Nothing changes

First posted in 2006

An interesting gambit

I'm no economist, but neither am I a Democrat   an interesting gambit

“ For simplicity, let’s assume that the Fed’s policy instrument (now that the federal funds rate is stuck near zero) is the 10-year Treasury note. As an example, suppose the yield is 4%. In that case, it’s all but certain that the Fed, if it chooses, can do something to stimulate the economy and raise the inflation rate. For example, suppose the Fed were to bid the 10-year note yield down from 4% to 1%. It would take out a whole slew of marginal noteholders in the process. Banks that had been satisfied with a 4% return would be unsatisfied with a 1% return and would lend more aggressively. Domestic investors that had been satisfied with a 4% return would be unsatisfied with 1% and would bite the bullet and buy stocks. International investors would be unsatisfied and would shift their investments into foreign assets, thus weakening the dollar and making US products more competitive. Households would refinance their mortgages and spend some portion of the increased cash flow. Others who previously couldn’t afford houses could now afford them, so demand for houses and home furnishings would go up. And so on. With such a huge policy action, it’s virtually certain that business activity would accelerate enough to reverse any deflationary pressure. Andy Harless ” What?  You don't like the positive approach?  Try Cuzzin Ricky's scenarios. What's that?  Nuh-uh, While immensely satisfying, the wholesale lynching of the Administration is illegal.  But, looky here.  John Bolton Suggests He Could Consider 2012 Presidential Bid.  He does foreign, Sarah does domestic.  Oh my.

FOOD FESTIVALS

Testicle Festival Fun For ALL Let it all Hang out

Likes 'em fat and juicy CLICK PIC

Conrad Dead

ASIDE

Pulitzer-winning cartoonist Paul Conrad dies at 86 LOS ANGELES — Paul Conrad, the political cartoonist who won three Pulitzer Prizes and used his pencil to poke at politicians for more than 50 years, has died. He was 86. ” Even if you don't know who Conrad is, this single paragraph tells you everything. political cartoonist for 50 years =  50 years of agitprop Pulitzer Prize for political cartoons =  Nobel Peace Prize eligible. Conservative political cartoonists needed the WWW to get a foothold.  Before 1995, or so, there were very very few;  now they seem to have achieved parity, if not dominance.   If Conrad and Herblock (Herbert Block)  are together in Heaven, they're no doubt part of a cabal working to undermine God. I pulled these two Conrad 'toons  with a random Google search.

Over Exuberance.

What gun rights?

Democrat Gov. suspends NC gun rights with the stroke of her pen.  Which of course means North Carolina had no gun rights to begin with.

State of emergency order makes criminals of concealed handgun permit-holders, sport shooters and hunters.

Carolina voters and a bunch of ACORN activists wanted a Democrat government; they've got it.  FWIW, Governor Perdue's approval rating has dropped since her 2008 election, averaging in the low 30's since June 2009. But she's only half the problem: “   NC DEMOCRATS REFUSE TO RECTIFY PROBLEM In recent years, two North Carolina bills could have prevented infringement on individual rights under state of emergency laws.  ... bill died when it was denied a committee hearing by Democrat leadership.  ” Proving Abraham Lincoln's  (I think) observation, "The only good Democrat is a deceased Democrat, and even then half  will  vote against the public good for another 50 years."

Send The Geezers, and win wars

New Rules for any war: Send Service Vets over 50!

My old drinking buddy Deadwood Frank sent me this.  Don't know if he wrote it, but don't matter.  He could have.

