Political Digest for July 25, 2011

Guest Post--Random Thoughts from Paul

http://tartanmarine.blogspot.com/2011/07/guest-post-random-thoughts-from-paul.html

My "I'm Tired" essay

Now has 813 comments on my blog. I had to read them all to post over the last 2.5 years, as I moderate comments to block Spam, too foul language and a couple of people who tried to take over the blog, posting long rants on everything. If you read them all (I wouldn't recommend it), you'd discover there are pretty much two points of view. Either I'm the second coming of George Washington and should be elected president by acclimation, or I'm a Nazi monster who should be burned at the stake. I'm too old, tired, sick and worn out to be president, so I guess it's the stake.

Clockmaker

Saturday I had our grandfather clock serviced. It needs to be oiled and adjusted by a pro every two years or it will seize up, like a car engine (as ours was when we got it. Cost $1200 to rebuild.) Don't try to spray it with WD-40! The pro who services our is August, who owns a clock business, still making house calls at 83. He says he can't train an apprentice--no Americans want to spend the long years needed to learn the trade. He came here from Germany in the 1950s. He was supposed to be a doctor, but was drafted into the German Army at the end of WWII, as a 15-year-old anti-aircraft gunner. Then he was a POW after the war. The experience made him pretty much a pacifist. I said that peace was wonderful, but that it took two sides to make peace, only one to make a war. He tells very interesting stories of that time. Because they said he was too old to go to medical school when it re-opened, he went into the family clock business. He said that countries go up and down, like Rome. He thinks ours is going down. So we agree on some things. I asked him to read my book, The Coming Collapse of the American Republic, and tell me what he thinks.

The anti-Obama: Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty only seems dull

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-oped-0724-chapman-20110724,0,4805896.column

Excerpt: "We got into this mess, in large measure, because we elected somebody as president of the United States who had no executive experience," he tells an audience of 40 people. "And then he went into the Oval Office, and we wonder why it's not working." Voters who want a candidate to make their legs tingle, his approach implies, are welcome to go elsewhere. But those who want a candidate to get things done — conservative things — need look no further. ... But T-Paw, as he likes to be called, has some other advantages that may pay off in the long run. He's relaxed and comfortable in front of a crowd — in a way the overeager Romney is not. His style is likely to wear well and make his often sharply conservative positions more palatable to independent voters. ... Pawlenty's personality on the stump may come across as slightly dull. A Pawlenty presidency, rest assured, would not be.

Public Trust in Government: 1958-2010

http://people-press.org/2010/04/18/public-trust-in-government-1958-2010/

Interesting chart and data. ~Bob

Declaration of Independence, 2011

http://www.libertyaction.org/1334/LC-Declaration2011.pdf

Hookers, booze & bribes: The secret weapons of our shadow war in Iraq — and how we lost $9 billion

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/hookers_booze_bribes_ORtEHhz2G6PYfTK4gKatwN#ixzz1T1Syz5KH

Excerpt: The best decision he ever made during his tour of duty in Iraq, says former US Army Capt. Jason Whiteley, was using government money to hire local hookers for a booze-fueled intramural blowout at Saddam’s palace. Unlike many of Whiteley’s other inventive, unconventional transactions, this one was incredibly cheap with unforeseen and long-term benefits. “I paid, at most, $10 total for five hookers — and their pimp cooked dinner,” Whiteley says. “In the negotiations, they said they’d do only three guys each.” After that party, Whiteley suddenly had inside knowledge of imminent IED attacks. “Those hookers were very popular with the [resistance] Mahdi Army,” says Whiteley. “Anytime those guys came through [the brothel] with a lot of money, we knew an IED had just been planted.” Also, one prostitute in particular — who had a crush on one of Whiteley’s men — would text whenever a customer slipped during pillow talk.

News Bias, Civil Disobedience, and John Adams’ Rule of Thumb

http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/38765

Excerpt: Well, now we know why the first President of the United States warned us that government is “a dangerous servant, and a fearful master,” do we not? And when big government has co-opted the “fourth estate” (journalism), as it now has, then “we the people” are confronted with a fearsome master indeed. Almost all of our TV “news” shows are unacknowledged, unchallenged, and unopposed Far Left to Moderate Left, pro-Big Government apologists. Occasionally they will make a daring foray out into the hinterlands of “fly-over country,” and run a slanted expose on what those wacky Tea Party people are up to, but mostly they stick with their schtick—smug, anti-American, elitist doublethink.

