Obama, yesterday, launched his own news network.  Rather than allowing the White House press corps to take photos and interview the UCONN women’s team at the White House, they were denied access and told that the White House was creating their own news channel and would conduct all necessary reporting of the event themselves.

“After shaking hands with the team’s parents and members of Congress who showed up, the president walked the team over to his basketball court and shot hoops. The pool was held back from the stroll down the drive and around the corner, and couldn’t see the court. Poolers could hear periodic cheering coming from the other side of the bushes.”

Read the TV pool report: “Your Pool was not allowed to go over and shoot POTUS with the team shooting hoops.  We protested loudly.”

Now we know why: Obama White House officials decided to do their own media report on the visit, complete with cuts, interviews, and chyrons identifying who’s speaking.

Also, just like a network, they have their own little logo!

So I have heard the term Pravda being paraded around again (the old Soviet run newspaper that meant ‘Truth’ in English), but that’s too boring, then there is OTV, of course for Obama TV, aptly named by Jake Tapper, GBCN which I figured could stand for Government Broadcasting Communism Network or my favorite, American Communism Obama Reinforcing Network or ACORN…

Whatever the name, it’s still pretty disturbing that an administration so hell-bent on controlling everything in the free market is also taking over the airwaves.  This is the socialism/communism creep; frog in a pot analogy.

What I don’t understand is that this should scare people, no matter what side of the aisle you are on, however, the Obama appeasers are still backing his every move.  If the White House or any government is putting out its own news it has to be biased.  It will be politically slanted based upon whichever party they are part of.  This is what Soviet Russia, Venezuela, North Korea, China, and Cuba do.  They do not allow dissent and they only put out “news” they deem acceptable – most of which promotes what they are doing – there can never be an opposing opinion less you end up in some prison or killed for that matter.  This is getting unbelievably ridiculous and the cult followers are getting scarier by the minute!

“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” ~ Joseph Goebbels (Chief Propagandist of the National Socialist Party of Germany or Nazis)

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They’re ba-a-ack!

We have few iconic couples from the 1960s and 1970s left. Sonny and Cher divorced and went their separate ways politically. Republican Congressman Sonny Bono died tragically in a skiing accident in 1998. Cher continues to perform by herself.

But not all was Laugh-In and flower power.

Today another famous couple, comrades-in-arms and former collaborators in Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Weatherman, and then Weather Underground — and now coauthors of the book Race Course Against White Supremacy — are bringing their show on the road.

I am talking about Bill Ayers, once-fugitive “peace activist,” whose photo of him defiling the American flag was used against his “pal” Barack Obama during the presidential campaign.

His wife, Bernardine Dohrn, praised mass murderer Charles Manson and was jailed for seven months for refusing to cooperate with a grand jury investigating the 1981 Brinks truck robbery by the Weather Underground and the Black Liberation Army that killed two policemen and a guard.

Needless to say the republicans and conservatives, from Ayers’ & Dohrn’s point of view, are the evil white supremacists in this country, however, white supremacy groups have always been socialist in nature and align more with Obama and Ayers’ type of government!  These two don’t much like individual freedom or liberty – if you recall in the classroom of Ayers, he mentioned he was a communist with a small ‘c’ – hmmm… and how many people has communism hurt and/or killed? 

The biggest crime is that these two teach children and indoctrinate them with their lies and false statements regarding America!  

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Stalin would be so proud!  The Donkey’s are controlling the cars:

There should be no question as to why the auto industry accepting the new CAFE standards today…

General Motors Corp’s (GM.N) plan for a bankruptcy filing involves a quick sale of the company’s healthy assets to a new company initially owned by the U.S. government, a source familiar with the situation said on Tuesday.

The source, who would not be named because he was not cleared to speak with the media, did not specify a purchase price. The new company is expected to honor the claims of secured lenders, possibly in full, according to the source.

The remaining assets of GM would stay in bankruptcy protection to satisfy other outstanding claims.

GM has about $6 billion in secured debt, including a secured revolving credit and bank debt.

The government’s plans include giving stakes in the new company to GM’s union and bondholders, although the ownership structure of the company is still being negotiated, said the source who is familiar with the company’s plans.

