Chủ Nhật, 31 tháng 7, 2011

"54 MPG Never Looked So Good!"

Hey, we gots to pay the bills!


And now, a word from our sponsor, Government Motors


Because what could go wrong with the huge, out-of-control, centralized, authoritarian, federal government mandating an arbitrary 54.5 miles-per-gallon?


Lede of the Day: Stanley B. Greenberg Self-Beclownment Edition

If Stanley B. Greenberg ever decides to leave the "center-left political" polling business (if that is a real business), I think he has a future on the comedy circuit with one-liners like this one:

Barack Obama can’t catch a break from the American public on the economy, even though he prevented a depression and saved global capitalism.

HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHA AHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAAHhAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHA AHHAHAH (***cough***) AHAHAHHAHAHAH AH AHA HA HAHA HA HA AHA HA HA AH AHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHA (***wheeze***) AHAH AHA HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHA (***owww***) HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHH AHHA HA HA AHHAHAHAH (***sh--***) OWWWW HA OWWW...

Ow. Ow. I think I just wrenched my clavicle.

Greenberg is a hilarious kook of a propagandist. Obama, in fact, helped cause the housing meltdown as an agitator for ACORN, which harassed banks into issuing subprime loans.

Obama blew trillions of borrowed dollars on 'shovel-ready projects', only to admit later that there was no such thing.

The Obama administration was also held in Contempt of Court for illegally obstructing oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, one of many steps the president has taken to destroy the domestic energy industry.

Obama also bludgeoned a wildly unpopular "health care reform" bill through Congress -- thousands of pages of legislation that no one had a chance to read or understand -- which is frightening business owners around the country and crushing hiring.

Obama also told a major aerospace manufacturer that they could not locate a billion-dollar manufacturing facility in a right-to-work state, an unprecedented act by a president completely dependent on unions for campaign donations.

And, most recently, Obama set the nation on a course of a downgrade from its once-unchallenged AAA credit rating by borrowing 40 cents of every dollar the federal government spends.

Stanley Greenberg has a future at Second City.


Moody’s: Boehner and Reid plans both completely fail to avoid downgrade

Gee, this is unexpected:

Moody’s, best known for “Subprime is AAA,” is belatedly coming to the realization that a country running serial deficits of 10% of GDP is not a AAA credit.

Well, admitting you have a problem is the first step. And today, Moody’s is admitting what we’ve been telling you for some time, that the debt ceiling charade is a farce and the real problem is the debt itself.

President Subprime McTrainingWheels could not be reached for comment.

And, gee, who could've predicted such a turn of events?

House Speaker John Boehner had two nuclear weapons at his disposal. And he chose to use neither. He had the debt ceiling and a threat of a downgrade by the rating agencies.

Cut, Cap & Balance addressed both issues.

If Republicans had united behind CCB, they could have forced a vote in the Senate -- by putting massive pressure on the 20 Democrats who had earlier pledged to support a Balanced Budget Amendment -- and send it to the President's desk.

Boehner could then tell the American people: there's only one plan that addresses the deficit and prevents a downgrade.

And let Obama deal with the fallout of a veto -- if he has the guts.

Instead, we submit a plan that still results in downgrade and default.

Idiocy. Sheer, unmitigated idiocy.

We need to elect a boatload more conservatives in 2012, politically eradicate the RINOs, and jam true conservatives into leadership positions.

Because all of these pantywaists -- put together -- don't have the cojones of Michele Bachmann.

They're wimps who are selling out the American people -- just a tad bit slower than the Marxist, Democrat Left. We're headed for fiscal apocalypse and these feckless RINOs won't even put up a fight.


Larwyn's Linx: A Deal No Republican Can Support

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. Bloggers: you can install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget!

Nation

A Deal No Republican Can Support: RS
Saturday Night Backroom Deals: Malkin
Major Obama Donors Reap Profits From His Policies: Riehl

The Devil’s In The Debt Ceiling Details: RWN
What does Obama want?: Greenroom
MS NAACP leader sent to prison for voter fraud: DC

The Man With No Plan Accuses House GOP of Irresponsibility: RSM
Losers All Around in Debt Limit Debate: PJM
Primarily Bolton: Atlas

Economy

A Tale of Two Signs: "Hiring Now!" or "Going Out of Business"?: HE
Bush vs Obama: Facts And Observations: ZH
White House Chart on debt--Bush's fault: VR

Official Lies: 1Q GDP Revised Down to 0.4% From 1.9%: RWN
“Raising the Debt Ceiling” For Dummies: NoisyRoom
Europe Declares War on American Ratings Agencies: PJM

Gunrunner

Obama and the Drug Cartels: AT
The Associated Press Covers Gunwalker: Power Line

Climate & Energy

Enviro-kooks baffled: Gulf Coast wildlife is thriving after oil spill: IHTM
The First Church of The Blessed Evaporator: Primordial Slack
CT's new, short-lived, all-time high temperature record corrected: WUWT

