This is AWESOME! We need more of this!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Obama: Re-Election Campaign Propped Up By Demagoguery & Misrepresentations
In the first month of his presidency, Barack Obama averred that if in three years he hadn’t alleviated the nation’s economic pain, he’d be a “one-term proposition.”
When three-quarters of Americans think the country is on the “wrong track” and even Bill Clinton calls the economy “lousy,” how then to run for a second term? Traveling Tuesday to Osawatomie, Kan., site of a famous 1910 Teddy Roosevelt speech, Obama laid out the case.
It seems that he and his policies have nothing to do with the current state of things. Sure, presidents are ordinarily held accountable for economic growth, unemployment, national indebtedness (see Obama, above). But not this time. Responsibility, you see, lies with the rich.
Or, as the philosophers of Zuccotti Park call them, the 1 percent. For Obama, these rich are the ones holding back the 99 percent. The “breathtaking greed of a few” is crushing the middle class. If only the rich paid their “fair share,” the middle class would have a chance. Otherwise, government won’t have enough funds to “invest” in education and innovation, the golden path to the sunny uplands of economic growth and opportunity.
Where to begin? A country spending twice as much per capita on education as it did in 1970 with zero effect on test scores is not underinvesting in education. It’s mis-investing. As for federally directed spending on innovation — like Solyndra? Ethanol? The preposterously subsidized, flammable Chevy Volt?
Our current economic distress is attributable to myriad causes: globalization, expensive high-tech medicine, a huge debt burden, a burst housing bubble largely driven by precisely the egalitarian impulse that Obama is promoting (government aggressively pushing “affordable housing” that turned out to be disastrously unaffordable), an aging population straining the social safety net. Yes, growing inequality is a problem throughout the Western world. But Obama’s pretense that it is the root cause of this sick economy is ridiculous.
As is his solution, that old perennial: selective abolition of the Bush tax cuts. As if all that ails us, all that keeps the economy from humming and the middle class from advancing, is a 4.6-point hike in marginal tax rates for the rich.
This, in a country $15 trillion in debt with out-of-control entitlements systematically starving every other national need. This obsession with a sock-it-to-the-rich tax hike that, at most, would have reduced this year’s deficit from $1.30 trillion to $1.22 trillion is the classic reflex of reactionary liberalism — anything to avoid addressing the underlying structural problems, which would require modernizing the totemic programs of the New Deal and Great Society.As for those structural problems, Obama has spent three years on signature policies that either ignore or aggravate them ...
Krauthammer continues:
In Kansas, Obama lamented that millions “are now forced to take their children to food banks.” You have to admire the audacity. That’s the kind of damning observation the opposition brings up when you’ve been in office three years. Yet Obama summoned it to make the case for his reelection!As entitlement-pushers and entitlement-addicts jumped on Obama's "blame-the-rich" bandwagon, surprisingly the AP came out with some damning statistics that debunked the Left's claims that the rich don't pay their "fair share" (emphasis added) --
Why? Because, you see, he bears no responsibility for the current economic distress. It’s the rich. And, like Horatius at the bridge, Obama stands with the American masses against the soulless plutocrats.
This is populism so crude that it channels not Teddy Roosevelt so much as Hugo Chávez. But with high unemployment, economic stagnation, and unprecedented deficits, what else can Obama say?
He can’t run on stewardship. He can’t run on policy. His signature initiatives — the stimulus, Obamacare, and the failed cap-and-trade — will go unmentioned in his campaign ads. Indeed, they will be the stuff of Republican ads.
What’s left? Class resentment. Got a better idea?
[Let's not forget Geithner's tax evasion problems when we read that total dodge.]FACT CHECK: Are rich taxed less than secretaries?
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama says he wants to make sure millionaires are taxed at higher rates than their secretaries. The data say they already are.
