Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Non-partisan MarketWatch reports: Economy is Dying, Thanks to Leno Cancellation and Marxist-Democrat Policies, But Mostly Marxist-Democrat Policies

Irwin Kellner at MarketWatch reports that the economy isn't getting better. In fact, it's getting worse. Much worse.

Commentary: Recent data paint a picture of an economy slowing -- sharply

The fledgling economic recovery appears to be running out of gas... The recent run of economic data is most compelling. Just about all of them paint a picture of an economy slowing -- and sharply, at that...

-- both consumer confidence and sentiment have fallen unexpectedly;

-- after-tax personal incomes adjusted for inflation have flattened;

-- sales of both new and existing homes took a surprising stumble;

-- orders for most durable goods are down;

-- manufacturing has slowed;

-- jobless claims are up;

-- fourth-quarter GDP growth came largely from a slower pace of inventory liquidation, not from an increase in consumer spending;

-- and as a matter of fact, consumer spending weakened last quarter.

Understand that the changes in the data above were not insignificant:

-- consumer confidence fell to a 27-year low;

-- new-home sales fell to record lows and they are likely to fall even further, since mortgage applications are down to 13-year lows;

-- existing-home sales are down two months in a row to a seven-month low;

-- first-time claims for unemployment benefits have risen in six of this year's first eight weeks;

-- and new orders excluding transportation fell 0.6%; orders for capital goods fell 2.5%, while capital spending itself was down a thumping 3.5%.

...the magnitude of the declines noted above suggests a message that should not be ignored... Are there any solutions to this mess?

...In my view, the best solution is a cost-free one: remove the uncertainties facing business such as regulations, costs for health care, energy and the environment, not to mention what their own tax rates will be.

You'd be surprised what this will do for hiring and thus for the economy...

Hey, Irwin: news flash -- everyone knows this. Everyone. Including the President and his sycophants in Congress. They don't care. They're committed, hard left ideologues trying to reshape our country and destroy the few remaining firewalls in the Constitution.

They're forcing Democrats to walk the plank on yet another unfunded entitlement.

In fact, the more they crush the life out of the economy with taxes, regulations and uncertainty, the greater the crisis they can precipitate. And that's what they will exploit to confiscate more and more of your private property while exercising increasing control over every aspect of your life.


It's VIRGINIANS, Stupid!

Papa B sent this one in:

When Abu al-Zarqawi died and George Washington met at the Pearly Gates. George slapped him across the face and yelled, "How dare you try to destroy the nation I helped conceive!"

Patrick Henry approached, punched him in the nose and shouted, "You wanted to end our liberties but you failed!"

James Madison followed, kicked him in the groin and said, "This is why I allowed our government to provide for the common defense!"

Thomas Jefferson was next, beating al-Zarqawi with a long cane, and who snarled, "It was evil men like you who inspired me to write the Declaration of Independence."

The beatings and thrashings continued as George Mason, James Monroe and 66 other early Americans unleashed their anger on the terrorist Leader.

As al-Zarqawi lay bleeding and in pain, he beseeched Allah, "This is not what you promised me."

Allah replied: "I told you there would be 72 Virginians waiting for you in Heaven. What did you think I said?"


Dubai Hit: "They Went That-a-Way!"

Dan from New York:

'Arabs may have targeted Mabhouh'


By JPOST.COM STAFF AND AP

02/03/2010

Hamas man: Jordanian, Egyptian agents tracked terror chief before murder.

Arab countries may be complicit in the January 19 assassination of Hamas terror chief Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, Hamas sources said on Tuesday, according to various reports.

Citing a report by Al-Quds Al-Arabi, Reuters quoted Hamas official Mahmoud Nasser as saying that Jordanian and Egyptian intelligence agencies had probably tracked Mabhouh prior to his assassination.

Nasser told the newspaper that there was evidence showing that Mabhouh had been targeted by moderate Arab countries because he had handled sensitive information concerning the activities of Hamas and other Islamist elements. He added that that assassination may have been carried out earlier than planned.

According to the newspaper, Nasser is in charge of Iran's ties with Hamas and had worked closely with Mabhouh prior to the latter's death.

###

I knew it all along. 26 men to take out just one? Sounds more like Arabs than Jews to me.

Related: Hit on Hamas in photos -- When you want to say goodbye, say it with bullets.

Larwyn's Linx: Dems to use Nuclear Option. Let a Million Amendments Bloom.

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. You can also install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget.

