Quotes of the day:
You have perhaps noticed that endangered species seem to pop up just when there coincidentally happens to be something going on that Big Environment wants to stop. Surely there can’t be a connection.-American Elephants from The Price of Gas, The ESA, and a Lack of Adult Government.
How is it that this White House can make a big hullabaloo over what it called a coup in Honduras in 2009, yet ignore last week’s news of death squads in Venezuela? Dictatorships and double standards, anyone?-– Opening of an Investors Business Daily editorial, May 13 From Bizzy Blog’s Quotes of the Day (051511, Morning)
Must See TeeVee!
- Bin Laden’s Death explained
- White House: Transparency Behind Closed Doors?
- Media Amnesia: Why Has No One Reported Obamas Massive Egyptian “Spring” Misread
Japan and the softly glowing world:
Info Links:
- BBC
- NHK in English (Live feed in upper right corner)
- Telegraph of London
- Kyodo Wire
- Japan Times
- Asahi Shimbun
- Japanese government list of nationwide radioactivity concentration
- Japan Geigermap
- SPEEDI (Japan Radiation level map)
- Ibaraki Prefecture Geiger Counter Readings
- US National Radiation Map (updated every minute)
- Via Soylent Green: Radiation Exposure in Daily Life
- Radiation Dose Chart
- Radiation Converter
- ZeroHedge commenter Max2205′s excellent post about radioactivity including a list of radioactive elements and their half lives.
- Donations to the American Red Cross that are being designated to Japanese Earthquake relief are already getting to the folks in Japan and are most helpful.
ALERT: Melted fuel in No. 1 reactor NOT covered with water
Missing water located in the Unit 1 reactor basement
Latest reactor 1 temperatures, with diagram
Take note of the ‘note’
TEPCO’s Analysis of Reactor 1 Core Meltdown
Fukushima I Reactor 3: TEPCO Pouring Boric Acid to Prevent Recriticality
Add another reactor to the list of ones that have serious problems in Japan. Large amount of saltwater found in Reactor No. 5 at Hamaoka nuclear plant — Trying to stop reactor from eroding
Two Other Reactors Suffer Serious Damage
A third worker dies at Japan’s troubled nuclear plant – Cause unknown
Was it due to heat exhaustion, a pre-existing medical condition exacerbated by difficult working conditions at the plant, or unknown and unaccounted for exposures to radiation? The latter seems the least likely, but they better find the cause of death, and fast.
Highly Radioactive Substances Detected in Tokyo
Japan extends the exclusion zone around Fukushima
Professor Kunihiko Takeda: “Teachers, Wake Up and Protect Children from Radiation!”
Mediatheque: The building that still stands
Anyone who watched this video of the March 11 Japan earthquake can only be in awe of the fact that the building is not only still standing, but preserved its structural integrity after the 9.0 earthquake.
Cesium-137 rising in samples of strawberries, kale, and grass from Northern California
World News:
Two Chinese Bond Auctions Fail
And while the US is no longer allowed to auction off debt, in China the PBoC appears to be no longer able to auction off debt.
India is BTFD! $14.3 Trillion U.S. Debt Ceiling Threatened; Silver Bullion Buying Spree In India After Price Falls
A Bank Failure You Won’t Hear About
For once the FDIC isn’t behind a bank failure and seizure. Of course for them to be involved in actions in Dubai would be interesting although not shocking. Dubai Bank which is part of the troubled Dubai Holdings along with Emaar Properties, another troubled concern. While the United States sits in blissful ignorance of what is happening overseas as these institutions begin to fail as the lack of cash flow from their U.S. and European holdings starts to impact their viability as ongoing institutions, the pool of funds to buy American will dwindle rapidly as the liquidity worldwide shifts from the high risk areas like our country and most of Europe.
If the ruler of Dubai can not even keep his bank solvent and operating properly, what does that tell you about those financial institutions in Bahrain, Oman, and other Arab countries which have had a problem with protests and violence? No wonder the Emirates have sought to create a private military arm, it would appear they are going to need them as their countries endure the unrest from a financial collapse and a weak ally in Washington, D.C.
JUDGE: NO BAIL FOR STRAUSS-KAHN
Emergency IMF Meeting Begins As Strauss-Kahn Retains High Profile Attorney
It makes you want to join the tea party
LEAVE aside the details of the allegations against Dominique Strauss Kahn, the head of the IMF (his lawyer indicates he will plead not guilty). Just note that the New York Times states that he was staying in a $3,000 a night suite and was taking a first class flight to Paris. This is the IMF, the body that imposes austerity on indebted countries and is funded by global taxpayers. And this was the likely leading socialist candidate for the French presidency.
What kind of immunity does the IMF Managing Director Have?
If humanity largely shares a common biology, it is indisputably divided into cultures, many of which are generated by bureaucracies. It is ironic that idealists have reposed their greatest faith in overcoming the divisions among peoples by placing the task in the hands of the most impenetrable and unaccountable bureaucracy of all. A saner, but less ideological world would have nominated the Ramen Noodle, not Yasser Arafat for the Nobel Peace Prize. But that would have required clear thinking, and clear writing.
