‘The Insightful Investor’ Radio Show–coming soon!

MoonHowler

Prince William County is full of talent.  We have filmmakers and now an investment radio show will be broadcast from Prince William County.   Many here know Prince William resident Bob Pugh.  Bob is known around the blogs, he has served on various county committees and has even been known to give ’em hell at Citizens’ Time at the BOCS.

Bob will be the host of ‘The Insightful Investor’ on The VoiceAmerica  Business Talk Radio Network.   The first show premiers this Monday at 10 am.  Jim Bacon will be his guest in October to discuss his book  “Boomergeddon.”

Here’s some information about Bob:

Bob Pugh, CFA, CFP®

Bob Pugh, CFA, CFP® has been helping people achieve investing and financial success as an educator and advisor for over twenty years. Bob founded Insight Wealth Management, Inc. to offer fee-based, independent investment and financial planning without the conflicts of interest inherent in firms that sell financial products. He has worked as a financial analyst in government and the private sector, an economic analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency, and a U.S. Foreign Service Officer.
Bob has taught portfolio management, investment analysis and economics for over two decades, most recently for The Johns Hopkins University’s Carey School of Business. He served two terms as President of the CFA Society of Washington, DC and is the CFA Institute’s Eastern Region Presidents Council Representative.

In 1997, Bob earned the CFA designation and later the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification. He has graduate degrees in global political economy from The Johns Hopkins University, SAIS, and in financial economics from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He is a member of the CFA Institute, Financial Planning Association, National Association for Business Economics and MENSA.
Bob has volunteered since 1998 for the Virginia Cooperative Extension’s Personal Finance Program providing free education for the public. He speaks frequently on investing and financial planning for numerous groups including the American Association of Individual Investors.

We have discussed investment, finances and the economy often on this blog. It will be fun having our own local star from right here in Prince William County. We wish Bob all the best and if I can figure out how to tune in, will be doing so!

FCC Swear Word Ban Policy Ditched By Federal Court

MoonHowler

From Huffington Post:

NEW YORK — A federal appeals court on Tuesday struck down a government policy that can lead to broadcasters being fined for allowing even a single curse word on live television, saying it is unconstitutionally vague and threatens speech “at the heart of the First Amendment.”

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan threw out the 2004 Federal Communications Commission policy, which said that profanity referring to sex or excrement is always indecent.

“By prohibiting all `patently offensive’ references to sex, sexual organs and excretion without giving adequate guidance as to what `patently offensive’ means, the FCC effectively chills speech, because broadcasters have no way of knowing what the FCC will find offensive,” the court wrote.

“To place any discussion of these vast topics at the broadcaster’s peril has the effect of promoting wide self-censorship of valuable material which should be completely protected under the First Amendment,” it added.

The court said the FCC might be able to craft a policy that does not violate the First Amendment.

It cited several examples of chilled speech, including a Vermont station’s refusal to air a political debate because one local politician previously had used expletives on the air and a Moosic, Pa., station’s decision to no longer provide live coverage of news events unless they affect matters of public safety or convenience.

“This chill reaches speech at the heart of the First Amendment,” the appeals court said.

In a statement, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said: “We’re reviewing the court’s decision in light of our commitment to protect children, empower parents, and uphold the First Amendment.”

Carter Phillips, a Washington lawyer who argued the case for Fox Television Stations Inc., called the decision satisfying. He said the court had “sent the FCC back to square one to start over” by not only tossing the FCC’s fleeting expletive policy but also a broader indecency policy as unconstitutionally vague

I am not so sure this is a good thing. Talk is trashy enough on TV as it is. On the other hand, what difference does it make if the show is network or cable. It seems the burden of decency is all on network TV and radio and not on the satellite and cable stations. Do our contributors think this is a good plan or not?

Finally, N & M Takes a Position

MoonHowler

Included, in its entirety. 

