Why not? It's working fabulous for Detroit.(it really is!)-------Why Illinois should file for bankruptcy

Prove you're fiscally criminal and the federal (and state) moolah comes rollin' in!
Why Illinois should file for bankruptcy | Rare
From the more than 1,000 politicians (including three former governors) convicted of corruption, to the virtually-insolvent defined-benefit teachers pension that is likely underfunded to the tune of $76 billion, Illinois is in deep trouble. 
So fiscally feckless is the Land of Lincoln is that it makes California seem financially responsible in comparison.
Prairie State politicians are actually attempting to make some fiscally-sensible decisions to whittle down its pension and retired civil servant healthcare liabilities.
Those efforts are being successfully opposed in the courts by public-sector unions such as the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees and affiliates of the nation’s Big Two teachers’ unions.
The most-likely solution for Illinois to finally address its long-term burdens – and force public-sector unions to agree to them – is to follow the example set by woe-begotten Detroit last year and file for bankruptcy protection.

Obama Sends a Message: Mike Brown’s Death More Important than Highest Ranking Military Official Killed Since Vietnam

Obama Sends a Message: Mike Brown’s Death More Important than Highest Ranking Military Official Killed Since Vietnam:
"But, Barack Obama will be sending not one, not two, but three members of his administration to the funeral of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. This is after Eric Holder stood before the cameras and told the people of Ferguson that he stands with them."

CDC Director: Ebola Outbreak ‘Is Spiraling Out Of Control’

CDC Director: Ebola Outbreak ‘Is Spiraling Out Of Control’ « CBS Atlanta:
"ATLANTA (CBS Atlanta/AP) — The director for the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention says that the Ebola outbreak is going to get worse.
Speaking to “CBS This Morning” following his trip to the West African countries dealing with the outbreak, Dr. Tom Frieden explained that they have to act now to try to get Ebola under control.
“It is the world’s first Ebola epidemic and it is spiraling out of control. 
It’s bad now and it’s going to get worse in the very near future,” Frieden told CBS News.
“There is still a window of opportunity to tamp it down, but that window is closing.
We really have to act now.”"

Not to mention beheadings. Ebola......

History for September 3

History for September 3 - On-This-Day.com:
Ferdinand Porsche 1875, Alan Ladd 1913 


Al Jardine (Beach Boys) 1942, Valerie Perrine 1943, Charlie Sheen 1965 


1783 - The Revolutionary War between the U.S. and Great Britain ended with the Treaty of Paris. 


1833 - The first successful penny newspaper in the U.S., "The New York Sun," was launched by Benjamin H. Day. 


1838 - Frederick Douglass boarded a train in Maryland on his way to freedom from being a slave. 


1939 - British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, in a radio broadcast, announced that Britain and France had declared war on Germany. Germany had invaded Poland on September 1. 


1954 - "The Lone Ranger" was heard on radio for the final time after 2,956 episodes over a period of 21 years. 


1966 - The television series "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" ended after 14 years. 



1967 - Nguyen Van Thieu was elected president of South Vietnam under a new constitution. 


1967 - In Sweden, motorists stopped driving on the left side of the road and began driving on the right side. 


1981 - Egypt arrested more than 1,500 opponents of the government. 

‘Time for Some Fury’: Buck Sexton Tears Into Obama Admin. After Another American Apparently Beheaded | TheBlaze.com

‘Time for Some Fury’: Buck Sexton Tears Into Obama Admin. After Another American Apparently Beheaded | TheBlaze.com:
"Sexton said the Islamic State is beheading Americans “with the explicit promise that the same evil, that same sadism, is coming to our shores — it’s just a matter of when.”

VIDEO: Want to Know How to Deal with the Muslim ISIS Terrorists? Watch This

VIDEO: Want to Know How to Deal with the Muslim ISIS Terrorists? Watch This:
"Lt. Col. Ralph Peters, a FOX News analyst, recently gave his assessment on how the United States should deal with the Muslim ISIS terrorists following the beheading of American photojournalist James Foley."

