We want to be clear ... Fuck the NRA! They have worked for decades to deregulate guns and weapons in our society. The result:

Quentin Patrick, 22, "an ex-convict who said he thought he was being robbed gunned down a 12-year-old trick-or-treater, spraying nearly 30 rounds with an assault rifle from inside his home after hearing a knock on the door ... Patrick emptied his AK-47, shooting at least 29 times through his front door, walls and windows after hearing the knock." [source]

InfoImagination wants to be 100 percent clear on this issue. We do not oppose hunting. Yet an AK-47 (or an Uzi, see below) isn't a hunting rifle -- unless you're targeting human beings. They do not belong in society. Automatic weapons should be locked up in secure armories and available for a "well regulated militia." If you're a true sportsman, hunt with a bow and arrow.

Less than a week ago, an eight-year-old killed himself after losing control of an automatic weapon, an Uzi, at a gun fair. It is inconceivable that these parents were so stupid as to allow their young child to play with this weapon! It is unbelievable how stupid were the event promoters, Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo and C.O.P. Firearms and Training! Their motto is "all legal and fun." [source]

I believe an important man in history urged us to pound our swords into plowshares. I could be wrong. I believe he also said to love your enemy, but that may be a misquote. Christians are the first to call for war, so I must have heard wrong!

Recently rebel forces in Nigeria declared an "oil war" in the west African nation in response to what it said were "unprovoked" attacks by Nigerian government forces a day earlier. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) issued a statement saying it attacked several oil installations, making good on a previous threat that any attack on its positions "will be tantamount to a declaration of an oil war."

MEND vows that, "the operation will continue until the government of Nigeria appreciates that the solution to peace in the Niger Delta is justice, respect and dialogue." But what do they really want?

MEND hopes to secure a greater share of Nigeria's oil wealth for people in the delta, where more than 70 percent of the population lives on less than a dollar a day. [source]

At the same time, the Bush administration and the White House is pushing the sales of military weapons throughout the world.

From tanks, helicopters and fighter jets to missiles, remotely piloted aircraft and even warships, the Department of Defense has agreed so far this fiscal year to sell or transfer more than $32 billion in weapons and other military equipment to foreign governments, compared with $12 billion in 2005.

The trend, which started in 2006, is most pronounced in the Middle East, but it reaches into northern Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and even Canada, through dozens of deals that senior Bush administration officials say they are confident will both tighten military alliances and combat terrorism.

"This is not about being gunrunners," said Bruce S. Lemkin, Air Force deputy under secretary who is helping to coordinate many of the biggest sales. "This is about building a more secure world." [source]

Mr. Lemkin may be able to deceive himself and most Republicans, but you and I know that groups like MEND would find it very difficult to rally their supporters to further war and violence if they weren't starving. And, George W. Bush claims he's a follower of Jesus. Just another lie!

[UPDATE: 4.2.08] Wal-Mart told the family on Tuesday (4.1.08) that they won't have to pay back the company for the cost of Debbie's medical care. While this is the right decision, we cannot easily applaud Wal-Mart.

Keep in mind that Wal-Mart sued Debbie to recoup $470,000 it paid for her medical care and the Shank family had to appeal all the way to the US Supreme Court (who refused to hear the case). Think of the additional cost to both sides; the added hardship and frustration to the Shank family due to years of additional litigation. Yes, it is the right decision, but a decision that should have been made some time ago.

InfoImagination instead applauds all of you who stood together to demand that Wal-Mart change their policy. We salute you! We can make a difference.

Debbie Shank lost her 18-year-old son, Jeremy, to the war effort in Iraq. Even though the 52-year-old mother of three attended her son's funeral -- she continues to ask how he's doing.

When her family reminds her that he's dead -- she weeps as if hearing the news for the first time. Mrs. Shank has severe brain damage due to a traffic accident in 2000.

Two years after the accident, Shank and her husband were awarded about $1 million in a lawsuit against the trucking company involved in the crash. After paying legal fees, $417,000 was placed in a trust to pay for Debbie Shank's long-term care.

