tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40535852012-01-31T11:58:14.638-05:00Viking PunditErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11486910318208004303noreply@blogger.comBlogger116371100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-43129532895780764572012-01-30T19:29:00.005-05:002012-01-30T19:29:59.860-05:00Having solved all its problems, California turns to other issues - The Truth About Cars: "California Volt drivers get carpool lane access" "Starting in March, the Chevrolet Volt will be eligible to use the HOV lane on California highways. The catch? You have to buy a new Volt to use the carpool lane." D'oh!Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-46805032861899574492012-01-29T20:00:00.000-05:002012-01-29T20:05:43.453-05:00I'm afraid to go to Free Republic
I'll admit it: once a day or so I'll head over to Free Republic for the (right-wing) news. But lately it's turned into the Newt Gingrich fan/Mitt Romney-bashing club. Similarly, there are conservative bloggers I greatly respect who have gone whole-hog for Gingrich - and then I wonder if there's something wrong with me.
Maybe it's the engineer in me but I lookErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-39127790833664578542012-01-28T22:42:00.000-05:002012-01-29T20:02:48.008-05:00Report in haste, repent at leisure - Politico: "Reuters laments Marco Rubio 'fiasco'."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-68615394297362278582012-01-28T16:38:00.000-05:002012-01-28T16:38:01.451-05:00Meanwhile in Europe - Zero Hedge is reporting that Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel thinks Greece will default. Man the watertight doors.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-26809065281816518892012-01-28T16:26:00.002-05:002012-01-28T16:26:24.350-05:00How about those savings...oops, they're gone - Mark Steyn "The State of our Union is broke": "The president certainly had facts and figures at his disposal. He boasted that his regulatory reforms “will save business and citizens more than $10 billion over the next five years.” Wow. Ten billion smackeroos! That’s some savings — and in a mere half a decade! Why, it’s equivalent to what the Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-36467119025969310692012-01-27T21:09:00.000-05:002012-01-27T23:16:44.022-05:00I think you're confused about the adjective "new"
The Hill: "Dems embrace new strategy on taxes"
Democratic leaders are embracing a new strategy for tax reform that leans on President Obama's State of the Union call for tax fairness and economic equality.
The new strategy diverges from the 1986 formula, the last time Washington successfully tackled tax reform, and focuses on raising tax revenueErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-3258261683374155322012-01-26T21:24:00.003-05:002012-01-26T21:27:39.313-05:00Misty water-colored memories - The other night, during the State of the Union address, I was taken by Obama's nostalgia for the post-WWII economy and the credulous belief we can re-create the prosperity of the Eisenhower years. In fact, I texted my buddy: "We really beat the heck out of the Chinese economy...in 1953." Megan McArdle clearly had the same impression: "The President's Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-29630506680417035722012-01-26T20:18:00.002-05:002012-01-26T20:18:18.825-05:00Yikes - National Review: "Dole goes nuclear" on Gingrich. Not a fan.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-20637800109868899652012-01-26T20:15:00.001-05:002012-01-26T20:15:28.045-05:00It's a brand-new day - Zero Hedge: "America has a $16.4 trillion debt ceiling." You're welcome.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-57620554918614921602012-01-25T18:31:00.001-05:002012-01-25T21:03:07.141-05:00The more things hope and change the more they remain the same
Keep in mind that a good chunk of these promises and proposals were made when Obama had a filibuster-proof majority in Congress. Yet he couldn't even get a vote on, for example, cutting off those oil company "tax breaks." It's all populist smoke and mirrors.
Extra - Here's Cato with more info on corporate taxes.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-16544504026220591512012-01-24T22:18:00.000-05:002012-01-24T22:55:22.426-05:00Did I miss something? - Did Obama say a single word about the out-of-control national debt? Not a whisper on the issue that animated the 2010 midterms? Wow.
