The U.S. Delegation of the Crazy to Cuba

I'll never understand as long as I live why so many on the left refuse to acknowledge the human right abuses in Cuba. Take a look at these astonishingly stupid remarks by Rep. Emanuel after visiting Cuba:

[U.S. Rep. Emanuel] Cleaver called his trip the most interesting he had ever taken. He said he preached Sunday at an Episcopal church where he was allowed to speak freely and meet privately with congregation members. An interpreter was at Cleaver’s side throughout his trip.

“To see all of these myths melt right in front of my eyes was something to behold,” he said. “We’ve been led to believe that the Cuban people are not free, and they are repressed by a vicious dictator, and I saw nothing to match what we’ve been told.”

Really? All those repressed in Cuba by a vicious dictator is just a myth? So... people climb on rickety rafts and tires with their children and risk death (and many die) to make it 228 miles to Miami just for fun?

What planet does this man live on? People who have survived to tell about Cuba here describe post revolution firing squads. Execution without trial. Gross human right violations, on children as well as adults. There are hundreds of political prisoners languishing in Cuban prisons as we speak.

Does this delegation, which was headed by Rep. Barbara Lee of California accompanied by Rep. Cleaver, Reps. Marcia Fudge of Ohio, Mel Watt of North Carolina, Bobby Rush of Illinois and Mike Honda and Laura Richardson, both of California, HONESTLY believe that the Cubans living here in the United States are lying about these abuses? What do they imagine that the people who risk an agonizing death at sea to get here are running from?

It boggles the mind that these people are actually elected officials.

After this embarrassing trip, Fidel Castro released a statement where he noted that members of the delegation said that American society “continues to be racist” despite President Obama’s election. When asked about this on the news this evening the delegation insisted that they said nothing of the kind.

What? Fidel is lying?

Imagine that (although something tells me that he wasn't lying in this instance).

Fidel also said that one "lawmaker" expressed that the United States "should apologize to Cuba for all these years of hostility and for the blockade policy..."

You can read Fidel's entire statement here where he paints the picture of a lovely Cuba where there are no "illiterate people or children shining shoes on the streets." Where all young people attend school and universities. Where all people enjoy free day-care-centers, free senior citizens homes, free hospitals and "no citizens queuing up to apply for a job."

What a paradise! Yet, there is that pesky rickety raft thing. I mean, if all that is true, then why, WHY in the world would Cubans risk their very own lives to leave such a Utopia?

They would have to be crazy, right? No. Who is crazy are the Representatives listed above who dismiss all those brave Cubans who risked everything they loved to come to the United States because of a brutal Communist evil dictator.

As Sen. Mel Martinez, a Florida Republican says, “This is the time to support pro-democracy activists in Cuba, not provide the Castro regime with a resource windfall.”

Castro,

Free political prisoners. Let your people travel freely, let them speak freely, let Cubans living here visit family without reprisals, let people leave Cuba if they wish.

Try all that FIRST, then we can "open a dialogue" with you.

For more about all things Cuba, visit the most excellent blog Babalu.

Good grief

I wasn't going to blog about Pres. Obama bowing to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. I didn't even watch the video of it. It seemed silly. It may be irritating, but we have more things to worry about. But now the Obama administration is denying that it was a bow. So I finally look at the video and it is CLEARLY a bow. Give me a break. If he bowed, he bowed. Just own it. Don't lie when it's on video tape for heaven's sake.

Unacceptable

Pres. Obama goes out on a limb for Turkey and what kind of thanks does he get? Turkey TV mocking him in blackface.

Now, I know the left in this country never defended Bush when anyone in or outside our borders mocked him. They were too busy mocking him themselves. We may disagree with Obama on issues, policy, and big government, but the color of his skin has nothing to do with those things and this "blackface" is unacceptable. We should all be offended, whether we agree with Obama or not, he is our President and I won't stand by and say nothing while this kind of vile racism occurs like the left did when Bush was mocked.

Turkey should be ashamed.

A Rock Star, Not a Leader

I know I haven't been blogging about all the "gaffes" of Obama overseas. Yes, it is tempting to write about how the press would have reacted if Bush had thought "Austrian" was a language, but didn't we hate that? It was so ridiculous to go over and over the mistakes and gaffes like they did with Pres. Bush.

I know the feeling is that turnabout is fair play, but I just can't get into it.

My overall feeling of the G-20 summit and the NATO conference was just frustration. I don't like to see my President whine. I don't like to hear him call America "arrogant" and "derisive," because I don't believe we are. I don't like hearing him say "we may not always have the best answer," because I believe we do.

What Reagan always understood was that one negotiates from a position of strength. Obama seems to negotiate from a position of regret. It's not leadership stuff. It just isn't. He talked more about "listening" than leading. The latter should have come first.

This whole overseas trip really was only about one thing...Obama The Rock Star. It was about Obama showing the world that America really isn't that bad.

Ugh.

In reality, other than his pretty speeches, Obama didn't achieve much. Not that you would notice that, with the press rolling around at his feet like a puppy dog waiting for a snack.

Pres. Obama asked for an increase in global stimulus efforts, but simply nothing came of that. He had hoped to get a bit of help in Afghanistan and that was pretty much ignored. And lastly, and most embarrassingly, just as Obama's soaring rhetoric was pleading for a world without nuclear arms, N. Korea fires a long range missile as a nice backdrop for that pretty speech. Later Obama would say, ""North Korea broke the rules, once again, by testing a rocket that could be used for long-range missiles." Broke the rules? Like it was a school child that wrote on the bathroom walls. Good grief. We can't even get strong language here, much less a strong reaction.

Let me just say what no one else will say. Under Obama, the U.S. nor the U.N. are going to do a dang thing to N. Korea until a missile hits a city, and we all know that and N. Korea knows that too. Same thing with Iran.



The Rock Star returns to the United States, still a rock star, but not a leader.

Oh, but didn't Michelle look fabulous? *eye roll*

Ted Nugent prays for Obama to fail...

Yeah, I agree.

But I will let the rock and roller explain.

The One True Journalist

Jake Tapper of ABC News twitters and I follow him. I follow news guys for tips for stories for blogging and breaking news, but Jake twitters like a crazy person sometimes and you gotta love that.

But what is even better to love is that he actually asks tough questions of Pres. Obama instead of just staring and drooling like the rest of the White House Press corps.

Don't get the wrong idea. Tapper is decidedly liberal. That is clear in his tweets too. But the difference is that Tapper is actually a rare thing these days. A real journalist with real integrity in his work. He doesn't let his liberal views keep him from being fair or asking the tough questions.

For crazy, here are just a few of his recent tweets while following around the Pres. in Europe:

re: snacks on plane - reporters descended like locusts upon trays of hummus and dolmades. skeleton found in wake-

the truth is i cant get "elmo has two hands" out of my head. during the campaign it was "bob the builder" theme song

Dude Looks Like a LAAYYY-DEEEEE!!!

hey, annoying person on bus, can u solicit the bus driver to get on the PA and be annoying too? u already did! thanks

DUDES POTUS just called on the China TV guy!!!!


