Saturday, November 17, 2012

Weekend Newsbites: Sat. & Sun., Nov. 17 & 18, 2012


Here's a small gift to you... for some a memory... for all something to consider...

You may know that the late, great Sammy Davis Jr. died of throat cancer.

Did you know that when he was first diagnosed he was told that with surgery to remove the cancer it was quite likely that he'd survive and recover... except for his voice, that is.

He refused.

Why?

He felt that his voice... being able to sing with "his" voice... was the key to his livelihood and even though no doubt his friends in the entertainment world would have ensured his continued access to enough non-singing gigs to "get by" (by Hollywood standards) he refused to surrender the "tool"... his voice... by which use he was judged a star.

Money. Pride. A willingness to throw caution to the wind and bank on beating the odds... all in pursuit of his dignity and self-worth as a man.

Sammy Davis Jr. was a man... was an American... was an inspiration to others... and yet in many ways he was "the norm" in terms of his generation's expectations of themselves and their willingness to pursue their dreams regardless of the cost.

I often think of men like Sammy Davis Jr., men like Frank Sinatra, men like my father and the fathers of many of my friends growing up. I think of The Greatest Generation, not just the stars, but the ordinary men and women who came through the Great Depression, fought and won World War Two, went on to raise America up to heights which would have been unimaginable to our Founders...

In 1969 Americans walked on the moon... they planted our flag.

Forty-three years later... Americans in the affluent suburbs of New York sit for a week or more without power because of a storm.

Forty-three years later... close to fifty million Americans are on food stamps...

Forty-three years later... close to have the families in America pay no federal income tax and take more than they give from an over-sized, out-of-control federal government which needs to borrow 43-cents of every dollar it spends on normal operating expenses!

Sammy's dead. Frank's dead. John Wayne is dead. Ronald Reagan is dead. My father is dead. My uncles who like my father served in combat during World War Two are dead.

Folks... if you don't believe America is dead... I hope you understand that she's dying.

This blog isn't just my hobby... my excuse for taking up space...

This blog... my newsbites... my commentary... it's an "Every Man's Guide" laying out the continuing decline and slow fall of the America our forefathers left us.

I know some of you refuse to believe this. I know there's nothing I can write, no event or series of events that will push you to share my... er... pessimism... my cynicism... but I have no doubt that in years to come my analysis (and fears) will come to pass and that from the vantage point of 50 years in the future if anyone stumbles upon any remaining record of this blog and studies it... or even browses it... he or she will nod and say, "yep... that Bill Barker guy was usually right!"

Melancholy... that's what I feel.

Forgive me for sometimes dwelling in the past... it's just that the future holds little hope for me... for my America.

Oh... don't mistake this for self-pity. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have a damn good life and compared to any one of my good friends I'm an absolute professional failure! 

You know me... eat, drink, sing, and be merry... to love life is to live life...

No. The bumps and potholes on my personal stretch of "road" are few and far between compared to most human beings on the planet, and believe me... I'm well aware of that and thankful for my blessings.

Anyway... I'm rambling now... so... off to this weekend's newsbites! (Or... "What Bad News Do I Have To Share With You All Today?!")


9 comments:

William R. Barker said...

* THREE-PARTER... (Part 1 of 3)

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/17/business/drug-shortages-are-becoming-persistent-in-us.html?hp&_r=0

Paul Davis, the chief of a rural ambulance squad in southern Ohio, was down to his last vial of morphine earlier this fall when a woman with a broken leg needed a ride to the hospital.

The trip was 30 minutes, and the patient was in pain.

[B]ecause of a nationwide shortage, his morphine supply had dwindled from four doses to just one, presenting Mr. Davis with a stark quandary. Should he treat the woman, who was clearly suffering? Or should he save it for a patient who might need it more?

* MORPHINE SHORTAGES. OBAMA'S AMERICA... 2012.

In the end, he opted not to give her the morphine, a decision that haunts him still.