"Warren Buffett's secretary shouldn't pay a higher tax rate than Warren Buffett. There is no justification for it," Obama said as he announced his deficit-reduction plan this week. "It is wrong that in the United States of America, a teacher or a nurse or a construction worker who earns $50,000 should pay higher tax rates than somebody pulling in $50 million."
On average, the wealthiest people in America pay a lot more taxes than the middle class or the poor, according to private and government data. They pay at a higher rate, and as a group, they contribute a much larger share of the overall taxes collected by the federal government.
The 10 percent of households with the highest incomes pay more than half of all federal taxes. They pay more than 70 percent of federal income taxes, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
In his White House address on Monday, Obama called on Congress to increase taxes by $1.5 trillion as part of a 10-year deficit reduction package totaling more than $3 trillion. He proposed that Congress overhaul the tax code and impose what he called the "Buffett rule," named for the billionaire investor.
The rule says, "People making more than $1 million a year should not pay a smaller share of their income in taxes than middle-class families pay." Buffett wrote in a recent piece for The New York Times that the tax rate he paid last year was lower than that paid by any of the other 20 people in his office.
"Middle-class families shouldn't pay higher taxes than millionaires and billionaires," Obama said. "That's pretty straightforward. It's hard to argue against that."
There may be individual millionaires who pay taxes at rates lower than middle-income workers. In 2009, 1,470 households filed tax returns with incomes above $1 million yet paid no federal income tax, according to the Internal Revenue Service. But that's less than 1 percent of the nearly 237,000 returns with incomes above $1 million.
This year, households making more than $1 million will pay an average of 29.1 percent of their income in federal taxes, including income taxes, payroll taxes and other taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank.
Households making between $50,000 and $75,000 will pay an average of 15 percent of their income in federal taxes.
Lower-income households will pay less. For example, households making between $40,000 and $50,000 will pay an average of 12.5 percent of their income in federal taxes. Households making between $20,000 and $30,000 will pay 5.7 percent.
The latest IRS figures are a few years older _ and limited to federal income taxes _ but show much the same thing. In 2009, taxpayers who made $1 million or more paid on average 24.4 percent of their income in federal income taxes, according to the IRS.
Those making $100,000 to $125,000 paid on average 9.9 percent in federal income taxes. Those making $50,000 to $60,000 paid an average of 6.3 percent.
Obama's claim hinges on the fact that, for high-income families and individuals, investment income is often taxed at a lower rate than wages. The top tax rate for dividends and capital gains is 15 percent. The top marginal tax rate for wages is 35 percent, though that is reserved for taxable income above $379,150.
With tax rates that high, why do so many people pay at lower rates? Because the tax code is riddled with more than $1 trillion in deductions, exemptions and credits, and they benefit people at every income level, according to data from the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation, Congress' official scorekeeper on revenue issues.
The Tax Policy Center estimates that 46 percent of households, mostly low- and medium-income households, will pay no federal income taxes this year. Most, however, will pay other taxes, including Social Security payroll taxes.
"People who are doing quite well and worry about low-income people not paying any taxes bemoan the fact that they get so many tax breaks that they are zeroed out," said Roberton Williams, a senior fellow at the Tax Policy Center. "People at the bottom of the distribution say, `But all of those rich guys are getting bigger tax breaks than we're getting,' which is also the case."
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was pressed at a White House briefing on the number of millionaires who pay taxes at a lower rate than middle-income families. He demurred, saying that people who make most of their money in wages pay taxes at a higher rate, while those who get most of their income from investments pay at lower rates.
"So it really depends on what is your profession, where's the source of your income, what's the specific circumstances you face, and the averages won't really capture that," Geithner said.
And, here's some clips of Dear Leader on the campaign trail rollin' out the "Hate-The-Rich" rhetoric:
2001: redistributive change
Revenue debates: "additional income that I don't need"
But, to end on a brighter note ... Go, Maggie!!
Quote of the Day: Socialism
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.”Sounds an awful lot like the demagoguery in which Dear Leader frequently engages ... and a lot like the lack of maturity and the disconnect from reality that plagues the far Left and its current manifestation among the OWS protesters.
