Saturday, September 22, 2012

Osama bin Laden: still dead........ General Motors: committing suicide

Here's a math problem for you:

Overall cost to manufacture a Chevy Volt:    $70,000

Retail Price on a Chevy Volt---------------:     $40,000

Current cost with new discount------------:     $30,000

AMOUNT LOSS ON EACH CAR-------:     $40,000

Number of Chevy Volts sold in August '12:    2,800

Loss to General Motors based on the above:  $112,000,000

The math question is as follows:

What kind of troglodytical moron runs a company in which the sale of each product results in a loss of more than half of the total manufacturing cost and considers a loss of $112,000,000 in one month a good sign? 


General Motors still owes the US Taxpayer $42 Billion.    Kiss it goodbye.  It's never going to be repaid if this is how they continue to do business. 


A Non-Muslim Riot

Up to 600 riot police were deployed.
A party invitation which went viral on Facebook ended in rioting and injury after thousands of revellers descended on a small town in the Netherlands.
Haren had been braced for trouble all week after what should have been an invite to a small-scale celebration was passed on to 30,000 people.
The girl whose 16th birthday was being celebrated had not set her Facebook event to "private."
Riot police broke up crowds of revellers who flocked to the town.
The girl who issued the invitation fled her home in Haren, a town of just under 19,000 near the city of Groningen, on Friday.
 
I think this is interesting news.  It's about a riot that didn't involve Muslim Rage, and therefore, unique.   Also, there were no cartoons or YouTube videos involved....or deaths.

Friday, September 21, 2012

It's That Time of Year--- OKTOBERFEST

 
I've never understood why Oktoberfest took place in September, but that's not important.  I have had the pleasure of participating in this annual event.  I've witnessed beautiful Italian lady tourists having their heads shaved while they were passed out in a puddle of drool.  I've spent 10 hour days bouncing from one brewer's tent to the next.  I, quite possibly, had more fun in that week than all the following years combined.  And, the year I was there (1989) I couldn't help noticing all the travelers coming in from the Easter Bloc through Hungary, and deciding on an ABSOLUTE CELEBRATION upon reaching Munich's most famous party.
 
The Berlin Wall came down weeks later, and the party was just warming up.  What I recall that resonates now is that while I was in Munich I read in the paper (and saw on TV) that Gorbachev was in Berlin making a speech.  It was your typical political speech in a way.  In a way, it was not.  For the first time, publicly, hecklers were really letting him have it from the peanut gallery.  They were shouting, yelling, and making themselves heard.  This just was not done to the Soviet Leader.  Yet, they didn't seem to be afraid.  Weeks later, we found out why.

The UK Guardian...and the Mohammad Toons

The Guardian (UK) has a poll up that reads thusly:

Are Charlie Hebdo's cartoons of the prophet Muhammad a necessary stand for free speech or a pointless provocation?
 
Free Speech
Provocation
 

I find it downright amusing that The Guardian is asking this question.  It's amusing (and disgusting) in the fact that they refuse to print these cartoons, but are asking their readers to form an opinion as to whether they are free speech or provocation.

Quite simply, if they were really interested (or even a relevant media outlet) they would present the item to which the poll applies so that the reading public could provide an informed opinion.  Ah, but they don't want to offend the delicate sensibilities of a religious faith.

Incidentally, it is indeed free speech.   There is no need for a poll.  And, here's a little article on the issue, and the managing editor of the magazine in question.  The editor, who calls himself,  Charb says all the right things, as far as I'm concerned.  While he does that, Muslims across France (and the globe) prove once again that Islam is the religion of victimization.  They are either creating victims or becoming one themselves.

Justice... Democrat Politician Style

California Democratic congresswoman Maxine Waters will not be charged with ethics violations.
At a meeting Friday, House Ethics Committee members said they found no violations in their investigation of allegations she steered a $12 million federal bailout to a bank where her husband owns stock. Waters is a senior Democrat on the Financial Services Committee.
The committee, however, said Waters' chief of staff, Mikael Moore, did take actions in Congress in an attempt to help the bank and violated standards of conduct. Moore likely will receive a letter admonishing him for his conduct. but will not face more severe punishment, such as a reprimand, by the full House.
 
