Posts
[Add 'Grain-of-Salt' Here]
Hell To Pay? Payback Time? A Threat?
From the
Desk of:
Mat StaverM.,
Conservative blogs are literally on fire over alleged comments made by Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to President Obama and one of his closest friends, who was recently addressing other Obama senior staffers…
“After we win this election, it’s our turn. Payback time. Everyone not with us is against us and they better be ready because we don’t forget. The ones who helped us will be rewarded, the ones who opposed us will get what they deserve.”
Jarrett, who is considered the single-most influential person in Obama’s White House, says of her relationship with the President that the two think alike. [....]
http://maylattanzio.blogspot.com/2012/11/look-at-this-shit-from-valerie-jarrett.html
The Absolute Best Way To Profit From Emerging Markets
by David Sterman,
townhall.com
October 31, 2012
Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released its biannual assessment of the global economy and there were few surprises. The IMF's economists continue to focus on the deep troubles in Europe, the clear headwinds in place for the U.S. economy and the still-impressive resilience of many emerging market economies. So they updated their economic forecasts to reflect these recent global economic trends: "Relative to our April 2012 forecasts, our forecasts for 2013 growth have been revised from 2.0 percent down to 1.5 percent for advanced economies, and from 6 percent down to 5.6 percent for emerging market and developing economies."
Of course, 5.6% economic growth would be very welcome on our shores. To put that in context, [....]
http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/davidsterman/2012/10/31/the_absolute_best_way_to_profit_from_emerging_markets/page/full/
Maybe They're Just That Dumb
by John Ransom,
townhall.com
October 31, 2012
Being president was always easy for Barack Obama.
But delivering on the big words has been considerably tougher.
Obama’s big troubles stem from the rigidity of the left’s broken ideas. They admit of no compromise. Consequently, Obama has subsumed his whole personality into an unworkable progressive ideology that was dead outside of academia- and news rooms- until he resurrected it.
It’s the idea that a benign government of technocrats and academics can engineer near perfect justice at the trivial cost in liberty and money to us.
Yes; maybe they just are that dumb to think it could work.
What could be fairer? [....]
http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/johnransom/2012/10/31/maybe_theyre_just_that_dumb/page/full/
A Detailed Look At obama's Radical College Past.... Not Barry's!
by Charles Johnson,
theblaze.com
October 30, 2012
Princeton, 1984.
Michelle Obama attends and promotes a “Black Solidarity” event for guest lecturer Manning Marable, who was, according to Cornel West, probably “the best known black Marxist in the country.” The event is the work of the Third World Center (TWC), a campus group whose board membership is exclusively reserved for minorities.
[Illustration]
Michelle Obama (Robinson at the time) was one of those 19 board members and a leader of the organization. She helped to dispense what was, in today’s dollars, a $30,000 budget. Of the 19 elected positions on the board, there were two reserved spots for each of the five ethnic groups TWC purported to represent: Asian, Black, Chicano, Puerto Rican, and Native American.
[Illustration]
The board also had representatives from the various minority organizations on campus, including Accion Puertorriquena y Amigos, the Asian-American Students Association, the Black Graduate Caucus, and the Chicano Caucus, among others. She also fundraised for the TWC by participating in its African-themed fashion show and fundraisers (see picture here). It was a controversial and racially-charged organization. And in looking at the group’s racial focus before and during Michelle’s tenure, we get a glimpse of her priorities while at Princeton.
[Several Illustrations]
[....]
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/a-detailed-look-at-obamas-radical-college-past-and-were-not-talking-about-barack/
obama's Layoff Bomb
by Michelle Malkin,
townhall.com
October 31, 2012
In June, a diffident and self-deluded President Obama claimed that "the private sector is doing fine." Last week, the private sector responded: Speak for yourself, buster. Who needs an "October Surprise" when the business headlines are broadcasting the imminent layoff bomb in neon lights?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported last Tuesday that employers issued 1,316 "mass layoff actions" (affecting 50 workers or more) in September; more than 122,000 workers were affected overall. USA Today financial reporter Matt Krantz wrote that "(m)uch of the recent layoff activity is connected to what's been the slowest period of earnings growth since the third quarter of 2009." Some necessary restructuring is underway in response to the stagnant European economy. But more and more U.S. businesses are putting the blame -- bravely and squarely -- right where it belongs: on the obstructionist policies and regulatory schemes of the blame-shifter-in-chief.
