Free Republic

Are Career DOJ Bureaucrats Targeting GOP Activists? Posted by: Erick Erickson Friday, October 17, 2008 at 07:18AM CDT The implications of this article are downright frightening. former Republican congressional candidate Tan Nguyen [ ] ran for office in the 47th Congressional District of California in 2006 against incumbent Loretta Sanchez. On October 1, the Civil Rights Division announced the indictment of Nguyen for obstruction of justice for supposedly making “misleading statements to investigators” regarding a letter that was sent to Latino voters during the election. This investigation and indictment represents a particularly egregious example of the government persecuting someone for...

Students' career hopes in disarray as crisis batters bank industry BY MELISSA GRACE DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Saturday, September 20th 2008, 1:50 PM Dolores Adams, a finance major at Baruch College, is one of many business students nervous about career options in the midst of the crisis on Wall Street. Mendez for News Dolores Adams, a finance major at Baruch College, is one of many business students nervous about career options in the midst of the crisis on Wall Street. The meltdown on Wall Street has some nervous business students across the city rewriting their résumés. "You think, 'What is...

We have all heard – a bit too much – about how supposedly impressive Barack Obama is. But even a cursory examination of his background can only suggest that Obama is, in fact, remarkably unremarkable. Now you might ask, how can that be? After all, putting ideology aside, this guy has successfully fought his way up to the U.S. Senate, on its own a remarkable achievement for anyone! Not so much. Let us go back to the roots of Obama’s political career. When Alice Palmer, the Illinois state senator who preceded him, wanted to run for the U.S. House of...

Barack Obama has built his political career on strokes of luck. He got elected to the U.S. Senate because of an opponent’s sex scandal. He won the Democratic presidential nomination because it turned out inevitability isn’t a strategy. Now, the man who can barely conceal his disdain for free-market capitalism is looking for campaign momentum just as Wall Street is experiencing some of its darkest days. And if Obama surfs Wall Street’s crashing waves all the way to the White House, it may be the most notorious example ever of an election turning on an issue the voters don’t understand...

Boys to men: Why guys aren’t growing upCareer aimlessness and beer and porn culture define ‘Guyland’ updated 10:41 a.m. ET, Wed., Aug. 27, 2008 After interviewing hundreds of 16- to 26-year-olds across the U.S., sociologist and gender studies expert Michael Kimmel found a trend of “guy” culture that is marked by the inability to have healthy relationships with women, murky career goals, and the desire not to grow up. In his new book “Guyland,” Kimmel writes about why many young men are trapped between adolescence and adulthood. An excerpt. **SNIP** Today, many of these young men, poised between adolescence and...

A NeW Kind of Choice by: Rachel Paulk, July 02, 2008 Radical feminists have been hard at work for decades stressing the importance of women choosing career paths over homemaking, corner offices instead of kitchens, and power suits to replace aprons. To a certain extent, their message has been accepted and assimilated into mainstream society. The U.S. Department of Labor reported in 2007 that “A record 68 million women were employed in the U.S.—75% of employed women worked on full-time jobs, while 25% worked on a part-time basis” and “Women accounted for 51% of all workers in the high-paying management,...

The Offshoring of America's Top Jobs Many of America's top jobs are moving offshore. Which jobs are most likely to be hit by "offshoring" and what can you do to protect and safeguard your career?Jobs that are most likely to be moved offshore have these Characteristics: Work is highly repetitive (accounting) Work is predictable and well defined (customer service) Can be broken down into small manageable projects (software development) Can be turned into a routine (Tele-marketing) Proximity to the end customer is not important (phone based tech support of consumer products) End customer has already moved offshore (semiconductor sales) Jobs...

NEW YORK – Sen. Edward Kennedy has held preliminary discussions with publishers about writing a book on his career, an adviser to the senator told The Associated Press on Saturday. Kennedy, whose books in recent years include a policy work and a children's story, has retained Washington, D.C., attorney Robert Barnett. Barnett's many literary clients include former President Clinton, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan. “After many years of being requested to do so, and after writing several other books in recent years, Sen. Kennedy has decided to consider the possibility of writing a book...

