Bad Advice Begets Bad Results

Good thing this guy took Tom Menino's advice to heart, choosing not to carry a gun and to cooperate with his assailant. Otherwise, he might have got hurt.

Boston police have released surveillance video of the person wanted for killing a convenience store clerk in Jamaica Plain during a robbery Saturday.

[...]

In the video, the clerk appears to cooperate with the robber, loading money into a bag.

But he was shot to death moments later. Police did not show or release that part of the video.

The only thing he didn't do right, according to the Self Defense For Liberals Handbook, was that he failed to call 911 and wait for the police to come save the day trace the chalk outline on the floor.

It was the clerk's first week on the job. But, I'm going to go way on that limb again, and guess that this wasn't this scumbag's first violent offense.

"Scott Brown for Senate" Campaign Ad Material?

Boston Globe - October 2006:

Democrat Deval L. Patrick, who regularly decries what he calls a "Big Dig culture" on Beacon Hill, collected thousands of dollars in campaign money at a fund-raiser this month hosted by O'Neill and Associates, a firm that lobbies for the Big Dig's project manager.

The breakfast, which raised more than $20,000, took place Oct. 3, hours before Patrick complained at a debate in Springfield about the state's "inward-looking political establishment" and referred to special interests as "people who get to play, no matter who the governor is."

"I bring that outsider perspective," Patrick said at the debate. He has also aired a television ad vowing to clean up the "Big Dig culture" and cited the Big Dig as "an example of what's wrong with Beacon Hill today."

Here's Andrew Paven, a lobbyist employed by O'Neill and Associates, and who works on behalf of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, explaining how supposedly there's no actual conflict of interest at work here.

"We raise money for many candidates," said Andrew Paven, a spokesman for Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff. ``We had a breakfast fund-raiser for [US Representative] Barney Frank today. The contributors are a matter of public record."

Paven said that at Patrick's request, no one associated with the consortium nor any other Big Dig contractor was invited to the Oct. 3 fund-raiser or allowed to contribute. He said that he is the only person at O'Neill and Associates who works with Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff and that he did not attend.

"Nobody who works for any company with any work on the Big Dig was invited," he said. "They're not taking money from the Big Dig, which is why I didn't make a contribution."

Paven quite clearly asserts that he did not make a contribution, beause there would be a conflict of interest if a lobbyist for the Big Dig were to contribute to a candidate who, in his elected capacity, would have oversight responsibilities on that project.

File under: Yeah, no kidding.

This point is made again in the next paragraph.

Paven, however, acknowledged that O'Neill and Associates is paid to represent Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff. In addition, an invitation to the fund-raiser said that one of the event's sponsors was John Cahill, who is listed as a congressional lobbyist for Bechtel in 2006. Paven said Cahill did not donate to Patrick.

So, it seems pretty clear that there would be a conflict of interest for a political candidate to receive campaign contributions from lobbyists representing an entity over which that person, if elected, would have some level of authority or oversight.

Again, sounds like a no-brainer to me.

Now, suppose something tragic were to happen on that project that resulted in a loss of life, like say, a tunnel ceiling collapsed.

Clearly, the state would want to conduct an investigation on any and all defective work or substandard materials used, which may have contributed to the incident in question, and prosecute and punish the parties found responsible for the fatality in question.

Would this same conflict of interest not be in play, if it were revealed that the lobbyists for the firm overseeing the construction of the Big Dig were sending campaign contributions to the state's Attorney General and the candidate running for said office?

Meet Martha Coakley, Massachusetts Attorney General and candidate for the United States Senate.

In November 2006, Coakley was elected attorney general, replacing Tom Reilly, who had just made an unsuccessful run for governor. Her office was, and still is, responsible for prosecuting and punishing those parties found liable for the Big Dig tunnel collapse of June 2006.

Pop Quiz Time!

Guess which entity below got squeezed by Coakley for a multi-million settlement (and a lot of headlines and photo-ops) in the wake of the tunnel collapse, and which one secured a provision as part of its deal with the state that protected it from any criminal liability?

A. An epoxy manufacturer from out of state.

or

B. The project management firm responsible for approving and signing off on every nut and bolt (and adhesive product) delivered to Big Dig job sites and installed on the project (and whose lobbying firm saw its employees donate thousands to Coakley's election campaigns).

