Friday, March 21, 2014

REALLY: Is Anyone Surprised?

Courtesy of the peerless Matt Drudge:


Uhm, it's almost as if Michelle is sending a surreptitious message to the Red Chinese. Like: we're with you!

But, no, that's just crazy talk.

Or... is it?


Hat tip: Andrea Shea King

PENSION ARMAGEDDON: Calamity Rising

Democrats and math mix like oil and water.

Some state pensions in dire straits


New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie doesn't waste an opportunity to raise the specter of Detroit when talking about his state's finances... Christie, a Republican, has included a $2.25 billion payment to New Jersey's public pension system in 2015, the highest in the state's history and more than his predecessor, Democrat Jon Corzine, allocated in his entire four-year term. But it does little to narrow the gap left by years of poor accounting, deferred payments and, according to Christie, ignorance of state leaders.

New Jersey's pension system is still short by $52 billion, and Christie, who successfully pushed through pension overhauls in 2011, is looking for another round of concessions from unions and public employees to rein in the soaring cost of retiree benefits.

At recent public appearances, Christie told his audience to look at Detroit, the largest American city to file for bankruptcy... "Ladies and gentlemen, that's where we're headed," Christie said at a town hall meeting in Burlington County on March 13.

Three years after a wave of pension overhauls swept across America, many states find themselves still hemmed-in by ballooning retiree costs and budget-sucking liabilities, setting the table for more battles between states and public workers.

PARTY OF WEAKNESS COMIX: Mom Jeans vs. KGB

Democrats despise our military and have always undermined our national defense. Always.


As former director of the U.S. Naval Institute Steve Cohen notes, "Only 35% of the U.S. Navy's entire fleet is deployed, fewer than 100 ships, including just three aircraft carriers."

And Obama wants more cuts. Not for his radical corporatist green-energy buddies. Not for the hundreds of millions of waste, fraud and abuse as described by the federal government itself.

No, Democrats always want to cut the military.

Because they despise America.

The next president is going to have one hell of a mess on his or her hands.


Hat tip: BadBlue News

BUMMER FOR GLOBAL COOLING DENIERS: Cold Weather Slashes Range of Electric Vehicles by 57%

Runner-up headline: Green Energy Nuts Stunned to Find Out Batteries Don't Like the Cold

Any particle physicist -- or a third-grader who has played with a battery -- could have told you this.

AAA recently released the results of a study that looked into the driving range for EVs in areas with freezing temps. According to the study, the EV takes a major range hit in cold weather.

The study claims that in freezing temps, the typical EV sees a reduction in driving range of 57% compared to the EPA ratings for the car. The significant reduction in driving range is noted in temperatures of about 20-degrees according to the study.

That means that for an EV with a driving range of 105 miles in 75-degree temps, the car will only get 43 miles on a full charge at 20-degrees. AAA also found that hot weather decreases driving range, but not as much as cold weather.

This is a good reason why California continues to be the most popular area for EVs. I am sure there are more than a few EV owners in places where it gets hot or cold that are very unhappy with their decision to purchase an EV right now.

Just to recap: EVs perform very poorly in cold weather and they perform almost as poorly when it's hot.

Gee, if only someone could invent, I don't know, maybe a combustion engine that would be impervious to changes in temperature?


Hat tip: BadBlue Tech News

Larwyn's Linx: The Pen, the Phone, and the Constitution

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

Nation

The Pen, the Phone, and the Constitution: LibertyLaw
Nation’s Best Cancer Hospitals Off-Limits Under Obamacare: WZ
Pelosi: Democrats Not Running On Obamacare--Running On Job Creation: RCP

Opposing Voter ID Laws Is Insulting to Minorities: David Limbaugh
Federal ruling paves way for states to ensure only US citizens can vote: BPR
Supreme Court faces wave of free-speech cases from conservatives: LAT

Falling In History, We Are Told Communism Is Our Savior: NoisyRm
The emptiness of the right side of history: Jonah Goldberg
California’s Gun Confiscation Program Based on Faulty Gun Registry: Wizbang

Jeb Bush Launches Ad Campaign Supporting Common Core: LibertyNews
FL-13 Fallout Watch: Two Democratic House candidates drop out: Moe Lane
Obamacare Exchange Leaks Applicants' E-Mail Addresses: MenRec