Talk radio host launches news website

http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=324393

Excerpt: Talk radio host Aaron Klein, WND's senior reporter, today launched his own website – KleinOnline.com – dedicated to breaking news, exclusive investigations, and news-making interviews. Updated daily, KleinOnline.com covers topics across the spectrum, with hard-hitting, exclusive investigations exposing corruption, waste, and fraud. The site emphasizes U.S. domestic issues and politics, investigations of the U.S. radical left as well as Klein's famous, boots-on-the-ground reporting from the Middle East and inside the viper's den of Islamic terrorism. KleinOnline.com also offers audio commentary and video analysis of the day's top news trends.

Fishy Science on the Great Barrier Reef

http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/7-8/fishy-science-on-the-great-barrier-reef

It appears “environmental disasters” evolve. Most readers have no clear idea just how many “potential environmental disasters” the world has worried about—and then discarded—in just the past five or six decades. In this excellent article, marine scientist Walter Starck, PhD from the University of Miami revisits one of the lesser-known—but taken very seriously at the time—and shows how it fed into today’s AGW debate. THIS is how it’s been done, folks. Ron P. Excerpt: Just any old problem won’t do. Most are too hard, too unimportant or too uncertain to attract significant research funding. This limitation was met by manufacturing new ones. An early and highly successful effort in eco-threat manufacture here in Australia was the great crown-of-thorns starfish plague.  Population explosions of the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef first came to scientific and public attention in the late 1960s. The starfish threat was soon deemed by academic “experts” to be unprecedented, even though earlier scientific research and underwater exploration on the reef which might have found any earlier outbreaks were almost non-existent. Once a few such outbreaks had been found, the “problem” was deemed to be on a scale which threatened the entire reef. It was even predicted that unless something was done (that is, generous funding for research) the reef would be killed and then wash away, causing massive coastal erosion as well. When it was discovered that the triton’s trumpet shell was a natural predator of the crown-of-thorns starfish, it was immediately concluded that shell collectors were to blame for the starfish outbreaks. That trumpet shells are never abundant enough anywhere to control an outbreak of starfish and most of the reefs involved had never been subjected to shell collecting was ignored. Although a geologist found good evidence for ongoing earlier crown-of-thorns outbreaks in the form of varying amounts of their distinctive skeletal elements at different levels in the reef sediments, this too was simply ignored. As far as the crown-of-thorns bandwagon was concerned, the science was quickly settled: the starfish plague had to be unprecedented and somehow caused by humans. All that was needed to solve the problem was more funding for research. (…) Over the years tens of millions of dollars have been spent researching the crown-of-thorns starfish; but despite determined efforts, no credible human causation has ever been found.

Bomb rocks troubled northeastern Nigerian city

http://news.yahoo.com/bomb-rocks-troubled-northeastern-nigerian-city-222324805.html

Only a matter of time until this is wide spread here, folks. ~Bob. Excerpt: Several people were wounded in a bomb blast in Maiduguri on Saturday, a city in remote northeastern Nigeria which has been plagued by almost daily attacks from a radical Islamist sect. "Three soldiers have been injured in the Saturday evening bomb blast that occurred close to the Palace of the Shehu of Borno," Hassan Mohammed, an officer in the Joint Task Force (JTF) told Reuters. The Shehu is a traditional ruler in Borno state, one of the poorest regions in Africa's most populous nation, close to borders with Chad, Cameroon and Niger. Witnesses at a local hospital said at least one body from the blast site had been brought to the mortuary. Boko Haram, which wants sharia law more widely applied across Nigeria, has claimed responsibility for almost daily bombings and shootings in Borno, mostly targeting police, churches and drinking spots.

Sikh man 'was beaten up by gang in street'

http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/Sikh-man-beaten-gang-street/story-12981155-detail/story.html

Excerpt: A Sikh man told a jury he was beaten up by a group of Muslim-looking men who knocked off his turban and pulled off his necklace and religious pendant. The 25-year-old alleged victim suffered a cut head and other injuries after being hit to the ground and struck with a weapon, possibly a spanner, it was claimed. ... Mark Achurch, prosecuting, said one of the witnesses claimed he heard members of the group shouting "Allah, Allah" during the alleged attack. (See, if the Zionist Sikhs would only get out of Palestine, the Muslims wouldn't be incited to violence. ~Bob.)

