Thursday, August 25, 2011

AT&T reveals T-Mobile acquisition truly about helping rural subscribers and killing competition but mostly killing competition

Consider this Exhibit 2,034 proving that Washington, DC is the world's capitol of crony capitalism.

AT&T Inc. was asked Wednesday for more details on why it needs to acquire wireless operator T-Mobile, following the disclosure—accidentally released by its lawyers—that it could have expanded its high-speed wireless service to most Americans for one-tenth of the T-Mobile purchase price...


...The request by regulators to AT&T highlights the central issue in the proposed $39 billion acquisition: whether the combined company would benefit consumers enough to overcome concerns that the deal could limit wireless competition...

...Earlier this month, AT&T sent a letter to the FCC about the merger, intending to protect sections of confidential data from the publicly available version. Lawyers accidentally filed an unredacted copy, which was available briefly on the FCC's website before it was removed at AT&T's request... The full version says that AT&T had considered and rejected plans to expand the network on its own to 97% of the U.S. at a cost of $3.8 billion. That's about a tenth of the cost of the proposed T-Mobile acquisition...

As an aside, this kind of blunder has the imprimatur of the Mistress of Disaster written all over it.

Of course, I feel certain that our completely aboveboard and ethical federal government would never permit AT&T to reassemble itself into a government-subsidized monopoly like the old Ma Bell. After all, the old telephone monopoly did its level best to crush competition, destroy innovation and shackle the Internet, once going so far as to threaten customers using WiFi routers that they were committing a 'federal crime'.

No, I'm sure that AT&T isn't trying to destroy competition through federal regulators. The fact that AT&T employs 93 lobbyists and spent $15.5 million lobbying last year alone is, I'm sure, purely coincidental.



Larwyn's Linx: Death By Amnesty

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

Nation

Death By Amnesty: RWN
Obama Tries to Spin Out of Responsibility: NewMedia
Tea Party Responds to Maxine Waters 'Go to Hell' Screed: Bruce

Pander-mandate-mania!: Malkin
Perry Leads the Field By... 12: Ace
Some Dems Think the Unthinkable: Not Obama: Des Moines Register

Economy

CBO: Deficit To Fall If Many Preposterous Things Happen: Ace
Even the CBO projects trouble for Obama: AmSpec
What do the Red Queen and the CBO have in common?: Viking

Obama’s Newest Way To Let Unions Avoid Disclosure Rules: RWN
Obamacare today: 10% of employers may drop coverage: WZ
California $382,519 Prison Doctor: What Budget Deficit?: Bloomberg

Obama’s Jobs Plan Downgraded To 'Some Ideas': WZ
Obama in ’08: Bush’s debt “unpatriotic”: Commentary
Gold "The World's Currency": Mish

Climate & Energy

Obama’s EPA Imposes Cap & Trade: RWN
Obama's fabrications on "regulation reform": Marathon
Obama Briefed on Hurricane Irene – Goes Golfing: GWP

Media

‘He’s not Jimmy Carter. He’s Tiger Woods’: Driscoll
American Regulatory Overload Courtesy Of Mark Steyn: RWN
2003 Flashback: Bush gives up golf -- "sends wrong message" during a war: CNS

You Can’t Always Come Back, Baby—Because YouTube Never Forgets: Driscoll
The Krugman Earthquake Stimulus Fakeout: Hayward
Paul Krugman on How to Spot Fake Paul Krugman Quotes: Malkin

Pity the rubes who watched Glenn Beck and bought gold at $800: Surber
Flailing Obama in the Black Community: PJM
Cheney: My book will have ‘heads exploding’ in D.C. : MSNBC

World

Iranian Regime: Islamic Spring Has Prepared Grounds For Final Victory Over Zionist Regime: GWP
Glenn Beck Takes Courage to a New Level at Jerusalem Rally: NoisyRm
With Glenn Beck by the Temple’s Walls: BRubin

The Middle East Mess: Hanson
Exposing Hizballah’s Front Groups: How Islamists use deception to protect their funders: PJM
London’s anti-gun zealots ban children from Olympic shooting events in city ticket giveaway: Malkin

