Fire Safety Cigarettes
You know what I hate? These new ” Fire Safety Cigarettes “. Talk about an absolutely horrible idea!
Entries Tagged as 'politics & government'
Why Sarah Palin is the smartest woman in America
“Sarah Palin, the smartest woman in America? With all due respect, I must refudiate.”
Refudiate away. Name her countless verbal transgressions, cite her taunting vacuum of legitimate political and legal knowledge, snort at her so-called feminist identity. I won’t deny you. I’m right there with you. Sarah Palin has never struck me as a genius. In fact, I’ve always gotten the impression she’s the type who’s unable to read without moving her lips. [Read more →]
The pap of progress
In the last embarrassing installment of the “The Conversation,” the New York Times’ pandering online ‘dialogue’ between columnists David Brooks and Gail Collins, readers overheard David and Gail chatting philosophical on the progress of humanity. Regardless of the deplorable state of American, well, everything, they assured each other in alternating heaves of optimism, at least the present is better than the past.
Not that we should be surprised. David Brooks could find the silver lining of industrial capitalism in a radiation cloud. Nuclear technology, after all, is clear evidence of economic growth and human creativity. No, we shouldn’t be surprised that this country’s supposed intellectuals are finding new ways to dumb down discourse with rancid chestnuts about progress. But we should be disappointed.
Top ten things overheard at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding
10. “Did you catch Hillary’s lace pantsuit?”
9. “Bill and one of the bridesmaids are missing.”
8. “Look! It’s the Salahis!”
7. “Who’s playing the part of Chelsea?”
6. “This is the closest we could get to a royal wedding?! We never should have left the British Empire!”
5. “Bill and another one of the bridesmaids are missing.”
4. “Reinforce the perimeter! Roger Clinton’s trying to crash the wedding!”
3. “This is even bigger than the Bristol Palin-Levi Johnston wedding!”
2. “Now Bill and all of the bridesmaids are missing.”
1. “Who let that Marc Mezvinsky in here? Oh, he’s the groom?”
Bob Sullivan’s Top Ten Everything appears every Monday.
I need help quickly
Does anybody know how to cancel a bid on E-Bay?
I put in a bid for a “Mickey Mouse Outfit” and now it seems I’m only 6 minutes away from acquiring Obama and his entire cabinet!
Barack Obama’s Jersey Shore lie
Having absolutely nothing better to do, the President of the United States appeared on The View yesterday where he made what I consider to be a rather startling claim for an American to make:
President Obama charmed the ladies on “The View” yesterday and confidently showed off his command of the big challenges facing the nation today.
But the name Snooki didn’t ring a bell.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know who that is,” the smiling but perplexed President said when asked about the big-haired “Jersey Shore” bombshell, according to several audience members interviewed after the show.
“We all liked that he didn’t know who she was,” said Nella Cerminara, 51, of Montreal.
That would be nice if the president didn’t know who “Snooki” was, I suppose.
Except he does know who Snooki is. He was lying. Check out this video from back in May: [Read more →]
Bristol Palin should not marry Levi Johnston
Bristol, Bristol, Bristol. The story of your charmed teenage years could have been taken right off the cover of a dog-eared Sweet Valley High paperback. You met a guy you liked, you had unprotected sex because condoms make Jesus cry, your mother forced you and your swollen belly to make an appearance at the RNC, and then your baby daddy abandoned you, trashed your family in Vanity Fair, and came crawling back with a diamond ring and five pounds of freshly-killed moose meat. I mean, really, what little girl hasn’t dreamt of a future like that? I get it, honey, you fell in love with the dream. And now I’m going to wake you up. Come crawl into Auntie Meg’s lap, Bristol Palin; it’s time for some tough love. [Read more →]
Cops checking citizenship
Buckle up kids, this is from ICE’s own website, discussing the Federal program designed to train State and local officers in immigration enforcement. The authorization for this was given in 1996.
Sort of an FYI to those of you claiming that Arizona does not have the liberty to enforce its new immigration law.
The Great Curve
The world moves on a woman’s hips, says David Byrne, or maybe it was the Weymouths but we know what they are talking about. That taper, swell and taper is hypnotic, notoriously it is used in advertising and product design to subliminally trip primordial triggers. Is it no more than vestigal reproductive instincts? Science seems to demonstrate this geometric construct to be nearly a bedrock of reality; not quite as solid as the speed of light but close enough to earn the name Normal or Standard Deviation.
And it isn’t just solar intensity or SAT scores that follow this template. Like so many other aspects of finance and economics, a Standard Deviation is historically demonstrated in the relationship between tax rates and tax revenues. [Read more →]
Ban on Movie Futures Trading an important step in protecting a vital national industry
The recent financial reform bill that passed the House and Senate was so important that even the people who created it don’t know exactly what it will do. And we can debate all day what’s the most important part of the bill, but I’d like to suggest that it’s the ban on the despicable practice known as “Movie Futures Trading” (MFT) that will have the most positive affect on the country.
MFT is the process by which people bet on how much money a work of art — a film — will “earn” at the box office. Much as the stock market speculators nearly caused the collapse of our entire financial system, so to does this crass gambling enterprise threaten the very foundation of an industry that is vital to our economy and to our standing in the world. Interim MPAA president Bob Pisano put it best when he said:
“After proposals for these speculative gaming platforms came to light, our industry came together to oppose these plans with an unprecedented coalition that included entertainment industry workers, creators, independent producers and distributors, studios and theater owners. We are pleased with final passage of this important legislation. Congress has acted decisively to ban proposed trading in box office futures and to make important reforms in the country’s financial regulatory system. We applaud the work the bill’s authors have done, and of course, the many Senators and Members who supported the provisions to prevent movie futures trading.”
Essentially, it encourages people to “root against” certain films — films produced by studios that already have a hard time ensuring their products make money.
The best bailout is a self-bailout: Making unemployment a win-win
I understand the nature of a changing economy enough to appreciate that some people are thrown out of work and have a difficult time getting back on their feet. The government doesn’t make it any easier no matter what they say because Washington only encourages continued unemployment by effectively paying people not to work. Therefore, I thought about an alternative system, one that would provide a cushion and yet not be a drag on the taxpayer. In fact, my idea provides greater flexibility and much greater potential for those who behave responsibly. No, it’s not perfect but it’s better than what we have. [Read more →]
1984
By Carter Era standards it is not really that bad. Of course by Carter Era standards Carter wasn’t that bad either. Those who remember “double-digit” unemployment remember poorly. The nation has never clocked a year with unemployment over ten percent and those two years that were close to that were ’82 and ’83, the shank of the Reagan Revolution. Inflation did hit murderous levels under Carter but of course we are not experiencing anything like that today. Four percent inflation has been the norm for decades and we have had some recent deflation though that was brief. Now we are about two percent, a quite good number giving us a misery index in the elevens which historically is not miserable at all. [Read more →]
DoJ to sue Arizona over immigration law
The Washington Post reports that the DoJ is going to file suit against Arizona’s new immigration law.
At the EXACT SAME TIME, “The Obama administration has vowed to crack down on employers who hire illegals… ”
So riddle me this, Batman: It’s the Federal Government’s responsibility to enforce immigration laws when it comes to Arizona, but it is NOT the Federal Government’s responsibility to enforce immigration laws when employers hire illegals? That sounds to me like a classic Catch-22. Enforce immigration laws on your own, the Federal Government will sue you. Don’t enforce immigration laws on your own, the Federal Government will sue you.
Man, I really love “Hope” and “Change”.
Turkey stands against tyranny
Turkey’s foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, just announced that their country will break ties with Israel if it refuses to apologize for the flotilla incident. This should come as no surprise to anyone who knows Turkey’s long history of supporting freedom. A history that stands in direct opposition to Israel’s, whose aggression goes back to when it was referred to as the Ottoman Empire. [Read more →]
Anything is acceptable in the pursuit of power
Yesterday brought us the funeral of Sen. Robert Byrd. He was the nation’s oldest and longest serving Senator. He also comes with a fairly controversial past, one which drew much criticism while he was alive. I’m obviously referring to his membership in the Ku Klux Klan, and his work as a recruiter for the organization.
So what is the best way to eulogize someone’s racist, cross-burning, terrorist past? Just ask former President Bill Clinton.
Afghanistan is all Obama’s fault
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said yesterday that the Afghanistan War was of “Obama’s choosing” and that the president should’ve known from history that a war there was unwinnable.
Of course, he couldn’t be more correct. [Read more →]
Fahrenheit 2010
Oliver Stone has a new movie out called South of the Border, which allegedly depicts President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela as some sort of humanitarian. Chavez has invested money in the poor areas of Bolivia, Ecuador, Cuba, and even the United States, but are his motives altruistic? More importantly what has he done for Venezuela? [Read more →]
Get well soon Mr. Cheney, the Gulf needs you
There’s one man who possesses all the skills and experience to get the BP spill under control. Love him or hate him, Dick Cheney is the man. He’s steered an oil services company (Halliburton). He’s been Secretary of Defense, proving he knows how to manage huge endeavors such as Operation Desert Storm. And he takes a heart attack the way the rest of us knock back a shot of Jack Daniel’s, with a wince and a smile.
[Read more →]
President Obama sets bad example for the children, eats a cheeseburger
President Obama, a role model to our children (I like to think of him as our “Role Model-in-Chief”) set a terrible example to our obesity-plagued children by having a cheeseburger with some guy from Russia.
The buzz around the White House centered much more on the presidents’ unexpected jaunt for cheeseburgers to Ray’s Hell Burger in Virginia — Medvedev took jalapenos — and less about the many substantive matters they discussed.
Did the president check this out with his wife first? Remember, she is the one who created the “Let’s Move” campaign, to encourage fat kids to, well, move.
And also, to not eat so many cheeseburgers.
The Penguin Republic (PRA)
The oil still gushes from the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, and washes up on shores, destroying and threatening tourism, fishing, and ecology. The Coast Guard and BP work tirelessly to plug the leak and limit the damage. The U.S. District Court of New Orleans just overturned an Obama administration moratorium on new drilling, citing that this rig’s disaster does not necessarily presage others’. Sometimes it looks like the President is more concerned with punishing big oil than fixing the problem.
If the United States did ban offshore drilling, where would we get the lost oil? These are considerations that the government will hopefully make. In fact, which forms of energy we should develop, where we should develop them, and how we should develop them seem to be the greatest challenge facing mankind in the 21st century. The answers are debatable, but there is one consideration that is not conventionally thrown around. Antarctica. [Read more →]