This ain't the feds. This local government. You!------Residents and businesses charged monthly utility fee to fix city streets

Residents and businesses charged monthly utility fee to fix city streets:
".....a new street improvement fee on August utility bills.
The street fund joins water, sewer, storm water and street lights and other utility fees that can total nearly $50 a month — on top of residents’ property taxes.
“Government has to start living within its means, instead of this thinking that we have an unlimited amount of money.
We don’t,” said Jim Booth, a financial planner who’s running for county commissioner.
“And it’s exactly the people the politicians say they’re watching out for — the low- and moderate-income people — that they’re hurting.”"

When Science is Settled - by Government

When Science is Settled - by Government :: SteynOnline:

Anthony Watts reminds us of what the settled scientists were saying half-a-decade ago:

World Will Warm Faster Than Predicted In Next Five Years, Study Warns

Duncan Clark in The Guardian laid it on as only a devout warm-monger can:

The world faces record-breaking temperatures as the sun's activity increases, leading the planet to heat up significantly faster than scientists had predicted for the next five years.

A CNN Host Let a Muslim Cleric Speak Freely. What He Said about Journalism, Terrorism and Sharia Law in America Left the Host Speechless | Video | TheBlaze.com

A CNN Host Let a Muslim Cleric Speak Freely. What He Said about Journalism, Terrorism and Sharia Law in America Left the Host Speechless | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Choudary was outspoken about his beliefs: “I believe that Sharia is the best way of life, and one day it will come to America.”
Choudary argued that no true Muslim interprets the Quran differently from he, and said that so-called “moderate” Muslims are probably paid by Western governments to speak out against “radical” Islam."


It's up to us to stop it.
Do you think the president will?

Shocker! RINOs oppose "outing"-----Michigan Republican Party chairman unhappy with 'RINO' hunters ahead of state convention

Michigan Republican Party chairman unhappy with 'RINO' hunters ahead of state convention | MLive.com:

“RINO,” a pejorative acronym used to label "Republicans In Name Only," has no place in the party lexicon, Schostak told MLive on Tuesday at a GOP office opening in the Ann Arbor area.

“I think it’s very offensive, frankly,” Schotstak said. 

“I think all Republicans are good Republicans. 

They may differ on ideas, concepts or approaches, but to decide to define that somebody is more conservative or less conservative, and that makes them less of a Republican or more of a Republican, is inappropriate.”

Yes, there are heroes-------The Story of a True Hero Spread

The Story of a True Hero Spreads [Michigan Capitol Confidential]:
"Sir Nicholas, who prefers to be called Nicky, was a 29-year-old London stockbroker who gave up a skiing holiday to visit Prague and witness firsthand the refugees who were fleeing Nazi tyranny.
That visit led to his heroic deeds which enabled 669 children to escape.

Parents, desperate to save their children, sought his assistance and he established an organization to aid them.
He worked for weeks to find homes for them and also to arrange safe passage to Britain.
For years no one knew of Nicky’s efforts for these many children.
An episode of the BBC television program “That’s Life!” aired in 1988 and many of the children met for the first time this humble, beautiful man who had saved their lives.
A clip from that program was shown to the captivated audience last night as the son explained the profound effect on him to see his father wipe away tears when he met with his “other” children."
....The trains left Prague and saved 669 souls, until Sept. 1, 1939, when the largest group of 250 children was scheduled to leave. 
Of course, on that day Hitler invaded Poland and the war had begun. 
Most of those lives, along with most of the families of the 669, were lost.
Because of the determined effort of Nicky Winton and those who assisted him there were 669 saved. These “children” and their descendants number in the thousands and they have made their mark on the world in many different walks of life.
The beautiful part of this story is that many have befriended Nicky and his family.

