House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called the windfall profits tax idea “very preliminary,” saying she’s asked House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) to look at how much the tax could raise.
“I have asked Chairman Rangel to see what is in it for us,” Pelosi said. “There’s more that the insurance companies could contribute to this health care reform. They’re going to get 50 million new consumers, many of them subsidized by the taxpayer. They can put more on the table.”
17. [[Developed [and developing] countries] [Developed and developing country Parties] [All Parties] [shall] [should]:] (a) Compensate for damage to the LDCs’ economy and also compensate for lost opportunities, resources, lives, land and dignity, as many will become environmental refugees; (b) Africa, in the context of environmental justice, should be equitably compensated for environmental, social and economic losses arising from the implementation of response measures.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Lake Forest Park Peace, Social Justice and Hypocrisy
Nonviolence is not passive, but requires courage. Nonviolence seeks reconciliation, not defeat of an adversary. Nonviolent action is directed at eliminating evil, not destroying an evil-doer. Nonviolence requires a willingness to accept suffering for the cause if necessary, but not to inflict it - a rejection of hatred, animosity or violence of the spirit, ans well as a refusal to commit physical violence - faith that justice will prevail.
From the captions on the Right Follies page:
My Name Is Always M. Wright and I made an ass of myself.
Last observed at Lake Forest Park frothing at the mouth while 'splaining why he was right and everyone else was wrong. A personal observation; before Mr. Wright gets in front of a camera to make an ass of himself, he should check that his shirt doesn't end before his belly begins.
The very unattractive Mr Always M. Wright spurns the truth again and again.
BUT WAIT... It Gets Better
We were blessed with a visit from yet another right winger last week. Notice the finger in the air. As usual they like to point things out with one digit, never two. Wouldn't want to confuse an IQ number with the peace sign.
Now this lady looks harmless but let me tell you, she'll chew you up and spit you out. She thinks the current health care system is just fine. Got medical bills & can't afford insurance? Tough, get a job. Lost your job? Tough, your a loser. Can't afford to see a doctor? Tough, heal yourself. Lost your home due to catastrophic illness and medical bills? Tough. Tough. Tough. Given a chance this kindly looking grandma will beat you to death with her cane. She must get her nastiness from her hero, George (the shoe) Bush.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Global Warming's Exhibit #1, The Hockey Stick Is Shown To Be A Fraud*
Here is the not as technical explanation of the whole story from Watts Up With That.
1- In 1998 a paper is published by Dr. Michael Mann. Then at the University of Virginia, now a Penn State climatologist, and co-authors Bradley and Hughes. The paper is named: Northern Hemisphere Temperatures During the Past Millennium: Inferences, Uncertainties, and Limitations. The paper becomes known as MBH98.
The conclusion of tree ring reconstruction of climate for the past 1000 years is that we are now in the hottest period in modern history, ever.
See the graph http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/image/mann/manna_99.gif
Steve McIntyre, a Canadian mathematician in Toronto, suspects tree rings aren’t telling a valid story with that giant uptick at the right side of the graph, implicating the 20th century as the “hottest period in 1000 years”, which alarmists latch onto as proof of AGW. The graph is dubbed as the “Hockey Stick” and becomes famous worldwide. Al Gore uses it in his movie An Inconvenient Truth in the famous “elevator scene”.
2- Steve attempts to replicate Michael Mann’s tree ring work in the paper MBH98, but is stymied by lack of data archiving. He sends dozens of letters over the years trying to get access to data but access is denied. McIntyre and Ross McKitrick, of the University of Guelph publish a paper in 2004 criticizing the work. A new website is formed in 2004 called Real Climate, by the people who put together the tree ring data and they denounce the scientific criticism:
3- Years go by. McIntyre is still stymied trying to get access to the original source data so that he can replicate the Mann 1998 conclusion. In 2008 Mann publishes another paper in bolstering his tree ring claim due to all of the controversy surrounding it. A Mann co-author and source of tree ring data (Professor Keith Briffa of the Hadley UK Climate Research Unit) used one of the tree ring data series (Yamal in Russia) in a paper published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society in 2008, which has a strict data archiving policy. Thanks to that policy, Steve McIntyre fought and won access to that data just last week.
4- Having the Yamal data in complete form, McIntyre replicates it, and discovers that one of Mann’s co-authors, Briffa, had cherry picked 10 trees data sets out of a much larger set of trees sampled in Yamal.
5- When all of the tree ring data from Yamal is plotted, the famous hockey stick disappears. Not only does it disappear, but goes negative. The conclusion is inescapable. The tree ring data was hand picked to get the desired result.
These are the relevant graphs from McIntyre showing what the newly available data demonstrates.
And by "fraud" I mean the "scientists" were purposely being deceitful.
Friday, September 25, 2009
A Health Care Solution
Listening to Congressman Jay Inslee at the August townhall forum in Edmunds, he claimed the following:
A government run public option will cover pre existing conditions. A government run public option will not have a limit on coverage. A government run public option will cost less than existing health care insurance. A government run public option will self finance through premiums and will not be subsidized by the tax payers.
So in a nut shell, it sounds like better coverage for less money.
Also observed at the townhall forum was a strong pro public option presence by unions.
So here is my idea, why not put all of the union represented government employees on a public option health insurance plan. The unions get what they want, a public option health insurance plan. Those on the right get lower cost government.
Everyone is happy... as long as Congressman Inslee is being truthful.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Jay Inslee Health Care Question Update
Day 60 and counting. 8+ weeks and no answer to my question.
I did have another email from an actual staff member that once again did not answer the question. The question was and still is if a public option is passed as part of health care reform, with Congressman Inslee sign up for that public option for his personal health care. The email I got said Congressman Inslee does support a public option. I replied back and then called the office and spoke directly with the staff member to both make sure the question was clear and to ask if I could get the answer expedited. That was 3 weeks ago. I emailed the same staff member on Monday, 3 days ago, asking for status and have not received a reply. I called the office this afternoon and was told they would talk to another staff member and get back to me.
60 days and no answer to a yes or no question and these are the people that want to be in charge of my health care.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Micheal Moore, The Genius Hypocrite
Micheal Moore was a guest on the new Jay Leno show Tuesday evening. You can view the interview at this link, 25 minutes into the show. When he walked onstage, my first reaction was man is he fat. Now an educated guess is he is around 6 feet tall and has to be close to 300 pounds. The first comment Jay made was about his weight and surprisingly enough, he has lost 70 pounds and we were told he is half way to his goal. Now someone who is 6 feet tall is considered obese If they are over 220 pounds. So I am going to guess his goal is in the 220 range which would put him currently around 290 and therefore was once hovering in the 360 range. Why do I bring this up? Because the reason for the appearance was to promote his new movie. Now his previous movie was called Sicko which was a condemnation of the United States health care industry, specifically insurance companies and pharmaceuticals. But the reality is that the majority of health related issues in the United States are because of lifestyle choices and obesity is right around the top of the list. Think about this fact, our poor people are fat. 1 in 7 low income children is considered obese. So this man who makes a decision to lead a life which puts him at an exceptionally high risk of having health issues makes a movie complaining about insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies making excessive profits. How much did the morbidly obese Micheal Moore make off of this film? Well the reports are he made 50% of the after cost take. The film cost 9 million to make. It grossed over 24 million in the United States and over 11 million overseas. So the gross minus the cost is 26 million, half of that is 13 million. I am sure there were other expenses but I think it is safe to say that Mr. Moore made a significant amount of money, probably over 10 million, complaining about an industry when he is in fact should be the poster child for what is wrong with health care in the United States.
And that leads to any even more extreme example of hypocrisy by Mr. Moore. His current film is called Capitalism, a love story. It is about how capitalism is evil. This from a man who is making millions and millions of dollars off of making film that complains about the exact things he does with his life. During the interview with Jay Leno, Moore made the claim that the top 1% hold more wealth in this nation than the bottom 95%. I was not able to find any stats on that for the last year or two but the stats I did find from a couple of years ago do not support that claim. The unbelievable part though was when he talked about the rich and how “they” now want our money. Excuse me? This guy is without a doubt in the top 1% of income earners and is probably in the top tenth of 1% and is talking to someone who has even more money than he does and he refers to the rich as “they”. In that conversation, any reference to the rich should have used the term “us” or “we”.
I have got to give the guy credit though, being able to look in the mirror, recognize the worst in you, making a film blaming others for your faults and making a boat load of money, genius, pure genius. I am expecting Mr. Moore’s next film to be a condemnation of those who dress like slobs.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Jay Inslee Responds To My Question Part 3
Just got an email from the office of Jay Inslee responding to my question asking if he will pledge to sign up for the public option if in fact it ends up being part of health care reform.
The answer... He supports the public option and will vote for it.
6 weeks. I have been waiting for 6 weeks for an answer to my yes or no question. I have had 3 email replies, none of which answer the question. I have called the offices, both Shoreline and Washington DC at least 10 times to let them know they have not answered the question, to ask status, to make sure my question is clear. I sat in on a town hall meeting where the same question was asked. I still do not have an answer.
I am just glad I am not part of some government run health care plan and had a urgent more difficult question asking if a certain medical procedure I need was covered by my governemnt run health care insurance plan.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Jay Inslee Town Hall Part 1
I went to the Jay Inslee Health Care Town Hall on Sunday in Edmonds. Did not get a chance to ask my question which is if a public option is passed with health care reform, will you sign up for that as your health care. Someone else though did ask the question. He did not answer her either.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Jay Inslee Responds To My Question... Part 2
3+ weeks ago I emailed Representative Inslee the question If a government run health care plan is passed, will you pledge to sign up for that as your health care insurance?
I received a reply 1 week ago with a form letter that in no way shape or form answered my question. I called the Shoreline WA. office to let them know that my question was not answered. They said they would resubmit the question and I should have an answer in 2 weeks. I called back the next day asking if they could put my question at the top of the list since I had already waited 2+ weeks. They said they would see what they could do.
Is this incompetence or cowardice? There really are not any other options.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Suddenly, Calling Someone a Nazi is No Longer Acceptable... Sometimes.
Leonard Pitts writes a column letting us know how horrible it is to call someone a Nazi.
I hope this column makes you sick.
See, we'll be talking about Nazis, something many of us are doing lately. Indeed, just this week a fellow named Joseph e-mailed me about a caller he heard on a radio show. The man, vexed over health-care reform, likened President Obama to Adolf Hitler. Asked why, he said, "Hitler took over the car companies, then health care and then he killed the Jews."
And finally, there is the Zombie Time's retrospective of Bush = Hitler references. It is a bunch of lefties expressing themselves so this is your content warning.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Jay Inslee Responds To My Question
2+ weeks ago I emailed Representative Inslee the question If a government run health care plan is passed, will you pledge to sign up for that as your health care insurance? Here is his reply:
Thank you for contacting me regarding potential health care reforms. I appreciate hearing from you.
As you may know, Members of Congress and retired Members are entitled to participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) under the same rules as other federal employees. The Federal Government and enrollees of FEHBP jointly pay for the cost, or premiums, of the FEHBP plans. Participants pay an average of 28 percent, but no less than 25 percent of premiums. Members of Congress must also pay the same payroll taxes as all other workers for Medicare Advantage Part A coverage.
I would like you to know that I share your concern for reducing the tax burden of the American public. As a father of three, I know how hard it is to pay the mortgage, save for retirement, send our children to college, and pay taxes. I firmly believe that any increases in spending or changes to our tax code should simplify the system, increase our nation's savings rate, and fairly tax individuals of varying income.
While this is true, I am deeply concerned as the cost of medical care has risen over the years. Inflation within the medical sector has risen at an alarming rate, and we have seen health care spending rise from an average of $348 per person in 1970 to $7,026 in 2006. There are multiple factors for this and it is one of the reasons I believe the time for health care reform is now. I believe we must continue to work to expand affordable, high quality coverage, and contain medical costs. Critics of the reform process have claimed that attempts to limit cost will necessarily limit services and lead to rationing. On the contrary, funding in H.R. 3200 is directed towards comparative effectiveness research that will help doctors decide what treatments will be most effective for their patients, thereby promoting high quality care as opposed to simply high quantity care. This research will also help to combat overutilization practices, or so-called "defensive medicine," another driver of high costs in the system.
You may be interested to know that throughout the process of consideration of H.R. 3200 in the Energy & Commerce Committee I have voiced my concern that the initial version of the bill did not do enough to address the high cost of health care, and I have worked diligently with my colleagues to add additional cost containment measures to the bill. Our Nation spent over $2 billion dollars on health care in 2007, or more than $7,000 per person. If the inefficiencies in the system aren't addressed, by the year 2025 it is estimated that one of every four dollars in our national economy will be consumed by the health care system. One of my focuses in the reform process has been addressing inequities in the Medicare reimbursement process. I worked hard for the inclusion of two studies in the reform bill that, when implemented, will lead to the creation of a value index to guide reimbursement rates, and address the geographical disparities that have long affected physicians in Washington state. Under the current Medicare reimbursement formula, payment for services rewards the quantity of services, rather than the effectiveness of those services. For this reason, Washington state physicians have historically been reimbursed at a lesser rate compared to their peers in other parts of the country, due to the efficient, high-quality service they provide. Implementation of the two IOM studies will rectify this historic inequity and provide real cost-containment by incentivizing and reimbursing for the quality, not the quantity, of medical care across the United States. This reform will also benefit Washington state's senior citizens, who suffer from limited access to providers as a result of the reimbursement inequality that affects low-cost areas. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that these Medicare reforms will save more than $500 billion in the next decade.
I would also like to take a moment to address one of the most common misconceptions related to the health care reform effort. Many voices critical of reform have pointed to a section that addresses seniors' consultations with their physicians as cause for concern. The provision in question, found in Part 3, Section 1233, simply allows for Medicare coverage of "advanced care planning consultations," sessions in which a physician can offer details as to what options the patient has for end-of-life care. These sessions would be in no way mandatory, and the purpose of this section is to merely to extend Medicare coverage to a common medical practice, making physicians more likely to be available to patients who are interested in the service but couldn't otherwise afford it, protecting the doctor patient relationship.
I believe that it is important to protect the interest of the consumer by providing choices so that people may decide what solution is best for them and their family. As you may know, H.R. 3200 promotes choice through the creation of a public health insurance option that would include sliding scale affordability credits to assist those with low and moderate incomes. H.R. 3200, includes language that explicitly affirms that the public option will remain just that, optional, and will be offered alongside private health insurance plans in a Health Insurance Exchange. Any individual who is satisfied with their current plan would be allowed to remain with that provider. While some express concern that this public option will lead to the disappearance of private plans, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the number of Americans with private health insurance will grow, rather than shrink, under the House bill. Additionally, the CBO projects that two-thirds of consumers who purchase insurance through the Health Insurance Exchange will opt for one of the private plans, and they further estimate that only 3% of our country will select the public insurance option in the first decade after it is implemented. Perhaps most importantly, this public option is entirely budget neutral, financed primarily through its own premiums.
Finally, as you know, most federal assistance programs are meant for citizens and legal residents only. Standing federal laws bar any illegal immigrant from receiving any direct federal assistance such as Social Security, Medicare, or housing assistance. H.R. 3200 expressly prohibits the payment of the public plan's affordability credits to individuals who are not legally documented residents. It would also create a small business health tax credit to make it easier for small businesses to cover their employees and assist in lowering premium costs for businesses. This bill also seeks to improve Medicare and Medicaid and prevent waste, fraud and abuse in the programs. These are just a few components of the proposed legislation. Knowing your interest in this issue, I encourage you to visit the Energy and Commerce website for a more comprehensive look at this bill. I hope you will find the following summary of interest: http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090714/hr3200_summary.pdf.
At this time, H.R. 3200 has been approved by the Energy and Commerce Committee and reported to the full House of Representatives. In the interest of allowing for ample consideration of such a hugely important issue, the House will not vote on the bill until after the August recess. I will keep your thoughts in mind as the bill moves through the legislative process.
Please continue to contact me about the issues that concern you, as I both need and welcome your thoughts and ideas. I encourage you to contact me via email, telephone, or fax, because security measures in the House cause delays in receiving postal mail. For more information on my activities in Congress, and for information on services that my office can provide, please visit my website at http://www.house.gov/inslee. If you would like to subscribe to my email updates, please visit http://www.house.gov/inslee/signup.htm.
Very truly yours,
JAY INSLEE Member of Congress
Is that yes or no?
I called the Shoreline office letting them know he did not answer the question. They said they would submit it again and I should hear back in about 2 weeks.
Saturday, August 08, 2009
News Flash! Jay Inslee Lives In The District He Represents
I called Jay Inslee's Shoreline office the other day asking about any scheduled town hall meetings, either in person or on the phone. I was told nothing was planned but that could change because Representative Inslee lives in the district. I then explained to the person that it is a requirement to represent the district.
