...in the challenge posed to him by J. Scott Armstrong.
It's obvious the The Goreacle is scared silly his pet project will be exposed for the fraud it is.
Why are we not surprised?
Monday, March 31, 2008
Understanding the Dems' nomination problem
It's all going to be up to the lawyers, it would appear.
"But the Democrats appear to be a party of lawyers. Only lawyers could have invented delegate selection rules as complicated and opaque as the ones the Democrats are struggling under. It also looks like only lawyers have a chance at the Democratic nomination. Harvard Law (Obama) and Yale Law (Clinton) candidates have survived, while University of North Carolina Law (Edwards), Syracuse Law (Biden), and the University of Louisville Law (Dodd) have been eliminated. And lawyers at the DNC Rules Committee will decide what happens next."
How fitting for the party who tied up the '00 election for weeks through legal nonsense.
(hat tip: Donald Luskin)
"But the Democrats appear to be a party of lawyers. Only lawyers could have invented delegate selection rules as complicated and opaque as the ones the Democrats are struggling under. It also looks like only lawyers have a chance at the Democratic nomination. Harvard Law (Obama) and Yale Law (Clinton) candidates have survived, while University of North Carolina Law (Edwards), Syracuse Law (Biden), and the University of Louisville Law (Dodd) have been eliminated. And lawyers at the DNC Rules Committee will decide what happens next."
How fitting for the party who tied up the '00 election for weeks through legal nonsense.
(hat tip: Donald Luskin)
More regulation of the financial/housing market?
Be careful of what you wish for. The "solution" may likely be worse than the problem.
"Many American homeowners are facing financial hardships resulting from onerous mortgages and falling home values. Many investors are facing financial losses as the risky instruments they bought in happier times decline in value. These processes must work through to conclusion for the economy to regain a sound footing, and the private sector is working effectively toward this end.
Congressional action cannot change this reality, except by prolonging and exacerbating the situation. Congress should focus its energies on policies to strengthen the economy coming out of the current slowdown."
Myths and realities about Uncle Sugar's major social entitlement programs
It's much worse than you think, especially in the area of Medicare.
Excerpt:
"...America faces a future of soaring taxes and government spending that will cause poor economic performance. Americans will pay onerous taxes, and future generations will have lower living standards than Americans enjoy today. The longer lawmakers wait to enact the necessary reforms, the more painful those reforms will be."
Beware the so-called "experts" (including Congressional Dems) who call for a gutting or elimination of the Medicare Advantage ("Part C") program.
These people fail to see beyond the immediate dollars and sense of this program, and greedily eye a quick and easy target to use while grandstanding about "children's health insurance" (the misguided and back door socialized medicine plan known as "SCHIP"), while ignoring the unintended consequences of such a move.
(hat tip: John Hood, at The Locker Room)
Excerpt:
"...America faces a future of soaring taxes and government spending that will cause poor economic performance. Americans will pay onerous taxes, and future generations will have lower living standards than Americans enjoy today. The longer lawmakers wait to enact the necessary reforms, the more painful those reforms will be."
Beware the so-called "experts" (including Congressional Dems) who call for a gutting or elimination of the Medicare Advantage ("Part C") program.
These people fail to see beyond the immediate dollars and sense of this program, and greedily eye a quick and easy target to use while grandstanding about "children's health insurance" (the misguided and back door socialized medicine plan known as "SCHIP"), while ignoring the unintended consequences of such a move.
(hat tip: John Hood, at The Locker Room)
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Covering up for Obama
The Lame Streamers are doing a fine job in explaining why the most liberal liberal in the Senate is not a "liberal".
Noteworthy:
"This, after all, is the MSM trying to insulate Obama from John McCain sure-to-come attacks on Obama for being far out of the mainstream on nearly every significant policy issue. In short, the MSM is trying to prepare the battlefield for their candidate.
It’s not going to be an easy task to rebut the coming assault, which is why the MSM is starting early. They will need all the practice they can get in trying to convince Americans that Obama isn’t what he really is: Teddy Kennedy’s dream candidate."
Noteworthy:
"This, after all, is the MSM trying to insulate Obama from John McCain sure-to-come attacks on Obama for being far out of the mainstream on nearly every significant policy issue. In short, the MSM is trying to prepare the battlefield for their candidate.
It’s not going to be an easy task to rebut the coming assault, which is why the MSM is starting early. They will need all the practice they can get in trying to convince Americans that Obama isn’t what he really is: Teddy Kennedy’s dream candidate."
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Howard "The Mouth" Dean: "McCain's a blatant opportunist"
......for talking about his military service and his heroism.
Excerpt from the McCain ad:
"What must a president believe about us? About America?
Need I point out that the Dem nominee four years ago tried to pass himself off as some kind of hero, when in reality, that execrable excuse for a military man's (self) service and his behavior afterward marked him as a liar and a traitor, respectively?
Excerpt from the McCain ad:
"What must a president believe about us? About America?
That she is worth protecting?
That liberty is priceless?
Our people, honorable?
Our future, prosperous, remarkable and free?
And, what must we believe about that president?
What does he think?
Where has he been?
Has he walked the walk?"
Need I point out that the Dem nominee four years ago tried to pass himself off as some kind of hero, when in reality, that execrable excuse for a military man's (self) service and his behavior afterward marked him as a liar and a traitor, respectively?
The Liberal High Water Mark has been reached
"Events this year have exposed, once and for all, in a way that cannot be denied, elided, or spun, Democratic liberals as the party of abject incompetence and institutionalized corruption."
More:
"Liberalism will stagger on. It still has control of all those urban political machines, along with the unions and bureaucracies. But it has no future. Personality cults and ideology will take you only so far. We may yet live to see this albatross removed from the nation's back."
More:
"Liberalism will stagger on. It still has control of all those urban political machines, along with the unions and bureaucracies. But it has no future. Personality cults and ideology will take you only so far. We may yet live to see this albatross removed from the nation's back."
Friday, March 28, 2008
Exposing the Dem/Lefty/"Progressive"/Media lie about McCain's Iraq policy
Hillary and Obama are starting to take aim at McCain, and they've chosen an outright lie about his Iraq policy for one of their highlights.
Krauthammer has details.
Noteworthy:
"But a serious argument is not what Democrats are seeking. They want the killer sound bite, the silver bullet to take down McCain.
According to Politico, they have found it: "'Dems to hammer McCain for '100 years.'" The device? Charge that McCain is calling for a hundred years of war."
"The Annenberg Political Fact Check, a nonprofit and nonpartisan project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, says: 'It's a rank falsehood for the DNC to accuse McCain of wanting to wage "endless war" based on his support for a presence in Iraq something like the U.S. role in South Korea.'"
On his final point, I disagree with Krauthammer.
It's quite frequently you see a dirty lie being propagated by this crowd.
The entire eight years of George Bush's presidency was subjected to such a tactic by the not-so loyal opposition.
Krauthammer has details.
Noteworthy:
"But a serious argument is not what Democrats are seeking. They want the killer sound bite, the silver bullet to take down McCain.
According to Politico, they have found it: "'Dems to hammer McCain for '100 years.'" The device? Charge that McCain is calling for a hundred years of war."
"The Annenberg Political Fact Check, a nonprofit and nonpartisan project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, says: 'It's a rank falsehood for the DNC to accuse McCain of wanting to wage "endless war" based on his support for a presence in Iraq something like the U.S. role in South Korea.'"
On his final point, I disagree with Krauthammer.
It's quite frequently you see a dirty lie being propagated by this crowd.
The entire eight years of George Bush's presidency was subjected to such a tactic by the not-so loyal opposition.
Obama: He's the new Jimmy Carter
From NRO's The Corner:
"If America is looking for a second term of the Jimmy Carter Administration of high taxes at home and weakness abroad vote Obama. I doubt they are."
"If America is looking for a second term of the Jimmy Carter Administration of high taxes at home and weakness abroad vote Obama. I doubt they are."
Playing the mortgage Blame Game
The Dem candidates' proposals will just make the problem worse.
Let me see if I understand this.
In the recent past, the government hounded the mortgage industry for "red-lining", and"discriminating" against people who normally would not qualify for credit.
Got it.
Yet now these same people have been astounded by the advent of this "crisis", and are impatient to crucify the lenders for making loans to people who shouldn't have been approved.
They want to "solve" a problem they helped create through regulation by enabling even MORE regulation.
Yeah, that's the ticket.
The sad part about all of this is that the bleeding heart contingent sees absolutely nothing wrong with this sort of thing.
Yet another example of how the "solution" becomes worse than the "problem".
Let me see if I understand this.
