Tag: Politics

Sickening Report: World Bank Destroys Albanian Village and then Covers it up

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This is absolutely sickening to read.  😡

Managers at the World Bank provided false information to the agency’s board of directors about a $39 million, politically-connected European “coastal cleanup” project that led to the destruction and destitution of a powerless village in Albania in 2007 — and then spent nearly two years trying to cover it up, FOX News has learned.

Bank insiders also misled and stonewalled a panel of independent investigators commissioned by the board to investigate the scandal, according to the investigators themselves.

World Bank sources tell FOX News that the panel’s report, submitted to the 24-member board in late November, is one of the most damning independent assessments of the anti-poverty agency’s behavior in the bank’s 60-year history. The bank, the world’s largest and most influential anti-poverty institution and part of the U.N. system, is doling out $100 billion over the next three years for development projects.

For its part, once the report leaked in Albania last week, the bank announced that further disbursements of the loan for the Albanian project had been temporarily suspended on Jan. 9 “due to certain outstanding policy and operational issues.” A World Bank spokesman did not comment to FOX News by press time.

via MyFox Springfield | World Bank Spent More Than a Year Covering Up Destruction

I hope like hell, whomever was responsible for doing this, is brought to justice. The very notion that the organization like the World Bank can just come in and destroy someone’s home is disgusting. May whomever carried this out rot in the Devil’s hell.

Don’t expect our Government to say anything about this, as it is well-known that the World Bank controls much of what goes on in this country as well.

(H/T Freedom’s Phoenix)

Justice is Served – Conn. judge suspended 8 months for slurs at arrest

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Glad to see that there is justice.

A judge charged with drunken driving and videotaped using racial slurs while arguing with police officers was suspended without pay Monday for eight months by a judicial review panel.

Superior Court Judge E. Curtissa Cofield, who was confirmed as Connecticut’s first black female judge in 1991, apologized to the state Judicial Review Council.

“I regret that my actions may have tarnished the institution that I love,” she said. “I’ve embarrassed and humiliated my family and loved ones, and disappointed my friends.”

The panel determined, by unanimous vote, that Cofield’s “disparaging and demeaning” comments failed to live up to the standards of integrity and impartiality expected of judges. The council could have imposed up to a one-year suspension and recommended her permanent removal by the Connecticut Supreme Court, but instead settled on the lesser suspension.

Cofield told reporters she would not appeal.

via Conn. judge suspended 8 months for slurs at arrest | CharlotteObserver.com.

While I hate to see anyone lose their jobs. I believe that the actions of this woman were quit unbecoming of someone in the law profession, much less a judge of her stature. I am hoping that this woman gets well and comes back to work with a great appreciation of what she has. Her sentence was very justified. let’s hope the punishment works.

(H/T to Freedom’s Phoenix)

The Road to European Socialism just got a bit shorter

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Via the New York Times, it seems that the economic socialist stimulus plan has passed a procedural vote:

Senate Democrats on Monday advanced the $838 billion economic stimulus bill, clearing a major procedural hurdle by a razor thin margin with the help of just three Republicans. A vote on final passage of the bill is expected on Tuesday.

The Senate vote, by 61 to 36, to close debate on the stimulus, symbolized the partisanship that still grips Congress despite President Obama’s call for new cooperation. It also highlighted the rising power of the centrist Republicans who cast the critical votes. Under Senate rules, it takes 60 votes to invoke cloture and usher a bill to a vote.

Those votes, by Senators Susan Collins and Olympia J. Snowe of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, along with the 56 Democrats and two Independents who regularly vote with them, followed a succession of floor speeches by Republicans criticizing the stimulus as a bloated, wasteful spending bill.

But supporters of the measure said that a good, bipartisan effort had been made at drafting a compromise bill.

“I am proud of the bipartisan work that we have done during the last 10 days,” said Ms. Collins, who supplied one of the three crucial Republican votes. “As with any major legislation, this bill is not perfect, but it can go a long way toward creating jobs and addressing the dire economic crisis facing our nation.”

The majority leader, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, said: “The United States senators from both parties met the seriousness of the economic crisis with an earnest approach to solving this emergency.”

Well, as you can see, the Republican Party, the part that is supposed to be the party of small Government and low taxes, has once again capitulated to “The One.” Remember this come election time.

