Thanks To Our Troops!

The holidays can be a lonely time in the military, especially if you are serving overseas.  Mess halls, hot pots, or MRE's are no sustitute for sitting down with family and friends... trust me on that.

I urge you to keep our troops, and their family and friends in your thoughts and prayers throughout this holiday season.  There are many opportunities for you to make a difference for someone serving far from home, so please take advantage of them.  If you support our military during the holidays, it may grow on you.  To paraphrase Bill Murray in Scrooged, soon you may want to experience that feeling all year long.

He who thanks but with the lips
Thanks but in part;
The full, the true Thanksgiving
Comes from the heart.
-- J.A. Shedd

 Please keep them in your hearts!

Pardon Every Turkey Again?

I would like to officially that PETA as I reflect on our Thanksgiving celebration to come tomorrow.  There is a lot of turmoil in our country and throughout the world right now, and PETA has reminded me of something that I am very thankful for.

See, from time to time I get to worrying.  Is global warming really going to wipe us all out before a comet does?  What are they going to talk about next on The View?  Should I really be eating tofurky instead of turkey on Thanksgiving?  Are animal rights wackos really leftists with an axe to grind?  Thanks to PETA, I have answers to half of those questions.

I read the traditional story about the Presidential pardon of the "first turkey".  In one of the few sentiments that Obama has expressed recently that I have actually agreed with, the president joked about his hesitance to release such a tasty bird.  Surely, I thought, PETA will have something to say about this.  They did.  When Obama said that his daughters convinced him to save the bird, PETA gave the first children honorary memberships to PETA kids.

I thought well I guess that is kind of cool, I mean PETA is standing up for what they believe in.  I then thought to check the PETA archives to see what the organization had done to commerate the Presidential Turkey Pardon in the past.  Here is a summary of what I found on PETA's blog:

• 2008 - President Bush pardoned two turkeys, they'll probably get sent to a theme park where drug induced obesity and poor care will kill them soon anyway, and we'll send President Bush a non-meat vegan Thanksgiving meal if he sends the turkeys to the sanctuary even though we think he is an idiot. 
• 2007 - President Bush pardoned two turkeys and is sending them to Disneyland to die.
• 2006 - President Bush pardoned two of the 50 million turkeys that will be killed to be displayed on our Thanksgiving tables, but the turkeys will be sent to Disneyland which is apparently the Turkey equivalent to Auschwitz.

OK, I fibbed a little.  I really didn't need or want PETA's input to answer any of the questions I asked.  However, you could answer one question for me PETA.  If it is really all about the animals, why didn't we get any of the details about where the turkey Obama pardoned is going to go?

I will not be pondering that question as I slip into a turkey induced L-tryptophan coma tomorrow, I already know the answer.

Is Somebody Goofing On Obama?

When the President visits foreign dignitaries, I presume he has people that advise him regarding protocol.  I am now aware of social gaffes in Great Britain, Saudi Arabia, and now Japan (thanks to Hot Air Pundit). 

I assume that Obama is not a moron, even though leftie friends of mine tell me that there is recent precedent for that.  There is a surprising amount of material out there on the protocol and etiquette of bowing.  It all leads me to the conclusion that either someone is goofing on Obama or my previous assumption is incorrect.

Your Political Definition

As of late our comments sections have begun to heat up. Some have taken great offense at Brohica's and my viewpoints, and that is to be expected.

Our fledgling Facebook group has seen members come and go. Those on the go presumably left because they take issue with some of Brohica's and my content, and I don't begrudge them that.

We do live in a very politically polarized time, at least that's how things wind up being perceived. But I wonder if we were able to begin framing the discussion differently, if we could all move away from a constant debate format, if we would not find that we share far more similarities than differences.

I know that I personally am guilty in getting caught up in the heat of a tit-for-tat debate, but debates are all about trying to establish who is right; you can never openly state a belief in this type of venue, for fear that the opposition will drown you out by their sheer tenacity and pitch of voice. Even the meek and timid should be given a moment of silence to be able to speak their mind in safety. In my experience, he who is most certain of his own veracity will typically have the weakest point of view.