In the recent past, the government hounded the mortgage industry for "red-lining", and"discriminating" against people who normally would not qualify for credit.
Got it.
Yet now these same people have been astounded by the advent of this "crisis", and are impatient to crucify the lenders for making loans to people who shouldn't have been approved.
They want to "solve" a problem they helped create through regulation by enabling even MORE regulation.
Yeah, that's the ticket.
The sad part about all of this is that the bleeding heart contingent sees absolutely nothing wrong with this sort of thing.
Yet another example of how the "solution" becomes worse than the "problem".
Thursday, March 27, 2008
The Cone Project, 3/27/08
Notice to all those experts in flag etiquette and the dilettante Constitutional experts and slime balls:
Read, learn, and show the proper respect.
Excerpt:
The Salute
To salute, all persons come to attention. Those in uniform give the appropriate formal salute. Citizens not in uniform salute by placing their right hand over the heart and men with head cover should remove it and hold it to left shoulder, hand over the heart. Members of organizations in formation salute upon command of the person in charge.
The Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem
Read, learn, and show the proper respect.
Excerpt:
The pledge of allegiance should be rendered by standing at attention, facing the flag, and saluting.
When the national anthem is played or sung, citizens should stand at attention and salute at the first note and hold the salute through the last note. The salute is directed to the flag, if displayed, otherwise to the music.
The "fetish of patriotism"....."flag idolatry".
Indeed, from one of the most obnoxious dweebs in our local blahgosphere.......
"Hold the Hysteria" - Robert Samuelson
The negative "we're all so screwed/it's a recession-depression/elect Obama and we'll all be saved" meme cheerleaders (prominent in our local blahgosphere) are full of......fear mongering nonsense.
Noteworthy:
"Regarding the economy, it's hard not to notice this stark contrast: The "real economy" of spending, production and jobs -- though weakening -- is hardly in a state of collapse; but much of today's semi-hysterical commentary suggests that it is."
"Still, economic conditions in the 1930s (average unemployment: 18 percent) were so different from today's that casual references to 'depression' amount to fear-mongering. If catastrophe strikes, it will probably result from something we don't now know or we haven't yet imagined."
On the other hand, if either of the potential Democrat candidates manages to fool enough people into voting him/her into the Presidency in November, and a Democrat Congress gets its way on expired tax cuts for everybody, increased "taxes on the rich" and more entitlements/earmarks/pork, all bets on the economy for '09 going forward are off.
They're probably even dumb enough to INCREASE corporate taxes, INCREASE dividend and capital gains taxes, and find new and innovative ways to separate more money from American citizens who live above the poverty level.
UPDATE:
Check out the self-serving nonsense from Cone.
"My newspaper column on Sunday is about the end of free-market fundamentalism, and the hucksters who want help from the Fed without corresponding regulation of financial markets."
I can almost read the the pious hand-wringing and the clarion call for more regulation, most of which will (if previous experience is an accurate predictor) be excessive and wrong headed, and the blame for all of this will most likely be attributed to the "Vast Right Wing/Republican/Bush/Free Market Conspiracy".
Noteworthy:
"Regarding the economy, it's hard not to notice this stark contrast: The "real economy" of spending, production and jobs -- though weakening -- is hardly in a state of collapse; but much of today's semi-hysterical commentary suggests that it is."
"Still, economic conditions in the 1930s (average unemployment: 18 percent) were so different from today's that casual references to 'depression' amount to fear-mongering. If catastrophe strikes, it will probably result from something we don't now know or we haven't yet imagined."
On the other hand, if either of the potential Democrat candidates manages to fool enough people into voting him/her into the Presidency in November, and a Democrat Congress gets its way on expired tax cuts for everybody, increased "taxes on the rich" and more entitlements/earmarks/pork, all bets on the economy for '09 going forward are off.
They're probably even dumb enough to INCREASE corporate taxes, INCREASE dividend and capital gains taxes, and find new and innovative ways to separate more money from American citizens who live above the poverty level.
UPDATE:
Check out the self-serving nonsense from Cone.
"My newspaper column on Sunday is about the end of free-market fundamentalism, and the hucksters who want help from the Fed without corresponding regulation of financial markets."
I can almost read the the pious hand-wringing and the clarion call for more regulation, most of which will (if previous experience is an accurate predictor) be excessive and wrong headed, and the blame for all of this will most likely be attributed to the "Vast Right Wing/Republican/Bush/Free Market Conspiracy".
Free Kittens: A story of infinite wisdom
Little Suzy had a box of very small kittens that she was trying to give away, so she had them out on the street corner with a sign "FREE KITTENS" next to them.
Suddenly a big line of big black cars came up with a policeman on a motorcycle in front. The cars all stopped and a tall man stepped out from the biggest car.
"Hi, little girl, what do you have there in the box?" he asked.
"Kittens" Little Suzy says. "They're so small, their eyes are not even open yet."
"What kind of kittens are they?" he asked.
"DEMOCRATS" says Little Suzy.
The tall man smiled, returned to his car and they drove away.
Sensing a good photo opportunity, Barack Obama called his campaign manager and told him about the little girl and the kittens.
It was planned that they would return the next day, have all the media there and tell everyone about these great kittens.
The next day, Little Suzy is standing out on the corner with her box of kittens with the "FREE KITTENS" sign and the big motorcade of black cars pulled up with all the vans and trucks from ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN. Everyone had their cameras ready and then, Barack Hussein Obama got out of his limo and walked up to Little Suzy.
"Now, don't be frightened," he said, "I just want you to tell all these nice news people just what kind of kittens you're giving away today."
"Yes sir," Suzy said, "They are all "REPUBLICAN" kittens."
Taken by surprise, Obama said, "But yesterday, you told me that they were DEMOCRATS."
Little Suzy says, "Yes, I know. But today, they have their eyes open."
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
More bad news for Obama
A large contingent of Hillary supporters will vote for McCain if Obama gets the nomination.
Key point:
"Still, when almost 3 out of 10 Clinton supporters say they would vote for McCain over Obama, it suggests that divisions are running deep within the Democratic Party. If the fight for the party's nomination were to continue until the Denver convention in late August, the Democratic Party could suffer some damage as it tries to regroup for the November general election."
And, once again, there's more: Condi Rice may be back in the running for McCain's VP, and the thought is making certain Dems/Lefties/"Progressives" nervous.
How do I know this?
Look at their babble, dribble, drool, and spew directed toward the Secretary of State in the link's comments.
(hat tip: Instapundit)
Key point:
"Still, when almost 3 out of 10 Clinton supporters say they would vote for McCain over Obama, it suggests that divisions are running deep within the Democratic Party. If the fight for the party's nomination were to continue until the Denver convention in late August, the Democratic Party could suffer some damage as it tries to regroup for the November general election."
And, once again, there's more: Condi Rice may be back in the running for McCain's VP, and the thought is making certain Dems/Lefties/"Progressives" nervous.
How do I know this?
Look at their babble, dribble, drool, and spew directed toward the Secretary of State in the link's comments.
(hat tip: Instapundit)
Antarctic Ice Chunk Collapses! Global Warming Disaster Imminent!
Or so you would think reading this AP story, especially with excerpts like this:
Noteworthy:
"Last year when Antarctic set a new record for ice extent, it got no media attention. They focused on the north polar regions where the ice set record low levels. This summer when unprecedented anomalous cover continued in the Southern Hemisphere again no coverage. Then this report in the news today. You probably saw it on your favorite network or internet news site (pick one, anyone)."
"In reality it and all the former shelves that collapsed are small and most near the Antarctic peninsula which sticks well out from Antarctica into the currents and winds of the South Atlantic and lies in a tectonically active region with surface and subsurface active volcanic activity. The vast continent has actually cooled since 1979."
"Scientists said they are not concerned about a rise in sea level from the latest event, but say it's a sign of worsening global warming.
Such occurrences are 'more indicative of a tipping point or trigger in the climate system,' said Sarah Das, a scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute."
Ummmm, no, sorry.......it's nothing of the sort.Noteworthy:
"Last year when Antarctic set a new record for ice extent, it got no media attention. They focused on the north polar regions where the ice set record low levels. This summer when unprecedented anomalous cover continued in the Southern Hemisphere again no coverage. Then this report in the news today. You probably saw it on your favorite network or internet news site (pick one, anyone)."
"In reality it and all the former shelves that collapsed are small and most near the Antarctic peninsula which sticks well out from Antarctica into the currents and winds of the South Atlantic and lies in a tectonically active region with surface and subsurface active volcanic activity. The vast continent has actually cooled since 1979."
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Hillary is one TOUGH presidential candidate!
