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BAGHDAD (Reuters) - More than a dozen car bombs and suicide blasts tore through Shi'ite Muslim districts in the Iraqi capital Baghdad and other areas on Tuesday, killing nearly 60 people on the 10th anniversary... 
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[Curator's note: This is an old piece, but many may not remember it. On the heals of CPAC, it seemed appropriate to revisit the ways in which the Tea Party extremists are warping history's most important messages.]
It should come as no surprise that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Republican. In that era, almost all black Americans were Republicans. Why? From its founding in 1854 as the anti-slavery party until today, the Republican Party has championed freedom and civil rights for blacks. And as one pundit so succinctly stated, the Democrat Party is as it always has been, the party of the four S’s: slavery, secession, segregation and now socialism.
It was the Democrats who fought to keep blacks in slavery and passed the discriminatory Black Codes and Jim Crow laws. The Democrats started the Ku Klux Klan to lynch and terrorize blacks. The Democrats fought to prevent the passage of every civil rights law beginning with the civil rights laws of the 1860s, and continuing with the civil rights laws of the 1950s and 1960s.
During the civil rights era of the 1960s, Dr. King was fighting the Democrats who stood in the school house doors, turned skin-burning fire hoses on blacks and let loose vicious dogs. It was Republican President Dwight Eisenhower who pushed to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and sent troops to Arkansas to desegregate schools. President Eisenhower also appointed Chief Justice Earl Warren to the U.S. Supreme Court, which resulted in the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision ending school segregation. Much is made of Democrat President Harry Truman’s issuing an Executive Order in 1948 to desegregate the military. Not mentioned is the fact that it was Eisenhower who actually took action to effectively end segregation in the military.
Michael Charney's insight:
This historical claim has been difficult to prove, other than by a niece's claim. But it doesn't matter. Even if he was, that was when Republicans were Republicans. Today's extremist principles bear no resemblance to the party as it was in the mid '60s, and the attempt to co-opt King is both ludicrous and sad. -- MC
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VIDEO: NRA President Defends Lobbyist’s Shocking Newtown Comments, Doesn’t Think He Should Apologize
WASHINGTON, DC — NRA President David Keene defended lobbyist Bob Welch’s statement that the group would continue weakening gun laws as soon as the “Connecticut effect” had subsided, saying that he had no reason to apologize. Via Greg Russak
Greg Russak's curator insight,
March 14, 2013 5:15 PM
People only run away from the questions they don't want to answer.
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Gun makers who were appalled by the lobbying group's response to Sandy Hook bit their tongues. After all, business is booming and the National Rifle Association calls the shots
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Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin has signed a contract to write another book — this one about Christmas.
HarperCollins has announced Palin’s book, titled “A Happy Holiday IS a Merry Christmas,” will be released in November, according to the Associated Press.
The book will reportedly focus on returning the Christmas holiday back to its religious purpose and downplaying the commercialism that has come to define it.
It will also hit on the popular conservative theme of secular America’s so-called “War on Christmas.”
“This will be a fun, festive, thought-provoking book, which will encourage all to see what is possible when we unite in defense of our faith and ignore the politically correct Scrooges who would rather take Christ out of Christmas,” Palin said in a statement release to AP.
Palin has written two books, one called “Going Rogue,” about her time as the GOP’s vice presidential nominee in 2008, and the other called “America by Heart.”
Palin, who has commanded a devoted following in conservative circles, hasn’t been in the news as much recently and didn’t have her deal with Fox News renewed. She will speak later this week at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
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BOOK REVIEW:
The party in power often loses seats in off-year election cycles, and In Florida’s predominately Democratic 2nd District, incumbent Dem Allen Boyd is deemed vulnerable. A slew of characters quickly enters the race, one of them being the author, Barbara Olschner, a former attorney and second-tier tennis pro who loves a bit of competition, but insists on logic, reason, and facts—and naively assumes that the voters care about those things, too. Olschner, however, soon discovers that the way to endear oneself to the electorate is not to be thoughtful, factual, or reasonable, but instead to intentionally pull as many emotional triggers as possible. Here she describes the first time she heard Steve Southerland (a local undertaker, Tea Partier and eventual winner of both the primary and the general election). First noting his easy manner and ability to work a room, she goes on to comment that she was “completely unprepared when he began to speak......"
