Sit room photos of the Sandy crisis

The White House churns out photos of the president during briefings and other activities in connection with preparations and later the impact and devastation delivered by Hurricane Sandy.

Here's just two:

President Barack Obama receives an update on the ongoing response to Hurricane Sandy, in the Situation Room of the White House, Oct. 29 2012. Participating via teleconference, clockwise from top left, are: Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano; FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate; Rick Knabb, Director of the National Hurricane Center; Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood; and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. Pictured, from left, are: Clark Stevens, Assistant Press Secretary; Emmett Beliveau, Director of the Office of the Chief of Staff; John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism; Richard Reed, Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security; Chuck Donnell, Senior Director for Resilience; Asha Tribble, Senior Director for Response; Chief of Staff Jack Lew; Alyssa Mastromonaco, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations; Press Secretary Jay Carney; and David Agnew, Director for Intergovernmental Affairs. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Barack Obama receives an update from officials via video teleconference on the ongoing response to Hurricane Sandy, in the Situation Room of the White House, Oct. 30, 2012. Pictured, from left, are: John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism; Tony Blinken, National Security Advisor to the Vice President; David Agnew, Director for Intergovernmental Affairs; Alyssa Mastromonaco, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations; and Chief of Staff Jack Lew. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

We've yet to see a Sit Room photo from the night the consulate in Benghazi was attacked. Is it possible a camera wasn't available? Probably not.

Withholding such a photo may have practical political purposes. A photo or photos would reveal who was there, and give guidance who may have not been there. If the White House blew it that night as bad as many of us believe, it seems perfectly natural that it would withhold photos or documents that would provide a "witness list" for those in the media who have taken a true interest in what happened on the evening of September 11, 2012.

Will it last?

Newark Mayor Cory Booker touts model behavior post-hurricane...

From: Twitter

For those who have the time and interest:

Fast and Furious: The Anatomy of a Failed Operation

David Workman offers some analysis at Examiner.com.

Attire to match your cheap Commie classic

Are Russian surplus Mosin Nagant rifles achieving cult status in the U.S.?

How else do you explain all these Mosin-themed t-shirts?

Obama uses storm preps to plug his campaign

"We want to make sure that we are anticipating and leaning forward into making sure that we’ve got the best possible response to what is going to be a big and messy system." - Barack Obama, October 28, 2012

The "Sovietizing" of America

A blogger caught my attention over the weekend.  Francis Porretto at Liberty's Torch wrote the following:

Because our military has suffered a thorough Sovietization. Commanders are no longer evaluated on the basis of their competence as military men and leaders, but on the basis of their "reliability:" that is, their responsiveness to the desires of the political elite. A captain or major who aspires to command rank must never, ever be heard to say a word of criticism against the masters of the regime. A colonel who wants stars on his shoulders knows that he'll be scrutinized so closely that even to nod in response to an "inappropriate" statement of opinion would be death to his prospects. Thus, corruption in our political class becomes spinelessness among our military commanders.

I'm not advocating commanders go off lone-wolf style or be excused to continually babble insubordinate lines, but how Sovietized has our system become?

Porretto's comment reminded me of discussions I had around the holidays last year regarding managers replacing leaders.  American institutions of all types appear obsessed with instilling conformist modern management principles at the expense of those who show real leadership traits.

Meanwhile, the Sovietizing of American life also seems the goal of many of Mr. Obama's efforts.

Just look at that latest executive order. Under guise of cooperation, the White House wants to build channels where it has direct influence not only on local policing, but also influence on other aspects of local government as well as on corporate security.

The pace of such things seems to be accelerating.

Burglars take note:

A "vote Democrat" sign in the front yard is not a fool proof indicator that the person who lives there is unarmed or a fan of gun control.

The Dallas Morning News reports three burglars there learned that lesson the had way.

The word "racist" no longer holds any sting

The Left apparently realizes overuse has ruined the good thing it had going when it called political adversaries racist.  So what does it do?

The Left scrambles for an alternative term that may still carry some of the sway racist used to have in its attempts at invoking so-called white guilt.

Need an example?  The Confederacy surfaced in this morning's discussion on ABC's This Week.


H/T: Pat Dollard

Another new Obama executive order

A new executive order from President Barack Obama reads like a vehicle to further co-opt local law enforcement and other local government and private entities. The order appears to create a council that finds excuses to funnel more federal money and White House influence into local entities.

