Thursday, August 23, 2012

Larwyn's Linx: California Ready to Hand Out Driver’s Licenses to 400,000 Illegal Aliens

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Cali Ready to Hand Out Driver’s Licenses to 400,000 Illegal Aliens: Bruce
Black conservatives dispute "zero" support for Romney: Twitchy
Historically accurate study predicts Romney victory in November: Scoop

ACORN fundraiser's journo org smears vote accuracy group: MonCrief
Report: ATF official also holding private-sector job: WaPo
State GOP Welcomes President to New York: MenRec

Do You Want To Punish America With A Baby Again In 2012?: RWN
Biden to appear in Tampa during GOP convention?: DC
Whoopi Goldberg on Polanski “I know it wasn’t rape-rape”: FAM

Economy

CBO: Deficit To Exceed $1 Trillion For Fourth Consecutive Year: CDN
GM goes from bad to worse despite Obama bailout: AEI
Uhm, both Reagan and Bush recoveries better than Obama’s: Peth

Obama's Epic Deficit Failure: IBD
Indiana's Voucher System Doubles; Teachers Unions Fight Back: Mish
Eric Sprott: The Financial System’s Death Knell?: ZH

Scandal Central

Ties to Obama Aided in Access for Big Utility: NYT
Liberals Looking For Donations to "Overcome PA's Voter ID Law" (Meanwhile Photo IDs Are Free): MenRec
Obscene Undercover Video of Inhumane Killing at Central Valley Meat Co. in Hanford, California: AmPow

Climate & Energy

Václav Klaus: The arrogance of the global-warming alarmists is appalling: NewNostradamus

Media

Media Credibility Hits New Lows: AIM
Obama uses POTUS seal at designated campaign event again after condemning practice: Twitchy
TMI: Biden: ‘I’ve known 8 presidents, 3 of them intimately’: Twitchy

The Trash-Talking President: RWN
Obama’s Targeted Engagement of the Press: CDN
Touré: “We Have, I Mean The Obama Campaign, Has…” – Same Difference...: AllAm

Obama: 'Very Rare I Come to an Event Where I’m Like the Fifth or Sixth Most Interesting Person': WS
What the Fluke?: Modicum
Obama Caught in Misspelling of a Four-Letter State, Wapo Tries to Rescue: NB

World

White House Aide Plouffe Receives Money From Iranian Interests - Nobody Seems to Notice: Breitbart
NYPD “Hate Crimes” Unit Investigates Bacon Incident; FRC Shooter Not Charged With Hate Crime: Sooper
DNC Convention to start with radical Islam? Of course!: AWD

Ethnic bloodbath in Kenya kills 62, mostly women and children: Breitbart
FM: Abbas engaged in political terrorism against Israel: JPost
Morsi trying to erode peace treaty: ynet

Sci-Tech

Four Things You Won’t Hear at VMworld: Channelnomics
Is iPhone Security Really this Good?: Schneier
Topsy Pro Analytics Lets Users Analyze Over 100 Billion Tweets From The Last 2+ Years: MarketingLand

Cornucopia

A big blow headed for Tampa: MOTUS
Lab tech parties with escaped monkeys: ClickOrlando
Is The DNC Getting In Bed With Radical Islam?: Looking Spoon

Image: Ethnic bloodbath in Kenya kills 62, mostly women and children (Breitbart)
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Welcome to College Insurrection

QOTD: "White House records show that Exelon executives were able to secure an unusually large number of meetings with top administration officials at key moments in the consideration of environmental regulations that have been drafted in a way that hurt Exelon’s competitors, but curb the high cost of compliance for Exelon and its industry allies.

In addition, Exelon, which provides power to more than 6.6 million customers in at least 16 states and the District of Columbia, was chosen as one of only six electric utilities nationwide for the maximum $200 million stimulus grant from the Energy Department. And when the Treasury Department granted loans for renewable energy projects, Exelon landed a commitment for up to $646 million allowing it, on extremely generous financial terms, to finance one of the world’s largest photovoltaic solar projects." --Eric Lipton, The New York Times

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Oh. My.

I've tried to avoid mentioning The Senate Candidate Who Shall Not Be Named for obvious reasons, but couldn't help notice this delightful advertisement:


"Chiping-in"?

