Greer McVay's Open Salon Blog

Weiner’s Over, Now Back to Ryan

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 09:06:06 -0400

Greer McVay’s Web Log (BLOG)

Volume 2, Issue 21

June 22, 2011

After a short, yet titillating foray into the pants of New York Congressman, Anthony Weiner, the Democratic Party is trying to refocus America’s attention on the Ryan budget plan and its potential detrimental impact. It’s a little challenging; however, to get back into that groove when the parade of Republic presidential nominees is vying for the brief amount of attention Americans are able to devote to anything. And frankly it’s more fun to bash Newt Gringrich’s many campaign staff desertions than it is to drill down on the numbers. But drill down we must.

Republicans insist the Paul Ryan-sponsored, Republican-backed budget, with the controversial Medicare-altering provisions was intended as a conversation starter. If it was simply intended as a point from which a national discussion could be launched then how do they account for the voting on this matter, particularly in the House of Representitives where Paul initially introduced his toxic pill?

Many pieces of legislation are never intended to actually see the ink from the nib of a presidential pen; however, it’s quite understandable that the authors would want to present their ideas in an arena that generates debate, negotiation and compromise. In this tradition, it is easily argued that a bill was introduced purely for the benefit of debate. A conversation starter if you will.

The problem with the Ryan bill is that it was clearly intended as the Republican’s grand plan as evidenced by the fact that they managed to hurry the bill through the legislative process without a single amendment sought, introduced or voted upon. Further, the overzealousness of the Republicans to get this legislation to the floor for a vote versus real debate speaks volumes about any alleged desire of the Republicans to make it a conversation-starting first step in what might normally take years of back and forth before any budget agreement that contains Medicare reforms would gain traction.

The problem is the Republicans keep lying to the American people. Their plans to dismantle Medicare and replace the entitlement (read: paid insurance benefit) with a voucher that is not viable given seniors’ propensity to aged ailments and Ben Gay bulk purchasing, is underscored by the fact that they would not allow any Democrats to chime in on the discussion.

By the way my Republican friends, “shamelessly demogouging” the issue and using scare tactics to railroad senior voters is what astroturfing organizations, and right wing “think tanks” did last summer when they threw down the gauntlet and started proclaiming death panels were going to kill grandma. That is where the shame exists. Making drastic cuts to Medicare benefits and other much-needed social programs has been brewing in the dark recesses of the collective republican psyche for 30 years and replacing one Republican with a Democrat in a single district of New York (NY 26^th) is not enough to reverse the damage they have already started in half the states across the union.

Americans must access information about the Republican agenda from entitlement annihilation to global-warming denying that manifests itself in record storms wiping out giant swaths of America while simultaneously eliminating the programs and funding that mitigate the negative impacts of doing so. Big oil subsidies, corporate welfare, a military industrial complex are all part and parcel of a bigger plan to drain this nation of its financial resources and labor force. The end game: lower wages and higher corporate profit. And never mind that Americans can no longer afford to purchase the products these corporations peddle. With a couple of billion new consumers in China and India, who needs Americans?

Read the bill: http://paulryan.house.gov/Legislation/Sponsored.htm

Did Gov. Walker Sneak in a Victory?

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 01:03:50 -0500

Greer McVay’s Web Log (BLOG)

Volume 2, Issue 20

March 9, 2011

Cocky Democrats have lost again! Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and his cohorts just slipped in a doozy of a procedural move by removing the portions of the budget repair bill that call for financial expenditure and passed the major part that they really wanted: to bust the union. So take that Obama; and anyone else who dares to receive or expect support from organized labor nation-wide. And I do mean nationwide because a host of other states are primed and ready to ram through their own Anti-American, civil-rights-denying legislation.

Several days ago I felt queasy because I saw far too many Democrats patting themselves on the back. Rachel Maddow spent 10 minutes giggling at the folly of Walker’s latest misstep. And while I felt nothing could outdo the David Koch impersonated phone call of two weeks prior, Rachel felt she was onto something. In my mind, the fact remained, if getting caught red-handed with your hand in the proverbial cookie jar didn’t deter Walker and company, then whatever Rachel was talking about certainly wasn’t going to do the trick.

Democrats have to accept that the Republicans have taken politicking and sleazy back room deals to another level. They have made it an art form that Democrats are woefully inadequate to combat, let alone foresee. Republicans lie!

