Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Hu dat?

 How to Combat an Arrogant China?  "Surely the J-20 flight was a snub to Washington. Surely China’s whole military buildup is aimed directly at us. And surely China is of no particular help when it comes to the nuclear operations of North Korea and Iran." Larry Kudlow.
Lisa Benson, Townhall 

Kelley: http://www.worldmag.com/editorialcartoons/



The Tab Comes Due in 2011

Victor Davis Hanson "But harsh realities have intervened. While the Obama administration was making it far harder to develop oil and gas on government-owned Western lands, and hampering offshore drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico and along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, the world economy was recovering — and with it, energy demands were increasing. As oil now approaches $100 a barrel, gas is already over $3 a gallon and headed still higher. It may have been two years since the beleaguered motoring public embraced the chant "drill, baby, drill," but when voters begin paying nearly $4 a gallon in 2011, they will want far more oil production and far fewer pie-in-the-sky green speeches."

A False Truce in Obama’s War on Business

Heritage  "The 2,319-page financial regulation bill requires 243 new formal rule-makings by 11 different federal agencies. The 2,700-page Obamacare bill contains more than 1,000 instances where Congress instructed ... (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to regulate the health care industry. And, in the ultimate example of power-hungry federal regulators providing “solutions” where no problem currently exists, for the first time in the history of the Internet, the federal government will begin to regulate service providers with “net neutrality” regulations."

Obama's Wall Street Journal column  "Over the past two years, the goal of my administration has been to strike the right balance. And today, I am signing an executive order that makes clear that this is the operating principle of our government.
"This order requires that federal agencies ensure that regulations protect our safety, health and environment while promoting economic growth. And it orders a government-wide review of the rules already on the books to remove outdated regulations that stifle job creation and make our economy less competitive. It's a review that will help bring order to regulations that have become a patchwork of overlapping rules, the result of tinkering by administrations and legislators of both parties and the influence of special interests in Washington over decades."

Boehner Takes Control With ObamaCare Repeal "The multitude of new government regulations in ObamaCare has already put many small business in financial straits, preventing them from creating new jobs. The law mandates that every small business owner file a 1099 tax form for a transaction over $600. The tax credits to offset this regulation were so far under the actual cost that small businesses have suffered and the economy stagnated."

Government Bureaucracies Created by Obama Care "WHERE is the money to pay for all of these agencies which will massively increase the size of government? These are just the ones created by Obamacare. There are also Cap and Trade, The Farm Bill, The Gift Act and SO much more coming from this President and this Congress. We must stop them all, for the life of our Republic."

Commission to Recommend Lifting Ban on Women in Combat

GlobalSecurity.org  "The nonpartisan Military Leadership Diversity Commission will make 20 recommendations to President Barack Obama and Congress to increase diversity and inclusiveness and develop “a demographically diverse leadership that reflects the forces it leads and the public it services,” according to a pre-decisional draft document posted on the commission’s website."

Debunking the Israeli 'women in combat' myth ""For example, it is a common misperception that Israel allows women in combat units. In fact, women have been barred from combat in Israel since 1950, when a review of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War showed how harmful their presence could be. The study revealed that men tried to protect and assist women rather than continue their attack. As a result, they not only put their own lives in greater danger, but also jeopardized the survival of the entire unit. The study further revealed that unit morale was damaged when men saw women killed and maimed on the battlefield," Luddy said."

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Stealing the "booty" of non-believers (Corrected links)

Atlas Shrugs  "Continuing the longstanding tradition of stealing the "booty" of non-believers -- which is how Muhammad made his bones and financed his war campaigns (as did his followers), Inspire magazine ran this (thanks to Internet Haganah ):"
Inspire Magazine


McCain praises Obama speech

Washington Post "I disagree with many of the president's policies, but I believe he is a patriot sincerely intent on using his time in office to advance our country's cause. I reject accusations that his policies and beliefs make him unworthy to lead America or opposed to its founding ideals. And I reject accusations that Americans who vigorously oppose his policies are less intelligent, compassionate or just than those who support them." Via  Freedom Fighter's Journal

City puts a stop to homeless outreach


Bobby "Tre9" Herring, center, prays with John
Bradley who had been on the streets for
41/2 months after his roommate lost his job
and created financial stress during
Feed a Friend  anniversary
event, Nov. 12, 2010, in Houston,under
 the Main Street bridge near downtown.
HOUSTON CHRONICLE  "Bobby and Amanda Herring spent more than a year providing food to homeless people in downtown Houston every day. They fed them, left behind no trash and doled out warm meals peacefully without a single crime being committed, Bobby Herring said.
That ended two weeks ago when the city shut down their "Feed a Friend" effort for lack of a permit. And city officials say the couple most likely will not be able to obtain one."
Neal Boortz entitled this piece "Government at its finest ."

