No Justice For Missing American Women In Aruba

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Almost ten years ago my husband and I went to Aruba. I had won the trip and we had an amazing time. The people there were so warm and friendly that we had opined moving there one day.

Just one short year later we learned of the disappearance of Natalee Hollaway who was there on a Senior Class trip. Americans had been shocked as they watched Aruban justice play out with no justice for Natalee. It suprised few people when Joran van der Sloot eventually went on to be arrested for murdering a young woman in Peru.

Now it's as though history is repeating itself with the release of U.S. businessman Gary Giordano, who was detained in connection with the August death of his traveling companion, Robyn Gardner.

It has been three months since Maryland woman Robyn Gardner went missing in Aruba. Prosecutors admitted that they had no body, no murder weapon and no solid motive. But over the past few months, they believed they had accumulated enough circumstantial evidence to keep him jailed for a while.

By the way, Gary Giordano’s lawyer, is none other than Jose Baez. YES THAT Jose Baez.

You see while the $1.5 million travel insurance policy that Giordano had purchased for Gardner the day before they left for Aruba might trouble most people Baez want us to realize who the victim is, HIS CLIENT. For some reason I seem to remember another client of Baez who was also a victim.

Baez says that "It's unfortunate what's happening to him and it angers me, which is why I got involved." Thank goodness Baez. Thank goodness.

“It doesn’t even pass the laugh test,” Baez said today on “Good Morning America.” “You’re going to say a person goes to an island he has never been to before and doesn’t leave a trace of a crime. I don’t buy it. I don’t buy it.” Baez told ABC News that Giordano would be freed Tuesday night at 8 PM and may be home as early as Wednesday.

Aruba is a nation that depends on tourism and this latest missing woman case certainly can't be a big tourist draw.

Tatiana Limanova Is Fired Over One Finger Salute

Russian news anchor shows Obama the middle finger - November 21, 2011 Vidéo mirrorthis2010 sélectionnée dans Actualité

Russian anchor, Tatiana Limanova, was fired over her one finger salute to U.S. President Barack Obama.

It's certainly not as if our President would ever lower himself to make such a crass gesture. Obviously when Obama scratched his face with middle finger during the April 17, 2008 speech he made in Raleigh, NC. I mean EVERYONE scratches their face with their middle finger don't they? The crowd certainly caught on though because you can hear them cheering the gesture.



Then again it wasn't like he was the President or anything. Certainly this was a juvenile trick, not worthy of someone who at the time was the front runner for the nomination.



It is obvious that "if" this had been deliberate, it was a remarkably childish thing to do, completely unworthy of anyone running for the presidency.

Obviously it is inappropriate to flip off a world leader just as it would be inappropriate to play the song "Lyin' Ass Bitch" by Fishbone when a female candidate for President appears on television.

Certainly our media would treat people better than that. Unless of course that female candidate was Michlle Bachmann. Don't worry though because that's all been taken care of because the Jimmy Fallon show's band was "severely reprimanded."

Kudos to New York Democrat Nita Lowey, who said the song was "...insulting and inappropriate. I do not share Michele Bachmann's politics, but she deserves to be treated with respect."

Obama Heckled By Occupy Wall Street

President Obama was heckled today by members of the Occupy Wall Street Movement in front a crowd packed into a Manchester, N.H., high school gym,

Occupy Wall Streeters could be heard chanting, "Over 4,000 peaceful protesters have been arrested while 'banksters' continue to destroy the American economy."

Just curious, when people from the Occupy movement heckle Obama, are they racist? I seem to remember that this was the charge leveled against tea party members when they spoke out against Obama.

President Obama bailed out everyone except the 99% that these Occupy people claim to be members. Maybe Occupy protesters didn't get the memo.

The longer the Occupy protests go on the more I am reminded of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Thousands of young activists from around the nation gathered in the city to protest the Vietnam War. In a clash which was covered on live television, Americans were shocked to see Chicago police brutally beating antiwar protesters in the streets of Chicago. While the protesters chanted "The whole world's watching," the police used clubs and tear gas to beat back the protesters, leaving many of them bloody and dazed.

Obama and some of the Democrats may feel that the Occupy Movement can be a power harnessed to re-elect the Democrats but they obviously failed to take a good hard look at how that actually worked for the Democrats back in '68.

