Sequester Insanity

Obama, Republicans clash on forced spending cuts - CNN.com:


Nearly every day now there is another news story so unbelievable that any sane person has to wonder how this nation can be operating at all and how little time we must have left. The "sequester" madness is just the flavor of the day.

If you read WAY down in the article, a small piece of truth slips in.

However, such a deal has proved impossible, leading to the imminent application of $85 billion in spending cuts for 2013 and almost $1 trillion over 10 years.

It is STILL a Henny Youngman world/ (when asked "How is your wife?", he responded "Compared to what?) 

Compared to what indeed. Well, to understand $85B in "cuts", one has to look at total spending which is $3.8 TRILLION!!!!

So, if the spending was $850B, then $85B would be a 10% cut. 

If the spending was $1.7T, then it would be a 5% cut

If it was $3.4T, it would be a 2.5% cut 

So we are discussing a LESS THAN 2.5% "cut" ... which REALLY isn't a "cut" at all, since when you count all the "Quantitative Easing", off budget, + other gimmicks, we ALWAYS spend significantly more than the year before no matter what the supposed budget says! 

On top of that, BO has the gall to say that we need a "balanced approach" after he snookered the Republicans at the end of 2012 for a "millionaire tax increase" with ZERO SPENDING CUTS!!  (oh well, $250K income, but what is a $750K "rounding error" when you are "the one") 

As his actions have pointed out over and over, his "balanced approach" is raising taxes on everyone that works (BOcare for example) and continuing to transfer more money from them and future earners  to the nonworking!

Oh well, the Takers voted him in, so he really is just paying off his supporters like all politicians do!

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Narrative vs Fact

A CIA veteran on what ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ gets wrong about the bin Laden manhunt - Washington Post

Solid and concise  little explanation of what "enhanced interrogation" really was, how it was used, and how the story foisted on the American people is wrong by someone that knows the details.

First, as I've said many times in this Blog, if water boarding is torture, then we have tortured every one of our Navy Seals. They are water boarded as part of their training.

It is part of the human condition that life involves pain. In some cases, lots of it -- childbirth, accidents, surgeries, back injuries, burns, dental procedures, etc. Medicine is a case where pain is often inflicted with a higher purpose -- in that case, some improvement of the condition of the patient. In the case of water boarding, the pain is inflicted in hopes of saving other lives.

The main focus of the narrative of water boarding was the vast media effort to demonize W and his administration. We know there was absolutely no bounds to their efforts on that front; Abu Grab was pined directly on W, ("the fish rots from the head")  where anything under BO from  Benghazi to soldiers massacring civilians in Afghanistan is simply "something that happened". The stated and bragged about policy of "Terror Tuesday" where BO decides who lives and who dies at the hands of remote controlled drones is either applauded or not discussed. Gitmo has moved from being a horrible stain on the nation and western civilization to being a US base in Cuba.

As is common in the human condition, the narrative has won. We are fact based creatures only with significant effort and a good deal of luck.Facts may be stubborn, but humans tend to be even more stubborn.

Atheists, Autism, Empathy

Epiphenom: Atheists lack empathy and understanding

I had the opportunity to have a rather long discussion with an atheist heading up to St Paul to support 2nd amendment rights this week. Although wide ranging, that discussion focused on the potential for having a written constitution that is held sacred as the basis for a republican vs mob based government when much of the population is non-religious, agnostic or atheist. My view is no, it hasn't been done and it can't be done with human beings at the level of development we will be at for 100's of K of years. The atheist would of course love it to be possible, but understood that it hasn't been done in history, so we are on completely new ground in attempting it -- and as evidenced by the attack on the 2nd amendment in MN, we are losing at present.

