Roman-words

No Senate Budget in 1000 days, WTF?

2012-01-29T08:36:00.002-05:00

HHS Secretary

2012-01-25T20:22:00.002-05:00

This clip needs some soft shoe music. The Secretary really dances around this.

Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz Targeted for Identity Theft by Former Obama Staffer

2012-01-21T20:15:00.000-05:00

Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz Targeted for Identity Theft by Former Obama Staffer

The Worst People In Politics Aren’t Racists

2012-01-21T19:52:00.000-05:00

The Worst People In Politics Aren’t Racists

Lady Thatcher, Brilliant Heroine

2012-01-14T09:39:00.002-05:00

Congressman Mike Kelly, Pa.

2012-01-14T06:48:00.002-05:00

General Motors, Government Motors

2012-01-13T20:44:00.000-05:00

This part, three letters for a 2011 GMC, costs $21.60 is made in China, What is wrong with this picture?

Gun Control, Explained, Hat Tip: Legal Insurection

2012-01-13T20:05:00.002-05:00

NewsBusted: Happy 2012!

2012-01-12T07:21:00.000-05:00

NewsBusted: Happy 2012!

Kodak and the Post Office

2012-01-10T19:29:00.000-05:00

Kodak and the Post Office

Paul L Foster, MIA 29 Dec 1967

2011-12-29T09:10:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T00:01:00.000-05:00

Happy Hanukkah!

2011-12-20T20:06:00.000-05:00

Graduation

2011-12-19T10:46:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to my Nephew Ryan, University of Toledo Graduate.

Veteran's Day 2011

2011-11-11T00:01:00.001-05:00

Marine Birthday

2011-11-10T00:01:00.000-05:00

Morning Glory

2011-08-15T10:17:00.000-04:00

Quick and shy!

2011-08-15T09:07:00.000-04:00

I'd vote for this Lady

2011-08-08T12:22:00.000-04:00

C130 over France, 1966

2011-08-03T14:48:00.000-04:00

Ever look out the back of a C130 and see a castle?

Sunday Sunrise

2011-08-01T14:26:00.000-04:00

Why do we do this?

2011-07-26T11:57:00.001-04:00

Thursday

2011-07-21T10:07:00.002-04:00

BBQ Chicken Breast, Roasted Red Potatos, Dinner

2011-07-11T20:38:00.001-04:00

It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!

2011-07-08T18:34:00.000-04:00

Lightning Almost Hits Christie Foe On TV: MyFoxPHILLY.com

'Matos

2011-07-07T22:30:00.002-04:00

Allen West, Patriot

2011-07-07T18:50:00.002-04:00

Rocket's Red Glare

2011-07-04T16:54:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T00:01:00.001-04:00

Hammertime

2011-07-02T20:13:00.001-04:00

Hammertime

2011-07-01T21:57:00.000-04:00

Special interest?

2011-07-01T03:36:00.000-04:00

Two out of three ain't bad. One of my faves.

2011-06-29T20:11:00.002-04:00

Ohio's lost decade

2011-06-27T10:40:00.002-04:00

Can John Kasich and Tea Party activists save Ohio?

June 27, 2011 - 12:00 am - by Tom Blumer

I first saw John Kasich in person at a county Lincoln Day dinner in early 2007. Though the former congressman was a bit under the weather, his animated, passionate style and strong convictions were still quite evident. When he said, in essence, that “Ohio is circling the drain,” you knew he meant it, even though I doubted it.

I shouldn’t have. With the election of Ted Strickland, I believed that trouble was probably on the way. I didn’t appreciate that it was already here.

A recent USA Today chart compiled from government data reported that from 2001 to 2010, Ohio’s economy contracted. Not by much, mind you — 0.7% — but only auto-overdependent Michigan fared worse (-7.1%), and no other state grew by less than 6%. As a whole, despite the Internet bubble, the 9/11 attacks, and the recession, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by over 16% during the decade. Meanwhile, the Buckeye State’s economy spent the time mired in mediocrity and worse, and all those who could have done something about it did was damage.

