Month: May 2010

Contributed by: filbert Monday, May 31 2010 @ 07:20 AM CST

Yesterday, I heard–on a local TV newscast, I think–someone say “Happy Memorial Day.”

No. Wrong.

The intent of Memorial Day is to be a day of memory–specifically, remembering those who wear the uniform of the United States, who have fought and died to defend this country.

Now, in certain circles, this is not a politically correct thought. It is uncomfortable to recognize that our liberties require at times an active, violent defense–a defense which often has an extremely high cost. It certainly is inconvenient at least to think of such things, as people rush back and forth between the big 2-Day Sale to the family barbecue at the lake.

It’s a specific case of one of the most widespread and corrosive problems our society has today.

IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT YOU.

So take five minutes, go somewhere quiet, sit down, and think about your freedom to do that very thing, and think about how that freedom came about.

Most people throughout history have not even had that simple freedom to take a few minutes to themselves. Most people have had to get up in the morning, work hard, backbreaking, physical labor from sunrise to sunset, somehow manage to eat and drink enough to keep them alive, and then go to sleep with little more hope than to get through the next day of toil and pain. Sitting and contemplating their freedoms would be an absurd impossibility for much of humanity over most of our history.

And there you sit, well-fed, well-clothed, comfortable and safe, secure in your self-absorption on this “traditional first weekend of summer.”

Think long and hard about how you came have the freedom to ignore the real meaning of Memorial Day.

And, if you’re one of those who have worn the uniform that secures our freedom and liberty, or if you are the family member or friend of one who has been wounded or has died in the service of this country, you have my solemn sympathy, respect, gratitude, and love. Be well.

UPDATE: Even The Heritage Foundation[*1] has succumbed to the corrosive “Happy Memorial Day” saying. I still assert it is properly a day of reflection, a day of gratitude–and for some, a day of deep emotional pain. I think cavalierly chirping “Happy Memorial Day” on this day seriously demeans the sacrifices of those who have given the “last full measure of their devotion.” “Happy New Year,” yes. “Happy Halloween?” Sure. “Happy Christmas?” Certainly, if you’re British or an Anglophile. “Happy Martin Luther King Day?” I can even see that. Even “Happy Veteran’s Day” can work–you’re honoring veterans who are still alive on that day, after all. But “Happy Memorial Day?” There’s some serious emotional/cognitive dissonance going on there, in my opinion.

Yeah, I’m a curmudgeon. Always have been, really.

[*1] http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/31/morning-bell-happy-memorial-day/

Contributed by: filbert Sunday, May 30 2010 @ 12:14 PM CST

Memorial Day [*1] — A poem, forwarded by That Woman, Sarah Palin:

“It is the veteran, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the veteran, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the veteran, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the veteran, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the veteran, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the veteran, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote.

It is the veteran, who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag, and whose coffin will be draped by the flag.”

Glenn Reynolds [*2] — Interview with the Instapundit[*3] , who is more important and influential than he thinks he is–or wants to be, really. I suspect he’d be appalled by the reality of that statement, which is why I like him. Oh, that, and the fact he’s an unrepentant geek.

Pathetic: BP Buses in Temps for Obama Photo Op [*4]

He Was Supposed to Be Competent: The spill is a disaster for the president and his political philosophy. [*5]

The president, in my view, continues to govern in a way that suggests he is chronically detached from the central and immediate concerns of his countrymen. This is a terrible thing to see in a political figure, and a startling thing in one who won so handily and shrewdly in 2008. But he has not, almost from the day he was inaugurated, been in sync with the center. The heart of the country is thinking each day about A, B and C, and he is thinking about X, Y and Z. They’re in one reality, he’s in another.

“He Was Supposed To Be Competent” [*6] The big surprise with the current president is not so much that he is incompetent, inexperienced and divisive, but the extent to which he is all of those things, and the extent to which anyone is surprised. It’s not like there weren’t enough warning signs on the way in, all of which were summarily dismissed.
Law Prof Surveys Legal Secretaries, Chronicles Layoffs, Conflicts with Female Lawyers [*7]

One discovery: Legal secretaries said they preferred to work for male associates and partners. In written responses, the secretaries said females were emotional and demanding, with “more to prove” and a penchant to “put on airs,” the story says.

“Working for a woman exposes some very complex class dynamics,” Batlan told Missouri Lawyers Media. “A woman working for a man is naturalized,” she said. “It’s what’s expected. It seems ordinary.”

Witnessing the heart as it cracks – UPDATED [*8] — I think that really sums up my feelings as I watch the Obama Administration flail towards disaster. For every minute or two I’m angry, I’m an hour or two just simply heart-sick at the sheer waste and stupidity of what they’re doing, just tearing this country apart while thinking they’re doing really good things. They really need to get out of San Francisco, Manhattan, and the Beltway more, and get out into the rest of the country.

