Monday, January 06, 2014

According to government accountants, WE are the liability------Obama's War Against the Elderly

Articles: Obama's War Against the Elderly
It has been plausibly argued that the government might raid your retirement account and replace your investments with Treasury bills or bonds, thereby compelling you to accept low interest rates and increased danger of inflation. This has already been done in several other countries.
You and your life insurance company want you to enjoy a long life. But frankly, your government wishes otherwise. 
If you are a typical retiree, your income tax has probably shrunk to the point where it's scarcely worth collecting. 
On the other hand, you've become an expensive liability, eating up Social Security and Medicare funds at an alarming rate.
This problem -- and you are considered a "problem" -- has been exacerbated by ObamaCare, which requires that two healthy young people enroll to support three older sign-ups. The young are not cooperating; in fact, many of them will have to be subsidized. The Democrats won't dare antagonize them, since they are one of their most important supporting groups. So guess who's going to get thrown under the bus. You are living too long and spending too much healthcare money to do so. You must be persuaded to gracefully depart.
One way is healthcare rationing. You probably laughed when Sarah Palin began talking about ObamaCare death panels. But perhaps the numerous articles in this website have induced you to consider them seriously. I fear that the coming year will vindicate Nancy Pelosi's famous prediction; we shall find out more about healthcare rationing as the ramifications of ObamaCare unfold during the coming year. (A shocking example of Obamacare discrimination against the elderly was exposed here.)
But that may not be enough to balance the budget. Old people who should die and won't die may have to be persuaded to die.
It will take time for our nation to become accustomed to assisted suicide. So far, only three states have legalized it and only a few hundred people have availed themselves of the opportunity. At present, the public is about equally divided on the issue while doctors seem to be 2 to 1 against it. It will take even longer to gain public acceptance of "persuaded" suicide but (as the gay marriage movement has taught us) radical changes in public moral norms can be achieved by patience and persistence.

Robbing the producers to pay the political contributors---------Record Profits for Warner Bros. Doesn't Stop State From Giving Company Huge Subsidy

Record Profits for Warner Bros. Doesn't Stop State From Giving Company Huge Subsidy [Michigan Capitol Confidential]:
"While Michigan taxpayers prepare to dole out $35 million to Warner Bros. for the filming of the expected blockbuster Superman-Batman movie sometime early in 2014, the company could be in for record profits.
In 2012, Warner Bros. had an operating income — profits that exclude interest and income tax expenses — of $1.2 billion, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
That's about the same amount the state of Michigan gives in general fund dollars to higher education and community colleges."

GUNS (Virtual State of the Union 2013)

 "In this segment of his Virtual State of the Union, the Virtual President talks about why politicians want to talk about gun control rather than crime control, and delivers the factual evidence and historical truths that make the case for the Second Amendment self-evident. "


Power to the People!-----------------California students sue state over ineffective teachers

California students sue state over ineffective teachers | Fox News:
"California’s laws surrounding teacher tenure, dismissal, and layoffs violate the state’s constitution — specifically, students’ right to an equal opportunity to access quality education — say nine students suing the state.
The trial is set to begin Jan. 27.
If they win, the effects could ripple across the country."

Hitler Gets Trapped in Sea Ice

Picture Of IBM Hard Drive On Airplane - Business Insider

1956 IBM hard drivePicture Of IBM Hard Drive On Airplane - Business Insider:
"This is a picture of an IBM hard drive being loaded onto an airplane in 1956. According to @HistoricalPics, which tweeted the picture, it's a 5 mega-byte drive, and it weighed more than 2,000 pounds.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/picture-of-ibm-hard-drive-on-airplane-2014-1#ixzz2pcA9A6rd"

CANCEL SKI AT HOFFMASTER TODAY. I WAS OUT!!!!!! ROADS AWFUL. STAY HOME AND READ A GOOD BOOK. WeMOG Monday Jan 6, 2014


CANCEL SKI AT HOFFMASTER TODAY.   I WAS OUT!!!!!!  ROADS AWFUL.  STAY HOME AND READ A GOOD BOOK.  
Meet at Hoffmaster ski trail, picnic shelter, at 12:55 Monday.  
Skis hit trail at 1:00 sharp.  
Snow shoers or hikers are also welcome.   
Length of ski, etc. depends on the weather.  
Ski conditions are optimal. 

