Degree of Madness

Maybe if you listen to it backwards...

A middle school football coach in Tennessee was fired recently for writing a song.  Some parents complained, saying the song had "racial overtones":

 

Bryan Glover, an assistant coach at Grassland Middle School near Nashville, co-wrote the country music song, “When You’re Holding a Hammer, Everything Looks Like a Nail.”

It was co-written by a parent who has a child on the team. Glover, 26, said he emailed a copy of the song to friends, family members and player’s parents through his personal email account.

And that’s when all the trouble started for the self-described independent conservative.

“The coach called me and said parents were upset – that I was being politically incorrect and the song had racial overtones,” Glover told FOX News Radio. “An hour and a half later I was told I was being terminated.”

 

Here's the racially overtoned video:

 

Wow. Did you see the head on that hammer? It was BLACK!

Obama to NASA: Make Muslims feel good about themselves

According to NASA's website:  NASA's mission is to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research.

Maybe NASA needs to update its website.  According to NASA administrator Charles Bolden there's a new mission (my emphasis):

When I became the NASA Administrator — before I became the NASA Administrator — [Obama] charged me with three things: One was he wanted me to help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math, he wanted me to expand our international relationships, and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering.

Foremost?  Is this a joke?  Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be:

“NASA is not only a space exploration agency,” Bolden concluded, “but also an earth improvement agency.”

Earth improvement agency.  How a person who could come up with that dopey statement made it to the top of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration is beyond me.  But he gets his orders from the president, the poster child for the Peter Principle.

Maybe Obama thinks the rocket attacks on Israel count as "historic contributions to science".  Maybe Muslims will promise not to fly any more planes into our buildings if we let them play astronaut.

Maybe we'll survive President Barack Hussein Obama.

Obama's answer to the Gulf crisis...

Go file a claim. 

One thing is clear: Bobby Jindal does not need a teleprompter to give you the entire run down on the Federal response to this crisis. 

Click image to The Rightscoop to listen.

 

Mr. President, Do Your Job

Sign, sign, every where a sign:

Napolitano: The Border Is More Secure Than Ever:

(Newser) – Janet Napolitano pushed back against immigration alarmists yesterday, even as she touted the the White House's latest efforts to secure the border. The Obama administration will deploy an unmanned aerial drone in Texas, and allow local police communities to temporarily “deploy” to assist the National Guard along the border, the Washington Post reports. But Napolitano said there was no crisis, asserting that the “border is as secure now as it has ever been," despite the people "looking to score political points" by suggesting otherwise.

Alarmists?  These signs are pretty alarming and the federal government put the damn things up:

The signs read in part:

      "Danger - Public Warning
       Travel not recommended
       -- Active Drug and Human Smuggling Area
       -- Visitors may encounter armed criminals and smuggling 
           vehicles traveling at high rates
       -- Stay away from cash, clothing, backbacks and
           abandoned vehicles
      --  If you see suspicious activity, do not confront!
          Move away and call 911"

Border security in the Obama administration.  KEEP OUT.  Unfortunately they're talking to law abiding American citizens.

Democrats Shredding (the Constitution) for Votes

House ’shreds our constitution for raw, ugly, partisan gain’ by vote of 219-206:

The DISCLOSE Act is the Democrats big legislative “fix” to pushback against the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision that eliminated a number of campaign finance restrictions on first amendment grounds. It just passed the House this afternoon — even with 36 Democrats voting against it.

House Republican Leader John Boehner’s already declaring that the legislation will “Shred Our Constitution for Raw, Ugly, Partisan Gain.” Normally, I’d automatically dissmiss such a press release as hyperbole, but this time I’m not so sure. For one thing, the DISCLOSE Act does this:

A Democratic amendment tucked into campaign finance legislation Wednesday night also drew fire from Republicans and their allies, who contend it gives special treatment to Democrat-allied labor unions. The language in question would exempt from disclosure requirements transfers of cash from dues-funded groups to their affiliates to pay for certain election ads. It was inserted into the bill by Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa.), chairman of the House Administration Committee and a big union backer.

