More on ClimateGate

The following is a link to Peter Ferrarra's article in the American Spectator that discusses what the effects of the leaked CRU emails really is. It provides insight into the scam that is AGW.

• The Great Hoax - American Spectator

And another article on the subject from Patrick Michael's who is one of the scientists who was getting snubbed by the proponets of AGW.

• How To Manufacture a Climate Crisis - WSJ

Copen-Chrock-en

Can someone explain to me why the American press is hardly talking about the climate conference in Copenhagen? Or Climategate? Every article I find is from the UK.

• Putting Our Economy in the Hands of Chavez Fans - UK Herald Sun
• Climategate Goes SERIEL - UK Telegraph
• Worst Scientific Scandal of Our Generation - UK Telegraph
• Clinton Backs $100 billion Climate Fund - UK Guardian
• Buch of Buffoons - UK Telegraph
• Obama's Speech Disappoints - UK Guardian

Climate Change

The level of hypocrisy here is astounding:

• Morning Bell: Climate Change Comedy - Heritage Foundation
• 1200 Limos, 140 Private Planes - UK Telegraph
• Denmarks Warm and Fuzzy Facts - NY Post

In other news:

• UN Climate Chief: Hacked E-mails Don't Look Good - MyWays

More Hypocrisy Over ClimateGate

I did a search yesterday on the major news websites for mention of the doctored climate data from East Anglia. The results were not surprising. CNN, ABC, and CBS came up with 0 hits. Surprisingly, I got one hit from MSNBC. I saw this article this morning that confirms the mainstream media is not covering this scandal.

• MSM Leaves it to John Stewart to Cover Climate-gate - FoxNew

And in other related news:

• Controversy Nows Snags NASA - Washington Times
• Boxer Wants to Prosecute the 'Hackers' - TheHill
• Some of the Emails - WattsUpWithThat
• Rep Issa: WH Not Investigating 'Climate-gate' Unconscionable - TheHill
  

And I found this interesting as well. In the first article above, there is a link at the bottom to YouTube where you can see the segment of the Daily Show they are referencing. The only problem is that when you click on it, you get the following message:

So it was taken off the air because Viacom claims copyright infringement. Atleast, that is what I assume "This video is longer available due to a copyright claim by Viacom" means. Yet when I did a search of "jon stewart daily show" on YouTube, it came up with 2,040 hits. What a joke. Here's a look at the results of both.

More on ClimateGate

These guys are unbelievable. Not even exposing them as a fraud will stop them. It appears that the UN is standing by its data even after 1 of the 4 sources it uses for its IPCC report has been shown to be fraudulent. I think my favorite line from this article is where he is giving advice to the fraud's at East Anglia, basically, if you are going to lie, don't be so obvious about it:

Pachauri said it was not clear whether the wording of the emails reflected the scientists' intended actions, but said: "I really think people should be discreet … in this day and age anything you write, even privately, could become public and to put anything down in writing is, to say the least, indiscreet … It is another matter to talk about this to your friends on the telephone or person to person but to put it down in writing was indiscreet. If someone was to say something like this in an IPCC authors' meeting then there are others who would chew him up."

All the more shocking considering the news gets bleaker and bleaker for East Anglia CRU's credibility. Thankfully the UK media is hammering this story, but there is no mention of it here in America. The CRU has finally admitting to dumping data. Not good considering they are the "leading" center on climate research.

The CRU is the world’s leading centre for reconstructing past climate and temperatures. Climate change sceptics have long been keen to examine exactly how its data were compiled. That is now impossible.

Here is a great example of how the American media covers this. Note how they make no mention of the CRU. To their shame all of the comments seem to realize the truth. Its no wonder nobody reads the newspapers anymore.



Other articles:

• Do Hacked Emails Show Global Warming Fraud? - HotAir
• Climate Cult Con is Hard to 'Bear' - NYPost
• Despite Research Dispute, WH Says Climate Change Still Happening - Hill.com
• Taking the Private Jet to Copenhagen - UK Times Online
• Global Warming Scandal Makes Scientific Progress More Difficult - FoxNews
  

ClimateGate

Sometimes the truth is ellusive. So it goes with the debate over man-made global warming. For the past decade now we have heard the Al Gore's and James Hanson's of the world tell us that man is responsible for global warming and we hve to stop burning fossil fuels now or the world will be destroyed.

Opponents have been silenced with the mantra that there is a "consensus" of scientists who believe warming is man-made. The only problem is that consensus has no place in "science." Science is about investigating the real world and seeing what the empirical data tells you. I do recall there was scientific consensus at one point in time that the earth was flat. Or that the Sun revolved around the earth. Consensus in science means absolutely nothing.

Now it appears someone has hacked into East Anglia's Climate Research Unit computers and leaked some classified information. I cannot say I support the method used to obtain the documents, nevertheless, the cat is now out of the bag.

• The Final Nail In AGW's Coffin? - UK Telegraph
• Inhofe's Press Blog - Environment & Public Works
• Hiding Evidence of Global Cooling - Washington Times

In light of the fact that its obvious the data doesn't support global warming, it makes these articles that much more comical:

• World On Course For Catastrophic 6° Rise, Scientists Say - UK Independent
• Obama 'Step Closer' to Climate Deal - Breitbart

No One Wants Congress' Health Care

Despite the fact that the latest polls show plummeting support for the President's health care plan, I'm sure Congress will continue to strong arm the thing through.

• Only 38% Now Support Health Care Reform - Rasmussen

Knowing that, it makes comments like this all the more comical:

“In the end, I don’t want four Democratic senators dictating to the other 56 of us and to the country, when the public option has this much support, that it’s not going to be in it,” said Sherrod Brown of Ohio on Sunday on CNN.

You can read the full article here. And as the health care debate rages on, nearly 1 in 5 Americans is out of work or under-employed says this CNBC article.

The Senate's Turn at Health Care

And we thought the 1,990 page House version was bad? Now we have a 2,000+ page Senate behemoth to deal with. There is a reason the bill is so long, its filled with garbage that has nothing to do with healthcare

• $100 Million For One Vote - ABC News

In other news:

• Geitner and Fed Take Heat - WSJ
• Help Wanted - WSJ
• Economy's Rebound Not as Strong as First Thought - MyWay

Cap and Trade

A few more articles on cap and trade and why it won't work in curbing carbon emissions.

• Cap and Trade Creators: Won't Solve Global Warming - WSJ
• The Economic Consequences of Waxman-Markey - Heritage

And a few more articles from the Heritage Foundation on why carbon credits are ultimately a fraud:

• Cap and Trade: Organized Crime's Best Friend
• The Fraud at the Core of Cap and Trade
• Tomorrow's Cap and Trade Horror Story Today
• United Nations Admits Cap and Trade is a Fraud

Using Common Sense

Its a little late now that the House's version of a crap sandwich, sorrry, healthcare bill has passed. But do you remember when there was all this talk about there being an "opt out" clause in the bill? I sure do.

