Wednesday, November 30, 2011

The 5 Best Toys of All Time

The 5 Best Toys of All Time GeekDad Wired.com

Weather’s Too Nice For Global Warming Alarmists

Weather’s Too Nice For Global Warming Alarmists - Latest Headlines - Investors.com
Sunday will be the 2,232nd consecutive day that the U.S. has gone without being hit by a major hurricane.
This is a big enough deal to be covered by the mainstream media.
But of course it won't be.
On Dec. 4, a new record will be set for the number of days between landfalls of category 3 or stronger storms.
The previous streak, according to Roger Pielke Jr., began on Sept. 8, 1900, and ended on Oct. 19, 1906, when the Great Galveston Hurricane hit.

Islamist parties on course to dominate Egypt's parliament

Islamist parties on course to dominate Egypt's parliament - Telegraph
Both the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), which is backed by the Muslim Brotherhood, and its rivals agreed that it was leading the count...

As predicted but still terrible news for the world.

'Prepare for armageddon'

'Prepare for armageddon' The Sun NewsSun City
BRITAIN'S banks have been told to prepare for the end of the Eurozone, it emerged today.

The ugly truth about pension reform

GUEST OPINION: The ugly truth about pension reform PressDemocrat.com
Any pension reform proposal that hopes to make a meaningful, positive impact on a public employer's budget must address the cost of pensions for current employees.

Obama's Christmas Tree Tax

Obama's Christmas Tree Tax
".... in the Federal Register of November 8, it was announced that the Secretary of Agriculture will appoint a Christmas Tree Promotion Board to run a “program of promotion, research, evaluation, and information designed to strengthen the Christmas tree industry’s position in the marketplace.”
Among its goals: “to enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States.”
Yes, you read that correctly.
The Obama Administration wanted the federal government to handle public relations for Christmas trees.
How did the White House want to pay for it? With a 15-cent fee on all sales of fresh Christmas trees by sellers of more than 500 trees per year.
As Addington wrote, “Of course, the Christmas tree sellers are free to pass along the 15-cent federal fee to consumers who buy their Christmas trees.”
More taxes for American consumers in the middle of the Christmas season? Some present. Especially with the economy barely growing and 14 million Americans out of work.
As Addington wrote, “Is a new tax on Christmas trees the best President Obama can do?”

America's Tallest Singing Christmas Tree




The Mona Shores Singing Christmas Tree show starts tomorrow night.
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2011/11/more-from-americas-tallest-singing.html
(don't miss clicking on the TLC TV link at the bottom of the Chronicle article)

and this:
http://muskegontaxpayers.blogspot.com/2011/11/americas-tallest-singing-christmas-tree.html

Obamaisms - Dumb Barack Obama Quotes - Gaffes and Obama-isms

Obamaisms - Dumb Barack Obama Quotes - Gaffes and Obama-isms

World traveler Barry Hussein's latest missed by MSM: http://blog.heritage.org/2011/11/29/does-obama-know-the-difference-between-great-britain-and-england/

But the democrat media made big news of this yesterday:http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/11/rick-perry-flubs-voting-age-and-election-date/

NTSB Looking At Phoenix Airspace

AVwebBiz Complete Issue#205809#205809
He also told newspaper that the aircraft flew in a straight line at 4,500 feet, 500 feet below the Class B floor in that area directly into a cliff in the Superstition Mountains.
Local pilots fought changing the floor from 8,000 feet to 5,000 feet when the FAA proposed it in 2006 and their spokesman didn't mince words on its role in the Thanksgiving Eve crash.
James Timm, executive director of the Arizona Pilots Association, suggested an accident was inevitable.
"You expect (an accident) to happen, and you hope it never will.
It has come to pass," Timm said.
"We were concerned about it from the very beginning.
We pushed very hard to get more space."

Chapter 11 For American Airlines

AVwebBiz
Chapter 11 For American Airlines
American said its labor contracts cost $600 million more each year than other legacy airlines pay.

