We The People Stimulus Package

I will let the video speak for itself....

Barack Obama Invited to Speak at the University of Notre Dame

Is School Honor a Dishonor to Catholics?


Basilica of the Sacred Heart, University of Notre Dame
Ben Franske, wiki media commons

By Tony Vega

On May 17, 2009, Barack Obama will be honored as Notre Dame's commencement speaker, Notre Dame's president Rev. John I. Jenkins invited Obama to the event. The “honor” has outraged many Catholics and should earn the ire of all Christians.

Barack Obama’s policies and ideals run counter to morality and are in line with a perverse pro-abortion stance, which transcends the usual Democratic and Republican debate on the abortion issue. In the world of moral relativism, Barack Obama is its champion.

Obama’s radical abortion stance and position as an avid foe of the Born Alive Protection Act [1] places him left of NARAL Pro-Choice America. NARAL released a statement that said, “NARAL does not oppose passage of the Born Alive Infants Protection Act. Floor debate served to clarify the bill’s intent and assure us that it is not targeted at Roe v. Wade or a woman’s right to choose.” [2]

The radical abortion issue alone should revolt every American, including those Pro-Choice Christians and non-Christians, but Obama’s radical ideals do not end there.

Obama failed to protect children from pornographic material in public libraries and schools, [3] Obama was the only senator to vote against measure SB 485 (1999), a measure to prevent sex offenders from earning early release [3], he failed to protect schools and houses of worship from sex shops being established close by [3], [4].

Obama voted no to prohibit taking minors across State lines in circumvention of laws requiring the involvement of parents in abortion decisions, including knowingly transporting a minor across state lines to get an abortion after committing incest with a minor. [5]

Obama enjoys a record that unravels traditional and sound values, measures that if successful will harm the most vulnerable among us; no wonder why Obama was able to, with ease and poise, joke about the Special Olympics.[6]

The University of Notre Dame’s invitation to Barack Obama caught the attention of many Catholics. The Cardinal Newman Society wrote a letter to Notre Dame's president, Rev. John I. Jenkins and established an online petition against Obama’s appearance.

“It is an outrage and a scandal that “Our Lady’s University,” one of the premier Catholic universities in the United States, would bestow such an honor on President Obama given his clear support for policies and laws that directly contradict fundamental Catholic teachings on life and marriage.”- The Cardinal Newman Society.

Follow the link to read the entire letter and to sign the petition, Petition to Fr. Jenkins.

The bishop for the Ft. Wayne/South Bend diocese said Tuesday he is boycotting the university's graduation ceremony. Bishop John D'Arcy said his decision "is not an attack on anyone, but is in defense of the truth about human life."

"This will be the 25th Notre Dame graduation during my time as bishop. After much prayer, I have decided not to attend the graduation. I wish no disrespect to our president; I pray for him and wish him well. I have always revered the Office of the Presidency, but a bishop must teach the Catholic faith in season and out of season and he teaches not only by his words - but by his actions." [7]

Is this response over the top or is there validity in a sense of outrage and scandal for a Catholic University to bestow such honor upon Barack Obama? What say you Christians, do you share a similar sentiment or does relativism permeate your religiosity? Perhaps, allowing ones political ideology to trump their Christianity is acceptable in this environment of moral relativism.

1- http://www.bornalivetruth.org/obamarecord.php
2- http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=18647
3- http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=18967&keywords=obama
%5C%27s+voting+record
4- http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/us/politics/20obama.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2
5- http://www.votesmart.org/issue_keyvote_detail.php?cs_id=7733&can_id=9490
6- http://americanangle.blogspot.com/2009/03/real-march-madness-2009.html
7- http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/03/24/pro-life-group-calls-on-notre-dame-to-rescind-obama-invite/

The Real March Madness 2009

By Tony Vega

March madness is a term commonly used to describe the NCAA basketball championship tournament. Welcome to 2009, folks, where the real March madness can be found in Washington D.C; no, not as a result of the American Eagles basketball team, but as a result of Barack Obama's inept DC political team.