Both Paven and Cahill, cited in the Boston Globe article above, made contributions directly to Martha Coakley's election campaigns from 2006 to 2009 - actions, which by their own words, constitute a conflict of interest and carry with them the potential for corrupting of the office of candidate in question.

Exit Question: Why is the Scott Brown campaign not working this angle?

The Country's In the Best Of Hands

Judicial Watch: “Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians” for 2009

You know things have gotten out of control in Congress when Charlie Rangel only makes it into the top ten in this category on a technicality, with the number six position on the list shared by a couple of his congressional colleagues from Illinois.

UPDATE: Disregard the commentary above.

The list is presented in alphabetical order, which kind of makes more sense, seeing how it's pretty much an 11-way tie for first place. The sooner each and every one of them is removed from office, the better we'll all be.

Gettin' That Warm n' Fuzzy Feeling Again

I just can't wait until the same government that twice failed to block a terrorist from getting a visa, allowing him to board an airplane with a bomb in his pants, takes control of my family's healthcare.

What could possibly got wrong?

Learn Something New Every Day

I didn't know there was such a thing.

I'd Rather Have the Coal

Investors.com: 10 Lumps Of Coal In The Health Care Bill

#11 Fraud, fraud, and more fraud

It's a known and proven fact that a multi-billion dollar industry of fraud, corruption and deceit has built itself up around our current Medicare/Medicaid systems. Expand those systems to what will eventually become a government-run healthcare system for every man, woman, and child in the United States, and the fraud will unavoidably grow with it.

Obama stated quite emphatically, and on more than one occasion, that part of his plan to pay for Obamacare involves cracking down on fraudulent Medicare claims and reclaiming that lost money.

Yet, to the surprise of no one, there has been no action of any kind taken by Congress or the current administration to to do anything about it.

And, why would they?

Everything this administration has done seems to revolve around one common goal. Break the American economy and bring this country to economic ruin so that we can be "rescued" from this "crisis" by the same government that got us there.

Allowing billions of taxpayer dollars to be siphoned from the Treasury into the hands of criminals every year is entirely compatible with that agenda.

Also, from that list:

10. A tell-all relationship with every doctor you see: What happens in your doctor's office must be recorded in an electronic data base that can send the information to insurers and other medical offices (Senate bill, p. 62-66). Every doctor you see will have access to your medical history. See a psychiatrist? Your foot doctor will know about it.

One thing that's often overlooked in this debate is the implementation of an electronic health records database. It's easy to see how a more streamlined system of gathering and sharing information, in any industry, can improve efficiency and reduce costs.

But that's only half the equation here.

It's one thing to have medical professionals sharing information electronically on an as-needed basis. Who could argue against that (as long as the proper security measures are taken to ensure the patient's privacy)? Anyone who's had to wait for paperwork to be mailed from one doctor's office so that it could then be faxed to another doctor's office across town knows what I'm talking about.

HOWEVER...

Put the federal government in charge of this database and you're opening a can of works of epic proportion. And, it's pretty much the same people who were crying foul at the thought of government agents under the Bush administration having access to people library accounts who are now pushing for this massive intrusion of government into our most intimate and personal histories.

Break your arm while surfing? The government's gonna know about it.

Child with a nut allergy? Bureaucrats in DC will know that too.

What's the harm, you ask?

Visit a bereavement counselor following the death of a family member? Well, the federal government now has you tagged as someone who's received psychological counseling.

You didn't really want to buy that new deer rifle, did you?

If this bill passes, you can be assured that this database requirement will be in it. The federal government and the thousands of unionized employees in the healthcare bureaucracy [read: SEIU/ACORN] will have your family's entire medical history at their fingertips.

And, if you don't think that information will be used as weapon against you and your personal liberty, you haven't been paying attention.

God help us if this comes to pass in the United States of America.

I Hereby Resolve To...

...um...nope, I got nothing.

But feel free to add your own New Year's resolutions in the comments.

Merry Christmas, Everyone

And peace of Earth, goodwill toward men.

Unless those men are trying to kill you or otherwise harm you or your family, of course. In that case, feel free to mess their shit up.

Operation Scorched Earth Officially Underway

The United States Senate passed Harry Reid's crap sandwich of a health care bill this morning.

