Happy New Year and some laughs from 2013!

Happy New Year to all here - I sincerely hope you all stay healthy, happy, and safe!

To end the year - I thought I would post just a few laughs here (we all need them).

I look forward to conversing with you all in 2014!!!! - COB

 

Merry Christmas to All - and Happy New Year as well

Good evening everyone - 

I just wanted to wish all of you here a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

I hope you are all as blessed as I feel I am - although this year has had its difficulties, I was always brought up to understand that there are many who would love to take our place any day of the week on our worst day.

I am also a Christian - and the faith I was taught by my Grandparents stays with me to this day.

May God bless you all and hold you in his heart - and may all of you also feel some kindness in your heart toward your fellow man this time of year - and always.

Merry Christmas my friends - we'll be all talking again soon.

 - COB  

So, here comes the snow

So the latest weather is cold and snowy (thanks global warming!)

I've posted the "special map" below with snow fall estimates.

What do you all think?  Do we get this?  Or will this be less than expected?

Also - for those of you in the surrounding areas - what are your gripes about plowing, sanding, or lack of it? 

I know it's a light topic - but, what the heck, it's Christmas.   I hope everyone is doing well!

 - COB

Mayor's Bond Rating

Have to love when politicians think that all their constituents are dumb and uneducated, and run to the press with "good news". Yes, increasing one's bond rating is good, but these days it's all relative.

From The Eagle Tribune:

"The mayor said the upgrade was the result of a detailed financial presentation and tour that city officials gave to representatives of the Standard & Poor's bond rating agency last month. He said the agency called him Tuesday morning and told him it was increasing the city's rating from A-plus to AA — a rare two-level increase."

I wonder if Haverhill's unfunded liabilities and Ponzi structure of pensions was part of that presentation? Not to mention the rating agencies themselves will rate anything you tell them or pay for. Fitch, S & P and Moody's are all paid by issuers whereas an agency like Egan-Jones is paid by investors for ratings. See where the might be a problem? Like I mentioned on The E-T page, they're all being sued, although the courts have stated what they offer is opinion only. In this case, the incriminating emails show that those "opinions" were full of fraud. Some have even gone further stating the "Big 3" are really just a loose extension of whatever the government tells them to say, because these days, the truth must be silenced.

Off-Topic

A break from the political and financial norms I saw the following on a site of which I'm a part of that made me chuckle:

As an avid outdoors-man, which I'm happy that my 11 year-old is following, we both got a chuckle out of this because it's so true. If anyone is interested, this is a local/state specific blog/website for anything fishing. Yes, it's one of those things you either love or hate, but I believe hunting and fishing are great skills to learn, not just for the end result, but for the patience and timing involved. I respect our environment and I only kill what I plan on eating, all the rest is released (fishing) as carefully as possible (I'll cut my hooks before I rip them out).

Anyways, I hope this gave a few of you a chuckle as it did my son and I.

Thanksgiving Proclamation President George Washington City of New York, October 3, 1789

Happy Thanksgiving to all tomorrow - I know this rather old proclamation may make the liberals angry - but so what? - This is yet again proof of the foundations of our country and the belief systems of our great founding Fathers. - COB


Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness." 

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the People, by constantly being a government of wise, just and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Amazing (Lantigua)

Forget that this guy has multiple grand jury indictments (innocent until proven guilty), or that he believed he didn't have to file his campaign finances, or that he thought double-dipping as Mayor & State Rep. was ok.

From The Boston Herald:

"A defiant Lawrence Mayor William Lantigua refused to admit defeat yesterday after a recount confirmed City Council Vice President Daniel Rivera is the city’s new chief executive, but one expert said it will be an uphill battle if Lantigua chooses to challenge the results in court.

“I am not conceding,” Lantigua said after the results were announced.

Rivera won by 81 votes — a wider margin than on Election Day — after the city’s Board of Registrars certified the results in which he tallied 7,628 votes to Lantigua’s 7,547."

He truly believes he still has a chance, sadly, he does in fact have a large contingent of devout supporters, minus the friends & family on the payroll. The local Spanish media have been remarkably silent on the issue as well, but we all know what's coming next: We're racists.

In Memoriam President John F. Kennedy

No comment on the politics - this was our President months after my own birth.