Nation

Obama to call for Nuke Option for Health Bill: GWP
Let a Million Amendments Bloom: Hewitt
Democrats will impose Obamacare no matter the cost: Hewitt

Coffee Party Parasites: LegalIns
NCAA caves to anti-family activists: BMW
Patriotic Banners: a Teacher Fights Back: STACLU

Blanche Lincoln files for reelection, tea party breaks out: GWP
Rangel to Give Up Gavel? Or Not?: Malkin
Signs of Intelligent Life at the White House: Power Line

Rick Perry's Big Win in Texas: WashExam
Where Progressivism Gets You: TJP
Growing anti-DC mood propels Perry: GWP

Economy

Business leaders swarm hill to fight card check: Tapscott
Sec. Geithner has some explaining to do: AT
Who Took Money from the Evil Insurance Companies?: JWF

"Jump off the cliff": Chris Christie for President?: Mish
New Government Programs Always Cost More Than Predicted: BigGovt
Obama’s Labor Department Is Serious About Ethics…Except When It Isn’t: BigGovt

See What $1.6 Trillion In Deficits Buys?: Denninger
Ford sales spike 43%, now outselling GM: BlogProf
KC Casino Reports $100,000 Loss In Counterfeit Chip Scam: KCTV-5

Obama’s Continued War on the Market: BigGovt
Permitstan: Steyn
50% of MI food stamp fraud occurs in Detroit: BlogProf

Climate & Energy

Phil Jones at ClimateGate Inquiry: Peer-'Reviewed' Journals 'Never Asked' for Data, Methods: Ace
A Wind Power Cautionary Tale: Malkin

Media

Another American Media Failure: Morrissey
Palin's New Gig: Late-Night Comedienne: WashExam
Where's the Good Will?: Commentary

Congress? Who Needs Congress?: RWN
Obama's Government Without Love: AT
Just Because I Loathe CNN’s Rick Sanchez: RWN

Stop Your Disingenuous Whining About The Filibuster, Liberals: RWN
Larry from the Department of No Energy: Mark Levin
Paul Krugman, 21st Century Howard Beale: PJM

Ezra Klein takes on Paul Ryan, Fails Miserably: Verum Serum
Frank Rich: Guilt by Free Association: Verum Serum

World

Tomorrow's Wars: Hanson
Sorry, Obama, but Russia and China Are Never Going to Help You on Iran: Lucianne
Better than the alternative: Power Line

Who are the Al Qaeda Seven?: Jawa
More Diplomatic Incompetence from the Obama Administration: Power Line
Truthers Gone Wild: Times

$ucce$$ In Marjah: Crittenden

SciTech

Hedge fund offers $1.8 billion for Novell: CNet
Microsoft exec: All PCs running Internet Explorer should be quarantined (Q&A): CNet

Cornucopia

And they'll do this forever: iOTW
West Virginia House Bill of the Day: Surber

"[The city of] Marlboro [New Jersey], after a two year negotiation, they give a five year contract giving 4.5% annual salary increases to the teachers, with no contribution, zero contribution to health care benefits.

But I am sure there are people in Marlboro who have lost their jobs, who have had their homes foreclosed on, and who cannot keep a roof over their family's head there is something wrong.

You know, at some point there has to be parity. There has to be parity between what is happening in the real world, and what is happening in the public sector world. The money does not grow on trees outside this building or outside your municipal building. It comes from the hard working people of our communities who are suffering and are hurting right now." -- Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey


Tuesday, March 02, 2010

Preview of Coming Attractions -- Greece PM Papandreou to Unions: How's a Pension Consisting of Sleeping Bags and MREs Sound?

The Prime Minister of Greece says civil servants better get used to a whole lot of less.

Greece risks bankruptcy if it does not take radical extra measures to fix its finances, Prime Minister George Papandreou warned on Tuesday, saying the country was in a "wartime situation."

Greece must avoid "a nightmare of bankruptcy in which the state would not be able to pay salaries or pensions," Papandreou told lawmakers in Athens, adding: "Yes, we have to take additional measures.

...The cabinet will meet Wednesday at 9:00 am (0700 GMT) to go over the latest set of measures which the EU has demanded Athens must take before it can be sure of getting any help to put its finances in order.

...Austerity measures already announced by the government -- including tax rises and public sector benefit cuts -- have sparked anger among many ordinary Greeks and have done little to reassure sceptical investors.