In Spite of State Law, Maryland Law Enforcement Officials Still Arresting, Charging People for Recording Cops

Now we have another video of an arrest during the Preakness Stakes in which a Baltimore police officer can be heard telling the camera-holder, “Do me a favor and turn that off. It’s illegal to record anybody’s voice or anything else in the state of Maryland.”

That simply isn’t true, and it’s outrageous that Maryland law enforcement keeps perpetuating this myth. Perhaps that officer was merely misinformed. But Maryland police spokesmen and prosecutors are giving the impression that the state’s wiretapping law is ambiguous about recording on-duty police officers. It really isn’t. They’ve just chosen to interpret it that way, logic and common sense be damned.

The Unprecedented Intensity of the YouCut Movement [*9]

As families have been forced to cut back and make tough choices out of necessity, they look towards Washington — where the exact opposite attitude persists. The Democrat majority in the House, for instance, will likely fail this year to pass a budget resolution for the first time since the modern budget rules were adopted in 1974.

An utter failure in leadership.

Bystander in Chief: Obama says he’s doing everything he can to control the Gulf spill [*10] — This is undoubtedly true. The President has very little capability to stop the flow of oil–BP has to do that, unless Obama wants to light off a nuke a mile underneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. Where the Federal Government (read: the Obama Administration) has demonstrably failed is in their utterly inept and inadequate response to the oil as it begins to lap up against the Gulf coast. Obama, as President, is responsible for that. It’s not the leak per se that Obama’s responsible for. It’s what happens next.

In this respect, the analogy to Bush and Katrina has a bit of merit: Bush was not responsible for Katrina, but he was held responsible for the response. (Of course, in the case of Katrina, it was the Governor of Louisiana and the Mayor of New Orleans who had primary responsibility for disaster mitigation and for disaster recovery from Hurricane Katrina, but that teensy little fact was inconvenient to The Narrative. And, when Governor Blanco (Democrat) and Mayor Nagin (Democrat) demonstrated their incompetence, Bush’s Federal Government had to step in.) We see a pattern here: Democrats seem incapable of dealing with disasters. Unfortunately, with the Gulf oil spill, there are no Republicans in power who can step in to clean up the mess–literally.

If the Obama Administration had spent the first month of this disaster actually responding effectively to the problem rather than putting a priority on playing politics and assigning blame, things might be better right now. We don’t know, now do we?

Unplugged Christians living off the grid [*11]

“Christians should be looking for a way to take care of one another without forcing their neighbor to contribute to their welfare. In essence that’s coveting your neighbor’s goods through the agency of the governments you create.”

And that is a sin.

The Thinker: Barack Obama explains his job. [*12] — Wile E. Obama, Genius. The only difference is that the Warner Brothers cartoons were actually funny.

Vote for These Free Enterprise Videos! [*13]

Dennis Hopper: the hippest American bikes off [*14] — I did not know that Hopper was a Republican. Did you?

Solar Scientists Agree That the Sun’s Recent Behavior Is Odd, but the Explanation Remains Elusive: The most recent solar minimum was both long and pronounced. But why? [*15]

Poll finds anger over country’s leaders [*16]

Obama, the Thin-Skinned President [*17]

May’s Big Selloff Could Be Just the Beginning [*18]

Some pretty smart people are cautious. Seth Klarman at Baupost Group is worried. John Hussman of the Hussman Funds says all sorts of warning lights have lit up across his screen. Even Ron Muhlenkamp of the Muhlenkamp Fund, who usually takes a sunnier view of things, says he has moved a big chunk of his mutual fund into cash in case there’s a plunge.

The best strategy right now IMHO is to (continue to) hunker down. The storm hasn’t hit yet. All we’ve seen so far are the first few rain bands.

Covering Obama, press encounters Nation of Islam [*19]

Le affair Sestak – in a nutshell [*20]

Michele Bachmann Slams Dems For Voting to Give Government Employees $30 Billion 10 Year Raise (Video) [*21]

Obama Won’t Meet With Governor Brewer… But Makes Time For McCartney Concert [*22]

Obama, ACORN and Stealth Socialism [*23]

Community organizers became the “information police” for minorities in dozens of cities. As the official representative for its members, ACORN was able to frame the debate in ways that aligned with its People’s Platform. The platform is based on the socialist idea of sharing the wealth. Members were asked, even coerced, to attend rallies and protests for issues ACORN had decided would lead to power.

The victims of ACORN don’t know what they don’t know.