Republicans promote economic growth, low taxes, and minimal regulation, right? If that were the case, 2001 through 2006, with the GOP in firm control of all branches of government, should have been the Buckeye State’s golden years. Instead, Governor Bob Taft, a pliant legislature, and pay-to-play cronies at ORPINO (the Ohio Republican Party In Name Only) increased taxes in 2003 and allowed state government, its headcount, and its workforce costs to grow at alarming rates. Ohio’s economy barely budged during those years, and was second-worst in the country (again, only Michigan trailed). On a per-capita basis, the state’s GDP grew by less than 0.3% per year. During 2003 through 2006, while the U.S. economy as a whole added over 6.1 million jobs, Ohio added a pathetic 6,000, gaining back hardly any of the 191,000 jobs lost during the decade’s first two years. The state’s 2005 revenue-neutral tax restructuring, which included an awful gross-receipts tax, did more harm than good.

As bad as the Taft era was, it was just a warmup. Under Strickland, with the hugging cooperation of Republicans in the legislature, Ohio’s economy tanked well ahead of the recession as normal people define it (July 2008 through June 2009). After losing 7,000 jobs in 2007 while the country gained almost 1.1 million, the state saw over 400,000 jobs — an astonishing 7.7% of the workforce — vanish during 2008 and 2009. Under “Turnaround Ted,” there was no jobs recovery; fewer Ohioans were working during Strickland’s final month than when the recession officially ended 18 months earlier.

If the Strickland administration did anything meaningful to stop the bleeding during its four-year reign, I certainly didn’t see it. Dayton high-tech icon NCR, the home of the original cash register over a century ago, left the state for Georgia; politicians of both parties, who clearly weren’t maintaining their business community contacts, were totally blindsided. The only thing I recall Ted Strickland doing is begging Washington for stimulus money. All that did is enable the state to keep its bloated structure essentially intact for two years while delaying and worsening the ultimate day of reckoning. Strickland, who fortunately became the first incumbent Buckeye State governor since 1974 to fail to win reelection, though by a scary-slim margin, left a state which had shrunk by over 3% during his four-year term — fifth-worst in the nation, beating out only Nevada, Michigan, Florida, and Arizona — and an $8 billion budget hole for Kasich, his successor.

Kasich and legislative leaders first pushed through SB5, a union-limiting cost control measure similar in many ways to Wisconsin’s better-known budget repair law, despite a poor performance by the PR-averse ORPINO, the opposition’s fundamentally dishonest claims, and some opponents’ sickening, Badger State-like childishness. As of this writing, Kasich and the GOP-dominated legislature, which lost the House in 2008 but won it back in 2010, appeared on the verge of meeting the budget challenge without raising taxes.

There’s a new constructive attitude in state government which, despite early stumbles, some by Kasich himself, shows signs of becoming contagious. “A new way, a new day,” and moving “at the speed of business instead of at the speed of a statue” may actually be more than corny slogans.

Most important, though it’s far too early to get overly excited, the state’s workforce is finally growing again. Through May, Ohio added 70,000 seasonally adjusted jobs, the fourth-highest in the country in percentage terms, and easily the best of any industrial state. It’s the best January through May result since 1994, which will not surprise longtime Buckeye State residents, as that is about the time when second-term governor and alleged Republican George Voinovich became just another tax-and-spend politician. The Kasich administration has also scored key corporate saves of companies which were considering leaving the state.

If anything will keep Ohio from legitimately turning around, it’s the state-reliant, business-hostile comfort zone in which too many relatively disengaged Buckeye State voters reside. That’s the only plausible explanation why the 2010 gubernatorial race was as close as it was.

