Committed to having the deficit

US to give $100B to developing nation climate fund

Hilary Clinton announced in Copenhagen yesterday that the United Sates would five $100 billion each year to the climate protection fund to help developing countries.


Just as the climate summit in Copenhagen was unraveling, Hillary Clinton (shown above) came to the rescue with the $100 billion dollar per year give away.

This was very charitable of her and the Obama administration, but how can they do this without congressional approval?

Link

Tiger Woods wants privacy

Police arrest Amish buggy driver for DUI

Police in Lancaster County Pennsylvania arrested an Amish man on drunk driving charges over the weekend after he was found asleep in his moving buggy.

East Lampeter Township Police say 22-year-old Elmer Stoltzfoos Fisher of Paradise was slumped over and asleep in a slow-moving buggy on Sunday night.

An off-duty officer from nearby Quarryville reported seeing the horse pulling the buggy at a walking pace as it straddled the centerline.

Police say a breathalyzer test snowed Fisher’s blood-alcohol content was 0.18, more than twice the 0.08 legal limit for drivers.

Link

The Obama Afghanistan policy

Enviros battle warming during Copenhagen blizzard

Is Mother Nature trying to send the global warmers a message?

Denmark has a maritime climate and has milder winters than its Scandinavian neighbors.

The country hasn’t had a white Christmas for 14 years and only had seven during the entire twentieth century!

But now, as if right on cue, there is a blizzard just as world leaders fly into Copenhagen today to discuss a solution to global warming.

Link

100 reasons why climate change is natural

Is climate change natural rather than man-made?

Click here for 100 reasons climate change is natural.

Head warming tunes with iHat headphone beanie

Now you can get an iHat for your iPod or other MP3 player.

The Headphone Beanie lets you enjoy your tunes in any weather, whether you're speeding down the slopes or waiting at a bus stop.

Link here and here.

Coffee and tea may lower diabetes risk

People who drink coffee or tea have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a review of past studies and the caffeine doesn’t seem to matter.

Researchers at the University of Sydney looked at 18 studies with more than 450,000 participants.

They found that every cup of coffee was associated with a 7 percent reduction in the risk of diabetes.

Individuals who drank three to four cups per day had an approximately 25 percent lowerrisk than those who drank between zero and two cups per day.

Link

Copenhagen summit veering towards farce

The climate talks are at least 18 hours behind schedule as world leaders are set to arrive in Copenhagen for the grand finale of the conference.

The climate change summit in Copenhagen was in jeopardy tonight with the complex negotiations falling far behind schedule as the climate secretary, Ed Miliband, warned of a "farce".

With just two days remaining, the inability to overcome disagreements about the shape of a deal to combat global warming led to hours of inaction while outside the negotiations police clashed with protesters who broke through a security cordon but failed in an attempt to storm the conference center.

One person close to the talks said they had made no progress. "What people don't realize is that we are not really ready for when the leaders arrive to finish the conference. The talks are 18 hours late."

More here.

Report: America souring on Democrats

A Wall Street Journal report says the Democrats blues grow deeper in a new poll.

Less than a year after Inauguration Day, support for the Democratic Party continues to slump, amid a difficult economy and a wave of public discontent, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.


The findings underscored how dramatically the political landscape has changed during the Obama administration's first year. In January, despite the recession and financial crisis, voters expressed optimism about the future, the new president enjoyed soaring approval ratings, and congressional leaders promised to swiftly pass his ambitious agenda.

According to December's survey less than half of Americans approved of the job President Barack Obama was doing, marking a steeper first-year fall for this president than his recent predecessors.

Link

Offbeat fashion displayed in China

A model presents a creation by graduates of the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology during China Fashion Week.

Chaos continues at climate conference

A report at the link below says the the Copenhagen climate change conference appeares to be imploding from within and exploding from without on Wednesday.

Police fired tear gas, brandished batons and detained more than 200 protesters who tried to push through the security cordon around the Bella Center, as negotiations inside bogged down, for the second time this week, over differences between China and the West over emissions, funding issues and transparency.

The photo above shows protestors turning violent at the climate conference. Since the conference started about 1,000 protestors have been arrested.