And it only took a billion or so in bribes and kickbacks, paid with the money of the taxpayers opposed to the bill, to get it done.

Despite what the headlines are telling us, there was nothing historical or earth-shattering about this morning's vote - quite the opposite in fact. You give me a bucket with a billion dollars in it, and I could buy off enough senators to pass a law mandating the wearing of propeller beanies on Tuesdays.

With this vote, and last night's vote to keep such vote-buying schemes legal, the Democrats have officially kicked off Operation Scorched Earth.

Sarah Palin tweets:

c tomrrw's Healthcare Takeover vote=the sleeping giant will awaken&action will b takn by"average"Americans as lite shines on big govt growth

She's right (again).

This vote will spark a voter backlash of massive proportion.

The Democrats know this.

And they don’t care.

If they cared about voter backlash, they’d have scrapped this pile garbage months ago and started over.

They know they’re going to get creamed in November.

And, they know this to be true, regardless of which way they voted this morning, or whether this bill becomes law or not.

So dedicated to their cause of radical leftism are they, that they're now willing to sacrifice themselves on the socialistic altar of Hopenchange in what can only be described as a scorched earth policy – a plan to inflict as much damage as possible to the private sector economy and the rights and liberty of the American individual between now and election day.

When U.S. and Allied Forces were driving Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait back in '91, he knew he was beat. He recognized that Kuwait was on the verge of liberation, so he had his men set fire to hundreds of oil wells on their way out - their way of saying "F*** YOU, AMERICA!" one last time before accepting defeat.

I've known for a long time now that our federal government is fraught with greed and corruption, and in need of real reform. But, I never thought I'd live to see the day where our elected representatives acted in such in a manner - one so diametrically opposed to the will of the citizenry - as if to say "Yeah, we're gonna get our asses beat. So, suck on this, bitches!" (i.e. "F*** YOU, AMERICA!")

And, oh yeah, that's the good news.

You want the bad news?

You ain’t seen nothing yet.

They’re just getting warmed up.

You think this healthcare bill is bad?

Don’t think for a minute that Cap & Trade is dead, just because Al Gore's empire has been exposed as the fraudulent criminal enterprise that it is. As long as there are United States Senators and Representatives willing to sell their votes and their integrity for hundreds of millions of dollars. in taxpayer-funded bribes and kickbacks, Operation Scorched Earth will continue to run its course.

Biden said it best: Gird your loins.

You Know Who's Gonna Need Health Insurance?

The manufacturer of this crappy bargain store wrapping paper. It's got the tensile strength of mayonnaise.

The Most Open and Ethical Congress....EVER!!!

The United States Senate voted today, largely along party lines, to keep taxpayer-funded bribery and coercion legal in the United States Congress.

Because using hundreds of millions of the taxpayers money to bribe fellow lawmakers to vote in favor of legislation that those same taxpayers are overwhelmingly opposed to is, like, all Hopeychangey and stuff.

Thank you, Jeanne Shaheen for sticking your middle finger in the eyes of the people of New Hampshire, and everyone who believes, as our Founding Fathers did, in the concept of representative government.

I hope we get the chance to return the favor someday soon.

Constitution Shmonstitution

Who cares about all that technical crap like whether this bill is, in fact, constitutional, when you have the chance to cram a multi-trillion-dollar tax-hiking fraudfest up the country's dirtpipe on the day before Christmas, during a period of double-digit unemployment?

Detroit News: Cox, 6 other state AGs probe health care deal

I Knew It Was Missing Something

Anyone seen my Pol Pot ornament?

The Colgate Defense

Color me skeptical.

State Sen. Anthony D. Galluccio has failed random alcohol tests - blaming his toothpaste - while on home confinement less than a week after pleading guilty to a hit-and-run crash in Cambridge.

Exit Question: What's this guy doing in the Massachusetts State Senate? He's clearly United States Senate material.

"It was Bush's the toothpaste's fault!!!"

Attention All Planets of the Solar Federation...

...this blog turned 2112 days old today.

Wake Up...

...and smell the commie.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 25% of the nation's voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-six percent (46%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -21 That’s the lowest Approval Index rating yet recorded for this President.

