Monday, March 30, 2009
Rep. Manzullo to Geithner: Your Plan Is 'Radical'
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In testimony before the House Financial Services committee that just adjourned, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner just had to defend his institutional takeover plan against charges of radicalism.
Rep. Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.) asked.
Geither began, before Manzullo interrupted him.
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In testimony before the House Financial Services committee that just adjourned, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner just had to defend his institutional takeover plan against charges of radicalism.
"Do you realize how radical your proposal is?"
Rep. Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.) asked.
"It's not radical. . ."
Geither began, before Manzullo interrupted him.
"You're talking about seizing private businesses and you don't consider that radical?"
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Just 11% Say Government Can Run Financial Institutions Better
Only 11% of Americans think a financial institution will run better if it’s run by the federal government, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Sixty-seven percent (67%) say the institution will not run better, and 22% aren’t sure.
Eighty percent (80%) of Republicans, 67% of unaffiliateds and 56% of Democrats do not believe the government will run it better.
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Researchers: Cyber spies break into govt computers
A cyber spy network based mainly in China has tapped into classified documents from government and private organizations in 103 countries, including the computers of Tibetan exiles, Canadian researchers said Saturday.
Once the hackers infiltrated the systems, they gained control using malware — software they install on the compromised computers — and sent and received data from them, the researchers said.
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Spy chiefs fear Chinese cyber attack
Intelligence chiefs have warned that China may have gained the capability to shut down Britain by crippling its telecoms and utilities
They have told ministers of their fears that equipment installed by Huawei, the Chinese telecoms giant, in BT’s new communications network could be used to halt critical services such as power, food and water supplies...
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China fury at US military report
Beijing has reacted angrily to a Pentagon report on China's military power, which claimed it was altering the military balance in Asia. A foreign ministry spokesman called it a ''gross distortion of the facts'', and urged an end to ''Cold War thinking''.
In its annual report to Congress, the Pentagon said China was developing ''disruptive'' technologies for nuclear, space and cyber warfare.
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Cybersecurity Chief Resigns
[HT:BM]
The government's coordinator for cybersecurity programs has quit, criticizing what he described as the National Security Agency's grip on cybersecurity. Rod Beckstrom, a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur, said in his resignation letter that the NSA's central role in cybersecurity is "a bad strategy" because it is important to have a civilian agency taking a key role in the issue. The NSA is part of the Department of Defense.
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Damascus set to receive MiG 31E planes
Damascus will take receipt of advanced MiG 31E fighter jets in the near future, the outgoing head of the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency Lt.-Gen. Michael D. Maples told the Senate earlier this month.
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Defense Ministry eyes possible lift of US ban on foreign sales of F-22 fighter
The Defense Ministry will closely follow discussions in Congress next month over the United States' 2010 fiscal defense budget amid growing speculation that a ban on foreign sales of the stealth F-22 fighter jet may be lifted to keep the threatened production line alive.
Israel has in the past expressed interest in the fifth-generation aircraft manufactured by Lockheed Martin, but has been unable to place an order due to a congressional ban on foreign exports.
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'UAVs hit Gaza-bound weapons convoys'
Israel used unmanned aircraft in a series of attacks on Iranian convoys in Sudan which were attempting to smuggle long-range missiles into the Gaza Strip, according to a report in London's Sunday Times.
The Sunday report quoted Israeli defense forces as saying that the strikes, which were widely reported last week, were carried out by Israeli-made Hermes 450 drones.
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Nearly 70 tons of explosives smuggled into Gaza since IDF op
Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin on Sunday briefed the cabinet on ongoing efforts to stem the smuggling of weapons into the Gaza Strip Dozens of tons of explosives have been smuggled into the Strip since Israel concluded its three-week offensive against the Hamas leadership in January, Diskin said.
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Yes, Hugo Cheated
Democracy: In a little-noted agency hearing, the CIA admitted that Venezuela's Hugo Chavez rigged his recall referendum in 2004.
