Biden’s Talk of Withdrawal in Afghanistan Makes Troops’ Task Harder

Max Boot  "In this week’s Weekly Standard, I have an editorial praising President Obama for the toughness and resolution he has shown in Afghanistan by refusing to waver from the surge. The latest sign of his willingness to hang tough was the AfPak review released last week, which suggested that the Petraeus counterinsurgency strategy is on track. But then on Sunday, Joe Biden — a never-ending source of ill-advised comments — muddied the waters with his appearance on Meet the Press."

Related:  Putz:  Yiddish - a dialect of High German including some Hebrew and other words; spoken in Europe as a vernacular by many Jews; written in the Hebrew script;
fool, muggins, saphead, tomfool, sap - a person who lacks good judgment

Video: The Jib-Jab 2010 review

Hot Air 
"We’re a few days late on this one, but it’s definitely good for a few laughs. JibJab has Barack Obama and Joe Biden dancing through its review of 2010, and manages to squeeze in as many political and pop-culture references it can get into just over 2 minutes. Some of my favorite moments: the seal falling off of the podium and the momentary highlighting of Charlie Rangel, as well as the last joke involving a basketball and stitches. As Joe Biden would say, “It’s a big effin’ production.” "

On Ewald Stadler/ Another European Who Gets Islam

Atlas Tours photo

Bruce S. Thornton  "Nowhere is this selective history more obvious and dangerous for our interests than in the role Jerusalem has taken on as the emblem of Western oppression of Islam through its neo-colonial proxy Israel. The holy city of Judaism, attested as such in history and archeology for three millennia, was seized by conquest in 638 A.D. by Muslims and occupied by them until 1967, when the Israelis liberated Jerusalem in a defensive war. Yet as good Westerners respectful of religious freedom, the Israelis left untouched the Islamic mosques constructed on the site of the Temple, and they allow Muslims to control and manage the most holy site in Judaism, free to worship in the mosque while they allow their children to throw stones on the Jews who come to worship at the few scraps of the temple wall, all that is left to them of their holiest site."

Mike Ramirez Cartoon

http://townhall.com/cartoons/MichaelRamirez/

God's Inconvenient Call

Breakpoint  "Of all the miracles recorded in the Bible, none has been derided as much as the virgin birth. The skeptic who turns a cool ear to stories about walking on water, healing the sick, and raising the dead will, more often than not, sneer at the very mention of the virgin birth. For many folks it is a difficult doctrine, one that has caused them to stop short of faith, or so they claim."

U.S. SECRET SERVICE IGNORES THREAT AGAINST PALIN

The Secret Service Journal  "The first letter published in response to the article calls for Palin to be electrocuted by a cattle prod by convicted dog abuser Michael Vick, "Vick gets a pet to torture and we get rid of Palin. A win-win for everyone!""

From December 14, 2010 What is the U.S. Secret Service Doing About The Leftist "Kill Bush" Mantra?

New Start's Old Illusions

OpinionJournal.com  "The good news is that New Start could have been worse. Before the treaty arrived at a Senate vote, Arizona's Jon Kyl negotiated useful commitments and clarifications from the Obama Administration on missile defense and nuclear warhead modernization. Senator Kyl is giving the idea of negotiating with ourselves a good name. Absent these commitments, New Start was insupportable. "

Charles Krauthammer  "Moreover, Obama's idea that the great powers must reduce their weapons to set a moral example for the rest of the world to disarm is simply childish. Does anyone seriously believe that the mullahs in Iran or the thugs in Pyongyang will in any way be deflected from their pursuit of nukes by a reduction in the U.S. arsenal?  The TW ran this some time back, but it is important enough to run it again.

It’s Time to Stop the FCC Internet Czars

Heritage  "Imagine a future where the Internet is governed by unelected bureaucrats in Washington, DC, who rule at their own whim, regardless of legislators’ demands or judicial rule. Sadly, that future is now. Today, the Federal Communications Commission is poised to make an unprecedented power grab and assert the authority to regulate the Internet, despite opposition from Congress and a contrary federal court ruling. And while it’s a story that has gone largely unnoticed amid Congress’ big-ticket lame duck decisions, it’s a tale of unchecked government expansion that must be told."

