Associated Press - A group that supports the flying of the Confederate flag called two Republican presidential candidates “scalawags and carpetbaggers” Friday for their criticism of the divisive banner during this week’s GOP debate.

The Sons of Confederate Veterans said it was upset by remarks by former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. A news conference outside Romney’s headquarters is planned for Tuesday.

“This will kick off a concerted effort by the SCV to let scalawags and carpetbaggers know that the road to the White House hits a dead end when they smear the good name of our Southern ancestors,” Don Gordon, an official with the state division of the organization, said in a statement.

Romney’s South Carolina spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

The flag, long seen as a symbol of racism by some and as an emblem of Southern pride by others, once flew atop the Capitol in this early voting state. A 2000 compromise removed it from the dome, though it remains on the Statehouse grounds and flies next to a Confederate soldier memorial beside one of the busiest streets in the city.

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Confederate flag supporters upset by Romney, Thompson

What do you expect from Romney?? He’s a Yankee, and we ALL know that Yankees just aren’t too bright, and as far as losing any respect for Romney, I didn’t have any to begin with, I wasn’t going to vote for the man anyway, under ANY conditions, so, as far as I am concerned Romney is a non-entity and of no consequence, his opinion of the Confederate flag means NOTHING to me…

When asked about the banner during the debate, Romney said, “That’s not a flag that I recognize.”

“My own view is that this country can go beyond that kind of stuff, and that instead we can do as a party what we need to do, which is to reach out to all Americans,” he said.

Romney is entitled to his opinion, I firmly believe that and I support his right to speak that opinion, even if I don’t agree with it, regardless, Romney will NEVER have MY support, but now Romney needs to be asked this question, ‘Do you recognize the flag of the United Nations?’, I’d love to hear that answer…

Thompson, according to CNN.com, said he does not believe everyone who flies the flag is a racist. “I also know that for a great many Americans, it’s a symbol of racism,” he said.

I can’t fault Fred Thompson in any way for that statement, he spoke the truth, not everyone that flies the Confederate flag is a racist, but, regrettably, some are, that’s a fact of life and it will never change, but for MANY of us that flag does not, IN ANY WAY, represent racism or hatred, it represents our heritage and family histories, nothing more…

Sen. Thompson is dead on the money when he says that the Confederate flag IS a symbol of racism to a great many Americans, mostly to the ignorant among us who use the Confederate flag as a symbol of hatred and racism and the even MORE ignorant among us who believe that the Confederate flag was the cause of, or somehow represented the enslavement of a race and that it continues to cause the many maladies that race suffers even today, but as I said, they are the even MORE ignorant among us…

I won’t drop my support of Sen. Thompson for that statement, he spoke the truth, and the truth is NEVER out of season…

Arizona Sen. John McCain also has drawn the ire of the Sons of Confederate Veterans for comments he made after losing the 2000 primary here to George Bush.

While McCain echoed the then-Texas governor during their debate, he later said he had not been honest about his feelings and his ancestors who fought for the Confederacy “fought on the wrong side of American history.”

As to John McCain, he too is entitled to his own opinion, no matter that by voicing that opinion he has shown himself to be a ‘flip-flopper’, does that bring back any presidential campaign memories for you??

For me it all boils down to this, the Confederate flag is many things to many people, to some it represents hatred, to others it is heritage and history, I just thank God I am one of the chosen few to know that heritage is the heart of the matter and that hatred is reserved for the ignorant among us, no matter which side that hatred comes from…

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KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) - Thousands of Sudanese, many armed with clubs and knives, rallied Friday in a central square and demanded the execution of a British teacher convicted of insulting Islam for allowing her students to name a teddy bear “Muhammad.”

In response to the demonstration, teacher Gillian Gibbons was moved from the women’s prison near Khartoum to a secret location for her safety, her lawyer said.

The protesters streamed out of mosques after Friday sermons, as pickup trucks with loudspeakers blared messages against Gibbons, who was sentenced Thursday to 15 days in prison and deportation. She avoided the more serious punishment of 40 lashes.

They massed in central Martyrs Square outside the presidential palace, where hundreds of riot police were deployed. They did not try to stop the rally, which lasted about an hour.

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Calls in Sudan for Execution of Briton

It’s their nation, they can run it any way they please but how much more evidence does the world need before the belief that radical Islam is nothing more than PURE EVIL?? When was the last time there were protests or riots because of an irresponsible naming of a stuffed animal by a school teacher?? Anyone know, or remember?? I know I don’t…

When was the last time their were protests that turned into riots in the USA?? In a recent time frame in history, say the last 30 or so years??

