Monday, May 24, 2010

When a public pension is a trust fund

Mark Hemingway: When a public pension is a trust fund Washington Examiner
"And what about the other 3,704 retired New York public sector employees collecting six-figure pensions?

According to the Congressional Research Service, the mean income for private sector retirees is $31,757.

The CRS figure doesn't count the value of health care, which most retired public employees get for free or at minimal expense to them.

The CRS figure does include the average Social Security payout, which almost all public sector employees get on top of their generous pensions."

2007 Heritage Flight Promo

2007 Heritage Flight Promo www.asb.tv

"2007 is the tenth anniversary of the United States Air Force Heritage Flight.
Over 200 million people have watched the Heritage Flight, making it the most popular air show program in history.
AirShowBuzz made this video to acknowledge the good work of the Heritage Flight and the proud Air Force history it represents."

Wow!
The chills flow during this video.

One false move in Europe could set off global chain reaction

One false move in Europe could set off global chain reaction
"If one or more fail to make the expected progress on cutting budgets, restructuring economies or boosting growth, it could drain confidence in a broad and unsettling way.
Credit markets worldwide could lock up and throw the global economy back into recession."

GOVERNMENT ASSISTED THUGGERY

GOVERNMENT ASSISTED THUGGERY?

D.C. Metro Police Escorted SEIU Protesters to Bank Of America Executive’s Home.
“Meanwhile, a teenage boy is home alone, frightened by what’s happening outside his front door.”

When tea-partiers show up on politicians’ doorsteps — and they will — I don’t want to hear any talk of “fascist tactics.”
We’re already seeing that, and the press and pundit class, for the most part, doesn’t care.
Just remember, every act sets a precedent.

Related: “They are the feral vanguard of a collapsing system, using violence and intimidation to make it clear those not favorably connected to the political power structure will be sacrificed to preserve it, for as long as possible.”

This is an outrage and not a peep out of the liberal MSM.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Jamaica declares emergency in capital after attacks

Jamaica declares emergency in capital after attacks Reuters
"Jamaica declared a state of emergency in two parishes of its capital Kingston on Sunday after shooting and firebomb attacks on police stations by suspected supporters of an alleged drug lord who faces extradition to the United States."

Check your cruise reservations!

Why losers have delusions of grandeur

Why losers have delusions of grandeur - NYPOST.com
"Charles Darwin observed that “ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge.”"

Don't Rule Out a Double Dip Recession - WSJ.com

Don't Rule Out a Double Dip Recession - WSJ.com

Republican Djou wins U.S. House seat - Hawaii News

Djou wins U.S. House seat - Hawaii News
"The celebration at Hawaii Republican Party headquarters was barely 15 minutes old as Charles Djou, the GOP's newest darling, had already moved past the historic victory and turned his sights toward the general election in November."

Multiculturalism Trumps Feminism - Mark Steyn

Multiculturalism Trumps Feminism - Mark Steyn

I wrote last week about the American Academy of Pediatrics' support for Female Genital Mutilation-lite - a 'ritual nick'.

In return, I received a remarkable number of letters asserting I'd invented the whole thing.
Not so.
You can find chapter and verse and here.

One reason why readers think we rightwing madmen are just making this stuff up is because of the shameful silence (and worse) of western feminists, who implicitly accept a two-tier sisterhood, in which some women get to lead the lives they choose while others, in the interests of 'cultural sensitivity', get a literally rawer deal that begins with FGM and, if they're really unlucky, ends with 'honor killing'.

So I'm happy to salute the great Tina Brown, a fully paid-up Clinto-Blairite but not one prepared to descend into barbarism.
Over at her Daily Beast, Miss Brown has published a tough and unsparing column by Ayaan Hirsi Ali on what the AAP's 'nick' really means - and where it leads.

I have one tiny quibble with the e-mail alert Tina sent out:
Do read the extraordinary piece by Ayaan Hirsi Ali this morning on The Daily Beast on the outrageous proposal from the American Academy of Pediatrics to 'nick' little girls, a slippery slope to tolerating genital cutting in the U.S.—Tina Brown

'Genital cutting' is itself a euphemism.
In its 1998 policy position, the AAP used the phrase 'female genital mutilation'.
A decade on, they prefer to call it 'female genital cutting' - 'mutilation' being regarded by cultural accommodationists as too judgmental.
At the rate this slippery slope is greased, you can guess where we'll be in another decade.
05/23 09:23 AMShare"

The depravity of the liberal left is stunning!