Wal-Mart had paid out about $470,000 for Shank's medical expenses, but in 2005, Wal-Mart's health plan sued the Shanks for the same amount. They want Debbie's long-term care money!

How bad is it for Wal-Mart? In 2007, the retail giant reported net sales in the third quarter alone of $90 billion.

This is a patriotic American family that is suffering the loss of their son. Their situation is so dire that Jim Shank divorced Debbie last year so she could receive more money from Medicaid.

Jim Shank, 54, is recovering from prostate cancer, works two jobs and struggles to pay the bills. He's afraid he won't be able to send their youngest son to college and pay for his and Debbie's care.

"Who needs the money more? A disabled lady in a wheelchair with no future, whatsoever, or does Wal-Mart need $90 billion, plus $200,000?" he asked.

It is our experience that Wal-Mart sells cheap, but inferior products that do not last, and now we learn they are "greedy, fucking scum" who do not support American military families or our troops. [source]

John McCain demonstrated conservative family values on Monday, Nov. 12th, when a Republican supporter asked the presidential hopeful an important question:

"How do we beat the bitch?" (referring to Hillary Clinton)

That "bitch" has a family. She is a mother, a wife, and currently an honorable United States Senator from New York. Any man of decency would have admonished the questionner for using such terminology. Yet John McCain showed his true colors, and that of Republicans, when he answered:

"That's an excellent question."

Frequently we hear Bill O'Reilly and FOX commentators claim that liberals are destroying the cultural fabric of America. These pundits attack Hip Hoppers and entertainers for using improper language. Will we hear them criticize this Republican leader? We bet not!

John McCain simply wants you to know that he "respects Senator Clinton."

Nice leadership, John!

Pat Robertson, TV evangelist and Christian Coalition founder, endorsed Republican Rudy Giuliani for president during an appearance at the National Press Club in Washington on Wednesday, November 7th. Robertson endorsed Giuliani because he appears to be "a proven leader who is not afraid of what lies ahead and who will cast a hopeful vision for all Americans."

Just last week, Robertson warned Christians not to paticipate in Halloween because letting your kids have fun, eat candy, and fit in socially leads to eternal damnation. Speaking on The 700 Club, Robertson called Halloween the "festival of the Devil" and claimed it is "a mistake for Christians" to participate -- because it is "wrong."

Robertson loves Giuliani because the former NY City mayor wants to continue the war indefinitely in Iraq and can't wait to bomb Iran. Good Christians know that marching to war and dropping bombs on kids are practices Jesus asked his followers to engage in whenever possible. Loving your neighbor -- by giving their kids candy and treats -- is so "unChristian."

Gail Collins points out how bizarre it is that Pat loves Rudy:

Back in mid-2001, when Mayor Rudy Giuliani was busy committing adultery, lurching into his divorce and third marriage and rooming with a gay couple he promised to marry as soon as the law allowed, who among us would have imagined that one day he would be endorsed for president by Pat Robertson? [Pat loves Rudy]

Who is Pat Robertson and what does he stand for? Robertson had this to say on September 13, 2001, referring to the causes of the al Qaida terrorist attack on 9/11 [more]:

JERRY FALWELL: The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way -- all of them who have tried to secularize America -- I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen."

PAT ROBERTSON: Well, I totally concur ...

He warned Orlando when Disney World welcomed gay patrons claiming the policy would lead to terrorist attacks, "earthquakes, tornadoes and possibly a meteor" -- all due to the rath of God.

... God raining down meteors because of compassion toward gays in America? ... Punishing people "who have tried to secularize America"? This is how the Taleban in Afghanistan and Pakistan talk. They believe secularization has corrupted the Islamic world. They want to return to religious domination of society -- and the world, an Islamic Caliphate. They want women under the veil and banned from eduation, no movies or music, and men must grow long beards and be willing to die for God -- at their command.

