Saturday, January 31, 2009
Politicians - Business as Usual
If you can follow the food chain, you can conclude that we paid for this...
Jim Meters reports at NewsMax.com:
"Six Democratic members of Congress enjoyed a Caribbean junket sponsored by Citigroup after Congress had approved the $700 billion bailout of financial services firms in October.
The National Legal and Policy Center, a watchdog group, has asked Neil Barofsky, the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, for a formal review of the Citigroup’s sponsorship of the trip by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel and five others.
The NLPC says the trip violated House rules."
Friday, January 30, 2009
Dodd of Indignation - WSJ.com
Most politicians are big time hypocrites!...
The Wall Street Journal opines:
"We refer to his promise to release mortgage documents for the two properties that he and his wife refinanced with Countrywide Financial in 2003. In June a former Countrywide loan officer charged that Mr. Dodd received preferential rates and had fees waived on those loans as part of a VIP program the company had for 'friends' of the company's then-CEO Angelo Mozilo. Mr. Dodd first issued a denial and then, days later, acknowledged that he was a 'VIP' with Countrywide but said he thought it was 'more of a courtesy.' In late June he pledged to make all pertinent documents public 'at some point.' We're still waiting."
Thursday, January 29, 2009
"Spread the Wealth Grading"
I've seen analogies like this before.
I'm pretty sure they are an attempt to reach those who don't understand the destructive nature of socialistic policies.
Historically, socialism destroys incentive. Being able to excel and be rewarded for that is what fuels the capitalism.
Unfortunately, many can't see it for what it is; hence, the analogy approach...
I'm pretty sure they are an attempt to reach those who don't understand the destructive nature of socialistic policies.
Historically, socialism destroys incentive. Being able to excel and be rewarded for that is what fuels the capitalism.
Unfortunately, many can't see it for what it is; hence, the analogy approach...
At Townhall.com, Mike S. Adams tries this:
"Good afternoon students! I’m writing you this email to announce that I’m making some changes in the grading policies I announced two weeks ago when I sent an email with an attached course syllabus. As you know, we now have a new president and I thought it would be nice to align our class policies with some of the policies he will be implementing over the next four years. These will be changes you can believe in and, I hope, changes that will inspire hope, which is our most important American value."
What did president tell Supreme Court?
I'm not much for most conspiracy theories.
I'm skeptical that there might be flying saucers.
I'm amazed that so many land bound lakes allegedly have "monsters" in them.
And, it seems odd that so many wilderness areas have a "yeti" or "abominable snowman".
BUT, this issue fascinates me, in that it seems so easy to resolve.
You can decide for yourself. I doubt the court will...
I'm skeptical that there might be flying saucers.
I'm amazed that so many land bound lakes allegedly have "monsters" in them.
And, it seems odd that so many wilderness areas have a "yeti" or "abominable snowman".
BUT, this issue fascinates me, in that it seems so easy to resolve.
You can decide for yourself. I doubt the court will...
Bob Unruh discusses it at WorldNetDaily.com:
"... the Supreme Court's actions now may become the subject of further questions, because Obama visited with the justices in their private chambers in a meeting closed to the public just before his inauguration. Taitz said a defendant in a legal action meeting with the judges who are deciding the case without have a representative from the other side is unprecedented – and unacceptable.
'I will file a motion to the chief justice to compel the records of this private meeting, that was held only a few days before my case was supposed to be heard,' Taitz said in a posting on her website.
'I would like to get information about what was discussed,' she told WND in an interview. 'It's unheard of for the Supreme Court to meet with [one] party when a case is pending.'"
How Modern Law Makes Us Powerless - WSJ.com
I think this is one of those articles that gets to the core of a problem.
I also think it's much more than just the President's problem.
My analogy is that unions often cripple companies with too many rules. Perhaps you see the similarity...
I also think it's much more than just the President's problem.
My analogy is that unions often cripple companies with too many rules. Perhaps you see the similarity...
Philip K. Howard explains in his Wall Street Journal article:
"Freedom has a formal structure. It has two components:
1) Law sets boundaries that proscribe what we must do or can't do -- you must not steal, you must pay taxes.
2) Those same legal boundaries protect an open field of free choice in all other matters.
The forgotten idea is the second component -- that law must affirmatively define an area free from legal interference. Law must provide 'frontiers, not artificially drawn,' as philosopher Isaiah Berlin put it, 'within which men should be inviolable.'
This idea has been lost to our age. When advancing the cause of freedom, law today is all proscription and no protection. There are no boundaries, just a moving mudbank comprised of accumulating bureaucracy and whatever claims people unilaterally choose to assert. People wade through law all day long. Any disagreement in the workplace, any accident, any incidental touching of a child, any sick person who gets sicker, any bad grade in school -- you name it. Law has poured into daily life."
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Not So Greatest Generation
Well, it is what it is.
I'm hoping most of them will mature and turn out just fine...
I'm hoping most of them will mature and turn out just fine...
At The American Spectator website, David N. Bass discusses a new book by Mark Bauerlein:
"The title immediately brings to mind the Greatest Generation, the idol of 20th century American history that weathered the Great Depression, beat the Nazis at Normandy, and brought us swing music. But the generation that Bauerlein writes of is very different. Ignorant of politics and government, art and music, prose and poetry, the Dumbest Generation is content to turn up its iPods and tune out the realities of the adult world. It is brash, pampered, young, and dumb -- and content to stay that way."
Who (not) to believe
This writer makes a great point.
The entertainment industry clearly perpetuates falsehoods that are not productive.
Going a step further; the news media does the same.
And think about what may be being taught in our schools.
Is it any wonder that so many citizens make poor choices when the information they are getting cannot be trusted?...