Portland Coffee Party's comment,
March 12, 2013 12:23 PM
Ms. Olshner's campaign was DOA. The immutable truth is that is that insider party politics cannot be overcome in favor of anything; whether rational thought or raw emotional appeal. Both of the prevailing parties use incestuous cronyism to slate candidates based on "win-ability" in an effort to keep or make gains in their respective power bases. Once selected, they throw their considerable weight behind the chosen one and if need be will smear all other challengers. This is a total bastardization of democracy as the candidates left standing on election day most often (according to polls) leave voters with a choice between "no way Jose" and, "gosh, if I have to".
Ms. Olshner would have stood a much better chance if she had run as an independent in the first place, and not tried to slug it out with a bunch of preachers, expert only at railing from a fiery pulpit on high about the evils of Washington and swearing (usually on a stack of bibles) to change things should they get elected. However, given the selection process, those who make the ballet are already indoctrinated in the ways of the party and instead of being disruptive slide into place as cogs on a party gear that meshes perfectly into the machine of corruption that Washington has become. Ms. Olshner's experience should serve to enlighten us to the fact that real change in Washington can only come from a third choice; a party dedicated to tearing down the corrupt institutions of government built up not by those candidates who defeated her, but by those lurking in the shadows who insured her defeat.
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How outrageous pricing and egregious profits are destroying our health care Via Margaret Reeve Panahi
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The conservative justice's commentary at Wednesday's Supreme Court arguments in Voting Rights Act case elicited a swift response.
's comment March 2, 2013 10:28 AM
I heard the comment by someone who was present that it seemed as if he just says these things BECAUSE he knows it will make people angry.
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Sean Hannity got an earful from Democratic congressman Keith Ellison on his Tuesday show. Ellison exploded at the Fox News host, calling him "the worst excuse for a journalist I've ever seen."
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by W. JAMES ANTLE III (Daily Caller)
...In the National Journal’s rankings, McConnell is just the 15th most conservative Republican senator while Rubio is the 17th. Paul ranks sixth, yet finds himself behind Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who has also been hoping to ward off a tea party challenge. This is the list that awardsRisch the top spot. New Mexico Democratic Sen. Tom Udall and Connecticut Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal tied for most liberal.... Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/24/ratings-war-congressional-liberal-conservative-rankings-conflict/#ixzz2LvVfVfZm
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Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal wants Republicans to stop being the stupid party — but apparently the memo hasn’t gotten out to state legislatures around the country. February has been a banner month for truly silly and anti-intellectual bills in state capitals across the country. Well, mostly across the South and Midwest. Some of these bills are based on the idea that birth control is poison, and that students should not fail for arguing in biology class that dinosaurs and humans coexisted. Others would stop gun control efforts by making it a felony to try to enact gun control. This is not the Onion: Here are some of the actual proposals.
1. Let corporations vote! In Montana, state Rep. Steve Lavin introduced a bill that would allow corporations to vote in local elections, taking the idea that “corporations are people” to new heights. Think Progress reports that the bill was tabled earlier this month. But under the proposal, “if a firm, partnership, company, or corporation owns real property within the municipality, the president, vice president, secretary, or other designee of the entity is eligible to vote.”
