I post articles because I think they are of interest. Doing so doesn’t mean that I necessarily agree (or disagree) with every—or any—opinion in the posted article. Help your friends and relatives stay informed by passing the digest on.
In Memoriam
Another comrade gone—Harry and I went through electronics school at MCRD, San Diego Brockton Vietnam Taunton
Read the entire post: A Burqa for Lady Liberty and a Mosque for Ground Zero
Excerpt: Anjem Choudary, the leader of the Islamic group that would like to sandblast Lady Liberty, and Arid Uka, the airport gunmen, were not hatched in some cave in Pakistan Germany Europe ' s plans to build a Thousand Year Reich on the bones of Europe ' s antics. In 1993, Americans laughed at a gang of stupid Muslim terrorists who had tried to blow up the World Trade Center ' t funny anymore. Evil is often ridiculous in its pretensions, but horrifying in its execution. It is silly only until it begins to succeed, and then the joke turns to horror and madness. We may find Kim Jong Il funny, but no one in North Korea ' s love poems, Stalin' s toupee, Hitler' s comic bellicosity, Khaddafi' s eccentricity are funny only because we never lived under them. The presumptuousness of a Choudary presuming to wave the flag of Islam over the White House and announce plans for dynamiting the Statue of Liberty is a joke. But the punchline is how little we are doing to halt the day when it really does fly over the White House. "All that is required for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." But our governments are not doing nothing, they are aiding it along. European leaders grumble about multiculturalism and call for more integration. Choudary and Arid Uka are the successes of their integration. The politicians talk and the refugees swarm and the mosques spread. Most European Muslims are not going out guns blazing or cursing returning soldiers. They don' t need to. They can do the math better than the politicians can. And they already know they will win. We don' t have the same demographic gun to our heads yet, but we are retreating almost as quickly.
Requiem Pour La France
In French, but sad even for English speakers. Europe
Requiem For France
The English translation of the above song. ~Bob
Obama administration prepares for possibility of new post-revolt Islamist regimes
Must be running a “bow and apologize” boot camp, in case “wishful thinking” doesn’t work. President’s tough, though—might even see some strongly-worded notes. ~Bob. Excerpt: The Obama administration is preparing for the prospect that Islamist governments will take hold in North Africa and the Middle East , acknowledging that the popular revolutions there will bring a more religious cast to the region' s politics. The administration is already taking steps to distinguish between various movements in the region that promote Islamic law in government. An internal assessment, ordered by the White House last month, identified large ideological differences between such movements as the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and al-Qaeda that will guide the U.S. ' t be afraid of Islam in the politics of these countries," said a senior administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe internal policy deliberations. "It' s the behavior of political parties and governments that we will judge them on, not their relationship with Islam." Islamist governments span a range of ideologies and ambitions, from the primitive brutality of the Taliban in Afghanistan to Turkey ' s Justice and Development Party, a movement with Islamist roots that heads a largely secular political system.
Obama signals willingness to intervene militarily in Libya
Excerpt: But in his first public statement on Libya since the outbreak of widespread armed conflict between opposition forces and those loyal to Gaddafi, Obama expressed several notes of caution, stressing that the United States ' re on the right side of history," Obama said at a White House news conference with visiting Mexican President Felipe Calderon. As with Egypt and Tunisia , he said, U.S. interests were best served if the United States Libya , and after moving warships into the Mediterranean, the United States and its allies appeared Thursday to step back from military intervention, even as opposition forces in Libya
Led by a Follower: The Danger of a Weak President
Excerpt: As has come to pass: emboldened by a weak or non-existent foreign policy, buoyed by the confidence that Obama’s White House is unwilling to act, and inspired by strongmen that openly defy the president’s wishes, thugs of all shapes, sizes, and degrees of brutality are challenging the United States. Those challenges are met with silence, when condemnation is required. They are greeted with ambivalence, when the world cries for decisiveness. The world begs the U.S. America
Regime Change in Iran
Excerpt: Though Iraqi Shiites wish their Arab Shiite brethren and relatives well, Iran Strait of Hormuz at the southwestern end of the Gulf. And more than half of the oil exported from the Arab Gulf Iran ’s current government would like their fellow Shiites in the Arab Gulf Egypt Tehran Tehran has worked for years with Mohamed ElBaradei, the UN inspector who whitewashed Iran Egypt until ElBaradei — who has not lived in Egypt for over thirty years — began to speak out against Mubarak and on behalf of Egypt
Does Newt Gingrich have what it takes for the 2012 presidential campaign?
