Usually Right: Barker's Newsbites: Thursday, September 13, 2012

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Barker's Newsbites: Thursday, September 13, 2012

Yep... I'm sure gonna like Texas!

16 comments:

William R. Barker said...: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20120913/DA18SAO00.html

Chanting "death to America," hundreds of protesters...stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Yemen's capital and burned the American flag on Thursday, the latest in a series of attacks on American diplomatic missions in the Middle East.

American missions have [so far] been attacked in three Arab nations - Yemen, Egypt and Libya...[over the last three days.]

Protesters smashed windows as they breached the embassy perimeter...

* FORGET ACTUALLY GETTING THINGS DONE... AS SECRETARY OF STATE, HILLARY RODHAM FUCKING CLINTON CAN'T EVEN SEE TO IT THAT U.S. EMBASSIES AND CONSULATES (OUR SOVEREIGN SOIL!) REMAIN SECURE!

...and reached the compound grounds...

* AND HOW THE FUCK DOES THAT HAPPEN?!

...although they did not enter the main building housing the offices.

* AND... WHAT...? WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE GRATEFUL FOR SMALL MERCIES...?!?! JEEZUS FRIGGIN' CHRIST...

Angry young men brought down the U.S. flag in the courtyard, burned it and replaced it with a black banner bearing Islam's declaration of faith - "There is no God but Allah."

Demonstrators removed the embassy's sign on the outer wall, set tires ablaze and pelted the compound with rocks.

* GOTTA LOVE THE KID GLOVES... (*SMIRK*)... "PROTESTERS..." "ANGRY YOUNG MEN..." "DEMONSTRATORS..." HOW ABOUT "VIOLENT MUSLIM FANATICS...?!?!" HOW ABOUT "ISLAMIC EXTREMISTS...?!?!"

* FOLKS... IMAGINE IF IN "RETALIATION" A TEA PARTY RALLY HERE IN THE STATES DEGENERATED INTO AN ATTACK UPON A FOREIGN CONSULATE... (*PAUSE*)... HOW DO YOU SUPPOSE THE AMERICAN MEDIA WOULD PORTRAY THAT...?!?!

* FOLKS... THIS IS A MINDSET... POLITICAL CORRECTNESS RUN AMOK! AND, YES... IT'S OBAMA'S FAULT. YES... HE'S BEEN PRESIDENT FOR ALMOST FOUR YEARS. HIS SECRETARY OF STATE IS HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON... HER "QUALIFICATION" TO BE SECRETARY OF STATE - HAVING BEEN A SENATOR; HER QUALIFICATION FOR BECOMING A SENATOR...? BEING THE WIFE BILL CLINTON SERIALLY CHEATED ON.

* FOLKS... THINK ABOUT IT... THIS IS FUCKING INSANE!; September 13, 2012 at 8:19 AM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-13/yen-strengthens-asian-stocks-little-changed-before-fed-decision.html

The dollar weakened to a seven- month low against the yen...

(*PURSED LIPS*)

* FOLKS... AGAIN... FED POLICY IS TO FURTHER DEVALUE THE DOLLAR...

The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell two basis points.

* FOLKS... AGAIN... FED POLICY IS TO FUCK SAVERS AND SHOWER BORROWERS WITH EASY MONEY.

* SOUND FAMILIAR...?!?!

The Fed will probably announce a third series of bond purchases known as quantitative easing, according to almost two- thirds of economists in a Bloomberg survey.

* MORE UNSUSTAINABLE BORROWING AND DEBT... MORE "CREATION" OF MONEY OUT OF THIN AIR...

* FOLKS... IF THE CHINESE, RUSSIANS, OR AL QAEDA RAN THE FED THEY COULDN'T "IMPROVE" UPON BERNANKE'S ASSAULTS UPON AMERICA'S ECONOMIC PRESENT AND FUTURE. THE FED AND TREASURY ARE BASICALLY WAGING WAR AGAINST THE RESPONSIBLE AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASS.; September 13, 2012 at 8:34 AM
William R. Barker said...: * TWO-PARTER... (Part 1 of 2)

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/316712/how-poor-poor-robert-rector

Yesterday morning, the U.S. Bureau of the Census released its annual report on income and poverty, saying that some 46.2 million Americans – 15% of the population — were "poor" in 2011.