Another scam to screw us?------State's plan to get rid of costly office leases moves ahead, but legislators have different idea

I'm thinkin' the ADA, fire safety and asbestos all existed BEFORE the professional estimate of what it was expected to cost. 
The "ESTIMATE".
State's plan to get rid of costly office leases moves ahead, but legislators have different idea | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"Crews have been renovating Constitution Hall floor by floor, but the nearby Mason Building on West Allegan has been completely vacated.
The project was estimated to cost $17 million initially, but is pegged at $27 million now.
The extra money will be used to make the restrooms comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, upgrade fire suppression, remove asbestos and pay for other mechanical improvements, Weiss said"

BIG STORY for the MSM-----1 reported dead in small plane crash in Aspen

Private planes crash all the time.
Occassionally in Aspen, CO.
But this is ASPEN!
And ASPEN is where the mega-rich MSM royalty calls "winter home".
And the "Bamas too!
So it's a big story...... gimme a break....
1 reported dead in small plane crash in Aspen | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"ASPEN, COLORADO — A private plane crashed and burned Sunday at an airport in Aspen, Colo., the Federal Aviation Administration said."

Remember the good old days?

1-5-2014


But it's not "cool" to have that talk--------Enough Pot Happy Talk

Enough Pot Happy Talk | RealClearPolitics:
"The risks associated with pot use must be discussed frequently and soberly so that all can recognize the downside threats.
Of course, legalization will encourage greater use. In turn, that greater use increases the risk of addiction illness, a lack of growth as individuals and workers, and a more non-productive society.
Normally, I'm a free-choice guy.
And I realize that I'm not going to be able to stop the legalization of pot. I can't control that. But I can raise some of these important issues.
Alcohol and drug addiction are huge problems in our society.
And it's not easy to get clean and sober once the disease of addiction sets in. So many people search for that great initial high, and they keep searching until they get hooked.
And if and when they get hooked, the costs and consequences are frequently catastrophic.
So no, I'm not going to completely oppose the legal sale of pot.
But this experiment should be studied carefully before the rest of the country decides to go forward with it.
Most of all, the legalization of pot needs serious and sober discussion -- not simply giddy reporting. "

Detroit ain't gonna "come back" with this level of "service"------Road commissions work to clear snow, but worry about Monday commute

Road commissions work to clear snow, but worry about Monday commute | The Detroit News:
"Not everyone in Metro Detroit is happy about snow removal.
David Morin, who lives on Michigan Avenue in downtown Pontiac, said he is still waiting for the streets to be plowed from last week’s storm."

Detroit's Official Policy is to NOT PLOW residential streets until 6" or more------Detroit residential streets to get plowed Monday

Detroit residential streets to get plowed Monday | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"At 6 a.m. Monday, contractors will start plowing Detroit’s residential side streets.
This is the third time this winter public works has implemented its residential street clearing plan, which kicks in when 6 or more inches of snow have accumulated, according to a release.
Contractors have 24 hours to complete their work.
City crews continue to salt and plow major roads."

Your Money in Pictures: The Top 5 Charts of 2013

SpendingByTheNumbers600649Your Money in Pictures: The Top 5 Charts of 2013:

And the "hits" just keep on coming......

History for January 6 - Joan, Hank, Sam, reality, American can-do, American grit, First Snoop Dog, Thunk, Scumbag

History for January 6 - On-This-Day.com

Joan of Arc: birth anniversary (1412-31).



1540 - King Henry VIII of England was married to Anne of Cleves, his fourth wife.



1838 - Samuel Morse publicly demonstrated the telegraph for the first time.



1900 - In India, it was reported that millions of people were dying from starvation.



1942 - The first commercial around-the-world airline flight took place. Pan American Airlines was the company that made history with the feat.



1945 - The Battle of the Bulge ended with 130,000 German and 77,000 Allied casualties.




1952 - "Peanuts" debuted in Sunday papers across the United States.



1994 - Figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed on the right leg by an assailant at Cobo Arena in Detroit, MI. Four men were later sentenced to prison for the attack, including Tonya Harding's ex-husband.




1999 - The 106th U.S. Congress opened. The first item on the agenda was the impeachment proceedings of U.S. President Bill Clinton. The trial was set to begin January 7, 1999. 

