The Senator and the Transportation Sandusky Administration (TSA) Flap

(To 'sandusky' is a verb now in use by the gang of unsocialized miscreants my 7th grader runs with. The things kids will come up with.)

So, anyway, this blogger invited the blogosphere to engage in thoughtful discussion regarding the strange case of the jackbooted airport brownshirts (the blue shirts are a clever disquise) detaining the duly elected Senator from Kentucky.

I was voluntarily unable to participate on this particular blogger's comment thread, because this particular blogger uses WordPress as her commenting system and I long ago wrote off that configuration as a huge pain in the arse to be avoided. According to my early experience with this whole blogging thing, WordPress apparently requires a distinct password for each and every WordPress serviced site, and that's simply too hard for this simple mind to keep up with.

Now, don't get me wrong - I often enjoy this particular blogger's writings (rantings), that's why she retains her highly sought after place on the Bob Schieffer Blog Roll.  I am simply prohibited by individual choice from interacting directly on this particular blogger's site due to this particular blogger's poor (in my view) choice of commenting systems.

==

So, I guess I'll just have to start the sorely needed erudite discussion thread here on my site.

First of all, we have reached a truly dark age for the constitution when low level bureaucrats equipped with intentionally faulty machines feel empowered to detain and harass a United States Senator. Read the last sentence, first paragraph, Article I, section 6; then get back to me kiddies. You, Ezra Klein, can hire a translator if you want, because it was written a really long time ago, or something.

Number two - the TSA, in its present configuration, was never necessary. Setting aside the debate over private vs. government agency staffing - trampling on the Fourth Amendment rights of each and every traveler to protect all from the criminal intent of a few easily profiled (there's that word! eek!) criminals has always been a ridiculous farce at best.

Number three - there is still time to eliminate the TSA and implement an Israeli style profiling and interviewing system. It's been working for them for decades. The only reason it hasn't been given a chance to work for us is the scourge of Political Correctness inflicted upon the republic by our political Left.

Profiling is not racism. Profiling is smart police work. Period. End of sentence.

Newton's Three Laws (Part 24)

I was determined to retire this series title - really - on the grounds it was looking as old as Joe Namath in his Los Angeles Rams uniform. However, sometimes events conspire to overtake the best intentions of the humble blog author.

The GOP Establishment is positively losing its' collective mind over Newt Gingrich's South Carolina primary win.  Losing its' mind!

This is good for the republic and an absolutely perfect fit for the Newtonian F=M*A theme that has been a big part of this blog.

==

Who exactly is this "GOP Establishment?" I, LibertyAtStake, shall now provide the most succinctly transparent definition available on the Intertubes of this suddenly common term. The "GOP Establishment" is (most, not all) of the collection of people who make their compensated livings working for team (R) in our two party system. It's the career politicians, career staffers, paid pundits, paid pollsters, and all the other paid media hacks who live inside the two party bubble 24 x 7. They have a losing record. Most recently they got wiped out by a Saul Alinsky Communist with no record of achievement beyond the capacity to read a teleprompter and repeat the empty chant "Yes We Can" in at least two languages. Basically, they lost to Ron Burgundy in Al Jolson "black face."

The Establishment GOP also possesses a very personal interest in maintaining the status quo, or something close to it, as the junior partners in your ruling cabal. Their immediate ability to pay their mortgages and pay their kids' tuition bills, and all the other bills, depends upon it. They lined up in lockstep up to six years ago behind the Massachusetts moderate named Mitt Romney - or Mittens, or Sir Mitt of RINO, on this blog.

LAS is here to inform you that's what explains many observations from today's news and opinion feeds. Herewith is a small sampling.

Wall Street Journal Opinionator becomes so unhinged as to draw a false equivalence between Newt and a well-known Cuban mass murderer.

Well known pseudo-conservative David Frum makes the case you should reject Newt because his (Frum's) "Establishment," losers to the Empty Suit in 2008, are frightened by the Newtser. (You can bet they are!)

The Old Grey Lady - and I do mean OLD AND GREY - editorial board takes a stab at dismissing the obviously uncomfortable reality (for them).

==

You, dear reader, are not buying it, though.  (And good for you!)  The latest measurement taken by the republic's most reliable pollster at this moment - Scott Rasmussen - informs us of a huge tidal wave of support surging in the hurricane prone state of Florida.  (btw - I love Reaganite Republican's "Revenge of the Nerds" gestalt on this link.  It reminds me of the time me and my high school friends donned broken glasses, short sleeve shirts, and pocket protectors to view the original's theatre opening in our particular backwater.  But I digress.)

==

This is the bottom line, patriots.  Newt Gingrich, as Speaker of the House, balanced the federal budget *and* showed sufficient conviction to shutdown the federal gub'ment in the political fight to get there . Ask Denny Hastert, Blinky Pelosi, or John Boehner if they can lay claim to these accolades. Newt Gingrich has arisen as the "outsider's insider" at this crucial time in history.  Embrace it.  It is what it is.

This confluence has given LAS the opportunity to use the following album cover graphic; which I obtained as a registered user of the best Internet Idea Ever - Pandora Radio.  I had never heard of the band "Elf Power," or their album "Creatures" (under this cover), or the song on this album titled "Let the Serpent Sleep" - but I was instantly entranced by the song when Pandora's algorithms brought the song forward based on my recorded preferences.  The very same Intertubes that made this possible makes the Establishment's resistance to Newt's rise futile.  This graphic captures the gestalt of the grass roots TEA Party fueled Conservative Ascendancy that will record one hell of a Newtonian impact come November 2012.

Don't cede one single inch of the ring to the Establishment, patriots.  They don't deserve it.  They lost to a Saul Alinsky trained Socialist.

Jack Wiley Dithers Exclusive: OccupyDC Instant Messages Intercepted

(AP) - Jack Wiley Dithers Reporting.

