Saturday, November 29, 2008

Vehicles gone wild













Via the albums at StupidStuff.org.

Feedback on NBC's Rosie Variety Show funnier than the show


The reviews are in on Rosie O'Donnell's spectacular new variety show on NBC! And to say the show bombed is a little like calling a hurricane a "bit of a breeze". TV Guide headlined its review "Dead on Arrival."

On one of the NBC discussion sites, the bad reviews outnumbered the good by a ratio of about 1000-to-1.

I'd rather watch Gary Busey in a Prom dress interviewing drunk psychotic homeless people. Hmmm. Actually, that doesn;t sound half bad!

What? The "Jews and Bush were behind 9/11" sketch and song and dance number (Fire don't melt no steel) didn't draw big numbers? No. Say it ain't so.

Why don't they pipe this show down into Gitmo? Being forced to watch this ... would be better than water-boarding.

Rosie, you're fired.

Rosie the un-riveting host: That was the worst 32 seconds I spent last night trying to figure out what on earth allowed you, dopy Baldwin and poor Conan on the same screen at the same time. Go get a real job as you will starve trying to entertain and be funny...

When I saw the commercial I thought it was a joke. I guess it was...on NBC.

What does (hate media) NBC expect? They put on the poster girl (?) for hate and expect people to watch? NBC is in a death spiral. Good riddance.

The only reason this show failed is because America is a backwards homophobic country still living in the dark ages. At least Barack Obama will lead us to future days. Out with Bush the Dictator.

Amateurish. Not prepared. Have seen better high school productions. ...NBC, wake up and get rid of this show. I could have done many other things last nite instead of watching this albatross.

The key to Variety shows of the past was the likeablity of the host. The format might work great if you don't use such a polarizing figure. Ms. O'Donnell is hated viciously by too many people... Nice try, NBC. We'll be seeing a few new faces at the unemployment office...

What a disaster!! What the hell was NBC thinking. The executives in charge should be fired immediately. They thought people would watch that s***?

Even though I think Rosie is vile, mean-spirited human being, longing for the days of the old variety shows, I was willing to give it a shot. I turned it after the first minute when she had to get political. Get over it Rosie, no one wants to hear your ingnorant political rants!

Try the format again, this time with someone more like Ed Sullivan, who would introduce the talent, spell the name correctly, and stand to the side.

Rosie, Thank you for reminding me of what a useless, no-talent political hack you were. The hype before the show was genius. Your show was the opposite. For God's sake, go enjoy your money and stay out of the public eye. Get a show on Air America. Nobody listens to that anyway, and it's the same format as your show. You would fit in nicely with all the other no-talent political hacks.

NBC should have sold "Rosie Live" vomit bags to make up for the lost advertising revenue on this pile of crap.

Please NBC, flush ... again. Sometimes it takes two cycles to remove one this big.

...I watched for 15 minutes out of sheer amazement at it's failure, kinda like a train wreck in progress. And I must ask Alex Baldwin about his jacket..... it was so small his huge and growing belly was made obvious.

You could dig up Frank Sinatra's corpse and prop it up on stage and have a more entertaining show than what was described in the article. Variety shows will work again like they did in the 70's, but only an idiot would have tried what they put on here. Whose Line or sketch comedy like Carol Burnett's show would be great. Why not just replay The Carol Burnett Show? Bring out Bob Newhart to carry on half a phone conversation for an hour. I'd watch. Have Frank Caliendo, Ryan Styles, and Wayne Brady do impersonations for an hour. I'd watch. Put Robin Williams and Jim Carrey on stage and let the audience give them an idea to run with. I'd watch.

I once knew Rosie back in late 90's. I was part of Toys for Tots NYC. She was a very gracious, humble, giving and funny entertainer. Then I ran into her family again in CT when she sent her kids to a private school in Greenwich. She had armed guards for her kids yet is against guns? She jumped right off the deep end after that with her political leanings and I've never been a fan or supporter since. Very sad!

...it may have been more entertaining if they did a skit where Baldwin had a phone converstion with Rosie playing the part of his daughter.

These comments are funnier than the show.