He would probably be the best president in the Republican field, but maybe not the strongest candidate. ~Bob. Excerpt: As he begins a process that' s likely to lead to a 2012 presidential campaign, those liabilities will be in the forefront of evaluations of his chances of winning, as they should be. But so, too, should his assets. The reality is that, by sheer force of intellect, energy and ambition, Gingrich has managed to stay at the top of public debate longer than almost any other contemporary member of the GOP. For three decades, he has been a leader of Republicans. He started as a House backbencher roiling the party' s old guard in the 1980s. Once elected to the leadership, he guided the GOP in 1994 to its first House majority in 40 years. After a government shutdown that cost his party, he worked with President Bill Clinton to produce major changes in the welfare system and a balanced budget.
Obama, GOP start $50 billion apart
Excerpt: The Obama administration opened talks on a budget deal Thursday with congressional Republicans and Democrats, but the two sides appeared miles apart on how much to reduce this year’s spending. The White House offered to slash spending by an additional $6.5 billion a day after President Obama signed short-term legislation cutting spending by $4 billion to prevent a government shutdown. Republicans, however, want $61 billion in cuts, and some dismissed the new offer from Democrats as small grapes. (And the GOP proposal is far too modest to do much to stave off the coming fiscal collapse. But I like how the writer mixes the metaphors “sour grapes” and “small beer.” ~Bob.)
Starting to see some results from keeping the Bush tax cuts in place at the end of December. ~Bob. Excerpt: Job growth soared ahead and the unemployment rate fell in February, as the economy gained momentum and people who had been stuck at home because of January snow returned to work. Employers added 192,000 jobs in February, the Labor Department said Friday. The number closely matched analysts' expectations, accelerating from a revised 63,000 jobs added in January. The unemployment rate edged down to 8.9 percent, from 9 percent.
How States Can Survive the Medicaid Crisis
Excerpt: Along with the exploding costs of public-sector benefit packages, managing Medicaid is the greatest challenge confronting the nation’s governors and state legislative bodies. About 16 percent of the nation’s population is currently enrolled in Medicaid, the joint federal–state program for certain categories of mostly poor individuals. State budgets are stressed from explosive Medicaid growth, which has more than quintupled over the past two decades. Four months from now, the extra Medicaid money delivered to states from the federal stimulus disappears. The loss of federal money, along with increased enrollment as a result of the recession, exacerbates the state crisis. All 29 Republican governors signed a letter to Congress and the White House asking that the Medicaid maintenance-of-effort requirements for eligibility in the new health care law be repealed.[1] Besides calling for increased flexibility on eligibility, states should also maximize opportunities to better manage their programs, control costs, and put in place fundamental long-term reform. Most Medicaid enrollees are children, their mothers, and pregnant women. Currently, Medicaid offers beneficiaries a fairly comprehensive one-size-fits-all benefit package and pays providers who deliver services. Despite the massive increase in Medicaid spending, many physicians fail to participate in the program because of low payment rates and mountains of paperwork. There is also evidence that Medicaid enrollees receive a lower quality of care. A recent study from the University of Virginia
State and Local Tax Burden Decreased in 2009
Excerpt: For nearly two decades the Tax Foundation has published an estimate of the combined state-local tax burden shouldered by the residents of each of the 50 states. For each state, they calculate the total amount paid by the residents in taxes, and then divide those taxes by the state' s total income to compute a "tax burden." The goal is to focus not on the tax collectors but on the taxpayers. That is, they seek to answer the question: What percentage of income are the residents of this state paying in state and local taxes? Here are some key findings, says the Tax Foundation: Taxpayers pay taxes not only to the state and local governments where they reside but also to out-of-state governments, both naturally and by design. Nationwide, over a quarter of all state and local taxes are collected from nonresidents, and a true measure of the tax burden on the residents of any state must take this into account. During fiscal year 2009, in the midst of a national recession, both income and taxes shrank, but taxes fell faster than incomes; the result was that tax burdens decreased from 9.9 percent in 2008 to 9.8 percent in 2009. In 2009, the residents of New Jersey , New York and Connecticut ' re the only three states where taxpayers give up 12 percent or more of their income in state-local taxes. Alaskans, consistently the least taxed in the nation, again paid the least in 2009, just 6.3 percent. The next lowest state, over a full percentage point higher, is Nevada
