Sunday, November 08, 2009

Larwyn's Linx: Dems Declare War on American People, Constitution

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Health Care Bill

Politburo passes health plan, 220-215: Surber
NY-23: Owens pulls a fast one on his constituents: TCOT
First Take on House Passage: LegalIns

2010 Outlook for Democrat 'No' Votes: NRO
The Coming Pharmaceutical Train Wreck: JWF
Souder's One Minute of Pain for Pelosi: GWP

It's on: Palin versus Pelosi: Hot Air
What Pelosi's Bribes Were: Morris
“This is NOT About Health Care Policy: This Is About Ideology”: GWP

Republicans offer health care Americans want: Boehner
NY-23: It takes Owens 1 hour to break 4 campaign promises: GWP

Nation

Fort Hood Suspect Has Ties to 9/11 Mosque : Patterico
'We cannot fully know what leads a man to do such a thing': Cold Fury
Fort Hood Investigation: Hasan's Handgun: AmPow

Obama’s Brown Shirts: SEIU and Political Intimidation in STL: BigGov
Comment of the Day: Black and Right
Who is answering the call?: WBK

Good Morning, Rep. Barney Frank: Lane
At least someone is acting presidential: Grand Rants

Economy

CBO cost estimate of Pelosi Plan $3 trillion: Morrissey
What’s A Foreseeable Rate of Taxation?: Glittering Eye
GM Management 'Reminds One of Socialism': Spiegel

Media

Obama's Frightening Insensitivity Following Shooting: NBC Chicago
Memo to ABC: There's a Reason He's Not Called Smith: AT
Glenn Greenwald's mastery of ellipses: Patterico

They Still Don't Get It: Grand Rants

Climate & Energy

Auto Execs Urge Fuel Taxes of $8/Gallon to Increase Fuel Efficiency: DailyTech

World

The Hole at the Heart of our Strategy: Steyn
Reality Raises Its Head as Media Wakes Up About Administration’s Middle East Failures: Rubin
The New Iran Man at the State Department's Iran Desk: AT (Lasky)

Sci-Tech

Islam’s Darwin problem: Boston Globe

Cornucopia

Supermodels: Then and Now: NBC Connecticut
Here We Go Again: Rostenkowski, Health Care and the Original Town-Hall Protest: BigGov
My Father's War Stories: BMW

From Afghanistan to Iran, Honduras, the UN, and of course Israel, President Obama has compiled an impressive record of failure in a remarkably short period of time. Most presidents have taken years to accomplish what Obama has in a few months. And one gets the feeling the best is yet to come. Former Deputy National Security Adviser Elliott Abrams has the Middle East wrap-up. -- Dan from New York



Saturday, November 07, 2009

What $2.1 million will buy these days


Reliapundit alerts us to a photo essay in the wrinkled gray lady ("Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport").

In the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport, a handful of buyers will get a rocket that gleams across the planet's surface faster than any true production automobile [in history].

...Particulars include 1,001 horsepower, 16 cylinders, 8 liters of engine displacement, 4 turbochargers, all-wheel drive and a dual-clutch automatic transmission.

The removable-roof version of the Veyron coupe costs 1.4 million Euros, or roughly $2.1 million.

...when a car makes a Lamborghini seem tastefully understated, there's a problem.

Editor's note: this appears to be the first time ever that the words 'understated' and 'Lamborghini' have appeared together in a sentence.


Evidence Mounts Fort Hood Shooter Is Ordinary Mass Murderer


Dan from New York:

FBI: Religion, ideology furthest thing from the guy's mind.

FORT HOOD, Texas - As authorities dig deeper into the possible motives behind the Ft. Hood massacre, a picture is emerging of a garden-variety US soldier who found the conflict between his desire to serve his country and the natural fear of combat just too hard to reconcile, causing him to snap. Investigators are now discounting earlier, unconfirmed, reports of 85 eyewitnesses who said they heard Major Nidal Malik Hasan cry "Allahu Akbar!" before going on his shooting rampage, killing thirteen and wounding 30 more. They now believe Hasan, an atheist of Iranian-Jewish descent, was actually shouting "Oy Vey Halvah," and amid the ensuing panic and confusion the phrase was misinterpreted by scores of combat-ready soldiers. MSNBC's Rachel Maddow quotes the FBI agent in charge of the inquiry, Ahmed Faisal, as saying, "we are now confident that Hasan's faith played absolutely no ole in his state of mind leading up to this tragedy. End of subject." Off camera, Maddow, not realizing her mic was on, was heard telling colleague Chris Mathews, "see, what [the] hell did I tell you?"

