They both voted for closure which let the bill go forward for a vote. As Cruz pointed out that would have been the time and place to stop the bill. Instead they voted to let it go to the floor where 51 votes was enough to pass it. Now they can tell us they voted against the law, but essentially they worked with Reid and it passed.
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STAND UP! Speak OUT! RESPOND! Create Dialog! Let's go! RIGHT NOW! JOIN ME, TAKE AMERICA BACK!
We are the leader's.
Molan Labe
The statement below is from Senator Corker TN, ( R). The problem is that Obama has ignored laws, Congress and even judicial decisions. To me he will; use all of the confusion around Obama care, funding and other issues to cover up his executive orders enforcing the UN treaty without the consent of Congress.
Administration Must Seek Congressional Advice and Consent on U.N. Arms Trade Treaty
Asserting the Senates constitutional role on treaties, Senator Corker in a letter this week warned the Obama administration against taking any action to implement the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty without Senate advice and consent.
The ATT raises significant legislative and constitutional questions. Any act to implement this treaty, provisionally or otherwise, before the Congress provides its advice and consent would be fundamentally inconsistent with the U.S. Constitution, law, and practice, said Corker
Seymour Hersh: Bin Laden Raid “One Big Lie”
Pulitzer-prize wining journalist slams “pathetic” US media for failing to challenge White House
Paul Joseph Watson
Infowars.com
September 27, 2013
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh says that the raid which killed Osama Bin Laden in 2011 is “one big lie” and that “not one word” of the Obama administration’s narrative on what happened is true.
Image: President Obama.
In a wide-ranging interview published today by the Guardian, Hersh savages the US media for failing to challenge the White House on a whole host of issues, from NSA spying, to drone attacks, to aggression against Syria.
On the subject of the Navy Seal raid that supposedly resulted in the death of the Al-Qaeda terror leader, Hersh remarked, “Nothing’s been done about that story, it’s one big lie, not one word of it is true.”
Hersh added that the Obama administration habitually lies but they continue to do so because the press allows them to get away with it.
“It’s pathetic, they are more than obsequious, they are afraid to pick on this guy [Obama],” Hersh told the Guardian.
The raid that supposedly led to Bin Laden’s death has been shrouded in mystery for over two years. Speculation that the Obama administration may have embellished or outright lied about the true account of what happened has persisted, mainly because the White House has refused to publicly release images of Bin Laden’s body.
Although the White House said the corpse was immediately “buried at sea” in line with Islamic tradition, it quickly emerged that this was not standard practice.
Numerous analysts have claimed that Bin Laden had in fact been dead for years and that the raid on his alleged compound in Pakistan was little more than a stunt.
Other questions also persist, such as why the narrative and timeline of the raid has changed multiple times, why the White House initially claimed that “situation room” photos showed Obama watching the raid live when in fact there was a blackout on the live feed, and why neighbors in the immediate area surrounding the compound said with absolute certainty that they had never seen Bin Laden and that they knew of no evidence whatsoever to suggest he lived there.
During the rest of the Guardian interview, which is well worth reading in its entirety, Hersh lambastes the corporate press and particularly the New York Times, which he says spends “so much more time carrying water for Obama than I ever thought they would.”
Hersh’s solution is to shut down news networks like NBC and ABC and fire 90% of mainstream editors, replacing them with real journalists who are outsiders and not afraid to speak truth to power.
“The republic’s in trouble, we lie about everything, lying has become the staple,” concluded Hersh.
http://www.infowars.com/seymour-hersh-bin-laden-death-one-big-lie/
This is too much to let pass.
Dave Hodges attends the Arizona Breakfast Club. I spoke with him at the last meeting. He is really on top of things and has his own Internet Radio show… I do believe that we all have a tendency to “overlay” the information we read and come across with a pair of “rose-colored” glasses. We, by nature, use our belief systems to twist the information to fit the outcome our “belief” leads us toward. We must try to avoid applying these “beliefs” and try to look, objectively, at the information that is available to us. Applying “beliefs” and assuming things that are not true may put us in jeopardy. With that in mind… Events seem to be coming that we may not be prepared to handle. These two articles are CURRENT and quite on point. Please prepare yourself – at least mentally – for what may be coming. EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED! Terry = = = = = = = = = Game Over: Total Collapse is Imminent September 28, 2013 - Conspiracy, Featured, Main- Tagged: crony capitalism, environmentalists, false flag, federal reserve, FEMA, goldman sachs, government, martial law, new world order, obama, police state, prepping, tyranny, wall street- 21 comments
America, while you slept, your country was stolen from you. Your country was absconded by all the political misfits and corporate criminals that the disenfranchised former Republicans and Democrats have been trying to warn you about during the last several years .
Laws, originating out of New Deal legislation, written in response to the Great Depression, provided some measure of protection for the American financial system from the unsavory forces which led to its initial demise in 1929. In 2008, corporate greed, governmental corruption and a populace who was asleep at the wheel, has succeeded in achieving what historians will someday label the “Greatest Depression of 2013-2014.” History will also show that the destruction of the late, great American economy was entirely self-inflicted.
Why the US Economy Is Irreversibly Damaged If Americans knew their history, then we would be cognizant of the fact that one of the prime causes of the Great Depression was due to stock investors buying shares on margin (i.e., loans). Glass Steagall Act protected Americans from this shady practice by separating commercial banking from this investment practice of stockbrokers. However, with one stroke of his New World Order pen , Bill Clinton’s repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act opened the flood gates for the domestic AND foreign infusion of bad credit into both our stock market and banking system. Consequently, both industries stand in the midst of a total and complete economic collapse in what is quickly becoming known as the most massive wealth transfer in world history.
On September 30, 1999 , Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac sought governmental permission to “relax” (i.e., break) the prudent governmental regulations on sound lending practices and begin to make loans to individuals who were not credit worthy. This spelled the death of the mortgage industry as we once knew it and the housing market was collapsed.
The Uptick Rule once prevented companies from crashing due to large scale shorting of company stock. A company’s stock could not be sold short as long as it was in continuous decline. Short sellers had to wait for an uptick in the stock before engaging in shorting. The Uptick Rule was retired in 2007 and the rest, as they say, is history. The elimination of the Uptick Rule is like going to a basketball game and not being able to see the scoreboard. Who’s ahead, who’s behind? Nobody knows but “Ladies and Gentlemen, place your bets!” What is your stock portfolio worth? Who knows? Who cares? Somebody wealthy is getting wealthier at your expense and you and your middle class investors are none the wiser.
The rapid increase in the price of fuel during the last several years is a good example of the destructive nature of the derivative market. Most of the price gouging which resulted in unprecedented increases in gas prices, and record oil company profits, was due to speculation in futures especially by Goldman Sachs which just happens to be former Treasury Secretary’s Henry Paulson’s old company. Paulson oversaw the first bailouts as a result of the derivatives market failure. Today the derivatives market has collapsed and the collapse has pulled our entire economy along with it. The Federal Reserve is temporarily keeping the economy barely afloat by printing massive sums of money, but this game is almost over.
Why America Can Never Recover banksters get out of jail card free
Derivatives are not stocks or bonds or anything of tangible value. The value of a derivative is technically viewed as “anticipated future value.” Therefore, derivatives have no real value. However, a derivatives transaction must have the backing of a financial institution such as a brokerage or a bank. The assets used to back up and collateralize the worthless derivatives are real and substantial. When the derivatives market crashed, it took down hard assets of tangible value. In effect, the economy had stupidly used something in order to back up nothing and the something is now in the total control of the central bankers. To cover the losses of the “too-big-to-fail” entities, the bailouts were initiated in what constituted the largest wealth transfer in world history.
This is the ultimate money game in which paper derived from other paper, such as futures and options, has served to bolster the balance sheets on Wall Street. Futures and options are exchanged traded derivatives, but the largest group of derivatives is not even traded on the exchanges. These are called “counterparty derivatives” and consist of such financial entities as mortgage backed securities and credit default swaps.
It is estimated that total derivative exposure of the financial system is between one quadrillion and one and a half quadrillion. A quadrillion is 1,000 trillion dollars and it has largely collapsed. The entire Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of all the world’s countries in 2011 was approximately 77 trillion dollars. GDP is an economic term for everything that is produced for sale. The American middle class is being asked to bear the burden of the entire derivatives market collapse which totals over 16 times the net value of the entire planet. No amount of bailouts can ever cover the loss. This is simply the bankers way of transferring what is left of middle class wealth before the final collapse.
Where do you think the bail out money went? Ask yourself why so many corporate heads are building homes overseas? Why did George Bush build a 100,000 acre ranch in Paraguay? Why is NORTHCOM, a combat organization, is engaged in urban riot control training? Why did DHS purchase 2.2 billion rounds of ammunition to go with their 2700 armored personnel carriers? Even the National Weather Service has purchased million of rounds of ammunition. Why are the Russians training on American soil with FEMA in a bilateral agreement signed by Obama? Why are we seeing one disaster drill after another being carried out in this country? Here is a partial list of disaster drills being carried between September 25-November 13th.
Many of us feel that inside one of these disaster drills lies the false flag event which will be used to collapse the economy and lead to either martial law or civil war. Do you really think that language is too strong? On Friday, Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) stated that the political rhetoric has reached civil war levels.
The central bankers know that no amount of Quantitative Easing can pay for the hard assets that were lost in order to collateralize the derivatives. They have no option but to collapse the system and start over, but before they do, they are going to steal everything that is not nailed down. This is why in preparation of this move to collapse the system, they are obtaining as many hard assets as possible. This is why the Federal Reserve has been printing 40 billion dollars per month for the sole purpose of purchasing mortgage backed securities. This is why central bankers are under orders from the Bank of International Settlement which has ordered its rank and file central bankers from each country to greatly minimize loans in order to limit exposure when the collapse occurs. This is why the MERS mortgage fraud, in which millions of people are having their houses stolen through the creation of phony titles, continues unabated. This is why the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that once a depositor puts their money in the bank, the bank owns the money. This is why Treasury Secretary Lew began to “borrow” against federal pensions late last spring. This is why DHS, the IRS et al are preparing to go to war with the American people as they arm to the teeth. This is why the foreign troops are here. You are on the Titanic and you are going down. Still not convinced? Then explain Cyprus, Greece, Poland and now Panama where the TPTB are stealing pensions and bank accounts and you don‘t think it can happen to you because you are an American?