It is doubtful that the end game is to only render the unions impotent. You can bet that tomorrow Democrats and union supporters will be distracted as they descend onto cable news shows screaming at the top of their collective lungs about how deceitful this maneuver was. Be mindful, that the big shoe has yet to drop. I don’t even know what it is, but you can rest assured that it hasn’t yet dropped. Perhaps Walker is eager to sell the Wisconsin power and utility agencies for pennies on the dollar; or maybe his agenda includes disposing of cities and letting private corporations own and manage them; he might even be determined to simply show his benefactors how much influence he has and far he’ll go. Regardless of Walker’s plans or those of other republican governors throughout the land, what we do know is that while Democrats were giddy that e-mails had been provided as a result of the Freedom of Information Act, showing Walker’s willingness to “negotiate” with the Wisconsin 14, he was doing what he said he would do, preparing to ratchet things up.

In the faux Koch Brother call, Scott Walker discussed an entire strategy that included a post Superbowl pep rally with his cabinet where he said he was ready to “drop a bomb;” he alluded to each and everything he has subsequently done, without variation; and most importantly, he told “Koch,” ‘if you hear that I am talking to the Democrats (read: enemy) don’t believe it is sincere. Yet somehow, Democrats’ hearts seem to get in the way and they insist on believing that a rattlesnake’s fangs are for smiling at the camera.

Caught off guard, the 14 State Senators who retreated across state lines somehow thought they were outfoxing the republicans only to be shut out of a vote that they couldn’t stop regardless. I am not suggesting that they should not have taken their principled stand by leaving, nor am I suggesting that they won’t ultimately win the war after seemingly losing this particular battle. What I am saying is that Democrats have got to stop underestimating the cunning and conniving of their fierce competitor. An opponent who will stop at nothing to have their will done is certainly not beyond omitting a few pesky lines of text from a piece of paper to circumvent procedure. Get smart and trust no one. This one could be seen from a mile away and they are not finished. Perhaps the damage can be undone in courts or in the next legislative session, but for now get the emotion out of the way and recognize your power. Tens of thousands of constituents hitting the streets AND voting is a force to behold. You can defang your enemy, but only if you think like a snake.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/09/wisconsin-gop-plan-advance-anti-union_n_833796.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/05/michael-moore-joins-wisconsin-protests_n_831886.html

Blood on Their Hands: Political Contributions to Mass Murder

Sat, 8 Jan 2011 21:01:17 -0500

Greer McVay’s Web Log (BLOG)

Volume 2, Issue 19

January 8, 2011

It is not a good idea to “reload” instead of retreating. “Second Amendment” remedies do not work. This morning’s shooting at a community event in Tucson, Arizona that claimed the life of an aide to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and six others, including a nine year old child; and left in critical condition the Representative and as many as nine others, is likely a testament to the utter stupidity of provoking people who cannot distinguish between a metaphor and a command. Sarah Palin and Sharron Angle and Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck and their ilk have all contributed to this tragedy and all have blood on their hands. Their repeated cries for people to harm those who would disagree with them haven’t been tacit; it has been insultingly blatant. As Americans we all have a responsibility to stand up and demand that all such encouragement of abhorrent and violent behavior immediately cease or be met with social outrage and derision.

Dog whistle politics have been building pressure for the last two years. When the Department of Homeland Security published a report in 2010 that indicated homegrown, “Lone Wolf” extremism was growing and required focused eradication, the loudest voices of the Republican Party and political Right denounced the report as part of a socialist plot to unfairly target outspoken patriotic Americans. Instead of quashing the extremists from both, any, either or no political party, Republicans refused to step back from their partisan dogma. They refused to insist that radical followers use calm and clear thinking when dealing with issues to which they were opposed. The rhetoric has been ratcheted up month after month and today’s outcome should have been expected. As a matter of fact, Democrats requested that their Republican counterparts limit the incitement, but were dismissed as playing party politics. How unfortunate for the victims today that those pleas went unheard. How unfortunate for America.

