Saturday, December 5, 2009

Random Thoughts by Thomas Sowell

Townhall "Here is a math problem for you: Assume that the legislation establishing government control of medical care is passed and that it "brings down the cost of medical care." You pay $500 a year less for your medical care, but the new costs put on employers is passed on to consumers, so that you pay $300 a year more for groceries and $200 a year more for gasoline, while the new mandates put on insurance companies raise your premiums by $300 a year, how much money have you saved? "

The Taliban's Response to Obama Afghanistan Policy

By Jane Jamison , AT "It does seem our enemies in Afghanistan understand us much better than we understand them."

NASA's Hansen urges Copenhagen 'collapse'

John McLaughlin , AT "So, it seems Hansen is still a believer. He just favors even more draconian measures than legislation like Cap and Trade. He acknowledges the recent disclosure of scientific fraud may present problems, but it doesn’t change his outlook."

A list of 12 very bad ideas

American Thinker "10. Relying on the president, whose Cabinet has the least private sector experience since at least 1900, to create jobs."

The Democrat's idea of 'free and open debate' on climate change

Rick Moran, AT "Still, it is interesting to watch as Democrats simply ignore Climategate or treat it as a joke. Perhaps the joke will be on them next year at the polls if they persist in this folly."

Great Dane: Denmark's Parliament's Speaker Expresses 'Serious Doubts' About 'Climate Change'

Newsbusters "Given what has been exposed in ClimateGate, Pedersen is actually giving climate change scientists more of a break than they deserve. It's clear from the e-mails exposed that many of these scientists have made up their minds and have in many cases been pretending to know what they don't really know."

WaPo Puts ClimateGate at the Top of Page One

Newsbusters "But the Post makes sure to emphasize that the side they generally favor are not liberals or activists for government intervention, but "top scientists" and "mainstream scienists" -- just like the Post is a top, "mainstream" paper."

Friday, December 4, 2009

Uncertain Trumpet

Charles Krauthammer "Does he think that such ambivalence is not heard by the Taliban, by Afghan peasants deciding which side to choose, by Pakistani generals hedging their bets, by NATO allies already with one foot out of Afghanistan?"...."Success in war depends on three things: a brave and highly skilled soldiery, ... brilliant, battle-tested commanders such as Gens. David Petraeus and McChrystal, fresh from the success of the surge in Iraq; and the will to prevail as personified by the commander in chief."

Political Cartoons by Glenn Foden

Obama, the anti-Churchill.

Alinsky Does Afghanistan

Andrew C. McCarthy "If there is one word that captures President Obama’s much-anticipated Afghanistan speech, it is “cynical.” Yes, the speech was also internally contradictory, counter-historical, and premised on fatally flawed assumptions about Islam and the Afghan people. Cynicism, however, is the defining feature of Obama speeches. This one was no different: from its use of the United States Military Academy as a prop to its concluding assertion that “our resolve is unwavering” . . . after the president had spent the preceding 40 minutes in full waver mode. There are two things to bear in mind in considering any Obama speech, and they go double for those that touch on national security..."

Iranian Crackdown Goes Global

WSJ "Tehran's leadership faces its biggest crisis since it first came to power in 1979, as Iranians at home and abroad attack its legitimacy in the wake of June's allegedly rigged presidential vote. An opposition effort, the "Green Movement," is gaining a global following of regular Iranians who say they never previously considered themselves activists. The regime has been cracking down hard at home. And now, a Wall Street Journal investigation shows, it is extending that crackdown to Iranians abroad as well."

Media Portrayal of Men and Women

Wikipedia Anybody besides me ever notice this? Also here: