly. If you object to Big Brother And Big Sister getting in your pants, don't fly. If you think it will happen to someone else, fly.

LINKS:

Getting touchy at the airport, by Tobin Harshaw. Biochemist says 'naked" X-ray scanner may be unsafe, by Declan McCullagh. Researchers: TSA misleads public on scanner safety, by AVweb staff. Don't touch my junk, by Charles Krauthammer. The T S of A takes control, by George Will. Enduring the bare necessities in airport screening, by Kathleen Parker. How to think about the tiny cancer risks posed by airport scanners, by Michael C. Dorf. TSA terrifies, too, by Al Lewis. $11,000 fine, arrest possible for some who refuse airport scans and pat downs, by John Lantigua. TSA pat-down leaves traveler covered in urine, by Harriet Baskas.

Air passenger who refused TSA molestation will be persecuted; where are Colo. Senators, Congressmen?

John Tyner, the passenger who refused to let TSA agents sexually molest him, will be investigated and may be fined $11,000 for refusing to complete the pat down process at the San Diego Airport. Where are Colorado's Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet on this case? Where are Congressmen Doug Lamborn, Mike Coffman, Diana DeGette, Jared Polis and Ed Perlmutter? So far, none of them have posted any comments about the TSA's abuse of passengers on their web pages.

Mark Udall, Michael Bennet, Mike Coffman, Diana DeGette must stop airport molestations by TSA

Are members of the Colorado Congressional delegation, their families and their staffs exempted from molestations by TSA security agents in Denver and Washington, DC? Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet have the most power to stop intrusive government agents from groping and molesting travelers, but being Big Government politicians who don't want to be blamed if terrorists down a plane, they probably will get themselves exempted from the searches. The TSA is said to be using molestation to force fliers to go through dangerous body scanners, which expose people to radiation that accumulates over time.

And they'll let all other Coloradans suffer the indignities of air travel. Sooner than later, however, air travel will shrink dramatically as tourists and skiers go on buyers strikes. They'll refuse to fly, and they'll stop coming to Colorado on vacation.

The Colorado and U.S. economies will suffer as the politicians cover their tails and millions of Americans lose more jobs.

This is not an Obama problem. This nonsense started under President George W. Bush and his GOP Congress, and it continues under the Obama Democrats.

It's time for Udall, Bennet and U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette, Mike Coffman, Ed Perlmutter and other members of our delegation to force the TSA to use racial, ethnic and other kinds of profiling rather than universal profiling.

And it's time come up with other ways to protect Americans in the air. It's time to restore our liberties and freedoms. And it's time to crush the terrorists where they live.

Click on this link to read the account of a woud be flier who defied the TSA and has been told that he could be subject to a $10,000 fine for refusing to be x-rayed or patted down.

The link also is on http://www.Drudgereport.com. So if the government spends $1 million to prosecute the flier and suffers $1 billion or more worth of bad publicity, Americans who will help the flier pay for a defense will be the winners. And the politicians will show what kind of people they really are.

Do not fly until Big Government gets rid of scanners and becomes less intrusive at airports

Since 9/11, we've flown only once or twice a year, if that, because I don't like to go through security at airports. Big government is too intrusive. Politicians are spending billions scanning everyone and everything and making little kids and old folks go through ridiculous security checks. From George W. Bush to Barack Obama and the Congresses that have enabled them, the politicians have imposed airport security checking systems to protect themselves from public criticism if a plane is blown up, not just to protect the traveling public. To be politically correct, politicians force everyone to go through security. It is time to use racial, ethinic and other available techniques that screen people who are real threats, not everyone. We shouldn't be giving terrorists such a huge victory by letting them cripple our economy and take away our rights to privacy and to move around the country and world freely. No trip is so important that you have to get some place overnight. It is time for all travelers to drive or stay home until the politicians come to their senses. 

Dan Maes filed for bankruptcy in ‘89; another Maes supporter calls him irresponsible

Dan Maes has confirmed months of rumors that he had filed bankruptcy. Bob Balink, a prominent El Paso County Republican and member of the state party's central committee who had tried to help Maes get his campaign finances in order called him irresponsible in an email that Balink sent to Maes Saturday. At a huge Republican rally for Tom Tancredo Saturday, his running mate, Pat Miller, announced to some 600 or more Republicans that she had been told that Maes has turned off his cell phones. This hasn't been confirmed, but the rumor is out there. Also, Tancredo said that a precinct leader in Aurora who was handing out a GOP brochure told a voter to vote for Tancredo because Maes "can't win." There also was an unconfirmed but relliably sourced rumor that Pete Coors, a long-time community leader and GOP candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2006 will be holding a fundraiser for Tancredo. This is my 290th post on Maes since Oct. 29, 2009. LINKS: News sparks new calls for Maes to drop out of race, by Karen E. Crummy. Why I think Dan Maes is too unethical to be governor of Colorado, by Donald E. L. Johnson, 8.16.2010.