With every single opportunity Sarah Palin finds, she blurts or Tweets a new version of the term, “Don’t retreat, Reload.” This statement, repeated ad nauseum to a nut with a gun becomes a programmed directive. When Sharron Angle indicated that an out-of-control Congress could be brought down with “2^nd Amendment remedies,” she was threatening honest candidates with the consequences we saw today. Bill “Tiller the Baby Killer” O’Reilly pounded the notion into the heads of his legions of followers that George Tiller, was a murderer and not worthy of the life that God had bestowed upon him. Glenn Beck sounds the alarm with each daily broadcast that encourages Tea Partiers and other right wing protesters to go to extreme measures to do the dirty work he knows he would never do. What prompts the attempted mass murder of an elected official? A misdirected notion of national honor and glory or perhaps, sheer insanity.

The simple truth that any half-observant person could see is that all of us have sat back and allowed the right wing to incite violence in every form imaginable. Perhaps we did so in the name of freedom of speech or because we simply find some of their actions so laughable. However, now, after the inevitable, we want to feign shock and outrage as if any other outcome was ever a possibility. We must decide here, today, to stand behind our words of prayer and sympathy. John McCain, Sarah Palin, Mitch McConnell and others expressed condolences to the families directly impacted by this tragedy. The question I ask is what actions will they take in the coming days, weeks, months and years, to show that they really are saddened by this event?

Does Sarah Palin’s expunging her own website of the grotesque map targeting legislators she wanted “taken out,” one of whom was Ms. Giffords, mean that she has finally become as appalled with herself as 80% of Americans have been since she hit the national stage? Or is she just making a cursory effort to “CYA,” intending to fool us into thinking that she genuinely cares about anything other than her own self-interests? I will believe she is sincere if her actions shift from name-calling her enemies to finding more productive ways of working with those with whom she disagrees in an effort to bring the change America voted for in 2008.

Jared Lee Loughner, the person being held as a suspect in this mass murder allegedly posted on his website dissatisfaction about the government, healthcare reform, etc. The House of Representative Republican majority is poised to vote on repealing the new healthcare law as early as next week. They know that 1) their bill will never pass the Senate; 2) President Obama would never sign it into law; and most importantly, 3) this healthcare reform is exactly what the nation needs and deserves. The only beneficiaries of repeal would be healthcare providers and some corrupt Legislators who benefit financially from the largess of the healthcare lobby. If they really were sincere they would stop pandering to their red-meat-seeking base and their corporate benefactors and take care of the people’s business in a way that helps the many rather than the few.

Today is the saddest day I can recall in two years. My sadness is not caused simply by knowledge that at least six people lost their lives senselessly, but because I fear this is not the end. My concern is that as we came together immediately following 9/11, we gradually went back to our old ways and we will do so with this tragedy. However, I pray everyone will stop looking at their fellow man as the enemy and use their collective common sense to understand that big corporate interests are holding the strings that ultimately infringe upon our ability to pursue happiness. The enemy is not, contrary to the incessant rants of Fox enthusiasts, any of our 'socialist, marxist, communist, fascist, liberal, Lame-stream elites.' Those are the people struggling to solve the problems in spite of constant opposition from those who sell their votes to the highest bidders.

I call on every elected official, political pundit, political celebrity and person with a microphone or blog to use your voice to encourage healthy debate and civil discourse. Eliminating the propaganda and campaigns to misinform is necessary to truly find middle ground and facilitate the cooperative living of 300,000,000 people sharing the United States of America. Otherwise, there will be continued consequences for our inaction.

Casino Jack and the United States of Money is a Must See

Wed, 17 Nov 2010 00:11:50 -0500

Greer McVay’s Web Log (BLOG)

Volume 1, Issue 18

November 16, 2010

At this stage of my life I have a thirst for all things politically incriminating. Let me rephrase that; I have an insatiable lust for information that would begin to explain the inexplicable. It is inexplicable to me that any American citizen would have support for and advocate on behalf of the current Republicans or corporations, whose sole purpose is self-enrichment at all costs. Casino Jack and the United States of Money is a must see documentary for absolutely everyone. It chronicles the rise and fall of Ï‹ber lobbyist Jack Abramoff. But more importantly, it illustrates the role of lobbyists in the American political process and it artfully depicts an array of political figures who succumbed to the inducements of a system designed to reward the wealthiest among us at the expense of everyone else.