From rural ambulance squads to prestigious hospitals, health care workers are struggling to keep vital medicines in stock because of a drug shortage crisis that is proving to be stubbornly difficult to fix.

* AGAIN... THIS IS AMERICA... 2012.

Rationing is just one example of the extraordinary lengths being taken to address the shortage, which health care workers say has ceased to be a temporary emergency and is now a fact of life.

* A... FACT... OF... LIFE...

* A FACT OF AMERICAN LIFE... 2012.

In desperation, they are resorting to treating patients with less effective alternative medicines and using expired drugs. The Cleveland Clinic has hired a pharmacist whose only job is to track down hard-to-find drugs.

Caused largely by an array of manufacturing problems, the shortage has prompted Congressional hearings, a presidential order and pledges by generic drug makers to communicate better with federal regulators.

* OH, YEAH... I BET THOSE CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS ARE GONNA FIX EVERYTHING! AND A PRESIDENTIAL ORDER...? WELL, WELL... NO DOUBT THAT WILL TURN WHAT'S "A FACT OF LIFE" INTO... er... A "FACT OF LIFE" WITH A PRESIDENTIAL ORDER ON FILE.

(*SMIRK*)

The problem peaked in 2011, when a record 251 drugs were declared in short supply.

* DIDN'T PRESIDENT OBAMA TAKE OFFICE IN JANUARY OF 2009...???

* TO BE CONTINUED...

William R. Barker said...

* CONTINUING... (Part 2 of 3)

This year, slightly more than 100 were placed on the list, and workers say the battle to keep pharmacy shelves stocked continues unabated. The list of hard-to-find medicines ranges from basic drugs like the heart medicine nitroglycerin to a lidocaine injection, which is used to numb tissue before surgery.

* SEE NO EVIL... HEAR NO EVIL... HEY... WHAT'S WITH THE NYT - DIDN'T THEY GET THE MEMO...?!?!

“When you can’t treat basic things - cardiac arrest, pain management, seizures - you’re in trouble,” said Dr. Carol Cunningham, the state medical director for the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s emergency services division. “When you only have five tools in your toolbox and three of them are gone, what do you do?”

* PERHAPS THE PRESIDENT CAN SIMPLY "DEEM" THERE TO BE ENOUGH MEDICINE! I'M SURE HARRY REID WOULD RAM A SENATE RESOLUTION THROUGH BACKING THE "DEEMING!"

Dr. Margaret A. Hamburg, the FDA. commissioner...

* OBAMA'S FDA COMMISSIONER...

...said in an interview this week that she was “guardedly optimistic” that the shortage crisis was abating.

(*PURSED LIPS*)

“I think there’s been an enormous amount of progress,” she said. “We’re seeing real change in the number of shortages that we’re able to recognize early.” More than 150 new shortages have been prevented this year, according to the agency.

* "HAVE BEEN PREVENTED...?!?!" ISN'T THAT LIKE ASKING FOR A PAT ON THE BACK FOR FAILING... BUT NOT FAILING AS BADLY AS ONE MIGHT HAVE FAILED...???

(*SNORT*)

Erin Fox, who tracks supply levels for a broader range of drugs at the University of Utah, said once a drug became scarce, it tended to stay scarce. The university’s Drug Information Service was actively tracking 282 hard-to-find products by the end of the third quarter of this year, a record.“The shortages we have aren’t going away — they’re not resolving,” she said. “But the good news is we’re not piling more shortages on top.”

* JEEZUS... LOOKS LIKE MY ABOVE REMARK WAS RIGHT ON TARGET! BASICALLY THEY'RE SAYING "IT COULD BE WORSE." FOR CHRIST'S SAKE... IT CAN ALWAYS BE WORSE!

In 2011, prompted by emotional pleas by cancer patients and others who said the drug shortage was threatening lives, President Obama issued an executive order requiring drug makers to notify the FDA. when a shortage appeared imminent.

* TO... NOTIFY...