Last week, Ohio-based auto parts manufacturer Dana Holding Corp. warned employees of potential layoffs amid "looming concern" about the economy. President and CEO Roger Wood specifically mentioned the walloping burden of "increasing taxes on small businesses" and the need to "offset increased costs that are placed on us through new laws and regulations."
Case in point: Obamacare. The mandate will cost Dana Holding Corp., which employs some 24,500 workers, "approximately $24 million over the next six years in additional U.S. health care expenses." As Ohio Watchdog blogger Maggie Thurber reported, the firm's Toledo area corporate offices laid off seven white-collar employees last Friday; company insiders told her more were on the way. They are not alone.
On Tuesday, Consol Energy issued a federally mandated layoff disclosure announcing its "intent to idle its Miller Creek surface operations near Naugatuck, W.Va." The move will affect the [....]
http://townhall.com/columnists/michellemalkin/2012/10/31/obamas_layoff_bomb/page/full/
Could Military Voting Turnout Win Colorado For Romney?
by Hope Hodge,
humanevents.com
October 30, 2012
While a number of battleground states have reported dismal numbers of military absentee ballot requests in early counts, the western swing state of Colorado announced Monday that its ballot request totals for military and overseas absentee voters have already surpassed 2008 totals, with eight days to go until the election.
After low recorded voter turnout in these demographics four years ago, Congress authorized $75 million for the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act, which, among other provisions, established and staffed voting assistance offices at over 220 military bases. But early ballot request totals in a number of states showed an even more depressed military voting turnout than in 2008, and a bombshell report at the end of August from the Department of Defense Inspector General found [....]
http://www.humanevents.com/2012/10/30/hodge-could-military-voting-turnout-win-colorado-for-romney/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Heritage%2BHotsheet
5 Ways Next Week's Election Results Can Affect Your Retirement
[written by TheStreet Guest Contributor]
by Matthew Malone,
thestreet.com
October 31, 2012
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Between all the debating, advertising and robocalls, it can be difficult to focus on the many everyday parts of life that will be affected by a Romney presidency or Obama re-election. When it comes to finances, for most of us "Big Bird" and "big government" are less important than the things, big and small, that will influence the way we spend and save.
Retirement planning, of course, is among the most important elements of a sound financial plan, so it's critical to understand how the incoming administration's policies will make that more or less secure.
Here are the five most important ways the election can make our golden years more -- or less -- so.1. Taxes
Tax policy is among the most uncertain outcome to the election. Democratic President Barack Obama hopes to keep the Bush-era tax cuts intact from all but the nation's top earners and raise revenue by closing loopholes. Republican challenger Mitt Romney wants to keep all the cuts intact but reduce deductions and loopholes to raise overall tax revenue. The good news: Neither candidate's plans are likely to affect the ability to deduct traditional IRA contributions from your taxes (Roth IRAs are funded with "after-tax" money). The candidates have generally [....]
http://business-news.thestreet.com/eveningtribune/story/5-ways-next-weeks-election-results-can-affect-your-retirement/11751915
obama And biden Indicted By Florida Grand Jury
by 'George M.,'
westernjournalism.com
October 31, 2012
(Ocala, Florida, October 30, 2012). Larry Klayman, the founder and chairman of Freedom Watch today announced that President Barack Obama and Vice President Joseph Biden have been criminally indicted for having willfully released classified national security information concerning the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, U.S. and Israeli war plans concerning Iran and their cyber-attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. The release of this information, among other harm to U.S. national security, resulted in the killing of members of Seal Team Six by terrorists and the arrest and imprisonment of American covert agents by Pakistan, such as the doctor who aided the CIA with regard to the bin Laden assassination. U.S.-Israeli war plans with Iran have also been compromised.
