Finally! Rachael Ray Unveils Dog Food Line

When we last saw this overexposed twit, she was wearing a keffiyeh in the Dunkin' Donuts commercial.

And we all know how well that went over.

Well, in case you have yet to reach your Rachael Ray saturation level, she's now unveiling--yes--a line of dog food.

It's for charity, so I won't beat her up too badly over this.

Daytime host, best selling author and pet lover Rachael Ray launches a new line of super premium dog food and treats called Rachael Ray(TM) Nutrish. Ray's proceeds from each sale will be donated to support Rachael's Rescue (www.rachaelsrescue.org), which is dedicated to helping at-risk animals through adoption, medical care and educational programs, along with training and outreach initiatives.

Rachael Ray Nutrish includes two varieties of all natural dog food featuring real meat as the first ingredient -- Real Chicken and Veggies and Real Beef and Brown Rice.
...
The launch also includes both crunchy and chewy treats named after Rachael's best friend, her dog Isaboo. Isaboo Booscotti crunchy treats come in two flavors -- bacon and peanut butter; and Isaboo Grill Bites chewy treats come in beefy burger and bacony burger flavors.

"I love my dog Isaboo and as a member of my family I need to make sure that she eats as well as the rest of us," says Ray. "With the launch of Nutrish, I now have the opportunity to share with other pet lovers some of her favorite meals, flavors and special treats."

Clueless Lehrer: What Obama Bias?

Safely ensconced in his media bubble, PBS anchor Jiom Lehrer laughably concludes there's no media bias toward Barack Obama.

Jim Lehrer, anchor of "The NewsHour" on PBS, doesn't believe the media are favoring Barack Obama.

"I don't see that," Lehrer, 74, told me. "There's an ebb and a flow to the news, and it will dictate how much news coverage there is going to be. The word 'bias' does not sit with me."

Well Mr. Lehrer, if the word "bias" does not sit well with you, does "in the tank for", "in love with", "adoring", "fawning" or "shill" work for you? Maybe Mr. Lehrer needs to watch Obama Love, which is nothing more than news and commentary clips from the same media that Lehrer sees as not biased.



Mr. Lehrer, when you have people like Chrissy Matthews talking about getting a tingle up their leg and wanting Obama's speaches equated with "The Great Gatsby", and others talking about how they can't stay objective, you are getting biased coverage.

W, The Trailer

Here's a look at Oliver Stone's made up fantasy film about George W. Bush.

File this one under comedy.

The guy they have playing Karl Rove looks realistic, the one playing Donald Rumsfeld not so much.

The libtards suffering from BDS will probably go watch it; otherwise, this one will be straight to DVD within a few weeks.

Previously.

Hot Air links. Thanks!

Cops Mistaken for Strippers

This is one of those side perks for the male officers, assuming they keep themselves fit.

Two German police officers responding to a complaint about loud party noise on Saturday night were met with cheers and applause from the guests who mistook them for male strippers.

"A young woman was giving a party and there seems to have been some confusion initially because the partygoers thought the two officers were a strip act," a spokesman for the police in the south-western town of Simmern told SPIEGEL ONLINE on Monday.

Male strippers often dress as policemen and the line "We've been called to investigate a disturbance" can serve as a cue for them to discard their uniforms and perform an erotic dance.

Not this time though. "The misunderstanding was swiftly resolved and calm was restored," the spokesman said. "And there was no theft of any parts of the uniforms."

I hope they were smart enough to return when their shift was finished.

IOC Hack: Beijing Air Just as Bad as Los Angeles and Atlanta

Here's a look at the dense smog enveloping Beijing less than two weeks before the Olympics begin.

With only 11 days to go until the start of the Beijing Olympics, this was the smoggy scene in the Chinese capital yesterday.

Visibility was down to half a mile in some parts, including the National Stadium, while the Athletes' Village complex could not be seen from the nearby Olympic Green.

The athletes are in fear of the polluted air.

Now an IOC nitwit claims it's just more mist than smog and ludicrously claim the air in Atlanta and Los Angeles was just as bad.

Really?

Du was supported by Dr. Patrick Schamasch, an orthopedic surgeon who is the IOC's medical and scientific director. Schamasch said the IOC was monitoring Beijing's air. He said particulate matter on Sunday "was a little bit higher than what's expected but nothing dramatic."

He said readings for ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide fell within 2005 guidelines set by the World Health Organization.