National Review has a piece about him and it quotes Rush Limbaugh as saying, “Jake Tapper is the one guy outside the butt-boy bubble in the White House press room.”

Very true.

NR says this:

What we can say for certain is that Tapper isn’t afraid to go against the grain of the liberal consensus in pursuit of a story. Whether he was pointing out that Barack Obama was a “one-man gaffe machine,” factchecking Obama on the surge, or chiding him for blaming any and all mistakes on his staff, no mainstream journalist was tougher on Obama during the campaign. Considering the fact that much of the media gave Obama the kid-glove treatment, Tapper’s reporting was essential.

Conservatives never minded journalists being liberal. We just wanted their journalistic integrity to give us the news fair and balanced. But that has evaporated completely with few exceptions, and Jake Tapper is one of them.

Why The Government Never Shrinks

Sen. DeMint has a great piece at the American Spectator about the politics of earmarks. This is at the heart of spending and part of what this tea party thing is about:

Take any bill in Congress that impinges on a sector of our economy or on individual liberty itself, and you will find it festooned with earmarks to assuage the concerns of congressmen and senators otherwise unwilling to accept the slow creep of collectivism.

If a proposed bill is 20 percent over budget and thus falls 10 votes shy of passage, congressional leaders are faced with a choice. On one hand, they can cut the bill’s spending by 20 percent. On the other hand, they can increase spending by another percentage point or two to specifically fund projects in the home districts of those 10 recalcitrant members. If they cut spending, the leaders would risk alienating members already comfortable with the size of the bill. If they increase spending with a few earmarks, the only people who will be upset are cranky skin-flints (like me) who were probably voting against the thing anyway.

Which tactic do you think Republican and Democrat leaders tend to employ? There is a reason bipartisan compromises never seem to shrink government. Advocates of earmarks say they represent a fraction of the cost of underlying bills. But like crack cocaine, earmarks create problems disproportionate to their size.

Some love to argue that this spending "creates jobs." But that simply isn't true:

The great lie at the heart of earmarking is that the projects funded create jobs at all. Take the $1.8 million earmark just passed—as part of a $410 billion spending bill—that funds research into pig odor (no, seriously). Its author argues that the study will, in fact, create jobs for the researchers conducting the project. But the problem is that $1.8 million will have to be first taxed out of the economy before it is redirected to any pig farms.

That $1.8 million, if left in the hands of the businesses and families who earned it, could build new homes for several young families, create dozens of jobs for small businesses, or develop new products and services for innovative entrepreneurs to market. In Washington, politicians talk as if federal money is free—it just appears, like magic. But of course, federal spending must come from somewhere in the private sector. Every job the government "creates" is funded through the elimination of a job (or two) in the private sector.

This is why the spending will never work:

That's why the biggest threat to our economy is not corporate greed—which is restrained by both law enforcement and market competition—but political greed, which is encouraged and even rewarded by our political system. Thus Americans are told that the only thing that can save us is a $1 trillion government spending "stimulus" bill that the Congressional Budget Office reports will be a long-term detriment to our economy. Meanwhile, the policies hidden behind the price tag make us less free, less competitive, and more dependent on a federal bureaucracy only too eager to control more and more of the economy.

The media has been focused lately on the greed of AIG big wigs, but in reality their greed in NO WAY compares to the greed of our politicians. It's time we recognized that and did something about it.

Tea Party. Be there.

Consequences

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned this week that if N. Korea fired a long range missle "There will be consequences."



Well, N. Korea did last night.

Our President had this response:

"Now is the time for a strong international response, and North Korea must know that the path to security and respect will never come through threats and illegal weapons."

I just can't wait to see what the "consequences" will be.

The drunken sailors passed the budget last night.

The Democrat drunken sailors approved Pres. Obama’s new budget late last night. While you were probably sleeping, your little ones down the hall just took on a burden that Americans don't seem to be able to fully grasp.

The sailors approved the $3.5 trillion budget during a time of economic crisis not seen in decades.

Voting along party lines, the House and Senate approved budget blueprints that would trim Obama’s spending proposals for the fiscal year that begins in October and curtail his plans to cut taxes. The blueprints, however, would permit work to begin on the central goals of Obama’s presidency: an expansion of health-care coverage for the uninsured, more money for college loans and a cap-and-trade system to reduce gases that contribute to global warming.

What?? Curtail cutting taxes????! You mean that mantra during the campaign that 95% of get a tax cut was disingenuous? Said only to get elected? I'm shocked. Shocked, I tell you.

When will people realized that a Democrat will NEVER EVER cut your taxes no matter what he says.

This budget didn't get ONE SINGLE GOP vote. Maybe this tea party thing is waking them up to the fact that we aren't going to put up with Republicans that say one thing and vote another. Even our usual betrayer, Susan Collins had this to say of why she would not vote for it:

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who sided with Obama on his $787 billion economic stimulus plan, said she couldn't support the White House plan this time.

"It would double the public debt in 5 years, triple it in 10 years. ... That is not sustainable. It poses a threat to the basic health of our economy," Collins said.

Even two Democrats stood strong against this wall of debt. Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Evan Bayh (D-IN).

Sen. Judd Gregg, who has become the Senate's version of the Emergency Siren Warning System, had this to say:

"The practical implications of this is bankruptcy for the United States," said Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H. "There's no other way around it. If we maintain the proposals which are in this budget over the 10-year period that this budget covers, this country will go bankrupt. People will not buy our debt; our dollar will become devalued."

But who really listens to that siren anyway?

Meanwhile unemployment crept up to 8.5% in March, according to numbers out this morning -- up from 8.1% last month, shedding another 663,000 jobs.

We can poke fun at Michelle Obama for touching the Queen, a protocol no no, get angry at Obama for bowing at King Abdullah, laugh at the Obama's tacky gifts, OR we can focus on what is really important here. An economic crisis that is only going to get worse under this budget.

I encourage you to find the closest tea party to you and bring your friends and attend on April 15th. This is just the beginning.

Our voices will be heard.

Some Brits not impressed with Obama

Oh, and it seems that PM Gordon Brown has a man crush on Obama despite his crappy gifts to him.

This is funny.

Anarchists suck and Capitalism doesn't

Here are some pics of the anarchists and hippies and thugs at the G2O protests.

See the blood? Probably fake. These are a bunch of kids, either studying somewhere, or your run of the mill loser. They love to wear bandannas over their face because it looks cool. They show up wherever the text message or e-mail from "protest central" tells them to. They couldn't spell capitalism, much less tell you what it means, but they protest against it all the same.

It's kids with too much time and not enough sense that don't realize that life requires certain responsibilities. The free love and peace generation is over, and all we got from them is promiscuous sex, abortion, and more war. So give it up already.

We know you want to be able to look back at how radical and cool you were, but you really just are stupid and clueless.

They storm banks because they have never taken the time from protesting to hold any real job that would require a bank account.