Local News – ACORN to Sponsor Detroit Mayoral Candidates Forum Tonight

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Acorn, much noted for their voter fraud, is sponsoring a Forum for the Detroit Mayoral Candidates.

As Detroit gets closer the Feb. 24 mayoral primary election, the candidates are getting another opportunity to put their ideas before voters.

The community group ACORN is sponsoring a forum on foreclosures at St. Paul AME Church on Hunt Street in Detroit tonight at 6.

All candidates are expected to be there — except Detroit businessman Dave Bing, who said he has a scheduling conflict.

via Detroit Mayoral Candidates Forum Tonight – Detroit Local News Story – WDIV Detroit.

Hmmmm… I just wonder, will ACORN allow the voter fraud in the Detroit Mayoral Election like they did in the election of  B. Hussein Obama?

Notice also, that WDIV never mentioned the voter fraud at all? Now, why I am not surprised. 🙄

Communist Leader says “Obama working to nationalize U.S. economy”

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Just as I suspected….:

President Obama is “considering” a radical agenda to nationalize the U.S. financial system, the Federal Reserve Bank, and private industries such as energy and other sectors whose future is “problematic” in private hands, claims the leader of the Communist Party USA.

In a major speech focused on Obama titled “Off and running: Opportunity of a lifetime,” CPUSA leader Sam Webb also alleges Obama’s administration is considering turning education, childcare, and health care into “no profit zones;” rerouting investment capital from military infrastructure

to “green economy” projects and public infrastructure; and waging a “full scale” assault on global warming.

“We now have not simply a friend, but a people’s advocate in the White House,” declared Webb at a recent speech in Ohio for People’s Weekly World Communist newspaper.

“An era of progressive change is within reach, no longer an idle dream. Just look at the new lay of the land: a friend of labor and its allies sits in the White House,” Webb proclaimed.

via Communist: Obama working to nationalize U.S. economy — WorldNetDaily.com.

You can bet your sweet royal behind that if this “economic stimulus” fails, the doors will be opened to nationalization of our Banks, Businesses, Oil companies and everything else eventually.  We as Americans must stand up and fight against this sort of tyranny!

16 illegal aliens sue Arizona rancher

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Now this is totally messed up!:

An Arizona man who has waged a 10-year campaign to stop a flood of illegal immigrants from crossing his property is being sued by 16 Mexican nationals who accuse him of conspiring to violate their civil rights when he stopped them at gunpoint on his ranch on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Roger Barnett, 64, began rounding up illegal immigrants in 1998 and turning them over to the U.S. Border Patrol, he said, after they destroyed his property, killed his calves and broke into his home.

His Cross Rail Ranch near Douglas, Ariz., is known by federal and county law enforcement authorities as “the avenue of choice” for immigrants seeking to enter the United States illegally.

Trial continues Monday in the federal lawsuit, which seeks $32 million in actual and punitive damages for civil rights violations, the infliction of emotional distress and other crimes. Also named are Mr. Barnett’s wife, Barbara, his brother, Donald, and Larry Dever, sheriff in Cochise County, Ariz., where the Barnetts live. The civil trial is expected to continue until Friday.

The lawsuit is based on a March 7, 2004, incident in a dry wash on the 22,000-acre ranch, when he approached a group of illegal immigrants while carrying a gun and accompanied by a large dog.

Attorneys for the immigrants – five women and 11 men who were trying to cross illegally into the United States – have accused Mr. Barnett of holding the group captive at gunpoint, threatening to turn his dog loose on them and saying he would shoot anyone who tried to escape.

The immigrants are represented at trial by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), which also charged that Sheriff Dever did nothing to prevent Mr. Barnett from holding their clients at “gunpoint, yelling obscenities at them and kicking one of the women.”

In the lawsuit, MALDEF said Mr. Barnett approached the group as the immigrants moved through his property, and that he was carrying a pistol and threatening them in English and Spanish. At one point, it said, Mr. Barnett’s dog barked at several of the women and he yelled at them in Spanish, “My dog is hungry and he’s hungry for buttocks.”

via Washington Times – 16 illegals sue Arizona rancher.

