The Rumbler Report

Required Rumbler Reading

2011-12-08T13:10:00.001-08:00

Sharing some goodies from my never ending stack-o-stuff:

Barbarians on the Thames: The always eloquent Theodore Dalrymple dispenses with the silliness of attempts at liberal explanations (income inequality!) for the rioting in England this past summer...a lot of these lessons can be applied here.

Mid-summer stroll in olde London towne.

I am generally not a fan of 60 Minutes - but if you missed this episode, you missed a sad but critical piece of our problems in Washington:

A lot of that material came from this book:

I am working through it right now - have to keep the blood pressure meds up, so I'll get back to you.

Illinois: State of Embarrassment - Joel Kotkin's analysis of the underlying problem with Barack Obama...it's the culture of Chicago politics. This short piece lays it out in excruciating detail. But hey, at least Blogo got sentenced!

The Dangers of Democracy: An excellent piece to hand to those who want to gush about the "Arab spring." Bottom line - we got it way wrong in Iran 30 years ago...we almost certainly have it wrong in Egypt, Libya, Yemen....

Democracy for Mohammed and a few of his friends...

Enough to keep you busy...

Rumble on!

Dividing America

2011-12-06T16:20:00.001-08:00

I am on the mailing list for an entertaining morning read from the investment advisors over at Penserra Securities called "The Marginal Prophet." A couple of weeks ago, in his "From the Cheap Seats" section, the author posited this:

While commenting on the veracity of the Occupy Anything movement, Robo asked the question, “When did our society become so polarized?”I can point to the exact moment; Monday; October 29^th, 2007. Though I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday, that moment in time is still burned into my memory banks. I was five months into my second retirement, and I was Occupying “Flippers,” a local greasy spoon. The Dow Jones was a shade under 14,000, the value of my home had two commas in it, and I was about to wolf down a fiendishly delicious cheeseburger and fries. Life was not just good. It was very, very good. Just as I picked up my sloppy three-quarter pounder, I was interrupted by a unique ringtone from my iPhone; a barking dog. It was Robo. “Hey there, Little Brother, XYZ (the name of the company is withheld to protect the innocent) is trading at $19,” he gushed. “We can do this!” I gave my meal a brief pardon and replied, “That’s right, Little Brother (we call each other ‘little brother’- don’t ask). Let’s always remember this feeling, because it will never get better than this.”Little did I know how right I would be. In October 2007, a tea party was what old women threw to amuse themselves. People occupied jobs instead of parks. Debates between a black male presidential candidate and a white female presidential candidate seemed downright civil. So long as asset prices kept going up, tempers kept going down. American society was on a roll.Here’s a snapshot of where we are four years later. Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on where the sun sets. The Federal Reserve is out of bullets. Billionaires stare down millionaires in the NBA. Tea Party advocates go to work everyday ready to eviscerate unemployed college graduates who Occupy their way. People don’t work for paychecks: they intern for the opportunity to get a paycheck. Obama seems impotant, and shooting pepper spray seems the best way for people from campus police to Black Friday shoppers to communicate their differences.When did everybody get so mad? It's painful out there, for sure, and there are plenty of issues to be upset about. But when did compromise become a four-letter word? Sports experts like to say that winning covers a lit of ills. So too does a rising stock market. And a rising housing market. And a job market where asking your boss for a raise isn’t met a scowl and a pink slip. A rising tide may lift all boats, but a falling tide reveals what really lies underneath the water.C’mon America. We’re better than this.

I don't disagree that being civil is a whole lot easier when the Dow is rocketing through 14,000, Europe looks stable and the Chinese are content with making cheap goods instead of hemispheric domination BUT, I do think there's more to incivility than a rising stock market. I was not alone. Another reader of the Marginal Prophet sent him this response, which he published the next day:

I think your date of October 27, 2007, pinpointing when our society became sopolarized, was the tipping point. However, it took two decades to build to thatpoint, and I give equal, if not greater weight, to the following dates: (1) July 1, 1987, when Ted Kennedy took to the floor of the US Senate and trashedRobert Bork, who just minutes earlier was nominated for the Supreme Court by RonaldReagan. Kennedy knew his tirade was BS, as did his fellow Democrats, but they stuckto that story and forever changed the "process" to nominate and approve SupremeCourt justices. Facts and truth no longer matter to the process, just innuendo andsmears. (2) December 19, 1998, the day the U.S. House of Representatives impeached BillClinton. Although Clinton was impeached on charges of perjury and obstruction ofjustice, it will be forever linked in the public mind that he was railroaded over aprivate encounter. (3) November 8, 2000, the day George W. Bush was elected president, and it wascontested by Al Gore. To me, the contested Florida recount in Bush/Gore marks the turning point for whenthe America I knew ended. Before that election, the supporters of the losing sidealways threw their support behind the presidency (not necessarily the man), nomatter how nasty or brutish the campaign. They may have preferred a differentoutcome, but there was still some respect for the office. After Florida, theliberals/progressives never accepted Bush as "legitimate'" and set out to destroyhim personally, and did great damage to the office of the presidency in the process.The Republicans have returned the favor with Obama.

An interesting counterpoint and I don't disagree with the dates. I would add that what happened to Robert Bork was repeated with Clarence Thomas and others. We have reached the point in the selection process of Supreme Court nominees that it's best to put ups someone that is plain vanilla with no track record than to nominate a serious juris doctor. Nevertheless, I submit there are dates even further back that began the journey to the hanging chads of Florida. Allow me to posit a few:

1. May 4, 1970: The Kent State Shootings. The Ohio National Guard fired 67 live rounds into a crowd of students killing four American citizens. Sure, there had been rioting in the town, a lot of threats had been issued about burning down the ROTC building and the like - but you DON'T fire on your own citizens! This galvanized the anti-Vietnam war movement and gave them moral superiority. The backlash was taken out on American GI's returning from the war. It was inexcusable, but I submit, it was the beginning of our polarization.

2. December 13, 1974: North Vietnam resumed combat with South Vietnam ignoring the Paris Peace Accords. President Gerald Ford asked the Democrat controlled Congress for funds to support the South Vietnamese and they refused. This ultimately led to the fall of Saigon and the humiliating American exit from Southeast Asia. Democrats became linked forever to weak defense; the military - an institution which reports to the civilian government - would never fully trust Washington again.

3. April 19, 1993: Attack on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. OK, David Koresh was a certifiably kooky and creepy religious nut with a lot of guns. (This country was founded by religious nuts with guns.) But what gave Bill Clinton and Janet Reno the right to use tanks - TANKS! - against a bunch of American citizens...well, some 20 odd were Brits - but overall 76 people were incinerated. For what? Because they thought Koresh was the new messiah? By that logic, the Justice Department should have attacked the Democrat Convention in Denver when they nominated the current occupier of the White House. This attack, along with other suspect incursions by an over-zealous DoJ like Ruby Ridge, led to a growing paranoia on the Right. As soon as the White House changed hands, the paranoia shifted to the Left. Regardless, if we can't feel that we can trust our government, we will come apart at the seams.

4. March 21, 2010: Passage of Obamacare. This single act of partisanship - ramming an unpopular piece of legislation down the throats of the American people with barely a nominal majority is probably the most divisive act of the last thirty years and it will take many years to undo and overcome. "We'll have to pass the bill to see what's in it." Will go down as the most irresponsible act of (non) governance in the history of the Republic. Brute force has become the standard of governance.

If you have any suggested dates, pass them along for consideration!

Rumble on!

Required Rumbler Reading

2011-11-29T13:57:00.001-08:00

Haven't done an R Cubed column in a bit, but over Thanksgiving I worked through my "Read it Later List" and thought I would share a few gems with you.

1. Should the Rich Be Condemned? I grow weary of Obama's constant class warfare and the idiocy it has spawned in the streets. But Walter Williams nails it in this piece. "Class warfare thrives on ignorance of the sources of income," Williams observes. Sadly, ignorance begets tyranny. I can't think of any demagogue from Huey Long to Adolf Hitler that hasn't used the meme that "someone else is getting theirs unfairly" that has improved the situation. The usual outcome is pretty grim.

2. U.S. Job Market Looking More Like Europe's: This Wall Street Journal piece takes a hard look at the results of Obanomics and what it has done to the core job numbers. It is a sobering prediction that if we don't change the regulatory environment and get the American economy focused on growth instead of "fairness," we're all screwed.

3. Speaking of the rich...what if we took EVERYTHING they had? Bill Whittle did a short video on this that is highly instructive - I shared this before, but it really is worth another look:

4. FATCA: A Ticking Time Bomb for the Economy: Is that intro missing a "T" at the end? I had not heard about this, but it actually stands for "Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act," bred from the FBAR. No, my military veteran friends not "F***** Up Beyond All Repair," FBAR is actually the "Foreign Bank Accounting Report. FATCA gives IRS the authority to find out the bank balances of U.S. citizens living abroad and to require the institutions holding those funds to report the information. This is truly scary stuff and will result in a complete abandonment of US financial markets by foreign investors.

5. Thomas Jefferson's Free Market Economics: as a student of the history of Mr. Jefferson, I was well aware of his love for Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations." This short piece pushed Jefferson squarely into the economic libertarian camp. It might be a bit of an overstatement - just as when Jefferson said "the tree of liberty must from time to time be refreshed with the blood of patriots and tyrants." He didn't really mean there needed to be regular violent revolution...it was a calculated overstatement to drive home the point that liberty requires vigilance. This is a good piece, nevertheless, worth the read!

That's enough for now...

Rumble on!

Jobs (and not the Steve kind)

2011-11-28T21:41:00.001-08:00

Ramirez's sentiment over at Investor's Business Daily really nails it. Liberals in Washington (and all over the fruited plain) are lambasting the same corporations that their allies in the OWS movement vilify for not creating jobs. The OWSers lament, through their wafts of body odor, that it is the corporations that are ruining America. You mean the oil companies that can't drill? Or perhaps you mean the food and beverage companies that are being regulated out of existence? Maybe you mean the tobacco companies that can no longer advertise? Perhaps you are talking about the evil pharmaceutical companies that can't get FDA approval for the product they spent billions of research dollars on? Wait, wait, you must be speaking of the horrifying financial services companies that can no longer lend thanks to the shackles of the Dodd-Frank Bill?

As we have discussed on these pages before, some regulation is necessary to maintain order in the system. But once the government has gotten in the business of picking winners and losers in the free market, we are finished. How about a Solyndra powered Chevy Volt with a battery that catches fire and burns all the shareholders' interests (except the ones that contributed to the Obama campaign)?

Leaves one pining for a little blues - how about Joe Cocker's "Unchain my Heart?"

Rumble on!

How's That "Reset" Thingie Workin' For Ya?

2011-11-22T08:43:00.001-08:00

Remember the famous Hillary "reset" button:

Of course the idiots didn't check their Russian-English dictionary wherein they would have learned that "peregruzka" actually means "overcharged." But let's not get in the way of symbolism. Back in those heady days when the oceans were going to recede and peace would be heralded throughout the world with vuvuzelas at the very image of our gifted young ~~God~~ President...oh how the mighty have fallen.

Take a look at this Russian newscasters quite public opinion of Msr. Obama:

Man if the Russian media doesn't feel the love, you know you have fallen to a new low!

Just checking...

Yup - still resembling that famous Ross Perot line about giant sounds.

Rumble on!

Just In Time for Black Friday!

2011-11-17T14:08:00.001-08:00

Don't go to the Mall! You can get all you need for your loved ones at the "Gifts for Conservatives" e-store! Get your special loved one that Ronald Reagan "Miss Me Yet?" T-Shirt. How about Mark Levin's latest book on the evolution of modern America? It's all here and we will be adding products daily!

Click on the image to go to the store.

Benetton Gets in Right

2011-11-17T07:56:00.001-08:00

Are they sure this is photo-shopped?

From the Occu-Cootie Front

2011-11-07T07:55:00.000-08:00

Meanwhile, the RAPES pile up. Head and body LICE are popping up. Theft is rampant. There have been at least two deaths reported from drug overdoses. Millions of dollars in damages and police overtime costs are being borne by the communities where these idiots are camping out...and best of all, most still have no idea why they are there...

The Chicago Board of Trade dealers are at least doing something about it - they dumped McDonald's applications at Occupy Chicago.

Rumble on!

Our Pious Pompous Congressman Cooper

2011-11-02T08:51:00.000-07:00

Oops! Mr. Dudley Do-Right, Mr. "Blue-Dog Democrat," (but voted FOR Obamacare AND for Cap and Trade AND for anything else Ms. Pelosi ran up when she were in power) done got caught. Jim Cooper likes to present himself as a cerebral even-handed policy wonk. He is none of the above. He is just like the rest of the ruling class that enjoy the benefits of the good life in Washington. In this instance, he has not been caught with his hand in the taxpayer cookie jar, but rather proving himself to be the beneficiary of the largess of folks interested in his vote. According to the always reliable Tennessean (cough cough), Msr. Cooper was numero uno in the Congress for taking trips on someone else's nickel. I don't resent anyone traveling to learn about a particular problem, show the flag et al. I do resent boondoggles and blatant transfers of funds that can't count as "campaign contributions." Let's take a look at one particular trip.

Mr. Cooper travelled to Barcelona, Spain, we are told - and mind you, the Tennessean has made it official policy to defend this gentleman, cost $18,487. Now I have travelled to a lot of places in the world and stayed in some pretty superlative hotels...I couldn't figure out how to spend money like that. But some exploration is warranted. The trip was for Mr. Cooper to speak on "policy changes in the Muslim world." Hmm, OK. he represents the 5th District of Tennessee - makes sense that he would be an expert on Muslim affairs... Well, let's go to Barcelona!

First we have to fly there...

Looks like $2,500 ought to cover a round trip from here to Barcelona.

Let's assume we are going to stay there a week and we HAVE to stay in a 5-star hotel. A quick search of Zagat's get's us this:

Nothing like the Gran Hotel La Florida overlooking the city. They're quoting $216.27 a night, but I want the Congressional Special - let's assume $350 per day - for six nights, that would be $2100. We are up to $4,600. But of course we have to eat!

Let's assume we are going to eat at a 5-star restaurant for six suppers...a little investigation reveals this jewel:

This is "Alikimia," pretty hot spot. If I total up the top prices for the "starters," "main courses" and "desserts," we get in Euros - 30+33+10 or 73Euros - throw in another 20 for drinks and tips and you get to 93 Euro. That translates into about $115 per meal. Heck, let's eat there for lunch too and we get six dinners and seven lunches: $1,495...we're now up to $6,095.

Jeez - let's thrown in some limos and breakfast above and beyond what the posh hotel offers...another $3,000. I am only up to HALF of what he was paid. Where did the money go? I'll wait...

Friends, an awful lot of Congressmen go up to DC from humble to middle class backgrounds and yet, they return multi-millionaires. This is just one teensy example of how corrupt the political class has become. The useful idiots at Occupy Wall Street ought to understand that they are camping out in the wrong town.

Rumble on!

Semper Fi!

2011-10-31T09:11:00.000-07:00

On November 10, the Marine Corps will celebrate their 236th Birthday. Here's the video produced by the Commandant and the Master Sergeant of the Marine Corps:

Mob Rule

2011-10-27T10:06:00.000-07:00

What happened at the Occupy Atlanta gathering last week is worth a second look. This takes about ten minutes, but to absorb, but it is worth it. They were copying the "people's mike" technique developed at Zuccotti Park in New York...but didn't understand that the reason they do it in NYC is because of a sound ordinance. These idiots just do it to happily sound like robots.

So John Lewis, icon of the civil rights movement, and somewhat mentally imbalanced Congressman, shows up to visit with his constituency...hilarity ensues:

If THAT is 99% of the country, I'm moving to Switzerland.

It is a shame they didn't let him speak - he could have regaled them with tales of how sharks in the Atlantic still follow the routes of the slave ships or how people were denied the right to vote because of their nationality. Sometimes letting liberals speak is half the fun.

Stuff the Ice Chest - Republican Candidates

2011-10-18T12:18:00.001-07:00

These guys at Bad Lip Reading are very clever:

Nine Thoughts on 9-9-9

2011-10-13T12:37:00.000-07:00

Herman Cain is getting a lot of traction on his 9-9-9 Plan as he should. He is the only candidate that is actively tackling the invasive, abusive, corrupt and ineffective tax system that has metastasized upon the American people and her industry. A 9% flat corporate tax, 9% income tax and 9% sales tax IS a bold proposal...here are 9 thoughts to consider...good and bad:

1. YAY! No one knows - except those who profit in this system what is in the Federal Tax Code - there are over 75,000 pages of scribble in the code and even way back in 2005, it was estimated that 6 BILLION hours are spent by individuals, corporations and non-profits to make sure they comply. This thing is SIMPLE.

2. BOO! States, such as Tennessee that have no personal state income tax would suffer, or would be forced to implement an income tax. 9% on top of the 9.5% we already pay in Nashville would be devastating.

3. YAY! Reducing corporate tax rates while eliminating the capital gains tax is a huge win for American competitiveness.

4. BOO! Introducing a national sales tax as a new piggy bank for Washington is pretty scary. It may start out at 9%, but without some serious checks, it WILL go up. Any time those junkies in DC need a revenue hit, they'll bump the sales tax.

5. YAY! This plan eliminates the death tax - no more double taxation!

6. BOO! The 9% sales tax and the 9% business tax are arguable the same thing and could result in a run-up in costs of goods sold. Couple that with the exclusion of the 9% sales tax on raw goods for those that are U.S. in origen, and you are potentially threatening trade retaliation.

7. YAY! The plan is simple, streamlined and easy to understand. It should dramatically reduce the cost of governance, enforcement and compliance...just feel the productivity surge!

8. BOO! The economic centerpiece of the Cain campaign focuses on the revenue side of the equation. He has got to start talking about the spending and where he will cut.

9. YAY! A serious candidate has put forth a daring new plan for how we can improve our economy. I don't like this plan as much as a flat or a fair tax, but I like the fact that someone is willing to take the heat and ignite the debate on this issue. I also like the fact that it gets every American to put skin in the game. For the 47% that pay no Federal taxes, that's a bummer...but then maybe you will be more conscious of the spending and become a conservative!

Rumble on!

The Donkey Whisperer

2011-10-11T12:47:00.001-07:00

The Democrats want this ad pulled - wonder why?

Tip o' the Hat: MGH

Islamofascism In the White House

2011-10-10T13:53:00.000-07:00

Tarek Fatah names names:

Watch live streaming video from ideacity at livestream.com

The Iranians are Coming, The Iranians are Coming!

2011-10-07T14:17:00.000-07:00

There have been several references to the Iranian Navy's announcement that they will send a "fleet" off our shore to demonstrate their Naval prowess. They even "leaked" the route the ships would take:

Let's see...if I were going to travel by sea from the Straits of Hormuz to the shores of America, that's pretty much the shortest route there...and as a former Navigator on a U.S. Navy destroyer, that's almost exactly the route we took one time. We didn't end up in Cuba though and more on that anon.