Update - Ah, I see: he was leaving that part for Mitch Daniels. And, boy, is he laying out the daunting numbers.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-39854499935868777942012-01-24T22:10:00.004-05:002012-01-24T22:10:25.789-05:00Take that, Standard and Poors! - "Anybody who says America is in decline is a poopy-head!" I may have paraphrased there.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-25851680992396711682012-01-24T22:00:00.001-05:002012-01-24T22:00:10.083-05:00Don't call it class warfare - "Hey, do you know who should pay for the government? Somebody else." Or, as I like to say: robbing Peter to pay Paul will always have the enthusiastic support of Paul.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-79880859476964810482012-01-24T21:46:00.003-05:002012-01-24T21:46:38.334-05:00Crazy for caulking - How many times over the past three years have we heard about all the cash we can save in homes and factories if we'd just lay down more insulation? Talk about small ball - Master Lock small.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-67061811215310687992012-01-24T21:32:00.003-05:002012-01-24T21:32:52.759-05:00Charlotte, Raleigh, Orlando - Hmmmm....there are a lot of proposals that just happen to be in swing states.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-59170758894998264032012-01-24T21:28:00.000-05:002012-01-24T21:28:05.749-05:00Smoot Hawley 2 - Electric Bugaloo! 1-2-3-4: Obama declares a trade war!Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-59960559190950201822012-01-24T21:06:00.003-05:002012-01-24T21:06:42.695-05:00Apple cares about Jobs
NY Times: "Apple's Jobs to Obama: "Jobs aren't coming back to U.S.'"
Fox Business: "Apple 1Q results blow past street views, shares surge."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-59073934155111311852012-01-24T20:45:00.000-05:002012-01-24T20:45:45.939-05:00Prepare to be disappointed, America - Hot Air: "Gallup: Americans want specifics in tonight's speech."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-49170037952963379662012-01-23T21:20:00.002-05:002012-01-23T21:20:59.106-05:00Fuhgeddaboudit - TTAC: "Chevrolet dealers reject Volt allocation."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-36289135872021223082012-01-23T20:16:00.000-05:002012-01-23T20:16:09.755-05:00SOTU cliche betting - The UK betting site PaddyPower is taking bets on the first cliche used by Obama in tomorrow night's State of the Union address. As it stands "We have more work to do" is the current favorite at 8-1 while "Life is like a box of chocolates" is running in last place at 225-1.
Exact wording is required so that disqualifies my straw-man entry of "Some people say (extreme Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-25887319429555947132012-01-23T19:53:00.002-05:002012-01-23T19:53:47.309-05:00Release the drones!
I get the impression that Conor Friedersdorf's rundown of Team Obama's pseudo-legal excesses in the War on Terror might have struck a nerve at the White House because now AG Eric Holder is going to ride the lectern and explain why the remote-control killing of (American, regrettably) Anwar al-Awlaki was A-OK.
Tom Maguire can't wait: "I absolutely cannot wait." Yeah, I said Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-35317360142534660352012-01-21T22:27:00.002-05:002012-01-21T22:27:34.628-05:00The deep, deep debt - NY Times: "The dangerous notion that debt doesn't matter."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-52749723553728240152012-01-21T09:11:00.000-05:002012-01-21T09:11:09.190-05:00Saturday poetry - I had an English professor who was a great fan of Richard Wilbur. So it was surprisingly delightful to find one of his poems over at Maggie's Farm this morning.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-58305430374954125102012-01-21T02:30:00.000-05:002012-01-21T02:30:22.347-05:00Take a guess which state has the worst credit rating. Nope, guess again. - Hot Air: "Illinois gets downgraded by Moody's."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-19570581068495272322012-01-21T02:25:00.000-05:002012-01-21T02:36:16.579-05:00I'm no big fan of Romney - But for heaven's sake, Republicans, are you really going to tank the nomination for Newt? Washington Examiner: "America hates Newt Gingrich." There is no way a guy thirty points underwater can win this election.