A true bill of indictment was issued [....]
SUV Gets Stuck On Border Fence During Botched Smuggling Attempt
by Chris McDaniel,
yumasun.com
October 31, 2012
http://www.yumasun.com/articles/border-82831-agents-fence.html#ixzz2B3VT92oE
obama Attacks Americans' Civil Liberties
by Jerry Philipson,
canadafreepress.com
October 31, 2012
Warrantless eavesdropping on Americans by federal government agencies has significantly expanded during President Obama’s time in office. The American Civil liberties Union has reported that there has been a dramatic increase in warrantless electronic surveillance under Obama and that between 2009 and 2011 the number of Americans who were subjected to telephone wiretapping more than doubled. During the same time period there was a 361 per cent increase in authorizations by the Justice Department for e-mail surveillance on Americans. There were 1.3 million demands on mobile telephone companies for information on their subscribers in 2011.
The problem has become so acute and the threat to Americans’ civil liberties by Obama and his administration so serious that a group of human rights organizations, attorneys and [....]
http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/50701
The 'Innocence' Of obama
by Daniel Greenfield,
frontpagemag.com
October 30, 2012
Ten years ago most left-thinking liberals were constantly worried about the erosion of civil liberties under the War on Terror, though they could rarely name an instance where an American citizen had actually experienced such an erosion.
This was, after all, before the days when naked scanners and drone strikes had entered the vocabulary, and the best they could do was to haul out Jose Padilla, aka Abdullah al-Muhajir, ACLU’s choirboy of the month, a Brooklyn-born convert to Islam who was being held in jail for no reason at all except aiding terrorists and plotting to build a dirty bomb.
Ten years later the lefty civil liberties types were proven right. The War on Terror did erode our civil liberties, and America’s first political prisoner in generations has spent a month in jail for making an inconvenient movie at an inconvenient time.
When Charles Woods, the father of Tyrone Woods, one of the Navy SEALS who died fighting in Benghazi, met with Hillary Clinton, the Secretary of State assured him that “We’re going to have that person arrested and prosecuted that did the video.” And they got him, officially on charges of violating parole, unofficially on charges of violently offending violent Muslims.
The woman whose policy had [....]
http://frontpagemag.com/2012/dgreenfield/the-innocence-of-obama-2/
"Would I Want This Man In Combat With Me?"
by MajGen Patrick Brady (U.S. Army-Ret.),
alineofsight.com
October 31, 2012
[Maj. Gen. Patrick Brady, retired from the U.S. Army, is a recipient of the United States military’s highest decoration, the Medal of Honor. Get the full account of Gen. Brady’s Vietnam rescue operations in his book, “Dead Men Flying,” a riveting tale from America’s most decorated living soldier.]
In an election climate that reeks of economic chaos, we may be overlooking a greater threat to our future. Economically, President Obama, all by himself, is a target-rich environment. Voters just need to ask a few simple questions. Would I want this man to invest my family funds or run my family business – for another four years? Or, would I trust my family’s money to Mitt Romney? That should do it – but economics pales in the face of Obama’s emasculation, socialization and feminization of our military, which, although related, I believe is a greater threat to our future than economic miseries.
For veterans and those interested in the security of America, the question is: Would I want this man with me in combat? Could he be trusted to lead a military squad let alone be commander in chief? Can you picture Obama in a duck blind – or even holding a gun? Has he ever held a gun? (Be assured he will assault the Second Amendment if he gets a second term.) Can you see him as a fighter pilot a la the Bushes? Or commanding a PT boat as did John Kennedy? This is not a man I would want with me in combat and neither should America.
