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As the media turns over every rock in the past of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, there has been shockingly little vetting of Barack Obama’s background. Although candidates should not be judged solely by their behavior as adolescents, an examination of their overall past is fair and important, especially as we pick our next president. And former schoolmates can help provide character clues, such as the former Obama schoolmate who told Newsmax that she is surprised he is running for president.

Palin Helps McCain With Christian Voters By Deal W. Hudson 09/29/2008 The evening Gov. Sarah Palin spoke at the Republican National Convention a cry went up from the floor so loud, so thunderous, that you would have thought you were at the Super Bowl. This was the sound of Christian voters, the ground troops of the GOP, expressing their relief that John McCain had embraced one of their own. Immigration aside, Christian voters have no serious problem with Mr. McCain's record. They have had a problem with a candidate who did not associate with them. Over the years, Mr. McCain...

UD persusasion expert gives debate edge to McCain By William Hershey | Saturday, September 27, 2008, 02:15 PM In presidential debates, what counts is not just what the candidates say but how they say it. Randy Sparks, a persuasion expert at the University of Dayton, gave Republican John McCain a slight edge over Democrat Barack Obama in the second category in their debate on Friday, Sept. 26. McCain over and over made the same point, simply and clearly, that Obama does not understand the complex issues facing a president, said Sparks, associate professor of marketing. “The cumulative effect of that...

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Sarah Palin visits The Villages Jim Stratton | Sentinel Staff Writer 7:37 PM EDT, September 21, 2008 THE VILLAGES - With thousands of supporters packing the streets and sidewalks of this massive retirement community, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said Sunday that she and John McCain would reform Washington, put America on the path to energy independence and nurse a struggling economy back to health. Palin, who has become a Republican phenomenon, also slipped comfortably into the role of political hit man, stoking the cheering crowd with jabs at Democrat Barack Obama. Obama "likes to point the finger of blame," she...

McCain was scheduled to appear in Scranton, PA this coming Monday morning,with Cindy. However, this event is no longer listed at johnmccain.com. http://www.wnep.com/Global/story.asp?S=9032827

Has anyone seen or know how to find the TV ratings for the Hannity TV show with the Sarah interviews?

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi Army wants every Iraqi Soldier to receive ethics training just like he receives marksmanship or drill and ceremony training. Since 2003, the primary focus for the Iraqi Army has been building the force. Getting Soldiers trained to fight took precedence over many other military functions. Iraqis came from all locations and all walks of life to join the fight to secure their country from terrorists. Every one of those Soldiers brought a unique set of values with him: personal values, family values, community values and religious values. Creating a culture of ethical behavior means that each...

ST. PAUL - John McCain's campaign hoped that the five days between the introduction of Sarah Palin as his running mate and her high-stakes speech tonight to the Republican National Convention would let it weave a narrative about the Alaska governor as a kindred maverick reformer who shares McCain's disdain for pork barrel projects and political corruption.[snip] McCain told reporters yesterday that "the vetting process was completely thorough" and gave a vote of confidence to Palin. However, campaign officials have acknowledged that they limited their vetting in Alaska because they wanted to keep the possible selection of Palin a secret.

Think the liberal mainstream media don't like the thought of Sarah Palin becoming president? Check out the editorials blasting John McCain's choice as vice president on the GOP ticket: The New York Times: "Governor Palin’s lack of experience, especially in national security and foreign affairs, raises immediate questions about how prepared she is to potentially succeed to the presidency. That really is the only criterion for judging a candidate for vice president." The Los Angeles Times: "In Palin, who is just halfway through her first term as governor, McCain has found an ardent opponent of abortion rights who won't provoke...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – While many studies have examined cheating among college students, new research looks at the issue from a different perspective – identifying students who are least likely to cheat. The study of students at one Ohio university found that students who scored high on measures of courage, empathy and honesty were less likely than others to report their cheating in the past – or intending to cheat in the future Moreover, those students who reported less cheating were also less likely to believe that their fellow students regularly committed academic dishonesty. People who don’t cheat “have a more...

. . . honor, integrity, honesty, ethics, morals, character, judgement? Recently, rumors at the company where I work have started proving true. Our building will be sold and the manufacturing facility sold to another company. Something new; unusual? Market downturn? No, not really. Just greed. Greed likely performed by an officer of the company who thought it would be okay to misreport our earnings. In other words, they "cooked the books". I'm sure they thought that no harm would come as a result of lying; it made their quarterly earnings look better than they were and earned them a higher...