“ You shouldn't be able to join a military unit until you're at least 35. For starters, researchers say 18-year-olds think about sex every 10 seconds. Old guys only think about sex a couple of times a day, leaving us more than 28,000 additional seconds per day to concentrate on the enemy. Young guys haven't lived long enough to be cranky, and a cranky soldier is a dangerous soldier.  'My back hurts! I can't sleep, I'm tired and hungry.' We are impatient and maybe letting us kill some asshole that desperately deserves it will make us feel better and shut us up for awhile. An 18-year-old doesn't even like to get up before 10am. Old guys always get up early to pee, so what the hell.. Besides, like I said, I'm tired and can't sleep and since I'm already up, I may as well be up killing some fanatical son-of-a-bitch. If captured we couldn't spill the beans because we'd forget where we put them. In fact, name, rank, and serial number would be a real brainteaser. Boot camp would be easier for old guys.. We're used to getting screamed and yelled at and we're used to soft food. We've also developed an appreciation for guns. We've been using them for years as an excuse to get out of the house, away from the screaming and yelling. They could lighten up on the obstacle course however. I've been in combat and never saw a single 20-foot wall with rope hanging over the side, nor did I ever do any pushups after completing basic training. Actually, the running part is kind of a waste of energy, too. I've never seen anyone outrun a bullet. An 18-year-old has the whole world ahead of him. He's still learning to shave, to start a conversation with a pretty girl. He still hasn't figured out that a baseball cap has a brim to shade his eyes, not the back of his head, or that pants are supposed to be around the hips, not the knees These are all great reasons to keep our kids at home to learn a little more about life before sending them off into harm's way. Let us old guys track down those dirty rotten coward terrorists. The last thing an enemy would want to see is a couple million pissed off old farts with attitudes and automatic weapons, who know that their best years are already behind them. HEY!! How about recruiting Women over 50...in menopause!!! You think MEN have attitudes?? Ohhhhhhhhhhhh my God!!! If nothing else, put them on border patrol. They'll have it secured the first night! ” I think many of my readers might quibble, as do I, with one assertion Frank made, and he should know better.  See these key board strokes?                                               . . ( | ) They all make me think of women.  For starters. And I served with Teddy Roosevelt before he turned commie.

German's - We've stopped being American

de' Tocqueville, Part Zwei US becoming too … European

“ Both the behavior of the American government and the Federal Reserve makes one thing clear: They do not see the solution to the US’s economic woes in a return to traditional American virtues. Obama is not calling for the unleashing of market forces, as Ronald Reagan once did during an equally critical period in the early 1980s. On the contrary: Obama, driven by his own convictions and advised by economists who believe in government intervention, has taken a path that leads far away from those things that catapulted America to the top of the world in the past century. - Der Spiege, via Hot Air ” Remember Part One? “ There are certain populations in Europe whose unbelief is only equaled by their ignorance and their debasement, while in America one of the freest and most enlightened nations in the world fulfills all the outward duties of religion with fervor.  - Alexis de' Tocqueville 1835 ”

And boy, are my arms tired

Chuck

Your typical Democrat. I mean that.

Pimp paid for first Harry Reid campaign  former manager takes lie detector to prove claims

“ The men discussed politics at a restaurant, until Conforte cut the meeting short and asked Williams to step outside. Conforte opened his car’s trunk to reveal a pile of absentee ballots. Each was marked for Reid, he told Williams. The brothel owner then directed the campaign manager to deliver a thick envelope to the politician. “I gave it to Reid the next day,” Williams said this week. “He opened it in front of me. It was full of hundred-dollar bills.” ” On the plus side for Reid:  Nothing to tie him to any contract killings, so far.

Tax Gambit

How Pelosi might save her majority.

“ We recall the Democratic Presidential debate when ABC's Charlie Gibson famously asked candidate Barack Obama why he favored higher capital gains tax rates when the evidence is that lower rates produce more tax revenue. After some back and forth, Mr. Obama's one word reply came down to "fairness." If you really believe the main job of government is to redistribute income and punish the rich for making too much money, then you don't mind raising taxes even if it costs you control of Congress. [Democrat Salvage Plan] ” This, in my opinion, misguided WSJ Editorial notes up front that Pelosi's "idea is to return to Washington in 10 days and start a debate over raising taxes only weeks before Election Day. "  Swim with the fishes Speaker Hankey. Even if Democrats do everything the article suggests [keep Reagan's tax cuts, at least temproarily], it's too late.  To borrow from M. Thatcher, "Democrats don't care how much people suffer,  just so long as the rich suffer as much, or more."

Mark Dayton resume

Mmmm.  I wonder if MN Gov. candidate MarkDayton even has a birth certificate?