For me and many veterans, President Obama’s military priority was initially evident at his Inauguration. One of the inaugural balls honors veterans, including Medal of Honor recipients. For the first time in memory a president, Obama, snubbed that ball. His ignorance and disdain for the military continued when he put victory in the hands of the enemy in Afghanistan by announcing the date we would quit. Weak leaders often try to project an image of toughness by “kicking ass.” Accordingly, he fired a senior commander for a revealing story in that paragon of journalistic integrity – Rolling Stone.
In the meantime, [....]
http://alineofsight.com/_blog/Blogs/post/Gen_Patrick_Brady_asks,_'Would_I_want_this_man_with_me_in_combat'/
The Real 'El Chapo'
by Scott Stewart,
STRATfor.com
November 1, 2012
A widely propagated myth would have us believe that Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera and his Sinaloa Federation are less violent than many of their competitors. Statements from journalists and analysts allege that Sinaloa is more businesslike than Los Zetas, whose reputation for brutality is well-documented, and that this business savvy somehow renders the group relatively benign. In turn, this has led many to believe that the Mexican government could broker a deal with the leader of one of Mexico's largest criminal organizations.
However, a close examination of Sinaloa's evolution demonstrates the group is hardly the hallmark of civility. In fact, the history of Mexico's cartel wars over the past decade reveals that Guzman, his Sinaloa Federation and the various cartels with which they partner have been more territorially aggressive than any other Mexican cartel.
Expansion and Escalation
Sinaloa incursions upset the balance of power that Miguel Angel "El Padrino" Felix Gallardo established in the late 1980s when he appropriated criminal territories to Guzman and his other lieutenants. Tens of thousands of people have died from the wars that arose from this imbalance.
This is because Guzman's expansion efforts necessarily entailed [....]
http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/real-el-chapo?utm_source=freelist-f&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20121101&utm_term=sweekly&utm_content=readmore&elq=86c53f3ce132461282b87bb4bee05042
Emails Catch barackingham Palace Lies On Green-Energy Loans
by Marita Noon,
townhall.com
November 1, 2012
When he is confronted about the failed green-energy loan program, President Obama deflects blame—pointing to “career bureaucrats” in the Department of Energy (DOE) who supposedly approved the loans that have become an embarrassment to the White House.
For months, along with researcher Christine Lakotos, I’ve been reporting on, first, the junk-bond rated projects (such as Solyndra) that received fast-tracked approval from the DOE and, then, the failed and troubled stimulus funded companies. Solyndra was just the tip of the iceberg. Embarrassment after embarrassment has come to light as the projects touted as the hope for America’s future have filed for bankruptcy, sent money and jobs overseas, and faced technical difficulties.
The 1705 loan guarantee program had 460 applicants, but only 7% were approved—26 projects were funded. Of those 26 projects 22 were junk-bond rated—meaning private investors wouldn’t fund them. So why did we, the taxpayers?
Our research showed that at least 90% of the projects had close ties to the White House and other high ranking Democrats. Despite the obvious connection, President Obama has repeatedly denied any involvement—preferring to blame “career bureaucrats” who could take the fall with no political consequence.
In March, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, testified that, “We looked at the loans on their own merits.” Also, back in November 2011, he said: “I am aware of no communication from White House to Department of Energy saying to make the loan or to restructure.”
Just last week, [....]
http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/11/01/emails_catch_white_house_lie_on_greenenergy_loans/page/full/
obama Needs 'Secretary of Business' Like Clinton Needed An Intern- And For The Same Reason
by John Ransom,
townhall.com
November 1, 2012
As the clock heads toward midnight on the Barack Obama experiment, it’s nice to see that he continues to be the guy we said he was all along. I’m beginning to doubt he was even any good at being a community organizer.
