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Post a Comment On: Steve Sailer: iSteve

"New info on the Rezko-Obama land deal"

26 Comments -

1 – 26 of 26
Anonymous dearieme said...

Ali Baba.

12/12/08, 3:48 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Obama's press conference yesterday went truly hilarious when he waxed tragic on the two kinds of politicians in the world: The Crooked (like Blago) and The Pure (like Obama).

Barack Obama is a sociopathic liar. Another lowlife in the Clinton, Nixon, Johnson, JFK mold. Other human beings register as objects to this sort of personality.

The evidence is disturbing: Televised democracy produces a critical mass of sociopathic leaders.

12/12/08, 4:28 AM

Anonymous TBA said...

I don't know much about wheeling and dealing, but it does say that Rezko paid too much, not that Obama paid too little: "[t]he Rezko lot was grossly overvalued." Isn't it possible that Rezko was bribing the seller, without Obama being involved?

12/12/08, 4:42 AM

Blogger togo said...

I seem to recall stories about the Russian Mob being involved in medicaid/medicare fraud in NYC and/or FL. The Chicago "Outfit" (through the old First Ward Dem Org)
got control of the City Health Dept during the Jane Byrne administration.

The above, no doubt, just the tip of the iceberg.

12/12/08, 6:00 AM

Anonymous Yuvi said...

How are sales going of the book? Pretty slow, I'd guess, from the number of times you keep plugging it.

12/12/08, 6:22 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

If Rezko's intent following purchase was never to build on the land, and Obama continued to own the home into the indefinite future, the Rezko purchase would be indistinguishable from a gift for the whole $300,000 amount.

As a sidenote, the typical 8 yard wide or so rectangular shoebox size lot in nicer Chicago neighborhoods, ideal for a 4,500 square foot tri- or quad-level home) goes (or recently went) for about $500,000.

12/12/08, 8:32 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I call the health care biz the "Medical-Industrial Complex."

Don't get me wrong, they do a lot of great things. If I were broken into a million pieces in a car wreck or stricken with cancer, I'd want these talented folks to put me back together again. Having said that...

I think we've become a nation of over-medicated hypochondriacs. People love going to the doctor. It gives lonely people something to do and someone to talk to, it gives boring people something to talk about, it gets them "medicine" which makes them feel good, it gets them excused from work, it gives them an excuse for all their short-comings ("I'm not fat because I over-eat, I have a medical disorder!)," and frequently provides support for legal claims and applications for government or private "disability" benefits. Americans LOVE those MRIs! "See, I have a hermniated disc!"

Of course, for profit medical care is more than happy to oblige these people, and charge ever higher rates as more and more people resort to Medicare and Medicaid, which pay a small percentage of the actual bill.

And who is willing to say "No?" Health care providers like getting paid, people like going to the doctor, the pharmaceutical firms who advertise non-stop are down with it... Win! Win! The problem is, the opportunity for scamming is immense.

12/12/08, 9:01 AM

Anonymous headache said...

Obama's methodology of keeping the rot just below the liberal MSM radar screen would of course not work if he were white or a Republican. But even for this Dem the "scandal-standard" must be very low indeed.

12/12/08, 9:24 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ali Baba - at least there would be a cap on the number of thieves, a maximum of 40.

12/12/08, 9:44 AM

Anonymous travis said...

"In Chicago, Arab operators like Rezko don't control enough votes to matter, so they have to pay to play."

Looks like Indians in Chicago have to pay to play, as well. I just want out of a union with such people. Not much has changed since 1860.

12/12/08, 11:07 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I would imagine that the last thing the One, the Messiah and the President Elect wants is for all this old dirt to be raked over again and again.

It's distracting!

12/12/08, 2:43 PM

Anonymous tommy said...

Watching MSNBC and CNN, I'm not certain which is the more important story: Blagojevich's scheming or the fact that Obama had nothing to do with it.

Obama's methodology of keeping the rot just below the liberal MSM radar screen would of course not work if he were white or a Republican. But even for this Dem the "scandal-standard" must be very low indeed.