Asked for his comments on the FBI's findings, President - wait for it - Barack Hussein Obama told reporters, "see, what [the] hell did I tell you?"

Someway, somehow, Karl Rove is to blame.


Correction: Massacre may be America's fault.

Photographic Proof that Dana Milbank Is, as Mark Levin Describes Him, "A Punk, a Liar and a Coward."


Constitutional attorney, bestselling author and hit radio show host Mark Levin certainly doesn't mince words. Alerted to Milbank's latest hit piece in The Washington Post, Levin called Milbank out as a propagandist of the first order.

The reason: out of literally tens of thousands of patriotic signs and shirts at Thursday's Capitol Hill protest, Milbank picked out a handful as supposedly representative of a crowd he described as "hateful and gruesome." An outraged Levin called Milbank a "punk, a liar and a coward" while challenging him to a debate on his show.

In the front of the protest, a sign showed President Obama in white coat, his face painted to look like the Joker. The sign, visible to the lawmakers as they looked into the cameras, carried a plea to "Stop Obamunism." A few steps farther was the guy holding a sign announcing "Obama takes his orders from the Rothchilds" [sic], accusing Obama of being part of a Jewish plot to introduce the antichrist.

But the best of Bachmann's recruits were a few rows into the crowd, holding aloft a pair of 5-by-8-foot banners proclaiming "National Socialist Healthcare, Dachau, Germany, 1945." Both banners showed close-up photographs of Holocaust victims, many of them children....

"Who knew a casual comment on TV could generate this?" Rep. Jeb Hensarling (Tex.) exulted as he stood in front of the Dachau banner.

Now, objecting to the health-care bill is one thing. But doesn't it send the wrong message for House Republicans to hold an event on the Capitol grounds full of hateful and gruesome words and images?

Here's a Nazi reference that Milbank might appreciate: I think of him as the Josef Goebbels of his age. He writes patent propaganda in service of the State. And I can prove it.

Bubba visited DC for the rally and wandered through the crowd for hours taking scores of photos. I created a montage -- click to zoom if you'd like read the dozens of visible messages -- from his collection. And I didn't spot a single "hateful" or "gruesome" message. Just highly p***ed off.

And Milbank's selective memory is appalling.

As has been copiously documented by ZombieTime and many others, the Leftist protests during the Bush administration were more than hateful and gruesome. They were just plain sick (and frequently pornographic). I created a similar montage using just a couple of Zombie's photo albums (click to zoom).


Dana Milbank, cowardly lying punk that he is, must have missed the hundreds of anti-Bush rallies and the thousands of truly despicable, pornographic and violent messages presented at those events.

Little wonder that the Washington Post's circulation is dropping faster than a hot dog into Michael Moore's gullet.


A picture is worth 2,000 pages


Tom Blumer provides this devastating view of PelosiCare's new bureaucracies: 111 agencies, regulators, committees, boards and offices:


The area in the yellow box in the top center was the chart as it existed several months and hundreds of pages ago.

I can’t wait for the “How to Keep Your Doctor” update.

Tom seems a little down in the dumps regarding PelosiCare. I, however, have complete faith in the Democrats to deliver a plan that increases the quality of care, covers 30 million new patients, won't change your existing health plans a bit, ensures coverage of pre-existing conditions and cuts costs!

I also have faith in the Democrats to provide singing unicorn petting zoos in every waiting room in the country.


ObamaCare: If It's Private, Kill It!


Dan from New York:

Excerpt of an email received from a big "community organizer":

Health insurer Humana posted a 65% jump in third-quarter profit on Monday, due largely to a bulging membership and to premiums from Medicare Advantage...

