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FEBRUARY 20,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 9:56 P.M. ET: 

IT'S HOLLYWOOD'S FAULT – You mean, Hollywood is pro-American?  From Breitbart:  "Wednesday CNN’s 'Newsroom,' senior editor from the The Islamic Monthly and former National Legal Director of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Arsalan Iftikhar, who recently accused Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) of 'trying to scrub some of the brown off his skin,' said hate crimes and 'Islamophobia is real and growing in America today' because of Hollywood.  Iftikhar said, 'Not just "American Sniper" with Bradley Cooper, but if you look at Hollywood’s overall depiction of Muslims and Arabs after 9/11. Whether it’s the show "Homeland" on Showtime with Claire Danes, or the Fox show "24" with Kiefer Sutherland, we have seen this ongoing narrative as the proverbial boogie man, the bad brown people next door. And we are starting to see that resonate in terms of hate crimes, and with America Muslims being one of the most hated demographic groups in the United States today. Islamophobia is real and growing in America today.'"  Yeah.  Without Hollywood Americans wouldn't know we're fighting Islamic extremists.

ABOUT TIME – From the Daily Caller:  "Are government climate agencies tampering with climate data to show warming? Some Republicans think so. California Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher says to expect congressional hearings on climate data tampering.  Rohrabacher serves as the vice chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, which has jurisdiction over NASA and other agencies that monitor the Earth’s climate.  Rohrabacher has long been critical of the theory of man-made global warming. Lately, the California Republican has criticizing NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for allegedly tampering with temperature data to create an artificial warming trend. Such data is then used to justify regulations aimed at curbing fossil fuel use and other industrial activities."  Probes have been long overdue.

VENEZUELA – From The New York Times:  "CARACAS, Venezuela — The abrupt arrest of the mayor of Caracas on accusations that he had plotted an American-backed overthrow of the government threatened to plunge Venezuela into new political convulsions on Friday, as his supporters rallied in the capital and pockets of protest erupted elsewhere.  The arrest of the mayor, Antonio Ledezma, on Thursday evening by intelligence agents who fired weapons in the air, was viewed by the opposition as the kidnapping of a political rival to President Nicolás Maduro."   The place is coming apart.  Even Sean Penn doesn't visit anymore.

WHAT ARE THEY TEACHING OUR CHILDREN? – From the Washington Times:  "Nearly half of Democrats have a strong and clear message for President Obama, especially as it pertains to a recent judicial rein-in on his immigration aspirations: Go ahead and ignore the federal courts.  Rasmussen found 43 percent in the party think the president should have the authority to dismiss court rulings that he perceives as unfair blocks to issues of personal importance. Thirty-five percent of Democrats disagree.  But Republicans say hold the phone — that’s not constitutional.  Of those who claim affiliation with the GOP, 81 percent say the president doesn’t have that right and shouldn’t. Another 67 percent claiming no particular party affiliation agree with Republicans — that the president should not be allowed to ignore the courts, Rasmussen found."

February 20, 2015       Permalink

OBAMA'S HECTORING – QUOTE OF THE DAY – AT 11:58 A.M. ET:  Bill Kristol gets it just right as he questions Barack Obama's curious tendency to lecture Americans on Islam.  From Newsmax: 

President Barack Obama is lecturing Americans about why they shouldn’t label radical Islamists as terrorists — as if they are bigots, says Bill Kristol, editor of "The Weekly Standard."

"Why did he feel the need to lecture us all as if we're bigots at heart and he's the one who has to explain to us that we've done some bad things in our life, too?" Kristol said Thursday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on Newsmax TV.

On Wednesday, Obama said he wouldn’t classify the Islamic State (ISIS) and al-Qaida as terrorists powered by "radical Islam" — because it gives them a religious legitimacy. "We are not at war with Islam. We are at war with people who have perverted Islam," the president said.

"Why does he even have to weigh in on this as if he thinks he's a president of a country that's full of people who are just one step from going out and assaulting their neighbors who are Muslims …" Kristol responded.

"In a way, it shows he can't resist being the high-school or even middle-school principal who's trying to teach a lesson to these unruly fellow citizens of his who believe in God and other things and probably don't have the politically correct view of Islam."

Kristol urged swift military action against ISIS, which last weekend slaughtered 21 Egyptian Christians, released a video of the atrocity, and later celebrated in the streets.

"If you look at these video and photos, they're like dozens and maybe a couple of hundred of these ISIS fighters assembled there, doing horrible things, celebrating their atrocities, parading people in the streets and these cages, etc." he said.

COMMENT:  Very well said.  Kind of an echo of Rudy Giuliani's observation that Obama really doesn't love America. 