Oh, but wait! There's more!
I love the smell of napalmed candidate in the morning.......
UPDATE: link fixed
Fake Political Photo Opp of the Day
Barack Obama demonstrates how he can magically make a telephone earpiece become a mouthpiece.
Now that's change that matters, right?
(hat tip: Fred Gregory)
Political Lie of the Day
Hillary:
Dick Morris provides the truth.
Noteworthy:
"I was deeply involved in the Irish peace process"Dick Morris provides the truth.
Noteworthy:
"Those words were uttered by Hillary Clinton — with a straight face!
Ever since she began her campaign for the presidency, Hillary and
Bill Clinton have both boldly — and falsely — claimed that she played
an important role in the Irish peace process. Suddenly rewriting history,
they’ve claimed that her success in bringing peace to Ireland is all part
of the vast experience that makes her qualified for the White House.
It’s funny that they both forgot to mention her magical diplomatic skills
in their respective memoirs.
But now her recently released White House schedules show that
Hillary’s assertions are one big fantasy. Hillary’s role
in all of the Irish visits were no different than any other
first ladies, the ones who didn’t think that accompanying
the president to a foreign country was a major diplomatic coup."
(hat tip: Fred Gregory)
Saturday, March 22, 2008
"The Worst Risks of the Credit Crisis Averted"- Donald Luskin
DeLong and Krugman's favorite blogger says "It's time to buy", at least in certain sectors.
Key point:
Key point:
"So here's where it leaves us. We can never be certain, but it looks to like even though there will still be plenty of problems coming from the financial sector due to the sins of the past, the most horrific risks are off the table because the Fed has made it clear it will step in and keep the worst-case scenario from happening.
So it's time to buy all the stuff that everyone's been selling during the credit crisis. Junk bonds. Municipal bonds. The US dollar. Stocks. And yes, financial stocks.
But it's time to stop buying gold and shorting the dollar as inflation plays. Oil and other industrial commodities may be a different story, because their prices are driven as much by growth as by inflation. But it's time to say goodbye to inflation as an investment theme.
There will still be plenty of inflation in the coming months and years, because the mistakes the Fed has made already. But inflation-driven investments won't make sense anymore, because they are motivated not by inflation already in the pipeline, but by the risk of worsening inflation yet to be set in motion.
The worst-case market scenario is off the table. It's amazing what can happen in just a week. Amazing, and in this case, very wonderful."
Of course, the doom and gloom pundits, the Lame Stream Media, the political opportunists who want financial disaster, and those who criminally manipulate financial markets in a time of turmoil (and don't get busted) won't like to hear that.
All of the afore-mentioned bottom feeders stand to lose if common sense and good judgment prevails.
Yet ANOTHER pastor problem for Obama
Confederate Yankee has some details, and a video.
Best comments:
"I'm sure if Obama felt the need to comment on something like this he could wave it off as he did in his speech Tuesday by saying this is this type of rhetoric you hear black politicians uttering all over over the country. He can't ignore them or disown them. Just look at Maxine Waters, Kwame Patrick, John Conyers, and Cindy McKinney, for example. You can't make this stuff up."
Best comments:
"I'm sure if Obama felt the need to comment on something like this he could wave it off as he did in his speech Tuesday by saying this is this type of rhetoric you hear black politicians uttering all over over the country. He can't ignore them or disown them. Just look at Maxine Waters, Kwame Patrick, John Conyers, and Cindy McKinney, for example. You can't make this stuff up."
"Who is keeping the blacks from a good education? Surely not our public school and higher ed apparatus that is full of Democrats! So who? How can they possibly not advance when the deck is so decidedly stacked in their favor unless....unless the reason they fail is a failure of effort given their opportunities? But then that's no one's fault but their own!
Bush was right when he spoke of the soft bigotry of low expectations! Democrats totally run the show in areas where minorities are 'the majority' - so the only people to blame for their lack of advancement compared with Asians and Whites in the suburbs is....the education/government complex run by Democrats themselves."
What further reminders will we see of Obama's poor judgment in the choice of people he surrounds himself with?
Friday, March 21, 2008
Will we hold the Dems accountable for their race demagoguery?
It's time to call them on their despicable wink and nod attitude on this subject.
Noteworthy:
"So the Left, and its mouthpiece the Democrats, have chosen the destructive demagogues and not the peace makers. So be it. But it's high time to call them on it. Voters must finally send that clear and unmistakable message: If you peddle hate, you don't get my vote."
"If race hatred is bad, it is bad no matter who cultivates and teaches it. That includes the Rev. Jeremy Wright. It also includes his cheering congregation, including the Obama.".
Noteworthy:
"So the Left, and its mouthpiece the Democrats, have chosen the destructive demagogues and not the peace makers. So be it. But it's high time to call them on it. Voters must finally send that clear and unmistakable message: If you peddle hate, you don't get my vote."
"If race hatred is bad, it is bad no matter who cultivates and teaches it. That includes the Rev. Jeremy Wright. It also includes his cheering congregation, including the Obama.".
The Cone Project for 3-21-08: "Regulation Today, Regulation Tomorrow, Regulation Forever!"
Cone provides links to several of most odious financial "wizards" of the Left in order to prop up a case for what would amount to imposing New Deal-type controls over the economy.
Although I doubt she reads Cone, Megan McArdle undoubtedly is familiar with the tired old wrong-headed rhetoric of Frank and Krugman.
Key points:
"Liberal commentators hope the current crisis will lead to a reflowering of the regulatory and redistributive powers that grew out of the Great Depression.:
"The key piece of information about all these securities was that by 2005, the subprime market involved many criminally stupid loans. And that knowledge was freely available in every newspaper in the country."
"Many of these complex securities were created to get around previous regulations. Taking away the punch bowl doesn't do much good if the guests just drive to another bar."
Although I doubt she reads Cone, Megan McArdle undoubtedly is familiar with the tired old wrong-headed rhetoric of Frank and Krugman.
Key points:
"Liberal commentators hope the current crisis will lead to a reflowering of the regulatory and redistributive powers that grew out of the Great Depression.:
"The key piece of information about all these securities was that by 2005, the subprime market involved many criminally stupid loans. And that knowledge was freely available in every newspaper in the country."
"Many of these complex securities were created to get around previous regulations. Taking away the punch bowl doesn't do much good if the guests just drive to another bar."
Greensboro's water shortage a hoax?
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Cheerleading for the Greenway
There has been an effort in the local blahgosphere to keep the Greensboro Downtown Greenway project in the public eye. It seems as though there's a push to get public funding, and even an effort to get such funding on the bond referendum this fall.
Threads at Cone's, Allen Johnson's blog, and at Greensboro Politics.
One common theme: Ryan Shell and Sue Polinsky are leading the cheerleading effort, defending the project and being critical of anyone who dares ask questions about the financial appropriateness of potential public funding of the project.
From Cone's thread.....
Shell, criticizing Allen Johnson:
"I think what got under my skin is the fact that Allen simply wrote something negative about something he knows nothing about, other than a dollar figure."
To Cone's credit, he points out Shell's faulty criticism of Allen Johnson.
From Allen's Blog.......
Shell again:
Polinsky:
"I don't think I'd call this post 'irresponsible;' however, I'd certainly call it 'lacking facts.'
From Shell's blog, criticizing Allen:
Shell:
"Without any facts other than a dollar figure, the Greensboro News & Record’s Allen Johnson has attempted to bring negative attention to the proposed Downtown Greenway. "
Polinsky:
"Hardly a respectable position: be against something before you know a whole lot about it except maybe how it “feels” to you and without stating a lot of facts."
And, of course, on Shell's blog toward me, when I had the audacity to ask for a cost/benefit/usage analysis to be provided by AG and the cheerleaders.
He hasn't yet posted my last comment, which told him in no uncertain terms that he and Polinsky WILL NOT be allowed to provide instruction to me on what I think about this project.
We're all aware about how Polinsky operates, and now we're learning a little about the true nature of Shell.
The arrogance on this is starting to add up, and it's indicative of how people seem to think important decisions should be made about how Greensboro is run: Without full disclosure, and at the behest of the special interests who control our city.
Keep tuned.
It's time to take our own "special interest" in this project.
I plan to make this a signature issue.
UPDATE:
I have corrected the listings of Shell's last name in this thread.
Threads at Cone's, Allen Johnson's blog, and at Greensboro Politics.
One common theme: Ryan Shell and Sue Polinsky are leading the cheerleading effort, defending the project and being critical of anyone who dares ask questions about the financial appropriateness of potential public funding of the project.
From Cone's thread.....
