Watching Out For Voter Fraud In The 2010 Mid-Term Elections

I never thought my beloved country would ever stoop to voter fraud to ensure a particular candidate would win over another, but considering it has happened in the past, including during the 2008 elections, thanks to ACORN, we can rest assured it will more than likely happen again during these 2010 mid-terms. There is way too much at stake, so it is incumbent upon us all to make sure that with the many tight-races occurring nationwide, that someone doesn't win as a result of fraudulent activity. An election should be won fair and square, regardless of whether or not we like the results, but since the Democratic Party has far more to lose, in many ways, my bets are on them, and this time they have SEIU on their side.

The following conservative website has been established specifically for reporting any voter fraud that you might encounter on election day. Keep those eyes and ears open.

FightVoteFraud.com

The following is set up for November 2nd:

On November 2nd, if you SEE something, SAY something


CALL: 877.794.0004
EMAIL: fightvotefraud@anystreet.org
CHATROLL: www.chatroll.com/fightvotefraud
CONFERENCE CALL all day and night!

CALL IN NUMBER: (218) 936-7999
BRIDGE: 972046

Enough With The Snow: Minnesotans For Global Warming Sing "Frozen Wasteland"

Amidst all the recent scandals that have emerged, and as both red and blue states turn white under record breaking amounts of snow- our thoughts turn to Global Warming.

Anyone know where Al Gore is? Maybe we should send out an amber alert.

The following is a brilliant video by Minnesotans For Global Warming, entitled "Frozen Wasteland", sung to the tune of The Who's "Teenage Wasteland".




thanks to Breitbart.TV

More Hamas Lies- Did Israel's Mossad Really Kill Mahmoud al-Mabhouh?

Why anyone would bother to believe information that surfaces from the land of Palestine, especially from the duplicitous mouths of the Hamas leadership, truly baffles me. Time and again they have proven to be consummate liars, and yet people are willing to believe. They have categorically denied the use of human shields, when there has been much proof to the contrary. They recently stated they would accept Israel's right to exist and turned around, a day or so later, and claimed they would never recognize Israel, which is the more plausible statement. Anyone who has read the Hamas Charter knows full well that they have no intention of nullifying the charter, which states very clearly their goals of eliminating Israel.

"Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it." (The Martyr, Imam Hassan al-Banna, of blessed memory).

They have broken ceasefire after ceasefire, claimed they are not guilty of war crimes, as per the Goldstone report, asserting that their thousands of Qassam rockets were aimed at military targets. At least Human Rights Watch called them on that one.

And now we have the latest fib filtering out of Gaza, although this one is quite laughable though intriguing at the same time. One of their head goons has died. The question is how? There are several different tales concerning his demise, but which is the truth? The first 2 you will find in various mainstream sources, the 3rd comes from a lesser known Palestinian media source. You tell me which you believe.

First of all, what we do know is that Mahmoud al-Mabhuh, or al-Mabhouh (or however people want to spell it) co-founder of Hamas' Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades , living in exile in Syria, is dead. He was found in his hotel room in Dubai. No loss there. How he died is a totally different story. The majority of news sources have published Hamas' claim, on January 29, that Israel's Mossad was responsible for assassinating al-Mabhouh on January 20, 2010. The method varies from electrocution to poisoning and suffocation, some include all 3.

So what took them 9 days or so to announce his death? As expected they have an excuse, as lame as it might be. Izzat Rashaq, another Hamas top dog living in Syria told the AP :

...that Hamas delayed the announcement about al-Mabhouh's death because it was trying to "reach the Israeli agents who implemented this operation."

Right.

Now this is where it gets interesting. The following announcement was published in a little known Palestinian news site, Maan News, on January 2oth, and updated on the 21st:

Gaza- Ma'an – Hamas' armed wings the Al-Qassam Brigades announced the death of its co-founder in exile Mahmoud Al-Mabhuh died of terminal cancer in a hospital in the UAE on Wednesday.

The Al-Qassam leader, a refugee living the Jabalia Refugee Camp until he left Gaza for the UAE, was behind a mission that successfully captured two Israeli soldiers, a statement from the brigades said.

Al-Mabhuh was captured two Israeli soldiers, Elan Sa’dun and Avi Sbortas who were captured at the in the early 1990s by Al-Qassam fighters, the soldiers were killed in military action following their capture," the statement said.

I'm not sure how long it will remain up, once this information gets out, if it gets out, but I have saved it for posterity.



So, which was it? Cancer? It has been reported that he was also ill, though Hamas has kept that under wraps. Or was it electrocution and/or poison? The latter, of course, being the more dramatic and appealing alternative to plain old cancer. Plus it would suit their militaristic goals far better than if he were to have died from a disease rather than at the hands of the evil Israelis.
They gain no traction from a simple death from, say, prostrate cancer . If Mossad was responsible, his death could be a rallying cry for more death and destruction. Blaming Israel, of course, gives them ample justification to hit back, which is exactly what they plan on doing. Khaled Mashaal had this to say:

"We will retaliate for the blood of this man who fought you (Israel) for 30 years, from one battle to the next, and was arming the resistance and supporting it night and day," Mashaal said while standing next to al-Mabhouh's coffin at his funeral in Syria.

"You (Israelis) have hurt us with his killing, but it is an ongoing war between us," he said. "This is an open war."

Not that they need much to justify their ongoing war against the Israelis, since they do that unprovoked.

It really doesn't matter how the man died, he's a terrorist, he deserved to be put to rest whether through an act of God or Mossad. What matters is that

1. It just proves people are willing to believe all of Hamas' flagrant lies.
2. The media, once again, has failed to vet the information they get from consistent liars.

An Israeli blogger found the Maan news item by a few simple google searches. How hard is it for the mainstream media to do the same before publishing what could potentially be a flat out lie.

