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January 31, 2009
Kentucky Freezes, FEMA Fiddles
Remember the days after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans when the unresponsiveness of FEMA was evidence of Bush's incompetence or racism? The constant screaming of the media and the celebrity telethons?
I guess everything really is different now.
Posted by slublog at 07:34 PM | Comments (149) | TrackBack
January 29, 2009
Some Like it Hot
Some, in this case, being President Obama. The noted advocate of sacrifice to protect the planet from the scourge of global warming simply can't be bothered to change his own habits.
The capital flew into a bit of a tizzy when, on his first full day in the White House, President Obama was photographed in the Oval Office without his suit jacket. There was, however, a logical explanation: Mr. Obama, who hates the cold, had cranked up the thermostat. “He’s from Hawaii, O.K.?” said Mr. Obama’s senior adviser, David Axelrod, who occupies the small but strategically located office next door to his boss. “He likes it warm. You could grow orchids in there.As Ed at Hot Air points out, this is the same guy who told the rest of us that "we can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times..." during the campaign.
Predictably, the media isn't pointing out the obvious contrast between what Obama says and what Obama does. Sure, we pick on Carter for good reason, but at least he had the decency to wear a sweater.
Posted by slublog at 01:47 PM | Comments (76) | TrackBack
January 28, 2009
Next Time, Might Want to Try Compromise
Spending bill passes on party-line vote in the House despite the president's lobbying efforts. Gee, I wonder why...?
Obama vowed to change Washington and usher in a new post-partisan era. The the mood music and optics were pitch perfect as he trekked up to the Hill. Republicans praised his gesture, welcomed his sincere demeanour and appreciated his willingness to listen.I'm watching the special primetime "CBS News" special. Katie Couric just asked, with visible incredulity, if Republicans in the Senate would also vote "en masse" against the bill. CBS pointed out that the bill would spend money on Amtrak, health care and education while ignoring the fact that it also contains cash for the NEA, child-care and global-warming research.Problem was, he wanted only to listen and did not want to act on what Republicans said. When he was asked if he would re-structure the package to include more tax cuts, he reportedly responded: "Feel free to whack me over the head because I probably will not compromise on that part."
He apparently added: " I understand that and I will watch you on Fox News and feel bad about myself."
Perhaps next time, President Obama will realize bipartisanship requires more than simply 'listening' without taking meaningful action to meet the GOP in the middle. He may not need Republican support to pass legislation, but like the Guardian says, not having that support will make it harder to blame the GOP if those measures fail to improve the economy.
Posted by slublog at 07:59 PM | Comments (69) | TrackBack
January 27, 2009
The Case for Tort Reform
You're in a plane that hits a flock of geese over the most populated city in the United States. Against all odds, your pilot keeps the plane under control and does what no other commercial airline pilot has ever successfully done. You and everyone on that plane with you survives the ordeal.
What's your response? Gratitude to the pilot and the airline who hired him? A rethinking of life's priorities?
Nah.
If you're Joe Hart, it's lawsuit time!
Joe Hart, a salesman from Charlotte who suffered a bloody nose and bruises, says he “would like to be made whole for the incident.”The significance of the incident? The significance of the incident, you ungrateful doofus, is that you and everyone on that plane is alive. I'm not sure what disgusts me more - that Joe Hart sees his brush with death as nothing more than the opportunity for a payout, or the fact that some bottom-feeding lawyer is willing to actually take this case under the circumstances. What the heck is wrong with these people?It’s too soon after the accident to determine what emotional distress he has suffered, he says.
…Hart says he has talked to a lawyer in North Carolina but hasn’t decided whether to take any legal action.
“I want to see how things play out with US Airways,” he says. “I’m hopeful US Airways understands the significance of the incident.”
Like Rachel Lucas says, if you want to sue someone, sue the geese who flew in front of that plane.
Posted by slublog at 08:03 PM | Comments (32) | TrackBack
January 26, 2009
Collins: A Tax Cheat for Treasury? No thanks.
For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my senator. *
Update - Confirmed. I guess Obama really is a miracle worker - I didn't think it was possible for me to hate doing taxes more than I already do.
Turns out it is.
Posted by slublog at 05:38 PM | Comments (15) | TrackBack
January 20, 2009
Some Advice for the Right
As much as the swipes at George W. Bush in the speech and the new White House website bugged me, I'm going to try to heed this advice.
