There have been multiple shootings and an ongoing hostage situation at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin just south of Milwaukee. At least 4 are known to have been shot and multiple hostages are still inside the temple. More from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal:

At least four people were shot just after 10 a.m. Sunday at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, and a police SWAT team entered the building before noon and brought uninjured people out of the building at 7512 S. Howell Ave.

Among those who were shot was the president of the temple.

People were in the temple as early as 6:30 a.m. Sunday and many more were arriving for a service that was to begin about 11:30 a.m.

There were reports that children were taken to the building's basement after shots were fired.

Someone who sent a text message to a Journal Sentinel reporter shortly before noon said that there were two shooters with children possibly as hostages.

And the head priest was locked inside a restroom with a cell phone and that there were as many as 20 to 30 victims.

Oak Creek police were not giving out any information at this point.

It is not known at post time how many hostages are still in the temple, or how many gunmen may be involved in the incident. The shooter has been described as a bald man with a sleeveless t-shirt. We'll update as events warrant. You can watch the local livestream here.

Update: Four people are reported dead from the shooting

Update #2: The Oak Creek police chief just announced that four people are dead inside the temple, including an officer, three people are dead outside the temple, including one shooter. Three people are reported in critical condition in the hospital. One twenty year veteran police officer is in surgery after engaging the shooter. It is not clear if there are additional shooters still in the building or whether there are still hostages.

As the people of Kansas begin to feel the pain of living in Brownbackistan, it was only a matter of time before they decided to join the Occupy Together movement. AP radio news reported today that the Occupy Wall Street protests had spread to "a few other cities" - if you count 1,340 cities to be a"few."

There have been Occupy Together protests in Kansas City and Lawrence, Kansas as shown above. Contrary to the reporting of the corporate media, there is a coherent, focused message:

LAWRENCE — On Saturday about 150 attended an “Occupy Lawrence” rally in front of the U.S. Bank building on Massachusetts Avenue in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York.

Melissa from #OccupyLawrence read the Declaration of the Occupation of New York City adopted also by the Lawrence General Assembly. The prolog to that document reads:

As we gather together in solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose sight of what brought us together. We write so that all people who feel wronged by the corporate forces of the world can know that we are your allies.

Steve Robinson from #OccupyLawrence said he started the local web page about the event since “America is broken economically and politically and the people need to fix it.”

Gretchen Alvarez, Lawrence, said her attention-grabbing sign, “The Hand of the Free Market Touched Me in a Bad Place!”, was about her 401(k) retirement savings being “raped” by events on Wall Street.

Their numbers were small, but mighty and right there in the Koch Brothers' home state no less! Not that they'd notice, mind you, but as the Occupy Together movement continues to grow and spread to cities and towns both large and small, eventually they will have no choice but to sit up and take notice.

Governor Scott Walker and the Koch brothers have managed to rally Democrats and Independents in Wisconsin like virtually no other person in recent history. Their attempts to destroy the middle class and vilify public employees woke people up across the nation, sparking 9 recall elections of state politicians - 6 of which are Republicans. The state GOP is scared to death, unsurprisingly trying all kinds of hackery to muddy the waters. If Tuesday's result is a foreshadowing of the future, Walker and his fellow Wisconsin Republicans are in for a summer of pain:

One down, eight to go. The summer of recalls had its first definitive outcome Tuesday night when Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, handily defeated Republican David VanderLeest with 66 percent of the vote.

But the margin of victory and the turnout by voters were a first-round demonstration of the Democratic Party’s ground game going into August, when six Republicans and two more Democrats face recall elections with control of state government hanging in the balance. If Democrats can net three seats, they will win back the Senate and provide a check to Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s virtually unchallenged agenda. Republicans are fighting to guarantee control of the state through 2012.

Granted, Hansen was expected to win, but the high Democratic turnout is wonderful to see. I applaud the people of Wisconsin for getting out and making a real difference in their state. Let's hope they serve as an inspiration to people in other states who are infested with Tea Party pols to get out and vote them out of office!

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann has never been one to shy away from controversy. Whether she understands the subject or not, she will belt out anything that crosses her mind if she thinks it will build her street cred with the Tea Party faithful. She is, after all, a Constitutional expert dontchaknow. Monday was no exception. After touring flood damaged areas of Iowa with fellow Republican Steve King, she used the occasion to inject race into the mix:

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann pointed to one program in particular Monday when talking about wasteful government spending: a multibillion dollar settlement paid to black farmers, who claim the federal government discriminated against them for decades in awarding loans and other aid.

The issue came up after Bachmann and Republican Rep. Steve King of Iowa toured flooded areas along the Missouri River. During a news conference, they fielded a question about whether farmers affected by the flooding also should be worried by proposed U.S. Department of Agriculture cuts.