The Adedy civil servants' union, which has around 300,000 members, has called a 24-hour strike on March 16, the same day that the European Commission is due to deliver its verdict on Greece's attempts to tackle the crisis.

On Tuesday, around 30,000 taxi drivers across Greece protested against a reform that would force them to provide receipts and keep accounts in order to increase tax income and eliminate fraud.

...The pressure on Greece has raised doubts about other countries facing similar problems such as Spain and Portugal and called into question the credibility of the eurozone.

It doesn't take much imagination to substitute California, Illinois, New York or New Jersey for Greece and the feds for the EU. Fortunately, the sympathy for public-sector unions is considerably less here in the U.S., so I'm mildly hopeful we can still avoid catastrophe.


Our friends the Saudis: woman gets 18 months, 300 lashes for filing police complaint while unaccompanied by a male guardian

Yabba Dabba Doo reports from Dubai:

Human Rights Watch called on Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to quash a sentence of 18 months in jail and 300 lashes issued against a woman for filing harassment complaints without being accompanied by a male guardian.

Tribal custom and strict rules limit women's movement in the conservative Islamic state, where women are forbidden from driving. Women can face action by the religious police if they are not accompanied in public by a male relative acting as a guardian.

"In Saudi Arabia, being a woman going about her legitimate business without a man's protection is apparently a crime," said Nadya Khalife, women's rights researcher for the Middle East at New York-based HRW... "The government needs to free Sawsan Salim and keep its promise to end this discriminatory system," Khalife said in a statement.

Salim had been accused of making "spurious complaints" against government officials, including 118 complaints during 2007, and appearing without a male guardian in court, the statement said.

...Saudi officials reject criticism by Western groups of the kingdom's human rights record as a misunderstanding of Islamic law, saying the strict rules have wide support.

The National Organization for Progressive Women Who Vote Only Democrat could not be reached for comment.

The Obama Economic Death-Mobile Accelerates: February 2010 Federal Tax Withholdings Plunge To Multiyear Low

It's another Obama miracle!

February was not an auspicious start to Obama's record budget deficit-busting plans. The Daily Treasury Statement for the full month of February was just released, and it disclosed that while corporate tax withholdings, net of refunds, actually climbed marginally to $3.4 billion from $(3.4) billion in February 2009, individual tax withholdings plunged to a multi-year low of $30.7 billion.

Combined, the two items also posted a multi low of $34 billion, less than the previous recent low from February 2009 when the first leg of the Greater Depression was allegedly at its zenith. We can't wait to hear how the "recession is over" brigade will paint this particular data point.

Leave it up to the White House publicists at the Bureau of Made-up Labor Statistics to take care of that problem. Count on Census hiring, for instance, to drive the unemployment rate down to -3%.

Tax revenues are plunging. States are going bankrupt. The federal deficit is exploding. And the withholding numbers are even worse than they appear: for 2010, your withholding increased, though taxes haven't changed (yet). This gives the Treasury an interest-free loan, which you'll get back in 2011 in the form of a refund.

And what are Democrats fixated on? Nationalizing the health care industry. The entire economy is melting down, and they're trying to implement death panels and giant health care databases.

No wonder Americans are livid.


Hat tip: ZH commenters.

Restaurant Execs Explain the Disastrous Economic Environment: "Government [is] the greatest single threat we have"

Restaurant News Magazine explains why the industry is shrinking despite a growing population. Restaurant owners are afraid to hire, unwilling to invest, and incapable of expanding because they are terrified of what Democrats -- at every level of government -- will do next.

The increase of government legislation targeting the foodservice industry, on the federal, state and local levels, is one of the largest challenges restaurateurs face, industry executives and operators said Monday during the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York.

Jon Luther, chairman of Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin Brands Inc., the parent to Dunkin Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, said the intrusion of government through such proposed legislative measures as menu labeling, card check and health care reform, would have the most profound effect on the industry’s future cost of doing business.

Government, that’s the greatest single threat we have,” Luther said Monday during a panel discussion at the New York State Restaurant Association’s trade show. "Every time something happens, it affects the bottom line... The venerable CEO of Coca-Cola... was once asked why [the company had] a huge government relations office overlooking the White House. He said, ‘government could put me out of business.’"

Rick Sampson, chief executive of the New York State Restaurant Association, also weighed in on the subject of increased legislation during a presentation on environmentally friendly restaurant initiatives within the New York restaurant community... “It’s coming,” he said. “We’re already starting to see [mandated] deposits and sales tax on bottled water. You will be paying higher taxes, fees and on and on. The last thing we want is mandates on how to run our business.”

