Political Digest for March 11, 2012

The Old Jarhead Blog. Bringing you news and information the MSM is too busy covering American Idol, celebrity affairs and sensational missing person cases to cover. Please forward to friends who need to be informed.

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 some cases I post things sent to me by readers I might not have posted on my own, to get ideas circulating.

Clinton's Bosnia Blunder

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=3968001n%253Fsource=search_video

Excerpt: Exclusive CBS News video contradicts Hillary Clinton's account of her 1996 visit to Bosnia. Senator Clinton admitted she "made a mistake," but it wasn't the only one. Sharyl Attkisson reports.

Worth Reading: Yet another rancid green Obama bet-Michel​le Malkin

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/yet_another_rancid_green_obama_bet_1v6BWxeL5tUYDy4zoyiAYO

The stench of Chicago-on-the-Potomac is fouling the fresh Rocky Mountain air. Meet Loveland-based Abound Solar, the lucky winner of a $400 million federal loan guarantee from the Obama administration. Earlier this month, the solar-module maker announced layoffs of nearly 300 employees (70 percent of its workforce).

Worth Reading: Why Are We Going Broke? by John C. Goodman

http://townhall.com/columnists/johncgoodman/2012/03/10/why_are_we_going_broke

Excerpt: In the United States, the national debt now equals 100 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), and is still growing. With the retirement of the baby boomer generation, 78 million additional people will turn to the federal government for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits — roughly $40,000 per beneficiary per year, on the average. If we continue on the current course, the federal government will need to more than double the tax revenues it now collects by the time we reach midcentury, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Hugo Chavez: Fighting crime by disarming innocent people
http://www.businessinsider.com/hugo-chavez-fighting-crime-by-disarming-innocent-people-2012-3

Excerpt: With an annual murder rate estimated as high as 67 homicides per every 100,000 inhabitants in his country, Hugo Chavez is about to show the world that he’s tough on crime. At least, the non-governmental kind. Chavez’s government claims that 98% of the homicides in Venezuela involve firearms. His solution? Restrict firearm ownership. (And it keeps the oppressed citizens from being able to oppose the armed government thugs. ~Bob.)

Some Policy: Obama Spent $24 Billion on Energy in 2011 by Bob Beauprez

http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/bobbeauprez/2012/03/10/some_policy_obama_spent_24_billion_on_energy_in_2011

Excerpt: The Congressional Budget Office says that the government provided $24 billion of tax credits and direct subsidies to the energy industry in 2011. Here’s how it was divided up: $2.5 billion in various tax credits to the fossil fuel industry. $6 billion to the ethanol industry. $16 billion to renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. So, the industry that receives about 10 cents of each dollar of incentives the government provides produces 85% of all the energy to keep America going. And, yet it is the industry that Barack Obama demonizes and wants to punish with higher taxes.

Today, Georgetown; Tomorrow, The World by Burt Prelutsky

http://www.burtprelutsky.com/2012/03/today-georgetown-tomorrow-world.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+burtprelutsky%2FSQlQ+%28BurtPrelutsky.com%29

Excerpt: By this time, anyone who’s interested knows that Sandra Fluke wasn’t just another young law student at Georgetown, but in fact was a 30 year old left-wing political activist who enrolled at the Catholic university in order to crusade on behalf of publicly funded contraception and abortion. Because the 800-pound gorilla of conservative radio, Rush Limbaugh, made the mistake of calling her a few names, he turned this otherwise insignificant ditz into the media’s idea of a martyr. Unlike Joan of Arc, however, the only voice Ms. Fluke heard in her head was her own, which, being a liberal, she naturally assumed was God’s.

Gaza militants fire rockets at Israeli south; casualties, damage reported

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/gaza-militants-fire-rockets-at-israeli-south-casualties-damage-reported-1.417606

Didn't get the memo. ~Bob. Excerpt: More than 40 rockets fired into southern Israel; eight people wounded, one seriously; Iron Dome intercepts six rockets fired at Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Be'er Sheva; Palestinians report 12 fatalities in IAF strikes on Gaza.

Saudi police break up protest at women's campus

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudi-police-break-up-protest-at-women-s-campus-1.992429

Excerpt: Saudi authorities have ordered a probe after more than 50 women students were hurt when security forces dispersed a campus protest this week, media and a local official said on Friday. On Wednesday members of the religious police and law enforcement officers used water cannons to break up a sit-in by women students at the Abha University in the south of Saudi Arabia, the Sebaq news website reported. (This is what Sandra Fluke and feminists should protest--but won't. ~Bob.)

