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Friday, April 26, 2013

It's An Orwellian World

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

We read on April 24, 2013, that lawmakers and their aides (both Democrats and Republicans) are quietly seeking exemption from ObamaCare:
Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said.

The talks...involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers...

[...]

Several proposals have been submitted to the Office of Personnel Management, which will administer the benefits. One proposal exempts lawmakers and aides; the other exempts aides alone....
Two classes in AmeriKa: the political class, regardless of political-party affiliation, and the rest (peons).

(hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance for the link in this post)

Recommended Reading

See Why the Boston Bombers Did It (Hint: It's In the Koran) by Stogie of Saberpoint.

Also see Islamic Terrorism Isn’t Going Away, Mr. President at Capitol Commentary.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

More Obama Idiocy

Wahhabism is an ultra-conservative branch of Sunni Islam. It is a movement among the most orthodox believers, an inspiration to return to the earliest fundamental beliefs. There is a relationship between Wahhabism and Sufism, by which I mean to suggest ultra-conservatism.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

The Iconic Image For the Jihad Attacks On The Boston Marathon



I wasn't going to post the above image here at Always On Watch and, indeed, have waited nearly ten days to do so.  Ever since the jihad attacks on the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013, however, I have been unable to push aside thoughts about those maimed.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

A Note for Ducky's Mommy

By Sam Huntington

In comments the other day, you graced us with your presence long enough to criticize all the ad hominem attacks against your darling little omelet. While I do admit that there are some of us who have nothing but contempt for Ducky, which he has earned over many years, it is not simply a matter of differing politics.

I did some looking into our archives and found the following contributions, little duck droppings left for us by your darling little piker back in 2005. Now of course, these remarks were directed against individuals he has never met and only knows from the expression of their opinions. It is only a sampling.  He has also assaulted high school students who occasionally post their essays at this blog as part of their assignments. As you read your little darling's tripe, you may note that if anyone dares to express an opinion different from his own, Ducky becomes openly hostile and frequently profane.  We have often thought that there is something quite odd about the dippy little duckling.  You know, mental issues. I only mention this on the off chance that you may want to take him to a family physician or perhaps your own psychiatrist. It would be the responsible thing for a mommy to do.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Still Suffering! (And Open Thread)

As I mentioned last week, I'm having a terrible time with seasonal allergies.  I'm better thanks to Bob's recommendation to use NeilMed Sinus Rinse, but I'm still not up to my usual blogging routine.

Meanwhile, commenters may treat this post as an open thread.

Note: Sam has at least one post queued up for this week.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Musical Interlude: Rodeo Suite

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

Composed in 1942 by Aaron Copland; performed by Antal Dorati and the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra; recorded by Mercury in 1957.

The four dance episodes of Rodeo Suite: 00:00 - Buckaroo Holiday, 08:02 - Corral Nocturne, 11:27 - Saturday Night Waltz, 15:33 - Hoe-Down:



The story:

Friday, April 19, 2013

Boston Marathon Bombings Suspects Named?

I don't know how reliable THIS is (from Twitchy): Suspects identified on police scanner as Mike Mulugeta, Sunil Tripathi; one ‘suspect is running’

Can anyone verify?

UPDATE 1: The Associated Press is now reporting that the two suspects are from a Russian region near Chechnya. The man on the run has been named as Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev, age 19.

UPDATE 2 from Atlas Shrugs:
Spencer says: "Chechnya is the Muslim area of the Caucasus that has been waging jihad against the Russians since the 19th century."

[...]

AP sources identify the surviving Boston bomber as Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19. The man is said to be from Russia’s south, not far from the Chechen Republic.

The man reportedly lived in Turkey before arriving legally in the US about a year ago.

The name is listed among the recipients of Cambridge scholarships in 2011.

The second suspect is said to be his brother.

An NBC report claims the two immigrated at least two years ago. One of the brothers is said to have a Massachusetts drivers’ license.

There is a page at the Russian social network VKontakte (In Contact) with the name Dzhokhar Tsarnaev living in Boston and studying at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School.
UPDATE 3 from Infidel Bloggers Alliance: COMPREHENSIVE INFORMATION.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Dire Consequences

by Sam Huntington

What I find amazing, in spite of all the complaining “we the people” do about the state of our nation, of our politics, is that no one other than ourselves created our present-day problems. For people that regard themselves well educated or reasonably well informed, we have certainly made a mess of a once great country. It is a trend that has gotten worse over the past 100 years.