Early this morning I saw on the news that Representative Inslee was holding a round table discussion at the Dale Turner YMCA at 9:30. I guess that one escaped his office's notice, as well as those who put out his press releases.
Friday, August 07, 2009
Obama Spokesperson Gibbs Intentionally Misleads The Press The press says nothing.
Start watching at 5:45:
"All we are asking people to do is if they are confused about what healthcare reform is going to mean to them, we will clear that up for them."
There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.
There is no "if you are confused let us know and we will clarify" kind of statement in there. It is clearly rat on your family and friends who send you emails that do not follow our version of the story.
The frustrating thing is the "reporters" have to know what Robert Gibbs just told them is not accurate and nobody, not one single person calls him on it.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Jay Inslee Is A Coward
My Congressman, Jay Inslee, has been doing phone town hall meetings recently. You did not know that???... probably because you do not check his web page every single day. You see, Representative Inslee puts out press releases on his web page informing the public of these calls. Here is the release, dated July 29th for the last one:
Inslee to hold telephone town hall meeting - Wednesday, July 29
July 29, 2009
Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) is hosting a telephone town hall meeting tonight so he can speak with his constituents about the health care reform bill. The call begins at 7:10 p.m. PDT and will last for one hour.
In the call, Rep. Inslee will give a update on the health care reform bill and its status. After that, he will then answer constituent's questions and listen to comments and concerns about the legislation.
Now if you were paying attention, the press release was put out the same exact day as the town hall.
I just happened to see this release on the 29th and called the office to ask what is the deal with putting out the release the same day. I was told they often do these things last minute and they said they would take my number and call me when they have another one. So I gave them my number. I have since checked the website every day or two and 2 days ago, Monday August 3rd, there was no mention of a town hall. I then check today and guess what, a town hall scheduled for today, Wednesday August 5th. Here is the release:
Media releases Inslee to hold additional telephone town hall meeting
August 2, 2009
In light of the success of his July 29th telephone town hall meeting, Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) will host another telephone town hall meeting on Wednesday, August 5th so he can speak with his constituents about the health care reform bill. The call begins at 7:30 p.m. PDT and will last for one hour.
In the call, Rep. Inslee will give a update on the health care reform bill and its status. After that, he will then answer constituent's questions and listen to comments and concerns about the legislation.
Dial-in information is as follows: -- Toll-free participant line: 877-269-7289 -- Conference code: 13634
So to recap, the press release dated August 2nd was put on the web sometime after mid morning August 3rd and that phone call I was promised... {insert crickets chirping}
Something tells me he would prefer to not have people know about these. What a gutless coward.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Animal Farm... 1984...
I just watched Animal Farm with my soon to be 10 year old son and we are starting to read 1984. That is why this from the White House website officially creeps me out.
Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.
Monday, August 03, 2009
Healthcare Phone Calls To My Representatives
I have called the offices, both local and Washington DC, as well as emailed, my congressional delegation, Jay Inslee, Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, 6 phone call, 3 emails, with one simply question…. If a healthcare bill with a government run public option is passed, will the Congressman / Senator pledge to sign up for that plan for their health insurance. The lack of a response has been eye opening.
It has become extremely clear to me that this is a question the offices have received many times and they simply have no good answer. I say this because the one person I did speak to who was not the front line telephone answerer told me that I am not the first person to ask this question but did everything she could to not answer the question and would not promise me she would get an answer, just like everyone else I spoke with. I will go a step farther and state I firmly believe that the offices have been in contact with each other and have talked about what to do to not answer this question. The reason I state this is because I have got the same non answers with almost the exact same wording from all 6 locations. So now almost 2full weeks after sending the original emails and making the first phone calls, I have yet to get a single response.
The most amazing conversation was one where when I first called and asked the question, I was originally told by the person answering the phone that she could not speak for Representative Inslee, which is the exact same first response I have received with all 6 calls. I told her I understood and then asked if she knew the answer to the question. She said no. I then asked if she could find someone else in the office who might know the answer. After 2 minutes of waiting on hold, she came back and said nobody else in the office knows the answer. I then asked if she knew who I should talk to in order to get the answer. She replied that would be me. After about 10 seconds worth of awkward pause / stunned silence, I told her that she did not know the answer. At this point I was not sure if she knew that or not. I then came up with what I thought was a brilliant idea. I told her what she should do is next time she sees Representative Inslee, she should walk up to him and say a voter called with this question, then ask the question and then after he gives the answer, she should call me back with that answer. She told me she was not sure she could do that in her position in the office. I then asked if she was physically capable of asking the Representative a question and she said she was. I told her it sounds to me like it is not a case of you not being able to ask the question, but rather you are not willing to ask the question and my guess is it is because we both know the truthful answer will make the representative look bad. She said she could not speak for the Representative.
While this was the most extreme example, all of the 6 calls have had a very similar nonsensical run around quality to them. An absolute unwillingness to try to get my question answered.
Feel free to call your representatives and see how their tax payer supported employees respond.
Friday, July 24, 2009
The Science is Settled
Reason number one why there is debate on "climate change". When asked to see the data and methodologies used by the UK's National Weather Service in order to verify the results, the answer was no, you might find something wrong with what we did.
When asked by Warwick Hughes for this data, Dr. Jones famously replied:
Even if WMO agrees, I will still not pass on the data. We have 25 or so years invested in the work. Why should I make the data available to you, when your aim is to try and find something wrong with it.
When one side refuses to allow independent testing of scientific results, it ceases to be science.
Friday, July 17, 2009
U.S. consumers should pay for part of Chinese greenhouse-gas emissions - Gary Locke
With the U.S. secretaries of energy and commerce in China this week, much of the attention focused on the standoff over emissions reductions or small breakthroughs in clean-tech cooperation. But yesterday, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said something amazing—U.S. consumers should pay for part of Chinese greenhouse-gas emissions. From Reuters:
“It’s important that those who consume the products being made all around the world to the benefit of America — and it’s our own consumption activity that’s causing the emission of greenhouse gases, then quite frankly Americans need to pay for that,” Commerce Secretary Gary Locke told the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.
PORT ORCHARD, Wash. -- A Kitsap County hearing examiner denied a permit for a Montessori school near Port Orchard in part because the laughter of children could annoy neighbors.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Bill Gates Need To Be Accountable To The Public For How He Donates His Money
So says Pablo Eisenberg, a senior fellow with the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, in one of the dumbest things I have read in a while. And that is saying a lot.
In short, The Gates Foundation would be well-advised to have an enlarged board of four to eight additional members who are not part of the Gates family or their personal advisers and retainers. Such a public board, along with greater and broader consultation, would give the Gates Foundation that minimal measure of public accountability that taxpayers and the public deserve. As a model for other family foundations, it could have an enormous, beneficial impact on our foundation world.
Eisenberg served for 23 years as Executive Director of the Center for Community Change. The Center for Community Change is a leftist socialist group
What We Believe
Only by challenging the "on your own" mentality of the right and building a new politics based on community values can we achieve social and economic justice.
that advocates for loans for the poor:
Helped establish the Community Reinvestment Act (1977). In 1978, helped community-based groups in Brooklyn and St. Louis file the first formal complaints against banks that failed to meet their CRA obligations. Results: Brooklyn received $20 million and St. Louis $1 million in housing loans for low-income neighborhoods.
Immigration reform
Launched and now staffs the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), a national coalition that unites 300 diverse grassroots groups to advance comprehensive immigration reform.
And other socialist agendas
Launched the Campaign for Community Values, a national effort to project the progressive values of interconnectedness and the common good into the political debate—and into public policies adopted by a new Administration and Congress.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Snohomish County Gets Beyond Race
If by "gets beyond race", I mean treats people differently based on race and in the process implies one race is poor and diseased.
The Seattle Times has a blurb on how Snohomish County is doing a public service... just for one race.
Snohomish Health District will offer free, anonymous or confidential HIV testing on Monday for black people who are at risk.
No appointments are needed for the tests from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Rucker Building, 3020 Rucker Ave., Suite 106, in Everett. People who want an appointment can call 425-339-5298.
The test requires a drop of blood pricked from a finger, and results are ready within 30 minutes. Participants do not need photo identification, proof of residence or nationality.
I may need to make a phone call tomorrow to find out how exactly they determine what race you are. Could they be using the "one drop rule"?
Friday, February 20, 2009
If Every Christian Acted Like Christ, The World Would Be A Better Place... If Every Muslim Acted Like Mohammed, According To Modern Law They Would Have To Be Jailed.
But the Washington state Supreme Court ruled the city for two years unfairly charged its water customers for hydrant service --a cost the city should've paid out of the general fund.
So the average Seattle water customer will get a court-ordered refund of $45. But the customers won't come out on top.
Someone has to pay for they hydrants, and city leaders say they don't have the money in the general fund. As a result, the city plans to charge the recipients of the refund a surcharge of $59.
The attorneys who fought the city on the hydrants will get $4.2 million plus interest charges.
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
Totally Useless Fact of the Day
On June 7, 1925, Moe Howard of the Three Stooges fame married Helen Schonberger, a cousin of the late Harry Houdini.
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Totally Useless Fact Of The Day
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory was the 1971 film based on the 1964 Roald Dahl novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. However, the title was changed to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory partly because of the United States' continued involvement in the Vietnam War at the time; "Charlie" was a nickname for the Viet Cong.
a decrease in snowpack in the mountains and less snow in the lowlands
because I have about 16 inches of climate change I need shoveled from my driveway.
Here is the problem, when the earth was getting warmer 10 years ago, people were crying global warming. Now that it has been getting cooler the last few years, it is now "climate change". What the climate change crowd does not seem to understand is the earth's climate is always changing and that people are really insignificant part in the process.
You can not think of global climate over a 1 year or 10 year period. Looking at the big picture, hundreds of millions of years, this page has a graph of carbon levels and global temperature, scroll down to the graph labeled Global Temperature and Atmospheric CO2 over Geologic Time, historically the earth is now cold and carbon levels are low.
The other reality is ever single human being could live in the state of Texas with a population density of less than 39 people per acre. And before you reply about that is too dense, there was an article in the Seattle Times within the last year or two about a new "green" housing development in Issaquah that had a density of 40 people per acre.
Then there is the whole myth of carbon dioxide causes temperature rise. If anything it is the opposite. Look at the following. It is clear that the change in carbon levels FOLLOW temperature changes. The temperature starts moving up or down and then the carbon follows.
Finally, who is claiming that a warmer earth would not be a better earth. More people die during the colder months than the warmer months. 7,300 Americans die each day during January and February while 6,200 die each day during July, August and September.
In addition, about 1,000 years ago was a time referred to as the Medieval Warm Period when the earth was warmer than it is now. It is also called the Medieval Climate Optimum. Funny how it is not call Medieval We Are All Going To Drown Because Of The Melting Polar Ice Caps Period.
As Dennis Miller says, I will believe we can fix global warming sometime after we figure out how to fix traffic after a Lakers game.
Just had a few spare minutes because I was unable to drive into work today because of the lack of lowland snowfall and thought I would express myself.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Global Warming... Is There Nothing It Can Not Do, Part 424.
An "informative" article in today Pacific Magazine section of today's Seattle Times
While there is great year-to-year variability in our weather, Mass documents a warming trend, increased precipitation, a decrease in snowpack in the mountains and less snow in the lowlands.
In unrelated news...
Snow continues to fall; freezing rain glazes roads Snow is falling again this afternoon all around the region — south in Fife and Tukwila, at Paine Field in Everett, east in Redmond, and on the Seahawks and Jets at Qwest Field in Seattle.
The when's-it-going-to-end snow followed a pre-dawn freezing rain that left a slippery layer of ice over Saturday's snow. Roadways and sidewalks have been left worse for the mix.
You've lived in Canada and the U.S. Which has the better healthcare system? At the end of the day, if it's free it's better. There are a lot of obstacles but eventually you get what you need if you fight really hard. That's better than being completely wiped out.
Well then I guess his music must suck since if I go to Amazon and search on his name, none of what comes up is free.
The whole Canadian Health Care is free line just bothers me to no end. It is not free. Doctors in Canada do not perform medical procedures as a hobby. The pharmacuticals do not donate drugs to Canadian medical facilities. It is NOT free and it is NOT better.
Funding for the insurance plans comes from the general revenues of the Canadian provinces/territories, assisted by transfer payments from the federal government through the Canada Health Transfer. Some provinces charge health care premiums, but these are in effect taxes (since they are not tied to service use, nor to provincial health expenditures). The system is accordingly classified by the OECD as a tax-supported system, as opposed to the social insurance approaches used in many European countries.
Free healthcare, it does not exist, it never has and it never will. Someone is paying and most likely it is the person receiving the treatment.
But let me ask this one question, would you even want to go to a doctor that does not get paid?
Al "Amazing Kreskin" Gore Makes Another Prediction
From Watts Up With That, Al Gore is now claiming all the ice in the North Pole will be gone in 5 years.
The following is a transcript of a speech given by former Vice President Al Gore at the National Sierra Club Convention in San Francisco on September 9, 2005 addressing the challenges and moral imperatives posed by Hurricane Katrina and global warming. ... ... There are scientific warnings now of another onrushing catastrophe. We were warned of an imminent attack by Al Qaeda; we didn't respond. We were warned the levees would break in New Orleans; we didn't respond. Now, the scientific community is warning us that the average hurricane will continue to get stronger because of global warming. A scientist at MIT has published a study well before this tragedy showing that since the 1970s, hurricanes in both the Atlantic and the Pacific have increased in duration, and in intensity, by about 50 %. The newscasters told us after Hurricane Katrina went over the southern tip of Florida that there was a particular danger for the Gulf Coast of the hurricanes becoming much stronger because it was passing over unusually warm waters in the gulf. The waters in the gulf have been unusually warm. The oceans generally have been getting warmer. And the pattern is exactly consistent with what scientists have predicted for twenty years. Two thousand scientists, in a hundred countries, engaged in the most elaborate, well organized scientific collaboration in the history of humankind, have produced long-since a consensus that we will face a string of terrible catastrophes unless we act to prepare ourselves and deal with the underlying causes of global warming. [applause] It is important to learn the lessons of what happens when scientific evidence and clear authoritative warnings are ignored in order to induce our leaders not to do it again and not to ignore the scientists again and not to leave us unprotected in the face of those threats that are facing us right now.
We can check how that prediction has panned out... 2005 28 storms, 15 hurricanes, 7 major hurricanes 2006 10 storms, 5 hurricanes, 2 major hurricanes 2007 15 storms, 6 hurricanes, 2 major hurricanes 2008 16 storms, 8 hurricanes, 5 major hurricanes
But that does not tell us how big and devastating the storms can be, so lets look at it from a different perspective. How costly have they been? It would seem to make sense that if in fact things are getting warmer and if in fact storms are getting bigger and more dangerous then the most costly storms should have been fairly recent.
Costliest U.S. Atlantic hurricanes Total estimated property damage, adjusted for wealth normalization[121] Rank Hurricane Season Cost (2005 USD) 1 “Miami” 1926 $157 billion 2 “Galveston” 1900 $99.4 billion 3 Katrina 2005 $81.0 billion 4 “Galveston” 1915 $68.0 billion 5 Andrew 1992 $55.8 billion 6 “New England” 1938 $39.2 billion 7 “Pinar del RÃo” 1944 $38.7 billion 8 “Okeechobee” 1928 $33.6 billion 9 Ike 2008 $31.5 billion 10 Donna 1960 $26.8 billion
Hmmm... 6 of the top 8 costliest storms are prior to 1945. Only one in the top 10, that being #9 since Mr. Gore made his prediction.
Unlike "The Amazing Kreskin" though Al Gore actually believes what he is saying is true. Too bad the facts do not back him up. Really too bad nobody seems interesting in calling him on it.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Seattle's Proposed Gun Ban Hearing
Monday 6:30, be there.
Public hearing scheduled on proposed firearms rule Residents may also comment online
SEATTLE – The city of Seattle has scheduled a public hearing on a proposed administrative rule to restrict firearms on city-owned property.
The hearing will be held on Dec. 15, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. at Seattle City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue, with sign-in beginning at 5:30 p.m. The Bertha Knight Landes room is accessible from the building’s Fifth Avenue entrance. Residents unable to attend may also submit written comments at: www.seattle.gov/firearmsrule
Following a shooting that injured three people at the Folklife Festival on May 24 of this year, Mayor Greg Nickels directed all city of Seattle departments to study the adoption and enforcement of policies, rules and contractual agreements which would prohibit the possession of dangerous weapons, including firearms, on city property. The suspect in the Folklife shooting had a concealed weapons permit, despite a history of drug abuse and mental health problems.
