The New Paradigm

I was paging through the new edition of American Rifleman last night when a "Eureka" moment occurred. We had changed the paradigm of American Rifles. The blessed free market had functioned once again and the result was something that the anti-gun forces could not have imagined in their darkest, Tim Burton, nightmare moments.

Back in the Clinton era it was easy for them to fan the fears of the limp-wristed left of the nation by pointing to those evil "assault rifles" which were so menacing that any rational person would quake in fear upon being in the same city with one. They were only meant for one thing, killing people. They were "cop-killer" guns. They were capable of shooting repeatedly! They were the "weapon-of-choice" of gangs, thugs, bank-robbers and people who push ahead of little old ladies in grocery store checkout lines.

They passed a law, you may recall. The assault weapons ban needed to define around "legitimate" hunting weapons--they would get to them later. So, they built a list of naughty features which made a gun too bad for a civilized person to possess. Stuff like collapsible stocks, flash-hiders, large capacity magazines, vertical hand grips, bayonet lugs, etc. If it was black it was bad.



That is indeed a menacing looking weapon. I'd like to have one just like it! Actually the ban did very little but raise the prices on guns. Minor cosmetic modifications made the new versions legal and the sales flourished. Eventually, Clinton was out and George W. Bush was in with a Republican congress and the ban expired.

During the ban and since then, a legion of folks have sought out their very own assault rifle to have, to hold, to shoot, to enjoy. We found that they are lightweight, they are easy to shoot without a lot of recoil, they are accurate, they are durable, they are inexpensive to shoot. The market noticed what the shooters wanted.

Today, if you want an AR-15, you can find them from at least a dozen manufacturers. They all follow the same basic pattern as the military M-16 rifle with the exception that they don't have a full automatic or a burst fire option.

DPMS
Rock River Arms
Wilson Combat
Smith & Wesson
Ruger SR 556

And that's just a sampling. But, the problem is that while these "assault weapons" are fine for shooting targets, plinking at the range, or hunting ground hogs, coyotes and jack rabbits, they aren't legal in most states for hunting larger game. The .223 caliber bullet is too small. Most states require a minimum of .243 or 6mm for deer and larger game.

Which leads us to the new paradigm. The AR-15 model is so popular for so many reasons that we are now seeing it available specifically in "hunter" versions--AR rifles in calibers that are great for North American big game hunting. We've had ARs in .308 (7.62 NATO) for a long time. We've added things like the 6.8mm SPC, the .243 Winchester, the .338 Federal, 7.62x39, .450 Bushmaster and there are more lurking out there.

The options to equip your AR make the old hunting rifle choice of "what kind of scope" look like the amateur hour. Worrying about rings and bases to mount that scope? Not with an AR. A simple mil-spec rail system lets you take any of the menu of optional pieces out of the box and clamp it on the rifle securely and ready to take to the range. Choose a lightweight variable power scope designed for the combat rifle and you've got great optics with the plus of an illuminated reticle that doesn't need batteries. "Light" years ahead of that old scope. Smaller too.

Want a simpler system? Go with a holographic "red dot" sight. A few ounces in weight and it offers a classic illuminated reticle that make a fighter pilot feel right at home. Single plane sighting in a nut shell sized gadget. Combine it with the scope if you want.

Want a light in the dark to get to your spot in the woods? Add a tactical LED flashlight to the rifle--there's plenty of room on the rail system. How about a laser aimpoint? That fits too. You can always go back to basic iron sights if you want.

When you've modded your rifle to fit your personal preferences, you've still got a lightweight, easy-shooting, accurate friend in the field. Sling points at front, middle and back of the rifle make it easy to carry. Collapsible M-4 carbine stock means you can get one for your son or grandson that will fit on his first deer hunt and still be comfortable when he's grown and on his own.

I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for a classic bolt action rifle with finely figured walnut stock, dark blue steel and a fine scope atop. But, the paradigm has changed and the rifle world has moved on. Today, the hunting rifle of choice is becoming the evil assault rifle of the '90s.

That is going to make it a whole lot harder for them to pry them out of our cold dead hands in the future. Their faulty argument that somehow the 2d Amendment is about hunting is going to be useless since the target of their effort is quite clearly a hunting rifle.

At that point, of course, all wise men will remind them that hunting isn't covered by the 2d Amendment. The amendment is about protection from oppressive governments and we know that.

More Than a Mouthful

While the political blogs are fascinating and even insightful, they tend to be driven by quantity rather than quality of commentary. The average independent blogger digs at scabs, then if there is some blood, he or she will point it out to the faithful audience. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. There is so much information available at our fingertips today that drawing attention to hot-button issues is helpful in sorting through the swamp.

I write short pieces and most of the "Regular Stops" links on the right will get you to other folks doing roughly similar work. Occasionally, however, someone will spend some excess energy on an essay that is insightful, powerful, well-referenced and undeniably logical. That is what happened today at Dr. Sanity's site. Take fifteen minutes to read through this. Slowly to absorb if you can, skim it quickly if you must, but read it:

Curiouser and Curiouser

Now, do you think you understand what is going on a little better? I hope so.

Messiah Open to Consider

How great is this man? It is mind-numbing to see the pace at which he seeks to convert this formerly capitalist, free-market, republic to a monolithic, all-powerful, total-dependency welfare state. It worked so well for the Soviet Union that today they are...oops, never mind. Well it worked so well in the People's Republic of China that they are now embracing free market capitalism and on a breakneck pace not only to catch up but to surpass the economic and technological prowess of the West...oops, poor example. Well, then it worked so well in Cuba that today people find it easy to keep a fleet of 1950's cars working reasonably adequately on the available fuel rations...oops, can anybody come up with an example where this stuff has worked?

Now, we've got this proposal:

Make Them Non-Profit and Dependent Upon Us

That's right! The news front is an important one. Gotta get control over that pesky media. They can't do it right themselves and make a profit. People see right through them when they are obviously in the tank for the administration. Advertising plummets, readership is non-existant, and their soft-ball journalism is fodder for late night talk-show monologs. They are collapsing and they are necessary to inform the proletariat what is good for them.

So, a couple of reliable liberal flunkies introduce a bill in the Senate to bail out the newspapers. Do it just like the banks and the car companies. Give them some money, save their scrawny butts, and then the Messiah makes the rules. Force them to become non-profits. That way they have no links to capitalism any more. Once saved, the government can then set the editorial policies, hire and fire the writers, control what gets published and have a magnificent tool for propagandizing the masses.

How easy to establish a state newspaper system and it will make Pravda look like a comic book operation.

A Day of Delights

Sunday was the day we all were waiting for. The usually shy President tried to overcome his reluctance to take the public platform and went out among the hostile elements of the mainstream media who have been aggressively opposing his every move dating back to his first efforts to enter this country as an immigrant from Indonesia with a sketchy past and an ultra-conservative mother.

Despite the deep-seated hostility of the national press corps, the President braved the lions and for the first time since his inauguration he went on television. As with all shy persons, he didn't choose a broad base for his appearances. At the suggestion of his staff of forty-six top-rated therapists who reached a consensus after the last four months of negotiation and review of a $137 billion study on causes and treatment of shyness, he choose narrow and tightly controlled market segments for his appearance.

The consideration was that if he spoke for short time to a single individual and in his own comfort zone of the Roosevelt Room of the White House, he could get through the ordeal. So, yesterday, America got to really see their President for the first time on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN and Univision. In quick, well-rehearsed, tightly scripted, pre-recorded and scrupulously edited video segments, he did a blitz of promotion of his favorite reading and historical perspectives from the 1917 revolutions to the nationalization and creation of the collectives of China. He seemed relaxed in the unfamiliar environment.

The citizen-subjects of the nation were delighted to see his face on channel after channel, each time across the five foot gap from a well-known and comfortably familiar avuncular news-reader celebrity. He exuded a warmth that has seldom been seen in recent years.

The topper for an already thrilling day of Messiah TV was his twenty minute live guest shot on the Home Shopping Network. He had changed to a less Presidential tie and indicated an approach to bipartisanship by donning a legacy Rush Limbaugh floral pattern that apparently had been recently purchased on eBay. (The reputed seller was not returning calls at the time of this writing.)