Scientists Behaving Badly

Scientists Behaving Badly - Jim Lacey - National Review Online#.TtRDLXx20vQ.mailto#.TtRDLXx20vQ.mailto#.TtRDLXx20vQ.mailto
In truth, virtually the entire warmist edifice is built around a small, tightly knit coterie of persons (one hesitates to refer to folks with so little respect for the scientific method as scientists) willing to falsify data and manipulate findings; or, to put it bluntly, to lie in order to push a political agenda not supported by empirical evidence.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Obama's Job Approval Drops Below Carter's

Obama's Job Approval Drops Below Carter's - Washington Whispers (usnews.com)
President Obama's slow ride down Gallup's daily presidential job approval index has finally passed below Jimmy Carter, earning Obama the worst job approval rating of any president at this stage of his term in modern political history.

Want To Be Carbon-Free? Bring On The Nukes

Want To Be Carbon-Free? Bring On The Nukes - Latest Headlines - Investors.com

Monday, November 28, 2011

Loved by media, Barney Frank Helped Cause Financial Crisis

Loved by media, Barney Frank Helped Cause Financial Crisis - Latest Headlines - Investors.com
"I, like many others, did not see the crisis coming," Frank said Monday.
He sure didn't.
Back in 2003, what did he say when the Bush administration proposed what the New York Times described as "the most significant regulatory overhaul in the housing finance industry since the savings and loan crisis a decade ago," including a new agency to supervise Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
Frank said: "The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing."

Consumer Delinquencies Starting To Creep Back Up

Consumer Delinquencies Starting To Creep Back Up
5 Charts That Show That Suddenly Something Is Going Wrong With The Consumer

The Great Global Warming Fizzle

Stephens: The Great Global Warming Fizzle - WSJ.com
Consider the case of global warming, another system of doomsaying prophecy and faith in things unseen.
As with religion, it is presided over by a caste of spectacularly unattractive people pretending to an obscure form of knowledge that promises to make the seas retreat and the winds abate.
As with religion, it comes with an elaborate list of virtues, vices and indulgences.
As with religion, its claims are often non-falsifiable, hence the convenience of the term "climate change" when thermometers don't oblige the expected trend lines.
As with religion, it is harsh toward skeptics, heretics and other "deniers."
And as with religion, it is susceptible to the earthly temptations of money, power, politics, arrogance and deceit.

Secret Fed Loans Helped Banks Net $13B

Secret Fed Loans Helped Banks Net $13B - Bloomberg
Add up guarantees and lending limits, and the Fed had committed $7.77 trillion as of March 2009 to rescuing the financial system, more than half the value of everything produced in the U.S. that year.

Editorial: Full Emails Show Climategate 2.0 is More Than Just Hot Air

DailyTech - Editorial: Full Emails Show Climategate 2.0 is More Than Just Hot Air
Full emails show inarguably the researchers fought transparency, to keep public in the dark

Following Delay of the Keystone XL Pipeline to U.S, China is Anxious to Tap Into Canada's Tar Sands Oil

CARPE DIEM: Following Delay of the Keystone XL Pipeline to U.S, China is Anxious to Tap Into Canada's Tar Sands Oil
"Canadian politicians and energy executives are ratcheting up support for several big infrastructure projects aimed at redirecting the country's growing oil output to thirsty Asian markets—a move seen as crucial in preventing a looming bottleneck of crude.

Muslim students walking out of lectures on Darwinism because it 'clashes with the Koran'

Muslim students walking out of lectures on Darwinism because it 'clashes with the Koran' Mail Online
Muslim students, including trainee doctors on one of Britain's leading medical courses, are walking out of lectures on evolution claiming it conflicts with creationist ideas established in the Koran.

EyeOnMuskegon 11-27-2011 "The Rich"

Memo to the Occupy protesters: here are ten things we evil capitalists really think

Memo to the Occupy protesters: here are ten things we evil capitalists really think – Telegraph Blogs

Climategate 2.0

James Delingpole: Climategate 2.0 - WSJ.com
Like the first "climategate" leak of 2009, the latest release shows top scientists in the field fudging data, conspiring to bully and silence opponents, and displaying far less certainty about the reliability of anthropogenic global warming theory in private than they ever admit in public.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Colin Powell Blames Media and Tea Party for Divisive Tone in Washington

Colin Powell Blames Media and Tea Party for Divisive Tone in Washington NewsBusters.org
Colin Powell on Sunday blamed the media as well as the Tea Party for the divisive political tone in Washington.
Not surprisingly, neither the class warfare stoked by President Obama and his Party nor the resulting Occupy Wall Street movement was mentioned during this seven minute interview with Christiane Amanpour on ABC's This Week (video follows with transcript and commentary):

And the GOPers wanted this liberal moron to be their presidential nominee?