(*PURSED LIPS*)

The agency also loosened some restrictions on importing drugs...

* BUT... BUT... BUT... ISN'T ANOTHER TERM FOR "RESTRICTIONS" er "PROPER AND NECESSARY GOVERNMENT REGULATION BY EXPERTS WHO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE DOING...???"

(*SMIRK*)

...and sped up approvals by other manufacturers to make certain medicines.

* BUT SURELY THE PREVIOUS "SPEED" WAS THE SPEED PREVIOUSLY CITED AS "NECESSARY AND PROPER" BY THE EXPERTS AT THE FDA...

(*SNICKER*)

* TO BE CONTINUED...

William R. Barker said...

* CONCLUDING... (Part 3 of 3)

A law passed this summer contains several provisions aimed at improving the situation, including expediting approval of new generic medicines...

* FOLKS... THIS WILL ONLY COMPOUND THE ROOT PROBLEM THAT OUR EXISTING PATENT LAWS ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM... NOT THE SOLUTION! THE COMPANIES WHO TAKE THE RISKS TO DEVELOP MEDICATIONS NEED TO BE GIVEN LONGER - NOT SHORTER - PATENT PROTECTION AND MORE RATHER THAN LESS PROFIT PARTICIPATION IN GENERIC MANUFACTURE AND SALE OF PRODUCTS THEY ORIGINALLY DEVELOPED AFTER PATENT PROTECTION CEASES!

...and requiring the agency’s enforcement unit to better coordinate with its drug-shortage officials before it takes action against a manufacturer.

* FOLKS... THE GOVERNMENT CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS! EITHER THEIR REGULATIONS - AS WRITTEN - ARE NECESSARY OR THEY'RE OVERKILL AND COUNTER-PRODUCTIVE! WHAT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION IS REALLY SUGGESTING IS A POLICY OF CONSTANT WAIVERS... MEANING REGULATIONS MEAN WHAT THEY SAY ONLY WHEN GOVERNMENT SAYS THEY MEAN WHAT THEY SAY BUT IF NOT... WELL... THEN THEY DON'T! (REMEMBER THE OBAMACARE WAIVERS TO MAINLY DEMOCRAT CONSTITUENCY GROUPS... LIKE UNIONS?)

Federal drug officials trace much of the drug shortage crisis to delays at plants that make sterile injectable drugs, which account for about 80% of the scarce medicines. Nearly a third of the industry’s manufacturing capacity is not running because of plant closings or shutdowns to fix serious quality issues. Other shortages have been caused by supply disruptions of the raw ingredients used to make the drugs, or by manufacturers exiting the market.

* FUNNY HOW THAT "OR BY MANUFACTURERS EXITING THE MARKET" IS TACKED ON AT THE VERY END...

(*SMIRK*)

Some people have accused the FDA. of causing the shortages, saying overzealous enforcement and poor communication have led plants to close needlessly or to slow production.

* UH... YEAH...

Others have cited economic factors, like market pressures and reimbursement policies that have set prices so low that some companies have stopped making certain drugs.

* YEAH... DUH!

Earlier this week, several Democratic members of Congress asked the Government Accountability Office...

* THAT'S THE "JUNKET" AGENCY... YOU KNOW... FIVE STAR CONFERENCES TO DISCUSS MATTERS LIKE... er.... WHERE TO HOLD THE NEXT FIVE STAR CONFERENCE.

(*SMIRK*)

...to investigate whether the practices of so-called group purchasing organizations, which buy drugs on behalf of hospitals, was contributing to the shortage.

(*JUST THROWING MY HANDS UP*)

Regardless of the cause...

(*SNORT*)

* WAY TO REPORT, NYT...!!!

(*SARCASTIC CLAP-CLAP-CLAP)

* THERE'S MORE... BUT YOU GET THE GIST.

William R. Barker said...

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2012/11/16/thousands-of-lax-workers-set-for-walkout-on-thanksgiving-eve/

Employees at Los Angeles International Airport were considering plans Friday to walk off the job ahead on what is traditionally the busiest traveling day of the year.