And you can bet the money and alliances will come with strings that will seek to bend your formerly local police or sheriffs, the stores where you shop, or the places where you work into something more in line with the political will of the White House.

The Executive Order -- Establishing the White House Homeland Security Partnership Council says, in part:

Sec. 2. White House Homeland Security Partnership Council and Steering Committee.

(a) White House Homeland Security Partnership Council. There is established a White House Homeland Security Partnership Council (Council) to foster local partnerships -- between the Federal Government and the private sector, nongovernmental organizations, foundations, community-based organizations, and State, local, tribal, and territorial government and law enforcement -- to address homeland security challenges. The Council shall be chaired by the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism (Chair), or a designee from the National Security Staff.

The White House wants a mechanism for a direct role in planning and implementing domestic security. It takes a lot of nerve for the White House to do this now.

The State Department has a partnership with the White House to keep our diplomats safe overseas. Both failed to protect our ambassador in Libya, and abandoned the ambassador and those who dared try to rescue him when they came under attack in Benghazi.

The White House didn't fulfill a security obligation it already has. Yet the president wants more influence in how we police and otherwise protect our cities and local neighborhoods.

Is anyone foolish enough to fall for this?

Why is it...

We don't seem to have enough Marines deployed to keep our ambassadors safe...

But the government is sending Marines to do role-playing in a mock zombie invasion in California.

If you ever thought government has a hard time sorting reality from fantasy, there ya go.

Another creepy Obama campaign theme

In light of what happened to Ambassador Stevens and those Navy Seals in Benghazi, I suggest this Obama campaign theme is, at the very least, in extremely poor taste. Obama should have had their backs. But he left them to die without lifting a finger. And then flew to Vegas for a fundraiser, apparently without regret.

From: BarackObama.com

No more happy hopey-changey kids

This year's PR attempt at an Obama youth choir looks like a bunch of sad little zombies. And the propaganda themes in their attempt at a song also have a sick-twisted feel.

First saw this at The Right Scoop:



Maybe they'd be happier if Michelle Obama gave back their old school lunch menus.

It's no wonder many Americans have no clue what happened in Benghazi

The media is too busy feeding 'em stuff it pretends is more important.

From MRC:



H/T: NoisyRoom

Does Germany fret the authenticity of its gold reserves?

Germany wants its gold shipped home. Seeks to test its authenticity.

Buyer beware

Australia's Channel 7 reports China forgery factories are cranking out fake gold.

Don's take on Benghazi: Treason

Don and I discussed the latest revelations in the Benghazi consulate attack this afternoon. As Don sees it, the government put people into harm's way. And abandoned them when they called for help. Was it cowardice or treason on the part of the decision makers?

A key clip from today's show

Don's bio from our TalkSouthRadio site:

Don Dickinson is a retired US Army Colonel of Infantry, a retired businessman, and a retired educator. He has seen the world, read its history, killed our enemies, and connected many of the decisive dots woven into the fabric of reality. He believes that America is in deep trouble but the way out of our perilous times is to rediscover the best ideas and ways of thinking that got us to the pinnacle of American greatness. We have been badly deceived and it is time to take off the blinders of nice and get on with the values, critical thinking, and true knowledge that will restore American greatness.

We spent a good chunk of today's show assessing the Benghazi mess. The entire October 26th program is available as an On-Demand offering at TalkSouthRadio.com.

Report: Potential responders watched the Benghazi attack go down

Someone ordered them to look the other way.

May God bless the souls of those who ignored orders and responded to aid Americans in peril rather than let evil go unchallenged.

The actions of this administration appear more callous and perhaps treasonous as additional details come forward.

A shift in priorities?

Are folks waking up? Dumping their toys, hoping to exchange some of them for firepower?

Here's an example of a classified at Armslist.com:

I have a kindle fire a nice set of ping golf clubs with Taylor made rocket balls driver it alone was 300 also have 19 inch insignia flat screen Tv with built in Dvd player trade all for pistol.

The golf clubs may have some staying power. But a good pistol will likely remain in service, and appreciate in value long after those other items are worn out or obsolete junk.

Coming up at 1 o'clock with "Don and Doug":

The latest on Benghazi. But don't get tunnel vision. There were other attacks on U.S. assets that week. Remember Camp Bastion? Did you even hear about the New Mexico National Guard under fire in the Sinai?

If you think Obama's Forward campaign theme was borrowed from the Communists, have you seen what his campaign just borrowed from Vladimir Putin?