The tragedy of the antiwar riots crippled Humphrey's campaign from the start, and it never fully recovered. If you don't believe that pepper-spraying student protestors isn't hurting the President, you might just want to watch the video once again and listen to what is being said.

Kathy Dusty Brown Has Died

What ever happened to the infamous "Dusty" Brown who was convicted of conspiracy to murder of her husband Chris Brown in 1983? 

You may remember that after three trials and almost three years Dusty Brown was finally convicted of Conspiracy to Murder and given seven years.  Dusty only served 4 years and she was released from Federal prison on September 13, 1989.

Since then Dusty has been in and out of prison for petty crimes, mostly writing bad checks, forgery, and DUI's. She was released from an Oklahoma prison in 1999 after serving five years for writing bad checks, and in 2001 was rearrested for forgery and concealing stolen property.  She was arrested again and sent back to prison in August of 2004, and she was released on parole on March 2, 2007.

She married Mark Lyons on August 27, 2008 in Tennessee.

Dusty died on November 21, 2011 in Oklahoma Hospital, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Oklahoma. She was buried in Cremated by Corbett Funeral and Cremation Service.  As a matter of fact she has a
memorial website where you can leave your condolences. 

Russian Journalist Shows Obama Some Love

Russian news anchor shows Obama the middle finger - November 21, 2011 Vidéo mirrorthis2010 sélectionnée dans Actualité

Not that I speak Russian or anything, but I'm thinking that whole middle finger salute thing might not be a sign of enduring love or respect for our President.

It appears that Obama's heart-warming outreach to other countries after the "cowboy diplomacy" of the Bush years is certainly having an affect. Perhaps not the affect that Obama's supporters thought it would but an affect all the same.

Ah the bad old days when EVIL George Bush was in charge. We were told time and time again that George W. Bush’s foreign policy was alienating our allies, enraging our enemies, and making America less safe.

Thank goodness Obama's been able to bring the world together with his community organizer skills. It certainly looks like he's winning the hearts and minds of the world doesn't it?

After The Thrill Has Gone

It appears the thrill is one, or at least Chris no longer feels a tingle up his leg at the mere thought of Obama.

To hear Chris describe Obama as just an empty suit living in a virtual world comes as a surprise to those of us who remember the Chris' coverage of Obama's inauguration. How "racist" of you Chris to say that Obama is not the deity you once thought he was. I mean it would be racist if someone on the right said it but gee golly I'm sure YOU didn't mean it to be "racist".

By the way was that a Freudian slip when Chris said "...we are waiting for our marching orders..." I thought you were a journalist Chris not a mouthpiece for the Obama administration. Then again, I do remember that you still felt that as a journalist, it is your job to help Obama succeed.” By the way, how's that going for you Chris?

Actually this clip sound a bit more like a woman scorned and you know what they say about them don't you? Maybe you should just sit by the phone and wait for it to ring.

Que song by Player:

Baby come back, any kind of fool could see
There was something in everything about you
Baby come back, you can blame it all on me
I was wrong, and I just can't live without you

Five Phrases You Shouldn't Use On Social Networks

Gather round my tin foil hatters, I have a story to tell you it's sad but true.

Do you remember when the dawning of the Age of Obama arrived and all his acolytes proclaimed that his lordship would usher in a reign of transparency such as we have never seen before.

Sadly like so much of Obama's hopey-changey thing, what he said is not necessarily what his administration is doing.

You see, the Obama/Holder Justice Department is attempting to re-write the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), empowering or even compelling government agencies to deny the very existence of records they know to exist if they believe they are legitimately exempted from disclosure.

In plain English the Obama/Holder Justice Department would then be the sole arbiters as to what information they choose to share and what information is classified as a "State Secret" and therefore exempt from disclosure.

So much for Change You Can Believe In!!!!

By the way, you may just want to be careful about the words you post on social websites. That's because the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), says DHS could track certain words and that information could be stored for up to five years and shared with other agencies.

Hmmmm. This whole things sounds vaguely familiar doesn't it? Let's see I seem to remember reading about a world with pervasive government surveillance, and incessant public mind control, accomplished with a political system ruled by cult of personality of Big Brother. Oh yeah, now I remember, I read it in the book 1984!

Guess it's time to re-read the book.





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Police evict Occupy Protesters From Zuccotti Park

"If there is any place on God's fair earth where wickedness 'stalketh abroad in daylight' it is in the army," wrote a Confederate soldier in a letter to his family back home. Indeed, life in the army camps of the Civil War was fraught with boredom, mischief, fear, disease, and death. Scratch the bordom and you may well be describing the Occupy encampments.

