Break From Politics

(If you must have politics, please scroll down to yesterday's open thread)

In honor of Dean Martin, whose 97th birthday was June 7 (hat tip to I Love Dino Martin):

Rare and Classic Photos of a Laid-Back Legend

Text for the collection of slides and a few music videos:

In the early- to mid-1960s, Dean Martin emerged as one of the most popular entertainers on the planet, starring in major films, knocking the Beatles off the top of the charts with what would become his trademark tune, “Everybody Loves Somebody,” defining an entire new genre of cool with Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack, starring in his own long-running TV variety show — achieving all of this with the air of a man who had just woken from a nap and was still charmingly groggy.

In 1958, meanwhile, when the pictures in this gallery were made, Dino – while famous as one-half of the Martin & Lewis comedy duo — had not yet crossed over into genuine superstardom. But he was certainly enough of a draw that LIFE magazine devoted a photo-filled seven-page feature to the man they dubbed “Make-a-Million Martin.”

[To] his skillfully used musical and comedy talents, he adds an ebullience that pervades everything he does. . . . Uninhibited, spry of mind and muscle, he maintains a state of relaxation that “makes Perry Como look like a nervous wreck.” Keeping carefree appears to be the common denominator of the many Martins — showman, businessman, prankster, family man, self-styled hell-raiser and Hollywood social lion. In each role he works hard at making hard work look easy.

On what would have been his 97th birthday (b. June 7, 1917, in Steubenville, Ohio) LIFE pays tribute to one of show business’ enduring — and most laid-back – legends.

The Dean Martin song that nudged the Beatles out of first place on the Billboard charts on August 15, 1964:

Open Thread

So, what's on your mind?

Here is your chance to vent, but please observe the guidelines below.

We welcome civil dialogue at Always on Watch. We will delete comments that include any of the following:
1. Any use of profanity or abusive language
2. Off topic comments and spam
3. Use of personal invective
4. We do not respond to anonymous comments

June 6, 1944

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

70 years ago today:


D-Day photo essay at WTOP

The cost of elections

by Sam Huntington

If we could in some way condense the President’s speech at the USMA (28 May), it would go something like this: Today, I would like to make the following important points about our foreign policy, the state of our economy, and my current world view. Uh (pause) thank you very much.”

Beyond the usual banalities, beyond comparing himself to political leaders of the past, beyond continuing his campaign to apologize to the world for US policies of the past (which fed all of Europe for five years following World War II), his commencement speech at the USMA was, in the view of Charles Krauthammer, “literally pointless.”

Justifiable Derision

Check this out! And be sure to watch the woman's facial expressions. Priceless!

Also note that the reporters actually laugh at this U.S. State Department spokesperson when she repeatedly says that the President doesn't get enough credit for his foreign policy (hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance):


Full text of the above:

Bergdahl Held Prisoner By Haqqani, Not The Taliban?

According to this article in Human Events:

...While it is almost universal for the media to describe this deal as a prisoner swap with the Taliban, the Washington Post article on the five released detainees very gingerly brushes past an important fact, about fifteen paragraphs in: Sgt. Bergdahl was not a prisoner of the Taliban. He was captured and held by the Haqqani terrorist network...

[...]

Which makes the content of this prisoner swap even more suspicious, because only one of the five released detainees, Mohammed Nabi Omari, had strong ties to the Haqqani network (and also to al-Qaeda.) Thor wonders if the White House is breaking the law not only to grab a front-page “Obama saves captive American all by himself” media coup, but to conceal other aspects of the deal, such as a cash payment to the money-obsessed Haqqanis...

More at the above link. Read it!

Something About Eric Shinseki

General Shinseki

I do not wish to malign Eric Shinseki.

He served with honor on the battlefield, sustained severe wounds, and eventually attained the rank of four star general.

However, I think that something needs to be brought to light.

From this source (All other sources were scrubbed between 7:00 A.M., May 30, 2014, and 7:00 A.M., May 31, 2014!):

View PostSharkhaywood, on 29 May 2014 - 02:32 PM, said:

The guy has been on the job for 5 years now so it's not like he is brand new to the position. I browsed the guy's Wiki page and he is a very decorated soldier. However, he doesn't have any medical background. It would seem to me that a person with some kind of medical background would be best suited to run the VA. It did also show the following:

Forgotten by many is the fact that much of the problems with infrastructure deterioration and neglect at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well as the lack of funding for repairs, occurred initially during Shinseki's tenure as the 34th Army Chief of Staff.