This sleazy bill, in a shameless bargain, already exempted the NRA:

Politico and others are reporting that the NRA has reached a deal to withdraw its opposition to the bill in exchange for an exemption for the NRA from its disclosure provisions. The exemption would apply to “organizations which have qualified as having tax exempt status under section 501(c)(4) of the tax code for each of the 10 years prior to making a campaign-related disbursement, that had 1 million or more dues-paying members in the prior calendar year, that had members in each of the 50 states, that received no more than 15 percent of their total funding from corporations or labor organizations, and that do not use any corporate or union money to pay for their campaign-related expenditures.”

The NRA loophole was expanded to include the Sierra Club, Humane Society and AARP.  Smaller, grassroots organizations will get no such relief:

Under the bill, all groups subject to the law’s requirements would have to list all donors of $600 or more with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Groups must also post a hyperlink on their website to the FEC, where a list of the names of their donors can be accessed.

Furthermore, every time an organization runs a campaign ad, its CEO must appear in the ad and twice state his name and the organization’s name. The top five funders of the organization behind the ad – even if they had nothing to do with the ad’s funding – must also have their names listed in the ad. 

In addition, the most “significant” donor to the organization must list his name, rank, and organization three times in the ad. Critics of the bill say that the disclaimers effectively consume valuable air time bought by these groups that would otherwise be used to inform voters about a candidate’s record.

The bill also effectively silences these organizations.  So the influential, big money political donors get a free ride and the little guy gets a sock in his mouth. 

Fortunately there is some hope for a return to sanity in the Senate:

Senator Mitch McConnell has signalled that Republicans would very strongly oppose the measure. While no Senate Democrats have come out opposing it, 10 of their number refused to co-sponsor the legislation (S 3295), sponsored by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), meaning some might join a GOP filibuster.

The Democrats are going all in to try and hold on to their majority in Congress.  These ridiculous, over-burdensome, unconstitutional  restrictions on free speech are a means to an end and to the Democrats the ends always justify the means. And, not to be outdone in the whatever-it-takes-to-win department, Obama has a plan of his own, guaranteed to bring in the votes:

The Obama administration has been holding behind-the-scenes talks to determine whether the Department of Homeland Security can unilaterally grant legal status on a mass basis to illegal immigrants, a former Bush administration official who spoke with at least three people involved in those talks told FoxNews.com. 

The issue was raised publicly by eight Republican senators who wrote to the White House on Monday to complain that they had heard the administration was readying a "Plan B" in case a comprehensive immigration reform bill cannot win enough support to clear Congress. 

The White House would not confirm or deny the claim. But the former Bush official said the discussions are real.  

"The administration at the very minimum is studying legal ways to legalize people without having to go through any congressional debate about it," the source said, calling the senators' claim credible. "Whether somebody pulls the trigger on that, that's another issue." 

I don't think Obama would hesitate pulling the trigger.  The Democrats need the votes and he needs the Democrats.  As an added bonus, he would no doubt take great pleasure in one-upping Governor Brewer by granting legal status to thousands of illegals in Arizona.

The speech

Stephen Green sums it up nicely:

Well that was mercifully free of content.

...

I keep waiting for somebody else to come on TV, maybe a cabinet member, to read the real speech, the one that tells us… I dunno… stuff.

Have another drink Stephen.  It's gonna be awhile I'm afraid.

Obama's Gulf Speech in One Sentence, Legal Insurrection:

"I don't know where I'm going, but follow me anyway."

And unfortunately many will.  A lady in Frank Luntz's focus group on Hannity's show just blamed the whole mess on GEORGE BUSH.  This one's for her:

Obama's "Oil" Commission

President Obama has appointed a commission to study the causes of the Gulf oil spill and to make recommendations on future drilling:

The group of men and women included academics and environmentalists but did not appear to include anyone from the oil industry.

Here's the list of commission members:

Obama previously named Bob Graham, a former Florida governor and senator, and William K. Reilly, a former Environmental Protection Agency administrator. 

The final five members are:

-Frances Beinecke, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

-Donald Boesch, president of the University of Maryland's Center for Environmental Science.

