In Passing

In Passing

I've got your back

No!  I'm a twig “ Taliban thought we were on run, but the tables have turned For years the farmers who tend the neatly arranged rows of crops along the river banks have been forced to endure the Taliban's oppressive rule. Few dared challenge the Taliban regime after a group of Afghans who had objected to the Taliban's strict implementation of Islamic law were hanged from a tree. Taliban Blown Up By Own Bombs They were racing to plant the IEDs before the Allied offensive Operation Moshtarak. The triggers on the IEDs have become so sensitive the terrorists are accidentally detonating them as they hide them. Above articles courtesy of the British press. The Man Who Would Take Murtha's Seat for the GOP American Thinker: Col. Russell, what do you think about Deputy National Security Adviser for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brenna saying that we have been too nasty to the Taliban? Col. Russell: One: I think that it is incredibly, incredibly naïve. A fun quote that always comes to mind when I hear some of these folks talk about counterterrorism and fighting the fight comes from Gen. George Patton, who said basically that they know less about fighting than they do about fornicating. Hawaii Birth Index shows no Obama In response to the evasive denials of my original UIPA request, and the outright claim I has written what I did not write, Miss Janice Okubo admitted to me last week, that microfiches of the Hawaii Birth Index did exist, and that they did not contain the said surnames.  Report: 3 key senators propose jettisoning 'cap-and-trade'; favor reducing carbon pollution HOW CAN THIS STILL BE ALIVE!?! Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Joe Lieberman, I-Conn,., are planning an alternative to be introduced next month, the Post reported on its Web site. The bill would apply different carbon controls to different sectors of the economy instead of taking a national approach.  A carbon tax could be levied on motor fuel. Rebuttals To Ryan? We're Still Waiting It was the Wisconsin congressman who made the most pointed remarks about Obama's reform proposal. For example: • "This bill does not control costs (or) reduce deficits. Instead, (it) adds a new health care entitlement when we have no idea how to pay for the entitlements we already have." • "The bill has 10 years of tax increases, about half a trillion dollars, with 10 years of Medicare cuts, about half a trillion dollars, to pay for six years of spending. The true 10-year cost (is) $2.3 trillion." • "The bill takes $52 billion in higher Social Security tax revenues and counts them as offsets. But that's really reserved for Social Security. So either we're double-counting them or we don't intend on paying those Social Security benefits." • "The bill takes $72 billion from the CLASS Act (long-term care insurance) benefit premiums and claims them as offsets." • "The bill treats Medicare like a piggy bank, (raiding) half a trillion dollars not to shore up Medicare solvency, but to spend on this new government program." • "The chief actuary of Medicare (says) as much as 20% of Medicare providers will either go out of business or have to stop seeing Medicare beneficiaries." • "Millions of seniors who have chosen Medicare Advantage (Medicare through a private insurer) will lose the coverage that they now enjoy."• "When you strip out the double-counting and ... gimmicks, the full 10-year cost of the bill has a $460 billion deficit. The second 10-year cost of this bill has a $1.4 trillion deficit." • "The 'doc fix' (restoring cuts in Medicare reimbursements) costs $371 billion ... a price tag (that) made the score look bad. (So) that provision was taken out, and (put) in stand-alone legislation. But ignoring these costs does not remove them from the backs of taxpayers. Hiding spending does not reduce spending." • "Are we bending the cost curve down or are we bending the cost curve up? If you look at your own chief actuary at Medicare, we're bending it up. He's claiming that we're going up $222 billion, adding more to the unsustainable fiscal situation we have." In response to all this, Obama basically talked up the benefits of Medicare Advantage. ”