The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Come On, Bill: Newt Has Always Been An ‘Ideas Guy’

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 8 Comments

by Smitty

Bill Quick is attacking Newt for being Idea Man Newt, and refusing to drop out of the GOP hunt. But that’s who he is, that’s what he does. In this vintage clip going back to their time in the House together in the early ’90s, Newt is on a road trip with none other than Rick Santorum, explaining his revenue-enhancement ideas (NSFW, F-bomb):How about a little sympathy for a poor guy who got turned into a Newt, in the hopes he’ll eventually get better?

Update: Ace: “Gingrich: I Have Come Here To Chew Bubblegum and Not Drop Out of the Race and I’m All Out of Bubblegum“

Category: Bill Quick, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum

They Told Me If I Voted For McCain, Politicized Economists Would Engage In Class Warfare Instead Of Speaking Truth To Power, And They Were Right!

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 6 Comments

by Smitty

Robert Reich:

But the rise in gas prices has almost nothing to do with energy policy. It has everything to do with America’s continuing failure to adequately regulate Wall Street. But don’t hold your breath waiting for Republicans to tell the truth.
As I’ve noted before, oil supplies aren’t being squeezed. Over 80 percent of America’s energy needs are now being satisfied by domestic supplies. In fact, we’re starting to become an energy exporter. Demand for oil isn’t rising in any event. Demand is down in the U.S. compared to last year at this time, and global demand is still moderate given the economic slowdowns in Europe and China.

Regulation! It’s what’s for breakfast! Seriously, one wonders what this jackwagon would consider too much regulation. Regulation is the salvation of the #Occupation, I suppose.
How about something akin to a real-world answer, from last year about this time?

An analysis produced by the Republican staff of Congress’ Joint Economic Committee blames the falling value of the dollar and the Fed’s quantitative easing policy for inflating the price of oil, and therefore the price of gasoline.
The report explains that while many factors contribute to the market price of oil, one is the value of the “unit of exchange” – the currency in which barrels of oil are traded.
“Oil is an international commodity that trades in dollars,” the report states. “The value of the unit of exchange, in this case the dollar, plays an important role in determining the ‘headline’ price for the underlying commodity.”

In summary, if “Zimbabwe” Ben Bernanke was not excreting a blizzard of currency from wherever, oil prices wouldn’t be, you know, inflated. Alternately, one wonders what the price would be if our government wasn’t systematically abusing the money supply. Economics, Reich: would you know it if it slapped you upside the head?

Update: more good stuff at The Rio Norte Line.

Category: Economics, Weimar America

Why Do You Hate Italians?

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 10 Comments

She’s an Italian actress named Alessandra Mastronardi, and if you needed a reminder to read Bob Belvedere’s Camp of the Saints . . .

Well, certainly she did the trick, eh? And speaking of Italians . . .

Mr. Santorum issued a statement that said, in part, “As the son of an Italian immigrant myself, I continue to believe that English is the language of opportunity in America under statehood or the current status.”
Mr. Neumann said that despite Mr. Romney’s having the backing of establishment Republicans in Puerto Rico, Mr. Santorum still had a good chance here “because of his connection with the religious sector of the community.” Mr. Santorum is Roman Catholic, as are an overwhelming majority of people in Puerto Rico.

Being in favor of English is not the same as being anti-Spanish. My daughter, who is fluent in Spanish — her husband is the son of Argentine immigrants, and she spent a year in a full-immersion Spanish language program in Argentina — teaches kindergarten in a school here in Maryland where about three-quarters of her students are the children of Hispanic immigrants who don’t speak English at home. You know what? Those kids’ parents are so happy that my daughter teaches those kids English. It is indeed “the language of opportunity,” and everybody knows it, and it shouldn’t be “controversial” for a politician to say so.

Good news for the English-speaking Italian-American in Missouri:

Thursday evening at the Chariton County caucus inside the Railyard Steakhouse . . . Republicans voted to send their full share of delegates to the district and state conventions in support of Rick Santorum.
For weeks, the Romney campaign has forcefully argued that Mr. Santorum’s victory in the Missouri primary last month was meaningless because no delegates were awarded. That assertion may turn out to be only partly true, which became clear for the first time here at the caucus meeting. . . .
An early glimpse into the caucuses unfolded here in Brunswick, a small town about two hours east of Kansas City, which decided to hold its meeting two days before the rest of the state.
The first question of the evening was whether to bind delegates to the results of the February primary. The measure passed by a wide margin and no discussion, which sent four delegates on behalf of Mr. Santorum and none for Mr. Romney or Representative Ron Paul of Texas.
“All of our county delegates will be bound to the popular vote for Chariton County,” said Andrea Rice, the county Republican chairwoman, who presided over the meeting and announced the results. “Four delegates will go for Rick Santorum.”