No, that isn't correct. I'm certain the likes of Chris Matthews would be just as fair and impartial if this were a Republican. I'm positive.

12/12/08, 3:57 PM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

>How are sales going of the book? >Pretty slow, I'd guess, from the >number of times you keep plugging >it.

I have a feeling that wen the new administration gets going on all 12, interest in the real Obama will be picking up, major like.

12/12/08, 4:54 PM

Anonymous Hittite said...

After reading story after story like this, do any of you Euro-descended folks out there ever get the feeling you're yesterday's news?

12/12/08, 5:16 PM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'd like to know what Michelle did for the University of Chicago Hospitals for the huge salary she was getting.

12/12/08, 5:33 PM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

One thing Michelle Obama did at the University of Chicago was to tell the medical researchers that asking for the cooperation of locals in testing the vaccine against the cervical cancer causing virus was the same thing as when the government “gave” syphilis to those black men in the Tuskegee experiment. The source for that is the New York Times.

Note also that the notion that the government “gave” syphilis to those black men is in line with the statements of Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright, Jr., and his comments on the Tuskegee syphilis experiment and the government role in AIDs.

12/12/08, 7:44 PM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

See more articles from Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL)

Governor's remarks on his ACT raise eyebrows.(News)

Article from:
Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL)
Article date:
April 22, 2005
Author:
Patterson, John
More results for:
ACT score blagojevich 18

Byline: John Patterson Daily Herald State Government Editor

SPRINGFIELD - As a candidate, Rod Blagojevich joked about getting a D in algebra, and since becoming governor his tales of academic malaise have included a C in constitutional law and, most recently, a middling ACT score.

"I had an 18 on my ACT score. I'm told that's kind of in the middle, maybe just a little bit below. If I can be governor of Illinois," Blagojevich told Mihan Lee, an award-winning high school student, during the nationally televised opening ceremonies for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, "Mihan, you can be president of the United States."

But his long-running comments about scholastic shortcomings continue even as he's demanding tougher graduation standards, telling students, "You can't get ahead without a good education."

The combination provides fodder for critics who question exactly what he's telling today's youth.

"It's a horrible message. He basically is celebrating his underachievement," said state Sen. Dan Cronin, an Elmhurst Republican and member of the Senate Education Committee. "I don't want to be too serious about it, but it's just stupid. ...If it's true, we may lose confidence in his abilities. And if it's not true, it's just stupid to say."

Cronin, a self-described "solid B" student, recalls getting a 28 or 29 on his ACT.

A spokeswoman for the governor said his self-deprecating comments are meant to show that those who don't score well on standardized tests can succeed. The governor's office would not release a copy of his academic transcripts to confirm his test scores or grades.

"He doesn't take himself too seriously. And now, the governor's in a position to give hope to kids, who, like him, didn't have everything handed to them," said spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff. "The lesson here is no matter where you come from or what your standardized test scores might be, don't give up. Believe in yourself and don't let others discourage you from pursuing your dreams."

After attending Foreman High School in Chicago, Blagojevich, now 48, received a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University in 1979.

Many Northwestern alumni at the statehouse were abuzz over how he could have possibly gotten into the school with an 18 on the ACT. Last year, only five students were admitted with scores below 20.

Blagojevich did not go straight to Northwestern. After high school, he attended the University of Tampa and then transferred. He later received a law degree from Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif.

As for his 18, it was roughly the average score in the mid- 1970s. The test was substantially revised in 1989 and a spokesman for the ACT said scores before and after are not directly comparable. The average national score did increase two points under the new test. Last year, the national average score was 20.9.

12/12/08, 11:48 PM

Anonymous wren said...

You didn't mention where Rezko ('s wife) got the money for all of this. That is pretty funny too.

12/13/08, 12:44 AM

Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is a fun post.

Here's an interesting detail Steve might like to know.

Over the summer, American Airlines and United Airlines both started direct flights from Chicago to Moscow.

Who wanted this? Mayor Daley.