Whistleblowers to the problems were summarily squashed and funding for improvements were routinely and regularly denied. For instance, the problems associated with Building 18 were not new to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center community. As early as 1999 the extensive problems with Building 18 were identified to senior level leadership, and funding for renovations and improvements were denied. Prior to its role housing wounded warriors, Building 18 had long served as the barracks of WRAMC Student Company. Between 1999 and 2001, under the Command of then Captain Michael D. Dake, the Student Company leadership identified the deplorable conditions in and around Building 18 to two Medical Center Brigade Commanders (COL Terry D. Carroll, and COL Larry S. Bolton respectively). By 2002, the requests for funding to improve conditions in and around Building 18 had made it to the attention of Major General Kevin C. Kiley. Kiley, who toured the facility as part of his Commander's in-brief after arriving in June, personally inspected the facility and spoke to the Soldiers and the Leadership. He then also denied funding for improvements. By 2004, renovation of Building 18 had been anticipated in connection with the enhanced use lease of Building 40, but since the post was slated for closure under BRAC in 2005, the anticipated in-kind services by the Building 40 developer did not materialize.

Funding for repairs at Walter Reed never did materialize during Shinseki's tenure as Army Chief of Staff; despite the fact Shinseki's directive to develop and wear the new Black Beret for all service members resulted in such enormous waste that, in one case with a cancelled manufacturing contract with a Chinese national firm, as much as $37.9 million U.S. dollars was lost to contracting errors, unlawful foreign sourcing and import law violations.

I am not suggesting that Eric Shinseki is a corrupt man or a corrupt leader.

What I am suggesting is this: Shinseki was the wrong man to appoint as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.  He already had a history as a poor manager of allocated funds.

At the beginning of this blog post, I alluded to the scrubbing of information. My statement was one of personal observation. I saw the information with my own eyes! To be clear: on May 30, I read the information cited above about the neglect scandal at Walter Reed Army Medical Center; match the 1999 date of that scandal with the timeline of Shinseki's career.

The evening of May 30, when I was watching the news, not a single television news outlet (not CNN, not MSNBC, not Fox) mentioned the apparent correlation between the scandal and Shinseki's position as Chief of Staff of the Army. I was stunned that nobody referred to the 1999 scandal at Walter Reed. When I arose on Saturday morning and searched the web for the information, I realized what had happened.

The information was scrubbed. Why?

Musical Interlude

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Maurice Ravel's Pavane for a Dead Princess:


About the pavane

Nincompoopery Poll

(Nincompoopery — and worse — abounds! This edition of "Nincompoopery" offers five links, and readers have the option of taking a poll as to which story they find the most outrageous. Discussion available in the comments section)

Links to read:

ONE: Federal health-care subsidies may be too high or too low for more than 1 million Americans[no remedy yet in the wings]

TWO: Senators say work on 2020 Census is far behind schedule

THREE: The War On Standards Comes to College Debate and Forensics: Kabbalah By Way Of Dada

FOUR: Obama Slides Butt Down Lunch Counter [official White House photo at WhiteHouse.gov]

FIVE: School Districts Are Paying Private Companies To Data Mine Your Children

Please cast your ballot in the poll, which closes on Tuesday:

survey tools

Today On The Gathering Storm

Listen to The Gathering Storm Radio Show, hosted by WC and Always On Watch.

The show broadcasts live for 30 minutes every Friday beginning at noon, Pacific Time.

The call-in number is 646-915-9870. Callers welcome!

Our scheduled guest this week is Mr. Ducky. We'll be discussing Duck's 10 favorite films - an insight into a leftist's mind.

Listen to the May 30, 2014 edition of The Gathering Storm Radio Show, live or later, by CLICKING HERE.

UPCOMING SHOWS:

The Brains of Squirrels

by Sam Huntington

What kind of a person remains with a physically or mentally abusive spouse?  Abusive persons are often sociopaths, defined as individual who consistently violate social customs, break the law with impunity, and exploit the people around them for their own purposes.  And of course, these convincing liars remain charming and consistently deny any wrongdoing, or they transpose the situation so that it becomes the fault of the person who is being abused or taken advantage of...