He suggested that restaurants that work to initiate green programs now will get ahead of the legislation curve, as well as manage to do something good for the environment... [and] initiating green practices before many become law is the smartest way to circumvent future problems.

California is legislating left and right,” he said. “The question is, do you want to [make changes] now when you can or wait until 2013 when you have to do it? I don’t know of any restaurant [company] that wants to be mandated to by government.”

Here's another idea: keep government out of the restaurant business and let the free market decide. But, in the case of California, I recommend that the state continue creating new regulations, agencies, boards, commissions, fees and taxes. It's been working out so well for them thus far.


Little-used 'Staple-and-bind' parliamentary procedure will allow Democrats to pass health bill with just nine votes in House, three in Senate

(Washington DC - RNN) Democrat insiders say that an obscure parliamentary procedure known as "Staple-and-Bind" will be used as an alternative to pass a health care overhaul should reconciliation efforts fail. "Staple-and-bind" refers to the final act of preparing legislation, using an industrial-grade stapler and a three-ring binder, for shipment.

"We take a trivial piece of legislation -- a resolution to honor Vin Diesel for his lifetime acting achievements, for instance," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

"At the very last second, the instant before we staple and bind the legislation, we can insert as many pages of new law as will fit in the binder," she said, "This will allow us to pass a meaningful, bipartisan health care reform bill that will benefit all Americans with just nine votes in the House and three votes in the Senate."

Politico's Mike Allen reported late this afternoon that Senate staffers were scouring the District for the largest American-made three-ring binder, the Avery Royale Deluxe. It is widely believed that the Royale is the only binder large enough to contain the entire 2,770-page health care reform bill.

Congressional Democrats have also purchased a Staple Jihad 5000 Nail Gun, the only street-legal stapler capable of binding the massive legislation. The propane-powered stapler can penetrate up to 3,000 8.5" x 11" pages, which leaves room for Democrats to nationalize other aspects of medical delivery including dentistry, veterinary medicine and crystal healing stones.


Larwyn's Linx: Full steam ahead on Obamacare hara-kiri

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Nation

Full steam ahead on Obamacare hara-kiri: Malkin
Plan C on Health Care?: Hot Air
Dear Lord, please let us replace John McCain...: Ace

Madame Speaker, Meet Reality: JRubin
Now, it's Obamacare, Junior: Pundette
Pelosi prepares fake "smaller" bill: Ace

Upward Bound is Downward Bound, But Rad Sex-Ed Is In!: GWP
Teachers union blocking education progress in Detroit: Marathon
Local Dems: Run Away! Run Away!: Marathon

Economy

Public sector unions and their donations: AT
Will There Be an End-Run Around the EFCA?: DelEmpLaw
Illinois 'near the point of fiscal disintegration': NewEd

Hoyer: nothin' we can do but raise taxes: DPU
Grim jobs number coming: Summers blames winter: JWF
Fed tax withholding plunge to new low: Zero Hedge

Are Unions Stymied under Obama?: RWN
The basis for tort reform: PJM
DPS (25% graduation rate) teachers' unions oppose highly qualified volunteer teachers: BlogProf

Climate & Energy

Gore not responsible for global warmicides: Malkin
EPA: 15 years of no global warming means there's warming: BlogProf
Al Gore Doubles Down: Six Meat

Al Gore ClimateGate: Mistakes - Not Just a Few: MagNote
The Goracle's Last Stand: RWN

Media

Debunking Some Emerging ACORN Liberal Myths: Patterico
Revealed: Media’s Phony Tea Party Leader Is a Phony Soldier Too: GWP
Democrats Rally Around Idea That They Have to Pass Unpopular Legislation to Prove They Can "Govern": Ace

NPR's ObamaCare Reporting: Corner
Dog Bites Man: Cold Fury
Liberty Loses a Voice: AT

Even state-run media demanding Rangel resign: Atlas
Eight Most Offensive Barack Obama Moments: Ranker

World

Does Ahmadinejad Want a Radioactive Cloud over Iran?: AT (Lewis)
Latest on the Holder-DOJ coverup: Malkin
A Face of Evil: EUR

Israel Pride Week: West Bank Mama
Dubai to Iran as Switzerland to Nazi Germany: HNN
Pali Hate Week starts Tomorrow: LegalIns