Let me get this straight…… A man defends his land against unwanted intruders and he’s being sued?!?!?! Something is wrong with America. I would have just shot them all. Told the law that they charged me or tried to attack and I was simply defending myself. It would have been my word against theirs.  But this guy shows a little aggression and brandishes a gun and he gets sued? Oy.

Of course, these are Obama’s people and thanks to the stupid idiot Republican Party who ran an idiot moderate, and a dumb assed harpy bitch. We are going to see a bunch more of this.  Welcome to Liberal America people! Because it is only going to get worse from here! 🙄

Others: Townhall.com, Debbie Schlussel and Infidel Bloggers Alliance

Funny News: Ann Coulter is being Probed

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This is a bit interesting….:

Ann Coulter is being probed. Following our Jan. 11 column, Connecticut’s Elections Enforcement Commission is making a “thorough investigation” of whether the conservative pundit broke the law by voting in the Nutmeg State while living in New York City, according to a commission spokeswoman.

Officials are responding to a formal complaint filed by Coulterwatch.com blogger Dan Borchers. “For over 10 years, Ann Coulter has gotten away with illegal, immoral and unethical behavior, ranging from plagiarism to defamation, perjury to voter fraud,” claims the conservative Borchers. Coulter declined to comment, but in the past has branded Borchers a stalker. He says the FBI has determined he poses no threat.

Meanwhile, private eye Joe Culligan, whose WebofDeception.com brought Coulter’s Connecticut voting record to light, has been poking into Rahm Emanuel’s living arrangements.

via New York Daily News: Ann Coulter under investigation.

Ann Coulter, being um, Probed?!?! Ha! Wishful thinking on her part, I’m sure. 😛 😉 😀 😆

I’d rather oink a goat! 😮

The only woman in the world that is so totally unfuckable. (Did I just say that?)

A great video

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Here Milton Freeman schools Communist liberal asshat Phil Donahue:

Reaction in the Blogsophere has been postive, except for some Communist Liberal Idiot, that just does not get it. (she writes at my hometown paper, which says quite a bit.)

Others: Macsmind, TigerHawk, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, Wizbang, Sister Toldjah, Scared Monkeys

(via Memeorandum)

Cartoons of the day

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More @ Baloo’s Cartoon Blog

Trackposted to Tidbits and Treasures, Wingless – American Teen Killed By Released Guantanamo Detainees, third world county, Nuke Gingrich, Woman Honor Thyself, The World According to Carl, The Pink Flamingo, CORSARI D’ITALIA, Wingless – Belgium Says Israel Uses Child Soldiers, Refuses to Sell Weapons, Democrat=Socialist, Conservative Cat, and Wingless – Hamas Steals Aid Meant For People of Gaza, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Linkfest Haven, the Blogger's Oasis

Quote of the Day

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This week President Obama claimed that failure to pass his economic stimulus bill will have catastrophic consequences for the U.S economy. The reality is the catastrophe will be far greater with his plan then without it. If the trends of January and early February of 2009 continue, the rug will be completely pulled out from beneath the U.S. economy, and the full cost of the President’s “economic depressant package” will be apparent to all.

If foreign capital does not continue to pour into Treasuries, interest rates and consumer prices in the U.S. will soar. At that point, we will finally be confronted with the real crises that I have long predicted. When the day of reckoning arrives our policy response will be critical. If we continue on the course our new President has mapped out, the catastrophe will far exceed the scope of any he hoped to avoid.

Radical Eco-Activist gets 22 Years for 1999 Arson at MSU

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Justice Served or Overzealous Justice?  You Decide.

A radical activist who helped set a $1 million fire to protest research on genetically modified crops was sentenced Thursday to nearly 22 years in prison _ even more than the prosecution recommended.

Marie Mason decided to “elevate her grievances beyond the norms of civilized society” through fire and destruction, U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney said. The case _ which was prosecuted as domestic terrorism _ was “about an abandonment of the marketplace of ideas,” he added.

The explosion and fire caused more than $1 million in damage to Michigan State University’s Agriculture Hall on New Year’s Eve 1999.

In her plea agreement, she also admitted causing another $3 million in damage through other acts from 1999 to 2003, including destroying homes under construction in the Detroit area and Indiana and setting fire to two boats owned by a man who formerly raised minks.