So why does he still merit global recognition as a democratically elected leader? Anyone who steals an election has no claim to democracy.
But somehow there's an exception for Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, who's still recognized as a "democratically elected" leader by the U.S. and others...
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Dodd's 'Democrat' Tightens His Grip
Hugo Chávez's threat last week to bring tanks to the streets if his side does not win key states in Sunday's gubernatorial elections is chilling. But it is not surprising. It is only the next logical step in what is the Venezuelan president's drive to seize all power and silence all dissent.
[the Dodd reference explained within]
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Obama, Charity, and 'Fairness'
Leave it to Barack Obama to justify a tax proposal that would significantly reduce the amounts going to charity -- on grounds the proposal is necessary for "fairness."
But the real reason is not "fairness." As Randy Shaw, the editor of BeyondChron (San Francisco's Alternative Online Daily), wrote earlier this week, there is a much different goal:
Even if we accept that charitable giving would decline by nearly $4 billion under Obama's plan, this critique addresses the wrong issue. The key question is whether the United States is better off having wealthy taxpayers pay more toward funding universal health care, or rather are free to give more billions to Harvard and Yale, more billions to elite art museums, and to otherwise spend tax dollars [?] in a way that does not address a pressing public priority.
And there you have it: the 'problem' is that taxpayers can benefit charities of their choice, rather than send the money to Washington to "address a pressing public priority" the government deems more important.
Shaw concluded that opponents of Obama's plan "miss the big picture" -- which is that
"Government, not private donors, should decide how tax dollars are allocated."
Implicit in this view is the conclusion that charitable contributions are actually the government's money -- and the government wants part of it back.
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"There are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations."
James Madison, "Father of the Constitution"
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Will A Weaker America Be A More ''Just'' America?
President Barack Obama has no intention of helping to grow the United States economy. On the contrary, he is doing everything a President can do to weaken it. I know that sounds harsh. Maybe it seems outrageously ''partisan.'' Maybe it just seems outrageous.
But after roughly ten weeks, Obama has consistently proposed ideas and plans (and in one case signing legislation) that will weaken the U.S. economy...
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'Make the World Safe for Tax Increases'
[meanwhile, in the MSM...]
You know what President Barack Obama's real economic problem is? He's not raising taxes enough.
On top of that he needs to raise taxes not only on the very wealthy but on almost everybody else. That is the opinion of Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne, Jr.. Here is Dionne recommending that Obama raise taxes on nearly everyone:
"The debate on the budget is phony, the howling on deficits a charade. Few politicians want to acknowledge that if you really are concerned about long-term deficits, you have to support tax increases."
Somehow Dionne just can't seem to find anything in all the "stimulus" earmark pork that can be cut. Nope. Can't do it. The answer MUST be to raise taxes on almost everybody...
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"We don't have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven't taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much."
-- Ronald Reagan
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30% Say Government Should Limit Pay for Athletes and Movie Stars
Thirty percent (30%) of Americans believe the government should make it illegal to pay movie stars and athletes more than $1 million per year.
There is a more support—but not much more--for capping the pay of corporate executives. Thirty-six percent (36%) say the federal government should make it illegal to pay any executive more than $1 million a year.
The majority (54%), however, disagree.
[Still, ~1 in 3. How is that possible in America? My answers:
> An education system that no longer teaches the founding principles of this country.
> A political party that promotes class envy and enslaves groups with government handouts.
> A media that ceaselessly promotes both.
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50M G20 Summit Is an Exercise in Colossal Vanity
International summits are little more than colossal exercises in political vanity. Full of hot air and meaningless photo opportunities they are designed purely to feed the self-importance of the global oligarchy.
Politicians like to see themselves as heroic figures grappling with the world’s problems but in reality are incapable of achieving anything beyond the misuse of public money...