Media

Media, Democrats, and the President in Lockstep with 'Tea Party as Terrorists' Message: NB
Barney Frank: Why didn’t the Republicans fix (fill in the blank) when they had control?: Constitution Alley
Bill Maher Makes His Own ‘It Gets Better’ Spot To Sell Americans on Socialism: Mediaite

Saturday Roundup & Debt Ceiling Collision Warning System Test: Malkin
J.P.'s Moment of Common Sense: JPA
Jon Stewart on Allen West: "Quick, Robin! To the Bats*** Mobile!": DailyPulp

President Fussbudget Uses Awesome Power of Weekly Address That Nobody Watches to Plead for Reelection: Ace
Jennifer Rubin Is An A**hole: Riehl
Client #9 Lectures the Tea Party: Glob

World

The Post-American World: Driscoll
Meanwhile The Global Economy...: ZH
Abbas ‘feels he’s above the law,’ charges Dahlan: JPost

Thanks Barack Obama: Mexico’s Unemployment Rate 4.9% … United States 9.2%: ScaredMonkeys
Harvard Instructor May Face Removal Over Anti-Muslim Op-Ed: Atlantic

Sci-Tech

Anonymous Claims Network Breach of FBI Security Contractor ManTech: eWeek
Internet Explorer Users are More Stupid Than Others: Study: IBTimes
iPhone 5 to launch in early September, report says: CNet

Cornucopia

The Great Debt Ceiling Debate: Havoc
Porsche's Top 10 Pop Culture Moments: Complex
In Post-Obamageddon “Bankrupttown”, Final Debt Debates to be Settled in “Dunderdome” : Doswell

Image: iOwnTheWorld
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Please Support the Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "In the most recent of numerous scandals to rock the District of Columbia’s famously corrupt government, a councilman charged with stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars meant for youth programs has been let off the hook by the city’s attorney general and won’t be federally charged because the area’s U.S. attorney is a college fraternity brother.

It marks the latest in a never-ending tale of the crooked officials who run D.C. and seldom face consequences. In this case D.C. Councilman Harry Thomas, who has represented Ward 5 since 2007, “diverted” more than $300,000 in public funds intended for children’s sports and spent it on personal travel and a luxury car." --JudicialWatch

Thứ Bảy, 30 tháng 7, 2011

The Top 150 Conservative Websites -- 3Q11

Using Alexa's traffic rankings, the following represents a tabular view of the top 150 conservatively focused news and blog sites. Each column can be sorted by clicking the column header. And just click on the site-name to open a new window and visit the website. And, yes, I know that some of these sites are truly left-leaning (e.g., Politico). That said, conservatives often cite and reference them, so I've included them for purposes of completeness.