I think that says just about everything we need to know. Look, if I lived in Missouri, I would vote for a freshly caught halibut over Claire McCaskill, because I'm pretty sure the halibut wouldn't regularly vote -- as McCaskill does -- to destroy our country with unsustainable levels of debt.

Yes, I would vote for TSCWSNBN. But I certainly don't have to like it.



Speaking of politicians uttering bizarre, incendiary remarks in public...

I refer, of course, to this newly unearthed videotape of State Senator Barack Obama (D-Grove Parc) endorsing third trimester abortions:

Q: Are you pro-choice?

Obama: I am pro-choice.

Q: In all situations, including [the] late-term thing?

Obama: I am pro-choice. I believe that women make responsible choices and that they know... uh... better the... uh... tragedy of... uh... a... uh... difficult... uhm... pregnancy... and I don't think it's the government's role to meddle in that choice.

As Jim Hoft observes, "[T]his political position in itself, makes Barack Obama the most radical president in US history. But, don’t expect the media to report on this."

In fact, Barack Obama -- as a state senator -- endorsing fourth trimester abortions, which is to say he explicitly voted on multiple occasions to legally permit a doctor to terminate a baby that had survived an abortion.

So which is more controversial: some crackpot statement by a guy in Missouri or the Obama record of -- not once, but twice -- voting to legalize infanticide?

For you drones reading along -- slowly, to be sure -- that's a rhetorical question.



Democrat Rep. Gauthier stays in race: He says having sex with 17-year-old boy at interstate rest stop is a "private matter"

There's delusional and then there's delusional.

Minnesota’s Kerry Gauthier... a DFL representative, was apprehended at a highway rest stop having oral sex with a seventeen-year-old boy. Gauthier described the incident as a “private matter.”

Gauthier’s fellow Democrats are trying to show him the door; one of them referred to him publicly as a “child molester,” while Governor Mark Dayton said, “I believe he is unfit to serve beyond this term.” The Minneapolis Star Tribune, however, reports that Gauthier says he will run for re-election in November

Is there any possibility he could win in November? One wouldn’t think so, but his Duluth district is heavily Democratic. His campaign will reveal, perhaps, whether Democrats have any standards whatsoever.

John Hinderaker, author of the cited article, should know better.

The party that called a man who drove a woman into a pond and left her to drown "The Lion of the Senate"?

The party that has as its convention keynote speaker this year an impeached, disbarred ex-president who admitted to molesting an intern in the White House and who was accused of rape or molestation by at least three different women?

The party that sent a man to 16 terms in Congress despite the fact that a gay house of prostitution was being run out of his residence?

The party that let a Congressman stay in office even though he admitted to having a sexual relationship with a male, 17 year-old Congressional page?

Somehow I doubt it.

No, all of the media outrage must be reserved for a doofus who said something idiotic, not Ted Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Barney Frank or Gerry Studds, to name but a few.



Reuters unveils its Official Photograph of President Obama™

Sometimes snark is no substitute for reality.

President Obama in Cleveland, Ohio/Reuters/Kevin Lamarque

Go ahead. Tell me this isn't teh awesome.



Larwyn's Linx: Has Anyone Noticed Obama's Campaign is Falling Apart at the Seams?

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Has Anyone Noticed Obama's Campaign is Falling Apart?: Ricochet
Feminists Hit DNC Over Anti-Women Policies For Convention: Cove
On that potentially troublesome Cook County poll: RS

Democrat Long Knives Come Out For Wasserman Schultz: Shark
Obama: I Don't Take SEAL Groups Working Against Me "Seriously": WZ
Akin and the Politicization of Women’s Healt: AUL

Journo-Tools for Obama: Malkin
MN Democrat urged to step down amid sex scandal: S&L
Mia Love Gets Prime Time Speaking Slot at RNC: Bruce

Economy

Housing Bubble, Financial Crisis - Who, What: TJ Hancock
Small Businesses Owners Overwhelmingly Favor Romney: LoneCon
Two Gas Price Graphs: Bizzy

Education Lunacy: Williams
Holder DOJ Intentionally Recruiting "Intellectually Disabled": Tatler
Why Ryan Might Be Right: Samuelson

Obama: The government will buy meat and drive prices up, okay?: Q&O
The closer you look at Obamacare, the more it looks like Medicaid: AEI
Obamanomics: Almost 500,000 Federal Workers Make Over $100,000: Breitbart

