News of the Week for November 3^rd, 2013

• Obama Scandals
• Gun Rights
• Hide the Decline
• Obamacare
• War & Terror
• National News
• Economy & Taxes
• International News
• Opinion

Obama Scandals

Michelle Obama and CGI Federal executive belonged to student group at Princeton that hosted pro-terrorist speaker
First Lady Michelle Obama and her Princeton classmate whose company received the no-bid government contract to build the HealthCare.gov Obamacare website were both members of a black student organization that caused a tense scene on campus by inviting a PLO leader who advocated for terrorism.

Under Pressure From The White House, NBC Throws Its Reporter Under the Bus and Censors News That Obama Wrote Regs to Disqualify and Terminate Health Insurance Policies
They later re-inserted the censored material. But what would compel them to delete true information in the first place?

IRS’ Lois Lerner gave confidential Tea Party tax info to FEC, violating law
The Internal Revenue Service shared highly confidential tax information of several Tea Party groups in the IRS scandal with the Federal Election Commission, a clear violation of federal law, according to newly obtained emails.

Gun Rights

Gun-Grabbers Attack Lead Supply Through EPA
The national security implications of severely curtailing our ability to produce our own ammunition are obvious. But to our current rulers, national security means something very different from what it did in the past. The idea is no longer to defend America from foreign threats, but to impose the ultimate threat from within.

“Stand Your Ground” opponents mangle law and Trayvon facts at Senate Hearing
Ted Cruz, Louie Gohmert and Dr. John Lott set the record and the law straight

Hide the Decline

Environment &
“Green Energy”

New paper shows Medieval Warm Period was global in scope
Here’s a chat with two authors of an important new Science paper examining 10,000 years of layered fossil plankton in the western Pacific Ocean. The paper finds that several significant past climate ups and downs — including the medieval warm period and little ice age — were global in scope, challenging some previous conclusions that these were fairly limited Northern Hemisphere phenomena.

An ‘Uh Oh’ moment in Nature – IPCC Climate panel is ripe for examination
It is fitting this is published near Halloween time in Nature, because the IPCC is full of scare stories.

IPCC Conclusions Were Reached Three Years Before The “Research” Was Done

Obamacare

Government in Healthcare

Government ‘Mining’ Social Media for Information on Health Behavior
HHS division will spend $30,000 on social media research

New York’s #Obamacare ripping old people away from their doctors.
Because to Governor Andrew Cuomo – not to mention Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand – old people are just numbers on a screen. Numbers on a screen that don’t reliably vote Democratic, to boot. The background is that New York’s Medicare Advantage program is having doctors being removed wholesale from the network: “one health carrier alone, UnitedHealthcare, is terminating contracts with up to 2,100 doctors serving 8,000 Medicare Advantage patients in the New York metro region.” This is causing not a little anger and, frankly, despair

Healthcare.gov automatically enrolled ineligible consumer in Medicaid without even telling them!

Destroying Private Insurance and Putting Everyone Into Government Insurance — Single Payer — Was Always the Goal
Remember, the media did not report on this at all — that the architect of the original ObamaCare plan bragged that his plan was not a “Trojan Horse” for single payer, because a Trojan Horse disguises what it is — and his plan was obviously a move to single payer.

The three interlocking gears of the #Obamacare #FAIL.
Originally, I was going to use the step-stool analogy, only the problem here is that in order for Obamacare to work all three problems need to be resolved. At the moment the administration is more or less working on one full time, and desultorily working on another. The third has yet to be addressed. So… consider a set of gears, with three obstructions. All three obstructions must be cleared before the machine can operate.

Why Won’t The GOP Let Us Have a Normal Debate? Why!?
Greg Sargent thinks it’s unseemly and ill-mannered for Republicans to focus on the fact that a great many people are losing their health insurance because of Obamacare. He does make a few very reluctant concessions.

Docs resisting ObamaCare
New York doctors are treating ObamaCare like the plague, a new survey reveals.

The Single-Payer Fantasy
Obamacare isn’t a Republican idea, and liberals could never get their dream of single-payer.

Don’t Like The Data? Just Call It Anecdotal And Ignore It
If Huffington Post reporter Sam Stein is any indication, liberal members of the so-called “reality-based” community have developed a new strategy for dealing with Obamacare’s myraid failures: just pretend the bad stuff isn’t real.

Google, Oracle gurus parachuted in to give kiss of life to Healthcare.gov
Obamacare flatlining – charging defibrillator… CLEAR! Bzzt-doofff

Meet the Three New Fees that Kick in for Health Insurance for 2014
Those of you who still have insurance will be paying more in premiums next year. A bunch of new fees take effect, all written into the law of Obamacare or instituted by the Department of Health and Human Services

GOP Rep. Asks Sebelius Why Single Men Need Maternity Coverage
“To the best of your knowledge, has a man ever delivered a baby?” Representative Renee Ellmers (R., N.C.) jocularly asked Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius, as part of her line of questioning as to why maternity coverage will be required in all insurance plans, including for single men.

