The Most Hated Family In The U.S.

Church ordered to pay $10.9 million for funeral protest

"... a father of a Marine whose funeral was picketed by members of a fundamentalist church carrying signs blaming soldiers' deaths on America's tolerance of homosexuals."

"Church members showed up at Snyder's funeral chanting derogatory slogans and holding picket signs with messages including "God Hates Fags."

They've picketed the funerals of dozens of troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, claiming that God is punishing the United States because of its tolerance for homosexuality.

... It's hard enough burying a 20-year-old son, much less having to deal with something like this," he said, recalling that some of the other signs at the funeral included "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "Thank God for IEDs."

It is rare the the left and right can come together in a common hatred towards those that are viewed as scum of the earth. These rabid, uber-pseudo-Christian idiots should have their clocks cleaned by a bunch of leather clad biker gay(ng) bangers.

I'm all for tolerance, freedom of speech, and even idiots, but this is ridiculous. These bastards just have to go! They don't have to go away mad... they can just go!

Here's a clip of the same "church" that goes around protesting military funerals.

Select A Candidate Quiz

Do you know who all the candidates are? Doesn't matter. Here's a little quiz that you'll enjoy taking. Answer the 11 questions and it spits out who the best candidate is that matches up with your stance on the issues.

Take the quiz.

The State Department promised Blackwater USA bodyguards immunity

By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer

"WASHINGTON - The State Department promised Blackwater USA bodyguards immunity from prosecution in its investigation of last month's deadly shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians, The Associated Press has learned.

The immunity deal has delayed a criminal inquiry into the Sept. 16 killings and could undermine any effort to prosecute security contractors for their role in the incident that has infuriated the Iraqi government.

"Once you give immunity, you can't take it away," said a senior law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.

State Department officials declined to confirm or deny that immunity had been granted. One official — who refused to be quoted by name_ said: "If, in fact, such a decision was made, it was done without any input or authorization from any senior State Department official in Washington."

Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd and FBI spokesman Rich Kolko declined comment..."

Well, looks like it's open season on rag heads. And to think... we were all getting bored with nothing to do. Now Uncle Sam will make ok to murder civilians... as long as they aren't our civilians.

Lying Rat Bastard "Stop 49" Campaign Spokespeople...

This image is of the Salem, Albany, Eugene Mid-Willamette Measure 37 Claims: Linn and Benton Counties In the Willamette Valley there are over 2,200 Measure 37 development claims. Here is a map of claims in Linn and Benton Counties

God I hate liars. Almost as much as I hate 6 hit die bugbears. Especially republican lying, self interest rat bastard liars.

This little diddy is from Measure37Watch.com. All of those commercials out there opposing measure 49... nothing but self interest rat bastard liars, in case you missed it when I said it up above.

"The same timber companies and developers who funded the "Yes on 37" campaign in 2004 are spending a fortune trying to defeat Measure 49. As part of that campaign - in television ads, mailers, flyers and in the voter's pamphlet - the Stop 49 Campaign has offered up "spokespeople" who claim that Measure 49 would prevent them from undertaking modest developments on their property. But the claims they are making are very different than the claims they have actually filed. Below is a chart of some of the "Stop 49" spokespeople in ads from the last several weeks. Read the real facts behind these spokespeople, and why they are working for the "Stop 49" Campaign."

Is The Surge Working? You Decide.

Is the surge working? Let's see what you think once you look at the numbers. Above is a graph of the cumulated deaths (Civilian and US) in Iraq comparing 2005 through 2007, June through October (assuming that no more deaths occur in October).

The numbers used to generate the graphs are below. They were found on these two pages US deaths, Civilian Deaths.

If you look at the numbers, and please double check them if you will, you will see that the total deaths are as follows.

• 2005 = 739 deaths
• 2006 = 709 deaths
• 2007 = 749 deaths

Even though the graph will show that, "Yes the number of deaths have dropped from September through October 2007, the total number of deaths is still higher than 2005 and even 2006.

I can see how one group of people might consider this something to be ecstatic about, that our numbers have dropped over the last two months. This might incline a person to say, "Yes, the surge is working" since the graph does show a decrease in casualties from August 2007 on.

But at the same time, I can see how another group of people would question, "Why are you ecstatic when our overall numbers are not only unacceptable... but actually worse than the last two preceding years?"

Does the successful surge take precedence over the total casualties accumulated?

Which group are you? Are you the Cheerleader over the successful surge? Or are you unhappy with our overall accumulated numbers?

Nathan Petrelli... yet another Republican Candidate. God Save Us!