Plans for a 13-storey mosque at Ground Zero provoke anti-Muslim backlash

Plans for a 13-storey mosque at Ground Zero provoke anti-Muslim backlash - Times Online
"Plans to build a 13-storey mosque and Islamic centre two city blocks from Ground Zero in New York are provoking an anti-Muslim backlash in America."

How do you say "in your face" in Islam?

Build a giant mosque at Ground Zero!

"Exclusive Followup: Identity & Union-Democrat Ties of Fake Tea Party Petition 'Organizer' Revealed"

OutsideLansing.com OutsideLansing.com is a production of Chetly Zarko and Zarko Research & Consulting.
"Exclusive Followup: Identity & Union-Democrat Ties of Fake Tea Party Petition 'Organizer' Revealed"

GREAT blog-research to find the demo-union scum behind the voting scam to disenfranchise Michigan voters!

Too bad the Michigan MSM is asleep again.....

Steele: 'Is Joe Sestak lying right now?' on White House job offer

Steele: 'Is Joe Sestak lying right now?' on White House job offer - POLITICO Live
"DNC Chair Tim Kaine, appearing along with Steele, was asked by host Chris Wallace: 'Should the white house answer the question openly and honestly instead of stonewalling?'

Kaine replied, 'I don't know stonewalling, I'm not sure what obligation they have.

If the question gets asked, it's something they should deal with.'"

Craven coward!

Palin accuses Obama of being in bed with big oil

Palin accuses Obama of being in bed with big oil
"The former vice presidential candidate and Alaska governor, who champions off-shore drilling, criticized the media for not drawing the link between Obama and big oil and said if this spill had happened under former Republican president George W. Bush the scrutiny would have been far tougher.

'I don't know why the question isn't asked by the mainstream media and by others if there's any connection with the contributions made to president Obama and his administration and the support by the oil companies to the administration,' she told Fox News Sunday."

Drawing lines: Counties, cities, townships villages, school districts. Is it time to take some places off the map?

Drawing lines: Counties, cities, townships villages, school districts. Is it time to take some places off the map?

Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell made local government consolidation the keynote of his State of the City speech at the beginning of the year.
"The greatest gift we could leave for our grandchildren would be a consolidated government," Heartwell said.

Interesting comment.

I guess outing the public employees union member's ever increasing wages and benefits sorta slipped his mind.

So, our grandchildren will be best gifted by more union and politician control over fewer groups of us pathetic citizens?
Hitler, Mao, Hugo, et al would be proud.

Health Care Bill Handouts to Big Labor Have Already Begun... Don't Say We Didn't Warn You

Health Care Bill Handouts to Big Labor Have Already Begun... Don't Say We Didn't Warn You

Indy 500 starting lineup

Indy 500 starting lineup - IndyCar.com

Stealth Unionization Plot Survives Another Attempt to Kill It

Stealth Unionization Plot Survives Another Attempt to Kill It [Mackinac Center]
"Another attempt to stop the funding of the government agency tied with stealth unionization of home day care workers was defeated this week.
This time, an amendment to House Bill 5838 would have spelled out that the Michigan Home Based Child Card Council would have its funding yanked.

It was defeated by a 62-44 vote."

Local democrats Bennett and senate candidate MaryValentine voted with the union thugs.
Every democrat, save one, voted to keep this outrage.

Every GOPer voted to end it.

Remember in November!

Whittaker Chambers: The New Deal as Revolution

»Whittaker Chambers: The New Deal as Revolution - Big Government
"When Chambers finally realized the administration was apathetic to the traitors in its midst, he had to reassess what he knew of FDR and his policies.
In his classic autobiography, Witness, he describes how this rebuff affected him:"

Obama Has Enraged the "Citizen Class"

Austin Hill : Obama Has Enraged the "Citizen Class"
"While an overwhelming majority of the citizen class supports Arizona’s effort to uphold the significance of citizenship and sovereignty, President Barack Hussein Obama has sided with the United Nations, Venezuelan Dictator Hugo Chavez, China, and the President of Mexico in opposing the state of Arizona.

One would hope that the President of the United States – any President of the United States – would seek to protect all fifty of the states that he governs from international criticism, even if he didn’t happen to like the behavior of one of his states.

But our current President stands united with some of the most thuggish regimes in the world, in opposing his fellow Americans of Arizona."

Investigators: Edmonds rape suspect deported nine times

Investigators: Edmonds rape suspect deported nine times KING5.com Seattle Area Local News
"Madrigal's arrest and immigration record includes a staggering number of contacts with law enforcement since 1989.
That's the year he was convicted of theft using a firearm in California.