The 47-year-old Mason, of Cincinnati, had acted on behalf of the radical group Earth Liberation Front, or ELF, which has been implicated in a spate of similar crimes, mostly in the West.

She had pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy and arson after reaching a deal with prosecutors. The prosecution had been aided by Frank Ambrose, her former husband, who cooperated with the FBI.

The investigation was cold until spring 2007, when a man looking for scrap cardboard found gas masks, an M-80 explosive, maps and anti-government writings in a suburban Detroit trash bin.

They belonged to Ambrose, who apparently was trying to shed remnants of his past. The FBI searched his home, and he became an informant, blowing the whistle on himself and Mason and going undercover to record 178 conversations with other activists.

At MSU, Mason and Ambrose targeted a campus office that held records on research related to moth-resistant potatoes for poor parts of Africa. Computers, file cabinets and desks were doused with a flammable liquid. Vapors contributed to an explosion, and the fire got out of control.

The explosion burned Mason’s hair and prevented her from finishing the message, “No GMO,” on a wall, a reference to genetically modified organisms.

via Woman Gets 22 Years For ’99 Mich. Campus Arson, Radical Activist Gets 22 Years In Prison For $1 Million Arson Fire At Mich. Campus In 1999 – CBS News.

The Libertarian in me says; A lady gets 22 years for setting fire to a Eco-Lab, but a President and his cabinet deceive the American people into a war that had nothing to do with September 11’th and he is sitting in Texas. Something is wrong with America.  For the record, nobody was killed as a result of this fire, 4000+ of our finest young people are dead. The fire cost what? 1 Million?? How much is the Iraq war costing us; 1 Trillion? Does anyone else see the oddball nature of this? Of course, the Fascist Neo-Con’s just love this conviction. That’s because they just love tossing around that word, “Terrorism.” That’s because it serves their masters well.

Thankfully, Mason’s lawyer is appealing this judgment, and I believe it is warranted, I believe this crime is wrong, but 22 years is extremely excessive.

Update: Jazz Shaw who writes at the Moderate Voice,  kind of agrees with me.

Quotes of the Day

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Let it be said. There is nothing wrong about Americans fighting to preserve the culture and country they grew up in. That is what patriotic conservatism is all about. And if the Times can understand and support the right of native tribes like the Navajo and Apache to preserve their unique character and culture, why this viral hatred of those of us who wish to preserve the Western and Christian character of America?


So, I repeat the question, Do Americans really cherish freedom anymore? And, if we do, what are we going to do about it? I believe that there are specific and constructive steps that can be taken to restore liberty in this land. (I will develop these thoughts later.) I further believe that there are still millions of Americans who really do understand and cherish freedom. We may be in a minority, but remember, we were also a minority in 1776. Freedom is laborious, onerous work. And not everyone enjoys hard work.

So be it. Let lazy, indolent fools wallow in their servitude. God will yet see to it that there is a land of liberty for those who truly desire it and are willing to fight for it. I firmly believe that.

Remember, liberty is a precious gift from our Creator. For those who fear God, respect Natural Law, and love liberty, there is yet a “promised land.”

We may have to do a little searching; we may have to rethink our priorities; we may have to adjust our lifestyles; and yes, we may have to “pledge our lives, fortunes, and sacred honor” in order to obtain it; but our forebears thought it was worth it–and so do I.

As Friedrich Schiller wrote in William Tell:

“By this fair light which greeteth us, before
Those other nations, that, beneath us far,
In noisome cities pent, draw painful breath,
Swear we the oath of our confederacy!
A band of brothers true we swear to be,
Never to part in danger or in death!

“We swear we will be free as were our sires,
And sooner die than live in slavery!

“We swear, to put our trust in God Most High,
And not to quail before the might of man!”

Such people can never be enslaved. And I believe that such people still exist in these United States of America. I count them my brothers. I offer them my arm and my heart. After all, we are freedom-loving Americans.

Will we see the nationalization and control of our main banks as Europe has done and is doing? I say, yes.

Will we start to hear “socialist” speeches about us all cutting back, thus giving more taxes to the Government to solve endless emergencies? Salaries might need to be cut everywhere and business achievement and profit swiped bit by bit, of course for the betterment of a troubled society. Watch it unfold.