God, I am so sick of these guys coming out of the woodwork! This guy, Nathan Petrelli, is a congressmen that has a family history... nay, a Dynasty that's been in bed with corrupt Vegas business for decades.

The corruption starts way back in the family, as it generally does in the neocon archtype. Nathan's father, "Dallas" Petrelli, served in Vietnam with a mister "Austin" Daniel Linderman. The very same Linderman who goes on to become the reputed mobster based in Vegas. They were the only survivors in the Tiger Force platoon where Dallas shot and killed a civilian girl in charge of her families crops. Both, Dallas and Austin were the only survivors of the Au Co mission.

Years later the connection between Dallas Petrelli and Daniel Linderman is revitalized as Linderman contributes millions to Petrelli's congressional campaign. Though the connection and chain of custody was never proven, we all know that it existed... just like Dubya's cocaine use.

Jesus, this reads like a soap opera. Well, Nathan Petrelli, son of Dallas, joined the U.S. Navy as a pilot and served in Serbia, Bosnia, and Rwanda. Ok, we have to give him koodos for this. Everyone knows pilots are the coolest!

Nathan ends up becoming a lawyer and works with the District Attorney's office. The District Attorney wanted to expose the Mafia connections between Nathan's father and Linderman. Nathan was all on board until a mysterious car accident which left his wife paralyzed. God she's such a rich-bitch hottie! Aren't all republican wives?

Recently, this bastard received $3 million from Linderman, just like his father, and has won the 14th congressional seat in NY and now he just threw his hat in for the Presidency.

Not only is this guy a crook, he's the antithesis of "family values" as proven by his white trash illigitemate daughter Claire. His mother has been arrested for shoplifting, his brother Peter is a complete psycho and a failure at daycare, which any fool can do with their eyes closed. What's next a bomb under some opponent's desk?

But really, what's one more republican to the mess that's already been spilled?

Yet another Republican "I'm not Gay" Sex Scandal

You know... this kind of stuff wouldn't be so bad if a) they weren't so biggoted against gay butt sex and b) they didn't do it in men's public bathrooms. Ewwwwwwww! I mean really... ewwwwwwwwww!!! Yuk.

In this article, More Republican Sex Skeletons, in the Black Star News (I guess which counts as an oxymoron), "The recent revelations regarding presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani’s employment of a pedophile priest, and those regarding Joey DiFatta, a councilman from St. Bernard Parish in Louisiana, are two illustrative cases in point...

...DiFatta, who started serving on the St. Bernard Parish Council in January of 1996, was first caught seeking to satisfy his urges in September of 1996, when he was issued a summons for peeping on a man in the bathroom of the Mervyn’s Department store in Esplanade Mall. (Must people now ask everyone they meet in a bathroom their Party affiliations before they risk entering a stall?)

The man dropped his complaint against DiFatta and the record was expunged. Then in March of 2000, like Senator Craig, DiFatta graduated to using the tap dancing code to signal he was ready for some action. As chance would have it DiFatta ended up tapping the toes of undercover Detective Wayne Couvillion, who played along by tapping his foot and asking DiFatta “What do you want?” To which DiFatta reportedly replied “I want to play with you.”

Is this an example of Republican male bonding?DiFatta reportedly also used a hand signal known among gay men who cruise for sex in bathrooms. However, he escaped arrest because Detective Couvillion decided to terminate the sting due to the intervening presence of young children in the bathroom. An officer close to the investigation, Sergeant Keith Conley, asserts that had the sting continued DiFatta would have surely been arrested. "

Freaking gross perverts. You know, the whole reach around, circle jerk, pull-me/yank-me thing is fine. Really. Go to town, more power to you... but Jesus H Christ... in a men's bathroom?? God, you guys are just... gross.

Rudy G. Living In Sin With Gay Couple?... Say it aint so!

I don't know.... If it weren't for the NY Times, I'd be mighty suspicious.

"after dumping his second wife for Judith Nathan, New York’s lame-duck mayor had been bunking for two months with a gay couple. No brand-name American politician had ever publicly done such a thing, so I decided to pay a visit to Rudy’s home away from home."

Ballot Measure 50... why it's proposed as a Constitutional Amendment.

Why Ballot Measure 50 is up for a Constitutional Amendment and not a mere statue (law).

Many people are wondering, but only a handful of people know the deal. Here it is for you... all nice and shiny!

Legislatures (House and Senate) can pass laws all they want. They don't need us to vote on it. But some laws are harder to pass than others. A new tax law is one of those hard laws to pass... for a reason.

In 1996 a law was passed requiring a 3/5 majority of the legislature to pass bills for raising revenue.

In order for the House to pass a bill for a new tax, they need to get a 3/5 Super Majority vote in the Legislature. Remember, we're talking about only our Legislature voting, not a ballot measure.

