This'n'That; March Twenty-Fifth #2; Education

Education Without Student Loans!
    Aught'Oh!!  "Clown Prince" obama really ain't gonna like this post!!  See, he's all for everyone getting an education but only if they--in the process of said education--come under the thumb of the obama regime with the use of federal student loans.  While CPo whines about the ever-increasing tuition rates he does nothing to change the situation.  The "Clown Prince's" continual promotion of the necessary of "FOUR MORE YEARS" of education beyond high school only serves as a catalyst for said tuition increases.
    Rochester (New York) radio has for the past several months, advertised a company that:
will give the applicant the opportunity for an education, and
will pay said applicant $10/hr while he/she is in student status, and
will provide priority hiring status upon course completion.
Of course during this student status, the company has requirements both acedemic and personal that have to be met to continue enrollment.
    The graduates of this program can/will be hired to operate CNC machines in a shop atmosphere.  Machining steel into all sorts of things certainly sounds interesting to me.  I did the same type of work, but with wood.  I made some of the pieces/parts for the 'high-end furniture made and marketed by the Gunlocke Company, Wayland, N.Y.  A great job, with great pay, with a great future!!
    If you have a child in their sophomore, junior or senior year of high school, you aught'a check this company out.  Their URL is:
http://www.pcmirochester.com/index.html
Be sure to read each segment on the site; very interesting; very informative!
If you live in the region, this may be a solution to your family's educational necessities!
    We--in the Rochester, N.Y., area--are availed some of the best learning institutions in the country, if not in the world!!  But--considering MY wallet--they're pricing themselves out of the market, i.e.,
U of R School of Music: a 3.9% increase to $44,580;
U of R School of Medicine/Dentistry: 4.0% increase to $46,500;
U of R School of Nursing: (RN accel prog) 4.0% increase to $57,750;
U of R Simon School of Business: 4.0% increase to $49,100;
U of R Warner School of Education: 3.8% increase to $39,936 FOR EACH AND EVERY ACEDEMIC YEAR!!
Comments, anyone?
Til Nex'Time....

This'n'That; February Twenty-Sixth #1; Better!

Don't We Deserve Better Than This?!?
    The "Clown Prince" obama (CPo) designed sequestration plan is suddenly not a plan that will work, even given that CPo can pick-and-choose those line-items he wants to cut.  Of course CPo is choosing those items that will damage the American integrity and security while causing the greatest consternation among those who actually fund the government!  Added among these cuts CPo is threatening, he's dragging out the Stephanie Cutter concept of a 'balanced approach!'
    The republicRATics--those folks taking all the 'CPo heat'--have never put forth their version of a plan of what or where to cut the budget this miniscule amount everyone is whining about!! 
It's all obama; all the time!!
Let's look at this CPo-created finance problem another way:
let's say you take-home $100,000 annually, and
let's say your boss says he's gotta cut your pay by the sequestration rate of 1.36436% [$85 Bln divided by $6,230 Bln], and you'll find that you're giving up $1,364.36 in take-home pay, annually [344.5 gallons of gas or 623 pounds of ground beef-Rochester, N.Y.];
which is $113.70 per month [28.7 gallons of gas or 51.92 lbs of ground beef-Rochester, NY];
which is $26.24 per week [6.6 gallons of gas or, 12 pounds of ground beef-Rochester, NY];
which is 66 CENTS per hour which will buy 1/6th of a gallon of gas in Rochester, N.Y., which at 30 mpg, will carry you all of FIVE MILES!!
On average,  few 'Rochester workers' earn $100,000; more like $35,000, so let's look at the obama created sequestration cuts  from that perspective:
pay cut: $477.53 annually [120 gallons of gas; 218 pounds of ground beef];
which is $39.794 per month [10.05 gallons of gas; 18.171 pounds of ground beef];
which is $9.183 per week [2.32 gallons of gas; 4.193 pounds of ground beef];
which is $1.84 per day [less than 1/2 gallon of gas; just over 3/4 pound of ground beef];
which is $0.229 (23 CENTS) per hour [less than 1/2 PINT of gas; about 1.6 OUNCES of ground beef]!!
This means--by the hour, here in Rochester--the hourly loss equals about 1.88 miles of travel; equals less-than-a-quarter of a McDonalds' Dollar-Menu hamburger!!
Like I said: Don't we deserve better from ALL politicians than arguing over the value of a Dollar-Menu hamburger every half-day?!?
    Not only the actual cuts in expenditures, what about all the taxpayer money wasted with the "Clown Prince" obama flying all over the country (at $180,000.00 per hour, or 45,455 gallons of gas PER HOUR; 82,192 pounds of ground beef PER HOUR!!) to denegrate anyone and everyone who does not or will not agree with him and his ludicrus financial/economic policies.  Recently, TFI, CPo (That Fuckin' Idiot, Clown Prince obama) has instituted a cross-country, 100 city, "Connecting To Your Community" bus tour.  I've tried to find which cities, which routes, but can't so we don't know how much taxpayer revenue TFI, CPo is wasting on this propaganda tour!!  So, let's just say that this bullshit trip will cover 20,000 miles in one bus.  One bus is doubtful; TFI, CPo has to have his yes-men as well as his ARMED guards with him so I'm guessin' he's using all three of the federal busses purchased for one of his thousands of campaign trips.  But we'll just consider one diesel powered bus covering the aforementioned 20,000 miles:
The national average for diesel fuel is $4.169 per gallon.
Most heavy busses and trucks average 5-8 mpg.
This means ONE bus will consume between
2,500 gallons [@$10,422.50 which equals 2,632 gallons of gas (78,960 miles!); equals 4,759 pounds of ground beef]
and
4,000 gallons [@$16,676.00 which equals 4,200 gallons of gas (126,000 miles!); equals 7,615 pounds of ground beef].
    Remember if more than one bus is used, the expenses will rise accordingly.  We're also not considering the wages and accommodations of two drivers and one 'porter' on each bus.
All the flying and bus travel-time considered, soon TFI, CPo will have consumed the same "sequestration-level" funds with his worthless, useless theatrics!!
With the figures provided, you can make your own determinations as to better uses for the money; as to how many poor and/or homeless folks that could'da been fed with all that ground beef!!
Comments, anyone?
Til Nex'Time....
Reference "Lie-Barry:"
Rochester, N.Y. Gas-$3.96/gal; diesel-$4.34/gal; 80% ground beef-$2.19/lb
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_United_States_federal_budget
http://foxnewsinsider.com/2013/02/25/info-what-will-be-affected-by-sequestration/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FoxNewsInsider+%28Fox+News+Insider%29
http://www.gasbuddy.com/gb_retail_price_chart.aspx?time=24
http://www.gasbuddy.com/gb_gastemperaturemap.aspx
http://lubbockonline.com/interact/blog-post/may/2013-02-23/barack-obama%E2%80%99s-100-city-santa-claus-tour
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-warns-of-flight-delays-if-sequester-is-not-averted/2013/02/22/7d0b0314-7d09-11e2-9a75-dab0201670da_story_1.html
http://dailyitem.com/0102_politics/x564660317/Sequestration-cuts-could-cause-long-delays-for-flights-administration-says
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2012/11/average-gas-prices/index.htm
http://www.ttnews.com/fuel/national.aspx