Yes, there should be significant salary limitations and spending requirements if a troubled company receives national financial aid, but a way to independent achievement and reward, not prolonged Government control, taxation, litigation and regulation!!!

Ronald Reagan said it best many years ago and was right! “Big Government is not the solution. It is the problem.”

Colorado McCain Staffer picked up on Child Molestor Charges, Liberal Blogs fawn over story

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Here’s the new Meme for the Liberal Blogsphere for the weekend or this day at least.

Via the Colorado Liberal Independent:

Police arrested the former manager of Sen. John McCain’s Pueblo presidential campaign office Wednesday on charges he sexually assaulted a 5-year-old boy left in his care so the boy’s mother could attend a rally for McCain’s running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, The Denver Post’s Howard Pankratz reported Thursday afternoon.

It’s the second arrest on charges of sexual assault on a child by a person in position of trust in a week for Jeffrey Claude Bartleson, 52, who has faced similar allegations at least five times since 1982 without being convicted of a crime, according to the Pueblo Chieftain’s Nick Bonham.

Two detectives have been assigned full-time to the investigation and are looking into allegations Bartleson lured victims through church groups, his work as a sponsor at a hospital drug rehab unit, and during involvement in political work.

I just have to ask, do you think that if President Barack Hussein Obama’s Campaign Manager had been picked up for oinking some kid, that the media would be all over it, like this?

I somehow very highly doubt it. 🙄

…besides that, why wasn’t this kids Mother watching her son more closely?

Whoops! Republican Representive Blows Security Cover

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Um, Ooops!

A congressional trip to Iraq this weekend was supposed to be a secret.

But the cat’s out of the bag now, thanks to a member of the House Intelligence Committee who broke an embargo via Twitter.

A delegation led by House Minority Leader John A. Boehner , R-Ohio, arrived in Iraq earlier today, and because of Rep. Peter Hoekstra , R-Mich., the entire world — or at least Twitter.com readers—now know they’re there.

“Just landed in Baghdad,” messaged Hoekstra, a former chairman of the Intelligence panel and now the ranking member, who is routinely entrusted to keep some of the nation’s most closely guarded secrets.

Before the delegation left Washington, they were advised to keep the trip to themselves for security reasons. A few media outlets, including Congressional Quarterly, learned about it, but agreed not to disclose anything until the delegation had left Iraq.

Nobody expected, though, that a lawmaker with such an extensive national security background would be the first to break the silence. And in such a big way.

Not only did Hoekstra reveal the existence of the lawmakers’ trip, but included details about their itinerary in updates posted every few hours on his Twitter page, until he suddenly stopped, for some reason, on Friday morning.

Since it’s already a matter of public record, here are some of Hoekstra’s twitter dispatches, typos and all, delivered in just 140 characters or less:

“On the way to Andrews Air Force base.12 hour flight to mid east. Be back on Mon instead of tues. Votes mon. I’ll keep you posted,” he wrote on Feb. 4

In his last dispatch today, he wrote: “Moved into green zone by helicopter Iraqi flag now over palace. Headed to new US embassy Appears calmer less chaotic than previous here [sic].”

via CQ Politics | Congressman Twitters an Iraq Security Breach.

Had a Democrat done this, Michelle Malkin would have went into meltdown mode. Heckuva Job Pete! 🙄

(speaking of “Whoops!”… Corrected stupid grammar error… D’oh!)

Dreadfully and Painfully True

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I don’t think I could have put this any better myself.

Prosecute Bush? Libertarians have long understood that criminals don’t prosecute fellow criminals, which is why so many libertarians have concluded that government per se is a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization as defined by the RICO Act of 1970, no matter how many checks and balances are checked and balanced or how separate the separation of powers are, and needs to be banned entirely. Which is why so many libertarians are anarchists at heart.

And perhaps, in the future, after the current president has had his run, having turned the United States into a third-rate Eastern European style Marxist hellhole, his former star struck extremists will scream, “Prosecute Barack Obama!”

You may disagree, but if you look at actual history vice the fairy tales that pass for history in our politicized government-run schools, you’ll discover the true nature of governments everywhere and everywhen.

And then you’ll puke.

Read the rest at:  Dallas Libertarian Examiner  —  Prosecute Bush? Good luck!.

So true. This is why I do not vote Republican or Democrat any longer. Because anymore, they’re just two sides of the same damn coin. Been that way since the 1970’s.