Religious Hypocrisy In Action: Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei Loves Him Some Caviar and Dirty Jokes

So, Iran's grand religious poobah Ayatollah Khamenei loves trout and caviar! Who would have thought. Now, trout is pretty commonplace, at least in the U.S., but caviar? Excuse me, but that stuff is dang expensive, so why the heck is Khamenei chowing down on caviar when the people of Iran aren't doing so great economically speaking. And that's not the only major indulgence, according to a defector from Khamenei's private guard who spilled the beans on the religious leader.

A catalogue of the private opulence and eccentric tastes of 70-year-old Ayatollah Khamenei and his family has been compiled by Iran's opposition Green Movement from the accounts of the defector, who is said to be in hiding in France.

Smart man to be hiding in France; we all know what happens to people who criticize the Iranian regime. Although I'm not sure how safe he will be. So, other than his penchant for caviar and trout, he is also

... an avid hoarder of collectables from bejewelled pipes to fine horses; and that he suffers regular bouts of depression which are treated in part by audiences with a mid-ranking mullah who tells vulgar jokes.

Living a double life as an austere theocrat in public, and an epicure in private- no wonder he's depressed. And vulgar jokes? Ha! I guess dirty jokes are in and Prozac is out. And that doesn't sound particularly pious to be using vulgar jokes as a form of therapy. And the man's a collector of fine (and obviously expensive) things to boot. He owns 170 antique walking sticks and at least 100 of the finest horses in Iran, not to mention his palaces- all 6 of them.

Ayatollah Khamenei is claimed to have accumulated a sprawling private court that stretches across six palaces, including Niavaran, the former resident of the Shah in Tehran. Two of the palaces - Niavaran and Vakilabad - are equipped with deep, reinforced concrete nuclear bunkers said to be capable of withstanding nuclear attack. A fully functioning hospital is overseen by a former health minister.

Then we have the following:

Claims from three intelligence officials, who have also fled Iran, have additionally documented the Khamenei family's wide-reaching business connections, including interests in European manufacturers, African mobile phone companies and international commodities markets.

You wonder where all their money is stashed. Switzerland, probably. Or the Cayman Islands. But the opposition Green Movement's exiled leader, film director Mohsen Makmalbaf seems to have information regarding his investments and wants the West to act on that info.

Mr Makmalbaf claimed the Green Movement had gathered information about the Khamenei family's investments abroad. "If the Western governments are serious enough in putting pressure on the regime by applying economic sanctions, then they should follow these leads and find these bank accounts and confiscate their deposits to be returned to the Iranian people at a later time," he said.

Before defecting, the bodyguard was one of a 200 personal security force for Khameini. I suppose you'd need that many when you are so loved. The fact that he denied rumours that Khameini also indulges in opium, which seem to be pretty widespread in Iran, seems to lend credence to his claims regarding the Ayatollah's other excesses.

None of this is surprising, of course, considering most of the ruling elite in authoritarian, totalitarian, communist, Islamic or other oppressive regimes always prosper while the population suffers.

There's nothing worse than religious hypocrisy.

Ulterior Motive For Jimmy Carter's Apology To Jews

When I read that Jimmy Carter had actually apologized to the Jews for his often contentious, anti-Semitic diatribes I knew there had to be some ulterior motive. A man who has so vociferously criticized Israel for years doesn't repent overnight. A man who actually called Israel an apartheid state in his book- "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid"- had to have some other reason for apologizing, besides a sudden change of heart. At first I thought- heck maybe he's dying and he wants to make amends before he kicks the bucket. It happens. Wiping one's slate clean, so to speak. After all, he told the Jewish community he was

... offering an Al Het, a prayer said on Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement. It signifies a plea for forgiveness.

"We must not permit criticisms for improvement to stigmatize Israel," Carter said in the letter, which was first sent to JTA, a wire service for Jewish newspapers, and provided Wednesday to The Associated Press. "As I would have noted at Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but which is appropriate at any time of the year, I offer an Al Het for any words or deeds of mine that may have done so ."

I'm all for asking for forgiveness and forgiving others, but the apology has to be sincere. I should have known better when it comes to Jimmah Carter, the two-faced snake. No, he's not dying- his grandson, Jason Carter, is running for office in a predominately Jewish area in Atlanta. The grandson, of course, denies any relationship between his grandpa's apology and his eyeing the state Senate seat that will become available if Obama's political nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, David Adelman, is confirmed. The special election would occur in March.

Jason Carter, who is running in a district with a vocal Jewish population, said in a statement that his grandfather's letter was unrelated to his campaign and hailed the apology as a "great step towards reconciliation."

Apologizing must have been a massively bitter pill to swallow, considering everything he has said about Israel and the Jews, because frankly I don't buy it. Others have been more accepting,

Carter's apology was welcomed by Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League and a vocal critic of Carter's views on Israel.

"When a former president reaches out to the Jewish community and asks for forgiveness, it's incumbent of us to accept it," he said in a telephone interview from Jerusalem. "To what extent this is an epiphany, only time will tell. There certainly was a lot of hurt, a lot of angry words that need to be repaired. But this is a good start."

I'm glad someone believed him. And perhaps I would have been less skeptical had this not coincided with his grandson's political aspirations.

Maxine Waters Dumps On Obama, Dodd Regarding AIG Bonuses

Looks like Obama's ship of fools is slowly sinking. Imploding from within. This from Democrat Maxine Waters. Truly not what I want, because I want this country to succeed and prosper, but so much pre-election arrogance is catching up to Obama, quicker than I had anticipated. Karma is a bitch, as they say. Though I'm sure she (and others) will eventually defend his blunders.



HatTip: Real Clear Politics

Bad Boy Blagojevich Goes Bonkers

I can't decide whether Rod Blagojevich is incredibly stupid, supremely arrogant, totally nuts or all of the above. Maybe that mop of hair has somehow put too much pressure on his brain and he's just flipped out. But you have to admit, the Illinois Governor has been highly entertaining these past few months, since he was busted trying to sell Obama's vacant senate seat. He's run the gamut from denial to defiance to paranoia to outright lunacy.