The state’s Tea Party adherents have been among the nation’s most active. To help sustain Kasich’s early momentum, they will need to redouble their efforts in the coming months and years. Fortunately, the movement’s leadership is aggressively acting to meet that challenge. Its “We the People” Convention in Columbus on July 1-2 promises to serve as Activism 101 for sensible conservatives, and to build an effective counter to the Alinsky-driven left. Buckeye State residents and out-of-staters who want to leave a free, solvent state and country to their children and grandchildren should seriously consider attending.

Tom Blumer owns a training and development company based in Mason, Ohio, outside of Cincinnati. He presents personal finance-related workshops and speeches at companies, and runs BizzyBlog.com.

Michele Bachman on Israel

2011-06-23T20:46:00.002-04:00

Racism, anyone?

2011-06-23T18:37:00.002-04:00

Double Rainbow

2011-06-22T21:10:00.001-04:00

While waiting for better light, this rainbow appears. What luck!

Allen West, Patriot

2011-06-21T20:01:00.000-04:00

Obama warns of new US tactical spats with Israel

2011-06-21T12:56:00.000-04:00

Obama warns of new US tactical spats with Israel

Garden, night lights

2011-06-19T22:36:00.000-04:00

Award winning?

2011-06-19T13:02:00.002-04:00

In Journalism, Scaremongering Pays — Or, Is Ethical Journalism an Oxymoron?

by Hans Bader on June 17, 2011 · 0 comments

in Legal,Mobility,Precaution & Risk,Regulation,Sanctimony

As legal commentator Ted Frank notes, ABC was rewarded for deliberate scaremongering and deceptive reporting that created needless fear and anxiety among Toyota owners with a coveted journalism award: “Brian Ross of ABC News repeatedly used footage of Sean Kane criticizing Toyota over sudden acceleration without telling viewers that Kane was being paid by plaintiffs’ attorneys pushing bogus product liability claims; he also faked footage of a tachometer speeding out of control to push the “deadly Toyota” meme. All of these scare tactics and hysteria turned out to be utterly false, and refuted by a NASA/NHTSA report finding nothing wrong with the electronics in the automobile. Ross and ABC News haven’t retracted their scare-tactic stories or even apologized, much less slunk off in disgrace. Rather, ABC News submitted Ross’s quack reports for an Edward R. Murrow Award — and got the award, doubling the scandal.”
At Gawker, John Cook calls Ross “America’s Wrongest Reporter” for “his coverage of the Toyota unintended acceleration story,” which had the effect of needlessly “Fostering Global Panic Based on” falsehoods:

“Ross, you will recall, was one of the driving forces behind the Runaway Toyota Panic of ’10, which was later determined by NASA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to have been largely the result of idiots stepping on the accelerator when they intended to step on the brake, and of other idiots talking about it on TV. Ross was one of those idiots. For some reason, ABC News submitted four of Ross’ Toyota reports to the Radio Television Digital News Association for award consideration. One report they didn’t submit was the one where Gawker caught Ross staging footage to make it seem like a Toyota was accelerating out of control when it was in fact parked with the emergency brake on, doors open, and someone stepping on the gas … In two of the winning reports, Ross quoted safety expert Sean Kane criticizing Toyota and insisting that there were cases of unintended acceleration that “couldn’t be explained by floormats,” which Toyota had recalled in 2009 after some mats became stuck under gas pedals. What he didn’t report was that Kane was being paid by plaintiff’s attorneys who were suing Toyota over unintended acceleration cases, and so had a financial incentive to argue that there was more to the Runaway Toyota scare than just floormats … [Kane's] position—that electronics were involved—was later eviscerated by the NASA/NHTSA report, which found “no electronic flaws in Toyota vehicles capable of producing the large throttle openings required to create dangerous high-speed unintended acceleration incidents.”

As Gawker notes, Ross has a “documented history of shamelessly hyping cooked stories” stretching back to “the 2001 anthrax attacks.”

