Big Government Mandate in Wisconsin is Telling me to Buy Car Insurance. That's not what the Founding Fathers wanted!

First it was Health Insurance, now we're losing the freedom to go without Car insurance.
Slowly but surely we're losing our liberties and freedoms to freeload off everyone else for health care and car insurance. What's next, regulating Wall Street?

Drivers will want to make sure the auto insurance paperwork in their glove box is up to date before Tuesday. That's when a state law requiring all Wisconsin motorists to purchase auto insurance goes into effect.

Those who can't provide proof of insurance when they are pulled over or in an accident may face a $10 fine, and the law allows for fines of up to $500 for people caught driving without insurance. Wisconsin is currently one of two states that doesn't require drivers to purchase auto insurance … New Hampshire will be the only state without the mandate.

It's estimated that "15 percent of Wisconsin drivers are uninsured," making everyone else pay extra for uninsured motorist coverage. Those freedom loving jackasses are costing me money.

Libertarian; A Picture of Perfection?

Preface: I have had it out with libertarian bloggers before, and came away frustrated by their false sense of superiority, know-it-all arrogance and disdain for everyone not buying into their world view. At "War on Socialism," Rob Waterson goes after the affable Jim Wallis, who's only crime is that he wishes we all could just get along. With just a few of my own personal warnings thrown in, here's Waterson demonstrating the typical libertarian condescension to non-believing American citizens:

Jim Wallis is a hard core leftist who attempts to wrap up his immoral philosophy in religion in order to legitimize it. Wallis’ Wikipedia entry states that he “actively eschews political labels”, but that is typical of those who work towards more big government control of our lives. They most certainly do not like being properly labeled as freedom-loathing statists.

Writing an article in the Huffington Post , Wallis demonstrates his mastery of dishonest sleight of hand. Wallis first equates the Tea Party Movement with libertarianism and then immediately makes the jump to Rand Paul … He must have received the email from the Democrats on that one; it is a consistent talking point approach lately … an attempt to make the case that because he is an alleged reverend he is therefore qualified to pass judgment on “how Christian” the Tea Party movement is.

This is where we get to hear how elitist, moral and intellectually superior liberatarians are, and how misguided, Marxist, socialist and "spread the wealth" losers everyone one else is. This weak presumptive rhetoric is all you see in the comments section of conservative blog's and websites.

In fact, his incredibly weak arguments fall well short of convincing any intelligent person of the merits of his position and simply made me want to find out who this clown was. It seemed clear that this guy was an Alinksy type, a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Wallis is not intellectually honest enough to understand the difference between individuals helping their fellow man when he truly needs it and the government seizing vast amounts of wealth to redistribute to those who have learned to game the system ... it is never compassion when you are spending someone else’s money and that one can love one’s neighbor without feeling any requirement to pay his bills.

Notice the unintended but revealing use of "projection" by the author in the following statement. Keep in mind, short sighted deregulation, tax cuts and wedge issues for political gain led to a global economic crash and the ecological disaster in the Gulf:

In fact, libertarians know that most poor people are poor not because they have encountered some misfortune in life but simply because they have made a series of stupid, short-sighted decisions … Libertarians believe – with good reason – that people who do not suffer from the stupidity of their actions will continue to do stupid things. Clearly Mr. Wallis thinks that one of the appropriate roles of government is to protect people from the consequences of their actions, but only if they are societal parasites. That plants him firmly in the camp of the Nanny State Left.

The truth is that the left’s supreme confidence in big government is not consistent with the reality of human nature and corruption. Their exclusive focus on wealth redistribution as the central goal ignores the real problem, which is that these people would not need to live off of the rest of us if the government had not created the lifestyle-subsidy welfare programs. Like our parasitic class in America, they will even get angry if the free food stops. That entitlement mentality is at the core of those 47% of Americans who pay no taxes and are therefore living off of the rest of us. Shockingly, liberals seem to believe in the myth of the blameless societal parasite and that giving someone else’s property to them will actually help rather than harm them.

…if Mr. Wallis actually took a clear look at the biblical view of human nature and sin he would realize that it in fact makes the best argument possible for limited government. We simply cannot trust human beings with that level of control over their fellows. it’s getting easy to understand how this clown is a democrat. But to be fair, being a leftist Mr. Wallis is unaccustomed to dealing with people who possess a command of logical thought, so we cannot blame him for attempting to foist tripe on us that works consistently with his normal bevy of parasitic myrmidons.

Cliché alert (created by the right to cloak actual racism):

Claims of racism are the last refuge of the scoundrel, the trump card played by someone who is losing the debate.

Name calling alert:

Mr. Wallis proves that he is a full-fledged race-hustling poverty pimp with this clumsy attempt to play the race card … it has nothing to do with his (Obama's) brown skin and everything to do with his red politics.

Projection and irony alert:

Wallis has the typically weak leftist knowledge of history and his world view clearly demonstrates that. Mr. Wallis is simply dishonestly attempting to use religion to sell tyranny. As always, that tyranny is disguised as false compassion and false security. His basic shtick is to attempt to use his status as an alleged religious leader to bash conservatives and push his own agenda.

The libertarian illusion of the U.S. is this: Our founding fathers were single minded in their desire for a free market system of autocrats, who earn and keep what they have, and dispensed what charity they could to the human rabble around them. If during the current Great Recession, where we saw 8 million jobs disappear, you couldn't find work; you weren't trying hard enough. Take your ill health, starving family and go away.

Rand Paul, Cafeteria Constitutionalist: Goodbye Citizenship for Newborns.

Cafeteria constitutionalist unite, Rand Paul has another amendment to repeal.

What were people thinking way back in the mid 1800's? Like the liberal concept of a living constitution, conservatives are anxious to reflect the changing times in our founding document by removing citizenship. How patriotic.

Thomas Frank joins Keith Olbermann and explains the libertarian lunacy of small government and what should be constitutional. Who knew we were still deciding.

Bush's Economic Stimulus: Two Wars. Is that Pro-Life too?

With this newly revealed economic blueprint by the Bush administration, war is the great job creator, where are the Republicans now with their free market mumbo jumbo?

So the Kids are Off Limits, Mr. Beck?

With short term memory, long term hypocrisy, Glenn Beck proves how callous and vicious the conservative snakes can be.

The right wings hates Keith Olbermann, but can never refute the exposed lies and hypocrisies.

Brinkman's tribute to Evolution

This is strictly for the Christian fringe who have framed their ticket studs to immortalize that unforgettable vacation experience at the Creationist Museum.

Deep Thoughts...from the Right Wing.

I recently commented on a conservative talk show host's Facebook page, and received this wonderful and insightful reaction. What makes this so great is that it is so typical.