Scandal Central

Democrat National Convention Welcomes Radical Islamists to the Fold: RS
Your children will eat what Michelle Obama tells them to eat, and nothing else: WyBlog
What We Got for the $535 Million Obama Flushed Down Solyndra: MB

Climate & Energy

Federal Court Kills EPA Cross-State Regulations: CDN
Fracking Leads To Cleaner Air: IBD
Court Strikes Down EPA’s Abuse of Power: Foundry

Media

White House Sets Ground Rules for Local Interviews: Dossier
Obama Tells Local Reporters What They Can Ask Before Interviews: LoneCon
CBS's Norah O'Donnell: Obama Has To Answer For The Tone Of His Campaign.: Instapundit

Niall "Hit The Road Barack" Ferguson Responds To The "Liberal Blogosphere": ZH
Polll: Romney Ahead of Obama in Texas Michigan: Ace
Oops: Michelle Obama Repeatedly Utters Vulgar, Racist Language in Front of Children: JWF

A Powerful Movie: Sowell
Art Cashin On The New Normal's New Populism: 165 Million As State Dependents?: ZH
How Pussy Riot bamboozled the media: Marsden

World

Egypt Moves Closer to Iran, Moves Forces Close to Israel: AIM
Germany: "Islamists Want to Bring Jihad to Europe": Gatestone
Iran Unveils Upgraded Short-Range Missile: ABC

The Muslim Brotherhood Builds a Totalitarian State in Egypt: Gatestone
Obama has not met expectations, says... French magazine: Hayom
Detained and flogged in Saudi Arabia: Nagla Wafa's story: AhramOnline

New Low: Obama Adds Patriotic Special Op Groups To His Enemies List: Nice Deb
San Fran officials pick sides in ad wars, choose jihad: Creeping
Spain Predicts 4.3% Bump in Tax Revenues, Actually Gets 3.5% Drop; Proposed "Solution" More Tax Hikes: Mish

Sci-Tech (via BadBlue.com/tech)

New hover vehicle is straight out of 'Star Wars': Fox
Is that sushi safe?: Fox
Peter Thiel sells 20 million Facebook shares: ZDNet

Cornucopia

Networks Unveil New Logos Prior to Election: IMAO
Communist Party Endorses Obama For 2012: FoxNation
Will Obama Keep Power 'by Any Means Necessary'?: AT

Image: Mia Love Gets Prime Time Speaking Slot at RNC Convention
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Please Support the Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "The core of the argument ['Hit the Road, Barack', the Newsweek cover story], which not one of my critics has addressed, is that he did not manage well his economics team. More seriously, he delegated the legislation. He delegates the detail on the key issues: stimulus, health care and financial reform to his own party in Congress. We should really talk about Pelosicare, not Obamacare. That’s the key issue. It’s not about how the economy performed. We all know this was a tremendously difficult inheritance. It is about how he has performed as the leader of the executive branch and I feel it is very clear he has fallen short...

...What I say that it is not that we should judge him as an economist. We should judge him on the promise of effective leadership and decisive change. If you assess him as a leader, not as an economist, I think it is not an impressive record. That is really the sad truth.” --Historian Niall Ferguson

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Which is more important: a jamoke from Missouri saying something stupid or skyrocketing food prices?

Tyler Durden challenges us to "spot the similarity":


Why is this so troubling? As Monty Guild explains:

Drought, bad crop data, and rising grain prices around the globe have put food inflation on the front pages, raising alarm in many circles. Consumers are concerned, food producers are concerned, businesses are concerned, and governments are concerned. While food may not be a huge percentage of the daily budget for those in the developed world, it is in the lesser developed countries. Food inflation can erode the standard of living in the emerging economics rapidly and when food prices go up too much, governments fall.

Of course, the completely un-politicized (*cough* *wheeze*) Bureau of Labor Statistics insists that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) remains unchanged.

It should come as no surprise. They're also gaming the unemployment rate.

Shhh... no one tell vintage media. They've got water to carry.


Inclusive: Democrat National Convention Welcomes Radical Islamists

Please tell me you're not surprised by this outrageous development.