Having a history in technology, I am very familiar from a personal POV of both the systemizing strength and the interpersonal / empathy weakness of computer geeks. It is a stereotype, but like all stereotypes, it is not without a good deal of truth. "People die, get over it" is very close to the actual felt sentiment of many high tech computer people when faced with the reality of death -- death is real, but they can't see any "logical way" that it can be dealt with other than just "getting through it". They are generally smart enough to intellectually know that they need to "hide out" and try to at least act like they understand the feelings when in the presence of the recently deceased and loved ones, but generally, it is even harder for them than for most folks to find any words to relate to the other living and grieving -- they often "feel fake". Not that everyone doesn't, it is just on that range of feeling they are on the "very fake" side of the curve.

So atheism makes sense to them. Maybe THAT is why they are different -- they are just smarter than other people, have a better intellectual grasp of the REAL world, so being an atheist allows them a framework in which to explain their difference in what they see as a positive way. It does at least sound more intellectually appealing than "unfeeling lost geek".

My background is that the "road to Damascus" experience for a tech geek is likely to be a slowly dawning realization that all human understanding, especially the arid tech science geek "if I can't measure it, it doesn't exist" brand, is very and extremely sadly limited. Having gone through that conversion, I can also say that it is painful -- it is so much easier for a technically oriented brain to reduce all discussions to "just the facts ma'am" and seem to often "win" on materialist points, while sadly losing big on the interpersonal and I believe eternal tally. Hell is probably loaded with really super smart technicians.

So I'm a passable technician, a lousy human, and an extremely needy likely to be bare last on St Peter's list at heaven's gate at best. But a tiny ray of hope is WAY better than being without hope!

Justifiable Homicide?

Liberal Shooter Planned Mass Murder | Power Line

The MSM is actually covering this a bit, but I'll bet that PL is right, it will be VERY quiet!!

The wisdom of publishing a "hate map"?? Ho hum, as long as it is "hate" for folks that don't happen to agree with gay marriage, no biggie.

Man, those right wing crazies are SCARY!!!! Lefty crazies? Not so much.

Welcome to the Fascist Sate of MN

I wasted the better part of yesterday and today up in St Paul trying to show support for maintaining the rule of law over the rule of man in this teetering republic. 

We have a 2nd amendment to a written constitution. We pledge allegiance TO THE REPUBLIC, which means that the written law trumps mob rule.  If the mob wants to change the written law, they have a process -- 2/3 in both federal houses, 3/4 of the states ratify. That is that ... we have WAY to many folks up there saying "I don't care what gun owners think".  If you talked to a good many of them, they would care no more for what is in the constitution.

That is exactly why there is a 2nd amendment!  It is the only part of our rights  that has teeth, and it appears that the last tiny ember of freedom on the planet is yet again in danger of being snuffed out.  Freedom never was free, but it seems that every generation or so it ends up coming to blood. 

Having rule of law vs rule of mob is explicitly to prevent just what is going on up in St Paul. Endless discussion back and forth that ought to have no place in a country where people understood how their government was built to work and why. When there is no rule of law, then the only recourse is violence, and that is now the precipice we teeter on. If it comes to confiscation -- which is where they want to go with this, then the only answer a free man can make is "fight or flight". 

One of the ways that you know you are living in a totalitarian police state is if you are subject to the knock on the door, the stop on the street, and find that you have violated some item that the rules decided to foist on you. In America, formerly not a police state, you were  able to live your life without having to pay much attention to politics. You could focus on being productive. Being happy. Being free. 

Two guns are shown below. They are IDENTICAL in mechanism and function. They are both Ruger 10/22 firearms, one of the most popular of guns on the market. They are semi-auto guns that fire one bullet per trigger pull, and have detachable magazines that carry 10, 25, and other popular numbers of rounds. 

The top gun is legal under the proposed MN statute HF021 which states" (1) semi-automatic rifle that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and 

2.31has one or more of the following:
2.32(i) a pistol grip or thumbhole stock;"

If you violate this law you are:

"guilty of a felony and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more 

9.11than 20 years or to payment of a fine of not more than $100,000, or both."

Got that?? You currently own, or are just visting the state of MN and you get caught with a standard Ruger 10/22 that happens of have a thumbhole stock and you can end up with 20 years in the slammer!! 

For a .22!!! The kids squirrel hunting gun. The first gun I ever had. Put a stock on it with a hole in it and it is an "Assault Weapon"!!!! 

