[Link in title]
"MOSCOW (Reuters) - In a slip of the tongue, U.S. President Barack Obama described Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Monday as president, echoing the widely held view that he remains Russia's most powerful man."
Jesus, this guy is an IDIOT! First off, had GWB done something like this the WORLD MEDIA would have eaten him alive. But, George Bush was not and IDIOT. In fact, GWB was always informed in the ways of international politics far beyond Obama could dream. When you take a guy like Obama who surrounds himself with amateurs in international politics, would you expect anything less then this blunder?
But, it gets even BETTER: "July 7 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. President Barack Obama lauded Prime Minister Vladimir Putin for his service to Russia, continuing a three-day push to overcome the animosities of the George W. Bush era."
Animosities? I guess the Obama Administration wasn't aware of this telegram written by Putin to George Walker Bush on July, 6th -- GWB's 63rd birthday: "With special warmth I recall your hospitality in the Crawford ranch and your family estate in Kennebunkport," Putin wrote, referring to their 2007 meeting at the Bush family vacation home when the two leaders went fishing and ate lobster." According to Reuters, the telegram was written just a few hours before the arrival of the Great O to Russia. Also, from the same Reuters article, "Bush had said he "was able to get a sense of his soul" when he first met Putin and since then their warm rapport has helped limit the damage from a series of rows that returned ties between their administrations to chilly Cold War lows."
Reuters is Europe based while Bloomberg is US based. How could Bloomberg have a different take on the Bush/Putin relationship over that of Reuters? Could it be that in the eye's of the U.S. media Obama can do no wrong? Draw your own conclusions. I will say this, So far the American media hasn't said a peep about Obama's SNAFU in regards to calling Putin President.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Honduran Constitution in Check
[link in title]
"Hugo Chávez's coalition-building efforts suffered a setback yesterday when the Honduran military sent its president packing for abusing the nation's constitution.
It seems that President Mel Zelaya miscalculated when he tried to emulate the success of his good friend Hugo in reshaping the Honduran Constitution to his liking.
But Honduras is not out of the Venezuelan woods yet. Yesterday the Central American country was being pressured to restore the authoritarian Mr. Zelaya by the likes of Fidel Castro, Daniel Ortega, Hillary Clinton and, of course, Hugo himself. The Organization of American States, having ignored Mr. Zelaya's abuses, also wants him back in power. It will be a miracle if Honduran patriots can hold their ground." [emphasis added by me.]
Not to be out done by his true leftest buddies, the O Himself has added that he was, "deeply concerned" that the people of Honduras would actually depose their president because he tried to impose law from the office, which the Honduran Constitution does not allow.
Officially, both Hugo Chavez and Barack Obama have called for the reinstatement of Manuel Zelaya, who was legally removed by the courts and Congress for violating Honduras' constitution—allegedly to extend his rule. The Honduran constitution limits presidents to a single four-year term and forbids any modification of that limit. Zelaya's opponents feared the referendum was part of an attempt to try to run again, just as other Latin American leaders have removed constitutional clauses designed to prevent strongmen from extending their rule.
The further you read into what Zelaya was trying to do, the more proof you see that he was indeed trying to extend his rule in the same fashion of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hugo Chavez. Best of all (tongue in cheek), Obama and Clinton support the deposed Zelaya. It's obvious that our adminastration is more interested in not offending the worlds socialist elite and leaders, then they are in preserving freedom through out the free world.
"Hugo Chávez's coalition-building efforts suffered a setback yesterday when the Honduran military sent its president packing for abusing the nation's constitution.
It seems that President Mel Zelaya miscalculated when he tried to emulate the success of his good friend Hugo in reshaping the Honduran Constitution to his liking.
But Honduras is not out of the Venezuelan woods yet. Yesterday the Central American country was being pressured to restore the authoritarian Mr. Zelaya by the likes of Fidel Castro, Daniel Ortega, Hillary Clinton and, of course, Hugo himself. The Organization of American States, having ignored Mr. Zelaya's abuses, also wants him back in power. It will be a miracle if Honduran patriots can hold their ground." [emphasis added by me.]
Not to be out done by his true leftest buddies, the O Himself has added that he was, "deeply concerned" that the people of Honduras would actually depose their president because he tried to impose law from the office, which the Honduran Constitution does not allow.