As your neighbors are losing their homes and jobs, not necessarily in that order, Barack Obama is putting on performances on late night TV inappropriately giggling about bowling scores. We should not begrudge our leaders their outlets, world leaders should be able to step back in order to re-energize and focus on pressing world issues.



Is the American president able to focus on the one issue that catapulted him into office, the economy? It doesn't appear Barack Obama is able to do that particularly with appointments such as Timothy Geithner and other irresponsible decisions.

As our economy is going the way of the Titanic, our president is making on air predictions for the NCAA basketball bracket; talk about March Madness. During sound times, NCAA predictions may be a light moment. However, when Barack Obama miscalculates the national deficit by 2.3 trillion dollars in the middle of a crisis, he cannot afford such leisure as college basketball predictions.

Barack Obama underestimated, in honor of presidential goofs perhaps that should be misunderestimated, his deficit increasing tactics by 2.3 trillion dollars. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Barack Obama's policies will create a 9.27 trillion dollar hole, $2.3 trillion more than Obama indicated.

Folks, the little Obamanomic miscalculation translates to more that a trillion-dollars a year, every year for nearly a decade. Who is doing the math in his team? Perhaps, it is the person hired to do so; our favorite tax cheat and self-proclaimed incompetent accountant Timothy F. Geithner. Hey mister can you spare a dime? This is the change you were promised, spare change.

Keeping with the spirit of madness are the misguided antics of many of our fellow citizens by aiming their outrage at the families including children of the AIG executives. Rich welfare recipients should indeed spur outrage, but folks, the target of that outrage should be the clowns that allowed it.

Those clowns can be found in the DC team that is tanking our economy, AIG is merely a straw among many that will break our backs. The top politicians that are complicit are prominently displayed. Namely, Senators Barney Frank and Chris Dodd, Treasury Secretary Geithner, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer and many more.

Some of those named started long before Barack Obama benefited from the side effects of Bush Derangement Syndrome, but all are emboldened and empowered since Obama took office. We can only hope that their bright spark will soon burn out.

President Obama’s on the job training has brought us back to pre-9/11 safety standards and promised our children a future devoid of national prosperity. In addition to creating OJ like trials for enemy combatants, oh I forgot the Obama team doesn’t want to offend our enemies and the term “enemy combatant” is not allowed.

More March madness is Barack Obama’s home video of him utilizing his Farsi and genuflecting to the Mullahs of Iran wishing them a Happy Nowruz. Can it get any worse than this? Yes it can! Does anyone remember the Great Depression, the Day of Infamy, the tragic events of 9/11/01?



Are we a nation of cowards? Screaming at the kids of welfare recipients created by our government is not the answer to such egregious flaws and corruption by government officials. Teflon Obama is enjoying his popularity at the expense of your grandkids' future. March Madness will continue far into the November years.

Firearms Refresher Course

Sent in via email from that Great American, Anne Bryant.

Preface: This is an old email, but worth thinking about again. The quotes (mis) attributed to Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson may not be verifiable but are included because the sentiment of the quotes are laudable and shared by many Freedom loving Americans.

Enjoy.
----

"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote." -Benjamin Franklin, 1759



"Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not." ~ Thomas Jefferson



FIREARMS REFRESHER COURSE:

1. An armed man is a citizen.. An unarmed man is a subject.



2. A gun in the hand is better than a cop on the phone.

3. Colt: The original point and click interface.



4. Gun control is not about guns; it's about control.

5. If guns are outlawed, can we use swords?



6. If guns cause crime, then pencils cause misspelled words.

7. Free men do not ask permission to bear arms.



8. If you don't know your rights, you don't have any.

9. Those who trade liberty for security have neither.

10. The United States Constitution (c) 1791. All Rights Reserved.

11. What part of 'shall not be infringed' do you not understand?



12. The Second Amendment is in place in case the politicians ignore the others.

13. 64,999,987 firearms owners killed no one yesterday.