• Health Care Bill Includes Opt-Out Public Option - RawStory

The notion that Democrats wanted people to walk away with was that they could opt out of the government option. Not the case. This is from Obama's own mouth.

“What I think is appropriate is that in the same way that everybody has to get auto insurance and if you don't, you're subject to some penalty, that in this situation, if you have the ability to buy insurance, it's affordable and you choose not to do so, forcing you and me and everybody else to subsidize you, you know, there's a thousand dollar hidden tax that families all across America are -- are burdened by because of the fact that people don't have health insurance, you know, there's nothing wrong with a penalty.”

Now, does that sound like you can "opt out"? Of course not, because the "opt-out" is something entirely different altogether. Your state can "opt out" of joining the public option, but you can't opt out of paying for it. Its exactly the same thing that states were dealing with during the stimulus debate. States could opt out from receiving money, but they were still forced to fund it.

• How The Opt-Out Option Works - FoxNews

Enough Is Enough

This article sums it up perfectly. All hope for Washington is lost. I have no idea whether or not the Republicans were abusing the deliberative process as is claimed or not. But let us assume they did for the sake of argument. This article clearly states that nothing has changed! The Democrats are doing the same thing they complained about.

• The Death of Deliberative Democracy - Michelle Malkin

More articles showing the dysfunction that is our Congress:

• Senate Passes Climate Bill without GOP Present - Fox News
• Pelosi Breaks Pledge to Post Health Care Bill for 72 Hours - Weekly Standard
• Raise the Roof on our Debt Limit - Bloomberg

Obama's Disgraceful Shout-Out

The tragedy at Ft Hood is bad enough. The news is still breaking and I have not heard any real definitive reports. However, I could not agree more with this assessment of the President's response. It is breathtaking in its ineptness.

• Obama's Frightening Insensitivity Following the Shooting - NBC Chicago

Saved Jobs Nonsense

Just a few articles about the White House claims on saving jobs.

• Jobs Saved in Non-Existant Districts - Reason.com - UPDATED 11/17/09
• More Jobs in Non-Existant Locations - Freedom Foundation of MN - UPDATED 11/17/09
• Stimulus Jobs Saved in MA Exaggerated - Boston.com
• Salary Raise Counted as Saved Job - Google News
• More Jobs Saved Than Actual Employees - Chicago Tribune
• WH Claims to Create or Save 1 Million Jobs, But Did They? - FoxNews
• WH Tally Appears to Overstate Stimulus Jobs - WSJ
• Stimulus Jobs Overstated by Thousands - Google News
• Salary Raise Counted as Job Saved - Google News
• Illinois Investigates Errors in Job Count - Chicago Tribune
  

The latest on health care:

• Pelosi's Plan Will Require Monthly Abortion Premiums - GOP Leader Blog
• 'Unisurables' Have to Wait 6 Months - FoxNews

News of the Week - 11/4/09

Your government hard at work.

• We're Governed By Callous Children - WSJ
• Second Thoughts on Obama in Iowa - NYTimes
• $160,000 Per Stimulus Job - ABC News
  

And some global warming related news. Regarding the article on Gore, while I don't agree with his positions, I don't really see the conflict of interest here. Every sector of business in America lobbies the government for laws and mandates that will fill their pocket books. As long as Gore is not in office, this is not a problem in my book. If he was elected, then you'd obviously have a major conflict of interest.

• Slowest Hurricane Season since 1997 - FSU
• Gore's Duel Role: Advocate and Advisor - NYTimes

The latest version of the health care bill coming through the House right now. Thank Ms Pelosi for this garbage

• New Health Bill Tops $1.2 Trillion - Fox News
• House Health Bill Hits $1.2 Trillion - Yahoo News
• Abortion and Immigration May Derail Health Bill - MyWay News
• Republican Version of Health Bill - Breitbart

The Rich Don't Like Taxes, Go Figure

Like we couldn't see this one coming.

• The Rich are Fleeing New York - NYPost
• Frank: "We Are Trying On Every Front To Increase The Role Of Government" - Real Clear Politics
• A Sign of Things to Come? - Washington Times

And in global cooling news:

• Give Up Meat to Save the Planet - UK Times
• News Flash: "The Sun Heats the Earth" - WND

And because I love irony so much:

• Pelosi’s Public Unveiling of Public Option Closed to Public - Breitbart TV
• Pelosi's Bill is 1990 Pages - Breitbart

Heritage Foundation

Some great articles from the Heritage Foundation:

• Proposed Global Warming Bills Do More Harm than Good
• The Transparent Cost of Cap and Trade
• Examining the History and Legality Of Executive Branch Czars

No One Wants To Be an Executive These Days

Welcome to post-free market America. I never thought it could happen this fast, but the current administration is working at breakneck speed here. I fundamentally disagree on every level with how the government is handling these financial institutions. When the government starts setting pay scales for private industry you have essentially become a socialist government. The average American seems to have no problem with this, but what if the government decides that one of these companies is not profitable because they pay too much in salaries to everyone, so they order a 50% paycut to all employees? Is that okay? Fundamentally its no different than what they are doing right now.

• US Set to Order Deep Pay Cuts at Bailed-Out Companies - CNBC
• Pay Czar to Slash Compensation at Seven Firms - WSJ
• US Plans Big Pay Cuts at Bailout Firms - Yahoo
  

And in other exciting news:

• Congress Light Bulb Law: Not So Bright - Heritage
• Debacle in Moscow - RealClearPolitics
• Even the Poor Slammed By ObamaCare - NewsMax

Attack On Fox

This is a new one for me. The White House is officially attacking Fox News. I can understand that the administration does not like Fox News. The Bush administration probably felt the same way about MSNBC, but they never went after them. This to me is yet another sign of Obama's incompetence as the leader of this country.

• White House Escalates War on Fox News - FoxNews
• White House: We 'Control' the Media - WND

He also is unwilling to make a decision on the war in Afghanistan. If you don't want to send more troops, fine, but he needs to man-up and make a decision. And we can't have a blog entry these days without something on health care. So here you go:

Climate Change

Lots of articles today on global warming, or the lack thereof:

• What Happened to Global Warming? - BBC News
• Austria: Snow Record in the Making - Austrian Times
• Ice Melt Lowest in 30 years - WND
• Quietest Hurricane Season in a Decade - Reuters

Susan in Glendale, California: Her Passion Speaks for Millions

This is a transcript from the Rush Limbaugh show on 9/30/09:


Susan in Glendale, California: Her Passion Speaks for Millions
September 30, 2009
Listen To It For Free! WMP RealPlayer

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: All right, Susan in Glendale, California, nice to have you on the EIB Network. Hello.

