J O S H U A P U N D I T

Jihadis Guilty In Major UK Plot - Targeted Stock Exchange, Mayor's Home, Rabbi's Homes

2012-02-01T20:03:00.000-08:00

Four jihadis pled guilty today in a London courthouse to to planning a terrorist attack on the London Stock Exchange, Mayor Boris Johnson's home and the homes of two London rabbis.

Mohammed Chowdhury, 21; Shah Rahman, 28; Gurukanth Desai, 30; and Abdul Miah, 25, all pled guilty at Woolwich Crown Court in London today, and five other men involved in the conspiracy pled guilty to other terrorist offenses.

They were arrested back in December 2010 in a large-scale anti-terrorist raid by Scotland Yard that drew massive criticism from the Muslim Council of Britain.All of them are British citizens.

Chowdhury and Rahaman were apparently the leaders. There were also plans to send mail bombs prior to hitting the main targets and launching a “Mumbai-style” attack on London.

The group is scheduled to be sentenced next week.

Ultimate Outsourcing!! Dogs Now Stealing Jobs From Americans

2012-02-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

Cute!!

Gallup State Approval Numbers Predict An Obama Loss

2012-02-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

The above is an interesting one from the latest Gallup Poll( via memeorandum). It's based on Gallup's annual state-by-state presidential approval numbers for 2011, and shows what the 2012 election would look like if President Obama carries only those states where he had a net positive approval rating in 2011 (e.g. Michigan where he is up 48 percent to 44 percent).

The generic GOP candidate beats him 323 electoral votes to 215.

Now, a projection of this kind has its faults. For one thing, 2011 is not 2012, and this map shows a generic Republican rather than a specific candidate, which would change the map considerably.So would turnout factors

Allowing for that, all things being equal my personal caveats would be as follows:

I would expect President to take Oregon and either Pennsylvania or Ohio. That would add 25-27 electoral votes to the Democrat total - still far short of 270.As a matter of fact, even taking Oregon and both Ohio and Pennsylvania still leave the president 10 electoral votes shy of the magic number

Assuming the above unlikely scenario - that President Obama takes all of the Blue states above plus Oregon, Ohio and Pennsylvania - to win, he'd need at least two of the following states: Colorado,Nevada, Iowa or New Mexico.The odds are far better that the president would take Oregon, either Ohio or Pennsylvania and two of the four states I just mentioned...which would still leave him shy of 270.

Depending on the candidate, it's very possible that Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan will be in play for the GOP. Mitt Romney, for instance, would be tough to beat in Michigan and possibly Wisconsin.

I wouldn't dream of making a personal projection this far out,but this doesn't look good for the White House.

Romney Wins Florida By Double Digits

2012-02-01T08:56:00.000-08:00

In a major blowout, Mitt Romney crushed Newt Gingrich 46.4% to 31.9% in the Sunshine State, with Rick Santorum taking 13.4% and Ron Paul bringing up the rear with 7%.

Romney's victory was telling in that he won big in a number of important groups.

Women overall abandoned Gingrich for Romney by a 22 point spread, and married women dumped Newt by an almost two-to-one margin, 28% to Romney's 51%.

Among Hispanics, Romney crushed Gingrich, taking 54% of that vote to Gingriches' 14%. This is especially telling because of Romney's relatively hardline stance on illegal immigration, which was distorted by a large number of negative Spanish language ads put out not only by the Gingrich campaign but by Super PACs and Union money friendly to President Obama.

And Governor Romney actually took the Tea Party vote away from Newt Gingrich. Out of the 66 percent of Florida voters who said they supported the Tea Party, 41% cast their ballots for Romney and 38% for Gingrich.

When asked which candidate had the best chance to defeat President Obama Romney got 58%, according to the exit poll data. Only 33 percent of those voters said they supported Gingrich.

Newt Gingrich barely managed to hold on to Evangelicals, 39% to Romney's 36%.

Florida is a massively important win because it's a vital state Republicans are going to have to carry if they are to defeat President Obama in November. Unlike the other primary states we've seen thus far, Florida is a larger state with a diverse population that has demographics that looked pretty favorable to Gingrich going in. It's a southern state, the GOP electorate is conservative and Tea-Party friendly like South Carolina, it has a large senior population and Gingrich came in to the state with the momentum (and cash) from his win in South Carolina just a short time before the Florida primary.

If Newt Gingrich got beaten like a gong in Florida, it's likely going to be difficult for him to compete with Romney anywhere out of the Deep South.

Another important milestone is that both Gingrich and Romney shed important parts of their image.

Newt Gingrich lost his perceived mastery as a debater,giving several poor performances prior to Florida vote. And Mitt Romney definitely put to rest and questions among conservatives about his toughness and ability to go toe to toe with Obama in the general with his blitzkrieg campaign that knocked Gingrich out of the ring.

As John Podhoretz wrote on Monday in the New York Post, Florida was a challenge to Romney’s ability to play hardball: “The clean-cut Boy Scout Ken-doll candidate from Massachusetts needed to show his fellow Republicans that he could be mean, tough and merciless on the attack — that he could take it to his rival and best him.”

Accomplishing that didn't come without a price, however. What Romney may have gained among conservatives is offset by what he may have lost from swing voters disgusted by the negative tone of the campaign.

Newt Gingrich's reaction was to promise a scorched earth campaign no matter what the cost, and to have the nerve to call for the other candidates to get out of the race so that "Newt Gingrich, the conservative alternative can defeat the Massachusetts moderate." Yes, he's talking about himself in the third person now. Just for that bit of pomposity, I hope Rick Santorum, a far better man takes over Gingrich's number two spot fairly soon.

Governor Romney, on the other hand, attempted to repair some of that damage in his victory speech, focusing on President Obama, calling for unity in the battle ahead and graciously giving a shout out to his rivals, saying:

There are fewer candidates than when the race began, but the three gentlemen left are serious and able competitors. And I congratulate them on another hard-fought contest in this campaign.

Primary contests are not easy – and they’re not supposed to be. As this primary unfolds, our opponents in the other party have been watching. They like to comfort themselves with the thought that a competitive campaign will leave us divided and weak.

But I’ve got some news for them: A competitive primary does not divide us; it prepares us. And when we gather here in Tampa seven months from now for our convention, ours will be a united party with a winning ticket for America!

Three years ago this week, a newly elected President Obama faced the American people and said that if he couldn’t turn the economy around in three years, he’d be looking at a one-term proposition. We’re here to collect.{...}

In his State of the Union Address, the President actually said, “Let’s remember how we got here.” Don’t worry, Mr. President, we remember exactly how we got here! You won the election!

Leadership is about taking responsibility, not making excuses. In another era of American crisis, Thomas Paine is reported to have said, “Lead, follow, or get out of the way.” Mr. President, you were elected to lead, you chose to follow, and now it’s time for you to get out of the way!

I stand ready to lead this Party and our nation. As a man who has spent his life outside Washington, I know what it is like to start a business. I know how extraordinarily difficult it is to build something from nothing. I know how government kills jobs and, yes, how it can help.

President Obama’s view of capitalism is to send your money to his friends’ companies. My vision for free enterprise is to return entrepreneurship to the genius and creativity of the American people.

On one of the most personal matters of our lives, our health care, President Obama would turn decision making over to government bureaucrats. He forced through Obamacare; I will repeal it.

Like his colleagues in the faculty lounge who think they know better, President Obama demonizes and denigrates almost every sector of our economy. I will make America the most attractive place in the world for entrepreneurs, for innovators, and for job creators. And unlike the other people running for President, I know how to do that. President Obama orders religious organizations to violate their conscience; I will defend religious liberty and overturn regulations that trample on our first freedom.{...}

President Obama believes America’s role as leader in the world is a thing of the past. He is intent on shrinking our military capacity at a time when the world faces rising threats. I will insist on a military so powerful no one would ever think of challenging it. President Obama has adopted a strategy of appeasement and apology. I will stand with our friends and speak out for those seeking freedom.

President Obama wants to “fundamentally transform” America. We want to restore America to the founding principles that made this country great.

Our plans protect freedom and opportunity, and our blueprint is the Constitution of the United States.

Together, we will build an America where “hope” is a new job with a paycheck, not a faded word on an old bumper sticker.

The path I lay out is not one paved with ever increasing government checks and cradle-to-grave assurances that government will always be the solution. If this election is a bidding war for who can promise more benefits, then I’m not your President. You have that President today. 

Pretty good speech, actually. Almost Reaganesque. I especially liked the lines about the faculty lounge and the faded bumper sticker.

And I also know given a choice between Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney whom I want sitting in the White House.

Watcher's Council Nominations - Florida Showdown Edition

2012-02-01T04:13:00.000-08:00

Ah, primary season is in full swing..

Welcome to the Watcher's Council, a blogging group consisting of some of the most incisive blogs in the 'sphere, and the longest running group of its kind in existence. Every week, the members nominate two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council.Then we vote on the best two posts, with the results appearing on Friday.

This week's contest is dedicated to Isabella Santorum and little Elli - get well soon, we're pulling for you sweethearts.

Council News:

This week, Ask Marion, The Independent Sentinel and Capitalist Preservation took advantage of my generous offer of link whorage and earned honorable mention status.

You can, too! Want to see your work appear on the Watcher’s Council homepage in our weekly contest listing? Didn’t get nominated by a Council member? No worries.

Simply head over to Joshuapundit and post the title a link to the piece you want considered along with an e-mail address ( which won't be published) in the comments section no later than Monday 6PM PST in order to be considered for our honorable mention category, and return the favor by creating a post on your site linking to the Watcher’s Council contest for the week.

It's a great way of exposing your best work to Watcher’s Council readers and Council members. while grabbing the increased traffic and notoriety. And how good is that, eh?

So, let's see what we have this week....

Council Submissions

The Colossus of Rhodey – If you didn't know this was coming by now, you're living in a cave

Joshuapundit-The New Egypt - Bankrupt And Sinking Fast

The Noisy Room – Tantrum on the Tarmac

Simply Jews – Wayne Madsen drops another... bombshell: Barack Obama outed as CIA creation

New Zeal – Russia Today Hires WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange- Will the Kremlin Be Pleased?

The Political Commentator – In a debate would John King ask Obama about this...? (Video)

VA Right - Senator Janet Howell ‘Rectal Avenger’

GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – The Saudi Persian War

The Mellow Jihadi – Parading Vets: St Louis Vs. New York

Bookworm Room – ObamaCare, the Catholic Church, and mandatory abortion payments

The Razor – The Twisted Memory of Newt Gingrich

Rhymes With Right – Presidents Are Not Kings; Americans No Obliged To Appear When He Beckons

Right Truth – What's In A Name?

The Right Planet – GOP: On Whose Side?

The Glittering Eye -The History of Spaghetti and Marinara

Honorable Mentions

The Independent Sentinel - Obama Signed the Anti-Counterfeiting Treaty & Ceded Our Internet Rights to the UN
Ask Marion - Hillary Leaving as Obama’s Eligibility Trial(s) Move Forward… Coincidence?

Capitalist Preservation - A hiss is just a hiss, a lie is just a lie...

Non-Council Submissions

Smithsonian.com – Revisiting the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Alisina.org – What Is My Identity? submitted by Joshuapundit

Michelle Malkin –For Santorum submitted by The Noisy Room

Terry Glavin – It's Not Funny Anymore submitted by Simply Jews

American Thinker – The Civilized Man vs. the MTA Savages submitted by New Zeal

Caroline Glick -The Zionist Imperative submitted by The Political Commentator

Investor.com – Media Act As Though Only Republicans Misbehave submitted by VA Right

The Reserve Officer – New Defense Strategy submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

The Kitchen Dispatch –Aloha, Sarge Charlie. Until We Meet Again submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

Bill Whittle-The Vote Pumpsubmitted by Bookworm Room

Via Meadia –Beyond Blue Part One: The Crisis of the American Dream submitted by The Razor

Frontloading HQ – I'll see your white knight and raise you a filing deadline. Why It's Too Late for Entry in the Republican Nomination Racesubmitted by Rhymes with Right

Blogbat -The Moon Is Made of Cheese, You Know submitted by Right Truth

Bob Owens/PJ Media – New Emails Suggest Eric Holder Perjured Himself submitted by The Glittering Eye

American Thinker – Barack Obama and the Strategy of Manufactured Crisis submitted by The Right Planet

Gates of Vienna – Breivik: Al Qaeda’s Man in Oslo? submitted by The Watcher

Enjoy! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

MF Global's Jon Corzine Raises $500K For Obama

2012-01-31T14:02:00.000-08:00

Well, at least we know now where some of that $ 1.2 billion in investor funds that's 'missing' went!

According the Barack Obama's 2012 campaign website, Jon Corzine of Hoboken, New Jersey raised at least $500,000 for the president's reelection effort.

Corzine, of course, has most recently been in the news for being on the wrong side of a $6.3 billion bet as head of MF Global. "MF Global filed for bankruptcy on October 31, after $6.3 billion in risky bets on European sovereign debt spooked investors and an effort to sell the company failed," Reuters reported. "Investigators are searching for as much as $1.2 billion in missing customer money, which regulators said the company may have diverted for its own needs."

Later, Corzine admitted he could not account for the $1.2 billion.

Ah the sweet smell of The Chicago Way..if the president gets re-elected, any bets out there on how soon Jon Corzine gets a pardon if he ends up being convicted?

Newt Attacks Romney For Fiscal Conservatism And Leaner, Smarter Government!

2012-01-31T11:27:00.000-08:00

This gets more bizarre the longer it goes on.

Florida has a large population of elderly retired Jews, and Newt Gingrich is targeting them in his personal appearances by claiming that while he was governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney vetoed kosher food in state-supported old age homes, thus causing the retirees distress because of the disrespect to their religion.

Sounds pretty nasty, doesn't it? Especially to someone who keeps kosher and imagines all those poor elderly Jews having to choose between violating their faith by eating non-kosher food or starvation.

The real story? What actually happened is that the State of Massachusetts was going through a severe budget crunch and Governor Romney attempted to cut the state budget by ending expensive kosher kitchens in state-supported nursing homes and called for kosher meals to get prepared off-site and bused in to those locations where they were needed. It would have saved the state $600,000 per year, and still provided kosher meals to any Jew that wanted them. The Democrat- dominated Massachusetts legislature shot the proposal down.

Just listen to Newt's new radio spot:

“vetoed a bill paying for kosher food for our seniors in nursing homes -- Holocaust survivors, who for the first time, were forced to eat non-kosher, because Romney thought $5 was too much to pay for our grandparents to eat kosher.”

I'm upset about this not only because it gives the lie to Newt Gingrich's claim that he's a 'fiscal conservative' but because it's a disgraceful attempt to manipulate old people and slander another person with a deliberate falsehood. He'll be saying Romney eats babies for breakfast next, and poisons puppies for recreation.

After this, I don't want hear another word from Gingrich or his supporters about 'attack ads' or 'lies'. Not another single word.

Iranian Majlis Preparing Impeachment For Ahmadinejad

2012-01-31T10:31:00.000-08:00

At least that's what a number of sources are reporting.

The rift I reported on earlier between President Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has not lessened, but gotten even greater.

The chief cause of the friction is that Ahmadinejad has been seeking increased power and freedom of action while showing a disturbing tendency not to follow orders to put it mildly, and the Mullahs don't like it, to say the least.

Under the velayat-e-faqih clerical government installed by Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979, the Supreme Leader and the Council of Guardians actually rule and the president's office is essentially an administrative one. If Khamenei decides he's had enough of Ahmadinejad,there's nothing stopping him from having the Iranian majlis (parliament) throw hm out of office.

However, the political discord may not be what Ayatollah Khamenei wants right now, especially if he can have a quiet talk with Ahmadinejad and let him know that there could be new accommodations for him in Teheran's Evin prison unless he changes his ways. Ahmadinejad's terms in up in 2013 anyway, and he would not be able to run fro re-election without the consent of Khamenei and the Council of Guardians anyway.

Another possible factor is Khamenei's reported ill health. He may very well decide to settle business with Ahmadinejad and not leave it for a successor to do.

Make no mistake about it - we're not talking about a 'Persian Spring' here..just a changing of one man's position.

Stay tuned...

CBC Chairman Emanuel Cleaver: 'Hey, We're Racists! What Of It?'

2012-01-30T18:16:00.000-08:00

That's not exactly verbatim, but it's essentially what the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus said:

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver — the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus – told The Daily Caller that African Americans won’t “march on the White House” over the high unemployment rate in the black community because President Barack Obama is black.

Following his appearance at Republican Rep. Allen West’s Black Conservative Forum, Cleaver elaborated on his past comments about Obama’s image in the African American community, saying, “The point I was making is that black people hold the president in such high esteem, that they would not dare march on the White House even though unemployment is at 15 percent and higher and if there was a white president we would do that because we’ve had white presidents since George Washington.”

Cleaver continued, “The point was that if we had anybody else in the White House, with this level of unemployment, that you know, you would see a lot more African Americans, African American organizations and retro organizations speaking out against it. But because he is revered, you know, he gets I guess the benefit of, you know, understanding that the situation was terrible when he came in. So, we’re not doing that.”

The Missouri Democrat told The DC that he personally resisted a proposed Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) “prayer” demonstration at the White House.

“I was resistant to a group of individuals who wanted to lock arms, surround the White House, with several thousand people during the ALC this past October and pray. I resisted it because I thought if we did that it would be interpreted as some kind of assault on the president, which I was not willing to launch,” he said.

So...it's OK to trash President Bush simply because he's white, but President Obama is sacrosanct just because he's black for even worse performance.

Does anyone have any doubt that if whites used exactly the same criteria in criticizing President Obama while giving a white president a pass Rep. Cleaver and his friends would be foaming at the mouth and screaming "Racism" ?

You see, Racism really is colorblind, as Dr, King so clearly saw.

It's an ugly cancer no matter who wears the sheet.

India Opts Out Of Participating In Iran Oil Embargo

2012-01-30T11:52:00.000-08:00

India, the world's fourth largest oil consumer has informed the US and Europe that it will not participate in the embargo on Iranian oil scheduled to start - if it starts - this summer.

"It is not possible for India to take any decision to reduce the imports from Iran drastically, because among the countries which can provide the requirement of the emerging economies, Iran is an important country amongst them," Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters on a visit to the Unites States.

Yeah, sanctions'll work. Sure they will.

In a related item, India and Iran have agreed to drop the use of the dollar as a reserve currency for oil trading between the two countries. They're using gold.

UK's Global Warming Office New Figures: No Warming in the Past 15 Years

2012-01-30T10:58:00.000-08:00

Whoopsie:

The supposed ‘consensus’ on man-made global warming is facing an inconvenient challenge after the release of new temperature data showing the planet has not warmed for the past 15 years.

The figures suggest that we could even be heading for a mini ice age to rival the 70-year temperature drop that saw frost fairs held on the Thames in the 17th Century.

Based on readings from more than 30,000 measuring stations, the data was issued last week without fanfare by the Met Office and the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit. It confirms that the rising trend in world temperatures ended in 1997.

Remember 'the science is settled'?

What I'd like to know now is how taxpayers in the developed world go about reclaiming the billions of taxpayer dollars that were and still are literally being stolen from the public purse in the name of this scam.

Brinks, The Great Train Robbery and even Bernie Madoff aren't even in the same league.

AG Holder Caught In Another Fast And Furious Lie

2012-01-29T17:50:00.000-08:00

Attorney General Eric Holder’s Department of Justice did a document dump on Operation Fast and Furious to congressional officials late Friday night. One part of this was a series of emails showing Holder was informed of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry’s murder on the day it happened – December 15, 2010 – and that he was informed the weapons used to kill Terry were from Fast and Furious on the same day.

Let me reiterate. Eric Holder didn't find out about gunwalking and Fast and Furious "a few weeks" before Congress called him in as he originally said (later amended to "a few months") before his May 2011 testimony.He knew all about it the very same day:

An email from one official, whose name has been redacted from the document, to now-former Arizona U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke reads: “On December 14, 2010, a BORTAC agent working in the Nogales, AZ AOR was shot. The agent was conducting Border Patrol operations 18 miles north of the international boundary when he encountered [redacted word] unidentified subjects. Shots were exchanged resulting in the agent being shot. At this time, the agent is being transported to an area where he can be air lifted to an emergency medical center.”

That email was sent at 2:31 a.m. on the day Terry was shot. One hour later, a follow-up email read: “Our agent has passed away.”

Burke forwarded those two emails to Holder’s then-deputy chief of staff Monty Wilkinson later that morning, adding that the incident was “not good” because it happened “18 miles w/in” the border.

Wilkinson responded to Burke shortly thereafter and said the incident was “tragic.” “I’ve alerted the AG [Holder], the Acting DAG, Lisa, etc.”

Then, later that day, Burke followed up with Wilkinson after Burke discovered from officials whose names are redacted that the guns used to kill Terry were from Fast and Furious. “The guns found in the desert near the murder BP officer connect back to the investigation we were going to talk about – they were AK-47s purchased at a Phoenix gun store,” Burke wrote to Wilkinson.

“I’ll call tomorrow,” Wilkinson responded.

Adding to the paper trail, there already are a series of memos containing the intimate details of Fast and Furious that were sent to Holder throughout 2010 from several of his senior aides. Holder has continued to claim he never read them.

Holder is scheduled to appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform next Thursday, February 2. This will be the first time the House oversight committee will have an opportunity to question Holder himself, although Holder has already testified before Congress three times on Fast and Furious — twice before the House Judiciary Committee and once before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Congress needs to grow a spine and impeach this weasel, since the president won't fire him. And the fact that President Obama has had nothing to say about this also leads me to believe that this entire plot, which appears to be mainly directed at pushing a major erosion of Second Amendments rights by sparking violent incidents on the border goes far beyond AG Holder and directly into the White House itself.

Does Congress have the basic integrity to insist on a special prosecutor? Idoubt it, but if they do, we might actually be able to get to the bottom of this.

California Goes Crazy Again...

2012-01-29T13:13:00.000-08:00

Ah, the beat goes on...

Notwithstanding the massive recalls of Chevy Volts, the low driving range before recharging and the high incidence of battery fires,The California Air Resources Board unanimously approved a set of new rules requiring that one in seven of the new cars sold in California by 2025 be an electric or other zero-emission vehicle.

The plan also mandates a 75 percent reduction in smog-forming pollutants by 2025, and a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from today's standards. All hail Gaia! :

"Today's vote ... represents a new chapter for clean cars in California and in the nation as a whole," said Mary Nichols, the board's chairman. "Californians have always loved their cars. We buy a lot of them and drive them. Now we will have cleaner and more efficient cars to love." [...]

Trade groups representing auto dealers worried that the new regulations would increase the costs of vehicles for consumers and stifle the industry's growth.

The California New Car Dealers Association and other industry groups representing those who sell cars said the board is overestimating consumer demand for electric vehicles and other so-called "zero-emission vehicles."

Dealers are concerned that the regulations will lead to higher costs in all cars, and say consumers have been slow to warm to electric and other zero-emission vehicles.

Board member Sandra Berg, who said she drives the all-electric Nissan Leaf, said before the vote that regulators need to take consumer behavior and choice seriously in this equation.

She said a lot of work must be done to educate dealers to sell the new generation of cars.

"Early adopters (of electric cars) are willing to go without heat to save the miles they need to get to their destination, but that is not going to help grow the consumer base," Berg said, referring to the range issues with some current electric vehicles.

The board's research staff disputes the argument from dealers that the mandates for new technology will increase costs for cars. They point to steady increases in hybrid and other sales and argue that fuel cost savings will make up for any vehicle price increase.

