Recent Emergency Messages to U.S. Citizens & Worldwide Caution.

Current Travel Warnings...

Travel Warnings are issued when long-term, protracted conditions that make a country dangerous or unstable lead the State Department to recommend that Americans avoid or consider the risk of travel to that country. A Travel Warning is also issued when the U.S. Government's ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate or because of a drawdown of its staff. The countries listed below meet those criteria.

Pakistan    09/19/2012
Lebanon    09/17/2012
Tunisia    09/15/2012
Sudan    09/15/2012
Algeria    09/13/2012
Libya    09/12/2012
Korea, Democratic People's Republic of    09/11/2012
Republic of South Sudan   09/10/2012
Guinea    09/07/2012
Mali    08/29/2012
Syria    08/28/2012
Israel, the West Bank and Gaza    08/10/2012
Iraq    08/09/2012
Congo, Democratic Republic of the    08/02/2012
Central African Republic    07/11/2012
Kenya    07/05/2012
Afghanistan    06/27/2012
Nigeria    06/21/2012
Haiti    06/18/2012
Somalia    06/15/2012
Philippines    06/14/2012
Mauritania    05/24/2012
Saudi Arabia   05/18/2012
Iran    04/27/2012
Cote d'Ivoire   04/23/2012
Burundi    04/18/2012
Eritrea    04/18/2012
Mali    04/09/2012
Niger    04/06/2012
Chad    03/29/2012
Yemen   03/27/2012
Colombia    02/21/2012
Mexico    02/08/2012

source: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_1764.html

Recent Emergency Messages to U.S. Citizens

The following Emergency and Security Messages for U.S. Citizens have been issued related to protests at U.S. Embassies, service disruptions, closures, departure of non-emergency personnel, and related security events for September 12 through today.  We encourage you to check Embassy and Consulate websites for updates:

ALBANIA

• Tirana

AFGHANISTAN

• Kabul

ALGERIA

• Algiers

AUSTRALIA

• Canberra
• Sydney

AUSTRIA

• Vienna

AZERBAIJAN

• Baku

BAHRAIN

• Manama

BANGLADESH

• Dhaka

BURUNDI

• Bujumbura

CHINA

• Guangzhou

DENMARK

• Copenhagen

EQYPT

• Cairo

GUINEA

• Conakry

HONG KONG & MACAU

• Hong Kong

INDIA

• Kolkata
• New Delhi 

INDONESIA

• Jakarta

ISRAEL, WEST BANK AND GAZA

• Jerusalem

JORDAN

• Amman

KUWAIT

• Kuwait City

LEBANON

• Beirut

LIBYA

• Tripoli

MADAGASCAR

• Antananarivo

MALAYSIA

• Kuala Lumpur

MALI

• Bamako

MAURITANIA

• Nouakchott

MOROCCO

• Casablanca
• Rabat

NAMIBIA

•  Windhoek

NIGER

• Niamey

NIGERIA

• Abuja

NORWAY

• Oslo

OMAN

• Muscat

PAKISTAN

• Islamabad
• Lahore
• Karachi

SENEGAL

• Dakar

SERBIA

• Belgrade

SINGAPORE

• Singapore

SUDAN

• Khartoum

SWEDEN

• Stockholm

SWITZERLAND

• Bern

TAIWAN

• Taiwan

THAILAND

• Chiang Mai

TUNISIA

• Tunis

TURKEY

• Adana  
• Istanbul

UGANDA

• Kampala

YEMEN

• Sana'a

ZAMBIA

• Lusaka  

MORE

The World Wide Caution, has also been routinely disseminated, along with Messages urging U.S. citizens to be aware of their surroundings and practice security awareness, via many other U.S. Embassies.

source: http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_4787.html

Worldwide Caution

July 18, 2012

The Department of State has issued this Worldwide Caution to update information on the continuing threat of terrorist actions and violence against U.S. citizens and interests throughout the world. U.S. citizens are reminded to maintain a high level of vigilance and to take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness. This replaces the Worldwide Caution dated January 24, 2012, to provide updated information on security threats and terrorist activities worldwide.  