House Set to Launch Health Law Challenge

FOX News  "Boehner's speaker blog described the anti-health overhaul campaign as a push to shield businesses from costly requirements, like the oft-maligned mandate that businesses fill out 1099 forms for purchases of more than $600. The statement called for Congress to pass "common-sense reforms" to lower costs without using "unconstitutional mandates" -- the latter a reference to the requirement that Americans buy health insurance, a requirement being challenged in the courts."

Repeal vote is just Republicans' first step on health care  "House committee chairmen will haul administration officials before their panels, pressing for answers to questions that they feel have been ignored. GOP leaders will call for votes on bills dismantling pieces of the law, such as the mandate requiring all Americans to buy insurance. ....
"And, eventually, they will offer an alternative health care reform plan, one that could be pushed legislatively in 2012 and beyond — if they win the Senate and the White House, the holy grail of their long-term strategy."  Politico
They will be opposed by every corner of the media including anti-Republican dialog in movies and TV shows.

British Government Plans Major Health Care Reform  [Prime Minister David] "Cameron says he will save money and cut red tape by giving control over management to family practitioners rather than bureaucrats.
"He said Monday that standards of care in Britain have fallen behind other European countries."
"Some doctors welcome the changes, but the British Medical Association claimed the scale of the reforms could cause chaos."  Because it is firmly entrenched in the British economy, which we must not let happen here in the US. Time is of the essence. (Emphasis added)

The 10 Freest Economies in the World

The Atlantic  "There are two reasons why the U.S. is falling behind. First, a lot of other countries are doing good reforms while we're standing still. Second, we have lingering government interventionist policies and spending is growing. We need to cut spending to make our fiscal future more reasonable, more viable."

The Age of Uncertainty "All this uncertainty “complicates planning and discourages hiring and investment” because “businesses tend to be more reluctant to invest when they perceive high levels of uncertainty about various things, including taxes.”
"One bitter fruit of all this uncertainty can be gleaned from a recent Federal Reserve study. The Fed calculated that skittish companies are now sitting on nearly $2 trillion of cash reserves rather than deploying those resources to expand payrolls, build new plants, or purchase new equipment. This is not only $130 billion higher than it was at the end of June but, as a percentage of total assets, the highest cash-reserve level in over half a century."
The liberal solution would be to tax those cash reserves out of existence and let the gubmint allocate it. About ten cents of every dollar might get to the actual place for whch it is intended .

Don't fret; this country's in the very best of hands

Morning Bell: Dragon Week

Heritage  "The U.S. has a long list of concerns about Chinese policies that reflect fundamental conflicts of interest between our two countries. Given Beijing’s interest in a smooth and uneventful visit, President Obama should press Hu on several key issues. Specifically, President Obama should seek public commitments to better policies on the economic role of the state, freedom of navigation in the western Pacific, and nuclear proliferation."
At the very least, Obama should not bow to hm. If Hu's on first, don't let him get to second . (Baseball analogy for our international readers)

For Chinese Leader’s Visit, U.S. to Take a Bolder Tack  "But the White House has prepared for the visit in other ways in the past two weeks, dispatching several cabinet officials to publicly lay down challenges for Mr. Hu.
"Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates had a testy series of meetings in Beijing last week, telling reporters beforehand that the United States would counter China’s military buildup in the Pacific by stepping up investments in weapons, jet fighters and technology. "...

H.R. 190: Protecting America’s Workers Act: OSHA on steroids

Overcriminalized.com  Increases civil and criminal violations of OSHA regulations. Plus this: "H.R. 190 would also increase the criminal penalty for knowingly impeding or interfering with an OSHA inspection through the provision of advance notice to an employer. " Emphasis added.
Business owners and supervisors beware.  Sponsored by Lynn Woolsey, Democrat-Ca.