The VAT Cometh - by Charles Krauthammer

WASHINGTON -- As the night follows the day, the VAT cometh.
With the passage of Obamacare, creating a vast new middle-class entitlement, a national sales tax of the kind near-universal in Europe is inevitable.

We are now $8 trillion in debt. The Congressional Budget Office projects that another $12 trillion will be added over the next decade. Obamacare, when stripped of its budgetary gimmicks -- the unfunded $200 billion-plus doctor fix, the double counting of Medicare cuts, the 10-6 sleight-of-hand (counting 10 years of revenue and only 6 years of outflows) -- is at minimum a $2 trillion new entitlement.

It will vastly increase the debt. But even if it were revenue-neutral, Obamacare pre-empts and appropriates for itself the best and easiest means of reducing the existing deficit. Obamacare's $500 billion of cuts in Medicare and $600 billion in tax hikes are no longer available for deficit reduction. They are siphoned off for the new entitlement of insuring the uninsured.

This is fiscally disastrous because, as President Obama himself explained last year in unveiling his grand transformational policies, our unsustainable fiscal path requires control of entitlement spending, the most ruinous of which is out-of-control health care costs.

Obamacare was sold on the premise that, as Nancy Pelosi put it, "health care reform is entitlement reform. Our budget cannot take this upward spiral of cost." But the bill enacted on Tuesday accelerates the spiral: It radically expands Medicaid (adding 15 million new recipients/dependents) and shamelessly raids Medicare by spending on a new entitlement the $500 billion in cuts and the yield from the Medicare tax hikes.

Obama knows that the debt bomb is looming, that Moody's is warning that the Treasury's AAA rating is in jeopardy, that we are headed for a run on the dollar and/or hyperinflation if nothing is done.

Hence his deficit reduction commission. It will report (surprise!) after the November elections.
What will it recommend? What can it recommend? Sure, Social Security can be trimmed by raising the retirement age, introducing means testing and changing the indexing formula from wage growth to price inflation.

But this won't be nearly enough. As Obama has repeatedly insisted, the real money is in health care costs -- which are now locked in place by the new Obamacare mandates.

That's where the value-added tax comes in. For the politician, it has the virtue of expediency: People are used to sales taxes, and this one produces a river of revenue. Every 1 percent of VAT would yield up to $1 trillion a decade (depending on what you exclude -- if you exempt food, for example, the yield would be more like $900 billion).

It's the ultimate cash cow. Obama will need it. By introducing universal health care, he has pulled off the largest expansion of the welfare state in four decades. And the most expensive. Which is why all of the European Union has the VAT. Huge VATs. Germany: 19 percent. France and Italy: 20 percent. Most of Scandinavia: 25 percent.

American liberals have long complained that ours is the only advanced industrial country without universal health care. Well, now we shall have it. And as we approach European levels of entitlements, we will need European levels of taxation.

Obama set out to be a consequential president, on the order of Ronald Reagan. With the VAT, Obama's triumph will be complete. He will have succeeded in reversing Reaganism. Liberals have long complained that Reagan's strategy was to starve the (governmental) beast in order to shrink it: First, cut taxes -- then ultimately you have to reduce government spending.

Obama's strategy is exactly the opposite: Expand the beast, and then feed it. Spend first -- which then forces taxation. Now that, with the institution of universal health care, we are becoming the full entitlement state, the beast will have to be fed.

And the VAT is the only trough in creation large enough.
As a substitute for the income tax, the VAT would be a splendid idea. Taxing consumption makes infinitely more sense than taxing work. But to feed the liberal social-democratic project, the VAT must be added on top of the income tax.

Ultimately, even that won't be enough. As the population ages and health care becomes increasingly expensive, the only way to avoid fiscal ruin (as Britain, for example, has discovered) is health care rationing.
It will take a while to break the American populace to that idea. In the meantime, get ready for the VAT. Or start fighting it.

Nanny Calls Summit on Texting While Driving

"The Obama administration will convene a summit of experts to figure out what to do about the problem of texting while driving."

Experts? Teen-aged girls? Seriously, who is an expert on this? This kind of crap drives me insane!

The follows right in line w/ increasing taxes on tobacco, sodas, fast food, output of atmospheric gases, transportation(oil and gasoline), heating and cooling (coal). Nanny Barry wants to legislate your personal activity to control your life and dictate your activities to meet their ideological goals. Before inauguration day some pundits conjectured that Barry wanted to be loved, be a great President and get a second term. I say they are wrong; that was Billy Jeff Clinton, the glory hound. Barry is an ideologue. He wants to "transform" the country - his words, not mine.


