Promoting irresponsibility

Hardly a day goes by during this housing crisis that the media does not report on families in foreclosure proceedings, or in arrears in repayment on mortgages that had close to zero down payment requirements and low "teaser" interest rates. The many excuses offered by some home owners for their plight, and also eagerly by the authors of these human interest stories, is that the borrowers did not understand that these introductory interest rates might rise a lot after a few years, or that they would have negative equity in their homes if housing prices stopped rising and began to fall. An obvious alternative explanation for their behavior is that they gambled that the good times would continue indefinitely.

This type of response to failed decisions is not unique to the present housing crisis, but is part of a strong trend toward shifting responsibility to others. Women who sign a pre-nuptial agreement specifying the amount of their husband's pre-marital wealth that would be theirs in the event of divorce often try to have the agreements overthrown in divorce litigation. They claim that they did not understand what the agreements meant, or that their husbands took advantage of them in other ways to get them to sign the agreements. Usually they signed simply because that was the only way they could marry the men they very much wanted to marry, perhaps in part because the men were wealthy.

Many criminals who confess to or are convicted of serious crimes try to have the courts excuse or mitigate their behavior. They allege that they had uncaring or abusive parents, or that fathers, relatives, stepfathers, or other adults molested them as children. Abusive treatment is awful, but still the vast majority of children abused do become law-abiding and responsible adults. That is a major fact that courts should pay attention to.

Successful attempts to shift the responsibility for bad decisions toward others and to society more generally create a "moral hazard" in behavior. If individuals are not held accountable for decisions and actions that harm themselves or others, they have less incentive to act responsibly in the first place since they will escape some or all of the bad consequences of their actions.

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France to cut its nuclear detergent: "President Nicolas Sarkozy has said France will reduce its number of airborne nuclear weapons by one third. Mr Sarkozy said the reduction to fewer than 300 missiles would leave France with "half the maximum number of warheads we had during the Cold War". But he also insisted he was committed to France's nuclear deterrent, saying it was its "life-insurance policy". He made the comments in a major defence policy speech after inaugurating a new nuclear-armed submarine, the Terrible. France is believed to have 348 deployed nuclear weapons, including 288 submarine-launched ballistic missiles, 50 air-launched cruise missiles and 10 airborne bombs, according to the Federation of American Scientists."

More socialist "caring": Main British airport cuts corners on safety: "Passengers at Heathrow are being put at risk because air traffic controllers are having to cut corners, a whistleblower claimed last night. They come under such pressure to keep planes moving that aircraft are put on collision courses, he said. In one case a British Midland Airways jet landing at Heathrow allegedly came within 20 seconds of hitting one from Air France. The BMI service was due to land first but the Air France jet was given permission to turn into the runway instead. The whistleblower said the planes were only 100m apart when evasive action was taken. Heathrow handles 240,000 landings a year and 62 million passengers and is at 98 per cent capacity. The former controller, who retired through ill health in February, spent most of his 27 years' service there. One of his final duties was to compile a report into potential safety breaches last year. Last night he leaked the 33-page dossier, which detailed 12 incidents, to the BBC."

Murdoch on the prowl in NY: "News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch is poised to open his cheque book again to expand his media empire, with reports he has made a bid for Tribune Company's Long Island newspaper Newsday. The deal, estimated to be worth about $US400 million, would come just months after News Corp completed its $US5.6 billion takeover of Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal. News Corp also owns the New York Post tabloid. Newsday is the nation's tenth-biggest newspaper, with about 387,500 copies sold on weekdays. Buying the daily, which services New York City and the affluent commuter belt on Long Island, would give Mr Murdoch his third major paper in the Big Apple, and pitch him against rival mogul Mortimer Zuckerman, who owns the Post's fiercest competitor, The Daily News, and is also bidding.... Last year he joined a bid for Tribune to get his hands on the paper and combine its printing, distribution and ad sales with those of the unprofitable New York Post. The tie-up "would be a very, very powerful combination for advertisers", offering them the combined reach of both papers, Mr Murdoch said last year."

Democrats aiming for a depression: "House Democrats recently adopted a budget with massive tax hikes, many of which are directed at those Americans who can least afford them. By allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire in 2010, this budget will raise income taxes not only on those in the highest income brackets, but raises the lowest bracket from 10% to 15% as well. Estates would again be taxed at 55%. The child tax credit would drop from $1000 to $500. Senior citizens relying on investment income would be hurt by increases in dividend and capital gains taxes. It's not just that the Democrats want to raise taxes on the rich. They want to raise taxes on everybody. The problem is, policing the world is expensive, and if elected officials insist upon continuing to fund our current foreign policy, the money has to come from somewhere."

Clinton lie kills her cred on trade policy: "What is the proper word for the claim by Hillary Clinton and the more factually disinclined supporters of her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination -- made in speeches, briefings and interviews (including one by this reporter with the candidate) -- that she has always been a critic of the North American Free Trade Agreement? Now that we know from the 11,000 pages of Clinton White House documents released this week that former First Lady was an ardent advocate for NAFTA; now that we know she held at least five meetings to strategize about how to win congressional approval of the deal; now that we know she was in the thick of the maneuvering to block the efforts of labor, farm, environmental and human rights groups to get a better agreement. Now that we know all of this, how should we assess the claim that Hillary's heart has always beaten to a fair-trade rhythm?"

Rights for terrorists? "Israel's renowned airline security faced a legal challenge Wednesday from a civil rights group charging that its practice of ethnic profiling is racist because it singles out Arabs for tougher treatment. At a Supreme Court hearing, civil rights lawyers demanded an end to the policy, which they say violates Israeli law. Such profiling is illegal in the U.S., where passengers must be singled out for security checks on a random basis."

If anybody is interested in what became of my Good Friday church visit, the story is on my personal blog

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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"Change" a red herring: Unlimited government is the problem

Democrats in general, I would submit, confuse change with improvement. They fail to weigh the costs and benefits of change, to consider its unintended consequences, or to worry about what we need to conserve and how we might go about doing that faithfully. They ask Americans to embrace change for its own sake, in the faith that history is governed by a law of progress, which guarantees that change is almost always an improvement. The ability to bring about historical change, then, becomes the highest mark of the liberal leader. Thus Hillary Clinton quickly joined Obama on the change bandwagon. Her initial claim of "experience" sounded in retrospect a bit too boring-indeed, almost Republican in its plainness. So "Ready on Day One" signs morphed into "Ready for Change."