“Top Kill” Fails to Stop Obama Oil Spill; UPDATED [*24]

Jacks fall short in championship [*25]

Breaking: Taliban Using Chemical Weapons Against US Troops? 4-5 Troops Reportedly Fall Ill [*26]

Crackpot Lefist Stalker Explains Why He’s Stalking the Palin Family in Alaska [*27]

Dave Weigel, Joe McGinniss, Jesse Griffin and the Palin-Hater Next Door [*28]

Authoritarian High Modernism [*29] — Modern urban planners and other do-gooders have done more harm to our overall sense of community than perhaps any other factor in society. I’m reading Jane Jacobs’ Dark Age Ahead right now. One thing that solidified my antipathy towards “urban planning” was reading some of Jacobs’ other works. Cities are organic creatures, almost alive. Urban planning is like the ancient Chinese, who bound the feet of their females–or the ancient Mayans who put a flat board over the forehead of infants, because they thought such alterations of natural human forms were in some way attractive. But where they’re not actively destructive, they’re a waste of time.

Cities should be allowed to grow, develop, breathe. This isn’t an argument against any kind of zoning at all (although I’m not totally convinced zoning is a net benefit, either) but it is an argument against the kind of urban micro-management of every single square inch of land anywhere near any city in the country. It ain’t natural.

Let cities live.

The media wolf pack holds itself at bay [*30]

Is Democrat Party Hack Frank Rich Even Trying Anymore? [*31]

Russia seeks EU’s help with visas, technology [*32] — Hmm, Russia wants help “modernizing its economy.” Maybe it should start with stamping out organized crime and corruption, and promoting the rule of law. Of course, we in the US should probably do the same, now shouldn’t we?

Memory and Survival [*33]

acts of group memory, like Memorial Day, are not simply events held for ceremonial purposes but are sources that are vital to the group’s — and the individual’s existence. Without that history — without that memory — then individuals will eventually forget the benefit derived from the altruism of their forebears and become susceptible to the preachings of the ’selfish mutant’. In a society without traditions the “free riders” may gain ascendancy and even suppress history to aid their increase. Gradually they may destroy a society’s capacity for mutual altruism and take it over for themselves. Yet even so their victory may be short-lived. Within their mutation lie the seeds of their own downfall. For “if the pathogen’s virulence kills the host and interferes with its own transmission to a new host, virulence will be selected against.” Eventually they kill the host and then themselves die.

It may take a while, but the demise eventually happens. And then the survivors gradually rediscover the benefits of thinking in terms larger than themselves and begin to act on that basis. And then the words, “truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” will become comprehensible again.

This is why it’s necessary to correctly remember history. “Airbrushed” or edited history, history manipulated to emphasize one or another trendy, current political view, or history suppressed to hide some embarrassing episode in the past, is ultimately cheating yourself, your society, and the world of the self-knowledge we all need to go forward successfully into the future.

What’s the saying? There are no such thing as failed experiment. There are only experiments that tell you what does not work.Still Wrong on the Middle East [*34]

Thanks Barack… Dow Suffers Worst May Since 1940[*35]

Liz Cheney on Bill Clinton: “There’s Not Exactly an Impeccable Record of Integrity There on the Part of the Former President” (Video) [*36]

Dowd: President Present strikes again [*37] — Are the real sheep beginning to wake up?

France warns on credit rating [*38]

What good are friends if they don’t hold your feet to the fire? [*39]

[*1] http://www.facebook.com/notes/sarah-palin/memorial-day-to-remember-past-and-present-sacrifice/394273363434
[*2] http://www.stevenpressfield.com/2010/05/glenn-reynolds/
[*3] http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/
[*4] http://jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com/2010/05/pathetic-bp-buses-in-temps-for-obama.html
[*5] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704269204575270950789108846.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_opinion
[*6] http://www.julescrittenden.com/2010/05/28/he-was-supposed-to-be-competent/
[*7] http://www.abajournal.com/weekly/article/law_prof_surveys_legal_secretaries_chronicles_layoffs_conflicts_with_female
[*8] http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/theanchoress/2010/05/28/witnessing-the-heart-as-it-cracks/
[*9] http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/the-unprecedented-intensity-of-the-youcut-movement/?singlepage=true
[*10] http://www.slate.com/id/2255224/
[*11] http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/05/27/christians.unplugged/index.html?hpt=C1
[*12] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704596504575272542364164212.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_MIDDLETopOpinion
[*13] http://reason.com/blog/2010/05/29/vote-for-these-free-enterprise
[*14] http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerlsimon/2010/05/29/dennis-hopper-the-hippest-american-bikes-off/?singlepage=true
[*15] http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=solar-minimum-forecasting
[*16] http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-05-27-poll_N.htm
[*17] http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/05/27/obama-the-thin-skinned-president/
[*18] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB127517060464598905.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird
[*19] http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/covering-obama-press-encounters-nation-of-islam-95214269.html
[*20] http://www.qando.net/?p=8582
[*21] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/michele-bachmann-slams-dems-for-voting-to-give-government-employees-30-billion-10-year-raise-video/
[*22] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/obama-wont-meet-with-governor-brewer-will-attend-mccartney-concert-instead/
[*23] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/29/obama-acorn-and-stealth-socialism-dire-domestic-threat/
[*24] http://www.conservatives4palin.com/2010/05/top-kill-fails-to-stop-obama-oil-spill.html
[*25] http://www.gojacks.com//ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=15000&ATCLID=204952613
[*26] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/breaking-taliban-using-chemical-weapons-against-us-troops-4-5-troops-reportedly-fall-ill/
[*27] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/crackpot-lefist-stalker-explains-why-hes-stalking-the-palin-family-in-alaska/
[*28] http://theothermccain.com/2010/05/29/dave-weigel-joe-mcginniss-jesse-griffin-and-the-palin-hater-next-door/
[*29] http://blog.mises.org/12841/authoritarian-high-modernism/
[*30] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026415.php
[*31] http://www.conservatives4palin.com/2010/05/is-democrat-party-hack-frank-rich-even.html
[*32] http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/30/1980512/russia-seeks-eus-help-with-visas.html
[*33] http://pajamasmedia.com/richardfernandez/2010/05/30/memory-and-surival/
[*34] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026416.php
[*35] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/thanks-barack-dow-suffers-worst-may-since-1940/
[*36] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/liz-cheney-on-bill-clinton-theres-not-exactly-an-impeccable-record-of-integrity-there-on-the-part-of-the-former-president-video/
[*37] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/30/dowd-president-present-strikes-again/
[*38] http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64R35J20100530
[*39] http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2010/05/what_good_are_f.html

