Free Republic

A vanity here. Does anyone have a transcript of Art Torres' comments on the O'Reilly Factor June 17. Torres was absolutely ridiculous, and O'Reilly told him so. It was Torres at his best, but the FoxNews/O'Reilly site does not have a transcript of the show. Thanks for your help.

Whether or not the invisible-man campaign will pay off for Bill Simon, one thing is certain: If he too clearly defines who he is and exposes himself too early, he will get clobbered by an avalanche of phony TV ads funded by a $50 million campaign "war chest" ready to deliver its lethal payload of misrepresentation and character assassination. The ads have already started. Simon's relative silence is wise and calculated. Image, not substance, constitutes the majority of any political campaign. Core issues, and how candidates handle them, are addressed in the confrontational combat of debates. And debates occur close...

In the event California’s gubernatorial race ends in November with Bill Simon winning, pundits and voters will ask two fundamental questions. What took people so long to recognize that Gray Davis was running against the majority of the state’s voters on so many issues? And why didn’t Davis ever comprehend and respond to a manifest credibility gap caused by his arrogant indifference to charges of unethical conduct? The answer to the first question is that voters unknowingly suffer from discriminatory news coverage and content deficit. The Old Guard at the L.A. Times and the San Francisco Chronicle select and "correct"...

DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe met with Democratic Party leaders last week to address eroding support from Jewish voters, who, in increasing numbers, recognize that the strongest and most loyal defenders of Israel are Christian conservatives. McAuliffe's party of emotions, atheism and name-calling is having an alarming time validating its purpose and is at risk of losing a substantial portion of a voting bloc it has always counted on. Like Bela Lugosi following a bad hangover, Democratic strategists are witnessing the switch of American Jewish voters to the GOP, a situation they once thought, by definition, impossible. Democratic and liberal propaganda...

Gary South, Gray Davis' Campaign Manager, has taken on the semblance of Tony Montana in the 1983 movie "Scarface." Angry, resentful, take no prisoners, a political mercenary with no other objective than to turn a rotten apple into Cinderella's chariot come November. "South the Mouth" is upset that the Davis campaign's recent commercial attacks on Simon have met with no response. How dare they, South must be thinking. After all it was South who said: "We've raised more money than God." "We've had a lot of crap poured on our heads in the last two years," South told the Sacramento...

Concentric is the state of having a common center. The U.S is no longer a concentric nation. It is being grotesquely divided, little by little, bit by bit. Free speech bordering on harassment and intimidation has replaced civility and open dialogue. A nation conceived in liberty now resembles a kid so confused about what liberty and identity is, and what unifying values are, that he has little in common with the family that instilled him with ethics and principles in the first place. How have we become "educated" to think like this? Public education now includes laws requiring that teachers...

The phone rang Saturday morning signifying a cold call. It was a salesperson from the Orange County Register, the local newspaper I had canceled due to a painfully obvious reluctance to report on major topics screaming for coverage. The offer to reinstate my seven-year subscription was attractive, but that wasn´t the point. I asked the personable voice if he wanted to hear why I didn´t want the paper. "Sure, why not," he said. "Did you know the paper refuses to judge the profound impact the gay lobby in Sacramento, with full support of Governor Davis, has on California public K-12...

The San Francisco Chronicle can't be a serious newspaper if they allow writers to mindlessly vomit at readers once a week about "race, society and other matters" — can they? I mean, it's one thing to have a field day like Tuesday, May 21, wherein the Chronicle presented tongue-tied readers with blockbuster stories such as: "Terrorists threaten apartments, rain threatens spring. Even couch potatoes aren't safe" "Joy Sticks for Harry Potter" "Why girls are bullies" "Making a Fool of himself over Wiffle Ball" These are REAL Chronicle stories. But the point of this article is clown prince himself, Emil Guillermo....

On Friday May 17, I wrote a Weekender column for Toogood Reports titled: "The Stench Of Racial Bigotry at University Of Michigan Law School," containing my opinion about U-M´s cowardly acquiescence in subordinating their elite academic admission standards to race-based factors designed to achieve their rendition of social justice. U-M Law School Dean Jeff Lehman, when describing his satisfaction with the court´s 5-4 decision defending the school´s admission policies stated: "Our constitution recognizes that students learn better in a racially integrated environment." This statement prompted me to write the article. Since there was no mention of a "U-M" constitution, it...

On Wednesday May 15, University of Michigan (U-M) law school dean Jeff Lehman, spoke about the U.S. court of appeals decision in favor of the university´s law school affirmative action policies: "Our constitution recognizes that students learn better in a racially integrated environment." Is that right? I had no idea that the constitution said that. You learn something new every day I suppose. Not that it´s of any useful significance to Mr. Lehman, but one certain aspect of the Constitution, lodged in the 14th Amendment, Section 1 states: "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the...