Senator John Kerry, the highest-ranking American yet to appear at the talks, urged attendees to put aside their differences and “make Friday our day of success.”

The report says that minutes earlier -- in a surprise move that captured growing uncertainty over conference -- Denmark’s climate minister, Connie Hedegaard, stepped aside as president of the conference, handing the gavel to Danish Prime Minister Lars Rasmussen, as head of the host country.

Outside, Danish police — who have been accused of heavy-handedness by human rights groups — clashed with thousands of environmental activists who descended on the complex from a nearby train station and demanded entry to the Bella Center.

BBC video showed truncheon-bearing Danish police shoving the crowd backward as protesters gasped and covered their faces to avoid breathing tear gas.

Inside it wasn’t much better as U.N. officials revoked the credentials of about 100 accredited members of the green group Friends of the Earth for staging a series of small protests on Tuesday.

Minutes after taking the gavel, Rasmussen angrily denounced developing countries for seeking to delay consideration of the text, accusing them of focusing on "procedure, procedure, procedure."

He was immediately rebuked by a representative of China, a member of the G-77 bloc, who said moving forward too quickly was tantamount to "obstructionism" and a bullying attempt by the West.

I find it amusing that a representative of China, a country referred as a ‘developing nation’ by leaders of the climate summit, is lecturing the Danish Prime Minister and new host of the conference!

With raucous behavior inside as well as outside, the climate conference is becoming more entertaining by the day. Pop some popcorn and kick back in that recliner. Who knows what will happen between now and Friday.

Link

Democrats to close Offutt Air Base if Sen. Nelson votes no

Democrats threaten Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson to get his vote on
ObamaCare.

According to a Senate aide, the White House is now threatening to put Nebraska's Offutt Air Force Base on the BRAC (closure) list if Nelson doesn't fall into line.

Offutt Air Force Base employs some 10,000 military and federal employees in Southeastern Nebraska.


As our source put it, this is a "naked effort by Rahm Emanuel (pictured above at the Obama Inauguration last January) and the White House to extort Nelson's vote." They are "threatening to close a base vital to national security for what?" asked the Senate staffer.

Washington Democrats will do anything to get ObamaCare passed.

Link

Televangelist and faith healer Oral Roberts dead at 91

Oral Roberts (pictured), a pioneer in televangelism and founder of a multimillion-dollar ministry and a university that bears his name, died Tuesday. He was 91.

His “faith healing” ministry began early in his career.

He gave up a local pastorate in Enid in 1947 to enter an evangelistic ministry in Tulsa to pray for the healing of the whole person - the body, mind and spirit. The philosophy led many to call him a "faith healer," a label he rejected with the comment: "God heals - I don't."

His ministry hit upon rocky times in the 1980s. There was controversy over his City of Faith medical center, a $250 million investment that eventually folded, and Roberts' widely ridiculed proclamation that God would "call me home" if he failed to meet a fundraising goal of $8 million.

A law school he founded also folded.

He once even claimed to raise a child from the dead.

Link

Heavy snow predicted for global warming summit

Forecast for Copenhagen Denmark issued Tuesday December 15 at 11:30 hours.

For Wednesday:
Cloudy with heavy snowfall. Maximum day temperatures around 2 degrees Celsius, minimum night temperatures around minus 3 degrees Celsius.

Link

Gore tries to con scientists at climate summit

Al Gore has refused to debate his so-called climate science and has become accustomed to universal acceptance of his climate pronouncements.

Now that Gore is finally on the world climate stage, he has stubbed his toe. He can’t fool them in Copenhagen. Gore’s detractors will surely find this story almost too delicious to read.

Mr. Gore has become embroiled in a climate change controversy after claiming that the Arctic could be completely ice-free within five years.

Speaking at the Copenhagen climate change summit, Mr. Gore said new computer modeling suggests there is a 75 per cent chance of the entire polar ice cap melting during the summertime by 2014.

However, he faced embarrassment last night after Dr. Wieslav Maslowski, the climatologist whose work the prediction was based on, refuted his claims.

Dr. Maslowski is trampling all over Al Gore’s nicely phrased globaloney.

The Al Gore blunder follows the controversy over hacked emails from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit, which skeptics claim suggest scientists manipulated data to strengthen their argument that global warming is man-made.

