Beating swords into welfare cheques

MARK STEYN: Hedonistic benefits, low birth rates—Europe needs protection from itself

... Polite society has spent the years since playing catch-up. So if you don’t want your fin du civilisation analysis from a frothing right-wing loon you can now get it from the house-trained chaps at the New York Times:

“Europeans have boasted about their social model, with its generous vacations and early retirements, its national health care systems and extensive welfare benefits, contrasting it with the comparative harshness of American capitalism . . . ‘The Europe that protects’ is a slogan of the European Union.”


Protects from what? Right now, Europe mostly needs protection from itself, and its worst inclinations:

“With low growth, low birth rates and longer life expectancies, Europe can no longer afford its comfortable lifestyle.”

The Times hits all the Steynian themes, including the Continent as defence-welfare queen:

“Europeans have benefited from low military spending, protected by NATO and the American nuclear umbrella.”

Absolved from having to pay for their own defence, Continentals, like Canadians, beat their swords into welfare cheques, and erected vast cradle-to-grave social entitlements. Even under the U.S. security umbrella, they proved unsustainable. Why? Because Europeans stopped breeding. And, even with unprecedented levels of immigration, they’ve been unable to halt population decline.

Again, that was mere Steynian alarmism a year or two back. Now it’s received wisdom.

Here’s Time magazine:

“Germany is shrinking—fast. New figures released on May 17 show the birth rate in Europe’s biggest economy has plummeted to a historic low.”

[Europe's biggest economy - one sixth the annual car sales of California alone. My point? Most Americans have been kept unaware that throughout the last 25 years of conservative resurgent boom (the longest in recorded history) America has continued to outperform our contanental cousins, increasing the economic gap between.

Yet we're now to adopt their model?]

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REGULATORS' BUDGET RISING

Subject: txt bbro sclm - lbrty -
The president's budget request calls for fiscal regulatory expenditures of over $59 billion in 2011 and a staff of almost 284,000. The requested Regulators' Budget of $59.4 billion in 2011 is 4.1 percent larger in real terms than appropriated outlays of $56.3 billion in 2010. [One year.]

Appropriated outlays in fiscal year 2010 were 8.9 percent higher than in 2009.

Over the last decade, between 2000 and 2010, annual budget outlays for regulatory activities increased 75.5 percent in real terms, for a real dollar increase of $21.7 billion.

Staffing increases at the federal regulatory agencies over the last decade have been similarly dramatic, and growth continues, say Dudley and Warren:

The number of full time staff is expected to reach an all time high of 283,741 in 2011.

Source: Susan E. Dudley and Melinda Warren, "Regulators' Budget Rising," George Washington University, May 18, 2010.

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Death by Debt

Subject: txt mny econ tax -
Death by debt isn’t only a Greek tragedy, it’s downright common. Powerful nations all the way from Rome to Russia have killed their economies by spending more than they had. And, if the American people don’t stage an intervention soon, the United States may do the same.

The federal government will soon be paying more in interest on the national debt than we spend on national defense.

The national debt represents 93% of our total gross domestic product (GDP) with foreign governments like China and private entities owning nearly half that debt...

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If You Can't Budget, You Can't Govern

ubject: txt 2010 libs bdd mny -

"If you can't budget, you can't govern,"

Rep. John Spratt Jr., D-S.C., proclaimed in 2006 when the House GOP leadership chose to dispense with passing a budget resolution. Now that the Dems run the House, Spratt is chairman of its Budget Committee and the April 15 deadline for passing a budget resolution is a niggling detail, easily ignored.

House Democrats have decided to not even try to pass a budget resolution before this fiscal year expires on Sept. 30 -- and may well delay passage until after the November elections... [snip]

The House Democrats must figure that they have a better chance of hanging onto their offices by doing nothing -- and they may be right. As Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., told the Los Angeles Times,

"Name one person who won or lost an election because they didn't get a budget resolution passed."

Come November, with any luck, voters will be able to name more than one.

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Mad and Madder

Subject: txt sclm bdd vals econ -
If a people base their societal model on non-work, their society will eventually fall apart. It cannot be otherwise

Said one [Spanish] outraged protestor:

We are very angry because this is not only an attack to our rights and to our salaries that there is an attack to the welfare. This is an attack to all the public services.

