Full service transportation provider specializing in produce shipments for the Foodservice Industry. Mixer produce loads are our specialty! Give us a call at 866-776-4035.
Visit our website by clicking HERE.

Commentary by Foodservice Analyst

Clarke W. Griswald

email CWG!

Search by keywords:

An easy way to support this site is by using AMAZON.COM via this link!

September 27, 2005

NO-BID CONTRACTS

Have you ever submitted a bid to the Federal government? What about a state, a county or a city? I have, and I can tell you without prejudice, it is a paperwork nightmare, not to mention a time consuming affair from bid posting to the closing, then rewarding the contract in a time frame that can take months.

Let's talk about Hurricane Katrina. In the aftermath of the storm we had the Democrats and the Left just besides themselves over the SLOW response by the Federal government. President Bush became their whipping boy over just how terrible slow-to-react the government was in getting something done in New Orleans.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and we have the Democrats and the Left just besides themselves over the FAST response by the Federal government. President Bush and Vice-President Cheney have became their whipping boys over just how fast-to-react the government has been to give no-bid contracts to the "cronies and buddies" of Bush and Cheney.

So, they rant over the slow response, and when Bush responds, they rant over that as well.........It's just not pleasing some folks.

However, what I really wanted to point out was how some covered, or should I say, did not cover Bush and Cheney's cronies...

(I will show parts of the article to get my point across. Click on the link id you would like to read the entire article)

FROM ELITE TV .COM

According to an investigative report in the 'New York Times,' more than 80 percent of the contracts handed out by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to clean up the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina were awarded with no competitive bids or very limited bidding.

The report raised serious concerns that cronyism and abuse may exist in the more than $1.5 billion spent by the government to help rebuild the devastated area.


According to the Times, two of the major contractors raised major concerns about cronyism and connections. The Shaw Group and Kellogg, Brown & Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton both had connections to President Bush and/or Vice President Cheney. Both were represented by Joe Allbaugh, who was once Bush's campaign manager and a former head of FEMA. Dick Cheney, of course, was CEO of Halliburton prior to taking office as vice president.

 

http://www.elitestv.com/pub/2005/Sep/EEN4338d64d30a08.html

NOTE: this article reminds us about KBR/Halliburton's connection to Bush and Cheney and about Albaugh connections. WHO IS THE SHAW GROUP??

FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES/FINANCIAL TIMES

FEMA contracts raise questions
By The New York Times
Published: September 26 2005 12:07 | Last updated: September 26 2005 12:07

 

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 - Topping the federal government’s list of costs related to Hurricane Katrina is the $568 million in contracts for debris removal landed by a Florida company with ties to Mississippi’s Republican governor.

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/afc2db70-2e7d-11da-9aed-00000e2511c8.html

NOTE: here we learn a Florida (Jeb) company has ties to the Mississippi governor.......a Republican governor.

FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES

September 27, 2005Cronies at the Till

The first results are in on who is set to profit from the Katrina cleanup, and - surprise - many of the firms winning major contracts have big political connections. Congressional investigators are already looking into AshBritt, a Pompano Beach, Fla., company with ties to Mississippi's governor, Haley Barbour - the former chairman of the Republican National Committee. AshBritt has nabbed $568 million in contracts for trash removal. Questions have also been raised about the political connections of two other major contractors: the Shaw Group, and Kellogg, Brown & Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton. Both companies have been represented by Joe Allbaugh, President Bush's former campaign manager and the former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency - although Mr. Allbaugh says he does not help any of his clients obtain federal contracts.

 We think that when Congress appropriates money for disaster relief, the advantage should be maximized for the victims, not for the same cast of characters that have been profiting from no-bid contracts in Iraq. Kellogg, Brown & Root, Americans may recall, is the company that came up with those $100-per-bag laundry bills for work in Iraq.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/27/opinion/27tue1.html?hp=&pagewanted=print

NOTE: Here we learn who the Florida (Jeb) company with ties to the former chairman of the (gasp) Republican Party. We also learn about the evil Halliburton being represented by Joe Allbaugh a former (gasp) Bush campaign manager and former head (gasp,gasp, gasp) of FEMA. Heck they evil tie Halliburton to the evil war in Iraq.  WHO IS THE SHAW GROUP??

FROM THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY'S WEBSITE

But there is something the Bush Administration has done right - or at least right for their political cronies. Already, no-bid contracts worth at least $100 Million have been awarded to several large, politically influential companies including the Fluor Corporation, Dewberry, and C2HM Hill, major donors to the Republican Party; Bechtel, a defense contractor with political connections to the Bush Administration; and Kellogg Brown & Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton, the giant defense contractor once led by Cheney and a current client of Joe Albaugh. Spokesmen at FEMA have been unwilling to provide details of the decision-making process that is being used to award contracts for the hurricane-relief program, nor have they identified the agency officials who are making the procurement decisions. [Hartford Courant, 9/14/05; New York Times, 9/13/05, 9/14/05; Wall Street Journal, 10/31/05; www.tray.com]

http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/09/week_in_review_7.php

NOTE: Here we hear from the horse....er...donkey's mouth about Bush and all his cronies.....major donors to the Republican Parties. Did you know that Cheney once led  KBR/Halliburton (gasp, gasp, gasp, gasp,gasp)......HEY.......WHAT ABOUT THE SHAW GROUP???

SHAW GROUP WAS REWARDED ONE OF THESE NO-BID CONTRACTS. THE SHAW GROUP GOT A $100 MILLION CONTRACT (with a 1 year renewal option) TO HELP WITH THE KATRINA CLEANUP.......SO WTF IS SHAW????

