Political Predictions for 2016

Political Predictions for 2016 - Reason.com:
Take Judge Andrew Napolitano's quiz about the year ahead.
Andrew Napolitano | December 31, 2015
[Ed. note: Judge Napolitano's choices are marked with italics.]

1) The Republican nominee for president in 2016 will be...
a. Donald Trump by unanimous acclamation of the Republican National Convention.
b. Ted Cruz by unanimous acclamation of the convention.
c. Mitt Romney after a contested, bitter, brokered convention.
d. none of the above.

2) The Democratic nominee for president in 2016 will be...
a. Hillary Clinton.
b. Bernie Sanders.
c. Al Gore after a contested, bitter, brokered Democratic National Convention.
d. not Hillary Clinton, because she will be indicted by a federal grand jury for various crimes.

3) The voters will elect in a landslide...
a. whoever promises to give them the biggest piece of the federal pie.
b. whoever scares them the most.
c. whoever comes across as most faithful to the Constitution.
d. a sleeper candidate not yet on the scene.

4) The 2016 Republican platform will promise...
a. to eradicate the Islamic State group by using ground troops and fighting an all-out war.
b. to replace Obamacare with a lighter, easier version of it.
c. to make abortion illegal, except for in cases of rape and incest.
d. to bring the troops home and let the Russians fight the Islamic State.

5) The 2016 Democratic platform will promise...
a. a 2016 version of "a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage."
b. free health care for those who want it.
c. criminalizing hate speech.
d. all of the above.

6) The Super Bowl will be won by...
a. the Carolina Panthers.
b. the New England Patriots, but only by cheating.
c. the New York Jets after the greatest comeback in NFL history.
d. none of the above.

7) The World Series will be won by...
a. the New York Mets.
b. the San Francisco Giants.
c. the Boston Red Sox, but only after they acquire A-Rod from the Yankees.
d. none of the above.

8) In 2016, climate change...
a. will be embraced by the Republican Party in a dramatic turnabout.
b. will be defined as an article of faith by Pope Francis.
c. will be exposed as a fraud.
d. will leave the public marketplace of ideas.

Obama's 'Streisand Effect' Presidency

Obama's 'Streisand Effect' Presidency | The Weekly Standard:
"Earlier this week, it made news that "Bringing Peace, Security to Syria" was listed as one of the top achievements in 2015 by the Obama State Department.
If this is what peace and security in Syria look like, I’d hate to see the hellish charnel house the region would have to become for the State Department to admit it's chaos.
This bizarre messaging reminded me of another bit of news that came out of the White House recently:
Obama gave the Medal of Freedom to Barbra Streisand. 
While ISIS and The Prince of Tides both fall under the heading of "things I dislike intensely," I will try and explain more precisely why these two things are related.
Streisand hasn't exactly been a pop culture fixture over the last few decades.
In fact, if you're on the younger side, Streisand's fame extends primarily to an internet phenomenon, known as the "Streisand Effect." 
In 2003, a photographer trying to document coastal erosion took a picture of Streisand's Malibu home from a helicopter and posted it online.
There was no attempt to specifically draw attention to Streisand's home; it was one of 12,000 pictures of the coast that the photographer took.
Nonetheless, Streisand sued to have the photo removed from the web. 
Of course, the silly legal action ended up drawing more attention to the picture of her house than it would have if she'd just left it alone. 
It became an internet meme. 
People were posting photos of her house, just to spite her.
So it's a wonder that the Obama presidency hasn't quite figured out that denying the existence of the obvious actually doesn't help.
When you say there's peace and security in Syria, you're not convincing anyone that's the case. You're inevitably drawing attention to the fact the region is a mess and the Obama administration's handling of the situation has been terrible.
It's not just limited to Syria, either.
Denial of the obvious has been a feature of the Obama presidency.
Recall that Obama told Bill O'Reilly in his Super Bowl interview a few years back that there was "not a smidgen of corruption" at the IRS. 
Well, no.
In fact, the IRS held a press conference to admit its own wrongdoing and the chief IRS official involved is pleading the Fifth.
When you deny the obvious, the effect is to sow distrust among those voters who are concerned about the scandal.
What about "Obamacare is working"? 
We hear that a lot.
Maybe this messaging is necessary because it gives liberal supporters a talking point to rally around, but for the rest of us in the "reality-based community" the undeniable fact is that the law is failing in very significant ways.
Insurance costs are up 27 percent despite promises that the law would make it cheaper, and even Hillary Clinton is now conceding in Democratic debates that the law has made the insurance industry less competitive and in Iowa she's admitting the law is killing jobs.
Unless you're already on Team Obama, this kind of denial is polarizing at best and infuriating at worst.
So why do they do it?
Well, the general rule in Washington is never assume malice when incompetence and arrogance will suffice.
It's more than possible that Obama and those in his administration are in a bubble.
Indeed, that was heavily suggested by the recent fracas when The New York Times reported—then memory-holed—a report where Obama said he underestimated how much the recent ISIS attack in San Bernardino had spooked Americans because he didn't watch cable news."

