A subtle way to support the unions

My local library, Upper Arlington Public Library, does have a number of copies of the movie/video "Waiting for Superman," however, there are 63 on the waiting list for the DVD and 21 for the Blue Ray.

Waiting for ‘Superman’, director Davis Guggenheim’s blockbuster 2010 documentary film about American schooling, concludes in dramatic fashion with the camera panning the anxious faces of students and their parents. The families, wrought with emotion, are awaiting the results of a lottery that will decide whether they receive a coveted place at a public charter school. When the results are announced the lottery winners—charter schools have more applicants than places available—are overjoyed. Those who lose are devastated." Charter Schools and Government Pensions

Money matters in foreplay

"John J. Sweeney, longtime labor leader and president emeritus of the AFL-CIO, on February 15 became a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom alongside such luminaries as poet Maya Angelou and former president George H.W. Bush. That Sweeney would receive any medal with the word “freedom” in the title, let alone the nation’s highest civilian honor, is laughable, considering that he is a leader of a labor movement that has championed legislation restricting freedoms, like Obamacare and card check. But then, back in the 2008 presidential campaign the AFL-CIO endorsed Obama and pledged to deploy $53.4 million to secure his election. That’ll buy you a “Medal of Freedom.” " Capital Research Center, Labor Notes, March 2011

The Katzenjammer Kids go to War

Obama's globalist ideas clash strongly with our Constitutional requirements that he needs to check with Congress first. He hooked up with the UN, but not the Congress of the United States.

"Even as the coalition advances in imposing the no-fly zone over the country, coalition members and their allies remain divided over who would take command of the cooperation.

The previous NATO secretary-general Tuesday said that the structure of an allied-led no fly zone over Libya was still unclear, and he expected Turkey would object to NATO's involvement in military operations in Libya."

U.S. Jet Crashes in Libya, Pace of Strikes to Slow - WSJ.com

As Senator Barack Obama said in December, 2007,

"The President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation. As Commander-in-Chief, the President does have a duty to protect and defend the United States. In instances of self-defense, the President would be within his constitutional authority to act before advising Congress or seeking its consent. History has shown us time and again, however, that military action is most successful when it is authorized and supported by the Legislative branch. It is always preferable to have the informed consent of Congress prior to any military action."

According the to news, Libyans were waiting in line for gasoline and were shopping, but Obama thinks there is a "humanitarian" crisis. The only crisis I can see is that he promised more than he could deliver lauding those rioting in Middle East countries and is bombing to save face when it turned ugly.

"The core principle that has to be upheld here is that when the entire international community, almost unanimously, says there's a potential humanitarian crisis about to take place … that we can't simply stand by with empty words, that we have to take some sort of action," Mr. Obama said at a joint news conference in Santiago with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera."

Obama justifies decision to attack - Washington Times

New shoes--Walk n Tone

They feel and look like they have little golf balls on the soles. Can't find the ones I liked so much and have used the past 2 years, so I had to try something different. These are only for WALKING--an entire pamphlet was in the box explaing why I must not run or twist in these shoes. L.A. Gear Walk n Tone. On sale at Meijer's

MedCity--Get an entertainment rundown of medical culture

If these guys can make it in the media with such a narrow focus, then NPR and PBS should be able to find investors and listeners to cough up enough to put their stuff out there.

"MedCity Life is a city guide for the healthcare industry, providing insights into the social side of the country's most important medical cities. It's a directory of where the people in healthcare are seen and the history of the life sciences was written. MedCity Life also fits the overall goal of MedCity Media Web sites: to cover local medical industries like communities or, better yet, scenes, where industry leaders can be known and in the know. Our motivation comes from what we've heard from our readers. They know deals are made over dining rooms as often as they are across board rooms. While stakeholders know the business reputation of our medical cities, they are less informed on the work-play-life aspects of these markets. They don't know which bars and events naturally attract their peers."

Isn't this clever? They know their market and go after it. (Cleveland, Twin Cities (MN) and Research Triangle (NC) NPR could do that--they already go after liberals and Democrats--why not ask them to pay for the programming and leave the rest of us alone?

Get an entertainment rundown of medical culture in the healthcare industry.

