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NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

The Cult Called Mormonism

Having lived in Utah for a spell, [where the men are men and the sheep run scared] I can tell you that this faith is very much the cult.

It is self evident that Pastor Robert Jeffress is correct in referring to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more colloquially known as the Mormons, as “a cult.” There do seem to be one or two points of similarity; The Mormons have a supreme leader, known as the prophet or the president, whose word is allegedly supreme. They can be ordered to turn upon and shun any members who show any signs of backsliding. They have distinctive little practices, such as the famous underwear, to mark them off from other mortals, and they are said to be highly disciplined and continent when it comes to sex, booze, nicotine, and coffee. It is well known that the church can be harder to leave than it was to join. Hefty donations and tithes are apparently appreciated from the membership.










According to claims made by Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Church, Jesus Christ, the Bible and America are the basis of the new religion he founded more than a hundred years ago in the United States. However, no Christian denomination has ever recognized the religion that Smith created as a Christian faith or an extension of Christianity. Instead, it is seen as a unique new religion with a theology of its own. The Mormons, as Smith's followers would later be commonly called, see themselves as the new Israel, God's chosen people, who wandered through America until they came to the promised land, now known as Utah.

Smith said he had received a revelation, which would ultimately lead to the restoration of the true church and its priesthood, that had been lost. He believed this priesthood and authority had been lost for centuries, until he had his revelation during the 1820s near Palmyra, New York. Smith said, no other church on the face of the earth held equal authority and he became Mormonism's first modern-day prophet.

Within the composite belief system that Smith subsequently devised, humanity is described as essentially "gods in embryo." Smith believed that God himself had once been a human being and had become a God through a process. And that his followers could become gods too, if they would follow his new religion.

The supposed restoration of the lost priesthood and truth took place when Smith's divine revelation occurred. At that time Smith was a 14-year-old boy. Never-the-less he claimed that divine beings had told him not to join any existing church or religion, but instead to begin his own, which would become the one true and anointed church authorized by God.

A similar story is told by Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder and leader of the Unification Church. Cult leaders such as David Koresh, Shoko Asahara of Japan and Jim Jones of the Peoples Temple all seemed to feel that God had given them an exclusive mission and somehow exalted their group above all others.

In 1823, Smith said a heavenly being or angel named "Moroni," who he claimed was the son of Mormon, a man that died about 400 A.D., appeared to Smith. Maroni, told Smith that there hidden written records on "golden plates" of a lost people who once had a great civilization in America. These plates were conveniently burried just outside the town where Smith lived. But they were written in an unknown language Smith called "Reformed Egyptian." Maroni instructed Smith to use two special peep stones to look through, which would enable his to translate the plates. Smith said he uncovered the golden plates, translated them with these stones and the end result is now known as the "Book of Mormon." And Maroni is now commemorated as the golden figure perched atop Mormon Temples.

Smith was and is largely regarded as a con man and a fraud. His golden plates disappeared, transported to heaven, or so he said. The civilizations recorded within the Book of Mormon have never been substantiated by any historical evidence through either archaeology or corroborated by any credible scholar or historian. Instead, as originally perceived by Smith's contemporaries, they appear to be little more than a collection of fictional stories put together by Smith, based largely upon other writings and his own creative imagination.

Smith eventually became a virtual dictator of his own city called Nauvoo in Illinois, which was populated by his followers. He also led a large private army as its General. His rule was often tyrannical and he became a feared figure within Illinois. In 1844 after Smith destroyed a Nauvoo newspaper that dared to openly criticize him as he was jailed in Carthage. An angry mob broke into the jail and Smith was killed. At the time of his death, his ardent apostles were promoting him as a candidate for president of the United States.

The story of Smith's city and his "persecution" is very reminiscent of Jim Jones who founded Jonestown, and David Koresh of Waco Texas fame, but unlike these small groups that have been called "cults," Smith's small cult has evolved into a major delusional cult wearing special undies with members of the devine lunacy running for POTUS.

Was Joseph Smith mentally ill?

Here are some quotes from good old Joe himself:

Joseph Smith boasted that he did more than Jesus. "God is in the still small voice. In all these affidavits, indictments, it is all of the devil--all corruption. Come on! ye prosecutors! ye false swearers! All hell, boil over! Ye burning mountains, roll down your lava! for I will come out on the top at last. I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet . . . " (History of the Church, Vol. 6, p. 408-409).

Joseph Smith said our greatest responsibility is to seek after our dead. "The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead" (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, page 7).

Joseph Smith said that there are men living on the moon who dress like Quakers and live to be nearly 1000 years old. Since he was wrong about the moon, is it safe to trust him regarding the way to Heaven? (The Young Woman's Journal, Vol. 3, pages 263-264. See reprint in Mormonism -- Shadow or Reality? by Jerald and Sandra Tanner, page 4.)

Joseph Smith said the Book of Mormon was more correct than the Bible."I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." (History of the Church, Vol. 4, page 461)

Joseph Smith said mothers have babies in eternity and some are on thrones."A question may be asked, 'Will mothers have their children in eternity?' Yes! Yes! Mothers, you shall have your children." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, page 10). "Eternity is full of thrones, upon which dwell thousands of children reigning on thrones of glory, with not one cubit added to their stature." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, p. 10).

Joseph Smith said there are many Gods."Hence, the doctrine of a plurality of Gods is as prominent in the Bible as any other doctrine. It is all over the face of the Bible . . . Paul says there are Gods many and Lords many . . . but to us there is but one God--that is pertaining to us; and he is in all and through all" (History of the Church, Vol. 6, page 474). "In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, p. 5).

Here are some questions. If Mormons say they are Christians, how come they follow more than one God? (In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it." Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, p. 5.)

Smith thought he did more than Jesus. Sounds like a mental health issue, possible narcissism, borderline psychopath? How about pathological liar? So let's see, if he was mentally ill, how did he manage to get so many people to follow him?

Mental illness or con artist, you choose, but the point of the day is…do we really want a guy whom adheres to and follows this crap to be the leader of the most powerful country in the land? Absolutely and unequivocally; HELL NO!


NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

How Dumb Is Congress You Ask?

The Sunlight Foundation just released the results of a study measuring the scholastic grade level of speeches made by members of Congress. The scale uses the Flesch-Kincaid test and is based on the length of words and sentences used. Among its findings are, “Congress now speaks at almost a full grade level lower than it did just seven years ago, with the most conservative members of Congress speaking on average at the lowest grade level.” The study further found that it is the “most extreme members” who speak at the lowest grade levels, as well as the most junior.

As you may remember, a major turning point in American politics was the 2010 election that saw a wave of new Tea Party Teapublicans elected to Congress. Of the 20 lowest scoring members, 17 were Teapublicans, and 12 of those are in their first term of office. You have to go down to 15th place before you find a Democrat.