This 3/5 Super Majority is needed between the Oregon Citizen Legislature comprising of the House of Representatives (60 members) and the Senate (30 members).

At least three-fifths of the members of each house, the Senate and the House of Representatives, must approve a bill for raising revenue in order for it to pass. (Yes, I'm redundant, but this stuff is like making sausage, just bear with me.)

In the 30-member Oregon Senate, the number of Senators required to approve a bill, which raises taxes, is 18 (raised from 16).

In the 60-member Oregon House of Representatives, the number of Representatives required is 36 (used to be 31). Again, this would apply only if a bill has the primary purpose of raising revenue.

Now, I don’t know how many democrats and republicans are in either the House and Senate, but, the important part is that when this was presented to the entire Legislature... the Super Majority was not reached. The democrats were in favor, but the republicans did not get on board.

See, this is key! The republicans had a chance to vote this into a simple law, but they didn't. Remember... the big issue now is "Why is this up for a vote to be on the Constitution?" This is the answer... because the republican Legislature did not want it passed as a law... period!

Now… (again) this was proposed to the House and Senate as a bill to be a statute, not as a constitutional amendment. Basically, in lay man terms, the dems proposed the same damn thing to the House and Senate as a bill to be a Law and it did not pass because they did not receive a Super Majority, thanks to the republicans..

I’m sorry if this is dragging on, it’s not my intention to, but this is important... and to date, nobody on any of these blogs has properly explained exactly why it’s up for an amendment and not a mere statute. Except for me on RINO's blog.

Before we get to the problem of it being on the Constitution it would be good to ask why did it not reach a Super Majority when we had the chance.
Why did they do it? Knowing full well that the dems were left with no other option than to LEGALLY put this measure up for a vote before the people as an amendment to the Constitution where all that is needed to get something up for the public to vote on it being an amendment in the Constitution is a Simple Majority, or 51%, which we now have.

The republicans say that the tax should not be on the Constitution, unlike the gasoline tax and snowmobile tax (for some reason cigarettes are sacred). They say the Constitution should not be a place for petty taxes. They also say they are ALL IN SUPPORT OF KIDS GETTING HEALTH CARE... yet they did not sign on when this was put before them in the legislature.

If Ballot Measure 50 passes and it amends the Oregon Constitution, the republicans are more at fault than the dems for not supporting the bill when they had a chance.

Is health care an end that more than justifies the means of an amendment?

And, yes, yes, I know... the pic above is of our founding fathers for the U.S. constitution and not the Oregon Constitution but it still gets the idea across.

If Measure 50 passes, will a tax on cigarettes threaten funds for healthcare? ...

Way back in economics 200 there is a little analyses called the "Price Elasticity of Demand."

In short, Price Elasticity compares the percentage change in quantity demanded of a given product with respect to the percentage change in price. In more short terms, if you raise the price of tobacco 10% would you expect to see a decrease in consumption of 10%?

Well, it depends on the product. Cigarettes are addictive and are therefore highly Inelastic. This means that a consumer is not all that price sensitive.

Now, neocons are saying that the sky will fall, volcanoes will blow and that the healthcare is threatened by an ever shrinking tax revenue generator from cigarettes. They are wrong. You can see here and anywhere else on the magical internet (by simply typing in "Price Elasticity of Demand for Cigarettes" into Google) that people are not very responsive to an increase in price at 10% markup.

Here at this wonderful site, towards the bottom of the page you will find "As you will see, governments prefer to tax goods with a relatively inelastic demand, since there will be little decrease in demand by consumers when the good's price increases." They are referring to cigarettes and gasoline. The graph at the top of the page is in reference to their explanation to Price Elasticity.

Real quickly, see the X axis, the difference between Q1 and Q0 is the change in percentage of smokers. Notice how much smaller that is to the Y axis, the change in price, between Pp and Pc. Big change in price... little change in smokers. (psst... someone's lying and their name begins with ... republicans)

I know, I know... some of this stuff is dry enough to serve an olive with, but HEY... it's the deal, man! It's what happens to cigarettes when you tax them and neocons and republicans of all colors (hell, Libertarians as well) are literally blowing smoke out their asses when they say that Ballot Measure 50 will cause a decrease in cigarette smokers to the extent that the kid's health care is threatened.

Is this an argument to vote yes on 50? No it's not. I'm still undecided about it.

On one hand, I like healthcare for kids. I also hate cigarettes. I also love the thought of taxing cigarette smokers for kid's health care. In fact I love it. But I don't like the constitution messed with.

