The Frisky

Jacques Magazine Sports Issue The Frisky:
"Jacques Magazine “Sports” Issues More About Skivvies Than Squash"

I used to play squash.... and this is EXACTLY how I remember my most memorable matches!

UC Tuition Hikes and Public Employee Pensions - WSJ.com

UC Tuition Hikes and Public Employee Pensions - WSJ.com: "The California legislature? Good luck with that. In 1999, the Democratic legislature ran a reckless gamble that makes Wall Street's bankers look cautious. At the top of a bull market, they assumed their investment returns would grow at a 8.25% rate in perpetuity—equivalent to assuming that the Dow would reach 25,000 by 2009—and enacted a huge pension boon for public-safety and industrial unions.
The bill refigured the compensation formula for pension benefits of all public-safety employees who retired on or after January 1, 2000. It let firefighters retire at age 50 and receive 3% of their final year's compensation times the number of years they worked. If a firefighter started working at the age of 20, he could retire at 50 and earn 90% of his final salary, in perpetuity. One San Ramon Valley fire chief's yearly pension amounted to $284,000—more than his $221,000 annual salary."

Daley: Day of reckoning for financial crisis

Daley: Day of reckoning for financial crisis
"Mayor Daley warned today that the day of reckoning has arrived for a financial crisis that’s choking local taxpayers: underfunded city pensions."

Gov't workers feel no economic pain - Washington Times

Gov't workers feel no economic pain - Washington Times: "The recession and the ongoing jobless recovery devastated much of the private-sector work force last year, sending unemployment soaring, but government workers emerged essentially unscathed, according to data released Wednesday by the Labor Department.
Meanwhile, the compensation for state and local government employees continued to easily outdistance the wages and benefits for workers in private business, a separate Labor Department report showed."

Motion to force Prichard to pay pensioners denied by judge

Motion to force Prichard to pay pensioners denied by judge al.com
"A bankruptcy court judge denied a motion Tuesday that would force Prichard to pay its pensioners, saying they do not qualify as administrative claims -- or day-to-day obligations -- of the city."

SO IS THIS THE HOPE, OR THE CHANGE? Monthly deficit hits $220 billion, highest in U.S. history.

Instapundit » Blog Archive » SO IS THIS THE HOPE, OR THE CHANGE? Monthly deficit hits $220 billion, highest in U.S. history.
“According to CBO, based on an analysis of the deeply deceitful numbers presented to it by Reid and Obama, the national panacea of health-care reform will save us $132 billion over the next 10 years.

"Which means the feds blew through our big decade-long ObamaCare refund in about … 17 days last month.”"

Muhammad cartoon republished

Muhammad cartoon republished
"At least three Swedish newspapers on Wednesday published a cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammad with the body of a dog after an alleged plot to murder the artist who created it was uncovered in Ireland."

‘The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing."

Greece warns of worse downturn as strikes loom

Greece warns of worse downturn as strikes loom - swissinfo
"The Greek economy is set to shrink by more than expected this year, the government said on Wednesday, as it braced for nationwide strikes protesting its plans for bringing the country's budget deficit under control.

Greece, grappling with a ballooning deficit and a 300 billion euro (272 billion pound) debt pile, told the European Union that 2010 gross domestic product (GDP) would 'most likely' shrink by more than the 0.3 percent currently forecast."

MEA's sabotage kept Michigan out of Race to Top finalists

MEA's sabotage kept Michigan out of Race to Top finalists
"It's hard to argue with the White House's decision not to include Michigan among the 16 finalists for the first round of federal Race to the Top education grants.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said repeatedly that heavy weight was given to applications from states where all parties were committed to reform.

Michigan can't even pretend to qualify under that standard.
It bickered for months about whether to adopt the required reforms.
Even after it did, the arguing and obstruction continued.

Place the blame for the loss of the much-needed grants squarely on the Michigan Education Association.
It sabotaged the state's application at every step."

Ionia kindergartner suspended for making gun with hand

Ionia kindergartner suspended for making gun with hand
MLive.com:
"To the little boy's mother, it was just a 6-year-old boy playing around.

But when Mason Jammer, a kindergarten student at Jefferson Elementary in Ionia, curled his fist into the shape of a gun Wednesday and pointed it at another student, school officials said it was no laughing matter.

They suspended Mason until Friday, saying the behavior made other students uncomfortable, said Erin Jammer, Mason's mother. "

Drones and Terrorism

American Thinker: Drones and Terrorism
"One question that has not arisen is the possibility of drones being used against us."

This entire article is fascinating.

Read it all.

The Associated Press: Roberts: Scene at State of Union `very troubling'

The Associated Press: Roberts: Scene at State of Union `very troubling'
"U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said Tuesday the scene at President Obama's State of the Union address was 'very troubling' and the annual speech has 'degenerated to a political pep rally.'

Obama chided the court, with the justices seated before him in their black robes, for its decision on a campaign finance case."

Seriously, the boy-president has NO class.

And not much more in the intellect area either.

Well.
At least it's "change"......right?