- Winston Churchill
Battle Saints Bracelets
What a terrific story I found on KSDK's website via CNN --
CNN - A simple bracelet is providing a source of strength and support for men and women fighting for our country.
A solemn march, a loud ovation and a last goodbye for these deploying troops; the Atlanta airport is the final stop on their way to war. That's also where you'll find military moms like Cynthia Lemay.
Lemay knows the pain of deployment all too well.
"Our son is in Afghanistan. My nephew just got back from his third tour. We have several other family members over there," she said.
While she can't be on the front lines, protecting her son, she can ask for a little help from above.
"We put together these saints bracelets. My son has been wearing it since he went over and he's been in several fire fights and attacks," Lemay said.
Lemay calls them the 'Battle Saint Bracelet.' They're made up of 12 to 16 different saints, each with a unique military connection.
"They have different saints on them, including St. Christopher to protect you when you travel, and St. Barbara to protect you if you work...that have very specific meaning to the military and offers them specific protection," she said.
Lemay started the program as a way to feel connected and show support for the troops overseas. Now, the small memento has spread to Hollywood and beyond.
You'll find them on the wrists of celebrities like Zac Brown and the cast from Band of Brothers. And now you can get them online too.
"When you have a loved one in harm's way, not a moment goes by where you don't think of them," Lemay said. "So we wear these every day and think of our loved ones and all the other service men and women who make so many sacrifices every day."
This shopping and holiday season take a moment to think about the men and women spending their holiday in harm's way. And while you're picking up that new gift for a loved one remember the troops and put the saints on their side.
Military mom designs 'Battle Saint Bracelets' for troops in harm's way
CNN - A simple bracelet is providing a source of strength and support for men and women fighting for our country.
A solemn march, a loud ovation and a last goodbye for these deploying troops; the Atlanta airport is the final stop on their way to war. That's also where you'll find military moms like Cynthia Lemay.
Lemay knows the pain of deployment all too well.
"Our son is in Afghanistan. My nephew just got back from his third tour. We have several other family members over there," she said.
While she can't be on the front lines, protecting her son, she can ask for a little help from above.
"We put together these saints bracelets. My son has been wearing it since he went over and he's been in several fire fights and attacks," Lemay said.
Lemay calls them the 'Battle Saint Bracelet.' They're made up of 12 to 16 different saints, each with a unique military connection.
"They have different saints on them, including St. Christopher to protect you when you travel, and St. Barbara to protect you if you work...that have very specific meaning to the military and offers them specific protection," she said.
Lemay started the program as a way to feel connected and show support for the troops overseas. Now, the small memento has spread to Hollywood and beyond.
You'll find them on the wrists of celebrities like Zac Brown and the cast from Band of Brothers. And now you can get them online too.
"When you have a loved one in harm's way, not a moment goes by where you don't think of them," Lemay said. "So we wear these every day and think of our loved ones and all the other service men and women who make so many sacrifices every day."
This shopping and holiday season take a moment to think about the men and women spending their holiday in harm's way. And while you're picking up that new gift for a loved one remember the troops and put the saints on their side.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Class Warfare: A Simple Explanation
The folks who are getting the free stuff don't like the folks who are paying for the free stuff, because the folks who are paying for the free stuff can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff ...
And, the folks who are paying for the free stuff want the free stuff to stop, and the the folks who are getting the free stuff want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!
Now ... The people who are forcing the people who pay for the free stuff have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff that the people who are PAYING for the free stuff are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.
So... the people who are GETTING the free stuff have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff by the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff and giving them the free stuff in the first place.
We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff.
Now understand this. All great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded. The reason? The voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.
The United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 231 years ago. The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff. We have one chance to change that in 2012.
Failure to change that spells the end of the United States as we know it.