February 20, 2015       Permalink

OH, AGAIN? – AT 11:21 A.M. ET:  How many months, years, have the Obamacare brigades had to get it right?   If they can't handle the administration, how will they handle the medical care?  From The New York Times: 

About 800,000 taxpayers who enrolled in insurance policies through HealthCare.gov received erroneous tax information from the government, and were urged on Friday to hold off on filing tax returns until the error could be corrected.

The Obama administration, under heavy pressure from congressional Democrats, also announced that it would give several million people more time to buy health insurance so they could comply with federal law and avoid tax penalties.

The incorrect insurance information is used in computing taxes. Consumers can expect to receive corrected data in the first week of March. With the new data, officials warned, some taxpayers will owe more and some will owe less.

Officials said they did not know why the error had occurred.

COMMENT:  It is true that many Americans who were formally uncovered before are now covered under Obamacare.  But it is also true that millions and millions of Americans who were satisfied with their medical care under previous plans are now very unhappy.  They're paying more, getting less, and getting less choice.  Obamacare is basically a wealth transfer scheme. 

Capable, non-ideological people could have corrected the problems in our health system without coming in like homewreckers.  But homewrecking is the Obama way.  Wreck the home first, then wreck the world.

February 20, 2015       Permalink

PATHETIC – AT 10:14 A.M. ET:   One of the things I do here is monitor news organizations to see how they're reporting events.  And it seems that whenever I see progress at CNN toward becoming the news organization it can be, someone at that network reverts back to the leftist bias that has hurt it so much over the years.

I turned on CNN a while ago to see their 10 a.m. ET news, and encountered the worst 12 minutes or so of CNN that I've seen recently.  The anchor was the very liberal Carol Costello, who had to apologize recently for an unsavory comment about Sarah Palin.  I have no idea why they keep her around, except that she is pleasant and attractive.  Intelligent is another matter.

The segment began with a report claiming that America's real terrorism problem isn't with Islamic terrorists who fly planes into buildings and behead Christians, it's with domestic "right wing" terrorists.  Now, no one denies that we have a historic problem with extreme rightist groups that have a KKK or Nazi philosophy.  They'll always be around.  (There are pro-Nazi groups in Germany today.)  But the fact is that they have no important constituency, they couldn't elect one person to Congress, and they've been dramatically rejected by all but a tiny segment of American society.  Yes, they can do, at times, horrible things.  Oklahoma City is an example.  And I recall seeing George Lincoln Rockwell's brown-shirted Nazis, with swastika armbands, picketing the White House many decades ago.

But they are no great threat to American society or ideals.  We have not had to send out armies to fight them.  They get no backing from foreign nations or major religious leaders.  The contrast with the threat of Islamic extremists, who may someday get weapons of mass destruction, is dramatic. 

So CNN did it again.

And then Madam Costello went on to Rudy Giuliani's comment, which has stirred up the feathers, that Barack Obama doesn't love America.  Costello actually ran a segment from Fox News wherein Rudy expounded on his views.  Frankly, he made some very telling comments about Obama's shortcomings and his failure to say what a president must say in this time of crisis.  I had no great problems with Rudy's remarks.

Costello essentially giggled at the great mayor, and then "interviewed" Errol Louis, an African-American commentator, who trashed Rudy.  Costello was practically sitting in his lap.

It's odd.  The very questions Rudy raised are the questions millions of Americans have – about Obama's background, his true beliefs, his true loyalties.  He was saying what many say quietly, that this president does not see the world the way other American presidents have seen the world.  He has ridiculed his fellow citizens, who "cling to their guns and their religion," and lectures Christians on their supposed sins.  He treats our allies worse than he treats our enemies.

But never mind at CNN.  Rudy is the bad guy.  In fact, his anti-crime policies actually saved more black lives than all previous mayors put together.  His police commissioners got standing ovations in black churches.  But he's the bad guy.

Step backward for CNN.  Bad minutes this morning.  I hope the chiefs were watching.

February 20, 2015      Permalink

UKRAINE – AT 9:31 A.M. ET:  Remember the cease-fire in Ukraine that started last weekend?  I think it lasted a minute.  Haven't heard much from Field Marshal Obama about this.  He's been busy this week explaining Islam to we ignorants. 

But I've noticed that even some of the leftish news organizations in Britain have started to wake up to reality about Russia, and sometimes even about the Mideast.  There is reason for Europe and Britain to be frightened.  From BBC: 

The UK and the EU have been accused of a "catastrophic misreading" of the mood in the Kremlin in the run-up to the crisis in Ukraine.

The House of Lords EU committee claimed Europe "sleepwalked" into the crisis.

The EU had not realised the depth of Russian hostility to its plans for closer relations with Ukraine, it said.

It comes as French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke about the crisis at a joint news conference in Paris.

The committee's report said Britain had not been "active or visible enough" in dealing with the situation in Ukraine.

And...

The report claimed that for too long the EU's relationship with Moscow had been based on the "optimistic premise" that Russia was on a trajectory to becoming a democratic country.