The only thing missing was the time worn "you never offer anything of substance," or "besides insults, you never offered any details." It's never an accurate comeback, but to conservatives, facts have never offered any substance or detail. Facts are just the same old liberal talking points. Enjoy:

Agalah Kasdah commented- "Your charges about Republicans in this are ridiculous. Both parties are equally guilty ... That being said...number one, the Foundation of this economic disaster was Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Certain Republicans (including Bush) tried to stop what was going on and were rebuffed in a cascade of racism charges. Yes, the other dirt bag banks ran with their own corruption but this all started with Dhimmi-c-rat redistribution programs.

That's just wrong. Republicans for years have been trying to take out Fannie and Freddie, so this was a convienent way to reinvent this utlimate villian. It was part of the demise, but was not the cause.

Number two, OUR ECONOMIC DISASTER DIDN'T REALLY START UNTIL AFTER PELOSI TOOK OVER CONGRESS IN 2006 AND STARTED THE SOCIAL JUSTICE FREIGHT TRAIN. Things rapidly went from more or less stable to catastrophe from 2006 on out.

Republicans can't get enough of dropping "Pelosi's" name into every conversation. To them, it has the ring of evil, not to mention another convienent shot at a powerful WOMAN who should be in the kitchen barefoot and pregnant.

It has been Congress' Biblical and treasonous stupidity for MANY decades that created this mess. Presidents come and go, but, sewer rats like Teddy Kennedy, John McCain, Chris Dodd, Lindsey Graham, Barney Franks, go on causing devastation forever like untreated Syphilis.

As you can see here, conservatives never call people names, and are always providing facts and substance.

You speak on Conservative efforts to get balance (budgets) with activist judges but the utter rewriting of the meaning of the Founders principles by Hypocritical Liberal Lawyers and judges in the effort to remove religion from our society as a moderating influence on behavior and the promotion of hedonism and self-centered attitudes into the children have doomed their futures.

Remember when Republicans said liberals hated our country, because they're always complaining about something? And Democrats were always trying to scare people so they could push their socialist agenda? Was the preceeding statement happy and constructive, or paranoid and complete BS? And finally, this uplifting thought:

Couple that with the focus on creating hatred of country and harping the evils of the majority culture into these children (without ANY honest comparison to the evils inherent in the rest of the world) has brought us thus."

Republicans, conservatives, libertarians and tea party protesters sure have an inflated impression of themselves and their failed economic policies.

Papers Please Law AZ Puppet Says Reading the Bill will Change Meaning Somehow.

I love the use of the old clips in this feeble attempt to vilify critics of the Arizona "papers please" law. Remember, whites need to prove their citizenship too if they're pulled over.

Republicans want Taxpayers to pay for BP Cleanup, they've been hurt enough.

Is it just something I've noticed or do the Republicans continue to do one thing, while saying another? No more bailouts, no more government ownership of private businesses.

When it comes to BP, it's time for the government to take over? Huh? Thank you Rachel Maddow for pointing out the obvious.



There's more: Begging!

Conservative Talkers say the Darndest things, Like Walter E. Williams about the Civil Rights Act.

Astonishingly, talker Walter E. Williams takes the Civil Rights Act for granted. Ever wonder how black conservatives are able to reconcile being in the Republican Party? Well here it is.

He also believes women are subservient to men, kinda like when blacks were subservient to whites, but in an okey biblical way. For some people, like Williams, the brain doesn't connect any of these dots.

Walker Bends the truth...Yawn!

Oh my gosh, fact checking Republican claims of balanced budgets during a recession, what an idea! Could there be just a few red flags present when Scott Walker claimed he'd done that?

Here and Now sneaks a peak in the gentlest way.

Tom Horne has Been Targeting Mexican Americans for Years.

Could it be possible to have non-English speaking kids in a class where the teachers doesn't understand a word they're saying?

I really don't know, and looking up the teaching style of immersion online, little is revealed. I know this, I sure won't take Horne's word.

Feel free to educate me on immersion class techniques.

Tom Horne fakes innocence in going after teachers by threatening to fire them or move them if they don't sound "American" enough. Ruling through fear works wonders.

GOP Singing Familiar tune: "It's money that matters…"

Despite not having any platform at all, the state GOP picked a challenger to long time Senator Russ Feingold. What is more revealing this time around is the Republican dependence on wealthy candidates. Money buys elections? Is there any doubt? This editorial in the Capital Times says it all:

Wisconsin Republicans … have simply asked for a wealthy candidate who could self-finance a challenge to Democrat Russ Feingold, the poorest member of the chamber. Aside from a big checkbook and a willingness to spend freely from it, the state GOP had no expectations regarding legislative skills, awareness of the issues, and approaches to the fundamental policies of the state, nation and world. In other words, they wanted a blank slate. And now they have one, in the form of Oshkosh businessman Ron Johnson.

GOP delegates were so excited about Johnson’s willingness to pay his own way that they quickly dismissed more serious candidates who had been working to win the nomination for months … the state has never been presented with a candidate who seemed to have so little else to recommend him.

Whatever it takes to win.

Viagra for Women.

Female Viagra: Do Women Really Need the Pink Pill?

Instead of two or three glasses of wine, women may now have a simple, very expensive pill to "turn on."

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Grayson is Right: Why put the GOP in charge of a Government they Hate?

Rep. Alan Grayson is right: "“Why would you want to put people in charge of government who just don’t want to do it? I mean, you wouldn’t expect to see al Qaeda members as pilots.”

Republicans are up in arms and outraged. But why?

Politico: Alan Grayson says putting the Republicans back in charge of Congress would be like putting a terrorist in the pilot’s seat of a jetliner. “Why would you want to put people in charge of government who just don’t want to do it?” the Florida Democrat asks in a new interview with Orlando’s WTVF. “I mean, you wouldn’t expect to see al Qaeda members as pilots.”

Republicans are pouncing onthe latest from a man who once said the GOP health care plan is for Americans to “die quickly.” NRCC spokesman Andy Sere says Central Floridians are “deeply embarrassed by Alan Grayson and would characterize his freshman term in Congress as a reign of terror.” But Grayson’s office is standing by his comments. The point he was trying to make: If Republicans want as little government as possible, why put them in charge of it?

But the right wing seems lost on the comparison:

"…never mind that the comparison doesn’t even make sense as an analogy. (Of course we are talking about an obvious lunatic here.) Mr. Grayson was probably just trying to top his idol –that other post-partisan politician, Mr. Obama. Lest we forget, Mr. Obama recently pronounced (paraphrasing) that ‘the GOP drove the country into the ditch and now want the keys back.’ Which was hilarious in its own right.

No, it wasn't just funny, but an accurate comparison. I would like to know why conservatives believe otherwise. Anyone?

ON A SIDE NOTE: How do you make things simple for conservatives? They don't understand the simple concept: For every action there is an equal reaction to the public. If you take away Medicaid benefits, someone picks up the tab, it doesn't make patients illnesses go away or their costs. It's a "tax shift" to the neediest, sickest people in society. They get the medical bill.