As for John McCain, he doesn't really have a slogan, unless we count "Mac is Back." McCain differentiated himself from Romney by saying that he is a leader rather than a manager. A leader, McCain argued, appeals to patriotism rather than self-interest. Certainly McCain's leading characteristic is his personal honor, which-unlike many republican men of honor-he talks about a lot and in public. He fits the traditional category of a war hero-turned-politician, but with one important difference. Usually war heroes are victorious generals, whereas McCain is famous as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, a war that ended in defeat. This fact helps to explain the somewhat prickly and self-referential quality to his sense of honor. He despises self-interest and likes to say so frequently in public, whether it's the self-interest involved in campaign contributions (which he wants to regulate), attitudes towards illegal immigration (he imputes to its critics the most selfish motives), or even something like waterboarding (a kind of selfish act, motivated by an urgent sense of national interest). McCain stands against all considerations of low self-interest-or maybe any self-interest-in favor of doing the honorable thing, which sometimes turns out to mean simply doing the thing that John McCain wants to do.

Utterly missing in this election season is a serious focus on limited or constitutional government. The Democrats, generally speaking, want more government, not less, so their neglect of the issue is to be expected. But the Republican dereliction is more troubling. It represents a falling away from the standards of Ronald Reagan's conservatism-a decline already reflected in the "compassionate conservatism" of George W. Bush. After 9/11, many prominent conservatives-e.g., George Will, David Brooks, Fred Barnes -pronounced that small government conservatism is dead. That awful reminder of the dangerous world we live in, and of the need to defend ourselves, somehow meant that big government conservatism, as they called it, was now the only game in town. Conservatives would need to make their peace with this idea, they argued, in order to win future elections....

From a certain point of view-let's call it, for shorthand purposes, the libertarian point of view, or the view associated this year with Ron Paul-every dollar that government spends comes at the cost of freedom. The premise of this view is that government and freedom are opposites-that all government is oppression. By this way of thinking, limited government is simply limited oppression, differing in magnitude but not in kind from tyranny. Interestingly, this notion does not come originally from any libertarian thinker or friend of freedom. It comes from Machiavelli, the great analyst of open and hidden power, of force and fraud. From Machiavelli's point of view, there's no difference between just and unjust government, which are the same phenomenon called by different names. All government, whether considered to be just or unjust, is oppression. Just government is the kind we happen to agree with and profit from, and unjust is the opposite kind.

Against this view stand the American Founders and the greatest statesmen, who have always sharply distinguished between just and unjust-or between free and tyrannical-forms of government. What is the Declaration of Independence but a great meditation on the difference between the absolute despotism contemplated by King George III and the freedom that the Americans hoped to enjoy under their own form of self-government? The Declaration does not proclaim that just government is merely less oppressive than unjust government-as if the American republic and, say, Nazi Germany were separated only by degrees of tyranny. Our ancestors thought that republican governments like ours were good because, grounded in human nature and operating by law and consent, they affirmed human liberty.

Much more here

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Four Times as Many Journalists Self-Define as Liberal than Conservative: "A recent study by the Pew Research Center has revealed that journalists are far more likely to define themselves as liberal than the general population, and far less likely to define themselves as conservative. The massive study was conducted late last year, and surveyed the views of over 500 journalists. "As was the case in 2004," reads the commentary on the study by the Pew Research Center, "majorities of the national and local journalists surveyed describe themselves as political moderates; 53% of national journalists and 58% of local journalists say they are moderates. About a third of national journalists (32%), and 23% of local journalists, describe themselves as liberals. Relatively small minorities of national and local journalists call themselves conservatives (8% national, 14% local)." Commentary by the popular Newsbusters website suggested that the statistics do not even fully describe the imbalance in the media, pointing out, "It's not much of a leap to presume many of the 53 percent who describe themselves as 'moderate' are really quite liberal."

Another crooked lawyer caught: "The prominent lawyer Melvyn I. Weiss of the Milberg Weiss law firm, a prolific filer of lawsuits against publicly held corporations, has reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors in Los Angeles, according to his defense lawyer. According to a statement released Thursday by the defense lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, Mr. Weiss will plead guilty to participating in a criminal conspiracy to pay a share of legal fees to plaintiffs in shareholder suits brought by Milberg Weiss. Such kickbacks are improper because they give plaintiffs representing a class of all shareholders an incentive to accept a deal that might not be best for the class. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Mr. Weiss faces a sentence of up to 33 months in prison. Mr. Weiss has also agreed to pay a total of $10 million in fines and penalties, according to the statement."

Do these dummies still get their 70 virgins? "Palestinian militants accidentally set off a large blast at a Hamas training base in the central Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing two members of the violent Islamic group and wounding another, a Palestinian medical official said. Hamas initially blamed Israel for the blast, but later acknowledged that it was caused by a mishandling of explosives, saying its men died while performing a "holy mission." The Israeli military denied involvement."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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GOOD FRIDAY

I am posting this very early in the morning of good Friday (Australian time). My old church (Ann St Presbyterian) is having its morning service from 8am this year -- which is a bit early for me. So I think I will attend our local Lutheran church later on. They have a 9am service and the music is sure to be good. We should get some Bach, I hope. I still like to go to church 2 or 3 times a year to refresh my contact with one of the great influences on our civilization. I feel at home in a Protestant church and I love singing the old hymns.

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Anti war activism causing casualties in Iraq

Researchers at Harvard say that public debates about the rights and wrongs of the U.S. occupation of Iraq have a measurable "emboldenment effect" on insurgents there, and periods when there is a lot of media coverage about the issue are followed by small rises in the number of attacks.

The researchers, a political scientist and a health economist, studied data about insurgent attacks and U.S. media coverage up to November 2007, tracking what they called "anti-resolve statements," either by U.S. politicians or in the form of reports about American public opinion on the issue.

The study, published this month by the National Bureau of Economic Research, uses quantitative analysis, a statistical tool employed by economists, to empirically test for the first time the widely held nostrum that public criticism of U.S. policy in Iraq encourages insurgents there.

"We find that in periods immediately after a spike in anti-resolve statements, the level of insurgent attacks increases," the study says. In Iraqi provinces that were broadly comparable in social and economic terms, attacks increased between 7 percent and 10 percent.

The study also found that attacks increased more in parts of Iraq where there is greater access to international news media, which its authors say increases the credibility of their findings.

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The ineffable (and incredible) Andrew Sullivan tells us that if you were not persuaded by Obama's speech, it was because of "racism". So now you know! Ace says that it is Sullivan who is the racist.