Rank Website Alexa Rank
1wsj.com212
2politico.com977
3realclearpolitics.com1473
4theblaze.com2177
5zerohedge.com2610
6hotair.com3624
7freerepublic.com3990
8thehill.com4016
9dailycaller.com4025
10consumerist.com4316
11nationaljournal.com4417
12mediaite.com4566
13foreignpolicy.com4577
14townhall.com5009
15nationalreview.com5049
16pajamasmedia.com (instapundit, etc.)6209
17military.com6548
18investors.com7179
19biggovernment.com7297
20rushlimbaugh.com7692
21cnsnews.com8293
22theatlanticwire.com8504
23washingtonexaminer.com8808
24reason.com9743
25newsbusters.org10432
26mises.org10631
27americanthinker.com10845
28ace.mu.nu (confederateyankee, jawa, etc.)11366
29redstate.com12344
30humanevents.com13778
31weeklystandard.com14009
32cbn.com14618
33michellemalkin.com14944
34wattsupwiththat.com18116
35blog.heritage.org19699
36spectator.org22354
37globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com22993
38stratfor.com23741
39bigjournalism.com25055
40powerlineblog.com26981
41thenewamerican.com28192
42commentarymagazine.com31775
43realclearmarkets.com32816
44atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com34096
45jihadwatch.org34970
46rollcall.com36098
47althouse.blogspot.com39026
48gatewaypundit.rightnetwork.com39165
49whitehousedossier.com39605
50thegatewaypundit.com41540
51therightscoop.com42042
52blogs.dailymail.com43262
53lifenews.com45063
54memeorandum.com47844
55volokh.com48263
56boortz.com48388
57freedomworks.org48679
58anncoulter.com50047
59weaselzippers.us50054
60marklevinshow.com50422
61rightpundits.com56414
62bigpeace.com57471
63defensetech.org64262
64hannity.com65581
65numbersusa.com66681
66outsidethebeltway.com67034
67firstthings.com67626
68theothermccain.com68199
69rightwingnews.com68286
70danielpipes.org71001
71armytimes.com71589
72wizbangblog.com79629
73ihatethemedia.com82606
74redcounty.com82656
75newsrealblog.com83613
76borderlandbeat.com83752
77patterico.com85333
78climateaudit.org86410
79conservatives4palin.com86446
80patdollard.com90959
81city-journal.org91140
82sayanythingblog.com94268
83the-american-interest.com96954
84linkiest.com97143
85uncoverage.net97865
86jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com98843
87cato-at-liberty.org100270
88legalinsurrection.blogspot.com101880
89viralfootage.com104866
90iowntheworld.com105312
91moonbattery.com105505
92directorblue.blogspot.com105844
93hughhewitt.com105996
94mrc.org109780
95memri.org126142
96lonelyconservative.com127062
97gatesofvienna.blogspot.com132153
98ricochet.com138329
99legalinsurrection.com140849
100steynonline.com141345
101bobmccarty.com150730
102aei.org153693
103yidwithlid.blogspot.com156096
104cafehayek.com159727
105thepeoplescube.com164308
106scaredmonkeys.com164669
107proteinwisdom.com169099
108iowahawk.typepad.com169738
109hillbuzz.org171869
110blackfive.net172848
111floppingaces.net179972
112allamericanblogger.com184949
113radicalislam.org185979
114polipundit.com195093
115varight.com198082
116smalldeadanimals.com198816
117americanpowerblog.blogspot.com200578
118verumserum.com200816
119judicialwatch.org202792
120allgov.com217439
121noquarterusa.net217756
122bostonreview.net223043
123imao.us226032
124creepingsharia.wordpress.com230142
125riehlworldview.com236692
126sultanknish.blogspot.com237703
127zombietime.com253740
128tammybruce.com263323
129dennisprager.com266319
130dailypundit.com285298
131americandigest.org292366
132sweetness-light.com326266
133hyscience.com332823
134noisyroom.net355927
135moelane.com356560
136deceiver.com357583
137sundriesshack.com359710
138babalublog.com362941
139justoneminute.typepad.com377224
140shark-tank.net377308
141theblogprof.blogspot.com380350
142atr.org386280
143politicsandfinance.blogspot.com391612
144qando.net402642
145libertypundits.net411046
146strata-sphere.com417364
147fireandreamitchell.com420301
148nicedeb.wordpress.com442933
149pointsandfigures.com459455
150winteryknight.wordpress.com460269





Related: Top 150 Conservative Websites - 2Q11


Butthurt Report Form: RINO Sellout Edition



Journolist Lives: The Democrat-Media Complex's Hostage Meme

Somehow I was left off the talking-points distribution list:

• Huffington Post: How Extremists Have Taken America Hostage

• News-Star: Sen. Mary Landrieu: Republicans in the House "holding the U.S. economy hostage"

• Los Angeles Times: Government: Trading the debt ceiling for another hostage

• The Nation: Economic Hostage-Takers Have Infiltrated the House GOP Caucus

• Tehran Times: Paul Krugman: 'Republicans have, in effect, taken America hostage'

• The Hill: Sen. John Kerry: GOP is "prepared to hold the nation's entire economy hostage"

• Bloomberg: Jonathan Alter: "Republicans want to hold the system hostage"

• Detroit News: Rep. John Dingell: GOP "is holding the U.S. economy hostage to its ideological agenda"

• NJ.com: GOP holding Congress hostage to advance [a] reverse Robin Hood economic agenda

• Politico: Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr.: "No other president has been... held hostage... over [a] debt vote"

• Al Arabiya: Hostage takers in America’s Congress

• W. Hartford: Rep. John Larson: "Republicans have taken our economy hostage"

• Van Jones: Americans don’t bow down to "hostage taking tactics"

• Bill Knight: Needy held hostage by the party of the rich

• White House Press Secretary Jay Carney: [Is it] "plausible to hold the American economy hostage to a two-thirds vote...?"

• White House Press Secretary Jay Carney: "What is not okay is to do this whole debate again by holding another extension of the debt ceiling hostage..."

• White House Press Secretary Jay Carney: "...essentially hold the American economy hostage to a two-thirds vote to amend the Constitution"


Hat tip: EIB Network. Linked by: Michelle Malkin and Ed Driscoll. Thanks!

Larwyn's Linx: I Won in an Historic Landslide and All I Got...

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. Bloggers: you can install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget!