Muslim Brotherhood in Our White House and the Murder of SEAL Team Six: NoisyRm
Israeli Legal Group Credits Rick Perry With Helping Effort To Stop Gaza “Freedom Flotilla”: WZ
Congressman Allen West Urges Israel Not To Apologize To Turkey: WZ

Sci-Tech

Steve Jobs Resigns, Apple's Deep Bench Faces Challenges: WSJ
Google, Motorola and the Patent Wars: WSJ
The Flash Mob Method of Scientific Inquiry: Coulter

Cornucopia

Massages, vodka and 5-star hotels: First Lady spending $10m in public money on vacations: Daily Mail
Han and Leia - The Deleted Scene: Ace
McDonald's Unveils New Senior Citizen PlayPlace: Onion

Image: Boston Globe
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "I recently had drinks with respected senior Democrats in New Hampshire. They were Barack Obama supporters in 2008 and now have serious buyer’s remorse.

They were alarmed at the lack of leadership... "He’s worse than Bill Clinton. It’s all about the Big O... I think we need a write-in candidate for the 2012 Iowa Democratic caucuses and Hillary would be my choice.”” --Steffen Schmidt

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Self-preservation is all the rage in Europe

Dan from New York:

As I’ve noted before, reports of the death of European culture are premature. Europeans will return to their roots and repel the encroachment of Islam in European societies. They’ve done it before. The French and the Germans have already thrown down their gauntlets, banning the burqa and declaring multiculturalism a failure. Now the Greeks seem to be stirring too. So when will we wake up? That’s anyone’s guess, but it won’t come before the reign of Obama ends.

Shariah Abolished for Greek Muslims


I, for one, would start by profiling Militant Quakers.



Study: Public Support for Obama Tragical Misery Bus Tour Slightly Below Hypothetical "Jersey Shore Plays the Philharmonic"

Although I'm sure Snookie would make a decent tenor:

Obama's Midwest tour last week prompted more criticism and ridicule than support on Twitter, according to this week’s Hill Hexagon.

Regardless of what President Obama and his political advisers had hoped for, the three-state Midwest bus tour last week prompted far more criticism and ridicule than support in Twitter comments, according to this week’s Hill Hexagon.

An analysis of Twitter traffic by Crimson Hexagon over the days of the tour showed that 72 percent of the opinions expressed were negative, while 22 percent were neutral and only 6 percent were favorable.

Neutral comments were primarily mentions of the stops he made on his tour and what he said and did while on it. The favorable reaction came along the lines that previous presidents have conducted similar tours and relief that Obama was making the case for his policies...

In related news, David Axelrod doubled the dosage of his blood pressure medication.



Photo: DC Earthquake Actually Cracked The Washington Monument

The quake was felt from Toronto in the north, to Louisville in the west, to Columbus, Georgia in the south and Cape Cod, Massachusetts in the east. Given the scale, it's truly amazing that the damage wasn't significantly worse than what's been reported

For most Washington residents, an earthquake in the nation’s capital seems about as likely as a foot of snow in Malibu. And yet, as Tuesday’s temblor shows, no region in the country is actually immune from the movement of the earth’s crust...

...The difference in geology is a main reason why the moderate earthquake centered near rural Mineral, Va., could cause a four-foot-long crack in the Washington Monument and be felt as far away as Toronto, while Western quakes, even if they are stronger, tend not to travel as far... (The Washington Monument remains closed while the National Park Service awaits a damage assessment from structural engineers.)

...The Sierra Nevada mountain range that dominates the West Coast pushed up some 40 to 60 million years ago, whereas the Appalachians date back 400 million years or more. The relatively recent and ongoing activity in the West means that there are 10 times more fractures in the surface rock – which tend to dampen earthquake transmission – than in the East.

By contrast, the East coast mountains are much lower, with much more of the original rock now compressed into the valleys, creating a long and uninterrupted rock structure to transmit the power of the quake, Professor Castner says...

Funny, the Appalachians don't look a day over 399 million years old.



China: Working Around the Clock to Lock Up Fossil Fuels While Obama's EPA Systematically Destroys America's Energy Infrastructure

As the EPA, the Department of the Interior and the State Department do their level best to suppress exploitation of America's domestic energy sources, the Red Chinese are on the move, 24 by seven, 365, around the globe.