Shell, criticizing Allen Johnson:
"I think what got under my skin is the fact that Allen simply wrote something negative about something he knows nothing about, other than a dollar figure."
To Cone's credit, he points out Shell's faulty criticism of Allen Johnson.
From Allen's Blog.......
Shell again:
"Allen,
I must say that this is an irresponsible post on your behalf."Polinsky:
"I don't think I'd call this post 'irresponsible;' however, I'd certainly call it 'lacking facts.'
From Shell's blog, criticizing Allen:
Shell:
"Without any facts other than a dollar figure, the Greensboro News & Record’s Allen Johnson has attempted to bring negative attention to the proposed Downtown Greenway. "
Polinsky:
"Hardly a respectable position: be against something before you know a whole lot about it except maybe how it “feels” to you and without stating a lot of facts."
And, of course, on Shell's blog toward me, when I had the audacity to ask for a cost/benefit/usage analysis to be provided by AG and the cheerleaders.
He hasn't yet posted my last comment, which told him in no uncertain terms that he and Polinsky WILL NOT be allowed to provide instruction to me on what I think about this project.
We're all aware about how Polinsky operates, and now we're learning a little about the true nature of Shell.
The arrogance on this is starting to add up, and it's indicative of how people seem to think important decisions should be made about how Greensboro is run: Without full disclosure, and at the behest of the special interests who control our city.
Keep tuned.
It's time to take our own "special interest" in this project.
I plan to make this a signature issue.
UPDATE:
I have corrected the listings of Shell's last name in this thread.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Meet the new Barack
Different than the old Barack:
"Don’t tell me words don’t matter.
‘I have a dream.’ Just words?
‘We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.’ Just words?
‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself.’ Just words? Just speeches?"
New Barack:
"'God damn America.' Just words.
'US government created Aids, supplied drugs to our community.' Just words.
'US of KKKA.' Just words.'What we are doing is the same thing al-Qaeda is doing.' Just words.
'Until now, I was never proud of my country.' Just words from my wife."
Obama's severe political crisis
WSJ editorial:
"Mr. Obama, of course, is in the midst of a chiefly political crisis. No one honestly believes he shares his minister's rage, or his political and racial beliefs, which have been seen all over cable news and reveal a deep disgust with America. Mr. Obama's fault, rather, was to maintain a two-decade entanglement with Mr. Wright without ever seeming to harbor qualms about the causes espoused by his mentor and spiritual guide."
"Rather than break ties with his demagogic, anti-American pastor, Barack Obama used a speech on race to excuse his behavior and sweep the controversy under the rug. Passing the buck is not very presidential."
"The rest of Obama's speech was spent explaining and rationalizing hate such as Wright's rather than denouncing it. Wright's words 'reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through,' the result of which has been 'a cycle of violence, blight and neglect' still haunting America."
"The Speech" was not about race. It was clearly about politics.
It's just a sign that Obama's poor judgment will continue to haunt him, and may well have destroyed his chance of becoming President, despite what the "progressives", once again, would like you to believe.
"Mr. Obama, of course, is in the midst of a chiefly political crisis. No one honestly believes he shares his minister's rage, or his political and racial beliefs, which have been seen all over cable news and reveal a deep disgust with America. Mr. Obama's fault, rather, was to maintain a two-decade entanglement with Mr. Wright without ever seeming to harbor qualms about the causes espoused by his mentor and spiritual guide."
"And the cause of all this human misery? Why, 'a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many.'
Mr. Obama's villains, in other words, are the standard-issue populist straw men of Wall Street and the GOP, and his candidacy is a vessel for liberal policy orthodoxy -- raise taxes, 'invest' more in social programs, restrict trade, retreat from Iraq.
Needless to say, this is not an agenda rooted in bipartisanship or even one that has captured a national Presidential majority in more than 40 years. It would be unfortunate if Mr. Obama's candidacy were toppled by racial neuroses, and his speech yesterday may have prevented that. But it also revealed the extent to which his ideas are neither new nor transcendent."
Despite what the "progressives" (especially at Cone's) would like you to believe, "The Speech" was an elementary effort toward political damage control. It probably backfired, and has damaged him among moderate Dems and independents, whether the "progressives" want to admit it, or not.
"Rather than break ties with his demagogic, anti-American pastor, Barack Obama used a speech on race to excuse his behavior and sweep the controversy under the rug. Passing the buck is not very presidential."
"The rest of Obama's speech was spent explaining and rationalizing hate such as Wright's rather than denouncing it. Wright's words 'reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through,' the result of which has been 'a cycle of violence, blight and neglect' still haunting America."
"The Speech" was not about race. It was clearly about politics.
It's just a sign that Obama's poor judgment will continue to haunt him, and may well have destroyed his chance of becoming President, despite what the "progressives", once again, would like you to believe.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
The Cone Project: The Obama speech
It didn't take long for the true colors to come out, did it?
Noteworthy:
"In any event, it is disheartening to see Obama wrestle with race in a very real, honest and eloquent way and then have the knuckledraggers immediately oversimplify, soundbite and degrade the debate through ignorant attacks."
-- drfranklives
"The GOP cannot sustain itself without the support of these bigots. Over the last 40 years, it has consciously transformed itself into the latter day version of the Jim Crow Democratic Party. In a parallel track, conservative Christians have allowed themselves to become solidly identified with those who espouse policies of hate. Today, in many circles, to be known as a practicing Christian is also to be assumed to be someone who wants to live in 1950."
-- justcorbly
And then we have poor, deluded, and naive Ged, who says:
"If you don't take him at his word in this speech, you never will believe him regarding anything. The saving grace is the simple fact that he's not speaking to these people. He's speaking to the far, vast majority of American's who share similar experiences or view points that he does."
....a statement which shows you can fool some of the people all of the time.
And then we have Cone, himself, with his usual apologia missing the pertinent points entirely:
"My view is that Wright's views are not Obama's views, and that the uproar resulted in an important speech about Obama's views on race, which I found very satisfying and which made me think the guy would bring a lot of good things to the job."
....which ignores the greater issue of the fact that Obama has consistently used bad judgment in what he says, does, and thinks.
The Wright story is just the latest, but by no means the last example of bad judgment that we know the Senator from Illinois has committed.
Aside to Rosenberg:
These people earned the appellation of "Usual Suspects" and "Dems/Lefties/"Progressive" LONG before I started using those terms.
The name calling didn't start with me. I just react to it appropriately. And accurately.
UPDATE 10PM
More vile spew prevails at Cone's:
"This guilt-by-association flap is nothing more than Karl Rove/Republican party dirty propaganda, designed to distort and distract us from the real issues. Kudos to Obama for confronting it directly. Now can white Americans please 'just get over it?'"
-- Laura James
"Your prejudices and downright hatred of those different from you will continue on, but for the majority of Americans, they will take something from this speech and maybe even show a little compassion and understanding when it comes to where Rev. Wright's words originated from in the first place."
-- Stacey
"Spag - we can bring America together around the understanding that republicans ARE responsible for most of the problems, chief of which is that cynicism you mention in you last paragraph."
-- John Burns
(This passage after he had the audacity to complain "This thread is profoundly depressing, Ed. You should close your comments.")
-- justcorbly (aka billg)
The lengths to which people like this delve into denial is amazing, isn't it?
And yet when the voters shove it all back in their face, they'll stand around and wonder "what happened?", or they'll extend the denial further by attributing it all to "The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy".
Obama's bad judgment can not be covered up by all the babble, dribble, drool, and spew the Dems/Lefties/"Progressives" produce.
Noteworthy:
"In any event, it is disheartening to see Obama wrestle with race in a very real, honest and eloquent way and then have the knuckledraggers immediately oversimplify, soundbite and degrade the debate through ignorant attacks."
-- drfranklives
"The GOP cannot sustain itself without the support of these bigots. Over the last 40 years, it has consciously transformed itself into the latter day version of the Jim Crow Democratic Party. In a parallel track, conservative Christians have allowed themselves to become solidly identified with those who espouse policies of hate. Today, in many circles, to be known as a practicing Christian is also to be assumed to be someone who wants to live in 1950."
-- justcorbly
And then we have poor, deluded, and naive Ged, who says:
"If you don't take him at his word in this speech, you never will believe him regarding anything. The saving grace is the simple fact that he's not speaking to these people. He's speaking to the far, vast majority of American's who share similar experiences or view points that he does."
....a statement which shows you can fool some of the people all of the time.
And then we have Cone, himself, with his usual apologia missing the pertinent points entirely:
"My view is that Wright's views are not Obama's views, and that the uproar resulted in an important speech about Obama's views on race, which I found very satisfying and which made me think the guy would bring a lot of good things to the job."
