Well, Now We're Stuck With It

At least until the Supreme Court can weigh in and save us from this mess. Either that or we get the bill repealed.

Obama and the Health Care Bill

Make sure to check out the button.

When to Cooperate... and When to Debate

Michael Ramirez has a great image that illustrates the Republican side of the Healthcare Debate.

The Democrats keeping saying they want the Conservatives to help pass healthcare reform and stop slowing the process. However, I think the Republicans are doing what their constituents want them to do, block a bad piece of legislation.

Great TARP Infographic

This is a wonderful infographic about TARP funds and where they've gone. I'm not sure we can ever say that this was a successful use of American taxpayer dollars. The infographic provides some sense of scale for the massive bailout for businesses from the Obama administration.

How can we convince them to stop wasting our taxes?

Thoughts on Obama's Recent Speech

Overall, I'm not too impressed with President Obama's speech (full text courtesy of the LA Times). The main issue I have is how his troop announcement came with a timeline. Very bad. Read the notes below.

1. Paragraphs 5-6 – I’m glad he mentions the international and bipartisan nature of the beginning of the conflict. The US didn’t just ‘go rogue’ in Afghanistan.
2. Paragraph 8 – Blame Bush comes in. Notice there is no defining the largely bi-partisan vote that went into this decision.
3. Paragraph 10 (end) – If the efforts have been hampered by “insufficient Security Forces,” then why has it taken so long for Pres. Obama to make the decision to send more? He had information on what was needed before he even officially took office (note the highlighted text in the domestic speech, and see the international press confirmation) .
4. Paragraphs 21-28 – This actually sounds fairly presidential. President Obama states the case that most ‘right minded’ Americans know. I like the reference to extremists apprehended ‘within our borders.’ Everyone knows the danger to the US, and Democracy, will “only grow if the region slides backwards.” And Obama acknowledges this is a global threat, one that needs more participation from our allies.
5. Paragraph 33 - You’re giving a timeline for withdrawal already? Really? If you’re going to “tak[e] into account conditions on the ground,” then shouldn’t you leave it at that? What if everything is not copacetic by your deadline? Or, being the intelligent folks they are, what if the enemy simply decides to disappear until after the deadline? And just 2 years? Are you kidding me? That’s not nearly enough time to get the job done. This is troublesome. Of course, the date is no coincidence. July 2011 is basically campaigning season for Presidential candidates. It’s far enough away from the election day to claim “Leaving Afghanistan” as a political victory, while close enough to election day to help ensure security won’t totally go to sh!t before the (possible) reelection for candidate Obama.
6. Paragraphs 40-43 – I agree with President Obama’s stance on Pakistan. I think we need to have closer ties to the nation if we are to have lasting influence in the region. Concentrating solely on Afghanistan would not solve the problem.
7. Paragraphs 46-46 – I’m glad Obama puts to rest the whole “Afghanistan is Vietnam” mantra. It couldn’t be further from the truth. His main point, ‘they attacked us first,’ is germane to the whole reason we’re there.
8. Paragraph 49-55 – So, President Obama wants to include a timeframe to establish a “reasonable cost” so we don’t go beyond “our means?” Why not simply define the objectives and leave when they’re done, instead of informing the enemy you plan to pull out? And does he think we can’t rebuild the economy without cutting costs in the War on Terrorism? He’s sadly mistaken about what will actually help the economy. If limiting the National Debt and building our economy were really more than mouthed words to him, he would work to reassure businesses here at home that his policies won’t put them in the poor house. So far, he hasn’t been a big supporter of free enterprise (Note the sub-heading “Creditors Take Hit”) and contract law.
9. Paragraph 56 – If the “struggle against violent extremism” won’t be finished quickly, why the heck is he going to cut and run in Afghanistan after only 2 years?
10. Paragraph 57 – Confront extremists with “pressure and strong partnerships?” Yeah, because that’s worked so well in Iran.

President Obama Doesn't Like You, America

It's abundantly clear to me that President Obama has problems with America, what we should stand for and who our allies should be. He's ignoring history and the lessons we've learned. Instead, he seems to kowtow to our enemies and snub our friends. The latest snub? Not appearing in Germany at what is arguably one of the great moments in modern history.

Paul Rahe, at Power Line Blog, has a great write up.

"If we are to comprehend what is going on, we must pay close attention not only to what Obama says but to what he conveys in other ways. His tone is nearly always moderate but what he hints at and what he intimates by way of body language often convey the opposite Witness his warm embrace of Hugo Chavez. Behind the thin veneer of politeness, there is, I suspect, something ugly lurking. In the first of the autobiographies that he claims to have written, Barack Obama frequently speaks of himself as being in the grips of rage. We would do well to take him at his word."

Reading his words really brought home how little the current president thinks of this nation. Read the whole article.