More of the story here and here.

Howard Dean: kill the Senate health bill

Former Democratic leader Howard Dean (pictured) said the Senate health care bill in its current form should be scrapped.

Others agree saying the Senate health care bill is so compromised it would be better to kill it than fight for its passage.

After Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid gave in to Sen. Joe Lieberman and agreed to scrap a Medicare compromise, and with the public option already off the table, many Democrats supporting ObamaCare are giving up on the legislation.

The public option will probably be dead regardless of what happens.

More here and here.

St. Nicholas Day run in Budapest, Hungary

Wearing Santa Claus hats and swimming suits, people participate in a charity run on St. Nicholas' Day in Budapest, Hungary, on Dec. 6, 2009.

Entry fees of the runners were donated for the benefit of a foundation aiding patients suffering of cystic fibrosis

Lieberman to support ObamaCare if Medicare expansion removed

Sen. Joe Lieberman (pictured) says he expects to support the Democrats' health care legislation as long as any government-run insurance plan stays out of the bill.

Reid needs Lieberman's support to secure 60 votes necessary to advance the legislation in the 100-member Senate.

To win him over, Senate leaders said late Monday they were backing away from a Medicare expansion Lieberman opposed.

They already had dropped a full-blown government insurance program.

Lieberman told reporters Tuesday that if the Medicare expansion and government insurance plan are gone, "I'm going to be in a position where I can say what I've wanted to say all along: that I'm ready to vote for health care reform."

Link

Major sponsor drops Tiger Woods

Global consulting firm Accenture has dropped Tiger Woods.

Accenture became the first of Tiger Woods' sponsors to completely cut ties with the golfer.

Accenture released a statement saying it was ending its business agreement with Woods, who had represented the company for six years.

"After careful consideration and analysis, the company has determined that he is no longer the right representative for its advertising," the statement said.

Link

The Congressional Holiday weigh in

Democrats may lose Lieberman on health bill

Democrats in the Senate were counting on Senator Joe Lieberman’s vote on ObamaCare.

Since Lieberman’s vote is critical to the bill's prospects, the loss of the Connecticut Senators vote came as a blow to the Democrat caucus.


The photo above shows Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson (l) and Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman (r) on Face the Nation last Sunday

Lieberman said he would join Republicans in opposing health care legislation if it permits uninsured individuals as young to 55 to purchase Medicare coverage.

Senate Democrats who thought they had found a workable compromise on health care reform learned otherwise from independent Sen. Joe Lieberman over the weekend.

Lieberman expressed his opposition twice Sunday: first in an interview with CBS, and more strongly later, according to Democratic officials, in a private meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Senator Ben Nelson may also vote against the bill but for a different reason.

Lieberman’s vote is mostly to protect the private health care insurance industry. Many of these insurance companies have major offices in Connecticut.

If Nelson votes against the bill, it will be because he is thinking of his re-election in conservative Nebraska. If Nelson votes for ObamaCare, he will undoubtedly kiss is re-election chances goodbye.

Link

Prince William to become 'Shadow' King?

The London Daily Mail claims to have a confidential document showing that the Queen is to hand over a substantial part of her public duties to Prince William (pictured) to help him prepare for the day when he becomes King.

Secret papers reveal that plans to ease the strain on the 83-year-old monarch and her 88-year-old husband, Prince Philip, are at an advanced stage.

The disclosures come despite months of denials from the Palace that the Queen was planning to step back from her official work in favor of her 27-year-old grandson.

The move will fuel rumors that the Queen believes William, rather than her son Charles, represents the best long-term interests of the monarchy.

William’s father, 61-year-old Prince Charles, has been waiting for the Queen to die so he can begin his life’s work.

And now the Queen seems to be planning to by-pass him in a “generation-skipping” succession to the British throne.

Link here and here.

Al Gore: inconvenient truth bites back

Mr. Gore (pictured) was caught up in another falsehood.

There are many kinds of truth. Al Gore was poleaxed by an inconvenient one yesterday.

Mr Gore, in a speech at the climate summit, said the latest research showed that the Arctic could be completely ice-free in five years.