* JUST FOR COMPARISON... TO COMPARE AND CONTRAST... IN 2006 - THE LAST YEAR REPUBLICANS CONTROLLED BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS WHILE GEORGE BUSH WAS PRESIDENT... 36.4 MILLION AMERICANS WERE "POOR." (YEP... 36.4 MILLION THEN... 46.2 MILLION NOW.)

According to the Census Bureau, some 11 million more adults are without work today than before the recession began.

(This number has been getting worse year by year.)

Similarly, roughly 8 million fewer Americans work full-time through the year.

* WELCOME TO OBAMA'S AMERICA!

But what does it mean to say that 46.2 million Americans are “poor?"

The Census Bureau determines that a family is "poor" if its annual “income” falls below specified thresholds.

For 2011, the threshold for a family of four was around $23,000.

But the bureau doesn’t count welfare benefits such as food stamps, public housing, the earned-income tax credit, and many other programs as “income” for purposes of determining whether a family is poor.

(*SNORT*)

* SOUNDS LIKE HOW THE GOVERNMENT (MIS)MEASURES INFLATION... YOU KNOW... NOT COUNTING "LITTLE THINGS" LIKE... er... FOOD AND FUEL PURCHASES... AND IGNORING PACKAGE SHRINKAGE.

(*SMIRK*)

The federal government runs nearly 80 means-tested welfare programs that provide cash, food, housing, medical care, and targeted social services to poor and low-income persons.

* WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THAT BORROWS 43-CENTS OF EVERY DOLLAR IT SPENDS SIMPLY ON OPERATING EXPENSES!

In FY 2011, government spent $927 billion on these programs - not counting Social Security and Medicare.

(*PURSED LIPS*)

* TO BE CONTINUED...; September 13, 2012 at 9:16 AM
William R. Barker said...: * CONCLUDING... (Part 2 of 2)

Roughly one-third of the U.S. population received aid from at least one of these programs, at an average cost of $9,000 per recipient.

* JEEZUS... (*SIGH*)

But the Census Bureau counts only about 3% of this $927 billion as “income” for purposes of measuring poverty. This missing means-tested welfare spending — taxpayer funds spent on the poor but not counted by the Census Bureau for purposes of measuring poverty — exceeds the GDPs of most nations on earth.

(*SNORT*)

Nearly all “poor” persons live in houses or apartments that are in good repair and not overcrowded; in fact, the dwelling of the average poor American is larger than the house or apartment of the average non-poor person in countries such as France and the United Kingdom.

By their own reports, most poor persons in America had sufficient funds to meet all essential needs and to obtain medical care for family members throughout the year whenever needed.

Some 80% of poor adults and 96% of poor children were never hungry at any time during the year because they could not afford food.

(The average consumption of protein, vitamins, and minerals is virtually the same for poor and middle-class children and is well above recommended norms in most cases.)

Some 80% of poor households have air conditioning; nearly two-thirds have cable or satellite TV; half have a personal computer; 43% have Internet access; and one-third have a wide-screen plasma or LCD TV.

* I WONDER WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE "POOR" SMOKE AND DRINK AND DO DRUGS... ALL ON THE TAXPAYER DIME?

(*PURSED LIPS*)

When the War on Poverty began, 7% of American children were born outside marriage; today the number is 42%.

* IT'S AROUND 73% FOR BLACKS...

(*PURSED LIPS*)

Single-parent families are four times more likely to be “poor” or "non-self-sufficient" than are families headed by a married couple with the same level of education.

* I WONDER HOW MANY TIMES MORE LIKELY THE HEADS OF THESE HOUSEHOLDS ARE TO VOTE DEMOCRAT RATHER THAN REPUBLICAN...

(*SHRUG*)

* FOLKS... THERE'S POWER IN MAKING PEOPLE DEPENDENT UPON YOU.

(*JUST SHAKING MY HEAD*); September 13, 2012 at 9:16 AM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.cnbc.com/id/49016234

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week...

* BROWSE THROUGH THE ARCHIVES... (*SMIRK*)... IT'S PRETTY MUCH ALWAYS "MORE THAN EXPECTED."

(*SNORT*)

...with several states reporting an increase related to Tropical Storm Isaac.

* THAT'S A NEW ONE!

(*GUFFAW*)

In a separate report, a sharp rise in gasoline costs drove up wholesale prices last month by the most in more than three years. But outside energy and food, price gains were mild.

