News of the Week for Apr. 21st, 2013
- Gun Rights
- Hide the Decline
- Obamacare
- War & Terror
- National News
- Economy & Taxes
- International News
- Opinion
Gun Rights
Cuomo Dismisses Gun Owners as “Extreme Fringe Conservatives”
Not only does he unconstitutionally deny your rights as a gun owner, but he has to make sure to insult you while he’s at it. Way to reach out to the other side, Andy.
Obama: “Unimaginable” That Congress Would “Defy” Americans And Not Pass Gun Control
“I think we’ve got a good chance of seeing it pass if members of Congress are listening to the American people,” President Obama said in an interview on NBC’s “Today Show” that aired on Tuesday. “The notion that Congress would defy the overwhelming instinct of the American people after what we saw happen in Newtown, I think, is unimaginable.”
The “Pro-Gun” Provisions of Manchin-Toomey are Actually a Bonanza of Gun Control
The Toomey-Manchin Amendment which may be offered as soon as Tuesday to Senator Reid’s gun control bill are billed as a “compromise” which contain a variety of provisions for gun control, and other provisions to enhance gun rights. Some of the latter, however, are not what they seem. They are badly miswritten, and are in fact major advancements for gun control.
Gov. Cuomo: If I Tell You What’s In My Bill It Won’t Pass — So I’m Not Gonna Tell You What’s In It!
I’m not sure whether “wow” or “LOL” is the more appropriate response to this, from New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
How Obama Misread the Politics of Gun Control
Reality check: Gun-control opponents hold the upper hand politically in 2014.
8th grade student suspended, arrested over gun t-shirt
When 8th grade Jared Marcum got dressed for school this morning he says he had no idea that his pro-Second Amendment shirt would initiate what he calls a fight over his First Amendment rights.
Could Obama’s gun-control push cost Democrats the Senate?
So far, we’ve heard a lot of bluster coming from Barack Obama and his allies on Capitol Hill about how the voters will punish Republicans for opposing a series of gun-control measures that didn’t even keep all the Democrats in the fold. The real problem with “the audacity of mope,” as National Hotline’s Josh Kraushaar writes today, is that voters may end up punishing Democrats in key 2014 Senate contests.
Pro-Obama group will go after Democrats on guns
The nonprofit advocacy group backing President Obama’s second-term agenda plans to mobilize constituents against the U.S. senators who on Wednesday helped defeat a measure to expand background checks – including four members of the president’s own party.
Hide the Decline
Environment &
“Green Energy”
A Big Picture Look At “Earth’s Temperature” – “The Pause” Update
Recently there has been significant attention focused on “The Pause” in Earth’s warming, the length of “The Pause” and where “Earth’s Temperature” may go from here, e.g.: “Over the past 15 years air temperatures at the Earth’s surface have been flat while greenhouse-gas emissions have continued to soar.”
Fireworks in the EU Parliament over “the pause” in global warming
It seems the debate is getting a bit testy in the land of watercress sandwiches and doilies.
Another “escalator“
Some CAGW proponents argument against the recent stall in the global warming trends with this graph called “escalator”.
Obamacare
Government in Healthcare
Health Actuaries: Obamacare Rates Will Soar
But health law supporters are pushing back, noting close ties between the actuaries making the forecasts and an insurance industry that has been complaining about taxes.
Baucus warns of ‘huge train wreck’ enacting ObamaCare provisions
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) said Wednesday he fears a “train wreck” as the Obama administration implements its signature healthcare law.
War & Terror
‘These runners just finished and now they don’t have legs’: Witnesses recount war zone at end of Boston Marathon as bombs left race course littered with limbs of 25-30 people
Unimaginable horror as victims with missing limbs are transported away
Surgeons battling wounds usually only seen in combat
Doctor who ran to the scene: ‘It was like a war zone’
Massachusetts General Hospital: ‘Several amputations’ performed
Ten of the victims are feared to have lost limbs
Two brothers each lost a leg, from the knee down in the blast
Mass. gov: No unexploded bombs at Boston Marathon
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick says no unexploded bombs were found at the Boston Marathon. He says the only explosives were the ones that went off Monday.
Boston Marathon Explosions: Revere Apartment Searched
Federal and local investigators are sifting through evidence and interviewing witnesses, trying to determine who’s responsible for the deadly explosions at the Boston Marathon finish line.