Like the Greeks, the Spaniards too do not like the idea of spending cuts and demand that their government keep giving them money. The problem is that the Spanish government does not have any money. It only has debts.

We used to mock Europe's spend-happy socialists. In recent years, however, we have been spending so much that Europeans now seem responsible in comparison.

If you still think they are mad, then we must be madder still...

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Permanent middle class tax cuts too costly

Subject: txt tax - Hoyer:
A top House Democrat said Tuesday that tax increases will eventually be necessary to address the nation's mounting debt, raising a difficult election-year issue as Democrats fight retain control of Congress.

In the near term, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer raised the possibility that Congress will only temporarily extend middle-class tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year.

He pointedly suggested that making them permanent would be too costly. Tax cuts enacted under former President George W. Bush are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, affecting taxpayers at every income level...

[And representing, at this time of recession, the largest tax increase in our nation's history.
They consider it their money, and they don't care how much harm they cause in pursuit of their socialistic ideology.
It's either them or us - choose wisely.]

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State workers to be paid when budget is late

Subject: txt crpt cali mny -

"State employees would get paid if the Legislature fails to enact a budget on time, under a bill passed by the California Assembly."

[But we'll send them all back to Sacramento come November, because the majority of electorate are now public employees.]

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The paranoid delusions of the expert class

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The indomitable James Poulos, writing from his new perch at the excellent Ricochet blog, links to this frightening New York Times piece: But increasingly, some educators and other professionals who work with children are asking a question that might surprise their parents:

Should a child really have a best friend?

As James notes, How deep must the depths of anxiety be into which our administrative class is regularly plunged.

They are getting the bends...

[We NEED universal school vouchers.]

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And so it begins

Subject: txt hcare -
Those of us with even a shred of common sense saw the handwriting on the wall when the health care bill was being sold

Those of us with even a shred of common sense saw the handwriting on the wall when the health care bill was being sold and subsequently forced down our throats. We knew that most, if not all, of the promises being given to sell the legislation would be broken or were outright exaggerations of reality. While "I told you so" would be appropriate now, it just doesn't make me feel any better.

This document is an actual letter that was received by a good friend of mine just yesterday. Needless to say, this 60-year old didn't sleep much last night. Her policy with this insurance company dates back 12 years. Because of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed by this Congress, she will no longer have insurance effective December 15, 2010. Where does she go now, Mr. President? Her policy was affordable. Can you assure her that the next one will be?

Remember this? "If you like your insurance company, you can keep it." She liked her insurance and the policy provisions....and yet?

How about this one? "We're going to provide insurance for millions of Americans who are currently uninsured." How many millions of Americans will be joining the uninsured rolls after receiving a letter like this one in the coming years?

Paying close attention to paragraph one: "NHIC has determined that it will not be able to meet the requirements set forth by Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act." (emphasis mine)

How many more insurance companies are going to have a similar finding?

My greatest fear is that this is just the beginning. We're witnessing the biggest lie of all:

"This legislation will not lead to national health care."

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Mocking Moscow Cuts Gas Supply To Belarus

Subject: txt engry intl russia -
Russia has cut back its gas supply to Belarus over unpaid debts, raising fears of disruption to European supplies. The head of Russian oil giant Gazprom said Belarus had failed to come up with the money and instead was offering equipment and machinery to cover a £130m overdue payment.

But in a mocking attack, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said only hard cash would settle the debt and ordered Gazprom to close the tap on Russian gas supplies to Belarus...

[It's our energy policy that enables such energy tyrants - all needlessly.]

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Belarus 'to suspend Russian gas transit to Europe'

Subject: txt engry tinl russia try -
Belarus will suspend Russian transit gas deliveries to Europe after Moscow cut supplies in a dispute over debts, President Alexander Lukashenko says. Mr Lukashenko said the neighbours were facing a "gas war" and he would resume supplies only when Belarus got $260m (£176m) in outstanding transit fees. Earlier, Russia cut gas supplies to Belarus...

[This is how wars begin - over an artificially created resource shortage.]

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Obama administration spends $1.2 billion on cycling and walking initiatives

Subject: txt sclm grn bdd othr auto -
The Obama administration more than doubled spending on cycling and walking initiatives to $1.2 billion last year as it seeks to coax Americans out of their cars....