Nation

I Won in an Historic Landslide and All I Got...: AT
Senate quickly tables Boehner debt plan: Ace
Tea Party, Fix Your Gaze On 2012: IBD

Obama's Ineptitude: AT
Man with no plan demands deal by Tuesday: RWN
Brown Says He’d Support the Reid Debt Plan: Malkin

Obama and Marxists March in Unison on Immigration: NoisyRm
Schumer, Lindsey Graham working on amnesty bill: VS
Pelosi declines endorsement of 14th Amendment solution: Hill

Economy

Obamaconomy: Ace
Moody's: US won't default on 8/2; White House hardest hit: VS
What Expansion?: IBD

White House Prods Rating Agencies to Endorse Reid Plan: WSPit
Steve Wynn Is Right: AmSpec
Gil Cedillo, California’s Socialist Immigration “Czar”: IBD

Gunrunner

Gunwalker: One Step Closer to the Oval Office: PJM
Still Fast, Getting Furiouser: NRO
Emails to White House didn't mention gun sting: LAT

Climate & Energy

A Big Welcome To EPA Motors: IBD
Mandated Mischief: Obama’s 54.5 MPG Standard: PJM
Polar Bear Champion Charles Monnett Accused of Scientific Misconduct: RWN

Media

Civility: A List of 'the GOP is Insane/Terrorists/Extremists' over the Debt Ceiling Articles: PunditPress
End This Crisis: NRO
NYTimes poll-graph on debt crisis: public rejects extreme partisan solutions, but false premise skews results: Tatler

Politico Op-Ed: TEA Partiers Are Terrorists: RWN
Peggy Noonan: Obama's Not A Revolutionary, He's Just A Loser: Ace
Krauthammer Scolds Margaret Carlson for Saying Tea Party 'Strapped Explosives to the Capitol': NB

World

Turkey's Military Leaders All Resign En Masse: TAB
Flee to Mars if America commits worst error since 1931: Telegraph
Libya, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Opposition's Military Commander is Assassinated: EAWorld

Debunking 6 Myths About Anders Breivik: Knish
Abdo (and other threats): Mudville
Pentagon’s Craziest PowerPoint Slide Revealed: Wired

Obama and the Drug Cartels: AT
Muslim school loses zoning decision, terror-linked CAIR asks DOJ to step in: Creeping
NJ: Muslims attack, threaten cops, get $50,000 settlement: Creeping

Sci-Tech

How to avoid becoming a Twitter pest : Helium
Obama takes to Twitter in debt ceiling debate, but loses almost 37,000 followers: Post
Apple Has More Cash Than The U.S. Government: OTB

Cornucopia

Photoshop Contest: One Does Not Simply Mock Into Mordor: RS
Jamie 'Mistress of Disaster' Gorelick receives award from Natl. Assocation of Women Lawyers: RP&EL Alert
Visualization of U.S. Debt: Kleptocracy

Image: Photoshop Contest: One Does Not Simply Mock Into Mordor
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Please support the Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: ...let's not forget how serious our fiscal problems are. Federal outlays now make up a quarter of the total national output. Federal spending is up 46% in the last decade while the economy has grown by just 14% (inflation adjusted dollars). In other words, government is growing over 3.5 times faster than our ability to sustain it.

...Given the situation, are we to believe that that a cut amounting to less than 1% of the federal budget is the best we can do? If so, then we better snap a few pictures of America, because it won't be around much longer. --Joseph Ashby

Thứ Sáu, 29 tháng 7, 2011

John 'Forrest Gump' Boehner Gets Played Again

Using every arm-twisting, committee appointment, and earmark bribe in the book, John Boehner was able to slam his ridiculous faux debt-ceiling bill through the House, 218-210 a few minutes ago.

Let me be the first to predict what will now happen.


It will go to the Senate, where it will be rejected, rewritten, revamped and -- in general -- shredded by Chuck Schumer's mannequin, Harry Reid. In other words, it will become an even more pathetic "deficit reduction" vehicle than it was to begin with.

Then, with only hours to spare, it will be sent back to the House, whereupon the media and the Democrats -- but I repeat myself -- will predict total economic calamity should it not pass.

Boehner, the consummate Beltway insider, will panic, cry, and force it through the House, echoing the same predictions of complete economic collapse of Timothy Geithner. It will enforce no cuts, it will command no deficit reduction measures, and it will also grant Barack Obama unconditional permission to borrow another trillion dollars (or two) from our kids and grandkids.

And it will tiptoe this country right to the edge of fiscal collapse.

It's a game of hot potato, and Gump will have been handed the scalding hot potato with no time to spare.

Instead of hammering Cut, Cap & Balance through the House and Senate, the feckless GOP leadership will have folded like a deck-chair in a typhoon.

The imperative for 2012 could not be more clear: replace every RINO with conservatives in the primaries. Then obliterate the Marxist pod-people that have subsumed the husk of the once-proud Democrat Party. We have no alternative if we are to save this Republic.


Every road is an on-ramp to fun with the startlingly new, surprisingly sexy Dodge Deflation™


Yes, it's come to this.

Larwyn's Linx: The GOP Crappy Meal: It's Better Than Nothing!

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. Bloggers: you can install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget!