* BUT OUTSIDE OF ENERGY AND FOOD... (*SNORT*)... AND COLLEGE TUITION... (*SMIRK*)... AND HEALTH INSURANCE PREMIUMS... (*GRITTING MY TEETH*)... AND AIRFARES... AND HOTELS... AND... AND... AND...

* FOLKS... THE SAD, PATHETIC THING IS... MOST OF OUR FELLOW CITIZENS HAVE NO FRIGGIN' CLUE HOW BADLY THE GOVERNMENT DELIBERATELY UNDERSTATS INFLATION. CERTAINLY YOU DON'T HEAR ABOUT THE "MISERY INDEX" NOWADAYS - NOT WITH OBAMA UP FOR RE-ELECTION!

* BUT, HEY... BACK TO UNEMPLOYMENT...

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 382,000, the highest in two months, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

* AHH! BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!

(*DRUM ROLL*)

The prior week's figure was revised up to show 2,000 more applications than previously reported.

* AGAIN... "FUNNY" HOW OFTEN THIS HAPPENS...

(*SHRUG*)

* OH... AND FOLKS... TO REMIND YOU...

While the unemployment rate dropped to 8.1% in August from 8.3%, it was because Americans gave up the search for work.

* FOLKS... THE POLICIES OF THIS ADMINISTRATION AND THIS FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD ARE DESTROYING OUR ECONOMY...!!! IT'S NOT FUCKING DEBATABLE! WE HAVEN'T SEEN INCOMPETENCE AND RESULTS OF COUNTER-PRODUCTIVE POLICES SUCH THESE SINCE THE CARTER YEARS... NAY... SINCE FDR's POLICIES EXTENDED THE GREAT DEPRESSION!

The unemployment rate has been stuck above 8% for more than three years, the first time this has happened since the Great Depression.

* AS... I... WAS... SAYING... (*GRITTING MY TEETH*)

The sluggish labor market is seen prompting the Federal Reserve to announce a third round of bond purchases at the end of a two-day policy meeting later on Thursday.

* AND, AGAIN... THE EXACT WRONG POLICY!

* FOLKS... ROMNEY HAS PROMISED TO GET RID OF BERNANKE. FOR THAT REASON ALONE WE MUST PRAY FOR HIS ELECTION.; September 13, 2012 at 11:20 AM
William R. Barker said...: * THREE-PARTER... (Part 1 of 3)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/george-will-a-different-kind-of-inflation-problem/2012/09/12/fd87db5a-fc41-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html

Fortunately, not everything is up to date in Kansas City.

Esther George, president of the regional Federal Reserve Bank here, is refreshingly retrograde regarding what less circumspect people welcome as the "modernizing" of the nation’s central bank into a central economic planner.

Ms. George has concerns, both prudential and philosophical, about the transformation of the Fed in ways that erase the distinction between monetary policy, which is the Fed’s proper business, and fiscal policy, which is inherently political.

The basic interest rate — i.e., the federal funds rate minus the inflation rate — was negative during about 40% of the disastrous 1970s and the 2000s... which ended disastrously.

(*CHUCKLING IN SPITE OF MYSELF*)

Because today’s rate is negative, the Fed’s stimulus repertoire is reduced to “quantitative easing.”

That phrase, which is how government speaks when trying not to be understood, means printing money. (Except printing is so 20th century. Nowadays, the Fed gives banks digital transfusions of money to lower long-term interest rates, which result in...)

(*PAUSE*)

Not much bang for trillions of bucks.

* ACTUALLY... IT DEPENDS UPON HOW ONE DEFINES "BANG." IF ONE DEFINES "BANG" AS IRRESPONSIBLE AND UNSUPPORTABLE DEBT... INFLATIONARY DEBT... A DELIBERATE ASSAULT UPON THE VALUE OF THE DOLLAR... THEN, YEAH... BERNANKE HAS GOTTEN "BANG" FOR THE BUCK. IF HOWEVER WE'RE TALKING "BANG" AS IN SOMETHING POSITIVE... (*PURSED LIPS*)... THAN, NO... NO BANG... NEGATIVE BANG...