In addition, the government would extend a credit line to the new company and forgive the bulk of the $15.4 billion in emergency loans that the U.S. has already provided to GM, the source said.

As I have been stating… we will never see our taxpayer dollars for any of this bailout nonsense.  These bankruptcies were inevitable and they just threw money down a black hole!

The government has given GM until June 1 to restructure its operations to lower its debt burden and employee costs.

Not ‘gonna happen!

If those talks failed, the company has said it would follow rival Chrysler LLC into bankruptcy.

My father mentioned yesterday, on his birthday, that he would be finding out whether or not he would have a job today… GM will follow Chrysler, the question is when and how soon this summer?

Setting up a new company to buy the healthy assets is aimed at reassuring consumers who might not be willing to make a major purchase from a bankrupt company, fearing it would not honor warranties or provide service.

The board of the new company would be established with the tacit approval of the government. Fritz Henderson, who took the helm of GM earlier this year after the government pushed out Rick Wagoner, would likely head the new company, the source said.

GM could not be immediately reached for comment.

GM shares were up about 9 percent at $1.29. (Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

George Soros – stop buying up GM shares for yourself!

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Is that you Stalin?  How is this not edging ever so closely to communism and totalitarian government?  Power grab anyone?

The days of a large unregulated Internet may be coming to an end.  The government, and especially the democrats, will use the latest crisis of the electronic grid hacking, although China and Russia say it did not occur, to implement a new Cyber Security Act that will control and regulate the Internet.  To be quite frank, I have no idea who to believe.  At this point China, Russia and the Democrats could all be working together for all I know!

The latest from Obama and “our” government:

A bill making its way through Congress proposes to give the U.S. government authority over all networks considered part of the nation’s critical infrastructure. Under the proposed Cyber Security Act of 2009, the president would have the authority to shut down Internet traffic to protect national security.

Does Obama have ultimate authority to police the net?  What criteria is necessary to shut down a website or to remove an individual from the net?  Does anybody get the feeling that the latest DHS report conveniently came out before most recent power grab act of 2009?  Why couldn’t Obama use the DHS report to remove any right leaning websites, blogs, individuals etc.?  I don’t care if you are a Democrat or a Republican this is just plain scary!

Again, I have an issue with the hypocrisy that is taking place.  Liberals screamed and cried over the NSA wiretapping for known terrorists and those who had background information that would lead us to believe they had terrorist ties, but this is ok all of the sudden?  The fact that something as large as the Internet may be policed is worse, in my opinion, than wiretapping.  Even if you don’t agree with wiretapping, it’s not like Obama has banned wiretapping and is now only policing the net – he is doing both!  Why are the liberal sheep so easily blinded by the blatant double standards here?

The government also would have access to digital data from a vast array of industries including banking, telecommunications and energy. A second bill, meanwhile, would create a national cyber security adviser — commonly referred to as the cyber security czar — within the White House to coordinate strategy with a wide range of federal agencies involved.

Oh, wonderful, another czar…

The need for greater cyber security is obvious:

– Canadian researchers recently discovered that computers in 103 countries, including those in facilities such as embassies and news media offices, were infected with software designed to steal network data.

– A Seattle security analyst warned last month that the advancement of digital communication within the electrical grid, as promoted under President Obama’s stimulus plan, would leave the nation’s electrical supply dangerously vulnerable to hackers.

– And on Tuesday the Wall Street Journal reported that computer spies had broken into the Pentagon’s $300 billion Joint Strike Fighter project and had breached the Air Force’s air-traffic-control system.

I have inside information that the electronic grid that was hacked into could easily be taken out with a gun shot – it’s not that big and it’s not that hidden.  I also know for a fact that on black programs that are highly classified, they are not allowed on the net.  You are placed in a pass-coded room that is closed off to everyone else, you are not allowed to bring blackberries, cell phones, cameras etc. into the room where you work, nor are you allowed to have internet access or email access on the computer containing the classified information.  Your personal computer is placed at the front of the room away from classified material if you need to send emails.  So I’m curious how much people actually know about classified information and why is this “classified” information on the Internet in the first place, when defense companies I have worked for in the past, do not allow that to happen?  I’m only curious…

Nonetheless, the proposal to give the U.S. government the authority to regulate the Internet is sounding alarms among critics who say it’s another case of big government getting bigger and more intrusive.