There are varying perspectives from which to interpret this study. On the surface it could be viewed as evidence that the intellectual capacity of the Congress is declining, thanks to the new Tea Party members who speak in short bursts of small words. That would be consistent with their shallow grasp of most issues and their tendency to reduce every discussion to a battle between liberty and socialism (drilling everywhere = liberty; clean air = socialism).

On the other hand, it could be said that concise expression makes communication more effective and accessible. So the fact that members of Congress are speaking at lower grade levels may be an indication of either creeping ignorance or enhanced manipulation. If this language analysis isn't the perfect measure of intelligence or effectiveness in government, let's take a look at some of the things the 10 lowest scoring members in the study have actually said and done, and judge them on that.

1. Mick Mulvaney, R-SC: Mulvaney is the co-author of the Cut, Cap and Balance bill that has been at the center of the debate on raising the debt ceiling. The bill would impose stiff reductions, mostly to programs that fund economic growth and aid to the poor. It would also cap spending for entitlement programs and call for a constitutional amendment to balance the budget. Mulvaney is one of those extremists who would rather see the U.S. default on its debts and suffer a credit rating downgrade than reform the tax code to be more equitable and stop favoring the wealthy.

2. Rob Woodall, R-GA: Woodall once advised a constituent on Medicare that she should reject the government-provided plan and secure her health insurance on the private market. However, when asked why he refused to reject the health plan provided to him by Congress he said simply, “Because it’s free.” Then, to cement the impression that he is focused solely on his own welfare and special privileges for congressmen, he was one of only two votes against the STOCK Act that prohibited members of Congress from engaging in insider trading.

3. Rand Paul, R-KY: The son of cranky Libertarian Ron Paul, Rand is such a strong advocate of the free market that he opposes the parts of the Civil Rights Act that prohibit businesses from engaging in discrimination. He believes so firmly in personal responsibility that he wanted to let BP off the hook after its oil rig exploded, killing 11 workers and flooding the Gulf with toxins. He called criticism of BP “really un-American.” More recently, he said of Obama’s support for same-sex marriage, “Call me cynical, but I didn’t think his views on marriage could get any gayer.”

4. Sean Duffy, R-WI: At a town hall meeting in Wisconsin, Duffy was asked whether he’d vote to cut his $174,000 congressional salary. He proceeded to whine about how $174,000 really isn’t that much: “I guarantee that I have more debt than all of you. With six kids, I still pay off my student loans. I still pay my mortgage.” Sounds like he could benefit from Obama’s proposals to reform mortgage and student loan debt.

5. Tim Griffin, R-AR: A few years ago there was a scandal in Bush’s Justice Department when it was revealed that they fired several U.S. Attorneys for political reasons. Then, to make matters worse, they filled the vacancies with cronies and partisan patrons. One of those terminated was the U.S. Attorney in Arkansas. His hand-picked replacement was a Karl Rove protege named Tim Griffin.

6. Todd Akin, R-MO: Last year Akin appeared on the radio program of Family Research Council President Tony Perkins. That would ordinarily be enough to dismiss him as a fringe-dweller, but Akin took the opportunity to broadcast his opinion that, “The heart of liberalism really is a hatred for God and a belief that government should replace God.” Akin was also the sponsor of a bill to prohibit courts from hearing legal challenges to the Pledge of Allegiance – an ironic attempt to unconstitutionally elevate Congress over the judiciary in order to suppress “liberty and justice for all.”

7. Vicky Hartzler, R-MO: Like many Tea Party Teapublicans, Hartzler has expressed doubts about Obama’s citizenship. When questioned about the birth certificate the president released she said, “You know, I have a lot of doubts about all that. But I don’t know, I haven’t seen it.” She also opposes same-sex marriage with the old slippery slope argument that associates it with polygamy and pedophilia. She asks, “Why not allow one man and two women or three women to marry? [...] Why not allow a 50-year-old man to marry a 12-year-old girl if they love each other and they are committed?”

8. Tom Graves, R-GA: Graves’ obsession with limiting government is so severe that he voted against bills that would provide organizations that work with children easier access to a federal database so they could screen job applicants for criminal records. But then his grasp of legislation is somewhat faulty. With regard to funding for oil subsidies, he declared them to be a “manipulation of the marketplace” shortly after voting twice to extend them.

9. David Schweikert, R-AZ: Perhaps the poster child for this list is Rep. Schweikert, who was asked a question about the health insurance mandate provision in the Affordable Care Act, and whether he thought it was fair that prior to the ACA someone could incur medical expenses but not pay for them, raising the cost of health care for everyone else. He responded, “You have the right as an American to be dumb.” And he is fully exercising his rights.

10. Ron Johnson, R-WI: Johnson has been a harsh critic of the government stimulus bills. But somehow that didn’t stop him from seeking stimulus funds for renovations to the Grand Opera House when he was president of the venue’s board. His explanation when asked to justify the apparent hypocrisy was that “he may have asked a question or two, but that doesn’t mean he supports the stimulus effort or even wanted the money.” Of course not. He was just curious to see if they would hand over the cash, which he would have promptly returned.


The question of whether or not a low score is indicative of low intelligence is still open. Republican pollster and word doctor Frank Luntz spins the results by contending, “It’s not an issue of dumbing it down; it’s an issue of cleaning it up.” But that interpretation only seems to be applicable for Teapublicans who score poorly. It's also pure Luntzian meme surgery from the man who calls clear-cutting, "healthy forests."

These 10 members of Congress, who grace the bottom of the list, were rated as speaking at seventh- to eighth-grade levels (scoring between 7.95 and 8.62). Eight of them are first-term Tea Partiers. Is it a coincidence that their work in office reflects the arrogance, selfishness and resistance to compromise

Lessons learned, do not vote tea bagger!


NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

MEMORIAL DAY 2012

Fallen Soldiers In Afghanistan

Twenty-four notes. It's a simple melody, 150 years old, that can express our gratitude when words fail. Taps honors the men and women who have laid down their lives and paid the ultimate sacrifice for the cause of freedom.

TAPS





NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Educating Mittens

NFTOS
STAFF

BIRTHER'S AND WIFER'S

Bill Maher had some fun tearing into birthers on his show tonight by turning the tables and ginning up irresponsible, rampant speculation about Mitt Romney‘s marital history. Sure, Romney says that he’s a monogamist, but Maher provided “proof” that the Republican candidate has not been so quick to abandon his Mormon roots and has secretly taken on multiple wives. Maher thereby officially launched the “wifer” movement.

Maher brought out the bit for some light comedy in the middle of the show, and used it to make a point about the media coverage of birthers. Maher played the innocent journalist who professed not to be a “wifer,” just someone asking the tough questions about Romney’s background. He said that Romney may or may not have multiple wives, but he clearly has “the blood of a nomadic polygamist tribesman and I think that has shaped his worldview.”