Tom Tancredo victory wouldn’t hurt GOP or American Constitution Party

Democrats are doing all they can to scare Republicans into voting for the ethically-challenged Dan Maes instead of helping elect former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo governor of Colorado. And the Denver Post political writers are doing all they can to help the Democrats by writing misleading stories about the situtation and quoting warnings by a Democrat political consultant, Fred Ciruli. Even if the reporters are trying to be objective and fair, their work looks very biased in favor of Obama Democrat John Hickenlooper. I support Tancredo and my agenda is obvious.

John Hickenlooper, Dan Maes will hold 10 debates; Tom Tancredo will get valuable free media

Obama Democrat John Hickenlooper has agreed to 10 debates with disgraced Dan Maes, an unethical and incompetent Republican who has been disowned by his party.

Tom Tancredo won’t participate in the debates, but he’ll probably get more good, free publicity out of the Hickenlooper and Maes show than they will. Think about it. Colorado voters will watch two of the most distrusted politicians in the state compete to see who makes the most promises that they can’t fulfill. Before and after every debate, the media, bloggers and Tancredo will mock the debates, find fault with the debaters and wonder what kind of man would debate a loser like Maes. Hick’s cynicism will rally Republicans and independents behind Tancredo and give him a terrific chance to win the gubernatorial election on Nov. 2. I can’t wait to hear Tancredo’s response to Hick’s attempt to use Maes to trash the GOP. And if any Republicans still think Maes is their guy, his vindictive cynicism and willingness to help Hick defeat downticket Republicans will change their minds. Every Colorado GOP candidate is now totally free to attack the disloyal, vindictive and unethical Dan Maes for trying to make Hickenlooper look like a hero. Tambor Williams should resign from Maes’ ticket in protest. I think the series of debates should be called Two Con Men Talking.

John Hickenlooper avoids responsibility, excuses rogue cops

Hear no evil, see no evil and cover up all evil Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, an Obama Democrat who is running for governor of Colorado, rarely comes out of his bubble to infect voters with his opinions and plans. But he has made a big statement with his mishandling of Denver’s rogue cops. For voters like me who are just beginning to pay attention to Hickenlooper, the first impression is devastating.

Even the liberal 

Freda Poundstone backs Tom Tancredo, calls Dan Maes a ‘liar’

Freda Poundstone was an early supporter of Dan Maes. And she tells the Denver Post that she gave her financially struggling candidate more than $300 in cash so that he could pay his $3,300 mortgage. But she became unhappy with Maes, voted for Scott McInnis and now supports Tom Tancredo for governor. Maes denies that the money was a gift and says it was a campaign contribution. Poundstone says he’s “a liar.” Now, Maes’ campaign is trying to trace the $300 and figure out why it failed to report it as a campaign contribution.

Walker Stapleton is turning off Republicans; won’t appear with J. J. Ament

Republican candidate for state treasurer, Walker Stapleton, is turning off me and other GOP activists with misleading and unfair attack ads against his opponent, J. J. Ament. And he’s recently refused to appear with Ament before various GOP groups six times, according to Jessica Fender at the Denver Post. Ament recently said Stapleton has stood up him and sponsoring groups eight times. Earlier in the campaign, the candidates made several joint appearances.

How is Stapleton misleading voters with his direct mail pieces and attack ads? He’s blaming the approval of Ref. C by 52% of voters in 2005 on a commission on which Ament served. Ament told me, “That’s not true.” And to blame Ref. C, which was backed by a conservative GOP Governor Bill Owens, on a commission and one member of the commission, Ament, is absurd. 

Also, Stapleton brags that he is the only chief executive officer of a publicly-owned company in the race for treasurer. Yes, he’s CEO of Sonoma West Holdings (stock symbol SHWI.PK). It is a tiny real estate business that is controlled by Stapleton’s father. The company owns a few buildings in California, and is so small that it probably takes anyone who knows how to delegate only a few hours a week to run.

For more details and links to Sonoma West’s annual report and a profile of the company on Yahoo, see this link to my February interview with Stapleton. See more links after the jump by clicking on the headline of this story.

LINKS:

John Hickenlooper 46% to 24% each for Tom Tancredo, Dan Maes in 3-way

Without running a commercial or having said much during the Colorado Republican’s disastrous July, Governor-elect John Hickenlooper has the support of 46% of Colorado voters in a three-way race against Tom Tancredo and Dan Maes who get 24% each. If the GOP candidate is Scott McInnis instead of Maes, he would get 25% to 26% for Tancredo and 44% for Hickenlooper, according to a new poll published in the Denver Post. (Now that I’ve found the actual poll results on 9News, the poll’s co-sponsor, I’ve corrected the numbers, which weren’t totally clear on the Post’s site.) The poll shows the underfunded Maes, who has failed to impress Republican activists, leading the admitted plagiarist, McInnis, 43% to 39% with a 4 point margin of error.