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California Economy 'Leaking' Emissions

CALIFORNIA

"The LAO reported May 13 California's economy will likely be adversely affected in the near term. Implementing the California Air Resource Boards (CARBs) Scoping Plan will raise the state's energy prices which are already among the highest in the country. This will further impact the state's economy by causing the prices of goods and services to rise, lowering business profits, and reducing production, income, and jobs. It will also worsen the already devastating state and local budget crises."

[Because of who we vote for.]

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CBS Poll Finds Tough Numbers for Obama on Oil Leak, But Couric Hides Them

Subject: txt msm bias engry -
Katie Couric opened Monday's CBS Evening News by touting how “in a CBS News/New York Times poll out tonight, 43 percent of Americans approve of President Obama's handling of the spill. Only 13 percent approve of BP's efforts.”

She offered no further details, such as how 47 percent disapprove of Obama's performance, and only those checking CBSNews.com would realize the selectivity in the assessment of Obama she chose to highlight.

“Poll: Most Say Obama Lacks Clear Plans on the Oil Spill, Energy or Jobs” read the headline over a “Political Hotsheet” posting, which Brian Montopoli led:

Most Americans do not believe President Obama has a clear plan to deal with the oil spill in the Gulf -- 61 percent -- say the President's response to the oil spill was too slow...

[What bias?]

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CNN Fires the Associated Press

CNN has announced that it will cease using all content from the Associated Press effective June 30, and from all appearances will take a run at becoming a credible wire service competitor.

Although it would be easy to dismiss this as the blind leaving the blind, this development seems like it has the potential to alter the news landscape and temper some of the worst excesses of press bias and ignorance.

Here are a few paragraphs from CNN's internal announcement, as carried at Media Bistro:

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Is Obama's BP Shakedown an Impeachable Offense?

Subject: txt grn engry lbrty 2010 lgl -
The president has no legal authority to create the escrow fund and no authority to compel BP to contribute to it.

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The Reason for Constitutional Rights

Subject: txt hots grn engry - lbryt -
It is useful to recall the very reason for having constitutional rights: Those rights are intended to protect unpopular people

Why do we even have a Constitution if it is only to protect the friends of powerful political groups? Why do we have elections if politicians who grossly fail in their jobs can shove accountability onto the shoulders of those who did not violate the law? We have a Constitution only to limit government. That means, particularly, protecting the politically unpopular...

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Moratorium on gulf oil drilling could increase risks rather than make process safer

Subject: txt hots engry - Critics say
A six-month deep-water drilling moratorium imposed to protect the Gulf of Mexico may raise the risk of oil spills, some members of a U.S. Department of the Interior safety-advisory group warn. The moratorium is also raising concerns that the gulf's $124 billion offshore oil industry will suffer as 33 deep-water projects are on hold.

The delay could imperil as many as 38,000 jobs related to the proj ects as rigs leave for work in other parts of the world, the National Ocean Industries Association, a trade group, estimates....

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Obama is Kicking Louisiana’s Ass

Subject: txt hots grn engry econ -
President Obama announced on national television recently that he was looking for an ass to kick. [Class.]

Well, it seems he found one, the State of Louisiana. During his address this week to the nation from the Oval Office, the President made clear that he will not offer real help to the struggling people of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.

In his speech, he presented no specific action plans and instead relied on lame platitudes.

Incredibly, the President told Lafourche Parish President Charlotte Randolph that his plan for those losing their jobs is to “put them on unemployment”...

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Jindal steps up battle against Obama's deepwater drilling ban

Subject: txt hots engry -
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) has spent weeks throwing political punches at the Obama administration’s six-month freeze on deepwater oil-and-gas drilling, alleging it will wreak havoc on the region’s already battered economy. Now, Jindal is battling the moratorium in the courtroom, too.

Jindal and state Attorney General Buddy Caldwell on Sunday filed a legal brief in support of a Louisiana-based offshore services company that’s asking a federal judge to lift the ban. The ban is “effectively turning an environmental disaster into an economic catastrophe for the state,”...

