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My legs are tingling in anticipation of this movie.

See longer trailer and more info here.

One of the top searches coming here from Google lately is for Anti Barack Obama desktop wallpaper. We’ve got a number of Anti Obama T-Shirts, do I guess its only fitting we offer some free Anti Obama wallpaper for visitors of American Elephant.

So here it is. I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to install as the background for your computer at home, at work, at the public library, your local Best Buy, or anywhere else where a computer may be seen. Spread the word, Barack Obama is not right for America.

Like all Desktop Wallpapers available at AmericanElephant.com, feel free to use, install or pass around to your friends. But please remember to give us credit when you do. This Anti Obama Desktop Wallpaper is available in a variety of sizes for both traditional (4:3) and widescreen (16:9 & 16:10) monitors

For Traditional 4:3 Monitors

• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1600 x 1200
• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1152 x 864
• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1024 x 768
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For Widescreen 16:9 Monitors

• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1600 x 900
• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1366 x 768

For Widescreen 16:10 Monitors

• Anti Obama Wallpaper 1680 x 1050
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Note: If you enjoy our Anti-Obama wallpaper, please check out the Anti-Obama section of the American Elephant store, where you can find Anti Barack Obama mousepads, Anti Obama t-shirts, Anti Barack Obama bumper stickers, and more.

Our Latest Design in our Barack Obama Contrast Series is “Hero or Zero, The Choice is Clear“. John McCain is an American hero, who risked everything fighting for our country and has devoted his life to public service. John McCain’s accomplishments are numerous, be it from his time in the military to his time on Capitol Hill.

Barack Obama’s accomplishments provide stark contrast… he doesn’t have any. As an Illinois State legislator whenever an issue had any importance, Obama voted present rather than take a stand… nearly 130 times. And since being elected to the United States Senate in 2005, Barack Obama has only spent about 143 days working there. To get an idea of how little time that is, nationwide students spend an average of 180 days in school PER YEAR. Yet Obama couldn’t rack up that many days since 2005.

So he voted “present” in Illinois and hasn’t even shown up in the U.S. Senate. So what has he accomplished? Nothing. Other than graduating from Harvard and being editor of its Law Revenue, Barack Obama has done nothing except write a couple books about himself and run for office.

An American Hero or a Zero? I think the choice is clear.

Many of us in the business (at least the people I associate with) don’t like the Pick-A-Payment Mortgage plan, where every month borrowers get to choose from paying their loan at something like 1-1.5% (considerably below the interest rate), interest only, or based on a 15yr or 30yr amortization. Any guess what most borrowers choose?

The theory behind the loan is sound, and if you understand the loan, it gives you greater control of your finances and how to manage your debt. The problem is, most people who worked inside selling these loans didn’t quite understand… and that left many loan officer’s scratching their heads on how to explain it. If the LO doesn’t know how to explain it properly, how is the customer to understand? Furthermore, they got away with marketing these things as “If you are paying more than 1% on your mortgage you are paying to much,” or “Your mortgage payments as low as 1%!”. Of course neither of those are entirely accurate statements as the interest still accrued at a slightly higher than normal prevailing interest rate. But those statements aren’t entirely untrue either, and that’s how brokers, corespondents, and Wachovia itself sold the product.

So, unlike most of the other wholesale mortgage closings we have seen over the last 12 months, Wachovia leaving the wholesale business isn’t much of a surprise. In fact, this is the only one I could have even predicted, and honestly I’m surprised it didn’t come sooner. But don’t think its the mortgage broker who caused their 8.9 billion dollar loss. That’s a red herring, designed to focus the blame on others outside the company so you don’t focus on those within. It was Wachovia, not the mortgage broker, who chose to focus on Pick-A-Payment mortgage loans, who just until a few months ago, after everything had gone to hell, was still marketing the program (with huge potential negative-amortization possibilities) to brokers and their own customers. And it was Wachovia, not the mortgage broker, who made the bonehead decision to buy World Mortgage and others (including a subprime company or two) at the peak of the housing bubble to begin with. Of all people, shouldn’t bankers know you don’t buy something at the top… you wait to buy at the bottom so you can ride the curve to positive gains? I guess that’s where the real people on the ground are smarter than those in their glass skyscrapers surrounded by yes men with phony MBAs. But we’re the ones getting the blame for their 8.9 billion dollar loss. Yeah right.