14. Guns only have two enemies; rust and politicians.



15. Know guns, know peace, know safety. No guns, no peace, no safety..

16. You don't shoot to kill; you shoot to stay alive.

17. 911: Government sponsored Dial-a-Prayer.

18. Assault is a behavior, not a device.

19. Criminals love gun control; it makes their jobs safer.

20. If guns cause crime, then matches cause arson.

21. Only a government that is afraid of its citizens tries to control them.

22. You have only the rights you are willing to fight for.



23. Enforce the gun control laws we ALREADY have; don't make more.

24. When you remove the people's right to bear arms, you create slaves.



25. The American Revolution would never have happened with gun control.

In the true spirit of a viral email:

PASS THIS 'REFRESHER' ON TO TEN FREE CITIZENS!

NYC Schools Closed Today

Central Park Winter (modified_Young_wikimedia commons)

NYC Schools Closed Today
All NYC schools are closed today. The last snow day for NYC schools was more than five years ago
READ MORE

11 Most Expensive Catastrophes in History

(Sent in via email, thanks AGB)

# 11. Titanic - $150 Million

The sinking of the Titanic is possibly the most famous accident in the world. But it barely makes our list of top 10 most expensive. On April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage and was considered to be the most luxurious ocean liner ever built. Over 1,500 people lost their lives when the ship ran into an iceberg and sunk in frigid waters. The ship cost $7 million to build ($150 million in today ' s dollars).


# 10. Tanker Truck vs Bridge - $358 Million

On August 26, 2004, a car collided with a tanker truck containing 32,000 liters of fuel on the Wiehltal Bridge in Germany . The tanker crashed through the guardrail and fell 90 feet off the A4 Autobahn resulting in a huge explosion and fire which destroyed the load-bearing ability of the bridge. Temporary repairs cost $40 million and the cost to replace the bridge is estimated at $318 Million.

# 9. MetroLink Crash - $500 Million

On September 12, 2008, in what was one of the worst train crashes in California history, 25 people were killed when a Metrolink commuter train crashed head-on into a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles . It is thought that the Metrolink train may have run through a red signal while the conductor was busy text messaging.. Wrongful death lawsuits are expected to cause $500 million in losses for Metrolink.

# 8. B-2 Bomber Crash - $1.4 Billion

Here we have our first billion dollar accident (and we ' re only # 8 on the list). This B-2 stealth bomber crashed shortly after taking off from an air base in Guam on February 23, 2008. Investigators blamed distorted data in the flight control computers caused by moisture in the system. This resulted in the aircraft making a sudden nose-up move which made the B-2 stall and crash. This was 1 of only 21 ever built and was the most expensive aviation accident in history. Both pilots ejected safely.

# 7. Exxon Valdez - $2.5 Billion

The Exxon Valdez oil spill was not a large one in relation to the world ' s biggest oil spills, but it was a costly one due to the remote location of Prince William Sound (accessible only by helicopter and boat). On March 24, 1989, 10.8 million gallons of oil was spilled when the ship ' s master, Joseph Hazelwood, left the controls and the ship crashed into a Reef. The cleanup cost Exxon $2.5 billion.

# 6. Piper Alpha Oil Rig - $3.4 Billion

The world ' s worst off-shore oil disaster. At one time, it was the world ' s single largest oil producer, spewing out 317,000 barrels of oil per day. On July 6, 1988, as part of routine maintenance, technicians removed and checked safety valves which were essential in preventing dangerous build-up of liquid gas. There were 100 identical safety valves which were checked. Unfortunately, the technicians made a mistake and forgot to replace one of them. At 10 PM that same night, a technician pressed a start button for the liquid gas pumps and the world ' s most expensive oil rig accident was set in motion.

Within 2 hours, the 300 foot platform was engulfed in flames. It eventually collapsed, killing 167 workers and resulting in $3.4 Billion in damages.