The answer to the question posed above is, any person with the brains of a squirrel.  This would appear to define every single person who either voted for Barack Obama in 2008, or reelected him in 2012 because Barack Obama fits the clinical definition of a sociopath, and disturbingly, so do the people with whom he has chosen to advise him.  Now, I have heard people argue that Barack Obama wasn’t nearly as popular in 2012 —and yet, Obama was overwhelmingly reelected.  One must admit, this is an amazing phenomenon.  

More Tragedy from the Left

by Sam Huntington

I see that the scion of a leftist family has managed to destroy the innocent —again.  Elliot Rodger was the 22-year-old son of Peter, the assistant director of a film in production titled The Hunger Games.  It is a story based on a series of books by Suzanne Collins in which the residents of North America are subjected to the tyranny of a leftist government and are required to participate in death matches.  Don’t get me wrong —fiction is entertaining, but only to the point at which ceases being fantasy and starts being reality.

I suspect Peter Rodger is one of those seriously detached persons who think that guns kill people.  We call this irrational denialism —and it appears to have been a problem with Peter for quite some time.  But Peter isn’t alone, evidenced by the father of one of Elliot’s victims who shared his grief with us on national television —demanding the confiscation of firearms.  He too must think that guns kill people.  No, it was Elliot who killed these people.  You know, the son of the man who makes violent films and video games for children.

Explanation

The last day of the homeschool group's 2013-2014 classes is June 5.

YEEHAW!

As Mr. AOW explained at his blog site, this school term is ending with me more frazzled than usual. Summer break cannot begin too soon!

For Memorial Day 2014

Solemnity — because we remember the meaning of Memorial Day:

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
— John 15:13,KJV

Ignorant!

I am at a loss for a printable comment:

See, the way this works is...

by Sam Huntington

Everyone on the left hates Mitt Romney, and there’s a good reason for this: he’s a filthy hedge fund manager and as such, he personally gave cancer to the wife of an employee at a nuts and bolts company. Bad Romney, bad! Everyone on the left hates the Koch Brothers, too—and for good reason. Those bastards give way too much money to GOP candidates and they are far, far to involved in political activism. Bad Koch brothers, bad!

Just when it appears (to me) that the political left is incapable of demonstrating a greater degree of dishonesty —when I think they’ve reached the pinnacle of hypocrisy, some new revelation comes along those forces me to reevaluate my former position.

This Is Governing?

...[I]f the administration knew of potentially life-threatening wait times at VA facilities and efforts by VA employees to conceal the real numbers, something wasn’t done years ago — long before CNN revealed the specific Phoenix accusations....

Please take a moment to read the brief article from which the above excerpt came and to watch the short video about the Veterans Administration scandal.

Mainstream Media Incest

With a hat tip to Capitol Commentary for the first graphic below:

The Newspeak noose continues to tighten so as to control the information that WE THE PEOPLE receive (links below the fold):

Gaslighting America

Good analogy (hat tip to Razor Sharp Claws):


When will the majority of Americans realize that they have been scammed?

Perhaps when their wallets are empty — or nearly so.

The Power Of Cat Purrs (Video)

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

There is plenty of news to keep us ramped up much of the time.

We need a break, and cat purrs can reduce stress levels:

Nincompoopery Poll

(Nincompoopery — and worse — abounds! This edition of "Nincompoopery" offers five links, and readers have the option of taking a poll as to which story they find the most outrageous. Discussion available in the comments section)

Links to read:

ONE: [Los Angeles] Man, 79, Beaten After Accidentally Bumping Into Car In Grocery Store Parking Lot

TWO: Obama Admin Can’t Say Why It Took Two Years To Label Boko Haram a Terrorist Organization

THREE: U.S. businesses are being destroyed faster than they’re being created

FOUR: [At the same time stating that there is insufficient funding to serve taxpayers,] Obama’s IRS Spends Nearly $100 Million on Office Furniture

FIVE: Policing for Profit? Lawmakers, advocates raise alarm at growing gov’t power to seize property

Please cast your ballot in the poll, which closes on Tuesday:

surveys

[Nincompoopery will be on hiatus next Saturday in observance of Memorial Day weekend]

Thought For Today

One of the elephants in the room today is the definition of "the right thing to do."

Obama himself has stated on many occasions: "It's the right thing to do!"