Think I'm exaggerating? Consider this, a 35-year-old military veteran shot himself in the head and later died from his wounds at the Occupy Burlington encampment. The city closed half of City Hall Park and called an immediate halt to all camping, which led to clashes between protesters and police on Thursday night.

An overdose of cocaine and heroin killed Ashlie Gough, the 23-year-old Victoria woman who died at the Occupy Vancouver protest.

Salt Lake Police have ordered the closure of the 'Occupy Salt Lake' protest after the discovery of a dead body inside a tent at the protest campsite.

Police and fire authorities say the death may have been caused by drug related issues, carbon monoxide exposure from a heater inside the tent, or a combination of both.

A woman protester at the Occupy Philadelphia encampment at City Hall was raped in a tent, allegedly by a man who had traveled from out of state to join the protest, police said.

A Cleveland teenager claims she was raped while staying overnight with activists taking part in the Occupy Cleveland rally.

A woman at the Occupy Wall Street encampment claims a man barged into her tent and sexually assaulted her.

At the Occupy Baltimore encampment a woman claims she was raped and begs that the encampment be dismantled.

Dallas police arrested a man who allegedly sexually assaulted a minor at the Occupy Dallas campsite downtown.

The lack of sanitation and food safety, combined with the large quantities of debris in very tight quarters, made the Occupy encampments a tinder box for gastrointestinal and respiratory infections. That's why it should be no surprise that tuberculosis was found at the Occupy Atlanta camp. Officials from the Fulton County Health Department confirmed that residents at the homeless shelter where the protesters have taken refuge, have contracted a drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis. They are warning that homeless persons and protesters occupying the shelter are at risk, since the disease is airborne.

People living in the conditions that the occupy encamplments are susceptible to respiratory viruses. It has also been reported that there is evidence of lice and fleas at the Occupy San Francisco encampment.

Even an Occupy Wall Street activist is filmed referring to part of Zuccotti Park as a “ghetto,” with a prevalence of drug abuse, sexual assault, rape, and other violent crimes among the demonstrators. It's time. Time to close the encampments.

It's clear to many that the message of your movement has been lost and your hijacked by hooligans. If you really want to be heard register to vote and do so.

What's New With Justine Winters?

After watching these videos, the depth of this tragedy even more clear to me. While I had been outraged upon reading the original news story detailing Justine's attempt to sue the actual victims, I hadn't actually seen the destruction wrought by one young woman's decision.



Ever want to know why you should NEVER text and drive? Not just teens, NO ONE should be texting and driving.



The boyfriend actually makes sense. He says "All your life you're like a puppy you run from BLEEP instead of facing it" Sounds like a pretty accurate assessment if you ask me.



Is Justine remorseless or is she simply acting upon counsel advice not to display any emotion during the trial?




Why did the defense refuse a plea bargain which could have given Justine a four year sentence?

In the end it took just four hours for the jury to unanimously decide that Winter was guilty of both counts of deliberate homicide.

Four months later, a judge sentenced Winter to 30 years in prison, with 15 years suspended. She will be eligible for parole after 7 and a half years, when she's 25.

Thankfully Winter and her father dropped their lawsuit against the Thompson estate but I still can't believe that such a suit was ever initiated.

Announcing FWD>Day, Wednesday, Nov 9th

Right now 13.3 million people are in crisis because of the Famine, War, and Drought in the Horn of Africa. This is the worst drought in 60 years, the worst famine in 20, and there is non-stop violence.

Today, you can make a big difference by taking part in FWD Day. It’s our massive push to spread awareness and ensure the Horn of Africa tragedy no longer goes overlooked. Our goal is to generate 13M+ tweets and shares of the FWD facts.

Celebrities like Uma Thurman, Josh Hartnett, Geena Davis, Lance Armstrong, and Anthony Bourdain are on board. Check out their videos at: youtube.com/usaidvideo.

But we need you to show your support too! Join the powerful FWD coalition by:

• Tweeting with the #FWD hash-tag,
• Sharing updates from the USAID Facebook page,
• E-mailing your friends and telling people about usaid.gov/FWD,
• Creating your own video on YouTube, or
• Texting “GIVE” to 777444 to donate $10.

Saving lives doesn’t take a lot. It just takes a lot of us.