The Gripping Story of Two Brothers Who Both Lost Legs in Boston Marathon Bombing: ‘Ma, I’m Hurt Real Bad’
Witnesses of Monday’s Boston Marathon carnage reported seeing many serious leg injuries, including legs being blown off.
Explosion at at Boston Marathon (images)
Deadly poison sent to Sen. Wicker
A letter addressed to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) tested positive for ricin on Tuesday, according to U.S. Capitol Police.
Mind-Boggling Details Emerge About Ricin Letter Suspect: ‘I’m on the Hidden Front Lines of a Secret War’
Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, of Tupelo, Miss., has been arrested in connection with ricin letters that were sent to both Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and President Barack Obama,” The New York Times reports. Initial reports listed the suspect as “Kenneth Curtis,” however, the Times updated its report with the corrected name.
Suspected letter bomb sent to German president
The police on Friday detonated a suspected letter bomb sent to the official residence of Germany’s president in Berlin.
The Mystery of the (Alleged) Bombers’ Voter Registration
This morning, people are responding in shock at a Buzzfeed report that Djohan and Tamerlan Tsarnaev are registered to vote. People are wondering how this can be if Tsarnaev can be registered to vote if he is not a U.S. citizen.
Boston Bomb Suspect’s Dad Tells Him to Surrender, Warns ‘ Hell Will Break Loose’ if Son Dies
The father of suspected Boston Marathon bomber called on his son today to give up peacefully, but warned the U.S. that if his son is killed “all hell will break loose.”
NPR says April “big” month for right wing terrorism
Revealing Politics has posted audio of NPR correspondent Dina Temple-Raston who claims that investigators are leaning towards a domestic terrorism because of the “timing.” Specifically that April is big for right-wing terrorism because of things like Columbine & Hitler’s birthday.
National
Tea Party fave Joe Miller eyes Alaska Senate race On Politics
Tea Party favorite Joe Miller, who lost a closely watched 2010 election in Alaska, is back for another possible Senate bid next year.
“A Bad Time for Press Freedoms”
The Columbia Journalism Review has an interesting interview with James Goodale, former general counsel and vice chairman of The New York Times and author of the forthcoming book Fighting for the Press. Goodale is very critical of the current Administration’s hostility to press freedoms — “Worse than Nixon” — and the relative lack of critical response from journalists.
Progressives start push for Elizabeth Warren 2016
As noted at the Wiki, the progressive movement has had a twinkle in its eye for an Elizabeth Warren presidential campaign since before she was elected to the Senate, Elizabeth Warren for President in 2016 movement.
Former prostitute running for mayor in Mississippi
Dennis Hof, owner of the Bunny Ranch brothel in Nevada, announced on Friday he is offering to join former prostitute Linda Fondren on the campaign trail to support her run for mayor in Vicksburg, Miss.
Eric Holder’s wife co-owns abortion clinic building run by indicted abortionist
Thanks to pro-lifers Michelle Wolven and Catherine Davis, a small group of us have been on this story for weeks.
Fertilizer plant explosion near Waco
City of West being evacuated
Apartment near explosion in West
EMS Director Says 60 To 70 Dead In West Explosion
West EMS Director Dr. George Smith says as many as 60 or 70 people died and at least 100 were injured Wednesday night in a fertilizer plant explosion in West.
Lightning Strike Ignites Fire At Tank Battery In NE OKC
A lightning strike ignited a fire at a tank battery near NE 4th and Bryant Ave. In Oklahoma City, Wednesday night.
Homebuilders Dumping Term ‘Master Bedroom’ For Supposed Racism, Sexism
Homebuilders in Washington D.C. have been dropping the phrase “master suite” from their language thanks to its supposed implications of racism and sexism.
BSA membership policy resolution released, will be voted on in May
The Boy Scouts of America’s Executive Committee today released its membership policy resolution, which proposes removing the restriction denying membership to youth on the basis of sexual orientation alone and maintaining the current membership policy for all adult leaders of the Boy Scouts of America.
