The Moynihan Report at 50

The New York senator was right—and not only about black families.

By Timothy S. Goeglein• August 26, 2015

But in my time as a staffer, there was no man, other than Coats himself, for whom I acquired more respect than a senator whose worldview in elemental ways was almost exactly the opposite of my own: Daniel Patrick Moynihan of New York…… He wrote in 1965 that“The fundamental problem … is that of family structure. The evidence—not final but powerfully persuasive—is that the Negro family in the urban ghettos is crumbling.” On the day his report was released, about one quarter of black kids were living only with their mothers. Moynihan called this a crisis, as indeed it was, but 50 years on between 70 and 75 percent of all black Americans are now born out of wedlock, a tripling of the trend Moynihan had spotted. More than half of Hispanic children are also born out of wedlock today, and 29 percent of white babies. (Editor’s Note: In 1965 white illegitimacy was around 2%. RK)…… according to the 2010 census, for the first time in American history more than half of all babies born to American women 30 years of age and under were born out of wedlock. In 1995, looking back at his four decades in public life, Moynihan was asked what had been the biggest transformation he had observed: “The biggest change, in my judgment, is that the family structure has come apart all over the North Atlantic world.”……..To Read More......

The World As I See It!

The daily signal 

The Hypocrisy of Denver's War on Chick-fil-A - In Denver, city council members are weighing whether Chick-fil-A will be allowed to open in the Denver International Airport. Denver council member Paul Lopez “called opposition to the chain at DIA ‘really, truly a moral issue,'” according to the Denver Post, while council member Robin Kniech is alarmed about Chick-fil-A’s “corporate profits used to fund and fuel discrimination.” “Ten of the 13 [Denver city council] members attended Tuesday’s meeting, and none rose to defend Chick-fil-A, although some didn’t weigh in,” reported the Post. Chick-fil-A’s crime? Well, back in 2012—when 48 percent of Americans opposed gay marriage, according to Gallup—Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy spoke out about his opposition to gay marriage, setting off a firestorm. The fact that the CEO of a company so committed to Christian values that it’s not even open on Sundays opposed gay marriage was somehow shocking…..

 

The Government Is Fighting to Keep $167K It Seized From Motorist - After a federal judge ordered the government return $167,000 law enforcement seized from a motorist driving through Nevada, federal prosecutors are fighting the decision. The U.S. attorney’s office in Reno, Nev., filed documents with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, Calif., earlier this month calling on the court to revisit a decision requiring the government to return cash it seized from Straughn Gorman several years ago. Gorman was never charged with a crime.  “The prosecutors simply have the financial calculus [to appeal]—either pay a six-figure attorney’s fees to Mr. Gorman or potentially win a six-figure return if they win in the ruling and prevail,” Jason Snead, a policy analyst at The Heritage Foundation, told The Daily Signal……

 

Why Progressives Are Wrong to Revere Margaret Sanger - Margaret Sanger is a saint in the feminist church. She is a charter member of the progressive hall of fame. Liberals revere this woman who preached “race improvement” and denounced what she called “human weeds”. Hillary Clinton glows that she is “in awe of” Sanger. She said so in 2009 upon receiving Planned Parenthood’s “highest honor” that year: its coveted Margaret Sanger Award. Likewise effusive was Nancy Pelosi when she proudly accepted the award in 2014. Speaking to Planned Parenthood a year earlier, President Barack Obama, hailed the organization founded by this racial eugenicist committed to creating a “race of thoroughbreds” and purging America’s “race of degenerates.”

 

Meet the Man Challenging John Boehner's Speakership - The man who made the move to overthrow House Speaker John Boehner is back home now, shaking the hands of war veterans. He grips the hands for so long, it’s like he is holding on for dear life. As much as he is there for them, to reassure the veterans that their benefits are coming, they are here for him, to stand by a leader facing a consequential moment. This is what happens when you risk it all—friends, money, power, respect—in the name of some greater purpose…

 

Ann Coulter on Why Immigration Is the Only Issue That Matters - Political commentator Ann Coulter believes that immigration is the most important issue facing America today. If we don’t get it right, she says, debates over economics, foreign policy, and other issues just won’t matter. Coulter makes the case in her new book, “Adios, America,” that it has been the goal of liberals for decades to fundamentally transform America by bringing in millions of immigrants from third-world countries to build their voting base. As those familiar with Coulter know, she speaks her mind. Watch the interview to find out what she told us.

Commentary by Erick Erickson

RIP GOP  - The Republican Party has most often come to power at times of crisis, starting with slavery. But in the great moral crisis now, the Republican Party finds itself infested with charlatans, conmen, louts and Donald Trump. The Republican Party of 2015 more often than not responds to the fierce urgency of now with palms outstretched, waiting for the highest bidder to purchase its policy positions, while running from any fight that might get it criticized by a Washington press corps increasingly composed of former leftwing activists masquerading as objective journalists.

After eight years of broken promises and Republican collaboration in Barack Obama's agenda to expand government, the Grand Old Party has been confronted with a moral evil in Planned Parenthood. Undercover, unedited videos show Planned Parenthood officials laughing about harvesting organs from babies. The CEO of StemExpress, a business that was willing to pay extra for 50 human baby livers a week, bragged on film about her "socially liberal" sister advising Republican Speaker John Boehner on health care.  Boehner's response has been to call for more investigations while keeping federal dollars flowing to Planned Parenthood. Boehner and Mitch McConnell have kept federal dollars flowing to all areas of Obama's agenda. From Obamacare to the IRS to Obama's immigration expansion, the Republicans have chosen not to use any of their constitutional powers to restrain executive overreach. Instead, they will let judges sort through everything…….