See what I’m talking about? Yes, officially, the Missouri primary was “non-binding,” but there was never any logic to the Romney spin. They wanted us to believe that Republicans attending a caucus in a county where Santorum previously got 60 or 70 percent of the primary vote would then turn around and award a majority of delegates to Romney. And considering that Santorum got 55% of the vote to 25% for Romney in the primary, this kind of caucus-flipping skullduggery would have to occur in county after county in order for Romney to swindle Santorum out of any significant number of delegates.

That’s just crazy talk, yet we heard that spin repeated endlessly on TV, and have seen it everywhere on the blogosphere. “Non-binding” became one of those things people said to show how sophisticated they were, as if anyone who counted Missouri a solid win for Santorum was a dimwit yokel, but Santorum won Missouri by THIRTY FREAKING POINTS!

“Non-binding,” my ass. Read more

Category: Camp of the Saints, Da Tech Guy, Italy, Rick Santorum

The NRA Has 10 Reasons To Worry About BHO Re-election

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 22 Comments

by Smitty

It’s all good that the NRA is on about 2nd Amendment concerns associated with BHO.

However, 2010 called, and reminds us that Sharron Angle sure could have used some support to unseat arguably the Worst Senator in American History.

Thanks for all that ‘support’, NRA; you really know how to focus on one tree at the expense of the rest of the forest. When we grow up, let us consider that liberty is not a one-dimensional topic, and join the full-court press to restore it.

Update: Bill Quick offers something of a defense of the Narrowed Retinal Aggregation. I see the point, and maybe a mix of organizations with varying focus has the best overall effect; however, seeing the Sharron Angles, Joe Millers, Doug Hoffmans, Les Phillips and Christine O’Donnells die on the beach of being ignored by nominally patriotic organizations is an idea to which I’ll never warm. Sorry.

Update II: I’m looking rather an ass in the comments, over the general question of where/when to be pragmatic. The argument I’m getting at here is that we should support reformer candidates, and not support diabolical tools like Reid.
So how much is too much “deal with the devil”, if there is a need to make a tactical call that goes against the strategic principle? Is Harry Reid worth keeping Chucky Schumer out of the Senate Majority slot?
Too, if attacked on a variety of fronts, is it silly to hold onto just one or two (though Amendments One and Two are pivotal) and then get flanked and overwhelmed from a different side?
Let me get right out front here and point out that there is simply no final, provable, repeatable correct answer on any of this. We all have our little pet compromises.
I do submit that, overall, what’s key is that people chew on these matters, online and off, so that the overall quantity of compromise is held to a minimum.

Category: Barack Obama, Democrats, Nevada

LIVE AT FIVE – 03.16.12

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 10 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
Norks Plan To Launch Satellite In April

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un

Launch will violate recent agreement

Accused Panjwai Massacre Sergeant Lawyers Up
Sniper unhappy about deployment to A-stan



Tornado Destroys 100 Homes In Dexter, Michigan
Fortunately, no deaths



POLITICS
Ted Stevens Prosecutors Hid Evidence Before Trial

The late Ted Stevens

The fix was evidently in

Live Streaming Obama’s Slick “Docu-Ganda”

A Look At GOP Spending Per Vote

Biden Hits GOP Over Auto Rescue


Paul Hesitant To Back Romney In The General Election; Cites Foreign Policy

Gary Ackerman (D-NY) Retiring

Mississippi Lawmakers Pass Tough Immigration Bill

Hatch Cheered By Initial Caucus Reports

Indiana Supreme Court Clears Way For Daniels To Appoint New SecState

Rookie Arkansas GOP Congressman Proposes Millionaire Surtax

Colbert’s SuperPAC Fundraising Falls Flat



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Oil Rebounds From Weekly Low As Punters Bet On Improving US Economy
Gold, Silver Gain Almost 1%
S&P Cracks 1400 For First Time Since 2008; Dow Continues Rally
Asia Stock Mixed Amid Doubts Over PRC Growth
Treasury Market Exuberance Leads To Violent Sell-Off
Sears To Close More Stores
Jobless Claims Fall, Manufacturing Holds Up
Sprint Nextel Pulls Plug On Lightsquared Partnership
18 Firms Sued For Using Privacy-Invading Mobile Apps
“Diablo 3” Finally Gets A Release Date
Major Changes Coming To Google Search
Scientists Create “Unprinting” Technology