Overview

The Shaw Group Inc. was founded by three individuals, including our Chairman and CEO, in 1987 as a fabrication shop in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Driven by leaders with bold vision and a strong entrepreneurial spirit, the company has evolved into a diverse engineering, construction, fabrication, environmental and industrial services organization with over 19,500 employees in strategic locations around the world.

Throughout our rapid growth, our core values have remained constant—honesty in decision-making, personal responsibility and accountability, and leadership by example. These principles are at the heart of our ability to create and respond to market opportunities and have fueled our dramatic expansion.

Twice named to the Fortune 500, Shaw is one of the youngest companies to appear on this prestigious list. Shaw was also recently named, for the second consecutive year, to Fortune magazine's annual list of "America's Most Admired Companies. " We are proud of this recognition as it reflects our commitment to innovation and premier products and services.

AT A GLANCE

 HQ: Baton Rouge, LA

NYSE Symbol: SGR

No. of employees: 18,000

FY 2004 revenue: $3.1B

Founded: 1987

Chairman & CEO:
J.M. Bernhard, Jr.

President & COO:
T.A. Barfield, Jr.

CFO: Robert L. Belk

http://www.shawgrp.com/About/default.aspx

OH.......SO THAT'S WHO THEY ARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Message from our Chairman

Thank you for visiting Shaw’s Hurricane Recovery website.

The Shaw Group has earned a reputation for providing premier rapid response capabilities and expertise in times of domestic and international crisis including natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. This devastating storm is the largest natural disaster in United States history and, as a global company headquartered in Louisiana, this tragedy hits far too close to home. Shaw is committed to being one of the first emergency response providers on the scene to assist in the recovery efforts. This site has been designed to keep you abreast of our efforts related to rebuilding Louisiana and the Gulf Coast region in the wake of this terrible storm.

Shaw is recognized for its ability to mobilize quickly to provide unparalleled emergency response services including the restoration of utilities and infrastructure. Shaw’s team of experts can effectively address the devastating environmental concerns that can accompany these disasters from the restoration of clean drinking water to wide-scale debris management and removal. Shaw also provides security for emergency response teams and government agencies during recovery efforts. For detailed information regarding our comprehensive emergency response capabilities, please visit the links provided on the right side of this page.

As events unfold, this site will be further developed and updated regularly. Please check back with us soon and stay safe!

J.M. Bernhard, Jr.
Founder, President & Chief Executive Officer

MY QUESTION THEN.....Why was it that we did not know more about The Shaw Group AND JIM BERNHARD from the media and Democrats coverage of all the no-bid awardees?????? WHY, WHY, WHY?????

Louisiana Democratic Party Executive Committee (2004-2008)

About our Chairman

J. M. Bernhard, Jr. is the Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Shaw Group Inc., a Fortune 500 company offering a broad range of services to the power, process, environmental, infrastructure and emergency response markets. The Company’s stock is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “SGR.” Under Mr. Bernhard’s leadership, The Shaw Group has grown dramatically and through a series of strategic acquisitions to over $3 billion in revenues since its inception in 1987. Shaw is one of the youngest companies to be named to the Fortune 500 and recently debuted on the magazine’s list of “America’s Most Admired Companies”. Headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the Company employs over 18,000 people at its offices and operations in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region.

http://www.lademo.org/index.php?display=ShowPage&i=329508&pid=329508

Like the great Paul Harvey ends....."and now you know the rest of the story..............good day!!"

Logically, until next time….

Clarke

April 11, 2005

“Hello Boys! I’m Back!”

Wow! It has been awhile. When you’re doing two jobs, this foodservice business will keep you busy! “Time to make the Donuts” indeed!

 I guess it would be fair to say that a few things have happen since my last posting. So let’s review each and every one of the major events!

 Just kidding!

FAMOUS CASE IN FLORIDA

The Terri Schavio event.  Some random thoughts and comments.

 Could it be that her family and friends were so adamant in their cause in 2005 to keep her alive, was because they have feelings of guilt, because as her family and friends, they failed to force her to seek professional help for her eating disorder back in 1989?

 I would be willing to bet good money, that half of the protestors that I saw on FOX coverage at the Hospice Center have (1) NEVER have contacted ANY elected official, AND (2) If a gun were held to their head two months ago (before this became a real hot issue) COULD NOT have named their two Senators, their Congressman and their State Representative and Senator....

SOCIAL SECURITY

 IT IS BROKE...If SS was being done in a private business, they would have been busted for run a Ponzi scheme. Ponzi is where you take money from someone last year with a promise, and you take money from someone today and use some of that to pay off the person that gave you money last year, and you go look for someone to give you money next year, to pay some to the person that gave you the money today.

  WE do not have ANY responsibility, morally or otherwise, if someone chooses to piss their life away, and not make any personal investments in their future.... and I'm not talking about purchasing lottery tickets.

 Now, YOU may feel some moral obligation to help out the guy down the street that spent his life pursing things other than providing for himself and his family, but I sure as hell don't. With very, very few exceptions, all of us are where we are today at based on the actions, decisions and choices that WE MADE FOR OURSELVES.

 Sort like some activist I read about whining that Wal-Mart pays too law a wage to raise a family of four on.

DUH...If you have gone through life and made choices and decisions to the point where the only job you can qualify for is working as a hourly employee at Wal-Mart, then you should not be having children in the first place.  It's called ---RESPONSIBILITY.

 But here is the deal. There IS NO GUARANTEE IN SOCIAL SECURITY............NONE. There is nothing, no law, no order, no resolution...nothing that gives ANY guarantee that John Doe (who has paid into the SS for the last 45 years) will get one penny.  Let me repeat.

 THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT SOCIAL SECURITY WILL PAY OUT ONE PENNY.

 I am confused.