Yes, the variety show format must be horrible! It couldn't POSSIBLY be that potential viewers might think Rosie O'Donnell is an angry, mentally-disturbed, no-talent nit wit... If someone figured out how to cast and produce a contemorary version of what Carol Burnett did SO WELL in the 1970s, it would be a huge hit... This only proves that programming executives at NBC are morons. They think all television shows must be leftist political crap, junior high bathroom humor, or fake "reality" nonsense.

When asked on her blog "When will u know if there will be more Rosie Live shows in '09?," O'Donnell writes, "there will b no more/no ratings/ bad reviews/ yet still - a thrill 4 me."

Rosie, it's a thrill for me to know that I won't be seeing any more of you for a very, very long time.

Friday, November 28, 2008

What teachers unions don't want you to see: spending vs. test results


How come no one ever compares spending-per-student with standardized test results? I'm kinda surprised that the NEA and the other teacher's unions don't publicize these stats (heh).

I put together a workbook that matches up these variables and discovered some interesting insights. For instance: the District of Columbia spends the most (by far) and has the worst results (by far).

4th Grade Reading8th Grade Reading4th Grade Math8th Grade Math
StatePer-pupil spending ($)Rank% meeting state prof stndrd % at or above NAEP level % meeting state prof stndrd % at or above NAEP level % meeting state prof stndrd % at or above NAEP level % meeting state prof stndrd % at or above NAEP level
District of Columbia13,18714412407
New York11,54627133493387365631
New Jersey11,43638137743881456436
Connecticut10,00146638773478427635
Massachusetts9,8565484439494243
Vermont9,6786
Alaska9,58677927822671346529
Delaware9,271880305630
Rhode Island9,1789
Pennsylvania8,8411064366231
Wyoming8,667114734393639433729
Wisconsin8,574128333863574407536
Maryland8,507138232683078385330
Michigan8,4891473386129
Maine8,35115
Ohio8,100167734803665436333
Illinois8,0221772315429
New Hampshire7,75018
West Virginia7,748198026802275257118
Minnesota7,69120
Oregon7,6212164336534
Indiana7,580227230662872387030
California7,51123482139215128
Virginia7,50124
Nebraska7,41825
Georgia7,340268726832575306923
Iowa7,305277733723480377634
Hawaii7,253285623371830272018
Kansas7,0522978358547
Montana7,027308136
Missouri7,0183141311526
South Carolina6,984323526302539362430
Washington6,8943380366042
Colorado6,884348637863290397432
Texas6,746358129832682406131
North Dakota6,728367635723780406535
New Mexico6,606375020521939192414
Louisiana6,519386520542063245616
North Carolina6,511398229882791408432
Kentucky6,4934067313723
South Dakota6,31941
Oklahoma6,256428225712574296721
Arkansas6,119435330572653343422
Alabama6,11544
Florida6,056457130442563375826
Nevada6,0344648215226
Tennessee5,984478827872687288821
Idaho5,923488733823291407030
Arizona5,5244963236126
Mississippi5,382508818581879195314
Utah4,89051

Now you can see why the anti-voucher teachers unions hate standardized testing. You know, the type of thing mandated by No Child Left Behind.

Deep Thoughts by Bill Ayers


• Does the Terrorists' Union threaten to stop car-bombing when they go on strike?

• Some very sharp financial minds think that Citigroup is a "screaming buy". Seriously.

• Who tests urine recycling machines?

• Rochelle Riley of The Detroit Free Press says that Democrats should push for Bush's impeachment now -- for the economy's sake. In unrelated news, the Union of Unhinged Leftie Journalists announced its op-ed winner for 2008.

• Tomorrow's headlines today: Somali Pirates Hold 'Black Friday' Sale of Captured Goods

• Could we solve most problems in inner cities by making it cool to be smart?

• It strikes me that Donny Osmond would make an excellent James Bond.

• Robert Byrd actually had the title of "Exalted Cyclops" as a Klan leader. It was a promotion from Grand Kleagle.

Quote o' the day: Don't question their patriotism -- or their timing!