Silicon Valley executives are calling the bill vague and overly intrusive, and they are rebelling at the thought of increased and costly government regulations amid the global economic crisis.

Others are concerned about the potential erosion of civil liberties. “I’m scared of it,” said Lee Tien, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco-based group.

“It’s really broad, and there are plenty of laws right now designed to prevent the government getting access to that kind of data. It’s the same stuff we’ve been fighting on the warrantless wiretapping.”

Isn’t that a shame?  Most of these people in Silicone Valley, like the Googles and Yahoos of the world, voted for Obama.  I think people really have a hard time understanding what big government really means.

The bill would allow the government to create a detailed set of standards for cyber security, as well as take over the process of certifying IT technicians. But many in the technology sector say the government is simply ill-equipped to get involved at the technical level, said Franck Journoud, a policy analyst with the Business Software Alliance.

“Simply put, who has the expertise?” he said. “It’s the industry, not the government. We have a responsibility to increase and improve security. That responsibility cannot be captured in a government standard.”

ROTFLMAO!  Of course the government doesn’t have the expertise, I’m not sure they have the expertise to run a lemonade stand!  We have seen what they have done to our economy, the banking system, the auto industry, the farming industry, and even the Mustang Ranch.

A spokeswoman from Rockefeller’s office said neither he nor the two senators who co-sponsored the bill, Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and Bill Nelson, D-Fla., will answer questions on cyber security until a later date.

The fact that the Senators who came up with this idea are not answering questions should send up the red flags!

If the United States was to set its own standard for cyber security, they say, it would create a host of logistical challenges for technology companies, virtually all of which operate internationally.

“Any standards have to be set at an international level and be industry led,” said Dale Curtis, a spokesman for the Business Software Alliance. “This industry moves so fast, and government just doesn’t move that fast.”

How true!  But, yet so many people put their trust and faith in government.  They have treated Obama as if he were God-like and the man himself believes his own hype; Pathetic!

Many Silicon Valley executives remain hopeful that the White House’s recommendations will be more industry-friendly, following what Journoud said was a good dialogue with former Bush administration official Melissa Hathaway, who is leading the White House review and is considered a likely candidate for cyber security czar.

Good luck believing that Obama will be industry friendly, he is just as progressive, if not more so, than FDR, who hated the private sector.  And just to remind everyone… Bush was a big government “conservative.”  I have major qualms with him and his big government policies and spending practices, but I respected him for his efforts in the War on Terror.  There are many politicians on both sides of the aisle that merely want the power and control and this latest act proves that it is only going to get worse from here.

It was nice knowing you Freedom of Speech!  Maybe we’ll meet again one day.

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The American Form of Government:

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SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea fired a rocket over Japan on Sunday, defying Washington, Tokyo and others who suspect the launch was cover for a test of its long-range missile technology. President Barack Obama warned the move would further isolate the communist nation.

Liftoff took place at 11:30 a.m. (0230 GMT) from the coastal Musudan-ri launch pad in northeastern North Korea, the South Korean and U.S. governments said. The multistage rocket hurtled toward the Pacific, reaching Japanese airspace within seven minutes, but no debris appeared to hit its territory, officials in Tokyo said.

The U.S., South Korea, Japan and others suspect the launch was a guise for testing the regime’s long-range missile technology — a worrying step toward eventually mounting a nuclear weapon on a missile capable of reaching Alaska and beyond.

Now here is the amusingly propagandized statement from North Korea:

Four hours after the launch, North Korea declared it a success. The satellite reached outer space in just over nine minutes and was orbiting without any problems, the state-run Korean Central News Agency said in a dispatch from Pyongyang.

The U.N. Security Council approved an emergency session for Sunday afternoon in New York, following a request from Japan that came just minutes after the launch.