The thing that sucks about this whole mortgage crisis, and the constriction in the industry, is how it will hurt consumers and our economy in the long run. The mortgage broker industry sprung up because there was a very large segment of the population not being served by their traditional brick-and-mortar bank. Whether it was the 9-5 hours, the fact that their deposits were elsewhere, the color of their skin, or a blemish on their credit… the banks didn’t or couldn’t help most Americans and another industry was formed. An industry that often offered better service, faster closings, and cheaper rates with less fees (keep in mind you can’t see most of the fees on a bank loan because the law doesn’t make them disclose them… but trust me, compare Good Faith to Good Faith and take into consideration what the Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac rates are for the day and you’ll find out that the bank’s usually charge more, they just get to play a little magic with the numbers).

The mortgage broker market was capitalism at its best. An untapped void was there, and people like me got involved tapping it. Once the banks began to realize that, they started searching for more ways to take back the pie they assumed was always theirs. From buying non-bank wholesale lenders to getting involved in alternative markets and opening up their own portfolios to loans outside their normal box. They even started being open later hours or Saturdays. And as they were adjusting their business practices to take some of the broker market back, they actively lobbied legislators for protections under the law. That is why banks/lenders don’t have to disclose yield spread premium (the money they make by selling you a higher interest rate) while brokers do. That is why the bank loan officers are not subject to loan officer licensing in North Carolina but everyone else is. That is why they are also not subject to fee caps, some disclosure requirements or even having an attorney present at the closing (as is required in North Carolina). Banks wanted to take the market back.

And they’ve been successful. The problem is, maybe they were too successful. At the same time they wanted a bigger piece of the pie, the pie began to sour. And now they are stuck having grown too late to have earned as many gains as they expected, and holding too much of the bag that they helped to fail.

But unlike the mortgage brokers, the banks will be back. Even though they are taking losses, it still plays into their longterm hands. And when the housing market rebounds (which it will), the only people left due to over-reaching government involvement and constriction in the market… will be the large banks. Who will successfully control the mortgage market once again.

Its no Bojangles’, but this is awesome nonetheless. KFC recently opened up a restaurant in Fallujah, Iraq. Who would want to commit their afternoon to suicide bombings or acts of terrorism when you can sit down and enjoy a cold Pepsi and the Colonel’s original 11 herbs and spices?

It would be kind of hard to say the surge hadn’t really worked or downplay the remarkable success of our troops if you can enjoy a meal of honey barbecue wings in the former terrorist stronghold. Maybe Barack Obama will stop by on his tour. Somehow I doubt it though, it doesn’t exactly jive with the defeatist message he wants to send.

Capitalism is a beautiful thing… especially when it comes with new found peace and a bucket of crispy fried chicken. Success never tasted so good.

If you think North Carolina is a solid red state this year, think again. Obama knows it could be in play, as is evident by his virtual non-stop television adverstising we are currently enduring. Whether the ads are a cause or an effect is unknown, but voter registration is skyrocketing in North Carolina and most new registrants are Democrats.

Statewide voter registration reached nearly 5.9 million as of last week, an increase of nearly 5 percent since Jan. 5. In April alone, 100,000 voters were added just before the May primary, according to Democracy North Carolina.

…

Statewide, Democrats have added eight times as many new voters as Republicans since the beginning of the year, Hall said. He noted that there are fewer registered Republicans today in 15 counties than in January, including Durham and Orange, the release said.

According to Hall’s analysis, one-third of the new voters are black; two out of five live in the state’s six largest counties; and 10,000 identify themselves as Hispanic — a 25 percent increase in this new category.

And while voter registration increases is part of the story its not the whole story.