Economy

More Overtime Rules Enrich Obama: CEI
LBJ: I’ll have those n******s voting Democrat for the next 200 years.: Allen West
“$50,000 Gold in 2020″ — Jim Sinclair’s Senior Moment: Gary North

Scandal Central

Zero Oregon Obamacare Enrollees After Four Months and $305 Million: Breitbart
Obama Judge: Mexican Border Fence May Have “Disparate Impact” on Minorities: JW
‘Jack-Booted Thugs’? What Four NM Forest Officers Did at Ski Resort Faces Harsh Backlash: Blaze

Media

Ben Sasse Releases 'Constitutional Madness' Bracket to Highlight Obama's Lawlessness: Breitbart
REPORTER RETRACTS CLAIM: WH Reporters give Jay Carney questions ahead of time?: Scoop
‘Egadsten!’ Pelosi’s daughter does the unthinkable to Gadsden ‘don’t tread on me’ flag : BPR

Freed from CBS, Sharyl Attkisson Launches Website Exposing Obama Scandals: Don Irvine
#BanBossy - My take on the movement as a Mom of a Daughter: Cubicle Chick
Feel the burn! Sandra Fluke wants to #BanBossy, gets pwned instead: Twitchy

Connecticut: the Constitution State?: Reality Always Wins
What Two Words Do Those ‘Seeking to Increase Tyranny and Totalitarianism’ Tend to Use?: Blaze
Quality Parenting, and More: Reaganite

Whatever Happened To The Coffee Party?: Glob
Ted Cruz reacts to his smoking shirtless street art poster: Exam
Anita Hill: Still Playing the Race Card: GWP

World

Putin cronies enjoy mucho hilarity over Obama administration’s sanctions: Doug Powers
The Honeymoon Is Over: Ukraine To Stun Citizens With 40% Gas Price Hike: ZH
Possible debris from Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 spotted: CBS

The Myth of ‘Core’ Al-Qaeda: Affiliate Leader Now Calling the Attacks: PJM
Dancing With The Devil: GrEaT sAtAn"S gIrLfRiEnD
Virginia Legislature Passes Resolution Honoring Radical Mosque Tied To 9/11 Hijackers: WZ

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Busted! – U.S. Tech Giants Knew Of NSA Spying Says Agency's Senior Lawyer: ZH
Why the NSA Tried to Keep Its Water Use a Secret: Blaze
Google Voice: The SMS guide: ZDNet

Cornucopia

Obama/Ellen Selfie Contest: Who Wore it Better?: MOTUS
Study Rates Obama As The 5th Greatest President of All-Time: iOTW
Cannibals And Colonialism: Solving The Mystery Of Michael Rockefeller: NPR

Image: Pelosi: Democrats Not Running On Obamacare; We're Running On Job Creation: RCP
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Sick of Mitch McConnell's Insults? Here's How to Fire Him!

QOTD: "Unless you have a very low opinion of minorities, how could you conceivably argue that it is racist to require that all voters prove their identity as a condition to voting? If anything racist is involved here, it is in the suggestion that minorities are too incompetent to furnish their IDs. How could you disrespect minorities any more that that?

If people can’t muster their ID — I don’t care who they are — then they don’t deserve the privilege of voting, and people who want to protect their right to do so without ID are on their face suspect.

It is a crying shame that our federal government is run by partisan Democrats who are waging war against the integrity of the election process, the rule of law and the sovereignty of the several states. I pray more people wake up to this reality." --David Limbaugh

Thursday, March 20, 2014

#BanBossy: Fun With #GetCovered Photoshops

Via @AdamBaldwin:


Our intrepid summer intern @BiffSpackle offers the following riposte:


Oh, and Fluke this.

Researchers finally figure out how tire sounds are made

Apparently we didn't know until now. I highlighted this story because of: (a) the cool illustration; and (b) science.

With supercomputers capable of beating our best chess and Jeopardy players, you'd think that being able to simulate the sounds a tire makes while rolling on a road was easy—but it's not. In fact, Yokohama had to team up with the Japanese equivalent of NASA to finally recreate how air and sound behave around the company's tires.

Working with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, Yokohama's researchers used a detailed 3D model of a tire to finally simulate how the sounds it produces are created. And it turns out those sounds are not only produced by all the air turbulence around a rolling tire, but also by the constant compression of air in front of the tire where it meets the road, and as it circulates around it.