In his speech, Mr. Gore told the conference: “These figures are fresh. Some of the models suggest to Dr. [Wieslav] Maslowski that there is a 75 per cent chance that the entire north polar ice cap, during the summer months, could be completely ice-free within five to seven years.

However, the climatologist whose work Mr. Gore was relying upon dropped the former Vice-President in the water with an icy blast.

Mr. Gore’s office later admitted that the 75 per cent figure was one used by Dr. Maslowksi as a “ballpark figure” several years ago in a conversation with Mr. Gore.

“It’s unclear to me how this figure was arrived at,” Dr. Maslowski said. “I would never try to estimate likelihood at anything as exact as this.”

More here.

Polls Obama and Biden Senate seats could go Republican

Polls show Democrats may lose the old Barack Obama and Joe Biden Senate seats in 2010.

President Obama and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. won't be on the midterm ballot next year, but their former Senate seats will be, and both races are now either tossups or leaning Republican in high-visibility contests.

Mr. Obama, who was a freshman senator from Illinois when he was elected president, and Mr. Biden, who was in his sixth term as a senator from Delaware, come from states that have been running strongly Democratic in past elections.

No one doubts that Mr. Obama would have been a re-election shoo-in had he remained in the Senate and that Mr. Biden had his seat for the foreseeable future.

But in another sign of political winds that appear to be blowing against the Democrats in the 2010 cycle, Republicans and independent political analysts say the chances are at least even that their seats could be taken over by two strong Republican candidates next November, when the GOP is expected to make gains in Congress and in the state governorships.

More here.

Overloaded cycles in India

The cycle above is hauling nine giant empty water tanks. The cycle below is carrying dozens of empty boxes.

Mini Gandhis help celebrate birthday of Mahatma Gandhi

Last October marked the 140th birthday for Mahatma Gandhi.

The mini-Gandhis shown above helped celebrate the occasion.

Thoughts on Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address

Mr. David Wills was the principal person behind the establishment of the Soldier’s National Cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

For the dedication of the cemetery Mr. Wills asked Edward Everett to give the principal speech at the ceremony.

Mr. Everett was a politician and former President of Harvard University. He was a noted orator and seemed a perfect candidate to deliver an address dedicating the cemetery.

Mr. Wills also asked President Lincoln to say a few words at the dedication. The letter to the President read:

"It is the desire that, after the Oration, you, as Chief Executive of the nation, formally set apart these grounds to their sacred use by a few appropriate remarks."

Mr. Wills was President Lincoln's host while in Gettysburg, and the now immortal Gettysburg Address was completed from its rough draft in the Wills home.

At the dedication ceremony Edward Everett gave a 13,607-word speech that went on for nearly two hours.

Abraham Lincoln followed with a speech of only 269 words and lasted barely two minutes.

Lincoln was not a dynamic orator. In those years before loudspeakers, anyone making an outdoor speech had to speak loudly.

Some historians have suggested that Lincoln’s voice became a bit high-pitched when speaking loudly. Also, he had the strange habit of throwing his arms in the air while flexing his knees to make a point during a speech.

One eyewitness said the speech was followed by a “dignified silence.” A noted historian said the applause was delayed, scattered, and “barely polite.”

It is not surprising then to learn of negative reactions to the Lincoln Gettysburg Address.

Edward Everett, however, praised Lincoln saying, “I should be glad if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion, in two hours, as you did in two minutes.”

The Abraham Lincoln speech at Gettysburg is now considered one of the most famous speeches in American history. It emboldened the Union cause during the Civil War with perhaps the most stirring words ever spoken.

Nuclear Monday number four

Don’t ya just hate it when they give you a medical procedure that you can’t pronounce?

This morning it was another nuclear ventriculography. It was the fourth one in the last ten years.

They inject a radioactive isotope into a vein while taking a treadmill stress test to show how well the blood is pumping through the heart and check for clogged arteries.



I am grateful for modern medical technology, good insurance coverage and not as many stairs to climb as shown in the drawing.

Colorado homeless camp called Obamaville

Residents of Colorado Springs, Colo., have a mystery on their hands: Who came up with the idea to erect a sign reading “Welcome to Obamaville - Colorado's fastest growing community” on the site of a homeless tent camp in the city?