The entertainment industry clearly perpetuates falsehoods that are not productive.
Going a step further; the news media does the same.
And think about what may be being taught in our schools.
Is it any wonder that so many citizens make poor choices when the information they are getting cannot be trusted?...
James Hudnall lists his top cinematic cliches' at Breitbart.com:
"As a writer and consumer of entertainment, I really hate clichés and stereotypes. They’re only useful for misdirection, making readers believe the story is going a certain way so you can fool them. But Hollywood keeps trotting out the following lame tropes over and over again. It’s about time they were called on the carpet for this stupidity. These stereotypes are not only offensive; they’re overused to the point where they must be retired for good. If you really care about not offending people, Hollywood, stop offending me and the legions of people who are sick of this drivel."
A 40-Year Wish List - WSJ.com
What to believe?
Is it the granddaddy of "pork" because they know it's getting harder to get?
Is it a "payoff" package for those who helped get President Obama elected?
Is it what happens when one party gets too much into the majority?
Is it just politicians out of control in their haste to save us?
And why is it going to inefficient "middlemen" who will surely dilute the benefits for their own causes?
Ugh!...
Is it the granddaddy of "pork" because they know it's getting harder to get?
Is it a "payoff" package for those who helped get President Obama elected?
Is it what happens when one party gets too much into the majority?
Is it just politicians out of control in their haste to save us?
And why is it going to inefficient "middlemen" who will surely dilute the benefits for their own causes?
Ugh!...
The Wall Street Journal attacks the "stimulus":
"The 647-page, $825 billion House legislation is being sold as an economic 'stimulus,' but now that Democrats have finally released the details we understand Rahm's point much better. This is a political wonder that manages to spend money on just about every pent-up Democratic proposal of the last 40 years.
We've looked it over, and even we can't quite believe it. There's $1 billion for Amtrak, the federal railroad that hasn't turned a profit in 40 years; $2 billion for child-care subsidies; $50 million for that great engine of job creation, the National Endowment for the Arts; $400 million for global-warming research and another $2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects. There's even $650 million on top of the billions already doled out to pay for digital TV conversion coupons.
In selling the plan, President Obama has said this bill will make 'dramatic investments to revive our flagging economy.' Well, you be the judge. Some $30 billion, or less than 5% of the spending in the bill, is for fixing bridges or other highway projects."
Politicians - Mayor Eddie A. Perez
Another politician that apparently doesn't know right from wrong...
Dave Collins of the Associated Press reports:
"Hartford's mayor turned himself in Tuesday on charges of having a city contractor do $40,000 in work at his home and paying for it only after being confronted by investigators.
Eddie A. Perez, a native of Puerto Rico and the first Hispanic mayor in the city's history, called his conduct inappropriate but said he did not commit a crime. He pledged to remain in office.
'I should never have used a city contractor to have done improvements on my home,' Perez said Tuesday. "It was inappropriate and inexcusable. I should never have allowed the perception of impropriety to color my administration."
Perez, the Democratic mayor of Connecticut's capital city since 2001, was charged with receiving a bribe and falsifying evidence.
The contractor, Carlos Costa, told investigators he believed he would be shut out of lucrative city contracts had he not done the work for free, prosecutors said Tuesday."
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Barack Obama - and his senior staff
I don't know what will become of this, but it sure doesn't convey the message I'd like to hear...
Doug Ross reports on his blog:
"On Saturday morning, the list of subpoenas served by the U.S. Attorney's office in the Governor Rod Blagojevich case was made public. The list included one major surprise for the new administration.
A veritable 'who's who' of Obama staffers, surrogates and affiliates were among those served with subpoenas. Put simply, within one week of President Barack Obama's administration taking office, it is already under significant legal scrutiny that will -- at a minimum -- take precious time away from dealing with the country's monumental economic and foreign policy challenges.
And, once again, the mainstream media is AWOL, unwilling to report on this very newsworthy story."
The Media - the New York Times
Apparently, they didn't "get it".
Unfortunately, their shareholders and non-decision maiking employees will now suffer...
Unfortunately, their shareholders and non-decision maiking employees will now suffer...
Thomas Lifson is editor and publisher of the American Thinker. He writes:
"Shareholders have lost between 80 and 90 percent of their investment in the company's common stock over the last 5 years, while the Times journos have merrily enjoyed the elitist lifestyle bubble on the company dime in Manhattan capitals around the world."
Global Warming - About that snow
I know it's probably just a freak occurrence; but, considering the prevailing "global warming" hype, it's fun to point these things out...
This is from the Arab Emirates :
"Snow covered the Jebel Jais area for only the second time in recorded history yesterday.
So rare was the event that one lifelong resident said the local dialect had no word for it."
The Stimulus Time Machine - WSJ.com
It looks like our politicians have once again missed their history lesson.
Time will tell...
Time will tell...
The Wall Street Journal explains:
"The stimulus bill is also a time machine in the sense that it's based on an old, and largely discredited, economic theory. As Harvard economist Robert Barro pointed out on these pages last Thursday, the "stimulus" claim is based on something called the Keynesian "multiplier," which is that each $1 of spending the government "injects" into the economy yields 1.5 times that in greater output. There's little evidence to support this theory, but you have to admire its beauty because it assumes the government can create wealth out of thin air. If it were true, the government should spend $10 trillion and we'd all live in paradise.
The problem is that the money for this spending boom has to come from somewhere, which means it is removed from the private sector as higher taxes or borrowing. For every $1 the government "injects," it must take $1 away from someone else -- either in taxes or by issuing a bond. In either case this leaves $1 less available for private investment or consumption."
Monday, January 26, 2009
Barack Obama - and his Regulatory Czar
This looks like it could get interesting...