Write Me Out of Your Will
Well, she didn't put it quite like that. She actually said ... "Dad I have decided to work for Obama's reelection campaign."
The Ant & the Grasshopper: The 2012 Version
What a gem my friend R sent me! Thanks! Be sure to send this on to your fellow "ants" ... and some "grasshoppers" who naively think OWS is kewl.
OLD VERSION:
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE OLD STORY: Be responsible for yourself!
MODERN VERSION:
The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
The ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER
This one is a little different ...... Two Different Versions .....
Two Different Morals
This one is a little different ...... Two Different Versions .....
Two Different Morals
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE OLD STORY: Be responsible for yourself!
MODERN VERSION:
The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
America is stunned by the sharp contrast.
How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green..'
ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, We shall overcome.
Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray for the grasshopper's sake.
President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight.
Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share.
Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act
retroactive to the beginning of the summer.
The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper.
The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant's food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it.
The ant has disappeared in the snow,
never to be seen again.
The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize and ramshackle, the once prosperous and peaceful, neighborhood.
The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2012
I've sent this to you because I believe that you are an ant!
You may wish to pass this on to other ants, but don't bother sending it on to any grasshopper's because they wouldn't understand it, anyway.
How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green..'
ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, We shall overcome.
Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray for the grasshopper's sake.
President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight.
Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share.
Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act
retroactive to the beginning of the summer.
The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper.
The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant's food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it.
The ant has disappeared in the snow,
never to be seen again.
The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize and ramshackle, the once prosperous and peaceful, neighborhood.
The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2012
I've sent this to you because I believe that you are an ant!
You may wish to pass this on to other ants, but don't bother sending it on to any grasshopper's because they wouldn't understand it, anyway.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
2012 Election Blues: Heartbreak, Scandal and ... CONSPIRACY?!?
I do like Romney. Hell, now I'm starting to understand the Left's mentality during the last election with their feeling of "anybody but Bush." Well, I feel that way about Obama -- ANYbody, short of Stalin, would be better than Obama. Hell, I'd even vote for Clinton again! At least Clinton was a leader. Obama has proven himself time and again that he lacks leadership, a spine, and balls. What an utter disappointment, and, if his Liberal supporters didn't throw in the towel last summer with his slipshod mishandling of the BP oil spill, they surely must be angry at the ridiculous con game he thinks he's pulling over us -- "Oh, here, let me come up with some solutions for our budget crisis" or "Here, let me put together a Super Committee to make decisions about budget cuts."
Quite frankly, I am still in mourning that Chris Christie decided not to throw his hat in the ring. My sorrow was renewed when I read Christie's succinct analysis of Obama's recent budget debacle, describing Obama as being just a "bystander." This from Politico (emphasis added):
Gov. Chris Christie on Monday tore into President Barack Obama in the aftermath of thesupercommittee’s failure to reach an agreement on debt reduction last week, asking the president, “What the hell are we paying you for?”
Calling Obama “a bystander in the Oval Office,” the outspoken New Jersey governor said the White House spent the weekend tossing out a whole lot of “spin” about the supercommittee’s inability to come to an agreement before the Nov. 23 deadline.
“I was angry this weekend, listening to the spin coming out of the administration, about the failure of the supercommittee, and that the president knew it was doomed for failure, so he didn’t get involved. Well then what the hell are we paying you for?” Christie said during a press conference in Camden, N.J. “It’s doomed for failure so I’m not getting involved? Well, what have you been doing, exactly?”Even though he said both parties deserve blame for talking at each other instead of talking with each other, Christie ultimately maintained that the buck stops with the nation’s highest in command and pointed to his own governance in the Garden State as a model for effective leadership.
“In New Jersey, the reason [problems got solved] is because I called people into the room and said we’re going to solve this problem and I had people of good will on the other side who said they believed it was their obligation, regardless of party, to get done things like pension and benefit reform,” the governor said, adding, “Why the president of the United States refuses to do this is astonishing to me.”
