Subversive Phrase of the Day

A little noted rightwing extremist:

The extravagant expenditure of public money is an evil not to be measured by the value of that money to the people who are taxed for it. – Chester Arthur

FAA Approves Murtha Pork

Geesh:

The Federal Aviation Administration, after reviewing concerns about a project at a regional airport named after Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), has decided to go forward with plans to use $800,000 in stimulus funds to repave the airport’s alternate runway.

Late this afternoon, a spokesperson for the Department of Transportation confirmed that the department had completed its review and would be releasing the funds for the Johnstown, Pa., airport project.

DOT spokesperson Jill Zuckman said the review was undertaken after a “senior policy” official at DOT decided he wanted to reconsider the project, but she declined to identify who that was or detail the reason for the reconsideration. She said the runway’s concrete hasn’t been replaced in many years and is in need of repaving.

“The bottom line is it deserved the money based on the merits,” Zuckman said. “It’s not an earmark.”

The FAA had notified the John P. Murtha-Johnstown airport authority that the project was under review, and authority board members said press reports about other federal funding steered to the quiet regional airport was leading the FAA to reconsider the repaving project.

Shouldn’t a Congresscritter be dead before we allow anything to be named after him? Also, what sort of self-absorbed creep do you have to be to even allow something to be named after you while you’re alive? Is there anyone out there, finally, who thinks that Murtha shouldn’t resign?

Obama to Back Off on Releasing "Abuse" Photos?

Interesting:

From White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs’s press briefing today:

Q … Is this something that is being considered, by the president, for reversal? Or is this the policy that will go forward? And does he have any anxiety about the potential consequences of the release of these photographs?

MR. GIBBS: Well, obviously the president has great concern about any impact that pictures of potential detainee abuse, in the past, could have on the present-day service members that are protecting our freedom either in Iraq, Afghanistan or throughout the world. That’s something the president is very cognizant of. And we are working to — we are working currently to figure out what the process is, moving forward.

Q Does that mean the decision could be reversed?

MR. GIBBS: I don’t want to get into that right now.

Q So you can’t commit either way.

MR. GIBBS: I’m not going to add much to that right now.

This sounds to me as if the president is getting ready to reverse the decision of his Justice Department. I expect him to announce, perhaps citing his discussions today with General Odierno and Ambassador Chris Hill, that he’s decided it would be damaging to our soldiers and the nation to release these photos.

Two cheers for Obama is he does, in the end, refuse to feed the anti-American, defeatist left which wants the pictures merely to gin up hatred of America overseas. Every picture is worth 1,000 words – but each one of the words is a lie. Pictures are mostly worthless – and pictures of alleged abuse are more worthless than most. All these pictures would do is provide “proof” to our enemies (foreign and domestic) that we are evil and in need of destruction – fanning the flames of hatred and, in the end, causing people to be killed. We’re at war, and it isn’t time to provide our enemies with a handy club to beat us with – especially as there is no way to tell if any particular picture of “abuse” is really something resulting from an American violation of law, though all of them would be used as if they were just that.

And, now, my liberal friends – when will you call for Obama’s impeachment, if he does his duty as Commander in Chief and refuses to release the photos?

Run Shrieking in Fear, Americans…

Jimmy Carter is giving advice to Obama:

Jimmy Carter, who presidend over the oil crisis of 1979, told Congress Tuesday that America’s energy challenges are deeper and more urgent today than when he was president, but the solutions are the same.

Kinda like the skipper of the Titanic giving advice to the pilot of the Hindenburg…

Obama Voter Gets $250.00

Well, perhaps:

Millions of Americans on Social Security are receiving $250 checks as part of the president’s stimulus plan — including an Anne Arundel woman who died more than 40 years ago.

The woman’s son, 83-year-old James Hagner, said he got the surprise when he checked his mailbox late last week.

“It shocked me and I laughed all at the same time,” Hagner said. “I don’t even expect to get one my own self, and I get one for my mother for 43 years ago?”

His mother, Rose, died on Memorial Day in 1967.

Obama Cult of Personality Becomes Douple-Plus-Weird

I mean, you’ve got to be kidding me:

Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is threatening to pull state business from Wells Fargo & Co. unless the bank stops trying to liquidate a company that makes suits for President Barack Obama.

Giannoulias made the ultimatum outside a Hartmarx Corp. factory in Des Plaines Thursday. Chicago-based Hartmarx is the nation’s largest maker of men’s tailored clothing.

The name “Giannoulias” struck a bell, and then I remembered he’s an Obama protege – picked out early for elective office by the fast-rising Obama and now being groomed for a Senate run to obtain Obama’s former seat. I also remembered that Giannoulias was involved in some way with Obama’s partner in Illinois corruption, Tony Rezko – the Giannoulias family bank did a lot of business with Rezko. So, what we have here is the Illinois Democrat political mafia calling for a hit on someone who isn’t willing to pay protection (in this case, in the form of keeping employed a lot of SEIU union members who’s dues go in large measure to Democrat party coffers)…”that’s a nice, little financial institution you’ve got there, Mr. Fargo. Be a shame if anything was to happen to it…”. After all, its not like Obama’s got more going for him than tailoring and teleprompters, right? Wells Fargo is placing 50% of the Obama mystique at risk…

Hoyer: Investigate Pelosi

Are Democrats getting ready to eat one of their own?

The House majority leader reluctantly agreed Tuesday that congressional hearings should investigate Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s assertion that she wasn’t informed, more than six years ago, that harsh interrogation methods were used on an al-Qaida leader.

Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., called Republican challenges to Pelosi’s assertion a diversion from the real question of whether the Bush administration tortured terrorist suspects. Nonetheless, he acknowledged the controversy should be resolved.