My research on him and study of his administration was the main spark for the rest of my life in being interested in public service and politics.

I firmly believe that a large part of our country's innocence died that day in Dallas - and that the whole world changed a bit for the worse.

It is up to those of us left to make our world a better place - and work to understand that peace, progress, and concern for our fellow man and woman are the underpinnings of a new frontier. - COB

Haverhill Post Dispensary

What do The People think? For some it's an important issue, for others, not so much. I compare this issue with casino's, the majority wants it, but no one wants it in their back yard. In this case over 63% passed it in our area, I voted in favor on a personal liberty issue, nothing else. I do find it ironic that we can have all the liquor stores we can handle, yet "pot" for some reason raises the ire with the anti-drug crowd. I'd be curious to find out how many who are against pot, but consume alcohol, which is a drug as well.

From The Eagle Tribune:

"Councilors said they had too little time to consider the new proposal, which they said they received Monday. They voted unanimously last night to continue the city’s temporary ban on such facilities to Feb. 25."

Kind of amusing since it was passed overwhelmingly by ballot measure in 2012.

"The proposals have drawn opposition from neighbors in both areas, including a petition signed by 100 Ward Hill residents."

I hope all 100 don't drink, or we have this thing called hypocrisy. 

What say ye Citizens of Haverhill?

Gettysburg Address 150th Anniversary

Gathering of notables at Gettysburg National Military Park today to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Never a more important speech given. Too bad POTUS is too busy to attend. - COB

Three More Years (crosspost)

I thought The Bush Administration was bad, you could smell then the stench of bad reasoning for decisions made. The worse of course was committing troops for a now unending war in The Middle East, and we can't discount that it won't spill over to other areas or globally. We can argue that it's "safer" for our troops than it was for The Russians when they learned their lesson, but the region has too many natural resources not to be exploited. Throw in some financial deregulation and it still probably isn't as bad as what we have today.

From The New York Post:

 "In the home stretch of the 2012 presidential campaign, from August to September, the unemployment rate fell sharply — raising eyebrows from Wall Street to Washington.

The decline — from 8.1 percent in August to 7.8 percent in September — might not have been all it seemed. 

The numbers, according to a reliable source, were manipulated.
And the Census Bureau, which does the unemployment survey, knew it."

Anyone not asleep called this out before this, but when the media purposefully gives the current Administration freedom to do whatever it wants without question this is what we get. While our Banana Republic isn't as bad as say Russia's, we apparently have a need to step up to the plate to compete for that title too.

In just under five (5) years we get: Benghazi, Fast & Furious, IRS, Drone Strikes, Guantanamo, Whistle Blower Prosecution, Too Big To Jail, Obamacare, GDP Revision and now unemployment manipulation. It's not just Obama, it's everyone embedded with him and our political establishment, which ostensibly means most of our own government. Sure Republicans have their fair share of shenanigans, including outright crimes which I'm more than happy to call out at every chance. However, we are now in an Orwellian Era where absolutely no politician can be trusted. John Williams over at Shadow Stats is eating his just desserts, as he has been chronicling the unadjusted data points before ridiculous revisions of both Party's over the years. While I don't believe in his hyperinflation theory, his data does in fact put us in outright Depression Era waters, which even now Paul Krugman is conceding too.

House votes to let Americans keep health plans; 39 Dems defy Obama

Our President is finally being exposed for the total lack of leadership he and his team provide - even some in the MSM and now some (politically worried) Democrats are jumping ship.

Government is becoming more and more of a problem - proof positive the Liberalism really IS a mental disorder!  - COB

Nearly 40 House Democrats defied President Obama and helped the Republican majority pass a bill Friday that lets Americans keep, for one year, health plans that do not comply with Obamacare.

The defections from 39 members of Mr. Obama’s party highlighted the pressure on Congress to help people who lost coverage because of the president’s signature law, as balky websites keep a veil over alternative plans and pressure mounts on the Democrat-led Senate to forge a remedy.

---

SPECIAL COVERAGE: Health Care Reform

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“Let’s face it, millions of people right now have a cancelled policy,” Rep. Ron Barber, Arizona Democrat, said before voting for the Keep Your Health Plan Act.