America seems to be coming to the realization that they were lied to and manipulated in a big, big way last year during the presidential campaign.

Exit questions:

1. Is it too late to right the ship and put an end to the Obama administration's efforts to destroy the country's economy and usher in a new socialistic era of Hopenchange?

2. Had McCain prevailed in '08, how big a shit sandwich of a "comprehensive" healthcare reform bill would he already have signed into law by now in order to show his willingness to bend us over the end of the sofa reach across the aisle?

3. Is 10:30 AM to early for scotch?

These Polling Numbers Would Mean Something...

...if our federal government was made up of people who actually gave a crap about what the People wanted.

Quinnipiac:

As the Senate prepares to vote on health care reform, American voters "mostly disapprove" of the plan 53 - 36 percent and disapprove 56 - 38 percent of President Barack Obama's handling of the health care issue, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

[...]

From December 15 - 20, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,616 registered voters nationwide with a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percentage points.

Note the dates. This polling does not reflect the respondents' opinion of, and reaction to Harry Reid's late-night bribery and corruption gambit.

Puttin' On the Shocked Face

Heritage.org: Left Now Admitting Obamacare Full of Budget Gimmicks

Why, it's almost as if we're bring lied to.

Again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

I'll Have What This Guy's Smoking

Obama: We Can't Treat Tax Dollars Like "Monopoly Money"

And, he's got the nerve to sling this bullshit the day after this party's leader in the Senate gave a fellow lawmaker billion dollar-plus bribe to buy his vote.

The government is broken.

Burn it down.

Vote them ALL out.

Start over.

***** NH DEMS PASS BACK-DOOR GUN BAN *****

From Gun Owners of New Hampshire:

GUNS BANNED IN THE STATEHOUSE!

They have BANNED GUNS in the statehouse! The Joint Committee on Legislative Facilities, the committee that typically decides on what color to paint the halls, repair the roof, amount of salaries and other housekeeping matters have decided to TAKE AWAY your second amendment rights!! No notice, no opportunity to be heard, nothing! GO-NH has friends everywhere (and thank goodness to a Republican friend for this scoop minutes after the vote, he called the GO-PHONE to report this travesty of justice).

The NH Legislative Facilities Committee voted today to ban firearms in the NH State House.

This is a Joint Committee, and members are:

Sylvia Larsen (D)
Terie Norelli (D)
Margaret Hassan (D)
Mary Jane Wallner (D)
Peter Bragdon (R)
Sherman Packard (R)
Lou D'Allesandro (D)
Marjorie Smith (D)
Daniel Eaton (D)
Gene Chandler (R)
Martha Fuller Clark (D)
Sheila Roberge (R)

The Joint Facilities committee just passed by an 8-3 vote (party lines)
the following regulation on the State House:

"No person, except for law enforcement personnel in active duty, shall
carry a firearm or other dangerous or deadly weapon or an explosive,
openly or concealed, while inside the State House, the Legislative
Office Building, the Upham Walker House, or any of the underground
tunnels connected to these buildings. Law enforcement personnel, when
requested by State House security staff, must produce sufficient
identification establishing their status as law enforcement personnel."

They tried and were unsuccessful in early 2008 to enact this gun ban through lawful legislative channels. So, now, in the spirit of open and transparent government (aka: Hopenchange) they've decided to pack a committee full of freedom-hating statists and ram it through when no one was paying attention, and with no public notice or legislative hearings.

Gee, why does that strategy sound so familiar?

"...but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here."

I Guess It All Depends...

...on one's definition of victory.

US President Barack Obama has hailed the Senate's healthcare vote as a "big victory for the American people".

If, by "victory", you mean "middle finger", then yeah.

He said the Senate showed it could "stand up to the special interests" and move the nation closer to a health insurance overhaul for the country as a whole.

And, by "special interests", he means "American citizens".

This Is Just Awful

If only there was something we could do to warm the globe.

Dozens of people have died across Europe as days of snow storms and sub-zero temperatures swept the continent, causing traffic chaos for millions.

At least 29 people froze to death in Poland as temperatures fell far below freezing, while in southern Germany a figure of -33C (-27F) was recorded.

Help us, Gore-bi Wan Kenobi. You're our only hope.