-Terry Garcia, a National Geographic Society executive.

-Cherry Murray, dean of Harvard's engineering school.

-Frances Ulmer, chancellor of the University of Alaska Anchorage.

No.  It does not appear to include anyone from the oil industry.  You know, someone who might actually know something about the subject matter. 

Obama's economic recovery plan summed up in one word.

Bailouts. 

Simple.  Easy to remember.  No need to leave the golf course, or the fundraiser, or the party.  Just dial it in.

President Obama wants another $50 billion.  According to this Washington Post headline, he's "pleading" for it:

President Obama urged reluctant lawmakers Saturday to quickly approve nearly $50 billion in emergency aid to state and local governments, saying the money is needed to avoid "massive layoffs of teachers, police and firefighters" and to support the still-fragile economic recovery. 

House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer understates the obvious:

"I think there is spending fatigue... It's tough in both houses to get votes."

Spending fatigue?  I'll say.  I don't think Obama is concerned with spending fatigue, however.  His agenda here is clear.  The union controlled public sector must be propped up - to hell with the cost.

Helping out his political comrades is standard operating procedure for Barack Obama.  When the original stimulus bill was being debated the reliably Democratic feminists came calling howling.  Their complaint?  Too much money for the men.  All those "shovel-ready" jobs Obama promised to create are traditionally held by men:

Last November [2008], President-elect Obama addressed the devastation in the construction and manufacturing industries by proposing an ambitious New Deal-like program to rebuild the nation's infrastructure. He called for a two-year "shovel ready" stimulus program to modernize roads, bridges, schools, electrical grids, public transportation, and dams and made reinvigorating the hardest-hit sectors of the economy the goal of the legislation that would become the recovery act.

Women's groups were appalled. Grids? Dams? Opinion pieces immediately appeared in major newspapers with titles like "Where are the New Jobs for Women?" and "The Macho Stimulus Plan." A group of "notable feminist economists" circulated a petition that quickly garnered more than 600 signatures, calling on the president-elect to add projects in health, child care, education, and social services and to "institute apprenticeships" to train women for "at least one third" of the infrastructure jobs. At the same time, more than 1,000 feminist historians signed an open letter urging Obama not to favor a "heavily male-dominated field" like construction: "We need to rebuild not only concrete and steel bridges but also human bridges." As soon as these groups became aware of each other, they formed an anti-stimulus plan action group called WEAVE--
Women's Equality Adds Value to the Economy.

The National Organization for Women (NOW), the Feminist Majority, the Institute for Women's Policy Research, and the National Women's Law Center soon joined the battle against the supposedly sexist bailout of men's jobs. At the suggestion of a staffer to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, NOW president Kim Gandy canvassed for a female equivalent of the "testosterone-laden 'shovel-ready' " terminology. ("Apron-ready" was broached but rejected.) Christina Romer, the highly regarded economist President Obama chose to chair his Council of Economic Advisers, would later say of her entrance on the political stage, "The very first email I got . . . was from a women's group saying 'We don't want this stimulus package to just create jobs for burly men.' "

No matter that those burly men were the ones who had lost most of the jobs. The president-elect's original plan was designed to stop the hemorrhaging in construction and manufacturing while investing in physical infrastructure that is indispensable for long-term economic growth. It was not a grab bag of gender-correct programs, nor was it a macho plan--the whole idea of economic stimulus is to use government spending to put idle factors of production back to work.

Obama didn't disappoint:

...Our incoming president did what many sensible men do when confronted by a chorus of female complaint: He changed his plan. He added health, education, and other human infrastructure components to the proposal. And he tasked Christina Romer and Jared Bernstein, Joseph Biden's chief economist, with preparing an extraordinary report that calculated not only the number of jobs the plan would likely create, but the gender composition of the various employment sectors and the division of largess between women and men.

And where did the money wind up?  From a June 4, 2009, AP story:

Remember the "shovel-ready" projects lined up for all that stimulus money? It turns out social spending, more than construction, is hitting pay dirt in the huge federal effort to turn the economy around.

...

Most of the roughly $300 billion coming directly to the states is being funneled through existing government programs for health care, education, unemployment benefits, food stamps and other social services.