....which ignores the greater issue of the fact that Obama has consistently used bad judgment in what he says, does, and thinks.
The Wright story is just the latest, but by no means the last example of bad judgment that we know the Senator from Illinois has committed.
Aside to Rosenberg:
These people earned the appellation of "Usual Suspects" and "Dems/Lefties/"Progressive" LONG before I started using those terms.
The name calling didn't start with me. I just react to it appropriately. And accurately.
UPDATE 10PM
More vile spew prevails at Cone's:
"This guilt-by-association flap is nothing more than Karl Rove/Republican party dirty propaganda, designed to distort and distract us from the real issues. Kudos to Obama for confronting it directly. Now can white Americans please 'just get over it?'"
-- Laura James
"Your prejudices and downright hatred of those different from you will continue on, but for the majority of Americans, they will take something from this speech and maybe even show a little compassion and understanding when it comes to where Rev. Wright's words originated from in the first place."
-- Stacey
"Spag - we can bring America together around the understanding that republicans ARE responsible for most of the problems, chief of which is that cynicism you mention in you last paragraph."
-- John Burns
(This passage after he had the audacity to complain "This thread is profoundly depressing, Ed. You should close your comments.")
"Spag, i suspect my comments are among those you group under a 'attack the Republicans' rubric.
Well, they deserve it. Not for creating racism or fear and division, but for exploiting it and nurturing it and sustaining it. The GOP made a deliberate decision to go after the votes of people who opposed the civil rights progress of the 1960's, and the politics spawned by that decision have leveraged and nourished by every GOP administration since. That party made a moral choicce that was, and is, fundamentally morally wrong."-- justcorbly (aka billg)
The lengths to which people like this delve into denial is amazing, isn't it?
And yet when the voters shove it all back in their face, they'll stand around and wonder "what happened?", or they'll extend the denial further by attributing it all to "The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy".
Obama's bad judgment can not be covered up by all the babble, dribble, drool, and spew the Dems/Lefties/"Progressives" produce.
Random thoughts on "The Speech"
1. The speech will be the first of several crucial ones he will make from this stage forward in the campaign.
2. It (and the entire Wright issue) will lead to a "Dump Obama" movement among Democrat power brokers, joined by more than a few from the Nutroot contingent. Watch this.
3. Nevertheless, it won't be enough to deny him the nomination, despite the fact he is now trailing in national polls, and in the PA primary polls.
4. The Lame Streamers will no doubt be effusive in their praise of Obama and his words, far out of proportion to what those words actually said and accomplished for the senator.
5. The Obama camp's effort to focus on "Moving On" will be rather futile.
6. Most of the conservatives are having a field day with this issue. (Hat tip: Fred Gregory)
7. The lingering result of all this will be a reminder of his bad judgment about the people and philosophies with whom he has allowed himself to be associated with for many years.
8. Finally, this will all result in the text of his last crucial campaign speech beginning with the words "I would like to offer my congratulations to President-elect McCain on his victory this election night".
2. It (and the entire Wright issue) will lead to a "Dump Obama" movement among Democrat power brokers, joined by more than a few from the Nutroot contingent. Watch this.
3. Nevertheless, it won't be enough to deny him the nomination, despite the fact he is now trailing in national polls, and in the PA primary polls.
4. The Lame Streamers will no doubt be effusive in their praise of Obama and his words, far out of proportion to what those words actually said and accomplished for the senator.
5. The Obama camp's effort to focus on "Moving On" will be rather futile.
6. Most of the conservatives are having a field day with this issue. (Hat tip: Fred Gregory)
7. The lingering result of all this will be a reminder of his bad judgment about the people and philosophies with whom he has allowed himself to be associated with for many years.
8. Finally, this will all result in the text of his last crucial campaign speech beginning with the words "I would like to offer my congratulations to President-elect McCain on his victory this election night".
Monday, March 17, 2008
How to interpret the financial hysteria
....that the media, some in our local blahgosphere, and various other financial rocket scientists want you to buy in to: "The obvious is obviously wrong".
Clif Droke:
"Of significance is that the rate reset issue on adjustable rate mortgages is becoming less of an issue. The 6-month LIBOR rate, the index rate used for many subprime ARMs, has come down around 2.5 percentage points since last September, greatly reducing the payment shock on many ARM resets."
Meanwhile, over at Cone's, we have this particular gem of a comment by "Debra" who, if memory serves me right, is one of the more deluded commentors common to one of our statewide Nutroot network:
Clif Droke:
"Fundamental and technical analysts and financial pundits of all stripes are busy wracking their brains trying to analyze the deluge of negative news. Yet the single most reliable method of news analysis is being grossly ignored by almost everyone. The analysis I’m referring to is what I like to call 'Granville analysis.' Granville analysis is based on Joe Granville’s classic observation, 'The obvious is obviously wrong.'
It’s so simple to perform Granville analysis that anyone with a modicum of common sense can do it. Here’s how it works: simply make a list of all the bearish or super pessimistic news headlines concerning the economic and financial market outlook. Instead of taking these headlines at face value, make a cumulative index and add together all the headlines from the mainstream media that agree with each other.
Then apply Granville’s Golden Rule to each one. Each time you see a super bearish headline, remind yourself that everyone else already knows and believes this to be true and the value of commonly believed information is exceedingly small. Remember at all times Granville’s Golden Rule, 'The obvious is obviously wrong.'"
As are the parties listed in this thread's first sentence.
RELATED:
Have you read anything like this anywhere else?"Of significance is that the rate reset issue on adjustable rate mortgages is becoming less of an issue. The 6-month LIBOR rate, the index rate used for many subprime ARMs, has come down around 2.5 percentage points since last September, greatly reducing the payment shock on many ARM resets."
Meanwhile, over at Cone's, we have this particular gem of a comment by "Debra" who, if memory serves me right, is one of the more deluded commentors common to one of our statewide Nutroot network:
"Emotional and Ethical Dwarfs"
No, we're not talking about certain of the Usual Suspects in our local blahgosphere, we're talking about journalists, writers, politicians, and some professional bureaucrats as a group, described by David Brooks:
Hmmm.....who comes to mind for me when I read that passage?
The title of this thread comes from Don Boudreaux:
"In other words, politicians are children disguised as adults - persons who ought to be playing with wooden blocks while seated at their little desks in Romper Room rather than playing with our liberties and resources while seated at their mahogany desks within marble-domed monuments to their stupid power."
"And, of course, these people succeed and enjoy their success. When Bigness descends upon them, they dominate every room they enter and graciously share their company with those who are thrilled to meet them. They master the patois of globaloney — the ability to declaim for portentous minutes about the revolution in world affairs brought about by technological change/environmental degradation/the fundamental decline in moral values.
They treat their conversational partners the way the Nazis treated Poland. They crush initial resistance, and the onslaught of accumulated narcissism is finally too much to bear."Hmmm.....who comes to mind for me when I read that passage?
The title of this thread comes from Don Boudreaux:
"In other words, politicians are children disguised as adults - persons who ought to be playing with wooden blocks while seated at their little desks in Romper Room rather than playing with our liberties and resources while seated at their mahogany desks within marble-domed monuments to their stupid power."
Friday, March 14, 2008
The lesson learned from Eliot Spitzer's disgrace
"Politicians take people's money with a promise to fulfill desires that supposedly can't be attained any other way. Prostitutes do the same, though by reputation, they are more reliable in delivering."
--Steve Chapman, in Reason.
--Steve Chapman, in Reason.
Obama's Minister of Hate
"Mitt Romney was constantly challenged about the tenets of his Mormon faith and its past treatment of blacks, and finally under pressure had to give a speech in which he discussed the influence of his religious beliefs on his political actions.
Barack Obama says on the campaign trail that his campaign transcends race, but he has refused to discuss beyond cursory comments what he thinks about his own pastor's wild hate speech -- speech that includes dark racial overtones.Mr. Obama has attended the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's church for some 20 years, and has attended countless sermons there. But when a Jewish group in Ohio confronted him with a list of outrageous statements by Rev. Wright, including calling on blacks to sing 'God Damn America' for giving the minority community drugs and engaging in "state terrorism," Mr. Obama more or less waved away the objections.
'I don't think my church is actually particularly controversial,' he told the group. He said Rev. Wright 'is like an old uncle who says things I don't always agree with,' adding that everyone has someone like that in their family.
Mr. Obama won't comment specifically on Rev. Wright's denunciations of the United States, but he did authorize a campaign aide to say that he 'repudiated' those comments.