CALLER: Rush, it's a huge honor for me to speak to you, and I hope I can keep my -- my voice level, because I am so passionate. I am as passionate as you are about this country. I'm a conservative. I've listened to you for 25 years. I'm married. I have seven kids. And when you were telling me about how all of the shenanigans that they're going to do in the Senate to pass two different Senate bills then slam 'em together, attach them to some House bill about TARP, and then jam it through and jam it down our throats, I got furious. And then I listened to what you said about the Michigan mom who was watching some kids before they went to school and how the Michigan state came down on her accusing her of running an illegal day care, and you're right: What they're going to do is they're going to threaten our health and they're going to threaten the health of our children. If I don't comply with their health care, I'm not going to be able to get my children the medicine they need.

RUSH: No, it's not -- whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. It's not if you don't comply with their health care. It's if you're a good citizen in support of the liberals running the country.

CALLER: Yes, sir. And I'm not. I'm a conservative. You know what? I'm 45. I might fall and break my hip in the next ten years. They're going to have to give me a shot because they're not going to want me to be healed and they're going to do this to my children. It's like you said. They are the party of abortion. They are the party of euthanasia. They are trying to wipe out senior citizens who are maybe not as useful to the Democrat National Committee as they should be, we're not contributing enough to them. And I am outraged and furious. And my question to you -- because I'm a political nobody; I'm just out here on the Left Coast in la-la land watching all the liberals run our California state bankrupt -- is: "What can we do, legally, morally, to take this country back?" I want people to stand up, and I want them to vote these criminals, these pedophiles out of office.

I want them to take back the state of California and make it a Golden State, and I want them to take back Washington. But we're little people, and we marched two million of us down to Washington and the press -- ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC -- not one of them shows pictures on the news, not one of them will report anything. In fact, they cover it up! I've talked to so many people on the phone, just neighbors who are liberal and some of them are conservative, both sides, and I tell them these things. "Go to Fox News. Look at this." No one sees the truth. But the travesty of all of this -- part of this is politics as normal, independent, it's two party. We're going to fight and tussle over what's right and wrong and, you know, we're going to win some, lose some. But the damning thing today is that the press, the press is betraying us and we have no way -- us, we be the little political moms, nobodies. I'm a mother, and I have no one to listen to, to go to on the news, except for you and Fox.

Tell us what we can do in 2010, other than voting for Sarah Palin. Which I will do. But I need to know because I don't have much hope. I sure don't have hope from Obama. I need hope from Rush and I want you to please tell us what we can do, because this is the life of my children. They're on the line. They can put me out to pasture, but, yes, they've got me over a barrel. Because I will do anything to save the lives of my children, even if it means I've gotta kiss some big Democrat's rear end to get the health care for my baby, I'll have to do it, and that sickens me because they're my employees. I'm paying their salaries. I'm paying for their fancy office of doctors down where you were talking about at the House of Representatives and the Senate. They just get to walk in and pay $503 and they get all the health care that they need for $503, specialists flown in.

The pharmacy right there on their hour! Probably open 24 hours a day. Nobody has to wait. They get that because I'm paying for it. I'm paying for it! It's coming out of my children's allowances, my grocery money. They are getting it, and they're taking it without listening, without representing us -- like you said, the small R. I'm not being represented. I've called Boxer's office. I've called Adam Schiff who is my so-called representative. They are very polite to little people on the phone but the people who are running this country don't listen to us. There are millions of us and we are all furious. And no one, no one is even reporting what is being said! And I'm watching my country that I love, that my father fought for in World War II, that my father-in-law was wounded and got the Purple Heart for -- and I'm watching it just being taken, just like candy from a baby.

"Oh, we'll help you. We'll give you health care. Here's a lollipop. Go away," and nobody's doing anything. I'm sorry to be so angry, but I need hope, and I need to know how to counteract these's shenanigans. This is not what we put people in government for is to run little-bitty side bills, smash 'em together, and then vote 'em under the carpet into a different health care bill that is languishing in some committee that they haven't voted on. That's dirty politics and it shouldn't be happening. It should up-and-down votes. And you're right. The 63 new judges coming on, that's going to cement -- that's going to absolutely cement -- their ability to write law instead of legislate. They can just send it to the judges. The judges will rubber stamp it. We'll have liberal judges, we'll just write the law. Never mind conservatism. Never mind reading what the law actually says. I look at this, and I see this happening every day.

I'm listening to you, and I'm to the point where I don't even know if I should listen anymore because I'm so passionate and I'm so furious to watch all this and to hear it all happening, and I feel so powerless for the first time in my life. I'm glad Mrs. Obama is proud of her country for the first time in her life. I, as a mother, as a nobody I am ashamed of my government for the first time in my life -- and I need to know how to combat this, especially in 2010. What can I do today, now, to help, to revitalize these namby-pamby liberal Republican RINOs in our Senate and in our government who are just voting to get along and "I want to get reelected." That's nonsense. They're not standing up for what is good and clean and right. They're not standing up for our Constitution. They should be all thrown out, every last one of them -- and I don't know how to mobilize people, but you do, Rush. You do! You have the power. And with great gifts, God gives great responsibility. And I beg you please, please give us hope and lead us. Because this cannot stand. They cannot keep doing this. This is wrong.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: We still have Susan on the line from Glendale, California, and Susan, I was under no inclination to interrupt you or stop you, even when we got to the segment end.

CALLER: I apologize.

RUSH: No, don't apologize, just the exact opposite. You summarized my first hour in ten minutes.

CALLER: Well, I like to listen to you, you're great, and you always give us the facts.

RUSH: But you asked me what you could do.

CALLER: Yes.

RUSH: One thing you have to realize, you just did it. The passion and the emotion that you brought without one stutter --

CALLER: Well --

RUSH: You didn't lose your train of thought. There was not one stutter. And I guarantee you the people in this, the largest radio audience in the country, are all out there standing up and cheering on their feet.

CALLER: You know what, Rush? I did it without a teleprompter! Or notes! So there.

RUSH: Or a writer. You didn't have a ghostwriter.