Bachmann seconded King's criticism, saying, "When money is diverted to inefficient projects, like the Pigford project, where there seems to be proof-positive of fraud, we can't afford $2 billion in potentially fraudulent claims when that money can be used to benefit the people along the Mississippi River and the Missouri River."

Inefficient projects? Of course neither King nor Bachmann can cite any actual fraud, they just throw it out there to see what sticks to the wall. When asked by the AP for his thoughts on Bachmann's statements, John Boyd, head of the National Black Farmers Association had this to say:

"Why continue to take from those people who haven't taken part in federal programs equally and give to another group of farmers who have taken part in federal programs?" Boyd asked. "I think taking resources from a group of people who have been historically denied any relief at the Department of Agriculture is a bad idea. For the flood victims that deserve redress ... they should provide those people with relief, too."

Later in the article Boyd was quoted as saying "If Ms. Bachmann wants to be president of the United States, she should treat all people fairly." Mr. Boyd, I applaud your statement, but unfortunately, in Michele Bachmann's America, only wealthy, white Christians are worthy.

Earlier this year I posted a story about a mind numbing political conversation I had with some of my conservative friends and relatives. No matter what I said, and no matter how much we agreed on certain issues, I was always dismissed as being "too far left." I had lunch with some of those same relatives earlier this week and as expected, politics took center stage in our conversation -- and I'm happy to report some progress!

We decided to meet at a local restaurant and right off the bat, I knew things were going to be interesting. My youngest, and most under-informed cousin pulled up in his ginormous SUV adorned with FIRE PELOSI stickers on both the front and back bumpers, and the sound of Rush Limbaugh's voice blasting from the open windows. You see, he has friends in the military and listens to Limbaugh so he knows everything there is to know about politics, the economy, war and social issues. Oh, and he's 21 and earns just under $22k a year. We'll call him cousin #1.

We were seated at a table and before the server could even introduce herself, cousin #1 looked across at me and said "So, what do you think 'bout your glory boy Obama now?" I knew it was coming and was prepared for battle, but before I could get a word out, cousin #2 jumped in and said "He's still a hell of a lot better than Bush and THANK GOD McCain and Palin didn't win!" And it was on like Donkey Kong. I just sat and smiled because the cousin who came to my defense was the first one to call me a "leftist" in our last conversation. He (and his wife) had finally seen the light and now realize how toxic the GOP and their media are to our nation. I was shocked at how their conversion to the truth was so strong that they even chided corporatist Democrats like Ben Nelson! Can I get an AMEN?

To be perfectly honest, I didn't really participate in the conversation all that much. I didn't have to. The two cousins sparred for the better part of the meal and I sat and nodded my head - when I wasn't defending my new "leftist" cousin. Cousin #1 left the restaurant looking defeated and confused, albeit better informed than when he walked in. He conceded nothing, but was forced to admit that the Republican party had turned into a bunch of far right wing extremists and probably more extreme than he was comfortable with.

It was nice to finally be vindicated by two family members who were at one time, rabid Fox News watching Republicans. It took me years, but it was well worth the fight. If any of you need to vent about Republican friends, family or co-workers, please use this thread to get it off your chest!

One of these turtles is progressive, the other belongs to the Tea Party. Can you guess which one is which? : )

Open thread below...

The month of October has certainly started out with a bang when it comes to First Amendment issues. On Thursday, the Supreme Court heard the case against the Westboro Baptist Church and their protests at military funerals and earlier this week, a Mississippi judge jailed a lawyer who refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance out loud in his courtroom:

Chancellor Talmadge Littlejohn ordered Lampley jailed shortly after court began in Tupelo this morning.

Eyewitnesses said Littlejohn asked the court audience to rise and repeat the pledge. Lampley rose but failed to vocalize the words to the pledge, an act he has done before, apparently to the judge's consternation.

Oh my -- what will those freedumb loving teabaggers think about this? As Alan Colmes points out over at his blog, Liberaland, the SCOTUS ruled back in the 1940s that a child cannot be forced to salute the flag or to recite the pledge. One would think adults would be covered under that ruling too, no?

Personally, I find it disturbing that anyone in this country could be jailed for choosing not to verbally recite the pledge. I understand that judges rule the roost in their courtroom, but this goes well beyond the pale. It should also be noted that Lampley is a constitutional lawyer, but according to this update, cannot sue the judge for his wrongful imprisonment. That...is a shame.

As many of you may recall, during the 2008 presidential election, Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin made the ridiculous claim that her first amendment rights were being violated because people were criticizing her hateful and negative rhetoric.