'Helicopter parents' still hover even as grads pound pavement By Eleanor Yang Su STAFF WRITER July 5, 2007 Rowena Paz's parents did everything they could to help her land a good job after college. They edited her résumé, suggesting experience she should play up or cut out. Her mother called regularly to remind Paz, 21, to get enough sleep before interviews. Her father coached her with interview questions and drove her to three job interviews in Los Angeles, because “driving in Los Angeles is tension-filled.” It came naturally for Paz's parents, who for years shuttled her to music and karate...

MARINE CORPS BASE, CAMP H.M. SMITH, Hawaii, June 15, 2007 — Born on the land, bred in the water and now a lethal and effective hybrid of both – one hospital corpsman has worked through and trained in the trenches to become the dedicated, life saving “Devil Doc” he is today. Petty Officer 2nd Class Angelo Catindig, a native of the Philippines, has tasted three different branches of military service. His military career began on the ground side as an infantryman in the Army. However, it was the events at the outset of his next experience – a naval career...

Education sure is an asset, especially in ol' fashioned Europe, but all the same; "McJobs worth more than university A majority of personnel managers consider a job at McDonalds more valuable than a political science course at university. A new report - commissioned by McDonalds - has shown that 59 percent of personnel managers consider the experience gained from a job with the global fast food chain more beneficial than a term spent studying political science. Related Articles Helicopter makes emergency landing for McDonalds lunch 17th April 2007 Ministers announce job policy measures 4th April 2007 AstraZeneca to announce further...

Branching out Young Muslims look to new careers to gain ground in public debates. By Eileen E. Flynn AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Tuesday, February 13, 2007 Ali Jafri made some changes when he enrolled at the University of Texas School of Law last year. First, he let his beard grow. Then, he helped create a Middle East Law Students Association. In class, he regularly sports T-shirts with Arabic script and a keffiyeh, the checkered scarf often associated with Palestinian militants. Jafri has ventured far from the Detroit suburbs, a bastion of Islam, and off the well-worn career paths he says many of...

Did huge career pressures aid astronaut's undoing? 16:39 07 February 2007 NewScientist.com news service Kathleen M Wong The family of Lisa Nowak says her alleged attempt to kidnap and murder a woman she considered her romantic rival was 'completely out of character' (Image: NASA) US astronaut Lisa Nowak's fall from grace – she is accused of trying to kidnap and kill a woman she considered a rival for the affections of a fellow astronaut – has raised a plethora of unanswered questions from a shocked public. Chief among them: how someone who passed the stringent psychological screening required to become...

Henrik Larsson is one of the greatest footballers ever. He is rather tiny, in fact not very fast, but is all the same a master of the game he still is participating in in at the highest of levels, despite the age of 35. On Sunday, he will play for the legendary club of Manchester United. The article: "I had a really good reception from the Manchester United players when I arrived on Friday. They seem like a good bunch of lads and it was very exciting to be shown around the club for the first time. The facilities at...

Like many other baseball fans, Joe Kosa, 28, is spending his Sunday glued to a TV. But relaxed he's not. Instead, the ESPN (NYSE:DIS - News) production assistant is stationed in front of dozens of flat-screen TVs tuned to global sporting events at the headquarters of the Disney-owned network. He's furiously jotting down notes to weave into a storyline that will be read in 60 seconds flat on tonight's 6 p.m. SportsCenter broadcast. With the San Diego Padres leading the Chicago Cubs 9-0, the outcome is hardly in doubt, and writing the highlights should be easy. Then, Clay Hensley, who...

Wondering about that muffled howl you’ve been hearing the last couple weeks? It’s the sound and fury of feminists reacting to Michael Noer’s latest exegesis, Don’t Marry a Career Woman. Noer’s column, which ran at Forbes.com, surveyed marriages in which the wives doggedly pursue a high-powered career, all the while neglecting family and home. The research shows these women are more likely to be unhappy if she earns more than the guy, or if she quits her job and stays home. Either way, she’s going to be a grump. Her husband is more prone to be discontented if she is...