We criticize the mullahs in Iran for blocking secular forces in the region [more]. Al Qaida in Iraq wants to destroy secular movements in the budding nation as well.

Pat Robertson et al represent the "American Taleban." They just endorsed Rudi Giuliani -- who obviously couldn't be more pleased!

[Update 10.12.07] Two weeks ago, the Democratic response to President Bush's weekly radio address was delivered by a 12-year-old, Graeme Frost.

Graeme and his sister received severe brain injuries in a 2004 car crash and need continued physical therapy. Both are beneficiaries of S-CHIP -- the legislation Bush vetoed!

Time magazine writer, Karen Tumulty, penned the following, "If you listen closely to the two-minute radio address that 12-year-old Graeme Frost delivered last week for the Democrats, you can hear the lingering effects of the 2004 car crash that put him into a coma for a week and left one of his vocal cords paralyzed. 'Most kids my age probably haven't heard of CHIP, the Children's Health Insurance Program,' he says in a voice that sounds weak and stressed. 'But I know all about it, because if it weren't for CHIP, I might not be here today.' " [source]

Graeme's father, Halsey Frost emailed a letter to Tumulty:

"My son Graeme has helped put on a human face, that of a young boy, representing the needs of children and families across this nation. We are a hard working family that has stepped forward to support S-CHIP. Mudslinging from the fringe has now been directed at the messenger. To be smeared all over the Internet and receive nasty email -- my family does not deserve this retribution. It is both shameful and pathetic.

"Driven by a most dubious agenda, shortsighted cut-and-paste bloggers, lacking all the facts, have made a feeble attempt at being crack reporters. This is an aberrant attempt to distract the American people from what the real issues are. Hard working American families need affordable health insurance.

"I find it morally reprehensible, and the act of a true coward, to publicly (world wide) smear a man and his family and not sign one's own real name to what they have written. I sign my name to what I write.
-Halsey Frost"

Mr. Frost also included a letter from a friend who wrote:

"Chances are, Bonnie, Halsey and their kids will survive this. The sad reality is that they've already been through much worse. But what does it say about us as a nation that we seek to destroy the reputations of those we should honor? Have we become so cynical and nasty that we no longer can recognize simple courage and decency?"
-Andrew Gray

In his NY Times column, Paul Krugman wrote, "the Frosts and their four children are exactly the kind of people S-CHIP was intended to help: working Americans who can't afford private health insurance. The parents have a combined income of about $45,000, and don't receive health insurance from employers. When they looked into buying insurance on their own before the accident, they found that it would cost $1,200 a month -- a prohibitive sum given their income. After the accident, when their children needed expensive care, they couldn't get insurance at any price." [source]

The Compassionate Conservative Republican response was to attack Graeme Frost and his family. Right-wing bloggers led by Michelle Malkin, who writes for National Review and is a frequent guest on Fox News, initiated the "Swift Boat" smear campaign against the injured 12-year-old boy. Rush Limbaugh quickly added momentum to the sliming of Graeme. Mitch McConnell, Senate minority leader, furthered the smears in various emails.

Krugman pointed out that "the Graeme Frost case is a perfect illustration of the modern right-wing political machine at work, and in particular its routine reliance on character assassination in place of honest debate. If service members oppose a Republican war, they're "phony soldiers"; if Michael J. Fox opposes Bush policy on stem cells, he's faking his Parkinson's symptoms; if an injured 12-year-old child makes the case for a government health insurance program, he's a fraud." [source]

E. J. Dionne Jr., in the Washington Post article, "Meanies And Hypocrites," wrote, "Conservatives claim to be in favor of stable families, small businesses, hard work, private schools, investment and homeownership. So why in the world are so many on the right attacking the family of Graeme Frost?" [source]

Dionne included a Republican response, "Democrats chose to outsource their airtime to a Seventh Grader," wrote National Review's Mark Steyn. "If a political party is desperate enough to send a boy to do a man's job, then the boy is fair game."