(*TEAR DUCTS WELLING UP*)

* TO BE CONTINUED...; September 13, 2012 at 11:48 AM
William R. Barker said...: * CONTINUING... (Part 2 of 3)

With corporations holding upward of $2 trillion in cash, and 30-year mortgages at 3.5%, Ms. George, speaking several weeks before this week’s meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, asked: “Is there anyone not borrowing today or purchasing a house because interest rates aren’t low enough? Do we expect that businesses will hire if their long-term rates are lower?”

Very low interest rates discourage saving, punish retirees living off interest-bearing assets and, Ms. George says, “incent people into riskier assets.”

* DUH!

These include commodities, farm land (for the first time on record, prices of cropland in George’s district have risen more than 20% for two consecutive years) and equities.

* AHH, YES... REWARDING WALL STREET MONEY MOVERS... MONEY SHUFFLERS... MEN LIKE OBAMA CAMPAIGN BUNDLER AND FORMER DEMOCRATIC UNITED STATES SENATOR AND GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY JON CORZINE...

* HEY... I WONDER WHAT KIND OF PORTFOLIO CHARLIE RANGEL HAS..? JUST CURIOUS... (*SHRUG*)

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke evidently thinks that driving up the stock market will quicken the animal spirits of the affluent 20% who own 93% of equities, and this “wealth effect” will spur economic activity, eventually benefiting others.

(So, the interest rates Barack Obama favors are a form of the trickle-down economics he execrates.)

Richard W. Fisher, George’s counterpart at the Dallas regional Fed, is “perplexed” by Wall Street’s “preoccupation, bordering upon fetish” concerning a possible third round of qualitative easing, or QE3. Financiers “have become hooked on the monetary morphine we provided when we performed massive reconstructive surgery” during the 2008-09 panic. However, “monetary policy provides the fuel” for America’s economy and “we have filled the gas tank and then some.”

* BERNANKE, OBAMA, AND TIM "THE TAX CHEAT" GEITHNER ARE POURING GASOLINE ON THE FIRE! THEY'VE DOUBLED DOWN... TRIPLED DOWN... ON THE FAILED BUSH ECONOMIC MONETARY POLICY...!!! (DON'T YOU SEE THIS, FOLKS...?!?!)

Esther George considers the Fed’s dual mandate — stable prices and maximum employment — “redundant.”

* SHE'S RIGHT IN THE SENSE THAT STABLE PRICES SHOULD BE THE GOAL AND STABLE PRICES SHOULD IN TURN LEAD TO REALISTIC MAXIMUM EMPLOYMENT.

Achieving the former is the best thing the Fed can do for the latter.

* WHICH IS WHAT I JUST WROTE...

(*CHUCKLE*)

James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Fed, seems to agree. Monetary policy, Ms. George acknowledges, is “a blunt tool.” Its bluntness is, however, a virtue if it discourages the folly of trying to fine-tune the economy.

* IF ONLY!

“People,” Ms. George says, “will figure out a way to make a buck if they know what the rules are.”; September 13, 2012 at 11:50 AM
William R. Barker said...: * CONCLUDING... (Part 3 of 3)

Investing — including hiring, which is investing in employees — is a wager on the future.

Fidgety government makes the future unnecessarily opaque.

Stanford’s John Taylor notes that “over the past 12 years, the number of provisions of the tax code expiring annually has increased tenfold,” the number of federal regulators has grown 25% in five years, and ObamaCare and Dodd-Frank expand uncertainty by enlarging the government’s discretion.

* THE GOVERNMENT'S ARBITRARY DISCRETION... DISCRETION PRACTICED BY THE BUREAUCRATS WHO WRITE THE REGULATIONS - NOT OUR DULY ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES WHO TURN INTO LAW MULTI-THOUSAND PAGE BILLS THEY HAVEN'T EVEN READ AND WHICH EMPOWER THE BUREAUCRATS TO "FILL IN THE BLANKS."

* AND, HEY... IF A DEMOCRAT-FRIENDLY CORPORATION OR UNION IS ABOUT TO GET HURT... A WAIVER CAN ALWAYS BE ISSUED... (REMEMBER THE OBAMACARE WAIVERS, MY FRIENDS...?)

Uncertainty is exacerbated by the Fed’s exercise of its vast discretion, including QE1, QE2 and, perhaps soon, QE3 (or QE5, including two “twists” also aimed at lowering borrowing costs). Bernanke, who promises more “policy accommodation” to support the economic recovery, is inadvertently vindicating Milton Friedman’s belief that “the stock of money [should] be increased at a fixed rate year-in and year-out without any variation in the rate of increase to meet cyclical needs.”