Officially, both Hugo Chavez and Barack Obama have called for the reinstatement of Manuel Zelaya, who was legally removed by the courts and Congress for violating Honduras' constitution—allegedly to extend his rule. The Honduran constitution limits presidents to a single four-year term and forbids any modification of that limit. Zelaya's opponents feared the referendum was part of an attempt to try to run again, just as other Latin American leaders have removed constitutional clauses designed to prevent strongmen from extending their rule.
The further you read into what Zelaya was trying to do, the more proof you see that he was indeed trying to extend his rule in the same fashion of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hugo Chavez. Best of all (tongue in cheek), Obama and Clinton support the deposed Zelaya. It's obvious that our adminastration is more interested in not offending the worlds socialist elite and leaders, then they are in preserving freedom through out the free world.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
2nd Weakest 20 Metro Area
[link to Brookings Institute study in title]
Overall Performance
The map below classifies the 100 largest metro areas into 5 categories (quintiles), based on their average rank across a series of four indicators: employment change from peak; unemployment rate change from one year ago; gross metropolitan product change from peak; and housing price index change from one year ago.
Of course our local rag decides to look solely at the economic indicators (61 of 100) with the following rosy headline: "Twin Cities are No. 61 in measure of recession's toll". While somewhat misleading, the headline is true -- IF you take the housing market out of the equation. To me thats kinda like getting a $1000.00 check and then depositing into the bank, which in turn takes $500.00 out of the deposit to pay down your overdraft fee's. True you got a $1000.00 check, but that's not what you ended up with.
Take a look at the several interactive maps in the study. You'll find some interesting information. The Twin Cities is going backwards but we're not the only metro area heading backwards. The entire "rust belt" is going backwards, with the exception of Madison, Des Moines and Omaha-Council Bluffs. I'm sure that had Sioux Falls been ranked in the top 100 metro areas, they would have ranked better then average. Of course California is in the shitter but Texas ranks in the top 20% in nearly every aspect tested.
Here are a few highlights:
"The recession has had highly varied impacts on different metropolitan areas, even within the same broad regions of the country." In March 2009 the unemployment rate ranged from 5.1 percent in Provo to 17.5 percent in Modesto. From the beginning of 2008 through the beginning of 2009, home prices fell by 30.6 percent in Stockton but rose by 4.7 percent in Houston.
"A few metropolitan areas are beginning to showing signs of economic recovery, although none has completely recovered." McAllen (TX) is the only metropolitan area that saw growth in both employment and output during the first quarter of 2009. Employment also rose in New Haven and Baton Rouge, while output also increased in Seattle, Austin, Virginia Beach, Washington, Richmond, San Jose, and Riverside.
"There are two distinct "Manufacturing Belts." Economic pain is widespread in Midwestern metro areas that depend heavily on the auto industry and its supply chain. Most metro areas in Michigan and Ohio have experienced employment and output declines exceeding national averages. Several, including Dayton, Detroit, and Youngstown, began losing jobs two to three years earlier than the U.S. economy as a whole. At the same time, job losses have been more modest, and housing prices have risen slightly, in many Northeastern metro areas that have less auto-oriented manufacturing sectors[.]
"There are also two distinct Sun Belts." Large swaths of the South and West, particularly metropolitan areas in Florida, Arizona, Nevada, and inland California, have suffered severe employment, output, and home value declines over the past year due to the broader housing fallout. Wages in those metro areas have risen rapidly, most likely due to a slowdown in less-skilled migration to those areas, and to disproportionate losses of lower-paying jobs. Yet parts of the Southwest and Deep South—including metro areas in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana—have performed relatively well, experiencing less severe job losses, relatively large wage gains, and modest home price increases. Specializations in energy and government, large amounts of federal hurricane recovery funding for the Gulf Coast, and smaller increases in housing prices during the early and mid-2000s may all help to account for their better performance.
"Concentrations of jobs in "eds and meds" and government seem to have shielded some metro areas from dramatic job losses." ompared to a national employment decline of 3.7 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 through the first quarter of 2009, metro areas with specializations in education and health care saw employment drop by an average of only 2.0 percent, and those specialized in government/military employment saw average job losses of 1.3 percent.
"Tourism-specialized metro areas suffered relatively large employment declines." Metro areas with job concentrations in arts, entertainment, and recreation, such as Orlando, Las Vegas, and Bradenton, experienced 4.0 percent employment declines on average[.]