 Let's assume that Joe Blow is 60. Let's assume that Joe started working at 20. Let's assume that Joe plans to retire at 65.

 So Joe has had 14 cents of every dollar he has earn the last 40 years deposited into Social Security, and will do so for 5 more years.

 At 65 Joe gets his watch and settles down to enjoying his retirement years...unfortunately 'ol Joe dies at 67. Therefore all that money he put into Social Security stays there. His family or benefactors get none of it.

 So in addition to income taxes YOU pay in, you're Ok with having 14% of YOUR money.... the money that you earned, taken from you, knowing that the possibility is there that YOU will never see it again...much less be able to share with your family?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

 OK you argue that the with the life expectation of White men, the average man will get back a big chunk of what he paid in.

 NOT SO for the Black man who has the lowest life expectation...

 One COULD therefore argue that Social Security is racist because the average Black male will not enjoy the benefits of having paid in 14% of his money his entire working life.

 You WILL NOT convince me that privatizing some part of this 14% is a bad thing.

 It is illogical to argue against it.

 Clarke

September 20, 2004

FUN WITH NUMBERS

You have heard of astrology. Have you heard of numerology? Mere consequences or not? That all depends on what you believe. I am not trying to make a case either way, just that I found this interesting. Therefore, do not try and read anything into this, but if you’re like me, I bet you will at least go, “interesting” when you finish reading this.

In numerology you break a number down to one digit, with the exception of 11, which is considered a special number. How to add. The day September 10,2004 is a “7” day. 9-10-2004; 9+1+0+2+0+0+4 = 16…..1+6 = 7

I was doing some research and noticed the unusual number of events somewhat related to 9/11 that occurred on the 11^th day of the month.

In the following notice the elevens (11).

9-11-2001 (5) -  The terrorist attacks

9-11-1990 (3) - President George HW Bush makes a speech. As an added note, this speech was where he first mentioned the infamous phrase, “New World Order.” (Note the date, plus it was eleven (11) years to the date!)

3-11-2004 (11) – Terrorist bombing in Madrid Spain. (Note the date, plus there were 911 days between 9-11-90 and 3-11-04) (Also note that 3/11/2004 adds up to 11)

5-11-2004 (4) – Nick Berg video of his beheading shown.

6-11-2004 (5) – President Ronald Reagan is buried.

7-11-2004 (6) – CIA Director George Tenet’s last day as director. (Note: Tenet began his tenure as CIA Director on 7-11-1997)

8-11-2004 (7) – CIA releases information about the next wave of possible attacks, that could include political assassinations.

I look at and read many article from websites from the far left to the far right, and I came upon a weird article on Rense.com website. What caught my attention was the headline read “9/11 embedded code broken.” There was an article by an Eric May and he was writing stuff regarding the number “11”. I thought cool, since I had been interested in numbers. May writes that the next terror attack will be 9-27-2004 because there are 1,111 days between 9-11-01 and 9-27-04.  Now here’s where the article got a little weird.

Basically, he wrote that since there was a fire and explosion at two refineries near Houston (Texas City 3-30-2004 and Moss Bluff 8-19-2004) AND in the movie “Independence Day” Houston was nuked….that Houston will be the next terror target. I’m thinking, here’s proof someone DID take the bad acid at Woodstock!

I told you it was weird, but that is what the article stated. Here the link to the article if you’re interested. Strange stuff.  http://rense.com/general57/sepo.htm

Anyway back to the numbers….. I think it’s neat how the numbers add up, or how they come up numerically, and how some numbers are repeaters.

President Bush was born 7-6-1946. The war against Iraq started on 3-20-2003….or 20,711 days. 2+0+7+1+1 = 11

Between 9-11-2001 and 3-20-2003 was 555 (6) days. 13,320 hours. 799,200 minutes, 47,952,000 seconds. Each one of these (hours, minutes, seconds)

add up to 9-9-9. It was also 18 months (9) and 9 days between the two.

President Bush was inaugurated on 1-20-2001 and the Iraq war started on 3-20-2003.  789 days (6). 18,936 hours, 1,136160 minutes, and 68,169,600 seconds which add to 9-9-9.

Between the inauguration and 9-11-2001 was 234 days, which adds to a 9. It was also 7 months and 22 days which adds to 11. 5,616 hours, 336,960 minutes, 20,217,600 seconds which add to 9-9-9.

Between Pearl Harbor (12-7-1941) and 9-11-2001, was 59 years, 9 months and 4 days….5+9+9+4=27=9, and the hours, minutes and seconds add up to 9-9-9. Add or take a day away, and this would change.

Now don’t write and say I have joined the conspiracy club. I am no math wiz and all this could just be mathematical probabilities, or just odd coincidences.

BTW, I used a calendar calculator found at www.calendarhome.com  Go there yourself and put in dates important to you and see what you get.

WHO AM I?

I was against the first Iraq war, I am against the second Iraq war, but
I voted for it.

Now I'm against it but I was for it.

I support the UN.

I'm against terrorism and against the Iraq war. But I voted for the Iraq
war. So, I voted against the first war and supported the second war,
wait..

I'm against gay marriage but for gay unions. I support gays but think
the SF mayor is wrong.

I support gay marriages. No, wait, gay unions.

I'm Catholic. Wait, I'm Jewish. My dad was Jewish. But I was raised
Catholic. What am I? I don't want to confuse people.

I am for abortions, but wait, I'm Catholic, and Catholics are pro-life.

But I might consider putting pro-life judges in office, but I'm not
sure. I do know I voted for a pro-life judge, but I stated that it was a
mistake.

I went to Vietnam. But I was against Vietnam. I testified against fellow
US troops in Vietnam, threw my medals away and led others to do the
same.