If you're into science and technology news, I recommend bookmarking BadBlue.com/Tech and visiting once every, oh, four or five minutes.


RUMBLE: Is Illinois Finally Ready to Embrace Fiscal Sanity by Electing its Own Scott Walker?

Guest post by Investor's Business Daily

Politics: The primary victory of a private-equity millionaire who believes in term limits and curbing the incestuous power of public-sector unions has a real shot at becoming Illinois's first GOP governor in a decade.

That Illinois, arguably the bluest of blue states, may turn red in November may seem implausible. But then, it wasn't that long ago that a relatively unknown Scott Walker was tilting at union windmills in Wisconsin. Bruce Rauner, victor in Illinois' gubernatorial primary Tuesday, has taken dead aim at the same target, and in a state beleaguered by debt, taxes and unfunded pension liabilities he is given a real shot.

Rauner, a self-made, private-sector millionaire who said in his ads, "I can't be bought," argued for term limits as a way of keeping government officials from enriching themselves at public expense. Three recent Illinois governors have found their way to prison, the latest being Rod Blagojevich, famous for trying to sell President Obama's old Senate seat to the highest bidder.

Rauner took on the public-sector unions early. "The government-union bosses are at the core of our spending problem in Illinois," he said in a primary debate, arguing that public unions create a "conflict of interest for the taxpayers" and have made a mess of the state's finances.

Larwyn's Linx: Stunner: ObamaCare Premiums set to Skyrocket, Some will Triple in Cost

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

Nation

Stunner: ObamaCare Premiums to Skyrocket, Some to Triple in Cost: JWF
Why Liberals Attempt to Silence Honest Debate: Ross Kaminsky
Valerie Jarrett, the CEO of Obama Inc.: Daniel Greenfield

This Is How The Tea Party Ends: Ben Domenech
Chris Christie asks SCOTUS to abolish the Second Amendment: WyBlog
More than 100 people found in suspected stash house: Chron

Sen. Mike Lee: “The best thing we can do in Congress is to withhold funds": FW
Insurgents Thump Pennsylvania GOP Establishment: Jim Panyard
It's Time to Draft Ted Cruz for President: RedState

Economy

Almost 40% of private biz will lay off employees if min. wage increases: Toldjah
Teacher Speaks Out on Union Bullying: Mackinac
Race-Based Looting Spree Begins in New York: MB

Scandal Central

PA Democrats Took Bribes to Oppose Voter ID: PJM
The Obama Scandal Bracket 2014: Jon Gabriel
Raul Ruiz (D-CA 36) – KeyWiki Progressive/Marxist Profiles: Trevor Loudon

Russia and the 2008 Financial Crisis | “For The Record”: Trevor Loudon
Feds Took On $7K Per Household In Debt Since Shutdown: LoneCon
Principal being fired because she asked students to speak English on campus: Scoop

Climate & Energy

An impending black swan for electric cars: I, Cringely

Media

No Reporters on Michelle Obama's Trip to China : Daniel Halper
AP photographer hits White House: 'Once we lose access, we'll never get it back': Exam
Reporter announces ‘new rule’ for criticizing Obama; promptly gets hammered!: BPR

Democrats living in mortal fear that Gov. Walker’s success in Wisconsin will be discovered: Scoop
New Muslim Brotherhood coalition to launch Islamic Broadcasting Network in U.S.: Creeping
David Axelrod wants Rand Paul to stop using big words: Exam

Nicholas Wade’s A TROUBLESOME INHERITANCE: John Derbyshire
Young People Don’t Change — Neither Does The N.Y. Times: Ann Coulter
Revolt Against the Testing Tyrants: Michelle Malkin

World

Putin Redraws Russian Borders; Obama Unveils Bracket Picks: NRO
Hagel Witnesses a Familiar Act: Power Line
Venezuela: The Left vs. reality: Fausta

Malaysia flight MH370 – Two objects found possibly from Missing Jet: Politisite
Experts claim objects found near Perth, Australian too big to be from Malaysia MH370: FAM
Malaysia Airlines search: Jet already had turned before co-pilot's 'good night' message: Fox