San Francisco Police Launch LGBT Safe Zones
If the picture alone isn’t enough to convince you that the time has come for a giant asteroid to put an end to this, here’s the story
Junior High Girls Beaten by High School Mob in Queens
Hispanics of the light-skinned variety may find it advisable to avoid public schools in the rainbow utopia of New York City — given what happened recently to 8th grade girls attacked by a feral mob in Queens
Economy
& Taxes
Why a single mom is better off with a $29,000 job and welfare than taking a $69,000 job
The U.S. welfare system sure creates some crazy disincentives to working your way up the ladder. Benefits stacked upon benefits can mean it is financially better, at least in the short term, to stay at a lower-paying jobs rather than taking a higher paying job and losing those benefits. This is called the “welfare cliff.”
German ‘Wise Men’ push for wealth seizure to fund EMU bail-outs
Two top advisers to German Chancellor Angela Merkel have called for a tax on private wealth and property in eurozone debtor states to force the rich to fund rescue costs, marking a radical new departure for EMU crisis strategy.
The Terrifying Reality of Long-Term Unemployment
It’s an awful catch-22: employers won’t hire you if you’ve been out of work for more than six months
The One Number You Need to Know in O’s Budget
Here’s the number to keep in mind: $763 billion.
If enacted, Barack Obama’s latest budget would mean that in just ten years, interest payments alone on the national debt would begin pushing the trillion-dollar mark: $763 billion a year by 2023. That may be a rosy estimate: It assumes that interest rates, currently near historic lows, do not rise a great deal over the next ten years as the Treasury continues to pile up new debt. If interest rates do climb a bit higher — not even to their historical average, but higher than they have been of late — then those interest payments easily could be more than $1 trillion a year.
California City Abandons Sinking Pension Fund
Canyon Lake, a small gated city in Southern California, has just announced plans to withdraw from Calpers. The move comes in response to the pension fund’s recent suggestion that cities kick in as much as 50 percent more to the fund to keep benefits secure. Calpers requires a “termination fee” for any municipality looking to exit, but the city apparently thinks paying that fee now offers a better deal than a future of contribution hikes with Calpers.
China’s Local Debt “Out of Control”
Be warned: there is a growing consensus of thoughtful observers, both Chinese and foreign, who think China’s local government debt is dangerously inflated. Joining the chorus this week is Zhang Ke, the head of an important Chinese accounting firm.
Gosnell Employee: I Saw Ten Babies Breathe Before They Were Killed
The final prosecution witness against Kermit Gosnell, the abortion doctor on trial for the capital murder of seven babies and one adult patient, was Kareema Cross, a former employee of Gosnell’s. Thursday Cross testified that she saw ten babies breathe before Gosnell killed them.
Success for ‘Holistic’ Med School Admissions
Boston University has demonstrated the success of “holistic” admissions for medical school, according an analysis published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
College fires professor who forced students to sign pledge to vote for Obama
Brevard Community College (BCC) has fired a professor after a school investigation concluded she required students to sign a pledge to vote for President Obama in the run-up to the 2012 election.
Judith Grossman: A Mother, a Feminist, Aghast
Unsubstantiated accusations against my son by a former girlfriend landed him before a nightmarish college tribunal.
International
Chavez protege wins Venezuela election; opposition protests, refuses to concede
Venezuela concluded its first post-Hugo Chavez presidential election, and it turned out closer than anyone thought. The result, though, was about what most expected, which is that Chavez’ hand-picked successor Nicolas Maduro will run the country for the next six years — probably. His opponent, Henrique Capriles Radonski, demanded a recount, claiming that electoral fraud had taken place
Pakistan’s Musharraf disqualified from election
Lawyers say judges have disqualified Pakistan’s former military ruler, Pervez Musharraf, from running in the upcoming parliamentary election.
Venezuela Faces Turmoil as Maduro Foes Protest Victory Decree
Venezuelans faced the prospect of extended political instability as the country’s electoral council proclaimed Nicolas Maduro president-elect while opposition supporters marched in the streets to demand a full recount of the April 14 election.
Venezuela: An Election That Reeks Of Fraud
Latin America: Venezuela’s election on Sunday, which saw bus driver Nicolas Maduro declared the winner by a razor-thin margin, reeked of electoral fraud. Kudos to challenger Henrique Capriles for calling it out.