“You can look ahead and see this horrible traffic jam,” Bob Hall, executive director of Democracy North Carolina, a Durham-based research and advocacy center, said in a news release.

Hall urged election officials to add more staff and one-stop voting venues before Election Day.

If Obama doesn’t win North Carolina this November, consider the above quote as groundwork for the countless challenges, irregularites and charges of voter fraud we’ll hear. The Dems in this state won’t give up without a fight, even if they have to make it up. Of course they control the state government and election apparatus, so they won’t have anyone to blame but themselves.

Great quote from Charles Krauthammer, discovered via Patriot Post:

“Americans are beginning to notice Obama’s elevated opinion of himself. There’s nothing new about narcissism in politics. Every senator looks in the mirror and sees a president. Nonetheless, has there ever been a presidential nominee with a wider gap between his estimation of himself and the sum total of his lifetime achievements? Obama is a three-year senator without a single important legislative achievement to his name, a former Illinois state senator who voted ‘present’ nearly 130 times. As president of the Harvard Law Review, as law professor and as legislator, has he ever produced a single notable piece of scholarship? Written a single memorable article? His most memorable work is a biography of his favorite subject: himself. It is a subject upon which he can dilate effortlessly. In his victory speech upon winning the nomination, Obama declared it a great turning point in history—’generations from now we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment’ —when, among other wonders, ‘the rise of the oceans began to slow.’ As economist Irwin Stelzer noted in his London Daily Telegraph column, ‘Moses made the waters recede, but he had help.’ Obama apparently works alone.” —Charles Krauthammer

If Barack Obama is elected President, the only things larger than his ego will be the new size of the Federal Government and the increase in our taxes.

Last week, Democratic Presidential Hopeful, Barack Obama penned an editorial that was published in the New York Times.  Republican Presidential Presumptive Nominee, John McCain submitted his own in rebuttal, but was rejected by the Times.

The entire editorial, in its submitted form, is available via Drudge.

Administrations are run like the campaigns that preceded them, so its no surprise that Barack Obama has the largest campaign apparatus in U.S. Presidential History. All you have to do is change a few words and it provides remarkable insight into what an Obama-led Federal Government will look like…

His government campaign already has by far the largest full-time paid staff in U.S. government presidential campaign history and unlike what would have been Republican rival John McCain’s, the reach of the federal government continues to grow by the day.

Think about what kind of change you really want.

…

And for those of you outside of Manhattan or the Upper West Side, not sophisticated enough to understand… the blue words were changed in the quote to make a point.

You’ve probably read a lot of posts (this site included) complaining that the weasel Chuck Schumer’s disgraceful actions caused the bank run that led to the failure of IndyMac Bank.  If you want a good illustration of what a bank run is and why the Weasel Chuck Schumer is no different than the evil Old Man Potter, check out this post by Charlie Martin at Pajamas Media.

According to this FoxNews article, there are members of Congress quietly talking about INCREASING the Federal Gas Tax another Dime per gallon?

Apparently there’s not enough money in the Highway Trust Fund, so at this time of record high gas prices and an economy on verge of recession, our leaders are actually considering sticking it to us even more with another 10 cent increase at the pump. In North Carolina that would mean we would pay about 77 cents per gallon in taxes between the federal and state government. That’s too much.

The government is already propping up fuel prices by refusing to allow offshore and ANWR drilling in this country. Until they do something to open up our supplies and reduce our dependency on foreign oil, they don’t deserve the taxes they currently get on fuel sales, much less a 54.35% increase.

As citizens, we must demand better. Americans can’t afford the price at the pump now. As a country we can’t afford to keep our heads buried in Arabian sand. The high prices at our pumps are a direct result of our legislators and the environmental lobbies failing to allow us to drill at home. Those high prices are causing the costs of virtually all other goods and services to increase. When the dollar is weak, housing is in crisis, jobs are on the line and our economy is faltering… now is not the time to be asleep on the job and refuse to allow American’s to take care of themselves. And now is certainly not the time to pile on and make it even harder for working Americans to afford the basic necessities or fill up at the pump. Our representatives are failing us miserably and are woefully out of touch. Its time they wake up to the realities facing real Americans, or step aside and let someone else take the wheel.