* TWINKIE, ANYONE...?

A coalition of Southland labor and "community leaders" are calling for the protest of alleged violations by LAX contractor Aviation Safeguards (AVSG) after breaking their contract with the airport earlier this year.

* HOW THEY "BROKE THE CONTRACT" ISN'T QUITE CLEAR...

Andrew Gross-Gaitan, the director of the Southern California Airports Division of SEIU...

* AH... SEIU...

...told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO that AVSG left more than 400 LAX workers without affordable family health care when it failed to comply with the city’s Living Wage Ordinance.

* WHAT'S THIS HAVE TO DO WITH BREAKING A CONTRACT?

* AND IF THEY'RE IN VIOLATION OF THE LAW... SHOULDN'T THE LAW BE DEALING WITH IT...???

As many as 1,000 airport workers and union supporters...

* AND... UNION... SUPPORTERS...

* WELL, FOLKS... MANY AMERICANS WANT US TO BE EVER MORE LIKE EUROPE. SEEMS AS IF THEY'RE GETTING THEIR WISH!

...are expected to march on Century Boulevard just as an estimated 1.8 million passengers are expected to travel through LAX over the holiday weekend.

In March, SEIU workers staged a protest outside the Tom Bradley International Terminal, but despite some congestion, passengers were not prevented from entering the building. This time, however, Gross-Gaitan would not dismiss the potential for severe disruptions to airport operations during the protest. “It’s entirely possible there will be significant travel delays,” he said.

* IF ONLY THE INCONVENIENCE COULD BE LIMITED TO THOSE WHO VOTE DEMOCRAT...

(*RUEFUL SNORT*)

William R. Barker said...

* TWO-PARTER... (Part 1 of 2)

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/11/16/ranchers-farmers-brace-for-death-tax-impact/?intcmp=trending

Rancher Kevin Kester works dawn to dusk, drives a 12-year-old pick-up truck and earns less than a typical bureaucrat in Washington D.C., yet the federal government considers him rich enough to pay the estate tax -- also known as the "death tax."

"There is no way financially my kids can pay what the IRS is going to demand from them nine months after death and keep this ranch intact for their generation and future generations," said Kester, of the Bear Valley Ranch in Central California.

Two decades ago, Kester paid the IRS $2 million when he inherited a 22,000-acre cattle ranch from his grandfather. Come January, the tax burden on his children will be more than $13 million.

For supporters of a high estate tax, which is imposed on somebody's estate after death, Kester is the kind of person they rarely mention. He doesn't own a mansion. He's not the CEO of a multi-national. But because of his line of work, he owns a lot of property that would be
subject to a lot of tax.

"Our number one goal is to repeal the estate tax, to get rid of it, not have it for every generation, when I die and my kids die and so on," he told Fox News. "For everyone to have to re-purchase the ranch or farm over and over for each generation, that's inherently unjust. So
what we're doing is asking our politicians to understand that and repeal the estate tax."

That, however, is unlikely.

Currently, the federal government taxes estates worth $5 million dollars and up at 35%. When the Bush-era tax rates expire in January, rates increase to 55% on estates of $1 million or more.

* FOLKS... I CAN SEE THE ARGUMENTS BOTH FOR AND AGAINST THE ESTATE TAX. IT'S A COMPLICATED ISSUE AND WHILE I COULD DISCUSS IT AT LENGTH AND THROW OUT A BUNCH OF ARGUMENTS AND SCENARIOS THAT WOULD ARGUE BOTH PRO AND CON, ONE BELIEF I HAVE IS SET IN STONE: IT IS UNJUST ON IT'S FACE FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO DEMAND MORE THAN HALF OF A PERSON'S INCOME... OR INHERITANCE. END OF STORY.

While some Republicans want to eliminate the death tax entirely, President Obama has proposed a 45% rate on estates of $3.5 million and up.