The House passed the bill, 261 to 157, despite a veto threat from Mr. Obama and objections from Democrats who said the legislation was an insidious attempt to rot the Affordable Care Act from the inside out.

Four Republicans voted against the bill, perhaps because it could be viewed as an attempt to smooth over Mr. Obama’s controversial reforms.

Rep. Fred Upton, Michigan Republican, offered the bill at the height of furor over Mr. Obama’s oft-repeated promise that people who liked their health plans could keep them. Millions of Americans received cancellation notices because their plans did not meet the health care law’s coverage requirements, forcing the president to apologize as vulnerable Democrats scrambled to find a legislative solution.

Rampant glitches on the HealthCare.gov website — a federal portal that connects 36 states with plans under Obamcare — have intensified the problem, because people losing their policies cannot explore their options.

Mr. Barber said some Arizonans are “beside themselves.”

“Because by December 31 they don’t have health coverage, and they can’t get on the exchange to find out what’s available,” he told reporters.

Mr. Obama announced an administrative remedy on Thursday that permits insurers to offer a one-year renewal to people who hold noncompliant plans, and Senate Democrats are pushing legislation that would let existing enrollees hold onto their plans indefinitely.

The Republican-led bill goes further, allowing new enrollees to gain current health plans that do not comply with Obamacare.

Democratic opponents of the bill said the GOP offered a hocus-pocus fix that amounts to yet another attempt to repeal Mr. Obama’s signature law.

“It basically allows them to sell low-quality 2013 plans all through 2014, nothing else,” Rep. Frank Pallone, New Jersey Democrat, said.

Rep. Jim McGovern, Massachusetts Democrat, deemed it a “colossal waste of time.”

The White House said Mr. Obama would veto the House bill because it would likely increase the number of people with barebones plans, undermining Obamacare’s attempts to offer better protections through state-based insurance markets.

If too many young and healthy people keep noncompliant plans, a high proportion of sicker consumers on the exchanges — people with preexisting conditions can no longer be denied — would cause premiums to rise and spoil Mr. Obama’s overhaul.

“The Administration supports policies that allow people to keep the health plans that they have,” the White House said in a statement of administration policy. “But, policies that reverse the progress made to extend quality, affordable coverage to millions of uninsured, hardworking, middle class families are not the solution.”

The House voted shortly before Mr. Obama met with insurance company executives at the White House.

The president made no mention of his renewal proposal in remarks before the meeting. Instead, he said they would be “brainstorming” ways to make Americans aware of their coverage options.

“Because of choice and competition, a whole lot of Americans who’ve always seen health insurance out of reach are going to be in a position to purchase it,” he said.

But Mr. Obama’s administrative decision has some state insurance commissioners worried. The logistics of grabbing back people who received cancellation notices are murky, they said, and it may prevent customers from contributing to a robust exchange in their respective states.

Rep. John Fleming, Louisiana Republican, said Mr. Obama’s fix “really only offers political cover for Democrats. It doesn’t really do anything substantial.”

He said the Upton bill is a step in the right direction, but he is working on legislation that lets Americans “meet the individual mandate as long as you purchase insurance that you like that you’re comfortable with.”

“What I’d like to do is actually put in effect rules and regulation and laws that actually allow that [individual] market to come back together again,” he said, an idea that would surely roil Mr. Obama’s plans to build balanced exchanges through his law.

GOP lawmakers insisted they like to scrap the whole law, despite their vote to amend Obamacare’s problems.

“It is merely to stop the bleeding,” Rep. Michael Burgess, Texas Republican, said.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/15/house-votes-let-americans-keep-health-plans-39-dem/#ixzz2kkro3OLf
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Thank You From COB

Hello to All my Friends here at the Haverhill Citizen Blog

I wanted to say thank you for your notes and well wishes and for the many of you who have stayed active here - I truly appreciate it.

The last four weeks have been tough. I was hospitalized with pneumonia (that developed from bronchitis.) Also, while being hospitalized, an older heart murmur problem resurfaced - and I did some time in the ICU for that as well.

I am home now, and feeling much better and was actually able to walk a 1/2 mile at a brisk pace yesterday and am on the road to recovery - and yes, dammit it's cold!

I just wanted to explain my absence - now that that's done - enough about me.