Important: Wasteful Spending Does Not Stop At Earmarks And Overpayments
Excerpt: Fraud, waste and abuse in the form of improper federal payments are undoubtedly problems worthy of congressional attention. However, improper federal payments are only a small component of government waste in this country. Federal entities estimate improper payments totaled $125.4 billion in fiscal year 2010, about 5.5 percent of the $2.3 trillion in reported outlays for the related programs.1 This $125 billion in overt waste, however, pales in comparison to the pervasive waste that exists in current spending patterns. It certainly pales compared to the economic damage caused by misallocation of capital and the creation of perverse incentives such as moral hazard. In fiscal year 2010, the federal government spent $3.6 trillion dollars, or 24.6 percent of GDP,2 well above the historical average. The consequence of this spending was $1.3 trillion in budget deficits.3 A large part of this overspending was improper spending or spending that never should have happened at all. According to the CBO’s alternative scenario budget projection—the scenario under which widely expected policy changes occur, including legislators’ concessions to interest groups such as physicians and senior citizens—at its current trajectory, spending will increase to 25.9 percent of GDP in 2020 and to 32.2 percent in 2030.4 The expansion of mandatory programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, is the driving force behind this spending growth. According to the CBO’s alternative scenario, the combined cost of these three programs, which was roughly 10 percent of GDP in 2010, will reach 12.4 percent in 2020 and 15.7 percent in 2030.5 As the debt grows, fed by increased Medicare and Medicaid spending, the interest payment on that debt grows as well. If the United States
Worth The Candle?
Excerpt: This report examines the costs and benefits of government policy to support the renewable energy industry in Scotland and the UK UK Scotland Scotland is because of the greater concentration of renewable energy generation in Scotland UK UK
The lowdown on a so-called consumer advocate
Excerpt: The medical malpractice wars are back, and as usual the trial lawyers are getting an assist from a widely quoted group supposedly looking out for the interests of consumers. "Supposedly" is the key word here. Last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo' s Medicaid Redesign Team agreed on some long-sought changes in malpractice laws in the state--especially capping pain and suffering awards at $250,000. Let' s be clear: Patients will be compensated for the costs of their injuries and lost wages. There just won' t be any bonanzas from the litigation lottery for them or their contingency-fee lawyers. Let' s also be clear on this: There is no evidence that malpractice awards lead to better medical care. In fact, they lead to worse care by forcing doctors into defensive medicine that drives up health care spending enormously. Obviously, trial lawyers who have frustrated all previous attempts at malpractice law reform weren' t happy and are organizing to block the changes in the law. Neither was the New York Public Interest Research Group, the group endlessly quoted by the media as a consumer advocate. It quickly criticized the plan too. That' s usually where the story stops. This time, the governor' s press aide lashed back with a piece in Newsday calling them tools of the trial lawyers. Not us, replied NYPIRG Executive Blair Horner. Who is right? The governor, hands down.
Memo to Democrats
"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite." --James Madison, Federalist No. 45
The Patriot Post www.patriotpost.us/subscribe/
Ted Kennedy Arranged to ' Rent' Brothel in Latin America , ' 61 Memo Says
Excerpt: The late Sen. Ted Kennedy arranged to "rent" a brothel for a night while on a visit to Chile
Judicial Watch released several documents said to be from Kennedy' s FBI file. The group said it obtained a cleaner copy of the State Department memo after a mostly redacted version was made public earlier. (Good training for the Senate, I suppose. ~Bob.)
