Honolulu

Theallet, des Garcons - you got designer clothes on

Rodriguez, Toledo -  thank God you don't wear Speedos 

Panichgul, Narciso - no need to pay as you go

To Honolulu

On a Hawaiian beach

Lays the nation’s biggest leech

That's where you wanna go to sun and drink Boudreaux

That big ass in the sand

Takes forever to get sun tanned

But there's no hurry! Go slow!

Four million bucks you will blow

Down in Honolulu

Theallet, des Garcons - you got designer clothes on

Rodriguez, Toledo -  thank God you don't wear Speedos 

Panichgul, Narciso - no need to pay as you go

Down to Honolulu

You got there fast

Air Force One you flew

That’s what you wanted to do

Way down in Honolulu

No Plantation Estate, the reservation was too late.

First Wookie sits by the sea

While her husband sets up to tee

And the Muslims romp so merrily

It is quite a sight

That giant ass of yours in the sunlight

It’s just like a frigging total eclipse

When the sun’s behind your hips

Way down in Honolulu

Theallet, des Garcons - you got designer clothes on

Rodriguez, Toledo -  thank God you don't wear Speedos 

Panichgul, Narciso - no need to pay as you go

Down to Honolulu

You got there fast

Air Force One you flew

That’s what you wanted to do

Way down in Honolulu

Now here's the real deal:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hopefully the 2012 tide will also wipe away the current administration!

Why I Carry

Written almost six years ago, the Munchkin Wrangler delivers a most excellent essay on the utility of firearms in establishing a civil and safe society:

Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and force. If you want me to do something for you, you have a choice of either convincing me via argument, or force me to do your bidding under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those two categories, without exception. Reason or force, that's it.

In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is the personal firearm, as paradoxical as it may sound to some.

When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You have to use reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your threat or employment of force.

The gun is the only personal weapon that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger, a 75-year old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year old gang banger, and a single guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys with baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and a defender.

There are plenty of people who consider the gun as the source of bad force equations. These are the people who think that we'd be more civilized if all guns were removed from society. But, a firearm makes it easier for an armed mugger to do his job. That, of course, is only true if the mugger's potential victims are mostly disarmed either by choice or by legislative fiat - it has no validity when most of a mugger's potential marks are armed.

People who argue for the banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and the many, and that's the exact opposite of a civilized society. A mugger, even an armed one, can only make a successful living in a society where the state has granted him a force monopoly.

Then there's the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal that otherwise would only result in injury. This argument is fallacious in several ways. Without guns involved, confrontations are won by the physically superior party inflicting overwhelming injury on the loser.

People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don't constitute lethal force, watch too much TV, where people take beatings and come out of it with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun makes lethal force easier, works solely in favor of the weaker defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is level.

The gun is the only weapon that's as lethal in the hands of an octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weight lifter. It simply would not work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn't both lethal and easily employable.

When I carry a gun, I don't do so because I am looking for a fight, but because I'm looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don't carry it because I'm afraid, but because it enables me to be unafraid. It doesn't limit the actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the equation--and that's why carrying a gun is a civilized act.

Set Toothbrushes On "Stun"

The toothbrush of the future may surprise you.

Some background, for anyone who doesn't subscribe to Dentistry Illustrated Weekly: the plasma brush isn't a toothbrush, but actually a tool dentists are hoping to use for two primary situations. The first is breaking up plaque; the plasma torch, though it's no hotter than room temperature, is excellent at breaking the bonds that adhere plaque to a tooth. The second is as a sort of primer for filling cavities.

There are certain kinds of cavities, according to Hao Li, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering in the Missouri University University of Missouri College of Engineering, that need to be refilled every five or seven years using current technology--and they can only be refilled a few times before having to be pulled. The plasma brush can prime a cavity for filling in sort of the same way pavers create those divots in roads before filling them in with new asphalt: it provides more surface area for the filling to stick to, and the research team claims plasma-assisted fillings could be 60% stronger than traditional fillings.

The Duck Of Windsor He Ain't

The Duck of Palma and his bride, Infanta Christina de Espana

The son-in-law of King Carlos of Spain is now a person of interest in an embezzlement investigation, according to Spanish authorities.

Inaki Urdangarin, 43, a former Olympic athlete who carries the title Duke of Palma, will face court as part of an investigation into accusations that a non-profit organisation he ran was siphoning off funds from the regional government of the Balearic Islands – Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera.

For the record, any woman of royal birth whose name is Infanta Christina has absolutely no business marrying anyone named Erkle.

The Noos Institute, which the duke ran from 2004 to 2006, is accused of misusing millions of euros in public funds.

Oh noes! Not the Noos?!?!

The case has made the front pages of Spanish newspapers for weeks, but a judge's decision to name Mr Urdangarin as a formal suspect took the scandal to a new level.

The former handball player, who is married to King Juan Carlos's younger daughter, Princess Cristina, will have to appear in court in Palma, the capital of Majorca, on Feb 6.

And this was the magic that sealed the deal for her... he played Olympic handball?

Hmmm -excuse me Your Royal Highness, I'd like to introduce you to Mr. Palms of Steel!

So, who is Erkle and what does he do? According to Forbes, he is from Sao Paolo, Brazil:

Inaki Urdangarin is 42 years old and serves as a member of our Board of Directors. Mr. Urdangarin is a former world-class professional handball player. He has also participated in three Olympic Games, winning medals in two of them (1996 and 2000), and is Spain's most decorated sportsman accumulating significant sporting achievements, and especially the affection of many fans across Europe. He held the important role of Vice-President of the Spanish Olympic Committee. He combined competitions with studies of Business Science.