These are worth a look!-----13 Google Chrome Tips That Will Make Your Life Better | TIME

13 Google Chrome Tips That Will Make Your Life Better | TIME:
From learning a new language to saving money while online shopping
Since it debuted in 2008, Google Chrome has quickly risen to be the most popular web browser in the world, beating out Firefox and Internet Explorer.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t make it better.
There are many extensions and programs that innovative developers have built to make using Chrome more productive and more fun.
With them, you can save articles to read anywhere, learn a new language, save money while shopping, and even improve your writing.
And the beauty is that they don’t actually require you to put in any extra work.
These 13 extensions and apps can help you both streamline your Chrome browsing and help you do things you didn’t even know were possible.
Read on to become a Google Chrome pro:

City Councilman Wants Citizens to Throw Rocks, Bricks and Bottles at Police | Video | TheBlaze.com

City Councilman Wants Citizens to Throw Rocks, Bricks and Bottles at Police | Video | TheBlaze.com: "A Mississippi city councilman is in hot water for suggesting residents attack police officers from other districts and counties with rocks, bricks and bottles.

Speaking earlier in the week about police chases crossing into Jackson’s jurisdiction, Councilman Kenneth Stokes publicly stated, “Let’s get rocks, let’s get bricks and let’s get bottles and start throwing them and then they police won’t come in here anymore.”

Predators for Hillary

Predato
"...Unlike Cosby, Bill Clinton's most well-known extramarital activities were consensual.

Yeah, right. Tell that to Juanita Broaddrick, and Paula Jones, and Kathleen Willey...

Miss Abrams concludes:

Bill Clinton is scheduled to headline his first solo campaign events next week as he hits the stump to get voters excited for the former secretary of state's candidacy. While the Clintons are ignoring attacks by Trump and others, they are also likely hoping that Cosby does not stay in the news for too long so that voters can focus on the 42nd president's charm and not his affairs.

I don't think dropping your pants and instructing a state employee to "kiss it", or groping the breasts of a grieving widow, or telling a woman after you've raped her twice that "you might want to put some ice on that" meets the minimum definition of an "affair". 
But evidently "the 42nd president's charm" still works on Abigail Abrams.

The retreat to euphemism is most telling. 
The President and Mrs Clinton's marriage is an arrangement, the protection of which necessitated Hillary's enthusiastic participation in the trashing of his victims. 
No doubt she'd do the same if the Epstein story were ever to receive the coverage in the US papers that it's received in Britain. 
Which is why there are no half-measures for Donald Trump here: he has to go "the full Lewinsky" (as Laura Rosen Cohen advises) or not at all. 
They're going to need a lot more euphemisms.rs for Hillary :: SteynOnline\

History for January 4

History for January 4 - On-This-Day.com
Sir Isaac Newton 1643 (N.S.) - Physicist, mathematician, Louis Braille 1809 - Inventor of a reading system for the blind, Charles "Tom Thumb" Stratton 1838 


Jane Wyman 1914 - Actress, Floyd Patterson 1935 - Heavyweight boxing champion, Dyan Cannon 1939 - Actress 


1884 - The socialist Fabian Society was founded in London. 


1885 - Dr. William Grant performed the first successful appendectomy. The patient was Mary Gartside. 


1944 - The attack on Monte Cassino was launched by the British Fifth Army in Italy. 


1951 - During the Korean conflict, North Korean and Communist Chinese forces captured the city of Seoul. 


1953 - Tufted plastic carpeting was introduced by Barwick Mills. 


1965 - The Fender Guitar Company was sold to CBS for $13 million. 


1965 - In his State of the Union address, U.S. President Johnson proclaimed the building of the "Great Society." 


1999 - Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura was sworn in as Minnesota's 37th governor. 

Obama Won’t Do It, So Texas Does – Texas Governor Strips Funding from Sanctuary Cities! - Eagle Rising

Obama Won’t Do It, So Texas Does – Texas Governor Strips Funding from Sanctuary Cities! - Eagle Rising:

"Now the question is, when will other conservative governors begin showing the same kind of fortitude that Governor Abbott has? When will conservatives across the nations stand up to the bullying of the lawless left and demand that our laws be upheld? I’d say now is as good a time as any."