Humana has faced the wrath of seniors across the country after falsely warning them that their benefits are at risk due to health reform...

Many senior advocates see the gigantic rise in profits as further proof of Medicare Advantage subsidies being an unnecessary corporate giveaway from the government to private insurers at the expense of seniors.

In other words, seniors' benefits - namely their Medicare Advantage plans - are at risk due to Obama's health reform because Obama's health reform reduces or eliminates the government subsidies that make those privately-issued plans possible.

And once regular Medicare's competition is put out of business, seniors will have no choice but take the sharply reduced benefits ObamaCare gives them.

That's the way Obama and his Leftocrats plan to drive you into their arms, and then squeeze the life out of you.

And what happens to the employees, vendors, partners, suppliers and shareholders (direct and indirect through mutual funds) of private health insurers?

The SEIU is licking its chops at the opportunity to unionize millions of new public sector employees.


National Health Care's Test Bed: Puerto Rico


Vic sent in his observations from a recent visit to "The Beautiful Island".

I recently returned from a long anticipated sojourn to the land of my ancestors: Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is a beautiful tropical getaway for travelers in the know and was a melting pot for Spanish, French, Irish Geese and so many more during the Colonial Period when Spain ruled the seas and wars were fought over honor and commodities such as gold and cotton. From 1508 until the Spanish ceded Puerto Rico to the United Sates in 1898, gold was mined and depleted, the island was depopulated of Taino indians, repopulated with Europeans, and natural disasters shaped the culture and ethos of its inhabitants.

My visit re-acquainted me with long lost relatives and introduced me to a raft of previously unknown loved ones. One such newcomer (to me anyway) has been employed by the Commonwealth for decades and ran for office against the corruption as he saw it and is solidly for statehood; a perennial issue that comes to a head with a vote periodically. Puerto Rico is a true colony of the United States: it owes its economic survival to the sustenance provided by the Federal Government and would sink into Third World poverty if not for the billions of dollars pumped into the economy. It really is a welfare state and the Puerto Ricans are well aware of their status as a 'stepchild territory'. It is an outpost for the United Sates that hems in Cuba and its strategic importance can not be understated. That having been said, the Island economy is depressed and has been for many years.

The number one industry in Puerto Rico is administering the distribution of the money provided by the United States in the form of so many programs and a welfare system rivaling any Cold War satellite of the USSR. There was an amazing burst of economic activity until the early nineties, when the Clinton Administration eliminated an enhanced tax status for corporations operating on the Island. Then the companies pulled up stakes for Asia and the economy collapsed. A drive through the southern shore treats you to an ugly display of abandoned and rusting oil refineries among the tropical lushness. A stunning sea bordered by a coastline of deteriorating factories: disgusting in all of its irony.

This long-winded description of island life is meant to inform you of the mindset of the Puerto Rican people. One of resignation to economic slumber and permanent dependency on the United States. Are they proud to be Americans? You betcha! But many long for statehood and the responsibilities that go along with it. But they are also proud perversely, as I see it, of their health care system.

The Puerto Ricans see government-run health care as a right and not a privilege of gainful employment. Understand that redistribution of money is the prime industry there so it follows that a sense of entitlement is ingrained. Only a minority, however large it may be, want the sometimes crushing responsibilities of statehood and the status the goes with it. Case in point: California is effectively bankrupt because of its social programs and unceasing support for illegal aliens who neither pay taxes nor re-invest in local communities.

The Islanders are intensely proud that the Obama Administration had studied their model and has decided to take it nationwide. They see the benefits of a centrally run program but have cautions for the White House regarding implementation. Firstly, it is expensive, depleting funds that would otherwise be used to spur economic activity. The Puerto Ricans are sensitive to the financial costs in the long run but trust the Government will make up the lost growth later.

The second caution is more of a warning to our aging population: Rationing. Certain procedures and modalities are simply not available for a small 'nation' who never had the budget for the more exotic equipment and treatments anyway. If you get a fatal illness that will consume lots of resources and buy a few months; you go home to settle your affairs. On an island that has commercial vehicles belching smoke and abandoned buildings on every street can it surprise anyone that top level health care simply does not exist?

