Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), senior Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, said that provisions in the new financial regulatory bill violate privacy rights by allowing the government to collect any financial information it wants from any financial institution it wants.

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/65427

Assuming this is an accurate representation of what the new Wall Street Reform legislation allows, how do ya'all feel about it??

I know everyone here is REALLY big on Privacy Issues..

So I am curious as to whether or not this would be a deal breaker for any of ya'all?

Michale......

Let me quantify that...

The vast majority of LEGAL immigrants that *I* have read (and I have read tons) support anti-ILLEGAL-immigrant legislation...

Michale.....

Here is a LEGAL immigrant's take on the issue...

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/05/05/boris-epshteyn-arizona-immigration-law-sb-obama-america-legal-immigrant/

A VERY good read...

The vast majority of LEGAL immigrants support anti-ILLEGAL-immigrant legislation..

Michale.....

Nothing sexier than a woman with an assault rifle and a glock!!!! :D

Michale......

http://tlc.discovery.com/tv/police-women-of-maricopa-county/

I was going to mention this speech and I was trying to figure some way to bring it into the conversation... :D

And here you are... :D

Anyways...

"But what troubles me is when I hear people say that all of government is inherently bad."

This coming from the man who made (and CONTINUES to make) a platform out of bashing Bush and vilifying the "government" of Bush and Cheney...

This coming from the man whose wife said that she was never proud of her country until her husband was nominated for president..

It's remarkable how Obama says that vilifying the government is not a good thing... When HE is the government...

Yet, when Bush was the government, Obama couldn't do enough vilifying...

Hypocrite, thy name is Obama...

{{In my best Bill Cosby accent}} NOW.....

Now that I got THAT off my chest, let me say this..

" If you're a regular Glenn Beck listener, then check out the Huffington Post sometimes. If you read The New York Times editorial page the morning, then glance every now and then at The Wall Street Journal."

This is a welcome change from all the partisan bashing that Obama has been about of late...

THIS is the president that I voted for...

It's just too bad that we'll probably won't see any more of this type of attitude...

Michale.....

I posted this today, on last week's column ( FTP[120] ), where I used your comment as Talking Point #1. I thought I'd post it here, too, on the off chance you'll see it...

DrCardio -

I know this column's a week old, and the chances you'll read this might be slim. But I had to point this out. President Obama just gave the commencement speech at the University of Michigan. In it, he said the following:

"But what troubles me is when I hear people say that all of government is inherently bad. One of my favorite signs from the health care debate was one that read "Keep Government Out Of My Medicare," which is essentially like saying "Keep Government Out Of My Government-Run Health Care." For when our government is spoken of as some menacing, threatening foreign entity, it conveniently ignores the fact in our democracy, government is us. We, the people, hold in our hands the power to choose our leaders, change our laws, and shape our own destiny.

Government is the police officers who are here protecting us and the service men and women who are defending us abroad. Government is the roads you drove in on and the speed limits that kept you safe. Government is what ensures that mines adhere to safety standards and that oil spills are cleaned up by the companies that caused them. Government is this extraordinary public university - a place that is doing life-saving research, catalyzing economic growth, and graduating students who will change the world around them in ways big and small."

He also gave a free plug for the Huffington Post in the same speech.

Inescapable conclusion: someone in the White House read your words, and took them to heart. Read your piece again, and then read Obama's comments. Pretty close, wouldn't you say?

:-)

-CW

Kill all the lawyers...
Kill 'em tonight...
-Don Henley, GET OVER IT

:D

Michale.....

"It's a grunge thing."
-Sean Connery, THE ROCK

You really crack me up sometimes... :D

But put your arguments aside for a moment if you can,

Ooooohhhh I dunno.... :D

Sure, why not. We can always revisit them later, right? :D

and tell me what you really think about TP#1-4 this week. I thought it an amusing little mini-rant, myself, but then I'm biased.

Yea, they were funny.. I especially like #1.. :D Like the old joke says, "What do you call 1000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?".. A GOOD START!! :D

(Since we're on jokes, here is a gem. Hope no one minds Blonde jokes. :D
What do you call a dead blonde in the closet??
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
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.
HIDE AND SEEK Champion, 2005

:D

Ahem... moving on... :D

Lawyers are always an easy target. But I completely agree that Wall Street bankers are fast approaching the top spot and might actually supplant Lawyers as the most hated vocation. :D

SecHomeSec (or whatever you'd prefer to call her job, although I think that has a certain ring to it, don't you?)

It does indeed. Consider it officially christened.. :D

She used to be governor of the state, didn't she?

Yes, she was Arizona Guv.. as an aside, I always wondered if she is related to Judge Napalitano of Fox News fame..

And I can imagine she has a real beef with Sheriff, which I personally believe is completely unfounded..