“From increasing the number of patrol officers on our streets, to our Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, we’re addressing public safety issues from all directions. Common-sense gun rules are just one more way to protect our workers, residents, families and children,” said Nickels.
The proposed rule does not include any specific criminal or civil penalties, but a person refusing to comply with the rule would be subject to citation or arrest for criminal trespass.
The proposed rule would not apply to:
City streets and public sidewalks, except when they are being used for non-transportation purposes such as special events. The rule does apply to sidewalks and other walkways located within city parks. Motor vehicle parking garages and parking lots. City property leased and occupied for residential purposes. City-owned property that is located outside the state of Washington. The Roger Dahl Rifle Training Range. To address the safety of visitors, including families and children, at city-owned properties, the city of Seattle is also implementing a firearms policy which is applicable to permits, leases and other contractual agreements for the use of city property. Under its policy, the city would lease, rent or permit the use of city property to only those parties who prohibit all persons, except law enforcement officers, from possessing firearms on leased city premises. To prevent the possession of firearms during an event, the city would also require sponsors of major events to take reasonable steps, such as signage, visual inspections, safe storage for lawful firearms, etc. The city would also permit departments to add gun-free terms to most leases and agreements.
State law allows private property owners to prohibit the presence of firearms on their property. As a property owner, the city has rules at Seattle Center and most facilities such as City Hall, prohibiting firearms unless a person has a concealed weapons permit. Organizations that lease Key Arena also have the ability to prohibit firearms in the facility. In addition to other prohibitions, state law prohibits firearms at schools, jails and courthouses.
Get the Nickels Newsletter and the mayor’s inside view on transportation, public safety, economic opportunity and healthy communities at mayor.seattle.gov
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Office of the Mayor
Friday, November 14, 2008
Did President Elect Obama Not Register?
All male citizens 18 - 25 must register with the Selective Service. There may be evidence that President Elect Obama may not have done so and people have made an effort to cover that up after the fact. Debbie Schlussel has the details.
Men who do not register could be prosecuted and, if convicted, fined up to $250,000 and/or serve up to five years in prison. In addition, men who fail to register with Selective Service before turning age 26, even if not prosecuted, will become ineligible for:
Student Financial Aid - including Pell Grants, College Work Study, Guaranteed Student/Plus Loans, and National Direct Student Loans.
U.S. Citizenship - if the man first arrived in the U.S. before his 26th birthday.
Federal Job Training - The Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) offers programs that can train young men for jobs in auto mechanics and other skills. This program is only open to those men who register with Selective Service.
Federal Jobs - men born after December 31, 1959 must be registered to be eligible for jobs in the Executive Branch of the Federal government and the U.S. Postal Service.
There is the question of the cover up and we should all know by now, it is not the crime, it is the cover up that is usually the problem.
I also always am fascinated by those investigating things like this, how something small and seemingly trivial can be the smoking gun. For example, if you look at the document, it is suppose to be from 1980 and there is a United Postal Service stamp on it that says USPO but the postal service stopped using that stamp in 1970 and went to USPS. Smoking gun, don't know. Not sure how someone could explain it away though.
Finally, I have always had a beef with the Selective Service regarding the fact only males need to register. I live in a state where the Governor is female and both Senators are female and if you call and ask why is it only males have to register, you will get some lame answer that sure does not sound "empowering to women" to me.
#14 If you have kept a diary... that could be embarrassment, please describe.
#18 Please describe any relationship with any financial institutions.... Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac.
#46 have any member of your family close social or business associates been arrested, charged with a crime or convicted...
#59, Do you or any member of your family own a gun. If so please provide complete ownership and registration information, whom it is used by. etc. etc.
Former Obama workers claim they were short-changed
Indianapolis - The Obama campaign says most of the payment issues that brought hundreds of upset campaign workers to the Indianapolis office Wednesday have been resolved.
Campaign spokesman Jonathan Swain says a few people showed up Thursday and made arrangements for payment by mail.
A few hundred people stood in line for several hours Wednesday waiting to get paid for working in the final days of the campaign. Many of those people said they were underpaid for the number of hours they worked.
Read the original story:
Lines were long and tempers flared Wednesday not to vote but to get paid for canvassing for Barack Obama. Several hundred people are still waiting to get their pay for last-minute campaigning. Police were called to the Obama campaign office on North Meridian Street downtown to control the crowd.
The line was long and the crowd was angry at times.
"I want my money today! It's my money. I want it right now!" yelled one former campaign worker.
... ...
The large gathering of around 375 people prompted police to call in extra officers and set up temporary barricades. The barricades helped keep the crowd from spilling out onto Meridian Street. Police say the several hundred people in line were for the most part orderly. ... ...
Eventually people did start getting paid, but some said they were missing hours and told to fill in paperwork making their claim and that eventually they would get a check in the mail.
"Still that's not right. I'm disappointed. I'm glad for the president, but I'm disappointed in this system," said Diane Jefferson, temporary campaign worker.
"It should have been $480. It's $230," said Imani Sankofa.
"They gave us $10 an hour. So we added it. I added up all the hours so it was supposed to be at least $120. All I get is $90," said Charles Martin.
"I worked nine hours a day for 4 days and got paid half of what I should have earned," said Randall Waldon.
Some people weren't satisfied with filling out a claim form for money they felt was still due to them.
... ...
"Talking about they'll mail it to us. I ain't worried about that, man. They're not going to mail nothin'," said Martin.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
My Head Hurts
In the last 4 year, President Elect Obama took more money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac than any other person in Congress over the last 30 years except for the head of the Banking committee, Chris Dodd - D.
And somehow the economy was the number 1 issue...
Monday, November 03, 2008
Redistributing the wealth
Got this in an email today...
Today on my way to lunch I passed a homeless guy with a sign that read "Vote Obama, I need the money." I laughed.
Once in the restaurant my server had on a "Obama 08" tie.
When the bill came I decided not to tip the server and explained to him that I was exploring the Obama redistribution of wealth concept. He stood there in disbelief while I told him that I was going to redistribute his tip to someone who I deemed more in need--the homeless guy outside. The server angrily stormed from my sight.
I went outside, gave the homeless guy $10 and told him to thank the server inside as I've decided he could use the money more. The homeless guy was grateful.
At the end of my rather unscientific redistribution experiment I realized the homeless guy was grateful for the money he did not earn, but the waiter was pretty angry that I gave away the money he did earn even though the actual recipient needed money more.
Redistribution of wealth is an easier thing to swallow in concept than in practical application.
Sunday, November 02, 2008
Media Bias, What Media Bias?
An ad from a recent edition of Newsweek:
Friday, October 31, 2008
I Am Voting For Obama
Hey, I do not want to pay for my gas or mortgage either...
Now if you will excuse me, I need to go home and wait for my pet unicorn to poop some more Hersheys kisses.
The Community Reinvestment Act (or CRA, Pub.L. 95-128, title VIII, 91 Stat. 1147, 12 U.S.C. § 2901 et seq.) is a United States federal law that requires banks and savings and loan associations to offer credit throughout their entire market area and prohibits them from targeting only wealthier neighborhoods with their services, a practice known as "redlining." The purpose of the CRA is to provide credit, including home ownership opportunities to under-served populations and commercial loans to small businesses. It has been subjected to important regulatory revisions.
Let me see if I can simplify that, the C.R.A. requires banks to give mortgages to poor people.
The hell you say?!?
The new rules, during a time when many banks were merging and needed to pass the CRA review process to do so, substantially increased the number and aggregate amount of loans to low- and moderate-income borrowers for home loans, some of which were "risky mortgages."
Lets look at some video, shall we...
And one more, just for fun.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
How To Get A Grass Roots Campaign Going 101
Pay People!
"Grassroots"... that word does not mean what you think it means.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Why We Are Having A Financial Melt Down
Lenders were "encouraged" to lend to those who can not afford the payments. Throw on top of that lenders thinking those making the rules are "family".
Anti-Palin Astroturfing Traced Directly to Obama-Connected PR Firm UPDATE: LIKE CLOCKWORK, VIDEOS TAKEN DOWN!!! Update: Rusty Uploading His Copy Now
Obama Connected PR Firm Produces, Uploads Lying Anti-Palin Ad on YouTube, Then Pushes it Virally as "Grassroots" Effort; PR Exec Sockpuppets Praise Video for "Getting the Truth Out;" Company Employee Uploads it On Democratic Underground and Urges Readers to Send it Out to Ten People Each
It is Ace... so consider this your content warning.
Just so you know, I am still alive, just life getting in the way of posting.
Obama Camp Disavows Last Year's 'Inartful' Statement on D.C. Gun Law Email Share June 26, 2008 7:35 AM
ABC News' Teddy Davis and Alexa Ainsworth Report: With the Supreme Court poised to rule on Washington, D.C.'s, gun ban, the Obama campaign is disavowing what it calls an "inartful" statement to the Chicago Tribune last year in which an unnamed aide characterized Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., as believing that the DC ban was constitutional.
"That statement was obviously an inartful attempt to explain the Senator's consistent position," Obama spokesman Bill Burton tells ABC News.
"Inartful"??? When you have to make up words to "clarify" your position...
Comment On The Heller Decision
One quick comment based on a quote from a CNN article
Elilta "Lily" Habtu, however, told the high court that she supports the handgun ban, and tighter gun control in general. Habtu was in a Virginia Tech classroom in April 2007 when fellow student Seung-Hui Cho burst in and began shooting. She survived bullets to the head and arm.
"There has to be tighter gun control; we can't let another Virginia Tech to happen," she told the court. "And we're just not doing it; we're sitting around; we're doing nothing. We let the opportunity arise for more massacres."
Virginia Tech had a total ban on guns. It was a gun free zone as are the overwhelming majority of places that experience tragedies such as this. Let me say that again, the overwhelming majorities of mass murders caused by guns happen in "gun free zones". It is not a coincidence. It is because gun control laws take guns out of the hands of law abiding citizens, thus making them unable to defend themselves in a V.T. type of situation. The criminals know nobody will be able to shoot back and therefore gun free zones are nothing more than consequence free firing ranges for those intent on killing large numbers of people.
So what law exactly does M. Habtu think would have stopped the V.T. massacre?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Is Global Warming About To Bring On A Little Ice Age?
The sun has been laying low for the past couple of years, producing no sunspots and giving a break to satellites. That’s good news for people who scramble when space weather interferes with their technology, but it became a point of discussion for the scientists who attended an international solar conference at Montana State University. Approximately 100 scientists from Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa and North America gathered June 1-6 to talk about “Solar Variability, Earth’s Climate and the Space Environment.”
... Tsuneta said solar physicists aren’t like weather forecasters; They can’t predict the future. They do have the ability to observe, however, and they have observed a longer-than-normal period of solar inactivity. In the past, they observed that the sun once went 50 years without producing sunspots. That period, from approximately 1650 to 1700, occurred during the middle of a little ice age on Earth that lasted from as early as the mid-15th century to as late as the mid-19th century.
How The Old Farmer's Almanac Predicts The Weather ... We derive out weather forecasts from a secret formula that was devised by the founder of this Almanac, Robert B. Thomas, in 1792. Thomas believed that weather on Earth was influenced by sunspots, which are magnetic storms on the surface of the Sun.
Over the years, we have refined and enhanced that formula with state-of-the-art technology and modern scientific calculations. We employ three scientific disciplines to make our long-range predictions: solar science, the study of sunspots and other solar activity; climatology, the study of prevailing weather patterns; and meteorology, the study of the atmosphere. We predict weather trends and events by comparing solar patterns and historical weather conditions with current solar activity.
After a shooting at the Northwest Folklife festival injured three people, Mayor Greg Nickels will prohibit guns at Seattle Center, parks, community centers and city-run buildings.
On Monday, Nickels announced he had signed an executive order, which does not require City Council approval, directing employees to draft a plan in 30 days to create a "gun-free policy" on city property. He has not set a date for the prohibition to take effect.
"Our parks, our community centers and our public events are safer without guns," Nickels said at a news conference with Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske. "At many properties, including City Hall, you can bring a gun if you have a concealed-weapons permit. Under this order, people with concealed weapons will be asked to give up their weapon or leave."
The city does not have the authority to arrest or fine people for bringing a gun onto city property. Only the state can enact laws governing firearms, and the mayor acknowledged the city could face a legal challenge.
First some background, at the recent Folklife festival, where people who do not regularly bathe, gather to air out and do what they normally do the other 364 days of the year, nothing productive, there was a shooting which injured 3 people. Nobody died, 3 people were injured. Over the course of the 37 year history of Folklife, the number of shootings at the festival now total… I may need some time here to calculate the total… fire up the spare server with the dual processor… including this 1 shooting… that would be 1. 1 shooting, 37 years. Millions of people have gone to this festival and there has been 1 shooting, no deaths, in 37 years.
So Mayor Greg Nichols has taken it on himself to make us all safer from this epidemic of violence from this one shooting, in 37 years, by deciding unilaterally that the constitution, the part that say the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, should not apply on city owned property.
Now I understand the need to get this epidemic of gun violence of 1 shooting in 37 years at Folklife down to a rate that would make other gun free zones such as post offices or schools envious, oops, bad examples. But wouldn’t a better idea be to limit other constitutional rights that have no doubt been the source of more violence? If the Mayor imposed restriction on speech, such as outlawing the phrase “Dude, are you sure this is not oregano?, at Hempfest or any speech starting with the phrase "Yo Momma" at the hip hop festival, surely that would result in a greater reduction of violence and we are just limiting a right, not doing away with it. Doesn’t this make more sense? Who could possibly have a problem with this idea?
Saturday, June 07, 2008
Seattle, Where The Constitution Does Not Always Apply
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels plans to ban concealed weapons at festivals after a shooting at Northwest Folklife injured three people.
Joshua Penaluna, her boyfriend, who was shot in the arm, called a ban a good idea. "At a public area like that, the only people that should have weapons should be cops and security."
And criminals Joshua, you forgot criminals. Because the reality is only "law abiding" citizens follow laws.
On May 25, the two Renton residents were hit by stray gunfire after a fight erupted between two men. A bullet shattered Penaluna's wrist and then entered Thorsnes' thigh. A third man, Henry Morris, who was struggling with the gunman, suffered powder burns on the upper lip and nose when the gun discharged close to his face.
Does anyone believe that someone willing to violate attempted murder laws by pulling a gun out and starting to shoot is going to be deterred from bringing a gun by a law against possession?
It was the first shooting in the festival's 37-year history.
So the reality is no doubt thousands and thousands of people have probably had concealed guns at the festival in the past and this was the first shooting. So because of this one shooting, part of the United States Constitution is now null and void at festivals in the city of Seattle.
Let me make an analogy. Let's say tomorrow, someone goes to Safeway and buys a 6 pack of beer and starts drinking it on the drive home and gets in a bad accident that injures some people, not kills, just injures. Should we now ban driving with alcohol in the car? I am not saying ban the consumption of alcohol while driving, that is and should be illegal. I am saying should we ban the transportation of alcohol in a vehicle. If a 6 pack is sitting in a grocery bag in the back seat of a car, should that be banned? The simple act of having a concealed weapon at a festival does not cause harm. Using that weapon, that can, and I stress, can cause harm. It is the same with the alcohol in the car. Having alcohol in the car does not cause harm. Using the alcohol can cause harm. But here is the difference... using the weapon at the festival can cause good. It could stop a serious crime. Using the alcohol in the car will not cause anything positive to happen. One more difference... we do not have a constitutional right to keep and use alcohol.
And where exactly is the ACLU on this issue? Their silence is deafening.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Seattle Alone Will Stop Global Warming
Seattle has decided to take the one drastic step needed to stop global warming, ban beach bonfires.
The park board will hear the recommendation Thursday, and the city plans to run public-service announcements and hand out brochures later this month about the effects of bonfires on global warming.
According to a memo to the park board from the staff released Thursday, "The overall policy question for the Board is whether it is good policy for Seattle Parks to continue public beach fires when the carbon ... emissions produced by thousands of beach fires per year contributes to global warming."
Because that is all it should take:
But at Alki, Nguyen said he'd be OK with banning bonfires.
"By all means, I'd rather not have bonfires than have global warming," he said.
Snow forecast for mountains, rain for lowlands By Seattle Times staff and The Associated Press
Snow is in the forecast for the higher elevations of the Olympics and North Cascades, and rain will continue to fall in the lowlands through the rest of today.
The National Weather Service says up to two feet of new snow are possible by tonight above 5,400 feet, creating avalanche danger and hazardous conditions for climbers or hikers in the backcountry.