In a commonwealth that appears to a visitor to be stuck in the 1970s there is no expectation of emerging from near poverty and the achievement of the wild prosperity that the mainland boasts. There is the feeling of just getting along and the hope for more funding from 'Mother Congress'.

And as the United States emerges from its recession more money will come: As a territory it is their right. Don't get me wrong, Puerto Ricans are very proud to be Americans. They are simply the victims of 'Mother Congress' socializing and completely controlling their economy. There is no other option for them as the Government has taxed most industry right off the island and has a stranglehold on its income.

When a government can dictate how much money you earn and where you may work it has infinite control over the decisions you make. And that is not the America I want for my children. Don't let 'Mother Congress' and headmistress Pelosi nationalize health care. It will be the undoing of the best medical system in the world and have the unanticipated result of suppressing our economy. It will unquestionably lead to a lower standard of living. I fear for the Democracy if this dog of a bill passes.



Chart o' the Day: We Went a Trillion in the Hole for THIS?

Spotted at InstaPundit:


Click to bigg-ify

Logical: let's turn over one-fifth of the economy to the same Einsteins that obliterated the economy with a Keynesian "Stimulus" disaster. And let's do so using a 2,000-page bill that puts Rube Goldberg to shame.


Larwyn's Linx: ObamaCare's Redistribution of Health

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Nation

ObamaCare's Redistribution of Health: PJM (Blumer)
Michelle Bachmann's Capitol Hill Tea Party: PJM
He Likes Bad Boys: Ace

The Hero of Fort Hood: AmDig
Fort Hood and Muslim Soldiers with Attitude: Malkin
The Price of the Public Option: AT

Democrats and the death of deliberative democracy: Malkin
Pelosi Caves to Stupak: Hot Air
Buy a $15K policy or go directly to jail: JWF

Obamacare is government-by-coercion, not consent: Examiner
Health Care Bill Will Destroy Millions of Jobs: Boehner
Be Proud, Democrats. Be Very Proud: Red State

Economy

Cap-and-Trade: destroying the economies of Europe: AT
Worst. Talking Point. Ever.: McArdle
The Unstimulating Stimulus Continues to Work Its Magic: AmDig

10.2 Unemployment: a leading indicator Obama policies must change: Tapscott
Destroying More Jobs Cannot Wait Until Monday: LegalIns
Blue State Utopia: College Grants Canceled; Pork Construction Scheduled: BlogProf

Media

Dancing around the truth of the Ft. Hood massacre: PJM
WaPo's Dana Milbank Decries 'Hateful and Gruesome' Citizens' Protest: NewsBusters
AP Unclear What Motivated Devout Muslim Shouting "Allahu Akbar" to Kill: Jawa

Classy: White House Thugs Now Threatening Democrat Strategists Who Appear on Fox: JWF
Spokes-idiot Gibbs can't imagine anyone comparing a President to Hitler: Hot Air
'2012' filmmaker feared Muslim backslash: BMW

Climate & Energy

Australian PM warns skeptics 'are too 'dangerous to ignore': Depot

World

Iranian People to the U.S.: Recognize Our Existence!: PJM
Good News: Iran Working On High Tech Nuclear Warhead Designs: Ace
Are Syria, Hizballah and Iran Threatening to Assassinate Americans Including U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon?: Rubin

Does corruption provide a way out of Afghanistan?: MYODBP
China buys into U.S. off-shore oil leases: Examiner
Lesson of the Berlin Wall -- Still Relevant: Kesler

Sci-Tech

Fast food morning with the Tesla Roadster: BoingBoing
Repugnant Rides: 10 Ugliest Cars at SEMA: InstaPundit

Cornucopia

Headlines from the Year 2020: AWOL Civilization
How God Created the Military Wife: TigerHawk
So how popular is Gay Marriage?: Ace

Friday, November 06, 2009

Look up 'faux pas' in the dictionary...