He's been in denial since day one, and continues to be so. In a recent interview with Diane Sawyer on ABC'S Good Morning America, Sawyer asked Blago if he had done anything wrong. His response,

"Absolutely not and I'll have a chance in a criminal case to show evidence and bring witnesses. And this impeachment trial actually gives me an opportunity, if it was fair, if it allowed me to actually bring witnesses, to prove that the allegations are not true."

Does he truly think he will be exonerated when FBI wire taps have him saying things like

"I got this thing and it's bleepin' golden. I'm just not giving it up for bleepin' nothing.".

And, he claims the Illinois house is out to get him because he helped the people of Illinois.

"The causes of the impeachment are because I've done things to fight for families."

Huh? What delusional, paranoiac world is this man living in? But I guess he might as well chalk it up to some kind of conspiracy theory since he has no other leg to stand on.


His latest bizarro act is claiming he had considered offering the seat to Oprah Winfrey. How wacky is that?!

And it's not just trying to auction off the senate seat the man is guilty of. The Chicago Sun Times compiled the following list of transgressions:

1. Gov. Blagojevich plotted to auction off President-elect Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat for personal benefit.

2. Blagojevich tried to get members of the Chicago Tribune editorial board fired.

3. The governor signed a bill in exchange for a campaign contribution from the horse racing industry.

4. Blagojevich awarded a Tollway contract in exchange for campaign contributions.

5. The governor threatened to withhold reimbursements to hospitals and doctors in Illinois in exchange for campaign contributions.

6. The governor engaged in pay-to-play in making appointments, and plotted to award a state job to Ali Ata with the Illinois Finance Authority in exchange for campaign contributions.

7. The governor tried to award state contracts to Joseph Cari for campaign contributions.

8. Blagojevich attempted to exchange state permits for campaign cash.

9. The governor failed to abide by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and unlawfully expanded the FamilyCare program.

10. Blagojevich purchased additional flu vaccines without proper approval, making the sale illegal.

11. The governor attempted to import prescription drugs from Canada without consent of the Food and Drug Administration.

12. Blagojevich did not follow the appropriations process when he allocated money for the Agency Efficiency Initiative.

13. The governor violated both state and federal laws in the firing and hiring of various state employees.

That's some list of accomplishments!

As entertaining as this whole saga has been, I find the man incredibly distasteful. He looks like a a 2-bit thug, and you have to wonder how on earth did he manage to get elected Governor of Illinois not once, but twice!

If he had any shred of dignity he would have stepped down ages ago. And had he been a Republican, this prolonged circus act would have ended long ago.

Stealing The Votes From The Mentally Challenged

Looks like Obama and his supporters are going to steal this election, in whatever way they can, even if it means taking advantage of the mentally challenged.

Jack Justice, a mentally challenged man in Albany, Georgia, claims he was forced to vote for Obama by an aide at his adult day rehab programme, even though his choice was McCain.

Georgia state election officials are investigating the allegations, and the aide could face criminal charges, but one wonders how much of this is going on, nationwide? How many physically or mentally challenged individuals are being forced, or coerced, into voting for Obama? How many people have filled out absentee ballots for others, without their knowledge of who they are voting for? How easy it would be for an aide, or relative, of an incapacitated senior citizen to simply fill out "Obama", on the ballot.

How sad and pathetic that people feel the need to cheat to get their candidate in office, but it looks like that's what Obama supporters are doing.

Crossposted at redcounty.com

ACORN and Voter Fraud- Or How To Steal An Election

Everyone who deserves to vote should have the right to vote, it is every citizen's inalienable right to do so. But there are some unethical and criminal types who seem to think it's okay to vote multiple times to ensure their particular candidate wins, and that's what ACORN is encouraging with their sketchy voter registration efforts. Whether they are directly complicit or not, the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now (better known as ACORN) is being investigated for voter registration fraud across the country, from Nevada to Ohio to Florida and everywhere in between. One of the major problems is that people hired by ACORN to register voters are being paid per name, and with quotas to fill, they'll do anything to get signatures, including bribing people who have already registered. One Ohio man, under investigation, was paid cash and cigarettes to register a whopping 73 times! Another Cleveland pizza delivery guy being questioned about the 10 to 15 times he registered to vote claims

he was approached multiple times by ACORN workers while sitting in a public square. He said the group's solicitors told him they were getting paid by the name to sign up voters. "I 'd be like, 'No, I'm already registered,'" Barkley said. "Then they just asked me again, like, 'I need a job, I'm just trying to hold on to a job. So would you sign it for me? I need 25 or more. I need a certain amount of them.' So me being the kind-hearted person, I say, 'Yeah.'

There are also reports of new registrations in dead people's names, and many with false phone numbers and addresses. A CNN video report (below) describes how at least 50 percent of the newly registered voters in one county alone were totally bogus.

ACORN seems unconcerned about all the allegations of voter fraud, and claim they are a non-partisan organization. However, they endorsed Barack Obama, and Obama's campaign donated $800,000 to ACORN to help with its primary 'get out the vote' registration drive. ACORN's emphasis is to get lower income citizens to vote, which is fine, but we know that they tend to vote Democratic. And, if the driving force behind this effort happens to have endorsed a Democratic candidate, odds are they will be pushing that candidate.

As much as ACORN (and the Democratic Party) swear they are not attempting to steal this election, it looks like it to me. I think they will do anything to get Obama elected, even if that means bribing people to vote, illegally. Voter registration fraud can potentially lead to election fraud, especially when the only states that require a photo I.D. to vote are -Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan and South Dakota . There's an emergency petition being circulated to require photo i.d.s to cast one's ballot. You can sign the online, emergency "voter identification" petition here.

We live in a democracy! One would think we were beyond voter fraud. What message do we send to the world at large, when we are just as guilty as some of those countries we've sanctioned for stealing elections.