I have no sympathy for fake outrage wannabes. Capitalism bothers you? Really? Well then, let's take back the millions and billions of dollars given to 3rd world countries from charities that exist off people who made a lot of money OFF CAPITALISM.

Let's take their most hated American President, President Bush. When President Bush became President in 2001, the US spent $1.4 billion a year on humanitarian and development aid in Africa. By 2006, the figure had quadrupled to $5.6 billion a year. Aid that provided Aids prevention and mosquito nets designed protect 5.2 million Tanzanian children from the deadly disease of Malaria.

Remember the capitalist show "American Idol?" They came up with "Idol gives back." The funds benefited six charities. including: the Children's Defense Fund, The Global Fund, Make It Right, Malaria No More, Save The Children, U.S. Programs and the Children's Health Fund.

In 2007 Americans gave almost 300 BILLION in charity. Am I making my point here? Why were Americans able to give so much? The answer would be CAPITALISM.

You see, when people work hard and are not held back by government, they make money. Which is always nice. But what is even better is that we give back. Big time. And in doing that, we save people's lives around the world.

So you young idiots who wear your bandannas and slather fake blood on you, my advice is to get a real job and contribute to society. The more money you make, the more you can give to help the poor.

Wouldn't that be better than waiting by your bong while on government assistance for the next text message of where you can go protest?

Think about it.

Tea Party Update! WOW!

The Tea Party Movement has now confirmed more than 360 cities to host a Tax Day Tea Party on April 15th. We're now in all 50 states!

This is promising to be the largest single day multi location demonstration in our country's history!

A wonderful artist donated her talent for tea party slogans and put them on a web page so that they are free and downloadable. The art is set up so you can take them to a local copy shop and print inexpensive 11″ x 17″ color copies on cardstock. You can download the signs, post the link... pass it on!"

The outpouring of support has been nothing short of amazing, especially since the main stream media seems to be ignoring this. People are just so frustrated and now they have way to vent their frustrations in a postive way!

There will be some big names at the tea parties, but this isn't about big names. It's about the fed up taxpayer saying that our government must stop this out of control spending now!

Get some Tax Day Tea Party gear here. I'm getting the t-shirt that has to logo above.
The Houston Tea Party event on facebook is here.

Felicia Craven, the tea party organizer for Houston was on the Glenn Beck the other day. Watch the video here.

Let your voice be heard!! This is about us and our families demanding that government be responsible and be beholden to the people! We are standing up against wasteful spending and reckless bailouts and budgets supported by too many of those who are suppose to serve us in both parties.

So mark your calenders, blackberries, and iphones. I want to see all of you there! (If you live in Houston or near)

TAX DAY TEA PARTY April 15 Wednesday 4 p.m. lasting indefinitely - Jones Plaza - 601 Louisiana St Houston TX 77201 by the downtown Post Office Houston

It's going to be a GREAT PARTY!

Julie Limbaugh speaks out

Julie Limbaugh, Rush's cousin has a piece at Salon.

It's a well written piece where she whines about how she is treated as a "Limbaugh" by those oh so tolerant liberals who don't even realize that she actually doesn't' agree with Rush (she wants to make that very very clear). How is she treated? Rudely, of course.

In her piece she accidentally reveals two things. One is that Rush is really the nice generous person those of us who do like him hope that he is.

Second, that she is a typical liberal. She hates Ann Coulter although she has never read any of her books or listened to anything she has to say. She bases it all on the media's perception of Ann. At least Julie admits that and realizes this:

"And suddenly I realize that I have become the person I can't stand."

I am assuming the "person she can't stand" is one who judges people before she knows them. One who is so closed minded that she cannot bring herself to actually listen to her cousin Rush on the radio, and maybe open her mind to the possibility that he might have some great ideas (but of course she listens to Jon Stewart).

Julie is a good writer and she realizes some of her flaws, but not all.

Intolerance and a refusal to listen to the other side has to be the worst flaw of all. Whining about how you have had to put up with the intolerance of the left your whole life is also a serious flaw. Maybe if Julie had listened to Rush, learned from Rush, and realized that most of the time he is spot on in his political assessments, then she could have been proud of her cousin and defended him as any family member should.

What Julie will find now is a new found fame. If she can only come up with a bit more meaness in her description of her cousin. If she can bring to the table stories that degrade or demean her cousin Rush, then all the attention she ever wanted from the left will be granted to her. They will have her as a pundit on MSNBC. Keith Olberman will give her a guest spot on his show. Saturday Night Live will offer her a skit.

All she has to do is sell out her family member, sell her soul so to speak.

Will she?

I guess we will have to see.

“If you paid attention you’d be worried too.”

Mona Charon puts it all in perspective:

Let’s imagine that President Obama decides to go help out in Fargo, N.D., where they are experiencing floods. Mr. Obama enters the home of a flooded family. The water is already six inches high in the living room. The president produces a fire hose and begins to douse the room with even more water. “What are you doing?” cry the anguished homeowners. The president fixes them with one of his impatient looks, and explains “May I remind you that I inherited this flood?”

President Obama has reminded us countless times that he inherited a $1.3 trillion deficit. Even if he were about to propose the most responsible, prudent, visionary budget imaginable, that complaint would still be petulant and unseemly. But considering what Obama’s own spending will do to the deficit, it’s jaw-droppingly galling. He now proposes to increase that deficit to $7 trillion in ten years. And that $7 trillion is probably a low estimate (the Congressional Budget Office estimates that it will be $2.3 trillion higher).

The house flooding analogy is a perfect example. Obama decries the spending of the Bush administration while he spends more than all our past Presidents combined. It's like throwing grease on a fire.

So, to review, it was terrible for President Bush and the Democratic Congress (the president neglects to mention the latter) to saddle him with all this debt. His answer is to triple it. That’s showing ‘em!
...................................................

....the current gusher quite takes your breath away. In just the first two months of his term, President Obama has proposed the largest increase in federal spending since World War II. If his budget is enacted, the national debt will be close to 100 percent of GDP in nine years. The Obama/Pelosi/Reid triumvirate is massively increasing government debt at the same time that individuals are struggling to reduce their private debt.

Are Americans getting this? Are they paying attention? I'm afraid not.


I wanted to add this from Gateway Pundit:

**The stock market had its worst January in 113 years.
** The stock market had its worst February since 1933.
** The Dow has dropped faster under Obama than any other new president in 90 years.
** In March the dollar saw its worst drop in value in 25 years.
** And, today we found out that the stock market had its the worst first quarter since 1939.

Never say we didn't warn you

It's mind boggling how quickly we have just opened the door to unfettered government invasion into companies (and banks).

From Wizbang: (emphasis mine)

We are now entering the black hole of statism.