Energy secretary's wife drives a gas-guzzling BMW

http://times247.com/articles/chu-s-wife-drives-gas-guzzling-bmw

Excerpt: In a piece of video that shot across the Internet Thursday like a sports car doing zero-to-60 in four seconds, Energy Secretary Stephen Chu told the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power that he does not own a car. ... But The Daily Caller has confirmed that Chu’s wife does — and it’s quite an automobile. TheDC has obtained motor vehicle registration records showing that Jean Chu (nee Fetter) is the owner of a 2002 BMW 325i, a sports sedan with a gas-guzzling 6-cylinder engine ... and its engine requires premium gasoline. (Another Greenie hypocrite. But I repeat myself. ~Bob.)

Non-Farm Payroll Report: Is It As Good As The CNBSers Claim?

http://www.fedupusa.org/2012/03/non-farm-payroll-report-is-it-as-good-as-the-cnbsers-claim/

Excerpt: Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 227,000 in February, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 8.3 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment rose in professional and businesses services, health care and social assistance, leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, and mining. The Bureau of Lies and Scams claims that private employment rose by 233,000, with government decrementing the number by 6,000. The also claim that all of the employment gain in manufacturing came from durables, while the durable goods report was extremely negative last month.

Obama To Introduce New Gun Laws, Introduce Legislation to Redefine 2nd Amendment.

http://lasvegastimes.info/las_vegas_times.html

Excerpt: "I have proof I obtained weeks ago, that President Obama is going to make anyone wanting to buy or own firearms to be part of a federally regulated militia. These militias will require members to show up for training on a weekly basis. This is the corruption of the Constitution of the United States!" Said Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona. When asked about this, the White House declined to comment specifically but offered that President Obama will "make sure the reforms adhere to the Constitution as written."

Windmills vs. Birds: About 70 golden eagles are killed every year by turbines at California's Altamont Pass, reports the LA Times.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204781804577267114294838328.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Excerpt: For years, the wind energy industry has had a license to kill golden eagles and lots of other migratory birds. It's not an official license, mind you. But as the bird carcasses pile up—two more dead golden eagles were recently found at the Pine Tree wind project in Southern California's Kern County, bringing the number of eagle carcasses at that site to eight—the wind industry's unofficial license to kill wildlife is finally getting some serious scrutiny.

Senate Democrats Ask I.R.S. for More Scrutiny of Nonprofit Political Groups

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/08/senate-democrats-ask-i-r-s-for-more-scrutiny-of-nonprofit-political-groups/?pagemode=print

Excerpt: Senate Democrats on Friday will ask the Internal Revenue Service to institute a “bright line test” to ensure that tax-exempt organizations devote less than half their activities to politics and to prevent corporate donors from deducting “super PAC” contributions from their taxes. If the I.R.S. will not do it administratively, the senators say they will move to do it with legislation. (The IRS: paramilitary wing of the Democratic Party --IowaHawk.)

Hidden unemployment numbers stymie Obama’s job growth claims

http://dailycaller.com/2012/03/09/hidden-unemployment-numbers-stymie-obamas-job-growth-claims/

Excerpt: There’s so much hidden unemployment in the labor force that even Friday’s improved jobs numbers failed to decrease the official unemployment rate of 8.3 percent. In February, the private sector added 233,000 new jobs, but 476,000 non-working people began looking for a job. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) rules, only by seeking work did those individuals officially become unemployed.

Former Marine Refuses Plea Deal in NYC Gun Possession Case

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/former-marine-refuses-plea-deal-in-nyc-gun-possession-case/

Excerpt: You may recall Jerome was arrested for felony gun possession during a visit to NYC last September. He voluntarily checked in his firearm at the Empire State Building, as it was legally registered in another state, and he believed he was in compliance with the law.

The Student Loan Debacle--What a Mess by Andrew Gillen

http://www.mindingthecampus.com/forum/2012/03/the_student_loan_debacle--what.html

Excerpt: The main headline is of course the $870 billion outstanding balance. Also noteworthy is the $85 billion that is held by those who are past due. But what these numbers really illustrate is the human and financial impact our bizarre student-loan system is having. ... 61% of folks with a student loan are not paying.