* I KNOW THIS IS A TERRIBLE THING TO SAY... BUT IF BERNANKE WERE TO DROP DEAD TONIGHT... I'D CHEER. HE'S THE SECOND MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA.

When the "independent" Fed...

(*GUFFAW*)

* THE FED IS A CREATURE OF TWO ENTITIES: THE BANKS; WHOEVER IS IN POWER IN WASHINGTON.

...buys bonds to affect short-term economic stimulus by manipulating long-term interest rates, this is less monetary policy than fiscal policy, which is the business of an accountable Congress.

(*ANOTHER GUFFAW*)

* "ACCOUNTABLE CONGRESS." NOW THAT'S FUNNY! (SPEAKING OF WISHING PEOPLE WOULD DROP DEAD...)

It also is a preposterous arrogation by the Fed of a role as the economy’s central planner, a role beyond the Fed’s — or anyone else’s — competence, and incompatible with its independence.

Bernanke’s term ends in 2014, and Mitt Romney says that he would not reappoint him.

* AGAIN... REASON ALONE TO VOTE FOR ROMNEY COME NOVEMBER!

If Romney becomes president, he should appoint someone such as Esther George, who would concentrate on protecting the currency as a store of value — restraining inflation — while reversing the recent inflation of the bank’s ambitions, which have not prevented the recovery from being dreadful and may have helped to make it so.

* YES! AGREED!; September 13, 2012 at 11:50 AM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/316724/depending-dependency-thomas-sowell

* BY THOMAS SOWELL

Being willing to donate the taxpayers’ money is not the same as being willing to put your own money where your mouth is.

Ronald Reagan donated a higher percentage of his income to charitable activities than did either Franklin D. Roosevelt or Ted Kennedy.

Milton Friedman pointed out that the heyday of free-market capitalism in the 19th century was a period of an unprecedented rise in philanthropic activity. Going even further back in time, in the 18th century Adam Smith, the patron saint of free-market economics, was discovered from records examined after his death to have privately made large charitable donations, far beyond what might have been expected from someone of his income level.

Although the big word on the Left is “compassion,” the big agenda on the left is dependency. The more people who are dependent on government handouts, the more votes the Left can depend on for an ever-expanding welfare state.

(Helping those who have been struck by unforeseeable misfortunes is fundamentally different from making dependency a way of life.)

Optimistic Republicans who say that widespread unemployment and record numbers of people on food stamps hurt President Obama’s re-election chances are overlooking the fact that people who are dependent on government are more likely to vote for politicians who are giving them handouts.

(*NOD*)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt understood that, back during the Great Depression of the 1930s. He was re-elected in a landslide after his first term, during which unemployment was in double digits every single month, and in some months was over 20%.

* YEP! IF YOU WANNA KNOW HOW FDR BOUGHT ELECTION AFTER ELECTION USING TAXPAYER MONEY, I SUGGEST READING: "FDR's FOLLY" BY JIM POWELL OR "NEW DEAL OR RAW DEAL" BY BURTON W. FOLSOM, JR. OBAMA IS FOLLOWING THIS MODEL!

The time is long overdue for optimistic Republicans to understand what FDR understood long ago, and what Barack Obama clearly understands today. Dependency pays off in votes — unless somebody alerts the taxpayers who get stuck with the bill.

(*NOD*)

The Obama administration is shamelessly advertising in the media — whether on billboards or on television — for people to get on food stamps.

Welfare-state bureaucrats have been sent into supermarkets to tell shoppers that food stamps are available.

The intelligentsia have for decades been promoting the idea that there should be no stigma to accepting government handouts. Living off the taxpayers is portrayed as a “right” or — more ponderously — as part of a “social contract.”

You may not recall signing any such contract, but it sounds poetic and high-toned. Moreover, it wins votes among the gullible, and that is the bottom line for welfare-state politicians.

* FOLKS... WAKE UP... WAKE UP YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS... BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!; September 13, 2012 at 12:07 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://nation.time.com/2012/09/13/whats-worse-no-marines-or-possibly-unarmed-marines/

[W]hat’s worse? No Marines or unarmed Marines?