This'n'That; September Sixth #2; TANSTAAFL!!

Rochester, N.Y., Opts For.... "Equality?"
    It doesn't matter how much you earn or the source of your 'earnings.'  You can be a fifth-generation welfareRAT--and we got plenty of those--or you have have a million-dollar annual income like the "Clown Prince" and "Clown Princess" obama--we don'got plenty of those--your kids will still qualify for free breakfasts and lunches in the Rochester City School District.
    Can you believe this load-a-shit?!?  Apparently, the city hierarchy has developed the welfareRAT mentality:  There IS such a thing as a 'free' lunch; it's all obammoney!!  And yet at the first hiccup in the city budget, said hierarchy will come hat-in-hand to the property-taxpayer!!
Folks, Ya just can't make this crap up!!!
Til Nex'Time....

This'n'That; May Nineth #1; 'Forward'

owe-bama Foregos Research
    "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist's" crack campaign staff stepped on their collective duu-luus on this one:  the new owe-bama logo, "Forward"  is the same one used by the Hitler Youth in the 1930s-'40s Nazi Germany!!  Check this You-Tube posting for verification:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7_nK3gx4kAU
Til Nex'Time....
Blogger Note:  Duu-luu is a radio-acceptable substitute for the word penis.  Said substitute was originated by "Brother Wease," a long-time--on the edge--radio personality in Rochester, N.Y.

This'n'That; May Eighth #3; Where's the MSM?!?

Why No One Is Applauding Evil Speculators!
    As noted by the chart below, gas prices have been dropping the last week or so.  Since "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist" was immaculated the National Pamphleteer 'corpse' has been "in the toilet"--er....in the tank--for his brand of socio-fascism.  Since said immaculation his marxist, communist policies have steadily driven up gas prices to the current levels of ++110%!!  The "Clown Prince" had no plausible lie the public would believe so he went after those evil 'commodities (traders) speculators.'

    Now that the prices are dropping, no one--in the pamphleteer 'corpse'--is commenting on the causes.  They would be forced to accurately report on the "Clown Prince's" failed economic policies as well as the positive effects of those 'evil' commodities (speculators) traders plying their trade!!  'His royal Clownship' has so destroyed the national economy as to have it named after him in future TRUTHFUL, unsanitized, history texts:  the owe-bamaDepression or the owe-bamaGeddon!

    The economy is so stagnant as to be a driving force in the price drops; those evil commodities traders--in the course of their trading in crude oil--are another driving force in the reductions.  Where's the accolades for the commodities traders?!?  Where's the honest reporting of the owe-bama failed economic policies?!?
'Splain to me again why YOU elected this Arschloch!?!



Regular Gas prices by day; (NE)  Rochester, N.Y.

