Charlie Manson vs. Michele Bachmann

Bachmann 

“We’re in a state of crisis where our nation is literally ripping apart at the seams right now, and lawlessness is occurring from one ocean to the other. And we’re seeing the fulfillment of the Book of Judges here in our own time, where every man doing that which is right in his own eyes—in other words, anarchy.”  Senator Michele Bachmann, appearing as guest on radio program “Prophetic Views Behind The News”, hosted by Jan Markell, KKMS 980-AM, March 6, 2004.

Manson:

Manson told me ... that he personally believed in law and order. There should be "rigid control" by the authorities, he said. It didn't matter what the law was - right or wrong being relative - but it should be strictly enforced by whoever had the power. And public opinion should be suppressed, because part of the people wanted one thing, part another.
     "In other words, your solution would be a dictatorship," I remarked.
     "Yes."

Vincent Bugliosi, from Helter Skelter © 1974 Curt Gentry and Vincent Bugliosi:

All jokes aside, speculation has been high that Bachmann might actually lose her House seat to Democratic challenger Jim Graves. The polls showed a tight race all summer but most surveys suggest that Bachmann with her hefty $15 million war chest, will be back in Congress after the election. 

As one source reports:

According to a poll released [two weeks ago] by theMinneapolis Star-Tribune, Bachmann leads Democratic challenger 51-45 percent, with four percent undecided.

A KSTP/Survey USA poll released Oct. 12 showed Bachmann ahead, 50-41 percent.

Those are fairly convincing numbers.

Jason Easley, writing for PoliticusUSA, gave this assessment for why she has been in such a struggle to hold onto her job: 

But it might be Bachmann’s national political ambitions that will be most responsible for her undoing. Nothing turns off the folks at home like the feeling that they are being used as stepping stones by their ambitious elected officials. Bachmann’s brief presidential campaign also put her right wing extremism on full display. Because of this, it will be nearly impossible for her to come back to the middle and court Independents after what took place on the national stage earlier this year.

Clearly strategists for the Republican Party, which has been the source of a great deal of her support, have decided that Bachmann is worth the risk. And that's revealing decision given her talent for making a spectacle of herself and for making outrageous statements on Fox News. 

Ultimately their decision to back this Tea Party crusader may come back to haunt them and provide the Democratic party a steady stream of outlandish quotes.

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Related articles

• The Democrat Who Could Unseat Michele Bachmann (truthdig.com)
• Bachmann on defense after W.H. bid (politico.com)
• Welfare queen Michele Bachmann super excited about government she hates building her a new bridge (dailykos.com)
• Michele Bachmann feeling the heat of Jim Graves' challenge (dailykos.com)
• "Michele Bachmann In Danger": The Voters May Just Pray Her Away (mykeystrokes.com)

Hurricane Sandy Brings an October Surprise

by Nomad

I
n a rather surprising show of solidarity, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who has been bashing President Obama for the last year on his lack of leadership- did an about-face after his state was devastated by Hurricane Sandy. 

According to CBSNews

Christie called the level of cooperation between the local, state and federal governments "excellent" and praised President Obama's involvement. "I was on the phone for the third time yesterday, last night, with the president of the United States. He called me at midnight last night as he was seeing reports," he said before adding that President Obama accelerated the designation of New Jersey as a major disaster area "without the usual red tape."

"The cooperation has been great with FEMA here on the ground and the cooperation from the president of the United States has been outstanding. He deserves great credit," Christie added.

Meanwhile Jay Carney, spokesman for the White House, gave this assessment of the relief efforts:

"When disaster strikes, Americans suffer -- not Democrats, not independents, not Republicans -- Americans suffer. And then we come together and put politics aside to make sure that those Americans get the assistance that they need."

With a week left before the election, Obama  canceled campaign trips planned for Tuesday and Wednesday to stay in Washington and supervise storm recovery. On Wednesday, Obama is scheduled to visit New Jersey, and is expected to return to campaigning on Thursday.

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The US and Greece: Does the Public Have a Right to Know What Politicians are Hiding?

by Nomad

No matter how cynical Americans are about their politicians and the political process, nothing can compare to the Greeks. Most Greeks you ask on the street would tell you that their government has been corrupt for as long as they can remember.

And that way of thinking goes back to the ancient times too. The philosopher Anacharsis once said,

Written laws are like spiders' webs, and will, like them, only entangle and hold the poor and weak, while the rich and powerful will easily break through them. 

If the Greek public weren’t already by their nature skeptical about the politics, the austerity measures imposed on Greece by the European Union have pushed that cynicism to the breaking point. Mass protests have erupted into violence throughout Greece as European Union leaders in Brussels have attempted to pull the nation back from the edge of bankruptcy.

The Lost LaGarde List

When journalist and HOT DOC magazine editor, Kostas Vaxevanis, published a list of 1,991 people who had 1.95 billion in deposits in the Geneva, Switzerland HSBC bank branch, many were enraged but few were totally surprised.

According to Greek law, there is nothing illegal about having a Swiss bank accounts as long as they are declared and taxes are paid on them. The editor stressed that people on the list should not be considered tax evaders unless it is proved they did not pay taxes on the deposits.

What was interesting was the names on that list which reported included “several politicians, an advisor to Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, well-known businessmen, journalists, doctors, lawyers and engineers, actors and civil servants – some of them working at the Finance Ministry.” The list contained names, not only of Greeks, but foreign nationals who had apparently emptied their accounts from Greek banks and transferred them to HSBC.

The list contains also the names of three former ministers, of whom one died sometime ago. Also the names of owners of enterprises that have gone bankrupt. But also students studying abroad, pensioners and housewives.