That doesn't mean I'm going to quit creating photoshops, though. After all, dissent is patriotic.
Posted by slublog at 08:20 PM | Comments (38) | TrackBack
Pomp and Circumstance
I've got to admit. I like inauguration ceremonies. Always have. The peaceful transition of power from one party to another is a pretty impressive quality of our democracy.
Today's ceremony, like all, had high and low points.
High - This. The violin and clarinet beginning is beautiful, but my favorite part was when the clarinet first starts playing the melody from Appalachian Spring. It was a palate cleanser after the horror that was Aretha Franklin's "America the Beautiful."
Low - The poem. I like poetry, but that nearly random string of words and thoughts was just terrible. Robert Frost, she was not.
High - Rick Warren's invocation. Respectful, humble and heartfelt.
Low - Rev. Joseph E. Lowery's benediction. Race-baiting nonsense that was completely inappropriate for the venue.
Major Low - The media's adoring coverage. Visit Newsbusters and just keep scrolling.
High - The Carter snub. What makes it a high is not that it happened, but who did the snubbing.
Low - Liberals booing and jeering the departing president. I'd call these jerkoffs children, but that would be an insult to actual kids.
Posted by slublog at 07:32 PM | Comments (26) | TrackBack
So Far, New Politics Not so New
From President Obama's inaugural address:
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.From the White House website:On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics.
President Obama will keep the broken promises made by President Bush to rebuild New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. He and Vice President Biden will take steps to ensure that the federal government will never again allow such catastrophic failures in emergency planning and response to occur.I guess he meant Republican recriminations.President Obama swiftly responded to Hurricane Katrina. Citing the Bush Administration's "unconscionable ineptitude" in responding to Hurricane Katrina, then-Senator Obama introduced legislation requiring disaster planners to take into account the specific needs of low-income hurricane victims.
When combined with a rather classless inaugural address that initially sounded good, but doesn't hold up on repeated readings. The speech was not shrill, but the new president took some unnecessary cheap shots at the outgoing president. So far, it looks as though an integral part of Obama's new politics will be to continue dumping on the Bush administration.
As I've said, I'm not going to mindlessly hate the new president, but so far, his version of reaching across the aisle is not all that impressive.
Compare and contrast. Bush's statement this evening - "A good man took the oath of office today, and we offer him our prayers for success."
Posted by slublog at 07:11 PM | Comments (97) | TrackBack
January 19, 2009
An Open Letter to Almost-President Obama
Dear Mr. Almost-President,
I didn't vote for you.
Yeah, that's a terrible way to start a letter like this, but I figure I'd get it out of the way upfront, so as to avoid all the awkwardness. It wasn't personal. I just had some issues with some of your ideas, and I was disappointed when you won the presidency last year. Of course, the fact that John McCain was the Republican nominee tempered those feelings a bit. Anyway, now that I've got that off my chest, I figured this might be a good time to share some thoughts.
Tomorrow, you will take the oath of office and become the 44th president of the United States. Congratulations. Your ascension to the presidency is an historic moment for the country, and as an American, I can appreciate the significance of your inauguration. I wasn't sure I'd see such an event in my lifetime. The fact that I have makes me appreciate the country in which I live.
But...
Like I said before, I don't agree with you on a lot of issues. Actually, make that most issues. I'm a mostly conservative guy who is for low taxes, free markets, pro-life views and a strong military. During the campaign, your rhetoric didn't match up all that well with my beliefs.
Unlike many of those who voted for you, though, I'm not going to hate you for simply disagreeing with me. There's no point in it. After all, hating you diminishes me. One of my major issues with you is that you never spoke out against the vicious Bush-hatred that infected your party. Your refusal to do so did not, and does not, speak well of you.
Since becoming the almost-president, you've made some good choices on cabinet officials and economic advisers. I hope you heed their wise advice and ignore the bad. Your outreach to conservatives and moderates has been welcome, but I'm still not entirely convinced.
Let's be frank, though. You belong to the party that opposes mine. I will be hard to convince, but not impossible. If you were at all serious about wanting to reach out to people like me and be a post-partisan president, you'd better do it quickly. If you go hard left immediately, those of us who are willing to give you a chance will be forced to conclude all of your campaign rhetoric about a new politics was simply lies, and we'll spend a lot of time criticizing you.