CALLER: No, I didn't. I have a three-year-old son, but he can't do this. But I didn't use a teleprompter, and I know what I'm saying, which is, I'm sorry, perhaps more than I can say for some of the people who are running our country. And it insults my intelligence. I walked away from a very good job at a law firm, I'm educated, I have a law degree, and I did it because I was promoted by God to be a mother of seven. I'm giving everything I've got to them. And the one thing I cannot give them, absent help from good people all over this country, I can't give them the American way of life. I can't give them freedom. I can't give them that. I can teach them and that's all I can do. But everybody's got to stand up, and, you know what? Why don't you make 2010 the worst nightmare ever for the Democrats. Pick up the phone, call Sarah Palin, and you two run, run in 2010. Rush and Sarah. Do it. They would go nuts. I know you couldn't do your show every day. And I know there are not enough Democrat women like Pelosi in the Senate to give you your 30 minutes of aerobic activity because there's no boobs to ogle like you were telling about that German study finding that 10 minutes of breast ogling helps men, but we'll get you a treadmill in there, I'm sure the White House will have a treadmill, it's got a basketball court now and other things and an organic garden. We'll get you set up, we'll keep you healthy, maybe once you judge the Miss America contest, maybe you could do that every year, and that would give you a good cardiovascular burst. And you could go ahead and run the country for four years. But we gotta do something.

RUSH: Well, one thing I want to tell you here is, you are not alone. I know you feel it, you said it --

CALLER: I do.

RUSH: -- you feel you're just a little person out there on the left coast and you're overwhelmed by all this, but I think you should try to understand that the majority of people who pay attention to stuff in this country are with you on this. Their frustration is identical to yours.

CALLER: Yes, but they don't know how to mobilize to do it, to stop it. We're going to have this health care bill rammed down our throats before the election.

RUSH: Wait a second, now. I think they do. People have been mobilizing on their own. That's one of the great things about all the tea parties and the other things going on, is there's not an identifiable leader saying, "Go here, do that, I want you to show up."

CALLER: I know.

RUSH: People are doing it on their own, of their own volition, their own emotion, because they're just like you --

CALLER: I know.

RUSH: -- they don't want to lose the country, they don't want to see it taken over, they don't want to see it destroyed this way, especially for their children and grandchildren, and there are more of you than you know. Now, this health care thing, you talk about 2010. If they're able to ram this through in the next couple of weeks or the next couple of months --

CALLER: Yeah.

RUSH: -- 2010 is going to be nothing but punishment.

CALLER: I hope so.

RUSH: Now, the one thing to keep in mind here, the one thing to keep in mind is -- I'm actually wrong. I need to take that back. This bill is not going to be implemented until 2013.

CALLER: Right. Right.

RUSH: So 2010 is crucial. That's where the real change is going to come, and that's throwing these Democrats out, as many as possible.

CALLER: Yes.

RUSH: Now, there are two things that I want to say to you here. The reason that 2013 is the year is because everybody in charge of this plan, from Obama to Reid and Pelosi, all the Democrats know full well there's going to be a revolt.

CALLER: Yes. I know they know this. They're just trying to lock it in anyway.

RUSH: Well, no --

CALLER: -- because they want to secure their power.

RUSH: But 2012 is Obama's reelection year, 2013 it gets implemented. If it got implemented before 2012 Obama would be beaten in a landslide --

CALLER: That's right.

RUSH: -- and he still may be, ACORN notwithstanding.

CALLER: Yes.

RUSH: The second thing here about all of these things that are happening, and you feel powerless to do anything about it, I think what's happening throughout the country is an illustration that people are not powerless. This passion, this emotion that you represent here today that is felt by millions will have and is going to have an outlet. These techniques, the things that are being tried by the Democrats here are so against the decency and grain of the vast majority of the people in this country --

CALLER: That's what's offensive.

RUSH: -- they're not going to put up with it.

CALLER: I know. That's what's offensive --

RUSH: They aren't going to put up with it.

CALLER: It's not just politics as usual. It's not, "Okay, we win some and we lose some." This is underhanded, dirty dealing, "Okay, we're going to vote for one bill, but we're going to switch it, we're going to edit it out." It's like a computer, you just zap it out and stick something in, but the vote doesn't get edited. It's virtual bills. We just get to change it. It's outrageous. If I did this in a job, I would be fired. And yet they keep doing it and we've got to hold them accountable.

RUSH: And trust me, believe me, they will be.

CALLER: I know you're right. That's why I listen to you every day I can.

RUSH: I will tell you when it's time to panic. And it isn't time to panic. Panic doesn't lead to productive action.

CALLER: True.

RUSH: I'll tell you when it's time. What you're feeling right now is not even panic.

Taxes and the Massive Health Care Lies

Several really good articles from the Heritage Foundation. Many of the articles touch on how Harry Reid and the Demorcrats plan to railroad this Obamacare bill through the Congress via deception and outright lies:

• The 'Tax and Spend' Left Are Back With a Vengeance
• Today’s Calamity: Cap and Trade Costs Fly Sky High
• Does Obamacare Turn Your State into a Medicaid Monster?
• Congress’ Secret Plan to Pass Obamacare - CONFIRMED
• Medicare: Largest Denier Of Health Care Claims
• Morning Bell: The Baucus Bait And Switch

ACORN, Global Warming, Health Care and More

Global Warming news:

• US Northeast May Have Coldest Winter in a Decade - Bloomberg
• Boxer, Kerry Introduce Climate Bill in Senate - NYTimes
• Gore and Google Team-up for More Lunacy - Sydney Morning Herald
  

And in more ACORN news:

• The Story Behind the ACORN Story - Real Clear Politics

And we can't forget health care:

• Liberal Dems Want Care for Illegals - Washington Times
• NY Health Workers Revolt - CBS2 TV

Miscellaneous:

• Empire State Bulding Goes Red and Yellow for Communist China - Google News


• Without Bush, Media Loses Interest in War Casualties - Washington Examiner


• You Commit Three Felonies A Day - WSJ
• Obama's Safe School Czar Not So Safe - FoxNews

News of the Week

Here is a collection of articles from this week that caught my attention.

• Car Showrooms Empty After Clunker Clamor Ends - Boston.com
• UN Climate Summit Leaves Large Carbon Footprint - CBSNews

More on Cap and Trade

It looks like the Administration is stupid after all, they atleast realize that the cap and trade bill will cost every American family about $1500 a year. So they knew it was a tax, they just didn't bother admitting it. I'm actually impressed CBS News even reported on this.

• Cap and Trade Could Cost Families $1761 a Year - CBS News

ACORN

So if you follow the main stream media this will be news to you, but it finally appears that ACORN is being exposed for the fraud that it is. FoxNews.com (I know, they are a part of the vast right-wing conspiracy who are completely intolerant) has had headlines since last Thursday documenting 3 cases where ACORN has been caught in corruption. Needless to say, there is no mention of this on CNN, ABC, or CBS news sites. Shocking I know. That is probably why people no longer trust the media. Fully two-thirds of American's think that the stories they see reported are inaccurate!!!