Now before everyone hyperventilates about this, consider that a "fleet" is a corvette and a supply ship. The corvette is the Alvand. She is a Vosper class corvette, displacing about 1500 tons fully loaded...about 310 feet long. To put that in perspective, your typical Arleigh Burke class destroyer, a centerpiece of the U.S. line of battle is 505' long and displaces 9000 tons. This is what the Alvand looks like:

Alvand transiting Suez Canal

This is what her sister ship, the Sahand looked like after a brief encounter with the United States Navy in 1988:

This is when some Iranian gun boats went out and seized an oil drilling platform then fired on some U.S. warships that came to take a look. All in all, I am reminded a little bit of the wonderful movie with Alan Arkin, "The Russians are Coming! The Russians are Coming!"

But there is more. The second ship that will transit with the Alvand is the Krang:

She's not much to look at, but the issue is what will she be carrying. As a warship, she is not subject to search when transiting the Suez. We know from last year that this ship gave the Israelis some heart burn when she transited the Suez and headed for Syria. Best bet is she's rigged to carry a lot more than fuel.

The map indicates that these ships will head to Cuba - no surprise there. My guess is they will head to Venezuela too and stop by to see Achmadinijad's fellow tyrant, Chavez. The concern I would have is that the Iranians know we have a porous southern border and they could use this transit as an opportunity to insert operatives and equipment that could wreak havoc at the appropriate time. So this will be worth keeping an eye on. But as for a Naval threat from Iran...off our shore...I don't think so.

Rumble on!

Steve Jobs, RIP

2011-10-06T09:08:00.001-07:00

For Your Consideration

2011-10-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

A few things that have come across my desk need to be shared.

1. Obama by the Numbers - brilliant, fact based look at the Bamster and what he has wrought.

2. Cheer up: In my line of work, I spend a lot of time with entrepreneurs, bankers and finance types. There is desperation out there right now, but also a sense that a new day will be dawning. The feeling is if we can hold on till November, 2012, there will be a new day. Victor Davis Hanson captures that feeling spot on: "The Coming Post-Obama Renaissance."

3. Sinophobia Part Deaux: I wrote about this yesterday - but here's another analysis on the new "China Syndrome:" "Predictions of America's Demise are Greatly Exaggerated."

4. What do they want?? You are going to have to promise me you will put the coffee cup down before clicking on the next link. The silliness of the Occupy Wall Street crowd is finally spelled out in their "Manifesto:" Declaration of the Occupation of New York City. It's all the usual Soros-fed communist clap-trap from "poisoning our food" to "torture" and "student loan enslavement." Quick private note to you OWS types:

Dear Maggot Infested Women's Studies Major,

Instead of taking up sidewalk space with your stupid signs, iPhones and video cameras, how about picking up the phone and calling your parents to thank them for the fact that you were able to attend a college. Instead of yelling at Wall Street types who are trying to create wealth so that you will actually have a job one day, how about heading to Washington and yelling at the real criminals - the Obama administration and the Democrats that got us in this mess. You live in the freest, most wonderful country in the world and you want us to be like Cuba or the USSR in the 1970's? You troglodytes are wasting the tax revenue of the city of New York with your insouciant childish behavior. You fools really believe that in a communist state you would end up on top? Hah! You are what Lenin called "useful idiots." Grow up, go back to Mom's basement, get a shower and get a job.

Lovingly,
Rumbler

5. History lesson: Here are a few images of our future if OWS type folks have their way:

Prisoners in Soviet Labor Camp

Killing fields of Cambodia under Khmer Rouge

Raw sewage flowing into Anyang River, China 2008

6. Why we'll be OK:

Tip of the hat to Don Surber

Rumble on!

Sinophobia

2011-10-05T15:26:00.000-07:00

There's a great article over at New Geography titled "Are We Headed for China's Fat Years." In it, the author, Joel Kotkin discusses the chilling novel "The Fat Years," that raises the spectre of a Chinese "1984" arising out of the ashes of a Euro-American collapse. Kotkin sketches the plot line of the book which is scheduled for publication in the US the first of next year, and concludes that the fears are an unwarranted case of sinophobia. We have scribed about this in these pages for some time and my thinking on the subject is largely driven by the demography of China which Kotkin touches upon:

Ethnic splits between the Han Chinese and the polyglot of cultures that make up the balance of the country.
A demographic nightmare in an aging population coupled with (courtesy of social engineering and abortion) a highly disproportionate number of young men to young women - one of the central problems in the Arab world.
An enormous income disparity between the coasts and the interior.

Put all that together with a centralized control government and you get a grim future, not one that includes running the world. China, in my opinion, will have one of two ways out...neither one of them pretty. Option one is a collapse into a neutron star Maoist state of horrific control. Option two some form of outward aggression to keep the populace busy and, more importantly, loyal.

The option they are not going to take anytime soon, but which would truly save them in the long run, would be freedom. Imagine the brain power that could be unleashed if a truly free-market economy were to emerge in China. I would not just be afraid of such a future - I'd be willing to learn Chinese to become a part of it! Sadly, I don't foresee that happening. But that is about the only way the Chinese will overtake the United States. A word of caution though - the policies of this administration continue to undermine our economy and reduce our competitiveness. That might be the path down which China overtakes us; but it will only be if we allow our freedom to continue to be usurped.

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-09-23T15:48:00.000-07:00

This has been one of those weeks that you get to Friday and you really wish it were Saturday already. Between Obambarrasment at the United Nations to the GOP "debate," from the Solyndra scandal that would have brought impeachment charges to a Republican president to yet another Congressional CR to keep the government moving it's been exhausting. All this going on with the back drop of Europe crumbling and the stock market cratering...oh, and did I mention that a satellite might fall out of the sky?

The Colbert Report
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But don't worry - if the satellite does fall and do damage to you, you can rely on America's lawyers to help! Ever wonder how a case gets to the Supreme Court? Take a look:

I've just about finished my stack of articles relating to the tenth year anniversary of 9/11. I know I mentioned one in last week's Feed Bag, allow me to present two more to you. The first is from il miglior fabro, Victor Davis Hanson: The Ripples of 9/11. His wrap up paragraph is like a good Scotch, just swirl it around and sniff:

The common denominator in these ten years? American life under its hypercritical, volatile, and mercurial democracy proves resilient; the Islamic terrorists and their authoritarian sponsors who would destroy it do not. And even after a decade of acrimony, partisan rancor, and stasis, Americans continue to be horrified—and angry—over those who were murdered on September 11. We’ve done our best for ten years to ensure that it cannot happen again.

Makes you feel a teensy bit better in this madcap time, doesn't it?

OK, stop that feeling right now and read this piece: The Fruits of the Philosophy of Self-Abnegation. The central theme of this piece we have discussed often on these pages:

Intellectually, we have refused to face the fact that we are at war and should act to end it quickly. Morally, we have denied all principles except one: moral goodness means self-sacrifice. Psychologically, we lack confidence in our efficacy, and have murdered our self-esteem by leaping into the quicksand of sacrifice. Politically, we are at perpetual war, because to win decisively would be an act of self-interest—and that is the one action we dare not take.

Finally, to round out your weekend reading, you really should put this in your "stack of stuff:" "Nathan Glazer's Warning." As a real estate practitioner, I see a lot of effort to practice sociology by site planning. Mr. Glazer warned us a long time ago where the road of best intentions heads.

Have a great weekend...don't forget your aluminum foil hats to protect yourself from the satellite!

Rumble on!

Dear World, We're Sorry

2011-09-21T10:35:00.000-07:00

As a child of America's Diplomatic Corps, seeing stuff like this sends me through the roof:

Who wants Obama to be re-elected?

This is the "Open Government Conference" at the UN yesterday. How is it that every other pol there knows to keep their hands down. That is the Mongolian Prime Minister behind Alfred E. Neuman's hand. The complete lack of situational awareness on this man's part is truly frightening. How is it that someone who is sooooo goshdarned smart can't grasp the basics?

Just add this to the long and glorious string of diplomatic gaffes this dolt has committed, from bowing to every foreign leader in the world to giving iPods full of his own speeches to the Queen of England. Please November, 2012, come quickly.

Obama of York

2011-09-19T12:07:00.000-07:00

So, Obama proposes $1.5 trillion in new taxes - certainly reminds me of this great skit from the old days of SNL:

Just what the economy needs right now - a little more blood letting!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-09-16T12:25:00.000-07:00

I've been busy these past few weeks, but have been keeping up with my reading and via Twitter, trying to keep you abreast of important events too - please hit the "follow" button over there to keep yourself up to speed. Anyhow, after a two week absence, here is the latest edition of the "Friday Feed Bag:"

Like many of you I spent part of this past Sunday reflecting on where we have come in a decade since the Twin Towers fell. I was actually flying back Sunday morning and was in the terminal at BWI at 8:46 when they requested a moment of silence in honor of the victims of 9/11. I was sipping a cup of coffee, waiting for my flight and reading an excellent piece over at the City Journal titled "The Vanished Skyline."

On my last trip to New York, I was impressed by the progress on the new WTC Tower, and the developer, Larry Silverstein, deserves enormous credit for his patience. But we need to be honest and realize what was lost and cannot be replaced. I remember being on the roof of Tower 1 in 1984 and feeling how the building actually swayed in the wind. This graceful and powerful building symbolized and her sister symbolized American presence, stability and power. On a recent documentary about the building of the new WTC tower, I heard the architect describe how the reflective surfaces of the building would make the building appear to look like the original towers when approached from different angles. Neat? You bet...but it's an optical illusion. I pray that our country hasn't become an optical illusion for what it once was.

The always insightful Joel Kotkin has a masterful analysis of the Obama administration titled "The Crisis of the Gentry Presidency." For all the accusations made at the Republicans for being slaves of the well-heeled, they are chumps compared to the circles that Obama swims in. The emerging scandal behind the Solyndra funding is Exhibit A for Kotkin's theory.

Hat tip American Thinker

I had Rush on in the background a bit ago and the discussion about Obama's narcissism reminded me to go back and dig up this article I had saved in my "Read it Later" file: "Barack Obama's Emotional State of Mind." Here's a pull from the column:

As Mr. Obama is increasingly overwhelmed by events, as he and his presidency shrink before our eyes, his worst tendencies are being exacerbated, his narcissism further exposed, his anger at an unaccommodating world more pronounced. A man of supreme self-regard is watching things crumble before his eyes. He is obviously not well equipped to process any of this. It is enough for one to feel, if only for a moment, some pity for Mr. Obama.

Gagging through, err watching Obama's speech to the joint session of the House and Senate last week to announce his latest fantasy about job creation, I reached the conclusion that he has reached Jimmy Carter status - no one listens or cares, they just want him to go away. Stephen Moore over at the Wall Street Journal chronicles the promises and the lack of delivery in a fine piece this morning: "The Obama Promise Then and Now."

Hey, speaking of Solyndra and the abuse of taxpayers, take a look at this outrage:

The rest of us are just trying to move along, but it ain't easy. Remember the old "Misery Index" from the Jimmuh Carter days? It's baaack! Investor's Business Daily has a succinct piece this morning: "Living Miserably."Here's the graphic if you aren't miserable enough already:

OK, no fair for me to leave you for the weekend in a foul mood - be of good cheer:

Have a great weekend!
Rumble on!

Still NOT Shovel Ready

2011-09-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

Chinese high-speed rail crash site.

Where oh where did the money go? As Investor's Business Daily points out today in a piece titled "5 Myths Behind Obama's Infrastructure," we were supposed to spend $809 Billion in 2009 on "infrastructure projects..." that was going to save the economy. It was going to create "400,000 jobs." Instead, the number of workers in that sector fell dramatically. Now the figure is $50 Billion more that Obama wants to add and for what? To build high-speed rail so we can be more like China? As the image at the right illustrates, top down mandates of construction projects don't turn out so well.

Yes, the Eisenhower Interstate system was an incredible investment - but remember - it was primarily done for military purposes. During World War II, Eisenhower had accompanied a military convoy and seen how long it had taken to move from A to B. The interstate system ties in with the Strategic Road Network to facilitate the movement of forces internally in the United States. The airstrip every 5-mile myth is just that...but it is still considered important for moving men and materiel in time of crisis.

We will probably never know if Obama was a good student or not - those grades are deep in the vault - but what we do know is that he is not very bright about creating jobs and encouraging growth. As damned near every American knows now, the Federal Government cannot create a job without funding it by taking the money from someone else - or worse, borrowing or printing the money.

Do we have infrastructure needs in the United States? You bet we do - take a look at the ASCE Infrastructure Report Card where a minimum of $2.2 Trillion is estimated to bring our infrastructure up to par. The Urban Land Institute's Annual Report on Infrastructure is another scary read. But remember, the authors of both of these reports have an incentive to encourage the spending. As an old business partner of mine used to remind me: "Always remember how people are compensated." Not saying their intentions are bad, nor that the reports are not sobering, but the problems are better solved at the local level and that's where the problems of regulation and interference by such interest groups as the environmentalists, for example, become insurmountable.

One of the bridges, that Obama talked about in his ~~taxpayer funded campaign stop~~ speech at NC State yesterday is the Bonner Bridge in the Outer Banks - guess who is holding that improvement up? The environazis. Read all about it here. Even if you gave full Federal funding for these projects, they will either get held up in the Courts or take years to plan, design, issue the RFP's, receive the RFP responses, impose Federal wage rate and quota regulations, pull permits, conduct environmental impact studies, traffic count studies etc. etc. The cost of the project will double in that time period, so it still won't get done.

The best way for these projects to get done is to have demand bubble up from below. The light rail projects along the Front Range in Denver are a great example. When the plans were originally presented for a $3 billion system, the citizens of the metro-Denver area rejected them outright. It took several years of explaining the benefits of the system and a measured "let's test it as we go" approach before the voters approved the tax increases necessary to fund the system. The closer to the dirt that you can get the funding and the impetus, the more successful the project will be. Just don't tell the President that.

Orwellian Attackwatch.com Spoofed!

2011-09-14T11:01:00.001-07:00

Yes, our tyrannical regime's dear leader has resumed the paranoid "fink on your neighbor" behavior - at least we conservatives still have a sense of humor!

Keynesian Twilight Zone

2011-09-13T08:21:00.001-07:00

I watched BHO's speech last week and kept thinking of the movie "Groundhog Day." This is a better and more frightening analogy:

Friday Feed Bag

2011-09-01T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that having amateurs like Obama in power does provide a target rich material for the p.j. journolista corps (that's pronounced "core," Mr. President). We are heading into the Labor Day Weekend (am I the only one that resents that notion??) without a HURRICANE!!!! Sympatico to my friends in Virginia and parts north that are still without power, but as a veteran of a number of Gulf Coast hurricanes, Irene did not impress me much. In advance of the long weekend though, I wish all of you safe travels.

First topic - The childish dust-up with Speaker Boehner over a joint session of Congress presentation. Is the White House that nervous about Rick Perry getting in the race that they wanted to upstage the six-month long planned Republican debate? I commend Speaker Boehner's gentlemanly, professional response summed up thusly: "nice try...you can do it on the 8th." But this really is a case of the incredible shrinking presidency. We are witnessing a political supernova collapse into a black hole of nothingness (and puleeze, leftards, do not scream "racist" at me - it's what it is actually called.) Here' some visual verification:

Oh, by the way, this ~~political campaign stop~~, speech has nothing to do with a "laser like focus on jobs." It is meant to do two things: 1) Put the little boy president into a big setting to try to re-establish his importance AND 2) re-package plans that don't work, call them "bi-partisan" and attempt to pin his economic failure on an intransigent congress.

Speaking of the economy - a couple of terrific articles came across the Rumbledesk this week. First up, where would you turn for economic advice? Well in these dark times with hope crushed out of the American economy like a spent husk of coconut drying in the West Texas sun, you might cry out to God. Well, how about the Vatican? Dan Mitchell recommends just that in a great piece: "Let's Send Obama to the Vatican For An Economics Lesson." Quoting from the pull quote of the Vatican spokesman:

Further forms of taxation would not be synonymous with solidarity but only with greater public spending and, perhaps, a higher debt and more widespread poverty. High taxes penalize saving, generate distrust in the ability to stimulate recovery, hit families and prevent the formation of new ones, as well as creating uncertainty and precariousness in employment. In short, they lay the foundations for another phase of unsustainable development.

Amen, padre! And, if like your humble Rumbler, you feel like you are waking up on the economic version of the set of "Groundhog Day," you are not alone. The boys over at Investor's Business Daily sum it up well: "The Endless Economic Recovery." Herewith another graphic:

Makes one long for a good dose of voodoo and trickle-down economics don't it? Someone ought to sneak into the White House Situation Room and Carville-esque hang a big sign that reads "It's the policies stupid!" But that assumes anyone over there can read. If you can handle the truth...

OK, you've been warned: "Broke! The Ten Facts About the Condition of American Families."

An excellent perspective piece from Shelby Steele over at the Wall Street Journal this morning: "Obama and the Burden of Exceptionalism." The notion that the 2012 election will be a battle for the very soul of America is summed up by this:

America seems to be facing a pivotal moment: Do we move ahead by advancing or by receding—by reaffirming the values that made us exceptional or by letting go of those values, so that a creeping mediocrity begins to spare us the burdens of greatness?

Obama has led the country on the path to mediocrity attempting to turn us away from our own exceptionalism out of some deep-set guilt or hatred. The rise of the Tea Party is proof positive that in the words of Monty Python, "I'm not dead yet." Obama and the mind-numbed press want to play the role of head whacking mortician on them with labels and lies:

As for me, and apparently Mr. Steele, I trust the American people:

As a president, Barack Obama has been a force for mediocrity. He has banked more on the hopeless interventions of government than on the exceptionalism of the people. His greatest weakness as a president is a limp confidence in his countrymen. He is afraid to ask difficult things of them.

Say, speaking of American decline and "leading from behind," how's that Arab Spring working out for you? The "rebels" are busily hunting the syphlitic goat-loving Khaddafi through the desert now and "bully!" that he's gone, but do we really have any idea what we are getting in exchange? The good folks over at Stratfor aren't so sure: "Libya: A Premature Victory Celebration." What's next, Syria? I'm all in favor of toppling tyrants and power to the people, but I am hugely worried that we are going to see the long shadow of a brutal Medieval religion being cast over the whole area for a long time to come. Until Islam is reformed, it is fundamentally incompatible with democratic rule.

With that dear friends, I will sign off.

Rumble on!

"Irresponsible and Unpatriotic"

2011-08-24T13:13:00.001-07:00

Love this Obama campaign riff from 2008 - adding $4 Trillion in debt over eight years is "irresponsible and unpatriotic." So adding $4 Trillion in two years is spot on?