Byron York at The Washington Examiner:

But now, in a little-noticed move, the House Financial Services Committee, led by chairman Barney Frank, has approved a measure that would, in some key ways, go beyond the most draconian features of the original AIG bill. The new legislation, the "Pay for Performance Act of 2009," would impose government controls on the pay of all employees -- not just top executives -- of companies that have received a capital investment from the U.S. government. It would, like the tax measure, be retroactive, changing the terms of compensation agreements already in place. And it would give Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner extraordinary power to determine the pay of thousands of employees of American companies.

The purpose of the legislation is to "prohibit unreasonable and excessive compensation and compensation not based on performance standards," according to the bill's language. That includes regular pay, bonuses -- everything -- paid to employees of companies in whom the government has a capital stake, including those that have received funds through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The measure is not limited just to those firms that received the largest sums of money, or just to the top 25 or 50 executives of those companies. It applies to all employees of all companies involved, for as long as the government is invested. And it would not only apply going forward, but also retroactively to existing contracts and pay arrangements of institutions that have already received funds.

In addition, the bill gives Geithner the authority to decide what pay is "unreasonable" or "excessive." And it directs the Treasury Department to come up with a method to evaluate "the performance of the individual executive or employee to whom the payment relates."

Another Obama appointee, another tax problem

Good grief. It's beyond parody now.

You know, it's not just how they all can't seem to pay the proper taxes, it's the gall that they want us to pay so much more.

Kathleen Sebelius, President Obama's nominee to become Health and Human Services secretary, said in a letter obtained by the Associated Press that she made "unintentional errors" on her taxes and has corrected her returns from three different years.

She made "unintentional errors" to the tune of $7000.

Heh. via COC

The Beauty of Gitmo

Miss Universe made a visit to Gitmo.

I think she liked it.

I didn’t want to leave, it was such a relaxing place, so calm and beautiful.

via Hotair

A Beck Beating

I saw this live yesterday and it was simply delicious.

From Newsbusters:

Fox News Channel host Glenn Beck has already shown he's a rating success and is leaving a mark in cable news. However, he may have pulled one of his most successful performances yet.

Beck interviewed Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal on his March 30 broadcast. But, the radio and TV host took the opportunity to tell Blumenthal what he thought of his investigation into the bonuses received by American International Group (AIG) executives - whose company received federal bailout money.

"Look, you know what you have done, know what you have done?" Beck said. "You have - you are an insult to George Washington, sir. George Washington made it very clear that we are a respecter of laws, not of men. For your own political gain, you have decided to go after these people at AIG because it is a popular thing."

***Oh, I almost forgot to mention that my Houston buddy Felicia Cravens who is heading up the Houston Tea Party on the 15th of April was also on Beck yesterday. She was the one who led the organization meeting I was a part of and blogged about the other day. She was awesome.

This car's for you!

I see that I wasn't the only one disturbed to see Pres. Obama on TV assuring us that our car warranty will be safe like a used car salesman:

What America really needs in these tough times is a new Used Car Dealer-in-Chief!

And that's just what we got from the Grand Foyer of the White House yesterday as Obama explained all the great new features of owning the world's second-largest automaker.

"Just in case there's still nagging doubts," Obama said, as if to a skeptical buyer.

"Let me say it as plainly as I can: If you buy a car from Chrysler or General Motors, you will be able to get your car serviced and repaired, just like always."

All that was missing was the sharkskin suit, giant pinky ring and slicked-back 'do.

"Your warranty will be safe," Obama promised. "In fact, it will be safer than it's ever been!

"Because, starting today, the United States government will stand behind your warranty."

Sold!

But wait.

This is the same federal government that can't even switch America to digital TV?

Even Jon Stewart had a segment yesterday showing Obama as a slick oily used car salesman.

The problem here? People are fooled every day by a used car salesman.

Look at this AWESOME map of the tea parties!

The GM CEO steps down

I have only a quote to share you:

“Fascism should more appropriately be called corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power.” -- Mussolini

Don't be fooled people...

Pres. Obama is all about perception. From his teleprompter to his town halls, all must be carefully orchestrated.

From the WaPo:

But while the online question portion of the White House town hall was open to any member of the public with an Internet connection, the five fully identified questioners called on randomly by the president in the East Room were anything but a diverse lot. They included: a member of the pro-Obama Service Employees International Union, a member of the Democratic National Committee who campaigned for Obama among Hispanics during the primary; a former Democratic candidate for Virginia state delegate who endorsed Obama last fall in an op-ed in the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star; and a Virginia businessman who was a donor to Obama's campaign in 2008.

The Shame of Notre Dame

The academia of Notre Dame are sending out e-mails on how to handle the outraged Catholics that are protesting Pres. Obama speaking at their commencement this year.

I was struck by this sentence in the e-mail:

"Rather, the invitation recognizes the president for his historic election, for his concern for the poor, for his efforts to improve educational standards, his respect for the role of faith and religious institutions, and for his commitment to ending war. These issues are dear to the heart of Notre Dame and all Catholics."

Let's take these one by one. Concern for the poor? Records show that Obama gave less than 1% of his income from 2001-2006 to the poor. Real concern there. Improving educational standards? Is that why he is abandoning school choice for Washington D.C. kids? His respect of the role of faith? Rev. Wright. Need I say more? But I will say more. When he reduces tax deductions for charitable contributions, who will suffer the most? The Churches that help the poor of course. His commitment to ending the war? He has announced he will not speed up the process of bringing troops home from Iraq, saying the work isn't done. He is sending 17,000 troops to Afghanistan next month.

Yeah, I can see how these issues override his pro-abortion stances.

Geeze.

The new era...of wussy

From NRO:


The United States can do nothing to stop North Korea from breaking international law in the next 10 days by firing a missile that is unlikely to be shot down by the U.S. or its allies, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday.

Appearing on "FOX News Sunday," Gates said North Korea "probably will" fire the missile, prompting host Chris Wallace to ask: "And there's nothing we can do about it?"
"No," Gates answered, adding, "I would say we're not prepared to do anything about it."

Get Ready For A Party!

Get ready for The TAX DAY TEA PARTY here in Houston.

It's pretty simple. If you think Washington and our politicians are out of control spenders and you don't want your children and grandchildren saddled with enormous debt, then you are the one who needs to attend this tea party. It's one of many across the country.

If you don't believe that we can spend our way out of this economic crisis, then you need to attend. If you are sick of "bailouts' then you need to attend. If you think that government is overreaching and too intrusive, then you need to attend. If you believe in a government that is supposed to be for the people and by the people, then you need to attend.

This is about change. But it's isn't about one man or one party. It's about us. You and me, the American taxpayer, upon which the burden of all this spending will fall.

Channel 13 did a story on it Thurs. See it here.

Here are the details:

April 15 Wednesday 4 p.m. lasting indefinitely - Jones Plaza – 601 Louisiana St Houston TX 77201 by the downtown Post Office Houston



Mark your calender RIGHT NOW.

I went to a organizational meeting of The Tea Party yesterday in Houston. Over 60 people showed up and it was clear they had had enough. Although this was largely a conservative/libertarian group, political labels weren't used. This isn't about Republicans or Democrats. It's about the people of this great country fed up with Washington invading our lives and spending money we don't have. It's about standing up against the unfair burden Washington is forcing upon us.