I would like to get back to posting here (and even at Duncan's site - that looks great).  I hope you all will still continue to visit and I wanted to check in with you all and make sure you would be interested in continuing.

I tend to stay more local with articles - but will always post stories and comments regarding world events as well.

Hopefully there still is an interest - please let me know with your comments. You can also email me at HaverhillCitizenBlog@yahoo.com.

Once again - thank you all very much for your patience, understanding, and notes - I hope I offend no one by saying I appreciate it very much and I hope God blesses you and your families with all his mercy.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Best Regards,

COB

CoB Will Return!

CoB got in touch with me to tell me he is doing ok. He came down with an illness but will be back sometime later next week.

CoB are you ok?

Let us know...

False Flag

Once this catches the national wires, http://fox13now.com/2013/10/14/utah-families-on-food-stamps-could-be-cut-off-soon/, D.C. criminals will be blaming each other and the theater known as "debt ceiling" talks will have concluded. There is no way people get cut off SNAP/EBT benefits, there's simply too many. Food pantries and churches are already stretched thin, there's simply not enough to pick up the slack. This is especially true in a country where only 3% of the population even knows how to produce food, and meats are going to take a hit soon with the livestock disaster out West.

"People out on the streets like Richard Phillips says, “It could impact us and it’s going to cause problems because you’re going to come to find out that people are going to steal and do what they have to do to survive.”

Utah was a poor example to run with this story. Devout Mormons have at least a years long supply of food as a matter of course. Also, unlike liberal bastions of the coasts, middle and red-neck American love their guns. If past disasters and city upheavals are any precedent, they will use them to protect what they worked hard for.

“What this means if there’s not a deal, if Congress doesn’t reach a deal to get federal government back up and running"

It's baked into the cake to create more theater and hysteria. A deal will get done, Americans will be screwed (again), and $900 billion of deficit spending and $1.2 trillion of QE will continue, the illusion of a 150% return in markets will continue (for now). No way do 48 million Americans get cut off, cities would burn to the ground. FALSE FLAG.

Haverhill, Beacon Hill, Xerox and Obamacare?

It doesn't look like Haverhill is looking to kindly to having a pot dispensary within its borders, http://www.eagletribune.com/latestnews/x1442584511/5-apply-to-open-local-pot-dispensaries. The doctor in the article made a great point:

“Even though the (U.S.) Attorney General said the federal government is not interested in pursuing medical marijuana growers in states that allow it, that allayed the fears of many people, but administrations change and the next election is not too far away,” said Dr. Joel Gorn

I'd go one step further; to The DEA under federal law pot is still illegal. So even if you get approval, there's yet another issue about underwriting. Were you purchase or lease a building, the owner of such property would still be on the hook should The DEA come sweeping in. In theory (or in practice), they could come in and seize everything, including the property. So while "the voters have spoken" here in Massachusetts, which Haverhill politicos seem to conveniently ignore, The Feds can still ruin the party. I could care less what The People do to themselves, including ingesting, smoking, or injecting as long as they don't harm others when they do. However, I find it ironic and even more glaring in the hypocrisy where alcohol seems to be more destructive than pot, and the pharmaceutical industry are arguably the biggest drug dealers on the planet.

We all remember when Rep. Nancy Pelosi stated: "You have to pass the Bill so that you can find out what's in it" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoE1R-xH5To). Classic. Well, it appears that our Beacon Hill Representative wanted to take one out of the pages of Pelosi: http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/columnists/howie_carr/2013/10/carr_hey_it_s_ok_to_read_bill_before_vote. Howie does a good take down on Heroux, I don't agree with everything Howie says, but this is endemic of both our State and Federal "Representation". In a State that has 35% registered Democrat, 15% Republican and 50% Independent, I think there's a lot of Independents not being truthful as to how they vote.

Looks like Xerox had some "issues" over the weekend with EBT software. There apparently were some very angry people when they went to swipe their card. As The AP reports, http://bigstory.ap.org/article/food-stamp-debit-cards-not-working-many-states, 17 states had issues, including Massachusetts.

"That's a problem. There are a lot of families who are not going to be able to feed children because the system is being maintenanced," Colman said. She planned to reach out to local officials. "You don't want children going hungry tonight because of stupidity," she said.