...look up faux pas in the dictionary and you'll see this speech by President Obama on the Fort Hood massacre.

Please, everybody have a seat. Let me first of all just thank Ken and the entire Department of the Interior staff for organizing just an extraordinary conference. I want to thank my Cabinet members and senior administration officials who participated today. I hear that Dr. Joe Medicine Crow was around, and so I want to give a shout-out to that Congressional Medal of Honor* winner. It's good to see you. (Applause.)

My understanding is, is that you had an extremely productive conference. I want to thank all of you for coming and for your efforts, and I want to give you my solemn guarantee that this is not the end of a process but a beginning of a process, and that we are going to follow up. (Applause.) We are going to follow up. Every single member of my team understands that this is a top priority for us. I want you to know that, as I said this morning, this is not something that we just give lip service to. And we are going to keep on working with you to make sure that the first Americans get the best possible chances in life in a way that's consistent with your extraordinary traditions and culture and values.

Now, I have to say, though, that beyond that, I plan to make some broader remarks about the challenges that lay ahead for Native Americans, as well as collaboration with our administration, but as some of you might have heard, there has been a tragic shooting at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas. We don't yet know all the details at this moment; we will share them as we get them. What we do know is that a number of American soldiers have been killed, and even more have been wounded in a horrific outburst of violence.

My immediate thoughts and prayers are with the wounded and with the families of the fallen, and with those who live and serve at Fort Hood...

Gee, he's so much smarter than G. W. Bush!

Genius: Fort Hood Shooter Participated in Obama's Homeland Security Transition Planning


The phrase 'man-made disaster' comes to mind. It would appear that the Fort Hood shooter assisted the Obama administration's transition planning for homeland security. Gawker does the heavy lifting for the lame-stream media:

The gunman who killed 12 people today at Ft. Hood appears, based on current media reports, to be Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan who was listed as a participant in a Homeland Security Policy Institute's presidential transition task force last year.

The task force was not officially affiliated with the White House. It was a project of the Homeland Security Policy Institute, an independent thinktank housed at George Washington University, aimed at drafting policy recommendations for the incoming Obama administration.

According to the task force's May 2009 report, a "Nidal Hasan" from the Uniformed Services University School of Medicine was a task force event participant. Other participants included Senate and House staffers, Department of Homeland Security officials, Defense Department officials, and reporters for Politico, the Washington Post, and the London Times.

The real dangers, of course, are beanie babies. Or the Christian right. Not radicals who espouse the destruction of the West and the concomitant establishment of a new Caliphate.


Science Fiction: Ferrari 458 performance statistics


Autospies has a first look at the Ferrari 458 including some excellent videos.

Best quote: "The claimed performance figures are utterly mental:

"This is the one that bends my head... Naught (zero) to 124 miles-per-hour in 10.4 seconds."

I wonder if spine surgery is included in the MSRP.

Make sure you watch the videos... and remember to turn up the volume.


RED ALERT: ACORN Headquarters Raided: 'This is an investigation of everything'


Just received several text messages and emails:

in new orleans today acorns office files and computers were seized

Red Ink is reporting:

Only minutes ago the Louisiana Attorney General's office issued a statement that the Elysian street offices of ACORN in New Orleans was raided today and all of their computers and records were seized in a racketeering and embezzlement investigation.

If memory serves, the Elysian Street offices house dozens of entities that comprise the ACORN web of corruption.

State investigators raided ACORN offices on Friday, taking away computer hard drives and documents as part of a probe into alleged embezzlement and tax fraud when the organization's national headquarters was based in New Orleans.

"This is an investigation of everything — ACORN, the national organization, the local organization and all of its affiliated entities, specifically as it relates to any potential violations of Louisiana law," Assistant Attorney General David Caldwell said.

ACORN staff on the scene declined to comment, but an attorney for the group said in a statement the raid was prompted by allegations that former ACORN employees had removed or altered electronic documents and may do so in the future.

Attorney Pamela Marple said ACORN was cooperating and called the raid exhaustive, saying investigators wanted "virtually every document in the possession of ACORN and any related entity."