That is why, I believe, he and Rahm and Nancy and Reid and all the other Reds in DC are rushing everything to the floor for votes. The transparency they so loudly boasted was coming under Democrat rule died before it ever saw the light of day. Not one piece of proposed legislation has been posted online for the 48 or 72 hours of review they claimed it would be. Barry and his ilk want to hurry and push through as much transformational legislation that we will have a very tough time overturning legislatively - if ever. They also know that if they get the unions more power and money they are almost ensured re-election in perpetuity. They can do this through EFCA, immigration "reform" (read: amnesty for illegals), government giveaways, control (manipulation) of the census.


They see money as power and they want both. They'll tax you into oblivion, then give you your money back as they see fit - only for doing the things they want you to do. Make no mistake, taxes are going up on everyone - indirect taxes you'll pay in the form of higher prices and income taxes. Have a great day!

See a good recap of the situation around the above posters here.

Uh-oh....not the change he was talking about.

I normally don't have much use for polls. I think you can make them say whatever you want them to say by changing up a few words in the questions / making them a bit confusing / less straight-forward. But we'll assume Rasmussen is reliable and respectable. Barry went negative for the first time a week or two ago, then hit -2, -3.... Now this week he's hit -5 and -8 in two straight days of reporting.

Is it the growing deficit for this year, the mounting national debt, the 2009 Euorpean/ Mid-East apology tours he's been on, the lack of transparency he's pushing with Crazy-Eyes Pelosi and Whorehouse Harry, the capNtax / Gorebal Warming nonsense, the Sotomayor nomination, the nomination (and confirmation) of transnationalist Harold Koh, paying back the unions big time with the GM and Chrysler bailout/nationalization/restructure/screwing of the primary creditors, pushing EFCA, agreeing to a nuclear disarmament deal w/ Russia, staying silent on the Iran protestors, but siding w/the Leftist would-be dictator in Honduras in record time (with Castro, Chavez, et al), etc. etc. Quite a list off the top of my head.

So, maybe, just maybe the American Sheeple and starting to wake up and say to themselves, "This doesn't seem right. Maybe this isn't what I bargained for when I flushed my vote down the toilet and let the patients run the asylum." I hope I'm right and the tide is turning. Only time will tell, but it may already be too late save the ship.

And some random notes from the news......

Holy crap. Big Nance did something I actually agree with. Don't know why she did it, and for now, I don't care. This Rep. Jackson-Lee is a whack-job. She's been pimping this resolution so much it is sickening. Check out this nice recap at RedState.com. As a bonus you'll get to see Rep. Peter King (R-NY) turn a nice little partiotic piece into a great tirade against MJ and the media. I don't agree with the guy on everything he says and does, but on this one, I think he's pretty much got it down.

Of course the money is going to those who put him in office. I don't necessarily think there is anything conspiratorial going on here. Like the article says, they are just signing checks and sending them out to whoever asks and maybe qualifies. If you look at a breakdown of the '08 Presidential voting like this one, with the county bubbles and county leaders filters, you see that Barry won in the NE, Midwest and West coast where there are large cities and mostly urban population centers. So if you ship the money off to big cities blindly, you end up giving the money to those who voted for you.

Dear lord! First he gets punked by Chavez in the whole sucker "book gift" photo-op at the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad, then he bows to the king of Saudi Arabia, bows the Putin, now he's glad-handing it with Qaddafi? WTF? I'm not buying this whole "repairing the US image around the world BS." You can "repair" our image without making us look like the class punk whose next in line to get his head flushed down the toilet after gym class. This guy doesn't know the first thing about earning respect. Kissing ass just gets you laughed at and used. If America has been so horrible that he needs to "transform" it, why have we been the lone superpower in the world for the last two decades?

And a good story to end the day. Video of a guy who fought off a car jacking punk in Florida. It's great to see the good guy win!

More Random News from the World

Arrogant a**holes

Top Notch Security by our Nanny.gov

From the "No Sh*t Department" ... we have this.

But wait, Barney has a new plan. I'm sure THIS ONE will work out better......pure thievery.

Great QB, community servant, bad husband/father, Crazy woman. All the cheaters out there better be careful- I'm sure this story has them sweating. This story really pisses me off on so many levels.

Check the chop-shop. They may be stripping him down for parts. Can we move on from this now? Finally? Please?