Cutting education funding makes families pick up the tab individually for educating their kids, freeing up childless couples and singles. Someone always pays. Taxes may go down, but costs for everyone else will go up dramatically.

So Grayson is right. When you dig deep, smaller government means balancing the books on the backs of the least among us. What is the price we pay for proudly wiping out our deficits? I think Scrooge said it best: "If they would rather die, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population."

Rep. Paul Ryan's Dickensian economics made simple.

We're all Republicans Now

According to Karl Rove: "Yes, the Gulf Spill Is Obama's Katrina. Where was the White House plan, and why has it been so slow to make decisions?"

That was expected, but fear brought out the Republican in some of us:

UPI: James Carville criticized the president's "lackadaisical" response to the spill.
"It just looks like he's not involved in this," Carville said.

Warning, warning Will Robinson, self loathing Democrats self destructing.

Super Obama should just fly down to the bottom of the Gulf and crimp the pipes closed. Why hasn't he acted?

The Man Behind Right Wing Social Studies for Kids

Dr. Don McLeroy is the leader of the conservative goons on the board, who believes, “History has already been skewed. Academia is skewed too far to the left.”

Watching this guy knowingly twist education because he can. Some conservative religious zealots are just plain frightening. He's so crazy he was voted off the board, but not in time. Still think conservatives have anything but chaos to contribute?

The New Wave of Republican Candidates Dumb as Rocks.

This candidate has a lot of problems, including stupidity and plagiarism.

Perfect Republican, tea party crazy.

What Does it say about Mark Neumann that he's Friended the Wicked Witch of the West?

Wisconsin's Verona High School T-Shirt Angers Some Parents.

What a great idea! The students at Verona High School decided to protest the racist law in Arizona with a t-shirt that reads Do I look legal? But one parent didn't like the idea, protested, and got the sale of the t-shirts on campus stopped.

The story below is another one of those TV reports stations work so hard to put together, only to make them totally inaccessible for later viewing. I even had to make a facsimile of the t-shirt. Sorry, this has always been a sore spot for me since my early days in radio.

One interesting note: One caller to "Sly in the Morning" on WTDY observed that the t-shirt could infer the student is legally able to have sex. An interesting thought.

WISC Channel 3000: Some students at Verona Area High School wanted to sell a t-shirt they said was designed to teach … "I didn't think it was going to be that big of a deal," said VAHS junior Katherine Huete. Huete, who is a member of a school club called Latino Nation, said the group was initially approved to sell the t-shirt that said, "Do I look legal?" on the front and, "Oppose SB 1070" on the back … The group had taken 15 orders when members said they were told to stop selling.

Administrators, however, apparently suggested that the students sell the shirts outside of school and start a letter writing campaign. Student said they have followed that advice -- so far 150 shirts have been ordered, according to Huete.

Students told WISC-TV that school officials explained that if the district allowed the "Do I Look Legal?" t-shirt sale, it might set a precedent … "They gave us an example and said what if a student comes up and proposes an idea for shirts that say, 'Do I look gay? Do I look like a member of the KKK?,'" said Emmanuel Martinez … the students said they understand, but they wish the opinion of their peers -– not a parent –- could be weighed when deciding whether to allow the sale or not.

Rand Paul Losing the Historical Argument.

Over at the Moderate Voice, you can read an amazing dissection of Rand Paul's outrageously libertarian positions on the Civil Rights Act. Historians and the Cato Institute are NOT on Rand's side.

Sometimes, a straight news story about some outrageous thing a politician said or did sparks a larger conversation about underlying issues. That is what is happening with the news item about a contentious interview Rand Paul had with Rachel Maddow, in which he refused to back down from previous statements he had made opposing Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination in private accommodations on the basis of race, skin color, religion, or national origin.

AOL News asked three well-known libertarians for their thoughts on Rand Paul’s views on the private accommodations section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. All three agreed that the key to an intelligent analysis of this issue is historical context: “I think Rand Paul is wrong about the Civil Rights Act,” libertarian Cato Institute
scholar Brink Lindsey wrote in an e-mail.

Wisconsin GOP Promises Tax Cuts, but won't say How they are going to Pay for Them.

In an effort to debate the issues for job creation, Republicans accidentally tossed out one of the debaters. At least, we think it's an accident.

One Wisconsin Now staff (was) removed by security from its convention grounds outside the Harley Davidson Museum (as it) was respectfully asking convention participants to sign its petition calling for responsible budgeting and to reject unpaid, budget-busting tax cuts for the rich and big business supported by its leading candidates for governor, Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann.

"Scott Walker and Mark Neumann refuse to tell Wisconsin how they will pay for their job-killing, budget-busting tax cut plans for the rich and big business, because they can't pay for them.

This isn't just an issue "created" by Democrats. Conservative David Frum has also questioned the wisdom of tax cuts when deficits are so high. Frum argues that both Democrats and Republicans can't do what they want do without creating more deficits, unless they pay for it with cuts somewhere else.

One Wisconsin Now, and every tea party protester, should be asking how the Republicans are going to pay for their promised tax cuts.

Cars vs Human Bodies on Bikes. State Rep. Steve Nass on the side of...CARS.

We have a certified crazy Republican anti-education, anti-life saving Representative in our legislature, and his name is Steve Nass. How crazy? When was the last time you had an elected official defending the rights of a big hunk of steel to go unhindered into the night…and day. The poor car.

The European-styled pavement markers the city of Madison installed last week at the intersection of Williamson and Wilson streets has made state Rep. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, see red. Nass said Friday that he would introduce legislation in January that would ban the bike boxes, which are intended to minimize conflicts between motorists and bicyclists at busy intersections.

When you minimize "conflicts," a bizarre use of the word, your basically trying to minimize cars injuries or death. We're trying to save lives. As much as I hate the arrogance of bicyclists, I understand the issue, and possible solution. That's why this is so weird. Nass has singled out and believes "liberals" hate cars.

“It’s basically about liberal extremists in Madison who hate cars and think everyone should bike to work,” Nass said. “It is basically making it difficult to use an automobile.”

Creating safety boxes for bicyclists makes it "difficult to use an automobile?" You know how hard it is to "use an automobile" normally, don't you? And like all penny pinching Republicans, there's never a good time for spending money and saving lives, especially during a Great Recession caused by conservative free market policies.

The installations are costly in a time when government budgets are pinched, he said.

I would assume that crosswalks, like pavement markers, is just another assault on drivers and what Nass considers a "difficulty." After all, despite a cars advantage over the frail human body, we shouldn't make it "difficult" to use a car. Cars have sovereignty on our roads, and those who wish to venture near them, should beware.

The bike boxes are an extension of bias against motorists, Nass said.

It's a comfort to know that someone is sticking up for drivers, and their heavy steel cars.

Accidents Happen, like Candidate Rand Paul.