My cracker-jack investigative journalism team has uncovered direct ties between the OccupyDC camp at McPherson Square and the White House. This connection is firmly established by our archive of intercepted Instant Message (IM) packets, all sent and received from the same Toshiba Satellite Pro laptop. This laptop has been using the open, public, wi-fi connection provided by a Starbucks two blocks north of McPherson Square ever since the occupiers arrived in town. The IM exchanges are between an account inside the Starbucks using the handle @FreeAbbieHoffman, and a co-conspirator using the handle @OFA. Our elite IT staff has analyzed the IP addresses in these packets, have done their geo-location computations, and have established with 99.98% certainty the @OFA packets originate from inside 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC.

The promising young intern I hired last year for her unique qualifications has connected the Starbucks laptop to a hobo.   This hobo somehow manages to walk around all day with very expensive digital devices and film equipment, and also somehow affords the freight to sleep every evening in the Residence Inn directly across from the targeted Starbucks network. We have observed him expertly agitating the mob most evenings during so-called General Assembly (GA). This is our best surveillance photo to date.

I think you'll find the IM exchanges quite eye-popping. I know I did as I observed the perky intern doing her desk work to assemble them into this report.

==

10/1/2011 3:30 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Checked in with Residence Inn. Awaiting instructions.
10/1/2011 3:33 pm
@OFA: Plouffe taking nap. Check back tomorrow.


10/3/2011 4:00 pm
@OFA: Introduce yourself to the mob at GA tonight. You will be an unemployed auto worker who lost his job due to Governor Scott Walker's illegal union busting activities. Begin gaining the mob's trust as an expert in Marxist economics. Talk to the mob a lot about how Teddy Roosevelt was a progressive. Plouffe is working up a speech for the One channeling TR.

10/6/2011 11:12 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: 3 new CPUSA registrations since last night. Reading up on the Rough Riders and Spanish-American War to learn about TR.
10/6/2011 11:32 am
@OFA: Nice start on the registration drive. Re: TR, read something about his policy disagreements with Taft instead.

10/7/2011 1:42 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: 8 more CPUSA registrations. Total now 11. Met promising young activist from West Virginia. He's been a very effective voice at GA.
10/7/2011 1:53 pm
@OFA: Excellent. Plouffe is cooking up something big for tomorrow. Stay sober.

10/8/2011 10:44 am
@OFA: The mob will ransack the NASA museum today. Capture everything on film.
10/8/2011 11:08 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: WV guy riling mob with chant - Space Travel For the 99% Now! Told you he had promise.
10/8/2011 2:28 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Mob on the march.
10/8/2011 3:03 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Museum doors breeched!
10/8/2011 3:14 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Pepper spray! Kent State moment!
10/8/2011 3:26 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Mob retreating back to base camp.
10/8/2011 8:57 pm
@OFA: What do you know about the American Spectator reporter?
10/8/2011 8:59 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Huh?
10/8/2011 9:01 pm
@OFA: Never mind. Get your Anonymous people on the case.
10/8/2011 9:49 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Anonymous on the case. Spectator post should be wiped by tomorrow.

10/20/2011 11:02 am
@OFA: Flash mob at Union station tonight - Walmart CEO at fund raiser.
10/20/2011 1:04 pm
@FreeAbbirHoffman: WV guy came up with another great chant. We're Here! We're Smart! We Fart on Walmart! Recommend for early promotion to Organizer.

10/29/2011 12:14 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Exciting news! Some black kids have joined camp!
10/29/2011 12:33 pm
@OFA: Jarrett sent them down from Howard U. Brush up on your black liberation theology for GA.

11/1/2011 2:02 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Some guy wearing dark glasses and smoking a cigar keeps coming into camp and talking to occupiers. Talks to WV guy a lot. The chants coming from WV guy much weaker lately. Withdraw promotion recommendation. Cigar guy has Lolita spooked 'cos he keeps asking about the welfare of her kids.
11/1/2011 2:04 pm
@OFA: Ignore him. Plouffe is on the case.

11/4/2011 11:11 am
@OFA: The mob terrorizes the AFP summit at Convention Center tonight.
11/4/2011 11:13 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: There's cigar guy again. Who IS he?
11/4/2011 11:15 am
@OFA: Get a hold of yourself.

11/5/2011 1:13 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Cigar guy knows WV guy pushed that old woman down the stairs. How is that even possible? WV guy spooked - thinking about leaving camp.
11/5/2011 1:16 PM
@OFA: Forget cigar guy. WV guy no matter. Convince Lolita to go home and lay low for awhile. Wash Times posted video of her using her kids as a barricade. It's linked all over the Internet.

11/17/2011 10:43 am
@OFA: The mob blocks the key bridge at rush hour today.
11/17/2011 10:51 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: R U sure? That might piss a lot of people off.
11/17/2011 10:56 am
@OFA: Just do it. Plouffe says so.

11/20/2011 11:34 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Cigar Guy walked right up to me and asked about the Franklin School arrests. U GOT TO DO SOMETHING!
11/20/2011 11:36 am
@OFA: Are you back on crystal meth?

11/22/2011 2:33 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: OWS marchers arrived. Send Kosher food.
11/22/2011 2:36 pm
@OFA: ACORN on it.

12/4/2011 3:38 pm
@OFA: Baltimore friend will deliver lumber tonight. Organize mob to build shed from delivery.
12/4/2011 6:48 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Lumber arrived from Baltimore friend.
12/4/2011 8:08 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Finished explaining to occupiers what a hammer does. Cops looking agitated.
12/4/2011 10:06 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Cops moving in! Kent State! Kent State! Kent State!
12/4/2011 10:16 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: WV guy resisting from shed roof. Pissing on cops. Reinstate promotion recommendation.
12/5/2011 9:08 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: WTF happenend to the shed?
12/5/2011 9:09 am
@OFA: Never mind.

12/6/2011 10:04 am
@OFA: The One gives TR speech today.  How did TR brainwashing go with the mob.
12/6/2011 10:07 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: T Who?