The Weather Service says the strong low pressure system over the Northwest will bring cool, cloudy weather with a chance of showers through the weekend across Washington. That means rain is likely off and on through the weekend, with temperatures in the mid-50s to lower 60s.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
It's Official, Hillary! Is Out, Obama Is The Nominee
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Obama Fundraising Buddy Guilty On "Some" Counts
Of course no mention on which Presidential party nominee he might have raised these so called funds for.
Political fundraiser Antoin 'Tony' Rezko has been found guilty on some counts of corruption charges related to a kickback scheme for companies that do business with the state.
Guilty on 16 of 24 counts... or as those of us with degrees in math would say... "most" counts.
Obama Clinches, Race Hustlers Hardest Hit
With the "historic" nomination of Barack Obama, race hustlers such as Al "Tawana Brawley" Sharpton, Jeremiah "God Damn America" Wright and Jesse "Hymietown" Jackson may want to take another angle in order to shake down corporations and the tax paying public for cash.
Either Barack Obama is the next President of the United States of America, proving that race does not matter or Barack Obama loses proving what I have long believed that it is the left that has a problem with race.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Obama's Spiritual Advisor's Film On Hold
Barack Obama's chief political advisor, David Axelrod, is making a film on one of Obama's spiritual advisors, Rev. Michael Pflegerm but that film is currently on hold.
Pfleger's crusades against guns, prostitution, porn and tobacco have made good copy for years for a fairly admiring local press corps hooked on cheering for the underdog, the poor and the powerless.
Pfleger is the subject of a documentary being made by Chicago-based David Axelrod, Obama's top strategist. On Friday, Axelrod told me in an e-mail that the film project has "been dormant for much of the last two years due to other commitments
When asked to comment, Mr. Obama said, "I did not know that".
Friday, May 30, 2008
So Long Montana?
Or should that be hello Republic of Montana? In response to the 2nd amendment case before the Supreme Court, if it does not come down on the side of an "individuals right to keep and bear arms", Montana, may take things into its own hands.
In a joint resolution, the Montana politicians argue that when Washington approved the state constitution, including a clause granting “any person” the right to bear arms, upon the Treasure State’s entry into the Union in 1889, the federal government recognized that clause as consistent with the Second Amendment. If the Court comes down on the side of a collective right, they argue, it would breach the compact for statehood between Montana and the federal government.
Bringing the United States down to 49... or 56 in Obama's world.
Waters was named in 2005[2] and 2006[3] as one of the "most corrupt" members of congress by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. They said, "Her ethics issues arise from her exercise of this power to financially benefit her daughter, husband and son."
Would like to socialize.... or is that nationalize big oil.
I am reposting something from May 2007, because I feel like it and it is a really good idea, no more so than before.
I am going to throw this out to the public but remember, it was my idea, you heard it here first.
One of America's biggest problems is energy independence. Another is the terrorist issue, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. What is one way we could solve both problems with one solution? Easy answer, become energy independent. No more need to buy oil from the Middle East, no more billions of dollars available to those who would like to see us dead.
So how do we do this? Being the capitalist society we are, monetary incentives and disincentives. Now stick with me for a second... we raise the tax on gas and other oil products that come from outside our borders. Call it the foreign oil tax. Not sure the proper amount per liter, quart, gallon or barrel but enough to cause at least some mild discomfort from the consumers and enough to raise some serious cash. Then we take that money, and I am talking multiple billions per year, and we have a national contest, make it a reality show. An American Idol type event called American Energy Independence. Anyone and everyone who is an American citizen, any individual, group, team, company, non profit, church, club, quilting circle whomever, whatever are eligible to submit a plan to a blue ribbon panel with the goal of making America energy independent. The ultimate goal would be a source of energy that is homegrown with bonus points for renewable, cheap and clean.
The foreign oil tax money would be used to fund the research and development of the top ideas deemed worthy of pursuit. There would be a limit to how many are currently being funded and every so often, say 6 months, each plans progress would be reviewed and ranked by probability of success. Any new plan, or even updated old plan, that has been submitted that looks more promising than the current list would replace any existing plan for funding.
The ultimate winner gets any money left over and all future foreign oil tax revenue in addition to a reasonable royalty fee on all future units of energy sold. And by reasonable I mean enough to make Bill Gates wish he had not wasted his time on software.
One condition. The name of the ultimate product has to be called VOOM! Because I really like reading Dr. Suess to Andrew and like I said, it was my idea.
Friday, May 09, 2008
The United States of America, According To Obama
Not sure which United States of America he is talking about... it is not the one I am familiar with.
State closes "flawed" office to help black children in welfare system
5 years after the “Office of African-American Children's Services” opened, someone realized that it
appeared to use "racial classifications as the sole factor in determining" which kids are served
I wonder if anyone at DSHS has looked to see if they have an “Office of Cooking and Distributing Meth”. Nothing gets past these people.
The flaw of course is not that the office only serves African American kids, the flaw is nobody is willing to admit what any sane person knows, that the problem is in the African American culture, parents, and more specifically fathers, in the African American community tend to not take responsibility for their children. Obviously not the case in all or even most situations but just look at Seattle Public school data and compare the breakout by race with the percentage of kids living in a single parent home. Then see if there is a relationship between single parent homes and test scores. Who would have thunk it? It appears dad is not there to make sure junior does his homework.
Enough diversity training of the welfare workers already, get dads to take responsibility for their kids. There is no other solution.
Between 5 and 10 a.m. Monday, 339 solo drivers paid to enter the northbound lane, in fairly light traffic, said Craig Stone, urban-corridors administrator for the state Department of Transportation. Just 29 drivers used the southbound HOT lane.
The tolls, which increase as traffic gets heavier, reached $2.25 at 7:15 a.m. northbound at 277th Street, but Stone said no one paid that rate to use the HOT lanes. The most anyone paid, he said, was $2. The minimum toll was 50 cents, while the average paid was $1.04.
For the afternoon commute, between 2 and 7 p.m., 284 vehicles used the HOT lanes southbound and 60 used them northbound. They paid an average of 72 cents and had an average time saving of two minutes.
The highest the toll Monday afternoon was $1.25, and the highest time savings was 4 minutes.
That would be $557.04 for Monday. And now for the cost side of that financial ledger.
The federal government contributed $5 million toward the state's $18 million startup costs.
18 Million... that does not include the day to day ongoing cost which I am reasonably sure is way, way more than $557.04.
So at this rate, at $557 a day, the startup costs should be repaid in about 88.5 years. Someone may want to take another look at the cost benefit analysis for this project.
HOT Lanes, Another Bad Idea Only Government Could Come Up With
HOT (high occupancy transportation) lanes, AKA diamond lanes, are those where you need to be in a carpool or on public transportation to actually use. Highway 167 is now setup so that single drivers can use these lanes if they are willing to pay a fee. The fee varies depending on how bad the traffic is at the time.
Monday morning, in the first 5 hours of a weekday commute, 339 cars paid an average of $1.04 to use the lanes. Just a guess here but the cost to administer this program was more than the revenue generated and the benefit was minimal at best. $350 for 5 hours, that is about what it would cost to pay 9 people minimum wage over the same time period. This does not take into account any of the cost of the technology, signage etc. Reports this morning was 167 was backed up because of confusion over how the new system works.
Only government could come up with a plan this costly and ineffective. Do we need to do something about traffic congestion, sure. Spending $1000 to get $100 worth of benefit... only the government would do something like this.
Monday, May 05, 2008
McDermott Call U.S. Soldiers Mercenaries, Stupid and Felons
McDermott said that “we’re losing in Afghanistan,” accused the President of planning to expand the war into Iran, and said “we’re running a gulag – one over in Guantanamo, and several in Iraq.” Yet, the congressman argued, “nobody cares” about the war because “as long as we can hire mercenaries to fight this war for us” the war would continue. McDermott said that the "mercenaries" were recruited from those who could not get jobs, or who could not get into school, or who were in jail due to having committed felonies.
And based on Representative McDermott's history, there is no reason to give him the benefit of the doubt.
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama's loose cannon of a spiritual adviser, stole the wife of a parishioner - after the man sought Wright's help in saving his troubled marriage, the former husband told friends.
Delmer Reed, 59, confided to pals that he believed the minister moved in on his wife while Wright was counseling the couple at his Chicago church in the early 1980s, The Post has learned.
"That's exactly how he said it," Reed's divorce lawyer, Roosevelt Thomas, told The Post.
We do not need a gas tax holiday. When a patient is hemorrhaging from a gaping wound, a band aid is nothing more than a waste of time fixing the issue. What we need is a comprehensive energy plan that will eventually make us energy independent. This needs to include temporary steps such as drilling in ANWR and raising fuel mileage standards. Both side need to give on this issue because it is too important.
And no, Senator McCain, ANWR is not the Grand Canyon but even so, if there was significant oil in the Grand Canyon, we should drill there also, it is that important.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Obama - Wright, Part 2
Interesting theory about why the rift between Obama and Wright. Could it be that if Obama wins, then everything Wright needs to continue to do what he does, make a really good living complaining about "whitey", goes away?
Obama - Wright, Part 1
Here was my first reaction when I heard Obama say "that is not the man I met 20 years ago". Oh really, how about the man who married you the the Mrs.? How about the man who baptised your children? How about the man that inspired your book? Is that the same man?
It reminded me about the comment about Ayers when he said the bombings took place when I was 8. OK but you did not meet with him when you were 8, you did not serve with him on Boards when you were 8. There seems to be a pattern here.
I have not heard anyone else bring this up. Am I the only one?
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
McDermott Pays $1 Million For Leaking Tape But Still Claims Victory
It is official, the check has finally been written and cashed.
Rep. Jim McDermott has paid more than $1 million to House Minority Leader John Boehner, ending a decadelong dispute over an illegally taped telephone call.
"Every last penny will be used to help elect Republicans," Smith said, calling it ironic that McDermott — an outspoken partisan — "is helping fund the defeat of his fellow Democrats. I wouldn't expect he'll receive a lot of thank yous come November."
Meanwhile, McDermott still does not get it...
"While the amount of damages assessed in this case is significant, I submit that defending the First Amendment is beyond measure and worth every penny," he said.
If it was truly "worth every penny" then why is he not out each and every day breaking laws in a constant effort to defend the First Amendment?
Why? Because he was not defending the First Amendment, he was proving that if you can come up with enough cash, ideally from other people, you are free to violate the law and do what you want.
Multiple calls to Rep. McDermott's office asking for an explanation of how he was defending the First Amendment have gone unanswered.
UPDATE: Another call into the office and we have an explanation. It seems new case law was created and the court ruled that Rep. McDermott did nothing wrong. When asked why then was he paying over a million dollars, I was told that it was because the court said he should not have turned over the tapes. I was also told that I needed to read the ruling to understand that he did not "lose" the case.
What was the word he used to describe the ruling... "nuanced". I kid you not.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Voter ID Is Constitutional
As blogging buddy Karl over at LSU notes, it is legal to require ID to vote. Who would have thunk it.
Reminds me of the time that I went to my polling place after complaining earlier in the day to the county about the law which said it was illegal to ASK for ID. When was my turn to sign the voters book, I asked to see the book and looked through a couple of pages of voters names as if I could not decide which one I was. I then said how about this one. The polling person said how do I know that is you? You do not, do you, and you are not permitted to ask for identification. I then said in fact that was me and they said we understand your point, feel free to make it somewhere else next time.
Potential African American Baseball Players Opt To Become Doctors and Lawyers
Jerry Brewer had an article in the Sunday Seattle Times complaining about the lack of African American baseball players in the major leagues.
The subject barely musters shock value now. Mention that the African-American baseball player is on the verge of extinction, and, at best, it inspires brief pondering. At worst, it prompts little more than an obligatory nod.
We already know he's dying. We figure there's little we can do.
This feels like a vigil.
"It's sad," says Dan Jurdy, the Rainier Beach High School athletic director. "It's really sad."
Only 8.2 percent of major-league baseball players are African-American, according to diversity expert Richard Lapchick's 2008 Racial and Gender Report Card. It's the lowest percentage in at least two decades. Some estimates have it as the lowest since the 1950s.
I say it is a good thing. First off, if you strictly look at the numbers, African Americans make up about 12% of the population in the US and account for 8.2% of MLB players. Now if you subtract out the foreign players, mostly Latin and Asian, that brings those numbers up to something closer to the population at large. The sad reality is a significant number of young African American males can not play in the majors because they are incarcerated. Subtract out that total and that would probably get you to right about that 12% number.
But here is my point... sometime in the past, say 20 years ago, if you were driving down the road and a top of the line Mercedes pulls up next to you and a fairly young African American is driving this expensive vehicle, your first reaction is I wonder what team he plays for. That was what I was thinking, that is what you were thinking. Not the case anymore. That guy could be a doctor, a lawyer, sell real estate or own a small business.
As long as kids think the only chance to succeed is playing pro sports, they will not hit the books and stay in school and become a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer or teacher. The reality is making a living playing sports is one in a million and the overwhelming majority just do not have the God given gifts that it takes. But they can graduate from high school and go to college and make something of their lives. That should be what we are concerned about, the number that graduate, not the number that can hit a ball with a bat over a wall.
After an unsuccessful campaign for Congress in 2000, Illinois state Sen. Barack Obama faced serious financial pressure: numerous debts, limited cash and a law practice he had neglected for a year. Help arrived in early 2001 from a significant new legal client -- a longtime political supporter.
Chicago entrepreneur Robert Blackwell Jr. paid Obama an $8,000-a-month retainer to give legal advice to his growing technology firm, Electronic Knowledge Interchange. It allowed Obama to supplement his $58,000 part-time state Senate salary for over a year with regular payments from Blackwell's firm that eventually totaled $112,000.
A few months after receiving his final payment from EKI, Obama sent a request on state Senate letterhead urging Illinois officials to provide a $50,000 tourism promotion grant to another Blackwell company, Killerspin.
Killerspin specializes in table tennis, running tournaments nationwide and selling its own line of equipment and apparel and DVD recordings of the competitions. With support from Obama, other state officials and an Obama aide who went to work part time for Killerspin, the company eventually obtained $320,000 in state grants between 2002 and 2004 to subsidize its tournaments.
There is the obvious corruption angle. Clearly Obama took a payment in order to direct taxpayer money to a client. But here is my issue... the government is providing tourism promotional grants... to a ping pong company?
This reminds me of a book I read about the Clinton administration. Before the 1992 election, the Clinton camp was going to come up with places where the federal budget could be cut and the one thing they came up with, reducing the amount of money the government gave to honey producers by 40 million dollars. And why exactly is the federal government giving money to honey producers?
Sunday, April 27, 2008
The Black Panthers, Celebrating 40 Years Of Racial Socialism in Seattle
The group was never anti-white, members said. Its mission was to advocate for the poor and protect the oppressed.
as long as they were black...
According to the Black Panthers own 10 point plan:
1)We want power to determine the destiny of our black and oppressed communities' education that teaches us our true history and our role in the present-day society. 2)We want completely free health care for all black and oppressed people. 3)We want an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people, other people of color, all oppressed people inside the United States. 4)We want an immediate end to all wars of aggression. 5)We want full employment for our people. 6)We want an end to the robbery by the capitalists of our Black Community. 7)We want decent housing, fit for the shelter of human beings. 8)We want decent education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society. 9)We want freedom for all black and oppressed people now held in U. S. Federal, state, county, city and military prisons and jails. We want trials by a jury of peers for all persons charged with so-called crimes under the laws of this country. 10)We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice, peace and people's community control of modern technology.
Who would you think the Black Panthers are referring to when they say "our people"? Not Asians, not Hispanics, certainly not "the Jews".
Substitute the word white in place of black and you would think it was the KKK or white supremacists talking... no wait, that is not correct. The KKK is not a socialist group that is demanding land, bread, housing etc. for its members.
Here is a better analogy, substitute the word Germans for black and it sure sounds like the Nazis or as they are officially known, the National Socialists.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Diversity Loving Liberals In Seattle... Not In My Backyard
Many residents in Seattle's affluent Magnolia neighborhood are fuming over plans to house homeless people near Discovery Park at soon-to-be-closed Fort Lawton.
"We're the ones who live here, and we want to have a nice, safe neighborhood to live in," Donald Raz, a King County deputy prosecutor and Magnolia resident, said later.
Like most affluent neighborhoods in Seattle, Magnolia doesn't have any housing for homeless people mainly because land is too expensive for social-service agencies to buy.
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 19,156 people, 9,077 households, and 4,828 families residing in the neighborhood. There are 9,416 housing units. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 87.4% White, 5.8% Asian, 1.6% African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 1.0% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.3% of the population.
They are all for helping the homeless, just keep those wife-beaters, sex offenders and crack addicts away from overwhelmingly white, liberal neighborhood.
