Congress Circles the Drain

Big Government "Well here we are in the middle of the worst economy in almost a century, wars on two fronts, and a monster oil spill turning our southern coast into asphalt. And what is Congress busy on? Solving gender discrimination in restrooms."

Official: Van Der Sloot Says He Knows Location of Holloway's Body

Fox News   "Put this insufferable man away forever."  via Lucianne

Iran Sanctions: Just Another Slap On The Wrist

IBD "Ahmadinejad is certainly speaking more accurately than the self-congratulating voices within the Obama administration. They seem to believe a work of diplomatic genius has just taken place courtesy of Hillary Clinton's State Department. But nothing about this fourth pestilence of bothersome insects will derail Tehran in its bomb-making abilities."

YouCut – a first-of-its-kind project

RepublicanWhip You select the federal programs you'd like to see cut. Can't hurt to try it. H/t to CATO

‘Regime Uncertainty’ hurting the economy

CATO  "A huge help in moving toward a stronger economy for small business owners would be to “do no harm”. But Congress continues to pass and propose legislation that increases the cost of running a business and create huge uncertainty about future costs."

Debunking chain e-mail

Politifact "Our in-box has gotten so many requests lately, we decided to check several in one go. Here are four facts from e-mails our readers asked us to check. Here's what we found; read the individual reports for our complete reasoning and a full source list:"...You may want to bookmark this site to use on future chain e-mails. Visit the Politifact homepage Here .  Hat tip to Neal Boortz.

Beyond Bigotry

Townhall "Israel is at war and were Israel to be defeated much of the world would not shed wet tears. What would happen after such a defeat? No one can seriously doubt that Hamas has genocidal intentions. Abdallah Jarbu, Hamas' Deputy Minister of Religion, recently asserted that Jews "want to present themselves to the world as if they have rights, but, in fact, they are foreign bacteria -- a microbe unparalleled in the world." Jarbu then offered this prayer: "May He annihilate this filthy people who have neither religion nor conscience." " Emphasis added
Iran's Ahmadinejad says Israel is 'doomed'  "Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Friday Israel was "doomed" and singled out US President Barack Obama for scorn, blaming Washington for orchestrating new nuclear sanctions against Tehran."

Lesson: You cannot afford to major in the minors.

Townhall "President Obama has created a gaping breach in our key military leaders at a most inopportune time. In an unprecedented move, three members of the joint chiefs of staff broke ranks publicly with their chairman (Mullen). And the fourth member of the team, Marine Gen. James Conway, has already gone on record as opposing the repeal. Dissension now reigns within the ranks of our core military leadership team. Focusing on a minor has created a major problem. "

Prolonging Education's Race to the Bottom

Heritage "But unlike the federal takeover of the banking and health care industry, this time around Obama and his liberal allies are shrewdly avoiding another public fight by moving their education agenda forward without even going through Congress. The administration is supporting a move to implement national education standards, using the $4.35 billion Race to the Top grant program to secure those ends. National standards will give the federal government – not parents – more power over education. Now, instead of petitioning their local schools boards for curriculum changes, parents will have to trek to Washington to lobby D.C. bureaucrats for input in the content taught at their children’s school." Emphasis mine

Snopes.com: Obama's Military Private Insurance Proposal

Snopes.com This has been going around for a while so TW did a bit of research on it. Snopes says it is "mostly false". However...

Failed EPA Votes Undermines Economy

Heritage "53 Senators voted against a resolution offered by Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) that would have disapproved of the Environmental Protection Agency’s backdoor global warming regulations. Today’s outcome was a victory for anti-growth environmentalists, but a devastating loss for the American people."

Jones Act Slowing Oil Spill Cleanup?

Fox News  "Foreign companies possessing some of the world’s most advanced oil skimming ships say they are being kept out of efforts to clean up the oil spill in the Gulf because of a 1920’s law known as the Jones Act -- a protectionist law that requires vessels working in US waters be built in the US and be crewed by US workers." .... "Waivers to the Jones Act were granted by the administration of George W. Bush in the days following hurricane Katrina. And today, the Obama White House said waivers might again be considered.".... "Cause this is a big thing for unions,”  Brian Wilson
Oil Boom Manufacturer: We Notified Government 4 WEEKS AGO That We Have Product (Video) "Oil boom manufacture Packgen has miles of floating oil containment boom in warehouse right now and they say they can make lots more on short notice. Packgen owner John Lapoint said his company is ramping up production to make 90,000 feet of oil boom per day. But, there’s a hitch."...