NEW REPORTS: REPRISING THE 2013 NC REPUBLICAN CONVENTION

 

RANDOM NOTES FROM A GRAND MEETING 

Verne Strickland June 10, 2013

 

NEW Charlotte Observer SUNDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

THOM TILLIS

House Speaker Thom Tillis, who announced (U.S. Senste) last month, was the only one to speak Saturday. In a speech that lasted little more than a minute, he focused on Hagan.
“How many people think we need a cheerleader for Barack Obama?” he said. “How many people (want) a Democratic, liberal progressive senator from North Carolina representing us for six more years?”
Cary physician Greg Brannon is the only other announced candidate. Convention organizers had him speak Friday, when fewer delegates were in the audience. Brannon is a favorite of many tea party supporters.
He focused on the primacy of the Constitution and talked about “buzz words like bipartisanship, crossing the aisle or compromise.”
“This is where Mr. Tillis and I are going to disagree in the primary,” he said. “We do not compromise.”
The two are among at least seven Republicans talked about as possible candidates.
Two others, former Ambassador Jim Cain of Raleigh and Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger of Eden, did not attend the convention.
Two members of Congress often mentioned as possible candidates did, though neither spoke about the Senate race.
U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx of Banner Elk said she’s been “urged not to say no yet” to a Senate run. But, she added, “it’s a huge mountain to climb in terms of fundraising, and I love what I’m doing.”
U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers of Dunn said she’s “a couple weeks away” from deciding.
“I do have a lot on my plate,” she said.
Making the rounds Saturday in a possible Senate bid was the Rev. Mark Harris, pastor of Charlotte’s First Baptist Church and president of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. Last month Harris supporters filed papers to form an exploratory committee with the Federal Election Commission.
“I’m certainly encouraged by what I’m hearing,” said Harris, who’s undertaking a “listening tour” of the state. “I’m hearing a lot of positive feedback.”
While Tillis appeals to many establishment Republicans, and Brannon to libertarian or tea party Republicans, Harris could appeal to social conservatives. He was an outspoken backer of last year’s constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. Supporter Mary Frances Forrester of Gaston County, also a leader in the effort, called him “a new Jesse Helms.”
“Obviously, Mark has a built-in base,” Lt. Gov. Forest said when asked about his possible candidacy. “You’re going to have a tight race in the primary.”
Tillis, meanwhile, is a proven fundraiser. The Cornelius lawmaker raised $1.7 million for the 2012 election, using most of it to help elect fellow Republicans. His supporters have also organized a so-called super PAC, which can raise and spend unlimited amounts.
And Brannon could tap a national network of like-minded supporters. He said he’s already talked to Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, a tea party favorite.
Pope, the new chairman, said he’s not worried about preserving party unity.
“The party has many flavors of conservatism,” he said. “And it’s not disloyal to disagree.”

NEW FB POSTS JUNE 10, 2013

• Thom Tillis Kelly Mullins Common Core was adopted under a democratic General Assembly and democratic Governor. Like so many other sins of the past, we are trying to figure out an orderly way to deal with it.

  
  
• 

  Jeff Foster There is nothing like a 140 year old knot of Democrat threads to have to unravel.

  
  
• 

  Teresa Grant Thom Tillis, I wish I had a triple like button on that answer to common core!

CLAUDE POPE -- NEW CHAIRMAN OF NCGOP. CONGRATULATIONS!

I ran for Chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party because I want to build on the successes we’ve had in the past two election cycles and establish the Republican Party as the dominant political organization in our state for the foreseeable future.
Staying on top is even tougher than getting to the top, in my opinion, but I believe my combination of business and political experience has prepared me to lead the Republican Party to a successful future in North Carolina – and that will be good news for the state and its people.
Our great new Governor, Pat McCrory, and our Republican majority in the legislature are going to make the reforms and changes North Carolina needs to get its economy moving again, put an end to the constant tax increases and pervasive corruption that marked the recent Democrat years, and give all North Carolinians a government that works efficiently and treats them like they were valued customers.
But the Democrats aren’t going to roll over and play dead.  You’ve probably read that they have a plan to “cripple” and “eviscerate” Republican leaders and “weaken their ability to govern.”  They promise to use private investigators and other shady tactics to dig up dirt on Republicans.
To fight that kind of disgusting negativism, our party is going to have to be strong, and I’m ready for the challenge.

NEW More on Chairman Claude Pope & VP Race
June 10, 2013 Beaufort Observer

Well, it looks like the NCGOP will be led for the next two years by by Chairman Claude Pope of Brunswick County (formerly of Wake) and Vice-chairman Joyce Krawiec of Winston-Salem. Pope handily defeated Charlotte area Tea Partier Jack Brosch. Krawiec topped a four-person field with former legislator Glen Bradley coming in second, former Guilford GOP chairman Marcus Kindley coming in third, and Tea Party activist Dave "Major Dave" Goetze pulling in at a distant fourth.

Pope has publicly admitted to being the hand-picked choice of Gov. Pat. But a surprising number of Tea Party activists I've spoken with are quite content with Pope at the helm of the state party. They tell me he was very helpful to Tea Party efforts while serving as chairman of The Wake County GOP.

