Black Friday Indeed

They should all be prosecuted. Lunatics.

Sounds Good

We shall see.

But why go after the "Millionaire Farmers" (you're welcome, Iowa!)? How about attacking entitlements and socialist programs?

Someone nudge me if/when a Democrat President and Congress ever eliminate anything wasteful or reduce the governmental footprint. I'll want to check how long I've been asleep.

“Who really cares about it being unconstitutional?

It's the rallying cry of the Obama Era!

Todd Stroger: "Read my lips - no new taxes"

Of course, that is because there's no way in hell anyone would let him raise taxes again this year. So what is a profligate spender to do? Ah yes - the county must continue to live beyond its means, which means borrowing almost a billion dollars this year. Maybe we can borrow a billion dollars every year. What could possibly go wrong?

Here's the comedy goldmine:

Critics said they couldn't fully evaluate Stroger's proposal because the budget he released was riddled with errors.

"Every year, President Stroger issues his budget, and it's a mess," said Commissioner Forrest Claypool (D-Chicago). "It's full of errors. It's incomplete.

"They don't even know what their own financial picture is, and I think the strongest evidence of that is that they are suggesting they have to borrow hundreds of millions of dollars even though they've got $300 to $400 million of new tax revenue coming in the door."

Copies of the budget were not released to the media by late Tuesday afternoon. Chief Financial Officer Donna Dunnings said inaccurate figures in the budget resulted from computer errors.

"We had a printer's issue," she said. "There are some numbers that need to be adjusted."

Lousy printer's issues - always changing numbers. Don't you hate it when you create a Word doc, then print it, and when you look at the printed page, the words and numbers are different than the actual file?

I would like to have a discussion with Stroger's high-school teachers. They obviously never made him show his work.

"The budget is chock-full of errors," he said. "It's the exact same thing that happened last year. It's like the Keystone Kops are in charge of the budget in Cook County. ... [Stroger's] running an inept government."

Stroger spokesman James Ramos acknowledged "there were a couple of errors," but added, "whether they were reprinted or not, I'm not sure."

Hey that's great.

Feel-good story of the day

Provided by Tim Blair.

I get the feeling that INS' screening process isn't quite up to snuff (pun intended!). I mean, better there than here, but I fear our government is headed to a pre-9/11 mindset.

Illogic

Now Obama says he will delay rolling back the Bush tax cuts to the "wealthy."

His aides' comments suggest Obama may be wary of imposing any additional tax burden at a time of deep crisis, despite the outlook for record budget deficits and mounting national debt. He may also be seeking to bolster Republican support for his recovery measures.

So, O Great One, why is it good to have tax cuts when we are in a recession, but not when the economy is booming? Why is it important to have money in the hands of the middle class (which I agree is good) but not the people who pay the vast majority of the taxes?

Here comes FDR Lite

Obama economic plan aims for 2.5M new jobs by 2011

A great goal. Where are those jobs going to come from? Perhaps O will stimulate the market by slashing the capital gains tax!

No.

President-elect Barack Obama promoted an economic plan Saturday he said would create 2.5 million jobs by rebuilding roads and bridges and modernizing schools while developing alternative energy sources and more efficient cars.

Yep, he's going to create a bunch of new government jobs. Not clear on who is going to pay for all that. Probably the rich people making...whatever they make. The number keeps dwindling in O camp.

"We'll put people back to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing schools that are failing our children, and building wind farms and solar panels," Obama said. He also made a commitment to fuel-efficient cars and alternative energy technologies "that can free us from our dependence on foreign oil and keep our economy competitive in the years ahead."

Wind farms and solar panels. Ok, that will take care of about .5% of the country's energy needs. How about drilling for oil on our own land? That would reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Nah, not on O's radar.

"We have acted boldly, bravely, and above all, together," Obama said. "That is the chance our new beginning now offers us, and that is the challenge we must rise to in the days to come. It is time to act. As the next president of the United States, I will."

Prediction: The unemployment rate will be edging near 10% by 2011.

I say we just declare him "Best. President. Ever."

The Evil Of Wal-Mart

Evil, I tells ya! Just look at them cruelly donate gobs of money and food! Don't they know that's the government's job? Don't they understand that only huge entitlement programs that cost taxpayers millions of dollars are appropriate charity? Evil!

Not sure they're taking this seriously

According to some anonymous transition staffers, there is now a policy of "If you leak, you're gone."

In other news....

Maxim Magazine has done all the legwork here in providing us with TV's 10 Hottest News Anchors.