From the News and Messenger:

EDITORIAL: Stewart’s duty is to Prince William County

Our View
Published: June 26, 2010
Corey Stewart, not content to let the spotlight shine only on leaders in another state, is now pushing a law in Virginia similar to illegal immigration legislation in Arizona.

Virginia’s version would, among other things, “Make it a violation of Virginia law to fail to complete alien registration documents,” according to Stewart’s website: http://www.coreystewart.com/ruleoflaw. Police officers would be required to check “in any lawful contact, the legal presence of an individual, when practicable.” Go to Stewart’s website to see all aspects of the proposed law.

The issue here isn’t whether the legislation is a good idea, it’s whether Stewart has any business pursuing it. His job is to be the chairman of the Board of County Supervisors, so what is he doing trying to change state law? That is the job of our delegates and state senators, some of whom have stated that they are pursuing state remedies for illegal immigration already. Perhaps if this were a proposal supported mainly for the good of the county, we would understand. However, arguably, Prince William County, which already has a controversial illegal immigration law, is the jurisdiction that would benefit least—despite Stewart’s assertion that some illegal immigrants who have fled may be returning.

In an interview with Editorial Page Editor Alex Granados, Stewart said that state leaders in Richmond have shown themselves incapable of doing what’s necessary.

“The legislature down there has had three years to do something, and they have done nothing,” he said.

Furthermore, he says that the attention he has received in the past as a crusader against illegal immigration will be a boon to his current effort.

“For better or worse, I have the notoriety on the issue that I can use,” he said.

And by spreading news about the proposed bill to everyday citizens, he hopes they will pressure state legislators to take action.

Stewart is right that state legislators have not found a fix for illegal immigration. But that probably has more to do with the fact that the issue is complicated than with anything else. The newspaper has never found our area’s leaders particularly fearful of controversy. Quite the opposite, in fact. And regardless, it is not Stewart’s place, as BOCS chairman, to do their job for them. He has a responsibility to Prince William County, one that cannot be effectively fulfilled when he is focused on reforming state law.

As for Stewart’s notoriety and its usefulness, he is correct. His reputation will bring attention to illegal immigration reform. However, it will also bring attention to Prince William County—attention that it does not need.

When the county went through its debate over illegal immigration years ago, a great deal of negative publicity was focused here. Perceptions of the area across the country varied widely, but no matter the opinion, the county became intertwined with controversy.

Gradually, the uproar has faded. However, with Stewart’s involvement in this new illegal immigration fight, the county, once again, will become a focal point.

In a time when local jurisdictions are battling a tough economy, Stewart should not hamstring us with a possibly negative reputation. What businesses will want to invest in a seemingly divided community? What professionals will want to move here when all they hear about us in the news relates to strife? Stewart’s notoriety might be good for illegal immigration reform, but it’s not good for the county.

Whether or not the attempt to model Virginia after Arizona succeeds, one of the main people to benefit from this will be Stewart. We have already seen with his short-lived attempt to become lieutenant governor that he has higher ambitions. We don’t fault him for that—that is the nature of political leaders. However, we have a problem with Stewart harping on issues outside the county for the sake of his own reputation, which we believe is the case here.

 

Virginia probably does need better illegal immigration laws. It also needs strong leaders to make it happen. But we don’t need Corey Stewart to do that now. He was elected to focus on the residents of Prince William County, not the state. Until he is actually elected to higher office, we would like to see him keep his focus here.

Unacceptable!—-Shannon Column: The 2010 Mexican roundup

MoonHowler

Michael Shannon has a guest column in the News & Messenger. Unfortunately, his rantings often go over into the realm of unacceptable public speech. By allowing him to have a column in the News & Messenger, the newspaper gives his voice a platform of legitimacy that includes prejudice, ignorance, and racism. Were Shannon to post his diatribe against Hispanics and Chief Deane as a letter to the editor, he would be exercising free speech. Because he writes as a guest columnist, the News & Messenger becomes complict in spreading this hateful message:

Shannon Column: The 2010 Mexican roundup

There was a near miss in Fairfax County for Prince William County’s Jefe de la Policia Charlie Deane. Authorities there arrested a Belgian accused of soliciting prostitution. A records check, conducted as part of the Federal “Secure Communities” program, revealed this miscreant was also an illegal alien.