American Thinker

At War with Reality - Nothing equals the insane attempt by the leftist crazies to completely eliminate the distinction between men and woman. Characterizing the opposition as insane is a favorite tactic of the Left. To question their latest fatwa is for them an indicator of mental derangement on the part of the inquirer. But in case you haven’t noticed, within in the halls of academia, which once passed as the place for rational inquiry and analysis, the real crazies are hard at work introducing the equivalent of jabberwocky. Even language is supposed to adjust to the current insanity of those seeking “gender equality.”

Obama, Bush, Clinton: Secret Agents- I have thought for a while that a case could be made that Obama was really a secret conservative, showing America what would happen if the “progressive” agenda were ever put in place and thereby weaning us off it forever. My friend Noemie Emery, an exceptionally astute observer of American political history, emailed, “All politicians act like secret agents, in the pay of the opposite side.” As I thought about it, it seemed to me her observation had special applicability to the president, Jeb Bush, and Hillary Clinton, though I’d certainly not rule out a wider field…. My Take – Interesting take article except it seems to me the headline and the first paragraph seem inappropriate for the context. RK

The Hard Work of Defending Civilization- By now, everyone knows about the three American heroes -- two of them off-duty military personnel -- who foiled a terrorist attack on a packed Amsterdam-to-Paris train. Armed with an AK-47, a handgun, nine magazines of ammunition and a box cutter, the lone-wolf terrorist opened fire. Most passengers ducked for cover. But the Americans “immediately took action,” as The Washington Post reported, citing the firsthand account of a British businessman. They rushed the gunman--a Moroccan man tied to “radical Islamist movements,” according to French officials -- subdued him by force and then began treating the wounded. “We just did what we had to do,” said Alek Skarlatos, an Army National Guardsman and veteran of Afghanistan. U.S. Airman Spencer Stone, who was stabbed during the attack, said the jihadist “seemed like he was ready to fight to the end.” But Stone added:“So were we.” This is one of those microcosm moments that serve as a metaphor for much larger truths. First, we are at war. The enemy is real. It is tenacious. And it wants to kill those who oppose its death creed…..My Take – This article outlines the Bretton Woods reality which has existed since 1944. That’s coming to an end. I will have more on this in the near future. RK

Lawfare and Gay Marriage - A Colorado appellate court ruled earlier this month that Jack Phillips, the evangelical owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in suburban Denver, had violated the rights of a gay couple when he declined on religious grounds to design and bake a custom wedding cake for them in 2012-- two years before same-sex marriage was even legal in the state. (The couple had actually married in Massachusetts.) The court ordered Phillips to“take remedial measures, including comprehensive staff training” on how conscientious objection must give way to anti­discrim­ination law in these situations, and to“file quarterly compliance reports” with the state on this mandated retraining.

The Watchdog Is At The Door

Budget

Got ‘no’ milk: Feds spending $3 million to study Southern cows - Remember the “Got Milk?” ad campaign? For dairy farmers in seven states in the Southeast, the answer is unequivocal: No. In 1995, Tennessee had 1,544 dairy farms; it has 375 now, says University of Tennessee at Knoxville professor of animal science Stephen Oliver. Grainger County veterinarian Mike Tarrier, who specializes in treating cows, told Tennessee Watchdog 25 percent of the state’s existing dairy farms will have gone out of business by 2017. Why?....... Seven Southeastern colleges, including UT-Knoxville, divvied up the grant money......But the researchers, part of the five-year long Southeast Quality Milk Initiative, have to start asking the right questions……. Not one time did they ask ‘In your opinion, why do you think dairies are going out in the Southeast?’”

Court allows Christie to hide $1 million in Amex charges - Based on secret evidence, a New Jersey court is allowing Gov. Chris Christie to hide American Express bills that show how his state police security team charged more than $1 million to pay for out-of-state travel.  Judge Mary C. Jacobson dismissed a public records suit by New Jersey Watchdog on Friday, ruling that details of past expenses for food, lodging and transportation could create a potential security risk for the governor in the future.  “The court finds the general interest of the public to have a breakdown pales in comparison,” said Jacobson during a hearing in Mercer County Superior Court. As a result, state taxpayers may never learn how the money was spent.

Bureaucracy: The Fourth branch of government.

VoIP pioneer: Supreme Court decide FCC fate - No matter the outcome of the latest lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission’s net neutrality regulations, the issue has a high likelihood of heading to the Supreme Court, says one Internet pioneer. In a recent interview with Watchdog.org, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) pioneer Daniel Berninger explained that he believed that if the DC appellate court were to agree with any one of the six arguments being leveled by ISPs and entrepreneurs in the net neutrality lawsuit, the net neutrality order would fail and the FCC’s legitimacy would be thrown into question.

EPA

EPA withholds mine spill documents from Congress - A congressional committee blasted the Environmental Protection Agency today for blocking release of documents related to the Gold King mine disaster, which poured deadly chemicals into the largest source of drinking water in the West.   “It is disappointing, but not surprising, that the EPA failed to meet the House Science Committee’s reasonable deadline in turning over documents pertaining to the Gold King Mine spill,” said Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX). “These documents are essential to the Committee’s ongoing investigation and our upcoming hearing on Sept. 9. But more importantly, this information matters to the many Americans directly affected in western states, who are still waiting for answers from the EPA.”