But I am a war hero. Against the war.

I stated I threw my medals away then I threw my ribbons away.  I then
revealed that I threw my ribbons away but not my medals, then lately I
stated that I threw someone else's medals away and never threw anything
of mine away.

I believe Ribbons and medals aren't the same thing.

Medals come with ribbons, so now I believe that ribbons and medals are
the same thing besides the fact that ribbons are cloth and medals are
metal.

I wrote a book that pictured the US flag upside-down on its cover. But
now I fly and campaign in a plane with a large flag right-side up on it.

But sometimes, we fly upside-down for fun.

Yasser Arafat is a hero and a statesman. The Israelis shouldn't kill
Palestinian terrorists, but they should stop terrorism.  Yasser Arafat
is a terrorist supporter.  I support Mideast peace.

I am for the common man, unlike Bush. I am against the rich. But my
family is worth 300 million dollars has a jet and many SUVs. I am the
common man.

I am against sending jobs overseas.  My wife is a Heinz heir, which
Heinz has most factories offshore. I am against rewarding companies for
exporting jobs as long as it is not Heinz.

I own $1 million in Wal-Mart stock. I believe Wal-Mart is evil by
driving small business owners out of town.  I am a capitalist and I own
part of Wal-Mart but I am a good guy for small corporate America. I own
SUVs when I talk to my followers in Detroit, MI.

Teresa owns SUVs, I don't, when I talk to tree hugging followers.

I have a campaign jet that gets 1/3 mpg, which is great fuel efficiency.

I am against making military service an issue in presidential elections.
I defended a draft dodger (Clinton) and stated that all serve in their
own capacity whether they draft dodge or not.  Did I mention, I served
in Vietnam and am a hero?  Are you questioning my patriotism?  I served
in Vietnam.

My opponent didn't. I have three purple hearts! I am a hero. I am
qualified to run this country since I served.

I am John Kerry

(NO SH*T SHERLOCK)

Logically,

Clarke

August 26, 2004

HELP….PLEASE!!!

Is it just me.....do I not get it, or what?

This is important........I DO NOT CARE WHAT BUSH OR KERRY DID, OR DID NOT DO, BACK IN THE LATE 60'S AND EARLY 70'S. Personally, I do not think it is a campaign issue but Kerry, actually made it part of his campaign (don't matter if you agree or not) and opened this can of worms.

ANYWAY>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I only WISH that I could get the answer to why we stand by and let the media get away with this very obvious double standard. Even those of you that are die-hard Democrats HAVE TO see the double-standard involved here. Even those of you who have said that you would vote for Saddam Hussein before you would ever vote for a Republican HAVE TO see the double-standard here.

The following is an article that was on the Internet. I have put it here and have added my comments.

Aug 25, 2:05 AM (ET)

By Adam Entous

CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters) - Democrat John Kerry will dispatch two fellow Vietnam veterans to President Bush's secluded Texas ranch on Wednesday to press him to condemn television advertisements accusing Kerry of lying about his wartime service.(When will Bush dispatch people to Kerry's camp and press him to condemn the advertisements accusing Bush of lying about his military service?)

The move comes one day after it was disclosed that a top lawyer for Bush's re-election campaign has been providing legal advice to the group behind the ads, the so-called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.(So. Kerry's campaign has the same type deal. Joe Sandler, a lawyer for the DNC and MoveOn.org, a group running anti-Bush ads, said there is nothing wrong with serving in both roles at once. Attorneys are ethically bound to maintain attorney-client confidentiality, and could lose their law licenses if they violate that, he said.)

Kerry is sending to Crawford former Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia, a frequent companion of Kerry's on the campaign trail and a fellow Vietnam War veteran who lost three limbs during the war.

Cleland and former Army Green Beret Jim Rassman, whose life was saved by Kerry during a Vietnam war firefight, will try to deliver a letter protesting the ads to Bush at his heavily guarded ranch, Kerry aides said.

Kerry's service has dominated the neck-and-neck race for the Nov. 2 election in recent days as both candidates try to portray themselves as the best man to lead the United States in its war against terrorism.

Bush has called for the Swift Boat ads to be stopped along with others run by independent groups, and said Kerry should be proud of his war service.(to my knowledge, Kerry has not call on Moveonpac.org or similar groups from running their anti-Bush ads)

(I do have to disagree with Bush that these ads should stop, AND I disagree that the anti-Bush ads should stop. I am 100% behind the first amendment. I think we as a people should be able to voice our opinions about the candidates. My point is, he can ask that people stop running the ads, and even condemn them, but there should not be a law making them stop. My point of all this is the double standard question....not wither the ads should be stopped or not.)

But Bush stopped short of condemning the group or its specific accusations that the Democratic presidential candidate lied about his record in Vietnam.(Bush or the Republican Party has never questioned Kerry's service. However, Kerry himself has questioned on more than one occasion Bush and his National Guard records. The Democratic party chairman said that Bush was AWOL. Even today(8-25-04) you can see on the official Kerry and Democratic websites, questioning Bush's military record, BUT you won't see anything on Bush or the Republican websites questioning Kerry's service.)

The Kerry letter, signed by at least seven Democratic senators who have served in the military, calls on Bush to "recognize this blatant attempt at character assassination, and publicly condemn it."

"Call on this group to cease and desist," they wrote.(You know, I might take this letter seriously IF these same Senators had asked Kerry to call on Moveonpac.org to stop running their ads.)

Cleland said Bush "owes it to every soldier and veteran in the nation to stop condoning their smears through his silence."(Couldn't the same thing be said to Kerry, Mr., Cleland?)