The Department of State remains concerned about the continued threat of terrorist attacks, demonstrations, and other violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests overseas. Current information suggests that al-Qaida, its affiliated organizations, and other terrorist organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks against U.S. interests in multiple regions, including Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. These attacks may employ a wide variety of tactics including suicide operations, assassinations, kidnappings, hijackings, and bombings. 

Extremists may elect to use conventional or non-conventional weapons, and target both official and private interests. Examples of such targets include high-profile sporting events, residential areas, business offices, hotels, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, schools, public areas, and other tourist destinations both in the United States and abroad where U.S. citizens gather in large numbers, including during holidays.

U.S. citizens are reminded of the potential for terrorists to attack public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure. Extremists have targeted and attempted attacks on subway and rail systems, aviation, and maritime services. In the past, these types of attacks have occurred in cities such as Moscow, London, Madrid, Glasgow, and New York City.

EUROPE: Current information suggests that al-Qaida, its affiliated organizations and other terrorist groups continue to plan terrorist attacks against U.S. and Western interests in Europe. European governments have taken action to guard against terrorist attacks, and some have spoken publicly about the heightened threat conditions. In the past several years, attacks have been planned or occurred in various European cities.

MIDDLE EAST and NORTH AFRICA: Credible information indicates terrorist groups also seek to continue attacks against U.S. interests in the Middle East and North Africa. For example, Iraq remains dangerous and unpredictable. U.S. military forces were withdrawn as of December 31, 2011 but the threat of attacks against U.S. citizens, including kidnapping and terrorist violence, is expected to continue. Methods of attack have included roadside improvised explosive devices, mortars, and shootings. Terrorist organizations continue to be active in Yemen, including al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). A U.S. citizen was attacked and killed in Taiz on March 18 and the press reports that AQAP claimed responsibility. Security threat levels remain high in Yemen due to terrorist activities there and the U.S. government remains highly concerned about possible attacks against U.S. citizens, facilities, businesses, and perceived U.S. and Western interests. U.S. citizens have also been the targets of numerous terrorist attacks in Lebanon in the past (though none recently) and the threat of anti-Western terrorist activity continues to exist there. In Algeria, terrorist attacks occur regularly, particularly in the Kabylie region of the country. In the past, terrorists have targeted oil processing facilities in both Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Some elements in Iran remain hostile to the United States. U.S. citizens should remain cautious and be aware that there may be a more aggressive focus by the Iranian government on terrorist activity against U.S citizens.

The events of last year’s Arab Spring, which affected many countries in the Middle East including Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria, resulted in civil unrest and large-scale protests and demonstrations. U.S. citizens are warned that demonstrations intended to be peaceful can escalate into violent clashes. U.S. citizens are also reminded that demonstrations and riots can occur with little or no warning. U.S. citizens are urged to avoid areas of demonstrations if possible and to exercise caution if within the vicinity of a demonstration.

AFRICA: A number of al-Qaida operatives and other extremists are believed to be operating in and around Africa. In February 2012, the emir of U.S-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization al-Shabaab and al-Qaida’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, announced the alliance of the two organizations. Al-Shabaab assassinations, suicide bombings, and indiscriminate attacks in civilian-populated areas are frequent in Somalia. The terrorist attacks in Somalia in late 2011 against the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and African Union (AU) peacekeeping forces in Somalia that have killed numerous civilians in various districts around Mogadishu, as well as at least 17 attacks involving grenades or explosive devices in Kenya over the past year, highlight the vulnerabilities to terrorist attacks in East Africa and around the world. Additionally, the terrorist group al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has declared its intention to attack Western targets throughout the Sahel (which includes Mali, Mauritania, and Niger). It has claimed responsibility for kidnappings, attempted kidnappings, and the murder of several Westerners throughout the region, including southern Algeria. The loosely organized group of factions known as Boko Haram continues to carry out significant improvised explosive device and suicide bombings in northern Nigeria, mainly targeting government forces and innocent civilians; attacks have increased since their attack on the UN building in the capital of Abuja last year. The President of Nigeria declared a state of emergency in certain areas in response to activities of extremist groups.

