Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for February 13, 2013

Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for February 13, 2013

Robert A. Hall

Lots of great links today. I have a good book about combat in Afghanistan, The Outpost by Jack Tapper (Black Knight Troop is part of the story—see next piece) to read instead of watching the State of the Union speech. But I didn’t watch Bush’s either. Set piece stuff doesn’t interest me much. Every promise is DOA. ~Bob.

Medal of Honor recipient declines invitation to State of the Union. By Jake Tapper

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/02/12/medal-of-honor-recipient-declines-invitation-to-state-of-the-union/

Excerpt: Clint Romesha, who was awarded the prestigious medal for uncommon valor in Afghanistan, told CNN that he has decided to spend the evening with friends from his former unit, Black Knight Troop, 3-61 CAV, his wife Tammy - with whom he celebrates a wedding anniversary Tuesday - and their families.

Important: North Korea Confirms It Conducted 3rd Nuclear Test

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/world/asia/north-korea-nuclear-test.html?ref=asia

Excerpt: No country is more interested in the results of the North’s nuclear program, or the Western reaction, than Iran, which is pursuing its own uranium enrichment program. The two countries have long cooperated on missile technology, and many intelligence officials believe they share nuclear knowledge as well, though so far there is no hard evidence. The Iranians are also pursuing uranium enrichment, and one senior American official said two weeks ago that “it’s very possible that the North Koreans are testing for two countries.” (One mad dog wandering through your town might be ignored in relative safety. Two of them together are a much more serious problem. Just for a moment, suppose there was a whole pack of them, like hyenas. If we add in a Burma/Myanmar, a ‘Stan or two, perhaps a Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua or Cuba, and then simply have the other major players (Russia and China) stand back to watch the dogfight, it might well be like watching a pack of hyenas chase a lion away from his dinner. No matter where the lion faces, one of the hyenas darts in behind him and bites his backside. After a while, the lion gives up from exhaustion and the hyenas have dinner. --Ron P. And you thought the Pope stepped on Obama's State of the Union address. – Jim Geraghty. There goes San Francisco. But Obama is too busy with the threat of Jews building houses to worry about the small stuff. ~Bob.)

China firms sanctioned for missile proliferation. By Bill Gertz

http://freebeacon.com/missile-madness/

Excerpt: Four Chinese missile manufacturers and exporters were slapped with U.S. sanctions for illicit sales related to North Korea, Iran, and Syria, the State Department said in a statement late Monday. The sanctions were imposed under the Iran, North Korea, Syria Nonproliferaiton Act on four Chinese firms as well as two Belarusian companies.

Worth Reading: In Venezuela, Plenty of Oil, Not Enough Food: It's the old story: Socialist government interferes with the marketplace, and the result is scarcity. By Otto J. Reich 

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324590904578293790195650224.html

Excerpt: There are now reports of severe food shortages in Venezuela, including milk, bread, sugar, poultry, dairy products and cooking oil. Vice President Nicolás Maduro—running the country in the absence of ailing President Hugo Chávez—has threatened Venezuela's businessmen with unspecified punishment for "hoarding food." Last week the government devalued the nation's currency, bringing even more misery to consumers.

Worth Reading: Random Thoughts. By Thomas Sowell 

http://townhall.com/columnists/thomassowell/2013/02/12/random-thoughts-n1509850?utm_source=thdaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl

Excerpt: I can't get excited by the question of whether Senator Robert Menendez had sex with a prostitute in Central America. It is her word against his -- and when it comes to a prostitute's word against a politician's word, that is too close to call. If an American citizen went off to join Hitler's army during World War II, would there have been any question that this alone would make it legal to kill him? Why then is there an uproar about killing an American citizen who has joined terrorist organizations that are at war against the United States today?

The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future. By Senator James Inhofe (Author)

http://www.amazon.com/Greatest-Hoax-Warming-Conspiracy-Threatens/dp/1936488493/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358561860&sr=1-1&keywords=the+greatest+hoax

Excerpt: On January 11, 2013, the US government released for public comment, a draft report of what is expected its formal climate assessment report for the year 2012. This huge 1100+ page report is heavily reliant on the greenhouse gas theory of manmade climate change. Like similar UN climate reports and past reports from the Obama administration, it paints a picture of climate change causes and effects. It is believed this report when finalized will most likely by used to rouse the people and the Congress to support his coming new punitive climate policies, carbon taxation, and industrial control programs. In his review of the report Mr. John L. Casey, President of the Space and Science Research Corporation, shows that the report is so full of errors, unverified findings, misleading and false statements, that the report should be thrown out. 