Race-Baiting Scumbag of the Day

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI):

They are desperate to break this president. They have ardent supporters who are nearly hysterical at the very election of President Barack Obama. The birthers, the fanatics, the people running around in right-wing militia and Aryan support groups, it is unbearable to them that President Barack Obama should exist.

Says the morally upright individual who voted in the dead of night, on the last weekend before Christmas, to pass legislation that is so unpopular that members of his own party had to be bribed with hundreds of millions of taxpayers' dollars in order to secure their votes.

Why am I not shocked to see a so-called "progressive" member of Congress spewing such nonsensical and racially-divisive rhetoric?

Seriously, Sheldon, the race card is so 2008.

In case you were wondering...

...what a power-hungry jackass with a badge looks like.

Test For Echo

Switched over to the upgraded Echo commenting this morning.

We'll see how this goes.

Not To Worry, People

I'm sure President Barack "No More Backroom, Business-As-Usual Politics" Obama will refuse to sign any bill that makes its way to his desk via such a corrupted pathway of bribery, threats, and deceit.

What?

Again, with the laughing.

What's up with that?

Ben Nelson

Whore.

Barack Obama: Hawaiian Secessionist?

I guess it's only racism if Alaska does it.

Mainstream media outrage in 10...9...

Oh, wait.

Never mind.

Nice to see that socialized health care isn't the only legislation Obama's trying to ram up the People's backside without anyone knowing about it.

Gotta mix it up, dontcha know.

It's All About Saving the Planet

Saving it from the shackles of individual liberty and economic freedom, that is.

Putting our economy in the hands of Chavez fans

It's come to this - an American president who has more in common, ideologically speaking, with the likes of Chavez and Mugabe, than he does with the American citizenry.

Is it 2010 yet?

Euphemism of the Day

CBS News: U.S. National Debt Tops Debt Limit

The latest calculation of the National Debt as posted by the Treasury Department has - at least numerically - exceeded the statutory Debt Limit approved by Congress last February as part of the Recovery Act stimulus bill.

The ceiling was set at $12.104 trillion dollars. The latest posting by Treasury shows the National Debt at nearly $12.135 trillion.

A senior Treasury official told CBS News that the department has some "extraordinary accounting tools" it can use to give the government breathing room in the range of $150-billion when the Debt exceeds the Debt Ceiling.

Hot Air commenter, lorien1973, for the win:

So did ENRON

Don't Hold Your Breath

From the dedication page of this Algorian cultist handbook.

To Malia and Sasha Obama,
in thanks for sharing your dad
so he can save the world

T.F.

Let's play "Spot the Savior/Disciple Complex".

Great Place to Visit,,,

...but, you couldn't pay me enough to live there.

Despite its good intentions, San Francisco is not leading the country in gay marriage. Despite its good intentions, it is not stopping wars. Despite its spending more money per capita on homelessness than any comparable city, its homeless problem is worse than any comparable city's. Despite its spending more money per capita, period, than almost any city in the nation, San Francisco has poorly managed, budget-busting capital projects, overlapping social programs no one is certain are working, and a transportation system where the only thing running ahead of schedule is the size of its deficit.

And here's a shocker.

Are you sitting down?

No, seriously, you'd never see this one coming.

I swear.

Seems over-priced union labor contracts might have something to do with it.

I know.

Me too.

What Do They Care?

It's not like it's their money.

Critics slam Deval Patrick over hiring spree

The Patrick administration filled more than 1,300 state jobs this year - including a librarian for cons, a painter for hospitals and a “game biologist” - in a hiring frenzy that has watchdogs questioning whether the governor has a tight grip on hiring in the face of a dire fiscal crisis.

A Herald payroll analysis also indicates scores of the lucky job-seekers also gave generously to Gov. Deval Patrick’s election campaign.

The hiring flurry is alarming state budget observers who slammed the governor for dishing out plum posts - including 20 that carry salaries of $100,000 or more - with no apparent rhyme or reason.

OK, I can see how a lot of people were persuaded to vote for this bullshit-slinging con artist, but anyone still in this guy's camp either has a screw loose or is in on the scam.

Meanwhile, in the snakepit of progressivism that is our nation's capital...

D.C. hands out $15M in bonuses despite recession, budget gaps

The economy has been in the dumps for years, but the good times keep on rolling for some favored D.C. employees.