If he played hockey I could understand her attraction.

After ending his sporting career, he began advanced management studies in ESADE, one of the most prestigious business schools in the world. Currently, he is a professor of business policy at ESADE. He has also developed a professional career as an advisor and consultant at La Caixa (a major Spanish financial firm) and Octagon, before he co-founded the Noos Institute, where he was the president until 2006...

...when he decided to tap into the fruit of the Institute.

Okay, okay, I agree. He is innocent until proven guilty. But for a Court to bring a member of the royal family under suspicion there has to be more than a handful, or palmful, of evidence implicating the Duck.

The Duck is being investigated for billing regional governments over 5 million euros for organizing sporting events and then diverting the funds to companies controlled by his associates.

More from Forbes:

Sustainable development and social integration have been some of the priority areas in which Mr. Urdangarin has developed his own professional activities for Telefónica. His sports, academic and professional experience makes him believe in the power of sports and culture as useful tools for social inclusion. He, together with other relevant sportsmen, international academics and CEOs, developed a foundation to study and promote the use of sports and culture to help those in danger of being socially excluded.

He's guilty as sin! Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!
Anyone who makes a living from the Society For The Prevention of Danger of Social Exclusion has to be stealing someone blind.

Here's Spain's royal family. That's the Duck on the right.

Kim Jung-Il: A Creepy Dictator Gets A Creepy Funeral

These people act like it's Kim Kennedy-King-Ghandi-il being buried, not Kim Jong-il, a crackpot dictator who literally starved an entire nation. He had an army of 1.2 million in a country that has only 8.3 million men between the ages of 15 and 64. That's like 25% of all men of military age in the country were in the armed services. If America had armed services that large it would be almost 20 million.



Because this goof's father was named "Eternal President" Kim Jung-il was never actually the President of North Korea. He was known by many titles, the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, Chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea, and the supreme commander of the Korean People's Army and simply "Supreme Leader" - but not President.



The last time I saw people cry like this was when my grandfather died and a bunch of sobbing bookies threw themselves on his coffin.

Things To Do In Russia

Starving In North Korea's Fatherland

Apparently in North Korea common sense has gone the way of the 2,000 calorie minimum dietary requirement. Or else they're democrats.

Magpies mourn, are you listening?

In North Korea, tears are glistening.

He had a great ride, but Kim Jong-il has died.

Starving in North Korea's Fatherland.

The world may say we're over-acting

Our Blessed Leader they're detracting;

We're all in lip sync 'cause his shit didn't stink

Starving In North Korea's Fatherland.

Since he's dead we'll build a mausoleum

Make the sucker sixty stories high.

We'll bow before his lazy son Kim Jung-un

And kiss his wrinkled ass before we die.

Later on we'll be sneaking,

A grain of rice while we're weeping.

The revolt's undeclared 'cause we're just too damned scared!

Starving In North Korea's Fatherland.

On Donner! On Dasher! On Prancer! Oh Fenton!

Santa will be using Fed Ex tonight.

Merry Christmas!

If The World Hates You, You Know That It Hated Me Before It Hated You

As we approach the celebration of the birth of our Savior, we should bear in mind that this occasion is a time both of joy and potential deadly unrest for millions of Christians throughout the world. Christians in Asia and Africa are under enormous pressure as other religions and governments persecute the Church of Christ.

Radical Muslims in Egypt, Syria, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Nigeria and other nations have murdered thousands of Christians. Some of the oldest Christian communities in the world are in danger of disappearing completely. Much if not most of this is completed ignored by the media.

SYRIA - (pop. 22,500,000) - 2 million Syrian Christians have also come under pressure to join anti-government protests or face death. Several churches have been burned.

IRAQ - (pop. 30,400,000) - now that there a minimal American military presence in  Iraq, persecution of Christians is increasing. Somewhat protected under Saddam Hussein's ruthless dictatorship, over half of Iraq's Christians have fled the country since 1991. Under pressure from assassinations and bombings, less than a half million Christians remain. The new Iraqi constitution specifies that no other religion can contravene Islam - this does not bode well for Iraqi Christian communities, many of which predate Islam by centuries.

IRAN - (pop. 77,980,000) - there are approximately one million Christians in Iran and they are under fearful pressure from the Shi'a government. Muslim converts to Christ may be sentenced to death by Islamic courts. Conversely, this has had an unanticipated effect, conversions to Christianity are increasing. Pastors are routinely sent to prison for this offense.

EGYPT - (pop. 82,080,000) - Christians have not benefited from the Arab Spring. The Egyptian Constitution gives lip service to freedom of religion, but in practice it is very repressive. If you are born a Muslim you are not allowed to convert or marry a non-Muslim. This year scores of Coptic churches have been destroyed and Christians murdered while government security forces stood by and watched - even aiding the attackers in many instances. Egypt has the Middle East's largest Christian population, about 10% of 82 million Egyptians profess Jesus as Lord.

NIGERIA - (pop. 155,200,00) - Even though Christians comprise 40% of Nigeria's population and Nigeria has a secular constitution guaranteeing freedom of religion, many of Nigeria's northern states have imposed Sharia Law and in the process have destroyed hundreds of churches and killed thousands of Christians.  The violence directed against the Nigerian Christian community is even worse than in the Middle East.

INDONESIA - (pop. 245,600,000) - With over 85% of it's population professing Islam, Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population. A growing Christian population, now estimated at over 19 million, has prompted jihad. Thousands of churches have been attacked or destroyed.