SPORTS
We Were The Champions: Huskies Put Down By Cyclones In First Round Of March Madness

Forward Melvin Ejim and teammates react to an ISU 3-pointer in the first half of last night's game

Iowa State takes apart UConn men early, winning 77-64

VCU Signs Up For Sweet 16 Bid, Takes Out Wichita State 62-59

Critical Calls Go For Syracuse In 72-65 Win Over UNC Asheville; ESPN’s Bilas Rips Officiating

Mario Williams Signs With Bills: Six Years. $50 Million

Blazers Fire Coach McMillan

Howard Waives His Option, Stays With Magic For Another Year

Pens’ Crosby Clearly Back On His Game In Thrashing Of Rangers

Nationals Lose 8-5 To Yankees, Wang Injured



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Bobbi Kristina Not Dating Adopted Brother

Whitney Houston's kids

Close, but not dating

Russell Brand Arrested For Cell Phone Snatch & Smash

Kate Middleton Shows Her Sporty Side In Olympic Park Appearance

Paramount Buys Heist Script “Swindle”, Will Pair Megan Fox And Zoe Saldana

Kate Upton’s Controversial Zoo York Commercial Banned BY MTV, Adult Swim

Tara Reid Dishes On Partying Past



FOREIGNERS
Syrian Uprising Sputters On One-Year Anniversary
Karzai To Meet With Families Of Slain In Panjwai Massacre
Xi Appeals For “Purity” Amid CCP Scandal
Russian Opposition Sees Jailings As Warning From Putin
Kony Video Pulled In Uganda After Victims Shun Bid To Publicize Warlord
Dissidents Evicted From Catholic Church In Havana
Italian, British Police Break Synagogue Plot



BLOGS & STUFF
Iowahawk: Obama Like Me? Roman, Please
Rich Lowry: Eric Holder’s Identity Problem
WyBlog: The ObamaCare Hits Just Keep On Coming
Cold Fury: Not The Boss Of Me
Legal Insurrection: Media Matters Astroturfed The Limbaugh Secondary Boycott
Don Surber: Obama Slimes Rutherford B. Hayes
Sarah Palin: Breitbart Is Here
NRO Corner: Krauthammer’s Take On Obamacare Cost Projections
Jim Pethokoukis: CBO says Obamacare Could Cost $2.1 Trillion Through 2022
Indystar: county Election Board Rules Senator Lugar, Wife Ineligible To Vote In Indiana
Rush Limbaugh: Obama To Release Oil From SPR In Response To National Emergency Of Falling Poll Numbers
Clayton Cramer: I Keep Waiting For Obama To Demonstrate A College Education
Jammie Wearing Fools: About Those Democrat Party-KKK Connections
Newsbusters: NYT Plays Up GOP Fears Over Womens’ Vote, Buries Obama’s Slipping Poll Numbers


SOTD: Disappointed

Category: Live at Five

From Twitchy: Best. Sex. Scandal. Evah!

Posted on | March 16, 2012 | 18 Comments

Folks, I am seriously enjoying Twitchy, the new Twitter-based news site that Michelle Malkin has created. But they need to work on their headlines, because this one is waaaay too understated:

PM Belden Namah accused
in casino sex scandal, gambling

Back in the day, I’d have demanded a re-write from the copy desk, because this is one super-awesome sex scandal: 

SYDNEY’S Star casino has been rocked be fresh sexual harassment allegations involving the Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea.
The Deputy Prime Minister of PNG Belden Namah has been accused of sexually harassing a male blackjack dealer at the casino and behaving in a drunk and threatening manner, according to staff incident reports obtained by Fairfax Media.
According to the reports Mr Namah was allegedly gambling in the high roller room at around 7am on April 16 last year when he was asked to stop drinking due to “intoxication”.
A blackjack dealer then alleges Mr Namah started “teasing me by asking my mobile number” and then allegedly said to the man “Can I f… you tonight?”
This was followed up with “Can I love you, u (sic) are so pretty to me” and repeated requests for sex and to meet the man outside according to the dealer’s statement.
The staff statements from five separate employees say that despite the alleged sexual harassment the casino allowed Mr Namah back into the venue several hours later when it allegedly learnt he had paid $800,000 into a gambling account for use at the casino.