What a loon. I love the spotlight on the libertarian small government view of the country. It'll scare the crap out of everyone but the selfish racists out there looking for another "well reasoned" talking point to not pay their fair share of living in this great country.

Ron Paul says too bad You Don't have a Safety Net. Randy Paul is just starting apparently.

The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree with Rand Paul. Here's dad Ron Paul and the brutal reality of libertarian safety net removals. Matthews tries to get along with Ron's inhumanity, but it doesn't change Paul's answers or soften his approach.

Enjoy daddy's just as crazy insane abandonment of human suffering.




Okay, some people don't save money, so they should die. Just like some people get sick and go broke. What about those who spend every dime on an illness, or college for their kids, or paying their bills while jobless, or an emergency of some sort.

Better yet, pull all the safety nets, and the kids of seniors will end up housing them and spending everything they have on medical care, unless you would let your parents die.

Just the Opposite, Welfare State "enhances the productivity of capitalism"...Rep. Paul Ryan Wrong Again.

Poor Rep. Paul Ryan, his recent "welfare state" rap on Greece, the problems associated with it and the warning it could happen in the U.S., has now been proven to be a myth. Like his "Road Map" shift of wealth to the wealthy, the horrors of the welfare state actually strengthen capitalism. Doh!

A new book "Wealth and Welfare States: Is America a Laggard or a Leader?" explores the role of the welfare state in the overall wealth and well-being of nations and, in particular, looks at the American welfare state in comparison with other developed nations in Europe and elsewhere.

While it is widely believed that the welfare state undermines productivity and economic growth, and that the United States has an unusually small welfare state, and that it is (and always has been) a welfare state laggard, the authors disagree.

"Wealth and Welfare States" shows that all rich nations, including the United States, have large welfare states because the socialized programs that make up the welfare state - public education, health insurance and social insurance - enhance the productivity of capitalism. For most of the 19th and 20th centuries, the U.S. was a leader in public education, the most productive part of the welfare state.

The authors argue that generous investments in education and other social welfare programs provided a foundation for America's economic growth," says Maria Cancian, professor of public affairs and social work. "The book not only turns
conventional wisdom about the minimalist American welfare state on its head, but also reframes the current debates about how to return the country to a period of broad-based prosperity."

Though few would argue that public education is not part of the welfare state, most previous cross-national analyses of welfare states have omitted education, the book shows. The authors argue that from 1968-2006, the United States swung right politically and lost its lead in education and opportunity, failed to adopt universal health insurance and experienced the most rapid explosion of health care costs and economic inequality in the rich world.

(America needs to) restore its historical lead in education, beginning with universal preschool. The American health insurance system is by far the most costly in the rich world, yet fails to insure one-sixth of its population; produces below average results; crowds out useful investments in children and is the least equitably financed. Only complete government financing is likely to restrain long-term costs, the authors say.

What’s Latin for “Employee Beware?”

In the libertarian world of little regulation and flourishing businesses, when people get hurt or killed by products or workplace environments, stuff happens. Stop passing blame, it's so un-American.

In one of the most revealing if not appalling statements from any conservative/ libertarian snake we've heard from so far, Paul's ideological view point is strikingly irresponsible. Take the killer BP oil spill:

MSNBC: Kentucky's Republican Senate nominee Rand Paul criticized President Barack Obama's handling of the Gulf oil spill Friday as anti-business and sounding "really un-American."

In Rand’s world view, you go to work and take your chances. So what if 11 workers were killed and the Gulf coasts ecosystem is heavily damaged by millions of gallons of oil, holding BP accountable is un-American and obviously just an accident.

"And I think it's part of this sort of blame-game society in the sense that it's always got to be somebody's fault instead of the fact that maybe sometimes accidents happen," Paul said.

The Senate candidate also referred to a Kentucky coal mine accident that killed two men, saying "We had a mining accident that was very tragic. ... Then we come in and it's always someone's fault. Maybe sometimes accidents happen," he said.

Maybe Rand Paul's got a point. So what if there’s lead in your food and children’s toys, mercury laced fish and cancer causing pollutants in the air…it happens. Stop being so anti-American.
Paul is giving every tea party protester and conservative nut job the language to use to justify their vision of a loner society where you get what you deserve. You bought the defective car, get over it. Your child choked on a toy, accidents happen.

Like the founding fathers wrote into the constitution, “quite your complaining,” or something like that.. right?

"Real" Artificial Life Created, was Future Predicted in Terminator Movies?

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Fox Never Questions Paul Ryan's Horrific "Road map." Ryan Bashes Greece as Diversion Tactic.

Guess who's filled with a lot of BS, Rep. Paul Ryan. This guy is a walking Ayn Randian fruitcake.

First, Ryan has it all wrong. If spending was the problem, wouldn't have had "surpluses as far as the eye could see" at the end of Clinton's term in office. The problem is jobs. If people had jobs, the ones Republicans outsourced the last 15 years, the taxes they would pay the would help reduce or wipe out the deficit. Ryan is a disaster capitalist, advocating tax cuts and spending cuts that would make the problem worse. Again, Clinton had a big surplus without the draconian cuts proposed by Ryan. But Ryan lives in his Dickensian world of big business and the wealthy elitist upper class. Fox News:

RYAN: The problem in Washington is not revenue or tax problem, it is a spending problem.

VAN SUSTEREN: Value added tax?

RYAN: A bad idea.

VAN SUSTEREN: Why?

Europe, our strong ally and trading partner, would be surprised at Ryan's view that they have a lower standard of living.

RYAN: If you basically say we are going to have a new revenue tax system on top of the current tax system we will have, then we will have European levels of taxation, and guess what you have in Europe? A lower standard of living than in America. It means less jobs, less prosperity, lower standard of living. Again, we don't want a new tax system on top of the current tax system to fuel growth of spending because that means less prosperity, lower jobs.

A lot of us conservatives are for consumption-based tax reform, replacing the current tax system, not on top of the current system. So all of the talk today about VAT is throw that on top of the taxes we have now which simply means don't address spending, just raise taxes. That will kill our economy.

Ryan would love to kill the economy, or the people in it first, so he can have his precious "balanced budget."

I haven't balanced my budget. I've got a mortgage, a big debt, and I'm doing okay. Throwing Americans under the bus so the budget is balanced is a screwy set standards that Paul Ryan is happy to advocate.

We can save Social Security without Privatizing it.

I found the above chart of options for reforming Social Security interesting enough to question the Republican Parties "sky is falling" rhetoric about taking dramatic action on something that's not going to be there for our kids. Below is a press release from Sen. Herb Kohl that pretty much "took the words right out of my mouth."

Wispolitics.com: A new report from the Senate Special Committee on Aging -- chaired by U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl -- recommends that lawmakers adjust Social Security to accomodate longer lifespans, changing worker demographics and declining pensions … But the analysis also shows that subtle changes could effectively address the long-term health of the Social Security program.