* OK. PERHAPS OBAMA AGREES WITH ME. 45% STILL SEEMS OUTRAGEOUS TO ME... BUT IN THEORY ANYTHING BELOW 50% IS A REASONABLE STARTING POINT FOR NEGOTIATION.

"The idea behind the estate tax is to prevent the very wealthy among us from accumulating vast fortunes that they can pass along to the next generation," said Patrick Lester, director of Federal Fiscal Policy with the progressive think tank -- OMB Watch. "The poster child for the estate tax is Paris Hilton -- the celebrity and hotel heiress. That's who this is targeted at, not ordinary Americans."

* THAT'S THE THING, THOUGH... IT'S THIS WHOLE IDEA OF "TARGETING" THAT RUBS ME THE WRONG WAY. IF AN ESTATE TAX IS MORALLY AND ETHICALLY JUSTIFIABLE THAN SHOULDN'T ALL INHERITANCES BE TREATED EQUALLY....?

* AGAIN, FOLKS... AS REGULARS KNOW I'M WILLING TO ACCEPT THE CONCEPT OF A "PROGRESSIVE" TAX... BUT IF YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A TAX THAN NO ONE SHOULD PAY ZERO JUST AS NO ONE SHOULD PAY MORE THAN HALF HIS OR HER INCOME/INHERITANCE.

* TO BE CONTINUED...

William R. Barker said...

* OOP... make that a THREE-PARTER... which makes this (Part 2 of 3)

[A]ccording to the American Farm Bureau, up to 97% of American farms and ranches will be subject to an estate tax where the exemption is set at $1 million.

* IS DESTROYING (WHAT'S LEFT OF) FAMILY FARMING REALLY THE GOAL OUR GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE PURSUING...?

Many Democrats argue the tax promotes equality among classes, especially in capital gains -- or stocks passed from one generation to another.

* AND THIS IS WHERE I'M SYMPATHETIC TO THE REASONING BEHIND AN ESTATE TAX...

Since stocks are only taxed when they are sold, the government can't profit from long-term investments without the estate tax.

* HERE I'M LESS SYMPATHETIC. I MEAN... IF THE STOCKS AREN'T SOLD THEN THE ONLY PROFIT IS FROM DIVIDENDS... AND THE GOVERNMENT ALREADY TAXES DIVIDENDS.

"Very large portions of very wealthy estates are tied up in stocks and they have never been taxed," said Lester.

* SO...? AGAIN... ANY DIVIDENDS WERE TAXED! THE MONEY USED TO BUY THE STOCKS WAS ORIGINALLY TAXED!

"The estate tax is one of the ways we make sure the wealthy pay a little bit more as an overall share of their wealth and income compared to low-income individuals."

* A LITTLE MORE...?!?! 55% IS DEFINED AS "A LITTLE MORE...?!?!" COM'ON... IF WE'RE GONNA DISCUSS THIS LET'S AT LEAST BE TRANSPARENT ABOUT WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT!

Many Republicans argue the opposite. Because the estate tax falls on assets, they say it hampers investment by reducing incentives to save and invest.

* BUT THAT'S THE FAULT OF THE TAX CODE WHICH REWARDS THE "GAMBLING" ASPECT OF STOCK AND BOND INVESTMENT AND PUNISHES (RELATIVELY) THE DIVIDEND ASPECT - THE VERY ASPECT WHICH NEEDS TO BE CHAMPIONED!

* IN OTHER WORDS, FOLKS... THE GOVERNMENT HAS IT ALL BACKWARDS!

* TO BE CONTINUED...

William R. Barker said...

* CONCLUDING... (Part 3 of 3)

A pending estate tax could become a disincentive to invest in an otherwise viable business, forcing older people to liquidate or shift resources out of an ongoing business and into a trust or tax-free investment.