"Our research shows a $1,400 to $1,900 car price increase. But over the life of the vehicles, the owners save $6,000 in reduced fuel and maintenance costs," board spokesman David Clegern said.

Consumers have largely shied away from these electric vehicles because of their limited driving range, higher purchase prices ( I don't know what planet Clegern and his 'researchers' are living on) and a mixed record for reliability in a number of models. Simple solution..California's bureaucrats are going to force you to buy them.

Let's look at the likely results of this stupidity:

Car prices across the board are going to rise sharply. That includes the price of used cars as people desperately try to avoid having to shell out huge bucks for an electric car that only gets 30 to 40 miles per charge and makes trips to outlying areas without a charging station a thing of the past.And by the way, do you know how long it takes to charge up an electric car as opposed to a fill up at your local gas station?

Additional government spending in a state that's already broke to put in the infrastructure for charging stations and the all important bureaucrats and their staffs to ensure and monitor compliance by dealers and manufacturers.

Increased demand in the urban areas of California for electric power from the state's already strained power grid...and of course, higher prices for energy for both homes and what remains of California's businesses. Welcome to blackout city!

The ironic part is that this is being done in the name of 'global warming', but will have little or no effect of emissions because all that electric power comes from - you guessed it, power plants fueled by oil, gas, coal or nuclear power. And even if that wasn't true, pollution doesn't honor state boundaries. Or even national borders.

Of course, this isn't about pollution per se, but almost entirely political in nature. The Obama Administration loves cap n' trade because it provides tax revenues, cripples the hated oil and coal industries and gives them bureaucratic control over yet another segment of American industry. And it also allows them to use taxpayer dollars to reward campaign donors with Solyndra-like green energy scams. The Democrats who run California are no different.

If California was anything but a state of the Union, it would be under receivership right now.

Michael Savage Rips Ron Paul To Shreds

2012-01-29T12:25:00.000-08:00

Not one of my favorites, but when Dr. Savage is on target, he's really on target...

Occupy Oakland Creeps Riot, Break Into City Hall, Burn American Flag

2012-01-29T10:17:00.000-08:00

You'll remember that far left Oakland mayor Democrat Jean Quan was noticeably tolerant and supportive of the #Occupy Oakland creeps the last time they erupted back in November.Their pestilential encampment was only dismantled by police after it became a major health hazard.

Over the weekend, #Occupy Oakland repaid the city's tolerance by breaking into City Hall and did massive damage to the facility, including seizing American flags and burning them as part of the festivities.They also tore down fencing at the adjacent Henry Kaiser convention center and smashed everything they could get their hands on, including construction equipment left onsite. The #Occupy mob fought with police throughout the entire day, throwing rocks, bottles and other objects at officers. The Police responded by deploying smoke, tear gas and bean bag rounds. They later marched downtown,breaking into a number of buildings including a YMCA and damaging them.Over 300 were arrested.

The riot occurred after #Occupy protesters demanded the use a vacant building as a social center and threatened to to shut down the port, occupy the airport and take over City Hall.

Mayor Quan was typically schizoid about the event, on one hand demanding that the rioters "stop using Oakland as its playground" and on the other hand refusing to condemn the #Occupy movement, blaming on a small "very radical, violent" splinter group within #Occupy for the violence and destruction.

In media stories about this and other incidents, it's notable that no mention has been made of the fact that prominent Democrats like Nancy Pelosi and President Obama have explicitly endorsed the #Occupy protesters and everything they stand for. And that the Democrats and of course Democrat paymaster George Soros have helped finance it.

Israeli PM Netanyahu Wishes The Chinese People A Happy New Year

2012-01-29T01:11:00.001-08:00

Believe it or not, the most popular video on YouTube this week, with over 40 million hits and climbing.

( hat tip, Carl)

Muslim Shooting Out Of Car Shouting "Allahu Akbar" Pleads Guilty -WAPO: 'Motive Unclear'

2012-01-27T10:20:00.000-08:00

Today's Washington Post provides a superb example of why the majority of the dinosaur media is not to be trusted when it comes to reporting about Islamists or about jihad activity, particularly in the United States.

Yonathan Melaku, an ex-marine reservist and a naturalized citizen from Ethiopia pled guilty today in a plea bargain to three counts, including shooting at the Pentagon on Oct. 19, 2010, and attempting to vandalize veterans’ memorials on U.S. property. As part of a plea agreement, Melaku admitted to shooting at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, the Pentagon and two military recruiting offices in October and November of 2010. Here's how the WAPO described this, under the headline 'Motive of Shooter is Unclear':

Yonathan Melaku was sneaking through Fort Myer and Arlington National Cemetery, his backpack filled with plastic bags of ammonium nitrate, a notebook containing jihadist messages, and a can of black spray paint. The 23-year-old former Marine was heading to the graves of the nation’s most recent heroes, aiming to desecrate the stones with Arabic statements and leave handfuls of explosive material nearby as a message.

Before police foiled the plan in June, the vandalism was to be Melaku’s sixth attack, months after he went on a mysterious shooting spree that targeted the Pentagon, the National Museum of the Marine Corps and two other military buildings in Northern Virginia. A video found after Melaku’s arrest showed him wearing a black mask and shooting a 9mm handgun out of his Acura’s passenger window as he drove along Interstate 95, shouting “Allahu Akbar!”

Yes, 'mysterious'. Wait, it gets better:

FBI officials and prosecutors said Melaku was on a personal terror mission. They said he researched jihadism on the Internet and had references to terrorism in a notebook and on his computer. It also seemed like he was gathering materials to make an improvised explosive device, though there was no indication how he would have used it.

Melaku wanted “to create fear and terror, which is what terrorists do,” said Dana Boente, first assistant U.S. Attorney in Alexandria.

Special Agent Jacqueline Maguire, of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, said it was fortunate authorities caught Melaku before anyone was injured. She said it appears Melaku acted alone.

“This case shows that violent homegrown extremism is present in our community, whether by one person or by many,” Maguire said.

Even the FBI won't mention the words 'Islam' and 'terrorism' in the same sentence, but they at least mentioned an amorphous, undefined 'extremism' without mentioning the obvious. Listen to how the accussed's defense attorney is spinning this:

Gregory English, Melaku’s defense lawyer, said after the hearing that Melaku’s family is of the Coptic Christian faith and that they were stunned to learn of his involvement in the crimes and the references to Islamic jihad. English said the shootings were out of character for Melaku, and he wonders whether his client suffers from a psychological problem, which he has asked the court to evaluate.

“As bad as it is, this is someone who essentially broke windows,” English said. “It’s vandalism. He has no link to terrorism. . . . He had a message, but I don’t understand what that message was supposed to be.”

Either Mr. English is stupid, or he thinks we are.The only reason this home grown jihadi didn't hurt anyone is because we were extremely lucky, and that luck might not have held if Melaku had managed to escape and proceeded to manufacture the IED for which he was already putting together the ingrediants. As for Melaku's Coptic background, here's a tip...find the imams he was associating with that converted him to Islam and you'll find where the 'violent homegrown extremism in our community' Special Agent Maguire was talking about is coming from.

Melaku agreed to the plea bargain which carried a sentence of 25 years only because he was looking at a possible mandatory sentence of more than 85 years in the face of solid hard evidence. He's only 23, and he'll likely be out in 10 to 15, and you'll notice that no one is talking about deporting him when his sentence is served.

'Ssssh! Don't mention the word jihad! Nothing to see here.

The Council Has Spoken!! This Week's Watcher's Council Results

2012-01-27T04:40:00.000-08:00

The Council has spoken, the votes have been cast, and the results are in for the first Watcher's Council match up of 2012, carved eternally in the akhasic records of cyberspace.

This week's winning essay, The Mellow Jihadi's Lance Corporal Donald Hogan, Marine Hero is a prime example of the Jihadi's unique literary style as he takes a stirring look at an American hero in and recounts his feelings on reading about his posthumous honoring. Here's a slice:

I am sitting in my home away from home, Panera Bread. The traffic outside is all jerky bumpers and tire shrieks. A bummy dude with an expensive laptop sprawls a seat five feet from me. I finish reading this moving post on the Marine Corps and continue my duck hunt through the web for interesting stories to share. Posts, articles, pictures that capture me, waiting for me to do the same to them.

Then this story waves at me and I know I have to salute a great hero:

A Marine who died from a roadside bomb in Afghanistan was awarded the highest honor given to members of the Corps for his heroic actions as he hurled his body into a fellow serviceman and warned the rest of the his squad of the blast.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said Tuesday that 20-year-old Lance Cpl. Donald Hogan is “now part of Marine lore along with the great heroes of the Corps” as he presented the fallen hero’s parents with the Navy Cross. He said his actions placed him among the “bravest and finest” in the Marines.

Semper Fi indeed.

In our non-Council category, the winner was a must read piece by an old favorite of mine, terrorism expert Dave Gaubatz writing in Family Security Matters on howMuslim Children in America are Being Taught to Hate submitted by The Political Commentator.

Eventually, we're going to wake up to what's happening right under our collective noses as a new generation of American Muslims is indoctrinated by people who definitely mean us no good.

Here are this week’s full results. Only New Zeal was unable to vote this week and was affected by the infamous mandatory 2/3 vote penalty:

Council Winners

*First place with 3 2/3 votes! The Mellow Jihadi – Lance Corporal Donald Hogan, Marine Hero

Second place with 3 1/3 votes – The Right Planet- Are We a Democracy?

Third place with 1 2/3 votes – Joshuapundit- Obama's State Of The Union - The Hollow Man

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Colossus of Rhodey-What the Gingrich South Carolina victory could mean

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Glittering Eye-You Be the Judge

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote – The Noisy Room-Revolution Moves Into The Overton Window

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote – The Razor-A Tale of Two Disasters: The Titanic and the Costa Concordia

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – Bookworm Room –War is not, and should not be, sporting

Sith place *t* with 1/3 vote – GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Going All The Way

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote –Simply Jews – Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey vs FUKUS

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – Rhymes With Right – Am I Wrong To Be Troubled Here?

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – The Political Commentator – Doing away with the Electoral College! One man, one vote and majority wins!

Non-Council Winners

First place with 2 2/3 votes! –Family Security Matters- Muslim Children in America are Being Taught to Hate submitted by The Political Commentator

Second place with 2 votes – Mark Steyn – The Sinking Of The West submitted by Joshuapundit

Third place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – Sultan Knish So You Want a Revolution... submitted by The Noisy Room

Third place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Yourish.Com–TANSTAAFL submitted by Simply Jews

Third place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Right Wing News –The Worst People In Politics Aren't Racists submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote - The Foundry –1,000 Days Without a Budget: Facts on the Senate's Failure submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote -The Compass – An Iran Attack Would Succeed, Then What? submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Gay Patriot –SOTU: Obama’s last chance to change tone submitted by Right Truth

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote -The New Atlantis –The Global War Against Baby Girls submitted by The Watcher

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote -James Taranto/Best of the Web–The Genetic Fallacy submitted by The Glittering Eye

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote -Zero Hedge –Obama Puppetmaster Warren Buffett Biggest Winner From Keystone Pipeline Rejectionsubmitted by The Razor

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote -Cabinet –The Behavioral Sink submitted by The Watcher

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote -Polipundit –Why Newt should not be the nominee submitted by Rhymes With Right

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote - Accuracy In Media –The FOX News Feminists submitted by New Zeal

See you next week! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

Happy Australia Day!!

2012-01-26T11:26:00.000-08:00

A shout out to all my fiends in Oz...enjoy the day and make it beaut!

Australians all let us rejoice
For we are young and free
We've golden soil and wealth for toil,
Our home is girt by sea:
Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare,
In history's page let every stage
Advance Australia fair,
In joyful strains then let us sing
Advance Australia fair.

Beneath our radiant Southern Cross,
We'll toil with hearts and hands,
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands,
For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share,
With courage let us all combine
To advance Australia fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia fair.

'Everybody Needs to Pay Their Fair Share In Taxes' - Except Obama's Aides!

2012-01-26T10:39:00.000-08:00

My, my....after all the class warfare screed at last Tuesday's SOTU speech,it turns out that President Obama's chief aides are doing exactly the opposite - to the tune of almost $1 million in unpaid back taxes!

And these aren't people struggling to get by on piddling incomes either. One-third of Obama's aides make more than $100,000 with 21 being paid the top White House salary of $172,200 apiece.

It's not only good to be the King, it ain't so bad to be one of his lackeys either..although I'll give President Obama credit for perhaps not knowing how dirty his own house was before he pointed the finger at others.

India Celebrates Republic Day!

2012-01-26T00:32:00.000-08:00

Republic Day is the day India celebrates its Constitution, written 3 years after India obtained its independence.

Congratulations to the worlds most populous democracy on its sixty third anniversary! Many more!

The Gingrich Roundup

2012-01-25T20:35:00.001-08:00

One of the interesting things about Newt Gingrich is how few people who actually know him or have served in Congress with him have much good to say about him. And we're not talking RINO's or establishment Republicans, but people who have been a part of the conservative cause for years. Today's crop includes:

Ann Coulter, who apparently loathes him

Long time conservative R. Emmett Tyrrell, the founder of the American Spectator, who weighs in on the many similarities between Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich, something I also picked up on here, along with certain similarities both Clinton and Gingrich have with President Obama.

Elliot Abrams, former Assistant Secretary of State in the Reagan Administration who went public on how insulting, obstructive and disdainful so-called 'Reagan conservative' Gingrich actually was of President Reagan and his policies, as does long time commentator Mark Shields.

I'll say it again. Character is destiny.

If Newt Gingrich is the GOP nominee, I will vote for him over Barack Obama with my nose held and with grave misgivings. We may lose quite badly in the end even if Gingrich wins.

Turkey Says Will Not Allow NATO To Use Its Territory To Attack Iran

2012-01-25T18:02:00.000-08:00

Turkey, a member of NATO issued a statement today that they will not allow their fellow NATO allies to use Turkish soil or facilities to attack Iran. The statement came from Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, according to RIA Novosti. Davutoglu ended by saying that the borders between Iran and Turkey have been borders of peace and will remain that way.

This is the second time the Islamist regime in Turkey has pulled this sort of thing.You might remember that the Turks refused to allow US forces to go through Turkey en route Iraq, causing America and its allies a great deal of extra logistical trouble and expense. You have to wonder why we still consider them allies at all.

Hug and kiss Erdogan some more, Mr. President!

The New Egypt - Bankrupt And Sinking Fast

2012-01-25T12:25:00.000-08:00

All hail the wondrous Arab Spring!

It is one year ago today that the protests in Cairo's Tahrir Square began that ended in the fall of the Mubarak regime. It was fitting that President Obama mentioned it last night in his State of the Union Address, since he had a major role in that 'wave of change', calling for Mubarak's ouster and signalling to the Egyptian military whom now control the country which way to turn.It's well worth examining how things are going.

The parliamentary elections have been held, and the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood and the hard core Salafist al-Nour Party won - surprise!- over 75% of the seats.The FaceBook and Twitter liberals in places like Cairo and Alexandria everyone in the West was so in love with proved to be a negligible political force, and Egypt is likely headed towards an Islamist Republic as soon as the proper arrangements are made with the Army.

The Army originally had ideas of a government that had little civilian control over the military or is it's budget, ala' the old Turkish model. In response, Islamists played their cards quite cleverly, gradually fomenting discontent against military rule and instigating violent riots after Friday prayers over the military's refusal to turn over power to a civilian government. The riots resulted in a harsh series of crack downs that effectively turned the military from the people's heroes during the Revolution into oppressors and the chief villains opposing 'democracy'. Between September and the end of December, something like 100 demonstrators were killed by the Army and police, while hundreds were injured and arrested.

The military junta's tactics also turned the Brotherhood and the Salafis into heroes, and the election results show how effective their tactics were. The Egyptian military will almost certainly have to make the same devil's bargain with the Islamists that the Iranian military did.

So Egypt is likely headed towards Islamist rule, but the country's future is looking increasingly grim. Egypt's economy is essentially collapsing from within.

After the Lara Logan gang rape and the widespread scenes of unrest, most of Egypt's tourism industry is dead, and the rest will likely collapse as soon as the Islamists take power and put sharia law in place to outlaw alcohol, bikinis and mixed bathing on beaches.

Increased sectarian violence against Egypt's Coptic Christians, who largely supported the Revolution, is ensuring that a large group of Egypt's more prosperous and educated citizens are emigrating in droves.

Investors are unwilling to buy Egyptian bonds even at double digit interest rates, which means that Egypt's ability to borrow is being cut to the bone. No one wants the Egyptian pound. The only Egyptian bonds anyone wants to buy are dollar-denominated treasury bills. After the results of the last election, currency flight has become a major problem, as anyone with money is stashing it overseas as fast as they can in euros or dollars, preparing for a relocation out of the country.

Foreign aid is also problematical.Egypt's government has begun negotiations for a $3.2 billion IMF loan and still receives about $1.3 billion annually in military aid from the US but that's not enough for Egypt's needs and won't even begin to replace the amount of money leaving the country. And it's also likely that as things unravel, any of that military aid that's in cash and isn't directly spent on armaments will likely follow the rest of Egypt's treasury overseas, while foreign nations are unlikely or unwilling to be able to commit large amounts of aid right now. Unlike Libya, there's no significant oil wealth in Egypt to tap.

Any warehoused resources or stocks that can be sold for cash are being liquidated, resulting in shortages of fuel, foodstuffs and even medicines in a number of localities according to numerous reports. Since Egypt has a population of over eighty million it can't support or feed on it's own, food imports are a necessity and there is increasingly less money to do so, or for consumers to buy it even if it were available.

Egypt is heading for some very uneasy times.

Aside from major economic woes, Egypt's political situation looks increasingly bleak from an American standpoint. The best case scenario is an agreement between the military and the Islamists for governing which would at least ensure a certain amount of domestic peace, but would almost certainly be a setback for American strategic objectives in the region - helping to guard the Eastern Mediterranean, cooperating with the US on anti-terrorism efforts, keeping the Suez Canal and its access to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf functioning and continuing to observe the Camp David Accords. Mubarak was at least a nominal, anti-Islamist ally in these matters, but those days are gone.

The Obama Administration will likely try to appease Egypt's new Islamist rulers, and Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met with Brotherhood leaders earlier this month to begin that process. Given the Brotherhood's hostility toward almost every American policy aim in the Middle East, that will probably end up working as well as President Carter's early attempts to appease the Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran did.

In later years, historians will be looking at President Obama's encouragement of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamists in Egypt, Libya and elsewhere the same way way they now see Jimmy Carter's encouragement of the same thing in Iran...as a major foreign policy blunder.

Watcher's Council Nominations: State Of Obama Edition

2012-01-25T04:25:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Watcher's Council, a blogging group consisting of some of the most incisive blogs in the 'sphere, and the longest running group of its kind in existence. Every week, the members nominate two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council.Then we vote on the best two posts, with the results appearing on Friday.

Council News:

This week, Liberty's Spirit, The Independent Sentinel, Ask Marion and Capitalist Preservation took advantage of my generous offer of link whorage and earned honorable mention status.

You can, too! Want to see your work appear on the Watcher’s Council homepage in our weekly contest listing? Didn’t get nominated by a Council member? No worries.

Simply head over to Joshuapundit and post the title a link to the piece you want considered along with an e-mail address ( which won't be published) in the comments section no later than Monday 6PM PST in order to be considered for our honorable mention category, and return the favor by creating a post on your site linking to the Watcher’s Council contest for the week.

It's a great way of exposing your best work to Watcher’s Council readers and Council members. while grabbing the increased traffic and notoriety. And how good is that, eh?

So, let's see what we have this week....

Council Submissions

The Colossus of Rhodey – What the Gingrich South Carolina victory could mean

The Political Commentator – Doing away with the Electoral College! One man, one vote and majority wins!

The Noisy Room – Revolution Moves Into The Overton Window

Simply Jews – Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey vs FUKUS

GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Going All The Way

Bookworm Room – War is not, and should not be, sporting

Right Truth – Making Sausage

The Right Planet – Are We a Democracy?

The Razor – A Tale of Two Disasters: The Titanic and the Costa Concordia

VA Right - Will Newt Survive His Ex-Wives With Knives?

The Mellow Jihadi – Lance Corporal Donald Hogan, Marine Hero

Rhymes With Right – Am I Wrong To Be Troubled Here?

The Glittering Eye -You Be the Judge

Joshuapundit-Obama's State Of The Union - The Hollow Man

New Zeal – Kyrsten Sinema: Communist Connected Arizona State Senator to Run For Congress

Honorable Mentions

Liberty's Spirit - Abbott and Costello Discuss Unemployment

The Independent Sentinel - Obama Reduced Our Dependence on Foreign Oil & I’m the Easter Bunny

Ask Marion - Tic… Tic… GOP Toc… or Rather Talk

Capitalist Preservation - The Fallacy Of The Minimum Wage Part Four

Non-Council Submissions

The Foundry – 1,000 Days Without a Budget: Facts on the Senate's Failure submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Family Security Matters -Muslim Children in America are Being Taught to Hate submitted by The Political Commentator

Sultan Knish –So You Want a Revolution... submitted by The Noisy Room

Yourish.Com – TANSTAAFL submitted by Simply Jews

The Compass – An Iran Attack Would Succeed, Then What? submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

The Anchoress-Pro-Lifers and the Truth-Phobic Press submitted by Bookworm Room

Gay Patriot -SOTU: Obama’s last chance to change tone submitted by Right Truth

Chicago Reader – What Makes Obama Run? submitted by The Right Planet

Zero Hedge –Obama Puppetmaster Warren Buffett Biggest Winner From Keystone Pipeline Rejection submitted by The Razor

Creeping Sharia – Colorado Muslim arrested on terrorism charges submitted by VA Right

Right Wing News –The Worst People In Politics Aren't Racists submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

Polipundit – Why Newt should not be the nominee submitted by Rhymes with Right

James Taranto/Best of the Web – The Genetic Fallacy submitted by The Glittering Eye

Mark Steyn – The Sinking Of The West submitted by Joshuapundit

Accuracy In Media – The FOX News Feminists submitted by New Zeal

The New Atlantis – The Global War Against Baby Girls submitted by The Watcher

Cabinet – The Behavioral Sink submitted by The Watcher

Enjoy! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

Obama's State Of The Union - The Hollow Man

2012-01-24T19:19:00.000-08:00

Ah, the Hollow Man...

As I've told you before, I listen to these things so you don't have to, and I've got a pretty strong stomach - but tonight's festivities were truly something else.

A transcript is available here for those of you into self-mortification, but I'll go over the basics.

First off, the speech was obviously very well rehearsed down to the last vocal inflection and raised eyebrow..in fact. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if there were theatrical directions emanating from TOTUS tonight. Simply amazing..yet as he spoke, the contradictions between what was coming out of his mouth and what we've seen coming out of this White House are so radically different they underlined one of the qualities I dislike most about this president -the way he arrogantly thinks everyone's stupid except him, and thinks that the usual rule that nothing ever goes away on the internet doesn't apply where he's concerned.

The president started off and ended by invoking what he referred to as 'this generation of heroes' returning from victory in Iraq, and indeed he used the military frequently as an example of how he wants the Republicans in Congress to behave . It was disgusting to hear, considering how Senator Obama and many of his fellow Democrats cheering him on tonight did everything they could to sabotage our troops in the field and their mission during wartime. Yet he had the unmitigated gall to use military teamwork as an example of what he wants to see in Washington!

Our military is legally bound to follow President Obama's orders no matter how nonsensical. Congress is not, especially when their common sense revolts and it was both deeply insulting as well as very revealing of the president to use the comparison, making the expected rhetoric that came later about working together a mockery. As if President Obama made any pretense of that when he and the Democrats controlled Congress!