Have we always been politically naïve? Yes — and increases in population compounds this problem. In the year of my birth, the US population was 130 million; less than a quarter of those were squawking for entitlements. Now our population is approaching three times that number, with two-thirds of the people demanding their fair share of other people’s money.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Major Allergy Attack! (And Open Thread)

I haven't had such a terrible allergy attack for decades!  Even Claritin provides little relief.

I've been suffering for over a week.

When I feel better, I will return to my usual blogging schedule.

Meanwhile, commenters may treat this post as an open thread.

Note: Sam has a post queued up for Thursday, April 18.

Monday, April 15, 2013

Tax Breaks For Illegal Immigrants

As you file your 2012 tax return, remember the mind-boggling information below (hat tip to Asylum Watch, citing this source):


As Asylum Watch points out:
US tax laws allow illegal immigrants to claim tax credits for children who DO NOT LIVE in America.
To the tune of $4.2 billion a year.

Meanwhile, Tax Freedom Day 2013 is April 18, five days later than Tax Freedom Day 2012. Furthermore:
Americans will spend more on taxes than they will on food, housing, and clothing combined in 2013.
More information HERE.

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Musical Interlude

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

With thanks to FreeThinke, who, in a comments thread some time back, left the link to the Judy Garland video below:


Back then, pop music was actually music and elegance was still in style!

Fred Astaire praised Judy Garland as "the greatest entertainer who ever lived." More about Judy Garland HERE.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Licensed to Kill

by Sam Huntington

It has been said that nothing is more lethal to a Moslem than another Moslem—particularly one who is unable to maintain control over his emotions. But then, we suppose that given the lethal incompetence of Barack Obama and his state department, James Bond isn’t the only agent of government who is licensed to kill.

[Que up Monty Norman's James Bond Theme]

We do recognize, however, that the rape of the Middle East has been a free-for-all event since World War I, when Enver Bey made a poor choice in his political alliances. If there have been improvements in the Middle Eastern standard of living, they have been marginal. This may be an intentional strategy among Moslem power brokers, and when added to our own political incompetence, it is no small wonder the innocents are so easily persuaded that we’re the problem. In many ways, we truly are.

Monday, April 8, 2013

Prophet Ray Bradbury

These final weeks of the 2012-2013 school term, my high school literature class is reading Fahrenheit 451, written by Ray Bradbury in 1953.

A few prophetic excerpts from the novel:
“We must all be alike. Not everyone born free and equal, as the Constitution says, but everyone made equal. Each man the image of the other; then all are happy, for there are not mountains to make them cower, to judge themselves against.

[…]

“You must understand that our civilization is so vast that we can’t have our minorities upset and stirred. Ask yourself, What do we want in this country above all? People want to be happy....

[…]

“Colored people don’t like Little Black Sambo. Burn it. White people don’t feel good about Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Burn it. Someone’s written a book on tobacco and cancer of the lungs? The cigarette people are weeping? Burn the book.  Serenity...Peace...
(58-60).
The novel also contains this passage:

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Thursday, April 4, 2013

An observation

by Sam Huntington

While the communist left seeks to curtail America's Second Amendment rights, owing to the unseemly behavior of a few nut-jobs (who are mostly themselves leftists), they defend against any criticism of Islam by pointing out that terrorists are only a small percentage of the Moslem population.

From this, we should conclude that progressivism is a mental illness.

By the way, how free are you in your own home state? Check it out.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Is Allah Satan?

Watch this short video only 3.5 minutes long, and decide for yourself (hat tip to Pastorius of Infidel Bloggers Alliance):


Link to Sahih Bukari

Pastorius commented as follows:

Monday, April 1, 2013

Guessing Game

When was the poem below written?

Life today is hectic.
Our world is running away.
Only the wise can recognize
The process of decay.
All our dialectic
Is quite unable to say
Whether we’re on the beam or not,
Whether we’ll rise supreme or not,
Whether this new regime or not
Is leading us astray.

We all have Frigidaires, radios,
Television and movie shows
To shield us from the ultimate abyss.
We have our daily bread neatly cut,
Every modern convenience but
The question that confronts us all is this:

What’s going to happen to the children
When there aren’t any more grown-ups?
Having been injected with some rather peculiar glands
Darling Mum’s gone platinum
And dances to all the rumba bands.
The songs that she sings at twilight
Would certainly be the highlight
For some of those claques that Elsa Maxwell
Takes around in yachts.
Rockabye, rockabye, rockabye my darlings,
Mother requires a few more shots.
Does it amuse the tiny mites
To see their parents high as kites?
What’s, what’s, what’s going to happen to the tots?