And a nice long article on Leftist tactics and the mouth foaming hatred of Sarah Palin. For now, I think she made a mistake, but we'll see. I heard someone say on the radio the other day, that the problem conservatives (and libertarians, for that matter) have is that we don't see politics as our life or our religion, but the Progressives do. It is their reason for being; 24/7, everything relates to politics and nothing is sacred or off-limits. The ends just about always justify the means. How do you argue with that energy, drive, hatred, when all you want to do is enjoy your private life, family, friends, and working hard to succeed and provide a future for your kids?

If any combination of Cap N Trade, ObamaCare, Amnesty for Illegals and EFCA passes into law, I fear we are all done. Turn out the lights, the parties over.

"Economic power is exercised by means of a positive, by offering men a rewared, an incentive, a payment, a value; political power is exercised by means of a negative, by the threat of punishment, injury, imprisonment, and destruction. The businessman's tool is values; the bureaucrat's tool is fear." --- Ayn Rand

No More Green Guilt - By Keith Lockitch

I pulled this article from Glenn Beck's free daily email / newsletter. The article appeared in his bi-monthly Fusion magazine. I think it pretty well sums up the issue with listening to the wacko enviro-terrorists and

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Every investment prospectus warns that "past performance is no guarantee of future results." But suppose that an investment professional's record contains nothing but losses, of failed prediction after failed prediction. Who would still entrust that investor with his money?

Yet, in public policy there is one group with a dismal track record that Americans never seem to tire of supporting. We invest heavily in its spurious predictions, suffer devastating losses, and react by investing even more, never seeming to learn from the experience. The group I’m talking about is the environmentalist movement.

Consider their track record—like the dire warnings of catastrophic over-population. Our unchecked consumption, we were told, was depleting the earth's resources and would wipe humanity out in a massive population crash. Paul Ehrlich's 1968 bestseller, The Population Bomb, forecasted hundreds of millions of deaths per year throughout the 1970s, to be averted, he insisted, only by mass population control "by compulsion if voluntary methods fail."

But instead of global-scale famine and death, the 1970s witnessed an agricultural revolution. Despite a near-doubling of world population, food production continues to grow as technological innovation creates more and more food on each acre of farmland. The U.S., which has seen its population grow from 200 to 300 million, is more concerned about rampant obesity than a shortage of food.

The Alar scare in 1989 is another great example. The NRDC, an environmentalist lobby group, engineered media frenzy over the baseless assertion that Alar, an apple ripening agent, posed a cancer threat. The ensuing panic cost the apple industry over $200 million dollars, and Alar was pulled from the market even though it was a perfectly safe and value-adding product.
Or consider the campaign against the insecticide DDT, beginning with Rachel Carson's 1962 book Silent Spring. The world had been on the brink of eradicating malaria using DDT—but for Carson and her followers, controlling disease-carrying mosquitoes was an arrogant act of "tampering" with nature. Carson issued dire warnings that nature was "capable of striking back in unexpected ways" unless people showed more "humility before [its] vast forces." She asserted, baselessly, that among other things DDT would cause a cancer epidemic. Her book led to such a public outcry that, despite its life-saving benefits and mountains of scientific evidence supporting its continued use, DDT was banned in the United States in 1972. Thanks to environmentalist opposition, DDT was almost completely phased out worldwide. And while there is still zero evidence of a DDT cancer risk, the resurgence of malaria needlessly kills over a million people a year.

Time and time again, the supposedly scientific claims of environmentalists have proven to be pseudo-scientific nonsense, and the Ehrlichs and Carsons of the world have proven to be the Bernard Madoffs of science. Yet Americans have ignored the evidence and have instead invested in their claims—accepting the blame for unproven disasters and backing coercive, harmful "solutions."

Today, of course, the Green doomsday prediction is for catastrophic global warming to destroy the planet—something that environmentalists have pushed since at least the early 1970s, when they were also worried about a possible global cooling shifting the planet into a new ice age.
But in this instance, just as with Alar, DDT, and the population explosion, the science is weak and the "solutions" drastic. We are told that global warming is occurring at an accelerating rate, yet global temperatures have been flat for the last decade. We are told that global warming is causing more frequent and intense hurricanes, yet the data doesn’t support such a claim. We are warned of a potentially catastrophic sea level rise of 20 feet over the next century, but that requires significant melting of the land-based ice in Antarctica and Greenland. Greenland has retained its ice sheet for over 100,000 years despite wide-ranging temperatures and Antarctica has been cooling moderately for the last half-century.