Okay, the Democrats are "fair game," but a 12-year-old? No wonder nobody talks about compassionate conservatism anymore, writes Dionne. Hypocritically, less than a month ago, Republicans were up in arms over a MoveOn.org campaign that questioned General Petraeus or General Betray-Us. [more on MoveOn.org campaign]

The moral of the story is that it's okay to attack a 12-year-old but not the General running Bush's failed Iraq misadventure! That's about right for cowardly Republicans.

---

BACKGROUND
President Bush vetoed (10.3.07) national legislation extending and reforming the State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP). Can you believe this? The President of the United States just blocked health care for millions of low-income children! Bush vetoed the bill in private, hiding from television cameras and other media representatives who normally attend even routine presidential actions, because he is such a coward.

Bush said the S-CHIP program will cost too much. The expanded coverage would have cost $35 billion over five years -- $7 billion per year -- and provided coverage to an additional 10 million children. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, told reporters he agrees with President Bush's veto. The proposal asked for $700 per child per year, but that is too much for Republican leaders!

Putting the cost in perspective, for the price of one day in Iraq, we could cover 256,000 children. One week would cover 1.8 million children. And just over one month of the Iraq war would cover the full cost of the bill, insuring more than 10 million children for a whole year.


Bush added that he vetoed the bill because he believes "in private medicine, not the federal government running the health care system." Yet Bush championed a massive expansion of Medicare to cover prescription drugs for the elderly, a program that will cost the federal government roughly 10 times what any expansion of children's health insurance would cost. He supported the Medicare expansion before his re-election -- and senior citizens vote.

House Republicans quietly distributed a survey by David Winston, who is close to Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, the House Republican leader, that came to a different conclusion. It said critics of the legislation can win the public debate if they say they favor "covering uninsured children without expanding government coverage to adults, illegal immigrants and those who already have insurance..." A copy of the poll was obtained by The Associated Press.

Claim: Illegal immigrants will be able to sign up for benefits. Answer: It is against federal law for illegal immigrants to sign up for S-CHIP programs. That wouldn't change. [Source: Mike King, Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

The irony of Bush's position is he's borrowing the money for the Iraq war from Saudi Arabia and China and these kids will be the ones who will work a lifetime to pay down the debt. Screw 'em as kids; f*ck 'em as adults.

This is a question of priorities -- and President Bush's priorities obviously don't include the needs of America's children. All we can say is, compassionate conservatism indeed.

During his broadcast last week, talk show host Rush Limbaugh called anti-war vets "phony soldiers." Brian McGough, a 31-year-old former Army staff sergeant who was wounded in a roadside attack in Iraq, responded by appearing in an ad by the anti-Iraq war veterans group VoteVets.org.

"Rush, the shrapnel I took to my head was real. My traumatic brain injury was real. And my belief we are on the wrong course in Iraq is real."

McGough says in the ad, "Until you have the guts to call me a phony soldier to my face, stop telling lies about my service." (Mr. McGough shown at right)

Limbaugh responded on air Tuesday, comparing McGough metaphorically to a suicide bomber. He said the ad was:

"a blatant use of a valiant combat veteran, lying to him about what I said, then strapping those lies to his belt, sending him out via the media in a TV ad to walk into as many people as he can walk into."

Rush Limbaugh never served our country. He found ways to be exempted from military service. Millions of Americans claim this makes Rush a "chicken hawk."

See also: Media Matters Transcript and Video of Rush's Comments

Under the leadership of George W. Bush and the Republicans, our nation has slipped in countless categories that measure our national strength and welfare. GM is no longer the world's largest auto maker; our national debt has increased exponentially while we return billions in tax revenue to the most wealthy; personal debt is at a historic high; our schools continue to falter; medical care, gas and heating oil, and food costs are rising faster than paychecks.

The competitive global arms market, where manufacturing nations seek both to increase profits and expand political influence through weapons sales to developing nations, accounted for nearly $28.8 billion in sales during 2006.

The "Conventional Arms Transfers to Developing Nations" report produced by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service also points out that the US has signed weapons-sales agreements with nations whose records on democracy and human rights are subject to official criticism.