“This report shows that, contrary to popular belief, the sky is absolutely not falling for Social Security," said Kohl. "By implementing one or more of these modest changes, we can ensure solvency and even strengthen benefits for those who count on their monthly check the most."

Kohl said he hopes the report, delivered to members of the president's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, helps inform the debate about the solvency of Social Security. He reitierated that, "Social Security has never been
responsible for one penny of the federal deficit, and by law is barred from doing so."

Republican, Tea Party Voters Love Rand Paul Discrimination, as long as it's Not Done with Government Money.

Here's the Rachel Maddow/Rand Paul interview that has ignited every Republican/conservative voter in America. From what I've noticed listening to conservative and liberal radio shows, Republicans callers appear to have had an Epiphany. It's okay for private businesses to shut their doors to anyone, including... minorities. They love it.


Every one of them agreed with Rand Paul, that any private entity can discriminate, as long as they don't take government money.


It would also appear that this one caveat mentioned by Paul would completely obliterate civil rights laws, freedoms, liberty and encourage a divided segregated America, as meant by the constitution.

The Internet and TV are Coming together This Fall. It Better be 3D too!

So, were you kicking yourself for not waiting to get a new big screen 3D TV for the living room? Kick yourself again if you just bought one, because web base TV and internet is coming this fall, and you better hope it's 3D too.

(AP) - Google believes it has come up with the technology to unite Web surfing with channel surfing on televisions.

To reach the long-elusive goal, Google has joined forces with Sony, Intel and Logitech. The companies were unveiling their much-anticipated plan for a "smart" TV on Thursday during a Google conference for about 5,000 software programmers.

The TVs are expected to go on sale in the fall. Pricing wasn't immediately announced.

Sony will make the TVs, which will rely on an Intel microprocessor. Google will provide the software, including its Android operating system and Chrome Web browser. Logitech will supply a special remote control and wireless keyboard.

600 New Wind Turnbine Jobs Coming to Wisconsin! Republican Voters are Outraged.

Jobs, jobs, jobs. That's what the upcoming election is all about. Republican campaigns are gearing up to bash Democrats for not doing enough to replace the jobs lost by Republicans over the last 8 years. Good news though, jobs are on the way:

jsonline: Plans to build a sprawling factory that would make giant wind-turbine blades and create 600 jobs in north-central Wisconsin - the heart of the state's struggling paper industry - got a boost Tuesday when the state approved $45 million in bonding authority (part of the stimulus) for the project.

Energy Composites Inc. also announced that it has purchased two pieces of land in Wisconsin Rapids to build the factory, which would make turbine blades for use in land and offshore wind farms.

This is great news for Wisconsin, and great news for those looking for work. That's 600 new jobs and a foot in the door as we usher in the new green economy. Jobs are jobs, 600 of them.

But Republican ideologues registered their outrage in the comments section following the story. These aren't the kind of jobs they had in mind:

rmwfranklin: Wind power is NOT a good investment for the little power we get from these hulking eyesores! Pretty soon we won't be able to go anywhere in this state without encountering these blights-on-the-landscape. Clean energy...yeah, right … I see the Doyle Administration was hard at work letting 115 jobs walk out of the state to Mississippi!! Fiskars is moving ... Way to go Jimbo!

sneagles: Put this in the category of "Feel Good" stuff.. Unless this firm diversifies into other product lines, the whole "Wind Mill Thing" will fade as fast as bellbottoms during the "Carter Years". Wind mills are fashionable at the moment as "Greenies" love the tree hugger energy approach, but will never cut it as a major source of power … As to mountain top mining, who cares?? They are required to restore lands to acceptable standards after they are done mining, unless its the Obama Administration who is monitoring at which point something will get screwed up.

But there was one voice of sanity over the addition of 600 news jobs for Wisconsinites:

3rdwardmark: Are you kidding me? every country around the world is investing
heavily in wind energy, but all of a sudden we're just going to throw it all
away? and do what? just keep mountaintop mining for coal? now talk about an
eyesore...have any of you ever seen what mountaintop mining does to the
landscape? its people like you conservatives that will be the downfall of this
country.

It's people like them that don't really care about jobs, jobs, jobs. They care about power, power, power. Happy elections guys.

Dumbed-down Lawmakers Dumb-down Schools. Is That the kind of Future we want to Hand down to Our Childrens Children?

Republicans have never met a problem they couldn't kick down the road. Under the false truism and myth that "parents know better when it come to education," Republicans are not only dramatically cutting school funding in the name of "balancing their budgets," but they're running from the problem by giving taxpayer money away to any private school that will take it with no strings attached.

(New Jersey) School officials in Verona and Cedar Grove say a new bill passed by the state Senate last week could make public education funds more difficult to obtain. The bill results in a loss of $360 million to public education, and instead diverts it to private and religious schools, with no requirement that these schools meet state education quality and performance standards, said Gene Polles, superintendent of Cedar Grove schools.

That's right. Those highly accountable public school parents, who complain about holding their schools accountable, appear to be okay with unaccountable private schools because…they're better? Parents really do know better!

"The absence of any educational accountability for the private and religious schools receiving public education dollars through vouchers is remarkable, given the intense levels of scrutiny the state now places on public schools, especially those with high student need," added Polles. "The program would divert $360 million in tax dollars to private schools, at a time when New Jersey's public schools are absorbing a $1 billion cut in aid as proposed by Gov. Christopher Christie," the NJPSA said in its Web site.

Let's not pretend. Republicans are using kids and their parents to vilify and destroy the unions representing teachers. They are intentionally reducing state budget coffers with corporate give-a-ways to speed the process along.

Funding would come from donations by corporations who would receive tax credits equal to their contributions.

The double whammy. I hope that these privatization moves put these states at an educational disadvantage in the future when it comes to business relocation.

The Best Noise Canceling Headphone Review Ever.

Funny stuff.

In a late effort to save my hearing from any further damage (25 years in radio), I found this interesting review at Target.com for the pictured, Sony noise canceling headphones. SOLD!

Most Helpful Review
8 out of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5 stars
How $... Kept Me Out of Jail October 21, 2009 Reviewer: SouthernSoftwareGuru "SS" (Memphis, TN

These are exceptional headphones. I'm not sure if they could filter jet engine turbines if you were standing right next to them. However, they have performed very well at keeping my ridiculously loud and antagonizing coworker from drowning every single silent thought that is created within my mind.

His "baby-waby-pookie-wookie" phone calls to his wife every day at 11 AM, 11:30 AM, 1 PM and 3 PM are no longer a problem. Like the ending to a series of epic migraines, the desires to strangle him with his mouse cord have finally subsided.

I literally spent my lunch hour searching for a way to end the madness and the $ I spent on the headphones were much cheaper than the costs of a good legal team or a six-month supply of medication.