Sunday, January 05, 2014

Aren't conservatives regularly branded "crazy" by government types?----------Obama Administration’s Two Quiet New Executive Actions on Who Can Buy a Gun

Obama Administration’s Two Quiet New Executive Actions on Who Can Buy a Gun | TheBlaze.com
After failing to strengthen background checks on gun buyers through Congress, the Obama administration on Friday announced pending executive action on the matter focused mainly on mental health issues that would allow the government to get around certain privacy laws on the books in order to obtain more information.
“Too many Americans have been severely injured or lost their lives as a result of gun violence,” a White House release said Friday. “
While the vast majority of Americans who experience a mental illness are not violent, in some cases when persons with a mental illness do not receive the treatment they need, the result can be tragedies such as homicide or suicide.”

The new restrictions would take the form of regulations from the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services. One of the regulations would seek to gain information previously withheld because of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPPA, which protects medical privacy.
The administration’s Friday post-holiday announcement came while President Barack Obama was still on vacation in Hawaii, in stark contrast to Obama’s first executive actions on guns, which were announced in a White House ceremony. “Friday news dump” announcements have also traditionally been used to try to avoid media scrutiny.
Federal regulations do not require congressional authorization, but must go through a period of public comment and review before being enacted.

Is it 1914 all over again? We are in danger of repeating the mistakes that started WWI, says a leading historian

Is it 1914 all over again? We are in danger of repeating the mistakes that started WWI, says a leading historian - World Politics - World - The Independent:
"While history does not repeat itself precisely, the Middle East today bears a worrying resemblance to the Balkans then," she says. 
"A similar mix of toxic nationalisms threatens to draw in outside powers as the US, Turkey, Russia, and Iran look to protect their interests and clients."
Professor MacMillan highlights a string of other parallels between today and a century ago. 
Modern-day Islamist terrorists mirror the revolutionary communists and anarchists who carried out a string of assassinations in the name of a philosophy that sanctioned murder to achieve their vision of a better world. 
And in 1914, Germany was a rising force that sought to challenge the pre-eminent power of the time, the UK. 
Today, the growing power of China is perceived as a threat by some in the US.
Transitions from one world power to another are always seen as dangerous times. 
In the late 1920s, the US drew up plans for a war with the British Empire that would have seen the invasion of Canada, partly because it was assumed conflict would break out as America took over as the world's main superpower.

Burn oil-Plant trees...That's the ticket!-----Forest needed to cover carbon footprint of icy rescue

Forest needed to cover carbon footprint of icy rescue - National - NZ Herald News
The hapless Australasian Antarctic Expedition is finally homeward bound - and thousands of trees will have to be planted to offset the carbon footprint from the prolonged rescue effort.

The expedition had pledged to plant about 800 kauri trees in Northland to cover its carbon footprint. Environmentalists believe planting trees helps to offset the impact of burning fuels such as diesel.

But former Act Party leader and Herald on Sunday columnist Rodney Hide said that would have to increase to about 5000 trees to make up for the fossil fuels burned in the rescue. Expedition leader Chris Turney said more trees would be needed than earlier estimated but he was yet to work out how many.

In an interview with AFP yesterday director of the French Polar Institute Yves Frenot criticised the "pseudo-scientific expedition". Because it had run into difficulties, it had drained resources from the French, Chinese and Australian scientific missions in Antarctica, he said.

State-sponsored extortion!

"You might be interested to know of the extortion racket being conducted by the State of Michigan. 
I got a speeding ticket recently, about 150 yards from home! 
My bad. 
Not a big deal, I paid the fine and I was done with it. 

Then a couple weeks later, I receive a letter from the State of Michigan. 
They won’t report the incident to my insurance company if I enroll and pass their online “Basic Driver Improvement Course” before Feb 5th
The fee shall not exceed $100.


Pay them some money, and they are willing to keep this under wraps. 
Hmmmm… seems like extortion to me."