Shocking!!!  No...not really.  There are different laws, these days, for politicians.  Additionally, there are even more different laws these days for black politicians.  Just ask Charley "free as a bird despite breaking the law" Rangel. 

Maxine Waters' chief of staff is going to get a nasty letter.  Gosh...that's going to leave a mark. 

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Is There a Disclaimer in the Attorney General's Job Description?

Via CBS News:

AG Holder cleared in Justice gunwalking probe
 
Also, via the same article at CBS News:

 The inspector general found fault with the work of the senior ATF leadership, the ATF staff and U.S. attorney's office in Phoenix and senior officials of Justice's criminal division in Washington. He also said that poor internal information-gathering and drafting at Justice and ATF caused the department to initially misinform Congress about Fast and Furious.
 
So, since the Attorney General heads and oversees the Department of Justice, and the Department of Justice screwed the pooch...how is Attorney General Holder cleared of that incompetence?  He must have a disclaimer in his job description.  Good thing they never applied Sarbanes Oxley (2002) to goverment offices.

Rand Paul: ‘I think the election is over. I think that Romney has already won’

Yeah...me too.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Biden in Repose: #10

 
"No foolin'...I'm at your airport and your customs guys come up behind me and tell me to empty my pockets.  I fly a lot, so I'm used to that.  But, the wierd thing was that he told me not to turn around, and kept jabbing me in the back with something.   But, hey, those folks have a job to do, so I just put my hands up like this and let them get on with it.   I guess they give your wallet back when you leave...huh?  Different customs for different cultures...am I right?"

Free Haircuts in Kuwait

Gosh...I wonder what it's like in Kuwait?

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 22: Officers from the Jahra Security Directorate arrested 23 youths for harassing girls and families in a commercial complex in the area.
The officers detained the teenagers at Jahra Police Station until their parents came and signed pledges to ensure that their children will no longer repeat the act.
 
 Eve-teasers go bald: The Hawalli police have arrested 18 youths (Kuwaitis and citizens of various GCC states) for harassing passers by and visitors to commercial complexes, reports Al-Anba daily.
According to reports as a form of punishment police have shaved their heads and summoned their parents to sign pledges of good conduct
 
Eve-teasers held: A team from the Hawally Security Directorate recently carried out a surprise inspection campaign in the area, resulting in the arrest of 15 youths who were harassing female students near a school.
Sources revealed the youths were referred to the concerned security department where they were asked to sign a pledge of good conduct. It has also been reported that the security officers cut the hair of the youths as punishment.
 
 KUWAIT CITY, Aug 14: Security operatives attached to the Jahra Security Command arrested five minors for loitering and harassing families inside shopping malls within the area.
The operation followed several complaints from individuals who reported misdeeds and unruly behavior by teenagers who harassed people inside the shopping malls. Those arrested were referred to concerned authorities to sign undertakings of good conduct, after which their heads were shaved to deter them from repeating the act
 
 KUWAIT CITY, Dec 10: Hawalli securitymen arrested nine men for harassing girls in commercial complexes in Salmiya area. The men were referred to Salmiya Police Station where their heads were shaved and they were made to write a good conduct pledge.
 KUWAIT CITY, June 21: Jahra securitymen have arrested three youths for harassing students of school for girls in the governorate.
While patrolling near the premises of the school, the securitymen noticed three young men lying in wait for girls on their way out of the school to harass them. The youths were arrested and referred to the concerned security department for the necessary legal action.
 What have we learned?  Well...two things:
 
1.  If you are in need of a haircut, merely harrass a female, and you'll get one for free.
 
2.  Harrassment of women in Kuwait is so bad, that they actually created a separate terminolgy for the act (eve-teasing).  Of course, this particular act is something learned at home...and in the culture in general.

