Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for February 1, 2013

Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for February 1, 2013

Robert A. Hall

Your one-stop-shop for political news and opinion. Please forward to friends who need to be informed. This SitRep (Military for “Situation Report”) is created by many readers who send me items for inclusion, which I would have likely missed or skipped. And I can only spend at most three hours a night pulling stuff, plus the healthcare or economic stuff that crosses my desk at work. As always, I—and you—owe them thanks and appreciation. I post articles because I think they are of interest and will stimulate thought and discussion. Doing so doesn’t mean that I necessarily agree (or disagree) with every—or any—opinion in the posted article, or that I was able to verify the information presented, which is the responsibility of the author. I try not to post things that are false, or too far a stretch, regardless of the view point, but I don’t always succeed. As always on the Net, or in the legacy media, you must read critically and with skepticism.

Worth Reading: Dial 911 and Die. By Michael Geer

http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/01/dial_911_and_die.html

Excerpt: The FBI Stats, please:

Worth Reading: War is like rust. By Victor Davis Hanson

http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0113/hanson.php3#.UQqwvx3WI0E

Excerpt: Yet the reasons for our new isolationism, analogous to early 1914 or 1939, do not matter, only the reality that lots of bad actors now believe that the United States cannot or will not impede their agendas -- and that no one else will in our absence. 

Book Recommendation: The Revenge of Geography: What the Map Tells Us About Coming Conflicts and the Battle Against Fate. By Robert D. Kaplan

http://www.amazon.com/Revenge-Geography-Coming-Conflicts-Against/dp/1400069831/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359659116&sr=1-1&keywords=revenge+of+geography+kaplan

This is a wonderfully-written book that will make you look at a lot of issues in a new light. It is about the intersection of geography with history, geopolitics, national interests and power. Though I have a master’s degree in history and am well read in the field, I also learned a great deal about non-European history. Particularly China, India and the Middle East, though of course in one book it could only take a broad brush approach to these things. Unfortunately, Kaplan gave me several new worries about the future, and I was already pretty pessimistic. This is a high level review of geo-strategy, and should be read by policy makers at all levels. It requires some focus; certainly not light entertainment. The most interesting section was the last. Kaplan argues that Mexico, with a long border with the US, is far more important to us than Iraq, Afghanistan and the Middle East. Given that Mexico and Central America have a rapidly developing population—now at 50% of the United States—and a native US birthrate below the replacement level, he argues that we cannot afford to have Mexico become a failed narco-state on our border. Everyone involved in the current immigration debate would do well to read this and look at the big picture view he presents.

South Korea Rocket Launch: Satellite Reaches Space Weeks After North Korea Test

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/30/south-korea-rocket-launch-space-satellite_n_2580678.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmaing7%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk3%26pLid%3D263831

Excerpt: South Korea launched a satellite into space from its own soil for the first time Wednesday amid increased tensions after archrival North Korea accomplished a similar feat and was condemned by the United Nations. The South Korean rocket blasted off from a launch pad in the southwestern coastal village of Goheung. Science officials told cheering spectators minutes later that the rocket delivered an observational satellite into orbit. (Suddenly, space is getting crowded. And few of the newcomers speak English, even as a second language. Ron P.)

Reagan’s Childhood Home to Become Parking Lot for Obama’s Library

http://www.newsmax.com/US/reagan-obama-library-demolition/2013/01/30/id/488082?s=al&promo_code=123D9-1

Excerpt: The University of Chicago Medical Center has announced plans to turn Ronald Reagan’s childhood home in Chicago into a parking lot for President Barack Obama’s library. The Commission on Chicago Landmarks previously denied the Gipper’s home landmark status in 2012, according to The Washington Times, and the university subsequently scheduled demolition to begin in January. (I don’t know if this is true, but we'll see if the country is in as good a shape after Obama's eight years as it was after Reagan's. ~Bob.)

Commandant: Some Marine jobs may stay closed to women

http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/marine-corps/280235-amos-some-jobs-in-the-marines-may-remain-closed-to-women

Excerpt: Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos said Wednesday that some positions in the Marines may remain closed to women if only a small percentage can meet the physical standards.

Some Unions Grow Wary of Health Law They Backed

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323854904578260313912570432.html

Excerpt: Labor unions enthusiastically backed the Obama administration's health-care overhaul when it was up for debate. Now that the law is rolling out, some are turning sour. Union leaders say many of the law's requirements will drive up the costs for their health-care plans and make unionized workers less competitive.

How Entrepreneurs Could Solve Medicare's Problems

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22794&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Excerpt: Medicare faces growing problems of cost, access and quality. These problems exist because Medicare is structured in a way that eliminates or suppresses features of a normal market system. In order to truly reform Medicare, entrepreneurs must be free to innovate. True reform falls into four basic categories: freeing the patient, freeing the doctor, freeing the market and freeing the insurer, say John C. Goodman, president and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis, Greg Scandlen, founder of Consumers for Health Care Choice, and Devon Herrick, a senior fellow with the National Center for Policy Analysis.

California's Push for Renewable Energy Will Raise Prices

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22795&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Excerpt: A new report released by the Pacific Research Institute finds that California's 33 percent renewable portfolio standard (RPS) will trigger a substantial rise in energy costs for the state by 2020. The report, written by Pacific Research Institute Senior Fellow Benjamin Zycher, estimates that the mandate will cost California approximately $5 billion in 2020. Set to take effect in 2020, the RPS mandate requires California electric utilities to obtain 33 percent of their power supplies from renewable wind, solar and geothermal sources. Of the estimated $5 billion cost of the mandate, $1 billion will be incurred during transmission, $500 million will be incurred as backup and $3.5 billion will be incurred when generating the power through nonhydroelectric renewable resources. Zycher predicts that the overall cost of the mandate will increase with consumption and that it equates to an implicit tax of 27 percent.

Exaggerated Global Warming Claims May Lead to Poor Policy

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22797&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Excerpt: Consider this: The number of global wildfires has decreased by 15 percent since peaking in 1950. A Nature in November study states that the incidence of drought has not changed substantially in the past six decades. The U.N. Climate Panel in 2012 notes that while droughts are more intense and frequent in some places, they are weaker and less frequent in other places. Despite the massive damage inflicted, the United States is actually at the lowest point of hurricane activity, measured by total energy, since the 1970s. The Nature in November study estimates that global damage cost as a percentage of gross domestic product will drop by 0.02 percent by 2100, despite global warming.