The per-capita Gross Domestic Product in Papua New Guinea? $2,416. So the deputy prime minister’s gambling account was equal to the combined annual income of 331 of his country’s citizens.

“Can I f– you tonight? . . . You are so pretty to me.”

Yeah, that’s Grade A primo sex-scandal stuff right there.

Category: Australia, Corruption, Papua New Guinea, Scandal, Sex

Pornographic Politics: Did the Daily Caller ‘Pull a Media Matters’ on Rick Santorum? UPDATE: Romney and Gingrich Both Made January Pledge to Fight Porn

Posted on | March 15, 2012 | 77 Comments

Today I noticed a thread at Memeorandum aggregating commentary on an article by Daily Caller associate editor Steven Nelson:

‘Vigorous’ Santorum crackdown may catch
Internet porn viewers with pants down

I sort of shrugged that off, and then I saw this Tweet by Jedediah Bila:

Didn’t tweet about this today, but if it’s accurate, I find it absolutely insane.”Santorum Promises Broad War on Porn”: http://onforb.es/zjmZvb

That link is to an article at Forbes. Again, I shrugged this off. But then I was checking my e-mail and saw an item from Judson Phillips at Tea Party Nation:

Ritual Santorum suicide
As Rick Santorum tries to coalesce his position as the Anti-Romney candidate, he manages to attempt political suicide. … Gingrich has his faults, but none this dumb. Romney, for all of his faults such as being a liberal, is not that dumb. Does Santorum really want to simply lose?

Phillips’s item linked an article in The Hill on the same subject, and now I was suspicious, so I checked: Yup.

Nelson’s article was headlined at the Drudge Report. And that’s when I decided to read the Daily Caller article:

Santorum says in a statement posted to his website, “The Obama Administration has turned a blind eye to those who wish to preserve our culture from the scourge of pornography and has refused to enforce obscenity laws.”
If elected, he promises to “vigorously” enforce laws that “prohibit distribution of hardcore (obscene) pornography on the Internet, on cable/satellite TV, on hotel/motel TV, in retail shops and through the mail or by common carrier.” . . .

Yes, this is what Santorum says in a statement, one of about two dozen issue-oriented statements on the “Where I Stand” page of his campaign’s Web site. The statement is clear: Santorum wants to enforce laws that the Obama Administration has refused to enforce.

Would you like me to be more specific — because I could, y’know — about some of the clearly illegal obscenity now available online? Perhaps Jedediah Bila or Judson Phillips should contact former Attorney General Ed Meese or former Justice Department official Mark Levin and ask them about this subject. Because I’m reasonably sure that a whole lot of things now available online are, in fact, illegal.

Suffice it to say (I’m trying to be circumspect here) that there are some acts in which “consenting adults” may legally engage, but which are not legally protected as “free speech.”

But maybe the circumspect approach is part of the problem.

How can I put this politely? Ah! Let’s try this: What you want to do with that baseball bat in the privacy of your own home is strictly up to you, but the video is illegal obscenity.

Did that help clarify the issue somewhat?

Remember that Rick Santorum has a law degree and spent 16 years in Congress drafting legislation. He knows the law, and he knows the Constitution, and he knows doggone well that the First Amendment wasn’t intended to protect the kind of filth that’s on the Web nowadays.

So, yes, Santorum promised “vigorous” enforcement to shut down operators who are profiting from commerce in illegal obscenity, and you may agree or disagree with that. But this isn’t an issue that Santorum raised during a stump speech yesterday or that is the subject of his newest campaign ad.

THAT STATEMENT HAS BEEN ON SANTORUM’S WEB SITE FOR SEVERAL WEEKS, PERHAPS FOR MONTHS.

If you didn’t realize that when you read the Daily Caller article — if you mistakenly believed that Santorum had suddenly decided to raise this subject during his campaign — ask yourself why you didn’t realize it.

Do you feel you have been misled?