China joins shale gas hunt: "China approved its first shale gas exploration tender in July, awarding two blocks in the Sichuan Basin to China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, or Sinopec, and a Henan provincial state-owned company... Last year, PetroChina Co, the country's top listed gas producer and a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), started drilling two shale exploration wells in Sichuan province. PetroChina said earlier it aims to produce 500 million cubic meters of shale gas by 2015."

Beijing switches its allegiance to major oil supplier's rebel council: "CHINA HAS called for “a stable transition of power” in Libya and said it had made contact with the rebels there, a sign it has switched allegiances from Muammar Gadafy in a bid to ensure the flow of oil from Libya is not jeopardised... While Beijing backed Col Gadafy initially – as an authoritarian government itself, Beijing is not quick to call for the demise of other such regimes – it had also been stepping up engagement with Libyan rebel leaders in recent months."

China and Iran Join Hands on Oil: "Recently, an oil deal was done between China and Iran; they’re bypassing the US dollar by having a trade agreement for the oil. If you look at what China has done in East Africa, you can see that Chinese firms are investing heavily in the region to secure future oil production."

In the mean time, the Obama administration's Cloward-Piven strategy is literally dismantling the United States' energy industry piece by systematic piece. Our infrastructure is truly being hollowed out from within, not unlike an infestation of termites inside a home's foundation.



The fact that Microsoft's IE team is poking fun at anyone seems to me, er, rather ill-advised

Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) team has traditionally sent a faux congratulatory cake to Moxilla's Firefox team whenever the latter introduces a new release.

IE team pokes fun at rapid-release Firefox 6: Matching Firefox's new rapid-release development cycle, Microsoft's Internet Explorer team has downsized the traditional congratulatory cake it sends to its browser rival...

The new cake arrived last week to Mozilla upon shipment of Firefox 6. Jonathan Nightingale, director of Firefox engineering for Mozilla, posted a photo of the cake on Flickr.

Of course, given the changes in browser market share of late...

...I'd recommend the IE team spend a little bit more time on open standards and less on spanking the Mozilla Foundation.



Fake Paul Krugman mimics "pathologically deranged and homicidal psychopath" so well that the real Paul Krugman is forced to refute charges

If there's anyone in legacy media worthy of a satire this good, it is the despicable, left wing, hackish, slobbering, stuttering twit of a nincompoop named Paul Krugman. And that's the introductory phrase he prefers, I hear.

We truly can only hope that this Google Plus account of Paul Krugman is merely a well-orchestrated parody, because if it is indeed that of the self-styled uber-Keynesian, the time for the public outrage, his economic beliefs aside, has arrived. In a blast post..., which should immediately result in the termination of the Nobel prize winning economist if it was indeed penned by him, this particular account of "Paul Krugman" writes:

"People on twitter might be joking, but in all seriousness, we would see a bigger boost in spending and hence economic growth if the earthquake had done more damage."

Translation...well it's pretty obvious, but for those laboring under the aftermath of a full frontal lobotomy, the person who tweeted this essentially yearns for his voodoo economic religion to be validated following countless failures of Keynesianism (no, really, after this latest injection of Xx *illion dollars into the economy things will really be well), at the expense of death and destruction...

This is about as close as we will get to a Keynesian admitting that reparations for death and destruction are the only two special clauses under which fiscal stimulus does work. Which of course means that with idiots such as the poster of the above who actually thinks this, be it Krugman or some of his countless voodoo brethren, and with their proximity to the president, the only logical explanation is that a war is coming, and is being welcomed by all these s[h|c]am "economists", for whom human death and suffering is a fair tradeoff in preserving their tenure or modestly-paid, liberal publication blogging jobs. If this indeed Krugman's account, it is imperative that the NYT immediately terminate this pathologically deranged and homicidal psychopath. Institutionalization in a mentally insane ward may be a proper subsequent action.

Well, it turns out that the author of the Google+ page really wasn't Paul Krugman, but that fact certainly shouldn't change any of Durden's verbiage, in my opinion.

Because, this is the same guy arguing that the government should lie about an impending alien invasion... seriously... to justify even more government borrowing and wealth redistribution. The real Krugman was, in fact, forced to defend himself against this latest missive simply because it sounded so bizarre, so unstable, and so totalitarian that it could have only come from the real Krugman.