Contributed by: filbert Saturday, May 29 2010 @ 04:15 PM CST

We’re too broke to be this stupid [*1]

So the easiest “solution” to the problem is to throw public money at it. You know how it is when you’re at the mall and someone rattles a collection box under your nose and you’re not sure where it’s going but it’s probably for Darfur or Rwanda or Hoogivsastan. Whatever. You’re dropping a buck or two in the tin for the privilege of not having to think about it. For the more ideologically committed, there’s always the awareness-raising rock concert: it’s something to do with Bono and debt forgiveness, whatever that means, but let’s face it, going to the park for eight hours of celebrity caterwauling beats having to wrap your head around Afro-Marxist economics. The modern welfare state operates on the same principle: since the Second World War, the hard-working middle classes have transferred historically unprecedented amounts of money to the unproductive sector in order not to have to think about it. But so what? We were rich enough that we could afford to be stupid.

That works for a while.
. . .

By the way, where does the government get the money to fund all these immensely useful programs? According to a Fox News poll earlier this year, 65 per cent of Americans understand that the government gets its money from taxpayers, but 24 per cent think the government has “plenty of its own money without using taxpayer dollars.”

“Where did Obama get the funds?” “I have no idea!””I don’t know where he’s getting the money, but he’s giving it to us!”

There’s your problem, right there.

Comrade Hillary: “The Rich Are Not Paying Their Fair Share of Taxes in Any Nation” (Video) [*2] — A finer, more succinct statement of Marxism/”progressivism” would be difficult to find . . . “From each according to their ability, to each according to their need.” — Karl Marx, co-author of The Communist Manifesto. There’s only one problem: It Doesn’t Work. Ever. Anywhere. Any time it’s tried. It always devolves into dictatorship, because somebody has to decide what the rest needs. That’s the dirty little secret of “progressivism”, Marxism, communism, socialism, call it what you will. If you let any person decide for him or herself what he or she needs, that person will always say that they need MORE. This is, in the modern phraseology, “unsustainable.” Therefore, you need the Mother of All “Death Panels” — the Government — to decide Who gets What and How Much.

And that’s tyranny. Dictatorship. Command economy. Again, call it what you will. It means that YOU won’t get to decide what you do with what you create, and YOU won’t get to decide what you need and don’t need. That will be decided for you.

So, why are you still a Democrat? Morning Bell: White House in Disarray [*3]

What they got from President Obama was a glimpse of a White House in total disarray, where one hand doesn’t know what the other hand is doing and where there are more questions than answers. At 12:45 PM EDT yesterday, President Obama stood before the country and did his best to convey one clear message regarding the oil spill – the federal government is in control and that he will hold BP to account.
. . .
Unfortunately for the President, he couldn’t maintain that message for the duration of his 63-minute press conference. When it came time to questions, he admitted that the federal government just doesn’t have what it takes to keep the oil spill under control.
. . .
From total control, to lack of control, to personal responsibility – that’s heck of a mixed message. What will President Obama do with that responsibility? For one, he announced a halt to all new offshore drilling and called for the United States to move toward “investing in renewable source of energy” in order to “accelerate the competition with countries like China.” And he also warned that “easily accessible oil has already been sucked up out of the ground.”

The truth, though, is a different story. Unlike us, China is pursuing increased offshore drilling for oil, including deep-sea oil development. And for all the President’s talk about China’s alternative energy push, the reality is that China’s dependence on coal is actually growing.

Obama simply keeps spewing bullsh*t with his trademark confident voice and hypnotizing cadence, and hopes that the majority of the marks don’t catch on to the fact that he has no idea what he’s talking about. Do you actually listen to what he says, or do you let him and the Old Media mesmerize you?