 Til Nex'Time....
http://www.rochestergasprices.com/index.aspx

This'n'That; April Twenty-Sixth #2; Farm Socialism

owe-bama To Slowly Socialize U.S. Farms
    "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist" and his communist Department of Labor just can't leave BAD ENOUGH alone!!  This latest (as far as I know) advance of federal control over all aspects of American life came to light (for me, at least) during a call to the Bob Lonsberry radio show on WHAM1180, Rochester N.Y., a couple of months ago.
    After Bob initially broached the subject, he received several phone calls, one from a fruit farmer in the growing areas hat surround Lake Ontario in Monroe and Wayne Counties.  Said caller explained how this latest DoL invasion into the working life of the American farmer would strangle the family farm concept in the United States.  No longer would his children or neighboring youngsters be allowed to operate ANY motor-driven apparatus, so long as it was on a farm property.  It gets even more ludicrous:  The farmer's--under 16--child is restricted from the simple task of mowing the lawn with a powermower.  A neighboring child--on residential; non-farm, property--of any age, can mow residential lawns to his heart's content, so long as any of the lawns are not on a family farm!!
    On June 9, 2011 the socio-fascist "Clown Prince" issued an executive order to boost his ratings among farming, rural residential families, voters.  Said executive order was to enhance the federal government's involvement in rural activities, from financing to communications, to science-and-technology, to drug control policy; every aspect of American life, rural or not!!
Let me point you toward:
Executive Order #13575 (Establishment of the White House Rural Council);
Section 4 (Missions and Function of the Council):
paragraph (a)  "make recommendations to the President, through the Director of the Domestic Policy Council and the Director of the National Economic Council, on streamlining and leveraging Federal investments in rural areas, where appropriate, to increase the impact of Federal dollars and create economic opportunitites to improve the quality of life in rural America;"
paragraph (b)  "coordinate and increase the effectiveness of Federal engagement with rural stakeholders, including agricultural organizations, small businesses, education and training institutions, health-care providers telecommunications services providers, research and land grant institutions, law enforcement, State, local, and tribal governments, and nongovernmental organizations regarding the needs of rural America;"
Got that?!?  Sounds like the "Clown Prince"--FINALLY--wants to do something; ANYTHING that will actually benefit SOMEONE in America, right?!?
Well...... NOT SO FAST!!  I'm thinkin' the aforementioned is nothing more than presidential s&m for upcoming rural economic strangulation.  Now let's have a look at just some of the activities listed in a U.S. Labor Department proposal affecting said rural, farm, family-farming, families:
1.  Would prevent anyone under 16 from working with animals when they are branded, castrated or vaccinated;
2.  Would prevent anyone under 16 working in a pen with an un-castrated male bovine, porcine or equine over 6 months old;
3.  Would prevent anyone under 16 from working on a ladder or scaffolding more than 6 feet off the ground;
4.  Would prevent anyone under 16 from using powered machines, from electric drills to tractors;
5.  Would prevent anyone under 18 from working in stockyards, grain elevators, feedlots, livestock exchanges and auctions.
    I gotta tell'ya.... this labor department bullshit seems to run up against the "Clown Prince's" Rural Council bullshit.  What happens when bullshit collides with bullshit?!?  Everyone involved gets splattered!!
Don't these prevented activities fly in the face of E.O. #13575, Section 4, Para (a)  "....create economic opportunities to improve the quality of life in rural America...."
Don't these prevented activities fly in the face of E.O. #13575, Section 4 Para (b)  "....increase the effectiveness of Federal engagement with rural stakeholders...."
Not only that.... where does "Michelle Antoinette" weigh in relative to her "Get'cher ass off the couch, fat boy" program of anti-obesity?!?  Surely this will affect her "Eat as I say, not as I eat" policy!!
    One can only guess, but one thing's fer-sher:  Nobody in the federal government has a phuckin' clue what the others are doin'!!!
'Splain to me again why YOU elected this Arschloch!?!
Til Nex'Time....

This'n'That; February Twenty-First #1; Their Kinda Group

They Picked 'em; They're Stuck With'em!!
    Remember back last October when "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist" blusterfully supported the various units of the Occupy Wall Street movement:
"The most important thing we can do right now is those of us in leadership letting people know we understand their struggles and we are on their side, and that we wnat to set up a system in which hard work, responsibility, doing what you are supposed to do, is rewarded."
....while he--INCORRECTLY--compared the 'Occupy....' miscreants to members of the "Tea Party" Movement:
"In some ways, they're not that different from some of the protests that we saw coming from the 'Tea Party.'  Both on the left and the right, I think people feel separated from their government.  They feel that their institutions aren't looking out for them."
....and, in the same ABC News blather opportunity, denegrated the "Tea Party" Movement:
"Those of you who are watching certain news channels where I'm not very popular, and you see folks waving 'tea bags' around, just let me remind them that I'm happy to have a serious conversation about how we are going to cut our health care costs down over the long term, how we are going to stabilize Social Security."
    Of course, "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist" was joined by his 'arschloch buddies:'
Nancy PORKlosi, rankest owe-bamacRATic House leader
"I support the message to the establishment, whether it's Wall Street or the political establishment and the rest, that change has to happen.  We can not continue in a way this is not relevant to their lives."
John Larson (Ct), 4th rankest owe-bamacRATic in the House
"The silent masses aren't so silent anymore.  They are fighting to give voice to the struggles that everyday Americans are going through.  While I don't condone their every action, I do applaude their standing up for what they believe in."
Dorothy 'Geeze-Louise' McIntosh Rodham Slaughter, (NY) rankest owe-bamacRATic on the House Rules Committee
"Its time for all Americans to pay their fair share.  And I'm so proud to see the Occupy Wall Street movement standing up to this rampant corporate greed and peacefully participating in our democracy."
Raul Grijalva (Az) and Keith Ellison (Mn), apparently not very rank among the owe-bamacRATics (in a joint statement)
"We share the anger and frustration of so many Americans who have seen the enormous toll that an unchecked Wall Street has taken on the overwhelming majority of Americans while benefitting the super wealthy."
    The federal fascists' support notwithstanding, I'm sadly disappointed with our (Rochester, N.Y.) 'Occupy....' contingent of miscreants!  Rochester miscreants--at #164--were way down the 'Peaceful(?) Miscreants' Missteps' List of 417--and counting--incidents.   While the nationwide list includes shittin' on police cars, pissin' in public, screwin' in public, masturbatin' in public, child molesters exposing their (Anthony) weiners to children, raping under-age girls, pimping unwilling girls, drug dealing, knifings, shootings, assaults, murders, stealing from local businesses, discouraging the reporting of sexual assaults, miscreants linked to international terrorism, ad infinitum; the Rochester miscreants barely made the list by having 161 miscreants arrested!!!  All-in-all, a fine crowd of miscreants for the owe-bamacRATic socio-fascists to support and defend....
    In this presidential campaign season, "Clown Prince ZERO-bama, the Narcissist's" support more-than-likely will come back to bite him in his 'fuzzy, very-light-brown ass!!'  My reasoning here is that George Soros couldn't 'nail down' his choice.  On it's face, the republicRATic side of the season looks like Soros colluded with the republicRATic national hierarchy in selecting Willard Romney as the republicRATic 'annointed one!'  This collusion began to fall apart early on when Newton Gingrich won the South Carolina primary vote.  It's now continuing as Richard Santorum is gaining lots of traction with his conservative message, his non-waffling positions, his understanding of the plight of those Americans most affected by the Soros-"Clown Prince" disasterous actions, rules, regulations, control, out-of-control spending, ad infinitum!!
    Mr Santorum has an unwaivering message that verifies his understanding of basic economics as it relates to the American Depression.... the owe-bamageddon!!  Comparison at any level, in any sector, the Santorum message 'stomps owe-bama's ass into a pisshole-in-the-snow,' rhetorically speaking!!  While I--personally--am not completely on-board with Mr Santorum, he's certainly the front-runner in my book!!
Til Nex'Time....
http://biggovernment.com/jjmnolte/2011/10/28/occupywallstreet-the-rap-sheet-so-far/
http://news.yahoo.com/house-democrats-endorse-occupy-wall-street-160655836.html
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65229.html
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pelosi-supports-occupy-wall-street-movement/story?id=14696893
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-occupy-wall-street-we-are-their-side_598251.html