He then revealed Romney’s marriage license, which he necessarily had to point out was only the “short-form license.” Why, for example, is the singular word “SPOUSE” typed above his wife’s name instead of “ONLY SPOUSE?” Maher ran down a whole list of conspiracies saying that the “wifer” speculation may be right after all, but all he’s doing is just asking questions.







NFTOS
STAFF

Stay At Home Mom’s, Listen Up

Stay-at-home moms should be considered working moms, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) argued on Tuesday — just so long as they’re not poor.

West discussed the issue on Tuesday following a town hall meeting. West argued that women who stay in the home to raise kids should be considered working mothers. But when asked whether mothers who are on welfare should be allowed to stay home and raise their children, West’s position was remarkably different. Instead of advocating for the work that poor mothers do at home raising kids, West decried the “growth of the entitlement or the nanny state.”

To West, the problem isn’t welfare-to-work, which requires mothers on welfare to work outside the home; it’s “people depending on the federal government”. Listen to West below.





Staying at home and raising kids is absolutely work, as any parent will attest. The problem is that conservatives like West will only defend the work of stay-at-home moms when they live in financially secure homes, while backing welfare reforms that prevent lower income mothers from doing the same.



NFTOS
STAFF

SPONSOR A UTERUS

I love these videos that depict a really FUBAR ideology and party, that being the tea bagger society, better know as the new GOP.




NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

To Prove A Point

This should emlighten the Tea Baggers

A Woman Is Kicked Off Flight For Wearing A Pro-Choice T-Shirt

A woman was not allowed to board her connecting flight Tuesday because she was wearing a pro-choice shirt that was too offensive, according to American Airlines.

The woman emailed Jodi Jacobson, editor-in-chief of RH Reality Check, recounting the experience:

Right before we were set to land the flight attendant from first class approaches me and asks if I had a connecting flight? We were running a bit behind schedule, so I figured I was being asked this to be sure I would make my connecting flight. She then proceeded to tell me that I needed to speak with the captain before disembarking the plane and that the shirt I was wearing was offensive.

The shirt was gray with the wording, “If I wanted the government in my womb, I’d fuck a senator.”

I must also mention that when I boarded the plane, I was one of the first groups to board (did not pass by many folks). I was wearing my shawl just loosely around my neck and upon sitting down in my seat the lady next to me, who was already seated, praised me for wearing the shirt.

The shirt’s words are actually lifted from a sign used by Oklahoma state Sen. Judy McIntyre (D) at a pro-choice rally. McIntyre told critics who found her sign offensive that “I would hope they would have that same passion about how offensive it is for the Republican Party of Oklahoma to ramrod, because they have the votes to do so, bills that are offensive to women and take away the rights of women.”

American Airlines has an exceptionally strict dress policy, according to CNN. It says that “it can refuse to transport you, or may remove you from your flight for reasons including ‘being clothed in a manner that would cause discomfort or offense to other passengers.’”

Hopefully this gal got the attention of the tea baggers, but something tells me, and recent polls show - Faux News and teapublicans are an ignorant lot.



NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Yet Another Poll Showing Faux News Viewers “Less Informed”

Faux News Full of More Shit Than a Christmas Turkey

We have lost count of how many of these studies have been done at this point, but I guess it's time to add another one to the pile. Watching Faux News makes you less informed about events than not watching any news at all.

According to a new study by Farleigh Dickinson University, Faux viewers are the least knowledgeable audience of any outlet, and they know even less about politics and current events than people who watch no news at all.

Respondents to the survey were able to answer correctly an average of 1.8 of 4 questions about international news and 1.6 out of 5 questions about domestic affairs. “Based on these results, people who don’t watch any news at all are expected to answer correctly on average 1.22 of the questions about domestic politics, just by guessing or relying on existing basic knowledge,” said Dan Cassino, the poll’s analyst.

“The study concludes that media sources have a significant impact on the number of questions that people were able to answer correctly,” wrote Cassino and his colleagues. “The largest effect is that of Faux News: all else being equal, someone who watched only Faux News would be expected to answer just 1.04 domestic questions correctly—a figure which is significantly worse than if they had reported watching no media at all. On the other hand, if they listened only to NPR, they would be expected to answer 1.51 questions correctly.”

Now, let's just reflect on this. Let's say you decided to make a little fort out of your couch cushions, crawl inside, and just stay there. No television, no newspapers, no contact with the outside world whatsoever. Let's say you only ventured out to hunt your own food in the backyard, so that your meals consisted mainly of crabgrass and possums. Let's say that, for companionship, you made a little stick figure out of paper clips, named him, oh, I don't know, let's say "Skippy," and devoted yourself to long, meandering conversations with him about nothing in particular. Then you got mad at him and broke his little paper clip leg, panicked and buried him in the yard………You'd still know more about the world than if you watched Faux News.

On Monday, Faux News CEO Roger Ailes was giving one of his patented "I iz so smart, Faux iz so great" college lectures. This one was filled with gems like "one thing that qualifies me to run a journalism organization is the fact that I don’t have a journalism degree" and that reporters for the New York Times were "a bunch of lying scum." Oh, and that everybody in the media is just outrageously liberal, everywhere, all the time.

You would think that having studies show that your "news network" actively causes viewers to know less about the news than when they started would put a bit of a damper on your ol' public displays of self-aggrandizement. Then again, if you're the head of Faux News, you probably just say those studies are figments of the imagination, or were commissioned by dirty rotten hippies, and get on with your day. Or maybe you just have Steve Doocy say that stuff, because you can't be bothered and because Steve Doocy will freaking say anything you put in front of him.

So given that public shaming is right out—I'm sure Roger would be first to tell you that the purpose of the news is not to inform people, after all—what's left? Maybe a truth in advertising law, so that if your viewers score abominably in tests of basic world events, you're no longer allowed to call yourself "news" anymore? Federal marshals come to paint over the "News" part of all your signs?

At the least, we might politely assert here that if your "news" programs result in people not knowing the news, or believing false things about the news, it's not "news" anymore. It's propaganda. You can puff out your chest and talk about your patriotism and great business sense all you want, but the rest of us don't have to actually respect you for it. You're still just a huckster in a nice suit.



NFTOS
Staff Writer
Steve "Damn Nazi Liberal" Chevapravatdumrong

DID YOU KNOW

NFTOS
STAFF

Are You A Conservative?

You Might Be A Conservative If — 2012 Edition


1: You think that if the government is forced into another shutdown scenario this summer — again — it’ll be the fault of the president — again — and not due to John Boehner and Eric Cantor playing the same game they played last year which resulted in the nation’s credit rating being reduced. And you believe this, in spite of the evidence, because Sean Hannity said so last week — again.

2: You believe President Obama’s support for gay marriage will weaken the sanctity of your own marriage. And the two babes you’re banging on the side down at Bubba’s Busty Bistro both agree with you.

3: In the Trayvon Martin-George Zimmerman case, you immediately took the side of Zimmerman, because Martin was wearing a hoodie and had no business being out at night in a gated community. But you still insist your position has nothing to do with race.