Insurance Companies Being Told To Remain Silent About Obamacare Policy Terminations; Executives Say They Fear Retribution
So here is the game: the White House wrote regulations to insure that the maximum number of people were terminated from their old policies, thus intentionally breaking its oft-made promise.

UK’s top court: OK for hospital to stop treatment
Britain’s highest court has ruled in favor of a hospital that gained court approval to withhold treatment from a terminally ill man despite the family’s opposition.

In first month, the vast majority of Obamacare sign-ups are in Medicaid
The first month of the new health law’s rollout reveals an unexpected pattern in several states: a crush of people applying for an expansion of Medicaid and a trickle of sign-ups for private insurance.

The Association of American Physicians & Surgeons (AAPS) Sues to Stop the Unlawful Revisions to ObamaCare
The AAPS lawsuit, which was filed today in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, asks the Court to enjoin the Obama Administration from imposing its “individual mandate” while delaying the “employer mandate.” The law that was passed by Congress in 2010 requires that the employer mandate go into effect at the same time as the individual mandate: Jan 1, 2014.

Virginia Democrat Calls For Forcing Doctors To Accept Medicare And Medicaid Patients
You would think that when your party is burying a hole that is getting harder and harder to get out of, you wouldn’t want to that hole get deeper faster. But here is Kathleen Murphy, Democrat running for the House of Delegates against Barbara Comstock, telling a forum in Great Falls that she believes it should law to force doctors to accept Medicare and Medicaid patients. Forced by government decree, mind you.

Obamacare and the Unforgiving Gauntlet
“Running the gauntlet” refers to a ceremony of passage, trial, or even execution wherein a person is forced to walk or run between two lines of people who are usually armed with clubs, whips, or other weapons. The people in the lines are then free to strike at the person running up the middle. Except in those cases where the intent is execution, if the person running the gauntlet makes it to the other end, he is deemed to have expiated his crimes (in case of a trial) or worthy to join the appropriate group (in case of passage). If the person collapses without making it all the way though, then he might be sent back to the start to run the gauntlet all over again.

Forced collectivization of the health care kulaks via single payer is inevitable under Obamacare
The Revolt of the Kulaks Has Begun, February 22, 2009, just over a month after Obama’s first inauguration

Another Liberal Stooge Loses His Insurance Because of ObamaCare
Some more pure schadenfreude for you on the ObamaCare front. Contributor at The Frying Pan and all around good liberal Matthew Fleischer had a guest post on the Los Angeles Times website on Tuesday bemoaning the fact that he lost his health insurance, and the new policy permitted under the law will raise his premium from $50 a month to $214. My apathy toward his plight is underwhelming.

War & Terror

Cheney: Mideast Allies No Longer Trust The US, Enemies ‘Don’t Fear Us’
Dick Cheney said Sunday that Republicans need to look to a new generation of leaders as the party deals with poor approval ratings following the government shutdown.

Syrian troops retake Christian town from jihadis
Syrian government forces retook a Christian town north of Damascus on Monday, expelling al-Qaida-linked rebels after a week of heavy fighting, state media and opposition activists said.

Inside China: Nuclear submarines capable of widespread attack on U.S.
Chinese state-run media revealed for the first time this week that Beijing’s nuclear submarines can attack American cities as a means to counterbalance U.S. nuclear deterrence in the Pacific.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards committed to ‘Death to America’
In light of negotiations with US, conservative groups in Iran call for continued use of ‘Death to America’ as official slogan, celebrate anniversary of US Embassy hostage crisis

Overlooked and over the hill: is China invading Bhutan?< Amid the growing distress in Egypt, the dramatic infighting among the Syrian rebels and the engulfing confusion of the Snowden sweepstakes, including the recent statements by Glenn Greenwald, the British journalist who first published his leaks, claiming that the young spy-turned-whistleblower might make potentially destructive revelations if harmed or captured, world media and international relations commentators are seemingly overlooking what might be China’s latest geopolitical bet and provocative military move.

Hagel more concerned about gay rights than combat readiness
At a speech last Thursday night in New York at an Anti-Defamation League centennial dinner, Secretary of Defense Hagel attacked certain states which are not allowing same-sex couples to use National Guard facilities to sign up for benefits, such as ID cards.

National

College Kicks Out Afrobeat Band for Being “Too White”
Apparently bands now have to be the same race as the music they’re playing. That’s going to be a problem. So no more white rappers or black classical musicians are allowed.

‘Uncomfortable truth’ in Matthew Shepard’s death
Stephen Jimenez didn’t set out to be the most dangerous journalist on earth.