He was at the top of his game when he pitched a beautiful 14-karat gold-filled delicate chain necklace with zircon studded heart pendant that had a delightfully retro look. When he held it in his well-manicured hands, he accentuated the cut and clarity of the synthetic gems and seamlessly compared the similarity of his own healthcare proposals to real medical care. It was a delightful metaphor for those housewives who have been confused or unaware of the issue until then.

The necklace was offered at a special Presidential "no exorbitant profit" government negotiated contract rate of only $2750 with a special letter of authenticity. He stressed that buyers could pay it in 68 years of low monthly payments of just $49.95 per month and that doing so could shift the costs to the next generation and they would effectively get that beautiful necklace for free.

Well, I will tell you that as quickly as I could I reached for my phone. Alas, I was too late and according to the very nice telephone clerk in Sri Lanka, "My name is Betty. All dese nicklices are been already sold to dose nice men from dat federal regulatory agency for der wives. Would you like sometheen else?"

Still, I was calmed by the reassuring appearance of my President. He seemed in good health and his smile just made tingles run down my leg. But, then I realized it was only my dog scratching at my cuff to take him out for a walk.

The Hard Sell Begins

I try to read the newspaper with an open mind. Not an accepting mind, but an open one for new ideas, challenging viewpoints, previously unseen perspectives and additional information. I've always read the major newspaper from the big city nearest where I live. When I was in Mesa, it was the Arizona Republic. In Alamogordo, it was the El Paso Times. In Colorado Springs it was both the Colorado Springs Gazette and the Denver Post.

Today, I live north of Dallas and that means the Dallas Morning News. That isn't a good thing. They are deep in the liberal tank. I've tried to be objective, but can conclude nothing else. One need only check their front page every day for a week or two. There may be huge issues afoot in the world, but what the DMN will offer you is a human interest story on the front above the fold. You'll find little about N. Korea's latest adventures. Not much about Iran's weapons program. Certainly nothing about Israel's challenges or Russia's resurgent adventurism.

No, you'll find a sad tale about a single mother of four who has no job, is eight months delinquent in her rent, faces eviction, will lose her children by court order because of impending drug charges and needs health insurance. Or, maybe there will be a deep analysis of the homeless wandering the streets of downtown Dallas and the nutritional content of the offerings of the soup kitchens.

This Sunday they've started the hard sell for Obamacare. They've got it localized, of course. There's the picture of a poor mother with lupus getting a treatment and not knowing how to pay for it when she reaches her maximum coverage point. Inside there is the self-employed couple working from home in a business selling "book holders". They are pinching pennies by using clamp-on reading lights on their laptop computers while working on the kitchen table with the overhead flourescents turned off! They opt for $6000 deductible health insurance and complain that they are paying a lot.

Inside there is five full pages of pictures and text of the need for a national healthcare plan. Take a look:

This Week We Focus on the Healthcare Problem in America

Now, let us stand back and try to detach the DMN's obvious bias. Dallas has an incredible network of quality healthcare providers in the city such as Baylor Medical Center or SMU. They've got a huge infrastructure of suburban medical center complexes. There is no care that you cannot receive in Dallas. If you expand to the entire state of Texas, the choices get even better. MD Anderson's Cancer Center in Houston is world renowned. The burn services available in the San Antonio area are best in the world.

What's the kicker headline of the DMN piece today? "Competition Drives Up Costs"!!!

Yes, despite monopoly being counter-productive to cost efficiency in every other enterprise in the world, the DMN found someone to say that competition doesn't work in healthcare.

Why? Well, the reason given is that when you have competition you will have doctors seeking to make profit...duh! Yes, and they do that by prescribing unneeded tests and examinations! Excuse me, how many times have you personally experienced a wrong diagnosis? I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when I was 26 years old. It was a wrong diagnosis.

Doctors prescribe tests for two reasons and neither of them are profit motivated. First, they prescribe tests to narrow the possibilities and rule out or confirm causes of symptoms. Doctors are not prescient. They can't say conclusively, "your acid reflux is caused by a faulty esophogeal valve, let's go to surgery." They have to scope you, x-ray, cat-scan, MRI and maybe ultra-sound you to insure they have found the cause. Thankfully the "exploratory surgery" of the 1950's is a thing of the past.

Second, they prescribe tests as defensive medicine. A mis-diagnosis can be damaging to a patient, but unfortunately our laws have made a physician's mistake disastrous for the doctor. Failure to conduct a relevant test can lead to loss of a malpractice suit which can result in huge damage awards, so doctors pay exorbitant premiums for malpractice insurance. If they don't also minimize their risks, they will see those premiums escalate still further.

Elimination of competition will only result in deterioration of healthcare. We will lose our defense against mis-diagnosis, doctors will lose access to necessary diagnostic tools, the monopolistic single-payer will control funding leading to escalating costs to meet infrastructure requirements while at the same time rationing what care we receive.

The Dallas Morning News is going to devote a full week to building the Obamacare case and since they are the only major newspaper in the area, the case for the defense will not be heard. We will learn during this week of more human interest cases, lots of bad doctors, scandals in our best hospitals, limited access for the "unfortunates" of our society, and the nasty ol' obscene profits of anybody trying to make a living.

We won't hear anything about the failures and impending financial collapse of Medicare or the squandering of Medicare funds on Medicaid. We won't get an analysis of the very economical and efficient Medicare Advantage programs that are on the chopping block. We won't learn about the tax impacts of Obamacare nor a relationship to that elusive "tax cut for 95% of working families." We won't pick at the dirty scab that is government VA care despite the cesspool of a major VA center in S. Dallas. Nope. We are going to learn that Obamacare is the solution to stamping out competition and profit.

I don't think I can read it all without gagging. I'll depend on my other newspaper for news this week, the Wall Street Journal. The DMN will be good only for sports and comics.

A Perspective on Life

Brigid waxes incredibly eloquently today on what for her is the shooter's view of life. She does a magnificent job of it and I might humbly note that her view makes her a "Fighter Pilot".

I Am A Shooter

Many who have had the assignment have not merited the title and many very clearly merit the title who have never strapped on a tactical aircraft. She's got it in spades. Read it and you'll know what I mean.

Saturday Morning Swinger

Why do you suppose zoot suits went out of style? I've been to Dumas, and didn't see a single ding-dong daddy.

Who Is the Injured Party

As someone with a couple of books published, I've learned a lot about the business. The main thing I've found out is that if you want to get rich, you could do it quicker in terms of hourly wage by flipping burgers at a fast-food joint rather than writing books. For every multi-millionaire author like J.K.Rowling, Steven King or (cough, gag, cough) Barack Obama, there are thousands of folks who get a book published by a major house and still net only a couple of bucks. It is a brutal business.

There is a joy to seeing your words in print and holding a book in your hands that has your name on the title page. There is satisfaction in having your thoughts distributed to readers around the world even if they only number in the thousands and not the millions. There is reward which isn't necessarily financial.

At the end you possess two things, a contract and a copyright. The former is an agreement with someone to publish your work and administer the various distributions such as hard-cover, soft-cover, electronic, audio, foreign language, movie/TV rights, serialization, animation, comic books even. The latter is your establishment of intellectual property. Your writing is your work just like a painting, a sculpture or a house that you built. You own it.

I've got Amazon's wunder-Kindle. I love it. I read more, it costs less, it is convenient, and I like the free wireless connection for my book acquisitions. I've encouraged both of my publishers (Smithsonian Books and St. Martin's Press) to make my books available on Kindle. If and when they do, I will get royalties based on our contract.

Google is entering the market and they are taking a different approach. They are seeking to make "out-of-print" books available for their e-reader. I'm not sure if I win or lose in that event.

Here's some analysis and the issue isn't a simple one:

Justice Department Opines to Federal Judge on E-Publishing

Some points need to be emphasized here. First, "out-of-print" is not out of copyright protection. I own the copyright, the publisher owns the right to publish--even when they let the work go out of print. It seems that Google is infringing on the publisher's rights here.

