Friday, November 9, 2012

Barker's Newsbites: Fri., Sat. & Sun.; Nov. 9, 10 & 11, 2012


Yeah... I figure since I'm remote blogging and thus will have abbreviated opportunities to blog today and through the weekend, I might as well "start" the newsbite weekend here... on Friday.

6 comments:

William R. Barker said...

http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/watercooler/2012/nov/8/picket-companies-plan-massive-layoffs-obamacare-be/

* MAKE OF THIS WHAT YOU WILL.

William R. Barker said...

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/record-704-million-enrolled-medicaid-2011-1-out-every-5-americans

A record 70.4 million people were enrolled in the Medicaid health care program for the poor in fiscal year 2011, according to government figures provided to CNSNews.com.

That figure equals about 22% of the population, which means there was one person on Medicaid for every 5 Americans in 2011.

Figures provided to CNSNews.com by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency that oversees the two health care entitlements, reveal an ever-expanding Medicaid program. From 2005 to 2011, total enrollees grew by more than 10 million people, going from 60.1 million in 2005 to 70.4 million in 2011.

Medicaid is the joint federal-state health care program for the poor that allows states to extend coverage beyond those who are in poverty. Recently, the ObamaCare health reform law expanded Medicaid eligibility to those living on 133% of the federal poverty level.

* WHETHER ONE APPROVES OR NOT (AND I CERTAINLY DON'T) THIS PROVES ONCE AGAIN THAT OBAMA IS DELIBERATELY EXPANDING THE AMERICAN WELFARE STATE EVEN AS HE AND CONGRESS ADD LITERALLY OVER A TRILLION DOLLARS A YEAR TO THE EVER-GROWING NATIONAL DEBT.

The poverty level annual income for a family of four is $23,000 – 133 percent of that, in terms of annual income for a family of four, would be $30,590.

* SO BASICALLY WE SUPPORT PEOPLE WHO WON'T - OR CAN'T - SUPPORT THEMSELVES AND THEN WHEN THESE PEOPLE HAVE CHILDREN WE SUPPORT THEIR CHILDREN...

That expansion does not go into effect until 2014, however, and therefore does not affect the continued growth trend. Nor does it contribute to the record 70.4 million Americans enrolled in Medicaid.

* SO IN OTHER WORDS... 70.4 MILLION AMERICANS PRESENTLY ENROLLED IN MEDICARE IS BUT A LOWBALL FIGURE OF WHAT THEY ESTIMATE TO BE THE REALITY IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS UNDER OBAMA'S EXPANSION OF THE PROGRAM.

According to CMS statistics, Medicaid has been growing rapidly since 2008, going from 62.8 million total enrollees to 70.4 million in 2011. Prior to 2008, Medicaid rolls had remained relatively stable, going from 60.1 million in 2005 to just 60.9 million in 2007.

* FUNNY... ISN'T 2007 THE YEAR DEMOCRATS TOOK CONTROL OF BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS...???

While Medicaid rolls would be expected to rise during a recession, as they did in 2008 and 2009, the last recession ended in June 2009 and Medicaid rolls have expanded faster than during the 2005-2008 period.

* OOPS!

Medicaid rolls have grown by 5.2 million Americans since 2009 – when the recession ended and the economy began to grow again slightly.

* RECESSION "ENDED." HA! HA! HA! VERY FUNNY...

William R. Barker said...

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/NATL-CIA-Director-Petraeus-Resigns-Cites-Extra-Marital-Affair-178159541.html

Central Intelligence Agency Director David Petraeus has resigned, citing "extremely poor judgment" for having an extramarital affair, NBC News reported.

* DOES... ANYONE... BELIEVE... THIS...?

* WHEN DID THIS SUPPOSED AFFAIR BEGIN? BEFORE HE WAS VETTED FOR CIA DIRECTOR...? IMPOSSIBLE!

* INTERESTING TIMING, HUH?

* SO... OBAMA'S PRESIDENT... THE SECRET SERVICE HAVE GONE FROM THE BEST OF THE BEST TO THE BUTT OF HOOKER JOKES. MEANWHILE THE FBI DOESN'T GET TO BENGHAZI FOR 28 DAYS AND WHEN THEY DO SUDDENLY ARRIVE THEIR "INVESTIGATION" LEAVES ALL SORTS OF DOCUMENT AND EVEN THE AMBASSADOR'S DIARY FOR THE PRESS AND WANDERING THRILL SEEKERS TO FIND. AND NOW... PATRAEUS SUDDENLY RESIGNS... WITH THE EXCUSE BEING "AN AFFAIR."