12/7/2011 10:43 am
@OFA: The mob blocks the K street at rush hour today.
12/7/2011 10:51 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: R U sure? That might piss a lot of people off.
12/7/2011 10:56 am
@OFA: Just do it. Plouffe says so.

12/8/2011 11:16 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Cigar guy commenting on our site. DO SOMETHING!
12/8/2011 12:02 pm
@OFA: We have his real name and address. Organize a march on his house for this evening.
12/8/2011 2:04 pm
@FreeAbbieHoffman: March on cigar guy's house a no go. Too far to walk and nobody in camp has a valid drivers license.
12/8/2011 2:06 pm
@OFA: No matter - we decided to cancel because he has a blog.

1/16/2011 10:41 am
@FreeAbbieHoffman: Cigar guy in camp almost every day now. This is really pissing me off.
1/16/2011 10:42 am
@OFA: We told you he has a blog. Nothing can be done.

(AP) - Jack Wiley Dithers Reporting.

Hell Hath No Fury Like a Woman Scorned

We have been informed that ABC News will air an interview with Newt Gingrich’s second wife this evening. She will be re-hashing old gossip from their divorce of 13 years ago.

This is interesting on several levels – not the least of which is the sound argument it makes for mandatory gag orders with all divorces.

A slightly more instructive angle is given to us by the corrupt and biased liberal MSM positively salivating all over itself at the possibility of sinking the candidacy of most articulate voice left in the GOP nomination race.

I have often heard the phrase “timing is everything,” and often lived its truth - almost always a day late and a dollar short. The timing of this MSM hatchet job is positively exquisite; what with Newt rising again in the polls.

Especially when you consider some of the things that have somehow escaped the attention of corrupt and biased MSM ... documentary evidence provided by L. Brent Bozell’s excellent organization known as the Media Research Center (MRC).

The MSM couldn’t figure out John Edwards’ mistress was flying on the same press plane with them.

MSM hacks lined up to be apologists for Eliot Spitzer’s whoring.

Not to mention William Jefferson Clinton’s record of serial sexual assaults.

==

But, LAS also understands the conservative coalition does have its standards, the double standards of the Left are not something to emulate, and those social conservatives over there at the other end of tent are staring at me suspiciously. So, for me, the most interesting angle on this one is the perpetual tug and pull inside the conservative coalition tent - between social conservatives with a gag reflex reaction to infidelity, and liberty conservatives now dedicated to the proposition of beating Barack Hussein Obama like a government mule in the general election of 2012. The liberty side of the tent doesn’t give a damn about 13 year old gossip.

Therefore, I’ve put together my own poll to get to the bottom of this latest MSM hatchet job on a Republican candidate. Only registered Republicans should vote. It’s the honor system, so all dead voters are assumed to be Democrat mischief makers.

==

After viewing the ABC News hatchet job on Newt Gingrich, please select the answer that best fits your reaction.

Update 1/22/12

It's a BLOWOUT in the Palmetto state! Nikki Haley still has time to admit she made a mistake endorsing Mittens and seek TEA Party forgiveness. Because we believe in redemption - Rick Perry said so. And now, the speech that made LAS go "woo-hoo!"

Recess? Don't Talk About Recess! You Kiddin' Me!

With Apologies to Jim Mora ...



==

The Community-Agitator-In-Chief has inflicted yet another constitutional crisis upon the republic with his recent “recess appointments.”

These appointments represent precisely what our Founders rebelled against – the unilateral dictatorial decree of a tyrant executive. The Founders split power between three branches of government to avoid the grand errors that always arise from concentrating too much power in too few hands. In the situation at hand, the constitution requires otherwise unaccountable bureaucrats to receive the consent of the Senate before being deputized as our masters and overseers.⁽¹⁾

The Founders made provision for the so-called “recess appointment”⁽²⁾ in an 18th Century world – intending it to cover the exceptional condition of the Executive branch needing to suddenly fill a position between sessions of Congress, when re-convening an adjourned Congress was dependent on the horse and buggy.

The recess appointment simply serves no purpose anymore in a world of travel governed by the internal combustion engine and jet air flight. At this point in history, the recess appointment no longer serves its’ originally intended purpose as a stop-gap measure mitigating the limitations of Congress to hold up its’ end of the appointment / confirmation bargain. The recess appointment is now nothing more than a procedural option the Executive possesses for subverting the originally intended separation of powers.

The political argument over these appointments makes my point. In practical terms, it is nothing but political theater. Every single one of today’s Senators could make the round trip home and back to DC in infinitely less time than the 18th century Senator from New Hampshire might have spent stuck in a Philadelphia snow storm just trying to get home. The Senate Majority leader can send a tweet instantly to have the Senate in session day after tomorrow. If Barry needs these positions filled so badly, he should just tell Dingy Harry Reid to get everybody back in town and get the confirmation process started.

For the same reasons, the argument over whether Congress is or is not really in recess based on the House’s refusal to accept the Senate’s adjournment⁽³⁾ is more political theater than constitutional legal debate. It really doesn’t matter how many warm bodies are inside the Capitol. Speaker Boehner has the power and capacity to get every Representative back into the building day after tomorrow.

If Barry is truly the enlightened “progressive” constitutional scholar he claims to be, he should be arguing that we “progress” into modern times by amending the constitution to eliminate recess appointments altogether. But he won’t – because the only real value held by BHO and his corrupt gang of Progressives is the raw, naked exercise of power.

Just ask Anita Dunn’s favorite political philosopher, Mao Tse-Tung: “Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”

Or ask Barry’s community agitator hero, Saul Alinsky: "The third rule of ethics of means and ends … the end justifies almost any means...." (p. 29 of “Rules For Radicals”)

Or ask Dingy Harry Reid why he used the identical tactic (not adjourning) to block Bush era recess appointments, yet rejects the same argument against Barry’s recess appointments today.

Footnotes
⁽¹⁾Article II, Section 2 of the constitution.
⁽²⁾Article II, Section 2 of the constitution.
⁽³⁾Article I, Section 5 of the constitution.

