Cold War Olympics Vs. Al-Qaeda Olympics (Costas and Colbert Interview)

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Bob Costas
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Skate Expectations

Missle Defence Logo Sends Cries Throughout Internet -

 

The crescent shape in the logo has the Internets abuzz with questions...

The Digital Dictatorship

The Wall Street Journal ran this fascinating article

That flawed but vital stimulus bill | The Platform | STLtoday

That flawed but vital stimulus bill The Platform STLtoday

Mitt Romney Assaults Rapper

Hayek VS Keynes - Adventures in Economics

Department of Justice Report on Prison Population

ADVANCE FOR RELEASE AT 4:00 P.M. EST	Bureau of Justice Statistics
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2009	Contact: Kara McCarthy (202) 307-1241
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs	After hours: (202) 598-0556

GROWTH IN THE TOTAL CORRECTIONAL POPULATION DURING 2008
WAS THE SLOWEST IN EIGHT YEARS

 

    WASHINGTON – At yearend 2008, 7.3 million men and women were under correctional supervision, including 70 percent (about 5.1 million) who were supervised in the community on probation or parole and 30 percent (about 2.3 million) who were held in the custody of prisons or jails, the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today. The correctional population increased by 0.5 percent during 2008, about a third of the average annual rate of growth since 2000 (1.6 percent), and the increase in the number under correctional supervision (33,900 offenders) was the smallest annual increase in the population since 2000.

    State and federal correctional authorities had jurisdiction or legal authority over more than 1.6 million prisoners at the end of 2008, the equivalent of about one in every 198 persons in the U.S. Growth in the prison population slowed to 0.8 percent during 2008, the smallest annual rate of growth since 2000. Prison populations declined in 20 states during 2008, led by New York (down 2,273), Georgia (down 1,537), and Michigan (down 1,495) with the largest absolute decreases.

    Prison population growth slowed in 2008, as the number admitted into prison decreased (down 0.5 percent) while the number released from prison increased (2.0 percent). The decline in prison admissions was led by a decrease in new court commitments into state prisons (down 0.5 percent), while the growth in releases was led by increases in the number of prisoners released unconditionally (8 percent) through an expiration of their terms, a commutation, or other unconditional releases.

    The decline in the growth of the prison population that occurred during 2008 continues a declining trend in its rate of growth. From 2000 to 2008, the prison population increased an average of 1.8 percent annually, less than a third of the average annual rate during the 1990s (6.5 percent). Slower growth in the prison population since 2000 has been associated with a decrease (down about 18,400) in the number of sentenced black prisoners, lowering the imprisonment rates for blacks to 3,161 men and 149 women per 100,000 in the U.S. resident black population.

    The equivalent of about one in every 45 adults was under community supervision at yearend 2008. Among offenders supervised in the community, probationers (4,270,917) represented the majority (84 percent) of this population at yearend 2008 while parolees (828,169) accounted for a smaller share (16 percent). The probation population increased 0.9 percent (36,446 probationers) in 2008. Growth in the probation population slowed in recent years to an average of 0.7 percent annually between 2003 and 2008 from an average of 2.5 percent annually between 2000 and 2003.

    Probation exits (2.4 percent) grew at a faster average annual rate than probation entries (1.5 percent) between 2006 and 2008, and the average annual rate of growth in the population slowed (0.7 percent). The exit rate for all probationers increased from 53 per 100 probationers in 2006 to 55 per 100 in 2008. The increase in the exit rate for all probationers was associated with an increase in the percentage of probationers who either completed their full-term probation sentence or received an early discharge between 2006 (58 percent) and 2008 (63 percent).

    In 2008, the parole population increased by 6,992 parolees. Growth in the parole population during 2008 (0.9 percent) slowed to about a third of the average annual rate between 2005 and 2007 (2.6 percent), the fastest period of growth in the parole population since 2000. Parole exits (5.6 percent) grew at a faster rate than parole entries (2.1 percent) in 2008, and growth in the population slowed during the year. The exit rate for all parolees increased from 67 per 100 parolees in 2007 to 70 per 100 in 2008. The increase in the parole exit rate during the last year was associated with an increase in the percentage of parolees who either completed their full-term parole sentence or received an early discharge, from 46 percent in 2007 to 49 percent in 2008.

    The report, Prisoners in 2008 (NCJ-228417), was written by BJS statisticians William J. Sabol, Ph.D., Heather C. West, Ph.D., and BJS intern Matthew Cooper, and the report, Probation and Parole in the United States, 2008 (NCJ-228230), was written by BJS statisticians Lauren E. Glaze and Thomas P. Bonczar. Following publication, Prisoners in 2008 can be found at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=1763 and Probation and Parole in the United States, 2008 can be found at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=1764.

    For additional information about the Bureau of Justice Statistics' statistical reports and programs, please visit the BJS Web site at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm.

# # #

    The Office of Justice Programs (OJP), headed by Assistant Attorney General Laurie O. Robinson, provides federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice, and assist victims. OJP has five component bureaus: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; and the Office for Victims of Crime. In addition, OJP has two program offices: the Community Capacity Development Office, which incorporates the Weed and Seed strategy, and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART). More information can be found at http://www.ojp.gov.