McCain ahead: "Barack Obama's big national lead over Hillary Clinton has all but disappeared in the US presidential race, and both Democrats trail Republican John McCain, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released today. The poll showed Senator Obama had only a statistically insignificant lead of 47 per cent to 44 per cent over Senator Clinton, down sharply from a 14-point edge he held over her in February when he was riding the tide of 10 straight victories. Illinois Senator Obama, who would be America's first black president, has been buffeted by attacks in recent weeks from New York Senator Clinton over his fitness to serve as commander-in-chief and by a tempest over racially charged sermons given by his Chicago preacher. The poll showed Arizona Senator McCain, who has clinched the Republican presidential nomination, is benefiting from the lengthy campaign battle between Senator Obama and Senator Clinton, who are now battling to win Pennsylvania on April 22. Senator McCain leads 46 per cent to 40 per cent in a hypothetical match-up against Senator Obama in the November presidential election, according to the poll. That is a sharp turnaround from the Reuters/Zogby poll from last month, which showed in a head-to-head match-up that Senator Obama would beat Senator McCain 47 per cent to 40 per cent."

Hillary dithering: "Having accused Senator Obama of giving mixed messages on Iraq, Senator Clinton's national security director Lee Feinstein said that unspecified "contingencies" would dictate the course of her own plan. Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson was later pressed on whether she would proceed with troop withdrawals within 60 days of taking office, regardless of any upsurge in violence or countervailing advice from US commanders. "The answer is yes," he said. Senator Obama's chief foreign policy advisor Susan Rice said it was "imperative that Senator Clinton clarify" whether she agreed with Mr Feinstein or Mr Wolfson, "and how she intends to square the circle".



Hillary endorses bitchy British gold-digger: "If like me you share the twin obsessions of the Beatles and American politics, you might enjoy this example where the two "Come Together". It seems that the woman whose evidence was branded "inaccurate but also less than candid" in places "wholly exaggerated" or "make-belief", who may have attempted to defraud her husband over the mortgage on a property and has "an explosive and volatile character" and who could provide no evidence of her claim of giving 80-90% of her income to charity does have a couple of things going for her. Heather Mills has two celebrity video character witnesses proudly displayed on her website, Richard Branson and Hillary Clinton. It's been said of Senator Clinton that she reminds too many men of their first wife. Being on the side of Heather Mills won't help dispel that impression."

McCain Was Right, Iran Works With Al Qaeda: "Some bloggers are jumping all over Senator John McCain for his supposed "gaffe" today. According to The Trail, a blog over at the Washington Post, McCain said that Iranian operatives were "taking al-Qaeda into Iran, training them and sending them back." He elaborated by saying it was "common knowledge and has been reported in the media that al-Qaeda is going back into Iran and receiving training and are coming back into Iraq from Iran, that's well known. And it's unfortunate." Senator John Lieberman apparently then whispered something in McCain’s ear, prompting McCain to take it back: "I'm sorry, the Iranians are training extremists, not al-Qaeda." But McCain was right the first time. He shouldn’t have taken his statement back. And it’s the bloggers who are ignorant--not John McCain. The 9-11 Commission found extensive evidence of collaboration between Iran and al Qaeda. For example, the Commission concluded (p. 61): "The relationship between al Qaeda and Iran demonstrated that Sunni-Shia divisions did not necessarily pose an insurmountable barrier to cooperation in terrorist operations."

Should the taxpayer bail out Bear Stearns?: "The extraordinary intrusion into the free market over the past several days by the Federal Reserve Board under Chairman Ben Bernanke should send shudders down the spines of conservatives everywhere. While some so-called free marketers were lauding the Fed's bailout of Bear Stearns as a necessary rescue of a banking institution that was too connected with the rest of the financial system to be allowed to fail, government should not protect Wall Street firms from the inherent risks of investing. As a result of the deal, American taxpayers could be on the hook for billions of dollars in troubled mortgage assets so that Bear Stearns can avert bankruptcy"

The British Labour party begins to get it: "Labour needs to start urgently winning back the middle-class vote by highlighting issues such as crime and immigration if it is to win the next general election, Hazel Blears said last night. In an unashamedly Blairite new Labour speech, the Communities Secretary said it was vital that the party pitched itself as the "party of the affluent" as well as the poorest families. During a debate held by Progress, a group of modernisers, the Blairite minister Ms Blears argued that the New Labour approach had delivered three election victories by appealing to those across the social spectrum. "If we retreat into our comfort zone, and duck the tough issues such as crime and immigration our coalition will fracture." Her speech follows John Hutton's remarks earlier this month that he wanted to see "more millionaires". Mr Hutton, the Business Secretary who is also a prominent Blairite, sparked a row by urging the party not to attack huge salaries and bonuses in the City."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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The Union of Soviet Socialist Europe

Democracy, No!

Poland may soon join Ireland as the only EU members to hold referendums on the new Lisbon Treaty, the latest attempt to ram through a European "Constitution." If it does, euroskeptics will cheer and europhiles howl.

Plebiscites are rarely justified or necessary. Governments routinely sign treaties and make other decisions on behalf of citizens. Yet the Lisbon Treaty is a case apart because of the way it has been presented. Born as the EU's Constitution, the original document was put up for a vote in various EU countries, where it was roundly rejected by the French and the Dutch.

Anywhere else, that would be the end of the story. Not in Europe, which decided it would be stuck in "crisis" without the document's key provisions. So a new "reform treaty" was drawn up and signed last year in Lisbon. Though the failed Constitution's most overtly state-like elements such as an EU anthem were dropped, it remains a transformative treaty. It establishes the EU as a legal personality for the first time, creates new or enhanced offices to represent the bloc globally and significantly changes the ways decisions are made.

Only this time around, the voters are to be shut out. Britain promised and then withheld a referendum. The French and the Dutch won't get a second chance to vote "no," as they did in 2005, or yes. Only the Irish are being given a chance to express their views at the ballot box.

And now, possibly, the Poles. A referendum in Poland, however, would have far more to do with domestic political gamesmanship than with the EU. The opposition Law and Justice Party led by former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski is threatening to block approval in Parliament -- likely leading to a popular vote on the treaty -- if certain conditions are not met regarding Poland's sovereignty. A parliamentary vote is expected within the next week....

With all the effort put into avoiding referendums, it's hard to escape the conclusion that EU politicians are trying to pull a fast one on their voters. On the one hand, they're selling Lisbon as a grand reform treaty that propels Europe out of the malaise that followed the French and Dutch no votes. On the other, they say the treaty is a small tightening-up exercise that doesn't require a return to the ballot box. Which is it?... Should Lisbon be rejected in Ireland or Poland, EU leaders and Brussels insiders will proclaim yet another crisis for Europe. It couldn't happen to a more deserving bunch.