Proposed constitutional amendment: "Article II, Section 2 shall be amended to remove the final paragraph 'The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.'"

Got that, Ezra Klein? It's really not that hard.

d(^_^)b
http://libertyatstake.blogspot.com/
"Because the Only Good Progressive is a Failed Progressive"


Update 1/18/12

A visit today to this site generated by a long ago forgotten url signed comment reminds LAS this is not the first time Barry has abused Article II, Section 2.

Tagged!

Discovered last week inside my mailbox. So many questions ...

Really?

AYFKM?

Is there a dire national need to improve the efficiency of junk mail delivery?

Am I a criminal if I remove the sticker?

If I replace the crusty old mailbox with a shiny new one, will their system become confused? Will I be assessed a tax?

If they can afford the snazzy new data collection technology, why can't they print a leaflet answering my questions?

Does this mean I will never again have to walk my neighbor's mis-routed mail across the street? (Doubt it)

Or maybe there is something more nefarious afoot. Perhaps I should write a memo.

==

HIGH PRIORITY MEMO

EXTRA SPECIAL EMERGENCY CLASS DELIVERY

Monday January 16, 2012

To: VRWC HQ

From: LAS DC Outpost

** BURN AFTER READING **

========================

Stop sending instructions via snail mail. They are on to me. Please reimburse postage.

LAS 2011 Review & 2012 Preview (Part 4 of 4)

Part 1 covered domestic conditions.
Part 2 covered foreign affairs.
Part 3 covered the current electoral situation.
Part 4 covers this blog project.

When I inaugurated this blog nearly 25 months ago, the Democrat Party (usually referred to on this blog as DemoHacks or the Donkey Party) held commanding majorities on both sides of Capitol Hill and was also in command of the White House. This version of the Democrat Party held – and still holds - policy positions closer to Nikita Kruschev than to John F. Kennedy. The hapless GOP establishment had lost the entire store to the Donkey Party, mostly because they (the GOP) had foolishly governed as ersatz progressives. The Donkey Party, long ago taken over by real progressives, was riding high and hell bent on “fundamentally transforming” America into a European social democracy like Greece or, more likely, if given sufficient time to slide down the slippery slope, a communist misery pit like Cuba. It was a dark time for liberty.

The only countervailing political force was a grass-roots citizen driven movement whose name matched precisely its message – Taxed Enough Already (TEA). While simultaneously weathering a withering caricature assassination mercilessly coordinated by the corrupt and biased liberal media, the patriots in this movement, political novices for the most part, accomplished the initial stages of a hostile takeover of the empty husk that was the GOP. The initial fruits of this takeover were the historic “shellacking” of the Donkey Party in the election of 2010, giving the GOP control of the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, the Empty Suit Known as Barack Hussein Obama was not on the ballot, and therefore still sits in the White House scheming and dreaming for “fundamental transformation.” His method for furthering his socialist, statist dreams is to constantly pick fights with the House GOP with the objective of dividing the American people into competing factions. Just as he was instructed so long ago by the teachings of Saul Alinsky in “Rules For Radicals” and Bill Ayers in “Prairie Fire.”

The election of 2012 will be a monumentally decisive and historic election for this 235 year old republic. Just as the Newtonian F=M*A theme running through this blog archive predicts and documents. If control of the government is given to a newly TEA Party infused GOP, the future for liberty will be restored. If the government remains split, especially if BHO holds onto the White House, the prescription is four more years of chaotic gridlock and whatever that may lead to at street level. If, in the least likely event, full control is restored to BHO and his corrupt gang of Progressives: Hello Cuba! This blog will remain in operation until this historic decision is made by the American people. Whether or not it turns out to be “Shellacking II” as I fully expect, this blog will shutter operations once the decision is made. Assuming, for the sake of argument, a period of postscript extending from election day 2012 to inauguration day 2013 – what, then, to expect from LibertyAtStake over the next twelve months or so?

==

Keeping up a decent blog is hard work. That’s why so many of the hacks paid to do it suck at it. The ubiquitous bell curve that applies to all of life’s undertakings does not spare the blogging community.

In recognition of this, and the old saw “work smarter, not harder,” the evolution of the blog format has been a constant search for higher returns on lower investments (of effort).

I have also tried to keep in mind the first keystone to success in any endeavor is a clear and unambiguous mission statement.

“Because the Only Good Progressive is a Failed Progressive”

==

With these things in mind, I have settled on a few tweaks for the 2012 run.

I’m stripping down the header section. It will contain only one widget devoted to political cartoons. A picture being worth a thousand words, as they say. This will also allow the meat of the matter – my own genius spilling forth from my own archive – to rise closer to the top of the blog.

I’m pretty happy with the sidebar as it is. The Assigned Reading List will continue to grow as a library in its own right to fuel the Conservative Ascendancy. The Daily Barry will automatically update itself each day as a tool for monitoring the Conservative Ascendancy’s progress. The JAUL Gallery has grown in direct correlation to the scourge of the White House directed Occupy movement, and the 2012 projection is for explosive growth. The video roll will continue to be rich source of mirth for conservatives, and the Bob Schieffer Blog Roll will continue to be the best damn conservative RSS feed on the planet.

==

Getting back to the dual objectives – return on level of effort and mission – I think the 2012 run will have more frequent, but shorter, posts. I will be less concerned about delivering the essay format personified by this four part series. I will concentrate more on hitting one issue at a time, with a short commentary designed to connect it to larger themes.

Like, for example, when Barry and his corrupt gang were patting themselves on the back for hitting 8.5% unemployment, I would have put together something like:

• Link to some corrupt and biased MSM cheerleading piece.
• Link to that chart everyone has seen, reminding us these are the same hacks who told us the trillion dollar crap sandwich known as Stimulus was needed to keep the number below the 8% they expected if we did nothing.
• Link to a piece reminding us they got down to 8.5% in large part by not counting people who have stopped looking for work.
• Link to a piece reminding us the only number that really matters – real jobs added per month – was half of what is necessary to get back to pre-crash employment levels. (200,000 vs. 400,000)
• Something about the anemic growth being a product of the American spirit and free market despite being saddled by the most anti-growth administration in American history.
• A snarky conclusion – something like, “It’s called math. They should try doing it honestly some time.”