RELATED: Mine owner says EPA has record of toxic dumping that goes back to 2005

Wyoming man challenges outrageous EPA fines - A rancher is taking the Environmental Protection Agency to federal court, asking a judge to stop the agency from fining him more than $16 million because he built a small pond on his property. Andy Johnson of Fort Bridger, Wyoming says he made sure to get the proper permits from his state government before building the pond. After all, this is America in the 21^st century, and nothing done on your own property — certainly when it involves the use of water — is beyond government concern Johnson is facing millions in fines from the federal government after the EPA determined his small pond — technically a “stock pond” to provide better access to water for animals on his ranch….

Going Green

Eagles win, wind farms and feds lose in court - Eagles — and the people who love them — picked up a big win in court this month. How the victory may affect the Obama administration’s desire to dramatically ramp up wind energy production to meet its climate change goals is still unclear. “We believe it’s very good news for eagles,” Michael Hutchins, director of the American Bird Conservancy’s Bird-Smart Wind Energy Program, of the Aug. 11 decision by a federal court rescinding a controversial rule proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that granted a 30-year exemption to wind energy and other companies for killing bald and golden eagles.“We can’t have people do end-arounds”……Koh cited comments from Fish and Wildlife’s own staff that the rule-making process leading to the 30-year exemptions was a “trainwreck” and that it was a “no-brainer” the agency needed to follow the National Environmental Policy Act.

The industry’s chief booster, the American Wind Energy Association, recently came out with a chart using data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showing wind as the most cost-effective way for the country to meet compliance with the Clean Power Plan…..In May, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz released a report calling on the nation to “unlock the vast potential for wind energy deployment in all 50 states,” highlighting technical advancements to greatly expand the areas of the country where wind turbines can be used. The agency called for taller turbines with larger rotors.  Little more than two weeks ago, the Deparment of Energy released a report calling wind power “a key component of the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy and Clean Power Plan.”….

Robert Bryce, an energy journalist and author who has been a outspoken critic of the effectiveness of wind energy, said the ruling is a setback for the Obama administration.  “The rationale being used by renewable-energy promoters and the Obama administration is that future climate change trumps today’s wildlife concerns,” Bryce wrote in an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal. “Therefore, we have to kill lots of birds and bats with turbines to save them from the possibility of climate change.

Never mind that whatever carbon-dioxide cuts we achieve will be swamped by soaring emissions growth in places like Brazil, India and Indonesia.”  “We’re very happy to have wind farms, along with other forms of alternative energy like solar to address anthropogenic climate change,” Hutchins said. “But we want it done right … That means putting (wind farms) in the right places, not putting them in major migratory routes or sensitive habitats.”…(My Take – This guy is talking out of both sides of his mouth.  None of what he’s suggesting is possible.  First, there is no need for wind or solar energy because anthropogenic climate change is a fraud, and CO2 isn’t a pollutant. Secondly,  there’s no way either wind or solar can supply the energy any industrialized nation needs without turning the continent into a gigantic wind and solar farm and that would destroy wildlife in immense numbers and obliterate wilderness areas.  RK)….“Adding the effects of alternative energy on top of all that when it isn’t done properly, we have a problem with that,” Hutchins said. “We would like to see better regulation, better science applied to this. If we’re going to do alternative energy we shouldn’t do it in a way where we’re killing hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of birds and bats each year.”

Green-energy CEO: Vermonters must abandon the car, embrace renewable energy future - Now that Vermont has a mandate to get 75 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2032, residents will have to ditch automobiles and embrace a whole new way of life, the state’s top renewable energy CEO says. “We’re probably going to have to abandon the car,” David Blittersdorf, president of All Earth Renewables, told Addison County Democrats in a recent presentation titled “Vermont’s Renewable Energy Future.”

Company that got millions from U.S. taxpayers now profits Chinese owners - The good news is electric car battery maker A123 Systems is finally on track to turn a profit.  The bad news is taxpayers don’t figure to see any of the $133 million the federal government spent and the estimated $141 million in tax credits and subsidies secured from Michigan to help the company take off in 2009, only to see A123 Systems crash, declare bankruptcy in 2012 and then get purchased by a privately held Chinese conglomerate.

Tesla gets $295M in cap & trade credits for technology not offered to customers - The credits came through a government program that was supposed to encourage Tesla to promote its new battery-swap technology, but the program didn't require evidence that the company actually provided the service.

After 32 years,76-year-old energy exec still waiting on the feds - Sidney Longwell, a 76-year-old energy executive, has been waiting 32 years for the feds to approve his application for a permit to drill on federal land in northwest Montana.

Health Care

More paying Obamacare fines as subsidies go to people who don't exist – Last year the IRS fined more than 7.5 million Americans who didn’t have health insurance, while Obamacare subsidies flowed to people who didn’t even exist.

Unions

Home-care workers find getting out harder than getting in union - Renee Katz has one question for the Service Employees International Union: What part of “no” don’t you understand? “I can’t get out of it. They want me to now do some letter and certify mail it. They didn’t certify mail anything to me. And then every time I call or email, they try to talk me into staying,” said Katz. The Oakdale mother works part-time as a personal care assistant for her special needs daughter and other care recipients through subsidized programs designed to avoid institutionalized care. She was outraged to learn 3 percent of their gross wages would be taken for dues for a union she didn’t realized she joined.

Houston’s debt now surpasses Detroit’s - Houston’s debts are now bigger than Detroit’s.  According to one key measure of fiscal health, Houston’s situation is nearly as bad as that of Chicago, which is starting to collapse under its debt burdens. The city’s financial reputation took a hit earlier this month when Moody’s Investors Service revised its outlook on Houston to “negative.” …..Even that review doesn’t capture the depth of some of the holes the city’s financial planners have dug. James Quintero, director of the Center For Local Governance at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, says the problem is structural, that defined benefit pension plans simply aren’t sustainable.