City officials have doled out nearly $15 million in bonuses and awards since Mayor Adrian Fenty took office in January 2007, records obtained by The Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act show.

Among the big winners were Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, who was handed $41,250 in August 2007 after barely two months on the job; Department of Health Director Pierre Vigilance, who was given $15,000 in 2008; and city property manager Robin-Eve Jasper, handed $18,000 over two years.

Whose idea was it to let a truckload of drunken badgers work the overnight shift down at the 24-hour Liquor Barn?

Hope and Change

"Vote against the wishes and best interest of your constituents, or we'll see to it that 10,000 of them lose their jobs as soon as possible."

Chicago thuggery is alive and well.

And, THIS Time, He MEANS IT!!!

Gore At Climate Talks: Polar Ice May Go In 5 Years

COPENHAGEN -- New computer modeling suggests the Arctic Ocean may be nearly ice-free in the summertime as early as 2014, Al Gore said Monday at the U.N. climate conference.

What?

Why is everybody laughing?

This is SERIOUS, people!!!

UPDATE: Needless to say, "computer modeling", is Algorian for "rectal data extraction".

Mr Gore, speaking at the Copenhagen climate change summit, stated the latest research showed that the Arctic could be completely ice-free in five years.

In his speech, Mr Gore told the conference: “These figures are fresh. Some of the models suggest to Dr [Wieslav] Maslowski that there is a 75 per cent chance that the entire north polar ice cap, during the summer months, could be completely ice-free within five to seven years.”

However, the climatologist whose work Mr Gore was relying upon dropped the former Vice-President in the water with an icy blast.

“It’s unclear to me how this figure was arrived at,” Dr Maslowski said. “I would never try to estimate likelihood at anything as exact as this.”

Mr Gore’s office later admitted that the 75 per cent figure was one used by Dr Maslowksi as a “ballpark figure” several years ago in a conversation with Mr Gore.

The science is settled. Al Gore is a total fraud.

Must Be Grading On a Curve

Or, it's one of those tests where you got to switch papers with the kid sitting next to you (Axelrod) for correcting and grading purposes.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama, in an interview that aired Sunday, gave himself "a good solid B-plus" grade for his first year in office.

Link via AoSHQ, where commenter 'Star Witness' notes:

The really scary thing is that he's suggesting there is very little room for improvement. In other words, this year was nearly a best-case scenario.

UPDATE: America begs to differ, you narcissistic fruitball.



I'm not one to post a lot of polling results like this, for reasons I've stated several times in the past. But, with every polling outfit around showing the same trend - Obama's approval numbers dropping like a rock in a vacuum - it's simply astonishing (well, not really) that President Walkonwater thinks he's honor roll material.

Funny side note: The last I checked, Obama's best set of approval numbers were coming from that renowned water-carrying, Obamapologist outfit known as Fox News. I'll try to find the link.

Alternate Post Title: Must Be Grading on a Curve Hockey Stick

Govern THIS, Pal

This is quite possibly the most intellectually bereft assemblage of words, phrases and punctuation you'll read all week.

Matthew Yglesias: Ungovernable America

The smarter elements in Washington DC are starting to pick up on the fact that it’s not tactical errors on the part of the president that make it hard to get things done, it’s the fact that the country has become ungovernable.

A country founded on the principles of economic freedom and individual liberty, and populated with people who believe in such things should be ungovernable by a devoted disciple of Karl Marx, raised on the tenets of radical leftism, with the raw sewage of Chicago thug politics flowing in his veins, and who finds such principles offensive and considers them an obstacle to power.

This "ungovernability" of which he speaks is a feature, not a bug.

Seems to me like he's all bent out of shape over the realization that the American people are, by and large, so darned "uncontrollable". What's wrong with us? Don't we know what best for us???

According to Yglesias and all the other like-minded "smarter elements" polluting our nation's capital, we should all roll over and let Obama, Pelosi, Reid and Holder have their way with us and our families.

For our own good.

Yeah, I'm gonna have to pass on that option.

Got All Your Christmas Shopping Done Yet?

No?

Good.

Because you still have time to pop on over to the Gadsden and Culpeper American Heritage Shoppe and check out their new items (t-shirts, flags, lapel pins, fleece blanket, etc.).