If you don't believe me, you should have heard the crowd when certain high ranking Republican politicians who wished to speak at the tea party were mentioned. A big "NO' roared from the group. It was clear that this group was as mad at the Republicans for spending as they were at the Democrats. Almost everyone agreed that this wasn't about the politicians or elected officials, this was about the weary taxpayer. It was about the people. It was about the constitution and what it demands of limited government.



Revolution. Liberty.



Be There.

Democrats make me laugh

I can't get over how The Smartest Woman in the universe keeps screwing up.

It's almost as bad as Biden's latest gaffe.

Not surprising, Al Gore ignores "Earth Hour."

Oh, how they made fun of Bush, but these clowns make Bush look like Einstein.

You knew this was coming...

The left is noticing that Pres. Obama, having actually seen intelligence that warn of keeping vigilant against terrorists, continues a military presence in the Middle East. One that will inevitably result in military deaths. Many on the left are not happy.

Maddow, a BIG leftie, tries to justify what Obama is doing somewhat, but she puts together the side by side comparison of Obama and Bush justifying bringing our military to the Middle East. It struck me the same way.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

via Gawker who says Michael Moore is NOT HAPPY either. He says Obama is just like Bush.

You gotta laugh. No one is left enough for these people.

Punish the rich, punish the poor

Just a few comments about Pres. Obama's continued attack on the successful. Now he wants to reduce how much one can take off in tax deductions for charity. Dick Morris points out what Obama failed to mention.

Obama claims it will only impact one or two percent of us. The part that he so conveniently left out is that that one or two percent DOES ALMOST HALF THE DONATING to privtate charity in this country.

Obama is just determined to get us coming or going. If we reduce our giving because we don't get to take off as much, then Obama gets more money from us to fund what HE wants to fund. He doesn't care about private charity or church. He never gave even 1% of what he made to those things.

Who will this hurt the most? The poor.

In 2006, the most recent year for which data is available, four million taxpayers had adjusted gross incomes of $200,000 or more. They comprised 3% of the tax returns, made 31% of the income, but donated 44% of all charitable contributions. Together, they provided charity with $81 billion in that year.

Obama's plan will cost them $10 billion in extra taxes on the income they allocated to charitable donations. How can the president be so glibly certain that they will not curtail their charitable contributions by a like amount or even more?

Imagine all the harm Obama's program will cause. Churches will be hit most hard. They account for the largest share of charitable donations, but universities, disease research, hospitals, soup kitchens, and cultural institutions will also be hard hit. So will international relief efforts that funnel aid abroad through churches or directly.

It is totally dishonest for Obama to pretend that his curtailment of these deductions won't hurt the poor. It will most directly impact them since most of the charities Obama is hurting focus on helping the impoverished.

Here Dick Morris hits the nail on the head:

This proposal is not about saving money. It is about controlling it. By, in effect, transferring at least $11 billion a year from private philanthropy to government spending, Obama empowers the public sector at the expense of the voluntary one.

New Day, New Nightmare

Good grief.

I'm a mutant

I had a lot of fun last night tweeting about my blue eyed status being the cause of all the world's trouble. In case you missed it:

Brazil's President, while meeting with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown Thursday, said the global financial crisis was caused by "white people with blue eyes."

Now I find that I'm a mutant. If only I could be the Halle Barry kind of mutant.

Punishing Conservatives

Last year I quoted a George Will column regarding how conservatives give much more to charity. This is from from that column:

Sixteen months ago, Arthur C. Brooks, a professor at Syracuse University, published "Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism." The surprise is that liberals are markedly less charitable than conservatives.

-- Although liberal families' incomes average 6 percent higher than those of conservative families, conservative-headed households give, on average, 30 percent more to charity than the average liberal-headed household ($1,600 per year vs. $1,227).

-- Conservatives also donate more time and give more blood.

-- Residents of the states that voted for John Kerry in 2004 gave smaller percentages of their incomes to charity than did residents of states that voted for George Bush.

-- Bush carried 24 of the 25 states where charitable giving was above average.

-- In the 10 reddest states, in which Bush got more than 60 percent majorities, the average percentage of personal income donated to charity was 3.5. Residents of the bluest states, which gave Bush less than 40 percent, donated just 1.9 percent.

Anyone familiar with the charitable giving of say...Al Gore before and when he was Vice President compared to Vice President Dick Cheney can't help but be struck by the difference:

In a 34-page 1997 federal tax return, Vice President Al Gore and wife Tipper reported giving $353 to charity. In 1992, aided by the royalties of Gore's book, "Earth In The Balance," the couple donated $52,558. Most of that -- $50,000 -- went to the University of Tennessee to endow a chair in memory of Gore's late sister.

VP DickCheney on the other hand:

In one of the largest sums ever donated to charity by a U.S. public official, Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife Lynne gave away nearly $7 million last year to help the poor and to medical research.

Obama released his tax returns from 2000-2006 when running for President:

..the Obamas gave far less than 1% of their income to charity; in three of the years, they gave around 1% of their income to charity.

John McCain in comparison:

In 2006, Mr. McCain said he had $358414 in total income and donated $64695, or 18 percent of his total income, to charity.

It's an amazing difference, isn't it?

We conservatives believe in "spreading the wealth" as well, we just want to do it ourselves and not let the government waste it or spend our money on things we are morally opposed to.

It's quite clear that conservatives are more generous when it comes to charity.

So.... is it no surprise that Pres. Obama proposal to change tax policy that will reduce the tax deduction on charitable giving is really aimed at conservatives?

Pres. Obama really is ingenious in his 40 different ways of taxing "the rich." But successful people didn't get there by being stupid or foolish with their money.

Successful people are generous with their money. That is clear. But class warfare and punishing the rich has never and will never work.

Let's not re-write history Pres. Obama

Fred Barnes via Ace


I would say it's worse than "pablum." Frequently, it's simply a flat-out lie:
Obama also seems misinformed about America's economic record in recent decades. Prosperity was "fleeting," he said, but "our strategy is to ensure that we do not return to an economic cycle of bubble and bust." Again, this was in his text.

If he's talking about the past quarter-century, most Americans would love to return to that era. From late 1982 well into 2007, we experienced one of the greatest economic booms in the history of the world, interrupted only by two shallow and brief recessions. Prosperity wasn't fleeting. It was practically non-stop--until the housing bust and credit crisis hit last year.

Ever wanted to join the NRA?

You can now join for a year for FREE.

Good grief.

Every day is like a new nightmare. The Senate just passed the "Give" Act.

We have the two usual betrayers, Snowe and Collins.

Atlas Shrugs has our heros (including 3 Democrats!) here.

If you are not familiar with this, I posted on this previously here.

The Fox Is In The Hen House

CNBC's Larry Kudlow recently wrote that "Obama is declaring war on investors, entrepreneurs, small businesses, large corporations, and private-equity and venture-capital funds."