Read It Now: The Possible/Probable Main Crisis for 2012
Syria (the Democrat/LLP’s BFF), Lebanon (essentially Syria’s colony), Gaza (Hamas/Hezbollah land now with Obama’s ‘secular and moderate’ Muslim Brotherhood support from Egypt), Libya is up to its a$$ in NATO alligators and The Gulf states too busy being tied down by Iranian sponsored ‘uprisings’ in Bahrain and Yemen. Let us not forget all the ships that have been seized by the Israelies (ships that were essentially being escorted or interference bening run for by Leftist/Islamist ‘peace flotillas’ that included Cynthia McKinney (D-too far to the left for even Pelosi’s district!) and some of Obama’s Best BFF’s like William Ayres and Code Pinko) over the past couple of months chock full of arms, ammunition and bombs bound for Syria, Lebanon and Gaza from Iran. You finally getting the picture of the situation and the seemingly nonsensical actions of the US during this ‘Arab spring’?…
The only remaining wild card at this point is Iran: should Tehran join in, then all bets will be off.
Only an ideology so evil and debased could declare such a righteous occasion as something horrible, catastrophic but that is what the free world is dealing with (despite our reluctance to fight this evil or even call it by its name.)
Surrounded by hostiles on all sides, Israel knows of one superpower they definitely can’t rely on for support: the United States. As all out war breaks out around Israel, watch the American left dance in delight when those defending themselves start to fall.
I believe that it was Reliapundit, in a prediction written a couple of days ago, who was the first to predict the outbreak of the ‘Third Intifada’.
These ‘protests’ are thinly-veiled proxy attacks organized and funded by Iran, Syria, Egypt and the other 7th-century barbarian extremists.
How’s that ‘Democracy Movement’ working out, Sparky?
- “Palestinian” Nakba Riots: Pawns and Politics
- Nakba Violence Erupts in Middle East — Analysts: Iran, Syria Leveraging Arab Spring to Destroy Israel (VIDEO)
- A Turning Point in the Arab-Israeli Conflict?
Ahh! The Arab Spring! Peace, liberty, freedom, the rule of law, and all that good stuff!
Hamas Leader Haniyeh: Pray For the End of Israel
After Killing 780 Protesters Since March – Syria Condemns Israel For Firing on Protesters Today
As I have pointed out in previous posts if you understand what is ‘behind the curtain’ you understand Obama’s inexcusable indecision on Syria
Iran president takes over oil ministry temporarily
His decision to take charge of Iran’s most-strategic sector came shortly before the 159th OPEC meeting scheduled for June 8 in Vienna, where the oil producers are represented by their ministers.
Mohammad Ali Khatibi, Iran’s representative to OPEC, told AFP on Monday that the president would be eligible to chair the meeting.
“As he is the caretaker of the ministry, he may attend the (ministerial) meeting,” he said in a telephone interview.
Here It Comes: Shi’ite Iran Sends “Solidarity” Flotilla To Sunni-Controlled Bahrain
Ahmadinejad: Hamas-Fatah Unity Should Result in Eradication of Israel
Fury at Iran’s ‘eye-for-an-eye’ acid punishment as sentence is branded ‘cruel and inhumane’
White House Down in Middle East
Arrogance mixes poorly with inexperience; the US position in the peace process has been on the skids from the new administration’s earliest days, and the unraveling of American diplomacy in the Middle East has significantly damaged both the perception and the reality of American strength in the region.
A good ‘starter’ book to read about the creation of India and Pakistan (Bangladesh was East Pakistan if you remember your history) from the British colony of India is called “Freedom at Midnight“. It is factual, well written and very readable and a good platform for you to jump off from to do you own exploration into the subject. In any case read the whole article…Break It Up
The West’s only sensible course of action today is to unstitch the British patchwork, let the major nations within Pakistan choose their future, and negotiate coherently with new national administrations that don’t have impossibly conflicted mandates.
*snip*
Under the status quo, the monstrous hybrid that is Pakistan for decades has been one of the greatest forces for instability in the world. Apart from its role as a breeding ground for terrorism, Pakistan has been the single biggest proliferator of nuclear weapons technology, its A. Q. Khan network having made or helped make nukes available to North Korea, Iran, Libya and Iraq under Saddam Hussein.
Khalilzad’s idea makes perfect sense. It is also extremely problematic for three reasons. The first is that it changes the Obama administration’s model of the War on Terror as a law enforcement problem or at worst, as a campaign against nonstate actors, back into the Bushian campaign against the State Sponsors of Terrorism. Second, it sets up a long term program of pressure and confrontation against a Muslim state — with Pakistan in the role formerly occupied by Saddam Hussein. Third, it sets Obama, who has campaigned on the platform of a “world without nuclear weapons” right on course for conflict with a nuclear armed state. To take Khalilzad’s advice would require Obama to reverse course along not just one, but three axes.