Catching Up

2011-08-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

Been off taking Rumblebairn back to college in the job production factory of Texas, I've kept up with the Twitter thing, so feel free to sign aboard with @RSRumbler. It's a little more convenient to post stuff from the road with the Tweets, though I am still learning my way around. Herewith a little romp through recent correspondence and observations:

Let's whet your palate for some good conservothrills with a quickie video to get your blood pressure up to cruising altitude:

Fun language facts - you probably already know that a "murder of crows" is not a new punk-rock group nor a heinous crime - it is the English language showing off fun collective nouns. Some others include a "sleuth of bears" and a "parliament of owls." But, my favorite pointed out in a recent e-mail I received would be the collective noun for a group of baboons...you guessed it: a "congress."

Also from the e-mail pile - there's this jewel:

Here is an enlightening analogy from the blog “Things That Make You Go Hmmmmm.” Here’s the bit:

If the US government was a family, they would be making $58,000 a year; they spend $75,000 a year and are $327,000 in credit card debt. They are currently proposing BIG spending cuts to reduce their spending to $72,000 a year. These are the actual proportions of the federal budget and debt reduces to a level that we can understand.
Kind of puts the debt debate in a rather different perspective.

Hat tip RL.

My folks always taught me that a real measure of character was how a person treated other people, especially the "little people." No, not folks that are vertically challenged, but those serve in roles whose shoulders we stand upon. Folks like our military, the girl at the check out counter, the young man waiting your table...or the secret service - check this out:

Hat tip MGH.

While we're letting Wild Bill chat - here's his take on Muslims and dogs:

Tie this piece in with the first video above and you have a scary picture emerging: "The End of the Growth Consensus." The only way out of this morass is to get the economy growing - you don't grow an economy by taxing the productive and giving it to the non-productive.

OK, conference call coming in - got to run.

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-08-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Been a crazy week here in Rumblerville and blogging has not been at the front of the line. It happens. That doesn't mean that I haven't been paying attention. Today's Feed Bag has a broad selection for your weekend reading on the key issues - I hope to hole up in the next few days to share some deeper thoughts on some of these, but until then, here's some good stuff:

SUBJECT: The shrinking presidency. Some time ago I posted this picture - take a moment and let it sink in:

There's some little bitty guy behind the Resolute Desk...this is a theme that we've been on since the junior Senator from Illinois was running for the Democrat nomination in 2007...there's no "there there." Several good pieces pick up on that theme:

"A President In Over His Head Should Resign."

"The Left's Summer of Discontent"

"It's Now Obama's Economy"

And it appears that the rest of the folks are catching on:

SUBJECT: London Riots. This is what liberalism begets and I am not alone in the fear that it this type of behavior is coming across the pond to us. It does us no good when we have "leadership" that constantly urges class divisions - excoriating the productive for not giving their "fair share." We are seeing outbreaks in expected places like Philadelphia and unexpected places like the Wisconsin State Fair. Who is doing this and why?

Two excellent pieces on the subject:

"British Degeneracy on Parade."

"Apres le Deluge, What Next?"

SUBJECT: Market Crash. What do you get when you combine a hard left President with ideological rigor, several pieces of legislation that vastly expand government ~~oversight~~ intrusion into every aspect of your life, a Congress that refuses to accept that an agenda that favors growth and reduces dependence is the only way to save the economy? Well, you get this:

Of course we got downgraded! We deserved it! Are we more credit worthy than France, which has a AAA rating? Sure, but the numbers are so damned huge and scary, it would be irresponsible to not send a signal to the world that the US of frickin' A needs to get their house in order. What does President Downgrade do? Go out and make a speech about how "millionaires and billionaires" need to pay their fair share. You know what else you inherited from Mr. Bush, Mr. Obama?? A AAA Credit Rating!

Some other thoughts on this vein:

"500 Billion New Reasons To Invalidate Obamacare"

"Obama and Bernanke: A Double-Whammy Disaster"

Just so I don't leave you suicidal, let's look at the upside. I tend to be of good cheer in the belief that this is the high-watermark of liberalism. I am not alone:

"Best Opportunity for America in 50 Years."

OK, I have to go mow the yard. Have a great weekend!

Rumble on!

Al Sharpton Meet Mr. Peter Principle

2011-08-10T13:23:00.000-07:00

Fame and notoriety rarely equal common sense or intelligence. Al Sharpton is one of the more glaring examples. When not yelling through his bullhorn inane accusations and dangerous race bating blasts, Al went and got himself a TV show! That's right...Tawana Brawley and all that mess - who cares? After all this is MSNBC - a network that ~~had~~ has (what's that? He's gone? Didn't notice.) Keith Olberman as their star of journalistic integrity now has Al Sharpton. But, look at the fun you can have when you rely on a teleprompter:

It's doubly delicious now that we know the Republicans held on in Wisconsin, despite the $14 million that the unions spent in a recall election. The $14MM is what Heritage is reporting the Unions spent - but you know, actually, they are doing a service: they hire union protesters for this type of work thereby reducing the unemployment rate.

Here in Twangtown, the going rate for a union protester is $10 an hour - well below what unions demand for similar work: Music City Center Protesters. It does beg the question - how much are protesters around the world being paid? President Downgrade can insist that we maintain our lead in that one category at least!

Friday Feed Bag (Video Edition)

2011-08-05T09:26:00.000-07:00

Wanted to circulate a few great videos today - kick back and take a view:

Every day American wisdom - I'm sure Kerry and the Veep would want this man labelled a "terrorist:"

The always insightful Bill Whittle:

If you never saw the "Honey Badger" bit, this might not be as funny...all I can say is we'd better all be ready to become honey badgers...

A quickie lesson in economics:

Here's the chart he refers to:

It's about envy, not fairness.

Wait - is this real? It's an excellent idea!

Have a great weekend...
Rumble on!

Good Feed (Feel Good Edition)

2011-08-04T08:48:00.000-07:00

Take one and pass one along!

OK, so the Dow's sunk over 200 to start the day and it's hotter than the hinges of hell outside with humidity so thick you have to shovel a path through it for the dog to go to the potty, but hey, here in Rumbleville, we are going to have a happy day. Today we are going to share upbeat, optimistic viewpoints that you really need to read to gird your loins for the scrap that lies ahead.

There is something to the old adage that the darkest hour is just before dawn. Jeffrey Lord over at the American Spectator picks up on that theme with a splendid piece titled "American Tipping Point." He picks up on the Guadalcanal theme I blogged about on Tuesday and carries it forward with a comprehensive history of the conservative movement. He boldly asserts that:

An epidemic of conservatism is sweeping America. And thanks to the Tea Party, yesterday disgracefully accused of terrorism by Vice President Biden (he the vice president in an administration terrified of calling real terrorists terrorists -- seriously!), the country will never be the same again.

I think he's right, but I do think it is a race against time. Symptomatic of our ascendency is the downright meanness of the left. They can't win on ideas so they bludgeon with hatred - or they do, as a former FB "friend" of mine did when he got smoked in a kerfuffle with me in public over Obamacare, they de-friend you and block you from their wall. It's the electronic version of covering over one's ears and yelling "I can't hear you" as loud as you can. Childish. But liberal to the core, reacting on feelings rather than intellect.

I was not happy with the Wall Street Journal last week - their childish swipes at the Tea Party "hobbits" and their almost panicky push for a deal to be made were unseemly for an otherwise noble and reliable newspaper. But this morning's version brought an excellent piece from Dan Henninger in his Wonderland column: "Obama's Deal With The Debt Devil." Henninger makes the point that it is Obama's ill fate that has him at the point in history when the money is running out:

Alas, cruel history. Three years into their presidency, they find themselves trapped in the twilight years of the welfare state. They enacted a fourth entitlement obligation and an upward spending path at precisely the moment history turned against their ideas.

Canada is dismantling its' welfare state and their economy is taking off...Europe is watching it crumble into ruins. We are not too late...yet. But the race really is on - as a commenter pointed out on here the other day "50% who pay taxes and 50% who don't...with 70% receiving some kind of Federal subsidy" - can we turn the ship of state away from entitlement addiction to the self-reliance that built this great nation?

How about this view: "The Real 'Uniters' Are The Tea Party Patriots." That's Investors Business Daily's take and you have to agree that the debate has shifted away from "gimme" to "how can we afford it."

Just the facts ma'am.

There's a bit of the "this is the best we can do" argument in this next piece, but the author raises some very valid observations: "Boehner's Half a Loaf Deal Better Than Nothing." The column pulls out another piece of World War II history which is how Churchill helped the United States military ultimately prevail in the battle for Europe...worth the read!

Finally, even as Obama's EPA charges forward to regulate the air that we breath out, a consensus is emerging in the American public that the "scientists" behind Global Warming are perpetuating a hoax and lying to us. In a Rasmussen Poll released last week, they found that "69% say it's likely that scientists have falsified global warming research." We are winning the war with facts...we'll cede the feelings high ground to the loons, let us all be Sergeant Friday's: "just the facts ma'am."

Finally, here's something we can all smile about - over the past couple of weeks the split hasn't moved below -15 and has been as high as -21:

Be of good cheer!

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-08-03T09:15:00.000-07:00

There is so much material right now on so many different fronts. We've all been consumed with the debt ~~debate~~ debacle, that we have forgotten all those other areas of Obama success. Here are a couple:

Egypt/Middle East: "The Muslim Brotherhood has never had it so good..."

Iran: "Iran's Dangerous Concoction of Nuclear Ambitions and Shiite Messianism"

Greece (Hey, this could be us soon!): "Political and Cultural Malaise at Heart of Greek Financial Crisis."

But why pick on Greece - after all, there's still Italy, Spain and Portugal: "Italy and Spain Add to Debt Woes." Who wouldn't want their sovereign bonds at 7%?

OK, we need a little humor here: "Drunken Ben Bernanke Tells Bar Patrons We're Screwed."

Speaking of cultural problems...take a look at this:

In the words of Lilly Tomlin, "no matter how cynical I become, I can't keep up."

That's it for today,

Rumble on!

Guadalcanal? More Like The Battle of the Bulge

2011-08-02T09:35:00.000-07:00

Marines go over the wall at Tarawa

I have heard the usual rationalizations from the conservative bloggitry that the Tea Party and Conservatism won this round of the debt ceiling agreement. About the best I can do is that we didn't get rolled as bad as Reagan did in 1982 or George H.W. Bush did in 1991. A popular analogy I have heard from several folks is that we on the right should take a deep breath because this is going to be long fight and this was our "Guadalcanal" or "Tarawa." The theory is that the debt/spending philosophical conflict is metaphorically demonstrated by the island hopping campaign of the United States against the Empire of Japan. We clawed out every square inch of lava in the Pacific to bring our forces in range of the Japanese main islands for the final blow in 1945. I would submit that this deal is more analogous to the opening round of the Battle of the Bulge. We got rolled back, regrouped, and ultimately reclaimed the land the Germans had pushed us out of on our inevitable march to Berlin.

Now before you lefties go berserk saying I'm comparing you to Nazis, take a breather. Our Vice President thinks that people of my ilk are "terrorists," so let's keep it civil.

The one thing this agreement may have achieved is that the dialogue has now changed..."changed utterly: a terrible beauty is born." (Yeats, Easter 1916) We are told that the discussions in Washington will now have to center on cuts in the budget rather than new programs...sorry, but I'm not buying it. One of the absolute easiest places to have cut into the globe-swallowing deficit would have been to have Obamacare on the table with it's projected $2 Trillion price tag and locked in 5% annual increases. The fact that this monstrous new entitlement was never even whispered about by the Republican side is downright alarming to me.

The business with taxes and how Obama "caved" because he gave up and "compromised" on increasing revenue to the government is false on two fronts. First, I suspect that the "I've got to have taxes" gambit was nothing more than a red herring...an old negotiating trick to distract the opponent while you zero in on what you really want. Second, the fix is in on taxes anyway. As we discussed yesterday, the Bush tax cuts will most likely expire in 2012 resulting in across the board tax increases. And, as we also pointed out yesterday, the trigger mechanism sets up a Scylla and Charybdis for Republicans on the "super committee:" "Tax hikes or we gut defense!" Besides, even Obama can't be stupid enough to want to go into an election season bragging about tax hikes - that would only appeal to the 4% totally brain dead in this country who would vote for him anyway.

No, I suspect Obama's big prize was to not have to fight this fight again before next November. He can now sit back in comfort over at 1600 PA Avenue and watch the Congress bicker and bash each other...then he can stride in at the next State of the Union address and with a little make-up and some resonant tele-prompting actually appear to be the adult in the room.

All of this does remind me of World War II nonetheless. There is an inevitability about its outcome. Just as everyone knew that Germany and Japan's fates were sealed once the "Arsenal of Democracy" entered the war, there is little that can prevent us from an economic collapse. Take entitlements alone - by 2052, they will swallow 100% of the budget. Add in the projected interest on the debt (at current ridiculously low levels!) and 100% of the budget goes to those categories by 2025...and that does not include the cost of Obamacare!

Sadly, we conservatives are doomed to walk the streets of Berlin circa 1933 at the collapse of the Weimar Republic before we walk into Berlin circa 1945. And it is here that I draw this past weekend's kerfuffle WWII parallel: it was not the Battle of Guadalcanal, it was the Battle of the Bulge. One of the opening moves of the Bulge was Operation Grief. This was when German Waffen-SS commandos snuck behing Allied lines dressed in U.S. uniforms and driving stolen U.S. Army vehicles. While their mission to seize the bridges over the Muese River failed, they wreaked havoc by disrupting our lines of communication and causing the overall tenor of reaction to slow...it was a psychological masterpiece. In the end, the Germans ran out of gas - literally, and the American and British forces pushed them back into Germany and into history.

German POW column after the Bulge

I liken the efforts of the liberal punditry and blogosphere these past two days to Operation Greif. They are busy screaming from the rooftops of how the Tea Party outmaneuvered the administration and "Obama Got Rolled," but methinks the lady doth protest too much. All of this caterwauling serves as intellectual cover for a lot of Republicans to toss in the towel and vote for the agreement.

But let's be real, it is inevitable that the entitlement programs will collapse or be dramatically altered. We can't print money fast enough. The terms of the debate may have been altered, but the outcome is sure. It will be a prolonged and ugly fight over the very concept of what we want the Federal Government to be. Both sides do not appear to have the stomach for the fight right now, so the American people will have to fight it out at the ballot box.

The Banker's Calling

2011-08-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

I love that show "Deal or No Deal." What's not to like - a game of chance, a bevy of attractive women holding briefcases, and of course, a malevolent financier hiding behind smoke glass up in the gallery who calls with his offers depending on how the contestant is doing on his/her selection of briefcases. Watching the machinations of our Congress and our Dear Leader over this weekend really leaves me wondering what the offer from the banker will be when he calls in. The banker in this case is going to be Wall Street and the bond market. So...at 11:15AM CST, how is this deal being met? Chart on the left says down about 130+. Moody's is also saying that all the cuts that are being talked about are insufficient to stave off a downgrade of the credit rating of the United States.

Why? My guess is two things: first, the numbers from the economy continue to float just below Moby Dick poo-poo. Second, this "deal" really does NOTHING except extend the debt ceiling. If you want to read the whole bill, you can click here. James Pethokoukis has a very fine summary which I will borrow from directly:

Ø Debt Ceiling increase in three tranches for a $2.4T total:o Immediate $400B raiseo Second $500B raise, subject to congressional disapproval (the old McConnell-Reid Plan)
o Third and final $1.5T raise, subject to congressional disapproval
Ø $917B in cuts through the Boehner Plan’s spending capsØ Special Committee of 12 Members of Congress with mandate to recommend $1.5T in deficit reduction by November 23, 2011 and Congress is required to vote on recommendations by December 23, 2011o Simple majority to pass recommendations out of committee
o Fast Track process for votes on House and Senate Floors
o Trigger/Sequester modeled after Gramm-Rudman model
§ If Special Committee can’t agree to recommendations, triggers $1.2 trillion in across-the-board cuts, half would be Defense cuts and the other half would be non-Defense cuts. Non-defense cuts would exempt Social Security and Medicaid, and only impact providers in the Medicare cuts.
Ø Balanced Budget Amendment votes on House and Senate floors

What I can't figure out is why so many MSM sources are crowing that the Tea Party won....won big! I tend to get suspicious when they start speaking in una voce. What victory? The Tea Party went to Washington to fundamentally change the way we do business. The only "victory" I see in this deal for the Tea Party is that the discussion is actually focused on cutting spending. But the overall trajectory is not good. Take a look at the last section of the bill that slips in another $17 Billion for Pell Grants in "higher education:"

6 SEC. 501. FEDERAL PELL GRANTS.
7 Section 401(b)(7)(A)(iv) of the Higher Education Act
8 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a(b)(7)(A)(iv)) is amended—
9 (1) in subclause (II), by striking
10 ‘‘$3,183,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$13,183,000,000’’;
11 and
12 (2) in subclause (III), by striking ‘‘$0’’ and in-
13 serting ‘‘$7,000,000,000’’

But I digress. let's start at the beginning: the baseline. We already have the stimulus money counting toward the overall Federal Budget baseline - i.e. that's the new starting point...reduce any money spent and you have a "cut." So that's the starting point...going forward, there are automatic increases in the budget already built in. In Washingtonspeak, if you reduce the percentage of increase from 7% to say 5%, that's a "draconian cut in spending." Guess where they are finding some of their savings??

This issue was a big Tea Party deal - the zero based budget approach - the same way any business or family operates. Score? Politics-As-Usual: 1, Tea Party: 0.

Say, when do the cuts begin? 2013. When does the debt ceiling rise? Now. P-A-U: 2, TP: 0.

How about that Balanced Budget Amendment? It gets a vote on the House floor and the Senate floor...sometime after September 30, 2011. We already know that Reid and the boys will kill this in the Senate and it's already passed in the House. I put this in the Pyrrhic Victory category. P-A-U: 2, TP: 1/2.

Taxes? The media is yelling that there are no taxes - a massive victory for the Tea Party and a humiliating loss for Obama. But, when you consider that the Bush Tax Cuts will be deemed a "cost" of $5 Trillion by the Congressional Budget Office. The Bush Tax Cuts expire at the end of 2012...their chance of survival in the face of hate-the-rich demagoguery and a growing maw of Federal debt? Not good. So, therefore, I would submit that taxes are very much part of this deal. Further, there is no assurance that this "super committee" wouldn't suddenly show up with a "revenue enhancement" scheme that is nothing more than a tax increase. P-A-U: 3, TP: 1/2

The biggest loser in all of this is the military. They are already shouldering the burden of the cuts to date...BUT if there is no agreement in the super committee, automatic cuts kick in, 50% of them from the Defense Budget. As Heritage is reporting, this gives the Democrats on the super committee enormous leverage - "vote for our tax hikes or we gut the Military." Strong defense is a core value of the conservative movement - did I mention we are in two and a half wars already? P-A-U: 4, TP: 1/2

Defense represents 5.2% of GDP today - an historic low. Entitlements are now over 10% of GDP. This deal does NOTHING to entitlements. In short, your humble Rumbler scores this as a serious loss.