Or a masterful satirist.

I wonder where IowaHawk was last night?



Larwyn's Linx: 5 Most Catastrophic Hidden Costs of the Obama Presidency

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

Nation

The Five Catastrophic Hidden Costs of the Obama Presidency: Shiver
The Recognition of Reality: Denninger
What Really Happened to the National Cathedral in the Quake: Wire

Meet the first White House deportation waiver winners: Malkin
Unexpectedly, Dems Demonize Tea Party, play race card: Ace
Do you understand yet?: GreenMnt

Social Security’s Disability Program Faces Empty Trust Fund: Foundry
Wisconsin Republicans Rule in Recall Rebound: HE
West: Obama 'Shredding' Constitution With Stealth Amnesty: WZ

Economy

Keynesian Solutions - After Total Failure -Try, Try Again: ZH
$1.2 Trillion in Secret Loans to Wall Street Crony Capitalists: RWN
Obama Labor Dept. Redefines 'Employer', Excluding Union Bosses: BG

“White House to Scale Back Regulations on Businesses”: ProWis
Spending, not entitlements, created huge deficit: York
Union label doesn't stick at VW's Tennessee plant: Exam

Climate & Energy

Obama’s “Industrial Sabotage” Devastates the Gulf: Power Line
Standing Accused of "Climate Change Racism": RWN
No Spark: The Unanswered Questions of the Chevy Volt: RWN

Media

Politifact-less: Surber
Tea Party: ‘Small-Minded, Fear-Driven, Superstitious Lovers of Authoritarianism’?: RSM
After Golf, Obama Visits CEO of MSNBC Parent Company: FoxNation

The Death of the Tea Party Movement (Re-re-redux): Wrinkles
Gallup: Obama’s Approval Drops to 38%: Malkin
Oh My: Obama Took Conference Call About DC Earthquake... While Remaining Resolutely On Golf Course: Ace

The Cynical Politics of Compromise: NRO
Quote of the Day: Driscoll
Roger Cohen Discovers Antisemitism: PJM

NBC: ‘Go For Broke,’ Obama! Cloward and Piven Could Not Be Reached For Comment: Driscoll
Researchers: Tea Partiers Are Xenophobic, Fear Change, And Cling Bitterly To Their Guns and Religion: Ace
Health Insurance Isn't Car Insurance: AmSpec

World

Israeli-Arab Crisis Approaching: Stratfor
Egyptians in Terror Attack? Warning from Egypt to Israel? Where is U.S. Leadership? Playing Golf: BRubin
Jon Voight Rides Into Jerusalem: NoisyRm

ATF Death Watch 62: Chaos vs. Control: Truth About Guns
M3 Report: Mexico in ‘civil war’ with drug gangs: Tucson Citizen (Caution: Graphic Photos)
Syrian President Assad To President Obama: Your Words Are Worthless: BigPeace

Sci-Tech

Paperless Flight Deck: 11,000 iPads going to all United and Continental pilots: MarketWatch
First malware using Android Gingerbreak root exploit: Sophos
Web Surfing At Work Can Boost Productivity: Slashdot

Cornucopia

Petty Officer Jon T. Tumilson and friend "Hawkeye": C&S
E-Mail From Ron: Denny
Top 10 funniest tweets about Gaddafi’s downfall: C&S

Image: What Really Happened to the National Cathedral in the Quake (Atlantic)
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Defend Michael Behanna

QOTD: "If a hostile nation drove our drilling rigs out of the Gulf of Mexico, it would be an act of war." --John Hinderaker

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Latest Hurricane Map [Biff Spackle]

Biff Spackle located this up-to-date hurricane map:

Faster, please.


Hat tip: D&S.

The Section 1603 Scam: $8 Billion of Your Money Redistributed For "Clean Energy Properties" ... So Far

When the final damage assessment of the Obama administration is written -- hopefully not long after the 2012 election -- I am convinced that we will find evidence of the most massive organized criminal operation in history. Literally trillions of dollars of your grandchildren's money will have been stolen: to give to public sector unions for recycled campaign donations; to send to crony capitalists for similar reasons; and granted to failed "green energy" companies that are using the mantle of environmentalism to disguise their real motives.