India: Two Muslim Women Murdered Their Daughters for Marrying Non-Muslims
Raiding private pensions: it’s not just for Argentina anymore
But Argentina and Ireland are not alone: Business Insider lists Iceland, Switzerland, Finland, Belgium, the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic, France, Poland, Austria, Slovenia, Portugal, Greece, Germany, South Korea, Spain, Italy, and Japan as likely candidates to follow their example. Investor’s Business Daily points out that
Britain under Labor Party Prime Minister Gordon Brown did something similar in 2008.
The Irish plan is to tax of 0.06% on 65,000 private pensions to fund a :jobs initiative” for four years.
And when that doesn’t work, what next?
Tuition protesters find money to par-tay
The same students who rioted against tuition hikes last fall are now going to spend up to £500 a couple for tickets to a decadent party at the very same Cambridge University.
More on the Iranian training camps in Latin America
These reports have been surfacing recently (including Kuwaiti newspapers), but long-time readers of this blog know about the Iranian and Hezbollah presences in Latin America. Interestingly, now the reports are including Hamas.
‘The dominoes are starting to fall,’ says Sprott
US News:
Treasury Confirms Debt Ceiling To Be Breached Today; Will Tap Pension Funds
It’s official: the US credit card has officially been maxed out, just as we predicted on Wednesday, and throughout Q1 and Q2. The United States is expected to reach the legal limit on its debt later on Monday and will start dipping into federal retirement funds to give the country more room to borrow, a Treasury official said. As Reuters reports further, The U.S. Treasury will settle $72 billion in maturing bonds on Monday, which will push the country right up against its $14.294 trillion borrowing cap, the official said. To all those who thought only the insolvent government of Ireland will plunder pension funds, our condolences.
Geithner Admits: There Are NO Trust Funds
Tim Geithner just admitted in writing that there is no trust fund – there is no money – the Government in fact blew every last penny of it.
You, America, have been serially lied to about these so-called “trust funds.”
THEY DO NOT EXIST.
Chinese Treasury Holdings Decline For Fifth Month In A Row, Biggest Drop Since November 2010
PIMCO’s Largest “Equity” Holding – Gold
So in an interview recently granted to Fortune by Gudefin, we were not very surprised to hear her response on what her largest investment position is in: “The largest position in the fund is gold, which we think is a very good form of protection against what can go wrong. We were encouraged by the fact that a lot of the central banks, especially in Asia, are big buyers. We think that’s an underlying trend that’s very favorable for gold.
3 Reasons The Dollar Will Plunge Even More
And the US stagflation continues. The just released Empire Manufacturing index has plunged nearly by half from 21.7 to 11.9 in May. The general business conditions index fell ten points to 11.9. The new orders index declined fi ve points to 17.2, and the shipments index slipped three points to 25.8. The inventories index climbed to 10.8, its highest level in a year. The prices paid index rose to 69.9, its highest level since mid-2008, and the second highest ever, while the prices received index held firm at 28.0. And more on the stagflation as defined by the ongoing surge in Prices Paid: “The prices paid index rose sharply, indicating that price increases accelerated over the month. The index advanced twelve points to 69.9, its highest level since mid- 2008, with roughly 70 percent of respondents reporting price increases, and none reporting price declines. This index has moved up a cumulative fifty points over thepast six months.” Downward GDP revisions are a-coming.
President Obama weighs in on Bulls vs. Heat
Obama Golfs for the Seventh Weekend in a Row
President Obama is skipping church this morning to head to out to the golf course, playing with two of his usual mates – White House staffers Ben Finkenbinder and Marvin Nicholson – as well as guest player Ron Kirk, the U.S. Trade Negotiator.
Okay, I shouldn’t say the president is skipping church. It’s not fair. Because actually, the president never goes to church, so he can’t exactly be said to be skipping it.
- 600,000 cubic feet of water a second gushing from Morganza spillway
- 18,000 acres of farmland will be under water
- First time in 40 years spillway has been opened
- Opening is last ditch effort to save New Orleans and Baton Rouge from flood
- Residents in flood zone packing up and piling sand bags
- If Mississippi rises, Coast Guard could suspend river traffic
An addendum on opening the Morganza Spillway
Notably missing–so far–from the media coverage of the Mississippi River flooding is the usual hand-wringing about how this is surely another sign of global warming.
Could Technical Default Today Save America from Greek-Style Fiscal Disaster in the Future?
There’s DOOM in them thar hills!
If It Sounds Good, It Trumps Truth Every Time!
I would urge you to read the speech. This is what he says to his Democrat supporters, and there’s no truth in it. It’s all fluff at best or gross hyperbole. What it means is that we have to look carefully at candidates’ record of accomplishment, and demand real experience, not good looks. America fell for showmanship, a deep baritone voice, a dazzling smile and a fraudulent resume.
So ultimately that’s what this budget debate in Washington is all about. it’s about who we are. It’s not just about numbers. It’s about our values, what we care about, the kind of country we believe in.