Link

Italian PM Berlusconi bloodied in attack

An attacker hurled a statuette at Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, striking the leader in the face at the end of a rally Sunday and leaving the stunned 73-year-old media mogul with a broken nose and bloodied mouth.

Police said the 42-year-old man accused of attacking Mr. Berlusconi as he signed autographs in Milan was immediately taken into custody. The Italian leader was rushed to a hospital where he was being held overnight.

More of the story here.

Apple blocks 1,000 iPhone apps after scam surfaces

Apple has pulled the plug on more than 1,000 iPhone applications because of allegations that the developers behind them planted positive reviews about its products while using knockoffs of existing apps.

Apple has sent a clear message to any developers who try to game its iTunes App Store.

Software developer Molinker has been kicked out, along with more than 1,000 of its iPhone applications.

The Chinese developer had, according to some estimates, 1,000-plus applications in the store, most of which were copycat knockoffs of existing applications.

More of the story here.

Polls show Obama slide accelerating

The latest Rasmussen daily tracking poll shows that only twenty-three (23%) of voters say they strongly approve of Obama’s performance while forty-two percent (42%) strongly disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -19.




That’s a loss for Obama of 4% in just the last three weeks!

Previous Obama poll drop report here.

Worst poll drop for a president in 50 years here.

Latest poll drop here.

Santa and reindeer in Lapland

Santa Claus with his Reindeer and sled in Rovaniemi's Christmas theme park in Finnish Lapland.

A Gentoo penguin looks out from its pool that is a constantly chilly seven degrees Celsius and an environment that includes a light cycle that changes to replicate the Antarctic seasons, with very short days in winter and very long days in summer, at the Melbourne Aquarium

Professional demonstrators at climate summit

An Associated Press report claims that tens of thousands of protesters marched through Copenhagen during the United Nations climate summit.

This was not a grass roots protest. It appeared to be professionally organized by global warming alarmists.

The signs were obviously professionally mass produced with no appearance of grass roots spontaneity.

Organizers claimed as many as 100,000 joined the protest march. Police, however, estimated their numbers at 40,000.

A large number of the protestors must have been thugs as nearly 1,000 were detained by police when cobblestones smashed windows of the former stock exchange and Foreign Ministry buildings.

Link

Tiger Woods may have a new sponsor

Playboy Magazine may want to sponsor Tiger?

Up-side-down house in Gettorf Germany

Upsy-daisy.

A wooden house is being readied to set it up-side-down in the compound of the zoo in Gettorf, northern Germany.

The fully furnished so-called 'crazy house' has a kitchen, a bathroom, a living room and a sleeping room. Visitors can tour the home for a fee.

More about that Nobel Peace Prize...

A Christmas treat for ring tailed lemurs

Calf born with cross on forehead

A calf with a cross on its forehead was born last week at a dairy farm in Sterling, a small, rustic Connecticut town on the Rhode Island border.

There’s only one thing you can say upon seeing a calf born with a cross marking on his head: Holy cow!

The mostly brown calf is half Jersey, half Holstein. Neighborhood children have named him Moses.

Link

Congressional Gold Medal plan for Tiger Woods dropped

Congressman Joe Baca, an avid golfer, introduced a measure in March seeking to give Woods the highest civilian award bestowed by Congress.

The bill states, “To provide for the award of a gold medal on behalf of the Congress to Tiger Woods, in recognition of his service to the Nation in promoting excellence and good sportsmanship, and in breaking barriers with grace and dignity by showing that golf is a sport for all people.”

Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.) is abandoning his effort to honor golf star Tiger Woods with the Congressional Gold Medal.

In a statement, Baca said, “In light of the recent developments surrounding Tiger Woods and his family, I will not pursue legislation awarding him the Congressional Gold Medal this session.”

Link

Continuing to blame Bush

More girls claim affairs with Tiger Woods

More alleged girlfriends of golfer Tiger Woods rush forward to sell their stories.

Well, not really. The photo was taken during the third Stiletto race in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The race is run while wearing spike heel shoes.

Short stay for Prize miffs Norwegians

Barack Obama was in Sweden today to accept his Nobel Peace Prize. An article at the link below reported:

Obama had quite a whirlwind day Thursday - he signed the Nobel guest book, huddled with Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, met with King Harald V and Queen Sonja, and delivered an acceptance speech after he was formally presented with the prize.