Reports of crops damage caused by freezing temperatures has grabbed the attention of Gov. Christine Gregoire, who may seek a proclamation offering growers low-interest loans
Fire up those SUVs
"Right now, the damage does not appear widespread but may be significant in isolated areas," Gregoire said in a news release. "Growers are telling us they need a few days of warmer weather before they will know the real extent of the damage."
Product Description Oh, no! Hazardous waste has managed to seep out of a barrel and onto the sidewalk! No need to worry, the Hazmat Crew has promptly arrived. The street has been secured with road warning signs and the Crew begins clean up with their powerful very vacuums. Dressed in protective uniforms and armed with hazardous material equipment, this sidewalk is sure to be free of this hazardous substance in no time! Ages 4 & Up
Fun for everyone.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Sexism At the University of Washington
According to the UW's own Factbook for 2007, 9521 first year freshman females applied for admittance to the University of Washington while 8356 first year freshman males applied. 53.26% of the applicants were female, 46.74% of the applicants were male. But... 55.55% of those accepted were female while a mere 44.45 accepted were male.
Today, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell and Rep. Jay Inslee will be sending a letter to President Bush, urging him to increase vigilance at the federal level. They want an energy-fraud task force established at the Department of Justice. Last year, Cantwell was able to insert a provision into law that provided more tools for the federal government to investigate allegations of gas-market manipulation but the rule-making has been slow to start.
Is she in favor of increasing supply by drilling in ANWR? No. Is she doing anything to increase refining capabilities? No. All she wants to do is increase government regulation. Yea, that should help.
I guess I should not expect anything more from her.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Stock Market Investing Update
As I mentioned in a previous post, I had changed the way I invest in the stock market a while back. Starting in January, I tweaked that method slightly. I now purchase up to 5 stocks every 3 months instead of selling the 5 that have hit the one year anniversary and buying 5 new stocks. In January I held two of the 5 I already had and bought 3 new stocks. Just last week I purchased 4 new stocks, replacing the 5 that I have had for the last year.
This is a slight modification to the "MFI" method I had been using. I just feel more comfortable not being forced into 5 new stocks every 3 months. If I can find 5 worthy of purchase, great, if not, ok. This also concentrates my investment dollars into fewer stocks, which can be good or can be bad.
So far, the results since January, way, way too short of a time period, have been exceptionally good but only time will tell.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Global Warming, Is There Anything It Can Not Do?
I drove around the Seattle area watching it snow and hail from time to time while the thermometer said it was 41 degrees outside.
Snowing at 41 degrees. I am finally impressed by global warming.
Seattle Public Schools will pay former John Marshall Alternative School principal Joseph Drake more than $200,000 in exchange for his resignation from the district.
Clearly this guy should not be a principal of a school.
A district investigation found that Drake was viewed as a "threatening person" by his staff. In addition, the investigation said he "engaged in a campaign of profane, intimidating and bully behavior, using the 'F' word during a meeting with central-office staff members"; bullied University of Washington evaluators working on a report about his school; "created an atmosphere of mistrust and 'my way or the highway' approach to policies and practices at the school"; and "impugned the character and competence of the district staff."
But here is the "money quote", literally...
In a March 4 letter, Drake wrote that he deserved compensation "in order that my family and I continue to experience a quality lifestyle."
He "deserves" compensation so he can continue to experience a quality lifestyle? No... you deserve compensation because you supply goods and or services of value.
This smacks of the school district spending taxpayer money to take care of their own. The guy deserved to be fired and they paid him off to go away. Must be nice to have a checkbook funded by others that allows you to do that.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Cuban Citizens Can Finally Get Cell Phones, Part 2
The contracts cost about US$120 (euro76) to activate — half a year's wages on the average state salary. And that doesn't include a phone or credit to make and receive calls. Still, lines formed before the centers opened, and waits grew to more than an hour. ... Astorga planned to buy about US$65 (euro41) in credit — enough, she hopes, for three months of very brief conversations
The "average" state salary? What about economic equality? Shouldn't all workers be equally poor in a Marxist utopia?
So lets run some numbers, $120 to ACTIVATE, another $65 for 3 months worth of calls, so $260 per year for air time. $120 is half a years wages for the average state salary, so $240 is about the average yearly salary. So for the low, low price of only 58% above your yearly salary, you to can purchase cell time and activation for a cell phone. The actual cell phone is extra.
So to put that in perspective, if you were making the US federal minimum wage, not the average salary, but the minimum wage of $5.85 an hour and working a full year at 40 hours per week, you would earn $12,168 and if the US had "economic equality" similar to Cuba, phone activation and airtime for the year would cost $19,266. But remember, that does not include an actual phone.
Getting through the day without a cell phone is unthinkable now in most developed countries, but Cuba's government limited access to cell phones as well as kitchen appliances, hotels and other luxuries in an attempt to preserve the relative economic equality that is a hallmark of social life in communist Cuba.
"Economic equality" Or as we would call it, everyone is dirt poor.
Anyway, welcome to the 1990s Cuba... you may want to start getting prepared for that Y2K bug.
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
McDermott's Loses Again But Thinks He Won
There is a saying that goes something like I would rather deal with a corrupt politician than an insane one because at least I know how to work with the corrupt one.
McDermott to pay more than $1 million in Boehner legal bills
A federal judge has ordered Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) to pay over $1 million in legal bills incurred by House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) in a long-running battle between the two lawmakers over a leaked 1996 phone call.
Chief Judge Thomas Hogan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered McDermott to pay $1,053,181.40 in attorney's fees and costs, plus roughly $40,000 in interest to date. The Washington Democrat also had to cough up another $60,000 in fines. And that's on top of the hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees that McDermott must pay his own lawyers.
In a statement, McDermott said the legal fight - which Boehner offered at one point to settle with a public apology and a charitable donation - was worth it, despite the cost.
"This has been a long and costly battle but, in the final analysis, the judgment handed down today in the U.S. District Court is a small price to pay in defense of so fundamental a principle, and freedom, as the First Amendment," McDermott said. "Because of this protracted legal challenge, the First Amendment is stronger today, and shielded by new case law that will buttress its capacity to protect the publication of truthful information on matters of public importance long into the future. Knowing this, I am proud of my role in defense of the First Amendment."
I have a call in to McDermott's office asking what case law now protects the right to illegally disclose taped conversations. I also asked what color is the sky in Representative McDermott's world. I won't hold my breathe on getting an answer.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Ribbon seals, which depend on floating sea ice that is growing scarce in a warming Arctic, will be considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act, a U.S. government agency said on Wednesday.
CHARLOTTETOWN, Prince Edward Island (Reuters) -Canada's annual seal hunt, which the government promised would be more humane this year, cranked up slowly on Friday because of thick ice.
Global Warming 2008
It is April, a light covering of snow on the ground here in Seattle, 30 degrees this morning, my vehicle was frozen shut.
Global warming, she is finicky, ain't she.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
The Company Hillary! Keeps
From Wikipedia so you know it may or may not be total BS.
Susie Tompkins Buell, a United States former entrepreneur and a liberal political donor. Buell is often described as Hillary Clinton's best friend.
In 1967, Tompkins Buell and Jane Tise co-founded the Plain Jane clothing label. Tompkin Buell's new husband Douglas Tompkins recommended changing the name to Esprit. The early sensibility of Esprit was seen as flowing from the personalities and interests of its founders. They were once described as "a pair of San Francisco hippie merchants who sold clothing over a North Beach massage parlor".
Esprit de Corp. was found by the National Labor Relations Board to have illegally interrogated and intimidated $2-an-hour Chinese workers, and then to have shut down a factory to keep them from unionizing. The Department of Labor found that an Esprit contractor doctored payroll records and refused to pay overtime.
Tompkins Buell led a 1990 leveraged buyout that allowed her to gain control of Esprit, and also earned her a profit of about $150 million. The buyout left Esprit deeply in debt. In two years it went into technical default on its outstanding loans and in 1997, Tompkins Buell relinguished all ownership of and involvement in the company to a consortium of investors.
In March 1997, Tompkins Buell sued the new owners of Esprit for $3 million she said they owed her in reimbursement for tax payments
A San Francisco hippie who illegally interrogated and intimidated $2-an-hour Chinese workers, refused to pay overtime, took $150 million in profits resulting in a company deep in debt that lead to a default on its loans and then sued to get someone else to pay her taxes.
The audio has some gaps, not sure why. I bring this up now because of the item over at Ace's that claims Saddam may have paid for McDermott's trip to Bahgdad prior to the war.
Note the following: Jim McDermott is unaware that Bryan Suits, a talk show host on a political talk radio station, is an officer in the National Guard or that he is not old enough to have been in the Vietnam war.
After saying over and over that he has never said he was a Vietnam veteran, he then repeatedly says when I was in the (Vietnam) war.
He refers to the United States as "they".
It sounds like the Congressman may have "drank his dinner".
A little background. Bryan Suits use to be on Seattle Radio stations KIRO and KVI but was let go only to be picked up by Southern California talk radio powerhouse KFI. The first time I ever heard Bryan on the radio, he was on KIRO. I was just flipping through stations and heard this guy talking about McDermott and claiming that McDermott had never claimed to be a "Vietnam Veteran". To quote Kieth Jackson... Whoooa Nelly... earlier that week, I had personally heard Jim McDermott, while in Bahgdad, hence "Bahgdad Jim", give an interview on ABC's "This Week" were he said, and I quote,
I believe that sometimes they give out misinformation. Lyndon Johnson did it in the Vietnam War. Both David and I were in that war, and there was no Gulf of Tonkin incident.
So I emailed Bryan the next day and let him know this fact and pointed him to the transcript. That was the first of what turned out to be many, many emails and a few face to face meetings where alcoholic beverages may or may not have been consumed.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Seattle Public Library Announcement
The Seattle Public Libraries will be closed this Sunday due to "historically low usage". Or as the rest of us call it, "Easter".
The NBPP lists on its Web site a 10-point plan for full employment for black Americans as well as housing, education, free health care and an end to the death penalty.
In addition, it demands slavery reparations, the release of all black prisoners from American jails, trials of blacks only by all-black juries, an end to all black cooperation with police departments, exemption for blacks from the all-volunteer U.S. military and a separate country for African-Americans.
Exemption from the all volunteer military... what does that mean?
The Brady Campaign Says The Citizens of Washington DC Are Dangerous
I was listening to the Supreme Court oral arguments regarding the 2nd amendment case. Afterwards, there were statements made by both sides of the debate. One statement was by a spokesman for the Brady Campaign. He said, and this is not an exact quote, but should be very close, that the Brady Campaign, which supported the Washington DC ban on handguns was in favor of reasonable restrictions on dangerous people owning guns.
So let's understand what they are saying, they are in favor of reasonable restrictions, the DC law BANS HANDGUNS, on dangerous people, the DC law applies to all citizens.
So if I am understanding what was said, the Brady Campaign thinks a total ban on handguns is reasonable and the citizens or Washington DC are dangerous.
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Boeing Tanker Contract Reaction
Sounds like Boeing is surprised that being the only "American" company bidding on the tanker deal is not enough to overcome submitting an inferior bid.
As a former Boeing employee who worked almost exclusively on Air Force related projects, I was more than a little surprised by the news. Reading the reports though, it sounds like Boeing was relying on being based in America as the main selling point. The 767 did not appear to be the strongest platform and had some performance issues when compared to the Airbus proposal. It will be interesting to follow the reaction as news of why Boeing lost leaks out.
One note of interest, in all that I have read in the news, not once has my representative, the Congressman from Seattle, Jim McDermott's name been mentioned once. I am guessing the reason is if he had been asked for comment about the Boeing tanker deal, the comment would have been something along the lines of "Boeing, Tanker deal? What are you talking about?"
Of course I could be wrong.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Congratulations President McCain
And you think these are good things?????
I stole this from Ace who stole it from someone...
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Liberal Compassion, Acceptance and Tolerance
While I admire Warren Buffet for his investment geneous, I have always personally had issues with certain things about how he lives his life. Being more libertarian socially, it is not really any of my business what he does in his life. On the other hand, when he comes out and speaks in ways intended to change tax policy, that is fair game. The next time Warren Buffet talks about how he pays less in tax than his secretary, someone please, please ask him 2 questions, 1) how much did you pay accountants and tax professionals to get your tax that low and 2) what is keeping you from paying more? There is not a law limiting how much you can voluntarily pay.
In Jamie Johnson's film "The One Percent," Nicole Buffett talks about how lucky she is to be a Buffett. "I feel very fulfilled and happy in my life," says Nicole, the adopted daughter of Peter Buffett, Warren Buffett's son.
Warren Buffett, however, wasn't pleased. Shortly after Nicole appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to talk about the film, Mr. Buffett sent her a letter saying that, while he was proud of Nicole and her achievements, "...I have not legally or emotionally adopted you as a grandchild, nor have the rest of my family adopted you as a niece or a cousin."
Nicole is the biological daughter of Mary Buffett (with another man), who married Peter when Nicole was 4 years old. Peter and Mary divorced but Peter adopted Nicole when she was 18. Warren Buffett declined to comment.
Nicole says she spent almost every Christmas with Warren Buffett between the ages of 4 and 11 and often went to his home in Omaha for spring break. Susan Buffett, Warren's first wife, who died in 2004, named Nicole in her will as one of her "adored grandchildren" and left her $100,000. She added that Nicole "shall have the same status and benefits ... as if they were children of my son, Peter A. Buffett."
A source close to the family says Nicole spent "very little time" with Warren Buffett over the years but that he paid for Nicole's school and living expenses until she was 28. Nicole says that Mr. Buffett's reaction may have reflected his philosophy about wealth. "Sharing my experience as a Buffett was stepping outside the box," she says.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Obama's "Accomplishments"
And by accomplishments, I mean stuff that never went anyplace...
Just name one of his legislative accomplishments...
Senator Obama’s fight for universal children’s health care in Illinois.
His success bringing Republicans and Democrats together (a huge selling point for me in general) on bills such as the one in Illinois requiring police interrogations and confessions to be videotaped.
His leadership on ethics reform in Washington (the bill that lobbyists and special interests are complaining about right now has his name on it).
His bill to make the federal budget far more transparent and accessible to Americans via the Internet – we could use that openness in Texas.
And his vital work with Republicans to lock down nuclear weapons around the world.
So what exactly is the source of income that allows the Cuban government to be able to pay for health insurance. What industry are they in where they make a profit?
Oh... that is right, oppressing its citizens.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Seattle Times Op-Ed Columnist Bob Herbert's Toxic Bigotry
On Saturday, in a cold, steady rain, voters turned out for the Republican primary. Nearly all of them — close to 100 percent — were white. At a dinner here Saturday night, I was reminded ruefully by one of the guests: "It used to be the Democratic Party that was the white man's party in South Carolina. Now it's the GOP. The black people vote next Saturday."
They still honor Benjamin Tillman down here, which is very much like honoring a malignant tumor. Astatue of Tillman, who was known as "Pitchfork Ben," is on prominent display outside the statehouse.
Tillman served as governor and U.S. senator in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A mortal enemy of black people, he bragged that he and his followers had disenfranchised "as many as we could," and he publicly defended the murder of blacks.
In a speech on the Senate floor, he declared: "We of the South have never recognized the right of the Negro to govern white men, and we never will. We have never believed him to be the equal of the white man, and we will not submit to his gratifying his lust on our wives and daughters without lynching him."
In the recent book "White King and Red Queen," British author Daniel Johnson said the match was "an abstract antagonism on an abstract battleground using abstract weapons ... yet their struggle embraced all human life."
"In Spassky's submission to his fate and Fischer's fierce exultant triumph, the Cold War's denouement was already foreshadowed."
Please.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Add This Guy To My Hero List
He is a publisher from Canada who is being asked to explain, be a Canadian government employee, his reasons for publishing cartoons.
New Hampshire Democrats Do Not Want A Black President
That is my take on the New Hampshire primary. Let me see if I can explain it a little better... traditional democratic voters recognized that if Obama won the New Hampshire primary, there was a good chance he would become president.
That was not the case in Iowa. Obama winning Iowa just stirred up the race and sent a message to the Clinton camp that she should not take the nomination for granted. An Obama win in Iowa and a win in New Hampshire, now that would have had some serious consequences.
So the question is why were the polls so wrong? The answer is do you cheat on your taxes? Do you watch porn? Are you a bad driver? Almost everyone will answer no, no and no. But what people say and what they do... especially in the privacy of the voting booth...
Seattle is a lot like New Hampshire, mostly white, mostly liberal. I have lived in Seattle all of my life, I know that what liberals tell you about diversity and inclusiveness and how they act when the rubber meets the road is often in contradiction.
Feel free to disagree but that is how I see it.