And is Sandy the Frankenstorm really the threat the media says it is? Whether it is or isn't, will it be used as an excuse to bump information detrimental to the president from next week's newscasts in the final stretch before the election?

Today's (October 26th) show goes live at 1:00 pm ET at TalkSouthRadio.com. Or just click here for direct access to the show.

We knew Obama was out of ideas...

But did we think we'd see Obama's campaign stoop to borrowing ad ideas from Vladimir Putin?

Take a peek. 

Good stuff

I had a leaky gas tank that needed a quick fix. This stuff called Seal-All seems to work.

I came across an old Powermate generator that hadn't been used in years, had the carburetor rebuilt and gave it a test. Generator, powered by a 1994 Briggs and Stratton engine, ran fine but after about 20 minutes, a very slow gas leak or leaks appeared at the bottom of the gas tank under where a support brace had been welded on.

After I did an Internet search for a replacement without much luck, I thought I'd look for a repair option. Several positive reviews for Seal-All showed up online, so I picked up a tube at an auto parts store. I applied it to the tank around the edges of the welded bracket. A couple hours later, I refilled the tank and gave the generator another run.

No leaks. I usually don't let gasoline sit in a generator, but I've let this one sit with gas in the tank for a week now. The repair still holds.

Yes, I'll keep looking for a replacement tank. Exact fit or one that can be modified. But until then, Seal-All appears to be solid stop gap fix.

Indonesian prince? Kenyan royalty?

As a child, young Barry Obama seemed to indulge in some high fantasy as he described himself to  classmates in Hawaii. One of his former classmates, Kristen Caldwell, was recently interviewed by the PBS news show Frontline:

So yeah, I can picture him as this slightly -- "chubby" is too strong, but rounded, short little guy, Barry Obama. And he told us that his father was an Indonesian king and that he was a prince, and after he finished school he was going to go back, and he would be a ruler in Indonesia. And I absolutely believed him. 

I understand that he told his fifth-grade class that he was Kenyan royalty, but I never heard that story until years later. My sister and I remember very clearly that he was an Indonesian prince and that he would be going back there. So there was some reference to where he had come from, and the understanding was his family was there.

How much of today's known Obama narrative continues to be fantasy based? Why not cut some records loose that might help us sort fact from fantasy?

Clint Eastwood's back

No chair this time. Just Clint with some straight talk. Says America can't survive another Obama term.

New, selective EMP type weapon

Boeing appears to be developing a new missile that looks and sounds a lot like as an easily deployable, targeted EMP or similar type weapon.  From Boeing's press release:

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah, Oct. 22, 2012 -- A recent weapons flight test in the Utah desert may change future warfare after the missile successfully defeated electronic targets with little to no collateral damage. 

Image courtesy: Boeing

Boeing [NYSE: BA] and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Directed Energy Directorate, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., successfully tested the Counter-electronics High-powered Microwave Advanced Missile Project (CHAMP) during a flight over the Utah Test and Training Range that was monitored from Hill Air Force Base. 

CHAMP, which renders electronic targets useless, is a non-kinetic alternative to traditional explosive weapons that use the energy of motion to defeat a target. 

During the test, the CHAMP missile navigated a pre-programmed flight plan and emitted bursts of high-powered energy, effectively knocking out the target's data and electronic subsystems. CHAMP allows for selective high-frequency radio wave strikes against numerous targets during a single mission. 

"This technology marks a new era in modern-day warfare," said Keith Coleman, CHAMP program manager for Boeing Phantom Works. "In the near future, this technology may be used to render an enemy’s electronic and data systems useless even before the first troops or aircraft arrive." 

CHAMP is a multiyear, joint capability technology demonstration that includes ground and flight tests.

Boeing has a video presentation available here.

Smaller, lighter, cheaper

That seems to be the motto behind the manufacture of almost any product these days.

I bought some paint the other day. The store threw in a free key to open the cans when I got home.

The new key (bottom) is a bit shorter and a lot lighter than the old key they gave me when I bought some paint a few years back.

I don't mind it being smaller or lighter as long as it works. But it does seem to be another example of production skimping in an attempt to remain viable in slow economic times. And I'd almost bet the retailer is paying the same (or more) for the smaller key as it did for yesteryear's beefier version.

Motorhome blues

Our intrepid 1984 motor home needs a new carburetor.