Life today’s neurotic, a ceaseless battle we wage;
Millions are spent to circumvent
The march of middle age.
The fact that we grab each new narcotic
Can only prove in the end

Whether our hormones gel or not
Whether our cells rebel or not,
Whether we’re blown to hell or not,
We’ll all be round the bend
From taking Benzedrine, Dexamyl,
Every possible sleeping pill
To knock us out or knock us into shape.
We all have shots for this, shots for that,
Shots for making us thin or fat,
But there’s one problem that we can’t escape.

What’s going to happen to the children
When there aren’t any more grown-ups?
Thanks to plastic surgery and uncle’s abrupt demise,
Dear Aunt Rose has changed her nose
But doesn’t appear to realize
The pleasures that once were heaven
Look silly at sixty-seven,
And youthful allure you can’t procure
In terms of perms and pots.
So lullaby, lullaby, lullaby my darlings,
Try not to scratch those large red spots,
Think of the shock when mummie’s face
Is lifted from its proper place,
What’s, what’s, what’s going to happen to the tots?

What’s going to happen to the children
When there aren’t any more grown-ups?
It’s bizarre when grandmamma, without getting out of breath
Starts to jive at eighty-five and frightens the little ones to death.
The police had to send a squad car
When daddy got fried on vodka
And tied a tweed coat round mummie’s throat
In several sailor’s knots.
Hushabye, hushabye, hushabye my darlings,
Try not to fret and wet your cots.
One day you’ll clench your tiny fists
And murder your psychiatrists.
What’s, what’s, what’s going to happen to the tots?

Answer below the fold. But make your guess(es) first!

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Music For Resurrection Day

(Hat tip to Mark Alexander of A New Dark Age Is Dawning)

"Wele'n Sefyll Rhwng y Mwrtwydd" ("Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah"):


Lyrics in Welsh:
Wele'n sefyll rhwng y myrtwydd
Wrthrych teilwng o fy mryd;
Er mai o ran, yr wy'n adnabod
Ei_fod uwchlaw gwrthrychau'r byd:
Henffych fore, henffych fore,
Y caf ei weled fel y mae.

Rhosyn Saron yw ei enw,
Gwyn a gwridog, teg o bryd;
Ar ddeng mil y mae'n rhagori
O wrthrychau penna'r byd:
Ffrind pechadur, ffrind pechadur,
Dyma_ei beilat ar y môr.

Beth sy imi mwy a wnelwyf
Ag eilunod gwael y llawr?
Tystio'r wyf nad yw eu cwmni
I'w cystadlu â Iesu mawr:
O! am aros, o am aros
Yn ei gariad ddyddiau f'oes.
Parsing and translation of the Welsh words:

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Music For Holy Saturday

Based on the Lamentations of Jeremiah and composed by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (3 February 1525 or 2 February 1526 – 2 February 1594):

Friday, March 29, 2013

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Let's Stop the Bleeding

by Sam Huntington

According to an article in the Daily Caller the other day, the Internal Revenue Service once again demonstrated its arrogance  when it decided to spend $60,000 on the production of two parody videos, one of which was a Star Trek imitation. Jim Treacher wrote, “Thanks to the sequester that Obama has been fighting even though it was his idea, we might not get a sequel to the following masterpiece. …It’s got the same production values and acting talent as a porn movie, except the only one getting screwed is you.”

Subsequently, a good friend asked, “Why do we need the IRS again?” I could not answer.

FEATURED QUESTION: Blogging

(This post stuck here for a few days. Please scroll down for other material)


I've been blogging for nearly eight years.

I'm curious about a few matters related to blogging.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Recommended Reading

Recently, my high school American Literature class read F. Scott Fizgerald's short story "The Baby Party." Published in 1925, the story presents themes that apply to our society today.

Short story below the fold.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Agenda 21 — At The Local Level

(With a hat tip to Political Tea Leaves)

Please make time to watch the video below. Then, investigate what is happening at your local level.


Now, read Obama's Plans for the Suburbs.

New world order! And at the local level, where it will have a direct effect on YOU!