The president of course mentioned bin-Laden, and regular members of Joshua's Army may recall what I had to say President Obama's chief boast perhaps being a huge error. And his statement about how the Taliban's momentum has been broken was simply a blatant falsehood - which is exactly why we're desperately negotiating with them and just released one of their leaders with American blood on his hands from Club Gitmo as a 'confidence gesture'.

The president's chief theme, under the slogan 'an economy built to last' is actually pretty simple - eat the rich and punish the corporations to pay for more government spending.

He called for a punishment levy on 'big banks' and 'big oil companies' and is apparently going to sic Eric Holder on the financial sector to ' find out who was responsible for the mortgage collapse'. I guarantee you that well connected Democrats like Franklin Raines and Jaimie Gorelick who ran Fannie Mae into the ground and walked away with multi-million dollar bonuses are not going to have to worry on that account.

You see, it wasn't the banks that made the rules that governed the secondary mortgage market..it was Washington, and government entities Fannie and Freddie set the pace by reducing underwriting standards and down payment requirements while demanding that lenders make more loans to the unqualified based on racial bean counting. And the Democrat majority in Congress defended them from any oversight or reigning in while they did it.

The president went on to mention his great achievement of 'saving' the auto industry. Will anyone remind him that he did it by gifting GM to his union political allies, crapping on private equity holders and giving the company special tax breaks at the taxpayer's expense to make them look artificially profitable? Or that he allowed GM to do stock dumping that was against SEC rules?

Or about the outright lies he told the American people about GM and Chrysler being profitable and returning the money used to bail them out, when in reality they were a huge loss?

We also had to listen to the president's blathering about trade. Rather than lower our corporate income tax sufficiently to encourage more companies to do business here, his solution is to put another punishment levy on companies that outsource, which will have the effect of even more companies relocating all but bare bones operations elsewhere. When Canada's corporate rate is less than half of ours, why not ?

It was also unintentionally comical to hear the president make a vague call for tearing down regulations that stifle entrepreneurship in one part of his speech while mentioning at least three or four brand new regulatory bureaucracies he wants to create and calling for cap n' trade and climate change legislation in another.

The president went on to discuss education, and of course his solution is to spend more taxpayer dollars to hire more teachers to pay more union dues to fund the Democrats. For such a pro-education guy, you'd never think he'd be the one to stop poor kids from getting into a decent school right there in DC.

Not to mention the trillion dollar time bomb for America's economy this president enacted by executive order concerning a new student loans entitlement that will eventually create a bubble similar to housing and is guaranteed to raise the cost of college education.

Yes, he really does intend to bankrupt the country. Or he's simply clueless, take your pick.

The president also got in a nice plug for the DREAM Act for illegal aliens that he enacted by executive order after Congress rejected it twice. What was that about working together again?

President Obama made quite a thing about his favoring the creation of domestic energy while believing that those of us listening would forget about his job killing de facto prohibition on offshore drilling, his opposition to drilling in ANWR , his recent fiasco with the Keystone Pipeline and his war on the coal industry. Or about Solyndra and the other green energy scams he doled out to his campaign donors and bundlers. All you have to do is look at what the price at the pump was when he came into office and what it is now, the largest increase in history...and that doesn't even calculate the corresponding rise in the price of food and other goods.

And speaking of Keystone, I had to chuckle at President Obama's solemnly intoning the so-called Buffet Rule as an example of how 'the rich' should behave. Buffet, a nicely placed Obama donor stands to make a tidy sum because the pipeline got cancelled because the oil we buy from Canada will now have to be shipped via Buffet's railroads. At a surcharge, of course. It's good to be the King's friend!

There's plenty more, but a few final bits that stood out.

President Obama talked a bit about his foreign policy. He reverently evoked the Arab Spring he helped along as 'a wave of change', which it is. He failed to mention that the change involves the rebirth of al-Qaeda and some of it's affiliates in these countries and replacing dictators like Khaddaffi who was no threat to us and Mubarak, Ali Abdullah Saleh and Ben Ali who were at least nominal allies and replacing them with hard line Islamists and salafists who are not going to be friends to the West, not to mention the 'men and women; Christians, Muslims, and Jews' whose dignity and freedom he claims to be so concerned about. President Obama committed an an historic error here that will come back to haunt us long after he departs the scene.

The president also mentioned what he described as his 'iron clad commitment to Israel's security' which is news to those of us who have followed the interaction between this president and Israel closely.But hey, it's election time, and there a sucker born every minute.

I also found it particularly nauseating to hear this president talk about how smart he is in hollowing out our military budget and in the next moment talking about jobs and VA benefits for those he described as 'those men and women in uniform who defend our freedom.'

This is the same president who is laying off an estimated 500,000 military personnel, many of them who haven't been in long enough to become vested for a military pension or full medical benefits. They'll simply be tossed into an already toxic job market for their 'reward' so President Obama can have more money for his domestic agenda. And I got a horrible taste in my mouth hearing the same President who tried to take away their VA benefits early in his administration talk about health care for veterans.

You have to wonder at what goes through someone's mind when putting on this kind of a performance. Is it simply a case of 'the show must go on'? Or has he simply been mouthing these lies and untruths for so long that he actually believes them by now?

Barack Obama is the modern version of Rehoboam, telling the people of America that he's going to double down his failed policies and add to their yoke.

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, who gave the Republican rebuttal did a decent job of responding to the president's little show tonight. But he didn't mention much about a lot of the things I've talked about here, and most of the media certainly won't.

That's the real tragedy. It's one thing to snicker to yourself as you see through a cynical con man going through his act for you, but it' s quite another to keep quiet about it and let the rubes get screwed in the name of 'civility' by the Hollow Men of this world.

They deserve better at your hands. We all do.

Obama's Target - Mitt Romney

2012-01-24T14:36:00.000-08:00

One matter of interest about the current GOP race - in spite of Newt Gingrich's recent surge of popularity, the main target of the Obama campaign and it's surrogates remains - Mitt Romney.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the major public employee union is spending 7 figure sums on ads depicting Governor Romney as an out of touch greedy plutocrat.

In Florida, the SEIU and a super-PAC supporting President Obama have teamed up to make a major buy in Spanish language media, running an ad attacking Romney titled “Dos Caras” or "Two Faces".

And tonight, depend on President Obama's State of the Union address to bash the class war drum for all he's worth by concentrating on ' the wealthy few', 'tax reform' ( read 'tax the rich' and 'economic inequality'. Romney's name won't be mentioned, but there's no doubt whom the president is talking about. It's the same ridiculous meme the president's surrogates in th epress have been pushing for days, aided and abetted by Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and to an extent, Rick Santorum.

The conclusion's obvious - the Obama campaign considers Romney a much greater threat to the president's re-election than they do Newt Gingrich.

They're very likely right about that.

Israel And 'Palestine' - An End To An Error

2012-01-24T11:48:00.000-08:00

As I predicted, the talks about talks in Amman between Israel and the PLO came to nothing, simply because there's nothing to negotiate...the 'Palestinians' are unwilling to do anything unless the Israelis agree to all their demands in advance. While Mahmoud Abbas played good cop and talked about seizing opportunities for peace, Fatah's negotiator Saeb Erekat made it very plain that the Amman talks were a mere formality and not a return to negotiations, saying, "Netanyahu needs to freeze the construction of settlements and accept the '67 outline for a two-state solution before we return to the negotiations table."

So the 'Palestinians' are continuing with their plans to get what they want by other means than negotiations. And they have a full agenda planned this year in their campaign against Israel.

While their efforts to unilaterally abrogate both Oslo and the Roadmap by having the UN declare 'Palestine' a state on the pre '67 lines and bypass any negotiations or concessions to Israel ultimately fell short last year, they plan to continue their efforts in 2012.

As of January 1st of this year, several countries that would have voted against the Palestinians or been swayed by a US threat of a veto rotated off the UN Security Council as their terms expired and were replaced by Guatemala, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Morocco and Togo. At least four of those countries will vote in favor of admitting 'Palestine' as a full member with its borders on the pre '67 lines.

And a US veto against it by the Obama Administration is unlikely if the vote occurs after the November 2012 American presidential elections, regardless of whether President Obama is re-elected or not. Israel, just as a side note, is the only UN member officially prohibited from serving on the UN Security Council as a rotating member.

The 'Palestinians thus hope to have their demands for borders based on the pre '67 lines and half of Jerusalem backed up by a UNSC resolution for the first time.

And that's not all. The 'Palestinians' are planning international efforts to turn Israel into the world's pariah state.

Senior Fatah official Nabil Sha’ath, formerly the left fork of Yasser Arafat's tongue recently said on Palestinian radio that 2012 “will be the start of an unprecedented diplomatic campaign on the part of the Palestinian leadership, and it will be a year of pressure on Israel that will put it under a real international siege. The campaign will be similar to the one waged against apartheid in South Africa.”

The PLO thus plans to hit Israel from two directions. According to my sources, while Abbas and Fatah will concentrate on gathering support at the UN, eliciting international boycotts and orchestrating violent riots and protests in Judea and Samaria. Hamas will take on the task of a new wave of rocket attacks and terrorism directed at Israel's populace, thus giving Fatah plausible deniability. Besides, Abbas and the Fatah Old Guard are already on the way out with the money they stole, and they know full well that Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood are almost certainly going to take over all of the 'Palestinian' territories in fairly short order. So does Hamas.

It's a pretty straight forward strategy. If Israel actually were to go back to the pre '67 lines, the country would become indefensible with avowed enemies in control of the high ground in Judea and Samaria as well as an enclave right next door in Jerusalem. If the Israelis refuse to commit national suicide by doing so, they become a pariah nation in defiance of the UN and 'international law'. This is exactly why the two state solution envisioned by Oslo was always a myth..or more exactly, as Arafat's old political commissar in Jerusalem Faisal Husseini famously put it, "a Trojan Horse designed to trick the Jews."

There are definite ways for the Israelis to head this off and frustrate it.

At this point, I doubt that Israel talking about consequences for the PLO for this behavior really means much to Abbas and company. Since for the most part they're on their way out anyway there's no particular reason they should pay anymore than lip service to the well being of their people at this point than they have since the 1970's. And the truth of the matter is, the 'Palestinians' have never really suffered much in the way of real consequences for bad behavior, either from Israel or from their western donors. There isn't any reason for them to fear consequences now.

With that in mind, from a strategic viewpoint the best thing Israel could do would be to publicly offer the 'Palestinians' a final settlement that involves recognition of Israel as a Jewish State, takes the so-called right of return, Jerusalem and Area C, the part of Judea and Samaria under Israeli sovereignty off the table, offers a division on Area B that maintains an Israeli presence in the Jordan Valley and cedes Area C, which Fatah already controls, to the 'Palestinians'.

Abbas and the PLO would certainly reject this out of hand. As Abbas has said many times, he's not prepared to make even a single concession on 'Palestinian' demands.

Once the 'Palestinian' refusal is made public, I recommend that Israel do what I've been suggesting for literally years - call the 'Palestinian's' bluff by simply unilaterally imposing their proposition on the ground, annexing the areas in question and declaring all agreements null and void.

At the same time, the Israelis should announce an end to any contact with the 'Palestinians' based on prior agreements. No more free electricity and water, no more tax rebates, no more security cooperation, no more trade concessions, nothing. Any new agreements in these areas would need to be negotiated from scratch.

The Israelis would simply be formalizing something that's evident to any objective observer. The 'peace process' is over, if indeed it ever really existed.

The Israelis would need to accompany these declarations with certain concrete actions to underline their seriousness about this.

They would need to be prepared to repatriate any Israeli citizens now living in 'Palestine' back to Israeli territory, while at the same time repatriating all non-Israeli citizens of 'Palestinian' origin to the new, second Arab 'Palestinian' state.

Second, Israel also would need to publicly inform the 'Palestinians' and the world that any protests or violence directed at these areas or sovereign Israeli territory would be considered an act of war by a hostile entity and dealt with accordingly.

And third, the Israelis would need to arm the Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria appropriately and fortify any Jewish communities that need it to resist attacks and hold out until the IDF gets there.

There would undoubtedly be consequences for Israel from these actions, but the upside overwhelms them.

For the first couple of weeks, the usual suspects would go absolutely insane. Elements of the media that are consistently anti-Israel like NPR, Newsweek, the New York Times and the Guardian would run the sort of stories and commentary you would expect, but the news cycle moves on, and honestly, their coverage of the Middle East conflict has not been objective for years anyway.

The UN General Assembly might pass a motion or three condemning Israel - again, nothing new. It's highly doubtful the Security Council would and even if they did it would be unlikely to have much practical effect.

Elements of the EU would undoubtedly condemn the Israeli actions, but again with limited effect. Aside from the fact that the continued existence of the EU itself is in doubt, the EU countries have a healthy appetite for Israeli agricultural and high tech products, and a trade boycott gets even less likely when you consider that the Europeans are unlikely to alienate an up and coming major source of gas and oil capable of providing an alternative to dealing with the Russians. Again, the likely impact is a certain amount of rhetoric for awhile, followed by business as usual.

The same would likely be true of Australia, Canada, and the United States, even with a hostile Obama Administration in office.

Israel's relationships in the Middle East might likely undergo one major change, the severing of diplomatic relations with Egypt and Jordan. The Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafists whom now control Egypt are already talking openly about abrogating the treaty with the hated Jews anyway, the Israeli embassy in Cairo was recently sacked by a mob while Egyptian police looked on and even during the Mubarak regime outright anti-semitism was openly promulgated by the government controlled media as a tool of policy. There isn't much of a relationship to lose there.

The same is true of Jordan, a country where almost 80% of the population identifies themselves as 'Palestinians'. There is little if any trade, tourism or cultural exchanges with Israel and as the Muslim Brotherhood gets stronger there's a real likelihood of Jordan cancelling its treaties with Israel no matter what Israel does.

Neither country can afford the financial or social costs of a war with Israel, something that's also true of all of Israel's traditional Arab antagonists. And they're especially unlikely to go to war for 'Palestine'. Hamas and Hezbollah will remain hostile to Israel no matter what Israel does or doesn't do, but both have sufficient reasons for avoiding overt war Hamas because of it's relationship with the new Muslim Brotherhood ruled Egypt and Hezbollah because they have no desire to experience the kind of political fallout they got from their host country after the 2006 war...especially with Syria otherwise occupied.

The major upside for Israel, of course, is that while unilaterally staking out its borders and declaring an end to the Oslo Era won't put an end to the effort to delegitimize and destroy the country, it will put it on life support. Without the possibility that the Jews could be tricked into further strategic concessions existing, there's about as much energy expended in trying to get Jerusalem away from Israel as there is in trying to get Texas away from America. And it will decrease even more with time.

Oddly enough, there's also the possibility of an upside for the 'Palestinians' , believe it or not. After the initial shock and anger, they're going to be faced with two choices. Since the old dream of replacing Israel and driving the Jews into the Sea would no longer be a possibility, they can choose to either succumb to a preoccupation with revanchist dreams or they can look at the reality of having a country of their own to build and a destiny of their own to carve out. The first is far more likely, but only the second would lead to any kind of real future for themselves and their children, and there's just the chance they might finally realize it.

Senior Aide to Democrat Senator Kerry Charged With Leaking Classified Information

2012-01-23T19:21:00.001-08:00

The Justice Department has charged John Kiriakou, a former CIA officer and former senior Democrat Senate aide to John Kerry with being the source of major media leaks compromising national security, disclosing the identity of an undercover officer and lying to the CIA about the origin of other sensitive material he published in a book. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Kiriakou is also a popular Huffington Post columnist.Or was, at any rate.

He first surfaced in the public eye in a 2007 interview with ABC News, where he claimed to have played a major role as a CIA agent in the capture and interrogation of al-Qaeda terrorist Abu Zubaydah, who was waterboarded. He was a huge source for the 'waterboarding is torture' crowd.

Three years, when he published a book about his CIA experiences (and presumably after he cashed his advance check), he admitted on the second to last page that he hadn't participated at all in the capture and interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, but just relied on what he'd heard about it.

The charges of disclosing the identity of an undercover officer came about because information Kiriakou supplied to journalists at Guantanamo Bay enabled defense attorneys there to obtain photographs of CIA operatives suspected of being involved in interrogations. Some of the pictures were subsequently discovered in the cells of terrorist detainees.

A real prince, no?

I can't help but wonder if the Obama Administration is planning on prosecuting the journalists and defense attorneys who aided and abetted - not to mention the editors and publishers. I doubt it, but it would certainly be fair and just to do so.

Do you get the feeling Kiriakou learned about ethics and patriotism from his old boss Senator Kerry, who met with the North Vietnamese in Paris during the Vietnam War to plot strategy on how to undermine the US war effort?

Nigeria Bleeds..176 Killed On Islam's Bloody Borders

2012-01-22T18:55:00.000-08:00

Earlier this month, Christians were given an ultimatum by the Islamist group Boko Haram and its various affiliates to leave Northern Nigeria on pain of death.

This weekend, Boko Haram struck in a series of coordinated attacks that left over 176 Christians dead and scores wounded in the northern city of Kano. The Islamists targeted several police stations and other public buildings, including the building housing the assistant inspector general of police. And of course, churches, businesses and private home belonging to Christians were attacked, with bloody results.

This happened not in some remote backwater but in Kano, Nigeria's second largest city with a population of over 9 million.

There has been continuous violence in Northern Nigeria for years, ever since the country became independent in 1960. The most populous nation in Africa and the eight largest oil exporter in the world, it is almost a poster case for what commonly happens along what many demographers and historians have called 'Islam's bloody borders'.

The north is mainly Muslim and is fairly underdeveloped while the rest of the country is Christian or animist and has the oil wealth.

A century ago, there were very few Christians in Nigeria, except for a few coastal enclaves; most of today's Nigerian Christians' families were either Muslims or followers of tribal religions not so long ago. The line between Islam and Christianity has continued to march north and as this process has continued, Nigeria's Islamists have repeatedly called for Islamic rule and sharia over the entire north, and used violence to attempt to drive the increasing numbers of Christians out by force.

Just last Christmas Day, Boko Haram (the name loosely translates as 'western education is forbidden') bombed a church near Abuja that killed 43 people and carried out an August 26th suicide bombing of the United Nations building in the capital that murdered 24 people.

Adding to Muslim unrest, the current President Goodluck Jonathan is a vocal Christian from the south who took over from ailing President Umaru Yar'Adua when he died in office. In 2011, Jonathan became the first ever sitting Nigerian president to run for re-election, which he won handily. His election victory was greeted by rioting by Muslims in the north.

There are various analysts and pundits writing for the dinosaur media who are referring to what happened this weekend as 'unrest' based on the Nigerian government's cutting of the government fuel subsidy. Some, like CNN's Fareed Zakaria are typically attempting to spin this away from a problem with Islam-based terrorism as the harbinger of a 'Nigerian Spring' based on social disquiet, forgetting that unlike Libya, Tunisia and Egypt, the Nigerians just elected a president a little over a year ago.

Make no mistake...this is about Islam and its interaction with the 'other'.

Following this weekend's attacks, President Jonathan visited Kano, declared a state of emergency and pledged to to fight the insurgency.

“They are no spirits,” Jonathan said of Boko Haram after his Kano visit yesterday. “Look at your neighbors and know what they do, and if there’s any suspicious movement, inform security agencies.”

The problem, and one that has become increasingly more evident is that there are some elements in Nigeria that have been aiding and abetting Boko Haram. No insurgency of any kind in modern times can thrive without the support of a good number of the people within its operational bases - insurgencies need a secure source of money, arms and recruits as well as safe havens to train.Even though many Muslim leaders officially disavow Boko Haram, there is a wide spread belief in Nigeria that a significant Muslim element look the other way at best and provide a welcoming environment for them at worst, with the idea of dislodging a democratically elected non-Muslim government by making Nigeria as it is ungovernable. Rooting them out is going to be the real challenge, and there's a definite possibility it could lead to a second Nigerian civil war between the Hausa-Fulani Islamists and the Christians and animists.

Ruth Bader Ginsberg Says No Plans to Resign From SCOTUS During Obama's Term

2012-01-22T18:16:00.000-08:00

Here's a bit of good news - Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has let in be known that she will not be resigning during Obama's term.

There's been a great deal of speculation that Ginsberg, 78 would step down and allow the president to put another überLefty Justice on the Court during an election year, but apparently Justice Ginsberg, who's been on the Court for 18 years isn't going anywhere just yet.

While another far Left Obama nominee wouldn't change the balance of the Court since Justice Ginsberg is reliably Left leaning, both of President Obama's appointments have not only been even further off the spectrum than even the current Left-leaning Justices but fairly young, assuring that they're unfortunately going to be around for awhile. On the other hand, if Justice Ginsberg hangs on until 2013 and the president is defeated for re-election, the new president could very well have at least two Supreme Court justices to replace..and both of them are part of the current block of four Left leaning justices.

South Carolina...And Beyond

2012-01-21T23:00:00.000-08:00

I'm not encouraged by the results last night.

There's absolutely nothing more President Obama and the Democrats want than a prolonged, drawn out primary campaign that spews bad blood and wastes resources..while the president continues to consolidate his re-election campaign unopposed on all fronts.

Obviously a part of Saturday's result had to do with the despicable way the dinosaur media besmirched itself and Newt Gingrich's spirited response. The press launched outrageous attacks on both Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney and it was refreshing to see them slapped around for it. So the voters of South Carolina apparently surged at the last minute for Newt Gingrich, giving him a lopsided victory over Mitt Romney.

This is all very well, but is 'sending a message' what's wanted or needed? Especially if it means re-electing President Obama, or even worse, putting another unfit individual in the Oval Office?

I want emphasize again that there is no true Reagan-type conservative in this race as of yet. Newt Gingrich in his own words is a Teddy Roosevelt-style progressive , Rick Santorum leans towards 'compassionate conservatism ' ala' George W. Bush and Ron Paul is an isolationist conspiracy theorist fruitcake, while Mitt Romney as I've pointed out before is a pragmatist rather than an ideological conservative, who bends according to what he feels he can get accomplished.

None of them is going to change the climate in Washington significantly, so competence and character take on an increased significance.At present, we have neither embodied in our current president, and it's essential he be defeated.

The simple fact is that in my opinion, Newt Gingrich lacks the basic character and demeanor to be president.

Intelligent and articulate? Definitely so, but much of his career has been a series of questionable and self-serving events. In that, he resembles both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, who also saw government as a path to personal entitlement and wealth.The incident of his throwing a tantrum during his tenure as Speaker over being seated in the rear of Air Force One en route to the Rabin funeral and being asked to deplane via the rear exit upon returning is a revealing one.

If you look at the Republican members of Congress he led, not only did they ask him to resign as Speaker but few of them if any have anything good to say about him or his leadership. That says something to me ...as does his personal history.

The thing that bothers me most about Newt's Gingrich's story with both his ex-wives is not the adultery per se - stuff happens, after all - or the 'he said she said' stuff, but a simple, easily proven fact - in both cases, he started sniffing around, found someone willing to cheat with him and dumped wife # 1 and wife #2 once he found out they had become ill, #1 with cancer and #2 with MS.

To my mind, that's simply not how a decent man acts.And again, it says a great deal about how he would conduct himself as president.We had a number of similar danger signs about both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

Admittedly, Newt Gingrich would likely squash President Obama in a debate, but only if there's actually a debate. President Obama is not obligated to hold one, and if the president is significantly ahead in the polls,he might use the excuse that he's simply 'too busy' running the country to do so. Meanwhile President Obama's shills in the dinosaur media would be broadcasting every nuance of Newt Gingrich's foibles - and there's quite a bit to get into.