The photo above shows a smirking Barack Obama with Norwegian politician and Nobel committee member Kaci Kullmann Five.

He skipped out on a host of other activities, including lunch with the king, a news conference at Oslo's Grand Hotel, CNN's traditional interview with the prize winner and a "Save the Children" benefit concert, where organizers replaced him with an Obama cardboard cutout. Obama also won't be around for Friday's Nobel Concert.

Replaced him with an Obama cardboard cutout? Why can’t we do that here in America?

Mr. Obama stiffed the King for lunch: a classless act. His community organizing background just doesn’t measure up to European royalty. At least he didn’t give the King videos of his speeches like he gave the Queen of England.

Cardboard cutout of Barack Obama? Sounds interesting. Maybe they should sell them in the White House gift shop. The proceeds could help reduce the trillions of dollars of debt run up by the Obama administration.

Link

Barack Obama got his Nobel prize today

(click on cartoon to enlarge)

What to do when a compact fluorescent bulb breaks

We had an energy-efficient light bulb suddenly break a seal and a large amount of whitish pungent smelling smoke poured out.

This happened when the light switch was turned on. We were able to turn the switch off quickly but it smelled so bad it took quite a while to air the room out. What would have happened if the bulb had cracked while we were away from home for several hours?

Below is a list of things to do when a compact fluorescent bulb cracks:

1. Keep people and pets away. Open windows, and leave the area for 15 minutes before beginning the cleanup.

2. Do not use a vacuum cleaner, even on a carpet. This will spread the mercury vapor and dust and will potentially contaminate the vacuum.

3. Wear rubber gloves.

4. Carefully remove the larger pieces and place them in a secure closed container, preferably a glass jar with a metal screw top lid and seal it like a canning jar.

5. Scoop up the smaller pieces, as well as the dust, using two stiff pieces of paper such as index cards or playing cards.

6. Pick up fine particles with duct tape, packing tape, or masking tape, and then use a wet wipe or damp paper towel.

7. Put all waste into the glass container, including all material used in the cleanup.

8. Remove the clean-up container from your home and call your local solid waste district or municipality for disposal instructions.

9. Open windows during the next several times you vacuum the carpet to provide good ventilation.

10. As a precaution, consider discarding throw rugs on the area of carpet where the breakage occurred, particularly if the rug is in an area frequented by infants, small children or pregnant women.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
If you still want to ‘go green’ and use one of those twisted bulbs thrust on us by twisted-science people, go right ahead.

Never mind that breathing the fumes of a CF bulb is a health hazard.

Never mind that the flickering of a CF bulb can cause or aggravate a migraine headache.

Never mind that electromagnetic radiation can be a problem if used in a desk lamp, bedside lamp or anywhere you will be close to the lamp.

Never mind that CF bulbs emit UV-radiation which is harmful to the skin (eg. skin cancer) and the eyes (eg. cataract). Several studies have found that fluorescent bulbs raise the risk for skin cancer when used in close proximity to people.

Never mind that flickering light from CF bulbs can lead to discomfort, headaches/migraines, eyestrain, diminished concentration, seizure-like symptoms in epileptics, worsened symptoms in people with Ménière’s disease, etc.

Link here and here.

Boy gets tongue stuck on frozen pole

A boy in Boise, Idaho got his tongue stuck to a pole.

Boise firefighters used a glass of warm water to free the unidentified boy from the metal fence pole.

Fire Capt. Bill Tinsley says the boy's tongue was bleeding a little, but he was OK and allowed to continue walking to school.


The photo shows Flick putting his tongue on a frozen flagpole as Ralphie Parker watches in the movie A Christmas Story. Flick just had to do it - after all, he was triple-dog dared.

The incident brought back a poignant childhood memory of a winter day when I was in the first grade.

I tried to lick frost from the metal steering bar of a sled while playing in a farmyard near Hurley, South Dakota.

Link

$6M political payoff came from stimulus

An article at the link below reports that:

Nearly $6 million in stimulus money was paid to two firms run by Mark Penn, Hillary Clinton’s pollster in 2008.