The biggest challenge to politicians who aim to do the right thing is that they are up against an opponent whose resources know no bounds. The limitless checkbook of corporations makes it virtually impossible for anyone or anything to derail their agenda, which is obtaining more money. Barack Obama emerged on the scene with honorable intentions, but he is up against a machine that has had a 250 year head start. He is trying to change a system whose creators and sponsors built into that system a structure that cannot be dismantled without an uprising from you and me: the voters. The Citizen’s United Supreme Court case gave corporations everything they need to influence our democratic election landscape. That is, everything they need except the right to vote. However, from the looks of the 2010 midterm elections, they have now even bought our votes. Obama is one of the few people fighting the good fight. However, a one-man battle cannot emerge victorious, especially if he must capitulate on every issue in order to remain a viable adversary. Obama alone is unable to make substantive changes to the system because too many powerful people profit from maintaining the system as it is.

In Casino Jack and the United States of Money, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tom DeLay, serves as the ringleader of Congress who, simply put, was caught trading votes for campaign contributions. He controlled which bills reached the floor and which did not. He was the most prominent member of a band of ideologues, most of whom emerged from the College Republican50s over the course of the last 35 years. They chant the republican mantra of deregulation, tax cuts and smaller government ad nauseum.

Standing out like a sore thumb is the incredible lack of depth to their justification for why they believe as they do. At no time does anyone offer an explanation of why deregulation, lower taxes or smaller government is a panacea to what ails the country. In fact, the opposite is painfully apparent. If a republican lawmaker could or would ever rationally explain how we all benefit by not holding corporations to healthier standards, they might find less opposition to their mission. Instead they maneuver and manipulate people, money and votes to drive political schemes that only serve them and a few close allies; and they conjure up 501(c)(3) organizations as fronts for complex money laundering operations. Their only support comes from those profiting alongside them, those gullible enough to believe their lies or those who are driven enough by wedge issues to not care about their own self-interests. Any thinking person could see through the hyperbolic façade if they chose to embrace reality instead of spending time looking for President Obama’s birth certificate.

The subjects of this documentary appear to be wholly committed to the notion of “conservative” principles. Make no mistake, these people are not conservative. None of their actions are consistent with their rhetoric or the Christian principles they proclaim. Jesus would not have prevented children born with “pre-existing conditions” from accessing healthcare or health insurance. Nor would Jesus apologize to an oil company who had dumped millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico thus depriving thousands from pursuing their livelihood. But that is the genius of this film: it shines a spotlight on the blatant hypocrisy of many members of congress while highlighting their compensation for turning their backs on the American public. Director Alex Gibney, brilliantly describes an unimaginable world of influence peddling, as he illustrates Abramoff and company’s exploits in the Marianas Islands and within the Indian gaming industry.

Casino Jack and the United States of Money floods my mind with many questions. Among them is who will actually watch this movie? More to the point, if Republicans, Tea Partiers and even Independents watch this film, will they dismiss this criticism that the political Right justly deserves? Will Right Wing viewers of this film ever realize that they have been duped by moneyed elite who swap favors for power and more money at the expense of the middle and working classes? Will people ever accept that they are very unlikely to ever become one of the nation’s top 2% of the income earners; and therefore, stop voting for people who make policies that they ignorantly think will someday benefit them? Does the Right see any connection between the lies they’ve been fed and the reality that drives our national policies? It is a shame that the practices that are so commonplace in the nation’s capitol are so very transparent and easily observable if only you are willing to see the truth. Why do so many people choose to look the other way when glaring evidence of bribery and corruption slaps them in the face?

Clearly, Jack Abramoff was the proverbial tip of the iceberg. He was a small drop of water in an ocean of corruption. The film, the film’s special features and the film with the director’s commentary is worthy of five hours of your time. I truly believe that anyone who uses Netflix wisely, after watching this film, would consider themselves current on the issue of our time: Campaign Finance Reform. Once you see Casino Jack and the United States of Money you will never watch Fox News, or even MSNBC, the same way again. Today’s debate about extending the “Bush tax cuts” or “repealing healthcare reform” will take on new meaning when juxtaposed against the financial incentive of those advocating those policies.