2. Criminalize gun control! In Missouri, state Rep. Mike Leara believes even proposing gun control should be illegal. So he has proposed legislation that would make it a felony for “any member of the general assembly who proposes a piece of legislation that further restricts the right of an individual to bear arms, as set forth under the second amendment of the Constitution of the United States.” “I filed HB 633 as a matter of principle and as a statement in defense of the Second Amendment rights of all Missourians,” Leara told Buzzfeed. “I have no illusions about the bill making it through the legislative process, but I want it to be clear that the Missouri House will stand in defense of the people’s Constitutional right to keep and bear arms.” READ MORE HERE: http://www.salon.com/2013/02/24/creationism_ayn_rand_and_gun_control_six_terrible_state_laws_proposed_this_month/
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On Wednesday evening, Fox News' Shepard Smith beat his colleague Sean Hannity in the key 25-54 demo. Racking up 375k demo viewers, Smith placed second among all cable news programming, beating out his colleague Hannity, who had 355k in the demo.
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by Eric Byler
Annabel Park recently spoke to Diane Rufino, leader of the Eastern North Carolina Tea Party, at the "Honor the Oath" rally at the State Capitol in Raleigh. Diane had drawn applause during her speech when she praised North Carolina's role during the Civil War, yet, she said that Rev. Dr. William Barber is wrong to remind us of historic struggles for racial equality in order to counter the TEA Party, and address modern day injustices. "Time to move on," she said.
Joseph Pomponio's comment,
February 24, 2013 9:26 PM
I have to admit, after viewing the video I was a bit taken. Most Tea Party members I encounter have a very different vernacular to their speech. She did bring me back to my early years, doors unlocked, everyone knew each other, they were comfortable times. I though have seen the change. From a time when we helped each other, got over our different ethnic differences ( West Side Story), and lived in a society where opportunity was the mantra of the well and very well off. We were schooled from age 12 to be understanding, empathetic, productive and self supporting. Part time jobs were always available for lower income, people like myself. My employers were always encouraging my work and provided traning from adults with experience. We understood and respected law even when we didn't agree. As the years pasted I severed in the military, got married, and had 2 Kids. Then things changed, around 1973. An oil shortage caused be Opec, stagnation and encomium problems. But work was good, not much in raises but you made out. In the 1980"s laws changed, tax structure was set at fixed amount with deductions only for home owners. Jobs were still available but a little harder to get. Government work seemed the safest bet so I got one. Things got better, regular raises, health coverage, pension and representation. Like the kind we as citizens have. Never thought much of unions, until then. The 1990's proved the best until 1999. I remeber hearing that congressional reps were screaming that eliminating Glass Segal would destroy the country. I figured if Clinton signed it, banking and investors could be trusted. A very big mistake. Along the way I started looking back, when I grew up homeowners lived in homes 20 to 30 tears and that developed communities. From the 1990's on people bought homes and moved to better ones every 3-5 years. By the millennium Salaries were stagnant and hong people didn't want to have kids. I could go on but I'll sum up briefly. We did this to our selves, Diane probably lived in a different part of the country but like the rest of us a system stopped working. Today, there is to mush of every man for himself, with outside interests playing it for profit. Maybe I can't stop it but like Diane I can try. The Coffee party was my breath of fresh air: so here we go.
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Ever wonder why it is that Fox News can lie over and over again - yet continue to call itself "News"? It's because Fox News is a corporation - and ever since... Via Joseph Pomponio, Greg Russak
Rhett Rebold's curator insight,
March 17, 2013 5:52 PM
It's a challenge to prosecute slander and liabel since corporations are now US Citizens. Not letting them lie with impunity would infringe their free speech. 
J'nene Solidarity Kay's curator insight,
March 19, 2013 5:45 PM
A quick and concise explanation of how personhood is infecting "news".
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Update: This post now includes a variety of patriotic and conservative tattoos sent to TheBlaze. You can see them at the end of the story.
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Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute is putting out her annual call for parents to remove their children from their public schools during next month’s “Day of Silence” (a student-run initiative during which volunteers don’t speak on behalf of the members of the LGBT community who have been forced to be silent about their sexual identities)... Via Religulous
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On Monday night, Rachel Maddow, host of “The Rachel Maddow Show,” stopped by “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and discussed the decision by the organizers of the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) not to invite New Jersey’s Gov. Chris Christie to this year’s conference, but rather to include businessman and reality show host Donald Trump.