What a colossal load of
#*&#!nonsense. It is about spending. You are deliberately spending more money that you are taking in, and you can’t squeeze enough out of “the rich” to save the country. It is about the kind of country we believe in — responsible, dependable, solvent, able to pay our bills.
This is no surprise, they have not been able to come up with one since Obama took over. The Democrats have been behaving like those people who think that if they still have blank checks left they still have money...Democrats: Where Is Your Budget?
Every intelligent American knows that the federal government is facing a budget crisis that threatens our country’s future, yet the Democrats apparently are incapable of coming up with a plan to dig out of the hole their profligate spending has created. What could be clearer evidence of the intellectual bankruptcy of liberalism?
Stimulus=Democrat slush fund Obama Created or Saved 450,000 Government Jobs, Lost 1,000,000 Private Sector Jobs With Stimulus
No wonder the Obama Administration doesn’t talk about the created or saved stimulus jobs anymore. There weren’t any. According to a new study the Obama-Pelosi Stimulus bill created 450,000 government jobs and delayed or destroyed 1,000,000 private sector jobs.
Nice work, democrats.
One of the Saddest Facts About Barack Obama’s Presidency…
It is easy to understand why most African-Americans were enthusiastic about President Obama’s candidacy. In their shoes, I probably would have been excited, too. But by now it is painfully obvious that what blacks needed was a president who understands the economy and who would staff his administration with people who know how jobs are created. A redistributionist job-killer like Barack Obama has proved the worst possible choice for the very people who supported him the most.
Why the Job Market Feels So Dismal
The fact is the jobs numbers that create so much anticipation from the business press and so many pundit pronouncements do not give a clear picture of the labor market’s health. A better understanding requires an examination of hires and separations, or what the Bureau of Labor Statistics calls Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) data. Here are some surprising facts:
First, the increase in job growth that occurred over the past two years results from a decline in the number of layoffs, not from increased hiring. In February 2009, a month during which the labor market lost more than 700,000 jobs, employers hired four million workers. In March 2011, employers hired four million workers. The number of hires is the same today as it was when we were shedding jobs at record rates.
We added jobs because hires exceeded separations, not because hiring increased.
What Cross-Country Evidence Tells Us About the Federal Debt
The Republican staff report is must reading for anyone who wants to understand our current budget crisis.
Homebuilder Confidence Unchanged In May, Misses Consensus
I’m always behind on my reading, so I missed calling attention yesterday to two items in the Wall Street Journal that prompt the following two-part quiz: Why are Australia and North Dakota alike? Second, which state produces more oil–California or Alaska? The second question sounds really dumb: of course oil-rich Alaska is going to produce more than green, anti-oil California, dude.
Will the few remaining defenders of Obamacare finally capitulate when the total number of people receiving waivers exceeds those still in the program?
Why 1,372 waivers … and counting?
Meanwhile, Rep. Steny H. Hoyer has penned a nice little letter urging colleges and universities to indoctrina— er, to teach, yeah teach, the benefits of ObamaCare to new students coming in.
We are, after all, entering into the 2012 election cycle soon enough and we can’t have those young minds of mush missing election day November 2012 because they are stuck in their dorm rooms, too sick to get out and vote for Obama … By the way, if you were counting on Medicare being there for you in roughly 20 years, or less … If they haven’t been able to run Medicare efficiently what makes them think a nationalized medical program for everyone will be any less a disaster?
To all the fantasists that insist that all is well
Going broke? You betcha. Conservatives have been warning about this for decades. But in the progressive fantasy world, where funding comes out of Unicorn dust, these inconvenient facts don’t exist…
Medicare, the U.S. health insurance program for the elderly and disabled, and the Social Security trust for the disabled and retirees are running out of money sooner than the government had projected.
This is not the Hope and Change™ they voted for…The final countdown: After the space rush, where now for Nasa?
The situation at Nasa is a train wreck,’ says James Muncy, a highly regarded space consultant.
‘They have no plan. At the moment the future destination and schedule of Nasa’s manned space flights could be “nowhere” and “never”.”
Housing projects are one of the ‘community activists’ favorite things...A trail of stalled or abandoned HUD projects
Trusting The IRS, Waiting For Congress
They probably didn’t tell Glenn that if he voted for McCain the Administration would use the IRS to stifle dissent, because it would have seemed crazy. However, they would have been right
And in other news, they probably did tell Glenn that if he voted Republican the War Powers Act would become a dead letter
The only people who wanted personal information in this amount of detail were Nazi Germany and Stalin’s Russia...So You Want to Get a Passport— Heh, Heh, Heh!
State Department officials plan to fix the problem by expanding the investigatory powers they have failed to use properly, and plan to impose new burdens on applicants for passports.