The result, it said, was a failure to appreciate the depth of Russian hostility when the EU opened talks aimed at establishing an "association agreement" with Ukraine in 2013.

It coincides with European Council president Donald Tusk calling Prime Minister David Cameron to discuss how the EU should respond to ongoing violence in eastern Ukraine.

COMMENT:  Obama grew up in a pro-Marxist family.  His father's background was Muslim.  Notice which forces are rising in the world on his watch.  Notice the lack of reporting of same.

February 20,  2015     Permalink

FEBRUARY 19,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:46 P.M. ET: 

CRAZY – The U.S. has released details of a plan emerging to retake the city of Mosul, Iraq, now under ISIS control.   Many military people, especially intelligence operatives, are furious at the fact that such information has been made public.  From Reuters:  "An Iraqi and Kurdish military force of some 20,000 to 25,000 troops is being prepared to recapture the city of Mosul from Islamic State fighters, probably in the April-May time frame, an official at the U.S. Central Command said on Thursday."  Remember the concept of surprise?  Why would anyone want to release information like this?  I guess the Obama administration wanted an image boost.  Who cares about the lives of soldiers?

FAILING UPWARD – Jen Psaki, Kerry's poodle as State Department spokeswoman, is getting a new gig.  From Hot Air:  "Alongside her colleague Marie Harf, State Department Spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki has become the focus of a significant amount of scrutiny in the right-leaning press. After serving as a press liaison for President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign, Psaki moved on to the State Department. There, she was responsible for such hits as scolding Moscow for not living up to the "promise of hashtag," conceding that the administration is utterly without a policy approach toward the most populous Arab nation on Earth, and being incapable of naming a single lasting military accomplishment secured by America’s indigenous “boots on the ground” in Iraq.  On Thursday, Psaki failed up. Way up.  The White House revealed this week that Psaki would be moving on from her role as spokeswoman for America’s chief diplomat and will be diving back into the political fray. She will soon transition back into the White House to serve as Obama’s new director of communications."  Psaki has the most important qualification – utter loyalty to Obama's absurdity.

NATO TRUTHS – From WaPo:  "The German army has faced a shortage of equipment for years, but the situation has recently become so precarious that some soldiers took matters into their own hands.  On Tuesday, German broadcaster ARD revealed that German soldiers tried to hide the lack of arms by replacing heavy machine guns with broomsticks during a NATO exercise last year. After painting the wooden sticks black, the German soldiers swiftly attached them to the top of armored vehicles, according to a confidential army report which was leaked to ARD. "  Shades of 1940, when the U.S. Army, on maneuver in Louisiana, mounted signs on cars saying TANK because no real tanks were available.  NATO has always been the United States and some others.  And with Field Marshal Obama in the White House, it is increasingly a paper tiger.

SERIOUS THREAT – From London's Daily Mail:  "More than 500 refugees from Syria's bloody civil war have already been resettled in the United States, and U.S. officials and members of Congress are becoming increasingly worried that jihadis linked to the ISIS terror army could slip into the country along with them.
Since war broke out in Syria nearly four years ago, America has welcomed 524 people from the rapidly disintegrating country with open arms. U.S. intelligence agencies lack the resources to vet them properly, but the Obama administration plans to admit a few thousand more this year.  'The United States has admitted 524 Syrians since 2011,' State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters on Feb. 13."  I'm sure Obama wants to give them all executive positions in American corporations, which should snuff out any Islamist ideas.  It would, wouldn't it?

February 19, 2015       Permalink

ENOUGH!  ENOUGH! – AT 9:46 A.M. ET:  I am getting so tired of this administration's groveling propaganda.  From RealClearPolitics: 

"DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY JEH JOHNSON: 'We in the administration and the government should give voice to the plight of Muslims living in this country and the discrimination that they face. And so I personally have committed to speak out about the situation that very often people in the Muslim community in this country face. The fact that there are 1.6 billion Muslims in the world and the Islamic faith is one about peace and brotherhood.'"

COMMENT:  You take care of homeland security, fella.  You've got enough to do without becoming an ideological nursemaid. 

I have no doubt that some Muslims in this country face discrimination and question.  But no country attacked as we were on 9-11 responded with more restraint toward a minority community than this one did.  I recall President Bush immediately going to a mosque to reaffirm respect for true Islam.  And there were no mass arrests.  There was no internment.

Pretty soon Obama will announce that, while we're not at war with Islam, we are at war with Dick Cheney.