Hoyer, of course, wants Pelosi’s job and the best way to get it is to force Pelosi to resign…and so calling for an investigation which everyone knows will show Pelosi is a liar is a good way to secure that. Also, Democrats are worried that in 2010 all the GOP will have to do to win swing districts is hang a picture of Pelosi next to the Democrat. Remember, the most important thing to a liberal Democrat is to hold on to office…anything which risks having a Democrat lose his place at the trough is living on borrowed time.

Misdirected Spendulus Funds

The news story:

Counties suffering the most from job losses stand to receive the least help from President Barack Obama’s plan to spend billions of stimulus dollars on roads and bridges, an Associated Press analysis has found.

Although the intent of the money is to put people back to work, AP’s review of more than 5,500 planned transportation projects nationwide reveals that states are planning to spend the stimulus in communities where jobless rates are already lower.

One result among many: Elk County, Pa., isn’t receiving any road money despite its 13.8 percent unemployment rate. Yet the military and college community of Riley County, Kan., with its 3.4 percent unemployment, will benefit from about $56 million to build a highway, improve an intersection and restore a historic farmhouse.

Altogether, the government is set to spend 50 percent more per person in areas with the lowest unemployment than it will in communities with the highest.

The AP reviewed $18.9 billion in projects, the most complete picture available of where states plan to spend the first wave of highway money. The projects account for about half of the $38 billion set aside for states and local governments to spend on roads, bridges and infrastructure in the stimulus plan.

Because government can’t get it right – its just not possible. You see, where the money is going to get spent is where the pull is the strongest…and poor districts just don’t have a lot of pull, ya dig? Even supposing that stimulus would improve the economy (it won’t, but for the sake of argument…), the plain fact of the matter is that like all government expenditures it will give an overwhelming amount of its aid to people who don’t need it. Who in heck needs a restored historic farm house? It ain’t some single mom who just had her hours cut. You think affirmative action actually helps poor, black people? What rock have you been living under?

Its a gigantic boondoggle passed on the run by corrupt, liberal Democrats who only care about one thing – getting re-elected…and you don’t get re-elected by helping poor people. Don’t you liberals understand that, at all? The only thing helping poor people gets you is that immense feeling of love and satisfaction…heck, do it enough and you might wind up a Saint with Our Lord saying, “well done, good and faithful servant”…and just what use is that at election time? To get re-elected – under liberalism, especially – you need to grease the wheels. You need to take care of certain people. Some of your backers need “walking around money”, don’t you know? Every penny spent actually helping the poor is a penny less spent helping you get re-elected…

Figure it out, liberals – you’re being scammed. You think your side is all about goodness, sweetness and light. Its not – its a disgusting, nauseating thing scurrying around on slimy legs…

Balancing the Budget

Obama is promising us multi-trillion dollar budget deficits on course to create about $8 trillion in new debt by 2017. Since we conservatives are aghast at this, it does fall to us to say what we’ll cut. So, taking the President’s budget we cut.

$20 billion for loans and grants for rural development.

$119 million for purchasing new Forest Service lands.

$6.9 billion for rural water treatment, internet connection, Forest Service facilities and home loans.

$230 million for NOAA habitat restoration.

$180 million for National Institute of Science and Technology facilities.

$50 million for the Economic Development Administration.

$2.5 billion for Action Completion and Incentive Fund.

$1.6 billion for Dept. of Energy basic science.

$3.4 billion for carbon capture.

$6 billion for cancer research.

$63 billion for the “down payment” on socialized medicine.

$1 billion for comparative effectiveness research.

$1.1 billion for the “Zero to Five” program.

$47.5 billion for the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (department closed)

$420 million for the Land and Water Conservation fund.

$1.4 billion for the Office of Detention Trustee.

$13.3 billion for Dept. of Labor (department closed)

$35 billion from Dept. of Transportation (bit less than 50% reduction).

$3 billion from EPA (removing proposed increase).

$1.1 billion for Corporation of National and Community Service.

$1.4 billion CVN-21 program.

$2.2 billion DDG-51 program.

$4 billion SSN-774 program.

$1.3 billion Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle.

$120 billion for 10%, across the board reductions in proposed increases.

So, I’ve cut $336 billion from the President’s proposals. I’m sure that in the far details we can cull enough to round it out to $500 billion in savings. Still means we have outlays of $3.09 trillion and expected revenues of $2.3 trillion – a $700 billion or so shortfall. So, just where to we scare up $700 billion on short notice?

Well, Uncle Sam owns 650 million acres of land – about 30% of the total US land area. Should be able to sell 10% of that, or 65 million acres, at $1,000 per acre (on average), there is $65 billion dollars.

There has got to be a couple hundred billion in continental shelf and other oil/natural gas leases.

It is said that the very wealthy hold about $20 trillion in wealth – land, trust funds, yachts…that sort of thing. Stuff which doesn’t get taxed because its not income. This is the wealth of Ted Kennedy, Jay Rockefeller, George Soros…you know, the fighters for the little guy in liberal politics. Well, its time for them to pony up and put their wealth where they have proposed to put our income…in to government, their great friend and benefactor of all Mankind. We’ll need about $450 billion from them – so, pay up, my wealthy friends. Its patriotic, don’t you know?

On the other hand, we can go for a round of tax cuts of various types to kick-start the economy (uh, we’re still keeping those $500 billion in spending cuts, boys and girls)…so, either Ted gives up the yacht to cover the deficit, or the American people are able to keep more of their money. Your choice, liberals.

Discuss.

Subversive Phrase of the Day

Given the rise of anti-Semitism in Islam and the so-called liberal West, this is an important quote:

It is not possible for Christians to take part in anti-Semitism. We are Semites spiritually. – Pope Pius XI