Immigration is stupid. Let's talk more about gas

Hey, it's down to $2.76 a gallon.

Never did reach $3.00 here in good ol' Lancaster, did it?

Hmmm.....

Immigration: Harry Reid and the Democrats

Source

FLASH BACK: Dem Senate Leader Harry Reid: 'Our Federal Wallet Stretched To Limit By Illegal Aliens Getting Welfare'

'Even worse, Americans have seen heinous crimes committed by individuals who are here illegally'

August 5, 1993

The Office of Sen. Harry Reid issued the following:

In response to increased terrorism and abuse of social programs by aliens, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) today introduced the first and only comprehensive immigration reform bill in Congress.

Currently, an alien living illegally in the United States often pays no taxes but receives unemployment, welfare, free medical care and other federal benefits. Recent terrorist acts, including the World Trade Center bombing, have underscored the need to keep violent criminals out of the country.

Reid's bill, the Immigration Stabilization Act of 1993, overhauls the nation's immigration laws and calls for a massive scale-down of immigrants allowed into the country from approximately 800,000 to 300,000.

The bill also changes asylum laws to prevent phony asylum seekers. Reid said the U.S. open door policy is being abused at the expense of honest, working citizens.

"We are a country founded upon fairness and justice," Reid said. "An individual in real threat of torture or long-term incarceration because of his or her political beliefs can still seek asylum. But this bill closes the door to those who want to abuse America's inherent generosity and legal system."

Reid's bill also cracks down on illegal immigration. The 1990 census reported 3.3 million illegal aliens in America. Recent estimates indicate about 2.5 million immigrants illegally entered the United States last year.

"Our borders have overflowed with illegal immigrants placing tremendous burdens on our criminal justice system, schools and social programs," Reid said. "The Immigration and Naturalization Service needs the ability to step up enforcement.

"Our federal wallet is stretched to the limit by illegal aliens getting welfare, food stamps, medical care and other benefits often without paying any taxes.

"Safeguards like welfare and free medical care are in place to boost Americans in need of short-term assistance. These programs were not meant to entice freeloaders and scam artists from around the world. "Even worse, Americans have seen heinous crimes committed by individuals who are here illegally," Reid said.

Specific provisions of Reid's Immigration Stabilization Act include the following:

-- Reduces annual legal immigration levels from approximately 800,000 admissions per year to about 300,000. Relatives other than spouse or minor children will be admitted only if already on immigration waiting lists and their admission does not raise annual immigration levels above 300,000.

-- Reforms asylum rules to prevent aliens from entering the United States illegally under phony "asylum" claims.

-- Expands list of felonies considered "aggravated" felonies requiring exclusion and deportation of criminal aliens. Allows courts to order deportation at time of sentencing.

-- Increases penalties for failing to depart or re-entering the United States after a final order of deportation order. Increases maximum penalties for visa fraud from five years to 10 years.

-- Curtails alien smuggling by authorizing interdiction and repatriation of aliens seeking to enter the United States unlawfully by sea. Increases penalties for alien smuggling.

-- Adds "alien smuggling" to the list of crimes subject to sanctions under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Expands the categories of property that are forfeited when used to facilitate the smuggling or harboring of illegal aliens.

-- Clarifies that a person born in the United States to an alien mother who is not a lawful resident is not a U.S. citizen. This will eliminate incentive for pregnant alien women to enter the United States illegally, often at risk to mother and child, for the purpose of acquiring citizenship for the child and accompanying federal financial benefits.

-- Mandates that aliens who cannot demonstrably support themselves without public or private assistance are excludable. This will prevent admission of aliens likely to be dependent on public financial support. This requirement extends to the sponsor of any family sponsored immigrant.

-- Increases border security and patrol officers to 9,900 full-time positions.

Reid calls language proposal racist

By Charles Hurt
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
May 19, 2006

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid called a proposal to make English the official language "racist" on the Senate floor yesterday.

No female U.S. army fatality in Iraq for over two months

Check icasualties.org for the latest stats on Iraq casualties.

Oil dips below $70 again, Gasbuddy.com reports 17601 at $2.80 a gallon

Once again, the newspapers that reported over and over and over and over that gas was headed over $3.00 a gallon are ignoring that prices are once again dipping. As reported earlier, some experts on the issue feel that gas prices will continue to ease.

I guess it's back to the drawing board for Democrats?

Breaking News: 29% Poll was fixed

In response to your question, the percentages are as follows:

Excellent - 6%
Pretty Good - 22%
Only Fair - 25%
Poor - 46%
Don't know/Refused - *

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to contact me.

