Tuesday, January 27, 2009
First he snubs the Medal of Honor recipients ...
Obama: Rehabilitating America's Image Abroad
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Obama snubs Congressional Medal of Honor recipients?
Apparently, some have noted that Obama is the first President to snub the Salute to Heros Inaugural Ball since its inception.
I guess those guys just aren't on the President's radar.
I had noticed this last week, but I wasn't sure about the sourcing for the claim that every single president since Ike had honored these heroes with his presence during the inaugural balls. I'm still not sure, but if true, it's quite a gaffe. (I shouldn't be surprised, though, after Landstuhl.)
UPDATE: Convinced.
UPDATE II: See also this:
On a more positive note, although apparently recipients of the Medal of Honor didn't make the cut, Obama did manage to carve out some time with Mary J. Blige, Sting, and Shakira.
I predict we're going to have staff screwups galore that will make Bill Clinton's first year in office seem like a model of efficiency and competence, until they finally get some adult supervision in there. I don't think David Gergen will be riding to the rescue this time, though.
Splash, out
Jason
I guess those guys just aren't on the President's radar.
I had noticed this last week, but I wasn't sure about the sourcing for the claim that every single president since Ike had honored these heroes with his presence during the inaugural balls. I'm still not sure, but if true, it's quite a gaffe. (I shouldn't be surprised, though, after Landstuhl.)
UPDATE: Convinced.
UPDATE II: See also this:
"By tradition," Cheney told the heroes, "this is always the first event the president and vice president visit before we begin the round of inaugural balls, and that's for a very good reason."
It's "because of the enormous obligation and debt that we have to all of you who served in the U.S. military, veterans as well as the Medal of Honor recipients who are here tonight. On behalf of Lynne and myself, letme thank you for what you've done for all of us."
Bush echoed Cheney's support for the tradition. "It's right that it be that way," the president said. "It makes good sense to start here."
"The inaugural balls are a reflection of the wonderful freedoms we have in America — the free transfer of power that took place today," he noted. "This is a free land, however, it would not have been free necessarily withoutthe sacrifice of the men and women who have worn our uniform."
On a more positive note, although apparently recipients of the Medal of Honor didn't make the cut, Obama did manage to carve out some time with Mary J. Blige, Sting, and Shakira.
I predict we're going to have staff screwups galore that will make Bill Clinton's first year in office seem like a model of efficiency and competence, until they finally get some adult supervision in there. I don't think David Gergen will be riding to the rescue this time, though.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: culture, Obama, Politics, veterans
"Undiscovered Circumstances"
Ann Althouse (who voted for Obama) writes:
"Newly discovered circumstances?"
NONE of these circumstances are "newly discovered." They have all been common knowledge to everyone on the planet for years.
Except, apparently, libtards and the morons in the Obama camp.
Splash, out
Jason
We heard his opaque order the other day, a plan to close down Guantánamo by a year from now, with all the details to be worked out later. That sounded spurious to me from the first minute of this ticking-down year, and I expected the dribbling out of news of complicating, newly discovered circumstances.
"Newly discovered circumstances?"
NONE of these circumstances are "newly discovered." They have all been common knowledge to everyone on the planet for years.
Except, apparently, libtards and the morons in the Obama camp.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: detainees, Gitmo, Obama, War on Terror
Masters of the Universe
Bloomberg: Now is a great time to get divorced.
Via Trader magazine.
Via Trader magazine.
Labels: culture, economy, family, finance
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Cease fire with Al Qaeda?
Ready. Fire. Aim.
Obama's first act as president, it seems, is to paint himself into the most widely anticipated corner in legal history.
Good plan. Shut down Gitmo. THEN decide what we're going to do with all those people.
S
Details, details.
This back-asswards decision-making and reasoning process is illustrative of the fundamental unseriousness of the left in this country. Obama knew damn well that this decision was problematic. That's why he is convening the cabinet level review.
He just doesn't seem to care.
The liberal reasoning is backwards. Intellectually bankrupt.
Their methods have become... unsound.
I predict a lot more people are going to be killed in the attempt to capture them than was the case before.
Splash, out
Jason
Good plan. Shut down Gitmo. THEN decide what we're going to do with all those people.
S
aying that “our ideals give us the strength and moral high ground” to combat terrorism, President Obama signed executive orders Thursday ending the Central Intelligence Agency’s secret overseas prisons, banning coercive interrogation methods and closing the Guantánamo Bay detention camp within a year.