Unfortunately, it is U.S. only.

Donovan McNabb shocked to learn that NFL games can end in a tie

The Eagles QB is pretty clueless about his profession.

The clincher:

I guess we're aware of that now," said McNabb, who was 28-of-58 for 339 yards. "In college, there are multiple overtimes, and in high school and Pop Warner. I never knew in the professional ranks it would end that way. I hate to see what would happen in the Super Bowl and the playoffs."

I doubt you're going to find out this year.

The $32 Million Dollar Man

It makes you wonder how much the crew had riding on San Diego last night.  Apparently unsatisfied that they threw 13 flags on Pittsburgh (and only one on SD), the refs mysteriously decided to take away their touchdown at the end of the game, which would have meant that Pittsburgh covered the spread.

“If the touchdown was properly upheld, Steelers bettors would have won about $32 million instead of losing big,” Pregame.com president R.J. Bell said. “This admittedly incorrect call resulted in a $64 million swing in favor of the bookies.”

What is Tim Donaghy up to these days anyway?

That's reassuring!

Obama says he will do 'whatever it takes' on economy

A little light on specifics. My guess is he's going to spend his way out of the recession. Good night and good luck to all.

Yes, shocking

Unhappy People Watch Lots More TV

While happy people reported watching an average of 19 hours of television per week, unhappy people reported 25 hours a week. The results held even after taking into account education, income, age and marital status.

Well, happy people tend to have lots of friends and an active social life and, therefore, less time to sit around in front of the TV.

The researchers are not sure, though, whether unhappiness leads to more television-watching or more viewing leads to unhappiness.

In fact, people say they like watching television: Past research has shown that when people watch television they enjoy it. In these studies, participants reported that on a scale from 0 (dislike) to 10 (greatly enjoy), TV-watching was nearly an 8.

But perhaps the high from watching television doesn't last.

Oh come on. People with unfulfilling lives turn to TV for lack of better options. Whether they enjoy watching TV as an activity is irrelevant; the point is they have nothing else to do.

Look, there are a number of activities people participate in that fail to enrich their lives. They might take drugs, overeat, shop, or even, yes, watch a lot of television. But it is nonsensical to turn causality on its head.

The researchers say follow-up studies are needed to tease out the relationship between television and happiness.

No, really, they're not.

Clinton Carousel

Wasn't one of the reasons Hill lost the nomination that people didn't want another Clinton presidency?

Really?

Really??

That's A Hell Of A Secret

Obama holds secret meeting with Sen. Clinton in Chicago

Not terribly surprising, given the Obamamanians propensity for their sieve-like security.

There's been some talk this morning about Hill being the Secretary Of State. Given the range of possible choices, this doesn't bother me much. There is little on which I would agree with her policy-wise, but she's a bit of a hardass when it comes to dealing with our enemies. Much better than the European wannabe milquetoasts that typically grace the halls of the State Department.

Franken Blatantly Stealing Election In Minnesota

And the Minnesota press shrugs.

Norm Coleman has lost 519 votes before the recount has even started. Is it even statistically reasonable that a cursory check of ballots has all of the "corrections" going one way?

Then there's this knee-slapper:

Elias said that because Beltrami County had complied, the campaign had already learned of one woman, an 84-year-old stroke victim, whose absentee ballot was disqualified because her signature no longer matched that on her pre-stroke voter registration card.

"The state may not devise a regime where a woman, because she had a stroke, does not have the right to vote," Elias said at Franken headquarters Thursday morning.

But Beltrami County Auditor Kay Mack later questioned the campaign's account, saying her office hadn't rejected any ballots because of mismatched signatures. Mack said there was one instance of an 87-year-old woman in an assisted living center whose ballot was rejected because it bore no signature or mark. The law, Mack said, is "very clear" about not accepting such ballots.

After being contacted by the Star Tribune with Mack's account, Franken campaign spokesman Andy Barr said Thursday night that there may have been "some confusion about our earlier field report," adding that the campaign is "still digging into the facts." Barr said the issue does not affect the merits of their lawsuit.

Yeah, they're digging, but I don't think it's into facts.

See, This Worries Me Too...

Read this whole thing. Really good.

I find one of the more amusing although important questions is how will President-elect Barack Obama govern? As a moderate and centrist, or as an extremist, radical and liberal?

I can answer such questions with another question: When your whole career and resume shows you are a leftist, an extremist, a radical, a liberal, and a 96 percent pure party line Democrat, are you are likely to be just that no matter what you say in the campaign?

Indeed.