Constitutionality and any resulting burden of debt (taxation) don't matter if something is "the right thing to do."

On May 13, 2014, Obama again stated, "It's the right thing to do" — this time regarding immigration policy. Never mind the following:

...[A]report on Monday [May 12, 2014] showed that the Obama administration in 2013 released tens of thousands of criminals awaiting possible deportation, including some accused of murder, sexual assault, arson and kidnapping. A total of 36,007 illegal immigrants who committed nearly 88,000 crimes combined were freed last year while being processed for deportation, according to the report from the Center of Immigration Studies.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency gathered the statistics in response to a congressional inquiry. Besides violent criminals, ICE released 16,000 illegal immigrants convicted of driving under the influence. The report also showed that ICE released nearly 2,700 illegal immigrants convicted of assault, 1,300 convicted for domestic violence, and nearly 1,300 convicted for battery....

Let's return now to the first link in this blog post. The title of the article is Obama: (Insert Issue Here) ‘It’s the Right Thing to Do’.

What is the definition of "the right thing to do"? What if that definition contradicts the parameters of the rule of civil law established by our Constitution or the rights guaranteed by our Constitution? This blog post mentions the Obama administration, but could just as easily refer to earlier administrations.

We often speak of the dangers of moral relativism.

Perhaps we should also be examining the inconsistencies and dangers of political relativism.

Yes —it is true!

by Sam Huntington

The lame-brains are at it again: CNN reports, “Devastating droughts in the Southwest, ruinous floods in New York City, killer wildfires in Colorado, intense heat waves in the Plains: these are some of the disasters that are being exacerbated by global warming, and problems will continue to worsen in the decades to come, according to a massive federal climate report released Tuesday at the White House.”

Indeed.  If this information comes to us from the White House or from any federal agency, it must be true.  You know: Benghazi was the result of a video, and if you like your doctor...

Except that once again, the White House is being dishonest.  Western wild fires are nothing new, evidenced by the Ortega Fire in 1888, the Santiago Canyon Fire in 1898, and the Big Blow up Fire in 1910.  The White House must have forgotten about the Great Heave Wave of 1936 (the hottest summer in the United States on record).  As for ruinous floods, we can start with the New Hampshire Flood of 1740 and work our way through several more devastating torrents, including the Great Pumpkin Flood of 1786, the Great Flood of 1844, Susquehanna River Flood of 1861, and the Johnstown Floods of 1884 and 1889. 

So maybe the sky isn’t really falling, after all —but if it does, I hope it falls on the White House and crushes Leon Podesta into minuscule cockroach pieces and crushes the brain-housing group of the first Kenyan-Indonesian president. 

Everything Is Racism!

What to say to this?


Please note that those interviewed are of voting age.

For the record, I find Mexican food así así.

The Spanish dish paella de marisco is another matter entirely!

Quotation Of The Day

Recently, Indigo Red made the following comment to the blog post Property Confiscation here at Always On Watch:

This is another example in which the Left has been allowed to redefine the terms. The BLM's charge to administer the land has morphed to ownership, though their original mandate has not changed. The BLM is only authorized to administer and manage the land on behalf of the people, the true and sole owners. The Constitution is quite clear on what land the Federal Government can actually and that is an area of land not exceed 10 square miles upon which the building to house the governmental functions are to be built. We call it Washington, D.C. The Federal Government is further authorized to acquire lands in the various states for the construction of military forts/bases for the period of time it deems the facilities necessary.

All the land we think belongs to the Federal Government, does not. Neither does it belong to the various States. It belongs wholly and solely to the American people and held in trust by the Federal Government for the benefit of the current generations and posterity.

How have WE THE PEOPLE allowed this to happen?

Why have WE THE PEOPLE allowed this to happen?

Additional reading: Policing for Profit? Lawmakers, advocates raise alarm at growing gov’t power to seize property.

Tales From The Classroom

("Tales from the Classroom" is a feature posted occasionally here at this blog.  All tales are true and present matters about which I have personal knowledge.  The following tale relates the story of a particularly poignant moment that occurred the Friday before Mother's Day in 1984 when I was teaching fourth grade.  Every year, as Mother's Day approaches, I remember that day in my classroom.   Note: If you must have politics, please scroll down to other posts)

I knew that K.L., a stunningly beautiful Filippina and a slightly-above-average student, had been adopted by her aunt and uncle shortly after both her parents died when she was about three years old.   Until that day in 1985, she had never spoken of her mom and dad.  "I don't remember them," she used to say.  Furthermore, she had bonded well with her extended family.