Sunday’s move was a bold act of defiance against Obama, Japanese leader Taro Aso, Hu Jintao of China and others who pressed Pyongyang in the days leading up to liftoff to call off a launch they said would threaten peace and stability in Northeast Asia.

“North Korea has ignored its international obligations, rejected unequivocal calls for restraint and further isolated itself from the community of nations,” Obama said in Prague, urging Pyongyang to honor the U.N. resolutions and to refrain from further “provocative” actions.

After reusing the words from Hillary Clinton, as a “provocative” act, Obama and the United Nations will probably feel compelled to issue a strongly worded letter to North Korea and Kim Jong-Il – I’m serious here folks – please rent Team America!

I have been following a live feed from Japan, where the Japanese Defense Agency failed to counterstrike or counter-fire the rocket with some of their new Aegis warships.  Although the rocket went into Japanese airspace, it did not present a direct threat to the country and no debris fell towards them, this may have been their reason to let the rocket fully launch. 

There were a couple of stages to the rocket.

The first stage of the rocket dropped about 175 miles (280 kilometers) off the western coast of Akita into the waters between Japan and the Korean peninsula. The second stage was aimed for the Pacific at a spot about 790 miles (1,270 kilometers) off Japan’s northeastern coast, a Defense Ministry spokeswoman said in Tokyo.

Japan had threatened to shoot down any debris from the rocket if the launch went wrong, and positioned batteries of interceptor missiles on its coast and radar-equipped ships off its northern seas to monitor the liftoff.

No attempt at interception was made since no debris fell onto its territory, a Defense Ministry spokeswoman said in Tokyo, speaking on condition of anonymity, citing department rules.

Let the games begin…

Both Russia and China have made clear they would block new sanctions by the Security Council, where they have veto power.

“If the United States and Japan insist on a new resolution and new sanctions at the United Nations, China will most likely use its veto,” said Shi Yinhong, professor of international security at Renmin University in Beijing.

“China’s principle is only to support United Nations sanctions in the most extreme cases. Although the launch was serious, it was much less serious than the nuclear test.”

here’s the timeline of North Korea’s missile program:

Aug. 31, 1998: North Korea fires suspected missile over Japan and into the Pacific Ocean, calling it a satellite.

Sept. 13, 1999: North Korea pledges to freeze long-range missile tests.

June 2001: North Korea warns it will reconsider missile test moratorium if Washington doesn’t resume contacts aimed at normalizing relations.

July 2001: U.S. State Department reports North Korea developing long-range missile.

September 2002: North Korea pledges in summit talks with Japan to extend its moratorium on missile tests beyond 2003.

Jan. 10, 2003: North Korea announces withdrawal from Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

March 10, 2003: North Korea fires a land-to-ship missile off east coast into waters between South Korea and Japan.

October 2003: North Korea fires two land-to-ship missiles.

May 2004: North Korea reaffirms its missile moratorium in summit talks with Japan.

May 2005: North Korea fires a short-range missile into the Sea of Japan.

March 8, 2006: North Korea fires two short-range missiles.

June 18, 2006: North Korea vows to increase its “military deterrent” to cope with what it calls U.S. attempts to provoke war.

July 5, 2006: North Korea launches seven missiles into the Sea of Japan, including a long-range Taepodong-2.

July 15, 2006: U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1695 demanding North Korea halt missile program.

Oct. 9, 2006: North Korea conducts underground nuclear test blast after citing “extreme threat of a nuclear war” from U.S.

Oct. 15, 2006: U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1718 condemning test, imposing sanctions and banning North Korea from activities related to its nuclear weapons program, including “their means of delivery and related materials.”

July 14, 2007: North Korea shuts down its main Yongbyon reactor, later starts disabling it.

June 27, 2008: North Korea destroys cooling tower at Yongbyon.

Sept. 19, 2008: North Korea says it is restoring a key atomic reactor.

Oct. 11, 2008: U.S. removes North Korea from a list of states that sponsor terrorism.

Feb. 15: North Korea claims it has the right to “space development.”

Feb. 23: South Korea says North Korea has a new type of medium-range ballistic missile capable of reaching northern Australia and Guam.