4: You bristle whenever someone reminds you that today’s recession began during the George W Bush administration, and have even developed a talking point to combat it; “Bush is gone, It’s Obama’s presidency now!” Except of course, when president Obama killed Osama bin Laden, then suddenly Bush did it.

5: 2012 is already trending to be the warmest year in recorded meteorological history, followed by 2011, 2010, 2005, 1998, 2003, 2002, 2009, 2006, 2007, 2004, and 2001. But because 2008 didn’t make the grade, you’re quite certain climate change is bullshit.

6: You’re convinced that there’s massive voter fraud going on in the African/American community, because you saw 13 “New Black Panthers” looking mighty intimidating at a polling station on Fox News once. Even though, those 13 jokers make up the entirety of the New Black Panthers, and Fox News played that footage more times than they played the Rev. Wright tape. Oh, but don’t you assume from this that Fox is appealing to racist voters.

7: You take Mitt Romney at his word when he said “Of course I would have given the order [to go after bin Laden in Pakistan], even Jimmy Carter would have.” Even though Mitt Romney previously said “Osama bin Laden is not worth moving heaven and earth spending billions of dollars just trying to catch. I do not concur in the words of Barack Obama in a plan to enter an ally of ours.” But hey, this is all academic anyway, because everyone knows President Obama was only following Bush’s strategeiry.

8: You think the recall movement going on in Wisconsin is un-American, and Scott Walker is only doing what the voters of his state demand. And that recording of Walker taking a phone call from a bogus David Koch was overblown… He just thought it was a courtesy call to discuss their mutual love of cheese.

9: You think Romney will be a better president than Obama, because he’s made it crystal clear that he wants nothing to do with those creepy gays. Well, except for that one time, when he was running for governor of Massachusetts.

10: You believe the debt is at $15 trillion today, primarily due to Barack Obama’s failed policies, even though it was at $11 trillion when he was inaugurated, and the tax cuts and wars had yet to be factored in during the Bush years. You also believe George Bush’s role in doubling it was necessary, because he had to combat a Democratic-controlled Congress… the very Democrats that voted 126 to 81 against the Iraq War. And the two tax cuts became law by Bush using reconciliation, against the will of the majority. Together, these made up the bulk of Bush’s spending spree, because after all; “Deficits don’t matter.” ~ Dick Cheney

11: You tout the concept of “American Exceptionalism,” because America’s the bomb! We’ve done it all, we do it right every time (unless a Democrat’s in power) and those stupid European socialist twits would have been lost decades ago, if not for us. And anybody who says our claims of American Exceptionalism are really just arrogant boasts of “American Superiority,” is just jealous, because they know we’re the best. Booyah!

12: Even though Rush Limbaugh called a young birth control activist a slut and nobody within the GOP condemned him for it, the Komen Foundation was infiltrated by a mole whose intent was to defund Planned Parenthood, the governor of the state of Virginia proposed a bill that would have required a trans-vaginal probe against her will before being permitted to have an abortion, Planned Parenthood itself has been under attack by Boehner’s congress, and most Republicans voted against the Lilly Ledbetter Law, a bill guaranteeing equal pay for women — you still deny that there’s any sort of “War on Women,” because Gretchen Carlson said so on Fox & Friends. And she’s a woman, so case closed!

13: You think Mitt Romney would make a better president than Barack Obama, because he’s had hands-on experience in the business world. And who was the last president who ran on his record of business experience? George W. Bush. So there.

14: You think Barack Obama broke the law by backing the NATO mission to support the Libyan rebellion, which ultimately toppled a true supporter of international terrorism, but Bush’s invasion of Iraq … which wasn’t condoned by NATO or the United Nations, was just swell.

15: You believe teachers, firemen and cops are overpaid, and that’s a better place to make budget cuts than asking millionaires and billionaires to pay the same tax rate they did under Clinton… when times were good, and the budget was balanced.

16: You’re a big supporter of free speech, but nothing ruins your day more than when some immigrant says Sarah Palin was dumb. How dare they? If that’s what they think, then they should go back to Russia. Then Sarah can wave at them from her porch.

17: You think Citizens United was the best thing to happen to Democracy since Glenn Beck, because finally, those poor downtrodden corporatists will have a say in who represents their interests… just as poor Siemens, Mengele GmbH, IG Farben and Bayer were finally permitted to do what they do best, once freed of those pesky, restrictive regulations. Because nothing says “Freedom,” better than a government kept in check by industry!

18: You were shocked, SHOCKED when the Romney campaign suggested Barack Obama might try to use Romney’s Mormon faith as a wedge issue in the coming months, even though there are no such plans to do so. What sort of sick, anti-American commie party would ever use religion to divide America? After all, who’s ever done that?


Blog in its entirety brought to by Addingtinginfo.com



NFTOS
STAFF

Police Brutality Accepted By All White Jury

All white jury declares white policeman innocent despite video of him beating black teen.

Police officers were caught by a security camera apparently beating a black teen as he lay prone with his hands behind his head. Chad Holley, then fifteen, was running from police after committing burglary, but after falling over the hood of a police car remained on the ground and put his hands behind his head. The video shows Officer Andrew Blomberg reach Holley first, and he then appears to kick or stomp Holley on the head or neck. Blomberg then runs to pursue another suspect. Holley remains surrounded by at least five officers who appear to continue beating him.

Police officers were caught by a security camera apparently beating a black teen as he lay prone with his hands behind his head. Chad Holley, then fifteen, was running from police after committing burglary, but after falling over the hood of a police car remained on the ground and put his hands behind his head. The video shows Officer Andrew Blomberg reach Holley first, and he then appears to kick or stomp Holley on the head or neck. Blomberg then runs to pursue another suspect. Holley remains surrounded by at least five officers who appear to continue beating him.



Despite the video and expert testimony that “Blomberg’s actions were ‘objectively unreasonable’ and were ‘contrary to any legitimate police action,’” an all-white, six member jury acquitted Blomberg on Wednesday. Blomberg was the first of four officers who were fired by the Houston police department over the incident to face trial trial for official oppression, which carries a penalty of up to one year in jail. Blomberg claimed to being using his foot to “sweep” not stomp Holley after Holley failed to put his hands behind his back. Jurors in the case told Blomberg’s attorney, Dick DeGuerin, that prosecutors had failed to prove that Blomberg had acted unreasonably.

The acquittal came after another white officer was accquitted of wrongdoing in the shooting of African-American Robert Tolan in the driveway of his home last year, and members of the local community are outraged at the outcome:

“The jury sent a message that the life of a black man don’t mean a damn thing in Houston,” African-American community activist Quanell X told the Los Angeles Times. “I believe the prosecutor never truly intended to convict this cop. I believe that allowing an all-white jury to be impaneled in this case was absolutely wrong and a miscarriage of justice.” 