Reid in virtual tie with all GOP challengers [*4]

ObamaCare: Death Panels Are a Real Concern After All [*5]

Gulf Oil Spill & the “dominant narrative of Katrina” [*6]

Obama Votes ‘Present’ on Arizona Boycott, but Not on Tea Parties [*7]

“Kagan pursued two paths on ‘don’t ask’ at Harvard” [*8]

Denver Post Embargoes Own Scoop On White House Crime [*9]

Now Writers Can Self-Publish to iBooks [*10]

Cuccinelli on Obamacare Lawsuit: ‘We Are Doing What the Founders Expected’ [*11]

Ultimately, Cuccinelli said his legal challenge to Obamacare is more than a fight over government-run health care. He said America’s first principles are at stake.

“I don’t think in my lifetime we’ve seen one statute that so erodes liberty than this health care bill,” he said. “Certainly, we view our lawsuit as being not merely about health care. That’s actually secondary to the real important aspect of the case, and that is to protect the Constitution as we essentially define the outer limits of federal power. If we lose, it’s very much the end of federalism as we’ve known it for over 220 years.”

Deep Subduction of the Indian Continental Crust Beneath Asia [*12]

Discriminating Between Discriminations — There’s a simple, handy, easy guide to understanding what discrimination is acceptable, and what isn’t: if the discrimination is acceptable to a “progressive” (i.e. discrimination against whites–especially white males–or against devout Christians, or against people with property or wealth earned through free enterprise, or against people of any race, sex, religion, or carnal inclination who actually produce more than they consume, or indeed against people who simply want to be left alone to lead their lives the best that they can without “help” from those selfsame “concerned” “progressives”) then the discrimination is not discrimination at all, but simply “making things more fair.”

White House admits pushing Sestak to drop Senate bid [*13]

An iPhone for Verizon and Sprint: Dream On [*14]

The Making of an Oil Spill [*15] — A large share of the blame needs to be laid on those who forced BP to look for oil in mile-deep sea water, rather than in more easily worked coastal waters or indeed on the dry land of northern Alaska.

4 more ebooks by Ludwig von Mises [*16]

Sestak Statement [*17]

Has Bill Clinton Broken Federal Law? [*18]

California Uber Alles and the Dead Kennedys’ Coming Revival [*19]

Woman sues airline for leaving her asleep in seat [*20]

Book publishers agree change coming; details murky [*21]

In Their Own Words: CBO Admits Obamacare Unsustainable [*22]

New Rand Paul “scandal”: We shouldn’t have birthright citizenship for illegals [*23] — Actually, I believe that the United States is one of the very few countries in the world that does allow children born within its territory of criminal entrant parents to become citizens. So, by the test of Internationalism (i.e. What Would Europe Do?) then we should certainly scrap that relic of a past age, shouldn’t we? Of course, “progressives” have never been particularly known for intellectual consistency–other than the consistent assertion of whatever policy will make them feel good about themselves at that particular time.

Tavis Smiley: Christians Are Killing People Every Single Day [*24]

Record of Previous Answers Says Sestak and White House Are Coordinating In a Lie[*25]

Sestak speaks: Hey, no biggie [*26]

The Public Education Spending Binge Must Stop [*27] — Actually, I think you can edit that to “The public spending binge must stop.” We’re driving at maximum speed off of a very high cliff, and about to see if our late model automobile called The Economy can fly.

Oh boy: Obama proposed downsizing Coast Guard crisis center three months before spill [*28] — I predict this will quickly drop down the Old Media memory hole, if indeed it ever gets widely reported in the first place. It doesn’t fit the narrative, you see.

Mitt Romney’s main strategy in the GOP primaries of 2012 is to hammer Sarah Palin as “a quitter”. Message to Mittens: it’s not going to work [*29] — I think Mitt Romney will, in the run-up to the 2012 Republican primaries, be politically torn limb from limb by a very, very, very angry pack of Tea Partiers.

Wicked good: Royals bean Boston 12-5[*30]

Bill Clinton in the limelight, Part Two [*31] — Bubba is never happier than when the spotlight is on him.

South Dakotans among kings of road when it comes to smart drivers [*32]

Jacks to play ORU for title [*33]

Gadget Patrol: iPad [*34]

Magic v. Science: Doctor Who Part III [*35]

The Asher doctrine applied [*36]

Rush is right, says … Chris Matthews? [*37]

Don’t Panic [*38]

Throwing the polar bears under the bus [*39]

Necessary Secrets: A necessary review [*40]

Is Obama the New Cheney? [*41]

Libertarian Sci Fi Anyone? [*42]

How Whales Have Changed Over 35 Million Years [*43]

King Canute is in over his head — a mile deep! [*44]

Versus America [*45]

The passage of ObamaCare dispelled the myth of the moderate Democrat. The illusion of the patriotic Democrat died in their thunderous applause for Felipe Calderon. The Democrats obviously find more in common with this shadowy foreign ally than the people of Arizona… or the wider American population, which supports Arizona’s immigration law by lopsided majorities. Any sense of unconditional loyalty to the United States is obviously not distributed evenly across all fifty of them.