I-L-L

Chief Illiniwek to Dance Again

I hope they can find a way to bring the tradition back to athletic events. That being said, this is... odd:

"Chief Illiniwek is a big priority," said Martell, a 20-year-old junior. "It inspired me to be a complete man."

More change than you can shake a stick at

Obama pledges to lead the most open and transparent presidential transition in history, starting by pointing out how carefully worded all his promises regarding lobbyists were.
He said last November:

"I have done more to take on lobbyists than any other candidate in this race...I don't take a dime of their money, and when I am president, they won't find a job in my White House."

Currently on his website it states:

No political appointees in an Obama-Biden administration will be permitted to work on regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years.

And now we learn that :

President-elect Barack Obama, who said lobbyists would not run his White House, signaled Tuesday that lobbyists could serve in his transition so long as their activities do not involve areas of policy they have tried to influence in the past year.

Well, technically the transition isn't a permanent position, so he was kind of telling the truth.

Technically.

Yeah, I Had That Thought, Too...

Obama, Candidate of Change, Looks to Old Hands From Clinton Era

Thank You!

Today is Veterans Day. An impossible-to-overstate thank you to all who serve our country and secure our freedom.

Hardly Anyone

Continuing the 53% = Overwhelming Majority theme just for fun for a minute. Logically deducing that 47% must then be an Underwhelming Minority, I thought I'd bring you some other barely-noteworthy fun facts from around the world:

• 47% of homicides in San Francisco are gang-related. Hardly any!
  
• Japan Airlines operating profit is down 47%. Shareholders rejoice! (Honorable mention to Big 5 Sporting Goods and Goldman, who had similarly robust results)
  
• My favorite: the news in the elevator this morning that 47% of the public opposes pushing through a bailout/stimulus package for the auto industry. Hardly worth notice.
  

Deafening Silence

Much was made of the expense of Bush's 2004 inauguration, despite the fact that it was funded primarily from private donations. During these difficult economic times, I fully expect the media to call for Obama to hold a small luncheon with no fanfare.

Did She Really Say That?

Racist Maureen Dowd:

Now we have the delicious irony that a white president from a patrician family, whose administration was so negligent about America’s poor and black citizens, was so incompetent that he helped elect the first black president.

That's right...only an incompetent can force us to choose a black president!

Joe Scarborough: "Oooh fuuudge!"

Only he didn't say "Fudge." He said THE word, the big one, the queen-mother of dirty words, the "F-dash-dash-dash" word....

They told me...

....that an Obama victory would inspire people around the globe, instilling a powerful "Yes we can!" attitude in everyone, and they were right.

For example, prior to November 4th, who would have ever thought that an armless man could steal a 24" television?  

Not I.

Oh, and also...

To Max: This white type on the black background is an eye-killer.

Johnny Latecomer

I was fortunate enough to have been in Vegas for election week, so I missed many of the details. There wasn't really much mention of it there; some dealers and guests briefly spoke about the outcome but there was no real fanfare. The business of the casino (ie, to relieve me of my money) is rarely disturbed by such trifling events.

Naturally, I echo many of the comments made by Jeff: historic election, congrats to Obama, etc, but I can't claim to be as hopeful. At a time when we need to employ true conservatism in government--low taxes and less government interference--we've elected a president who promises to move us to perhaps unprecedented territory in the opposite direction. At the same time, we have a, to put it mildly, very compliant press and core of Obama supporters so feverish that their worship is completely out of proportion to any accomplishment the man has ever made. Or could possibly make, for that matter. Sprinkle in a core of Chicago Machine politicians and other corrupt administrators (Jamie Gorelick, really???) and you have a recipe for disaster.

But at least there will be no Obama Derangement Syndrome.

Sweeping

With the Mandate For Sweeping Change already being used as an excuse to increase the size and scope of government, and to make your decisions for you, the fact that more than 47% of people who bothered to vote (58,661,867 people) selected someone else seems to be conveniently overlooked.

Blitzkrieg

Looks like we're in for a whirlwind. Taxpayer funding of abortions, harvesting fetuses, socialism spreading (beyond banks) to the automotive industry, and of course to healthcare, and a jumpstart to Federal Robin Hoodism all apparently on the agenda for early January.

Strap in tight. I wonder how far things will go before the "middle class" supposedly benefiting from radical policy shift will feel the whiplash?

Also, pay close attention over the next few weeks... You don't break every record there ever was for fund raising without the "donors" quickly coming back for reimbursement. Stay tuned for a record-breaking level of payoff requests, to match.