Racism at the Department of Injustice
As has been well documented by The Patriot Post, the Obama Justice Department shirked its duty to prosecute members of the New Black Panther Party for blatant voter intimidation in Philadelphia
Excerpt: My fellow Americans, who are "your people"? I ask because US Attorney General Eric Holder, who is black, used the phrase "my people" in congressional testimony this week. It was an unmistakably color-coded and exclusionary reference intended to deflect criticism of the Obama Justice Department' s selective enforcement policies. It backfired. In pandering to identity politics and exacerbating race consciousness, Holder has given the rest of us an opportunity to stand up, identify "our people" and show the liberal poseurs what post-racialism really looks like. Herman Cain is my people. I' ve never met him, but we are kin because we are unhyphenated Americans comfortable in the black, brown and yellow skin we' re in. We are growing in numbers on college campuses, in elected office, on the Internet. Cain is the successful Georgia ' s Pizza and forceful Tea Party speaker happens to be black. So he must pay the price that all minority conservatives in public life must pay. A cowardly liberal writer recently derided Cain as a "monkey in the window" and a "minstrel" who performs for his "masters." Race traitors. Sellouts. Self-haters. I' ve heard it for nearly 20 years in public life. Every outspoken minority conservative has. (“My People” include Dr. Thomas Sowell and Dr. Walter Williams, if, being my intellectual superiors, they don’t mind my saying so. ~Bob.)
Immigration Front: Violence in Juárez Eclipses That in Afghanistan
If one were to think about the most violent places on earth, Afghanistan would no doubt come to mind, but a city, just a single city on the southern border of the U.S. is far more violent than the entire country of Afghanistan Afghanistan ' s malfeasance at securing our borders even more troubling. While the majority of civilian deaths in Afghanistan were caused by members of the Taliban and other groups battling the Afghan government and U.S. and international troops, the violence in Juárez is almost completely committed by drug lords battling each other for control of the major smuggling corridors into the United States Texas U.S.
Excellent column: From Baghdad to Benghazi
Excerpt: Voices around the world, from Europe to America to Libya , are calling for U.S. U.S. ' s evil was an order of magnitude beyond Gaddafi' s. Gaddafi is a capricious killer; Saddam was systematic. Gaddafi was too unstable and crazy to begin to match the Baathist apparatus: a comprehensive national system of terror, torture and mass murder, gassing entire villages to create what author Kanan Makiya called a "Republic of Fear Iraq , there was no chance of putting an end to the regime without the terrible swift sword (it took all of three weeks) of the United States ' s freedom agenda, it' s not just Iraq ' s foreign policy -- the "smart power" antidote to Bush' s alleged misty-eyed idealism.
Public Unions Get Too ' Friendly'
Excerpt: Chris Christie is a national figure now because the teachers union decided, in an epic political drama in which arithmetic is the predominant fact, to ignore the math. They also decided to play the wrong role in the drama. They decided to play the role of Johnny Friendly, on whom more in a moment. If the union leaders had been smart—if they' d had a heart!—they would have held a private meeting and said, "Look, the party' s over. We' ve done great the past 20 years, but now taxpayers are starting to resent us, and they have reason. They' re losing their benefits and footing the bill for our gold-plated plans, they don' t have job security and we do, taxes are high. We have to back off." They didn' t do this. It was a big mistake. And the teachers union made it just as two terrible but unrelated things were happening to their reputation. In what might be called an expression of the new spirit of transparency that is sweeping the globe, two documentaries came out in 2010, "The Lottery" and "Waiting for Superman." Both were made by and featured people who are largely liberal in their sympathies, and both said the same brave thing: The single biggest impediment to better schools in our country is the teachers unions, which look to their own interests and not those of the kids.
A Toxic Consensus on Toxic Substances?
Excerpt: Ironically, the precautionary approach is dangerous because it rarely considers the risks associated with the regulations themselves — or their economic impacts. Banning a product simply because it “might” pose a risk means replacing it with second-tier products that may pose higher risks, higher costs, or both. Moreover, misguided government bans simply waste the fruits of human labor and ingenuity employed to create the products. The mere threat of onerous regulation impedes innovation and entrepreneurship. Such policies stymie economic growth and eventually produce a lower standard of living for everyone. Accordingly, those who value science and economic growth would be wiser to support TSCA’s existing “unreasonable risk” standard. The EPA explains on its website: “unreasonable risk involves the balancing of the probability that harm will occur and the magnitude and severity of that harm against the effect of a proposed regulatory action on the availability to society of the expected benefits of the chemical substance.”