Of course there are moderate Muslims who are appalled by this. In Cairo, some Muslims participate in Coptic services in order to forestall attacks and express solidarity with their countrymen. Others have ringed churches to defend them from radicals. But many Muslims are intimidated by the ferociousness and unrelenting cruelty of the radicals and by the government's apparent compliance.

But Muslims are not the only ones...

INDIA - (pop. 1,189,000,000) - Hindu extremists have murdered scores of Christians in the past few years and displaced tens of thousands through threats and intimidation. Several states have passed laws forbidding conversion to any religion other than Hindu. Experts see this as a way to maintain the forbidden caste system as many Christian converts are from the lowest castes. Christians comprise approximately 2.3% of the population giving an estimated Christian population of over 27 million.

CHINA - (pop. 1,337,000,000) - Since Chairman Mao's communist revolution, Chinese Christians have persevered in their faith under the most appalling conditions. The Chinese government continues to imprison more Christians than any other country. This is under the guise of enforcing the government's recognition of only one Christian denomination, the Catholic Church, and cracking down on evangelical home churches.

The Chinese maintain that there are about 28 million Catholics but experts estimate that there are between 80 and 130 million Christians in China and it is rapidly growing. All officially approved churches must submit to government control and officials see the underground home churches as a challenge to authority; they can be incredibly brutal in closing these small places. Many Chinese who wish to worship Christ in a non-Catholic/non-governmental setting are severely beaten and imprisoned.

Do we see a foreshadow of what may come here, in America? And if so, why are we surprised? The world is at war with Christ, always has been and we are now witnessing America's post-Christian era. Our so-called modern churches have diluted the Gospel into a social statement. Politicians no longer fear the Christian political base because, quite frankly, it is not nearly as strong as it was two generations ago. And it wasn't just Christians; there was a strong moral consensus even amoung non-believers that certain actions were reprehensible and not to be tolerated. That cultural consensus no longer exists.

Can we see the same persecution here in America that now exists in China? Who knows...

I *Heart* Purple Hearts

From Military.com:

HOLLAND, Mich. -- Pawn shops are big business this time of year, thanks to the holidays and tough economic times. However, one particular West Michigan store is generating buzz over a small treasure many consider priceless.

As owner of A-Z Outlet in Holland, Bryan Vandenbosch has purchased a lot of electronics, jewelry, and tools, but after almost 19 years in business, he bought something he never expected -- a Purple Heart, a medal awarded to U.S. troops wounded in battle. This one was earned in Afghanistan in May 2010.

"[The Soldier had] been in here the week [before Thanksgiving]," says Vandenbosch. "He brought it in the following week, I purchased it from him, and put it on display."

Vandenbosch says the active-duty Soldier, on leave from Afghanistan, was reluctant to sell the medal at first, but like a lot of people, he needed a little extra cash for the holiday season. So, the Soldier gave up one of his two Purple Hearts -- something he almost gave his life to get.

As word began to spread about the medal, Vandenbosch says the phone has been ringing off the hook with people wanting to help.

"I have people that have walked in already this morning that have asked me 'Hey, how much did you pay for it? I'll pay for it so he can get it back,' " he says.

Vandenbosch says that he refuses to sell the Purple Heart to anyone but the prior owner. He will not disclose how much he paid for it.

Prior to the creation of the Badge of Military Merit in 1782, it was common practice to honor only generals for their victories, not the common soldiers. The Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, General George Washington writes:

The General ever desirous to cherish virtuous ambition in his soldiers, as well as to foster and encourage every species of Military merit, directs that whenever any singularly meritorious action is performed, the author of it shall be permitted to wear on his facings over the left breast, the figure of a heart in purple cloth, or silk, edged with narrow lace or binding. Not only instances of unusual gallantry, but also of extraordinary fidelity and essential service in any way shall meet with a due reward. Before this favour can be conferred on any man, the particular fact, or facts, on which it is to be grounded must be set forth to the Commander in chief accompanied with certificates from the Commanding officers of the regiment and brigade to which the Candadate for reward belonged, or other incontestable proofs, and upon granting it, the name and regiment of the person with the action so certified are to be enrolled in the book of merit which will be kept at the orderly office. Men who have merited this last distinction to be suffered to pass all guards and sentinals which officers are permitted to do. The road to glory in a patriot army and a free country is thus open to all. This order is also to have retrospect to the earliest stages of the war, and to be considered as a permanent one.

The original Purple Heart, the Military Badge of Merit.

Today's Purple Heart was designed by John R. Sinnock of the Philadelphia Mint in 1931 and is awarded to those who have been wounded or killed while serving in the US military on or after April 5, 1917. By Executive Order of the President, the Purple Heart was instituted on the 200th anniversary of George Washington's birthday, 22 February 1932.

Evolving Options

Iran has been a burr under America's saddle since 1979. Through their support and instigation of Islamic jihad they are responsible for the deaths of thousands and thousands of people including many Americans. In Lebanon, Kenya and Tanzania their support was behind the bombings of our embassies. In Iraq and Afghanistan the Irani governemnt has supplied IED's and other weapons used against American soldiers. Iran is also a major supporter of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations.

Iran has been active in this cowardly "slaughter by proxy" for over thirty years and, if various sources can be believed, they are close to developing nuclear weapons. I say it's long overdue that we put an end to this bullshit. Apparently the Pentagon agrees.

General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, said that the US military had reached a point where they were ready to execute force against Iran if necessary.

In an interview with US media in Afghanistan he said: "We are examining a range of options. I'm satisfied that the options that we are developing are evolving to a point that they would be executable if necessary."