I can buy a rebuilt one online for about $225 including shipping. Or I can go to a retail store and pay $400 and up.

One brick and mortar retailer is asking $400 for a rebuild that comes from the same company that advertises it will sell me one direct for around $250.

And don't expect to find many savvy rebuilders locally.  A carburetor is old school technology. You might as well ask about rebuilding a steam locomotive when you ask most of today's auto shops about rebuilding a carburetor.

After we get the carberator squared away, it looks like the rear brakes may need some attention. For now, the coach remains parked. Little more than a storage shed with wheels.

The truth about bailouts

Nigel Farage, a member of the European Parliament, sums up the effect of bailouts on the nation states of Europe.



But the European examples doesn't stand alone. Our federal government also expects increased influence when it promises to bail out local and state governments. When guys like Barack Obama tell you they want to help your community hire more teachers, police or firefighters, you have to know there are plenty of strings attached.

Same's true when the feds bailout businesses. Just look at the way General Motors suffers along with the Chevy Volt. Not because of market forces, but largely because of government demands.

Yesterday's castoffs may be tomorrow's dinner

Have you ever found expired good on grocery shelves? Such finds would  be a prized discovery for destitute shoppers in Greece. Kitchen Daily takes note:

In response to its ongoing recession, the Greek government is asking retailers to discount expired food. Greece's food safety board will extend final sell-by dates by as many as three months past the dates determined by the foods' manufacturers in order to help its citizens save money on food.

On the plus side, people should realize that "best by" dates on many foods packaged for long term storage are conservative estimates.  If you find a slightly expired can of soup or beans in the back your pantry, it never hurts to at least inspect the contents before choosing to toss it.

Paul Ryan on homeschooling

Sounds like a straight forward endorsement.

The imperial presidency

Eric Cantor and the GOP take clear aim at how Obama's running the country. A report they issued on Tuesday starts off like this:

Over the past several months opinion pieces appearing in such places as The Washington Post, National Review, and The Wall Street Journal have talked about the emergence of an “Imperial Presidency.” While some may wish to simply chalk this up to partisan criticism of the incumbent President, even The New York Times in a recent A1 article examined “an increasingly deliberate pattern by the administration to circumvent lawmakers…” 

Less noticed, but perhaps even more important – especially to the over 20 million Americans currently out of work or underemployed – is the link between a breakdown in the rule of law and reduced economic growth and individual prosperity.

Plenty more to read at the link. But if you're in a hurry...

TheHill.com's summation can be found here.  Newsmax also has a tell of the story here.

Snapshots of an unraveling America

From Camden, New Jersey.

Why did Obama pretend not to know?

Newsweek on the Benghazi attack:

The State Department, monitoring the phone calls from the consulate’s operations center, knew virtually from the first minutes, as Ubben, Stevens, and Smith were hiding, that the attack on the consulate was no protest gone astray. And when a major CIA outpost nearby came under attack hours later, there was little doubt about that being an operation by well-trained terrorists. 

Notice anything odd about this poster?

Daniel Hannan does, and he blogs about it:

You thought the whole 'EUSSR' thing was over the top?

At least one European army now trains for post-collapse scenarios

Saw this at the EU Observer:

BRUSSELS - The Swiss army is preparing for possible internal civil unrest as well as waves of refugees from euro-countries as the economic crisis drags on. 

Switzerland, a non-EU, non-euro country landlocked between eurozone states, last month launched a military exercise to test its preparedness to deal with refugees and civil unrest.

There's more at the link.

Annie Oakley in her later years

"Annie Oakley, with gun Buffalo Bill gave her"

From the New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection, Library of Congress.

Long after her formal retirement from the traveling exhibition circuit, Annie Oakley took part in a charity benefit program in 1922 in Long Island, New York. This photo was presumably taken at that event, and would have been taken about a month before her 62nd birthday.

Self defense shooting

I'm not a fan of shooting through doors. But in this case, it seems clear the shooter knew she and a home invader were the only two in the house...

The shooter was a 12-year-old girl, who fortunately had access to a firearm to defend herself.

Mower inflation and modification

I had a part break this summer on the engine of my much used riding lawn mower. I bought the mower five years ago for around $700. Because the engine's maker ceased production in 2008 and the company's changed hands, a key part I need is no longer widely available.  After scouting parts the past couple months, it looked like it would run about $325 plus labor to put the engine back in service.