JOYCE CLEANS HOUSE -- WINS VP POST BIG TIME!

"As our Vice Chair, I would like to reach out to all conservatives across

North Carolina and to form a partnership that will make our state

Republican Party even stronger.”

A resident of Kernersville, Krawiec works in real estate with her husband,

Ray, and is a former member of the NC House. She represented District 73,

which included areas of Forsyth and Davidson counties. In addition to her

current position with the NC Federation of Republican Women, she has also

served as the Legislative Chair, New Membership director and Regional Vice

President of the organization. 

Krawiec has also served on committees of the National Federation of 

Republican Women. Krawiec is the FreedomWorks North Carolina Grass Roots

Coordinator. She has traveled the Southeast to speak to conservative groups and lead

training seminars. As the group’s membership was nearing 1 million members

in 2003, Krawiec was named the FreedomWorks National Activist of the Year.

AND YOU KNOW WHAT ELSE? SHE IS GOING TO BE A WONDERFUL VICE
CHAIRWOMAN OF THE N.C. REPUBLICAN PARTY. SO LET'S RALLY
AROUND HER AND GIVE HER OUR ROUSING SUPPORT!



NEW   LETTER FROM JOYCE ON SUNDAY, JUNE 10, 2013
  
Joyce Krawiec

Thank you friends for the warm wishes and Congratulations. The grassroots team who worked on my campaign is amazing. I love you every one. There were way too many to name but do want to recognize a few of them and say Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Tracy Bengtson, Lori Jones Bardsley, Velvet Shelton Cowan, Julie Scott Emmons, Joanne Wittenborn, Robert Watkens, Brenda Formo, Lori Goins Clark.. you are all amazing women.

Well, it looks like the NCGOP will be led for the next two years by by Chairman Claude Pope of Brunswick County (formerly of Wake) and Vice-chairman Joyce Krawiec of Winston-Salem. Pope handily defeated Charlotte area Tea Partier Jack Brosch. Krawiec topped a four-person field with former legislator Glen Bradley coming in second, former Guilford GOP chairman Marcus Kindley coming in third, and Tea Party activist Dave "Major Dave" Goetze pulling in at a distant fourth.

Pope has publicly admitted to being the hand-picked choice of Gov. Pat. But a surprising number of Tea Party activists I've spoken with are quite content with Pope at the helm of the state party. They tell me he was very helpful to Tea Party efforts while serving as chairman of The Wake County GOP.

GLEN BRADLEY  JUNE 9, 2013

We need to do a couple things. First we need to establish a reputation as a true conservative block, and a powerful block at that. Yesterday (Friday) with attendance numbering 409 delegates, we brought 40 people and swung a block of around 98 votes. Establishing a 24% conservative voting block is not something that will be ignored in a party which has been slowly losing it's conservative base now for the last 20 years! If we can bring every possible delegate to the convention today, we may be able to swing as much as a 35% block, or a 40% block, but we need your help to do it.

And I, too, need your help. I have been graciously nominated to run for national committeeman against the incumbent David Lewis. David Lewis is currently a member of the NC General Assembly and has a great deal of time and experience in NC Politics. His current position as National Committeeman was an emergency executive appointment 4 months ago, and he will be running for election for the first time today. I happen to like David personally, but politically he is a neoconservative, and he recently caused a major party fracture over siding with McCain against the NC GOP regarding the Barack Obama/Pastor Wright ad. In the end, we may or may not be able to wield enough votes to put a strict constructionist on the National Committee from North Carolina, but every single vote against him will be a message that conservancy is not dead in the NCGOP, that we are here to stay, that we are here for the long haul, and that we WILL see our party returned to the values held by Barry Goldwater and in the early years of Ronald Reagan.

Glen Bradley
2nd District
Franklin Co

Go Gunny someone wrote.

VS: He ain't no "Gunny". Make him prove that claim!

NC Republican Party 2013 Convention Launches in Charlotte; Heated Party VP Contest on Tap

 SEE VERNE STRICKLAND'S USA DOT COM REPORT BELOW 'FIRST DAY'


Special Credit: News 14  Updated 06/07/2013 09:33 PM

First day of NC GOP Convention begins in Queen City

By: Brad Broders

CHARLOTTE—At this weekend's NC GOP Convention, Republicans across the state are laying out their vision and goals for the upcoming year.

The plans include a key priority, getting new minority members and bringing more minority leaders into the fold.

African-American and Hispanic NC GOP delegates said they are excited about their recruitment efforts this year and the progress made in the 2012 election, where a boost in Republican minority votes helped turn the state Red in both the presidential and gubernatorial races.

In the past year, Hispanic and African-American NC GOP leaders have traveled the state, working to recruit new members and volunteering at events.

The Republican National Hispanic Assembly is now a permanent group within the NC GOP, as it works to start up Hispanic chapters in counties across the state. GOP Leaders say the steady outreach paid off in the 2012 election, when according to exit polls nearly 11 percent more minorities voted Republican compared to the 2008 election.

“Engage the minority community with the truth, and let them know all we have in common, which is less taxes, smaller government and more freedoms,” said NCGOP delegate Earl Phillip.