Bob Menendez’s foreign underage prostitution story stubbornly not going away. By Moe Lane

http://www.redstate.com/2013/01/30/bob-menendez-hookers-underage/

Excerpt: just before the election a story broke alleging that Democratic Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey had taken advantage of the hospitality of one of his campaign contributors to go down to the Dominican Republic (via the aforementioned contributor’s private plane) and use the services of at least two prostitutes (one of whom may or may not have been underage). Worse, he allegedly refused to pay said foreign partially-underaged hookers the full amount that Menendez allegedly promised to pay – and, let me note again this in passing: to patronize a prostitute is hardly a moral act. But if you must do this, pay what you said that you were going to pay. There is a difference between being uncouth, and being a cad.

Dominican prostitute: Sen. Bob Menendez ‘likes the youngest and newest girls’
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/31/dominican-prostitute-senator-bob-menendez-likes-the-youngest-and-newest-girls/#ixzz2JZtoVok5

Excerpt: “That senator also likes the youngest and newest girls,” the woman wrote on April 21, 2002, according to an English translation provided to The Daily Caller by a native Spanish speaker.

Hillary Clinton warns GOP lawmakers not to act like North Africa terrorists

http://washingtonexaminer.com/hillary-clinton-warns-gop-lawmakers-not-to-act-like-north-africa-terrorists/article/2519973

excerpt: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, while lamenting the partisanship of congressional Republicans who grilled her about the Benghazi attack, encouraged Republicans not to imitate the unwillingness to compromise evinced by terrorists in North Africa.

Displaced Sandy victims: Temp housing unlivable

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57566193/displaced-sandy-victims-temp-housing-unlivable/

While some Sandy victims have been put up in hotels, more than two dozen Rockaways residents are living in a pair of rundown rooming houses in the Longwood section of the Bronx. Those two buildings, CBS Station WCBS reports, have received dozens of housing code violations and have numerous fire safety problems. Residents have complained of a lack of heat, and problems with infestations by roaches and mice. (Bet those on government dole got the hotels; those with insurance probably got the rats. It’s redistribution or payback a la O. –Barb.)

Boeing Battery Fires Highlight Folly of Obama's Electric Car Push

http://news.investors.com/print/ibd-editorials/013013-642577-boeing-dreamliner-fires-show-folly-of-obama-electric-car-push.aspx

Excerpt: After lithium-ion batteries caught fire on Boeing's new Dreamliner, stories popped up about how dangerous they are. Turns out they're the same kind of batteries President Obama is forcing into U.S. cars.

Obama DHS To Buy 7,000 “Assault Weapons” “Personal Defense Weapons”

http://freedomoutpost.com/2013/01/obama-dhs-to-buy-7000-assault-weapons-personal-defense-weapons/

Excerpt: OH the blatant hypocrisy of the politicians and those in government in Washington. When they want you to be afraid of civilians with semi-automatic rifles they refer to them as “assault weapons,” but when they want to purchase similar weapons for their people, they refer to them as “personal defense weapons.” (What is with Homeland Security buying more and more weapons along with millions of rounds of ammunition? These guys are not kicking in doors in Mexico, or taking on the various gangs destroying the peace in some of our big cities. I don't want to sound paranoid, but this just starts to bother me, since I really can't understand why DHS needs to buy enough long guns to equip a Marine Division. Who are they planning to fight, and with those 30 round magazines? –Del)

Hizbullah: Israeli Attack Aimed at Syria

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/164765#.UQot-h37L0c

Excerpt: Both Hizbullah and Russia condemned Israel a day after the attack on a convoy carrying Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles from Syria to Hizbullah terrorist bases along the border with Lebanon. …The real target of the attack, Hizbullah said, was “eliminating Syria's pivotal resistance and rejectionist role to pave the way for unfolding the chapters of a major conspiracy against [Syria] and against our Arab and Muslim peoples.” On Saturday, Iran said that any attack on Syria would be considered an attack on Iran.

How Does Planned Parenthood Celebrate Black History Month? Anti-Abortion Pro-Life Video

http://margaretsanger.blogspot.com/

Older, but interesting picture of her speaking to the KKK, if real. One can’t trust pictures since the invention of Photoshop. ~Bob.

The Obama administration's modus operandi for defusing scandals: Stonewalling Benghazi into Irrelevancy

http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/52776

Excerpt: Last week, the dwindling number of Americans who believe this administration owes them an honest explanation regarding the murders of ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi were likely expecting that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be forced to shed some light on the issue. What they got instead was a well-rehearsed theatrical presentation, complete with tears, anger and self-righteous indignation…As CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson has so masterfully revealed, the real “job” of this administration is to stonewall this scandal into irrelevancy.

Brokeback America; Fundamental Transformation of America Equals turning legal civil society into illegal one

http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/52763

Excerpt: In the ongoing forced Battle Royale between a president and what he sees as his all but captured USA civil society, there’s no longer any mystique behind the “Fundamental Transformation of America”. It’s becoming more clear by day that the ‘Fundamental Transformation of America’ is a long-planned formula that is forcing legal civil society into a complete illegal society…. Decency, law-abiding, individual, God and liberty loving are being strategically culled from humanity’s herd.

The Consequences of Intervening in Syria. By Scott Stewart

http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/consequences-intervening-syria?utm_source=freelist-f&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20130131&utm_term=sweekly&utm_content=title&elq=74d713a64d074b6ba21b8879b3fa180d

Excerpt: The French military's current campaign to dislodge jihadist militants from northern Mali and the recent high-profile attack against a natural gas facility in Algeria are both directly linked to the foreign intervention in Libya that overthrew the Gadhafi regime. There is also a strong connection between these events and foreign powers' decision not to intervene in Mali when the military conducted a coup in March 2012. 