We have options America. We could arrest the Wall Street thugs that perpetrated this whole bloody mess and issue a declaration of debt repudiation. However, the other side is prepared to fight you as evidenced by the recent militarization of every federal agency. I do not believe that that America has the intestinal fortitude to fight back. We are a soft nation. And if we did resist, we should be prepared to fight the Russians and the Chinese on American soil because the central bankers will certainly follow a Red Dawn scenario.
When the Titanic went down, who did they save? They saved 70% of the wealthy as they were the ones that got into the life boats while the coach passengers were locked into steerage in which only 10% of those poor persons survived. This is exactly what is going on now. The government is not bailing out small business owners, pension holders and the average investor. They, we, are only bailing out the rich friends of the international bankers. The rest of us are locked into middle class steerage. Get your money out of the bank. Cash in your 401K and your pensions. The game is over and you only have time to jump from this sinking ship.
America is a captured operation, captured from within. Time is too short to mince words or to fear the ridiculous accusations of “doom porn,” made either by the factually challenged or some paid, professional government trolls (see DHS Insider articleby this author, later verified in the media) describing what you are about to read.
Within the last 24 hours, I had two separate conversations with two different sources, each saying nearly the same thing: Expect the unexpected. Wake up. Understand that everything we’re being told is a lie. We are at the epicenter of a ‘perfect storm.’
The opening words coming from my source inside the intelligence community tell much. “These people [the Obama regime and his handlers] are ‘pissed.’ They did not get what they wanted with Syria because we put them behind schedule by exposing Benghazi. The ‘alternative media’ put them behind, but that doesn’t mean they’ve given up. Far from it. What it means is that they have the same objective, but are switching plans.”
To be clear, I asked about their end-game objective. “ The take-down of America as a viable global power, economically and militarily. They are counting on people’s attention being diverted to political theater, which is exactly what’s happening right now with the budget showdown. But no one is looking beyond the stage act and if they are, very few are understanding what they are seeing. They are thinking too small and are still clinging to the right-left paradigm of political theater,” he stated.
The objective is to create a new global economic and power structure by removing the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency. By making the U.S. subservient to a global power structure. Why isn’t anyone in the media talking about this? Because they are complicit. Why aren’t the majority of those in the ‘alternative media’ talking about this? Because they are not looking at the bigger picture. The lie is bigger than they realize.”
At this point, I informed my intelligence source about my conversation hours before with a financial insider who uses the internet pen-name “V, The Guerrilla Economist.” This financial insider has a near perfect record of accurate financial predictions as documented by his multiple disclosures on The Hagmann & Hagmann Report, from the Bank of Japan through, most recently, Deutsche Bank. In addition to being a regular guest on The Hagmann & Hagmann Report, he recently founded the website Rogue Moneyand appeared on Coast to Coast AM with George Noory last week. He was emphatic about the current liquidity crisis in the U.S. “We’re broke, bankrupt, and not by accident, but by design.” he stated. “While some 18,000-plus Yankee fans who incredibly stood in line for hours last week to stake their claim to some cheap and meaningless plastic bobble-head of a retiring sports figure, their country and their pensions and retirement accounts are about to be looted. Sadly, this is the prevailing mentality that is allowing the power brokers and the complicit media to do what they will. But it’s even bigger. A perfect military, economic and political storm is brewing.”
“What people must realize is that China and Russia are acutely aware of our economic and military vulnerabilities, and are exploiting those vulnerabilities. China has positioned their economy for domination, world domination. Additionally, they have increased their military power to surpass that of the U.S.,” he added.
“Currently, the Russians are teaming up with the Chinese and conducting war exercises. Remember that in 2008, a war simulation conducted using U.S. Joint Strike Force F-35 fighters against the Russian Su-35 heavy fighters, it was clear that the clear victors were the Russians. The U.S. JSF f-35s were ‘clubbed like baby seals.’ Don’t think for a minute that the Chinese and the Russians aren’t positioning themselves to dominate the U.S. militarily. In light of the U.S. involvement against Syria and Russia’s push back, this is very significant,” stated this financial insider. Concurrent with the information I received from my intelligence insider, “V” added that the time clock for the U.S. dollar as holding the position of the world’s reserve currency is a ticking time bomb.
“Thanks to the policies of the Federal Reserve and this regime of economic psychopaths, the U.S. is in very deep financial trouble. Yet, you have politicians and talking heads on the news telling everyone that everything is okay. It’s far from okay, and we’ll be experiencing the same that is happening in Europe, with bank runs and bank holidays, in addition to the looting of our pensions and retirement accounts. It’s just a matter of when, not if.” He also added that it is obvious that the plan is a single global currency, a one world economy. And with that comes a one world power structure to oversee this new world financial order.
“One more thing,” added this financial insider. “Domestically, watch more municipalities go belly up across the U.S., like Detroit. Do you know which city is right behind Detroit in terms of teetering on bankruptcy,” he asked me. “New York City. That’s right, New York City is right behind Detroit” and headed for a financial apocalypse.
Looking at the larger picture, we are at the precipice of an economic collapse that will make the Great Depression look like a holiday at “Club Med,” compliments of the elite membership within “Club Fed.” “Club Fed” is populated by both democrats and republicans, progressives and conservatives, those elected and others appointed, all rabidly pining for a new world economic order. It is an incestuous group of international and domestic families consumed and propelled by greed and power who have been at this for decades, even generations.
As a result of their insatiable greed and lust for power and control, we are about to experience the pain of a world-wide crash and economic depression that will leave no one untouched. Moreover, it has been planned, awaiting the “perfect storm” to be formed. The last few isobars have been drawn on the map of devastation, and we are now in a short and deceptive calm before this storm hits us like a freight train.
As I continued my discussion with my intelligence insider, I asked what we might expect next from Syria and the Russia-China push-back against U.S. and Saudi hegemony in the Middle East. “We can expect to get hit, the other shoe to drop, but perhaps not in the manner we expected. They, the power brokers, the international bankers, the globalists will implement their agenda by whatever means fits the conditions that exist at the time. We’ve been saying that World War III will start in Syria, but their plans are not always foolproof. I don’t think they counted on the ‘alternative media’ to be as effective in exposing the real deal behind Benghazi, which was a weapons running operation to Syria, to slow them down. But it did. Now, they are switching to plan B, C or even plan Q,” he stated.
“We’re in one of the most dangerous times in our history. Think about this, and I mean really think about it. If we believe that the real power masters were behind some of the most historic, life-altering and bloodiest events in history, whether it’s Benghazi, the military overthrows of sovereign countries, or even elements of 9/11 and going back even further to the assassination of JFK, what are they capable of now? It’s the same groups, the same families, but different generations. Their objectives have not changed.”
“Look at D-Day as a classic example of the art of deception in wartime. And make no mistake, we are at war being waged by the globalists. Based on elaborate deceptions that convinced Hitler that Patton would lead an attack at Calais, the real invasion happened at Normandy,” stated this intelligence insider. “They are using the same principals. They want to take us out from being politically, militarily and economically viable to implement their plans for a new global power structure. While we think the trigger event could happen in the Middle East, maybe it will happen in the U.S. instead. While we expected Syria to be the causative factor to usher in an economic collapse, perhaps the sequence of events have been changed,” he stated.
DO NOT ADD A SINGLE WORD Yes, he told us in advance what he planned to do. Few were listening. The following is a narrative taken from a 2008 Sunday morning televised "Meet The Press'. From Sunday's 07 Sept.2008 11:48:04 EST, Televised "Meet the Press" THE THEN Senator Obama was asked about his stance on the American Flag. General Bill Gann' USAF (ret.)asked Obama to explain WHY he doesn't follow protocol when the National Anthem is played. The General stated to Obama that according to the United States Code, Title 36,Chapter 10,Sec.171... During rendition of the national anthem, when the flag is displayed, all present (except those in uniform) are expected to stand at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. Or, at the very least,"Stand and Face It". NOW GET THIS !! 'Senator Obama replied : "As I've said about the flag pin, I don't want to be perceived as taking sides". "There are a lot of people in the world to whom the American flag is a symbol of oppression.." "The anthem itself conveys a war-like message. You know, the bombs bursting in air and all that sort of thing." (ARE YOU READY FOR THIS???) Obama continued : "The National Anthem should be 'swapped' for something less parochial and less bellicose. I like the song 'I'd Like To Teach the World To Sing'. If that were our anthem, then, I might salute it. In my opinion, we should consider reinventing our National Anthem as well as 'redesign' our Flag to better offer our enemies hope and love.It's my intention, if elected, to disarm America to the level of acceptance to our Middle East Brethren. If we, as a Nation of warring people, conduct ourselves like the nations of Islam, where peace prevails - - -perhaps a state or period of mutual accord could exist between our governments ...." When I become President, I will seek a pact of agreement to end hostilities between those who have been at war or in a state of enmity, and a freedom from disquieting oppressive thoughts. We as a Nation, have placed upon the nations of Islam, an unfair injustice which is WHY my wife disrespects the Flag and she and I have attended several flag burning ceremonies in the past". "Of course now, I have found myself about to become the President of the United States and I have put my hatred aside. I will use my power to bring CHANGE to this Nation, and offer the people a new path.My wife and I look forward to becoming our Country's First black Family. Indeed,CHANGE is about to overwhelm the United States of America " Yes, you read it right. I, for one, am speechless!!!
Satire by John W. Lillpop
Shutting down the United States government is very serious business, not to be taken lightly or flippantly. Our government is, after all, a huge coalition of incompetent bureaucrats engaged in entirely meaningless activities resulting in wasteful spending on grand scale, not seen elsewhere in our universe, and perhaps even beyond.
Imagine the vast vacuum that will be created when hundreds of thousands of otherwise unemployable loons like Lois Lerner are not clogging the highways and byways of our nation’s capitol, and not spending your great, great grandchildren into abject poverty.
Consider, too, the possible return of sanity to our decaying republic if the Oval Office is shuttered and boarded leaving The One with nothing to do but golf and work on his ESPN basketball picks for the 2014 Spring Madness debacle just six months hence!
Furloughing Barack Obama may be the only thing that can save America from the dual vices of bankruptcy and Sharia law!