If Obama doesn’t get his act together, he may as well go back to the Senate, Christie suggested.
“If he wanted to run for Senate again and just be 1 of a 100, I’m sure he could have gotten reelected over and over again in Illinois,” he said. “He’s the one in Washington and he’s got to get something done here. And it’s not good enough just to say, ‘Well, I’ll get it done after the election.’”
Could someone please wave a magic wand and make Christie magically appear in the GOP pool? He surely would skyrocket to the top of the chart and win the nomination.
But, alas! -- 'tis but a fruitless wish! The pool as it stands, in my humble and woefully inexperienced opinion? Here you will see the source of malaise --
- Romney, yes I would vote for him, although he has been too much of a flip-flopper on too many issues; but, he could handily take on Obama and, with him being a flip-flopper, he might be seen as more of a centrist and, therefore, more likely to draw some of Obama's disgruntled supporters;
- Cain: like him, the ongoing allegations are going to torpedo his chances (I wonder who's behind those ... it seems a lot of his accusers have questionable backgrounds and track records ... the current accuser, Ginger White, being a prime example); don't really think he's presidential material ... but I would still vote for him over Obama, knowing that Cain has leadership skill (and Obama was far from presidential material);
- Gingrich: hate his marital record, he also seems to be a flip-flopper; but, MAN! the guy is brilliant; I love how he blows away the debate moderators/ass clowns; maybe he's a big enough of a shit to get the job done (I think he would definitely show far more leadership than Obama could even begin to picture);
- Santorum: good guy, intelligent, good debater, could do the job; but, the press has blocked him out (as usual, the press is want to choose our candidates for us ...)
- Bachman: press has ridiculed her from the git-go; someone used the expression the other day (sorry, I forget who) about the press pulling out the Sarah Palin playbook on Perry ... I think the MSM did the same with Bachman; she has come off too robotic for me -- sounding a bit too much like slogans she regurgitates; great background ... she'd get my vote, but the press has blacklisted her;
- Paul: BWAAH - hahahahahahhahha! He sounds like he could unexpectedly suffer a psychotic snap and push "the button"; his ideas of foreign policy are too isolationist and evince a serious lack of international awareness or concern; his lack of support for our military makes him a big, fat zero in my book;
- Perry: as mentioned earlier with Bachman, the press pulled out the Sarah Palin playbook on him and did a major hatchet job ... but, Perry also shot himself in the foot at some of the debates; I do love how his ads call Obama's policies for what they are -- socialist ... and I would still vote for him over Obama!
- Huntsman: Why do I want to take a bath after hearing this guy talk? And ever since it was announced in January that Huntsman resigned his position as ambassador to China, MSNBCs "Morning Joe" has been pumping out the PR for Huntsman like nobody's business! I clearly remember hearing one morning Mika piping up with "Love him!" in another one of her incisive analyses ... not! (Go here for my review of "Morning Joe.") Again, I would vote for him over Obama. Huntsman has way more experience and fortitude than Obama The Spineless Wonder.
Speaking of Morning Joe, this morning's show had the cast really knuckling down on getting out the word for Huntsman, pointing out that Huntsman is the true conservative. The gang was in hot counterattack mode against the recent endorsements Gingrich has received. (Here is Scarborough's op-ed piece, or "test", about the GOP candidates: "Who is the real RINO?") Scarborough does make some interesting observations about the candidate field, making the case for Huntsman being the true conservative compared to Romney and Gingrich ... some good food for thought ...
I just think it a tad odd how hard Morning Joe has been promoting Huntsman ...
Here goes ... What if MSNBC and Scarborough's minions are actually pumping in loads publicity and financial support to Huntman's campaign, having received some sort of promise in return ... let's say ... GOT IT! Huntsman gets the nomination and asks Scarborough to be his running mate!