“Black people must rise up and send a message to white people in this city and this town that our lives and the lives of our children do matter,” Quanell X told the Times. “We’re at a boiling point where America is headed toward some real civil conflict because of cases like Trayvon Martin and Robbie Tolan and Chad Holley. Black people are sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

The community responded to the outcome by holding a protest in downtown Houston on Thursday. The protest started with three dozen people but the crowd grew to about 300.

Both Houston Mayor Annise Parker and Harris County District Attorney agree with protesters that the verdict in the case was incorrect. Mayor Parker told a news conference that none of the officers who were fired over the incident will ever be Houston police officers again regardless of the outcome of their trials. State Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, also disagreed with the verdict and has called for a complete review of the Houston criminal justice system, stating that “[a]n officer of the law simply cannot be above the law.”

Three other officers await trial for their part in the incident. Drew Ryser is charged with official oppression and Phillip Bryan and Raad Hassan are both charged with official oppression and violating the civil rights of a prisoner.

Apparently these jacked up whack jobs cant simply do their job and arrest the guy - they have to become criminal thugs themselves.

Change the year of the cars and this could be part of a film from eastern Europe or Russia in the 1930s.


NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Liberty University.....Not A Real University

Scary how close we are to having a Pres. who would create a theocratic government. Totally ignoring reality, factual information, and history. Wake up America!





NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Surprise, George Zimmerman Touted As A Bully

Witness Says George Zimmerman Repeatedly Bullied Him At Work, Targeted Him With Racist Jokes

Among the evidence in the Trayvon Martin case released by the Florida state prosecutor yesterday was a 15-minute interview with a former work colleague of George Zimmerman. The man, who is not identified by name, says that Zimmerman relentlessly bullied him at work.

Zimmerman, according to the witness, targeted him because he was Middle Eastern. He repeatedly called the man a “fucking moron” and mocked him using the voice of “Achmed the terrorist.” Zimmerman’s stories about the man would involve “bombing,” “I’ll kill your family” and other “jokes” about “Middle Eastern stuff.” According to the man, this went on “for days and days.”




After a few months, Zimmerman was terminated. According to the witness, “he was fired for calling HR hotline so many times…he would complain about each and every manager and employee.”

Zimmerman is currently being investigated by the FBI, who reportedly may charge him with a hate crime.



NFTOS
STAFF

Opps, We Killed The Wrong Guy

Last year, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) admitted that he “never struggled . . . at all” with whether someone his state executed might have been innocent. Yet a new book written by Columbia Law Professor James Liebman shows that Carlos DeLuna, executed by Texas in 1989, was innocent. According to Liebman, DeLuna was wrongfully convicted and executed for the murder of Wanda Lopez following a botched investigation. DeLuna and the man believed to have committed the murder, Carlos Hernandez, looked so much alike that they were mistaken for each other in photographs by family members. However, DeLuna, who was clean-shaven and wearing a white shirt, did not fit the description of the eyewitness who said that the murderer was wearing flannel and had a mustache. Police arrested DeLuna anyway and failed to do a formal lineup. Police also failed to formally examine the crime scene, ignoring foot and fingerprints, not taking blood samples, and allowing the scene to be cleaned by gas station employees.

Not only did DeLuna maintain his innocence throughout the investigation and his subsequent incarceration, he told investigators that he knew Hernandez had committed the crime. DeLuna was ignored, and during his trial prosecutors ridiculed his claim:

They told the jury that police had looked for a “Carlos Hernandez” after his name had been passed to them by DeLuna’s lawyers, without success. They had concluded that Hernandez was a fabrication, a “phantom” who simply did not exist. The chief prosecutor said in summing up that Hernandez was a “figment of DeLuna’s imagination”

By the end of a single day the investigator had uncovered evidence that had eluded scores of Texan police officers, prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges over the six years between DeLuna’s arrest and execution. Carlos Hernandez did indeed exist.

Hernandez had a criminal background that included several violent assaults. He eventually died in prison after attacking his girlfriend with a knife.

DeLuna is not the only man to be wrongfully convicted and executed by the state of Texas. There is persuasive evidence that Cameron Todd Willingham, convicted in the death of his three daughters and executed in 2004, was innocent and DNA tests have undermined the evidence used to convict and execute Claude Jones. Texas continues to lead the nation in executions, accounting for over one-third of US executions since 1976, despite the fact that there were 41 DNA exonerations there from 2002-2011.

Moreover, DeLuna’s case highlights the difficulties inherent in the permanence of the death penalty — despite conservative efforts to dismiss these difficulties. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said in 2005 that there was not “a single case—not one—in which it is clear that a person was executed for a crime he did not commit.” It’s now hard to doubt that’s not true.

Once again, a compelling argument against the death penalty. Texas murders over a dozen inmates each year and many of them had incompetent lawyers or overzealous prosecutors. Additionally, the death penalty costs around $137 million a year whereas keeping the same prisoners in prison for life would cost around $11.5 million.(California statistics).

Most importantly, the death penalty is not an effective deterrent. If it was states with capital punishment would have lower crime rates than those without. The facts are reversed, 10 of the 12 states without capital punishment have homicide rates below the national average according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Lastly it is morally wrong to compound one crime with another!



NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Voter Fraud James O'Keefe Style

James O'Keefe is still at it, repeating the shenanigans that got him a grand jury investigation in New Hampshire, this time in North Carolina. In New Hampshire, the little asshole caused terrible grief for a recent widow. In North Carolina, he's besmirching a citizen
James O'Keefe is still at it, repeating the shenanigans that got him a grand jury investigation in New Hampshire, this time in North Carolina. In New Hampshire, the little asshole caused terrible grief for a recent widow. In North Carolina, he's besmirching a citizen.





In his latest video he highlights a supposed non-citizen who has voted in recent elections, Zbigniew Gorzkowski. In fact, that's the only non-citizen O'Keefe purports to have proved voted fraudulently in his North Carolina stunt. But Think Progress did the research, proving once again O'Keefe is a liar.

In fact, if O’Keefe had done a simple Nexis search for “Zbigniew Gorzkowski”, he would have found a single article from the News & Observer in 2008 noting that Gorzkowski and his wife are naturalized citizens:

Customers flock through the red door of Zbigniew “Ziggy” and wife Halina Gorzkowski’s European grocery and flower shop to buy one of the 12 varieties they sell. The pierogis and 400 eastern European food items and flowers are also punching the naturalized citizen couple’s ticket for their version of the American Dream.

ThinkProgress spoke with Gorzkowski this morning. He verified that this information was indeed correct and he had been an American citizen since the late 1980s. Therefore, his votes in the 2008 and 2010 elections were not only perfectly legal, but encouraged as a civic duty.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

What a "journalist" James O'Keefe is. He has, however, once again proven that the only real voter fraud that irregularly occurs in the country is when he's doing it. Once a douche bag, always a douche bag.