But they also cover the medical news. Who are benefitting the least from Obamacare? Those ages 55 to 65, low-income adults and the unemployed. More men are having facelifts, botox and breast reduction. I didn't know Cleveland Clinic was building a 360-bed Abu Dhabi hospital that's projected to open late next year. What? We're now outsourcing medicine for the mega-rich? And here's a really messy story about a 15000% price increase in a pregnancy drug.

Juan Williams Takes Gloves Off: Defund NPR Now

This is no surprise. NPR's former token black gets to smack them back. Juan Williams comments on Rep. Steve Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, fundraising letter

"In the letter, Israel wrote that Republicans “know NPR plays a vital role in providing quality news programming – from rural radio stations to in-depth coverage of foreign affairs. If the Republicans had their way, we’d only be left with the likes of Glenn Beck, Limbaugh and Sarah Palin to dominate the airwaves.”

That convinced Williams, whom NPR fired last fall because of comments he made that were judged offensive to Muslims.

“With that statement Congressman Israel made the case better than any Republican critic that NPR is radio by and for liberal Democrats,” Williams wrote. “He is openly asking liberal Democrats to give money to liberal Democrats in Congress so they can funnel federal dollars into news radio programs designed to counter and defeat conservative Republican voices.”

If a conservative idea had a chance of surviving on NPR, there would be no calls for defunding, because Republicans like pork and free things and advertising just as much as the next guy, but why would you want to fund your opposition?

Juan Williams Takes Gloves Off: Defund NPR Now

Sounds fair to me . . .if

They really need to put out the numbers--what the little guy pays into Social Security, what he gets after 50 years, compared to what the academic and unionized employees get after 30 years.

From an OSU HR memo:

"Last week, Ohio Governor John Kasich presented his proposed biennial budget. In his plan, the Governor is proposing a 2 percent shift between employer and employee pension contributions for all state and local public workers. As proposed, employee contributions would increase by 2 percent, and employer contributions would decrease by 2 percent."

When the wolf is at the door about to eat the Democrats for lunch

They change the menu choices.

"The late economist Herbert Stein famously declared that "If something cannot go on forever, it will stop," and sure enough, this logic is now working even in the reality-free zone of liberal New York. Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos seem to be winning their fight to close a $10 billion state budget deficit by cutting spending while favoring tax relief.

The Empire State currently imposes a top tax rate of 8.97% on income over $500,000, a "temporary" surcharge imposed in 2009 that is due to expire at the end of the year. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver wants to extend the tax, as liberals always do, and what passes for a concession in Albany is to raise the threshold to $1 million. Mr. Silver is used to getting his way, and the Manhattan Democrat is backed by the perennial tax increase caucus of organized labor and the progressive Working Families Party.

No surprise there. More notable is that in the negotiations for the budget due in two weeks, Messrs. Cuomo and Skelos have refused to consider this tax hike, or any other new taxes. Mr. Silver seems to be in retreat, while the Governor's other ruptures with Democratic orthodoxy include a 2% cap on property tax increases and budget cuts, like a 10% drop in state operations and especially in the Medicaid program that covers one of four New Yorkers." Wall Street Journal, Market Watch

Justice Loses Its Stars and Stripes

My cousin mentioned that the Department of Justice had lost it's stars and stripes (a number of months ago), so I took a look. It's somber and boring, but I don't think the lack of splash is the problem. The announcements are just scary--like asking us to read about Obama's new transparency or why Obamacare is so great. Are they kidding? He's the least transparent of any president in my voting years. Recent revelations on the fraud in Medicare and Medicaid show that this government is not ready for health care prime time.

But the quote on the website has an interesting trail--one very appropriate and transparent about this administration

. . . it's thought to be from C. Wilfred Jenks, a socialist/globalist, "British lawyer, C. Wilfred Jenks, who back in the late 1930s and after World War II was a leading figure in the "international law" movement, which sought to impose a global, common law, and advocated for global workers rights. Jenks was a long-time member of the United Nation's International Labor Organization, and author of a number of globalist tracts, including a set of essays published back in 1958, entitled The Common Law of Mankind.

Most telling: Jenks, as director of the ILO is credited with putting in place the first Soviet senior member of the UN organization, and also with creating an environment that allowed the ILO to give "observer status" to the Palestinian Liberation Organization, and to issue anti-Israeli statements, which precipitated efforts by the U.S. Congress to withdraw U.S. membership from the ILO. The U.S. actually did withdraw in the mid-1970s due to the organization's leftist leanings.