RINOs choose cronism over fixing roads------MEDC Approves Corporate Welfare for Auto Dealership

MEDC Approves Corporate Welfare for Auto Dealership [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
LaFaive: Special favors unfair to competitors, taxpayers

Michigan Strategic Fund board members voted Tuesday to divert almost three-quarters of a million dollars in local and school taxes to a private entity so that a Redford Township car dealership can upgrade its facilities, MLive reports.
The Michigan Economic Development Corp. will give the dealership $719,528 to renovate its building and install a car wash on an adjacent piece of land it owns.
Michael LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, said this type of special treatment is unfair.
“It’s unfair because this dealer no doubt competes with other dealers not lucky enough to get a government handout,” he told MLive.
“Robbing many taxpayer Peters to subsidize the corporate Paul only shifts precious resources around.
Evidence shows it is unlikely to create net new jobs. 
Worse, this is money that could have accrued to local schools.
Depriving them of such revenues represents a very high opportunity cost, unless of course some future graduates intend to wash cars on the new site.”

‘That’s My Wife, How Dare You!’: Video Captures Discipline Man Faced After Paying at Women-Only Cash Register in Saudi Arabia | Video | TheBlaze.com

‘That’s My Wife, How Dare You!’: Video Captures Discipline Man Faced After Paying at Women-Only Cash Register in Saudi Arabia | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Video posted online Monday appears to show members of Saudi Arabia’s religious police beat a British businessman after he paid at a women-only cash register.
Men are strictly prohibited from paying at certain cash registers which are designated for females only."

Generous teacher pensions continue as Illinois' financial crisis worsens

Generous teacher pensions continue as Illinois' financial crisis worsens - Washington Times:
"If the Illinois Teachers Retirement Service (TRS) had to pay out all of its pensions today, it could only afford to give its members 40 cents on the dollar.
Yet the number of six-figure pensions TRS has been doling out has increased 24 percent this year compared to last, with about 6,000 retired educators collecting more than $100,000 annually, according to records obtained by Open the Books, an online aggregator of local spending that tracks educator salaries, pensions and vendor spending.
The group’s Labor Day report found more than 100,000 retired Illinois educators had been paid back what they invested into the system just 20 months after leaving work, a financial burden linked to union collective bargaining, which can cost taxpayers $2 million or more per teacher over the course of retirement."

Email Reveals Lerner Ignored Union Political Expenditures

Email Reveals Lerner Ignored Union Political Expenditures | The Daily Caller:
"The official at the center of the Internal Revenue Service tea party scandal once dismissed complaints that labor unions were not reporting millions of dollars in political activities on their tax forms, according to an email obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation.
In 2007, Lerner responded directly to a complaint that some major labor unions reported completely different amounts of political expenditures when filing with the IRS and the Department of Labor.
At the time of the email, Lerner was the Director of Exempt Organizations at the IRS.
Lerner wrote, “We looked at the information you provided regarding organizations that report substantial amounts of political activity and lobbying expenditures on the DOL Form LM-2, but report little to no political expenditures on the Form 990 filed with the IRS.”
“We believe this difference in reporting does not necessarily indicate that the organization has incorrectly reported to either the DOL or the IRS,” Lerner concluded."

Frontrunning: September 2 | Zero Hedge

Frontrunning: September 2 | Zero Hedge

Ukraine Shifts to Defense Against Russian Incursion (WSJ)

U.S. forces carry out operation against al-Shabaab in Somalia (Reuters)

Bond Markets Tilt Toward Frankfurt as Draghi Negates Fed (BBG)

Another "unexpectedly" - Swiss Economy Unexpectedly Stalls as Euro Area Takes Toll (BBG)

Japan's 'Abenomics' feared in trouble as challenges build (Reuters)

Germany Imposes Nationwide Ban on Uber's Cab-Hailing Service (WSJ)

Japan's 'forward guidance', the GPIF, has "already begun a highly anticipated portfolio reshuffle" (WSJ)

Detroit Brings Bankruptcy Plan to Court With Billionaires (BBG)

Burger King has maneuvered to cut U.S. tax bill for years (Reuters)

JPMorgan Operating Risk Rises With Past Seen as Prologue (BBG)

Apple Investigating Reports of iCloud Vulnerabilities (WSJ)

U.S. Firms Feel Unwelcome in China, According to Survey (WSJ)

Compuware Nears Deal to Sell Itself (WSJ)

Angelo Mozilo Speaks: No Villainy at Countrywide (BBG)

LIKEWISE THE SELF-LOATHING OF THE U.S. LEFT

Instapundit » Blog Archive » LIKEWISE THE SELF-LOATHING OF THE U.S. LEFT
The self-loathing of the British Left is now a problem for us all.
“We don’t need to rehearse the facts.
We’ve all read them, and reeled away in horror.
The interesting question is how and why would any country allow the racialised gang-rape of its own daughters? 