Welcome to the Fascist state of MN Comrade!!! 

Science, Politics, Climate Change

Occam’s Razor, the Null Hypothesis, and Anthropogenic Global Warming | Power Line:

Fairly short and very much on the mark to those few still willing to look at science as opposed to politically popular views of "Global Warming" or "Climate Change".

Indeed, "Climate Change" IS true, always has been true and always will be true, it is just that to date, there is no evidence that humans play a part in it.

I love this quote from Feynman. It also doesn't matter how many people support the guess, or even how willing they are to call the people that don't support the guess "anti-science, stupid, etc".

“In general we look for a new law by the following process. First we guess it. Then we compute the consequences of the guess to see what would be implied if this law that we guessed is right. Then we compare the result of the computation to nature, with experiment or experience; compare it directly with observation, to see if it works.

It’s that simple statement that is the key to science. It does not make any difference how beautiful your guess is. It does not make any difference how smart you are, who made the guess, or what his name is. If it disagrees with experiment it is wrong.”

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The End of the Worst Recovery in History??

Is the Worst Recovery In History Coming to an End? | Power Line:

To the extent that the MSM covers the negative economic growth in the 4Q of 2012 at all, it is "stunning", "surprising", etc.

Huh?? Do they really believe their own BS that much??? There is no way that this would have EVER have been called ANYTHING but at least a recession if a Republican was in the WH I guarantee you this would be a DEPRESSION, and I have irrefutable evidence  (see http://bilber99.blogspot.com/2008/10/part-of-history-that-won-get-told.html)

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Can We All "Progress" to be Chicago??

Teen who performed at Obama inaugural events shot dead in Chicago - CNN.com:

Detroit was once the shining bright star of the leftist "progressive" policies in this country. California, Illinois and cities like Chicago, DC, and NYC are at today's vanguard.

All are violent, all are broke, all are corrupt.

Chutzpah. It is either that or rank malice and/or stupidity that makes CNN, the American elite and the Democrat party blather on about how we all need to be "more like them". Chicago and the state of Illinois ALREADY HAVE one of the most draconian gun control policies in the nation. It also vies for the murder capitol of the nation along with DC, NYC and any of the other heavily gun controlled cities. When they get the just desserts of their policies and their people are indiscriminately dying like flies, what is there "solution"? Misery loves company!

Illinois turns out brilliant politicians like Barak Obama and Rahm Emanuel. Jessie Jackson Jr, and a string of governors that know what it is to eat from a tin tray. Look at the results!!!

Violent, Bankrupt and Corrupt. The actual results and appropriate motto for the "progressive" movement in this nation.

Oh, and is there a good word for the "blame everything and everyone else" mentality in leadership and the media?? The best I can come up with is "feckless". Insanity is good as well. Their policies produce the exact opposite of their stated objectives, and yet it is NEVER the fault of their policies!!!

Definition of insanity: Doing the same things and expecting different results.

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Is Fox a Hedgehog?

Is Fox Actually a Hedgehog? | Power Line:

Excellent little critique of Fox that I wholeheartedly agree with. I find a lot of Fox News very hard to watch for exactly the reasons that they point out.

I also very much miss Firing Line, and am utterly amazed at how quickly the censorship views of "liberals"  come out when they are faced with diversity of thought!

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Krauthammer, GOP Strategy

Charles Krauthammer: A new strategy for the GOP - The Washington Post

I think Charles calls this pretty well. My view is that the country is toast at this point for a good long while, if no permanently.  '14 is a likely Dem pickup in the House because the R's will still be "in blame range" for sure.

Likely odds, things are going to still suck in '14 -- Try to block, R fault, don't try to block, STILL R fault ... could have done MORE!!

Outside chance things get better, certainly "all BO, in spite of R's".

Bottom line is that you can't govern with just the House as Charles says.

The VERY best that can be done is to make it clear that D's haven't done so much as pass a budget out of the Senate since '09 which they are LEGALLY MANDATED TO DO. Ho hum, our MSM could care less about a D breaking the law.