The entitlement riots will spread. First public employees, then geezers like me, then handout dependent. ~Bob. Excerpt: “Wisconsin comes to Iowa next week” was the message Iowa Democrats delivered Thursday as they prepare to square off against Republicans over House Study Bill 117, legislation that makes changes to Iowa
Despite Violence, Obama wants U.S. agents in Mexico
Excerpt: Obama said: “There are laws in place in Mexico Mexico ' s not about carrying out law enforcement activities inside of Mexico ' s about providing our agents with the means to defend themselves since it' s obvious that the Mexican authorities can' t...or won' t do it. Napolitano said the U.S. ' s simply not going to be allowed and she damn well knows it. Either give them the means to defend themselves, or bring them home. --MasterGuns)
Not news. Everyone on both sides knew they were fudging the numbers any way they can. ~Bob. Excerpt: During a hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) admitted to double-counting in the Obamacare budget. In her first appearance before the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee since the health-care law passed, Kathleen Sebelius responded to a line of questioning by Republican Rep. John Shimkus of Illinois
Video: Krauthammer criticizes President for treating U.S. troop shooting in Germany
The Jobs Obama is Leaving Behind
You have to understand the Democrats clarity of position. Gas at 42.78 under Bush was too high. Gas at $3.78 under Obama is too low. Got it? ~Bob. Excerpt: Yesterday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar testified before the House Natural Resources Committee on the Department of the Interior’s Fiscal Year 2012 Budget proposal. When pressed by Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) about the de facto offshore drilling moratorium the Obama Administration has inflicted on his district, Sec. Salazar responded: “When you look at the production within the Gulf of Mexico , even in the midst of the national crisis of the Deepwater Horizon, the production has remained at an all-time high.” This is an audaciously out of touch statement. According to the Energy Information Administration, the Obama offshore drilling moratorium will cause a 13-percent fall in domestic offshore oil production this year, which translates to a loss of about 220,000 barrels of oil a day. That means lower GDP growth for the nation, higher gas prices for all Americans, lower tax revenues for the federal government, and most importantly, fewer jobs for Americans living in the Gulf region. Today, the Labor Department released its monthly jobs report showing that the U.S.
Excerpt: Jack Harris was removed as head of the Phoenix Police Department by city officials Thursday while they conduct a 60-day review to determine whether his agency submitted inaccurate kidnapping statistics to the federal government. City Manager David Cavazos said preliminary findings from an internal Police Department audit released Monday prompted him to strip Harris of his day-to-day control of police operations. Harris will keep his position as Phoenix ' s Office. Critics of Harris claim instances of kidnapping in Phoenix ' s chances of winning federal stimulus money. Those complaints led to a federal review. (For those of you outside the knowledge of Phoenix Phoenix as a Sanctuary City ' s main thrust was to deny Sanctuary Cities to people like Gordon and Harris. When Harris would not do anything about Illegals, residents went to Joe Arpaio. Arpaio made raids inside Phoenix City Limits. Gordon got on an airplane and went to Washington , DC
In Defense of American Exceptionalism
There is no denying it: America America
Barack Obama reelection starts cash chase
Remember when he lied and said he’d abide by the Public financing limits? If you don’t you are in a large majority. ~Bob. Excerpt: President Barack Obama’s 2012 fundraising team has begun nailing down major cash commitments from top donors during a coast-to-coast “listening” tour — the surest sign to date that the vaunted Obama money machine is back in business. Former White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina, along with Hollywood producer-turned-Democratic fundraiser Rufus Gifford, has been aggressively recruiting big-money contributors who maxed out to the 2008 campaigns of Obama and Hillary Clinton, donors and party officials told POLITICO. One of their pitches: an offer to join a new “National Finance Council,” which would entail a contribution to the Democratic National Committee of up to $61,600 per couple, per year. That money could be used to fund support operations for Obama’s reelection effort, in addition to smaller donations they would be expected to make directly to Obama’s as-yet-unincorporated Chicago-based campaign, according to donors. The decision to ask for the DNC’s $61,600 up front, while hardly unprecedented, has taken some Democratic fundraisers by surprise. In part, that’s because it comes so early in the cycle — before any clear GOP frontrunner has emerged. But that kind of commitment from wealthy donors could crowd out the party’s cash-hungry congressional committees, which are desperately competing for 2012 contributions, often from the same source.