Cleland lost his 2002 re-election bid after a bitter campaign in which Republicans questioned his patriotism. Bush did not intervene then, and Kerry spokesman Phil Singer said what happened to Cleland in 2002 is similar to "what is going on today" against Kerry.(Isn't this special how they threw this in? I lived in Georgia for 3 years while Cleland was a Senator. He lost re-election because he was a typical tax and spend Senator. No disrespect, but he tried to be a liberal style Kerry or Kennedy, but Georgia ain't exactly Massachusetts. Georgia voted him out because of what he did in the Senate...not what he did in Vietnam.)

MCCAIN NOT A SIGNATORY

The Kerry letter was not signed by Republican Sen. John McCain, a fellow Vietnam veteran who has urged Bush to condemn the ads. McCain was scheduled to campaign next week with Bush before the Republican convention.

Kerry has called the Swift Boat ads inaccurate and accused the group of being a front for the Bush campaign. He has asked the Federal Election Commission to force the ads to be withdrawn.(Couldn't the same be said of the Moveonpac.org ads?)

The Bush campaign and the White House have said they have nothing to do with the Swift Boat group or the ads.(Kerry campaign has made no secret of their association with Moveonpac.org. Matter of fact Theresa Heinz Kerry has given money to the Tides Foundation, who in turn gave money to Moveonpac.org. Why isn't this being reported by the media?)

But the group received some of its funding from long-time Bush supporters and its new commercial features one veteran, Ken Cordier, who was on a Bush campaign committee until last week when he was forced to step down.( I need help with this. Why is it wrong for "long-time Bush supporters" or wealthy Texas Republicans from funding the Swift Vets? While you explain to me why this is wrong, please also explain why it is perfectly OK for a foreigner, George Soros, to give millions of dollars to groups like Moveonpac.org with the self-admitted (Soros) goal of defeating Bush, and has pledged up to $50 million to see that Bush is defeated. And is it OK for the candidate's wife to be funding groups to defeat her husband's opponent?)

(Ask yourself this. How many news articles or reports have you heard or seen that mentions something along the lines of, Swift vets or Vietnam Vets being funded by George Bush supporters? Quite a few. Now ask yourself this. How many news articles or reports have you heard or seen that mentions something along the lines of, Moveonpac.org, or their Vote for a Change concert tour is being funded by John Kerry supporters? I can answer this for you.....NONE!)

It was further disclosed late Tuesday that the Bush campaign's chief outside counsel, Ben Ginsberg, has also been giving legal advice to the Swift Boat group.(So. Kerry's campaign has the same type deal. From a AP article; Joe Sandler, a lawyer for the DNC and MoveOnpac.org, a group running anti-Bush ads, said there is nothing wrong with serving in both roles at once. Attorneys are ethically bound to maintain attorney-client confidentiality, and could lose their law licenses if they violate that, he said. Guess what kids.....there is NOTHING ILLEGAL ABOUT THIS)

Will the media ever change? Not as long as we let them get away with it.

Use your logic!

Clarke

July 25, 2004

MOORE B[U]RGERS, WILSON!

WOW! The last few days have sure been interesting.

We have learned that former Ambassador Joe Wilson lied about his involvement in the infamous Iraq and Africa Uranium connection.

We have learned that  Clinton’s National Security Advisor  took,  then “lost”  some classified, top secret documents from the National Archives.

We have learned that entertainers, along with super-sleuth Michael Moore do not know the difference between free speech and freedom.

JOE BLOWS IT!

In his 2003 State of the Union address, President Bush said that “the British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.”

Well ‘ol Joe Wilson goes on the warpath, writing a book and a big newspaper article about how Bush lied to the American people just so he could go to war, and this uranium claim just wasn’t true.

Today we know that the one telling stories was Joe Wilson. Two reports, one by the Senate Intelligence Committee and the British board of inquiry has shown that Wilson’s trip lent credibility to the CIA reports on the uranium deal, and the British found that Iraqi officials DID try to buy uranium from Niger in 1999.

With his book being released and the media making him an instant hero to the anti-war crowd, Wilson became an even further martyr when his wife was “ousted” as a CIA “spy.”  This led to the Bush critics going crazy and giving Wilson a chance to say that his wife had nothing to do with him getting the assignment to investigate the uranium deal and how his wife’s life is in danger. In several interviews, he denied that his wife had anything to do with his assignment to go to Africa and fears for her life.

We now know that his wife is a desk-jockey, and not some undercover spy at the CIA and according to the Senate report, it was his wife, Valerie, who wrote a memo to her boss at the CIA. stating that her husband was a good choice for the assignment because her “husband has good relations” with Niger officials and had “lots of French contacts.” They have the memo, but now ‘ol Joe is saying this is not a recommendation!?!?!

As an aside, all the critics screamed bloody murder about the terrible intelligence gathering the CIA had done on the weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Guess what Joe Wilson’s paper-pushing wife job is at the CIA.?

That’s right! She works in the department that gathers info on WMD’s!

What is funny….well actually it is sad rather than funny, Joe Wilson was given the, “Award for Truth-Telling” award from  The Nation magazine, but then again, considering which way that magazine leans, it is not a surprise. On top of those accolades, he even got a lucrative book contract. There was even talk of making a movie of his and Valerie’s heroic and heart-wrenching patriotic tale.

YOU WANT FRIES WITH THAT?

Former President Clinton’s national security advisor and current (now, former) advisor to candidate John Kerry is under a criminal investigation for taking classified and top secret documents from the National Archives that should have been turned over to the 911 commission that probed the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

Sandy “the Sock” Berger has admitted taking some sensitive and classified documents to his home and has admitted that he had “inadvertently” and “accidentally” discarded some of them!