Stoned to death for being an emo: NINETY Iraqi students killed for having 'strange hair and tight clothes'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2112960/90-students-Iraq-stoned-death-having-Emo-hair-tight-clothes.html#ixzz1okrzdef0

Excerpt: More than 90 Iraqi students have been stoned to death for their Emo haircuts by religious extremists in Baghdad in the past month after Iraq's interior ministry dubbed it 'devil worshipping'. Iraq's Moral Police released a statement on the interior ministry's website condemning the 'emo phenomenon' among Iraqi youth, declaring its intent to 'eliminate' the trend. The move is part of a wider clampdown on young people taking on what government officials call 'Western appearances' in Iraq. (Apparently having strange hair is worse than accidently burning Muslim-defaced Qur'ans. OWS better hide if they see an Imam coming. ~Bob.)

Allen West Centers on U.S. Security During Town Hall -by Elizabeth Roberts, Forum Publishing Group

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2012-03-09/news/fl-dff-west-0308-20120309_1_security-threat-allen-west-town-hall

Excerpt: "I am greatly concerned that the government is not telling you what is on the ground with unemployment in the United States," he said. "We have 1.2 million who dropped off the [unemployment] rolls." "For the first time since World War II, we owe more than we are producing," he said, "[making] the national debt the No. 1 security threat."

Allen West Betrayed - by Armstrong Williams, The Hill

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/lawmaker-news/214909-allen-west-betrayed

Excerpt: Can anyone with a modicum of common sense understand why the Republican Party of Florida allowed Congressman Allen West to be gerrymandered out of his congressional district? It would make sense if this were Massachusetts or California. If a Democrat-majority state had tried to force Rep. West out, we could easily see why.

Dozens of AQAP fighters killed in airstrikes in southern Yemen

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/03/dozens_of_aqap_fight.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LongWarJournalSiteWide+%28The+Long+War+Journal+%28Site-Wide%29%29

Excerpt: Dozens of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters were killed in a pair of airstrikes in the southern Yemeni cities of Jaar and Al Baydah over the past 24 hours. The strikes are suspected to have been carried out by US aircraft, however the reports have not been confirmed. In the first strike, warplanes hit AQAP hideout in a rural area near Al Baydah, a city an the southern part of Baydah province near Abyan province, another terrorist stronghold, according to the Globe and Mail. Abdulwahhab al-Homaiqani, an AQAP commander in the city, and 16 of his fighters were reported to have been killed in the strike. Yemeni tribesmen said the attacks were "carried out by US drone airplanes."

Santorum projected winner of Kansas GOP caucuses

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/03/10/santorum-aims-for-strong-showing-in-kansas-but-delegate-game-could-favor-romney/

Excerpt: Santorum and Paul were the only candidates to actively campaign in Kansas in the run-up to the caucuses. Kansas, with its social conservative base, was considered a natural fit for Santorum -- Romney and Gingrich effectively skipped Kansas in favor of campaigning in southern states that are holding primaries on Tuesday.

Obama mocks reporter with lies- left wing press swallows it whole

http://floppingaces.net/2012/03/09/obama-mocks-reporter-with-lies-left-wing-press-swallows-it-whole-reader-post/

Good collection exposing Obama on gas prices. ~Bob.

'Whites suffer more racism than blacks': Study shows white American people believe they are more discriminated against

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1390205/Whites-suffer-racism-blacks-Study-shows-white-people-believe-discriminated-against.html#ixzz1ol4FAfNK

White Americans feel they are more discriminated against than blacks, a new study reveals. Sociologists from Harvard and Tufts universities asked 209 white and 208 black men and women to rate 'racism' against both ethnic groups since the 1950s on a scale of one to 10. (The race-baiters have created this impression by using race to gain wealth and power, but poisoning the well of race relations. ~Bob.)

Rasmussen Poll: Romney and Santorum Ahead of Obama
http://nation.foxnews.com/2012-presidnetial-race/2012/03/10/rasmussen-poll-romney-and-santorum-ahead-obama#ixzz1ol6HTUgN

Excerpt: With the perception growing that he will be the GOP nominee, Romney leads President Obama by five points in a hypothetical 2012 matchup. Today’s numbers show Romney at 48%, Obama at 43%. That’s Romney’s largest lead since December. If Santorum is the Republican nominee, he is up by one point over the president, 46% to 45%.

The Latest GOP Math: Delegates and Money

http://www.therightsphere.com/2012/03/the-latest-gop-math-delegates-and-money/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Excerpt: Yes I’m going to bang the same drum again but with a new look at the current mathematics of the GOP Primary race, and yes I’m still advocating that Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich accept their fate and drop out of the race soon. The Republican Party needs to begin coalescing, formulating a platform to win the general election and consolidating its fund-raising.