Obama is Irate at Israel (He Can't Handle The Truth): Lid
Human slaughter houses exposed in Syria with decapitated bodies hanging like meat: Scoop
Head teachers 'bullied and driven from jobs for resisting Islamic extremists': DailyMail

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Moto 360: The future of Android Wear is round: CNet
28-hospital group fails mock cyberattack: Erin McCann
Scientists unveil 'chicken from hell' dinosaur that lived 66 million years ago: Fox

Cornucopia

The Sun Don’t Shine Here so Move Along, Nothing to See.: MOTUS
Wow! The Most Unbelievable ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Win Ever!: Tammy Bruce
Reds closer Chapman hit in face by line drive: USA Today

Image: Ancient Stick Insect
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Want to fire John Boehner? Support conservative J.D. Winteregg.

QOTD: "The Chinese “received a message from the Russians” back in 2008 suggesting a pact to sell Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac securities on the market, which would have nudged down the price of the debt of Fannie and Freddie and also maximized the chaos on Wall Street, a former U.S. official told BBC. It confirms a report that TheBlaze TV’s For the Record first aired back in September 2013.

...Talking about the 2008 financial crisis, particularly the issues with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson explained that the Chinese were the “biggest external investor holding Fannie and Freddie Securities.” Because of this, China was “very, very concerned” when Fannie and Freddie began to melt down.

That’s when the Russians allegedly tried to iron out a pact with the Chinese." --Jason Howerton

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Culled from the sidebar at American Digest

American Digest is one of those Visit... and Linger sites.


Go. Now. Run! Run like the wind!


Hat tip: C.I.

UHM, YES, REALLY. "Hillary says she is still mulling over titles for her upcoming book"

Via @AdamBaldwin:


And our summer intern @BiffSpackle was happy to oblige:

That means... one tiny atom... in my fingernail could be like... could be one little... tiny universe!?!

The only reason I posted this link is because the accompanying picture is too cool and the whole concept is mind-blowing. And I know that's two reasons, but... physics.


This illustration depicts a main membrane out of which individual universes arise.

Big Bang Discovery Opens Doors to the "Multiverse"

Gravitational waves rippling through the aftermath of the cosmic fireball, physicists suggest, point to us inhabiting a multiverse, a universe filled with many universes...

FORMER PENTAGON INSPECTOR GENERAL: Obama Administration Riddled With Deceit

Guest post by M.D. Kittle

Yes, government waste, fraud and abuse are the triplet children of incompetence, greed and unbridled ambition.


Joseph E. Schmitz, former inspector general of the U.S. Department of Defense, says the Obama administration doesn’t like watchdogs looking at it.
But these sins of public trust begin and end with dishonesty.And Joseph E. Schmitz has seen a lot of lying by the government to taxpayers in his lengthy legal career.

Schmitz, who served as inspector general of the U.S. Department of Defense from 2002-05, in an interview with Watchdog.org said, “no political party has a monopoly on waste, fraud and abuse and corruption.”

But he said he has seen some troubling patterns of deceit in the Obama administration.

Exhibit A, according to the attorney: Benghazi.

“I still represent whistleblowers, and I see the people in this current administration just blatantly lying — lying to American citizens, lying about people trying to redress grievances,” Schmitz said. “These huge scandals start with dishonesty.”

Conservatives have been critical of the Obama administration’s handling of the Sept. 11, 2012, attack on a U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, an assault that killed four Americans — including a U.S. ambassador.

A Senate Intelligence Committee report released in January criticized the Hillary Clinton-led U.S. State Department and the intelligence community for not preventing the attacks.

The long-delayed bipartisan report asserts the State Department failed to increase security, although it had been repeatedly warned to do so, and it faulted intelligence agencies for not sharing information.

“The attacks were preventable, based on extensive intelligence reporting on the terrorist activity in Libya — to include prior threats and attacks against Western targets — and given the known security shortfalls at the U.S. Mission,” the panel said in a statement.

The report was released a year after Clinton, in aggravation at a Senate committee hearing on Benghazi, asked U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., “What difference does it make?”

“Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night and decided they’d go kill some Americans,” Clinton said. “What difference — at this point, what difference does it make?”

Schmitz, like myriad other conservatives, said the State Department’s actions, or lack thereof, made a big difference in the outcome of the attacks.

“From my standpoint, whoever wrote those fallacious talking points that (then U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations) Susan Rice repeated to citizens in government, those blatantly dishonest talking points that were propagated by senior officials. And nobody has been held accountable,” the former inspector general said.