Through these distortions of science we are again being harangued to support coercive policies. We are told that our energy consumption is destroying the planet and that we must drastically reduce our carbon emissions immediately. Never mind that energy use is an indispensable component of everything we do, that 85 percent of the world's energy is carbon-based, or that there are no realistic, abundant alternatives available any time soon, and that billions of people are suffering today from lack of energy.

Despite all of that, Americans seem to once again be moving closer to buying the Green investment pitch and backing destructive Green policies. Why don't we learn from past experience? Do you think a former Madoff investor would hand over money to him again?
It's not that we're too stupid to learn, it's that we are holding onto a premise that distorts our understanding of reality. Americans are the most successful individuals in history - even in spite of this economic downturn - in terms of material wealth and the quality of life and happiness it brings. We are heirs to the scientific and industrial revolutions, which have increased life expectancy from 30 years to 80 and improved human life in countless, extraordinary ways. Through our ingenuity and productive effort, we have achieved an unprecedented prosperity by reshaping nature to serve our needs. Yet we have always regarded this productivity and prosperity with a certain degree of moral suspicion. The Judeo-Christian ethic of guilt and self-sacrifice leads us to doubt the propriety of our success and makes us susceptible to claims that we will ultimately face punishment for our selfishness--that our prosperity is sinful and can lead only to an apocalyptic judgment day.

Environmentalism preys on our moral unease and fishes around for doomsday scenarios. If our ever-increasing population or life-enhancing chemicals have not brought about the apocalypse, then it must be our use of fossil fuels that will. Despite the colossal failures of past Green predictions, we buy into the latest doomsday scare because, on some level, we have accepted an undeserved guilt. We lack the moral self-assertiveness to regard our own success as virtuous; we think we deserve punishment.

It is time to stop apologizing for prosperity. We must reject the unwarranted fears spread by Green ideology by rejecting unearned guilt. Instead of meekly accepting condemnation for our capacity to live, we should proudly embrace our unparalleled ability to alter nature for our own benefit as the highest of virtues.

Let’s stop wallowing in Green guilt. It’s time to recapture our Founding Fathers' admiration for the pursuit of each individual's own happiness.
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Keith Lockitch, PhD in physics, is a resident fellow at the Ayn Rand Institute, focusing on science and environmentalism.

The Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights is located in Washington, DC. It is a Division of the Ayn Rand Institute, whose mission is to advance Ayn Rand's ideas. To learn more go to http://www.aynrand.org/

Nanny Wants More Control - as Usual.

Last week I got an ordinary, non-descript, envelope in the mail from my power provider, Duke Energy. Here is what was inside.

If you can't read what it says, it is basically an "offer" from Duke to come out and install a "Power Manager" power meter (controller) on your A/C unit so that "when demand for power is especially high, the radio-controlled device turns your outdoor air conditioning unit off for only a few minutes each half hour...." (emphasis mine) This interruption "may occur between May 1 and September 30, Mon-Fri. But you can request to be excluded from the interruptions for one day each month. You have to request to control the temp in your own home!! And for handing over control of your A/C to Nanny, you get a $25 credit to your account! Does anyone believe that is a fair trade?? What price do you put on control of your own life and comfort? And this is only 1 of a growing list of ways Nanny is tightening her grip.

I like to keep my A/C on higher temps and use fans, open windows, etc. to save money. I do it by choice, in my own self-interest. I don't do it to "save the earth" or "reduce my carbon footprint." That may be a result of my action, and I'm fine with that. (even though I believe the global warming /climate change racket is the biggest con-job ever pulled)

Along the lines of government actions creeping over into and joining with the private sector is this group. USCAP, United States Climate Action Partnership, is a pretty scary group. The Other Mike S. has a good recap and breakdown here on his site, No Nanny State. My guess is that these companies are accomplishing three things by going this route. 1) They are going with public / government sentiment to try to stay alive, 2) get in the good graces with politicians so they don't get targeted more specifically (as if that is possible) with worse legislation, and 3) they see this as an opportunity to help craft the legislation in a way that allows them to survive / prosper and kick the crap out of their smaller competitors and scare off any start-ups from trying to compete with them. These companies will take a tax, fee, fine hit here in the US, but they'll just pass most, if not all of the cost increases on the consumer, and if they drive out competitors, they'll make up for the higher "cost" in increased market share and added revenue.