Climate Change to Next Cold Era Accelerates with Colder North Atlantic

http://www.spaceandscience.net/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/ssrcpressrelease12013climatechangetonextcolderaaccelerateswithcoldernorthatlantic.pdf

Excerpt: The Space and Science Research Corporation (SSRC) announces today that the North Atlantic Ocean has entered a period of decades-long decline in temperatures which will accelerate the rapidly advancing new cold climate era.

Spirit of Dr. Ben Carson Will Transcend Tonight’s State of Union Address. By Judi McLeod

http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/53061

Excerpt: The roughly 50 percent of Americans who stand firmly against the Fundamental Transformation of America have waited four long years for someone to tell President Barack Obama he has no right to destroy an America built by its Founding Fathers. That ‘someone’ emerged Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast in the person of Dr. Ben Carson.

Worth Reading: Alleged gunman in Hadiya Pendleton slaying was on probation for weapons conviction

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-hadiya-pendleton-probation-20130212,0,1383301.story

Excerpt: The reputed gang member accused of gunning down 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton last month was on the street even though he had been arrested three times in connection with break-ins and trespassing while on probation for a weapons conviction in recent months, the Tribune has learned. (If I understand the Democrats’ position, passing new gun laws is vital, but enforcing the ones we have is racist. Because, according to the FBI, 53% of the murders are committed by the 13% of the population that is black, with most of the dead being black as well. Kind of full service Planned Parenthood. I bet he didn’t use an “assault” rifle” or fire more than ten shots, so of course, Democrats want to respond by banning things the killer didn’t use. ~Bob.)

The Blood on Chicago’s Hands. By Kevin D. Williamson

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/340459/blood-chicagos-hands-kevin-d-williamson

Excerpt: Like the majority of murderers in most large U.S. cities (and about half the murder victims), 18-year-old Michael Ward already had a criminal history at the time of the shooting. Chicago is very proud of the fact that it leads the nation in the number of firearms seizures it manages each year. Unfortunately, it also leads the nation in the related category of seizing firearms and not doing a damned thing about it.

Worth Reading: 5 Things Americans Shouldn't Take for Granted. By John Hawkins 

http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2013/02/12/5-things-americans-shouldnt-take-for-granted-n1510351/page/full/

Excerpt: The reason people who are knowledgeable about our nation’s history are so concerned with following the Constitution, sticking to traditions, and safeguarding our rights is that our country's success is not the rule. For all the bitter railing you hear against "1%ers," if you're living in modern day America, you are one of the 1%ers. That’s because 99% of the people in human history haven't had it as good as you do.

The Winds of War in Lebanon. By Jonathan Schanzer
http://www.defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/the-winds-of-war-in-lebanon/

Excerpt: Multiple sources suggest that the winds of war are blowing to Israel’s north, and that such a war could erupt very soon. Lebanese parliamentarian Jean Ogassapian of the Future Bloc issued a warning over the weekend of “dangers of an Israeli strike against Lebanon. There is information that Israel told UNIFIL to take precautions.” Ogassapian told Lebanese television, “This warning should be linked to the smuggling of arms from Syria to Lebanon.”

Bush deputy national security adviser: Syrian crisis ‘would be even more dangerous’ had Israel not destroyed nuclear reactor in 2007

http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/12/bush-deputy-national-security-adviser-syrian-crisis-would-be-even-more-dangerous-had-israel-not-destroyed-nuclear-reactor-in-2007/

Excerpt: Elliott Abrams, former deputy national security adviser to President George. W. Bush, says the current turmoil in Syria could have been significantly more dangerous had Israel fallen in line with the Bush administration’s decision not to act militarily against Syria’s covert nuclear program in 2007. (Once the Islamists kill all the Jews, they will not stop. These are people who daily slaughter each other in the name of Allah. Do you think they will be content for infidels like you to live free of their control? Or to live at all? ~Bob.)