The Sunday 'Report;' 01/22/2012

What The National Pamphleteers Don't Report:
Eco-friendly car refrigerant 'turns into deadly gas it vehicle catches fire'
by Henry Samuel,
telegraph.co.uk
January 17, 2012A new "eco-friendly" car refrigerant expected to become the industry standard turns into a deadly gas if the vehicle housing it catches fire and should be shelved, it has been claimed.  The coolant for car mobile air conditioning systems, called HFO-1234yf, has been approved for use in the US, Japan and Europe and Toyota and Suburu have started fitting their cars with the substance.  It was chosen as it is produces 98 per cent less climate damaging that its predecessor, R134a.  However, a German expert on the compound has warned that it is should be scrapped as it is much more flammable than the current coolant and when heated above 500C (932F) releases hydrogen fluoride, a highly toxic gas. Temperatures in car fires can easily reach twice that heat. 
    "You have 600g of this cooling agent per car, which if it burned completely would produce 200g of hydrogen fluoride at a level of concentration that is very high. For a human just one gram is deadly – either inhaled in gas form, through the skin or when dissolved in water," warned Prof Andreas Kornath, an inorganic chemistry professor at Munich University who has been studying the substance for 20 years.  The odourless gas has no instant effect but once inside the body a person dies within a day or so in terrible pain due to internal burns and muscle failure.  "This product should not be on the market. There is a real risk every time a car catches fire, which happens 30,000 times [....]
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/9021335/Eco-friendly-car-refrigerant-turns-into-deadly-gas-it-vehicle-catches-fire.html

9 Popular Tax Breaks You Can No Longer Count on in 2012
by David Muhlbaum
Kiplinger.com
January 17, 2012.
    You’ll face a higher tax bill next spring if Congress doesn’t act to revive a series of tax breaks that expired Dec. 31, 2011. Among the breaks that Congress didn’t extend in all the sturm-und-drang over the payroll tax holiday are:
Alternative minimum tax patch
The AMT is a parallel tax system created more than 40 years ago to prevent excessive use of tax breaks by the very wealthy, ensuring they pay at least some tax. Taxpayers whose income exceeds the AMT exemption – in 2011, $48,450 for individuals and $74,450 for married couples filing jointly – must calculate both regular tax and AMT liability and pay the larger of the two amounts. But exemption levels have, at least tentatively, dropped to $33,750 for individuals and $45,000 for married couples filing jointly in 2012, which will expose 31 million taxpayers to the higher AMT this year, according to Tax Policy Center estimates.
Higher mass transportation benefit
This one's of particular interest to straphangers, van-riders and other users of public transit. A 2009 federal stimulus provision raised the maximum an employee could receive for transit, tax-free, from $  [....]
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/9-popular-tax-breaks-you-can-no-longer-count-on-in-2012.html

Allen West on the Marines Incident: 'Shut Your Mouth, War Is Hell'
by Daniel Halper,
weeklystandard.com
January 13, 2012
Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.), a former Army lieutenant colonel, sends THE WEEKLY STANDARD an email commenting on the Marines' video, and has given us permission to publish it.
“I have sat back and assessed the incident with the video of our Marines urinating on Taliban corpses. I do not recall any self-righteous indignation when our Delta snipers Shugart and Gordon had their bodies dragged through Mogadishu. Neither do I recall media outrage and condemnation of our Blackwater security contractors being killed, their bodies burned, and hung from a bridge in Fallujah.
“All these over-emotional pundits and armchair quarterbacks need to chill. Does anyone remember the two Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division who were beheaded and gutted in Iraq?
“The Marines were wrong. Give them a maximum punishment under field grade level Article 15 (non-judicial punishment), place a General Officer level letter of reprimand in their personnel file, and have them in full dress uniform stand before their Battalion, each personally apologize to God, Country, and Corps videotaped and conclude by singing the full US Marine Corps Hymn without a teleprompter.
“As for everyone else, unless you have been shot at by the Taliban, shut your mouth, war is hell.”
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/allen-west-marines-incident-shut-your-mouth-war-hell_616699.html