He did not disclose the exact levels, saying it was not the IOC's practice.

"Today there is nothing critical preventing an athlete from running, except the visibility," he said. "I can tell you it's mist more than smog."

Schamasch said conditions were "not worse" than in other cities that hosted the games, mentioning Los Angeles, Atlanta and Athens.

Someone needs to clue this idiot into the fact runners might be aided by visibility. You know, in order to see where they're going.

Update: Thanks to Doug Ross for linking. He's unearthed a slew of additional photos. More also from Ed Morrissey at Hot Air.

'Journalist' Squeals Over Obama: 'He Touched Me!'

Media members squealing with delight over Barackstar.

Which was entirely predictable.

At UNITY, the applause was restrained, after organizers reminded conference participants that the appearance was being nationally broadcast and they should make every effort to maintain "professional decorum."

Still, Obama received a standing ovation from many in the audience at the start and end of his appearance. There was also a rush toward the stage after his speech, as Obama shook hands and signed autographs.

One journalist was also overheard wishing him luck, while another squealed, "He touched me!" as she left the ballroom.

Before Obama arrived, a panel discussed the question of journalistic objectivity, including whether journalists should clap for politicians when they appear.

Les Payne, an angry black racist going way back, apparently has been ingesting some kind of substance.

"The mainstream media loves John McCain. They cheer for him all the time. And now we're going to tell our black journalists, our Hispanic journalists, that they can't clap for Obama?" African-American columnist Les Payne responded.

Brzezinski: McCain Would Start World War IV

Always nice to see one of Jimmy Carter's hacks saying something stupid for international consumption. As an added bonus, he's being quoted by the Iranians.

Thanks, Zbigniew.

Former US President Jimmy Carter's national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski criticized US officials in Senator McCain's camp for pushing the presumptive Republican nominee toward a radical foreign policy on issues such as Iran.

Brzezinski described McCain's presidency as an 'appalling concept' as it would lead to the World War IV, arguing that from the viewpoint of figures surrounding the Arizona senator the Cold War counted as World War III.

"Well, if McCain is president and if his Secretary of State is Joe Lieberman and his Secretary of Defense is [Rudolph] Giuliani, we will be moving towards the World War IV that they have been both favoring and predicting," Brzezinski cautioned.

What an idiot.

Naturally, he's a top Obama foreign policy adviser.

Senator Obama is standing by one of his top foreign policy advisers, Zbigniew Brzezinski, despite concerns that aligning with the former aide to President Carter will undermine Mr. Obama's support with the pro-Israel community.

Mr. Brzezinski, who served as national security adviser in the Carter administration, introduced Mr. Obama before a major policy speech on Iraq yesterday in Iowa, where the Illinois senator praised his work on the Camp David Accords and called him "one of our most outstanding thinkers."

Last year he was hailed as Obama's new brain.

Hot Air links. Thanks!

Whale Flatulence, The Aerial Shot

Makes you kind of, um, want to stay out of the water.

Definitely not something you see every day.

Scientists have photographed a giant gas bubble emanating from a whale, suggesting that flatulence is just as common for ocean mammals as it is for humans and many other terrestrial animals.

The picture, released last week by scientists from the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) in Tasmania, was taken by the captain of a U.S. research ship the Nathaniel B. Palmer, while on expedition between Marguerite Bay and Palmer Station, Antarctica.

"The picture is of an Antarctic minke whale taken from the bow of a ship," said AAD principal research scientist Dr Nick Gales. "The white bits in the photo are pieces of ice-floe, the stream of pinky colour behind the whale is a faecal plume - a.k.a. "poo" - the large circle in the water is indeed the physical eruption of the whale’s flatulence."

Al Gore blames it on a strict seafood diet and global warming.

Via Neatorama.

Hot Air links. Thanks!

'You Sold Us Down the River, Bill; You Took Us for Granted'

Ah, to look back nostalgically on those heady days of the summer of 2001.

You suppose this moron even goes back to Harlem any more?

THE streets were bright with promise on the sunny July day in 2001 when former President Bill Clinton arrived in Harlem, the historic capital of black America, to celebrate the opening of his office on 125th Street. A chant of “We love Bill!” rose from the adoring crowd of 2,000 well-wishers, some of whom wore buttons and waved fans decorated with Mr. Clinton’s face.