(via National Review – The Libertarian Journal)

Frum makes a good point

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For a change, I agree with this guy. (Mark your calendars, it does not happen often!)

The first is that the social and cultural basis of American conservatism remains very much alive and active. Conservatives may have lost their majority, but that is not the same thing as disappearing outright.

The second is that conservative ideas continue to be relevant – and will soon re-emerge more relevant than ever. The current US administration and congressional majority seem determined to forget every economic lesson learned in the years since 1966. They are rapidly expanding social spending in the name of “stimulus.” They are redirecting investment from high productivity to low productivity uses in pursuit of “green jobs.” They are toying with “buy American” protectionism while repudiating “hire American” enforcement of immigration laws. They are so eager to restore the dominant liberalism of the 1930s that they cannot see that they are repeating their own errors of the 1970s.

via The New Majority.

I hate to say it. But Frum’s right on the money there.

Japan could serve as a lesson to the United States

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Barack Obama could learn a lesson from Japan. There’s a very good article in the New York Times today, on the mistakes made by the country of Japan in the 1990’s to fix their failing economy:

The Hamada Marine Bridge soars majestically over this small fishing harbor, so much larger than the squid boats anchored below that it seems out of place.

And it is not just the bridge. Two decades of generous public works spending have showered this city of 61,000 mostly graying residents with a highway, a two-lane bypass, a university, a prison, a children’s art museum, the Sun Village Hamada sports center, a bright red welcome center, a ski resort and an aquarium featuring three ring-blowing Beluga whales.

Nor is this remote port in western Japan unusual. Japan’s rural areas have been paved over and filled in with roads, dams and other big infrastructure projects, the legacy of trillions of dollars spent to lift the economy from a severe downturn caused by the bursting of a real estate bubble in the late 1980s. During those nearly two decades, Japan accumulated the largest public debt in the developed world — totaling 180 percent of its $5.5 trillion economy — while failing to generate a convincing recovery.

Now, as the Obama administration embarks on a similar path, proposing to spend more than $820 billion to stimulate the sagging American economy, many economists are taking a fresh look at Japan’s troubled experience. While Japan is not exactly comparable to the United States — especially as a late developer with a history of heavy state investment in infrastructure — economists say it can still offer important lessons about the pitfalls, and chances for success, of a stimulus package in an advanced economy.

The Lesson to be learned here is:

“It is not enough just to hire workers to dig holes and then fill them in again,” said Toshihiro Ihori, an economics professor at the University of Tokyo. “One lesson from Japan is that public works get the best results when they create something useful for the future.

But the real lesson to be learned here is the follow and pay special close attention to what is said here:

In the end, say economists, it was not public works but an expensive cleanup of the debt-ridden banking system, combined with growing exports to China and the United States, that brought a close to Japan’s Lost Decade. This has led many to conclude that spending did little more than sink Japan deeply into debt, leaving an enormous tax burden for future generations.

Gee, is that not what Ron Paul said ALL ALONG, while he was running for President of the United States? For Ron Paul’s troubles and hard work he was slandered, maligned  and marginalized by the Neo-Conservatives who hated him and the Liberal Democrats who were sacred to death of him.

I highly suggest that you read the rest of this article. The United States could learn much from this lesson that Japan had to learn. We could very well end up causing more harm than good to our economy.

Others: Glenn Thrush’s Blogs, Hot Air, A Blog For All, Cafe Hayek, Weekly Standard and QandO

Quote of the Week!

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This quote qualifies for the quote of the year, not to mention,  the Quote of the week or day.

The typical liberal reaction to this was (paraphrasing): “It’s such a relief to ‘finally’ have a president who will own up to his mistakes!”

Really? That’s setting the bar really low. This was an easy mistake for him to own up to. The hard one apparently is for him to admit he was wrong about the surge. Let’s not forget that last summer he said he would still have voted against the surge even had he known at the time how successful it would end up being in terms of the downturn in violence that led to other positive things happening in Iraq.