The leaders of [the “Jummah at the DNC”] event – Jibril Hough and Imam Siraj Wahhaj as advertised are no moderates. They are radicals. These individuals embrace Islamist supremacy and have demonstrated support for radical ideologies... M. Zuhdi Jasser M.D., Founder and President of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy [describes] Siraj Wahhaj [as someone] "who I saw with my own eyes in 1995 seditiously say it his duty and our duty as Muslims to replace the US Constitution with the Quran"...


...Imam Siraj Wahhaj is imam of a mosque in Brooklyn, New York, the leader of The Muslim Alliance in North America, a member of CAIR, and an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing...

...As a character witness for Omar Abdel Rahman (the Blind Sheik) who was convicted of plotting to blow up the World Trade Center and other New York City landmarks, Wahhaj described him as a “respected scholar,” and “bold, as a strong preacher of Islam.”

...Wahhaj is also a Board of Trustee member of the North American Imams Federation (NAIF)(who’s website currently features an anti-Jewish, anti-black rant), a Muslim Brotherhood front organization, who (coincidentally) held a conference in Charlotte last year on Islamophobia...

...Like Hough, Wahhaj is also connected to NAIT by way of his membership in the Islamic Society of North America(ISNA), which was also found by the government to be a front for HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood. While Hough has been careful to play politics in Charlotte, Wahhaj has not hidden his hatred for America. He is quoted as calling America, “a garbage can… filthy, filthy and sick.”

...As an imam, he has stated, “Where ever you came from, you came to America. And you came for one reason – for one reason only- to establish Allah’s deen (a complete way of life).” He believes that the only reason to get involved in politics is to use it as a weapon in the cause of Islam. By his own admission, the question of why Wahhaj would be interested in hosting events at the DNC is obvious.

All of these organizations are connected in one way or another to the Muslim Brotherhood, the new leaders of Egypt and proud heirs to the legacy of the Third Reich.


We interrupt the kerfuffle over Missouri's senate candidate to bring you a spreading Middle East conflict already in progress

Not that you'll have any of these dots connected for you by vintage media -- they have an idiotic rape statement to hype -- but there happens to be a far more important story brewing in the Middle East. Yes, that's right, The Arab Spring™ is now spreading from Syria to neighboring countries and beyond like a deadly wildfire.

UN military observers abandoned Syria as fighting intensified in several key cities. As many as 20,000 have been killed in the conflict thus far; the Assad Regime also admitted it "maintains a large stockpile of chemical weapons".

Clashes in Tripoli "is a clear sign that Lebanon has been pulled further into the orbit of violence from the Syrian crisis" as at least five have been killed and 40 wounded in clashes between pro- and anti-Assad forces.

About 2,500 Syrians have fled to Turkey in the last 24 hours, joining tens of thousands of others who sought refuge from the violence. In addition, a car bomb killed eight in southeast Turkey.

• In a clear violation of the Camp David Accords, Egypt's new Islamofascist government is moving heavy weapons into the Sinai Desert, another worrying sign for Israelis already concerned with Iran's growing nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

So.

Which is more important: some guy in Missouri saying something idiotic or the Syrian conflict spreading to neighboring countries?

Just wondering.

And isn't it just a bit hypocritical that a convicted, impeached pervert -- who actually admitted to molesting an intern and was accused of rape or molestation by Paula Jones, Kathleen Willey and Juanita Brodderick (to name but a few) -- is an honoree and keynote speaker at the Democrat National Convention?


Genius: Postal Service, Which Lost $5.2 Billion Last Quarter, Stuck With 682 Million Unsold, Mispriced Simpsons Stamps

The United States Postal Service reported a $5.2 billion last quarter and just defaulted on a $5 billion loan payment earlier this month. In addition, the USPS said it will "miss a second $5.6 billion payment due next month as cash runs low."

In fact, in the last year alone, it has lost $11.6 billion... so far.

And it's not just the heavy unionization, unbelievable pensions and health care benefits, the plethora of offices, or the failure to embrace digital technologies.

It's also the superb management!

The U.S. Postal Service wasted $1.2 million in printing costs by selling less than a one-third of the 1 billion commemorative stamps of The Simpsons, Bloomberg news reports... The 44-cent "Simpsons" stamps, which sold in 2009 and 2010, came in five designs, featuring Homer, wife Marge, and children Bart, Lisa and baby Maggie.