But even as he reversed the most disputed counterterrorism policies of the Bush years, Mr. Obama postponed for at least six months difficult decisions on the details. He ordered a cabinet-level review of the most challenging questions his administration faces — what to do with dangerous prisoners who cannot be tried in American courts; whether some interrogation methods should remain secret to keep Al Qaeda from training to resist them; and how the United States can make sure prisoners transferred to other countries will not be tortured.
Details, details.
This back-asswards decision-making and reasoning process is illustrative of the fundamental unseriousness of the left in this country. Obama knew damn well that this decision was problematic. That's why he is convening the cabinet level review.
He just doesn't seem to care.
The liberal reasoning is backwards. Intellectually bankrupt.
Their methods have become... unsound.
I predict a lot more people are going to be killed in the attempt to capture them than was the case before.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Obama, Politics, The Left, War on Terror
Libtards ruin ball to honor wounded veterans
Leave it to libtards. Especially the animals in the rhythm section.
Only a libtard who hangs around entirely too much exclusively with other libtards, with an IQ around room temperature (we call those people "drummers") could possible think for an instant that hanging a sign like that could possibly be appropriate at a casual gig like that.
No musician who calls himself a professional would do that. Whoever put that sign up, that's the last gig that juvenile idiot should get for a decade. He shouldn't even be trusted to play the Nussbaum's kid's Bat Mitzvah or the Sunnyvale High School Prom.
Believe me, I've seen musicians do some stupid things on gigs. And I've seen them shut down by a thundering velvet hand.
That band leader should slice. Like a fucking hammer.
Where's Joe?
An inaugural ball honoring U.S. military veterans ended in a kerfluffle as several veterans walked out when a musical act's attempt at humor backfired.
During the Heroes Red, White & Blue Inaugural Ball honoring the nation's veterans, a vocalist with George Clinton and the P. Funk All-Stars held up a white towel with large block letters saying "[Expletive] GEORGE," perturbing many audience members who walked out after the display, interpreting it as a jab at the outgoing commander-in-chief, George W. Bush.
Only a libtard who hangs around entirely too much exclusively with other libtards, with an IQ around room temperature (we call those people "drummers") could possible think for an instant that hanging a sign like that could possibly be appropriate at a casual gig like that.
No musician who calls himself a professional would do that. Whoever put that sign up, that's the last gig that juvenile idiot should get for a decade. He shouldn't even be trusted to play the Nussbaum's kid's Bat Mitzvah or the Sunnyvale High School Prom.
Believe me, I've seen musicians do some stupid things on gigs. And I've seen them shut down by a thundering velvet hand.
That band leader should slice. Like a fucking hammer.
Where's Joe?
Labels: Music, music business, Politics, The Left
Nannies and Taxes Derailed Carolyn Kennedy's anointing to the Senate.
Thank God.
Why are libtards so keen on raising taxes on everything in sight; yet so keen on not paying them themselves?
This part's hilarious:
So the Governor demonstrates a firm grasp of the obvious: That Kennedy is an empty suit, and her elevation to the Senate would make a laughing stock of Democrat politics (not that that has ever stopped them before), and yet the flying monkeys in the Kennedy camp manage to ignore the Nanny problem and the tax problem and insist that yes, the Gov IS, TOO, GONNA PICK CAROLYN KENNEDY!!!!!(paynoattentiontowhatthegovernor'sofficeisactuallysaying).
(either they are lying about their knowledge of the issue, or Kennedy lied to them and they're, umm, ok with that).
More:
Translation: The Democratic party is run by a bunch of 14-year-old girls who hate each other's guts.
Democrats. They'd be funny if they didn't have so much power.
Why are libtards so keen on raising taxes on everything in sight; yet so keen on not paying them themselves?
This part's hilarious:
Hard feelings toward Ms. Kennedy were clearly building among the governor’s staff on Thursday, after a dramatic evening in which she was reported to be dropping out, then wavering, then ultimately, shortly after midnight on Thursday, issuing a statement ending her candidacy.
The person close to the governor said Mr. Paterson “never had any intention of picking Kennedy” because he had come to consider her unready for the job. The person did not describe the exact nature or seriousness of the tax and household employee issues.
But other Democratic operatives and people who talked to the governor disputed that account, and said that he had all but decided to select Ms. Kennedy as senator, and that his staff was arranging a press conference for late this week.
So the Governor demonstrates a firm grasp of the obvious: That Kennedy is an empty suit, and her elevation to the Senate would make a laughing stock of Democrat politics (not that that has ever stopped them before), and yet the flying monkeys in the Kennedy camp manage to ignore the Nanny problem and the tax problem and insist that yes, the Gov IS, TOO, GONNA PICK CAROLYN KENNEDY!!!!!(paynoattentiontowhatthegovernor'sofficeisactuallysaying).
