Why I didn't leave my heart there...

...because of crap like this. After 23 years of living in San Francisco, it became unbearable as it only got worse, and we left. I shook the dust from my feet and didn't look back. It's a beautiful city, full of insane, ugly-minded people.

Typical San Francisco People

I'm sorry to say, it's all too typical. It's actually the norm in SF.


Ever notice how the political left gets all bent out of shape of over the religious right, while it has no problem at all embracing the religious Wright? That's because all the America haters stick together.
     

A Tour of the International Space Station

This NASA Video on Youtube is just over 5 minutes long.

For more information, about the Station, including a neat interactive reference guide/tour of the ISS, visit NASA's website:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
     

Cut Corporate Taxes and Help our Economy

We are strangling out own economy. Would you believe that even in US states with low-level state taxes, the corporate tax rate is higher than FRANCE and 25 other major countries? Have a look, courtesy of Nealz Nuze:

THE TRUTH ABOUT CORPORATE TAXES

The Tax Foundation has released a new study. A study that will, no doubt, get little media attention. And why not? Well, because it may be a bit boring .. and because many on the left (and that would be the media) don't particularly want you to understand these things. After all .. the study flies directly in the face of the liberal agenda. This new study shows that most American states tax job providers at higher rates than any other developed country in the world. If you were not educated in government schools you will immediately see that this could be a problem.

If you click on the link, it will show a state-by-state break down that adds each state's corporate taxes on top of the federal corporate tax rate. When you do this, it shows that half of the states in this country have a higher rate than any other nation. Even in states with fairly low state-level corporate taxes – states like Nevada, South Dakota, and Wyoming – the corporate tax rate is still higher than France and 25 other major countries. Take a gander:

• 25 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than top-ranked Japan.
• 35 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than third-ranked Germany.
• 46 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than fourth-ranked Canada.
• All 50 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than fifth-ranked France.

The study comes to a not-so-shocking conclusion, if you listen to the Neal Boortz Show or read Nealz Nuze .. "If federal lawmakers are serious about making the U.S. corporate tax system more competitive globally, they will have to partner with state officials to lower the nation's overall corporate tax burden." Or -- here's a wild concept – enact the FairTax.

In a related study by three prominent economists at the Tax Foundation, employees suffer most when their corporate employers are forced to pay high corporate taxes. This basically runs counter to the theories that have prevailed in American politics for decades ... that corporate taxes hurt investors. But this study found that workers bear 70% of the burden of corporate income taxes.

(bold emphasis mine) Europe, even with all it's socialism, has lower corporate taxes than many of our states. And the countries in Europe that are doing best economically, like Denmark, have cut their corporate taxes the lowest. It obviously works, so why aren't we doing the same?


Related Link:

There's no such thing as corporate tax
     

Obama's Grandmother "problem"? ...

Looks like the white grandmother gets thrown under the bus once more:

Obama trashing his grandmother again?

The link above is to Michelle Malkin. You can follow it to find out more about his latest remark about his white grandmother, who raised him.

He seems to want to equate his grandmothers fears of black men on the street, expressed privately to family members, as being the same thing as Jeremiah Wright's racist public sermons at a powerful and politically active Chicago Church. He wouldn't reject grandma, so why reject Wright too?

But Wright is a much more public figure, and we certainly hear more from and about him than we do of grandma Dunham. In fact, some say she is hidden away in Hawaii.


This article by Andy Martin at NewsMax, from March 2007, asks questions about why we don't see his white grandmother, and why a step-grandmother from his father's side of the family in Kenya is promoted as his granny instead:

Free Obama's White Grandmother

CHICAGO -- If anyone else running for president locked his granny away and refused to allow her to be seen, would the media complain? You betcha.

But America's media have supinely allowed Barry Obama to pretend he has no white relatives. He has paraded his step-grandmother in Kenya, who never saw him until the 1980s, as his "granny," and locked the grandmother who actually raised him away in a closet.

Now, the Chicago Tribune reports "the Obama campaign declined to make [his white grandmother] available."

Is she sick? Not apparently. Bedridden? Hospitalized? Not apparently. She is the "Prisoner of Obama," and of Obama's racist myth that he is "Black" and not "Black and White."

What a disgrace.

And like whimpering puppies the media do not protest, complain or demand access.

Free Granny Madelyn Dunham [Obama]!

Barack Obama is one of the most racist politicians in America today. And we let him get away with it. We are afraid to confront Obama's reality, so we pretend that reality is not there, even though it is staring us in the face. Anyone remember "Miss Lillian?" Or Barbara Bush? Or Bill Clinton's mom, drinking, gambling card-playing gal that she was?

Noone else but Obama could get away with pretending that his paternal grandfather's second or third or fourth wife was his "granny" when she wasn't. [...]

Great photo, but is the lady even his real granny?

But the "segregation" of Madelyn Dunham, Obama's white grandmother, and only real grandmother, has to be one of the cruelest and most mendacious political kidnappings this nation has ever seen.

Mrs. Dunham lives alone in the same apartment where she has lived for many years. Thus, it is reasonable to assume she is not incapacitated or an invalid.

Granny Dunham told the New York Times she was not well enough to speak, but in reality the Obama campaign maintains Stalinist "control" over potential interviewees. Obama's minions tried to control access to Obama's friend who was recently released from prison. Since he became a candidate for U.S. Senator, Obama has locked his white relative away in his racist closet. [...]

Well I imagine she IS pretty old, and perhaps not up to the publicity. Though as the article points out, old age hasn't stopped a slew of other grannies of presidential hopefuls. And if she doesn't want to talk, doesn't she have friends or relatives that do? At the very least, there probably IS a story here, even if none of those involved want to talk about it.

I'm not saying that if she were interviewed, that she wouldn't agree with him or support him. She may agree with him completely, but has anyone even really tried to find out what she thinks? It's the lack of questioning, the deference to the Obama campaign by so-called journalists, that I find disquieting. Why isn't he treated like any other candidate?