Where is the Red Line on Iran?: PJM
Nigerian Taliban denied freedom of religious expression: JWF
CAIR Hosts First US Appearance of Banned Jihadist Tariq Ramadan: Atlas

Obama Signals British That They Aren’t So Special: RWN

SciTech

Science and the Toxic Scare Machine: AT
The Top 25 Dangerous Programming Errors: SANS

Cornucopia

Indexer: C&S
Israeli martial art wins armies of devotees in the United States: SFgate
You can't fix stupid: Denny


Monday, March 01, 2010

Blue State Economic Success Story, Chapter 4,325: New York is $2 Billion In The Hole; Projections Assume Discovery of Massive Diamond Mine in Ithaca

California, Illinois, New Jersey -- and now, New York. Gee, isn't it great having Democrats run the whole country? Their command of economics is just so... je ne sais quoi...

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today warned that unlikely revenues included in the Deficit Reduction Plan and lower tax collections could increase the current year state deficit to more than $2 billion. In an analysis of the Governor’s amendments to the proposed 2010-11 state budget, DiNapoli found that for the state to meet current revenue projections, total General Fund tax revenues would need to grow by more than 46 percent in March.

To show you the miracle that is Democrat accounting, consider the following chart (click to zoominate):

Year to date tax collections have been below projections for most of the year, including over $1 billion in January alone (as compared to the Executive's January Planupdate). To reach year-end projections, collections will require 56 percent growth in the month of February and 46 percent in the month of March.

Well, I for one am confident that, since President Obama has saved or created four hundred and seventeen million jobs, New York is certain to get this kind of lift in revenue!

See those flying unicorns saddled up with money bags? There -- off in the distance? Why, it's another Obama miracle!


Andrew Sullivan's Boy Robin, Jonathan Bernstein: I don't really understand that filibuster thingy, but it must be kinda bad, I think

Jonathan Bernstein isn't the shiniest tool in the Atlantic's shed, which is why he serves a pinch-hitter for Andrew Sullivan. This is roughly equivalent to, in NBA terms, serving as Jon Koncak's backup in 1996.

See, Bernstein hasn't quite figured out the nuance of the filibuster.

The complex, advanced mathematics.

And all of the political machinations that make it so daunting to comprehend. Like, something about 60 votes.

...[It has become] a Senate in which the minority insists that almost every single item, controversial or not, needs 60 votes to pass (the new GOP standard in 2009) has changed the game...

Gee, Robin, and I thought the Democrats were the ones to invent the unconstitutional judicial filibuster: something that had never been done before! And they began engaging in this despicable practice specifically to prevent the first Hispanic judge -- Miguel Estrade -- from reaching DC's Court of Appeals.

If the Republicans had filibustered the stimulus, the climate/energy bill, the health care bill, and a handful of other things (card check, a few nominations) that their constituents intensely oppose, then I think filibuster reform would have remained a minor issue -- and the Republicans would be, as far as I can tell, not a whole lot worse off in terms of preventing legislation they actually care about. In fact, I think they would have been better off in many ways.

Last time I checked, Boy Wonder, a climate/energy bill and card check never made it to the Senate (thankfully) despite a Democrat supermajority.

Get it? Supermajority? That means the Republicans couldn't filibuster these things, Einstein. Get out your calculator and check. Don't worry, I'll wait here.

As for the ill-fated stimulus and health care bills, one additional news flash: a Republican was just elected Senator from Massachusetts. That means representative government worked. And the people, best I can tell, don't want their representatives screwing up anything more than they already have.

Now I know this article was really hard to understand, what with all the calculations and such, but get Andy to explain it to you one evening. Uncork a bottle of Pinot sometime this summer (I hear the Cape has beautiful beaches), and have Sully describe what all of this means in single-syllable words. Although, just to warn you, wine does not appear to be Andy's first choice as a recreational adjunct (*nudge* *nudge* *wink* *wink*).


In light of Chinese cyber attacks, flashback to 2003, when Microsoft started sharing source code with -- wait for it -- China's military

If you follow technology news even at a cursory level, you're likely aware of the massive information warfare campaign uncovered by Google recently. Attackers from Red China, which many experts believe to be the People's Liberation Army (PLA), compromised as many as 100 companies according to iSEC.

The attackers used a method called "spear-phishing." These are highly targeted and enticing emails ("Hey, Joe -- check out this salary spreadsheet I found!") that contain a link to an attack website. When the victims clicked on the links, their Internet Explorer 6 browsers were compromised using zero-day exploits ("zero-day" means the attacks were previously unknown). Once the browsers were attacked, the victims' machines were fully controlled by the PLA, providing network reconnaissance, key-logging, screen-shots and pretty much anything else the attackers wanted.

