Politicalization of the DOJ Continues.....

[Whirlaway]

The Gibson Guitar Saga Gets Steadily Curiouser...(and other stories on Obama job failures)

These days, you can’t keep up with all the news. There is just too much going on. So inevitably, there are interesting stories that you have to catch up with when you can, like a moving train. The Justice Department’s raid on four Gibson guitar factories is in that category. The raid took place last Wednesday; this Memphis Daily News story, published this morning, is a good place to start:

Around 8:45 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 24, agents executed four search warrants on Gibson facilities in the two cities [Nashville and Memphis]. They seized several pallets of wood, electronic files and guitars.

But Gibson’s CEO says his company has not been told what it did wrong and that he assumes the allegation is that some of the wood being used to manufacture the company’s guitars is illegal.

“Everything is sealed. They won’t tell us anything,” Juszkiewicz said, never raising his voice but pulling no punches in his defense of the storied guitar maker.

He valued the equipment and raw materials seized from Gibson at almost $1 million. At one point, the chief executive said he’s letting the U.S. Justice Department know he’s telling his employees to keep making the instruments. …

“We feel totally abused,” he continued. “We believe the arrogance of federal power is impacting me personally, our company personally and the employees here in Tennessee, and it’s just plain wrong.”

The company stated it assumes the raid stems from an alleged violation of the U.S. Lacey Act, legislation that requires anyone coming into the U.S. to declare with unambiguous specificity the nature of materials being brought into the country.

According to Gibson: “The U.S. Lacey Act does not directly address conservation issues but is about obeying all laws of the countries from which wood products are procured. This law reads that you are guilty if you did not observe a law even though you had no knowledge of that law in a foreign country. The U.S. Lacey Act is only applicable when a foreign law has been violated.”

Mr. Juszkiewicz says that the government of the country where the rosewood comes from certified it for export, and Gibson jumps through rather elaborate hoops before it buys the wood after it is imported to the U.S. The Lacey Act, which puts American importers of exotic woods at risk, is discussed here. One of the ironies, as you might expect, is that America is a trivial importer of rosewood from Madagascar and India. 95% of it goes to China, where it is used to make luxury items like $800,000 beds. So putting Gibson out of business isn’t going to do a whole lot for the forests of Madagascar.


It has come out that Juszkiewicz is a Republican donor, while the CEO of one of his principal competitors, C.F. Martin & Company, is a Democratic donor. Martin reportedly uses the same wood, but DOJ hasn’t raided them, leading to speculation that the Obama administration is sending a warning to Republican businessmen that they had better not oppose his re-election, lest they face criminal investigations. Normally such speculation would not be credible, but Eric Holder has politicized the Department of Justice to a point where such questions must be taken seriously.

Oh, one more thing: if Gibson has violated the Lacey Act, so, perhaps, has Michelle Obama, who gave French First Lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy a Gibson Hummingbird acoustic guitar with a rosewood fret. Maybe, when the time comes, she can share a cell with Mr. Juszkiewicz.


If nothing else, this incident illustrates the misguided priorities of the Obama administration. Harassing American businesses on frivolous grounds is not exactly what our economy needs at the moment. But the anti-business Obama administration just can’t help itself.

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archive...-curiouser.php

[wellendowed1911]

*yaaawwwnnnnnn* and in today's other news............

[TheDaliLama]

Les Paul is rolling over in his grave.

[WTF]

Originally Posted by TheDaliLama

Les Paul is rolling over in his grave.

[surcher]

I'd be ROFLMAO if I could, but I'm still LMAO at Whirly's commentary. Was it his or that of the anonymous emailer from where this originated? Either way, they don't know why Gibson was raided by the DOJ at this time, but they're positive the Obama administration is behind it, cause the CEO is a republican. TFF!

Whirly, why did you leave the common sense world of reality?

[Whirlaway]

Drip...drip...drip....the sound of one negative story after another of Obama's failures....his poll numbers continue to fall.....drip...drip...drip... ...

We will see who will be ROFLMA come Nov-2012.....