GMO Fight Exposes Green Hypocrisy

GMO Fight Exposes Green Hypocrisy - The American Interest:
GMO Fight Exposes Green Hypocrisy
Molecular biologist Henry Miller makes the case for GMOs over at Project Syndicate, and green science-haters are going to fight it tooth and nail.
Miller points out that not only are the global poor hurt by restrictions on research that could make crops more productive, but even at the most basic level the distinction between GMOs and “natural” foods doesn’t make sense:
A half-century of “wide cross” hybridizations, which involve the movement of genes from one species or genus to another, has given rise to plants – including everyday varieties of corn, oats, pumpkin, wheat, black currants, tomatoes, and potatoes – that do not and could not exist in nature. Indeed, with the exception of wild berries, wild game, wild mushrooms, and fish and shellfish, virtually everything in North American and European diets has been genetically improved in some way.
The important fact here is the blatant hypocrisy: when they’ve got scientific evidence on their side, green campaigners spew hate speech about the evil science deniers on the other side. 
But the moment a scientific consensus attacks some cherished green myth (organic good, GMO bad, for example), they spew hate speech against scientists as corporate shills. 
There is no intellectual honesty or consistency in this attitude; the one constant is anger and contempt for those who challenge the tenets of green faith.
What the planet and the people who live on it badly need is a pro-environment, pro-people movement that actually cares about scientific evidence.
Unfortunately that’s not what we’ve got—and climate change activists again need to come to terms with the reality that cloudy green thinking and downright hypocrisy is a leading cause of climate skepticism.

This isn't ovet yet. Nor should it be-----Obama's Other Big Lie

Articles: Obama's Other Big Lie:
"We will keep this promise to the American people: If you like your doctor you will be able to keep your doctor. Period. If you like your healthcare plan, you will be able to keep your healthcare plan. Period." (Barack Obama, June 15, 2009, with variants repeated many times since).
Today, any American who isn't willfully blind knows this "promise" is a very big lie. 
A lie which was deliberately told by fundamentally-dishonest pushers of Obamacare, because if the truth were widely known at that time the Affordable Care Act would never have become law.
It's a lie that is so egregious, even the dinosaur media can't ignore it or cover it up. 
In fact, the dinosaurs are increasingly upset that they're being continually abused be "the most transparent administration in history" and they now seem to be more willing to shed light not just on this lie, but also on some of Obama's other lies.
Do you suppose we could get them to take another look at the big lie of April 27, 2011? 
The lie that is central to Barack Obama's identity? 
The lie the dinosaurs not only glossed over, but for which they excommunicated from the human race anybody who dared to point out it was a lie?
I refer, of course, to the long-form "birth certificate" forgery for Barack Obama released by the White House to the world as a digital image on April 27, 2011.
Before you say, "Oh no, here we go again -- the guys with the tinfoil hats are on the loose", let's dispense with the easy part. 
Here is the irrefutable proof that the Obama long-form "birth certificate" is a forgery.

Do people really watch Al Sharpton on TV?----------Al Sharpton — in Lab Coat, Behind Bubbling Test Tubes — Lectures On ‘Right-Wing Meltdown Over Global Warming’

Al Sharpton    in Lab Coat, Behind Bubbling Test Tubes    Lectures On Right Wing Meltdown Over Global WarmingAl Sharpton — in Lab Coat, Behind Bubbling Test Tubes — Lectures On ‘Right-Wing Meltdown Over Global Warming’ | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"It happened as part of Sharpton’s “Politics Nation: Science Lab” segment on MSNBC Friday, using the arctic winter freeze besetting much of America this weekend as a springboard.

“These right wingers are boiling over with denial,” he said. “Just because it snows in winter doesn’t mean the planet isn’t getting warmer. Remember a UN panel said there’s a 90 percent probability that humans are the primary cause of global warming.”

“It sure doesn’t take much for the folks at Fox to hit their melting point. The results of tonight’s experiments are in. And we’ve deduced the right wing could use a new talking point.”"

Lawyers gonna love this----Couple who are just friends allowed to adopt, judge says in landmark ruling

The first step to giving full "marriage" rights to those who don't want the responsibility of a marriage contract?
Or just another step in the left's War Against Marriage?
There's gotta be more to this.
Likely not good.
Couple who are just friends allowed to adopt, judge says in landmark ruling  - NY Daily News:
"In a first of its kind ruling in New York, a Manhattan judge has given a couple who're just friends the green light to become legal co-parents to an adopted girl.

The pals identified, only as LEL and KAL, met in 2000 and have been close friends since, according to court papers.