According to exit polls, 14 percent of minority voters in North Carolina cast a ballot for Gov. Pat McCrory in 2012. Minority Republican leaders say that their goal is to get that number to 20 percent in 2016.
Saturday, the NCGOP will elect a new chair and vice-chair to a two-year term. Current NCGOP Chairperson Robin Hayes is stepping down.

********************

SPECIAL REPORT FROM VERNE STRICKLAND OF USA DOT COM:

• The NCGOP State Convention is underway in the Queen City. Party faithful answered to the call to join in, and excitement is high: Participate In Important Party Business, Hear From an Incredible Line Up of Speakers, Network with Republicans from Across the State, and Attend One of Nearly a Dozen Break Out Sessions ....
•  
  
  

  
•  CHARLOTTE CONVENTION CENTER June 8, 2013

To set the stage for the NCGOP 2013 Convention in Charlotte, we interviewed Andy Yates, veteran conservative analyst and co-founder of full-service political agency RED DOME GROUP in Charlotte:

We'll all very excited about our convention. This is a good chance to get together and reflect on where’ll we go in 2014. We jave some good choices going forward. The selection of our Speaker is one of the best we’ve ever had. Chairman Hayes done good job of setting up the convention. 

The race for Vice Chair has been nothing short of a stem-winder. That’s where the real excitement will be. There are four people running. 

Candidates include GOP stalwarts Major Dave Goetz, Marcus Kindley, and Joyce Krawiec, who agree that the party must fight to retain its brand as the statewide political party that supports the US Constitution and fights for God, traditional families, fiscal restraint, leaner government, and other social and pocketbook issues, and Glen Bradley.

           Author note:

The “stand-out” entry is Glen Bradley, who has created an uproar by proclaiminjg: Glen Bradley stated this at a Monsanto rally on May 25, 2013 in Greensboro:

“Occupy America calls the Tea Party right wing nut theocratic fascists and Tea Parties call Occupy left wing nut hippie communist and we are all too busy hating each other to recognize that we all have more in common than we have against each other.”

 The chairman’s race will lack the excitement of the the vice chair race race. In this contest there are clear differences between the candidates, between the candidates. This will probably go to a second ballot. In my memory of conventions, and I’ve been to just about every one since’99, I cannot remember an election that has gone to two ballots. 

That will add to the intrigue and the interest, and unfortunately it may depend on who hangs around to vote on the second ballot. You’ve got some good canaidates there, and then, I guess you’d say there are some interesting candidates. That race will determine a lot about where the party’s going. As far as where the libertarian-leaning candidates are, and the more conservative traditional repubs, if you want to keep an eye on the convention that will be the most interesting part.

Another area will be the buzz about who may run for Senate, whether it be Speaker Tillis, or Mark Harris, or Brannon. Among those rumored to become candidates are high-profile politicans such as Fox or Ellmers. That hasn’t really taken shape yet. Will be a lot of gossip about that race this week-end, and you’ll start to see who’s taking sides there.

It’s very nice to have the first convention with a Republican Governor in modern times. This is historic in that it is the first time we’ve had a convention where we’ve actually been in charge of the state. We have a Rep[ublican Governor, Republican House, Republican Senate, Republican Supreme Court. I hope this face is properly celebrated this week-end. We must bear in mind that, while it is good to be in this position, we will have to work hard to keep our gains.

The rumor mill always runs rampant at the convention, and maybe you can believe a quarter of it, but a least it provides some entertainment. 

At any rate, this convention is a landmark meeting for the North Carolina Republican Party, and we intend to enjoy it, as well as ramp up the energy looking forward to 2014. 

About Us

 Partners Todd Poole (left) and Andy Yates of RED DOME GROUP

Party activists Jennifer Mauney (left) and friend cover GOP sign-up
desk for special issues including Property Rights, Right to Life,
Education and Hot Lanes.

wounded and dangerous

Wounded...and dangerous

June 7, 2013, 8:17 AM

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US Secretary of State John Kerry looks like a bit of an idiot these days. On Monday he announced that he will be returning to Israel and the Palestinian Authority and Jordan for the fifth time since he was sworn into office on February 1. That is an average of more than one visit a month.

And aside from frequent flier miles, the only thing he has to show for it is a big black eye from PLO chief and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

When Kerry was here last month he unveiled a stunning plan to bring $4 billion in investment funds to the PA. If his plan actually pans out, its champions claim it will increase the PA's GDP by a mind-numbing 50 percent in three years and drop Palestinian unemployment from 21 to 8 percent.

Standing before world and regional leaders on May 26, Kerry said plaintively, "This will help build the future. Is this a fantasy? I don't think so."

Abbas and his underlings wasted no time, however, in demonstrating that indeed, Kerry's plan is fantasy. Abbas appointed Rami Hamdallah, a Fatah apparatchik with perfect English, to replace America's favorite moderate Palestinian, Salam Fayyad, as PA prime minister.