They are proposing a new application, Form DS-5513. It would require the name and address of your every employer, your every supervisor’s name and the address of your every residence. If you were not born in a hospital, or if your birth was not recorded within a year, you would have to supply:
- The circumstances of your birth, including the names of everyone in the room when you were born;
- Whether your mother received pre-natal and post-natal care and the names of the doctors and dates of the appointments for that care;
- The name of your mother’s employer when you were born and her dates of employment;
- Your mother’s address when you were born and her address one year before and one year after your birth.
Good grief. I couldn’t supply those facts for my own children! Each of them were born in a different hospital, I have no clue who the obstetricians were, and who else was in the room? Sheesh, only a cubicle-enclosed bureaucrat could dream up such nonsense. Department officials claim the new application will take just 45 minutes, on average, to complete.
Michael Barone: Obama’s hypocritical rhetoric on immigration reform
Texas Officials Say Terrorists Are Sneaking Across Border (Video)
But, according to Barack Obama, the border is safe… He’s even cracking jokes about it.
Undercover Agent Discusses Hezbollah in Mexico
Obama Announces New Oil Drilling for EPA to Block
The call for new drilling is part of “Operation: How many times can we get Big Oil to invest billions on research and permits before yanking the rug out from under them over undeclared greenhouse gas emissions?”
He Thinks We Are Ignorant Frogs To Be Boiled Slowly
The only addiction here is not the American people’s addiction to oil and gas so that we can get to work and school, live clean, healthy, and comfortable lives while being productive and generous with ourselves and others. Oil and gas is the life blood to this nation’s growth, progress, and strength that has enabled us to help ourselves, and the rest of the world for generations. No, the addiction here is that of this man and the government to power, control, and the hard earned money off the backs of the American taxpayer.
He thinks we are are ignorant frogs in a boiling pot. He turns up the heat, then lowers it. Turns it up again, and lowers it again … Until he believes we cannot tell we are being cooked alive by the flame of this insanity.
He is wrong, and will be blowing a billion dollars come 2012 …
But that’s all this guy knows … How to spend and blow other people’s money.
Hopeless changeling …
Bull, Baby Bull: Obama to open Alaska petroleum reserve to new drilling
If you think Obama is channeling his inner Sarah Palin and has now embraced her Drill, Baby Drill philosophy, guess again. This is just more of Obama’s naked political ambition. If it weren’t for the fact that high gas prices will sink his election chances, Obama would say anything like this.
Since we know that oil cannot be extracted from any of the places Obama mentioned before election day, this is just more cheap talk. If Obama is reelected in 2012 (God forbid), he will go back on his word faster than he failed to close Gitmo safe in the knowledge that no drilling actually occurred.
The time for America to increase its own oil production is dangerously overdue and playing reelection games with this issue is just plain cruel.
Here’s Another Reason for High Gas Prices at the Pump!
Whine, delay, fail to respond, claim overwork, claim understaffing, and grab for more power and more authority. Unfortunately, this is the way things work in our nation’s capitol. And why our oil production is expected to drop by a third this year. Go figure.
The NLRB hands the Republicans a potent issue
The authors conclude that the NLRB’s position, if sustained, would “significantly alter that statutory scheme. It would effectively mean that existing companies with any unionized workforce could not expand in right-to-work states, at least not without serious litigation.”
The complaint will be heard by an administrative law judge and then probably by the NLRB, heavily stacked in labor’s favor at this point. If needed, Boeing will appeal to the federal appeals court. It’s hard to imagine it will be sustained. (Notice how quiet the administration has been on this one.) And frankly, this is one case the Democrats better hope they lose, that is if they want to deprive Republicans of a boffo campaign issue and keep in play in 2012 some important right-to-work states.
AP-GfK = Absolutely Pathetic Garbage for Koolaiders
Note that the AP reporters didn’t have the nerve to tell readers how “skewed” May’s poll was. 46% of those surveyed identified themselves as Democrats, 29% as Republicans, and 4% as independents (after classifying leaners); 20% didn’t know. By contrast, the latest available party identification results from Rasmussen as of April have the GOP at 34.8%, Dems at 33.5%, and 31.7% as not affiliated. Gallup, in an aggregate of 21 separate polls conducted last year, shows a Democrat-Republican split of 45%-44%.
Polling 101, or I guess I should say “Reliable Polling 101″ considering AP’s laughable defense, is that for your samples to generate meaningful results they should not only should be random, but they must also be representative.
Is Obama Actually Going To Run On The GM Bailout?
Seriously, is the best Team Obama can do? Well, yes. There aren’t many positives for his term so far. OK, he gave the order for others to kill Osama. He’s expanded the Afghanistan war. He’s authorized “targeted killings” of terrorists, and allowed operations in other Muslim jihadi countries. Those don’t exactly endear him to his Leftist base. Unemployment is still high and stagnant. Consumer confidence is down, and the number of people who think the country is on the wrong track is still very high. Gas and consumer prices are high, and going up. Consumer spending is down. The States still have huge budgetary problems. Federal spending is still way too high. The US credit rating is in danger. The economy as a whole is sputtering along. His base might like ObamaCare, but, the majority of Americans want it repealed, and think it will cause prices to go up, and quality of service to go down. What does he really have to run on?