If you went to their home page and looked at the list of members, did you notice any companies you deal with? Did you see Duke Energy? Coincidence? I guess I can't really boycott Duke, unless I move out to the sticks and live "off the grid," but the others will definitely be getting less of my money. That is going to be a hell of a list to keep in my head.

Minnesota, You Idots‏

(Not Everyone, just those that voted for this guy or didn't vote)

Al Franken?!? This guy???


Hollywood gave him the money and you guys put him in (though likely with the help of ACORN and definitely with the help of the courts. Now the Socialists, err, Democrats in the Senate have a filibuster proof majority. Bend over folks, the "change" can get kicked into high gear at anytime (assuming it isn't already- I "hope" not). This guy is not qualified, has no sense of rational thought and will vote the Party line without even thinking.

Isn't the Senate supposed to be one of, if not the most, respected bodies in the nation? And no this clown is a member? Too bad it isn't funny.

Have to go scrub my eyes with a brillow pad now.

Quick! Look Over Here....

Look, I liked the guy. He was great. He was on TV almost every weeknight for decades. Ed McMahon was so comfortable with himself playing "second" to Johnny Carson. Many think he made Johnny better, setting up his jokes, laughing at the jokes, making his own, etc. And who could forget the Publisher's Clearinghouse work he did. Classic.

Never cared for Farrah, but can't say I watched her much. Maybe she was hot in her younger days. Beauty fades and from what I saw, she turned out to be nuts. Remember her appearance on Letterman years back?

As for MJ, I can't say I care much. Nobody, including me, ever wishes for, or rejoices in someone's demise, but..... is anyone surprised? He made good music, but his personal life was nuts and he may or may not have spent "alone time" with little boys. I can't respect that and I can't pretend to get all broken up over his death. And to top it all off, he was reportedly in debt to the tune of a "measly" $400M!!!! WTF???!?? He sold 61M albums in the US alone! How many people is he screwing over via this debt? Bye bye to all his music rights, his home, cars, cash on hand, furniture, art, dishes, bath towels, toothbrush, old noses, etc.

The media fawns and crowds weep. Meanwhile, back on the Hill, our duly elected distinguished leaders in the House took another step to royally screw the country (mainly taxpayers and businesses w/ out connections) with the Crap and Tax bill. Where is the media on this? UCLA med center trying to find out what MJ's last meal was. The utter dumbing down of our society is leading to the ruination of the country. Hopefully, nobody will die when ObamaCare or EFCA come up for a vote. Or God forbid there be a rainstorm, or a celebrity cat fight.

Can we talk about the N Korean's and their nukes? Can we talk about China looking to dump the dollar and not buy our debt any longer? The trillions we're printing? Harold Koh got confirmed by the Senate - anyone hear about that? He's a bad dude and, like Barry, wants to "transform" the nation. But, we lost MJ and Farrah ON THE SAME DAY!!!! OMG! For sure! What a joke.

Something New - Daily Reads

Since I don't really have the time, energy, motivation, words, etc to put together any rational and well thought out posts, I'm going to share some interesting articles and blog posts that I come across every day or two, or three. I'll try to add some commentary or a short summary with each link.


Articles
A little surprising when you consider all the monthly dues they rake in, but they did spend a TON of cash to get Barry et al into power. The union-owned golf course/country club in Michigan (for leaders, of course) is up to it’s eyes in debt too.

Ten-year notes didn’t sell too well, huh? No surprise – are you confident in the US gov / the dollar, enough to go 10-years long? 4% is considered high? I’d need something closer to 6 or 8% to even consider plunking my money down. 30-year bonds up for sale on Thursday. We’ll see how well that goes over.

Twenty years he spent as a member of this guy's church (but really, how often did he attend?) "Show me a man's friends, I'll show you who he is" or something along those lines.


USA Today - more good news.


Oil climbs

Are they F*%&^ing serious with this? I don’t even know what to say about this one.

Blogs
Some perspective on Barry's cost cutting in the budget from a few weeks back. I meant to put the video on here when I first found it, but I can't figure out how to post video on here in the 5 minutes I normally spend looking each time I think of it. Lack of an attention span is a kicker.

Michelle Malkin is hosting a little "contest" for the best "Photoshopped" Obamacare posters, most spun off of the old wartime morale boosting posters. I think these are my favorite 2 so far.








Nanny to own big stake in Citi. I think this was part of the power play all along w/ the preferred shares.