Sestak not eligible for unpaid position offered? [*46]

James O’Keefe Gives His Side [*47]

Destroyed by court order: The footage of a Landrieu staffer admitting the senator’s office had no problem with their phones [*48]

Arctic Ice Volume Has Increased 25% Since May, 2008 [*49]

Noonan: Where is the competence? [*50]

White House Sestak Story Doesn’t Pass The Smell Test [*51]

Uh-Oh: “Junk Shot” Fails; “Top Kill” Halted and Being Reevaluated [*52] — Oh, man. This may cut into Wile E. Obama’s basketball and golf practices . . .

Shocker: Court Destroyed Evidence That Landrieu’s Phones Were Working Fine, Just As O’Keefe Endeavored to Establish [*53]

Hi Neighbor! — Special Guest Commentary by the Sarah Palin Homunculus that Lives Inside Liberals’ Heads [*54]

Now where were we? Oh yes, Tina Fey. Now, just the other day Tina… umm… is everything all right? I mean, you have the strangest look in your subthalamus. Oh…! Oh, this. The bikini. Funniest thing. Turns out once I’m inside a liberal’s head, It’s like poof! Off with the clothes. I tell ya, it’s gotten to the point that I really don’t even notice it anymore. No, don’t be embarrassed or ashamed, most of your friends don’t even give me the bikini.

I guess that explains why Governor Palin finds it so easy to get and stay in their heads . . .

[*1] http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/05/27/were-too-broke-to-be-this-stupid/print/
[*2] http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2010/05/comrade-hillary-the-rich-are-not-paying-their-fair-share-of-taxes-in-any-nation-video/
[*3] http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/28/morning-bell-white-house-in-disarray/
[*4] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/28/reid-in-virtual-tie-with-all-gop-challengers/
[*5] http://biggovernment.com/bgarst/2010/05/28/obamacare-death-panels-are-a-real-concern-after-all/
[*6] http://www.gaypatriot.net/2010/05/28/gulf-oil-spill-the-dominant-narrative-of-katrina/
[*7] http://biggovernment.com/jlakely/2010/05/28/obama-votes-present-on-arizona-boycott-but-not-on-tea-parties/
[*8] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026407.php
[*9] http://minx.cc/?post=302056
[*10] http://www.cultofmac.com/now-writers-can-self-publish-to-ibooks/44924
[*11] http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/28/cuccinelli-on-obamacare-lawsuit-we-are-doing-what-the-founders-expected/
[*12] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100528101552.htm
[*13] http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64R43U20100528
[*14] http://www.macnewsworld.com/story/An-iPhone-for-Verizon-and-Sprint-Dream-On-70095.html?wlc=1275062465
[*15] http://reason.com/blog/2010/05/28/the-making-of-an-oil-spill
[*16] http://blog.mises.org/12829/4-more-ebooks-by-ludwig-von-mises/
[*17] http://minx.cc/?post=302061
[*18] http://www.gaypatriot.net/2010/05/28/has-bill-clinton-broken-federal-law/
[*19] http://www.redcounty.com/california-uber-alles-and-dead-kennedys-coming-revival/40450
[*20] http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64R52C20100528
[*21] http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64R5F820100528
[*22] http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/28/in-their-own-words-cbo-admits-obamacare-unsustainable/
[*23] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/28/new-rand-paul-scandal-we-shouldnt-have-birthright-citizenship/
[*24] http://minx.cc/?post=302071
[*25] http://minx.cc/?post=302072
[*26] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/28/sestak-speaks-hey-no-biggie/
[*27] http://blog.heritage.org/2010/05/28/the-public-education-spending-binge-must-stop/
[*28] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/28/oh-boy-obama-proposed-downsizing-coast-guard-crisis-center-three-months-before-spill/
[*29] http://hillbuzz.org/2010/05/28/mitt-romneys-main-strategy-in-the-gop-primaries-of-2012-is-to-hammer-sarah-palin-as-a-quitter-message-to-mittens-its-not-going-to-work/
[*30] http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/28/1978614/royals-bean-boston-in-12-5-win.html
[*31] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026411.php
[*32] http://www.argusleader.com/article/20100529/NEWS/5290312/1001/
[*33] http://www.argusleader.com/article/20100529/SPORTS0202/5290334/1002/
[*34] http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2010/05/gadget-patrol-ipad.html
[*35] http://www.religiondispatches.org/dispatches/editorial/2651/magic_v._science%3A_doctor_who_part_iii
[*36] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026412.php
[*37] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/29/rush-is-right-says-chris-matthews/
[*38] http://minx.cc/?post=302080
[*39] http://wattsupwiththat.com/2010/05/29/throwing-the-polar-bears-under-the-bus/
[*40] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026414.php
[*41] http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/05/026413.php
[*42] http://blog.mises.org/12834/libertarian-sci-fi-anyone/
[*43] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100528211150.htm
[*44] http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2010/05/king_canute_is.html
[*45] http://www.doczero.org/2010/05/versus-america/
[*46] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/29/sestak-not-eligible-for-unpaid-position-offered/
[*47] http://biggovernment.com/patterico/2010/05/29/james-okeefe-gives-his-side/
[*48] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/29/destroyed-by-court-order-the-footage-of-a-landrieu-staffer-admitting-the-senators-office-had-no-problem-with-their-phones/
[*49] http://wattsupwiththat.com/2010/05/29/arctic-ice-volume-has-increased-25-since-may-2008/
[*50] http://hotair.com/archives/2010/05/29/noonan-where-is-the-competence/
[*51] http://biggovernment.com/jdunetz/2010/05/29/white-house-sestak-story-doesnt-pass-the-smell-test/
[*52] http://minx.cc/?post=302084
[*53] http://minx.cc/?post=302085
[*54] http://iowahawk.typepad.com/iowahawk/2010/05/hi-there-neighbor.html