Larwyn's Linx: We Trashed The Health System For A Supposed 5 Million Enrollments?

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

Nation

We Trashed The Health System For A Supposed 5 Million Enrollments?: RWN
The San Francisco Democrats Finally Rule the Roost: Erick Erickson
Obama To Stab Backs of Military Again By Reducing Pensions 10%: CFP

Romney Shreds Obama’s Failed Leadership, White House Butthurt Ensues: JWF
Democrat Bullies Against School Choice: Betsy McCaughey
Spring Clean Government: John Stossel

Obama rewrote FOIA to suppress politically sensitive docs: Mark Tapscott
New York Protestors Burn “Assault Weapon” Registration Forms: Bob Owens
The Taste of Crow: Christian Mercenary

Economy

Report: Premiums rising faster than 8 years before Obamacare combined: DC
The UAW against democracy, free speech in Chattanooga: DC
Liesman: Dumb and Dumber: Karl Denninger

A $1.2 Tril Corporate Welfare State Lurks In U.S. Budget: IBD
Is there wage stagnation?: Walter Williams
Fast-food protests hit Chicago as workers target 'wage theft': ChiBiz

Scandal Central

Obama’s Latest De Facto Amnesty and the Push to Delegitimate Deportation: Heather Mac Donald
Guess what Obama is telling Hispanics in order to get them to sign up for Obamacare?: YoungCons
SEIU Hit With Second-Biggest Campaign Finance Fine in Michigan History: WFB

The Joke's on Us: Cold Fury
Patriot Lawsuit Demands Money From IRS: WND
License To Wait: CA Conceal Carry Applicants Told to Wait Two Years: TR

Climate & Energy

Lawsuit Challenges Use Of Endangered Species To Stop Energy Boom: IBD
Arctic blast coming to Eastern US: coldest opening to calendar spring in at least 50 years?: WUWT
Which Gov’t Agency Is Becoming an ‘Organ to Play the Music of Karl Marx’?: Blaze

Media

ABC's 'Nightline' Skipped ObamaCare for 123 Days, Gossips Over 'Bootleg Butt Injections': NB
The End of Obama’s Presidency? : Keith Koffler
Obama Hasn’t Changed Since Columbia University: Blaze

World

Is Hillary Clinton on the Missing Malaysian Airlines 777?: Erick Erickson
Top Russian laughs at US sanctions, calls Obama a ‘prankster’: BPR
Russia formally moves to swallow Crimea: USA Today

Snowden Marks Russia's Aggression by Disclosing Another American Intel Operation : PJM
Boeing Believes Flight MH370 Is In Taliban Territory in Pakistan: Sara Noble
What if MH370 was (mistakenly or purposely) shot down?: Aviationist

Obama Retracts Jewish Identity of Israel: Leo Rennert
Did Russian Intelligence Promote Obama from Lieutenant to Colonel?: Oleg Atbashian
The Brand New, And Shocking, Third Largest Foreign Holder Of US Treasurys: ZH

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Target Breach: Where The Weak Points Were: Dave Kearns
Sharing what’s up our sleeve: Android coming to wearables: Official Android
A Closer Look at the Cisco-Google Alliance: NoJitter

Cornucopia

“Obama wants people to quit bashing his jeans”: Protein Wisdom
Of Friendly Lawsuits and Potemkin Protests: Ed Driscoll
MH370: Hiding in Plain Sight?: Winter Soldier

Image: Chris Floyd: Car Trouble: Tarnished Icons and Imaginary Friends
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: FreePAC Kentucky - April 5th, 2014

QOTD: "Sanctions and modest help to the Syrian rebels have failed to halt the slaughter; if anything, the killing worsened as negotiations dragged on. The White House was taken by surprise by Vladimir Putin's decisions to invade Crimea, but also by China's increasingly assertive declaration of exclusive rights to airspace and barren islands. Neither the economic pressure nor the cyberattacks that forced Iran to reconsider its approach have prevented North Korea's stealthy revitalization of its nuclear and missile programs. In short, America's adversaries are testing the limits of America's post-Iraq, post-Afghanistan moment." --New York Times

Bonus QOTD: "As if Bracket Week wasn't a natural distraction as is, now Quicken Loans has decided to offer a billion dollars -- well, a half billion up front, or a bunch of millions every year thereafter — for a perfect bracket.