* OH, YEAH... NOTHING STRANGE HERE... NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY... JUST ANOTHER DAY IN AMERICA IN THE AGE OF OBAMA.

* FOLKS... NOT TO GET TOO MELODRAMATIC... BUT I'M SURPRISED WE'RE NOT READING THAT THE GENERAL DIED IN A PLANE CRASH... OR MAYBE A JEEP CRASH. (PATTON REFERENCE FOR YOU!) NAH... I'M SURE THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BENGHAZI OR THE LEAKS OF TRUTH THAT SOMEHOW MADE IT OUT TO DISCREDIT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION'S EVER-CHANGING LIES.

William R. Barker said...

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/11/airport_screeners_ratify_first.html

The nation’s 44,000 newly unionized airport screeners...

* NEWLY UNIONIZED SCREENERS... 44,000 OF THEM... HOW'S THAT SOUND, FOLKS?

...have ratified their first-ever collective bargaining agreement.

* BUT IT WON'T BE THEIR LAST, FOLKS!

The TSA’s enabling legislation left it up to the TSA administrator to grant screeners collective bargaining rights. When the agency was formed, the position of the Bush Administration was that work rules achieved through collective bargaining might hinder TSA managers’ ability to mobilize screeners for security purposes. However, the TSA’s current administrator under the Obama Administration, John Pistole, decided in 2010 to allow collective bargaining rights with the provision that pay and security-related issues were not negotiable.

* WHAT DO YOU WANNA BET THAT BY THE TIME OBAMA LEAVES OFFICE PAY AND SECURITY-RELATED ISSUES WILL BE NEGOTIABLE?

In a side agreement that was not part of the agreement ratified today, management and labor also agreed that, effective Nov. 1, employees would be entitled to third-party arbitration in disputed disciplinary cases.

* ANYONE CARE TO GUESS WHAT SORT OF PARTISAN AND IDEOLOGICAL LEANINGS MOST OF THESE "THIRD PARTY ARBITRATORS" WILL EXHIBIT THROUGH THEIR RULINGS...?

* DRIP... DRIP... DRIP... DRIP...

William R. Barker said...

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121109/DA2E8UH83.html

George P. Bush, a nephew of former President George W. Bush and son of one-time Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, has made a campaign filing in Texas that is required of candidates planning to run for state office...

* AND, AGAIN, FOLKS... AMERICA IS MOVING TOWARDS A SOCIALIST MONARCHICAL OLIGARCHY MODEL. YES... AMERICA HAS ALWAYS HAD PROMINENT FAMILIES, BUT NOT IN THE SENSE WE DO... NOT TO THE DEGREE WE DO... TODAY.

* A MAN GAINS POLITICAL OFFICE... HIS WIFE GAINS POLITICAL OFFICE... HIS CHILDREN GAIN POLITICAL OFFICE... SOON NIECES, NEPHEWS, COUSINS ARE ALL IN "THE FAMILY BUSINESS." AND MOST AMERICANS LOVE IT! THEY LEARN FOR "ROYALTY" - ONLY UNLIKE FIGUREHEAD NOBILITY AND FIGUREHEAD KINGS AND QUEENS, OUR POLITICAL ROYALTY... OUR POLITICAL NOBILITY... GAINS ACTUAL POWER ONCE ATTAINING OFFICE.

* ENOUGH BUSHES. ENOUGH KENNEDYS. ENOUGH CLINTONS.

William R. Barker said...

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-11-10/foodstamps-surge-most-one-year-new-all-time-record-delayed-release

While there had been speculation that the BLS may delay the release of its October non-farm payroll number until after the election, it turned out there was no reason to worry.

* NOTE, HOWEVER... THE CHANGE IN AVERAGE HOURLY EARNINGS DID TUMBLE TO ALL TIME LOWS...

There was, however, another closely tracked number which perhaps is far more indicative of the economic "growth" in the past 4 years, which certainly had a delayed release.

(*DRUM ROLL*)

The number of course is that showing how many Americans are on food-stamps, and usually is released at the end of the month, or the first day or two of the next month.

* USUALLY...???

This time the USDA delayed its release nine days past the semi-official deadline, far past the election, and until Friday night to report August food-stamp data.

(*SMIRK*)

One glance at the number reveals why: at 47.1 million, this was not only a new all time record, but the monthly increase of 420,947 from July was the biggest monthly increase in one year.

One can see why a reported surge in food-stamps ahead of the elections is something the USDA, and the administration may not have been too keen on disclosing.

* SADLY... EVEN HAD THE TRUTH BEEN RELEASED ON SCHEDULE... IT WOUND'T HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE. OBAMA VOTERS WOULD NO DOUBT ACTUALLY APPLAUD SUCH NEWS!