Google's royalty plan, if it is as stated in the analysis, offers 63% of the electronic sales price to the copyright holder as royalty. That appears to exceed anticipated royalties if paid in agreement with the publisher's contract which means I would gain. The publisher holding rights to a work which they have let go out-of-print would apparently lose. Unless, of course, the Google e-sale price is well below what could reasonably be anticipated. Since Google has no up-front costs of publishing and only scans a work and then distributes it, they could really bargain chop the pricing. Then I lose as well.

I've got a deep distrust of the Justice Department under this administration. The public policy emotional attachment of something like a "Free The Books" campaign stressing easy access to information denied the masses by the oppressor class of authors making "obscene" profits is all too apparent.

There is also the issue of big supporter payback which seems to underlie every action of the nationalization of American free enterprise. Google is a big player in every way. Congress loves to pander. The leanings of dependency oriented Americans seem to be toward expecting everything for nothing.

Someone is going to lose here and the way I see it, the only two players who have rights--the publishers and the writers--are the candidates. The smallest constituency is the weakest and we will suffer the tort.

There Are Costs to Living

The First Lady has now been enlisted in the never-ending campaign saga. She's hit the trail for health care and true to form she is playing up the victimhood aspects. Yes, my friends, the national healthcare system is abusive of women!

Act To Help Women Fight the System

Read that piece again slowly. It makes one want to scream that agonized Hindenburg disaster line, "ohhhh, the humanity."

Take this tidbit:

Michelle Obama said women are being “crushed by the current structure of our health care” because they often are responsible for taking care of family illnesses, arranging checkups and monitoring follow-up care.

Yes, they must arrange checkups and monitor follow-up and take care of their families. Who else would do it for you? You want a checkup, pick up the phone and make an appointment. The doctor tells you take two tablets every six hours. Who should monitor that you are doing it if not yourself? Your children need medical attention. They are your children! Take responsibility!

Women also are more disproportionately affected by the lack of insurance options because they are more likely to work part-time or at small businesses that don’t provide coverage.

Dissect that with me. They work part-time or at businesses that don't provide coverage...is that because their husband is working full time and his benefits cover the family? They are married aren't they? There is a male partner in the household isn't there? Wouldn't that help?

Oh, they are single mothers. How did that happen? Isn't that a biological impossibility? They have to take care of their children, so they can't get a full-time job. They are on welfare and welfare only sends money it doesn't offer healthcare benefits...yet.

My impression is that Michelle is woefully out-of-touch. She also is spoiled rotten and unconcerned apparently about any inconvenience she might cause the proles around her:

Michelle Goes A Block for Fresh Veggies

Pick up some $20 a pound kale and cost the taxpayers a few hundred thousand while bunging up Washington traffic for an hour or two. Gotta love it!

Are You Practiced and Ready?

Tomorrow when you rise it will once again be "International Talk Like a Pirate Day" so you'd better be up on your jargon. It won't happen by itself, so you'd better study tonight and maybe practice a bit so that you don't embarass yourself and have to walk the plank or be keelhauled.

Start easy and work your way into the character:



Eventually though, you will want to get a bit more serious. Here's a real training film:



Learn all about it here:

Official Talk Like A Pirate Website

Now stop your dallying ye scabrous dogs and find me the rum.

A Confluence of Giants

Wouldn't you have loved to have been there for this session?

Shrugging

The impact of "healthcare reform" on the actual practitioners has been minimized so far, but Billy Beck expounds on an item in Investor's Business Daily:

Driving the Dedicated Out of Business

There, my friends, is an unintended consequence that not even a blind man could miss seeing.

Dagny, Hank, Francisco, John Galt, you'll have great medical advice soon.

Boom, Boom, Pow!

The sounds of the crashing healthcare plan have me flashing on the Black Eyed Peas hit song...

Yesterday I watched a triumphant Max Baucus (D-Mont) announce the successful negotiation of a Senate healthcare bill that would do everything for everybody and simultaneously reduce the deficit over the next ten years. He smiled, he extolled, he lauded the aspects which would gain bi-partisan support, he had me driving home in this new car today!

But, I then realized that his lips were moving and I know too well what that means. There was the now familiar canard about keeping what I've got if I'm satisfied. And, the business about all that savings from reducing costs in Medicare--which I know means I'm going to get a lot less service and pay a lot more co-payments. There was that business-ignorant line about no denials for pre-existing conditions and the populist rhetoric about stopping those profits that insurance companies make.

But, there was some new stuff as well. Like the tax on "Cadillac" plans. If an employer is offering too good a healthcare plan, we're going to tax it for you! How logical is that? If they tax a conscientious employer providing quality insurance who will pay the tax? It always trickles down to the end-user, the worker. You will get taxed or your great plan will become a crappy one.

Now, here's the crashing part:

Won't Work For Nevada!

Imagine that! The Baucus plan is so bad that even Socialist-in-chief of the Senate, the leader of his own party, Harry Reid can't abide it!

But hey, if you've got union support, you can make it work can't you?

Coal Miners Will Take Lumps

Ooops! Fellow traveler Jay Rockefeller sees through the concept and points out that the union workers are going to get screwed over their hard-won Cadillac healthcare. And Rockefeller is well aware that putting an exemption for selected unions in the bill won't be a pretty picture for the media coverage.

Yet, there is always the possibility of some renegade Republicans showing how they embrace bipartisanship. You can always count on Olympia Snowe (R-ME) to cross the aisle and show her egalitarian side.

You're On Your Own, Max!

Boom, boom, pow!

Loving Every Minute of It

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Audacity of Hos
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

Stimulus/Response

"Gotta save the planet you know. Yes, indeed, those exhalations are the cause. Can't have that carbon dioxide you keep emitting screwing up the weather can we? Let's declare it evil and then tax it! Yes, that's the ticket."

"But, boss, we're in a recession, people are unemployed, taxes are sky-high and your poll numbers are plummeting."

"What do you think, Rahm? Can we turn this around by screwing them over still more? What would Saul Alinsky do? Are they frightened enough about global...what are we calling it this week?...That's right global climate change. Are they scared enough to let us milk this profit center?"

"Sure, boss. They're even dumber than the folks in Chicago. They don't even look for a taste out there in fly-over country. We can stick 'em, no problems. Anybody objects, we call'em racists."

"OK, so here's what we do. First I have EPA declare carbon dioxide a carcinogen and cause of greenhouse effects. Then I want you guys to set up a way to charge folks for it. How about we pull a number out of our butts and declare that the maximum allowed? We then sell stock in that butt-number, sort of like franchises to screw up the atmosphere. If you need more you can buy more from us. They can trade shares between themselves, but we control the total number of shares. Then every year or two we rachet the total amount down so that the shares cost more. We create a market for a product that is totally free and which they can't do without! Ohmigod! We're sort of being capitalists!"

"Genius, boss, simply genius. That's why you're the Messiah!"

So, now we start to get some truth out of (drum-roll and pregnant pause, please) the mainstream media outlet, CBS! Read this on what Cap-and-Trade will mean to you:

Effectively a Fifteen Percent Tax Hike

That's right! You won't have a thing that you don't have already, but now it will raise your yearly income tax rate, not your total tax, but the rate you pay by 15%.

It won't stimulate the economy. It won't increase the GDP. In fact it will lower it. It won't improve our position relative to the rest of the world. It won't create jobs, but it will increase unemployment. And, best of all, it won't do a damned thing to effect global weather patterns. It will just take your money out of your pocket.

How's that hope and change working out for you today?

Toy Story

You've heard, I'm sure, about the Yard Sale Gestapo that will visit your driveway on a Saturday morn to check that you aren't selling any used but dangerous lead-filled toys that you've had around the house for five years in the hope that some child of a less fortunate family might get some use out of them. Can't have that can we?

Not finding many toys or books at the Goodwill store these days? No resale of that sort of thing anymore because unless you are willing to risk the liability you will be fined. Sorry, all of that useful stuff must be destroyed to "protect the children."

Unintended consequences are the bane of our existance. And, well-meaning, pandering legislators are the prolific creators of a never-ending supply of unintended consequences. If I were not an optimist I might believe that they actually intend to inflict the maximum damage on American families and businesses with the goal being to prolong the recession and exacerbate our economic strife. That couldn't be it, could it?

Read this:

The Toy Story From Hell

There must be some sort of qualification required to display demonstrable stupidity to serve in our Congress these days. The ineptitude with which they impose this crap on America is impressive indeed.