So, I went to price mowers the other day. One comparable to mine now runs around $975 at big box retailers.

Long story short,  I've found a new replacement engine that will work for $375. Looks like I'm going to go the engine-swap route. And I can probably do the swap myself. If I get another five years service out of the unit, I'll be happy.

Coming up today at 1 o'clock:

Barack Obama and Mitt Romney poked fun at each other at a charity dinner last night. Is there any comfort in seeing our presidential candidates swap jokes as America hurtles toward the fiscal cliff?

More voices express concern over the insanity of U.S. policy in Afghanistan.

And have you noticed how Mr. Obama has warmed over his Fast and Furious playbook to deflect inquires about Benghazi? We told you this would happen.

Don and I kick off today's show at 1:00 pm ET today on TalkSouthRadio.com. You can access the program directly by clicking here.

Just a little too cozy

Yes, there are some funny lines. But as Governor Romney and President Obama trade barbs at Thursday night's Al Smith dinner, it strikes me the two sides are just a little too cozy.

Maybe it's not so much that our political parties are all that different. Maybe it's just the branding of them makes it appear so. And each side does seem to love having the other to play off of.

I kind of felt like I was watching a couple of Neros fiddling as America crumbles.

C-SPAN has video of the event. After introductions, Mr.Romney speaks first. Mr. Obama follows.




updated 10/19/2012 12:30am

The election won't fix this...

Karl Denninger writes:

There is a mathematically-certain collapse in our funding and economic model in the offing and we are now at the point where the actions we have left available to us can only change the outcome from catastrophic to "big suck", but cannot avoid the inevitable and ugly adjustment that must be taken.

Are you among those still in denial?

Scavengers are coming earlier

My neighbor and I put some metal items on the curb last night in advance of today's trash pick-up.

All the metal stuff was gone before the sun was up.

Competition among the curbside prospectors appears to be escalating.

Update: It's nearly 10:30 am, and another scavenger's pick-up just made a slow pass checking things out. That's four vehicles I've seen since eight o'clock with drivers obviously looking for curbside cast-offs.

If there was economic recovery, would the frequency of curbside trash day scavenging be picking up?

Muslims push to censor online content

Looks like a Google had some visitors over the weekend. The The Telegraph reported on Sunday:

A protest by 10,000 Muslims outside the offices of Google in London today is just the first in an orchestrated attempt to force the company to remove an anti-Islamic film from website YouTube in Britain. 

Thousands had travelled from as far afield as Glasgow to take part in the demonstration, ahead of a planned million-strong march in Hyde Park in coming weeks...

Obama's hometown is a war zone

As of late morning Sunday (October 14), the Chicago Sun Times reports the Windy City weekend casualty count at five dead, 25 wounded.

Benghazi attack looks worse as the days drag on

Daniel Greenfield writes at FrontPage:

The Islamist militia that Obama turned to in order to provide security to the Benghazi consulate was affiliated with the Islamist militia that would attack the consulate. The thin red line between the moderate Islamists trying to enforce Islamic law with AK-47s and the Islamic extremists trying to enforce Islamic law with AK-47s proved to be both very thin and very red.

More women shooters of the past

The Tarleton State University (Texas) Rifle Teams of 1923 and 1936

The Universty of South Dakota at Vermilion, 1927

Minneapolis Park Board girls rifle team

Coming up later today, October 12:

On today's Don and Doug, we assess the vice presidential debate. No DC spin. Our perspective is strictly from outside the beltway.

The mainstream media continues to go soft on the Benghazi attack. But what do you expect? Most of 'em only yawned over Fast and Furious. 

And I went through three sets of lawn mower blades this year. Am I getting rougher on my gear? Did a grow a better crop of rocks this year? Or are the blades being made with softer, cheaper steel? I've also been doing some online shopping, and seem to see evidence of inflation that's far more severe than shows up in federal surveys.

Join Don  and Doug for live talk Friday at 1:00pm EDT at TalkSouthRadio.com or access program audio directly by clicking here. 

If you like to tinker...

Harbor Freight is putting a cheap 800 watt generator on sale this weekend for $79.

Read the reviews. It sounds like a crap shoot regarding QC. And it's an itty-bitty thing. Don't expect it to drive big power tools or appliances.

But with a little patience, and some hands-on refinements, some reviewers say they've received (or achieved) a unit that'll give some basic light, power a TV or keep the electric motor running on a gas powered furnace during a power outage.