Certainly looks like that way with his punitive measures and taxes on these kinds of things.

One thing that Obama said on the Tonight Show the other night struck me though.

Obama said:

"We need young people instead of the, you know, a smart kid coming out of school, instead of wanting to be an investment banker, we need them to decide they want to be an engineer, want to be a scientist, they want to be a doctor or a teacher, and if we're rewarding those kinds of things that actually contribute to making things and -- and making people's lives better, that's going to put our economy on solid footing, we won't have this bubble and bust economy that we've gotten so caught up in for the last several years."

Maybe it's in vogue to be all against investment bankers, but guess who made 16 million dollars in just 3 years as an investment banker? That would be Pres. Obama's right hand man, The White House Chief of Staff......Rahm Emanual. A small part of that fortune was made in 2000 when Rahm was named to the board of Freddie Mac by Clinton. According to the Chicago Tribune:

Immediately upon joining the board, Emanuel and other new directors qualified for $380,000 in stock and options plus a $20,000 annual fee, records indicate.

It was easy money. The board met no more than 6 times a year. Do you think we can find some retro outrage left over from this AIG thing? Because it really isn't that different.

On Emanuel's watch, the board was told by executives of a plan to use accounting tricks to mislead shareholders about outsize profits the government-chartered firm was then reaping from risky investments. The goal was to push earnings onto the books in future years, ensuring that Freddie Mac would appear profitable on paper for years to come and helping maximize annual bonuses for company brass.

The accounting scandal wasn't the only one that brewed during Emanuel's tenure.During his brief time on the board, the company hatched a plan to enhance its political muscle. That scheme, also reviewed by the board, led to a record $3.8 million fine from the Federal Election Commission for illegally using corporate resources to host fundraisers for politicians. Emanuel was the beneficiary of one of those parties after he left the board and ran in 2002 for a seat in Congress from the North Side of Chicago.

We still don't know what's on those phone tapes of Gov. Blago's with Rahm. If you remember, Rahm suddenly found that he had to travel out of the country during the whole Blago fiasco. It was easy to avoid questions that way.

Obama doesn't seem to mind that his own Chief of Staff was once one of those "evil" investment bankers AND was a part of the Freddie Mac greed that started this whole stack of cards to fall.

Rahm has slimeball written all over him. I hope the Chicago Tribune has the guts and the fortitude to keep looking into this scumbag. I can't believe he is our President's right hand man.

The Fox is in the henhouse. It's going to get bloody.

Marriage on the Blogs!

Ann Althouse is getting married to one of her long time commenters. (her blog here)

He had been commenting on her blog for five years.

I get it. There are quite a few of you long time commenters that, if I was single, I would defintely want to meet.

I think it's kind of cool that two people can get to know each other through words only for so many years before meeting.

So, congrats Ann. May God bless your union and you be as happy in life as you were in cyberlife.

;-)

"Let America Work"

HotAir has the video of Sen. DeMint and the full text of his speech against the "Give Act" here.

I told you at CPAC that this guy gets it.

These are not Government decisions. We need to focus on what we were set up to do and do it much better than we are doing, instead of every week coming in here, bringing our good intentions and our compassion and every problem we see across the country we say something needs to be done. Then we say: The Government needs to do it.

That is the fatal flaw of the Congress today, is we forget that sacred oath of office that says: We will protect and defend the Constitution which says this Federal Government has a very limited function. And those functions that are not prescribed in the Constitution are left to individuals and to the States.

Contrary to what many of you believe about Democrats, they are not evil little socialists waiting to take over. Just as DeMint says, they are well intentioned. But we all know where the path paved with good intentions leads to.

Democrats believe that the government can better serve the people by orchestrating programs that help them in all areas of life. It's fine to believe that. But that is not what our founding fathers believed. It is not what our Constitution requires.

We are now at a point where we soon won't recognize the principles upon which our country was founded. As government has creeped into our lives over these many decades, we stood by quietly. We hoped that these programs, laws, intervention, and regulations would make our lives better. We "fought" a war on poverty through our government and clearly lost. We "fought" a war on drugs through our government and clearly lost. Our social ills will never be solved by the government. Never. Stop looking there and look in the mirror. The answer is with us and in us.

As more taxes eat away at our hard earned money, and more and more people become more dependent on the government, we are losing everything that made this country great. Liberty and freedom.

DeMint:

Civil society works because it is everything Government is not. It is small, it is personal, it is responsive, it is accountable. Civil society must be protected from any effort to make it more like Government.

That is what we are doing with this bill today. This bill centralizes control of important functions of our civil society. There is a downside to good intentions here in Government. The Founders created a limited government and our oath to support and defend the Constitution means that is our focus here. Our oath is to a limited government. The Founders wanted the people to be free from our good intentions. Government charity is anathema to what our Founders intended and what our Constitution stands for. Despite our good intentions, where we try to implement those good intentions and our compassion through the force of Government, we are effectively violating our oath of office here.

The key:

Do you see anything in our history as a Federal Government that shows we have the ability to effectively manage something like that without extreme levels of waste and fraud and abuse? Look what we have done recently with the stimulus plan and the bailout plans. As soon as it comes to light what is actually happening with that money, people are outraged at what is going on. Despite the good intentions of this bill, we are creating a huge new government entity that will be unmanageable and violates some of the core principles of our civil society. Every time the Government steps in to solve a problem, it creates three new problems in its place.

I'm just heartsick at what is being done here. Before Obama's 4 yr term is done government's sticky fingers will touch almost everything in our lives from healthcare to charitable giving and volunteerism. From increased taxes to owning banking institutions.

More:

Jefferson called it little democracies, when he saw these little groups all around America voluntarily doing things to solve problems and make communities better. Burke called them little platoons. Most people who understand America know that those voluntary groups are what made our country great and what sustain us even today. Civil society binds communities, not by its fruits, but by its motives–charity, donations, giving without thought of getting anything in return. This is the selfless sacrifice that happens throughout America today. This is what works.

This is what works. Each of us, in our own communities and in our own towns, know what we need. We work through local government if need be. What is good for the people of Texas might not be good for the people of New York. Each place, each person should have a say. It's called State Rights and we seem to have completely forgotten that.

The answer:

...we need to realize this Government needs to stop spending and stop borrowing, stop taxing, and let America work.

We can stop the budget vote!!

From Erik at RedState:

We need to get the Blue Dog Democrats to slow down budget approval in the House of Representatives. The vote in committee is tonight.

STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING.

PICK UP THE PHONE.

CALL 202-224-3121.

Ask for one of these five Congressmen:

1. Alan Boyd of Florida
2. Bob Etheridge of North Carolina
3. Charlie Melancon of Louisiana
4. Chet Edwards of Texas
5. John Yarmuth of Kentucky

Tell them to vote no on the budget tonight. We can stop the budget if you will pick up your phone right now. The vote is tonight.

AIG

There is always another side to the story.