And what if the shutdown included the State Department where boss man John Kerry, who once threw his military medals over the fence in the front of the White House to protest the Vietnam war, is forced to while away the hours on his sail boat instead of working 24/7 to toss the 2nd Amendment to wolves at the United Nations?
A shutdown may give We the People a chance to “Swift boat” Kerry once again.
And how might we all benefit if Ben Bernanke’s printing press was moth balled for a while, bringing an abrupt pause to the Quantitative Easing madness which will be unnecessary once the Obama spending addiction is treated?
What if coal-hating buzzards at the EPA were sent home, putting a hold on the evil plan to eliminate a private American industry via government fiat? How many jobs could be salvaged in the coal producing states?
And what if dedicated anarchists at Treasury who send monthly foreign aid checks to Mexico, Egypt, and other dysfunctional third-world nations were unable to send those checks starting October 1?
Imagine walking through an airport without being mauled by sexual predators posing as TSA agents!
Best of all, a shutdown could mean that the IRS would be unable to spend tax dollars to willfully promote the Democrat Party, and that those 16,000 heads which were to be hired for Obamacare can instead seek more suitable work as loan sharks and street prostitutes.
On and on the list goes.
A government shutdown could be the equivalent of every American citizen sharing in a multi-trillion-dollar power ball jackpot, without even buying a ticket.
Government shutdown good for America? Hell yes, in fact it may be our only hope for survival!
Yesterday while reading the news, I had the overwhelming urge to puke. I've been vigilant in watching the news, mentally sorting articles written by liberals into one category and those written by Constitutional Americans into the right category.
I thought I was nauseated from staring too long at the fine print on the screen until I realized there was a picture of Obama on every article I had read.
Every time I try to read the news, his face appears. He is either smirking or he looks belligerent in every pose. I'm sick of seeing his face.
I had a discussion about the problem with a dear friend in the wee hours of the morning. She confessed that, of late, she had experienced nausea when she saw him on television.
After our chat, I went to youtube and typed his "Obama" name (as opposed to any of his aliases) in the search option. I watched and listened to 2 videos that he "starred" in.
He ranted, boasted, strutted, preened, threatened and yelled insults to the non-obama-ites. Every time he opened his mouth, a lie fell out.
I long to turn on my television or surf the Internet and not see his face or hear his rants.
I've diagnosed my new, unique illness. I'm allergic to Obama and he's making me sick.
And yet another nightmare is arising from the monstrosity that is Obamacare. Child support ends at 18? Or is it now 26?
This is a real story: A hard working young man earns minimum wage and cannot afford a home of his own because he pays $400 per month for his 2 minor children. His monthly income after taxes is about $600.
He must live with a sibling in order to make support payments.
The cost of obama's nightmare insurance for him range from $300 to $600 per month.
He can't afford it and will be forced to pay a penalty to the IRS. He won't be able to pay the penalty and that means it will be withheld from his refund check which isn't equal to the penalty itself.
The IRS says they will keep your refund check if you owe child support. And, you owe child support because you can't come up with the money to buy obama's insurance because you are paying child support.
Obamacare is confusing and the consequences are even more confusing.
Begin forwarded message:
From: Sandra Adcock <ollamok@aol.com>
Subject: New use for old Cisco Product make billions! I know. Me? I want less than million. Chx my linked in profile.
Date: September 30, 2013 1:29:41 AM CDT
@ Plz have cisco call me OK 405-850-0595 Autism Study & other health care app. Big help I know. PLZ
See my idea insert your product once I tell you.
http://ollamok.com/2013/09/04/project-oklahoma-infinity-and-beyond/#!
See my complete ideas linkedin profile before you miss out on something big.
Why not so much money? Money isn't everything.
Category: Entrepreneurs | Industry: Health & Wellness Posted by: Sandra Lynn Mallo Adcock
Hello,
My son is a 17 year old teenage boy. I say boy because he has many lessons to learn as I did. However, he is more polite, tuned in and caring than I was at that age (maybe).
For sure he is precious in many ways. I am going to take an abbreviated approach.
I. Linkedin Profile will tell you a lot about myself and goals of forming; for profit, nonprofit and coauthor a book on autism with another mother.
http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=53644897&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile
II. 2013-2014 award from NAPW(National Ass of Prof. Women) http://www.napw.com/profile/111400006/Sandra-MalloAdcocr
III. Blogs with Resources I would love for you to check before you share. I have other writing I would love for you to look at but I also have a heart and passion for see this post;
http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/07/9/ http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/10/reframing-resources-wants-you-to-know/
http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/09/this-is-childhood-cancer-awarness-month-and-more-health-news-from-ollamok/ *****This has 3 pages from the NIH: one has a downloadable handbook on cancer for kids, a page that tells how to explain cancer to kids and a page that has the latest research on kid's cancer's. If you share nothing else please share this one.
These others are good in my opinion too. http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/08/true-success/ I think it goes with the mantra all kids are hero's.
**************************The next two have some good resources; as the bottom one does. And, the top one is informative on a a Transition project that needs to be dumped or changed. I want to be fair there is opinion here. The others above contain little of that. These below are loaded. They are statements from the heart. If I am wrong I want to learn about it. Or, if these programs help that much, I want to learn what will ultimately help our kids. http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/17/project-search-or-robbing-disabled-youth-part-i/ http://reframingresources.wordpress.com/2013/09/09/transition-hints-dont-blame-schools-hold-all-accountable/
If you have read this far and want to read for fun here some articles/below or stories some instructors have given me praise on. If you do not then skip over please. I do not want to ruin my genuine chance to help for the sake of a chance at networking. However, it never hurts to try. Yet, I want you to know what is coming. Honesty usually pays off in the end.
http://ollamok.com/2013/09/01/autumn-trails-of-sixty-eight/ http://ollamok.com/2013/09/11/old-timers/ http://sanlynnmaladc.blogspot.com/ http://reframingresources.blogspot.com/ http://ollamok.blogspot.com/ http://tannermana.blogspot.com/ http://ollamok.com/2013/09/15/my-get-away-if-written-7-26-13-by-ollamok-2/ http://ollamok.com/2013/09/12/gilligans-lake/http://ollamok.wordpress.com
Respectfully,
Mrs. Sandra Lynn Mallo Adcock D.Ph., M.S.M.http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=53644897&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile
By John W. Lillpop
With his daring, unrelenting search for truth in the US Senate last week, Ted Cruz has established himself as the anti-establishment rebel America needs to thwart the malicious Marxism of Harry Reid and Barack Obama.
Sick of Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, John McCain and other RINO abominations? Of course, we all are.
Good news may be just around the corner as 2014 elections near.
When the GOP takes the Senate from the tired, old corrupt hands of Harry Reid in 2014, Ted Cruz will be the most logical choice to serve as Majority Leader!
Imagine that: Ted Cruz, Senate Majority Leader!
Some will resist, knowing that Cruz could be the GOP’s best chance to end the harmful career of Hillary Clinton in 2016.
That may be, but he can do both! What better stage than the US Senate to lead the nation out of the Marxist morass of Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid?
As Senate Majority Leader, Ted Cruz can show his talents in advance of 2016 and avoid another spectacular failure of the sort that voting for a Marxist community organizer dumped on America.
Ted Cruz could use the Senate to begin the de-Obamaization of the world’s greatest Democracy while setting the tables for an all-conservative government in 2016!
Conservatives can fundamentally re-transform America to the greatness of the pre-Obama era! We need Ted Cruz to lead the way!
Your president ( a Muslim) has made November National Muslim Appreciation month.
Looks like some of them are attention whores and are starting early.
I appreciate how creative they get killing Christians, Jews and any other non-Muslims. I appreciate how peaceful they are. Does your religion condone the same?
http://nationalreport.net/obama-declares-november-national-muslim-appreciation-month/
There is no question that Obama is pro-choice when it comes to women's rights to kill babies. So, being 9 months pregnant with a sick baby himself ( the Unaffordable Health Care Act), why doesn't he abort the damn thing and try again? I'll tell you why, he wants our economy to collapse.
This years crop in my back yard
The Ideal germination temerature is 68 F at night to 86 F day.
Tobacco prefers rich well-drained soil but will do well even in poor soil. The ideal ph for tobacco is: Seedlings: 5.8 to 6.2 Adults: 6.4 to 6.6 but may vary depending on the strain grown.
Depending on the strain of tobacco and the growing conditions you can estimate each plant will yield enough tobacco to produce about five packs of cigarettes. The plants should be spaced about 2 feet apart with 3 foot wide rows.
Starting tobacco from seed:
Plant your tobacco seeds indoors about 30 days before the last frost. The seeds are tiny and should be sprinkled on a finely textured moist growing medium (Soil). After adding the seeds cover the soil with some newspaper to hold the moisture in and spray the soil from time to time with a spray bottle producing a fine mist. Alternately a Styrofoam egg carton with ¼” holes punched in the bottom of each egg cup can be used. Fill the carton with moist soil, plant the seeds then close the lid until the seeds sprout. Water by placing the carton in a tray of water to allow it to wick-up into the soil. It takes 3 days to 2 weeks for the seeds to germinate depending and the strain and freshness of the seeds. Germinate the seeds in the dark to speed germination. Once the seeds germinate move them into the light or the stems will elongate and the plants will flop-over. Do not overwater the seedlings. Let the soil dry some before watering or the seedlings may be attacked by a fungus at the base of the stem and quickly die. Keep the plants in a heated greenhouse, indoors in a sunny window or indoors under an artificial light source. Cool white florescent light work well but you need to keep the bulbs close to the top of the plants.
Thin the seedlings out by removing all but the best 1 or 2 plants per pot, or plug tray slot. Eventually leave only 1 plant.
Growing tobacco:
Transplant outdoors after danger of frost and the leaves are 2 to 3 inches long.
Keep well watered and fertilized. Tobacco grows like a monster so it has to be fed and watered like one. Using uncomposted manure will taint the flavor of your tobacco so only use compost or chemical fertilizer. Remove any suckers that form so the plant focuses all of it's energy into the main stalk.
All tobacco plants are self fertile so you only need 1 of each variety to be spared from topping for seed production. Flowers should be covered with a fine mesh bag to prevent cross pollination.