• ACORN Exposed
• Baltimore ACORN video
• Brooklyn ACORN video

UPDATE: After posting this, I saw this article restating what I just said above.

UPDATE: Apparently the corruption is not over. There are more videos:

• California ACORN video
• LA ACORN Exposed - Fox News

UPDATE: And now the document dump...

• ACORN Dumps Files Amid AG Investigation - BigGovernment.com

The Revolution

• Tens Of Thousands Attend Protest - Post Gazette
• A Million March to US Capitol - Daily Mail
• Lashing Out at the Capitol - Washington Post

But Obama doesn't seem to care. He'll get what he wants:

• Obama Expecting 'Good Health Care Bill' - Yahoo News
• Obama Vows To Fight Health Care Opponents - Bloomberg
• Obama Claims 'Scare Tactics' From Opponents - Reuters

Health Care Reform and the Economy

Health Reform related articles:

• Obama Disapproval on Health Care Up to 52% - Yahoo News
• Obama Has Not Met With Republicans Since April - The Hill
• American's To Be Fined For Going Without Healthcare - MyWay News
• Obama To Endorse Public Option in Speech - WSJ

and the economy:

• Tax Payers Take Heavy Losses on Auto Bailout - MyWay News

miscellaneous:

• Is It Too Late for Obama? - Salon
• Convenient Fantasies of President Obama - Washington Examiner

Check This

I'm only adding this video because I find it completely ironic. Democrats are vehemently opposed to checking IDs at the voting booth, but apparently are okay with checking IDs when you want to ask a question at a TownHall meeting. You seriously can't make this stuff up.





But the Congressman doesn't have a monopoly on irony these days:

• Climate Change Super Computer Among Worst Polluters in UK - Daily Mail
• Clunker Rebate Tax - KELO

Government Spending Revisited

• White House Predicts Bigger Budget Deficit - Yahoo News
• White House, CBO See Budget Deficts for Years Ahead - Reuters
• Surging US Deficit Under Scrutiny - Google News

In other news:

• Court Orders Federal Reserve to Disclose Emergency Loan Details - Bloomberg
• King Wonders Who's Side AG Holder is on - Politico

Prius Worse Than Hummer

This article was originally posted on the website at Central Connecticut State University. Since they have gone ahead and removed it, I'm pasting it here:

March 7, 2007
Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage

By Chris Demorro
Staff Writer

The Toyota Prius has become the flagship car for those in our society so environmentally conscious that they are willing to spend a premium to show the world how much they care. Unfortunately for them, their ultimate ‘green car’ is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America; it takes more combined energy per Prius to produce than a Hummer.

Before we delve into the seedy underworld of hybrids, you must first understand how a hybrid works. For this, we will use the most popular hybrid on the market, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius is powered by not one, but two engines: a standard 76 horsepower, 1.5-liter gas engine found in most cars today and a battery- powered engine that deals out 67 horsepower and a whooping 295ft/lbs of torque, below 2000 revolutions per minute. Essentially, the Toyota Synergy Drive system, as it is so called, propels the car from a dead stop to up to 30mph. This is where the largest percent of gas is consumed. As any physics major can tell you, it takes more energy to get an object moving than to keep it moving. The battery is recharged through the braking system, as well as when the gasoline engine takes over anywhere north of 30mph. It seems like a great energy efficient and environmentally sound car, right?

You would be right if you went by the old government EPA estimates, which netted the Prius an incredible 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon on the highway. Unfortunately for Toyota, the government realized how unrealistic their EPA tests were, which consisted of highway speeds limited to 55mph and acceleration of only 3.3 mph per second. The new tests which affect all 2008 models give a much more realistic rating with highway speeds of 80mph and acceleration of 8mph per second. This has dropped the Prius’s EPA down by 25 percent to an average of 45mpg. This now puts the Toyota within spitting distance of cars like the Chevy Aveo, which costs less then half what the Prius costs.

However, if that was the only issue with the Prius, I wouldn’t be writing this article. It gets much worse.

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis.

Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

So, if you are really an environmentalist - ditch the Prius. Instead, buy one of the most economical cars available - a Toyota Scion xB. The Scion only costs a paltry $0.48 per mile to put on the road. If you are still obsessed over gas mileage - buy a Chevy Aveo and fix that lead foot.

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses.

Cash For Clunkers

I would like to thank President Obama for giving America another example of just how inept the government is at running programs. Lets take a look at the Car Allowance Rebate System (a.k.a. Cash for Clunkers).

• Dealers Still Waiting for Clunker Cash - KELO
• Car Dealers Still Waiting on Cash - CBS 2 Chicago
• Dealers Slow to See Government Reimbursement - Baltimore Sun
• Dealers Shun Clunkers Due to Slow Payment - AutoNews.com
• The Train Wreck Rolls On - FoxNews
• Dealers Stiffed as Clunkers Pile Up - KRQE News

And this is absolutely rich. The program set up to help American auto makers is helping foreign owned companies instead. Here is the list of the top 10 vehicles sold in the Cash for Clunkers program (full article).

1. Toyota Corolla
2. Honda Civic
3. Ford Focus FWD
4. Toyota Camry
5. Toyota Prius
6. Hyundai Elantra
7. Ford Escape FWD
8. Honda Fit
9. Nissan Versa
10. Honda CR-V 4WD

Notice, only 2 American owned cars in the bunch. However, the top 10 cars getting traded in.... all American owned.

1. Ford Explorer 4WD
2. Ford F150 Pickup 2WD
3. Jeep Grand Cherokee 4WD
4. Jeep Cherokee 4WD
5. Ford Explorer 2WD
6. Dodge Caravan/Grand Caravan 2WD
7. Chevrolet Blazer 4WD
8. Ford F150 Pickup 4WD
9. Chevrolet C1500 Pickup 2WD
10. Ford Windstar FWD Van

Health Care, Climate Change and the Census

Atleast the media covers both sides fairly.... or not.

• Press Largly Ignores Incendiary Rhetoric at Bush Protest - Fox News

And in more health care related news:

• Dirty Secret No. 1 in Obamacare - Townhall
• Obama's Healthcare Horror - Salon
• 'You Are Terrifying Us' - WSJ
• Canadian Health Care Imploding - Google
• That Great Canadian System - Detroit Free Press

And everything else:

• Debunking Climate Change Myths - News Leader
• Our Unconstitutional Census - WSJ
• Pawlenty Gets After Obama - Politico

Who's Spying on Who?