These documents were about the Clinton administration handling of al Qaeda terror threats leading up to the 2000 New Years celebration. The part of this that is interesting, is the documents that Berger “accidentally discarded.”                                                 

Those highly classified “lost” documents were ones that documented America’s terror vulnerabilities at airports and seaports.

Furthermore, he admits that he knowingly removed handwritten notes from the Archives by putting them in his jacket, pants and socks. SOCKS!?!?

All of his colleagues and Bill Clinton are laughing this off as “messy-desk” Sandy being Sandy, and they want us to believe that his actions were much ado about nothing and it was just a simple error of judgment on Berger’s part. Error? Yeah, he got caught.

Well, I will admit that I can  be forgetful and absent-minded and I have even put papers in my pockets and forgot about them, but I have never stuck anything in my socks.

So, you may convince me of the innocence of  all this, up to the point about the facts that the missing pages are classified,  and that Berger hid classified notes in his socks. At that point, he knew exactly what it was he was doing. Case closed.

FAT, FARTINGHARD GUY

Michael Moore is on the warpath telling us that Slim-Fast and the Las-Vegas Aladdin Hotel are squashing the First Amendment Rights of Woopi Goldberg and Linda Ronstadt because they both dared to speak out against the Bush administration and/or endorse him and his movie Frankenstein 911.

Just how ignorant is this man? These entertainers are hired by companies to either entertain paying guests, or entice people to purchase their products, not to share their political views. 

Yes, they have a right to spout their views, but they should do it in a letter to an Editor or in an interview if they are asked political questions in the interview.

They do have the right to speak out like any other person in this country does, but keep this in mind. While there is freedom of speech, there is also freedom for a company to fire someone that is outspoken, if their actions are detrimental to the company.

It would be like the Pepsi route salesman delivering Pepsi products to a store while drinking a Coke! I think most people would agree that Pepsi would be well within their rights to fire that person. Nobody is stopping that person from drinking Coke on his own private time, but he shouldn't be doing it while wearing his Pepsi uniform while delivering Pepsiã.

That should be understandable, even to a Marxist; it is just plain basic sense and logic. Remember, there is freedom of speech, but there is not freedom from ownership of the

words that you speak,  They belong to you and actions have consequences, good or bad.

When I am out in public wearing a shirt that has the name of the company I work for on it, I would never do anything that would be detrimental or caste a negative image about the company that provides me with a job.

There are some that find it an honor to be compared to Michael Moore, and they threaten…anyone from comparing them to anyone in the Bush administration. What a gigantic and humiliating insult it would be for ANYONE in the Bush administration to even be mention in the same sentence…                                                                                                          

…With a Bush-bashing, Moore-loving groupie!

Hey, I have an idea for a new movie by Michael Moore. He can do one of his “documentaries” on the escapades of Sandy Berger and the missing classified documents.

Seeing how Moore cannot come up with his own titles, and he has to steal the titles from previous  books and movies, I have a title for his Sandy Berger movie.

It is a 2000 French (Moore would have to use it!) movie titled, “Les Chaussetles Sales,” which translated into English is, “The Dirty Socks!”

Logically,

Clarke

July 12, 2004

FARTINGHARD 911

I did not see the movie Fahrenheit 911 (F911), but I am going to write about it based on reviews and information that I have read. By the way, I did not get my information from FOX, Rush or Marc Racicot, the Campaign chairman for Bush.

I purposely avoided using any reviews of the movie from, as same may call them, members of the “Far Right.”  I got my information from Michael Moore, Richard Clarke, Matt Labash and Dave Kopel. All four men are against the war in Iraq , all four men are critics of the Bush administration, all four men want Bush to LOSE the election this fall and all four men know that the movie is fiction.

I used their words, not to support their attacks on the President, but to show that these same people know that F911 is inaccurate portrayals of the facts.

When the man that wrote, produced and directed the movie tells you that it is not true; that the movie is an op-ed piece and a comedy as well, why would any logical thinking  person come to the conclusion that the movie was factual. That should pretty much be the end of it.

We know that Michael Moore does not really like America. When asked, “You do not seem to like the U.S., do you?” in a interview with a Japanese newspaper, Moore replies, “I like America to some extent.”

Michael Moore is on record as saying, “But documentary can be as manipulative as fiction, can't it? If you want to make it that way, you can make the facts fit.” No, he is not interested in facts, as he has an agenda to pursue.

“The primary goal was to make a good movie. The secondary goal: the complete and entire removal of the Bush family and their associates from Washington come November.”-- Michael Moore, 6/26/04

Moore has defended deliberate inaccuracies in his prior films by claiming that satirists don't have to tell the exact truth. Why would we expect anything different from F911?

Dev Chatillon a member of the Moore production team said, “[This is] not a network news report.”

Richard Clarke,  a very vocal critic of the Bush administration told the audience at the American Library Convention recently, “The invasion of Iraq was an enormous mistake that is costing untold lives, strengthening al Qaeda and breeding a new generation of terrorists.” "The hatred that has been engendered by this invasion will last for generations."

In speaking about the movie, Clarke (referring to the Saudis leaving the country after 911) said that he, himself gave the OK for them to leave after they were cleared by the FBI. Clarke said,  “Making the incident a big part of the movie was a mistake,” and added that he agrees with many things Moore stands for.

Writing in The Weekly Standard, Matt Labash writes, “…that Michael Moore and I have one surprising trait in common: We both believe that the war in Iraq was ill-advised, ill-planned, and ill-executed, an apparent failure bordering on unmitigated disaster, that was never in our best national interest.”

He adds, “I do not trash Fahrenheit 9/11 because it's a piece of antiwar propaganda. I trash Fahrenheit 9/11 because it's an offal-laden piece of junk.” He then points out some of the inaccuracies in the movie.