Don't be an ostrich:


More information at Political Tea Leaves.

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Spring!

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)


Robins everywhere!

They've been around for a few weeks. But now that today is Palm Sunday, which typically marks the end of weather here Northern Virginia, I'm seeing even more of these beautiful birds, the harbingers of spring.

The song of the robin:

Friday, March 22, 2013

Brutal Honesty

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

From the author of We Need to Talk About Kevin (2003) comes So Much for That, a 2010 novel about the effects of devastating illnesses upon two middle-class families: the Knackers and the Burdinas.  Both families, the married couples longtime best friends, are struggling with the emotional and financial burdens of combating life-and-death illnesses.

Shep Knacker, entrepreneur of Knack of All Trades, has worked for decades with a particular goal in mind — a goal that he calls "The Afterlife":

Thursday, March 21, 2013

What is a racist?

by Sam Huntington

One definition reads, “Racialism is normally defined as any view, practice, or action that reflects a belief that one race of human beings is superior to others, or that any racial group is inferior to others."

There is some context, however. On the question of whether or not he was a racist, Enoch Powell answered, "If by racialist one suggests a conscious difference among men and nations of various backgrounds, then in that context everyone is a racist. On the other hand, if by racialist one means a man who despises a human being because of his race, or a man who believes that one race is superior to another, then no, I am not a racist."

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

The Lorax? Really?

Last week, I conversed with a parent concerned about the education that her seventh-grade daughter is receiving in one of the "finest" public schools in one of the "finest" school districts in the United States.

The account I received was beyond disconcerting.

It was dismaying!

Monday, March 18, 2013

Kerry's America

By Sam Huntington
“In America, you have a right to be stupid … if you want to be. And we tolerate it. We somehow make it through that. Now, I think that’s a virtue. I think that’s something worth fighting for.” —John Fauxbrain Kerry, American Secretary of State

Sunday, March 17, 2013

The Panel Of "The Uninvited"

At CPAC 2013 on March 16, 2013

Videos below the fold.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Forget the controversy related to the Molly Maguires. Instead, enjoy the music below — music with an Irish flavor:


The genius of Mancini, who grew up in the steel town of West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Our Fatal Folly

By Sam Huntington

In spite of infrequent episodes of discrimination toward Catholics and Jews, at various times and places —we do not live in a perfect world— there has never been an official requirement that anyone recant their religious beliefs as a condition of serving the American people.

However, there has been an underlying expectation that individuals appointed to positions of public trust freely and honestly give their oath of allegiance to the Constitution; there was an expectation that servants of the people would be culturally American.

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Ponder This


The words of Ammianus Marcellinus (325/330–after 391):
In consequence of this state of things, the few houses that were formerly famed for devotion to serious pursuits now teem with the sports of sluggish indolence, re-echoing to the sound of singing and the tinkling of flutes and lyres. In short, in place of the philosopher the singer is called in, and in place of the orator the teacher of stagecraft, and while the libraries are shut up forever like tombs, water-organs are manufactured and lyres as large as carriages, and flutes and instruments heavy for gesticulating actors.

At last we have reached such a state of baseness...
Read more HERE.

I recently encountered the words of Ammianus Marcellinus in the following context — in a letter to the editor of the Washington Post:

Monday, March 11, 2013

Here's The Job That I Want!

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)

The President's chief of staff to the dog gets an annual salary of $102,000!

From this source:

Star Trek Prophecy?

Forget the pacifistic message. Instead, apply the following to the blogosphere, where rancor rules:

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Musical Interlude: J.S. Bach

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

California Guitar Trio's rendition of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor:




The traditional version (pipe organ):




The genius of Bach!

Friday, March 8, 2013

Thursday, March 7, 2013

The Third Shoe

by MacKubin Thomas Owens

The Department of Defense faces some stark choices in the future due to the threat of sequestration. But the continual sounds of shoes dropping at the Pentagon suggest that the sequester may be the least of its problems.

Monday, March 4, 2013

"This Woman Is My Mother"

If you must have politics, please scroll down)

The words in the title of this post appear with frequency in Mira Bartók's memoir The Memory Palace, a first-person narrative about growing up with a schizophrenic mother.

Occasionally, the author varies the sentence by writing "This creature is my mother."

A sad book?