[...]Leon Panetta, the secretary of defence, said this week that the US was prepared to step in to prevent Tehran realising its nuclear ambitions. He estimated that the country was only a year away from reaching its goal.

"The United States does not want Iran to develop a nuclear weapon," he said. "That is a red line for us and that is a red line for the Israelis. If we have to do it we will do it. If they proceed and we get intelligence that they are proceeding in developing a nuclear weapon then we will take whatever steps necessary to stop them. There are no options that are off the table."

It's about time.



One thing does bother me and it bothers me a lot. The *spit* President *spit* has allowed the JCS Chairman to say this while in full campaign mode and his popularity in in the crapper. Wag the dog time? Is this just another misdirection play while he trashes America once again?

Searching For The God Particle

This is an ATLAS particle detector. It is huge and there are six of these detectors located throughout the large Hadron collider at the CERN facility in Switzerland. The six ATLAS devices will hopefully be used to detect the Higgs boson, AKA the God Particle.

Silly me, I always thought a boson was some kind of Navy guy. They're pretty easy to find, especially late at night when they've been drinking.

In any event,scientists think they are finally getting close to grabbing one. What they'll do with it is anyone's guess. Hopefully the boson will be in a good mood and not knock them on their ass.

To Boldly Go Where No One Has Taxed Before

In a dramatic statement, scientists has announced that they have discovered new Earth-sized planets only 950 light years away.

Two planets orbiting a star 950 light-years from Earth are the smallest, most Earth-size alien worlds known, astronomers announced Tues., Dec. 20. One of the planets is actually smaller than Earth, scientists say.

These planets, while roughly the size of our planet Earth, are circling very close to their star, giving them fiery temperatures that are most likely too hot to support life, researchers said. The discovery, however, brings scientists one step closer to finding a true twin of Earth that may be habitable.

In a prepared statement, Senator Nancy Pelosi (D-Bankrupt) stated that once a truly Earth-type planet is found, Congress will, "tax those Trekkie sonsabitches so bad, they'll think a cosmic black hole is actually our Social Security plan."

A Dirt Nap For Our Buddy Kim

Reprising his most famous role, North Korean Dictator for Life Kim Jong-Il has now assumed the same ambient temperature as his famous look-alike puppet. Unfortunately for Kim, the puppet will fare much better physically over the next few months than Dear Departed Leader.

Things You Wanted To Know About Kim Jong-Il But Were Afraid To Ask.

1. He wanted to breed giant rabbits to feed the people of NorK.
2. Claimed to have invented the hamburger.
3. Had the unofficial title of the "Central Brain."
4. Wrote six dreadful operas.
5. Had over 20,000 movies in his personal library; his favorites were "Rambo" and "Friday The 13th"
6. Loved to roller blade.
7. Was very partial to roast donkey.
8. NorK propaganda states that when Kim was born, a double rainbow came out and Spring simultaneously arrived.
9. He built an entire city, Kijong-Dong, for PR purposes. No one has ever resided there.

10. Kidnapped a South Korean film director and forced him to make a Godzilla movie.

But perhaps Kim Jong-Il is best known for the dramatic reduction in North Korea's light pollution. North Korea is one of the world's best nations in which to view the night sky and myriads of stars due to the fact that there little or no electricity in much of the country as seen in the following satellite photo. Of course the nation is outlined in white else you could not see it at all.

Thank you, thank you Dear Departed Leader!

Egyptian Police Foreplay

You can tell which cop is the intern.
He's the one stomping the woman with his Air Allah sneakers instead of combat boots.

Protesters and security forces fought in Cairo on Sunday, the third day of clashes that have killed 10 people and exposed rifts over the army's role as it manages Egypt's promised transition from military to civilian rule.

Soldiers and police manned barriers on some streets around Tahrir Square, the hub of the uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak and again convulsed by violence as protesters demand the generals who took charge in February quit power.

Police in riot gear made brief forays beyond their barriers and were met by a surge of protesters pelting them with rocks. Police appeared to have taken over the frontline from soldiers.

Troops in riot gear were filmed on Saturday beating protesters with long sticks even after they had fallen to the ground. A Reuters picture showed two soldiers dragging a woman lying on the ground by her shirt, exposing her underwear.

I'm so glad my daughter left Cairo four years ago. She saw some Egyptian cops in action and they are horribly brutal.

USS Independence

This is the LCS2, USS Independence, the US Navy's latest coastal warcraft. LCS stands for Littoral Combat Ship - it is designed to operate in relatively shallow coastal (littoral) waters. Allegedly it will do sixty knots (almost 70 mph) and has a very large storage area to support a wide variety of missions. The LCS class are made for launching helicopters and lightly-armored vehicles, sweeping mines and launching torpedoes and missiles.

These ships are also relatively inexpensive. The LCS2 was built at a cost of $208 million and the Navy plans to build 55 of them at a total cost of $11.44 billion.

These ships are considerably cheaper to build, maintain and update than the 84 Aegis class cruisers and destroyers currently in service, meets a different service requirement and replaces the smaller Navy corvettes and frigates. The LCS mission:

[...]to counter growing “asymmetric” threats like coastal mines, quiet diesel submarines, global piracy, and terrorists on small fast attack boats. It also requires intelligence gathering and scouting, some ground combat support capabilities, and the ability to act as a local command node, sharing tactical information with other Navy aircraft, ships, submarines, and joint units.


At the same time, however, the Navy needs ships that can act as low-end gap-fillers in other traditional fleet roles, and operate in the presence of missile-armed enemy vessels and/or aerial threats.