Clinton likes to keep her mom out of the spotlight too, but she's not totally invisible; she appears in public with Hillary sometimes, and she once did an interview with Oprah. And while I'm not fond of Clinton, I have to admit I don't think she's ever thrown her mom under a bus.


Related Links:

More on Obama’s White Grandmother

Obama Paints White Grandmother as a Racist

Barack Obama: My Grandmother Is the "Typical White Person"
     

A new book: "Islam for Pigs, Apes, Mules and Other Beasts: 250 Questions about Islam"

In response to the controversy over a movie about Muslims that is soon to be aired in Holland, an author renames the title of his upcomming book about Islam to ride the wave of controversy. Elaib Harvey at the Brussels Journal reports:

Islam for Pigs

Reported via the Dutch blog Klein Verzet is the story of Professor Hans Jansen who seems to have put the cat amongst the pigeons by renaming his forthcoming book “Reading the Koran for Unbelievers.” In the light of the Dutch Government's panic about Fitna, the film made by Geert Wilders, it appears that he has changed the name to, “Islam for Pigs, Apes, Mules and Other Beasts: 250 Questions about Islam.”

Now Professor Jansen seems to be pretty serious about his work, and currently holds his tenure at Utrecht University, his CV seems kosher, [...]

Interesting. The full article has some excerpts from the book.


Another interesting article by Tiberge at the Brussel's Journal has a look at the growing Islamic population of France:


The Islamification of France

The article has another graphic, and a link to a large listing of Mosques in France. This news isn't new, but I like graphs and maps.

About Chickens coming home to roost...

There's been a lot of talk about Obama's chickens coming home. But are they? If so, how many? While the gallup poll shows a dip for Obama, it's not big.

I can remember a time when something like this would have sunk a politician pretty quickly. It may yet sink Obama, but it sure isn't happening quickly, which makes me wonder if it will happen at all. How many Americans think like Obama, or have other reasons to support him regardless? From Gallup.com:

Gallup Daily: Clinton Moves Into Lead Over Obama

PRINCETON, NJ -- New Gallup Poll Daily tracking finds Hillary Clinton with a 49% to 42% lead over Barack Obama in national Democratic voters' presidential nomination preference.


This is the first time Clinton has held a statistically significant lead in over a month. She last led Obama in Feb. 7-9 polling, just after the Super Tuesday primaries. Since then, the two candidates have usually been in a statistical tie, but Obama has held a lead in several of the polls, most recently in March 11-13 polling.

Obama's campaign has been plagued by controversial remarks made by his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Obama delivered a major speech on race Tuesday to try to move beyond the controversy. The initial indications are that the speech has not halted Clinton's gaining momentum, as she led by a similar margin in Tuesday night's polling as compared to Monday night's polling.

John McCain may be benefiting in the short-term from the highly charged Democratic race. He holds a statistically significant lead over Obama, 47% to 43%, in registered voters' preferences for the general presidential election. That is the first time any of the candidates has held a statistically significant lead since Gallup Poll Daily tracking began reporting on the general election race last week. McCain's 48% to 45% advantage over Clinton is not statistically significant, but it is the first time he has had an edge over her in Gallup Poll Daily tracking. -- Jeff Jones

To see more about McCain's lead, you can follow the link for more graphs and details. This is good news for Republicans, but it's still early in the race, and no one can assume anything at this point.

In Obama's speech yesterday, he threw his grandmother under the bus, and then insisted he must not completely distance himself from Jeremiah Wright, defending the racist demogogue, even though Obama himself has insisted that other candidates disassociate themselves completely from people who have been accused of being racist. It would seem that Obama believes that only white people can be racist.

It doesn't make a lot of sense in my world, but for many people, it apparently does. Is Political Correctness trumping common sense? Let's hope not.

As for chicken's coming home to roost... for years I've listened to leftists like Jeremiah Wright preach that 9-11 was America's chicken's coming home to roost, because we DESERVED it. I see it a little differently. I think it WAS our chickens coming home, but not because we deserved it. These chickens were about our weakness and unwillingness to defend ourselves and hold our ground, which had consequences. Jimmy Carter opened the door for this, and for decades since Islamists have been launching attacks on us, which we have repeatedly ignored. Each time we failed to respond, it encouraged them to think we were weak and to try harder with each new attack, right up to 9-11.

Since the crusades centuries ago, the Western world has staved off attacks by Muslim Extremists by being strong. Militant Islamists have only returned to attacking us now because they see us as weak and vulnerable, unwilling to fight.

It's a war whether we want it or not. I know which side I'm on, and it's not the side of leftist's like Wright or the Democrats who support him.


Related Links:

Obama's Speech

Steele on Obama: The Great "Bargainer"

Obama Seeks to Bridge Racial Divide Among Democrats
     

John McCain's Favorable Rating Climbs

From Gallup.com:

McCain Favorability Surges to Eight-Year High

John McCain's favorability rating has surged 11 percentage points this month to 67%. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton trail McCain on this measure, at 62% and 53%, respectively.

You can follow the link to see Gallup's video report.

Meanwhile, John's been visiting Iraq:

McCain Visits Iraq for the Eight Time

Hillary Clinton spent the St. Patrick’s Day weekend working the crowds at parades and giving speeches wearing a green scarf adorned with Irish clovers. Barack Obama spent the weekend with weak attempts to find the right set of words to get himself out of the corner he’s painted himself into by running as the candidate who transcends race while having spent the last twenty years attending a church that is astonishingly racist. I also imagine that he spent a large part of the weekend with spin doctors working on a speech he is to give tomorrow that is supposed to fix this entire situation for him. Words. Its all about words.

While the democrats were busily working on their respective campaigns, McCain made a surprise visit to Iraq. It is his eight trip there since the beginning of the war (did you know he’d been that many time? Right. I didn’t think so). He was traveling with fellow Senators Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) and Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.). While McCain visited Iraq and met with official there he stayed largely out of view. That doesn’t stop the leftists blogs from declaring that he was there for photo-ops and political gain.

The only political gain involved in his trip to Iraq had to do with progress in relations with the government of Iraq. [...]

Read the full post for more details from Beth and video too at McCainBlogs.com.