Crossposted at Georgia Politics Daily

China, Censorship and The Olympics

China just doesn't get it. It has clear goals of becoming a major superpower, has introduced market based economic reforms and is now considered to be the fourth largest economy in the world, and yet it still falls pitifully behind in terms of its political and social reforms. Who cares how much money you have in your pocket if you have no freedom, if you continuously fear what you say might land you in jail, if you have little access to information other than what your government deems appropriate. I'd rather be a pauper with freedom, than a rich person with none. The Chinese government would like the world to think they are evolving as a nation, but other than their economy, not a damn thing has changed.

I am still grappling with the question of why China was awarded the honour of hosting the 2008 Olympic Games, given the government's continuing penchant for flagrantly violating the rights of its citizens. Sure, back when they were bidding to host the games, 7 years ago, government officials assured news organizations that they would have complete freedom to report the games, as they have during past Olympic Games. Right. Easy to pay lip service when you have no intention of complying. Did anyone truly believe those promises? I guess not because, we come to find out, the International Olympic Committee (although they deny it) secretly brokered a deal which allows China to, yes, block certain sensitive websites, even for foreign journalists, who are already complaining they've encountered blocked access to various sites. So much for promises. Then again, did people expect anything different from a government that has exercised such suffocatingly tight control over its own people, for decades. And as for all their assurances they'd improve their human rights record, as a condition for hosting the games- empty promises.

If tourists think they will have carte blanche over there, think again. It's been confirmed that they too will be subject to censorship, and who knows what else. International hotel chains have been ordered to install software that will monitor the Internet activity of their guests, and there will be punishment for those who do not comply. So not only do they subject the Chinese people to censorship, they are forcing those same restrictions on visitors to their country. How's that for a warm welcome.

What I find most appalling is that they blatantly lied to ensure they would win the bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games, and that the IOC and the world was stupid enough to believe them.

UPDATE: Due to international pressure, as of 8/1/08, the Chinese government has lifted the ban on some sites, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), although others continue to be banned, including any sites relating to Tibet or The Falun Gong. Some progress, but not enough!

Paypal Phishing Scams

With the holidays rapidly approaching, the scammers, phishers and other scrooge-types are stepping up their cons in the hopes that with all the holiday hubub people won't be so vigilant when it comes to emails. I already posted about the Zapchast trojan hidden in Hallmark (and other) E-Cards, now Paypal phishers are stepping up their efforts to steal your info and, in turn, your hard earned cash.


For those of you who use Paypal to shop on-line, be aware that the scammers are sending out the following types of email:


Dear PayPal Member


This email confirms that you have sent an eBay payment of $47.75 USD to

mailto: johnsput81@ xoxo
for an eBay item.
-----------------------------------
Payment Details
-----------------------------------
Amount: $47.75 USD
Transaction ID: 2LC956713J776333Y
Subject: Digimax 138
Note:
If you haven't authorized this charge ,click the link below to dispute transaction
and get full refund
Dispute transaction (Encrypted Link )
*SSL connection:
PayPal automatically encrypts your confidential information
in transit from your computer to ours using the Secure
Sockets Layer protocol (SSL) with an encryption key length
of 128-bits (the highest level commercially available)
-----------------------------------
Item Information
-----------------------------------
eBay User ID: scrchandgnaw22

----------------------------------------------------------------
Edward Harrell's UNCONFIRMED Address
----------------------------------------------------------------
Edward Harrell
211 David St.
Springtown, TX 76082
United States
Important Note: Edward Harrell has provided an Unconfirmed Address. If
you are planning on shipping items to Edward Harrell, please check the
Transaction Details page of this payment to find out whether you will
be covered by the PayPal Seller Protection Policy.
----------------------------------------------------------------
This payment was sent using your bank account.
By using your bank account to send money, you just:
- Paid easily and securely
- Sent money faster than writing and mailing paper checks
- Paid instantly -- your purchase won't show up on bills at the end of
the month.
Thanks for using your bank account!
----------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for using PayPal!
The PayPal Team
PayPal Email ID PP118


I have received quite a few over the past few weeks, and if I happened to use Paypal frequently this might go unnoticed, particularly during this busy time of year. It certainly looks legit, however Paypal will never ask for any personal information like:


full name
password
social security number
driver's license number
credit or debit card numbers
pin or bank account numbers


They will also always address the email in your name.


They will never send an attachment or update software.


Never click on the link in an email, it might look legit, but it will take you to a fraudulent website.


Check out Paypal's Security site for more info and take their Anti-Phishing challenge.



If you receive one of these emails, help bring them down by reporting them to Paypal. Forward the emails to:


spoof@paypal.com

They keep perpetrating this kind of fraud, so someone is falling for it!!

Email Virus alert: Zapchast Trojan Virus in Hallmark E-Cards

With the holiday season fast approaching spammer reprobates are at it again. As I was perusing hallmark.com tonight, I noticed the following alert regarding the latest attempt to infect your computer with the Zapchast Trojan Virus via Hallmark E-Cards. Hallmark recommends the following:

E-Card Fraud Alert

A fraudulent e-mail flooding the Internet claims to have a link to an E-Card from a family member, friend or neighbor and uses major greeting card company names such as Hallmark. Clicking on the link downloads a virus onto your computer that compromises personal data.

What you can do:

1. Report suspicious e-mail to your e-mail service provider so they can take action.

2. File a complaint at http://www.ic3.gov/

3. Forward the suspicious e-mails to abuse@hallmark.com. (Due to the large amount of e-mail we receive at that address we will not be able to reply to your e-mail, but we will investigate.)

Then you should delete the e-mail.

If you are unsure if you've received a legitimate Hallmark E-Card, don't click on a link in the e-mail. Instead use our E-Card pickup.