"It was Jenks's efforts that helped make the ILO a tool of the socialist and communist movement," says one of the DOJ lawyers. "We used to joke about how fitting it was that this was Janet Reno's favorite quote to use in speeches, and now the Obama folks think it encapsulates out department's mission."

Too bad they couldn't have found an American worth quoting for the "transparent" web page.

The American Spectator : Justice Loses Its Stars and Stripes

The left's love-hate relationship with Gaddafi

Apparently the romance is over? We're "the leading edge" of a Coalition [ 3rd front]. (Pentagon) Bush had more support than this, used months of debate and discussion, and years of research and espionage from the previous administration before going after Saddam, and he was blasted by the left. Where are the critics now? Hoping to put their own, easier to control, Muslims in power all across the Middle East.

Gaddafi hates Israel--writes op-ed in NYT

All the nasty things Gaddafi says about the U.S., but he hopes Obama who he believes is a Muslim and an African can redeem us

For some reason, no one caught on what a bad dude he is

Mr. Dithers turns on a dime

The view from Israel

Senator Obama advises President Obama about including Congress in his decisions (2007):

"The President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation. As Commander-in-Chief, the President does have a duty to protect and defend the United States. In instances of self-defense, the President would be within his constitutional authority to act before advising Congress or seeking its consent. History has shown us time and again, however, that military action is most successful when it is authorized and supported by the Legislative branch. It is always preferable to have the informed consent of Congress prior to any military action."

Don't send me money

Today I received an e-mail from a Facebook friend asking for money--she was stranded in England. Of course, it was a scam, and I had heard of this one, so I notified the group of which we are members. She wasn't even aware of it, but is taking steps to correct it.

So, if you get an e-mail from me asking you to send money, don't do it. I would never ask, plus after getting deathly ill on my last two transatlantic flights, I don't plan any trips across the pond.

Michigan Boosts Power to Intervene in Cities - WSJ.com

"DETROIT—Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law a measure that broadens state powers to intervene in the finances and governance of struggling municipalities and school districts, giving these local bodies a stronger hand in renegotiating labor contracts.

The law also requires local government to send financial projections to Lansing, the capital, which could lead to the state stepping in earlier in hopes of averting a crisis."

Michigan Boosts Power to Intervene in Cities - WSJ.com

Democrats are of course objecting. Public employees have 3 forms of representation--their unions, their Democrats, and their elected representatives. The people who pay their salaries and benefits have only elected representatives, who need to be very, very strong.

Radical Carol Browner Energy Czar--where did she go?

Yes, I know she's under the bus with Van Jones, but he got a really cool gig and gets to do a lot of speaking engagements--I think he's sort of a rock star of the left (and very good looking and a better speaker than Obama). Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt. Does she get a tour and a cushy job at a socialist think tank?

Radical Carol Browner created oil spill lies,False drilling memos « SHAWSBLOG

And now from the middle.

And now equal coverage from the left.

The most recent item I can find on Browner is that she was supposed to be the speaker at Berea College on March 3. The press release of Feb. 28 said she was [still] White House coordinator [czar] of energy and climate policy for the Obama administration, but in the description of her duties, only her past "accomplishments" were mentioned--Clinton, Albright, Gore and hiking in the Everglades as a child. It was a free event and she must have been one of the headliners when she got the gig. Next week the Berea College Country Dancers perform at 8 p.m. in Old Seabury Gym.

Rand Paul accuses Democrats of being anti-choice--particularly about toilets

His toilets don't work and he can't find a decent light bulb and Democrats are shipping jobs overseas with their energy regulations. They are anti-choice--putting people out of business or fining them with their efficiency standards. Appalling and hypocritical, he says, you are busy-bodies. Besides these toilets have to be flushed multiple times to even work. Amen, brother!