I think a bigger problem might be when the nearly 48 million (unbelievable) Americans don't get to eat and buy "stuff" at Walmart. I think that would qualify for a very violent changing of the guard in CONgress, but then again, if the L.A. riots taught us anything, it would be our own cities that would burn. No one seriously thinks The Fed would go without one of their scheduled Primary Open Market Operations do they? If they missed one of those, TBTF/SIFI banks would go into withdrawals from not receiving their monetary heroin.

So it looks like The Deceiver in Chief is going to win out on Obamacare (even though The U.S. Supreme Court gave him victory). Republicans have started to cave during the theater in Washington. At this point, does it matter? We're already roughly $825 billion in the hole as of this month http://www.fms.treas.gov/mts/index.html, I mean Bush was bad enough, but Obama and CONgress went "full retard" since being elected to office. The Lemmings of course don't understand the catastrophic fiscal consequences this does to them personally. Your wages are already under duress, with Obamacare, if you live in Massachusetts, you get no subsidies if you make over $94k (apparently some think that's "rich"). Of course that isn't a lot, especially in wage deflation and price expansion, should do wonders for those in that bracket. Sorry, you now have to fork over $2k-$7k extra with a gun stuffed up your nose. No? If you have a family and kids, you have to have it, if single, then it's worth paying the fine and paying cash for medical expenses https://bangordailynews.com/2013/05/27/news/portland/south-portland-doctor-stops-accepting-insurance-posts-prices-online/.What could go wrong with all your medical and financial (eligibility is determined by your credit reports) information being broadcast over an unsecured (especially to The NSA) internet?

Who's in charge?

That's the American People pictured above, a run over "Muppet". Some may remember this http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/14/opinion/why-i-am-leaving-goldman-sachs.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0, while most of us don't bank or do business with Goldman Sachs, they still have an impact on you. This is especially true if you have a 401k, invest/trade on your own (or pay someone to do it for you), or stash your gold and/or silver in your bunker.

 

Well, I guess if you're going to sell out for your own self-interest, do it big. That's what former NH Senator  Judd Gregg did. After sucking up to the banks, and selling out The American People in favor of bailing out Wall Street, Gregg was handsomely rewarded http://www.goldmansachs.com/media-relations/press-releases/current/judd-gregg.html. Of course, it wouldn't be long before he was rewarded yet again for his loyalty http://www.sifma.org/newsroom/2013/sifma-announces-former-senator-judd-a_-gregg-as-new-ceo-and-appoints-kenneth-e_-bentsen,-jr_-as-president/.

So Gregg went to SIFMA, arguably one of the best Wall Street lobbying firms around, although these guys are not to bad either http://www.fsround.org/fsr/about/default.asp. If you bank with any of those institutions on that member list, remember where your fees go. Meanwhile, credit unions and local banking institutions are under pressure from the extraordinary cost burden from the "Dodd-Frank" travesty, there's a reason why the number of banks are dwindling. 

Talking about more "Muppet's" and Goldman, in a world where there's a Rule of Law equal for all, this would be illegal. Goldman advised their clients to sell http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324240804578414872583064816.html, yet right after they did, they bought up a 540.66% increase after smashing the price! Apparently fiduciary duties don't matter a whole lot, especially when you can make bank on the other side of the trade, at the behest of your own clientele. Now we have to hear about what a sell it will be from MSM http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-08/goldman-s-currie-says-gold-is-slam-dunk-sell-after-shutdown.html. I'm pretty sure it isn't going to be Goldman that takes the loss. I have no idea where metals are going, even after CONgress figures everything out, but with continued Fed intervention, it doesn't compute for it to keep going down. Then again, these are not normal times, but I'll hold onto to a few coins just in case.

Which brings me to this. Are we due for a massive correction? Courtesy of J.P. Morgan https://www.jpmorganfunds.com/cm/Satellite?UserFriendlyURL=diguidetomarkets&pagename=jpmfVanityWrapper#top, they put together quite a review. I have no idea what's exactly going to happen, I doubt anyone else does either, but I can speculate it's not going to look to good for most of us when this run ends. The aforementioned shows how badly the Washington "revolving door" benefits those who play and sell us out, yet get paid handsomely for it. I mean, we're all "Muppet's" after all aren't we? Of course, when you're a TBTF bank that can now legally hide losses, and know you're going to get bailed out again, why worry http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-20/it-s-not-too-early-to-start-worrying-about-banks-again.html? With Obamacare taking over, my guess is the money flows into healthcare/insurance industries, but fear not, Wall Street will still get their blood money too.