The raid was the latest development for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. Videotapes released recently showed ACORN employees offering tax advice to two people in Baltimore posing as a prostitute and her pimp. The videos led Congress and state governments to cut funding for ACORN.

State prosecutors said their probe into the New Orleans offices stemmed from allegations made last year by board members involving embezzlement at ACORN nearly a decade ago... David Caldwell said he did not know which former ACORN employees removed the computers... "We're going to grab the stuff, make copies," he said, "and get it all back to them so whatever entities are doing business with them are able to do so."

I blame Bush.


Update: Big Government has the must-read report.

Collectible Postcards from 11/5 Capitol Hill Protest!


Isn't entrepreneurship wonderful? No sooner had concerned citizens descended on Washington than the gift shops started selling these collectible postcards.


Click to bigg-ify

Best question posed by protesters: "Will the public option pay for Pelosi's botox?"

Collect 'em all!


Larwyn's Linx: Answering the Call at the Capitol

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Ft. Hood Massacre

Fort Hood -- a now familiar horror: Hanson
'I wish his name was Smith': NewsBusters
The Daily Kos reaction to the Ft. Hood Massacre: STACLU

Police Raid Ft. Hood Suspect's Home: Fox

Nation

Photos: Answering the Call at the Capitol: WBK
Get ready to pay a monthly abortion premium: GOPleader
That light in the tunnel is still a locomotive: AT (Shiver)

James Madison on PelosiCare: AT
Keys to success found in NY-23 loss: PJM (Byrd)
60 Plus leader: Senior 'tsunami' coming: Times

Just back from the Capitol protest: Riehl
Faith in Government: Blair
Volunteering will be mandatory: Trib

Economy

Press Silent as Uncle Sam's Coffers Run Dry: BizzyBlog
Boxer breaks Senate rules to levy Carbon tax: GWP
California Housing and Economy In Depth: DHB

Why Gold has a long way to go: Zero Hedge
Thoughts on SPN 2009: STACLU
MI governor: "raise taxes or people will die": BlogProf

P/E is improving (it is, right?): Denninger
AARP and CU should put their money where their mouths are: LegalIns
More insider trading: UUP options go nuts: Denninger

Media

Time to stop this fight: Power Line
Exploiting infant deaths to sell ObamaCare: AT (Tate)
E.J. Dionne Embarrasses Himself Again (Chap. 408): Power Line

Climate & Energy

Britain faces a a new "dark age" thanks to the church of environmentalism: AT
Man made climate change belief now legally a religion: Jawa
Panel OKs climate-change bill without GOP: Times

World

WaPo: 'Smart Power' actually 'Amateur Hour': Hot Air
Russia stages a mock invasion of Poland, abandoned by U.S.: PJM
Censored: Critics of the Goldstone Report at the U.N.: Eye on the UN

Sci-Tech

Rare virus poses new threat to troops: Times
Google tries its own take at customer service: CNet
Google offers Javascript programming tools: CNet

Cornucopia

White House Bunker: Election Night 2009: Jawa

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Malik Nadal Hasan and Obama's Pet Goat Moment


Linda Chavez, writing at Commentary, nails the administration's offhanded response to an apparent terrorist attack.

We still don’t know what was behind the killings at Ft. Hood this afternoon, in which 11 soldiers and the killer died, but President Obama’s rushed press conference was surprising in its flippancy nonetheless. Before he got to the issue on everyone’s mind — namely the deaths of Americans in uniform — the president gave a “shout-out” to government bureaucrats gathered for a previously scheduled conference at the Interior Department, complete with appreciative chuckles. He treated the event like a pep rally rather than a tragic occasion with a wider audience than those gathered in the room. I wonder how many media outlets will compare Obama’s performance to President Bush’s “Pet Goat” moment on 9/11. I won’t hold my breath.

Larwyn reports that both MSNBC and CNN have released one of the names of the shooters: Malik Nadal Hasan, reportedly a Muslim convert:

Al Qaeda directed Muslims to infiltrate the military for these very attacks... The [Fox] coverage is beyond stupid. Three men -- is a conspiracy. Three men is a terror cell. For the FBI to rule out terrorism in an obvious act of terrorism (by whom, we know not yet) indicates were are worse off than the UK. Three men, synchronized shoting, M16s, maximum kill...