It seems that everyone's favorite relationship shrink Dr. Laura Schlessinger has pulled a page from Palin's playbook. The good doctor has decided, after having an epic, racist on-air meltdown, that she will quit her job as a radio show host when her contract expires (at least she's finishing out her term) and is now playing the victim. Dr. Laura claims that she's been stripped of her first amendment rights because people like the fine folks at Media Matters, dared to re-air her nasty little rant, and citizens complained to her sponsors.

I'm here to say that my contract is up for my radio show at the end of the year, and I've made the decision not to do radio anymore. The reason is, I want to regain my First Amendment rights. I want to be able to say what's on my mind and in my heart, and what I think is helpful and useful, without somebody getting angry, some special interest group deciding this is the time to silence a voice of dissent and attack affiliates and attack sponsors. I'm sort of done with that. I'm not retiring. I'm not quitting. I feel energized, actually -- stronger and freer to say the things that I believe need to be said for people in this country.

Dr. Schlessinger goes on to say that she's not giving up her career, just her radio show. She still wants to give lectures and have the opportunity to "say what's on her mind and in her heart." Wow, if things like "Don't NAACP ME!" and NI**ER, NI**ER, NI**GER are what's in this woman's heart, she needs some very expensive therapy.

Shall we take bets on how long it takes before she becomes a contributor on Fox News, or gets her own show?

(definition of Pullin' A Palin can be found here)

(h/t GottaLaff at Political Carnival)

By now, unless you've been living under a rock, or below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico, you know that Glenn Beck is about the lowest common denominator when it comes to corporate teevee and radio. Despite his ratings dive and a lack of sponsors, he still considers himself to be a winner.

Well, he's really stepping in it this time. He's asking his fans to make donations to a military charity to fund a rally in Washington D.C. - the only problem is that the rally is nothing more than a release party for his new book and well...I'll let GottaLaff tell the rest of the story, keying off this audio report from Bill Press:

DOWNLOADS: 1202

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Yes, you heard right. Beck doesn’t even have a permit for The Big Rally yet. They’ve applied, but they’re still in negotiations. Yet, they’re selling merchandise as if it’s a done deal. He’s selling stuff for an event that may never take place.

It’s also not being held at the Lincoln Memorial, but at the reflecting pool, across the street. Glenn Beck is lying about the location of the rally.

And finally, he’s exploiting a charity by soliciting contributions to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. But see, the fine print says all contributions will first be applied to the rally, the one with Sarah Palin. All contributions in excess of the costs will go to the troops.

Let’s recap:
–He’s desecrating the memory of Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln;
–He’s lying to the (gullible) American people who still choose to give him an ounce of credibility, and
–He’s using a charity set up to raise money for members of the military, and then stealing the money he raises to pay for his little get together. Read on...

I am flabbergasted that Glenn Beck would try to freeload like that! /snark WTF is wrong with pukes like Beck and Hannity, who claim to be sooo patriotic, yet use military charities to enrich themselves? Oh wait...they're Republicans....

Kansas Republican Kevin Yoder is running for Congress, attempting to win a seat long held by Democrat Dennis Moore. In Yoder's new campaign advertisement you see him walking around on a farm with his wife and children and chatting at a diner with locals in what appears to be your garden variety ad. The problem is, according to The Pitch - Yoder and his wife have no children.

What a good-looking family. In his new campaign video for Congress, Kevin Yoder appears to have a photogenic, all-American brood: three adorable girls and a boy, who seem to embody the heartland values Yoder espouses in his new campaign video. Except those aren't Yoder's children.

If you just watched the video and didn't know any better, you'd think these were Yoder's kids. They're not. They're likely his nieces and nephew (or models hired for cuteness).

While misleading and creepy, that alone wouldn't be much of a story. But, thanks to a very observant blogger, we find out that Yoder not only hired other people's children to give the impression he was a "family man," he also hired right wing, anti-tax lobbyists and a Delta Dental executive to pose as regular, working folk:

But what Pitch didn't notice, but we at DOTR did, is that while the ad has plenty of other people's children, Yoder also gathered some of his favorite lobbyists to play "real people" for him to "meet" in a "diner."

Why there's Ken Daniel, the conservative anti-tax advocate, in the brown coat next to Yoder at 0:33. And that's Dan Murray at 0:59. You remember him - he's the Kansas director for the right-wing National Federation of Independent Businesses and a frequent Statehouse visitor.

Even former legislator and current Delta Dental insurance executive Dean Newton makes several appearances, bringing his whole family to "meet" Kevin at 1:03 before giving an unconvincing "I'm a Yoder voter" at 1:21. Read on...

Yoder's Democratic opponent is Stephene Moore (Dennis Moore's wife) and here is her website. If you're so inclined, click through and show her some love.