As The Jerusalem Post's Khaled Abu Toameh has pointedly explained, Hamdallah was appointed for two reasons. First, to facilitate Fatah's absconding with hundreds of millions of dollars in donor aid to the PA and to Palestinian development projects precisely of the type that Kerry hopes to finance with his $4b. grant. The second reason Abbas appointed Hamdallah the English professor from Nablus was because his language skills will enable him to make American and European donors feel comfortable as his colleagues in Fatah pick their taxpayer- funded pockets.

Aside from mooning Kerry in the middle of his speech in Jordan, Abbas couldn't have thought of a more graphic way to show his contempt for Kerry and the Obama administration.

But that wasn't the only thing the Palestinians did. Again, as Abu Toameh has reported, the popular Palestinian response to last week's World Economic Forum in Jordan, where Abbas and Kerry rubbed elbows with President Shimon Peres and Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, was to attack the businessmen who accompanied Abbas to the conference. Their crime was meeting with Israeli businessmen who came to the conference in Peres's entourage. Led by Fatah activists, Palestinian writers, unions and others also went after Palestinian businessmen from Jenin who went to Haifa to meet with Israeli businesspeople at the invitation of Haifa's Chamber of Commerce. The "anti-normalization" crowd is calling for Palestinians to boycott Palestinian businesses that do business with Israelis.

And again, that isn't all. At the PLO's birthday celebrations this week, Abbas said that the group's 1964 charter reflects the will of the Palestinian people. That charter calls for the destruction of Israel. It was written three years before Israel took control of Judea, Samaria and northern, southern and eastern Jerusalem.

But wait, there's more. The Palestinian leadership attacked Kerry personally and his plan as an attempt to bribe them. They promised that while they will happily take the money, $4b. measly dollars won't convince them to moderate one iota. They still demand that Israel release all Palestinian terrorists from its jails, agree to its demographic destruction through the so-called "right of return," or unfettered immigration of millions of foreign Arabs to Israel, and the surrender of all of Judea, Samaria and northern, southern and eastern Jerusalem to the PLO as a precondition to beginning negotiations.

And for all that, Kerry responded by applauding Hamdallah's appointment and announcing he will return here next week and is planning to roll out his own comprehensive peace plan very soon.

Israeli leaders for the most part have reacted to Kerry's constant harping by rolling their eyes. He seems like a complete lunatic. Obviously he will fail and the best thing we can do is smile and nod, like you do when you are dealing with a crazy person.

Even when Kerry claimed that the reason Israelis aren't interested in peace is that we have too much money to care, we didn't take offense. Because really, why take anything he says seriously? And aside from that, they ask, what can the Obama administration do to us, at this point? Every single day it becomes more mired in scandal.

The Guardian's revelation Wednesday that the US government has been confiscating the phone records of tens of millions of Americans who use the Verizon business network since April is just the latest serious, normal-presidency destroying scandal to be exposed in the past month. And every single scandal - the IRS's unlawful harassment and discrimination of conservative organizations and individuals, the Justice Department's spying on AP journalists and attempt to criminalize the normal practice of journalism through its investigation of Fox News correspondent James Rosen - makes it more difficult for President Barack Obama to advance his agenda.

As for foreign policy, the whistle-blower testimony that exposed Obama's cover-up of the September 11, 2012, al-Qaida attack on the US Consulate and CIA annex in Benghazi has caused massive damage to Obama's credibility in foreign affairs and to the basic logic of his foreign policy.

Ambassador Chris Stevens was tortured and murdered by al-Qaida terrorists who owed their freedom of operation to the Obama administration. If it hadn't been for Obama's decision to bring down the regime of Muammar Gaddafi, who had been largely harmless to the US since he gave up his illicit nuclear weapons program in 2004, those al-Qaida forces probably wouldn't have be capable of waging an eight-hour assault on US installations and personnel in Benghazi.

With the Benghazi scandal hounding him, the Syrian civil war and, for the past week, the anti-government protests in Turkey all exposing his incompetence on a daily basis, these Israeli leaders take heart, no doubt in the belief that Obama's freedom to attack us has vastly diminished.

Although this interpretation of events is attractive, and on its face seems reasonable, it is wrong.

And it would be a devastating mistake for Israeli leaders to believe it.

Since he entered office, Obama has responded to every defeat by doubling down and radicalizing.

When in 2009 public sentiment against his plan to nationalize the US healthcare industry was so high that Republican Scott Brown was elected senator from Massachusetts for the sole purpose of blocking Obamacare's passage in the US Senate, Obama did not accept the public's verdict.

Instead he used a technicality to ram the hated legislation through without giving Brown and the Senate the chance to vote it down.

And now, as his Middle East strategy of appeasing Islamists lies in the ruins of the US Consulate in Benghazi and in the cemeteries interning the Syrians murdered in sarin gas attacks as Obama shrugged his shoulders, Obama is again doubling down. On Wednesday he announced that he is elevating the two architects of his policy to senior leadership roles in his administration.

Obama's appointments of UN Ambassador Susan Rice to serve as his national security adviser, and of former National Security Council member Samantha Power to serve as ambassador to the UN, are a finger in the eye to his critics. These women rose to national prominence through their breathless insistence that the US use force to overthrow Gaddafi in spite of clear evidence that al-Qaida was a major force in his opposition.