The rest should be topped so considerably thicker leaves are produced. Typically the flowers which appear at the top of the plant towards the end of the plants life are removed for tobacco production.
Tobacco is usually harvested in autumn/fall. When ripe the leaves take on a crinkled appearance similar to alligator skin, they may start yellowing & the stems will become brittle. Harvest the whole plant regardless of leaf color or ripeness if there is a threat of frost.
Processing tobacco at home:
Hang the leaves in clusters using a rubber band or wire tie around the leaf stems in a protected area with some air circulation until the leaves turn brown. The leaves must turn brown before they dry so if the leaves begin to dry before turning brown place them in a pile and cover with a blanket or towel. Rotate the leaves within the pile everyday or they will begin sticking to one another and tearing. If any leaves become wet dry the moisture off the leaves before returning them to the pile
Mild Virginia strains can be smoked once they turn brown but are better tasting if cured. Chewing tobacco can be prepared by boiling the leaves in some water along with licorice roots, molasses, chocolate and other flavorings.
The dried leaves will naturally cure when stored. The longer they are stored the better they will taste. Some easy curing strains may be cured well enough to enjoy after 3 months but others may take years. Alternately the curing process can be shortened considerably by using a homemade kiln where heat, humidity and ventilation can be carefully controlled. Harsh tobacco can also be sprayed with plain water or sugar water then oven toasted at 250-275F for 10 to 12 minutes to make it milder.
The leaves should be shredded before smoking. There are machines made for the purpose but good results can be obtained using a common kitchen blender. Moisten dry leaves just enough to make them pliable, roll them into 1 inch diameter rolls then cut the rolls into 1 inch chunks. Drop the chunks into the blender then run on the shred setting for about 15 seconds. Experiment with small amounts until you get a feel for how dry the tobacco should be and how long the blender should run.
Most people prefer to make cigarettes using premade paper tubes with a filter attached. The tubes are then stuffed with shredded tobacco using a machine such as a Topomatic.
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Did you know that that there’s a competitive and contentious governor race going on in Virginia? The two contenders: the state Attorney General Republican Ken Cuccinelli vs. Democrat Terry McAuliffe, “whose controversial business dealings and past life as a party moneyman make him a walking negative ad," wrote POLITICO this month.
McAuliffe, with a modest lead, Wednesday night during a crucial debate in Northern Virginia each "cast the other as unfit for office, untrustworthy and wrong for the commonwealth," noted the Washington Post.
Blows were thrown, with McAuliffe attempting to cast Cuccinelli as a "right-winger," and Cuccinelli landing a right hook: “If Terry’s elected governor, we’re gonna have to change the state motto from ‘Sic Semper Tyrannis’ to ‘Quid Pro Quo.'" Still, most of the headlines portrayed this debate as uneventful, and there was very little "pounding McAuliffe over transgressions such as the current federal investigation of a “green car” company that the Democrat founded" –– the focus of today's Green Corruption File.
While this battle will end in just over a month, the controversy surrounding the "green car" in question won't, and it serves as another example of how green energy has been hijacked and deceptively used. Even Kimberly Strassel of the Wall Street Journal, a while back had this to say, “Green crony capitalism is proving to be one of the more politically toxic stories of our time…”
This green energy story has connections all the way from the Clinton's to the Obama White House, as well as other interesting ties, including a Republican governor, and plenty of taxpayer subsidies. Worse, besides "Chinese capitalism" at the helm, political influence, and a flop to boot, it involves exaggeration at best, deception at its worst, all wrapped up in a pile of mystery, and possibly bundled with a "green cards for sale" scheme. Meanwhile, this particular green project "has led to two federal investigations — one by the Securities and Exchange Commission to determine whether company officials improperly raised money and one by the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general to determine whether appeals to obtain visas for foreign investors were improper," reported TribLive News in August.
The only difference in this tale, other than the potential threat to national security, and that President Obama is not at the center (although there are ties), is the fact that GreenTech is overly sensitive, even when facing facts. Case in point: sometime in April, GreenTech filed an $85 million lawsuit against an online government watch dog for libel, taking issue with two online stories, of which "detail the woes of the government immigration program, called EB-5. In one article, a financial expert criticized the EB-5 program as “a fraud," explained Watchdog.org.
Later I'll dig into the EB-5 program, but at this juncture it is important to point out that Watchdog.org, who has provided a 63-part series on "Terry McAuliffe, gubernatorial candidate and car mogul," stands by its reporting. "Jason Stverak, president of Watchdog’s parent company the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, said the lawsuit is baseless," and many on the right have since expressed their outrage over what they deem as an attempt to intimidate and suppress the truth from being exposed.
"Hustler" on the move
Interesting enough, the politically connected heavyweight (a close friend and adviser to both former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hilary) and former Democratic National Committee Chairman, Terry McAuliffe is aligned with President Obama's "war on coal," and he also has the backing of "climate change radical," Big Oil investor, Obama bundler and billionaire buddy, Tom Steyer. I've addressed Steyer's footprint inside this Green Corruption scandal a few times, but now we see that just a bit ago he "has directed his political operation to spend heavily in the Virginia governor’s race in support of Democrat Terry McAuliffe," as reported by POLITICO
Wall Street Journal's Strassel, in covering GreenTech this past April –– “McAuliffe's Solyndra” –– nailed it in her statement, “Turn over any green-energy rock, and wiggling underneath will be the usual creepy mix of political favoritism and taxpayer-funded handouts. Add to this the Clintons, Mississippi and a murky visa program, and you've got a particularly ripe political embarrassment for Terry McAuliffe.”
It all started a few years ago: After losing the 2009 Democratic primary for governor in Virginia, McAuliffe bought a Chinese electric-car company, moved its headquarters to Northern Virginia and tried to set up a manufacturing base in the United States.
In July 2012, Mr. McAuliffe unveiled his signature MyCar at a rock-star event attended by the former President Clinton and then-Gov. Republican Haley Barbour, who is also personal friends with McAuliffe –– an electric car, by the way, that has recently received "awful" reviews by some auto industry experts. Four months later, November 2012, McAuliffe announced his plans to run for Virginia governor in 2013 and he stated in an email, "It is absolutely clear to me that Virginians want their next Governor to focus on job creation..."
McAuliffe has "made his private sector experience a cornerstone of his campaign" and is betting that his slogan, "McAuliffe for Governor: Putting Jobs First," will resonate with the folks. Still, prior to officially beginning his second attempt to be the governor of Virginia (although it seems he never stopped campaigning), sometime in 2009, he began a traveling road show, bragging about GreenTech, and using it as an example of how he was a big job creator, promising hope, hundreds of thousands of green cars and thousands of green jobs.
Due to the fact that Virginia denied access (for various concerns and doubts) to McAuliffe's electric-car dreams, he found a willing participant: "In October 2009, GreenTech Automotive Inc.'s owner, Chinese businessman Xiaolin "Charles" Wang [President and CEO] unveiled four prototype cars during a flashy ceremony and promised to build a $2 billion [some report it as $1 billion] plant in Mississippi, the poorest state in the U.S.," wrote Phys.org News. With the support of then-Governor Barbour, GreenTech was in line and has already received "public loans and grants that total more than $8 million, with millions more in tax exemptions and rebates."
At that time, GreenTech "promised it would create 1,500 jobs. McAuliffe predicted at least 10,000 cars a year would be manufactured by 2011," as documented by Politifact.com last month –– with another 2009 report stating, "the plant will produce 150,000 vehicles annually in phase one."
Considering that there are conflicting reports on the number of green cars and green jobs –– promised, claimed and actual –– I'll attempt to tackle that part of this tale a bit later. But to give you a hint, Politifact.com also noted, "GreenTech has not met those expectations, undercutting McAuliffe’s claim to be a proven job creator. The New York Times, in an Aug. 9 article, said GreenTech employs 80 people and that company officials would not say how many cars will be built this year."
But being a master job creator is not the only declaration made by McAuliffe: Breitbart.com busted him when he claimed that he was a founder of this start-up long after it existed. In May 2011, he told a Democrat audience, "I'm a founder of a company called GreenTech Automotive, a very ambitious project. I'm building 5 cars .... we have 3 hybrids and 2 electrics." However, Breitbart.com documented a chronological timeline on how GreenTech evolved by Mr. Wang, "a Chinese national, who first became involved in the project that would become GreenTech Automotive, Inc." –– and it all dates back to March 2008.
Mr. McAuliffe, who became chairman of GreenTech Automotive in March 2010, when things began to heat up, he mysteriously left his green car company sometime in late 2012. McAuliffe's "carbon footprint" may have been scrubbed from the GreenTech website, and all the while as hardball questions, serious accusations and ongoing criticism are hurled his direction, McAuliffe response is to distract and deflect: "Don’t ask me about GreenTech, I was just the Chairman."
Needless to say, evidence has emerged that as of March 2013, McAuliffe is still a GreenTech Exec, and is found to be the largest individual shareholder. This all came to light in a September 21 article by the Washington Post, divulging that McAuliffe "is listed in a recent confidential memorandum to prospective investors." His position, writes Breitbart.com, is described as "Chairman Emeritus of the company," noting that the document states McAuliffe "will have such duties and responsibilities as designated by the Board of Directors from time to time." The Post also notes that "the company’s confidential March memo implies to investors that he would remain involved" even if McAuliffe wins his race for governor. Basically, the memo says, that he would “resign all positions with [GreenTech] and appoint a representative to vote his shares.”
Additionally, the pitch to lure potential investors, touted the Democrat heavyweight's political connections, savvy, and McAuliffe’s past promotion of electric vehicles on “national television news programs.” It also included another PROMISE: GreenTech "will enjoy billions in government subsidies and tax credits."
What's quite fascinating is that The Post, in its 2013 analysis of what I am calling "McAuliffe's formula for success" (methodology that has made him a millionaire many times over), while giving an array of examples, concludes: "The prospectus, along with other documents reviewed by The Post, shows how GreenTech fits into a pattern of investments in which McAuliffe has used government programs, political connections and access to wealthy investors of both parties in pursuit of big profits for himself."
