There once was a woman named Mary. Well, I say a woman, but she was actually only a teenage girl. Many assumed she was older because she was engaged to be married when she became pregnant. The truth is she might have been as young as fourteen. So here she is, young, pregnant, and to make matters worse, the baby was not fathered by her husband to be.
In the society she was raised in, the promise of marriage as sacred as the marriage contract, and they took a very, very dim view of adultery, let alone unwed pregnancy.
What was her response when she found out? At first she was confused, but then, calling herself the Lord's servant, accepted the pregnancy as the will of God and said she was willing to do what ever God asked of her. She didn't seem to think of it in terms of "God is asking me to, so I have a choice to say yes or no." She seemed to have thought of it only in terms of "This is what God wants me to do, so I will do it."
What was the response of her husband to be? When he learned of the pregnancy, he first thought it would be best to quietly back out of the engagement and sign papers for what would essentially be a "divorce" from the engagement contract. He thought to do it quietly so that no one else in the community would hear about it and hurt her. But being the good, prayerful man that he was, he didn't make an angry or snap decision. Instead, he took time to be sure. After thinking it over, maybe just one night, maybe a little longer, he felt God telling him - not asking but telling him - to go ahead and take Mary as his wife and raise the child as his own. So he did. He took her home, but didn't lay with her until after her son was born. Then he loved, cared for and protected the little boy as he felt God wanted him to.*
World Net Daily reports that Planned Parenthood is again offering a gift card, which in the past several years they have called a "Choice on Earth" card. The term "Choice on Earth is a play on the passage from Luke 2:14, which refers to "peace on Earth," a statement made by a heavenly angel celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ to Mary. Reportedly the certificates come in $25 increments and can be used for any most anything at their clinics, from birth control to breast exams and pap tests. "Woman's health is Planned Parenthoods promotional feature. They don't sell them as just abortion gifts. But Planned Parenthood does accept these cards for use in abortions.
One person on a forum at online Lone Star Times has referred to the cards as a legal way to put a hit out on someone.
WND columnist Jill Stanek, who also documented the cards on her blog, stated, "Planned Parenthood, this generation's King Herod, you know, the guy who ordered the mass slaughter of babies when Jesus was born." That would be the same King Herod that Mary's husband protected baby Jesus from.
The Lone Star Times forums page included other analogies. One commenter said the card was "A gift for those who only want to kill the very innocent."
Others quipped that the card could read, "Good for one dead baby," or "What a marvelous way for the donor as well as the recipient-user to have blood on their hands, "and "Redeem this at Planned Parenthood. No other redemption possible. Ever." (The last isn't Scriptural but gets the point of seriousness across. Everyone, no matter the sin, can be redeemed if only they humble themselves, grieve their sins, ask forgiveness, and accept that Jesus Christ is their Lord.)
Jim Sedlak, executive director of American Life League's STOPP International, once slammed the Planned Parenthood gift card campaigns by saying, "In its continual attempt to 'normalize' abortion, Planned Parenthood has once again chosen to offend the Christian community by releasing the latest edition of its 'Choice on Earth' holiday cards. Contrary to the open-minded image the abortion organization aims to present for itself, Planned Parenthood has zero tolerance for anyone – or any religious group – that recognizes abortion as an evil act that kills a pre-born baby."
He also said, "By replacing 'peace' with 'choice,' or more accurately, 'killing the innocent on earth,' Planned Parenthood is essentially saying 'abortion on earth,'" Sedlak said. "This blatant mockery of Christian values – and of Christ Himself – truly demonstrates the bigoted, anti-religion, anti-God nature of Planned Parenthood."
* adapted from Matthew Chapter 2 and Luke Chapter 2
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Friday, November 28, 2008
The Sarah Palin Ad - Thank You from America
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The Sarah Palin Ad
Without a doubt, people that have no respect for others will mock this ad. The people in the ad were honestly expressing the appreciation they feel for Governor Palin, but a certain number in America don't like honest people expressing themselves.
The nasty comments below the video seem to be the types of comments given by teenagers who can't stand their parents and grandparents; the kinds of kids that have never been taught to respect people that don't agree with them.
It also reflected the gap between older, rural adults and younger, urban brats...er, people.
But it doesn't matter. These were real people expressing real feelings. To heck with what anyone else thinks.
I know we're supposed to care because pundits say we can't win if we don't win young urban people. But ever since the election we've been getting nothing but pressure from the left to change. We aren't accepted for who we are and what we think. We're supposed to jump on the bandwagon and be part of the new, "united America."
I was listening to some of the pundits saying conservatives need to come to the center and forget all the Christian morality if we're ever to win back the White House. It made me sick to hear that. I thought...but even if that effort were to be successful, who would be winning the White House? Not us. Do you understand what I'm saying? Unless the Repubilcan candidate understands our values and represents our issues, we aren't winning even if the Republican wins.
Moving to the center doesn't do us any good. Being who they want us to be means nothing if in the process we lose who we are and all that we stand for.