"A few banking centers have been hard hit, but metro areas specializing in insurance have suffered less." The New York and Charlotte metro areas, the nation’s two foremost banking centers, have suffered in different ways during the recession. Charlotte has suffered deep recent employment losses and its unemployment rate rose dramatically since early 2008, while New York has actually shed jobs at a lower rate than the national average but has experienced steeper declines in output and housing prices. Meanwhile, metro areas specialized in the less-affected insurance industry, such as Des Moines, Hartford, and Omaha, have experienced very modest job losses and have performed relatively well on most other economic indicators.
"38 of the top 100 metro areas avoided declines in home prices over the past year, even as prices nationwide dipped 6 percent." Most of these metro areas also experienced below-average employment declines, and lie in the less-affected parts of the "Manufacturing Belt" (Pennsylvania and upstate New York) and Sun Belt (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana). They also exhibit below-average shares of properties in REO (real estate-owned) status due to bank foreclosure.
Notice how those with most generous welfare, high personal and corporate taxes and liberal policies are heading backwards?
Overall Performance
The map below classifies the 100 largest metro areas into 5 categories (quintiles), based on their average rank across a series of four indicators: employment change from peak; unemployment rate change from one year ago; gross metropolitan product change from peak; and housing price index change from one year ago.
Of course our local rag decides to look solely at the economic indicators (61 of 100) with the following rosy headline: "Twin Cities are No. 61 in measure of recession's toll". While somewhat misleading, the headline is true -- IF you take the housing market out of the equation. To me thats kinda like getting a $1000.00 check and then depositing into the bank, which in turn takes $500.00 out of the deposit to pay down your overdraft fee's. True you got a $1000.00 check, but that's not what you ended up with.
Take a look at the several interactive maps in the study. You'll find some interesting information. The Twin Cities is going backwards but we're not the only metro area heading backwards. The entire "rust belt" is going backwards, with the exception of Madison, Des Moines and Omaha-Council Bluffs. I'm sure that had Sioux Falls been ranked in the top 100 metro areas, they would have ranked better then average. Of course California is in the shitter but Texas ranks in the top 20% in nearly every aspect tested.
Here are a few highlights:
"The recession has had highly varied impacts on different metropolitan areas, even within the same broad regions of the country." In March 2009 the unemployment rate ranged from 5.1 percent in Provo to 17.5 percent in Modesto. From the beginning of 2008 through the beginning of 2009, home prices fell by 30.6 percent in Stockton but rose by 4.7 percent in Houston.
"A few metropolitan areas are beginning to showing signs of economic recovery, although none has completely recovered." McAllen (TX) is the only metropolitan area that saw growth in both employment and output during the first quarter of 2009. Employment also rose in New Haven and Baton Rouge, while output also increased in Seattle, Austin, Virginia Beach, Washington, Richmond, San Jose, and Riverside.
"There are two distinct "Manufacturing Belts." Economic pain is widespread in Midwestern metro areas that depend heavily on the auto industry and its supply chain. Most metro areas in Michigan and Ohio have experienced employment and output declines exceeding national averages. Several, including Dayton, Detroit, and Youngstown, began losing jobs two to three years earlier than the U.S. economy as a whole. At the same time, job losses have been more modest, and housing prices have risen slightly, in many Northeastern metro areas that have less auto-oriented manufacturing sectors[.]
"There are also two distinct Sun Belts." Large swaths of the South and West, particularly metropolitan areas in Florida, Arizona, Nevada, and inland California, have suffered severe employment, output, and home value declines over the past year due to the broader housing fallout. Wages in those metro areas have risen rapidly, most likely due to a slowdown in less-skilled migration to those areas, and to disproportionate losses of lower-paying jobs. Yet parts of the Southwest and Deep South—including metro areas in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana—have performed relatively well, experiencing less severe job losses, relatively large wage gains, and modest home price increases. Specializations in energy and government, large amounts of federal hurricane recovery funding for the Gulf Coast, and smaller increases in housing prices during the early and mid-2000s may all help to account for their better performance.
"Concentrations of jobs in "eds and meds" and government seem to have shielded some metro areas from dramatic job losses." ompared to a national employment decline of 3.7 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 through the first quarter of 2009, metro areas with specializations in education and health care saw employment drop by an average of only 2.0 percent, and those specialized in government/military employment saw average job losses of 1.3 percent.