Yet, the Congress-critters were duplicitous enough to exempt toy-behemoth, Mattel, from the requirements of the legislation. How did that happen?

Your Healthcare Future

Have you been wondering about your healthcare visits after imposition of Obamacare upon us all? Do you think you will get the help you need in the precise areas you are concerned about? Or is it possible that bureaucracy could run amok?

It isn't like it hasn't happened before:

Deep Cesspools From Tiny ACORNs grow

I've got to note that the orchestration of the revealing of the ACORN sting video(s) is masterful. You've got to pay attention to avoid the possibility of thinking you are seeing repetition of a single incident. It hasn't dumped the whole crap bag on the table at one time. It is allowing it to be stretched so that outrage can build and maybe America will be able to get some information from their usual news sources in case they don't watch Fox or read the WSJ.

It started in Brooklyn. The intrepid stinger in garish bling and pimp rags accompanied by the scantily clad and tantalizing beauty in an unusual occupation seek some help from their local branch office of ACORN. They want to get a government housing loan to buy a place for their business but they can't figure out how to fill out the application. What do they do for a living? He's a pimp and she's a prostitute. Now they are an agent and a performing arts practitioner. No need to declare all of their income. That's the ACORN advice.

And, by the way, they also want to bring a bevy of thirteen year old illegal girls to live in the cat house. No problem, they become dependents.

Scandalous? You bet. Government funded? Absolutely! Isolated incident? Don't you wish.

Two days later, we get another chapter in the reality TV serial of what ACORN does with your tax dollars. The script was nearly identical in Washington DC. That reveals a pretty consistent ACORN modus operandi.

But, as the Ginzu knife commercial has taught us, "Wait! There's More!"

The most recent is Chapter 3. This time the ACORN road show is in Baltimore. Will this begin to lose impact because of repetition? I hope not. The stingers promise there is more to come before the season finale.

How is this playing in the MSM? This appeared on page 5 of this morning's Dallas Morning News:

Senate Cuts Funding for ACORN

Short and sweet, isn't it? No mention that this is the third instance. No mention that the videos have a two microphone record so it would take more than simply over-dubbing video. Creating identical audio tape and video record would be pretty high tech. Strong implication that this is some sort of right-wing conspiracy. Gratuitous hits at Fox News.

America is about to get sick of this, I think.

'Roid Rage

One side effect of steroid abuse is supposedly an overly aggressive attitude and a proclivity for violent outbursts. We should be familiar with it as we've watched for the last twenty-five or more years as football players become increasingly super-sized, able to bend steel with their bare hands, run faster than a speeding bullet and crush opposing super-sized linemen into submission without winding up short of breath. In fact, if rampant steroid usage makes an individual more susceptible to focussed outbursts without much provocation that might be viewed as a desirable football outcome. Explode off the line of scrimmage if you need to.

The problem arises when the 'roid rage occurs off the field because unfortunatley there is no convenient on/off switch. Then we get spouse abuse, bar fights, night time habitat destruction and injured by-standers.

In baseball, we see the manifestation in charging of pitchers' mounds (once a rare interruption to the normal staid and placid passage of a sunny afternoon at the ball park) or the breaking of a Louisville Slugger 35-inch, 34-ounce Bobby Bonds knot-free ash autograph-edition bat with bare hands. It may extend to the hapless water fountain in the dugout and occasionally results in a shower of furniture erupting from the clubhouse tunnel onto the area behind the third base coach's box.

But, what to make of this:

I'd Shove This F****** Ball Down Your F****** Throat

That was the petite Miss Serena Williams expressing her disagreement with a 4' 8" Asian line judge in a ladies tennis match.

Yes, the white flannels and straw boater crowd was delighted to observe the distaff side of the sport engaged in good old American sports banter on the clay courts. Take a look at the pictures in that news piece.

Is Ms William's musculature indicative of a well-planned exercise and diet regimen do you think? Or is modern chemistry at work there? Then also note the picture of the winners.

I'm thinking Serena is wasting her money on hypodermic needles.

Astonished and Apparently Out of Touch

The mainstream media reported it as "thousands" which was an updated estimate from the initial "couple of hundred." The less mainstream have found park police estimates of over a million--those are the folks that deal with DC demonstrations regularly so they have a handle on what the crowds are that fill how much of the mall and the streets of our capitol. Some European media gave the number as two million.

They Were Astonished!

I got an on-scene report from a friend who lives in the DC area. He's a retired Army aviator and a regular attendee at major events on the mall. He often guides small groups at the Vietnam Memorial and he regularly participates in honors ceremonies at Arlington. He is exceptionally active in programs to assist our wounded warriors at the medical facilities in the Washington area. He was there for the Tea Party.

He confirmed the high level crowd estimates. The numbers were amazing. What was more amazing was that the crowd was orderly. The aftermath was not a trashing of the area. The message was clear and consistent. We the people are simply not interested in what the Messiah is adamant that he must have. Leave our healthcare alone.

And, the media was largely absent. The usual media command centers were largely unmanned. The vans, the satellite dishes, the camera guys with talking heads were out of sight.

Above all, the reaction is that the Congress-critters who acknowledge it at all "were amazed."

They still don't get it.

The Master Race & The Mud People

Study totalitarianism a bit and you will find it; the need for a straw man enemy. Totalitarianism is a unique product of the Twentieth Century. Before that time it might have been a goal but it was a technological impossibility. You could assuredly have autocrats, despots and tyrants, but they did not have the capability to build a system which could monitor and control every aspect of society, which is the basic characteristic of a totalitarian system.

The term gets used haphazardly, but it is a misnomer when you apply it to Iran or Iraq, North Korea or Cuba. It comes close occasionally, but it really fits best to only a very few systems and particular leadership. Stalin's Soviet was arguably the first example of a true totalitarian society. He purged his enemies, organized his loyalists, controlled his economy and tolerated no challenges. He monitored, listened, controlled propaganda and re-interpreted both history and current events. If he told you that there was plenty of food you accepted that as you were turned away at the empty bakery. Nothing in your life was beyond government scrutiny.

Hitler did it best. And, if we dig at his interpretation of totalitarian we find a key to gaining "consent of the governed" for such a loss of liberty. He built a threat to the society, a stereotypical enemy against whom the power of government could be used without limit. For Hitler it was the Jews and the "mud people"--those races against which prejudice could be nurtured and hatred could flower to excess. They had killed Christ and they had been the money-lenders when charging of any interest was viewed by Christians as usury. They were the cause of problems and they could be extinguished without moral question. Be careful what you say or write because the Gestapo will know it.

Are we building a totalitarian future for America?

We are rushing headlong into nationalization of major segments of our economy. Mortgages, banks, markets, wages, automakers, energy production and rationing, soon healthcare will be government run, dispensed, regulated. If you wish to receive you will be obliged to comply.

The power exists to monitor our email, listen to our cell-phone conversations, retrieve our internet activities, track our movements and everywhere we go we are in view of surveillance cameras.

We are watching a free media be overwhelmed by a governmental propaganda arm. The Messiah is on prime time TV at least once a week. He's dominant on every news magazine cover. He has found his way into our school classrooms by webcast so that parents are cut out of the loop. He is dispenser of largess for purchasing a new car, for getting groceries at the local food distribution point, for having a bit of spending money to "stimulate" the economy, and soon for maybe getting a shot of flu vaccine. He is the giver of all things we need for life.

But what if he is challenged? What if someone dares to comment on the absence of clothing on the Emperor? Then we get this:

It Is Always About Race

How can someone spin those two words, "You lie!" into a racist rant? What can possibly be wrong about commenting on veracity of basic statements in a public forum when someone is of a different ethnicity?

Does Maureen Dowd want us to abandon any rational debate simply because the President is African-American?

I wonder what she would have thought of this:

"There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. When I refer to hyphenated Americans, I do not refer to naturalized Americans. Some of the very best Americans I have ever known were naturalized Americans, Americans born abroad. But a hyphenated American is not an American at all."

That was from Theodore Roosevelt in 1915.

I almost wish we could print that on our currency instead of "In God We Trust."