Consider the "Section 1603" scam -- a confluence of TurboTax Timmy's Treasury Department and the EPA. Part of the so-called "Stimulus", the 1603 Program has thus far spent $8.5 billion in direct payments to organizations in lieu of tax credits when they build "clean energy properties".

What kinds of properties can receive cash payments rather than tax credits? I'm glad you asked:

And here is the list of roughly 3,600 organizations that have "taken advantage" of this generous gift from generations yet unborn to the green energy industry.

The entire list of those receiving awards may be downloaded from the Treasury Department (XLS format).

I feel certain that a careful review of these awards will find rampant examples of fraud, partisan payoffs, theft and other examples of outright criminality. But perhaps I'm just a cynic.

In fact, maybe the intrepid pro journalists at The New York Times could take a look, unless they're too busy vetting Michele Bachmann's geneaology.


Hat tip: The Defensive Back.


Graph: The Obama Financial Anxiety Index Level™ (O-FAIL for short)

I believe I've come up with an excellent proxy for the level of economic distress felt around the world thanks to our feckless Democrat leaders. I call it O-FAIL, which stands for Obama Financial Anxiety Index Level™.

O-FAIL takes all of the world's instability, hysteria, deficit spending, money printing, fears of energy disruption, terrorism and war -- and encapsulates them into a single, easy-to-understand number.

The higher O-FAIL gets, the worse things are around the world. Check out the O-FAIL index. You can see that over the past couple of years, immediately after the election of Barack Obama, it began going parabolic.

O-FAIL is also known as the price of gold.

The last time it was this high, in inflation-adjusted terms, one James Earl Carter was President. Enough said.


Hat tip: Post1.org. Linked by: Ace o' Spades. Thanks!

Obamas campaign in Minnesota [Biff Spackle]

Biff Spackle reports that the Obamas were spotted campaigning in Minnesota recently:

These photo’s were taken at Scandia’s annual Parade. Scandia is a small town in Minnesota, north of the Twin Cities.

For those who don’t recognize it, the trailer behind the tractor.

It is a manure-spreader...

Apt.


Hat tip: Larwyn.


Maps of East Coast Earthquake

A major earthquake centered near Washington, D.C. occurred around 2pm ET today. The U.S. Geological Survey stated that it received over "10,000 reports of felt shaking ... from more than 3400 zip codes all over the eastern United States."

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck the National Capital Area on Tuesday, August 23, at 1:51p.m. (EDT), causing moderate shaking and potentially significant damage, and was felt throughout Northern Virginia and neighboring areas. No casualties are expected.

The earthquake occurred near Louisa and Mineral, Va., approximately 100 miles southwest of Washington, DC. It was a shallow earthquake, and shaking was recorded all along the Appalachians, from Georgia to New England... There have been several aftershocks.

...The earthquake occurred in the Central Virginia Seismic Zone, which has produced earthquakes in the past. The most notable was an earthquake that occurred in 1875 that scientists believe was about a magnitude 4.5... This earthquake is almost as strong as the strongest recorded earthquake in Virginia, a magnitude 5.9, which occurred in May 1897 in Giles County, Va. The strongest recorded earthquake to strike the East Coast was the 1886 Charleston, S.C., earthquake, which was about a magnitude 7.3.

The Wall Street Journal notes that:

Meanwhile, a 5.3 magnitude quake also struck Colorado Monday night, about 180 miles south of Denver...

It was the biggest quake in that state in 40 years. If you're wondering about a pattern here, and looking for a culprit, we're sure someone will soon blame global warming.

Shhh. Don't give the moonbats any ideas.