(either they are lying about their knowledge of the issue, or Kennedy lied to them and they're, umm, ok with that).
More:
Several people who have spoken to the governor said he had decided on Ms. Kennedy some time ago. A Democrat operative with ties to Mr. Paterson said the governor told Ms. Kennedy last week that she was the choice, but that he would use the next few days to do “a little misdirection to keep the suspense up.”
A person close to the governor adamantly denied that assertion.
“The fiasco of the last 24 hours reinforced why the governor never intended to choose her,” the person said.
Translation: The Democratic party is run by a bunch of 14-year-old girls who hate each other's guts.
Democrats. They'd be funny if they didn't have so much power.
Labels: Democrats, Politics, taxes, The Left
Jihad me at "hello."
An amazing voice speaks to the Muslim world.
I hope her voice is a clarion across the Muslim world.
I hope her voice is a clarion across the Muslim world.
Labels: culture, Islam, War on Terror
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Al Qaeda was developing a bio weapon
So says at least one source:
That's the Washington Times.
I haven't seen anything in the mainstream media sources on it yet - probably because the mainstream media can't bring itself to admit that anyone whose not a neocon or anyone whose name isn't Rupert Murdoch could possibly be up to anything bad.
An al Qaeda affiliate in Algeria closed a base earlier this month after an experiment with unconventional weapons went awry, a senior U.S. intelligence official said Monday.
The official, who spoke on the condition he not be named because of the sensitive nature of the issue, said he could not confirm press reports that the accident killed at least 40 al Qaeda operatives, but he said the mishap led the militant group to shut down a base in the mountains of Tizi Ouzou province in eastern Algeria.
He said authorities in the first week of January intercepted an urgent communication between the leadership of al Qaeda in the Land of the Maghreb (AQIM) and al Qaeda's leadership in the tribal region of Pakistan on the border with Afghanistan. The communication suggested that an area sealed to prevent leakage of a biological or chemical substance had been breached, according to the official.
That's the Washington Times.
I haven't seen anything in the mainstream media sources on it yet - probably because the mainstream media can't bring itself to admit that anyone whose not a neocon or anyone whose name isn't Rupert Murdoch could possibly be up to anything bad.
Labels: Al Qaeda, Media, terrorism, War on Terror
Monday, January 19, 2009
Bring Out Yer Dead!!
So it seems Al Qaeda has been faced with an outbreak of bubonic plague in their training camps.
The obvious question: Why are so many Al Qaeda all of a sudden exposed to the bubonic plague?
Answer: Because, very likely, they were screwing around trying to weaponize it. And to some extent, seem to have succeeded - though their targeting was a little off.
Dust off those bio attack response procedures.
Splash, out
Jason
The obvious question: Why are so many Al Qaeda all of a sudden exposed to the bubonic plague?
Answer: Because, very likely, they were screwing around trying to weaponize it. And to some extent, seem to have succeeded - though their targeting was a little off.
Dust off those bio attack response procedures.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Al Qaeda, terrorism, War on Terror
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Craic dealing ...
Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh and Michael Rooney. No one... and I mean NO ONE, gets inside the song like Muireann.
Incidentally, the ornamentation, the vibrato, the attention to detail, are just insane.
Splash, out
Jason
Incidentally, the ornamentation, the vibrato, the attention to detail, are just insane.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Music
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Ha ha ha ha ha
What liberal media?
CNN actually asks with a straight face: "Is Ann Coulter the worst guest ever?"
And these drooling simians actually think this is bad PR for Coulter!!!!
These fuckers just don't get it at all.
Splash, out
Jason
PS: Here's the Coulter appearance on The View they were referring to:
And these drooling simians actually think this is bad PR for Coulter!!!!
These fuckers just don't get it at all.
Splash, out
Jason
PS: Here's the Coulter appearance on The View they were referring to:
Labels: CNN, Humor, Media, public relations, stupid, The Left
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Reclaiming Army Standards
Obama Administration plans increase in SSI bennies ...
Here's the plan:
I can see it now: Thousands of Obama supporters will be financially devastated as additional SSI payments blow out their eligibility for Medicaid.
I hope these jokers realize it's not just a matter of cutting some extra checks. Because the scenario I describe above is exactly what will happen if all 50 State legislatures don't carefully coordinate their income limits with the stimulus plan.
Splash, out
More than 7 million poor people who are elderly, blind or disabled and receive cash benefits averaging $477 a month could get an extra monthly payment as part of President-elect Barack Obama's $800 billion economic recovery plan.