However, The Post wasn't so kind in 2009: "McAuliffe is, at his core, a salesman -- and described himself as a hustler in his [2008] autobiography [What A Party!: My Life Among Democrats...]" –– a label that at best is deemed a "go-getter," but has many other negative connotations. I'll keep that to your imagination, but The Post, a paragraph earlier wrote, "He is a deal maker who made millions from investments. And many of his biggest deals came in partnership with prominent donors and politicians, creating a portrait over the years of a Washington insider who got rich as he rose to power within the Democratic Party." In fact, one of the most disturbing references to his methodology is this: “McAuliffe has made a fortune investing -- sometimes in companies that went bust, laid off thousands and drained investors' and employees' savings."
The "Alleged" Corruption
Special money
Before he resigned as chairman in December 2012 –– although as documented earlier, we know he's still quite active –– McAuliffe helped raised plenty of private money from foreign investors, but GreenTech Auto also received its fair share of government assistance.
With GreenTech's 2009-promise to build a $2 billion plant in Mississippi, the poorest state in the U.S, "some 100 acres were donated by Tunica County's economic development foundation, at a cost of $1.8 million, and in 2011 the state gave a $3 million loan toward site preparation," as documented by the Huffington Post.
"Breitbart News confirmed with the Mississippi Development Authority [MDA] on July 22 [2013] that these loans have been completely disbursed." However, Mississippi’s Economic Development Authority says the taxpayer subsidies are contingent on GreenTech raising $60 million by Dec. 31, 2014. If GreenTech fails to meet the capital requirement and hire 350 full-time workers, local and state authorities can “claw back” their investments. Good luck with that...
What's not widely reported is that the MDA got stimulus funds: The Mississippi Development Authority, Energy Division received approximately $40 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding from the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE).
Also, I have found conflicting reports on how much taxpayer money GreenTech snagged: it ranges from $5 million to $8 million, and even McAuliffe himself puts the price tag at $18 million. Not to mention for every car purchased, taxpayers again pay –– for example the MyCar NEV states, "...find state and federal incentives to make your MyCar even more affordable."
But the worst part comes from the fact that the private funds for GreenTech involves a program here in the USA called the Immigrant Investor Program, also known as “EB-5,” which was "created by Congress in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors." What's relevant here is that "GreenTech has sought overseas investors through [this] federal program that allows foreigners to gain special visas if they contribute at least $500,000 to create U.S. jobs," documented The Post last month.
The other twist here is that "GreenTech partners with Gulf Coast Funds Management (GCFM), a company that is authorized by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to collect EB-5 investments for GreenTech." And, Anthony Rodham, a close friend of McAuliffe who also happens to be the brother of the former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton, is the President and CEO of GCFM. According to an August 12, 2013 report by the Washington Free Beacon, "GCFM has collected at least $45.5 million from foreign investors for GreenTech through the program."
Special political favors
With so many numbers floating around –– $37.5 million in cash investments, says Breitbart.com, with $32 million from the "green cards for sale program" –– it's difficult to track just how much foreign cash McAuliffe and Co. raised for GreenTech Automotive. However, there is strong evidence –– not yet proven beyond a reasonable doubt –– that the USCIS gave them special treatment.
At the core is Alejandro Mayorkas, who currently serves as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (UCIS), an agency within Homeland Security, and is also the Obama administration's nominee to become the next Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. This is where it gets even more convoluted. As stated earlier, this "visas for sale" program has caused quite the controversy. Last month, the National Review Online reported that "the Homeland Security Inspector General is investigating to see whether officials gave special treatment to GreenTech because of McAuliffe’s political connections," of which NRO notes that "McAuliffe was central to GreenTech’s effort to get DHS to reverse decisions on visas."
That accusations was preempted by the Daily Beast July report: "in December 2010, McAuliffe wrote to Napolitano on behalf of GreenTech and asked her to expedite the company’s EB-5 requests and reopen consideration of requests that had been previously denied." Moreover, we find via the New York Times: "Frustrated by government red tape slowing his electric car company, Terry McAuliffe repeatedly sought a meeting at the Department of Homeland Security."
The Times gives a few more details...
He and his lawyers sent a stream of e-mails to a senior official in charge of approving foreign investments that Mr. McAuliffe sought, and he went up the chain of command to Janet Napolitano, the secretary of homeland security... Finally, a 2011 meeting took place, and Mr. McAuliffe and Mr. Wang met with Alejandro Mayorkas [my words here]... As their meeting was wrapping up, Ms. Napolitano popped into the room to say hello, Mr. Wang said. Later, Mr. Mayorkas issued a favorable ruling that cleared the way for GreenTech to recruit more foreign investors.
The Times goes on... "In 2011, Mr. Mayorkas overruled two lower officers in his department, Citizenship and Immigration Services, which allowed GreenTech to recruit more Chinese investors."
In the Daily Beast piece we also discover that "this past January, Rodham wrote to Mayorkas directly and pressed him to speed up approval of EB-5 visas for GreenTech."
This past July NBC News reported that this particular IG investigation, "was opened in September 2012 based on a referral from an FBI counterintelligence analyst," and they gave some key points:
The probe is based on allegations that Mayorkas personally intervened to win an approval for Gulf Coast Funds Management, a financing company headed by Clinton’s brother Anthony Rodham, after USCIS officials rejected its application, according to an aide to GOP Sen. Charles Grassley, who had received internal USCIS emails about the matter from a department whistleblower.
During the course of the probe, the email states, the inspector general learned of other allegations "involving alleged conflicts of interest, misuse of position, mismanagement of the EB-5 program, and an appearance of impropriety by Mayorkas and other" officials within the UCSIS.
By the end of July, Republican senators, due to the ongoing IG investigation, boycotted the confirmation hearing set for Mayorkas, "Obama’s nominee to become the deputy secretary of Homeland Security, a job that could result in him running the department" since Secretary Janet Napolitano stepped down in September," wrote the Daily Beast. Mayorkas' confirmation has since been put on ice, but that was after the hearings proceeded in July without Republican participation, giving him an opportunity to plead his side of the GreenTech case: "I have never in my career used undue influence to influence the outcome of a case," Mayorkas testified in front of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Even so, according to TribLive News, Senator Grassley, who is pressing for more information on Homeland Security's handling of the EB-5 program, recently charged, "We absolutely gave special treatment to Green Tech at the directive of D1" (“D1″ is an apparent reference to Mr. Mayorkas ). In an August letter, "Grassley told Alejandro Mayorkas that he has received a torrent of whistleblower reports that Mayorkas interfered continuously on behalf of GreenTech."
But a "homeland invasion" is not the only thing hampering McAuliffe and his eco-car's reputation: "in May [2013], the SEC subpoenaed documents from GreenTech Automotive and bank records from a sister company, Gulf Coast Funds Management of McLean," reported the Washington Post last month.
Even though The Post admits that "the full focus of the SEC investigation into GreenTech and Gulf Coast is not known, we do know that "in recent months, the SEC has stepped up its scrutiny of companies that use the visa program, largely over concerns that investors may have been misled or defrauded by the companies seeking their money. The visa program has also raised national security concerns from some lawmakers worried that suspect individuals are using it to gain entry into the country."
More GreenTech Cronies
Detailed thus far in this Green Corruption File has been some influential pals of McAuliffe: former President Bill Clinton, who appeared at a company launch party, Hillary Clinton’s brother Anthony Rodham, who runs the firm’s foreign-investor outreach, as well as former Republican National Committee chair and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who not only "helped the company secure millions in state incentives," but stood by Terry's side, even for photo ops.
Watchdog.org has also exposed Levar Stoney, a former director of the Virginia Democratic Party (2008 to 2009), who served as GreenTech's director of public and government affairs from May 2010 until December 2012. Then this past August we learn via the Washington Free Beacon that the former Virginia Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine, who is now a U.S. senator, in December 2009, "sent a letter to an official at the U.S. Customs and Immigration Service (USCIS), detailing Virginia policies that would benefit Gulf Coast Funds Management (GCFM)" –– and we've already established that GreenTech's sister company is GCFM, and where we find Terry's pal and Hillary's brother Anthony Rodham (President & CEO).
Considering all that clout, there's a former Obama cabinet official by the name of Rick Wade, whom as Tori Richards (author at Watchdog.org and Human Events) puts it, "might be the insider who carries the most weight." Mr Wade, whose history includes "a founding partner of the Axelrod-Wade Group, a global business development firm," joined GreenTech Automotive in 2011, whereas his bio brags that he is currently the "Senior Vice President & Head of China Operations, following a distinguished career at the Department of Commerce."
Wade, while at Commerce, was involved in President Obama's trillion-dollar stimulus spending spree, yet he also had many other key Democratic positions, both during and after his time with Team Obama (see bullet point presentation). And as of late, Wade is planning on getting back into politics, and will be running for the United States Senate against Tim Scott, of which according to the Grio, "He is expected to announce his candidacy early next month."
- 2008: Senior adviser role for then-Senator Obama’s 2008 campaign
- 2008: Wade chaired Obama’s successful South Carolina primary in 2008 against Hillary Clinton
- 2009: Wade was a member of the White House task forces on Automobile Recovery (a $25 billion effort to prop up the failing U.S. auto industry), which was led by former treasury secretary Timothy Geithner and Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers.
- 2009: Within Commerce, Wade served as interim chief of staff during the presidential transition, and he contributed to all major policy and personnel decisions.
- 2009 to 2011: Wade was also the Senior Adviser and Deputy Chief of Staff for Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, who served that role from March 24, 2009 until October 2011. Gary Locke resigned as the 36th Secretary of Commerce on August 1, 2011 to become the U.S. Ambassador to the People's Republic of China. And then John Bryson, who became Obama’s Secretary of Commerce in October 2011, is another player inside some of this clean-energy dirt. Bryson resigned in June of 2012 following a series of mysterious auto accidents, and now we have Penny Pritzker, the mega-rich pal of Obama, who raised mega-bucks for both of his presidential campaigns and was a member of his so-called jobs council, whereas she is “related” to at least two large Green Corruption stories.
- 2009-2011: Additionally, while at the Commerce Department, "Wade worked diligently to ensure President Obama’s business and economic programs, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, were implemented effectively and efficiently." Some say that Wade even helped craft President Obama's massive stimulus package, of which $100 billion was earmarked for renewable energy. These taxpayer funds have been the centerpiece of the entire Green Corruption scandal, of which I've been tracking and reporting on since 2010 –– even the fact that billions of "green" tax dollars have been shipped overseas to aid production of green ventures in foreign countries.