 With a very shallow draft due to it's unique hull design, this ship can also operate in rivers.

The Littoral Combat Ship concept spent some time in the making and does have its detractors.

Naval analyst Raymond Pritchett has pithily described the current compromise as:

”...3000 ton speedboat chasers with the endurance of a Swedish corvette, the weapon payload of a German logistics ship, and the cargo hold of a small North Korean arms smuggler.”

This is the Swedish corvette Helsingborg.

Guess you can't keep everybody happy.

UPDATE:
Found a video of the Independence. 
At the 25 sec. mark, look at the left turn this ship  is making. Almost like a car. Simply amazing. Using similar hull /propulsion technology the Swede's can have their ship come to a dead stop from 40 knots in a few hundred feet or less.

An Islamic Diploma

From the Daily Mail:

A jealous husband is facing life in prison after chopping off his wife's fingers because she began studying for a degree without his permission.

Rafiqul Islam, 30, blindfolded his wife Hawa Akhter, and taped her mouth, telling her he was going to give her a surprise present.

Instead he made her hold out her hand and cut off all five fingers. One of his relatives then threw Ms Akhter's fingers in the dustbin to ensure doctors could not reattach them.

This occurred in the Islamic Paradise of Bangladesh.

Sure, let's keep the immigration gates wide open for these people.

Three In One

Tear up the Constitution and set a torch to the Capitol. Obugger has declared himself to be all three branches of the government rolled up into one corrupt little pisspot.

From Real Clear Politics:

"Where Congress Is Not Willing To Act, We're Going To Go Ahead And Do It Ourselves"

In an interview with KOAA-TV, a local news channel from Colorado Springs, Colorado, President Obama says if Congress is not willing to pass legislation he wants, he will do it himself in order to win another term. Read the transcript below.

Rob Quirk, KOAA-TV: "And one year from today we will know if this a one-term or two-term president. So, I asked the president what will it take from now until then to not only win Colorado again, but reelection as well."

President Obama: "Well, what we're going to have to do is continue to make progress on the economy over the next several months. And where Congress is not willing to act, we're going to go ahead and do it ourselves. But it would be nice if we could get a little bit of help from Capitol Hill."

Model Me This

As the old adage goes, "Figures Don't Lie, But Liars Never Figure ... They Use Models."

Whether it's global warming, public support for the Occupiers or the housing market, people are quick to use flawed models on which to base their recommendations/findings, particularly when it involves your money. This way, instead of being accused of lying, they are merely using the wrong model ... oopsy! ... and then say they will correct the model after screwing around with the lives of millions of people. It's a great way to avoid responsibility and criticism; after all, who ever lost their job because they used the wrong model? Hey, we flunked math!

Data on sales of previously owned U.S. homes from 2007 through October this year will be revised down next week because of double counting, indicating a much weaker housing market than previously thought.

The National Association of Realtors said a benchmarking exercise had revealed that some properties were listed more than once, and in some instances, new home sales were also captured.

That's how you determine the reliability of a model, you benchmark it. But you design the benchmark tests and run them prior to verifying that the data model is accurate and then using it. Not here, they waited ten years (they use census data) to find out that it's crap; now they can blame Bush.

"All the sales and inventory data that have been reported since January 2007 are being downwardly revised. Sales were weaker than people thought," NAR spokesman Walter Malony told Reuters.

"We're capturing some new home data that should have been filtered out and we also discovered that some properties were being listed in more than one list."

So how bad was their model? It was off by as much as 20%. That moves the Suck Meter right into the red zone.

Early this year, the Realtors group was accused of over counting existing homes sales, with California-based real estate analysis firm CoreLogic claiming sales could have been overstated by as much as 20 percent.

[...]The depressed housing market is one of the key obstacles to strong economic growth and an oversupply of unsold homes on the market continues to stifle the sector.

Malony said the Realtors group had developed a new model that would allow frequent benchmarking instead of waiting 10 years for the population Census data to revise their figures.

And this model will come online just in time to blame the new screwed up economic projections on the new Republican administration that takes over in 2013...

Life is good when you flunk math.

Gone, But Not Forgotton

Especially by law enforcement officials in three different countries. But let's face it, you'd require a frontal lobotomy in order to forget acne scars like that. He  looks like someone set his face on fire and put it out with an up-armored Caterpillar D9.

From the BBC:

Panama's jailed ex-ruler Manuel Noriega is returning to his homeland following extradition from France.

He took off from Paris' Orly airport early on Sunday morning, transferring at Madrid's Barajas airport to a flight to Panama City.

He is expected to be taken to prison once he arrives in Panama, having been convicted in absentia of crimes during his 1983-89 rule.

The 77-year-old has already spent more than 20 years in French and US prisons.

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. I miss the days when we had people running the US government who wouldn't take crap from petty dictators. Now we have petty dictators like Obama and Holder running our government. Lord willing, they'll suffer a similar fate starting in 2013.

Although he was never president, General Manuel Noriega served as Panama's de facto leader between 1983 to 1989.

Noriega faces 20 year jail terms upon his arrival in Panama Once a US ally, he was arrested by invading American troops in January 1990, amid allegations he had turned the Central American nation into a drug-trafficking hub.

He spent 20 years in prison in the US after being convicted there of the charges.

In 2010, he was extradited from the US to France, where he had been convicted in absentia of laundering money from Colombian drug gangs through a French bank to buy property in Paris.

He received a seven-year jail sentence from the French court.

In Panama itself, he faces three 20-year jail terms for crimes committed during his rule, including the murders of political opponents.