Obama's Kenyan Muslim Friends burn churches

In an earlier post I had a look at some of Obama's foreign connections, including an Irish woman who advises him on foreign policy issues. A further look at Obama's foreign connections and who he supports is also quite revealing. For example, look at who he supports in Kenya:

Barak Hussein bin Obama

[...] Bin Obama's father was a Kenyan Muslim and guess which side Obama is backing. Do you remember when Atlas Shrugs posted this back in January and no one paid attention?

Raila Odinga has, in his own words, a 'close personal friendship' with Barrack Hussein Obama Junior. When Obama went to Kenya in August of 2006, he was hosted by Raila and spoke in praise of him at rallies in Nairobi: Obama's bias for his fellow Luo was so blatant that a Kenya government spokesman denounced Obama during his visit as Raila's ‘stooge.’

Guess who burned Christian churches after the election. Yep, bin Obama's buddy, Odinga. Yep, the same guy who vows to introduce sharia to Kenya. [...]

Yeah, burning Christian churches and promoting Sharia Law, two things every Democrat ought be supporting, don't you think? Obama apparently does, if we are to believe his endorsements.

And then there is the question of his connections with Columbia's FARC:

Obama and FARC

Considering Obama's position as a front runner in the Democrat Party, shouldn't we be hearing more about these things in the MSM?

Maybe we are just supposed to take Oprah's word for it that he's a good choice, because Oprah attends the same church Obama does. [CORRECTION: Oprah used to attend the church, but disassociated herself from it in recent years, according this article. But since she is familiar with the church, I can only wonder at her endorsement of Obama. See below.]

Actually, I don't see why an endorsement by Oprah Winfrey should be taken as such good thing. She has a history of being taken in by frauds and con-men... numerous guests on her talk show, the child molestation scandal at her girl's school in South Africa. Few would doubt her talents as a talk show host and Media Mogul. Yet it seems her judgment of people's character is less than perfect. I think it would be wise to view her endorsements with some skepticism.


Related Links:

OBAMA AND THE PASTOR

Jeremiah Wright’s Greatest Hits

Obama's Church: Cauldron of Division

Now we know where Michelle Obama’s resentment of America comes from
     

Shuttle Endeavour to install "Dextre" robot arm and Kibo lab components onto the ISS

Below is an artists rendition of the new Canadian robot arm that the current shuttle mission will install on the ISS. They will also be installing a storage unit and other components of the Japanese Kibo lab, with the main part of the lab to follow on the next mission launch in May.


The Kibo lab will be the largest science lab on the station. The following is a description of the current mission from NASA (note that it was published prior to the mission, so it talks about it in the future tense):

All Aboard for STS-123: The Station Goes Global

“This is the first flight where we actually have all the partners,” said Dana Weigel, the lead station flight director. “It’s not just ‘a Japanese flight,’ or ‘a Canadian flight.’ This flight truly is the first time that it requires every single partner actively participating to make everything work. I think that’s a great milestone.”

Topping the list of milestones is the delivery of part of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s module, marking the beginning of the agency’s presence on the station. The Japanese Experiment Logistics Module, Pressurized Section – called the JLP – is really just the warm-up act for JAXA. It will contain critical avionics and serve as a storage area for experiment materials. At 14.4 feet in diameter and 12.8 feet in length, it is the smaller of two pressurized Japanese modules. Combined with other elements, they will make up Kibo, the station’s Japanese complex, named for the Japanese word for hope. Kibo’s main facility and its robotic arm are scheduled to launch on the following shuttle mission, and a "front porch" that will allow astronauts to expose experiments directly to space will be delivered later.

But small or not, what the module represents is big.[...]

They mention the Robot arm as going up in a following launch, but it's actually gone up on this flight. Assembling the robot will be part of their mission. Below are the astronauts of the Endeavour crew:

Image above: From the left (front row) are Pilot Gregory Johnson and Commander Dominic Gorie. From the left (back row) are mission specialists Richard Linnehan, Robert Behnken, Garrett Reisman, Michael Foreman and Takao Doi, a Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut. Credit: NASA

This mission will be the longest mission for a shuttle flight crew to date, scheduled to last a minimum of 16 days. You can track the latest news on the Mission's progress here:

Astronauts Enter JLP, Prepare for Spacewalk

Last time I looked, they had unloaded the Dextre robot for assembly, but were having some power supply issues with the platform it's to be assembled on.


You can read more about Dextre here:

'Dextre' Ready for Space Station Duty
It has some great links, including a link to a video about Dextre and Kibo.

Canadian robot Dextre heading to ISS

[...] The two-armed, $200-million robot is tentatively scheduled to be launched March 11 on board space shuttle Endeavour.

Daniel Rey, head of the technical team preparing Dextre, says the robot will reduce the amount of time astronauts must spend outside the space station. The robot could eliminate the need for up to a dozen spacewalks a year.

"He will free up astronauts so they can do more science and more research rather than maintenance,'' said Rey, who has worked on the Canadian Space Agency project for 10 years.

"It's easy to imagine from a half-a-dozen to a dozen sorties will be avoidable now,'' Rey said in an interview.

Dextre, short for Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator, will perform exterior construction and tasks like changing batteries and handling experiments outside the space station.

Dextre also comes equipped with a tool holster which allows the robot to change equipment as needed "like any good handyman.''

But Rey said the 3.7-metre robot can't be compared to R2-D2 or HAL, the computer in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey.''

"He doesn't have an artificial intelligence. . .he can be remote controlled from the ground or from the space station.''

The astronauts who will operate the robot's rotating joints, torso and five cameras have already been trained at the space agency, just outside Montreal.

Dextre is the third and final component of the mobile servicing system developed by Canada for the space station.

It can either be attached to a mobile base which runs on rails along the exterior of the station or it can be connected to Canadarm2 like a snap-on tool.

Long life for new robot

The robot, which has a 15-year lifespan, will be installed during three of the five spacewalks planned in March. [...]

Fascinating. You can read the whole article for more details.

Does Obama's camp think we're all stupid?