This is How I Feel

It seems odd that the Dems and Obama are trying to go ahead with a public option to healthcare reform when all of the evidence points to the fact that it will simply increase costs and decrease quality for everyone. Of course, Obama could always just disagree with the guy who happens to have a PhD. in economics. I mean, if the dictionary is wrong, who's right?

I still say that expanding healthcare coverage and reducing costs are competing goals that cannot be achieved at the same time.

The Way to Win in Afghanistan

I have immense respect for Steven Pressfield after reading his novel, Gates of Fire. In his online blog, he turns his critical eye on Afghanistan and the current conflict there. Most agree there needs to be a change in the way we conduct the war there, if we plan to 'win.' It's obvious to embedded reporters, like Michael Yon, that the war is not going well. General McChrystal believes we can win, but only if he is given the right tools and the resources needed to fight.

The question to ask is,"Who are we fighting in Afghanistan and how do we figth them?" Stephen Pressfield's answer is very telling. See the initial article in the continuing series on how we need to rethink the conflict.

Simply having more troops will not work. We need to refocus our energy and create a real alliance with the tribes in Afghanistan.

Our Leader Looks Like a Wimp Compared to... The French??

Okay, something is wrong when the French President is tougher on Iran than the US President. I mean, doesn't this quote sound like some Bizzarro world version of a news story, "[French] President Sarkozy in particular pushed hard [to confront Iran]. He had been "frustrated" for months about Mr. Obama's reluctance to confront Iran, a senior French government official told us, and saw an opportunity to change momentum." Instead, we find Obama didn't want to spoil his 'image of success' for the first UN meeting he attended.

So, we have a President who causes the French to say, "America needs to be tougher." A President who is more concerned with the appearance of success instead of actually doing real work for success. Wow. Could an "inexperienced" leader, like Sarah Palin, have done any worse?

Hat Tip - Powerline

Wow!! Do We Have Another President Wishing to Reform Language?

So, the last president to get into language peccadilloes was a Democrat who carefully guided the conversation about his philanderings, and if he lied about them. This time, we have a Democrat who won't acknowledge the new healthcare bill would be a tax on people, even though the bill itself includes the word "tax" not once, but twice.

Guess what, when you try to set yourself up as the lone authority on EVERYTHING, people tend to believe you have dictatorial tendencies and stop trusting you. See the video of Obama attempting to singlehandedly redefine the English language below.

A Short, Powerful Article

One phrase I've heard before is about a "war to the knife." The idea is that you fight hard, until the job is done, even if you have to get up close. This means fighting until your enemy is well and truly defeated and not capitulating because the way is hard for you.

Today, I read a great article in Real Clear Politics by David Warren. His article talks about how the Allies stopped short of completing the job in WWI, which inevitably led to WWII. He rightly points out that something similar happened in Iraq during the first Gulf War, which necessitated the need for Gulf War II to finish the job and remove the destabilising dictator, Saddam Hussein.

As Warren continues his article, he points to mistakes happening now, mistakes that are allowing our War on Terror to flag and weakening our country. That he manages to cover all of this so clearly in under 800 makes this a must read article.

Hat Tip - Hot Air

Obama's Plan to Help HR3200

So, in the wake of the vigorous debate and reaction against the Democratically sponsored legislation to reform Health Care in the US, President Obama feels it is necessary that he step forward to clarify the Federal Government's position.

Michael Ramirez's cartoon pre-sages how successful this will be.

The BS Package is Not Working

This article from the Washington Post gives a really good report on the BS Package and why the economy isn't really moving. Of course, the 'BS Package "was mostly a political exercise, designed to claim credit for any recovery, shower benefits on favored constituencies and signal support for fashionable causes." The author mentions the package was "an orgy of politically appealing spending increases and tax breaks." As if we didn't see that coming.

With an open ended spending bill that no one read being rushed through, of course the authors are going to put in a bunch of projects they couldn't fund otherwise. And, of course, there are issues with oversight and fraud in any government program, especially one as large as this. Heck, the bill isn't even creating jobs, as it was intended to do1.

Tell me again why we had to rush passage of this bill?

1 - Notice the date on the articles, February vs. May. Same Network, different news.

Friday Stimulus Funny

This wouldn't be so funny, except it's true.

The BS Package has produced no new jobs, it's intended goal. In fact, the job numbers are worse than those projected for the country by Obama's administration if we had 'done nothing.'

Hat Tip - Hot Air

The Press Might Finally Be Waking Up

When is an open forum not an open forum? When all of the questions are known ahead of time and the audience is there by invitation only. That is the issue with the Town Hall Meeting planned for today. Luckily, the press is waking up to this tight control on dissenting views.

According to Helen Thomas, a reporter with the Associated Press, "not even Richard Nixon tried to control the press the way President Obama is trying to control the press."

I just wonder when the rest of the press corp will wake up and smell the coffee.

Can We Opt Out of Socialism, Please?