After a violin rendition of “We Shall Overcome,” Mr. Clinton and the crowd sang along to a vibrant saxophone version of the soul song “Stand by Me.” “You were always there for me,” the ebullient former president declared before descending into the crowd for handshakes and hugs. “And I will try to be there for you.”

But the relationship between Mr. Clinton and Harlem’s African-American community has gone through a distinctly rocky patch this year. Many black residents say they were hurt and angered by what they perceived as racially disrespectful comments made by Mr. Clinton during the Democratic presidential primary fight between Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Senator Barack Obama, son of a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Kenya.

As the seventh anniversary of Mr. Clinton’s arrival in Harlem approaches on Wednesday, it is impossible to predict whether the wounds can be healed. And to be sure, Mr. Clinton still has his admirers among black Harlemites and among African-Americans nationwide. But in dozens of interviews with Harlem’s African-American residents, business people and community leaders, strong currents of disappointment and resentment toward the former president were evident.

“You sold us down the river, Bill; you took us for granted,” said Darlene Sims, co-owner of an Internet cafe in Harlem. “There’s a definite level of betrayal, of ‘You done us wrong by marginalizing us.’ ”

The only reason this boob wound up in Harlem was he tried to saddle the public with the tab for obscenely expensive midtown digs and figured he could just continue the fraud that he was the first black president.

A lot of good that did him and his wife.

After 50 Years of Misery, Castro Warns of Tough Times Ahead

Naturally, the New York Times lackey reports this with a straight face, failing to note what misery has overrun the island prison since 1959.

Like a true leftwing wacko, Raul Castro spouts the usual bilge about climate change and reminds us Cuba is prepared for the inevitable American invasion that never arrives.

President Raúl Castro used a speech Saturday on the 55th anniversary of the beginning of the Cuban revolution not to unveil any new changes but to call on everyday Cubans to prepare for tough times in the days ahead.

Citing the global economic downturn and the rising cost of oil, Mr. Castro said Cuba and other countries in the developing world face severe challenges that would require belt-tightening and patience.

“We must bear in mind that we are living in the midst of a true world crisis which is not only economic but also related with climate change, the irrational use of energy and a great number of other problems,” he said.

There was speculation that Mr. Castro, who officially took over the presidency in February from Fidel Castro, his older brother, would use Cuba’s important July 26th holiday — which commemorates a failed raid on a military barracks here — to extend the rash of modest changes he had announced in recent months. But he seemed eager to dampen expectations.

“We are aware of the great number of problems waiting to be solved, most of which weigh heavily and directly on the population,” he said, adding later, “Regardless of our great wishes to solve every problem, we cannot spend in excess of what we have.”

Citing one bright spot, he said that tourism had grown 14.8 percent in the first half of this year compared with last year, with nearly 1.3 million people visiting the island.

And the president, a former defense minister, said the country was as prepared as ever for any invasion that might be planned by the United States.

“We shall continue paying special attention to defense, regardless of the results of the next presidential elections in the United States,” he said.

No word who he's endorsing in November, but I have a sneaking suspicion who he prefers.

To show you how bad the reportage from the Times is, even NPR is more honest about what problem Cubans face.

Cuba, which used to be the world's largest sugar exporter, is facing a crisis in agriculture. It is now heavily dependent on U.S. food imports, which have been exempted from Washington's long-standing embargo.

Cuba's infrastructure is crumbling. Raul Castro said the government has plans to rebuild roads, pipelines, houses and railways. But he didn't address whether Cubans might be allowed to freely leave the country or whether they can buy and sell houses. He avoided mentioning the dilemma of Cuba's dual-currency which often forces people to buy necessities in a currency they're not allowed to earn.

Such joy. Now there may be tough times ahead.

Mass Hangings in Iran

Such lovely people.

Iran on Sunday hanged 29 men convicted of offences including drug trafficking, murder and rape in the largest mass execution in years as the country says it is fighting increasing crime.

The hangings were carried out inside the notorious Tehran's Evin prison at 5:10 am (0040 GMT), the state broadcaster said.

The latest hangings bring to at least 155 the number of executions in Iran this year, according to an AFP count.

Amnesty International reported that in 2007 Iran applied the death penalty more often than any other country apart from China, executing 317 people.

Those executed on Sunday had records of repeated crimes including rape, murder with torture and armed robbery, the report said. It also listed charges including drug trafficking, drinking alcohol and possessing ammunition.

Capital offences in the Islamic republic include murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery.