But in presidential politics, that won't be good enough. In a summary of Wright sermons that Ron Kessler offers in today's Wall Street Journal, it's clear that Mr. Obama's pastor has done far more than merely speak favorably of Louis Farrakhan.
On the Sunday after 9/11, Rev. Wright mounted his pulpit and claimed that the U.S. itself had brought on the attacks because of its own history of terrorism. 'We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye,' he told his congregation. 'God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human.'
At some point, in some venue, Mr. Obama is going to have to give a speech directly addressing his longtime pastor's views and answering a simple question: Why didn't he find another church that didn't include a leader who so frequently engaged in such hate speech?"
-- WSJ's John Fund
The "Bush Recession" lies begin
Notice how our lame stream media recession drumbeaters are now starting (with the help of Useful Id.....ummmm, Usual SUSPECTS, like Cone) to spread the meme around freely.
Noteworthy:
Noteworthy:
"There is your proof. It is definitive, and it is simple, and because it is definitional in nature, it is not subject to doubt, reasonable or otherwise. Based on the most current information now available, the United States is not now in a recession. At worst, if it turns out that there is a decrease in GDP for the first quarter of 2008 (which has not yet ended, much less been definitively measured), and it then turns out that there is also a decrease in GDP for the second quarter of 2008 (which has not yet even begun), then we will be in a recession.
Short of that, you can talk about 'down-turns,' or you can talk about 'not meeting expectations.' But if you use the word 'recession' to mean something other than two consecutive quarters of declines in the gross national product, you're misusing that word, and you're a liar."
"Kristen" speaks!
As you can see, she's got very little to hide about her relationship with the DEMOCRAT soon-to-be ex governor of New York.
Oh, did I mention that he was a DEMOCRAT?
Silly me.
I never knew which party he belonged to when reading and viewing stories about this on the tube, and in the paper, and on the blahgosphere.......
(hat tip: Fred Gregory)
Oh, did I mention that he was a DEMOCRAT?
Silly me.
I never knew which party he belonged to when reading and viewing stories about this on the tube, and in the paper, and on the blahgosphere.......
(hat tip: Fred Gregory)
Intimidation and payback in Greensboro's blogosphere
A despicable story of pettiness and small-minded childishness by the "curator" of WE101, a supposed guiding light of the principles of blogging.
Dr. J:
"I have miss-placed my We101 password. Please forward it, or a way to reset it, and I will change my city settings myself.
I do not live within the city limits of Asheboro. In fact, I am joining forces with my neighbors (of Dave's Mountain) who are actively opposed to the Asheboro City Council's current plans to annex us.
My Father was born and raised in Greensboro - and I still have extended family who reside there. I was born in Greensboro. My Mother did her undergraduate & Master's work in education at UNC-G (meanwhile I attended pre-school at the campus). I lived in Greensboro for four years - while attending UNC-G (pre-med/triple-major/Phi Beta Kappa). I shop in Greensboro. I dine in Greensboro. I socialize in Greensboro.
I realize my name is not "Cone", but NONE of this should be necessary to "justify" listing my blog in Greensboro.
I will repeat. Roch Smith, Jr. did not ask permission . . . or have my approval . . . to make any changes to my blog's listing or settings.
It is very clear Mr. Smith's actions, as curator of We101, were retaliatory and based on a personal grudge."
I'll repeat what I've said before:
The "royalty" of Greensboro's blogging community is getting threatened by their lack of ability to control that which challenges the power and authority they want to possess.
Here's a message to all of them:
GET USED TO IT. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
It will shortly be time to name all their names and their offenses.
Dr. J:
"I have miss-placed my We101 password. Please forward it, or a way to reset it, and I will change my city settings myself.
I do not live within the city limits of Asheboro. In fact, I am joining forces with my neighbors (of Dave's Mountain) who are actively opposed to the Asheboro City Council's current plans to annex us.
My Father was born and raised in Greensboro - and I still have extended family who reside there. I was born in Greensboro. My Mother did her undergraduate & Master's work in education at UNC-G (meanwhile I attended pre-school at the campus). I lived in Greensboro for four years - while attending UNC-G (pre-med/triple-major/Phi Beta Kappa). I shop in Greensboro. I dine in Greensboro. I socialize in Greensboro.
I realize my name is not "Cone", but NONE of this should be necessary to "justify" listing my blog in Greensboro.
I will repeat. Roch Smith, Jr. did not ask permission . . . or have my approval . . . to make any changes to my blog's listing or settings.
It is very clear Mr. Smith's actions, as curator of We101, were retaliatory and based on a personal grudge."
I'll repeat what I've said before:
The "royalty" of Greensboro's blogging community is getting threatened by their lack of ability to control that which challenges the power and authority they want to possess.
Here's a message to all of them:
GET USED TO IT. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
It will shortly be time to name all their names and their offenses.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
The Cone Project for 3-11-08
-- The nonsense and the Cone-ish smarm on the Spitzer thread continues unabated as our old pals Stew and Ribar join with Cone to tag team-up on Sam, to no avail.
Sam to Cone:
"As I've said countless times before, it's your blog, but quit pretending that you are something that you are not, and that is a fair minded, objective observer. You are bitterly partisan and ideological and that is apparent to many people despite your efforts to hide it. Getting defensive when people point out your double standards shouldn't upset you."
My response?
Standard Operating Procedure, Spag.....
Meanwhile, more whine from Cone:
"I understand that you do not believe me about what I say I think."
Sam responds:
"Everyone sees the world and politics as a series of choices. Pretending that you don't makes you look arrogant as hell and foolish. Nobody is that far above the fray, Ed. Most people have the honesty to admit it."
And he obviously does not.
Sam to Ribar, after good old Dave has made several insipid posts, and is clearly in need of getting a life:
Sam to Cone:
"As I've said countless times before, it's your blog, but quit pretending that you are something that you are not, and that is a fair minded, objective observer. You are bitterly partisan and ideological and that is apparent to many people despite your efforts to hide it. Getting defensive when people point out your double standards shouldn't upset you."
My response?
Standard Operating Procedure, Spag.....
Meanwhile, more whine from Cone:
"I understand that you do not believe me about what I say I think."
Sam responds:
"Everyone sees the world and politics as a series of choices. Pretending that you don't makes you look arrogant as hell and foolish. Nobody is that far above the fray, Ed. Most people have the honesty to admit it."
And he obviously does not.
Sam to Ribar, after good old Dave has made several insipid posts, and is clearly in need of getting a life:
"Dave, I'm not going to argue with you because you make no sense as your logical skills have failed you. You take two entirely separate points based on entirely different premises and attempt to make them appear contradictory.
Quit apologizing for Ed and find a wife or a girlfriend. They are much more fun than Ed, and he is already married anyway."
This "banning" stuff is fun. I get to say anything I want, and none of my negative fan club even dares to respond.
Criminal consequences for Spitzer's behavior
It appears that there's lots to prosecute in this case.
Andrew McCarthy:
"But there's an even simpler money laundering law that I imagine the Governor may be concerned about. You have committed a felony violation, punishable by up to 20 years in jail, if you have money that is the proceeds of some form of illegal activity (including prostitution), and you conduct a financial transaction with those proceeds (a) with the intention of promoting certain crimes (including prostitution), or (b) with the knowledge that the transaction is designed to conceal how the proceeds were generated.
If I understand the allegations correctly, Spitzer not only obtained and paid in cash in order not to leave a paper trail, but paid extra cash in order to set up a credit with the prostitution ring for future use. That raises the possibility of money laundering under both the promotion and concealment theories."
Ah, but already some of the dumbasses are babbling about "The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy" wanting to prosecute yet another Dem/Lefty/"Progessive" hero over "sex".
It's a good thing "arrogance" is not a crime. Otherwise, Spitzer (and Ed Cone) would have long ago started serving sentences.
Andrew McCarthy:
"But there's an even simpler money laundering law that I imagine the Governor may be concerned about. You have committed a felony violation, punishable by up to 20 years in jail, if you have money that is the proceeds of some form of illegal activity (including prostitution), and you conduct a financial transaction with those proceeds (a) with the intention of promoting certain crimes (including prostitution), or (b) with the knowledge that the transaction is designed to conceal how the proceeds were generated.
If I understand the allegations correctly, Spitzer not only obtained and paid in cash in order not to leave a paper trail, but paid extra cash in order to set up a credit with the prostitution ring for future use. That raises the possibility of money laundering under both the promotion and concealment theories."
Ah, but already some of the dumbasses are babbling about "The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy" wanting to prosecute yet another Dem/Lefty/"Progessive" hero over "sex".