He was deported a couple of times after that.
Then in 1999, he was arrested for drug sales in both San Diego and San Francisco.
Records show that he was deported three times that year between April and August.

He was arrested for drugs again in Stockton, Calif. in 2000.
In 2002, he pleaded to third degree sexual assault in Denver. Later that year, he was deported again.
And in 2003, records show he was deported three more times."

And Obama's democrat henchmen are more outraged by the AZ law that the reality of America today.

Stealth IRS campaign mandates millions of new 1099 tax forms

Stealth IRS campaign mandates millions of new 1099 tax forms
"But SMC's survey found that extending 1099s just to services purchased from corporations would push that number to at least 200 filings per year for a typical small business -- adding an estimated $6,000 to the cost of preparing the average tax return.

And that's without even accounting for the requirement that 1099s be filed for purchases of goods"

Sell Everything, You Won't Recognize America By The End Of The Year

Dow Theorist Richard Russell: Sell Everything, You Won't Recognize America By The End Of The Year

"Do your friends a favor.
Tell them to 'batten down the hatches' because there's a HARD RAIN coming.
Tell them to get out of debt and sell anything they can sell (and don't need) in order to get liquid.

Tell them that Richard Russell says that by the end of this year they won't recognize the country."

Quotes of the day

Quotes of the day
"City government was developed to serve its citizens.

Today the citizenry is working in large part to serve the government.

It is always hard to shrink government spending.

It is particularly difficult when public-sector unions have such a unique lever of pressure.We have to escape this cycle or it will crush us."

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Prosecutors lay out case in garbage cart bid rigging scheme

Prosecutors lay out case in garbage cart bid rigging scheme - chicagotribune.com
"A day after Chicago's inspector general said a Daley administration program to boost minority- and women-owned businesses in city contracts is beset with fraud, federal prosecutors laid out for a judge how they think a politically connected firm rigged a $1.7 million contract."

Jet-Setting Dave Matthews Wants You To Walk To Work

Jet-Setting Dave Matthews Wants You To Walk To Work
"“What I try and do is try and, with the knowledge that I have, is offset my contribution to [carbon emissions].

I think people that don’t move around as much as me can take a bike when it’s a nice day.”

You MUST watch all of this. Finally the perfect answer to, “Celebutard says what…?”

CNS reporter Nicholas Ballasy asks a simple question and what follows are three-plus minutes of what would make for a howlingly funny SNL skit if only SNL had the courage to pop their heads out of the bubble and seek to “get it” once again.

It’s probably time to move beyond howling “hypocrite” when we’re presented with revealing moments like this.

Celebrity and elitist hypocrite are now tied together as automatically as Patrick Goldstein and Polanski-supporting blacklister or Robert Rodriguez and race-hustling demagogue.

The entertainment value, however, never grows tiresome."

America's new culture war: Free enterprise vs. government control

America's new culture war: Free enterprise vs. government control
"In one, America will continue to be an exceptional nation organized around the principles of free enterprise -- limited government, a reliance on entrepreneurship and rewards determined by market forces.

In the other, America will move toward European-style statism grounded in expanding bureaucracies, a managed economy and large-scale income redistribution.

These visions are not reconcilable."

D.C. to begin using more-expensive Trojan condoms in HIV prevention program

D.C. to begin using more-expensive Trojan condoms in HIV prevention program
"High school students and college-age adults have been complaining to District officials that the free condoms the city has been offering are not of good enough quality and are too small and that getting them from school nurses is 'just like asking grandma or auntie.'"

Williams sisters back at Nos. 1-2 at French Open

Williams sisters back at Nos. 1-2 at French Open - Yahoo! News
"PARIS – Serena and Venus Williams are the French Open's two top-seeded women"

Amazing!

P-38

http://p38assn.org/newsletters/current.htm

Michigan Teacher Salary

Michigan Teacher Salary Teaching Salaries in MI: $54,739
"Michigan is fourth on our comfort scale because there are great lakes and good teacher salaries.

New teachers make an average starting salary of $35,557 and an average overall salary of $54,739.

If you enjoy natural beauty, snowy winters, and desire an affordable lifestyle, this northern state is a great place to become a teacher.

Teachers that have a Master's Degree live even better in Michigan - but you'll be comfortable with a standard teaching certificate if you don't mind a few less canoe and hunting trips or a cabin in the UP!"

No mention of hours worked or benefits and still $54,739 average pay.

But the unions tell us WE need to pay more.

Will we cut our income so the teacher's union members can have more of our money to spend?