Help us reach our goal of 13.3M shares—FWD facts, !


In keeping with the FTC rules I would like to inform you that I received no financial compensation for this post.

Winter Wonderland Returns to Fernbank Museum to Celebrate Holiday Season and More

Fernbank Museum of Natural History will celebrate holidays, traditions and cultures with Winter Wonderland: Celebrations & Traditions Around the World, the Museum’s 2nd Annual holiday-inspired exhibition and programming series. On view from November 16, 2011 through January 8, 2012, Winter Wonderland will feature trees and other displays decorated by local cultural partners that recognize celebrations including Christmas, Hanukkah and the Festival of Lights, as well as traditions and practices like origami, indigenous art and national symbols.

The exhibition will twinkle with lights, glimmer with color, and shine with a variety of cultural ornaments and emblems that recognize the diversity of celebrations, holidays, traditions and events around the world. Festive programming will accompany Fernbank’s Winter Wonderland on select days as cultural groups entertain visitors with performances, dancing, music, demonstrations, storytelling and more.

Winter Wonderland trees, displays and performances will showcase traditional celebrations from cultures across five continents, representing the Arab World, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Liberia, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey. Decorations include origami cranes from Japan, natural objects symbolic of Switzerland’s ecological lifestyle, iconic columns and friezes representing the Parthenon in Greece, folkloric figurines symbolic to the Arab World, and many other beautiful displays of cultures around the world.

Fernbank also will feature a variety of special opportunities, sponsored in part by Publix Super Markets Charities, in collaboration with many of the Winter Wonderland cultural partners at no additional cost, including:

* Evening Hours

November 18 and 25 and December 16 from 6:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.

See Winter Wonderland after dark during Fridays during Martinis & IMAX®.
(Standard Martinis & IMAX® ticket prices apply).

* Winter Wonderland Celebration Weekend

Saturday, November 19 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and Sunday, November 20 from noon – 4 p.m.

Enjoy performances by The Atlanta Ballet, straw star-making crafts from Germany, a roaming Santa-saurus, Viking stories and re-enactment from Norway, a Chinese Lion Dance, a Hungarian cultural display, hat-making craft from Canada and more.**

* Martinis & IMAX® Holiday Fest

Friday, November 25 from 6:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.

Work off those extra Thanksgiving Day calories with live music by Kingsized and enjoy evening viewing hours of Winter Wonderland during a special holiday-themed evening.

(Standard Martinis & IMAX® ticket prices apply.)

* Caroling and Cupcakes Weekend

Saturday, December 3 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and Sunday, December 4 from noon – 4 p.m.

Enjoy the sounds of the season and free holiday delights including performances by the Georgia Boy Choir and The Atlanta Ballet, ornament-making crafts and a special appearance by Fernbank’s holiday mascot, Santa-saurus.

* Winter Wonderland Celebration Weekend

Saturday, December 10 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and Sunday, December 11 from noon – 4 p.m.

Join us for performances by Salsa Belles, storytelling and crafts from Israel, crafts from Japan and France, a variety of cultural games, Turkish dancers and more.**

* Winter Wonderland Celebration Weekend

Saturday, December 17 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and Sunday, December 18 from noon – 4 p.m.

Enjoy an appearance by Fernbank’s Santa-saurus, storytelling from Italy, Liberian singers, Peruvian music, Philippine dancing, Indian arts and more.**

Admission to Winter Wonderland: Celebrations & Traditions Around the World is included with Museum admission at $17.50 for adults, $16.50 for students and seniors, $15.50 for children ages 3 to 12, and free for Museum members and children ages two and younger. Events offered during Martinis & IMAX® are included with the $7 cover charge or with the purchase of an IMAX® ticket for one of the evening’s film screenings at $12. Tickets can be purchased online at fernbankmuseum.org/winter or by phone at 404.929.6400.

A special joint ticket package is available, which includes admission to Fernbank Museum, including the Winter Wonderland exhibition, and to Christmas at Callanwolde, a historic mansion featuring Period furniture, designer treasures, fine art and dazzling Christmas trees that reflect a glorious era from the 1920s to the 1950s, when the prominent Candler family lived in the home. The joint ticket package is offered at a savings for $32 for adults, $27 for students and seniors, and $24 for children and can be purchased by calling 404.929.6400. The tickets can be redeemed for admission to Callanwolde from December 5-18 and to Fernbank from November 16-January 8.