I found this on the The Center for Consumer Freedom website:
"Sunstein also argued in favor of 'eliminating current practices such as greyhound racing, cosmetic testing, and meat eating, most controversially.'
He concluded his Harvard speech by expressing his 'more ambitious animating concern' that the current treatment of livestock and other animals should be considered 'a form of unconscionable barbarity not the same as, but in many ways morally akin to, slavery and mass extermination of human beings.' Sound familiar?
As the individual about to assume 'the most important position that Americans know nothing about,' Sunstein owes the public an honest appraisal of his animal rights goals before taking office. Will the next four years be a dream-come-true for anti-meat, anti-hunting, and anti-everything-else radicals? Time will tell. For now, meat lovers might want to stock their freezers."
Global Warming - Antartica is NOT warming up
Many people have caught on to the global warming scam.
Unfortunately, the advocates have the attention of the media and keep pushing and publicizing their bad science...
Unfortunately, the advocates have the attention of the media and keep pushing and publicizing their bad science...
Chistopher Booker discusses the "science" in the U.K. telegraph:
" It was Dr Mann who duly obliged by getting his computer-model to produce a graph shaped like hockey stick, eliminating the mediaeval warming and showing recent temperatures curving up to an unprecedented high.
This instantly became the warmists' chief icon, made the centrepiece of the IPCC's 2001 report. But Mann's selective use of data and the flaws in his computer model were then so devastatingly torn apart that it has become the most comprehensively discredited artefact in the history of science.
The fact that Dr Mann is again behind the new study on Antarctica is, alas, all part of an ongoing pattern. But this will not prevent the paper being cited ad nauseam by everyone from the BBC to Al Gore, when he shortly addresses the US Senate and carries on advising President Obama behind the scenes on how to roll back that 'spectre of a warming planet'. So, regardless of the science, and until the politicians finally wake up to how they have been duped, what threatens to become the most costly flight from reality in history will continue to roll remorselessly on its way."
Earmarks - They're baaack!
Except now they'll be more difficult to find...
Julie Hirschfeld Davis reports for the Associated Press:
"President Barack Obama's ban on earmarks in the $825 billion economic stimulus bill doesn't mean interest groups, lobbyists and lawmakers won't be able to funnel money to pet projects.
They're just working around it - and perhaps inadvertently making the process more secretive.
The projects run the gamut: a Metrolink station that needs building in Placentia, Calif.; a stretch of beach in Sandy Hook, N.J., that could really use some more sand; a water park in Miami.
There are thousands of projects like those that once would have been gotten money upfront but now are left to scramble for dollars at the back end of the process as "ready to go" jobs eligible for the stimulus plan.
The result, as The Associated Press learned in interviews with more than a dozen lawmakers, lobbyists and state and local officials, is a shadowy lobbying effort that may make it difficult to discern how hundreds of billions in federal money will be parceled out."
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Iran Is the Terrorist 'Mother Regime' - WSJ.com
Life is never dull in Israel.
And their election is coming.
If Netanyahu wins, one can only guess what will happen...
And their election is coming.
If Netanyahu wins, one can only guess what will happen...
Bret Stephens reports on his interview with Benjamin Netanyahu in the Wall Street Journal:
"This brings Mr. Netanyahu to the political pitch he's making -- so far successfully -- to Israelis ahead of next month's election. When elections were held three years ago, bringing Mr. Olmert to power, "we [his Likud Party] were mocked" for warning that Gaza would become Hamastan, and that Hamastan would become a staging ground for missiles fired at major Israeli cities such as Ashkelon and Ashdod.
'I think we've shown the ability to see the problems in advance,' he says. 'Peace is purchased from strength. It's not purchased from weakness or unilateral retreats. It just doesn't happen that way. That perhaps is the greatest lesson that has been impressed on the mind of the Israeli public in the last few years.'"
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Blowhards - WSJ.com
I've been following this Cape Wind project for quite some time.
It has exposed quite a bit of interesting hypocrisy, especially among certain politicians...
It has exposed quite a bit of interesting hypocrisy, especially among certain politicians...
The Wall Street Journal reviews the issue and concludes:
"We wouldn't be surprised to see the President's green future wrestled to the ground by the likes of Mr. Delahunt, the Kennedys and other anticarbon Democrats. Environmentalists love the idea of milking Mother Nature for power, but they hate the hardware needed to make it work: huge windmills, acres of solar panels, high-voltage transmission lines to connect them to the places where people live. Of course, they still totally, absolutely, wholeheartedly support green energy -- as long as it gets built where someone else goes yachting."
Barack Obama - Forces Taxpayers to Fund, Promote Worldwide Abortions
I wonder how long it will take before the new president realizes that everything he says can and will be used against him?
Of course, when you've promised everyone everything in order to get votes, it only seems right that you get called on it...
Of course, when you've promised everyone everything in order to get votes, it only seems right that you get called on it...
Steven Ertelt writes about it at Lifenews.com:
"Barack Obama promised during the presidential campaign that he wanted to reduce abortions and said as much in a statement yesterday in association with the anniversary of Roe. Today, however, he betrayed that promise by forcing taxpayers to fund groups promoting and performing abortions overseas.
In an executive order, the president officially scrapped the Mexico City Policy that protected taxpayers from involvement in overseas abortions for eight years. Now, Obama will send hundreds of millions of dollars to groups that aggressively promote abortions on a worldwide scale."
Barack Obama - Breaks his own rule - CNN
Interesting. Even the liberal media is calling attention to this...
At CNN.com, Campbell Brown has this and more:
"You see, what happened is, there is this former lobbyist for a big defense contractor called Raytheon. His name is William Lynn.
President Obama wants him to be deputy defense secretary. So, the Obama administration wants a waiver to its own rule.