Nation

The GOP Crappy Meal: It's Better Than Nothing!: Malkin
Here's the Latest Democrat Plan: RS
The Rancid Odor of Desperation and Decay: babalu

The Worst Negotiators: RS
No split in conservative movement that wasn't already there: Riehl
Payback may be coming for congressman's 'disloyalty': Dispatch

John McCain Denounces the Tea Party: RWN
TSA Abuses Cancer Survivor For Second Time: RWN
TSA Agents Pose As Cops To Harass Women: Indybay

Economy

Red States, Including the ‘Newly-Reds,’ Excel at Job Growth: PJM
Feds: Hey, Employers, Hire Foreign Grads!: GardenSerf
Why the Debt Crisis Is Even Worse Than You Think: BizWk

Obama's destruction in two nauseating charts: RWN
Dear ExxonMobil: Thank you for being profitable!: BSF
Good news: Fed Health tab to hit $4.6 trillion in 2020: DC

Gunrunner

Gunwalker: William Newell Circles the Wagons: PJM
Will Fast And Furious Cost Obama's Attorney General His Job?: Insider
Did Obama Admit To Ordering ‘Operation Fast & Furious?': Dollard

ATF: The White House Knew: IBD
IRS, DEA And ICE Connected To Project Gunrunner: SHN

Climate & Energy

Is It Over for Global Warming Alarmism?: Power Line
The Obama EPA’s Brave New Future: Foundry
Obama Running Not One Auto Company but All of Them: Foundry

Barack Obama re-election contributors are rare in Louisiana: Nola
Analysis of NASA Satellite Data Suggests UN Climate Models are Full of Hot Air: Malkin
"Fuel standards have become one of the major causes of death and misery in the United States.": BlogProf

Media

Columbia Journalism Review tells the press to lie about Republicans: BigJourn
NY Times: Palin’s Well-Timed Reminder to Freshmen: C4P
CBS's Schieffer Wrongly Claims Social Security Checks Can't Go Out Without Debt Resolution: NB

World

Fort Hood UPDATE: Abdo Confesses to Planning Attack, Bought Uniform and Fort Hood Unit Patches Off-Base: PJM
Norway's Terrorism in Context: Pipes
Single-payer hell: NHS begins rationing operations: Independent

Another jihadist plot against American soldiers on U.S. soil; Alert gun dealer, local police blew the whistle: Malkin
State Department spending millions of U.S. tax dollars to save mosques overseas: HySci
Afghanistan War: US rescue teams rush to save troops hurt by IEDs: GlobPost

Sci-Tech

Excite could have bought Google for $750,000 in 1999 -- and turned it down: Minyanville
TW Cable loses 4 percent of home-video subscribers: CNet
Twitter starts injecting paid tweets into the stream: CNet

Cornucopia

Ron On Palin And Bachmann: Denny
How Hot Is It in Texas?: C&S
La Raza Members Beg Obama to Become Dictator: RedCty

Image: IRS, DEA And ICE Connected To Project Gunrunner (SHN)
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Please support the Senate Conservatives Fund

QOTD: "He is dividing us as a nation. He's not bringing us together. He's willfully dividing us. He's petulant... He is not acting presidential. He is behaving in a way designed in my opinion to divide us, to make us look at each other with skepticism, with suspicion. That is the end of America as we know it. The destruction he is inflicting by his behavior will carry on long after we settle the debt limit." --Ken Langone, former director of the NYSE

Thứ Năm, 28 tháng 7, 2011

Attention UAW Members: If You Want to Keep Your Jobs, Perhaps You Should Look at the Republican Candidates in the Next Election

Dear UAW members:

Did you know that President Obama is dedicated to wiping your industry out?

Oh, I'm not kidding.

The Obama Administration tomorrow will announce new auto efficiency regulations that will create stricter miles per gallon (mpg) standards for cars and light-duty trucks for the model years 2017–2025. The target would be an average of 54.5 mpg by 2025 standard, slightly down from the initial proposal of 56.2 mpg. White House press secretary Jay Carney said the new regulations will “result in significant cost savings for consumers at the pump, dramatically reduce oil consumption, cut pollution and create jobs.” As nice as all that sounds, this is bad news for the American consumer...


...The government acknowledges that increased fuel efficiency standards will increase the upfront cost of a vehicle... Higher prices reduce demand and force people to hold onto their older vehicles longer. Reduced demand means fewer cars produced, which means automakers have to shed jobs. The Michigan-based consulting firm Defour Group projected that a 56 mpg standard would destroy 220,000 jobs.

Think the average family will be able to absorb the hike in car prices? Think again.

The Center for Automotive Research which warned that overly stringent standards could add $10,000 to the cost of a new car...


... [and] a 2002 National Academy of Sciences study concluded that CAFE’s downsizing effect contributed to between 1,300 and 2,600 deaths in a single representative year, and to 10 times that many serious injuries.

If you're a member of the United Auto Workers, please be aware that your richly paid bosses have sold you out.

They've caved to President Obama's radical environmental, flat-earth, no-growth, eco-Marxists who have but a single goal: eradicate the automobile.