In any negotiation, there are "deal points" that can be horse-traded. As I have written on these pages several times before, "compromise" when the fate of the nation hangs in the balance is unconscionable. Here are the basic deal points that I saw were on the table on Friday:

1. Timing - Obama and the Dems were frenetic to not have this debate again anytime soon. Their objective was to get this out past the 2012 election. If their spending is so wonderful, why would you not want to have this debate?

2. Debt Ceiling - O and the boys were scaring the hell out of everyone that if we didn't get an increase in the debt ceiling, the world as we know it would end. A nominal increase of the debt ceiling could have been engineered, although I was in favor of calling the bluff. After all, the debt ceiling really expired last May - as we have written on these pages, and the Treasury has been raiding civil servant pension funds to pay the bills.

3. Cuts - how many and when? We now know the architecture of this deal. I was in favor of a big compromise that said for every $1 increase in the debt ceiling there would have to be $1.50 in real cuts.

4. The Baseline - we've talked about this up above, but I felt that was a key deal point that should have been negotiating.

5. Tax reform - fundamental tax reform. This was a chance to raise this issue...butkus.

6. Balanced Budget Amendment - we got a vote...it won't pass.

By the Rumbler standard, this deal, as it currently stands, is very bad and we need to pray that the thin red line in the House of Representatives can hold.

Rumble on!

A Rich Guy Speaks Out

2011-07-29T08:54:00.000-07:00

This is one of the finest interviews in a long time. Sit back and listen to a very wise man:

Ken Langone, the other co-founder of Home Depot speaking truth to the madness of Washington DC.

Some highlights:

What do rich people do?

They provide jobs - his company employs over 320,000 people nationwide.
They give to charity - he has given away far more than he has ever spent on himself.
They pay plenty in taxes already - but Langone offers that he is willing to pay more in taxes if there were a commitment that every penny of the overage went to paying down the debt.

What does he think of the debt ceiling crisis?

It's going to get solved - the deal is already done.

What does he think of Obama?

He probably went to college on a scholarship that some rich person helped fund.
He's "petulant" and he wants to divide us.
He had no respect for the office of the Presidency

It's a little long, but do listen.

Good Feed

2011-07-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

My post on 7/22 included a link to an article about the death of high-speed rail in this country...I also frighteningly predicted what would happen with the Chinese HSR system - didn't know it would happen the next day: Chinese Train Wreck.

Sic semper medius consilium! (Thus always to central plans.) The analogies between the central planning aspect of Obamacare and the Chinese HSR system are legion. They are trying to run a shiny new system over aging tracks with inadequate safety control over a geography that may/or may not want it...but doesn't have any say...just like the Chinese rail system!

We're good - just chillaxin!

Say, while we are bragging about our ESP on what happens, I had also posted a piece about how wonderful our forests are doing because of the CO2 and that increasingly, scientists see raised levels of CO2 as a pretty good thing...contrary to the global warmers. Guess what? They busted another one! First it was East Anglia and all the phony data points with the resulting "Climategate" scandal. Well, remember how the polar bears were all going to drown? Guess not - turns out the "scientist" who dreamed that one up...lied. He's on administrative leave...from the government...which means he will probably still be able to retire with a cushy pension. Liberals must just hate it when facts get in their way.

What are the unintended consequences of central planning? Well, the Obamacare legislation is certainly demonstrating one of them: slaughter of private sector jobs. While correlation is not causation, the one-to-one relationship between the passage of Obamacare and the death of the private sector in America is inescapable. Frankly, all the fluff and feather flying in Washington over the precious debt ceiling is just that - the Boehner plan, if it passes today is DOA in the Senate and the White House - but to me, the larger issue in the wonderful paradise of "compromise," (which is Democrat speak for "do it our way, or else") is the fact that a brand new entitlement program that has already demonstrated it's ability to shackle an economy, is not on the table. This is a fight worth having if you are a Republican, but apparently one they insist on shying away from.

But, hey, we have ridden this pony before! Government overreach in the 1930's perpetuated the Great Depression. Even some left-leaning pubs like The Atlantic are starting to get the message: "Repeal the Democrats Complex and Expensive Legislation." Here's the money quote from that short piece:

This is not the first time we have faced intractable unemployment. The same thing occurred during the New Deal, when employment, which had averaged 6 percent during the 1920s, never dropped below 14 percent until the US began to prepare for war. The reason, I believe, was business uncertainty in the 1930s because of constantly shifting government policies and a well-founded fear of costly and adverse government action. That is what is afflicting us today.

Switching gears, the Left is going apoplectic to call the Norwegian madman, who murdered innocent people, a "Christian." It's very simple - Christians don't spend their waking hours figuring out how to pack cars with explosives and kill children - period. I always find it ironic that the same people who want to label Breivik a "Christian" would never put "Muslim" and "Major Nadal Hissan" in the same sentance. But that's to be expected from the sere wasteland of liberal thought. Anyhow, a real threat outside of Al Queda does exist and it is the "lone wolf" kook. Jared Loughner, Timothy McVey and Anders Breivak provide glaring evidence that evil is alive and well and lurks in the minds of people we might otherwise call "normal." Here's a good sober write-up on the attack from Stratfor: "Norway Lessons from a Successful Lone Wolf Attacker."

What do Christians do in times like these? Some answers: "Christians Worldwide Reach Out to Norway." Here's something else we do:

The veneer of civilization is alarmingly thin. The good Pope's words deserve profound reflection. Sadly, however, we must remain vigilant: "AWOL Soldier Arrested Near Ft Hood." Notice, there's no mention of Msr. Nassar being a "muslim." When CARE and Muslim Imams the world over begin expressing outrage at this type of individual, and when our own media stops the charade, we can begin to make progress towards some kind of rapprochement with the Islamic faith...until then, vigilance.

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Whiner In Chief

2011-07-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

As a backdrop, take a listen to famed investor Jim Rogers on what the US credit rating REALLY is:

So what did our fearless leader have to say about all this last night? You guessed it, not much. It was a partisan political assault aimed at swaying feelings rather than winning an intellectual argument. He used a prime-time address to the nation in an attempt to rally his base, which is already leaving him in droves, and he did so at the expense (and to the disgrace of) the office of the Presidency. He maligned President Reagan by using this quote:

“Would you rather reduce deficits and interest rates by raising revenue from those who are not now paying their fair share, or would you rather accept larger budget deficits, higher interest rates, and higher unemployment? And I think I know your answer.”

Yes, Reagan uttered those words in 1982 when the "Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act," or TEFRA was going through Congress. The gist of TEFRA was that there would be $3 of cuts for every $1 of tax increases. The Democrat Congress never gave a dime's worth of cuts and Reagan later regretted his support of TEFRA as one of the "biggest mistakes of his Presidency." For the full transcript of his speech and some good observations alongside, go to Maggie's Notebook and read all about it.

John Boehner's speech which followed was pretty political too. It was not the snaggle-toothed-knuckle-dragging-Tea-Party-polemic that some on the left tried to say it was. It was a very frustrated man attempting to tell the country that he's tried everything he can, but nothing is good enough and he had tired of the goalposts being moved. Out of respect for the office of the Presidency, he avoided the juicy assaults that I only dreamed of:

1. The President is lying.

Well, that would about cover most of it, so we'll leave it there.

Hat tip Bill Whittle

So where does that leave us? As I have shared previously on these pages, the debt ceiling was hit last May. The Treasury Department and the White House are lying to us, period. There is enough revenue coming in on a monthly basis to pay the interest on the debt, fund Sosha Security and pay for critical services (like the military). Reality is, we've already defaulted. We've defaulted in allowing increased entitlements to cloud our thinking, producing several generations of Americans now dependent on the Federal Government - good little lefites who pay no taxes all getting fat out on the Liberal Plantation. We've defaulted in allowing a tax code to evolve that in the name of "fairness" leaves 48% of the population untouched but grousing at the "rich corporate jet owners" to pay more. We've defaulted on electing a ~~man~~ man-child whose mantra of leadership is "it's worse than I thought" or "it's my predecessor's fault." Last night's performance affirmed him forever as the Whiner-In-Chief.

The rest of the world, as Jim Rogers points out, knows the truth about our fiscal house. They are counting on a great people to rally and restore this nation to greatness...they weep when they see the "leader of the free world," act like Che Guevara.

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-07-22T10:09:00.000-07:00

The local weatherman is describing it as "hazy hot." Heat index pushing 105F is just plain "hot," and is unacceptable except in the middle of the Summer. Oh wait, it is the middle of the summer - guess we'll just have to deal with it.

Say, speaking of global warming, remember when CO2 was an awful thing? So awful that Obama's EPA has stepped into regulate it? Well, it turns out that the forests of the world are growing faster and absorbing all the CO2 we miserable humans can put out. The net effect is that CO2 levels are stabilizing - the earth is getting greener, not browner. Aww, but who cares about "facts" when you have a "cause?"

One of the other liberal mythologies I take issue with is the notion that the United States needs to look more like Europe; we need to evolve into neat little hamlets connected by high-speed rail with a highly developed public transport system that everyone who wasn't walking or riding a bike would use. It's a nice picture, but like so many Liberal panaceas, it is devoid of reality. Let's start with HSR or "high speed rail." Obama came to office pledging billions for a national system of high speed rail. Well, after the local union thugs got done siphoning off the funds and the reality of actually building such a system came to play - it turns out the concept is on life support. Here's a good thoughtful analysis of what happened: "Let's Face It, High Speed Rail Is Dead." Please understand that I would love to have an HSR system in place - I have fond memories of riding trains in Europe and in the Orient...there was a time when Nashville had a rail line that I could jump on to get to my grandmother's house, but we have to be realistic about our priorities and build a system from density to density where the economics work. Liberals get all misty eyed about Chinese five year plans to build more HSR than anyone on earth, but that's what centralized control does. The end result will probably be unsafe and economically disastrous...but the trains sure look shiny right now!

Speaking of liberal mythologies and central planning, guess what yesterday way? Why it was the one year anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Bill!! Hurray!! That's when two of the politicians most responsible for the financial meltdown rammed through 2,300 pages of legislation that will create some 30,000 pages of REGULATION that has left financial firms in uncertain limbo and the economy gasping on its knees. Of course passage of Obamacare only helped the situation. "Helped" if your goal is to wreck the greatest economy on earth. Heritage has a great write up on this wonderful event" "Unhappy Anniversaries President Obama."

Hat tip Michael Ramirez, IBD

In the same vein - we posted Steve Wynn's rant the other day - here's another businessman weighing in - Bernie Marcus, who co-founded Home Depot, tells it like it is: "Obama Is Choking The Recovery."

I love the TED series of talks - if you are not familiar with them, Google yourself some and sit back and enjoy. I'm going to close out today's edition with a TED talk from Eric Daniels at the Clemson Institute for the Study of Free Markets...the moral case for free markets:

Have a great weekend!

Rumble on!

Non-Headline: "Postmaster Says Days Are Numbered"

2011-07-20T08:20:00.000-07:00

Try putting those qualifications out there today!

USA Today is reporting that due to "falling mail volume and rising red ink" the days of Saturday mail delivery are numbered. The steady decline of the U.S. Postal Service is emblematic of the sclerotic thinking that surrounds Washington D.C. It's a business model that is doomed to failure - anyone in the private sector could have told you that years ago.

First came FEDEX and UPS. The story of the former is legend and only partly true: Fred Smith, a former US Marine, submits a paper in graduate school at Yale where he earns a "C." The paper purportedly is the outline of what became the FEDEX system. (The true story, according to Fred himself, is that the paper was written as an undergrad and was a reflection on the effects of automation.) Point is, he built a system that people trusted. If you wanted to make sure your package was delivered on time and in one piece - you used FEDEX. Sure, you payed more for it, but it was worth it!

This was the first nail in the coffin of the USPS. Then came the fax machine. Businesses could now almost instantaneously exchange critical information without worry and only nominal cost. Finally, the ultimate - the internet and e-mail. In typical government fashion, what did the US Postal Service do in each of these instances? They raised the cost of doing business with higher fees. Oh, and the service got worse - remember when your front door had a funny little slot and mail was dropped through once a day, except Sunday? They made us install streetside mailboxes to increase efficiency and our mailmen gained weight and lost connection with the customer. By the way, did I mention their labor force is unionized? Admittedly, after 1982, the USPS is no longer subsidized by the U.S. taxpayer and they love to tout that they "are not a government agency." But, they sure behave like one!

As internet banking and other services continue to improve and as marketing forces switch increasingly to the web, it is inevitable that the USPS will continue to dwindle. My proposed solution? A fee for service business model with several tiers. First, you could have a secure scan and e-mail delivery system for a set price, eliminating the need for paper delivery period. Second, if you want to touch the mail you would have tiers of delivery at different costs - you want your mail every day instead of once a week - it will cost you. Finally, if you want the true personal service of mail delivered to your door - that would also be an additional cost. It's sort of a "paygo" model, but one that might save the USPS. Of course, in the short term you would have the problem of all those unionized postal workers that you can't fire that will be paid to do nothing...but once those contracts age out the business could be profitable.

I don't know if what I propose is the right solution. But, this is the kind of thinking that has to be applied to EVERY government agency from HHS to Defense to Energy...all of them. Ask the question - how have times and technology changed since we were founded and how can we adapt our businesses to exploit those changes? Ultimately, it would save the American people a lot of cash and heartache.

I'm out of here.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-07-19T07:24:00.000-07:00

Obama and Biden rejoice over their "excellent" strategy

Il maestro, Victor Davis Hanson weighs in on the Libyan affair: "A Dumb and Dumber War." This amid news that we, ~~they~~, ~~NATO~~, well somebody is meeting with the Libyan ~~gov'men~~t, ~~representatives~~, ~~rebels?~~, somebody to ~~sign a truce~~, ~~discuss settlement~~, ~~play Clue~~, do something...so it's all good, right? The nice thing about the VDH piece is that when you take the sweep of any event that this administration has talked about from closing Guantanamo to starving Gramma by withholding her social security check, they have done nothing. Zip zero nada butkus. The two things you could argue they have accomplished are a big part of the reason we're in the sticky wicket we find ourselves: Dodd Frank Financial "Reform" and the budget devouring beast, Obamacare.

Former Treasury Department big, Emil Henry, has a concise piece in the WaStreJo this AM (my attempt at text/Twitter shortening of the Wall Street Journal) titled "America's Debt Ceiling Opportunity," He cites the report "USA, Inc." - a report we have discussed in these pages before - that is a bi-partisan effort to look at the Federal Government's finances as a business would. You wouldn't buy shares in this firm - here's their 2010 summary:

For example, if Congress had submitted fiscal year 2010 financial reports of our country in a fashion similar to a corporation, the U.S. would show a negative net worth of $44 trillion, an operating loss of $817 billion, and $1.3 trillion of negative cash flow.

Reminds me of the scene in the movie "Dave:"

The way out of this morass is growth. As Henry points out in his article - 5% growth and we are home-free. We've been averaging just north of 2.5% for the last 20 years, so we've got some room to give. But when you consider the other places growth could occur, a stable and prosperous United States is not that bad. As we've discussed here before, we don't believe in the Chinese miracle over the long haul. Europe? Done. Africa? Good luck. Japan? Done. Some good prospects in the Asian/South Pacific markets, but security is a big concern. So, the point is, the US of A is not a bad place to invest money. IF you would get the Washington bureaucrats out of the picture. OR, we could settle for some more of that good old malaise. That's what Michael Spence, over at the Economist fears is in the mix: "America the Sclerotic." OK, Michael, we're a ~~little~~ lot overweight and we have a bigger and bigger chunk of our population that has gotten fat and lazy (and believes it is owed to them!) on the Federal teat...but don't count us out yet. This could well be capital's chant in the coming years:

Cut, Cap and Balance is headed for a vote today. The adults in Washington continue to try to lead - sadly, the petulant Obama will probably veto it, so it is only symbolic. But hey - he continues to be popular:

If you turn the graph upside down.

Hot day ahead!

Rumble on!

Guess They Won't Love Us More Afterall

2011-07-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

In all the swooning of the hopey change bunch, one theme throughout was how much the rest of the world would love us if only we elected his Sainthood, Barrack Hussein Obama....mmm, mmm, mmm.

Well, like all the rest of the nonsense, this one turned out false too. In a recent survey by the Arab American Institute, we find that they hate us more than they did under the horrifying George W. Bush:

After improving with the election of Barack Obama in 2008, U.S. favorable ratings across the Arab world have plummeted. In most countries they are lower than at the end of the Bush Administration, and lower than Iran's favorable ratings (except in Saudi Arabia).

You can read the full report here, but if you didn't vote for Barrack Hussein Obama, you already know what's in it. If there is a lesson in this report, it is this - they are going to hate us regardless of what we do. Apparently they hate us more since we made ~~Obama~~ Osama Bin Laden fish food. The flip side of that is they like us when a person determined to maim and kill American citizens is alive?

It's time to cut the hopey change BS and deal with these people for what they are: enemies.

On Negotiating And "Compromise"

2011-07-18T06:27:00.000-07:00

One of the classic gambits in game theory was played out over the weekend as Republicans ignored BO's 36-hour deadline. I don't know if that was calling his own bluff or not, but it reminded me of the wisdom of Sophocles: "Do not command that which you cannot enforce." It is wise of the Republicans to do this - Barry seems to think that he's the Emperor and can dictate terms. This should serve as a wake-up call to the White House which is only negotiating in the hopes of scoring political points.

Meanwhile the cacophony grows from the Scylla of the mainstream press and the Charybdis of "mainstream" Republicans and "reasonable" Democrats for the Republican negotiators to fall prostrate at the altar of "compromise." I touched on this last week, but let's offer up some analogies for why "compromise" should not be on the table:

If you were dying of cancer, would you want your doctor to "compromise" and only cure part of the cancer?
If a thief broke into your house and was robbing you of all that you owned - should you "compromise" with him and let him take everything in the living room as long as you got to keep the den and the bedrooms?
If termites were eating away the timbers under your first floor, should you "compromise" and let them eat half of it?
If you were in a plane that was going to crash into the mountain unless you pulled the stick up sharply - should you "compromise" and agree to just smash into the top part of the mountain?

I think you get the point. Put succinctly by Admiral Stockdale in a speech given at my graduation from Surface Warfare School many years ago: "Where matters of principal are concerned, there can be no compromise."

We are in a death struggle to save our nation. The historical track record beautifully spelled out in "This Time It's Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly," is brutally clear. As of June, 2011, the percent of debt of the GDP is 98.6% - and as the following chart shows, we are slated to go over 100% soon:

The sobering conclusion of "This Time It's Different?" Go over 90% and really bad things start to happen. The domestic economy can no longer grow as interest carry on the debt swallows current payments, services are curtailed, gimme's get gone - result? Chaos, riots, groups protesting in the streets...err, like the bunch in Chicago over the weekend threatening not to work for BHO if he cuts ANYTHING. A little bit of scratching on that bunch: "Boldprogressive.org" - leads you to find out that they are in cahoots with Soros and "Democracy for America" and other essentially anti-American groups.