"And the banks -- hard to believe in a time when we're facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created -- are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place."

                                                                        - Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)

Realizing that the majority of people can't, don't or won't be involved in this, I just wanted to point out what We The People are up against. Fraud, market rigging, a corrupted justice & legal system, and a renegade rogue group of plutocrats that have ostensibly bought our government. A government now entrenched more than ever in selling The People out for their own gain while they let a powerful few steal everything not nailed down. It eludes me why devout, educated, middle-class Obama supporters can't see this, it was bad before Obama, but he took this fraud upon us to new heights. Will it take a complete crash to get The People to act? Or will The People completely bow down in submission if the powers-that-be win out entirely?

I don't think that's the light we're looking for, I think it's a train coming, and we as a nation are going to crash right into it.

Who do you call or write?

I'm just doing a quick response to early returns on the earlier poll. Early consensus is readers want to read about state politicians (target rich environment). Here is a graphic I made for easy reference of who "represents" us in the Haverhill area:

I added Niki Tsongas as she is currently our 3rd District  CONgressional Representative as well. I don't want to assume readers know who these people are, so this is an easy reference. Lennny Mirra is the only Republican out of the bunch, which is to say Beacon Hill is arguably a lonely place for him. He is also the only one, who in my experience, will actually respond and converse with you. DiZiglio does, but her responses are measured and fairly generic. Ives? I couldn't tell you, she has never responded to inquiry. Campbell doesn't either, but definitely a card carrying Democrat. Since her "chaos" response to my questioning her in person about property taxes being changed (which Gov. Patrick platformed on), unless you are a Democrat, chances are you will ignored as well.

Want to know about local and state politicians financials? Click http://www.efs.cpf.state.ma.us/default.aspx to see who is giving money to whom, and where politicians money is being spent.

At the CONgressional level, http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00029026&cycle=2014, or "OpenSecrets.org", is a treasure trove of financial data regarding your CONgress Members finances. OpenSecrets provides where the real money is coming from, and tells the story of who is really writing the laws of our land.

Per CoB's request, I forgot to mention "POPVOX", https://www.popvox.com/ is a fantastic tool to reach out to your CONgress Member. Should you decide to "weigh in" on an issue, POPVOX automatically will send your input on whatever issue you comment on to your CONgress Member (not mandatory). You can also see how others weigh in on issue in not only your district, but around the country. No, you do not have to use your real name (I do). It truly is a fantastic resource, thanks for reminding me CoB!

White House, IRS exchanged confidential taxpayer info

More evidence that the communist in the White House should be impeached - COB

Top Internal Revenue Service Obamacare official Sarah Hall Ingram discussed confidential taxpayer information with senior Obama White House officials, according to 2012 emails obtained by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and provided to The Daily Caller.

Lois Lerner, then head of the IRS Tax Exempt Organizations division, also received an email alongside White House officials that contained confidential information.

Ingram attempted to counsel the White House on a lawsuit from religious organizations opposing Obamacare’s contraception mandate. Email exchanges involving Ingram and White House officials — including White House health policy advisor Ellen Montz and deputy assistant to the president for health policyJeanne Lambrew — contained confidential taxpayer information, according to Oversight.

The emails provided to Oversight investigators by the IRS had numerous redactions with the signifier “6103.”

Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code forbids a federal employee from “disclos[ing] any return or return information obtained by him in any manner in connection with his service as such an officer or an employee.”

Federal employees who illegally disclose confidential taxpayer information could face five years in prison.

“Thanks, David. Thanks for the information on [6103],” White House official Lambrew wrote to IRS official David Fish in a July 20, 2012 exchange. “I am still hoping to understand whether the 50 percent rule is moot if the organization does not offer goods and services for sale to the general public. Do we assume that organizations like [6103] do offer goods and services for sale?”

Another email from Montz to Ingram and others refers to the “[6103] memo” and the “[6103] letter” while discussing organizations that are not required to file 990′s.

Ingram appeared before Rep. Darrell Issa’s House Oversight Committee Wednesday and claimed she could not recall a document that contained confidential taxpayer information.

“Well one of the areas of interest is there’s a significant redaction that quotes the statute 6103. Do you know who is underneath that blackout?” Issa asked Ingram.

“I don’t recall the document so I can’t help you with what’s underneath that redaction,” Ingram said.

“Her response has not put concerns to rest,” Oversight staffer Frederick Hill said. ”This caught people’s eye.”

Issa has requested unredacted copies of the emails, citing a prohibition from misusing Section 6103 “for the purpose of concealing information from a congressional inquiry.”

Ingram headed the scandal-ridden IRS office responsible for overseeing tax-exempt nonprofit groups before leaving to head the agency’s office in charge of Obamacare implementation.

An IRS voice mail message declined to comment on any media inquiries during the government shutdown, citing law.

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/10/09/white-house-irs-exchanged-confidential-taxpayer-info/#ixzz2hG0Vl4mV

Haverhill Citizen Poll

 A crude poll for developing content here. Just click the link to get to the poll. I'll post the results Friday, October 18, 2013.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1JT7U64oNa9hQlw2pZXHYRCoaXJisN_S30huoM93W7ko/viewform

*CoB - Could you check the margin settings please? I don't have access.  

Where are we going?

Above we have four (4) long-time career cronies that combined have over 100 years in office. What have they done? I can think of a few things, such as have a role in usurping our Constitution and collapsing our economy. Now? More transfer of wealth with ACA. Sure it has some good points, but it still leaves people not covered, and thanks to the monopoly the various healthcare industries have, there's only one place left to extract the bill from. Guess who that will be? It amazes me to know that these disgusting people continue to be elected while the laws they pass do The People harm.

There's some more of the same criminal cronies passing some legislation they didn't write (Sandy Weill of Citi wrote it), getting rid of Glass-Steagal, which of course we all know what happened less than 10 years later. The timing couldn't be more ironic with the current stalemate (which isn't). Our one-hundred year anniversary of the income tax was yesterday. Amazing we went without prior, which ironically enough it was deemed Unconstitutional just twenty years earlier. The year itself is even more foreboding.

That's right, the year The Federal Reserve was instituted. How's that working out? I can think of a couple of collapses that can directly be attributed to some of their policies. Policies which they either do not follow themselves or just outright lie http://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed/section2a.htm. What could possibly go wrong with a balance sheet exploding and no way to unwind it? Rates appear to be doing what the market is telling them to, which if they continue to climb, will crush us all.

Yea, so that doesn't look to good does it? Calling our CONgressional Representatives about that and you get: "We'll get back to you". I'm still waiting to hear. I don't know, maybe someone reading this will have better luck than I. What we really need these days is some sound journalism, not the propaganda bullshit on your channel or paper rag of choice. Which brings us to another anniversary of sorts, the passing of the late Mark Pittman:

Unlike reporters of today spewing whatever propaganda nonsense they're told to by higher-ups, Mark actually had the knowledge and expertise on what he was reporting. If it wasn't for him, we may have never known the treachery The Fed was engaged in (enabled by ours and foreign government), nor the watered down auditing of The Fed. You can read more here http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=anOj_XTh.8yo&pos=12. We need a return to journalism and reporting like his, not the bullshit the masses eat today. The closets thing to him I can think of would be Glenn Greenwald of the U.K.'s The Guardian. He recently (yesterday) completely ripped apart another propaganda pusher from The BBC http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/10/04/glenn-greenwald-kirsty-wark_n_4043667.html. Classic.

What a nice place to work. You get to ignore The Constitution, not go to jail, and find anything you want (illegally on U.S. soil), http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-broke-privacy-rules-thousands-of-times-per-year-audit-finds/2013/08/15/3310e554-05ca-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html, what laws? Just in time for more Banking Cartel theft, usurpation of The Constitution, the forcing of buying a product (called a tax) that doesn't treat The People equally. It looks like more fraud, more theft (ostensibly with a gun pointed at you) , and more crony politicians truly serving a few special interests will rule for a bit longer.