That basically means they are saying, we will mostly put tough new restrictions on lobbyists, except when we won't."
Friday, January 23, 2009
Rebuilding the Infrastructure? Apparently not!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Meanwhile - in Washington State
Sand or salt? Let the environmental games begin...
Susan Kelleher and Warren Cornwall report in on the SeattleTimes website:
"Sand — one of Seattle's main weapons against icy streets — is more likely to harm aquatic life than the salt the city refuses to use out of concern for its environmental effects.
That's the opinion of scientists who have studied the issue and officials from other cities that use salt to clear icy roads.
Seattle doesn't use salt, an effective ice-buster used widely by other cities and the state Department of Transportation, because of environmental concerns.
Since last Thursday, Seattle has sprinkled more than 6,000 tons of sand on city streets and this week ordered 700 more tons for storage."
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Meanwhile - in the U.K.
I wonder what the crime victims call them...
Tom Whitehead reports in the U.K. Telegraph:
"Prison officers have been told not to refer to their charges as "inmates" because it might offend them.
Prison staff have been told to use the word 'prisoner' in preference to the words 'inmate' or 'offender'.
Ministers claim the age-old term is not appropriate if criminals are to be treated with 'respect and dignity'."
Holder for Wiretaps - WSJ.com
I'm willing to bet that many of Bush's policies will be continued by President Obama.
It will be a bit sad as we learn that the complaints about those policies were nothing more than politics; not to mention the media's bias in reporting about them...
It will be a bit sad as we learn that the complaints about those policies were nothing more than politics; not to mention the media's bias in reporting about them...
The Wall Street Journal noticed this one:
"First it was the special surveillance court that we learned last week has affirmed the President's constitutional power to undertake warrantless wiretaps. Now comes Attorney General nominee Eric Holder, who endorsed this executive authority during his confirmation hearing late last week."
Free Solar Power Is Hoax
Ugh Oh! The truth is out.
Now, let's see if the media finds out about it...
Now, let's see if the media finds out about it...
Using his expertise, James P. O'Loughlin reports in the Albuquerque Journal:
"At this time, PV panels account for around 50 percent of a system's cost, or $5,000 per kilowatt. The other part of the PV system is based on mature technology, the cost of which cannot be reduced. The only way to reduce the PV power generation cost is to reduce the cost of the panels. Even if we take the most extreme, totally unrealistic case of reducing the PV panel cost to zero, the immutable factor of six in power rating still dominates and results in a cost of $143.29 for $42.75 worth of electricity.
The cliché about investing in research and development to decrease the cost of panels and make PV power generation competitive is an unachievable myth that is fanatically pursued by the government and other groups having various and peculiar reasons.
When reality is not acceptable, the government can fix it with political alchemy. Through the influence of pressure groups and lobbyists, state and federal governments decree that photovoltaic power generation must be implemented. To fix the inherently expensive PV power generation problem, governments provide tax credits, incentives and other forms of subsidy to cover up the excessive cost.
This does not reduce the actual cost; it just transfers it to the general taxpayer or ratepayer."
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Politicians - Mayor Sam Adams
Another less than perfect politician...
Anna Griffin reports for The Oregonian:
"Mayor Sam Adams acknowledged today that he had a sexual relationship in 2005 with an 18-year-old man he had mentored. He said he lied when asked about it in 2007 and told the young man, Beau Breedlove, to lie about it, too.
The revelations come nearly a year and a half after Adams and Breedlove insisted, in the weeks after rumors surfaced in summer 2007, that their relationship was strictly platonic."
Politicians - Mayor Gary Becker
Obviously, the city employees honored the law more than loyalty...
Tom Kertscher reports in the Wiscinsin Journal Sentinel:
"Taken into custody at Brookfield Square mall Tuesday evening, Becker became one of the more than 475 people arrested by the state's 10-year-old Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
By now, it is relatively widely known that investigators from the Division of Criminal Investigation pose as youths on the Internet, looking for adults who want to have sex with minors.
But according to a source familiar with the case, a criminal investigation of Becker was begun before Christmas after he brought a personal computer to City Hall and asked city workers to fix a problem with it.
Whatever the workers found was turned over to Racine police, who in turn passed it on to the state task force."
Bush's Real Sin Was Winning in Iraq - WSJ.com
I wonder when it became politically correct to lose wars?...
William McGurn makes the point in the Wall Street Journal:
"Here's a hint: It's not because of his failures. To the contrary, Mr. Bush's disfavor in Washington owes more to his greatest success. Simply put, there are those who will never forgive Mr. Bush for not losing a war they had all declared unwinnable.
Here in the afterglow of the turnaround led by Gen. David Petraeus, it's easy to forget what the smart set was saying two years ago -- and how categorical they all were in their certainty. The president was a simpleton, it was agreed. Didn't he know that Iraq was a civil war, and the only answer was to get out as fast as we could?"
Monday, January 19, 2009
The United Nations - Protecting the children
Don't believe it...
Bill Levinson writes at Israpundit.com:
"The United Nations, which is currently enabling Hamas terrorists and possibly giving them material support, has been implicated in widespread cases of child rape in Third World countries."
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Mischief in the 21st Century
It's really much more than that, but kids wouldn't be thinking about that...
At TheSentinel.com, Joe Slaninka reports:
"As a prank, students from local high schools have been taking advantage of the county's Speed Camera Program in order to exact revenge on people who they believe have wronged them in the past, including other students and even teachers.
Students from Richard Montgomery High School dubbed the prank the Speed Camera 'Pimping' game, according to a parent of a student enrolled at one of the high schools.