Pakistan was the leading recipient of American arms sales in 2006, including the $1.4 billion purchase of 36 new F-16C/D fighter aircraft and $640 million in missiles and bombs. The deal included a package for $890 million in upgrades for Pakistan's older versions of the F-16 -- and this is where Usama bin Laden maintains his hidden headquarters and recruits a significant number of extremist fighters. The State Department's own survey of global human rights in 2006 noted a variety of shortcomings in Pakistan's record on human rights and democratization.

That's okay ... we're glad to sell them a million more bullets and bombs! Food, medical and education supplies, and economic development only lead to peace and there's no profit in that strategy. NUKE JESUS!

Fox News Republican TV host Bill O'Reilly says his review of famed Harlem restaurant Sylvia's is being taken out of context and was not racist. Archie [Bill O'Reilly] Bunker said:

"I couldn't get over the fact that there was no difference between Sylvia's Restaurant and any other restaurant in New York City."

"I mean, it was exactly the same, even though it's run by blacks, primarily black patronship," he told listeners. "It was the same, and that's really what this society's all about now here in the U.S.A. There's no difference."

O'Reilly said there "wasn't any kind of craziness at all" during his dinner. "There wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, 'MotherFuckerer, I want more iced tea.' "

We don't really understand what the controversy is here ... it's not like Archie has "RACIST" tattooed on his forehead or something!

General Peter Pace, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, created heated controversy at a Senate hearing this week when he repeated his view that gay sex is immoral and should not be condoned by the military.

"We need to be very precise then, about what I said wearing my stars and being very conscious of it," he added. "And that is, very simply, that we should respect those who want to serve the nation but not through the law of the land, condone activity that, in my upbringing, is counter to God's law."

We're not here to initiate a debate about the morality of gay and lesbian sexual encounters ... but we believe "God's Law" also includes something similar to, "Thou Shall Not Kill."

Dear General Pace, how many kids have you killed with your bombs and bullets? Isn't it kind of ironic that a killer is lecturing homosexuals about God's Law on Morality?

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told delegates to the Global Change Conference on Thursday that countries around the world must work together to combat climate change, much as they cooperate against terror and the spread of disease.

Rice said the United States takes climate change seriously, "for we are both a major economy and a major emitter. Climate change is a global problem, and we are contributing to it. Therefore, we are prepared to expand our leadership to address the challenge."

Bush responded by saying he believes every nation should set its own goals (so much for global cooperation). The president dork expressed concern that setting strict targets would damage the US economy. Instead, he said, industries should enact voluntary measures.

Bush believes that strict measures will hurt the economy, while individual companies will joyfully volunteer to harm their bottom line. If you can understand his flawed logic, then you must be insane! This is another example why he is having so much difficulty in the global war on terror. Thankfully, Bush is willing to put strict standards on our kids in school. He knows who he can bully around...

George W. Bush continually boasts that his "war on terror" has made you more safe. It appears most Americans believe his propaganda. Yet after spending nearly a trillion dollars -- that's $1,000,000,000,000 -- in a failed and illegal war against the Iraqi people, we learn that our northern border isn't safe at all (let's not even talk about the southern border with Mexico).

The a new report from the Government Accountability Office congressional investigators found that a terrorist wanting to smuggle radioactive material from Canada into the United States probably would find it easy to do.

Government investigators were able to cross from Canada into the United States carrying a duffle bag with contents that looked like radioactive material and never encountered a law enforcement official.

GAO's Greg Kutz testified Thursday, "Our work clearly shows substantial vulnerabilities in the northern border to terrorist or criminals entering the United States undetected."

A trillion dollars to destroy Iraq, kill over a million Iraqi citizens (and only a handful of al Qaeda terrorists), inflame Muslims around the world, allow Usama bin Laden to continue planning, leave our borders unsecure -- and Americans refuse to call for Bush and Cheney to resign. Yes, that's insanity news!