Surge of Black Violence Called 'Urban Terrorism'

http://www.wnd.com/2013/01/surge-of-black-violence-called-urban-terrorism/#8eHglwPomEsmc3mu.99

Excerpt: Today, Nordstrom is gone. As are many of the restaurants and shops. The rest of the mall and the surrounding area is increasingly hazardous – and empty – following a series of black mob riots featuring hundreds of people. (And the jobs at those places, even when held by decent black folks, are gone too. ~Bob.)

Students at Colorado high school recite Pledge of Allegiance in Arabic
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/31/students-at-colorado-high-school-recite-pledge-of-allegiance-in-arabic/#ixzz2JXTwvQFU
Excerpt: “When they pledge allegiance to United States, that’s exactly what they’re saying,” he added. “They’re just using another language as their vehicle.” Community response to the recitation of the Pledge in Arabic and the other two foreign tongues has been generally positive, Lopez told the station. Not everyone is supportive, though. (Wonder how they translated “One Nation, Under GOD”…. If they substituted “Allah,” there IS cause for great concern. –Barb)

Hackers in China Attacked The Times for Last 4 Months

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/31/technology/chinese-hackers-infiltrate-new-york-times-computers.html?_r=0

Wait, aren’t they fellow Progressives? ~Bob.

Stonewalled CBS reporter fights back, embarrasses Obama administration on Twitter

http://www.bizpacreview.com/2013/01/23/stonewalled-cbs-reporter-fights-back-embarrasses-obama-administration-on-twitter-16316

Excerpt: CBS News investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson has had enough of the uber-secretive Obama administration’s handling of the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, which led to the murder of four Americans, including that of Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Feinstein's plan bans any gun with a 'grip'?
http://www.wnd.com/2013/01/feinsteins-plan-bans-any-gun-with-a-grip/#ci7w0hPdGuzerTXi.99

Excerpt: “The list is meaningless tripe. It is camouflage for the real purpose of the bill. When the president said he is not going to take away your guns, well, Feinstein’s bill puts the lie to that. Magazine size does not matter. Brand name does not matter. It doesn’t matter if it’s black. If you can grip it, it’s banned under this bill.”

Legal Immigrant’s Must-Watch Testimony Against Gun Control: ‘Few Saw The Third Reich Coming Until It Was Too Late’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=NyYYgLzF6zU

Excerpt: During a public hearing on gun violence in Hartford, Conn. on Monday, a legal immigrant by the name of Henson Ong issued a passionate defense of the Second Amendment and argued that gun control simply “does not work.” The video of Ong’s testimony has already surpassed 130,000 views on YouTube.

Private Security Guards Shoot Somali Pirates

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESFFFW0B64I

And a fun time was had by all. Well, all the good guys. Older video, but enjoyable. ~Bob.

Revealed: How immigrants in America are sending 120 BILLION back home
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2271455/Revealed-How-immigrants-America-sending-120-BILLION-struggling-families-home.html
Excerpt: In the United States last year, more than $120 billion was sent by workers to families abroad - making it the largest sender of remittances in the world. More than $23 billion went to Mexico, $13.45 billion to China, $10.84 billion to India and $10 billion to the Philippines, among other recipients.

Congress approves plan to temporarily suspend debt limit

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/senate-votes-to-temporarily-suspend-federal-debt-limit/2013/01/31/256cae78-6bde-11e2-ada0-5ca5fa7ebe79_story.html

Excerpt: Congress gave final approval Thursday to a plan to temporarily suspend the legal cap on the $16.4 trillion national debt, lifting the threat of a government default until early August. The measure, approved by the Senate 64-34 Thursday, now goes to President Obama for his signature. Without congressional action, the administration had predicted that the Treasury would run out money to pay the nation’s bills by early March.

'Malian women recount abuse under al Qaeda-linked group'

http://www.longwarjournal.org/videos/2013/01/malian_women_recount_abuse_und.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LongWarJournalSiteWide+%28The+Long+War+Journal+%28Site-Wide%29%29

Pro-Choice and Pro-Life: What a middle ground on abortion could look like. By Avik Roy

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/339351/pro-choice-iandi-pro-life-avik-roy

Excerpt: One of the many injuries that Roe has imposed upon the country is that it has made it hard for this middle 58 percent of voters, who think abortion should be legal in some cases but not all, to find a home. Most Americans reject the radical feminist argument that abortion is the ethical equivalent of clipping one’s fingernails. But they’re also uncomfortable with the notion that every blastocyst is sacred.

Reaching the Valleys: We need to make the case to Americans that conservatism advances their interests. By Artur Davis
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/339311/reaching-valleys-artur-davis

Excerpt: But this is the movement and the cause that rescued this country 30 years ago, when serious people thought we were too complex to be governed anymore. This is the movement and the cause that refused to believe freedom was exhausted, only that it was tired of not being defended. 

'El Culto.' By Silvio Canto, Jr.
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/01/el_culto.html
Excerpt: We Cuban Americans have first hand experience with personality cults. In fact, Latin Americans know a thing or two about cults, from Evita Peron in Argentina to Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. All of these cults have something in common: They make people feel good but nothing good happens in the long run.

Record number of recent college grads defaulting on student loans.
http://redalertpolitics.com/2013/01/30/record-number-of-recent-college-grads-defaulting-on-loans-according-to-new-report/
Excerpt: A new report by FICO Labs, a unit of Fair Isaac Corp., found that the student loan delinquency rate has risen to 15 percent over the past three years - a 22 percent increase from its previous high in 2005-2007. Fair Issac Corp. publishes consumer credit scores and helps banks decide if an individual is qualified for a loan and what level interest rate they may be qualified for.

On the topic of Guns, Accoutrements, and the idiots who "Represent" us. By John Bernard

http://letthemfight.blogspot.com/2013/01/on-topic-of-guns-accoutrements-and.html

Excerpt: I am sick to the point of retching of listening to the absolute nonsensical sputtering about firearms by those who can't differentiate between a butt stock and a flash suppressor so here is a short lesson in nomenclature to make you sound less stupid:

The Path to Saving the Republic: Just Say 'No.' By Michael Finch
http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/01/the_path_to_saving_the_republic_just_say_no.html
Excerpt: What is happening in Topeka, Austin, Ogden, Billings, Richmond and many other locales is just the beginning of a movement that will sweep this nation in the next four years. The people, in the form of their respective States and their State legislatures, are learning and relearning the lessons that Jefferson and Madison taught us over 200 years ago. The lesson resides in one word: Just say "No."

Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for January 31, 2013

Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for January 31, 2013

Robert A. Hall

Reminder: Obama: “I Will NOT Take Your Guns Away.”

http://cnsnews.com/blog/gregory-gwyn-williams-jr/flashback-obama-i-will-not-take-your-guns-away

Excerpt: "When you all go home and you're talking to your buddies and you say, ah 'He wants to take my gun away.' You've heard it here, I'm on television so everybody knows it. I believe in the Second Amendment. I believe in people's lawful right to bear arms. I will not take your shotgun away. I will not take your rifle away. I won't take your handgun away." (Of course, he also promised to cut the deficit in half, said raising the debt ceiling was unpatriotic, promised to get us out of Iraq in a year, to win the “good war” in Afghanistan, to close Gitmo, to post bills on the Internet for three days before he signed them, to have all the health care meetings open and transparent and to not raise taxes on anyone making less than $250k a year. He’s a Chicago Politician, lies to get elected, and the media covers for him. ~Bob.)

C.Y.A. Protecting Yourself in the Modern Jungle

If you order directly from CreateSpace, the PFF receives a larger royalty:

https://www.createspace.com/4133396http://www.amazon.com/C-Y-Protecting-Yourself-Modern-Jungle/dp/1481989103/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358787454&sr=1-8&keywords=C.Y.A+.+Robert+A+Hall

First published in 2010, this book has been reissued through CreateSpace/Amazon at a lower price, with all royalties going to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. A humor/self-help book, this is advice with an attitude.

Must Read: The American City Is Dying. By Daniel Greenfield 

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/the-american-city-is-dying/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=be347a2186-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag

Excerpt: The American city is dying. It used to serve as a center of transportation and industry. Today the city holds a few knowledge industries and some secondary industries catering to them, but is mostly full of low-income immigrants whose big dream is to get a government job with good benefits. Until then there are government benefits that don’t require government jobs.

Worth Reading: Could Wasteful Health Care Spending Be Good for the Economy? By John Goodman

http://healthblog.ncpa.org/could-wasteful-health-care-spending-be-good-for-the-economy/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=HA#more-28708

Excerpt: Suppose I throw a rock through a store owner’s window. You admonish me for this act of vandalism. But I reply that I have actually done a good deed. The store owner will now have to employ someone to haul the broken glass away and someone else, perhaps, to clean up afterward. Then, the order of a new glass pane will create work and wages for the glassmaker. Plus, someone will have to install it. In short, my act of vandalism created jobs and income for others. The French economist, Frédéric Bastiat called this type of reasoning the “fallacy of the broken window.” All the resources employed to remove the broken glass and install a new pane, he said, could have been employed to produce something else. Now they will not be. So society is not better off from my act of vandalism. It is worse off — by one pane of glass. But there is a new type of Keynesian (to be distinguished from Keynes himself) that rejects the economist’s answer. Wasteful spending can actually be good, they argue. If so, they will love what happens in health care. (In the old days, they called it alchemy. Now it’s Keynesian Economics. Same scam. ~Bob.)

US economy shrinks 0.1 pct., first time in 3½ years; deep cut in defense spending key factor

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/us-economy-shrinks-01-pct-first-time-in-3--years-deep-cut-in-defense-spending-key-factor/2013/01/30/9dc71c80-6ae1-11e2-9a0b-db931670f35d_story.html?wpisrc=al_comboNE_b

Excerpt: The U.S. economy unexpectedly shrank from October through December for the first time since 2009, hurt by the biggest cut in defense spending in 40 years, fewer exports and sluggish growth in company stockpiles. The drop occurred despite stronger consumer spending and business investment.

Fact Check: Lack of Federal Spending Did Not Cause GDP Plunge

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/01/30/Fact-Check-Federal-Spending-Increased-in-4th-Quarter

Excerpt: Before news of U.S. GDP shrinking 0.1 last quarter had even hit the cable airwaves, we were being told by both that this collapse was mostly due to the fact that the federal government didn’t spend enough during the last quarter of last year. Translation: Don't blame Obama for this. Had we just grown the size and power of The State like he wants, we'd all be sitting in clover.

Tweet from John Nolte ‏@NolteNC

On a day the American economy moved MUCH closer to recession, Obama and his media are thrilled to have Wayne LaPierre to kick around.

Rick Santelli Responds to Negative GDP Report: 'We Are Now Europe.' By Noel Sheppard

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2013/01/30/rick-santelli-responds-negative-gdp-report-we-are-now-europe#ixzz2JUTOK3B9

Excerpt: "Hey Joe," Santelli said, "when you act like Europe, you get growth rates like Europe, and our discussions with economists sounds like we're in Europe. They have the same discussions constantly."

Your Scary-Ass Chart of the Day

http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2013/01/30/your-scary-ass-chart-of-the-day/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Tatler

Excerpt: So this is what $312,000,000,000 in deficit spending bought us for Christmas last year — a shrinking economy. What the chart doesn’t include is the additional $120,000,000,000 or so in “stimulus” securities purchased by the Fed.

Spain's recession worsens in the fourth quarter

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21258272

Excerpt: The downturn in the Spanish economy worsened in the final three months of 2012, as output fell 1.8% from a year earlier, official data has indicated.

Unions, Hollywood open to bankrolling Obama’s advocacy arm

http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/280001-unions-hollywood-open-to-bankrolling-obama-group-

Excerpt: Labor unions and Hollywood donors are open to bankrolling Organizing for Action, the outside group that has been formed in support of President Obama’s second-term agenda. Traditionally one of the biggest donors to Democrats, unions are considering putting their financial weight behind the group as it tries to harness the grassroots power of Obama’s reelection machine. (The permanent campaign of Obama’s brave new world. ~Bob.)