Mis-Shaping the Message

Unless you live in a cave you've heard about Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) being taken up by the Messiah's compelling rhetoric during Wednesday's joint session of salesmanship on healthcare. He was so deeply enthralled that he simply responded with "You lie!" It was a singular comment, nothing at all like my own every 27 seconds during the speech.

The feigned outrage of the left was instantaneous and simultaneously disingenuous. They demanded groveling immediately and purged the national memory of their much more vocal and widespread disrespect for President Bush in those same chambers just a few short years ago. The papers were filled with stories of Wilson's opponents war-chests over-flowing while Wilson plummeted in the local election polls--a totally fictitious and one-sided coverage of that aspect. And, Joe politely sent an apology to the President.

Now, take a couple of minutes for this "news" story that isn't:



Why in heaven's name would CNN put a reporter on a live shot on the mall during a demonstration against Obamacare that drew 2 million people to ignore the envent discuss Joe Wilson four days earlier?

Isn't the story about the fact that America has been activated and is trying to attract the attention of the dilletantes of Washington? Isn't the message de jour that they are moving the nation in the wrong direction? Why is that bimbo standing there talking about Joe Wilson and whether he should be called on the floor of the House for a flogging? What was CNN thinking?

Notice the respect for the reporter when the crowd is asked to listen for a second to a question. Can you imagine SEIU and ACORN acting like that? And then marvel at the deflection of the crowd's reaction when asked how they view Wilson. The anchor fluff simply ignores it.

And, just in case you think Joe Wilson needs to stay in his job, here's where you can check him out:

Notice the big red CONTRIBUTE button on the top right--It's easy!

Saturday Morning Rocker

This pairing might be the ultimate "unholy alliance" but it works:

Never Forget, Never Forgive

The New Van Jones

You are going to hear a lot about Cass Sunstein in the coming days. Now that Van Jones has been swept into the dustbin of history, Glen Beck is focussing on this new target. He is of concern to a lot of folks because he is the Messiah's appointee to be the Kommissar of Information and Regulation. Sorry, make that Administrator of Information and Regulation...but that title is equally 1984-ish, isn't it? Effectively he is a super-czar that will be coordinating what is apparently already a gigantic effort to control what information we receive and whether the federal government will leave anything unregulated.

He was in the news yesterday with a quote in support of the Supreme Court's Heller decision on an individual's right to ownership of a handgun within the District of Columbia. He sounded reasonable in acceptance of the Second Amendment as an individual vice collective right. It didn't take a very long time, however, to find a quote by him saying exactly the opposite. That statement was just two short years ago.

Want to learn about him? Maybe the most damning fact is his most recent employment--law professor at the University of Chicago. He's an Obama colleague from the same ultra-left academic cesspool. That should tell you all you need to know.

But, I'm not above a bit of research. Sunstein has a web page.

Professor Cass R. Sunstein

The usual college prof stuff is there, including a CV and a list of his publications. Can we glean a bit of info from what he has written? Click on the "Info" button next to his titles, and you get Amazon.com with the books for sale. Words like "nuanced" and "thoughtful" appear regularly, but they thinly mask a very unusual view of the world in America's future.

Check some titles:

Free Markets and Social Justice

Yes, he is going to get that social justice thing going for us and quite clearly achieving that justice is being obstructed by that pesky free market business.

Democracy and the Problem of Free Speech

We've certainly got to do something about the niggling problem of free speech don't we? We need some regulation of that so the proper messages can be supported and those counter arguments don't confuse us.

The Bill of Rights and the Modern State

Pray tell me what modernity has to do with the immutable rights expressed so cogently and so clearly protected by our Founding Fathers.

After the Rights Revolution: Reconceiving the Regulatory State

The review raves about the "right to clean air and safe consumer products" which the free market has always seemed to defend quite nicely. But, we can always use a "regulatory state" I guess. Thank God for Prof. Sunstein.

And, of course, let's not leave out:

Feminism and Political Theory

But, I always thought political theory was delightfully gender neutral. Yet a glance at Prof. Sunstein's picture does seem to show some metro-sexual, sensitive side nuances.

Truth Will Out

Like a moth to a flame, I was drawn. I simply had to watch. I remembered the rule though: if his lips are moving he is lying. I wasn't disappointed.

He was charismatic. He was dramatic. He was emotional. He was convincing. He was declarative. He was reading it. He was lying.

Yes, if I hadn't seen the language of HR-3200, I might have swallowed it all and jumped aboard the US Titanic. If I didn't understand the issue of a public insurance option "competing" with private industry, I would think it a good deal. If I didn't read between the lines about how ridiculous the accusation of "death panels" was, I wouldn't see the rationing in our future. If I didn't understand the economics of "no pre-existing condition" insurance, I would believe that I could delay getting fire insurance on my home until the flames were actually visible.

But, the whole evening was worth the pain. I watched a master-liar at work. He made Bill Clinton's denial of sex with Lewinsky look amateurish. The high point, however, was this one:

Joe Wilson (R-SC) Couldn't Take It

Yes, right there in public for all the world to see, Joe yelled out "you lie" to the President and Messiah-in-Chief. For a moment I thought it was the start of a British Parliament question session of the PM. After the boring stand-up, sit-down, clap-clap-clap of the previous thirty minutes it was refreshing.

The glare from Nancy Pelosi was worth capturing for posterity. Watching her grab her seating chart and look to identify the miscreant while the Bamster raved on was priceless. She can sure give a dirty look!

Once a Year is Too Much

The "Great State Fair of Texas" doesn't kick off until the last week-end of this month, but the most important event may have already taken place.

Yes, my friends, I refer to the "Big Tex Choice Awards," that annual homage to the evilest foods the mind of man can concoct for ingestion along the midway. We've known for years of the preference of incipiently obese children and their doting parents for fried foods. A state or county fair is ample justification to forget about four basic food groups, type II diabetes, and early onset heart disease. We want it fatty and fried.

Now, there are some things that are simply disgusting. I like a great hamburger and won't turn away a quality hot dog, particularly if it comes with all of the classic Chicago fixings. No, I mean that insult to gastronomy, the corny dog. That has no redeeming qualities in any universe. No one beyond the age when you thought Twinkies were good would ever eat a corny dog willingly.

Funnel cakes, on the other hand, are a gift from the gods. Call them what you will, Navajo fry bread or German krullers or southern fritters or super hush puppies. Sweet dough, deep-fried and dusted with powdered sugar is wonderful.

If you accept that folks want fried and fatty, it isn't a stretch to figure out the Big Tex Choice Awards. Hold a competition each year for the fair's midway vendors and then give prizes for "most creative" and "best taste." Win the prize, you get lots of pre-fair publicity, and when the fair opens the world beats a path to your door.

The Last Winners of Big Tex Choice

Proving again that nothing exceeds like excess, the most creative this year is "Deep Fried Butter"! Whip some butter with some nice flavors like maple or cinnamon or apple, then freeze it in little balls. Batter and deep fry the butter-balls. Sprinkle with the obligatory powdered sugar and voila. You get a mouth full of sweet bread with melted butter on the inside.

Best Taste winner is a more attractive and less cholesterol loaded treat, "Deep Fried Peaches and Cream." What's not to like about that?

Fernie’s Deep Fried Peaches & Cream – Sweet juicy peaches are coated in a delicious batter of cinnamon, ginger, coconut, graham cracker crumbs, eggs & milk, then deep fried to a crunchy golden brown on the outside, while luscious and sweet on the inside. Served on a plate drizzled with raspberry sauce, lightly dusted with powdered sugar and topped with a cool dollop of whipped cream. A side of vanilla butter cream icing is provided for dipping.

Be still my beating heart!

Freedom of Speech

From Juneau it might have been difficult to contribute some cogent thoughts on health care, but freed from those constraints and relocated onto the national stage, former Gov. of Alaska, Sarah Palin waxes eloquent in the Wall Street Journal:

Ignore the Past, Embrace the Dream

She points out the obvious and in the process demonstrates the distortions of the administration. The Messia seeks measured discourse, talking "with each other rather than over each other." She smacks him down with common sense, quotes from the congressional budget office and a large dose of common sense.