- 2009-2011: According to Watchdog.org, "The Commerce Department job also allowed Wade to hone a skill that might explain his value to GreenTech: he became a U.S. envoy on Chinese and Asian trade."
- 2012: Wade, a member of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), was also a Senior Advisor to the Obama for America presidential campaign and the 2012 Democratic National Convention, which means that he helped run the president’s 2012 campaign while simultaneously serving as a Democratic Party executive and vice president of GreenTech
Automotive. - Wade is (was) also part of the Advisory Board for Volt Energy
Now, I haven't found any clear evidence at this time whether Mr. Wade helped in any of the GreenTech dealings, but it's awfully convenient that Wade was not only involved in the 2009-Recovery Act, but worse, since joining GreenTech in 2011, he was actively part of President Obama's re-election bid –– thus he had "access and influence."
And, if you've been following any of my work, you'd know that I've published a series entitled "The RAT in the Recovery and the Gang of Eight”: those individuals and groups that were involved in crafting the energy sector of the 2009-Recovery Act, and who ultimately financially benefited from the $100 billion that was earmarked for renewable energy (with a summary installment coming in the near future). Keep in mind too, as mentioned earlier, the Mississippi Development Authority, Energy Division, –– the one that awarded GreenTech millions in state subsidies –– received approximately $40 million from President Obama's stimulus package.
"Fast Terry": Master Job Creator or Con Man?
Even though many news organizations, watchdog groups, and online forums have exposed the empty promises and debunked the claims in regards to GreenTech's factories, green cars and green jobs, I'll attempt to do my part, starting with a challenge: take the time to view "Fast Terry," a documentary by Citizens United. Besides being informed and infuriated, you'll discover that during the course of his traveling electric-car road show that began in 2009, McAuliffe promised hope, hundreds of thousands of green cars and thousands of green jobs –– all made in America
Two GreenTech Factories:
The Horn Lake Facility in DeSoto County, Mississippi and The Tunica Plant in Tunica County, Mississippi
According to the New York Times, in 2011, while presenting GreenTech as a catalyst of American job creation, McAuliffe was adamant, “I am sick and tired of seeing our jobs go to China...” Ironically, GreenTech has two manufacturing facilities in Mississippi, where the company has received state subsidies, and one in China, as well as some office locations.
- GreenTech Automotive Corporate Office: McLean, VA
- Tunica Office: Tunica, MS
- Horn Lake Assembly Plant: Horn Lake, MS
- Dongguan MyCar Electric Vehicle Technology Limited: located in China
Besides grants and loans from the state of Mississippi (totaling either $5 million, $8 million, or $18 million), GreenTech sometime in September 2011, received a sweetheart land deal as part of their location compensation: "The Tunica County Economic Development Foundation, a group in Mississippi headed by Tunica County Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Lyn Arnold, worked out a strategy to secure land [100 acres] for GreenTech without going through the state’s legislative approval process," reported The Daily Caller this past July –– which also emphasized that "Richmond’s Action News 5 recently reported there is no evidence GreenTech has produced any cars, green or otherwise."
Meanwhile GreenTech's website (GTA), with a grand picture of their plant –– the Horn Lake Facility in DeSoto County, Mississippi –– claims, "With 380,000 square feet under roof, GTA's first plant will be used for the production of GTA's first vehicle, a neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) named MyCar. They also claim, "In late 2013, MyCar production will move to GTA's all-new, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility located approximately 20 miles away in Tunica, MS," and that the "groundwork has already begun..." for the Tunica Plant –– again promising "5,000 new direct and indirect jobs in Mississippi and the vendor base nationwide."
It turns out that for more than one year (July 2012 to July 2013), the Action News 5 Investigators have been asking questions about GreenTech Automotive, "and its promise of hundreds of new jobs in North Mississippi." Action News also gave us another McAuliffe promise, followed by evidence that something is wrong...
"If I can be successful and make 10,000 cars over the next 12 months here in Horn Lake and ship them over to Denmark, that's a huge win for me, the company, and most importantly, Mississippi," said McAuliffe in July 2012.
Twelve months later, the Action News 5 Investigators have uncovered no evidence of any major car production and a former Greentech employee raises new questions about the company's operation.
"We were told, you know, when we first went in the fall of '11, we were going to build a 100 by Christmas, didn't happen," said the former employee, who asked to remain anonymous. "Then we were told we were going to build X amount through the year 2012 and that didn't happen."
The employee says workers built cars then deconstructed and rebuilt them over and over again to appear as though they were working.
What was GreenTech's response on reassembling of cars? "Both the plant manager Trey Agner and GreenTech Vice President Marianne McInerney said workers break down and re-assemble the cars for training and quality control," reported Action News.
Action News, in the same report said, "McInerney refused to release the number of vehicles actually made at the facility or sold last year because GTA is a private company. She would only say there are pending orders for the new 2014 MyCar," and McInerney told them that they "would create 350 jobs by the end of 2014 and those are direct jobs."
This investigation also uncovered the fact that GreenTech "told its employees in Northern Mississippi to pretend to build cars to fool foreign investors."
Furthermore, in April of this year, Watchdog.org made a visit to the GreenTech office located at a Tunica strip mall, whereas their investigators exposed quite the encounter, "Silence, secrecy, cops follow GreenTech’s China deal." One of the most interesting conclusions came from a local police officer stating, “They’re pretty secretive,” he said. “Just like the Russians.”
In that same April 25, 2013 article, Watchdog.org documented the following Intel, which coincides with, and adds another layer to what I just highlighted from the Action News investigation:
Next door, in the Desoto County city of Horn Lake, it’s a different story — except for the secrecy and apparent lack of actual manufacturing. Locals said workers almost daily drive GreenTech’s tiny MyCars — two-seater, all-electric vehicles with a 25-mile range — around the facility in what looks like a test-drive caravan.
While some say that "Terry McAuliffe’s GreenTech has tried to import more Chinese Nationals than it has sold cars," on August 12, 2013, the Washington Free Beacon shed some light into what's going on: "Five Things You Need to Know About GreenTech Automotive." The number one issue being that GreenTech has fallen "short on job promises multiple times..."
The Beacon goes on...
At this point it is unclear whether GreenTech is producing any jobs.
GreenTech is still operating at what was supposed to be a temporary facility in Horn Lake, Miss.
Although McAuliffe claimed that ground was broken at the company’s planed permanent facility, local investigators found that there was nothing but overgrown grass covering the plot on which it is supposed to be located.
(NOTE: Both photos are by Dustin Hurst –– one of the GTA office and the other of GTA's proposed production facility at the site in Tunica County, Mississippi, which I wrote about in this section –– can be found at Watchdog.org, yet I placed them on my blog as well.)
GreenTech Jobs
As many are still pondering when GreenTech will build (or even begin to break ground) at their proposed $60 million Tunica plant in Mississippi, GreenTech jobs are even more puzzling. I must reemphasize that tracking both the number of cars and jobs –– promised, claimed, or even saved for that matter, versus reality –– has been a difficult task. It seems to be a moving target and depending on the day, what con tactics Terry has up his sleeve, or what the folks at GreenTech are smoking, it changes.
Now, I briefly covered this topic early on, but here is my bullet point presentation of what I found during my two-week crash course research project on GreenTech and all its shenanigans. (NOTE: big shout out to Bearing Drift: Virginia's Conservative Voice, for their list as well).
- October 6, 2009 / Memphis Business Journal: "Tunica County will become home to a new hybrid automobile development and manufacturing facility that will initially employ 1,500 with a $1 billion investment. The [Mississippi] plant will produce 150,000 vehicles annually in phase one."
- 2009: "McAuliffe predicted at least 10,000 cars a year would be manufactured by 2011," as documented by
Politifact.com this past August - May 18, 2010 / Terry's Newsroom: “McAuliffe has announced his intent is to eventually create 4,500 new jobs for the electric auto manufacturing firm in Virginia as well as Tennessee and Mississippi.”
- May 20, 2010 / EVWorld.com: "GTA plans to create thousands of “'green collar'” jobs across Mississippi, Tennessee and Virginia. At full production, GTA will create over 4,000 new US jobs."
- October 7, 2010 / Bloomberg News: "GreenTech plans to buy parts abroad and assemble the cars in the U.S., creating around 5,000 jobs in economically depressed areas. Besides Mississippi, McAuliffe is looking at sites in Tennessee and Virginia and says he will go to the state offering the best tax breaks and other benefits."
- October 7, 2010, as written by Watchdog.org in Dec 2012: "In a 2010 interview, McAuliffe predicted that his company’s first-generation NEV would go on sale mid-2011. GreenTech initially pledged to hire thousands workers to assemble tens of thousands of vehicles a year at its new Tunica, Miss., plant by the end of 2012." At that time, "None of those projections has come close to fruition. The Tunica plant is still under construction, and the payroll barely tops 100 workers.
- February 2011 / You Tube clip (R): “I’m going to announce another major plant this year, which is going to be about 3,000 – 5,000 jobs.” – Terry McAuliffe
- August 6, 2011, but reported on September 5, 2011 / Automotive News: “We can achieve two important goals at once. We can provide China with clean technology and help reduce carbon emissions in the country,” said McAuliffe, chairman of GreenTech, in an Aug. 6 press release about the China factory. The China project will create 2,000 jobs for Americans, he said.
- November 2011 / Charlottesville Tomorrow: “Denmark has bought GreenTech’s first year of production, about 110 cars, which will be manufactured at a temporary plant in Horn Lake, Miss. McAuliffe is opening a permanent factory in nearby Tunica, which will eventually employ 350 workers."
- 2012: "Terry McAuliffe claimed in 2012 that the plant would be churning out 10,000 electric cars this year," reported by the Washington Free Beacon June 18, 2013
- July 2012 statement by McAuliffe and reported by Action News 5 (July 2013): "If I can be successful and make 10,000 cars over the next 12 months here in Horn Lake and ship them over to Denmark, that's a huge win for me, the company, and most importantly, Mississippi."
- July 6, 2012 when GreenTech Automotive unveiled its environmentally friendly, energy efficient vehicle, MyCar / HR Professionals: “Former President Bill Clinton and former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour were on hand to help celebrate GTA’s relocation to the U.S. The company is expected to create 426 new jobs and support about 7,400 more.”