Democratic congressional aides said the idea of an extra Supplemental Security Income payment is gaining traction on Capitol Hill as lawmakers and staff aides hold daily meetings to work out details of the upcoming stimulus bill. The aides spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations...
...The idea of a one-time, additional SSI payment this year would cost about $4 billion, which would go to more than 7 million poor people enrolled in the program. Most of them are disabled, though about 2 million poor seniors would also benefit.
The relatively low cost of the idea seems to help its chances, though it's not a sure bet to be included in the final economic recovery package, which will blend tax cuts for individuals and businesses with huge spending initiatives such as aid to state governments, an increase in local school aid, and infrastructure projects such as road and bridge construction and repair.
"It's in the package as of now," said an aide to a top House leader.
I can see it now: Thousands of Obama supporters will be financially devastated as additional SSI payments blow out their eligibility for Medicaid.
I hope these jokers realize it's not just a matter of cutting some extra checks. Because the scenario I describe above is exactly what will happen if all 50 State legislatures don't carefully coordinate their income limits with the stimulus plan.
Splash, out
Labels: Economics, economy, Medicaid, Obama
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Republicans: Stuck on Stupid
So Senator Charles Grassley is seriously concerned about an old tax mistake that Obama Treasury nominee Tim Geithner made years ago - and immediately corrected. And he's stroking his chin and hemming and hawing because the housekeeper he legally hired had her work permit expire (briefly) while she continued to work for him. Years ago.
Dear Senate Republicans: We're in the middle of the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression and your worried about a nanny. No wonder you assholes lost the majority and the Presidency.
You people are stuck on stupid.
You aren't going to get a better nominee than Geithner. Confirm him, and get on with it.
Splash, out
Jason
Dear Senate Republicans: We're in the middle of the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression and your worried about a nanny. No wonder you assholes lost the majority and the Presidency.
You people are stuck on stupid.
You aren't going to get a better nominee than Geithner. Confirm him, and get on with it.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Economics, finance, Politics, stupid
Be it resolved: The greatest entertainer the world has yet produced is....
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Countercolumn News Ticker: Porn industry seeks Federal Bailout
(CNT)Stung by limp sales and sagging profits, the American pornography industry has fallen on hard times, and is seeking a $5 billion injection from Uncle Sam, according to CNN. Experts say that unless the Treasury moves quickly, the entire U.S. adult entertainment industry could go down quicker than a crack whore on a quota, say anal-ysts.
Meanwhile, the nation's capital was thronged with demonstrators as the Million MILF March staged a series of protests around Washington DC. The MILF March comprised a loose interracial coalition of dwarves, amputees, teens, lolitas, matures, barely legals, daddies, daughters, Asians, latinas, lesbians, gays, cheerleaders, strippers, whores, latex queens, dominatrixes, submissives, slaves, gagged girls, sluts, bimbos, drunks, babysitters, amateurs, coeds, babes, bitches, cowgirls, midgets, MILFs, daughters, ponygirls, putas, exhibitionists, voyeurs, housewives, brides, victims, lactators, lapdancers, nurses, schoolgirls, secretaries, shemales, shorties, swingers, autoeroticists, teachers, trannies, sadists, wrestlers and wives, marching to save their jobs and to demand more respect from legislators and the population at large.
"If we're going to remain an industrial nation, we have to have some domestic porn manufacturing capacity," said Chesty Pullerhair, arguing that a failure to subsidize the American Porn industry would result in tens of thousands of porn industry jobs fleeing to Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Bulgaria, Hungaria, Russia and the Ukraine "with a giant sucking sound."
Free full-length streaming downloads at 11.
Splash, out
Jason
Meanwhile, the nation's capital was thronged with demonstrators as the Million MILF March staged a series of protests around Washington DC. The MILF March comprised a loose interracial coalition of dwarves, amputees, teens, lolitas, matures, barely legals, daddies, daughters, Asians, latinas, lesbians, gays, cheerleaders, strippers, whores, latex queens, dominatrixes, submissives, slaves, gagged girls, sluts, bimbos, drunks, babysitters, amateurs, coeds, babes, bitches, cowgirls, midgets, MILFs, daughters, ponygirls, putas, exhibitionists, voyeurs, housewives, brides, victims, lactators, lapdancers, nurses, schoolgirls, secretaries, shemales, shorties, swingers, autoeroticists, teachers, trannies, sadists, wrestlers and wives, marching to save their jobs and to demand more respect from legislators and the population at large.
"If we're going to remain an industrial nation, we have to have some domestic porn manufacturing capacity," said Chesty Pullerhair, arguing that a failure to subsidize the American Porn industry would result in tens of thousands of porn industry jobs fleeing to Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Bulgaria, Hungaria, Russia and the Ukraine "with a giant sucking sound."