In short, even if he were to win, there's a good chance we might come to regret a President Gingrich for the reasons I outline here. Character is destiny, as a very wise man once said centuries ago.

My preferred candidate chose to sit things out in Wasilla, and I did a great deal of thinking about the GOP field, based more on what I consider character and fitness for office rather than ideology or a chimera like 'electability'. All the stuff about the GOP establishment aside, there are a lot of reasons I consider Mitt Romney to be the most qualified and the best choice based on the field as it exists today.

If Newt Gingrich runs against Barack Obama, I will vote for him, but with my nose held and with a deep sense of foreboding. I simply don't think he's what the country needs at this juncture. People change, but we had better think very carefully before we anoint him.

My good friend Hube also weighs in on this subject here.

The Disgrace Of The Fourth Estate - The Obama Media Group

2012-01-20T12:50:00.000-08:00

Interesting times, to say the least.

President Obama's surrogates in the dinosaur media are wasting no time in attempting to clear the way for him the same way this president has always won elections - by using Alinskyite tactics to destroy opponents in advance.

It worked with Jack Ryan, whose divorce records were mysteriously unsealed by Illinois Senate candidate Barack Obama's pals on the Chicago Tribune to the point where Ryan dropped out of the race and Obama coasted to an easy victory in a race he likely would have lost otherwise.

It was done to John McCain, where the campaign started with a bogus front page New York Times story about an affair he supposedly had with a lobbyist, and even continued with attacks on his war record, his age and his spouse's character.

And it was done to Governor Sarah Palin, with tons of opposition researchers combing Alaska, the setting up an entire network of local Democrat operatives, using the Journolist network to plan media strategy to demonize her, having the campaign collude with with Katie Couric and Charles Gibson in advance of the Palin interviews, mounting an organized attempt to bankrupt the Palin family and even stooping to attacking her children.

The same forces are at work once again. We've already seen the media hit jobs on Michele Bachmann attacking her religion, her relationship with her husband, and her generosity of spirit in adopting foster children. We saw how anxious the media were to jump on Herman Cain. We saw how the dinosaur media attacked the record of one of the most successful governors in America. Rick Perry.

And now, the assault is focused on Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich.

I think Rush Limbaugh is entirely correct that Matt Drudge threw a monkey wrench into the works by exposing the ABC interview with Newt Gingrich's ex-wife in advance.

The day before, ABC had gone after Mitt Romney with two stories so bogus they don't even qualify as intelligent commentary, let alone journalism. The first one attacked his Mormon faith directly and his charitable contributions to the Church of the LDS in terms that were designed to convey the impression of a sinister, behind the scenes religious right wing mafia in which Governor Romney's part was now 'newly uncovered'. The second focused on portraying him as a tax cheat and plutocrat with 'millions parked in the Cayman Islands, a notorious Caribbean tax haven'.

The original waited until the very end of the story to inform you that what Governor Romney was doing was entirely legal and that he pays taxes on the money. It has since been changed to include a line in the second paragraph saying 'spokesperson for the Romney campaign says Romney follows all tax laws and he would pay the same in taxes regardless of where the funds are based.'

A number of people sounded off in the comments section on how ridiculous the article was. Here's a sampling:

This article is completely uninformed and misleading. Investment groups use Cayman entities to avoid DOUBLE taxation of capital gains for foreign investors. It is not in any way depriving the US IRS of any money it is entitled to. There is no "hidden" money in this. Will the reporters simply call any reasonable corporate attorney who knows about fund formation to understand this, and then do the responsible thing - retract their story or clarify the intent of these Cayman investments. It is driving me crazy to even think about how misleading this article is. And judging by the comments, people are buying into it. Again, ask ANY corporate attorney that knows about fund formation. There is NO tax evasion that comes from this, and there is NO undeclared money in these Cayman funds. This is allowing international investors to invest through a single Cayman entity as opposed to investing through hundreds of foreign companies (German, Italian, Singaporean, etc.).

Very common for American Companies to set up operations in Cayman Islands an Bermuda. Virtually all major corporations do it. The impact has been litigated several times overs - and the tax rules are clear cut. It is common largely for corporations that self insure. There aren't all that many jobs connected with the overseas operations - a few accountants generally. Some of the resasons they do it have to do with holding foreign currencies. I don't think it is allowed here - but managing currency re-evaluations is a major risk management necessity for corporations. Nothing to see here.

Average Americans making $36,000 - $55,000 only pay 3.1% in income tax.yes, 3.1%, that's it.I'm actually impressed that Romney pays 15%, because take Obama's buddy, Warren Buffett, for example: Warren Buffett is far, far more wealthy than Romney,and Warren Buffett pays Less Than 1% in income tax.

I am writing in response to your article about Mitt Romney's use of Cayman vehicles. This is truly irresponsible reporting. I know first-hand about these structures, and they are completely legitimate. There is NOTHING unethical about this as the article's innuendo implies. This is legitimate, ethical, and the responsible thing for Bain to do for its investors. The motive for doing this is exactly as they explained. The corporations that Bain invests in pay their corporate taxes. The partners at Bain pay taxes. The investors in Bain pay taxes. They are helping their investors avoid DOUBLE taxation on capital gains. A foreign investor in say... Germany can buy a US company stock in Germany on the stock exchange. The US company will pay its taxes, so the IRS gets everything it is due. The German stockholder is ONLY liable for capital gains taxes in Germany, not the US. Now for a fund like Bain, they have investors in many countries. If Bain sets up a US corporation, LLC, or Partnership as the holding vehicle for all of their investors, then every investor will be subject to US capital gains taxes - even if they have no business, presence, or operation in the US. Then they will also have to pay their taxes in their homeland. This is ONLY because of using a US holding company. If the German investor invested directly through a German company, they would not be subject to US capital gains taxes. It isn't practical for a company like Bain to set up hundreds of holding companies for each country that they have an investor from, so they set it up in a tax jurisdiction that is neutral such as the Caymans. That way Bain doesn't have to set up hundreds of holding vehicles, and foreign investors who WOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY US TAXES ON CAPITAL GAINS ANYWAY can all invest through one vehicle. This is to reduce the number of necessary entities and avoid DOUBLE taxation on capital gains, not to avoid taxes period.

Being a CPA, I know that dividends and capital gains are taxes at a 15% tax rate, What this article fails to mention is that this income comes from corporations that pay 35% in income taxes. Therefore the effective rate of this income is closer to 50%.

The entire idea was to slime Romney enough so that Gingrich either won South Carolina or finished a strong second and then unleash the interview from his ex-wife to take him out as well. Matt Drudge simply forced them to unleash it prematurely..not that it mattered to the media. CNN's John King's opening question in last night debate was to ask Newt Gingrich to respond to his ex-wife's recent television interview describing his desire for an open marriage. Gingrich's response:

GINGRICH: I think the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country, harder to attract decent people to run for public office. And I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that.(APPLAUSE)

KING: Is that all you want to say, sir?

GINGRICH: Let me finish.

KING: Please.

GINGRICH: Every person in here knows personal pain. Every person in here has had someone close to them go through painful things. To take an ex-wife and make it two days before the primary a significant question for a presidential campaign is as close to despicable as anything I can imagine. (APPLAUSE)

My two daughters wrote the head of ABC and made the point that it was wrong, that they should pull it, and I am frankly astounded that CNN would take trash like that and use it to open a presidential debate. (APPLAUSE)

KING: As you noted, Mr. Speaker, this story did not come from our network. As you also know, it is a subject of conversation on the campaign. I'm not -- I get your point. I take your point.

GINGRICH: John -- John, it was repeated by your network. You chose to start the debate with it. Don't try to blame somebody else. You and your staff chose to start this debate with it. (APPLAUSE)

Let me be quite clear. Let me be quite clear. The story is false. Every personal friend I have who knew us in that period said the story was false. We offered several of them to ABC to prove it was false. They weren't interested because they would like to attack any Republican. They're attacking the governor. They're attacking me. I'm sure they'll presently get around to Senator Santorum and Congressman Paul.

I am tired of the elite media protecting Barack Obama by attacking Republicans.

Actually, they're already getting around to Rick Santorum, alleging that his wife had an affair with an abortionist before the Santorum's marriage - as if that has any place in a presidential campaign. They will not go after Ron Paul in great detail, and I've already explained to you why.

Meanwhile, hardly anyone in the dinosaur media has any interest in exploring Fast and Furious, Solyndra and the other Green Energy scams. Or President Obama's relationship with the Nation of Islam, Rashid Khalidi, Khalid al-Mansour and Edward Said, or his corrupt deals with people like jailed bagman Tony Rezco, Big Pharma and a host of others.

With few exceptions, they aren't journalists in any sense 0f the word. They aren't even commentators for the most part, because commentators of whatever viewpoint usually attempt to present things honestly from their own viewpoints.

They're just campaign operatives in masquerade, following marching orders from upstairs including from the White House. They're simply bought and paid for whores, with the exception that a whore generally provides value for money.

They're worthy of no respect or consideration whatsoever, and it's about time people let them know about it, and often.

Etta James Makes The Passage

2012-01-20T11:47:00.000-08:00

At 73, after a long bout with leukemia.

She endured business troubles, man troubles and a nasty bout with heroin addiction, but through it all, that sexy, sassy, unbridled voice with the sweet edge never left. Listen to 'At Last''I'd Rather Go Blind' or her live album if you can find it..you'll see what I mean.

She influenced a whole slew of singers like Janis Joplin, Beyonce and Bonnie Rait, and she always remained a sort of highway between R&B pop and blues.

'Peaches' has finally found the peace she looked for all her life.

-selah-

The Council Has Spoken!! This Week's Watcher's Council Results

2012-01-20T04:26:00.000-08:00

The Council has spoken, the votes have been cast, and the results are in for this week's Watcher's Council match up.

The election approacheth, and as expected the usual suspects are already touting the wondrous accomplishments of Our Dear Leader.

This week's winner, Sard at The Right Planet's The Talking Points Meme examines some of these claims and takes them apart with a fine eye for detail and hyperbole. Here's a slice:

Here we go again … the ole leftist talking points meme! The Progressive never tires of it. If you want to try this at home (the Talking Points Meme that is), just string a series of hyperbolic, fanciful, unsubstantiated claims together and then challenge the listener to respond. I believe the purpose of this technique is analogous to running someone over with a freight train.

And what’s up with the British guy meme? Does he do the Geico ads too? Could we not find an American? Or does it make the inflated assertions sound so much more erudite if it comes in the form of an English accent? Maybe he works for the Chatham House. But I digress–so many amazing accomplishments. Where does one start?

Well, let’s start at the beginning … shall we?

Our TPM talking point friend (the British guy) alleges seven major accomplishments Obama has achieved during his years in Office, if my math serves me correctly.

TPM guy alleges Obama …

Killed Osama
Ended the war in Iraq
Contained Iran
Repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT)
Reigned in Wall Street
Prevented a 2^nd Great Depression
Passed landmark legislation–Obamacare

The Killing of Osama Bin Laden

“It is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it… anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.”–Douglas Adams

President Obama’s decision to take out America’s most-wanted–Osama Bin Laden–was hardly what I would call “controversial.” Honestly, what U.S. president in their right mind would not take out the world’s most notorious terrorist who perpetrated the worst terrorist attack in the history of our nation if given the chance?

I could act like a main-stream, liberal journalist and ask why the President delayed his decision for so long? Or why we never got to see the body of Bin Laden? Or why Osama was given a sailor’s burial at sea? Or how this opens a dangerous new chapter in American foreign policy in regard to the sovereignty of other nations? How many trees were burned and innocent animals killed during the illegal raid? What about noxious fumes being released into the atmosphere from burning helicopters? Won’t this lead to an increase in Climate Change? Yeah … I will leave all the speculation to the hyperbolic types of the main-stream media.

But the main point, as far as I’m concerned, is the notion Obama killed Osama. Yeah, right! Barack the brave Ninja warrior leaped from a burning helicopter riding his skateboard in, with nunchucks in tow, to engage Osama Bin Laden in mortal hand-to-hand combat. PUH-lease! I think we know who killed Osama–SEAL Team 6, and the U.S. Military and intelligence services that made the operation possible in the first place. The hunt for Osama had been going on long before Obama ever “made the scene.” Let’s put the credit where it belongs … NEXT!

Withdrawal from Iraq

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”–Napoleon Bonaparte

It was President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki who signed the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement in 2008. Obama did nothing but watch SOFA take its course. For Obama and his minions to make the claim it was dear leader who ended the war in Iraq is absurd and infuriating. It is also an insult to those who served in Iraq–who did the hard work–provided the blood, sweat, toil and sacrifice; while the Left did everything it could during the Bush years to tear down any forward progress in Iraq. How about giving credit to where credit is due? It’s not going to happen with the Left–only when it suits their hidden agenda and predetermined outcomes.

Additionally, after the withdrawal of U.S. Forces from Iraq, an escalation in car bombings and violence has exploded within Iraq. It doesn’t look like it’s going to stop anytime soon, either

In our non-Council category the winner was Rep. Colonel Allen West, who had a favor to ask the president in the coming campaign: Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit. Colonel West was his usual eloquent self, in spite of knowing that the president will almost certainly play that particular card. Do read it.

Without further ado, here are this week’s full results:

Council Winners

*First place with 3 2/3 votes! The Right Planet – The Talking Points Meme

Second place with 2 2/3 votes – Joshuapundit- "I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake

Third place with 1 2/3 votes – The Political Commentator-Achtung! Antisemitismus, immer präsent doch in der Regel unter dem Radar, ist jetzt immer häufiger offene und ist in das Licht der Welt erscheinen!

Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Razor-In the Belly of the Swan

Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Mellow Jihadi- Move, Vets Coming Through!

Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – The Noisy Room-Don’t Worry… Nuthin’ Bad’s Gonna Happen…

Fifth Place with 1 vote – Right Truth-Handcuffed, arrested, and now faces three and a half years in jail for firearms possession – for the crime of being unaware that the Second Amendment does not apply in New York City

Sixth place with 2/3 vote – The Glittering Eye – Citizenship Skills

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – Bookworm Room –San Francisco Chronicle columnist warns city's rational thinkers not to roll in the mud with one specific fringe group

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – New Zeal – DSA Marxists Take Over the Occupy Movement: Plan “Spring Offensive,” With Widespread Occupations of State Capitols, Schools and Workplaces

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote– Simply Jews–De Nada Ilse

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote – VA Right! – Ron Paul Flying First Class on Taxpayer Dime

Non-Council Winners

First place with 2 2/3 votes! – Allen West - Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit

Second place with 2 votes – Defining Ideas – The Death Of Honestystrong> submitted byThe Colossus of Rhodey

Third place with 1 2/3 votes – Melanie Phillips-The West's Useful Idiots submitted by The Political Commentator

Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Mark Steyn –Ron Paul beckons GOP to Fortress America submitted by The Noisy Room

Fourth place *t* with 1 1/3 votes - Maggie's Farm – Understanding The Wuterich Haditha Court Martial submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

Fifth place with 1 vote - Wings Over Iraq–Let's Review submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

Fifth place *t* with 1 vote -Inside Higher Ed – Price of Success submitted by The Glittering Eye

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -IsraellyCool –There's Something About Perry submitted by Simply Jews

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Big Government –EXCLUSIVE:Former Bush Counternarcotics Advisor: We're Losing the Drug War Because of Government Bureaucracy submitted by Right Truth

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -SE Cupp – Newt Gingrich, Natural Woman submitted by The Watcher

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Rush Limbaugh –Washington, DC, Law Forces Exterminators to Capture and Relocate Rats submitted by The Right Planet

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -GodFather Politics – Urinating on the Dead: Marine Performance Art? submitted by Bookworm Room

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Nile Gardiner – Why are Barack Obama’s critics so smart? submitted by The Razor

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Liberty's Spirit – The Real Story of the Lebanese Civil War submitted by The Watcher

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Accuracy In Media – AIM Interview with Craig Shirley on Pearl Harbor, Ronald Reagan and Today's Politics submitted by New Zeal

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -The Blaze –More ‘Embarrassing’ Ron Paul Newsletters Emerge on Race, Israel, & More submitted by Rhymes With Right

See you next week! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

NYT Poll Finds Obama’s Favorability Rating Down To 38% – Only 31% Among Independents…

2012-01-19T13:24:00.001-08:00

According to the latest Rasmussen poll...oh wait, this is a NYT/CBS Poll!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Independent voters, who helped propel President Barack Obama to victory in the 2008 election, could be an obstacle in his bid for a second term in the White House, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll published on Wednesday.

A majority of independent voters have soured on Obama’s presidency, disapprove of his handling of the economy and do not have a clear idea of what he hopes to accomplish if re-elected, the Times reported.

Only 31 percent of independent voters have a favorable opinion of the president and two-thirds say he has not made real progress in fixing the economy, the newspaper said.

In 2008, Obama won support from 52 percent of independent voters, compared with 44 percent who supported Republican presidential nominee John McCain.

Among all voters, 38 percent view Obama favorably, 45 percent unfavorably and 17 percent have no opinion, the survey showed. Voters were evenly divided in a matchup between Obama and Romney, but Obama fared better against other Republican candidates, the Times said

Note that this is a favorability rating, not a job approval rating, but it's important. One thing the president's apologists have always banked on is his 'likeability', the belief that this president is basically a nice guy even though he's treating the electorate like a bunch of simple minded serfs who exist only to do his and Mooch-elle's bidding, Apparently that's no longer true, and if Pravda-on-the-Hudson is allowing these numbers to see the light of day even on page A-16, the real ones must be devastating.

It's also worth noting that out of the four most recent polls, only the NYT/CBS poll shows President Obama's job approval ratings barely in plus territory - and that's well within the margin of error.

Job approval ratings are flexible and can come back, but favorability ratings relate to people's gut feelings about a candidate. Once they tank, it's hard if not impossible to bring them back.

Then There Were Four; Perry Quits, Endorses Gingrich

2012-01-19T09:26:00.000-08:00

The only question I have is, why now? Why not 2 months ago?

Obama Tells Another Whopper: "Republicans Forced Me To Reject Keystone PipeLine"

2012-01-18T18:16:00.001-08:00

I absolutely cannot believe the gall of this president.

The SorosBots over at Think Progress are broadcasting President Obama's statement on his killing the Keystone Pipeline deal because of the Evil Republicans:

" As the State Department made clear last month, the rushed and arbitrary deadline insisted on by Congressional Republicans prevented a full assessment of the pipeline’s impact, especially the health and safety of the American people, as well as our environment. As a result, the Secretary of State has recommended that the application be denied. And after reviewing the State Department’s report, I agree."

The president is flat out lying. As I revealed previously,it wasn't his decision at all and it wasn't the Republicans, who were just trying to get a decision out of him and get things rolling. The real story is that the Canadians finally got fed up with President Obama's delaying tactics and talk of putting off making a decision until 2013 and decided themselves to cut a deal with China and sell them the oil.

Thanks to this president, we lost out on cheaper prices at the pump, thousands of construction jobs and ticked off one of our closest allies in the bargain. The fault was entirely his.

Spin that, Mr. President!

( hat tip, memeorandum)

Bombshell - Newt's Ex-Wife Marianne Unloads On Camera

2012-01-18T17:18:00.000-08:00

Drudge has the story...

Newt Gingrich's ex wife Marianne apparently has done a tell-all two hour interview with ABC's Brian Ross about her marriage to Gingrich. That would be wife number two, the one he was having an affair with when wife number one had cancer and the one he ditched while he was having an affair with number three, Callista. Talk about flip flopping!

You had to know all along this was going to surface, and not at a good time. Marianne has said she could end Gingrich's career with one interview, and this one may be it. They were married 19 years, and to add insult to injury, Newt actually tried to have the marriage annulled!

Here's another nifty bit from the same 2010 Esquire interview, after Marianne found out about Newt's ongoing affair with Callista:

She kind of guessed it, of course. Women usually do. But did she know the woman was in her apartment, eating off her plates, sleeping in her bed?

She called a minister they both trusted. He came over to the house the next day and worked with them the whole weekend, but Gingrich just kept saying she was a Jaguar and all he wanted was a Chevrolet. “‘I can’t handle a Jaguar right now.’ He said that many times. ‘All I want is a Chevrolet.’”

He asked her to just tolerate the affair, an offer she refused.

He’d just returned from Erie, Pennsylvania, where he’d given a speech full of high sentiments about compassion and family values.

The next night, they sat talking out on their back patio in Georgia. She said, “How do you give that speech and do what you’re doing?”

“It doesn’t matter what I do,” he answered. “People need to hear what I have to say. There’s no one else who can say what I can say. It doesn’t matter what I live.”

Newt Gingrich is obviously taking it pretty seriously - he cancelled a press conference to try and work something out with her,but if the interview's already on tape there's no way ABC won't run it.

According to Drudge, there was a pretty huge dust up within ABC about whether to air it before or after the South Carolina primary, and the Network tentatively decided to air the interview next Monday, after all votes have been counted.

This could mean we have a situation where Gingrich finishes well, but ultimately implodes once America gets to hear what Gingrich's ex has to say.

Politico, on the other hand, is saying it's going to air tomorrow - right before the debate. That makes a great deal more sense, but we'll see.

The ancient Greeks said that character is destiny. We may be about to see that reaffirmed shortly.

Iranians To Return US Drone To Obama - Who Says There's No Muslim Sense of Humor?

2012-01-18T14:58:00.000-08:00

You remember the top secret American RQ-170 Sentinel drone went down over Iran last month, the one President Obama asked them to pretty please return?

Well the Iranians are complying...sort of.

While Iran may have trouble reverse engineering the drone itself, an Iranian company has profited by making miniature toy versions of the drone. The toys come on several colors, are made of Iranian plastic, and most of them have already been snapped up by Iranian government organizations.

A special model — a pink one — has been specially reserved for President Obama.

“He said he wanted it back, and we will send him one,” said Reza Kioumarsi, the head of cultural production at the Ayeh Art group.

I wonder if President Obama's going to keep it on his desk as a sign of 'engagement'?

The Ayeh Art Group normally makes things like t-shirts, posters, buttons and mugs but is now cranking out 2,000 of the toy drones a day.

“This is not made in China,” Kioumarsi stressed.

The toy drones also come with a special transparent plastic stand emblazoned with a quotation from Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic: “We will put America under our feet.”

Nifty!

Who says there no laughter in Islam? Certainly they're finding President Obama pretty comical.

Netanyahu: "The Palestinians Have No Interest In Entering Peace Talks"

2012-01-18T12:06:00.000-08:00

Well, it's about time someone admitted it.

“For the last three years, the Palestinians have refused to enter negotiations, thinking they could impose preconditions upon us,” Netanyahu told Israeli lawmakers in a closed parliamentary meeting.

“The Palestinians have no interest in entering peace talks. I’m ready to travel now to Ramallah to start peace talks with Abu Mazen, without preconditions. But the simple truth is that Abu Mazen is not ready,” he said. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is widely known as Abu Mazen.

Netanyahu’s comments were relayed by a meeting participant who spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was closed.

Abbas says the Palestinians will not resume talks unless Israel stops building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, areas Israel captured in the 1967 war from Jordan and claimed by the Palestinians as parts of their future state.

Actually, this WAPO article is somewhat..incomplete in details. Not only is Abbas insisting that Israel not build in the areas mentioned (most of whom are going to be off the table in any peace settlement anyway) but Abbas insists that Israel commit to making the pre '67 lines the starting point of the negotiations before any talks occur, and has said numerous times that he's unwilling to make a single concession of any kind to Israel in any negotiations he enters.