Originating from Wootton High School, the parent said, students duplicate the license plates by printing plate numbers on glossy photo paper, using fonts from certain websites that 'mimic' those on Maryland license plates. They tape the duplicate plate over the existing plate on the back of their car and purposefully speed through a speed camera, the parent said. The victim then receives a citation in the mail days later."
Global Warming - Fired by Gore
I'm thinking that may be a plus on your resume'...
I found this at RightSieNews.com:
"Award winning Princeton University Physicist Dr. Will Happer, who was reportedly fired by former Vice President Al Gore in 1993 for failing to adhere to Gore's scientific views, has now declared man-made global warming fears 'mistaken.'"
"'I am convinced that the current alarm over carbon dioxide is mistaken,' Happer, who has published over 200 scientific papers, told EPW on December 22, 2008. Happer made his remarks while requesting to join the 2008 U.S. Senate Minority Report from Environment and Public Works Ranking Member James Inhofe (R-OK) of over 650 (and growing) dissenting international scientists disputing anthropogenic climate fears."
Global Warming - A major "takedown"
This opinion article is quite thorough in telling it like it is...
Vin Suprynowicz writes in the Las Vegas Review Journal:
"It's getting colder. 2008 was the coolest year in a decade.
The American mainstream press seem to know 'team players' don't mention such inconvenient developments, but in the U.K., the esteemed Guardian reports, 'This year is set to be the coolest since 2000, according to a preliminary estimate of global average temperature that is due to be released next week by the Met Office. The global average for 2008 should come in close to 14.3C, which is 0.14C below the average temperature for 2001-07.'
How stupid does this make politicians such as Barack Obama and the other suckers who have fallen for the "global warming" hoax as they race to say, 'Never mind'?
Actually, they haven't missed a beat. These guys are so 'scientific' that the evidence of their own eyes and overcoats has become irrelevant. They now contend global cooling is just further proof of global warming. Honest."
Global Warming - Top 10 dud predictions
Maybe global warming enthusiasts should lay low for a while.
This is about last year.
You can look out your window for this this...
This is about last year.
You can look out your window for this this...
Andrew Bolt writes in Australia's Herald Sun:
"GLOBAL warming preachers have had a shocking 2008. So many of their predictions this year went splat.
Here's their problem: they've been scaring us for so long that it's now possible to check if things are turning out as hot as they warned.
And good news! I bring you Christmas cheer - the top 10 warming predictions to hit the wall this year.
Read, so you can end 2008 with optimism, knowing this Christmas won't be the last for you, the planet or even the polar bears."
Global Warming - Theory "Arrogant"?
I'm starting to see more and more stories like this.
It appears that more and more respectable people are willing to confront the global warming hucksters...
It appears that more and more respectable people are willing to confront the global warming hucksters...
At BusinessAndMedia.org, Jeff Poor posting includes:
"'If we go back really, in recorded human history, in the 13th Century, we were probably 7 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than we are now and it was a very prosperous time for mankind,' Lehr said. 'If go back to the Revolutionary War 300 years ago, it was very, very cold. We’ve been warming out of that cold spell from the Revolutionary War period and now we’re back into a cooling cycle.'
Lehr suggested the earth is presently entering a cooling cycle – a result of nature, not man.
'The last 10 years have been quite cool,' Lehr continued. 'And right now, I think we’re going into cooling rather than warming and that should be a much greater concern for humankind. But, all we can do is adapt. It is the sun that does it, not man.'"
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Flouridation - Is it Bad?
Flouridation has been an issue since the concept was first presented.
This writer is obviously NOT an advocate.
Unfortunately, as with so many things, the average person has no way to really know. We have to trust people who MAY have an agenda that's not good for us...
This writer is obviously NOT an advocate.
Unfortunately, as with so many things, the average person has no way to really know. We have to trust people who MAY have an agenda that's not good for us...
This article, by "SallyStride", was provoked by New York State's recently proposed tax hikes. I found it at PlacerHerald.com:
"Science shows ending fluoridation saves teeth, money, preserves health and will reduce the carbon footprint, to boot, but it would irk organized dentistry. That’s the rub."
Meanwhile - in Lorain County, OH
So, in what country do you think this took place?
And what in the world do you think is going on there?...
And what in the world do you think is going on there?...
I found this posted by David E. Gumpert on his blog:
"The answer was a knock on the door December 1, according to the suit, “and Katie Stowers opened. Police shoved Katie Stowers to the side, and immediately entered the residence, without first announcing (1) that they were police; or (2) the purpose of the visit. During the raid, at least one, if not several police entered the home with guns drawn, and the Stowers home was surrounded by police who also had guns drawn. Once having obtained entry into the home, the lead officer on the raid, with his gun drawn, swiftly and immediately moved to the upstairs of the home, where he found 8 small children in the middle of a home-schooling lesson. The officer used physical force to get Jacqueline Stowers and her children down the stairs. The officers held the Stowers family captive in their living room for in excess of six hours."
Myths & Facts About the Real Bush Record
President Bush is a long way from perfect; however, he HAS accomplished quite a few things.
The mainstream media is too busy with President Elect Obama's coronation, so they don't have time to report them.
Others will...
The mainstream media is too busy with President Elect Obama's coronation, so they don't have time to report them.
Others will...
At RealClearPolitics.com, Ed Gillespie lists these and more:
"Some other items that are infrequently mentioned about the real record of the Bush Administration but are worth noting: Teenage drug use has declined 25 percent; in 2007, the violent crime rate was 43 percent lower than the rate in 1998; between 2005 and 2007, the chronically homeless population decreased approximately 30 percent; funding for veterans' medical care has increased more than 115 percent; and as of 2005, the most recent abortion rate is at its lowest since 1974.
And one last fact: Our homeland has not suffered another terrorist attack since September 11, 2001. That, too, is part of the real Bush record."