U.S. citizens considering travel by sea near the Horn of Africa or in the southern Red Sea should exercise extreme caution, as there have been armed attacks, robberies, and kidnappings for ransom by pirates. Merchant vessels continue to be hijacked in Somali territorial waters, while others have been hijacked as far as 1,000 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia, Yemen, and Kenya in international waters.

The U.S. government maritime authorities advise mariners to avoid the port of Mogadishu and to remain at least 200 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia. In addition, when transiting around the Horn of Africa or in the Red Sea, it is strongly recommended that vessels travel in convoys and maintain good communications at all times. U.S. citizens traveling on commercial passenger vessels should consult with the shipping or cruise ship company regarding precautions that will be taken to avoid hijacking incidents. Commercial vessels should review the Department of Transportation Maritime Administration’s Horn of Africa Piracy pagefor information on maritime advisories, self-protection measures, and naval forces in the region. Review our International Maritime Piracy Fact Sheet for information on piracy in the southern Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Indian Ocean.

SOUTH ASIA: The U.S. government continues to receive information that terrorist groups in South Asia may also be planning attacks in the region, possibly against U.S. government facilities, U.S. citizens, or U.S. interests. The presence of al-Qaida, Taliban elements, Lashkar-e-Taiba, indigenous sectarian groups, and other terror organizations, many of which are on the U.S. government's list of Foreign Terror Organizations (FTOs), poses a potential danger to U.S. citizens in the region. Terrorists and their sympathizers have demonstrated their willingness and ability to attack targets where U.S. citizens or Westerners are known to congregate or visit. Their actions may include, but are not limited to, vehicle-born explosive attacks, improvised explosive device attacks, assassinations, carjackings, rocket attacks, assaults, or kidnappings.

Such attacks have occurred in a number of South Asian states, including Pakistan, where a number of extremist groups continue to target U.S. and other Western citizens and interests, and Pakistani government and military/law enforcement personnel. Suicide bombing attacks continue to occur throughout the country on a regular basis, often targeting government authorities such as police checkpoints and military installations, as well as public areas such as mosques, and shopping areas. 

Kidnappings of U.S. citizens are also on the increase. No part of Afghanistan should be considered immune from violence, and the potential exists throughout the country for hostile acts, either targeted or random, against U.S. and other Western nationals at any time. Elements of the Taliban and the al-Qaida terrorist network, as well as other groups hostile to International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) military operations, remain active. There is an ongoing threat of kidnapping and assassination of U.S. citizens and Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) workers throughout the country. India continues to experience terrorist and insurgent activities which may affect U.S. citizens directly or indirectly. Anti-Western terrorist groups, some on the U.S. government's list of designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, are active in India, including Islamist extremist groups such as Harkat-ul-Jihad-i-Islami, Harakat ul-Mujahidin, Indian Mujahideen, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and Lashkar-e Tayyiba. 

Terrorists have targeted public placesin Indiafrequented by Westerners, including luxury and other hotels, trains, train stations, markets, cinemas, mosques, and restaurants in large urban areas.

CENTRAL ASIA: Supporters of terrorist groups such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, al-Qaida, the Islamic Jihad Union, and the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement remain active in Central Asia. These groups have expressed anti-U.S. sentiments and may attempt to target U.S. government interests. 

Before You Go

The Department of State encourages U.S. citizens living overseas or planning to travel abroad to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). When you enroll in STEP, we can keep you up to date with important safety and security announcements. Enrolling will also make it easier for the Embassy to contact you in the event of an emergency. You should remember to keep all of your information in STEP up to date; it is particularly important when you enroll or update your information to include a current phone number and e-mail address.

