Category Archives: Pensacola

MRIOTD, Pensacola, Politics, War On Terror

Last Man Standing Against The Surge

Host of Air America Radio show ‘Ring of Fire,’ Mike Papantonio, is still in denial over the effects of what is known as ‘the surge’ in the Iraqi front of what is known as the war on terror. He, who has never been to Iraq, says that all the journalists who have been there, all the generals who are prosecuting it, and all those Iraqi citizens who are returning home from Syria, knows that the whole thing is a sham, AND that all the media the world over are somehow controlled by ‘the shrub’ (the nickname he ascribes to President Bush) in as much as they are complicit in spreading the myth that the surge is working.

Makes one wonder how someone who he repeatedly calls an idiot could be able to control all journalists and all media worldwide and all our military leaders to say that the surge is working when it isn’t, doesn’t it? Certainly qualifies for the Most Ridiculous Item Of The Day, MRIOTD.

Hear it in his own words in an excerpt from last Saturday’s Ring of Fire show that he calls ‘The Pap Attack.’

related links: Ring of Fire show | The Pap Attack | Papantonio

Immigration, Pensacola, Politics

Illegals On The Gulf Coast

There’s a reason that illegal immigration is such a big issue in this country.  Basically its because they are all over the country, and especially so along the Gulf coast, thanks in no small part to hurricanes Ivan, Katrina, and Dennis.  The tip of the iceberg is in two local papers in the Pensacola area today.

You have the Mexican restaurateur arrested for drug distribution and harboring Mexican illegal aliens in the Pensacola News Journal.  And in a neighboring county, the Northwest Florida Daily News  reports of an illegal alien smuggling operation getting busted.  Those involved were charged with alien smuggling and visa fraud for forging temporary H2-B visas.

Over time, be prepared for the rest of the iceberg to be revealed.

Pensacola, War On Terror

Will Muslim Americans Please Stand Up?

Like anything else in society, making generalizations about race and religion hide some truths that, when it comes to life and death, matter. So to say [American Muslims are NOT our enemy!] that an entire class of people are not our enemy is wishful thinking, and wreaks of naivete. Of course, it depends on what your definition of ‘enemy’ is. I think it is fair to say that most American Muslims are fine, peaceful, and productive citizens. It is also fair to say that some terrorist cells are already here in America.

The Pew Research Center did a survey of American Muslims. It shows that 1 in 4 American Muslims aged 18-29 actually support suicide bombings.

* More than one in four Muslims (or 26%), aged 18-29, said “Suicide Bombing is Justified.” 2% percent of them say it can often be justified, 13% say sometimes, and 11% say rarely. Add to that, the 5% don’t know/refused to answer this easy, instinctive question, and it’s even worse–for a total of 31%–almost a third of young American Muslims, who support homicide bombings. This younger group of Muslims is the most radical, the study found, and it’s the largest group of Muslims in America. It is also the future of “America’s” Islam.

A quadruple amputee can count on his toes and fingers the number of times local mosques in Pensacola have denounced radical Islam. Them not speaking up and getting out in front of this Islamofascist movement to denounce it doesn’t make them bad. But it doesn’t make make me feel safe to know that such a large group of people are getting a pass either.

American Muslims face a special challenge in this post 9/11 world. And their silence breeds bias which only they can assuade. It’s not the majority of Muslim Americans (69%) I’m concerned about. It’s the other 31%.

related links:
American Muslims Support Suicide Bombings | Muslim Silence Breeds Bias

2008 Election, Media, Pensacola, Politics, Uncategorized

Joe Scarborogh, And Me, On CNN’s Plant At Republican Debate

On the ‘Morning Joe‘ show this morning, Pensacola’s own Joe Scarborough gave his take on what the mainstream media has been playing really low key, if mentioning IT at all. The IT is the planting by CNN of questioners at last nights CNN/YouTube sponsored Republican debate.

He didn’t go into all the other phony questioners mentioned here, but he really didn’t need to to make his point. The retired ‘openly gay’ general not only had his video question aired, but CNN flew him from California, all expenses paid, so he could be in the audience and actually participate in the debate with the candidates. THAT was no coincidence. Nor is it a coincidence that he is on the “LGBT Americans for Hillary”1 committee. A national steering committee of over 65 leaders in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community.

The video from Morning Joe is HERE.

I saw the ‘debate.’ And from the opening bell with the folk singer, (folk singers are a staple for liberals (Baez, Mitchell, Young, Taylor)), it quickly became apparent from that tune, and from the way the questions that followed were framed, hitting all the stereotypes the left ascribes to republicans and conservatives, that CNN’s intent was to demean the candidates by casting them all as racists, homophobes, hypocrites and bigots. To their credit though, I thought all of the candidates handled the idiotic questions just fine. Unfortunately, for the few Americans who actually watched the debate, there was little to be learned from the candidates that everybody didn’t already know.