But to liberal journalists, Ross got the ideological narrative right, even if his facts were wrong. Even if Toyota’s vehicles were perfectly safe, by making them appear unsafe, Ross’s reporting conveyed a larger narrative to the public that liberal journalists believe is generally true: that businesses like Toyota are greedy and evil and need to be subjected to stricter regulation to keep them from menacing the safety of consumers.
Ross’s reward for deceiving and alarming the public reminds me of how the media circled the wagons after the Duke Lacrosse case. After the innocence of the Duke Lacrosse players became too obvious to deny (due to DNA evidence and the admission of North Carolina’s attorney general that the players were in fact innocent), liberal journalists like Evan Thomas of Newsweek defended the media’s rush to judgment about their supposed guilt, after having been falsely accused of a racist gang-rape (by a woman with a criminal record and history of false allegations, who recently stabbed to death her boyfriend). “The narrative was properly about race, sex, and class,” he said. “We went a beat too fast in assuming that a rape took place … We just got the facts wrong. The narrative was right, but the facts were wrong.”
To the liberal media, it seems, even false facts are excusable when they advance a politically correct narrative. Their bestowing of an award on Ross is just the latest illustration of this.
AIM asks whether “journalistic ethics” is “an oxymoron,” noting how “former New Republic reporter Stephen Glass signed a six-figure book deal for a novel after he admitted making up stories for the liberal weekly during the 1990s. CBS’ 60 Minutes showcased him in an exclusive interview, which inevitably helped promote his book. Glass’ novel was widely panned and didn’t make any best-seller lists. But he got a lucrative film contract anyway.”

Weiner Greg-a-log

2011-06-19T12:11:00.002-04:00

Pay attention to this smart Lady

2011-06-13T21:11:00.002-04:00

C-130 test, not sucessful

2011-06-05T18:48:00.000-04:00

Secretary Eagleburger, RIP

2011-06-04T15:20:00.002-04:00

Larry Eagleburger passes at 80 years of age.

Delta Jet blows tire on takeoff

2011-06-03T18:52:00.002-04:00

Dinner

2011-05-30T22:26:00.000-04:00

Obama: US Military Is ‘One Of The Finest’?!

2011-05-30T19:59:00.000-04:00

Obama: US Military Is ‘One Of The Finest’?!

Surprised by Obama Recovery Stats

2011-05-30T15:14:00.001-04:00

Reporters Surprised by Anemic Obama Recovery

Posted by B. Daniel Blatt at 12:59 pm - May 29, 2011.
Filed under: Economy,Media Bias,Obamania

Puttering around the apartment this morning beginning my day, I wondered how, without Lexis/Nexis I could test a particular theory of mine, that many economic reporters always seem to find a silver lining in the somewhat dark clouds hovering over our economy in this brave new Obama era while in the previous administration, they always found a dark lining in those silver economic clouds.
Then, just moments later, while munching on my cereal and reading Instapundit (often the first blog over than this one I check every morning), I find this link to one of my favorite pundits exploring another aspect of media bias on the economy;

MICHAEL BARONE: Pro-Obama media always shocked by bad economic news. “I’m confident that any comparison of economic coverage in the Bush years and the coverage now would show far fewer variants of the word ‘unexpectedly’ in stories suggesting economic doldrums. It’s obviously going to be hard to achieve the unacknowledged goal of many mainstream journalists — the president’s re-election — if the economic slump continues. So they characterize economic setbacks as unexpected, with the implication that there’s still every reason to believe that, in Herbert Hoover’s phrase, prosperity is just around the corner. . . . We tend to hire presidents who we think can foresee the future effect of their policies. No one does so perfectly. But if the best sympathetic observers can say about the results is that they are ‘unexpected,’ voters may decide someone else can do better.”