Power is reportedly the author of Obama's policy of apologizing to foreign countries for the actions of past administrations. Certainly she shares Obama's hostility toward Israel. And she has been outspoken in expressing her negative opinions.

In a nutshell, Power's vision for US foreign policy is a noxious brew of equal parts self-righteousness, ignorance and prejudice. And now she will be responsible for defending Israel (or not) at the most hostile international arena in the world, where Israel's very right to exist is subject to assault on a daily basis.

Obama's decision to appoint Rice and Power in the face of the mounting scandals surrounding his presidency generally and his foreign policy particularly is not the only reason Israeli leaders should not expect for his weakened political position to diminish Obama's plan to put the screws on Israel in the coming years. There is also the disturbing pattern of the abuse of power that the scandals expose.

To date, all administration officials questioned have denied that Obama was in any way involved in directing the IRS to use the tax code to intimidate with the aim of discrediting and destroying conservative organizations and donors. Likewise, they say he played no role in the Justice Department's espionage operations against American journalists, or in the intentional cover-up of the al-Qaida assault on US installations and personnel in Benghazi. But mounting circumstantial evidence indicates that this is not true. 

White House visitor records show that IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman visited Obama's White House 157 times. His predecessor Mark Everson who served under president George W. Bush only visited the White House once.

So, too, as Andrew McCarthy reported last month in National Review, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney admitted that Obama spoke with then secretary of state Hillary Clinton at 10 p.m. on September 11, 2012, during the al- Qaida assault in Benghazi.

It was after that phone conversation that the administration changed its talking points about the nature of the assault, purging details on the identity of the perpetrators and blaming an unrelated Internet movie trailer for inciting the attack.

The one thing all the scandals share is a single-minded willingness to pursue radical goals to the bitter end. The IRS's targeting of conservatives was an appalling abuse of executive power, unlike anything we have seen in recent history. The passage of Obamacare in the face massive public opposition was another means to the end of destroying his opponents. 

The cover-up of the Benghazi attack was a bid to hide the failure of a policy in order to double down on it - despite its failure. The only reason you would want to double down on an already failed policy is if you are ideologically committed to a larger goal that the failed policy advances.

The similarities of the pattern of behavior in all of these actions, as well as the circumstantial evidence already unearthed, indicate strongly that despite the denials, Obama was in fact involved and may have directed the actions of all of his underlings in all of the scandals now unfolding.

What this means for Israel is we cannot be lured into complacency by Kerry's buffoonery or Obama's apparent political weakness. This is a man who is most dangerous when attacked. And this is a man who is absolutely committed to his ideological agenda. We had better be ready, because if we are not, we won't know what has hit us.

Originally published in the Jerusalem Post. 

Posted on June 7, 201

The Orwell classic "1984" was published on June 6, 64 years ago. Amazon has erased his books from Kindle

 Verne Strickland USA DOT COM June 7, 2013

Lucas Jackson/Reuters

A commuter using an Amazon Kindle while riding the subway in New York.

By BRAD STONE

Published: July 17, 2009 

 

In George Orwell’s “1984,” government censors erase all traces of news articles embarrassing to Big Brother by sending them down an incineration chute called the “memory hole.”

Times Topics: Kindle

On Friday, it was “1984” and another Orwell book, “Animal Farm,” that were dropped down the memory hole — by Amazon.com.

In a move that angered customers and generated waves of online pique, Amazon remotely deleted some digital editions of the books from the Kindle devices of readers who had bought them.

An Amazon spokesman, Drew Herdener, said in an e-mail message that the books were added to the Kindle store by a company that did not have rights to them, using a self-service function. “When we were notified of this by the rights holder, we removed the illegal copies from our systems and from customers’ devices, and refunded customers,” he said.

Amazon effectively acknowledged that the deletions were a bad idea. “We are changing our systems so that in the future we will not remove books from customers’ devices in these circumstances,” Mr. Herdener said.
Customers whose books were deleted indicated that MobileReference, a digital publisher, had sold them. An e-mail message to SoundTells, the company that owns MobileReference, was not immediately returned.

Digital books bought for the Kindle are sent to it over a wireless network. Amazon can also use that network to synchronize electronic books between devices — and apparently to make them vanish.

An authorized digital edition of “1984” from its American publisher, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, was still available on the Kindle store Friday night, but there was no such version of “Animal Farm.”

People who bought the rescinded editions of the books reacted with indignation, while acknowledging the literary ironies involved. “Of all the books to recall,” said Charles Slater, an executive with a sheet-music retailer in Philadelphia, who bought the digital edition of “1984” for 99 cents last month. “I never imagined that Amazon actually had the right, the authority or even the ability to delete something that I had already purchased.”

Antoine Bruguier, an engineer in Silicon Valley, said he had noticed that his digital copy of “1984” appeared to be a scan of a paper edition of the book. “If this Kindle breaks, I won’t buy a new one, that’s for sure,” he said.

Amazon appears to have deleted other purchased e-books from Kindles recently. Customers commenting on Web forums reported the disappearance of digital editions of the Harry Potter books and the novels of Ayn Rand over similar issues.

Amazon’s published terms of service agreement for the Kindle does not appear to give the company the right to delete purchases after they have been made. It says Amazon grants customers the right to keep a “permanent copy of the applicable digital content.” 