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GOP senators introduce bill to suspend Jones Act

Subject: txt hots grn engry -
In response to Obama's refusal to waive the Jones Act, three GOP senators introduced legislation Friday to ease the passage of foreign ships in the Gulf of Mexico to help with the oil spill cleanup. The bill, sponsored by Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and George LeMieux (R-Fla.), would remove an obstacle for foreign vessels to travel between U.S. ports to provide needed assistance. The Jones Act, a protectionist law passed in 1920, restricts the movement of foreign ships without a waiver...

[So then who is standing in the way? {hint: 'never let a crisis go to waste'}]

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Cap-And-Trick

Subject: txt engry -
Energy Policy: President Obama says the oil disaster proves the need to get off fossil fuels. But before we save the planet, let's save the Gulf and stop exploiting crises to deny America the energy it needs.

Saving the planet is nice, but just how do we plug the hole again? With an abundance of hand gestures, the president didn't really say...

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Obama Is Wrong; Alternative Energy is Not an Alternative

Subject: txt engry -
Obama is using the oil spill in the Gulf as an emotional lever to push his cap and trade policy. The spill is a disaster, but exploiting it is truly despicable. It is made far worse when the alternative energies solutions don’t work. Increased costs will damage the economy and negatively impact the people he claims to represent.

We’re in this predicament because of exploitation by politicians and environmental groups who deliberately ignore scientific evidence and corruption in climate science...

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Firms paid to shut down wind farms when the wind is blowing

Subject: txt intl grn engry crpt - bbro sclm -
Britain's biggest wind farm companies are to be paid not to produce electricity when the wind is blowing. Energy firms will receive thousands of pounds a day per wind farm to turn off their turbines... Critics of wind farms have seized on the revelation as evidence of the unsuitability of turbines to meet the UK's energy needs in the future.

The 'intermittent' nature of wind makes such farms unreliable providers of electricity...

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Missing Defense

Subject: txt nsec -
National Security: There seems to be only one thing White House arms negotiators want more than a reduction in U.S. nuclear weapons — a reduction in U.S. missile defenses to protect us from such weapons.

The Washington Times' Bill Gertz reports that U.S. diplomats are secretly negotiating with Russia to link nuclear arms reduction to limits on our anti-missile defenses...

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Russians pressing Kyrgyzstan to oust U.S. base

Subject: txt intl nsec russia -
The strategic U.S. air base at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, is once again facing closure as Russia works behind the scenes to influence Kyrgyzstan's interim government...

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NBC Sees Gaza as 'Prison Sentence Imposed by Israel,' Ignores Reports of Food Abundance

Subject: Fwd: txt israel -
Catching up on an item from last week on the Tuesday, June 8, NBC Nightly News, correspondent Tom Aspell portrayed the residents of Gaza as living through a life prison sentence imposed by Israel:

"Israel's blockade on Gaza isn't just about preventing goods from getting in, it's about preventing 1.5 million Palestinians from getting out. It sentences them to life inside a 140-square-mile prison."

Anchor Brian Williams set up the piece:

"We are back now with a rare look inside a place 1.5 million people call home. The Israelis call it a hotbed of terrorism, but the people who live there say they are prisoners of poverty and misery."

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Israel and the Surrender of the West

Subject: txt israel -
The most interesting voice in all the fallout surrounding the Gaza flotilla incident is that sanctimonious and meddling voice known as "world opinion." At every turn "world opinion," like a school marm, takes offense and condemns Israel for yet another infraction of the world's moral sensibility.

And this voice has achieved an international political legitimacy so that even the silliest condemnation of Israel is an opportunity for self-congratulation...

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France to raise retirement age to 62

Subject: txt sclm intl -
The change is expected to come into place in 2018 as part of an effort to get the country's spiralling public finances under control. The move has been strongly opposed by the opposition Socialist Party and labour unions, but Eric Woerth, the labour minister, said the measure was a "real moral obligation," given France's burgeoning deficit and its aging population, which he said threatens the viability of the money-losing pension system...

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Meet The 8,074 New York Transit Workers Who Earn More Than $100,000

[HT:MH]

Another shocking report by SeeThroughNY reveals that 8,074 MTA employees earned $100,000 last year. Fifty MTA employees earned more than $200,000 last year. And salaries are rising.

This is at a time when the New York City and State are struggling with a gaping budget deficit and billions in debt. Meanwhile, the MTA is cutting costs by reducing service and may remove cars to save electricity.