Anyway, I bet ol' Joe got so annoyed at this that he lobbied the state gov't pretty hard for them to grant him the authority to do so at the state level.

Good for him...

It's GOOD to see state's take matters into their own hands because it gives the federal government another reason to do the right thing. Apparently, the good of the country is not a sufficient enough reason..

And you raise a good point, I have to admit, about Mexico.

Danke.. I have my moments. :D

Their immigration problem (from their own southern border) is dealt with in incredibly harsh ways, which everyone should condemn. You're absolutely right about that.

Yep, that definitely falls under the Stones/Glass Houses adage...

Michale.....

See, this is why I haven't written about it yet... haven't done any homework on it, I have to admit (blush). But put your arguments aside for a moment if you can, and tell me what you really think about TP#1-4 this week. I thought it an amusing little mini-rant, myself, but then I'm biased.

I have a sneaking suspicion that the untold story to the whole Arizona thing is the fact that one of the first things Janet Napolitano did as SecHomeSec (or whatever you'd prefer to call her job, although I think that has a certain ring to it, don't you?) was to strip Sherrif Joe Arpaio of his legal ability to make immigration arrests. She used to be governor of the state, didn't she? Or was that NM, I do tend to get those two mixed up. Anyway, I bet ol' Joe got so annoyed at this that he lobbied the state gov't pretty hard for them to grant him the authority to do so at the state level.

But then, I have to admit, I'm basing this on just his history and sheer speculation, I haven't actually looked into it. Next week, next week....

And you raise a good point, I have to admit, about Mexico. Their immigration problem (from their own southern border) is dealt with in incredibly harsh ways, which everyone should condemn. You're absolutely right about that.

-CW

"'Swampy Muck' would be great name for a rock band."

Heh.

-CW

I don't think the cops should ever be able to pull anyone over without a reason, because it always leads to abuses.

Apparently, I am the only one amongst us who has actually READ the law...

No offense, CW... :D

Allow me to paraphrase, since I am too lazy to cite the actual passage...

Oh hell... I KNOW there will be someone out there who cries FOUL!!!

So, the actual text of the law..

For any lawful contact made by a law enforcement official or agency of this state or a county, city, town or other political subdivision of this state where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States, a reasonable attempt shall be made, when practicable, to determine the immigration status of the person.

The key phrase is "LAWFUL CONTACT"... Allow me to re-iterate for the cheap seats...

"LAWFUL CONTACT"

So, let me ask you...

Is stopping people solely because they are black or hispanic, is that "LAWFUL CONTACT"???

No it is not...

Is pulling someone over for a busted taillight... Is THAT... "LAWFUL CONTACT"???

Why, yes it is...

So, in the course of... What's those words again, ladies and gentlemen..???

LAWFUL CONTACT...

So, in the course of LAWFUL CONTACT, a Law Enforcement official in the great state of Arizona is authorized to inquire as the the immigration status of said contactee...

I honestly and truly have to ask...

WHERE'S THE BEEF???

Are the Democrats upset because cops are being allowed to ask about illegal activities???

"OH MY GOD, WHAT A FUCKING NIGHTMARE!!!"
-Marisa Tomei, MY COUSIN VINNIE

I am also constrained to point out that Arizona only took this step because the Federal Government, as epitomized by Obama, Bush and Clinton completely and utterly and SPECTACULARLY failed...

"Failed... Failed... Impressively failed..."
-Doctor, ARMAGEDDON

... in their job... ***THEIR JOB*** to secure America's borders....

So, I ask the lot of ya..

WHAT would ya'all have had Arizona do?? Continue to watch it's state go bankrupt and watch it's citizens brutally murdered?? As I type this, an Arizona Deputy has just been gun downed by an illegal immigrant..

Why are the rights of criminals more important to ya'all than the rights of law-abiding American citizens?

WHY???

So, let's summarize..

The Arizona law is NOT an invitation to arrest willy-nilly, simply for breathing in this country....

(Although if Obama's EPA has IT'S way, all bets on THAT are off.. But I digest..)

....as one utterly moronic statement has suggested...

What's those words again, kids???

That's right... "LAWFUL CONTACT"

And, CW.. I really wish you had a HYPOCRITE OF THE WEEK award, because the government of Mexico would win that hands down..

The Mexican Government had the unmitigated gall to COMPLAIN about the Arizona anti-illegal-immigration law..

Do ya'all KNOW how utterly and completely DRACONIAN the Mexican Immigration laws are???

How many murders and rapes and robberies are committed BY THE MEXICAN AUTHORITIES against illegal immigrants???

And THEY complain about ARIZONA's laws!!!????

What have THEY been smoking???

Let me just leave you with these words:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704302304575214613784530750.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_opinion

Michale......