In other words, Abbas is only willing to 'negotiate' with the Israelis only if there's nothing much left to negotiate. This is roughly the equivalent of agreeing to go to Las Vegas and place a bet on the roulette wheel only if your winnings are guaranteed in advance.

Another building freeze is off the table, and Abbas knows it very well, which is exactly why he's insisting on it. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu already gave the 'Palestinians' a 10 month freeze as a unilateral concession before in an attempt to get talks going, something that caused him considerable political damage at home. It turned out to be worthless, because the 'Palestinians' stonewalled for 9 1/2 months and then used Netanyahu's refusal to extend the freeze indefinitely as an excuse to bail out of talks. Netanyahu isn't going to make the same mistake twice.

Actually, the reality is that the 'Palestinians' have little interest in living in peace beside Israel, but merely in getting Israel as close to the indefensible pre '67 lines as possible. People interested in living in peace don't display maps of 'Palestine' with Israel obliterated, don't hold up people who've murdered Israeli civilians as heroes and role models and don't preach Jew hatred in their mosques, schools and media:

PA Mufti calls for the killing of Jews quoting Islamic Hadith from Palestinian Media Watch on Vimeo.

Moderator at Fatah ceremony:
"Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (i.e., Jews)
is a war of religion and faith.
Long Live Fatah! [I invite you,] our honorable Sheikh."

The official Palestinian Authority religious leader, the Mufti Muhammad Hussein comes to the podium and says:

"47 years ago the [Fatah] revolution started. Which revolution? The modern revolution of the Palestinian people's history. In fact, Palestine in its entirety is a revolution, since [Caliph] Umar came [to conquer Jerusalem, 637 CE], and continuing today, and until the End of Days. The reliable Hadith (tradition attributed to Muhammad), [found] in the two reliable collections, Bukhari and Muslim, says:

"The Hour [of Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews.
The Jew will hide behind stones or trees.
Then the stones or trees will call:
'Oh Muslim, servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.'
Except the Gharqad tree [which will keep silent]."
Therefore it is no wonder that you see Gharqad [trees]
surrounding the [Israeli] settlements and colonies.."

Imagine the headlines worldwide if Israel's chief Rabbi had addressed the Knesset and called for genocide against the Palestinians.

Of course the Quartet certainly provides lip service on violent incitement of this kind, but since the 'Palestinians' never receive any penalties for it and the aid money continues to roll in, there's no incentive for them to stop it. Oddly enough, the UN is a member of the Quartet and calling for genocide against a member nation is expressly against Article 2 of the UN Charter...yet they happily continue to fund the 'Palestinian Authority'.

And to refer to Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria as 'settlements'.

It's well worth remembering that 'Arab East Jerusalem' only became 'Arab' after the ethnic cleansing of every Jew there by the Arab armies after 1948.

The same applies to the 'Arab' areas of Judea and Samaria (AKA The West Bank), where again every Jew living there was ethnically cleansed, just like almost a million other Jews throughout the Arab world after 1948.

Strange, isn't it that an attempted Arab colonization of 19 years based on aggressive war and an occupation the UN itself didn't even recognize at the time is now considered legitimate, while Jewish communities that existed before 1948 on Jewish owned land like Ariel and Gush Etzion are considered temporary 'settlements' after being repopulated by Jews for over 40 years?

And isn't it odd that it's only Israeli building in the so-called disputed areas that continually comes under criticism as an obstacle to peace rather than that of the 'Palestinians'?

Not only East Jerusalem but the 'Palestinian' occupied areas in Judea and Samaria are rife with illegal and often unsafe construction, often done by squatters with no legal title to the land they build on. As I write this, the 'Palestinians' are attempting to build an entire city from scratch called Rawabi using EU and USAid funds in the middle of a primarily Jewish area that will actually encroach on the Israeli town of Ateret. Yet no one, especially President Obama or our State Department has ever referred to 'Palestinian' building as 'unhelpful'.

The truth of the matter is that the fabled two state solution doesn't exist,because there's no deal that Abbas is willing or able to accept that doesn't amount to the Israelis committing national suicide, especially since Fatah is now officially in a unity government with the genocidal Hamas.It's bad enough to have Hamas shooting missiles and mortars at Israel's sparsely populated south. It's quite another to cede the high ground in Judea and Samaria and the strategic area of the Jordan Valley to the same people in easy range of Jerusalem and Israel's densely populated coastal plain.

The real problem here is not building in Judea and Samaria. It's the Arab refusal to live with Jews in peace and equality. Since they insist on getting their apartheid, obscene little reichlet without a single Jew in it and refuse to make any concessions for real peace, there's no reason for Israel to accomodate them any further.

It might very well be time for Netanyahu to name some preconditions of his owntocontinue talks,like taking Jerusalem and the Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria off the table, insisting on recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and a formal renouncing by th e'Palestinians' of any fictional 'right of return.' Abbas of course would never agree to any of this since it would be tantamount to recognizing that a peace settlement involves the end of the conflict, but the clarity might be helpful.

If the 'Palestinians' really dislike living in peace next to Jews that much, there are there are 22 Arab countries they can move to where Jews are already forbidden. The Israelis lack that option, in case no one has noticed.

Why Gingrich Got A Standing O

2012-01-18T11:12:00.001-08:00

The always scintillating James Taranto has a good piece on why GOP candidate Newt Gingrich's smackdown of Juan Williams in the last South Carolina debate went over as well as it did. Here's a slice:

The live-audience reaction to Republican presidential debates is a matter of great public significance--so great that even the president of the United States takes time out from his duties to evaluate it. We anxiously await President Obama's comment on what, as far as we know, is a first in the history of presidential debates: a standing ovation.

It happened at last night's debate in Myrtle Beach, S.C., which was sponsored by Fox News Channel and The Wall Street Journal. FoxNewsInsider.com describes the exchange that prompted it:

Juan Williams questioned Newt Gingrich about his recent comments that black Americans should "demand jobs, not food stamps," and that Obama is a "Food Stamp President." When asked if he could see why these comments might be insulting to African-Americans, Gingrich said flatly, "No, I don't see that."

He then went onto [sic] propose a janitorial program that would allow students to do light janitorial work while continuing their studies, paying them and teaching them the value of work. He said that they would be earning money, "which is a good thing if you're poor. Only the elites despise earning money."

Williams then pressed, suggesting that Gingrich's comments, including references to President Obama as a "Food Stamp President," were intended to belittle the poor and racial minorities.

Gingrich responded, "The fact is more people have been put on food stamps by Barack Obama than any president in American history."

He proclaimed, "I believe every American of every background has been endowed by their Creator with the right to pursue happiness, and if that makes liberals unhappy, I'm going to continue to find ways to help poor people learn how to get a job, learn how to get a better job, and learn someday to own the job."

One might ask: What's race got to do with it? An essay carrying that title appeared on the New York Times website two days before the debate, but the question turned out not to be rhetorical. The author, Lee Siegel, was writing about Mitt Romney's campaign, not Gingrich's, but there is a clarifying resonance between his piece and Gingrich's response to Williams.

Siegel writes that "Mitt Romney is the whitest white man to run for president in recent memory." That sounds like a promising start to a Chris Rock comedy riff, but Siegel means it as a serious thesis.

Read the rest here.

It Begins - ABC Attacks Romney For Donations To Mormon Faith

2012-01-18T09:09:00.000-08:00

ABC began what is likely going to be a concerted attack on the Church of the Latter Day Saints now that Mitt Romney is the front runner for the GOP nomination.

Under the headline "Mitt Romney Sent Millions to Mormon Church" the story opens like this:

Underscoring the prominent, if little discussed role that Mitt Romney played as a Mormon leader, the private equity giant once run by the GOP presidential frontrunner carved his church a slice of several of its most lucrative business deals, securities records show, providing it with millions of dollars worth of stock in some of Bain Capital's most well-known holdings.

Romney has always been a major donor to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which requires that members "tithe," or give 10 percent of their income to the church. His family charity, called the Tyler Foundation, has given more than $4 million to the church in the past five years, including $1.8 million in 2008 and $600,000 in 2009. But because Romney, whose fortune has been estimated at $250 million, has never released his personal tax returns, the full extent of his giving has never been public.

Newly uncovered stock contributions made during Romney's Bain days suggest there is another dimension to Romney's support for the church -- one that could involve millions more than has been previously disclosed.

'Carved his church a slice'...brilliant choice of words. The story gets more balanced towards the end, but the opening paragraphs are all a lot of people will read, conveying the impression of a sinister, behind the scenes religious right wing mafia in which Romney's part is now 'newly uncovered'.

First of all, this is Mitt Romney's money, honestly earned and he is entitled to do what he pleases with it.The fact that he chose to give his money to an entity he has confidence will put the money to uses he approves of rather than the federal government is immaterial, and a decision a great many Americans make.

If Governor Romney wanted merely to avoid taxes, there are plenty of other avenues he could choose. Only the dinosaur media could take someone's admirable charitable impulses and try to turn it into a negative - if that someone is a Republican. Has ABC ever questioned how much money the Obamas gave over the years to Reverend Wright's bigoted little church? Based on the mansion the Obama's Trinity Church built for him when he retired, it must have been a nice chunk of change.

The LDS, by the way, is not the only religion that asks its members to tithe and just as with other faiths it is an ideal, not a requirement as ABC would have it. Moreover, while I'm not an LDS member I have personally seen how the LDS uses its money to take care of members facing financial, personal and medical emergencies. This kind of self reliance was something Mormons cultivated when they faced prejudice and persecution in the Church's early history..something they have in common with Jews, I might add.

This sleazy non-story is not going to be the last attempt to attack Governor Romney and the LDS by the dinosaur media. They're just getting warmed up.

Watcher's Council Nominations - Float Like A Butterfly, Sting Like A Bee Edition

2012-01-18T04:59:00.000-08:00

Seventy years young yesterday...rumble young man, rumble!

Welcome to the Watcher's Council, a blogging group consisting of some of the most incisive blogs in the 'sphere, and the longest running group of its kind in existence. Every week, the members nominate two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council.Then we vote on the best two posts, with the results appearing on Friday.

Council News:

This week, The Independent Sentinel, Crazy Bald Guy and Capitalist Preservation took advantage of my generous offer of link whorage and earned honorable mention status.

You can, too! Want to see your work appear on the Watcher’s Council homepage in our weekly contest listing? Didn’t get nominated by a Council member? No worries.

Simply head over to Joshuapundit and post the title a link to the piece you want considered along with an e-mail address ( which won't be published) in the comments section no later than Monday 6PM PST in order to be considered for our honorable mention category, and return the favor by creating a post on your site linking to the Watcher’s Council contest for the week.

It's a great way of exposing your best work to Watcher’s Council readers and Council members. while grabbing the increased traffic and notoriety. And how good is that, eh?

So, let's see what we have this week....

Council Submissions

The Political Commentator – Achtung! Antisemitismus, immer präsent doch in der Regel unter dem Radar, ist jetzt immer häufiger offene und ist in das Licht der Welt erscheinen!

The Noisy Room – Don’t Worry… Nuthin’ Bad’s Gonna Happen…

Joshuapundit-"I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake

Simply Jews – De Nada Ilse

GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Preemptive Or Preventive

The Right Planet – The Talking Points Meme

Right Truth – Handcuffed, arrested, and now faces three and a half years in jail for firearms possession – for the crime of being unaware that the Second Amendment does not apply in New York City

Bookworm Room – San Francisco Chronicle columnist warns city's rational thinkers not to roll in the mud with one specific fringe group

The Razor – In the Belly of the Swan

The Colossus of Rhodey – Oh, no!

New Zeal – DSA Marxists Take Over the Occupy Movement: Plan “Spring Offensive,” With Widespread Occupations of State Capitols, Schools and Workplaces

The Glittering Eye -Citizenship Skills

The Mellow Jihadi – Move, Vets Coming Through!

Rhymes With Right – In Which I Argue That Scott Brown And Elizabeth Warren Don't Understand The First Amendment

VA Right! - Ron Paul Flying First Class on Taxpayer Dime

Honorable Mentions

The Independent Sentinel - Marines Urinating on Dead Taliban – the Crime of the Century?

Crazy Bald Guy - Mr. Electability

Capitalist Preservation - Venture Capitalism Explained

Non-Council Submissions

Melanie Phillips -The West's Useful Idiots submitted by The Political Commentator

Mark Steyn –Ron Paul beckons GOP to Fortress America submitted by The Noisy Room

Allen West – Mr. President, please don’t play the race card in 2012... submitted by Joshuapundit

Israellycool – There's Something About Perry submitted by Simply Jews

Wings Over Iraq – Let's Review submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

Rush Limbaugh – Washington, DC, Law Forces Exterminators to Capture and Relocate Rats submitted by The Right Planet

Big Government -EXCLUSIVE:Former Bush Counternarcotics Advisor: We're Losing the Drug War Because of Government Bureaucracy submitted by Right Truth

Godfather Politics -Urinating on the Dead: Marine Performance Art? submitted by Bookworm Room

Nile Gardiner –Why are Barack Obama’s critics so smart? submitted by The Razor

Defining Ideas – The Death Of Honesty submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Accuracy In Media – AIM Interview with Craig Shirley on Pearl Harbor, Ronald Reagan and Today's Politics submitted by New Zeal

Inside Higher Ed – Price of Success submitted by The Glittering Eye

Maggie's Farm –Understanding The Wuterich Haditha Court Martial submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

The Blaze – More ‘Embarrassing’ Ron Paul Newsletters Emerge on Race, Israel, & More submitted by Rhymes with Right

Liberty's Spirit – The Real Story of the Lebanese Civil War submitted by The Watcher

Robert R. Reilly – Why "Invent" The Palestinians? submitted by The Watcher

SE Cupp – Newt Gingrich, Natural Woman submitted by The Watcher

Enjoy! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

Tonight's Debate: The Palmetto Ping Pong Match

2012-01-16T21:18:00.000-08:00

Four of the five GOP candidates obviously had a mission tonight, and it wasn't to tell Republicans how they were going to defeat Obama - it was to try and derail Mitt Romney,the front runner.

I doubt they gained much ground.

One positive thing is that this particular debate was moderated by FOX, so partisan antics by the likes of people like George Stephanopoulos were mercifully absent and a much more professional atmosphere ensued.

Newt Gingrich quite correctly caught some heat from Bret Baier about the anti-capitalist attacks on Romney, but also managed to get off a number of good lines, especially when Juan Williams tried to play the race card and accused Gingrich of belittling minorities for suggesting that poor, young kids be paid for "light janitorial work" at school.

Gingrich replied, "No, I don't see that."

"They'd be getting money, which is a good thing if you're poor. Only the elites despise earning money," he said to tremendous applause.

Romney continued to be basically untouched, and continued to concentrate on taking on President Obama.

"I know the Democrats are going to be showing videos of, you know, old people being thrown off cliffs and so forth. But don't forget who it was that cut Medicare by $500 billion, and that was President Obama to pay for Obamacare."

He also did a decent job of defending himself from the expected Bain Capital attacks.

Rick Perry accused Bain of coming into Georgetown, S.C., closing a steel mill and said Bain had "..picked that company over, and a lot of people lost jobs there", Romney replied that Bain had actually invested in two steel mills and invested for seven or eight years, but that the mills closed because of foreign competition which killed their business.

"Ultimately, what happened from abroad, dumping steel into this country, led to some 40 different steel mills being closed," Romney said. "I understand what happens when China cheats, or when others cheat and dump products into this country. That's one of the reasons I'm running, is to make sure we crack down on cheaters."

It's not so much cheating as the problem of unionized American steelworkers competing with Chinese labor, but he's essentially correct and Bain's steel mills weren't the only ones affected.

Romney defended his record at Bain, saying he invested in more than 100 businesses and had an overall successful record of job creation, which is normally what happens when businesses thrive.

"If people want to have someone who understands how the economy works, having worked in the real economy, then I'm the guy who can best post up against Barack Obama," he said.

The only two points were Romney was rocked back for a second concerned calls from Rick Perry and Rick Santorum for him to release his tax records,and accusations that he had failed to challenge a Massachusetts law that that allowed convicted felons to vote while still on parole.

Romeny's answer to the first was that he'd likely get around to doing it eventually, and to the second that he was faced with a state legislature that was 85% Democrat and realized it was a no win situation.

An interesting head to head occurred between Rick Santorum and Ron Paul, of all people when Paul cited Santorum's record of voting for raising the national deficit, supporting Sarbanes-Oxley banking laws and voting against right-to-work labor laws, a particular sore point in South Carolina after the dust up over Boeing wanting to relocate jobs here. Santorum accused Paul of quoting left wing Soros backed sources for his information, but didn't really effectively dent them as untrue.

Overall, I don't think anyone particularly did any damage to Romney,although Newt Gingrich may have done himself some good in putting himslef back to the front - by a nose- of the anti-Romney forces.

Rick Santorum looked just uneven enough to give Gingrich the edge, and a lot of what came out tonight about Ron Paul's stance on the military will not play well in South Carolina, although his claim that taxes should be lowered to zero certainly raised a cheer.

Hezbollah Mumbai-Style Attack Against Jewish Targets Foiled In Bangkok

2012-01-16T20:34:00.000-08:00

A Lebanese/Swedish man seized by Thai authorities led them to a warehouse filled with bomb making materials today.

The police removed more than 8,800 pounds of urea fertilizer and several gallons of liquid ammonium nitrate from the warehouse, located in Samut Sakhon, a western suburb of Bangkok.

Atris Hussein,who was seized by Thai police at the airport denied any association with Hezbollah at first, claiming he was on holiday. But he eventually cracked under interrogation and admitted he was on a mission to attack Jewish, Israeli and American sites in Bangkok and that explosive materials had already been put in place by a a Hezbollah team that had already scouted out the targets and was going to brief the actual shooters, of whom Hussein was one. He then led police to the explosives, as well as a number of small arms and GPS navigators, the same tools used in Mumbai to pinpoint targets for the Pakistani killers.

The Thais reportedly were tipped off about the ongoing plot from the Mossad and from the American CIA.

According to what's emerged so far, one target was the Chabad House in Bangkok, which is fairly large and has rooms for dozens of guests, a reflection of the popularity of Bangkok and other spots in Thailand like Phuket with Israeli tourists. Another team of killers was supposed to hit restaurants and bars along the Khao San Road area, which are popular with Israelis and Americans. In other words, this attack was to be a mirror image of what happened in Mumbai.

Chabad rabbis in Thailand on Sunday said they were taking safety precautions after reports emerged that a terror cell was planning to attack Israeli and Jewish targets in the country.

Rabbi Yosef Chaim Kantor of the Jewish Association of Thailand said he was in close contact with the authorities and they had taken measures to ensure the safety of his family and guests.

“The Thai authorities are taking this very seriously and so are we,” said Kantor. “We are in close contact with them.”

Thai authorities are currently looking for other members of the Hezbollah cells who are still believed to be in Thailand, although some of them have reportedly left the country, most likely by crossing over to Laos and catching a plane from Vientiane back to the Middle East.

The Iranians have said numerous times that they were going to retaliate against Israel and America for the sanctions. This was probably the opening move.

What NewsWeak And Sully Think Of The Rest Of The Country

2012-01-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

Unfreakingbelievable.

UPDATE: Sarah Palin weighs in:

Love it!

"I Got Bin Laden" - And Why Obama's Big Boast Might Have Been A Huge Mistake

2012-01-16T14:40:00.000-08:00

"..Osama bin Laden will never again walk the face of this Earth. That’s what change is."

So said President Obama at a recent fundraiser, the same one where he also claimed that Republicans threaten the "very core of what this country stands for."

Let's ignore his attacking the GOP's patriotism and focus on that first statement, because President Obama keeps coming back to it as a great foreign policy achievement of his. Was it?

Osama bin Laden certainly deserved death if any one did. But foreign policy is based on strategic goals, not on simply meting out justice to those who've murdered Americans. If President Obama's chief concern was punishing people who've murdered Americans, we wouldn't be aiding the Palestinian Authority, Hamas or the Hezbollah-controlled government of Lebanon and Iran would be a smoking crater right now, with the mullahs, President Ahmadinejad and a lot of other members of that government turned into halal crisps.

Since President Obama is touting this as a great foreign policy accomplishment of his and is using it to raise money, let's simply take a cold hard look at it in the light of what it actually accomplished from that perspective.

At the time he was assassinated, Osama bin Laden was essentially living quietly as a guest of the Pakistani government in Abbottobad. His health was not the best, so a great deal of the actual operational command was in the hands of his subordinate, Egyptian-born former Muslim Brotherhood leader Ayman Zawahiri.

As President Obama has pointed out, al-Qaeda has been weakened severely and marginalized, thanks to bin Laden's miscalculation in making Iraq a central front of jihad and suffering massive losses of men and material. That happened, ironically, because of military strategies like the surge Senator Obama did his very best to criticize and sabotage before he entered the White House.

At the time of bin Laden's death, Al-Qaeda had become more of a brand name, a proselytizing force over the internet and an inspiration to young jihadis rather than an actual source of many attacks.

We used a painstakingly created network of Pakistani informers and intel sources to nail down bin-Laden's whereabouts and plan the operation that assassinated him. We then sent the valiant men of Navy Seal Team Six into Pakistan via helicopter, broke into bin-Laden's compound, shot him down, removed his body, gave him a proper Islamic funeral ( which involves cursing Christians and Jews, if the usual text was used) and threw his body into the sea.

So we accomplished an act of retribution. Let's examine the results and see if they were worth it.

The Pakistanis were predictably livid at being exposed, again, as a major aider and abetter of Islamic fascism and terrorism. Their honor/shame mentality kicked in and rather than express regret that they had been caught sheltering a mass murderer, they went into hysterics about the violation of their sovereignty. They arrested every member of the Pakistani network they could get their hands on that helped the US find and assassinate bin-Laden and charged them with treason, which will likely end in a number of executions. Aside from our network in Pakistan being burnt, this assured that we're going to have great difficulty with intel from that country in the future.

The Pakistanis also closed the land route they control into Afghanistan through the Torkum Pass for several days. This route transports 75% of the supplies going into Afghanistan for our troops, who now simply had to make do without needed supplies for a few days. Also, because the stopped supply trucks were sitting ducks, the Taliban manged to destroy several of them.

Even more costly, we lost one of our helicopters in the bin-Laden operation, a Blackhawk. Now, these normally cost about $20 million or so, but this one cost a great deal more, because it had been highly modified with top secret stealth technology that brought its cost up to more like $60 million. Even worse, the SEAL's were unable to completely destroy it, and the angry Pakistanis gleefully gave it to the Chinese to examine at their leisure. The potential loss of technology is in the millions, not to mention our relationship with Pakistan, which has worsened considerably and is unlikely to recover for some time if at all.

But the worse is yet to come.

When we take a look at exactly why Osama bin-Laden was ratted out after all this time, some interesting intel surfaces. As I've mentioned on these pages before, we know that there was a substantial disagreement between Osama and his chief lieutenant Ayman Zawahiri, prior to Osama's death. Bin laden was relatively comfortable in Abbotobad and wanted to keep al-Qaeda anchored in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Zawahiri, looking at developments in his native Egypt and elsewhere like the 'Arab Spring' , the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood and President Obama's already announced retreat from the region was pushing to relocate al-Qaeda back to the Middle East and the roiling Arab world.

So now that Osama's dead (and according to my sources, there are pretty solid indications he was deliberately fingered) Zawahiri, a former Muslim Brotherhood member has taken over and we see increased al-Qaeda presence in both the Egyptian Sinai and Libya, as well as in Iraq where the Maliki government's marginalization of the Sunnis has given al-Qaeda new life.