Modern
1980: Miami
1991: Crown Heights Riot
1992: Los Angeles
2001: 2001 Cincinnati Riots
2001: Seattle Mardi Gras Riots

Look at what led to these riots, in all but one case it wasn’t religion or religious ideology, it was RACE, although religion may have well been a part of the one case in Crown Heights, New York, but I am not going to opine on the root causes of those race problems, that’s a topic for another post, but there was not an outrage in ANY of these protests and/or riots because of the naming of a stuffed animal, a child’s toy, a violation of some moonbat Islamic law I am sure but it wasn’t even an offhand insult to Allah, just their goat loving, child molesting founder of the sect, MoMo…

Thank God this isn’t a Muslim controlled nation, I would likely be beat to death for my feeling regarding the Islamic sect and it’s evil followers that subscribe to the belief that if you insult MoMo you must die, yes indeed, that is a religion of peace if ever there was one…

And folks, it’s things like this that make me a firm believer in MY opinion that there will never be PEACE in the middle east and other areas of the world that are dominated by Islam, Christianity, love of fellow man, freedom and democracy are foreign topics to these people and always will be, and we’re NOT going to convert the Muslims to Christianity, that’s been tried for centuries, all this is, in actuality, is oil and water, they don’t mix, never have, never will…

I don’t know about you, but in MY opinion, anyone that would call for the execution of a human being over then naming of a stuffed teddy bear is nothing more than a moonbat of the highest order and any EVIL sect that would consider such naming to be a crime, of ANY degree, is just as guilty, that isn’t a religion, it’s pure tyranny…

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SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (AP) - Rodney King, whose videotaped police beating in 1991 led to deadly rioting when the officers involved were acquitted, was shot on a street corner, but his wounds were not life-threatening, police said. King, 42, was shot two or three times from a distance by birdshot fired from a shotgun. He then bicycled about 1 1/2 miles back to his home in neighboring Rialto and called police. King was hit in the face, arms, back and torso, police said.

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Rodney King Sprayed With Shotgun Pellets

Ya know, I’m starting to think there’s folks out there that just don’t like Rodney King… Trouble follows that guy everywhere he goes…

EL DORADO, Kan. (AP) - A body found in Kansas appears to be that of a missing college student who led a secret life as an Internet porn star, police said Thursday. (snip) Sander, 18, was last seen leaving an El Dorado bar Friday with a man who has been the focus of a nationwide search since police found large quantities of blood in a Kansas motel room where he was staying.

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Missing Student’s Body Apparently Found

Not trying to be judgemental but, 18 years old, hanging out in bars, making internet porn, and somehow folks are shocked by her death??

LONDON (AP) - Like UV rays and diesel exhaust fumes, working the graveyard shift will soon be listed as a “probable” cause of cancer. It is a surprising step validating a concept once considered wacky. And it is based on research that finds higher rates of breast and prostate cancer among women and men whose work day starts after dark.  

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Graveyard Shift Work Linked to Cancer

Yeah, OK, maybe, but I still think it’s a wacky idea, suppose you work a rotating shift?? Does that lower your risk by 50%??

WASHINGTON - A lawsuit against Blackwater Worldwide alleges widespread use of steroids and other drugs by the contractor’s workers in Iraq and accuses its bodyguards of abandoning their post shortly before taking part in a shooting in Baghdad that killed 17 Iraqi civilians.

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Lawsuit: Blackwater guards on steroids

As far as drugs or abandoning posts and any other accusations, I have nothing to say because I have no 1st hand knowledge, but I DO know, for a fact, that there is, or was, rampant abuse of steroids by contractors and troops, YES, I DID say troops… I know, I am denigrating the troops and trying to do damage to the war effort, that will be the interpretation some read into this, but you know, the truth is something a few people can’t handle, and the FACT is, there was steroid abuse by OUR troops, so, it wouldn’t be all that hard to imagine Blackwater guys doing it too, or, possibly being the ones bringing at least some of it in country, just sayin’…

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The Federal Emergency Management Agency is planning to close by Friday as many as 13 trailer parks in Louisiana where victims of the 2005 hurricanes are currently living. The move is intended to help the hurricane victims move into more stable, permanent housing, FEMA said. But advocates are concerned that a housing shortage in the still-recovering area could leave some struggling to find a place to live.

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FEMA to Close Post-Katrina Trailer Parks

There’s only one way that New Orleans will EVER be totally rebuilt, and that’s for the Feds to make the lazy, teet suckling cretins IN New Orleans to get off of their welfare entitlement asses and get the job done…

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KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) - British teacher Gillian Gibbons was convicted of insulting Islam for letting her pupils name a teddy bear Muhammad and sentenced to 15 days in prison and deportation from Sudan, one of her defense lawyers said Thursday.

Ali Mohammed Ajab, of Gibbons’ defense team, said she was found guilty of “insulting the faith of Muslims in Sudan” under Article 125 of the Sudanese criminal code, a lighter conviction than the original charge of inciting religious hatred. A charge later confirmed by a judge leaving the closed court session.