How can anyone accept the proposals of the President? Take what you know and apply it. Medicare has all workers paying to insure a few, the elderly. That insurance is barely adequate as most folks will need a supplement to really pay the bills. It is already a band-aid solution (no healthcare pun intended.) Many doctors opt not to accept Medicare patients because of the inadequacy.

Now, you are asked to believe that healthcare benefits will be extended by this same bureaucracy to everyone. That necessitates acceptance that the existing base of payers (i.e. all workers) will be able to insure a group five times as large without getting a huge tax increase in the form of Medicare withholding.

Then accept that existing Medicare coverage will be improved while at the same time reducing costs. That is the classic conundrum of doing more with less. Maybe spinning straw into gold would be a better metaphor for our presidential Rumpelstiltskin.

Top the whole sundae with the requirement to believe that a non-profit, bureaucrat operated, mandatory-or-be-fined, public option insurance won't damage private insurance options. Remember that the government will regulate, mandate and handicap the free-enterprise companies along the way.

Listen carefully to the discussion which has gone on regarding "death panels." Throw out the inflammatory nickname. Simply consider the end-of-life options. Is care efficacious at that point? If you are concerned with cutting costs won't you inevitably ration?

Examine all of the other national healthcare experiments. Check numbers to evaluate. Still believe it is a good idea?

Read Gov. Palin, then get involved.

Villainy As High Art

One of my favorite and most dignified villains from one of my favorite movies:

Robin Olds

Production on the Robin Olds book is moving ahead rapidly. The publisher, St. Martin's Press, is already distributing copies of the manuscript for cover blurbs from noted people. The first return is a home-run:

"Robin Olds is probably the greatest aerial warrior America ever produced. He is the real deal, a fighter pilot's fighter pilot, a consumate military professional, a natural, charismatic leader, and a true, heroic servant of our republic. His autobiography tells it like it was... and provides written proof why the people who served with him made him a legend. That men like Olds chose to wear our nation's uniform does high honor to the profession. I confidently predict that this book will be an instant classic."

--Stephen Coonts, New York Times bestselling author of THE ASSASSIN

With a few more like that, this book should go flying off the shelves when it is released next spring.

Airpower Classics

Occasionally a bit of recognition pops up from an unexpected place. This is from the current edition of Air Force Magazine, the monthly publication of the Air Force Association. The feature for this month's "Airpower Classics" is the F-105 Thunderchief:

Beautiful Warrior

Yours truly winds up in some pretty powerful company in the list of "notables" associated with the venerable Thunderchief. I'm deeply honored to even be noticed.

The Shoe Is About to Drop

One can only wonder how much longer the Messiah can continue to wag his scrawny little finger in the face of the American people and blame the previous administration for the national debt. This is on the near-term agenda:

Bill to Raise Debt Ceiling Needed to Match Real Debt

That's right! We are going to be over $13 TRILLION by the end of the fiscal year. I wish old Everett Dirksen was alive today. He, you may recall, was the originator of that quote about "a billion here, a billion there and pretty soon you're talking about real money." We don't even worry about billions anymore.

But, there is some interesting stuff in that piece. First notice this bit of background:

Democrats in control of Congress, including then-Sen. Obama (Ill.), blasted President George W. Bush for failing to contain spending when he oversaw increased deficits and raised the debt ceiling.

That's modus operandi, isn't it? Bush bad, but now Obama good. In his own words, the Messiah condemns high debt:

“Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren,” Obama said in a 2006 floor speech that preceded a Senate vote to extend the debt limit. “America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership.”

Truer words were never spoken! I am stunned to find myself in total agreement with him. We do have a debt problem and we definitely have a failure of leadership!

The real pressure point this go-round is the Senate. You see they will have to stand and deliver, not like the miscreants of the House who had a mechanism for hiding:

When the House raised the debt limit to $13 trillion as part of a budget resolution approved in April, Democratic leaders used a maneuver known as the “Gephardt rule,” named after former House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt (Mo.), to avoid taking a roll call vote on the debt limit increase.

I think I would really feel bad about leaving that legacy in the House of Representatives, a rule that the members could use to avoid responsibility.

There isn't much choice about the action however, since the SecTreasury, Tim "TurboTax" Geithner says it is a fact that only needs to be legalized. The real issue is how this will impact the debtors (AKA China), the markets, the plummeting dollar, and the future of all Americans.

Some Town Hall Meetings

It seems increasingly that those who were chosen to represent us have forgotten how that relationship works. They work for us, not the other way around. We are a government of the people and it is the consent of the governed which is what gives them any authority or legitimacy at all. At least that is the way Hobbes and Locke and Jefferson told the story.



They seem to have forgotten that they don't have any money of their own. The only money which a government can spend is that which it takes from its citizens. If the citizens as a whole do not benefit, but some are pilfered to distribute to a chosen subset, then there is something wrong as this young lady has noted:



And some have been in office so long that they no longer can speak civily to those who put them in office, but from their pompous pedestal they insult, demean and simultaneously disregard the concerns of the electorate:



Some have to raise their voices to attempt to be heard, but the non-representatives blissfully are unaware of the principles of free market competition and capitalism. Yet, the people are making sense:



There were two movies last year that impressed me. Both were great and both have titles which seem increasingly to apply to the current political climate:

"No Country For Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood"

So be it.

A Policy of No-Precondition Negotiation

Remember the promise? Yes, despite a hundred years of history demonstrating that appeasement of dictators, terrorists and despots always bears dire consequences, the Messiah promised a velvet glove without even an iron fist inside. He would talk to them and they would be charmed into submission and cooperation.

Remember the slap down from Ahmadinejad over the initial overtures? Notice how that negotiation is going with regard to Iran's nuclear program? Remember Khadafi rolling over for Bush to get his belly scratched like a nice guy but now we've got him buying mass murderers out of Scottish jail and then parading them as heroes. Remember Chavez with his arm around his good friend Barack?

Check this:

Trade Deal Defies Trade Restrictions

The message between the lines here is very likely that Hugo is forthcoming on supplying refined gasoline to Mahmoud in return for something of value. What could it be? Does Hugo want a twenty pound bag of Iranian rials? Pretty unlikely. Would it be that Chavez sees a quid pro quo for an Iranian product yet to be produced, but promised for the 2010 model year? How about a nice nuclear weapon or two?

Yes, give us nuclear weapons for the southern hemisphere, just a hop, skip and jump from the US. Iran might have short range missiles to threaten Israel, but they aren't close to an intercontinental delivery capability. Give some weapons to Venezuela in exchange for much needed gas, and you've got a win-win situation.

Does Hugo have an air force capable of handling the mission? Well, he's got a nice squadron of US made F-16s, that certainly could be wired for the job. They are in place and functional. But why use them when you can simply wait for the impending delivery of two dozen Sukhoi SU-30s.

SU-30mk Capabilities

Longer range, better payload, more maneuverability and a serious threat particularly if the Messiah remains totally clueless about the world of foreign policy and how it relates to national defense.

Hillary, can you get on the Messiah's calendar some time this month? Can he fit you in between the dinner dates with Michelle, the indoctrination sessions with the children and the sales pitches on prime-time TV for a healthcare nationalization? Really, Hil, this is what a SecState is supposed to work on for us.

Candidate in 2012

Yes, it has taken a bit of time, but I think we've found the perfect candidate to defeat President Obama in the 2012 election. Isn't it time for a grass-roots, community organizing, articulate candidate of Hispanic heritage to be elected president?

Are You Ready?

I'm suffering sensory overload this morning. A full day of back-to-back-to-back-to-back football games yesterday has got me befuddled. Beer, brats, couch-potating, and high definition mean life is very, very good.

What do I know now that weekend one of the college season is pretty much in the books? Well, I know that Texas and Colt McCoy have practiced, but they weren't challenged by Lousiana-Monroe. I mean is that even a four year school?

Air Force chose a designated mort for target practice on week one. Who ever heard of Nichols State? Where do they come from? A 72-0 drubbing isn't any sort of accomplishment.

Navy played Ohio State to a surprise finish. Too bad they couldn't nail down the upset on the two-point try.

Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M all played credible if not first rung opponents. It will be an interesting fall season for the Texas fans.