There will be ten more opportunities to do this one. You get the idea for now.

==

I’m sure there will be the occasional essay as my muse (a truly lazy fellow, truth be told) dictates.

For example, I’d like to find the time to write an essay contrasting progressivism and conservatism in a way that makes clear why progressivism is perpetually at a competitive advantage. Not because it has superior ideas; but, rather, because it is an easier “sell.” Progressivism allows its’ adherents to simply feel good about intentions. Consequences, intended and unintended, never seem to come into the calculus of the progressive mind – at least not an honest accounting of consequences, anyway. Any idiot with a beating heart can embrace progressivism – functioning brain totally optional. By contrast, conservatism requires its adherents to start out by thinking clearly and honestly about human nature, and then to apply this understanding to an honest calculation of policy consequences, before spending other people’s money or issuing mandates for everyone else.

As an aside, this contrast brings to my mind the one word answer I whip out whenever a progressive pulls out that favorite canard of theirs – “how can you be pro-life and for the death penalty?” The one word answer is accountability. The fetus in the womb has had zero opportunity to make any choices, and is therefore accountable for nothing. The defendant in the court room, as well as the mother carrying the fetus, is accountable for all the choices leading up to the circumstance they find themselves in. But I digress.

I’d also like to do an essay piece on the commonalities between agile software development and conservatism. Both begin with a hardheaded acceptance of reality as it is given to us, both value transparency and individual accountability, and both emphasize disciplined adaptation to constant change, while always maintaining contact with a few governing principles to guide the change management process. And, yes, I am quite aware there may be as many of three of you out there who will understand what I’m talking about.

==

I’m certain Jack Wiley Dithers and his cracker-jack investigative journalism team will make a few contributions. JWD informs me they are now busily intercepting Instant Message (IM) communications sent and received by the hirsute raggedy-ass recycled hippie that has been using the Starbucks store wi-fi ever since OccupyDC has been in town.

The ‘Commentapalooza’ format will make the occasional appearance – because the raw content is so easy to collect systematically. Which means the url signed comments will continue to seed the input. Sorry comment board prudes, the beatings will continue until morale improves.

I’m also considering mounting a comment board invasion on the Leftie and biased MSM sites. This has to be carefully timed, however. While the repartee of a comment board fight is fun for me (yes, I know I am on the extreme edge of this bell curve for conservatives), Lefties are a time-consuming bunch to engage directly. They possess a tireless capacity for circular argument, the non-sequitur, ad-hominem attack, and setting straw men on fire. The overall experience is like chasing a bevy of moonbats with a tennis racket. It’s a good work out largely achieving nothing but the workout itself. But, timed properly, it could change the minds of a few observers, perhaps.

==

What to do after this blogs closes its’ shutters? Well, first and foremost, I fully expect to be celebrating the inauguration of Not-Obama in January 2013. And I still enjoy what I do outside of politics / blogging for compensation. I also enjoy the political blogging, though it remains uncompensated. However, this blog archive will forever stand as a resume bullet on the political blogging side. The question of what to do beginning from 2013 and beyond looks like a nice problem to have to LAS.

Commentapalooza V

(Find IV if you can)

To fill a gap between parts 3 and 4 of the currently active series ... drawing on the 'Plan B' potential provided by the Commentapalooza format ... LAS gives you ... what LAS has in inventory tonight.  The usual rules apply - LAS Intertubes comment genius captured upon its' boomerang back to this site 90 days or later after seeding.


LAS seeks legal advice regarding his brash comment board practices.

LAS opines on the existentially critical question ... 'fake or real?'

LAS spots a familiar inflatable.

LAS explains why the death of the corrupt and biased MSM is nigh.

LAS reflects on Barry administration's domestic energy policy.

LAS still making friends everywhere he goes.

LAS praises Bibi.

LAS pans waivermania.

LAS plays fashion critic to liberal moron.

LAS 2011 Review & 2012 Preview (Part 3 of 4)

Part 1 covered domestic conditions.
Part 2 covered foreign affairs.
Part 3 covers the current electoral situation.
Part 4 will cover this blog project.

In Part 1, we examined the domestic chaos being inflicted upon the republic by the Community-Agitator-In-Chief. In Part 2, we took a whirlwind tour around the globe to review the foreign affairs wreckage being left behind by the Appeaser-In-Chief. Now, in part 3, we take up the race to replace the Empty Suit Known as Barack Hussein Obama.

==

Understandably; the attention of the media, its’ pundits, and the small percentage of us willing to pay attention is on the GOP nomination process for President. I have made my position clear. Newt Gingrich is the best nominee left in the field.

My principal objection to front runner Mitt Romney is now and always has been that he is the wrong candidate to draw the sorely needed sharp distinction with the Empty Suit Known as Barack Hussein Obama. I don’t just want to defeat BHO – I want to defeat his morally and intellectually bankrupt Leftist ideology. Leftist ideology has spread quite enough financial wreckage and human misery across the planet, TYVM. If the GOP nominates Mittens in 2012, this opportunity is effectively lost. I don’t care what Karl Rove says, the clueless independents that swing general elections will simply not be able to distinguish RomneyCare from ObamaCare – and David Axelrod’s corrupt attack machine will exploit their ignorance.

Until Iowa played out, that was the sum total of my Not-Romney nomination position. But then Mittens really pissed off LAS when he broke Ronald Reagan’s eleventh commandment and attacked fellow Republican Newt Gingrich so mercilessly. Especially galling were the thinly veiled “character” attacks contrasting Romney’s single marriage with Gingrich’s three. This angle played well in an atypical state where literally 56% of the caucus attendees self-identified as fundamentalist Christian, and establishment “super PACs” funded a relentless rotation of vicious attack ads. (News flash for Social Conservatives: Ronald Reagan was on his second marriage when he saved the country after Jimmy Carter’s term of ‘malaise.’ The fidelity thing is irrelevant to this critical election cycle. Get over it.)