I was a Tim Pawlenty man at the start and I would have loved to see Mitch Daniels in the race. But nominating Gingrich is punching Obama's ticket for four Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-6609605316139594102012-01-19T21:48:00.001-05:002012-01-19T21:48:30.051-05:00Ho-hum, so there's this again - Megan McArdle: "CBO report: Medicare pilot programs don't control health care costs." Remember that these Medicare adjustments were supposed to save us enough money to fund Obamacare.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-55011765196521818302012-01-19T20:15:00.000-05:002012-01-19T20:52:47.067-05:00Keystone Kop-out
Here's Robert Samuelson: "Rejecting the Keystone pipeline is an act of insanity"
By law, Obama’s decision was supposed to reflect “the national interest.” His standard was his political interest. The State Department had spent three years evaluating Keystone and appeared ready to approve the project by year-end 2011. Then the administration, citing opposition to the pipeline’s Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-37291973667439251322012-01-19T19:38:00.002-05:002012-01-19T19:38:36.298-05:00Dog bites man: Obama blames somebody else for something
This time's a little different: after some of the most fawning media coverage in the history of the Republic, Obama has declared that - gosh darn it - it's not sycophantic enough. Politico: "Obama blames press for his 'cold and aloof' image."
Extra - Ace senses disappointment.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-36920893689470512212012-01-18T21:29:00.002-05:002012-01-18T21:29:50.020-05:00The Citizens United debate - The Volokh Conspiracy asks if Congress could pass a law to prevent Google from advocating for or against an issue, like its anti-SOPA campaign today, if corporations are not afforded First Amendment rights.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-49963156693879192222012-01-18T20:14:00.000-05:002012-01-18T20:14:01.388-05:00Not granted certiorari yet - Hit & Run: "Will the Supreme Court end New York's rent control laws?" "After losing various legal battles at lower levels, Harmon has petitioned the Supreme Court to hear his argument that rent stabilization is a form of takings that should be prohibited under the Constitution."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-151023329995719612012-01-18T19:18:00.000-05:002012-01-18T19:35:49.001-05:00Obama tells another Presidential commission: "Drop dead"
Here's the Hill yesterday afternoon: "Obama's jobs council report says 'drill'":
President Obama’s jobs council called Tuesday for an “all-in approach” to energy policy that includes expanded oil-and-gas drilling as well as expediting energy projects like pipelines.
“[W]e should allow more access to oil, natural gas and coal opportunitiesErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-5325041612901748452012-01-17T20:28:00.001-05:002012-01-17T20:28:04.493-05:00Honestly, the Pontiac Aztek should be the center square - From The Truth About Cars: "Bored on a long trip? Bad Car Bingo!"Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-2011033620624187832012-01-16T20:56:00.002-05:002012-01-16T20:56:47.173-05:00Return of the Drachma - I heard this story on NPR this morning about how if Greece is thrown out of the Eurozone, they're going to have to revert back to their own currency and this could be catastrophic for Greek businesses, especially those that import from other countries. Greeks don't want to pay for their government but they hate austerity also. This is all leading towards a predictable Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-21890079921875985902012-01-16T20:14:00.000-05:002012-01-16T20:14:03.857-05:00Martin Luther King Jr. day - In which we celebrate the unity and equality of all Americans, but really Democrats.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-40957687343640224292012-01-15T19:40:00.002-05:002012-01-15T19:40:34.818-05:00Buffalo'd - Here's Steven Malanga at the WSJ: "How stimulus spending ruined Buffalo."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-79824110467210200722012-01-14T22:38:00.001-05:002012-01-14T22:38:53.320-05:00Everybody talks about income inequality, but nobody does anything about it
Over at the New Republic, they're highlighting a presentation by the White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Alan Krueger about how income inequality and income mobility appear to be correlated. Timothy Noah laments: "If we don't get growth in income inequality under control" well, bad things will happen.
OK, Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-24573236649793575382012-01-14T13:01:00.000-05:002012-01-14T13:24:21.479-05:00Adjective trouble at the NY Times
How does the Times get from paragraph 1:
President Obama on Friday announced an aggressive campaign to shrink the size of the federal government, a proposal less notable for its goal - the fight against bloat has been embraced by every modern-day president - than for the political challenge it poses to a hostile Congress.