Nothing Much to Say Lately

I've got nothing to say that isn't already being said somewhere out in the media / blogosphere somewhere. I've been reading alot and taking it all in. There is not much good news currently or on the horizon. So, until I feel like I have something to add (as if anyone is really reading this and it is mostly for my personal venting, what's the point?) I guess I won't post anything else. I'll just prepare for the next "Greater Depression" and stock up on all manner of staples and supplies. Between Kim Jong Il, Barry, Osama, Bernanke and Geithner, Kennedy/Dodd healthcare bill, China buying everything (except our debt), yadda yadda yadda, I am not in the mood to write much or often. With that, I'll leave you with this letter I found over at Michael Bane's blog (link to his site on the right side of the screen).
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Snopes says this letter from Lou Pritchett to President Barry is the real deal....

AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA


Dear President Obama:


You are the thirteenth President under whom I have lived and unlike any of the others, you truly scare me.


You scare me because after months of exposure, I know nothing about you.


You scare me because I do not know how you paid for your expensive Ivy League education and your upscale lifestyle and housing with no visible signs of support.


You scare me because you did not spend the formative years of youth growing up in America and culturally you are not an American.


You scare me because you have never run a company or met a payroll.


You scare me because you have never had military experience, thus don't understand it at its core.


You scare me because you lack humility and 'class', always blaming others.


You scare me because for over half your life you have aligned yourself with radical extremists who hate America and you refuse to publicly denounce these radicals who wish to see America fail.


You scare me because you are a cheerleader for the 'blame America' crowd and deliver this message abroad.


You scare me because you want to change America to a European style country where the government sector dominates instead of the private sector.


You scare me because you want to replace our health care system with a government controlled one.


You scare me because you prefer 'wind mills' to responsibly capitalizing on our own vast oil, coal and shale reserves.


You scare me because you want to kill the American capitalist goose that lays the golden egg which provides the highest standard of living in the world.


You scare me because you have begun to use 'extortion' tactics against certain banks and corporations.


You scare me because your own political party shrinks from challenging you on your wild and irresponsible spending proposals.


You scare me because you will not openly listen to or even consider opposing points of view from intelligent people.


You scare me because you falsely believe that you are both omnipotent and omniscient.


You scare me because the media gives you a free pass on everything you do.


You scare me because you demonize and want to silence the Limbaughs, Hannitys, O'Relllys and Becks who offer opposing, conservative points of view.


You scare me because you prefer controlling over governing.


Finally, you scare me because if you serve a second term I will probably not feel safe in writing a similar letter in 8 years.


Lou Pritchett


About Lou Pritchett: Lou Pritchett is one of corporate America's true living legends- an acclaimed author, dynamic teacher and one of the world's highest rated speakers. Successful corporate executives everywhere recognize him as the foremost leader in change management. Lou changed the way America does business by creating an audacious concept that came to be known as "partnering." Pritchett rose from soap salesman to Vice-President, Sales and Customer Development for Procter and Gamble and over the course of 36 years, made corporate history.

Free Help?

Good quote I heard this week on the Dennis Prager Show, in relation to the government: "Every helping hand is a controlling hand." I was already told this week that this was very cynical, and maybe it is, but I think it is more realistic than anything, especially since it came in the context of "government help." Ever heard or read the line, "Relax, I'm from the Government. I'm here to help?" They probably aren't going to help, and they almost always want something in return.

The government doesn't give anything for free. There are usually more than tax in place or coming to cover the cost. Education isn't free, whether it's grammar school where property is generally taxed, state/Federal loans come with interest and now Barry wants the gov. to take over the whole student loan market. If you want a loan for college, you're going to have to give a few years in "public service" (read "Youth Corps" or "Brown Shirts"). Welfare and government housing aren't totally free. The gov. wants something in return or wants to tell you how to live. In most areas, guns are prohibited in public housing complexes. Can anyone explain the rationale there, let along the legality? The NRA just settled a lawsuit in January of this year with the San Francisco Housing Authority which had a inserted a clause in their lease ducments that banned guns in the public housing residences. They have agreed to remove the provisions and admited that they are not lawful. Score one for the good guys.

Personally, I think this can apply to other areas of life as well. I do not like being in debt to others, especially financially. I believe the adage that "the borrower is slave to the lender."

Barry Loves Big Labor

"Craig Becker and Mark Pearce are President Barack Obama’s nominees to fill two of three vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). .......Becker is associate general counsel to the Service Employees International Union and the AFL-CIO."

No shit, really? A lawyer for the SEIU and AFL-CIO? I said it before, it's all about payback now.

