http://jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com/2010/11/this-is-why-american-people-have-thrown.html
This is an interesting look at the politics of raw power and the stupidity that often accompanies it.
Is President Obama being hoisted on his own Petard?
I ask one thing: HOW IS THIS ANY DIFFERENT FROM THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION RELEASING CLASSIFIED CIA DOCUMENTS ON TERRORIST INTERROGATIONS? Unarguably, both were done for political gain, and in an attempt to embarrass or undermine those with whom they disagree. Arguably, both were done to undermine America!
One may argue that it is a question of Authority. That is, President Obama had the Authority to release classified CIA documents that America's enemies would use to their advantage. While Mr. Assange did not possess the authority to release these documents that America's enemies would use to their advantage. That Mr. Assange perhaps received these documents illegally. Others would argue for Mr. Assange in the name of free speech and the people's right to know.
Whatever legal, technical or moral arguments are made, one thing is abundantly clear to me. That is, MR ASSANGE'S RELEASE OF DOCUMENTS TO EMBARRASS OR UNDERMINE AMERICA IS NO WORSE THAT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION'S RELEASE OF CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS TO EMBARRASS HIS PREDECESSOR AND UNDERMINE HIS POLITICAL OPPONENTS
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/12/obama_reaps_what_he_sows.html
This is an interesting look at WikiLeaks and what the current President did almost as soon as he came into office. Is there hypocrisy there?
More Republicans than Democrats
In November, 36.0% OF AMERICAN ADULTS IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES AS REPUBLICANS; 34.7% CONSIDERED THEMSELVES DEMOCRATS, AND 29.3% WERE NOT AFFILIATED WITH EITHER MAJOR PARTY. That’s the largest number of Republicans since February 2005 and the first time ever that Rasmussen Reports polling has found more people identifying as Republicans than Democrats. See the History of Party Trends from January 2004 to the present..
In NOVEMBER 2008, FOLLOWING THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, DEMOCRATS HELD A 7.6 PERCENTAGE POINT ADVANTAGE OVER THE GOP. That means Republicans have picked up a net of approximately nine points over the past two years. That is a somewhat larger gain compared to the Democratic gains from the reelection of President Bush in 2004 to the Democratic takeover of Congress in 2006. However, it is similar to the gains recorded by Democrats during the four-year period from Election 2004 to Election 2008
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/254247/new-republicans-daniel-foster
But like the November election this is more about Democrats than Republicans. This percentage identifying themselves at Democrats is near an all time low.
TEA Party vs the Invisible Crown
Remember this, if nothing else, from the text, here. FREEDOM IS A MEATBALL. It's made of chunks of delicious things, all rolled into something that tastes great with gravy. THE MINUTE A BUREAUCRAT CAN ORDER YOU TO STOP DOING SOMETHING EVERYBODY USED TO DO, LIKE DRIVING YOUR OWN CAR TO WORK, THEY'VE GOT ANOTHER PIECE OF YOUR FREEDOM. The minute that a bureaucrat can force you and your neighbors to pay for something most, or all, of you don't want -- like schools that don't work, or a health insurance program you think is junk -- you've lost a piece of your freedom. After that sort of thing has happened a hundred times, you have lost a hundred pieces of your meatball. Depending on the original size of the ball, you have either an empty plate or just some crumbs left to eat.http://oregonmag.com/SocialMonarchyDEC10.html
An interesting read that lays out the reasons why the left suffers from eleutherophobia.
The Law of Unintended Consequences
It's time for America's youth to buckle up and take a rough ride on Reality Highway. For the past two years, President OBAMA HAS PROMISED OUR CHILDREN THE MOON, STARS, RAINBOWS, UNICORNS AND UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE for all. But the White House Santa's cradle-to-grave entitlement mandates are a spectacularly predictable bust.
Don't take it from me. TAKE IT FROM OBAMACARE'S OWN BIGGEST CHEERLEADERS.
Late last month, the SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION informed dues-paying members of its behemoth 1199 affiliate in New York that it was DROPPING ITS HEALTH CARE COVERAGE FOR CHILDREN. That's right. A radical leftist union, not an evil Republican corporation, is abandoning the young 'uns to cut costs.
MORE THAN 30,000 LOW-WAGE FAMILIES WILL BE AFFECTED, according to The Wall Street Journal. Who's to blame? SEIU 1199 BENEFITS MANAGER MITRA BEHROOZI SINGLED OUT OPPRESSIVE NEW STATE AND FEDERAL REGULATIONS, INCLUDING THE MUCH-BALLYHOOED OBAMACARE RULE FORCING INSURERS TO COVER DEPENDENTS WELL INTO THEIR 20S:
"...(N)ew federal health-care reform legislation requires plans with dependent coverage to expand that coverage up to age 26," Behroozi explained in an Oct. 22 letter to members. "Our limited resources are already stretched as far as possible, and meeting THIS NEW REQUIREMENT WOULD BE FINANCIALLY IMPOSSIBLE."
http://townhall.com/columnists/MichelleMalkin/2010/12/01/the_littlest_victims_of_obamacare/page/full/
The road to hell is pave with good intentions.