Recount Refused in Venezuela
In his victory speech on Sunday night, Venezuelan president Nicholás Maduro promised a recount of the votes in his surprisingly thin 51 to 49 percent defeat of opposition candidate Henrique Capriles. After one of the five members of the National Electoral Council called for a recount, Maduro agreed and told suporters “We’re going to do it.” He continued “We’re not afraid. Let the [voting] boxes talk — that the truth be told.”
Venezuela: Maduro bans planned opposition march
Venezuela’s President-elect Nicolas Maduro says he won’t permit a march to protest a presidential election opponents say is illegitimate.
U.N. Committee Says: This Speech Must Lead to a Criminal Prosecution of the Speaker
The German government decided not to prosecute the speaker based on this speech, but the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has recently stated the contrary, TBB v. Germany (Feb. 26, 2013). Here’s the speech that, according to the Committee, must lead to a criminal prosecution in countries that have ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. (I am pleased to say that the U.S. has not recognized the competence of the Committee to enforce the Convention, though most European countries have; the U.S. has also ratified subject to a specific reservation in favor of the freedom of speech.)
Pakistan’s Former Military Ruler, Pervez Musharraf, Arrested
Pakistan’s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf was arrested Friday in connection with his unconstitutional dismissal of top judges while he was president.
Venezuela election vote to be audited
Venezuela’s electoral body has announced it will carry out a full audit on all the votes cast in Sunday’s disputed presidential poll.
Burma Opposition Leader Says Reforms Depend on Military
Burma opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi told an audience in Japan that her country’s democratic reforms are not yet irreversible and still depend on the powerful military, which ruled Burma for decades. Political analysts say the speech is another sign the Nobel laureate is trying to balance relations with the military and her party’s political ambitions.
Egypt: Mubarak to Be Moved to Prison
Egypt’s chief prosecutor on Wednesday ordered the transfer of former President Hosni Mubarak from a Cairo military hospital back to prison.
Italy Will Not Have A President Following PDL Boycott Of Fourth Round Vote
There had been some hope that the political vacuum in Italy would normalize after the fourth balloting round of presidential voting, in which the candidate agreed upon by both Bersani and Berlusconi, former trade union leader Franco Marini, would be elected with a simple majority, following a failure to elect one in the first three rounds. Marini had been in the lead with 521 votes but short of the two-third majority needed, or 672, to win the vote.
Opinion
The Tea Party Comeback
Thousands of Tea Party activists will gather Monday at rallies across the nation to mark Tax Day, April 15–and to re-ignite a movement that had been written off as dormant by the media and the political classes.
Exiled: This Is What Social Justice Looks Like
A new book edited by Mary Grabar, the academician who blogs as “the Dissident Prof,” targets the demonization of university conservatives.
Relax, America Still Makes Things
We live in a post-industrial age, defined more by Google than by General Motors. The term “post-industrial society” was first popularized by the sociologist Daniel Bell (1919-2011) in a 1973 book, and the change has generally been a boon. The transition from factory to office has raised living standards, curbed pollution and reduced the number of grueling, often-monotonous jobs. Yet, this largely beneficial transformation suffers in the popular imagination. The vast “service sector,” which now dominates the economy, is seen as inferior, low-paying and even frivolous because it produces nothing tangible.
The Left’s War on Science
“We did not come to ask for mercy from nature,” Ivan Vladimirovich Michurin, the Lysenko of Soviet agriculture, once declared. “We must wrest it from her.”
The Paradox Of Absolutism
You’ll Get Nothing, And Like It
Originalism and the Colorblind Constitution
The legal literature on the subject of originalism and affirmative action asserts two propositions: that originalism strongly supports the constitutionality of affirmative action and that the two originalist justices – Justices Scalia and Thomas – appear to be hypocrites for holding that the Constitution forbids government affirmative action. These claims are made by various leading scholars, including Cass Sunstein and Jed Rubenfeld.
The Privilege of Not Belonging
A theory of white racism against whites.
Gay marriage… And now on to polygamy
THE excitement over the Supreme Court arguments on gay marriage has probably died down until the court comes back with a decision. And what with a majority of senators now in favour, it certainly looks like, whether by judicial or legislative action, gay marriage is on a fairly rapid road to acceptance across America. So this moment, when fewer people are paying attention and it can’t do too much harm, seems like a good time for people who support gay marriage to admit that there are a couple of arguments for it which they’ve always thought were wrong.