Many in Congress have a vested interest in your not seeing this movie. Whether Tom DeLay and others beside Abramoff and Rep. Ney (R, Ohio) go to prison is still to be determined. But even if the Capitol building with all its inhabitants, Republican and Democrat, was suddenly converted into a penitentiary, the corporations would only double down on the next class of Congress. If I believed anything about how Barack Obama would approach his presidency, it was that he would have cast light on the unsavory underbelly of the Washington Beltway. That brutal honesty is the change I believe America thought it was voting for. We need an Obama who will not relent on the reforms that America needs; and bring aboard more like him. And if President Obama cannot or will not lead his own charge, then bring on someone else who will. America needs that change…and that you can believe in.

Note: Check out the documentary and the feature film

Casino Jack and the United States of Money is a documentary directed by Alex Gibney

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1540814/

Casino Jack is a feature film starring Kevin Spacey, Jon Lovitz and Kelly Preston opens in theaters December 17. It is already receiving Oscar buzz.

http://www.imdb.com/find?s=all&q=casino+jack

Did Juan Williams Need to be Fired?

Sun, 24 Oct 2010 01:10:00 -0400

Greer McVay’s Web Log (BLOG)

Volume 1, Issue 17

October 23, 2010

When you listen to Juan Williams in the context of Fox News and its resident commentators, he sounds no better or no worse; he fits right in. He has a right to say what he wants and if his employer has no problem with it, he can even voice his opinions on air. Apparently however, at least one of his employers did have a problem with it.

Williams admitted to having momentary lapses of comfort when traveling by air due to the presence of people he assumes to be Muslims, thus enemies. I don’t think he is all too far from the rest of us. We do try to be politically correct by not admitting our own prejudices and insecurities. However, that doesn’t eliminate the reality that we sometimes have unsavory thoughts going through our heads.

The issue here, however, is two-fold. First, how did Juan Williams, or I or you, or Beck or O’Reilly get to be so damned afraid of Muslims or Blacks or gays (or fill-in-the blanks)? It happened because we see a person in a burqa or other “Muslim garb” and feel a momentary twinge of trepidation because it has been beat into our heads for eight long years that we need to be afraid. Be very afraid.

What do you expect to happen when terror alerts are constantly hovering between deep-orange and fire engine red? What do you expect when we are entertained by scary television shows about Cops, or being Locked Up Raw, and America’s Most Wanted? What are our choices when our president gives us a daily directive to be vigilant in airports, shopping malls and public gathering places? What comes to mind when you wake up every single morning with news of yet another suicide bombing in a Baghdad market place? And how can you feel comfortable when your vice president will not come out of hiding from his secret undisclosed location? We have been programmed and conditioned to be afraid of any and everything that we do not understand.

Juan Williams simply made the mistake [if you could call getting a shiny new $2 Million contract a mistake] of stating his honest fear of Muslims in a discussion that lasted longer than a soundbite. The context of statements was that he has these fears but he has to catch himself and make sure he doesn’t disenfranchise all Muslims due to the actions of 20 radical Wahabi fundamentalists. According to a recent article by Jack Mirkinson, published on Huffington Post, ‘Williams did go on to tell Bill O'Reilly that he had to be "careful" to stress that he was not talking about all Muslims when he criticized some and that America was not at war with Islam. He also compared blaming all Muslims for the actions of extremists to blaming all Christians for the actions of Timothy McVeigh.’ But since we have dumbed down America and have everyone doing so much with so little, no one has time to listen to anything that is longer than 27 words.

Yep, that’s it. Twenty seven words, nine seconds and three messages is what studies have proven is all we can handle at any one time. With any more than that we go into overload. So if the three messages that have been a steady drumbeat for us are–Muslims killed us on 9-11; be afraid; and Democrats want to give all of your hard earned money to people who don’t belong (like Muslims and other dark people)–then of course you’ll find yourself considering voting for a witch or a Nazi-re-enactor.

The second lesson to learn from this Juan Williams incident is regardless of how he feels about Muslims, he [seemingly] doesn’t act on those fears. He didn’t indicate that he cancels trips when faced with a turban at the boarding gate. Nor does he show up at their funerals and incite a group of radical followers to hold up signs in protest shouting how God wanted them dead. Instead, he found an audience sympathetic to his fears and then pulled back the reins on fear-mongering by reminding people that his fears were somewhat unfounded and his reaction to his own feelings was key. It seemed logical to me. One might even argue that he’s the one sane voice on a network woefully lacking in diversity and tolerance.