It's a good thing "arrogance" is not a crime. Otherwise, Spitzer (and Ed Cone) would have long ago started serving sentences.
Monday, March 10, 2008
The Cone Project for 3-10-08
Ah, yes....SO much to cover, so little time available to do so!
-- "Global Warming" apologist and True Believer Dave Dobson, on Cone's so-called bigotry thread:
"....and I'm very, very glad not to have to read whatever Bubba would have typed."
How funny it is for someone like Dobson, a person who professes to advance the cause of higher learning, to feel protected by an intellectual and academic coward like Cone!
Spag nails Cone as usual, on the "civility" point.
-- Note that Cone is back harping on the Iraq situation, turning the spotlight on some carefully cherry-picked news about an increase in bombing.
It's just the particular time in Cone's "issue rotation" for something like this to appear, although he's not quite done with his whining about "Obama being slimed" over the Muslim name.
No big surprise, particularly for one whose literary imagination is as limited as his talent.
-- Cone also expresses his distaste for Ben Stein by misrepresenting a point. Nothing more there than the jealousy angle, something that Cone exhibits about once a quarter when talking about Charles Davenport's work in the N&R.
The fact that he has to share the Sunday N&R editorial pages with Davenport every now and them really drives Cone up a wall.
I think we should demand a Davenport (or some other conservative writer) column to appear every time a Cone column appears.
How about it, Allen Johnson?
UPDATE:
On the Spitzer scandal thread, Cone whines about the complaints regarding the lack of significant mention of Spitzer's political affiliation.
Who is Cone trying to fool?
If Spitzer was a Republican, the dominant lede all over the place in the Lame Stream Media would start with "Republican", as in "Republican Governor Eliot Spitzer of New York was implicated in a sex-for-hire scandal today....."
UPDATE 3-11:
Here's the latest on the not-so subtle attempt to whitewash Spitzer's political affiliation.
Excerpt:
-- "Global Warming" apologist and True Believer Dave Dobson, on Cone's so-called bigotry thread:
"....and I'm very, very glad not to have to read whatever Bubba would have typed."
How funny it is for someone like Dobson, a person who professes to advance the cause of higher learning, to feel protected by an intellectual and academic coward like Cone!
Spag nails Cone as usual, on the "civility" point.
-- Note that Cone is back harping on the Iraq situation, turning the spotlight on some carefully cherry-picked news about an increase in bombing.
It's just the particular time in Cone's "issue rotation" for something like this to appear, although he's not quite done with his whining about "Obama being slimed" over the Muslim name.
No big surprise, particularly for one whose literary imagination is as limited as his talent.
-- Cone also expresses his distaste for Ben Stein by misrepresenting a point. Nothing more there than the jealousy angle, something that Cone exhibits about once a quarter when talking about Charles Davenport's work in the N&R.
The fact that he has to share the Sunday N&R editorial pages with Davenport every now and them really drives Cone up a wall.
I think we should demand a Davenport (or some other conservative writer) column to appear every time a Cone column appears.
How about it, Allen Johnson?
UPDATE:
On the Spitzer scandal thread, Cone whines about the complaints regarding the lack of significant mention of Spitzer's political affiliation.
Who is Cone trying to fool?
If Spitzer was a Republican, the dominant lede all over the place in the Lame Stream Media would start with "Republican", as in "Republican Governor Eliot Spitzer of New York was implicated in a sex-for-hire scandal today....."
UPDATE 3-11:
Here's the latest on the not-so subtle attempt to whitewash Spitzer's political affiliation.
Excerpt:
"It is not too hard to imagine the kind of process that went on at the Times, as someone acted to minimize the pain to the Democrats, and then someone else pointed out that it might, uh, look a little bad, considering how badly the paper bungled its hit job on John McCain and the lobbyist, and how people tend to notice these shenanigans."
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Perpetuating the NEA Government School/"Progressive" Indoctrination Center concept in CA
"California courts have held that ... parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children".
Excerpt:
"'With this case law, anyone in California who is homeschooling without a teaching credential is subject to prosecution for truancy violation, which could require community service, heavy fines and possibly removal of their children under allegations of educational neglect,'Dacus said."
(hat tip: Red Clay Citizen)
Excerpt:
"'With this case law, anyone in California who is homeschooling without a teaching credential is subject to prosecution for truancy violation, which could require community service, heavy fines and possibly removal of their children under allegations of educational neglect,'Dacus said."
(hat tip: Red Clay Citizen)
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Message to Roch 101
If you want to run your mouth at me, you better do it at Cone's where he can protect you.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Lessons to be learned from the high taxes/low results scenario in New Jersey
It's the "More money, less to show for it" syndrome which seems to be a recurring theme here locally and statewide.
Excerpt:
"But New Jersey residents and businesses have gotten little in return for this spending, taxing, and hiring. In an age when states and cities are moving to performance-based systems that accurately measure their work, for instance, Jersey’s “agencies do not have goals or performance measures,” which will make it difficult to achieve Corzine’s budget reductions, Governing said."
Keep in mind that the word "patronage" can have many definitions and applications.
Excerpt:
"But New Jersey residents and businesses have gotten little in return for this spending, taxing, and hiring. In an age when states and cities are moving to performance-based systems that accurately measure their work, for instance, Jersey’s “agencies do not have goals or performance measures,” which will make it difficult to achieve Corzine’s budget reductions, Governing said."
Keep in mind that the word "patronage" can have many definitions and applications.
The Libthink double standard about military service
It goes like this:
Call highly visible supporters of the Iraq War "chickenhawks" if they didn't serve.
Criticize them if their children didn't serve.
Then speak out of the other side of your mouth in regard to the combat service of Britain's Prince Harry.
Yet another example of the bottom feeding that passes for "academic and intellectual integrity" among a majority of the legions of Dems/Lefties/"Progressives".
The "John Kerry Syndrome" lives on.
Here's the original story at Newsbusters.
"Journalisistic principles", my ass!
Call highly visible supporters of the Iraq War "chickenhawks" if they didn't serve.
Criticize them if their children didn't serve.
Then speak out of the other side of your mouth in regard to the combat service of Britain's Prince Harry.
Yet another example of the bottom feeding that passes for "academic and intellectual integrity" among a majority of the legions of Dems/Lefties/"Progressives".
The "John Kerry Syndrome" lives on.
Here's the original story at Newsbusters.
"Journalisistic principles", my ass!
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
The Cone Project for 3-5-08
Cone goes to the Rotary to give a lunchtime talk.
Excerpt from prepared remarks, at his blahg:
"Let me finish you with a warning. The voice of the people is not always in tune. The world is full of hostile people with agendas, and the web gives them a megaphone."
Translation:
"You may have to ban them if you can't ignore them, shut them up, or marginalize them when you can't answer their challenges based on the merits of your own point, or the points of those who help you massage your already massive ego."
And on the Obama thread Cone trots out his "who, me?" routine when Fred Gregory busts his chops about the whining over "going after" Obama supporters.
When the whining fails, the attempted phony schmooze gets laid on:
"Fred, my friend, I don't understand why you feel that I'm picking on you."
Too funny!
UPDATE 3-6
Ben Holder provides some info about the "talk" that keeps things in their proper perspective:
"I talked with two people that were at this meeting. Both of them called me to tell me that Ed Cone danced all around my name but did not mention it. In real life, the real world, Ed Cone hates citizen journalism. he likes for people to pretend to practice it. However, he does not want the establishment rocked."
Accurate and revealing, particularly for those who haven't quite figured Cone out yet.
I wonder what kind of whining and moaning Cone will do in response?
UPDATE #2
Looks like Cone and his Peanut Gallery have chosen sarcasm as their tactic.
Ben handles it without breaking a sweat.
Don't you just love how they try to marginalize someone they can't control?
Think they'll ever learn?
Converge South is going to be SO MUCH fun this year.
Count on it.
Excerpt from prepared remarks, at his blahg:
"Let me finish you with a warning. The voice of the people is not always in tune. The world is full of hostile people with agendas, and the web gives them a megaphone."
Translation:
"You may have to ban them if you can't ignore them, shut them up, or marginalize them when you can't answer their challenges based on the merits of your own point, or the points of those who help you massage your already massive ego."
And on the Obama thread Cone trots out his "who, me?" routine when Fred Gregory busts his chops about the whining over "going after" Obama supporters.
When the whining fails, the attempted phony schmooze gets laid on:
"Fred, my friend, I don't understand why you feel that I'm picking on you."
Too funny!