Larwyn's Linx: Obama still doesn't get it

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

Nation

Obama still doesn't get it: Betsy
Biden's Sympathy for the Devil: Pundette
What happened when Katy Perry tweeted 'Pray for Israel': Malkin

Anti-Americanism Disguised as Ethnic Studies in Tucson Schools: RWN
Back-Door Amnesty Fail: Obama Down to 44% Approval With Hispanics: WZ
Dems Using Jon Huntsman’s Words to Blast Republicans: GWP

Palin Will Make Major Announcement at Indianola Rally: GWP
Cargill gives Muslim workers gender-segregated prayer space: Creeping
Cummings: Obama should bypass Congress, dictate laws: RWN

Economy

Who didn't see this coming?: ProWis
General Motors Again Ripping Off Americans: Warranties Edition: BG
Welfare Reform Turns 15: Foundry

Economy poised to make Obama a one-termer: Pethokoukis
today’s KisP not so fun facts: Sondrakistan
Gold nears $1,900; Venezuela: BOE must ship its bullion by sea: ZH

Dem Rep Cites Racism for Black Unemployment: NB
Apology Accepted, Captain Needa: Driscoll
Something else for taxpayers to grouse about: RWN

Climate & Energy

The EPA's Looming Blackouts: IBD
Britain’s Wind Farm Scam Threatens Economic Recovery: Watts
Where will we plug in?: Wired

Media

Koch Schools Buffet: ProWis
Who Is Richard Kramer? Director of ‘Mental Health Professionals’ Group Admits His Own Attraction to Minors: RSM
Are CNBC’s Ratings Correlated to Volatility? (Yes): BigPic

In Race To Replace Anthony Weiner, NYT Surprised To Find New Yorkers Aren't Thrilled With Obama: Ace
Coulter on media's vetting of GOP candidates: ‘Can We Get The Ad To Find Obama’s Cocaine Dealer?’: Mediaite
No Visible Obama Support in Provincetown (Massachusetts): BermanPost

Baghdad Bob: People Should Ignore Obama Vacation Pics Because He Still Gets 'Secret Messages': WZ
The New Civility, Michigan Governor Edition: BlogProf
Time Mag Movie Review: G.W.Bush and Rick Perry Just Like Blood Thirsty Conan The Barbarian: RWN

World

Slip-Up in Chinese military TV show reveals it waging cyber warfare against US entities: Epoch Times
It’s a Real War, Stupid. A Big War. A Worthy Challenge for America: Ledeen
Somalia’s Islamists Are … Retreating?: PJM

Get ready for Armageddon: Macleans
New Libya. An Islamic Caliphate Supporting Terror?: Lid
Glenn Beck Ignites Spark of Hope in Speech at Caesarea: NoisyRm

Ahmadinejad Again Calls For Destruction Of Israel: Cut Out “The Infected Tumor Of The Zionist Regime”: WZ
Islamic Spring… Egyptians Protest Outside Israeli Embassy Chanting “The Gas Chambers Are Ready”: GWP
World Youth Day Pilgrims Mocked, Harassed, Spit On & Threatened By Leftists in Madrid: GWP

Sci-Tech

Television Kills You, Slowly: Kedrosky
GingerMaster Is First Malware To Utilize A Root Exploit On Android 2.3: DarkReading
Tumblr's Amazing Success Shows The Importance Of Design For Startups: Insider

Cornucopia

Our Nationally Lampooned V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N: MOTUS
Obama family participates in Minnesota parade: RollinSD
Photo Ops: Sondrakistan

10 Awesome Reasons to Live Off the Grid: BizPundit
Obama Meme – Like Sands Through The Hourglass...: SHN
Officer, Arrest That Man With The Big Breasts!: TSG

Image: iOwnTheWorld
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "It may not be quite Obama telling us to buy stocks as he did on March 6 due to attractive "profits and earnings ratios", but it is about as close as him advising it is time for everyone to do their patriotic duty and buy shares of floundering Wells Fargo:

OBAMA CALLED BUFFETT TO DISCUSS MEASURES FOR SPURRING ECONOMY

We can't wait to hear what 'altruistic', taxpayer bailout-funded ideas the Octogenarian of Omaha had. In the meantime we wonder: just why does Obama have an economic advisory team. Oh wait, after everyone bailed on him, Obama has no economic advisors left at all. Carry on then." --Tyler Durden

Monday, August 22, 2011

Crony Marxism: Chuck Schumer blocks EPA from enforcing bizarre water regulation in New York; other states not so fortunate

It turns out that there is at least one way to stop the EPA: sic Chuck Schumer on 'em. I think we can call this "Crony Marxism":

For seven years, the Portland Water Bureau and several activist groups have been fighting a national Environmental Protection Agency requirement stating that the city must cover its iconic reservoirs to protect against cryptosporidium—a bacteria that testing has repeatedly shown isn't a threat in Rose City water (though apparently drunken urination is).