Cleaning house: Justice Dept. won’t press charges against disgraced VA execs

Cleaning house: Justice Dept. won’t press charges against disgraced VA execs « Hot Air
We seem to be nearing the end of the saga of Diana Rubens and Kimberly Graves, the two Veterans Administration executives who were found to have gamed the system for plumb positions and generous relocation payments, though it’s probably not the outcome many government watchdogs may have wished.
Not too long ago, Ed covered the story of how VA officials were reluctant to fire people accused of such misbehavior, regardless of how egregious the charges may be. Shortly after that, the policy was explained by Deputy VA Secretary Sloan Gibson who said, “You can’t fire your way to excellence.”
But surely when you get a referral to prosecute someone at the federal level, that’s the tipping point, right? 
Once the review is finished and your own watchdogs have sent the case over to the Justice Department to have them prosecuted, it’s time to turn the screws.
As it turns out… not so much. (Government Executive)
The Justice Department will not pursue criminal charges against two former Veterans Affairs senior executives accused of using their positions of authority for personal gain.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia declined a referral for criminal prosecution from the VA watchdog related to Diana Rubens, former director of the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Philadelphia office, and Kimberly Graves, former director of VBA’s St. Paul, Minn., regional office…
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office has notified the VA’s Office of the Inspector General of this decision and referred the matter to the VA for any administrative action that is deemed appropriate,” the office said in a statement. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office has no further comment on this investigation.”...

Peer-Reviewed Survey Finds Majority Of Scientists Skeptical Of Global Warming Crisis

Peer-Reviewed Survey Finds Majority Of Scientists Skeptical Of Global Warming Crisis - Forbes:
"It is becoming clear that not only do many scientists dispute the asserted global warming crisis, but these skeptical scientists may indeed form a scientific consensus.
Don’t look now, but maybe a scientific consensus exists concerning global warming after all.
Only 36 percent of geoscientists and engineers believe that humans are creating a global warming crisis, according to a survey reported in the peer-reviewed Organization Studies.
By contrast, a strong majority of the 1,077 respondents believe that nature is the primary cause of recent global warming and/or that future global warming will not be a very serious problem.
The survey results show geoscientists (also known as earth scientists) and engineers hold similar views as meteorologists.
Two recent surveys of meteorologists (summarized here and here) revealed similar skepticism of alarmist global warming claims.
According to the newly published survey of geoscientists and engineers, merely 36 percent of respondents fit the “Comply with Kyoto” model. 
The scientists in this group “express the strong belief that climate change is happening, that it is not a normal cycle of nature, and humans are the main or central cause.”
The authors of the survey report, however, note that the overwhelming majority of scientists fall within four other models, each of which is skeptical of alarmist global warming claims..."

Man Who Escaped Islamic State Prison Provides Horrifying Details on What Group Did to Christians | TheBlaze.com

Man Who Escaped Islamic State Prison Provides Horrifying Details on What Group Did to Christians | TheBlaze.com:

“The airstrikes are not effective and there are really no functional operations. The coalition is bullsh**!” he told the Independent Journal. “They might get a couple good shots here or there, but for the most part it’s not an effective strategy.”

Saad added, “Under the Obama administration, America is not taking this fight seriously.”

Hope n' Change Cartoons: 2015: The Year in Review

Hope n' Change Cartoons: 2015: The Year in Review
As we begin a fresh new year which hasn't yet stunk up the calendar, it's time to look back on 2015 and reflect on the ups, the downs, and the freaking miracle that we somehow got through it without all ending up in drug rehab.

• JANUARY

The year started off horribly with the massacre in Paris of the Charlie Hebdo editorial and cartoonist staff by (surprise!) radical Islamic terrorists.
 A killing which John Kerry would later describe as having "legitimacy" (for having mocked Islam) before backtracking and saying that the killers at least had a "rationale."
While world leaders met in Paris to show solidarity against terror, Obama failed to attend and refused to send any official representatives.
He did, however, eventually allow John Kerry to fly folk artist James Taylor to Paris to sing "You've Got a Friend."
Yes, there is more. Read on.....