Thank goodness this bad man was caught before he had a chance to cross the Occoquan.

Adding Belgian outreach to his already extensive Hispanic illegal alien outreach could have pushed Jefe Deane over the edge. There is only so much apologizing for enforcing the law that one man can do.

Reaching out to Belgians is particularly difficult in that you have to pander in two languages: Flemish and French. Plus Deane would have had to find a police officer with a French surname that spoke French and a Flemish surnamed officer that spoke Flemish otherwise his outreach would not be sincere.

Que Lastima!

That sort of complication makes last year’s Hispanic Contrition Tour (or Festival de Contrición) look like a model of efficiency, since one abject apology in Spanish covers about 15 countries and most of the landscapers in the county.

“Secure Communities” is actually sort of an SAT test for illegals. It only matches arrestees with a database of aliens who had a visa and overstayed, or aliens who were caught earlier and are making a return visit to the hoosegow.

If Juan is clever enough to avoid attracting attention after he wades the Rio Grande—not difficult under Deane’s lethargic enforcement regime—his name won’t be in the database. And if there is no database hit, then Juan remains in El Norte.

“Secure Communities” is a much less stringent affair than the 287g program that allows deputized local officials to determine whether or not to pursue deportation of illegals.

Of course if it were up to Deane, the welcome mat (or alfombra de bienvenida) would never be withdrawn. He worries that a lot of crime is going unreported due to a victim’s immigration status, hence the constant reassurance that Deane’s heart is not really in immigration work.

But I wonder if when Charlie is talking to “immigrant rights groups”, do the terms “aiding and abetting” or “conspiracy” ever come to mind?

The audience for his outreach often is illegal or knows other illegals, harbors illegals, knowingly does business with illegals and generally approves of the mass violation of the nation’s borders. Yet our jefe is unperturbed.

It is interesting to compare Deane’s come-one-come-all (or viene uno que llega a todos) philosophy with that of Frederick County, MD Sheriff Charles Jenkins (trust me, the first name is the only similarity).

Jenkins’ policy is to target every inmate identified as an illegal for deportation, which amounts to about 9 percent of his jail population.

“One of the first persons we processed [for deportation] was driving under the influence of alcohol through a school zone during school hours at 30 miles over the speed limit,” Jenkins told the Washington Post. “Is he any less of a threat to the community than a [top-level] offender? I would argue no.”

A sentiment not shared by Deane who downplays illegal alien crime by explaining the most common violations are driving without a license, public intoxication and driving under the influence of alcohol.

That’s certain to be comforting to the taxpayer in an auto crash with an illegal who had neither a licencia de operador del automóvil or insurance.

It’s a mere property crime, don’t you know, and besides the county furnishes Deane with his ride.

But now if looks like Charlie’s foot-dragging has finally paid off.

The census has come to town and thar’s gold in them thar Mexicans. Why our Board of Supervisor’s says Uncle Sam’s bounty on illegals is $1,000 a head and we want to count every last Jesús and Jesúsa.

That measly thousand bucks will just about cover the county fee for the ambulance and first visit to the emergency room for our newly welcome South-of-the-Border guest.

After Obama’s thousand bucks is gone, who pays for the schools and associated social costs that illegals bring?

Once the public gets past the whiplash-inducing political hypocrisy, I don’t foresee a counting problem. Just ask Charlie for the list of groups he’s apologized to and work up from there.

One thing is certain: Hispanics aren’t shy about lecturing the U.S. on how to improve the illegal immigrant experience. Just this week Columbian fanny-shaker Shakira was in the White House to discuss “child development programs in Latin America.”