If you're a normal person looking for a sane solution to loud and crazy coworkers, a nagging spouse or just want to capture a few moments of zen without breaking the bank or spending 35 years to life contemplating why you're in a 6x6 concrete cell, then these are for you.

Arizona Raises Sales Tax to Pay for Public Services...Huh?

I’m stunned, shocked and stunned.

Here in Wisconsin, the last thing a Republican would be caught doing is raising taxes during a recession, or anytime for that matter. We would cut thousands of teachers, close schools, cut law enforcement, sell off parks, privatize public services and disband county government first, before deciding to never raise the sales tax. They’re nuts here.

But in the crazy right wing state of Arizona, the most boycotted place in the world, Republicans pushed a sales tax increase to pay for schools, health care and law enforcement. After ragging all week over banning ethnic studies in public schools, I’m not sure how to react to the following “sanity.”

Arizona voters on Tuesday approved a temporary sales tax increase championed by a Republican governor who, despite angering conservative supporters, embraced it as the only way to avert sharp cuts in education and other services. The one-cent increase in the sales tax, to 6.6 cents per dollar for the next three years, is expected to raise more than $900 million in the first year … close a gaping hole in the budget wrought by a 30 percent decline in revenue in a state among the hardest hit by foreclosures.

Had the tax failed, a contingency budget approved by the legislature would have cut money for schools, health care, state police officers and other services.

I’m sitting here trying to imagine one candidate for governor, Republican or Democrat, willing to say what Gov. Brewer said defending a TAX INCREASE:

“Doing the right thing almost always means doing the hard thing, and today, you did the hard thing,” Ms. Brewer said from a middle school stage

Hard core Republican voters acted just as surreal:

“It goes against almost everything I believe in but the state would have been hurt really bad without it,” said Paul Mercer, 62, a Republican supporter. “I hope it is the one time I do this.”

Arizona is one of the few states to pass a tax increase to pay their bills. I’m stunned.

Private Charter and Voucher School Reality Comes Crashing Down on Parents. No One will Listen to Them Now!

The following story from Schools Matter should be a warning for concerned parents involved in their child's education at charter schools, and those advocating adding their expansion.

Today, current and former charter school parents protested the appearance of Secretary Duncan’s visit to Kings Collegiate Charter School in Brooklyn, one of the chain of charter schools run by Uncommon Schools. They called attention to the fact that Duncan’s attempt to pressure the Legislature to raise the cap on charters ignores the many flaws in the current system, including the lack of sufficient financial oversight, excessive discipline at charter schools and the suppression of parent and student rights.

According to Mona Davids, President of the NY Charter Parents Association, "Uncommon Schools does not allow Parent Associations of any kind. We have been helping a parent at the Kings Collegiate School for several months. We need far more transparency and a voice for parents at all charter schools, to stop their abusive practices.

Samantha Jeffrey, a parent at Kings Collegiate Charter School, says, “I support the charter school system, however I believe they have not reached their potential so that my child can reach his potential as well. I would like to work with them on real solutions that focus on the child’s academic excellence, as opposed to the distractions of the current disciplinary code and policy. I have also been ignored when I asked for essential information that I deserve as a parent. Parents at our school as well as other charter schools need a voice.”

Khem Irby, parent leader in District 13 and a former parent at Leadership Prep Charter School, one of the Uncommon Schools chain, said: The practices at Leadership Prep continue to degrade the self-esteem of children. Many of their students have been suspended for trivial reasons like “yawning too loud”, and they have had a mass exodus of students who have returned to neighborhood schools. They also have used ACS as a tool to suppress parent complaints.”

Lydia Temples, a former parent at Leadership Prep, said: “When I had concerns about the unfairness of the disciplinary procedures at the school, I used all the legal avenues of redress at my disposal. I filed grievances with the school, the board of trustees, the SUNY Charter School Institute, the Board of Regents, and finally, the State Education Commissioner, and none of them responded. Instead, the school called ACS to try to shut down my complaints and they took my daughter away from me for two days. I finally had to take my child out of the school.”

Leonie Haimson, Executive Director of Class Size Matters, says: “We object to Duncan’s political pressure to force our state to raise the cap on charters, without any protections in place to prevent financial corruption and abuse of power.

The two groups have also formulated a framework of common principles for charter and district schools, demanding more accountability for the spending of taxpayer, including audits from the State Comptroller and barring profit-making charter operators from making money off our children.

The Rand Paul, Tea Party America. We're Road Kill.

What kind of America is Rand Paul, the U.S. Senate candidate, offering up? You might call it a "throwing out the baby with the bath water" solution, where the U.S. might have a balanced budget, but Americans are left picking up the whole tab they once shared at a lower price, alone and no safety nets. Again, if the government can't afford Social Security and Medicare, what makes Americans think they can make those payments alone? They won't and can't. Here's a list of pure ideological losers. Washington Post:

The retirement age would be raised to make Social Security solvent.

Congress would have to delay voting one day for every 20 pages of text in a bill.

A section of every law passed would have to include an explanation of what part of the Constitution empowers Congress to act on the issue.

Congress would have to balance its budget every year, a move that could result in billions of dollars in cuts to politically popular programs.

Lawmakers would simply send money to states for education, instead of imposing a variety of rules on schools through the U.S. Department of Education, which Paul wants to eliminate.

Paul hinted he would block unemployment aid to people out of work if Congress didn't find other programs to cut to fund the benefits.

Justice Thomas: Off with their heads!!! Capital Punishment for 7 Year Olds NOT a Bad Thing.

The conservative activist supreme court justices are at it again. To them, a life sentence for breaking ones parole, is not a violation of your 8th amendment rights. Hell, in the 18th century that happened all the time. Thomas, the freeloading justice, found the details to troublesome to deal with and would only cloud the issue up with empathy.

NY Times: The Supreme Court ruled that juveniles who commit crimes in which no one is killed may not be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole … the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment forbids such sentences as a categorical matter.

How would a strict constitutional constructionist react?

Justice Thomas predicted that Monday’s ruling would give rise to years of litigation about just what sort of parole or other processes states must provide to provide the required “meaningful opportunity to obtain release.”

That’s…outrageous? For constructionists like Thomas, the constitution does not evolve or broaden over the advancement of civilization. For example:

As usual in cases involving the Eighth Amendment, the justices debated whether the Constitution should consider, in a one common formulation, “the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society.”

Only the atrophied mind of Thomas, along with all ideological constructionist theorists, would take the following approach:

Justice Thomas said the court should look to the practices at the time the Bill of Rights was adopted. Given that capital punishment could be imposed on people as young as 7 in the 18th century, he said, Mr. Graham’s punishment would almost certainly have been deemed acceptable back then.

Justice John Paul Stevens, in a concurrence joined by Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor, said Justice Thomas’s “static approach to the law” did not allow for societal progress and would entail unacceptable human consequences.