It comes down to, "do the ends justify the means?" and, "why did they put this as an amendment?" I'll answer both of those in our next post.

Same Bat Channel. Same Bat Time!

Churchies and the Right are Breaking Up? ... Tell me it aint so!

Looks like the Evangelicals have wisened up to being hijacked by the GOP. Many are now distancing themselves from the righties.

• The NY Times has an absolutely wonnnnderful piece on "The Evangelical Crackup."
• Evangeicals Talk of Boycotting the GOP, at "The Huffington Post"
• When Would Jesus Bolt, at the "Washington Monthly"
• Christian Conservatives Consider Third Party Effort, in the "NY Times"

Oh! This is classic. From the Jesus Bolting story, "The Republicans were filibustering the Bible bill. On a Tuesday afternoon in early February, Republican legislators in Alabama took to the crimson-carpeted floor of the state house to oppose legislation that would authorize an elective course on the Bible in public high schools.

The recommended curriculum for the course had been vouched for by Christian Right all-stars like Chuck Colson and Ted Haggard, but so far as Republicans were concerned, there was only one pertinent piece of information about the bill: It was sponsored by two Democrats. And now Republicans were prepared to do everything in their procedural power to stop it, even if that meant lining up to explain why they could not--could not!--stand for this attempt to bring a class about the Bible into public schools."

Donchya just love it. Read on and you'll be amazed gentle reader.

Apparently, pastor, Terry Fox, at the Immanuel Baptist Church in downtown Wichita, Kan., would preach fire and brimstone about gays.. .(gasp)... and abortion.. (the horrors) 52 weeks a year. Well, the Churchies in charge have started to get tired of it and they let him go. Vamoose Terry!

See, Good Ol' Boy Terry Fox was, the "public face of the conservative Christian political movement in a place where that made him a very big deal." At least until now, amen brother!

Why is it that so many of these rabid churchies are fat, white loudmouth hate/fear mongers? Raining down from the "pulpit about the wickedness of abortion, evolution and homosexuality." Jesus... save me from your followers... please?

This guy, Fox, is a total right wing batting hard linger! A real wing nut, even amongst his own crowd, "urging fellow pastors to make the same “confession” [towards right wing allegiance] and calling them “sissies” if they didn’t. “We are the religious right,” he liked to say. “One, we are religious. Two, we are right.”

Apparently, the Board of Deacons were joining the rest of the country and got sick of Fox and his fear mongering. "Fox left under pressure. The board of deacons had told him that his activism was getting in the way of the Gospel." His hate, unfortunately, got in the way of the Love of Jesus and the Word of God. Can't let that happen, now can we?

"Fox is not the only conservative Christian to feel the heat of those battles." Oh no, it's now in vogue to 86 these fire and brimstone, rabid, fat, white hatemonger’s. "Within three months of his departure, the two other most influential conservative Christian pastors in the city had left their pulpits as well. And in the silence left by their voices, a new generation of pastors distinctly suspicious of the Republican Party — some as likely to lean left as right — is beginning to speak up."

Times, they are a changin! - Amen Brotha!

Untruths In Opposition in the Voters Pamphlet...

Before you read this, first… go read Ballot Measure 49 (Short Version, Long Version ) for yourself so you won't be swayed by any of my rabid hate mongering against the right wing neocons as I force the bile down while I read to you Arguments (Lies) in Opposition in the Oregon Voters Pamphlet.

Let's take a look at the lies in Opposition.

• First on the list by Senator Larry George "Measure 49 will allow state and local government to take your home and property without compensation." They didn't even make it into the pamphlet 10 sentences without lying. SHeesh! First of all, the state doesn't take your property. Second of all... the state doesn't take your property. If you own a farm, filed a Measure 37 claim and 49 passes... guess what... you still own your property. I think Larry is bearing false witness.


• Lie #2 - "Current Oregon law requires government to pay you fair value when it reduces the value or takes away your right to use your property..." This is the 2nd argument, written by .. hmmm let's see here... Oregon Family Farm Association PAC. A PAC! Not all farmers feel the way Matt does. The state doesn't "take away your right to use your property" Matt. It's still your property ol' buddy, and you my friend, are not telling the truth here. I think your pants ... are on fire Mattster.


• NEEEEEXT! Argument #3 - No wait, we're still on the 2nd damn argument. Matt's on a role here. Looks like we're here for a lonnng long time. Or at least till I'm ready to watch Heroes or Lost! Lie #2 for Matt is "Measure 49 is a radical change to state law that allows the government to take your property without any compensation." EEEEEEDERT [sound of Freddies shopping cart leaving the parking lot] Sorry Matt, I call bullshit. Again... the state, county, gestapo, feds, unca bush, Dubya... none of them "take your property" much less, take it without compensation. I'm afraid your pants are still on fire Mr. Cyrus.


