Glad I could Help...enjoy the Hot Tub

CAPE MAY - There was a steady stream of people seeking assistance at the FEMA office Saturday morning that was set up downstairs at the Cape May Courthouse Library.

Among them was Rocio Day, 79, of West New York, who obtained a FEMA loan to make repairs on her second home on the bay here - one she has yet to see for the first time since Hurricane Sandy struck.

All Day said she knows is there is now four feet of dirt that the storm swept in from the road beneath the home that sits on stilts on Pierce's Point at Cape May Courthouse and that the roof was damaged. She was about to find out how badly.

"We're on our way to see it for the first time," Day said as she sat with her son, James Day, 47, and Laura Day, 43, at the FEMA office as the trio waited to get the documents for the loan. Day did not qualify for a FEMA grant since it was not her primary residence.

"The home is insured, but I want to make sure if the damage is extensive, I can get the money to fix it," Day said
 

Nice...nicely done.  Apparently, the purpose of the US taxpayer is to put capital up front so that others can do home improvement on their second homes (in this case, a beach house).  

Am I being over dramatic.  How about insensitive?  Am I being that?

Here you have a woman who owns a shore home that isn't her primary residence, and she qualified for the FEMA Loan (not the grant).   Well, you say, she has damage to deal with.  Surely she does...but she also has homeowner's insurance on the property.  She's covered...and now she has a nice tidy FEMA Loan to do a little home improvement and renovation...courtesy of the taxpayer.

Let there be Light

Well, now you know...I live somewhere in the Hurricane Zone.  The electricity went out about 11PM last Monday when a huge, ancient oak decided to take a little back for Mother Gaia.  Oak trees aren't too smart, so when it took out some major power lines, it essensially killed itself.

I'm not one to shy away from any opportunity to wield a chain saw...so Mr. Oak is now drying out and waiting its turn to become carbon pollution via a woodstove.  Ah...the irony.

Regardless, the power came on about fifteen minutes ago...Ummm, let's see.  That was about four and a half days without juice.  No big deal.  But, now I know I am considered by MetEd to be one of their least important customers since over 96% of their other outages had already been taken care off.

I'm in the lower 4%.  I guess that means that you rich yahoos, and electric drinking troglodytes owe me stuff.  Isn't that how it works? Right?
Cheers,
Orson

PS:  Blogging will continue after I take care of some things...

Addendum:

Let me add something else, while I try to catch up.  City dwellers have no idea how to act or adapt.  They are babies.  Where I live, I have lost power at least seven times in the last year alone.  The October snow storm of 2011 took out power in my house for seven days.  The nearest grocery store is seven miles away (country roads...you do the snowstorm math).  Yet, I had no problem adjusting to the necessities of life.  I didn't waddle up to any TV cameras and whine, moan, and complain about how the rest of the country forgot about me.

City dwellers are a bunch of pansies that are so bent on immediate gratification and selfishness, that is is an ABSOLUTE pleasure to watch them self-destruct in the midst of a small bit of discomfort. 

SHOVE IT, NEW YORK. 

Hmmmm...was that insensitive?  I freaking hope so. 

Benghazi Speculation (Caused by the White House)

Since the White House will not answer direct questions relative to the failing in Benghazi to protect US Citizens and Officials, they open the opportunity for myriad scenarios to be portrayed as potential truths.

Here's one:

The White House National Security Council spokesman said this:

"Neither the president nor anyone in the White House denied any requests for assistance in Benghazi," National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor told Yahoo News by email.

However, we now have the CIA, Department of Defense, and State Department saying something similar.  One of those entities is lying...or not.

Imagine this scenario.  The President states unequivocally that he is not to be disturbed.  His underlings take this literally, and don't bring the necessity for a decision to him until is is way too late to take action.  All the relevant intelligence and defense agencies have ceded the decision to our President.  

Now there is a big problem, because four Americans are dead.  Keep in mind the type ideological mentality that makes up the current Administration's staff.  These are the "Give peace and chance" and "Imagine all the people" brigade.  At the same time, the answer of the NSC spokesman holds.  No one in the White House (authorized to make the decision) denied any requests for rescue.  They merely made no decisions at all.  It was not out of strategy or politics that this decision was not made.  It was out of pure incompetence and the failure to understand the importance and necessity by a sycophantic staff.