Why? 
Because too many in that country, especially on the Left, most especially in the Labour Party, despise their own ordinary people: the white working classes. . . . 
What kind of message does Straw’s statement send to everyone else?
It says that the English are dislikeable, that they are to be feared, and contained, to be treated with contempt.”
"Pretty much the way much of our American ruling class sees Americans."

‘Infidels!’: Three Churches Were Vandalized in One Night. But It’s What the Graffiti Said That’s Worrying Some People | Video | TheBlaze.com

‘Infidels!’: Three Churches Were Vandalized in One Night. But It’s What the Graffiti Said That’s Worrying Some People | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Police in Columbus, Indiana, are investigating three acts of vandalism against local churches that unfolded Saturday night — a series of crimes that constitute an apparent first in the city.
But it’s the messages that were spray painted on the buildings that have some wondering if the acts were pranks or part of a more serious and pointed effort to deliver a message to Christian leaders and parishioners, according to WTHR-TV."

Chicago by boat: A timelapse journey on Vimeo

Chicago by boat: A timelapse journey on Vimeo:

"Chicago by boat: A timelapse journey
from Philip Bloom PRO 3 years ago / via Vimeo Desktop Uploader NOT YET RATED
A 3 and a half hour timelapse on board a boat going along Lake Michigan and through the gorgeous Chicago canals.
This was on the annual Zacuto boat trip.
Shot with the Canon 60D AV mode, 320iso, 3 second intervals. Tokina 11-16mm at 11mm and a Gorillapod.
Music NiN 14 Ghosts II
Used under Creative Commons"
Chicago by boat: A timelapse journey from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

History for September 2

History for September 2 - On-This-Day.com
Allen Drury 1918, Peter Ueberroth 1937, Christa McAuliffe 1948


Jimmy Connors 1952, Keanu Reeves 1964 


31 B.C. - The Roman leader Octavian defeated the alliance of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. Octavian, as Augustus Caesar, became the first Roman emperor. 


1666 - The Great Fire of London broke out. The fire burned for three days destroying 10,000 buildings including St. Paul's Cathedral. Only 6 people were killed. 


1789 - The U.S. Treasury Department was established. 


1864 - During the U.S. Civil War Union forces led by Gen. William T. Sherman occupied Atlanta following the retreat of the Confederates. 


1901 - Theodore Roosevelt, then Vice President, said "Speak softly and carry a big stick" in a speech at the Minnesota State Fair. 


1963 - The integration of Tuskegee High School was prevented by state troopers assigned by DEMOCRAT Alabama Gov. George Wallace. Wallace had the building surrounded by state troopers. 


1963 - "The CBS Evening News" was lengthened from 15 to 30 minutes. 


1969 - NBC-TV canceled "Star Trek." The show had debuted on September 8, 1966. 


1973 - Billy Martin was fired as manager of the Detroit Tigers. Martin was relieved of his duties three days after ordering his pitchers to throw spitballs against Cleveland Indians batters. 


1992 - The U.S. and Russia agreed to a joint venture to build a space station. 


1996 - Muslim rebels and the Philippine government signed a pact formally ending 26-years of insurgency that had killed more than 120,000 people. 

Parents of Navy SEAL Killed in Action Demand Obama’s Resignation | TheBlaze.com

Parents of Navy SEAL Killed in Action Demand Obama’s Resignation | TheBlaze.com:
“As commander-in-chief, your actions — or lack thereof — Mr. President, cost lives,” the letter continued. “As you bumble about in your golf cart, slapping on a happy face and fist-pounding your buddies, your cowardly lack of leadership has left a gaping hole — not only in America’s security — but the security of the entire globe. Your message has come across loud and clear, sir: You are not up to this job. You know it. We know it. The world knows it.”