Chalk it up to a waste of time and a failed attempt to disparage the republican field of candidates. CNN did however manage to show themselves to be, to borrow a Chris Wallace phrase, ‘hyper-partisan’ in the staged event, to the point of making them look like total fools in the political arena.

1I have a screen capture of Hillary Clinton’s Campaign website in the event someone edits or removes the web page showing the general’s affiliation with her campaign.

Pensacola, War On Terror

Massive Ordinance Penetrator And Other Gifts

1 Comment

Living in Pensacola has its benefits. Like hearing the bomb blasts from about 50 miles away at the Eglin Air Force base testing and practicing range. Which brings me to my wish list for Santa. I’d like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to get one of these. It’s called a Massive Ordnance Air Blast. It has also been affectionately called the Mother Of All Bombs.

Massive Ordnance Air Blast

Thanks to the Northwest Florida Daily News for a fine article.

Video of first test, 5 years ago.

https://youtu.be/HsQdeAeOEg4

Media, Pensacola, Politics, Uncategorized

Lawsuit Perfect Storm Set In Pensacola

In one day, in the same issue, and on the same pages, the editorial pages echo a story on the front page called “Troubled Waters.” The Pensacola News Journal editorial page begins with “Still a long way to go in curbing toxic emissions.” Citing problems with mercury and lead both here and across the nation, raising the impact to “the critical importance of taking stronger steps to reduce or eliminate emissions of toxic chemicals.” It’s lead paint in houses, it’s PCB’s. What would we do without a ‘crisis’ to champion? And who eats houses anyway?

In the same section comes an article from Emerald Coastkeepers, an environmental group with strong ties to BIG law and Air America Radio talk show hosts Mike Papantonio and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., both of whom can lay claim to suing the pants off big corporations from Hudson Falls, NY to a mining town in West Virginia, and BIG pharm and BIG tobacco. This article says that the Coastkeepers are keeping and eye on a BIG company, Archer-Western, doing road infrastructure work for the county. Seems that all the state-required environmental precautions are no match for the occasional signature Florida rainstorm and some runoff goes into a bayou, Bayou Texar.

Curious thing about Bayou Texar is that it is lined with expensive homes with septic systems that leak raw sewage into it, rain or shine, 24-7-365, and the Coastkeepers are not concerned with stopping that. It’s about who has the deepest pockets, not who is doing the most damage.

The PNJ is just playing the responsible role in informing us of the environmental problems around us. And it is also laying the groundwork for the dynamic duo to go after those big, evil corporations again.

Digging deeper into this perfect storm shows the Independent News was the first to bring it up in their November 1st cover story. Coming off his “landmark environmental victory” in Spelter, W.Va, Papantonio says “I’m going to start doing cases like this in our area. I’m ready for it.” Papantonio sort of laid out his cards in an interview with editor Duwayne Escobedo like this . . .

“We have a generational issue here,” he says. “We had a generation of politicians, media types, businessmen, doctors and professionals who knew better but allowed the environmental devastation to happen anyway. There is going to be a backlash.”

He’s already thinking about the next environmental cases Levin Papantonio and its partners will do in Northwest Florida but he’s not ready to reveal them all yet.

Pressed about it, he does single-out lumber and paper company International Paper. Levin Papantonio filed suit last year on behalf of a handful of Cantonment residents against the company, the world’s largest paper company.

PNJ links: Still a long way to go in curbing toxic emissions
Emerald Coastkeeper monitors runoff problem
Troubled Waters
Nov 1 Independent News Cover Story: Papantonio Promises To Clean Up ‘Backyard’

related links in PNJ’s forum from an anonymous poster named hoagie. That would be me.

A Call To Harms, Slip & Fall Gone Wild | Here’s a suggestion

Pensacola, Politics, Race Relations

Being Offended Never Goes Out Of Season

On the subject of Race Relations, there seems to be no shortage of people looking to be offended. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not saying that there aren’t problems associated with race. Clearly there still are problems. We don’t live in a perfect, color-blind, world yet. A recent incident here in Pensacola, FL comes to mind. But when people of responsibility make accusations that foment racial tension, it just makes the hair on my back (which my wife will attest to) stand up.

Thomas Sowell calls it being belligerent. I agree and for those doing it, I see it as having a chip on your shoulder. Neither of which will earn you brownie points with the police in the course of their duties. It may even lead to you being killed.