Human rights groups have accused Iran of making excessive use of the death penalty, but Tehran insists it is an effective deterrent carried out only after an exhaustive judicial process.

The state broadcaster said the latest death sentences were approved by the Tehran revolutionary court and high judicial authorities.

On Saturday the press reported that 30 people would be executed on Sunday, saying 20 were drug traffickers and the rest were "murderer thugs."

In a previous mass execution on January 2, 13 people were hanged, including a mother of two young children found guilty of murdering her husband.

A year ago, citing "promotion of social security," the authorities launched an unprecedented crackdown against women and thugs whose behaviour was deemed to offend the county's strict Islamic moral code.

The idiot who this week suggested we open diplomatic ties with these monsters was unavailable for comment.

'New York Jihad': Odd Letters Predict NYC Bombings

These could well be some crank or maybe the real deal. Or, considering one letter was sent to a former Fox News producer, it could just be some leftwing crank in the throes of Fox Derangement Syndrome, a disorder rampant in certain circles.

Whatever the case, the NYPD is taking it seriously.

NYPD detectives are investigating a chilling new terror threat - a series of cards from a "New York Jihad" that look like birthday-party invitations but warn of bombs in lower Manhattan this summer, The Post has learned.

The cards were mailed last week to the homes of seven city residents, including former Fox News television producer Kelley Vick and a person in the 26th Police Precinct, which covers West Harlem, according to Vick and police sources.

The card reads: "Bombs! Bombs! Bombs! Lower Manhattan. July, August, September. New York Jihad."

Vick, a news producer who left Fox in early July, got the creepy mailing Thursday. She said it arrived at her Chelsea building but did not list her apartment number and had no return address. She went to police on Friday.

"It says, 'You're invited to a party, so put on a happy face,' " she said. "There were faces of an elephant, a monkey, like cartoon animals.

"Then you open the card, and inside is a piece of periwinkle paper and space for the date and time. That's where it says, 'Bombs! Bombs! Bombs!' in fancy type.

"My name is printed on the envelope. The stamp is green with a heart. Everything about it is like a cute little party invitation. It's really weird."

She said the postmark showed it had been sent Wednesday from Brooklyn.

Vick took the card and envelope to the 10th Precinct station house, where she met with a sergeant who works with the NYPD's Intelligence Division and who determined that the card was mailed about 2 p.m. Wednesday, she said.

"He said part of the postal code was missing."

Police told her another person had received the same card Wednesday. A detective called her Friday night and said a total of six others got it as well, she said.

Vick, who gave The Post a copy of the card, told cops she'd worked for Fox, helping produce shows for the news network's weekend line-up. She now works as a freelance journalist.

'F- - - Washington, F- - - Obama and F- - - You'

So now we have Barack Obama running some secret diplomatic missions while on his world tour.

Probably won't do any good, but here's the story.

There's a lesson to be learned, especially for naive American women. Don't marry Palestinians under some absurd belief you or your kids will be allowed to practice your own religious beliefs.

Barack Obama carried out a secret assignment during his global tour last week.

While talking about the Middle East peace process in the West Bank Wednesday, the presumptive Democratic nominee slipped a note to Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

The private message: Help an anguished Chicago mother get her daughters back.

Obama detailed the plight of Colleen Bargouthi, 36. She says that for the last year, her four daughters have been held in the Palestinian territories, made to wear headdresses and schooled in Islam by their Muslim father, Yasser Shibli.

Obama asked Fayyad's help in Colleen's fight to get her girls home after their Palestinian dad blocked them from returning from what was to be a six-week family trip to his hometown of Ramallah on the West Bank.

"According to Colleen, [her husband] hit her, kept her as a virtual prisoner in her in-laws' home and menaced her with guns," the note reads.

The husband promised he "would return the girls if she went home and found a job and a place for the family.

"Yasser Shibli Bargouthi has since told Colleen that her daughters will never be allowed to leave to return to their mother. I would ask that the minister of justice look into this case."

Obama also asked the US consul general in Jerusalem, Jacob Welles, to investigate and work with Fayyad.

Colleen had taken her case to the Chicago media and met with Obama's camp. But she was unaware of his efforts until contacted by The Post.

An Obama staffer called Colleen Thursday saying that Fayyad had vowed to look into the situation.

"I can't believe it. I am so amazed and pleased," she said.

Yasser Shibli Bargouthi isn't so pleased.