Enough is enough.

Whether its motivation or inspiration I don’t know. But the Obama Lemmings have it, and we likely don’t.

This afternoon I got home around 5 and I saw a young man walking around the neighborhood with a clipboard in hand and a bright blue DNC shirt on his back. He was going the opposite direction of my house, so I thought how lucky I was to have missed some unnecessary bloviating about Barack Obama and the DNC.

I thought wrong.

Two hours later there is a knock on the door and the dogs start going nuts. I walk in from the other room and my wife walks down the stairs… she starts to chuckle a bit and grabs the dogs. Its the same guy I saw a couple hours before, still out there in this 90+ degree, thick, humid heat… pounding the pavement for his man Barack.

I walked out, greeted him, and politely listened to his spiel. Barack Obama is so great… he’s working hard for America. The primary was hard and drained a lot of resources, now we need you to help Barack Obama and the Democratic Party push forward through the general election. Blah Blah Blah. It seemed like he went on for minutes, but it probably wasn’t very long. The kid was obviously nervous and had practiced his speech for a while. He really seemed to believe all the crap he was spewing, and because of that I couldn’t interrupt. He deserved my attention and I gave it to him. When he was done with his speech, he tried to hand me his clipboard and ask for my support. That’s when I finally got to respond.

Well, I think Barack Obama is a Socialist and the majority of the Democrats in this state are corrupt. I don’t support nearly anything they stand for and can’t help you with your cause… but I do respect what you are out here doing. Best of luck to you.

I then offered him my hand and smiled. He seemed taken back a bit. But then he shook my hand and politely walked away. He didn’t earn my vote nor my support… but he gained something his candidate will likely never have… my respect.

That young man has been out in this heat for at least two hours, pounding the pavement in support of his candidate and his party. And while their platform or candidate are incredibly wrong for America… there is something right about the devotion and efforts of the follower.

And if the Republican Party doesn’t have young men and women out there doing the same, spreading the message of conservatism, personal responsibility, small government, strong defense and lower taxes… than God help us all. The Lemmings will take the rest of us right off the cliff, and we won’t have anyone to blame but ourselves.

This morning I was listening to Clark Howard when some Deadbeat called in about his mortgage loan. He currently owes $350,000 on his mortgage but estimates now that his home is only worth $230,000 due to declines in the economy and housing market. So Mr. Deadbeat decided he didn’t want to pay what he originally agreed to and called his Financial Advisor looking for a way out.

The Deadbeat’s Financial Advisor instructed the Deadbeat to stop making his payments. Mind you, the Deadbeat can afford to make his payments, but is choosing not to, trying to game the system to forgive part of his loan balance. Instead of paying the lender for a loan he willingly took, the Deadbeat is putting his payment into a savings account each month, earning interest as his mortgage goes into default.

Why would he do this? Legislation is being batted around Congress that would forgive all but 85% of the current market value for home loans of customers who have found their home value drop. So Mr. Deadbeat with his $350,000 home loan, which he can afford, will get a new loan, guaranteed by the American Taxpayer for $195,500 (85% of the current market value of $230,000) at an FHA rate. That FHA rate will likely be lower than what Mr. Deadbeat originally agreed to pay.

What happens to the rest of his loan balance? He doesn’t have to pay it. The lender will have to write-off the difference… certainly giving them some kind of tax-break but ultimately coming at the expense of their stockholders. They obviously wrote a good loan if Mr. Deadbeat can still afford to make his payments, but they are getting hosed because Mr. Deadbeat on the advice of his Financial Advisor, aided and abetted by Clark Howard, are committing a fraud.

Mr. & Mrs. Taxpayer, welcome to the latest incarnation of welfare, where we are now rewarding able-bodied Americans who have the money, to stop paying their mortgage payments and commit fraud. Their reward for such despicable actions… a new mortgage loan that our tax dollars will guarantee. And if something happens and Mr. Deadbeat decides not to pay this debt as well… it will be our tax dollars once again to bail him out or be lost.