Politicians - Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon
Another corrupt politician...
Annie Linskey and Julie Bykowicz report in the Baltimore Sun:
"Baltimore Mayor Sheila A. Dixon was charged today with 12 counts of felony theft, perjury, fraud and misconduct in office, becoming the city's first sitting mayor to be criminally indicted.
The case stems in part from at least $15,348 in gifts Dixon allegedly received from her former boyfriend, prominent city developer Ronald H. Lipscomb, while she was City Council president. She also is accused of using as much as $3,400 in gift cards, some donated to her office for distribution to "needy families," to purchase Best Buy electronics and other items for herself and her staff.
Lipscomb was not indicted in the Dixon case, but he and City Councilwoman Helen L. Holton were charged this week in a separate $12,500 bribery scheme. Both cases grew out of a nearly three-year probe by the state prosecutor into City Hall corruption.
The investigation has hung over Dixon, a Democrat, ..."
The Media - the New York Times
Many Americans have become skeptical of the media. For those who want to understand why, here's a glaring example...
On her website, Ann Coulter exposes them in a big way. She begins:
"In a front-page article on Jan. 2 of this year, The New York Times took a brief respite from its ongoing canonization of Barack Obama and returned to its series on violent crimes committed by returning GIs, or as I call it: 'U.S. Military, Psycho Killers.'
The Treason Times' banner series about Iraq and Afghanistan veterans accused of murder began in January last year but was quickly discontinued as readers noticed that the Times doggedly refused to provide any statistics comparing veteran murders with murders in any other group.
So they waited a year, hoping readers wouldn't notice they were still including no relevant comparisons."
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Buy American - says Chuck Norris
Chuck Norris is a genuine patriotic son-of-a-gun...
Chuck Norris writes at HumanEvents.com:
"If you're old enough, you'll remember when 'Made in USA' was a badge of honor. Well, I'm proposing a buyers' revolution in which we all economically win that medal of valor. If the government isn't going to help us by securing our borders, reducing outsourcing, or ceasing debt caused by bogus bailouts and out-of-control spending, then we the people have got to take back the financial future of our country. The buck stops here -- in America. One resolution we all should make in 2009: Buy 'Made in USA.' Don't just go green; spend green -- in homemade products and services."
Government at Work - In Pennsylvania
Nice work if you can get it.
I wonder if the voters will ever "get" it, and vote these bums out?...
I wonder if the voters will ever "get" it, and vote these bums out?...
Chris Freind reports in the Philadelphia Bulletin:
"But in 2007, the ethical line was taken to a whole new level when Ballard performed $773,000 of state legal work without a state contract, leaving many questions unanswered.
On March 1 of that year, the firm began work on the proposal to privatize the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Over the next 83 days, Ballard utilized 55 attorneys (more than 10 percent of its legal staff), and billed the state for 2,300 hours, which equates to an average of 27.38 hours per 24 hour day. The hourly rates varied based on seniority, with firm Chairman Arthur Makadon billing $637.50/hour, and partners Ken Jarin and Adrian King Jr. billing $531.25/hour and $403.75/hour, respectively."
Government at Work - Promoting Avocados
It's easy to spend someone else's money; but, that doesn't make it right.
So you pay taxes, and they get to eat lobster. Nice!...
So you pay taxes, and they get to eat lobster. Nice!...
Teri Sforza reports on the Orange County Register website:
"The obscure, Irvine-based California Avocado Commission spent wildly and with few controls, dropping nearly $2 million on questionable credit card purchases and employee perks; lavish hotel stays replete with booze, body treatments, massages and facials; season tickets to Mighty Ducks and Angels games; remodeling an executive’s home office; and much more over a three-year period, according to a state auditor’s report."
Monday, January 12, 2009
In Our Schools - "Gifted"
I think everyone agrees that labels create preconceived ideas, stereotyping, and for the fragile, perhaps, damage to the psyche.
I'd prefer a results based system, using last semester's results to determine who goes to this semester's accelerated classes...
I'd prefer a results based system, using last semester's results to determine who goes to this semester's accelerated classes...
At WashingtonPost.com, Daniel de Vise writes about this issue:
"The gifted label is a hot potato in public education. A school that tells some students they have gifts risks dashing the academic dreams of everyone else. Any formula for identifying gifted children, no matter how sophisticated, can be condemned for those it leaves out."
Politicians - Former Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann
An Attorney General, no less.
What is it with these people?...
What is it with these people?...
In the Columbus Dispatch, Darrel Rowland reports:
"Former Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann falsified his campaign finance records to disguise tens of thousands of dollars spent to benefit himself, his wife, children and top campaign staffers, a complaint filed today says.
Statements of receipts and expenditures that Dann's campaign filed with the secretary of state 'contain incomplete, inaccurate and false information concerning expenditures from the fund for travel, food, beverages, cell phones and other expenditures,' Inspector General Thomas P. Charles said in a sworn statement filed with the complaint before the Ohio Elections Commission.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's office filed a separate complaint saying that Dann improperly spent more than $40,000 in campaign cash to install a security system and upgrade his Youngstown-area residence. "
Government at Work - for who?
Throw the bums out!
I keep hoping that the majority of Americans will come to their senses and take up that cry.
Unfortunately, media bias, misinformation, and apathy keep that in the wishful thinking category...
I keep hoping that the majority of Americans will come to their senses and take up that cry.
Unfortunately, media bias, misinformation, and apathy keep that in the wishful thinking category...
At TownHall.com, George Will writes about it:
"In 1966, the price of eggs rose to a level that President Lyndon Johnson judged, God knows how, was too high. There were two culprits -- supply and demand -- and Johnson's agriculture secretary told him there was not much that could be done. LBJ, however, was a can-do fellow who directed the U.S. surgeon general to dampen demand by warning the nation about the hazards of cholesterol in eggs."