Keystone XL decision may loom large for red state Democrats in 2014 midterms

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/senate-races/279957-keystone-xl-decision-may-loom-large-for-red-state-democrats

Excerpt: A handful of vulnerable Democratic senators running for reelection in red states are seeking to insulate themselves from political fallout if the Obama administration rejects the Keystone XL oilsands pipeline from Canada.

Sandwich generation takes a hit supporting adult children and aging parents

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/sandwich-generation-takes-a-hit-supporting-adult-children-and-aging-parents/2013/01/29/163e59c2-6a4b-11e2-af53-7b2b2a7510a8_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines

Excerpt: More parents are providing significant financial support for their adult children even as they cope with the needs of their own aging parents, according to a new survey of the middle-aged “sandwich generation.”

Another Private Company Announces Plans to Mine Asteroids

http://pjmedia.com/blog/another-private-company-announces-plans-to-mine-asteroids/?singlepage=true

Excerpt: While they claim to have the same overall goals, there are some significant differences between Planetary Resources (PR) and the newcomer, Deep Space Industries (DSI). When the former was announced last April, the biggest news was its billionaire backers from Microsoft and Google. In contrast, the purpose of last week’s announcement was, in the words of CEO (and commercial space veteran) David Gump, “…to go public so that potential corporate sponsors could find us.” (My point here is not to urge for or against investment in these companies but to show that there are serious people with serious money looking at the commercial possibilities of space. Would anyone care to bet what language the successful space entrepreneurs will speak when they get there? I’d bet on Chinese. I’d rate the likelihood of English being spoken by a majority of spacers as a pipe dream held only by old guys like me. It’s as if Columbus came back announcing his discoveries and Ferdinand and Isabella said “So what? Where’s our money?” --Ron P.)

The 'Opium Brides' of Afghanistan

http://www.longwarjournal.org/videos/2013/01/the_opium_brides_of_afghanista.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LongWarJournalSiteWide+%28The+Long+War+Journal+%28Site-Wide%29%29

Excerpt: A 2012 Frontline documentary covered portions of the child slavery trade associated with the opium trade and the Afghan government's selective campaign against opium farming. CNN recently interviewed the filmmakers, who assert that there are "hundreds, if not thousands of girls on the run from the traffickers."

Never Let a Dead Child Go to Waste. By William A. Levinson
http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/01/never_let_a_dead_child_go_to_waste.html
Excerpt: The destruction of the Million Mom March in 2000 exemplifies this principle. The group solicited donations, volunteer time, and corporate contributions under the premise that it was working for "gun safety," and particularly to protect children from "gun violence." When it became apparent that the group was using the money to promote House candidates on its Web site, while it threatened pro-Second Amendment candidates with defeat, its supporters distanced themselves from it very quickly.

4 Politicians Who Could Immediately Solve the Debt Ceiling

http://www.policymic.com/articles/24372/4-politicians-who-could-immediately-solve-the-debt-ceiling

Excerpt: The debt ceiling, the bizarre procedural technicality which requires Congress to vote separately on paying for spending they have already voted for, is an issue tailor-made for a bipartisan commission to solve. Here are two Republicans and two Democrats who could easily serve on the Debt Ceiling Reform Commission:

Help Wanted: Qualified Death Panelists. By Walter Russell Mead

http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2013/01/29/help-wanted-qualified-death-panelists/

Excerpt: Are you a nationally recognized health finance and economics expert willing to work for beans on a political lightning rod of a project? Do you enjoy being the subject of Senate confirmation hearings? If so, apply to be a death panelist today…because it doesn’t look like anyone else is.

Who wants to be a ‘death panelist’?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/01/28/who-wants-to-sit-in-the-hot-seat-on-a-federal-health-care-panel/

Excerpt: It’s not just Gruber. Obama’s former health policy advisers worry that other top health economists, those in hot demand in academia and in the industry, won’t be interested in a federal job where the compensation is low, the political controversy high and the ultimate payoff unclear.

High school teacher tweets half-naked photos, tells the world she was high while grading
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/29/high-school-teacher-tweets-half-naked-photos-tells-the-world-she-was-high-while-grading/#ixzz2JPylptz0

Unreal. ~Bob.

Teen girl killed, boy wounded in shooting near South Side high school

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-2-shot-at-or-near-south-side-high-school-20130129,0,6824507.story

Excerpt: A 15-year-old girl was fatally shot and 16-year-old boy wounded about three blocks from King College Prep on the South Side this afternoon, authorities said.

The ghosts of 1915

http://www.economist.com/blogs/charlemagne/2013/01/turkeys-armenians

Excerpt: On December 28th Ms Kucuk, 85, was found dead in her apartment. She had been stabbed, repeatedly. Relatives said a crucifix was carved onto her naked corpse.

Zimbabwe Has Just $217 in the Bank, Finance Minister Says

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/29/zimbabwe-217-bank-finance-minister_n_2576671.html?1359501273&icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl12%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D263371

Excerpt: While the amount is a stunningly low balance for an entire nation, it was somewhat expected. The African nation has been struggling to recover from hyperinflation that stretches back a decade. In the past few years, flagging diamond exports as well as salary hikes have compounded the nation’s financial woes, according to the Globe and Mail. (If anyone really needs an object lesson in crony socialism, here it is. And, as TOJ showed last week, they really DO have trillion dollar bills. Of course, they’re worth less than the intrinsic value of the paper they’re printed on. 30 years ago, Zimbabwe, then called Rhodesia, was one of the richest nations in Africa. It won’t take us that long to get to this point, we’re far more efficient, even in failure. Ron P.)

Iranian uranium-enriching facility ‘is damaged by explosion’

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/world/middleeast/article3670109.ece

Excerpt: An explosion is believed to have damaged Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility, which is being used to enrich uranium, Israeli intelligence officials have told The Times. Sources in Tel Aviv said yesterday that they thought the explosion happened last week. The Israeli Government is investigating reports that it led to extensive structural damage and 200 workers had been trapped inside.

Social Security Could Be Made Solvent through Payroll Tax Increase, but Not Without Consequences

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22789&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Excerpt: The most logical manner to reform Social Security is to do what has always been done: raise the payroll tax rate. The tax rate would have to immediately jump from 12.3 percent to 16.3 percent in order to make Social Security sustainable. Tax increases of this magnitude bring significant economic impact. If the rate increase is necessary, Biggs says it should be levied equally across all income levels.