...to paragraph 3...
The White House Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-30670009537678100642012-01-13T20:03:00.000-05:002012-01-13T20:03:23.305-05:00Not hiring - Via the Grumpy Economist, here's Hungarian Jakab Andor explaining why "This is why I don't give you a job." There's some politically incorrect stuff at the start but it boils down to the fact that the government in Hungary takes slightly more than half of the money an employer needs to outlay for an employee.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-69581875509286673082012-01-12T20:40:00.001-05:002012-01-12T22:01:36.759-05:00The refutation that proves the point
There's a lot of buzz today about the New York Times' "public editor" wondering if journalists should be a truth squad instead of just reporters. My reaction was the same as the Minuteman: as long as the "truth to power" only goes in one direction, the readership at the NY Times will be docile as sheep.
But then crusty James Fallows had to go and prove the Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-18901904498376135972012-01-10T21:41:00.001-05:002012-01-10T21:41:01.234-05:00Twilight of the Twinkie
Wall Street Journal: "Hostess Brands, maker of Twinkies, preparing for Chapter 11 filing."
Tallahassee is not amused.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-64210077934843716152012-01-10T20:33:00.002-05:002012-01-10T21:23:50.010-05:00The agony of de-Ricks - Santorum and Perry are bringing up the rear in the New Hampshire primary. A write-in vote for Stephen Colbert could beat Perry at this point.
Extra - Instapundit: "“Old tea-party goal: Stop Romney from winning the nomination. New tea-party goal: Stop Romney from winning all 50 primaries. Heart-ache,” Allahpundit quips at Hot Air, with a round-up of early results. What isErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-88809230902234166972012-01-09T22:11:00.003-05:002012-01-09T22:13:58.186-05:00Let's get ready to rumble, New Hampshire-style!
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-25051845677799979002012-01-08T20:11:00.001-05:002012-01-08T20:11:11.557-05:00Tebow! - What a finish. This was - by far - the best football game this weekend.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-55487434028078436892012-01-08T17:56:00.001-05:002012-01-08T18:00:07.675-05:00Situation principles at the Times - Lest I give the Times too much credit, the Minuteman notes that their positions are entirely dependent on the party in the White House: "The Times on Obama's recess appointments - the Republicans made him do it." "For example, we are offered the assurance that, even though Harry Reid invented the pro forma sesion in order to thwart Bush during 2007/08, it has Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-83894842492599210172012-01-08T17:23:00.000-05:002012-01-08T17:28:04.604-05:00The Obamas join the Tea Party
Fox News: "White House hosted 'Wonderland'-themed extravagant Hollywood Halloween bash."
In October 2009, the national unemployment rate was 10 percent, a national health care plan was at the center of debate over the cost of entitlements in an indebted nation and bank bailouts had launched a brand new political movement called the Tea Party.
So when the White Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-75247269739386896902012-01-07T20:24:00.002-05:002012-01-07T20:27:59.451-05:00Thou shalt not covet
Here's the conclusion to George Will's article: "Government: the redistributionist behemoth"
Try a thought experiment suggested decades ago by University of Chicago law professors Walter Blum and Harry Kalven in their 1952 essay “The Uneasy Case for Progressive Taxation,” published in their university’s law review. Suppose society’s wealth trebled overnight without any Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-76098483809156022702012-01-06T21:49:00.002-05:002012-01-06T21:49:16.548-05:00Heh heh
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-26578156155995674772012-01-06T20:59:00.002-05:002012-01-06T20:59:42.485-05:00A breaking point for employment? Just a second
The other day, the Economist had an article that suggested that productivity gains in the United States had reached a limit and businesses were going to have to add workers if they expected to keep going. Sure enough, the BLS announced today that the private sector added a more-than-expected 200,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dipped slightly toErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-9230664235559715542012-01-05T18:47:00.001-05:002012-01-05T18:47:20.662-05:00Time to short Best Buy
Five years ago, after a particularly bad experience, I wrote a post whose title tells it all: "Circuit City sucks." I have never had so much deja vu than reading this Forbes article: "Why Best Buy is going out of business...gradually."