But she’s behind the curve. We already have a program for that. It’s called “anchor babies.”

Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He wants you to share the machines and can be reached at [email protected].

The News & Messenger needs to balance its columnists with individuals who maintain proper public decorum. It is the opinion of this blog’s administrators that Mr. Shannon’s public writings should no longer be a part of the News & Messenger. Translation: Fire Mike Shannon.

Amazing Talent Captures National Tragedy

MoonHowler

Today a friend sent me an amazing email with a video link.   I felt it related to many of our topics we have been discussing here on Anti.  I am going to cut and paste Nancy’s (or whoever she copied them from) words and then post the link.  The woman shown in the video  is a sand artist.  The rest tells the story:

Please read the following paragraphs all the way through and then view the video…

This video shows the winner of “Ukraine’s Got Talent,” Kseniya Simonova, 24, drawing a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II.  Her talent, which admittedly is a strange one, is mesmeric to watch.

The images, projected onto a large screen, moved many in the audience to tears, and she won the top prize of about £75,000. 

She begins by creating a scene showing a couple, sitting holding hands on a bench under a starry  sky, but then warplanes appear, and the happy  scene is obliterated. 

It is replaced by a woman’s face crying, but then a baby arrives, and the woman smiles again. Once again, war returns, and Miss Simonova throws the sand into chaos from which a young woman’s face appears. 

She quickly becomes an old widow, her face wrinkled and sad, before the image turns into a monument to an Unknown Soldier. 

This outdoor scene becomes framed by a window as if the viewer is looking out on the monument from within a house. 

In the final scene, a mother and child appear inside, and a man standing outside, with his hands pressed against the glass, saying  goodbye. 

The Great Patriotic War, as it is called in Ukraine, resulted in one in four of the population’s being killed, with eight to 11 million deaths out of a population of 42 million. 

Kseniya  Simonova says:  “I find  it difficult enough to create art using paper  and pencils or paintbrushes, but using sand and fingers is beyond me. The art, especially when the war is used as the subject matter, even brings some audience members to tears. And, there’s surely no bigger compliment.”

View the video


 

Our country has been blessed.  We have never known our cities to be destroyed and one fourth of our population killed.  Even our own Civil War didn’t destroy the entire country, although many Virginians, Georgians and South Carolinians might beg to differ.   

Sometimes it helps to put things in perspective, when viewing one’s country through the eyes of this very talented young artist.  How does one so young capture the horror of the world in the 40’s?  Those living in the Ukraine must have long national memories to be able to produce such talent.  It would be hard to tell where Stalin stopped and Hitler started.  Judging from the reaction from those in the audience, the feelings are still strong and very much a part of the Ukrainians’s national being.

Rush Accused President Obama of being an Egomaniac

MoonHowler

Chris Wallace interviewed today Rush Limbaugh on his show, News Sunday.  Rush  informed us that President Obama  is an egomaniac.  An egomaniac?  Rush has the audacity to say someone else is an egomaniac?  Speechless.   

 

This video is the mother lode of insults and national antagonism.  Limbaugh  bashes the President, calling him a man-child and a little boy, brags about earning $400,000 a year, talks about his addiction, whines about the NFL (and blames Obama),  and all the other things we have come to expect from this radio actor.  He says Vice President Biden is a windbag and pompous. 

 

Rush feels it is his talent, not the news, that has made him what he is.  Rush seems to be all the negative attributes he has attached to President Obama.  How odd.  Who remembers when he talked this way about Bill Clinton?

Is this the most arrogant, egotistical evil man in the world?  I just think he is Un-American.  He makes me like Glenn Beck, who I do not think is evil, just misguided.