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Curbing class-action suits that benefit lawyers, but not plaintiffs

Curbing class-action suits that benefit lawyers, but not plaintiffs Washington Examiner
Imagine that you get a congratulatory note in the mail because you won a multimillion-dollar settlement in a class-action lawsuit.
Only problem is, you didn't even know you were involved in the case, so what does "your" victory mean for you?
You get nothing, but the lawyers who brought the lawsuit will be paid handsomely, and some obscure charities also get big financial windfalls.

The class action lawyers are pure democrat supporters.
Remember in November.
There is a difference between the political parties!

Report: Michigan's jobless benefit system falls short of other Midwest states

Report: Michigan's jobless benefit system falls short of other Midwest states

Pensions strike will hit thousands of NHS operations

Pensions strike will hit thousands of NHS operations, says Andrew Lansley - Telegraph
The Department of Health estimates one in five NHS staff could strike on November 30, which officials think might lead to a 20 per cent drop in capacity.
That would equate to 5,500 pre-planned operations having to be rescheduled as well as 12,000 diagnostic tests.
It would also mean 40,000 outpatient appointments being delayed, and 7,500 ambulance transfers.

"Free" government "health care"!

Why E.U. Collapse is More Likely Than the Fall of the Euro

Guest commentary: Why E.U. Collapse is More Likely Than the Fall of the Euro MLive.com
But the thing that could cause the European Union to topple, or at least shrink in size, would be the outright withdrawal of Britain.
And that has started to look quite possible.

Global Warming Models Called Into Question By New Study

Global Warming Models Called Into Question By New Study - Latest Headlines - Investors.com
The study in the journal Science found that global temperatures appear to be far less sensitive to the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere than originally estimated.
This sounds prosaic, but it's a bombshell — another in a long line of revelations showing the scientific fraud at the heart of the anti-global warming movement.

As Banks Struggle, U.S. Gov't Tries To Take Them Down

As Banks Struggle, U.S. Gov't Tries To Take Them Down - Latest Headlines - Investors.com
Bankers were ordered to "reinvest" in unprofitable areas, and reallocate capital to people who posed credit risks.
When those risky loans went bad, radicals blamed "greedy" bankers and "predatory" lenders.
Today, they want to punish bankers and lenders by forcing them to "repair the damages" that they themselves caused.
And they don't care if it drives many of them out of business.

Pepper-Spraying Taxpayers

Pepper-Spraying Taxpayers - Heather Mac Donald - National Review Online
his 2009 base pay of $194,000 was nearly four times that of starting assistant professors.
Basri was given responsibility for a $4.5 million slice of Berkeley’s vast diversity bureaucracy when he became the school’s first Vice Chancellor for Equity and Inclusion in 2007;

The Non-Green Jobs Boom

Review & Outlook: The Non-Green Jobs Boom - WSJ.com
While Washington has tried to force-feed renewable energy with tens of billions in special subsidies, oil and gas production has boomed thanks to private investment.

Why blacks aren’t embracing Occupy Wall Street

Why blacks aren’t embracing Occupy Wall Street - The Washington Post
“Occupy Wall Street was started by whites and is about their concern with their plight,”

Friday, November 25, 2011

Climategate 2.0: Lawson squishes Huhne

Climategate 2.0: Lawson squishes Huhne – Telegraph Blogs
But here he is with Lord Turner, gently suggesting in a roundabout way that Huhne is both incredibly stupid and a big fat liar.

Deconstructing Solyndra

Deconstructing Solyndra - Yahoo! News
The pressure the White House was putting on the Energy Department to ensure Solyndra, its first recipient of a stimulus-backed loan guarantee, would quickly succeed was intense and unrelenting. Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Chu made public statements about how Solyndra was the prototype for both stimulus jobs and clean-energy innovation in 2010 when the company’s finances were going south.

Climategate 2.0: the most damning email of them all

Climategate 2.0: the most damning email of them all – Telegraph Blogs
The worst, most toecurlingly awful, damning, vile, reprehensible, stomach-churningly dreadful email – the one that shows the Warmist junk-scientists in a light of such festering syphilitic repellance they can never possibly recover is this, the Christmas ditty specially written by Kevin Trenberth in celebration of the Nobel committee's comedic decision to award the Peace Prize to Al Gore and the IPCC.
Hold onto your stomachs real tight boys and girls, here we go

Spending Wars

Articles: Spending Wars
The ideas that federal spending exploded under George W. Bush, that "Bush's wars" account for our spending explosion, that Reaganism died with Reagan, and that we are on a spending binge that started decades ago are all nonsense.