Two political icons that cast considerable shadows led the headlines this week. One for his desire to return to the lynchings of the slavery era - through literal castration, the other for his enormous generosity, sense of fair play, and kindness. On Father's Day 2008, when Barack Obama claimed that any "fool" could have child he could have easily addressed those comments directly to the Rev. Jesse Jackson. When Obama also claimed it took a "man" to raise a child, he would have been hard pressed to find a more brilliant example than former press secretary Tony Snow. One had...

Here are some additional qualities that embody superior leadership. Great leaders surround themselves with greatness. They actively seek out the best possible people and hire them to fill all key positions within their organizations. Great leaders know that surrounding themselves with excellence is a direct reflection on their own character, abilities, and effectiveness as leaders. They understand that their own success and the success of their organizations depend mostly on hiring and promoting the best qualified, ethical, skilled, responsible, mature, and productive people and giving them the proper resources, authority, and freedom to do what’s needed for the long-term benefit...

"He Who Came to Jesus By Night" By Anton Bosch We all know the story about Nicodemus who visited Jesus under the cover of darkness in John 3 and to whom Jesus spoke about being born again and to whom Jesus uttered the famous John 3:16. It is interesting to note that Nicodemus is mentioned three times in John’s Gospel. In addition to the well-known passage in John 3, he is also mentioned in chapters 7 and 19. He is the only man by that name in the Bible and there can be little confusion about who he was. His...

(CBS) It was a tempting sight for struggling landscaper Eli Estrada: a bag filled with $140,000 on a Cerritos street. There was his credit card debt, upcoming wedding and making ends meet with his artificial grass and landscaping business. But turning it over to Long Beach police last month was the right thing to do, he said. The 40-year-old Estrada admits that some days "I think I was nuts," but he adds, "I know in my gut that to keep that money would be wrong." The Bank of America money bag was lost March 11 by Brinks Armored truck drivers. The...

53 minutes ago (at time of posting this thread) WASHINGTON (AFP) - Republican John McCain Thursday portrayed his possible Democratic presidential election rival Barack Obama as a national security neophyte who was dishonestly misrepresenting him on Iraq. Intensifying his assault, McCain questioned Obama's plan to leave a "strike force" of US troops in the Middle East after an eventual withdrawal from Iraq, and accused him of being "disingenuous" about his own Iraq stance. [SNIP] "I think somebody ought to ask what in the world he's talking about, especially since he has no experience or background at all in national security...

In 2001, the United States Air Force wanted to begin replacing 500 of its aging refueling planes. The plan began with a sweetheart deal, buried in the fine print of the 2002 defense-authorization bill. The Air Force was to lease 100 Boeing fuel tankers at a cost of $26 billion — $6 billion more than the cost of buying them outright, according to an estimate by the White House Office of Management and Budget. If that sounds like a bad deal, it’s because it was. It never occurred, thanks to loud and persistent protests from Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.)....

Do you know the three essential rules of real estate? Can you name all three? Well, the answer you’re probably thinking of is that most famous of all real estate axioms: Location, location and location! But with the big ugly mortgage lending and housing foreclosure mess continuing to drive so many homeowners to the brink of financial ruin, I’m proposing a new and better answer: Integrity, integrity and integrity! You’ve no doubt heard terms like “subprime lending” and “teaser rates” and “no doc loans” and “real estate bubble” used as easy catch phrases to explain what went wrong in our...

Bankers must take long-term view of their reputation Antonia Senior: Business commentray The word banker never used to be an insult. It once stood for a pillar of the community, a captain of capitalism. But bankers’ reputations have soured as their bonuses have bloated. You cannot condemn an entire industry on the reputation of one rogue trader. But the £3.7 billion hit to Soc Gen from Jérôme Kerviel’s bad bets comes at an extraordinary time for the banking world. That hit pales beside the £67 billion writedowns that the banks have taken on their exposure to sub-prime debt so far....

The Skeleton Closet All the Dirt on All the Candidates for President --Since 1995-- Because character DOES matter. You've come to the right place for dirt, attitude and opinionated character reviews of all the presidential candidates. Candidates In 2008 John Edwards -- Mike Huckabee -- Mitt Romney -- Rudy Giuliani -- Hillary Clinton -- Ron Paul -- Fred Thompson -- Barack Obama -- John McCain -- Bill Richardson -- Dennis Kucinich -- Wesley Clark -- Ralph Nader -- Joe Biden -- Newt Gingrich -- Alan Keyes

"Join Kenneth Copeland and his special guest Governor Mike Huckabee as they take a unique look at their life experiences and explore two foundational teachings: The Need for Character and Integrity and The Integrity of Character."