“CPAC,” said “Tonight Show” host Jay Leno, “That convention is this week, right? I assume you’re not invited.”
“I went one year,” Maddow said. “I had one guy scream at me on an escalator. It got spit all over my face. But aside from that, people were very nice.”
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But wait… maybe Dennis is onto something here. Maybe there’s an entirely new opportunity on the diplomatic horizon, one that could bring the people of the world closer together. After all, we learned from Rodman’s insightful analysis that Kim Jong-un is—to quote Rodman—“humble,” and a “great guy.” That got me thinking: what other diplomatic missions might we all want to see? What other opportunities do we have for casting new light on long-held beliefs?
Here are three that I think we’d all find fascinating (orat least I would…).
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by JOEL SIEGEL (NY Daily News)
In his first interview since losing the Presidential election, Mitt Romney sounded a wistful note about the end of the campaign. Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ann-romney-interview-article-1.1276399#ixzz2MIQaQD9E
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A bill that would have given corporations the right to vote in local elections in Montana was simply an oversight, according to the Republican state legislator who filed it. The bill died in a legislative committee on Thursday.
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by ALEX SEITZ-WALD (Salon)
Who are the names that come to mind when you think about leaders of the Tea Party movement? Maybe Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Jim DeMint, Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann? Those were the most popular leaders listed by self-identified Tea Party activists in a 2010 Washington Post poll, at the height of the movement. You could add to that list a handful of other congressmen, especially outspoken Reps. Steve King, Allen West and Joe Walsh, among others.
And then you’d realize that every single one of them either lost their job or abandoned being a voice of the movement.
The 2012 election was devastating for the outspoken leaders in Congress. Allen West lost after a protracted battle, Joe Walsh was trounced by rising star Tammy Duckworth, and Ron Paul retired. Other, lesser-known members like Roscoe Barlett also lost. The two House Tea Party Caucus members who ran for the Senate last year both lost — Reps. Denny Rehberg in Montana and Todd Akin in Missouri.
Meanwhile Jim DeMint, the most prominent Tea Party leader in the Senate, who funded primary challenges against more moderate Republicans, left the Senate a month after the election to head the Heritage Foundation. As for Bachmann, the founder of the Tea Party Caucus, she’s gone almost completely silent....
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Anchorage media personality Dan Fagan has lost his show -- again. Coastal Television, which televised the “Dan Fagan Morning Show,” declined to talk about the end of the program. Both the conservative talk show host and his co-host, Elizabeth Giardina, are out of jobs now that the show is no longer broadcast 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on the FOX network affiliate in Anchorage. Neither could not be reached for comment, and their plans are unclear....
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In their opposition to the nomination of Chuck Hagel to be defense secretary, several conservative news outlets have cited a report that Mr. Hagel received money from ‘Friends of Hamas,’ which does not exist.
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The party of Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan has now lost the popular vote in five of the last six presidential elections. The marketplace of ideas will render us irrelevant, and soon, if we are not honest about our time and place in history. Unfortunately, much of the discussion has focused on cosmetic solutions to, say, our underperformance among ethnic and young voters. This is a mistake: we cannot cross this river by feeling for stones. Instead, we need to take a hard look at what today’s conservatism stands for.
Conservatives can start by examining how Republicans working with Democrats have governed in several successful states, including Utah; free-market-based healthcare reform, tax reform that eliminated deductions and closed loopholes to bring down rates, and practical education reforms that spoke to 21st-century realities.
Instead of using immigration reform as a wedge issue, like many leaders in Washington, Utah passed legislation to help manage immigration based on our real economic needs. If conservatives come to the table with solutions that put our communities first, it will go a long way toward winning elections.....
Read More: http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/marriage-equality-is-a-conservative-cause485/
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