Yet We Still Don't Drug Screen Welfare Recipients

RightMichigan.com Yet We Still Don't Drug Screen Welfare Recipients
"So, let me get this straight... we are supposed to be outraged that employees are doping it up at a business that prohibits drug use, which is paid by our tax dollars.
Yet, we have individuals on welfare, some for generations, which are funded by our same tax dollars that are not screened for drug use?
Yessiree.
Only in Michigan!"

World News: Seniors scammed into buying 70 years’ worth of toilet paper

World News: Seniors scammed into buying 70 years’ worth of toilet paper - thestar.com
MIAMI—Florida scam artists told elderly victims the government had changed the laws regulating toilet paper and that their septic tanks would be ruined unless they bought specially formulated rolls, court documents said.

Wanted: Ebonics Translator for Federal DEA Job

#.Ts9dhGNFunA#.Ts9dhGNFunA#.Ts9dhGNFunA#.Ts9dhGNFunA#.Ts9dhGNFunA
The U.S. Department of Justice is looking for fluent Ebonics speakers to fill nine drug enforcement jobs, giving merit to a dialect that experts say is often mimicked and little understood.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Massive global health fund says it's broke

Massive global health fund says it's broke - CBS News
The fund had to make some "tough decisions to protect some of the gains that have already been delivered," he added.
Among those decisions were that hundreds of millions of dollars in grants planned for China, Brazil, Mexico and Russia will now be used for other purposes, fund officials said.

CHINA?

Death of a currency as eurogeddon approaches

Death of a currency as eurogeddon approaches - Telegraph
No, what this is about is the markets starting to bet on what was previously a minority view - a complete collapse, or break-up, of the euro.

George Washington thanked God for USA

Column: George Washington thanked God for USA – USATODAY.com
In his 1789 proclamation, President Washington listed the blessings for which his countrymen should be thankful.
As we gather with our family and friends, we Americans still have much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving — including the wisdom and foresight of the founders' remarkable vision of religious freedom.

A Special Thanks From Sparty

Exposing the Cost of Health Care

Exposing the Cost of Health Care - Technology Review
Travelocity for medicine: Castlight's data-driven tool sheds light on the costs of medical care, information that can be difficult for consumers to find on their own.
Credit: Castlight Health

America’s first socialist republic

America’s first socialist republic Power Line
We have much to learn from the history of the Plymouth Plantation.
For, in their first year in the New World, the Pilgrims conducted an experiment in social engineering akin to what is now contemplated; and, after an abortive attempt at cultivating the land in common, their leaders reflected on the results in a manner that Americans today should find instructive.

Japan ‘May Be’ Close to a Downgrade: S&P

Japan ‘May Be’ Close to a Downgrade: S&P - Bloomberg
“Japan’s finances are getting worse and worse every day, every second,” Takahira Ogawa, director of sovereign ratings at S&P in Singapore, said in an interview.

Death Panels, Shmeath Panels

Death Panels, Shmeath Panels. Chicks On The Right
I mean, it’s a call into a radio show, so I have nothing other than this audio to show you that proves what the caller says.
But I also have no reason to believe some random dude would pretend to be a neurosurgeon who just came back from an HHS update on Obamacare in DC, because ultimately this will be proven or disproven, and it will have done no good to make stuff up.

Death panels.
Listen and wonder.

J.R. Martinez: Who is the 'Dancing with the Stars' winner?

J.R. Martinez: Who is the 'Dancing with the Stars' winner? - NYPOST.com
A few months into his service, the truck he was driving hit a land mine and the explosion burned over 40 percent of Martinez's body, including his face.
He was evacuated to Germany for treatment and spent a year and a half in hospital care, undergoing more than 30 surgeries.
Martinez had to relearn many basic tasks, including walking.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

U.S. Rep Sander Levin organizing support for an unemployment insurance extension

U.S. Rep Sander Levin organizing support for an unemployment insurance extension MLive.com
Rep. Sander Levin is hosting a forum to organize support for a federal extension of unemployment insurance.