Let's digest this a bit. The White House is now asking people to snitch on fellow citizen's. From the website, it says, "If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy" then you should email it to the White House. You can read about it here:

• Cornyn Accuses White House of Compliling Enemies List - Dallas Morning News
• Facts are Stubborn Things - White House Blog

Several things I want to touch on here. First, I keep hearing people breaking out the old saw that George Bush used warrantless wiretaps which were much worse than this. Two big differences here in my opinion. One is that these wiretaps were only for phone calls between someone in this country and known or suspected terrorists residing outside the US. The other is this, wiretapping terrorists is completely different than asking people to turn in their neighbor if they disagree with the President's viewpoint. I mean what is "fishy"? That opens up the box to anything. Notice that Bush is targeting terrorists, Obama is targeting Americans.

Next, I vaguely remember when we were told it was patriotic to disagree with the administration:

Thank you Hillary for that rousing reminder to dissent from our current President's policies. Now, I want to get back to the "fishy" comment. Seriously, what does that mean? If I say that Obama's health care bill would fund abortions, is that fishy? What if I say he wants to move to a single payer system, is that fishy? What if I said his statements about us all keeping our private health insurance is false, fishy? What if I provide facts for all that, is it still fishy?

• Coverage For Abortions - MyWay News
• Five Freedoms You Lose in Obama's Health Plan (#4) - CNN Money
• Ten Questions on Healthcare Overhaul (#8)- WSJ
• More Healthcare Lies - Townhall

And a couple more videos of Obama saying some "fishy" things:

Its no wonder the natives continue to get restless. I guess I get to look forward to being watched by the government now. Maybe they'll send some G-Men to get me. Please, Mr. President, when you said them, could you tell them to bring some global warming with them, its been awfully cold here in Minnesota this year.

• Rowdy Crowds Grill Congressman In Arkansas - Fox16
• Tempers Flare in South Florida - Miami Herald
• Protesters in Connecticut - Hartford Courant
• Specter Faces More Heated Questions - Yahoo News

Obamacare and More

Things continue to look bleak for Obama's one payer health care system.

• Mike Pence is On The Record - FoxNews video
• Audience Shouts Down Sebelius and Specter - FoxNews
• Some Health Care Numbers Don't Tally - AP
• Health Reform Demands Lawmakers Read the Bill - US News and World Report
• Town Halls or Town Hells? - Politico

And other ways in which the government is showing its inept:

• Stimulus Jobs Last Just One Week - Google News
• Cash For Clunkers Is a Clunker - CNN
• Geitner Lashes Out -NYTimes
• Newly Elected Democrats Waiver on Health Plan - FT

More on Health Care and Prof. Gates

This is great, they don't even hide the fact that they won't read the bills. So what exactly do they do?

• 5 Freedoms You'll Lose in Health Care Reform - CNN
• CBO Deals Another Blow to Obamacare - Politico

And as your bonus cuts this week:

• Caller Never Brings Up Gates' Race (911 audio) - Real Clear Politics

Honduran Crisis

I've been following the Honduran fiasco somewhat closely since I have two really good friends who I played college baseball with who were born and raised there. I have not been able to get a clear sense from any media reports what is actually happening. The only thing I really saw was a lot of sympathy for deposed leader Zelaya, which in my cynical mind meant he was the villian. So I contacted one of buddies and he told me this:

ps. I'll give you some insight on the Honduran situation, but a quick summary: there was no military coup, the former president thought he was above the law (constitution), we were days if not hours away of having a dictator. 85% if not more of the Hondurans are happy that Zelaya was taken out.

Then he sent me this clip. Looks like CNN atleast finally got it right.

Obamacare

The numbers coming out regarding Obama's new universal health care plans are mind numbing. I believe Bobby Jindahl says it best in this Politico article. The 2 largest government run entitlement programs, Medicare and Social Security, are perpetually underfunded, yet we are now considering handing over our health care. This is beyond absurd.

What is truly insane is that if you have a good health insurance plan now you won't be able to keep it. When faced with that proposition, voters are against a new government run health plan 54% to 32%, but fear not, the Democrats and Mr Obama have no plans of listening to the people.

Now, a great article from Heritage. Two things from this article. First, Obama has no idea what's in the House bill. Second, note at the end the quote from the Mayo Clinic. They are opposed to the bill, even though Obama keeps touting Mayo as the answer to the health care problems.

• Obama Admits He's 'Not Familiar' With House Bill - Heritage Foundation

More articles for your reading enjoyment:

• More Health Care Lies - TownHall
• Obama's Health Care Plan: Prepare to Pay Up - SmartMoney
• Obama Health Plan to Cover 12 Million Illegals - NewsMax
• AMA Opposes Obama Health Plan - Examiner
• Ten Questions on the Health-Care Overhaul - WSJ
• White House Mum on Health Insurance Visitors - LATimes
• Take the Red Pill Mr President - Examiner
• Rushing It Through - Breitbart
• Pelosi Hits Throttle On Healthcare - FoxNews

Here's your bonus articles for the day:

• Counting the Czars
• Utilities Scramble to Meet Needs of Electric Cars - Time

Your Stimulus at Work

All of this can be found on the Recovery.gov website.

• $351,807 FOR 'REPLACE AND UPGRADE THE DUMBWAITER'
• $1,562,568 FOR 'MOZZARELLA CHEESE'
• $5,708,260 FOR 'PROCESS CHEESE'
• $16,784,272 FOR 'CANNED PORK'
• $1,444,100 FOR 'REPAIR DOOR BLDG 5112'
• $541,119 FOR 'INSTALL TRAFFIC SIGNAL'

UPDATE: Soon after I posted these I noticed the recovery.gov website removed the descriptions of what the money was for.

Unemployment and Taxes

• Behind the Unemployment Numbers - WSJ

What do you know, Obama breaks another campaign promise.

• Nearly 59% Tax on NYC's Wealthiest - NYPost

How Were We Supposed To Know

Over the last few weeks we have heard statements from both the President and the Vice President about the economy and the apparent lack of success from their huge $787 billion stimulus package. First, Joe Biden came out and said that they misread the economy (another article) and that they didn't know how bad the economy was that "they inherited." Interesting, considering Obama kept telling us this was the worst economy since the Great Depression. Then Obama came out and tried to clarify VP Biden's comments. He claims that they did not "misread the economy", they simply had 'incomplete information'.

One question then. How is that any different than the beating George W. Bush took over the Iraq war? Biden claims everyone misread the economy. Well, everyone also thought Iraq had WMD. Obama claims they have incomplete information. Everyone blamed Bush for using incomplete intelligence. The only difference is that Bush was crucified over this for the past 6 years and Obama is getting a free pass.

The other glaring difference here is that Bush would have been burned at the stake by foaming at the mouth liberals if he had tried to start another war in either Iran or North Korea. The irony here is that many Democrats are already talking about a 2nd stimulus package.