“Justice Thomas would apparently not rule out a death sentence for a $50 theft by a 7-year-old,” Justice Stevens wrote. “Knowledge accumulates,” he wrote. “We learn, sometimes, from our mistakes.”

Thomas was joined by Scalia, Alito and Roberts, the predictable coalition of conservative activists.

Republicans Worry about our Childrens Debt, Not about Their Education. Good-bye Schools.

GOP Outrage over Blumenthal's Service in Vietnam Fizzlessss!

Holy cow. Here's the deal:

USA Today:The New York Times is reporting that one of the party's brightest hopes, Connecticut Senate candidate Richard Blumenthal, has been fibbing about his military service. The paper says Blumenthal has been suggesting at campaign stops that he served in Vietnam when, in fact, he did not.

So it's only natural the GOP took the leap:

Republicans are pouncing. Blumenthal "owes the people of Connecticut, and particularly its veterans" an explanation for "what appears to be a long history of dishonest statements," said Brian Walsh, spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, in a statement.

But wait, how do you explain the following released video by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee:

Virginia AG Cuccinelli not so Virtuous in Cover-up.

If you thought John Ashcroft was friggin' crazy, then you haven't seen Virginia's AG
Ken Cuccinelli. Little needs to be added to the text of this article. And you thought Republicans were all about jobs, jobs, jobs.

The Richmond Times Dispatch: The armored breastplate seen and heard around...
Ken Cuccinelli's coverup of the bare-breasted state seal launched a lot of jokes, but Mike Williams says it's symptomatic of a serious encroachment of religion into government.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli issued lapel pins to his staff with an altered version of the state seal that covered the exposed left breast of conquering Roman goddess Virtus, or Virtue, with an armored breastplate.

It became painfully obvious that there's no virtue, beyond the comedic, in treating a classical image like smut. After a round of national ridicule, Cuccinelli pulled the pins yesterday.

"It takes a real filthy mind to find a state seal arousing," joked local attorney David Baugh, after news of Cuccinelli's pin broke over the weekend.

Cuccinelli had seen and heard enough. "This is simply a media-made issue that has become distracting to the work of my office. I am going to end this distraction by discontinuing future use of the pin."

Cuccinelli advised Virginia's colleges and universities against protecting gays and lesbians against discrimination. And just last week, Gov. Bob McDonnell rescinded a Virginia State Police directive ordering its chaplains to keep prayer nonsectarian.

It's easy to get the sense that little happens in Virginia without Christian fundamentalists -- the Family Foundation, Liberty University or Regent University -- delivering their seal of approval.
That sort of outsized influence is no virtue. This encroachment of religion into government needs constant exposure.

GOP Candidate Runs on his Wealth, George Will says Republicans will make life hell to win in 2012. Jobs?

Here are two golden moments of honesty from the Republican Party. The first is an admission that money buys a senate seat and not ideas, and the second, is George Will admitting that by 2012 the GOP will made things so bad the Democrats wouldn't stand a chance. You gotta love the abundance of arrogance.

WLUK: On Monday, Ron Johnson became the fourth candidate to enter the race. The 55-year-old owns Pacur, a plastics manufacturing company in Oshkosh.

What qualifies Johnson for a shot at solving the energy, the economy and job growth?

Johnson hopes to capitalize on the fact he has no prior political experience.

"I was sitting at home watching FOX News when Dick Morris came on and said 'Feingold is vulnerable. If you're a rich guy from Wisconsin, step up to the plate.' I kind of looked at (my wife) Jane and said 'is he talking to me?'," said Johnson. "This is not me buying a Senate race.

And guess what, he's a tea bagger:

Johnson has been active at tea party rallies across the state. He says his main goal is to repeal the recently passed health care reform legislation. Johnson says he's willing to spend millions of his own dollars to make it happen.

Can you really trust a guy to manage government when he wants to throw his money away making insurance companies richer with higher premiums for you and me? He's a genius.

Here's George Will on Upfront with Mike Gousha (goo-shay), simply telling it like it is; Republicans will make things so bad for Americans, intentionally, the public will want to throw... the Democrats out of congress. Thanks for the heads up...

It's Back, the Texas School Boards Rewrite of History. Will there be a National Call to Bar it's Use?

Why isn't every state in the country proposing a ban on the Texas rewrite of history? Here's a Guardian UK story that you have to keep telling yourself, "it's not fiction," this is really happening.
Cynthia Dunbar does not have a high regard for her local schools … called them unconstitutional, tyrannical and tools of perversion. The conservative Texas lawyer has even likened sending children to her state's schools to "throwing them in to the enemy's flames".

Dunbar was elected to the state education board on the back of a campaign in which she argued for the teaching of creationism – euphemistically known as intelligent design – in science classes. Two years ago, she published a book, One Nation Under God, in which she argued that the United States was ultimately governed by the scriptures.

She is one of a clutch of Christian evangelists and social conservatives who have grasped control of the (Texas) state's education board … a sweeping purge of alleged liberal bias in Texas school textbooks in favor of what Dunbar says really matters: a belief in America as a nation chosen by God as a beacon to the world, and free enterprise as the cornerstone of liberty and democracy. "In Texas we have certain statutory obligations to promote patriotism and to promote the free enterprise system. There seems to have been a move away from a patriotic ideology. There seems to be a denial that this was a nation founded under God. We had to go back and make some corrections."

1. Sidelining Thomas Jefferson, who favored separation of church and state, while introducing a new focus on the "significant contributions" of pro-slavery Confederate leaders during the civil war.

2. Study of Sir Isaac Newton is dropped in favor of examining scientific advances through military technology.

3. There is also a suggestion that the anti-communist witch-hunt by Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s may have been justified.

4. The education board has dropped references to the slave trade in favor of calling it the more innocuous "Atlantic triangular trade."

5. One amendment requires that students be taught that economic prosperity requires "minimal government intrusion and taxation".

6. One curriculum amendment describes the civil rights movement as creating "unrealistic expectations of equal outcomes" among minorities.

7. Some figures have been sidelined because they are deemed to be socialist or un-American. One of them is a children's author, Bill Martin, who wrote a popular tale, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Martin was purged from the curriculum when he was confused with an author with a similar name but a different book, Ethical Marxism.

The California legislature is considering a bill that would bar them from being used in the state's schools.

Hello…Wisconsin? Yoo hooo!

Miss USA Winner a Threat and Arab Plot against America

It really is okay to be a racist, fear mongering anti-Islamist "exceptional American."

Jonathan Turley wrote:

Miss Michigan Rima Fakih, 24, made history this week as the first Arab-American to win the Miss USA competition, here.

The extreme right has gone ballistic –painting Fakih as a mole for Hamas and part of some Islamic threat despite her appearing in a bikini and contradicting most of the mores of conservative Islamic mores.