# 5. Challenger Explosion - $5.5 Billion

The Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after takeoff due on January 28, 1986 due to a faulty O-ring. It failed to seal one of the joints, allowing pressurized gas to reach the outside. This in turn caused the external tank to dump its payload of liquid hydrogen causing a massive explosion. The cost of replacing the Space Shuttle was $2 billion in 1986 ($4.5 billion in today ' s dollars). The cost of investigation, problem correction, and replacement of lost equipment cost $450 million from 1986-1987 ($1 Billion in today ' s dollars).

# 4. Prestige Oil Spill - $12 Billion

On November 13, 2002, the Prestige oil tanker was carrying 77,000 tons of heavy fuel oil when one of its twelve tanks burst during a storm off Galicia , Spain . Fearing that the ship would sink, the captain called for help from Spanish rescue workers, expecting them to take the ship into harbour. However, pressure from local authorities forced the captain to steer the ship away from the coast. The captain tried to get help from the French and Portuguese authorities, but they too ordered the ship away from their shores. The storm eventually took its toll on the ship resulting in the tanker splitting in half and releasing 20 million gallons oil into the sea.

According to a report by the Pontevedra Economist Board, the total cleanup cost $12 billion.

# 3. Space Shuttle Columbia - $13 Billion

The Space Shuttle Columbia was the first space worthy shuttle in NASA ' s orbital fleet. It was destroyed during re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003 after a hole was punctured in one of the wings during launch 16 days earlier. The original cost of the shuttle was $2 Billion in 1978. That comes out to $6.3 Billion in today ' s dollars. $500 million was spent on the investigation, making it the costliest aircraft accident investigation in history. The search and recovery of debris cost $300 million.

In the end, the total cost of the accident (not including replacement of the shuttle) came out to $13 Billion according to the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

# 2. Chernobyl - $200 Billion

On April 26, 1986, the world witnessed the costliest accident in history. The Chernobyl disaster has been called the biggest socio-economic catastrophe in peacetime history. 50% of the area of Ukraine is in some way contaminated. Over 200,000 people had to be evacuated and resettled while 1.7 million people were directly affected by the disaster. The death toll attributed to Chernobyl , including people who died from cancer years later, is estimated at 125,000. The total costs including cleanup, resettlement, and compensation to victims has been estimated to be roughly $200 Billion. The cost of a new steel shelter for the Chernobyl nuclear plant will cost $2 billion alone. The accident was officially attributed to power plant operators who violated plant procedures and were ignorant of the safety requirements needed.

# 1. 2008 Presidential Election-
$800 Billion in the first two months...

Change

Webster's: Change, transitive verb

1 a: to make different in some particular : alter b: to make radically different : transform c: to give a different position, course, or direction to

2 a: to replace with another b: to make a shift from one to another

Many of you believed that the Obama chant of change was in the positive spirit as defined in 1 a, b, & c. Wow, what a leap of faith! And to think, many of you belonging to the approximately 52% of Obama voters claim believers of God are dumb.

What did you Obama believers get? A negative 2 a & b, which is fine because your anti-Bush blood lust is sated. After all, wasn't that the point.

Change is Good



Admit it, you guys would have voted for the Great Deceiver if he had a (D) trailing his spiked tail. Hmm... maybe you did.

Nancy Pelosi: 500 MILLION Americans Will Lose Jobs

Wonder why we are in the state we're in? THEY can't count!

Nancy Pelosi lies..uh..scares..uh.. misspeaks..or rather misunderstimates.

Should that have been misoverestimates....

Roll the tape:

It's All About The Ice Cream

Wondering how the loons got into office?



Ponder this simple analogy delivered with levity and sent in via email by a Great American; Ann Bryant.

And for more Political humor in the same vein Don't miss the recent addition:
Baskin-Robbin

(Author unknown)

We are worried about "the cow" when it is all about the "Ice Cream."

The most eye-opening civics lesson I ever had was while teaching third grade this year. The presidential election was heating up and some of the children showed an interest. I decided we would have an election for a class president.