Mittens then further pissed off LAS by hiding behind legal technicalities in a bogus attempt to avoid accountability for the attacks his friends funded. Sir Mitt of RINO is looking more and more like the same old establishment politician that got us into this mess in the first place.

The GOP establishment loathes Newt Gringrich, because they know he’s the last Speaker to balance a budget and the only Speaker who ever showed sufficient conviction to actually shut down the gub’ment. As such, the establishment feels compelled to destroy Newt because they are not ready to have their apple cart overturned with the level of big idea direct action he is uniquely capable of delivering. We The People are not only ready for it, but hunger for it.

Gingrich is still the best debater on the stage – and this is still the prime qualification for defeating BHO as well as his intellectually and morally bankrupt ideology. As far as I’m concerned, the interesting story out of Iowa is that Newt still polls even 3rd or 4th anywhere after the barrage of negativity funded by Mittens and his establishment pals. The Santorum surge proves but one thing – the search for Not-Romney continues unabated. It could yet yield Newt when all is said and done.

All that stated – I will repeat the warning I have frequently set down in comments posted all across the Intertubes. We need to keep our eye on the ultimate prize – BHO’s defeat in the general election. Whoever the nominee becomes – however weak he is - (with Conservative Warrior Princess Michele Bachmann unfortunately out, I can abandon any PC attempt to cover both genders with my use of pronoun) – we will need to close ranks behind him to ensure the defeat of BHO and his corrupt gang of Progressives. Their ascendancy to a second reign of comic-tragic F-A-I-L would simply be a disaster for the republic. IMHO, Gingrich is slightly better than Santorum, who is a thousand times better than Romney. However, everybody left on the GOP stage would be a trillion times better than the Alinsky trained socialist now occupying the Oval Office – even that crazy old isolationist kook Ron Paul. So, nobody better be thinking about splitting the vote with any foolish 3rd party runs. I’m talking to you, crazy old isolationist kook Ron Paul.

==

Some in the conservative blogosphere are still kvetching about what they perceive as a weak field of candidates. The “Run Sarah (Palin) Run” grassroots drumbeaters are still out there, for example. I also recently heard pundit Krauthammer wistfully lament how the race would be different if only it included some of his preferred eggheads; such as Bobby Jindal, Mitch Daniels, and Paul Ryan. I have a news flash for these fantasy nomination players – the field is the field. Its makeup – especially its omissions - has an awful lot to do with the rectal examination any GOP candidate for POTUS will immediately receive from the corrupt and biased liberal media from the moment an announcement is made. A decision to run for President as an (R) is synonymous with accepting that you, your record, and your character will be mercilessly molded into a negative caricature by the liberal media, and fed to clueless independents as red meat in a mercilessly coordinated political assassination. Just ask Sarah Palin how that works on the receiving end. I suspect her decision, and the decision of Krauthammer’s list of fellow smart guys, took this reality into consideration. Correcting this problem is a longer term project. For now, let’s just play the game with the team on field, shall we?

Which brings me to the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue ... Yes, getting a warm body not actually hostile to the interests of the American people into the Oval Office is important. But that’s only half the equation, at most. We need conservative legislation to come off Capitol Hill for that warm body to sign with his autopen. National polls are starting to show, for the first time in my lifetime I think, more voters self-identifying (R) than (D). These numbers bode well for keeping the House of Representatives out of the kleptocratic clutches of Nanny Pelosi and her corrupt gang. The 2012 set up is also ripe for a GOP takeover of the Senate. Of the 33 seats on the line, 23 are the Donkey party’s to hold or lose. Only 10 are for the GOP to defend. A swing of 4 gives the GOP a plain majority, and a swing of 13 gets the GOP to the magical filibuster proof 60 number. Reaching 60 is very possible IMHO, provided the GOP runs a decent campaign. However, based on history, I expect the GOP to run the usual dismal campaign and come out with a 52-55 seat majority.

I intend to do all I can at a local level to defeat the progressive technocrat with the (D) label representing my congressional district – affectionately known around these parts as “Jihad” Gerry Connolly for his close ties to the Islamist front group CAIR. I also intend to somehow help with George Allen re-taking the Senate seat he lost in 2006, all because the hacks at the Washington Post mounted a merciless character assassination over a nonsense word. George Allen’s re-ascendancy to that seat will be a sign of the decline of Political Correctness and its cult of mumbo-jumbo. If you don’t have a clue about the congressional races in your district / state, LAS strongly suggests you start paying attention and prepare to cast votes you won’t regret down the road.

==

Nationally, the visceral battle for the hearts and minds of the American electorate will occur at street level.

As far as “governance” from DC is concerned - there won’t be any in 2012. The hapless establishment GOP will once again fail to capitalize on the strong hand We The People gave them in the election of 2010 – the hand that controls the purse strings. They proved that by snatching defeat from the jaws of victory time and again in 2011. Dingy Harry Reid’s Democrat Senate will ring up a fourth straight year of failing to even bother to pass a budget. The Empty Suit That Occasionally Occupies the Oval Office will be in perpetual campaign mode, on the taxpayer dime, demagogically spreading lies across the land. His unaccountable Leftist bureaucrats will dream up still more economy killing regulations and taxes.

The real action will be in a contrast between the TEA Party and Occupy movements. Translating this contrast to an actionable vote is within the grasp of clueless independents. We need to relentlessly remind clueless independents of the following:

• TEA Party patriots assemble and make a specific point – i.e. we’re tapped out on taxes and regulations. Then they clean up after themselves and go back to their individual productive activities in the civil society. In other words, the TEA Party movement represents the productive class.

