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[[Page 6115]] Presidential Determination No. 2009-15 of January 27, 2009 Unexpected Urgent Refugee and Migration Needs Related To Gaza Memorandum for the Secretary of State By the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, including section 2(c)(1) of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (the ``Act''), as amended (22 U.S.C. 2601), I hereby determine, pursuant to section 2(c)(1) of the Act, that it is important to the national interest to furnish assistance under the Act in an amount not to exceed $20.3 million from the United States Emergency Refugee and Migration...

The marketing executive at the center of The Washington Post’s discredited plan to charge power-brokers for private dinners with the paper’s publisher and journalists has resigned from The Post, the paper disclosed on Friday. The Post had sent fliers to lobbyists and trade groups, inviting them to pay $25,000 or more to sponsor salons at the home of Katharine Weymouth, the publisher — off-the-record dinners with reporters, editors and government officials. The plan became public in July, drawing sharp criticism from journalists in and out of the paper, and The Post quickly dropped it.

Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., rudely shouted "You lie!" when President Obama said Wednesday night that his health reform plan wouldn't subsidize coverage for illegal immigrants. Alas, Wilson shouted at the wrong moment. Obama was right about that. He just lied about a bunch of other stuff. "Nothing in our plan requires you to change what you have," the President said. Unless you have Medicare Advantage. The President will eliminate that program. Furthermore, the Congressional Budget Office has concluded that the proposed reforms will cause millions of Americans to lose the coverage they now have. It won't be "required," but it...

I'm beginning to wonder. Those of you who have followed my writings for the last two+ years know that I have often remarked "where are the cops?" and in fact more than once asked: Is the government a policeman or a felon? The latter is a dangerous question should the answer ever be determined to be the latter, as it would be an open declaration that there is no rule of law.  It would instantly define the entire federal law enforcement apparatus, and those of the States and Localities that stood with the Federal Government, as nothing more than thugs with...

A Cabinet minister has raised fears of a return to 1930s fascism, comparing modern right-wing groups to Oswald Mosley's Blackshirts. Communities Secretary John Denham's comments came as he announced a drive to prevent white working class people being 'exploited' by extremists. He singled out protests being organised by the English Defence League, some of which have turned violent over recent months. Hundreds of supporters are expected to gather in Trafalgar Square tomorrow. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1212831/Tensions-threaten-boil-right-wing-extremists-anti-fascist-protestors-clash-outside-London-mosque.html#ixzz0QthwvmQV

Everyone marvels at President Obama's rhetorical prowess. But don't be overly bedazzled. With these 13 easy steps, you, too, can give a Barack Obama speech. 1) Create a false center. In his speech Wednesday night, Obama positioned himself between the left calling for a single-payer system and the right agitating to end employer-based health insurance. Presto -- he's the very definition of a centrist. Anyone advocating almost any position can benefit from the same insta-centrism.

A very tasty Mexican soup!

'I'm as Mad as Hell, and I'm Not Gonna Take This Anymore!' This sentiment is being voiced by protesters turning out for Tea Parties and Health Care Town Hall Meetings around the country. People are angry and frightened by the prospect of government running their health care system, but their anger goes far beyond a 1000 page health bill. Health care reform is merely the spark that has touched off a prairie fire of grassroots rebellion among a people who believe their representatives do not represent them, do not listen to them and do not care what they think. Many...

Some conservatives have begun to openly wonder if Obama is going to seize power in America. Would he want to do this? Perhaps so (a scary thought, but he has promised change.) No one dreamed that Carter, the worst president of the last century, wanted or planned to seize power. Clinton wanted to win power, but the worst anyone expected of Clinton was Huey Long bossism. Obama rose in politics through the thoroughly corrupt one-party government of Chicago. His spiritual advisor sounds like a rabble-rousing storm trooper. His intellectual mentor, Saul Alinksy, like the Bolsheviks and Nazis, believed in state...

Athlete Caster Semenya has pulled out of her return to competitive sport amid growing fears over the psychological impact of rumours about her sex. The 18-year-old withdrew from a cross-country race in South Africa tomorrow after it was widely reported that a leaked sex test reveals she is a hermaphrodite. Her coach, Michael Seme, said she will not run because she is "not feeling well". South Africa condemned the international media reports as an invasion of the teenager's privacy and threatened a "third world war" if the women's 800m champion is disqualified from athletics.

Iran is set to allow what is believed to be its first transsexual marriage after the would-be bride asked a court to override her father's opposition to the match. The woman, named only as Shaghayegh, told Tehran's family court that she wanted to wed her best friend from school, who had recently undergone a sex-change operation to become a man, but was unable to obtain her father's blessing, as legally required. Now her father has agreed to permit the union on condition that the male partner, Ardashir, who was previously a woman called Negar, undergoes a medical examination intended to...

Device captures everything you type and sends it via your ethernet card to the Dept. of Homeland Security without your knowledge, consent or a search warrant - every time you log on to the internet! I was opening up my almost brand new laptop, to replace a broken PCMCIA slot riser on the motherboard. As soon as I got the keyboard off, I noticed a small cable running from the keyboard connection underneath a piece of metal protecting the motherboard. -------------------------------------------------- This was sent to me, not confirmed.

Even after nearly twenty years of living in the Washington, D.C. area and studying its various inhabitants — politicians, lobbyists, journalists, and bureaucrats — there are still times when it is difficult, if not impossible, to tell what is theatre and what is real. Of course, it is never purely one or the other, but a mixture that has to be weighed to see whether it is more of one or the other. This week was no exception. Those who debarked their morning commuter train on September 9 and walked into Union Station were greeted by phalanxes of police —...

President Barack Obama broadened his pitch for healthcare reform to Americans who have health insurance on Saturday, reminding them that they risk losing the coverage they have under the current system. A Treasury Department report found about half of Americans under age 65 -- the age that the government Medicare insurance coverage starts -- would lose healthcare coverage at some point in the next 10 years, Obama said in his weekly radio address. "If you're under the age of 21 today, chances are more than half that you'll find yourself uninsured at some point in that time. And more than...

“A lot of seniors do not know what’s coming down the pike… When they hear (about it) they’re going to be upset,” said U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Sander’s statement refers to last month’s projection by the Social Security trustees that there will not be a cost of living adjustment (COLA) for the next two years. While historically a small amount, each Social Security cost-of-living adjustment is a big deal for America’s senior citizens. As well it should be. Seniors living on a limited, fixed income face multiple financial decisions several times each day. Most revolve around what food is...

<p>Ok, it's 8:30. March starts at 11 AM EDT and people were asked to START at 9. There are so many people so far it's unbelievable. Everywhere you look, more are coming. I have already cried. It is America at our finest. Please pray it doesn't rain!! More later.</p>

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Google is well known for the clever logos it often drapes over its home page on holidays and some anniversaries, such as the Internet behemoth's own birthday. But on the solemn eighth anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks, while rivals including Ask.com and Microsoft's Bing.com offered prominent commemoration displays, it was just another day for the biggest search engine of them all. Whereas Google made special note when Luciano Pavarotti died, the anniversary of the worst terrorist attack in history went unnoticed