Yes, the video was cheesy. but maybe that was because that's who we are. Simple and cheesy. so what. I love those people in the video for it. Even the little lady at the end. Because look at them - who do they remind you of? They are my grandparents, neighbors, church family, and friends. I'm proud of them.
I might be naive, but sooner or later young people grow up and realize Mom and Dad were right.
Maybe by 2012 or 2016 a certain number of Obama fans will have grown up.
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The Sarah Palin Ad
Without a doubt, people that have no respect for others will mock this ad. The people in the ad were honestly expressing the appreciation they feel for Governor Palin, but a certain number in America don't like honest people expressing themselves.
The nasty comments below the video seem to be the types of comments given by teenagers who can't stand their parents and grandparents; the kinds of kids that have never been taught to respect people that don't agree with them.
It also reflected the gap between older, rural adults and younger, urban brats...er, people.
But it doesn't matter. These were real people expressing real feelings. To heck with what anyone else thinks.
I know we're supposed to care because pundits say we can't win if we don't win young urban people. But ever since the election we've been getting nothing but pressure from the left to change. We aren't accepted for who we are and what we think. We're supposed to jump on the bandwagon and be part of the new, "united America."
I was listening to some of the pundits saying conservatives need to come to the center and forget all the Christian morality if we're ever to win back the White House. It made me sick to hear that. I thought...but even if that effort were to be successful, who would be winning the White House? Not us. Do you understand what I'm saying? Unless the Repubilcan candidate understands our values and represents our issues, we aren't winning even if the Republican wins.
Moving to the center doesn't do us any good. Being who they want us to be means nothing if in the process we lose who we are and all that we stand for.
Yes, the video was cheesy. but maybe that was because that's who we are. Simple and cheesy. so what. I love those people in the video for it. Even the little lady at the end. Because look at them - who do they remind you of? They are my grandparents, neighbors, church family, and friends. I'm proud of them.
I might be naive, but sooner or later young people grow up and realize Mom and Dad were right.
Maybe by 2012 or 2016 a certain number of Obama fans will have grown up.
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Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Joran van der Sloot is telling the truth
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I do believe Joran van der Sloot is telling the truth this time. The initial suspicion was that he had killed Natalee Holloway. Now he says he sold her.
It's easy to say he's a liar and that he's lied before. But his face is different in this interview. It's sad, not angry as in other videos. His eyes are also softer. And when he's telling his story or answering Greta's questions, he includes detail and presents it naturally.
Many of the details aren't ones that would normally come to mind if one were making the story up. He says that Natalie made no objection when the man led her onto the boat. If I were making the story up, I would have said that she was upset and fought and even screamed. I would have said that because it's what those of that have never participated in such a thing would have expected to happen. It didn't occur to me that she might drunkenly cooperate, not understanding that Joran wasn't going with and that she had been set up.
Joran's story to Greta fits all the puzzle pieces. We've long suspected that his father had paid off officials in Aruba in order to "save" his son. That was the only thing that could explain their indifference to the case.
Also, when Greta asked questions concerning his father's involvement, Joran drew back and tried to end the interview. He had wanted to confess and get it off his chest. As he said in the tape between himself and his father, he felt rotten and thought that if the girl could be found, it will prove that he'd never hurt her. But in his desire to get it off his chest, he didn't want those that had covered up for him to get into trouble. He remembered his father's admonishments concerning the amount of money that had paid to make this go away. He remembered his father's admonishment that if Joran goes down for this, it would affect him and Joran's mother as well. This after his father reminds him that human trafficking is bad. Good father.
Obviously Joran grew up incredibly spoiled.
I don't know how Greta got him to come back to the interview. Maybe Joran's desire to tell the story was just that strong. But later, after he got back to his parents, he took it all back and claimed he'd lied again. It would be expected that he would say that after he returned home and the story came out.
What he did to Natalie is beyond horrific. There is no excuse for what he did and he needs to pay the consequences, no matter what. Joran was a monster when he seduced and then sold Natalie. But I think he knows that now. His sick father, the one that spoiled him silly all his life, still doesn't.
If Natalie is still alive, I pray the Lord is with her and that she is found quickly. If she is not, I pray that she died quickly and without trauma. Either way, I pray for comfort for her parents.
And for Joran, I pray that his heart suffers and succumbs under the pressure and "rotten" feeling in his heart. I pray that through this he comes to know himself as the monster he is - that he wakes up and fully recognizes who he is. And then I pray salvation for him and everyone else involved. And I pray that the Lord takes Joran's father by the scruff of the neck and shakes the heck out of him until he wakes up and starts to feel rotten in his heart as well.
Lord in the name of Jesus, I pray Natalie is found..
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I do believe Joran van der Sloot is telling the truth this time. The initial suspicion was that he had killed Natalee Holloway. Now he says he sold her.
It's easy to say he's a liar and that he's lied before. But his face is different in this interview. It's sad, not angry as in other videos. His eyes are also softer. And when he's telling his story or answering Greta's questions, he includes detail and presents it naturally.