Hoyer Opposes Obama’s Thug Tactics
President Obama wanted legislation that would force any company that does business with the federal government to disclose political contributions by its officers and directors–not just those where disclosure is required by law, but contributions to advocacy groups where disclosure is not required. He couldn’t get that legislation passed, in part because it is obviously unconstitutional, but the effort speaks volumes about the Obama administration’s desire to suppress free speech and bully its opponents into submission.
Having failed in Congress, the Obama administration announced its intention to promulgate the same rule by executive order. So far, the administration hasn’t actually issued such an order; it seems to be testing the waters. Obama may want to reconsider, based on Minority Whip Steny Hoyer’s opposition to his thuggish tactics.
Orrin Hatch Sums Up the Democrats
He was talking about President Obama’s attempt to use unconstitutional means to bully companies into supporting him and his party. But really, Hatch’s comments sum up the last four years of Reid/Pelosi and Obama/Reid/Pelosi government:
They want to intimidate all of the corporations in this country and other businesses from giving money that might help Republicans. And they know it’s unconstitutional what they’re doing, they know it’s wrong, but they’re going to go do it anyway, because it’s political time to them. And frankly, it’s been political time from Day One with this president. They play politics very, very tough, they play it well, and they don’t give a damn about what’s right and what’s wrong.
From Each According to Obama’s Needs, To Each According to His Desires
It is through spontaneously trading with one another that aggregate value increases — just as if something has been created from nothing. Note that this cannot occur if a central authority tries to undertake the fanciful project of determining peoples “needs,” then providing for them.
“To each according to his need, from each according to his ability” is a recipe for stasis and impoverishment. For one thing, people do not value what is given to them, with the result that what they are given diminishes in value. What one is “entitled to” becomes simultaneously priceless and valueless, like soundwaves or gravity.
But there is also no increase in value without rules for gettin’ it. This is why war and plunder do not result in increased value — because they satisfy desire by simply appropriating value created by someone else, in a zero-sum game.
The Mystery of the Second Helicopter
Yet why did they need a second helicopter? They were only after one man. They could have popped him or snatched him, and been off. The answer is obvious. They wanted to take his entire entourage with him and they knew who composed it. Instead after one of the choppers suffered some sort of difficulty the SEAL Team was left with just one chopper to take some two dozen warriors and the body out. So they left bin Laden’s family for the Pakistanis to debrief. Now we shall be squabbling with this insufferable ally interminably over our lost baggage. The mission was a great success, but it was not perfect.
The war that dares not speak its name…US and Libya:
*crickets*
Look for the Union Label/The Badger Rebellion:
Ironic Twist of Fate In Wisconsin Recount
By demanding a statewide recount, and insisting that the recount continue to the end even as it became clear she had no chance of success, JoAnne Kloppenburg has seen her public persona devolve into a caricature of a bitter partisan lacking the necessary judgment for the job she seeks.
By contrast, Kathy Nickolaus, the Republican Waukesha County clerk who was harshly criticized by Democrats for an election night reporting mistake, is seeing a rehabilitation of her reputation as the city of Brookfield and Waukesha County recounts demonstrate no meaningful errors much less fraud.
Union Thugs Provide Card-Check Preview
Card-check legislation is the unions’ top priority and is strongly favored by Barack Obama and most Democrats. Why? Because under card check, there is no secret ballot. The unions know who is supporting them and who isn’t. How will they treat the ones who don’t sign the union card? The same way they treated the communications union workers who didn’t appreciate having their money stolen by the bosses. If you think union violence is an old-fashioned concept, just let the Democrats adopt card check.
Whistleblowers Attacked by Union Thugs: ‘This Was Union Greed and That’s Worse Than Corporate Greed’
These union goons get awfully touchy when exposed as the frauds they are, don’t they? Just imagine what might happen if we had a Justice Department that was actually interested in justice.
The Politics of Personal Intimidation
A disturbing new element has crept into our political life: organized efforts to intimidate private citizens who choose to support certain political causes or otherwise participate in civic affairs. This, as far as I know, is unprecedented in our modern history. Our democracy depends on citizen involvement, and until now, Americans have felt free to participate in public life and to support whatever causes, political and otherwise, they choose. But if the Left has its way, that may be about to change.
We wrote here about a disgraceful episode in which approximately 500 union members were bused to the home of a lawyer who works for Bank of America, where they “demonstrated” on his lawn, thereby terrifying his teenage son, who was home alone. The event was supposed to have something to do with foreclosures. Nina Easton, who lives nearby and witnessed the attack first-hand, wrote at the time:
Now this event would accurately be called a “protest” if it were taking place at, say, a bank or the U.S. Capitol. But when hundreds of loud and angry strangers are descending on your family, your children, and your home, a more apt description of this assemblage would be “mob.” Intimidation was the whole point of this exercise, and it worked-even on the police. A trio of officers who belatedly answered our calls confessed a fear that arrests might “incite” these trespassers.