California’s Tech Secessionists
The New York Times reports Tuesday that Silicon Valley is breeding a secessionist movement. It is attracting tech gurus who are frustrated with society’s refusal to listen to them, and its insistence on regulating them. Entrepreneur Balaji S. Srinivasan, who is leading the charge, is winning applause by promoting ‘Silicon Valley’s ultimate exit…an opt-in society, ultimately outside the United States, run by technology.”

No More Success Stories: University of Georgia Students Protest Excellence for Social Justice Week
Life is truly beginning to imitate art. According to prevailing progressive “wisdom,” success is just becoming downright… unfair. The University of Georgia’s Student Government Association (SGA) held an unusual “dinner and dialogue” during Social Justice Week in opposition to the notion of “success stories.”

Anti-bullying videos questioned after two students’ suicides
Two students from separate schools committed suicide within days of each other this month — which is National Bullying Prevention Month — and both boys apparently had been bullied. Now, parents are asking questions not just about bullying but also about anti-bullying videos, which both schools aired shortly before the incidents.

Kentucky Dem Compares Republicans to Japanese Soldiers in WWII
A Kentucky Democrat compared congressional Republicans to the Japanese during World War II.

The ENDA Agenda
Conservatives and libertarians alike oppose this bill.

Obama heckled by Keystone protesters at Boston Obamacare rally
Several noisy protesters interrupted President Obama’s health care reform rally in Boston on Wednesday afternoon, stopping the commander in chief’s speech dead in its tracks.

“Common Core is Obamacare for Education”
The video below is part of an internet based series called Afterburner with Bill Whittle of PJ Media. If you don’t watch it regularly, you should because it’s outstanding.

Cornell students demand end to “male heterosexual” Big Red Bear mascot
The Cornell Big Red Bear is the mascot of Cornell University sports teams and attends not just sports events, but also alumni and other gatherings.

Brown University Students Boo NYPD Commissioner off Stage over Stop-and-Frisk
Brown students booed New York City police commissioner Raymond Kelly off the stage in Providence, R.I., Tuesday night as he was giving a speech

Why I’ve filed an EEOC charge against Time Warner
My attorneys have filed an EEOC charge on my behalf against Time Warner over an offensive and discriminatory policy.

Court Rules Obamacare Birth Control Mandate Unconstitutional
The DC Court of Appeals struck down the birth control mandate in Obamacare, saying it would place an undue burden on businesses who object to the mandate on religious grounds.

Court Reinstates Most of Texas’ Tough New Abortion Laws
A federal appeals court on Thursday issued a ruling reinstating most of Texas’ tough new abortion restrictions in a decision that means as many as 12 clinics won’t be able to perform the procedure starting as soon as Friday.

Mother Jones Shocker: ‘New Poll Shows Democratic Incumbents in Big Trouble’
Since the government shutdown, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting some media member claiming Republicans are in a lot of trouble heading into next year’s midterm elections.

Former Secret Service Agent Warns: President Obama Sees Government as a ‘Shiny New Toy’
Former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino, who is running for Congress in Maryland, appeared on the Glenn Beck Program Thursday to discuss why he chose to run for elected office.

Will Pedophiles be Covered Under Senate “ENDA” Bill?
While it’s possible to recover from fiscal bankruptcy, we will never recover from the moral bankruptcy in Washington. We will never build a free and prosperous country built upon the ruins of the civil society. But this week in Washington, Harry Reid’s Senate will spend the entire week using the power of government to infringe upon our liberty and destroy the civil society.

Economy
& Taxes

A very cursory glance at DOOM
I expended most of my good DOOM ammo last week plugging holes in the leaky tub we call Ace of Spades HQ, so today I can only bring the dregs from the grog barrel. Gather ’round, me hearties, and hark ye to the tale of this sad buccaneer!

The Ten US Cities With Less Than Ten Days Of Cash On Hand
As the Detroit bankruptcy hearing heats up following news that the city’s unsecured creditors, among them pensioners, are set to recover pennies on the dollar, 16 to be precise, the question of which are the next cities to follow in the footsteps of bankrupt Motown, becomes relevant once again. Courtesy of the WSJ, and the second part of its series on “U.S. Cities Grapple With Finances”, here is a list of the US cities that when push comes to shove metaphorically, and when the money runs out literally, will have no choice but to knock on the door of the local regional bankruptcy court and submit that long-prepared bankruptcy petition. Specifically, here are the cities that have 10 days or less in cash on hand available. Because, unless one is the Fed, cash and lack thereof is all that matters.