Excerpt: Former New Mexico Wilson
American And German Efforts On Kosovo Pay Off In Frankfurt
Excerpt: Twenty-one year-old Albanian born and raised in Germany Israel
Obama Poll: Thumbs down on leadership and performance
Excerpt: "Obama is brave with other people' s lives. He' s generous with other people' s money. And he' s articulate with other people' s words." While President Barack Obama benefits from cooperative -- at times even adoring -- news reporters who all but ignore problems they would otherwise highlight had the President been a Republican, the American public appears to be more willing to give Obama low marks for his performance. While possessing an oratory style that' s heralded by most denizens of the nation' s newsrooms, it appears John and Jane Doe prefer action over flowery recitation and adept TelePrompTer reading. A recent Harris Poll appears to bear sad tidings for the President and his minions. (The quote should be on billboards across the country. ~Bob.)
2 N.J Muslims plead guilty to plotting terrorist acts
Didn’t get the memo. If you are not a Muslim, you are a kuffar, and targeted for death because of your beliefs, by a great many of the faithful. ~Bob. Excerpt: During the probe, an undercover New York City United States
Obama: Mexico
Wonder if the agreement requires them to be insured and meet US trucking inspection standards, and what happens if they carry drugs and “undocumented Democrats”? ~Bob. Excerpt: U.S. President Barack Obama said Thursday the U.S. and Mexico have agreed to end a long-simmering dispute over allowing Mexican trucks in the U.S. Obama, speaking with Mexican President Felipe Calderon at the White House, said the pact will increase jobs in both Mexico and the U.S. Mexico to slap tariffs on some $2 billion in U.S.
Cops tackle lawmaker amid layoff threats, detention order: Tensions still running high in Wisconsin
Excerpt: By fleeing the state last month, Wisconsin Democrats succeeded in stymieing--for now--GOP Gov. Scott Walker' s controversial bid to end collective bargaining rights for many public-sector workers. But that doesn' t mean things are settling back to normal in the Badger State
Save Houton Kian and Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani from Execution in Iran
Excerpt: The Islamic Republic of Iran has sentenced Houtan Kian, the lawyer of Iran
"Schools need to teach about orgasms" says NEA to UN
I’d have stayed after for extra help. ~Bob. Excerpt: Graphic sex education for youth is the new battleground at the UN, as evidenced by side events during the past week at the Commission on the Status of Women. The theme of this year’s CSW is the “access and participation of women and girls to education, training, science and technology.” While delegates are busy negotiating resolutions and outcome documents, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and UN organizations campaign for the installation of socially radical curriculums in Africa and America US
Let’s use the “national resource” in his bank account first. Too stupid to understand basic economics. See link to my piece below. ~Bob. Excerpt: "They' re sitting on the money, they' re using it for their own -- they' re putting it someplace else with no interest in helping you with your life, with that money. We' ve allowed them to take that. That' s not theirs, that' s a national resource, that' s ours. We all have this -- we all benefit from this or we all suffer as a result of not having it," Michael Moore told Laura Flanders of GRITtv.
Why the Rich Should be Taxed More
Beanbags or Bullets for Protecting Immigration Agents?
Excerpt: Just look at the killing of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. According to a story in the Arizona Daily Star, Terry and another agent ordered a group of "illegal border entrants" to drop their weapons during a confrontation. They didn' t. So, the two border agents fired beanbags at them. Yes, that' s right... beanbags. The "migrants" (as labeled in the news story) returned fire using guns. Terry was shot and killed.
The Rising: Josh Mandel could take on Sherrod Brown
Excerpt: Ohio ' s newest state treasurer is only 33. He' s also a Marine who served two touts in Iraq ' s why even at his young age, Josh Mandel is being talked about as a potential challenger to Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) next year. It' s also why he' s the latest pol to be profiled in our serious "The Rising," an occasional look Mandel crushed incumbent Treasurer Kevin Boyle (D) in November, his first state-wide race. He has a compelling back story: He says he was inspired to go into public service by his grandparents, both Holocaust survivors, and that his time in the Marines "really shaped me as a leader, the leadership traits and principles that are hammered into us."