Barack Obama and his church's former pastor,
the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, in a 2005 photograph.

Controversial minister off Obama's campaign

[...] Earlier Friday, before the announcement of Wright's departure from the Obama camp, the Illinois senator denounced some of the ministers's sermons, calling them "inflammatory and appalling."

[...]

And, even though he has been a member of Trinity United for the past 20 years, Obama said he had never witnessed Wright making such statements.

[...]

Still, Obama defended his 20-year relationship with Wright, saying that the pastor has served him in a spiritual role -- not a political one.

[...]

Obama and Wright have been close for years. Obama has been a member of Wright's church since his days in law school, and Obama's best-selling book, "The Audacity of Hope," takes its title from one of Wright's sermons. [...]

Read the whole thing, which includes some of the controversial statements... and the Obama camp's attempts at spin control.

It would seem we are being asked to believe that for 20 or so years, Obama attended a church with a pastor that espoused these views, was good friends with the pastor, but he didn't know about these views until he decided to run for president? It sounds like Bill Clinton saying he smoked a dubee, but he didn't inhale. Clinton had a problem with being truthful. Does Obama share this problem?

Which is more likely; Obama never personally heard the sermons, and passively disagreed with many of the Pastor's ideas, or: Obama knew about all this, but it didn't worry him much, because in the social circles they move in, such ideas are widely accepted and taken for granted, and therefore don't seem shocking or controversial?

People generally tend to attend churches that reflect their beliefs. That's the norm. William Teach sums it up nicely here:

Obamessiah Repudiate’s Pastor Of 20 Years Remarks

OK, let me get this straight (as so many others have said, as well): Barack Mary Obama has been going willingly to Reverend Wright for 20 years. Wright married Barack Mary Obama and his wife Michelle “America is just mean”. Obama’s children were baptized by Wright. Obama’s kids go and listen to the hate speech of Wright. When Obama became a United States Senator, the Obama’s continued to go this same church of hate, blame America, demean America, say America created the HIV virus to kill Blacks, conspiracy theories, and segregation, among others. Obama continued to have Wright be not only a part of his families life, but his campaign. [...]

Teach goes on to suggest that if Obama really disagreed with Wright's ideas, why didn't he distance himself sooner, instead of inviting him to join his campaign? See the full article, for more information and links.

What I find really disturbing is, all of this should have come out in the mainstream press long ago. Can you imagine if a Republican candidate had attended a church for 20 years were the pastor said things like "God Damn America" and worse, that we would not hear about it in the press? I guess journalists don't ask questions and dig for information anymore... unless the candidate is a Republican.


Related Link:

Obama and His Racist, America-Hating "Pastor"
     

Why the Dutch are leaving the Netherlands

While there has been a steady rise in emigration from Western Europe, Holland is unique in that more people have been emigrating from the country than are immigrating to it. From the Brussel's Journal:

Eldorado or Home. Europeans' Flight from Europe

[...] Since 2003, emigration has exceeded immigration to the Netherlands. In 2006, the Dutch saw more than 130,000 compatriots leave. The rise in Dutch emigration peaked after the assassinations of Pim Fortuyn and Theo van Gogh. This indicates that the flight from Europe is related to a loss of confidence in the future of nations which have taken in the Trojan horse of Islamism, but which, unlike the Trojans, lack the guts to fight.

Elsewhere in Western Europe immigration currently still surpasses emigration, though emigration figures are rising fast. In Belgium the number of emigrants surged by 15 percent in the past years. In Sweden, 50,000 people packed their bags last year -- a rise of 18 percent compared to the previous year and the highest number of Swedes leaving since 1892. In the United Kingdom, almost 200,000 British citizens move out every year.

Americans who think that the European welfare state is the model to follow would do well to ponder the question why, if Europe is so wonderful, Europeans are fleeing from it. European welfare systems are redistribution mechanisms, taking money from skilled and educated Europeans in order to give it to nonskilled newcomers from the Third World. [...]

There are lots of reasons why this is happening, but in the case of the Netherlands, it may be simply that people are beginning to fear for their very lives. I'm sure many people would rather not be killed for voting for the party or politician of their choice:

“People Who Vote Wilders Must Die”

A Moroccan youth group from Delft in the Netherlands, calling themselves “Scheme 015 Delftse Samenzwering Shit,” [samenzwering means conspiracy] has posted a video clip threatening to kill voters and sympathizers of Dutch politician Geert Wilders. The clip shows a group of Moroccans youths provoking two Dutch lads on a crowded public train. The hooded Moroccans ask the lads, who are dressed in black, what the badges on their clothes mean. At first the lads do not react. When the Moroccans start pulling at the lads’ clothes the latter ask to be left alone. At this the Moroccans grab them from their seats and beat them up. [...]

The video clip is in Dutch, the first part is kinda boring, but you don't have to speak Dutch to understand the violence of the hooded thugs at the end. Try living with that. The government won't let you own guns, but they also can't protect you. In fact, the thugs are so confident, they are making videos of their attacks, their crimes, to put on-line?

Sounds like a good case for emigration to me. When more people emigrate from your country than immigrate to it, something is seriously wrong.

In the comments section, there was some speculation that the two Dutch boys who got beat up might have been Goths. The Brussels Journal also has an interesting article about the Goth movement, why it's become popular, and why many of it's adherents end up in conservative professions. It's interesting:

Goths: Fashion’s Unlikely Conservatives
     

Obama and his leftist foreign policy advisors

Where does Obama get his foreign policy advice? It's a good question.

This first article from A. Millar at the Brussels Journal is about our worsening relations with Great Britan, and how the US no longer considers them to be our top ally, but now looks to Germany and France instead. It's worth reading for the reasons why relations have soured:

Are Britons Planning to Attack the U.S.?

They of course are not planning to attack the US, but they may be overly sympathetic and too gentle with those who are trying to. Read the full article for the disturbing details. But interestingly the last part of the article mentions Barack Obama and Briton's Labour party, which is a big part of the problem. Although Obama apparently doesn't think so:

[...] However, in marked contrast to the Bush administration, Obama – who probably views Britain as America’s quant little cousin across the sea – seems likely to try to build a better relationship with Britain, should he become president. He has already met Britain’s Junior Education Minister, David Lammy (heralded as Britain’s own Obama), though much to the surprise of the rest of the British government, which was apparently deliberately kept in the dark about their meeting.