“ This is very interesting. Mark Dayton's current website biography reads: After college, I taught 9th grade general science for two years in a New York City public school. It was the toughest job I’ve ever had! This was my request (in addition to standard template language for a FOI request) Please email the following records: confirmation of employment of: Mark B. Dayton (birthdate 1/26/47) by the New York City Dept of Education/NYC Public Schools dates of employment (believe them to be approximately July 1969-July 1971) job title at the time of employment school of employment home address during the period of employment [I can't wait to see what happened] ”

So, how's the acting thing?

"I'm glad I'm married." - TimW

Dems: We Don't Care What You Want

120 Days to Go Until the Largest Tax Hikes in History

Senate Numbers

Sabato: GOP to Take House, Maybe Senate in 2010 Election

NUMBERS Drudge has this titled "SHOCK PREDICTION," but if you're surprised, you haven't been paying attention, and still don't know. To answer your unasked question: “ If the Senate is split 50-50, who is in control? Has there ever been an even split? If the voters were ever to elect 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats to the U.S. Senate, the party of the Vice President would be considered the majority party. The Vice President is named by the Constitution to be the President of the Senate [the presiding officer]. The Vice President would cast the tie-breaking votes on all the resolutions organizing the new Senate, including electing its officers and assigning committee seats. In 1881, the Senate stood at 37-37, with 2 Independents: one tended to vote with the Democrats and the other with the Republicans. When Vice President Chester Arthur became president after the assassination of President Garfield, the Vice Presidency was left vacant, leaving no one to cast a tie-breaking vote in the Senate. The two parties came to an agreement where the Republicans controlled the committees and the Democrats managed the patronage. ” A better analogy, I think,  is 1980.  Reagan's sweep brought with him a Republican Senate, but the House remained Democrat controlled.  Didn't matter.  Houses Dems were so fearful of Reagan's popularity that House Republicans were able to steamroll them - for two years.  I see the same thing happening in a split Senate.  Plus, if Reid manages  to be one of those 50 Democrats, it will be an easy task to get him indicted, something that's way-way overdue.

The Big Blow

Anthony Watts Latest Hurricane Earl Info

Another meta-4 DAYBREAKERS

Indeed

“ Watched the Ethan Hawke vampire movie "Day Breakers" with my daughter the other night. The idea is that the world is 95% vampires and only 5% humans and there aren't enough humans to supply blood. Made me wonder if it was a metaphor for government and taxpayers. -Steve in Greensboro ”

Pulling the right strings

Pulling Strings

“    Though he served as Prime Minister of Japan for a mere two years in the early '70's before being driven from power in Nixonian fashion in a Watergate-like scandal, for the next decade and a half Kakuei Tanaka served as Japan's shadow leader, known forever as The Kingmaker  for his uncanny ability to govern Japan from the shadows, often hand-picking who would lead the country by controlling a powerful bloc of legislators. In modern American political history we haven't had a Tanaka-like Kingmaker, until now ... .Why Be President When You Can Be King(maker)? ” If I could stop myself, I'd be famous and rich.  Sighing but LOLing.

Now Serving ... .

The Face of Islam

Open to interpretation, but I find this picture downright chilling.  It appears the executioner is looking at the "check-out line"  while he tends to the current "customer."   Or, perhaps watching the face of the victim's family as he prepares to take a life. The face of Islam.

Meta4

Coming to a Congress Near You Job Satisfaction

Huff 'n Puff Revisited

Obama’s missile defense decision–a move that puts more military assets in position more quickly against the Iranian missiles –not only increases the pressure on Iran but allows  Russia to move closer to the U.S. position  without appearing to be buckling to America. The Greatest Strategist Ever

An Impeaching Majority?

Wha?  I just about fell out of my chair when I read that John Dingell is in trouble! More happiness

Power Washin

“I HAVE A CLEAN”

Banana the Terrible

You can have fun with anything

Thomas Sowell's Pessimism

"Doomsters are a dime a dozen. But when a leading economist who's been called "the nation's greatest contemporary philosopher" sees serious trouble ahead, we'd better listen up.