Do-gooder Performers Never Touch the Third Rail

Madonna is being sued by the Trade Union of Russian Citizens for a couple things.  One of them is that, during a concert in Russia, she trampled an Orthodox cross under her feet.  Arguably, the basis of the act was in reference to the Russian Orthodox Church taking such a leading role in the re-election of  President Vladimir Putin.  High representatives of the Church went as far as saying that Putin's rule was the "will of God." 

This, of course, led to some hack punk band called Pussy Riot giving an impromptu concert at Moscow's main cathedral, which led to a prison sentence for the band's members. 

I suppose Madonna was protesting that occurrence.
The claim was made by the Trade Union of Russian Citizens and several other public organizations. It seeks damages of 333 million rubles ($11 million) from Madonna and the organizers of the concert for allegedly inciting religious hatred and offending cultural traditions.
The applications were submitted to investigators along with a video, which according to the Trade Union shows Madonna trampling an Orthodox cross under her feet and asking audience members wearing pink bracelets to raise their hands in order to show their support for gay rights in Russia.
 
My only question is:

When is Madonna going to get on stage in support of women's rights, homosexual rights, and poverty in Muslim nations?  When is she going to get on stage and trample a Koran?  When is she, or any other self-important, "altruistic" do-gooder going to address the absolute medival actions of Islam?

They play it safe by attacking the Russian Orthodox Church, Christianity, and the like.  But, they never touch the third rail.  Why?

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Abu Sufyan Said al-Shihri, Dead? or Alive?


According to CNN:
Analysis: Al Qaeda in Yemen suffers another blow as top Saudi member is killed
 
According to Yemen Post:


 DNA tests have not proved the killing of Saeed al-Shehri, the number two leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a Yemeni official told the London-based Al-Sharaq Al-Awsat Newspaepr.
The official who requested anonymity said that Al-Shihri was not killed in the attack that killed several al-Qaeda suspects last week.
 
Unfortunately, CNN sold out their credibility over the years, and have become one of the sycophantic mouth pieces for the Obama Administration.   We can't trust them to tell the truth if it doesn't provide immediate gratification and positive reflection on those in the White House. 

Do I believe the Yemen Post has any more credibility?  Of course not.  But, sadly, they don't have any less.   I, also, believe without a doubt that the little hairy bastard should still be rotting in Gitmo.

Concerning Those SECRET Romney Fundraiser Tapes

Democrats have perfected the art of being simultaneously maudlin and vicious, and above all else ruthlessly partisan in their pious denunciations of partisanship.
                                       --- MARK STEYN November 3, 2002

At least, they're trying to be vicious and maudlin.  However, it falls flat, because I agree with just about everything Romney said.  From the Liberal perception, his comments were damaging to election.  To someone who understands facts, truth, and integral honesty, Romney banged the nail head dead-on.

I said it before, I'll say it again...landslide in November, and demoralized Democrat debris all over the battlefield.

What Happened?

161 years ago today, we were blessed with the initiation of the "paper of record."  In 1851, George Jones and Henry Jarvis Raymond introduced to the world, the New York Daily Times.  This newspaper, selling for one cent a copy, took on the New York Times name in 1857.

The first edition of the New York Daily Times tried to explain its purpose to the potential readers.  It read like this:
We shall be Conservative, in all cases where we think Conservatism essential to the public good;—and we shall be Radical in everything which may seem to us to require radical treatment and radical reform. We do not believe that everything in Society is either exactly right or exactly wrong;—what is good we desire to preserve and improve;—what is evil, to exterminate, or reform.
 
Shocking, isn't it?  The New York Times started out as a "conservative" publication.  Henry Raymond, at the time, was a member of the Whig Party, but eventually became the chairman on the Republican Nation Committee.  Today, however, the New York Times leans so far left that it looks like it's lying down.  And so does its circluation.

 Happy Birthday you Liberal rag, you!!!