If I had the opportunity to deliver a speech conveying my profound appreciation to our American soldiers — both past and present — for all they have done, and continue doing for this wonderful country, this is what I´d say: I´m not a veteran, just a common American in possession of a deep and heartfelt admiration for the sacrifice and courage, demonstrated by you, the soldier. It is your bravery, your ability to perform your mission no matter what the obstacles, and your heroism that connects you to the pantheon of soldiers who have honorably served this country in the...

In the movie Cool Hand Luke, actor Strother Martin says when reluctantly subjecting Luke to solitary confinement: "I hate to do that to a human being, I really do." When using the word "fascism" I must state honestly that this word is only in my vocabulary because I know it exists. It is a powerful term, one that conjures images of Il Duce, Mussolini himself. It has never been used by this writer in any piece I have ever written. It contains far too much loaded imagery. So why is it used in the title? I believe in literal word...

California Governor Gray Davis is preoccupied with the Oracle scandal, one wherein a now fired Davis campaign official accepted a $25,000 check made out to and deposited in the governor's reelection account, allegedly in exchange for a state-approved 91 million dollar contract, of which 41 million is now deemed by the state auditor as "completely unnecessary." Davis has since replied: "I think most of you people know I am barely on the information on-ramp, much less proficient in technology, so this is not a matter that would come to my attention, nor did it." Sure. Got it. California Superintendent of...

Author James Martin said in his study: "The Last Acceptable Prejudice? Anti-Catholicism in the United States" (03/25/00), "The leaders of Bob Jones University, where Gov. George W. Bush appeared during his presidential campaign, call Pope John Paul II the "Anti-Christ," and the Catholic Church "satanic" and the "Mother of Harlots." Martin states as well: "It is, of course, impossible to summarize 400 years of history in a few paragraphs. But even a brief overview serves to expose the thread of anti-Catholic bias that runs through American history and to explain why the eminent historian Arthur Schlesinger Sr. called anti-Catholicism "the...

"Whom G-d wishes to destroy he first makes mad." — Seneca No cliche merchant here. I prefer to gravitate toward original thought, though each time discovering tomorrow that someone else has done a better job making my point for me, yesterday. Most of us are fascinated by apocalyptic works of fiction wherein humanity, or an important part of it, is threatened with destruction. CNN viewers are firsthand witnessing a real-life drama, and the sorry implosion of a once very informative and respected network. Here are some recent verbatim quotes from CNN programs, enjoy the show: 1.4/26/02: Anchor Daryn Kagan on...

What is it about being American that is so embarrassing to our leaders? Perhaps its the discourteous message printed on our currency: "In God we trust." Or maybe it’s the divisive lyrics of the National Anthem? Could it be trepidation over elders describing the reassuring impact of Kate Smith singing "God Bless America" while rallying the American people behind U.S. soldiers on D-Day and the Invasion of Europe? Are our school kids even permitted to know who Kate Smith is (excepting Philadelphia Flyers fans)? For bonus points, see if you can guess the year grades in Citizenship were obliterated from...

Tom Daschle is pleading for "equal time" to anyone who’ll listen. Former Clinton hitmen Carville and Begala get hired by CNN to anchor the new "Crossfire" in a flagging attempt to spawn a forum for their liberal schtick. Al Gore and Joe Lieberman go on the speechmaking circuit, frantic to somehow discredit conservative ideology and programs. Why is the left unable to achieve any influence with the majority? It’s simple. They have zero to offer. And they know it. What’s worse, the public knows it too. Even "mainstream" media apologists can’t run their cover anymore. Molly Ivins, David Brock, Jonathan...

Newspapers, once the ‘key to civic literacy´ are losing subscribers hand and foot. Recently, a well-educated friend said to me when I asked why she canceled her subscription to the LA Times: "I just don´t think very much of what's covered is worth bringing up in conversations with my friends." Last week, LA talk radio AM-790´s "Allred and Taylor" spent the entire three hours of their popular call-in show discussing why people are canceling their subscriptions to the Times. Knowing this is THE Gloria Allred, I decided to give it a rest and listen in. It was fascinating to hear...

Its been a rough week for the LA Times, so let start from the top. About 1,000 people have canceled their subscriptions to the Times, claiming the newspaper's coverage of unrest in the Middle East is biased toward the Palestinians. This number will rise. Police Chief Parks was denied in his request for a second five-year term as confirmed by the City Council, despite extraordinary efforts by the Times to downplay important factors behind Parks dismissal, such as the fact that "a group of officers announced that they were so dismayed with his leadership that they did not want him...

Tuesday night, in an incredible address to the LA City Council, besieged LA Police Chief Bernard Parks exercised all he could muster to salvage his career ("Chief, Charging Conspiracy, Berates Mayor, Police Union," LA Times 04/17/02). The council is expected to vote on whether to overturn the police commission's 4-1 decision to remove Parks. The mayor wants him out and 90% of the rank and file officers are opposed to his leadership. The list of reasons not associated with his own lack of performance grows daily, and provides further evidence of the depth of racial politics in the city, as...