Forbes.com published a story Aug. 22 by editor Michael Noer on two-career relationships that provoked a heated response from both outside and inside our building. Elizabeth Corcoran, a member of our Silicon Valley bureau and principal author of the magazine's current cover story on robots, sent in this rebuttal. Here's a link for reader discussion. Point: Don't Marry Career WomenBy Michael NoerHow do women, careers and marriage mix? Not well, say social scientists. Guys: A word of advice. Marry pretty women or ugly ones. Short ones or tall ones. Blondes or brunettes. Just, whatever you do, don't marry a woman...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 -- Moving frequently is not always beneficial to military spouses’ careers, but RE/MAX officials hope to help change that. RE/MAX, an international realty company, announced “Operation RE/MAX” on Aug. 14, during opening ceremonies of the 2006 RE/MAX International Conference of Broker/Owners and Managers here. This program assists military spouses in developing careers in real estate, which a recent American National Standards Institute survey indicated as one of the top five careers suited for military spouses. “A career in real estate is ideal for many military spouses,” Dave Liniger, RE/MAX co-founder and chairman of the board,...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 8, 2006 – A workshop today and tomorrow at Fort Gordon, Ga., is providing career guidance for wounded servicemembers. The Defense Applicant Assistance Office, of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the Army’s Installation Management Agency are sponsoring the “Hiring Heroes/Wounded Warriors Technical Workshop” and career fair at Fort Gordon’s Gordon Club. The program will provide transitional career and employment information for soldiers who have suffered injuries while supporting operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. DoD officials said the program is the first of its kind and will address issues such as benefits, entitlements and employment...

Young conservatives in DC apparently like intellectual stimulation in a lecture format, but then again the free beer might have been on more than a few minds. Last Wednesday night, more than 80 young conservative intellectuals crowded into a back room of The Brickskeller on 22nd St, NW to listen to a professor talk about vocation, to eat and drink, and to meet their peers and colleagues. It was the first meeting of “Conservatism on Tap” presented by the ISI (Intercollegiate Studies Institute) Young Alumni group of DC founded by Princeton graduate Evan Baehr. The event was a success, with...

Recently, ABC News Anchor Elizabeth Vargas left the nightly news for a regular gig on 20/20. Her reason? She was expecting another child and the nightly news meant a far too demanding schedule for a mother of two young children. Feminists groups were outraged. One asked, "If she can't have it all, who can?" The answer is, "No one." No one can "have it all." Sacrifices must be made. One of our greatest problems as Americans is that most of us have a series of contradictory urges. Like the child who wants to be a baseball player, an astronaut, and...

"If I take a class and never study, I can still get a B," said Scott Daniels, a 22-year-old at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. "I know that if I'd applied myself more, I would have had better grades." On each campus, many young men concluded that the easy B was good enough .. At Greensboro, where more than two-thirds of the students are female, and about one in five is black, many young men say they are torn between wanting quick money and seeking the long-term rewards of education. "A lot of my friends made good money working...

WASHINGTON, May 24, 2006 – The United Service Organizations of Metropolitan Washington and Joint Employment Transition Services will present their first Military Spouse Career Expo at the Sosa Recreation Center at Fort Belvoir, Va., June 17, USO officials announced. USO of Metropolitan Washington is a member of "America Supports You," a Defense Department program to showcase the nation's corporate and grassroots support to servicemembers and their families. The expo is designed to empower military spouses through information, motivation and skill development leading to sound career choices. It will include presentations on federal jobs, self-employment and alternative careers, officials said. Debbie...

AL ASAD, Iraq (May 16, 2006) -- "Generation after generation of Marines have grown gray in war, in both hemispheres, and in every corner of the seven seas that our country and its citizens might enjoy peace and security." These words, written several generations of Marines ago by Lt. Gen. John A. Lejeune, 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps, describe with uncanny accuracy the service one proud warrior with Marine Aircraft Group 16 (Reinforced), 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, has given to his country and Corps over a career spanning 30 years. Sgt. Maj. Abelardo Flores passed his position as Group...