The More Things Change™...

I had to actually dig a little, to find an article that at least made an attempt to touch on both sides of the "day after" attacks on Governor Palin.

I don't know if I can remember a candidate for anything of this scale being so savagely attacked from day one, and I certainly don't recall a losing candidate being villified this severely after the election.

In these times of swirling Change™, it seems like we're being encouraged to dwell on something that no longer matters. Or is it that certain people are envious, and others are flat-out terrified? What else could be continuing to stir up this pack of ferocious jackals?

I don't know if she's a future candidate or not, but I do know that the Democratic Party and it's powerful lobby known simply as "The Media" are exhibiting behavior that is quite frankly sickening here. Let the woman go home in peace, already... or at least give her the rest of the week off. She has 5 kids who don't need your barrage of poor sportsmanship and slander.

I have to agree

A lot of good things can and will come from this election.  Most importantly, the Obama victory has done a huge service to both parties. The pool of electable candidates has just increased because Obama has shown that a minority can win, and win big. By increasing the pool of possible candidates, our chances of getting the best person have now gone up a bit more. Having been limited to white guys has actually done our country a disservice, and Obama's victory has put an end to that. It is a historic victory, and something we are all better off for, whether we agree with his policies or not.

Now excuse me while I go work on my tax sheltering skills.

Dare to Dream

Talk about your teaser headline. Can we get that every day?

That About Sums It Up

Americans joyous, worried after Obama victory

I don't get all of the hand-wringing, though. This election was a great thing for America in a lot of ways. Those inclined to panic need to take a deep breath and refresh their perspective.

Life will go on... and the biggest cynics and pessimists should hope to be wrong. In the meantime, we can embrace the dream that maybe, finally, skin color is not an obstacle to opportunity in America. We can celebrate yet another exercise of our democratic process, and this time with relatively little legal wrangling or delayed concession (ahem -- Al Franken). Everything was essentially peaceful and orderly, Black Panther Party extracurriculars notwithstanding. There will always be anomalies, but things went well.

Maybe the result isn't ideal, but who knows. Either way, you can suck it up and weather the storm (and voice your opinion -- God Bless America), or you can celebrate and hope the promises to make everything sunny again are true, but stick around and you will see the pendulum continue to swing back and forth. With a little luck, everything will still be standing, transition after transition.

And if it's not, everyone will be there to blame everyone else.

Let the games begin

WASHINGTON -- President-elect Barack Obama chose Illinois lawmaker Rahm Emanual to be his White House chief of staff, his first selection for the new administration, Democratic officials said Wednesday.

That would be Rahm Emanual, who was elected after Daley sent out an army of city workers to help with his campaign, costing the taxpayers God knows how much money & resulting in at least 4 convictions. I think Kass was on this back then. The former Clintonite will obviously provide change-we-can-believe-in, and not be more-of-the-same. You can be sure that nobody will care or even bat an eye. Just like nobody will bat an eye that we now allow foreign comedians to donate to political campaigns. I'm looking at you, Eddie Izzard

Reset

Are we really on the cusp of a flood of restatements and adjustments to the promises of the campaign? It certainly smells like it. Is the new administration already apologizing for what they won't have done? Will people accept it?

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there

That, directly from the acceptance speech. Someone convince me that's not making excuses in advance.

Land of Opportunity

It's been said before, and better, but whatever one thinks of either candidate, it's really a fantastic achievement that a Black man has been elected POTUS... and an enormous burden on that man's shoulders. This is a completely different kind of presidential legacy about to be created.

How many people out there are now thinking, "Please don't screw this up?" Rightly or not, there is an "extra" onus on being the "first" of anything.

Now the big question: is he who he says he is, or who his record says he is?

Time to Backpedal?

As the mainstream media chortle joyously about Obama's lead in the polls, and today in the general election ("calling" states for him after as many as 0% of the votes are tallied - which I've always had a problem digesting), there have been a few quieter stories about the weight of expectations faced by the candidate, and how this might be a
concern:

In recent days the Obama team have admitted they are nervous that people will end up feeling disappointed by an Obama presidency because their expectations of what he can do may have been driven sky-high by his soaring rhetoric.

Are they really saying people shouldn't have believed them? Of course there will be disillusionment among the people who have been allowed to believe that they will no longer need to pay their bills or mortgages, and that all of their problems will be solved by eliminating the tax cuts of the last 10 years and reallocating them to those who earn the least.

Fear not, though. I doubt the media will be able to tear themselves away from frenzying around their new idol long enough to notice reality settling in.