AAAANNNDDDD!!! Meanwhile, Huntsman is actually the one behind all those women making accusations against Cain in an attempt to bump Cain out of the running. Also, Huntsman might even be funding the media leeches to dig up trash on the other candidates in order to up his chances for the nomination. Huntsman is the U.S.'s billionaire number 486, according to Forbes. He's got the bucks ...
... and I would still vote for him over Obama ... even if Joe Scarborough were his running mate!
Monday, November 28, 2011
Christmas Shopping: A New Angle for a Weak Economy
As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high
gear to provide North American with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods -- merchandise that has been produced at the expense of Canadian/American labor.
gear to provide North American with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods -- merchandise that has been produced at the expense of Canadian/American labor.
This year will be different. This year North Americans will give the gift of genuine concern for others. There is no longer an excuse that, at gift giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands.
Yes there is!
It's time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?
Everyone -- yes EVERYONE gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates from your local hair salon or barber?
Gym membership? It's appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some health improvement.
Who wouldn't appreciate getting their car detailed? Small, locally owned detail shops and car washes would love to sell you a gift certificate or a book of gift certificates.
Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plonking down the $$$$ on a Chinese made flat-screen? Perhaps that grateful gift receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, or driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.
There are a bazillion owner-run restaurants -- all offering gift certificates. And, if your intended isn't the fancy eatery sort, what about a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint.
Remember, folks this isn't about big National chains -- this is about supporting your home town
businesses with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open. How many people couldn't use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?
businesses with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open. How many people couldn't use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?
Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? Mom would LOVE the services of a local cleaning lady for a day.
My computer could use a tune-up, and I KNOW I can find some young guy who is struggling to get his repair business up and running.
OK, you were looking for something more personal. Local crafts people spin their own wool and knit them into scarves. They make jewelry, and pottery and beautiful wooden boxes.
Plan your holiday outings at local, owner operated restaurants and leave your server a nice tip. And, how about going out to see a play or ballet at your hometown theatre.
Musicians and Stand Up Comedians need love too, so find a venue showcasing local talent!
Honestly, people, do you REALLY need to buy another ten thousand Chinese lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of lights, about fifty cents stays in the community. If you have those kinds of bucks to burn, leave the mailman, trash guy or babysitter a nice BIG tip.
You see, Christmas is no longer about draining North America's pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about us, encouraging small businesses to keep plugging away to follow their dreams. And, when we care about our neighbours, we care about our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn't imagine. THIS is the new Christmas tradition.
Forward this to everyone on your mailing list -- post it to discussion groups -- throw up a post on Craigslist in the Rants and Raves section in your city -- send it to the editor of your local paper and radio stations, and TV news departments.
You see, Christmas is no longer about draining North America's pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about us, encouraging small businesses to keep plugging away to follow their dreams. And, when we care about our neighbours, we care about our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn't imagine. THIS is the new Christmas tradition.
Forward this to everyone on your mailing list -- post it to discussion groups -- throw up a post on Craigslist in the Rants and Raves section in your city -- send it to the editor of your local paper and radio stations, and TV news departments.
This is a revolution of caring about each other, and isn't that what Christmas is about? Live simply. Love generously. Be kind. Care deeply. Speak kindly. In God we trust.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
ClimateGate 2 Scandal Continues to Heat Up: BBC in Cahoots
BBC sought advice from global warming scientists on economy, drama, music... and even game shows
By David RoseLast updated at 12:29 AM on 27th November 2011
[loads more good reading if you go to the original article!]
McCaskill Challenges Obama Admin over Sole-Source Vaccine Contract
McCaskill asks for investigation into Obama administration’s sole-source vaccine contract
Britain Prepares for Collapse of the Euro
This is some very somber and sobering news from the UK's The Telegraph (via The Gateway Pundit) -- emphasis added:
Prepare for riots in euro collapse, Foreign Office warns
British embassies in the eurozone have been told to draw up plans to help British expats through the collapse of the single currency, amid new fears for Italy and Spain.