Armed UAV Operations 10 Years On
Staff Report,
stratfor.com
January 12, 2012
    One of the most iconic images of the American-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- as well as global U.S. counterterrorism efforts -- has been the armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), specifically the MQ-1 "Predator" and the MQ-9 "Reaper." Unarmed RQ-1 Predators (which first flew in 1994) were flying over Afghanistan well before the 9/11 attacks. Less than a month after the attacks, an armed variant already in development was deployed for the first time.
    In the decade since, the Predator has clocked more than a million flight hours. And while U.S. Air Force procurement ceased in early 2011 -- with more than 250 airframes purchased -- the follow-on MQ-9 Reaper has already been procured in numbers and production continues. Predators and Reapers continue to be employed in a broad spectrum of roles, including close air support (CAS), when forward air controllers communicate with UAV operators to release ordnance with friendly troops in the vicinity (CAS is one of the more challenging missions even for manned aircraft because of the heightened risk of friendly casualties). Officially designated "armed, multi-mission, medium-altitude, long endurance, remotely piloted aircraft," the second to last distinction is the Predator and Reaper's principal value: the ability to loiter for extended periods, in some cases for more than 24 hours.  This ability affords unprecedented situational awareness and physical presence over the battlefield. The implications of this are still being understood, but it is clear that it allows, for example, the sustained and constant monitoring of main supply routes for attempts to emplace improvised explosive devices (IEDs) or the ability to establish a more sophisticated understanding of high-value targets' living patterns. In addition, live, full-motion video for ground controllers is available to lower and lower echelons to an unprecedented degree.
    As the procurement of Predators and Reapers and the training of operators accelerated -- particularly under the tenure of former U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, beginning in 2006 -- the number of UAV "orbits" skyrocketed (an orbit is a single, continuous presence requiring more than one UAV airframe per orbit). There are now more than [....]
http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/armed-uav-operations-10-years?utm_source=freelist-f&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20120112&utm_term=sweekly&utm_content=readmore&elq=8bd50c74e6ab41bc896d0f9e079c3445

Baltimore elementary school to kids: Wear purple or sit in the library
by MJD,
Shutdown Corner
yahoo.com
January 20, 2012
    The Baltimore Ravens have a "Purple Fridays" caravan that motors around the city hosting pep rallies for their precious purple Ravens. They've done it all year and it continues into the playoffs.  One stop Friday was at Roland Park Elementary where the kids were happy to hang out with Poe and Rise & Conquer, partially because they love the Ravens and partially because they weren't locked in the library.  In advance of the pep rally, a teacher wrote an email to parents indicating that any kid who didn't wear Ravens gear wouldn't be allowed to attend the pep rally but would be stuck in the library instead. From the Baltimore Sun: [....]
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/baltimore-elementary-school-kids-wear-purple-sit-library-180953556.html

Cities With the Highest Rising Home Prices
by Patricia Mertz Esswein,
Kiplinger.com
January 12, 2012
    The housing markets in most of these cities missed the bubble and bust altogether, and home prices continued to climb steadily after the national market went bust. These cities have diversified their economies, enjoy rising population and job growth, and have relatively low rates of unemployment and foreclosure.  The cities on this list that did go bust, such as Cape Coral, Fla., are beginning to recover, although home prices may still be bouncing around the bottom as buyers (particularly investors) dash in to nab bargains. The likelihood of continued double-digit price increases is slim, especially as more foreclosures come to market.
    All of the metropolitan areas we've ranked have a population of at least 200,000. Change in home prices reflects the one-year period through September 30, 2011, when the national average was -2.6% and the median home price was $171,250. We also report the change since the national peak in home prices, in the second quarter of 2006. Sales and inventory numbers were drawn from the most current market reports (October or November 2011). Unemployment rate is as of October 2011, when the national average was 8.5%. Foreclosure rate is as of September 30, 2011, when the national average rate was 1 of every 213 housing units, or 0.47%.
5. Rochester, N.Y.
One-year change in home prices: 7.1%
Median home price: $114,900
Change in price since peak: 6.7%
Unemployment rate: 6.7%
Foreclosure rate: 1 of every 2,220 housing units (0.05%)
Home prices rose 7.1% in Rochester over the past year.
Rochester, headquarters of flailing Kodak, is another of those well-kept secrets of upstate New York. Or, as one local real estate agent says, "It gets a bad rap for the lagging upstate economy, job layoffs and snow, but once people come, they don't want to leave."  Sales rose [....]
http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/cities-with-the-highest-rising-home-prices.html

Economic Freedom Country Rankings; overall score
Heritage.org
January 15, 2012
[Slideshsow]
#1 Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s economic freedom score is 89.9, making its economy the freest in the 2012 Index. Its overall score is 0.2 point higher than last year, with improvements in freedom from corruption and the control of government spending partially offset by a small decline in monetary freedom. Hong Kong is ranked 1st out of 41 countries in the Asia–Pacific region. [....]
http://www.heritage.org/index/Ranking

Don Bosco's Yuri Wright, a possible Rutgers recruit, expelled for graphic tweets

by Mike Vorkunov,
The Star-Ledger
January 19, 2012Don Bosco Prep cornerback Yuri Wright, who has listed Rutgers among his final suitors, was expelled from the school Wednesday for comments he made on Twitter. The tweets — which began in July, spanned the football season and continued until as late as Jan. 7, according to a screen grab of his feed posted on several websites — were sexually graphic and racial in nature. His account was subsequently taken down and phone calls made in an attempt to reach him were unsuccessful.  “He’s a good kid and I think [....]
http://www.nj.com/hssports/blog/football/index.ssf/2012/01/don_boscos_yuri_wright_expelled_for_graphic_tweets.html

Facebook: Friends' Happy Pictures Make You Sad?