More here

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Brookes News Update

A monetary storm hits US economy: America is experiencing a monetary crisis that the Fed's loose monetary policy generated. Unfortunately this simple fact has yet to be recognized. The result is that the symptoms of monetary disorder are being mistaken for the cause. One can only hope that Bismarck got it right when he said: 'God looks after fools, drunkards and the United States of America'
Is monetary policy destroying the country's manufacturing base?: The Institute of Public Affairs sponsored a paper that argued - with providing any proof - that there is nothing wrong with the current ratio of manufacturing to GDP and that the market working. We argue that there exists the possibility that monetary policy has artificially reduced our manufacturing base and created severe economic imbalances
Only savings can create wealth: Mainstream economists who advocate monetary pumping and the artificial lowering of interest rates in order to counter recessions, totally misconceive that the interest rate is just an indicator. It is just a manifestation of the demand versus the supply of savings. Manipulating it distorts the production structure
Economic growth is the only way to raise living standards and conserve resources: Regardless of what the greens say economic growth is a self-sustaining process that raises living standards. The world's present population owes its existence to economic growth. Stopping growth would literally be a sentence of death for several billion people. But as Dr Van den Bosch, another greenie, said they're only 'little brown people in poor countries'
Global warming is big business: Looks like big business is jumping into bed with the global warming fanatics with the excuse that electricity costs will be lowered. But how can costs be lowered if a new expense is added to the cost of producing electricity which is then passed onto the customer? That's a damned good question
General Confusion About Obama: Why would 10 retired generals and admirals endorse Obama after he accused US troops of being war criminals? Why would they support a Party that publicly slandered the troops as Nazis and slimed General Petraus as a liar. And why do the names Marshall Petain and Benedict Arnold spring to mind. Whatever happened to 'Duty, Honor, Country'?
Obama's supporters say: "Viva Che!": Obama election volunteers decorate their offices with the picture of an America-hating sadistic killer and all he can say is that it was 'inappropriate'. Yet shortly afterwards he accused US troops of committing war crimes. This is the same guy who gives every US-hating dictator the benefit of the doubt while slandering US troops. No wonder the media love him
Obama's mentor's mentor: That Obama's 'spiritual' advisors of 20 years standing are white-hating racists who despise America is bad enough. Obama's refusal to denounce their bigotry and distance himself from their hate-mongering is even worse. But what can we expect when Obama's wife made her hatred of America a public issue that the media are trying to overlook, just as they overlook Obama's racist link

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More Muslim garbage: "An Arab billionaire's son listed as a Facebook friend of a murdered socialite has been named by police as a prime suspect in the blonde's death. Yemen born Farooq Abdulhak, 26, was allegedly the last person to see Martine Vik Magnussen alive after leaving the exclusive Maddox Club with her early Friday morning. The Norwegian socialite's body was found two days later, partially buried under a pile of rubble in the basement of an exclusive London apartment building where Mr Abdulhak was reportedly living. The Daily Mail reported that Magnussen was believed to have been strangled, although investigators told the newspaper that further scientific analysis was being carried out on her body. Mr Abdulhak and the 23-year-old blonde studied business together at the prestigious Regent's College in London. They were listed as friends on Magnussen's Facebook page, but Mr Abdulhak has since deleted his online profile. Associates of Mr Abdulhak tried to contact him over the weekend but he did not reply to calls or texts. Mr Abdulhak's father Shaher, a Yemeni billionaire, is a major hotelier and Pepsi-Cola executive. Farooq was born in Yemen, but has lived in London since he was a child. The Sun reported that flight records show Farooq left Britain "shortly after the time of Martine's death". Police now believe the billionaire's son has fled to Yemen - which has no extradition treaty with Britain".

The absurd Andrew Sullivan takes sycophancy to a new low in discussing Obama's speech: "Alas, I cannot give a more considered response right now as I have to get on the road. But I do want to say that this searing, nuanced, gut-wrenching, loyal, and deeply, deeply Christian speech is the most honest speech on race in America in my adult lifetime. It is a speech we have all been waiting for for a generation. Its ability to embrace both the legitimate fears and resentments of whites and the understandable anger and dashed hopes of many blacks was, in my view, unique in recent American history. And it was a reflection of faith - deep, hopeful, transcending faith in the promises of the Gospels."

China Hand has just blogged on the disturbances in Tibet. He sees little hope for the Tibetans. Mirror site here for any readers in China.

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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For an extensive coverage of "Pastorgate" -- the story that the media are desperate to downplay -- see my OBAMA WATCH blog

Democrats misrepresenting the financial disturbances

President Bush on Monday welcomed the Federal Reserve's sweeping intervention in the nation's financial markets as his administration faced accusations that it had supported the bailout of a prestigious investment bank while doing little to address the hardships of Americans facing foreclosures on their homes...

Senator Barack Obama of Illinois declared the economy "in shambles," but he and his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, trod carefully, expressing concern about the broader market and, in Mrs. Clinton's case, for the employees of Bear Stearns, based in her home state, New York.

"There is no doubt that we are teetering on a potential crisis on Wall Street that could have ramifications all across the country," Mr. Obama said at a news conference after meeting with voters during a campaign stop in Monaca, Pa., a town near the Ohio border. "We have a credit market that is locked up."

Mrs. Clinton said that Main Street was as important as Wall Street, but like many Democrats, she did not directly criticize the government's intervention in the sale of Bear Stearns. In a statement, she noted that she had spoken with Mr. Paulson and the president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, Timothy F. Geithner. She urged that the administration do more. "We have blown it," she said at a news conference in Washington in which she linked the economic turmoil in part to Iraq. "And one of the reasons why we must end the war in Iraq is we cannot afford it. We have got to get control of our economic destiny. There are so many danger signs on the horizon." .....

Both Clinton and Obama are talking through their hats. Many of the employees of Bear Sterns have had their fortunes disappear with this "bailout." Those who invested in the compan's stock have losses similar to the employees of Enron, yet the Democrats are treating them like fat cats who got saved from a huge loss. In fact their losses were probably significantly greater than those who have walked away from upside down mortgages because they have little to lose. It was those who were walking away from houses because of a declining market who caused the huge losses that Bear Stearns incurred, yet Democrats act like the defaulters are the victims.

Harry Reid is as bad as Clinton and Obama. Wall Street has taken the big hit from peoples failure to live up to their obligations and Democrats have mischaracterized these firms as "predatory lenders." What a bunch of worthless demagogues. Meanwhile Obama and Clinton's prescription is Smoot-Hauley light by reneging on NAFTA and on top of that raising taxes in a down economy which is just the sort of prescrpition that led to the great depression.

Democrats should be working to try to resolve this situation rather than trying to take advantage of it, but that maybe asking too much.