And how about this little piece of info that hasn't gotten much, if any reporting - Barry decided that the Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) in the U.S. Department of Labor can do without $4M of it's 2009 budget for 2010, a decrease from $45M to $41M. For anyone who doesn't know, this is the government agency that investigates fraud, embezzlement, etc. by union leaders and officials. It's a good thing that corruption is not a serious issue anymore in Big Labor. Did I miss that goernment report? It must have been released on a Friday afternoon.

Check out the link to this story over at Atlas Shrugs for a very solid rundown of the stories linking Barry w/ the SEIU and ACORN.

Barry's Disdain for America

I have not read such a complete and well documented article detailing the numerous acts of disdain and harming America as I have here. I don't know that I would go so far as to say Barry "hates" America, but he certainly doesn't love it as much as an American President should.

You could see it during the campaign when he repeatedly stated that he wanted to fundamentally "transform" and "change" America. Anyone who loves their country does not want to see it transformed. Improved upon, sure, but not transformed. Dennis Prager has written some great pieces on this issue, and honestly, is who I read to form this opinion. Mr. Prager has the best political and social commentary on American radio today. If he's not on in your market, you can stream his show online (12-3p) or join his site and get podcasts.

Back to Barry. I believe he is an amalgamation of left and radical left figures from throughout history. I do not think he has a single core belief or principle, but only acts as the social and political zealot playbook tells him he should act. He is not a religious man with a strong foundation of character as W. had (like him or not). This was obvious during the campaign and in reviewing his life history and voting record in Illinois and the US Senate. But look at how much he pressed that he was an avid church-goer, albeit not to a church most would recognize as one, but in the fact that he never joined a church or attended more than maybe one service in his first several months in office. He was in DC the whole time and never made it? I don't mind that he didn't go (I wish I could say I attended church more often), but why did he profess so strongly that he had a great church attendance record? It's all part of the facade; the illusion; the mask.

Glenn Beck asked this week if anyone had given much thought to what the country will look like later this year, or at the end of Barry's first term, given all the legislation he's passed and spending he's pledged - not to mention what he still wants to do. I fear we will not recognize the America of 2008 in 2012.

EFCA = "Barry and The Gang Screw the Country and American Business in Order to Pay Back Big Labor for all the Campaign Contributions....Act

The Employee Free Choice Act. Another proposed bill that is not what it says it is and doesn't do what it says it will do. It isn't about Employees; it's about unions and power. It isn't about free choice; it's about a forced choice, or no choice. It is the Grand Prize for the labor unions who donated millions of dollars from member dues to the Democrats in the past elections. And now it's time for Barry and The Gang to pay up on their part of the deal. You know what they say about payback.... but this time it’s the American Taxpayer and American businesses that will be hurt. Here is the first payment …

And the next payments are being drafted with the royal screwing of the primary stakeholders / creditors along with the American taxpayers in the proposed auto bankruptcy deals. O'bama is calling the creditors and tier 1 stakeholders "speculators" and is giving the UAW BILLIONS in cash, a major equity stake, the right to appoint a Board member, etc. It is good to have friends in high places.

So back to EFCA, aka "card check." Here's how it currently works - the short version:
A union decides to target a business. They can "Salt" the job with paid union organizers to get inside, or just hang out on the outside and get access to employees during non-working hours. The union gets enough employees to sign these cards in order to ask for recognition by the company or take a petition to the NLRB. This isn't the worst thing in the world because, as an employer, you are able to launch an information campaign to combat the lies and half-truths told by the union reps. It goes to an election WITH SECRET BALLOTS and if the union gets the votes, there is still no mandate to reach an agreement through negotiations.

Now, if/when card check is passed the unions only need to get 50% + 1 of the workforce or bargaining unit to sign the cards; and there are no expiration date on the cards. Cards signed before EFCA passes could theoretically be saved for use later on down the road. The union reps will be able to say whatever they want, or do whatever they want, to get the targeted employees to sign cards indicating that they are interested in being represented by the union. They can use intimidation, coercion, at lunch, after work, in the parking lot, at the bar, the grocery store, church, your kid's little league game, your house. Employees may sign for any reason - bad day, family problems, lies, fear, to be part of the crowd, don't want to get left out, or to get the harassment of them and their family to stop, etc. You don’t think harassment will take place? You don’t think fraud will take place?