If you do click on the link in the bogus e-mail, you will launch a variant of the Zapchast Trojan virus. Zapchast installs an Internet Relay (IRC) chat client and causes the infected computer to connect to an IRC channel. Attackers then use that connection to remotely command your machine.

What Hallmark is doing:

1. Contacting the Internet providers identified as the source of the spam requesting that they shut down the imposters.

2. Working with Microsoft to include the virus code in their phishing filter to protect consumers who use their web browser and e-mail client software.

3. Working with anti-virus software corporations to get the virus code added to virus definition updates.

4. Reviewing Hallmark's E-Card notification and pickup procedures.

5. Educating consumers about how to avoid E-Card abuse.


How to tell if a Hallmark E-Card notification is real:

1. The subject line of legitimate E-Card notifications from Hallmark will say, "A Hallmark E-Card from (name of the sender)" not a generic term like "friend," "neighbor" or "family member.

2. The e-mail notification will come from the sender's e-mail address, not Hallmark.com.

3. The notification will include a link to the E-Card on Hallmark.com as well as a URL that can be pasted into a browser.

4. The URL will begin with http://hallmark.com/ followed by characters that identify the individual E-Card. Hover your mouse over the words "click here" in your e-mail. If you do not see the URL above, it is not a legitimate Hallmark E-Card.

5. Hallmark E-Cards are not downloaded and they are not .exe files.

6. In addition, Hallmark.com will never require an E-Card recipient to enter a user name or password nor any other personal information to retrieve an E-Card.


E-mail Safety Tips:

1. Do not open e-mails from unknown senders.

2. Don't open an e-mail you know to be spam. A code embedded in spam advertises that you opened the e-mail and confirms your address is valid, which in turn can generate more spam.

3. If you receive an attachment that you are not expecting, don't open it, even if it's from someone you know. First read the e-mail, and make sure the attachment is most likely legitimate. If you're still not sure, call or e-mail the sender to confirm, but do not reply to the original e-mail.

4. Some fraudulent e-mails that appear to be from financial companies (PayPal, banks, credit card companies, etc.) direct the reader to click on a link to verify or confirm account details. Never click these links. Instead, call the company if you are concerned about your account.

Hallmark gives some very good advice, that we all should follow. I've received (recently) a spate of emails from PayPal, Ebay and even the IRS, none of which were legit.

So the miscreants are on the hunt, once more, and during a time we might all be a little less vigilant than we should.

Email Virus Alert- Greeting Card from a Classmate actually the W32/Zhelatin.gen!eml virus

Was checking out the bulk folders for several email addresses I have, today, for any legit emails that might have inadvertently been pegged as spam (which does happen), when I noticed 2 different greeting card emails. No names I recognized, so I deleted them, though I did hesitate momentarily. You know, curiosity.... blah blah blah. I receive E-Cards quite often, and usually just click on the link, although I usually delete anything with attachments unless I know the sender, and have confirmed that they actually sent it. But the fact that it wound up in the bulk folder made it suspect.

Coincidentally, I received an email from a friend, within seconds of having deleted the E-Card emails, warning of a relatively new virus, with a link to a snopes.com verifying the validity. Actually it was first reported early July, but this is the first time I have received any.

According to Mcafee Anti-Virus, the virus is W32/Zhelatin.gen!eml:

Overview -

This is a generic detection of spammed email messages used to entice users into visiting sites hosting exploits that would result in a drive-by download. A user receives an email titled “You’re received a postcard” [greeting card etc] in his inbox and is requested to open the link contained in the message body in order to view the virtual postcard. On visiting the link, a cocktail of browser and application exploits that attempts a drive-by install of malware on the users machine is performed.

A copy of the spammed message is as follows:

Symptoms -

Presence of the W32/Zhelatin.gen!eml detection is not an indication that a system has become actively infected. The from address is spoofed when sending infectious email messages and therefore, it can not be assumed that the from user address is any indication of which user may actually be infected. The following list of subject lines have been observed in the wild:

You’ve received a greeting card from a admirer!

You’ve received a greeting card from a class mate!

You’ve received a greeting card from a class-mate!

You’ve received a greeting card from a colleague!

You’ve received a greeting card from a family member!

You’ve received a greeting card from a friend!

You’ve received a greeting card from a mate!

There are many more.

Considered low risk, but it's always a pain to remove them, so better safe then sorry. Delete, delete, delete.

In my humble opinion, spammers and virus creators etc. should be drawn and quartered!

UPDATE: Helpmybabylive.com con found

The face of an idiot

So, Austin CBS affiliate (CBS42) did some investigating, and tracked down the moron who created the website helpmybabylive.com. That truly tasteless ploy to scam people out of money that I blogged about, a short while back.

As expected there was no young couple "with child", and no potential baby to be aborted if they didn't receive $50,000.00 by a certain date. It turns out some hapless 25 year old idiot decided it would be fun to create debate about the abortion issue, or so he says. And who might this cretin be? None other than Matthew Schiros, owner of InvisiHosting, the webhosting company that hosts helpmybabylive.com.

After initially denying having anything to do with the creation of the site, Schiros eventually caved in (that is, after the Austin P.D. paid him a visit) and admitted that:

“…it’s a joke” designed to “…further the national debate…” about abortion in America…” In other words, this is one man’s effort to push people’s emotional buttons and strike a chord of public reaction outrage that apparently is successful. Thousands of people have commented or responded to the site and its intention and web bloggers are in a cyber frenzy."

"Politically speaking he previously considered himself a “…conservative…” but now says his views lean more towards being an “anarchist…” He also claims to support, not oppose, legal abortion although he says he strongly disagrees with the Roe-v-Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision, calling it “…stupid….”

His helpmybabylive.com website is still up and running, but the sick puppy has replaced the original appeal with revolting photos of aborted fetuses, and a message that says:

LOOK AT WHAT YOU MADE ME DO

There was never a baby, you got fooled, no money was collected. 200,000 people got pranked. Suck it. tell us what you thought.