The choice is clear. A fundamental realignment of spending priorities and a return to the resilient society of self reliance or...Athens:

And before you choose "Athens," consider that in 2002 in Argentina when the economy collapsed in on itself in a debt drunk implosion - there wasn't money to pay the police like they still can in Athens.

Compromise anyone?

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-07-15T10:11:00.000-07:00

Let's lead off our Friday Feed Bag with some great perspective provided by Dr. Krauthammer: "Regime Change May Be Needed To Cut The Deficit." The good doctor is saying, far more eloquently than me, what I said yesterday: Call his bluff! This nonsensical "if not now, when?" gauntlet thrown down by Obama is lunacy. Why not when he was in the Senate, when he voted against the debt ceiling increase?

Speaking of the debt. Here's a quick question - True or False - the debt ceiling will be reached on August 2? Like me, you probably quickly answered "True." That would be wrong. The actual debt ceiling was reached on May 15. "WTF? WTFF????" I hear you cry. That's right...and the world did not end, Grandma isn't eating the wallpaper to stay alive... The Tax Cheat Treasury Secretary instituted a policy known as "DISP" or "Debt Issuance Suspension Period." How's he been paying the bills? Easy - by raiding government pension funds. Read all about it over at Casey Report's Daily Dispatch: "The Despicable DC Looters."

This just in: "Obama says 80% of Public Sold on Tax Cuts." This guys is starting to scare me. It's not good to have someone that lives in a fantasy world this close to the nuclear buttons. Here's a poll from Rasmussen just yesterday: "55% OPPOSE Tax Hikes As Part of Settlement." If this guy's support keeps eroding we might see a presser like this in the near future:

On vacation recently, I re-read Bill Whittle's excellent essay, "The Iceberg." It's over a year old now but still astonishingly accurate. I'm with him on this theory - the Titanic would have survived if she had rammed the iceberg or if she had missed it entirely. The worst case scenario was the late attempt to miss which sliced open enough of her hull that too many compartments filled. Looking at this debt ceiling kabuki dance, I say "Full speed ahead!"

At full speed, rudder amidships this would have been avoided.

Speaking of reading - I just loaded this book into my kindle app:

Here's why: "Blaming Women For the Infantilization of Men." Count me in among the crowd that is sick of seeing anorexic looking metrosexual types sipping pink colored cocktails...we need some more masculinity in our midst...hell, just look at the girly president we've ended up with. But I am also in favor of strong women, and gals, it ain't your fault. We've got some 'splaining to do as men...I'll let you know if there any answers in this new book.

That's it for me - have a great weekend!

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-07-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

Dear Mrs. McConnell,

Your lad has been misbehaving in his job at the Senate. He seems to have forgotten what the American people want. What they do not want is Barack Obama and his policies. Why does young Mitch want to allow him to continue to wreck the economy?

All the best,

The American People

And note - this is Gallup - not known for pro-Republican slants.

Point is, Republicans have the wind at their backs. Unlike Obama who thinks this is some kind of a poker game - "Don't make me call my bluff, Eric" - and is more focused on what this does to his reelection chances than making any real progress, the Republicans HAVE presented a budget, HAVE offered compromises and have got butkus in return. (Sidebar - wouldn't you love to play poker with a guy that threatens to call his own bluff?? Toss them chips on the table, cowboy!)

The latest Dem ploy has been to fill the airwaves with reminders that even Republican saints like Ronald Reagan raised taxes. Exactly. In each of those instances, he agreed to tax increases in exchange for spending cuts. The problem was the majority of the cuts were on the out years and never materialized. Sound familiar? This is the old rope-a-dope Democrat tactic that the idiot Republicans have fallen for over and over again. Obama is so childish and petulant (and I might add, spoiled) that he can't understand why the current crop in the negotiating room won't go along.

Dan Henninger has a great piece over at the Wall Street Journal this morning. It is an accounting of a recent lecture delivered by Robert Lucas, the 1995 Nobel winner in Economics. Lucas has been looking at historical trends and the lines that fit our current situation the best are in the 1930's. The common threads?

What discomfits him is the similarities in the policy choices that accompanied both delayed recoveries. By 1934, the Depression's banking crisis had been resolved, "yet full recovery was still seven years away," he said in the Milliman lecture. GDP stayed more than 10% below trend. "Why?" The answer, he says, was growth-suppressing policies, such as the Smoot-Hawley tariff, cartelization, unionization and, "most important but hardest to measure, FDR's demonization of business.

And FDR didn't have corporate jets to kick around back then. Here's a cartoon from the Chicago Tribune in 1934...deja vu all over again?

Ahh, how history repeats itself!

Of course one of the endearing features of the American landscape created by FDR is Social Security. Remember how all that money we paid in was going to be put in one of Al Gore's safe and secure lock-boxes? Oops! Obama, in what the New York Times described as an "fatherly moment," said that seniors might not get their Social Security checks if Republicans don't agree to a tax hike. That's some parenting! "Kids, things are little tight, either take some more money from our neighbor or Grandma gets it." But, as Investors Business Daily points out - he has publicly stated what every sentient person has known all along. Social Security is one giant ponzi scheme - Bernie Madoff would have been so proud! THERE IS NO MONEY THERE. Lord knows you wouldn't want to have privatized the program years ago... jeopardize the lock box! Read the whole point here: "Obama Exposes Social Security's Big Lie."

Changing subjects...I'm a dog person. Don't mind kitties in the 'hood if they are doing nice things like killing ground squirrels that tunnel under the foundation. Round here, the coyotes have been keeping the cat population at bay though forcing your humble Rumbler into a trap and relocate program for the cute little varmints - the ground squirrels, I mean. (Dear Liberal Readers, Please note that I use a humane trapping system - they leave well fed are unhurt. They are relocated to a bucolic public park about 6 miles away to live in peace. I do this because I believe in heaven and hell and I don't want to face the dude with the pitch fork because I was mean to one of God's creatures.) But back to the cats. What's a liberal do when they run out of things to worry about or get all frustrated and nasty because we won't let them control our lives? Find NEW things to worry about! Here's one:

Enough fun for one day...I'm out of here.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-07-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

While Obama and Boehner do the Kabuki Death Dance over raising the debt, the boys over at the United Nations are demanding $76 TRILLION from the "developed" world be given to the "developing" world for "green technology." I thought I was reading the Onion when I first heard about this, but in the words of Madeline Kahn in "Blazing Saddles:" "It's twoo, it's twoo: "UN DEMANDS $76 TRILLION FOR GREEN TECHNOLOGY."

Speaking of Madeline Kahn, maybe the Republicans should adopt her attitude in dealing with Obama on this debt deal. I mean if you heard the presser he had yesterday, it's beginning to sound like "Ground Hog Day" in the White House. Boehner and the boys have to be tired:

Short piece on the cost of regulation over at Investor's Business this morning: "Less Regulation = More Jobs." If you don't read the whole article - remember the money line:

Federal regulations cost the economy more than $1.75 trillion in 2008, about 14% of the size of the economy.
To understand how massive that is, consider that the regulatory burden for each U.S. household is more than $15,000 a year while private health care spending per household is $10,500 annually.

That was in 2008, BEFORE the on-going implementation of Dodd-Frank and the disaster of Obamacare. Speaking of that - Obama and the parrot Dems keep yelling that the Republicans should "compromise" and "bend" on taxes. Really? How come Obamacare is not allowed into the discussion when it is an estimated $14 TRILLION torpedo aimed at the centerline of the U.S. economy?

Look, Obama and his minions have already raised taxes...how soon we forget: Taxes Upon Taxes Upon Taxes. No tax ever created a job.

For all the caterwauling in Washington over the debt, in 50 state capitols, the Governors and legislators are trying to figure out how to address a collective $112 Billion dollar debt - without the ability to print money. New Geography has a comprehensive report on their efforts that is worth a browse: "Enterprising States: Recovery and Renewal." The states are the laboratory of our republic and some like Texas and Tennessee are being innovative and forward-thinking while some, like California, are dying. The whole report is available from the U.S. Chamber by clicking the picture below:

That's it for today.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-07-11T13:41:00.000-07:00

Slowly digging out from the usual pile of e-mails and detritus that accumulates when you leave your post for a week. Today's collection for you is a little eclectic, but hopefully, as in all of our Good Feed columns, nourishing and informative!

The continuing economic recess - err, depression, has more unintended consequences than Liberals have ideas on how to spend your money. One sad reality is the impact on the less fortunate. One group, particularly hard hit, ironically supported Obama overwhelmingly in the '08 Election. They are paying the price: "The Disappearing Black Middle Class."

The "black mascot of the Wall Street oligarchs." -Cornell West

So, the economy is tanking, the market is plummeting, unemployment is 450 bps above where you said it would be at this time, what do you do? Go to Disney World? NO! Get more regulations on the sale of guns, of course! Obama's team of behind the scenes czars are quietly wreaking havoc on free markets and free people. Here, the Daily Beast (I am sure they published this to try to shore up the base on the Left) discusses what Barry and the Boys are doing to make it harder for you to protect your home: Obama's Quiet Guns Crackdown.

We posted a piece yesterday about political vision and will - The Audacity of Mediocrity - two pieces overlap and reinforce some of my humble assertions. First, the Heritage Association's Morning Bell Piece this morning reminds us that we don't have to go the way of Europe - even though that IS the vision of the liberal effete elite - from John Kerry (did you know he served in Vietnam?) to our current boy president. Great piece worthy of the read: America the Europe of the West.

The second checkpoint reinforces my assertion of the need for a strong Navy: "The Necessity of U.S. Naval Power." We are down to 286 combatant ships in the fleet give or take a few. This is less than half of the Navy that Ronald Reagan had built. When I was active duty in Msr. Carter's Navy, the number was just north of 300. No space shuttles and a shrinking Navy make for a very bad duet if some bad guys come up on your dance card.

Trust me - we need these guys!

Switching subjects entirely on you - here's a great piece on the state of our educational system and a potential remedy: "Grading the Teachers." It is a discussion on value added teacher evaluations. This is important...we can't all aspire to be dependent recipients of Obama's largesse! OK, let's rock out of here with a little Pink Floyd reminiscence:

That's it - I'm out of here.

Rumble on!

The Audacity of Mediocrity

2011-07-10T15:33:00.000-07:00

I have returned from my journeys Northward and had some time on the road to reflect on where we are as a nation. While folks inside the Beltway (which when travelled now would really make you think you live in the Third World) dither about the debt, greatness in our nation is ebbing.

Consider this image:

This is the interior of the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, completed in 1897. The building is a testament of a belief in a great nation with a future ahead as bright as the stars. Now admittedly, architecture and building techniques have changed dramatically, but typically these days for a civic building we get something like this:

...with lots of surface parking! But that's another story. This is the architecture of "we're done, stick a fork in it." I get e-mails and comments accusing me of being so anti-government that I prefer utter chaos to any semblance of a legal order. Not true. I want government to stay out of the way of the private sector, but in those areas where they do belong, and preserving the story of our nation a la the Library of Congress, I want them to do it right. The builders of the Library of Congress were conscious of producing something that would be admired for ages - it was hard and expensive, but they succeeded. I want our leaders to set a vision of progress for the nation not pablums about the goodies they will bestow on me if I vote for them.

Consider the following image:

Yes, that is the shuttle Atlantis blasting off for her final voyage earlier this week. There are a lot of issues with the shuttle program, but the fact remains that they were designed to each fly a minimum of 100 missions. Atlantis has flown 33. We have no replacement. It is embarrassing to note that only four astronauts flew on this last mission. Reason? The Soyuz (Russian) craft is the only thing that could fly in the event of an emergency and it only carries three at a time - they have two on stand-by with a pilot per craft.

Shocking, I know for a conservative like me in these times of budget austerity to be getting misty-eyed about the space program, but here's the reality: if we can't get into space, we can't control it. For a nation that relies on satellites for everything from our GPS units that tell us how to get to Grandma's house to watching re-runs of "I Love Lucy," not being able to control space is a frightening proposition. Did I mention that we also use that environment for military intelligence, targeting and scientific exploration? We cannot fight nor defend ourselves without having a space presence. And, wait for it, this is one area where the government DOES need to be involved, because our livelihoods and existence as a nation depend on it. We have recognized from our founding that we are a maritime nation and we have built a Navy to protect and accomodate that. Admittedly, the Fleet is down to Jimmy Carter levels again, but it can still do its job of protecting our commerce at sea and projecting power to the bad guys on an as-needed basis. Space is the ocean of the future and we just chucked our oars into the tall grass.

All of this points to our priorities as a nation. This is where leadership comes in. I find enormous fault with JFK on a lot of fronts from the absence of a moral code to the abandonment of the Cuban rebels in the Bay of Pigs. But I liked his tax policy - "rising tide lifts all boats," and I really liked his challenge to the American people that we would go to the moon. A goal and a vision fulfilled at 20:17:40 UTC, on the 20th of July, 1969. That voyage began here:

The premise laid out by JFK has not changed. All eyes are pointed space-ward...we are staring at our shoes kicking dust. Modern leaders have forgotten that part of the task of leaders is to challenge and coax greatness out of their people. Our current crop just wants to secure the next vote and the end result is the sclerosis that is killing greatness in this land.

The real tragedy is that the eyes of the world are also fixed on us. Peggy Noonan reminisced in a fine column yesterday that the world needed another Ronald Reagan. She scribes this from her recent trip to Europe where Reagan was honored in London, Prague, Krakow and Budapest and rightfully observes:

The world looks to America. It doesn't want to be patronized or dominated by America, it wants to see America as a beacon, an example, a dream of what could be. And the world wants something else: American goodness. It wants to have faith in the knowledge that America is the great nation that tries to think about and act upon right and wrong, and that it is a beacon also of things practical—how to have a sturdy, good, unsoiled economy, how to create jobs that provide livelihoods that allow families to be formed, how to maintain a system in which inventors and innovators can flourish. A world without America in this sense—the beacon, the inspiration, the speaker of truth—would be a world deprived of hopefulness. And so we must be our best selves again not only for us but for the world.

Now Dame Peggy and I have had some serious differences. She was in the "wouldn't an Obama presidency be neat" crowd, but I respect her insights. Reagan saw the big (and very hard) picture - the world would never be safe as long as the Soviet threat existed. He knew we had to build up our military and push our technology to the limit to defeat the "Evil Empire." Everyone said it couldn't be done.

A second column in the same section titled "China Versus America: Which Is The Developing Country," pointed out the pristine status of China's infrastructure to ours. It's a LOT short sighted as it avoids the point that when you get outside of China's coastal region you descend about 400 years in time and the idea of 5-Year plans didn't turn out so well in other Communist states. But I will give the Chinese this: they have their priorities right. Instead of trying to provide every form of gimme to their people, they are focused on creating jobs and building world class infrastructure.

We, on the other hand, are busy rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic with piddling discussions of cutting here and there and taxing more and more while the Public Sector union cancer erodes us from the inside. (How would you like to get paid $5600 a month to wash your motorcycle?) The problem is not that the government doesn't collect enough revenue - it is that we are spending it on the wrong stuff and there is no mobilizing force of leadership to steer us onto the right path.

Here's what I would like to see:

1. Recommitment to the space program with the goal of returning to the moon in 5 years.
2. Restoration of existing infrastructure around the country. Let's fix what we have first and then look into building high-speed rail and such.
3. Rebuild and modernize our military stet. Our operational commitments have strained everything from men to materiel.
4. A crash program - Apollo project? - to make us energy independent. The green stuff is all well and good, but let's be honest...there is no replacement for the gas engine that is feasible. If one comes along, fine, but in the mean time, let's drill AND refine our own oil.

How are we going to do this - after all, it can't be done!

1. A national commitment to these programs will draw private sector capital in and create jobs!
2. We will HAVE to cut, trim, eliminate (especially Obamacare) entitlement programs. A great nation should have a safety net for the less fortunate - but it should also inspire people to greatness not bully them into redistribution and mediocrity.
3. Dismantle the regulatory beast of the government - from EPA to OSHA to silliness like the Dodd-Frank Bill, we need to spend our money on the things we need not the "nice to haves," that grow into budget devouring cancers.
4. Eliminate outright those departments that are not mandated by the Constitution: Department of Energy, Department of Education, etc.

We are going to have to grow a leader that is willing to tell the American people the truth. Ronald Reagan, one speaker in London said last week, "did not move to the center to get votes. He moved the center to him." We are still a great nation, the world is counting on us, we are only in decline if we allow ourselves to believe that we are. Obama and his professorial crowd have done much to convince us that we have past our aegis. We have not, we just need someone to step forward and remind us.

Good Feed

2011-06-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

There's been some fun defining of liberals in the past few days...Missouri Congressman Todd Akin stated bluntly that "at the heart of liberalism really is a hatred for God..." Which of course led to howls from HuffPo and other organs of the left for him to apologize!! How dare he! I would assert that liberals are, by nature, bullies. They can't win arguments with the facts, so they resort to intimidation and innuendo. One popular meme is that you don't "care" enough if you don't like your taxes being raised - quickly followed up with images of starving children or old people being chucked off a cliff in a wheelchair. Fortunately, there is a growing chorus of conservatives who arent' going to take it any more. At the speartip of this movement is Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, who had the following exchange:

We are in the same boat here - we pay property taxes in Davidson County, but choose to send them to private schools instead - shudder, religious ones at that! But the reality is that the bulk of our County schools are moribund brainwash tanks who encourage their graduates to attend leaky liberal colleges and major in "women's studies" and "africana."

Here's another Governor speaking out with the truth -Bob McDonnell from Virginia laying out the case that the Republican governors are doing the heavy lifting. This effort will add credence to the Presidential and other conservative candidates come next November.

Can I say "Elephant in the Room" when referring to the spendthrift addiction of our political class? Our boy President goes on the air today to chastise us, the American people, for not giving enough to government. There's some logic for you - the problem that got us where we are today was government spending. The solution? Take more away from the people so the spending can continue. The sad reality is that there is spending that needs to occur in this country - a lot of which was supposed to come from the "stimulus" and "TARP." According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, the state of our infrastructure in the United States earns us a "D," with $2.2 Trillion needed just to get us up to an acceptable standard. The problem is that the functions that government is supposed to be involved in per the Constitution like defense and infrastructure, get crowded out with "feel good" programs that should be handled by the states, local municipalities and civic organizations and churches. The indisputable chain of logic goes like this:

1. Compassion leads to...
2. Funding leads to...
3. Dependence which leads to...
4. Power over the dependent which leads to...
5. More funding, expanded benefits and greater dependence which leads to...
6. Greater power, less freedom, provider making decisions for the dependent...
7. The non-dependent give up more and more of what they earn to provide for the dependent BUT
8. It is never enough. The powerful take what they need or are finally removed from office.

We are at Step 8 in the process right now. Eudora Welty said it succinctly: "Compassion leads to the gas chamber."

