Fact checking the fact checkers

A biased "fact checker." Who knew?

People, especially conservatives, hate it when I use Snopes, but I’ve always found them (a husband and wife team) to be pretty accurate.  Not so all of them.   " . . . media fact checkers aren't going to be surprised by this, but Media Trackers, a nonpartisan watchdog, combed through the personal Twitter feed of PolitiFact Ohio writer Tom Feran and found he's a pretty vocal liberal. You can review the evidence here, but it turns out that he's not a fan of George W. Bush, refers to conservatives as "wingnuts" and "yahoos," and tweets out links to blog postings on the "The Cancer of Conservatism." On the other hand, Feran is an enthusiastic Obama supporter—"Go-bama!"—and supporter of Occupy Wall Street." Shocked. Not. [Weekly Standard Blog]

The Mustang, 1964 1/2

Down memory lane. As we drove to the near by Tri-Motor air museum today, on the way at a stop sign we admired an early Mustang lovingly restored and both agreed it was about the prettiest car ever (although not particularly comfortable) except for the 55-56 Chevy, to which I'm partial. Technically, there is no such car as a 1964 1/2, it was called that because it came out early, or late, I suppose depending on your viewpoint We began reminiscing about my brother's--I think it was red--a first year model. When babies started to arrive, it wasn't a good family car. Bet he wishes he had it now.

Tri-Motor Heritage Museum in Port Clinton

Today we visited the newly opened Ford Tri-Motor heritage museum near Port Clinton on Oak Lake Drive.  A very impressive building which speaks of history and risk, and not the fame of the architect. There are not many displays, yet, but I’m sure that will grow, and the Ford Tri-Motor being restored is in a number of large pieces.  While there we enjoyed an art show sponsored by the Greater Port Clinton Area Arts Council.  I bought a very nice small bowl in soft greens and blues, just perfect for the lake house from Colin Budd who summers on Catawba and winters in Oracle, AZ, and a note card from Julie Faetanini,  of Sandusky, which I’ll probably never use because it’s too nice.  Looking forward to the opening of the Tin Goose Diner which is in the building.

 http://www.colinbudd.com/page2.html

I can’t find any text to got with these photos, but they are interesting. http://www.putinbayphotos.com/TriMotor8407/TriMotor8407.htm

Job growth under Obama--the IRS

"When President Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA, aka "Obamacare") goes fully into effect in 2014, the American people will only then begin to see the implications of its thorough government takeover of health care, in all its glory. But what they are not expecting is the massively expanded role of the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") in our lives, as the IRS is the chief agency responsible for enforcing the Act."

The new face of healthcare

SPLC maps to hate

Which is a hate organization, one which maps to another organization on a "hate map" or one that follows the teachings of Jesus? If you support Southern Poverty Law Center, shame on you. It had FRC on a “hate map” as a destination where a security guard was shot this week by a guy carrying a bag of Chick-fil-A.  "Family Research Council (FRC) champions marriage and family as the foundation of civilization, the seedbed of virtue, and the wellspring of society. FRC shapes public debate and formulates public policy that values human life and upholds the institutions of marriage and the family. Believing that God is the author of life, liberty, and the family, FRC promotes the Judeo-Christian worldview as the basis for a just, free, and stable society."

The founder and 2 CEOs of SPLC make over $300,000 a year; the CEO of FRC earns $174,000.  Poverty pays well.

 

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/shooting-southern-poverty-law-center-put-family-research-council-hate-map

At a press conference on Thursday outside the FRC headquarters in downtown Washington, FRC President Perkins said, “I want to express my appreciation to the groups and organizations that we do not agree with on many public policy issues who have also expressed their outrage at what took place here yesterday. For that, I appreciate it. I appreciate them making those statements.”

“But I would ask them to go a step further and to join us in calling for an end to the reckless rhetoric that I believe led to yesterday’s incident that took place right behind me,” he said.

“And that does bring me to my final point,” said Perkins. “Let me be clear, that Floyd Corkins was responsible for firing the shot yesterday that wounded one of our colleagues and our friend Leo Johnson. But Corkins was given a license to shoot an unarmed man by organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center that have been reckless in labeling organizations hate groups because they disagree with them on public policy.”

In case you believe in "fairness" ala Obama

Obama and his supporters don't think he's doing such a bad job. I checked Daniel the Librarian* from Alaska, and he's loving it, and never liked being a Catholic anyway. Didn't he want fair? Isn't that what Jesus is all about? Unemployment is up; income is down; food stamp recipients are up; poverty higher; college grads not doing any better than those who didn't go; debt is soaring pushing his legacy to future unborn generations, so, . . . more people with less, more people dependent. See how it's all leveling out? That's a statist's idea of fair.