ObamaCare policies will cost more, cover far fewer than promised. By Betsy Mccaughey

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/wheels_coming_off_QPojjZX0Bd8BU80hDpcKZP

Excerpt: The central parts of ObamaCare don’t roll out until 2014, but the wheels are already falling off this clunker. The latest news from four federal agencies is that 1) insurance will be a lot less affordable than Americans were led to expect, 2) fewer people than promised will get insurance and 3) millions of people who have coverage through a job now will lose it, thanks to the president’s “reforms.” Oh, and children are the biggest victims. The Affordable Care Act is looking less and less affordable. (Still more parts of the program become known as the IRS report is analyzed. This just promises to get more and more interesting in the next 2 years. That quote from Nancy Pelosi ("We have to pass it to find out what's in it) is going to go down as the boldest and yet most accurate statement from a politician in many years. We will see people and companies looking for ways to stay out of the system. For instance, having as many employees as possible working part-time, under 32 hours, and trying desperately to stay below 50 full-time employees. And I wonder what happens to the people already on MedicAid, or not on any program but below the poverty line? What we can be sure of is that any loopholes left in the system will be found and people will run trucks through them. And it looks like it will cost more and cover fewer....I still wish Congress would have explored some of the alternative steps to make health care work better before signing 2000+ pages that it seems nobody read. --Del)

The Boys at the Back. By Christina Hoff Sommers

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/02/the-boys-at-the-back/?ref=opinion

Excerpt: There are some who say, well, too bad for the boys. If they are inattentive, obstreperous and distracting to their teachers and peers, that’s their problem. After all, the ability to regulate one’s impulses, delay gratification, sit still and pay close attention are the cornerstones of success in school and in the work force. (I had the G2 to be an A student, but it was certainly my behavior that put me in the top 98% of my high school graduating class. The Marines gave me discipline and I was a pretty strong student in college. But with my SATs [1,424, taken in 1968, four years after I graduated from high school and before they lowered the scoring system] I could have gone to Harvard with better high school grades. And more money. ~Bob.)

LAPD records: Fugitive Christopher Dorner had troubled tenure

http://www.dailynews.com/ci_22556719

Excerpt: Hundreds of pages of court records, which include confidential Internal Affairs reports, detail a pitched struggle between Christopher Jordan Dorner and the Los Angeles Police Department. Almost from the beginning of his employment the seeds of Dorner's 11,000-word manifesto, which details his grievances against the department, were sown.

Top policy director: Obama administration ‘has not done a particularly good job’ on drugs
http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/11/top-policy-director-obama-administration-has-not-done-a-particularly-good-job-on-drugs/#ixzz2KdAheVwx

Excerpt: President Barack Obama’s drug czar this week exhaled a puff of protest at the White House’s laid-back attitude about the spreading conflict between federal drug laws and newly relaxed state laws on marijuana. “The administration has not done a particularly good job of, one, talking about marijuana as a public health issue, and number two, talking about what can be done and where we should be headed on our drug policy,” Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, told a Canadian magazine, who also indicated his opposition to the state decriminalization laws

More Hagel Speeches Emerge, Suggesting He Misled Senate

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2013/02/11/More-Hagel-Speeches-Emerge-Suggesting-he-Misled-Senate

Excerpt: Emerson told Breitbart News: "These are not once-off mistakes, as Hagel has described them. Hagel's radical views on Israel and Iran are hard-wired, despite what he told the Senate during his confirmation hearing." Those speeches found by the IPT include three inside the committee's five-year timeframe--none of which, apparently, were described by Hagel in his formal submissions. 

Activists: Bring Obama Out to Samaria

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/165127#.URltUR37L0c

Excerpt: The suggestion comes as a reaction by leftists that Obama make a speech in Rabin Square as a way of identifying with leftist groups pushing the government to make concessions to the Palestinian Authority. The prospect of Obama speaking in the spot where Yitzchak Rabin was shot and killed will, the leftist groups hope, will “inspire” Israelis to embrace the Oslo Accords that Rabin imposed upon Israel, and in the wake of which over 1,000 Israelis have been killed in terror attacks.

Lawmakers accuse VA of covering up veterans' deaths
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/02/11/lawmakers-accuse-va-covering-up-legionnaires-deaths/%20?test=latestnews#ixzz2KdPpHwu5

Excerpt: A group of lawmakers is accusing the government of engaging in a high-stakes cover-up that includes hiding the real reason why five veterans died in a Pittsburgh-area hospital of Legionnaires’ disease – an outbreak they say could have been prevented -- and how thousands more could still be at risk. “This has got the federal government’s footprints all over it,” Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Colo., told FoxNews.com. “I am stunned at the coordination that took place and that is occurring at the highest levels of government to try and counter the blame.”