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Just In Time For 'Earth Hour': Americans Care Less Than Ever About Globaloney
Gallup has issued two polls in the past couple of weeks showing that the reality is breaking through the non-stop, years-long propaganda blitz known properly known as the Great Global Warming Hoax:
- On March 11, the pollster told us that a record-high 41% now say it is media coverage on the topic is exaggerated.
- On March 19, we were informed that "For the first time in Gallup's 25-year history of asking Americans about the trade-off between environmental protection and economic growth, a majority of Americans say economic growth should be given the priority, even if the environment suffers to some extent." And it's a 51-42 rout.
"global warming is clearly the environmental issue of least concern. In fact, global warming is the only issue for which more Americans say they have little to no concern than say they have a great deal of concern."
Media attention has been, as one would expect, virtually nil.
A New York Times advanced search on "Gallup environment" (not in quotes) shows no primary results, only references to Times blogs on the right of the results. A Google News search on "Gallup warming" (again not in quotes) for March 25-26 comes back with four results. Only two besides the Gallup poll itself were directly relevant.
Americans' growing resistance to threatened globaloney mandates and Europeans' flat-out refusal to go along with them (a possible topic for another post, if it can be kept shorter than a book; the tide of European anti-globaloney news is almost overwhelming**) continue to be among the most under-reported stories of the year.
[**That's key: do not believe the EU government/media's contention that America is somehow a hold out: most of the EU nations citizens are ahead of us in admitting that the Green Emperor has no cloths (as you'll note by the origin of most climate-reality pieces coming to the fore).
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Environmentalists hail Earth Hour as a big success
For environmental activists, the message was clear: Earth Hour was a huge success. Now they say nations have a mandate to tackle climate change."The world said yes to climate action, now governments must follow,"
the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said a day after some followed its call to turn off lights for an hour.
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[Big success? ... ]
No Drop in Elecricity Usage in NY and CA at Earth Hour
The Greenies did not convince the average liberal New Yorkers and Californians to turn off their lights at the appointed Earth Hour of 8:30 PM local time. By looking at real time data in New York and California, there was no drop in electric usage...
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Copenhagen: Environmental Munich
[HT:SP]
Climate: Czech President Vaclav Klaus once called global warming a new religion, a Trojan horse for imposing a global tyranny worse than communism. Details about the Copenhagen Conference prove how right he was.
A 16-page informational note obtained by Fox News outlines the goals and agenda of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a body paving the way to Copenhagen with good intentions. Behind this alphabet soup is a list of ideas and talking points for what the U.N. calls an "ambitious and effective international response to climate change."
We're not sure how effective it will be, but it's certainly ambitious as it seeks to reorder the world economy in a de facto repeal of the Industrial Revolution. Under the supervision of the U.N., free trade would die, industries that survived could be relocated across borders, and we would have mandatory carbon offsets and cap-and-trade imposed on a global scale...
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Telling CO2 Lies to Destroy America
The Wall Street Journal
My friend, the internationally famed climatologist, Dr. S. Fred Singer, calls them “the CO2 wars.” It is the last ditch attempt by the Greens, under the aegis of the Obama administration, to declare carbon dioxide a pollutant and thus open the door to its regulation. Singer says such regulation“would be the equivalent of an atomic bomb directed at the U.S. economy—all without any scientific justification.”
When it comes to CO2, Obama, his so-called science advisors, and the Environmental Protection Agency are all lying. It is governmental gangsterism.
As reported in The Wall Street Journal,“The Environmental Protection Agency has sent the White House a proposed finding that carbon dioxide is a danger to public health, a step that could trigger a clampdown on emissions of so-called greenhouse gases across a wide swath of the economy.”
Here are a few things you need to keep in mind about carbon dioxide: [I.e., the argument it's a polutant or harmful to life is inane... snip]
As the Wall Street Journal noted,“The administration has proposed a cap-and-trade system that could raise $646 billion by 2019 through government auctions of emission allowances.”