Exactly why the Daily Caller saw fit to assign its associate editor to write a 700-word “news” article, soliciting opinions from Eugene Volokh and Jonathan Turley, I don’t know. Why this cheap political “gotcha” hit-job deserved headline treatment at the Drudge Report, I don’t know.

But for intelligent people who call themselves “conservative” to fall for such a dishonest media stunt as this is ridiculous.

As James Carville likes to say, “If you find a turtle on top of a fence post, you know it didn’t crawl up there by itself,” and this particular turtle seems mighty damned suspicious to me.

UPDATE: Thanks to a sharp-eyed commenter who found this Jan. 9 news release from Morality in Media:

Three of the leading GOP 2012 Presidential candidates have made statements committing to enforce existing federal obscenity laws if they are elected, while the current administration still refuses to enforce federal obscenity laws prohibiting distribution of hardcore pornography, according to Morality in Media.
Morality In Media launched efforts in October 2011 to contact the 2012 presidential candidates, including President Obama, to obtain their respective views on the enforcement of obscenity laws. Thousands of individuals sent emails, made calls and even spoke to the candidates in person urging them to respond to the survey. As a result of these efforts, the following candidates responded:

  • Former Senator Rick Santorum in a written statement:
    “Federal obscenity laws should be vigorously enforced. If elected President, I will appoint an Attorney General who will do so.”
  • Former Governor Mitt Romney in a written statement:
    “(I)t is imperative that we cultivate the promotion of fundamental family values. This can be accomplished with increased parental involvement and enhanced supervision of our children. It includes strict enforcement of our nation’s obscenity laws, as well as the promotion of parental software controls that guard our children from Internet pornography.”
  • Former Speaker Newt Gingrich in a face-to-face meeting:
    When MIM’s Executive Director Dawn Hawkins asked former Speaker Gingrich if he will enforce existing laws that make distribution of hard-core adult pornography illegal, he responded: “Yes, I will appoint an Attorney General who will enforce these laws.”

OK, good: That was on JANUARY 9th, which means that the Daily Caller has had more than two months to write the story about how Mitt Romney wants “strict enforcement” of federal obscenity laws.

But they didn’t write that story and send it to Drudge, did they?

You wanna hear some obscenity, Tucker Carlson? Because I’m just about in a mood to cuss a blue streak at your blatant deception.

Category: Crime, Media Bias, Rick Santorum, Sex

Gearing Up To Tell SCOTUS, BHO What We Think Of ObamaCare

Posted on | March 15, 2012 | Comments Off on Gearing Up To Tell SCOTUS, BHO What We Think Of ObamaCare

by Smitty

The Alexandria Tea Party has a summary, which I will tart up with my mighty HTML-fu:

Rally Details

  • Tea Party Patriots (TPP) Upper Senate Park (NEW LOCATION) Saturday March 24th noon – 2 p.m.; registration and bus info at http://www.roadtorepeal.com/
  • Americans for Prosperity (AFP) Upper Senate Park Tuesday March 27th 1 p.m.; joined by Tea Party Express and other partners, registration and buses at http://handsoffmyhealthcare.eventbrite.com/?tr=y&auid=10271580
  • Faith and Action, et al – prayer vigil and laying flowers around the Supreme Court on Sunday, March 25, at 2:00-4:00 P.M., as well as prayer vigils at the Court beginning at 8:00 A.M. from March 26-28 during the oral arguments….” For Information: please email: [email protected] or call: 202-546-8329 ext. 104. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Faith-Action/64587653749
  • Stand Up for Religious Freedom Coalition – “Stand Up for Religious Freedom—Stop the HHS Mandate!” 50 federal buildings March 23rd. Rally Info & Locations – http://standupforreligiousfreedom.com/coalition/
  • Alexandria Tea Party members will be on the Supreme Court sidewalk Monday – Wednesday March 26th-28th when the case is being heard. Contact [email protected] to volunteer and help make signs

One might be tempted to form the opinion that the people think ObamaCare sucks pond water, based upon all of that activity. I currently plan to cover at least the first two events for the blog, fedora and all, as well as show up for some ATP sign making.

Your sign input is welcome in the comments. Should I reprise my National Anthem parody from 2010? (Crikey–that was yesterday and lifetime ago. It just happened, but I’ve spent a year in Afghanistan and become a father since. Wild.)

Category: Health Care
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