Many of the details aren't ones that would normally come to mind if one were making the story up. He says that Natalie made no objection when the man led her onto the boat. If I were making the story up, I would have said that she was upset and fought and even screamed. I would have said that because it's what those of that have never participated in such a thing would have expected to happen. It didn't occur to me that she might drunkenly cooperate, not understanding that Joran wasn't going with and that she had been set up.
Joran's story to Greta fits all the puzzle pieces. We've long suspected that his father had paid off officials in Aruba in order to "save" his son. That was the only thing that could explain their indifference to the case.
Also, when Greta asked questions concerning his father's involvement, Joran drew back and tried to end the interview. He had wanted to confess and get it off his chest. As he said in the tape between himself and his father, he felt rotten and thought that if the girl could be found, it will prove that he'd never hurt her. But in his desire to get it off his chest, he didn't want those that had covered up for him to get into trouble. He remembered his father's admonishments concerning the amount of money that had paid to make this go away. He remembered his father's admonishment that if Joran goes down for this, it would affect him and Joran's mother as well. This after his father reminds him that human trafficking is bad. Good father.
Obviously Joran grew up incredibly spoiled.
I don't know how Greta got him to come back to the interview. Maybe Joran's desire to tell the story was just that strong. But later, after he got back to his parents, he took it all back and claimed he'd lied again. It would be expected that he would say that after he returned home and the story came out.
What he did to Natalie is beyond horrific. There is no excuse for what he did and he needs to pay the consequences, no matter what. Joran was a monster when he seduced and then sold Natalie. But I think he knows that now. His sick father, the one that spoiled him silly all his life, still doesn't.
If Natalie is still alive, I pray the Lord is with her and that she is found quickly. If she is not, I pray that she died quickly and without trauma. Either way, I pray for comfort for her parents.
And for Joran, I pray that his heart suffers and succumbs under the pressure and "rotten" feeling in his heart. I pray that through this he comes to know himself as the monster he is - that he wakes up and fully recognizes who he is. And then I pray salvation for him and everyone else involved. And I pray that the Lord takes Joran's father by the scruff of the neck and shakes the heck out of him until he wakes up and starts to feel rotten in his heart as well.
Lord in the name of Jesus, I pray Natalie is found..
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Monday, November 24, 2008
Oberman Can Eat Cake.
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What is Keith Olberman having for dinner this Thursday other than a slaughtered turkey? Why is he all tied in knots because Governor Palin was at a turkey farm just before Thanksgiving, and turkey's were being slaughtered?
Several years ago, after our family had moved from a big city out to a rural area, my husband, a member of the Minnesota Chippewa tribe, decided not to take any more government entitlements and support our family on his own. Not having much money and no longer having food stamps, commodities or WIC, we started raising chickens and goats and teaching the kids to take care of them. The kids' chores included feeding, gathering eggs, milking the goats, etc.
People came over to show my husband and I how to slaughter the chickens when it was time. This was much cleaner, kinder, better for the kids, and more satisfactory than showing up regularly to a government worker, filling out all of their intrusive forms, and taking our neighbors tax money - all to buy someone else's slaughtered chickens, etc.
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What is Keith Olberman having for dinner this Thursday other than a slaughtered turkey? Why is he all tied in knots because Governor Palin was at a turkey farm just before Thanksgiving, and turkey's were being slaughtered?
Several years ago, after our family had moved from a big city out to a rural area, my husband, a member of the Minnesota Chippewa tribe, decided not to take any more government entitlements and support our family on his own. Not having much money and no longer having food stamps, commodities or WIC, we started raising chickens and goats and teaching the kids to take care of them. The kids' chores included feeding, gathering eggs, milking the goats, etc.
People came over to show my husband and I how to slaughter the chickens when it was time. This was much cleaner, kinder, better for the kids, and more satisfactory than showing up regularly to a government worker, filling out all of their intrusive forms, and taking our neighbors tax money - all to buy someone else's slaughtered chickens, etc.
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Thursday, November 13, 2008
Presidential Pardon for Border Guards
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Former Border Guards Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean's need a pardon or commutation from President Bush before he leaves office.
"We still remain very hopeful that that will happen, and if it doesn’t, we’ll have the appeal to the Supreme Court,” T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, told Fox News. "Ultimately we’re hoping that justice is served in this case because both of those agents are innocent. All they were doing was their job defending themselves against an armed drug smuggler in the process of stopping a load a marijuana that was worth more than a million dollars."
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R.-Ca., said Thursday, “Many patriotic Americans are dismayed by the continued persecution and legal torture of former Border Patrol officers Ramos and Compean,"
In 2005, Ramos and Compean shot a drug smuggler in his butt. They say that they believed the man was armed and they reacted in self defense. Drug runners are frequently armed and shoot at border patrol.