NFTOS
Staff Writer
Steve "Damn Nazi Liberal" Chevapravatdumrong

Police Say It’s Ok To Kick A Pregnant Woman In The Stomach

A police officer in Georgia is under criminal investigation for allegedly kicking a woman who was nearly nine-months pregnant in the stomach before charging her with obstruction of justice.

In an incident report filed on Dec. 12, 2011, Dekalb County Police Officer Jerad Wheeler wrote that he gave "three verbal commands to 'Get back'" to Raven Dozier. The woman was in her third trimester at the time and visibly distraught over witnessing Wheeler taser her brother, Darius Usher, in response to a domestic disturbance.

Wheeler wrote that Dozier began "moving aggressively," prompting the officer to "kick her in the stomach to push her back," just as he was "taught to do in the Academy," according to the report.

Approximately six months later -- following an overlooked internal affairs complaint and a premature birth by C-section -- Dozier is suing the county as the district attorney investigates Wheeler's actions.

"This officer is just another loose cannon," Dozier's attorney, Mark Bullman, told The Huffington Post. "And I don't know how a 180-pound pregnant woman comes at you aggressively."

Bullman says that Wheeler, at the advice of his supervisor, arrested Dozier because he would "need to be justified" for kicking a pregnant woman if "something were to happen to the baby."

Police charged Dozier with obstruction and disorderly conduct, a "higher charge than the guy they tased," Bullman said.

"At the time of the altercation it was very dark and Ms. Dozier had a larger shirt on," Wheeler wrote in his report. "I could not tell by the sight of her at the time that she was pregnant."

Wheeler placed Dozier in the back seat of his vehicle and brought her to the police station. Authorities gave her a choice.

"They asked me did I want to go to jail or to the hospital," Dozier later wrote in a complaint filed with the Dakalb County Police. "I said I wanted to go to the hospital."

Doctors could already see contusions and spotting, according to Bullman. The attorney says that the infant became ill within the womb as a result of defecation from the impact.

Following the hospital visit, police returned Dozier to the station "where she was refused by intake," according to the police report. Authorities gave Dozier a court date and released her.

Records show that Dozier filed a complaint with the DeKalb police department's internal affairs unit, but authorities never investigated the incident. Instead, four supervisors and an internal affairs detective approved the actions, stating that the use of force met policy,
 WSBTV reported.

The Dekalb District Attorney's Office has since dropped the charges against Dozier, who is now suing a county where her attorney says police officers are "off the chain."

On Thursday, three other Dekalb county cops were charged with beating teenage suspects, some of whom were in handcuffs at the time,
the
Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Wheeler is also the focus of two other questionable incidents in which he is accused of killing an innocent family's leashed dog and forcing a 53-year-old woman's face onto a police vehicle.

Two weeks after being kicked in the stomach, Dozier prematurely delivered her child by C-section. Her son, Levi, is doing well.
Read the incident report filed from the scene:


"What kind of a human being kicks a pregnant woman? I mean, forget whether or not it is a police officer that is supposedly protecting people," Dozier's attorney Mark Bullman said. Dozier filed a complaint with the DeKalb police department's internal affairs unit, but it was never investigated. Instead, four supervisors and an internal affairs detective signed off that Wheeler's use of force met policy. ... Fleischer filed an open records request and found two more use-of-force complaints against Wheeler within the last nine months. In all three cases, the victims were not the focus of the original police incident.

We are sure she had it coming to her, as it will become clear once people dig into her Facebook page and uncover pictures of her in a hoodie. (Sarcastic)

NFTOS
STAFF

Teapublicans, Social Security And Ronald Reagan

"Ponzi scheme!", "bankrupt", "liberal conspiracy". These are terms you often hear from the teapublication party and radical conservatives when describing the Social Security program. The issue with those terms is that they're all false. Whether it's your conservative uncle around the dinner table, conservative mouth pieces like Rush Limbaugh or the Tea Party members of congress, these flat-out lies are being told across the country.

Social Security is important in people's lives, especially retirees who rely on these benefits. Social Security is not part of the budget and doesn't contribute one nickel to the national debt. Social Security is part of a payroll tax, which is 100% solvent until the year 2038, and can pay out over 80% of the benefits until 2085. Social Security, from its creation under one of our countries greatest presidents Franklin Delano Roosevelt, has been one of the most successful programs the government has ever provided its people.

While Social Security is solvent for the short-term, there are long-term issues with the program that stem from situations that occurred over thirty years ago. In the 1980s, Republican President Ronald Reagan cut tax rates drastically. In 1980 the top tax rate was 70%, which was cut to 50% by 1984 and finally down to 28% by the time Reagan left office in 1988. Supply side economics, or "Reaganomics", was the economic system that Reagan used and was the idea that giving wealthy Americans more money would create jobs which would then "trickle down" to other Americans.

The supply side theory didn't exactly work as planned and Reagan needed a way to make up for the loss in revenue. Reagan ended up tripling the debt while congress raised the debt limit 18 times during his presidency without hesitation. With the lack of revenue coming into the government, Reagan needed a way to keep his fiscal house in order. In addition to raising the debt limit, Reagan also raised taxes multiple times and he did it on the middle class by attacking Social Security.

In 1987, Ronald Reagan appointed veteran business man Alan Greenspan to become Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Before he stepped into his new job, Greenspan already had a big impact on American economics. Under the advice of Greenspan, Reagan took money from the Social Security trust fund to help pay down the debt. The payroll tax was raised in 1983, and the government spent the surplus of Social Security each year to help pay down the giant debt that Reagan created by giving the wealthiest Americans more money each year with the promise of "job creation" for the middle class.

When teapublicans scream about "big government spending" today, they fail to mention that their party was a major reason behind our debt getting out of control. When it comes to Social Security, we need to eliminate the "cap" that is on the program. The cap currently is at $106,800. Anyone who makes more than $106,800 doesn't get taxed for Social Security on their additional income. A person making a million dollars is only paying into the Social Security system 10% of their income, compared to someone making $50,000 a year who is taxed for Social Security on 100% of their income. Shared sacrifice? Not so much.

The "golden child" of the teapublican party, Ronald Reagan, was the man who started the problems for Social Security and the teapublicans have been scaring the American people, especially the elderly, ever since. Social Security is solvent, but we wouldn't even be having the discussion about its future if it wasn't for Ronald Reagan.

 

NFTOS
STAFF

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

 My mom is no longer here, so I was thinking, what did mom teach me?

Below is a list of the things she has told me since I was a kid. I've never forgotten her words, and the values she instilled in me that helped in becoming the person I am today.

Sure, like most kids, I just kinda nodded my head and went, "Uh, huh...uh, huh," but over the years, I've found that these lessons she was trying to teach me had sunk in a lot more than I had thought. I'm always grateful for her parenting skills, which there weren't so many handbooks written on the subject then like there are today.

"Class isn't about champagne or what car you drive. Being a classy person is how you treat others."