The CBO Quietly Downgrades Obama's $825 Bil Stimulus

The CBO Quietly Downgrades Obama's $825 Bil Stimulus - Latest Headlines - Investors.com
The new report finds, for example, that the stimulus may have added as little as 0.7% to GDP growth in 2010 — when spending was at its peak

Review & Outlook: Warren Buffett's Tax Dodge

Review & Outlook: Warren Buffett's Tax Dodge - WSJ.com
The billionaire volunteers the middle class for a tax increase.

Uh oh, global warming loons: here comes Climategate II!

Uh oh, global warming loons: here comes Climategate II! – Telegraph Blogs
In other words, what these emails confirm is that the great man-made global warming scare is not about science but about political activism

Climate change and extreme weather: What’s the connection?

Climate change and extreme weather: What’s the connection? - Slate Magazine
Sorting through the confusion on “extreme weather events.”

Why swirling wine in a glass makes it taste better

Why swirling wine in a glass makes it taste better - Telegraph
Wine buffs who swirl their drink in a glass are using the sophisticated physics of wave technology to unleash the flavour, scientists say.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Monday, November 21, 2011

uppity | Michelle Obama | NASCAR

uppity Michelle Obama NASCAR The Daily Caller
“Bottom line: We don’t like being told what to eat,” Limbaugh said.
“We don’t like being told how much to exercise.
We don’t like being told what we’ve got to drive.
We don’t like wasting money.
We don’t like our economy being bankrupted.
We don’t like 14 percent unemployment.
The question is, what is there to cheer for when Ms. Obama and Ms. Biden show up?”

How One Man Played 'Moneyball' With 'Jeopardy!'

How One Man Played 'Moneyball' With 'Jeopardy!' : NPR
"Everybody that wants to succeed at a game is going to practice at the game," he says.
"You can practice haphazardly, or you can practice efficiently. And that's what I did."

"Obama's Pig

European Debt Crisis Threatens U.S. Money Market Funds

European Debt Crisis Threatens U.S. Money Market Funds

"We've done a lot to prepare the banking sector," Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank, said on Wednesday.
"I'm less confident about the money market funds and their ability to weather major problems at European institutions."
........Many investors believe money funds are as safe as lower-yielding bank accounts even though it is common knowledge that that they are not backed by the federal insurance that protects bank deposits.

Less well known, and of concern to U.S. officials, is that the money funds cannot count on the protection measures that were pulled together to help them in 2008.

Peter Schweizer responds

Peter Schweizer responds Power Line
The claim that John Kerry has no incentive to transfer information for stock profit also doesn’t make sense.
Who cares if he is already rich?
Martha Stewart was worth more than $1 billion when she was charged with it.
Research indicates that insider trading is usually not about the money, but a sense of entitlement.
3. The claim by Jenkins and Scott here that this information is not all that valuable anyway also flies in the face of reality.
Hedge funds that are politically connected perform dramatically better than those that aren’t.
And hedge funds are paying lobbyists huge sums of money to tell them what bills will pass and when so they can execute trades on that information.

BORN in a Prison Camp, Mr. Shin Thought North Korea's Torture was "Normal"

BORN in a Prison Camp, Mr. Shin Thought North Korea's Torture was "Normal" Red County
Watching his mother and brother executed for trying to escape, Shin told us he "didn't shed a tear," thinking this barbaric black hole was "normal." He even justified his punishment --burnings and whippings-- for their actions.
When prison guards cut-off his finger tip for accidently damaging a sewing machine, he was grateful his punishment wasn't worse.
Mr. Shin took the initiative to escape mainly because he had to --he was starving.
Once in South Korea, he was surprised the world had color.

The Naughty Professor

Wolfram: The Naughty Professor themichiganview.com The Michigan View
- does raise questions about ethical behavior in a taxpayer-funded institution.
Danny Guthrie, associate professor of photography in MSU's Art Department, began taking nude photos of himself and current and former students according to a recent article in The State News.
When university officials told Guthrie to cease the photo shoots, he resisted.

James Hansen and the Corruption of Science

James Hansen and the Corruption of Science Power Line
We can’t say it enough: global warming alarmism is not science.
It is politics at best, outright fraud at worst.