Source

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Sweden shows the corrupting influence of welfare

In the Western world, Sweden is often considered a Social Democratic paradise, the irrefutable proof that the welfare state can transform society for the better. But outsiders, and still too many Swedes, tend to overestimate the gains and underestimate the costs of social engineering.

To start with, homogenous Sweden was already an egalitarian society with few social problems before the expansion of the welfare state. It is often forgotten that in 1950 Sweden had lower taxes, fewer trade restrictions and more hours worked per working-age person than contemporary U.S. -- and yet was already blessed with essentially the same flat income and wealth distribution it has today, half a century after the expansion of the welfare state.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the integration of migrants worked quite well. The foreign-born had a 20% higher employment rate than native Swedes in 1950. Half a century later, in the mature welfare state, the picture has dramatically changed. According to the latest figures, only 48% of non-Western immigrants are gainfully employed, which is 30 percentage points below the average. For this group, originating from places such as Turkey, Chile, the former Yugoslavia, the Middle East and North Africa, welfare dependency is nine times higher than for native Swedes.

No doubt, a generous welfare system initially helps many immigrant families, cushioning the transition to a new country. However, the combination of high taxes, a regulated labor market, the world's highest union-imposed minimum wages and the lavish transfer programs effectively keeps out immigrants from the labor market.

Last year, the OECD advised Sweden to pursue labor-market and welfare reforms to tackle immigrant unemployment. The OECD recommended policies such as "substantial easing of job security rules, more individual wage flexibility and considerable reductions in benefit levels."

Sweden's powerful unions and the left-leaning intellectual elites work against such reforms. Swedish voters, though, are beginning to have mixed feelings. In 2006, they ousted the Social-Democratic government and elected a center-right coalition that promised to cut taxes and benefits. Labor-market reforms, though, were missing from their election campaign.

High unemployment among immigrants is of course not confined to just Sweden or Scandinavia. Throughout Europe, governments have found that well-intentioned social insurance policies can lead to lasting welfare dependence, especially among immigrants. Belgium is the European country with the highest difference in employment rates between the foreign-born and natives. The images of burning cars in the suburbs of Paris that were broadcast around the world illustrate the kind of social and economic problems France is facing with its restive immigrant population.

Given the high barriers to entry, many immigrants in Europe no longer start accumulating essential language and labor market skills. This is in stark contrast with the situation across the Atlantic. For example, in 2000, Iranians in the U.S. had a family income that was 42% above the U.S. average. The income of Iranian immigrants in Sweden, however, was 39% below the country's average...

More here

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Iraq polls: On the day that Sen. Clinton promises a precipitous withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, Real Clear Politics highlights a new poll showing significant increases in the number of Iraqis who say that life for them is better and security is improving. Meanwhile, Jim Geraghty of National Review Online highlights a new poll that shows most Americans want Sen. McCain on the other end of the phone when it rings at 3:00 AM.

The "experts" get it wrong again: "Bear Stearns Cos.'s shell-shocked investors may want to scuttle the investment bank's sale to J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. for $2 a share, but in the absence of another viable bidder they may have only one real option -- to grin and bear it. Bear Stearns shares fell 84% yesterday but still closed at $4.81, well above the offer price. Speculators flooded into the stock betting J.P. Morgan would ultimately raise its offer to keep the deal from falling apart..... Still, with government regulators prodding the investment bank into J.P. Morgan's arms and in the absence of another bidder with a strong balance sheet, a better deal is unlikely, analysts say. Big Bear holders recently included the $45 billion Vanguard Windsor II Fund that is subadvised by well-known managers including Jim Barrow, the $13.3 billion Legg Mason Value Trust run by Bill Miller and funds from Fidelity Investments, MFS Investment Management and Putnam Investments. The funds declined to comment on their positions. One of the most surprising and well-known fund managers getting burned is Mr. Barrow. Seeing Bear's stock trading below the firm's book value, or its assets minus liabilities, and thinking "it would emerge from the crisis," Mr. Barrow added to his position in a big way for Vanguard last year" [I never touch merchant banks, managed funds and the like]

Death coming to Jews in America too: "A fire bomb attack on the home of Jewish Agency emissary Yossi Knafo in Providence, R.I., was likely a spontaneous attack, Israeli security officials say. While Israeli officials are viewing the incident as a spontaneous act by a single group, they are concerned the attack marked an unprecedented assault on U.S. soil, The Jerusalem Post said Sunday. "This is unprecedented," Jewish Agency executive member Amos Hermon said. "A Jewish Agency emissary hasn't been attacked in America for decades, and we've never known a Molotov cocktail attack that came from anti-Israel or anti-Semitic groups."

There is a new lot of postings by Chris Brand just up -- on his usual vastly "incorrect" themes of race and IQ.

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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National PROGRESSIVE Radio

Imagine you're a typical NPR listener, tuning in as you sip your Starbucks Cafe Latte - made with skim milk and a shot of cinnamon - work the New York Times crossword puzzle, and think about how great it is that you don't have to stop for gas on your way to work this morning because you drive a Prius. Suddenly, you're jolted out of your comfortable morning routine by the unimaginable: a segment entitled "Conversations with Conservatives."

Choking on your latte and misspelling "pestiferous" on your crossword, your head begins to spin as Rev. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, discusses the status of evangelical voters. But surely it's just an anomaly. An early April Fool's Day joke. Yeah, that must be it! And fortunately, it was only seven minutes.

But the next day, you hear Grover Norquist, founder of Americans for Tax Reform, talking about which fiscal policies appeal to Republican voters. And the day after that, radio talk show host and CNN personality Glenn Beck discusses core conservative values. And on the last day of February, you are treated to David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union, blathering on about the challenges that Sen. John McCain faces when it comes to proving himself to the conservative base.

If there's a reason to abolish Leap Year and February 29, then having David Keene spoil your Starbucks experience surely must be it. Who can you call? There has to be someone. The Washington Times reports that for daring to air the views of conservatives on its morning drive show during the final four days of February, NPR fielded "more than 60 angry e-mails and phone calls.... calling the programming `shameful' and a `lovefest with radical, right-wing nuts.' There were only a few . that praised the series as `refreshing' and `articulate,' among other things."

National Public Radio is funded in part by federal tax dollars. The last time I checked, both liberals AND conservatives are required to pay federal taxes. So what's wrong with having four seven-minute segments out of the year where conservative ideas are brought forth? You know, throw them a Milk Bone once in a while to pretend you care about them while you spend their money on things like Garrison Keillor's "Prairie Home Companion."