Read the whole thing. It’s not exactly the post I had in mind, but does address the biased coverage of the economy. Maybe with a little legwork, I’ll be able to track down economic reporting which puts a positive gloss on negative economic numbers. Do recall the Anchoress did some posts on how economic coverage in the Bush years skewed negative even before the economic downturn that followed (by a year) the election of a Democratic Congress in 2006 – at a time when the economy was growing, jobs were being created and unemployment remained low. (Here’s one of her posts on the matter.)

Call to Colors

2011-05-30T06:00:00.000-04:00

It's always a great day to be an American. God Bless the USA.

Memorial Day 2011

2011-05-30T00:01:00.002-04:00

Rain passes through

2011-05-29T21:16:00.000-04:00

The Sad Truth: Pretty Girls Get Free Stuff

2011-05-28T17:26:00.000-04:00

The Sad Truth: Pretty Girls Get Free Stuff

Lech Walesa Snubs Obama: ‘It Doesn’t Suit Me’

2011-05-28T02:34:00.000-04:00

Lech Walesa Snubs Obama: ‘It Doesn’t Suit Me’

Lean Forward-Hamnation

2011-05-26T20:05:00.001-04:00

Obama’s New ‘Truth Minister’ Husband of ‘General Betrayus’ MoveOn.Orger

2011-05-26T19:46:00.000-04:00

Obama’s New ‘Truth Minister’ Husband of ‘General Betrayus’ MoveOn.Orger

Tornado Hits Paul Ryan | Nate Beeler's 'Toons | Washington Examiner

2011-05-26T19:27:00.000-04:00

Tornado Hits Paul Ryan | Nate Beeler's 'Toons | Washington Examiner

Stand with Israel, Rep Joe Walsh

2011-05-26T03:43:00.002-04:00

Tornado blame by a real meteorologist

2011-05-25T19:55:00.001-04:00

Obama, why no one invites him to weddings.

2011-05-25T19:26:00.001-04:00

Bibi, True leadership

2011-05-24T18:18:00.000-04:00

Yes, we Cain!

2011-05-22T07:24:00.001-04:00

High energy prices were predictable.

2011-05-22T07:01:00.001-04:00

Hammertime

2011-05-21T15:23:00.001-04:00

GOP Slams Obama on Israel - Politics & Gov't - Israel News - Israel National News

2011-05-21T14:24:00.000-04:00

GOP Slams Obama on Israel - Politics & Gov't - Israel News - Israel National News

Rob Lowe: Conservative Politics Built on Logic

2011-05-21T09:17:00.000-04:00

Rob Lowe: Conservative Politics Built on Logic

Andrew Klavan

2011-05-20T19:27:00.001-04:00

Network That Once Refused to Air ‘Support the Troops’ Ad, Currently Running Ads from Group with Terror Links

2011-05-19T19:18:00.000-04:00

Network That Once Refused to Air ‘Support the Troops’ Ad, Currently Running Ads from Group with Terror Links

Slaves to words | Thomas Sowell | Columnists | Washington Examiner

2011-05-17T21:24:00.000-04:00

Slaves to words | Thomas Sowell | Columnists | Washington Examiner

Allen West | Qualities of Leadership | Ginni Thomas | The Daily Caller

2011-05-17T18:27:00.000-04:00

Allen West | Qualities of Leadership | Ginni Thomas | The Daily Caller

Demagoguery 101 - Charles Krauthammer - National Review Online

2011-05-15T08:41:00.000-04:00

Demagoguery 101 - Charles Krauthammer - National Review Online

Using Better Technology to Decipher Osama’s Information Trove

2011-05-15T08:09:00.000-04:00

Using Better Technology to Decipher Osama’s Information Trove

NASA Gets Caught Faking Climate Change Data-AGAIN!

2011-05-14T15:30:00.000-04:00

NASA Gets Caught Faking Climate Change Data-AGAIN!