Monday, January 07, 2008
Mike Huckabee, Conservative?
Love him or hate him, and I really do not love him, one thing we should all be able to agree on is Mike Huckabee is not a conservative. Just do not tell that to Pat Regnier, Money Magazine editor at large. Who in an article on CNN, says this:
With Mike Huckabee's big win in the Iowa Republican caucus Thursday, more people are asking, "So what's this guy actually stand for?"
Answer: For the most part, he's a pretty conventional conservative Republican.
About the only thing that ties Gov. Huckabee to conservatives is the fact that almost all of his supporters go to church. That is it because few if any of his positions can be described as conservative.
His aides are wary of New Hampshire. "It's all no tax, no government there," said Bob Wickers, a top strategist. "It's not ideal."
I think it is safe to say you may not actually be a "conventional conservative".
About the only thing I do agree with the Governor on is the "fair tax", what is really nothing more than a national sales tax. The CNN article labels the idea as "radical" and regressive while glossing over the massive benefits. Remember, "THIS IS CNN". The last thing they would advocate is for an idea that would reduce the size of government and help reward productivity.
Reporters who walked into this Nashua high school today were immediately struck by the crowd — there are visibly more people here for Sen. Hillary Clinton than were here for Sen. Barack Obama yesterday in the same location.
The Clinton crowd was loud and boisterous and their foot-stomping was thunderous.
Many of them were also from Massachusetts. ... Serap Sankoh, a biostatistician from Acton, Mass., said she had been actively recruited to attend and wave signs wildly by the Clinton campaign. "I got the telephone calls not last night but the night before and I'm a die-hard supporter, so I made the drive," she said. ... UPDATE, 4:20 P.M. — When the event ended I talked to some of the out-of-staters, including Julia Fuchs, 65 and a recent graduate student. She was about to board one of the buses back to New York after spending two days in the Granite State for Clinton.
"We are crazy about her. We came here to stump for her, they told me where to go," she said. "The campaign paid for everything."
Fuchs also told me that one questioner who asked about student loans during the event was one of the volunteers from New York.
UPDATE, 5:20 P.M. — I just spoke to the student loans questioner, Dominique Wilburn, who told me she actually is an intern in Clinton's New York senate office.
Apparently that is the opinion of Lee Gaillard who wrote an op ed piece in the Seattle Times stating such. Actually he states that "public safety" should trump the outdated 2nd amendment and he cites the upcoming Supreme Court case which will decide if the ban on handguns in Washington D.C. is constitutional. Washington D.C. has the strictest gun laws in the country and a murder rate 3.5 times higher than any state in the country. It is almost as if criminals know in advance that their victims will be unarmed.
But that lack of logic is not good enough for Mr. Galliard. He goes on to state:
The nine justices should hone their grammar skills. The introductory absolute phrase ("A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State,") preceding the main clause sets the condition for why the people collectively had a right to keep and bear arms: to be able quickly to muster their local "well regulated Militia," individually lifting smoothbores down from over their fireplaces so they could assemble and march off to defend "the security of [their] free State" against aggressors
Um.. no, what you call an introductory absolute phrase that is a condition of the main clause is a dependent clause that serves as a justification for the main clause, but does not limit the main clause. If being part of a militia was a condition, then the wording of the main clause would not be the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. Instead it would need to be the right of the people who are part of a militia to keep and bears arms shall not be infringed.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Are Any Of Them Electable?
I am not thrilled with any of the candidates for President. And by not thrilled, I mean I can not remember a more pathetic list of candidates. I simply do not see how any of them are electable. Someone will have to win but it is going to only be because "none of the above" is not an option on the ballot. They all have issues, some really serious, some that should not be serious.
But here is what I think is going to be interesting. The Democrat that wins the primary is going to most likely be either Clinton or Obama. Now what nobody wants to talk about is that last I checked, neither a female or African American has ever been elected President... or Vice President.... or been nominated by one of the major parties... or even been a serious candidate. In the primary it is probably not going to matter all that much since it really is the hard core cool aide drinkers that get out and vote, but come November 2008, if the Democratic ticket does feature either of the two front runners... in the privacy of the voting booth... will the party of diversity come out and back up what they preach? I have relatives from the mid west that have never ever even considered voting Republican who I think are going to have a really hard time pulling a leaver that says either Hillary or Obama. That is just reality.
And just so it is clear, I would vote for a female and / or an African American in a heartbeat. In fact if Condi Rice jumped in the race tomorrow, she would probably jump to the top of my list.
Chicago Lawyer Wishes He Would Have Simply Been Beaten To A Pulp.
What could be dumber than claiming a pterodactyl caused you to drive your car into a light pole? How about keying a Marine's car?
Marine Sgt Mike McNulty is on activation orders to Iraq (second tour). On December 1st, 2007, Mike went to visit a friend in Chicago before deploying to say goodbye.
While saying goodbye, at about 11am, he noticed a man leaning up against his car. Mike left his friend's apartment and caught the man keying his car on multiple sides.
After caught in the process, the man told Mike, "you think you can do whatever you want with Department of Defense license plates and tags". (In Illinois you can purchase veteran, Marine, or medal plates. Mike has Illinois Marine Corps license plates.) During the exchange, he made additional anti-military comments.
Mike called the Chicago police and had the man arrested. A citation against the man was issued for misdemeanor criminal damage to private property
The jerk in question is a lawyer named Jay Grodner. I am going to guess that Mr. Grodner may regret his actions. Seems his office phone lines have been disconnected, his long list of legal problems published for all to see.
"In addition to being disciplined for being involved in a scheme to forging documents, it has been reported to CLR that attorney Jay Robert Grodner has since then engaged in a conflict of interest with his clients, has abandoned his clients, has engaged in false billing, has engaged in a fraud upon his clients, provided ineffective assistance of counsel, and has engaged in a "fraud upon the court". "
But it gets worse... a lot worse for him. He has a listing on an internet "dating" site. And by dating I mean skip dinner and the movie dating. What a creep. Click at your own risk.
WENATCHEE -- A 29-year-old Wenatchee man told police a pterodactyl caused him to drive his car into a light pole about 11:30 p.m. Thursday.
Wenatchee police cited the man with first-degree negligent driving. A breathalyzer test showed "a minimal amount of alcohol," said Wenatchee police Sgt. Cherie Smith.
The only surprises, "minimal amount" and Wenatchee instead of Pullman.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Tim Tebow Wins The Heisman Trophy
Florida Sophmore Tim Tebow won the Heisman trophy on Saturday. Al Gore finished a disappointing 3rd.
H RES 635 2/3 YEA-AND-NAY 2-Oct-2007 5:06 PM QUESTION: On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Agree, as Amended BILL TITLE: Recognizing the commencement of Ramadan
H RES 847 2/3 YEA-AND-NAY 11-Dec-2007 7:02 PM QUESTION: On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Agree, as Amended BILL TITLE: Recognizing the importance of Christmas and the Christian faith. 10 40
Jim McDermott voted no. All 9 no votes came from Democrats.
An Inconvenient Truth, A Movie Review And A Little More
I read in the newspaper the other day that Al Gore took the train from the airport to the hotel where he was staying before picking up his Nobel Prize.
OSLO, Norway (AP) — Former Vice President Al Gore skipped the traditional airport motorcade and took public transportation when he arrived Friday in Oslo to accept the Nobel Peace Prize he shared for his campaign against global warming.
Before his arrival with his wife, Tipper, Gore told his hosts that he would not need the traditional motorcade from the airport, preferring to take the high-speed and environmentally friendly airport train, and then walking to his downtown Oslo hotel. "I use public transport when I can. It isn't always possible," Gore told The Associated Press while walking to his hotel. He said the train was much faster than a limousine, but that it was also a symbol of efforts to reduce pollution in hopes of slowing climate change.
"It is a gesture. It is also one of the changes we are all going to have to be doing anyway," Gore said about the need to change travel habits.
Later that same day I got a call from a relative who was borrowing a copy of An Inconvenient Truth. I asked if I could come over and watch it with her. She said yes and so I did.
Now I promise not to give away the ending where we all drown but here are a couple of observations about what the movie included versus what I expected.
I was expecting more science. More scientists explaining the scientific facts. Al Gore in not a scientist.
In 1965, Gore enrolled at Harvard College, the only university to which he applied. He scored in the lower fifth of the class for two years in a row[11] and, after finding himself bored with his classes in his declared English major, Gore switched majors, found a passion for government, and graduated with honors from Harvard in June 1969 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in government.[10] After returning from the military he took religious studies courses at Vanderbilt and then entered the university's law school. He left Vanderbilt without a degree to run for an open seat in Tennessee's 3rd Congressional District in 1976.
There are almost no scientist talking about the science of global warming in this film. Al talks about them, “his good friend Carl Sagen” or “his good friend Roger Revelle” Al Gore has a lot of good friends. Lots more cartoons and animation than I expected. Lot of video of Al growing up or when he was in the Senate. Seemed like a lot of the footage was recycled from his planned run for the 2008 Presidency. Much of it just seemed like a campaign ad. The other part that seemed to come up lots and lots and lots were scenes of Al Gore riding in an airplane or in the back of a limousine. Al Gore burns a lot of fuel. Seemed like an odd choice of footage considering the subject.
So here is what the movie wants us to believe, man made carbon, CO2, is increasing the temperature of the earth. That is it.
Here is the problem with that argument. Increases in carbon does not appear to cause an increase in temperature. But there is another problem, even if increases in carbon could cause an increase in temperature, is man capable of increasing carbon enough to make a difference in the temperature. I will get back to those topics shortly.
First lets discuss if the temperature of the earth is increasing or not. Of course it is! Really? Contrary to what Al Gore says in the movie, 2005 was not the hottest year on record. James Hanson of NASA, a John Kerry Supporter who received a $250,000 Heinz Environment Award from the Heinz Foundation, run by Kerry's wife, in 2001, stated 2005 was the hottest year on record but that was found to be inaccurate by Stephen McIntyre. Did Mr. McIntyre find the error by going over the NASA data and methodologies? Well no, Mr. Hansen did not follow that time honored tradition of peer review by refusing to release the data and source code, which were paid for by United States taxpayers.
McIntyre expressed his hope that the acknowledgment of this error will make it much more difficult for what he asserted was the denial by GISS to allow researchers access to the source code and methodologies GISS uses to construct its U.S. and global temperature anomalies.
So is the earth warming or not? It depends, start watching the following @ 2:40.
So now on to the question of does CO2 cause temperature to rise or not?
The money quote of the film was “When there is more carbon dioxide, it gets warmer“ Al can be seen delivering that line here @ 3:32.
But stop the video @ 3:37 and take a good long look at the graph. There are two lines on the graph, temperature and carbon. Which of the two appears to be leading the other? They both seem to move up and down in a similar manner but isn’t the bottom line, the temperature line appear to move up or down first, just barely but doesn’t that appear to be the case? Remember that those lines represent 650,000 years in time. I made an educated guess as to the length of the graph being about 50 feet based on the number of steps it take Al Gore to walk from one side of the graph to the other. A 50 foot graph that represents 650,000 years would mean that 1 inch of that graph is slightly more than 1000 years.
Now fast forward to 6:35. Temperature leads carbon by about 800 years, or a little less than an inch on Al’s graph. Kind of matches what you see in the chart.
Here is a video showing same thing but with the temperature and carbon lines of Al’s graph overlayed, starting @ 3:21
Now let’s look at carbon as a percentage of all greenhouse gases and man made carbon as a percentage. Surely carbon must be a significant percentage of all greenhouse gases if it is capable of changing the temperature and surely man has made a significant increase in carbon is man made carbon is the cause of the temperature increase. Well not exactly.
There are a number of greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide being one of them. Carbon Dioxide makes up 3.6% of all greenhouse gases. Carbon Dioxide is a naturally occurring gas. Sources of carbon dioxide are decaying plants, animals, volcanoes humans and the ocean.
Now here is the important part, humans are the cause of about 1/30th of all carbon dioxide. So if you do the math, human caused carbon dioxide accounts for about 0.117% of all greenhouse gases. Now humans produce other greenhouse gases as well and all human produced greenhouse gases amount to about .28% of all greenhouse gases, but like I said, carbon dioxide is what is being targeted. Nobody talks about methane offsets or your nitrous oxide footprint. So the greenhouse gases that are not human caused carbon dioxide make up 99.883% of all greenhouse gases.
Let me put that into perspective. If all of the greenhouse gases were represented by a mile long string, the length of the string from man made CO2 would be slightly over 6 feet. CO2, 6.18 feet, all other greenhouse gases 5273.82 feet. So what we are suppose to believe is that if we could just cut our CO2 emissions by 20% or 30% of 50%, that will save Mother Earth. If we could get that .117% down to .0585%, that will do it. If you get tired from running a mile, would it help if you stopped 6.18 feet short of a mile?
Another issue I had with the film was the excessive mentions of hurricane Katrina. Al says that we will see bigger storms more often as a result of global warming. But what has happened in the 2+ years since Katrina. Here are the number of storms, hurricanes and major hurricanes from 2005 through 2007 plus the current prediction for 2008. 2005: 28 storms, 15 hurricanes, 7 major hurricanes 2006, 10 storms, 5 hurricanes, 2 major hurricanes 2007 14 storms, 6 hurricanes, 2 major hurricanes 2008 prediction 13 storms, 7 hurricanes, 3 major hurricanes
There is not one year since 2005 where the number of storms is more than half the number of 2005. There is not one year where the number of hurricanes or major hurricanes are even half the number of 2005. How can that be? If global warming is always increasing and global warming is causing these storms, how come they have dropped in half.
OK, so what do I think is the cause of any temperature increase? It’s the sun stupid.
Based on many different indicators from widely varying sources, it has been found that our sun, a variable star, is a major and controlling influence on the extent and rate of long- and short-term climate changes affecting Earth. In a January 17, 2003 article, Science@NASA describes the extent of the fluctuations in solar radiation over time, how they are being measured, the instruments that are being used to measure them, how those instruments are being calibrated and what has been found by using them.
In his report, Solar Activity: A Dominant Factor in Climate Dynamics, Dr. Theodor Landscheidt discusses that the distance of the nucleus of the Sun from the center of the mass of the solar system varies in an eleven-year cycle. The centre of the mass of the solar system is a function of the distribution of the mass of the Sun and the planets, and as that distribution changes as the planets orbit around the Sun, the distance between the nucleus of the Sun and the center of the mass of the solar system is not constant and varies from one cycle to the next. That causes variations in the rotational speed of the Sun. In turn, that causes disturbances in the internal circulation of the Sun.
Those disturbances manifest themselves in the form of sunspots and solar flares. It is primarily the intensity of solar flares and eruptions, not so much the 11-year sunspot cycle, that is of concern. Massive solar flares can be triggered and occur even during or near the minimum of the 11-year sunspot cycle, and it can happen that none or few of the sunspots detected during the peak of the 11-year sunspot cycle are associated with very intense increases of solar radiation brought about by massive solar flares or eruptions.
Of course some people have know this for a long time. From the Farmers Almanac
We derive out weather forecasts from a secret formula that was devised by the founder of this Almanac, Robert B. Thomas, in 1792. Thomas believed that weather on Earth was influenced by sunspots, which are magnetic storms on the surface of the Sun.
Over the years, we have refined and enhanced that formula with state-of-the-art technology and modern scientific calculations. We employ three scientific disciplines to make our long-range predictions: solar science, the study of sunspots and other solar activity; climatology, the study of prevailing weather patterns; and meteorology, the study of the atmosphere. We predict weather trends and events by comparing solar patterns and historical weather conditions with current solar activity.
But here is my question, this whole global warming scare, why is it that we are suppose to think the current temperature is the optimal temperature? Who made that decision? Al Gore shows picture after picture of glaciers, years ago covered with snow and ice but now they are not. Who is to say that the “natural state” of those places are snow and ice covered? At one time all of North America was covered in ice. Why is that not considered the norm? The earth is constantly changing, there is no normal as to what the weather should be. For example, close to a thousand years ago, it was known to be warmer than it is now.
The Medieval Warm Period (MWP) or Medieval Climate Optimum was a time of unusually warm climate in the North Atlantic region, lasting from about the tenth century to about the fourteenth century.
It was called the Medieval Climate Optimum. It was not called the Medieval Climate Everyone Drowned From Rising Sea Water Period or the Medieval The Weather Sucks Period. It was Medieval Climate Optimum. Side note, did you know that nurseries pump additional CO2 into greenhouses as plants prefer higher concentrations to what we currently have, about 380 parts per million.
So the next question is, why is there so much talk about global warming? Well, as a famous line from a movie said… “follow the money”.
OK, maybe not the case for everyone but for some on the global warming bandwagon, without global warming, they would be looking for work.