I have no experience with this unit.  But I gotta say, for less than the price of taking the family to dinner at Longhorn, it looks tempting.  And no, I'm not compensated for this mention.

Sprucing things up before winter and "fiscal cliff"

Not a lot of time spent posting the past week. The next few may be light as well.

You've heard of spring cleaning. Well, I've embarked on a bout of fall reorganization.

Among the things that have me otherwise occupied: I'm going through household items and things like hand tools, and taking stock. Which items can I surplus to regain space. Which items need some TLC. Which are candidates for replacement.

One night's tasks was to inspect and clean my socket wrench sets and some other hand tools.  I seem to have acquired a bunch of them over the years. Sometimes buying new, at other times picking up other's cast offs. Amazingly, among my best socket sets is one I bought in the late '70s to carry in an MG Midget I was driving back then. It appears that set is USA made genuine stainless steel. Some of the more recent acquisitions were chromed and made in China, and they're been prone to growing patches of rust if not maintained from time to time.

This year's reorganization binge is a little more thorough than most. In addition to being prepped for severe weather that winter might bring, we also have a fiscal cliff forecast for January 1. What are the chances financial burps could lead to hiccups in retail inventories? I figure it's best to target any shortcomings or needs now, and maybe stock ahead a few more everyday supplies.

Just in case.

Credit card campaign donations. Is it time to tighten things?

From Chris Muir's Day by Day Cartoon:

Barack Obama's not the only candidate who has online fundraising that's short on security features. Lots more information, and an interactive map are available at a watchdog group's new website.

I'm seeing Republicans as well as Democrats showing up in the red on the site's interactive congressional map.  Does your congressman use online fraud protection? According to the map, mine doesn't.

Obamacare killing full time jobs

I noticed the trend beginning soon after Obamacare was passed. Companies began trimming their work forces to reduce exposure to health insurance coverage mandates. I knew several people who either got bumped back to a lesser position or even laid off as a result.

Now a national restaurant chain has gone on record. Darden restaurants, the folks who run Red Lobster and the Olive Garden says it's experimenting with shifting more workers to part time.

No protest after all

Reports indicate a reversal in claims by the Obama administration regarding the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. New version of events: No protest preceded the deadly attack.

Scavenger nation

I put some stuff on the curb this evening in advance of Monday trash pick-up. A couple of old vacuum cleaners disappeared between my leaving them there and my next trip down with more stuff.

As night fell, I put out some old, inoperable florescent light fixtures, along with a couple of non-working space heaters and some old power tools. Even as I was putting them on the curb, a car stopped and backed up.

A woman got out. Said she'd seen the stuff by the road when she drove her son to Bible study, and she made a point to swing back by. I helped her load the back of her SUV. Every little bit helps these days, she said.

I've seen suburban moms cruise for curbside castoffs before. Old guys in pick-up trucks too. Some trash day mornings, I keep watch and keep count how many cars or trucks make a pass though my neighborhood looking for something to salvage. At least two, sometimes four vehicles make the rounds most collection days.

If you'd told me five years ago that curbside scavenging would become such a common occurrence, I'd have had a hard time believing you.

"Voices without a vote"

For those still having trouble realizing how important this election is...

 

Are Military Police on the streets of Columbia, SC tonight?

If this report is accurate, the answer would be yes.

Are the lines between the military and civilian law enforcement are being blurred?

Updated 8:50 am Oct. 7, 2012:

Noted in the TV reporter's closing comments, the MPs will be used to process any off duty military personnel who are arrested. That seems to bring things down a notch or two.


wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina |

Prioritizing threats

I've seen this captioned photo posted on Facebook and some progressive blogs. The Left appears to be deeply offended that Mitt Romney threatened Big Bird.

Since the debate, President Obama has made it clear, he'd save Big Bird.

All I can say is, too bad Mr. Obama, Hillary Clinton, and the rest of the O team didn't show this kind of concern for the safety of Ambassador Stevens and others denied adequate security at the consulate in Benghazi.

The administration makes some poor choices when it comes to prioritizing threats. And choosing who gets a bigger safety net.

Another girls' rifle team

This rifle team is from Drexel Institute. Judging by their attire, the photo appears to date from the early to mid 1920s.

National Photo Company Collection/Library of Congress

The New Yorker strikes again

Have you seen the latest cover?

Do you remember this infamous cover from 2008?