Ace o' Spades receives the prestigious LOD trophy, winning a gently used McDonald's Apple Turnover and a deluxe Michelin snow tire in return.

Remember the days of "I question the timing" after every quite-plausible terror alert was announced?

Sources told CBS 2 HD the plot involved the Long Island Rail Road. If the explosion went off in Penn Station, the source said, it would affect transportation of Amtrak's northeast corridor between Boston and Washington, LIRR service and New York City subway service.

"This is definitely linked to Al Qaeda and they had very significant details about exactly how they would carry out the attack, where they would carry it out -- that's what makes it sound so plausible," Rep. King said...


I give thanks for the Lightworker. Now that he's President, the world is safe for vigilance against terrorism once more. It turns out it's no longer such a "fictitious threat."

Funniest Sports Memorabilia Ever: Official Pete Rose Dice™


Baseball legend Pete Rose was effectively banned from the Hall of Fame due to allegations of gambling activities. Prior to the ban Rose was known as a hard-charging player with a penchant for playing the ponies.

At a sports collectible store this morning I spotted a small "Pete Rose Museum" display. The funniest exhibit included an official set of "Pete Rose Dice".



I asked the owner how much. He just grinned and said, "Museum exhibits aren't for sale."

CCTV images of Mumbai Terror Attacks


Fox News has some uncut, closed-caption videotape taken by surveillance cameras in Mumbai.





Only Bombay posted these two pictures, which they describe as CCTV-generated.


I guess the Quaker extremists in Mumbai didn't get the "Obama Election Memo". I mean, didn't the drones tell us that the world would view Americans much more kindly if we just elected The One?

The Militant Quakers who killed and wounded hundreds in Mumbai -- targeting Americans and other westerners -- must have accidentally deleted that email. And I'll predict that the media will inform us that choosing the Mumbai Chabad as a target was coincidental. Stratfor has a red alert analysis and believes that within days we'll be witnessing a violent flare-up between India and Pakistan.

Gateway Pundit, Atlas, Hot Air, JihadWatch, LGF, LawHawk and Powerline have important takes on the attacks, mainstream media reporting on the events and the aftermath.

Linked by: Memeorandum. Thanks!

Kudlow on Mundell


Larry Kudlow, writing at The National Review, spoke with Robert Mundell recently. Mundell, one of the architects of Reagan's supply-side revolution and a designer of the Euro, has a few suggestions for his friend Paul Volcker.

First, he’d like to see a complete corporate tax holiday for one year. He then favors corporate tax reform that would drop the current top rate from 35 percent to 15 or 20 percent. He believes this would generate badly needed business investment and job-creation to fight recession.

...Business needs help. Without healthy business, there will be no significant new job creation or consumer spending power.

On money, Mundell had two interesting thoughts: First, the U.S. dollar and the Chinese yuan should basically be re-linked at roughly today’s exchange rate (about 6.8 yuan to the dollar). There should be no more Chinese currency appreciation. Incidentally, Mundell thinks the Chinese economy is actually in some trouble...

Rather than slathering around hundreds of billions of dollars in an ill-fated central planning exercise, has anyone considered a massive personal tax cut that would let consumers decide how best to spend their money?

Eh, I didn't think so.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Ready to buy your GT-R?


If you live in the Phoenix area, Midway Nissan is taking orders for The Giant-Killer. The GT-R stacks up this way.

• VR38DETT - 3.8l Twin-Turbocharged 24 Valve V6
• Horsepower - 480 hp @ 6,400 rpm
• Torque - 430 lb-ft @ 3,200-5,200 rpm
• Cylinder bore x stroke - 95.5 x 88.4 mm
• Top Speed - 193 mph!
• Emissions - 50 State LEV2/ULEV
• Dual overhead camshafts with variable intake-valve
• Aluminum cylinder block with super-low-friction
• Nissan Direct Ignition system with iridium spark plugs
• ATTESA ET-S All-Wheel Drive (AWD)
• Electronic Traction Control
• Brembo® 4-wheel disc brakes

You may want to order soon. Given the way that Democrats try to design cars with CAFE standards, we may not have it for long.