Okay, most of us will do that anyway. But your actions will determine the degree of criticism.
Still, congratulations Mr. President. I wish you luck, but not too much. After all, I like low taxes.
Regards,
Slublog
P.S. - Not to get pushy or anything, but where's my unicorn?
Posted by slublog at 09:11 PM | Comments (336) | TrackBack
"Good Luck, President Obama. The rest of you can go to hell."
Andrew Breitbard responds to celebrity Obama-worship.
Twenty years ago AIDS was the number one cause for the Hollywood left. Remember the trendy red ribbons at all the self-aggrandizing awards shows? Hollywood has moved on (dot org) to better blame-your-fellow-American causes. But President Bush didn’t. And aside from Bob Geldof and Bono , they ignore this president’s demonstrable goodness .The "new patriotism" and hypocritical calls for 'unity' from the left are disgusting, considering the orgy of Bush-hate they engaged in over the last eight years.Amazing that Geldof and Bono could valiantly fight their battles and serve humanity without being paralyzed by the Leader of the Free World 2000-2008’s all-encompassing awfulness.
Remember this video: It is a instructive relic of the era of celebrity decadence and boutique anti-Republican activism under President Bush. It is a sickening display that they want want fast and easy absolution for having comported themselves like ill-behaved children for eight difficult and war-torn years.
Of course, they have reason for optimism, since I guess all the problems that Bush faced really were difficult.
Posted by slublog at 06:52 PM | Comments (116) | TrackBack
January 18, 2009
Broke but Feeling the HopeandChange Fever
The Portland Press Herald here in Maine sent a team of four reporters to cover the inauguration of Barack Obama.
Wonder where they found the money?
Posted by slublog at 05:32 PM | Comments (46) | TrackBack
January 15, 2009
Five Days Left, But the Hate Continues
I watched as much of President Bush's farewell speech as my daughters allowed. They both decided it would be the perfect time to fuss and/or scream. Still, what I was able to catch reaffirmed my belief that while Bush has been an imperfect president, he is a decent man.
One thing I've been especially impressed by is his refusal to engage in the sort of pettiness that marked the final week of Bill Clinton's presidency. Clinton signed off on hundreds of new rules on everything from ergonomics to arsenic standards, setting numerous regulatory stink bombs that Bush would have to defuse. Clinton also put the political 'no taxation without representation' DC license plates on the presidential limo, making Bush the bad guy when he removed the inappropriate statement.
Bush has done none of that. Quite the opposite. Even Obama aides are saying the White House has helped made this a very smooth and orderly transition. He has shown grace in the face of the incomprehensible rage displayed by the left. I say incomprehensible because even though Bush's time is done, some liberals are not done hating him. Read the liberal comments in this Hot Air thread. Or "feel the pain" of this puerile bleating in the LA Times.
You've got to wonder when the left is going to give up its addiction to Bush hatred, and how they're going to cope with the fact that his presidency is over.
Posted by slublog at 10:28 PM | Comments (61) | TrackBack
The View from My Window
As bad as that looks, we've actually got it easy compared to others. After all, the temperature actually climbed to 9 degrees or so today. Practically a heat wave.
Update - When I left for work this morning, the temperature was four degrees lower.
Posted by slublog at 09:47 PM | Comments (10) | TrackBack
January 14, 2009
Obama: I Have Full Confidence in My Tax-Cheat Treasury Pick
The president-elect says he's sure Timothy Geithner will be confirmed. Given the fact that even Lapdog for Hire Lindsay Graham doesn't seem bothered by Geithner's 'taxes for thee, but not for me' history, Obama is probably right.
It's one thing to forget paying taxes. It's another to take money specifically given to pay taxes and still not pay taxes.