The 10 Most Inappropriate Children's Products Ever

Brilliance at BusinessPundit:

10. Hasbro’s “Spastic” Transformer

People might think that such a long-standing company as Hasbro would do some elementary market research to make sure that their product names don’t have people staring at the toys in disbelief. Apparently not, as they decided to name one of their Transformer toys “Spastic with Stunticons” in 2010, apparently unaware that the term “spastic” is a derogatory term used in the United Kingdom to refer to people with disabilities. When contacted about this cross-cultural blunder, Hasbro denied ever having planned to release the toy in the UK — though some reports say such plans were scrapped. They declined to rename the figure in the US.

9. Primark’s Padded Bras for Children

The cut-price UK fashion retailer, Primark, caused a wave of public outrage in 2010 when it emerged that they were selling padded bras and bikini tops for little girls. The products sparked calls for a boycott of the store and were widely condemned by those opposed to the sexualization of children, including parent groups and the British Prime Minister David Cameron. After a whole lot of angry recrimination, Primark not only stopped selling the clothing, but pledged to donate any profits they had made from this sexual targeting of children to charity.

8. Mattel’s Oreo Barbie

A toy company partnering with a company that sells sugary treats might be seen as problematic in the first place, but Mattel took such a union into the realm of the unacceptable when they partnered with Nabisco’s Oreo cookies to produce a black Barbie back in 1997. Clearly there was not a single black or even somewhat socially aware person in the room when this decision was made, nor through the lengthy design and marketing stage. If there was, they probably would have mentioned that “Oreo” can be used as an ethnic slur to describe a black person who is “white in the middle.” The dolls were met with outrage and disbelief, and as soon as Mattel understood the nature of the problem, they quickly pulled all the Oreo Barbies from stores… and, one would hope, instituted racial sensitivity classes for their employees.

7. Twin Towers Attack Toys

Someone would have to be from another planet to not realize that they really shouldn’t make light of the September 11th terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. And yet, in 2004, toys depicting the attack and a man appearing to be Osama bin Laden at the Twin Towers began turning up in bags of candy. Consumers and Lisy Corp, the company that distributed the candy, were shocked. The distributor had bought the toys from an importer as part of a mixture, where the offending figures had been labeled as plastic swing sets. Lisy quickly sprang into action, recalling the candy, and doubtless directing extremely sharp words the manufacturers’ way.

6. Dick Tracy Tramp Figure

One of the action figures from the 1990 movie Dick Tracy depicted a character called “Steve the Tramp.” Somewhat insensitive already, this toy became downright offensive towards the homeless when parents read the packaging, which stated such nasty sentiments as “Ignorant bum… You’ll smell him before you see him,” and proclaiming him to be “Stinking up the city sewers.” At least one church leader contacted the manufacturers to explain to them why this was not the kind of thing children should be taught about the homeless, protests were held, and thankfully the manufacturers were shamed into withdrawing the product.

5. Mattel’s Teen Talk Barbie

Mattel has often been criticized by those who feel that Barbie gives little girls unrealistic ideas about women, but Teen Talk Barbie really took the biscuit. While each doll could only say four of a possible 270 phrases, there was a chance that they would say such harmfully stereotypical phrases as “Will we ever have enough clothes?”, “I love shopping!” and “Math class is tough!” This led to criticism from the American Association of University Women and was even satirized by the pop-culture institution that is The Simpsons. In a matter of months, Mattel altered production so that the phrase “Math class is tough!” was not part of any of the dolls’ verbal repertoire, and offered to swap any which had been programmed with it.

4. Morrisons’ Misspelled Toddler Toys

Educating a child starts with teaching them to read. It’s one of the best things a parent can do for their child, so the last thing any parent needs is to be undermined by the learning tools on which they’ve shelled out their money. British supermarket Morrisons was left red-faced in 2009 when they discovered that educational toddler toys that were supposed to help small children with their letters and spelling were themselves rife with spelling errors (“yacht” misspelled as “yatch” and “umbrella” as “umberlla”). At first, the supermarket chain refused to withdraw the toys until existing stock had run out, but complaints from concerned parents forced them to pull them from the shelves and issue an apology.

3. Mattel’s Harry Potter Nimbus 2000 Vibrating Broomstick

Mattel were yet again in the firing line, this time for the release of a toy that sought to capitalize on Harry Potter mania

The idea of a real Harry Potter broomstick would appeal to any child, but one would have thought that Mattel might have realized that a long vibrating stick that was designed for children to put between their legs might raise some eyebrows. Tongue-in-cheek rave reviews for the product from adults quickly sprang up online, and a contrite Mattel pulled the vibrating broomsticks from the market.