Upon his arrival in Panama City, Noriega is expected to be taken by helicopter to El Renacer prison, north-west of the capital and close to the Panama Canal.

France convicted Noriega and his wife, Felicidad Sieiro de Noriega, of laundering $7 million in drug proceeds by using French banks. His wife lives in Panama but has not been charged. His daughters Sandra and Thalia are kinda hot. I wonder how much of their current life style was financed through the nostrils of American crackheads?

A Day That Will Live In Infamy

According to statistics released by the Veteran’s Administration, our World War II vets are dying at a rate of 740 a day. This means there are approximately only 1.7 million veterans remaining of the 16 million who served our nation in World War II.

NEVER FORGET.

For the past few days my wife and I have been watching "Band of Brothers" again. The episode that deals with the Battle of the Bulge always gets to her because of the scenes of the wounded GI's. Her Uncle Mike was in Bastogne with the 82nd Airborne when he was seriously wounded by sharpnel. He survived the war. Unfortunately he died  a few months before I met his niece in February of 1979.  Here's to you Big Mike.

Obama Volt!

Yeah, I'm reaching here. It was supposed to be a play on "Deus Vult!" Latin for "God Wills It!" which was a Medieval expression used to promote the Crusades and the Black Plague. Now it is Obama Wills It! for you to purchase this miserable, pokey toy that will go 40 miles on a battery charge and then set your garage on fire.

In any event, it appears that General Motors and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration may have colluded to prevent timely disclosure of several fires in Volt test vehicles that originated in the car's battery system.

From Auto Guide:

The Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle touted as “the most fuel-efficient compact car in the United States,” is the subject of a federal investigation into whether it is safe or not.

According to a report by CBS, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has begun a “safety defect investigation,” on the vehicle after crash testing earlier in the year found that damage to the Volt’s lithium-ion battery resulted in a fire.

“The agency is concerned that damage to the Volt’s batteries as part of three tests that are explicitly designed to replicate real-world crash scenarios have resulted in fire,” the administration said in a news release. “NHTSA is therefore opening a safety defect investigation of Chevy Volts, which could experience a battery-related fire following a crash.”

In related news, several Italian women claimed that they lost their virginity after purchasing the new Fiat 500 but later recanted their stories after checking the glove compartment and finding the missing items.

Honestly, after looking at that Fiat, the only thing I could lose in it would be my lunch.

The Capital of Sex Exploitation

"Suffer the little children..."

As a nation I really fear that we are wearing God's patience and long suffering mighty thin. It's bad enough that the most dangerous location in America for a child right now is a mother's womb, but combine that with the sexual predation of pedophiles and our goose is cooked. If a major spiritual revival is not in the immediate forecast for our beleaguered country, be prepared for some real rough roads ahead.

Our Nation is cursed because our children are abused, exploited and taught that evil is good and good is evil. Our children are exposed at an early age to drug use, moral deparavity and obsession with material goods through the manipulation of the media in television and movies. And who are these manipulators?

If a spate of recent allegations proves true, Hollywood may have a hideous epidemic on its hands. The past two weeks have brought three separate reports of alleged child sexual abuse in the entertainment industry.

Martin Weiss, a 47-year-old Hollywood manager who represented child actors, was charged in Los Angeles on Dec. 1 with sexually abusing a former client. His accuser, who was under 12 years old during the time of the alleged abuse, reported to authorities that Weiss told him "what they were doing was common practice in the entertainment industry." Weiss has pleaded not guilty.

After seeing my alma mater go through the cover up of a pedophile and the well deserved scandal at Syracuse, I hope Hollywood at long last is due for a wake up call.

On Nov. 21, Fernando Rivas, 59, an award-winning composer for “Sesame Street,” was arraigned on charges of coercing a child “to engage in sexually explicit conduct” in South Carolina. The Juilliard-trained composer was also charged with production and distribution of child pornography.

Registered sex offender Jason James Murphy, 35, worked as a casting agent in Hollywood for years before his past kidnapping and sexual abuse of a boy was revealed by the Los Angeles Times on Nov. 17. Murphy’s credits include placing young actors in kid-friendly fare like "Bad News Bears," "The School of Rock," "Cheaper by the Dozen 2” and the forthcoming "Three Stooges.”

And I imagine that many parents of these children are equally to blame for turning a blind eye to what was happening in order to benefit from lucrative contracts that they managed on behalf of their offspring.

Another child star from an earlier era agrees that Hollywood has long had a problem with pedophilia. “When I watched that interview, a whole series of names and faces from my history went zooming through my head,” Paul Peterson, 66, star of The Donna Reed Show, a sitcom popular in the 1950s and 60s, and president of A Minor Consideration, tells FOXNews.com. “Some of these people, who I know very well, are still in the game.”

“This has been going on for a very long time,” concurs former “Little House on the Prairie” star Alison Arngrim. “It was the gossip back in the ‘80s. People said, ‘Oh yeah, the Coreys, everyone’s had them.’ People talked about it like it was not a big deal.”

Arngrim, 49, was referring to Feldman and his co-star in “The Lost Boys,” Corey Haim, who died in March 2010 after years of drug abuse.

“I literally heard that they were ‘passed around,’” Arngrim said. “The word was that they were given drugs and being used for sex. It was awful – these were kids, they weren’t 18 yet. There were all sorts of stories about everyone from their, quote, ‘set guardians’ on down that these two had been sexually abused and were totally being corrupted in every possible way.”

Far, far too much of our culture has been turned into a cesspool. It is time to clean it up starting at the capital - Hollywood.

