Obama to China: Uncensored society is healthy

BEIJING - President Barack Obama sat down with the Chinese leader Monday night, hours after he pointedly nudged his host country to stop censoring the Internet access, offering an animated defense of the tool that helped him win the White House - and suggested Beijing need not fear a little criticism.

The president's message during a town hall-style meeting with university students in Shaghai, China's commercial hub, focused on one of the trickiest issues separating China's communist government and the United States - human rights.

In a delicately balanced message, Obama couched his admonitions with words calling for cooperation, heavy with praise and American humility.

"I think that the more freely information flows, the stronger the society becomes, because then citizens of countries around the world can hold their own governments accountable," Obama told students during his first-ever trip to China. "They can begin to think for themselves."

The first-term U.S. president and his delegation later arrived at the Forbidden City for Obama's third meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao, where trade and economic issues were expected to dominate. The two leaders then sat down for what was expected to be a lavish dinner behind the walls surrounding the ancient city that was once home to Chinese emperors. They were scheduled to meet again Tuesday.

Obama's message, aside from his proddings on human rights, was clear: few global challenges can be solved unless the world's only superpower and its rising competitor work together. He and his advisers have insisted in virtually all public utterances since he arrived in Japan on Friday: "We do not seek to contain China's rise."

During Obama's opening statement to university students in Shanghai, he spoke bluntly about the benefits of individual freedoms in a country known for limiting them.

"We do not seek to impose any system of government on any other nation," Obama said. Then he added that freedom of expression and worship, unfettered access to information and unrestricted political participation are not principles held by the United States; instead, he called them "universal rights."

His administration doesn't seek to impose any system of government on any nation other than his own.

Weapons failed US troops during Afghan firefight

In the chaos of an early morning assault on a remote U.S. outpost in eastern Afghanistan, Staff Sgt. Erich Phillips' M4 carbine quit firing as militant forces surrounded the base. The machine gun he grabbed after tossing the rifle aside didn't work either.

When the battle in the small village of Wanat ended, nine U.S. soldiers lay dead and 27 more were wounded. A detailed study of the attack by a military historian found that weapons failed repeatedly at a "critical moment" during the firefight on July 13, 2008, putting the outnumbered American troops at risk of being overrun by nearly 200 insurgents.

Which raises the question: Eight years into the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, do U.S. armed forces have the best guns money can buy?

Despite the military's insistence that they do, a small but vocal number of troops in Afghanistan and Iraq has complained that the standard-issue M4 rifles need too much maintenance and jam at the worst possible times.

Jimmy Carter: Wilson comments 'based on racism'

"I think it's based on racism," Carter said at a town hall held at his presidential center in Atlanta. "There is an inherent feeling among many in this country that an African-American should not be president."

Oh! Now I understand! It's not about socialism, lying and corruption.

Ranger teams to go to Texas-Mexico border

Special teams of Texas Rangers will be deployed to the Texas-Mexico border to deal with increasing violence because the federal government has failed to address growing problems there, Gov. Rick Perry said Thursday

No, not baseball players...that's Texas Rangers as in "one riot, one ranger".

Fines proposed for going without health insurance

Baucus would require that all Americans get health insurance once the system is overhauled. Penalties for failing to do so would start at $750 a year for individuals and $1,500 for families. Households making more than three times the federal poverty level - about $66,000 for a family of four - would face the maximum fines. For families, it would be $3,800, and for individuals, $950.

No way am I ever going to pay a fine!

Have you...

...spoken to your Congress Critter lately?

Senate Republicans delay Sotomayor vote

...for a whole week. Like that is going to do any good. As the socialist.gov says, it's a done deal. But further down in the article is this:

Susan Collins on Tuesday became the fourth Senate Republican to announce support for the nominee.

Every Republican that votes for her should be put out of office. It is as simple as that!