I am reminded of the lack of access available to German military leaders during WWII.  The gatekeeper, Martin Bormann refused on a number of occasions to awaken Hitler despite the most dire of requests from the military (even during the first hours of Operation Overlord).

Is this scenario likely?  Probably not.  But, we have seen the level of pure incompetence of which this current Administration is capable.  The fact that they won't answer direct questions of the events and detailed requests for clarification put the public in a position to hypothesize.  This is one such exercise.  Unfortunately, the past four years have done nothing to negate such "wild" accusations.  Integrity and trust have not been earned by the President, and so leads to speculation.

More Drone Attacks in Yemen This Year, than Ever Before

 Hakim Almasmari, a reporter for CNN and editor of the Yemen Post seems to contradict President Obama's optimism towards the fate of al-Qaeda.

He also believes that a deal could have been made between al-Qaeda and the government. ‘Yesterday alone five senior members escaped a prison, a highly secured prison in Yemen. Two days ago, two suspected al-Qaeda militants escaped Aden prison…. Eighty-eight suspected al-Qaeda militants have escaped prison over the last four months alone. It’s a strategy – President Hadi needs to be powerful, he needs the image of being a leader. And sometimes that could mean cooperating or coming to agreements with al-Qaeda to evacuate but in return have some of their members released.’

The Bureau has recorded more airstrikes in Yemen so far in 2012 than in any previous year, and more activity than in Pakistan. But precisely who is carrying out most of the strikes remains unclear. Although there have been 63 airstrikes in the past six months, only 17 have been confirmed by US or Yemeni officials as US attacks.

Almasmari, an American of Yemeni descent who moved to the Yemeni capital Sanaa 10 years ago, is one of the few reporters in the country regularly reporting on drone strikes.
 

Is the Left aware that President Obama has ordered more drone attacks in Yemen this year than any previous year?  I doubt it.   Are they aware that drone attacks are taking place in Somalia as well?  I doubt it.  No one reports on it.   Don't get me wrong.  Personally, I think these drone strikes are a great idea.  I just get a kick out of the fact that the president can't afford to advertise these efforts because it would demoralize his base voters.  At the same time, taking a victory lap and implying that al-Qaeda is on the run, is dangerous...since they aren't. 

"You Shall Not Pass"

Picture Gandalf stolid, solid and sturdy blocking the bridge.  The Balrog keeps edging forward, but Galdalf refuses to budge.  Now you know how things are going in the State Government of New Jersey.  Despite the obvious similarities between Governor Chris Christie and the Balrog, I assure you he is the ever stalwart Gandalf in this scenario.

With the state's current 9.8 percent unemployment rate the fourth-worst in the country, the Democrats who control the Legislature now are reintroducing half of these economic-stimulus bills.

And they still have little chance of becoming law.

Christie says a bill that offers a tax credit, as most of these do, must come with spending reductions. He would rather help the economy with income tax credits, paid through a projected budget surplus. Democrats say the state can't afford that.

Where does that leave New Jersey? In a stalemate over how to get people working.

Democrats say Christie has rejected job-creation bills, some based on GOP-backed programs in other states and endorsed by business, just because they didn't come from him. Two bills on taxation were vetoed by Christie only to be incorporated into his budget, they note.
 

Simply put, Governor Christie requires (REQUIRES) spending reductions to accompany tax credits.  In other words, he requires the State Legislature to reel itself in to lower the amount of money spent by the State of New Jersey.  This is competent, solid and pragmatic application of basic economics that should not only be applied to New Jersey, but to the United States as a whole.  The Democrat led Legislature refuses to do it.  The centrist Republicans in the NJ Legislature refuse to do it.  So, Governor Christie has vetoed over a dozen Bills.

Christie has long said he would not approve measures that cost money if they were proposed outside of the budget negotiations. Republicans say Democrats send him bills they know he'll reject to try to show him up by attempting a veto override.

 

This is pure leadership.  The unruly children of the State Legislature just can't believe that they are not going to get their way.  The unruly children of the press write hit pieces (such as this one) to try and show Chris Christie to be the problem.  What they fail to see is that the citizens of New Jersey recognize a Governor trying to set the mess that is the New Jersey budget straight and procure stability in the long run.  I've never be a huge Chris Christie fan overall.  But, on a straight economic basis, he is the type leader that should be in charge of the treasury.

Bizarro World

MOSCOW — Two Islamist gunmen killed in a special operation in Kazan were planning a major terrorist attack in the city on an upcoming Muslim holiday, the Federal Security Service said Thursday.