Little tiny symbolic message things are about the best that can be accomplished. It is a sad state of affairs, but things have to get MUCH worse now before there is even a tiny prospect of them getting better!

Naturally the far right will see this as a betrayal and it will increase their desire to push candidates that won't win and fail to vote for what they see as the WAY too "RINIOish" R establishment.

In many ways I agree with their sentiments, I just don't see that strategy as doing anything helpful either short or long term except possibly making a few far righties "feel better". However I strongly doubt if even that is true. No matter what is done, they will see it as "not enough". They are like the "stimulus, spend / regulate" folks except from the opposite side!

A Lost Civilization

An Image of a Lost Civilization: Why? | Power Line:

When I was in school in the 60's, we also took our guns to school. To work on them in shop class, or as we got to driving age, because we were headed out hunting after school. School shooting? We had never even imagined such a thing.

My view of "why" is that in the interest of supposed "liberty", we destroyed that civilization and it is indeed lost. The book "The Closing of the American Mind" details it very well, but the simple version is that on every front -- from religion, to manners, to civility, to fidelity, decency, responsibility, propriety, decency, etc, we simply trashed our civilization.

We have continued our decline with a slight pause in the '8os, and now we are clearly the bankrupt and corrupt, dying husk of what was once a great civilization.


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AR Ban EXPIRATION 10x Better Than Australian Gun Ban!!

Should the U.S. adopt Australia's strict gun laws? | Intellectual Takeout (ITO)

Really? Well no, not factually, but only in the same sense that the MSM commonly uses to mislead Americans on gun crime.

Short, sweet, and the graph pretty much ends the gun debate for people that are thinkers vs feelers.

The murder rate in the US is higher than the Australian murder rate! Sure, banning guns cut down on GUN MURDERS, but do you REALLY find it preferable to just be murdered by another means?? (and not have the option to use a gun to protect yourself?)

And to the REPUBLIC!!

NRA's paranoid fantasy flouts democracy - CNN.com:

Why do we have a 2nd Amendment? Well, one reason is because some people live in a "paranoid fantasy".

These people talk a lot about liberty and freedom and love to call themselves patriots, but they seem to have a real problem with democracy. In a democracy, if people are proposing a law you don't like, you criticize it, you argue against it, you campaign against it, you vote against the politicians who support it. But if you believe in democracy, you don't threaten to start killing people if it passes. You don't say that if you don't like a new law, you'll start an insurrection to overthrow the government.

Uh, the US is a REPUBLIC, explicitly NOT a Democracy!! In a REPUBLIC, where there is rule of law rather than rule of mob. Things like the 2nd Amendment are ONLY to be changed via the CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT PROCESS!! "Voting on it" is NOT an option!!

This is on CNN. Don't these people have editors?? Before you start calling people "paranoid, extremist  etc", wouldn't it be wise to at least know the system of government of the country you live in??!!  If not, then how "paranoid" is it for someone to believe that they are going to need to use force to protect the rights that the REPUBLIC that they pledge allegiance to guarantees IN SPITE OF MAJORITY THINKING when a significant numer of our "elite" don't even have enough of a clue to know what our system of government actually is??


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Pumping In IA 2012

Being retired means not having any good excuses for being "late", so I won't offer any. I'm not late! I got to it when I got to it and that is just the way it is!

Here is a slideshow of the pictures I took during my 5 weeks of learning a lot more respect for the guys that make sure we can keep having bacon, ham, ribs and sausage for our pizza!




Here are a few movies of pumping and application operations shot during the fall.

Proudly Gun Free!

Not quite that proud… | Power Line:

Hmmm, OK, maybe not. Is it REALLY surprising that although the left wants to tell everyone else that THEY ought to be "gun free", they aren't so keen on the idea themselves??

I'm CERTAIN that criminals will obey the laws. Look how good a job they do on drugs, drunk driving, tax evasion, etc.

If Democrats demanded that their cabinet folks paid their taxes, a Democrat president could never field a cabinet at all!

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