* THAT'S ANOTHER THING... WHY SHOULD THERE BE SUCH A THING AS "TAX-FREE INVESTMENTS?" DOESN'T "TAX-FREE" INVESTMENT GO AGAINST THE VERY CONCEPT OF EVERYONE PAYING "THEIR FAIR SHARE?" HOW IS ZERO A "FAIR SHARE?"

* AND BACK TO THE TAX CODE... THE TAX CODE THAT CREATED/ALLOWS CERTAIN TAX-FREE INVESTMENTS...

(*PAUSE*)

IT'S THIS SAME TAX CODE WHICH SETS UP THE RULES ALLOWING THESE TRUSTS TO SHELTER MONEY! WHY...?!?! AGAIN... DOESN'T THIS GO AGAINST THE CONCEPT OF EVERYONE PAYING HIS OR HER "FAIR SHARE" WITH A TRANSPARENT PROGRESSIVE TAX CODE...?

"We're not millionaires in the terms of making a million dollars a year," said Kester who lives in a modest home and whose family -- not outsiders or a corporation -- runs his ranch. "I have a half-a-million dollars in soil."

Kester can't spend it, without selling land.

* YEP...

But by selling the land, each year the ranch would become less viable.

* YEP...

The estate tax dates back to 1916 when then-President Woodrow Wilson imposed the tax of 1% to 10% on the wealthy because World War I reduced federal government revenues.

* NOT TO BE A STICKLER... BUT WASN'T IT CONGRESS WHICH IMPOSED THE TAX...??? (JUST SAYIN'...)

Under Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the tax rose to 77%, as Congress tried to prevent wealth from becoming concentrated among a few powerful and super-rich families.

* YA MEAN LIKE... er... THE KENNEDY FAMILY...?

* SARCASM ASIDE, TWO POINTS: 1) AS PREVIOUSLY NOTED, I FIND ANY DEMAND BY GOVERNMENT TO OVER HALF OF A PERSON'S INCOME/INHERITANCE TO BE ILLEGITIMATE AND TYRANICAL; 2) DID THE AVERAGE RICH PERSON SUBJECT TO THE FACE TAX OF 77% ACTUALLY PAY 77% OR WERE THERE LOOPHOLES AND SHELTERS WHICH ALLOWED THE DEMS TO CAMPAIGN OF SUCH "TOUGHNESS" WHILE ALLOWING THE RICH DEMS TO ESCAPE ACTUAL TOUGHNESS. (JUST CURIOUS...)

Ironically, many nations historically more concerned with class and wealth -- namely Russia and China -- have since abandoned their estate taxes.

* THEY'VE GONE FULL CIRCLE AND BECOME FULL-BLOWN OLIGARIES, THAT'S WHY. WHILE THERE REMAIN "CLIQUES" WITHIN THE POWER STRUCTURES OF THESE NATIONS THERE'S NO LONGER THE ILLUSION OF FUNCTIONING MULTI-PARTY DEMOCRACY.

William R. Barker said...

* TWO-PARTER... (Part 1 of 2)

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121117/AUTO01/211170359/EPA-rejects-bid-to-relax-ethanol-mandate

The EPA on Friday rejected a request from eight governors and nearly 200 members of Congress to waive requirements for the use of corn-based ethanol in gasoline, after last summer's severe drought wilted much of the nation's corn crop.

* OBAMA'S EPA.

(*SHRUG*)

The move is a victory for corn farmers who have seen corn prices jump 400% in recent years. But it is a loss for pork and beef producers who say the diversion of corn to ethanol raises feed prices and ultimately prices at the supermarket.

* FOLKS... CORN-BASED ETHANOL IS BAD. PERIOD. IT'S BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND BAD FOR CONSUMERS. THE ONLY PEOPLE IT'S GOOD FOR ARE CORN FARMERS AND THE ETHANOL INDUSTRY ITSELF. THIS IS CRONY CAPITALISM AT IT'S MOST BASIC.

Automakers have clashed with ethanol advocates and opposed boosting the percentage of ethanol. They argue that higher concentrations of ethanol in gasoline — which may be necessary in order to meet stepped-up minimums for annual ethanol usage — can harm engines in most vehicles on the road today.

