Democrat Harry Reid, who was quick to jump on the “culture of corruption” campaign while conveniently ignoring his very own connections, has once again been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid accepted free ringside tickets from the Nevada Athletic Commission to three professional boxing matches while that state agency was trying to influence him on federal regulation of boxing.

Reid, D-Nev., took the free seats for Las Vegas fights between 2003 and 2005 as he was pressing legislation to increase government oversight of the sport, including the creation of a federal boxing commission that Nevada’s agency feared might usurp its authority.

So, about that whole “culture of corruption” thing…

Several ethics experts said Reid should have paid for the tickets, which were close to the ring and worth between several hundred and several thousand dollars each, to avoid the appearance he was being influenced by gifts.

Normally, I’d ask, “what if this had been a Republican”… but in this case, I don’t have to ask, because two Republicans did join Reid at the fights. Compare their actions with his.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., insisted on paying $1,400 for the tickets he shared with Reid for a 2004 championship fight. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., accepted free tickets to another fight with Reid but already had recused himself from Reid’s federal boxing legislation because his father was an executive for a Las Vegas hotel that hosts fights.

So, about that whole “culture of corruption” thing…

Update: While liberals are still rushing to defend Reid’s corrupt behvaior (even in the very comments to this post), Reid, himself, is acknowledging the wrongdoing:

Reversing course, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid’s office acknowledged Wednesday night he misstated the ethics rules governing his acceptance of free boxing tickets and has decided to avoid taking such gifts in the future.

Cause: Re-elect an incompetent Mayor who completely failed the citizens during Hurricane Katrina.

Effect: Hurricane drill in Louisiana cancelled due to miscommunication.

Hard to feel real sorry for them at this point.

I am a reviewer for Mind & Media. It’s a great program. They send me new books… for FREE… and I review them.

The latest book I received was Help! Mom! Hollywood’s in My Hamper!.

At first glance, one would think this is a children’s book. And frankly, it could well serve those with children. It’s the tale of two children who, despite receiving guidance and values from their parents, are easily duped into wasting all their money on Hollywood-endorsed garbage. The graphics are a bit juvenile, but the caricatures are unmistakable.

Eventually the children come to realize that the original parental guidance is more than just lip service and the message peddled by the self-absorbed useful idiots from Hollywood is nothing more than lip service… with a bit of collagen added.

The story doesn’t quite finish in a nice, tidy “lessons learned” like I was hoping, but in the end the children come to realize the “experts” in Hollywood aren’t all they’re cracked up to be and instead the children are the real “experts” of their own lives.

If only it were so easy to teach the children.

A month ago I asked:

How long before MSM stops acting surprised about this economy?

Apparently not yet…

Sales of new homes rose unexpectedly in April to the fastest pace this year as the housing sector showed resilience in the face of rising mortgage rates.
…
The pace of activity caught economists by surprise. They had been expecting a decline in sales, reflecting the fact that mortgage rates have been climbing in recent weeks and now stand at the highest level in nearly four years.

Caught which economists by surprise? The ones on MSM payroll?

But never fear. The MSM isn’t coming around to actually believing our economy is strong. They make sure to temper every piece of good news with the requisite amount of negativity.

The unexpected jump in April home sales was not likely to change the overall view that the booming housing industry is beginning to cool off after setting sales records for five straight years.

It’s ironic that when then-Governor Bush commented on the impending economic downturn he was inheriting, he was accused of “talking down” the economy.

So are they going to now accuse him of “talking up” the economy?

Back on March 13, 2003, this blog was born out of my desire to correct the record on the Dixie Chicks self-induced saga. Tired of calling in to all the talk radio shows about this topic, I finally ventured into the blogosphere with my very first post.