Texas has $81 billion in hidden debt - Texas has $81 billion in hidden debt that doesn’t show up on balance sheets, according to a new study by Truth in Accounting. This means Texas is $62.6 billion short of the money it needs to pay its long-term bills, which the group calculates as equal to $8,300 per taxpayer. These figures do not include the $333 billion in bond debt run up by local government agencies, particularly school districts. When it comes to calculating unfunded liabilities, a few changes in assumptions can produce wildly different figures, so we took a closer look at Truth in Accounting’s numbers. The surprise here is that, if anything, Truth in Accounting is understating the magnitude of the problem.  The group pulls its figures from the state’s annual financial reports, which for this year only are calculated using different rules than the state’s pension funds. The pension funds have started using new accounting rules that showed the old accounting understated pension debts by half.

New Jersey pensions sue Christie for $4 billion in missed payments - New Jersey’s three largest public pension plans are taking Gov. Chris Christie to court in a renewed effort to force the state to pay more than $4 billion in missed payments to retirement funds. The papers were filed in Mercer County Superior Court Friday by the Public Employees Retirement System, Teachers’ Pension Annuity Fund and Police and Firemen’s Retirement System. Combined, the three state plans represent roughly 290,000 retirees and 475,000 active members. “We’re looking to get a judgment out of this,” said Tom Bruno, chair of the PERS board of trustees, told New Jersey Watchdog. Public employees unions lost a similar suit last month in State Supreme Court, but Bruno said this case is different because the state pension boards have statutory authority as fiduciaries for the funds.

Labor union bosses stand up for Planned Parenthood - Americans are divided on taxpayer funding of abortion, but union bosses remain staunch supporters. With a Planned Parenthood scandal in the news, two of the nation’s most powerful labor union leaders have stuck their necks out to defend the network of abortion clinics. This is no surprise where Service Employees International Union is concerned — SEIU executive vice president Kirk Adams is married to Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards. Adams’s boss, SEIU president Mary Kay Henry, expressed her support for Planned Parenthood and bashed Planned Parenthood’s “extremist” critics Tuesday.

San Antonio digs deeper into debt with $13 wage plan -  The city of San Antonio is mired in $17 billion of debt, but that isn't stopping officials from pushing to raise the minimum wage for municipal employees to $13 an hour.

City employees feasting on tax dollars - Taxpayers in March 2014 spent $15,041 to cater the Denver employee recognition awards and another $1,744 for table coverings and center pieces for the annual ceremony at the Denver Center for the Performing Art.  About 300 employees attended the 5281 Employee Recognition Awards, records obtained by Watchdog.org show.  Five months later, taxpayers paid at least another $15,000 for barbecue at the annual City Spirit employee recognition lunch, records show.  Along with citywide employee luncheons, some departments hold their own events, costing taxpayers thousands more. In May, Public Works paid more than $10,000 for an employee recognition barbecue, and in September 2013 Parks spent $3,000 for its employee recognition event, receipts obtained under state open records show.

We Have Lost Our Minds!

Florida county sends environmental specialist to investigate BBQ - Hardly anything screams “summer in America” more than the smell of meat roasting on an open grill. NO BBQ FOR YOU: The smell of barbecue has landed one Florida man in trouble with his local authorities, who reportedly sent an “environmental specialist” to inspect his grill and then ordered him to contain the smell to his own property. But the smell of barbecue has landed one Florida man in trouble with local authorities, who reportedly sent an “environmental specialist” to inspect his grill. The specialist then ordered him to contain the smell to his own property.  How he’s supposed to do that? Good question.  As The Week magazine suggests, if you want to barbecue in Pinellas County, Florida, you better be endowed with the powers of Aeolus, the Greek god of the winds.

 

Matricula Consular resolution must be rescinded in Lake

By Kimberly Laurie - published on 12 Aug 2015 in The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)

Another Viewpoint is a column The News-Herald makes available so all sides of issues may be aired. Kimberly Laurie is a Willoughby resident. She is running for Lake County Commissioner. She can be reached at kimlaurie@1791.com, KimLaurieforLakeCounty.com or 216-245-3193

First, I’d like to commend News-Herald reporters Andrew Cass and Simon Husted for their July 31 article, “Local Officials Refute ‘Sanctuary City’ Claims”. It’s clear that care was taken to present both sides of the story.

Though illegal immigration is a controversial subject, it’s vital to acknowledge that it exists in our county in order to appropriately address it.

Despite what officials would have us believe, the invalidity of the Matricula Consular card is based on irrefutable fact.

The FBI researched these cards extensively and found them to be unreliable, vulnerable to fraud, and easily counterfeited.

In fact, the FBI’s findings were so concerning that the Lake County Sheriff ’s Department sent the commissioners a four-page memo citing the warning about potential dangers that passage of the resolution presented to the citizens of Lake County.

For example, Assistant Director of the FBI’s Office of Intelligence testified in 2003 that “there are two major criminal threats posed by the cards, and one potential terrorist threat: 1) The first criminal threat stems from the fact that the Matricula Consular can be a perfect breeder document for establishing a false identity; 2) The second criminal threat is that of alien smuggling, a crime that has resulted in many deaths within the past year.” The memo then cites an article from the Center for Immigration Studies which says, “The acceptance of Mexico’s Matricula Consular sets a precedent, making it almost impossible to reject similar cards presented by illegal aliens from other countries, including those which have sent terrorists to the United States in the past.”