But Obama would be advised to tread very carefully when it comes to cosying up to Labour, which has not only allowed Islamic extremism to grow, and Islam to become a powerful voice in politics, but which is also quite willing to “commend” the U.S.’s long-time adversaries. Notably about a week ago an early morning motion was made in the House of Commons, praising Fidel Castro, condemning the U.S., and urging the British government to, “resist the aggressive forces within the US Administration…” You may note, the sentiment is eerily similar to statements normally issuing the Iranian government.

Obama seems to side with foreign leftists on how America should be. He certainly has their support. From Briton's Daily Mail newspaper:



Labour Minister 'in campaign for Obama' sparks diplomatic row

An ambitious minister once tipped to be Britain's first black Prime Minister is being blamed for sparking a diplomatic row over the US Presidential election.

Senior Foreign Office officials claim David Lammy, hailed by some as "a British Obama", is linked to furiously denied reports last week of panic in Downing Street over the prospect of Barack Obama beating Hillary Clinton.

The reports coincided with junior education minister Mr Lammy, 35, joining Mr Obama on his campaign trail for the Democratic nomination – a trip which neither the British Embassy nor Mr Lammy's own department knew about.

It was a private visit but eyebrows were raised in Whitehall because of the unwritten rule that Ministers should not endorse candidates in foreign elections. [...]

While there is nothing illegal about the visit, it has ruffled some diplomatic feathers in Briton. And it's always worth noting who a candidate meets with.

More interesting still, is who Obama seeks foreign policy advice from closer to home. Would you believe, an Irish journalist:



Samantha Power, a former journalist,
advises Barack Obama on foreign policy

Barack Obama 'will repair image of US in UK'

[...] Miss Power is the self proclaimed "genocide chick", who won the Pulitzer Prize for her reporting from Bosnia.

She plays basketball with George Clooney and is the inspiration for the latest David Hare play.

This auburn haired Irish journalist is a professor at Harvard, the founder of a human rights think tank and was cited by Men's Vogue as one of the most beautiful women in the world.

She is also one of Mr Obama's most trusted advisers on foreign policy.

The would-be President of the United States texts her with, "It's Obama, call me" in the middle of the night. Sir Nigel Sheinwald, the British Ambassador to Washington has already called on her three times.

[...]

In America, Miss Power has been compared to Condoleeza Rice.

"I'm nothing like her," she says. "I don't have any conventional political ambition."

But if Mr Obama wins the Presidential race she is likely to remain a powerful force. "I'd do anything he asked me to do. It's not about working for the next President of the United States, it's Obama. If he ran General Motors I'd be working for him."

Sounds like she has a serious case of Obamamania. Her views are the typical leftist anti-American views that are so chic in Europe. I don't doubt Obama shares those views. Obama can certainly seek his advice from wherever he likes, but I have to say I would prefer a president with American views and values, instead of European ones.
     

Rising food costs due to Ethanol Boondoggle

I warned about this in a previous post in May of last year. Now it's happening, and it's not only a waste of taxpayer's money, it's damaging our economy and causing food prices to rise world-wide. Walter Williams at Townhall.com gives us the details:

Big Corn and Ethanol Hoax

[...] Ethanol is 20 to 30 percent less efficient than gasoline, making it more expensive per highway mile. It takes 450 pounds of corn to produce the ethanol to fill one SUV tank. That's enough corn to feed one person for a year. Plus, it takes more than one gallon of fossil fuel -- oil and natural gas -- to produce one gallon of ethanol. After all, corn must be grown, fertilized, harvested and trucked to ethanol producers -- all of which are fuel-using activities.

[...]

Ethanol is so costly that it wouldn't make it in a free market. That's why Congress has enacted major ethanol subsidies, about $1.05 to $1.38 a gallon, which is no less than a tax on consumers. In fact, there's a double tax -- one in the form of ethanol subsidies and another in the form of handouts to corn farmers to the tune of $9.5 billion in 2005 alone.

[...]

Ethanol production has driven up the prices of corn-fed livestock, such as beef, chicken and dairy products, and products made from corn, such as cereals. As a result of higher demand for corn, other grain prices, such as soybean and wheat, have risen dramatically. The fact that the U.S. is the world's largest grain producer and exporter means that the ethanol-induced higher grain prices will have a worldwide impact on food prices.

It's easy to understand how the public, looking for cheaper gasoline, can be taken in by the call for increased ethanol usage. But politicians, corn farmers and ethanol producers know they are running a cruel hoax on the American consumer. They are in it for the money.

[...]

The ethanol hoax is a good example of a problem economists refer to as narrow, well-defined benefits versus widely dispersed costs. It pays the ethanol lobby to organize and collect money to grease the palms of politicians willing to do their bidding because there's a large benefit for them -- higher wages and profits. The millions of gasoline consumers, who fund the benefits through higher fuel and food prices, as well as taxes, are relatively uninformed and have little clout. [...]

I've only excerpted a few things wrong with ethanol from the article, there's more. Read the whole thing. I can't believe our government, both parties, is actually doing this to us. We can thank the global warming hoax and it's attendant hysteria too, for helping it along.




Related Link:

Bakers lobby govt to help ease wheat crunch

     

Obama's Pastor: “God damn America”

Obama’s pastor takes highly nuanced approach to racial divisiveness

Well that explains a lot about their attitudes. They can have any attitudes they like, but is it what we want for the American presidency?

You can read more about it here:

I’ve found a church!

Obama’s Pastor Puts Church In Hot Water-Now With More Blame America!
     

Michelle Obama: an ungrateful socialist?