The Urban Dictionary defines "Barack Obama" as a "Chocolate Jimmy Carter." But Michael Barone asserts that this is not fair...to Jimmy Carter. He compares him to Chauncey Gardner, the brilliantly portrayed Presidential advisor in "Being There." (RIP Peter Sellers) Barone may be on to something:

You can project what you want to hear onto Chauncey's sayings...sound familiar?

That's it for today.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-28T10:24:00.000-07:00

We spend a lot of time on these pages criticizing the folks in power - from Hanes snapping Congressmen to diaper checking TSA agents - it does seem at times that we are truly at "the mercy of idiots." Take a step back for a second and the picture is disturbing: we the people put the idiots in power. Either through our ignorance, our complacency or our sheer lack of interest, we are being ruled by a level of incompetence that is truly frightening. Thomas Sowell in a piece in the Investors Business Daily makes the case in "Careless Voters Cast Doubts On The Future Of The U.S." I am always sobered by the realization that a completely untested and unknown individual named "Barrack Hussein Obama" became our Commander in Chief. The lightest scratching on the surface sniff test would have revealed to the sentient being that this guy was trouble. As Sowell observes:

In our own times, however, voting has been seen as just one of the many "rights" to which everyone is supposed to be entitled. The emphasis has been on the voter, rather than on the momentous consequences of elections for the nation today and for generations yet unborn.

What all of this tells us, is that it it up to us - do I dare call us a "remnant," to fix the solution. We have to be visionaries and educators in our communities that sound the alarm and encourage a more active and engaged populace. The American people aren't stupid - they can obviously be lazy.

OK, enough self loathing...on to the matters at hand. What is the function of a State Department? Yes, you in the back row with your hand up..."to represent our nation abroad, to negotiate trade and defense agreements, to ensure smooth immigration and travel..." Excellent answer! But you are apparently wrong. Just as we learned that the mission of NASA was to enlighten Muslims around the world about their contributions to space travel, turns our the mission of our State Department is to help Lady Gaga get a gig in Rome: "Hillary: State Dept Instrumental In Sealing The Deal" Proudly stated at the "Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs ...oh, Agency, or GLIFAA Conference. Glad to know our nation's finest - sent overseas to lie for their country are doing such admirable work!

In the "so they got it from us" category - an excellent essay on the "Divided State of Europe," from our friends over at STRATFOR. With the daily images of Greece in flames or Angela Merkel chewing her nails over another bail-out for her Mediterranean buddies, this is a thoughtful read. The model to consider in both it's weaknesses and attributes is our Articles of Confederation:

The best analogy for the contemporary European Union is found not in European history but in American history. This is the period between the successful Revolutionary War in 1783 and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1788.

Well, we all know how that turned out - hint, hint...history does repeat itself. The only question will be if they will go the route we chose of a "Republic, Madam if you can keep it!" or break back into member states with autonomous governments. Good thing our State Department is on the job!

Well, if the are borrowing bad ideas from us, we are apparently doing the same from them: "Obamacare's Unsavory East German Links." When I was active duty Navy, we used to brag that one of the things that set us apart from the Soviets was that we didn't have "Zampolit's" or "Political Officers" on our ships. The zampolit structure was an integral part of the KGB and Stasi world to ensure ideological purity and total obedience to the party and the state. So now, our tax dollars get to hire "secret shoppers" to check in on Doctors to see if they can catch them in a flub up. "Practicing" medicine is hard enough without having to deal with ideology. If you want to know where this leads - you need to watch the movie "The Lives of Others." Here's the trailer:

So, now that Obama and the boys took over GM, Chrysler et al, I'm going to bet you think those cars are "all American now," right? Wrong! The winner for top American-made car based on the percentage of parts made domestically are the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord. Thanks for saving all those jobs BHO.

Yoni Netanyahu

Finally, I wanted to close today with a little tribute to Operation Entebbe. On June 27, 1976, an Air France plane heading from Athens to Paris was hijacked and forced to land at Entebbe Airport in Uganda (home of the always hungry Idi Amin). The hijackers, Palestinians err "Muslim Extremists" had a set of demands and the Israelis told them to go pound sand. Then, on July 4th, they snuck a commando force under the command of Jonathan (Yonatan) Netanyahu, the older brother of the current PM of Israel, into Entebbe and rescued the hostages. Yonatan was the only casualty of the IDF that night.

He died leading his men from the front. A true hero.

That's it for today.

Rumble on!

Good Feed (Special Edition)

2011-06-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

I apologize for not giving you a meaty Friday Feed Bag. The duties of fatherhood had me on a round trip to Atlanta this Friday last. Over the next two weeks, we will be on the road as well. We will be heading up through the "Breadbasket of the Confederacy" (the Shenandoah Valley) to points close to New York. We shall be returning via our old haunts in D.C. I encourage you to subscribe to the Twitter feed - a new feature here on the Rumbler Report, from where I am able with a few thumb-strokes to provide thoughts and links to the events of the day. A poor substitute for the Feed, but perhaps some gruel to see you through these next couple of weeks.

Let's start off with a review of the Law of Unintended (but to be expected) Consequences. As we discussed last week, our boy President has decided upon the Goldilocks solution in Afghanistan. As the Wall Street Journal points out, this has led all the other "allies" to re-evaluate their positions: "The Crush at the Afghan Exits." Wherein France, Poland, and the British are bugging out. Reminds one of that scene from Monty Python's "Holy Grail:"

In a telling piece, "Planned Parenthood Takes On The States," we learn of the efforts of the Obama administration to keep the lifeline of funding up to the Planned Parenthood abortion mill. They are doing it the old fashioned liberal way: in the courts. If you can't win in the realm of public opinion, SUE. One of the tremendous upshots of the election last November is that the citizens of the various states (all 57 of 'em, Barry!) have begun taking their governments back. We are seeing main stream American thought at the state capitols - exactly the way our Republic was supposed to work. The wise old gnomes in Washington will have none of that though - see you in Court. The reality is that there is no rational, nor moral reason for the taxpayers of the United States to prop up this vile institution.

Hot button item with me as I prepare to stroke the checks for the next round of college tuition and fees for middle Rumblespawn, is the incredible appreciation of tuition costs. I find it intriguing that liberals in our government go ga-ga over increases in gasoline prices with shouts of "gouging" and angry shaking of pitchforks and policy, but remain mum over college costs. Mind you - I WANT them to remain mum - their involvement could only make a bad thing worse. Creepy thing is the Feds have taken over all the student loan programs now... will they tell us what to study next?

More to the point, however, is the question of whether everyone in fact needs a college degree. I question the utility of a BA from NoName U when, in fact, it is little more than a glorified high school diploma from NoName HS where the faculty was too afraid to flunk or discipline students. I would be very much in favor of a system of trade schools that focused intensively on life skills that would ensure gainful employment. Some authors across the pond are re-examining the role of colleges in their economies and offer some instructive insights in "Hollowing Out The Ivory Tower."

It has been said that the veneer of civilization can be frighteningly thin. OK, I added the "frighteningly" part, but witnessing the mob behavior from Peoria ("Kill All The White People") to Philadelphia ("Editor Attacked by Mob") to Chicago ("Chicago's Violent Flash Mobs") leaves one feeling a little uneasy. The premise of Anne Coulter's new book "Demonic," is that liberals work in mobs to achieve their aims, an assertion that is hard to refute. Is it possible, however, that we are missing the point? That what is really at work here is tribalism; that as civilization decays, we fall back into tribal units? An excellent review of the book by Robin Fox, "The Tribal Imagination: Civilization and the Savage Mind," summarizes that point.

Well at least Obama finally has a financial plan for the future of our nation:

Obama Befriends Rich Elderly Widow In Hopes She'll Put Nation In Her Will

That's all for now.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

This is one of those days where you start to feel like the Spartans at Thermopylae - the bad news has us surrounded:

1. JOBS - the economy shed another 9,000 jobs last week, yet the Obama administration continues to brag about what a great "job" they are doing. News flash: they are lying to you...blatantly. As this piece from Investors Business Daily points out: "Fudging the Jobs Data." As the article points out, O and the boys are touting "2.1 million new jobs since they took office..." they conveniently forgot the 4 MILLION lost in the first year they took office AND as the chart at the right demonstrates, even without that figured in, the growth is pathetically anemic and does not keep up with population growth. Jobs are not being created because of uncertainty over healthcare and taxation costs, overregulation and general - what was the term Jimmy Carter liked - malaise.

We're not there yet.

2. OIL - so we are going to release 30 million barrels of oil out of our strategic petroleum reserve. That coupled with another 30 million, coming from International Energy Agency stocks, is supposed to stabilize oil prices. Oil prices that are roiled because of the situation in LIBYA (more on that anon). That's about 4% of the total in the SPR. But, what is the purpose of the SPR? Well the name "strategic" gives us a hint - it's there in the event that we get cut off from the rest of the world. The country (and most importantly our military) could continue to function till we (the military) got the spigots turned on again. But all this is silly...we have the oil! It's in Alaska, it's off our shores, it's in our shale and our coal. If this situation is so dire, let's get after it and declare our independence from the tinhorns and crackpots at OPEC. Sadly, that solution is too sane, too simple, to good to ever be considered by this tribe of amateurs residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. They continue to seek Goldilocks solutions to problems that do not involve bears returning home.

3. LIBYA - Speaking of Goldilocks solutions...what on earth are we doing there? We wouldn't implement the no-fly zone when it could have mattered, we won't commit to win, the alternative to Khadafi could be a lot worse (aka Al Qaeda)...this is senseless. Worse, it's un-Constitutional, in my humble opinion, and I didn't need to shop for lawyers to get an answer: "Top Lawyers Lost To Obama On Libya Policy." The language of the War Powers Act is pretty straight forward - Congress is supposed to be notified within 48 hours of the committal of U.S. Forces and they can't remain there for more than 60 days without approval from Congress. Now we can argue, correctly I think, that the War Powers Act is, in and of itself, unconstitutional...but that is a fight you take up when bullets are not flying.

4. BUDGET DEFICIT - Oy! The Congressional Budget Office just released it's latest analysis...(remember, the CBO is who we were supposed to trust on Obamacare and they missed that one badly on the low side) says of the budget: "Without Action Debt Will Exceed the Budget by 2021." Lookee at this chart - it represents the percent of the budget that the debt represents...truly scary stuff.

5. AFGHANISTAN - think Goldilocks again. I have argued on these pages before that once we ~~get~~ got
bin Laden, we should declare victory and GET OUT. We would leave behind an ominous warning - "mess with us again, and we will send you even further back into the stone age." The alternative is the Petreus solution - full out surge and defeat the enemy. That strategy will win the war in the short term, I just don't know how you hold after victory. Things have not ended up well in Afghanistan for the Soviets or the British before them (throw in Alexander the Great and a few others too). We are the furthest away from where we are fighting than any of our predecessors. So last night, Obama goes on the air and delivers a ~~policy~~ campaign speech wherein he is going to bring 30,000 troops (1 troop for every 1,000 barrels of oil from the SPR) home by next summer. Once again, the Goldilocks solution.

Well, on the good news side, my alma mater stayed alive in the College World Series last night.

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

This is a video intensive post today - for some reason Blogger is having issues uploading pictures...waah!

Let there be light! If ever there was an "Exhibit A" for Nanny State overreach, it is the Federal Law that extinguishes Thomas Edison's incandescent bulb in 2012. In exchange, we get the mercury laden squiggly bulb that lets off a greenish-garish light instead of the warm glow of the gentle bulb. God bless my birth state Texas - they have taken a stand (again) for independence: "Texas Light Bulb Bill Will Skirt Federal Plan."

Illustrative of how perverse this whole idea was, look no further than the people that brought this madness to our doors: the EPA - this is from THEIR website on how to clean up one of those squiggly CFL Bulbs:

Before cleanup
Have people and pets leave the room.
Air out the room for 5-10 minutes by opening a window or door to the outdoor environment.
Shut off the central forced air heating/air-conditioning system, if you have one.
Collect materials needed to clean up broken bulb:
stiff paper or cardboard;
sticky tape;
damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes (for hard surfaces); and
a glass jar with a metal lid or a sealable plastic bag.
During cleanup
Be thorough in collecting broken glass and visible powder.
Place cleanup materials in a sealable container.
After cleanup
Promptly place all bulb debris and cleanup materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area until materials can be disposed of properly. Avoid leaving any bulb fragments or cleanup materials indoors.
If practical, continue to air out the room where the bulb was broken and leave the heating/air conditioning system shut off for several hours.

You can download the THREE PAGE INSTRUCTIONS by clicking here. How many bureaucrat gnomes worked on these jewels. What comes next Mommy State - instructions on how to properly use papel de toilette?

Speaking of the government selling a bill of goods - I've been revisiting some of the movie reels of the 1930's when FDR's administration was doing it's best "Remain calm, all is well" stance:

Here's a doozy about how "old man depression" had the black folk down - why "one in six" didn't have a job (among blacks 18-30, the number is now 1 in 4). Think you could ever get this one to press now?

It wasn't true then, and the bi-polar whipsaw between fear-mongering and all is well isn't true now either.

Hey, speaking of fear mongering, we haven't heard from our good ol' grinnin' gruntin' Algore lately. He doesn't allow his talks to be filmed anymore - you are about to see why - but someone snuck a Flip camera in to catch some more of his tomfoolery:

Hat tip Watts Up With That.

What is up with the all brown look? Is this a brown version of Dr. Evil? Or an earth toned Kim Jong (Mentally) Il? But the bigger issue is this - how's that population control working out for China? They now have a rapidly aging population that will not have a younger cohort to finance their pensions. How about Europe? The only folks producing there are the Muslims - welcome to the new Caliphate. The reality is that as population groups become prosperous, they naturally have fewer children. We don't need Uncle Al to show us where to put the IUD. For now, in the words of a certain massage therapist: "Get off me you big sex poodle!"

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-21T07:12:00.000-07:00

Ben Bernanke really should dust this one off and have it played in movie theaters...how about some good old Democratic propaganda circa 1933 - this one is titled "Inflation," wherein we learn that if we flood the system with paper currency, the cost of living will go up, the purchasing power of the dollar will go down and (of course) employers will pay employees more to make all the pretty graphs match:

Hat tip VV over at Casey Research. Shame they hadn't thought up such cute sayings like "TARP" and "QEII." I have never been one of those that believed our government would intentionally lie to us, but when you see stuff like this it makes you wonder. What will the efforts they are putting out now via all the Obama websites and organs of the Democrat party look like in 78 years?

It is fun to watch this stuff - Keynesianism was in full flower. JMK married a Russian ballerina and everyone gushed: "Never was there a marriage of such beauty and brains as that of Ludovica and John Maynard Keynes." Oh, did I mention that he was a big proponent of eugenics? Yup, that same brilliant liberal intellectual (aren't they all intellectuals - smarter than us regular schlubs?) was a big proponent - head of the British Eugenics Society - of eugenics! That's right folks, that wonderful social philosophy the Nazis were so in favor of, the "self directed evolution of the human species."

So, if inflation is good, then more of it should be better - right? Oops - apparently inflation in China isn't going to help matters: "U.S. Faces Costlier Chinese Goods."No worries - I am sure those slave laborers will just increase the "salaries" so their folks can get those curves to meet. Over here? Guess Ben will have to print more money.

Of course one of the great stumbling blocks of the Keynesian inflation theory is depicted graphically here:

Why that would be the state unemployment map provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for May - 27 down, 22 flat or slightly up, 1 unchanged. Sooo, if employers can't hire, what happens to that fancy theory, Mr. Keynes? Mr. Keynes? ...crickets.

I'm in such a cheery mood - how about we wrap up today's reading with a fine piece from The American Thinker: "Twenty Nine Reasons to Be Angry or Scared." I might add one or two items to this list, but it's a darn good start.

That's it for today.

Rumble on.

Good Feed

2011-06-20T13:58:00.000-07:00

Let's start the week off on a high note - how about a quick walk down nostalgia lane:

Sigh. We just don't have politicians that can joke like that anymore. Speaking of which, received a delightful e-mail this morning decrying how the quality of insulting people has gone down the tubes. A couple of examples from the good old days:

“I didn’t attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it.” –
Mark Twain

“He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends.” –
Oscar Wilde

“I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play. Bring a friend… if you have one.” –
George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill

“Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second… if there is one.” –
Winston Churchill, in response

As I have said before on these pages, I am not overly worried about the Chinese "threat." We do need to keep our eye on them, like we need to keep our eye on the ~~Soviets~~, err Russians, the NORKS, the Pakistanis, the Saudis...well just about everyone. A little tidbit of Chinese news was a piece I read over the weekend was about how the Chinese are buying up U.S. assets: "The Chinese Government Is Buying Up U.S. Economic Assets." The author is a little over the top, but certainly raises concerns if the assets being bought up are strategic in nature. I have no problem with foreign investment in U.S. real estate - it gets capital back into our system and remember - they can't take it anywhere! Remember the hysteria over the Japanese buying Pebble Beach and Rockefeller Center? They lost their shirts.

Now one thing we had better be watching is those darned Christian terrorists - any day now they could take down our government:

Yup - the people who rule this country are that bright.

Say, following up on that story we reported on Friday about the lack of "Muslim" as an identifying characteristic of the foiled Pentagon bomb plot. Our good old "Pravda on the Cumberland" aka "The Tennessean," said he was a "misguided young immigrant." As we say down South: "How nice!" None of the MSM noted his religion. Guaran-damned-tee you though if he had been a "Christian" it would have been headline news.

More from the "Emperor has no clothes" department: "UN Climate Propaganda Exposed." Wherein we learn that the UN report on renewable energy is a hoax with "data" gleaned from Green Peace and others:

The study’s conclusion was such a blockbuster that the panel issued a press release last month previewing the finding. “Close to 80 percent of the world’s energy supply could be met by renewables by mid-century if backed by the right enabling public policies a new report shows,” it proclaimed.
Since this statement was supposedly based on actual scientific research,Steve McIntyre, editor of the Climate Audit blog, did what the IPCC must have assumed nobody would bother doing. He checked the sources cited in the report. He discovered the IPCC’s banner claim was not the work of prestigious and disinterested scientists toiling away in a laboratory, but of hacks with a political agenda and direct financial stake in the issue.

In the ever expanding news of the weird and useless, the Tennessean breathlessly trumpeted the following over the weekend: "UN Backs Gay Rights For First Time Ever." The article had the sub-head: "African and Muslim Nations Decry US Led Effort." Soo, Obama and his band of braniacs tell us that they hate us for our culture but then we push for this?? The article cited Hillary Clinton, our very own Secretary of State:

“This represents a historic moment to highlight the human rights abuses and violations that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people face around the world based solely on who they are and whom they love.”