Reason would dictate that because Matricula cards are easily forged, terrorists from other countries could create or purchase them on their own using false identities.

The article continues to warn that “The Matricula is becoming a shield that hides criminal activity…”

Finally, it addresses the campaign by the Mexican Consulate that Commissioner Daniel Troy said was the reason he introduced and implemented the resolution, stating that “the objective of this lobbying effort is to achieve quasilegal status for Mexican illegals in the United States without waiting for action from Washington.”

If the safety and wellbeing of Lake County citizens really is the priority of our commissioners, why was this warning from the Sheriff ’s Department ignored?

It was ignored in 2005, and it’s been ignored by subsequent commissioners since, who have all been in positions to rescind that resolution, including current Commissioners Judy Moran and Kevin Malecek.

Regardless of the commissioners’ feel-good reasons to pass and then maintain this resolution, they were negligent in their duty to research the consequences of implementing such a policy and must be held accountable.

 

Editor's Note:  I will admit I never heard of this until now, and I'm inclined to think this is largely true for society as a whole, so you may wish to see the history of this and the surrounding issues.  Matricula Consular

John Doe horror stories: ‘I felt completely helpless in my own home’

By M.D. Kittle / July 23, 2015 / 66 Comments
Part 225 of 237 in the series Wisconsin's Secret War

MADISON, Wisconsin — This is what an abusive, politically motivated investigation looks like:  The sun had yet to rise when deputies pounded on the door of Deborah Jordahl’s home in a quiet suburb of Madison.  They had a warrant, and they were coming in.  Armed law enforcement officers, led by Milwaukee County District Attorney investigator Anna Linden, proceeded to root through the home. They hauled out computers, smart phones, paper records and an array of “evidence” that had nothing to do with the investigation, private possessions that weren’t listed on the sweeping warrants.

DEBORAH’S STORY: Deb Jordahl, a Madison political consultant, was one of several Wisconsin conservatives targeted for years in the unconstitutional John Doe probe.

Through it all, Jordahl, her husband, and her teenage children were confined to the home’s family room, guarded by Dane County Deputy Sheriff Linda Kohlmeyer.

“At one point early on, I started to get up from the sofa,” Jordahl told Wisconsin Watchdog. “I told the deputy who was guarding us that I wanted to call my lawyer. She backed me down on the sofa and told me I could not call anyone.”

“I felt completely helpless in my own home.”

Jordahl has had a lot of helpless feelings since the coordinated John Doe raids of Oct. 3, 2013, but maybe nothing compares to watching her 15-year-old daughter, her “little girl,” sitting in her pajamas on the living room couch, crying, as a deputy told her she could tell none of her friends at school about that morning.

It has been described as “Wisconsin’s shame,” and now that the John Doe investigation is legally dead, Wisconsin and the nation are learning more about the horrifying accounts of the political probe — from the people who lived it.

Thanks to the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s 4-2 ruling last week, which killed the investigation launched more than five years ago, people such as Deb Jordahl finally feel safe to tell their stories.

That’s bad news for Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, the Democrat who launched the John Doe, special prosecutor Francis Schmitz and the “nonpartisan” state Government Accountability Board that worked alongside the prosecutors in targeting and, accounts like Jordahl’s attest, intimidating dozens of conservative groups.

Jordahl, her business partner R.J. Johnson and long-time conservative activist Eric O’Keefe shared their experiences with Wall Street Journal senior editorial writer Collin Levy in a piece published Wednesday night.

While O’Keefe has publicly led the charge against the investigation and its prosecutors, Jordahl and Johnson are telling their stories on the record for the first time. Doing so before the Supreme Court’s ruling could have landed all three in jail, the consequence of the John Doe’s “screamingly unconstitutional” gag order.

In fact, it seems in January 2014 Schmitz was pushing for John Doe presiding Judge Gregory Peterson to hold O’Keefe in contempt of court for disclosing the “existence of his subpoena and the fact that search warrants were executed.”

Prosecutors were keenly interested in Johnson and Jordahl, political consultants who had worked with Republican Gov. Scott Walker.

In the Wall Street Journal piece, Johnson recounts being on a plane when the 2013 raids went down, and that his 16-year-old son was home alone at the time, awakened by six law-enforcement agents with guns and a warrant.

“He was told he couldn’t move, that he couldn’t call a lawyer, that he couldn’t call his parents. He was a minor and he was isolated by law enforcement,” Johnson told the Journal.

“My first reaction was incomprehension. We were baffled. We had no idea what this was about or that this is what they do over campaign finance issues. . . . It wasn’t until much later that we even began to understand that it was connected to the first Doe (investigation).”

He and Jordahl confirm what Wisconsin Watchdog in its series, “Wisconsin’s Secret War,” recently reported: That the John Doe prosecutors were engaged in a multi-year spying operation into conservative targets, some of whom still do not know that they were being monitored.

Jordahl told Wisconsin Watchdog the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office sent its lead investigator, David Budde, to search her Madison office — without her knowledge. The DA’s office has yet to provide an inventory of confiscated items.

Budde could not be reached for comment.

Chisholm did not return Wisconsin Watchdog’s call seeking comment Thursday. He and his assistants have not returned dozens of calls regarding the John Doe probe.

While the investigation may be over, Jordahl says the abuse continues. She said the prosecutors continue to mislead the public about their activities, particularly the raids. Chisholm, Schmitz and others have downplayed their role in the raids. In fact, Chisholm refuses to refer to the predawn operations as “raids.”