After Ejecting, Plane Lands By ITSELF With Minimal Damage - World War Wings

After Ejecting, Plane Lands By ITSELF With Minimal Damage - World War Wings:
"You Seriously Can’t Make This Up!
This is the story of the “Corn Field Bomber,” but as the pilot explains, it should have become the story of the “Wheat Field Fighter.”
You’re confused we know, but we’ll get to that part in the video.
On February 2nd, 1970, Major Gary Foust took off in his F-106 Delta Dart along side his two wingmen. They were conducting a dogfighting exercise in which his wingmen were supposed to be the opponents. Getting into “vertical scissors” with one of them at about 40,000 feet, Foust’s Delta Dart got into a flat spin from which he could not recover.
F-106 Delta Dart were all-weather interceptor aircraft from the 60s to the 80s.
At about 8,000 feet, his wingmen told him to eject to which he of course complied.
The ejection went smoothly without a hitch, Faust landing safely a distance away.
As for the plane, he thought that it crashed.
There was really no other option if you think about it.
When in a flat spin, delta type aircraft have an even harder time recovering, so being unmanned after the ejection would point to a certain fireball.
That was not the case though.
Check out the video and let Foust tell you what happened later.
It’s actually an incredible story...."

Lunch video-----NUMBER ONE WITH A BULLET

Noon-toon

Even Teddy Roosevelt warned of Islamic danger

Even Teddy Roosevelt warned of Islamic danger:

"In his book “Fear God and Take Your Part,” 1916, Theodore Roosevelt wrote: “Christianity is not the creed of Asia and Africa at this moment solely because the seventh century Christians of Asia and Africa had trained themselves not to fight, whereas the Moslems were trained to fight. Christianity was saved in Europe solely because the peoples of Europe fought."

More than 100 Muslim employees fired after walkout in demand of prayer time

More than 100 Muslim employees fired after walkout in demand of prayer time | BizPac Review
"About 150 Somali-Muslim employees of a Colorado meat processing plant were fired after they walked out on the job, demanding prayer time, and refused to return.
Approximately 200 employees at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan staged the walkout, demanding various blocks of prayer time throughout the day, but a small number returned, according to The Denver Post.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, is negotiating on behalf of the those who didn’t return.
The Denver Post reported:
On Tuesday Cargill, through its attorneys, fired the workers who were holding out, said Jaylani Hussein, a spokesman and executive director of CAIR.
Cargill is a Kansas-based company.
Some of the fired employees have been working at the plant for up to 10 years, Hussein said. 
Cargill had previously allowed Muslim employees to pray at the plant, even providing a prayer room, he said."

Most PC Moments on College Campuses in 2015

Most PC Moments on College Campuses in 2015:
"Warning: This article contains both pronouns and references to maracas. 
It seems like 2015 has just been so full of examples of extreme political correctness on college campuses that it might be easy to forget just how full of them it’s been. 
Here, in no particular order, are the 13 stories of 2015 that made me most want to bash my head into a wall: 
1. Hating pumpkin-spice lattes was declared sexist. 
If you say bad things about pumpkin-spice lattes, what you’re really saying is that “girls don’t get to have valid emotions” — at least according to Min Cheng’s op-ed in the Phoenix, Swarthmore College’s student newspaper. 
According to Cheng, girls generally like pumpkin-spice lattes, therefore, saying that you don’t like them is saying that none of girls’ opinions ever matter. 
She said the same applies to making fun of leggings, Uggs, and Grey’s Anatomy — which, as I’ve said before, is probably the worst show ever created . . . perhaps second only to Gilmore Girls. 
2. A university language guide stated that the word “American” was “problematic.” 
According to a “Bias-Free Language Guide” that was used by the University of New Hampshire, the word “American” is offensive and should not be used. 
Why? 
Because it “fails to recognize South America” and “assumes the U.S. is the only country inside these two continents” of course! 
It recommends using “resident of the U.S.” instead, but I kind of feel like “I’m proud to be a resident of the U.S./Where at least I know I’m free” just doesn’t have the same ring to it. 
Now, the school ultimately removed the guide after media scrutiny — but the fact that it ever existed at all is pretty head-bashing-worthy if you ask me..."
Read on!

Time For Torches & Pitchforks——-The Little Guy Is About To Get Monkey-Hammered Again

Time For Torches & Pitchforks——-The Little Guy Is About To Get Monkey-Hammered Again | David Stockman's Contra Corner:
The reputations of Ben and Janet are going to be eviscerated in 2016. That’s because the US economy will slide into recession in defiance of every claim they have made for their snake oil monetary policies. 
The plain fact is, massive falsification of financial markets via their “wealth effects” doctrine did not levitate main street prosperity at all; it just fueled another giant speculative mania in the Wall Street casino.