Best regards,
Jen Cummings
Harris Interactive Inc.
Public Relations Coordinator
60 Corporate Woods
Rochester, NY 14623
Phone: 585.214.7720
email: jcummings@harrisinteractive.com
website: www.harrisinteractive.com
newsroom: www.harrisinteractive.com/news
europe: www.harrisinteractive.com/europe

Original message:
I am interesting in the recent poll numbers for the Bush approval rating (29%).

Specifically, I would like to know for May 2006 what the following percentages were in the Harris Poll (number 38? on May 12, 2006).

Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Unsure

Thanks

That gives Bush 53% of people saying he did "Excellent, good, or only fair".

Note: Harris puts Excellent/Good results as Positive. Fair and Poor as Negative. Why? I am not sure. Maybe to make some good headlines?

Choke on this poll

TABLE 18

RATINGS OF DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS – BY POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

(Not Sure’s Excluded)

"And how would you rate the job Democrats in Congress are doing – excellent, pretty good, only fair or poor?"

Base: All Adults

Political Philosophy

Total
Positive
23%

Conservative
18%

Moderate
26%

Liberal
29%

Total
Negative
72%

Conservative
77%

Moderate
71%

Liberal
68%

Source: Harris Interactive Poll #38

Newsmax: USA Today NSA Scoop Not News

Source

The USA Today "scoop" on the NSA's massive telephone surveillance program isn't really news at all - though liberal media outlets have been blaring the story as a shocking revelation all Thursday morning.

The Agency, the paper announced ominously, "has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans . . . The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans — most of whom aren't suspected of any crime."

But as NewsMax noted in December - back when the New York Times tried to ballyhoo a similar story about the NSA's terrorist surveillance program - CBS's "60 Minutes" blew the lid off the agency's domestic wiretapping in Feb. 2000, when the Clinton administration was using it for all sorts of unauthorized purposes.

"60 Minutes" host Steve Kroft introduced the segment by saying:

"If you made a phone call today or sent an e-mail to a friend, there's a good chance what you said or wrote was captured and screened by the country's largest intelligence agency. The top-secret Global Surveillance Network is called Echelon, and it's run by the National Security Agency."

NSA computers, said Kroft, "capture virtually every electronic conversation around the world."

Echelon expert Mike Frost, who spent 20 years as a spy for the Canadian equivalent of the National Security Agency, told "60 Minutes" that the agency was monitoring "everything from data transfers to cell phones to portable phones to baby monitors to ATMs."

Mr. Frost detailed activities at one unidentified NSA installation, telling "60 Minutes" that agency operators "can listen in to just about anything" - while Echelon computers screen phone calls for key words that might indicate a terrorist threat.

Now, more than six years later, the big media is pretending that this is all brand new - something cooked up by President Bush in a mad rush to shred the Constitutional rights of every American.

But even USA Today had to admit in its own report that the NSA wiretapping program has "been done before, though never on this large a scale."

Sh*tbag Conyers at it again

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2006/5/12/182539.shtml?s=ic

John Conyers Defies Nancy Pelosi on Impeachment

Speaker of the House wannabe Nancy Pelosi is desperately trying to reassure the public that Democrats won't launch an impeachment jihad against President Bush if they win back the House in November.

In fact, lead House Bush-basher John Conyers has canceled his plans for impeachment hearings, she insists.

However, Mr. Conyers - who will chair the committee where impeachment would begin if his party regains control - seems to be disregarding the message.

Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly insisted to the Washington Post on Friday that his boss had "told her caucus members during their weekly closed meeting Wednesday that impeachment is off the table; she is not interested in pursuing it."

Daly also claimed that Conyers "agrees with Pelosi's thinking" that Democrats would be better off pursuing other issues and forgetting about impeachment.

But that's not what Conyers is saying on his recently redesigned official web site.
"Stand with Congressman Conyers," the Michigan Democrat implores.

"Demand an Investigation of Administration Abuses of Power and Make Recommendations Regarding Grounds for Possible Impeachment if Warranted . . . .

"Join me to demand the creation of a Special Committee to investigate administration abuses of power and make recommendations regarding grounds for possible impeachment if warranted."

Nancy Pelosi - call your office.

Harris Poll Interactive Auto-response

According to an email auto-response, I should be contacted by the next business day (Monday, May 15, 2006). If not, they provided me a toll free number to call. Keep checking back for updates.

Inside Scoop on Harris Polls

Check here.

Would you or would you not add "Fair" to the "Positive" column? I certainly would. That puts Bush at 58% in March of 2006. Not 36%.