Oklahoma was the shocker. BYU brought their mature, hardened and well-coached clean-living Mormons to that brand-new monument to Jerry Jones excess, "Cowboys Stadium" and simply played classic defense and just enough offense. Bob Stoops was figuring to notch OK's belt with another one of his run-up the score jobs, but when Sam Bradford got taken out in the last minute of the first half with a very clean hit, the jig was up. The Sooners played out the game, but didn't have the spark that Heisman winner Bradford brings to the field. With Bradford sidelined for at least three weeks, I'm thinking this takes OK out of the BCS running for the major stuff. Too bad; a Bradford vs Colt McCoy matchup for the Red River Classic would have been great.

Now, this just in from the pro ranks:

Exempt List Means No Roster, No Team Practice

Vick is NOT on the roster, can't be on the roster until the third week of the season, and can't practice with the team until he's on the roster.

Yes, life is very sweet...

Slinking Back to Berkeley

In the dark of night on a holiday weekend when hundreds of thousands of Americans are involved with Labor Day outings and the college football kickoff weekend, the news dribbles out of the back door of the White House to go largely unnoticed.

Van Jones, avowed racist, Truther, community organizer, American military accuser, sewer-mouthed ersatz humorist of political opposition and White House "czar" has quietly resigned.

Beatification Completed Now Canonization Awaits Miracles

The Reasons Spelled Out For the Slow Learners

Drummed Out By a Smear Campaign Consisting of My Quotes

Oh yes, the Huffington Post, the Daily Kos, even the New York Times and major network talking suits will be decrying the loss of this struggler for equality who saw the evil American empire for what it was. They will be attempting to dismantle the critics who picked at the scab that is Van Jones until his background was exposed for all to see.

They will fail, however, because there is no way that this guy is anything but another Jeremiah Wright in a Brooks Brothers suit.

Isn't amazing what the blogosphere can accomplish these days?

A Great State

Want to know why I'm happy to have moved to Texas? I loved my 20 years in Colorado, but this wouldn't happen there:

Reaction to the Messiah Indoctrination Show

"We don't need no steenkin' Webcasts"

Traditional Holiday Falls This Weekend

Yes, it's that time again. Time to celebrate the end of summer with that festival which we all know and love. After months of anticipation building today is the day:

International Bacon Day

So, let's gather around the blackened cast iron frying pan, toss in a slab of hickory smoked, thick-sliced, black-pepper crusted cholesterol overload and enjoy the spattering pork fat, the smoky aromas filling the kitchen, the crunchy remains of the rendering process that reduces ten inch slices to four inch shriveled morsels. Then let's fry a clutch of hen-fruit in the half-inch deep delicious grease, slather a chunk of butter on some sourdough bread and have breakfast.

Lunch can't come soon enough for more of the delicacy as we rush back from the market with some end-of-season tomatoes and leafy lettuce to build a triple deck mayonaisse slathered BLT with a dill pickle and some cold beer.

As evening falls we'll sprinkle bacon bits on the roquefort dressed salad and maybe pop a bacon-wrapped filet on the barbie. Some green beans par-boiled then tied in neat bunches with a strip of bacon to fry in the pan will balance the meal. Don't forget a baked potato with some sour cream and bacon bits tossed on top.

I wonder where I might find some of that bacon ice-cream the site mentions?

Then how long can it be until we erect the Festivus pole again? I should be out of intensive care by then.

News From Montauk

I fear I'm taking the easy way out too often, but Iowahawk is so good, I must once again highlight him. Today he is channeling an "elite conservative" writing for The Topsider, a ultra-poobah newsletter. It is a masterful effort:

When Wind Breaks, Tack to Starboard

If that doesn't capture the mood of the Northeast, I don't know what could.

Saturday Morning Rocker

Well, I've got the E-ticket. I get a free horse-drawn carriage ride, a small piece of land, a bunch of sharp guys in neat outfits to walk along with me, a bit of commemorative bang-bang to end the party and the promise of some music at the end. All great, but rather than that traditional musician playing the same old tune, I want to hire this guy for my Arlington gig.

The Final Straw

The liberal MSM seldom notices the pecadilloes of their chosen ideological mates. But, sometime they go too far and then the drumbeat for a scalp will come from an unlikely quadrant.

Rangel Must Go

The incongruity of the congressman from Harlem being responsible for national tax policy while simultaneously igoring the laws he himself is charged with promulgating seems to have exceeded the limits of even the WaPo.

Rangel now, maybe Franks and Pelosi next week?

Case Dismissed

I promised to keep you updated on the dismissal of the corruption charges against NM governor Bill Richardson. I was particularly perplexed by the reversal in the news coverage that first indicated it was done at the direction of the Attorney General's office in Washington--clearly a mark of "the fix being in". Then a short day later, the statement out of NM's US Attorney, Greg Fouratt that he was dropping the case because of a rapidly expiring statute of limitations and insufficient evidence to bring the matter to trial. It didn't track with my long background with Mr. Foratt.

Now, here's a viewpoint regarding the letter informing the parties to the case of the dismissal.

I'm Watching and You'll be Back

When you are part of a big organization, whether it be the military as I was, or the Attorney General's bureaucracy, it is sometime necessary to do things which aren't what you would prefer. But, if doing so helps to retain your job in a position where you can still have a positive impact then occasionally you bite the bullet.

This story still has some chapters to be written. Too bad the MSM aren't paying attention, or maybe there is simply too much fodder available to cover all of the foibles of the machine.

Yale Graduate...

Yes, the expose of Van Jones is accelerating. Now, we've got a brief resume available to get a handle on where this guy came from onto the national scene. He's a community organizer, of course.

But, I particularly liked this activity:

Co-founded a socialist collective, Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement, or STORM, in 1994, which held study groups on the theories of Marx and Lenin and dreamed of a multiracial socialist utopia. The group protested police brutality.

Now, doesn't that explain so very much? Read the rest here. Don't worry, much like the Bamster's resume, it shouldn't take you very long:

Credentials Make the Man

Only now do I realize what counts in a career. Krauthammer comments cogently here:

Act in Haste

...repent in leisure. Parents caution children to think about what they are doing before they do something that will result in a bad outcome either for themselves or others.

Marketing departments learn to do it before recommending the go-ahead on a new product. Business executives learn to do it before major corporate decisions. Slow down. Think it through. Consider the alternatives. What's the worst case scenario? Has everything been accounted for?

Now, consider the Obama administration. Is there any policy decision that isn't critical to enact immediatly lest the world collapse? How many of these rash decisions are necessitating "re-thinking" or "re-phrasing"?

The latest, of course is the Messiah worship, education and indoctrination session scheduled for next Tuesday's school menu. The outrage is certainly predictable to anyone with a bit of life experience. Is there no mature mind in all of the White House? Is there nobody in a position of authority who actually knows what the laws of the land are with regard to their own fiefdom?

Read this retrenchment on the "lesson plans":

Take a Memo to "Self"

OK, I'm willing to acknowledge that the revised phrasing is an improvement over the ill-advised first cut. But slowly go back and read the last paragraph from the piece:

Christina Erland Culver, former deputy assistant secretary for education, said presidents have traditionally addressed classrooms on the first day of school, but the problem with the event was the accompanying materials from the Department of Education.

"That's where they kind of got into a slippery spot. Federal statute denies any authority to the Department of Education to provide any kind of curriculum or anything that can be passed down to the state, and that's part of the statute forming the Department of Education. So they kinda got themselves into this mess because they didn't really understand some of the key legal roles or the dos and don'ts at the federal Department of Ed," she said.

They don't even know what the enabling statutes of their own department prohibit!

Questionable Background

Yesterday I offered the viddie of "green jobs" czar, Van Jones, being himself for a Berkeley townhall meeting of true believers. It was adequately outrageous in itself to initiate a bit of demand for resignation--someone that base and crude should be questioned with regard to whether they were suitable White House material.

Now Gateway Pundit offers more background on the not-so-gentleman:

Truther and Hip Hop Futurist

Just as there are "Birthers" and they tilt at the windmill of questioning the Messiah's qualifications for the office he holds, so also there are "Truthers" who somehow can blank out the actual footage of the events of 9/11 and create a scenario of a White House conspiracy. I'm comfortable that there isn't the slightest basis for either position. But, while one might be a simple semantic and paperwork exercise the other scenario is so incredible that you might suggest psychiatric evaluation for the adherent.