“If those unidentified persons feel that the unidentified sheriff deputies violated their rights in any manner, they may vindicate their rights in the proper forum, wherever that may be,” Douglas Knott, Chisholm’s attorney, wrote in an earlier motion.

But Milwaukee County District Attorney investigator Anna Linden was at the raid on Jordahl’s home, leading the activities. She signed the return warrant, according to a document obtained by Wisconsin Watchdog.

Speaking to Bill Lueders of the left-leaning Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney, a Democrat, earlier this year called accounts of the raids in National Review “highly suspicious,” and said he couldn’t believe “there would be a warning that you could not call an attorney or tell others of the warrant.”

Mahoney spoke specifically of the raid his deputies and FBI agents conducted in 2011 on the home of former Walker aide Cindy Archer, who has since filed a civil rights lawsuit against the prosecutors in state court.

Jordahl says she has four witnesses — her family — who will gladly testify they were told they could not contact their attorney while the raid was going on. It was Mahoney’s deputy who gave that order.

The warrants insist on secrecy.

“This John Doe search warrant is issued subject to a secrecy order,” read the warrants, reviewed by Wisconsin Watchdog. “By order of the court pursuant to a secrecy order that applies to this proceeding, you are hereby commanded and ordered not to disclose to anyone, other than your own attorney, the contents of the search warrant and or the fact that you have received this search warrant.”

The warrants conclude, “Violation of the secrecy order is punishable as contempt of court.”

Schmitz released a statement saying he was disappointed by the Supreme Court ruling and asserting that there has been “no fact-finding hearing conducted at any level establishing, for example, that search warrants were executed unprofessionally or that persons were denied an opportunity to contact their attorneys.”

Jordahl says the damage from John Doe continues.

“Our rights have been repeatedly abused and, given what we’ve learned from various lawsuits, we may not even know the half of it,” she said. “Yet even now that the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ended the investigation, the prosecutors continue their assault by claiming that our accounts of the raids are not true. I cannot stand by while they lie to media about what they did, what my children saw them do.”

Click here to LEARN HOW TO STEAL OUR STUFF!

 

Reality Can Be So Overwhelming!

Benny Peiser's Global Warming Policy Foundation Proclaims  - At Last! - Britain Signals End Of Solar Subsidies and Solar Panels No Longer Viable As Britain Plans To Cull Subsidies By 87%

Editor's Note: It never fails – the world listens to activists who never had a job or started a business and yet they're treated as experts on every industry in the world – industries in which they never worked nor in which they have any practical experience! Why? Policies many of us knew were stupid because history proclaimed their stupidity going back to the very same policies that failed under the second dumbest President of the United States, Jimmy Carter.   What is most disturbing is they never have to pay the penalty for being wrong. So who's going to have to pay for these stupid failed policies promoted by green activists and their acolytes in government? You are!   In the meanwhile I recommend reading my April 27, 2010 article, “The Activist's Bureau”, which I’ve reposted today.  

 

Cut the Green Crap! - David Cameron has ordered ministers to ditch the ‘green crap’ blamed for driving up energy bills and making business uncompetitive, it is claimed. The Prime Minister, who once pledged to lead the ‘greenest government ever’, has publicly promised to ‘roll back’ green taxes, which add more than £110 a year to average fuel bills. But a senior Tory source said Mr Cameron’s message in private is far blunter. The source said: ‘He’s telling everyone, “We’ve got to get rid of all this green crap.” He’s absolutely focused on it.’ -- Daily Mail, 21 November 2013

At Last: Britain Signals End Of Solar Subsidies - Britain’s solar boom is over after ministers announced they would offer virtually no subsidies for people to install panels on their homes. In a surprise move, ministers on Thursday said that they plan to slash the amount of money given to families who put solar panels on their homes. Under the new proposals, the amount paid to homeowners under the “feed-in tariff” from next year will fall by nearly 90 per cent. Critics say the scheme, which was heavily pushed by energy firms, enables wealthy families to rake in subsidies paid for by many who are already struggling with their energy bills. --Peter Dominiczak, The Daily Telegraph, 28 August 2015

Europe Pulls The Plug On Its Green Future – EU members states have spent about €600 billion ($882bn) on renewable energy projects since 2005, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Germany’s green energy transition alone may cost consumers up to €1 trillion by 2030, the German government recently warned. These hundreds of billions are being paid by ordinary families and small and medium-sized businesses in what is undoubtedly one of the biggest wealth transfers from poor to rich in modern European history. –Benny Peiser, The Australian, 9 August 2013

 

Solar Panels No Longer Viable As Britain Plans To Cull Subsidies By 87% - Householders planning to install solar panels will receive 87pc less in subsidy payments as ministers attempt to halt a £1.5bn overspend on renewable energy. The Government consultation published today follows the recent axing of a £540 million taxpayer-funded scheme, the Green Deal, which gave out loans and cash for energy-efficient home improvements. Now feed-in-tariff payments on domestic solar panels will also be cut. The move came after Amber Rudd, energy secretary, said “Government support has driven down the cost of renewable energy significantly” and that renewable energy should “survive without subsidies” due to falling costs. --Kate Palmer, The Daily Telegraph, 27 August 2015

 