Dave Kopel writing an article titled, Fifty-nine Deceits in Fahrenheit 9/11 on National Review Online  states, “…there are lies from the Bush administration which should concern everyone. Moreover, regarding the issues presented in Fahrenheit  9/11, the evidence of Bush lies is extremely thin.”

Kopel, who is critical of the methods used by Moore in his movies, nonetheless is aligned politically with Moore. They both supported Ralph Nader in 2000.

Kopel adds, “I think you will agree that the evidence is undeniable that Fahrenheit  9/11 is filled with deceit.”

He closes by saying, “Do the many falsehoods and misrepresentations of Fahrenheit  9/11 suggest a film producer who just makes careless mistakes? Or does a man who calls Americans: “possibly the dumbest people on the planet" believe that his audience will be too dumb to tell when he is tricking them?”

If you do go see the movie, at least read Kopels’ article. At almost 18,000 (eighteen thousand) words, you will have enough information to decide if F911 is fact or fiction.

Another aside. China will import F911 into their country to show the movie to the Chinese people. This is the first American “documentary” that has been allowed to be shown in China. Interesting isn’t it? But then again, F911 is anti-American.

Keep in mind that the Chinese were partying and dancing in the streets after they heard the news of the events of 9-11-2001. It has been reported that key Chinese officials watched the video of the plane slamming into the World Trade center again, and again, and again wearing big smiles on their faces.

They have even made their own movie about 911 called Attack America where it is reported to be typical anti-American propaganda. It would not surprise me to hear that Michael Moore will import their movie here, after all, one of the terrorist organization in the Middle East is distributing F911 in the Arab countries.

It is one thing to work and campaign to defeat a sitting President and get your candidate elected. That is every American’s right and is supported by the Constitution. Heck, it is even OK to work for their defeat just because you don’t like the way they part their hair or the sound of their voice.

However, it is another thing entirely when those rights are abused and are instead used to give aid and comfort to an enemy that is trying wipe the United States from the face of the earth. Keep in mind, we are at war.

We know whose side of the war Fahrenheit 911 is on…

RANDOM THOUGHTS

This was emailed to me from a friend:

Right now, we have one guy saying one thing, and then the other guy says something else. Who to believe?

Clinton awards Halliburton no-bid contract in Yugoslavia - good

Bush awards Halliburton no-bid contract in Iraq - bad...

Clinton spends 77 billion on war in Serbia - good...

Bush spends 87 billion in Iraq - bad...

Clinton imposes regime change in Serbia - good...

Bush imposes regime change in Iraq - bad...

Clinton bombs Christian Serbs on behalf of Muslim Albanian terrorists - good...

Bush liberates 25 million from a genocidal dictator - bad...

Clinton bombs Chinese embassy - good...

Bush bombs terrorist camps - bad...

Clinton commits felonies while in office - good...

Bush lands on aircraft carrier in jumpsuit - bad...

Clinton says mass graves in Serbia - good...

Entire world says WMD in Iraq - bad...

No mass graves found in Serbia - good...

No WMD found Iraq - bad...

Stock market crashes in 2000 under Clinton - good...

Recession under Bush - bad...

Clinton refuses to take custody of Bin Laden - good...

World Trade Centers fall under Bush - bad...

Clinton says Saddam has nukes - good...

Bush says Saddam has nukes - bad...

Clinton calls for regime change in Iraq - good...

Bush imposes regime change in Iraq - bad...

Terrorist training in Afghanistan under Clinton - good...

Bush destroys training camps in Afghanistan - bad...

Milosevic not yet convicted - good...

Saddam in custody - bad...

Ah, it is so confusing!

Logically,

Clarke

June 7, 2004

SO??

Dr, I

Apparently, Clarke Griswald doesn’t read your column because he completely re-wrote the column you posted weeks ago about Trent Lott versus Christopher Dodd. What do you think of that?

Mike

Dear Mike:

His Loss.

Dr. I.

Obviously, Mike and the good Doctor have issues with the fact that my last column which was on the same subject matter that Doctor Iroselti had written in one of his recent columns.

Dr. Iroselti, I had no intentions writing my column to attempt to upstage your work or plagiarize you, nor would I ever have those intentions. Also, I do not apologize for writing about the same subject as you, and I will guarantee you that in the future, I will never refrain from writing about something that you may have written about.

I live in a small county with about 54,000 people and one small daily newspaper…no Saturday editions though. I bring this up to say that even in this small paper, the editor will sometimes run two articles, by two separate writers, on the same subject matter…. all on the same day!

If only one person is suppose to write about a subject, then why are we being bombarded hourly by every Tom, Dick and Harry in every media outlet for the last 2 months about the pictures and the prisoner humiliation pictures from Iraq??

Notice I didn’t say torture. How can making a man stand naked with woman’s panties on his head, be considered torture, when Saddam had professional rape gangs in the same prison that would rape young pre-teen girls in the same room with their Mothers and Fathers? Or would lock a Mother in one room, and her infant child in the room next to her, and make her stay there and watch her own baby starved to death. Now, that is torture.

But that’s another story.

I’M A LOSER?

Reading his answer to Mike, one would think that once the good Dr. Iroselti has taken the decision to write about a particular subject, then his is the final word, and if someone else dares to write about the same subject……well, they’re nothing but a loser.

Well Doctor, maybe in your eyes I am, but sticks and stones……

If I may, let me present some facts in my defense before sentencing is carried out.

I saw and read Dr. Iroselti’s column when it came out on May 2^nd, HOWEVER, I had started compiling information and  writing my column around April 10^th, just a few days after the now infamous Dodd gaffe. Currently, I have at least a dozen articles and ideas that I am  working on, and many more in my brain bank.