Once the union gets the 50% +1, the game is over. No election, No Secret Ballots. No counter-campaign, no election, you are off to bargaining. Isn’t the right of casting your vote in privacy something we hold sacred in this country? Do Barry, his henchmen and all the Big Labor bosses want the poll workers to start going door to door to “ask” you to fill out your local and state ballots while a couple thugs stand behind them. The intimidation factor on this is huge! But whatever they can do to help the unions and screw business is just fine with them.

After the union gets the 50% + 1 you have 90-120 days to bargain. That might as well be a day. Nothing ever gets done that fast. If no deal is reached, both sides are subject to binding arbitration. So really, what the hell is the motivation for the union to bargain, at least with any semblance of good faith? They know Barry and his boys are waiting to set the deal in their favor! So they sit on their hands, or thumbs, and wait for the Federally mandated - and selected - arbitrator to swoop in, feign listening, and lay out the deal that will be in force for 2 YEARS! Some lawyer, or worthless bureaucrat, who has no idea about your industry, your company, your competitors, yours costs, your business hurdles, etc. will have final say on how you do business, what you pay, what you offer in benefits, time off, discipline process, etc. The companies that get hit with this first, will be at a serious disadvantage in the marketplace. Their only hope will be to hold on for dear life long enough to see all their competitors placed under the same disadvantages by this cluster of a process.
But here is the kicker – many union members don’t agree with EFCA. It is mostly the government and union leaders. Even some national politicians like Diane Feinstein and Arlen Specter have said they don’t support EFCA…. “in it’s current form.” Of course a few wording adjustments and they’ll fall right in line and claim it was changed or that it’s a new version, or even the old favorite, that it was a bi-partisan effort. Let’s all get ready to take it up the ….. again.

Arlen, Arlen, Arlen......

I have to admit I haven't followed the career of Arlen very much, up until last fall, so I've been doing some reading on the guy. What a creep. Weasel. Worm. Spineless. What else? First he was a Democrat, but ran with a Republican. Then switched to the GOP. Lost an election, won, lost, won, etc.

Just days before the switch, he said he would not leave the GOP because he thought he "played an important role" in maintaining a balance between the parties in the Senate. I guess a few promises from the Donkeys and/or the fear of having to enter private life again can make a weak man jettison his principles and character. Maybe this is his character, he already switched once in his career. Maybe he doesn't have any principles. Specter claimed the Republicans moved too far to the right for him to stay in the party. Who is he kidding? Who believes that? The Republicans have moved left in the last 20 years in an attempt to "expand the party" and increase membership. Our friggin' Presidential nominee wrote a pro-amnesty bill for illegal immigrants, wrote and passed a campaign finance "reform" bill that ended up hurting him and hurts the country in general, in pro-cap-n-trade / global warming "fix" and wouldn't take the fight to his political opponent on real and legitimate issues due to fears of not being politically correct or insensitve or whatever his lame excuse was. Specter was just making shit up to try to cover his butt and blame others for his lack of will and courage.

Arlen said in his presser announcing his latest switch, "I am not prepared to have my 29 year record in the United States Senate decided by the Pennsylvania Republican primary electorate." Wow! Honesty! Too bad he is proclaiming that this move isn't about issues, but is really about saving his own political ass.

So now he gives the Dems 59 votes. After the Minnesota disgrace, Stuart Smalley, gets into the Senate, they Dems will, for all intents and purposes, have the necessary 60 votes to push through any piece of crap legislation they want. EFCA - get ready. Socialized medicine - start taking your vitamins now and pray you don't get sick. Taxes, Federal debts, gun control, more welfare, anti-business legislations of all kind, the most liberal Supreme Court in decades coming into being and presiding for the next several decades to come, etc. etc. But Arlen says he's not going to be the automatic 60th vote. He doesn't have to be. He has Maine Senators Snowe and Collins to pick up the vote for him.

On the not-so-dark side, now everything that passes through the Senate that royally screws up the country will almost entirely have to be owned by the Dems. I doubt there are any clear thinkers outside the MSM who think Snowe and Collins will really count as republican votes or make any bill "bi-partisan."

It really is amazing what people will do to save themselves. He never was a Conservative and rarely voted like one. Specter had the balls this weekend to claim that the GOP is somehow to blame for Jack Kemp's death by not funding medical research. But in the next breath says that he has benefited from such research. The National Cancer Institute had a $4.8 billion budget in fiscal 2008 and has had in excess of $80 Bn since the early 1970's. This guy's a joke. The Dems are going to use him and then sabbotage him in the 2010 Democratic Primary. Who in their right mind is going to vote for him?