• A Second Stimulus? - Examiner.com
• Obama Won't Rule Out Second Stimulus - US News and World Report
• Calls Grow To Increase Stimulus Spending - WSJ

Health Care Reform

Great article from John Stossel about the state of British and Canadian government run health care. The last paragraph sums it up best. Average wait for an MRI in Canada is one month. Average wait for an MRI if you are a cat.... one day.

• "Better" Health Care - RealClear Politics

And speaking of our elected officials spending our money wisely...

• Congressional Travel Budget Swells - WSJ

Cap and Trade

It appears my 1st District representative, Tim Walz, decided to drive another spike into his coffin. He voted for H.R. 2454, American Clean Energy and Security Act. Add that to the list of ways Mr. Walz intends to kill the American economy. Following are a few articles on the bill in general:

• Lets Do Something - Anything - RealClear Politics
• The Cap and Tax Fiction - WSJ
• Cap and Trade Will Be Tax and Fail - Atlanta Journal Constitution
• Will The Global Warming Bill Cool the Global Economy - Forbes

Goverment Efficiency

Some shining examples lately in the news about the efficiency and potentcy of our elected officials. Why people still think government is the answer is beyond me. Not only are they inept at their jobs, it appears the only thing elected officials can do is spend our tax dollars on absolutely worthless things.

• NY Senate Debacle Continues - wcbstv.com


• $100,000 To Save Wyoming Toads - grants.gov


• $10 million For Cambodian Education - grants.gov


• Massachusetts Housing the Homeless in Hotels, for $2 million A Month - WPRI

And just a quick article about the coziness of the current administration and the press:

• Stay Tuned For More of 'The Obama Show' - Washington Post

US Taxpayers Pay for Chinese Abortions

Great article here from Chuck Colson. It exposes the pro-"choice" movement as completely disingenueous.

Where's the Choice in This?
Funding UNFPA
June 23, 2009

Last year, a young Chinese woman—let’s call her Dan Li—ran afoul of the Chinese government. She had become "illegally pregnant." By the time the authorities found out, Dan Li was seven months along. Family planning officials tied her to a bed, induced labor, and, when the baby was born, killed the baby.

What happened to Dan Li is an abomination—one, however, that tragically takes place regularly in China. But now, thanks to the U.S. Congress, you and I will be
paying for it.

Last March, without fanfare, Congress passed a bill providing $50 million for the United Nations Population Fund. This organization promotes abortion around the globe—including in China. What makes the bill especially heinous is that it voided Kemp-Kasten, a bill which, for two decades, prevented our tax dollars from funding forced abortions and sterilization.

This blows the lid off the argument that abortion is all about giving a woman choice. If Congress really stands for choice, as they claim, why did they vote for coercion? If feminists are really for choice, why aren’t they fighting this law? Why isn’t our pro-choice President demanding that this brutalization of women be stopped?

Abortion is a glaring example of the difference worldview makes. Are all children—Chinese babies or inner-city African American babies—worthy of protection? Are babies just mouths to feed, and a strain on the environment—or are they potential producers and contributors? Do parents have the right under God to have as many children as they desire? Or should governments dictate this decision?

Let’s be clear: Coercive family planning is a humanitarian disaster.

Reggie Littlejohn is an expert on China’s "One Child" policy for a group called Human Rights Without Frontiers. She points to three negative outcomes of China’s policy.

First, "gendercide." Parents who are forced to limit their families to one child overwhelmingly abort girls. For every 120 boys born in China, there are only 100 girls born. So, since China’s "One Child" policy began in 1978, she writes, "400 million births" have been "prevented." That’s more than the current U.S. population.

Second, China’s gender imbalance "is a powerful, driving force behind trafficking in women and sexual slavery from nations surrounding China."

Third, according to the World Health Organization, China suffers the highest female suicide rate in the world—some 500 women per day. As Littlejohn notes, "Forced abortion traumatizes women. Could this high suicide rate be related to forced abortion?"

You and I need to let our friends and churches know about what Congress did—that their taxes being used by the UNFPA to support coercive family planning programs in China. According to Reggie Littlejohn, if there’s enough of an outcry, "Congress can pass an amendment blocking . . . funding from going to nations that practice coercive family planning."

Certainly pro-choicers would agree that women deserve better than to be hunted down and tied up while their babies are killed.

Global Warming Goodies II

• Polar Bears Are Not Dying Out - UK Telegraph
• June Hasn't Been This Nice Since.... 1913 - AZCentral.com
• Global Warming: The Science Is Not Settled - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Busting Out the Old Saw

I was directed to classy journalistic piece of work on MSNBC today, done by Rachel Maddow. The whole piece was set out to dump on the "birthers", those who believe Barack Obama was not born an American citizen.

I noticed that they showed a "certificate of live birth" on the piece, but it was so fuzzy you could not see anything in detail. So I scoured the web a bit to see if I could find it. Sure enough, you can get a good look at it here. I have no idea whether Obama is an American born citizen or not, and I'm by no means a "certificate of live birth" expert, but I'd be willing to bet my life savings the document the Obama team provided is a fake.

Here are a few articles that do a little more in depth study of this certificate:

• Unstamped Certificate - Isralinsider
• Polarik's Final Report - Free Republic

Grab Bag of Articles

• Barack is America's First Muslim President - Washington Times


• Terrorists Get Miranda Rights - FoxNews


• Government to Own 34% of Citi - NYTimes

More Obamanomics

This first article says it well. Obama's economic policies are flying directly into the face recent studies and conventional wisdom. This article implies it is because Obama wants all business in America to fail so that the gov't will be forced to step in and rescue them.

• Obama Tells American Business to Drop Dead - Bloomberg

Now a couple articles on his stimulus plan and its ability to "create or save" jobs. The Wall Street Journal does a great job of calling him out out on that point. There is no possible way to measure how many jobs were "saved", but no one in the media is pointing that out.

• Obama Repackages Stimulus Plan in Old Promises - AP
• Obama Numbers Are Pure Fiction - WSJ

Here's an article about the press giving Obama a pass and never challenging him.

• Obama and the Fawning Press Need to Get a Room - SF Gate

And here's one on how he's effectively cutting off all of America's home grown energy.

• Watch What He Does, Not What He Says - WeeklyStandard

More Minnesota Shenannigans

The latest news out of Minnesota now is that potentially around 2,800 fellow Minnesotans who have passed away may have voted in this past election. The amount of deceit and deception that has gone on this past election is mind-numbing. The group Minnesota Majority has taken the lead on this story.

• Do the Dead Vote in Minnesota
• MN SOS Mark Ritchie Admits Records are Out of Balance
• SOS Admits to Record Keeping Failures

Obamanomics at Work

These two articles pretty much sum it up. Obama plans to spend more money this summer than originally planned in an effort to "stimulate" jobs and the economy. The only problem, evidence is showing that all this government meddling is doing just the opposite. Fiscal conseratives have been pounding that drum for months now.