by Matthew Rosenbaum
ABC News.com
January 19, 2012
There are plenty of reasons to feel down in today's fast-paced, hectic world, and you wouldn't think that the world's most popular social networking site would be one of them. But that's exactly what a new study by Utah Valley University has found.  According to the study, Facebook is making us sad. Why? It's all about the kinds of pictures people to post on their pages.  Facebook photos generally depict smiling, cheerful people having good times, conveying a sense of happiness. Of course everyone likes to smile for the camera, so that good cheer may be inflated or false. As others view the photos, they may believe this conveyed sense of intense happiness is real, making them think that their friends are much happier than they are.  Sociologists Hui-Tzu Grace Chou and Nicholas Edge said they interviewed 425 students, asking them whether they agreed or disagreed with such statements as "Many of my friends have a better life than me," and "Life is fair."  They also asked about the students' [....]
http://news.yahoo.com/feeling-sad-facebook-could-cause-180318638--abc-news.html

Fox and Elway agree: Tim Tebow’s earned the right to start in 2012

by Doug Farrar
Shutdown Corner
yahoo.com
January 16, 2012
If there was any doubt about Tim Tebow's ability to drive a passing offense at the NFL level, it most likely went away when the second-year quarterback made several big-time throws against a Pittsburgh Steelers defense that loaded up against the run in the wild-card win. That 29-23 upset over the Steelers was followed by a 45-10 rout in the divisional frame at the hands of the New England Patriots in which Tebow regressed as a pure passer, most obviously because New England's point total forced the Broncos to pass more often, and the Patriots' defense knew it.
Anyone who worried that Tebow's performance against the Pats would have team president John Elway and head coach John Fox looking elsewhere for a starting quarterback in the 2012 preseason need concern themselves no longer — in the Broncos' season-ending press conference on Monday, both Elway and Fox made it very clear that Tebow is their guy going forward.  "I think Tim has earned the right to be the starting quarterback going into training camp next year," Elway said. "I think that [....]
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/fox-elway-agree-tim-tebow-earned-start-2012-221258523.html

H.R. 3674: Promoting and Enhancing Cybersecurity and Information Sharing Effectiveness Act of 2011 (PRECISE Act)

Sponsor:
Lungren (R - CA)
Official Title:
A bill to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to make certain improvements in the laws relating to cybersecurity, and for other purposes.
Status:
12/15/2011: Introduced in House
12/15/2011: Referred to House Homeland Security Committee
12/15/2011: Referred to House Judiciary Committee
12/15/2011: Referred to House Oversight and Government Reform Committee
12/15/2011: Referred to House Science, Space and Technology Committee
12/15/2011: Referred to House Select Intelligence Committee
Commentary:
This bill, creating a large government infrastructure to face cybersecurity threats, also establishes a new criminal offense. Part of this comprehensive legislation includes the National Information Sharing Organization, which is charged with connecting government, companies, and individuals (members) in order to share information about cybersecurity threats. Some of the information passed will be confidential. It is unlawful for an individual associated with the organization, including government and member [....]
http://www.overcriminalized.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?id=872

Key fact fails to occupy Globe story

by Jessica Heslam-Media Reporter
bostonherald.com
January 18, 2012
The Monday Boston Globe featured a photo on the front page of its Metro section of a lip-locked couple who “found romance” at Occupy Boston.  “Holding hands outside the food tent before the encampment disbanded,” read the accompanying story, “they were the archetype of an Occupy couple: he, a red-headed Mainer with tattoos on his arms; she, a petite upstate New York girl with a heart-shaped face and a boyish haircut, wearing a knit grandmother sweater three sizes too big.”  Good details — but the story failed to mention one big one: Robert “Red” Stitham, the 25 year-old beau whose relationship with Anya Karasik, 18, is the focus of the piece, is a [....]
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view.bg?articleid=1396747

MLK Day speech from Bishop Reginald Jordan

January 16, 2012
“The only thing that comes to a sleeping man is a dream”-Tupac Shakur
However
The one thing that a sleeping man and a visionary have in common is dreams.
But, neither a sleeping man or a visionary changes our society, our culture, and certainly not the world. Only the doer’s, the engaged, the invested, the one who lays down his life for a cause that’s greater than himself will in spite of chaos and challenges, change the inequities and ill’s of our reality.  When examined closely and considered honestly, our reality can be quite discouraging and frightening to one who has hope for the day when a man is not judged by the color of his skin but by the content of his character, because if the truth be told, while many would celebrate how far we’ve come, in many ways we’ve retreated more so than we’ve advanced.
The prayer was to be judged by the content of our character:
Not long ago we fought for the right to get a fair and quality education, yet now our youth refuse to go to school and learn basic [....]
http://mornings.wbap.com/?p=2509

Obama Shreds The Constitution Again

by Chip Wood,
Personal Liberty Digest
January 13, 2012
President Barack Obama made four recess appointments last week.Guess what? Barack Obama has found an opponent whose approval ratings are even lower than his own. So to kick off his re-election campaign, he’s decided to run against Congress.  The campaign against the obstructionist, do-nothing Congress started in earnest last week, when Obama decided to ignore the U.S. Constitution, recent Presidential tradition and even his own vote when he was a U.S. Senator by making four “recess” appointments.  There was just one teeny tiny problem with the stratagem; Congress wasn’t in recess. 
In case you missed the story — which was easy to do, because most Americans neither cared about it nor understood it — let me give you a condensed version of what happened. This is no mere tempest in a teapot, by the way. As I’ll explain below, this seemingly silly confrontation could have enormous legal implications for our country.  The brouhaha began last month. Rather than adjourn for the Christmas holidays, Republicans in Congress decided to do the absolute minimum to keep Congress in session, holding “pro-forma” meetings every three days. Basically, all it took was one Senator showing up, declaring the session open [....]
http://www.personalliberty.com/conservative-politics/obama-shreds-the-constitution-again/?eiid=