There’s a disquieting report in Thursday morning’s NightWatch blog that claims the Marines...in Cairo were barred from carrying live ammunition as the U.S. Embassy in Egypt came under attack:

"[U.S. Ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson] did not permit U.S. Marine guards to carry live ammunition, according to USMC blogs. Thus she neutralized any U.S. military capability that was dedicated to preserve her life and protect the US Embassy. In this respect, she did not defend U.S. sovereign territory and betrayed her oath of office. She neutered the Marines posted to defend the embassy, trusting the Egyptians over the Marines."

…reports John McCreary, a former veteran Defense Intelligence Agency analyst.

Well, Battleland can’t find those blogs; we’ve asked McCreary for them, and also asked the Marines and State Department to respond to what he is reporting.

Senior U.S. officials late Wednesday declined to discuss in detail the security at either Cairo or Benghazi, so answers may be slow in coming.

* I'M NOT GOING TO ACCEPT THE CLAIM ABSENT PROOF. WE'LL SEE, THOUGH!

* HEY... FOLKS... NOTE... TIME MAGAZINE IS RUNNING THIS PIECE - THAT'S WHY I'M MAKING IT A NEWSBITE.

(*SHRUG*); September 13, 2012 at 2:11 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2012/09/13/nyc-board-of-health-passes-soda-ban/

The New York City Board of Health on Thursday approved Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s controversial proposal to ban the sale of large sugary drinks in restaurants and other venues...

* IS THIS YOUR AMERICA, FOLKS?

Beginning March 12, the city will prohibit restaurants, mobile food carts, delis and concessions at movie theaters, stadiums or arenas from selling sugary drinks in cups or containers larger than 16 ounces. The city will begin fining sellers for violating the ban in mid-June.

* IS... THIS... YOUR... AMERICA...???

The proposal passed by a vote of eight to zero...

* FOLKS... DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A REFLECTION OF THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE? SERIOUSLY...?! EIGHT TO ZERO...?!?!

After more than 38,000 oral and written comments, the administration proposed no changes to the initial proposal that was made public in May.

* DOES THIS SOUND AS IF DEMOCRACY AND THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE IS BEING RESPECTED?

Recent polls show a majority of city voters oppose the initiative.

* ONE... MORE... TIME...

* THE NEW REGULATION (NOT A LAW... A REGULATION!) WAS PASSED EIGHT TO ZERO! NOT SEVEN TO ONE. NOT SIX TO TWO. NOT FIVE TO THREE. NOT FOUR AGAINST FOUR WITH THE CHAIR BREAKING THE TIE.

(*PURSED LIPS*)

Pamela Brier, a board member, described the initiative as “terrific” and said she wholeheartedly supported it. “It’s hard to do – there are a lot of unhappy people,” she said, noting the criticism. She said she hopes the ban becomes the “new norm.”

(*PURSED LIPS*)

* FOLKS... WE'RE LOSING ANY CONTROL OVER THE POWERS THAT BE! THESE PEOPLE NO LONGER EVEN PRETEND TO RESPECT THE IDEALS WHICH ONCE MADE AMERICA GREAT! YOU LOOK AT THE BLUE STATES... THE BLUE CITIES... AND YOU SEE WHERE AMERICA IS HEADING. AND FRANKLY... THE RED STATES BY AND LARGE ARE ONLY THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS IN AN IMMEDIATE SENSE. GOD HELP THIS ONCE GREAT NATION...; September 13, 2012 at 2:41 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://paul.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=598

* HAT TIP TO MIKE D.

Yesterday, Sen. Rand Paul once again requested that Senate Democrat Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) provide a brief amount of time for debate and a vote on Sen. Paul's amendment to end U.S. aid to the government of Pakistan for their detainment of Dr. Shakil Afridi.

Sen. Reid blocked Sen. Paul's attempt to allow a vote on his Pakistan amendment, as well as a new amendment cutting funding to Egypt and Libya pending the discovery and release to FBI authorities the perpetrators of Tuesday's attacks on our U.S. consulate and U.S. embassy.

The two amendments introduced this evening are 2783 and 2815, respectively.

Sen. Paul offered the following statement prior to introducing his amendments:

"Today we are reminded that our enemies are relentless but we are also reminded that our so-called allies are often not acting like allies at all. We are saddened by the assassination of Ambassador Stevens and his fellow workers. And we are appalled by lack of protection of our embassies by supposed allies. We send billions of taxpayer dollars abroad and what do we get in return? Disrespect, disdain, and ultimately violence."