Black Bloc must die, say Jihad and Jama'a al-Islamiya

http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/black-bloc-must-die-say-jihad-and-jama-al-islamiya

Excerpt: The Islamist party of the Jihad Organization and Jama'a al-Islamiya has said the ways of dealing with banditry specified in the Quran must be applied to Black Bloc members, which means they must be killed. “God orders us to kill, crucify or cut off the hands and feet of those who spread mischief on earth,” said Jama'a al-Islamiya Mufti Abdel Akhar Hammad, citing a verse from the Quran. “The president must give that order.” (Ah, the tolerant, democratic Arab Spring. Maybe they can use the F-16s Obama is sending them to bomb the people. ~Bob.)

Egypt suspends all train services in south due to protest

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/63706.aspx

Excerpt: Train services have stopped in the entire South of the country from Aswan to Cairo on Wednesday night. The internal radio at Cairo's Ramsis train station, the country's main train hub, announced that the government has grounded all trains to a halt in order to ensure the public's safety.

Irony alert: Eyes finally open, liberals hope for military coup in Egypt

http://pubsecrets.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/irony-alert-eyes-finally-open-liberals-hope-for-military-coup-in-egypt/

Excerpt: From Andy McCarthy’s post at NRO’s “The Corner” blog on commentators rising calls for the Egyptian military to intervene as that country starts to fall apart:

UK embassy suspends visa applications in Cairo, Alexandria 

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/63670/Egypt/Politics-/UK-embassy-suspends-visa-applications-in-Cairo,-Al.aspx

Excerpt: British embassy visa services in Cairo and Alexandria are halted due to "current security situation"; UK Middle East minister expresses concern at ongoing violence.

Suspected Islamists hunted down and beaten in liberated Mali towns

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2013/01/29/uk_to_send_troops_to_help_mali_military.html

Excerpt: It was payback time Tuesday in the newly liberated town of Gao in Mali, with residents hunting down and beating suspected Islamist extremists who had not fled with their brothers-in-arms as Malian and French military forces closed in and retook the town. (The people's verdict on the "strict" version of Sharia that the Islamic supremacists had imposed. Apparently Mali is being overrun with greasy Islamophobes. –Robert Spencer.)

Teen in Sweden jailed eight years for honour killing

http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/teen-in-sweden-jailed-eight-years-for-honour-killing-323857

Excerpt: A Swedish court on Tuesday sentenced a 17-year-old man to eight years in prison for stabbing his sister 107 times in what judges called an honour killing. … The lawyer for the convicted teen called the sentence "extremely harsh" and said he planned to appeal.

Ex-SEIU local (Los Angeles) exec convicted of stealing from low-income members

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tyrone-freeman-20130129,0,3528628.story

Excerpt: A onetime rising star in national labor circles who headed California's biggest union local was convicted Monday on federal charges that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from his low-income members.

Another EPA official caught using a personal email address to conduct business

http://freebeacon.com/richard-windsor-redux/

Congressional Republicans are investigating another high-ranking Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official for using a personal email account to conduct official business. (The “most transparent administration in history” rolls on. ~Bob.)

U.S. 'backed plan to launch chemical weapon attack on Syria and blame it on Assad's regime'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2270219/U-S-planned-launch-chemical-weapon-attack-Syria-blame-Assad.html
Excerpt: A leaked email exchange, reportedly between top officials at defense firm Britam, details a plan to use chemical weapons in Syria that has allegedly been 'approved by Washington'. (I think doubtful. The risks if discovered would be great and the payoff low. ~Bob.)

Worth Reading: Official Lies. By Walter E. Williams 

http://townhall.com/columnists/walterewilliams/2013/01/30/official-lies-n1499699?utm_source=thdaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl

Excerpt: Which is the lie, Social Security checks must be delayed if the debt ceiling is not raised or there's $2.7 trillion in the Social Security trust funds? The fact of the matter is that they are both lies. 

Massachusetts Gov. Patrick picks ex-aide as interim senator
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/01/30/massachusetts-gov-patrick-picks-ex-aide-as-interim-senator/#ixzz2JTXX3FVY

Excerpt: Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has selected his former chief-of-staff William "Mo" Cowan to serve as interim U.S. senator until a special election to fill the seat left vacant by Secretary of State designate John Kerry.

Tweet from Jonah Goldberg ‏@JonahNRO

Waiting for NYT to explain the White House's brilliance for releasing millions of golf photos but keeping skeet shooting pics secret.

Russia scraps US anti-drug accord after 10 years

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21258715

Excerpt: The Russian government has abandoned an agreement with the US on fighting crime and the drugs trade, in an apparent sign of worsening relations.

Mexico breaks up alleged border sex-slavery cult

http://news.yahoo.com/mexico-breaks-alleged-border-sex-slavery-cult-191856662.html

Excerpt: Mexican officials broke up a bizarre cult that allegedly ran a sex-slavery ring among its followers on the U.S. border, Mexican immigration authorities said Tuesday.

Obama’s Immigration Plan: Faster Path to Citizenship, No Border Security. By Bryan Preston

http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2013/01/29/obamas-immigration-plan-faster-path-to-citizenship-no-border-security/

Excerpt: Obama is not proposing legislation, but the gruel he is offering is designed to pull the debate to the left and weaken the already weak push for real security on the border. The president is putting his cards on the table to undermine American sovereignty. In due time, he’ll pull the rug out from under Sen. Marco Rubio and the Republicans involved in the Gang of Eight, and they can be expected to play the fool.

FBI raids Florida eye clinic of donor linked to Sen. Bob Menendez’s prostitution scandal
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/30/fbi-raids-office-of-donor-linked-to-sen-bob-menendez-prostitute-scandal/#ixzz2JTbLDqQh
Excerpt: FBI agents have raided the West Palm Beach, Fla. eye clinic owned by Dr. Salomon Melgen, the wealthy donor to New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez who allegedly procured prostitutes for him — some of them as young as 16 — during trips to the Dominican Republic.

Tweet from Dennis Miller Show ‏@DennisDMZ

Dem Sen. Menendez using hookers procured by an eye doctor? "Better this way...or this way...this...or this?"

Menendez: Prostitution allegations ‘manufactured’ by ‘right-wing blog’

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/01/30/menendez-prostitution-allegations-manufactured-by-right-wing-blog/

Excerpt: Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) is denying allegations that a major donor supplied him with free trips to the Dominican Republic where he engaged with underage prostitutes.

NJ man pleads guilty to steering illegal contributions to Sen. Bob Menendez

http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/30/nj-man-pleads-guilty-to-steering-illegal-contributions-to-sen-bob-menendez/

Excerpt: The owner of a New Jersey medical imaging company pleaded guilty Tuesday to making $21,400 in illegal campaign contributions to Democratic New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez between 2005 and 2008.

MSNBC ‘essentially’ ran ‘a voter suppression campaign’ against GOP during 2012 presidential election, says author
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/30/msnbc-essentially-ran-a-voter-suppression-campaign-against-gop-during-2012-presidential-election-says-author/#ixzz2JTc8At3H

Excerpt: By tarring conservatives as racist during the 2012 presidential campaign, MSNBC “essentially” mounted “a voter suppression campaign,” says the author of a new book on media bias.

Quotes from The Patriot Post

www.patriotpost.us/subscribe/ 

"Born in other countries, yet believing you could be happy in this, our laws acknowledge, as they should do, your right to join us in society, conforming, as I doubt not you will do, to our established rules." --Thomas Jefferson

"I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that this cold weather is far worse than the Holocaust." --Gawker senior writer Travis Okulski

Draft UN climate report shows 20 years of overestimated global warming, skeptics warn

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/01/28/un-climate-report-models-overestimated-global-warming/?test=latestnews#ixzz2JTenqXyM

Excerpt: A preliminary draft of a report by the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was leaked to the public this month, and climate skeptics say it contains fresh evidence of 20 years of overstated global warming.

Reforming America's Immigration System

http://blog.heritage.org/2013/01/30/heritage-foundation-statement-on-immigration/?roi=echo3-14403903828-11190034-a3259236afc3ed49f131982499aefbeb&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Morning%2BBell

Excerpt: America's heritage of immigration has fueled our nation’s strength and diversity, yet our immigration system has become so politicized and dysfunctional that it causes untold personal tragedies, strains the fiscal capacity of public services in many states, and prevents many from pursuing the American Dream. Complex, comprehensive legislation based on back-room deals never works, and the Senate immigration proposal announced this week and echoed yesterday by President Obama—to the extent that it repeats the mistakes of the past—will further polarize Americans, fail to solve the real policy problems, and make matters worse.

Why You Should NOT Count on the Cops to Save You

http://girlsjustwannahaveguns.com/2013/01/why-you-should-not-count-on-the-cops-to-save-you/

Excerpt: To the pro gun control crowd out there (well, the few who might dare read this), to the people who think that no citizens should own guns, or at least no semi-auto guns, to the people who place their safety and the safety of their family solely in the hands of law enforcement, to you I say: You have MUCH more faith in law enforcement than I do, and I am a law enforcement officer.

Lessons of the Sword Hunt. By G. C. Smith

http://splashingrocks.blogspot.com/2013/01/lessons-of-sword-hunt.html

Excerpt: In 1588, the ferocious Japanese military dictator, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, ordered the notorious Sword Hunt. Throughout Japan, all swords and other weapons were confiscated from the entire population – except for the samurai warrior class that was under Hideyoshi’s iron control. The purpose of the Sword Hunt was to render the citizenry completely defenseless against Hideyoshi’s totalitarian power as enforced by the armed samurai and, in consequence, to reduce the populace to hopeless impotence against the government’s harsh impositions.

Has to be a spoof: Another Genius Obama Supporter?

http://www.therightsphere.com/2013/01/another-genius-obama-supporter/

Excerpt: Our great president came from a civilized part of the country where there is strict gun control, and he is only trying to bring the benefits of that more modern way of living to the rest of us. I don’t know the exact statistics, but I’m quite certain that Chicago is a lot safer that Morehead City, when it comes to gun violence.

Tweet from @bamumford:

Or, as a kidless friend said recently--"America is in decline--why have kids who will just suffer because of it?"

Why Husbands Who Share Household Chores Miss Out on Sex

http://healthland.time.com/2013/01/30/why-husbands-who-share-household-chores-miss-out-on-sex/#ixzz2JTosgGgj

Excerpt: In what feels like a blow to egalitarianism, new research finds that husbands and wives who assign housework along traditional gender lines have more sex than those who split the chores more equitably. (Please don’t shoot the messenger! ~Bob.)

NASA Launches Rocket from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/wallops/news/westpost.html

Excerpt: In the technology test launch, two canisters in the rocket’s payload section contained solid metal lithium rods or chips embedded in a thermite cake. The thermite was ignited and produced heat to vaporize the lithium. The vapor was released in space to be detected and tracked optically.

Ga. court upholds sentence in 'honor killing'

http://www.dailyreportonline.com/PubArticleDRO.jsp?id=1202585286661&slreturn=20130030122322

Excerpt: Chaudry Rashid was accused of strangling his 25-year-old daughter because she planned to divorce her husband from an arranged marriage. … During the conversation he said: "I put the rope around her neck and squeezed her." "She disgraced our family."

Cuomo’s High Approval Rating Falls After Gun Law Push

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/01/poll-cuomo-new-york-guns.php?ref=fpnewsfeed

Excerpt: His disapproval rating has more than doubled, climbing from 13 percent in December to 28 percent in Wednesday’s poll.

Jordan government submits resignation after vote

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/63633/World/Region/Jordan-government-submits-resignation-after-vote.aspx

Excerpt: Jordan's Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur submitted his cabinet's resignation to King Abdullah II on Tuesday, following a general election which was swept by pro-regime loyalists.

Center for American Progress’ Christie Hefner: Climate change a factor in Chicago’s murder rate
http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/30/center-for-american-progress-christie-hefner-climate-change-a-factor-in-chicagos-murder-rate/#ixzz2JTuPaGhG

You had to know this was coming. ~Bob.