Democrats unveil new Solar Energy Beans™ to address energy shortfall


The United States Government will unveil a "remarkable energy innovation by 2012" that will cut reliance on foreign oil according to incoming Secretary of Energy George Clooney.


"By 2012 (just after the election), the Democratic Party will have released our patented Magic Solar Energy Bean™ technology", Clooney said in a thinly-attended press conference.

Asked to describe the nature of the innovation, Clooney was circumspect.

"Hope, change and a unique willingness to spend taxpayer money will create millions of green-collar jobs as well as this stunning new technology," Clooney said. He asked voters to be patient with the Democrats, who have "only had seven or eight decades" to turn things around with social programs.

Linked by: American Digest. Thanks!

All new for 2011, GFCM presents the FannieCrat 3000 Luxury Sedan!


All new for 2011, General Ford Cerberus Motors is proud to present The FannieCrat 3000, the first automobile designed by the same members of Congress who brought you Fannie Mae.


With 24 airbags -- both inside and outside the vehicle -- and an integrated cow- and deer-catcher, this is one safe vehicle. And CAFE fuel standards are no problem because this luxury sedan sports three (count 'em, three) windwills and an extra-large solar-panel certain to keep you in the slow lane!

The Fanniecrat 3000 is a worthy successor to other government-designed vehicle like the EV1 and the Volga.

So jump on your bicycle right now and pedal on down to your city's GFCM dealer to see this phenomenal new vehicle. Pre-orders are available and the federal waiting list is down to 24 months, so act now!

And remember, all GFCM vehicles are guaranteed to be compatible with Magic Solar Energy Beans, the amazing fuel source designed by Democrats and due just in time for the 2012 election!

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Line o' the day: They hate us! They really, really hate us!


Ann:

I thought the rest of the world was going to love us if we elected B. Hussein Obama! Somebody better tell the Indian Muslims.

Update: Bonus Ann.

After being captured fighting with Taliban forces against Americans in 2001, Abdullah Massoud was sent to Guantanamo, where the one-legged terrorist was fitted with a special prosthetic leg, at a cost of $50,000-$75,000 to the U.S. taxpayer. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, Massoud would now be able to park his car bomb in a handicapped parking space!

1.5 miles down, submersible films huge squid with "elbows"


National Geographic has the astounding video.

A mile and a half (two and a half kilometers) underwater, a remote control submersible's camera has captured an eerie surprise: an alien-like, long-armed, and—strangest of all—"elbowed" Magnapinna squid...

...The clip — from a Shell oil company ROV (remotely operated vehicle) —arrived after a long, circuitous trip through oil-industry in-boxes and other email accounts.

"Perdido ROV Visitor, What Is It?" the email's subject line read—Perdido being the name of a Shell-owned drilling site. Located about 200 miles (320 kilometers) off Houston, Texas (Gulf of Mexico map), Perdido is one of the world's deepest oil and gas developments...

...In a few seconds of jerky camerawork, the squid appears with its huge fins waving like elephant ears and its remarkable arms and tentacles trailing from elbow-like appendages...

Another positive development related to energy exploration, eh?

Harsh Medicine for GM


Writing at Advisor Perspectives, Robert Huebscher offers some pragmatic financial counsel for GM.

GM will have less than $5 billion in cash by late December and this cash level “could be overwhelmed by payables coming due in early January,” according to Rod Lache of Deutsche Bank. GM is on the brink [and its] failure could make Lehman’s bankruptcy seem like a hiccup.

...Assuming GM’s revenue for 2008 ends up at $150 billion, its challenge is to trim expenses by about $24 billion per year. Some of these reductions will come from fixed costs, and others will come from variable costs as production decreases.

For his projections, Lache assumed that US auto demand will be 13.5 million units for 2008, declining to 12 million in 2009 and then rising to 14 million as the economy recovers in 2010. By contrast, between 1998 and 2007 US vehicle demand hovered between 16 and 18 million units.