Several years ago, KAL decided she wanted to become a mom, and LEL offered to be her sperm donor.

But when she couldn't get pregnant, they “decided to instead adopt a child together,” the court papers say.

“They spent years planning and hoping” for a child, and their dream came true in 2011, when KAL was able to adopt a child — identified as G. — from Ethiopia."

Yes, what kind of man........President Obama, While on Hawaii Vacation, Lambastes GOP Who ‘Went Home for the Holidays’ and Abandoned Less Fortunate

President Obama, While on Hawaii Vacation, Lambastes GOP Who Went Home for the Holidays and Abandoned Less FortunateLots of thoughts about this one but the "We don't abandon Americans..." is gotta be the Bengahzi Gaff of the month.
President Obama, While on Hawaii Vacation, Lambastes GOP Who 
‘Went Home for the Holidays’ and Abandoned Less Fortunate | Video | TheBlaze.com:
While President Barack Obama continued what the New York Times called a “real and rare vacation in Hawaii,” he used his Weekly Address to accuse Republicans in Congress of going home for the holidays while less-fortunate Americans suffer.
"Just a few days after Christmas, more than one million of our fellow Americans lost a vital economic lifeline – the temporary insurance that helps folks make ends meet while they look for a job. Republicans in Congress went home for the holidays and let that lifeline expire. And for many of their constituents who are unemployed through no fault of their own, that decision will leave them with no income at all.
We make this promise to one another because it makes a difference to a mother who needs help feeding her kids while she’s looking for work; to a father who needs help paying the rent while learning the skills to get a new and better job. And denying families that security is just plain cruel. We’re a better country than that. We don’t abandon our fellow Americans when times get tough – we keep the faith with them until they start that new job."

While the GOP was home for the holidays, how did Obama spend some of his two-week trip across the Pacific? The Times described a bit of it:
He played golf eight out of 14 days. And he and the first lady, Michelle Obama, stepped out for dinner at a few of their favorite restaurants: Alan Wong’s, Morimoto Waikiki (twice!) and Nobu Waikiki.
Island Snow, the president’s favorite spot for shave ice — the island’s syrupy, brightly colored and refreshingly sweet version of the snow cone — even had a message board in its back room reminding its employees to “wear Island Snow T-shirts all week long while the president is here!!”

Didn't this city go broke a bit ago? ----------M-­1 rail public hearing set for Jan. 22

M-­1 rail public hearing set for Jan. 22 | Crain's Detroit Business

And isn't the Detroit "People Mover" a lemon on the scale of Obamacare?
And does anyone really believe the "11 stops" will only cost $137 million?
And didn't EVERY incumbent in Detroit get re-elected in the last election?
And Crain's thinks this will turn out ....how?
The city of Detroit and the Michigan Department of Transportation will host a joint public hearing on Jan. 22 to discuss their operating licenses for the $137 million streetcar line planned for Woodward Avenue.
..The M-1 Rail streetcar project involves the construction of a mostly curbside-running, fixed streetcar circulation system, commingled with traffic, along a 3.3-mile grade-level loop on Woodward Avenue. 
It will have 11 stops between Grand Boulevard and Congress Street and will run in the median at its north and south ends.
The system is expected to be in service by February 2016.

This is gonna work out great------How long until you can vote on your smartphone?

I'm thinkin' Bulgarian hackers are giddy.....
And democrat politicians.....
How long until you can vote on your smartphone? | The Daily Caller:
"A Clemson University professor is developing a new electronic voting system that will allow voters to cast their ballots from home computers, tablets and smartphones.

As Clemson’s chair of human-centered computing, Juan Gilbert has lead teams of students over the last 10 years to create an online voting system accessible at home or on the go that will be more accurate, have increased verification and make voting more accessible to people with disabilities by offering mobile and voice-command options.

The system will be downloadable via computer, tablet or smartphone, and be significantly cheaper and easier to use than conventional electronic voting machines, The Greenville News reports."

"What kind of man..." Yes, what kind of man?

Bonefish Grill ........ set to open on Big Beaver in Troy

Headline of the day...... kinda.....
Bonefish Grill, Carrabba's set to open on Big Beaver in Troy | Crain's Detroit Business:
"Bonefish Grill, Carrabba's set to open on Big Beaver in Troy