Free full-length streaming downloads at 11.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Humor, News Ticker, Sex
Repentance and nonrepentance.
Megan McArdle links to this story about Meaghan Cheung, the SEC investigator who missed the Bernie Madoff scheme, despite being tipped off to it in writing.
Megan feels bad for her. Well, not too bad:
Who's to say? Watch the video of the interview, and judge for yourself.
My take: One of Megan's commenters got it right: The SEC is made up of lawyers, not quants. They are simply not equipped to do deep due diligence on funds with complex trading strategies: It would take an advanced degree in statistics and a hellacious amount of number crunching to pull that off, and I haven't met the lawyer yet who is equipped to do that on his or her own... nor are the people who can do such things inclined to work for the SEC, or in journalism, for that matter, because the money isn't good enough.
On the other hand, I have met very few lawyers who truly understood the limitations of their field of expertise and circle of competence... an observation buttressed by the many stupid attempts to legislate from the bench. Or from the legislature, for that matter.
It is entirely within the realm of possibility that Cheung was a faithful and industrious public servant who did the level best she knew how, given the resources at her disposal and the fund of information she had, or reasonably could have had. The fault very properly lies with higher-ups who knew her expertise was in law, and not quant, and who failed to adequately supervise her, by providing her with the staff expertise or access to outside knowledge she needed to carry out an investigation of this nature.
I think she's being scapegoated. But on the other hand, it's not like the SEC has ever gone after anyone else for "failure to supervise," either.
Besides, regulators were far, FAR to busy trying to make sure competent insurance agents weren't suggesting people diversify out of home equity, stocks, or other ridiculously inflated assets and into safe, secure, fixed vehicles that would have saved their retirements and their family fortunes over the past several years.
Splash, out
Jason
"Why are you taking a mid-level staff person and making me responsible for the failure of the American economy?" an upset Meaghan Cheung, with eyes tearing up, told The Post...
Megan feels bad for her. Well, not too bad:
No one's blaming Ms Cheung, I hope, for the collapse of the entire American economy, but it's hardly crazy to blame her for the failure of the Madoff investigation, given that she signed off on it.
Who's to say? Watch the video of the interview, and judge for yourself.
My take: One of Megan's commenters got it right: The SEC is made up of lawyers, not quants. They are simply not equipped to do deep due diligence on funds with complex trading strategies: It would take an advanced degree in statistics and a hellacious amount of number crunching to pull that off, and I haven't met the lawyer yet who is equipped to do that on his or her own... nor are the people who can do such things inclined to work for the SEC, or in journalism, for that matter, because the money isn't good enough.
On the other hand, I have met very few lawyers who truly understood the limitations of their field of expertise and circle of competence... an observation buttressed by the many stupid attempts to legislate from the bench. Or from the legislature, for that matter.
It is entirely within the realm of possibility that Cheung was a faithful and industrious public servant who did the level best she knew how, given the resources at her disposal and the fund of information she had, or reasonably could have had. The fault very properly lies with higher-ups who knew her expertise was in law, and not quant, and who failed to adequately supervise her, by providing her with the staff expertise or access to outside knowledge she needed to carry out an investigation of this nature.
I think she's being scapegoated. But on the other hand, it's not like the SEC has ever gone after anyone else for "failure to supervise," either.
Besides, regulators were far, FAR to busy trying to make sure competent insurance agents weren't suggesting people diversify out of home equity, stocks, or other ridiculously inflated assets and into safe, secure, fixed vehicles that would have saved their retirements and their family fortunes over the past several years.
Splash, out
Jason
Labels: Economics, economy, finance, Humor, investing
Sorry for the light posting of late...
Working like a paddy on probation, lately. Don't know when there's going to be a let-up, but it's taken a lot of time out of the day, not just for writing, but for perusing news feeds and other bloggers for writing ideas.
Don't get me wrong... I'd love to be posting long treatises on the Gaza fight and the recessions and bailouts and Madoff and other madness. And there are lots of funny things happening in the world. Or, more precisely, unfunny things calling for funny treatments, a la the Countercolumn News Ticker.
Just hadn't had time to execute lately, so I've been quiet.
Hope everyone had a great new year. All is well in my sector.
Jason
Don't get me wrong... I'd love to be posting long treatises on the Gaza fight and the recessions and bailouts and Madoff and other madness. And there are lots of funny things happening in the world. Or, more precisely, unfunny things calling for funny treatments, a la the Countercolumn News Ticker.
Just hadn't had time to execute lately, so I've been quiet.
Hope everyone had a great new year. All is well in my sector.
Jason