US Green Energy Subsidies ‘Unfair and Ineffective’, Study Finds - A University of California study has slammed the fairness, efficiency and effectiveness of billions of dollars of so-called green energy subsidies provided by the US government. The US federal government has paid $US18.1 billion in tax credits since 2006 aimed at encouraging American households to install energy-efficient windows, air conditioning schemes, rooftop solar in their homes and buy electric and other hybrid vehicles. The study has found the bottom 60 per cent US households by income received about 10 per cent of the value of the four main ‘green energy’ tax credits available, while the top 20 per cent (those with annual incomes above $US75,000) extracted 60 per cent of the benefit. “The most extreme [example] is the program aimed at electric vehicles, where the top income quintile received about 90 per cent of all credits,” concluded Severin Borenstien and Lucas Davis, from the University of California, Berkeley. --Adam Creighton, The Australian, 12 August 2015

 

Obama Administration Wins Case Against India’s Solar Subsidies - India has lost another case against the US at World Trade Organisation as the body ruled that India's domestic content requirements under its solar power programme were inconsistent with the international norms. Last year, the US dragged India to WTO on country's solar mission plan. The US alleged that India's programme appears to discriminate against the US solar equipment by requiring solar energy producers to use locally manufactured cells and by offering subsidies to those developers who use domestic equipment. --Press Trust of India, 28 August 2015

 

Rupert Murdoch Links Regulations, ‘Endless Climate Alarmist Nonsense’ To Financial Turmoil - Media mogul Rupert Murdoch took to Twitter Wednesday night to weigh in on the recent volatility in global financial markets, calling small business “the only hope for growth” while decrying the regulatory obstacles standing in its way – and pointing a finger at climate change “alarmist nonsense.” --David Wright, CNN, 27 August 2015

The Activist's Bureau

By Rich Kozlovich, originally published on April 27, 2010 and updated today

Any moronic membrane can tell the world we don’t need pesticides because being "all natural”, or "green", or "organic" is sufficient for all of mankind’s needs. No one will question their right or their sincerity while making these emotion laden unscientific pronouncements. Why? Because we have all been indoctrinated by what Bjorn Lomborg calls the “litany” of the environmental movement!

By contrast, anyone who supports the use of pesticides had better watch out!

No matter how accurately the information is presented. No matter how much information showing how many lives pesticides save. No matter how wise, their observations are. No matter how intelligently and logically stated their pro-pesticide position might be - their integrity and veracity will be arrogantly challenged. They will labeled as paid lackeys of big business and their views dismissed with a snort and a smirk. Not with any real facts mind you, because most of what will be heard will be unfounded personal attacks and endless debates filled with speculation and logical fallacies to divert attention away from the facts. This is often followed by outright lies and cited studies that never occurred or were discredited.

Activism is philosophy without form and action without consequence for all of these armchair philosophers who oppose the use of pesticides but aren’t responsible to provide the protections they afford.

They simply don’t have to pay any penalty for being wrong.

What I would like to know is why the burden of proof doesn’t rest upon those who call for the end of pesticides instead of those that have successfully tested the products and are saving lives on a daily basis, not to mention, property and foodstuffs.  Can we not see the inherent danger of philosophy without form? This is a concept which promotes change for philosophical reasons or “change for change sake”. Doesn’t this compel us to demand that its advocates not just talk the talk, but also actually walk the talk?

When things go down the toilet do the advocates of a certain policy pay the price for being wrong, or are others left with the bill? While the unchallenged and unchallengeable academicians and irresponsible activists live comfortably in western countries endlessly expounding utter nonsense by making unscientific claims regarding the dangers of pesticides we need to ask - who will ultimately suffer when they have their way, and they turn out to be wrong? Is it the activists?  Or is it the poor people who have to live with the consequences of these feel good philosophies that give activists an unjustified sense of self-righteousness?

 

Activists have never seen a burden so great they would be unwilling to place on someone else’s back, demanding all sorts of unnecessary, irrational, misanthropic and morally defective actions from society and industry.

When will the anti-pesticide fanatics put their own necks on the line for their beliefs? When will they move to the countries they have turned into an environmentalist’s paradise? You know the kind of place I’m talking about. The ones where everyone has had a loved one die from some preventable disease or have had children starve to death because environmental policies prevent them from being able to grow enough food for their families. Of course when environmentalists make statements like “better dead than riotously breeding” you have the tendency to believe they have a “feel good” philosophy that is not a “do good” philosophy.

I propose that we create a program of “Direct Involvement for Activism”, which is an excellent check of the sincerity and integrity of environmental activists. They can now have the joy of seeing their handy work up close and personal. This is their opportunity to step up where others have failed. This is a great opportunity for them to prove their integrity.

Stop crying wolf to the press and go to these third world "paradises" they have created where child mortality is staggeringly high, insect borne diseases are the rule and not the exception, where the water is contaminated and life is short and miserable. This way they can be directly  responsible for the health and welfare of thousands, or maybe millions of people.

 

Step away from the common herd of activists, as this is the chance of a life time!  This is a chance to be different than those wimpy protesters. They can take on the responsibility to care for millions, and prove via firsthand experience they are as truly special as they think.  And when they leave should show just how confident, sincere and committed they are by taking their children with them.  What an opportunity!  Now they won’t just be talking about what we are all doing wrong, they can make their mark by showing what we are all doing wrong, by showing the rest of us how it’s "supposed" to be done.

Putting themselves and their families on the line will certainly impress me, and I’m willing to accept their sacrifices if it turns out they were wrong.

Eventually their moment of truth will come. The people for whom they’ve taken on the responsibility of their well being -  who are now starving to death - can be ordered to stay away from the genetically modified food because they need to give environmentalism a chance. For that brief, shining moment, they will have the pleasure of knowing that they stood up for their principles. That is of course just before their “followers” bust them right in the head on the way to the warehouse. If they’re willing to send the poor third worlders off to die in order to feel good about themselves, surely they must be willing to stand there and defend their latest philosophical flavor of the day!  Shouldn't they?