Fernbank Museum of Natural History is located at 767 Clifton Road, NE in Atlanta. The museum is open Monday-Saturday from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday from Noon-5 p.m. For visitor information, call 404.929.6300 or visit fernbankmuseum.org/winter.

*Please note: All events and program participants are subject to change without notice.

**Not all activities will be offered both days.



For the most current schedule information, visit fernbankmuseum.org/winter.

Andy Rooney Dead At 92

Andrew Aitken "Andy" Rooney (January 14, 1919 – November 4, 2011. He was most notable for his weekly broadcast "A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney", a part of the CBS News program 60 Minutes from 1978 to 2011. His final regular appearance on 60 Minutes aired October 2, 2011. He died a little over a month later on November 4 at age 92.

Rooney typically offered satire on a trivial everyday issue, such as the cost of groceries, annoying relatives, or faulty Christmas presents. Rooney's appearances on "A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney" often included whimsical lists (e.g., types of milk, bottled water brands, car brands, sports mascots. In later years, his segments became more political as well. Despite being best known for his television presence on 60 Minutes, Rooney always considered himself a writer who incidentally appeared on television behind his famous walnut table, which he made himself.

While I can't say I always agreed with Andy Rooney he was a weekly presence in our home for years. While many identify him as a prickly, irascible, curmudgeon, he was the gold standard in stating what was on his mind, and in a way that everyone understood. He will be greatly missed.

The American Nazi Party Issued An Official Endorsement Of The Occupy Wall Street Protest Movement

That's right boys and girls, Obama and some Democrats are not alone in support of the Occupy Protests. The “National Socialist” political party, in company with the Socialist Party USA, have thrown their support for the Occupy protesters in a nationwide conference call last Tuesday night.

In its statement on Sunday, the Westland, Michigan-based Nazi party wrote:

I urgently URGE all of you,” the statement’s unnamed author added, “to TAKE PART and JOIN IN when these protests hit your neck of the woods. Produce some flyers EXPLAINING the ‘JEW BANKER’ influence — DON’T wear anything marking you as an ‘evil racist’ — and GET OUT THERE and SPREAD the WORD!”

Oh I did I mention that in an October 20th video posted on his Youtube channel, former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke expressed support for the “Occupy Zionist Wall Street” movement.

“The Zionist media has their paid whores condemning the demonstrations across America against these criminal banks,” says Duke.

Kind of brings to mind that old adage about what happens to you when you lie with the dogs.

Is Feeding People Who Are Drug Users Further Enabling Them?

If you think those, heartless and selfish words are the words of one of those "evil, racist, tea-baggers", you would be WRONG.

No this caring message brought to you by a woman giving a health committee report at the Occupy Baltimore encampment.

Funny isn't it? When taxpayers try to have laws passed requiring welfare recipients to have drug tests they are portrayed as evil, uncaring people.

Another said that “there are people who feel we’ve over extended ourselves … instead of demanding that the city provide more money to shelter the homeless, we are sheltering the homeless.”

Really? I think I remember someone else who said that. See if you recognize this famous quote from a fictitious character:

Are there no prisons? And the union workhouses - are they still in operation?

I help to support the establishments I have named; those who are badly off must go there.

If you said that sounds like Scrooge, well then you're smarter than a fifth grader, congratulations!

Funny isn't it? Just a few days ago the liberal media was fawning over the Occupy movement for feeding the homeless and the poor.

It may be interesting to note the following stats brought to you by Arthur C. Brooks, a professor at Syracuse University:

Although liberal families' incomes average 6 percent higher than those of conservative families, conservative-headed households give, on average, 30 percent more to charity than the average liberal-headed household ($1,600 per year vs. $1,227).

-- Conservatives also donate more time and give more blood.

-- Residents of the states that voted for John Kerry in 2004 gave smaller percentages of their incomes to charity than did residents of states that voted for George Bush.

-- Bush carried 24 of the 25 states where charitable giving was above average.

-- In the 10 reddest states, in which Bush got more than 60 percent majorities, the average percentage of personal income donated to charity was 3.5. Residents of the bluest states, which gave Bush less than 40 percent, donated just 1.9 percent.

-- People who reject the idea that "government has a responsibility to reduce income inequality" give an average of four times more than people who accept that proposition

So much for the 99% because it doesn't seem as though the part that's camping out in the parks is "doing their fair share" now does it.