What is Socialsim? A short answer can be found in Wikipedia, where they define Socialism as "Any one of various economic theories of economic organization advocating state or cooperative ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of good." So, in Socialism, the State controls businesses, either in part or in whole.

Keep this in mind as you think about how Obama's Federal government tries to get its hands in everything. Government tries to manipulate the economy, with questionable effects. Government intervenes in previously private businesses and banks that are "too big to fail."

Now, even though Obama's budget deficit will be historically high, Obama wants to step in, spend even more money and muddle about with our private health care system. An aside: How does government interference help restore or rebuild our economy? Answer: It doesn't.

This scares me more than most of the other systems, since it has the potential to do several things, none of them good. I've listed some of the effects below.

First, it will INCREASE the cost of care, not decrease it. We would have to fund the system twice, both as patients and as taxpayers. When we go to the doctor, most Americans would still have to pay money out of pocket for service. In addition, taxpayer money would have to go into paying for the administration of this system. And we all know how efficient government administered programs are.

Second, there will be fewer doctors and fewer specialists to treat everyone. Don't believe me? Then quickly review this New York Times article about how the current government run healthcare system, Medicare, is working.

The recommendation from the article seems to be that individuals should find "Concierge Medicine" in their area. The anecdote provided at the end illustrates how coverage in concierge medicine, coverage for services not covered by government funding, saved a person's life. Would a government paid doctor answer the phone after business hours to offer life-saving services? As mentioned above, even with "Government Healthcare," individual spending for appropriate, necessary, life saving care is necessary.

Finally, we would have face a shortage of service. This is the really scary effect, one that will kill people. With fewer doctors and specialists, rationed health care is garunteed. Look at the evidence provided by this video.



With all of these effects of Socialism, why is Obama pushing us further in that direction?

Awesome Friday Funny... Burn!!

I saw this video and knew I had to share.

The sad thing about this video is it pretty accurately portrays what Obama has done with our tax dollars.

Anti-Gun Treaty

Call you Senators and tell them to vote against ratification of the SIFTA treaty. See this video to learn more about this gun registration treaty Obama wants to pass.

At least Senator Barrasso has it right. Our Second Amendment right should not be curtailed. Of course, when you have an anti-gun presidency, you have to work hard to protect those rights.

Gangster Government on the Rise

The United States is supposed to be a Republic. Our nation was founded on the rule of law, to help protect smaller and less popular ideas from being snuffed out by the rule of the mob, which we would see in a Democracy. In a Republic, laws and contracts apply to all individuals equally. However, our new Federal government seems to be changing that.

This article outlines how Obama's leadership is "undermining the legal and financial stability of the United States." And it's not the only article to notice our President's disdain for the rule of law. The articles touch on some major ways in which Obama's organized labor friends are receiving preferential treatment, instead of being treated equally under the law. Of course, influence pedaling and corruption is the Chicago way.

In addition to issues relating to Unions and other cronies , the Obama administration is interfering in our open banking system. This includes forcing certain private banks and financial organizations, such as Citibank, to take TARP money. This, in turn, gives the Federal Government a say in how these companies are run. This is not open business.

So far, with Obama's administration, we've seen bigger government being more intrusive in our businesses and everyday lives. Couple this with some of the losses of freedoms from Bush's push against terrorism with the misnamed Patriot Act and it's a dangerous mix. This is not how we made this nation great.

The recent tea parties, far from being partisan protests, show more that people are ready for the Federal government to step back out of our lives. If we are to succeed as individuals and as a nation, we need the Federal Government to get out of our way instead of laying down road blocks.

I believe it was Thoreau who said, "That government is best which governs least." On that note, I think we need a better government.

Hat Tip - Hot Air

Obama is Not Really Helping the Economy

This video is scary. Not only are we in tough economic straits, but apparently the tax money give away that started with Bush and went rampant with Obama is not really helping things.

One thing that struck me is the accounting rules that changed recently. Oh my gosh! It appears that, instead of trying to acurately report items, banks and financial institutions (with the help of our Federal Government) said, "Let's just change how we report things to mak eour balance sheets look better."

I also agree with Black about the bogus stress tests. It's a FARCE and a SHAM! And we know this based on the real facts, not the revised accounting numbers. How do we know the tests are a sham? Stress test doesn't test for asset quality. And, as Black states, "How can the banks all pass the stress test if they collectively need $2 Trillion in U.S. Taxpayer money?"

Also, the whole idea that we can simply inject capital into the banks to make them solvent is ILLEGAL! Black states, "The prior administration violated that law and the current administration is violating that law."

I love his almost blunt answer to the question, "Tim Geitner's the Treasurey Seceratary. Doesn't he know what he's doing?" He starts to say, "No," but backs off and gives a more politic answer, although going on to offer MOUNDS of evidence detailing how Geitner is not qualified.

Watch the whole thing to understand just how screwed up things are right now.