Tweet from willspencer ‏@willspencer

Oppressors can tyrannize only when they achieve a standing army, an enslaved press, and a disarmed populace. - James Madison

Israel hits Syria arms convoy to Lebanon: sources

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/israel-hits-target-syria-border-area-sources-113955592.html

Excerpt: Israeli forces attacked a convoy on the Syrian-Lebanese border on Wednesday, sources told Reuters, after Israelis warned their Lebanese enemy Hezbollah against using chaos in Syria to acquire anti-aircraft missiles or chemical weapons.

After Performing at Obama's Inauguration Chicago Honor Student Shot in the Back, Killed. By Katie Pavlich 
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2013/01/30/after-performing-at-obamas-inaguration-chicago-honor-student-shot-in-the-back-killed-n1501290

Excerpt: More sad news out of Chicago today as violent gangs continue to take over the unarmed city. The young girl and honor student who performed at President Obama's second Inauguration just last week has been gunned down and killed. 

The U.S. Navy's latest $277MILLION pile of scrap
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2270395/U-S-Navy-hack-61million-minesweeper-ship-pieces-remove-sensitive-reef-near-Philippines.html#ixzz2JTg0dqes

Excerpt: The U.S. Navy will hack apart a minesweeper ship worth $277million that is caught on a coral reef in the Philippines - rather than risk further damage to the sensitive ecosystem. … Lieutenant Commander Mark Rice was in charge of the ship when she hit the reef as she was sailing between Puerto Princesa and Indonesia on a routine patrol. (I do not see Flag Rank in Lieutenant Commander Rice’s future. ~Bob.)

Obama administration issues regulations for individual mandate
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/280117-obama-administration-implements-health-laws-individual-mandate

Excerpt: The Obama administration released new regulations Wednesday to implement the unpopular individual mandate in Obama's signature healthcare law.

Enough of This Glumness. By Peter Ferrara

http://spectator.org/archives/2013/01/30/enough-of-this-glumness

Excerpt: Conservatives are still glum about the election, and the upper hand President Obama seems to have over Republicans. But the political stage has been framed far worse for conservatives and Republicans in the past.

‘Carrying a Gun Saved My Life’: Meet Ryan Moore. By Paul Hsieh

http://pjmedia.com/blog/carrying-a-gun-saved-my-life-meet-ryan-moore/

Excerpt: On December 11, 2010, in Conyers, GA, 22-year-old Ryan Moore was at a friend’s house for an evening of leisure. He borrowed a friend’s car to drive to the nearby grocery store, where his handgun saved his life. 

Tough Targets: When Criminals Face Armed Resistance from Citizens

http://www.cato.org/publications/white-paper/tough-targets-when-criminals-face-armed-resistance-citizens

A year old, but worth saving. ~Bob.

Tweet from Bob Owens ‏@bob_owens

Prosecution for federal weapons violations in 2011 down 35% under Obama. Too many DOJ officials running guns, I guess.

Tweet from Katie Pavlich ‏@KatiePavlich

Murder rate in America today is half what is was in 1993 #guns

Convicted rapist organizes gun control demonstration at Dayton gun show; Media fails to note his sex offender status. By Chad D. Baus

http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/8759

Excerpt: In short, "Anti-Gun-Protestor Jerome McCorry" and "Rapist-and-Convicted-Felon Jerome McCorry" are one and the same person, and WHIO-TV and The Dayton Daily News have been treating this man as a legitimate voice of reason that should be considered in the debate over whether or not rape and other crime victims should be able to buy firearms in order to protect themselves from attack.

They don’t even know what they’re banning; NY SAFE Act web site serially misidentifies firearms

http://www.bob-owens.com/2013/01/they-dont-even-know-what-theyre-banning-ny-safe-act-web-site-serially-misidentifies-firearms/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BobOwens+%28Bob+Owens%29

Excerpt: The Mini-14 NY SAFE says isn’t an assault rifle fires the same ammunition, from similar 30-round magazines, at the same rate of fire, as an AR-15. (But I’d call a revolver a pistol…~Bob.)

Heckuva job: ICE agents lose deportation fugitive at Denver airport. By Michelle Malkin

http://michellemalkin.com/2013/01/30/heckuva-job-ice-agents-lose-deportation-fugitive-at-denver-airport/

Excerpt: As I mentioned earlier in my column today, the persistent deportation and removal abyss allows hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens — many of them known, repeat criminal offenders — to pass through the immigration court system and then disappear into the ether because we have no determined will to track them down and kick them all out of the country.

Worth Reading: Who Are We? By Mark Steyn

http://www.steynonline.com/5376/who-are-we

Excerpt: Culture trumps politics. Culture trumps economics. On November 6, culture trumped reality … Because the Left understands where the real victories are won: Politics is a battle, but culture is the war.

"Liberals With Guns!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeTCkoXslsE&feature=youtu.be

Excerpt: "Wanna keep guns out of the hands of psychos? I Purpose that every registered liberal Democrat be placed on the mentally ill list..." (Short video with some interesting observations. --MM)

Tweet from Bob Owens ‏@bob_owens

Funny how the 14 Mexican kids slaughtered at a party with #FastandFurious guns didn't make Obama care about gun control.

Justice Scalia: The Constitution is Dead

http://politicaloutcast.com/2013/01/justice-scalia-the-constitution-is-dead/

Excerpt: Most of the Founding Fathers were strict constructionists (as you would imagine… since they drafted the document. Of course they wanted it interpreted as it was written). Over time, as high technology and low morals altered the nature of American society and politics, the question started to arise more and more: “Isn’t this document a little outdated? 

Rev. Sirico: How to Think Clearly About Social Justice. By Sarah Stanley

http://blog.acton.org/archives/44985-rev-sirico-how-to-think-clearly-about-social-justice.html

Excerpt: The theme of the Forum, which encourages the study of free enterprise by bringing scholars together for dynamic exchanges of ideas on topics related to free market economics, was “Markets, Government, and the Common Good.” Rev. Sirico spoke about the evolved meaning of the phrase “social justice,” explaining the current usage of the phrase as well as its literal meaning. He also warned that if words and phrases lose their meaning then “chaos can result.”