Let’s see now......how many volunteers do we have?

Thomas Sowell, the nationally syndicated columnist noted “The media continue to take seriously, and provide free publicity for, people who call themselves "consumer advocates" or "environmentalists," even though there are no qualifications required for these roles. All it takes are a big mouth, a big ego, a disdain for inconvenient facts and an ignorance of economics.”

He comments further, “I wish that some way could be found to add up all the staggering costs imposed on millions of ordinary people, just so a relative handful of self-righteous environmental cultists can go around feeling puffed up with themselves.” He goes on to say, “It is bad enough that so many people believe things without any evidence. What is worse is that some people have no conception of evidence and regard facts as just someone else's opinion.”

I guess the real problem I have with activism is it isn't - REGULATED!  And of course after being regulated there will be required testing and licensure to make sure they have been properly trained and know what they're talking about, and taxed just as any other industry.   Now before they protest we will know they have met some basic requirements.

Here is an example as to how to do this. They must demonstrate they have a track record of success in the area they are protesting. Perhaps we can set up an “Activist’s Bureau” in each state, where they will have to register and show their federally mandated license to protest before they are allowed to protest. Under this arrangement they must meet the following regulated criteria.

Require protesters at the various business conferences to have started their own successful companies before we allow them actively involve themselves in public protests of others businesses. Having started businesses that failed will not count.

Require animal rights activists to start businesses that require them to feed the world or develop medicines without the use of animals. Having failed will be a disqualifer for this person as an activist.

Require anti-energy protesters to start businesses that provide electricity to millions of people without any of the means currently being used and without government funding of any kind.  Nor will presenting future possible inventions that may possibly be invented at some future possible date count as a qualification to protest. 

Anti-pesticide activists must be operating a successful business that provides the following;

·         Actual protection from disease carrying pests without using registered or non-registered pesticides or chemicals in general

·          Provide protection for homes without using registered or non-registered pesticides or chemicals in general against all the things we currently provide services for.

·         Must be able to grow enough food to meet the same capacity that is currently enjoyed in this country.

·         This must be done with the same amount of landmass without fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides.

·         This all must be accomplished without grant money from any source or tax incentives of any kind from the government.

·         Not meeting these criteria will disqualify the person as a registered activist with the “Activists Bureau”.

If they meet the qualifications and are successful in the protest against any company or system the activists must be willing to undertake to provide the same service, product or whatever else it is they may have destroyed.

·         This must be done without using any of the means they have protested against.  

·         Failure to protect, feed or provide the services promised by the activist will require the activist to be liable to criminal and/or civil litigation.

·         Failure to be willing to meet this final requirement will require them to “just be quiet.”

Truth is the sublime convergence of history and reality. If what we're presented fails in either of these categories it's wrong.  These "unregulated" activists fail in both!

American Council on Science and Health

Generic Drug Price Gouging Stems from Meddling Congress - Congress tries to control drug prices and it blows up in their faces. How? Shortages of common drugs, and obscene price gouging for others. Unintended consequences? You bet, along with a few horrendously painful outcomes for patients. Read more.

Movie Review: O-D’ing on Sugar Produces Flabby Science - Now that it's OK to eat fat again, we seem to need another dietary villain. Enter That Sugar Film, one Australian's attempt to blame sugar for his ills after he consumes way too much of the stuff. How convincing is it? Not very. Read more.

E-Cig Survey Muddles Gateway-to-Smoking Debate - A new study published in JAMA, focusing on a survey of 2,500 ninth graders, suggests that e-cigarettes might be a gateway to traditional tobacco smoking. But a closer look shows how the study falls short. Read more.

Colon Cancer Risk Reduced with Common Pain Relievers - A new study links long-term, continuous use of common painrelievers (NSAIDs and aspirin) to a reduced risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). This study does not prove a cause-and-effect benefit, and these drugs can cause bleeding, so discuss with your doctor. Read more.

Bee Wary of Tales of the 'Beepocalypse' - Bees die. A lot. They die in the winter and summer. Sometimes they die in one area, like they did in 2006. Why? Well, it could be stress. Or that beekeeping has become a fad, where amateurs are bungling their backyard hive. So there's mounting evidence that the so-called "Beepocalypse" is not to be Bee-lieved. Read more.

Will Sugar Substitute Psychos Like Psicose? - There's a new sugar substitute called allulose (aka psicose), with properties that could make it a very popular, non-caloric sweetener. But it must be manufactured. It'll be interesting to see how psicose will be received by the anti-sugar substitute psychos. Read more.

Rating Doctors Like PCs: Bad Idea Needing a Reboot - A new trend among health care systems is posting patient evaluations of staff physicians, or "doctor report cards." A bad idea. Professional qualities of care, knowledge and compassion (much less outcomes) are not amenable to Yelp-like reviews, as if doctors were personal computers on sale. Read more.

2 New Alzheimer's Studies Show Disappointing Results - Simple lifestyle interventions are a tempting target to stave off cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease. Sadly, two new studies appearing in JAMA show no discernible benefit from exercise activity nor from omega-3 or vitamin supplementation. Read more.

Clearing Itself, EPA Again Weakens Public's Trust - First, the EPA bungled the mine disaster in Colorado, polluting a beloved river. Now, it's getting even tougher to believe its officials, when earlier this week the agency announced that an internal investigation of a separate matter cleared itself of wrongdoing. Read more.