14 rioters shot down in Xinjiang attack

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-07/20/content_12938621.htm

If we could just get the Zionist Chinese to stop occupying Palestine, all would be peaceful. ~Bob. Excerpt: The official, who declined to be named, said the attack left four people dead, including an armed police officer, a security guard, a woman and a teenage girl. At least three others were injured. Rioters hacked security guard Memet Eli to death while they were trying to break into the Na'erbage police station shortly after 12 pm Monday, said Ablet Metniyaz, chief of the police station. ... Shouting frantic religious slogans like "Allah the only God", the rioters ran to the top floor and police opened fire to stop them, said an anonymous policeman with the police station.

Who added "Christian" and "Conservative" to Norway shooter's Facebook page yesterday?

http://www.jihadwatch.org/2011/07/who-added-christian-and-conservative-to-norway-shooters-facebook-page-yesterday.html

Excerpt: Pamela Geller has noticed an interesting anomaly: While the leftist and Islamic supremacist ghouls rush to portray Norway mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik as a Christian and even as an anti-jihadist, the unanswered questions multiply. Why did a jihad group take credit for the atrocities, and then retract? And who altered the murderer's Facebook page?

Man who had relationship with primary-school girl jailed for 10 years

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/more-news/man-who-had-relationship-with-primary-school-girl-jailed-for-10-years/story-fn7x8me2-1226099812297

Damn Islamophobic Aussies. This is allowed by Shari'a Law and all right-thinking multiculturalists support child rape as long as done by Muslims. ~Bob. Excerpt: A MAN who claimed it was culturally acceptable for him to have a sexual relationship with a primary-school child who later bore him a son will spend up to 10 years in jail. The 31-year-old, now classified as a pedophile, had claimed his cultural background meant age was not a relevant factor in choosing a wife or sexual partner, the County Court in Melbourne heard. But in sentencing the man, who migrated as a refugee from a north-Asian country, Judge Lisa Hannan said his continued sexual relationship with the girl - from the age of eight until she fell pregnant - was repulsive and defied morality.

Building To Be Reconstructed Into Mosque For Muslim Community In Athens

http://greece.greekreporter.com/2011/07/23/building-to-be-reconstructed-into-mosque-for-muslim-community-in-athens/

Since the IMF, of which the US is a large contributor, is bailing out the Greek government, these are your tax dollars at work. ~Bob. Excerpt: The Greek government will finance the reconstruction of building structures into mosques for the Muslim community in Athens. Estimated to cost less than 15 million, the existing plans for the mosque will serve 500 faithful Muslims. The building of the former Naval Base in Botanikos has been chosen and once it is renovated and converted, it will operate as an Islamic mosque in Athens. According to the amendment tabled in parliament it will be incorporated in a bill being debated by the Ministry of Environment Energy and Climate Change which governs energy issues.

Sharia-style marriages could be officially recorded by the government

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/2011/07/22/sharia-style-marriages-could-be-officially-recorded-by-the-government-115875-23288136/

Excerpt: A leaked government document by an integration and tolerance working group said polygamous marriages may be registered by authorities to protect women whose partners take a second or third wife. The Government strongly denied it would make the practice of having more than one wife legal.

Welcome to the Obama for America Fall Fellows Application!

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/fall-fellows-cover?source=20110723_se_em&utm_medium=email&utm_source=obama&utm_campaign=20110723_se_em

I didn't go beyond the first page. An amazing number of buzz-words, though, and a call for near slavery in "unpaid positions." Very slick. Ron P. Excerpt: The Fall Fellowship program will train and develop the next generation of community organizers and will help the campaign expand its outreach efforts in communities across the country. Organizing is inspiring but difficult work, so only those with a serious interest should apply. Fall Fellows who complete the program will leave with a full understanding of the most effective tools and methods that organizers use to make change in their communities. Some Fall Fellows work for the Obama Campaign directly while others will work for Organizing for America.