"Other people's love are like ships that come and go, but love for yourself will always be the harbor that brings them in."

"Always work hard, but work smart, too."

"Don't compare yourself to others, and don't ever let anyone define who you are."

"Always be prepared for the worst so you can live your life for the best."

"Sometimes saying nothing is better than saying something just for 'something's sake'."

"Always do what you think is right. It's you who has to look at himself in the mirror everyday."

"It's the things we don't do that we end up regretting most."

"Be happy. Nobody's gonna do it for you."

Thanks, mom!



NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

Trayvon Martin Symbol Becomes Gun Range Targets

In yet another disgusting turn of events in the Trayvon Martin case, and just when you think humans can't be more callous:

A person selling gun range targets modeled after slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin says that their “main motivation was to make money off the controversy.”

WKMG’s Mike DeForest reported on Friday that the unidentified seller told him that the targets “sold out in 2 days.”

“The response is overwhelming,” the seller said.

While the item appears to have been removed from GunBroker.com, a cached version of the page was still available at the time of publication.

Photos of the item, which was titled “10 Pack Trayvon Martin Targets,” showed crosshairs over a hoodie similar to the one Trayvon Martin was wearing when he was shot by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman in February. The figure has a bag of Skittle in his pocket and is holding what appears to be a can of iced tea, similar to what Martin had purchased before being gunned down. The pack of 10 targets was being sold for $8.




NFTOS
STAFF

DIMWITTED DAMSEL

DIMWITTED DAMSEL DANA LOESCH

When the douche bag named Dana Loesch feels left out of the limelight, she often reverts to the fringe of the radical tea bagger society. This wannabe Ann Coultergeist - with a dash of Queen Snowbilly Sarah Palin, has a disgusting pattern of mean and hate well embedded within her. The very gal whom often complains of death threats herself, backs an asshat whom threatens the life of a Democratic Senator. Make no bones about it; Dana Loesch is the epitome of Aleistar Crowley, only this dimwitted damsel is in the female form. This college dropout, once Democrat, has more off the chart rhetoric than Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Rush Limbaugh combined.

Ever since Jared Loughner went all John Hinckley Jr. and brazenly fired shots at Arizona Democratic Congresswoman Gabby Gifford, putting her in a coma and killing six innocent bystanders, publically remarking that you want to kill a member of Congress, no matter how inadvertently hilarious the analogy, is really, really not cool.

Reference of course to Scott Boston, the deranged tea bagger who called for the killing of Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill at a TPE event at which McCaskill’s Republican challenger, Sarah Steelman (R), was in attendance.

Not surprisingly, Brietbart spawn and morphed pretend journalist, Dana Loesch of CNN, whose only credentials appear to be having an active Twitter account, defended Boston’s remarks. After all, it’s the Christian God-given constitutional right of every freedumb-fighting patriot to freely threaten the life of a sitting politician with whom you disagree with, and ”don’t tread on me” if you think different. But what this Aleistar Crowley apprentice neglected to mention in her diatribe of Scott Boston was that she co-founded a conservative activist group with questionable objectives with him.

During Loesch’s cacophonous incoherent defense of Boston in one of her articles for Big Government, Loesch reported that the FBI questioned Boston about his remarks at his home in St. Louis. But conspicuously absent from her perambulate entry was that Loesch and Boston helped to found the Gateway Grassroots Initiative, which is dedicated to, “advancing conservatism at the national, state, and local levels,” according to Media Matters. Also, it seems that Boston co-authored a post promoting the Gateway Grassroots Initiative at Breitbart.com. One peripheral glance at the group and its so-called, “advancement of conservative principles” - what you see is yet another radical group of angry white men who take their cues from William J Simmons [kkk founder] and Moammar Gadhafi warlords.

Sending Dana Loesch packing is the right thing to do. CNN’s ROI [return on investment] from Loesch has to be nil to none. While her enthusiastic spirit to rule the world “pinky and the brain” style was entertaining 10 years ago, Ms. Loesch is a worn out old sea hag whom needs to be retired to the pastures.

NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

And Just When You Think You’ve Heard It All

Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson

Allowing women to vote ‘One Of The Greatest Mistakes That America Made’

The Raw Story uncovered a sermon that Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson gave in March in which he spends 10 minutes lecturing his audience about how women have destroyed America. Lee is a radical pastor who says that allowing women to vote was “one of the greatest mistakes that America made.”

“Look at every place where a women is in control,” said Peterson. “You see nothing but confusion. There’s no good in it at all, none.”

Peterson’s sermon began with comments about Sandra Fluke, doubling down on Rush Limbaugh’s slut remarks. But halfway through his speech, he kicked the hate into another gear:

PETERSON: “I think that one of the greatest mistakes that America made was to allow women the opportunity to vote. We should have never turned that over to women.”

“It was a big mistake…these women are voting in the wrong people. They’re voting in people who are evil, who agree with them…Men in the good old days understood the nature of the women, they were not afraid to deal with them.”

“Wherever women are taking over, evil reigns.”

Amazingly, just last week, Sean Hannity, who sits on the board of Peterson’s group BOND: Brotherhood Organization for a New Destiny, invited him to sit on his Great American Panel once again to discuss the president’s comments on the one-year anniversary of the death of Osama bin Laden.

But the conversation never quite made it that far. Fellow panelist Kirsten Powers, a Fox News columnist and political analyst, abandoned the segment to hit back against Peterson and his anti-women views, over the objections of Hannity who wanted to spend his time attacking President Obama.

For two minutes, Powers and Peterson exchanged barbs while Hannity and the third panelist, Indiana state Treasurer Richard Mourdock (R), sat quietly on the sidelines. Powers told Hannity that she had no idea Peterson would be a guest on the show alongside her, and invited him to repudiate Peterson’s remarks (he declined).

Peterson has made appearances on Fox News for years, fielding frequent invites from Hannity in particular despite Peterson’s history of hateful comments. And it’s not like Hannity had no warning. Peterson has previously said he “thank[s]God for slavery, because had it not, the blacks that are here would have been stuck in Africa.” He also called the victims of Hurricane Katrina “welfare-pampered,” “lazy,” and “immoral.”

And while Powers was rightfully outraged at Fox News’ decision to offer Lee a national platform, Hannity was unapologetic, quickly shutting down the spat and pivoting to his usual agenda of attacking the president.



NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

GEORGE W. BUSH THE SECOND?



The Dummest POTUS of Our Time

It is not unusual for people to emulate their heroes and attempt to equal or exceed their achievements that are successful. There are problems, though, when a politician strives to imitate a previous politician’s tactics and accomplishments especially if the politician’s agenda turned out to be disastrous. Willard Romney has demonstrated time and again that he intends to equal the accomplishments of George W. Bush in every area and particularly in giving incredibly large tax cuts to the wealthy at the expense of the economic health of the nation. However, as catastrophic to the economy and nation’s deficit as giving trillions away to the rich is, Americans should be mortified at Romney’s intent to repeat Bush’s war-mongering that will cost taxpayer dollars, military hardware, and countless lives.