The FSB said in a statement on its website that the gunmen, Robert Valeyev and Ruslan Kashapov, had planned to launch the attack on Oct. 26 in areas crowded with people celebrating the first day of the three-day Eid al-Adha holiday.

The two were also suspects in attacks on two senior religious officials in Kazan in July, the statement said.

The FSB said Valeyev shot dead prominent cleric Valiulla Yakupov and planted bombs in the SUV of Tatarstan Mufti Ildus Faizov, who survived the July 19 explosions.

Kashapov was named as an accomplice in those attacks, which the FSB said "aimed to sow fear among the population" on the eve of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
 

Had this happened in the United States, the media would be falling all over themselves trying to keep the religion quiet.  You gotta love Russia.  The first three words of their article..." Two Islamist gunmen." 

Welcome to Bizarro World, where Russia is more honest in their press than the US.  Apparently, in this country you can shout   "Allahu Ackbar" at the top of your lungs, pull a gun and start slaughtering US military personnel, and it's only 'work place violence.'

They Just Can't See the Irony of Their Thoughts

Dick Polman, Philadelphia Inquirer Political Columnist thinks this general election and future elections are about race.  Of course, as your typical liberal Op/Ed contributor, he promises not to dwell on the overt or unconscious racism involved in picking a presidential victor.  That would be...wrong.

But, here's the thing.  The entire Op/Ed highlights differences in voters based on skin color and origin.  These two traits should have nothing to do with picking a president.  The very fact that a journalist is using those two qualities to form a theorem as to how these differences will effect this and other elections is...well...racist...insulting...and, unfortunately, reflective of the very minorities he is trying to highlight.

I truly believe there to be much more racism on the Left.  Minorities seem to portray excessive amounts of racism especially when picking a candidate in an election. 

Just ask yourself this:

How many folks with more melanin in their skin tone are going to vote for Obama simply because he has more melanin in his skin tone than Romney?  

Excuse me for raising a sensitive subject, but reality requires it: The reelection of America's first black president is imperiled because he's doing so badly with white voters.

I won't dwell on whether, or to what degree, his white deficit may be attributable to overt or unconscious racism. That debate is ongoing, and I'll leave it to others. Today, I'm simply interested in the racial math. The math alone tells us plenty about Barack Obama's prospects - and about how heavily he's banking on minorities to propel him across the finish line.

America is more racially diverse than ever, and that accelerating trend will resonate politically in the 21st century. Down the road, the overwhelmingly white GOP may find itself on the wrong side of history. But the big question in this election is whether the diverse Democratic electorate is sizable enough, and motivated enough, to get Obama rehired.

If your Country Still Has a King, you're in the Wrong Century

Looky over there...it's the King of Saudi Arabia telling the world that the United States is not entitled to her First Amendment Rights.  That's right, King Abdullah is pushing for the United Nations to adopt ANOTHER resolution that condemns anything termed abusive towards Islam and the Prophets.  He really says "religions and Prophets," but anyone with a cerebral cortex know he means Islam.  Otherwise Muslims around the world wouldn't be blowing up, shooting up, and burning up other religious constituents...like the Roman Catholic Church in Nigeria that just got truck bombed.

Up until this point, most of this nonsense has been originated and initiated by Pakistan.  Now, oil producing Saudi Arabia is pushing this tripe from the pulpit of Haj. 

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah yesterday urged the United Nations to adopt a resolution condemning those states and groups that abuse divine religions and Prophets (peace be upon them).

Addressing a reception given to prominent personalities and heads of foreign Haj missions at Mina Palace, he urged Muslims to strengthen their unity. “Haj is a symbol of Islamic unity and solidarity,” he said.

“From the vicinity of Grand Mosque in Makkah, I demand a UN resolution that condemns any country or group that insults religions and prophets,” he said. “It is our duty and that of every Muslim to protect Islam and defend the Prophets.”

The king’s statement comes after a low-budget film produced in the US, “Innocence of Muslims,” triggered a wave of deadly anti-American violence last month across the Muslim world targeting US symbols ranging from embassies and schools to fast-food chains.
 

By the way, Mohammad was a pederast, an untrusted backstabbing militant leader who made up the rules as he went along so as always to appear in the right.  When you conjure an entire religion out of thin air, you can do that sort of thing.  That is, of course, if Mohammad ever lived in the first place.  Historians are mixed on that speculation.