So after posting our latest poll, I got to thinking about how interesting it would be to open up the comments section to allow our readers - and anyone else who would be willing to add to the tapestry of this experiment - to explain their political viewpoint. My only request is that it be stated simply in terms of what YOU believe. I don't want any sniping at other viewpoints, any degradation of previous posts. Lets be adults here.

Perhaps we will find that when we're not trying to yell over the top of each other, that we actually agree more than we ever imagined. It would be nice if Americans could begin finding points of unification.

I'll close by quoting some words of Brohica's from the Regular Bros Facebook page:

"Although the blog that Raph and I started reflects our primarily conservative point of view, I think the more important thing is to give a voice to the average guy or gal. I hope that is something we can continue to do and improve on as we go forward. By in large you certainly can't wait for your congressional representative or senator to do it for you.

"So, I'm interested in hearing what you have to say, and I hope you will consider commenting on the blog and discussing it here."

Tall Tales IV - You Can't Hide From YouTube

Our good friend Barney Frank on the House floor on June 27, 2005:



Our good friend Barney Frank during a PBS interview on April 20, 2009:



At least he's consistent in his inconsistency.

Mr. Thune Takes on Washington

This even-handed look at John Thune, the Republican Senator from my home state of South Dakota, actually aired on CNN. No, that wasn't a typo. Regular Bro Paul N. pointed it out to me yesterday.

You can't spend money you don't have and when you borrow money you have to pay it back... Is it not a sad state of affairs when these are ideals that actually have to be reiterated to be remembered? At least there is someone in Washington keeping them alive. Perhaps I'm misguided, but I truly believe that these are ideals shared by a large majority of Americans, regardless of their political affiliation.

Thanks to Paul for the heads up on this one. I'll post the complete interview below. Mr. Thune seems like the genuine article. Then again, I'm pretty sure that is a Packers helmet visible in his office.

Oh, well - you can't win 'em all.

Make Sure to Apply Enough Logic So Idea Will Stick

You know, I kept on trying to think of some clever anecdotes that would somehow express how I felt about this, but I think I'll just let the story speak for itself. I guess desperate times call for desperate measures. And when chocolates don't generate anything, you know you've got a catastrophe of Herculean proportions on your hands.

Tall Tales III - Up in Smoke

A legendary orator once said, "I tried marijuana once. I did not inhale."  Yeah, and you didn't have sex with that woman either, did ya Bubba?  Of course, it is easier to disbelieve Bubba when you look at the sheer number of inventive stories he has told over the years.

We are now asked to believe that the sponsor of the following two bills in congress would not recognize marijuana if he saw it:

H.R.2835 : To provide for the medical use of marijuana in accordance with the laws of the various States.
H.R.2943 : To eliminate most Federal penalties for possession of marijuana for personal use, and for other purposes.

OK, I suppose that could be theoretically believable, except that Barney Frank has reportedly introduced the same or similar legislation every year since 1995, and co-sponsored such legislation for 10 years before that.  Twenty four years of being associated with legalizing maijuana in some form, and he doesn't know cannabis sativa when he sees it?  Give me a break.

Who cares? Well in case you missed it, the Fox affiliate in Boston discovered that Frank was present in 2007 when his partner was arrested and charged with marijuana possession, "cultivation and use of drug paraphernalia in August of 2007".  Apparently Barney was sitting on the porch, but the only thing he was puffing was a cigar.  Listen for yourself.



I don't know or care if Frank inhaled, but for him to ask that we believe he had no idea what all his lover's bongs were for or what the plants his lover was growing were, is ridiculous.  What is he, high?

10.2

The unemployment rate rose to 10.2 percent in October. Between September and October, the total number of jobless Americans rose from 15.1 to 15.7 million. It is believed the rate could climb as high as 10.5 by the end of the year.

Everyone in America should be sobered by this figure. Those of us who are employed should be extremely thankful. This is not an issue to be flippant about. In an era where millions and billions and trillions are tossed around like chicken feed, it's important to remember what a significant chunk of the population 15.7 million is.

When I read this story this morning, I went over and reread Brohica's Tall Tales post. If you'll recall, he pointed out the White House's employment figures for the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council in Moultrie, GA. You know, the one where they claim 935 jobs were "saved" even though only 508 people are actually employed there. They did this by multiplying the total number of employees, 508, by their percentage pay raise, 1.84.