• Obama Ramps Up Spending to Create New Jobs - FoxNews
• Big Government Spending Having Opposite of Desired Effect - MyWay News
• US Unemployment Gallops Ahead of Expectations - VOA
  

Dick Morris, former President Clinton's right hand man, has his say about Obama's economic policies:

• The Failure of Obamanomics - DickMorris.com

And lastly, and again, not surprising, Obama's tax increases appear to be moving jobs overseas.

More on BHO

It appears that questions about Obama's background are flaring up in the media again. Mostly because it was taboo to use his middle name during the elections, but apparently now it is fashionable to call him Barack Hussein Obama.

• BHO: US "One of the largest Muslim countries in the world" - UK Telegraph
• The Emergence of President Obama's Muslim Roots - ABC News

Probably not a good thing when one of the worst dictators in the world thinks you're a socialist:

• Chavez More Conservative Than Obama - Reuters

I'm a conspiracy theorist, so I tend not to think of this as an accident:

• Gov't Posts Sensitive List of US Nuclear Sites - MyWay News

More of the Usual

• Obama Blames Bush - Weekly Standard
• Obama Ducks Promise to Delay Bill Signing - Washington Times
• Openness for Thee, But Not for Me - Weekly Standard

Here is a rather lengthy speech that was given by former VP Cheney (referenced in the Weekly Standard piece above). I found it interesting to hear the argument from the former administrations point of view.

• The United States Has Not Lost its Moral Bearings - Real Clear Politics

More Global Warming Discussion

I saw a recent article in the WSJ that discussed the whole notion of greenhouse gases. The individual who wrote this had stirred up some memories of other things I had read, so I decided to just looked across the vast fruited internet plain and see what I could find. First, here's the article that spawned this post. In it I find 3 main "facts" or claims that he makes. So I list them below with what I found in my investigation:

1. Water vapor makes up 95% of all greenhouse gases
   
   
   
   • I couldn't find anything that substantiated that high of a percentage. Actually, I found several websites that said up to 98%, but those sites would be deemed "crackpot, right-wing, deniers" websites, so I won't count those. Wikipedia's greenhouse gas page puts the number between 66% and 85%. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration does not give a percentage, but does say that water vapor is the most abundant greenhouse gas. So I think it is safe to say that there is unanimous agreement it is the most abundant greenhouse gas.
   
   
   • Many sites like the Wikipedia page and others (Slate.com, Encarta) talk about greenhouse effect, not the overall percentage of the gas. This has merit since the different gases have more or less ability to trap heat and radiation, I get that. What I don't get is how they come up with the numbers. Most sites say water vapor is responsible for 60-70% of the greenhouse effect. It appears that they come up with an "effect" number based on climate models. I personally am extremely wary of any climate models, simply because they are just that, models. They are only as good as the data you put into them, and in my experience I have seen enough mistakes to put very little stock in them.
   
   


2. Only 3.2% of all CO2 is man-made.
   
   
   
   • I'll be honest, this one was a little harder to verify. It took me a good 20 mins on Google to find even one article discussing this. Its also mentioned in a few of the other previous articles and as far as I can tell, this number seems to be accurate.
   
   


3. Man-made CO2 contributes only 0.117% of the relative greenhouse influence.




• This I'm not quite certain about either. Not looking at this "effect" or influence number, the number provided is somewhat close. If CO2 only makes up less than 5% of total greenhouse gases and man only creates 3.2% of the total CO2 produced, then my math (1.0 * 5% * 3.2%) = 0.16%. That constitutes how much man made CO2 there is in relational to all the other greenhouse gases. However, I've seen websites that suggest CO2 makes up as much as 30%. Even in that case the actual percentage then of man-made CO2 to total greenhouse gas pollutants only jumps to 0.96%.

What makes this whole discussion so difficult is that nearly every government study neglects water vapor from all their calculations. So naturally the CO2 effect looks an order of magnitude larger. For instance, the EPA says that the largest source of CO2 emissions globally is the combustion of fossil fuels. But if man only produces 3.2% of CO2 that statement is patently false.

There is also no doubt (as evidenced by the EPA website) that numbers are being used to sway perception. One that kept showing up on all the pages I was looking at was the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. You can see a table on the Wikipedia page. Its presented in such a way that it appears drastic in that over the past 200 years the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has doubled. Okay, but that does not imply anything other than that its doubled. If the numbers begin small and are relatively insignificant, then who cares if the numbers double? I'm not implying that the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere before, or now, is insignificant. All I'm saying is that without any context they use those numbers to scare people into thinking that doubling the CO2 in the atmosphere is a major problem. If I make a $100k/yr in salary and my income tax goes from $100/yr to $200/yr I'm not too worried. But if my income tax doubles from $25k/yr to $50k/yr, now I'm worried. All that to say, numbers need to seen in a bigger context before they meaning anything.

And the last thing this little exercise taught me is that it is nearly impossible to get any real facts for government or research facilities on these topics... from a Google search. Everything seems shrouded in confusing and misleading statements and facts.

Close Gitmo Now

A few things to note in this article. First, Harry Reid calls the prisoners at Guantanimo "terrorists." That goes against what many on the left have said over the past 12-24 months, that the prisoners there are regular guys who got plucked from their homes in Iraq and around the world.

• Democrats Won't Fund Guantanamo Closing For Now - Google News

I'm still waiting to hear where exactly we are going to put all these "terrorists." I know it sounds like a great idea to close Gitmo, the only problem is those guys have to go somewhere.

Don't Breathe, You Only Get to Inhale Twice an Hour

The global warming, climate change juggernaut continues to roll. Apparently there are no people left in Washington who have the ability to look at facts and come to a logical conclusion any longer. It was reported today that President Obama will be ratcheting up emissions standards tomorrow:

• New Emissions Standards - Bloomberg


• US to Require Fuel Economy Standards by 2016 - WSJ

Did you catch that, its going to cost the auto industry $46.7 billion to bring their cars up to 31.6 mpg by 2015. But this new requirement will make it 35.5 mpg by 2016, so its going to be much more than $46.7 billion.

This all might make sense if (1) we were not, as President Obama has told us, in the worst economic situation since the Great Depression, (2) if global warming were actually a problem, and (3) if man was actually responsible for said warming.

Why We Need Less Government

I'll let these articles speak for themselves:

• Dead People Get Stimulus Checks - MyFoxNY


• US Gov't Funds $400k Study On Gay Sex in Argentina Bars - FoxNews


• Your Tax Dollars at Work: Teaching Chinese Hookers to Drink Responsibly - Hot Air