How Barney Frank Got Rear Ended

It just happens. You're sitting at a red light  minding your own business when all of a sudden out of a clear blue sky - BAM! - somebody ass-ends you, and not in a manner that you're accustomed to. Only too late do you realize that you were stting there day dreaming while the light changed.

It couldn't happen to a more deserving guy...

From the Boston Herald:

Barney Frank has always been the smartest guy in the room — just ask him.

As for Eddie Markey, well, let’s just say that he isn’t — even if the room is a broom closet and the only other thing in it is a mop.

So here’s the irony: Barney Frank, so arrogant, so full of himself, so intoxicated by decades of fawning media coverage, just assumed that he would be taken care of in redistricting by the peons in the Legislature.

Meanwhile, Fast Eddie was sucking up to these same below-average solons. Markey may not be the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, but he was smart enough to remember Tip O’Neill’s old adage about how you have to ask for every vote.

[...]Barney got caught flat-flooted. He didn’t wake up until the sky was dark with chickens coming to roost. To quote Oscar Wilde: It would take a heart of stone not to laugh.

“They didn’t do me any favors,” Barney said. But why would they?

He hadn’t cultivated any of the newer reps; he probably still only knew a handful. The other congressman who got his way at Barney’s expense was Steve Lynch of South Boston and there’s another ironic twist for you.

For years Southie’s Senate President Billy Bulger unsuccessfully tried to wreck Barney’s career, in both legislative and congressional redistricting. But now, all these years later, Steve Lynch, the guy who ended the Bulger dynasty in Southie, now takes care of his old foe’s final unfinished piece of business.

Apparently when the state reps sliced up the electoral pie, poor Barney didn't get a big enough piece. He finally woke up at the wheel but by then it was too late.

At the end, Barney realized he was in a jam and begged for all of Fall River. But that would have required some shifts on the Irish Riviera. Lynch, backed by his own surrogate, Rep. Mike Moran of Brighton, refused to give up any of the South Shore. He had fashioned the perfect district for himself, shorn of minorities and heretics (Needham) and what did he owe Barney?

Nobody owes Frank anything. Quite the opposite; Frank should be investigated and imprisoned for poisoning the financial industry and leaving the retirement plans of millions of people in ruins.

But Barney will retire in style. Here is his luxury yacht tied up in Boston Harbor.

A Wise Man Once Said...

There's sad news from Muswell Hill in London.  Our favorite girl, Goodnight Vienna, is shutting down her blog.  She identifies "a personal meltdown", but I suspect that watching one's country and culture destroyed by socialist inbred politicians and European bureaucrat-bankers does nothing to raise one's hopes.  Decades ago, I spent 2 years in a bedsitter on Alexandra Road in Muswell Hill. I shared the digs with a psychotic and jealous Turkish au pair who passionately defended her poor personal hygiene.  I'm sure that Goodnight Vienna and I could swap colorful meltdown stories.  


Hurry back, girl.  There's one big f*cking battle on the horizon and, by the way, we win it.


Love,


Nickie


-------------------------------


There's been a bit of a personal meltdown here in Muswell Hill Towers in the past week so I'm going to put my blog out of its misery and close it rather than keep it on hold until the good times roll.  Blogs are like children, they need nurturing and mustn't be left to fend for themselves.

If you're incredibly bored one evening you can check the archives to find out about smart meters, report-back computers in cars, the infrastructure, the cameras, the censorship, the arming of the police, what you can grow in your garden, what you can give to relatives and friends, what's approved and what isn't, and what's under global attack. If you're not already aware, you can read about how they did it and how we ended up with a one-party State that takes direction from an unelected foreign entity.  You'll also find this:

from Dmitry Orlov and there's more HERE.

There are many good, independent blogs around; if I could give you only one piece of advice it would be to put on your thinking cap and read them (you'll find a good selection in the sidebar). You may not like the language but there's a truth in them that you won't find in the mainstream media.

When I began this blog I was startled to discover how behind the times the msm actually is, and how much they cover up with half-truths. The msm are enablers so if they tell you something, double-check it for yourself. If you feel the need to contribute to their comments sections: don't. They're always filtered and moderated, no matter what they say, so it's best to start your own blog. If you haven't checked through the Essential Links, it's worth doing that too. There's so much information on the internet that you only need to check into the msm now and then to see what they're reporting and how out of sync they are.

It gives me no pleasure to see what I've been predicting come about, and I'm nobody - I'm just someone who took the time to look at the political and financial world, check out sources and use my own judgement.  You can do it too.

For our government and for the EU:
]

Well, that's it from me.  Take care, thank you for reading and commenting and, DV,  I'll see you on the other side of the barricade.

Oh yes, the Wise Man.  He said: "So long, and thanks for all the fish".

Black Friday At The OK Corral

Instead of coal, it appears that many shoppers have filled their Christmas stockings with another substance, gunpowder.

USA Today reported that the FBI’s National Instant Check center logged more than 129,000 background check requests last Friday, a new record surpassing the 97,848 checks conducted on Black Friday in 2008. The National Shooting Sports Foundation credits much of the buying to the realization by increasing numbers of citizens that they have a constitutional right to own guns. Also, more women are getting involved in shooting sports, including hunting, and more are carrying firearms for personal protection.

“Americans hope for the best,” Gottlieb said, “but they prepare for the worst. Some call that ‘panic’ but in reality, it is prudence. While there are some small signs of improvement, there remains a vast landscape of uncertainty. Sensible people have evidently concluded that it is better to have a gun and not need it, than to need a gun and not have it.”