The smuggler admits he was smuggling hundreds of pounds of marijuana on the day he was shot. He also pled guilty earlier this year to drug smuggling, but it wasn’t the smuggling he was doing that day. The smuggling he was charged for happened several months after the shooting. Apparently he learned nothing from the incident.
Supporters argue that the U.S. Attorney should have prosecuted the drug-smugger rather than the US Border patrol. Should the border patrol now be afraid to do their jobs, lest they get arrested? Aren’t their jobs and the stresses that go with it hard enough already?
We’re praying President Bush pardons these men, who were doing their job protecting our border as well as trying to keep drugs off the streets and out of our children’s hands. President Bush, please support our law enforcement officers and pardon these men.
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Former Border Guards Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean's need a pardon or commutation from President Bush before he leaves office.
"We still remain very hopeful that that will happen, and if it doesn’t, we’ll have the appeal to the Supreme Court,” T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, told Fox News. "Ultimately we’re hoping that justice is served in this case because both of those agents are innocent. All they were doing was their job defending themselves against an armed drug smuggler in the process of stopping a load a marijuana that was worth more than a million dollars."
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R.-Ca., said Thursday, “Many patriotic Americans are dismayed by the continued persecution and legal torture of former Border Patrol officers Ramos and Compean,"
In 2005, Ramos and Compean shot a drug smuggler in his butt. They say that they believed the man was armed and they reacted in self defense. Drug runners are frequently armed and shoot at border patrol.
The smuggler admits he was smuggling hundreds of pounds of marijuana on the day he was shot. He also pled guilty earlier this year to drug smuggling, but it wasn’t the smuggling he was doing that day. The smuggling he was charged for happened several months after the shooting. Apparently he learned nothing from the incident.
Supporters argue that the U.S. Attorney should have prosecuted the drug-smugger rather than the US Border patrol. Should the border patrol now be afraid to do their jobs, lest they get arrested? Aren’t their jobs and the stresses that go with it hard enough already?
We’re praying President Bush pardons these men, who were doing their job protecting our border as well as trying to keep drugs off the streets and out of our children’s hands. President Bush, please support our law enforcement officers and pardon these men.
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Thursday, November 6, 2008
Thank You Sarah Palin
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Sarah, you are awesome. I didn't know anything about you prior to the Republican Convention, but I fell in love with you right off the bat.
A Conservative, Christian, home school mom. A praying, believing Mom. Just like the women I know and love in my church community - you reminded me of Kathy, Ann, and dozens of others.
I trusted you right away.
I listened to your pastor do interviews. I saw the prayer for you on the internet. (Interesting that the media now reports that Obama was prayed for in Kenya, in a "traditional Pentecostal" way, but apparently, it was okay for him)
I liked your pastors. I also liked that you were on the same page with us as far as the issues were concerned.
I could also relate to - and was hurt by - attacks on your oldest daughter. My daughter had her baby almost two years ago. I want to tell you, it was hard to learn she was pregnant, but that little guy, he's the joy of our household. He makes us all so happy, especially with everything being so stressful lately. He brightens my day by just walking in to the room.
You've done a great job with your kids. You've been a great Mayor and Governor. You did an awesome job standing up to all the pummeling these last two months. We look forward to working with you more.
We met your husband in Moorhead. He's so easy going; we loved him. My daughter told him she felt for your daughter, and showed him her baby. On the drive home, one of my adult daughters said that while listening to Obama speak earlier this year, she found it hard to pay attention. She said Obama had good inflection, but his content was too smooth. As she put it, too “politician.” But she really enjoyed listening to Todd. He wasn’t a polished speaker, but she said that’s what she liked. He was real, and you knew that what he was saying was coming from his heart.
I also told him that I'd like to talk to you about the Indian Child Welfare Act and how it is hurting families. Hope you got the message.
Sarah, you are awesome. I didn't know anything about you prior to the Republican Convention, but I fell in love with you right off the bat.
A Conservative, Christian, home school mom. A praying, believing Mom. Just like the women I know and love in my church community - you reminded me of Kathy, Ann, and dozens of others.
I trusted you right away.
I listened to your pastor do interviews. I saw the prayer for you on the internet. (Interesting that the media now reports that Obama was prayed for in Kenya, in a "traditional Pentecostal" way, but apparently, it was okay for him)
I liked your pastors. I also liked that you were on the same page with us as far as the issues were concerned.
I could also relate to - and was hurt by - attacks on your oldest daughter. My daughter had her baby almost two years ago. I want to tell you, it was hard to learn she was pregnant, but that little guy, he's the joy of our household. He makes us all so happy, especially with everything being so stressful lately. He brightens my day by just walking in to the room.
You've done a great job with your kids. You've been a great Mayor and Governor. You did an awesome job standing up to all the pummeling these last two months. We look forward to working with you more.
We met your husband in Moorhead. He's so easy going; we loved him. My daughter told him she felt for your daughter, and showed him her baby. On the drive home, one of my adult daughters said that while listening to Obama speak earlier this year, she found it hard to pay attention. She said Obama had good inflection, but his content was too smooth. As she put it, too “politician.” But she really enjoyed listening to Todd. He wasn’t a polished speaker, but she said that’s what she liked. He was real, and you knew that what he was saying was coming from his heart.