Gun sales still strong

September FBI background checks were down a bit compared to previous months. But a business analyst sees more room on the upside for the firearms biz, and specifically for gun maker Smith and Wesson:

Analyst Mike Greene with The Benchmark Company cites three factors behind continue growth in gun sales:

The first is political buying. Before the election, people are buying because they think that, if re-elected, President Obama might go after more firearms regulation. 

The second is economic... with the "anarchy trade" people are thinking crime rates might go up in a poor economy. 

But the third thing we think is very important is the growing social acceptance of firearms use for both personal defense and recreational purposes. One of the biggest ways we've seen this is in female firearms ownership. It's been up significantly over the past couple of years.

Later today with "Don and Doug"

The presidential debate has already been hashed and rehashed, but Don and I will chime in with a few additional thoughts. It's interesting to note what sore losers the Democrats have been. And how their pundits have been visibly shaken.

Doesn't matter who wins in November, thinking folks are starting to make final preps for the fiscal cliff.

And are gun sales finally slowing? Or do September figures just reflect a pre-Christmas lull?

Don and I go live at 1:00 pm EDT at TalkSouthRadio.com.

You can also access the show directly by clicking here.

"Not up for debate"

From Day by Day Cartoon:

Tactical zombie target?

Do people really buy stuff like this? The ad says this tactical zombie target will bleed where hit.

I find it hard to believe this zombie would hold up under a lot of shooting practice. Especially if peppered with high power or hollow point rounds. And eighty bucks is a bit steep for a disposable target. 

Seems to me, if you shoot outdoors, go for a steel target that'll last a life-time (or at least a year or two). Or use tin cans like we did as kids. If you're shooting at an indoor (or even an outdoor) commercial range, you're probably stuck with paper only options anyway.

Before blowing eighty bucks on a zombie that'll presumably be worthless after one trip to the range, I'd suggest targeting a cheaper target. And plow the difference in price into more ammo or more post-shooting cleaning supplies. 

Democrats spin last night's debate. Or at least they try...

Last night, Democrats saw a mean Mitt Romney who didn't let the poor President Obama get a single word in. At least that's apparently what they want you to believe.

Or maybe it's that Obama's performance was so bad, the Democratic Party wants you to forget every word Obama said.

I guess Obama really did blow it

Even Bill Maher is dissing the president's debate performance big time.

Gun banners to exclude opposing viewpoint at event. Do invited media participants endorse this move?

When advocates for more gun control and select members of the media gather in San Francisco later this month, those holding a Constitutionally protected pro-gun position based on the Second Amendment will apparently be denied admittance.

One Second Amendment advocate has already had his ticket money refunded and been told he's not welcome at the upcoming program sponsored in part by the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Details are reported at the No Lawyers - Only Guns and Money blog.

It's interesting that an event held on a publicly owned college campus with free admission to students and faculty, and paid admission available to others, reserves the right to refuse admission to anyone the organizers' choose to exclude.

Appears to me, it's the First Amendment as well as the Second Amendment that's under fire here.

Do the journalists on the panel advocate for censorship as well as gun control? Do the news organisations that employ these journalists understand the biased and exclusionary nature of the forum their personnel are participating in?

More school lunch insanity

A school system in Florida considers using video surveillance to monitor which students dare dump the veggies Mrs. Obama and the USDA mandate being served.

Benghazi update

When word of the attack on the Benghazi attack reached Washington, President Obama and his key advisers apparently shrugged.

According to the Wall Street Journal, a deliberate decision was made to let the Libyans handle the situation.

The president who deployed U.S. air power to "liberate" Libya from Gaddafi failed to use nearby U.S. air power in a show of force that might have aided consulate personnel under siege or in retreat.

Photos of and related to the Camp Bastion attack

Along with a larger warning. From Michael Yon. Be sure to read both pages.

USDA wants at-home re-education to help quell school lunch resistance

The new school lunches inspired and directed by Mrs. Obama are so bad, kids are dumping the food and either going hungry or students bring their own edible substitutes. At the very least, kids are steering to older favorites still on the menu, if and when available.

The USDA, the government agency that oversees school lunches, sees there's a problem.

But in the eyes of the USDA, the problem isn't necessarily with the lunches, it's with the re-education process. The USDA advises  parents to do more to help mold their kids to the will of the state:

We recommend reviewing school menus with kids at home and working to incorporate foods that are being served at school into family meals as much as possible. In many schools, parents are working through their Parent-Teacher Associations to take a lead role in helping kids adjust.