The first time I read this I laughed. When I read it today in light of the new jobless report I became infuriated. This is not a game of Monopoly, Mr. President. This is not a terrier and a top hot that you're moving around a board. These are the real lives of real people, and you're bragging about fake jobs?

One comes to expect these kinds of games and clever manipulations of truth during political campaigns. It's part of why every citizen must be discerning, sifting through the muck to come to their own conclusions about truth.

But this is our President, and right now he's slapping the face of every American who is swallowing their pride right now, sitting at home because they've been laid off. The future is a scary place when all you see are question marks. It doesn't make it better to hear your President playing fast with the numbers, silencing the severity of your uncertiny to make his own look better.

Tall Tales II

On the cusp of the Administration's fuzzy math issue, it was revealed today that Speaker Pelosi apparently had her fingers crossed when she committed to transparency with regard to the health care bill.  As reported in the Weekly Standard blog:

On September 24, Speaker Nancy Pelosi told THE WEEKLY STANDARD that she was "absolutely" committed to putting the text of the final House bill online for 72 hours before the House votes:

TWS: Madam Speaker, do you support the measure to put the final House bill online for 72 hours before it's voted on at the very end?
PELOSI: Absolutely. Without question.

But tonight, when asked if Speaker Pelosi will leave the bill online for 72 hours after we see what's in the rule, Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly replied in an email: "No; [the] pledge was to have manager’s amendment online for 72 hours, and we will do that."

Why should we be surprised by more of the same from Washington? 

Tall Tales

Finally, some good news out of the beltway.  The Obama administration recently reported that "[t]he $787 billion stimulus bill passed in February is directly responsible for saving or creating about 640,329 jobs so far".  That almost sounds too good to be true, and if it sounds too good to be true... well, you know the rest.

The Associated Press reports that 935 jobs were saved at the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council.  While this may not sound impressive at first, consider that only 508 people actually work at he Council.  It was also claimed that 14,506 jobs were saved at the federal office of the Administration for Children and Families at Health and Human Services.  Of course, that figure included more than 9,300 existing employees that received pay raises.

Reading this AP story I was thinking to myself, how does a pay raise constitute a job being saved or created?  It turns out there is a simple answer:

"If I give you a raise, it is going to save a portion of your job," HHS spokesman Luis Rosero said.  

Now I've been known to tell a fish story or two, but that is truly impressive.  Hold on now, it gets better.

At Southwest Georgia Community Action Council in Moultrie, Ga., director Myrtis Mulkey-Ndawula said she followed the guidelines the Obama administration provided. She said she multiplied the 508 employees by 1.84 — the percentage pay raise they received — and came up with 935 jobs saved.

"I would say it's confusing at best," she said. "But we followed the instructions we were given."

Confusing? That may be a bit of an understatement.  Then again, Washington has always had a way with spending money that I've never been able to comprehend.  For example, the Houston Chronicle reports that the seven counties around Houston received $293 million which reportedly created or saved 276 jobs.  Spending over a million per job doesn't seem like the taxpayer is getting a lot of bang for their buck, but maybe those folks needed slightly more than a cost of living adjustment.

The same article included the Administration's defense of its claims and a Republican response:

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said the stimulus spending accounted for nearly all of the 3.5 percent increase in economic growth during the three month period ending Sept. 30, the strongest quarterly showing in more than two years.

“I think for those that have said the stimulus or the recovery plan aren't working, you're hard pressed to back that statement up with the figures that have come out in the last couple of days,” Gibbs said.

Texas Republicans disagreed.

“Rather than conjuring up fuzzy economic fiction to justify a wasteful spending bill passed in haste, the Obama administration should consider redirecting unused stimulus money toward debt reduction or programs that will actually spur job growth,” declared Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas.

Clearly, the Georgia and the HHS examples call in to question the Administration's claims.  To be fair, Senator Hutchinson received the dubious honor of Porker of the Month by Citizens Against Government Waste.  CAGW reports that the Senator Hutchinson obtained earmarks for Texas projects of $259 million for fiscal year 2008,  $189 million for fiscal year 2009, and  $1.6 billion for fiscal year 2010.

Its seems obvious to me that the change we need has taken shape as politics as usual.  It is equally apparent that wasteful spending is the province of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.  One thing should be indisputable, the American taxpayer can't afford to continue down either path.