You can’t measure tax progressivity while ignoring income trends

by Andrew Fieldhouse,
The Economic Policy Institute
January 20, 2012
Mark Thoma does a terrific job explaining why the purported measure of tax progressivity favored by many conservatives doesn’t measure tax progressivity. Former Bush Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, the inspiration behind Thoma’s post, insinuated that those lucky duckies at the bottom and middle of the earnings distribution should be paying more because their share of federal taxes paid has been [....]
http://www.epi.org/blog/measure-tax-progressivity-ignoring-income/

[Related Content] Should We Feel Sorry for the Wealthy?
by Mark Thoma,
The Economist's View
January 18, 2012The editors at CBS asked me to respond to Ari Fleischer's tweets about how tax burdens have changed in recent years:
Are the wealthy paying to much in taxes?:
Ari Fleischer, the former White House Press Secretary for U.S. President George W. Bush , has been trying to make the case on Twitter that the wealthy are taking on more of the tax burden than ever. Here's a sample of his tweets:
@AriFleischer The share of total federal tax paid by bottom 60% dropped from 22.5% in '79 to 14.4% today. Source: CBO
@AriFleischer The share of total federal tax paid by middle income dropped from 21% in '79 to 16.5% in '07.
@AriFleischer The share of total federal taxes paid by top 10% rose from 40.7% in '79 to 55% in '07.
The share of total federal taxes paid by top 1% rose from 15.4% in '79 to 28.1% in '07
Of course, the argument is incomplete without [....]
http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2012/01/should-we-feel-sorry-for-the-wealthy.html

[Related Content] March of the “lucky duckies”
by Farhad Manjoo,
Salon.com
December 21, 2011    On Nov. 20, the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal began worrying that most Americans don’t pay enough in taxes. That was a shock — since the editorial page, a leading forum for conservative thought in America, has always led the charge to cut taxes. But in an editorial titled “The Non-Taxpaying Class,” editors agonized over the fact that the federal government gets most of its money from wealthy people. The top 5 percent of Americans — people who earn about $120,000 or more a year — “coughed up more than half” of tax revenue, the paper said, while poor people pay almost nothing. A worker who [....]
http://www.salon.com/2002/12/21/duckies/
http://www.cbo.gov/publications/collections/tax/2010/all_tables.pdf
http://stateofworkingamerica.org/charts/share-of-pre-tax-income-growth-1979-2007/

Yes, You Can Dump Your Bank

by Ismat Sarah Mangla
Money.com
January 13, 2012
Does "ditch my bank" make your list of resolutions for 2012? Join the club.
Americans' simmering resentment toward big banks seems to have finally bubbled over: In the month after Bank of America threatened a monthly fee on debit cards, 221,000 folks joined more consumer-friendly credit unions -- equal to about a third of the new members for the entire previous year.  In addition, customers of the 10 largest retail banks are so fed up with rising fees and dismal rates that the institutions stand to lose a combined $185 billion [....]
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/banking-best-online-bank-checking-101500159.html

Obama Wants Internet ID

by Sam Rolley,
The Personal Liberty Digest
January 13, 2012
The Commerce Department will soon have the authority to implement an “identity ecosystem” for the Internet.The Administration of Barack Obama is planning yet another assault on the Internet privacy rights of all American citizens, some critics say.  The Administration is currently drafting a plan that will hand over to the Commerce Department the authority to implement an “identity ecosystem” for the Internet with the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace to be released in coming months.  According to CNET, details about the Obama Administration’s [....]
http://www.personalliberty.com/news/obama-wants-internet-id/?eiid=
Until Next Sunday....

This'n'That; October Seventeenth #2; Scam?!?

A Financial 'Mailer'
    Over the weekend, we received one of those mailings everyone gets.  You know the ones; "you're pre-qualified for a KaZillion bucks, just fill in the blanks and return or go to our website....;"  those kinds!  This mailing--from Springleaf Financial Services--is probably local to the Rochester, N.Y., MSA*
    This offer says I'm pre-qualified for a secured loan** up to $5,250 at an APR of {just} 24.14%; a payment of $171.56 for 48 months.  Oh.... and this offer comes with my very own 'Pre-Qualification Number: (9-digits)'  I gotta tell'ya:  This less-than-wonderful offer smells of a legal scam, if there is such a thing!!  Legal in that Springleaf Financial Services*** can rightfully charge what ever interest rate they think they can get away with; Scam in that--excluding my family and I--Springleaf Financial Services*** is--presumably, allegedly--praying upon the folks who can least afford it, with rates that can be 'bettered' elsewhere.
    Let's 'do the math' on this one:

24.14% equals $1.21 added to every five-dollar-bill borrowed from these--alleged, presumed--miscreants.
If I actually--and stupidly--took this deal, over the four-year life of the note, I'd pay back $8,229.60; that's right, $2,979.60 just in interest, alone!!!

    Anyone who gets one of these mail offers and thinks it's the best they can do; then by all means, goffer'it!!  But bear-in-mind, you're gonna pay dearly for the priviledge!!
   If someone needed this amount of money--for once,--they'd be better served to put the purchase on a credit card at the prevailing rate in the 17++%, range!!  When has anyone ever heard that advice before?!?  No one I know would be that 'financially strapped' to take dis-advantage of this offer!!
NOTES:
Bold text-MY emphasis.
*MSA: (Metropolitan Statistical Area) A geographical region with a large population density and economic ties throughout.
**a secured loan:  a loan for which the borrower must put up an asset of equal value; a car, property, gold or silver coins, the wife's engagement ring, etc.
***Springleaf Financial Services
      1600 Ridge Rd., West;  Ste 11
      Rochester, N.Y., 14609
(It's presumed this is but a regional office of a franchised business.)
Til Nex'Time....