Pawlenty's Appeal to GOP: I Won't Embarrass You

http://townhall.com/columnists/debrajsaunders/2011/07/24/pawlentys_appeal_to_gop_i_wont_embarrass_you

Excerpt: Then again, nice guys finish last. So Pawlenty has started talking tough -- about the need for a nominee with "executive experience" who "has a record of not just rhetoric but results." Pawlenty's dilemma: He's not polarizing, and polarizing generates buzz, which boosts poll numbers, during the early name-recognition phase of a primary. So he has to find a way to tell GOP voters: Unlike the showboats in the field -- no need to name Bachmann, Newt Gingrich or businessman Herman Cain -- I am the Republican who won't embarrass you. (Trust me. Republicans are sick of going to parties where Democrats buttonhole them so that they can rant about Sarah Palin. No need to double down on that.)

Voters Give GOP 10-Point Edge Over Democrats on Economy

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/trust_on_issues

Excerpt: With lawmakers haggling over government debt and consumer confidence at a two-year low, voter confidence in Republicans to handle the economy is growing.

Boehner aims to release new debt plan by Sunday afternoon

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/173131-boehner-says-new-debt-plan-will-be-released-by-sunday-afternoon

Excerpt: House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) told his GOP rank-and-file that congressional leaders are working round the clock on a deal set for release before the Asian markets open on Sunday at 4 p.m., a source tells The Hill. Boehner didn't mention any details; he said the big deal is the Asian markets tomorrow and therefore, we've got to get something out there," the source said, with a cynical attitude as to the urgency of the Asian markets.

Head of Dem Caucus warns: No revenues in deficit deal, no Dem votes

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/173117-head-of-dem-caucus-warns-no-revenues-in-debt-deal-no-dem-votes

Excerpt: The leader of the House Democratic Caucus indicated this weekend that tax-revenue hikes must be included in a sweeping deficit-reduction plan to win the Democratic support it will need to pass. Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) suggested House Republicans would get no Democratic help if the final package includes only spending cuts and the promise of new revenues later. "What the Democratic Caucus has been focused on … is balance," Larson said during an appearance on C-Span's "Newsmakers" program, which will air Sunday. "Obviously, balance would include cuts and revenues."

Revenue in the deal?

If I was the GOP leaders, I'd give them some of the tax increases they keep harping on. I'd eliminate the Obama-stimulus on corporate jets Obama now harps on. I'd eliminate the tax incentives for oil companies. And they keep talking about "millionaires and billionaires, so I'd give them tax rate increases on those folks. 1% if your income is a million dollars a year, graduated up to 10% increase if your income is a billion dollars a year. (Of course, these are the things the Dems talk about. What they want it is hit small business owners who bring in over $250k.) Then I'd blanket the media with ads and statements saying that they did this reluctantly to spare the country the effects of an Obama Default, and that if it didn't increase jobs, it was Obama's fault, because they gave him what he had been talking about.

To get a mandate, GOP must win another election

http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/2011/07/get-mandate-gop-must-win-another-election

Excerpt: Those who consider themselves constitutional conservatives should take care to consider not only the powers that the Constitution confers on the different branches of government and reserves to the states and the people, but also the schedule that the Constitution sets up for sharp changes and reversals of public policy. The entire House of Representatives is elected every two years. The voters in 2010, with unusual clarity, elected a House determined to reverse the Obama Democrats' vast increase in the size and scope of government. But determination is not enough. Barack Obama, elected in 2008, remains in office armed with a veto. The friendly mainstream media permits him to use euphemisms to insist on tax increases that were roundly rejected by the voters in 2010.

Black Tea Partiers to Protest NAACP

http://www.theroot.com/buzz/black-tea-partiers-protest-naacp

Excerpt: The black-led South Central L.A. Tea Party (whose motto is "Power to the People") is reportedly planning a protest against the NAACP at the organization's 102nd annual convention in Los Angeles on July 24. The group is headed up by the Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, president of BOND Action (the Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny). Black Tea Partiers' specific gripes about the civil rights organization include that it's been "spreading lies" about racism in the Tea Party movement and promoting "black genocide" through its support of Planned Parenthood. (Bumper Sticker: Support Planned Parenthood--Abort Black Babies. No. I don't have the nerve. ~Bob.)