I find it amusing when the entertainers spout off whatever mantra is cool for the day and then complain when consumers start talking about boycotting their services (ACTING!) or products (items they endorse as celebrities). You see, somewhere down the line the concept of “free speech” has been confused with the economic concept of supply and demand. If you’re livelihood depends on something and you take actions (whether protected or not) that alienate a portion of that collective ’something’, you’ve got to expect a reduction in demand for your product. Look at it this way… do you see top executives of companies making public statements about politics? NO! Taking it a step further, do you hear business owners making personal attacks or snide comments about politicians or religious figures in public? NO! Why, you ask? Because they know that there are differing viewpoints in the world… a world which comprises their entire customer base… a world which does not care to hear their latest rant about foreign policy or their stance on global warming. They understand that while they too enjoy freedom of speech, the wise move is to shut up when it comes to hot topics. Sure, you say, they are afraid to voice their opinions…. I counter that it is intelligence, not fear that guides them. The entertainment industry for the most part has elevated many of these ‘activists’ to a financial position that boycotts of their goods and services may not completely destroy their way of life, and for that reason they have nothing to lose. But for those who are on their way up, or require continual support from the audience, it might be wise to shut the hell up…. unless of course the cost of their free speech is worth a reduction in lifestyle and livelihood.

The “right to free speech” is not being attacked. Stop the spinning. They have the right to say whatever they want (obviously) and we as the consumers, the people who can put money in their pockets or not, have the choice to stop purchasing their products and services. The beauty of capitalism.
…
This is not about freedom of speech, it’s about business. Supply and demand.

The only difference is this time next year, she might not have a world stage on which to spew her idiocy, she’ll be relegated back to a local bar or street corner… but her free speech rights will remain fully intact.

And here we are three years later and my point has been proven.

It appears the war U.S. country radio stations mounted against the politically outspoken Dixie Chicks has not abated in the least.

The band is promoting “Taking the Long Way,” its first album since Natalie Maines told a London audience in 2003 she was ashamed to be from the same state as U.S. President George Bush. The comment sparked a radio boycott of the group’s music.

Although the album hits stores Tuesday, the first two singles from the album are not getting widespread airplay, Billboard.com reported Monday.

The first single, “Not Ready to Make Nice,” only peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and the second single, “Everybody Knows,” is moving downward after its peak at No. 48.

WKIS FM in Miami reported it pulled “Not Ready to Make Nice” due to listener complaints after only one week.

The program director at KUBL/KKAT in Salt Lake City told Billboard he was angered by its “self-indulgent and selfish lyrics.”

Neither the Chicks or their label, Columbia Records, would speak to Billboard for its article.

Looks like they waited a little too long to finally stop speaking. Welcome to the world of capitalism.

Just in time for the kickoff of the 2006 campaign season, the media is padding some Hurricane Katrina statistics to give the finger-pointers some more ammunition.

Deaths of evacuees push toll to 1,577
Out-of-state victims mostly elderly, infirm

The first stories of death came quickly and immediately: New Orleans area residents drowning in fetid floodwaters, succumbing in sweltering attics or being swept out to sea.

But state officials say that for weeks after it made landfall Aug. 29, Hurricane Katrina kept claiming Louisiana victims, often in more subtle fashion and often in other states: elderly and ill evacuees too fragile for grueling trips on gridlocked highways, infants stillborn to mothers who were shuttled to other cities when they should have been on bed rest and residents overcome with anxiety by 24-hour television broadcasts of the devastation back home.

Seems to me we could just as well consider these “anxiety” deaths a result of the MSM-generated hysteria that was later shown to be total and complete BS.

And other stories of death they blame on Katrina…

At 81, her aunt, Rita Parker, wasn’t the picture of perfect health. Parker had bronchitis and was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. But O’Neil and another of Parker’s nieces, Jo Ann Owen, said their aunt was nowhere near gravely ill… But after 20-plus hours in a car fleeing Katrina — with stops in Florida, Georgia and, finally, Oklahoma — Parker was beginning to wear, O’Neil said. Her aunt was glued to television coverage about the storm. Things seemed to worsen when they got the news that two family homes had been destroyed. Parker refused to eat and drink and became lethargic.

She was hospitalized in Oklahoma City on Sept. 4 and died six days later. Doctors said her breathing problems put a strain on her heart.

and…

Most of the out-of-state dead reported so far were elderly people. But the ages range from an infant who survived only 45 minutes after birth in Pennsylvania, to a 104-year-old woman who died in North Carolina. The vast majority, 82 percent, died of natural causes. Twenty seven of the deaths were deemed accidental. At least two suicides are included in the official count.

If they were from “natural causes” doesn’t that by its very definition mean it wasn’t a result of the Hurricane?

and the suicides?