U.S. citizens are strongly encouraged to maintain a high level of vigilance, be aware of local events, and take the appropriate steps to bolster their personal security. For additional information, please refer to "A Safe Trip Abroad".

U.S. government facilities worldwide remain at a heightened state of alert. These facilities may temporarily close or periodically suspend public services to assess their security posture. In those instances, U.S. embassies and consulates will make every effort to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens. U.S. citizens abroad are urged to monitor the local news and maintain contact with the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.

As the Department of State continues to develop information on potential security threats to U.S. citizens overseas, it shares credible threat information through itsConsular Information Program documents, including Travel Warnings, Travel Alerts, Country Specific Information, and Emergency Messages, all of which are available on the Bureau of Consular Affairs website at http://travel.state.gov/. Stay up to date by bookmarking our website or downloading our free Smart Traveler iPhone App for travel information at your fingertips. Follow us on Twitterand the Bureau of Consular Affairs page on Facebook as well.

In addition to information on the internet, travelers may obtain up-to-date information on security conditions by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada or, from other countries, on a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are available from8:00 am to 8:00 pm Monday through Friday, Eastern Time (except U.S. federal holidays). 

Status of Japanese Evacuations...

AMERICAN CITIZEN SERVICES

Evacuations

Evacuations (including non-combatant evacuation operations (NEOs) supported by the Department of Defense) will be considered only if there is a breakdown in civil order that cannot be contained by local authorities and that further threatens the lives of Americans in a particular country. Even then, such evacuation operations may not be possible or advisable based on other concerns. Note that, if the U.S. Government does coordinate an evacuation operation, private U.S. citizens may be required to find their own transportation to the departure point. Note also that private U.S. citizens are required to reimburse the USG for all costs of their evacuation.

In many instances where trouble exists, Americans and others can take advantage of existing transportion to either move away from the danger or return to the U.S. As a situation grows more serious, many prudent people choose to depart, or have their families depart, long before an "evacuation" need occur. 

That said, even departing voluntarily before a crisis occurs but on short notice can be difficult, and so we would like to share these resources to aid in your planning.

Department of State Evacuation Planning

This material is written for employees and family members assigned to an American Embassy or Consulate abroad, but most of it is practical advice that would be useful to anyone living outside of their own country. 

Evacuations are stressful experiences: Where to go? What to take? What personal papers are necessary? Stresses and frustrations can be reduced by advanced contingency planning on your part. This information includes handy checklists of things to prepare before arriving in a new country and for the period leading up to your departure.

Concerned about how to talk to your children about terrorism? Read the article "Helping Our Children Cope with Terrorism" from our March 2003 newsletter.

U.S. Red Cross

This page, created by the Red Cross, offers information on how to best prepare for a sudden departure from a dangerous area.

http://www.redcross.org/preparednes

source: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-evac.html

Summary of Current Economic Events

Here's a summary on the economic current events.

More Utahns turn to government for financial help
July 27th, 2009 @ 10:39am
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The number of Utahns getting financial help from the government has gone up 30 percent since last year.

In May, 6,797 Utah households were on public assistance. A year earlier the number was 5,219.

To qualify for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a family of three can make no more than $1,050 per month. The state has not increased the income limits since the 1990s.

However, the state is planning to temporarily extend the eligibility time period for help. Starting as early as September, the change would affect residents who have recently been laid off, have essentially no other income and have previously maxed out the 36-month time limit for TANF.

It's not clear how many people the change would affect.

View Source Here

"WASHINGTON -- The number of newly laid-off workers seeking jobless benefits rose last week, though the government said its report again was distorted by the timing of auto plant shutdowns.

Unemployment insurance claims have declined steadily since the spring, but most private economists and the Federal Reserve expect jobs to remain scarce and the unemployment rate to top 10 percent by year-end."