This column has reported for months that Romney is anxious to start a war with Iran and that he persists demeaning the President’s Middle East policies and particularly that President Obama has abandoned Israel. Romney’s close ties to Benjamin Netanyahu are common knowledge, and his delusional belief that his Mormonism qualifies him as a latter-day Jew in latter-day American Israel, although not common knowledge, are driving him to believe Iran must be attacked to preserve Israel and by Romney’s twisted beliefs, America. However, his cult beliefs aside, he is emulating Bush’s “crusade” against Islam and based on his choice of foreign policy advisors, he informs his intention to initiate a “substantial war” with Iran if he wins the presidency. Although Romney avoided ever mentioning Bush throughout the Republican primary, he intends to return to Bush’s America as a unilateral interventionist state despite Americans’ weariness of over ten years of war.

Romney is a foreign policy dolt, and to make up for his lack of experience he assembled a foreign policy team that includes Bush neoconservative advisors that are war-hawks, to the right of Bush, and closely aligned with Israel’s right-wing war-mongers. Romney’s rhetoric during the primary insinuates he will use cowboy diplomacy as a first option, reset President Obama’s foreign policy by refusing to negotiate, return to Reagan-era antagonism towards Russia, and begin an economy-killing military buildup at home. The Washington Monthly called Romney’s proposed foreign policy vision the “more enemies, fewer friends doctrine” that portends a rapid return to the Islamic nation-destroying Bush doctrine President Obama inherited and corrected with diplomacy and measured use of force. A foreign policy expert at the Cato Institute, Christopher Preble, said a Romney presidency is “likely to be in the mold of George W. Bush when it comes to foreign policy if he were to be elected.”

What Americans should be most alarmed at is Romney’s foreign policy advisors that include eight neoconservatives from the Project for a new American Century (PNAC) who signed a letter urging both the Clinton and Bush administrations to attack Iraq, and John Bolton, the man who “never met a war he didn’t like” who told Israel before the Iraq invasion that Syria, Iran, and North Korea would be the next American targets. Bolton has pushed Israel to drag America into another costly war on Islam, and campaigns for Romney as a proponent of war with Iran. When he endorsed Romney, Bolton said “Mitt Romney will restore our military, repair relations with our closest allies and ensure that no adversary—including Iran—ever questions American resolve,” and Romney responded with “John’s wisdom, clarity and courage are qualities that should typify our foreign policy.” Bolton’s wisdom and courage are non-existent, but he does exhibit the clarity of a warmonger who will never be in harm’s way except when facing questions on why he and his cohorts pushed for a war with Iraq when there was no evidence to remotely suggest Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, a nuclear program, or assisted Al Qaeda in the terror attacks of 9/11. Another Romney advisor and a founder of PNAC, Eliot Cohen, labeled the war on terror “World War IV” and contended after 9/11 that Iraq was an “obvious candidate, having not only helped Al Qaeda, but…developed weapons of mass destruction,” and in 2009 urged President Obama to “actively seek the overthrow of Iran’s government.”

Willard Romney has spent a major portion of his campaign reiterating a PNAC white paper’s contention he first revealed in a speech at the Citadel that President Obama believes “there is nothing unique about the United States” and “issued apologies for America” and other hawkish and prohibitively costly proposals such as increasing the number of Navy warships, placing a defensive missile shield over Europe, stationing two aircraft carriers off the coast of Iran, and increasing the size of the military by 100,000 troops. A senior fellow at the New America Foundation said that Romney’s Citadel speech was “was one of the most inchoate, disorganized, cliché-filled foreign policy speeches that any serious candidate has ever given” demonstrating Romney is following his neocon war council’s recommendations that are Bush’s cowboy diplomacy to the extreme.

Of the 40 members of Romney’s foreign policy team, 70% were instrumental in pushing America into the Iraq war and Cato Institute expert Preble said “I can’t name a single Romney foreign policy adviser who believes the Iraq War was a mistake” despite the mountain of evidence it was a calculated disaster; over two-thirds of Americans believe that invading Iraq was a mistake. Like most of Romney’s foreign policy positions, he chooses to align himself with neoconservative warmongers and Americans who believe so strongly in their distorted vision of American exceptionalism that they share his belief that the United States has divine right to impose its will, death and destruction, and pro-Israel stance on every country in the world including Russia, but particularly Islamic nations. In fact, in an opinion piece in the Washington Post in March, Romney wrote regarding war with Iran that, “Either the ayatollahs will get the message, or they will learn some very painful lessons about the meaning of American resolve.” So, if Willard wants a war with Iran and will increase the size of the military by 100,000 troops, he can prove his resolve by sending his 5 sons as the front line of an invasion force and if he is ill-prepared to do that, he is just another chicken hawk and a coward draft dodger like one of his warmonger heroes Dick Cheney.

America cannot return to George W. Bush’s cowboy diplomacy of bomb first and never negotiate any more than Romney’s version of Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy. Another war and increasing the military budget will decimate the economy to prove that America is exceptional if one believes Romney and his warmonger foreign policy team. He plans to spend at least 4% of GDP on defense that is a 38% increase over President Obama’s budget, and according to Merrill Goozner of the Fiscal Times, “Romney’s proposal to embark on a second straight decade of escalating military spending would be the first time in American history that war preparation and defense spending had increased as a share of overall economic activity for such an extended period,” wrote Merrill Goozner in the Fiscal Times. “When coupled with the 20 percent cut in taxes he promises, it would require shrinking domestic spending to levels not seen since the Great Depression—before programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid began. Such cuts, would likely throw the U.S. economy back into deep recession.” Even Grover Norquist and the Cato Institute urged Congress to make serious Pentagon cuts and it led to a manic pushback from the Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute who echo Romney’s belief that drastically increasing defense spending is necessary to keep American exceptional.

It is exceptional lunacy to return to Bush-era warmongering as much as exceeding his tax cuts for the wealthy that together portend a devastating blow to the economy and fragile recovery President Obama has lead with spending on Americans instead of another war. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a candidate emulating a previous politician’s agenda and policies, but Romney’s choice of George W. Bush is remarkable; no, stunning that he would choose the worst president in America’s history who presided over two unnecessary and unfunded wars, unfunded tax cuts for the wealthy, and destroyed America’s reputation around the world. However, that is the path Willard envisions for America and not only is he a chicken hawk coward; he will be the undoing of the economy and any goodwill President Obama has fostered from America’s friends and enemies alike. If Romney were not a coward, he would campaign as Bush incarnate and promise voters to exceed Bush’s malfeasance and record of unprovoked war and economic destruction that he promises to repeat if he wins the White House.




NFTOS
Staff Writer
Steve "Damn Nazi Liberal" Chevapravatdumrong