FCC to approve Net neutrality rules Tuesday  "Meanwhile, Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell, who has long opposed Net neutrality regulation, said in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal on Monday that the new rules are trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist.

"On this winter solstice, we will witness jaw-dropping interventionist chutzpah as the FCC bypasses branches of our government in the dogged pursuit of needless and harmful regulation," McDowell wrote. "The darkest day of the year may end up marking the beginning of a long winter's night for Internet freedom."

The FCC's Threat to Internet Freedom  "It wasn't long ago that bipartisan and international consensus centered on insulating the Internet from regulation. This policy was a bright hallmark of the Clinton administration, which oversaw the Internet's privatization. Over time, however, the call for more Internet regulation became imbedded into a 2008 presidential campaign promise by then-Sen. Barack Obama. So here we are. "  Mr. McDowell is a Republican commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission.

http://newsbusters.org/

START: The Ghost of Broken Promises Past

Heritage  "New START is a bad deal for national security at any time. The Administration still refuses to release the treaty’s negotiation records. The Congress elected last month has a far more legitimate claim to approve this treaty than the one sworn into office two years ago, despite Senator John Kerry (D-MA) saying new members don't count. The tax rates have been frozen. The spending has been frozen. This Senate should just leave New START to the next Congress and go home."

Mike Ramirez, World Magazine

Fighting the repeal of don't ask, don't tell

American Thinker  "But the wise governors and state legislatures will enforce the current standards in order to maintain military discipline and not the latest version of latest social engineering experiments at the expense of national security. The Commander-in-Chief will not "Federalize" twenty-five or so state National Guard forces simply to enforce the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." If he did, the Federal Government will have to pay them.
"Let the lawsuits begin."

Next steps for 'don't ask, don't tell' "A vote in the Senate on Saturday cleared the way to abolish the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. But questions remain about how the change will be implemented, and it will be months before gays and lesbians can serve openly in the military." ....

Will changes be made to living quarters?
The Pentagon study recommends against creating separate bathrooms and living quarters for gay service members, saying that doing so would be impractical and stigmatize some members. But it says commanders should retain the authority to make adjustments in individual cases, such as installing shower curtains to address privacy concerns or changing room assignments.

What kind of benefits will be available to service members in same-sex marriages?
The Pentagon study recommends that for now, service members who are not in a federally recognized marriage should be treated as single for the purposes of benefits eligibility. But it says the department should revisit the issue.

The FCC's Threat to Internet Freedom

Wall Street Journal  "'Net neutrality' sounds nice, but the Web is working fine now. The new rules will inhibit investment, deter innovation and create a billable-hours bonanza for lawyers."

Democrats put heat on FCC commissioner on net-neutrality vote "Democrats allied with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski are working to put public pressure on Copps — also a Democrat — as the net-neutrality vote draws near.
"Genachowski needs Copps to vote for his plan during a commission meeting on Tuesday if the rules are to pass.
"As a result, Democrats who support the plan are pushing this message in the media: If Copps doesn't vote for Genachowski's plan, the consequences will reverberate all the way up to the White House. They are arguing the damage could even hurt President Obama. "

FCC Dems Narrowing Net Neutrality Gaps  "The two Republicans on the five-member commission remain staunchly opposed, arguing that the proposed rules amount to unnecessary government regulation of the Internet."
Via Drudge

FCC poised to adopt network neutrality rules  "Republicans, meanwhile, warn that the new rules would impose unnecessary regulations on an industry that is one of the few bright spots in the current economy, with phone and cable companies spending billions to upgrade their networks for broadband.
"Burdensome net neutrality rules, they warn, would discourage broadband providers from continuing those upgrades by making it difficult for them to earn a healthy return on their investments. "