Political Bits

Building all-American; Charlestown real estate news, Foxboro says NO to the Patriots; we're all gonna die (redux), Ron Paul is nuts, Rick Perry discovers Canada
By Will Collette

We can build with MADE IN AMERICA materials. Despite the terrible beating American manufacturing has taken, here is proof that it is possible to build any entire, fully-equipped American home with ALL-AMERICAN materials. And you can do it within 1% or 2% of the price of using imported construction material. And the materials are not only competitively priced with their foreign counterparts, but of much better quality. AND by simply insisting on “Made in America” goods, we can create hundreds of thousands of American jobs.

Watch the video here. . Then go to the resource links on this page including lots of lists with contact information for US made construction materials.  

Zillow says Charlestown home values continue to fall. From Zillow.com:

Affordable housing, Charlestown-style
The old motel at 34 Prosser

Zillow shows ZERO – none – no rental units available in Charlestown. RealtyTrac.com shows eight bank-owned properties priced in the “affordable” range and three homes about to go up for auction. RealtyTrac also shows 10 homes priced in the affordable range – however half of them are converted old motel rooms at 34 Prosser Trail.

Foxboro board of selectmen say NO to Bob Kraft and proposed resort casino at Patriot Place. Patriots’ owner Bob Kraft and Las Vegas casino developer Steve Wynn propose to build a $1 billion resort casino right on Route One. Last month, the Foxboro Planning Commission voted against key zoning changes they needed. On Monday, December 26, the selectmen voted 3-2 in opposition to the project and refuse to even open negotiations with the Kraft-Wynn group. This vote does not kill the project, however.

Supporters of the project want to see the issue go before the voters. If this casino project goes forward, it will almost certainly kill Rhode Island’s Twin River slot parlor and the millions of dollars it generates in state revenues. That lost of Rhode Island revenue would probably trigger more cuts to state programs and infrastructure, since our legislature seems unlikely to reverse the years of income tax cuts the state has given its wealthiest residents.

It may also increase pressure for Rhode Island to establish its own resort or full-service gambling venue to at least recoup some of the money a Patriots casino would take away from Twin River. And Larry LeBlanc still has those 81 acres!

NASA photo of coronal mass (left side of the sun)
due to hit the Earth today

End of the World, or just cell phone service? The sun did some Christmas Day fireworks and threw off a massive Coronal Mass Ejection. NASA’s Solar-Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) caught the eruption on film and estimates the mass will hit the Earth sometime this week. This is not an unusual occurrence, but also not one that happens every day. Our planet is protected by its naturally occurring magnetic fields which should deflect most of the blast. In high latitudes, there may be especially intense aurora activities. The flares can also degrade the quality of satellite signals, affecting everything from your TV reception, to cell phones and computers. This flare will pass over and through us and then is expected to hit Mars. Mars doesn’t have the same magnetic and atmospheric protection is likely to blast Mars with high energy particles. Read more here.

Ron Paul is nuts. This isn’t exactly news, but as his position within the Republican Presidential field makes him more of a contender, he is getting a lot more scrutiny. Most recently, The Hill  ran a piece with quotes from former Ron Paul Congressional staffer Eric Dondero on Paul’s views about Jews, Jewish conspiracies, 9/11 conspiracies and more.

Some samples of Dondero’s reflections on Ron Paul: "He wishes the Israeli state did not exist at all. He expressed this to me numerous times in our private conversations. His view is that Israel is more trouble than it is worth, specifically to the American taxpayer…. "

"He strenuously does not believe the United States had any business getting involved in fighting Hitler in WWII. He expressed to me countless times, that 'saving the Jews,' was absolutely none of our business. When pressed, he often times [sic] brings up conspiracy theories like FDR knew about the attacks of Pearl Harbor weeks before hand [sic], or that WWII was just 'blowback,' for Woodrow Wilson’s foreign policy errors, and such…. "

"Ron Paul was opposed to the War in Afghanistan, and to any military reaction to the attacks of 9/11. He did not want to vote for the resolution. He immediately stated to us staffers, me in particular, that Bush/Cheney were going to use the attacks as a precursor for 'invading' Iraq. He engaged in conspiracy theories including perhaps the attacks were coordinated with the CIA, and that the Bush administration might have known about the attacks ahead of time.”


Geography lesson from Rick Perry. “Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil that we don’t have to buy from a foreign source,” Mr. Perry said in Clarinda, earning a loud round of enthusiastic applause. Too bad Canadians can't vote in US elections.