UPDATE 3-6
Ben Holder provides some info about the "talk" that keeps things in their proper perspective:
"I talked with two people that were at this meeting. Both of them called me to tell me that Ed Cone danced all around my name but did not mention it. In real life, the real world, Ed Cone hates citizen journalism. he likes for people to pretend to practice it. However, he does not want the establishment rocked."
Accurate and revealing, particularly for those who haven't quite figured Cone out yet.
I wonder what kind of whining and moaning Cone will do in response?
UPDATE #2
Looks like Cone and his Peanut Gallery have chosen sarcasm as their tactic.
Ben handles it without breaking a sweat.
Don't you just love how they try to marginalize someone they can't control?
Think they'll ever learn?
Converge South is going to be SO MUCH fun this year.
Count on it.
Regarding the various health care cons being floated around
The most egregious ones generally come from politicians.
Quote of the Week:
"There's a lesson here. When the government seeks to enforce a counterfeit right -- such as the 'right' to medical care -- no expansion of freedom results. Instead, government power expands -- to everyone's detriment."
It's amazing the tradeoffs some folks are willing to make for the sake of fulfilling a misguided social agenda.
Quote of the Week:
"There's a lesson here. When the government seeks to enforce a counterfeit right -- such as the 'right' to medical care -- no expansion of freedom results. Instead, government power expands -- to everyone's detriment."
It's amazing the tradeoffs some folks are willing to make for the sake of fulfilling a misguided social agenda.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
More holes poked in the "Peak Oil"/"We're All So Screwed" meme
The Alarmists are just as wrong on this issue as they are on their sister issue, "Scientific Consensus on Anthropogenic Global Warming".
Noteworthy:
"The world is not running out of oil anytime soon. A gradual transitioning on the global scale away from a fossil-based energy system may in fact happen during the 21st century. The root causes, however, will most likely have less to do with lack of supplies and far more with superior alternatives. The overused observation that 'the Stone Age did not end due to a lack of stones' may in fact find its match."
Noteworthy:
"The world is not running out of oil anytime soon. A gradual transitioning on the global scale away from a fossil-based energy system may in fact happen during the 21st century. The root causes, however, will most likely have less to do with lack of supplies and far more with superior alternatives. The overused observation that 'the Stone Age did not end due to a lack of stones' may in fact find its match."
At John Robinson's blog, regarding banning bloggers
JR is looking for an excuse to ban me, just like he has done with jaycee and Mary Johnson.
Here's my response to him:
Also, look at the smarmy and arrogant responses from Cone and Sue Polinsky.
It strikes me that the ersatz royalty of Greensboro's blahgosphere is feeling a little threatened.
Here's my response to him:
"'You're not trying to get banned yourself, are you Bubba, with the unnecessary personal attacks on Ed?'
They are necessary, and they are accurate..
I criticize his attitude, his methods, and his motivation.
Do you consider that a "personal attack"?
If so, I will give you a plethora of examples of his work that qualifies as 'personal attack'.
The double standards enforced at some blogs, including his, are legendary.
I'm holding him accountable for his words and actions.
I am hardly alone in those sentiments."
Also, look at the smarmy and arrogant responses from Cone and Sue Polinsky.
It strikes me that the ersatz royalty of Greensboro's blahgosphere is feeling a little threatened.
Sunday, March 02, 2008
The Cone Project for 3-2-08
Part 1:
Cone has a post up on an agenda item from Blue NC, about those horrible, miscreant "mercenaries" at Blackwater, and their role in that evil, empire-building Illegal War in Iraq, started by BushCo, so his cronies could profit.
Apparently, these people at Blue NC think they can demagogue this issue into some kind of a political advantage.
Look at the garbage posted at Cone's by "James":
"Businesses that engage in "wrong" deserve to be vilified, in my opinion, as part of the effort to change laws. I'm sure their are some decent people at Blackwater, but they are in a business that succeeds by perpetuating armed conflict."
And at the Blue NC site itself, we have this from "James":
"Walter Jones has been complicit in Black water's war profiteering. For all his so-called family values and God-fearing patriotism, Jones is apparently lost in the wilderness when it comes to understanding the realities of war."
Yeah, right.
Next , we are sure to hear the argument that funding and sanctioning Blackwater is the moral equivalency of funding a terrorist group.
To his credit, Obama is lot smarter than these would-be supporters of his. He understands the mission and the necessity for an outfit like Blackwater.
The Blackwater "issue" is just one more excuse for our Dem/Lefty/"Progressive" friends to get themselves all worked up into the orgiastic agenda frenzy that so often passes as "discussion of policy".
Part 2:
Here's Cone's contribution to the tired old bromide "America The Evil, for Invading Iraq" meme that's becoming so boring to read about.
Must have been a slow day on the "Defend Mitch/Robbie" team, along with the "Wray the Untrustworthy Liar/Racist" front, and the "We're All So Screwed Because It's Gonna Be a HUGE Recession so Vote for the Dems" meme.
As well we know, these are all favorite little themes our pal Ed likes to posture with.
Cone has a post up on an agenda item from Blue NC, about those horrible, miscreant "mercenaries" at Blackwater, and their role in that evil, empire-building Illegal War in Iraq, started by BushCo, so his cronies could profit.
Apparently, these people at Blue NC think they can demagogue this issue into some kind of a political advantage.
Look at the garbage posted at Cone's by "James":
"Businesses that engage in "wrong" deserve to be vilified, in my opinion, as part of the effort to change laws. I'm sure their are some decent people at Blackwater, but they are in a business that succeeds by perpetuating armed conflict."
And at the Blue NC site itself, we have this from "James":
"Walter Jones has been complicit in Black water's war profiteering. For all his so-called family values and God-fearing patriotism, Jones is apparently lost in the wilderness when it comes to understanding the realities of war."
Yeah, right.
Next , we are sure to hear the argument that funding and sanctioning Blackwater is the moral equivalency of funding a terrorist group.
To his credit, Obama is lot smarter than these would-be supporters of his. He understands the mission and the necessity for an outfit like Blackwater.
The Blackwater "issue" is just one more excuse for our Dem/Lefty/"Progressive" friends to get themselves all worked up into the orgiastic agenda frenzy that so often passes as "discussion of policy".
Part 2:
Here's Cone's contribution to the tired old bromide "America The Evil, for Invading Iraq" meme that's becoming so boring to read about.
Must have been a slow day on the "Defend Mitch/Robbie" team, along with the "Wray the Untrustworthy Liar/Racist" front, and the "We're All So Screwed Because It's Gonna Be a HUGE Recession so Vote for the Dems" meme.
As well we know, these are all favorite little themes our pal Ed likes to posture with.
It's official: Global Cooling is upon us
But don't you just know the True Believers will find some way to distort this information in an attempt to retain some small vestige of of hope for their fast fading cherished agenda item?
Noteworthy:
"While the data doesn’t itself disprove that carbon dioxide is acting to warm the planet, it does demonstrate clearly that more powerful factors are now cooling it."
Noteworthy:
"While the data doesn’t itself disprove that carbon dioxide is acting to warm the planet, it does demonstrate clearly that more powerful factors are now cooling it."
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Note to poser poster "casket" at Cone's
You missed my posts at the STEI, LWN, CSCO, SUNW, BWNG, and CORV boards, among others.
Shame on you.
Shame on you.
I've challenged Ed Cone to ban me from his blog
After several years of combating his arrogance, the over-the-top ego, snark, smarm, and all the academic and intellectual dishonesty he's exhibited, I'm calling him out.
Here's his comment that made me decide to take this action.
My reply:
Go ahead, Ed.
Stop talking about it.
Do it now.
Show how your arrogance reigns supreme.
Announce it for everyone to see and hear exactly how void of academic and intellectual integrity you actually are.
Validate everything I've been saying.
Do it now!
I am no longer willing to tolerate his behavior.
He's an ass of the first order.
Here's his comment that made me decide to take this action.
My reply:
Go ahead, Ed.
Stop talking about it.
Do it now.
Show how your arrogance reigns supreme.
Announce it for everyone to see and hear exactly how void of academic and intellectual integrity you actually are.
Validate everything I've been saying.
Do it now!
I am no longer willing to tolerate his behavior.
He's an ass of the first order.
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"Liquidity crisis? Recession? Market collapse? Bailout (socialism) of dumbass lenders?
Wait -- look over there!
Sex scandal!
Obama's pastor said something outrageous (that many educated and well-off black Americans believe, BTW).
Pay attention to the distractions.
Ignore the complete and total destruction of America by its incompetent leadership (Republicans, led by Bush) who are raping the Constitution and destroying our future by pillaging our economy.
Sex scandal!
Obama's pastor said something outrageous.
Keep your priorities straight, y'all."
WAY too funny and too obvious for further comment.....