[TexTushHog]

If they're pissed off at Gibson and favoring Martin, why did they give Carla Bruni an Gibson guitar rather than a Martin?

Only reason I could think is that since she's likely going to be a centa-millionaire or a billionaire in her own name when her father dies, so she's got all the Martin's that she wants and that they're the better guitar in any event. And the guitar doesn't have "rosewood frets". I may have a rosewood fingerboard, but I'll bet dollars to donuts it doesn't have rosewood frets.

[surcher]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

We will see who will be ROFLMA come Nov-2012.....

Even some stupid people have common sense and eventually stop buying bullshit. That's why in Nov. 2012 you'll be ROFCYAO. In case you can't figure it out, it's crying your ass off.

You never answered my question. Whirly, why did you leave the common sense world of reality? Better yet, when did you lose your common sense?


When it comes to acoustic, Martin is better. Everyone loves Les Paul's.

[TexTushHog]

Originally Posted by surcher

When it comes to acoustic, Martin is better. Everyone loves Les Paul's.

I agree with your first sentence. So if this is politically motivated, why did Obama give Carla Bruni a Gibson acoustic guitar instead of a Martin?

And while I don't mind a Les Paul, I wouldn't take a half dozen of them for either my Strat or my Tele Deluxe. The Gibson SG is my third electric in preference to a Les Paul, too. My next electric is going to be a Gibson hollow body. So the Les Paul is fairly low on my list.

[IIFFOFRDB]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/08/29...est=latestnews

Originally Posted by wellendowed1911

*yaaawwwnnnnnn* and in today's other news............

[surcher]

Originally Posted by TexTushHog

I agree with your first sentence. So if this is politically motivated, why did Obama give Carla Bruni a Gibson acoustic guitar instead of a Martin?

And while I don't mind a Les Paul, I wouldn't take a half dozen of them for either my Strat or my Tele Deluxe. The Gibson SG is my third electric in preference to a Les Paul, too. My next electric is going to be a Gibson hollow body. So the Les Paul is fairly low on my list.

It is a matter of personal taste and I'm with you on the Strat. LP's are heavy and their sound isn't for all types of music. As a teen in the '70's, strats and LP's were my favs, each having a different sound. Clapton and Jimi were strat men, while Page and others preferred LP's. Ted loved the hollow body. Today there are so many good electric guitar makers it all comes down to taste and feel.


And now back to the absurd world of Whirly!

It's not the first time Gibson was raided. it happened in '09 too. It appears Madagascar ebony may be the reason, according to TWSJ, not because Obama wants to send republican businessmen a message.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...471223268.html

However, it is brain dead idiots who copy, paste and forward chain emails, with fact-less, untrue commentary, to other brain dead idiots who take it as fact and forward it to more like minded people, thus perpetuating the spread of disdain and ignorance across this country. Whirly, you are guilty as charged. Stop spreading ignorance.

[Whirlaway]

I agree...Obama is such a fucked-up President that it is laughable (if not sad) how broad the story lines of his mis-mangement of our country extends.....his failures/shortcomings/mismanagement have become so routine that is boarderline boring; if it wasn't so important !

Originally Posted by wellendowed1911

*yaaawwwnnnnnn* and in today's other news............

[surcher]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

I agree...Obama is such a fucked-up President that it is laughable (if not sad) how broad the story lines of his mis-mangement of our country extends.....his failures/shortcomings/mismanagement have become so routine that is boarderline boring; if it wasn't so important !

You skate the issue of you promoting lies and ignorance, yet try to defend your post with incomprehensible dribble rather than admit you posted another lie. And you name Obama as the fuck up and reason that made you do it.

Stop blaming Obama for you making up shit and passing along lies! We're trying to fight ignorance and you're championing it!

[CuteOldGuy]

Guitar companies, raw milk producers and lemonade stands. Thank God for President Obama protecting us from these evildoers.

[Whirlaway]

Super Surcher To The Rescue.......



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEVsRLhet2k

Metropolis can sleep well tonight knowing Surcher is seeking out truth and fighting evil !

Originally Posted by surcher

We're trying to fight ignorance and you're championing it!