"Tourism-specialized metro areas suffered relatively large employment declines." Metro areas with job concentrations in arts, entertainment, and recreation, such as Orlando, Las Vegas, and Bradenton, experienced 4.0 percent employment declines on average[.]
"A few banking centers have been hard hit, but metro areas specializing in insurance have suffered less." The New York and Charlotte metro areas, the nation’s two foremost banking centers, have suffered in different ways during the recession. Charlotte has suffered deep recent employment losses and its unemployment rate rose dramatically since early 2008, while New York has actually shed jobs at a lower rate than the national average but has experienced steeper declines in output and housing prices. Meanwhile, metro areas specialized in the less-affected insurance industry, such as Des Moines, Hartford, and Omaha, have experienced very modest job losses and have performed relatively well on most other economic indicators.
"38 of the top 100 metro areas avoided declines in home prices over the past year, even as prices nationwide dipped 6 percent." Most of these metro areas also experienced below-average employment declines, and lie in the less-affected parts of the "Manufacturing Belt" (Pennsylvania and upstate New York) and Sun Belt (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana). They also exhibit below-average shares of properties in REO (real estate-owned) status due to bank foreclosure.
Notice how those with most generous welfare, high personal and corporate taxes and liberal policies are heading backwards?
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
We're all going to die, thanks to MMGW
[link in title]
Breaking news: "Obama's first global warming report most dire yet: Ill effects already here, will get worse[.]"
I love the first two paragraphs: "Harmful effects from global warming are already here and worsening, warns the first climate report from Barack Obama's presidency in the strongest language on climate change ever to come out of the White House.
Global warming has already caused more heavy downpours, the rise of temperatures and sea levels, rapidly retreating glaciers and altered river flows, according to the document released Tuesday by the White House science adviser and other top officials."
The full report can be downloaded HERE.
The timing of this report couldn't be worse. So far this year the Northern Hemisphere has experienced much colder then normal weather this year. In fact, the cold snap has been happening since 2007(or as some say, earlier). Here are a few reminders of the unusually cold or record cold and unusual weather we have experienced in 2008:
On December 20th, 2008 this map was built showing close to Nearly 1500 cold temp records & 770 snow records set in U.S. in past week! [source: INFO MAP] Just this month here in the Twin Cities: Historic cold in Twin Cities - Minnesota’s State Climatology Office says the temperatures in St. Paul and Minneapolis stayed below for 60 for three straight days, something that hasn't happened in June since June 1-3, 1951.
The only other years with three days in a row of high temperatures below 60 in June were 1917, 1935, and 1937.
The high temperature of 52 degrees on Saturday (06/06/2009) set a record as the lowest high temperature for that date.
www.iceagenow.com has compiled a list of record cold and snow fall total since 2000. It is a must read!
Breaking news: "Obama's first global warming report most dire yet: Ill effects already here, will get worse[.]"
I love the first two paragraphs: "Harmful effects from global warming are already here and worsening, warns the first climate report from Barack Obama's presidency in the strongest language on climate change ever to come out of the White House.
Global warming has already caused more heavy downpours, the rise of temperatures and sea levels, rapidly retreating glaciers and altered river flows, according to the document released Tuesday by the White House science adviser and other top officials."
The full report can be downloaded HERE.
The timing of this report couldn't be worse. So far this year the Northern Hemisphere has experienced much colder then normal weather this year. In fact, the cold snap has been happening since 2007(or as some say, earlier). Here are a few reminders of the unusually cold or record cold and unusual weather we have experienced in 2008:
On December 20th, 2008 this map was built showing close to Nearly 1500 cold temp records & 770 snow records set in U.S. in past week! [source: INFO MAP] Just this month here in the Twin Cities: Historic cold in Twin Cities - Minnesota’s State Climatology Office says the temperatures in St. Paul and Minneapolis stayed below for 60 for three straight days, something that hasn't happened in June since June 1-3, 1951.
The only other years with three days in a row of high temperatures below 60 in June were 1917, 1935, and 1937.
The high temperature of 52 degrees on Saturday (06/06/2009) set a record as the lowest high temperature for that date.
www.iceagenow.com has compiled a list of record cold and snow fall total since 2000. It is a must read!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
BUT
[link in title]
WASHINGTON (AP) -- "The Obama administration says executive compensation must be better managed to prevent the sort of risk-taking that jeopardizes the economy.