Former vice president to guide investments that help fight global warming
But isn’t Al donating all of his salary to global warming charities? Sure he is, he is donating all of his SALARY to a global warming charity that he controls. He will not pay any tax, at the top tax rate, on that money, that he will still control. Now he is not donating any of the profits he will earn from being a partner.
Gore promised to donate 100 percent of his salary as a Kleiner Perkins partner to the Alliance for Climate Protection, the Palo Alto-based think tank he founded to focus on accelerating policy solutions to the climate crisis. The donation does not include stock options. Typically, a tiny fraction of a venture capitalist's compensation is salary; the vast majority of wealth comes from sale of stock options when the companies the firm invests in are sold to the public.
This is referred to as carried interest earnings and are currently taxed at 15%. It will be interesting to see if Al Gore’s fellow Democrats raise that tax rate to 30% like they have promised or keep it at 15%, now that one of their own will be adversely affected.
Meanwhile, Kleiner Perkins is an outspoken opponent of legislation on Capitol Hill that would tax carried-interest earnings for investment partnerships at the 30% rate for ordinary income instead of the lower capital gains rate of 15%. That puts Gore's new employer at odds with many of his fellow Democrats.
Al Gore has come under fire for making personal gain from his mission to save the planet – after charging £3,300 a minute to deliver a poorly received speech.
One of the arguments against global warming is the conflict of interest inherent in the scientific community. If a government is handing out cash to study something that may be a problem, what is in the best interest of the scientist, to report back there is no problem and no need to study the issue further or is it to report back that an impending catastrophe is just around the corner and we need more funding for more research?
OLYMPIA, Wash. - A faculty member at The Evergreen State College who is a nationally known expert on insects has been rewarded a $649,371, five-year grant from the National Science Foundation, the college announced.
John Longino will lead a study to find new insect species and to explore possible effects of global warming on insect diversity.
"This work is trying to identify the scope of global warming," Longino said from a research station in Costa Rica. "This may give us all a little extra push to do something about it."
Now I realize he needs to finish the research in a hurry as I am sure the private sector is clamoring to line his pockets with mountains of cash to study ants in Costa Rica but shouldn't Professor Longino finish the study before he comes to the conclusion that the result will give us a little extra push to do something about global warming?
Examples abound of grant money going to study the effect of global warming on [insert your area of expertise here]
Researchers Study Effects of Global Warming on Air Quality Pullman, WA – A group of researchers in the Laboratory for Atmospheric Research have received an EPA Science to Achieve Results (STAR) grant to look at the impacts of global climate change on regional air quality in the U.S. The three-year, $900,000 grant builds on previous EPA-funded work, in which researchers looked at air quality 50 years into the future in the Pacific Northwest. From that initial study, they concluded that we can expect to see more days of poor air quality in future years. Several cities in the region can expect to see an increase in the number of days in which they have unhealthy levels of smog and most cities will see higher ozone levels on future summer days.
And one more.
Researchers from the University of Washington directed the Let’s Improve Transportation Challenge as part of a $2.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation and enlisted 135 residents of King, Pierce and Snohomish counties in an experimental project in online participatory democracy. The UW researchers believe the process they developed and the results it produced can be used to restart public discussion about solving the region’s transportation woes. They think the process also can be used to support public evaluation of choices about such issues as regional climate change impacts and Puget Sound habitat restoration.
For more information, watch The Great Global Warming Swindle:
Now lets go back to where I started a long, long time ago, that Al Gore took a train to his hotel room. That same article ends with the following sentence:
On Wednesday, Gore and Pachauri will leave for Germany and then fly to the climate meeting in Bali.
I recently read a quote, I am not sure by who but I would guess it was George Will,
I will treat global warming like an emergency once those who are telling me it is an emergency treat it like an emergency.
Thursday, December 06, 2007
I Got This Spam Email Earlier This Evening
Dear Democrats & Independents,
Please join us for a balanced analysis of the political scene in the USA. Check out the following quotations about us:
“(The Young Turks are) changing the face of radio.” - Senate M. L. Harry Reid “(The Young Turks have) helped pioneer the rapidly developing field of online programming.”- Matea Gold, Los Angeles Times “Maybe (the Democrats) could tune in (to The Young Turks) for some ideas.” - The Detroit News
“Part Howard Stern, Part Howard Dean...The Young Turks offer a host of innovative programs with a political edge.” - Kathy Newman, Pittsburgh City Paper
“The role and impact of new media on the electoral process grows every year. The Young Turks get it. Their live webcast reaches and engages people where they live and work. It has become a part of the national conversation on the air and over the Internet.” - General Wesley Clark
“The Turks, all under 40 and with an infectious zeal for lampooning the right-wing Establishment, are fun to watch and listen to... More than just entertaining.” - Ron Grover, Business Week
“From little-known talkers to big shots in radio and on the Internet. Love Air America or not, The Young Turks will soon be that network’s headliners.” - Paul Bedard,US News & World Report.
The Young Turks 6363 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 301 - Los Angeles, CA 90048 US
Wrong person to send that to. Because of places I have worked, jobs I have done and degrees I have earned, I do not simply delete and ignore this kind of thing. I did a search and came up with a phone number and made a call. I was told the "Young Turks" are at that number between 2 and 6 am Pacific time. Luckily for me, I am typically up and at 'em before 6 am Pacific time. So some poor bastard will be on the receiving end of a nasty phone call in the morning.
Former KVI afternoon host Bryan Suits appears to have landed a new gig; KFI 640 AM in Los Angeles. He'll be guest hosting tonight and tomorrow from 7 to 10 p.m.
As I emailed both KVI and KTTH, "I personally think he would fit better in his old 6-9 pm time slot". Funny how the most listened to talk station in the country can figure this out
In the Spring 2006 quarter Arbitron rating, KFI was the most listened to radio station in Los Angeles, averaging approximately 1.5 million listeners during any given weekday. In the Los Angeles market, this is extremely rare for an AM station, and more rare for an English-language station. The station is now the most listened to AM radio station as well as the most listened to news/talk radio station in the country, beating out WABC in New York City
but stations Seattle can not. Of course maybe that is why it is the biggest station in the country.
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Good Day
I am writing down this date, 12/5/2007. A good day. Work kind of stunk, the computer repair guy did not show, our main sales rep backed out of our planned meeting AGAIN, lots of long difficult phone calls but besides that, a really good day.
Had kind of a personal breakthrough, nothing massively significant but I followed through on something I may not have in the past. Later in the day I got a call from my son's principal... usually not a good thing but this time it was. He wanted to let me know about what a good day he had. So I immediately call him and let him know how proud I was and told him Friday night we would go do something fun, whatever he wanted to do. I was thinking he may want to go bowling or see a movie or some other 8 year old activity. Nope... Dad, can we go bungee jumping?
Gun Free Zones Strike Again
Chalk up another victory for gun free zones in their effort to keep law abiding citizens from protecting themselves against those who want to kill as many people as possible before the police can respond.
Some dispute about Westroads being posted "no guns." No dispute, there is a big sign inside every mall entrance that says "MALL RULES" and item 3-4 is "no weapons" which is enough under state law to qualify. I have seen the sign. I will stop in and take a pic whenever the mall reopens.
Well it sure sounds like it was not totally gun free, OK, maybe for the law abiding citizens it was. Somehow this person who was intent on committing mass murder must not have been aware he was in a gun free zone when he killed 8 people. Surely he would not have broken a gun law before committing mass murder by bringing a gun into a gun free zone. Why would a person who wanted to kill as many people as possible go to a place where it is posted nobody else will be able to shoot back?
We need to be honest and start calling these places Self Defense Free Zones.
Our prayers are with the victims and their families and all future victims of gun free zones. Someday, hopefully soon, the public will wake up to the absurdity of gun free zones. The only question is how many more will die in the meantime.
Monday, December 03, 2007
"Ex" Aid To Maria Cantwell Arrested For Attempting To Have Sex With A Minor
A former aide to Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., was in federal custody after being arrested on a charge of attempting to sexually exploit a minor.
James Michael McHaney was fired Friday from his job as a scheduler for Cantwell, hours after he was arrested by FBI agents. The FBI said in court papers that McHaney is accused of trying to set up a meeting with a witness posing online as a teenage boy.
So he was not an "ex" aide and he was not a "former" aide when this happened. He was literally on his lunch break.
According to court papers, McHaney, known as Mike, tried to arrange a lunchtime meeting with an unidentified person posing as a 13-year-old boy.
There are so many things wrong with this story, I do not know where to start.
Let's start with an adult male wanting to have sex with a 13 year old boy. If there is such a thing as a just and merciful God, this creep will spend the rest of his life being raped and sexually abused by exceptionally large felons courtesy of the United States penal system... AFTER he is convicted.
So I have to ask, why was he fired? First off, since when is being arrested for attempting to have sex with an underage boy a firing offense for a Democratic Senate staffer? Seriously. More importantly, when did this guy get exempt from the presumption of innocents?
Sounds like I need to make my weekly phone call to my Senator, Maria Cantwell, a little earlier than originally planned and ask some really uncomfortable questions.
hijabi seeking maculine practicing Muslim 40-57 - 42
American caucasian religious hijabi seeking Muslim man - single, divorced, or widowed; no polygyny. Not interested in sponsoring anyone; you must already be a permanent resident or citizen. Sorry, no incarcerated brothers or felons.
My New Most Favorite Bush Administration Employee
Is White House Press Secretery, Dana Perino.
Here she is explaining to the enemy who the good guys are.
Two consecutive years of volatile weather — last November and this October were the warmest on record for the New York City area, a retail mecca — have proved disastrous for companies that rely on predictable temperatures to sell cold-weather clothing like sweaters and coats.
So the $200 billion American apparel industry is making sweeping changes in how it makes and sells clothing. The industry, filled with esoteric job titles like visual merchandiser and fabric assistant, has even started recruiting for a more familiar role: weather forecaster. ... A host on HSN, formerly known as the Home Shopping Network, promoted a lightweight women's poncho as ideal for this winter, "especially in the midst of global warming, when none of us are wearing heavy coats anymore."
Nobody is wearing a heavy coat anymore because of that significant change in the temperature.
The reality, of course, is a bit more complicated. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its latest report, average temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere rose roughly 1.5 degrees from 1979 to 2005 — a shift that has not yet eliminated the need for heavy coats.
In unrelated news, the current temperature in New York City, 35 degrees.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
Hillary's Hostage Crisis, The Blogs React
The following post contains comments from other blogs. Many of the comments are not family friendly. Many of the links in this post will go to blogs that contain adult language. Click away at your own risk.
While the hostage crisis in New Hampshire was underway, it was interesting to see the reaction on some of the right and left blogs. For example, on the conservative side, Ace Of Spades, the recent winner of the Web Blogs Best Conservative blog, and widely considered the most R rated of the conservative blogs, typical reaction was:
Thoughts and prayers go out. Hope this ends quickly and safely.
He's asking to speak to Hillary. Hopefully it's just some random nut that they can take down before he hurts anyone.
Damn, best wishes to the people being held hostage. Good luck to the NH State Police in getting this wrapped up safely and quickly.
When there was a comment such as
Ok, since I'm an inconsiderate bastard, I'll put this out there. How about a pool on whether this guy is on the extreme right or extreme left. I'm betting the left; an anti-war fucktard with no sense of irony.
There was a quick reply such as:
Not now, okay? The why and who doesn't matter right now except as it helps the cops deal with this. Any violence in the political system threatens us all. We can figure all the rest out later, right now the only important thing is the safety of these two people.
Now compare that to what was posted at liberal blogs, and remember, it is a Democratic candidate's office where this is happening, not a Republican. Over at Think Progress, the first 9 comments:
US withdraws UN text backing Mideast peace process: diplomat
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - The United States on Friday withdrew a resolution it had presented to the UN Security Council endorsing the Annapolis conference relaunch of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, said a diplomat close to the Security Council.
Thats that peace deal dead then Comment by Bush Cover Ups — November 30, 2007 @ 1:57 pm
Watch Fock Snooze try to pawn this off as an Obama backer, or more likely, a Hillary “Oh, I’m a victim” stunt Comment by RUCerious — November 30, 2007 @ 1:58 pm
Or will Faux claim it is blowback from retired gay Generals? Comment by robbez_92107 — November 30, 2007 @ 2:00 pm
It must be the Liberal Media’s doing.
It must be! Comment by kindness — November 30, 2007 @ 2:02 pm
Is his name Jake or Dayrll?
Ah, so this is how the RiechWingers are gonna react to Hillary running for Pres, can’t say I didn’t see this one coming. They are desperate pyschos that think guns and aggression are the answer to their plight.
Bush/Cheney Hague Trials ‘09
Buck Fush Comment by Buckie Boy — November 30, 2007 @ 2:04 pm
One would expect this from bloggers with names like Age of Rifles, or some other dumbshit handle… Comment by RUCerious — November 30, 2007 @ 2:09 pm
Here are the odds that this domestic terrorist is a frequent visitor of:
Foxnews.com: Even Freeperville: 5 to 1 Stalkin Malkin: 2 to 1 Redstate: 8 to 1 Newsbusters: 3 to 1 Drudge: Even O’Reilly.com: 2 to 1 Comment by Dr. Matt — November 30, 2007 @ 2:09 pm
Ten to one this is a redneck hilbilly…Yes, they have them even up in NH… Comment by RUCerious — November 30, 2007 @ 2:10 pm
It’s Clinton’s fault. No, the other one. Comment by Badmoodman — November 30, 2007 @ 2:11 pm
Over at Democratic Underground, 4 of the first 6 posts were deleted because they were inappropriate even for DU. I can not imagine what it takes to have a comment deleted on that board.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
YouTube Debate
Here was my favorite question, from "independent" Mark Strauss.
Wait... that wasn't the question... although that was "independent" Mark Strauss who claimed he really wants to vote for Ron Paul.
Is Oprah A Racist? Clearly not in the kill whitey "Racist" sense but clearly she is in that she treats people differently based on race. As Bryan Suits recently stated, how is it she has never endorsed anyone in all of these years and now she is endorsing Barack Obama? It does not take a rocket scientist to see that if Baracks name was Jose Lopez or Paddy O'[fill in the blank], there is exactly a zero percent chance she would be endorsing someone with such a thin resume.
But to be honest, I really do not care if she is a "little r" racist or not. Let the market figure it out and deal with it and right now, the market appears to be putting a premium on treating people differently depending on race.
All that being said, my one beef with Oprah is that her and all the other "watch me and you will have a better life" pushers is they need to be honest with the audience. If they wanted them to have a better life, each and every show would be the exact same. A full hour of them starring into the camera and screaming "get off your fat ass, turn off the damn TV and do something".
I still stand by that what I wrote but it looks like she may be a big R racist after all. Here is audio of Oprah and her friend Gayle making fun of "whitey". I seem to remember Don Imus getting in trouble for a whole lot less.
Buy A Dell, Save The Planet
Now when you go to purchase a Dell computer, one of the available options is to pay to have a tree planted, or pay to offset your monitor's carbon emissions.
Make me not want to buy a Dell computer.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Hole In One
Not by me... by my 70 year old father. His first one. We were playing with his younger brother and his wife. Dad could not have picked a better four some. We have a little wager on par 3s. The person who is closest to the hole has a shot of winning $1 from the other players if they make par or better but you have to hit the green. On the previous hole, Dad missed a very short 2nd putt to not collect on the wager. Any hole where the wager is not collected carries over to the next par 3. We arrive at the 12th hole, 168 yards to the middle, pin in the back with 2 carry overs, $3 per person up for grabs. Dad is first to hit and states he just wants to get it on the green. Hits a 7 wood that lands on the front half of the green and starts to roll. About this time, Dad picks up his tee and starts walking away from the tee box not paying attention to the shot. I mention that it looks like it might end up close. It then disappears and my Uncle screams "it went in". I then state well I guess I need to get mine close for a shot at the money.
I think I was more excited by it than he was. Maybe because unlike him, I actually watched it go in.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Eat Up America, There Is Plenty Of Food To Go Around
I was talking with a relative earlier in the week. He had just got back from his church where they were putting together Thanksgiving dinners for the poor. The goal was to feed 60 families. They had enough for 200. The church had to call area schools and other social organizations to find families who needed food. I was told the only problem with feeding the hungry is getting the food to the people. Volunteers to take the food to the people are what is in short supply. So I asked what is keeping the poor from going to the food? After some silence, I was told, nothing... anyone in America who does not have enough to eat simply is not making an effort.