 

Click for full video

Kiran Chetry is a Class Act

MoonHowler

Kiran Chetry, formerly of Fox News, currently of CNN is a class act. Jon Stewart had her in his spoof sights recently. Apparently, Chetry was demonstrating a new iphone app that gave traffic reports one day. The next day Kiran had an exposé about how bad using electronics devices while driving is.

Instead of expressing outrage, Kiran Chetry laughed at herself and admitted that Stewart had gotten them and said he was funny. Then she explained that the iphone should be used by a passenger, not the driver, laughing all awhile. How many of our prime time folks are capable of laughing at themselves? Not many. Most take themselves entirely too seriously.

9500 Liberty Wins Charlotte Film Festival for Best Documentary!

MoonHowler


Congratulations to Eric and Anabel for winning the Best Documentary Award at the Charlotte Film Festival last night! The award is the Indy Truth Award for Best Documentary and is a very prestigious award. 

 

The film will show again at 3:30 on Sunday. Eric and Anabel were featured on two Charlotte NPR radio programs. Check them out at the 9500 Liberty website.

Here are the upcoming plans for these talented film makers:

Next stop, we will be premiering in DC on October 1st at the DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival as the opening night film. You can buy tickets here for the screening and reception.

http://www.apafilm.org/festival-2009/9500-liberty/
This is our big hometown premiere screening with the “stars” from the film and a big after party so it is not to be missed if you are in the DC area.

This is the list of scheduled screenings including Prince William County, Honolulu, St. Louis, San Diego, Charlottesville, etc. We are adding more screenings including in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles in the coming weeks. http://9500liberty.com/screenings.html

Thank you for supporting us throughout these months. Some of you have been with us for nearly two years. In fact, the second-year anniversary of the creation of the 9500 Liberty YouTube Channel will be celebrated on October 9th with the residents of Prince William County with a special community screening of the film at St. Paul’s Church in Woodbridge.

 

Please plan on seeing the film. According the the website:

9500 Liberty reveals the startling vulnerability of a local government, targeted by national anti-immigration networks using the Internet to frighten and intimidate lawmakers and citizens. Alarmed by a climate of fear and racial division, residents form a resistance using YouTube videos and virtual townhalls, setting up a real-life showdown in the seat of county government

.

United Throws Guitars?

MoonHowler

And you thought that only the Empire Strikes Back?  Not so.  A band called Sons of Maxwell has struck back at United Airlines for tossing an expensive guitar out on the tarmac and breaking it.

The video tells the tale far better than I could ever hope to do.  Hats off to this group, Sons of Maxell, for giving consumers hope.  Too many companies just give half rate services and then blow you off when you complain.  All too often, entry level clerks tell us no without bothering to even investigate.

In the case of Sons of Maxwell, we might speculate on who got fired at United after this video hit Youtube.com and all the cable news shows. No one wants to be the star of this group’s complaint list!

Not all of us are in the position of being able to create our own videos.  What other means do consumers have to right the wrongs of the various companies we have to deal with? Any good get even stories out there?

Ensign Plot Thickens, involves Fox News

MoonHowler

Doug Hampton in Las Vegas

The Ensign plot becomes the gift that keeps on giving.  However, much of it seems to have missed the news channels.  There has been noticeable “non-coverage” of this story.  Usually cable news latches onto these kinds of stories and beats them to death like an old drum.  Not so in this case and there appears to be a reason why.

According to the Washington Post 6/20/98 Senator Ensign decided to go public with his affair for several reasons. Supposedly, the husband of the woman he was involved with, Douglas Hampton, has sought an undisclosed about of money from Ensign. On first glance, it appears to be blackmail or extortion. Reading further, one gets the idea it is for damages.

Mr. Hampton apparently was so distraught over this affair and the supposed continued interest and attention paid to his wife, he wrote a letter to Megyn Kelly of Fox News. (see letter) Apparently nothing was done with the letter but Ensign didn’t know that the letter would not be acted on and broadcast all over the United States (like was done with indiscretions by Clinton, Craig, Foley, et al).