• ok... on to Argument #3 - Woah Nelly! WAITAMINUTE... I just found my left slipper, and Matt is still full of it! I should have read ahead before I sat down. Damnit! "We will have to pay the government’s attorneys and appraisers to get our property back" Lie, the big bad wolf never took your property. "Those of us who have permits to build a house or two on our property will have those permits wiped out, and be forced to start all over." Lie again, none of the Measure 37 claimants start over again. This lie has been used up and down the blogs it's pathetic. I verified it with a simple call to the state. Jeepers... they even told me the truth and admitted that people were lying to sway voters. Gasp! Republicans lying?? First the mens room incidents and now... lying?? Oh.. the Humanity.


• If I knew a little more about the $40,000 / $80,000 farmhouse rule I'd call BS on Cyrus' claim that "We will have to prove that we made $80,000 per year in order to build a farmhouse to live in on our property." ... screw it, I call bullshit. This site sums up the statute pretty nicely however this page is the official document... if you can stomach it. Do a search (or "find function) for $80 on both pages to find it. Basically, on high value farm land a farmer needs to proove he's a farm, in order to build a farmhouse, by earning $80,000 gross annual income. This statute exists, but it's not a 49 argument. Basically, a red herring. Use a real truth, that has nothing to do with the argument, to sway people's minds. Liar Mr. Cyrus.


• Next is Glenn Cloyd, President of the Oregon Sportsmen Assn. "Measure 49 could cost Oregonians their whole life-savings when government takes their property without compensation." See.. these hillbillies think that if you say something enough times it's true. Firstly, the government is not taking away any property. Secondly, it's rather difficult to believe that a family will loose their "WHOLE LIFE-SAVINGS" after 49 passes. "But Gramma... What about all of that land you and Grammpa have?? There's 125 acres you guys bought for $15,000 40 years ago." "Shhhhhhh! Shuddup you little brat!" "SMACK" See, when Jethro is ready to move out of the farm land, he wants to sell his land to developers to make even more money so they can leave some greenbacks for their little kiddies, Buffy and Jodi, who don't reeeeally feel like working for a living. So now.. they will only be able to make $3 million instead of a little more million. I think that's fair all for the sake of keeping Oregon green after they head out to Florida. As it goes, investment in farm land beats out the stock market almost every time.

And it goes on and on and on. More of the same. Vacuous Rhetoric spread by the right wing agenda. Am I biased? Damn straight I am. Almost as biased as I am against KKK members and neo nazis. A snake is a snake and bias doesn't matter when you can call bullshit when the right continues to follow in the footsteps of Karl Rove.

March on Christian Soldiers.

We vote November 6th. Measure 49 has people confused. Hopefully these Measure 37 stories and maps will help inform you about what exactly is going on and why this is a big battle and why you should get involved.

In 2004 Ballot Measure 37 set the stage for poorly planned urban sprawl onto the farms and forest lands surrounding Portland, and throughout Oregon. What this means is that if all the farm owners wanted to sell their land to developers or strip miners, they can. The result is all of our farms would turn into mini Orange Counties and strip mines. It's already been happening.

Measure 37 claimants have filed more than 2,500 residential applications for Measure 37 waivers in the greater Portland area. All of these claims together add up to nearly 34,500 new residents in our "formerly known as" farm land.

Farmers, timber companies and developer landowners have filed more than 7,500 Measure 37 claims, requesting over $15 BILLION Dollars in compensation or the right to develop what ever they want in spite of current farm land and forest statutes and laws.

Sightline.com has the maps of the estimated number of new people and dwellings that would appear in areas that are currently protected as Exclusive Farm Use land and Forest land across Oregon. These maps illustrate the potential Measure 37 development and damage to Oregon's greenery in relation to current growth boundaries. What this means is Urban Sprawl.


Here are some stories of real people affected by the Measure 37 claims. Remember, 37 allows for urban sprawl onto sacred farm and forest land. Sprawl in the form of hundreds of suburbanites packed together like Orange County California. How do we know that?

1) Look at what the claims are for "MAXIMUM UTILIZATION" which means as many houses that they can pack into one spot to get as much money as they can out of the forest land.

2) Common sense. These people want to either develop their land, then sell it, or sell it to a developer. All sellers want the most that they can get from their goods or service, the most being the most houses that can be packed into 200 acres of high value farm and forest land.

Oregon's Property Wrongs
A very clear pdf put together by Sightline of Bad Neighbors in Oregon that "sound far fetched but are actually affecting real people, right now.