...One problem, the IG notes, is that the stamps are tied to their 44-cent price, and became unwieldy for customers when the price of mailing a first-class letter went up by a penny. The IG also criticizes the process for deciding how many stamps to print, saying it is too unscientific and dependent upon the experience of one individual, which can lead to "costly miscalculations."

I don't know how you feel, but in my book this management team has bailout written all over them.

And let's look on the bright side: at least they didn't order 1 trillion Simpsons stamps!


Hat tip: BadBlue.com News.

Horrific Crash in Texas Kills Five Children, Leaves Two More in Critical Condition; "Language Barrier" Prevents Communicating With Other Occupants

A horrific crash east of Dallas killed five children and critically injured two others yesterday afternoon.

There were no child safety seats and not enough seat belts in the vehicle. And a "language barrier" prevented investigators from communicating with occupants.

An SUV packed with children veered out of control and overturned on Interstate 20 in East Texas on Monday, killing five children and injuring nearly everyone else inside.


The Texas Department of Public Safety said two adults and 10 children from near Marshall were inside the GMC Envoy, which had no child safety seats and not enough seat belts.

It rolled into a ditch about 2:15 p.m. near Van, about 70 miles east of Dallas, ejecting nine occupants.

Three girls, ages 13, 6 and 2, died at the scene.

A 5-year-old boy was pronounced dead at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas. A 3-year-old died late Monday at Renaissance Hospital Terrell.

Two more children were in critical condition at Children’s late Monday.

Another five, including the two adults, were taken to a hospital in Tyler, according to Trooper Jean Dark with DPS. One child was later discharged and the other two were in stable condition. Only one of the adults turned out to be injured.

It was unclear late Monday what caused the the single-vehicle crash.

“There’s a language barrier between investigators and the occupants,” Dark said.

Our prayers go out to the victims of this horrific accident.

Regarding the lack of seatbelts and child seats: What makes you think if the parents broke our immigration laws that they would follow other laws?

Which laws do people get to break in this country without punishment (or with the outright encouragement of the Obama administration)?


Images: Fox News Latino and Hispanically Speaking News.

Larwyn's Linx: Straws in the Wind

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Straws in the Wind: Rahe
Exclusive: TX county fakes crime stats to make border appear safe: PJM
Labor leader describes Occupy movement's Communist goals: RSM

It's Not 2008 Anymore: Driscoll
Shock poll: Obama could lose Illinois: DC
Unexpected guest drops by White House press briefing: Hot Air

MN Democrat urged to resign after admitting to underage sex: JWF
Conservatives Push for Todd Akin to Quit MO Senate Race: AmPow
Romney Is Flush With Cash, Poised For Stretch Run: Power Line

Economy

Obama's Outstanding Non-Recovery: NewAm
How Obama Economically Crushed the Gulf: Vitter
Rural Utility Stimulus a Bomb, A Net Drag on Employment: MagNote

Nobel Economists Back Mitt Romney's Plan: USN&WR
Paul Krugman vs. Math: Manatees
Stimulus-backed battery-makers fall to foreign competitors: Trib

Scandal Central

5 Reasons Stephanie Cutter is Obama's Worst Press Person: Beacon
No Horses But Detroit Pays Horseshoer More Than $56,000 in Salary and Benefits: Blaze
SEIU Denies Link Between $100K Donation To Illinois Speaker, Killing Pension Reform: LUR

Climate & Energy

The Past Future Tense: Belmont Club
US record lows outpace record highs 127 to 4 this weekend: Watts
Wonderful: President Obama's still pushing expensive, inefficient wind energy: Elephant

Media

Obama calls Marco Rubio "boy": Althouse
Dumb and Dumber: Biden to Appear With Al Franken: JWF
Dispatches from the Anthropologist-American Community: Driscoll

Mark Halperin Admits the Media are Helping Obama on Romney Tax Return Issue: AIM
Boston Globe Calls for Biden to Apologize for “Chains” Remark: AIM
Christine O’Donnell Accused of Trying to Steal Occupy vs. the Tea Party Show: Blaze

Anti-Obama movie beats Batman, Bourne: Exam
Minnesota Democrat reportedly had sexual encounter with 17 year old boy at rest stop – media silent: FAM
Dream Team: The 10 Best Conservative Columnists: PJM

World

Egyptian Tears Up the Quran on Camera: Nonie Darwish
Obama Funding $1 Billion in Infrastructure Projects…in Hamas-run Gaza : Creeping
Anti-Terror Exercises Planned for D.C. Skies: Beacon