The official story about K.L.'s parents: they had died together in a car accident. Not so.

Nincompoopery Poll

(Nincompoopery — and worse — abounds! This edition of "Nincompoopery" offers five links, and readers have the option of taking a poll as to which story they find the most outrageous. Discussion available in the comments section)

Links to read:

ONE: [Portland, Oregon] Reservoir flushed [for the second time in less than three years] because of urinating teen

TWO: Fuels from corn waste not better than gas

THREE: Senator: Non-English Speakers Qualify for Disability Benefits More Quickly

FOUR: 14-Year-Old Girl [in the UK] Accused of Being Antisocial After Building Fort, Picnicking in the Woods

FIVE: DNC Uses Michelle Obama’s “Mother’s Day Card” As Fundraising Ploy

Please cast your ballot in the poll, which closes on Tuesday:

customer survey

The Erosion Of Our Rights

If you do nothing else today, watch the video below (hat tip to Mustang):

Government, of the people

Of course some consideration was given to the questions of power and propriety before this matter was acted upon. The whole of the laws, which were required to be faithfully executed, were being resisted and failing of execution in nearly one-third of the States.  Must they be allowed to finally fail of execution, even had it been perfectly clear that by the use of the means necessary to their execution some single law, made in such extreme tenderness of the citizen’s liberty that practically it relieves more of the guilty than of the innocent, should to a very limited extent be violated?  To state the question more directly, are all the laws but one to go unexecuted and the Government itself go to pieces lest that one be violated? 

—Abraham Lincoln, 4 July 1861

Zingers

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

"When Insults Had Class," shamelessly stolen from Woodsterman:

Just Shut Up

In essence, "Shut up!" is Nancy Pelosi's position regarding the recently-revealed Benghazi emails:

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said the emails were a distraction from real issues.

“Diversion, subterfuge, Benghazi, Benghazi, Benghazi,” Pelosi said, according to CBS News. “Why aren’t we talking about something else?”

At bit more from the first link in this blog post (CBS News):

Amazing Elephants!

(Two posts today because I couldn't resist posting the following video, which I just found on Facebook)

Check this out!

Musical Interlude For Spring

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Enjoy the music and the images (hat tip to Western Hero):


Here in Northern Virginia this year, spring is even sweeter because of late arrival.

[about Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons (1723)]

Nincompoopery Poll

(Nincompoopery — and worse — abounds! This edition of "Nincompoopery" offers five links, and readers have the option of taking a poll as to which story they find the most outrageous. Discussion available in the comments section)

Links to read:

ONE: ObamaCare makes it more difficult to buy insurance year-round

TWO: Saudi Arabia: Officials Sew the Mouth and Eye Shut of a Young Girl Who Professed ‘..Jesus as Her Saviour..’ [Warning: graphic photo]

THREE: At Dartmouth, The Word ‘Fiesta’ Is Racist And White People Can’t Use It

FOUR: Suspect In Violent Home Invasion Sues PD, Seeks $450K For Physical, Emotional Damages

FIVE: NSA Exploited Heartbleed Bug for Years, Exposing Consumers

Please cast your ballot in the poll, which closes on Tuesday:

polls

Thought For Today

As the weather warms up from the long hard winter bringing woe after woe to Northern Virginia, people are out and about: jogging, bicycling, sightseeing, etc.  By noon, outdoor temperatures have risen significantly, and when the sun beats down, those who are out and about naturally get thirsty.  They are clutching their water bottles as if they are talismans absolutely necessary for survival.  Some people seem incapable of walking a city block without toting that water bottle!

Heart-breaking Stories

There are a lot of heart-breaking stories in the world —this is one of them. Not long ago, US Border Patrol agents discovered 80 illegal immigrants living in a makeshift encampment near the South Texas city of McAllen. They were living in an undeveloped patch of scrub not far from an abandoned tennis club. They were living under lean-to shelters and canvas tents, camouflaged with mesquite branches and cacti. They were sleeping on pieces of cardboard. Food and water was scarce, and their crude latrines were unhealthfully close to their living positions.