Sowell sees the national equivalent of a "perfect storm," a gathering of "dangerous forces (that) have been building .. . for at least a half-century."      Yes, he says, our great nation has weathered many storms. But, he quickly notes, so did the Roman Empire before it collapsed. "Is that where America is headed?" Sowell asks upfront. "I believe it is. Our only saving grace is that we are not there yet - and that nothing is inevitable until it happens."......     The Obama administration "is not the root cause of the ominous dangers that face this country at home and aboard," Sowell says. But "it is the embodiment, the personification and the culmination of dangerous trends that began decades ago. Moreover, it has escalated those dangers to what may be a point of no return.  [Sowell's Pessimism] Opinions about the nexus of that perfect storm are also a dime a dozen, and in my case free of charge.  August 9, 1974.  The Nixon  bloodless coup.   Sowell's fifty-year parameter takes us to JFK's election, in effect the beginning of The Great Society.  Hard to argue that too. Secession is still the only course of action I can think of.  Things will still be tough, but at least "we" will have the opportunity to rebuild without the constraints and gloom imposed by statist government. And, we'll have hope where none now exists.

Anyone seen Kusak?

Voted Obama? Embarrassed yet?

C ritchfield says he's received death threats due to the sign; people accuse him of hate speech and racism. He insists the billboard was for something more American in the name of discourse, conversation, and old-fashioned debate. ” It appears the unhinged left poses a threat => al Qaeda.  Waiting for the media blitz.

A Cardboard Dry Run?

A Colossal DHS Error, or a Tale of Two Terrorists Gone Awry?

I think, neither one Annie “ This was a dry run as a prelude to a big attack. This is exactly why the stories are being changed to confound the public. [comment #10] ”

Fear of Flying

Lexington Green

I Think I See What Glenn Beck is Doing

via Gerard

Birther's Good Catch

Out, damn'd spot

“ I try to ignore the birther movement unless it inducts someone important -- a congressman, for example. The (sigh) American Patriot Foundation's announcement that Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney (ret.) has signed an affidavit supporting court martialed birther Lt. Col. Terry Lakin is actually a pretty big coup. How wild is McInerney's statement? This wild: A Good Get for the Birthers. ”

I read the Lt. General Thomas McInerney story (the One Nice Deb posted on), and let it slide because I've been down this road countless times, only to be disappointed.  Just now Grumpyunk :alerted me to this SLATE article; A Good Get for the Birthers.  Maybe the reason it's  so much on Obama's mind is that he knows this one has legs?  I want closure on this thing.   And gloating rights.

In a vacuum

OMG- Is that the Starlighters playing? When's the last time you used a tube tester? When's the last time you saw vacuum tube electronics for sale?

That's right.  4 Watts for $140.00 at Woot.  Whereas today I love the smell of cordite, bourbon and cigar smoke,  I would dearly love to relive  vacuum tube smell, Canoe aftershhve, and Kathy Shinner's perfume.

Helen sensed that she'd wasted money on this fantasy

I am having difficulty getting started this morning.

Barry Gets Even

Teleputzing

And he was a friend

Am I going too?

Origami Magic

Between the folds

This is a truly fantastical look at orgiastic origami.  The 10 minutes clip has voice sync problems, but if you have NetFlix, it's an instant view. I would generally only expect to see this mind bending ability in an idiot savant, but these guys can tie their own shoes and whistle Dixie.   I can't comprehend talent like this. Cuzzin Ricky's tip

A Message From Batman

From linebacker to Snow White

Today's Thought Bubble

When I was a tad, girls who did porn looked like, well, girls that would do porn.  I'm oddly unsettled that  most of today's porn "models" are so pretty  that I wouldn't have had the nerve to ask them for a date. -Dwight Eisenhower* * I think

Intra Union Food Fight

Precious! Unions Eating Selves Union on strike against union

Didn't  try to figure out the who's, what's or why's of it.  I just know what I like.

WE WANT BUSH!