After churning over all the options available to him- using the full-faith and credit of the United States; a one billion dollar campaign war-chest; $37 million in staffing costs at the executive office per year; a trillion dollars in pork barrel spending; QE4EVER!; recommendations from Nobel-prize winning economists (ha!), the top business experts that political contributions can buy (ouch!) and (deep breath) presumably THE 1-800 HELPLINE at the Small Business Administration… and here’s the plan to jumpstart our economy in the second term: Obama wants to create a U.S. Department of Business, with a cabinet-level secretary.
Yep. That’s it.
Secretary Van Jones anyone?
Someone has to coordinate the upward revisions of the already ridiculous jobs, GDP and voter registration numbers. Someone has to wear the presidential knee pads when the economy won't cooperate.
“Isn’t this rich? Saturday Night Live couldn’t have thought of anything better,”
writes the Washington Post’s Ed Roger.
“When I read this headline [about appointing a Secretary of Business], I had to make sure it wasn’t coming from The Onion.” [....]
http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/johnransom/2012/11/01/obama_needs_secretary_of_business_as_clinton_needed_an_intern_and_for_same_reason/page/full/
Friedman Foundation Takes Critical Look At Administrative Bloat In Public Schools
by Lindsay Burke,
heritage.org
October 24, 2012
The Friedman Foundation has published an excellent report detailing the administrative bloat plaguing our nation’s public schools. The School Staffing Surge: Decades of Employment Growth in America’s Public Schools shows dramatic increases in teaching and non-teaching staff over the past five decades despite modest increases in student enrollment.
As we detailed in a recent report on growth in non-teaching positions in public schools across the country, student enrollment has increased just 8 percent since 1970, while the number of teachers has increased 60 percent, and the number of non-teaching administrative and other staff has increased [....]
http://blog.heritage.org/2012/10/24/friedman-foundation-takes-a-critical-look-at-administrative-bloat-in-public-schools/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email;utm_campaign=EdReview
Underestimating Our Voter Fraud Vulnerability
by John Fund; Hans von Spakovsky,
usatoday.com
October 21, 2012
Voter fraud is so rare that "you're more likely to get hit by lightning than find a case of prosecutorial voter fraud," asserts the liberal Advancement Project. An August study by News 21, a group of journalism students, claimed that to find only 10 prosecutions of in-person voter impersonation nationwide since the year 2000.
If state legislators worried about voter fraud are just imagining the problem, then it's that much easier to block laws requiring voters to use photo ID to prove they are eligible voters. But that's not quite the whole story. Evidence used to dismiss the problem turns out to be thin.
A large number of the nation's 3,031 counties never provided data, and the News21 researchers report that they sent out only 2,000 queries. Nor did the study mention the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling upholding voter ID laws, which found an "extreme difficulty of apprehending a voter impersonator" if ID isn't required. While voter impersonation is hard to detect, it is easy to commit. Earlier this year, James O'Keefe released a video of a 22-year-old undercover reporter who obtained Attorney General Eric Holder's ballot in Washington, D.C., and could easily have voted if he had chosen to.
Easy to commit fraud
Chaotic voter registration rolls make it too easy to commit voter fraud. A February study by the non-partisan Pew Center on the States found one in eight voter registrations were inaccurate, out-of-date or duplicates. Nearly 2.8 million people were registered in two or more states, and perhaps 1.8 million registered voters are dead.
Critics of voter ID laws also fail to note [....]
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2012/10/21/voter-fraud-voter-id/1647913/?utm_source=strategicmarketing&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=LibertyJustice
Networks Have Emails From White House Ordering Team To Stand Down
by Madeleine Morganstern,
theblaze.com
October 31, 2012
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Tuesday a U.S. senator told him that at least two news networks have emails from the White House ordering a counterterrorism team to stand down on a rescue mission at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
“There is a rumor — I want to be clear, it’s a rumor — that at least two networks have emails from the National Security Adviser’s office telling a counterterrorism group to stand down,” Gingrich told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren.
“They were a group in real-time trying to mobilize Marines and C-130s and the fighter aircraft, and they were told explicitly by the White House ‘stand down and do nothing. This is not a terrorist action.’”