Not really — even though the author's mother, formerly a piano prodigy, deteriorates mentally over the years until she lives the last seventeen years of her life as a homeless person.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Musical Interlude

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

I miss Henry Mancini (1924-1994), whom Mr. AOW and I saw live twice when he conducted the National Symphony Orchestra — and his jazz combo too, of course.

"The Pink Panther," "Baby Elephant Walk," and "Peter Gunn" (apologies for the abrupt ending of the version below):



The theme from The Thornbirds:

Friday, March 1, 2013

Recommended Reading

(Two posts today.  Please scroll down)

See Smoke coming out of the keyhole by Tammy Swofford in the Daily Times Pakistan.  Denial is temporary, reality is inevitable.

Did The White House Threaten Bob Woodward?

Recently, journalist Bob Woodward, sometimes credited with bringing down the Nixon Presidency, wrote an article about Obama and sequestration.

Now comes this (with a hat tip to Will of MFS - The Other News):

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Obama and the Arab Winter

by Sam Huntington

The very last thing we need at this stage is a president who demonstrates an astonishing lack of understanding about terrorism and the so-called “Arab Spring.” Very close to the last thing is a CIA Director who is an admitted convert to Islam, which was part of a campaign by foreign agents to infiltrate the U. S. government.

But, that’s where we are … thanks to a grossly uninformed voting public.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Consider This

With a hat tip to Leticia of My Daily Trek:


What makes people act in such a cruel manner?

Does such cruel treatment of others make a statement about our society?

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Another Cartoonifada?

(information about a previous cartoonifada HERE)

Hat tip to Weasel Zippers, citing this source:
...The preacher at the centre of the controversy, Kamil Al Awhadi, said he did not come to Tunisia to change its society or impose religious choices.

Al Awadhi is known across the Middle East and North Africa thanks to his ability to use television to broadcast his ideas.

He is also well known for issuing a fatwa against cartoon character Sponge Bob accused of 'homosexuality' and of 'inducing children to pervert behaviour'....
Islam is often proclaimed as "one of the world's greatest religions." Hmmmm....

Additional reading: Egypt: Court upholds death sentences for seven Christians involved in Muhammad video

Monday, February 25, 2013

Quotation Of The Day

Actually a series of quotations (hat tip to Mike's America):

“Obama’s been virtually absent from the legislative process” of replacing his sequester, reports Politico. After getting the $600 billion in tax hikes he wanted last month (with no spending cuts), “there has been no discernible effort by the White House to work on a bill that might pass.”

“The Obama administration seems to be spending far more time warning of the consequences of the sequester — and blaming Republicans for it — than engaging in actual negotiations that would prevent it,” says ABC News.

“The president hasn’t actually come up with a proposal to avert sequestration,” says David Brooks in the New York Times, “let alone one that is politically plausible.”

“Tuesday's event had the feeling of a campaign commercial that went too far to be believed,” says the Los Angeles Times.

Politico says calls to GOP leaders were “perfunctory,” meant to “inoculate” the president from criticism that he’s campaigning instead of urging Senate Democrats to follow the House and pass legislation replacing his sequester. Their headline asks, “Is President Obama overplaying sequester hand?


Meanwhile, this morning the mainstream media are so thrilled that Michelle Obama appeared at yesterday's Oscar Awards and, a day or so earlier, danced with Jimmy Fallon.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Friday, February 22, 2013

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Racist Democrats

Here’s what happens when you disarm the American people. Chicago, Illinois has one of the toughest gun control laws of any American city. In spite of this, 446 children were murdered in Chicago in 2012. Ninety-eight percent of them were black.

Let’s review: Since the 1930s, Democrats have enslaved blacks to government benefits, promising them a utopian life style at someone else's expense. "Trust us," proclaims the government, "we’ll take care of everything. We'll take away guns and you'll be safe."  Progressives prefer that we ignore the fact that while black males comprise only 3% of New York City's population, 33% of male murder victims are black or that 36% of black unwed fathers have a prison record.  Of course, the communists do appreciate the black vote.

Let us speak plainly: taking guns away from law abiding citizens increases murder statistics.  If anyone is to blame for the wanton murder of 446 Chicago children, it is the un-American, unconstitutional behavior among the neo-communists.  The fact that the liberal media ignores the massacre of 446 black children in Chicago while giving extensive coverage to the loss of twenty mostly white children at Sandy Hook demonstrates that Democrats and their media enablers are pure racist.

Our children are a precious resource, no matter what the color of their skin.  So why is there no outrage in Chicago?