10 wounded as gunfire erupts at Kent car show

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2015710060_shooting24m.html

Excerpt: A fight at a crowded Kent car show escalated Saturday afternoon, leaving 10 people shot as cars sped away from the scene and frightened spectators ducked into the safety of nearby businesses. Hundreds of people packed the La Plaza parking lot all day before the shooting. At least one shooter fired from the front of the shopping center into the crowd. Patrons and employees in nearby shops and restaurants locked the doors and crouched in back rooms as the crack of gunfire filled the air like fireworks. “First I heard like six shots, then they kept going,” said Alejandro Lara, a witness. He said he saw a single gunman firing into the parking lot full of people. Police said they don’t know how many shooters there were. No arrests had been made by Saturday night.

Dem PAC Caught Pushing Lies – They Made Up WSJ Quotes in New GOP-Bashin​g Ad (Video)

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/07/horrible-democrats-caught-in-massive-lies-completely-make-up-wall-street-journal-quotes-in-new-ad-video/

Excerpt: A new far left group has emerged recently to promote and defend the big-spending Pelosi-Obama socialist agenda. The PAC claims the tea party is over. This democratic group is currently this ad in Missouri. It is a complete lie. Their ad claims that Republicans want to end Medicare. They use several far left pundits in their ad to parrot this lie and even include a snippet from the Wall Street Journal. “Patriot” Majority USA is running this ad in Missouri. These liars said this line came from an April 4 article in the Wall Street Journal: The Wall Street Journal says “Their plan will essentially end Medicare costing seniors $6,000 more a year.” But here is what The Wall Street Journal actually reported on April 4: “The plan would essentially end Medicare, which now pays most of the health-care bills for 48 million elderly and disabled Americans, as a program that directly pays those bills.

Marines receive Navy Cross for Ganjgal heroics

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2011/06/marine-navy-cross-ganjgal-061011w/

The Captain is black and from Nigeria. The Sergeant is Hispanic and from Mexico. These are the kind of immigrants America needs more of. Semper Fidelis. ~Bob. Excerpt: On Friday, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus awarded Capt. Ademola Fabayo, 30, and Staff Sgt. Juan Rodriguez-Chavez, 34, with the Navy Cross, the nation’s second-highest award for valor. They were members of Marine Embedded Training Team 2-8, out of Okinawa, Japan, which was ambushed in Ganjgal, a village near the Pakistan border. In a ceremony at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, Mabus said the two immigrants showed great courage and dedication to their fellow Marines. Fabayo was born in Nigeria and moved to New York City in 1993. Rodriguez-Chavez was born in Mexico, and enlisted in 1995.

Black men are half as likely to die in prison than they are in the outside world, says new study
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2015131/Black-men-half-likely-die-prison-outside-world-says-new-study.html

Excerpt: Black men are half as likely to die at any given time if they're in prison than if they are in the outside world. A new study of North Carolina inmates shows that black prisoners are better protected against alcohol and drug-related deaths, as well as lethal accidents and certain chronic diseases. White men on the whole are slightly more likely to die in prison than outside, according to findings published in Annals of Epidemiology.

72-Year-Old Ex-Marine Runs Down, Kills Armed Man Who Robbed His Business

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/72-year-old-ex-marine-runs-down-kills-armed-man-who-robbed-his-business/

As this story shows, there no such thing as an "ex-Marine." ~Bob. Excerpt: A man who robbed a 72-year-old Texas business owner at gunpoint is dead after the owner, a former Marine, jumped in his car and chased after him, ramming him against a metal fence. According to the Houston Chronicle, a tall man forced his way into Kenneth Kobobel, Sr.’s office Friday morning where Kobobel had been chatting with his brother. He put a 9mm handgun to Kobobel’s head, demanded money from them and screamed “You’re dead!” He emptied the contents of the brother’s wallet and Kobobel handed him $20. Not satisfied with the amount, Kobobel said the man patted him down and upon finding a wad of bills totaling $800 yelled, “You lied to me! You’re dead!” Kobobel said robber struck him on the head with the barrel of the gun and ran off, warning them to wait before calling 911. Once he left, Kobobel called 911 and went outside, asking neighbors if they had seen which way he went. He then got into his car and sped off in pursuit. ... Kobobel said he spotted the robber in a strip mall parking lot, and when the robber saw Kobobel coming he raised his gun and fired at least once. Kobobel rammed him with his car, then did so again when the man prepared to fire again.