House Republicans Work Immigration Behind Scenes

While the American people are yet again being played by the phony representatives in Washington and the joke called 'government shutdown' - here is what is REALLY going on  behind closed doors and the next thing that will be shoved down REAL Americans throats - COB 

Immigration overhaul legislation has been dormant in the House for months, but a few Republicans are working behind the scenes to advance it at a time the Capitol is immersed in a partisan brawl over government spending and President Barack Obama's health care law.

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, has been discussing possible legal status for the estimated 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. He's also been working with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a fellow Virginia Republican, on a bill offering citizenship to immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children.

Reps. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, and Ted Poe, R-Texas, are working on a plan to create a visa program allowing more lower-skilled workers into the country.

Goodlatte and the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Mike McCaul, R-Texas, hold out hopes for floor action by late October on a series of immigration bills that already have passed their committees.

"I would think that would be the next agenda item in the queue after we're done with this mess," McCaul said this past week, referring to bitter divisions over the health law, the level of government spending and the growing federal debt.

The attention of House GOP leaders seems certain to remain squarely focused on the fiscal disputes until they are resolved, leaving immigration on a back burner for some time to come. But lawmakers and outside advocates insist that three months after the Democratic-led Senate passed a sweeping immigration bill, the issue is showing signs of life in the Republican-run House.

"Despite the appearance that would suggest everyone in Washington is focused on one thing, work is going on on other issues beneath the radar," said Tamar Jacoby, head of ImmigrationWorks USA, a coalition of small businesses that supports comprehensive immigration legislation.

Goodlatte has made it clear he wants to see the issue solved.

Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other members of the House Republican leadership also support a resolution to an issue that has become a political drag for their party.

While Goodlatte has been outspoken about his desire to get legislation to the floor as soon as possible, House leaders have been more circumspect, adding to the uncertainty about whether or when anything actually will happen.

"Moving immigration forward remains a priority, but right now there's no firm timetable," said Doug Heye, a spokesman for Cantor.

The issue is a top second-term goal for Obama.

House leaders have said they plan a step-by-step approach, in contrast to the comprehensive Senate bill that added billions of dollars in new spending on border security, remade the legal immigration system from top to bottom and created a 13-year path to citizenship for the millions living here illegally.

McCaul's committee has approved a border security bill. Goodlatte's committee has signed off on legislation addressing a range of issues, including visas for high-skilled workers and enforcement of immigration laws.

But so far, there's been no House GOP bill taking on the trickiest policy issue for Republicans: what to do about those already here illegally.

Woodward: If Shutdown or Debt Ceiling Causes Economic Crisis, It’s on the ‘President’s Head’

Sorry for my absence - I have been sick for two weeks straight - and thanks to Duncan for continuing the site with his great posts and all of you for your comments - Now - we have a government shut down - and I'm fine with that! - Happy Fall! - COB 

'It's on the president's head, he's got to lead he's got to talk. And the absence of discussion here is a baffling element'

 

      

BY: Washington Free Beacon Staff
September 30, 2013 7:47 am

Bob Woodward of The Washington Post said if there is a “downturn or a collapse” resulting from the failure of CR or debt ceiling negotiations it will be on President Obama’s “head” Monday on Morning Joe.

Woodward noted he respected President Obama’s objection to negotiating on the debt ceiling, but criticized the administration for failing to initiate any dialogue that could result in a deal on funding the government.

“It’s on the president’s head, he’s got to lead, he’s got to talk” Woodward said:

BOB WOODWARD: Can I enter in here just for a moment because I think it’s a good question. And there is something the president could be doing. He said he will not negotiate on the debt ceiling. A reasonable position. “I will not be blackmailed” he said. But he should be talking. They should be meeting, discussing this, because as I think Steve Ratner showed earlier, the American economy is at stake and the president, if there is a downturn or a collapse or whatever could happen here that’s bad, it’s going to be on his head. The history books are going to say, we had an economic calamity in the Presidency of Barack Obama. Speaker Boehner, indeed, is playing a role on this. Go back to the Great Depression in the 1930s. I’ll bet no one can name who was the speaker of the House at the time. Henry Thomas Rainey. He’s not in the history book it’s on the president’s head. He’s got to lead. He’s got to talk. And the absence of discussion here, I think, is baffling element.