Case in point is U.S. Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill), from the 7th district in Chicago. He was pulled over by police for what he claims is ‘driving while black.’ He was given a $75 ticket for a moving violation. Davis says . . .Rep. Danny Davis

“I hope that this was some kind of isolated instance, but I know in my heart of hearts, I know that it’s not”

He fails to see that the duties of that officer are to protect himself and others with whom he could have had a head-on collision. Hearken back to former Rep. Cynthia McKinney, who committed battery on an officer for doing his job, keeping the capitol building safe and secure. She said it was because she was black. This, in a building where intruders have come in and shot and killed people. There is no measure of understanding from people like McKinney and Davis, other than, I’m black so leave me alone.

Davis says . . .

“There was just no reason I could conjure up other than the fact that there were four black people in a car.”

Oh really? What about swerving over the center line in the wee hours of the morning? He ought to be thankful he wasn’t given a breath test. Had he been drinking, and there is no evidence that he was or wasn’t, his ticket could have been much worse.

By contrast, Thomas Sowell has his own experience of DWB, Driving While Black.

Twice within the past few years, I have been pulled over by the police for driving at night without my headlights on. My car is supposed to turn on the headlights automatically when the light outside is below a certain level, but sometimes I accidentally brush against the controls and inadvertently switch them to manual.

Both times I thanked the policeman because he may well have saved my life. Neither time did I get a ticket or even a warning. In each case, the policeman was white.

and

Recently a well-known black journalist told me of a very different experience. He happened to be riding along in a police car driven by a white policeman. Ahead of them was a car driving at night with no headlights on and, in the dark, it was impossible to see who was driving it. When the policeman pulled the car over, a black driver got out and, when the policeman told him that he was driving without his lights on, the driver said, “You only pulled me over because I am black!”This was said even though he saw the black man who was with the policeman. The driver got a ticket.

There needs to be some distinction between driving while black and driving while being a jerk.

CBS2 Chicago | Driving While Black | What Color Is Articulate?

Media, Pensacola, Politics, Uncategorized

Thanksgiving Episode of NewsBusted TV

Came across this web TV series just in time for Thanksgiving. I’m guessing that this will be a regular feature here at The Lunch Counter. Should give the folks at goLeftTV1 something to squawk about. It is material like this that tends to bring out the very best in them. Brought to you by NewsBusters.

1 goLeft.tv is a production of Air America radio host and BIG LAW trial attorney Mike Papantonio of Levin-Papantonio, Pensacola, FL.

Pensacola, Race Relations

Service Station Refuses Service To Blacks

2 Comments

Sounds like something right out of the last century. But it happened last weekend right here in Pensacola, FL to a black woman. It all went down like this.

She went to get gas at a Race Track gas station near I-10 and Rt. 29 around 9:30 p.m. while they were open. There was a woman attendant there who told her through the glass window to go away, that they don’t serve blacks at night. She didn’t understand what the woman told her at first because she couldn’t hear very well through the glass and the woman was a foreigner of some sort. So the woman kept replying “What? I can’t hear you?” Something like that. The attendant then brandished a hatchet towards her, telling her to get out and leave. She did leave, but as she was leaving, a white customer came up and was served without incident.

I am not releasing the identity of the woman who was refused service, and threatened with an axe, because the course of action she may take has not yet been determined. I know her personally and have no reason to doubt what she told me, and, there was a witness.

I don’t know how prevalent a behavior this is at that gas station but for me, once is too much. If something like this has happened to you, I’d appreciate hearing about it.

Judiciary, Pensacola, Politics, Whiners

Lawyers Being Rounded Up, In US?

Pakistani President Musharraf has his hands full to say the least. He is rounding up protestLawyer Round-Up In Pakistaners who also happen to be lawyers. Or is he rounding up lawyers because they are the protesters? No word yet whether that would be good for global warming.

It’s a tough call.
And on the domestic front, lawyers face another challenge. They are being caught breaking the law. Imagine that? Officers of the court and all. I guess it shows more than anything else that lawyers are not unlike people in other occupations.

But, not everyone thinks that way. Class action attorney, and Host of the Ring of Fire show on Air America Radio, Mike Papantonio thinks there is a conspiracy in this country to single out the BIG LAW attorneys, like himself.

Mike Papantonio, a trial attorney in Florida, believes the recent indictments are part of “a design to dismantle the plaintiffs bar.”

A little tort reform never hurt anybody. I’ll never forget a piece of advice I got from an attorney for free. And that was, don’t break the law and you won’t need me.

Belly up to the counter. Politics are on the menu and Ross is on the grill.