GM has already slated approximately $9.2 billion in additional cost-saving measures, as follows:

* $2.7 billion from an 18,000 person hourly headcount reduction
* $1.4 billion from salaried headcount reduction, elimination of salaried healthcare, and executive bonuses
* $2.4 billion from a reduction in 2009 capital expenditures (from $7.2 to $4.8 billion)
* $2.7 billion from a reduction in healthcare benefits

But these still leave GM in a position to burn $10 billion in cash annually in 2009-2010, assuming – conservatively - its market share declines from 22% to 20%... Lache says two drastic steps are needed to get GM to a break-even level:

* Brand Line Reduction: GM currently has eight brands (Chevrolet, Cadillac, Hummer, Saab, Buick, GMC, Saturn, and Pontiac). Lache estimates that reconfiguring to a “more defendable” core brand structure of three brands (Chevrolet, Cadillac, and Buick) would lower GM’s fixed costs by $5 billion per year. After this reconfiguring, GM’s product line would be comparable to that of Toyota or Honda. Such a reduction would also dramatically reduce the number of GM dealerships (currently approximately 7,000), although it is not clear whether it would reduce them to Toyota’s level of 1,500 dealerships.

* Move All Tier 1 Employees to Tier 1.5 Status Immediately: GM’s 2007 labor contract defines three categories of workers: Core/Tier 1, Tier 1.5, and Tier 2. A summary of labor costs for these tiers, along with Toyota’s costs for comparative purposes, is below...


But if the auto guys don't feel like enacting these drastic measures, we could always cut the UAW a check for $500 billion or so.

Hat tip: RIA News Focus.

Important Holiday Messages


The American Thinker's Richard Baehr emails us this picture, which he describes as follows.

Artist's Rendering of Greenwich, Connecticut in 2012



Don Surber offers this important holiday message.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Democrats have a plan to stimulize the economy


The. Best. Congress. Ever. Just laid out a clear picture of their agenda.

Adding in the Citi bailout, the total cost of the bailout is roughly $4.6 trillion dollars. Or, as Barry Ritzholtz has calculated, more than what the country spent on the Marshall Plan, the Louisiana Purchase, the Race to the Moon, the Savings and Loan debacle, the Korean War, the New Deal, the Invasion of Iraq, the Vietnam War and NASA... combined... and all adjusted for inflation.

But don't worry, Robert Rubin -- senior transition adviser to president-elect Obama -- is on the case.

Wait a second... isn't that the same Robert Rubin who works for Citibank? And who would benefit from the bailout dough? The same Robert Rubin who mentored Treasury secretary designate Tim Geithner? No problem, Rahm Emmanuel -- former head of Freddie Mac -- is a senior staffer for Obama so I'm pretty sure nothing can go wrong.

Remember those 68 million acres of land Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said the oil companies had to "use or lose"? The oil companies just lost 'em -- because some eco-Nazis just blocked a major drilling operation, presumably in order to save a plankton from going homeless. In other words, Democrats lied.

So far, Democrats have also blocked: the development of new sources of petroleum, exploration in ANWR, exploration off the coast of Florida, exploration off of the east coast, exploration off of the west coast, exploration off of the Alaskan coast, building new refineries, building clean coal plants, and clean nuclear energy production. They are, however, in favor of harnessing wind power and unicorn farts, which should make up for the shortfall.

How about legalizing illegal immigration? Harry Reid (D-NV) says there's another monumentally craptastic program on the way: "I don't expect much of a fight at all [on immigration this time]." Legalizing illegal stuff seems like a good way to go for Congress.

As for freeing terrorists - Democrats can do! As a precursor to closing Gitmo Salim Hamdan, Osama's driver and bodyguard, is being dispatched to his native country of Yemen. I heard Dick Durbin (D-IL) insisted we return the surface-to-air missiles he was transporting when he was illegally captured.

Bringing back Franklin Raines to run Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with the Federal Reserve? Yup.

Just kidding about that last one.

Wouldn't surprise me though.

All of this stuff courtesy of Larwyn. Linked by: Jules Crittenden. Thanks!

Six Degrees of Operation Overlord


Tigerhawk Teenager came up with a new game.