I also told him that I'd like to talk to you about the Indian Child Welfare Act and how it is hurting families. Hope you got the message.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Despite Everything, Almost Half of America Voted McCain
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Some are already blaming Sarah Palin, Fox News, President Bush, and even Joe the Plumber.
Come on.
Despite Bush’s unpopularity, fatigue with Iraq, Obama's charisma, McCain's age, the fact that this was a Democratic year, the $600 million that Obama received, the blanketing of Obama ads, the media bias for Obama, and the economy," John McCain got 46% of the popular vote.
Stop and think - that means despite all those things against him, almost half of America still preferred McCain over Obama.
So if McCain had run a good campaign and brought home the fact that he had been fighting for years to stop Fannie and Freddie from doing what they were doing, and Obama hadn't had all those donations from overseas to use to blanket the media with campaign promises - as well as Acorn and other organizations committing voter fraud - what would have been the result?
I think that all things considered, Senator McCain did very well. This election in no way means that Conservative views were rejected.
Many of the newly registered voters had no idea what they real issues were and weren't concerned about them. It's a very sad day in America when an election as important as this one has been decided by people bought by charisma.
Further - both Obama and McCain had moved right in their campaigning. Obama moved to center and McCain moved farther right. That shows that America is more to the right than to the left, and it still is.
There are no tears of regret here. Sarah Palin still represents the conservative half of America - which still has a right to exist and is not going away.
God Bless the Palins and McCains. I pray the Lord now leads them in the direction they are to go in order to serve His - The Lord's - Holy purposes. And I pray the Lord leads us as well. Lord, please give us all the wisdom and courage to do whatever you ask of us. I ask this in Your Holy Name - the Holy Name of Jesus.
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Some are already blaming Sarah Palin, Fox News, President Bush, and even Joe the Plumber.
Come on.
Despite Bush’s unpopularity, fatigue with Iraq, Obama's charisma, McCain's age, the fact that this was a Democratic year, the $600 million that Obama received, the blanketing of Obama ads, the media bias for Obama, and the economy," John McCain got 46% of the popular vote.
Stop and think - that means despite all those things against him, almost half of America still preferred McCain over Obama.
So if McCain had run a good campaign and brought home the fact that he had been fighting for years to stop Fannie and Freddie from doing what they were doing, and Obama hadn't had all those donations from overseas to use to blanket the media with campaign promises - as well as Acorn and other organizations committing voter fraud - what would have been the result?
I think that all things considered, Senator McCain did very well. This election in no way means that Conservative views were rejected.
- Many of the new voters - people who wouldn't have voted otherwise - voted Obama, including my 21-year-old son-in-law, had no real knowledge or care what the issues were. They simply thought Obama was cool, or that Obama is going to work miracles in their lives.
- Others say they voted for Obama because McCain gave them no reason to vote for him. But in saying that, did they say they embrace Obama's issues? No.
- And others say they voted for Obama because McCain went negative. Is that saying they agreed with Obama on the issues? No.
Many of the newly registered voters had no idea what they real issues were and weren't concerned about them. It's a very sad day in America when an election as important as this one has been decided by people bought by charisma.
Further - both Obama and McCain had moved right in their campaigning. Obama moved to center and McCain moved farther right. That shows that America is more to the right than to the left, and it still is.
There are no tears of regret here. Sarah Palin still represents the conservative half of America - which still has a right to exist and is not going away.
God Bless the Palins and McCains. I pray the Lord now leads them in the direction they are to go in order to serve His - The Lord's - Holy purposes. And I pray the Lord leads us as well. Lord, please give us all the wisdom and courage to do whatever you ask of us. I ask this in Your Holy Name - the Holy Name of Jesus.
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Sunday, November 2, 2008
Obama Campaign Worker Message
This message below was written by an Obama Campaign worker and was originally posted at http://www.lynettelong.com/ It is interesting to me that despite hundereds of people viewing this post in the last two days, there has been no comment from Obama workers on the content of her message.
"After a long and careful consideration of all the implications and possible consequences of my actions today, I have decided to go through with this in the hope that our country can indeed be guided into the right direction.
"First, a little personal background… I am a female grad student in my 20’s, and a registered Democrat. During the primaries, I was a campaign worker for the Clinton candidacy. I believed in her and still do, staying all the way to the bitter end. And believe me, it was bitter. The snippets you’ve heard from various media outlets only grazed the surface. There was no love between the Clinton and Obama campaigns, and these feelings extended all the way to the top. Hillary was no dope though, and knew that any endorsement of Obama must appear to be a full-fledged one. She did this out of political survival. As a part of his overall effort to extend an olive branch to the Clinton camp and her supporters, Obama took on a few Hillary staff members into his campaign. I was one such worker. Though I was still bitterly loyal to Hillary, I still held out hope that he would choose her as VP. In fact, there was a consensus among us transplants that in the end, he HAD to choose her. It was the only logical choice. I also was committed to the Democratic cause and without much of a second thought, transferred my allegiance to Senator Obama.