Broke California City Basically Held Together with Duct Tape
Municipal crises are spreading relentlessly in California, this time to Fresno, home to half a million residents. Fresno took a beating during the recession when, like many other cities, it saw tax revenues start to dry up. But that didn’t stop city officials from digging themselves into an economic hole with absurd spending projects, like a $26 million convention-center garage. Unable to make its annual payments on the boondoggle, Fresno ran a $14 million deficit and started borrowing from its various treasury funds.

International

Italy Breaks Your Heart
ON my first night back in Italy, at a dinner party in Milan, I watched and listened to a successful couple in their late 40s plot their escape from a country that they love but have lost faith in. They cleared the plates, opened a laptop, and began checking out real estate in London, where one of them had been offered a transfer. The prices horrified but didn’t deter them. They have a 10-year-old son, and they fear that Italy, with 40 percent unemployment among young adults and an economy whose listlessness has come to seem the new normal, doesn’t promise a particularly bright future for him.

Rise of Eurosceptism an assertion of identity
European Parliament, Strasbourg, 23 October 2013

Girl crawls out of grave after being raped, buried alive
A 13-year-old girl has dug herself out of a muddy grave after being raped by two men who then buried her alive in Pakistan.

Belgium considering unprecedented law to grant euthanasia for children, dementia patients
Should children have the right to ask for their own deaths?

Nurses flash victory sign in front of slain bomb squad officer
Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Hospital publicly apologised on Wednesday after a photograph of two of its nurses flashing a victory sign in front of a slain bomb squad officer circulated on the internet.

Remembering the Hungarian Uprising of 1956
On November 4, 1956, Soviet tanks rumbled through the ancient cobblestone streets of Budapest, crushing a true “people’s revolution” that had wrested control of Hungary from Soviet stooges and thugs.

Opinion

Feminism, Cultural Marxism and Permanent Revolution
Ever notice how the far Left demonizes people who offer practical ideas on how to help fix a problem? Emily Yoffe of the liberal website Slate advised young women entering college that getting blacked out drunk at parties is not a good idea when it comes to rape prevention, and feminists naturally went nuts.

Sen. Mike Lee on “What’s Next for Conservatives”
It began with our effort to stop Obamacare — a goal that all Republicans share even if we have not always agreed about just how to pursue it. And it is ending with powerful practical proof of just why stopping Obamacare is so essential.

THOMAS SOWELL: The race-hustlers among us
Years ago, someone said that according to the laws of aerodynamics, bumblebees cannot fly. But the bumblebees, not knowing the laws of aerodynamics, go ahead and fly anyway.

Obamacare Is The Apotheosis of the Progressive Mindset
What is going on here is that a cadre of people who have a very narrow skill-set — primarily law or some public policy degree which featured very little math, and that math was Math for Liberal Arts — have decided that they can comprehend the workings of everyone else’s job in America, simply because they went to a Good School.

The Hegelian Dialectic: the True Culprit
Most people have never heard of the Hegelian Dialectic, the esoteric concept that currently shapes most policy decisions. Even those who closely follow the debates within the political elite have no idea that they are resolved according to the Hegelian Dialectic. Nor do they know that their own expectations about compromise is rooted in the Hegelian Dialectic, or that it also explains why those who stand firmly on principle are rejected as “extremists.” All of these attitudes are outcomes of the Hegelian Dialectic; it also explains the ever-increasing centralization of political power, large government bureaucracies, excessive taxation, and dissatisfaction with government.

Big Government once again turns on its Little Partners
I’m going to use a loaded word in this post, so I want to get it out of the way right up front. That word is fascism.

Don’t Let Democrats Pack the D.C. Circuit
It is one of the most important battles raging in Washington, a fight that will have far-reaching consequences for everything from health care and the regulatory state to gun rights and the war on terrorism. Yet most Americans have heard nothing about it.

Is Mike Lee The Better Liar I’ve Been Waiting For?
I’ve argued before in various places that conservatives need candidates who are better liars. Democrats run candidates in red/purple states that talk a reasonable game back home but when they get to DC, they vote the Reid/Pelosi/Obama line without fail. The GOP on the other hand has a nasty habit of running candidates that talk a very conservative game and then vote like moderates when it counts. Conservatives need to find a way to flip that calculus within the GOP if the marriage is to survive.

What schools can do to help boys succeed
Being a boy can be a serious liability in today’s classroom. As a group, boys are noisy, rowdy and hard to manage. Many are messy, disorganized and won’t sit still. Young male rambunctiousness, according to a recent study, leads teachers to underestimate their intellectual and academic abilities. “Girl behavior is the gold standard in schools,” says psychologist Michael Thompson. “Boys are treated like defective girls.”

President Haze
Obama and his supporters emit a fog of equivocation and euphemism

Memories of Futures Past
A brief history of bold new visions of the American order

Terror! Robespierre and the French Revolution = Obama?
I stumbled on this excellent drama-documentary about the French Revolution on Twitter. The tweet simply read “Robespierre = Obama?”

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