The IMF did not withhold state and federal income taxes or self-employment taxes — Social Security and Medicare — from its employees’ paychecks. But the IMF took great care to explain to those employees, in detail and frequently, what their tax responsibilities were. First, each employee was given the IMF Employee Tax Manual. Then, employees were given quarterly wage statements for the specific purpose of calculating taxes. Then, they were given year-end wage statements. And then, each IMF employee was required to file what was known as an Annual Tax Allowance Request. Geithner received all those documents.Remember, the Treasury Secretary is in charge of the IRS. Obama has nominated, and thanks to mindless fools like Graham, the Senate looks as though it will confirm, an alleged tax cheat to head the tax-gathering bureau of the US government.The tax allowance has turned out to be a key part of the Geithner situation. This is how it worked. IMF employees were expected to pay their taxes out of their own money. But the IMF then gave them an extra allowance, known as a “gross-up,” to cover those tax payments. This was done in the Annual Tax Allowance Request, in which the employee filled out some basic information — marital status, dependent children, etc. — and the IMF then estimated the amount of taxes the employee would owe and gave the employee a corresponding allowance.
At the end of the tax allowance form were the words, “I hereby certify that all the information contained herein is true to the best of my knowledge and belief and that I will pay the taxes for which I have received tax allowance payments from the Fund.” Geithner signed the form. He accepted the allowance payment. He didn’t pay the tax. For several years in a row.
And the media's response? It's just a 'speed bump.'
Posted by slublog at 08:27 PM | Comments (17) | TrackBack
Obama's Official Portrait Released
Hey, what's that on his lapel?
Posted by slublog at 07:58 PM | Comments (27) | TrackBack
January 12, 2009
Most Obvious Pander, Evah
When one's choice of inaugural invocation pastor causes you political problems with a vocal constituency, the only answer? Nuclear-level pandering.
(CNN) — The first openly gay priest ordained by a major Christian denomination will deliver the invocation at the kickoff inauguration event Sunday at the Lincoln Memorial.I like the last paragraph. It's clear the incoming administration is taking great pains to make sure everyone knew this totally wasn't a response to any of the criticism they received. The fact that they got a gay bishop to deliver a prayer while taking heat from gay groups for allowing Warren to participate is just completely coincidental.The Rev. Gene Robinson, Episcopal bishop in New Hampshire, has accepted an invitation issued by the Obama team prior to the announcement of the Rev. Rick Warren’s selection to deliver the invocation at the president-elect’s swearing-in, Politico reported Monday.
Robinson had been a critic of Warren’s role, calling his inclusion in the event “really, really unfortunate” because of the California minister's support for California's Prop. 8, which barred same-sex marriage.Not sure what he means by that last sentence. Is Robinson suggesting his sexual orientation determines the content of his prayers rather than his Christian beliefs? Both men are Protestants. One would assume their prayers to God would be similar. For a guy who demands Christian doctrine and church tradition bend to accommodate his sexuality, Robinson seems awfully reluctant to tolerate views that differ from his own.“It's about this particular venue and the role that he has in praying for all of America, and I'm just not sure he'd pray to God the same way I would,” Robinson told Beliefnet last month.
How can our president-elect stand to embrace such intolerance?
Yikes - I guess he wasn't kidding about praying in a different way than Warren.
Posted by slublog at 07:42 PM | Comments (16) | TrackBack
January 07, 2009
Bad Laws and Unintended Consequences
I've been a parent for almost three years now. Being the father of two girls has taught me many things: girls are really sensitive to the tone of your voice, kids don't really smell until you introduce them to solid food, sleep is optional, and when your little girl asks you to wear pink hats, bracelets and necklaces it's best to just do what she asks and let go of your misguided sense of dignity.
The most potentially troubling realization, though, is how expensive it is to raise a kid. Being a parent has diversified what I spend money on. Instead of buying movies, books, and meals at restaurants, I'm shelling out cash for diapers, clothes, car seats, diapers, toys, added food costs and did I mention diapers? Don't get me wrong, I love being a dad more than anything in the world, but it does lead to considerably less disposable income. One of the more costly items is clothing, which makes our local secondhand store a frequent stop. Kids get bigger when you feed them. Who knew?
So imagine my surprise when my co-worker told me today that Congress, in its infinite wisdom, recently made being a parent more expensive, at least for those who don't want to break the bank on kid's clothes.
Barring a reprieve, regulations set to take effect next month could force thousands of clothing retailers and thrift stores to throw away trunkloads of children’s clothing.As Ed Morrissey points out at Hot Air, the law was intended to protect American consumers from poorly-made Chinese products, but is so badly written that it threatens the livelihood of American thrift shops and charities.The law, aimed at keeping lead-filled merchandise away from children, mandates that all products sold for those age 12 and younger — including clothing — be tested for lead and phthalates, which are chemicals used to make plastics more pliable. Those that haven’t been tested will be considered hazardous, regardless of whether they actually contain lead.