Contributed by: filbert Saturday, May 29 2010 @ 12:50 PM CST

Things have stacked up again . . . let’s get started:

Ye Olde Shell Game [*1]

The desire to remake America along the lines of a European-style welfare state is running into the hardest of all possible obstacles: the lack of money. Obama’s new national security stance sends the message that all available resources are going to be shifted to saving his domestic agenda or at least keeping the domestic economic troubles from spinning out of control. That will be problematic because cutting costs must run counter to the concept that government is a solution to ‘problems’. Cap and trade, immigration reform, a vast expansion of health entitlements by definition now become national security issues. At the very least they become political job security issues. Any sufficiently effective effort to create a prosperous economy will require Obama to liquidate his ’solution’s. But they are the point of his presidency, the goal of his legion of spoils-seekers. The President is in the impossible position of standing in his own way.

Or, shorter: We Are Out Of Money. We can’t afford all of the big shiny new government ideas and projects that Obama wants in order to remake America into a European-style social-democracy worker’s paradise. Hell, Europe can’t afford it. The only reason they’ve staggered along as long as they have is that they’ve hidden behind the shield of the American military from the various barbarians at the gates, from the Russians to the radical Islamists. The Europeans have partied hearty while we paid the bills in blood and treasure to try to keep the world somewhat civilized. But now, we look with naked envy at all the fun and frivolity the Europeans are having, and via Obama and the Democrats seem bound and determined to get a drink or two of what they’re having.

This will not end well. More Obama: Let me get back to you on our possibly felonious job offer to Joe Sestak [*2] — Dear Mr. Obama: When someone refers to you as a “piece of work” they are not being complementary. And you, Sir, are definitely a Piece of Work.

Obama on My Metro Pass [*3] — Dear Leader: a Piece of Work.

Obama: If You Think I Screwed Up On the BP Disaster, You’re Just Ignorant [*4] — So sayeth the Piece of Work . . . actually, no, I’ve reconsidered. Obama is not a Piece of Work. He’s Wile E. Coyote, Genius.

Bad news: Chris Matthews’s tingle finally ends [*5] — Hmm . . . “idiotic cerebral meritocracy” . . . has a certain ring to it . . . “letting the people who do things take over” sounds even better, however. Let’s review again the utter lack of executive or business experience Wile E. Obama brought to his current position, the one he’s so disastrously failing at . . .

Joe McGinniss’s Latest Rationale: The Palins’ Neighbor Made Me Do It. [*6] — Another apparent Piece of Work, and I’m not talking about the former Alaska Governor . . .

Go ask a native of Eastern Europe–the former Soviet Bloc, now experiencing freedom, and you’ll get an earful. If you think Tea Partiers are radical, you haven’t heard anything until you spend some time with people who lived under the Soviets, and now see the same damn thing happening to the West and especially the United States. They’ve seen it before. They’re seeing it again.

DISCLOSE my ass! [*7] — I will not submit.

Royal Society to review climate consensus position [*8]

Never-say-die Jacks win tourney opener [*9]

Not All the ‘Easy’ Oil is Gone Mr. President [*10]

Not all of it. He also could have noted that billions of barrels of “easily accessible” oil have been turned into “impossible to access” oil by federal regulations and moratoria that block any access. There is still a lot of non-deep sea oil available off the cost of California that can be accessed from onshore. And, don’t forget, there are the 10 billion barrels in ANWR. All of this oil has been placed completely off limits by federal regulations.

And so, it is logical then to affix at least a portion of the responsibility for the current disaster in the Gulf to the environmentalists, the “greens,” the “progressives,” the “renewable energy” zealots, and the Democrats who have blocked exploitation of easier-to-reach oil resources in the United States.