* AMEN!

"I have two amendments I wish to call down. First, not one penny of American taxpayer dollars should go to Libya until the murderers are delivered to justice. And not one more penny should go to Egypt until they prove that they are willing and able to protect our embassy. Second, not one more penny of American taxpayer dollars should go to Pakistan until the doctor who helped us get bin Laden is freed."

* HEAR! HEAR!; September 13, 2012 at 6:07 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012/09/13/us-identifies-anti-muslim-filmmaker/57777522/1

Federal authorities have identified a Coptic Christian in southern California who is on probation after his conviction for financial crimes as the key figure behind the anti-Muslim film that ignited mob violence against U.S. embassies across the Mideast, a U.S. law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Thursday.

* WHY ARE "FEDERAL AUTHORITIES" INVESTIGATING THIS MAN?

* WHY ARE THE MEDIA SO EAGER TO TOW THIS "THE ANTI-MUSLIM FILM THAT IGNITED MOB VIOLENCE" LINE...?

The official said authorities had concluded that Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, was behind "Innocence of Muslims," a film...

* AGAIN... WHY ARE "THE AUTHORITIES" INVOLVED? WHY ARE THEY INVESTIGATING THIS MAN? HEY... DON'T GET ME WRONG... IF IT WAS THE MEDIA OR A PRIVATE GROUP DOING THE "INVESTIGATING" AND "OUTING" OF THIS GUY I'D HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH IT. BUT WHAT ARE "THE AUTHORITIES" INVESTIGATING...?; September 13, 2012 at 6:20 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/sep/13/white-house-aid-egypt-will-continue/

The White House is flatly rejecting calls from...conservatives to halt U.S. aid to Egypt after a slow response from Cairo in rebuking violent attacks on the U.S. Embassy there Tuesday night.

A group of House conservatives, led by freshman Rep. Jeffrey M. Landry, Louisiana Republican, is calling for foreign aid to both Libya and Egypt to be stripped from a six-month federal funding bill up for a vote Thursday.

* WELL, FOLKS...??? DOES ANYONE SUPPORT OBAMA ON THIS?

Egypt is second only to Israel in the amount of assistance it receives from the U.S., an estimated $2 billion a year, but the White House has no plans to curtail its investment there.

* I DON'T WANNA SUPPORT ISRAEL EITHER!

* FOLKS... WE CAN'T SUPPORT OURSELVES WITHOUT MASSIVE BORROWING... WITHOUT THRUSTING MASSIVE DEBT UPON THE SHOULDERS OF OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN! WE PRESENTLY BORROW 43-CENTS OF EVERY DOLLAR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SPENDS! THIS IS INSANITY!

Campaigning in Golden, Colo., Thursday, Mr. Obama said the world is going through some “tumultuous times” but said America would stay true to its commitment to improving the plight of people around the world.

* WELL, FOLKS...?!?! IS THIS YOUR IDEA OF SUCCESSFUL AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY? OBAMA - LITERALLY - BELIEVES WE SHOULD BORROW MONEY... FURTHER INDEBT OURSELVES, OUR CHILDREN, AND OUR GRANDCHILDREN... SO AS TO GIVE THE MONEY TO THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD CONTROLLED GOVERNMENT OF EGYPT - NOT TO MENTION THE THUGS (SUPPOSEDLY) RUNNING LIBYA... NOT TO MENTION GOD ONLY KNOWS HOW MANY OTHER CORRUPT REGIMES! THIS IS "HOPE?" THIS IS "CHANGE?" MY GOD... I FEEL LIKE I'M CAUGHT IN ALICE'S WONDERLAND HERE!

“Our task, as the most powerful nation on Earth, is to defend and protect and advance our people, but also to defend and protect and advance those values at home and around the world,” he said.

* THE MOST POWERFUL NATION ON EARTH... THAT CAN'T DEFEND THEIR EMBASSIES...?!?! THAT CAN'T WIN THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN AFTER FIGHTING THERE FOR ELEVEN YEARS AND CURRENTLY LOSING APPROXIMATELY ONE AMERICAN LIFE PER DAY KIA...?!?! THIS MAN IS INSANE! WE CAN'T DEFEND OUR SOUTHERN BOARDER!