Class Warfare Democratic style
This was all said in 1924, in Mellon's book, "Taxation: The People's Business." Yet here we are, more than 80 years later, STILL NOT FACING THOSE FACTS.http://townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2010/12/01/can_republicans_talk_part_ii/page/full/
It is not just a question of what Andrew Mellon said. It is a question of hard facts, easily checked in official documents available to all-- and ignored all these years.
Internal Revenue Service data show that there were 206 PEOPLE WHO REPORTED ANNUAL INCOMES OF ONE MILLION DOLLARS OR MORE IN 1916. But, as the tax rate on high incomes skyrocketed under the Woodrow Wilson administration, that NUMBER PLUMMETED TO JUST 21 PEOPLE reporting a million dollars a year in income five years later.
What happened to all those millionaires? Did they flee the country? Were they stricken with fatal diseases? Did they meet with foul play?
Not to worry. RIGHT AFTER CONGRESS ENACTED THE CUTS IN TAX RATES THAT MELLON HAD BEEN URGING, THERE WERE SUDDENLY 207 PEOPLE REPORTING TAXABLE INCOMES OF A MILLION DOLLARS OR MORE IN 1925. As Casey Stengel used to say, "You could look it up." It is on page 21 of an Internal Revenue publication titled "Statistics of Income from Returns of Net Income for 1925."
Where had all the income of those millionaires been hiding? In tax-exempt securities like state and local bonds, among other places. Mellon had urged Congress to end tax exemptions for such securities, even before he got them to cut tax rates. But he succeeded only with the latter, and only after a political struggle with those who made the same kinds of arguments that are still being made today by those who cry out against "tax cuts for the rich."
Still, one out of two is not bad, when it comes to getting Congress to do something that makes sense economically, rather than something that looks good politically.
Unfortunately, raising taxes on the rich doesn’t work very often. They have the means to avoid taxes and the raising of their taxes by the left normally gives them the incentive to do so.
Taxes in the Lame Duck session
Much of the RECENT COMMENTARY ABOUT THE TAX CUTS HAS SKIPPED OVER THIS POLITICAL REALITY. It’s instead focused on how tough the Democrats should be and whether they should insist on the expiration of all the Bush tax cuts on income above $250,000 a year. But THAT’S NO LONGER ONE OF THEIR OPTIONS. Unless they believe they will benefit more than Republicans from a standoff in which taxes go up, which is hard to believe with a Democrat in the White House, their only choice now is among various versions of retreat..
A small group of Obama administration officials and lawmakers from each party will be negotiating over the next few days, and two possibilities are getting the most attention.
The first is A MILLIONAIRE’S TAX, in which THE BUSH TAX CUTS WOULD BE EXTENDED ONLY ON INCOME BELOW $1 MILLION. This would raise only half as much as Mr. Obama’s proposal — allowing the cuts to expire on all income above $250,000 — but it would still eliminate roughly 8 percent of the medium-term budget deficit. A millionaire’s tax would also mean that the tax code would again begin to distinguish between the merely affluent and the truly wealthy, as was the case decades ago
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/01/business/economy/01leonhardt.html?_r=1
We are living in interesting times. After two years of being able to do pretty much anything they wanted (not without big political problems), Obama faces a new reality. To get anything done, he will need to compromise and make deals. Although I’m still hearing the Democrats plan to pass tax relief for those making under $250,000 per year and dare the Republicans to vote against it. One of the problems they have is that in the Senate they don’t have the votes for closure so I think the gist of the article still holds sway and “THAT’S NO LONGER ONE OF THEIR OPTIONS.”
House May Block Food Safety Bill Over Senate Error
A food safety bill that has burned up precious days of the Senate’s lame-duck session appears headed back to the chamber because Democrats violated a constitutional provision requiring that tax provisions originate in the House.
By pre-empting the House’s tax-writing authority, Senate Democrats appear to have touched off a power struggle with members of their own party in the House. The Senate passed the bill Tuesday, sending it to the House, but House Democrats are expected to use a procedure known as “blue slipping” to block the bill, according to House and Senate GOP aides.
The debacle could prove to be a major embarrassment for Senate Democrats, who sought Tuesday to make the relatively unknown bill a major political issue by sending out numerous news releases trumpeting its passage.
Section 107 of the bill includes a set of fees that are classified as revenue raisers, which are technically taxes under the Constitution. According to a House GOP leadership aide, that section has ruffled the feathers of Ways and Means Committee Democrats, who are expected to use the blue slip process to block completion of the bill.
http://www.rollcall.com/news/-201012-1.html
Not only do taxing bills have to originate in the House but so to do all spending bills. That is why when people talk about the Bush deficits or the Reagan deficits; they are demonstrating they don’t understand how our government works. You have to look at the House if you want to assign responsibility for the deficit.