This a letter of resignation from a man who worked for AIG. One of the men who received the bonuses that we have heard so much about. He had agreed to work for a $1 a year, but was promised a bonus contractually. He had nothing to do with the failure of AIG, but is one of those being asked (and possibly taxed 90% by Congress) to give back his bonus. Please read the link to get his full story, it is very interesting.

He is quitting and who could blame him? He has decided that instead of giving back his bonus (which in reality was his salary for the year), he will give it to charity. Why? "This is not a tax-deduction gimmick; I simply believe that I at least deserve to dictate how my earnings are spent, and do not want to see them disappear back into the obscurity of A.I.G.’s or the federal government’s budget. Our earnings have caused such a distraction for so many from the more pressing issues our country faces, and I would like to see my share of it benefit those truly in need."

What has happened here with this whole AIG bonus mess is pure class warfare. When you read through this man's letter you see that he has worked hard for his success. His background and experience was desperately needed at this company and at this time to prevent a disaster that would affect us all.

And what did we do? What did our govt do? We bought a spin of class warfare. We allowed and even encouraged punishment for a small group of people for nothing more than earning their living.

Despicable. We should all be ashamed of ourselves.

A Catholic Leader WHo Stands For Life

Bishop D'Arcy Will Not Attend Notre Dame Graduation

The Bishop will not attend because Pres. Obama is slated to speak.

His statement in part:

"President Obama has recently reaffirmed, and has now placed in public policy, his long-stated unwillingness to hold human life as sacred. While claiming to separate politics from science, he has in fact separated science from ethics and has brought the American government, for the first time in history, into supporting direct destruction of innocent human life. "

This will be the 25th Notre Dame graduation during my time as bishop. After much prayer, I have decided not to attend the graduation. I wish no disrespect to our president, I pray for him and wish him well. I have always revered the Office of the Presidency. But a bishop must teach the Catholic faith “in season and out of season,” and he teaches not only by his words — but by his actions. "

My decision is not an attack on anyone, but is in defense of the truth about human life. "

I have in mind also the statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops in 2004. “The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.” Indeed, the measure of any Catholic institution is not only what it stands for, but also what it will not stand for.

..............................

"Even as I continue to ponder in prayer these events, which many have found shocking, so must Notre Dame. Indeed, as a Catholic University, Notre Dame must ask itself, if by this decision it has chosen prestige over truth.


Thank you Bishop for standing for truth and for the most innocent and vunerable of our society.

Hellooo!!!!!!

From NRO:

Yesterday, Sen. Judd Gregg gave a scary-yet-accurate picture of what America’s fiscal outlook will look like if President Obama gets his budget adopted. The president’s plan means:

Seventeen trillion dollars worth of debt at the end of 10 years, $11 trillion at the end of five years. This translates into a debt-to-GDP ratio which we have not seen in this country since the end of World War II when we were trying to pay off the war debt. Basically, you take national debt up to about 80 percent of gross national product. That's the public debt. Historically, it's been about 40 percent.

Gregg explains the implications: “When you get up to an 80 percent ratio, where your public debt is 80 percent of your gross national product, and you maintain that ratio for years to come, you're basically running your country into the ground.”

Folks, this is from the guy Obama first nominated to be our Treasury Secretary.

Does the end of that sentence, "running your country into the ground," scare anyone??? Helloooo!!! Anyone out there??????

The "Give Act." Not what it seems?

Ok, ok. My buddies in the comments want us to take a good long look at "The Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act" that passed the house yesterday. Now it goes to the Senate.

Whenever something is named in such a gobbly gook feel good wordy mess, you know you have something to worry about.

I don't think I'm quite where Gateway Pundit is by calling it "The Hitler Youth Bill," but am I bothered by it? You bet.

You can't get to the actual bill right now because of overload, but here is a summary.

Fox News reported that "“The legislation, slated to cost $6 billion over five years, would create 175,000 “new service opportunities” under AmeriCorps, bringing the number of participants in the national volunteer program to 250,000. It would also create additional “corps” to expand the reach of volunteerism into new sectors, including a Clean Energy Corps, Education Corps, Healthy Futures Corps and Veterans Service Corps, and it expands the National Civilian Community Corps to focus on additional areas like disaster relief and energy conservation.”

Gateway Pundit reports that Section 120 of the bill also discusses the “Youth Engagement Zone Program” and states that “service learning” will be “a mandatory part of the curriculum in all of the secondary schools served by the local educational agency”.

Yeah, it's that "mandatory" thing that brings us to the Hitler reference. If that is indeed true, then we should fight this with every ounce of strength we have. You don't MANDATE volunteerism. Yeah, because then it is no longer a volunteer thing.

There is no way on (if you will pardon the term) God's green earth I am going to let my children "serve' this country in some faux named "Clean Energy Corps" that is nothing more than the Al Gore school of global warming and melting icebergs. Obama and the Democrats could call it "the God's Green Earth Corp" and we would still know exactly what they are talking about; expensive energy alternatives that do not include the cleanest and most inexpensive and efficient energy of all......nuclear energy. Nor will it include shedding of our dependency on foreign oil by drilling more of our own oil and gas right here in our back yard.

As you read through the "public service" gobbly gook it's interesting to note that religion shall have no part in it. RB says in the comments that Congressman George Miller (D-CA) has attached Amendment 49 to this bill that includes language that would prohibits participants from:

(7) Engaging in religious instruction, conducting worship services, providing instruction as part of a program that includes mandatory religious instruction or worship, constructing or operating facilities devoted to religious instruction or worship, maintaining facilities primarily or inherently devoted to religious instruction or worship, or engaging in any form of religious proselytization.

No Christians or any person of faith need apply unless you leave your faith at the door of "public service." Wow.

This is the dream of Obama. An ever expanding government to "better" our lives. This is truly unprecedented. Having Washington force participating states and organizations to permanently depend on the government for their service activities.

It may not be "Hitler's Youth," but it is almost as disturbing.


Update: Kat says in the comments that the "mandatory" language didn't make it into the Senate bill. Thank goodness. But can't more language be put in at the Senate level? Let's keep a watch on that. It seems with everything else going on, no one seems to be paying much attention to this.

RADIO!

I'll be on live at 10:00 central! Listen here!

"Political Malfeasance"

If you are like me, trying to make sense of Tarp bills, the omnibus bill, AIG bonuses, Mexico, China, inflation, debt, NAFTA, and trying to wrap your mind around how we are spending TRILLIONS freely, then you might want to read George Will here.

He ends with this:

This is but a partial list of recent lawlessness, situational constitutionalism and institutional derangement. Such political malfeasance is pertinent to the financial meltdown as the administration, desperately seeking confidence, tries to stabilize the economy by vastly enlarging government's role in it.

You might need to grab a dictionary to get through his article, but it's good and it's sums things up well.

The simple translation though is that our constitution is under attack. Congress and Obama are using this economic mess to expand government into our lives to a degree not seen before. In doing so they are making things worse.