The problem with many liberals is that while they say they espouse tolerance, love for your fellow man, and discussing problems instead of resorting to fisticuffs, when they're actually expected to "walk the walk," things get ugly. To them, just listening to conservative ideas is akin to Dracula finding out about a nationwide tainted blood supply. It's painful when liberals realize that not everyone thinks the way that they do: that there are unenlightened souls out there who don't recycle, who go to church once in a while, who respect our military, and who don't think that the sun shines out of Barack Obama's nether regions.

So, being the enlightened, progressive types that they are, instead of listening respectfully to what the other side has to say - and possibly learning something new - they stick their fingers in their ears, chant "I can't hear you," and complain to the person in charge about how awful the experience was. It's sort of like the people who believe that vandalizing and bombing military recruiting stations is a great way to get their message of peace out to the masses.

More here

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In a recent post about the "steamroller", I reproduced a picture of Silda Spitzer which was not very flattering. A reader has suggested that the picture below is a better representation of her. That's probably true. She looks like a nice lady. Maybe she would need to be nice to be married to the "steamroller". Even in the picture below, however, one sees that the hooker would have had a considerable advantage in the bosom department.



Britain: An example of inherited politics: "He was given up for adoption at birth. He never knew his biological parents. And for 36 years he knew nothing of his personal and political roots, or what drove him from youth to pursue the Liberal tradition. Now Matthew Taylor, the Liberal Democrat MP, has revealed the extraordinary story of how he discovered his real mother - and that he is descended from a prominent Liberal who served in the House of Commons for almost 30 years. Finding his mother was shock enough; discovering that politics really is in his blood was almost more overwhelming. "The odds on my having followed in my great-grandfather's footsteps as a Liberal MP were minuscule," he said. "In that moment I felt everything I thought I knew about why I am who I am was turned upside-down. In the battle between nature and nurture, nature seemed to be having a laugh."

The parasites' Party: "The Democratic Party has become the Lawyers' Party. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are lawyers. Bill Clinton and Michelle Obama are lawyers. John Edwards, the other former Democrat candidate for president, is a lawyer and so is his wife Elizabeth. Every Democrat nominee since 1984 went to law school (although Gore did not graduate.) Every Democrat vice presidential nominee since 1976, except for Lloyd Benson, went to law school. Look at the Democrat Party in Congress: the Majority Leader in each house is a lawyer. The Republican Party is different. President Bush and Vice President Cheney were not lawyers, but businessmen. The leaders of the Republican Revolution were not lawyers. Newt Gingrich was a history professor; Tom Delay was an exterminator; and Dick Armey was an economist. House Minority Leader Boehner was a plastic manufacturer, not a lawyer. The former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is a heart surgeon."

Hillary's imaginary achievements: "I suppose I am in a position to comment on Hillary Clinton's claims that she played a significant role in what is called the Northern Ireland "peace process" since I was one of many others involved at that time. In my case I was trying to oppose the appeasement of terrorism that was being planned. Let me assure you that she is lying through her teeth when she alleges she contributed anything of substance. It was husband Bill - that dear friend of terrorist scum like Arafat - who worked alongside Irish PM Ahern and UK PM Blair - and this unholy trinity then did their bit to twist the arms and in other ways cajole democrats to enter a political arrangement with murdering IRA terrorists. Hillary made the tea and talked to pointless left-wing womens groups."

Petraeus makes a point diplomatically: "David Petraeus was diplomatic in his language and careful to honor the primacy of civilian authority over the military. But the commanding general of multi-lateral forces in Iraq has left little doubt that if a new president wanted to withdraw from Iraq faster than would reflect Petraeus's considered military opinion, his family would be happy to have him home."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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McCain and pastor Hagee

Post below excerpted from Warner Todd. See the original for links

As you should know by now, Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama has a Wright problem. That would be a Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. problem. It turns out that Barack Obama's "spiritual mentor" has a long, long history of hatred against whites and the history of the U.S.A. But, late last week, news began to surface that one of John McCain's religious supporters, John Hagee, has made many harsh anti-Catholic statements in the past. As reports of Wright's disgusting, hate filled garbage has made the news earlier last week, many on the extreme left have pointed to the low profile that the McCain story has had as proof that the media is unfair, intimating that the media might even be on McCain's side.

It is true that John Hagee has made bigoted statements against the Catholic Church. It is also utterly true that Jeremiah Wright has made racist, hateful statements against all whites and the history of this country. But, for the left to imagine that the situations in which McCain and Obama find themselves are exactly the same shows that leftists who think this are either uninformed or disingenuous. The situations are not in any way comparable.

Before you even attempt to dismiss this as just another fawning excusing of the GOP candidate by a Republican apologist, I will inform you that I will not vote for John McCain under any circumstances. So, you cannot chalk this up to mere electoral partisanship. So, that said, there are major differences between McCain's endorsement by Hagee and Obama's endorsement by and 20 year long relationship Rev. Wright. The following points mark a stark difference between McCain/Hagee and Obama/Wright:

* In his book the Audacity of Hope, Barack Obama called Rev. Wright his "spiritual mentor." McCain has not made any such statement of Hagee.
* Obama had his children baptized by Rev. Wright. McCain's kids never knew Hagee when they were small.
* Rev. Wright performed Obama's marriage ceremony. McCain had never even met Hagee until he became the frontrunner for the GOP nomination.
* Obama chose Rev. Wright's church and attended it for 20 years. McCain has never attended Hagee's church.

These points are extremely important and mark a completely different relationship between the hatemonger Wright and Barack Obama and McCain and Hagee. It shows that Obama had many decades of intimacy with Rev. Wright proving that Wright's hate speech could not possibly have bothered Barack very much at all, much less have come as any surprise. While John McCain had only just met John Hagee proving that his history of anti-Catholic statements is not something that McCain could have had long and intimate contact with.

Of course, both candidates have disavowed their religious supporter's statements. Obama made his statement via the Huffington Post and McCain via the media with a statement to the Associated Press.

But there is absolutely no way to equate McCain's acceptance of the anti-Catholic Hagee's support with that of Obama's acceptance of the racist Wright's. Obama has no excuse to have only suddenly distanced himself form this hate filled, ranter whom he has called his "spiritual mentor." For decades Obama has known of, and sat in a congregation listening to, the wild-eyed rants by this man. Barack has accepted him as part of his family closely associated with his wife and children. Barack Hussein Obama has been very close with Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. for 20 some years. On the other hand, John McCain has only just met John Hagee. You just cannot equate the two.