Federal records show that $5.97 million from the $787 billion stimulus helped preserve three jobs at Burson-Marsteller, the global public-relations and communications firm headed by Penn.

Other questionable payments from the $787 billion stimulus found in federal records can be found here.

Two Academy members say take back Al Gore's Oscar

In light of Climategate, two Hollywood conservatives, Roger Simon and Lionel Chetwynd, have asked the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to rescind the prestigious, profitable gold Oscar statuette that it gave Al Gore two years ago for the environmental movie "An Inconvenient Truth."


The photo shows Roger Simon on left and Lionel Chetwynd on right.

In 2007, Hollywood's Academy sanctified Gore's cinematic message of global warming with its famous statue, enriched his earnings by $100,000 per 85-minute appearance and helped elevate the Tennesseean's profile to win the Nobel Peace Prize despite losing the election battle of 2000 to a Texan and living in a large house with lots of energy-driven appliances.

This was prompted by the leak two weeks ago of a blizzard of British academic e-mails purporting to show that scientists at the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit systematically falsified data to document the appearance of global warming in recent years.

This leak comes at an inconvenient time just before next the United Nations' climate change meeting that will cause an immense carbon footprint with thousands of people flying to Denmark to talk about saving the environment.

Is it the publicity surrounding the leaked e-mails the reason Al Gore has cancelled his appearance at the United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen?

The demand by Simon and Chetwynd to withdraw the Oscar may not have kept Gore form the climate summit but is certainly an embarrassment to the former Vice President.

The raw database of the leaked e-mails can be found here.

The Simon and Chetwynd Oscar withdrawal demand is here.

Gatorade drops Tiger Woods drink

Golfing great Tiger Woods takes a big hit from sports drink sponsor after bizarre auto accident opened his private life to public.

Before that, the married father of two young children had a pristine image and raked in hundreds of millions of dollars in endorsements.

And, while most of Woods' sponsors continue to stand by him, a major one is pulling the plug on a Woods-related product. PepsiCo's Gatorade won't be making any more Tiger-themed drinks.

PepsiCo said the decision to drop Tiger Woods was made before the accident. It is interesting to note that the decision was made before the accident but the announcement was not made until after the accident.

"The more women that come out and the more mistresses we learn about," says so-called reputation doctor Mike Paul of MGP & Associates Public Relations, "the sponsors certainly have more of an evaluation going on, and there's increased pressure for them to at least consider dropping him."

Link

Weather Channel founder says Global warming biggest scam in history

The Weather Channel founder says:

It [global warming] is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it.

Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create in [sic] allusion of rapid global warming.

Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the "research" to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims.

Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.

Environmental extremists, notable politicians among them, then teamed up with movie, media and other liberal, environmentalist journalists to create this wild "scientific" scenario of the civilization threatening environmental consequences from Global Warming unless we adhere to their radical agenda.

Now their ridiculous manipulated science has been accepted as fact and become a cornerstone issue for CNN, CBS, NBC, the Democratic Political Party, the Governor of California, school teachers and, in many cases, well informed but very gullible environmental conscientious citizens.

Only one reporter at ABC has been allowed to counter the Global Warming frenzy with one 15 minutes documentary segment.

I have read dozens of scientific papers. I have talked with numerous scientists. I have studied. I have thought about it. I know I am correct. There is no run away climate change. The impact of humans on climate is not catastrophic.

Our planet is not in peril. I am incensed by the incredible media glamour, the politically correct silliness and rude dismissal of counter arguments by the high priest of Global Warming.

In time, a decade or two, the outrageous scam will be obvious.

Link

Christmas shopping in bad economic times

This was a winner in a recent cartoon caption contest by Gary Varvel, a cartoonist for the Indianapolis Star newspaper.

Obama has closed-door meeting on open-government

The Obama administration has promised to be transparent. No secrets - everything out in the open.

Then comes news of a closed meeting on openness. It's hardly the image of transparency.

A workshop on government openness that is closed to the public is an oxymoron.

The event Monday for federal employees is a fitting symbol of President Barack Obama's uneven record so far on the Freedom of Information Act, a big part of keeping his campaign promise to make his administration the most transparent ever.