The odds of you picking a perfect bracket are roughly one in 9 quintillion, and no, I'm not making that up. As David Sarno puts it, "If all 317 million people in the U.S. filled out a bracket at random, you could run the contest for 290 million years, and there'd still be a 99 percent chance that no one had ever won." Then again, if you just end up with one of the twenty most accurate brackets in the Quicken Loan contest, you get $100,000, and that's not bad." --Jim Geraghty

DEMOCRATS AND THE GOP ESTABLISHMENT ALLY TO CRUSH CONSERVATIVES: Part One of a Three Part Series

By Lee Cary

Series Abstract: Karl Rove’s targeting of Michigan Congressman Justin Amash as “the most liberal Republican” in Congress signals the GOP Establishment’s plan to cull out the most conservative Republican office-holders from the GOP herd. The bipartisan nature of that effort is illustrated in the Democrat funding behind the (Republican) Main Street led by former nine-term Republican Congressman Steve LaTourette.  

 

Part I: The GOP Establishment targets Tea Party candidates for defeat

The tension between the conservative and moderate wings of the Republican Party that began soon after the 2010 midterm elections has now escalated to open political warfare.

In the run-up to the 2012 elections, the conflict was largely clandestine, with the exception of the dust-ups surrounding a few Republican Senatorial candidates, including Todd Akin of Missouri and Christine O’Donnell of Delaware.  

But, in 2012, other largely unreported scraps between the GOP Establishment and Tea Party-friendly candidates happened at the county, state and national levels of the Republican Party apparatus. A Tea Party website prominent in Texas documented several of those engagements in Michigan, Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and in Western and Eastern states.

Now, as the 2014 midterm elections approach, the tension between the dueling wings of the GOP has advanced into open political warfare, in large part thanks to Karl Rove.

Back in August 2012, we asked here: “Who appointed Bush’s Architect the GOP Gatekeeper?” We can now answer that question: Significant business interests that push their candidate preferences with political donations, often to Political Action Committees (PACs) and Super PACs, coupled with the lobbying efforts of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Along those battle lines, The Hill reported on November 10, 2013 that, “Business leaders [referring to seven persons in Grand Rapids, MI] are plotting to take down Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) as part of a broader effort to punish lawmakers over the government shutdown.”

In reality, though, the issue isn’t the government shutdown. It’s about national governing ideology and raw political power.

The video clip below is from the 2013 Aspen Ideas Festival last June where Rove targeted Michigan (3rd Dis.) Republican Congressman Justin Amash for defeat in 2014. Four months later, in mid-October 2013, a GOP Establishment-backed candidate surfaced to challenge Amash.

Rove Transcript: “National Journal put out its ratings of the most liberal-to-conservative Republican: The most liberal Republican is Justin Amash of Michigan. Far more liberal than any other Republican.  And why? Because he is a one-hundred present purist Libertarian.  And if it’s not entirely perfect, I’m voting with Nancy Pelosi, which is how he gets up with all these liberal ratings. I vote ‘No’ because unless my side has something that’s completely one-hundred percent perfect, I’m voting with the bad guys.”

So, according to Rove, Amash is an oxymoron – a liberal libertarian. Like a jumbo shrimp.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

DEMOCRAT LAWMAKER: Vermont's single-payer health care system will destroy the state

Guest post by Jon Street

BURLINGTON, Vt. – In 2011, while the rest of America argued the merits of the president’s Affordable Care Act, Vermont jumped the progressive curve, promising to launch the nation’s first health single-payer system, in which state government pays providers to care for all residents.

Now, even Democrats say that plan, called Green Mountain Care, isn’t ready for its proposed 2017 rollout, and Rep. Jim Condon told Vermont Watchdog it’s time for Gov. Peter Shumlin to shelve the ambitious plan immediately.

“The deadlines for proposing financing have been missed two years in a row now, so to me that’s very disappointing. It’s becoming clearer and clearer that there is no financing plan,” Condon told Vermont Watchdog.

As Vermont Watchdog reported, an independent report by the Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm Avalere Health concluded that the costs of Green Mountain Care would require Vermont to raise tax revenue roughly equal to the state’s tax collections from all sources today.

