World leaders — minus Barack Hussein Obama — gathered in Berlin today, two decades after the fall of the wall, to celebrate and reflect on the event. Many will remember that we once had a president who didn’t travel the world apologizing for America, but reveled in its greatness and referred to it as “the shining city upon a hill,” whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere.
Symbolizing the fall of the Berlin Wall, 1,000 towering plastic foam dominoes were placed along the wall’s route to be tipped over. The New York Times, European edition has a spectacular pictorial covering the time line.
Three major dining chains —Applebee’s, McCormick & Schmick’s and Golden Corral — are offering free meals to veterans and active-duty military personnel in observance of Veterans Day. (The official holiday is Wednesday.)
Applebee’s: Applebee’s is offering a free entree on Wednesday to veterans and all active-duty military from 11 a.m. to midnight at all 1,900 locations. Although Applebee’s requests some kind of military ID, “We’re not going to argue with folks who might forget to bring it,” says Sam Rothschild, senior vice president of operations.
McCormick & Schmick’s: For the 11th year in a row, the 87 locations in 25 states are offering free entrees to veterans on Sunday. The chain also requests military ID and highly recommends reservations. The promotion is on Sunday instead of Veterans Day, “because it allows vets to bring their families who might not be available during the week,” CEO Bill Freeman says.
Golden Corral: The 485-unit chain is offering free buffet meals — including beverage and dessert — to current military and vets on Monday, Nov. 16, from 5 to 9 p.m. No military ID is required for its ninth annual Military Appreciation Monday, says Dolly Mercer, national events manager. The event is held on this date, she says, “so we don’t interfere with Veterans Day activities.”
Others are in the mix with promotions. Outback Steakhouse offers a free Bloomin’ Onion appetizer and beverage to past and present military members on Wednesday, and Krispy Kreme has free doughnuts. Home Depot and Lowe’s are offering 10% discounts to military and vets, according to a USAToday report.
Seeing Red AZ joins in sending sincere gratitude to all of our military personnel — past and current — for your dedication to keeping America free.
State Sen. Russell Pearce (R-Dist.18) discusses the topic of illegal immigration with the daily’s aztalk.azcentral.com. He is calling for new legislation and a citizen’s initiative to step up efforts to combat illegal immigration.
In responding to the question, What further steps do you think should be taken at the local, state and federal level? Pearce’s summation is straightforward and needs no clarification: “It is pretty simple. Enforce the law. No public benefits. No sanctuary policies. No jobs.”
Read his complete and cogent answer to that question and the six others he responded to here.
Sen. Pearce, an immensely popular Mesa Republican, served in the Arizona House from 2001 to 2008 and was elected to the Senate in 2009 — emerging victorious after a blistering campaign, where he trounced his primary opponent by an over two to one margin. He previously served as chief deputy for the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, director of Arizona’s State Motor Vehicle Division and as a Justice of the Peace.
From the Post editorial: The Republican candidate in that race, [New York's 23rd Congressional District] Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, is the product of an obscenely corrupt political bargain by GOP bosses that sells out their party — and New Yorkers generally.
Read the well-reasoned and politically instructive editorial here.
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI.) has announced he has organized a group of “about 40 likeminded Democrats” who will vote to kill the health-care bill if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) does not allow a floor vote on his amendment to prohibit federal funds from going to insurance plans that cover abortion.
Under Stupak’s plan, the approximately 40 Democrats in his camp would join with all House Republicans in voting to defeat the special House “rule” that would set the terms for debating and amending the health-care bill on the House floor when it is brought up for a final vote. If a majority of the House does not first vote to approve this rule, the health-care bill itself cannot be brought to the floor. Read the complete CNS News report here.
Read Congressman Stupak’s well articulated position on stem cell research.
You probably haven’t been giving much thought to Calvin Coolidge these days, but we recommend you give him another look.
It was President Coolidge, Ronald Reagan’s hero, who while still governor of Massachusetts in 1919, refused to concede to union strikers and found his courage rewarded. Ronald Reagan followed a similar path when he fired striking air traffic controllers in 1981. Both men knew what they had to do and followed their conscience rather than making concessions to moneyed entities who were in a position to throw indispensable campaign cash their way.
Amity Shlaes, writing for Forbes, addresses the issue of overpowering unions and the U.S. Presidents who took no guff from their often oppressive leadership: Today many Americans see the economic threat voracious unions–public sector or private–represent. Voters are more open to cutbacks and less sympathetic to spending than lawmakers believe. The politician who tries the Coolidge method may find himself pleased with the results.
This trip back in time is not only historically enlightening, but spotlights the path that should be considered today. Since nearly half of all tax revenues go to education funding, why should they be exempt in this tough economy when it comes to across-the-board cutbacks? Maybe Gov. Jan Brewer could take a page from Calvin Coolidge’s book. Or Ronald Reagan’s.
The recently launched Keep America Safe focuses on such issues as troop levels, missile defense, detainees, and interrogation, according to Liz Cheney, who heads the group along with Weekly Standard editor William Kristol and Debra Burlingame.
And unlike Obama’s Department of Homeland Security, with former Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano at the helm — providing none of what the title of her office implies — the team at Keep America Safe is not afraid to use the words, “We face a growing threat from rogue regimes” or “foreign terrorists.”
Staff Sgt. Thomas Rabjohn, 39, a Phoenix Police Department officer, died during combat operations in Wardak Province in Afghanistan this weekend while serving in the National Guard.
He was among ten American soldiers killed in one of the deadliest battles of the eight-year Afghani war.
ABC 15 reports Thomas Rabjohn, of Litchfield Park, was the married father of three young daughters.
We extend our condolences to his family and friends.
Posted by seeingredaz 
Posted by seeingredaz 
Posted by seeingredaz 