As a result of McInnis’ integrity scandal and growing doubts about his competence, McInnis is sinking rapidly in the polls even before Hickenlooper or independent Democrat groups have a chance to hit him hard with negative ads. And Maes, who has his own ethical and competence problems is gaining on McInnis only because while he’s been hammered in the media and on conservative blogs, he really hasn’t been taken on by the Democrats, either.

I’ve been predicting that in a three way race, Hickenlooper would get 45% of the vote to about 35% for Tancredo and 5% to 10% for McInnis (or Maes). That looks like the direction the campaign is going.

That the Post’s poll shows that Hickenlooper is leading Maes 50% to 41% and McInnis 48% to 43% doesn’t mean much because the public is still coming to grips with the character and competency weaknesses of the GOP candidates.

McInnis and Maes are at their peaks. Hickenlooper, his backers and Tancredo will bury them with negative ads and reminders of why McInnis and Maes would be lousy and weak governors.

If Maes wins, which still seems unlikely given that so many McInnis backers made the mistake of voting early, he won’t drop out. That means that there would be a three-way race between Hickenlooper, Tancredo and Maes. Hickenlooper almost certainly would win. 

Tancredo may be running on the American Constitution Party ticket, but he’s really a Republican and always will be. Maes, on the other hand, has said that the GOP doesn’t mean much to him. 

Republican leaders and activists currently are trashing their best candidate, Tancredo, the real Republican. Are they going to back the so so conservative and wimpy Republican, Maes, or the real Republican, Tancredo? 

To date, the state’s GOP central committee is pursuing a losing strategy of backing Mcinnis or Maes regardless of their integrity, intellectual, experience and competency failings. The Colorado GOP brand is going the way of Enron. 

The central committee had better reconsider and get behind Tancredo unofficially, if not officially.

Tancredo spent 10 years in the state legislature and 10 in Congress. He’s much smarter and wiser than any of the other three candidates—Hickenlooper, McInnis and Maes—and he would be a much better governor than any of them.

The Denver Post poll shows how the McInnis scandal has destroyed his candidacy. Once the public knows more about Maes, his popularity will tank, too. In 2006, Bob Beauprez made a few untimely and stupid comments and lost by some 17 percentage points. McInnis and Maes have not only said dumb things, they have done and are doing things that make them look dumb. They have no chance and probably will make “Both ways Bob” look like a genius.

If McInnis manages to win the primary, it’s hard to see how he could stay in the race. He’s a very slow learner and very proud and stubborn, but he’s a political pro and can read the tea leaves well enough to know that he’s done. The pressure on him to quit is growing, and this poll, negative ads and a few nudges from his sugar daddies may get him to quit.

As long as Maes or Mcinnis are in the race, Tancredo will be in to win. There will be a three-way race, and only Governor-elect Hickenlooper will enjoy the show.

The poll was conducted by Survey USA.

LINKs:

Maes holds slight edge over McInnis, poll says. By Michael Booth and Colleen O’Connor.

Poll: Romanoff barely beating Bennet; Maes ahead of McInnis. By Christina Dickinson.

Scott McInnis is to 2010 GOP as Nixon was to 1976 GOP: A disaster

Possibly too many Colorado Republicans are in denial about Scott McInnis, and they are imploding.

The party’s leaders and too many activists are more worried about beating Governor-elect John Hickenlooper than about the future of Colorado. They want to elect Scott McInnis even though it is clear that he lies, blows off clients and voters, delivers much more to top contributors than to constituents and doesn’t care or know much about the issues.

What today’s GOP apparently isn’t getting is that McInnis is to the 2010 GOP as President Richard Nixon was to 1976 Republicans. He’s a disaster.

He is setting up the GOP for losing not only the governor’s race, but every other down ticket race. Worse, he’s setting up the GOP for years in the whining gallery.

After Nixon, we got Jimmy Carter, the worst president in history. Only Ronald Reagan was able to save the country and the party from having to live down Nixon’s Watergate longer than it did. It’s very unlikely that a once-in-lifetime Republican will come along to save the GOP from McInnism. The state’s GOP bench doesn’t have a Ronald Reagan in the wings.

Both Hickenlooper and Tancredo will hammer away at McInnis’ ethical record. They’ll mock his earmarking, his service to contributors and the way he plagiarized and blew off the Hasan Family Foundation. They’ll quote his family friend, Rolly Fischer, who called him a liar about the plagiarism scandal.

And Democrats will spend years talking about the Scott McInnis Republicans and their lack of integrity.

Republicans don’t get it yet. But they will.