Ohio: Bush 50, Obama 42

“ A new GOP-boosting blockbuster from Rasmussen? Not quite: This comes from Kos’s new pollster, PPP. The Bushitler over the Lightworker in the paradigm midwestern swing state — by eight points. On a gut level, that strikes me as more amazing than even yesterday’s Gallup blockbuster. [Hot Air] ” Tom Mann

Light-bulb socialism

Bright Lights Done in By Dim Bulbs

“B eginning today, it is a crime to manufacture or ship for sale a traditional 75-watt incandescent light bulb in the European Union. Autocrats in Brussels last year declared war on Edison's greatest invention with a ban on 100-watt lamps. Homes throughout the Old World will continue to dim until incandescent lighting of all types is snuffed out in 2012 - the same year the United States is scheduled to begin a phaseout schedule mirroring the European plan. [... light-bulb socialism] ” The enabling legislation was an early bellwether for what a Democrat congress was capable of,  after the 2006 elections gave them control.  Crafted by John Dingel, and signed, for god knows what reason, by Bush, it was a victory for the now discredited AGW movement. Fit nicely with Democrat distaste for bright lighting, too. If you've tried to purchase 100, or even 75 watt incandescent light bulbs lately, you know that manufacturers, cued no doubt by retailers, are already in compliance.  The ceiling floods we've been forced to buy are a disaster.  Switch on the kitchen light, and wait about 5 minutes.  That's how long it takes before full brightness is achieved.  Add it to the list of things  that must be repealed. “ Two years ago, New Zealanders faced an imminent ban. The National Party, at the time in the minority, made overturning the light-bulb scheme a priority in its campaign against the ruling Labor government. The public responded favorably to the party that proclaimed that it "stands for freedom, choice, independence and ambition." In December 2008, the National Party  government overturned the light-bulb ban. Republican challengers seeking an edge over Democrats in November could learn a few things from the Kiwis. [ibid] ”

Jack Boots a coming ...

Subtleties be damned - Full speed ahead!

Previously And now, the Department of Justice ... Not content with altering the nation's constitutional infrastructure, Obama is removing its trappings. Like the Stars and Stripes.  Nothing subtle about this guy, is there?  In noting the remake of the DOJ website -  replacing the red, white and blue with Jack-Boot Black, the American Thinker relates this interesting tid-bit. “ And at the top of the page, is a rather interesting quote:     "The common law is the will of mankind, issuing from the life of the people." Catchy, huh? Just one tiny little (too small to be relevant obviously) point -- the quote is from C. Wilfred Jenks, who in the 1930's was a leading proponent of the "international law" movement, which had as its goal to impose a global common law and which backed ‘global workers' rights.' Call it Marxism, call it Progressivism, call it Socialism -- under any of those names it definitely makes the DOJ look corrupt in their sleek, new black website with Marxist accessories to match. See for yourself:  http://www.justice.gov/ ” Goes nicely with Justice Sotomayor and Justice Kagan, wot?  Marc Miller

I knew it!

The Best News in the History of News

Weekly Standard

Bad news for the left - JFC!

Government Study Withheld for Year: 70 Percent of Parents and 54 Percent of Teens Say Sex Before Marriage is Wrong

Completely Honest First Date

Completely Honest First Date

Tim W

Please. Pul-eeze, don't hurt John Kusak

Iranian Media Says French First Lady Deserves Death John Kusak Says Armey, Newt  -and all the GOP Deserves Death

I feel sorta bad here. Except for two words ("French" and "Armey)" I was feeling,  well, you know.  Oh stop!  It was involuntary. Anyway, after what Hollywood did to Mel Gibson for his, mild in comparison, "ravings,"  I guess Joan Kusak's brother won't be able to buy a hello from movieland's glitterati.  They're a fiercely righteous bunch, those entertainment folks; all "duty, honor and country first" sorts, and don't tolerate behavior like this. What I worry about is someone from the left assassinating Kusak, and trying to make it look like conservatives did it.  You know, like they did burning their own offices and such.  That sure would be a nasty trick (that would prolly succeed and allow the Democrats to pick up seats in the election), so I hope they don't "do" him. </disgust>

It hurts when I laugh. Then don't.