Worth Reading: The Democratic Disgrace. By Daniel Greenfield 

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/the-democratic-disgrace/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=e6fe0ddfea-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag

Excerpt: Obama, Clinton, Biden and Gore couldn’t even meet the lowest possible standard for their positions, but that’s not a problem in a Democratic Party that no longer has any standards. America’s newest Secretary of State, John Kerry, was wrong about every historical development since he became involved in politics.

Minority Students in Chicago: Hostages of the Democratic Party. By Arnold Ahlert 

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/arnold-ahlert/minority-students-in-chicago-hostages-of-the-democratic-educational-complex/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=e6fe0ddfea-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag

Excerpt: In 2009, the Chicago Public School system (CPS) was rocked by a grade inflation scandal. A Chicago Sun-Times report revealed that one-fifth of the CPS teachers felt “pressured” to change grades. ”There’s definitely a sense of, ‘We’ve gotta move these kids through.’ Even though they’re not even close to grade level,” said English teacher Caitlin Ring at the time. Apparently no one learned their lesson. 

Brainwashing Kids About Guns. By Mark Tapson 

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/mark-tapson/brainwashing-kids-about-guns/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=e6fe0ddfea-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag

Excerpt: A five-year-old girl from Pennsylvania was suspended from school last month after telling a friend she was going to shoot her with a pink toy gun that sprays hollow-point bullets bubbles. Despite not even having the bubble gun with her at the time of the shockingly dire threat, the kindergartener was later interrogated by school officials without her parents present. She was ultimately – are you sitting down for this? – labeled a “terrorist threat,” suspended for ten days, and required to undergo psychiatric evaluation.

Unions say hike taxes to pay for their pensions. By Benjamin Yount

http://watchdog.org/69002/unions-say-hike-taxes-to-pay-for-their-pensions/

Excerpt: Illinois’ largest public employee unions don’t want to raise just one tax to pay for the state’s sky-rocketing pension debt, they want to increase as many as they can.

Fertility, Faith, and the Decline of Islam: Strategic Implications. By David Goldman

http://pjmedia.com/spengler/2013/02/11/fertility-faith-and-the-decline-of-islam-strategic-implications/

Excerpt: The liberal establishment has finally taken note of the elephant in the Muslim parlor, namely the closing of the Muslim womb. … Iran’s total fertility rate plunged to an estimated 1.6% in 2010, barely above Europe’s rate of 1.5 children per female. 

Rep. Corrine Brown on Obamacare: ‘Don’t Confuse Me With Any Facts’

http://www.thenattyconservative.com/rep-corrine-brown-on-obamacare-dont-confuse-me-with-any-facts/

Excerpt: As part of a discussion with voters about Obamacare funding, Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.) told one man, “Don’t confuse me with any facts.” (I used to lobby her when she was a state rep in Tallahassee. The wheel is turning, but the hamster died. But she is probably responsible for Bush being president. A liberal Democrat congressman told me that Jesse Jackson went to Jacksonville, FL in the 2000 election to register and motivate black voters. He told every gathering to be sure to “Vote for Gore and vote for Brown.” (Meaning Congresswoman Corrine Brown.) And in that election, there were a couple thousand spoiled ballots in Jacksonville where the voters had voted for both Gore and the Libertarian candidate, Harry Browne, for president. Bush won Florida, thus the election, by a few hundred. ~Bob.)

Meet The Gun-Toting Preacher Who’s Training Texas Teachers To Arm Themselves In The Classroom. By Billy Hallowell

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/02/12/meet-the-pistol-packing-preacher-whos-training-texas-teachers-to-arm-themselves-in-the-classroom/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=story&utm_campaign=Share%20Buttons

Excerpt: James McAbee is a Christian pastor at Lighthouse Worship Center in Beaumont, Texas. But he’s also a licensed gun owner who’s known around town as the pistol-packing preacher. Since thwarting an attempted robbery at his church in 2011, McAbee has been encouraging others to prepare themselves for some good ‘ol fashion self-defense. Following the Sandy Hook massacre, the faith leader began offering local school teachers free concealed carry handgun classes.