What were the attackers' goals? It would appear that lifting source code from companies like Google and Adobe would be job one. That would allow them to "look inside" the secret sauce and craft new zero-day exploits, which would permit them to burrow deeper into corporate and defense-related networks.

Flashback to 2003


In light of this attack, I recalled the following CNet article from 2003: China looks into Windows code.

The Chinese government has set up a lab to study Microsoft Windows source code... The Source Code Browsing Lab--set up in Beijing last week--is part of an existing government-run software site, the China Testing and Certification Center for Information Security Products, according a report in the People's Daily newspaper.

Microsoft is the first commercial software company to have signed an agreement for the browsing of its operating system source code with the Chinese government, said the report, which hinted that the lab is also open to other commercial software companies that wish to have their products certified for security.

The report stressed the need for checking Windows source code for security loopholes, especially in light of recent attacks. PCs running Windows software were recently the target of high-profile attacks by the Slammer and MSBlast viruses.

However, previous reports have said that the search for backdoors installed by national intelligence agencies is also among the aims of the agreement.

China--potentially a huge market for Microsoft, once the problem of software piracy is solved--has seen wholehearted government support for open-source operating systems such as Linux. In response, Microsoft has drawn up policies to develop closer ties with officials and to open up its Windows source code for inspection...

That's right: Microsoft gave (and perhaps still gives) the PLA access to its critical source code. This wouldn't be so bad if everyone had the same rights -- but they don't.

It would seem that China has a leg up when it comes to crafting attacks for Microsoft products. One wonders whether the IE6 hack came from knowledge gleaned by this "sharing program". In addition, we could speculate that China has numerous other zero-day exploits stockpiled, just like an arsenal, waiting for the day when further attacks are necessary.

And that's reason #747 why open source software is generally considered more secure than closed source: there's a level playing field when it comes to security.


Related Reading


• For anyone still using Internet Explorer: Download Firefox for fast, free and more secure web browsing
• For IT professionals: 'Can we trust any technology that comes from China?'
• For IT security professionals: iSEC's Aurora Response Recommendations (PDF)
• Background information: Pwnt: The Terrifying State of Cyberwarfare Today
• Background information: Anatomy of a Cyber-Espionage Attack, likely by the Chinese Military


Chris Christie reins in New Jersey's shadow government

The more I read about Governor Chris Christie, the more I like him. In what should be a model for the federal government, Christie is trying to de-fund New Jersey's "shadow government." By that I mean the unelected hack regulatory bodies that do nothing but impede commerce and torment the citizenry.

They run airports and regulate charity bingo. They borrow money to build schools and try to ban bikini waxes.

They provide "soft landings" — complete with fat salaries and pensions — to allies of the politically powerful. And they spend billions of public dollars every year.

Now New Jersey’s 700 boards, authorities and commissions are being dragged from obscurity into the crosshairs of Gov. Chris Christie, who has slashed their spending and ordered a broad review that could put some out of existence.

It’s a mission as wide-ranging and complicated as the entities themselves, many of them unique kingdoms with their own budgets, structures and standards.

"I’ve been involved in local politics since the mid-1970s, and I don’t have an answer to why some authorities work efficiently and why some are just dumping grounds for political hacks," said Jim Freeman, a longtime member of the Plainfield Area Regional Sewerage Authority. "I wish I did know. I would have the answer to the biggest problem in New Jersey."

Christie is not the first governor to try to rein in the state’s "shadow government," and some reforms have been made after abuses were documented by watchdogs. But Christie broke new ground last week with an executive order limiting state authorities’ ability to hire lobbyists, offer employee severance packages and pay for travel and entertainment greater than $250.

There are roughly 750 authority employees who earn over $100K a year, topped off by the $313,000 salary of the soon-to-be-retired Pessaic Valley Sewage Commissioner.

Christie's model, in my uninformed opinion, is perfect for the federal government too.

How much damage could the Department of Labor and the EPA do if their total funding was restricted to, say, $50 million? I say we cap-and-trade their damn budgets.


To be (a lawyer) or not to be...

Larwyn received this "over the transom". Perhaps some of our reporters-in-training can give Biff Spackle a run for his money and chase down these leads. It's been a while since ol' Biff had a scoop, ya' know.