March 11: North Korea declares satellite launch will take place between April 4-8.

April 5: North Korea launches long-range rocket from its base at Musundan-ri on the country’s northeast coast.

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Jason Mattera of Hot Air goes under cover.

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This is beyond socialism folks.  Barney Frank is trying to pass new legislation that will allow government control of salary setting and pay. 

I wonder if I will be forced into gymnastics since I am short and close to five foot – as they did in communist Russia.  I feel as though we are heading down that path. 

It was nearly two weeks ago that the House of Representatives, acting in a near-frenzy after the disclosure of bonuses paid to executives of AIG, passed a bill that would impose a 90 percent retroactive tax on those bonuses. Despite the overwhelming 328-93 vote, support for the measure began to collapse almost immediately. Within days, the Obama White House backed away from it, as did the Senate Democratic leadership. The bill stalled, and the populist storm that spawned it seemed to pass.
But now, in a little-noticed move, the House Financial Services Committee, led by chairman Barney Frank, has approved a measure that would, in some key ways, go beyond the most draconian features of the original AIG bill. The new legislation, the “Pay for Performance Act of 2009,” would impose government controls on the pay of all employees — not just top executives — of companies that have received a capital investment from the U.S. government. It would, like the tax measure, be retroactive, changing the terms of compensation agreements already in place. And it would give Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner extraordinary power to determine the pay of thousands of employees of American companies.

I don’t know what scares me more, that this is unconstitutional, that the government wants more control, that Timmy Geithner the incompetent, will get more control or that Barney Frank is leading this charge?  They are all very scary to me to be honest! 

The purpose of the legislation is to “prohibit unreasonable and excessive compensation and compensation not based on performance standards,” according to the bill’s language. That includes regular pay, bonuses — everything — paid to employees of companies in whom the government has a capital stake, including those that have received funds through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The measure is not limited just to those firms that received the largest sums of money, or just to the top 25 or 50 executives of those companies. It applies to all employees of all companies involved, for as long as the government is invested. And it would not only apply going forward, but also retroactively to existing contracts and pay arrangements of institutions that have already received funds.

First of all, the bailouts never should have happened in the first place – they have caused this quagmire and have set a precedent, something that true fiscal conservatives were downing Pepto-Bismol over!  This is what happens when you open your door to the government vampires.  Don’t they say that vampires can only come in if you let them in?  Well here comes grubby hands, Barney Frank and his team, of inept cronies!  They now own you and are savoring the control and want to continue that control for as long as possible until these companies are sucked dry.  Heck, the government couldn’t even run the Bunny Ranch when they took it over and if you can’t find a way to sell sex – you’ve got a problem and probably need to go to business school.

I have a crazy idea – why don’t we also cap the salaries of all the idiots in Congress who helped caused this crisis like Barney Frank?  He received taxpayer money just like AIG now, so I feel as though we should control the salary he is paid as well… however, he just voted himself a raise… how hypocritical. 

Liberals will say this isn’t a slippery slope, but how could it not be when we are already seeing bill after bill presented to the house that is unconstitutional all to eat up this crisis that by my estimate was creating by a significant few.  I would like to ask you liberals what department or government created entity was ever scaled back once it was made larger by the government?  Has the department of education gotten smaller?  Did the GSE’s go away?  Did Social Security get any better? 

In addition, the bill gives Geithner the authority to decide what pay is “unreasonable” or “excessive.” And it directs the Treasury Department to come up with a method to evaluate “the performance of the individual executive or employee to whom the payment relates.”

The bill passed the Financial Services Committee last week, 38 to 22, on a nearly party-line vote. (All Democrats voted for it, and all Republicans, with the exception of Reps. Ed Royce of California and Walter Jones of North Carolina, voted against it.)

I hope that the Republicans stand strong and fight this.  I’m sad to see that two Republicans actually voted for this…  Are there no conservative Democrats left – or at least ones that have some cajones to stand up to the radical left of Barney, Nancy, Harry and Barack?

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Obama and his administration are at it again!  That fallacious indignation and the staged grandstanding – this time for the auto industry. 