Can you imagine Henry Kissinger, John Foster Dulles, James Baker, George Shultz or Al Haig saying this. It's times like these that you realize what a useless bloated waste of damned good real estate the United Nations has become. It exists for promoting bizarre initiatives like this one - where good little Turtle Bay bureaucrats can tell everyone in the world how to live their lives. They want to tell Muslim nations that their morality is flawed for viewing homosexuality as an abomination as badly as they want to tell the United States that we shouldn't have hand guns. The only other purpose it serves is to condem Israel. There's another place to cut the budget.

That's it for now. Ninety seven globally warmed degrees outside with about 90% humidity...wish Al Gore would shut up so things would cool off.

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-06-17T09:32:00.000-07:00

Raining golf balls

We're heading into the weekend here in Tennessee with overcast skies and more storms looming. That's OK with me, as long as we don't have any more of the hail we had the other day...testimonial on the right.

Snow in Mid June? Nope - hail storm

Let's begin our Friday feed with some observations by Victor Davis Hanson. In a piece titled "The Art of Appreciating America From Abroad," Hanson lays out some sound advice on how to manage the overflow of information we receive daily. Having lived abroad a good chunk of my formative years, I believe I still have a vision of America unlike many of my peers. My observations of her flaws are tempered by the realization that there are ~~few~~ no other places on the planet that offer the promise that this country does. To Mr. Hanson's fine list I would add one final rule - one taught to me by a former partner: "When listening to someone's opinion, always remember how they are compensated." Apply that rule to anything from real estate deals to political discourse and you will arrive at the nub of the argument - and frequently, the source of their poor logic. Consider Al Gore...when the ~~global warming~~ "climate change" nonsense is finally relegated to the ash heap of atrocious ideas, his net worth will plummet as he will be painfully exposed to be the fool he is - rich fool, no doubt, but whose fault is that?

A couple of breaking news stories: "U.S. Dismisses Charges Against Bin Laden." Dang, I was sure looking forward to his testimony on the stand. He'd have to plead insanity because he's lost his mind. (OK, sorry about that one!) And, this just in: "Muslim Marine Arrested In Pentagon Bomb Scare." Which part of "Muslim Marine" sounds wrong to you? When will we cease and desist with the political correctness that is our suicide?

When we start to see local imams, muslim scholars and the rest of their ilk come out and openly condemn terrorism, condemn suicide bombings, condemn "jihad" instead of preaching to us that we misunderstand the concept, THEN we might be able to start offering them positions in our Armed Forces, government and vital infrastructure locales. Until then, they have to be treated with enormous caution. Al Qaeda has said that the next waves of attacks would come from within. They have already begun: Fort Hood, Times Square, Little Rock, and numerous others no doubt foiled. Now add this Pentagon plot which, by the way, if you were watching CNN you would know nothing about it. ABC, NBC and CBS don't mention "Muslim" in their coverage and the latter network assures us that "he acted alone."

Charles Krauthammer has gotten some heat from conservatives, but he still writes a spot-on column in Investors Business Daily this morning: "A White House Union Owned And Operated." You mean the same union thugs that say things like this:

New Jersey = Nazi Germany? Where is the condemnation from the White House for this kind of repulsive hate speech? Aside from the fact that this man's history is terribly wrong. Hitler and the Nazis used the Unions to gain power. What is truly disgusting is watching a bunch of public employee union thugs who have prospered through the dark days of this continuing redepression courtesy of the taxpayers...these leeches...protesting because they aren't being given enough from the public dole.

One place we know this White House had been more than willing to ignore has been our military. Despite continually expanding commitments, our military has continued to shrink under budgetary pressure. Here's a stark warning from one on the front lines: "Investing In The Undersea Future." In my days as a Surface Warfare Officer, we jokingly called these fellows "Bubbleheads," they more accurately referred to us as "Targets." The warnings in this article should be heeded.

There are dangers in over-spending, but we have to have our priorities. The Greeks, Portuguese, Irish and most of Europe are in deep financial trouble because of their social spending - none of the above are exactly military powers. The consequences of profligate spending are readily apparent right before our eyes: "The Greek Example."

OK, I'm done for now...have a great weekend.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-16T14:48:00.000-07:00

Rumblewife posed an intriguing question last night: "What about a Perry/Rubio ticket?" Upon reflection, I think it might be a real powerhouse option. You get the executive experience of a successful governor coupled with the conservative ideology and wonderful personal story of the Senator from Florida. Browsing the Wall Street Journal this morning, I see that Mr. Henninger is pondering similar lines - at least about the potential top of the ticket: "Rick Perry Ready For Prime Time?"

Of course I would be happy with any of the candidates over the current administration. Grumbling from the left suggest that the incumbent has the edge - I tend to think that if unemployment - even as it is falsely reported by the government - stays above 9%, the Republicans could run Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite and have a better than even chance of winning.

"Napoleon, you know we can't afford the fun pack!"

Jon Stewart may lean hard left, but he still has some of the funniest gags going on the air. Last night he skewered Obama for his performance in Puerto Rico:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

West Wing Story

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show Full Episodes

Political Humor & Satire Blog

The Daily Show on Facebook

There is a fine line between politicking and patronizing. If you don't speak the language, don't parrot the locals is a good rule of thumb. They will appreciate a phrase or two in the native tongue, but this obviously crosses the line. Interesting point about Florida though...good reason to get Rubio on the ticket!

Oh, and how did the Puerto Ricans greet Mr. O? Well in a way that Hugo Chavez would love:

Puerto Rico is a beautiful place. I spent some time there in my Navy days and have several dear Puerto Rican friends...but if they want out, there's one place we could cut and be done. I suspect that they do not, because right now, the benefits from the mainland are too great. But I actually agree with Obama on this one - put it to a vote. With little to no indigenous industry outside of rum and tourism, it wouldn't stand very long on it's own if it followed the model of so many other island kleptocracies. But we should not stand in the way.

Finishing up an extraordinary treatise: "This Time It's Different." The book is a data/statistics heavy book looking back over 800 years of information on government defaults, liquidity crises, uber-inflation and the like.

We so often look at fairly narrow time windows when trying to understand events - especially economic data sets. As the authors point out it's analogous to "having a one in four chance of seeing a hundred year flood in a twenty five year period."

It's worth the read - click on the link above or the book-jacket at right to get yourself a copy!

No big surprise - Anthony Weiner has resigned. My guess is the cross-dressing pix were the final straw. It's one thing to run around and chase skirt - even in a kinky weird tweety way. Heck, if you are a Democrat you revel in characters like that: "that ol' Bill Clinton, you couldn't keep that dog on the porch! Yuck, yuck, yuck. " But when you show up oiled like a English Channel swimmer wearing a brasier and tights...OK, now we are into the downright weird. True, a vast chunk of the left's coalition would actually find that appealing, but they have to continue to con enough people in the middle to stay competitive. He had to go.

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Shovel Ready

2011-06-15T14:20:00.001-07:00

Glad someone out there can laugh about it...

Good Feed

2011-06-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

I keep hearing folks on the Left comparing Obama with Reagan. "Why, he has the same communications skills," they gush. And "he is sooo Presidential!" they swoon. How about we look at the facts? Peter Ferrara over at Forbes Magazine has done just that: "Reagonomics versus Obamanomics" - it is a chilling indictment of the predicament we find ourselves in. But there's more - let's compare the "stature thing"...compare and contrast:

Let's say you are Mr. Foreign Leader Tyrant...which of these two are you going to want to deal with?

"I'm a scorpion, what did you expect, I'd kiss you?" An allegory inside a well crafted assessment of the northern border of Israel: "The Frog And The Scorpion." Israel's situation with Hezbollah reminds of Jefferson's observation about the Constitutional problem with slavery: "it's like holding a wolf by the ears - you don't like it much, but you dare not let him go."

"Anagnorisis" - this is the term in Greek tragedy where a character makes a startling discovery about himself. We are seeing that played out on the streets of Athens right now:

Apparently, the anagnorisis they have discovered is that they like being on the government teat and, thank you, will fight to not be taken off. The Greek government's austerity measures - to save the country- are throwing a lot of people off the government gravy train and they are fighting back. These folks would rather tear the whole thing down than sacrifice for their children and grandchildren. Can you say "Madison," anyone?

State House in Madison, WI taken over by Union thugs.

Here's the bad news: "Greek Contagion Spreading Fast." Portugal and Spain and Ireland, oh my!

Here's some good news: "Wisconsin Supreme Court Upholds Anti-Union Law."

Market is heading south again...Weiner has yet to resign even as images of him cross-dressing emerge...

At least it has cooled off outside.

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-14T09:47:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I stumble on an article that after I read it, I don't know whether to laugh or to cry. A weekend book review did just that: "Thinking Inside The Box." It is a review of the book "Adventures Inside the Orgasmatron; How The Sexual Revolution Came To America," by Christopher Turner. I just downloaded this title onto my Kindle App, so you may hear more about it later, but the review was enough to really pique my interest.

Apparently in the 1940's and '50's, the intellectual elite of this country ( the Anthony Weiner, Nancy Pelosi, Michael Moore, Michelle Obama crowd of fifty years ago) fell under the thrall of another psyche explaining German named Wilhelm Reich (unfortunate last name given the timeframe) who hawked a product called the "orgone box" that accumulated the vaporous orgone. When one sat in the box, all clarity came to you as you experienced the "apocalyptic orgasm." Apparently once the gild was off the lilly of communism, Dr. Reich's solution to nirvana took hold. What is it today? ~~Global Warming~~ "Climate Change?"No, really, I am not making this stuff up. If you are interested, I linked Amazon to the picture and title above. I'm going to read my copy in my cozy chair, perhaps watching Woody Allen's "Sleeper."

If only Anthony Weiner had had one of these...

Well, when not fantasizing that we can all be cured with giant doses of orgone, the left continues to destroy the economy. Here's some cheery news from Forbes: "Good Bye Recovery, Hello Recession." The author points out, correctly, that everyone from businesses to individuals is paying off debt (oops, the government is NOT doing that) and hoarding cash. The reason? Fear and uncertainty. The economic policies of Obama and his team have left us all wishing we had one of those little balls in our house.

And they still don't get it - this just in...it takes 887, 624 hours for banks to comply with the new Federal regulations. That's 110,000 days or roughly 395 years worth of man hours in cost that the banks now bear thanks to Dodd-Frank. And we wonder why the economy is slow. And where do you think that cost of compliance will fall? Still, you talk to some Simplibs, and they will tell you that the real problem with the economy is that there isn't ENOUGH regulation: "Cass Sunstein: "The Obama Administration's Ambivalent Regulator."

Well, there is hope. Maybe some reality is starting to sink in. There's this: "Obama Fundraiser Underwhelms" - apparently the swooning and fainting numbers are way down. And there is this:

Now that's some real hope for change!

RumbleDad forwarded the following pic - allegedly a gas station sign in Alaska...works for me!

That's it for today.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

Time for the Monday edition of "Good Feed." Had some time over the weekend to catch up on some reading. If you are an avid Internet Miner like me, let me recommend the "Read It Later" app. It comes as a button on Firefox, but if you are like me and use Chrome or Safari, you have to add it as a button. Nice thing is it synchs to your smart phone, so if you have some downtime...or, like me you have to spend 8 hours in a car driving back and forth to Atlanta, it comes in handy!

In the late 1980's, Tom Clancy, fresh off his breakthrough success with "Hunt for the Red October," produced a book that became required reading at both the U.S. and Soviet War Colleges. The book was titled Red Storm Rising, and the premise was that the Soviets would stir up insurrections in different corners of the earth in order to thin out, confuse and deplete U.S. military strength and will. Then, the main attack would come screaming through the Fulda Gap.

I was thinking about the parallels between Red Storm Rising and the situation we find ourselves in now. We (our military) are heavily deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are operational in Yemen, Libya, off the Somali coast and numerous other brush fires in North Africa and the Middle East. And we continue with our regular stands in Europe and Korea along with a regular rotation at sea of our Navy.

All of this activity and we are shrinking our Navy and Marine Corps, cutting our Defense Spending and not replacing what is being used up in the course of combat and regular operations. With the exception of Europe and Korea, ALL of these operations have one thing in common: Radical Islam. There are enough variants and nut jobs to go around, that I seriously doubt it is a coordinated effort but if you stand back and look at it from a satellite's world view, it may be achieving the same objective as if it were a coordinated attack. All the more reason we need to be extremely cautious, Constitutional and prudent about how we deploy our force - lest we end up like - well, err, this:

What is the economic impact of Freedom? I am asking that rhetorically, but take a look at this recently released study from the Mercatus Institute at George Mason Institute, and you get some hints. One piece of correlation - the states that are considered the "least free," New York, New Jersey and California are the ones closest to insolvency. My great state of Tennessee comes in 16th - a lot of room for improvement! Here's the video:

"Too many people in America think that other people need to be regulated..." - for those that continue to be in this mindset, I have two words for you: Anthony Weiner. THAT's the type of person that wants to regulate YOU.

Islamic Mob burning a Coptic Church in Aina, Egypt

Speaking of freedom, one of the most fundamental freedoms is the freedom of religion - to worship who, what, where, when and why we want to. Unfortunately, that right is under assault across the globe - from the free reign Islamic mobs now have over Egypt's Coptic Christian community to the outright suppression of all other religions in Saudi Arabia - it ain't pretty. Here's a good read on the matter: "Targeting the World's Worst Religious Persecutors."

Finally, continuing wisdom from Victor Davis Hanson who is apparently galavanting around Europe right now as I noticed this column is post-marked "Rome:" "We Have Seen Our Sad Future And It Is Europe."

That's it for now.

Rumble on!

Friday Feed Bag

2011-06-10T10:39:00.000-07:00

OK, it's hot outside thanks to La Nina, but this little bit of video really got me steamed:

If this doesn't show the selfishness, crassness and outright thuggery of the unions, I can't imagine what would. It also shows a level of desperation which is a hint that Walker's policies are working.

As you're driving past the orange barrels this summer you might want to have a look behind the scenes - here's the story from James Bovard who worked for the Virginia DOT: "My Summer Job To Perdition."
I can tell you that I worked two summers for a grocery distribution company in Northwest Florida. We unloaded boxcars in 105+ heat and there weren't many breaks...private versus government contrast and compare. In Bovard's story, there was no incentive to move faster; in mine, it was called unemployment.

My own horror story, and I am sure each of you has one, was on I-75 in Georgia where it took us four-and-a-half hours to get over a bridge. As we finally reached the "construction," there were fourteen guys standing around - one had a shovel - the others were...watching. But the orange barrels had constricted the four lanes to one. Madness!

Two perspectives on energy policy that are worth a look. The first is a piece in the Investor's Business Daily: U.S. Goes On An Energy Starvation Diet. Coal? Got it. Natural Gas? Got it. Oil? Millions of Barrels. But we are not allowed to touch it thank to our own Government. Guess that price of electricity will skyrocket, eh Mr. O? The second is a piece noting the monster find Exxon made a couple of days ago in the Gulf, "A Gulf Drilling Revival," which points out that the PRIVATE sector in natural gas and oil is the one making all the advances for energy independence. The PUBLICLY subsidized sources of wind, solar, ethonol et al are doing butkus for us. Please, Mr. Government, just get out of the way!

Read a review in the American Spectator yesterday about this one and downloaded it to my Kindle app for Mac and Blackberry:

Click here to buy the book.

The article "Fanniegate: Gamechanger for the GOP?" implies that the information in this book will destroy the Democrat party. Probably wishful thinking, but if people like Barney Frank, are finally brought to heel, it will be a good thing.

That's it.

Have a great weekend.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-09T09:41:00.000-07:00

Among the many urban myths we have worked hard to debunk is the one that says China will eat our duck...they are the new superpower, we need to figure out how to accept our second place status etc. etc. Unfortunately, some of the biggest proponents of this wrong strain of thought are in high places in the current administration. Facts are troubling things though, and along comes a census - this dings not only China, but India too: China and India's Demographics Getting In The Way Of Growth. The report is interesting, but only peripheral. There are numerous demographic and sociological troubles with the Middle Kingdom - coast versus interior, Han versus everybody else, growing Muslim problem in Western China and on and on. The real question is whether they'll go Maoist on us and implode into a super-dense dark star or (scary scenario) decide that the only way out is to start an old fashioned war. Given the odds and their history, I'm betting on the first option.

Hey kids, dress groovy like me!

Obamacare is in court again - this time int the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, where once again, our robed scions will peer into the bowels of our Constitution to try to find where it says Congress can make the citizens of this country purchase anything. We know it's legally flawed - here's a short analysis on it's economic faults: ObamaCare's Economic Flaws.

News of the Obvious: So, the government says they'll pay for healthcare if an employer doesn't provide that benefit...what do you THINK might happen? "Huge Number of Businesses to Drop Health Insurance."

History lesson: "A Short History of Political Suicide." And we let these people tell us what our healthcare should be, what kind of light bulb we should use, what kind of toilet we can install...

Finally, some answers from the mainstream media - about time they figured this out:

Report: Economy Failing Because U.S. Built On Ancient Indian Burial Grounds

That's it.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-08T09:08:00.000-07:00

Read this one carefully and thoughtfully: "The Economy is Worse Than You Think." Well, actually, if you were thinking, you would already know it's certainly worse than THEY say it is. These aren't "bumps on the road to recovery," they are:

Somewhere down there are your tax dollars.

Speaking of being lied to - take this fun quiz and see how much you really know about how the government spends your money...teaser: "we spend HOW much for Chinese hookers??" Here it is:
Dirty Spending Secrets.

Thanks so much for Yankee tax dollars!

If you like keeping track of these things - and if you don't like it, you should at least pay attention - here's one of the great places for the truth: Shadow Government Statistics. The blue line below is the REAL inflation rate, not the one THEY quote:

That's a lot closer to my grocery bill pattern.

Meanwhile, back in the Middle East...let's see, the Iranians say they are going to TRIPLE their uranium production capacity...no worries. Ben Stein is calling the Arab Spring a "fraud," Here's a fun timeline from the Guardian, so you can keep track of all the fun: Arab Spring Timeline.

I don't know where it will end up, but I have a bad feeling that it will not turn out well. Revolutions of this nature - mob led - tend to end up badly, although it did help line the pockets of Msr. Guillotine at one point. Simple minded liberals (aka simplibs in the Rumblehome) think that these things are replicas of our own American Revolution. Loud buzzer sound - thank you for playing, but you are wrong. They are more akin to the French Revolution. Ours produced a Republic (not a democracy!) theirs produced...well, chaos and murder.

Wishful thinking.

That's it for now.

Rumble on.

I'd Like Some Relish On That Dog

2011-06-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

So Anthony Weiner has come err. clean. Terrific. Here's a thought: I don't give a rat's pa-toot for what he does in private. I feel sorry for his wife, I feel sorry for the targets of his crude photos - they guy reminds me of a meerkat:

But here's what I do mind...I am sick and tired of people like this, trying to tell me how to run my life. I resent the fact that pervies like this will probably get away with it and in a few months will be lecturing me about how I don't "give enough" or "care enough." I want people like Anthony Weiner and his ilk to shut up and leave me alone.