Now, I am not saying that I was the first one to think about writing on the Dodd incident….the good doctor could have started his article days before I had. However, I had been working on mine when I saw his published. Bottom line, even if on April 10^th, Dr. Iroselti had called me to say he was going to write about the Dodd incident, I still would have written mine.

Mike, ask yourself this question. If you were working on something and found out someone was working on the same thing, but from a different viewpoint, would you just stop working on yours? I don’t think so.

Like Dr. Iroselti who I am sure works in advance preparing his lesson plans, I too, work in advance in hopes of creating an enjoyable and informative article. I strive to make sure that my facts are indeed facts, and that my presentation is presented in a logically, rather than emotional viewpoint. I have a few things I would really love to write about, but I haven’t been able to verify the facts, so I will not until I can write with confidence that facts are backing my words.

So I guess the solution to this very urgent problem will be that all of the Foodservicerumors columnists must present their story ideas for the next 6 months o so to Steve, and let him then assign the particular stories to us various columnists.

Who knows, maybe I can write about tacos and California and my buddy HAAMIAME, can write about commies and voting patterns.

Hahahahahhahhaaaaaa, now that would be interesting!

Logic prevails………I think.

Clarke

May 20, 2004

MEDIA BIAS?

For years people have said that the mainstream media in this country is bias against conservative/Republican issues and/or politicians. Sometimes it would appear to be true, others times….not so true. Overall however, I think that the media IS bias, and IS agenda driven.

Point in case is the events surrounding statements made by Senators about other Senators. You know the ones…..Trent Lott’s statements about Strom Thurmond and Chris Dodd’s statements about Robert Byrd.

You didn’t hear about the Dodd/Byrd episode? Sort of proves my point if you didn’t, as most newspapers and TV networks gave it little or no coverage.

EVENT #1

On April 1, 2004 the Senate celebrated a milestone. They were celebrating the 17,000^th vote of Senator Robert Byrd, Democrat from West Virginia. The event was held in the Senate chamber, and various Senators rose to the floor of the Senate to voice their accolades for Senator Byrd.

Here is what Senator Dodd had to say about Senator Byrd;

NOTE: this is from the Congressional Record as it was an official event presented to the full Senate.

 “Mr. President, I add my voice as well to my seatmate…but the quality of my colleague and friend's service is what I think about when the name Robert C. Byrd comes to my

mind. …importance of an oath we all made, and that is to do everything we can to

preserve, protect, and defend the principles upon which this Nation was

founded. Robert C. Byrd, in my mind, is the embodiment of that goal

.

  It has often been said that the man and the moment come together. I

do not think it is an exaggeration at all to say to my friend from West

Virginia that he would have been a great Senator at any moment. Some

were right for the time. Robert C. Byrd, in my view, would have been

right at any time. He would have been right at the founding of this

country. He would have been in the leadership crafting this

Constitution. He would have been right during the great conflict of

civil war in this Nation. He would have been right at the great moments

of international threat we faced in the 20th century. I cannot think of

a single moment in this Nation's 220-plus year history where he would

not have been a valuable asset to this country. Certainly today that is

not any less true.

  There is no one I admire more, there is no one to whom I listen more

closely and carefully when he speaks on any subject matter. I echo the

comments of my colleague from Massachusetts. If I had to pick out any

particular point of service for which I admire the Senator most, it is

his unyielding defense of the Constitution. All matters come and go. We

cast votes on such a variety of issues, but Senator Byrd's

determination to defend and protect this document which serves as our

rudder as we sail through the most difficult of waters is something

that I admire beyond all else.

  I join in this moment in saying: Thank you for your service, thank

you for your friendship, and I look forward to many more years of

sitting next to you on the floor of the Senate.”

So we have one Senator praising another Senator for his years of service and his opinion on how he would be a good addition to have lived in any period of our country’s history.

PERFECTLY FINE STATEMENT…NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.

EVENT #2

On December 5, 2002 the Senate celebrated a milestone. They were celebrating the 100^th birthday of Senator Strom Thurmond, Republican from South Carolina. The event was held in the Senate Office Building, attended by a friends and family.

Here is what Senator Trent Lott had to say about Senator Strom Thurmond.

Note, This was not an official event, so it was not recorded in any government documents.

"I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We're proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years, either."

So we have one Senator praising another Senator for his years of service and his opinion on how he would be a good addition to have lived in any period of our country’s history

PERFECTLY FINE STATEMENT…NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.

IN THE BEGINNING

Robert Byrd was a member of the Klu Klux Klan and left the organization many years ago. He was a “Klegale” which is the official recruiter for the Klan.  The ex-Klansman allegedly ended his ties with the group in 1943. He may have stopped paying dues, but  three years later he wrote  to the Imperial Wizard of the KKK  saying,  "The Klan is needed today as never before and I am anxious to see its rebirth here in West Virginia" and "in every state in the Union." The ex-Klansman later filibustered the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act -- supported by a majority of Republicans. He also opposed the nominations of the Supreme Court's two black justices, liberal Thurgood Marshall and conservative Clarence Thomas. Senator. Byrd wrote after he quit the KKK, this time attacking desegregation of the armed forces. Byrd vowed never to fight "with a Negro by my side. Rather I should die a thousand times, and see Old Glory trampled in the dirt never to rise again, than to see this beloved land of ours become degraded by race mongrels, a throwback to the blackest specimen from the wilds."

He apologizes for his past and asked forgiveness, yet in an interview March 5, 2001 on a FOX political show he said, “There are white niggers. I've seen a lot of white niggers in my time. I'm going to use that word.”

Strom Thurmond was a Senate Republican, yet was a Democrat until 1964 when he switched parties. His notoriety came in 1948 when he and