Retailers of physical goods cannot, of course, force their way into a customer’s home to take back a purchase, no matter how bootlegged it turns out to be. Yet Amazon appears to maintain a unique tether to the digital content it sells for the Kindle.

“It illustrates how few rights you have when you buy an e-book from Amazon,” said Bruce Schneier, chief security technology officer for British Telecom and an expert on computer security and commerce. “As a Kindle owner, I’m frustrated. I can’t lend people books and I can’t sell books that I’ve already read, and now it turns out that I can’t even count on still having my books tomorrow.”

Justin Gawronski, a 17-year-old from the Detroit area, was reading “1984” on his Kindle for a summer assignment and lost all his notes and annotations when the file vanished. “They didn’t just take a book back, they stole my work,” he said.

On the Internet, of course, there is no such thing as a memory hole. While the copyright on “1984” will not expire until 2044 in the United States, it has already expired in other countries, including Canada, Australia and Russia. Web sites in those countries offer digital copies of the book free to all comers.

D-Day invasion of Normandy in World War II -- Soldiers' Stories of the epic battle to free Europe

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Home Battlefield Leaders Media Vault Overview Soldiers' Stories Timeline Soldiers' Stories   On June 6, 1944, Allied Forces invaded Normandy and turned the tide of World War II in Europe.   More than 100,000 soldiers swept ashore and nearly 10,000 died that first day.  By June 22, the Allies had broken out of Normandy heading for Berlin. These stories are the first-hand accounts of the men and women who participated in this "mighty endeavor." Roger Airgood Lieutenant Airgood flew C-47s in the ETO.  During the D-Day he dropped paratroopers over Normandy. More... 1st Lt. James P. Alford Before invading Adolf Hitler's "Fortress Europe" in 1944, the U.S. Army reorganized its armored formations to better deal with their German counterparts. No less than 14 American armored divisions would slash their way into the German Reich by the end of World War II.  One such unit, the 746th Tank Battalion, First Lieutenant James Posey Alford of Gonzales, Texas, led a platoon of M4 Sherman tanks with the 746th.  More... Hubert Mark Alvater After dropping out of the University of Michigan after Pearl Harbor, Altvater entered the U.S. Army Air Force. Though his wartime flying was cut short by a burst of Nazi flak, Altvater recounts his time as a bomber pilot in the ETO. More... Roy Arnn He participated in the Normandy Invasion on Omaha Beach as part of Boat Crew #8. This is his story. More... William John Arnold As a captain in the Durham Light Infantry of the British Army, Arnold gives an interesting account of the great invasion from the point of view of our “cousins across the pond.”  He tells his tale with characteristic British aplomb as he and his “batman”, Private Blair, land at Juno Beach and push into France. More... Garwood Bacon Part of a Navy beach battalion, Bacon's landing craft hit a mine on its way to shore. More... Edwin J. Barrios A worker in the Higgins shipyards in New Orleans, Barrios gives a view of the war effort from the home front. More... Sherman Baxter A veteran of North Africa and Sicily, he drove a tank ashore on the D-Day invasion.  He was on the beach head for only a few days before being wounded by a German anti-tank round. Baxter later returned to his unit and drove on through Germany. More... James Hollis Bearden A boatswain on a Navy LCT Bearden witnessed the invasion from the high-tide mark. More... Frank Beetle After enlisting in the Army in 1940, Beetle tells of going AWOL to landing on the beaches at Normandy. More... Joseph Beryle This story is the stuff of legend. Thought to have been killed in the airborne landings of D-Day, Beryle relates his captures and his escapes before he finally linked with the oncoming Russian army.  More... George Bonadio Lieutenant Bonadio saw action in North Africa and served on the Liaison Staff to the British Admiralty during the landings at Normandy. More... Felix Branham Felix Branham went ashore in the second wave at Omaha Beach as a demolition man for the 29th Division.  In this story he tells his experiences on the beach, losing his comrades and surviving.  More... Thomas M. Brown Thomas M. Brown was a private first class with the Company A, 115th Infantry of the 29th Division.  After his initial training in Maryland, Brown landed at Omaha Beach as a machine gunner on D-Day plus two.  More... Brown-Stigler They met briefly over the skies of Germany, one the pilot of a crippled B-17, the other at the stick of a Luftwaffe Me-109.  Read how a show of chivalry towards a helpless foe became the foundation of a friendship forty years later. More... John G. Burkhalter Former Miami minister Burkhalter landed on Omaha beach  as chaplain for the  "Fighting First."  He penned this letter to his wife Mabel shortly after the invasion.   "When my part of the Division landed, there were impressions made on my mind that will never leave it ... I was looking toward land and saw a large shell fall right on a landing craft full of men ..." More... John C. Capell From the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest up through the Battle of the Bulge, Capell gives the view from the foxhole on life as an infantryman.  