The prospect that the leaders of our monetary politburo are about to be tarred and feathered by economic reality might be satisfying enough if it led to the repudiation of Keynesian central planning and a thorough housecleaning at the Fed. 

Unfortunately, it will also mean that tens of millions of retail investors and 401k holders will be taken to the slaughterhouse for the third time this century.

And this time the Fed is out of dry powder, meaning retail investors will never recover as they did after 2002 and 2009. 

Moreover, the overwhelming share of main street losses will be the among baby-boom demographic——sixty and seventy something’s who will be down for the count.

As Jim Quinn so graphically put it an the adjacent piece,

Investors are lazing around the waterhole like unsuspecting gazelles. This herd will be running for their lives in the near future, as danger is lurking.

Proof: Obama Planned the Deconstruction of America | The Black Sphere | TheBlackSphere.net

Proof: Obama Planned the Deconstruction of America | The Black Sphere | TheBlackSphere.net:

"A question often asked about Obama is, “Is he just incompetent at an unbelievable level, or is his destruction of America intentional?”
That may be two questions, but either way, America has suffered mightily at the hands of Obama. And there are many American who believe Obama’s dismantling of America is indeed intentional.
As one report  read:"

Playing the 'Bill card' against Hillary

Reynolds: Playing the 'Bill card' against Hillary:
Hillary Clinton stepped in it big time. Trotting out the “war on women” card that she has played so effectively, she charged Donald Trump with sexism.
But Trump, unlike other Republican candidates in the past, wasn’t having any of it.
He fired back, on Twitter, ”If Hillary thinks she can unleash her husband, with his terrible record of women abuse, while playing the women's card on me, she's wrong!”
And boom!

The issue switched to President Clinton’s record, turning him from a campaign asset to a campaign liability.
As the only president to be impeached over sexual harassment (technically, for lying about sexual harassment), and as a political figure who has faced numerous accusations of rape and sexual abuse, Bill Clinton isn’t a good choice for feminist standard-bearer.
Worse yet, bringing up Bill’s misbehavior also brings up Hillary’s role in covering for his abuses, and in attacking and humiliating his accusers.
Even The Washington Post’sRuth Marcus concluded that Trump was right, and that Bill’s awful record with women is "fair game.”
The former president, Marcus noted, has a real problem.
“ 'Sexism' isn’t the precise word for his predatory behavior toward women or his inexcusable relationship with a 22-year-old intern.
Yet in the larger scheme of things, Bill Clinton’s conduct toward women is far worse than any of the offensive things that Trump has said. 
Trump has smeared women because of their looks. 
Clinton has preyed on them, and in a workplace setting where he was by far the superior. 
That is uncomfortable for Clinton supporters but it is unavoidably true.”
Yes, and it’s a pretty ugly story.
As The New York Times' Maureen Dowd wrote, feminism died when Hillary and other top Democratic women circled the wagons around Bill and attacked his accusers:
“Feminism died in 1998 when Hillary allowed henchlings and Democrats to demonize Monica (Lewinsky) as an unbalanced stalker, and when Gloria Steinem defended Mr. Clinton against Kathleen Willey and Paula Jones by saying he had merely made clumsy passes, then accepted rejection, so there was no sexual harassment involved.
As to his dallying with an emotionally immature (22-year-old), Ms. Steinem noted, ‘Welcome sexual behavior is about as relevant to sexual harassment as borrowing a car is to stealing one.’ ”...

History for January 3

History for January 3 - On-This-Day.com
Marcus Tullius Cicero 106 B.C., J.R.R. Tolkien 1892, Victor Borge 1909 


Stephen Stills 1945 - Musician (Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills and Nash), Mel Gibson 1956 - Actor ("Braveheart," "Lethal Weapon" movies), Danica McKellar 1975 - Actress ("The Wonder Years") 


1777 - The Battle of Princeton took place in the War of Independence, in which George Washington defeated the British forces, led by Cornwallis. 


1833 - Britain seized control of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. About 150 years later, Argentina seized the islands from the British, but Britain took them back after a 74-day war. 


1871 - Henry W. Bradley patented oleomargarine. 


1888 - The drinking straw was patented by Marvin C. Stone. 


1925 - In Italy, Mussolini announced that he would take dictatorial powers. 


1951 - NBC-TV debuted "Dragnet." 


1957 - The Hamilton Watch Company introduced the first electric watch. 


1990 - Ousted Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega surrendered to U.S. forces, 10 days after taking refuge in the Vatican's diplomatic mission.