2. Costco’s Cuddle With Me Dolls

Diversity in hiring isn’t just a good PR exercise; it can help stop companies from releasing products whose inappropriateness seems blindingly obvious to anyone with even an ounce of real-world experience. It’s shocking, then, that Costco didn’t realize that packaging a black doll (wearing a hat proclaiming it to be a “lil’ monkey”) with a small monkey teddy would cause concern and upset in the African-American community. They couldn’t even claim that the dolls simply liked monkeys, as no dolls representing other ethnicities were packaged with them (while panda bears were an equal-opportunity accessory). At first, many parents were simply shocked, but the growing outrage led to an apology from Costco and the dolls’ manufacturer as well as a recall of the product from stores.

1. Tesco’s Peekaboo Stripper Pole

Anyone who does not believe that companies target children with inappropriately sexual toys should simply be pointed towards this product. While many women (and some men) are now taking up pole dancing as exercise, the fact is that it is still, and probably always will be, linked with stripping for money. In fact the Peekaboo Pole even comes with a “sexy garter” and fake money. After some pointed questions and utter disbelief from the media, parents and family organizations alike, British retail giant Tesco moved the product from the “Toy” to the “Fitness” section of their store, but refused to admit that they had targeted children, maintaining that it was for “adult use.” Funny that it was put in the “Toy” section then...

Related: Toys from our youth that would be illegal today.


The Boehner Plan For Dummies

Someone far smarter than me can correct this assessment in the comments but -- as I understand it -- the Boehner plan is:

• Raise the debt ceiling with no real cuts - check

• Hold secret meetings with an elite "commission" of masterminds - check

• Trying to avoid blame rather than fix problems - checkety check

• End up getting pwnt by legacy media anyhow - check and mate

I'm sure glad the current RINO leadership wasn't advising General Washington at Valley Forge.


Related: How Barack Obama is destroying the American economy in two nauseating charts


New sign at Wal-Mart [Papa B]

Papa B:

Remember when America was dumbing down? No more. We have arrived...


It's the new math.


How Barack Obama is destroying the American economy in two nauseating charts

You don't need to be a math major to understand these devastating charts (slightly modified from the originals to depict the beginning of the "one-time, emergency Stimulus"):

...next time Obama or his allies in the press go back to the well and recite the well-worn verse that spending is all the other guy’s fault, take a look at the facts...

President Obama has steered a fiscal course that will lead to more spending and deeper deficits and ultimately to vastly higher taxes...

...If you want to know the real cause of our deficits today, the answer lies primarily with Obama. If you want to know the real cause of our deficits in the near future, the answer lies in entitlement spending, which Obamacare increases.

That John Boehner, who was put into power by the same Tea Party conservatives he condemns, could ignore the so-called "emergency Stimulus" package -- and leave it in all subsequent baseline budgets -- is a freaking moral outrage!

Fight! Why won't they fight? Because: (a) they're cowards; or (b) they like big government. Either answer is un-freaking-acceptable. Has Barack Obama given an inch in his battle to Cloward-Piven-ize America? No! Did Stretch Pelosi? No! Did Harry "Chuck Schumer writes my speeches" Reid? Hell, no!

Boehner had two nuclear weapons at his disposal. And he chose to use neither. He had the debt ceiling and a threat of a downgrade by the rating agencies.

Cut, Cap & Balance addressed both issues.

If Republicans had united behind CCB, they could have forced a vote in the Senate -- by putting massive pressure on the 20 Democrats who had earlier pledged to support a Balanced Budget Amendment -- and send it to the President's desk.

Boehner could then tell the American people: there's only one plan that addresses the deficit and prevents a downgrade.

And let Obama deal with the fallout of a veto -- if he has the guts.

Instead, we submit a plan that still results in downgrade and default.

Idiocy. Sheer, unmitigated idiocy.

We need to elect a boatload more conservatives in 2012, politically eradicate the RINOs, and jam true conservatives into leadership positions.

Because all of these pantywaists -- put together -- don't have the cojones of Michele Bachmann.

They're wimps who are selling out the American people -- just a tad bit slower than the Marxist, Democrat Left. We're headed for fiscal apocalypse and these feckless RINOs won't even put up a fight.


Larwyn's Linx: The Man Without a Plan

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. Bloggers: you can install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget!

Nation

The Man Without a Plan: PJM
Rancor on the Right: Of elephants and asses: Malkin
All 53 Senate Democrats Threaten Default: GWP

All You Need To Know About The House Republicans: RS
F*** John McCain: RSM
Choosing Time for Conservatives: Pundette

Bam, it's time to cut spending - period: McCaughey
Will Boehner 2.0 Launch?: Hewitt
Obama’s Battleground-State Blues: NatJourn

Gunrunner

ATF Official: I shared Gunwalker Data with White House: CBS
Issa Hopes White House Official Will Testify: Foundry
Just a reminder, and a thank you; Confounding the 'EeBeeGees': Sipsey

Economy

A Thousand Pictures Is Worth One Word: Worthless: ZH
In the wake of Obamacare: Boortz
Sgt. Schultz: GOP acting like a dictatorship or something: Hot Air