Way back in 1992, when Hillary and Hubba Bubba first burst onto the national scene, many Americans expressed doubts about their honesty and integrity. Clintonesque, parsing, the definition of "is" - those and other phrases became polite shorthand ways of accusing a Clinton of lying. Fast forward to last week, to fresh proof that the charge is still political dynamite. If Sen. Clinton loses the nomination because of the honesty gap, she can't say she wasn't warned. Indeed, one of the mysteries of the Democratic race so far is why she fell into a predictable trap. She and her team,...

Is it just me or are we all getting pretty tired of FNC’s abuse of “Breaking News” and “News Alerts”? It amazes me that you can’t watch one day’s worth of programming on America’s “fair and balanced” network without being assaulted by these false overtures. The producers at the FNC must think we are the dumbest viewers in the history of television news. The recent fires in Southern California provided almost every anchor on Fox with the opportunity to over-dramatize the events of the day. I’ve never seen so many “Breaking News” reports on one story in my life. And...

Recent months have seen Jeri Thompson painted a variety of ways in the press, from doting mom to trophy wife. The wife of GOP presidential candidate Fred Thompson says she knew that would happen, but because she has given few interviews, it can be hard to tell who she really is. The Naperville Sun had an opportunity to get to know the 41-year-old Naperville native. She sat down for an interview before attending a major Chicago fund-raiser. The former Jeri Kehn lived in one of Naperville's downtown neighborhoods with her mom and stepdad, Vicki and Ron Keller. She graduated from...

NEW ORLEANS—The members of Integrity have prayed unceasingly for their bishops as they met this week to consider a response to the primates' communiqué. The bishops were pressured by the Archbishop of Canterbury and other international guests to comply with the primate's demands. The bishops struggled mightily amongst themselves to achieve a clear consensus on how to respond. Integrity is gratified that the final response from the House of Bishop declined to succumb to the pressure to go backwards, but rather took some significant steps forward. We are encouraged by their strong language against the incursions of uninvited bishops into...

Contenders for the GOP Presidential nomination bring not only the positions they espouse, but the additional spouses they have espoused. Does anyone have trophy wife bios and photos and stories of succession? This exploration is not totally even - Romney cannot enter, and Rudy can enter more than once - but in a campaign this long it would be interesting to know how our candidates walk the walk, and who walks with them.

I finally had a chance to sit down and read the Globes 7 piece story on Mitt Romney. It's worth a read if you have the time. Long, but full of details. Before reading it what struck me, was the Boston Globe does a 7 article piece on Romney, and the most negative thing the public can take away from it is that Romney strapped a dog carrier to the top of his car. You would think with a paper owned by the NYTimes that has a penchant for negative stories on Romney, a little more could have been unearthed,...

During the Middle Ages there were all kinds of crazy ideas, such as that a piece of rhinoceros horn would increase potency. Then a method was discovered for separating the ideas--which was to try one to see if it worked, and if it didn't work, to eliminate it. This method became organized, of course, into science. And it developed very well, so that we are now in the scientific age. It is such a scientific age, in fact that we have difficulty in understanding how witch doctors could ever have existed, when nothing that they proposed ever really worked--or very...

Tears run from the eyes of U.S. President George W. Bush during a ceremony in honor of Medal of Honor winner Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham in the East room of the White House in Washington, January 11 2007. Cpl. Dunham was killed when he jumped on a grenade to save fellow members of his Marine patrol while serving in Iraq. REUTERS/JIM bOURG (UNITED STATES)

Dear (name deleted): I received your message indicating surprise and disappointment with your final grade this semester. In your message, you said “I did miss several days in your class. I did not mean to miss but I was just going through so much this semester with a death in my family, my house got robbed, fired from my job for being 10 minutes late and my good friend died so i [sic] am sorry for that.” I am sorry, too. I am particularly sorry that I was hog hunting in South Carolina and was, therefore, unable to respond immediately...

There was quite a bit of discussion back and forth today about irresponsible journalism, and bad headline writing. Look at this example: Retail sales in Sept down on gasoline dip Oh noes...say it ain't so! Let's look a little further into this particular article... Retail sales fell unexpectedly in September on a record drop in gasoline sales, but were up when gasoline sales were stripped out, a government report said on Friday. OK, well that is a little different then what the headline title insinuated. How convenient. Anything to do with the upcoming elections? You decide. It does seem like...