Past reports by the non-profit group include a list of 899 state employees who earn more than Governor David Patterson.

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Gov Jobs Paid $12 More Per Hour

Subject: txt cali crpt mny -

"I continually get myself in trouble by describing these two factions of employment as 'real jobs' versus 'government jobs', but it is simply the truth. We (the citizens) agree that there should be limited government jobs for the sole purpose of government responsibilities that are described within U.S. and State Constitution. The belief that government jobs are a profession unto themselves, or a ladder climbing career, is wrongheaded."

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AZ Immigration Law Less Stringent Than Federal Law

Subject: txt immig - lgl -
Then-Chief Justice Rehnquist who said in that case, the officers did not need reasonable suspicion to ask Menia for her name, date, and place of birth, or immigration status. The cops do not need reasonable suspicion to ask you about immigration status.

Under Arizona law, they do.

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American's Don't Want Justice Department Challenge of Arizona Immigration Law

Subject: txt immig - Most
The Obama administration has reportedly decided to challenge Arizona’s new immigration law in federal court, but a recent Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 56% of U.S. voters oppose such a challenge.

Just 26% believe the Justice Department should challenge the legality of Arizona’s law in court. Eighteen percent (18%) are undecided in the survey conducted May 26 and 27.

Fifty-eight percent (58%) of voters, in fact, favor passage of a law like Arizona’s in their own state.

When asked specifically about the chief provision of the Arizona law, support is even higher. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of voters believe a police officer should be required to check the immigration status of anyone stopped for a traffic violation or violation of some other law if he suspects the person might be an illegal immigrant.

Arizona voters support the state's new immigration law more than ever, with 71% in favor of it.

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The Obamites v. Arizona, &c.

Subject: txt immig owg -
About a month ago, the United States, in the person of assistant secretary of state Michael Posner, expressed guilt to the People’s Republic of China over Arizona’s new immigration law. Now the secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, has informed Arizona of the administration’s intention to sue the state while speaking to Ecuadorian television. I knew that I wouldn’t like the Obama administration and its policies. I am a Reagan Republican. But I didn’t know the administration would be so disgusting.

Honestly. Whose good opinion would the administration prefer? The U.N.’s or Arizonans’?

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Obama Labor Chief: Illegals Have a Right to Fair Wages -

Subject: txt immig fnn -

Obama's DOL Secretary Hilda L. Solis: You Have the Right to Be Paid Fairly Whether Documented or Not. (see Video)

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Obama's Means to the Immigration Reform End

Subject: txt immig crpt bdd hots -
President Obama is playing Russian roulette with the lives of Americans to pass his Immigration Reform bill. This past Friday Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona told Arizona Tea Party members in this video how he and President Obama had a discussion, one on one, concerning the need to secure the border. Kyl went on to explain to the attendees what Obama said to him.

"‘The problem is,' (Obama) said, ‘if we secure the border then you all won't have any reason to support comprehensive immigration reform.' In other words they're holding it hostage," State Senator Kyl added.

"They don't want to secure the border unless and until it is combined with comprehensive immigration reform."

Yet again the ends justify the means when it comes to President Obama and his Saul Alinsky disciples. Certainly Obama's administration will say this exchange did not occur. They will return to name calling and pointing blame to Senator Kyl. It is truly par for the course. Yet, how could one not believe this when Obama and Speaker Nancy Pelosi showed they would do whatever it took to pass health care reform, whether it be pole vaulting over a fence or parachuting in?

Should the American people be faced with another attack on our soil I know in who's direction I will be looking for accountability: President Barack Obama.

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War over the border: White House says Kyl is lying about security;

Subject: txt immig -
A few days ago, Arizona Republican Sen. Jon Kyl told a town meeting in North Phoenix that President Obama personally told him that the administration will not secure the U.S.-Mexico border because doing so would make it politically difficult to pass comprehensive immigration reform. “I met with the president in the Oval Office, just the two of us,” Kyl said. “Here’s what the president said. The problem is, he said, if we secure the border, then you all won’t have any reason to support comprehensive immigration reform.”

“In other words,” Kyl continued, “they’re holding it hostage.

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Endless Zeros

Subject: txt mny econ tax - bdd -
Twenty trillion dollars. That is the estimate of federal indebtedness by 2020. But that is just the start of the troubles that lie ahead...