*Librarians vote 223:1 Democrat to Republican (survey from 2004, but it probably hasn't changed), which could explain some unbalanced library collections.

David Barton and left wing hate non-profits

David Barton has educated thousands, maybe millions, about the contributions of the Founders, the role of the 3 branches of government, how LBJ took away rights of churches in the 60s and fought civil rights legislation in the 50s, and especially the stunning role of African Americans in our country's history--something few of us ever learned since much of it was done through the churches. But he's been labeled a right wing extremist hater for telling the truth. He's also educated people on who gave us Jim Crow and the KKK, something the Democrats try to hide. If you're contributing to SPLC, check out the salaries of their mostly white board and executives. Hate really pays well for leftist non-profits. http://freethoughtblogs.com/rodda/2012/05/28/southern-poverty-law-center-names-david-barton-as-a-radical-to-watch/

Remember when Fancy Nancy knew more than President Bush about peace in the middle east?

Remember when Nancy Pelosi tried to undermine (with other Democrats like Obama) President Bush with playing footsie with Syria's Assad? Yesterday Assad forces bombed a children's hospital. I think this makes them extremist Muslims instead of moderate Muslims--the moderates only bomb the infidels. The Sunni Muslims are the majority and the Alawite sect to which the family of President Bashar al-Assad belongs is the minority.

"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi challenged the White House on Middle East policy yesterday, meeting with Syria's leader and insisting "the road to Damascus is a road to peace." That brought a sharp attack from the Bush administration, which has rejected direct talks with Damascus until it changes its ways.

http://articles.boston.com/2007-04-05/news/29225817_1_syrian-security-officials-syrian-president-bashar-assad-mideast-crises

Clean energy in Michigan

When Gov. Granholm signed the Clean Renewable and Efficient Energy Act in 2008 there were 4,256 jobs in the state in "power and communications systems construction," which includes the jobs for wind and solar power construction. In 2011, that number had dropped to 3,728 jobs; about a 14 percent drop.

http://www.michigancapitolconfidential.com/17400

Rahm

George Obama, Barack’s youngest brother

"George has a real life brother who just happens to be the president of the United States. (George Obama is the youngest of eight children sired by Barack Obama Sr.) George’s brother is a multimillionaire and the most powerful man in the world. Moreover, George’s brother has framed his re-election campaign around the “fair share” theme that we owe obligations to those who are less fortunate.

One of Obama’s favorite phrases comes right out of the Bible: “We are our brother’s keeper.” Yet he has not contributed a penny to help his own brother. And evidently George does not believe, even in times of emergency, that he can turn to his brother in the White House for help."

You see, George is a "conservative" living in Kenya and rejects the anti-colonialism espoused by his and Barack's father - so naturally, his wealthy brother, Barack Obama, has nothing to do with him.

"So much for spreading the wealth around."
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/08/16/how-became-george-obama-brother/

Trust and Obey—Doug

BO and Hillary

This would be the left's dream team. I'm guessing old Joe is suddenly going to decide he has health problems or wants to spend more time with the grandchildren. I just don't think a sex scandal would do it--it doesn't bother the Democrats, and just wouldn't be believable.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/today-day_650058.html

The housing boom

“Not only did Federal Reserve actions stoke the housing boom, but transcripts released by the Fed make it clear that they entirely missed the magnitude of the problem of the housing bubble and failed to anticipate the ensuing crisis. This occurred even with diligent and constant economic forecasting by scores of intelligent and well-intentioned Ph.D. economists, armed with all the computers and databases they could desire, and earnest discussions of the outlook by senior officials. “

http://www.aei.org/article/economics/financial-services/why-do-smart-people-make-big-financial-mistakes/

Our strongest allies. . . all . . .punching above their weight class

http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/erYpXzE9Pxs%26

Why has Obama put the Navy SEALS in danger?

(CNN) -- A web video featuring former special forces officers accuses President Barack Obama of taking too much credit for the killing of Osama bin Laden and allowing classified information about the raid to become public.

The ad also includes former Navy SEALs.