And how was the money supposed to benefit the states?:

John Husing, a Southern California economist, said keeping teachers and police officers employed should help prevent the recession from getting worse. But he said the stimulus package would have improved communities' ability to grow over the long haul if it had dedicated more money to public works.

While billions of dollars eventually will flow to infrastructure projects, Democrats who crafted the package say they directed most of it to existing government programs such as Medicaid and education to prevent state economies from slipping even more. One goal was to help fill state budget gaps, keeping teachers and others employed while strengthening the social safety net.

$300 billion here, $50 billion there.  Pacify the feminists, pacify the unions.  

John Hinderaker:

The original "stimulus" bill was all about keeping state and local government spending, and the salaries it supports, sky-high. It doesn't appear that President Obama has a game plan to help the economy, other than continuing to feed the already-bloated public sector. This is consistent with his apparently complete ignorance of basic principles of economics. Democrats in Congress, however, can see the writing on the wall. It will be interesting to see whether they are willing to brave voter wrath by stimulating the public sector still further.

Bottom line from Ed Morrissey:

This is a $50 billion bailout to Big Labor — the SEIU, AFSCME, and the NEA.

Arizona Governor Is Not Amused

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer takes President Obama to task over his lame joke at the White House Correspondents' Dinner:

Nice job, Governor.

via:  Hot Air

Ray Stevens speaks - and sings - for We The People

Continuing with the "entertainers with more sense than Congress" theme here's a doozy:

Please tell Nancy Pelosi we're gonna do the hokey pokey...Gotta love it. Pelosi isn't listening, of course. Neither is Harry Reid (who stands a good change of losing his Senate seat in November). They are so determined to shove this down our throats they're forcing many of their own members to bail out and retire. Apparently the retiring Dems are too afraid of Pelosi and Reid - and Obama - to do the right thing and listen to their constituents:

Other than the H1N1 virus, the most contagious disease in our nation’s capital is retirement. The more Democrats that quit, the more others are also encouraged to hang it up.

...

The retirement bug is in full rein in DC. The week before Christmas saw three House Democrats from red districts retire (two from Tennessee and one from Kansas) — while a fourth, Parker Griffith of Alabama, became a Republican. With Dodd and Dorgan now leaving, expect blue legislators from red states to start falling ever more quickly. 

...

Seeing Democrats stand up and (in effect) admit defeat is a bit like watching repentant sinners confessing at a revival meeting: One outburst triggers another.

Plus, the specter of Democratic leaders running from having to face their constituents again simply adds to voters’ suspicion that something may be rotten in the party and in its congressional delegation.

For now, though, the Democrats still have the votes.  By the time these sure losers complete their little hit-and-run Obamacare could be the law of the land.  Is there any chance at all this blatant power grab can be stopped?  It would take the "mother of all upsets" to do it:

Politics has often been called the “Art of the Possible.”  We have seen many a strange thing happen in the history of American elections.  But nothing would be more unexpected, or more immediately helpful to the American people, than if Republican State Senator Scott Brown could pull of the mother of all upsets and capture the special election for Ted Kennedy's Senate seat on January 19th.  A Brown victory would deny the Democrats the 60 votes necessary to shove through the takeover of the nation's health care system. 

...

It is also the only opportunity for Americans to have any say what so ever on the pending bill.  Since the White House has weaseled out of its promise of transparency and Congressional leadership is holding the details closer than their ATM pin numbers, Americans can make a statement by helping Scott Brown in this race.  If Brown has the resources to make a competitive media buy in the next two weeks, he could close the gap.  Even if he falls short, the message will be unmistakable and could make other Democrats even more skittish about this albatross of a bill.  Opponents of Obamacare across the country can easily toss a few dollars to Brown via his web site and it is the best way that Americans can actually prevent passage of the bill being crafted behind locked doors at this very moment. [Link to web site added]

A long shot is better than no shot.  More on Scott Brown from Michelle Malkin here and here.

With a "hat tip" to Ray Stevens:  "We Ain't Dead Yet".  Visit raystevens.com and join the cause!