"I’m going to let you in on a few secrets here, and this is not because I enjoy the gossip or the attention directed my way. I’m doing this because I doubt much of you know the true weaknesses of Obama. Another reason for my doing this is that I am lost faith in this campaign, and feel that this choice has been forced on many people in this country. Put simply, you are being manipulated. That was and is our job – to manipulate you (the electorate) and the media (we already had them months ago). Our goal is to create chaos with the other side, not hope. I’ve come to the realization (as the campaign already has) that if this comes to the issues, Barack Obama doesn’t have a chance. His only chance is to foster disorganization, chaos, despair, and a sense of inevitability among the Republicans. It has worked up until now. Joe the Plumber has put the focus on the issues again, and this scares us more than anything. Being in a position to know these things, I will rate what the Obama campaign already knows are their weak links from the most important on down.
"1 – Hillary voters. Internal polling suggests that at best, we are taking 70-75% of these voters. Other estimates are as low as 60% in some areas – particularly Ohio and western PA. My biggest problem with this campaign’s strategy was the decision NOT to offer Hillary the VP slot. She was ready and able to take this on, and would have campaigned enthusiastically for it. This selection would have also brought virtually all of her supporters into the fold, and the Obama campaign knew it. Though I have no way of knowing this for certain, and I do admit that I am relying on internal gossip, Senator Obama actually went against the advice of his top advisors. They wanted him to choose her, but the only significant opposition to this within the campaign came from Barack and Michelle Obama. In short, he let personal feelings take precedence over what was the most logical thing to do. Biden, by the way, has been a disaster inside the campaign. Everyone cringes whenever he gives an interview, and he creates so many headaches as the campaign has to stay on their toes in order to disseminate information and spin whatever it was he was trying to say.
"2 – Sarah Palin. Don’t believe what the media is telling you about how horrible a choice she was. Again, our internal polling suggest that though she has had a minimal impact on pulling disaffected Hillary Democrats to McCain, she has done wonders in mobilizing the base for McCain. Another thing – we were completely taken by surprise with her pick. In my capacity in the research department, I looked into the backgrounds of Leiberman, Romney, Pawlenty and Ridge, and prepared briefs. I don’t mind bragging that we had pretty good stuff on all of them. With Leiberman, the plan was to paint him as an erratic old-timer who didn’t have a clue as to what he was doing (pretty much a clone of McCain). In Romney, we had him pegged as an evil capitalist who cut jobs. Pawlenty was going to get the “Quayle treatment”, or more precisely: a pretty face, with no valid experience. Tom Ridge was going to be used to provide a direct link from McCain to Bush. As you can see, we were quite enamored of all of them. Then the unexpected happened – Sarah Palin. We had no clue as to how to handle her, and bungled it from the start. Though through our misinformation networks, we have successfully taken some of the shine off. But let there be no doubt. She remains a major obstacle. She has singlehanded solidified “soft” Republican support, mobilized the McCain ground game, and has even had some appeal to independents and Hillary voters. This is what our internal polling confirms.
"3 – Obama’s radical connections. Standards operating procedure has been to cry “racism” whenever one of these has been brought up. We even have a detailed strategy ready to go should McCain ever bring Rev. Wright up. Though by themselves they are of minimal worth, taken together, Rev. Wright, Bill Ayers, Father Pfelger, and now, Rashid Khalili, are exactly what the campaign does not need. The more focus on them, the more this election becomes a referendum on Obama. The campaign strategy from the very beginning was to make this election a referendum on Bush. Strategists have been banging their head on how successfully McCain has distanced himself from Bush. This has worked, and right now the tide is in his favor. People are taking a new look at Barack Obama, and our experience when this happens tells us this is not good news at all. When they take a look at him, one or more of these names are bound to be brought up. McCain has wisely not harped on this in recent weeks and let voters decide for themselves. This was a trap we set for him, and he never fully took the bait. Senator Obama openly dared him to bring up Ayers. This was not due to machismo on the part of Obama, but actually due to campaign strategy. Though McCain’s reference to Ayers fell flat in the last debate, people in the Obama campaign were actually disappointed that he didn’t follow through on it more and getting into it. Our focus groups found this out: When McCain brings these connections up, voters are turned off to him. They’d rather take this into consideration themselves, and when this happens, our numbers begin to tank.