The EPA proposal is not about science. It is about power and it is about money...
[Highly Recommended > ]
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Look who's sneaking into the country using known drug routes
[HT:SN]
It's Hezb'allah and they are getting assistance from Mexican drug cartels:
Hezbollah is using the same southern narcotics routes that Mexican drug kingpins do to smuggle drugs and people into the United States, reaping money to finance its operations and threatening U.S. national security, current and former U.S. law enforcement, defense and counterterrorism officials say.
Logically, we should be able to kill two birds with one stone by stepping up border security - interdict drugs and stop Hezb'allah from infiltrating America. But that would require the will to do so.
And it doesn't appear that there is a will to do much except marginally improve border security while talking about what a wonderful job the government is doing to protect us...
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Delay in Immigration Raids May Signal Policy Change
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has delayed a series of proposed immigration raids and other enforcement actions at U.S. workplaces in recent weeks, asking agents in her department to apply more scrutiny to the selection and investigation of targets as well as the timing of raids, federal officials said.
A senior department official said the delays signal a pending change in whom agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement choose to prosecute...
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Napolitano says thanks but no thanks, DHS has funds
The head of the Department of Homeland Security turned down an offer for more money to fight crime along the U.S.’s southern border, saying she’ll pay for it with the funds she has.
At a meeting of the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday, committee Chairman Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said he requested an additional $380 million in funds for enhanced border protection....
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Examiner Editorial: Adopt-A-Highway services stalled by political correctness
No new permits have been issued since last June for California’s popular Adopt-A-Highway volunteer program, where businesses and organizations pick up garbage along state highways in exchange for a small roadside sign recognizing their efforts.
The San Diego Minutemen were approved for a litter pickup permit in November 2007, then randomly (also cluelessly) assigned to clean a two-mile stretch of northbound Interstate 5 passing a major Border Patrol checkpoint a few miles from the Tijuana gateway.
Within days after the “San Diego Minutemen” roadside sign went up, Caltrans officials were bombarded by complaints from immigrant rights groups and Latino legislators insisting the Minutemen were racist vigilantes who must be expelled from Adopt-A-Highway.
The Minutemen countered they are just law-abiding citizens devoted to upholding enforcement of U.S. immigration laws and border security.
Under pressure from Sacramento higher-ups, Caltrans soon removed the recognition sign and offered to reassign the Minutemen to clean up a 'less controversial' San Diego highway site...
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New Political Study Center? Turn Right at Berkeley
If you’re interested in studying left-wing social movements like organized labor, civil rights or feminism, virtually all universities and colleges have special programs and research centers devoted to the subject. But no similar institutions exist in academia for those looking for a place to study conservatism in America and abroad.
Now, with backing from an anonymous donor, the University of California, Berkeley, where ’60s-era students stood atop a police car and ignited free-speech protests, is creating a Center for the Comparative Study of Right-Wing Movements. According to experts in the field it is the first of its kind in higher education.“This is unique, There are no other centers that I know of.”
said Paola Bacchetta, an associate professor at Berkeley...
[Remember this the next time our schools deny that they're liberal indoctrination centers. "unique", "no other centers", "is the first of its kind in higher education".
Anyone with the I.Q. of a cabbage must recognize these statements as proof positive that in the center-right nation that is America, something is seriously wrong to have o-n-e (1) non-liberal study center - and that one labeled "right wing" and taught be Democrats.]
We need massive education reform at all levels.]
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Transparency and Accountability: The Simple Solutions
This past week in Colorado, Senate Bill 57, also called the Public School Financial Transparency Act, which simply require public school districts to put their spending online, died in committee. How could any responsible public official forbid parents from seeing how their tax-dollars are spent educating their children?
The answer to that question is simple: Taxpayer-funded lobbying associations and National Education Association.
How many parents are aware that school districts use taxpayer money for political lobbying purposes? Does the NEA want mom and dad to have easy access to teacher's salaries, health care costs, pension payouts as well as performance reviews? The answers respectively are none and no.