The Bureau Of Land Management

Why those in the Northeast don't understand all the uproar about the BLM:

Federal ownership of land in Nevada:

Article HERE:

The BLM currently administers more federal lands than any other agency—247.9 million acres.

Property Confiscation (With Addendum)

Most readers of this blog have likely heard about the Cattle Battle at the Bundy Ranch. Technically, this confrontation did not involve eminent domain but rather the Bureau of Land Management and grazing rights on public lands.

Now something similar is afoot in Texas.  Before continuing to read this blog post, please go to THIS LINK to read the article and to watch the video about another possible impending land grab on the part of the Bureau Land Management.

Musical Interlude

(If you must have politics, please scroll down. Yesterday, I posted a Nincompoopery poll, which will close on Tuesday)

Friday morning, the tune below was blasting from our van's radio station to which Mr. AOW and listen when he's on his way to physical therapy.

Crank it up!


Question: In what ways is this tune NOT a break from politics?

Note: lyrics are below the fold:

Nincompoopery Poll

(Nincompoopery — and worse — abounds! This edition of "Nincompoopery" offers five links, and readers have the option of taking a poll as to which story they find the most outrageous. Discussion available in the comments section)

Links to read:

ONE: NBC News Scrubs Any Mention of “Islam” And “Muslim” From Story On Female Genital Mutilation

TWO: Teachers “White Privilege Conference” In Wisconsin: Whites Will Never Be Cured of Their Racism, Like Alcoholics

THREE: IRS awards bonuses to 1,100 [employees] who owe back taxes

FOUR: UN Says Vacuuming CO2 Out of Air May Be Only Way to Save Planet Earth

FIVE: Woman Wears Hijab to experience Discrimination but is Treated like Royalty; concludes people still Racist

Please cast your ballot in the poll, which closes on Tuesday:

survey service

Book Review: Room

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Emma Donoghue's 2010 novel Room was "inspired" by the Fritzl Case.  For good reason, Room received rave reviews and was named as one of the Top 10 books of 2010.

Yes, the novel tells the tale of a travesty, but Room should not be classified as a dark novel.  Rather, the primary theme is the resilience of the human spirit as told in the voice of the speaker: five-year-old Jack.

In addition to the rescue of Jack and his mother — a rescue in which Jack is the hero — the novel relates the subsequent well-meaning medical experts' interventions and the subsequent media feeding frenzy.  Totally plausible!

Ukraine: Grow up!

“Not being George W. Bush is not a foreign policy.” —Peggy Noonan

What most gratifies me about world news is that Americans are not our planet’s only morons. There are others, and while I won’t waste your time making the case for one group of imbeciles over another, I think it is fair to say that Ukrainians are striving to achieve the top five ranking, and were this not true, then why would they expect the United States to “save them” from the re-emerging Soviet machine? Are they daft? Is it a matter of watching one too many Eliot Ness re-runs on Channel One when they ought to have been watching ICTV News reflecting Obama’s withdrawal the United States from its former leadership position?

How ObamaCare Became Law

By exploiting the Constitutional process (hat tip to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS):

CLICK DIRECTLY ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT.

Where is America's outrage?

Tales From The Classroom

("Tales from the Classroom" is a feature posted occasionally here at this blog.  All tales are true and present matters about which I have personal knowledge.  The following tale relates the story of two messages that I received the week of April 13, 2014  — just in time for the resuming of classes today after our Easter break.  I say "just in time," because during Easter Break every year, I feel that I should have done more for my students.  Note: If you must have politics, please scroll down to other posts)

Via Facebook. I recently received affirmations from two former student of some fifteen years ago when I was teaching sixth grade at a small private school. Both of these students were challenges behaviorally, but I consistently held them accountable. They each lost many a recess for their constant talking in class.

They fought me all the way.

Back then.

But now?

Below the fold is the first message I received:

Fifty States?

The United States still consists of fifty states, but they no longer have fiscal independence (hat tip to Asylum Watch):

Percent of budget coming from the feds went from 37% in 2001 to 45% in 2012. Federal money per person went from $1,352 in 2001 to $2,603 in 2012.  The darker the color, the more federal monies the state receives.

For more details, please scrutinize this. The graphic is interactive; see the legend at the bottom of the graphic.