Obama Admin Bans US Aircraft Maker, Favors Non-US Firm with Ties to Iran on Light Aircraft Project

The PJ Tatler » Obama Admin Bans US Aircraft Maker, Favors Non-US Firm with Ties to Iran on Light Aircraft Project
Why is the administration making a decision to exclude an American manufacturer in favor of a maker with such a history?
This is the Obama administration’s second billion-dollar giveaway to the Brazilian government in 2011; the first was its outrageous offshore oil loan guarantee decision in March.
The two decisions siphon more than $2 billion and more than 21,000 jobs out of the US economy

The Tebow Haters

The Tebow Haters - HUMAN EVENTS
Good people make bad people uncomfortable.
Their example nudges everyone to undertake the hard work to be better.
Our faults are so much easier to tolerate when we stand next to Jerry Sandusky​.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Why Yankee Doodle called it “macaroni”

The Volokh Conspiracy » Why Yankee Doodle called it “macaroni”
The question has bothered me for decades.
We sang “Yankee Doodle” plenty of times at school, but nobody seemed to wonder why he would say that “a feather in his cap” was “macaroni.”

With Deadline Nearing, What Happens if Super Committee Talks Collapse?

Thanksgiving Meal for Ten Only $34.03 at Walmart

CARPE DIEM: Thanksgiving Meal for Ten Only $34.03 at Walmart
Update 1:
"What single organization in human history has made the greatest contribution to enriching and improving the lives of the poor, the middle class, the average citizen, the bottom of "the 99%," etc.?
I nominate Walmart."

EyeOnMuskegon 11-20-2011

14,000 abandoned wind turbines

14,000 abandoned wind turbines « Don Surber
When an honest history of this period in the United States is written, it will no be kind to the corporate cronyism that preyed upon public ignorance of earth science to create a crisis — global warming — to exploit and loot the Treasury

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Elite Firms Fishing in a Very Small Hiring Poo

Elite Firms Fishing in a Very Small Hiring Pool - Megan McArdle - Business - The Atlantic

1. Most applications practically go straight in the trash.


2. Evaluators have a lot of slack. . . . In fact, evaluators explicitly select candidates similar to themselves in school rank, grades, etc. For example:
[R]oughly one-third of evaluators did not use educational prestige as a signal.
One of the primary differences between these two groups was their own educational history, with those who had attended "top" schools being more likely to use educational prestige as a screen than those who had attended other types of selective institutions.

3. Super-elite credentials matter much more than your academic record:
[E]valuators drew strong distinctions between top four universities, schools that I term the super-elite, and other types of selective colleges and universities.
So-called "public Ivies" such as University of Michigan and Berkeley were not considered elite or even prestigious...

4. Super-elite schools matter because they're strong signals, not because they're better at building human capital:
Evaluators relied so intensely on "school" as a criterion of evaluation not because they believed that the content of elite curricula better prepared students for life in their firms - in fact, evaluators tended to believe that elite and, in particular, super-elite instruction was "too abstract," "overly theoretical," or even "useless" compared to the more "practical" and "relevant" training offered at "lesser" institutions...

[I]t was not the content of an elite education that employers valued but rather the perceived rigor of these institutions' admissions processes. According to this logic, the more prestigious a school, the higher its "bar" for admission, and thus the "smarter" its student body. . .

5. At least in this elite sample, I'm totally wrong to think that extracurriculars don't matter:

[E]valuators believed that the most attractive and enjoyable coworkers and candidates would be those who had strong extracurricular "passions." They also believed that involvement in activities outside of the classroom was evidence of superior social skill; they assumed a lack of involvement was a signal of social deficiencies... By contrast, those without significant extracurricular experiences or those who participated in activities that were primarily academically or pre-professionally oriented were perceived to be "boring," "tools," "bookworms," or "nerds" who might turn out to be "corporate drones" if hired.

Nancy Pelosi Wants A Federal Babysitting Service

Nancy Pelosi Wants A Federal Babysitting Service
"One of the great pieces of unfinished business is high-quality child care; I wonder why we just can’t do that,’’ she recently said to a California audience.

Sierra Club leader departs amid discontent over group's direction

Sierra Club leader departs amid discontent over group's direction - latimes.com
He was replaced by Michael Brune, 40, a veteran of smaller activist groups, who has pledged to concentrate on grass-roots organizing, recruit new members and focus on such issues as coal-fired power plants.