Not long after she got word from Obama's camp about his efforts, the phone rang again. It was her estranged husband.

He reportedly told her, "F- - - Washington, f- - - Obama and f- - - you."

Instapundit links. Thanks!

Strange Behavior Follows Visit to Kos

The island of Kos that is.

The pilot of a holiday jet was forced to divert and make an unscheduled landing after two drunken British women attacked his cabin crew with a vodka bottle and tried to open an emergency exit in midair.

Stewards and passengers wrestled with the pair, who had been caught smoking in the lavatory on the flight back from Kos in Greece.

They were overpowered and pinned to the ground as a flight attendant cuffed their hands behind their backs.

The pilot apologised and announced that the flight would have to divert to Frankfurt in Germany, where armed police were waiting to arrest the women, aged 26 and 27.

It is understood the pair had been on a package holiday to Kos.

Yesterday a witness told how passengers screamed in fear as crew grappled with the drunken women, who had opened up their duty free in their seats and started drinking heavily.

One of the 214 passengers aboard said: ‘It was a hell of a scene. One of them was lashing out with a vodka bottle after being refused more booze and the other went to the emergency exit yelling, “I want some fresh air”.

‘It was a nightmare – we all thought we had had our chips.’

‘I Can’t Believe I Spoke in Front of All Those Negroes Today!’

Yawn. Yet another attempt by the media to tell us how Rush Limbaugh will be counter-balanced by the left, this time via a profile of black talk radio hosts.

Frankly, I never heard of most of the names mentioned in the piece. Maybe it's a bone thrown back to the left after the Zev Chafets piece on Limbaugh several weeks ago.

Whatever the case, is there even mild surprise black talk radio hosts are behind Obama?

Of course, they neglect to even mention conservative black radio hosts such as Larry Elder.

Naturally, they run directly for the odious Al Sharpton, who supposedly has a radio show, but honestly, has anyone ever heard it before?

He must have dozens of listeners.

Warren Ballentine, one of black talk radio’s new stars, was on a tear against Senator John McCain as he broadcast from the Greenbriar Mall here last week, blithely dismissing Mr. McCain’s kind words about Senator Barack Obama at the recent N.A.A.C.P. national convention.

“He came out talking about how good of a race Barack Obama was running, and how proud he was of Barack,” Mr. Ballentine said. “You know he went back home and said, ‘I can’t believe I spoke in front of all those Negroes today!’ ”

“He was pandering to the crowd, talking about how he felt when Martin Luther King Jr. died,” Mr. Ballentine went on. “However, he didn’t vote for the holiday of Martin Luther King Jr.”

Rush Limbaugh, meet your black liberal counterprogramming. Mr. Ballentine is one of the many African-American radio hosts and commentators who are aggressively advocating for Mr. Obama’s election on black-oriented radio stations daily.

Since Mr. Limbaugh first flexed his tonsils two decades ago, Democrats have publicly worried about their lack of an answer to him and his imitators, who have proven so adept at motivating conservative Republicans to go to the polls, especially for President Bush.

Now it is Mr. Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, who has a harmonious chorus of broadcast supporters addressing a vital part of his coalition, feeding and reflecting the excitement blacks have for his candidacy in general. Mr. Obama is getting support from white liberal talk radio hosts as well, but the backing he is getting from black radio hosts could be especially helpful to his campaign’s efforts to increase black turnout and raise historically low voter registration enough to change the math of presidential elections in battlegrounds and traditionally Republican states like this one.

“Urban stations can be in ’08 what Rush Limbaugh delivered for conservatives a generation ago,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton, who has a two-year-old radio program that is now syndicated on stations throughout the country, including in states like Georgia, Michigan, Ohio and North Carolina. “If you look at the political map of where our shows are, it matches the gap of unregistered voters.”

A generation ago?

Huh?

I guess we we treated to Tawana Brawley a generation ago, in that case.

Mr. Limbaugh and other conservative hosts generally support Mr. McCain, though perhaps with less enthusiasm than they displayed for the man he hopes to replace.

Clearly the author must not listen to Limbaugh, as he derisively mocks McCain on a regular basis.

'I Think We Need to Behave'

Well, that should go for the entire media, not just minority journalists.

Since the media horde slobbering over Barack Obama has already sunk to new depths this campaign cycle, I doubt the reception he gets at this Unity event will be any less shameless.