Moreover, should Muslim Brotherhood and Salafist governments take over in Egypt and Libya as seems likely, Ayman Zawahiri, al-Qaeda and its affiliates like Takfir-wal Higra can count on a haven to train and recruit, with Libya's oil wealth and Egypt's population and rabid Islamism to draw on.

So let's reiterate, shall we? The chief foreign policy triumph President Obama continually boasts about consists of taking out a largely defanged terrorist. It cost us millions of dollars, inflamed an already unfriendly but unfortunately necessary relationship between the US and Pakistan, burnt our intel network in that country, gave the Chinese and probably the Russians and Iranians a good look at American state of the art stealth technology that cost additional millions to develop, and helped relocate al-Qaeda to the heart of the Middle East after we had largely driven them out.

'Foreign policy achievement' or a fiasco being used for political effect? You be the judge.

Obama Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett Uses Church Pulpit To Blast Republicans

2012-01-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

Senior Obama Advisor Valarie Jarrett celebrated MLK Day by using the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta for a rabid political speech damning Republicans and shilling for her boss:

"Teachers, and firefighters, and policemen, whose jobs are now in jeopardy because Congress--well let me be specific--because the Republicans in Congress," Jarrett told the crowd. According to the CBS affiliate in Atlanta, at this point, "Before she could finish her sentence, people in the congregation were laughing, and applauding."

At the Sunday service, Jarrett also brought up Osama bin Laden's death in order to praise the president. "We all sleep a little better at night knowing Osama Bin Laden and his lieutenants are not plotting a terrorist attack against the United States," Jarrett said. Then she pivoted to Iraq: "I saw so many soldiers returning home from their last tour of duty in Iraq, in time for the Christmas holidays."

At the end of Sunday's sermon, after Jarrett had delivered her remarks to the congregation, the church held a voter registration drive.

The height of chutzpah to use Dr. Martin Luther King's own church to libel the Republican party Dr. King was a member of his entire life, no?

And I certainly wish someone had been there when she mentioned all those soldiers returning from Iraq to ask her why her boss was tossing so many of them out of the military with no benefits to fend for themselves in the poisonous job market he's created. Somehow, I think a question like that would not have been greeted with love and Christian tolerance.

Another thing comes to mind...why is a church with its tax exempt status feel free to use its pulpit as an arena to give a full on political 'sermon'?

Ah, I forgot. It's only a violation of the Leftist mantra of 'a wall between church and state' when their political enemies do it.

Canada Selling Oil To Asia Instead Because Of Keystone Pipeline Block. Thanks Obama!

2012-01-16T10:45:00.000-08:00

It's not well known, but the country we buy the biggest share of our imported oil from isn't in the Middle East,but our neighbor Canada.

In order to process it cheaper and easier, Canada and US oil companies wanted to construct a pipeline between the drilling sites in Alberta, Canada and American refineries known as the Keystone Pipeline.

Aside from providing thousands of construction jobs, the Keystone Pipeline would have meant lower energy costs for all Americans.

The Republican in both the House and the Senate introduced legislation to get the pipeline approved,and it was part of the negotiations in the recent payroll tax controversy.However,President Obama refused to consider approving the pipeline and voted present, putting off any decision until 2013.

It doesn't matter anymore, because the Canadians got tired of waiting:

Canada is now looking to Asian countries to market its abundance of oil, natural gas and minerals as plans to build the proposed Keystone XL pipeline have stalled with the U.S. administration.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper will travel to China next month to discuss selling Canada's bounty to the rapidly growing nation.

The preferred initial plan was to build the $7 billion Keystone pipeline to deliver Alberta's oilsands crude to refineries in Texas on the Gulf of Mexico.

Harper reasoned that the U.S. government would prefer to deal with a friendly neighbor to help meet its energy needs while creating thousands of jobs.

With widespread opposition by U.S. environmentalists, the Obama administration has delayed its decision on whether to approve the project proposed by energy giant TransCanada Pipelines.

The new plan would market to China and Asian countries through the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline that would transport Alberta's oil and natural gas to British Columbia for shipment by tankers.

Thank you, Mr. President!

Huntsman's Out

2012-01-15T21:53:00.000-08:00

Republican presidential candidate Jon M. Huntsman Jr. will announce tomorrow that he's dropping out of the GOP presidential race. He's also going to announce his endorsement of Governor Mitt Romney, something that won't mean much in South Carolina but that definitely will make a difference elsewhere. He finished third in New Hampshire.

While I agree with Huntsman's motives - he realizes that he has no chance of his own and wants to help Romney, perhaps in exchange for a quid pro quo if Romney wins - I'm rather sorry he's leaving the fray this early. He's an intelligent, sensible man with a lot of good ideas I found appealing, especially when it came to the economy, trade policy, and China and the Far East.

Here's hoping we see his gifts used in a different capacity.

US/Israel Military Exercises Postponed; US Pressures Israel Against Unilateral Iran Strike

2012-01-15T16:39:00.000-08:00

The US and Israel have postponed the joint military exercises they had scheduled for April under the code name "Austere Challenge". The official reason given was to avoid exacerbating tensions with Iran.

The exercise as it was originally planned would have include more than 5,000 U.S. personnel and simulated Israel's ballistic missile defense.

In the midst of all this, the US is strongly pressuring the Israelis not to mount a unilateral attack on Iran at this time. US Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is scheduled to be in Israel this week for talks with his IDF head, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, and is also going to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that's exactly the message he's almost certainly carrying.

While the US Senate voted 100-1 to impose sanctions on Iranian oil and on Iran's central bank, the Democrats watered things down sufficiently so that President Obama has substantial wiggle room on when and how to apply them. So far, the most damaging sanction, on Iran's Central Bank that would make it difficult for Iran to process its oil payments has been put off for six months by President Obama.

Moshe 'Boogie' Yaalon, Israel's vice prime minister put his finger on what's going on in an interview with Israel Radio today.

He compared the Obama administration's actions to those of France and Britain, which he said "are taking a very firm stand and understand sanctions must be imposed immediately."

"In the United States, the Senate passed a resolution, by a majority of 100-to-one, to impose these sanctions, and in the U.S. administration there is hesitation for fear of oil prices rising this year, out of election-year considerations."

"In that regard, this is certainly a disappointment, for now."

Yaalon continued that the international community must force Iran to "face the dilemma of choosing between its nuclear program or its regime as soon as possible," using the tougher sanctions necessary to isolate the regime.

Yaalon, finished by saying that Israel should not "leap forward" to attack Iran, "But Israel has to be ready to defend itself.Let's hope we do not arrive at that moment."

The truth of the matter - and Yaalon, Netanyahu, Gantz, General Dempsey and yes, the Iranians all know it - is that the entire US posture in the Gulf is geared towards defense, not offense.

As my friend the always scintillating Commander J.D. Dyer points out, what we're currently seeing in the Gulf is a small defensive buildup, a sign of how the Obama Administration plans to deal with Iran:

...we are not “boosting” our troop presence in the Gulf. We decided last year to keep some of the troops coming out of Iraq in Kuwait, as a ready force to deal with contingencies. As far as I can tell, the US administration has not explicitly implied in the last few days that the troops were “dispatched” to Kuwait, as if they had just recently deployed from North America. But numerous news outlets are reporting the developments in exactly those terms.

The force of about 15,000 includes two Army brigade combat teams (BCTs) and a combat air (helicopter) brigade, all of which deployed in 2011 prior to the withdrawal of combat forces from Iraq. We haven’t “boosted” our ground-force presence in the Persian Gulf; we have drawn it down a little less than originally advertised. The forces in Kuwait are insufficient to mount an attack with; they might be used instead to help defend Gulf nations if Iran retaliated against sanctions or other Western actions with regional attacks. (The original premise was being able to go back into Iraq for security operations.)

The carrier strike group situation, meanwhile, will prove out in the coming days; we may have decided to keep two strike groups on station instead of one. One of two carriers that are currently outside the Persian Gulf – USS John C Stennis (CVN-74), which has been on station and is due to go home to the West coast, and USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70), which has just arrived from San Diego – will probably leave shortly. A third carrier strike group, that of USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), is reportedly headed for the theater from its last port visit in Thailand, which may mean that two carriers will be within a 1-3 day transit of the Persian Gulf, even if both are not operating there continuously.

It has been far from unusual to have two carriers in CENTCOM over the past decade. Even Pat Buchanan seems to have given up thinking it’s a harbinger of an ill-advised attack on Iran. Two carriers are, in fact, insufficient to launch a deliberate attack on Iran – like the ground forces being retained in Kuwait. The presence of two carriers in the theater for an extended period is evidence of a marginally heightened defensive profile. (It also gives the president the flexibility to send one on a dash to the Eastern Mediterranean if necessary, while keeping one on station in Southwest Asia.) The two carriers are not a signal that we are going on offense.

Notably, if we did need to apply significant force in the Eastern Med, we’d have to send assets there. The Russians have the only aircraft carrier task force deployed in EASTMED. The US has not maintained a robust carrier presence in the Med for some years now. (Interestingly, Britain and France are planning to jointly deploy a large naval force – including aircraft carriers – to the Med later this year.)

That's the real story behind the postponing of the joint US/Israel military exercises - President Obama is simply trying to wait out the election season hoping he doesn't have to take any decisive action on Iran while doing his very best to keep Israel from forcing the issue.

The president may also be concerned with preventing the Israelis from taking the option away from him of a 'wag the dog' October surprise attack on Iran if he's down in the polls. I guarantee you that scenario's been discussed at the White House.

El Baradei Pulls Out Of Egyptian Presidential Race

2012-01-15T01:17:00.000-08:00

Ex IAEA head Mohammed El Baradei announced today that he was pulling out of Egypt's presidential race and would no longer be a candidate. When he discusses why, as usual he's lying through his teeth.

El Baradei claims that he pulled out because of the military junta is still ruling Egypt. “My conscience does not permit me to run for the presidency or any other official position unless it is within a real democratic system.”

The real reason he pulled out is that he doesn't stand a chance of getting elected, and in the sort of country Egypt is going to become being a failed presidential candidate could be quite hazardous to one's health.

The Egyptian parliamentary elections are over, and the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) won 46% of the seats, with the even more hard core Salafist al-Nour Party winning about 23% of the seats, giving the Islamist parties a 70% majority.

El Baradei was definitely anti-Israel and anti-Western as well as an appeaser of Iran who consistently covered up for Iran's illegal nuclear program, but he's not an Islamist and was thus seen as not hardline enough compared to Amr Moussa, an ex-head of the Arab League or other Islamists candidates in the field. El Baradei was associated more with the Facebook liberals in places like Cairo, who have proven to be political wash outs with little actual support.

The current military junta has been in place for almost a year,led by ex-President Mubarak's former defense minister General Mohamed Tantawi. While elections have been held, there's actually been little progress in heading towards a civilian government, although a civilian prime minister, Kamal al-Ganzouri was appointed by the junta two months ago and elections were held as promised.

That really points either of two scenarios; either the military cuts a deal with the Islamists and cedes power in exchange for a few perks or the military holds on to power with Tantawi or one of his junta mates in charge.

In either case, there's no place for El Baradei. Some western policymakers actually considered El Baradei the best possible outcome, which shows both how clueless they are and where Egypt is likely headed.

Oh Woe! The RomneySaurus Cometh!

2012-01-13T14:55:00.000-08:00

After the victory, the hand wringing and mourning.

A lot of conservatives are bemoaning Governor Mitt Romney's back to back victories in Iowa and New Hampshire and saying 'it's McCain and 2008 all over again.' Others see him, at best, as the second coming of George W. Bush.

This puts me in the position of making a case for someone I haven't endorsed and who may not even get the nomination. But I feel compelled to at least point out a few things.And I promise not to mention 'electability' except peripherally, since it's a myth no matter whom you're talking about. You never know for sure until election day.

As I've said before, we have a three things that absolutely have to be achieved in 2012; the defeat of President Obama by the most conservative and best qualified candidate possible, the repeal of ObamaCare , and to get a conservative majority into Congress. Everything else stems from these three things.

All the candidates have said they'd abolish ObamaCare and number three is a separate item, so let's focus on the first one.

Out of the current field, in my opinion to most qualified and conservative candidate is Mitt Romney. He wasn't my preferred candidate (she stayed home in Wasilla and didn't run) but there's much to admire about him and his accomplishments.

Like it or not, Romney is the only candidate so far who has the qualifications and experience to do the job and a decent shot at winning.The others shrink in comparison.

I don't see Romney as either a conservative or a lefty,but as a pragmatist,which as Machiavelli teaches us is always the best kind of head of state. What that means is that he looks at a given situation and pushes for the best possible achievable outcome. That's also why he was so successful at Bain. Ronald Reagan, who had to work with Tip O'Neill and a Democrat House embodied much of the same philosophy. Read Ronaldus Maximus' diaries sometime.

The anti-capitalist attacks on Romney coming from the likes of Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum are ridiculous and could be just as easily coming from the Obama campaign. And in fact, that's who they will likely be used by in the general election. All three of them deserve criticism for going there and handing the Democrats ammo, Gingrich in particular.

Even more ludicrous, Romney is being attacked by the other candidates for turning around some of the companies Bain Capital acquired that were operating at a loss by downsizing and streamlining them to make them run better and more productively. And these are the same people who claim to want to downsize government to make it smaller, more productive and more efficient!

To me, if you're looking for someone who might actually downsize government intelligently and eliminate waste, Romney's shown he might just be the person you're looking for. In my opinion, I think that's a stellar comeback to charges about him being 'ruthless' about downsizing at Bain.

I think at this point we actually need a successful capitalist in the Oval office to put things back in order economically. Rush Limbaugh, no great fan of Romney himself has been saying much the same thing lately, complaining about the anti-capitalist rhetoric coming out of people like Gingrich,Perry and Santorum.

Do any of them have a better record of streamlining and downsizing successfully than Mitt Romney does? Nope.

After three lousy presidents in a row, I think is a lot of what this election is about when you get to the bottom line is competency. Looked at in that light, especially if he has a conservative Congress to work with which will help steer how the executive performs, Mitt Romney might be a lot better than many conservatives think because he has already demonstrated the experience and the ability to be a pretty good president. None of the others currently running even come close.

Newt Gingrich has proven he's the loose cannon everyone always said he was.He completely lacks presidential temperament and his anti-capitalist attacks on Mitt Romney prove it. Newt is also the consummate DC insider and in his own words, a Teddy Roosevelt-style 'progressive' who has arguably changed his views when it suited him a lot more than Mitt Romney has.

Rick Santorum is in many ways fairly close to George W. Bush in that he's a conservative who believes in using Big Government to mandate social change. His emphasis on social conservative views will alienate a lot of people, and like Gingrich, his inability to put together an effective campaign staff shows he lacks the executive ability needed for the job. I also question his foreign policy chops. While he says some of the right things, when asked how to actually handle a given situation he's proven it's not his strong point. He's rapidly fading in the polls and could very well be gone after South Carolina anyway.

Ditto with Rick Perry on all counts, plus Perry's unacceptable stance on illegal aliens as a bonus. Obama would likely decimate Perry or Santorum in a debate.

Like it or not, this is the field - to paraphrase Don Rumsfeld, you wage an election with the candidates you have, not the candidates you wish you had.

The comparison with George W.Bush is quite interesting too. A number of differences crop up quite easily.

First, unlike GWB, Mitt Romney made his own money, although his family name was undoubtedly a help. For that matter so did Romney's father George, whose money came from
his being named president of a faltering AMC. George Romney, as a confidence building measure to attract investors mortgaged his own home and put the proceeds into AMC stock after he decided to make the Rambler AMC's main focus when everyone told him he was crazy and Americans wouldn't buy an economy car.

He was right, they were wrong and the stock became the Microsoft of its day.

This is another difference with Dubbya, who relied a lot more on family money and made a number of questionable decisions based on where the family money was and the bidness connections to people like the Saudis and in the Emirates. There's nothing like the Carlyle group in Mitt Romney's background

Another big difference is Romney's Mormon faith. It may turn out to be a liability with some evangelicals, but I see it as a substantial plus from a character standpoint.

There are a lot of Mormons in my neck of the woods, including my congressman, Buck McKeon, a man I have the deepest respect for and the head of the House Armed Services Committee. While I'm sure not every Mormon is a good neighbor, patriotic, hard working and self-reliant, I've yet to run into one that wasn't. It seems to be what the faith teaches.

Most young LDS men spend 2 1/2 years in missionary activity, often in pretty hairy places. They serve in pairs, so one watches the other and it is a time of committing to something bigger than themselves - sort of the psychic equivalent of compulsory military service.

In Romney's case, he was sent to France, a place where he barely spoke the language and most of the population were either Catholics or secular atheists and would be almost guaranteed to slam the door in his face, accompanied by a few choice words.

Not only did young Mitt Romney persevere in a difficult situation, he excelled. He became fluent in the language and did so well and exhibited such leadership that he was promoted to being in charge of all Mormon missionaries in France.

This tells us three things about him - he's not afraid to take on difficult tasks, he has what it takes to accomplish them and he has the ability make decisions and lead others. His experience and success with Bain relied on similar qualities.

Another difference with Dubbya - most of the current Republican field - is that Romney appears to have given a lot more thought and study going in to national security issues, something Bush barely looked at prior to 9/11.

Romney, in contrast to his competitors for the nomination has gathered around him an
impressive group of a-list advisers on national security, including John Bolton and Walid Phares. He's particularly committed to increasing and revamping our blue water Navy, the key to keeping our trade lines open, maintaining pax Americana and guarding our firewall in the Western Pacific. And he gets the concept of the War on Jihad, something Dubbyah remained clueless about for most of his time in office.

Bottom line, Romney's not the perfect candidate. There aren't any. He's simply much better than what's out there running, and I'm convinced that he would do a pretty decent job as president - especially compared to what we have lurking in the Oval Office right now. He's smart, articulate and Barack Obama isn't going to be able to walk over him during the campaign the way he did over John McCain. Especially since this time out, President Obama has a record and even the shills at the New York Times and the alphabet networks can't cover for him the way they did back in 2008.

In short, if he's the nominee, I feel I can vote for him without holding my nose, especially if a conservative Congress goes along with the deal. But then, as I mentioned, that's our job isn't it?

Eurozone: Dancing Downgrades!

2012-01-13T12:26:00.000-08:00

The eurozone has been hit with a number of credit downgrades by Standard & Poor's, France and Austria both lost their AAA credit ratings and were reduced to AA+, and the credit ratings of Italy, Spain and Portugal were cut by two notches each.

Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and Luxembourg have maintained their triple A ratings for now.

In plain English, what the means is that the costs of borrowing for the countries hit with downgrades is headed upwards and they'll have to offer a higher rate on bonds to attract investors.It also means that the eurozone's rescue fund used for bailouts could also very likely have it's rating cut,ultimately meaning that the eurozone countries are going to have to pony up more cash to keep it solvent.

The current downgrade came on the heels of disappointing returns on the recent Italian bonds auction and a failure of the major banks participating in the write down of Greek debt to agree on who gets stuck for how much, thus stalling the negotiations.

On the selfishly plus side,this could spark more of an appetite among investors for non-EU debt in America, Israel, Australia, Canada, and elsewhere, because it's seen as safer.

Nasty Computer Virus Alert

2012-01-13T12:10:00.001-08:00

I received the information below from a trusted source, and after researching it I verified that there's a new, insidious and dangerous computer virus being spread. Tis is NOT a joke...please circulate this to your friends, family and contacts:

Subject: URGENT!!

PLEASE CIRCULATE THIS NOTICE TO YOUR
FRIENDS, FAMILY, CONTACTS!

In the coming days, you should be
aware.....Do not open any message with an
attachment call ed : Invitation FACEBOOK,
regardless of who sent it. It is a
virus that opens an OlympIc torch that burns
the whole hard disc C of your computer.
Virus name: KOOBFACE.

This virus will be received from someone you had in
your address book. That's why you should send this
message to all your contacts. It is better to
receive this email 25 times than to receive the
virus and open it.

If you receive an email call ed : Invitation FACEBOOK, though sent
by a friend, do not open it and delete it imm ed iately. It is the
worst virus announced by CNN. A new virus has been discovered
recently that has been classified by Microsoft as the most
destructive virus ever.
It is a Trojan Horse that asks you to watch a YOU TUBE video and
install an adobe flash plug-in. Once you install it, it's all over.
And there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply
destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital
information of their function is saved.

The Council Has Spoken!! This Week's Watcher's Council Results

2012-01-13T04:11:00.000-08:00

The Council has spoken, the votes have been cast, and the results are in for this week's Watcher's Council match up of 2012, carved eternally in the akhasic records of cyberspace.

This week's winning essay, Joshuapundit's The Tale Of The Swine is a cautionary tale about...well I think you'll figure it out for yourselves. Here's a slice:

Once there was a tribe of wild pigs who lived in a remote area of the woods.

As anyone who's spent time around pigs will tell you, they are by no means the most unintelligent of animals, and these pigs had learned to adapt quite well to their circumstances. They had fashioned dens and had gradually learned to piece together a tribal law that allowed them to work as a group when necessary to ensure an adequate if not over generous food supply, care for their young and defend themselves against any natural predators. In their little corner of the woods, they were pretty much the dominant species, and were reasonably content.

One day, a pig named Andy went missing. The others searched for him throughout their part of the forest, but they were unable to find him no matter where they looked. Andy's fate became a major topic of conversation among the pigs. It was totally unheard of for one of them to simply disappear like that.

The pigs didn't quite keep track of time beyond the seasons, but still by their reckoning it was some time before, to their astonishment, Andy reappeared as the leaves were turning color.

The pigs were ecstatic to see their lost tribe member returned to them..and even better, in what appeared to be rip roaring good health.

Most of the wild pigs tended to lose some weight as the weather started to turn colder and food became scarce and harder to find, but Andy was sleek, fat and obviously had been living, if you'll pardon the expression, high on the hog. His bristles and hooves were clean, his eyes shone brightly and he was as happy as a pig in - well, you know. And much to the other pig's surprise, he had a pretty red collar around his neck, something none of them had ever seen before.

"Wherever have you been Andy?" the other pigs asked. "We looked everywhere for you."

"Oh, I can't wait to tell you", said Andy. "I've discovered something wonderful."

"You know, I was chasing down some berries I smelt over by the oak trees over by our eastern border, you know the place. Well I ended up going a little past our bounds and what bad luck! I wasn't paying attention and got my left rear trotter lodged in a tree root."

"I tried and tried, but I couldn't get free and I thought I might die there. But then the most marvelous thing happened. A man heard my squealing, came through the underbrush and set me free."

In our non-Council category, the winner this week was an interesting piece by Fred Seigal and Joel Kotkin in The City Journal, The New Authoritarianism submitted by Bookworm Room . It's an interesting look at the widening divide between President Obama and the increasingly authoritarian 'progressives' that support him and the rest of the more center right electorate.

Here are this week’s full results.Only New Zeal was unable to vote this week, and was affected by the 2/3 vote penalty:

Council Winners

*First place with 3 1/3 votes! Joshuapundit – The Tale Of The Swine

Second place with 2 1/3 votes – The Razor- Is The Republican Party Stupid?

Third place with 1 2/3 votes – New Zeal- Blinded by the Left: How Marxists Wrote Ron Paul's Defense Cuts Plan

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – Right Truth- The Unintended Consequences Begin

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Glittering Eye- What Creates Opportunity?

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Mellow Jihadi- My Harvard Story

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote – Bookworm Room-Which agenda really serves women's rights?