“They’ll all have to go to the landfill,” said Adele Meyer, executive director of the National Assn. of Resale and Thrift Shops.
This blog does a good job pointing out the far-reaching effects of this law.
If the Consumer Products Safety Commission has its way, this law will close thrift shops that sell kids clothing and artists who make and sell homemade toys. In the name of "protecting the children," Congress has harmed numerous small businesses and made it more expensive to be a parent. Heckuva job, guys!
Although the law has been passed by both chambers of Congress and signed by the president, there is still a way you can affect how broadly it is interpreted. Like any federal agency, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has rule-making authority. Those rule-makers can be influenced by Congressional offices. So I encourage you to call your senators and representatives to get the focus of this law narrowed to cover the foreign goods that were supposed to be the original intent. The CPSC has already made some changes, so they're open to re-interpreting this statute.
Or better yet, encourage them to repeal or rewrite this portion of the law entirely. This website has some good talking points to use when talking to your Congressional offices.
Here is the website to contact your representatives. Here's the site for the Senate.
Posted by slublog at 07:36 PM | Comments (127) | TrackBack
January 06, 2009
A Musical Interlude
The animation is good, but the music is better.
Looks like YouTube zapped that video, so I replaced it with a version of the finale conducted by the man who composed it.
Posted by slublog at 10:18 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Gupta for Surgeon General
He may be a television personality, but he's also one heck of a doctor. Why not? He's likely to be less frightening than C. Everett Koop, who seemed to enjoy scaring the ever-loving crap out of a generation of kids.
Posted by slublog at 10:07 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 05, 2009
The NYT Goes There
In its latest concession to the worst revenue slide since the Depression, The New York Times has begun selling display advertising on its front page, a step that has become increasingly common across the newspaper industry.What really makes this sad is that it didn't have to happen. The Times has always skewed left, but for the most part, they played fair. Under the management of "Pinch" Sulzberger, however, the reporting has grown more shrill, partisan and libelous.The first such ad, appearing Monday in color, was bought by CBS. The ad, two-and-a-half inches high, lies horizontally across the bottom of the front page, below the news articles and a brief summary of some articles in the paper. In a statement, the paper said such ads would be placed “below the fold” — that is, on the lower half of the page.
The Times and other papers may try to blame the recession for their woes, but the downturn in the newspaper industry goes back too far for that simple explanation to fully work. They just can't seem to bring themselves to consider the possibility that it's not just the market or the internet that is killing them - their death might be self-inflicted. (H/t: Hot Air)
Posted by slublog at 09:02 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
January 04, 2009
Senator Smalley
Whoever knew lutefisk was a hallucinatory substance?
Posted by slublog at 09:14 PM | Comments (29) | TrackBack
The Obama Tax Cuts?
Huh. I look forward to seeing how Congressional Democrats explain that these tax cuts are okay, but Bush's were the worst thing ever.
WASHINGTON -- President-elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are crafting a plan to offer about $300 billion in tax cuts to individuals and businesses, a move aimed at attracting Republican support for an economic-stimulus package and prodding companies to create jobs.I have no doubt the media will somehow manage to provide Obama cover on this one. Frankly, I don't care as long as the final result is less money out of my paycheck confiscated by the government.The size of the proposed tax cuts -- which would account for about 40% of a stimulus package that could reach $775 billion over two years -- is greater than many on both sides of the aisle in Congress had anticipated, and may make it easier to win over Republicans who have stressed that any initiative should rely relatively heavily on tax cuts rather than spending.
The Obama tax-cut proposals, if enacted, could pack more punch in two years than either of President George W. Bush's tax cuts did in their first two years. Mr. Bush's 10-year, $1.35 trillion tax cut of 2001, considered the largest in history, contained $174 billion of cuts during its first two full years, according to Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation. The second-largest tax cut -- the 10-year, $350 billion package engineered by Mr. Bush's in 2003 -- contained $231 billion in 2004 and 2005.
The entertainment value of watching Democrats defend 'trickle-down' economics is just gravy.
Posted by slublog at 08:49 PM | Comments (24) | TrackBack