It's not his fault Boy who zapped his nipples during shop class sues

“K yle Dubois and his parents claim teacher Thomas Kelley did not warn Dubois and other students of the dangers of the electrical demonstration cords in their electrical trades class. On March 11, Dubois attached an electrical clamp to one nipple while another student attached another clamp to the other. A third student plugged in the cord. ”

"Dubois' suit contends he suffered permanent brain damage."  That may be hard to prove.  I do note that the shop teacher resigned, which opens the possibility that he assigned the nipple zapping, but I see that as doubtful. Either way, I'll let this incident stand as my answer to this bit of silliness. Top 10 Reasons to Lower the Voting Age to 16

Crocheting an Afghan here boss

The 72 Hour Afghan Expert Everything you've ever wanted to know about Afghans, by P.J. O'Rourke

“ As all good reporters do, I prepared for my assignment with extensive research. I went to an Afghan restaurant in Prague. Getting a foretaste—as it were—of my subject, I asked the restaurant’s owner (an actual Afghan), “So what’s up with Afghanistan?” ”

As always, P.J. O'Rourke gets to the heart of things with a razor.  However, I have a good deal of trouble reading anything about Afghanistan, now that Obama has set our guys up in a shooting gallery by virtue of announcing a withdrawal date.  48 HOURS: 21 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan... To be honest, I got sidetracked ¾ of the way through by a desire to photo-chop the Weekly Standard cover.  That indulgence is all that stands between me and insanity I think.  God damn Obama to Hell..

Traffic Cams Ticketed!

Today's I'll Fix That For You Receive a traffic cam ticket in the mail?

“ A Supreme Court  ruling last year requiring that scientists be made available to testify in court cases about lab evidence they prepare may have the added effect of curtailing the use of automated traffic-enforcement cameras to assess criminal penalties. ”

The crux of this story is that various courts have taken a cue from that SCOTUS lab evidence ruling,  and applied it to traffic and speed cams.  “ Judge Wilson said declarations submitted to the court  by the private enforcement company to support the red-light infractions "contain testimonial hearsay," without which the officer cannot identify the photographs as taken by the company, cannot attest they pertain to any actual traffic violation and cannot say with certainty the camera equipment was in working order at the time of the violation. ” If states were really interested in protecting, not taxing the public, speed cams like this would be in use. The effect of these rulings is that methods for obtaining, transmitting and storing information about infractions are "not admissible in the absence of a live witness with personal knowledge of the procedures."  Which translates into requiring speed cam suppliers to send technicians to testify at ticket hearings.  There are not enough technicians, and they're too far away to travel to every court hearing anyway.  Cases are being thrown-out wholesale.  This of course will have the same effect on tax hungry city officials as failing to pay Louie the loan-shark his vigorish.  Stay tuned. ASIDE: Mo Sup makes regular trips to Tidewater,VA to see family.  During a recent trip she noticed that the yellow light timing at stop lights in Gloucester had gone from something reasonable,  to about 1 second. The thought occurred to her that this is precisely what Baltimore City did when when traffic cams were installed.  She skoonched  forward at a stop light, and looked up.  Sure enough,  perched high atop a pole - the camera. My suggestion that she use her 9mm to shoot the sumbitch fell on deaf ears however. She's such a pussy sometimes.

Felony Chutzpah

The "C" Word (chutzpah)

T his year's debate over extending President George W. Bush's tax cuts has turned into a brawl over which party is doing more for small businesses, with assertions that the health of the economy and thousands of future jobs are at stake. ” Obama claims that not that many small businesses will see taxes rise if the Bush tax cuts expire.  Which would necessarily mean that those tax cuts were negligible to begin with?   Besides, says Obama, his  first order of business when congress returns from its summer recess will be to pass a bill aimed at "enticing" banks to loosen up small business loan requirements.  A plan formulated by Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, and Maxine Waters no doubt.  Even the WaTimes reporter gets caught up in sub plots involving dueling "think tank" minutiae here.  Two indisputable facts remain, however.  Killing the Bush tax cuts results in a huge tax increase for somebody.  Obama the Marxist's claim that he is a champion of business growth is felony chutzpah.