Not two days later, I was reading Newsweek and as always I turned to the back to see if this was George Will's week or if I was going to be disappointed in seeing Anna Quindlen. Sure enough, it is Anna "Bash Bush" Quindlen's week. I was planning on doing what I usually do with her column, not waste my time, but noticed it was about hunger in America. Specifically how worse off the poor are doing today:
The poor could be forgiven for feeling somewhat poorer nowadays. The share of the nation's income going to the top 1 percent of its citizens is at its highest level since 1928, just before the big boom went bust. But poverty is not a subject that's been discussed much by the current administration, who were wild to bring freedom to the Iraqis but not bread to the South Bronx. "Hunger is hard for us as a nation to admit," says Clyde Kuemmerle, who oversees the volunteers at Holy Apostles. "That makes it hard to talk about and impossible to run on."
There were a number of shots at the "current administration" and the "feds" which is to be expected from her. So I decided to take a look around on the internet and I came across this article that talks about lack of hunger in America.
This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its annual report on household food security in the United States. According to USDA, some 12.5 million households, or roughly 11 percent of all households, experienced "household food insecurity" at some point in 2006 and some 35 million people lived in households with some form of food insecurity.[1] Most of these households were low income. The report showed little change in food security levels in the U.S. over the last decade.
According to the USDA, "food insecurity" is usually a recurring and episodic problem rather than a chronic condition.[2] In 2006, around two-thirds of food insecure households experienced "low food security," meaning that these households managed to avoid any disruption or reduction in food intake throughout the year but were forced by financial pressures to reduce "variety in their diets" or rely on a "few basic foods" at various times in the year.[3] According to the USDA, the remaining one-third of food insecure households (around 4 percent of all households) experienced "very low food security," meaning that at least once in the year their actual intake of food was reduced due to a lack of funds for food purchase.[4] At the extreme, about 1.4 percent of all adults in the U.S. went an entire day without eating at least once during 2006 due to lack of funds for food.
What is rarely discussed is that the government's own data show that the overwhelming majority of food insecure adults are, like most adult Americans, overweight or obese. Among adult males experiencing food insecurity, fully 70 percent are overweight or obese.[9] Nearly three-quarters of adult women experiencing food insecurity are either overweight or obese, and nearly half (45 percent) are obese. Virtually no food insecure adults are underweight. Contrary to the claims of poverty advocates, the major dietary problem facing poor Americans is too much, not too little, food. Public policies should be directed toward encouraging the poor to avoid chronic over-consumption, exercise more, and reduce intake of foods rich in fat and added sugar.
If you do not believe me, listen to Chris Rock, start @ 7:20. Just remember it is Chris Rock, this is your official content warning.
Happy Thanksgiving, do not eat to much.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Supreme Court Will Hear D.C. Guns Case
I have been waiting for this showdown for a long time...
The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will decide whether the District of Columbia can ban handguns, a case that could produce the most in-depth examination of the constitutional right to "keep and bear arms" in nearly 70 years
The District is making several arguments in defense of the restriction, including claiming that the Second Amendment involves militia service. It also said the ban is constitutional because it limits the choice of firearms, but does not prohibit residents from owning any guns at all. Rifles and shotguns are legal, if kept under lock or disassembled
Washington D.C. ranked number 1 in violent crimes and murder per 100,000 residents for the years 2004 and 2005. For violent crime, D.C. had 1459 crimes per 100,000 residents almost double 2nd place South Carolina which had 761, 3rd place Tennessee had 753, Florida 708, Maryland 703. For murder, D.C. had 35 per 100,000, 3.5 times 2nd place, Maryland and Louisiana each had 10, Nevada and Alabama had 8.
More from the article...
Washington banned handguns in 1976, saying it was designed to reduce violent crime in the nation's capital.
The City Council that adopted the ban said it was justified because "handguns have no legitimate use in the purely urban environment of the District of Columbia."
Well how about this..."being necessary to the security of a free State"
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
The dependent clause at the beginning serves as a justification for the main clause, but does not limit it. It is a dependent clause. Also, the main clause says "the right of the people.......shall not be infringed". It doesn't say "the right of those people who join a militia.....shall not be infringed. It means "the people". All of them. Why would we expect "the people" in the 2nd amendment to be defined differently than "the people" who have the right to speak their mind, print a newspaper, or peaceably assemble as in the 1st amendment, or for that matter "the people" who elect senators in the 17th amendment.
No. 6. Seattle, Wash. Population: 3,225,464 Median home price: $380,200 Number of public courses: 62 Median green fee: $45
THE GOLF: Fun fact: Seattle's iconic, 605-foot-high Space Needle was designed to look like a tee. OK, we made that up, but given the area's golf goods, it could be true. Two greats are Washington National and the Coal Creek course at the Golf Club at Newcastle. The recent debut of the tough-but-fun Chambers Bay, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design near the Puget Sound, helps make the home of Starbucks good to the last (penalty) drop.
The 3 courses they mention, Washington National, is in Auburn, Coal Creek, Newcastle/Bellevue, Chambers Bay, Tacoma. I guess it is "Seattle Area".
So what could possibly be the criteria for coming up with this list? Surely not weather, affordability or nice courses....
1. Weather: How much sun, rain, snow, etc.
2. Affordability: Median green fees of public courses, in relation to the median household income
3. Quality of courses: The best courses in the best overall condition
4. Accessibility: The number of golfers in relation to quality public courses
5. Number of courses designed by esteemed architects
6. Availability: Public facilities as a percent of total facilities (the higher the better)
7. Crowdedness: The number of rounds in relation to the number of public courses and weather
Just guessing they have never played Jefferson on a Saturday morning in October.
This is too important not to post the entire thing. I am willing to bet the number of people who are aware of this is approximately... zero... give or take zero.
Facts, just the facts ... they are always disturbing, but most of our media sources never let facts stand in the way of ideology... It is clear that a left-leaning press can make anything sound bad and we all become victims ... its just life in America, the freest and safest country in the world and not, as some would have us believe, a nation headed down the road to fascism ... accept it.
Military Death Numbers Below some very interesting data reference deaths in the military which you will not read in your local newspaper nor will it appear on any news broadcast - radio or TV. This may help you enlighten folks around you regarding the brave and courageous young people serving in our military. Deaths in the Military 1980 ....... 2,392 1981 .......... 2,380 1982 .......... 2,318 1983 .......... 2,465 1984 .......... 1,999 1985 .......... 2,252 1986 .......... 1,984 1987 .......... 1,983 1988 .......... 1,819 1989 .......... 1,636 1990 .......... 1,508 1991 .......... 1,787 1992 .......... 1,293 1993 .......... 1,213 1994 .......... 1,075 1995 .......... 1,040 1996 .......... 974 1997 .......... 817 1998 .......... 826 1999 .......... 795 2000 .......... 774 2001 .......... 890 2002 .......... 1,007 2003 ....... ...1,410 [534*] 2004 .......... 1,887 [900*] 2005.......... [919*] 2006.......... [920*] Figures so noted with an asterisk (*) indicates deaths as a result of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. You may initially feel confused when you look at these figures - especially when you see that in 1980, during the term of President Jimmy Carter, there were 2,392 US military fatalities. What this clearly indicates is that our media and our liberal politicians pick and choose and tend to present only those facts that support their agenda driven reporting. Another fact our left media and politicians like to slant is that these brave men and women losing their lives are minorities. Wrong again - The latest census shows the following: European descent (white)..... 69.12% Hispanic................................ 12.5% African American................... 12.3% Asian..................................... 3.7% Native American.................... 1.0% Other..................................... 2.6% The fatalities over the past three years in Iraqi Freedom are: European descent (white)..... 74.31% Hispanic................................ 10.74% African American.................. 9.67% Asian..................................... 1.81% Native American.................... 1.09% Other..................................... 2.33% These statistics are published by DOD and may be viewed here.
Monday, November 19, 2007
The Clinton's Secrecy Problem
I have read a lot recently about the Clinton's secrecy problem. Newsweek had an article about it back in October
An archivist explained to Smith that the release of materials was tightly controlled by the former president's longtime confidant Bruce Lindsey. Could she look at memos detailing the advice Hillary gave Bill during debates over welfare reform? Smith asked. No, the archivist said, those memos were "closed" to the public because they dealt with "policy" matters. What about any records that show what advice Bill gave his wife about her 2000 U.S. Senate campaign? Those, too, were closed, the archivist said, because they dealt with "political" matters. "He essentially told me I had no chance of getting anything," says Smith, whose book, "For Love of Politics: Bill and Hillary Clinton, the White House Years," hits the bookstores this week.
You’ve said this administration’s secrecy “on matters large and small is very disturbing.” In particular, you and other Democrats have criticized Dick Cheney’s refusal to be more open about his energy task force. Were you disturbed by your health care task force’s similar secrecy? How about your refusal to turn over subpoenaed documents for two years? Why do you tacitly support your husband’s refusal to release your White House correspondence from the National Archives? You’ve said the documents are being released on the Archives’ timetable, but your husband appointed his longtime henchman, Bruce Lindsey, to manage the release of such records. Why isn’t that disturbing?
It came up in a recent debate:
It is an issue that could cause the Clinton's a lot of trouble. Why would they allow an issue like this to be such a problem? Maybe it is because there is something to hide.
Seattle Catholic Archdiocese, One Tree Per Church
I heard today that the official word from the Archdiocese is one tree per church, that is all. Is this anything, probably not, just thought it was odd.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
John Kerry Is Going To Refute The Swift Boat Allegations
Three years after the elections, John Kerry has a chance to expose the lies of the Swift Vets For Truth.
Renewing a debate that raged through much of the 2004 presidential race, Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., on Friday accepted Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens' offer to pay $1 million to anyone who can disprove allegations by veterans who disparaged Kerry's Vietnam War record.
In his letter to Pickens, Kerry suggested they hash the truth out in a public forum in either Dallas or Massachusetts. The four-term senator said he would have Pickens pay the $1 million to the Paralyzed Veterans of America.
Friday afternoon, Pickens issued his own letter, saying he was "open" to Kerry's response but wanted more: for Kerry to provide his Vietnam journal, his military records and copies of movies and tapes made during his service.
Pickens also upped the ante: He challenged Kerry to risk his own $1 million, to be paid to the Medal of Honor Foundation, if Kerry "cannot prove anything in the Swift Boat ads to be untrue."
Kerry had left on an overseas trip by the time the counterproposal was delivered. "It appears that Mr. Pickens is backing off his original challenge," Kerry aide David Wade said. "Sen. Kerry took Mr. Pickens as a man of his word who, when he talks the talk, is willing to walk the walk."
Sounds like John may not be as confident in his chances now that he has been asked to put some cash money on the table.
Why would he wait three years? Probably the same reason he still has not released his medical records like he promised.
And in Seattle, two anti-war marches on Friday could delay afternoon traffic and part of the evening commute, city officials warned. ... ... As many as 3,000 people are expected to participate, according to a city announcement, which said anyone traveling into or out of the downtown core area "should plan on delays in their commute as the peak afternoon traffic will be impacted."
A crowd of roughly 400 anti-war demonstrators — most of them high school and college students — marched through downtown Seattle today, carrying signs and chanting slogans such as "This is what democracy looks like!" ... ... No one was arrested and the young people continued their march to Judkins Park, their numbers shrinking to about 200 by the time the demonstration wrapped up about 3:30 p.m.
According to the NY Times blog, some are not too impressed with Mr. Armitrage's "apology".
But Mr. Armitage’s words didn’t go nearly far enough, according to Firedoglake.com, the blog that The New York Times once profiled for its “a fanatical devotion to the intricacies of the Libby case.”
“Armitage’s response was unusual for people in the Bush Administration in that he owned up to some culpability,” the blog said. “But was it a full acceptance of responsibility?” Their answer, which highlights the comments of several readers of the blog, casts doubt on that Mr. Armitage could have so easily misused a classified memorandum
NEW FLASH for the NY Times... according to the same Richard Armitrage, it was Joe Wilson who was leaking Valerie Plame's name. He told Bob Woodward that exact thing.
Woodward: Well it was Joe Wilson who was sent by the agency, isn’t it? Armitage: His wife works for the agency. Woodward: Why doesn’t that come out? Why does that have to be a big secret? Armitage: (over) Everybody knows it. Woodward: Everyone knows? Armitage: Yeah. And they know ’cause Joe Wilson’s been calling everybody. He’s pissed off ’cause he was designated as a low level guy went out to look at it. So he’s all pissed off.
I have posted this fact in the NY Times blog's "moderated" comments more than once but for some reason, it is as if they do not want to know this fact.
What are the odds?
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Bryan Suits Is Out at KVI
I got a confirming email this morning.
Classy move there KVI, you idiots. Letting a member of the Washington Army National Guard 1st Battalion 161 Infantry who served in Operation Desert Storm, Bosnia, and the Iraq war go right before Veterans Day.
Feel free to let KVI / Fischer Radio know how you feel.
Appears to no longer be on KVI. I use to listen to KVI all day long. There is no longer a reason for me to listen to KVI. I understand it was not everyone's cup of tea but I honestly did enjoy the show.
Maybe now the month of Craptober is officially over.
A new exit poll indicates that global-warming concerns turned about 6 percent of the voters against Proposition 1, the regional roads and transit measure that failed Tuesday night.
The survey was done by Washington, D.C.-based RT Strategies for the Sierra Club, which mounted a campaign against the $38 billion, 20-year plan even though it included 50 miles of new light-rail tracks.
Club backers objected to 186 miles of new road lanes; they distributed polar-bear pictures and wore polar-bear hats to advertise a link between roads and global warming.
The poll of 5,000 voters found that 52 percent would choose yes if a plan offered transit only. Of that group, 29 percent voted against Proposition 1, and among those people, 39 percent cited global warming as the main problem — hence, an overall 6 percent bloc, Riehle said
It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create an allusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the “research” to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims. Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Hillary! Wants To Be President "Again"
Watch the video starting at T -4:03.
Friday, November 02, 2007
Send A Vet A Christmas Card
When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, please include the following:
A Recovering American soldier c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center 6900 Georgia Avenue,NW Washington , D.C. 20307-5001
Someone is playing politics and being dishonest with veteran benefits.
Despite Republican grumbling, House and Senate negotiators on Thursday agreed to tack a $65 billion bill funding the Department of Veterans Affairs and military construction onto a $151 billion bill for the Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education departments. The Veterans Affairs measure is about $4 billion more than Bush’s budget request, and the Labor-HHS-Education bill would add $10 billion to the president’s proposal.
“Where does this process take us except to delay getting vital needed funds to our veterans?” said Rep. Roger Wicker (Miss.), ranking Republican on the corresponding House subcommittee.
Bush and congressional Republicans are protesting Democratic efforts to tie the two measures together, arguing that the majority is holding veterans’ money hostage for an incremental increase in domestic policy programs.
Bush has threatened to veto the Labor-HHS measure, but not the spending bill for veterans and military construction.
So let's review. Democrats want to tie the veteran bill to a Labor, HHS and Education bill that they know President Bush will veto. So who is to blame here?
“It will be up to Republicans in the Senate whether they want to turn [their] back on our veterans right before Veterans Day,” said Patty Murray of Washington, a member of Senate Democratic leadership who sits on the Appropriations Military Construction and Veterans Affairs subcommittee.
Now there is a big surprise, Senator Patty "Not A Rocket Scientist" Murray claims it is the Republicans that want to turn their backs on veterans. Is she a liar or just plain stupid. Sadly, it seems she is both.
Thursday, November 01, 2007
November 1, 2007
October 2007 is officially over. That was the worst month of my entire life. If you took the 31 worst days of my 44 years of existence, outside of October 2007, and combined them into one month, let's call it Craptober, it would not have been as bad as October 2007. Nobody I know died, nobody, including myself had health problems, business was actually very good. The two big ongoing negative issues I have allowed to fester for years finally came to a head. The lesson that was learned, when something is important and needs to be dealt with, deal with it yourself. Do not leave it to others, do not expect others to do what is right even if it seems to be something in their area of expertise. Do not compromise on important matters.
A client happened to send this to me today:
that was me on a good day last month. Nothing like hitting proverbial bottom to straighten out your priorities.
Hopefully, one day, I will look back and see today as the moment things finally started heading in the right direction. I am sure there will be plenty of bumps in the road ahead but at least I am finally moving forward.
So in honor of this new beginning, let's play song one, my favorite song, off of my favorite REM album, Life's Rich Pageant. Ladies and gentlemen, Begin The Begin.
Mayor Greg Nickels WANTS To Be Green.
From the Seattle Times.... so you know it might be true. Mayor Greg Nickels wants to be green, he really does. He just does not want to be inconvenianced by taking the bus or riding a bike or replacing all of his light bulbs with energy efficient bulbs or doing video conferences instead of flying to conferences or taking a less than hot shower or spending tax payer money on phoney carbon credits