The Treasury confirmed earlier this month that contingency planning for a collapse is now under wayPhoto: BLOOMBERG
10:00PM GMT 25 Nov 2011
As the Italian government struggled to borrow and Spain considered seeking an international bail-out, British ministers privately warned that the break-up of the euro, once almost unthinkable, is now increasingly plausible.
Diplomats are preparing to help Britons abroad through a banking collapse and even riots arising from the debt crisis.
The Treasury confirmed earlier this month that contingency planning for a collapse is now under way.A senior minister has now revealed the extent of the Government’s concern, saying that Britain is now planning on the basis that a euro collapse is now just a matter of time.
“It’s in our interests that they keep playing for time because that gives us more time to prepare,” the minister told the Daily Telegraph.Recent Foreign and Commonwealth Office instructions to embassies and consulates request contingency planning for extreme scenarios including rioting and social unrest.
Greece has seen several outbreaks of civil disorder as its government struggles with its huge debts. British officials think similar scenes cannot be ruled out in other nations if the euro collapses.
Diplomats have also been told to prepare to help tens of thousands of British citizens in eurozone countries with the consequences of a financial collapse that would leave them unable to access bank accounts or even withdraw cash.
Fuelling the fears of financial markets for the euro, reports in Madrid yesterday suggested that the new Popular Party government could seek a bail-out from either the European Union rescue fund or the International Monetary Fund.
There are also growing fears for Italy, whose new government was forced to pay record interest rates on new bonds issued yesterday.
...
The Italian government yesterday said that in talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Prime Minister Mario Monti had agreed that an Italian collapse “would inevitably be the end of the euro.”
The EU treaties that created the euro and set its membership rules contain no provision for members to leave, meaning any break-up would be disorderly and potentially chaotic.
If eurozone governments defaulted on their debts, the European banks that hold many of their bonds would risk collapse.
Some analysts say the shock waves of such an event would risk the collapse of the entire financial system, leaving banks unable to return money to retail depositors and destroying companies dependent on bank credit.
The Financial Services Authority this week issued a public warning to British banks to bolster their contingency plans for the break-up of the single currency.
Some economists believe that at worst, the outright collapse of the euro could reduce GDP in its member-states by up to half and trigger mass unemployment.
...
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Press Goes Viral with Erroneous Story About Melting Greenland
Sorry I am so slow in posting this ... it's from September. But, it's another example of how the media will go viral with an erroneous report with no retraction getting as much press as the error. Sadly, the error was caught, of course, by that evil global-warming denying bastion known as FoxNews (emphasis added):
Times Atlas Apologizes for Global-Warming Error
Climate-gate, Himalaya-gate, and now … Atlas-gate?
Publishers of the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World scrambled Tuesday to correct a controversial statement that Greenland had lost 15 percent of its permanent ice cover over the last 12 years -- an assertion scientists labeled "incorrect and misleading."
The latest "Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World" shows Greenland with 15 percent less ice cover between 1999 (left) and 2011 (right).
The claim came in a HarperCollins press release on the publication of the 13th edition of the atlas, stating that global warming was "turning Greenland 'green.'" The gradual melting was also depicted in the atlas itself, as cartographers carved out huge chunks of ice to reflect the apparent results of a warming planet.
Revisionist History: Wayne Perryman Sets The Record Straight
I caught this great video clip over at Bob Park's site Black and Right:
MRCTVOne's caption: "Rev. Wayne Perryman spoke about the revised history in our nation, where the truth is politically incorrect and where the race card is played without shame."
Perryman has a book for sale that I think I might have to check into:
Why are most blacks in America Democrats?
On the issue of slavery, the Democrats literally gave their lives to expand it; the Republicans gave their lives to ban it.Many believed the Democrats had a change of heart and fell in love with blacks. To the contrary, history reveals the democrats didn't fall in love with black folks, they fell in love with the black vote knowing this would be their ticket into the white house.
Perryman's website looks like a keeper! There are some other great videoclips to watch.