The GOP' s entitlements problem
Everyone’s scared of us geezer voters—the Government better keep their hands off my Medicare! But they have promised us things they can’t deliver, that we paid into and expect. So they will kick the can until it can’t be kicked. ~Bob. Excerpt: As we get closer to 2012, Democrats hold out hope that Republican efforts at entitlement reform will pay much bigger dividends this time. Republicans and Democrats are currently engaged in a cat-and-mouse game over entitlements. With both sides looking to make spending cuts, neither has been overly anxious to broach the idea of cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, even though most of those involved acknowledge those programs need to be on the table in order to make significant cuts. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) took a key first step toward including entitlements Thursday, but we still have yet to see concrete plans. The reason neither side wants to go there is pretty clear; a Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll this week showed less than a quarter of Americans support making significant cuts to Social Security or Medicare in order to balance the budget.
President Obama, in his State of the Union speech last month, urged both sides to come out on the issue together. Republicans, including Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) on Thursday, have been urging Obama to take the first step. "Look, you' ve got the biggest microphone," Blunt said to Obama. "You' ve got the biggest podium, but we' re ready to sign on before you go public." Blunt and his GOP colleagues shouldn' t hold their breath.
Meet the three most powerful Big Labor bosses you never heard of
http://washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/2011/03/ron-arnold-meet-three-most-powerful-big-labor-bosses-you-never-heard
http://washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/2011/03/ron-arnold-meet-three-most-powerful-big-labor-bosses-you-never-heard
Excerpt: On Election Day last year, Big Labor' s bosses were aghast at spending some $200 million on political campaigns only to see voters elect a Tea Party inspired GOP majority, toss out the Democrats' supermajority in the Senate, and elect a wave of new Republican governors across the country. That' s a lot of money to come out of donations from Big Labor' s 14.7 million members - with some of it allegedly taken from their dues, which is illegal, and some rumored to come off-the-books from undocumented workers. Most of Big Labor' s political campaign money comes from payroll deductions and checkoff donations from the 56 affiliates of the AFL-CIO and breakaway rivals such as the Service Employees International Union, plus independents like the Carpenters Union and the giant 3.2 million-member National Education Association.
Sales of Chevy Volt plummet -- only 281 sold last month
http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/2011/03/auto-blog-sales-chevy-volt-plummet-only-281-sold-last-month
http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/2011/03/auto-blog-sales-chevy-volt-plummet-only-281-sold-last-month
The coal-powered car not doing well? Alert Al Gore! ~Bob. Excerpt: Looks like President Obama' s going to have to arrange another series of government acquisitions, ' cause this isn't good: Peruse Chevrolet' s February sales release, and you' ll notice one number that' s blatantly missing: the number of Chevy Volts sold. The number – a very modest 281 – is available in the company' s detailed data (PDF), but it certainly isn' t something that GM wants to highlight, apparently.
Dispelling some of the left' s lies about Koch Industries and the environment
Excerpt: Think Progress tries to portray Koch Industries as an environmental scofflaw. But that is the opposite of the truth. Koch puts a high priority on regulatory compliance, and has a superb record of environmental stewardship. This is why the Obama administration' s Environmental Protection Agency has repeatedly praised Koch and its subsidiaries. In 2009, the EPA awarded Koch subsidiary Georgia-Pacific its SmartWay Excellence award and specifically commended Georgia-Pacific. Obama' s EPA has also praised Koch subsidiary Flint Hills Resources, calling a process that Flint Hills worked out "an excellent one" that "will serve as a model for other companies." Remarkably, Koch companies have received more than 180 environmental, health and safety awards since the Obama administration took office.
Madison Wild Wings
Excellent economic explanation. ~Bob. Excerpt: In a response to my piece entitled, “Taxeaters”, a reader who favored progressive income taxation posed this question back to me: why shouldn’t the top 50% of income earners pay 96% of the taxes? My answer: for the same reason that they shouldn’t have to pick up 96% of the state’s collective bar tab. All knowledge builds upon what you know. That evening, I pondered his question some more and was inspired while enjoying a pub meal that Michelle Obama would ban if she could. And here is the problem with progressive income tax theory played out a fictional place called Madison Wild Wings.
New Ben Franklin Letters Discovered in London
What a find. Franklin London ' s interactions with Gen. Edward Braddock after he and his soldiers arrived on the banks of the Potomac and during their disastrous march to the Forks of the Ohio in 1755. The discovery not only adds texture to a key chapter in early American history, but it also raises the question of what else about the founding generation might be lurking out there, overlooked or miscategorized in a library, or perhaps stashed in an archive in some distant land. The professor is Alan Houston, a political scientist at the University of California at San Diego
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