"Another Great Depression?"
I've read this in other places.
It makes me wonder if the media has once again sold us on a scenario that wasn't true...
It makes me wonder if the media has once again sold us on a scenario that wasn't true...
Thomas Sowell writes at RealClearPolitics.com:
"The prevailing view in many quarters is that the stock market crash of 1929 was a failure of the free market that led to massive unemployment in the 1930s-- and that it was intervention of Roosevelt's New Deal policies that rescued the economy.
It is such a good story that it seems a pity to spoil it with facts. Yet there is something to be said for not repeating the catastrophes of the past."
Saturday, January 10, 2009
"Life on the Border"
If you think our borders are secure, just wait until you read this...
At Townhall.com, Sharla Ishmael describes this and more about what's really going on:
"'The people on the other side had a gate cut in the fence at some point after they put the solid wall in. They welded hinges on the gate, put a hasp on it and locked it. When they wanted to come through with their loads, they would unlock it and come through with several trucks at a time when the Border Patrol wasn’t watching,' she says. 'Finally, the Border Patrol accidentally saw a truck. They looked, and there was a gate. In fact, there are gates all along the border.'"
Wyoming lawmakers oppose Constitutional Convention
I didn't know about this and I don't like the sound of it.
Of course, you can read about it and form your own opinion...
Of course, you can read about it and form your own opinion...
Bob Unruh writes about it at WorldNetDaily.com:
"DeWeese wrote in his alert, 'In truth no restrictive language from any state can legally limit the scope or outcome of a [Constitutional] Convention! Once a Convention is called Congress determines how the delegates to the Convention are chosen. Once chosen, those Convention delegates possess more power than the U.S. Congress itself.'
'DeWeese is right,' Baldwin added. 'If called, a modern Constitutional Convention could declare the U.S. Constitution to be null and void, and could completely rewrite the document. For example, former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger once declared, 'There is no effective way to limit or muzzle the actions of a Constitutional Convention. The Convention could make its own rules and set its own agenda.'"
"If You Love Wind (and Solar)"
So, once again, something that sounds really good has major caveats.
Well, here I go again. I'm going to blame the media for this.
In this case, the media has done us all an injustice.
They HEADLINE and write about all the BENEFITS of alternative energy sources. They make it sound SO easy and imply that certain people are stupid for not embracing it.
They NEVER report on the complications and associated costs because they NEVER do their homework...
Well, here I go again. I'm going to blame the media for this.
In this case, the media has done us all an injustice.
They HEADLINE and write about all the BENEFITS of alternative energy sources. They make it sound SO easy and imply that certain people are stupid for not embracing it.
They NEVER report on the complications and associated costs because they NEVER do their homework...
Andrew C. Revkin posts this and more on his Dot Earth blog:
"If you love wind power (and solar power), you’d better at least like transmission. This was originally recited to me as kind of an energy-wonk joke. But it’s no laughing matter, as my colleague Matt Wald points out in an article today on new evidence that the country’s grid is already stretched to the limit and unlikely to be able to handle bigger, intermittent pulses of electricity from wind turbines and big solar-power arrays."
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Politicians - Gov. Jennifer Granholm
I wonder if it's constitutional to test candidates for executive positions in government.
Then, we could evaluate their scores before we give them a job...
Then, we could evaluate their scores before we give them a job...
Vrett Joshpe writes at CrossActionNews.com:
"Gov. Granholm presides over the state with the second-highest unemployment rate in the country and the fifth-highest taxes, and she actually thinks that raising the latter will lead to a decline in the former. Michigan also has the fifth-highest rate of foreclosure starts and the lowest rate of attracting new residents. During much of the past decade when the U.S. economy was growing at a healthy rate, Michigan’s was faltering with high rates of layoffs and taxes, and the state economy has shed approximately 300,000 jobs on Granholm’s watch.
In May, The Wall Street Journal reported that Michigan was facing a major budget deficit after Granholm raised personal income taxes and gross business receipt taxes by 22%. Higher taxes, rather than raising more revenue and narrowing deficits, have resulted in an exodus of productive citizens out of the Democratically controlled state. And despite budget deficits, Democratic legislators proposed a spending bill in 2007 that would have allocated $38 million of public funds to buy every Michigan student an iPod.
Now, as a result of the irresponsible fiscal management that has become so commonplace in tax-and-spend states like California, New York and Michigan, Gov. Granholm is seeking federal taxpayer dollars for her state, as well as the auto industry."
At McCain Headquarters On Election Night
The media is biased.
No Kidding! This writer knows it...
No Kidding! This writer knows it...
At TownHall.com, Austin Hill describes his point:
"Later that night, when the clock struck 9pm on the West Coast, and California was 'called' for Obama, and Obama was thus declared the winner of the election, several American journalists began cheering, 'high-fiving' each other, and dancing about in the McCain media center. A shot of staffers jumping and hugging on the set at CNN in Atlanta appeared on our big screen monitors, as well. 'Oh dear God,' Ian exclaimed in his thick Irish brogue. 'You weren’t jokin about the bias.'"
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Opinion: Questions on Clinton's Donors - WSJ.com
I think these are legitimate questions.
Do you wonder how many churches are on the donor list?...
Do you wonder how many churches are on the donor list?...
In the Wall Street Journal, Martin Perestz raises some questions:
"Then there are more serious questions about operating charities. What was the purpose of a contribution by the National Opera of Paris? Or of hospitals themselves in strained circumstances, like Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn and Arkansas Children's Hospital?