Her advice to young people: "Don't Go Into Corporate America". Tammy Bruce looks at the Obama's own financial particulars, and finds Michelle's posturing seriously flawed:

Let's *Not* Make This Woman First Lady

[...] What can you say about such rank contemptuous hypocrisy? It is, as I mentioned regarding her "no respect for America" speech, not just the Obamas who think this way, it is part and parcel of the entire Democrat/Leftist mindset.

Indeed. The Democrat party these days seems to THRIVE on envy, resentment and a permanent victim hood mentality. No matter how much they have, it's never enough, no matter how much they get their way, it's not good enough. They constantly go on about what they are against, but they are seldom FOR anything, other than taking away earned income and liberty from others. The whole party is based on a dynamic of negativity that needs to be continually fed and maintained, and thus creates nothing positive.

Mrs Obama: America is “just downright mean”

[...] And that's not counting Husseins's salary of $160,000 as a Senator. Together they make nearly a half a million a year or $40,000 a month. Guess which figure is closer to my annual income.

No wonder Mrs Obama thinks America is mean. She's an ungrateful bitch and ungrateful people can never be happy no matter how much they have. [...]

Visit the links above for quotes by her, she sure likes to complain, and seems to have a decidedly negative view of America. I've never known a socialist who was grateful, in fact they all seem quite the opposite; ungrateful, envious and resentful. Is that what we need in the Whitehouse? I think we could do better.


Related Links:

Obama and FARC

Obama & Democrats want American weakness

About Obama: asking questions the MSM won't
     

Norhtec's new low-cost laptop computer

This one is manufactured by the same factory (Quanta) that builds the OLPC project's XO laptop computer. It's built for a company called Norhtec, which has been making low cost micro PCs for some years now. The laptop is called the "Gecko". An excerpt from Linux Devices:



Low-cost laptop runs Linpus Linux

[...] The Gecko resembles several other newly launched sub-notebooks, including the Everex Cloudbook and the Asus EEE PC. Like the EEE PC, but unlike the Cloudbook, the Gecko runs a Linux OS that is actually tailored for use on small-screen displays, and it has a fairly conventional laptop trackpad.


Norhtec's MicroClient Jr.

Bangkok-based Norhtec has previously shipped several ultra low-cost Linux thin clients, including the MicroClient JrSX, as well as an earlier $100 PC called the MicroClient Jr., which runs Puppy Linux. The goal for the Gecko was to create a laptop affordable enough to sell in poorer nations, Barnes said. "We are bidding the laptop on several large developing country projects," he wrote.

Taiwanese manufacturer Quanta has some experience with laptops aimed at the developing world, having won the contract to produce One Laptop per Child's Linux-based XO-1 laptop. According to OLPC, XO-1 laptops started shipping in November, and they continue to roll out around the world, albeit at a slower pace than expected. Meanwhile Intel is selling a rival "developing-market" laptop called the ClassMate PC, and a nonprofit group called Literacy Bridge is working on a Linux-based laptop for developing markets that will serve as an audio library for a low-cost Talking Book audio player that is billed as a $5 iPod.

Availability

According to Barnes, the formal announcement for the Gecko Laptop will happen soon, and the laptop will sell for under $300. More information on Linpus Linux Lite can be found here.

It's not restricted to using Linpus, other operating systems, even Windows, can be installed on it. I think this machine will be another welcome entry in an expanding market niche. See the rest of the article for more photos and links.

Electronics, Multimedia, Reality and Children.

As the One Laptop Per Child project moves forward, kids seem to take to the computers quickly and with enthusiasm. Even very young kids. How about a 6 year old? From the blog Suburban (in)Sanity:

This laptop is so simple even a six-year-old can show you

My six-year-old son, Liam, and I recently attended a One Laptop Per Child networking event at the Marie Murphy school in Wilmette, IL. The event was put on by Chris Brown as part of a teacher professional development day. He invited area XO owners to come talk about our computers as well as have the opportunity to network with others in the community. One blogged about it here.

About 10-15 laptops were present at peak. We gathered around a large conference table in the resource room and quickly got to work. Liam was beyond excited to have so many “friends” show up on his neighborhood view. [...]

The kid takes to it like a duck to water, and pretty soon, he is "demoing" his computer skills to a very receptive audience. Amazing.

I once had a look at the "Sugar" software operating system used on the OLPC computers. I hated it. Most adults do, because it's too different from what we know. It's made to appeal to children who have little or no experience with computers. Even very young children. And apparently, they DO find it appealing. The OLPC project is now expanding to include US schools, with Birmingham, Alabama being the first major project here.

I posted earlier about a 10 year old British boy whose journalist father gave him a OLPC computer, only to be amazed at what the kid could do with it, and how enthusiastic he was. As more and more children are exposed to this, it seems apparent that they are very receptive to it. I find that fascinating for a variety of reasons.

I only became exposed to personal computers when I was in my mid twenties. I'm talking Timex-Sinclair and Commodore 64. I've been a computer geek ever since. But I had a childhood void of personal computers.

These kids I've posted about are part of a new wave that is just beginning. A wave of children who are being introduced to computers at a very early age. And not just rich kids in the classrooms of expensive schools, but kids from all backgrounds, everywhere.

Nothing like this has ever happened before, so we can't quite know what all the consequences will be. Like so many things, I expect there will be a mixture of good and bad. I'm not complaining about it. Even if there were a significant number of people who wanted to stop it or slow it down, I don't think it would be possible. A fully interconnected internet world is arriving now, where even children all over the planet will be able to talk to each other. It's happening NOW, right before our eyes.

In developing nations where the laptops are being used, the parents of children are asking their kids to look up stuff on the internet for them. By proxy, a whole bunch of new adults are being introduced to the internet. There is even talk now of designing a simple inexpensive laptop device like the OLPC XO, that's made for adults. This is a trend that could have big cultural effects world wide.

I love using computers. They can be very helpful tools. But they can be used for lots of other purposes as well, like entertainment and communications, a link to mass media and all the good and bad stuff that comes with it.

I remember as a kid, growing up in the 60's and 70's, listening to the old folks complain about Television being the "boob tube". They said watching too much television made people "stupid". Old folks back then remembered what life was like before the TV existed. Now many years laster, as I look at young kids and computers and the internet, I think I understand better what those old folks were seeing.