To be (a lawyer) or not to be...


Is the President's resume accurate when it comes to his career and qualifications? I can corroborate that Obama's "teaching career" at Chicago was, to put it kindly, a sham.

I spent some time with the highest tenured faculty member at Chicago Law a few months back, and he did not have many nice things to say about "Barry." Obama applied for a position as an adjunct and wasn't even considered. A few weeks later the law school got a phone call from the Board of Trustees telling them to find him an office, put him on the payroll, and give him a class to teach. The Board told him he didn't have to be a member of the faculty, but they needed to give him a temporary position. He was never a professor and was hardly an adjunct.

The other professors hated him because he was lazy, unqualified, never attended any of the faculty meetings, and it was clear that the position was nothing more than a political stepping stool. According to my professor friend, he had the lowest intellectual capacity in the building. He also doubted whether he was legitimately an editor on the Harvard Law Review, because if he was, he would be the first and only editor of an Ivy League law review to never be published while in school (publication is or was a requirement).

Consider this: 1. President Barack Obama, former editor of the Harvard Law Review, is no longer a "lawyer". He surrendered his license back in 2008 possibly to escape charges that he "fibbed" on his bar application.

2. Michelle Obama "voluntarily surrendered" her law license in 1993.

3. So, we have the President and First Lady - who don't actually have licenses to practice law. Facts.

4. A senior lecturer is one thing. A fully ranked law professor is another. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, "Obama did NOT 'hold the title' of a University of Chicago law school professor". Barack Obama was NOT a Constitutional Law professor at the University of Chicago.

5. The University of Chicago released a statement in March, 2008 saying Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) "served as a professor" in the law school, but that is a title Obama, who taught courses there part-time, never held, a spokesman for the school confirmed in 2008.

6. "He did not hold the title of professor of law," said Marsha Ferziger Nagorsky, an Assistant Dean for Communications and Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago School of Law.

7. The former Constitutional senior lecturer cited the U.S. Constitution recently during his State of the Union Address. Unfortunately, the quote he cited was from the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution.

8. The B-Cast posted the video.

9. In the State of the Union Address, President Obama said: "We find unity in our incredible diversity, drawing on the promise enshrined in ourConstitution: the notion that we are all created equal."

10. By the way, the promises are not a notion, our founders named them unalienable rights. The document is our Declaration of Independence and it reads: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

11. And this is the same guy who lectured the Supreme Court moments later in the same speech?

When you are a phony it's hard to keep facts straight.

President Barack Obama - Editor of the Harvard Law Review - Has No Law License?:

I saw a note slide across the #TCOT feed on Twitter last night that mentioned Michelle Obama had no law license. This struck me as odd, since(a) she went to school to be a lawyer, and (b) she just recently held a position with the University of Chicago Hospitals as legal counsel - and that's a pretty hard job to qualify for without a law license. But being a licensed professional myself, I knew that every state not only requires licensure, they make it possible to check online the status of any licensed professional.

So I did, and here's the results from the ARDC Website: She "voluntarily surrendered" her license in 1993. Let me explain what that means. A "Voluntary Surrender" is not something where you decide "Gee, a license is not really something I need anymore, is it?" and forget to renew your license. No, a "Voluntary Surrender" is something you do when you've been accused of something, and you "voluntarily surrender" your license five seconds before the state suspends you. Here's an illustration: I'm a nurse.

At various times in my 28 years of nursing, I've done other things when I got burned out; most notably a few years as a limousine driver; even an Amway salesman at one point. I always,always renewed my nursing license - simply because it's easier to send the state $49.00 a month than to pay the $200, take a test, wait six weeks,etc., etc. . . I've worked (recently) in a Nursing Home where there was an 88 year old lawyer and a 95 year old physician. Both of them still had current licenses as well. They would never DREAM of letting their licenses lapse. I happen to know there is currently in the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, Indiana an inmate who is a licensed physician,convicted of murder when he chased the two burglars who entered his home and terrorized his family into the street and killed them. (And I can't say I blame him for that, either.)

This physician still has an active medical license and still sees patients, writes prescriptions, etc. all from inside the prison. And he renews his medical license every two years, too. I tried looking up why she would "Voluntarily surrender" her license, but Illinois does not have its 1993 records online. But when I searched for "Obama", I found this:

"Voluntarily retired" - what does that mean? Bill Clinton hung onto his law license until he was convicted of making a false statement in the Lewinsky case and had to "Voluntarily Surrender" his license too.