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House Dems prepare alternative to budget that would avoid deficit vote

Subject: txt tax mny - crpt -
House Democrats are readying an alternative budget measure that would set next year’s spending levels without requiring a vote on deficits.

House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt (D-S.C.) said the alternative would be the “functional equivalent” of a full-fledged budget.

But because it won't be a traditional budget resolution, it will be silent on future deficits, which are expected to average nearly $1 trillion for the next decade...

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U.S. Economic Recoveries Taking Ever Longer To Bring Back Jobs

Subject: txt econ mny - sclm -
Job recoveries have been increasingly sluggish over the past several recessions as the government has taken a larger and larger roll in trying to engineer a recovery.

Today's jobs slump, already at 29 months, could last five years or more, analysts say...

[If history is any guide {and it's our only guide}, this recession would have ended by now if not for the policies of our government extending its effects.

Those who ignore history - doom us to repeating it...]

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'No Thank You, Mr. President' Highlights Entrepreneurship, Not Government, as Force for Recovery

Subject: txt gdd gcon econ mny -

Tough times don't last; tough people do.

That's the theme of author John S. Cohoat's new book "No Thank You, Mr. President," which tells the story of 10 private companies in Elkhart County, Ind., that made their own way to economic recovery without government handouts.

"My hope is that these stories provide some inspiration for you or make you remember why our capitalist economic policies and truly American way of life is the answer,"

Cohoat wrote in his first chapter, titled ‘Why This Book? Why Now?'

Cohoat characterized Elkhart County, in the northern part of the state near South Bend, as a hard-nosed area able to take care of itself. His portrayal stands in contract to the national media's portrayal of the county as the "poster child for all that is bad with our economy"...

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Newsweek Intern Assigned to Review Glenn Beck Book Admits She Only Read 10 Pages

Subject: txt hots msm bias fnn -
When reviewing a bestselling book, it is customary to read it first. Apparently Princeton doesn't teach that tidbit in its journalism classes anymore, as Newsweek intern (and Princeton student) Isia Jasiewicz decided she would attempt a review after reading only the first 10 pages--a fact she mentions in the last paragraph.

Does Newsweek really have such disdain for Beck that it would not only assign an intern to review what is sure to be this week's #1 New York Times bestseller (it came out Tuesday), but would print a review of a book the author didn't actually read?

The review attempts to contrast Beck's new thriller with Friedrich Hayek's "The Road to Serfdom," which Beck recently promoted on his show, and which has skyrocketed up the charts since. But given the many mistakes and assumptions Jasiewicz makes about the latter book, it seems she may not have made it past page 10 of that one either...

[Sounds like standard Newsweek training, what's the problem?]

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WaPo Predicts Glenn Beck's Dangerous New Novel May Become Handbook for Terrorists

Subject: txt gwot nsec islm msm -
[Of course.]

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Bachmann Responds to 'F--- Michele Bachmann' Concert Fliers: 'We Don’t See an Outrage Coming from the Media'

Subject: txt 2010 msm bias libs -

[But Beck's fictional novel - now that's a problem.]

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Voters fighting back against union control

Though it went unnoticed amid the flurry of primary races, the most significant election result this month might be the outcome of a local referendum in Chula Vista, Calif.

Voters in the San Diego suburb finally voted to rein in greedy local unions by banning Project Labor Agreements -- a common arrangement whereby unions, usually with government backing, dictate the terms of construction projects...

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Hit From Left Over Obama Criticism, Olbermann Quits Kos

When the vitriol is too much for Keith Olbermann, something is seriously wrong.

The MSNBC prime time anchor parted ways with the far-left Web site Daily Kos on Wednesday, citing the site's apparent unflinching, see-no-evil attitude towards President Obama, and the omnipresence of wild leftist conspiracy theories there.

"You want Cheerleaders? Hire the Buffalo Jills," Olbermann wrote. "You want diaries with conspiracy theories, go nuts. If you want this site the way it was even a year ago, let me know and I'll be back."

The divorce came after Kossacks relentlessly railed on Olbermann for having the gall to criticize their dear leader for his let-down of a national address on Tuesday. He took to his Twitter account to defend the decision.

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