Gene Sperling, who advises Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, said Thursday the administration does not want to impose caps on executive pay. But he also laid out for the House Financial Services Committee a list of guidelines calling on publicly-held companies to link compensation to long-term performance, not short-term gains." [emphasis added]
HOLY SHIT! The Obama adminsitration now want's to suggest a list of guidelines on on executive pay. Slippery Slope, meet the Obama adminsitration. Oh, you two already know each other? Oh yeah, Citi Group, Chrysler, GM, TARP. Great circle of friends.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- "The Obama administration says executive compensation must be better managed to prevent the sort of risk-taking that jeopardizes the economy.
Gene Sperling, who advises Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, said Thursday the administration does not want to impose caps on executive pay. But he also laid out for the House Financial Services Committee a list of guidelines calling on publicly-held companies to link compensation to long-term performance, not short-term gains." [emphasis added]
HOLY SHIT! The Obama adminsitration now want's to suggest a list of guidelines on on executive pay. Slippery Slope, meet the Obama adminsitration. Oh, you two already know each other? Oh yeah, Citi Group, Chrysler, GM, TARP. Great circle of friends.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
The government, after all, can create jobs by hiring people to dig holes and fill them in.
Milton Friedman.
I read the following Wall Street Journal Opinion and this piece managed to capture my thoughts.
The opinion piece puts a square focus on the job term, 'saved or created'. And, what I find interesting, there is no government office that tracks and counts jobs saved. According to Tony Fratto, Deputy Assistant and Deputy Press Secretary to former United States President George W. Bush, "We would never have used a formula like 'save or create[.] To begin with, the number is pure fiction -- the administration has no way to measure how many jobs are actually being 'saved.' And if we had tried to use something this flimsy, the press would never have let us get away with it." Is Tony Fratto calling bullshit on the BIG O?
Politico sure paints a rosy picture of Obama's big "Saved or Created" speech from June 7th: "President Barack Obama announced Monday that he is ramping up stimulus spending exponentially in the next three months, allowing the administration to “save or create” 600,000 jobs — four times as many as during the first 100 days since he signed the bill.
“We’re in a position to really accelerate,” Obama said, unveiling plans to boost spending on national parks, summer youth jobs, veterans medical centers, police and teachers. [Great, more government jobs]
Hmmm, lemme see: 600,000 / 4 = 150,000. So, according to Obama, he has "saved or created" 150,000 jobs in his first 100 days in office which is about 46,000 per month. BUT, the numbers don't lie, according Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 787,000 jobs were purged from the rolls. I guess, according to Obama and his figures, the actual numbers for may would have been 833,000.
Remember, PORKulus is to "save or create" jobs, mostly in the 'green' industry. Yet Suzlon Rotor Corp. in Pipestone will cut its workforce in half because of weak demand for its wind turbine blades -- even as state and federal officials are still pushing renewable energy sources.
I read the following Wall Street Journal Opinion and this piece managed to capture my thoughts.
The opinion piece puts a square focus on the job term, 'saved or created'. And, what I find interesting, there is no government office that tracks and counts jobs saved. According to Tony Fratto, Deputy Assistant and Deputy Press Secretary to former United States President George W. Bush, "We would never have used a formula like 'save or create[.] To begin with, the number is pure fiction -- the administration has no way to measure how many jobs are actually being 'saved.' And if we had tried to use something this flimsy, the press would never have let us get away with it." Is Tony Fratto calling bullshit on the BIG O?
Politico sure paints a rosy picture of Obama's big "Saved or Created" speech from June 7th: "President Barack Obama announced Monday that he is ramping up stimulus spending exponentially in the next three months, allowing the administration to “save or create” 600,000 jobs — four times as many as during the first 100 days since he signed the bill.
“We’re in a position to really accelerate,” Obama said, unveiling plans to boost spending on national parks, summer youth jobs, veterans medical centers, police and teachers. [Great, more government jobs]
Hmmm, lemme see: 600,000 / 4 = 150,000. So, according to Obama, he has "saved or created" 150,000 jobs in his first 100 days in office which is about 46,000 per month. BUT, the numbers don't lie, according Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 787,000 jobs were purged from the rolls. I guess, according to Obama and his figures, the actual numbers for may would have been 833,000.