In March, it looked like the city had lost and would have to spend $500 million to cover the city's five reservoirs and build an ultraviolet treatment plant or be found in violation of federal law. Altogether, the apparently-not-necessary public health project would add an $21 to an average water user's monthly bill.

But from the East comes a sign of hope! New York state is fighting the same rule, not wanting to spend $1.6 billion to put a concrete cap on an upstate reservoir. New York Senator Chuck Schumer wrote a letter to the EPA asking them to scrap the plan and, miracle of miracles, the EPA wrote back this weekend saying they would reconsider. If the EPA is willing to reconsider for New York, they could be willing to reconsider for Oregon, too!

Best of luck, losers.

Unless you have a powerful, fellow Marxist Senator in your corner (though this being Oregon, that may indeed be the case), I wouldn't count on any breaks from the EPA.

Because if we still had a Constitution in this country, "equal protection" would mean something. But the unelected fourth branch of government -- the immense, unaccountable federal bureaucracy -- doesn't give a damn what you and I think. Or what's fair. Or whether the Constitution even authorizes its very existence.

Which is something to think about long and hard in 2012.


Related: The Environmental Fifth Column.


Libya's New Regime: Daniel Pipes Fears the Worst

Emphases mine:

Many are ready to party about the political demise of the hated, eccentric, and foul Mu'ammar al-Qaddafi as rebel troops move into Tripoli. I am not partying. Here's why not.

The NATO intervention in March 2011 was done without due diligence as to who it is in Benghazi that it was helping. To this day, their identity is a mystery. Chances are good that Islamist forces are hiding behind more benign elements, waiting for the right moment to pounce, as roughly happened in Iran in 1978-79, when Islamists did not make clear their strength nor their program until the shah was well disposed of. Should that be the case in Libya today, then the miserable Qaddafi will prove to be better than his successors for both the Libyan subjects of tyranny and the West.

I hope I am wrong and the rebels are modern and liberal. But I fear that a dead-end despotism will be replaced by the agents of a worldwide ideological movement. I fear that Western forces will have brought civilization's worst enemies to power.

There have been a series of credible reports that NATO -- in its quest to dislodge Gaddafi -- was actually assisting the rise of Al Qaeda in Libya. Nothing I've read thus far leads me to believe otherwise.

Of course, as Hillary Clinton once promised us during her magnificent efforts to bring peace to the Middle East, perhaps they're like "the moderate Taliban" -- and open to reason.


Hat tip: Dan from New York.


The ancients predicted the rise of Obama and "the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal"

John Schroy, tweeting at @CapFlowWatch, highlights this archaeological find:

Obama glyph found in Egyptian pyramid.

[This m]ay be a mummy, which [generally] have no birth certificates.

Other glyphs seem to resemble more than two dozen individual Democrat politicians -- including Barney Frank and Maxine Waters -- which are so profound and disturbing that decorum prohibits displaying them here.



CBS: Obama has overseen "the most rapid increase in the debt under any U.S. president"

Here's an additional worry: he's got nearly a year-and-a-half to go...

The latest posting by the Treasury Department shows the national debt has now increased $4 trillion on President Obama's watch.

The debt was $10.626 trillion on the day Mr. Obama took office. The latest calculation from Treasury shows the debt has now hit $14.639 trillion.

It's the most rapid increase in the debt under any U.S. president..

George Soros' favorite front groups -- MorOn.org, Media Mutters, and Center for American Prognuts -- immediately issued press releases blaming Presidents Bush, Reagan, Ford, Calvin Coolidge and James Buchanan. Plus a run of "bad luck".

Needless to say, however, when you've lost CBS...


Hat tip: Amanda Carpenter.


The New Obama-Osama Movie Posters Are Here!

Greenroom Commenter BKeyser claims that Biff Spackle got it wrong when he asserted that this was the new Obama-Osama movie poster:

He says these are the two in play:

It's fair to say that given the timing of the movie's release -- just before the election -- it qualifies as "Obama campaign propaganda".

Leni Riefenstahl would be proud.