A Game changer in Afghanistan
It looks and acts like something best left in the hands of Sylvester Stallone's "Rambo," but this latest dream weapon is real -- and the US Army sees it becoming the Taliban's worst nightmare.
The Pentagon has rolled out prototypes of ITS FIRST-EVER PROGRAMMABLE "SMART" GRENADE LAUNCHER, a shoulder-fired weapon that uses microchipped ammunition to target and kill the enemy, even when the enemy is hidden behind walls or other cover…..
"YOU GET BEHIND SOMETHING WHEN SOMEONE IS SHOOTING AT YOU, and that sort of cover has protected people for thousands of years," Lehner said.
"Now WE'RE TAKING THAT AWAY FROM THE ENEMY FOREVER."
PEO Soldier says studies show the XM25 is 300 percent more effective than current weapons at the squad level.
The revolutionary advance involves an array of sights, sensors and lasers that reads the distance to the target, assesses elements such as air pressure, temperature, and ballistics and then sends that data to the microchip embedded in the XM25 shell before it is launched.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101201/pl_afp/usmilitaryweaponsafghanistan
Wow! I wouldn’t want to be an enemy of the United States. This really is a game changer.
A National Funk
And by the way, BEFORE EVERYONE DECIDES THAT CHINA HAS US BEAT, keep in mind OUR GDP IS LARGER THAN THE NEXT THREE COMBINED: CHINA'S, JAPAN'S AND GERMANY'S -- with a billion left over for walk-around money.http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_tony_blankley/the_great_american_funk
We lead in almost all technologies. As Joe Scarborough pointed out a few weeks ago, we have MOST OF THE TOP UNIVERSITIES in the world and MOST OF THE NOBEL PRIZES. We also HAVE THE YOUNGEST POPULATION OF DEVELOPED NATIONS. China's one-child policy is going to leave them with an aging population just as America, later in the century will hit 400 million -- most vigorous young people.
CHINA HAS NO RULE OF LAW, a banking system that hides credit and debit reality and a political system that allows for little expression from the people. IT HAS 800 MILLION PEASANTS WHO WANT MORE and are not getting it fast enough. The Chinese leaders live in constant fear that if their growth slips below 7.5 percent for long, they will have rebellion.
We have 200 years of democracy and capitalism. WE CAN WEATHER ALL STORMS. Let's see if the Chinese can weather the many storms that will hit them in the next few decades. I wouldn't trade our position for the Chinese.
I agree with Tony. People give too much credit to the power of China. The one child policy is a ticking time bomb. China’s population can do nothing but age and as it does, the demands on China for healthcare and social security will grow and grow. That isn’t to say they aren’t a powerful nation. But they have problems we can’t even begin to imagine.
Sometime it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt
"Congressman Cantor (R-VA) either failed English class or failed logic class or failed history class because these tax cuts for the rich that Bush did twice, in '01 and '03, resulted in very little economic growth. We saw only one million jobs created in the Bush years, 22 million created in the Clinton years when we reached a balanced budget with a fairer tax system," SEN. SHERROD BROWN (D-OHIO) SAID ON MSNBC.
"There is no real history illustrating that these tax cuts for the rich result in jobs. IT'S EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS THAT CREATES ECONOMIC ACTIVITY THAT CREATES JOBS, not giving a millionaire an extra ten or twenty or $30,000 in tax cuts that they likely won't spend," Brown said.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2010/11/30/sherrod_brown_tax_cuts_dont_create_jobs_unemployment_benefits_do.html
Hmmm, let’s see. Someone who is rich can either spend the money or invest the money. Both of these are good for the economy. Somehow the latest liberal meme that unemployment insurance is the best stimulus for the economy is akin to someone saying a broken window stimulates the economy because when the person replaces it they hire a glass company to do so. So the best stimulus would be to have the police go around and break windows everywhere. I’m hoping the people of Ohio will see the error of their ways and get rid of this Senator next election cycle.
Are Americans getting too fat?
Two American women have been arrested after they allegedly hid shoplifted goods in their body fat.
Police in Edmond, Oklahoma, said the pair were caught stuffing items under their belly fat and breasts by workers at a TJ Maxx department store.
The officers claim Ailene Brown, 28, and Shmeco Thomas, 37, had hidden four pairs of boots, three pairs of jeans, a wallet and gloves to the value of US$2600 ($2720).
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8173771/women-hid-shoplifted-goods-in-their-body-fat
Jay Leno likes to joke about how fat Americans are getting. We should hear about this story on the Tonight Show soon.
Eat your vegetables and fruits, but it won’t stop cancer
Official guidelines recommend at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day in order to be healthy but new research has found that this may not have a substantial effect on cancer.
The science suggests that people should be told that cancer risk is much more related to how much you eat and drink rather than what you eat.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8170733/Five-a-day-will-not-stop-cancer.html
As a meat and potatoes man, I find this oddly comforting.
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