-- Read From Source Here

"The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the proposal now under consideration will cost over 10 years a little more than $1 trillion, depending on the final deal. House Democrats have vowed to find a way to pay for that cost despite an acknowledgement by a Congressional Budget Office official that the deficit will increase $239 billion because of Medicare payments to doctors.

But fully phased-in coverage of Americans under the plan will only occur for six of the 10 years measured by the CBO. That's because the Democratic plan in the House will start collecting revenues in 2011 but won't start providing coverage until 2013 and won't be fully implemented until 2015."

-- See Source

"Though Americans still blame former President George W. Bush for the ailing economy, President Obama faces dropping approval ratings amid doubts that he has a clear plan for fixing the economy."

-- Read Source Here

Biden and the "Glob"

Where is the "glob" when we need it?

"Vice President Biden defended the Obama administration's economic stimulus package Thursday by suggesting that without the federal government spending massive amounts of money to shore up the economy the country would go bankrupt.

"We're going to go bankrupt as a nation," Biden warned at an event in the backyard of the House's No. 2 Republican.

"People, when I say that, look at me and say, 'What are you talking about, Joe? You're telling me we have to go spend money to keep from going bankrupt?" he said. "The answer is yes." -- Fox News

I think it's time for Biden to go swimming in the ocean...oh, say the Pacific...right around Alaska?!!!

We The People are Disgusted!

From Glenn Beck and the masses of We The People who are entirely getting disgusted are growing and gathering torches.

"I'm a home grown American citizen, ... I no longer feel any political party or representative in Washington represents my views or works to pursue the issues important to me. There must be someone. Please tell me who you are. Please stand up and tell me that you are there and that you're willing to fight for our Constitution as it was written. Please stand up now. You might ask yourself what my views and issues are that I would horribly feel so disenfranchised by both major political parties. What kind of nut job am I? Will you please tell me?

Well, these are briefly my views and issues for which I seek representation:

One, illegal immigration. I want you to stop coddling illegal immigrants and secure our borders. Close the underground tunnels. Stop the violence and the trafficking in drugs and people. No amnesty...This isn't to be confused with legal immigration.

Two, the TARP bill, I want it repealed and I want no further funding supplied to it. We told you no, but you did it anyway...

Three: Czars, I want the circumvention of our checks and balances stopped immediately. Fire the czars. No more czars. Government officials answer to the process, not to the president. Stop trampling on our Constitution and honor it.

Four, cap and trade. The debate on global warming is not over. There is more to say.

Five, universal health care. I will not be rushed into another expensive decision...

Six, growing government control. I want states rights and sovereignty fully restored. ...

Seven, ACORN. I do not want ACORN and its affiliates in charge of our 2010 census. I want them investigated. I also do not want mandatory escrow fees contributed to them every time on every real estate deal that closes. Stop the funding to ACORN and its affiliates pending impartial audits and investigations...

Eight, redistribution of wealth. No, no, no. I work for my money. ...

Nine, charitable contributions. Although I never got a job from a poor person, I have helped many in need. Charity belongs in our local communities, where we know our needs best and can use our local talent and our local resources...

Ten, corporate bailouts. Knock it off. Sink or swim like the rest of us. ...
...Great things happen in America under great hardship. Give us the chance to innovate. We cannot disappoint you more than you have disappointed us.

Eleven, transparency and accountability. How about it? No, really, how about it? Let's have it. Let's say we give the buzzwords a rest and have some straight honest talk. Please try ‑‑ please stop manipulating and trying to appease me with clever wording. I am not the idiot you obviously take me for. Stop sneaking around and meeting in back rooms making deals with your friends. It will only be a prelude to your criminal investigation. Stop hiding things from me.

Twelve, unprecedented quick spending. Stop it now.

Take a breath. Listen to the people. Let's just slow down and get some input from some non politicians on the subject. Stop making everything an emergency. Stop speed reading our bills into law. I am not an activist. I am not a community organizer. Nor am I a terrorist, a militant or a violent person. I am a parent and a grandparent. I work. I'm busy. I'm busy. I am busy, and I am tired. I thought we elected competent people to take care of the business of government so that we could work, raise our families, pay our bills, have a little recreation, complain about taxes, endure our hardships, pursue our personal goals, cut our lawn, wash our cars on the weekends and be responsible contributing members of society and teach our children to be the same all while living in the home of the free and land of the brave.