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote – The Noisy Room – Sunlight Down The Spider Hole

Fifth place *t* with 2/3 vote – The Political Commentator – A one-picture metaphor for the Obama regime plus a lot of words!

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Reckless

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – Simply Jews – Richard (Dickie) Silverstein: a blogging dupe of the century?

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – VA Right! – Meet Mitt Romney: Corporate Raider and Vulture Capitalist

Non-Council Winners

First place with 2 2/3 votes! – The City Journal- The New Authoritarianism submitted by Bookworm Room

Second place with 2 1/3 votes – Liberated – Why Do Muslims Despise Jews So Much? submitted by Joshuapundit

Third place with 1 2/3 votes – American Digest –The Gun School submitted by The Razor

Fourth place with 1 1/3 votes - Allen West Republic –America is Good submitted by New Zeal

Fifth place *t* with 1 vote - Doug Ross – Tehran TV's Iranian Idol: Ron Paul submitted by The Watcher

Fifth place *t* with 1 vote - Karen Holt/Historic American Examiner –Taking matters into his own hands submitted by Right Truth

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Sultan Knish –Ron Paul's Soros Defense Plan submitted by The Noisy Room

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -The Elder of Ziyon –Egyptians to block 'Zionist' visitors to rabbi's tomb submitted by Simply Jews

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -American Thinker – Obama: The Mask is Off submitted by The Right Planet

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Hired Intelligence –Threats and The School-as-Family submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Sixth place *t* with 2/3 vote -Rand Simberg/PJ Media –The Lunar Yellow Peril submitted by The Glittering Eye

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote -Yid With Lid –Why is Obama's favorite Middle East leader an anti-American Islamist? submitted by The Political Commentator

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote -Abu Muqawama –In Praise of John Nagl submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

See you next week! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

John Bolton To Endorse Romney, Join His team Of Advisers

2012-01-12T10:18:00.000-08:00

Yes indeed, the 'stache is backing Mitt Romney and more importantly, will join Romney's already stellar team of foreign policy and national security advisers.

Aside from being our most effective UN ambassador ever and an expert on nuclear weapons and proliferation, Bolton has consistently voiced his disapproval for the sort of state department 'culture' that frequently serves America so badly and an advocate for a muscular and sensible foreign policy. An America with Bolton as NSA or Secretary of State would be a very different proposition from what we currently have.

This once again underlines what I've always said - that Mitt Romney is the GOP candidate who is actually serious about foreign policy and national security issues, with the possible exception of John Huntsman.

You'll notice that the linked WSJ refers to Ambassador Bolton as 'irascable' in what purports to be a straight news piece. That's actually a recommendation as far as I'm concerned. I want someone who is irascable to our enemies, supportive of our friends, and no one's fool when it comes to agreements to the international order.

Obama Caught In Huge Whopper - Says Perry,Gingrich, Romney Would Cut All Aid to Israel

2012-01-12T09:15:00.001-08:00

"Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Newt Gingrich all say they would cut foreign aid to Israel — and every other country — to zero."

"Stand against ‘zeroing out’ aid to Israel," the web page says. "Republican candidates for president Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Newt Gingrich all say they would cut foreign aid to Israel — and every other country — to zero. Stand up to this extreme isolationism and join the call to reject the Romney-Perry-Gingrich plan."

It says a great deal about President Obama's contempt for his fellow citizens that he'd even try getting away with this one.

The campaign cites as evidence a series of statements made at a Nov. 12, 2011, debate among the Republican presidential candidates moderated by CBS News’ Scott Pelley and National Journal’s Major Garrett.

What the candidates in question actually said is so far away from what the Obama campaign says they did beggars the imagination.

Rick Perry responded to a question by Pelly about foreign aid to Pakistan by saying this:

"Listen, I think we're having an interesting conversation here, but the deeper one (is about) foreign aid. And we need a president of the United States working with a Congress that sends a clear message to every country. It doesn't make any difference whether it's Pakistan or whether it's Afghanistan or whether it's India.

"The foreign aid budget in my administration for every country is going to start at zero dollars. Zero dollars. And then we'll have a conversation. Then we'll have a conversation in this country about whether or not a penny of our taxpayer dollar needs to go into those countries. And Pakistan is clearly sending us messages, Mitt. It's clearly sending us messages that they -- they don't deserve our foreign aid that we're getting, because they're not being honest with us. American soldiers' lives are being put at jeopardy because of that country. … It's time for us as a country to say no to foreign aid to countries that don't support the United States of America."

Notice Perry says that foreign aid should be cut to "countries that don't support the United States of America." And notice that he specifically says that he'd start at zero dollars and then decide how much aid the US gives them, not that he'd 'zero it out' and eliminate it as the Obama website says.

Newt Gingrich was asked if he agreed with Perry by Major Garret and said this:

"What he said made absolutely perfect sense. … Consider the alternative. You're giving some country $7 billion a year .... or in the case of Egypt, $3 billion a year. So you start off every year and say, ‘Here's your $3 billion, now I'll start thinking’? You ought to start off at zero and say, ‘Explain to me why I should give you a penny.’...

"The Pakistanis hid Bin Laden for at least six years in a military city within a mile of their national defense university. And then they got mad at the people who turned him over to us? And we think those are the acts of allies? I think that's a pretty good idea to start at zero and sometimes stay there."

Mitt Romney later in the debate expressed the same views later talking about Pakistan: "One of the things we have to do with our foreign aid commitments, the ongoing foreign aid commitments -- I agree with Gov. Perry. You start everything at zero."

A sensible position, actually that has nothing to do with 'cutting foreign aid to Israel to zero'.

And guess what...when asked later specifically about aid to Israel, every one of the three GOP candidates made it quite clear where they stood.

Perry said during the debate, "Obviously, Israel is a special ally. And my bet is that we would be funding them at some substantial level."

After the debate a Perry aide e-mailed POLITICO columnist Ben Smith to say, "Perry believes Israel's an extraordinary friend and our greatest ally. … Under Rick Perry, Israel will set the bar for judging foreign aid to any country. Perry's Start at Zero is exactly the right policy -- no country stands to benefit more than Israel from merit-based foreign aid."

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, both of whom have taken consistently pro-Israel positions during the campaign made statements reiterating both their commitment to Israel as a valued ally and to continued military aid to Israel.

In fact, in Newt Gingrich's case, he cited a 2007 memorandum of understanding between Israel and the Bush Administration formalizing a 10-year commitment for U.S. military aid to Israel.

"We have a 10-year commitment that we have to live out," Gingrich said. "So I think because we’ve made this long-term commitment, you wouldn’t be able to go back to zero."

So the Prevaricator-in-chief is just flat out lying...again.

I'd love to see one of the candidates respond by mentioning that it was the Obama Administration that instituted what amounted to a de facto arms embargo on arms sales to Israel for eight months when President Obama first took office, and later threatened an aid cutoff in defiance of that 2007 MOU.

You'll also notice that th eObama website makes no mention of the one GOP candidate who does want to end all aid to Israel specifically and even introduced an amendment in Congress last February to that effect - Ron Paul.

But by now, I think we know why.

Ihave to admit I am disappointed by President Obama . I'm looking forward to more inventive lies and misstatements, not stupid ones like this. it belittles us both.

(h/t Politifact)

Whoopsie! Another Iranian Nuclear Scientist Goes Boom...

2012-01-11T10:26:00.000-08:00

Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a chemistry expert and a director of the Natanz uranium enrichment facility took the dirt nap today when two unknown assailants on a motorcycle attached a magnetic bomb to his car. He's now halal bits and pieces.

The US formally denied any involvement, which is probably true. I have a feeling it's a lot more likely the Mossad and the Mujahadeen-e-Khalq (MEK) might be able to shed some light on the matter.

I don't know if they have life insurance in Iran, but if they do, the rates must be pretty sky high on anyone working at an Iranian nuclear plant!

Excellent Read Alert

2012-01-11T09:41:00.000-08:00

This one is some short fiction by a milblogger, a former Marine in Iraq. Highly recommended.

Watcher's Council Nominations - The Watcher's Birthday Bash Edition

2012-01-11T04:13:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Watcher's Council, a blogging group consisting of some of the most incisive blogs in the 'sphere, and the longest running group of its kind in existence. Every week, the members nominate two posts each, one written by themselves and one written by someone from outside the group for consideration by the whole Council.Then we vote on the best two posts, with the results appearing on Friday.

Think of us as your private window of some of the very best of the blogosphere.

Council News:

This week, The Independent Sentinel, The Grouch, Liberty's Spirit and Capitalist Preservation took advantage of my generous offer of link whorage and earned honorable mention status.

You can, too! Want to see your work appear on the Watcher’s Council homepage in our weekly contest listing? Didn’t get nominated by a Council member? No worries.

Simply head over to Joshuapundit and post the title a link to the piece you want considered along with an e-mail address ( which won't be published) in the comments section no later than Monday 6PM PST in order to be considered for our honorable mention category, and return the favor by creating a post on your site linking to the Watcher’s Council contest for the week.

It's a great way of exposing your best work to Watcher’s Council readers and Council members. while grabbing the increased traffic and notoriety. And how good is that, eh?

So, let's take a look at what we have this week....

Council Submissions

The Noisy Room – Sunlight Down The Spider Hole

The Political Commentator –
A one-picture metaphor for the Obama regime plus a lot of words!

Joshuapundit-The Tale Of The Swine

New Zeal – Blinded by the Left: How Marxists Wrote Ron Paul's Defense Cuts Plan

Simply Jews – Richard (Dickie) Silverstein: a blogging dupe of the century?

GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD – Reckless

The Right Planet – Is Matter Made of Waves?

Right Truth – The Unintended Consequences Begin

Bookworm Room – Which agenda really serves women's rights?

The Colossus of Rhodey – Is Liberalism Killing Comics?

VA Right! - Meet Mitt Romney: Corporate Raider and Vulture Capitalist

The Glittering Eye -What Creates Opportunity?

The Razor – Is The Republican Party Stupid?

The Mellow Jihadi – My Harvard Story

Rhymes With Right – At What Point Does A President Lose His Legitimacy As Our Nation's Leader And Become A Tyrant?

Honorable Mentions

The Grouch - Romney? Electable? Hoax?

Liberty's Spirit - Apartheid in the Middle East

The Independent Sentinel - ICE Changes Detention Policies on Illegals & We Can’t Afford It

Capitalist Preservation - The fallacy of the minimum wage: Part Three

Non-Council Submissions

Sultan Knish –Ron Paul's Soros Defense Plan submitted by The Noisy Room

Yid With Lid -Why is Obama's favorite Middle East leader an anti-American Islamist? submitted by The Political Commentator

Liberated – Why Do Muslims Despise Jews So Much? submitted by Joshuapundit

Allen West Republic – America is Good submitted by New Zeal

Elder Of Ziyon – Egptians to block 'Zionist' visitors to rabbi's tomb submitted by Simply Jews

Abu Muqawama – In Praise of John Nagl submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

American Thinker – Obama: The Mask is Off submitted by The Right Planet

Karen Holt - Historic American Examiner -Taking matters into his own hands submitted by Right Truth

City Journal -The New Authoritarianism submitted by Bookworm Room

Hired Intelligence – Threats and The School-as-Family submitted by The Colossus of Rhodey

Yid With Lid – JEWICIDE! Organization of Orthodox Jews Celebrates Appointment of Jack Lew submitted by VA Right

Rand Simberg/PJ Media – The Lunar Yellow Peril submitted by The Glittering Eye

American Digest –The Gun School submitted by The Razor

DaddyBear's Den –A Damn Shame submitted by The Mellow Jihadi

Matthew E. Miller -- Race 4 2012 – It's Good To Be A Conservative Again submitted by Rhymes with Right

Doug Ross – Tehran TV's Iranian Idol: Ron Paul submitted by The Watcher

Sarah Honig – Good manners and high morals submitted by The Watcher

Enjoy! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!

Mitt Romney Sails To Victory In NH, And Has A Few Things To Say

2012-01-10T18:09:00.000-08:00

FOX news has projected Mitt Romney the run away winner in the New Hampshire primary.

He is projected to receive 39% of the vote, with Ron Paul coming in second with 23%, Jon Huntsman third with 17% and Newt Gingrich with about 10% and Rick Santorum with 9%. Rick Perry is projected to come in last.

Governor Romney had a few remarks to make in the way of a victory speech, and I think they bear repeating:

Thank you, New Hampshire! Tonight, we made history!

This state has always been a special place for our family. Ann and I made a home here and we’ve filled it with great memories of our children and grandchildren. And this Granite State moment is one we will always remember.

Tonight, we celebrate. Tomorrow, we go back to work.

We remember when Barack Obama came to New Hampshire four years ago.

He promised to bring people together.

He promised to change the broken system in Washington.

He promised to improve our nation.

Those were the days of lofty promises made by a hopeful candidate. Today, we are faced with the disappointing record of a failed President. The last three years have held a lot of change, but they haven’t offered much hope.

The middle class has been crushed. Nearly 24 million of our fellow Americans are still out of work, struggling to find work, or have just stopped looking. The median income has dropped 10% in four years. Soldiers returning from the front lines are waiting in unemployment lines. Our debt is too high and our opportunities too few.

And this President wakes up every morning, looks out across America and is proud to announce, “It could be worse.”

It could be worse? Is that what it means to be an American? It could be worse?

Of course not.

What defines us as Americans is our unwavering conviction that we know it must be better.

That conviction guides our campaign. It has rallied millions of Americans in every corner of this country to our cause.

Over the last six months, I’ve listened to anxious voices in town meetings and visited with students and soldiers. In break rooms and living rooms, I’ve heard stories of families getting by on less, of carefully planned retirements now replaced by jobs at minimum wage. But even now, amidst the worst economy since the Great Depression, I’ve rarely heard a refrain of hopelessness.

Americans know that our future is brighter and better than these troubled times. We still believe in the hope, the promise, and the dream of America. We still believe in that shining city on a hill.

We know that the future of this country is better than 8 or 9% unemployment.

It is better than $15 trillion in debt.

It is better than the misguided policies and broken promises of the last three years – and the failed leadership of one man.

The President has run out of ideas. Now, he’s running out of excuses. And tonight, we are asking the good people of South Carolina to join the citizens of New Hampshire and make 2012 the year he runs out of time.

President Obama wants to put free enterprise on trial. In the last few days, we have seen some desperate Republicans join forces with him. This is such a mistake for our Party and for our nation. This country already has a leader who divides us with the bitter politics of envy. We must offer an alternative vision. I stand ready to lead us down a different path, where we are lifted up by our desire to succeed, not dragged down by a resentment of success. In these difficult times, we cannot abandon the core values that define us as unique -- We are One Nation, Under God.

Make no mistake, in this campaign, I will offer the American ideals of economic freedom a clear and unapologetic defense.

Our campaign is about more than replacing a President; it is about saving the soul of America. This election is a choice between two very different destinies.

President Obama wants to “fundamentally transform” America. We want to restore America to the founding principles that made this country great.

He wants to turn America into a European-style entitlement society. We want to ensure that we remain a free and prosperous land of opportunity.

This President takes his inspiration from the capitals of Europe; we look to the cities and small towns of America.

This President puts his faith in government. We put our faith in the American people.

He is making the federal government bigger, burdensome, and bloated. I will make it simpler, smaller, and smarter.

He raised the national debt. I will cut, cap, and balance the budget.

He enacted job-killing regulations; I’ll eliminate them.

He lost our AAA credit rating; I’ll restore it.

He passed Obamacare; I’ll repeal it.

When it comes to the economy, my highest priority as President will be worrying about your job, not saving my own.

Internationally, President Obama has adopted an appeasement strategy. He believes America’s role as leader in the world is a thing of the past. I believe a strong America must – and will – lead the future.

He doesn’t see the need for overwhelming American military superiority. I will insist on a military so powerful no one would think of challenging it.

He chastises friends like Israel; I’ll stand with our friends.

He apologizes for America; I will never apologize for the greatest nation in the history of the Earth.

Our plans protect freedom and opportunity, and our blueprint is the Constitution of the United States.

The path I lay out is not one paved with ever increasing government checks and cradle-to-grave assurances that government will always be the solution. If this election is a bidding war for who can promise more benefits, then I’m not your President. You have that President today.

But if you want to make this election about restoring American greatness, then I hope you will join us.

If you believe the disappointments of the last few years are a detour, not our destiny, then I am asking for your vote.

I’m asking each of you to remember how special it is to be an American.

I want you to remember what it was like to be hopeful and excited about the future, not to dread each new headline.

I want you to remember when you spent more time dreaming about where to send your kids to college than wondering how to make it to the next paycheck.

I want you to remember when you weren’t afraid to look at your retirement savings or the price at the pump.

I want you to remember when our White House reflected the best of who we are, not the worst of what Europe has become.

That America is still out there. We still believe in that America.

We still believe in the America that is a land of opportunity and a beacon of freedom. We believe in the America that challenges each of us to be better and bigger than ourselves.

This election, let’s fight for the America we love. We believe in America.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

New Hampshire Votes...

2012-01-10T09:21:00.000-08:00

Well, the nation's first real primary is underway, and who better to help analyze the doings in the Granite State than Joshuapundit's own political animal, Weekend Monkey. Welcome aboard, Weekend Monkey!

WM: Howdy doody Rob, glad to be here. And hideyho to all my primate fans!

RM: What are you seeing on the ground in New Hampshire,Monkey.

WM: I still see this as a Romney win, Rob. The real questions are how high he gets up the tree and how high some of the others get on the lower branches. People like Santorum, Gingrich and Perry are hoping to do just well enough to make it to the next stop in South Carolina.

I gotta say, the poop flinging, especially from Newtie surprised me, but may be it shouldn't have.

RM: Yeah, he's always been kind of a bomb thrower. But in this case, all I think he's doing is convincing more and more voters that he isn't presidential material. But I never thought I'd see someone like Newt Gingrich using anti-capitalist rhetoric while still claiming to be 'a Reagan conservative.'

WM: What is it with the ReThugs and Reagan? He's been out office for what, thirty years now? Yet they continue going on about him like flies buzzing around an old dried up piece of chimpy poop.

RM: Don't be disrespectful, Monkey. Ronaldus Maximus was one of America's greatest presidents. He took over a country in decline and turned it around completely. And he set millions free by destroying the Soviet Empire, something no one thought was possible. He did what all presidents should strive for but most never achieve..he left the country far better off than he found it.

Anyway..I think Gingrich is plummeting, but he's going to desperately try and hang on until South Carolina. If he doesn't do well there, I think he's out of it. Same with Perry.

WM: I think you might be right about Newtie, but I have a feeling Rick Perry's gonna hang around awhile, try and outlast Gingrich and Santorum to be the anti-Romney Numero Uno.

RM: Yeah, that could work for Perry. Both Gingrich and Santorum have sketchy organizations and are underfunded. But in the end, I don't see him as winning the nomination.

WM: Hard to say at this point,but I'd agree it's an uphill climb for him.

RM: You figure Romney's going to be the nominee?

WM: You're asking me how ReThugs think? No telling. The convention isn't even until August, that's seven months away. In an election year, that's a lifetime. Anything could happen. I'll say this though. If Romney wins in South Carolina and maybe one more primary, I think most of the others will drop out. That would actually be good for the ReThugs, because they would have some breathing space to concentrate on getting ready for Obama.

RM: OK Monkey...as always, thanks for dropping by!

WM: Smell ya later primates!

Weekend Monkey was a Democratic candidate for president in 2008 and is JoshuaPundit's resident political Guru. He can be reached at wendmonkey@yahoo.com

Another Reason Rick Perry Shouldn't Be President

2012-01-09T21:03:00.000-08:00

Frankly, he's almost as clueless about foreign policy as Herman Cain and Ron Paul.

Take a look at this, from Saturday's debate:

Governor Perry, believe it or not, says he would send U.S. troops back to Iraq.

"The idea that we allow the Iranians to come back into Iraq and take over that country, with all of the treasures, both in blood and money, that we have spent in Iraq- because this president wants to kowtow to his liberal leftist base, and move out those men and women. He could have renegotiated that time frame."

He apparently doesn't realize that Maliki and the Iraqis ordered us out of Iraq at the behest of the Iranian controlled Shi'ite bloc that's responsible for Maliki being in power. During the flag lowering ceremony when the last of our troops left Iraq, not one member of the Iraqi government we put in power with our blood and treasure could be bothered to attend.

Is Governor Perry planning to invade again and have our military take out that shiny new army the American taxpayers built for Iraq? Is he going to have our troops overthrow the 'model Arab democracy' we left there?

A I wrote long ago, with Maliki and his friends, it was always a matter of 'thank you infidels for your time and your money. Now leave, so we can bond with our jihad brothers in Iran.'

Even before President Obama pulled us out of Iraq, Maliki and the Sadrist bloc that keeps him in power were quite clear about what they wanted. Once we empowered the Shi'ites and rushed them into elections less than two years after we invaded that were ultimately decided on tribal grounds, it was over.

Governor Perry is correct that we essentially left Iraq after putting in power a Shi'ite Islamic Republic based on sharia. But unless Governor Perry plans to go to war again and depose that government, he's simply being stupid.

This is not the first time he's demonstrated his ignorance of foreign policy matters. Back in September, when he was asked what he would do if he got the 3 AM call saying that Pakistan's nukes had fallen into the hands of the Taliban, here was his reply:

Well obviously, before you ever get to that point you have to build a relationship in that region. That’s one of the things that this administration has not done. Yesterday, we found out through Admiral Mullen that Haqqani has been involved with — and that’s the terrorist group directly associated with the Pakistani country. So to have a relationship with India, to make sure that India knows that they are an ally of the United States.

For instance, when we had the opportunity to sell India the upgraded F-16′s, we chose not to do that. We did the same with Taiwan. The point is, our allies need to understand clearly that we are their friends, we will be standing by there with them.

Today, we don’t have those allies in that region that can assist us if that situation that you talked about were to become a reality.

Yes, according to Governor Perry, his solution to the Taliban or one of Pakistan's other terrorist groups getting control of Pakistan's nukes was to call and ask India or Taiwan what to do!

I'm sure he's a fine governor, but I wouldn't want him within spitting distance of the Oval Office.

The Tale Of The Swine

2012-01-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

Once there was a tribe of wild pigs who lived in a remote area of the woods.

As anyone who's spent time around pigs will tell you, they are by no means the most unintelligent of animals, and these pigs had learned to adapt quite well to their circumstances. They had fashioned dens and had gradually learned to piece together a tribal law that allowed them to work as a group when necessary to ensure an adequate if not over generous food supply, care for their young and defend themselves against any natural predators. In their little corner of the woods, they were pretty much the dominant species, and were reasonably content.

One day, a pig named Andy went missing. The others searched for him throughout their part of the forest, but they were unable to find him no matter where they looked. Andy's fate became a major topic of conversation among the pigs. It was totally unheard of for one of them to simply disappear like that.

The pigs didn't quite keep track of time beyond the seasons, but still by their reckoning it was some time before, to their astonishment, Andy reappeared as the leaves were turning color.

The pigs were ecstatic to see their lost tribe member returned to them..and even better, in what appeared to be rip roaring good health.

Most of the wild pigs tended to lose some weight as the weather started to turn colder and food became scarce and harder to find, but Andy was sleek, fat and obviously had been living, if you'll pardon the expression, high on the hog. His bristles and hooves were clean, his eyes shone brightly and he was as happy as a pig in - well, you know. And much to the other pig's surprise, he had a pretty red collar around his neck, something none of them had ever seen before.

"Wherever have you been Andy?" the other pigs asked. "We looked everywhere for you."

"Oh, I can't wait to tell you", said Andy. "I've discovered something wonderful."