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Amusing Zogby poll news: "Independent candidate Ralph Nader wins 5%, taking more support from Democrats"



Sex scandal, possible perjury not stopping black Detroit mayor: "Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick continues meeting with Detroit business leaders about his plans to move the city forward despite a text-messaging sex scandal and possible perjury charges that could remove him from office. A day after meeting with three of the city's most prominent businessmen, Kilpatrick spoke Thursday morning to others at the Detroit Athletic Club. The 15-minute speech reiterated portions of Tuesday's State of the City address in which Kilpatrick outlined his vision for improving Detroit neighborhoods, police protection, job training and finding employment for residents, mayoral spokeswoman Denise Tolliver said. But a prosecutor's investigation into whether Kilpatrick will be charged with perjury for testimony during a whistle-blowers' trial and the furor over an agreement settling that lawsuit for $8.4 million has dogged his administration for nearly two months." [Did someone say that there are different rules for blacks?]

Taxachusetts again: "Year after year, Massachusetts government has let out its budget belt, while we workers and taxpayers tightened our belts. Massachusetts state government taxing and spending has more than doubled in the last 17 years -- while the population increased only 8.3%. City and town government taxing and spending in Massachusetts has also more than doubled. Is our government giving us double the results? Are streets twice as well paved and maintained? Are crime rates half of what they were? Are public school children getting twice the education they were?"

Price control stupidity in Maryland: "The road to hell is paved with good intentions, says the old saw. It may soon be lined with higher-priced gas stations, too, thanks to Maryland's General Assembly. State lawmakers are considering legislation to ban motor fuel 'zone pricing,' under which fuel wholesalers charge higher prices to some retail gas stations than to others. Understandably, retailers oppose the practice, and legislators worry that it's unfair. But if lawmakers vote to prohibit zone pricing, consumers will end up paying higher gas prices, because low-price stations will end up charging more."

Price control stupidity in South America: "Few things better illustrate the tragedy of Latin American populist and nationalist politics than the crisis related to natural gas in South America. A region endowed with vast reserves and governments that describe themselves as close partners is mired in crippling power shortages and cross-border disputes over cutbacks in the supply of natural gas. People cannot count on consistent service. The problem began in 2002 when Argentine politicians decided to control the price of natural gas, large amounts of which had been discovered in the country during the previous two decades."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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The never-ending farm insanity

When it comes to picking taxpayer pockets, no one -- not the trial lawyers or even AARP -- has it over the farm lobby. How's this for clout? Though last year was one of the best ever for farm incomes -- up 44% to $87.5 billion -- farmers are about to score the most lavish subsidies in American history.

The House and Senate are now ironing out differences between their bills, and it's all but certain that farmers will get about $26 billion over the next five years in subsidies. Soybean and wheat farmers are slated to receive higher price supports, though bean prices hit a 34-year high last year and wheat prices have soared to a new record.

Corn producers will get subsidies of $10.5 billion over five years, which is on top of the deal of a lifetime these farmers were handed when Congress expanded ethanol subsidies. The handouts make growing corn so profitable that last year some 15.3 million acres were converted to new corn production, according to the USDA. That has a cascading effect on other prices, as farmers convert bean acreage to more lucrative corn fields and feed prices for meat producers climb....

Congress has also spurned the Bush Administration's sensible proposal to establish a $200,000 income ceiling in order to receive subsidies. Instead, full-time farmers will be able to earn up to $1 million per farm ($2 million for a married couple) and still be eligible for a USDA handout. That means you can be in the top 0.2% in income in the U.S. and still get a subsidy check from Uncle Sam. Yet Robert Goodlatte of Virginia, the Republican who helped craft the House bill, says with a straight face that the bill is "real reform and a real safety net for the farmer." Yes, thank heavens for that millionaire safety net.

The only good news is that President Bush is threatening to veto this budget buster over its taxes, trade distortions and subsidies for the rich. The veto threat is at least causing the Members to think twice, and may actually improve the bill. But the best outcome would be if this monster died of its own, greedy weight.

Source

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ELSEWHERE

With friends like these.... I quote the ineffable Andrew Sullivan on Obama: "What does he offer? First and foremost: his face". Courage? Integrity? Wisdom? Intelligence? No. A face.

The Leftist group identity obsession has never faded: ""The pillars of American liberalism -- the Democratic Party, the universities and the mass media -- are obsessed with biological markers, most particularly race and gender. They have insisted, moreover, that pedagogy and culture and politics be just as seized with the primacy of these distinctions and with the resulting 'privileging' that allegedly haunts every aspect of our social relations. They have gotten their wish. This primary campaign represents the full flowering of identity politics. It's not a pretty picture. Geraldine Ferraro says Obama is only where he is because he's black. Professor Orlando Patterson says the 3 a.m. phone call ad is not about a foreign policy crisis but a subliminal Klan-like appeal to the fear of 'black men lurking in the bushes around white society.' Good grief."

Lone Star tax lesson: "When budgets begin to tighten, many state politicians start to talk tax hikes. So credit Texas Governor Rick Perry for cutting taxes this week as a way to keep his state as a national leader in job creation. Mr. Perry suspended the state unemployment insurance "replenishment" tax for the rest of the year on grounds that government doesn't need the money but employers do. By law, Texas must keep at least 1% of all taxable wages in the state in its unemployment trust fund, or some $920 million today. The trust fund now stands at $1.6 billion, is growing by the day and isn't in any immediate danger of being drained. Texas has a near record low unemployment rate of 4.3%, enjoys a job creation rate that is twice the national average, and in January added 28,000 net new jobs -- more than any state in the union".

Sometimes the EU gets it right: "Airlines will be forced to compensate many more passengers for delays and cancellations under a move by the European Commission to close loopholes in the law governing the industry. Passengers should find it much easier to claim up to 460 pounds for a cancelled flight and to obtain free meals, phone calls and hotel rooms during long delays. In an interview with The Times, Jacques Barrot, the European Transport Commissioner, said that many airlines were exploiting loopholes and leaving thousands of passengers stranded. Mr Barrot said he would issue new guidelines to clarify the rules. He would also prosecute national aviation regulators, such as the Civil Aviation Authority in Britain, that fail to enforce the rules. Airlines will no longer be able to dismiss claims by arguing that staff shortages or maintenance errors had prevented them from operating the flight."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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The Inequality Myth

Class warfare is once again a campaign theme. The Democratic candidates are railing against the "tax cuts for the rich," lamenting the stagnation of middle-class incomes, and decrying the deepening woes of the poor. In her January response to President Bush's State of the Union address, Hillary Clinton cited "seven years of stagnant wages, declining incomes and increasing inequality." Barack Obama echoes this theme by referring repeatedly to the "middle-class squeeze."