Assuming that the same number that said Bush was doing "fair" two months ago would still say the same thing, Bush's approval rating should currently be 51% - a slight majority. But a majority, none-the-less.

Poll shenanigans: 29% President rating bogus

Click to enlarge.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Why is "only fair" in the "negative" column? If someone is doing "fair", that isn't negative. Fair is an adjective that means "more than adequate in quality".

You can view the polls here.

End to major combat speech debunked.

"Admiral Kelly, Captain Card, officers and sailors of the USS Abraham Lincoln, my fellow Americans, major combat operations in Iraq have ended.

- May 1, 2003

Source

Abraham Lincoln was in port on 11 September 2001. It put to sea on 20 July 2002 to support Operation Enduring Freedom. It took up station once more in support of Operation Southern Watch before taking a port visit to Perth, Western Australia. It was during this time that the Lincoln was ordered to the Persian Gulf to take part in Operation Iraqi Freedom. This forced the Navy to extend Lincoln's stay from 20 January 2003 to 6 May, 2003.

Stem cells, much ado about nothing - again

Source

S Korea scientist on fraud charge

The South Korean cloning scientist who faked his stem cell research has been charged with fraud and embezzlement.
Hwang Woo-suk was also charged with using millions of dollars in grants for private purposes, as well as violating laws on bio-ethics.

Earlier this year Dr Hwang's apparently ground-breaking work, such as producing stem cell lines from cloned human embryos, was found to be fake.

Prosecutors said that he would not be taken into custody at present.

Friday's announcement marks a new low in the career of the once-famed South Korean scientific superstar, who was feted by the nation for his claimed breakthroughs in a promising new medical field.

Prosecution official Lee In-kyu announced the indictment against Dr Hwang, as well as charges against five members of his research team, during a nationally televised news conference.

Of the other scientists accused, one was indicted for obstruction of duty, three for fraud and one for violation of bio-ethics laws.

Oh, happy day!

Click to enlarge.

This is killin' em, I tell ya.

Click to enlarge.

Green is Good.

Click image to enlarge.

Gas prices dropping, dropping...

Here is the latest.

Gasbuddy.com reports gas dropped another cent today to $2.83 per gallon. One of the leading indicators, the price per barrel of light crude, has significantly dropped since last week. Yet we are still seeing the media frenzy on the price of gas.

What kind of bunk is this?

Gasbuddy.com reports Lancaster at $2.84 per gallon on average

Alright, we are down about 8 cents from last time one of these gas columns from our friend ran in the Lancaster Newspaper.

I must say, the trend has been downwards rather than upwards lately. The price of light crude oil (an indicator) dropped drastically late last week by around $5.00 to under $70 a barrel.

The Sunday News is generally received by the same general area as those who read the Intelligencer Journal. Who is reading it, you ask? Well, the Knight Foundation has done a study for us already. How nice!

Knight Foundation report on Intelligencer Journal

Does Smart realize that he is writing to an audience that has a "median household income" of between $34,583 and $90,885 a year?

I don't think that $3.00 a gallon for gas is going to break the bank, if you know what I mean. Luckily, we haven't been moving that direction for some time, now anyway.

Much ado about nothing.

Gas at $2.86 in Lancaster and falling.........

Did I mention that light crude oil closed below $70 today? That is a significant drop from the previous two weeks (nearly $75).

If you would like to track the price of light crude oil live with charts, I use this link. It was not very easy to find.

Bush and Hillary approval ratings = the same thing?

Click to enlarge.

A special message from the Incredible Hulk

Ughhhhhn.

Hulk like green.

Sit on this poll.

Democrats are beaming. President Bush's approval ratings are at an "all-time low".

33%

You'd be interested to see what I found at pollingreport.com that also has a 33% approval rating.

FOX News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. April 4-5, 2006. N=900 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3 (for all registered voters).

"Do you favor or oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally?"

	Favor	Oppose	Unsure
ALL reg. voters	33	55	11

NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Bill McInturff (R). April 21-24, 2006. N=1,005 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.1. RV = registered voters

"Now I'm going to read you the names of several public figures and organizations, and I'd like you to rate your feelings toward each one as either very positive, somewhat positive, neutral, somewhat negative, or very negative. If you don't know the name, please just say so. The Democratic Party."

	Very Positive	Somewhat Positive	Neutral	Somewhat Negative	Very Negative	Unsure
4/21-24/06	9	24	27	23	16	1

9 + 24 = 33% Democratic Party approval rating

When will impeachment proceedings begin on these matters?

Lancaster turns green