Since last summer, Dennis Hastert has been found on the wrong side of compelling ethical issues with alarming frequency. It appears that any time a grassroots campaign to hold our representatives accountable is launched, more of Hastert's fingerprints are found in the wrong places. First, Hastert protested over the FBI searches of a fellow congressman's office when the Constitution explicitly provides allowance for such things when evidence exists to support suspicion that a serving congressman has committed a felony. He told us mere citizens that we ought to learn our place, and that it was not proper for us to...

Dear Jesse Jackson by Mychal Massie Dear Rev. Jackson: I read with interest your Sept. 12, 2006, article "Goodwill, unity, money have been squandered since Sept. 11," which appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times. I do not object, as such, to your poisonous screed directed at President Bush. I object to the substance that so freely flows from your mouth and that can best be likened unto that which is consistent with encopresis – albeit in your case, the malady can hardly be defined as involuntary. You purport yourself to be a minister – a reverend – a so-called man of...

As ABC prepares to air their mini-series regarding the events leading to the events on 9/11, the left is up in arms over the docudrama's implications that former President Clinton's inaction greatly contributed to the attacks of 9/11. I will save that debate for later. What bothers me most about this whole thing is the whiny rhetoric coming from the left, as they launch attack after attack on ABC, calling for truth and honest representations in the mini-series. 'The Path to 9/11', as it is called, has a number of top democrats crying foul and slinging allegations of political bias...

by Mark Finkelstein September 5, 2006 - 08:39 Looks like CBS got itself a two-fer. Katie's not just an anchor - she's a comedian, too! The highlight of her extended interview with Harry Smith on this morning's Early Show, touting her debut on tonight's CBS Evening News, was her claim that what the "old media" has to offer in contrast with the new media is . . . "integrity and standards." Couric is apparently a jokester of the deadpan school, managing to get off the line without dissolving into guffaws. This from the woman about to take over the illustrious...

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- As the leadership of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force changed hands, the departing and incoming commanders said they believe an investigation into accusations that U.S. Marines deliberately shot civilians in Haditha, Iraq, will ultimately strengthen the corps. Lt. Gen. Keith Stalder took command of the Camp Lejeune-based group on Wednesday from Lt. Gen. James Amos, who is headed to the Pentagon to become deputy commandant in charge of combat development. "We don't know the facts on Haditha, let alone what the facts mean at this point," said Stalder. "We do owe it to the American people...

Pepsi Alerted Coca-Cola to Stolen-Coke-Secrets Offer•Three Arrested for Allegedly Stealing, Plotting to Sell Coca-Cola Recipes•Coke: Coca-Cola (KO) and Pepsi (PEP) are usually bitter enemies, but when PepsiCo Inc. got a letter offering Coke trade secrets, it went straight to its corporate rival. Six weeks later, three people were scheduled to appear in federal court Thursday to face charges of stealing confidential information, including a sample of a new drink, from The Coca-Cola Co., and trying to sell it to PepsiCo......

Last month, The New York Times published a 2,000-word, front-page dissection of Bill and Hillary Clinton's marriage. It contained no real news, few named sources, and plenty of gossip masquerading as political coverage. Observing that the Clintons typically spend 14 days of each month together--hardly unusual for a couple that includes a senator and a peripatetic former president--the Times opted for the half-empty conclusion that the two lead "largely separate lives." The story also made an oblique reference to a Canadian politician named Belinda Stronach, the significance of which would likely be grasped only by insiders and people who read...

COLUMBUS, OH: Gay Eucharist attracts 1,000+ By Hans Zeiger VirtueOnline Correspondent COLUMBUS, OHIO (6/16/06)-Over 1,000 homosexual and pro-homosexual clergy, bishops, and laymen of the Episcopal Church celebrated Eucharist Friday evening at Trinity Episcopal Church, just blocks from the site of the 75th Episcopal General Convention. "This is a small taste of what heaven must be like," said the Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Bishop of New Hampshire, as he began his sermon to the prolonged cheers of the adoring congregation. Then Robinson was brought to tears as he thanked his homosexual partner Mark, three years after the Episcopal Convention at...

The US Chamber of Commerce is on a tour of the US called China Business 2006 Initiative. The purpose of the tour is to encourage exchanges between the little guys. They want to pair up US business executives, legal experts, government officials, academics who have on-the-ground experience in China with local business owners, and community officials who might benefit from opportunities in the Chinese market. For example - China is the third largest buyer of products in Kansas! And the fifth largest buyer of Missouri exports. West Coasters are not the only ones who can do business with China. And...

Soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines of the Multinational Force, Over the last three years, your sacrifices and those of your comrades before you brought the Iraqi people freedom, a democratically elected government, and a chance for a new future. The Multinational Force is now at the point where we can move from the forefront of the effort to secure freedom to a position where we assist the Iraqis in securing and governing their own country. One important way for us to assist the Iraqis is to demonstrate the discipline and values that mark us as professional armed forces of free...

MARTINEZ, Calif. (Court TV) - An expert witness testifying on behalf of murder defendant Susan Polk told jurors Monday that he could no longer be a neutral witness because "there was an injustice being carried out" and Polk was "being held on false charges.""You haven't sat here and heard all the evidence. You don't know if she's being held on false charges," Assistant District Attorney Paul Sequeira said to the witness, retired Texas forensic pathologist Dr. John Cooper. "I see that the autopsy evidence exonerates her," Cooper said. Cooper previously testified that Polk acted in self-defense when she stabbed her...

PROPOSALS INVITED TOWARD A MORE CIVIL DISCOURSE RE RELIGIOUS FIGURES AT ODDS WITH VARIOUS SENSIBILITIES The current thread regarding Pat Robertson is but the latest in a long tradition of certain flavors of evangelical Christian and particularly Pentecostal/Charismatic religious figures being thoroughly shredded by what--90% or more of the posts--usually in the harshest, most hostile, even demonizing wording possible. It seems that when folks are perceived to be in such Pentecostal/charismatic categories, all bets are off, no holds barred--the most viscious attacks are the minimal Standard Operating Procedure. Instead of exhorting one another in Christian Love, the worst attitudes normally...

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No Iraqi WMD’s Proves Bush’s Integrity March 22, 2006 by Gargantua The Democratic drumbeat, stale and tired though it may be, not only continues, but is likely to intensify as we approach the 2006 mid-term elections. Their favorite mantra? “Bush lied about Weapons of Mass Destruction.” “Republicans can’t be trusted!” After eight long years of Bill Clinton’s Oval Office sexcapades, Vince Foster’s suspicious death, Ron Brown’s suspicious death, Betty Currie’s brother’s suspicious death, etc., and the way that these crimes (widely acknowledged though often never proven or admitted to) turned the stomachs of the vast majority of American voters, the...

Four New Orleans police officers have been cleared of allegations that they looted a Wal-Mart store after Hurricane Katrina, but each was suspended 10 days for not stopping civilians from ransacking the store, the Police Department said. The probe stemmed from an MSNBC report that showed the officers filling a shopping cart with shoes, clothes and other items. When a reporter asked the officers what they were doing, one responded, "Looking for looters" and turned her back. Assistant Police Chief Marlon Defillo, commander of the Public Integrity Bureau, said the officers seen on the video were recently cleared of looting...

:Dubya's last stand By Joseph Farah, Posted: March 8, 2006 WorldNetDaily.com Lame duck George W. Bush obviously has no care for how his party performs in the 2008 presidential election. But he has a little more time to consider his own fate in the 2006 mid-term congressional elections. Oh, it won't make any difference whether Republicans or Democrats are elected this fall to the rest of us. After all, with Republicans in charge of Congress and the White House for the last six years, spending has increased way beyond anything we imagined during President Clinton's eight years in office. Republicans...

Answer To Last Month's "Full House For Disaster" Four Of A Kind: Foundations For An American Future March, 2006 Feature--Return Of The Gods Web Site SynopsisThe four foundation blocks for a Conservative American Future, one that returns to the wisdom of the Founders: Integrity, Identity, Responsibility & Respect. Last month we discussed a metaphorical "poker hand from Hell," reviewing a "full house" of egregious errors in addressing social goals and in understanding the causation for social phenomena. In a discussion of error in addressing societal goals, we described serious mistakes in assigning responsibility in the approach to Public School...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - He was a man for whom the term muckraker was coined, a crusading journalist and novelist who never hesitated to expose scandal at the highest levels of government and business. But now the integrity of Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Upton Sinclair is being questioned 38 years after his death because of the discovery of a letter he wrote in 1929. Quotes from the letter in recent news reports make it seem that the man who exposed the horrors of the meat-packing industry in the 1906 book "The Jungle" covered up a confession from a defense lawyer that...