He continued,
“If that’s true, and I’ve been told this by a fairly reliable U.S. senator, if that’s true and that comes out in the next day or two, I think it raises enormous questions about the president’s role, Tom Donilon, the National Security Adviser’s role, the Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who has taken it on his own shoulders, that he said don’t go. And I think that’s very dubious,
[....]
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/gingrich-senator-told-me-networks-have-emails-from-white-house-ordering-team-to-stand-down-on-benghazi-rescue/
Russia Takes Swipe At US Democracy Ahead Of Elections
[Blogger: Doesn't sound like 'more flexibility after my election' to me!!]
by Kirit Radia,
abcnews.com
October 31, 2012
MOSCOW — Moscow’s Foreign Ministry took a shot at American democracy on Wednesday.
“The #US lectures the world on democracy and human rights, but looks only to its own laws when flaws in its voting system are pointed out,” the ministry tweeted from its English language account.
“The #US electoral system is decentralised, fragmented and obsolete,” the ministry added in another tweet moments later.
Opponents of the electoral college (which could include more Americans if one candidate loses next Tuesday’s election despite winning the popular vote) might not disagree with the broad strokes of that second point.
Of course, recent Russian elections have been marred by reports of widespread voter fraud. And since President Vladimir Putin’s inauguration in May, human rights activists have sounded the alarm about a string of new, increasingly restrictive laws and policies that appear aimed at intimidating Russia’s opposition.
The Russian Foreign Ministry’s statements came amid [....]
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/10/russia-takes-swipe-at-us-democracy-ahead-of-election/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Heritage%2BHotsheet
How To Spot A Flood-Damaged Vehicle
by AAA,
weather.com
undated material
Severe weather can cause flooding in a moment’s notice. After any major flood, auto dealers and car auction managers face the dilemma of salvaging or restoring flood-damaged vehicles. AAA warns car buyers that flood-damaged vehicles can be shipped anywhere for resale, and they often continue to appear in the marketplace for up to a year after a major flood. Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, vehicles that were flood-damaged in the hurricane affected areas were shipped throughout the United States for sale as both new and used cars.
If a car has been completely submerged, extensive disassembly may be needed for a thorough cleaning. Many parts of a car are difficult to clean and dry because they are hard to access. Door locks, window mechanisms, wiring harnesses, heating and air conditioning components and many other small devices are tucked away in hidden spaces. Initially, these items may operate properly [....]
http://www.weather.com/safety/autosafety/flood-damaged-vehicle-20120810
An $8 Billion Trick?
Toying With Medicare To Fix Elex
by Benjamin Sasse; Charles Hurt,
nypost.com
April 23, 2012
Call it President Obama’s Committee for the Re-Election of the President — a political slush fund at the Health and Human Services Department.
Only this isn’t some little fund from shadowy private sources; this is taxpayer money, redirected to help Obama win another term. A massive amount of it, too — $8.3 billion. Yes, that’s billion, with a B.
Here is how it works.
The most oppressive aspects of the ObamaCare law don’t kick in until after the 2012 election, when the president will no longer be answerable to voters. More “flexibility,” he recently explained to the Russians. But certain voters would surely notice one highly painful part of the law before then — namely, the way it guts the popular Medicare Advantage program. For years, 12 million seniors have relied on these policies, a more market-oriented alternative to traditional Medicare, without the aggravating gaps in coverage. But as part of its hundreds of billions in Medicare cuts, the Obama one-size-fits-all plan slashes reimbursement rates for Medicare Advantage starting next year — herding many seniors back into the government-run program.
Under federal “open-enrollment” guidelines, seniors must pick their Medicare coverage program for next year by the end of this year — which means they should be finding out before Election Day. Nothing is more politically volatile than monkeying with the health insurance of seniors, who aren’t too keen on [....]
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/an_billion_trick_ImTBFfz7MeuZLJY7JzXEIJ
No comments:
Post a Comment