More... Fred Carmichael Originally slated to be sent to the Pacific Theater, SGT Carmichael served in the 347th Infantry Regiment in Patton's Third Army from the Battle of the Bulge and the waning days of 1944. More... Donald Carl Chumley Though not in the D-Day invasion, Chumley entered the ETO as a replacement rifleman in the 90th Division, 357th Infantry Regiment, Co. E just in time for the Battle of the Bulge. More... Ted Cook In an interview, Cook tells of the nearly insurmountable obstacles he faced as a prisoner of the Japanese after the fall of the Philippines.  A survivor of the "Bataan Death March", Cook's account is a tale of the horrors POWs faced in the hands of the armies of the Rising Sun. More... Andrew J. Cooper From the beaches of Normandy, through the Battle of the Bulge and straight on to the fall of Berlin, Cooper sees the fight through the eyes of the infantryman. More... Maj. Crocker As the intelligence staff officer for a field artillery division Crocker found himself on D-Day as the liason to the British forces. More... I. J. "Irish" Degnan Part of a revolutionary Signal unit that hit the beaches with the waves of "grunts."  Degnan shows how the "command and control" of the Allied invasion helped to ensure its success. More... Sgt. Bill Dunfee On June 6, 1944, Dunfee's battalion was one of the few that hit the right drop zone. As they jumped into Ste. Mère-Eglise, the commander carried an American flag because, as Dunfee explained, 'he realized the historic significance of what we were going to do.' More... Edward A. Dunton Commissioned in 1942 as an ensign in the Naval Reserve, Dunton specialized in code and ciphers on active duty.  From the U-boat infested waters of the North Atlantic to the beaches of Normandy, Dunton tells of the buildup prior to the great invasion fleet leaving England. More... Joseph A. Dragotto Joseph A. Dragotto fought with his unit from the beaches of Normandy on D-Day through Belgium and Germany.  He fought in the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest and the Elsenborn Ridge during the Battle of the Bulge. More... Malcolm Edwards A bombardier on the B-26 Nicks' Chick in the 344th bomb group, 495th squadron, the following are his recollections of D-Day. More... Joseph Henry Esclavon  A crewmember on an LCT during the Normandy invasion, Esclavon gives the view from the high tide mark. More... Dr. Bernard S. Feinberg As a captain in the 116th Infantry, Dr. Feinberg had a unique view of the D-Day invasion as the regimental dental surgeon.  He gives a gripping account of landing at Omaha beach and attending to the wounded. More...  Maro P. Flagg A funeral director by trade, Flagg served during the invasion of Normandy as a Pharmacist's Mate on an LST.  From German POWs to grounded paratroopers, Flagg saw D-Day from a seldom seen point of view. More... Roy Aaron Ford As a Seabee, Roy Aaron Ford helped get soldiers and equipment onto the beaches of Normandy.  Ford tells the story of the Rhino barges made especially for the beaches of Normandy and provides readers a personal glimpse into the food, lifestyles and experience of the Normandy invasion.  More... Ed Fredericks Ed Fredericks, 76, was part of a glider crew in the 439th Troop Carrier Group of the 101st Airborne Division told his story to Military.com while visiting Normandy May 2000.  More... Richard A. Freed, Sr Though not drafted into the Army, Freed played his part in the war as a member of the Merchant Marine.  He survived wolf packs, convoys and met his brother before D-Day on the USS Ancon. More... Leroy Fritz In the 16th Armored Division Fritz saw action from the campaign on Normandy through to VE Day. More... Richard Gates From the ivy covered halls of Tulane University to the cockpit of an A-20, Richard gates flew over 60 bombing missions in the ETO.  Gates literally had a birds-eye view of the war while he with the 409th Bomb Group.  More... Congressman Sam G. Gibbons Congressman Gibbons saw action on D-Day as part of the 501st Parachute Infantry of the 101st Airborne Division.  His story takes a close personal look at a soldier's experiences in this 10 part history.  " "My parachute snapped open with a loud crack -- reflecting the added weight of combat equipment..." More... F.W. Glaze As a young lieutenant in the 4th Infantry Division, Glaze relates two of his very unique memories of the war.  More... Dr. Samuel N. Grundfast An LST skipper during the D-Day invasion, he was scheduled to hit Utah Beach in the first wave. More... Andrew Hertz  As a communications sergeant in the 834th Engineer Aviation Battalion, Hertz was assigned to a follow-up force to repair German airstrips in Normandy. These strips allowed the 9th Air Force to deepen its attacks into German territory. More... Howard W. Hicks First a Technical Sergeant and later a Platoon Sergeant, Hicks was a Pathfinder with the 82nd Airborne.  In addition to seeing action at Normandy, he took part in the invasions of North Africa and Italy.  This is D-Day seen by someone who was first in the fray.  More... Sam Jacks From a small town in rural North Carolina to the invasion beaches of Normandy, Jacks tells of his transition from being in the peace-time Army through the bloody battlefields of the ETO.  More... Steve Kellman As a young, green replacement to a unit with the invasion of Sicily already under its belt, Kellman tells how his unit prepared for the Normandy landings.  Wounded on the beach, Kellman stayed alive under withering German as his unit drove inland. More... Sam Kornfeld As a radio operator for a combat engineer regiment, Kornfeld landed at Omaha Beach in the early hours of the invasion and was on the beach for the duration. More... Lou Mais An engineer in the British Army, Mais gives an interesting account of the delivery of the "Mulberry" artificial piers to supply the follow-on forces on the Normandy campaign. More... William M. McConahey, M.D. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. McConahey joined the Army Medical Corps soon after Pearl Harbor.  McConahey landed in Normandy on D+2 and passed through the ruins of St. Mere Eglise on the road to Cherbourg.  The heavy fighting in the hedgerow country kept his battalion hospital operating at full capacity and Dr. McConahey witnessed the horrors of battle firsthand.  More... James B. Nannini Assigned to the 222nd Infantry Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division as a rifleman, James Nannini missed the initial landing at Utah Beach.  He fought during the harrowing first weeks of the invasion in the hedgerow country of France against a tenacious German army.  Wounded outside of Cherbourg, Nannini recuperated in England and returned to the continent in time to witness the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest.   More... William Thomas O'Neill O'Neill served as a quartermaster aboard the U.S. LCT 6-544 during the invasion of France at Normandy, Omaha Beachhead, June 6 1944.  More... Bill Oatman As a member of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment from the beginning, Oatman jumped into history.  But as Oatman says, "It didn't work out like it was planned."  From the French Underground to Fred Astaire's sister Oatman's account is truly one of a kind. More... Lawrence Orr  As a Coast Guard coxswain Orr was in charge a Higgins boat landing troops on the blood soaked shores of France. More... Anthony Paulino From the suburbs of Philadelphia, Paulino served as an aerial gunner in the 344th Bomb Group.  He recounts his trip across the Atlantic on the Queen Elizabeth and living in southeast England before the big push.  He flew over 65 missions after D-Day bombing German industrial centers until the surrender in Europe.  More... George Thomas Poe As a coxswain of an LCVP landing craft during Operation Overlord, George Thomas Poe had one of the most unique views, as well as one of the most unique experiences, of the D-Day landings. More... George "Dad" Rarey In 1942, George Rarey, a young cartoonist and commercial artist, was drafted into the Army Air Corps. He flew a P-47 before he drove a car.  He was killed in action a few weeks after D-Day, but during his service he kept a cartoon journal of the daily life of the fighter pilots.  This is a selection of his work.  More...  Arnold Rodriguez Following his draft notice from Uncle Sam, Arnold Rodriguez left the shipyards of New Orleans to become a member of the glider infantry.  He landed with the 502nd PIR on D-Day and rode a glider into Holland during Operation Market-Garden.  More... Charles Roland Here, Capt. Roland tells of his experiences beating back the Axis powers.  From basic training through his part in the Nuremburg trials, Roland shares every exploit with candor and pride.   More... Col. Robert P. Tabb III A graduate of West Point in 1938, Col. Tabb recounts the trials of a junior officer helping to build a combat engineer unit.  From the disaster at Slapton Sands to the D-Day landing, Col. Tabb gives his account as an officer in the 237th Combat Engineer Battalion.  More... Col. B. B. Talley The commander of I. J. "Irish" Degnan's unit, Col. Talley's account of the landing is riveting in its detail and lends more insight as to the "big picture" of D-Day and how that was conveyed from the top brass to the men on the beach. More... August Leo Thomas August Leo Thomas was a coxswain on LCT 633 during Operation Overlord.  His is a first hand account of the landings which took place on the beaches in Normandy.  More... William D. Townsley William D. Townsley landed at Omaha beach where he braved the murderous hail of German fire.  Wounded on the first day, he stuck it out on Omaha and pushed inland with the rest of his unit.  More... Kenneth Trott A veteran pilot of the RAF, Trott flew Typhoons against radar and V-1 rocket sites in France.  He flew missions on D-Day in support of the Canadian landings and special operations. He was later shot down during the Battle of Normandy.  More... Sarifino R. Visco A Marine during the Great Depression, Visco joined the Army in 1942 and landed on D-Day with the 457th AAA. He served from Omaha beach through the Battle of the Bulge. More... Dr. Simon V. Ward, Jr. Torpedoed early in the war while serving as ship's surgeon on a United Fruit freighter, Ward threw his hat into the ring and volunteered for the Navy.  Dr. Ward served during the D-Day invasion on an LCT treating wounded soldiers and sailors. More... Fritz Weinshank Born and raised in Germany, Fritz Weinshank fought for his adopted country with no regrets and paints a compelling picture of a young radioman on the front lines.  More... Edward Ambrose White Originally turned away from the Navy, White joined the field artillery, where he worked on the innovative 'proximity fuse'.  He arrived in Germany in time for V-E Day and found himself as a member of the occupation forces. More... Partners in Military.com's Living Histories The Eisenhower Center for American Studies is a non-profit research institute dedicated to the study and preservation of American history and leadership from a variety of perspectives, including foreign policy, social history, literature and popular culture. Back to D-Day Home Joseph A. DragottoDragotto fought with his unit from the beaches of Normandy on D-Day through Belgium and Germany. More... August Leo ThomasAugust Leo Thomas was a coxswain on LCT 633 during Operation Overlord. More...Tell Your Story Now Share with the Military.com family by completing this online form. Brig. Gen. Teddy Roosevelt Jr. was the highest ranking person to hit the beaches on D-Day.

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