Man Shot At Detroit Gas Station, Reportedly Over Price Of Condoms

http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/03/10/man-shot-at-detroit-gas-station-reportedly-over-price-of-condoms/#.T1u9fAA0aSo.twitter

Excerpt: A man was shot and killed Friday night after an apparent dispute over the price of condoms at a Detroit gas station.

Good Tweet

(Obama's) the first president of the "everybody gets a trophy" generation.

Too Funny: The Fluke Charade: Why should we have to fund a middle-aged schoolgirl’s sex life? by Mark Steyn

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/293094/fluke-charade-mark-steyn
Excerpt: Where was I? Oh, yes. The brave middle-aged schoolgirl had the courage to stand up in public and demand that someone else pay for her sex life. Well, as noted above, she’s attending Georgetown, a nominally Catholic seat of learning, so how expensive can that be? Alas, Georgetown is so nominally Catholic that the cost of her sex life runs to three grand — and, according to the star witness, 40 percent of female students “struggle financially” because of the heavy burden of maintaining a respectable level of premarital sex at a Jesuit institution.

It's Obamacare, Stupid - by Jeffrey H. Anderson and William Kristol, The Weekly Standard

http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/it-s-obamacare-stupid_633414.html
Excerpt: It’s not easy to lose 63 seats in a House election...Just how did the Democrats do it? A new academic study says the answer can likely be reduced to one word: Obamacare.

El Paso Christians who signed petitions investigated

http://www.wnd.com/2012/03/christians-who-signed-petitions-investigated/
Excerpts: A prosecutor has decided to pursue and possibly charge members of El Paso area churches who promoted petitions opposing the city administration's decision to implement benefits for same-sex partners even after voters decided not to allow that. Attorneys representing the churches warn that hundreds of Christians and other El Paso citizens "are facing jail time for exercising their constitutionally protected right to speak out against Mayor John Cook's policies." El Paso citizens should not live in fear of being arrested and jailed for exercising their constitutionally protected right to free speech,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Joel Oster, who argued before the appeals court on Jan. 24 in Cook v. Tom Brown Ministries.

Facebook 'friend' offer exposes man's other wife

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/03/09/facebook-friend-offer-exposes-mans-other-wife/#ixzz1om0EuWXq
Excerpt: Facebook's automatic efforts to connect users through "friends" they may know recently led two Washington women to find out they were married to the same man, at the same time. That led to the man, corrections officer Alan L. O'Neill, being slapped with bigamy charges.

ShePAC video highlights Obama hypocrisy: Spread the word.
http://www.examiner.com/manhattan-conservative-in-new-york/shepac-video-highlights-obama-hypocrisy-spread-the-word#ixzz1om1TtfmU
Excerpt: Oh, don’t mind me. I’m just listing some of the more intelligent arguments emanating from the left that explain why Rush Limbaugh is evil incarnate for calling a liberal activist a “slut,” while cable host Bill Maher, though undeniably guilty of misogynistic comments, gets a walk because conservative women don’t merit the same consideration. (Video link below. ~Bob.)
http://www.examiner.com/manhattan-conservative-in-new-york/shepac-montage-of-bill-maher-and-barack-obama-video
 
The Pyrolysis of the Spent Fuel Rods at Fukushima
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/03/the_pyrolysis_of_the_spent_fuel_rods_at_fukushima.html
Excerpt: As the detailed story of the Fukushima accident slowly emerges, it is increasingly apparent that much of the radiation that was emitted came from overheating spent fuel rods. (…) Much of the public's attention was drawn to the risk that the pressure vessels would fail as the fuel rods inside them melted down. But post-accident inspections of the pressure vessels reveals that they survived even though the fuel rods inside went through a partial meltdown. The "China Syndrome" did not occur. (“Pyrolysis” means burning. This article is a five-for. It’s a good, non-technical explanation of what happened, as verified by subsequent observations and inspections. It gives a pretty fair outline for preventing such problems in the future. It shows a way for Japan to mitigate its current economic slump. It offers a way to help reduce current and future US gasoline pump prices. And, finally, it makes clear the cause of the hydrogen explosions in the various buildings: delay in decision making by (unknowledgeable and frightened?) government officials. Ah, the beauties of top-down market control. Note that a lot of this is exactly as predicted at the time by the experts we linked to in TOJ’s coverage of the crisis last year. Ron P.)