As Obama's first year in office ends, the government's actions when the public and press seek information are not yet matching up with the president's words.

More here.

Harry Reid compares ObamaCare opponents to supporters of slavery

Senator Harry Reid (pictured) has outdone himself.

Since Barack Obama entered the White House, Reid and other left-wing liberals in Washington have used the ‘race card’ whenever a potential roadblock appears in the president’s path.

Reid is now using the ‘idiot card.’

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid took his GOP-blasting rhetoric to a new level Monday, comparing Republicans who oppose health care reform to lawmakers who clung to the institution of slavery more than a century ago.

The Nevada Democrat, in a sweeping set of accusations on the Senate floor, also compared health care foes to those who opposed women's suffrage and the civil rights movement.

Mr. Reid must have forgotten that it was Republicans who led the charge against slavery and it was Sen. Strom Thurmond, then a Democrat, who unsuccessfully tried to filibuster the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

A recent Wall Street Journal report asked the question:How did such an unappealing man who says so many foolish things get so far in politics?

The answer is simple. It’s the ‘Peter Principle’ formulated by Dr. Laurence J. Peter, which holds that in a hierarchy, all members rise to the level of their incompetence.

Harry Reid has demonstrated that he has actually exceeded his level of incompetence.

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Gift to terrorists: complete TSA manual posted online

Massive security breach as TSA gave away its secrets!

Photo shows airport screeners at work.

Transportation Security Administration officials said a review was under way to determine how a complete 2008 copy of its standard operating procedures for all airport security checkpoints was available on the Internet.

The agency said the operating procedures were "improperly posted" on a federal business opportunities site with redacted material that was not adequately protected. A link to the document went dead Monday but by then it had been picked up and spread on line by bloggers.

Christmas came early this year for terrorists and smugglers.

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Parking attendant wanted

Wanted: parking lot attendant. The last one didn’t work out.

Pilots of wayward NW Airlines plane now blame controllers

The Northwest Airlines pilots who flew their jet past their destination city of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 21 have blamed air traffic controllers for the snafu.

Capt. Timothy B. Cheney and First Officer Richard I. Cole are claiming air traffic control rules weren't followed, which contributed to the incident.

Photo shows First Officer Richard Cole talking to a reporter at his home in Salem, Oregon after the incident.

"The air traffic controller(s) did not comply with the requirements of the air traffic control manual and other relevant orders, rules, procedures, policies and practices with respect to Northwest Flight 188, nor coordinate effectively with Northwest dispatch, and such failure was a causal or contributing factor in the incident," they said. The responses were filed November 24, but made public Monday.

The pilots are appealing the revocation of their licenses by the FAA.

The National Transportation Safety Board has reported that the pilots told investigators they used personal laptop computers during the flight, in violation of company policy, and lost track of time.

Now, several weeks later the air traffic
controller accusation surfaces.

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Climate summit in chaos after Danish text leak

A headline from the UK says:

Developing countries react furiously to leaked draft agreement that would hand more power to rich nations, sideline the UN's negotiating role and abandon the Kyoto protocol.

First the leaked e-mails and now this. They will be scrambling to sweep it all under the carpet.

The so-called Danish text, a secret draft agreement worked on by a group of individuals known as "the circle of commitment" – but understood to include the UK, US and Denmark – has only been shown to a handful of countries since it was finalized this week.

The document is also being interpreted by developing countries as setting unequal limits on per capita carbon emissions for developed and developing countries in 2050; meaning that people in rich countries would be permitted to emit nearly twice as much under the proposals.

As mentioned above, developing countries are reacting furiously to the leaked “text.” They arrived hoping for huge monetary handouts. After all, that’s what happens when socialists get together - the poor and lazy are rewarded by the fruits of the labors of others.

In this case, the poor countries are out of luck. It’s survival of the fittest ... make that survival of the richest. Actually, there is no difference is there?

The following sentence is all you really need to know about the text:

Few numbers or figures are included in the text because these would be filled in later by world leaders.

The photo above shows a man watching an animated projection showing the different acidity levels of the ocean. But just wait until Al Gore arrives with his books and movie ... but just a minute ... Mr. Gore cancelled his appearance at the Copenhagen global summit ... he won’t be there.

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