Sci-Tech

Net Neutrality Group: AT&T Violating FCC Rules With FaceTime Data Plan Requirements: MacRumors
The one big thing that newspaper visionaries didn’t foresee: GigaOm
32 laws of the tweet: The simple social network gets very very complex (for developers): VenBeat

Cornucopia

Things Toure Thinks Are Racist: iOTW
It’s not the Quantity, it’s the Equality: MOTUS
Original Tuskegee airman Hickman dies at 88: ArmyTimes

Image: Lochte, J. Lo, Prince Harry make waves at Vegas adult pools
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Support the Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "On July 27, 2000, a first-term Congressman from Wisconsin signed his name to the Housing Finance Regulatory Improvement Act. The 30-year-old legislator didn't have much company. Of 435 Members of the House, only 12 were willing to join Paul Ryan in sponsoring a bill to reduce the taxpayer risks at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Eight years later to the day, a federal bailout of the two mortgage giants was on its way to the desk of President George W. Bush. Almost $190 billion in taxpayer financing later, the toxic twins of the housing crisis maintain their massive role in mortgage finance...

"In order to maintain double-digit growth," noted Mr. Ryan at a 2000 Congressional hearing, "Fannie Mae will have to take on more and more risk" in order to "increase profitability to shareholders." He added, "This is not a mission of public policy."" --The Wall Street Journal

Monday, August 20, 2012

Kryptonite to Democrats

You and I know it as math. Monty Pelerin, writing at American Thinker, offers some sobering factoids that highlight how desperate a fiscal situation the United States is in.

• "The official federal debt is $16 trillion. This debt represents 100% of current GDP."

• "The U.S. has passed [the Rogoff and Reinhart*] danger point, and recent U.S. GDP experience conforms to their findings."


• "In addition to the debt of $16 trillion, the Treasury has explicitly guaranteed the debts of certain government agencies [including] Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, ...[the] Postal Service, Amtrak, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation... [and] These shortfalls are likely to be funded by the federal government, although none of these exposures is recognized as federal government debt or obligations."

• "The unfunded liabilities of the federal government are enormous, dwarfing everything else. They arise from promises made to citizens, primarily with respect to Social Security and Medicare. Government maintains that it has no legal liability to honor these promises and hence does not recognize them as debt... Estimates of the present value of these obligations range from $50 trillion to over $200 trillion... This estimate is [as high as] 14 times what government reports as debt ($16 trillion)."

And, most importantly, the "U.S. government has promised its citizens almost four times the entire net worth of the nation."

This is why America's Tea Party movement is so important. If this country can be saved -- and that's a big if -- it is fiscal, Constitutional conservatism that will save it.

Democrats (and RINOs, to a lesser extent) have spent this country into oblivion. The New Deal, the Fair Deal, the Square Deal, the Great Society, Obamacare: all Utopian, Statist plans that could never work and have never worked in all of human history.

We have a choice to make in November: try to save this Republic, or let it collapse in the manner the Cloward-Piven Democrats seek.


* Authors of This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly

The Kickstarter project that set out to raise $100,000 and ended up raising $10 million instead!

Kickstarter is a three-year old crowd funding website that has truly taken off. Crowd funding's been around for a while, but until Kick Starter it was never easy to connect good ideas with potential customers and investors. Kickstarter changed all that and, so far, it's been used to raise over $323 million for more than 10,000 projects. While most projects are quite small (raising less than $10,000) a few have hit startling fundraising achievements.

A CNBC list of the top 10 Kickstarter projects has a very interesting and useful number one project: The Pebble E-Paper Watch for iPhone and Android.

Pebble is a customizable watch. Download new watchfaces, use sports and fitness apps, get notifications from your phone.

Pebble is the first watch built for the 21st century. It's infinitely customizable, with beautiful downloadable watchfaces and useful internet-connected apps. Pebble connects to iPhone and Android smartphones using Bluetooth, alerting you with a silent vibration to incoming calls, emails and messages. While designing Pebble, we strove to create a minimalist yet fashionable product that seamlessly blends into everyday life.