….

We bought a TV a year or so ago for $2,000. Financed it at no interest for 24 months. Two generations newer of that same TV is now on sale for $1297. WE STILL OWE MORE THAN THAT. Where is the government to bail me out because the value of my TV is less than I owe?

We bought an SUV about 15 months ago. I can guarantee you its not worth what I still owe on it. But I keep making my payments every month. I took out the loan willingly, bought the vehicle I wanted and promised to pay off that debt. I have a moral duty to live up to that obligation.

What about people who bought stock in auto companies a few years back or internet companies in the late ’90s? Where is their government handout because the value didn’t do what they wanted?

Why do we consider our homes any different? There wasn’t an evil mortgage broker convincing this guy to buy more than he could afford. He knowingly bought a house at the time and one can assume to he thought it worth the purchase price at the time. It was certainly worth the value at the time, and even though its not now, he can still afford it. But instead he’s gaining interest on the mortgage payments every month while the Tax Payer and the Mortgage Lender get hosed.

And guess what. When this turns around, the housing market picks back up, and his home once again is worth $350,000 or more… who do you think gets to pocket all of the equity or sell it for a huge gain? That’s right… Mr. Deadbeat, getting rewarded once again for perpetuating a fraud on the Tax Payer and likely making a hefty profit on YOUR investment into his house.

….

What happened to integrity? What happened to Personal Responsibility? Where has our country gone that it is commonly accepted to quit fulfilling your obligations so you can negotiate a better deal?

It makes me sick. And sadly this is all too common. We’ve known this was happening for a while, but for it to be talked about openly on a nationally syndicated radio program makes me sick. Clark Howard supposedly helps you “avoid getting ripped off.” But people are getting ripped off. The American Tax Payer is getting ripped off… as is the lender and the people who own its stock.

Shame on you Clark Howard. And as for the Financial Advisor… I can only assume he has a securities license through the Federal Government. If he does, we should seriously look into taking it back.

Unless, as a country, we find some personal responsibility again, I’m afraid we are doomed to fail. And the collapse will be much more severe than the current mortgage crisis.

Barack Obama is crying in his milk again… its ok for his wife to go out and actively campaign day in and day out, and not be proud of America… she can give interviews and speeches and walk around like the first lady in waiting… preparing for a job with its own office and staff… but how dare anyone criticize her for her America-hating views or leftist comments?

If you can’t stand the heat, get the heck out of the kitchen. Its simple really. You’d think a Harvard graduate would understand that.

The United Nations’ highest court has ordered the United States to halt the planned executions of five Mexicans on death row in Texas while their cases are being reviewed.

….One of the Mexicans, Jose Medellin, is scheduled to be executed on August 5 for the rape and murder of two teenage girls.

That’s right, Jose Medellin, raped and murdered two teenage girls. Medellin was tried, convicted, and given rounds of appeals and free legal representation. Now the appeals are exhausted and in accordance to Texas State law, its time for the rapist and murderer to face his punishment.

But not so fast, the United Nation’s says stop… how dare we execute someone who illegally entered our country and brutally raped and murdered two teenage girls?

The UN can stick it. This is just more evidence that we need to relinquish our membership in that corrupt, America-hating organization, and spend our money and time with something that matters.

Medellin was treated better here than he would have been treated anywhere else… given unlimited legal representation, food, shelter, a radio, and even a website to whine that he wasn’t allowed to watch television, all on the taxpayers’ dime. He had his day in court, now its time to face his maker.

Rather than try to appease the World Court, placate the Mexican government, or brush this under the rug as something that’s never discussed… why don’t we execute this animal on prime time to a nationally televised audience? Then maybe the next jerk that wants to rape and murder an innocent girl will think twice about doing it here. And who knows… we could actually enforce our existing laws and maybe people will think twice before coming here illegally, breaking them in the first place.

Don’t tell me that by breaking one law this monster deserves special treatment and protections that no other monster would receive. That’s ludicrous… and its wrong.