"You know, I was chasing down some berries I smelt over by the oak trees over by our eastern border, you know the place. Well I ended up going a little past our bounds and what bad luck! I wasn't paying attention and got my left rear trotter lodged in a tree root."

"I tried and tried, but I couldn't get free and I thought I might die there. But then the most marvelous thing happened. A man heard my squealing, came through the underbrush and set me free."

Now, the pigs had heard of men before, but only in their pig legends that dated long before they had moved to their present remote home. Some pigs wondered if they even existed. And now, here was Andy telling them he'd actually seen one!

"I was still injured, so the man took me back with him to an amazing place called a Farm. I couldn't believe what I saw there. There are fields loaded with food and grain, and all kinds of different animals living there in peace and plenty. I lived in a large, warm den called a barn, with straw for my bed and the very best of food.No sleeping out of doors for this pig! And do you know what I had this morning? Apples! And corn mash! You can't believe how good it tastes compared to the berries, roots and acorns we live on here - and free, every day, without me having to go out and find it."

"The man - I call him my Dear Farmer - gave me this red collar and made me his pet. He knew I came from a tribe of wild pigs in the area somewhere, and I overheard him say to one of the other men that he was going to let me go near where he found me to see if I would be able to lead him to the other pigs. He wants us all to come live there on the Farm, can you believe it?"

Needless to say, the other pigs were astounded. And as they began discussing this on their own, various differences emerged between them on what they should do.

"What makes you think he wants us all to come live on this farm thing?" one asked Andy.

"Why else would he send me to come and look for you?” replied Andy. " Why, the Dear Farmer loves pigs! He said so. He probably wants our manure to help grow his crops. This is a time for us to move on and progress now that we have a golden opportunity to have a better life for ourselves."

The pigs debated this at length. A number of them, particularly the sows with young piglets were all for going to the Farm. Winter was coming on, food was getting harder to find and the prospect of a warm barn to sleep in and ample food was very enticing. And all of it in exchange for a little manure!

One faction, headed by an old boar named Ronaldus was adamant in arguing against the move. No matter how glowingly Andy painted a picture of progress and plenty, Ronaldus insisted there was no guarantee of the Farmer's true intentions, and that more important, they had no guarantee that the food and lodging would continue. "If the Farmer can give you these things and you come to depend on them, the day may come that he takes them away. Better we stay in the forest and depend on ourselves."

"You're old fashioned and afraid of the future, Ronaldus" responded Andy. "This is all about change...there are plenty of animals already living on the Farm and it works out well for them. It's an animal's paradise. Why should it be any different for us? I tell you, I've been to the Farm, I've seen the future and it works."

With that, the majority of the pigs voted to follow Andy to where the Dear Farmer was waiting and begin a new life on the Farm. Besides, as Andy explained, if they didn't like it, they could always leave and return to their old life in the woods.

Once they reached the Farm, the pigs saw that it was very much as Andy had described it. The Dear Farmer seemed pleasant and genial, and the Farm had many animals living in it and looked peaceful and prosperous. And there, just as Andy had said, was the nice warm barn!

The pigs spent a couple of nights in the warm barn, and even if the food wasn't quite the way Andy had described it, it was still delicious and plentiful.

But on the third day, the Dear Farmer and one of his men herded the pigs into a fenced enclosure, all except Andy, who continued to be allowed to stay in the barn and to roam free during the day. The pigs heard the Dear Farmer refer to their new quarters as 'the sty' and while it wasn't as nice as the barn it was still sheltered and warmer than some of their old dens, and the food was still much more plentiful than back in the forest.

Some of the pigs had a few misgivings. Some of them noted that now that they were in a fenced enclosure, there was no chance to return to their old life in the forest even if they wanted to. And they noticed that only Andy, with his red collar, still had the freedom to roam and still slept in the nice warm barn.

"You're being unreasonable", some of the other pigs replied. "You're simply not progressive. The Dear Farmer is providing for all our needs here. This sty is far better than our old dens in the forest, and the food is better and comes without our having to hunt or do anything for it. And besides, why shouldn't Andy run free? Isn't he our leader now? And since he's the Dear Farmer's friend, so much the better for us."

Life for the pigs assumed a day-to-day routine. The Dear Farmer or one of his men came every day and continued to make sure that the pigs were fed and watered regularly and their needs were taken care of. Some of the pigs noticed that Andy had ceased coming around, although they spotted him roaming the farm occasionally. When some of the pigs questioned this, the others responded, "How can you criticize Andy like that? Look at all he's done for us! He's probably working hard with The Dear Farmer to make sure we get what we deserve and are taken care of properly."

Many of the pigs, you see, especially the younger ones had largely forgotten the old days in the forest and felt they were entitled to food, shelter and good treatment just because they were pigs.

One day, an unusual thing happened to break the routine. The Dear Farmer and two of his men came into the sty, picked out a couple of large hogs and a couple of piglets and drove them out of the sty towards another building over by the other side of the Barn, one the pigs heard the Dear Farmer refer to as a 'smokehouse.'

The pigs were quite surprised at this, and spent much time debating over what had happened and what it meant. Some of them thought that perhaps the Dear Farmer felt their sty was getting too crowded, and that the 'smokehouse' was simply another sty. "It's just another example of how the Dear Farmer looks after us."

Others theorized that the hogs and piglets had been promoted and were going to join Andy in assisting the Dear Farmer in looking after the other pigs, and that they would soon be seen wearing pretty red collars too. Still others thought that they had disobeyed the Rules of the Farm in some fashion, were being punished and would be returned to the Sty shortly.

The next day, some of the pigs noticed Andy walking by and called out to him, saying they needed to talk to him. To their surprise, Andy approached the sty at a brisk trot. "Hello my fellow pigs", Andy said. "How goes it with you?"

"Andy, we need you to find out something for us", one of the hogs said. "Yesterday, the Dear Farmer took two of the hogs and couple of piglets out of our sty. We've been wondering what happened to them."

"Oh, I know all about that" Andy said. "This is probably an excellent time for us to talk about what being part of the Farm really means."

"You see, being part of the Farm is not about the individual, it's bigger than that. Here, we're all part of the Farm. And to keep the Farm going, everybody in the Farm is going to have to sacrifice something, accept change for the greater good. Everybody is going to have to give. Everybody is going to have to have some skin in the game."

"That means that we pigs also have to sacrifice. We have to be about the good of the Farm, and all the animals on it, not just say 'hey, we're doing fine' and not worry about the rest of the Farm".

"What do you mean, Andy?" asked one of the pigs.

"I mean that the pigs you mentioned are helping the entire Farm, including all of us pigs, by performing a special role in keeping the Farm going. That's why they're in the Smokehouse. As the Dear Farmer taught me, from each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs."

The pigs mulled this over for a bit. Finally, a sow named Dinah asked, "Andy...I understand that maybe it might be necessary for some of us pigs to go over to the Smokehouse to help the whole Farm. But if that's our role, where do you fit in? Are you going to be going to the Smokehouse too?"

Andy chuckled, "Not quite Dinah. The Dear Farmer gave me other duties to perform for the Farm. I've already been able to tell another tribe of pigs in the forest near the south part of the Farm about the animal's paradise here and some of them are in the Barn as we speak. They'll probably be in a sty over in a different part of the Farm tomorrow, enjoying all of the benefits we have and doing their part to keep the Farm going just like we are."

"Not only that, but I also help them get the things they need and deserve from the Dear Farmer, just as I'm helping you. You need me to intercede with the Dear Farmer because I understand his ways. I'm the.. community organizer for all the pigs on this farm!"

"Wait a minute Andy", asked another of pigs, an older hog named David. "I don't like this one bit. Look at what we've come to. We were told that if we came here, we'd live in the nice warm barn, get free food and nothing was going to be demanded of us except a little manure. Now it seems like things have changed. We're not in the Barn, the food's not quite what we were told and it looks like a lot more is being asked of us than just manure. I want out of this deal. I want to go back to the forest."

"I see", said Andy. "Because things aren't exactly the way you want you're willing to jeopardize the entire community for your own selfish needs. Let's say all of us abandoned the Dear Farmer the way you want to. What do you suppose would happen to the Farm? What about the piglets? You want to deprive them of food and shelter too? Remember what I said about us all needing to have some skin in the game? "

"Yeah", yelled Dinah and some of the other pigs as they glared at David "Isn't it time we thought of the piglets?"

"I could care less,” replied David. "I want out!"

Andy looked at him a second, and then said very quietly, "Fine David. If you want to put yourself ahead of the piglets and their needs, ahead of the whole Farm, that's something I guess you'll have to live with."

'How do I get out of the sty?" asked David.

Andy looked at him for a long moment. "David, its one thing for me to listen to you outrageously putting yourself ahead of every animal on the Farm. It's something else for you to expect me to help you do it. I'm fighting for the average pig, the little porker, not the greedy one per cent who don't want to give so we all can enjoy peace and plenty."

He then trotted away, listening to the other pigs applaud him and shout out his name. And as he went, Andy made a note to himself to talk to the Dear Farmer about moving David to the Smokehouse the very next day.

Tony Blankley RIP

2012-01-08T13:21:00.000-08:00

Ace columnist, op-ed writer and commentator Tony Blankley made the passage last night, succumbing to a long bout with stomach cancer. He was 63.

Tony Blankley was not only a top columnist, but someone whom had seen things from the inside. He spent six years in the Reagan Administration as a speechwriter and senior policy analyst, and from 1990 to 1997 he served as press secretary and general adviser to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich during the Contract With America days.

What I always liked about his stuff was the way that he combined his sensibilities with the fervor of an articulate conservative and a naturalized American citizen.

His columns on national security issues were always a particular favorite of mine, He had an almost instinctive feel for these matters and you always came away with a fresh perspective. And he was one of a select group of people who have not only an innate understanding of American politics but the ability to communicate it.

He'll be missed.

Last Night's Debate - 'Moderator' Stephanopoulos Does His Bit For Obama

2012-01-08T11:10:00.000-08:00

Last night's debate in New Hampshire was most notable for proving once again that Republicans and especially conservative Republicans should avoid the dinosaur media like the plague.

Last night's debate was hosted by ABC, and moderated by George Stephanopoulos - ex-campaign operative, Senior Advisor on Policy and Strategy and press spin jockey for President Bill Clinton, who walked into his job with ABC as soon as he resigned from the White House.

Stephanopoulos' 'moderating' lacked even a semblance of objectivity or journalistic ethics as he fired over the top broadsides , often hypothetical ones at the GOP candidates to the point where I wouldn't be surprised if he got an early morning call from the White House beforehand. Here's a sample:

“Now, there have been questions about that calculation of 100,000 jobs. So if you could explain it a little more,” Stephanopoulos asked Romney of the former governor’s claims about jobs created by companies he has helmed. “I’ve read some analysts who look at it and say that you’re counting the jobs that were created but not counting the jobs that were taken away. Is that accurate?”

“No, it’s not accurate,” Romney bluntly responded. “It includes the net of both. I’m a good enough numbers guy to make sure I got both sides of that.”

Stephanopoulos did not cite any analysts by name.

In another line of questioning, Stephanopoulos asked Romney if he believes “that states have the right to ban contraception, or is that trumped by a constitutional right to privacy?”

Romney responded by questioning Stephanopoulos’ logic and his choice to raise a hypothetical situation that would never happen.

“You’re asking — given the fact that there’s no state that wants to do so, and I don’t know of any candidate that wants to do so — you’re asking could it constitutionally be done?” Romney asked, with a hint of incredulity.

Stephanopoulos, undeterred, pressed Romney again: “I’m asking you, do you believe that states have that right or not?”

Amid a chorus of “boos” from the audience, Romney again parried the impossible hypothetical.

“George, I don’t know whether a state has a right to ban contraception,” Romney responded. “No state wants to. I mean, the idea of you putting forward things that states might want to do that no state wants to do, and asking me whether they could do it or not, is kind of a silly thing, I think.”

Stephanopoulos also took shots at the other candidates, notably Rick Santorum and Ron Paul. And he deliberately encouraged the candidates to squabble among themselves rather than actually doing what a moderator is supposed to do, keep things on track and on topic. I'm sure that pleased the Obama campaign no end.

Oh, I hear what you're thinking...'hey,George Stephanopoulos is a human being,he has his views, you can't expect him to shut them off.'

Actually, that's exactly what I expect, from him and anyone else in the media who bills themselves as journalists and news professionals rather than commentators or opinion writers.

Tell me, when you go to work in an office, in a factory, or a business environment do you make a point of trumpeting your politics? Do you let them affect your job performance? Let's say you're Democrat plumber whose boss sends you on a job, you make a point of talking politics with the customer and modify your charges and your performance based on their ideology. How long do you think you'd stay employed?

The same thing is true in most work environments...with the exception of academia,Hollywood and the dinosaur media, where voicing conservative views can impact your employment prospects unless you're too well established and entrenched to touch.

A detached, balanced and non-biased attitude ought to be the standard in broadcast news and journalism, and it used to be, at least on the surface. Not any more. If George Stephanopoulos received any negative feedback from his employers at ABC for his performance, it was for not being more subtle about it.

That's exactly why the stocks, the readers and the audience are plummeting at the dinosaur media papers and the alphabet networks, and why the internet, talk radio and FOX, whose motto 'Fair and Balanced' is exemplified by their having Democrat Chris Wallace as their main anchor are seeing their readership and audiences surge. Since the dinosaur media's whitewash of President Obama, more and more people simply aren't drinking the Kool-ade anymore.

If I were running, I wouldn't even go near a debate like this. I think NewtGingrich had a decent idea of making these things Lincoln -Douglas style, with no moderator but a timekeeper and the candidates forced to think on their feet to counter each other's arguments. At the very least, I wouldn't go near one sponsored by the alphabet networks unless I badly needed exposure.

As for the rest of the debate, it was notable that once again, no one has really been able to lay a glove on Mitt Romney. There were a few attempts, mainly by Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, mainly focusing on Romney's changes in his positions and his time at Bain Capital, but they didn't really seem to do much damage and seemed fairly ineffectual.

The primary is Tuesday, and Romney is expected to win. It will be interesting to see how Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum end up finishing as we proceed on to South Carolina.

ADDENDUM: Hugh Hewitt notes that the execrable David Gregory did exactly the same thing that Stephanopoulos did last night in the NBC debate Gregory 'moderated' this Sunday morning.

No question in my mind now that this was coordinated from the White House. Disgraceful.

So Now, It's 'Recovery Winter'!!

2012-01-06T11:41:00.001-08:00

Remember 'recovery summer' and how that ultimately turned out? Well it's back,this time as 'recovery winter' . At least if you read the Soros media, outlets like the New York Times and other assorted Obamabot shills.

What they're jumping up and down about is a downtick in unemployment of a huge one tenth of a percent in December, from 8.6 to 8.5 and the 'robust' addition of 200,000 jobs.

I deconstructed this once before, but let's go over a few things again.

The percentages they're talking about are the the 'official' U-3 unemployment rate. It accounts only for the people who are receiving or have applied for unemployment benefits and are actively seeking work.

The more accurate stat is the U-6 rate, which government never trumpets but is a lot closer to reality. It includes the above plus people no longer actively seeking employment, people who are not covered by unemployment, like people hired as independent contractors or the owner of the small dry cleaning business or restaurant that closed its doors in your neighborhood last week or people let go with not enough quarters of employment to qualify for benefits or from part time and seasonal jobs. That rate fell too...from 15.6 to 15.4.

Adding 200,000 jobs during the holiday season is also not evidence of an uptick, since a number of seasonal jobs open up and then close afterwards in places like retail. Normally unemployment rates go down between 1 and 2%. A reduction of a tenth of a percent tells us things are actually getting worse. Retailers and others expected a skinny Christmas and gauged their hiring accordingly.

As Zero Hedge points out, there's also a distinct possibility that the Bureau of Labor Statistics is cooking the books by lowering the labor force participation rate to provide an artificially 'lower' unemployment rate.

The market isn't fooled either - the Dow is down almost 40%, although it may come back a bit if there are sell offs.

Look for a 'correction' in this horse manure next month.

ECI Ad On Ron Paul

2012-01-06T11:30:00.000-08:00

Now airing in New Hampshire...and featuring my old friend Gary Bauer, my choice for president in 2000. If only..

The Latest LATMA - Cutting Edge Israeli Satire!

2012-01-06T10:44:00.001-08:00

The Council Has Spoken!! This Week's Watcher's Council Results

2012-01-06T04:07:00.000-08:00

The Council has spoken, the votes have been cast, and the results are in for the first Watcher's Council match up of 2012, carved eternally in the akhasic records of cyberspace.

Great ideas and eternal truths never die - or as the megilla written by Ecclesiastes put it so well long ago "There is nothing new under the sun" - because human nature never changes.

This week's winning essay, The Noisy Room's 2011 – Turning Our Backs on the Gods of the Copybook Headings takes an old and very prescient poem by Rudyard Kipling, applies its lessons to our present day and turns in a real cri de coeur. Here's a slice:

Rudyard Kipling:
AS I PASS through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.

We were living in trees when they met us. They showed us each in turn
That Water would certainly wet us, as Fire would certainly burn:
But we found them lacking in Uplift, Vision and Breadth of Mind,
So we left them to teach the Gorillas while we followed the March of Mankind.

We moved as the Spirit listed. They never altered their pace,
Being neither cloud nor wind-borne like the Gods of the Market Place,
But they always caught up with our progress, and presently word would come
That a tribe had been wiped off its icefield, or the lights had gone out in Rome.

With the Hopes that our World is built on they were utterly out of touch,
They denied that the Moon was Stilton; they denied she was even Dutch;
They denied that Wishes were Horses; they denied that a Pig had Wings;
So we worshipped the Gods of the Market Who promised these beautiful things.

When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: “Stick to the Devil you know.”

On the first Feminian Sandstones we were promised the Fuller Life
(Which started by loving our neighbour and ended by loving his wife)
Till our women had no more children and the men lost reason and faith,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: “The Wages of Sin is Death.”

In the Carboniferous Epoch we were promised abundance for all,
By robbing selected Peter to pay for collective Paul;
But, though we had plenty of money, there was nothing our money could buy,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: “If you don’t work you die.”

Then the Gods of the Market tumbled, and their smooth-tongued wizards withdrew
And the hearts of the meanest were humbled and began to believe it was true
That All is not Gold that Glitters, and Two and Two make Four
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings limped up to explain it once more.

As it will be in the future, it was at the birth of Man
There are only four things certain since Social Progress began.
That the Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire,
And the burnt Fool’s bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire;

And that after this is accomplished, and the brave new world begins
When all men are paid for existing and no man must pay for his sins,
As surely as Water will wet us, as surely as Fire will burn,
The Gods of the Copybook Headings with terror and slaughter return!

*************************************************************************

Welcome to 2012… Buckle up because it will be one hell of a ride as Obama goes for broke and his mask comes off, displaying the full intent of his Marxist agenda. Interesting times indeed.

2011 was a year replete with Progressivism running wild in America and across the globe. A year that freedom slipped away and tyrants gathered collectively in gleeful anticipation of a coalescence of power, wealth and control. The year that many patriots woke up in America and realized they did not recognize their country any more.

Economics
AS I PASS through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.

The Keynesian economists blather on and on… Every channel you turn to, they proclaim that we are in a recovery, albeit slow, but, recovery nonetheless. And they actually think we are stupid enough to believe that. Elitist arrogance run amok.

Silly Marxists, we know the markets are rigged. All they do is go up and Americans know it is a lie. Gold and silver markets are being manipulated. Stocks are a bad joke. The dollar is junk. While firms such as IMF Global rip investors off, publicly and brutally, individual banks are stealing their clientele blind a few dollars at a time. Why? Because they can. The collective mentality dictates that you should steal all you can before the ship goes down for the last time. After all, what does it matter? Get it while you can, is their reasoning. Screw everyone, time to look out for numero uno. What they forget is that their actions will have a cost, just like it did in the days before the Russian empire came tumbling down and the KGB changed their clothes from chic jack booted thuggery, to sleek government de regeur.

We are trillions in debt here in the US. Forget untenable, it’s un-survivable. But our leaders keep printing money in a Weimar frenzy, declaring: “What inflation?” While Americans go to the store and weigh what they can afford to eat this week as opposed to keeping the heat on.

Regulations are strangling capitalism to death and company after company is down-sizing or folding altogether. Three years into Obama’s bleak utopia and unemployment is staggering. Don’t believe the government’s numbers – they are a lie as well. Rigged to make gullible taxpayers believe things are better than they really are. Thy story is entitled Animal Farm. How very anti-laissez-faire. Welcome to 1932 redux.

I sense Cass Sunstein chuckling sardonically behind the Marxist curtain of the EPA and other agencies stealing our land, telling us what we can and can’t buy and where we can and can’t live. Herding us into cities where we can be stacked and packed and controlled. They are engineering tenement Hell.

In our non-Council category, the winner was an old Watcher's Council favorite, Sultan Knish with The Year We Lost Afghanistan, Etc. submitted by The Political Commentator.

Here are this week’s full results.New Zeal was unable to vote this week, and was affected by the 2/3 vote penalty:

Council Winners

*First place with 3 votes! The Noisy Room – 2011 – Turning Our Backs on the Gods of the Copybook Headings

Second place *t* with 2 1/3 votes – Joshuapundit- A Bridge Too Far: CAIR Versus Bare Naked Islam

Third place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – Right Truth –Taliban to Gitmo: Bye-Bye!

Third place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – New Zeal-Communist Party Targets Veterans for Recruitment: How Will Their Skills be Used?

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – Bookworm Room-A tour de force post taking us from Google interviews, to self-esteem, to dancing men

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Razor-Israelis Stand Up to the Haredi

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – Rhymes With Right-Where Non-Discrimination Principles And Aiding Students Conflict

Fourth place *t* with 1 vote – The Mellow Jihadi-I Gotta Move to Texas

Fifth place with 2/3 vote – Simply Jews – Hugo Chavez Reflects

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – The Colossus of Rhodey – Civilization Continues to Crumble

Sixth place *t* with 1/3 vote – VA Right! – Why the Iowa Caucus Is (Almost!) Irrelevant

Non-Council Winners

First place with 3 2/3 votes! – Sultan Knish- The Year We Lost Afghanistan, Etc. submitted by The Political Commentator

Second place *t* with 2 votes – Gates Of Vienna – Driving Out The Infidel submitted by Joshuapundit

Second place *t* with 2 votes – Jon's Deep ThoughtsMilitary Intelligence is an oxymoron? I think not. submitted by Bookworm Room

Third place with 1 2/3 votes - Small Wars Journal – Thinking the Unthinkable about Napalm and Flamethrowers submitted by GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

Fourth place with 1 1/3 votes - Daily Mail/Dominic Sandbrook –The spectre of 1932: How a loss of faith in politicians and democracy could make 2012 the most frightening year in living memory submitted by The Noisy Room

Fifth place *t* with 1 vote - Confessions of a Closet Republican – <After Christmas Day Bombings Boko Haram Tells Nigerian Christians They Have 3 Days To Get Out submitted by Simply Jews

Fifth place *t* with 1 vote -Alex Knapp/Outside The Beltway – Ron Paul Versus The Fourteenth Amendmentsubmitted by The Glittering Eye

Sixth place with 2/3 vote -Wolf Howling –Obama Signs On To Silencing Criticism Of Islam submitted by Rhymes With Right

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -National Review Online –Repo Men submitted by The Razor

Seventh place *t* with 1/3 vote -Powerline –Keynes Was Right–About the Jews? submitted by The Watcher

See you next week! And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter..'cause we're cool like that!