• Occupiers never leave, unless and until evicted, and the only coherent point seems to be a strong desire to be handed more of other people’s stuff. When finally evicted, they leave behind a bestowment of trash, pestilence, and crime for the civil society. In other words, the Occupy movement represents the entitlement class.

• TEA Party patriots organize behind candidates and issues when they go home. They get people elected and legislation passed. Occupiers go back to their basements and rant on the Huffington Post and other Leftist sites.

The corrupt and biased liberal media will apply all of its resources to obfuscating and lying about the contrast. Communicating the contrast will be the patriotic duty of the blogosphere, AM talk radio and all the other forms of alternative media rapidly making the MSM obsolete.

LAS has one specific 2012 recommendation for the TEA Party movement. We need one more massive rally in DC along the lines of the 9-12-09 rally. Even the corrupt and biased MSM will not be able to hide it from America when we assemble by the hundreds of thousands, make our point legally, peacefully, and articulately, pick up after ourselves, and leave behind the pathetic band of whiny hippies, hobos, and criminals sleeping in McPherson Square and Freedom Plaza under the Occupy banner.

Update 1/8/12

Following is a 9-12-09 vid from my YouTube Playlist.



Check out the whole playlist. It's a great reminder of the patriotic spirit that was unleashed in 2009. Some of the links are broken, but after nearly three years, that's to be expected. My personal favorite is #12, depicting the Russ Carnahan townhall revolt (one of many that summer). A close second for me is #26 - lampooning how ObamaCare was shoved down our throats. The singer-guitarist in the prologue and epilogue is my then eleven year old son; equipped with nothing but an $80 acoustic and off-the-shelf PC microphone.

LAS 2011 Review & 2012 Preview (Part 2 of 4)

Part 1 covered domestic conditions.
Part 2 covers foreign affairs.
Part 3 will cover the current electoral situation (probably after the Iowa caucuses).
Part 4 will cover this blog project.

In Part 1, we covered domestic conditions. To quickly summarize: (1) intentionally divisive due entirely to the political tactics of BHO and his corrupt gang of Progressives; (2) standing on the precipice of total chaos due to same. Law and Order will be a big topic next year. 2012 is looking a lot like 1968. That’s the election year that gave us Nixon, btw.

We now turn our attention to the state of foreign affairs with the scandal LAS predicts will become the ‘Watergate’ of 2012. As the following graphic shows, the Fast and Furious scandal has aspects that neatly fit into any / all of the posts in this series. I’m throwing it into the foreign affairs area just because it has Mexico in it. Last time I checked - Mexico is a sovereign foreign nation as we haven’t yet invaded Mexico and made it a territory. For the sake of Law and Order, that is.

This is the Fast and Furious story in a nutshell ... In a politically corrupt effort to score political points around gun control, Eric “My People” Holder’s “Department of Just Us” literally sold military grade automatic weapons to Mexican drug cartels. When this operation was uncovered south of the border, it naturally strained relations will the small part of the Mexican government that is still independent of the drug cartels. But that was the least of it. Eventually – and completely predictably (the truly maddening part!) – American Border Patrol agent Brian Terry was shot dead by one of these weapons. Holder and the rest of his corrupt gang has been stonewalling Brian Terry’s family and the American people on this tragedy ever since. To his credit, the Congressman with investigative jurisdiction, Darrell Issa of California, has been holding Holder’s feet to the fire. The next round of questioning occurs later this month. LAS predicts the confrontation will drive Holder into ever tighter fits of dissembling to avoid accountability for his corruption and incompetence, and this will be his ultimate undoing – maybe even BHO’s.

==

Just as the original genesis for Fast and Furious was this administration’s corrupt domestic politics, the remainder of our foreign affairs review is chock full of situations arising directly from this administration’s domestic political calculus – i.e. pandering to the naïve worldview of its’ Leftist base.

When populist riots erupted in Egypt’s Tahrir Square, Team Leftie misinterpreted events as a grass roots democratic movement – in a country that has no historical experience whatsoever of democracy. Consequently, BHO and Team Leftie actively participated in bringing down a secular dictator who also happened to be an important ally in maintaining stability in that most volatile region. The first couple of rounds of Egyptian “elections” have yielded the result LAS predicted from day one of this diplomatic fiasco – a massive “electoral” victory for fundamental Islamism in Egypt. When BHO and Team Leftie threw Hosni Mubarak under the bus, they effectively threw Israel under the bus with him.

The current state of affairs is a set up for the rise of an Egyptian Islamic Caliphate. The latest turn is more astro-turfed street riots aimed at Egypt’s last remaining stabilizing institution – the Army we have spent 30 years training and arming. Thanks, Barry.

Next, BHO picked a fight with Muammar Ghaddafi, secular dictator of Libya. Once again, naively reading it as an opportunity to use armed force in support of some ill-defined downtrodden and oppressed “peoples”, BHO committed American prestige, treasure, and armed forces to fight on behalf of a loose collection of “rebels” no one could quite identify. His stated rationale was a foolish policy known as “Responsibility to Protect” (R2P) – an open ended blank check to rush in wherever populations are being mistreated by brutal governments. News flash: there are an awful lot of those across the globe - way, way, more than we can possibly police.

BHO was lucky no American blood was spilled. Really lucky, because he unconstitutionally committed US armed forces without so much as a conference call with Congress. (At least Geo. W Bush acquired legislation for both Afghanistan and Iraq). And, of course, Al Qaeda and other Islamic fundamentalists now appear to be enjoying the spoils of victory in Libya. Thanks, Barry.

Now, a secular dictator in Syria is brutally mowing down crowds of civilians with his armed forces. No signs of the Barry admin showing any willingness to invoke R2P here. WTF, Barry? Mubarak was a friend and ally. Ghaddafi was at least neutral with respect to US interests. (Thanks to Geo. W. Bush, TYVM.) Assad is a friend and ally of Iran, and actively involved in waging terrorism against Israel. If there is an argument for engaging any one of these situations, Syria is it. Well, the good news is that at least R2P seems to be thoroughly discredited. That much will be useful in the future.