I am also dismayed by Williams’ portrayal of how his firing transpired. According to him, his boss, who had it in for him, refused to listen to his side of the story and stated emphatically that nothing he had to say would change her mind. Of her, I ask one question: Do the words Shirley Sherrod have no meaning to you? Being sensitive to the feelings of others is a nice concept and goal but doing so at the expense of getting all the facts can lead to bigger trouble …and lawsuits…and bad press…and loss of federal funding.

When all is said and done my fellow Americans, the left and the right need to recognize that the sword we swing is the same one that will cut us. You cannot simultaneously vilify Muslims for exercising their right to build a religious facility on your “sacred ground” while embracing the rights to free speech of a pastor who chooses to burn their Qur’an; nor can we salute CNN for firing Rick Sanchez for exercising his right to free speech by calling Jon Stewart a bigot but chastise NPR for firing Williams for sharing his experiences. Dr. Laura is another story…

I have seen more than my share of discriminatory actions against minorities in my lifetime. I am no longer shocked by white men making a dollar for every 87 cents earned by black men or for every 76 cents earned by white women or for every 62 cents earned by black women when the work is equivalent; It doesn’t faze me when a seasoned employee is outsourced or downsized in favor of a novice who will work for half the pay and won’t be around long enough to receive the pension the older worker should receive; and I don’t lose sleep when I hear distasteful jokes about bad Asian drivers, lazy Mexican workers or Black welfare queens. It’s all the same to me: It’s a sad commentary on our inability to coexist peacefully. It is someone exercising their freedom of speech at the expense of others necessitating the open and frank discussion of our history required to launch a long-overdue healing process. It is something that will not go away until we deal with it and make it go away. For now, I accept that this is an national shortcoming.

I understand why a white woman might clutch her purse tightly when a Black man gets on an elevator; she's been taught to be fearful. But I’d also understand if a Black man does a double take when he comes across a group of White guys drinking beer near their pickup truck; there's some negative history there. There is ample fear and loathing to blanket the races, religions, genders, cultures, classes, age-, education-, and socio-economic groups.

We are all entitled to feel what we feel and we should be encouraged to participate in a conversation about those feelings. What is not alright is that we try to scare others into sharing our paranoia. It is also not alright to avoid hiring a black man although we know he is well-qualified for a job because he just might be the one Rush Limbaugh warned us about. Without defending Juan Williams, I have to admit that I hope his termination was not based on this particular episode of disclosure. I have witnessed a wide outpouring of derision as well as support for him. Opinions as divergent as ‘Williams is a hero for shining a light on race and civil rights in Eyes on the Prize’ to casting him as social pariah and a Muslim-ophobe. He may be both and he may be neither but it doesn’t really matter either way; he is entitled to his feelings. However, both sides of the political spectrum will construe the details of this occasion to advance their own agenda.

Republican leaders have already lionized this man, whom few would invite to their cocktail party. I’m sure Williams is a nice enough man, but his affiliation with the Fox News Channel and his willingness to pander to the anti-Obama rhetoric on the right gives Progressives reason to seek his ouster for any cause. Conversely, Williams’ willingness to divulge that he feels threatened by a group who currently rank as public enemy number one has the neo-cons frothing at the mouth, much the same as when they smelled blood with ACORN. Further, it was the right who are largely responsible for casting Muslims as the boogeyman. Each side tries to create a reality and when we stumble into the narrative that they set for us we become pawns in their game. Juan Williams is a pawn. I just hope he knows it.

So for now, let’s allow NPR to make its staffing decisions in peace. Let’s focus on what needs to be focused on like getting out the vote. And let’s leave trivial sideshow issues where they belong. If we are really ready to have a serious dialogue on race then let’s have it (after next Tuesday). In the meantime, if we allow ourselves to be distracted every time Ginny Thomas calls Anita Hill or Christine O’Donnell reminds us she is not a witch, we will miss the millions of dollars being funneled into our electoral system by overseas interests. As a result we may miss this opportunity to fix the damage that has been done to our county.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/22/bill-oreilly-juan-williams-npr_n_772281.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/farai-chideya/what-everyone-is-missing_b_772849.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/22/npr-ombudsman-juan-williams_n_772377.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/22/cantor-republican-leaders_n_772405.html