Hop on the gravy train: LIRR engineer pulls in $250G with OT pay
In Other News…
Geert Wilders’ speech in Tennessee deserves the widest possible distribution *UPDATED*
Everyone should read this speech. Everyone. While the media swooned about Obama’s Cairo speech (in which he lauded veiling women and ignored thousands of years of Jewish ties to Israel), and Obama’s race speech (in which he insulted white people), and Obama’s recent immigration speech (in which he demonized people who fear the risks to American security and economic well-being from an open border), this speech is the really important one. It goes to fundamental issues of freedom. So, send this to your friends, whether you post it at your blog, facebook it, tweet it, email it, snail mail it, or read it aloud to them over the phone.
New York City: Muslims March in Jewish Genocide Bund Rally “Third Intifada” Marches Round the World
In other words he wants him to lie.
Allen West for President? Some Hope So
Mark Halperin’s telling graphic the psi-ops of the left
Yet another declaration of GOP impotence. What is it for, to try to convince the GOP and the base that we can’t win. With President Obama at the top of their ticket their best chance for victory is to demoralize us because they don’t have a record of success to run on and the one signature success this crowd has managed invokes memories not only of another president but of policies that they abhor.
This is all Psi-ops and bluff, considering the realities that’s all they have. Our best response?
Ride right through them, They’re demoralized as hell!
Update: Stacy Links and tweets and says:
Don’t outsource your political thinking to a bunch of know-it-all pundits.
Don’t fall for the Psi-ops.
Deal me out: Mike Huckabee announces he will not run in 2012 presidential campaign
Memo to Gingrich: Get Lost. Now.
Newt Gingrich was on Meet the Press this morning in his first Sunday show appearance since announcing his intention to… challenge President Obama for the Democrat nomination, apparently.
It’s not as though I had any use for Newt Gingrich as president to begin with, but these statements, as reported by Andrew Stiles, will reinforce the widespread belief among conservatives that he’s the wrong man for the job. He need not agree with all the specifics of Rep. Paul Ryan’s plan, but any viable GOP candidate needs to hold and convey a genuine sense of urgency regarding the country’s dire fiscal straits. Newt doesn’t seem to get it
Rush is right…Is Mrs. Daniels Ready to Run? Because the Left is Ready for Mitch
Ruth Marcus, simply put, is saying Mitch Daniels will make Obama look good. Is that the perspective that you view all of this in, pick a nominee that will make the incumbent look good? That’s what Ruth Marcus is saying. Here, a couple more quick lines from her piece. “The real appeal of a Daniels candidacy is that I believe he is serious about reducing the debt and realistic about what it will take to achieve that,” and then she cites what she thinks that is. Raising taxes. “In a rigid GOP world of no-new-taxes ideologues, Daniels actually proposed a temporary tax increase to help close the state’s budget gap.”
So what Ruth is saying here is, give us Mitch because that gets rid of these far right-wingers who are talking tax cuts and austerity, give us one of us, give us a tax increaser. It’s kind of like what Pelosi said. (paraphrasing) “Can we go back to the days where it didn’t matter who won elections, when there wasn’t that big a difference, it really didn’t matter. The differences weren’t that stark or Draconian.” Now, if Michelle Obama calls Cheri Daniels and urges her to get in like Laura Bush did, then — (laughing) — well, I don’t know if we would ever hear about that.
Read the articles associated with this post, too. The turning of David Mamet
In his essay Mamet described his liberalism as an ingrained mental habit intimately bound up with his self-understanding. Leaving it behind must have been wrenching. Thus the anger inspired by the suffocating voice of NPR.
Daniel Henninger devoted a good Wall Street Journal column to Mamet’s 2008 essay. Henninger took Mamet’s public abandonment of liberalism as a leading indicator, foreseeing that “the years ahead likely will bring more Mamet drop-outs.” I thought at the time that this was a misreading. Mamet’s rejection of “brain-dead liberalism” represented the rebellion of the thinking man against “the herd of independent minds.” As such, it was less the precursor of a movement than the epiphany of an artist.
Independent Sunday Magazine Cover Story: Pamela Geller “The most dangerous woman in America?”
From the Muslim World, Big Donations to American Colleges
What’s revealed when you follow the money?
Bill Clinton: Hey, let’s have a Ministry of Truth, or something
Bill Clinton is a dangerous man
Hey kids! Let’s set up an agency to monitor and censor the internet!
At least, Bill Clinton thinks it’s a splendid idea…
There are so many things wrong with this idea – take your pick. But what I find truly chilling is that a former president of the United States would suggest it. He more than anyone else knows the power of government and what it can do to violate the rights of citizens.
New corruption allegations in NM may involve Bill Richardson
Just when Bill Richardson appeared to be in the clear on corruption charges in New Mexico, new allegations of pay-for-play during his administration may envelop the former Governor again. A grand jury indicted a sitting district judge on charges of corruption for buying his appointment from Richardson in 2006, and a whistleblowing judge believes the rot went all the way to the top
A disconnect exists between here and Washington that has matured beyond the tea party movement’s anger into something yet unnamed, yet no less vivid.