TV isn't reality. It's entertainment, fantasy. Sure sometimes it's educational or informative, but it has a large fantasy element. It isn't the REAL world, though it does interact with and claim to represent the real world, it is in so many ways, 2nd hand notions, 2nd hand experiences, unproven ideas and wild imaginings.

The same goes for the internet, but because it is interactive, perhaps it's even more so. Computers themselves are like extensions of our minds, or at least mind tools, as we interact with them so closely with our minds. Plug that into the mass media, the collective or race mind, and then spend too much time immersed in it and... I think you can lose touch with reality. You start living in a world of ideas and imagination, and stop seeing the world the way it really is, and stop seeing people the way they really are.

Our advanced Western culture is becoming so obsessed with electronics and multimedia, you would have to wonder how we will cope if an EMP pulse fries all of our electronics and we suddenly find ourselves living in a world with only the technology of the 1870's available to us? Would we understand enough about reality and the basics of living to survive?

I love computers and the internet, but I love reality too. I see computers and the internet as tools, and as entertainment to some degree. That's all for the good. I just think we have to be very careful not to lose ourselves in them, and thus our connection to reality. With children being indoctrinated into the computer lifestyle so early in life, I have to wonder if they will be able to even understand what I am talking about, much less why it is important.


Related Links:

10 Days without windows... The Machine Stops

A Different World Indeed...
     

The International Space Station Progresses

Many a high-rise office building boasts about having incredible views, but I doubt there are many that can top this view from the International Space Station. Talk about a "View from the top":


It is the sun setting over the pacific ocean, as photographed from the ISS. You can download a large version of the photo here, it makes a great desktop wall paper.


The space shuttle Atlantis recently completed a mission, in which they delivered and installed a new lab unit to the ISS. The European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory is ESA's biggest single contribution to the International Space Station.

Columbus European Module

[...] The 4.5-metre diameter cylindrical module is equipped with flexible research facilities that offer extensive science capabilities. During its 10-year projected lifespan, Earth-based researchers, together with the International Space Station crew, will be able to conduct thousands of experiments in life sciences, materials science, fluid physics and a whole host of other disciplines, all in the weightlessness of orbit.

To keep costs low and reliability high, Columbus shares its basic structure and life-support systems with the Italian Space Agency's Multi-Purpose Logistics Modules (MPLM). But whereas the MPLM is aptly described as a 'space moving van' - albeit a very sophisticated moving van - the 75 cubic metres of space inside Columbus contains an entire suite of science laboratories. [...]

The following link also has more details, including a clickable thumnail link to a much larger version of the diagram above:

Columbus - Europe's lab at the International Space Station ISS

[...] As the first European laboratory devoted to long-term research in space, Columbus will further expand the science capabilities of the ISS. In its interior, the Columbus laboratory will provide accommodation for experiments in the field of multidisciplinary research into biology, physiology, material science, fluid physics, technology, life science and education. In addition, its external payload facility hosts experiments and applications in the field of space science, Earth observation and technology. [...]

You can follow the links for more fascinating details and photos.




The mission concluded successfully, and the Columbus module is now fully functional. Below is a photo of the the ISS as it exists today, a work in progress:



Bellow is an artist's rendition of what the completed station may look like:




For more information, about the Station, including a neat interactive reference guide/tour of the ISS, visit NASA's website:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

The future is happening now... and it's really kewl!
     

Highlights from McCain's acceptance speech

Here is some video of the speech, it's about 5 minutes long:



Here is a link to the entire speech text, with some excerpts:

Remarks By John McCain On [last night's] Primary Victories

[...] The next President must lead an effort to restructure our military, our intelligence, our diplomacy and all relevant branches of government to combat Islamic extremism, encourage the vast majority of moderates to win the battle for the soul of Islam, and meet the many other rising challenges in this changing world.

I will leave it to my opponent to argue that we should abrogate trade treaties, and pretend the global economy will go away and Americans can secure our future by trading and investing only among ourselves. We will campaign in favor of seizing the opportunities presented by the growth of free markets throughout the world, helping displaced workers acquire new and lasting employment and educating our children to prepare them for the new economic realities by giving parents choices about their children's education they do not have now.

I will leave it to my opponent to claim that they can keep companies and jobs from going overseas by making it harder for them to do business here at home. We will campaign to strengthen job growth in America by helping businesses become more competitive with lower taxes and less regulation.

I will leave it to my opponent to propose returning to the failed, big government mandates of the sixties and seventies to address problems such as the lack of health care insurance for some Americans. I will campaign to make health care more accessible to more Americans with reforms that will bring down costs in the health care industry down without ruining the quality of the world's best medical care.

[...]

Americans aren't interested in an election where they are just talked to and not listened to; an election that offers platitudes instead of principles and insults instead of ideas; an election that results -- no matter who wins -- in four years of unkept promises and a government that is just a battleground for the next election. Their patience is at an end for politicians who value ambition over principle, and for partisanship that is less a contest of ideas than an uncivil brawl over the spoils of power.

Nothing is inevitable in America. We are the captains of our fate. We're not a country that prefers nostalgia to optimism; a country that would rather go back than forward. We're the world's leader, and leaders don't pine for the past and dread the future. We make the future better than the past. We don't hide from history. We make history. That, my friends, is the essence of hope in America, hope built on courage, and faith in the values and principles that have made us great. I intend to make my stand on those principles and chart a course for our future greatness, and trust in the judgment of the people I have served all my life. So stand up with me, my friends, stand up and fight for America -- for her strength, her ideals, and her future. The contest begins tonight. It will have its ups and downs. But we will fight every minute of every day to make certain we have a government that is as capable, wise, brave and decent as the great people we serve. That is our responsibility and I will not let you down.

It's a wonderful speech, it's not very long, you can follow the link to read the whole thing.

Pat posted some excerpts on his blog:

McCain's acceptance speech

Pat commented:

I'm beginning to think that Mac's strategy for winning over "independent thinking Democrats" has paid off. It's the beginning of a new coalition of the Silent Majority of hardworking middle-class moderate non-ideological Americans who just want to raise their kids in a safe and sane environment without all the partisan bickering and "culture wars."