This'n'That; September Sixteenth #2; Red Light Cameras

Twelve Intersections In Rochester Have Them!
    The City of Rochester (N.Y.,) is already making a veritable fortune off those who can least afford the charges.  They stand to make skads more!!  The city has cameras installed at twelve intersections and plans to install up to a total of fifty (50!) cameras!  Run one of these lights and you'll owe the city fifty-bucks; don't pay it in thirty-days, they add a 50% surcharge, for a total of $75.00!!
  The cameras are located at the following intersections:

Goodman Street at I-490
State Street and Allen Street
West Avenue and Ames Street
West Main Street and Brown/Genesee Street
691 Saint Paul Street (pedestrian crossing)
North Clinton Avenue and Alexander Street
North Clinton Avenue and Norton Street
Broadway Street and Andrews Street
State Street and Jay Street
East Avenue and Culver Road
Dewey Avenue and Ridgeway Avenue

Til Nex'Time....
http://www.cityofrochester.gov/redlight/These cameras operate twenty-four hours a day; Driver Beware!!

This'n'That; September Ninth #2; Craig S. Hasman Update

Justice Prevails!

    Back in August, Craig Hasman and Teresa Mancuso were on their motorcycle, riding along Lake Avenue, Rochester, N.Y.  A pair of testerone-infused street thugs in a granny-van, happened upon them at a stoplight.  Actually, the kerfuffle started along the roadway prior to the stoplight; you know the kind, the granny-van tailgating the bike, shouting back and forth, the 'polish salute' exchanged along with other verbal threats.
    Mr Hasman soon had enough of their shit--after one of the thugs popped him in the eye--shot the passenger from the granny-van.  Mr Hasman was charged with felonious assualt-2nd degree.  Mr Hasman maintained throughout that he was the victim of the assualt and was doing nothing more than defending himself and his lady-friend.  Apparently, the jury agreed and acquitted Mr Hasman of all charges.

    Seems rather 'funny' to me that with the physical evidence and witnesses statements that Mr Hasman was the only one charged!  Could it have been that he had a firearm-no matter than he's had a conceal-carry permit for over thirty years; no matter that there's no record of Mr Hasman EVER using a handgun in such a manner, prior to this incident?!?
Sadly, the recipient of Mr Hasman's highspeed projectile, the miscreant Michael Lee, survived!!
Til Nex'Time....

This'n'That; August Thirty-First #1; Kinsmen

owe-bama Kinsmen
    By now, everyone's heard about the felonious owe-bama's felonious uncle, Omar owe-bama Onyango.  The guy--an alleged drunk driver--who not only avoided deportation for nearly 20 years but has a valid driver's license and a valid Social Security card.  And remember, felonious owe-bama's felonious Aunt Zietuni Onyango, who lives in rundown Boston public housing.
    "Clown Prince" owe-bama has many times in the past--and continues to--play 'the race-card' so I feel free to do the same when discussing his kinsmen-the American Negro.
 
Let me set the scenario here:  I'm a retiree living in a working-class neighborhood in Rochester, N.Y.  Most of my neighbors work for a living; in many cases, both parents.  The area is mixed-race, mixed-family, mixed income levels, so those are only factors when speaking about the owe-bama kinsmen (not by blood; not by marriage).
    The house across the street had long been a 'drug-house' so the neighborhood was thrilled when a single lady (let's call her 'Mary') bought the place in early Spring and put some money into renovations.  Well, everything came to a screeching halt when some owe-bama kinsman (read: 'street-negro') kicked in the front door in broad-daylight (6:30PM on a bright, sunny day)!!  My wife heard a crashing noise she assumed was a neighbor who had broken something wooden.  Within minutes of that sound, I went to the front porch for a smoke.  As I visually checked the neighborhood, I saw Mary's front door open, screen-door closed, which is not unusual-she doesn't have air conditioning.  I saw a Negroid face peeking out the screen door; when he saw me, he disappeared.  I continued to watch the front and side of the house as well as neighboring driveways.  In seconds, he came down a driveway two houses away and casually walked up the street (away from me).  I called 9-1-1 and Rochester PD Officer Delveechio--among several others--responded, searched the house for any remaining owe-bama kismen-miscreants and searched the area with my highly-detailed description.  The owe-bama kinsman-miscreant has yet to be found, three weeks after stealing a laptop.

    The next scenario:  My east-side next-door neighbor (let's call him 'John')rehabs relatives' commercial and residential rental properties as necessary.  With this 'part-time job,' John works some long days and some not-so-long days.  When he's away, I keep a closer-than-normal eye on his house and grounds.  On one of his few days off--last Monday(08/29)--we were talking in his front yard.  Ya gotta know John: he's one of those guys who's never still; always doing something, even when in casual conversation.  While we talked, he was picking up various pieces of paper trash that sometimes blows around the neighborhood.  John found a 'benefit card' from one of the local convenience stores, then found a driver's license for a man up the street from our houses (too far to be in my viewing range).  He walked up the street to return both items and found that the rear door of the residence had been kicked in just minutes before.  John remembered an owe-bama kinsman casually walking down the street just before we found the license and card.  He called 9-1-1 and gave the report and description.  As far as I know, the owe-bama kinsman-miscreant hasn't been found yet.

    Is this or is this not, a direct result of the owe-bama Depression?!?  Every part of owe-bamanomics has exacerbated the falling economy and as a result, increased negro unemployment to meteoric levels, far beyond that of the white guys!!  A related article, check out this URL for a semi-local (Syracuse, N.Y.) judge (William Walsh) who has finally seen the light and is sentencing the owe-bama kinsmen-miscreants to meaningful terms in jail!!
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2011/08/syracuse_15-year-old_gets_two.html
Til Nex'Time....