The cost of $7.25 minimum wage
McDonald’s is replacing cashiers with touchscreen ordering and swipe-card payments.
The biggest incentive to automation is the high price of labor.
When robots can do it cheaper, business says good day to workers.
Military Academy, or Playground to Experiment With Fringe Ideas?
Political correctness is a creature of bureaucracy and refers to the fear of offending— not a real person— but a nebulous someone, somewhere. Synonyms are more likely to be found under absurdity, or irrationality. Why should we care if we offend some unknown person in some unknown venue? The general desire to be courteous should cover the situation.
Political correctness says that you must follow these rules—although we know they are silly— but they are in the rule book, and my boss knows they’re silly, and his boss knows they’re silly, but if we don’t follow the rules, he might be criticized because he did mot instruct the people for whom he is responsible that they had to follow the rule.
Political correctness says of the rule-maker that he, by making the rule, has assured that no one,anywhere, can be offended if the rules are followed, and the rule-maker is absolved of all blame.
Health Care Solutions: Market (Same-day House Calls) vs. Government (36 Days to See Family Doc)
Patterico Criticizes Google; Gets Locked Out of Gmail
In short: don’t be evil, Google.
Alan Boyle has the latest on Polywell.
A Navy-funded effort to harness nuclear fusion power reports that its unconventional plasma device is operating as designed and generating “positive results” more than halfway through the project.
And that is not all:
“It’s a very nice machine,” he said. “I like what we have so far. It’s quite well-built, relatively flexible to actually explore a lot of areas and find what’s best. Achieving the plasma for fusion is obviously a tall order. … You don’t just push the pedal on a Ferrari and drive the car. Like an F-18 or a stealth bomber, you have to learn how to operate it properly.”
MSM Circus and Celebutard Side Show:
NYT still doesn’t get Matt Drudge
Matt Drudge’s magic formula is called journalism.
Not the kind that they teach in Journalism School.
The kind they used to.
TIME Mag Says Massive Assault On Israel Was Part of “Arab Spring”
Today TIME Magazine called the assault on Israel as part of the “Arab Spring,” a term used to praise the recent uprisings in the region. It gives them an excuse to root for the radical Muslim thugs.
The Race Card=the last refuge of MSM scoundrels trying to stifle debate and to prop up their tin plated and clay footed Obamamessiah…
- Oh Please… NBC Host Accuses Gingrich of Being Racist for Talking About Food Stamps (Video)
- Roger Ebert and Joan Walsh Jump on David Gregory’s Gingrich is Racist Bandwagon
- Soros-Funded Group Falsely Accuses Ron Paul of Comparing Social Security and Medicare to Slavery
- David Gregory: Hey, Isn’t It Racist To Say A Black President Presides Over a Poor Economy?
With this you will understand why the MSM is tossing The Race Card™ like Monkeys flinging their own poo...Brit Hume warns Obama is ‘toast’ if current conditions persist
If it isn’t resolved, Hume said it could mean a failed reelection bid for the president — even with what many see as a weak GOP primary field.
“If he goes into the 2012 election and nothing serious has been done about the debt – that would deepen his political predicament, which I think by the way, looking at it from here is very serious,” he continued. “He’s in real trouble. Everyone is saying, ‘Well, look at the Republican field.’ I think this will be a referendum election and not so much a choice election. And if it is and conditions like this persist – he’s toast.”
SNL Parodies Obama’s El Paso Immigration Speech
Top 10 Most Obnoxious Hollywood Liberals
Global Warmening:
Read the whole thing…Former “alarmist” scientist says Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) based in false science
David Evans is a scientist. He has also worked in the heart of the AGW machine. He consulted full-time for the Australian Greenhouse Office (now the Department of Climate Change) from 1999 to 2005, and part-time 2008 to 2010, modeling Australia’s carbon in plants, debris, mulch, soils, and forestry and agricultural products. He has six university degrees, including a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. The other day he said:
The debate about global warming has reached ridiculous proportions and is full of micro-thin half-truths and misunderstandings. I am a scientist who was on the carbon gravy train, understands the evidence, was once an alarmist, but am now a skeptic.
And with that he begins a demolition of the theories, premises and methods by which the AGW scare has been foisted on the public.
UK Climate Deal Brings Historic New Legal Powers
Gee, it almost sounds like this fake issue is really all about fascist, er, Progressive control of people and economies (by people who will not give up their own high CO2 lifestyles, of course). Expect the first people to pitch hissy fits to be the True Believers, who will suddenly be forced to live the life, instead of simply “spreading awareness.”
The Sock Drawer:
Other Cultures Are Much Superior To America’s
‘Trek’ tricorder could win $10 million
Drifting apart: Amazing underwater photos that show the growing gap between two tectonic plates
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