I entrusted you with upholding the Constitution. I believed in the checks and balances to keep from getting far off course. ... Do you really think I find humor in the hiring of a speed reader to unintelligently ramble all through a bill that you signed into law without knowing what it contained? I do not. It is a mockery of the responsibility I have entrusted to you. ... Why is it that I feel as if you would not trust me to make a single decision about my own life and how I would live it but you should expect that I should trust you with the debt that you have laid on all of us and our children. We did not want the TARP bill. We said no. We would repeal it if we could....There is such urgency and recklessness in all of the recent spending.

From my perspective, it seems that all of you have gone insane. I also know that I am far from alone in these feelings. Do you honestly feel that your current pursuits have merit to patriotic Americans? We want it to stop. ... We want our voice back. ...We will have to give up our vacations, our time spent with our children, any relaxation time we may have had and money we cannot afford to spend on you to bring our concerns to Washington. ... Stop treating us like we're morons.

We want all of you to stop focusing on your re-election and do the job we want done, not the job you want done or the job your party wants done. You work for us and at this rate I guarantee you not for long because we are coming. We will be heard and we will be represented. You think we're so busy with our lives that we will never come for you? We are the formerly silent majority, all of us who quietly work , pay taxes, obey the law, vote, save money, keep our noses to the grindstone and we are now looking up at you. You have awakened us, the patriotic spirit so strong and so powerful that it had been sleeping too long. You have pushed us too far. Our numbers are great. They may surprise you. ...They will be at the polls on voting day to usher you out of office. ...We will find the representation among us and a grassroots campaign will flourish. ... We do not come in violence, but we are angry. You will represent us or you will be replaced with someone who will. There are candidates among us when he will rise like a Phoenix from the ashes that you have made of our constitution.

Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian. Understand this. We don't care. Political parties are meaningless to us. Patriotic Americans are willing to do right by us and our Constitution and that is all that matters to us now. ...

It is not your power. It is ours and we want it back. We entrusted you with it and you abused it. You are dishonorable. You are dishonest. As Americans we are ashamed of you. You have brought shame to us. If you are not representing the wants and needs of your constituency loudly and consistently, in spite of the objections of your party, you will be fired. Did you hear? ...

We are coming. Are we coming for you? Who do you represent? What do you represent? Listen. Because we are coming. We the people are coming."

Click Here For Complete Letter

American Decent Into Marxism.

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.

True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years. The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was. But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.

Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elites and betters.

First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather then the classics. Americans know more about their favorite TV dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives. They care more for their "right" to choke down a McDonalds burger or a Burger King burger than for their constitutional rights. Then they turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our "democracy". Pride blind the foolish.

Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different "branches and denominations" were for the most part little more then Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more then happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the "winning" side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the "winning" side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power. Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America.

The final collapse has come with the election of Barack Obama. His speed in the past three months has been truly impressive. His spending and money printing has been a record setting, not just in America's short history but in the world. If this keeps up for more then another year, and there is no sign that it will not, America at best will resemble the Wiemar Republic and at worst Zimbabwe.

These past two weeks have been the most breath taking of all. First came the announcement of a planned redesign of the American Byzantine tax system, by the very thieves who used it to bankroll their thefts, loses and swindles of hundreds of billions of dollars. These make our Russian oligarchs look little more then ordinary street thugs, in comparison. Yes, the Americans have beat our own thieves in the shear volumes. Should we congratulate them?