And, be sure to use the code DTOM for free shipping.

Mmmm...free.

Musical Interlude

Exit Question: After Gunpowder and Lead, who the hell's gonna even consider cheating on this woman?

Getting Ready For the 2012 Circus

(AKA: The New Hampshire Presidential Primary season)

Question: If we can have an election day in this country, why not a primary election day? Is it fair to have a party nomination system in place wherein half the population (to pull a number out of my nether regions) has no say in selecting a candidate?

WMUR: Both Sides Of The Aisle Work On 2012 Primary Calendar

Also, I'd like to see polling hours shifted so that every state's polls close at the same time.

Thoughts?

Coming Soon...

...to a once-free country near you.

State ups fine for health-reform scofflaws

The [Massachusetts] Department of Revenue will levy annual penalties of up to $1,116, or $93 per month, on individuals who don’t have health insurance in 2010.

That’s up roughly 5 percent from this year’s penalty of $1,068 per year, or $89 per month. There is no penalty for individuals who earn up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level.

Boston Globe - January 2007:

But, Monsieur, it is just a wafer-thin $200 fine!

(H/T Jim)

Hope and Change...

...meet Command and Control.

The Obama administration is warning Congress that if it doesn't move to regulate greenhouse gases, the Environmental Protection Agency will take a "command-and-control" role over the process in way that could hurt business.

[...]

But while administration officials have long said they prefer Congress take action on climate change, the economic official who spoke with reporters Tuesday night made clear that the EPA will not wait and is prepared to act on its own.

And it won't be pretty.

"If you don't pass this legislation, then ... the EPA is going to have to regulate in this area," the official said. "And it is not going to be able to regulate on a market-based way, so it's going to have to regulate in a command-and-control way, which will probably generate even more uncertainty."

And, by "uncertainty", they mean "economic doom".

The worst part is, they know there's no uncertainty about it.

The only question that remains is whether or not this ongoing campaign to destroy the private sector economy is being perpetrated intentionally, or is it merely the end result of the gross incompetence of this administration.

God, I hope there's still a viable country here when November 2010 rolls around.

Our Country Is In the Best Of Hands

These are the same morons who make my kids take off their Crocs, so that they can be screened for explosives.

In a massive security breach, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inadvertently posted online its airport screening procedures manual, including some of the most closely guarded secrets regarding special rules for diplomats and CIA and law enforcement officers.

The most sensitive parts of the 93-page Standard Operating Procedures manual were apparently redacted in a way that computer savvy individuals easily overcame.

The document shows sample CIA, Congressional and law enforcement credentials which experts say would make it easy for terrorists to duplicate.

While waiting to board our flight home from Florida on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, a TSA agent who was doing extra "security" screening at the gate asked to see my ID and boarding pass.

He explained to me, in a voice that everyone could hear, that the reason he was asking was that I was the eighth person in line, and that he had to check the ID of every eighth person standing in line.

How anyone could ever possibly thwart such a foolproof and airtight security measure is beyond me.

We Were Warned!

The "experts" kept telling us that if large groups of conservative Americans continued to congregate across the country, we'd start to see these aggressive acts of violence taking place.

And they were right!

A man was arrested for allegedly throwing two tomatoes at Sarah Palin from the second floor balcony during a book signing event at the Mall of America in Minnesota, MyFoxTwinCities.com. reported.

Neither tomato came close hitting the former 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, but did hit a police officer in the face, the station reported.

I guess it all depends on one's definition of "tolerance".

Tell me when you detect a pattern.

I Thought That Sounded Familiar

Wall Street Journal - December 2009:

If Democrats want faster job creation by next November, they'll do nothing at all.

[...]

Adjourn for the year, spend December with the family, come back in 2011.

No Looking Backwards - July 2009:

You Really Wanna Save the Economy?

Give every member of Congress, and his or her support staff, a year-long vacation.

Product Reviews in Six Words or Less

This thing could flush a cat.

Back Off, Pigs!!!

Or I'll bounce a BB off my head!

Give Us $14 TRILLION, Or the Planet Gets It!

Anyone who still argues that this is about saving the planet from any of a number of batted-around apocalyptic doomsday scenarios is either dumber that a bag of kindling, or is getting a cut of the action.