Mining in a National Monument
"East Lake...Newberry Crater has always been a peaceful place, with just a few campsites, plus the small summer-only East Lake resort that’s been around since 1915. East Lake is now the focal point of one of Oregon’s biggest Measure 37 claims. A private landowner, James Miller, who holds 157 forested acres inside the National Monument (which includes shoreline along the west side of East Lake) filed a $203 million claim for loss of use under the measure. Because the government couldn’t pay up, the landowner now has approval to build a pumice mine, a geothermal plant, and as many as 150 vacation homes on the property. Geologists hired by the landowner will soon begin looking at where to tap the geothermal energy. "

A Gravel Mine Moves in Next Door"...Susie Kunzman and her husband Wayne love their quiet rural life. They bought the property two years ago to grow their alpaca farm, now with 35 animals which by themselves have an estimated worth of $350,000. But all that could change if a proposed 80-acre gravel mine goes in just over the Kunzman’s fence line. Her neighbors, Charles and Wanda Daugherty, now hold an approved Measure 37 claim that allows the quarry and makes it easier to obtain permits. The county could not pay the Daughertys for loss of use, so under Measure 37 it was forced to approve their claim."

Suburbs in a Working Forest
"... As third- and fourth-generation Oregonians, Jim and Sandy LeTourneux love forests and wildlife. But don’t call them tree-huggers. They’re loggers.

The couple loves what some might see as a tough business: running a 460-acre timber farm in the forested Coast Range of rural Yamhill County.

In 1964, Jim’s father began planting trees; and in 1976, he passed the business down to Jim and Sandy. With their two sons grown and moved away, Jim is the entire labor force these days. He plants and fells the fir, alder, and maple and Sandy keeps the books. The two don’t take traditional vacations. Health insurance is on their dime. Retirement? Not an option, at least not anytime soon. ... But their livelihood, along with their stewardship, could slip away with a Measure 37 claim bordering their property on three sides. The LeTourneux tree farm is nearly surrounded by some 850 acres of forest owned by a Measure 37 claimant. The owner, a developer named Bob Hemstreet, filed a claim for $35 million for loss of use, and if the county doesn’t pay, he may be able to subdivide the property and build as many as 848 homes on 1-acre home sites... "

And it goes on and on and on. It's real simple. If you think it's ok for our farms to be turned into pumise mines and condos... then vote no on Measure 49.

If you think people's property rights are being taken away, even though they can still build up to 10 houses on prime farm land and sell their land for millions of dollars... then vote no on 49.

But... if you think that 37 was poorly written, allowing for unchecked development outside of the urban growth boundary, allowing undesirable growth in our farming communities and forest land... then you'll want to consider voting Yes on 49.

Your choice. Do your research. Google every name you read to get your own facts. Do your due diligence.

We're voting yes to save our farm lands, yes to save our watersheds, yes to save our forest land. We're voting yes on 49 in November.

Earth Melts While Republicans Maintain Denial

Environmentalists, people left of center, dirty hippies and even moderates have been saying FOR YEARS now that human activity is increasing the rate of global warming.

Republicans have been steadfast in the commitment to deny human affected global warming. Calling it witchcraft ever since 2004 and beyond.

Bush Attacks Environmental Scare Stories (2004)
Republican Congressman Advised to Deny Global Warming (2004)
Conservative website arguing against global warming
GOP against Global Warming (2007)
"In 2006, the National Journal asked a group of Republican senators and House members: "Do you think it's been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the Earth is warming because of man-made problems?" Of the respondents, 23 percent said yes, 77 percent said no. "

Until just VERY recently the hard right has denied global warming. Only until the majority of the planet and 99.87% of every single climatologist and weather scientist on the planet has screamed global warming has the Dubya administration and their sycophants finally started … talking about global warming.

This op-ed in the NY Times is, again, stating the obvious.

A Swiftly Melting Planet
By THOMAS HOMER-DIXON
Toronto
THE Arctic ice cap melted this summer at a shocking pace, disappearing at a far higher rate than predicted by even the most pessimistic experts in global warming. But we shouldn't be shocked, because scientists have long known that major features of earth's interlinked climate system of air and water can change abruptly.

A big reason such change happens is feedback - not the feedback that you'd like to give your boss, but the feedback that creates a vicious circle. This type of feedback in our global climate could determine humankind's future prosperity and even survival.

The vast expanse of ice floating on the surface of the Arctic Ocean always recedes in the summer, reaching its lowest point sometime in September. Every winter it expands again, as the long Arctic night descends and temperatures plummet.