Penn State’s institutional wickedness

Mark Steyn: Penn State’s institutional wickedness assistant, graduate, state - Opinion - The Orange County Register
Hold it right there.
"The next morning"?
Here surely is an almost too perfect snapshot of a culture that simultaneously destroys childhood and infantilizes adulthood.

The "child" in this vignette ought to be the 10-year-old boy, "hands up against the wall," but, instead, the "man" appropriates the child role for himself: Why, the graduate assistant is so "distraught" that he has to leave and telephone his father.
He is pushing 30, an age when previous generations would have had little boys of their own.
But today, confronted by a grade-schooler being sodomized before his eyes, the poor distraught child-man approaching early middle-age seeks out some fatherly advice, like one of Fred MacMurray's "My Three Sons" might have done had he seen the boy next door swiping a can of soda pop from the lunch counter.

....."When we say 'we don't know what we'd do under the same circumstances,' we make cowardice the default position."

Friday, November 18, 2011

State employee pension systems deliver budget shock

State employee pension systems deliver budget shock - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register
Most for university pensions
The university system is the main reason for the increase.
SURS originally expected to need $1.06 billion next year.
Instead it told lawmakers and the governor’s office it needs $1.4 billion, up from $980.5 billion this year.

Detroit's clock striking midnight

Stephen Henderson: Detroit's clock striking midnight Detroit Free Press freep.com
The City of Detroit is running out of money.
Not in the theoretical terms we've imagined for decades, but in literal figures, splayed out over spreadsheets that tell a long story of mismanagement and incompetence, culminating in insolvency.
Cash runs out by April, unless dramatic steps are taken.

Treasury Admits What Everybody Already Knew: Taxpayer Losses On GM Bailout Are Going to be Massive

Treasury Admits What Everybody Already Knew: Taxpayer Losses On GM Bailout Are Going to be Massive - Hit & Run : Reason Magazine
This means that the total hit to taxpayers, who still own about a quarter of the company, could add up to $38.6 billion.
That’s even more that the $34 billion on the outside I had predicted in May.

One in four American women take medication for a mental disorder

One in four American women take medication for a mental disorder Mail Online
More than one in four American women took at least one drug for conditions like anxiety and depression last year, according to an analysis of prescription data.
The report, by pharmacy benefits manager Medco Health Solutions Inc, found the use of drugs for psychiatric and behavioral disorders in all adults rose 22per cent from 2001.

Labor Unions Have 'Occupied' Occupy Wall Street

Labor Unions Have 'Occupied' Occupy Wall Street Business News
"the group has secured visible backing from organized labor. They now have the support of the most powerful organizing group in the country. The home page of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) even helps people to find an OWS location near them so that they can protest".

Bing to lay off 1,000 workers, freeze hiring

Bing to lay off 1,000 workers, freeze hiring Crain's Detroit Business
Detroit Mayor Dave Bing plans to lay off 1,000 city workers, effective Feb. 25, and freeze hiring for all civil service positions.

FuturePundit: Europe Boosting CO2 Emissions With Biofuels Mandate

FuturePundit: Europe Boosting CO2 Emissions With Biofuels Mandate
A new study on greenhouse gas emissions from oil palm plantations has calculated a more than 50% increase in levels of CO2 emissions than previously thought – and warned that the demand for 'green' biofuels could be costing the earth.

Will physician Medicare fees be cut by 27.4% this January?

Will physician Medicare fees be cut by 27.4% this January? Crain's Detroit Business
Fixing the broken physician Medicare fee schedule appears to be too complicated for Washington politicians

AFP: Pentagon successfully tests hypersonic flying bomb

AFP: Pentagon successfully tests hypersonic flying bomb
The Pentagon on Thursday held a successful test flight of a flying bomb that travels faster than the speed of sound and will give military planners the ability to strike targets anywhere in the world in less than a hour.

Shouldn't this be sorta... like... secret...?

Thursday, November 17, 2011

EU says water is not healthy

Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express UK News :: EU says water is not healthy
In a scarcely believable ­ruling, a panel of experts threw out a claim that regular water consumption is the best way to rehydrate the body.
The bizarre diktat from Brussels has far-reaching implications for member states, including Britain, as no water sold in the EU can now claim to protect against dehydration.