News flash: there won't be any "Beer Summit" between these protagonists, Mr. President.

Who was Hasan? The Corner advises:

Major Nadal Malik Hasan, a 39-year-old Muslim convert, was born and educated in Virginia. He is a psychiatrist who worked at Walter Reed for six years (and got a poor performance evaluation there). Hasan was transferred to Ft. Hood and worked at the psych ward there. He complained about deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Fox has interviewed someone who worked with him at Ft. Hood (Terry Lee) who says he was a harsh critic of U.S. foreign policy who said Muslims had a right to stand up and fight against the aggressor in Iraq and Afghanistan — i.e., us.

The V.A. database provides the following educational background on Nidal Malik Hasan:


Was Hasan a Jihadist? It would appear so, if these reports are accurate:

The main shooter was reportedly shouting in Arabic as the victims were shot down.

Al-Qaeda and the Ikhwan (the Muslim Brotherhood) are quite clear in encouraging jihadis to infiltrate the military and law enforcement, and we already know that they have targeted military bases in the past. Remember Fort Dix? And this one?

Not to mention the other attempts that were unsuccessful and hushed up.

Major Hasan was quoted as saying "Muslims have the right to rise up against the US military" and "The Muslims have a right to stand up against the aggressors" and after the Little Rock shooting said that "Muslims need to do more of these". according to a FOX interview with a Colonel Terry Lee who worked with Hasan.

And there are confirming reports:

Federal law enforcement officials say the suspected Fort Hood, Texas, shooter had come to their attention at least six months ago because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats...

...One of the Web postings that authorities reviewed is a blog that equates suicide bombers with a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to save the lives of his comrades.

"To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause," said the Internet posting. "Scholars have paralled (sic) this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers."

The original posting on Scribd reads (emphases mine):

There was a grenade thrown amongs [sic] a group of American soldiers. One of the soldiers, feeling that it was to late for everyone to flee jumped on the grave with the intention of saving his comrades. Indeed he saved them. He inentionally [sic] took his life (suicide) for a noble cause i.e. saving the lives of his soldier. To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause. Scholars have paralled [sic] this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers. If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers because they were caught off guard that would be considered a strategic victory. Their intention is not to die because of some despair. The same can be said for the Kamikazees [sic] in Japan. They died (via crashing their planes into ships) to kill the enemies for the homeland. You can call them crazy i [sic] you want but their act was not one of suicide that is despised by Islam. So the scholars main point is that "IT SEEMS AS THOUGH YOUR INTENTION IS THE MAIN ISSUE" and Allah (SWT) knows best.

Sounds like a Militant Quaker to me.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those impacted by these despicable attacks.


Good News: No Atomic Weapons Found in Iran Cache


Dan from New York:

Experts Agree: rest easy -- nuclear conflagration at least a year off


The IDF confirms that none of the Iranian weapons it seized on Wednesday appear to be nuclear devices. One high-level Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told our correspondent, "it was a calculated risk bringing the ship and its cargo into a major Israeli port like Ashdod. Even a low-yield nuclear bomb could have blown half the country sky high. But we are pretty confident it will take at least a year before Iran can miniaturize an atomic weapon and get it to fit inside the small wooden boxes they now use for their Katyushas. We'll worry about it when the time comes."

In other reassuring news, UN Atomic Energy chief Mohamed ElBaradei said there was "nothing to be worried about" at Qom, the previously secret uranium enrichment site Iran revealed in September. "It's a hole in a mountain," he said. The Egyptian-born ElBaradei, whose name means "Mohamed the liar" in Arabic, also told reporters he was examining possible compromises to unblock a draft nuclear cooperation deal between Iran and three major powers that has foundered over Iranian objections. "We still have plenty of time to get back on track," he told the New York Times. "It will take at least a year before Iran can miniaturize an atomic weapon and get it to fit inside the small wooden boxes they now use for their Katyushas."