First, we can easily dismiss the notion that the poor are getting poorer. All the Census Bureau tells us is that the share of the pie consumed by the poor has been shrinking (to 3.4% in 2006 from 4.1% in 1970). But the "pie" has grown enormously. This year's real GDP of $14 trillion is three times that of 1970. So the absolute size of the slice received by the bottom 20% has increased to $476 billion from $181 billion. Allowing for population growth shows that the average income of people at the bottom of the income distribution has risen 36%. They're not rich, but they're certainly not poorer. In reality, economic growth has raised incomes across the board.

Since 1970 there has been a dramatic rise in divorced, never-married and single-person households. Back in 1970, the married Ozzie and Harriet family was the norm: 71% of all U.S. households were two-parent families. Now the ratio is only 51%. In the process of this social revolution, the average household size has shrunk to 2.57 persons from 3.14 -- a drop of 18%. The meaning? Even a "stagnant" average household income implies a higher standard of living for the average household member. Last year, the Census Bureau published a new set of income statistics that adjusted for changing household size and composition. In a single year (2006), this "equivalence-adjusted" computation increased the income share of the poor by 8% and reduced the standard measure of inequality (Gini coefficient) by 4%. Such "equivalency" adjustments would mute unadjusted inequality trends even more.

The supposed decline of the poor and middle class is exaggerated even more by the dynamics of population growth. When people look at the "poor" in any two years, they think they're looking at the same people. That's rarely true, especially over longer periods of time. Since 1998, the U.S. population has increased by over 20 million. Nearly half of that growth has come from immigration, legal and illegal. Overwhelmingly, these immigrants enter at the lowest rungs on the income ladder. Statistically, this immigrant surge not only reduces the income of the "average" household, but also changes the occupants of the lowest income classes.

To understand what's happening here, envision a line of people queued up for March Madness tickets. Individuals move up the line as tickets are purchased. But new people keep coming. So the line never gets shorter, even though individuals are advancing. Something similar happens with the distribution of income. People keep entering the distribution line from the bottom. Even though individuals are moving up the line, the middle of the line never seems to move. Hence, an unchanged -- or even receding -- median marker could co-exist with individual advancement. The people who were at the middle marker before have moved up the distribution line. This is the kind of income mobility that has long characterized U.S. income dynamics.

When you look at the really big picture, it's apparent that living standards are rising across the entire spectrum of incomes. Just since 2000, GDP has risen by 18% while the population has grown by 6%. So per capita incomes have clearly been rising. The growth of per capita income since 1980 or 1970 has simply been spectacular.

Some people would have you believe that all of this added income was funneled to the rich. But the math doesn't work out. The increase in nominal GDP since 2000 amounts to over $4 trillion annually. If you assume that all that money went to the wealthiest 10% of U.S. households, that bonanza would come to a whopping $350,000 per household. Yet according to the Census Bureau, the top 10% of households has an average income of $200,000 or so. The implied bonanza is so absurd that the notion that only the rich have gained from the economic growth can be dismissed out of hand.

More here

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I suspect that Spitzer's "girlfriend" (above) had assets that Silda didn't. Maybe he should have married a sexy gal instead of a career gal.

The Democrat Federal budget proposals: "We have a Democratic majority in Congress seeking to enact the largest tax hike in history in an apparent monument to fiscal irresponsibility. Their proposal would raise taxes by a whopping $683 billion over the next five years. Put in perspective, this amounts to a tax hike of nearly $2,500 for the average West Virginia family. Incredibly, their plan would put 6 million low-income Americans - who currently pay no income tax at all - back on the tax rolls at a time when they can least afford it. Overall the majority's budget would increase marginal tax rates, re-implement the 10-percent tax bracket, increase taxes on small business, raise taxes on families with children, and increase tax rates on investments. Not only would it place additional strain on hard-working families, but it would also seriously jeopardize job creation by our state's small businesses, many of whom file taxes as individuals and would see serious spikes in their tax rates".

Time To Repeal McCain-Feingold : "Congress should repeal the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, which should never have become law in the first place. The BCRA, known as the McCain-Feingold law, gained momentum because politicians acquiesced to a public that demanded changes in the way political campaigns are financed. Money was singled out as the problem and those who opposed McCain-Feingold were labeled shady individuals who refused to reform a system that had become polluted by the almighty dollar. If only there were a way to bridle the influence that money plays in politics, many thought, we could free the system from corruption and level the playing field between incumbents and challengers. The current cycle of political primaries demonstrates money plays no less a role than it ever did.... Far from limiting money in campaigns, the law permits King Cash to run berserk. On February 20, the New York Times reported Senator Barack Obama, D-Ill., "has broken all political fund-raising records in this election; he has taken in more than $150 million so far, $36 million in January alone."

Airbus failed to hedge its currency bets: "Airbus, the European aircraft manufacturer, slumped to a record loss last year as weakness in the US dollar wiped more than 1 billion euros from the company's earnings. Airbus has been among the companies hardest hit by the declining value of the dollar and it may be forced to move work out of the eurozone to limit future damage. Aircraft are priced in dollars but Airbus's costs are nearly all in euros, which makes the company highly sensitive to exchange-rate movements. A boom in the aerospace market did enable Airbus, which employes 12,000 people in the UK, to increase revenues to 25.2 billion euros last year and its order book stands at 284 billion but despite the positive trading environment, the company still lost money. Two weeks ago EADS won a $40 billion order from the US Department of Defence for 179 air-refuelling tankers, which will be based on its successful A330 airframe. These aircraft will be built in Mobile, Alabama, and EADS is understood to be assessing whether commercial production of the A330 could also go there. Such a move would be controversial in Europe, where Airbus is regarded as an industrial icon and an important employer."

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

List of backup or "mirror" sites here or here -- for readers in China or for everyone when blogspot is "down" or failing to update. Email me here (Hotmail address). My Home Pages are here or here or here

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"Why should the German be interested in the liberation of the Jew, if the Jew is not interested in the liberation of the German?... We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time... In the final analysis, the emancipation of the Jews is the emancipation of mankind from Judaism.... Indeed, in North America, the practical domination of Judaism over the Christian world has achieved as its unambiguous and normal expression that the preaching of the Gospel itself and the Christian ministry have become articles of trade... Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist". Who said that? Hitler? No. It was Karl Marx. See also here and here and here.

The Big Lie of the late 20th century was that Nazism was Rightist. It was in fact typical of the Leftism of its day. It was only to the Right of Stalin's Communism. The very word "Nazi" is a German abbreviation for "National Socialist" (Nationalsozialist) and the full name of Hitler's political party (translated) was "The National Socialist German Workers' Party" (In German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)

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