Successes or failures of employees in the workplace can be traced to what kind of father they had, a psychologist argues in a new book. In "The Father Factor," Stephan Poulter lists five styles of fathers -- super-achieving, time bomb, passive, absent and compassionate/mentor -- who have powerful influences on the careers of their sons and daughters. Children of the "time-bomb" father, for example, who explodes in anger at his family, learn how to read people and their moods. Those intuitive abilities make them good at such jobs as personnel managers or negotiators, he writes. But those same children may...

Dr. Jonathan P. Oline waits for his commissioning ceremony to begin.  Oline received a direct commission as a lieutenant colonel during a ceremony at Headquarters, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C., April 29, 2006.   Photo by Gillian M. Albro U.S. Army Lt. Col. Jonathan Oline Heart Surgeon Restarts Career, Accepts Direct Commission By Paul D. Prince U.S. Army Special Operations Command FORT BRAGG, N.C., May 3, 2006 — Coronary specialist Dr. Jonathan P. Oline had a change of heart and a change in career. He put his 17-year private practice on hold to serve his country. The...

Tattered and faded, two American flags and one yellow ribbon waved for the last time this past Tuesday. They welcomed Zach Madsen, an Alaska National Guard soldier who spent the past year serving in Iraq, home to his mother’s house on the west shore of Lake Carlos. Patty Den Hartog has flown the flags and yellow ribbon – through rain, snow and sunshine – in her front yard during each of her son’s three deployments since 1999. She did the same when her other son, Justin, served in Somalia during the early 1990s. Each time Madsen returned, she took them...

“So, what do you do?” The question is posed relentlessly. In other words, "What label have you given yourself to prove to the rest of the world that you are not a drain on society?" During my single years I had a lot of creative answers to that question: “I am a ballet teacher.” “I work at an old and rare bookstore.” “I am a student.” “I teach piano lessons.” Those years were ripe with opportunities to invest in other lives, to develop skills for the future, and to discover the calling for which God had uniquely designed me. During...

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Conceding that it might take "a miracle" for him to play again, Houston Astros slugger Jeff Bagwell went on the disabled list today in a move that could signal the end of his major-league career. The franchise's all-time leader in home runs and RBIs is considering surgery to remove the bone spurs in his shoulder in a last-ditch effort to salvage his career, and the Astros will start a season without him on the roster for the first time in 16 years. "I said I wasn't going to embarrass myself," said Bagwell, 37. "I felt like this...

Asset classes--stocks, bonds, real estate, collectibles--are always competing with one another. Each clamors for our spare dollars. For periods we favor one asset class over others (e.g., stocks from 1982 to 2000). But when a collective judgment is reached that a particular asset class has been bid up too high, dollars are pulled and the asset class shrinks in value. Real estate may now be at that point. I can think of only one asset class that in my adult life has outperformed GDP growth plus inflation yet has been blissfully immune from busts--any busts at all. That is the...

  U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Aurelia Garza Senior Airman Patricia Maghanoy Sisters Share Career Field, Squadron, Flight By Tech. Sgt. Kevin Williams 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C., March 9, 2006 — Twins obviously have a lot in common, but for Senior Airmen Patricia Maghanoy and Aurelia Garza, twins, the similarities don't end there. These 20th Component Maintenance Squadron aerospace propulsion journeymen also share the same career field, squadron and flight. Born Jan. 30, 1984, in Yakima, Wash., the twins began their Air Force career together Jan. 18, 2002. "They didn't know (we were...

MARINE CORPS RECRUITING STATION DENVER (Feb. 8, 2006) -- Making the transition from enlisted Marine to warrant officer is something that many Marines often dream of, but rarely act on. However, Chief Warrant Officer Thomas W. Walker, formerly a gunnery sergeant, has long established himself as a leader. He now looks forward to his next steps as an officer of Marines. “The Corps offers many bittersweet moments and this is one of them,” said Master Sgt. Al Matthews, assistant recruiter instructor for RS Denver. “I hate to see him go. He was an outstanding NCOIC and recruiter who, as a...