Apps bring Pebble to life. We're building some amazing apps for Pebble. Cyclists can use Pebble as a bike computer, accessing the GPS on your smartphone to display speed, distance and pace data. Runners get a similar set of data displayed on their wrist. Use the music control app to play, pause or skip tracks on your phone with the touch of a button. Don't worry about the rain, Pebble is water-resistant! If you're a golfer, feel free to bring Pebble onto the course. We're working with Freecaddie to create a great golf rangefinder app for Pebble that works on over 25,000 courses world-wide. Instead of using your phone, view your current distance to the green right on your wrist. These apps will be the first, with more in the works!


...Pebble can change instantly, thanks to its brilliant, outdoor-readable electronic-paper (e-paper) display. We've designed tons of watchfaces already, with more coming every day. Choose your favourite watchfaces using Pebble's iPhone or Android app. Then as the day progresses, effortlessly switch to the one that matches your mood, activity or outfit.

If you need to stay on top of things, Pebble can help with vibrating notifications, messages and alerts. Dismiss a notification with a shake of your wrist. Don't worry, it's easy to disable all notifications.

I think Pebble has a real chance to make it big. Why?

If you think about the trends that have dominated computer technology, they tend to revolve around miniaturization. From mainframes, to minicomputers, to personal computers, to smartphones and tablets: people want smaller, more functional devices that are always there to assist them.

Pebble seems to fit that template.

While its fundraising cycle is over, you can now order the watches over at Pebble's Kickstarter site.

Oh, but remember: they didn't build that.


Hat tip: BadBlue.com/Tech.

The Ultimate Visual Guide to the Obamacare Tax Cliff

From the indefatigable Heritage Foundation, a graphic timetable of Obamcare's tax hikes:


Well, along with the fiscal cliff, this should help the economy immeasurably. At least, by Cloward-Piven standards.



Larwyn's Linx: Racism by Political Party

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Racism by Political Party: Marginal Revolution
In 2002, Barack Obama Supported Infanticide; Here's the Transcript: RS
Nebraska Gov joins AZ to stop Obama's lawless DREAM order: PW

When the Truth Goes Viral: RSM
The Southern Poverty Law Center is a Defamatory Hate Group: RS
MoveOn Goons Now Stalking Paul Ryan at Campaign Events: Nice Deb

Oops: Robert Gibbs confirms existence of Death Panels: Lid
Must be an election soon: Obama heads to church: Dossier
Prayers answered: Biden back on campaign trail: WZ

Economy

Obamacare designed to unionize 21MM health workers: DC
The amazing little story that didn't happen on Obama's big bus trip: IBD
Free pension giveaway crushes Cleveland school budgets: Breitbart

Ryan was a voice for Fannie Mae reform while Obama opposed it: WSJ
CA=socialism, TX=conservatism. Any questions?: Whittle
ECB Capping Rates on PIIGS?: ZH

Climate & Energy

State Dept Climate Change (Hoax) Program Is A Mess: RWN
Wow! Hundreds of Ohio Coal Miners Stand in Line for Mitt Romney: GWP
Can Mitt seize Ohio opportunity?: TribLive

Media

Radical Leftist "Fact Checker" Destroys Any Shred of Politfact's Credibility: MediaTrackers
How long before they go after Paul Ryan’s mom?: LI
Tourè – That Broccoli Is Racist!: Patterico

A tale of two campaigns: contrasting Romney-Ryan’s access with Obama-Biden’s.: RS
Shecky Pelosi: We totally cooperated with President Bush; congressional incivility is something new: Malkin
Republican makes stupid statement … everyone swarm: LI

Peggy Noonan: If Biden Were Republican Meet the Press's Topic Would Be 'How Stupid Is This Person?': NB
Mitt Romney Makes a Bold Stand: Zilla
Tom Morello's Misguided Rage: DC

World

Egypt’s Military and the Arab Spring: McCarthy
Great Public Relations Quotes for the Middle East: RWN
Canada: Man arrested for walking dog near Muslims in public park: Creeping

Universal Mediocrity: Why do Britons like their sub-par health-care system so much?: Dalrymple
The Vetting: Trevor Loudon Explains Why Obama Favors All The Tyrannical Powers of the World: Nice Deb
The Empire State Building Turns Green to Mark the Last Day of Ramadan: UrbInf

Journey Through a Liberal Brain: MB
The Anarchy Alley That Birthed Barack Obama From Washington State to Kenya and On to Chicago: MagNote
Ramadan Bank Run: WaPo