BJS10031

Page last revised on February 15, 2010

Sarah Palin - Why I'm Speaking at the Tea Party Convention

Why I'm speaking at Tea Party convention
By Sarah Palin

Later this week I'll head to Nashville, where I'll have the honor of speaking with members of the Tea Party movement. I look forward to meeting many Americans who share a commitment to limited government, common sense and personal responsibility. This movement is truly a grassroots, organic effort. It's not a top-down organization; it's a ground-up call to action that already has both political parties rethinking the way they do business. From the town halls last summer to the protests and marches in the fall to the game-changing recent elections, it has been inspiring to see real people — not politicos or inside-the-Beltway professionals — speak out for common-sense conservative policies and values. As with all grassroots efforts, the nature of this movement means that sometimes the debates are loud and the organization is messier than that of a polished, controlled machine. Legitimate disagreements take place about tone and tactics. That's OK, because this movement is about bigger things than politics or organizers. The soul of the Tea Party is the people who belong to it — everyday Americans who grow our food, run our small businesses, teach our children how to read, serve the less fortunate and fight our wars. They're folks in small towns and cities across this nation who saw what was happening to our country and decided to get involved. Thank God for them. Many of these good Americans had never been involved in their government before, but now they attend town hall meetings and participate in online forums. They write letters to the editor. They sign up to be precinct leaders and run for local office and support other independent patriots. They have the courage to stand up and speak out. Their vision is what drew me to the Tea Party movement. They believe in the same principles that guided my work in public service — whether I was working on the PTA and city council or serving as a mayor, commissioner or governor. I look forward to meeting some of these great Americans this weekend. Recently, some have tried to portray this movement as a commercial endeavor rather than the grassroots uprising that it is. Those who do so don't understand the frustration everyday Americans feel when they see their government mortgaging their children's future with reckless spending. The spark of patriotic indignation that inspired those who fought for our independence and those who marched peacefully for civil rights has ignited once again. You can't buy such a sentiment. You can't AstroTurf it. It springs from love of country and the knowledge that we can make a difference if we just stand up and stand together. I thought long and hard about my participation in this weekend's event. At the end of the day, my decision came down to this: It's important to keep faith with people who put a little bit of their faith in you. Everyone attending this event is a soldier in the cause. Some of them will be driving hundreds of miles to Nashville. I made a commitment to them to be there, and I am going to honor it. But participation won't be limited to those in Nashville who have a ticket. It's much bigger than that. Because the Tea Party movement is spread out across the country — with no central offices or annual events — this is an opportunity to connect with like-minded folks. Yes, there will be speeches given in a room in Nashville. But we'll also be speaking with thousands of Americans watching online at twitter.com/SarahPalinUSA, or through various news outlets. And the conversation will continue on my Facebook page. I will not benefit financially from speaking at this event. My only goal is to support the grassroots activists who are fighting for responsible, limited government — and our Constitution. In that spirit, any compensation for my appearance will go right back to the cause. The nature of the Tea Party movement means there may never be a "perfectly orchestrated" event: Democracy in action doesn't come with a manual. But we must not get caught up in the politics or the controversies that some hope will distract from the heart of the movement. The focus must remain on our ideas and beliefs, and on supporting those ideas and beliefs however we can. This weekend, it's Nashville, but in March, I'll head to Searchlight, Nev., for the kickoff rally at the Tea Party Express III. In April, I'll be in Boston for a Tea Party gathering there. Across the country, tea-partiers will be sharing our vision for America's future, a vision that promotes common sense solutions to out-of-control spending and an out-of-touch political establishment. The process may not always be pretty or perfect, but the message is loud and clear: We want a government worthy of the fine Americans that it serves. And we're going to keep spreading that message one convention, one town hall, one speech and one election at a time. Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska, was the 2008 Republican nominee for vice president. (AP.)

Ron Paul on Tea Party Movement

The first national Tea Party Convention convenes in Nashville, TN today and can be viewed live on Pajamas Media TV. Ron Paul answered questions regarding the movement in an interview with the National Journal online. Excerpt:

National Journal: The Tea Party has evolved largely through citizen groups. But you also have the Nashville convention coming up, where Sarah Palin will be a central figure. How do you feel about her role in sort this movement that often prides itself as leaderless?
Paul: The question of a leaderless movement, I think that’s hard to totally conceive of. I can see an amorphous movement, where there’s not one single person that owns the movement. But I think there’s always a leader. To me, the real leadership has to come philosophically in what you believe in, and certain individuals represent those views. But when it’s a philosophic movement, it can be amorphous. It can be spread out. To me, it’s sort of like asking, “Who’s the leader of the Keynesian economic philosophy?” Everybody’s a Keynesian in Washington because they believe in government intervention in the economy, but there’s no one single leader
Full Story
The question on leadership could derail negative press .

Tea Party

Mike Huckabee Down on Obama's Stance with Isreal