Hey, Mr. President, ‘Where’s the Plan?’: NoisyRm
More Idiocy From Democrats: Denninger
GE: 'Stop Complaining About Big Government' Moves to Beijing: SHN

A Leadership Default: WSJ
“We Don’t Have A Deficit Problem Right Now.”: RWN
One nation, under Moody’s: Malkin

Climate & Energy

Henry Waxman Asks Sec. Chu To Create Globull Warming Re-Education Program: RWN
The Death of Cars: Snapped Shot
Green agenda has parallels with excesses of communism: Herald Sun

Media

New York Times Reader Kills Dozens In Norway: Coulter
Did Obama Give the Nod to the SEIU/ACORN Economic Pressure Campaign Against Wall Street?: Vadum
The Politics of Blame: The Petulant Boy-King Stamps His Foot – One More Time: Marfdrat

Limbaugh: Tell Obama "We're Waiting for Your Plan, Chief": Ace
Re: Media Assassins; Pamela Geller Under Assault, It’s The Anti-Anti-Jihad Movement: POH Diaries
Carney gets testy over more questions on lack of Obama plan: TRS

Michelle Malkin to DC: We will not sit down and shut up! No more!: TRS
The New Journalism: IBD
Sarah Palin to Keynote September 3rd Tea Party Event in Iowa: Malkin

World

‘Gentle Justice’ Meets Mass Murderer: PJM
Breivik hated women and feared equal rights: TAB
The 5 Biggest Lies Told about Oslo Shooter Anders Breivik: PJM

Dictatorial Daydreams: MoneyRunner
Department of Sensitive Defense: Snapped Shot
Norway, Oklahoma City, and the notion of Christian terrorism: JPA

Sci-Tech

'War texting' lets hackers unlock car doors via SMS: NetworkWorld
Google+ traffic dropping already?: CNet
A Stuxnet Comeback?: DarkReading

Cornucopia

Big Love in Park City and Aspen: MOTUS
An Open Letter to All Patriots: NoisyRm
Mark Levin gives a history lesson on Nov. 2010: TRS

Image: Adapted from iOwnTheWorld
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: Senate Conservatives Fund


Thứ Tư, 27 tháng 7, 2011

Hanson: the Collapse of Our Failed Welfare State Will Purify Us

Historian Victor Davis Hanson is far more optimistic than I regarding the aftereffects of the impending debt implosion here in the U.S. We are approaching $15 trillion in national debt, which does not even take into account the $60+ trillion entitlement programs that will soon overtake our ability to pay. In that light, Hanson asks:

• "Should those on welfare who have more than three children still qualify for increased assistance for each additional offspring?"

• "Does the affluent class deserve mortgage-interest deductions on second and third homes?"

• "Should U.S. troops subsidize the defense of an allied and rich Germany or Japan 66 years after World War II?"

Hanson observes that the aberration of deficit spending will soon result in a return to rationality:

...the dogma that a teenager with dyslexia or a mature man with a bum knee will receive years of Social Security disability benefits will be assessed as an historical aberration of the last twenty years. A decision by an insurance company or government agency that a 62-year old must settle for arthroscopic surgery on a chronically torn meniscus rather than a complete knee replacement will not be interpreted as social cruelty.

Almost everything that can be said has been said about illegal immigration — and about the sustainability and morality of millions of Mexican and Latin American nationals crossing the U.S. border unlawfully and plugging into the American entitlement system. But an insolvent state like California, despite the liberal protestations, cannot continue to house 50,000 Mexican nationals in its penal system at a per capita cost of nearly $35,000 a year, or to extend free tuition in its broke university system to those without legal residence, or to provide social services to illegal aliens that may well cost the state nearly $10 billion a year. Even to suggest such limits was once considered illiberal. Now, not to state the obvious — that those without education, English, and legality have been expecting far more than what they could contribute in return — will be considered derelict.

Do the almost 50 million people now on "food stamps" all truly need them? Are they all starving to death? Is the program fraud-free and used only to buy bare necessities?

Is 99 weeks of unemployment (or more) reasonable?

Can someone who owns an iPhone, a big-screen television, a laptop computer, and a comfy leather couch really be called "poor"?

We can no longer afford the liberal philosophy of redistribution. Hanson concludes that there "...is a certain brutal honesty about this debt crisis. It is slowly beginning to force us to see the world in the tragic way it is, rather than in the therapeutic way we dream it must be."

But as Greece showed us -- and the public sector battle in Wisconsin hinted at -- civil unrest could be on the horizon rather than a becalmed expiation of liberals' sins.

Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.


Hat tip: Pundit & Pundette.

Gas Pump Sticky-Note Campaign Part Deux

Just a reminder: the 'Gas Pump Sticky Note Campaign' is still underway.

Rather than hand-written notes, here are a couple that you can print:


Of course, the notes don't have to be this fancy.

They can be as simple as a PostIt with the exhortation "Stop the damn spending!!!"