Remember, PORKulus is to "save or create" jobs, mostly in the 'green' industry. Yet Suzlon Rotor Corp. in Pipestone will cut its workforce in half because of weak demand for its wind turbine blades -- even as state and federal officials are still pushing renewable energy sources.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
President Apology
[Full Egypt speech linked to Huffington Post in title]
"I am also proud to carry with me the goodwill of the American people, and a greeting of peace from Muslim communities in my country: assalaamu alaykum."
"We meet at a time of tension between the United States and Muslims around the world - tension rooted in historical forces that go beyond any current policy debate. The relationship between Islam and the West includes centuries of co-existence and cooperation, but also conflict and religious wars. More recently, tension has been fed by colonialism that denied rights and opportunities to many Muslims, and a Cold War in which Muslim-majority countries were too often treated as proxies without regard to their own aspirations. Moreover, the sweeping change brought by modernity and globalization led many Muslims to view the West as hostile to the traditions of Islam. [emphasis added by me]
There must be a sustained effort to listen to each other; to learn from each other; to respect one another; and to seek common ground. As the Holy Koran tells us, "Be conscious of God and speak always the truth." That is what I will try to do - to speak the truth as best I can, humbled by the task before us, and firm in my belief that the interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart.
Part of this conviction is rooted in my own experience. I am a Christian, but my father came from a Kenyan family that includes generations of Muslims. As a boy, I spent several years in Indonesia and heard the call of the azaan at the break of dawn and the fall of dusk.
I know, too, that Islam has always been a part of America's story[.].. And when the first Muslim-American was recently elected to Congress, he took the oath to defend our Constitution using the same Holy Koran that one of our Founding Fathers - Thomas Jefferson - kept in his personal library.
...
So I have known Islam on three continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed. That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it isn't." [emphasis added by me]
I do not care that Obama has all but stated he is/was a Muslim. I have Muslim friends, I own a beautiful leather bound copy of the Koran that was given to me as a gift from a good friend who is a convert. What bothers me is both the tone of almost contempt displayed by Obama towards America and his glowing representaion of how the "West" has treated Muslim majority countries.
While we're at it, why during the campaign, were people labeled "racist" for asking if Obama is/was Muslim. If he's going to run around the middle-east on an apology tour touting his Muslim roots, why were his Muslim roots hushed during the campaign?
"I am also proud to carry with me the goodwill of the American people, and a greeting of peace from Muslim communities in my country: assalaamu alaykum."
"We meet at a time of tension between the United States and Muslims around the world - tension rooted in historical forces that go beyond any current policy debate. The relationship between Islam and the West includes centuries of co-existence and cooperation, but also conflict and religious wars. More recently, tension has been fed by colonialism that denied rights and opportunities to many Muslims, and a Cold War in which Muslim-majority countries were too often treated as proxies without regard to their own aspirations. Moreover, the sweeping change brought by modernity and globalization led many Muslims to view the West as hostile to the traditions of Islam. [emphasis added by me]
There must be a sustained effort to listen to each other; to learn from each other; to respect one another; and to seek common ground. As the Holy Koran tells us, "Be conscious of God and speak always the truth." That is what I will try to do - to speak the truth as best I can, humbled by the task before us, and firm in my belief that the interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart.
Part of this conviction is rooted in my own experience. I am a Christian, but my father came from a Kenyan family that includes generations of Muslims. As a boy, I spent several years in Indonesia and heard the call of the azaan at the break of dawn and the fall of dusk.
I know, too, that Islam has always been a part of America's story[.].. And when the first Muslim-American was recently elected to Congress, he took the oath to defend our Constitution using the same Holy Koran that one of our Founding Fathers - Thomas Jefferson - kept in his personal library.
...
So I have known Islam on three continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed. That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it isn't." [emphasis added by me]
I do not care that Obama has all but stated he is/was a Muslim. I have Muslim friends, I own a beautiful leather bound copy of the Koran that was given to me as a gift from a good friend who is a convert. What bothers me is both the tone of almost contempt displayed by Obama towards America and his glowing representaion of how the "West" has treated Muslim majority countries.
While we're at it, why during the campaign, were people labeled "racist" for asking if Obama is/was Muslim. If he's going to run around the middle-east on an apology tour touting his Muslim roots, why were his Muslim roots hushed during the campaign?
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