These people put their pants on one leg at a time, just like all of us. They are not our superiors, they are not our keepers. The American people should be mad at the Weiners of this world because of what they do in Congress and in the White House and in the Courtrooms across our great Republic, not because they send pics of their pecs to gal pals in faraway places.

I know it is not the Christian viewpoint here, but if he suffers a little, for all the suffering he and his type have put the country through with their smarmy self righteousness...well, I'd like a little relish on that dog.

Good Feed

2011-06-06T13:21:00.000-07:00

Interesting perspective over at the Guardian, "Decline and Fall of the American Empire." I know this is another one of those "end of America" pieces, but the author points out some interesting historical nuggets. I do have to take him to task on on two topics. First, we are not an empire, we are a republic...at least we are supposed to be. We act imperially when we ignore the War Powers Act and engage in combat missions in Libya, but by and large, this big ol' aircraft carrier of a country tends to be far more republican (little "r") than we give ourselves credit for. We seek not to conquer, but to truly do good. The second is his point that empires collapse as competing successors rise. He observes that Spain had Britain, Britain had the United States and well, we have China. The ongoing jabber that the Chinese are going to eat our Peking duck sandwiches is far fetched at best. China has it's own problems - rapidly aging population, demographic split between coasts and inland and the chance of a Maoist collapse if they don't sustain their 9% Ponzi scheme GDP growth. Chances are, if there is an American collapse, the world would look a whole lot more like the world post pax-Romana - utter chaos...another good reason for us not to collapse!

I've started this book on my kindle app (Blackberry and Mac - works great!) and have been very impressed with the author's analysis of our current situation and why we don't need to well, decline and fall:

Click on the image to order over at Amazon - worth the read!

Good review of the book was in this morning's Wall Street Journal: "Keeping Competitive." If nothing else, this book highlights the "x" factor in American rebirth - our entrepreneurial, inventive spirit.

Here's another take on the Arab-Israeli solution:

Hey, speaking of the Jews - how about an arm tattoo if you don't believe in Climate Change? Really, you can't make this stuff up: "The Dangers of Bone Headed Beliefs." Kind of adds a grisly dimension to the term "environazi."

Finally, what happens when you run up your state, county and local taxes to stratospheric levels? People leave - for the nearest laboratory on that theory, look no further than the Empire State: "Goodbye, New York State Residents Are Rushing For The Exits." Conservatives need to keep using the "F-Bomb" on liberals - "FACTS." They can't stand it! Oh well, I like liberals anyway...they taste like chicken.

That's it.

Rumble on.

A Poem And A Prayer For An Invading Army

2011-06-06T10:59:00.000-07:00

Edna St. Vincent Millay's poem written for the Allied Invasion on D-Day - June 6, 1944 read by Ronald Coleman:

God bless our troops that are still overseas, fighting in the "burning buildings."

Friday Feed Bag

2011-06-03T12:33:00.000-07:00

It's hot enough out right now to almost make you believe in the Global Warmings...scary to think that Al Gore dreamed the damned thing up about a mile and a half from where your humble scribbler sits. But, let's not get carried away - how about some good circumstantial evidence that this business is a giant hoax that will make the Piltdown Man seem downright reasonable: "Don't Look Behind The Green Curtain."

Speaking of the heat - ever wonder about the history of air conditioning? Rumbledad spoke much wisdom many years ago when he mused that "air conditioning ruined the Republic." Chain of thought was that the Founders had positioned Washington DC in a swamp on purpose - no one would a) want to stay there very long and b) ever want to make a career out of it. Air conditioning made DC inhabitable. But I digress - the good folks over at the Mises Institute have a nice scribble on government and air conditioning: "The Heat Is On."

Obama claims this is another "bump" on the road to recovery...or is it "Summer of Recovery Part Deaux?" They were forecasting 148,000+...we need close to 280,000 just to stay even: "Employment Growth Slows Sharply in May."

And another bump: "Housing Market Will Weigh On US Economy For Years."

And another: "US Manufacturing Growth Slowest Since September 2009."

The stock market is tumbling and on it goes - Obama's economic team has got to feel like a Christian Scientist with appendicitis. But at the end of the day, it's the policy stupid:

Thoughtful piece on whither Europe: "The Roots of Europe's Cultural Masochism." Don't think it couldn't happen here...we elected an administration full of people that don't believe in American exceptionalism. They actually believe that "diversity" and "cultural neutrality" built this great nation - with a side-dish belief that all cultures are equal, and if they are not equal - theirs is better because we are corrupt, awful, greedy, etc. They suffer because of us. No their condition would be even worse if it were not for us.

Friday fun video:

That's it.

Rumble on!

Good Feed

2011-06-02T15:48:00.000-07:00

I like Dr. Charles Krauthammer...not in a man-love way, but I really respect his life story and have deep admiration for his incisive intellect. But even the good guys go off the rails every now and then. A piece in the American Thinker this morning, Dr. Krauthammer and Gov. Palin: Analyzing the Analyst, takes a hard look at the good Doctor's dislike of Sarah Palin. I'll be honest, I don't know what to make of Sarah Palin - I don't like her, I don't dislike her - I love the way she tweeks the media, but I may fall into the Krauthammer camp over concern for her...dare I say it? "Gravitas?" Flip side of it is this: nothing could be worse for this nation than four more years of what we have. She, at least, has a successful track record at the executive level; she is unabashedly conservative and knows her way around a 12-gauge...not bad.

OK - I really was trying to stay out of the Anthony Weiner junk. Since he's a member of Congress, I figure he's a stand-up guy although he does come across as a blow hard. Any rate, here's the (hopefully) last word on Weinergate, from none other than that masterful razor weilder, Ann Coulter: Wiener's Penis Photo to Be Settled In Small Claims Court. Hat tip GS.

Dan Henninger over at the Wall Street Journal nails the economic situation - it's the fault of Obama's policy. Duh! Great read though: Obama's Cloud Economy.

If you're going to make up a story about how happy you are - why not rate yourself numero uno? Well the North Koreans did a "study" wherein they determined that they won the silver medal of happiness! China wins the gold - I guess that's a payoff to the only thing that keeps Kim Jong Il in Elvis records...you guessed it, we in the states need to take our right hands, hold them up to our forehead with the thumb out at a 90 degree angle making a big "L." Read it here: North Korea One of the Happiest Places on Earth?

Let's close out with a little education, The Road to Serfdom in Five Minutes. Remember, Members of Congress like Anthony Weiner, want to plan your life...they know better!

That's it.

Rumble on.

Good Feed

2011-06-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

Tony Blankley's perspective on how the situation in Europe could affect the electorate here is an interesting angle: Reality is Catching Up To The World's Elites.

Come on out of the bubble! David Mamet, the Pulitzer Prize winning playwright did - abandoning the cult of brain dead liberalism: David Mamet's Coming Out Party.

Not everyone wants a photo-op with BHO - especially iconic leaders of countries that our boy president has abandoned: Walesa Stands Up.

Michael Ramirez captures the essence of the problem in Washington today: if you put forth a legitimate policy for discussion - say, Paul Ryan's proposed fix for Medicare, you are Demo-gogued:

Speaking of Demo-goguing, how about that knee-slapper of a speech Barry O gave last week in El Paso, Texas? Victor Davis Hanson has some of the best gags from that wind up: Alligators, Moats and Other Such Nonsense.

Regardless of where you stand on Sarah Palin, she is a master as tweaking the loons on the left. Here MSNBC's Martin Bashir says that she is "violating Federal Code" for having a flag logo on the bus:

Then there's this delight from wingnut James Howard Kunstler, wherein he reveals that Sarah Palin is...wait for it...Hitler! Memorial Day: Enter Hitler Release 2.0 Apparently wearing leather on a motorcycle and hanging around military folks makes you the next Sturmfuhrer.

That's it for now.

Rumble on.

Toast Fail

2011-05-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

Is there no one on his staff that can teach him some manners?

Separated at Birth

2011-05-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

So despite the numerology and intense study of Biblical scripture, mixed in with a good dose of old fashioned hucksterism, Harold Camping's vision of the world ending over the weekend did not come to pass. Some wags on the left are enjoying the lack of rapture and trying to equate decent church-going folks with well...a nut. But they are looking in the wrong place for parallels.

Harold Camping predicting doom.

No, the real parallel is not in the pulpits of the faithful who dutifully attend church, temple, mosque and synagogue. Many of those folks attend services because they know that at least their world will end. We have a few decades on this little blue orb to do our best...having faith in an afterlife at least makes that experience somewhat more pleasant. At the very least, they are living out Pascal's Wager - there may be no way of proving God exists, but if you live your life accordingly, you have nothing to lose.

Al Gore bloviating.

No, the real profits of doom and the answer to the separated at birth question comes in the form of good ol' Al Gore. Here's the real profit of doom who, ironically, profits greatly from the forecast of doom. How many of his and his faithful's predictions are demonstrably false? The irony of comparing the two is that you really cannot disprove religion - but you can use "facts" to disprove the rantings of the Global Warmers, err. "Climate Changers," who blame every natural disaster from earthquakes to hurricanes and tornadoes on man's incessant desire for fuel.

Got a species going extinct? (As millions have...) Blame it on man and the global warmings. Just got whacked with a tsunami - pity you didn't stop driving your SUV last year. The ice caps are melting - no their growing...either way, it's your fault. The snow mass on the Rockies is receding, no wait, it's at a record...either way, you done it. You get the point.

We have called for stewardship on these pages many times before. We are all for good water quality, clean air and healthy foods. But unlike the cultist climate changers, we remain humble in nature's face acknowledging that there's a whole lot we cannot do even as we strive to do what we can.

Yup

2011-05-16T18:57:00.000-07:00

Sticky Note Activism

2011-05-06T08:33:00.000-07:00

Moonbattery has some great suggestions for the sticky note campaign!

Get your sticky-notes and sharpies and join in on this grassroots movement! Some additional suggestions:

Know Hope, NOBAMA.

Hope Returns in 2012- NOBAMA!

Just say "NOBAMA!"

Hope doesnt' get you a job.

Get creative and have some fun!

He Didn't Screw It Up

2011-05-02T17:02:00.000-07:00

Lord knows we have been harsh on President Obama in these pages. But when he has done something right, we acknowledge it. Killing Osama Bin Ladin is a really big deal (insert your language here, Mr. Biden), and congratulations to Obama for being the one on watch when it happened. Despite the numerous "I's" and "me's" in his hour-late address last night, he deserves credit for being the C-in-C when this one went down. The opportunities to have screwed this up were numerous - consider:

He could have done a Jimmy Carter and tried to "diversify" the operation by involving everyone - the Air Force, the Marines, the Army, the Coast Guard, the IRS. Not only would this have compromised operational security, it would have most likely lead to the kind of catastrophe we witnessed at Desert One in Iran.
Obama, we are told, chose not to turn Osama into aerosol particles with a B-2 strike. Without a long-form proof of death, the Arab world and the Taliban in particular would have run amok with rumors that OBL wasn't in the compound that got vaporized.
He could have insisted on Osama being taken alive so he could be turned over to the Eric Holder Justice Department and we could have had the entertainment of a trial on U.S. soil. Frankly, I'm disturbed by reports coming out of the White House that they wanted him alive...be careful of what you wish for! My guess is that even if those had been the orders, one of those Navy SEAL's, God bless them!, would have double-tapped OBL's brain anyway.
He could have told the Pakistanis we were coming. Anyone with half a brain knows the ISI (Pakistan's Intelligence outfit) and the Paki army are riddled with Islamists...OBL would have been tipped off long before we got there. Needless to say, there have to be some very nervous folks in the Pakistani establishment right now - heaven knows what we will find in the seized computers and other goodies we brought out of the compound.

I am sure I am probably missing a number of other ways Obama could have botched this thing, but he didn't. It was an uncharacteristically gutsy call and he should be commended for making it. He shouldn't have made such a gaudy "me, me, me" speech last night and he owed some thanks to his predecessor, the much maligned W who can now finally declare "Mission Accomplished."

The real heroes in this though are the folks that day in and day out get the job done: our military. As a retired Navy man, I am particularly proud to know that our SEAL's were the leading edge of the sword for this operation. It is of great comfort to know that the last person Osama saw was a young American sailor and the last thing that went through his head was a US made 9-MM round. As a former Intel guy, I am also proud of the painstaking human intelligence that went into bringing this one to ground. Big kudos to the CIA for a lot of hard, thankless work. A big shout out goes to the boys at Guantanamo too - that was where the first strand that eventually led to OBL originated. We don't know if it was during one of the "surf's up" water boarding sessions, but a start is a start.

[Sidebar: How about the ultimate water board Osama got this morning in the Arabian Sea?]

A few afterthoughts:

For those on the left rejoicing that this ensures ~~Osama's~~ Obama's (sorry, hard to avoid the typo) re-election - and those of you on the right despairing of the same, some advice from Jimmy Buffet: "breath in, breath out, move on." We are a loooooong way away from the election with many rivers to cross. Obama's re-election will hinge on whether unemployment gets below 9%. As this event fades, people will remember it was the SEAL's and CIA that got OBL, not Obama.
This could be our ticket out of Afghanistan. The original mission was to decapitate the Taliban and get ~~Obama~~ (dangit!) Osama. We could use the savings and build schools over here where we don't blow them up regularly! This could be a moment to declare victory and get out of that hell-hole. Let it return to the thuggery of the past without U.S. Marines and Army soldiers in the middle.
Spec Ops guys rock the house, but we need to remember they are only one arrow in the quiver. I am very much in favor of a leaner, more lethal military and the success of yesterday's raid is Exhibit A. But those guys are only able to get there because of the larger network of assets available to them. Let's not use this as an excuse to gut the military.
The war on terror is not over. Al Qaida is designed to be cancerous and pop up in unexpected places. They work on their own timetables and have probably anticipated that the day would come where OBL would either die of natural causes and old age or be finked out by someone in the Pakistani government. They probably didn't anticipate that we would figure it out on our own, so that's a nice message to send. Nevertheless, this will not end until the Islamic world deals with the crazies that the Shiites and Wahabists have created. To paraphrase Golda Meir, peace will come when the Moslems are more concerned about having their children grow up to be productive members of society and not proud of them for blowing themselves up. This is a big step in a very long walk, but it is only a step.

At the end of the day, this was a good one for the good guys.

George Carlin on Greenies

2011-04-26T14:13:00.000-07:00

George Carlin got the Environmental Movement spot on:

(Caution, some language!)

Hat tip Carpe Diem

A Conservative Primer

2011-04-20T09:02:00.000-07:00

As hard as the main-stream-press tries to portray conservatism as the product of troglodyte minds, they can't overcome the strength of facts. Here are two videos that lay out some basics of our philosophy:

Stay with me and watch the next segment:

This is what we are not:

Off With Their Heads!

2011-04-15T08:26:00.000-07:00

Bill Whittle graphically illustrates blog-pal (and evil genius) Iowahawk:

Hornswaggled

2011-04-14T15:18:00.000-07:00

That's what we got:

I am proud to report that Rumblecongressman Marsha Blackburn voted "NAY!"

This is starting to look like the business as usual game - we put forward a budget with a huge increase, then we "compromise" and cut the increase. We then go out and trumpet that we had huge "cuts," when all we did was cut the size of the increase.

Disgusting.

"Elections Shouldn't Matter"

2011-04-13T15:44:00.000-07:00

Hmm...if elections shouldn't matter then you would still be Speaker of the House, what a concept! The amazing thing with this woman is that she never fails to disappoint in proving the points we conservatives make.

Point 1: Washington is governed by an elite self-serving cabal. Check, thank you Nancy.
Point 2: They really don't want the "voter" getting involved in what they want to do. Check, thanks!
Point 3: They live in a fantasy world that believes that anyone who doesn't subscribe to their way of thinking is backward. Check!

I could go on, but this is priceless for proving why we have to drain the swamp.

The 1% Deal

2011-04-11T16:52:00.000-07:00

John Boehner is emblematic of Washington's culture. Yes, the government shutdown averting deal on Friday does represent the "largest spending cut since World War II," but we've also had the largest run-up in spending in the last two years in our nation's history:

Soo, call me crazy, but 1% just seems a little paltry - if it was a sandwich, we got one piece of stale bread. A celebrating Republican caucus acted like they got the 2 lb. turkey rueben from Noshville. Besides, when you have the upper hand in a negotiation, why give in? The upper hand? Yes. For Obama, the non-stop campaign has moved to a new level. He's officially running for re-election, don't you know, and he has to appear "moderate" and "level headed." He's not that crazy kid that said "we won," to the Republicans a mere two years ago - he's Mister Congenial! He has a problem and he knows it - Boehner's people should know it too; it looks like this:

You don't get to send your wife and kids to Spain and Rio courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer for another four years with numbers like this. So he has to claim wins on the moderate side where he can. I suspect Boehner's biggest fear was that the shutdown, regardless of who caused it, would be blamed on him. He is not a fire-breathing revolutionary like Newt was in 1995. But this is where he is emblematic of Washington: he doesn't trust the people! The American people look at our first chart above and they worry about their children. I have been in more than one social discussion with peers who are concerned that they are not going to turn over a country worth keeping to their own children - the upcoming generation will be the first in American history that will not come into its own in a better position than their parents.

Boehner should have realized the panic on the Democrat side - they pulled out all the usual memes about "cat food for Grandma" and "no breast exams for our daughters." (Planned Parenthood is to breast exams as the U.S. Navy is to resort hotels.) It's a shame, really. The budget proposal recently presented by Paul Ryan marks such a bold and dramatic departure from business as usual, that you hate to see it go right back to business-as-usual in such a short span of time.

There is a silver lining in this gloomy cloud. The discussion has shifted away from "how can we increase the budget to provide goodies for my district" to "how much can we cut?" If they can maintain that philosophic anthem and force the Liberals to walk the plank on every pet project, program, department, agency and sclerotic bureaucracy, much will have been gained. If every new proposal that comes to the floor of the House has a cost/benefit analysis attached to it...a REAL cost/benefit, not some smarmy feel good "surely you wouldn't want to kill panda bears" nonsense...this might have been worth it.

The good news is that Obama, as early as this Wednesday, may yet give Boehner and the boys another opening. My guess is that his little "talk" on budget and spending cuts will include the usual line that goes something like "if we have to sacrifice with spending cuts, the least we can do - let me be perfectly clear - is force those who have the most to sacrifice a little too and take away tax cuts for the wealthy." If our silver-tonged telepromptesident pulls that rabbit out of his hat, it should put some juldee back into the Conservatives' step. Ryan's proposed 25% caps on corporate and personal taxes are a breath of fresh air and demonstrate that at least one side understands how to create jobs and get the economy moving again. Let the battle be joined here and let not Conservative hearts be timid.

In the end, this was a step forward, but it was a very tiny, tiny step at a time that we need strides.

Libya vs. Iraq

2011-03-31T09:14:00.000-07:00

What a great summary of the simplib mindset.

Hat tip GS.