If parents understood the financial realities of how their money is spent, the education system would actually be accountable to children, not unions and lobbyists. Politicians would fear the wrath of voters more than the NEA.
The same can be said for our entire political system... [snip]
Nebraska state treasurer Shane Osborn recently addressed transparency in the Wall Street Journal. He rightfully bragged about the economic situation in his state compared to the rest of the country.
"Our state's unemployment consistently hovers in the 4%-5% range (the latest federal figures peg it at 4.5%, while the national average is 8.1%). The national foreclosure rate is one in every 500 homes; in Nebraska it is one in 25,500. The state currently has a record surplus. We ended the year with about $550 million in our rainy-day fund, and project a modest 1.2% growth in tax revenue this year."
Osborn attributed Nebraska's success to "an inquiring public that demands to know how tax dollars are spent." He credits the public's desire for transparency as his "inspiration" for creating a website that "discloses every aspect of state government spending". [snip]
In July 2008, the Sam Adams Alliance created the government transparency website Sunshine Review. The goal of this open-wiki source is to empower everyday citizens to serve as government watchdogs, giving them the tools to bring open and honest government to the state and local level.[snip]
The success of Sunshine Review as well as the economic climate in Nebraska is proof that an involved and knowledgeable citizenry can do what the mainstream media has failed to accomplish-make open and honest government a reality.
[I.e., it's in our interest to force our 'representative' governments at all levels to operate in this fashion. Is yours?
More, Highly Recommended > ]
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Then >
"Enact 'Sunshine Review' policies in government."
Whitehouse: mailto:president@whitehouse.gov
Senate-Reid: http://reid.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm
House-Pelosi: http://speaker.house.gov/contact/
YOUR Senator: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
YOUR Congressman: https://forms.house.gov/wyr/welcome.shtml
CA Governor: http://gov.ca.gov/interact mailto:governor@governor.ca.gov
YOUR CA Legislators (Sen+Assy): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html
or: Speed Message them with your personal distribution list...
and as always, pass it on...
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Labor's Agenda Undermines its Members' Livelihoods
Organized labor has accelerated its metamorphosis in recent years away from a movement committed to improving the lot of workers towards becoming a vast policy advocacy effort devoting a disproportionate share of its efforts to political operations.
In doing so, much of the traditional labor movement has been hijacked by newer unions devoted to vast expansions of government and an undermining of the economy in a way that directly punishes those they call "brothers"...
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The Sadness of 'Sexting'
Can a child be accused of child pornography? Could a child then be formally charged and convicted of it? These are the questions raised by the disturbing new trend called "sexting," teenagers sending nude or semi-nude pictures around on their cell phones. In some jurisdictions, prosecutors are playing hardball, threatening that students caught with naughty pictures could face jail time and being registered as sex offenders. At a minimum, prosecutors are demanding a 10-hour rehab program.
Does this offense seem too casual to justify throwing the legal book at children? Consider that it’s undeniable that if Johnny was a day or two over 18 and was sending around these images, he’d be treated as a sicko – with prison time a real possibility...
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As teen pregnancies soar, what does the Government do?
Abortion clinics are to be allowed to advertise on television and radio for the first time. Condom manufacturers will also be permitted to broadcast advertisements at any time of the day or night.
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Enviro Wikipedia Assault on Human Achievement Hour
[Intend for Friday by life intervened - apologies]
Environmentalists are leading a worldwide hour of shame and darkness on Saturday, March 28.
In response to this hour of darkness and shame, the Competitive Enterprise Institute launched a "Human Achievement Hour" - to celebrate the achievements of men, including the widespread use of energy that lifts the peoples of the world out of poverty.
Along with blog posts and press releases, CEI also created a Wikipedia page on Human Achievement Hour to let people know why it was established and how they might participate-- just as environmentalists had created a Wiki entry for Earth Hour.