February 19, 2015       Permalink

OBAMA POLL NUMBERS STEADY, AND MUCH TOO HIGH – AT 9:21 A.M. ET:  As we've noted here, it is simply amazing that, with all the foreign-policy catastrophes we've recently seen, Obama's numbers remain as high as they do.  He has gained since the election, possibly because of his own new aggressiveness, and possibly because the economy has in some measures improved.  But he remains a disaster.  From CNN: 

Washington (CNN)Americans' growing optimism about the nation's economy has not boosted President Barack Obama's approval ratings, according to a new CNN/ORC poll. The President's ratings for handling the economy have held steady, and the share who approve of his efforts to help the middle class has risen slightly, but more continue to disapprove than approve of his work on the nation's economic problems.

Ratings of current economic conditions remain mixed, with 48% describing them as good and 52% as poor, but that's significantly better than one year ago. In February 2014, just 36% said the economy was in good shape, 64% called it poor. Looking forward, optimism for the future of the economy has grown. The new poll finds 56% say things will be in good shape a year from now, up from 52% in October and the largest share to say so in CNN/ORC polls during Obama's second term.

And...

Obama's approval rating overall stands at 47%, with 51% disapproving, about the same as in a December CNN/ORC poll.

That's significantly better than George W. Bush's approval ratings at this stage of his presidency. In January 2007, just 34% approved of the job Bush was doing. About 8-in-10 of each president's own party approved of his handling of the job, but Bush fared much worse among political independents: 43% approve of Obama now, just 29% approved of Bush in January 2007.

COMMENT:  I have to believe that press coverage of Obama continues to boost him.  And his rock solid support from some groups in the Democratic base can't hurt.

But Obama's ratings not long ago hovered at 40%, also too high.  When will reality sink in again with the American people. 

February 19, 2015       Permalink

BARACK PROBABLY THINKS IT'S SILLY – AT 8:54 A.M. ET:  Italy, which has always had a relationship with Libya, only 300 miles away, across the Mediterranean, is becoming increasingly frightened by ISIS and is dire threats.  From the Daily Beast:   

ROME — Last weekend in Italy, as the threat of ISIS in Libya hit home with a new video addressed to “the nation signed with the blood of the cross” and the warning, “we are south of Rome,” Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi shuttered the Italian embassy in Tripoli and raised his fist with the threat of impending military action. Never mind that Italy has only 5,000 troops available that are even close to deployable, according to the defense ministry. Or that the military budget was cut by 40 percent two years ago, which has kept the acquisition of 90 F-35 fighter jets hanging in the balance and left the country combat-challenged to lead any mission—especially one against an enemy like the Islamic State.

In fact, Renzi didn’t specify exactly who would wield that military might, and, two days later, when no one volunteered to lead the charge, he backtracked. “It’s not the time for a military intervention,” Renzi told an Italian television station Monday night and said the United Nations had to lead the way. “Our proposal is to wait for the U.N. Security Council. The strength of the U.N. is decidedly superior to that of the radical militias.”

Whether the time is right or not, there is no question that there is a palpable tension in Italy over the ISIS threat—Libya is just 109 miles away from the island of Lampedusa and 300 miles from Sicily—made worse by a 64 percent increase in illegal migrant arrivals by sea since last year. In all of 2014, more than 170,000 people arrived from Libya and Turkey, the highest number ever recorded. Last weekend, as the embassy staff made their way to Italy on a mercantile ship, 2,164 migrants left the same Libyan shores en route to Sicily. The week before, more than 300 people were lost in the same seas as their rickety fishing boats capsized before rescuers could save them.

COMMENT:  This may well be the time when Europe finally wakes up and realizes that Islamic terrorism (I apologize for my bigotry) poses a real threat.  It would not take much for small groups of ISIS operatives to infiltrate into Europe and attack major targets.  Of course, Obama would be right there to give them jobs as campaign workers, but that may not do the trick.

February 19, 2015       Permalink

COMING TO A HEAD – AT 8:36 A.M. ET:  The nuclear talks with Iran are supposed to conclude next month with an agreement, but already even the UN is flashing warnings about Iran's behavior.  From AP: 

VIENNA (AP) — The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency is set to report little progress in its attempts to probe allegations that Iran worked on nuclear arms, diplomats said Thursday.

Two diplomats said the agency’s restricted report will likely be released to the UN Security Council and the IAEA’s 35 board member nations Thursday. They demanded anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the report’s contents.

Iran agreed a year ago to work with the IAEA. But — like previous probes — the investigation quickly stalled over Tehran insistence that it never wanted or worked on such weapons.

The IAEA also is expected to report that Iran is honoring commitments to put temporary restraints on its atomic activities as it negotiates on a long-term nuclear deal with the US and five other powers.

COMMENT:  Honoring its current, temporary agreement is insignificant.  What is frightening is that Iran continues to stonewall on the most important question of all – whether it was and is working on nuclear weapons.  Iran wouldn't stonewall if it had nothing to hide.  It clearly has everything to hide.  But will Nuclear-physicist-in-chief Barack Obama actually care?

February 19,  2015     Permalink