As one final note, recall that Mr. Otis McDonald, a black American, wanted to keep a gun in his Chicago for protection; Chicago's law banning McDonald's right to keep and bear arms led to the Supreme Court decision which upheld incorporation of the Second Amendment.  

There is but one adequate description for the American Communist (Democratic) Party: despicable.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

The End Of Dreams

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

From the 2012 novel The Good Father by Noah Hawley:
I had always wanted to learn to surf. I had nurtured a fantasy of a middle-alged surf adventure, an escape to Mexico, a diet of fish tacos, sleeping on the beach. Now I knew it would never happen. None of these shallow balloons of idle daydreaming would ever come true. The world was a desert now, a wasteland to be survived, not enjoyed. In less that twenty-foud hours all my fantasies had been destroyed. (page 66)
See THIS INFORMATION, including reviews of the book, at Amazon.

I highly recommend this book!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Jargon

Terms to know in education today: self-regulation, play-based learning, scaffolding, authentic assessment, DIBELS, positive behavioral interventions and supports, inclusion, Kagan structures, and differentiated instruction.

Definitions below the fold.

Monday, February 18, 2013

Obamacare Fail

(Two posts today. Please scroll down)


Forget the hope of those high-risk pools for health insurance:

Cutural Sensitivity Training At The USDA

On our tax dime, of course.

According to Judicial Watch, dated February 14, 2013:
Videos Reveal Indoctrination Program Requiring USDA Staffers to Bang on Tables, Chant, “The pilgrims were illegal aliens”

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today released previously unseen USDA videos revealing a compulsory “Cultural Sensitivity Training” program requiring USDA employees to bang on tables, chanting in unison “The pilgrims were illegal aliens” while being instructed to no longer use the word “minorities,” but to replace it with “emerging majorities.”...

The sensitivity training sessions, described as “a huge expense” by diversity awareness trainer and self-described “citizen of the world” Samuel Betances, were held on USDA premises. The diversity event is apparently part of what USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack described in a memo sent to all agency employees as a “new era of Civil Rights” and “a broader effort towards cultural transformation at USDA.” In 2011 and 2012, the USDA paid Betances and his firm nearly $200,000 for their part in the “cultural transformation” program.
Video clip below the fold.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Musical Interlude

(If you must have politics, please scroll down)

The tone poem "The Lark Ascending" by Ralph Vaughn Williams — music to soothe the soul in these contentious days of the second decade of the Twenty-first Century:


The above piece, which has an interesting history, is based on these lines from the "The Lark Ascending" by George Meredith:

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Does Your Dwelling Comply? (With Addendum)

(With a hat tip to Finntann of Western Hero for the article linked below)

Obama Administration Says All Americans Must Have 'Healthy Housing':
(CNSNews.com) - Under the broad banner of "health," the federal government not only is telling Americans what to eat, it's also telling us to make our homes safer.

This week, the Obama administration released a "bold new vision for addressing the nation's health and economic burdens caused by preventable hazards associated with the home."

The project has a name: "Advancing Healthy Housing: A Strategy for Action."

"People in the United States spend about 70% of their time in a home," the announcement said.

"Currently, millions of U.S. homes have moderate to severe physical housing problems, including dilapidated structure; roofing problems; heating, plumbing, and electrical deficiencies; water leaks and intrusion; pests; damaged paint; and high radon gas levels. These conditions are associated with a wide range of health issues, including unintentional injuries, respiratory illnesses like asthma and radon-induced lung cancer, lead poisoning, result in lost school days for children, as well as lost productivity in the labor force."...
Read the rest HERE.

About so-called electrical deficiencies....

Sunday Break From Politics

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

Ferocious!



Less ferocious:


(hat tip to Amusing Bunni for the above videos)

Thursday, February 7, 2013

The Inept State Department

by Sam Huntington

By reelecting Barack Obama to a second term, the American people have set into motion more foreign policy disaster. Mr. Obama has decided to replace the incompetent Hillary Clinton with the inept John Kerry. Nowhere was this ineptness more evident than during Kerry’s confirmation hearings, but I suppose to be fair … John Kerry is what we’ve come to expect from Massachusetts politicians. Here’s an example:

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Retro Break From Politics

(If you must have politics, please keep scrolling)

Mary Tyler Moore at the May 2012 SAG awards:


My personal favorite from The Mary Tyler Moore Show:
!--BLOCKING--