Fort Hood Hero Says Obama 'Betrayed' Her, Other Victims

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/fort-hood-hero-obama-betrayed-victims/story?id=18465024#.URp35EyA4CQ.twitter

Excerpt: Three years after the White House arranged a hero's welcome at the State of the Union address for the Fort Hood police sergeant and her partner who stopped the deadly shooting there, Kimberly Munley says President Obama broke the promise he made to her that the victims would be well taken care of. (“Put not your trust in princes.” ~Bob.)

Man charged in snow shovel attack

http://www.ctpost.com/policereports/article/Man-charged-in-snow-shovel-attack-4269817.php

Excerpt: STAMFORD -- A weekend dispute over snow removal led to a man's arrest after police said he struck a neighbor with a shovel. Police were called to Sylvan Knoll Road at noontime Saturday on a report of two men fighting in the street, Sgt. Richard Barbagallo said. When officers arrived, a man told them he was helping his mother shovel out her car when a neighbor came running out of his house yelling at him, apparently angry about where he was throwing the snow. (When snow shovels are outlawed, only outlaws will have snow shovels;…when you pry this snow shovel from my cold dead hand…--George. If we can save one child, we need to ban snow shovels. ~Bob.)

Like All Tyrants Biden Only Respects “Legitimate Media”
http://politicaloutcast.com/2013/02/like-all-tyrants-biden-only-respects-legitimate-media/
Excerpt: On the issue of gun control, Vice President Joe Biden wants people only to trust “the legitimate news media.” Any news that does not agree with what the White House says on the Second Amendment is “malarkey.”

Worth Reading: Obama’s Hypocritic Oath. By Victor Davis Hanson

http://www.nationalreview.com/blogs/print/340376

Excerpt: Barack Obama has a habit of identifying a supposed crisis in collective morality, damning the straw men “them” who engage in such ethical lapses, soaring with rhetorical bromides — and then, to national quiet, doing more or less the exact things he once swore were ruining the country. Washington will always be a city of hypocrisies, as one would expect when astronomical amounts of money and political power collide. What is striking about the recent disclosures about Obama’s tenure is not that his embarrassments are all that different from embarrassments of other administrations, but that they are at odds entirely with almost everything Obama has professed. And that realization is starting to damage his presidency as much as its actual shortcomings.

Health care inflation is slowing. Will Obama’s health care reform help or hurt? By James Pethokoukis 

http://www.aei-ideas.org/2013/02/96036/

Excerpt: Now a new wrinkle is being added to that last point: A persistent slowdown in the growth of health care costs might mean scary Congressional Budget Office forecasts are overstating America’s long-term debt problem. The New York Times points out today that new data show overall health care spending growth continuing at the lowest rate in decades for a fourth consecutive year. 

Witness recounts harrowing sexual assault by Tahrir Square mob

http://observers.france24.com/content/20130211-witness-sexual-assault-tahrir-square-mob?ns_campaign=observateurs&ns_source=twitter&ns_mchannel=reseaux_sociaux&ns_fee=0&ns_linkname=20130211_observers_witness_sexual_assault_tahrir_square_mob

Excerpt: A video showing a sexual assault in Tahrir Square on January 25 – the day Egyptians commemorated their revolution’s two-year anniversary – caused outrage the world over. That day, our Observer Mostafa Kandil tried to intervene to protect the victim, who was assaulted by a mob of dozens, if not hundreds, of men. Today, he shares his story.

7 Things Democrats Would Have Freaked Out About If Bush Had Done Them

http://www.buzzfeed.com/bennyjohnson/things-democrats-would-have-freaked-out-about-if-bush-had-do

Excerpt: Obama's national security policy has continued some of the most controversial moves of the Bush administration. Silence from much of the left.

The Real State of Our Union

http://www.gop.com/trending/the-real-state-of-our-union/

Excerpt: Check out our infographic below to get a clearer picture of the current state of our union after four years of Barack Obama in the White House.

Obama '09: Stimulus Will Lift 2 Million Out of Poverty; Today: 2.6 Million More in Poverty. By Joe Schoffstall

http://cnsnews.com/blog/joe-schoffstall/obama-09-stimulus-will-lift-2-million-out-poverty-today-26-million-more-poverty

Excerpt: On February 17, 2009, in remarks at the signing the $787 billion Stimulus bill, Pres. Obama promised it would lift two million people out of poverty. However, according to the latest available Census Bureau data, quite the opposite occurred. 