He claims that there was no money collected, but I would venture to say there was. I would hope that he takes that money and starts therapy, post-haste, because it's obvious he desperately needs it!

H/T: Anonymous

Latest scam targets military families

It looks like scammer scum have come up with a new one. The latest phishing ploy uses the Red Cross as a ruse to scam people into divulging personal information about their soldier loved ones, in order to steal their identities. The scenario goes like this: Someone from the Red Cross calls a family member of a soldier serving abroad, claiming that their loved one has been either killed or injured, and that they need some personal information verified before any action can be taken.

In the case of a Florida woman, Maureen Rieth, someone called from the "Red Cross" to notify her that her Navy son had been killed in an ambush in Afghanistan, and that they needed his date of birth and social security number to compare to the deceased's dog tags before his body could be shipped home. Thankfully, she came from a family of soldiers and knew that this was not the usual military protocol for notifying family members of a death. So, although she was very upset, she was wary and savvy enough to not give out any information. But how many have fallen prey to this scam?

Once they became aware of the scheme, the American Red Cross and the FTC notified military personnel about the problem, including her son's wife, but she was totally unaware, and perhaps that's why they targeted the mother, knowing she might not be privy to that information.

"Identity theft on members of the military has surged in recent years, experts say, with twinning issues that put them especially at risk: long deployments away from home and their Social Security numbers, their main form of identification, tacked all over the place. "They will put it right on their bunks," said Justin Yurek, an identity theft specialist who recently testified before a congressional subcommittee."

As if our soldiers don't have enough to worry about, a bunch of reprobates, in some back office out there, are sitting hatching ways to fleece our military guys and gals out of the little they have, by stealing their identities. Totally despicable!

Help My Baby Live- scam alert

I've seen some despicable attempts at scamming kind-hearted people out of their hard-earned money, but this tops them all.

An 'anonymous' unmarried couple is claiming that if they don't raise $50,000.00 within 80 days (of this posting), they will abort their unborn baby. Although not destitute, they say they don't have the money to properly raise the child and adoption is not an option for the 'mother'; hence the "ransom" demand for the baby.

"It comes down to this. If we can't raise the $50,000 in the next 3 months, we'll have to choose abortion. We don't like it, and we don't like the nature of our appeal, but it is what it is. We're asking you to donate money to us using the link to your left. Anything you can give
would be appreciated."

The site, Helpmybabylive is hosted by invisihosting, a service that allows the client to remain completely anonymous, which would tend to confirm the scam nature of the Internet appeal. However, even if the situation happened to be legit, it's still absolutely reprehensible, perhaps even more so. That a young couple would place a monetary value on the life of a child, when adoption is a viable option, regardless of the 'mother's belief "that she doesn't believe that she'd be able to give up a child after giving birth to it" is truly shameful.

I wonder if these are the same people who created the savetoby.com site, that threatened to eat Toby, the rabbit, if they did not receive $50,000.00 in donations. Did they think there would be greater appeal ( and therefore more money) if they graduated from a rabbit to a baby?

Helpmybabylive.com has, to date, accumulated $12,500 in donations via Pay Pal, or so the website says.

Either way, scam or legit, this is truly sick!


H/T: Paula Mooney

The Clinton connection: InfoUSA Bilking the elderly with corporate assist

There is nothing more despicable than bilking the poor, elderly and/or infirm. And it happens all too often. People are suckered into giving out information to unscrupulous telemarketers who deplete their bank accounts and leave them with barely a cent to their name. And where do these crooks find their potential victims? From publicly traded companies that sell them lists of potential dupes, like InfoUSA that has advertised and sold databases of "Elderly Opportunity Seekers" (with names etc of 3.3 million older people "looking for ways to make money"), and "Suffering Seniors", a list that contained info on 4.7 million people with cancer or Alzheimer's disease. There was also one called "Oldies But Goodies" that included the names of 500,000 gamblers over the age of 55 (which sold for 8.5 cents per name), and one that claimed: "These people are gullible. They want to believe that their luck can change."

Telemarketing sales have increased, substantially, in spite of implementing the federal "do not call" registry 3 years ago. Telemarketers grossed more than $177 billion in 2006, and it's estimated that 30% of those sales were to seniors. The elderly are easy prey because "they are often at home, rely on delivery services, and are lonely for the companionship that telephone callers provide." According to an FTC ( Federal Trade Commission) lawyer, C. Steven Baker, “Criminals focus on the elderly because they know authorities will blame the victims or seniors will worry about their kids throwing them into nursing homes. Frequently, the victims are too distracted from dementia or Alzheimer’s to figure out something’s wrong.”

One of the many ways these 'thieves' dupe unsuspecting seniors into divulging information about their bank accounts, is by posing as Social Security Administration officials or pharmacy employees claiming that computers have crashed or prescription records are incomplete and then threatening that their medication or checks will be delayed without it. With the pertinent information, in hand, they then rely on banks like Wachovia and others to "create unsigned checks that withdraw funds from victims' accounts. Such checks, once widely used by gyms and other businesses that collect monthly fees, are allowed under a provision of the banking code. The difficult part is finding a bank willing to accept them." Wachovia obviously had no problem complying with that kind of criminal activity, because over the years, the bank has accepted over $142 million worth of unsigned checks and collected millions of dollars in fees from those scam companies. And, in spite of thousands of warnings from the victims' banks and various attorney generals, they continued to do business with those companies until the government filed a law suit in 2006.

InfoUSA, is one of the largest "list brokers" in the U.S. and claims, on its website, to have data on 210 million consumers and 14 million businesses, and although some of its clients are legit (including Reader's Digest and Conde' Naste) they have no compunction dealing with the criminal fringe and have sold thousands of lists to companies that have scammed the elderly.