To discover the real reasons behind the company’s decline, just take this simple test. Walk into one of the company’s retail locations orErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-63425400588868878212012-01-04T20:06:00.002-05:002012-01-04T20:44:39.365-05:00Stuff they didn't teach on "Schoolhouse Rock"
It's been quite a year: first we found out that the President can pick and choose which laws he wants to enforce. Then we discovered that minority rights in the Senate can be suspended when votes reach the threshold of "potentially embarrassing." And today it came to our attention that all those pro forma sessions in the Senate were a waste of timeErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-14693578732595133312012-01-03T18:35:00.003-05:002012-01-03T18:35:34.977-05:00Medical device manufacturers to Obamacare: "Adios!" - And they're taking their jobs with them: "Obamacare's dangerous device tax."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-88946498353091358332012-01-02T16:41:00.000-05:002012-01-02T16:45:14.629-05:00You want to make this about flip-flopping? It's on.
The WashPost is reporting that Republicans are compiling "the book": a comprehensive reference of all of Obama's false promises and contradictory statements. Here's one of my favorites: candidate Obama telling us why the individual mandate to force Americans to buy health insurance is wrong:
"Nobody disputes that"...except future Obama.
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-80383076074651301232012-01-01T23:32:00.000-05:002012-01-01T23:32:01.221-05:00Comment of the day - From this ABC News story "With reservations, Obama signs act to allow detention of citizens": "Calm down. This is just a cost-cutting move to save money on judges and courts."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-7650476179532496042012-01-01T23:14:00.001-05:002012-01-01T23:14:12.508-05:00Blinded by the light - The WashPost tried to humanize a story about Solyndra, but Iowahawk was having none of it.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-80161626655276398832012-01-01T23:10:00.004-05:002012-01-01T23:10:39.934-05:00The economist strikes back - Grumpy Economist: "How to destroy the middle class." "In a splendid recent editorial piece, the New York Times distilled every bad idea floating around the liberal policy agenda."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-70908335498040921332012-01-01T21:58:00.002-05:002012-01-01T21:58:39.303-05:00This story sounds cheesy - I got a chuckle from this news blurb in today's Boston Globe about a couple who faked a robbery at a Domino's: the boyfriend tied up a store manager and then they claimed masked gunmen stole the money.
How many masked gunmen? Four! Four guys to rob a pizza place? What is this, the Italian Job? I can't wait for the surveillance video.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-67903160382007338622011-12-31T19:29:00.002-05:002011-12-31T23:41:02.062-05:00Happy New Year everyone - See you in 2012.
Extra - Auld Lang Syne sing-along.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-40090557456828284152011-12-31T13:54:00.001-05:002011-12-31T13:54:33.499-05:00First, quality of product - Or lack thereof. Roger Ebert: "I'll tell you why movie revenue is dropping." I think I saw one movie in 2011: "Moneyball" (which was great.) But for me a big reason why I don't want to sit in a movie audience anymore is the cell phone users. It's a near-constant distraction to see the glowing screens used by people who are unable to go two hours without texting.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-71765625582847286452011-12-31T13:30:00.001-05:002011-12-31T13:30:30.103-05:00Yo dawg, we cool? - If so, could you do me a solid and spot me a couple bucks? The clock's tickin' down to midnight, knowwhatimean?Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-61768235764023131802011-12-30T15:49:00.002-05:002011-12-30T15:49:32.189-05:00Suck it, Verizon - Can you hear me now? CNN: "Verizon scraps $2 fee." I am/was one of Verizon's customers who uses the "one-time" online bill pay option for the convenience, and there was no way I was going to pay that two dollars.
Sorry, Johnny.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-82744334599847031222011-12-30T10:04:00.000-05:002011-12-30T10:31:12.846-05:00Lots of OWS fun - Legal Insurrection: "Tweets of the Year."