NPR and the Democrats

Republicans aren't stupid. If they thought for a minute that funding NPR would represent their viewpoint even once in awhile, there's no way they would defund it. But of course, if you've ever listened for any period of time to NPR or watched PBS television you'll see the reason--that is, if you are conservative. Liberals don't see it, which is why President Obama is opposing H.R. 1076. It has nothing to do with rural areas, which in case Obama hasn't noticed, seem to be well served by many forms of media. When I visit Mt. Morris, Illinois, 100 miles west of Chicago with a population about 2,500 and decreasing after the closing of several important industries, I can get AM and FM radio and broadcast and cable stations from Chicago, Rockford, Freeport, DeKalb, Sterling, etc. and probably some Wisconsin stations if I tried--ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, Fox and the internet with its vast array of programing.

"The Administration strongly opposes House passage of H.R. 1076, which would unacceptably prohibit Federal funding of National Public Radio (NPR) and the use of Federal funds by public radio stations to acquire radio content. As part of the President’s commitment to cut spending, the President’s Budget proposed targeted reductions in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which provides a small amount of funding for NPR, and the Administration has expressed openness to other spending reductions that are reasonable. However, CPB serves an important public purpose in supporting public radio, television, and related online and mobile services. The vast majority of CPB’s funding for public radio goes to more than 700 stations across the country, many of them local stations serving communities that rely on them for access to news and public safety information. Undercutting funding for these radio stations, notably ones in rural areas where such outlets are already scarce, would result in communities losing valuable programming, and some stations could be forced to shut down altogether." Link

No it has nothing to do with rural areas, and everything to do with another mouthpiece for Obama's hope and chains. He's got millions for his next campaign chest, so I really don't think this is a problem. Just advertise on the "new" public radio which won't be taxpayer supported and let the choir listen.

Pine Ridge Reservation Wind Power FM Radio KILI

Printed prayers

The older I get, the more I appreciate a well written prayer. Yes, written, as in published. I find prayer books very useful, and enjoy the little short prayers included in the daily meditation booklets I use from Concordia. Usually, they contain passages of scripture or basic theological concepts. Today I came across a published prayer for Christians on strike in the 1957 My Prayer Book by Concordia Publishing House (Lutheran). In quoting I've somewhat modernized the pronouns thee and thou. Somehow, I don't think workers in King James era were going on strike.

"Owing to disagreements between my labor union and my employer, I am now on strike and out of work. I know you love all, and it is your will that I love all men as brothers. Therefore help me, my fellow workers, and my employer to overcome all selfishness and pride and to seek a fair solution of our difficulties. . .

Protect the property of strikers and employers during the conferences between them. Give our employer a sympathetic understanding of the problems and needs of his workers. Likewise give me and the other workers a proper insight into the problems and resources of our employer, that we may not ask more than is reasonable. Prevent bitterness and strife, and where ungodly strife is present, grant your healing and peace. Guide the negotiations toward an early agreement whereby both employer and worker may profit. May fairness and justice prevail for all concerned. . .

Give your blessing to honest labor everywhere that the needs of mankind may be supplied and that your kingdom may flourish; through Jesus Christ. Amen."

In 1957 there were no unions representing government employees--it was practically unthinkable. Wisconsin, the "progressive" state, was the first to allow state employees to bargain with their employers. In 1957, both public and private workers knew the basics of negotiating and that if you negotiate with yourself, you, not your neighbor [employer], always are the winner because of self-interest. It's like going into a ballgame where the final score is already determined. Home team wins every time. Public sector unions are negotiating with "self," i.e., the workers' union representatives are negotiating with the workers' elected representatives, and often with their own political party representatives [Democrats]. Therefore, this 1957 prayer sounds archaic--from a long distant past--and it is.

There is no "justice to prevail" at the state houses of Ohio or Wisconsin or New Jersey where one group of workers doesn't pay for their benefits at the expense of another group of workers who pay the salaries of the other group. A public sector worker employed for 35 years will pull out thousands of dollars more a year in her retirement check than a private sector worker who worked 50 years to receive Social Security. The school teacher who retires at 55 may get $80,000 a year (or more), and the real estate broker or small businessman who can't retire until 66 will get $28,400. And the businessman has contributed more! Both have elected representatives, but one has double the representation.

The disgraceful behavior of the Wisconsin teachers (and their friends)

So you thought the Communist/Islam link was just a parnoid threat by Glenn Beck? How do you like the Cairo to Madison link?

How Poverty won the War on Poverty--duplication, waste, poor planning and lobbying Congress

Community Action Agencies are local groups who get their funding from The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) which is federal tax money. They were first incorporated 47 years ago with the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964--the so-called War on Poverty.