MRCTVOne's caption: "Rev. Wayne Perryman spoke about the revised history in our nation, where the truth is politically incorrect and where the race card is played without shame."
Perryman has a book for sale that I think I might have to check into:
You will have to answer that question yourself. After reading this book, you will understand that:
for over 150 years, blacks were victims of terrorist attacks by the Democrats and their Klan supporters, including lynching, beating, rapes and mutilations
for over 150 years, blacks were victims of terrorist attacks by the Democrats and their Klan supporters, including lynching, beating, rapes and mutilationsOn the issue of slavery, the Democrats literally gave their lives to expand it; the Republicans gave their lives to ban it.Many believed the Democrats had a change of heart and fell in love with blacks. To the contrary, history reveals the democrats didn't fall in love with black folks, they fell in love with the black vote knowing this would be their ticket into the white house.Perryman's website looks like a keeper! There are some other great videoclips to watch.
ClimateGate 2: It Hits the Fan Again
This month; however, Scandal has once again reared its ugly head with regard to global warming. It appears that there is a "Part Deux" to ClimateGate from two year ago. First, this headline on Nov. 22nd from James Delingpole of the UK's The Telegraph (emphasis added):
A few days later, the UK's The Daily Mail offered more information:Uh oh, global warming loons: here comes Climategate II!
Breaking news: two years after the Climategate, a further batch of emails has been leaked onto the internet by a person – or persons – unknown. And as before, they show the "scientists" at the heart of the Man-Made Global Warming industry in a most unflattering light. Michael Mann, Phil Jones, Ben Santer, Tom Wigley, Kevin Trenberth, Keith Briffa – all your favourite Climategate characters are here, once again caught red-handed in a series of emails exaggerating the extent of Anthropogenic Global Warming, while privately admitting to one another that the evidence is nowhere near as a strong as they'd like it to be.
In other words, what these emails confirm is that the great man-made global warming scare is not about science but about political activism. This, it seems, is what motivated the whistleblower 'FOIA 2011' (or "thief", as the usual suspects at RealClimate will no doubt prefer to tar him or her) to go public.
Second leak of climate emails: Political giants weigh in on bias, scientists bowing to financial pressure from sponsorsThe Daily Mail also linked to a related article about the exaggeration of doomsday predictions:
More than 5,000 documents have been leaked online purporting to be the correspondence of climate scientists at the University of East Anglia who were previously accused of ‘massaging’ evidence of man-made climate change.
Following on from the original 'climategate' emails of 2009, the new package appears to show systematic suppression of evidence, and even publication of reports that scientists knew to to be based on flawed approaches.
And not only do the emails paint a picture of scientists manipulating data, government employees at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are also implicated.
One message appeared to show a member of Defra staff telling colleagues working on climate science to give the government a ‘strong message’.
The emails paint a clear picture of scientists selectively using data, and colluding with politicians to misuse scientific information.
‘Humphrey’, said to work at Defra, writes: ‘I cannot overstate the HUGE amount of political interest in the project as a message that the government can give on climate change to help them tell their story. 'They want their story to be a very strong one and don’t want to be made to look foolish.’
Climate change fears 'have been exaggerated' and doomsday predictions are overestimates, scientists say
Apocalyptic predictions about climate change are likely to be wrong, a study says. Dire forecasts by activists who say that carbon dioxide levels will 'double' and cause temperature rises of 10C are 'unlikely'. Instead, the maximum increase is likely to be 2.6C.
Writing in the journal Science, Andreas Schmittner of Oregon State University said he and colleagues studied how changes in carbon dioxide levels during the last ice age affected temperature. It shows that figures used routinely by pressure groups are simply wrong.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
![President Suit, Savior of the World](/%3Ca%20href="http://patrioticmobster.wordpress.com"%3E%3Cimg%20src="http://patrioticmobster.wordpress.com/files/2009/10/suit-banner-01.jpg"%3E%3C/a%3E){kind=small}