Condon, a Democrat from Colchester, said he thinks a single-payer system in Vermont would “cost more” than a couple of previous estimates. Those estimates pegged the cost for single-payer at anywhere from $1.6 billion to $2.2 billion annually.

“It’s a government program [so] I think it’s going to cost more than that. Given that, I think it would be in the best interest of Vermonters to redirect our energies away from single-payer health care to trying to improve the system we’re in now,” Condon added.

WARMAL COLDING TO SLAM U.S. AGAIN NEXT WEEK: Coldest Opening to Spring in at Least 50 Years

I'm so confused: I thought Al Gore promised that the polar icecaps were certain to melt by 2012. Instead, they seem to be moving southward:

Another massive cold wave headed for Eastern US next week to put temperature 20 degrees below normal

Senior WeatherBell Meteorologist Joe Bastardi commented:

I am 58.. never seen anything close to this for late March... [The] pattern next week has as much extreme potential for the time of the year as I can find. Coldest opening to calender spring in 50 yrs at least.

Weather forecast models such as the ECMWF and NCEP, both of which have had good track records this year in identifying polar vortex outbreaks in advance, are now forecasting a massive cold blast for the beginning of spring...

I've done a lot of reading and research over the years on "global warming", "climate change", or whatever it is they're calling it these days.

It's a scam, plain and simple. It's a conspiracy by the United Nations (in the form of its highly conflicted IPCC panel) to control huge swaths of the world economy. I liken it to the U.N.'s criminal "Oil for Food" program, only on a much grander scale.

As far as I can tell, the people promoting this fraud are either Marxist radicals, deluded drones, or scientists looking for government handouts.

And if I ever see Al Gore on the street...

Misunderstanderers of Islam call for car bombs in U.S. cities

Last week, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released the 12th issue of their Inspire e-magazine. This issue, the first since last year’s release of Issue 11 (30 May 2013), continues AQAP’s calls for attacks on the West, individual jihad, and the lionization of the Tsarnaev brothers. Local attacks are encouraged with considerable focus on the Commercial Facilities Sector, and sporting events in particular. It also identifies high-priority targets in the US, UK and France.

A section entitled “Open Source Jihad” asserts it is a “resource manual for those who loathe the tyrants; includes bomb-making techniques, security measures, guerrilla tactics, weapons training and all other jihad related activities.” As with previous messages, the section continues to encourage jihadists to conduct local operations as opposed to assuming risk via overseas travel.

The section on "Car Bombs Inside America" states, “Inspire Magazine's goal is to empower Muslim youth. And what is empowerment without being strong, powerful and intelligent? In this section, we give you strength, power and intelligence. Believe me, using car bombs gives you all that. It is absolutely simple. And we will make it simpler for you, biidhnillāh (meaning: by Allah’s [God’s] will), so that every Muslim, who loves Allāh and His Messenger, and wants to accelerate Islam's victory, becomes prepare to make, even if this is the first military mate- rial his eyes has set on. This recipe gives you the ability to make a car bomb even in countries with tight security and surveillance. The reason is: primary materials easily available and they do not raise suspicion. These materials are not explosives in nature. But after you have assemble and prepare them, they become a bomb ready for destruction, biidhnillāh. This type of car bomb is not usually used to destroy buildings, but is very effective in killing individuals. The merit of this method is that you can prepare a car bomb in a few hours during the availability of the primary materials. So there is less worry about your personal security.”

A section captioned “Car Bomb Field Data” states, "Choosing the place and time is a crucial factor to success in any operation. Choose targets in your own country. You know the enemy better, you are within. We will point out some general and specific targets as an example.” Identifying “general targets,” the segment continues, “America is our first target, followed by United Kingdom, France and other crusader countries. As for the field target for the car-bomb, you have places flooded with individuals, e.g. sports events in which tens of thousands attend, election campaigns, festivals and other gathering. The important thing is that you target people and not buildings.” The section then lists specific target areas within the US, UK and France.

Vowing not to be outdone, Hillary unveils her own version of iconic tattooed Cruz poster

Oh, my:


Related: here.