Photo H/T by Michelle Malkin (there may be some better ones presented throughout the day!)
If you think that Obama will not eventually give the U.S. auto industry additional taxpayer bailout money, you are sadly mistaken and naive.  The United Auto Workers (UAW) were one of his biggest supporters this past election.  The UAW has voted democrat for as long as I can remember and I want to actually say since the FDR era.  

Obama is grandstanding to win some brownie points with the public since he has gradually been losing support since his inauguration.  Bailing out the U.S. car makers is not very popular among the majority of Americans.  He made mention of that on 60 minutes as he giggled suspiciously through the economic segment. 

It’s ironic to me and hypocritical at the same time, (but what’s new) that his administration would call for a bailout for the auto industry and ask George Bush to use some of the $700 Billion on the American auto industry before leaving office.  Obama decided to give $30 Billion more to AIG and sign a stimulus bill that allowed for their bonuses, yet acted outraged as if he had just found out about all of this.  Why is it ok to bailout one incessantly failing company but not others?  Well, not to worry, he will bailout GM and Chrysler again – he just wants to look tough – like he is actually doing something and making them restructure. 

If you really want a company to restructure its debt, management and union contracts (which he most certainly does not) then you would let the company file bankruptcy.  Obama knows that his union supporters will be none-too-pleased if GM or Chrysler go belly-up and their union contracts no longer have to be fulfilled and a brankruptcy court deems that to be the case – Obama and the union cannot take that chance…

It’s obvious this is the case when the following statements are made:

“We cannot, we must not, and we will not let our auto industry simply vanish,” President Obama said at the White House.

“What we are asking is difficult,” he said. “It will require hard choices by companies. It will require unions and workers who have already made painful concessions to make even more. It will require creditors to recognize that they cannot hold out for the prospect of endless government bailouts.”

The remarks come a day after the administration ousted GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner and rejected the restructuring plans that GM and Chrysler had hoped would lead to another infusion of government cash. Instead, the White House is giving GM 60 days to come up with a strategy for viability. Chrysler has a month to wrap up a partnership with Italy’s Fiat SpA.

I personally do not think that Wagoner disagreed with their request to restructure and merely wanted another payout by the government.  I think they will use him as the scapegoat now that he has stepped down (and it would be interesting to see what type of severance package he received).  This administration continues to require a scapegoat and can never take responsibility and accountabilty for their own actions.  It’s easier to point the finger and blame others, however, many people will begin to grow weary of the constant blame game – if they haven’t already.

“I know that when people even hear the word ‘bankruptcy,’ it can be a bit unsettling, so let me explain what I mean,” he said. “What I am talking about is using our existing legal structure as a tool that, with the backing of the U.S. government, can make it easier for General Motors and Chrysler to quickly clear away old debts that are weighing them down so they can get back on their feet and onto a path to success; a tool that we can use, even as workers are staying on the job building cars that are being sold.”

To assure consumers reluctant to buy GM or Chrysler cars, the government plans to take the unusual step of guaranteeing all warrantees on new cars from either company. These guarantees would lapse back to the companies once they return to health.

Look forward to even greater sub-par vehicles if the government is backing them.  No way do they want their costs to rise – the government is always going to pay for the lowest bidder, not the highest quality.  Don’t think that the warranties will get shorter either – the government will do anything to save a buck.  And if other competitive companies have longer more effective and inclusive warranties that get in the way of the government run auto makers, you can bet your sweet tuckus that they will try to pass legislation that outlaws warranties all together… This is out of control!

Are you going to tell me that no democrats find it strange that the man, the president, has asked the CEO of GM to step down as well as discarded their initial business plan?  This is communism – I’m sorry folks but this is fascism, communism – I could care less what you call it – but it’s not constitutional, it’s not American and sure as hell isn’t Capitalistic!

The biggest losers in all of this – the bondholders.  Those who hold bonds want more union concessions and they aren’t sure if that will actually occur.  If they do go belly-up and the companies go to bankruptcy court the bondholders would also lose.