* THAT'S A MINOR CONSIDERATION. KEY CONSIDERATIONS ARE ENVIRONMENT AND ECONOMIC. ETHANOL BURNS 25% LESS EFFICIENTLY THAN GASOLINE AND THEREFORE YOU GET LOWER GAS MILEAGE... DECREASING MORE AS YOU ADD MORE ETHANOL TO THE MIX AND LESS GASOLINE! (PLUS THE OTHER ADVERSE ECONOMIC EFFECTS ALREADY ADDRESSED...)

The EPA said Friday it had not found evidence to support a finding of severe "economic harm" that would warrant granting a waiver of the
Renewable Fuel Standard.

* OH, PLEEEASE...!!!

The law was signed in 2007 by President George...

* SO...?!?! BUSH WAS A MORON!

...W. Bush and requires production of increasing quantities of ethanol.

* AGAIN... LET ME SPELL IT... M*O*R*O*N...

* TO BE CONTINUED...

William R. Barker said...

* CONCLUDING... (Part 2 of 2)

"We recognize that this year's drought has created hardship in some sectors of the economy, particularly for livestock producers," said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation. "But our extensive analysis makes clear that congressional requirements for a waiver have not been met and that waiving the RFS will have little, if any, impact."

* IN A WORD: BULLSHIT!

Michal Rosenoer, biofuels policy campaigner at Friends of the Earth, criticized the EPA decision. "If the worst U.S. drought in more than 50 years and skyrocketing food prices are not enough to make EPA act, it falls to Congress to provide relief from our senseless federal support for corn ethanol," he said.

* YEAH... GOOD LUCK WITH THAT... (SPEAKING OF MORONS... CORRUPT MORONS...)

"The RFS is a broken policy — rather than giving us clean energy, it's incentivizing biofuels like corn ethanol that are exacerbating our
economic and environmental problems.

* DO TELL...!!! (HERE'S THE PROBLEM; OBAMA DOESN'T CARE. NOR DOES HARRY REID. NOR DO REPUBLICANS WHOSE CONSTITUENTS INCLUDE A LOT OF CORN FARMERS...!!!)

* AGAIN... PEOPLE... I HEREBY APPROVE A MILITARY COUP!

(*BANGING MY FIST ON THE TABLE IN FRUSTRATION*)

"Congress needs to cut corn ethanol from the RFS entirely to protect the economy and the environment from this destructive and dirty fuel."

* BUT THEY PROBABLY WON'T...

(*SIGH*)

* FOLKS... AGAIN... NO SARCASM, ONLY TRUTH... IT'S OBAMA'S EPA. HE CAN OVERRULE ITS FINDINGS... ITS DECISIONS.

This year's corn yield could fall nearly a billion bushels short of 2011's yields due to the drought.

(*SIGH*)

The governors of Maryland and Delaware, also home to poultry producers, told the EPA in October that without a waiver they would face "the loss of thousands of jobs."

* LIKE THE EPA CARES...

(*SNORT*)

North Carolina, New Mexico, Georgia, Texas, Virginia, Utah and Wyoming also asked the EPA to waive the requirements.

Food producers, including restaurant chains and the makers of frozen food, have criticized the mandates, saying they raise food prices.

* BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY IT DOES RAISE FOOD PRICES...!!! DUH...!!! HARD TO ARGUE WITH FACTS...!!!

This is the second time the EPA has rejected a Renewable Fuel Standard waiver request. In 2008, Texas was denied a waiver.

* ONE... MORE... FRIGGIN'... TIME: GEORGE W. BUSH WAS A MORON.

In August, a top United Nations official urged the Obama administration to suspend ethanol requirements as fears of food shortages grew around the world.

(*SIGH*)

* FOLKS... EVEN THE FRIGGIN' UN GETS IT RIGHT EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE! GOOD FOR THEM!