At Asylum Watch, Jim writes the following:

Our nation, as constitutionally formed, is The Republic of the United State of America. In theory, a republic is where the supreme power is vested in the citizens who elect people to represent them. Do you feel that we are living in a republic? Do our elected officials really represent their electorate? And, what about the words: United States? Are we, a constitutional union of states, where all power rest with the states except for the enumerated powers constitutionally assigned to the federal government? Our nation may have started out as The Republic of The United States of America but it has evolved into something quite different. Some of the changes came about through constitutional amendments and, thereby, the citizens of each state did have a voice in those changes. Most changes, in my opinion, have come about by either judicial fiat or by congress passing laws that no one asked for or by Executive Orders of a sitting president. The laws passed by congress have often created federal programs, which states must implement with partial or full funding from the federal government. When states accept those funds, the find they must comply with the strings, which are firmly attached. Those federal funds and the attached strings have given the federal government much power over the states that was never envisaged in our constitution.

[...]

...Louisiana receives 44% of their budget from Washington and New Mexico 37% and Idaho 35%....

The destruction of the principles of federalism!

Your comment on the above data?

My Redeemer Lives!

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.
(Job 19:25-26)
From Handel's oratorio Messiah (1741):


Information about the performance in the above video:

The Royal Choral Society has performed Handel's Messiah on Good Friday at the Royal Albert Hall every year since 1878. The RCS filmed their performance on 6 April 2012 by kind permission of the Royal Albert Hall and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Good Friday

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

From Act III of Richard Wagner's opera Parsifal (1882), music and images to encourage meditation and reflection on this Good Friday, when all the world is renewed, and on Holy Saturday:


Scripture and another music video below the fold.

More Islamic Fascism

by Sam Huntington

Brandeis University recently redefined the notion of integrity and withdrew their conferral of an honorary degree on behalf of Ayaan Hirsi Ali.  Ms. Ali is an outspoken critic of Islam and so has incurred the wrath of Islamacists, who have engaged in a remarkable campaign to silence her.  I should add, a successful campaign.

Brandeis University president Frederick Lawrence issued a statement after withdrawing their honors, saying, “She’s a compelling public figure and advocate for women’s rights, and we respect and appreciate her work to protect and defend the rights of women and girls throughout the world.  That said, we cannot overlook certain of her past statements that are inconsistent with Brandeis University’s core values.”

Recommended Reading

See the letter Scholars working on the Middle East…have denounced well-founded scholarship as ‘Islamophobia’ by Jeffrey Herf (Ph.D from Brandeis, 1981), Professor, Department of History, University of Maryland College Park. Excerpt below the fold:

Tax Freedom Day 2014

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

[link with more information]
Tax Freedom Day 2014 for the state where you live may differ from the national average. What is your state's Tax Freedom Day 2014?

Fundamentalist Islam Rising

Hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance (Click directly on the image to enlarge it):

"It's the will of Allah!" cry the ummah.

Recommended Reading

See the essay What Drives Success? by Amy Chua and Jeb Rubenfeld. Excerpt below the fold:

Crows: As Smart As A Seven-Year-Old

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Remember Aesop's fable "The Crow and the Pitcher"?

It turns out the some crows can indeed solve certain puzzles involving principles of physics.

From the Washington Post:

Nincompoopery — And Worse

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

The Two Soviet Propaganda Posters Hanging In The White House Press Secretary's Home

'Heartbleed' Computer Bug Threat Spreads To Firewalls And Beyond

Brandeis University cancels honorary degree for Ayaan Hirsi Ali [additional information: Ayaan Hirsi Ali's statement about the cancellation, published in Time Magazine]

CDC: 200,000 Girls at Risk of FGM in US

Ohio Islamic Group Erects “Jesus Is Muslim” And “Mohammed Is In The Bible” Billboards

Easter Break!

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

After a grueling winter, both academically and meteorlogically, I am sooooo ready for this break, which lasts from today through April 21.

My students feel the same way as I, I'm sure.

The Long Arm Of The Federal Government

There is something very creepy about this.

Whatever happened to the filing of and IRS's acceptance of the estate return — and the 10 year limit on liabilities such as those explained in the article?  Read an excerpt from the article below the fold.