To read the complete article, CLICK HERE

Pledge Allegiance to the New World Order

I pledge allegiance to the flag
Of the new world order hosted by America
And to the classlessness
For which it stands
One globe under Darwin’s Theory, indivisible
With suppression and futility for all.
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Obama Signs 'Imperfect' Spending Bill, Announces Earmark Reforms
The president did not make any pledge to eliminate earmarks or reduce them. Rather, he and House Democrats announced new reforms to subject them to greater scrutiny and transparency.

Fox News Wednesday, March 11, 2009

President Obama on Wednesday signed a $410 billion spending bill to keep the government running through the end of the fiscal year, despite complaints that the package was filled with thousands of earmarks. [bold and italics added]

The president earlier defended the bill, which he called "imperfect" but necessary. But at the same time he announced new reforms he said would prevent wasteful earmarks in the future.

The president did not make any pledge to eliminate earmarks or reduce them. Rather, he and House Democrats announced new reforms to subject them to greater scrutiny and transparency.

"Done right, earmarks have given legislators the opportunity to direct federal money to worthy projects that benefit people in their district, and that's why I have opposed their outright elimination," Obama said. "But the fact is that on occasion, earmarks have been used as a vehicle for waste, and fraud and abuse. Projects have been inserted at the 11th hour, without review, and sometimes without merit, in order to satisfy the political or personal agendas of a given legislator, rather than the public interest." [bold and italics added]

Obama said the reforms would require lawmakers seeking earmarks to post them on their Web sites in advance, so the public and press can review them. He said each earmark should be "open to scrutiny" at public hearings.

"If my administration evaluates an earmark and determines that it has no legitimate public purpose, we will seek to eliminate it," Obama said.

He also said all earmarks for for-profit companies should be subject to competitive bidding requirements.

"The awarding of earmarks to private companies is the single most corrupting element of this practice," Obama said.

The announcement came after Congress passed the $410 billion spending package Tuesday night. Taxpayers for Common Sense estimated the package contained 8,570 disclosed earmarks worth $7.7 billion. [bold and italics added]

"I am signing an imperfect omnibus bill because it's necessary for the ongoing functions of government," Obama said, adding that he would use it as a "departure point" for enacting new reforms.

He did not respond to a question asking why was not signing the spending bill in public. [bold and italics added]

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who opposed the earmarks in the bill, criticized his former election opponent Wednesday for not pledging to "use his veto pen" to stop pork-barrel projects.

"The president's rhetoric is impressive, but his statement affirms we will continue to do business as usual in Washington regarding earmarks in appropriations legislation," he said in a written statement. "This is an opportunity missed."

The 1,132-page bill has an extraordinary reach, wrapping together nine spending bills to fund the annual operating budgets of every Cabinet department except Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs. Among the many earmarks are $485,000 for a boarding school for at-risk native students in western Alaska and $1.2 million for Helen Keller International so the nonprofit can provide eyeglasses to students with poor vision.

Most of the government has been running on a stopgap funding bill set to expire at midnight Wednesday. Refusing to sign the newly completed spending bill would force Congress to pass another bill to keep the lights on come Thursday or else shut down the massive federal government.

The $410 billion bill includes significant increases in food aid for the poor, energy research and other programs. It was supposed to have been completed last fall, but Democrats opted against election-year battles with Republicans and former President George W. Bush. [bold and italics added]

The measure was a top priority for Democratic leaders, who praised it for numerous increases denied by Bush. It once enjoyed support from Republicans. [bold and italics added]

But the bill ran into an unexpected political hailstorm in Congress after Obama's spending-heavy economic stimulus bill and his 2010 budget plan, which forecast a $1.8 trillion deficit for the current budget year.

The bill's big increases -- among them a 14 percent boost for a popular program that feeds infants and poor women and a 10 percent increase for housing vouchers for the poor -- represent a clear win for Democrats who spent most of the past decade battling with Bush over money for domestic programs. Republicans, though, had called on Obama to veto the measure. [bold and italics added]

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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I pledge allegiance to the flag
Of the new world order hosted by America
And to the classlessness
For which it stands
One globe under Darwin’s Theory, indivisible
With suppression and futility for all.