You might have noticed InfoUSA (owned by Vinod Gupta) in the news recently. Apart from their dubious dealings with scammers of seniors, which has only recently come to light, some angry shareholders filed a law suit last year claiming, among other things, that "Mr. Gupta wasted the company’s money trying “to ingratiate himself” with his high-profile guests." And who might those "high-profile guests" be? None other than La Hillary and Bill Clinton! Gupta, a major fan and supporter, flew the Clintons to Acapulco, Mexico in 2002 (for a family vacation) on his private jet at a cost of $146,866. "During the next four years, infoUSA paid Mr. Clinton more than $2 million for consulting services, and spent almost $900,000 to fly him around the world for his presidential foundation work and to fly Mrs. Clinton to campaign events." Although Hillary's people insist she "complied with all the relevant ethics rules" (i.e. reimbursement of the equivalent of a 1st-class ticket) they refused to share what that amount might be. And though the law suit doesn't specifically mention the Clintons, no-one (on either side) disputes the fact that it does refer to them.

The Clintons have a long (and more recently for Bill, 'profitable') history with Gupta. "Before leaving office, Mr. Clinton appointed Mr. Gupta to the board of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Earlier, Mr. Clinton had nominated him for two minor ambassadorships, which Mr. Gupta declined because of business commitments." Bill received $2.1 million in quarterly payments from July 2003 to April 2005, for his consulting services. His contract was renewed, in October 2005, for another 3 years for 1.2 million, with an option to buy 100,000 shares of company stock. No-one is very forthcoming about what Billy boy actually does for the company, but someone at infoUSA said that Clinton was expected to make appearances at several company events per year, because his presence "adds a lot of credibility."

Stormy Dean, CFO of infoUSA insists that Bill has no affiliation with the data collection aspect of the business, and (to be fair) their exploitative business practices were not uncovered until Iowa authorities started investigating questionable telemarketers in 2005. However, infoUSA was found to have helped provide lists to companies that had already been prosecuted for fraud, or were under investigation, dating back to, at least, 2001. Someone must have known. And why did it take the recent New York Times article (about the Iowa investigation in 2005!) to arouse the interest of the FTC? They stated they might start investigating infoUSA themselves, but what took so long, and will they actually follow through? And surely, Presidents and Presidential candidates would want to make sure that those they affiliate with (and accept donations from) are above reproach. I would assume they have the resources to research the backgrounds of potential donors, particularly the high profile ones.

And I find it doubly ironic that the Clintons would cozy up to a company that collects personal data and information on millions of individuals and businesses (from various sources, both legit and questionable) when Senator Clinton has sponsored legislation protecting consumers' rights to privacy.

But I guess it's just politics, as usual. And more hypocrisy from the liberal elite.

JOKE OF THE DAY: John Edwards- charges $55,000 fee to speak to UC Davis students about poverty

How ironic! Democratic Presidential hopeful, John Edwards, charged a $55,000 speakers fee to chat to 1,787 people at the, taxpayer funded, University of California at Davis last year about.... ta da.... poverty! The speech entitled "Poverty, the Great Moral issue Facing America," [is it immoral to be poor?] was funded by sponsors with ticket sales ranging from $17.50 to $45.00 per ticket! Granted, this was prior to announcing his presidential bid, but it seems excessively high for a student population. And ironies of ironies is that, of the 9 speaking engagements at various colleges and universities last year, he charged the most for this particular one about "Poverty". I wonder if he had one of those $400.00 haircuts prior to his appearance? He grossed more than $285,000 on the university circuit, in 2006, with fees from $12,000 to the $55,000 received from U.C. Davis.

John Edwards, recently recommended an educational policy that would remove "every financial barrier" for any American who chooses to go to college, and yet the public U.C. system is raising tuition by 7% next year. Maybe if they refused to pay such high speakers' fees they wouldn't have to raise the tuition rates.

So, we have an ex-personal injury lawyer who is worth millions, lives in a brand new $6 million, 29,000 square-foot mansion in North Carolina, gets $400 haircuts, charges a public university $55,000 to speak to students on poverty, and enrolled at a highly profitable hedge fund, to ahem....learn about poverty. Sure, I'll buy that.

Yeah, he's really in touch with the common man. Just what America needs.

Faith-based drug rehab sparks frivolous law suit

Here we go again, another monumental waste of taxpayers money to further the God-less agenda.

The N.Y. based Council for Secular Humanism (CSH), and 2 of its Florida members, has decided to sue the State of Florida. Why? They don't seem to like the fact that the Leon County Department of Corrections is providing financial support to 2 faith-based drug rehab and housing programmes: the non-profit 'Prisoners of Christ' and the 'Lamb of God Ministries'. You know, the whole separation of church and state babble, though, don't get me wrong, I firmly believe in separation.

The Florida Department of Corrections has contracts with over 20 faith-based substance abuse and transitional housing programmes (FBTH), but I've no idea why the above 2 were singled out. The success rates for all these programmes varies, but any success is better than no success.

CSH has cited Florida State's mandate prohibiting the spending of 'State' monies that "directly or indirectly... aid..any church, sect or religious denomination or .. aid.. any sectarian institution."

I could understand taking offense if people were forced to participate in faith-based programmes against their wills, but, all programmes are strictly voluntary. The contract with Lamb of God Ministries stipulates that "all enrolled program participants shall be required to participate in program activities and abide by program rules," which seems only fair. According to FDOC spokesman, Robby Cunningham, these programmes were created for the "sole purpose of furthering the secular goals of criminal rehabilitation, the successful reintegration of offenders into the community, and the reduction of recidivism." And these groups are specifically not permitted to convert participants to any particular faith, nor are they allowed to prohibit an inmate from entering the programme based on their beliefs. Which also seems fair. A person should not be forced to convert to any religion in order to avail him/herself of social services.

Most successful drug and alcohol rehab treatment programmes, in addition to medical, emotional and psychological help, utilize some form of moral and spiritual counseling to help overcome addictive behaviour. Even Alcoholics Anonymous' 12 Step Programme is God-centered. And if religious organizations have the resources and inclination to help a population that no-one wants to or can deal with, then why shouldn't they get some funding from the Department of Corrections to help offset their costs? I assure you they are not wholly State funded.