Silenced by Brooklyn College

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/silenced-brooklyn-college-article-1.1261287#ixzz2Ki8Q3VGE

Excerpt: Last Thursday, I was one of four students expelled from a forum at Brooklyn College held by the group Students for Justice in Palestine. The event — which consisted of lectures by Omar Barghouti and Judith Butler — had caused a furor because it was in support of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement that wants to marginalize Israel on the world stage.

Lehigh University student got a C+ and now seeks $1.3 million in lawsuit

http://news.yahoo.com/lehigh-university-student-got-c-124956418.html

Excerpt: A graduate of Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. has sued the school for $1.3 million because she is unhappy that she got a C+ in a class in 2009. Megan Thode, 27, says the grade ruined her dream of becoming a licensed professional counselor, reports The Morning Call, an Allentown-based newspaper. … One of the perks of that relationship was that she was able to enroll in the Lehigh graduate program tuition-free.

Heart Attack Grill 'spokesman's' heart gives out

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/heart_attack_grill_spokesman_heart_tJ5F4LMP9eWdsh1JnDpw4O

Excerpt: The unofficial spokesman for the infamous Las Vegas restaurant Heart Attack Grill has, you guessed it, died of a heart attack. (God will not be mocked. ~Bob.)

Charlie LeDuff interviews Detroit's Monica Conyers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiogXT9xZBQ

Figures. ~Bob.

Phone subsidies cost Americans $2.2 billion a year, much of it wasted

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/12/phone-subsidies-cost-americans-22-billion-year-muc/

Excerpt: Taxpayers spent an estimated $2.2 billion to give phones to those with low incomes in 2012 — but some shouldn’t have received them. According to one report, a large number of program participants may have received phones even though they didn’t meet income limits. (This is a perfect demonstration of "wealth redistribution" by the federal government. They tax all of us who pay for our phones, so they can give phones away to the supposedly needy. Then they run the program so sloppily that it looks like 1/3 or more of the people taking the phones shouldn't have them. Great, another reason for us to just trust those people in charge, they know what they're doing. –Del. It’s only “wasted” if you consider buying votes with your dollars through Obama-Phones is a waste. ~Bob.)

Gallup: Americans Disapprove Of Obama Policy On Nearly Every Issue

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/02/12/Gallup-Americans-Disapprove-of-Obama-on-Nearly-Every-Issue?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Except, of course, “Gimme mine!” ~Bob. Excerpt: According to a Gallup poll, 42% of Americans approve of Obama's gun policies while 54% disapprove. On taxes, 41% approve and 57% disapprove. On the economy, 39% approve and 60% disapprove. On "the situation in the Middle East between the Israelis and the Palestinians," 36% approve and 55% disapprove. 

How Much Is College Worth? Congress, States Now Asking Too. By walter Russell Mead

http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2013/02/12/how-much-is-college-worth-congress-states-now-asking-too/

Excerpt: How much is that college degree really worth? It’s not just a question for students and parents anymore, but for Congress and for state officials as well, says the WSJ. This week Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) are expected to re-introduce a bill to force states to provide more information about college graduates’ average salaries. Several states already give or are considering giving the public greater access to this kind of information. (Depends on the major. Gender studies probably gets you minimum wage. ~Bob.)

Saudi Arabia beheading nearly two people per week this year

http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/news-item/saudi-arabia-beheading-nearly-two-people-per-week-this-year

Excerpt: A spree of executions that has sent10 prisoners to their deaths since the beginning of the year in Saudi Arabia must be halted, Amnesty International said today. 

Magpul’s Open Letter to CO Lawmakers – Pass Gun Control, We Leave & Take Our Jobs With Us

http://gunssavelives.net/blog/magpuls-open-letter-to-co-lawmakers-pass-gun-control-we-leave-take-our-jobs-with-us/#

Excerpt: The company basically says if CO passes a proposed law that would ban magazines over 10 rounds in capacity, they would be forced to move their operation to another state in order to stay in operation. In doing so the company would be taking their tax dollars and hundreds if not thousands of jobs with them (once you take sub-contractors into account).

Gore, Current silent as cleric affirms death penalty for leaving Islam on Al-Jazeera
http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/12/gore-current-silent-as-cleric-affirms-apostacy-death-penalty-on-al-jazeera/#ixzz2KirXlhim

Excerpt: Aides to former Democratic Vice President Al Gore have failed to respond to a recent Al-Jazeera TV broadcast, in which a top imam affirmed the death penalty for anyone who quits Islam.