"4 – The Bradley Effect. Don’t believe these polls for a second. I just went over our numbers and found that we have next to no chance in the following states: Missouri, Indiana, North Carolina, Florida, New Hampshire and Nevada. Ohio leans heavily to McCain, but is too close to call it for him. Virginia, Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Mexico and Iowa are the true “toss up states”. The only two of these the campaign feels “confident” in are Iowa and New Mexico. The reason for such polling discrepancy is the Bradley Effect, and this is a subject of much discussion in the campaign. In general, we tend to take a -10 point percentage in allowing for this, and are not comfortable until the polls give us a spread well over this mark. This is why we are still campaigning in Virginia and Pennsylvania! This is why Ohio is such a desperate hope for us! What truly bothers this campaign is the fact that some pollsters get up to an 80% “refuse to respond” result. You can’t possibly include these into the polls. The truth is, people are afraid to let people know who they are voting for. The vast majority of these respondents are McCain supporters. Obama is the “hip” choice, and we all know it.
"As part of my research duties, I scour right wing blogs and websites to get somewhat of a “feel” as to what is being talked about on the other side. Much of it is nonsense, but there are some exceptions which give the campaign jitters. A spirited campaign has been made to infiltrate many pro-Hillary sites and discredit them. A more disorganized, but genuine effort has also been made to sow doubts among the unapologetically right wing sites such as redstate.com. Don’t you guys get it? This has been the Obama campaign’s sole strategy from the very beginning! The only way he wins is over a dispirited, disorganized, and demobilized opposition. This is how it has been for all of his campaigns. What surprises me is that everyone has fallen for it. You may point to the polls as proof of the inevitability of all of this. If so, you have fallen for the oldest trick in the book. How did we skew these polls, you might ask? It all starts with the media “buzz” which has been generated over the campaign. Many stories are generated on the powerful Obama ground game, and how many new voters were registered. None of this happens by coincidence. It is all part of the poll-skewing process. This makes pollsters change their mixes to reflect these new voters and tilt the mix more towards Democratic voters. What is not mentioned or reported on is not the “under-reported cell phone users or young voters” we hear so much about. What is underreported is you.
"changed my somewhat positive opinion of this campaign during the unfair and sexist campaign against Sarah Palin. I will never agree with her on the issues and will probably never vote for her, but I am embarrassed of what has happened. I can’t ignore our own hand in all of this. What I do know is that I will not be voting for Obama this time around. Treat that as you will. "
http://www.lynettelong.com/
http://www.redstate.com/diaries/anon...-know-in-this/
"After a long and careful consideration of all the implications and possible consequences of my actions today, I have decided to go through with this in the hope that our country can indeed be guided into the right direction.
"First, a little personal background… I am a female grad student in my 20’s, and a registered Democrat. During the primaries, I was a campaign worker for the Clinton candidacy. I believed in her and still do, staying all the way to the bitter end. And believe me, it was bitter. The snippets you’ve heard from various media outlets only grazed the surface. There was no love between the Clinton and Obama campaigns, and these feelings extended all the way to the top. Hillary was no dope though, and knew that any endorsement of Obama must appear to be a full-fledged one. She did this out of political survival. As a part of his overall effort to extend an olive branch to the Clinton camp and her supporters, Obama took on a few Hillary staff members into his campaign. I was one such worker. Though I was still bitterly loyal to Hillary, I still held out hope that he would choose her as VP. In fact, there was a consensus among us transplants that in the end, he HAD to choose her. It was the only logical choice. I also was committed to the Democratic cause and without much of a second thought, transferred my allegiance to Senator Obama.
"I’m going to let you in on a few secrets here, and this is not because I enjoy the gossip or the attention directed my way. I’m doing this because I doubt much of you know the true weaknesses of Obama. Another reason for my doing this is that I am lost faith in this campaign, and feel that this choice has been forced on many people in this country. Put simply, you are being manipulated. That was and is our job – to manipulate you (the electorate) and the media (we already had them months ago). Our goal is to create chaos with the other side, not hope. I’ve come to the realization (as the campaign already has) that if this comes to the issues, Barack Obama doesn’t have a chance. His only chance is to foster disorganization, chaos, despair, and a sense of inevitability among the Republicans. It has worked up until now. Joe the Plumber has put the focus on the issues again, and this scares us more than anything. Being in a position to know these things, I will rate what the Obama campaign already knows are their weak links from the most important on down.
"1 – Hillary voters. Internal polling suggests that at best, we are taking 70-75% of these voters. Other estimates are as low as 60% in some areas – particularly Ohio and western PA. My biggest problem with this campaign’s strategy was the decision NOT to offer Hillary the VP slot. She was ready and able to take this on, and would have campaigned enthusiastically for it. This selection would have also brought virtually all of her supporters into the fold, and the Obama campaign knew it. Though I have no way of knowing this for certain, and I do admit that I am relying on internal gossip, Senator Obama actually went against the advice of his top advisors. They wanted him to choose her, but the only significant opposition to this within the campaign came from Barack and Michelle Obama. In short, he let personal feelings take precedence over what was the most logical thing to do. Biden, by the way, has been a disaster inside the campaign. Everyone cringes whenever he gives an interview, and he creates so many headaches as the campaign has to stay on their toes in order to disseminate information and spin whatever it was he was trying to say.