1000 Years in Five Minutes

As a footnote, I want to say that the “bad old days” are still with us. We refer to the Cold War as a thing of the past, but it is still with us today. Conflicting ideologies continue to exist between east and west, we remain conflicted about what constitutes national interest, and we continue to suffer the plague of government incompetence. Our failure to learn any lessons from history is that we end up electing fools to high office, and they in turn somehow manage to murder our children. While this is going on, we the people look on and smile.

Hypocrisy On Display

At the March 2014 National Young Feminist Leadership Conference, those claiming to be tolerant and inclusive bully female conservative reporter:

If Satan ever laughs, it must be at hypocrites; they are the greatest dupes he has; they serve him better than any others, and receive no wages. — Charles Caleb Colton (1780–1832)

Cicero (?) Was Right

Nabbed from the sidebar of Diary of a Right Wing Pussycat (Kid's site):

The Cicero entry at Wikipedia

Cicero was exiled for opposing Julius Caesar's tyranny.

Authentic money quotes HERE. Worth considering.

Note (addendum): A commenter has rightly pointed out that there is no evidence that Cicero actually said or penned the words in the above graphic. See comments section of this blog post.

Curing Income Inequality

Consider the following excerpt from Were your parents rich? Maybe you should pay more in taxes, published in the Washington Post on March 28, 2014, and written by Yo Jeremijenko-Conley, a freshman at Stuyvesant High School in New York City, and Dalton Conley, a professor at New York University:

Sunday Break From Politics

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Remember the Winnie-the-Pooh stories by A.A. Milne?  The first volume of those delightful stories was published in 1926.

From this recent article in the Daily Mail comes this 100-year-old photo of the bear cub Winnipeg, the real Winnie-the-Pooh:

Nincompoopery — And Worse

(Weekend roundup post.   For the definition of nincompoop, see THIS in the Urban Dictionary. Commenters are encouraged to post links that tell of more nincompoopery)

Links to read (more possibly added as the weekend progresses):

Dearborn: Muslim parents angry over Easter egg hunt school flyer

'Honor Diaries' screening shut down by CAIR

Local couple upset after receiving pre-marked voter registration card from Covered California [the state's ObamaCare web site]

HHS Started Obamacare Applications for Americans Without Their Knowledge or Permission

Always The Last Place!

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Was I ever in a state of agitation this morning! For at least thirty minutes, I was in an absolute frenzy.

I couldn't find the vouchers needed to pay the April 2014 federal estimated tax payment! I knew that our accountant had provided the papers, but they were nowhere to be found.

Learning the hard way ...

by Sam Huntington

I’m actually not much of a conspiracy theorist, but I have to admit that I do enjoy a good mystery. For example, I enjoy the puzzle surrounding the disappearance of a Boeing 777 aircraft. I mean, come on ... this 70-ton aircraft was there, and then suddenly no one had a clue about its location.  As I said, puzzling —but from a multidimensional standpoint. Not only is this airliner missing, but we also have college-educated journalists proposing, among other things, that possibility that extraterrestrials may have snatched it out of the air, or that the aircraft flew into a black hole. Admittedly, both ideas would be excellent grist for the History Channel.

I feel sorry for the people trapped on this aircraft. I feel sorry for the pain and suffering of their relatives. But maybe there is a lesson here, or at least an alarm bell for the tens of thousands of sheep inured to doing whatever the airlines tell them. Perhaps it is time that the people who pay to ride in these Goliath airbuses begin participating in their own safety. For example, what is the name of our pilot today? What? Zaharie Ahmad Shah? And his co-pilot is Fariq Abdul Hamid? Oh ... okay. Well, uh ... who do you have scheduled for tomorrow’s flight?

BREAKING: Active Shooter(s) On Fort Hood Army Base

Right now, at the time of the publication of this blog post, Fort Hood is on lockdown with shelter-in-place instructions.  At least one is dead, and there are multiple injuries.

Thought For Today

As I have mentioned at various locations in the blogosphere, my mother-in-law is in the final stage of Alzheimer's Disease. She is a pitiful creature, and all who love her are more than ready for the Lord to call her home.

Before she was diagnosed as having Alzheimer's, she was very difficult.  The word difficult doesn't begin to convey her personality.

Jihad Alert!

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

The following is not an April Fool's Day prank:

FBI, military hunt ex-Army recruit suspected of plotting 'Ft. Hood-inspired jihad'

More information below the fold:

April Fool!

Actually happened (hat tip to Weasel Zippers):


A bit of reading below the fold: