Artist Spotlight and Some Music History

Yes, I am a walking encyclopedia of many forms of music.

Here I provide a brief history of one genre, along with a spotlight on an excellent example from that genre.

My information is based upon a lifetime of involvement in music and either knowing personally or knowing indirectly through others the key players who made music history--pioneers whose legacy is still being carried on today.

The 2A Roundup--Top Ten for Tuesday, September 20, 2011

All guns and politics from the best gun rights and liberty bloggers on the Internet.

Brigid opines on what constitutes the 'home on the range woman' as a follow up to a post she wrote some time ago on the 'home on the range man.'

Standing By provides excellent reading in 'post-modernism and the Democratic Party.'

CLO alerts us to 'the Dream Act, Part II' as it reaches California Governor Jerry Brown.

Tam muses on the notion that 'all guns break.'

The Suffolk County Liberty Report has the latest news on the leftwing radicals who have descended upon Wall Street as part of their so-called 'Day of Rage.'

Randy's Right posts the transcript of testimony before Congress on the part of a CEO who blasts current policy that he says is hindering business growth and expansion, preventing the creation of new jobs. Read it all.

Perfection Under a Red Umbrella provides a must-read on why Obama will veto the push for a Palestinian state at the U.N., despite his dogged determination behind the scenes for 3 years to get such a state created!

Patriot's Duty shares essential reading in an excellent piece entitled, 'Obama as Diocletian, With Wild Abandon.'

Zero Government describes the methods used by totalitarians to control the populace, one of which is using friends, neighbors, and acquaintances to spy on and report the activities of citizens. Sound familiar?

Maddened Fowl declares that Obama's plan for road construction and bridges does not lead to more jobs.

Breaking News--Congressman Issa Discards Mainstream Media for Bloggers

This morning bloggers who have written extensively on the 'Project Gunwalker' scandal--also known as 'Operation Fast and Furious'--had an email waiting for them from U.S. Congressman Darrell Issa, R-California, inviting them to participate in a conference call on the investigation into the scandal. In issuing the invitation, Issa went around the mainstream media, discarding them in fact, in order to go directly to the ones who have faithfully investigated and reported the facts concerning this case.

Issa's decision marks a watershed event, signaling that the era of big media domination of the news is over.

Although Issa did not say so directly, the news conference with bloggers is symbolic of deep frustration. The mainstream media's handling of the scandal has been less than thorough to say the least. Most have ignored it outright. The rest have treated the story as a minor occurrence during which 'a sting operation went awry due to the misguided actions of rogue ATF agents.'

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Breaking--CBS News Obtains Secret Recordings Indicating Possible Withholding of Evidence in Gunwalker Scandal

Mike Vanderboegh reports.

A short excerpt from the CBS report:

WASHINGTON - CBS News has obtained secretly recorded conversations that raise questions as to whether some evidence is being withheld in the murder of a Border Patrol agent.(Scroll down to listen to the audio)The tapes were recorded approximately mid-March 2011 by the primary gun dealer cooperating with ATF in its "Fast and Furious" operation: Andre Howard, owner ofLone Wolf Trading Company in Glendale, Arizona. He's talking with the lead case ATF case agent Hope MacAllister.The tapes have been turned over to Congressional investigators and the Inspector General.

Oh, and by the way, an ATF agent on the tape tells a gun store owner who was cooperating with the agency that, 'I was ordered to let guns into Mexico,' and that a third gun was recovered at the scene of the murder of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.

The third gun was never submitted as evidence.

Major Chicago Newspaper Calls for Obama to Withdraw from 2012 Presidential Race

The newspaper? The Chicago Tribune.

The writer? A Tribune columnist by the name of Steve Chapman.

Is this the start of a groundswell of demands from Democrats, sensing that Obama has become an albatross hanging around their necks?

Time will tell.

But don't rejoice just yet. Even if Obama did such a thing, guess who is the Democrats' top pick to replace him--Hillary Rodham Clinton...another Soros puppet who only SOUNDS more moderate than Obama.

The 2A Roundup--Top Ten for Monday, September 19, 2011

All guns and politics from the best gun rights and liberty bloggers on the Internet.

David Codrea reports that ATF agents who were alarmed over the Gunwalker scheme are very concerned that the new leadership in the Bureau will only give them more of the same. I think their concerns are justified.

Kurt Hofmann says that Mexican officials are just as frustrated as American citizens over the fact that the Obama Administration refuses to come clean about the Gunwalker scheme.

Mike Vanderboegh alerts us to the fact that Media Matters, the George Soros-funded 'progressive' front group, claims that Gunwalker is but a 'conspiracy theory.' It is no 'theory' when you have the facts that prove it! Dumb asses.

WRSA blows the whistle on the Obama ruse to hide his massive tax increases until after the 2012 election. Read this, and follow the links. It is CRITICAL that we clean house in Congress and the WH in order to undo the damage set in motion by this man.

Way Up North reports on his father-and-daughter trip to the firing range yesterday.

Alphecca has some good news for gun owners with regard to the new Congressman elected in NYC to fill Anthony Weiner's vacated seat.

Breda says that the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper is up to no good yet again in its blatant anti-gun bias.

Newbius provides the must-read quote of the day on armed Americans.

Around O-Town points to essential reading on Obama--'This is Why He Sucks.'

Pamela Geller posts commentary on the ridiculous, outrageous, and insane push by the Palestinian Authority to get the United Nations to 'make them a state' that would take half of Jerusalem, which contains the sites that are most sacred to Jews and Christians. Obama helped spearhead this early on in his regime. Now his advisers wish to veto the PA at the U.N., placing the delusional usurper in an awkward position.

'Operation Rainmaker' and the Massive Tax Refund Scam

The Tampa Police Department, working with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, the U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Postal Service, the State's Attorney's Office, and the U.S. Attorney's Office launched an investigation earlier this year into the massive tax refund scam which was described in this report yesterday. The investigation, called 'Operation Rainmaker,' has already uncovered over $100 million dollars in stolen tax refunds. 

Police officials believe that the $100 million is but a mere fraction of what has been stolen in the Tampa area alone and that the total amount is over a billion dollars. Law enforcement agents also believe that the scam is being conducted nationwide in cities across America.

Operation Rainmaker is designed not only to investigate stolen identities and tax refund fraud in the Tampa, Florida area but to discover leads that may uncover similar scams being conducted in other areas of the country.

The investigation was dubbed 'Rainmaker' in reference to the claims of drug dealers that their scam would cause it to 'rain money' on them from the federal government. 

Here are the facts that have been reported so far...

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

A Flawed Character

Wanna see who is the flawed character?

Click here for the answer.

It's best not to pretend we don't have blemishes when most people can readily see them!

Breaking--Taxpayers Bilked out of a Billion in Tax Refund Scam

Two weeks ago on September 1, a little-publicized story in The Tampa Tribune reported a major tax refund scam in which drug dealers in the Tampa, Florida area bilked American taxpayers out of upwards of a billion dollars. In spite of the fact that the scam appears to be but the tip of the iceberg, so far no other mainstream media outlet in the country has reported the story.

If fraudulent activity of this nature could be conducted on such a broad scale in Tampa, the question becomes, is this only one small piece of a nationwide scam in which taxpayers are perhaps being bilked out of tens of billions of dollars?

According to Tampa police detectives, drug dealers began to mysteriously disappear from street corners in the city earlier this year. Sensing that something ominous was afoot, officers began to notice odd items in vehicles pulled over in routine traffic stops. The Tampa Tribune describes the items:

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Political Favors With Taxpayers' Money--Law Firm Bailout Scandal Deepens

At the center of some of the various scandals swirling around the Obama Administration is a common thread that links them all--political favors are delivered to Obama supporters with taxpayers' money. The latest scandal involving the bailout of the Wilmer Hale Law Firm in Boston depicts more of the 'crony capitalism' that characterizes the manner in which the Administration does business.

Wilmer Hale is set to receive $214 million dollars from the taxpayers to cover its losses stemming from a case in which the law firm failed to comply with the statute of limitations. The error meant that Wilmer Hale lost the case and was liable for the 214 million. Large law firms carry malpractice insurance, and thus, the money would actually come from the company that insures Wilmer Hale against 'errors and omissions.'

But the Obama Administration, working in tandem with Democrats who control the U.S. Senate and a few liberal, establishment Republicans in the House, passed an amendment to a bill concerning U.S. Patents that would reimburse Wilmer Hale and its insurer for their losses.

However, the story goes much deeper than that.

In 2009 Obama appointed David Ogden to work under Eric Holder at the Department of Justice as Deputy Attorney-General. Prior to his appointment, Ogden worked as an attorney at Wilmer Hale in Boston.

And after being at the DOJ for less than a year, Ogden decided to resign from his post and return to Wilmer Hale as co-chair of the firm's government and regulatory litigation group.

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Will a Scandal a Day Keep Reelection Away?

With each passing day Americans have come to count on at least two things from the Obama Administration--a new scandal and/or the expansion and deepening of an ongoing scandal. One begins to wonder if the Administration has passed the point of no return, that is, too many scandals to realistically expect reelection.

If the worsening economic picture that Administration officials admit will continue throughout 2012 is not enough to torpedo Obama's reelection chances, then the scandals will.

First, there is the Gunwalker scandal known as Operation Fast and Furious. This one is the biggie, the one thing that has the greatest potential to bring down the entire Administration due to its sheer size and scope. When one considers the number of federal agencies implicated in the carrying out of the illegal scheme, one begins to wonder why this is not the central focus of every news media outlet in America, not to mention Congress.

Gunwalker is the first scandal in U.S. history to involve so many agencies of the federal government--the Department of Justice, the ATF, ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the State Department. The fact that the story is now being reported in mainstream outlets on a regular basis is an indication that reporters in the traditional media sense that a tsunami is on the way.

Second, Obama's taxpayer-funded bailout and/or stimulus money to 'green industries' has blown up in his face. The ongoing scandal revolving around Solyndra, which received over $500 million dollars from taxpayers but filed for bankruptcy anyway, is perhaps the poster-child for the Administration's 'green initiative' and 'crony capitalism.' And there is much more here than what meets the eye.

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Great Men Teaching Great Things

Some thoughts for your consideration...

Read them here.

We never know who we influence or who is watching and learning from us. Great men know how to teach by example, leaving behind a legacy of what's right, honorable, and admirable.

Shocker allegation--Did the White House Pressure a General to Change His Testimony to Congress?

You be the judge.

Here is the story at The Daily Beast.

The regime is in full defensive mode.

The 2A Roundup--Top Ten for Thursday, September 15, 2011

All guns and politics from the best gun rights and liberty bloggers on the Internet.

WRSO points to quite a read on 'gelded men and insane socialist women.'

Kurt Hofmann has a must-read on the use of guns for self-defense as well as the states that have come very close to outlawing it.

Billy Beck delivers a stinging indictment against Obama in a letter he wrote. Read it all.

Tam reports she has just gotten her hands on a French M1873 revolver.

Way Up North muses on the U.S. Postal Service and it's supposed need for a massive bailout.

GunRights4US provides the must-read quote of the day.

Days of our Trailers reports on the 'copy and paste' advocacy that anti-gun nutcases use to get their message out.

Alphecca posts the words of the California assemblyman who wrote the bill banning open carry in the state.

The Wandering Minstrel blogs on the Walther G22 Bullpup Rifle.

Pamela Geller announces that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will come to the U.N. General Assembly next week to address the body. His subject? The Palestinian push for a new 'state.' I tell you, folks, if this push is not stopped and the U.N. sanctions this 'state,' it will mean World War III. Mark my words.

Why GOP Candidates Must Shine Spotlight on Gunwalker Scandal

Yesterday's article was an open letter to the GOP Presidential candidates concerning the necessity for their focus on the Project Gunwalker scandal, otherwise known as 'Operation Fast and Furious.' Today's news shows why it is critical for the candidates to turn the spotlight on not only the scandal itself but the frantic and dangerous attempts of the Obama Administration to cover it up.

Initially the cover-up involved denials, lies, and stonewalling before Congressman Darrell Issa's committee in the House, which is investigating the scandal. Now the cover-up has turned retaliatory, retributive, and dangerous.

Issa himself is now the subject of ethics complaints designed to destroy his career. These complaints have been spearheaded by an Obama front-group, a progressive advocacy organization that claims Issa has used his office for private gain.

'American Family Voices' plans to file a complaint against Issa with the Office of Congressional Ethics.

The basis of the complaint is a now-discredited New York Times story that charged Issa with 'helping businesses in his district, including his own.'

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Open Letter to GOP Presidential Candidates

To: The GOP Presidential Candidates and presumed candidates--Governor Sarah Palin, Governor Rick Perry, Governor Mitt Romney, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Mr. Herman Cain, Congressman Ron Paul, the Honorable Mr. Newt Gingrich, the Honorable Mr. Rick Santorum, Governor Jon Huntsman 

Re: Dire need for attention to the 'Operation Fast and Furious' Scandal

One of the worst offenses ever committed against the American people has occurred under the watch of the current Administration, and yet so far none of it has been addressed in your speeches, debates, interviews, or other public appearances.