There's business before the Governor's office and the State legislature right now. They're debating a "suburban Chicago" casino license. The Chicago Crime Commission continues to lobby to keep Rosemont, IL out of the running for the license.

Where's Rosemont, IL? It's right next to O'hare Airport.

About that Chicago 2016 Olympic bid...buy some call options while they're cheap.

12/13/08, 10:38 AM

Blogger albertosaurus said...

Obama seems destined to be the last black President.

There a good chance that in future generations people will say, "Black President? Are you crazy! We tried that and look where it got us."

It may very well be like trying to run as a peanut farmer.

12/13/08, 10:49 AM

Blogger albertosaurus said...

You can investigate the Tuskegee syphilis experiment yourself on Google. The racial aspects are interesting and may surprise you.

Almost all of the experimenters and administrators were black. The black medical establishment was proud of their participation. A white doctor was the first to see the continuance of the study as inappropriate. When the study began no one understood syphilis very well. Years later the disease was largely controlable and the long term Tuskegee experiment should have been stopped. The white doctor tried to shut it down. That shut down was opposed by a black nurse with the support of the black medical establishment.

Blacks weren't chosen because they were easier to exploit. They were chosen because there were so many blacks with syphilis. The experiment should have been terminated when syphilis better understood. However there was no pressure then to stop from blacks, just from whites.

12/13/08, 11:11 AM

Anonymous Mr. Anon said...

"Anonymous said...

I think we've become a nation of over-medicated hypochondriacs."

I agree. Americans have little sense of the tragic nature of life - that we are all going to die, no matter how much "access" we have to "health care". (Why do libs always harp so much on giving people "access to health care" rather than actual "health care" - I don't get it).

The desire that people have developed to traipse off to the local hospital or doctors office at the drop of a hat may in future be tempered by the rise of MRSA, antibiotic resistant TB, and the like.

BTW: the word verification code for this entry is "fines"

12/13/08, 11:17 AM

Anonymous l. ron hoover said...

Americans have little sense of the tragic nature of life - that we are all going to die...

To see that you don't have to go further than gnxp.com, where various callow commenters fantasize about the possibility of eternal life through technology.

12/14/08, 4:54 AM

Anonymous headache said...

" albertosaurus said...

There a good chance that in future generations people will say, "Black President? Are you crazy! We tried that and look where it got us."

And us white South Africans thought we were of substandard intelligence because the Brits and the Americans told us so. Shit, we figured this out even before the US and allies foisted Mandela on us. Xcept this knowledge won't help us cause WE are the minority.

12/14/08, 12:53 PM

Blogger Chic Noir said...

Note also that the notion that the government “gave” syphilis to those black men is in line with the statements of Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright, Jr., and his comments on the Tuskegee syphilis experiment and the government role in AIDs.

12/12/2008


Not true. IINM, the government has owned up to this. The Black nurse who worked on the study admitted that she was well aware of the study's goal.

12/15/08, 7:10 PM

Anonymous Michael Foody said...

This sounds about right as a plausible worse case scenario. There pretty clearly was something fishy going on. The extent of it is more ambiguous.

Rezko might have made the generous offer on the expectation of future favors. This would be bad obviously, but less bad. Obama would have known that something was up, but turned a blind eye to it.

The health care board thing is not
I don't really understand how the overvaluing of the side lot has anything to do with Obama though, and it seems like the timing of complaint was suspiciously politically motivated.

The hospital thing is incredibly murky. It isn't as though there were 10 upstanding civil servants, and 5 of Rezko's crooks. It's likely more complex than that. There are plenty of good reasons to cut the number of board seats. In fact reducing the amount of government officials is an atypical method of corruption. I think as a categorical imperative type rule, cutting the amount of government officials is generally going to reduce corruption as less pigs are around the trough. That said any change is going to have the opportunity to have corruption and in Chicago politics that's almost inevitable. Obama's no saint, that's for sure, but I wouldn't characterize him as particularly lacking in integrity either compared to other politicians or even human beings.

12/16/08, 11:12 AM

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