US stealth bombers finally get nuke-nobbling super bomb

US stealth bombers finally get nuke-nobbling super bomb • The Register

You can have the euro or you can have democracy – you can't have both

You can have the euro or you can have democracy – you can't have both – Telegraph Blogs

The New Welfare Swindle

The American Spectator : The New Welfare Swindle
Ever since I moved to the inner city one thing has puzzled me more than any other, and that is how my low-income neighbors get by.
Assuming they aren't doing anything illegal, how do they afford their homes, their meals, their gadgets, their cars?

Medical-Device Companies | Obamacare

Health Care Law Medical-Device Companies Obamacare The Daily Caller
The 2010 law imposed a crippling 10-year, $20 billion tax on revenues — not on profits — earned by companies that make medical devices, such as catheters, artery-clearing stents, scalpels and pacemakers.

Cali to Business: Get Out!

Cali to Business: Get Out! by Steven Malanga, City Journal Autumn 2011
But there was a big “push factor,” too: California’s steepening taxes and ever-thickening snarl of government regulations.
“The tipping point was when someone from the Orange County tax [assessor] wanted to see our facility to tax every piece of equipment I had,”

Beer can helps increase Wi Fi coverage

The next financial crisis will be hellish, and it’s on its way

The next financial crisis will be hellish, and it’s on its way - Yahoo! News
"There is definitely going to be another financial crisis around the corner," says hedge fund legend Mark Mobius, "because we haven't solved any of the things that caused the previous crisis."
We're raising our alert status for the next financial crisis.
We already raised it last week after spreads on U.S. credit default swaps started blowing out.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Rep. West to Media: ‘Stop Being Afraid of This President’ Who ‘Is Destroying This Country’

Rep. West to Media: ‘Stop Being Afraid of This President’ Who ‘Is Destroying This Country’ CNSnews.com
Congressman Allen West (R-Fla.) called on the media to “stop being afraid” of President Barack Obama who is “destroying this country.”

Man Who Killed Mom And Two Daughters In 1989 Executed In Florida

Man Who Killed Mom And Two Daughters In 1989 Executed In Florida Fox News
A U.S. man convicted of killing a woman and her two teenage daughters in June 1989 as the victims returned from a dream vacation to Disney World has been executed.

Read more about this monster and those poor women:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oba_Chandler

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Rebecca Coriam: lost at sea

Rebecca Coriam: lost at sea World news The Guardian
There have been 171 disappearances in total, across all cruise lines, since 2000.

Report: Clinton County man sentenced to 90 days in jail for sexual act with neighbor's horse

man sentenced to 90 days in jail for sexual act with neighbor's horse MLive.com
Surveillance footage captured Mester, who is married, in June walking into his neighbor's horse pasture, standing on an overturned bucket and having some sort of sexual intercourse with a thoroughbred mare

Monday, November 14, 2011

“PIIGS Are Us!” David Walker on Why Americans Can’t Ignore Europe’s Crisis

“PIIGS Are Us!” David Walker on Why Americans Can’t Ignore Europe’s Crisis Daily Ticker - Yahoo! Finance
"Europe is in one of its toughest, perhaps the toughest hour since World War Two," Germany chancellor Angela Merkel said Monday

Maryland | Vandalism

Maryland Vandalism Dan Bongino The Daily Caller
Dan Bongino, a former U.S. Secret Service agent and a Maryland Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, told The Daily Caller that cars belonging to his pregnant wife and three of his staffers were vandalized — and he’s convinced it was a politically motivated attack.

The "peaceful" left.
I'm sure you'll hear more about this on ABC, CBS, NBC etc........yeah right!

Johnny Depp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Johnny Depp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Controversy
Comments on U.S.In 2003, Depp's comments about the United States appeared in Germany's Stern magazine: "America is dumb, is something like a dumb puppy that has big teeth — that can bite and hurt you, aggressive."[65]
Although he later asserted that the magazine misquoted him and the quotation was taken out of context, Stern stood by its story, as did CNN.com in its coverage of the interview.
CNN added his remark that he would like his children "to see America as a toy, a broken toy.
Investigate it a little, check it out, get this feeling and then get out."[66]
The July 17, 2006 edition of Newsweek reprinted the "dumb puppy" quotation, verbatim, in the context of a Letter to the Magazine.

Depp has also disagreed with subsequent media reports that he says paint him as a "European wannabe", saying that he likes the anonymity of living in France and his simpler life there.[65]

In 2011, Depp moved back to the U.S., because he said the taxes in France were too high.[67]