The Hampton and Ensign friendships go back many years. Both couples were actively involved in a college religious group which continued for many years.  They live in the same upscale neighborhood in Las Vegas.

According to the Las Vegas Sun:

The affair with Cynthia Hampton occurred while she, her husband and their adult son were all on the senator’s payroll. She was Ensign’s onetime campaign treasurer and the former treasurer of the senator’s Battle Born Political Action Committee.

Unnamed sources cited in various media reports initially raised the specter of extortion as the reason for Ensign’s news conference, but Metro Police and the FBI said they were not investigating. Ensign’s office on Thursday declined to say today whether the Hamptons sought any money to keep quiet.

Cynthia Hampton’s salary doubled as she took over as treasurer for Ensign’s leadership campaign account until she left in May 2008. Doug Hampton’s final month’s salary as a top aide at the senator’s office was nearly $20,000 — more than his normal pay at the $160,000-a-year-job, although the extra sum could have been for accrued sick or vacation time, or as a stipend.

The couple’s son, Brandon, was also on the payroll with a $1,000-a-month summer job at the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 2008, which Ensign chaired at the time.

The New York Times reported today that after Ensign reconciled with his wife and dismissed Cynthia Hampton, he paid her a severance out of his own pocket.

Ensign’s office has declined to comment on the Hamptons’ salaries, or any severance.

Doug Hampton took a job with Allegiant Air, a Las Vegas company whose CEO is a major Ensign supporter.

There are some interesting missing key elements here.

Why has Fox News sat on this story?
How did Ensign learn of the letter to Megyn Kelly?
How does this fit in with the fair and balanced motto of Fox News?
How have other philanderers been dealt with by this station?

The Washington Post carries the following explanation for Fox News sitting on this story:

After the Nevada Republican acknowledged the affair Tuesday, a Fox producer failed to tell his bosses that he had the letter from Douglas Hampton, and Fox never reported it. The Las Vegas Sun disclosed the letter’s contents Friday.

“Sometimes a ball gets by,” said Tom Lowell, senior producer of Fox’s “American Newsroom.” “This one got by.” It was, he said, “my mistake.”

Hampton had written to the program’s co-anchor, Megyn Kelly, saying he was not giving the information to any other news outlet. Lowell said his primary concern was protecting Kelly, who “has any number of people who have stalked her.”

Fox says it never received the letter that Douglas Hampton says he mailed to Kelly, but it was later attached to an e-mail that the network received at 12:21 p.m. Monday.

And

After the news conference, Lowell passed Hampton’s contact information to his Washington bureau but did not send the letter or show it to senior Fox executives, who have expressed unhappiness at not being informed. “The letter was an allegation of an affair,” Lowell said. “I don’t know that it would have shined a light on anything new.”

Lowell said Hampton called the Fox booking desk before sending the e-mail Monday. “He seemed evasive,” Lowell said. “His entire focus seemed to be talking to Megyn.” Kelly asked whether she should call Hampton, Lowell recalled, but he said the network should do more research first.

“As the day went on, it fell off my radar,” Lowell said. When he heard the next day that Ensign had scheduled a news conference, “at that point I realized there might be credibility to these claims. . . . Should I have paid a little more attention to this e-mail? Sure.”

There seem to be a lot of reasons why this story was never followed up on.  One that hasn’t been explored is political motive.  Additionally, Senator Ensign is the fair-haired child of the Religious Right.  Was Ensign being protected? 

Reading Mr. Hampton’s letters gives one the feeling that this is a desperate man willing to do anything to normalize his family.  He doesn’t seem like a blackmailer.  Ensign acts like he is being bilked and is the wronged party here.  Hampton just sounds like a frantic, sad man who wants his wife and life back.  He sounds betrayed.  What goes on in Vegas, or DC for that matter, obviously isn’t staying in either place.  I expect when this all shakes down, Ensign won’t be staying in DC either.