The irony of it all, is that in their attempt to stop taxpayers from funding programmes that can and have helped inmates get their lives back on track, they're wasting taxpayers money by forcing the state to defend itself. I'd rather have my taxes pay for programmes that might potentially help someone leave behind a life of crime, regardless of religious affiliation, than pay for the defense of another frivolous lawsuit.

Mass defections from the Global Warming Hysterics Society

Move over Al!  It seems more and more prominent scientists are beginning to trade in their alarmism for skepticism regarding the whole contentious, man-made Global Warming issue. It should be interesting to see what happens when more of them defect to the 'other side' of the GW "we're gonna fry" doomsday scenario. Many of these scientists are doing so at risk to their careers and reputations. Defectors are never kindly looked upon, so it could get nasty, particularly when there is so much at stake for those who have invested so much in 'climate hysteria'. 

The U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works (EPW) has compiled a list of scientists who have recently changed positions regarding the man-made Global Warming argument.  It's by no means a comprehensive list, and there are other scientists not yet listed, but I have added snippets from some of those scientists that are listed, below. For more comprehensive information and a full list of scientists, go to EPW.

Geophysicist Dr. Claude Allegre, a top geophysicist and French Socialist who has authored more than 100 scientific articles, written 11 books and received numerous scientific awards, converted from climate alarmist to skeptic in 2006. Allegre, who was one of the first scientists to sound global warming fears 20 years ago, now says the cause of climate change is "unknown" and accused the “prophets of doom of global warming” of being motivated by money, noting that "the ecology of helpless protesting has become a very lucrative business for some people!"

Geologist Bruno Wiskel of the University of Alberta was once such a big believer in man-made global warming that he set out to build a “Kyoto house” in honor of the UN sanctioned Kyoto Protocol which was signed in 1997. Instead, he said he realized global warming theory was full of holes and ‘red flags,’ and became convinced that humans are not responsible for rising temperatures.   Noting that the Earth has been warming for 18,000 years, Wiskel told the Canadian newspaper, “If this happened once and we were the cause of it, that would be cause for concern. But glaciers have been coming and going for billions of years."  Wiskel also said that global warming has gone "from a science to a religion” and noted that research money is being funneled into promoting climate alarmism instead of funding areas he considers more worthy.

Astrophysicist Dr. Nir Shaviv, one of Israel's top young award winning scientists, recanted his belief that manmade emissions were driving climate change. "Like many others, I was personally sure that CO2 is the bad culprit in the story of global warming. But after carefully digging into the evidence, I realized that things are far more complicated than the story sold to us by many climate scientists or the stories regurgitated by the media. In fact, there is much more than meets the eye.” According to Shaviv, the C02 temperature link is only “incriminating circumstantial evidence. Solar activity can explain a large part of the 20th-century global warming...it is unlikely that [the solar climate link] does not exist.”

Botanist Dr. David Bellamy, a famed UK environmental campaigner, former lecturer at Durham University and host of a popular UK TV series on wildlife, recently converted into a skeptic after reviewing the science and now calls global warming fears "poppycock." According to a May 15, 2005 article in the UK Sunday Times, Bellamy said “global warming is largely a natural phenomenon.  The world is wasting stupendous amounts of money on trying to fix something that can’t be fixed. The climate-change people have no proof for their claims. They have computer models which do not prove anything.”

Climate scientist Dr. Chris de Freitas of The University of Auckland, N.Z., also converted from a believer in man-made global warming to a skeptic. “At first I accepted that increases in human caused additions of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere would trigger changes in water vapor etc. and lead to dangerous ‘global warming,’ But with time and with the results of research, I formed the view that, although it makes for a good story, it is unlikely that the man-made changes are drivers of significant climate variation.”

Meteorologist Dr. Reid Bryson, the founding chairman of the Department of Meteorology at University of Wisconsin (now the Department of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, was pivotal in promoting the coming ice age scare of the 1970’s ( See Time Magazine’s 1974 article “Another Ice Age” citing Bryson: & see Newsweek’s 1975 article “The Cooling World” citing Bryson) has now converted into a leading global warming skeptic. In February 8, 2007 Bryson dismissed what he terms "sky is falling" man-made global warming fears.  “Before there were enough people to make any difference at all, two million years ago, nobody was changing the climate, yet the climate was changing, okay?” Bryson told the May 2007 issue of Energy Cooperative News. “All this argument is the temperature going up or not, it’s absurd. Of course it’s going up. It has gone up since the early 1800s, before the Industrial Revolution, because we’re coming out of the Little Ice Age, not because we’re putting more carbon dioxide into the air,” Bryson said. “You can go outside and spit and have the same effect as doubling carbon dioxide,”

Global warming author and economist Hans H.J. Labohm  was one of the 60 scientists who wrote an April 6, 2006 letter urging withdrawal of Kyoto to Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper which stated in part, “’Climate change is real’ is a meaningless phrase used repeatedly by activists to convince the public that a climate catastrophe is looming and humanity is the cause. Neither of these fears is justified. Global climate changes all the time due to natural causes and the human impact still remains impossible to distinguish from this natural ‘noise.’”

Paleoclimatologist Dr. Ian D. Clark, professor of the Department of Earth Sciences at University of Ottawa, reversed his views on man-made climate change after further examining the evidence. “I used to agree with these dramatic warnings of climate disaster. I taught my students that most of the increase in temperature of the past century was due to human contribution of C02...... However, a few years ago, I decided to look more closely at the science and it astonished me. In fact there is no evidence of humans being the cause. There is, however, overwhelming evidence of natural causes such as changes in the output of the sun. This has completely reversed my views on the Kyoto protocol.”

Test your knowledge on global warming.  Take a short test here.  I only got 9 out 10.  Oops.