The University of Cambridge and Liverpool University in the United Kingdom threw into the pot from the other side of the pond. American universities like Tufts, Columbia, Georgetown, Iowa State, Texas, Brown, Rensselaer Polytechnic, UCLA and its school of public health all gave, plus the University of Judaism with a whopping sum between $100,000 and $250,000. (Is Bill Clinton now supporting studies in theology?) Do these educational institutions have such deep pockets to share with Bill Clinton's ego?
On the donor list are also the names of the charities we all give to generically: Human Rights Watch (well, not me), Feed the Children, and the Hunger Project. The foundation also receives funding from the International Bank for Recovery and Development of the World Bank, and the World Health Organization. They have their own, far-reaching projects. Why would they give cash to charitable work for which Mr. Clinton is at most a matchmaker?"
Barack Obama - and his Transportation Secretary
"Change" doesn't seem to describe this choice.
It looks very much like more (and maybe even more) of the same...
It looks very much like more (and maybe even more) of the same...
The Wall Street Journal tells about him:
"Barack Obama wasn't kidding about the audacity of hope. In tapping Republican Illinois Congressman Ray LaHood to head the Transportation Department last week, he got more Beltway hosannas for bipartisanship. At the same time he managed to choose one of the biggest spenders in Congress, of either party, and just the fellow to push $850 billion in 'stimulus' out the door."
Barack Obama - Meet Terrence Bean
Hopefully, he's not an "education" pick...
This is from the New York Post:
"ONE of the 'bundlers' who has raised $50,000 to $100,000 for the Barack Obama presidential campaign is Terrence Bean, who once controlled the biggest producer of gay porn in America.
Bean, the first gay on Sen. Obama's National Finance Committee, is the sole trustee of the Charles M. Holmes Foundation, which owned Falcon Studios, Jock Studios and Mustang Studios, the producers of about $10 million worth of all-male pornography a year."
Barack - his Secretary of Education
A local pick (from Chicago, no less).
Here's a comment from a local blog...
Here's a comment from a local blog...
Publicola doesn't think much of it:
"President-elect Barack Obama continues to reach not across the aisle, or even across the country, but right across town for his cabinet selections. Yet another lackluster liberal Chicago pol — Chicago Schools Superintendent Arne Duncan – this week was named by Obama to his cabinet, as Secretary of Education.
Duncan’s biggest career accomplishments include: proposing the novel idea of an all-gay high school in Chicago, and offering to pay high school students to get good grades.
Let’s look at each of these astonishing educational policy ideas separately..."
Barack Omama - Busted?
It sure looks that way.
I think a President should know the laws and obey them.
Will it matter? Probably not...
I think a President should know the laws and obey them.
Will it matter? Probably not...
At NewsBusters.com, Noel Sheppard has this and more:
"The reason behind the contention was the state's Department of Land and Natural Resources Protection Law, which prohibits ashes from being dropped into the ocean. According to the regulation in place, ashes must be poured at a distance of at least three nautical miles. It has not yet been determined whether Obama will receive a fine for his actions."
Monday, January 05, 2009
About that jet noise
This happened in 2005.
You can't know everything, so be careful what you complain about...
You can't know everything, so be careful what you complain about...
You can read the story at TruthOrFiction.com:
"Subject: Appropriate reply by one of our Air Force Brethren
The complaint:
'Question of the day for Luke Air Force Base: Whom do we thank for the morning air show? Last Wednesday, at precisely 9:11 a.m., a tight formation of four F-16 jets made a low pass over Arrowhead Mall, continuing west over Bell Road at approximately 500 feet. Imagine our good fortune! Do the Tom Cruise-wannabes feel we need this wake-up call, or were they trying to
impress the cashiers at Mervyns early bird special? Any response would be appreciated.'"
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Israel at War
The world seems to be against Israel.
The media is for sure...
The media is for sure...
Ralph Peters tells about it in the New York Post:
"Despite the frankly anti-Israeli and anti-Jewish reporting of this conflict in the global media, Israel's military performance not only has been technically superb, but has been as humane as possible under such difficult circumstances.
From earlier briefings in Israel, I know the IDF takes an almost absurd degree of care in its targeting. The questioning doesn't stop with 'Is that the right building?' it then asks, 'What should be our angle of attack to ensure any rubble falls into the street, not atop the primary school next door?' (Hamas consistently embeds terror facilities among innocent civilians.)
Hitting a terrorist hideout in an apartment building, for example, an F-16 would be armed with the smallest warhead that could do the job. If the terrorists are tucked into rooms on the fourth floor, targeting officers evaluate which window the guided missile should go through to kill the terrorists, while minimizing harm to civilians living below."
Friday, January 02, 2009
"What We Really Need is a Moral Bail Out"
I choose neutrality on the pro-life issue; however, I do think the Deacon is on to something here...
At the Catholic.org website, Deacon Keith Fournier writes:
"I suggest that the financial collapse is simply the sordid fruit of the greed and the idolatry which has elevated the accumulation of stuff over persons to the level of something to actually be emulated - and dragged us all down with the indices. This practical materialism is a cancer,caused by a fundamental loss of basic values such as a respect for all human life, no matter how old or young, large or small. It has also given rise to a counterfeit set of purported 'values' which place consumption over care and ultimately eat away at true and authentic human freedom, whether that freedom is expressed in a market economy which purports to promote it or other structures of social, cultural and political life which are also succumbing to its corrosive effects."
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Random Thoughts - by Thomas Sowell
Wishful thinking; but, nevertheless, a great idea...
I found this in a post by Thomas Sowell at Creators.com:
"A reader suggests that members of Congress should wear uniforms, like NASCAR drivers, so that we will know who their corporate sponsors are. Many of those in Congress should also wear logos representing the teachers' unions, environmentalist extremists and other special interests."