Monday, September 17, 2012

Biden in Repose: #9

 
"Hurry up...hurry, damn it.  That little Bloomberg guy is around here somewhere with his soda nazis.  Which one's the Dr. Pepper?  Smart guys drink Dr. Pepper."

The New Stalin...

Now that President Vladimir Putin has firmly aligned the government with the Russian Orthodox Church, he has moved on to create a new burden for the nation: A program to re-industrialize the country. Speaking on Aug. 31 to a Security Council meeting on the military-industrial complex, Putin said: “Over the past 30 years, our defense companies have missed out on several modernization cycles for a number of reasons — above all, chronic financing shortages. … In short, we will have to modernize the entire defense industry … and carry out the same kind of comprehensive and powerful modernization drive that was achieved in the 1930s.”
 
A frightening and well thought out editorial in the St. Petersburg Times by Alexander Golts.  Give it a read.

I Hope We Didn't Hurt Yemen's Feelings When They Started Wrecking & Killing Stuff

Yemen's interior ministry said on Friday four protesters were killed and 48 others including 10 policemen injured in the riots around the US embassy in downtown the capital Sanaa the prior day.
The casualties occurred in the clashes after mobs marched to the US embassy compound, broke in and destroyed equipment and other properties in protest against a movie offending prophet Muhammad, it said.
 
Again with the "offending movie."  I think I'd be embarrassed if I had to write that my fellow countrymen were tearing apart a foreign embassy, and killing/maiming my neighbors because they didn't like the subject of a film.  I DON'T WANT BRUSSELSPROUTS....I HATE BRUSSELSPROUTS...DIE YOU BASTARDS!!!!  Or something like that.

 The mobs destroyed 61 cars, burned 13 and stole another car and they also destroyed the doors of the embassy and the guards' room, the ministry said, pointing out that 8 suspects, aged between 18-30 years old, were arrested in connection with the events at the US embassy in Yemen.
After several Arab and Muslim countries including Egypt, Yemeni people condemned the movie, which was reportedly published in the US in the past few days. They marched to the US embassy to protest the offending movie and, when guards tried to prevent them rioting erupted.
 
This is Yemen's premier media outlet, and they don't even know the facts about the film.  Their's are, obviously, wrong, but that doesn't stop the local gentry from tearing apart the landscape and starting a few Car-B-Que's.

Drum roll, please.  Here comes the kicker:
 The Yemeni official agency reported Friday that Hadi had received a telephone call from US President Barack Obama and was assured the attack on the US embassy by angry mobs will not affect the bilateral relations.

 
Thank you President Appeasement.  Take a bow.  Good grief.



 

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Skin of Our Teeth Justice

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A Virginia man convicted of plotting to detonate a suicide bomb at the U.S Capitol was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed under a plea deal he struck.
Amine El-Khalifi, 29, of Alexandria expressed no remorse for his actions at Friday’s sentencing hearing.
“I just want to say that I love Allah. That’s it,” he told U.S. District Judge James Cacheris.
 
That's a shame.  Had the FBI not caught the guy, he would be on easy street, and perfectly eligible for Obama's Stop-Gap illegal immigrant amnesty program. 

Amine El Khalifi came to the United States on a visitor's visa at age 16. He settled in Arlington, Virginia, as an illegal immigrant when his visa expired in 1999.
 

Hey, Who wants a Refund?

 
On this date in 1987, our intellectual superiors signed the Montreal Protocol to close the Ozone Hole.  It required the discontinuation of certain halogenated hydrocarbons from our daily use.  As a result, you probably had to get your car air conditioner switched out, and freon went the way of the Dodo This cost us great unwashed an arm and a leg in added expenses.  But, at the same time, it allowed the environmental caste an opportunity to feel good about themselves...and that's important, I guess.
 
As you can see above, it was all a load of crap.


How about a big ole heaping helping of irony with that.  You see, now these same intellectual superiors are telling us that closing the Ozone Hole will contribute to their other favorite project, Global Warming.