A mandatory background check is completed by the FBI every time a firearm is purchased in an FFL (Federal Firearms License) licensed premise. The clerk selling the weapon must phone in the request and get approval before the firearm leaves the shop. Of course any private sales of firearms are not subject to this restriction.

The Good Ship Barney Frank

On the Good Ship Barney Frank

It's a short trip to the central bank

Where gay boys played,

And the economy's in disarray.

Unemployment lines everywhere,

But the unions don't have a care.

Obama is breaking par,

While he hires another useless czar.

Barney had his way with Fannie Mae

And schtupped Freddie Mac just for kicks,

And if you think that's bad, ooh-ooh

He'll do the shake and bake with your trouser snake.

On the Good Ship Barney Frank

Working stiffs must walk the plank

And kiss their IRA's goodbye

On the Good Ship Barney Frank!

Don't Underestimate The Sneakiness

And never, ever underestimate the resolve, resourcefulness and bravery of Israel.

From the Australian News:

A second Iranian nuclear facility has exploded, as diplomatic tensions rise between the West and Tehran

AN IRANIAN nuclear facility has been hit by a huge explosion, the second such blast in a month, prompting speculation that Tehran's military and atomic sites are under attack.

Satellite imagery seen by The Times confirmed that a blast that rocked the city of Isfahan on Monday struck the uranium enrichment facility there, despite denials by Tehran.

The images clearly showed billowing smoke and destruction, negating Iranian claims yesterday that no such explosion had taken place. Israeli intelligence officials told The Times that there was "no doubt" that the blast struck the nuclear facilities at Isfahan and that it was "no accident".

The explosion at Iran's third-largest city came as satellite images emerged of the damage caused by one at a military base outside Tehran two weeks ago that killed about 30 members of the Revolutionary Guard, including General Hassan Moghaddam, the head of the Iranian missile defence program.

Iran claimed that the Tehran explosion occurred during testing on a new weapons system designed to strike at Israel. But several Israeli officials have confirmed that the blast was intentional and part of an effort to target Iran's nuclear weapons program.

On Monday, Isfahan residents reported a blast that shook tower blocks in the city at about 2.40pm and seeing a cloud of smoke rising over the nuclear facility on the edge of the city

A Life Lesson For Iran: Don't piss these people off.

On Monday, Dan Meridor. the Israeli Intelligence Minister, said: "There are countries who impose economic sanctions and there are countries who act in other ways in dealing with the Iranian nuclear threat."

And there are countries who make other countries pay the consequences for their actions and threats.

You just have it hand it to the Israelis. Iran has been expecting them to make a move against their nuclear capabilities and yet Israel still snuck into Iran's nuclear harem and screwed every atomic concubine in the palace.

ROTFLMAO!

A Moment Of Truth: Extra-Terrestrial Manipulation Of American Politics

Even if he's a RINO, there's only one way that Colon Powel could come up with the craptastic explanation that the Tea Party has poisoned the political environment in Washington,D.C.

 He was abducted by extra-terrestrials who conducted unspeakable experiments on him.


From Newsbusters:

Not surprisingly, neither the class warfare stoked by President Obama and his Party nor the resulting Occupy Wall Street movement was mentioned during this seven minute interview with Christiane Amanpour on ABC's This Week. [transcript follows~ sig94]

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, HOST: What about this tone in the country right now? It's still very divisive. It's still very sort of brash, some say poisonous. I mean, you can barely get anything done on Capitol Hill, just behind me there. What needs to be done, to actually improve the tone and the ability of people to work together?

COLIN POWELL: The tone is not -- is not good right now, and our political system here in Washington, particularly up on The Hill -- Congress -- has become very, very tense in that two sides, Republicans and Democrats, are focusing more and more on their extreme left and extreme right. And we have to come back toward the center in order to compromise.

It was decades of compromise that got us here in the first place! Failure to recognize established patterns of political weakness and corruption is one of the primary signs of alien anal probing, usually by a sadistic alien that was itself abused while still a larva.

AMANPOUR: I get your point about heat and light, but what about the fact that, in fact, it is one of the political parties, although -- or rather the big political influence, which is the Tea Party, which quotes left and right the Founding Fathers? They say compromise is a dirty word, and they try to point to the Founding Fathers and the Constitution.

POWELL: They compromised -- the Founding Fathers compromised on slavery. They had to in order to create a country. They compromised on the composition of the Senate, of the House, of the Supreme Court, of a president -- what are the president's powers? Can you imagine more difficult compromises today?

Compromise is how this country was founded, and unless two people in disagreement with each other don't find a way to reach out to one another and make compromises, you don't get a consensus that allows you to move forward.

[...]But the Tea Party point of view of no compromise whatsoever is not a point of view that will eventually produce a presidential candidate who will win.

AMANPOUR: General Powell, thank you very much indeed.

POWELL: Thank you, dear.

And of course when Colon used the example of slavery being behind the success of the Continental Congress he completely ignores the fact that seventy years later it lead to the greatest slaughter of Americans in our nation's history with over two million casualties - the Civil War. Obviously George Washington also compromised with the British at Yorktown as did the General MacAuliffe and the 82nd Airborne with the German Army at Bastogne. When you are at war you do not compromise - and we are at war for the future of our nation.

This entire interview must be the result of a alien cranial/anal inversion procedure performed on both Colon and Christine.

We are no longer foundlings, we are a mature constitutional repubic that has been corrupted by compromise, by the constant, unrelenting tweaking of idiots with so-called good intentions that has finally given birth to Government Gone Wild. And now we know why.

Call it the Martians Revenge. They didn't land in cylinders as H.G. Wells envisioned but they sure as hell rampaged through America.