This "war" has provided a steady stream of income for well paid middle class government workers and employees of non-profits, but hasn’t done much for the poor of Ohio even with half a billion a year. If you have the patience for the paperwork, you can set one up yourself and become a staff of one and recruit volunteers from your church. If you don't wish to work with the poor directly, organize an association of agencies and providers and lobby your city or state governments for a budget line. Or become a workshop provider for other agencies--show them how to use Twitter, Facebook and Blogging to recruit clients or make nice Power Point presentations. Do sensitivity training. The money's there.

There are tremendous duplication and few measures of success or accountability. Remember, the half a billion a year that Ohio agencies get doesn’t include all the other programs like SNAP (former food stamps) or TANF (former AFDC), Medicaid, or WIC or home weatherization or school feeding programs. That’s not home foreclosure workshops or programs for zero percent mortgages.

Vast amounts of money are funneled to local nonprofits whose purpose is to reduce poverty and to help low-income people become self-sufficient. Church groups can get this money as long as they just perform social acts and don't do anything religious, like tell their clients about Jesus. There are more than 1,100 Community Action Agencies in the United States and there are 50 Community Action Agencies in Ohio, “with every county receiving service. During the last program year, they administered $523,407,248 in resources aimed at alleviating the problems of poverty in Ohio's Communities.” (http://www.development.ohio.gov/community/ocs/cacs.htm )

Half a billion a year should be able to solve a lot of problems, wouldn’t you think? Apparently not, because the agencies were doing so poorly they needed a huge influx of temporary ARRA funding to stay afloat. (Example of application) The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was signed into law by President Obama on February 17th, 2009 and was supposed to be “a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century.” A down payment? Neglected? We’ve been addressing those challenges for 47 years, and it’s not like there were no state and local programs before 1964 which addressed poverty.

There are loud cries of alarm coming from the CAAs that receive CSBG funding right now because the Obama administration is looking at cutting some duplication in the block grants (not to worry--right now there’s no budget at all). All the CAA websites say pretty much the same thing--WE ARE DOING ESSENTIAL WORK FOR THE POOR!!!

It’s time to take the federal budget apart, agency by agency, bureaucrat by bureaucrat, nonprofit by nonprofit. And let’s begin with the bloated Block Grants’ overlapping programs and their 1100 Community Action Agencies. They don’t seem to be meeting their goals and mission statements if after almost half a century they they only morph and expand. Examples of mission statements:

http://www.impactca.org/ -- “provides a comprehensive array of services that enables struggling families to find jobs, maintain affordable housing and get on the road to becoming active, contributing, tax-paying citizens.” (Don't use these folks for computer training--still offering Windows XP).

http://www.leadscaa.org -- “is a private non-profit corporation that provides immediate assistance and lasting solutions for people in need”

http://www.tricountycls.com/index.htm “helps people find jobs, get educated and become financially secure”

http://www.lccaa.net/default.aspx “committed to improving the social well-being, economic capacity and opportunities for low- to moderate-income individuals and families.”

What is wrong with Republicans?

How can they possibly be taking Donald Trump seriously? Questioning Obama's birth will get him what--1% of the votes he needs? And Newt Gingrich? These men are moral midgets. How many marriages did the Pope have to annul for Gingrich? Let's find candidates with fewer personal problems. Those always become the focus, and Republicans just don't have the smarts or the knee cappers that the Democrats have when it comes to cover ups. We've got some great talent--stop with the preeners and pretty boys. We've got Bobby Jindal, Paul Ryan, Michele Bachman, Chris Christie--even Walker of Wisconsin seems to have some potential--at least he knows how to stand up to unions. But let's stay away from the thrice married and I don't care how much money they have. They're more useful to us as tax payers and cheerleaders for good candidates.

Trump Raises Birther Questions

The No-Fly Zone vote

No more wars to keep Muslims from killing each other. All we do is install new despots and they hate us. Stay out of Libya.

Update: Sounds like Obama is taking us to war. Or at least the stand-in President Hillary Clinton is.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says enforcing a no-fly zone in Libya would require bombing raids - one of several options being debated by the UN Security Council. Clinton made the comments while visiting neighboring Tunisia - where she met aid workers who have been helping refugees from Libya. NPR