- July 9, 2012 / HybridCars.com: “Production of MyCar and its derivatives, plus the all-new vehicles to be added to the product portfolio will lead to the formation of 5,000 new direct and indirect jobs in Mississippi and the vendor base nationwide,” GreenTech boldly says on its Web site.
- April 12, 2013 / Mother Nature Network by Jim Motavalli: "I also talked to McAuliffe, and he said the company was planning on at least 400 employees in Tunica, Miss., with 3,500 indirect jobs. (The company launched with a temporary facility in Horn Lake, Miss.) “We have 14 job openings right now,” he said. “These cars will be made by American workers.” The 300,000-square-foot plant was supposed to be pumping out cars in mid-2013, which is now, isn’t it?
- July 6, 2012 / Wheels Blogs @ the New York Times: “Mr. McAuliffe said the venture would employ 900 workers in Mississippi by the end of the year, as well as create many jobs indirectly.”
- July 15, 2013 / TimesDispatch.com: McAuliffe promised GreenTech Automotive would create 2,000 American jobs and produce cars
- July 17, 2013 / PR Newswire: designed to have an annual production capacity of 30,000 vehicles in Tunica, Mississippi
- July, 2013 / Action News 5: GreenTech Vice President Marianne McInerney "refused to release the number of vehicles actually made at the facility or sold last year because GTA is a private company. She would only say there are pending orders for the new 2014 MyCar," and that the plant "would create 350 jobs by the end of 2014 and those are direct jobs."
- August 12, 2013 / Phys.org News: The company says it will be producing cars by April, but its plans have changed dramatically, from a goal of 250,000 a year to 30,000...
Quite the track record, but in an effort to simplify, here a few of the latest stats that I could find on GreenTech jobs, starting in July of 2012 with HR Professionals Magazine, which stated, "As of July, GTA has more than 840 employees enterprise-wide, and they are on track to employ more than 900 more by the end of 2012." Later they add, "As of July [2012] there were 67 employees in the northern Mississippi sites (Tunica/Horn Lake) and eight employees in the McLean, Virginia office."
And July of this year, when Action News 5 Investigators attempted to get back inside GreenTech to check into the Horn Lake operation and its staff, the "GreenTech Vice President Marianne McInerney denied their requests each time, but claimed that 78 employees worked inside."
We also have (as presented earlier in this post) the New York Times, and its August 9, 2013 article that said, "GreenTech employs 80 people and that company officials would not say how many cars will be built this year."
Small Eco-car; Big Green Scam?
At what stage each of the two GreenTech plants are and how much money they snagged from the taxpayers of Mississippi ($5 to $18 million), is still unclear. Neither do we know the exact status of both investigations, and what they will conclude: the Securities and Exchange as well as the Department of Homeland Security IG. But as the residents of Virginia buy into his campaign slogan, "McAuliffe for Governor: Putting Jobs First," how many green jobs GreenTech has created in the state of Mississippi as well as the number of green cars they've assembled here in the United States remains a mystery.
Since Terry is leading the Virginia governor race, I can only assume that Virginians haven't done their homework or maybe they just don't care, because GreenTech has left many of us in the dark: instead of hope, cars and jobs, McAuliffe and his electric-car dream has perpetuated nothing but confusion and frustration for the folks at Tunica County and many in the state of Mississippi.
Obviously, GreenTech produces a small eco-car –– we've seen the flashy prototypes after all; like a high-end golf cart. Quite frankly, I wouldn't mind getting one for my teenage daughter (that way she can't go over 25 MPH); but the most critical question remains to be answered...is this a big green scam?
We report, you decide....
UPDATE, September 29, 2013: Marita Noon followed my research and this 9/28/13 post, adding her flair, personal experience as well as her take on what's going on with this small eco-car, and can be found at her Townhall.com column: Terry McAuliffe's MyCar Isn't Even a "Real Car": Car and Driver.
Two Women –– one Citizen & one Energy Columnist –– join forces on One Mission: to expose one chunk of the Green Corruption Scandal at a time.
Original Post: http://capblackhood.blogspot.com/2013/09/cap-black-no-saggin-twerking-tour.html
CAP BLACK THE HOOD CONSERVATIVE & ANTI CRIME ACTIVIST OFFERS HIS
ANTI-SAGGING
ANTI-TWERKING
TOUR:
" We CAN'T Sag Our Pants & Twerk Our Behinds
To Liberty! Nobody Else Has, So Why Are
We Settling For Being Thugs & Hoodrats
Do You See The Obamas; The Sharptons Or the Farakhans
Sagging & Twerking Their Way As Men & Wives To Success??? "
-Cap Black
Contact:
Cap Black The Hood Conservative
Anti Crime Activist
504 214-3082
Blog-Post which inspired this speech:
Thugs Twerkers & The Black American
Twilight of The Gods!
If you are like many a shooter you have thought about the hobby of reloading or handloading your own ammunition. Reloading or handloading is the hobby of recycling/manufacturing your own ammo for your firearms. The process basically starts with an empty brass case and involves depriming it/repriming it, adding powder and then a bullet by the use of specialized tools. What tools, you may ask? Is it safe? Why should I do it? These questions have probably crossed your mind if you have been thinking about getting started in this great hobby. In this article I will attempt to provide simple answers to these questions. This article is not intended to be a how to on reloading, or tell you what is the best equipment for reloading, it is just to mainly inform you of what you will need and some possible safety tips.
If you have been around shooting long enough you have probably seen a blown up gun sitting in the gun shop display case with the label "Caused by a Handload". This is an example of the worst that can go wrong in handloading. You are probably thinking to yourself "How can this hobby be safe when that can happen?" Well I won’t lie to you, handloading can be a potentially unsafe hobby. How can you make it a safe hobby? With proper loading practices and taking your time. A majority if not all handloading accidents are caused by not paying attention or not following instructions. Handloading requires patience, 100 percent of your attention, and the ability to follow instructions to the letter. Following those simple tips will insure you a lifetime of safe reloading.
So why should you start reloading? The most obvious reason is cost savings. Take for example shooting a .44 magnum. The cheapest factory plinking ammo I can find in my area starts at around .40 cents a shot. With reloading you can get that down to around .11 cents a shot if you saved all of your brass for reuse. The savings can be even greater if you are buying premium ammo. The second reason is you will have the ability to create custom ammo for each gun or low recoil ammo to condition yourself to the recoil of the magnums. Handloading also gives you the option of making ammo that is not available from the factory. The third reason is that it is just plain fun and will lead to you being able to shoot more.
By this time you may be ready to take the plunge, but you are wondering what equipment you need. You may be confused by the large amount of available equipment. Well, I am going to attempt to make it easy for you and break the equipment down into 3 categories: Absolutely required, nice to have items, and specialty items. Some of the items on the lists are going to be borderline to which category they go into, meaning that they may or may not be required depending on your setup.
As the name says, these items are ones that you cannot reload without. The first and most important item on this list is the press. The press is the backbone of your setup. Presses come in many different styles but basically can be broken down into two categories: progressive and single stage. Single stage presses are ones that only do one operation with each pull of the handle. Their main advantages are:
- They are capable of reloading nearly every cartridge on the market depending on the size of the press.
- They are inexpensive to start out with.
- They have the capability of accepting add on attachments that enable the press to do other reloading tasks besides reload ammo.
- They are very easy to learn the operation of.
- They need little to no maintenance.
The main disadvantage a Single Stage press has is that it is slow. The best you may be capable of producing is around 50 rounds of loaded ammo in about an hour.
Where the single stage presses main disadvantage is speed, the progressive presses main advantage is speed. Most progressive presses are easily capable of 150+ rounds an hour. They accomplish this by doing multiple operations on different cartridge cases with each pull of the handle, often creating a finished cartridge with each pull. The main disadvantages of a progressive type press are:
- Cost: they average 2-3 times the price of a single stage press and sometimes more.
- Parts can and will wear out requiring replacement on most models.
- Most if not all models require some type of routine maintenance to operate at peak efficiency.
- They have a slower learning curve and may seem "finicky" until you learn its operation.
So which type should you choose? That depends on your needs. First off you need to choose a press that is large enough. Larger cartridges will require a larger press of either type to accommodate them. Check with the manufacturer if in doubt about a presses ability to handle the cartridges you want to reload. Second you should consider if the press will see more rifle or pistol reloading. Most people prefer to do rifle cartridges on a single stage press because of the extra care needed with bottle neck rifle cases. The next thing you need to consider is how much you shoot. If you only shoot around 200 rounds a month then a single stage would suit you just fine. More then 200 rounds a month and a progressive press may be the ticket for you. As far as my personal recommendation for starting out I would invest in a single stage due to the fact that they are inexpensive to start with and easy to learn on. Progressive presses are nice, but for learning the process of reloading they have too much going on at any one time. Now there are progressive presses out there that can be used as a single stage for learning on, if you decide you need a progressive press that may be the way to go for you. Keep in mind that most reloaders that own a progressive press also have a single stage press around for one reason or another.
The next piece of required equipment you will need is a set of dies. The dies go into the press and do the actual work on the cartridge case. Dies come as sets that are cartridge specific, but there are sets that may load 2 or more similar cartridges. A .38 special/.357 magnum die set is an example of this. The number of dies that come in a set will usually be 2 for bottleneck cartridges and 3 for straight walled cartridges. In a 2 die set the first die is used to remove the spent primer, resize the case, and expand the throat area for a new bullet. The second die in the set is used for seating a new bullet in the case and crimping it in place. In a two die set you will have to use lube when resizing the case to prevent it from seizing in the die. In a 3 die set the first die is used to resize the case and remove the spent primer. The second die in the set is used to expand the case mouth for a new bullet. The third die in the set is used to seat and crimp a new bullet into place. Three die sets are usually available in steel, carbide and or titanium nitride. The carbide and titanium nitride sets are a little more expensive but have the advantage that they can be used without lube; a steel die set will require lube to be used. It is worth the extra cost to buy a carbide or titanium nitride set when available. Most brands of dies will work in any press, but sometimes you will run into a press that is die-brand specific. This is something to check when purchasing your press
The third required item you will need is a shellholder or shellplate. This is the piece that goes in your press to hold the cartridge case in place. Single stage presses most often use universal shellholders that work in any brand of press. Most progressive presses utilize a shellplate that is unique to the brand and type of press. Shellplates are more expensive then shellholders. Shellplates and shellholders are cartridge specific, but most can be used with multiple different cartridges.