However, not content with their hour of darkness, some in the environmental movement are determined to stamp out any opposition to their campaign.
Almost immediately after the Human Achievement article was published on Wikipedia, environmentalists began attacking the idea and calling for its deletion. (see previous such examples ). Eventually, the editors were convinced this week to delete the HAH article on the grounds that it did not meet "notability standards," despite the dozen or so newspaper articles, radio shows on the topic, and blog references (including Michelle Malkin).
As CEI analyst Michelle Minton explains on OpenMarket.org, the Human Achievement Hour called on people to "celebrate the achievements of humanity" The main philosophy of Human Achievement Hour is to celebrate the products of mens' minds and to oppose environmentalism that would have government prevent individuals from achieving in the future.
Update: The HAH article on Wikipedia was restored on March 27.
[But only because of our eternal vigilance against the thought police at Wiki...]
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Name That Party: March Madness Edition
The Chicago Tribune, taking a cue from its hero Barack Obama, gave bracketeering a try. The contenders, all former Illinois and Louisiana public officials, were selected for a smackdown to determine the most disgraceful.
The rivals from Louisiana were former Governors Huey Long and Edwin Edwards, former Congressman William "Refrigerator" Jefferson, and former New Orleans City Council president Oliver Thomas (identified as Thomas Oliver by the newspaper.). Weighing in from Illinois were former Governors George Ryan and Milorad "Call Me Rod" Blagojevich, former Congressman Dan Rostenkowski, and former Chicago alderman Arenda Troutman.
The Trib gave the nod to Edwin Edwards, although I think the competition was marred by not having an Illinois Daley in the competition. Setting that aside, what was interesting is the Tribune didn't mention party affiliation in its bracketeering. Seven of the eight contenders, or 87.5 percent, were Democrats.
Gee, what a surprise.
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California ‘Cool’ Paints Initiative Ugly, Lazy
If California regulators get their way, auto makers may soon be forced to rewrite a cliché from the Ford Model T era and start telling customers they can have any color they want as long as it isn’t black.
The problem stems from a new “cool paints” initiative from the California Air Resources Board. CARB wants to mandate the phase-in of heat-reflecting paints on vehicle exteriors beginning with the ’12 model year, with all colors meeting a 20% reflectivity requirement by the ’16 model year.
The rationale goes like this: Vehicle AC units sap engine power and hurt fuel economy. If vehicle paint and glass reflect more heat, car interiors will be cooler. That means drivers will use their AC units less, the compressors won’t have to work as hard and auto makers will be able to use smaller AC units in the future.
[The paint's on the outside, we sit on the inside - how stupid do they think we are {don't answer that}.
If they were serious about reducing AC time, they'd allow us to super-tint our windows to keep the sunlight out. But that would prevent cops from seeing who's using the commuter lane alone - and we can't have that.
When are we going to fire these idiots? {don't answer that either (sigh)}]
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NBC Highlights Downbeat 'State of Black America' Report
Wednesday's NBC Nightly News highlighted the downbeat “State of Black America 2009” report, but failed to identify the group behind it, the National Urban League, as liberal nor note the left-wing policy prescriptions recommended in the report.
Though NBC anchor Brian Williams acknowledged Barack Obama's election “was a reminder of the great strides this nation has made in race relations,” he warned that“today there was a reminder of how much work remains to be done to heal what has long been this nation's greatest wound.” [snip]
National Urban League President Marc Morial, the former Democratic Mayor of New Orleans, then charged:“The country's in a ditch, and black Americans have lost ground over the last eight years..."
[The grivance industry: too big to fail.]
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Kansans to vote on right to own guns
Kansans will have the chance to vote next year on a constitutional amendment guaranteeing individuals the right to own firearms. The House passed a resolution Wednesday to place the issue on the 2010 general election ballot.
The vote was 116-9, far more than the two-thirds majority needed. The Senate adopted the resolution Tuesday, 39-1.
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