==

Speaking of BHO’s “inheritance” from Geo. W. Bush we now train our attention on the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan. IMHO, both of these countries are doomed to be under the influence of stronger neighbors ruled by fundamental Islamism in the next stage of their histories.

In Iraq, history will record that Geo. W. Bush started the war, David Petraeus won the war, and Barack Hussein Obama lost the peace.

Whatever went before, President Bush deserves credit for implementing General Petraeus’ “Surge” strategy in Iraq. The immediate result was a military victory not only over Al Qaeda but also various other de-stabilizing proxies of Iran. Through various twists and turns, much heavy lifting by Americans, and much honorably spilled American blood; the end result was a functioning democracy in Iraq. Simply an amazing bestowment to a region of the world otherwise stuck in the 7th Century.

All this nascent democracy needed was sufficient leadership to keep a relatively small contingent of American troops in theatre for the sake of stability. Like the garrisons still in Europe that won the Cold War stand-off with the Soviet Union. Like the garrisons still protecting South Korea from North Korea’s lunatic Kim dynasty. But BHO and his corrupt gang of Progressives weren’t up to the task. They couldn’t negotiate an extension of the Status of Forces agreement, and Iraq is now on its own. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is consequently making Ramadan 2012 travel plans for Baghdad. BHO is disgracefully claiming a political victory with a so-called promise kept to “end the war.” In fact, he has condemned all of Iraq to Iranian dominance. Thanks, Barry.

Similarly, the Empty Suit Known as Barack Hussein Obama has guaranteed Afghanistan will be under the influence of the Taliban internally, which will in turn enjoy strong ties to its fellow travelers in Iran’s government as well as Pakistan’s security services and government.

BHO "inherited" the perfect set up in Afghanistan - the democracy building and stabilizing influence of a “reach out and kill the enemy when necessary” small garrison. Afghanistan is not Iraq strategically. Afghanistan is a landlocked mountainous region offering no strategic advantage. Iraq, by contrast, literally sits on an important cross-road of civilization (the Tigris-Euphrates river valleys). That’s the fundamental difference. Attempting total military victory in Afghanistan was never the right strategic move. Just ask the Brits or Russians. But still, if you’re going to attempt it, do it right. BHO did it all wrong – ramping up while simultaneously broadcasting to the enemy a date certain for ramping down. Military Science 101 will teach any fool the foolishness of giving your timeline to the enemy. No one on Team Leftie seems to have ever taken Military Science 101, however. They’ve spent all their time in the faculty lounges discussing transgender social and economic justice, or something. Expect the Taliban to be on the rise in Afghanistan next year, as our Army pulls out prematurely.

==

Osama Bin-Laden is anticlimactically dead. BHO dithered for nine months before pulling the trigger on the special forces capabilities he “inherited” from Geo. W. Bush’s administration. Anwar al-Awlaki, technically an American citizen, is also dead by drone capability developed during Geo. W. Bush’s administration. Some of us still have a problem with the concept of Presidents assassinating American citizens without a due process conviction for treason.

The giant elephant in the foreign affairs room for 2012 is Iran, of course. The so-called “Arab Spring” – now clearly becoming the “Islamist Winter” – has but one common denominator for the close observer. The common denominator is an increase in Tehran’s hegemony over the region.

Tehran’s saber rattling in the Strait of Hormuz is but a sign of Tehran feeling its oats for this very reason. From a foreign affairs point of view, Iran is turning out to be the singular cautionary tale of the BHO administration. In 2009, BHO initiated an appeasement policy toward Iran with his “open hand / clenched fist” Cairo speech. This appeasement policy caused him, in 2009, to forego extending any aid to the authentically democratic Green Revolution. (Where was R2P then, Barry?) Iran barreled forward with its nuclear weapons program through 2010 and 2011.

I just heard KT McFarland, Fox News analyst, predict 2012 is the year the question of Iranian nukes will come to a head. I agree. The Iranian Islamic regime – on record as desiring to “wipe Israel off the map” – will either acquire a nuclear capability in 2012 or western civilization will find a way to prevent it.

This brings me to Israel – the only functioning modern democracy in that otherwise God-forsaken region stuck in the 7th Century. Thank God Israel is being run by Benjamin Netanyahu – former special forces operative and all around stand up guy. 2011 was the year his government wisely decided to start acting in its own interest and told Barry’s administration to take a hike. My personal theory – just a theory – is the recent mysterious explosions around Iran’s nuclear weapons production infrastructure are the work of Israel’s Mossad organization. Whether or not this theory holds water – these explosions are certainly in the interest of Israel’s survival, which makes them in the interest of the continuation of western civilization. For Israel, 2012 will be a year of living at defcon one and a half.

I am also in agreement with what I’ve heard KT McFarland recommend as the best strategy for choking Iran off economically. “Drill Baby Drill!” We need to exploit our copious domestic fossil fuel resources to reduce – maybe even nearly eliminate - dependence on Mideast oil. Beginning now. However, the problem is “now” means a heated national argument leading to a historic election in November 2012.

(Shameless plug for the F=M*A theme that has permeated this blog from inception)

==

The spasmodic street riots that erupted in Greece, the United Kingdom, and other parts of the European Union in 2011 – all foretelling the predictable end game for the socialist welfare state, or any society foolish enough to embrace it – barely even merit mention at this time. We can thank God, I guess, for the temporarily stabilizing force of Germany conquering the rest of Europe with financial loans rather than tanks. Because we here in the USA will be spending the year 2012 deciding for ourselves how much further down the road of socialist moral and financial bankruptcy we will allow ourselves to go.

Sorry “world community”, the USA has had its attention turned inward by its political Left. You’re on your own for 2012. GLWT. See you in 2013 hopefully.

Footnote

Encountered while idly scrolling down the Bob Schieffer Blog Roll. Thanks again. Barry.

Update 1/3/12

This take on the Appeaser-In-Chief made me laugh.