For a homework assignment I must interview someone who has the same career I would desire. The career I chose was writer, however, I chose that career because I have genuine interest in it. I've written poetry, short stories, and a play before. So if there is a FReeper out there who could please spare some time for my 15-question interview, then please FReepmail me. Thank you in advance.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9, 2005 – Military.com is taking its mission of connecting veterans to their benefits one step further with the official launch of the online Veteran Career Network on Nov. 11. About 250,000 people leave the military each year, Christopher Michel, president and founder of Military.com, said. A goal of the new network, found at www.military.com/network, is to help veterans capitalize on the training they received in the military by connecting them with employers who value this type of training and to make that connection more efficient. "Job searches have been traditionally inefficient," Michel, a former Navy lieutenant commander,...

The man killed by San Diego police after a moving gunbattle Thursday afternoon had a criminal past that included convictions for armed robbery and assault on a police officer, records show. Santino Juarez, 31, of Encanto was also wanted on two arrest warrants: for violating probation for a purse-snatch conviction in Chula Vista in 2003, and for a drunken-driving conviction July 28 in El Cajon. An undercover San Diego police detective was looking for Juarez in connection with the robbery warrant when he spotted him about 2 p.m. near the mobile-home park in Encanto where Juarez lived. The detective called...

WASHINGTON - David Margolis, a lawyer at the Justice Department for 40 years, was named Friday to oversee a special prosecutor's investigation of who in the Bush administration disclosed the name of an undercover CIA officer. Margolis, whose title is associate deputy attorney general, is taking the place of Deputy Attorney General James Comey, whose last day of work was Friday. Comey will be Lockheed Martin's new general counsel. Comey made the designation of Margolis. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has stepped aside from the probe because he was White House counsel when Valerie Plame's name was leaked in 2003 and...

"Turning Hillary Clinton into a victim by publishing outrageous claims could backfire and strengthen her candidacy in 2008. This would be ironic given all the horrible things that Bill and Hillary have done over the years to the women who got in the way, including threats, smears, and intimidation. Hillary has shown that she'll stop at nothing to protect her political power—her real deeds are far more disturbing than the tawdry speculation Klein is spreading." One of the "outrageous claims" is said to be that "Chelsea Clinton was conceived when Bill raped Hillary." Other alleged "outrageous claims" are said to...

The black Republican abolitionist Frederick Douglass said, “Without struggle, there is no progress.” Successful people in every walk of life grow in character and ability by seeking new and greater challenges to master. In Judging Thomas, Ken Foskett shows Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas's struggles against poverty and prejudice as well as the determination to earn respect through excellence. Justice Thomas' life has proved his approach correct—hard work prevails over prejudice. Clarence Thomas came of age when Americans were struggling to rethink their perceptions about race and their attitudes toward blacks. Forced to confront their actions, Americans chose to change...

Out of catastrophe comes fresh hope. Six months ago, my friend Michael Jackson was facing disaster in every area of his life - his career was flatlining, his finances were coming apart at the seams, his reputation was smeared by a television show that he had hoped would relaunch his image. Worst of all, he was facing a court case that could destroy him utterly. The courage he needed to withstand whatever fresh ordeals were in store was awesome. I felt deep sympathy and pity for him. Worse than this, I blamed myself. I had persuaded Michael to make the...

I've been offered admission into West Point and the Naval Academy (class of '09.) I'm leaning towards West Point because I would like to serve in a hard-core, rapidly deployed, infantry/special forces unit. My understanding is that the Army controls the majority of the special forces. Any info would be appreciated.

To all the Freepers so kind in the past, please pray for my job situation. Today, I was laid off, and I am so happy! The company I worked for has been eating its own tail for four years, with fewer and fewer people, and I had been given responsibility (not the authority, you understand!) for more and more. The "big picture" people above me were among the first to go, and we have been like a rudderless ship for years. I am so happy to be free, and although dear Mrs. 50sdad is still temping, she's making more than...

LOS ANGELES - Hoisting her Academy Award in one hand and newly won Razzie in the other, Halle Berry reveled in her career low point. "Omigosh, oh my God," Berry gasped Saturday night, feigning excitement as she held her hand to her mouth and forehead. "I never in my life thought that I would be here, winning a Razzie. It's not like I ever aspired to be here, but thank you." Berry was picked as worst actress for 2004's action bomb "Catwoman," which also took the prize for worst film at the 25th annual Razzies, an Oscar spoof that trashes...