CHICAGO - When Barack Obama ascends the stage Sunday at the Unity journalism convention, fresh from an exhaustively chronicled overseas tour, he will face a surprisingly divided audience.

Not on the subject of whether Obama should be president — members of the four minority organizations that comprise Unity are largely Democratic. But many at the quadrennial gathering differ on whether the underlying current of enthusiasm for Obama's historic candidacy should be constrained or allowed to spill forth on live television.

In addition to race, the issue boils down to questions of human emotion, empathy versus ethics, and whether a group that has experienced its own share of prejudice can resist responding to Obama's powerful oratory and potent symbolism.

"This is not a pep rally," said Tonju Francois, a producer for CNN en Espanol and board member of the National Association of Black Journalists. "I don't want to say it's offensive, but the idea that just because he's a black candidate, somehow our journalistic ethics would go out the window ... I think we need to behave."

SUre. Good luck with that.

Well, I figure there won't be any brawls, at least, but expect the usual: fawning, drooling, panting, and fainting at the mere sight of The Obama.

Egobama Defends World Tour of Self-Congratulation

It's finally occurred to the idiot his weeklong photo op may backfire.

Now he gets back to babbling about gas prices. Not sure if this schmuck realizes they've been going down.

You suppose this jerk has even even pumped a gallon of gas in his entire life?

Presidential contender pretender Barack Obama defended his decision to travel to Europe and the Middle East on Saturday, saying that problems encountered by Americans at home are often best dealt with by working with allies overseas.

Obama, who spoke to reporters after wrapping up talks with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, said he wasn't sure if there would be any immediate political impact from the trip — and that he wouldn't be surprised if there was a dip in some of the polls in the week since he left home. People in America, he said, are worried about gas prices and home foreclosures.

"The reason that I thought this trip was important is that I am convinced that many issues that we face at home are not going to be solved as effectively unless we have strong partners abroad," he said. "And unless we get a handle on Iraq and Afghanistan, not only are we going to be less safe, but it's also going to be a huge drain on resources."

Obama said he and Brown discussed a wide range of issues, such as climate change, terrorism and financial markets.

"The prime minister's emphasis — like mine — is on how we can strengthen the trans-Atlantic relationship to solve problems that can't be solved by any single country individually," he said.

What, like kicking ass by ourselves when necessary?

When we crushed the Soviets without firing a single shot, who was it who pitched in with that effort?

Oh, yes, nobody. It was Ronald Reagan who did that, no thanks to your party, Barry. Reagan, the man you failed to mention when you showed up for your fundraiser after the free concert in Berlin the other day.

Asshole.

Rangel Lawyers Up, Hires Clinton Spin Doctor

He's feigning outrage and demanding a probe of himself by the Democrat-controlled House Ethics Committee, as if they're going to find this sleazebag guilty of anything or even if they do, issue anything more than a love tap on the wrist.

Though in a sure sign of guilt, he's lawyered up with one of the oiliest spin doctors in recent memory, Lanny Davis.

Frankly, the guy should just give up those cushy rent-controlled apartments and be done with it. He might even come off looking magnanimous, although that might be stretching it, considering what a sleazebag he is.

Rep. Charles Rangel asked the House Ethics Committee yesterday to investigate allegations that he improperly received sweetheart deals on four rent-stabilized apartments at Lenox Terrace in Harlem.

While denying any wrongdoing, Rangel is taking the matter seriously. He has tapped hot-shot Washington defense lawyer Lanny Davis to try to handle the controversy.

In a letter to House ethics-panel chair Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio), Rangel requested a review of "unfounded allegations against me with respect to apartment units that I have rented in my congressional district in Harlem."

"Some in the press have repeatedly - and erroneously - insinuated wrongdoing in my dealings with the landlord at Lenox Terrace. There has been no wrongdoing."

The House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct would look at whether the difference between the reduced rent that Rangel pays and the market value of the units constitutes a "gift" banned under House rules.

One of the apartment units in question was converted into a campaign office. Rangel said last week he would give up that apartment.

Previously.

When Vladimir Paranoid Talks . . . .

Putin's comments drive a company's stock down $6 billion

When Vladimir Putin talks, investors in Russia listen. And some head for the door.

Speaking at an industry conference this week, Putin, Russia's former president and now prime minister, spoke five sentences critical of one of his country's big steel companies, Mechel, and its billionaire chief executive, Igor Zyuzin.