"2 – Sarah Palin. Don’t believe what the media is telling you about how horrible a choice she was. Again, our internal polling suggest that though she has had a minimal impact on pulling disaffected Hillary Democrats to McCain, she has done wonders in mobilizing the base for McCain. Another thing – we were completely taken by surprise with her pick. In my capacity in the research department, I looked into the backgrounds of Leiberman, Romney, Pawlenty and Ridge, and prepared briefs. I don’t mind bragging that we had pretty good stuff on all of them. With Leiberman, the plan was to paint him as an erratic old-timer who didn’t have a clue as to what he was doing (pretty much a clone of McCain). In Romney, we had him pegged as an evil capitalist who cut jobs. Pawlenty was going to get the “Quayle treatment”, or more precisely: a pretty face, with no valid experience. Tom Ridge was going to be used to provide a direct link from McCain to Bush. As you can see, we were quite enamored of all of them. Then the unexpected happened – Sarah Palin. We had no clue as to how to handle her, and bungled it from the start. Though through our misinformation networks, we have successfully taken some of the shine off. But let there be no doubt. She remains a major obstacle. She has singlehanded solidified “soft” Republican support, mobilized the McCain ground game, and has even had some appeal to independents and Hillary voters. This is what our internal polling confirms.
"3 – Obama’s radical connections. Standards operating procedure has been to cry “racism” whenever one of these has been brought up. We even have a detailed strategy ready to go should McCain ever bring Rev. Wright up. Though by themselves they are of minimal worth, taken together, Rev. Wright, Bill Ayers, Father Pfelger, and now, Rashid Khalili, are exactly what the campaign does not need. The more focus on them, the more this election becomes a referendum on Obama. The campaign strategy from the very beginning was to make this election a referendum on Bush. Strategists have been banging their head on how successfully McCain has distanced himself from Bush. This has worked, and right now the tide is in his favor. People are taking a new look at Barack Obama, and our experience when this happens tells us this is not good news at all. When they take a look at him, one or more of these names are bound to be brought up. McCain has wisely not harped on this in recent weeks and let voters decide for themselves. This was a trap we set for him, and he never fully took the bait. Senator Obama openly dared him to bring up Ayers. This was not due to machismo on the part of Obama, but actually due to campaign strategy. Though McCain’s reference to Ayers fell flat in the last debate, people in the Obama campaign were actually disappointed that he didn’t follow through on it more and getting into it. Our focus groups found this out: When McCain brings these connections up, voters are turned off to him. They’d rather take this into consideration themselves, and when this happens, our numbers begin to tank.
"4 – The Bradley Effect. Don’t believe these polls for a second. I just went over our numbers and found that we have next to no chance in the following states: Missouri, Indiana, North Carolina, Florida, New Hampshire and Nevada. Ohio leans heavily to McCain, but is too close to call it for him. Virginia, Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Mexico and Iowa are the true “toss up states”. The only two of these the campaign feels “confident” in are Iowa and New Mexico. The reason for such polling discrepancy is the Bradley Effect, and this is a subject of much discussion in the campaign. In general, we tend to take a -10 point percentage in allowing for this, and are not comfortable until the polls give us a spread well over this mark. This is why we are still campaigning in Virginia and Pennsylvania! This is why Ohio is such a desperate hope for us! What truly bothers this campaign is the fact that some pollsters get up to an 80% “refuse to respond” result. You can’t possibly include these into the polls. The truth is, people are afraid to let people know who they are voting for. The vast majority of these respondents are McCain supporters. Obama is the “hip” choice, and we all know it.
"As part of my research duties, I scour right wing blogs and websites to get somewhat of a “feel” as to what is being talked about on the other side. Much of it is nonsense, but there are some exceptions which give the campaign jitters. A spirited campaign has been made to infiltrate many pro-Hillary sites and discredit them. A more disorganized, but genuine effort has also been made to sow doubts among the unapologetically right wing sites such as redstate.com. Don’t you guys get it? This has been the Obama campaign’s sole strategy from the very beginning! The only way he wins is over a dispirited, disorganized, and demobilized opposition. This is how it has been for all of his campaigns. What surprises me is that everyone has fallen for it. You may point to the polls as proof of the inevitability of all of this. If so, you have fallen for the oldest trick in the book. How did we skew these polls, you might ask? It all starts with the media “buzz” which has been generated over the campaign. Many stories are generated on the powerful Obama ground game, and how many new voters were registered. None of this happens by coincidence. It is all part of the poll-skewing process. This makes pollsters change their mixes to reflect these new voters and tilt the mix more towards Democratic voters. What is not mentioned or reported on is not the “under-reported cell phone users or young voters” we hear so much about. What is underreported is you.
"changed my somewhat positive opinion of this campaign during the unfair and sexist campaign against Sarah Palin. I will never agree with her on the issues and will probably never vote for her, but I am embarrassed of what has happened. I can’t ignore our own hand in all of this. What I do know is that I will not be voting for Obama this time around. Treat that as you will. "
http://www.lynettelong.com/
http://www.redstate.com/diaries/anon...-know-in-this/
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