We would choose our nominees. They would make a campaign speech and the class would vote.

To simplify the process, candidates were nominated by other class members. We discussed what kinds of characteristics these students should have. We got many nominations and from those, Jamie and Olivia were picked to run for the top spot.

The class had done a great job in their selections. Both
candidates were good kids. I thought Jamie might have an advantage because he got lots of parental support. I had never seen Olivia's mother.

The day arrived when they were to make their speeches Jamie went first. He had specific ideas about how to make our class a better place. He ended by promising to do his very best. Every one applauded. He sat down and Olivia came to the podium.

Her speech was concise. She said, "If you will vote for me, I will give you ice cream." She sat down. The class went wild. "Yes! Yes! We want ice cream."

She surely would say more. She did not have to. A discussion followed. How did she plan to pay for the ice cream? She wasn't sure.

Would her parents buy it or would the class pay for it. She didn't know. The class really didn't care. All they were thinking about was the ice cream.

Jamie was forgotten. Olivia won by a land slide.

Every time Barack Obama opened his mouth he offered ice cream and fifty-two percent of the people reacted like nine year olds. They want ice cream. The other forty-eight percent know they're going to have to feed the cow and clean up the mess.

Pittsburgh Steelers Triumphs in Super Bowl 43 with Historic Win

By Tony Vega

What a game and what a way to finish the NFL 2008 season! Super Bowl 43 began with an historic entry as the Arizona Cardinals for the first time in franchise history made it to the Super Bowl.

Arizona struggled out the gate and came alive in the fourth quarter that turned this game into a dramatic event worthy of a script. Pittsburgh rallied in a stellar performance crushing Arizona's hopes with 5 seconds remaining, the rest is history. Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23

Prior to the start of the game, some real heroes graced the field. Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger the captain of US Airways Flight 1549 made an appearance along with his crew and received a standing ovation; General Petraeus was there to perform the coin toss and received appropriate cheers as well. It was a treat to see some real live action heroes on the field in Tampa.

Here are some historical facts about the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Arizona Cardinals and Super Bowl 43;

The Pittsburgh Steelers is the only team to have six Super Bowl wins. They have achieved this feat under four different presidents; Ford, Carter, Bush, and Obama.

In last year's big game, Plaxico Burress of the NY Giants hauled in the winning catch with 35 seconds remaining. In Super Bowl 43, Santonio Holmes caught a Roethlisberger strike for the winning touchdown with, yep you guessed it, 35 seconds remaining. That catch earned Holmes the MVP designation for Super Bowl 43.

The first historical and jaw dropping play came at the end of the half with the Cardinals in the red zone. Kurt Warner was picked off by James Harrison, which he returned for a record 100 hundred yard run into the end zone extending Pittsburgh's lead.

Mike Tomlin, the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers is the youngest coach in franchise history to lead a team to a Super Bowl win. Mike Tomlin at 36-years old played against one of his current players in college, what an amazing feat for Mr. Tomlin.

The Arizona cardinals and Mr. Warner have a lot to be proud of. Quarterback Kurt Warner has a storied career with a pair of Super Bowl entries and a MVP designation as quarterback for the LA Rams in Super Bowl 34.

The Arizona Cardinals will certainly have a place in the history books by finally making it to the Super Bowl and sharing the stage with the Pittsburgh Steelers, as the nation watched the Steelers win their sixth Super Bowl title.

Also for the first time, the Empire State Building has split its tower lights to honor both teams to celebrate the Super Bowl during the weekend. On Monday, the Empire State Building will have the Pittsburgh Steelers colors illuminated on all four sides of the tower to commemorate their historical win. Only in New York, folks.

Great game and certainly one for the record books. Another little historical tidbit that won't end up in the books, for the first time as a sports fan, yours truly won the final score of the Super Bowl 43 office pool. How about that!?

Sources;

NFL.com

Super Bowl 43 with Jon Madden and Al Michaels