But, the funny part of the Pundit disclosures on Mr. Jones is this statement from his community organizer position before czardom was bestowed:

As Van Jones of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights said, "This event makes it clear that the path of social change needs to go through youth culture, and therefore it needs to go through hip-hop. Once hip-hop becomes central to social change, the entire game will be changed."

So, baggie pants, a crooked baseball cap and some heavy bling is the "change we can believe in."

The parallels to Camelot begin to break down here.

Warning

Be careful of social networking sites. I encountered this guy on Facebook last week:

Free Market vs Government

I'm watching a perfect example of government versus free enterprise in terms of efficiency. I've long been in total awe of the capability of UPS tracking to accurately tell me the progress of a package from initial contact to arrival at my doorstep. You've seen it as well. It is much more than simply "got it, had it, delivered it". Amazing.

Now, I've got an order from Amazon.com coming my way. It was a new product due to be released on the 30th of August. I ordered it around the first of the month. Amazon let me know that it was on the move my way via USPS and they gave me a tracking number for the box.

The fact that I had a tracking number meant it had actually been posted. I checked. The first entry was Aug. 29--package left shipper in Clarksville KY. Expected delivery 9 September.

Wait a sec. It is going to take 12 days for the Postal Service to move a 2 pound box eight hundred miles? Pony express got mail across the country on horse-back in three days and that was without roads! The cheapest, slowest UPS service takes three business days. What's up?

I went back to the tracking site on the 31st and there was no further information beyond the first entry. Yesterday, the 2nd of Sept, a quick five days into the journey, a new entry appeared. "Arrival scan, Sept 2---" Where was it? No entry disclosed where the arrival scan took place! It got there, but where "there" is can't be displayed. If they don't know where it is now, how can they know it will take six more days? Estimated delivery is still the 9th of September.

I wonder where it is. I wonder how they got a scanner to input arrival data to the tracking system without any destination included. I wonder if it is a Los Angeles distribution center. I wonder who programmed their software.

Yeah, that USPS system is right there competing shoulder to shoulder with UPS and FEDEX. The "public option" for package delivery gives Americans a reasonable, low-cost, equivalent system...or not.

Healthcare coming your way soon.

Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis

You've heard by now. The Messiah is holding a command performance on September 8th. The public school children of America, grades K-12, will receive the benefit of his wisdom and guidance with mandatory attendance.

Announcement Trigger Protest

There is more than enough reason for concern at this. But, beyond the nagging doubt of propriety, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Then I saw this:

Flopping Aces Offers a Trigger for Thought

My first reaction had been recollection of Hitler Jugend coming together to rally for der Fuhrer and dutifully recite his philosophy of Aryan superiority.

But the FA item with the description of the lesson plan activity was even more sinister to me. The students are encouraged to write goals and plans for themselves which the teachers are to collect and then redistribute at some future date.

This brings to mind the Mao period of re-education after the revolution. The dutiful recitation of the slogans from the Little Red Book. The self-criticism sessions and public demeaning of the nationalist sympathizers in order to regain their acceptance by the collective.

Yes, students, pay attention to the goals of the Messiah. Adopt them as your own. Describe how you will follow his leadership and spell out the steps which you will take to achieve his plans. Let me hold that document for you. Is it OK if I share this plan with your classmates now to determine if your are working hard enough? What have you failed to do...Confess! What have you not sacrificed...Confess! What are you holding back...Confess! Why don't you believe....Confess!

Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Republican Party?

How They View the World

He is at a town hall meeting. He is one of the President's "czars". That means he is at the highest level of the administration and works directly with the President in the White House. He is in charge of "green jobs", whatever those are.

The young lady, whose political ideology is probably clear since the meeting is taking place in Berkeley CA, asks a reasonable question about why the gang that couldn't shoot straight can't do things while the previous administration with a smaller majority was able to get their agenda enacted. It is a reasonable question from a political process perspective.



There were many answers that you might have expected from that level of administration policy makers to describe the difficulty with passage of legislation. There are certainly the very fundamental questions of garnering public support. There is even an opportunity to discuss the value of bipartisanship.

But, the answer shows clearly the sophistication of the administration and their disdain for any who do not march in lockstep.

Apologies in Advance

I'm sorry, but I can't resist:

Ben & Jerry offers Hubby Hubby Ice Cream

Yes, the ultra-liberal, super-saturated ice cream wizards of Vermont have celebrated the passage of a gay marriage law by renaming their Chubby Hubby flavor for the month of September.

The flavor features "Fudge covered peanut butter filled pretzels in vanilla malt ice cream with fudge and peanut butter".

Now, that description offers simply too many crass and disgusting jokes alluding to homosexual practices and derogatory nicknames. I'll refrain fudge jokes, but note that the short description could simply state that the ice cream offers "twice as many nuts and no cherries."

It makes me glad I live in Texas where Blue Bell comes in half gallons for the same price as a pint of B&J and is equal in flavor. The black and white cows of Brenham TX contribute their all to some of the best stuff on the planet. Blue Bell welcomes you. Maybe some of that Blueberry Cheesecake tonight...

The Mistakes We Made

Cameras used film in those days and many of the pictures are long gone. This one, however surfaced this morning and captures me in a moment when I was still young and immortal. The bulls were only yearlings and the horns were blunted, but they could still knock a 200 pound fighter pilot on his butt without much effort.



The bad news was that these young bulls did this every weekend against a new crop of budding matadors. They had seen it all before. It was only on my third or fourth go around with another bull later that afternoon that I got up-ended.

Knowing Your Enemy

Hat-tip to Chicago Ray for posting this and leading me to Big Hollywood:

The Left Explained in New Age Terms

The insights explain it clearly. Profound.

Diving Into the Tank

Latest Rasmussen Poll numbers strongly indicate that America is waking up:

Approval Index Now at -11

The pollster also noted that for the entire month of August the Bamster never got higher than 50% approval ratings. This may be a faster, deeper shift than we've seen since Lyndon Johnson declared defeat after Tet '68. One wonders if the campaign genius in the White House can discern a cause/effect relationship anywhere.

Note particularly the last paragraph in that Rasmussen report. The Messiah always polls more poorly when the poll is conducted of "Likely Voters" rather than simply respondents. In simpler words, people who can read and write are less likely to buy into the propaganda machine.

Another Amazing Semester

Yes friends, school is back in session and I'm facing more eager young mushy minds seeking a grade dispenser to provide them with an ego-satisfying A or B to pump their GPA and fill the mandatory state requirements for a course in American Government and a course in State/Local Government to get a degree in Texas.

I again have been overwhelmed in just a week by the crop on the academic tree. There is virtually no understanding visible of the basic principles of a free market. How they might have gotten through 12 years of education in America without anyone ever suggesting that prices aren't set by government with regard to "fairness" is astonishing.

Like a complex crystal, each time I turn the academic page, I get a new view of the misunderstanding and a new insight into what is wrong with America. These things aren't unique to this semester's bunch. The concepts they harbor were in the previous classes, but the one that jumps out at me this early in the semester is the issue of government spending.

They don't appreciate the incontrovertible fact that government at any level has no money of its own. They somehow think that there is a treasury filled with gold doubloons that a benevolent government strews out to the hungry populace. Or, conversely for the more modern viewpoint, the government owns a printing press.

If only some enterprising high school teacher would have mentioned Milton Friedman to them. It is a revelation when I suggest that money only has value when the total supply is limited. Printing more units of currency only means that each unit is worth progressively less until we reach the Weimar Republic moment of hyper-inflation and total collapse. They don't get it.

Even more telling was a State/Local student griping about "unfunded mandates". I guess the thought was that throwing a technical term like that into the discussion would confer gravitas into his answers. He griped that forcing the states to perform tasks at federal mandate without providing funds would tax the state budget! The feds should ship the necessary bucks along with the mandate or we wouldn't be able to get it done!

Describing to him that the service costs what the service costs and regardless of whether it was paid by federal appropriation or state, the money would come from the citizens in the form of taxes. Sort of "you can pay me now or you can pay me later."

What is so hard about that? Isn't it obvious? We only receive government largess after our own pocket has been picked.