That is why we shall now refer to GM as Government Motors – they may as well be a GSE…I will never consider buying a GM car again – at least not until the government has its hand out of it!

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The only thing most of the newspapers (esp. those who are already “part” of the DNC) are good for is toilet paper, or at least some sort of “cover” for my puppy who is still learning how to properly go outside rather than my kitchen floor.  Actually, newspaper is good for fireplace kindling as well – but I tend to use coupons and advertisements since I refuse to subsribe to certain “rags.”

However, there is a U.S. Bill that is seeking to rescue these failing newspapers.  What happened to our capitalist society or following free market principles?  My head is raw these days from so much scratching.

With many U.S. newspapers struggling to survive, a Democratic senator on Tuesday introduced a bill to help them by allowing newspaper companies to restructure as nonprofits with a variety of tax breaks.

“This may not be the optimal choice for some major newspapers or corporate media chains but it should be an option for many newspapers that are struggling to stay afloat,” said Senator Benjamin Cardin.

A Cardin spokesman said the bill had yet to attract any co-sponsors, but had sparked plenty of interest within the media, which has seen plunging revenues and many journalist layoffs.

Cardin’s Newspaper Revitalization Act would allow newspapers to operate as nonprofits for educational purposes under the U.S. tax code, giving them a similar status to public broadcasting companies.

Under this arrangement, newspapers would still be free to report on all issues, including political campaigns. But they would be prohibited from making political endorsements.

I am totally ashamed to admit that I reside in Maryland.  I hope that someone gets up and runs against old Ben Cardin as well as Ms. Toadstool Mikulski.  The Maryland senators are just as far left and liberal as the rest of the yahoos running congress.  The Baltimore Sun, for example, has been on the liberal dole for ages – they were even behind the Michael Steele debacle when he was running for office and giving a speech – to have people come to the event and throw Oreo cookies at him.  That’s not racist at all, right democrats?? Can’t be racist when you’re just doing it to someone with an “R” after their name/sarc.

This brings me to the show, The Wire.  This show takes place in Baltimore and many of the episodes are based on true stories, but the names and places may be tweaked a little bit.  The 5th season of this show goes into detail on how much the media is in the tank for certain politicians as well as police officers to either cover up a story or report it.  It’s all about the “Benjamin’s” as they say.

So – how does anyone not see this as a huge conflict of interest?  If we bail out newspapers, who are supposed to be objective, and anyone with a brain, can tell they aren’t already – then how does this help the American public?   I think the media has already endangered the electorate enough this past election by not reporting on Barack Obama’s roots, relationships and history and letting people vote for this “Manchurian candidate.”

The other issue I foresee is the possibility, or should I say, the inevitability that the pendulum will swing back the other way – and if newspapers and media outlets are owned by the government and republicans come back into power – won’t the media be forced to report on the very things they disagree with?  “As they say, be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.”

The media being owned by the government reminds me of communist countries that regulate the internet, they only report on specific things and even make stories up and pass them off as news (already happens here).  This happened under Joseph Stalin – why do you think that so many elitists and celebrities at the time who went over to the USSR were taken by how much communism seemed to help the people?  It was called the Iron Curtain for a reason folks!  The media could only report propaganda and it was all a show put on for visitors – nobody saw the death and destruction behind the performance, behind the curtain.

Newspaper subscriptions and advertising have shrunk dramatically in the past few years as Americans have turned more and more to the Internet or television for information.

In recent months, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Rocky Mountain News, the Baltimore Examiner and the San Francisco Chronicle have ceased daily publication or announced that they may have to stop publishing.

In December the Tribune Company, which owns a number of newspapers including The Baltimore Sun, The Chicago Tribune and The Los Angeles Times filed for bankruptcy protection.

Two newspaper chains, Gannett Co Inc and Advance Publications, on Monday announced employee furloughs. It will be the second furlough this year at Gannett.

Maybe if these newspapers reported the truth and reported objectively they would have more subscribers.  The free market says that if you cannot, as a company, stay afloat in your industry, whether it’s from poor management, poor business practices, or not knowing your audience, etc. then you deserve to file bankruptcy and let those who can – do.

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