People like to talk about how Bush’s mistakes “cost lives” in Iraq but Obama’s failure to admit he was wrong about the surge just shows the same foolish bullheadedness others criticized Bush for years about re: Iraq after things started heading south. Had then-Senator Obama had his way about the surge, that would have “cost lives” as well: We would certainly have seen the violence continue to get worse, resulting in more American soldier and coalition casualties, not to mention skyrocketing civilian deaths – possibly even resulting in genocide long-term, thanks to his desire to “cut our losses and get out.”

When he owns up to admitting his poor (not to mention dangerous and irresponsible) judgment in continuing to oppose the surge even after he knew what the results of it were, I’ll be impressed. Until then, this is just small potatoes. – (Source)

Man, is she right, Wow! Amen!

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has pancreatic cancer

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This is truly sad. 🙁

Via the AP:

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had surgery Thursday after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, the court said.

Ginsburg, 75, had the surgery at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. She will remain in the hospital for seven to 10 days, said her surgeon, Dr. Murray Brennan, according to a release issued by the court.

The court announcement said the cancer is apparently in the early stages.

In 1999, Ginsburg had surgery for colon cancer and had chemotherapy and radiation treatment. The only woman on the court, she has been a justice since 1993.

The pancreatic cancer was discovered during a routine, annual exam late last month at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md.

A CAT scan revealed a tumor measuring about 1 centimeter across the center of the pancreas, the court said.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly cancers: Nearly 38,000 cases a year are diagnosed and overall, fewer than 5 percent survive five years.

You know, politics in one thing, but real life is another. My best wishes and prayers are with the Ginsburg family and with Justice Ginsberg as well.

In the spirit of keeping things civil on this sad subject, I am shutting off comments on this posting. I just don’t need the problems with some idiot leaving an asshat comment.

God Bless the Lady. 🙁

Even more Tax Problems for Obama’s Appointments?

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This is getting to be a bit of a strange thing!

The husband of President Obama’s choice to head the Labor Department paid about $6,400 Wednesday to settle tax liens that had been outstanding for as long as 16 years against his business, the Obama administration said Thursday.

The disclosure came shortly before a scheduled 2 p.m. meeting of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which will vote on U.S. Rep. Hilda Solis’ nomination as Labor secretary. The hearing was postponed to give the administration time to look into the tax matter and report back to the committee, said Anthony Coley, a spokesman for Sen. Edward Kennedy, the committee chairman. Solis is a California Democrat.

At a news conference, Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said of Solis: “I read the story in USA TODAY and it quotes somebody who works here. Obviously we know about the story. We reviewed her tax returns and her tax returns are in order. Her husband had an issue.”

via Husband of Rep. Solis, Labor nominee, settles tax liens – USATODAY.com.

Oy. I’m starting to really wonder about Obama selection committee. I mean, is it staffed by monkeys, or just idiotic buffoons? I mean, how the heck hard is it to find out if someone has a tax problem? Really.

Others: TalkLeft, The Swamp, Hot Air, Weekly Standard, The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room, Michelle Malkin, Salon, Glenn Thrush’s Blogs, The Foundry, The Note, TPMDC, Government Bytes and Boston Globe

(via Memeorandum)

Is Obama preparing to send dissenters to prisoner camps?

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As a rule, I do not engage in this sort of this speculation. But seeing the way things are going here, it does sound a bit plausible.

Within the last few weeks since Americans witnessed the transition between a Bush Administration to an Obama Administration, some conservatives have noticed an escalation in using the US military and military-style tactics to deal with “national security concerns.” Such actions include use of army troops within US borders and the building of camps designed to house and control American citizens.

For example, in January immediately following the inauguration of President Barack Hussein Obama, Newswithview.com dispatched a reporter to participate in a US Department of Defense press conference.

Armed Forces Press Service representative Donna Miles reported to news reporters, bloggers and Internet journalists that troops from the 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team were deployed to the Naval facility located in Indian Head, Maryland. Their assignment was allegedly to get hands-on training in skills they could depend on to provide “support during a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or high-yield explosive incident, known here as a CBRNE.

via NWV News — Is the US Government Preparing to Send Dissenters to Prison Camps?.

It is a interesting report indeed. I mean, I am not totally sold in the idea, but it reeks of the Alex Jones type of nonsense. But, Obama is a far lefty, his birth certificate has still not been released. He does seem be to a far left socialist. I mean, it could be plausible.  What is the harm in asking the question?

What do you think? Comments welcomed here, please.