Kerry never met a war he didn't want to lose | Oliver North | Columnists | Washington Examiner

2011-05-14T12:00:00.000-04:00

Kerry never met a war he didn't want to lose | Oliver North | Columnists | Washington Examiner

Bush, Bin Laden, and Obama

2011-05-14T11:48:00.001-04:00

SEALs Angry At Attention, Want It Stopped - Washington Whispers (usnews.com)

2011-05-13T18:35:00.000-04:00

SEALs Angry At Attention, Want It Stopped - Washington Whispers (usnews.com)

JammieWearingFool: Dumbest Woman on the Planet: Let's Pay Terrorists ...

2011-05-03T18:53:00.000-04:00

JammieWearingFool: Dumbest Woman on the Planet: Let's Pay Terrorists ...: "Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com Give terrorists book deals rather than using torture? What a blithering idiot. She makes the o..."

PM Netanyahu Bin Laden statement

2011-05-03T18:14:00.001-04:00

Thank you Bibi!

Death of UBL

2011-05-02T09:37:00.002-04:00

I am very pleased with the heroic actions of our military, but the hostilities will continue for a very long time. God Bless the USA!

JammieWearingFool: The New Tone: California Democratic Party Chairman...

2011-05-01T17:24:00.000-04:00

JammieWearingFool: The New Tone: California Democratic Party Chairman...: "Imagine my surprise to discover there are actually some Republicans left in California. John Burton, the state Democratic Party chairman, c..."

Except for ABC, Media Ignore George W. Bush's Mountain Bike Ride with Wounded War Veterans

2011-05-01T11:44:00.000-04:00

Except for ABC, Media Ignore George W. Bush's Mountain Bike Ride with Wounded War Veterans

Seth Myers, WH Correspondents after parties

2011-05-01T11:35:00.001-04:00

Great TV?

2011-05-01T08:18:00.001-04:00

Andrew Klavan, How to behave in an Islamic Massacre

2011-04-30T19:58:00.002-04:00

John Kasich, President do your job.

2011-04-30T14:59:00.001-04:00

Does Jimmy Carter Have No Shame?

2011-04-30T07:21:00.000-04:00

Does Jimmy Carter Have No Shame?

Economic Inequality | Rich Poor Income Gap | Obama Poor Getting Poorer | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment

2011-04-26T18:31:00.000-04:00

Economic Inequality | Rich Poor Income Gap | Obama Poor Getting Poorer | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment

'Hub' Schlafly, teleprompter developer, dies at 91

2011-04-26T18:24:00.001-04:00

Is Barry in mourning?

'Hub' Schlafly, teleprompter developer, dies at 91

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T00:01:00.001-04:00

McCain: Risk-averse NATO losing ground in Libya | Byron York | Politics | Washington Examiner

2011-04-23T14:23:00.000-04:00

McCain: Risk-averse NATO losing ground in Libya | Byron York | Politics | Washington Examiner

Rep. Allen West, via the Blogprof

2011-04-23T11:53:00.001-04:00

Earth Day Ends Obama's 53,300 Gallon Trip - Washington Whispers (usnews.com)

2011-04-23T10:52:00.000-04:00

Earth Day Ends Obama's 53,300 Gallon Trip - Washington Whispers (usnews.com)

Happy Passover!

2011-04-18T20:18:00.001-04:00

IRS & Tax Compliance

2011-04-17T21:33:00.001-04:00

Another example of the "New Civility" towards a black Tea Party Member

2011-04-17T14:05:00.002-04:00

President Whatever finds things not going his way | Michael Barone | Politics | Washington Examiner

2011-04-17T11:56:00.000-04:00

President Whatever finds things not going his way | Michael Barone | Politics | Washington Examiner

Leftist/Socialist protesters at Tea Party Rally in Madison, Wisconsin.

2011-04-17T10:04:00.001-04:00

Is this what passes for the new civility?

Royal Wedding Spoof Entrance

2011-04-17T09:15:00.001-04:00

It's spending, not revenue

2011-04-16T20:48:00.002-04:00

Sarah Palin Rocks

2011-04-16T18:36:00.002-04:00