(bold emphasis mine) I sure hope so! The alternative it too terrible to contemplate. It's time to support our best choice.
     

Ahmadinejad continues his Lunatic agenda

Iran's insane president Ahmadinejad visits Iraq, tells the US to get out of the Middle East, claiming that our presence there has brought only destruction and division. He should talk. Through Hezbollah, Iran funds Hamas and other terrorist groups throughout the Middle East, with tentacles spreading even further.


Even now Iran is backing and supplying arms to Hamas for the current rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza, just as it arms Jihadists in Lebanon, all via Hezbollah. His visit to Iraq has nothing to do with peace and everything to do with Iran's pressing needs and Iraq's vulnerability.

Ahmadinejad has plenty of people in Iran worried, even members of the Iranian government. So they should be. Ahmadinejad is a nut-job who believes that a massive war and it's attendant bloodshed is actually needed to bring about the return of the Mahdi, the Hidden Imam.




The situation with Iran today is the direct legacy of Jimmy Carter, which was further abetted and supported by Bill Clinton. The Democrats just make us weaker and more vulnerable each time they're in charge. Shall we put another Democrat in the White House, so they can finish us off?


Related Links:

THE MULLAHS' TERRIBLE VISION

Is it time for regime change in Iran yet?

Hizbullah TV in Lebanon, courtesy of Iran

Iranian Internet users face blockage during coming election
     

Mechanized Music? Robotic Concerts?

I'm not sure what to call it, but it's interesting to watch and listen to. Here is some musical fun for your Monday:


What A Clip - Watch today’s top amazing videos here

What does the term "Conservative Republican" mean anymore? Can we all get along? SOON?

I love this cartoon because it cuts both ways. Conservatives would say it shows McCain is too liberal. But many moderate Republicans would say that some conservatives are so far right that they've left the Republican party, and now need to be "reached out" to. Me, I'm hoping John can reach BOTH ways.

Ronald Reagan did. He's now lauded as a "great conservative", but I remember when he was president, there were conservatives who complained he was too liberal. Reagan thought it was great if he got 80 percent of what he pushed for. Yet some on the far right continued to badger him to push for 100 percent.

Any politician who always gets 100 percent of what he wants has usually got a name like Mussolini or Hitler. 80 percent is pretty darn good. When you live in a democratic republic, you have to compromise, even when you hold a powerful position. And to even reach that powerful position, there has to be compromise and cooperation even within ones own party.

Reagan achieved his position by reaching out to conservatives. But not just Republican conservatives, but Democrat ones too, as well as moderates and independents. It was a true coalition, and it worked.

But that was 30 years ago. Times change, as do people. I'm hoping John McCain can also reach out to a wide range of voters and form a contemporary Republican Coalition, because we are going to need a big tent to win this one.

But this also begs a question: who ARE Republicans nowadays? What IS the definition of a conservative? Depending on who you talk to, you might get a very broad -or very narrow- answer.

I find this latest article from Gallup.com somewhat disturbing, but perhaps at the same time revealing:

Republicans Split on Whether Huckabee Should Drop Out

[...] The results show that there is no strong majority sentiment on the part of Republicans that Huckabee should leave the race. Forty-six percent say he should drop out, while 49% say he should continue.

According to media reports and many political observers, one of McCain's biggest challenges at this point is to woo the conservative wing of the Republican Party. It is not surprising, therefore, to find some differences by ideology in views of Huckabee's staying in the race.

Conservative Republicans say Huckabee should stay in the race, by a 54% to 42% margin. Moderate Republicans, on the other hand, say by a 57% to 38% margin that Huckabee should quit.

Gallup Poll Daily election tracking data show that about a quarter of Republicans nationwide continue to support Huckabee. Another 5% support Ron Paul or Alan Keyes, and 9% volunteer the name of another candidate (such as Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, or Mitt Romney) or don't have a choice. That currently leaves McCain with the support of about 6 in 10 Republicans nationwide.

In general, McCain's nomination support is lower among conservative Republicans, and higher among moderate Republicans. But the differences are perhaps not as large as might be expected given all of the attention to McCain's presumed problems with the conservative wing of his party. [...]

(bold emphasis mine) The poll also goes on to give graphs and figures giving a breakdown of people's church attendance, how often they attend, and who they support in the Republican primaries. It's interesting.

But the thing that keeps jumping out at me, if the Gallup poll data is to be trusted, is that 1/4 of Republicans are Huckabee supporters. Now to me, the only thing I see conservative about Huckabee supporters is their anti-abortion and anti-gay positions. In most other ways they seem like Big Government Nanny-State Democrats to me. If they are now 1/4 of the party, and the Republicans are supposed to be the "conservative" party, then what does that say about the present state of conservatism in America?

I've also been hearing it said that McCain wouldn't dare choose Huckabee as Veep, because "conservatives" wouldn't like it. Yet is seems that at least 1/4 of Republicans nationally would like it. And 54 percent of self-described conservative Republicans want Huckabee to continue running?

This just begs the question; if John McCain is going to form a coalition and pull the party together, what kind of coalition is it going to be? How will the 1/4 of Huckabee Republicans be accommodated? And what about other Republicans who don't like Huckabee but consider themselves to be conservatives of various kinds? What would this coalition look like, and how would it work?

To tell you the truth, I hope we find out... soon. I know a lot of folks are waiting to see who McCain picks as Veep before they will consider offering their support. Yet no matter who he picks, there are bound to be folks who will be dissatisfied. An effective coalition will need more than just a good Veep choice. Different segments of the coalition will want their particular concerns addressed, and that will have to be negotiated. Compromises will have to be made. Yet I believe it IS doable. I just hope it all starts to gel sooner rather than later. If conservatives only start to offer their support at the last minute like they did for Mitt Romney, it could end the same; too little, too late.

In a coalition, nobody gets 100 percent of what they want. But hopefully, we can all get what we NEED. If that happens, I'll be very happy.