Either way, for the betterment of society they should be kept locked away somewhere to avoid any accidental contact with our children.

Upfront money needed to ease UN climate deal

Money on the table — perhaps $10 billion a year or more — could help close a deal in Denmark next month and keep climate talks moving toward a new global treaty in 2010. But if poorer nations see too little offered up front, the U.N. conference could end in discord.

The money would help developing countries cope with ocean flooding, drought and other effects of climate change, while also helping them cut down on emissions of global-warming gases. The funds might eventually come from new sources, such as a tax on airline flights, but negotiators for now are seeking quicker infusions.

"Rich countries must put at least $10 billion a year on the table to kick-start immediate action up to 2012," the U.N. climate chief, Yvo de Boer, told reporters last week in a preview of the two-week conference opening next Monday in Copenhagen.

And, of course, that $10 billion is just the down payment. Check out the installment plan these shakedown racketeers have in mind.

The World Bank estimates adaptation costs alone will total $75 billion to $100 billion a year over the next 40 years. The cost of mitigation — reducing carbon emissions in poorer nations — will add tens of billions to that. China and other developing countries say the target should be even higher, in the range of $350 billion.

De Boer's $10 billion a year to 2012 is barely a start. But "kick-start finance is so important because such finance will allow developing countries to plan," he told The Associated Press.

Hey, what's $14 trillion between comrades?

And, with the predictability of the sunrise, they're ratcheting up the fear mongering with (surprise, surprise!) no mention whatsoever of the CRU e-mails that threaten to derail their efforts to turn us into a third world planet.

The needs are becoming increasingly clear.

Well, one thing is becoming increasingly clear, that's for sure.

An international scientific update last week said changes are happening faster than anticipated. Global temperatures are rising by 0.19 degrees C (0.34 degrees F) per decade, pushing the world into a time of climate disruption, species die-off and expanding seas. Oceans are rising by 3.4 millimeters (0.13 inches) per year, faster than predicted.

"It threatens to submerge the Maldives. My country would not survive," Mohamed Nasheed, president of that low-lying Indian Ocean island nation, told a conference of vulnerable nations earlier this month.

If anything should be causing the sea level to rise, it's the volume of water displaced by the weighted down bodies of these criminals.

Like Hitting a 15kV Line with a Shovel

Shocking.

Denmark is the centre of a comprehensive tax scam involving CO2 quotas, in which the cheats exploit a so-called ‘VAT carrousel’, reports Ekstra Bladet newspaper.

Police and authorities in several European countries are investigating scams worth billions of kroner, which all originate in the Danish quota register. The CO2 quotas are traded in other EU countries.

Why, it's almost as if fraud, graft, and corruption were the driving forces in getting bullshit scams like this enacted in the first place.

Rules of Thumb: Hopenchange Edition

#21:

Hacking into another person's e-mail, business records, or personal information is only acceptable if the person in question is a Republican candidate for office.

Or a plumber.

Sound Advice

From my good friend, and future press secretary, DoubleTrouble @ Rattail Bastard:

Ladies & Gents, don’t go around trying to impress people with your worldly experience, & likewise, don’t attempt to inculcate the unwashed masses with your brilliance, especially if the exactness of your grandeur is known only to you.

So Much Fail...

...so few paragraphs.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The small-town cop who zapped an unruly 10-year-old girl with his stun gun has been fired for violating department policy - not for using the Taser itself but for failing to use the camera attached to it.

Officer Dustion Bradshaw was called to the home Nov. 11 after the girl’s mom couldn’t get her to shower. He reported the girl was “verbally combative” and kicked him.

“The policy that Officer Bradshaw failed to obey is failure to have his camera placed on his Taser,” Chief Jim Noggle wrote.

I was going to highlight the stupid parts, but really, what would be the point?

First Amendment Be Damned

I'm the last person who would advocate for governmental restrictions on an individual's right to free speech, but would it be too much to ask for a ban on all future use of the suffixes "-gate" and "-palooza"?

A Wrinkle in Timeline

1979: Global cooling is coming. The science is settled. The debate is over.

1999: Global warming is coming. The science is settled. The debate is over.

2009: Climate change is coming. The science is settled. The debate is over.

2019: Radioactive monkeys from Saturn are coming. The science is settled. The debate is over.