It’s a sad day in America but a very predictable one, given the politically correct, Islamo-pandering climate in which we’re mired. The Hezbollah-supporting Shi’ite Muslim, Miss Michigan Rima Fakih–whose bid for the pageant was financed by an Islamic terrorist and immigration fraud perpetrator–won the Miss USA contest. I was on top of this story before anyone, telling you about who Fakih is and her extremist and deadly ties.

I do not even like such pageants but it is astonishing how little it takes to vent such anger and prejudice. Of course, even a scarf on a donut commercial in enough to trigger a national boycott today.

Born American, Fakih represents another reason to energize the base of the Republican Party, who imagine spys living next door planning their next attack. Or her participation in a radio station pole dance pictured above. Of course, conservatives love being the victim, especially when they take unpopular racist positions. Why is everyone picking on racism?

Fox News: Miss Oklahoma Morgan Elizabeth Woolard placed first runner-up behind winner Miss Michigan Rima Fakih in the Miss USA pageant on Sunday night after voicing her support of Arizona’s controversial immigration law, which requires police to verify a person's immigration status if there's "reasonable suspicion" that the person is in the country illegally.

"I'm a huge believer in states' rights. I think that's what's so wonderful about America, so I think it's perfectly fine for Arizona to create that law."

So does she regret her answer?

“I was absolutely ready for the question and truthfully for me, it wasn't tough. I believe if you know who you are and what you believe and why you believe it, then no question can stump you,” Woolard told Pop Tarts. “I was confident in my answer, there was no hesitation, and I just spoke from my heart and I believe what I said was well said and I feel strongly about that and I'm proud of my answer.”

Pelosi Debacle: Tells Artist and Musicians to be Creative, and not Get Jobs. Health care is Free?

One of the main ideas behind universal health care was to free entrepreneurs from working at dead end jobs, start their own businesses, and not have to worry about going without coverage. That was the whole point, besides saving thousands of lives every year from preventable deaths.

But the "supposed" champions of business, Republicans, never got that message. To drive the point home, check out the totally clueless report below. It shamelessly insinuates artists and musicians would game the system by getting free health care, without ever working a day in their creative, hedonistic lives.




Did you know that musicians and artists didn't actually work for a living, or face financial difficulties between paid jobs. Republicans DON'T GET IT:

The Daily Caller: Nancy Pelosi spoke to musicians and the artistically inclined in Washington DC, and instead of telling those in attendance they should get a job, she brought quite a different message: they needn’t bother working, because the taxpayers of the United States would cover their health care. Perhaps channeling her San Francisco district, Pelosi explained that without a job they would be free to focus on their talents, passions and aspirations because they wouldn’t be “job locked.”

Besides having one of the most difficult jobs in human history, artists and musicians would still have to buy their own health care insurance, unless they weren't working. And no one wants to be jobless, especially the "starving artist," who typically work a second job anyway to pay for the rent, food and bills.

Oh I forgot, these are lazy gifted people who fill our world with art and music, elitists! Like energy, finance and health care reform, they're part of a luxury class we can't afford right now, or ever.

George Will Pushes "Look the other way" Blame Game with Greece. Irony Alert!

The old Republican trick is getting old.

It's the "look, over there" scam, and voters should be aware and tired of it. Their crazy plan to deregulate, look the other way and use voluntary regulation failed, thanks to Wall Street greed. You might call it a "greed hazard." So what do you do when your entire ideology crashes.

George Will would say, like all the other Republicans, "Hey, look over there..."

Greece represents a perverse aspiration -- a society with (in the words of Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan) "more takers than makers," more people taking benefits from government than there are people making goods and services that produce the social surplus that funds government.

That's right, social safety nets did it. How simple was that? Hard core knuckleheads will believe that. Read now how Will is repulsed by the "moral" thing to do for your fellow man...forget that greed thing.

By socializing the consequences of Greece's misgovernment, Europe has become the world's leading producer of a toxic product -- moral hazard. The dishonesty and indiscipline of a nation with 2.6 percent of the eurozone's economic product have moved nations with the other 97.4 percent -- and the United States and the International Monetary Fund -- to say, essentially: The consequences of such vices cannot be quarantined, so we are all hostages to one another and hence no nation will be allowed to sink beneath the weight of its recklessness.

Will, a conservative, is telling us about "dishonesty and indiscipline" of another countries economy. Didn't the Republicans cause the an entire global economic trashing by using these same ironic qualities? But doing the moral thing is a "hazard." That's what we should be focusing on now. The irony doesn't stop there for Will:

Recklessness will proliferate.

Only if we elect Republicans again. Thanks for the misdirection play George, but we're not falling for it anymore, unless you're in a tea party movement.

Charter School Owner, State Senator and Possible Candidate for Govenor Wants more Failing Schools Like His Own.

In another fine example of a won over Democrat for voucher and charter schools:

In his quest to be the Democrats' nominee for governor, State Sen. Anthony Williams is calling for expanding educational choice and targeting taxpayer funds to charters and other schools that produce results.

While never answering the question as to why people hate spending money on public schools but love sending it to private hucksters, see if you can see a shocking conflict of interest in the following paragraph:

But the Southwest Philadelphia charter school he founded as Renaissance Advantage in 1999 and oversaw as board chairman for a decade has experienced rocky times. The school, which Williams renamed Hardy Williams Academy in 2009 for his late father, was nearly closed in 2003 because of academic and management problems.

A state senator and possible Democratic nominee for governor, Williams has a vested interest in seeing taxpayer dollars going to charter schools. Well what do you know. And it's not doing well, surprise, surprise!

According to the district, the school did not meet the state requirement of 75 percent certified teachers, had turned in incomplete annual reports, and posted low scores. Academically, the charter has failed to meet federal No Child Left Behind benchmarks for the last three years. And, despite receiving taxpayer money, the school did not file federal tax returns for five years. Last school year, the school received $9.2 million.

And it gets much worse…

Williams, whose candidacy was boosted by $3.2 million in contributions from supporters of charters and school vouchers, pledged that the school would do better. He cited … a seasoned executive and an increasing number of certified teachers. The charter, which enrolls 807 students from kindergarten through ninth grade, has posted test scores that lag the state's and the district's. In 2009, 30.1 percent of the school's fifth graders were on grade level in math and 28.9 percent in reading compared with 52.4 percent and 40 percent in the school district. Statewide, the figures were 73.5 percent on grade level in math and 64.5 in reading.

So is it still true that parents really do know best, when it comes to sending their kids to charter and voucher schools, when you see Williams Academy fail so misrably?

Nonetheless, parents sing the school's praises. "They're getting a good education," said Charlene Madison, who has four children at the charter.

Is this a harbinger of things to come? The following should dispell any doubts:

Williams said he stepped down as board chairman in the fall because he felt it was time to hand over leadership. Dawn Chavous, his campaign manager, replaced him.