In addition, Cataldie said, it’s quite possible that some evacuees had no access to essential prescription medication while away from home, and their wait turned fatal. Cataldie said he fielded a call from relatives of one man who committed suicide after he spent days without medication.

Really? That’s interesting considering there’s a friggin’ Walgreens on just about every street corner in Houston.

and…

That’s where the National Guard airlifted Shirley Richard, 87, after she rode out Katrina at Metairie Manor nursing home. Richard refused to evacuate before the storm, said her sister, Mary Marino.

Marino said she was shocked the second week in September to receive a telephone call from San Antonio informing her that Richard had been hospitalized there. She flew to Texas and spent three days with her sister, until Richard died Sept. 14.

Richard had been ill before the storm with colitis and congestive heart failure. But she was determined to stay alive to comfort Marino, who was still grieving the death of a son a few years ago, Marino said.

I wonder if they’re also including murder victims in their stats of “hurrice-related” deaths. Because we all know that New Orleans wouldn’t have seen a single murder if not for the storm. Bottom line, the number of deaths in New Orleans around the time of the hurricane really showed no “catastrophic” increase, so there has to be some post-game analysis to see how many unrelated deaths can be retroactively attributed to the storm.

And of course, I’m sure they’ll all be attributed back to President Bush… because we all know now it was 100% his fault.

Can we finally stop blaming Bush? Because it’s indisputable now that 52.3% of the residents of New Orleans are stuck on stupid.

Yes, that Ray Nagin.

Michelle says it’s the definition of insanity: “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

And I’m putting money on the fact it’s not the only thing stupid they do over and over. We’re one week away from the start of the 2006 hurricane blame-Bush-for-all-Lousiana-officials’-total-incompetence season.

I suppose they’ll also re-elect Congressman William Jefferson come November as well. I mean, even though he used the National Guard to protect his home while people were still drowning in Katrina’s aftermath, how bad could he be? After all, he was probably just trying to protect the $90,000 in cash he had stashed in his freezer. But don’t worry about where it came from, there’s video of him taking a $100,000 bribe… but it was probably to help the citizens of New Orleans survive the bombing of the levees that George W. Bush ordered.

The L.A. Times gets caught passing off agenda-driven propaganda as journalism… again!

The article highlights an “average contractor” who just can’t seem to find any red-blooded Americans to dig ditches for $34/hour. Yes, that’s $34 an HOUR.

Cyndi Smallwood is looking for a few strong men for her landscaping company. Guys with no fear of a hot sun, who can shovel dirt all day long. She’ll pay as much as $34 an hour.

She can’t find them.

Poor little Cyndi. Of course, if you only read the L.A. Times’ version of this story, you’d likely be wondering what’s wrong with our society that a poor, little woman who owns a contruction company can’t find any decent, strapping, young men to help her business. Of course, if you’re reading this right now, you’re not stupid enough to rely solely on MSM for your news. And here’s why:

But it turns out there’s a tiny bit more to the story that the LA Times isn’t telling you. Reader Christopher L. wrote this morning to point out that a simple Google search shows that Cyndi Smallwood is president of the Orange County chapter of the California Landscape Contractors Association, and is a member of the association’s “Immigration Task Force.” The activist group opposes the “Punitive Immigration Reform Bill Proposed by Rep. Sensenbrenner.”

And that’s not all…

Turns out Smallwood is quite a busy, savvy p.r. agent for the open-borders lobby. Conor links to articles here and here and here on her political activities, and observes:

If traveling to Washington DC to lobby for a trade association, planting pro-guest worker program quotes in multiple press outlets and backing a specific faction in the immigration reform debate is considered ambivalence on immigration reform I’d like to see the Times version of an activist!

It seems there are a lot of titles the L.A. Times can’t quite comprehend… apparently “journalist” is just one of them.

From the Washington Times:

The Senate voted yesterday to allow illegal aliens to collect Social Security benefits based on past illegal employment — even if the job was obtained through forged or stolen documents.

So we’re now going to reward those who break the law FOR breaking the law? And we’re not just talking about illegally being present in this country… we’re talking about thieves who, in some cases, have stolen the identities of innocent, LEGAL, citizens to commit fraud on our systems. Unbelievable.