Also, from Zero Hedge: "Words or phrases we hope not to hear in 2012." To which I would add: "supercommittee."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-8616685882189559172011-12-29T22:38:00.001-05:002011-12-29T22:38:30.655-05:00Keith Richards lives! - One other thing: while I was driving around the Eastern seaboard visiting relatives for Christmas, I finished Richards' autobiography "Life." Here is my super-condensed review:
First two-thirds of the book: Mick's a great guy!
Last third: Mick's a jerk! (Note: pejorative noun may not have been "jerk")
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-69312710055666268792011-12-29T22:21:00.000-05:002011-12-29T22:21:22.175-05:00Good words - Right Wing News: "The 50 best political quotes for 2011." Naturally, I prefer the ones that focus on the fiscal hole we're in, including #2.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-68929172920757245392011-12-29T21:27:00.000-05:002011-12-29T21:27:19.175-05:00Just another program
Will we look back on 2011 as the year when we ended Social Security? Washington Post: "Payroll tax cut raises worries about Social Security's future funding"
Since its inception under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Social Security program has been premised on a simple contract: Americans pay into the program’s trust fund over years of paychecks through the payroll Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-18253353147078859322011-12-29T20:26:00.000-05:002011-12-29T20:26:06.808-05:00I'm home!
Well, I'm back from visiting all the relatives. Here's the CDs I got this year:
Supertramp - Breakfast in America
The very best of Donna Summer
West Side Story
Prokofiev greatest hits
Eclectic, no? Also I got Neal Stephenson's "REAMDE" which is pretty good so far.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-14080116135954004532011-12-26T23:25:00.002-05:002011-12-26T23:25:47.038-05:00Wait...you have kids?
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-66799470196299734632011-12-26T11:58:00.003-05:002011-12-26T11:59:00.222-05:00Apres Christmas, le credit card bills
I was reading the Sunday New York Times yesterday and came across this lament from comedian Adam Corolla:
First, I don’t know why the school systems are doing it, but they’re acting as if you’ll never see money your entire life. They’re so focused on cooking classes, ceramics classes, sewing classes, French, German, Spanish. Literally, I took agriculture,Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-58651586497817056562011-12-23T21:36:00.002-05:002011-12-23T21:36:25.767-05:00Merry Christmas, everyone
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-28432567071996116872011-12-22T23:18:00.003-05:002011-12-22T23:18:29.705-05:00Security theater - As the holidays approach and you're heading to the airport, remember that the TSA will stop you for cupcake frosting. Fake boarding passes? Not so much.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-12258593083445701302011-12-22T21:29:00.001-05:002011-12-22T21:29:40.822-05:00The 1% at the NY Times are different than you and me - Patterico reviews the huge payout to outgoing NYT chief executive as the paper looks for force out workers at regional papers: "Occupy the New York Times." Yeah, that'll happen.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-717584763765381832011-12-22T21:04:00.001-05:002011-12-22T21:08:57.060-05:00Let's raid Social Security to get some cash to borrow more money
What happened when we first cut the payroll tax? Nothing good, as Louis Woodhill explains in this Forbes article:
Why didn’t the (approximately) $27 billion per calendar quarter tax cut spur demand? Well, let’s look at what actually happened in 1Q2011.
First, the Treasury borrowed $27 billion additional dollars. Then the $27 Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-68351151097630946292011-12-21T20:07:00.003-05:002011-12-21T20:07:49.867-05:00All-in - Zero Hedge: "It's official: US debt-to-GDP ratio passes 100%."
In related news, Douglas Holtz-Eikin notes that the deficit reduction measures we were promised do not exist.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-86984107172942911062011-12-21T19:49:00.001-05:002011-12-21T19:49:12.157-05:00What voter fraud?
Garry Trudeau: "Voter fraud is close to non-existent!"