In a sign of Putin's enduring power in Russia and around the world, that criticism came with a price: about $1.2 billion per sentence in lost shareholder value.

Such is the power of Putin's words - even after "stepping down" to prime minister in May - that shares in Mechel, a coal mining and steel company, plunged almost 38 percent on the New York Stock Exchange after Putin complained that the company was charging more to its domestic customers than to its foreign ones. The comments wiped out, at least for a day, about $6 billion in stockholder value.

[....]

On the heels of the imprisonment of one tycoon and some bare-knuckled corporate raids and renegotiations of large energy contracts under Putin, the market did not take this talk lightly.

Over all, the Russian stock market slid more than 5 percent Friday, on fears that Putin's comments might presage another attack on a company similar to the destruction of the Yukos oil company in 2004.

The remarks also coincided with the departure of the American chief executive of the British energy company BP's joint venture in Russia, which is under pressure from its Russian partners and the government, in another glum sign for investors here.

Putin's speech began simply enough.

"We have a respected company, Mechel," Putin said in introducing his subject.

"By the way, we invited the owner and director of the company, Igor Vladimirovich Zyusin, to today's meeting, but he suddenly got sick. Meanwhile, it is known that in the first quarter this year the company exported raw materials abroad at half the domestic, and world, price. And what about the margin tax for the government?" He added: "Of course, sickness is sickness, but I think Igor Vladimirovich should get better as quick as possible, otherwise we'll have to send him a doctor."

You're absolutely hilarious, Putie Putirovich! Just ask former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko about getting 'sick' all of a sudden, as it seems that the new Soviet Russian flu bears commonality with the old Soviet variety.

[....]

With inflation soaring in Russia, particularly for manufacturing inputs like steel, government officials are concerned about the impact on a vast infrastructure rebuilding effort that is a centerpiece of Putin's economic program.

The government is also seeking to diversify the economy away from dependence on raw materials exports, to provide employment and protection against a possible retreat in global commodity prices. Putin has asked business owners to comply with this approach, even at the cost of profits.

What a nitwit. It has more everything to do with the cost of their 'health'. Then again, we mustn't take the chance that Vlad Paranoid might become offended.

[....]

If there were any doubt over who holds sway over Russia's oil-fueled economy, the power of Putin's words could be seen putting that to rest. Indeed, his successor, Dmitri Medvedev, has spoken often of the need to burnish Russia's investor image and improve the rule of law, so far with little effect.

The Bush Adminstration's Russian expert was unavailable for comment.

Read the rest at IHT.com

High Comedy: Violence Breaks Out at 'Unity' Summit

I figure this is just an appetizer for the mayhem and hijinx that's to come once the Democrats get to Denver. Of course, The Messiah is scheduled to arrive for this confab come Sunday after he returns from his carefully choreographed World Tour of Self-Adulation, so no doubt by that time the Chicago police will come in and restore order.

After all, we can't have sundry Obamanites beating each other up on camera.

Violence broke out at Unity '08 Friday between supporters and opponents of Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade just before he was to speak to the convention of minority journalists in Chicago.

The violence, which flared just briefly but drew dozens of Chicago police squad cars to the convention McCormick Place site, appeared to have been touched off by supporters of Wade angry at a protester who was being interviewed by this reporter.

"All lies, all lies!" a Wade supporter who did not give his name shouted to this reporter and Bolly Ba, who said he was a Senegalese-American now living in Washington, D.C. Several men and a few women dressed in pastel native garb set upon Ba. About two dozen people tussled trying to rip protest signs and Senegalese flags from each other.

Dozens of Chicago police squad cars arrived and the groups were quickly separated and moved in different directions.

Sen. Barack Obama is to address the meeting on Sunday.

Wade was a controversial choice as a headline speaker at the joint conventions of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Asian American Journalists Association, and Native American Journalism Association. Lauded by many in the West for speaking on human rights issues, Senegalese political opponents and international free press groups such as the Committee to Protect Journalists say in his seven-year reign he has muzzled and intimidated the press.

"Beating up journalists, locking up journalists -- that is his game," a Wade protester Joe Sall said. "When he's home he acts like a real despot. When he's in the West, he acts like he's a democrat, talking about human rights."

Wade was cheered lustily and frequently at the Unity opening ceremony Wednesday night by some 50 supporters, many wearing T-shirts and baseball caps reading "Wade in 2012."