The USDA now wants parents to force feed the same kind of stuff at home that their kids won't eat at school. Market place rules don't apply here. The government wants dietary submission at school - and now at home.

Healthier eating is a good idea. But cramming the idea down kids throats as a government mandate isn't going to make anything better.

Non-Citizens on Food Stamps

The number of non-citizens on Food Stamps has quadrupled since 2001, as illustrated by this graph from Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee:

Imprinting and the public's political mindset

Did you see the recent post by radio talk show host Brian Wilson over at Lew Rockwell.com?
Wilson sees signs way too many voters have already been locked-in, with their minds already imprinted to vote Obama.

The Romney campaign reassures us with the notion that its non-stop carpet bombing of campaign commercials in October will change the outcome. I wish they were right, but fear they are not. By that point the "imprinting" will have already been complete, and the effect of the Left getting into the public’s mind first with brilliantly propagandistic emotionally charged advertisements, and the "persuasion" will be complete. 

I think Wilson's on to something with the imprinting. I've had several people open up on me with opinions about how wrong Romney is on many things (though they usually can't get beyond a line or two with alleged specifics).

Star Trek: The Next Generation, a TV series of 25 years ago, tried to warn us of this. At the time, most viewers dismissed as wild fiction the idea of intelligent people being assimilated into the Borg. But we are indeed seeing people's minds being politically imprinted in a similar fashion, and they seem to be unable to think for themselves once they succumb.

Same thing happened in Nazi Germany. Or in the sacrifice centric cultures of Mesoamerica.

A thinking people with the ability to use logic should be able to see the dangers of such group-think. But once group-think and imprinting takes over, logic is lost.

Some holes and questions in the Fast and Furious report

"We found, as we outlined in the report, we struggled to understand how an operation of this size of this importance, that impacted another country like it did, could not have been briefed up to the attorney general of the United States,”  Inspector General Michael Horowitz, U.S. Department of Justice, regarding Operation Fast and Furious.

Here's video of Horowitz giving testimony about the the OIG Fast and Furious report as published by the Government Oversight Committee of the House of  Representatives on September 20th. The committee session begins about 8:32 in, the comment cited above comes at 1:27:00:



Also included in Horowitz's testimony were comments (beginning at 0:37:24) explaining that parties from the White House and the Department of Homeland Security declined requested interviews to provide a more complete investigation.

Lots of holes here. And apparently not a lot of intellectual curiosity by the American public. The video here has only had around 600 views since it was posted on YouTube last month. Shorter clips have also generated similar low levels of viewership.

What's happened to military ballot requests?

The Military Voter Protection Project reports:

The absentee ballot data for 2012 paints a bleak picture for military voters. 

While the MOVE Act should have increased opportunities for military members to register and request an absentee ballot, the 2012 pre-election data shows a remarkable decrease in such requests from military voters, especially when that data is compared to data from 2008. 

Take, for example, the low number of absentee ballots that have been requested thus far in Virginia, North Carolina,and Ohio. Of the 126,251 active duty military members and spouses in Virginia, only 1,746 have requested absentee ballots for the November election. Similarly, in North Carolina and Ohio, less than 2,000 absentee military ballots have been requested by military members and their spouses in those states. Overall, in these three states, less than 2 percent of eligible military voters (5,411 out of 288,961) have requested absentee ballots.Data from other states, while not as extreme, still raises significant concerns. 

Thee fact is that an incredibly small percentage of military voters are requesting absentee ballots for the 2012 election, even though a majority of military members (roughly, two-thirds) will need to vote by absentee ballot.

The MVPP report appears to have been released in late August, and received only limited media coverage in September.

Is it reasonable to believe a wave of voter apathy has swept through our deployed military?

What other factors may be at work?

"Enemy of the American people"

"The press’s job is to stand in the ramparts and protect the liberty and freedom of all of us from a government and from organized governmental power.  When they desert those ramparts and decide that they will now become active participants, that their job is not simply to tell you who you may vote for, and who you may not, but, worse—and this is the danger of the last two weeks—what truth that you may know, as an American, and what truth you are not allowed to know, they have, then, made themselves a fundamental threat to the democracy, and, in my opinion, made themselves the enemy of the American people.  And it is a threat to the very future of this country if that—we allow this stuff to go on." - Pat Caddell, Democratic pollster and Fox News contributor, speaking at an Accuracy in Media conference