Each summer over the past six years, global warming has trimmed this ice's total area a little more, and each winter the ice's recovery has been a little less robust. These trends alarmed climate scientists, but most thought that sea ice wouldn't disappear completely in the Arctic summer before 2040 at the earliest.

But this past summer sent scientists scrambling to redo their estimates. Week by week, the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo., reported the trend: from 2.23 million square miles of ice remaining on Aug. 8 to 1.6 million square miles on Sept. 16, an astonishing drop from the previous low of 2.05 million square miles, reached in 2005.

The loss of Arctic sea ice won't be the last abrupt change in earth's climate, because of feedbacks. One of the climate's most important destabilizing feedbacks involves Arctic ice. It works like this: our release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases around the planet causes some initial warming that melts some ice.

Melting ice leaves behind open ocean water that has a much lower reflectivity (or albedo) than that of ice. Open ocean water absorbs about 80 percent more solar radiation than sea ice does. And so as the sun warms the ocean, even more ice melts, in a vicious circle.

This ice-albedo feedback is one of the main reasons warming is happening far faster in the high north, where there are vast stretches of sea ice, than anywhere else on Earth.

Continue reading full article...

And yet, another fantastic article from the NY Times, way back in Feb 2007

"On Feb. 2, 2007, the United Nations scientific panel studying climate change declared that the evidence of a warming trend is "unequivocal," and that human activity has "very likely" been the driving force in that change over the last 50 years. The last report by the group, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in 2001, had found that humanity had "likely" played a role."

Stimson Lumber Gives $200,000 to Fight Ballot Measure 49

So, when a lumber company, that specializes in cutting down trees, goes around cutting down trees, the state makes them plant more trees. ... or at least the state tells them to plant the trees. Maybe it's a strong suggestion in the eyes of the lumber companies. I'm not too sure.

Regardless. Planting a ton of trees cuts into the bottom line when Clear Cutting is your bread and butter. "Dem trees gotta come down! So I's can buy my pick up truck!"

But, why bother to spend a crap load of money planting trees when you can claim that state and county regulations force you to have to plant trees, cutting into your revenue, when you can simply file a claim and get permission to put up a bunch of houses? Sounds like a money maker to me.

In the event we run out of trees or some other source of wood out paces Oregon lumber for a cheaper price, it's always good to have a back up plan to cut every damn tree and throw up row after row of subdivisions.

The last thing a lumber guy wants is to be limited in making a profit when you have thousands of acres that still have resources that can be wrung dry out of the land. "good to the last drop... then you throw up condos and make a crap load of money! YEEEEE HAWWW!"

Stimson Lumber donates $200,000 to fight Measure 49
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
ERIC MORTENSON
The Oregonian Staff

Portland-based Stimson Lumber Co., which has filed the state's largest Measure 37 development claims, has contributed $200,000 to a campaign to defeat Measure 49, which would limit development allowed under the 2004 property rights initiative.

Contributions by Stimson and other timber companies, reported Monday under the state's campaign finance law, pushed Oregonians in Action to $1.15 million in contributions.

Oregonians in Action, based in Tigard, sponsored Measure 37 three years ago and opposes Measure 49, which is on the November ballot. The group reported spending $994,972 on the campaign through Monday.

Stimson's contribution is the largest single donation Oregonians in Action has reported in the current campaign.

"This is consistent with Stimson's very public plans to convert forests into subdivisions," said Shelly Strom, Yes on 49 spokeswoman. "Of course they are contributing to the campaign; they stand to make a lot of money on these subdivisions."

Yes on 49 said a search of records in six counties shows that Stimson has filed claims totaling 59,428 acres. Claims the company has filed with the state Department of Land Conservation and Development affect a total of 109,875 acres, according to Yes on 49.

Stimson CEO Andrew Miller called those figures "preposterous." He said Stimson's Measure 37 claims involve about 57,000 acres. Either figure is the state's largest in terms of acreage.
"They've got us painted as if we're going to urbanize the Coast Range," Miller said. Stimson has pursued only one development, Miller said: the 1,200-acre Iowa Hill project in Washington County, where the company hopes to build 40 homes.

The other claims ask the counties to roll back land-use regulations involving income requirements and minimum lot sizes, but Miller said those are "placeholder" claims intended to give the company options in the future. Stimson has no plans to develop its timber holdings, he said. "We know what it's worth growing trees; we'd be fools to do anything else with it."

Measure 37 allowed property owners to seek compensation if land-use rules imposed after they bought the property restricted its use and reduced its value. That prompted about 7,500 claims for subdivisions and industrial and commercial development, most of it on rural farm and forest land.