“I feel this is very serious and very unfair,” he told The Associated Press outside the courtroom. Ajab, who also works for the Khartoum Center for Human Rights, said the issue was raised by “hard-liners who are always trying to make some noise,” in an apparent reference to religious conservatives.

Ajab said his center would appeal the verdict, an opinion not shared by Gibbons’ employer.

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Briton Convicted in Sudan Blasphemy Case

I keep hearing all of the human rights groups and women’s groups and religious groups crying out, ‘Where is the outrage?? This isn’t right!’ and I have to agree, it isn’t right, but it IS Islam, and not being right and being Islam go hand in hand as far as we that live in a Christian or Jewish world are concerned…

But Gibbons is not in a Christian or Jewish nation, she is in an Islamic nation and their law is the law of their land, there’s not too much we can say or do, she knew, or, maybe I need say it this way, she should have known what she was getting into when she went to Sudan, she’s white, she’s female, I am guessing she’s probably a Christian, having seen her pictures I know she’s not a Muslim at least, that was obvious from the way she was dressed, all things considered it would appear that the cards were stacked against her from the start…

Outrage?? Where is the OUTRAGE?? That’s the question that everyone is screaming, outrage at a moonbat Islamic court that gave her a sentence of 15 days in jail and deportation for letting her pupils name a teddy bear Muhammad?? That outrage?? Even that sentence is way overboard as far as our legal system is concerned, but the Sudan does NOT operate under our legal system…

She could have received a much more severe sentence, she could have received six months in prison and something like 40 lashes, as well a monetary fine, and the lashes alone would have likely been more than enough to kill her…

Outrage?? Malkin was on FOX News earlier, HERE, she was so angry she was cross-eyed, her neck veins were throbbing and her eyes were close to popping out of her head a time or 2…

Outrage, oh yeah, Malkin has outrage, and a cause, and she had it going on, but here’s the real deal, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, if you don’t like Rome, stay OUT of Italy, so to speak…

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The Daily Mail — When the U.S. Navy deploys a battle fleet on exercises, it takes the security of its aircraft carriers very seriously indeed.

At least a dozen warships provide a physical guard while the technical wizardry of the world’s only military superpower offers an invisible shield to detect and deter any intruders.

That is the theory. Or, rather, was the theory.

American military chiefs have been left dumbstruck by an undetected Chinese submarine popping up at the heart of a recent Pacific exercise and close to the vast U.S.S. Kitty Hawk - a 1,000ft supercarrier with 4,500 personnel on board.

By the time it surfaced the 160ft Song Class diesel-electric attack submarine is understood to have sailed within viable range for launching torpedoes or missiles at the carrier.

According to senior Nato officials the incident caused consternation in the U.S. Navy.

The Americans had no idea China’s fast-growing submarine fleet had reached such a level of sophistication, or that it posed such a threat.

One Nato figure said the effect was “as big a shock as the Russians launching Sputnik” - a reference to the Soviet Union’s first orbiting satellite in 1957 which marked the start of the space age.

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Chinese sub pops up in middle of U.S. Navy exercise

Other than to point out the obvious, there is really not a lot to say, I will say this though, maybe I overlooked the story, the date is 10NOV and I was celebrating my birthday and that of the USMC and perhaps I just missed this one, or, maybe the MSM didn’t put it out there, I really don’t know, but I have to thank my blogging buddy Bloviating Zeppelin for posting it and making me aware of it’s existence…

This was a strategical faux pas of Biblical proportions, and I am certain that heads WILL roll, this is the type of thing that isn’t supposed to happen, ever…

I hope I honestly missed this story in the U.S. news sources, I rarely read British news sources, maybe I’d better start, and I haven’t been keeping up with Military.com too much lately, maybe they ran a post on it, in any case, it appears that The Daily Mail has some rather good sources…

Its 13 Song Class submarines are extremely quiet and difficult to detect when running on electric motors.

Any submarine is quiet when running on electric power but it is my understanding that the cavitation’s of the propellers is enough to give each sub an identifying sonar signature that is supposedly detectable at a fairly decent range, I may be wrong, I’m not as up on all of my Naval Warfare facts and figures as I need to be, but in any case, the boat can’t run on electric power forever, they have to surface to re-charge their battery system, maybe that was why they came up when and where they did, making a statement so to speak, ‘we have infiltrated you just that easily’, who knows, the Chinese mindset is totally different to ours…

Commodore Stephen Saunders, editor of Jane’s Fighting Ships, and a former Royal Navy anti-submarine specialist, said the U.S. had paid relatively little attention to this form of warfare since the end of the Cold War.

He said: “It was certainly a wake-up call for the Americans.

Well, all I can say is, it better be…

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