They did this to us–at least in part. They made BP go to mile-deep Gulf water to get the oil that we and the rest of the world still needs.

We need to work on new sources of energy–primarily fusion, IMHO. We need to build lots of new nuclear fission powerplants–and yes, we need a place to store the spent fuel (and so we recall that Obama cancelled the one best place in the U.S. we found to store the stuff–Yucca Mountain.) We need better batteries or fuel cells–energy storage devices–in order to make a transition from hydrocarbons. Wind and solar power will not be adequate replacements for oil any time soon, and may not ever be a complete replacement.

The left wants to sound serious about getting off of hydrocarbons. But they don’t advocate serious policies that will actually do that.

The ultimate stealth candidate [*11] — A cautionary note on Carly Fiorina . . .

Arizona on the aegean [*12]

Obama Revises History [*13] — It’s all the Road Runner’s fault, says Wile E. Obama . .

Passing The Buck Doesn’t “Plug the D#*! Hole” [*14] — Sarah Palin asks some good questions of Wile E. Obama:

. . . why did it take nine whole days before the administration asked the Department of Defense for help in deploying equipment needed for the extreme depth spill site?

Why was the expert group assembled by Energy Commissioner Steven Chu only set up three weeks after the start of this disaster?

Why was Governor Jindal forced more than a month after the start of the disaster[*15] to go on national television to beg for materials needed to tackle the oil spill and for federal approval to build offshore sand barriers that are imperative to protect his state’s coastline?

Why was no mention of the spill made by our President for days on end while Americans waited to hear if he grasped the import of his leadership on this energy issue?

Why have several countries and competent organizations who offered help or expertise in dealing with the spill not even received a response back from the Unified Area Command to this day[*16] ?

Links are in Palin’s original.

Frontier, Midwest Confusion (Trip Report) [*17]

Death Threat: “Liberal Tolerance” On Full Display [*18] — Sometimes people wonder why I cling to the thin veneer of anonymity on this blog . . . this kind of thing is why. But I may still “come out of the closet” as a Public Libertarian/Conservative one of these fine days. I’m still thinking about it, although I am not sure Snookums would appreciate a bunch of SEIU goons on our front lawn.

So You Think You Want to Commit Novel: the idea [*19]

On plotting and optimism [*20]

Pace–It’s not a race [*21]

Lost the plot: has the television serial run out of creative lebensraum? [*22] — Stargate Universe, in particular, is atrociously bad . . . and yet I keep watching . . .

SF and religion (If thy right hand…) [*23]

Don’t leave it to Cleaver: Last call [*24]

We believe that the congressmen’s story was a fabrication intended to defame the Tea Party movement and distract attention from the resistance to Obamacare. Not a single video corroborates it, despite Andrew Breitbart’s offer of a $100,000 reward to anyone producing such a video. And no independent journalist or other eyewitness has stepped forward to vouch for the congressmen’s story.

Given the involvement of Rep. Clyburn in promoting the story, the fabrication extends to the Democratic congressional leadership. It is a scandal that warrants the attention of the mainstream media, yet the story has languished and died.

In the past several installments of this series, a total of 17 in number, we posted correspondence — both our own and that of our readers — with McClatchy News investigative editor James Asher. (All previous installments can easily be accessed via the search engine in the right border.)

Many readers — persistent, articulate, informed and observant — forwarded their correspondence with Asher to us. This correspondence powerfully points out the deficiencies of the messages we posted from Asher. The common theme of his response to us and to our readers is Asher’s demand that a witness be produced to contradict McClatchy’s story. Asher simply ignores the several videos that belie McClatchy’s story far more effectively than any witness ever could. Asher obviously has no interest in examining the merits of the story.

The great 2007 ice crunch – it wasn’t just melt [*25]

Rumor: Justice Ginsburg to Retire [*26]

Polling the oil spill [*27]

Moody’s downgrades Northwest Missouri State University bond rating [*28] — Just a random blip in the news . . .

The Alleged Absence of Depressions under Totalitarianism [*29] — Perhaps because economies under totalitarian, socialist, or even “progressive” governments are permanently depressed . . . as Mises says:

Where there is no business at all, business can be neither good nor bad. There may be starvation, and famine, but no depression in the sense in which this term is used in dealing with the problems of a market economy. Where the individuals are not free to choose, they cannot protest against the methods applied by those directing the course of production activities.

Rush Limbaugh: I know I’ll be destroyed eventually: Radio giant fears not only for his life, but also his wealth, accomplishments [*30]

Detailed metabolic profile gives “chemical snapshot” of the effects of exercise [*31]

Exercise-associated changes were seen in more than 20 metabolites, reflecting processing of sugars, fats and amino acids as fuels as well as the body’s utilization of ATP, the primary source of cellular energy. Several changes involved metabolic pathways not previously associated with exercise, including increases in niacinamide, a vitamin derivative known to enhance insulin release.