On a personal note, ElBaradei, who will be retiring next year, was asked if he planned to spend his golden years in his native Egypt. "Are you s***in' me?," the suave diplomat asked, rhetorically of course. "The whole freakin' Middle East is going to become one radioactive powder keg the day after I hang up my dark grey suit. A nice basement apartment near the White House, that's where you'll find me."

Fun fact: El Baradei means 'useless tool' in Arabic.

Math and the Movies: An Interesting Quiz!


Chrissie sent this one in.

This math test can predict your all time most watched film, mine was Saving Private Ryan. Try it without looking at the answers. It works!

Pick a number from 1 to 9.

Multiply by 3.

Add 3, then multiply by 3 again.

You will get your answer by adding the two digits together to find your all time favorite movie listed below.

Good Luck!

The master list is:

1. Gone With The Wind.

2. Aliens.

3. Oliver.

4. Star Wars.

5. Forrest Gump.

6. Saving Private Ryan.

7. Monte Python and the Holy Grail.

8. Grease.

9. Joy of Wearing Women's Underwear: the Keith Olbermann Story.

10. Mary Poppins.



Linked by: Denny. Thanks!

Larwyn's Linx: Obama Rolls Dice, Craps Out in New Jersey

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Election 2009

Lessons from the 2009 election results: Barone
What it all means: Wizbang
The Significance of Yesterday: Grand Rants

The Price Of Apostasy: Wizbang
Divided party: Progressives threaten Dems: Examiner
Small Unpopular Fringe Party Wins In Virginia: LegalIns

Obama craps out in New Jersey: PJM (Wertz)
Forget the 2-1 Spin; It Was a Rout: AT (Wright)

Nation

AARP sells out seniors: Malkin
The discrete charm of the left wing plutocracy: Hanson
Another Democrat Utopia: BlogProf

The Great Mystery: AT (McCann)
The GOP's Much Better Plan: Boehner
Obama's revolving door always open to Podestas: Examiner

Pelosi's $6 billion slush fund: Examiner
The Worst Bill Ever: WSJ
Obama-Pelosi to Health Insurers: Shut Up or We'll Shut You Down: AT

Economy

After a flurry of stimulus spending, questionable projects pile up: Examiner
Prayer is another insanity in ObamaCare: Kesler
Goldman's Perfect Record: 63-to-1: Zero Hedge

Cut in Half Overnight: InTrade Odds for Health Care: Carpe Diem
Dem math: Wage hikes counted as 'jobs saved': BlogProf
An option for the public: Less government, more choice: Jacoby

Media

John Stossel Gets the Treatment: Verum Serum
Palin book tour begins Nov. 18: AP
Last night's big loser: the Washington Post: Examiner

Peace group" gears up for exciting talk by McClatchy reporter: McClatchy Watch
AP Screws The Pooch On Kennedy, Vietnam & Afghanistan: Kesler
"V" TV Series Mocks the Kool-Aid Drinkers: GWP

Climate & Energy

$4,500 to save 1 MPG: Surber
Captain Carbon Admits Inconvenient Truth: AGW Is A Religion: Soylent Green
Fossil Fuels Weren't Fossils: Surber

World

J Street - A Particularly Nasty Dead End To Be Avoided: JoshuaPundit
Indonesia bans its workers from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan for mistreatment: Maktoob
Fatwa issued against Indian national song: PakTrib

Censored! The Truth About Hizb ut-Tahrir: PJM (Chesler)
The Turkey-Israel alliance is over: Rubin
The Missiles of October: WSJ

Hijackers of a religion: Corner
Gold Prices Hit Record High As India Moves Away From Dollar, Warns U.S. Economy Has 'Collapsed': GWP
British Mom: I will turn my kids into suicide bombers: Jawa

Sci-Tech

Hurt More: Crittenden

Cornucopia

DMV Fun Time Activity Book: Doswell
Prejean Sex Tape Triggers Settlement: TMZ
Man dresses up as Breathalyzer with predictable results: JWF

Photo o' the day: We got a winnah!



Hat tip: Jasmine.