As usual, all feedback -- especially rumors, innuendo and outright speculation -- is welcome.


Update on 3/8/2010: Most Transparent President Ever Has Illinois Bar Records Partially Redacted This Week, Leaving Only Trace of His Existence Some Old Videos (Betamax).


Linked by: Ace o' Spades and Confederate Yankee. Thanks!

Larwyn's Linx: Pelosi to Democrats -- Screw the People's Will

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Nation

Pelosi: Screw the People's Will: RWN
Obama Fatigue: Hanson
Roy Blunt needs some education about Tea Partiers: BMW

Disappointing Leon: AT
Photos: Today we are one: Zombie
Bombing attempted Friday in NYC?: TAB

Government by whim is anarchy, or worse: WashExam
No end in sight for 'virtual' border fence: Times
Pelosi: Rangel Stays, for Now: WashExam

Jim Bunning's Finest Hour: RWN
Kiss of death: Reid tanks after Obama visit: JWF
Dear Sen. Inhofe: Please Expose the Kleptocrats: CBullitt

Two Obama comments may cost him health care: Riehl
Misery, Thy Name Is Bureaucracy: AT

Economy

The CBO Jobs Report Was Pre-Ordained: BlogProf
Obama's Auto Insurance: iOTW
Welfare Unreform: Obama returns the poor to dependency: Times

Climate & Energy

U.S. temperatures: adjusted or massaged?: RWN
Where are the Arctic temperature stations?: Virtuous
Drill here, drill now, drill better: JOdysseus

A Wishful Truth: Crittenden
Gore on ClimateGate: "The issue here is not whether we broke a few rules or took a few liberties with our female guests. We did. (Wink.)": Ace
Graph of the Day: AT (Hoven)

Yet another final nail: iOTW

Media

"If Our Colleges And Universities Do Not Breed Men Who Riot…": Driscoll
Who's obsessed and deranged?: Power Line
Media obsession with multicultural Britain: STACLU

Democrats will impose Obamacare no matter the cost: Hewitt
Cuttlefish squirts out ink in the Post: Barone
The Al Gore Comedy Hour: PJM

NYT: Reid, Pelosi in trouble on Obamacare: Surber
A Great Ad: iOTW

World

UK's Labour Party Infiltrated: GoV
Geert Wilders Slams Socialist Islamic Alliance: Atlas
Islamic Iran's Ahmadinejad: "existence of Jewish Homeland is an insult to the entire humanity": Atlas

The Northern Tinder Box: Spyer
The 7 Reasons to Support Israel: Joyce Kaufman
Lt. Col. Allen West in Support of Israel: Allen West

How's that Syrian Engagement Working Out?: JRubin
Victims of Radical Islam: Christianity’s Modern-Day Martyrs: S, C & A
China's Real Estate Bubble: Prairie

Hilary Clinton's Congressional Testimony Shows What's Wrong with U.S. Foreign Policy: BRubin
Chinese Spy Buy Caught on Video: Times
The gun-toting boys from Brazil who rule Rio’s ‘Corner of Fear’: Times of London

SciTech

How did we live before social psychology?: Dewey
What is needed to fight the cyber-war: Prairie

Cornucopia

Today's celebrity WTF WTF: SondraK
Ah, so *that’s* why the new WH social secretary.: Moe Lane
I loves me some Vegas: SondraK


Sunday, February 28, 2010

Exclusive: Transcript of President's secret meeting with Congressional Democrats to discuss strategy for passing health care



A man becomes president...

...he's expected to have...

...enthusiasms.

Enthusiasms!

Enthusiasms.

What are mine?

What draws my admiration?

What is that which gives me joy?

Nationalization!

A president stands alone in the White House.

This is the time for what?

Individual achievement!!

There he stands alone.

But the House of Representatives, the Senate, the SEIU, the community organizers, ACORN... Part. Of. A. Team.

...uhm, teamwork... ehm... teamwork...

Agitates, organizes, registers dead people to vote, supports the government!

Part of one... big... team!

Works for the party, the people, all the live-long day...

...Ayers, Hoffa...

...Alinsky...

...and so on.

If his team don't organize... help nationalize health care...

What is he?

You follow me?

No one.

...

*** THWAKK!!! ***

*** THWAKK!!! ***

*** THWAKK!!! ***

You got that, Stupak?

You got that?

Get someone to clean this s*** up, Rahmmie.