Supporters of Measure 49, referred to voters by the 2007 Legislature, say it would allow claimants to build one to three home sites on a fast-track basis or four to 10 home sites if they can prove that land-use regulations devalued the property. The measure prohibits industrial and commercial development.

Both sides have reported more than $1 million in contributions. Yes on 49 listed $2.78 million in contributions and $1.49 million in spending through Monday.

Seneca Jones Timber of Eugene; Swanson Group of Glendale, a wood products company; and A-dec Inc., a Newberg company that makes dental office equipment, have each contributed $100,000 to Oregonians in Action. Hire Calling, a Utah-based employment agency, also contributed $100,000.

Other wood products firms listed as contributors include Freres Lumber, C&D Lumber, Murphy Hardwood Plywood Division, South Coast Lumber Co. and Cascade Timber Consulting.

Read the full article at the Oregonian
Eric Mortenson; 503-294-7636; ericmortenson@news.oregonian.com. For environment news, go to http://blog.oregonlive.com/pdxgreen

Yet Another 'Another Republican' Caught in Funky Sex Scandal!

OK.. you JUST HAVE TO READ THIS STORY...God, it's hilarious.

You can find it here!

United States Penitentiary, Tucson, Arizona -

Cameras at this high-security prison have captured explicit video footage showing former Republican Congressman Randall "Duke" Cunningham performing a 'sex act' on a fellow inmate.

The images, which are already circulating on the internet, were apparently leaked by the warden's teenage son (who considers himself a life-long Libertarian). Mr. Cunningham, who is currently serving an eight-year sentence on bribery, fraud and tax evasion charges, denies that he did anything inappropriate.

Instead, he claims that he simply dropped a bar of soap in the shower. "I then leaned over to pick the soap up, accidentally slipping and falling in the process. The resulting uncompromising position with my cellmate, Butch, caught me off guard so badly that I temporarily forgot where I was," he stated.

"Take my word," he continued, "I bought the boat and not the lifestyle." (Referring to his earlier purchase of a 42-foot yacht named 'Buoy Toy' from a homosexual couple.) "As far as I'm concerned, all socialist homos (except for Barney Frank) should be lined up and shot," he added.

"I swear on the American flag that I have never lost at a game of soggy biscuit nor have I have ever been on the servicing end of a glory hole."

He then gave the one-fingered salute for effect. Note: The nickname 'Duke' was Cunningham's callsign during the Vietnam era and refers to his 'John Wayne'-esque personality.

=======

It's so right on target that you simply want it to be true because it has that "Oh-So-True" ring to it that we have heard over, and over, and over.

Voter's Guide - Weighing In At 3 Pounds of 49 Arguments.

Vote time is November 6th (not may like the pic says). Be sure that you submit your voter's registration to the post office YOURSELF and don't give it to any republicans or they just might throw them away! No kidding, it really happened in 2004. And thanks to an honest volunteer at a GOP headquarters, they had the whistle blown on them.

Well, the Oregonian did a little bit on the 49 arguments in the voters guide. Take a look-a-see.

Voter guide thick with Measure 49 arguments
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
DAVE HOGAN The Oregonian Staff

With people putting their money where their mouth is, voters are lucky that the Nov. 6 ballot has only two statewide measures.

The voters pamphlet mailed to homes next month adds up to 90-plus pages, packed with 175 paid arguments for and against the proposals.

Most of that is a record 117 arguments about Measure 49, which would revise a 2004 property-rights law. The voters pamphlet, which arrives in homes next month, will include 69 arguments for the proposal and 48 against it.

No other ballot measure racked up anywhere near that many arguments, according to records dating back to 1992. The most during that time were 83 arguments regarding 2004's Measure 37, the same property-rights initiative that would be revised by this year's ballot measure.

"Measure 49 is certainly the most arguments we've ever received on a measure," says Tami Dettwyler of the state Elections Division.

Supporters and opponents of ballot measures have to pay $500 to spell out up to 325 words of their thoughts in the voters pamphlet, so Measure 49's discussions cost more than $55,000.

Other measures that sparked large numbers of published arguments in the past included a proposed income tax surcharge in February 2004, which had 75 arguments for and against. And in 2004, Oregonians felt strongly enough to pay for 68 arguments regarding Measure 36, which specified that marriage is between a man and a woman.

The other measure on this year's ballot, Measure 50, drew 58 arguments about the proposal to raise cigarette taxes to fund children's health programs. That includes 27 for and 31 against.
That means the 175 arguments about this year's two measures is almost as many as the 196 arguments for all of the dozen measures on the November 2002 ballot.

Election officials plan to have this year's voters pamphlet delivered to Oregon homes Oct. 10-12.
Dave Hogan: 503-221-8531; davehogan@news.oregonian.com