“We all know that millions of undocumented immigrants pay Social Security and Medicare taxes for years and sometimes decades while they work to contribute to our economy,” said Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican Liberal-in-sheep’s-clothing.

Shut up, McCain. First of all, if you can’t even bring yourself to call them what they are - ILLEGAL ALIENS - then you have no credibility to even continue the sentence.

“The Ensign amendment would undermine the work of these people by preventing lawfully present immigrant workers from claiming Social Security benefits that they earned before they were authorized to work in our community,” he said. “If this amendment were enacted, the nest egg that these immigrants have worked hard for would be taken from them and their families.”

“Lawfully present immigrant workers”??? Stop being a pandering moron. We’re talking about illegal aliens. Those who thought so little of our rule of law, that they chose to simply ignore it.

What’s next, a McCain bill to propose a pension for career bank robbers? A gold watch for those who haven’t committed a murder in, oh, say 10 years? How about a new car for those who’ve wrecked their own in drunk-driving accidents? Afterall, they made their car payments on time, and despite the criminal act, should be entitled to a car, right?

“It makes no sense to reward millions of illegal immigrants for criminal behavior while our Social Security system is already in crisis,” said Sen. Jim DeMint, South Carolina Republican. “Why in the world would we endorse this criminal activity with federal benefits? The Senate missed a big opportunity to improve this bill, and I doubt American seniors will be pleased with the result.”

At least someone in Washington is in touch with reality.

“Instead of protecting the retirement security of Americans who are earning an honest living and abiding by the laws of our country, Debbie Stabenow sided with people who are here illegally and abuse our Social Security system,” Oakland County, Mich., Sheriff Michael Bouchard said in a press release. “Allowing illegal immigrants to use their illegal work history as credit towards receiving Social Security benefits shows that Debbie Stabenow has forgotten who she is supposed to be working for in the U.S. Senate.”

No, she knows full well who she’s working for… just like John McCain…. and it ain’t us.

Remember that this November!

In an attempt to UNIFY citizens of our great country, the Senate has approved a bill naming English as the official language of the United States. What better way to show immigrants from all over the world how we can unite this melting pot into a single, common America?

But then there are dividers like Harry Reid who claim the Senate bill is “racist“.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid called a proposal to make English the official language “racist” on the Senate floor yesterday.
“This amendment is racist. I think it’s directed basically to people who speak Spanish,” the Democrat said during the already tense debate over immigration reform.

So I guess we should maintain a divided country, one full of people refusing to assimilate? Seems to me it’s ol’ Harry that’s trying to keep this country divided.

And America doesn’t agree with out-of-touch Reid:

A poll by Zogby International earlier this year found that 84 percent of Americans say English should be the official language of government operations. The same poll found that 77 percent of Hispanics agree.

Even part of the INS’ citizenship test includes this:

General Requirements: All naturalization applicants must demonstrate good moral character. The other naturalization requirements may be modified or waived for certain applicants, such as spouses of U.S. Citizens.
A period of continuous residence and physical presence in the United States
An ability to read, write and speak English
Good moral character
Knowledge of the principles of the U.S. Constitution
Favorable disposition toward the United States

Is Senator Reid going to accuse INS and the citizenship test of the United States of being racist as well?

Senator Reid’s website only offers English and Spanish versions. I think that’s racist… considering there are hundreds of thousands in the U.S. that speak neither language. What about Vietnamese, Chinese, the French, Germans, Russians and others in this country?

Mr. Reid’s charge of racism caused a stir of whispers in the Senate chamber and gallery, and Sen. James M. Inhofe, the Oklahoma Republican who offered the amendment, was clearly offended.

As Mr. Reid continued his floor speech, an aide passed him a note on a folded sheet of yellow legal paper. After reading the note, the Nevada Democrat tried to clarify his remarks.

“Even though I feel this amendment is unfair, I don’t in any way suggest that Jim Inhofe is a racist,” Mr. Reid said. “I don’t believe that at all. I just believe that this amendment has, to some people, that connotation — not that he’s a racist, but that the amendment is.”

Translation: “I was just handed a note informing me that I’m a complete dumbass for the comments and therefore I will try to use some Clintonian weasel words to backtrack before the soundbite makes it to the public… oh, and please don’t remember this when you’re voting this Fall.”

Doh!