Six Degrees of Hitler

Here is the task set before you:

1) Go to Wikipedia.
2) Click any random link on there.
3) You have five clicks to reach Hitler's article.

GO!

UPDATE: Forgot to mention varying levels of difficulty.

Easy Mode: Any links

Nightmare Mode: No Country Links

Hell Mode: No Country or Date links.

Fully prepared to sue: Kevin Bacon's mom.

Ken Block: Gymkhana Practice


This could be the most incredible test of driving skill since Claude Lelouc's C'etait un Rendezvous.

The dude's tire bill has to be off the charts.

Starfish Prime: an EMP attack illustrated


Brian T. Kennedy, president of the Claremont Institute, offered an ominous warning in yesterday's Wall Street Journal. Entitled "What a Single Nuclear Warhead Could Do", it describes exactly why the U.S. needs a space-based missile defense system to protect the country against a particularly deadly form of attack called EMP. What is EMP?

On July 9, 1962, a high-altitude nuclear test named Starfish Prime was conducted by the United States military above Johnston Island in the Pacific Ocean. Its unexpected electromagnetic pulse (EMP) effects caused disruptions in electrical systems and equipment in Honolulu 700 miles away.

The EMP shut down long-distance telephone calls and disabled three satellites in low earth orbit. Radiation resulting from the test later destroyed a total of seven satellites by knocking out their solar arrays or electronics.

A massive current of EMP could be unleashed with catastrophic effect on the United States if a nuclear weapon were detonated high above the earth. The energy of this pulse would disable and possibly destroy any electronic device and power grid in line-of-sight of the detonation.

Cars.

Buses.

Trucks.

Planes.

Trains.

Any vehicle with an electronic ignition or engine control system could be rendered useless.

The lifeblood of America -- food, energy, goods and services -- would be gridlocked.

The power grid: knocked out.

The phone system: gone.

Several years ago, an Iranian military journal publicly considered the idea of launching an electromagnetic pulse attack as the key to defeating the world's lone superpower.

Yet, Copperhead Democrats call the threat of Iran "hype" and "fear".

Frank Gaffney, author of Warfooting, states "If [EMP] hits the electrical grids of the United States... if it hits electronic devices, computers, chips of various kinds--the things, in other words, that power our society--they're likely to be severely damaged, if not destroyed."

This would wreak havoc on the country's electronic systems, and plunge much--if not all--of the continental U.S. into a pre-industrial state. A blue-ribbon commission created by Congress confirmed this danger in a report submitted in August 2004.

At a height of 300 miles, the entire continental United States would be exposed to EMP attack, along with parts of Canada and Mexico. Congress was warned of Iran's plans by Peter Pry, a senior staffer with the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack in a hearing of the subcommittee on terrorism, technology and homeland security.

Pry pointed out the Iranians have been testing mid-air detonations of their Shahab-3 medium-range missile over the Caspian Sea. The missiles were fired from ships.

"A nuclear missile concealed in the hold of a freighter would give Iran or terrorists the capability to perform an EMP attack against the United States homeland without developing an ICBM and with some prospect of remaining anonymous," said Pry. "Iran's Shahab-3 medium range missile mentioned earlier is a mobile missile and small enough to be transported in the hold of a freighter. We cannot rule out that Iran, the world's leading sponsor of international terrorism might provide terrorists with the means to execute an EMP attack against the United States."

Lowell Wood, acting chairman of the commission, said yesterday that such an attack – by Iran or some other actor – could cripple the U.S. by knocking out electrical power, computers, circuit boards controlling most automobiles and trucks, banking systems, communications and food and water supplies.

"No one can say just how long systems would be down," he said. "It could be weeks, months or even years." Wood said he could think of no other reason Iran would be experimenting with high-altitude detonations of missiles besides planning for an EMP attack.

One nuclear weapon. One missile. One motivated maniac.

Those are the realities of the situation, no matter how the Copperhead Democrats try to spin the NIE.

Sources: WSJ: What a Single Nuclear Warhead Could Do, Warfooting: Report of the Commission to Assess the Threat to the US from EMP Attack and Joseph Farah. Linked by: Secular Apostate. Thanks!