'Operation Fast and Furious,' or 'Project Gunwalker' as it is known in other circles, is a direct attack on the Second Amendment Rights of the American people. Although Congressman Darrell Issa has investigated the scandal and directed the Department of Justice to provide information and documentation, the Administration has engaged in the practice of stonewalling, even to the point of refusing to provide the requested documents.

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.

Codrea says it's time to put the pressure on GOP candidates to take a stand on the Gunwalker scandal

I agree.

This is a golden opportunity for the Republicans to underscore the deep corruption in the Obama Administration and to defend the right of the citizens to keep and bear arms in the midst of overt efforts on the part of the current regime to prevent them from doing so...such as trumped up 'statistics' that prove we are arming Mexican drug cartels and then calling for sweeping gun control and gun bans to 'address the problem'

The only reason those cartels have U.S. guns is that the U.S. government GAVE THEM to them!

Anyway, read David's article here.

Palin: Rick Perry has engaged in 'Crony Capitalism'

Sarah Palin weighed in on the GOP debate last evening, stating that Texas Governor Rick Perry has engaged in 'crony capitalism'--a charge she leveled at Barack Obama and elitist, establishment Republicans in her ground-breaking speech at a large Tea Party rally in Iowa over the Labor Day weekend.

Palin's criticism of Perry is in reference to his executive order to give mandatory vaccines to young girls to 'protect them' from a potential disease that statistically few get. It turns out that Perry's direct connections to the drug manufacturer of the vaccine led to the decision.

'That's crony capitalism,' quipped Palin.

The 2A Roundup--Top Ten for Tuesday, September 13, 2011

All guns and politics from the best gun rights and liberty bloggers on the Internet.

Mike McCarville reports a lallapalooza of a story. Corruption in California. The Democratic Campaign guru for the state is charged with stealing millions from various accounts.

Vanderboegh says the Obama thugs have taken their coverup of the Gunwalker scandal to a new level--by bringing ethics charges against Darrell Issa, who is investigating them in the House.

John Jacob H notes that LawDog has commemorated the 9/11 attacks with some tantalizing quips.

Breda calls our attention to a liberal journalist who is married to a very liberal Senator, and who was caught behaving unethically. Wait till you see who she writes for and what she did!

Newbius blogs on holsters for his 1911 pistol. Oh, and btw, he needs one.

From the Barrel of a Gun reports that 'the Bastard' (Mayor Bloomberg) has started a campaign against the bill to allow reciprocal concealed carry.

From Perfection Under a Red Umbrella: 'The Not Jobs Plan that Only P.T. Barnum Would Love.'

The Suffolk County Liberty Report has a big news story today detailing how the government is killing American business. A must-read.

Randy's Right says that Texas Governor Rick Perry did not fare so well in the polls after last night's debate.

Line in the Desert calls attention to a college in Ohio that decided that American flags were 'inappropriate' in its 9/11 commemoration.

Brian the Abettor--the NBC Interview with Obama

NBC News anchor Brian Williams conducted an interview with Barack Obama, the segments of which are airing on NBC Nightly News this week. The second installment was last evening. Given the nature of the questions asked, and how they were worded, the best term to describe Williams' performance is 'Brain the Abettor.'

It is no secret that NBC News and its subsidiary MSNBC have been the most overt advocates for the Obama agenda among the major television news outlets. The fix was in when Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of General Electric, which at the time owned NBC and all of its affiliates, made a deal with Obama during the campaign of 2008 that in exchange for his unrestrained support the company would get certain 'benefits.'

GE, NBC, and Immelt came through with flying colors, complete with endorsements off the screen and not-so-subtle cheerleading for the Obama agenda on the screen. Thus, it was not surprising that GE has been one of the greatest beneficiaries of the Obama freebies that are dished out to corporations that 'toe the party line.'

The company received billions in taxpayer bailout funds. Immelt was rewarded with the position of a top advisor to Obama. And in spite of the fact that taxpayers paid through the nose to save GE from sure demise, the company has not paid one dime in taxes.

Had this been an oil company, imagine what Williams and the mainstream media would have said about such a 'deal with the devil.'

But the beneficiaries of the loot must now tread carefully around Obama so as not to ruffle the feathers of the goose who laid the golden egg. Williams' interview with the President is a perfect case in point.

Continue reading at Anthony G. Martin's Conservative Examiner.