Larwyn's Linx: Western Arrogance and Decline

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

Nation

Western Arrogance and Decline: Bruce Thornton
An annotated chart about why Presidential approval ratings matter: Moe Lane
For President Obama, It's Lonely at the Bottom: Stephen Green

Hundreds of Gun Registration Forms Burned In Protest: MenRec
Convicted al-Qaida spy works for IRS: Allen West
Chinese Outsmart Mexicans In Prop. 209 Struggle: Steve Sailer

Make Democrats Pay for Obamacare and Obamanomics: David Limbaugh
Facts and Factions: Thomas Sowell
Rick Perry Fail: Throws Support Behind Mitch McConnell: Times

Economy

Premiums up 39%-56% under Obamacare, $2,604/mo. in Cali: Exam
Vermont Single Payer System: Taxes to Double: Daniel Greenfield
Obamacare Is Dying? It Never Lived: Karl Denninger

East Baton Rouge School System Basically A Criminal Conspiracy: HayRide
Current Job Market for Teens is the Toughest on Record: United
Democrats Must Run on Obamacare in November: Daily Beast

Scandal Central

Police Point Guns At People At Massive I-270 Road Block: Outcast
Pa. AG shuts down corruption sting when too many fellow Dems caught redhanded: Unyielding
Gun store thanks supporters after raid: ‘We’re not down on our knees begging for mercy’: BPR

Climate & Energy

Wow, even MSM reporters want to see Michael Mann’s UVa emails now: WUWT
“Unusually Late” Winter Storm Buries D.C.: Cove
NASA: Earth Is Going To Burn By 2099: Cove

Media

How Mainstream Media Pretends U.S. Finances Are Improving: Outcast
The Obama administration wishes to wreck your quiet enjoyment of March Madness: Moe Lane
Mark Levin SCHOOLS intolerant atheist caller: Scoop

Networks Ignore Latest North Korean Missile Launches; Cover Fashion Designer's Death: MRC
Nitwit Stupak: I got double-crossed on the contraception mandate: Hot Air
Nate Silver on the Launch of ESPN’s New FiveThirtyEight, Burritos, and Being a Fox: Joe Coscarelli

World

Plot by Islamic jihadists to hijack passenger jet may relate to missing airliner: JihadWatch
Pilot of the Missing Flight Was a Follower of a Jew-Hater, Israel Tightens Security: Sara Noble
Finally, A Plausible Scenario Of What Happened To Flight 370: ZH

Homeland Security Chair: Missing Plane May be in Hands of Terrorists: CNS
Vladimir Putin and the Lessons of 1938: Garry Kasparov
Crimea Vote: 123% Turnout: TR

Virginia Honors 9/11 Mosque: IBD
‘Many Feisal Shahzads are residing inside America…yearing to fulfill duty of jihad’: Creeping
Isolated Hamas Contemplates Returning to Iran's Orbit: IPT

Air Force sacks two commanders in Europe: Adam L. Mathis
Sheriff in Virginia tells CAIR to take their friggin' $15,000 bribe and shove it: LibertarianRepublican
Navy SEALs board mystery tanker Morning Glory near Cyprus. No one hurt, Pentagon says.: WaPo

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Facebook's working on facial verification that's 'nearing human-level performance': Verge
iHear Wants To Make Personalized Hearing Aids Available For Everyone: TC
Astronomers Discover First Direct Proof of the Big Bang Expansion: Gizmodo

Cornucopia

“CriMeA” River: MOTUS
The Empire Strikes Back Against Tattooed Cruz: Moonbattery
AP Study: The Least Transparent Administration: TR

Image: Vladimir Putin and the Lessons of 1938
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: FreePAC Kentucky - April 5th, 2014

QOTD: "… the op-ed columnists at the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal are probably the most hedgehoglike people. They don’t permit a lot of complexity in their thinking. They pull threads together from very weak evidence and draw grand conclusions based on them. They’re ironically very predictable from week to week. If you know the subject that Thomas Friedman or whatever is writing about, you don’t have to read the column. You can kind of auto-script it, basically.

It’s people who have very strong ideological priors, is the fancy way to put it, that are governing their thinking. They’re not really evaluating the data as it comes in, not doing a lot of [original] thinking. They’re just spitting out the same column every week and using a different subject matter to do the same thing over and over.

It’s ridiculous to me that they undermine every value that these organizations have in their newsrooms. It’s strange. I know it’s cheaper to fund an op-ed columnist than a team of reporters, but I think it confuses the mission of what these great journalistic brands are about." --Nate Silver