A waitress at one of my favorite Strip District restaurants last week used one of the industry's oldest cliches. She delivered a meal and reminded me that she "really didn't do this" for a living. Waiting tables, she explained, was simply something she was doing until a well-paying job opened up in the field she studied during six years in college. While this is rote conversation for wait staff in places like New York and Los Angeles, where everyone with a tray of linguini in their hands is waiting for a slot on NBC's "Fear Factor," it's unusual for Pittsburgh....

"Do what you love and the money will follow" is great in theory, but the truth of the matter is, certain jobs and fields simply pay more. The Bureau of Labor Statistics National Compensation Survey, published in August 2004, showed that white-collar earnings -- which averaged $21.85 per hour -- were the highest among occupational groups. Blue-collar pay averaged $15.03 per hour, while the hourly pay of service occupations averaged just $10.40. Though many of these occupations require an advanced degree, there are jobs at every education level that pay more than other jobs for workers with similar levels of...

Her question stopped me in my tracks. “So why can’t you have a baby and go to college?” I opened my mouth to speak, “Because….” I stopped. “Well, it…." The modern proscription for a successful life in America is rigid. You graduate from high school, you go to college and graduate, you get a master’s degree, and you begin your career. Only then are you given permission to settle down and consider having a family. The promise of “success” hangs in front of our nose, like the hare racing in front of the greyhounds at the track. We have our...

Who Needs Harvard? Why big corporations are hiring fewer Ivy Leaguers. By Daniel Gross Posted Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2005, at 12:50 PM PT A coveted undergraduate admission to an Ivy League college is a ticket to success, right? But a recent paper by Peter Cappelli and Monika Hamori, both of the University of Pennsylvania, suggests that the prestigious degrees aren't as valuable at America's largest corporations as they were a generation ago. If you want to run GE, you might be better off attending the University of Connecticut than Yale. Cappelli and Hamori compared the résumés of the top 10...

Students at a Palo Alto middle school learned more than school officials ever expected when a recent "career day" speaker extolled the merits of stripping and expounded on the financial benefits of a larger bust. The hubbub began Tuesday at Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School's third annual career day when a student asked Foster City salesman William Fried to explain why he listed "exotic dancer" and "stripper" on a handout of potential careers. Fried, who spoke to about 45 eighth-grade students during two separate 55-minute sessions, spent about a minute explaining that the profession is viable and potentially lucrative for...

IT REALLY is brains not brawn that women look for in a man. An exhaustive study of people from primary school to middle age has proved that clever men are much more likely to marry than those with lesser intelligence. But for female high-flyers, the reverse is true. Their chances of walking up the aisle are considerably lower than those of classmates who left school at 16. When Nicola Horlick, the City investment manager nicknamed Superwoman for juggling her job and family of six, wrote her book on career and domestic bliss, its title posed the question: Can You Have...

The American Association for Retired Persons now calls itself simply "AARP" because some members are offended by the term "retired" and it wants to appeal to younger Americans. But the organization is now trying to explain a far more serious and deceptive practice. It hired an admitted former drug user and dealer as an editor of its 22-million circulation magazine. He has emerged as a spokesman on the so-called "medical marijuana" issue, telling America that seniors might benefit from smoking dope. With the assistance of Jeanette McDougal of Drug Watch International, anti-drug activists Joyce Nalepka and Dee Rathbone uncovered the...

Among the many distinctive expressions Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has offered as gifts to the media is the following: “I don’t do quagmires,” referring to the mantra-like repetition by some war critics that Iraq has become a quagmire. The media, however, especially its Official Rumsfeld-Hating Clique, remains mired in the viciously viscous putrid muck of all-consuming loathing of the Secretary of Defense. That same media currently has its puerile knickers in a twist about President Bush awarding Tommy Franks, Paul Bremer and George Tenet the Medal of Freedom. Or, as liberal columnist Richard Cohen, speaking for many media colleagues,...