Sci-Tech

Curiosity Rover Fires First Laser Beam at Martian Rock: Wired
Disney Adds A Bit Of Nonsensical Anti-Open Source FUD To Kid’s Sitcom: Crunch
Big Bang theory challenged by big chill: PhysOrg

Cornucopia

This Week in Automotivators, August 13-19: RWN
Remember My Obama Parody Markers?: iOTW
Obama: He Comes by his Feminism Naturally: MOTUS

Image: Gateway Pundit
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: America's Comeback Team

QOTD: "As we’ve illustrated here time and time again, it is delusional to assume the Egyptian military is pro-American and thus a reliable bulwark against the advance of Islamic supremacism. Cairo’s armed forces reflect the broader society, whose able-bodied men are required to serve — and, as even the Times now concedes, the Egyptian mainstream is Islamist. Plus, the Egyptian army has always had Islamists (including violent jihadists) in its ranks. Its historical tendency, moreover, has not been to lead; it has been to follow the shifting political programs of whatever dictator happened to be running the show.

Nonetheless, you’ve spent nearly two years being told not to worry: Bet the farm on these generals we’ve been training and funding. Yet, now we see that our government is not only well aware of the Egyptian army’s Islamist streak (or shall we say swath?); Egyptian officers, who often study in the U.S., actually submit sharia-driven “get out of Dar al-Islam” term papers to their American military professors...

...Meanwhile, dissenters and journalists are already being imprisoned and beaten — if not worse. (There are unconfirmed reports that crucifixion is making a comeback.) Terrorist leaders have been sprung from the prisons. The Sinai has become a jihadist haven. Women are attacked in the street if they fail to don the veil. A fatwa that prohibited eating during Ramadan was issued. Christians are fleeing in droves, their churches torched behind them. And the emirs of Hamas are warmly received as brotherly dignitaries.

No amount of whistling can obscure the graveyard. Things are bad, and they are going to get worse." --Andrew C. McCarthy

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Obama campaign concentrates on the important issues

The peerless Michael Ramirez always seems to capture in a single frame the simple truths that all of the Sunday talk shows combined can't seem to expose.



Hat tip: Protein Wisdom.

The Newsweek Cover You Never Thought You'd See

It's real. And it's spectacular.


The laughable hack Jonathan Alter hardest hit.



Photo o' the Day: Union Members March Against the Environmental Radicals and their Democrat Sycophants

Somehow I don't think you'll be seeing this particular photo on the front page of The New York Times.

Seventy-plus men walked out of the ground, overalls and hardhats covered in coal dust, and onto the risers of a stage built for a Mitt Romney speech.

To onlookers, mostly press and staffers, the image was stunning.

To the 2,600 family members gathered in the gravel parking lot or under tents, eating hot dogs and drinking pop, it was a moment of immense pride.

This is what we do, said Tim Wiles: “We make things. We provide energy for the state, food for our families, and businesses are sustained around the county because they make money from us.”

The 54-year-old miner added, after listening to Romney: “This election is his and Paul Ryan’s for the taking. They need to be bold and remind people of what we stand for, that we are the backbone of this country.”

The members of the United Mine Workers -- and just about every other private sector union in America -- are being sold down the river by Barack Obama and the Democrat Party. So beholden are Democrats to the environmental Statists that they would rather entire counties in California go without water, that America's electric grid struggle to survive without clean coal, and that all of the U.S. can go without oil from the Keystone XL pipeline.

This costs the union members a very important -- as Joe Biden might say -- three letter word: J-O-B-S. And methinks the results in November will be stunning.


Democrat Senator: Obama "led the mission that brought Osama bin Laden to justice" -- Here's the exclusive movie poster!

At a campaign event in New Hampshire yesterday, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (who?) introduced President Obama as the man who led SEAL Team Six into action to kill Osama Bin Laden:

"And let's not forget that this is the commander in chief who finally led the mission that brought Osama bin Laden to justice," said Shaheen.

In recognition of the president's unparalleled valor, Hollywood will soon release a major motion picture depicting his exploits. And (who else?) cub reporter Biff Spackle was able to secure an exclusive first look at the movie poster:


It goes without saying that another movie with Obama as the subject could be titled "All the President's Leaks."


Hat tip: @MelissaTweets.