The fourth required item is some type of powder measuring/dispensing device. This can be as simple as a calibrated set of scoops that are used by looking up how much powder each scoop holds on a table to a hopper filled rotary type that is adjustable to throw any charge weight you desire. Depending on the type of measuring/dispensing type you go with you may need to get some more equipment that is described later. If you are using a progressive press it will most likely come with a hopper-type powder measure that is either adjustable for any charge weight or uses removable rotors that throw a fixed charge weight. The hopper-type measures that use removable rotors are used by looking up the charge weight you want to throw and selecting the proper rotor for the measure. The best setup for either press type is a powder measure that is adjustable for any charge weight, but it does require extra equipment that will be mentioned later.
The last item you will need to reload is data. Reloading data is the recipe for the cartridge. It tells what type and how much of each ingredient that you will be using. The best sources are reloading manuals put out by the various bullet manufacturers. Most will contain data for a number of different cartridges, history of the cartridges, and any special tips for the cartridges. The better ones also have sections on how to reload with many good tips. It is a good idea to own multiple reloading manuals if possible. The second best source of data is from the powder manufacturers themselves. Most will provide you with the data for free on their website or through pamphlets available at your local gun shop. The last source of data is from the internet in general. This data may be safe to use in most cases but should always be verified with a reputable source before use. A reputable source is one of the previously mentioned suppliers of data. This is where multiple reload manuals come in handy. As far as using the data some general safety tips are:
- Follow the data to the letter; do not substitute components at first.
- Start low and work up, don’t ever start with the max charge listed or exceed the max charge.
- Some data sources only shows the maximum charge, in this case reduce by 10-15% and work up from there.
That is the list of everything that is absolutely required for you to start reloading equipment wise. The next list is the stuff that is nice to have. Keep in mind though that some of the items listed next may be required items based on your above choices. If this is the case I will state that with the item description.
These items are items while not necessary to reload with are nice to have around. As stated earlier some of them may be required based on your press type or what you reload. I am going to try and list them in order of importance.
The first item on this list is a scale. A scale is used to check the weight of your powder charge, weight of bullets, and to calibrate your powder measure if it is adjustable. As far as reloading goes you will need a scale intended just for that. The scale you use should be calibrated in grains, which is the standard unit of weight used in the United States for reloading. The scale should be accurate to .1 grain. Keep in mind there are 7000 grains in 1 pound. There are two types of scales in common use today, the balance beam type, and the digital type. Both types are very accurate. The balance beam is far more common and is usually less expensive. Depending on your press type and or powder measure setup a scale may be a required item. If you do not have a scale in your startup kit because it was not required I urge you to pick one up as your next reloading purchase.
The second good to have item is a dial caliper. A dial caliper is used to measure length of such things as case over all length, and bullet sizes. The caliper you use for reloading needs to be accurate to .001 inches. This item is more important to a person that loads for semi-auto handgun rounds due to the fact that the cartridge needs to be kept to an overall length specified in your reloading manual for proper feeding and to insure that the bullet is not seated to deeply. It is also used with other tools later on in this list. Once again every reloader should have a dial caliper as one of their tools.
The third item on the list is a case trimmer. A case trimmer is used to trim your cartridge cases all to the same length as specified by your reloading manual. While not as important to the handgun reloader, trimming your cases becomes a necessary task with most rifle cartridges due to the fact that they can lengthen over repeated reloading and firings. The largest benefit a case trimmer provides to the handgun reloader is that it will uniform up all your cartridge cases to the same length, thus giving you a more consistent crimp and possibly more accurate loads. You will need a dial caliper to use a case trimmer and a deburring tool to smooth up the trimmed area.
A case tumbler/vibrator makes the number 4 position on this list. This piece of equipment takes your brass cases and by means of tumbling or vibrating with some type of media and cleaner polishes and cleans them back up to a like new shine. The main benefit this has for the handloader is that your cases will be clean and free of all contaminants before you reload them. This will help prolong the life of your dies, and prevent them from getting scratched up by dirt. As an added benefit you get nice shiny brass and we all know shiny brass is more accurate than dull brass. Just joking there.
The next item on the list is one that some people may consider not necessary or one that you can live without: a chronograph. What a chronograph does is measure the velocity of the fired bullet. Most models will also keep track of the velocities from a number of rounds fired and then tell you the average velocity, high and low velocity, extreme spread, average deviation and standard deviation. This data is a treasure trove to the reloader because it tells you how consistent your loads are and it gives you a measured number that can be used when working up a load. Most people that own a chronograph say they would not live without one. Price wise they are a fairly inexpensive investment with most models starting at less than $100. This is one investment that I encourage all shooters to own even if they do not reload.
The last item, which is not really an item at all but is nice to have, is a place to reload. Ideally you will have a dedicated space for reloading. In the beginning if you are just using a small single stage press you can bolt it to a sturdy piece of wood and then clamp it to any stable surface and reload. This will give you a very portable unit that will not be in the way when it is not being used. As you progress in your reloading hobby though and acquire larger presses or a progressive press you will need a dedicated area and sturdy bench to mount everything on permanently.
Are these all the nice to have items, short answer no. A few other inexpensive items that are nice to have depending on if you need them or not are:
- Primer flip tray. Used to position primers all up or down for ease of loading into primer feed tubes.
- Loading blocks. These blocks hold your cartridge cases in an upright position in a nice organized manner. They can be purchased for fewer than $5 at most gun shops or can be made from a block of wood. This item is not as important to someone that only uses a progressive press, but if you use a single stage I recommend you have one on hand.
- Bullet puller. This item is used to disassemble loaded rounds back to the component state. This item is handy to have around for any mistakes you may make or anything you are not sure about.
This section I am going to dedicate to specialty tools used in reloading. Specialty tools are often tools that do a job that one of the tools listed above already does but does it better or more accurately. Most likely you will not need any of these tools, but some of them can be handy to have around. Below is a short list of some of the more commonly available specialty tools:
- Specialty Dies. These are extra dies you can add onto your existing die sets. Some of the more common ones used are:
- Universal decapper die. This die is pretty much a universal one that works with just about any caliber. Its main use is to deprime a cartridge case without sizing it or touching it in any way. Most people use it for removing the primer prior to polishing the cases in a case tumbler or vibrator.
- Lube die. This die is available for a number of different cartridges, but one die usually fits a family of cartridges. This die is most often used in a progressive press to lube rifle cases for resizing, eliminating the step of you having to do it by hand each time. If you only use a single stage press there is no added benefit to owning this die.
- Factory Crimp die. This item is available from Lee. It is cartridge specific die that is used to provide a factory type crimp and a second sizing of the finished case to make sure it is returned to factory specs. If you are having feeding problems or chambering problems with your reloads this die can be helpful to own.
- Small base dies. These dies are usually cartridge specific dies used on semi-auto rifle rounds to size the area of the case just ahead of the rim down to aid in feeding and chambering in semi-auto rifles. If you reload for a semi-auto rifle and are having chambering difficulties with your reloads this die may help you out.
- Hand priming tool. You do not need this item due to the fact that your press is capable of seating primers, but it can be handy to have. This tool does allow greater control and feel during primer seating. If you use a progressive press this tool will likely be of little use to you. For the single stage reloader this tool can speed up the process of reloading a little depending on your presses priming setup.
- Powder trickler. This item is for the reloader that likes to weigh every charge for every case for maximum accuracy. It is used to trickle very small amounts of powder onto your scale to achieve the desired weight. This item is not easily used with a progressive press setup.
- Digital scale/powder dispensing system combo. This combo utilizes a digital scale that is linked to an electronic powder dispenser. It fulfills the same purpose as a scale and powder trickler listed above but automates the process. Most units allow you to punch in the desired powder charge weight and the machine will dispense exactly that amount. These units are expensive and are only really useful to someone looking to achieve maximum accuracy from their reloads. Once again this item is not easily used with a progressive press setup.
- Primer pocket cleaning tool. This tool is used to clean any buildup out of the primer pocket in your cases after the primer is removed. Most people do not take the time to do this extra step. Of the people that do take the time to do this step most are trying to achieve maximum accuracy from their reloads. The only real need you may have of this tool is if you are consistently getting high primers (a condition where the primer sticks up higher than the head of the cartridge after seating. Primers should be seated flush with the case head for maximum sensitivity and safety. Seating the primer slightly below the case head is ideal). One cause of this is a buildup of junk in the pocket that will need to be removed. This tool is fairly inexpensive if you need it.
Well that should about do it for what you need in reloading tools. Now this is in no way a complete list of tools available to the reloader, but it does include the more commonly encountered items. If you have everything on the required items list you are set to start reloading. The ideal setup for you will most likely be a combination of the above items, but if you stay with the hobby long enough you will most likely get all the items on the nice to have list and maybe a few of the specialty items.
What is the best way to get the above items. Well it depends on your budget. There are a few companies that offer starter kits that will get you a majority of the items on the required list (most kits do not include the dies or a shellholder) and some items on the nice to have list. Most of the starter kits come with a single stage press, but there are a few progressive press starter kits out there. A starter kit is a cost efficient way of starting out. If your budget does not permit the purchase of a starter kit, or the press that is included in the kit will not fit your needs you can easily make your own kit by just purchasing the items on the required list and any that may be needed from the nice to have list. Once you have everything you need you are ready to learn the reloading process.
Unfortunately this article is not about how to reload. Ideally to learn the reloading process it would be best to have someone who reloads guide you in the steps of reloading. Since that is not always possible the next best thing is to have a couple of good reloading manuals around. They will explain in detail the process of reloading and how to set up your dies. Another great source on how to reload is your local gun shop. Some of them run reloading clinics or can tell you when reloading equipment manufacturers may be sponsoring a clinic near you.
I hope this article was of some help to you if you are thinking about becoming a handloader. If you do decide to take the plunge let me be the first to welcome you to a great new hobby.
Learn More at:
http://www.handloads.com/articles/?id=33
I load pistol and rifle, happy to answer any questions you may have