Ingredients in cat food

Several times in her 14 years our cat, who isn’t very large—about 7 lbs—has quit eating.  With an appetite stimulant and refusing expensive testing plus smearing some baby food on her mouth, we’ve been able to get her started again.  Last August, I thought we’d lost her, but we got her going again.  But I did switch to a more expensive, specialty cat food, which she’s been very happy with until recently, and now sort of sniffs. At $1.50 more per can, I prefer she lick the bowl clean.  So I keep rotating it (she doesn’t like fish unless we’re eating it).  I don’t know if it makes any difference in her health, but I feel better reading the labels: (high price) duck, turkey broth, no grain, plus the usual additives cats need like taurine.  (9-lives) meat by-products, turkey, giblets, chicken, soy protein, wheat flour plus additives Most cat food labels start with corn—this one didn’t. I don’t see much duck in the meat counters, but there’s a lot in high priced cat food.

 

The community organizers evolve

Now it’s global and rural as well as suburban and urban.  Same old, same old. . .

http://www.sustainablecommunities.gov/

“Sustainable communities are places that have a variety of housing and transportation choices, with destinations close to home. As a result, they tend to have lower transportation costs, reduce air pollution and stormwater runoff, decrease infrastructure costs, preserve historic properties and sensitive lands, save people time in traffic, be more economically resilient and meet market demand for different types of housing at different prices points. Rural, suburban, and urban communities can all use sustainable communities strategies and techniques to invest in healthy, safe and walkable neighborhoods, but these strategies will look different in each place depending on the community’s character, context, and needs.

Developing more sustainable communities is important to our national goals of strengthening our economy, creating good jobs now while providing a foundation for lasting prosperity, using energy more efficiently to secure energy independence, and protecting our natural environment and human health. Three federal agencies came together to create the Partnership for Sustainable Communities to help places around the country develop in more environmentally and economically sustainable ways. To guide its work, the Partnership developed six livability principles:”

 

http://www.sustainableworthington.org/links#COSusComm

Is Obama really incompetent?

Is he really a failure, as some Republicans say?  I don’t think so.  Look at what he has accomplished. No Republican can match his record.  He’s been the overseer of the worst economic recovery in 75 years--using every failed policy from the FDR era, a man who extended the Great Depression by a decade; the debt has increased 450% to set in place years of diminishing strength;  he backed two losers in 2011—the Arab Spring and the American Occupiers;  he’s grabbed one fifth of the economy, health care, for the federal government; he’s expanded the wars and managed the press so well that even during a campaign year no one is talking about it not even Mitt Romney; he’s brought more people onto welfare and food stamps making them dependents of Uncle Sam than any other president in our history; he’s found at least a million college age illegals right before the toughest election in his career to fold into the Democratic party; he’s dismantling the work requirement in welfare reform of the mid-90s, something that’s always been an anathema to his party; he thinks contraception is more important than jobs to women; he’s virtually castrated Congress with his regulatory czars.  Add to all those events of the last 4 years, he’s the most anti-life leader we’ve ever had, garnering praise and endorsement from Planned Parenthood, the great snuffer of black children.  For a man of his political beliefs, these are not failures, they are accomplishments.

Both parties claim this

“It’s the President who took $716 billion from the Medicare program to spend on Obamacare. That’s cuts to current seniors that will lead to less services for current seniors. We won't do that. We actually say end the raid and restore that, so that those seniors today get the benefits that they organized their lives around.” Paul Ryan

 http://mi.tt/OfwGMO

Obama says he will save Medicare and Seniors by removing waste and fraud, and taking money from providers, but he’s moving that savings to Obamacare.  Ryan is doing pretty much the same thing, but giving it to seniors.  (I do wonder since 3 of the 4 candidates are/were members of Congress, why they couldn’t have tackled the waste and fraud issues before now.)  You’ll be the judge in November.  Ryan’s voucher plan won’t affect me or anyone over age 55, but for the rest of you it sounds like a good deal.  You’ll be able to buy the same health care that federal workers get or you can choose regular Medicare. Woot!  Choices always mean lower prices.   Someone has to step up and save Medicare (I guess we’re too ingrained with this entitlement to completely dump it).  The designers always intended it to grow, always saw it as the camel’s nose inside the tent of government paid health care for everyone,  but if it keeps on going, we won’t have any money for anything else. In 1960 health care was 5.2% of GDP, and today it is 18.4%. (Keep in mind when you see U.S. health care costs compared to other developed nations that ours is for the census population, not citizens, which means over 11 million Illegals, plus many legal immigrants who come here having had very little health care in the past.)

http://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/Downloads/quickref.pdf

http://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/downloads/proj2008.pdf