* AND, AGAIN... WE MUST BORROW 43-CENTS OUT OF EVERY FEDERAL DOLLAR SPENT JUST IN ORDER TO "MAINTAIN" OUR DEMINISHED STATUS!

Speaking about the outbreak of protests at the U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Mr. Carney said U.S. officials “are doing everything we can to protect the safety and security of personnel.”

* BUT... BUT... BUT... IF - AS OBAMA CLAIMS - WE'RE "THE MOST POWERFUL NATION ON EARTH"... (*PAUSE*)... SHOULDN'T PROTECTING OUR EMBASSIES AND CONSULATES BE A GIVEN...?!?!; September 13, 2012 at 6:39 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2012/09/government-employees-work-less-than-private-sector-employees

The stereotype of the underworked government employee is frequently invoked in criticisms of public-sector employment.

But does the average public employee really work less than the average private employee?

* I'M GONNA GO OUT ON A LIMB (*SMIRK*) AND GUESS... "YES."

To provide an objective answer, this paper uses the American Time Use Survey, which produces a detailed listing of personal activities on a given day for each respondent.

Based on this dataset, government employees work around three fewer hours per week and roughly one less month per year than private-sector workers.

Substantial differences in work time persist even after controlling for occupational and skill differences between sectors.

The underworked government employee should be of concern to taxpayers who expect private-sector levels of work in the public sector in exchange for private-sector levels of compensation.

* FAR ABOVE PRIVATE SECTOR LEVELS OF COMPENSATION WHEN WE'RE TALKING THE AVERAGE FEDERAL WORKER!

[P]rivate-sector employees work 41.4 hours during a typical work-week.

Federal workers...put in 38.7 hours...

...and state and local government employees work 38.1 hours.

(As with all the public-private differences reported in this Backgrounder, the time differences between each government sector and the private sector are statistically significant at the 95% level or greater.)

Private-sector employees work the equivalent of 3.8 more 40-hour workweeks than federal employees, and 4.7 more weeks than state and local government workers. (Put another way, private employees work about one month more each year than public employees.)

* ANYWAY... (*SHRUG*)... I'VE PROVIDED THE LINK. ANYONE INTERESTED CAN PERUSE THE STUDY FOR THEMSELVES.; September 13, 2012 at 6:53 PM
William R. Barker said...: http://washingtonexaminer.com/franchisors-warn-obamacare-will-halve-profits/article/2507920#.UFKg56607Ht

The International Franchise Association held a convention in Washington this week where most of the Radio Shack, Dunkin Donuts, Curves and other franchisers were grumbling about new federal regulations, especially the impact of ObamaCare.

Most, said Atlanta Taco Bell and Kentucky Fried Chicken franchiser David Barr, presumed that the reports about how hard ObamaCare will hit them were overblown. "They had their head in the sand," he told Secrets.

That is until he pulled out his PowerPoint showing how funding ObamaCare will cut his - and likely their - profits in half overnight.

With simple math the small business folks understood, he spelled out that their only choice is to slash employee hours so they aren't eligible for company-paid health care or stop offering insurance and pay the $2,000 per employee fine.

Barr has 23 stores with 421 employees, 109 of whom are full-time. Of those, he provides 30 with health insurance. Barr said he pays 81% of their Blue Cross Blue Shield policy, or $4,073 of $5,028 for individuals, more for families, for a total bill of $129,000 a year.

(Employees pay $995.)

Under ObamaCare, however, he will have to provide health insurance for all 109 full-time workers, a cost of $444,000, or two and half times more than his current costs. That $315,000 increase is equal to just over half his annual profit, after expenses, or 1.5% of sales. As a result, he said, "I'm not paying $444,000."

Providing no insurance would result in a federal fine of $158,000, $29,000 more than he now spends but the lowest cost possible under the ObamaCare law.

So he now views that as his cap and he'll either cut worker hours or replace them with machines to get his costs down or dump them on the public health exchange and pay the fine.

"Every business has a way to eliminate jobs," he said, "but that's not good for them or me."

But that's not all. His experience tells him that most low-wage workers he would have to cover under ObamaCare won't take it because their $995 share is too high, meaning those the program was set up for won't see any benefit. And those who do will because they have major health issues, likely resulting in higher premiums to him.

* WHAT A FUCKING DISASTER...; September 13, 2012 at 11:22 PM

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Thursday, September 13, 2012

Barker's Newsbites: Thursday, September 13, 2012

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