Scary Update: This is exactly what Will was talking about: (msnbc)

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is considering asking Congress to give the Treasury secretary unprecedented powers to initiate the seizure of non-bank financial companies, such as large insurers, investment firms and hedge funds, whose collapse would damage the broader economy, according to an administration document.

The government at present has the authority to seize only banks.

Giving the Treasury secretary authority over a broader range of companies would mark a significant shift from the existing model of financial regulation, which relies on independent agencies that are shielded from the political process.


Glenn Beck, call your office.

How's that "reputation" thing going?

Obama insisted during the campaign and has reiterated in his presidency that he would "restore America's reputation."

Let's see how he is doing in just the short time he has been President.

He totally ticked off our greatest ally, the Brits with rudeness and tacky gifts.

The Russians are laughing at us and our "reset" button.

The French are ticked that Obama didn't know who was actually the current President of France.

Poland is more than irritated that Obama may not live up to the our anti missile shield agreement.

The left's hero, Hugo Chavez of Venezuela thinks Obama is an "ignoramus."

Iran takes Obama's friendly gesture of a video taped message, and tells him to go stuff it.

I don't think this is going as Obama had planned. I'd rather be viewed as the bully than the wimp.

Geithner today

If you want an overview of the press briefing with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner today, a CNN reporter has one here.

Although I must say, she spends more time giving us a detailed description of Geithner's appearance than she does in what he actually says.

I'm not business savy, (I think that is obvious!) so I can't comment on the plan going forward that Geithner puts out there. But if you are business savy, tell me what you think.

Afghanistan

I really am amazed that Obama actually did something he said he would do during the campaign. He is sending 17,000 troops to Afghanistan in May.

I can only imagine the intelligence Obama has received since he took office that led him to this decision that he says was the hardest one he has made so far. What truths did Pres. Obama discover that made him see how important it was to continue Predator attacks in Pakistan? Now Pres. Obama will have to put up with the likes of Code Pink as well. They are "heartbroken."

Michael Yon isn't convinced Afghanistan is worth it. It is my hope that we don't let those people down again. Yon says this: (via NRO)

The hints coming out of Washington tend to cause me to believe we will abandon Afghanistan. I’m making no personal comment one way or the other yet, other than Iraq was worth the effort and costs all the way around – so long as we cement that success. Afghanistan seems little more than a tar pit. I want to hear General Petraeus say success is achievable, and to at least set some white lines by what he defines as success. He’s one of the very few people who have both the experience and character that are required to accurately estimate the truth and then deliver the good, bad and the ugly. If General Petraeus puts his word behind it, I’m only one man but I’ll back him. That’s about all there is to say on Afghanistan.

Also, Yon says this is a rumor going around Iraq:

The rumor: In Iraq, "Brigade Combat Teams" might be renamed to "Brigade Support Teams" so that President Obama can say there are no more "combat" troops in Iraq. This would be like calling your Rottweiler a Chihuahua because your condo does not allow Rottweilers. Pulling this off might require a Jedi Mind Trick. Call it what you like, Mr. President, but please don’t pull out the Rottweilers too quickly.

I totally believe it, don't you? It's all about perception with this President.

The Truth

Update! I'm bumping this to the top. Here is a site where you can register your complaint regarding Notre Dame inviting Pres. Obama to be the commencement speaker this year. Sign the petition! Over 21,000 signatures so far!


Archbishop Charles Chaput writes with such clarity regarding the failure of the Catholic Church in teaching it's true faith and Catholics allowing such evil in society, that I have nothing to add to it. It's perfect. (via HotAir)

Having been asked to examine what November 2008 and its aftermath can teach Catholics about American culture, the state of American Catholicism and the kind of Pauline discipleship necessary today, Archbishop Chaput said:

“November showed us that 40 years of American Catholic complacency and poor formation are bearing exactly the fruit we should have expected. Or to put it more discreetly, the November elections confirmed a trend, rather than created a new moment, in American culture.”

Noting that there was no question about President Barack Obama’s views on abortion “rights,” embryonic stem cell research and other “problematic issues,” he commented:

“Some Catholics in both political parties are deeply troubled by these issues. But too many Catholics just don’t really care. That’s the truth of it. If they cared, our political environment environment would be different. If 65 million Catholics really cared about their faith and cared about what it teaches, neither political party could ignore what we believe about justice for the poor, or the homeless, or immigrants, or the unborn child. If 65 million American Catholics really understood their faith, we wouldn’t need to waste each other’s time arguing about whether the legalized killing of an unborn child is somehow ‘balanced out’ or excused by three other good social policies.”

Offering a sober evaluation of the state of American Catholicism, he added:

“We need to stop over-counting our numbers, our influence, our institutions and our resources, because they’re not real. We can’t talk about following St. Paul and converting our culture until we sober up and get honest about what we’ve allowed ourselves to become. We need to stop lying to each other, to ourselves and to God by claiming to ‘personally oppose’ some homicidal evil — but then allowing it to be legal at the same time.”

Commenting on society’s attitude towards Catholic beliefs, Archbishop Chaput said, “we have to make ourselves stupid to believe some of the things American Catholics are now expected to accept.”

“There’s nothing more empty-headed in a pluralist democracy than telling citizens to keep quiet about their beliefs. A healthy democracy requires exactly the opposite.

Update: Add to this the pathetic and deeply disturbing fact that Notre Dame has asked Pres. Obama, the most pro-abortion President ever, to speak at their 2009 commencement, and you have a University who no longer holds what is truly "Catholic" to be true.

More to the point is George Weigel here.

Slate Stupid

Mark Steyn points out how the left can't let Bush go, even when it's obvious that our new President gives them plenty to make fun of:

In turbulent times, it's good to know some things never change. After a week in which President Obama thanked himself for inviting him to the White House, compared AIG executives to suicide bombers, and did the first Presidential retard joke on national TV, I was impressed to find that Slate is bravely keeping up its Bushism Of The Day feature.

Four more years!

Update: Obama wasn't finished with the gaffes this week.

From RedState:

We would like to think that this is a joke. Sadly, the French media is reporting as true that Barack Obama sent a letter to the President of France pledging support and friendship. His actual words were

“I am certain that we will be able to work together, in the coming four years, in a spirit of peace and friendship to build a safer world.”

There’s just one problem: he sent it to the wrong guy. That’s right. Barack Obama sent the letter to the former President of France, not the present President.

And Nicholas Sarkozy is not amused.*

Give credit where credit is due.....

Pres. Obama is getting one thing right in the war on terror (although he isn't calling it that anymore, he's calling it an "enduring struggle" against bad stuff or something like that...;-)

Anyway, Pres. Obama is continuing the Predator attacks in Pakistan against Al Qaeda that Bush began about 6 months ago without Pakistan's permission.

According to the LA Times, The stepped-up Predator campaign has "killed at least nine senior Al Qaeda leaders and dozens of lower-ranking operatives" and "has depleted the organization's operational tier."

Also, "A strike in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province last Sunday was the second in four days, and the ninth this year."

So good on Pres. Obama. When he does get things right, we need to acknowledge it.