Fox News: "Officials plead guilty in New York voter fraud case."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-72060565597480272542011-12-20T19:54:00.003-05:002011-12-20T19:54:34.789-05:00Robbing from the poor and giving to the rich - Veronique de Rugy reviews entitlement spending's transfer of funds from the young to the poor in "Occupy AARP."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-66990194232663460162011-12-19T21:02:00.000-05:002011-12-22T21:18:33.532-05:00Deep-thinking economists at the NY Times
In the latest installment of carrying water for the Obama administration, some way-smart perfessers pick up the flag of class warfare and propose the "Brandeis rule." Hold on to your socks for this stellar idea:
Enough is enough. Congress should reform our tax law to put the brakes on further inequality. Specifically, we propose an automatic extra tax Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-73354397295569886262011-12-19T19:31:00.002-05:002011-12-19T19:31:32.836-05:00Failure to launch
Hit & Run: "The ObamaCare implementation gauntlet."
Bizblogger: "CBO downgrades Obama stimulus effects."
ABC News: "Two-month payroll tax holiday passed by Senate, pushed by President, cannot be implemented properly, experts say."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-16039263461222531752011-12-18T22:29:00.001-05:002011-12-18T22:31:14.242-05:00Kim Jong Il dead - Wow, 2011 has been a bad year for the two worst people on the face of the Earth: Osama Bin Laden bought the farm in May and now the North Korean nutcase is dead.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-74033478380404277602011-12-17T21:35:00.001-05:002011-12-18T17:25:50.629-05:00Romney, I suppose - The Hill reports that Iowa's top newspaper has endorsed Mitt Romney. In related news, the Gingrich bubble has popped and Intrade has Romney well in the lead for the Republican nomination. I'm not a big fan, but I think Mitt has the best chance of all the GOP nominees to beat Obama. So...hooray.
Extra - Here's David Paul Kuhn on RCP: "It's Obama, stupid: GOP will rally for Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-74642996423984016042011-12-16T22:36:00.005-05:002011-12-16T22:36:54.973-05:00Kickin' that can - NY Times: "Senate agrees to two-month extension of payroll tax cut." Our government is now resolute to continue with continuing resolutions.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-10525760391797940172011-12-16T22:22:00.000-05:002011-12-16T22:45:53.554-05:00Please, NBC, don't cancel my favorite show: "Community"
Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-62251026077500343342011-12-16T21:33:00.001-05:002011-12-16T22:32:18.976-05:00Computer problems - My son's computer has intermittent Wi-Fi connection: sometimes it connects and sometimes it doesn't. The troubleshooting - both written and digital - is useless, e.g. "is it plugged in?" The computer sees my modem address but won't connect to the network. None of my other computers has a problem with connecting. Frustrating.
Update - OK, here's what happened. I found an Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-81838783513228759652011-12-15T22:42:00.005-05:002011-12-15T22:42:48.865-05:00Stop the presses, Congress does something - WSJ: "Congress blinks on shutdown." Well, we wouldn't have to deal with these serial continuing resolutions if Congress just passed a budget. Like they're supposed to.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-87885356608182203892011-12-15T19:41:00.001-05:002011-12-15T20:55:51.449-05:00Stop, thieves!
Chicago Tribune editorial: "Stop cheating Social Security with payroll tax cut - Extending the cut would shortchange the system - and deepen our enormous debt."
In their rush to head home for the holidays, members of neither party want to discuss how continuing this year's cut in the payroll tax and extending long-term jobless pay would add to our already enormous national debt. Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-58074758007972794392011-12-14T21:03:00.000-05:002011-12-14T21:03:00.889-05:00Year of the protester - Althouse: "90+ people out of work after OWS wrecks business at Milk Street Cafe."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-29591933153200256072011-12-14T21:00:00.000-05:002011-12-14T21:00:09.378-05:00Like anybody's watching - Hot Air: "MSNBC apologizes to Romney campaign." I'm sure this is just another one of those isolated incidents where the media loses track of its legendary objectivity.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-33639086373538760732011-12-14T20:39:00.002-05:002011-12-14T20:51:24.236-05:00About those trillion-dollar deficits - Hit & Run: "New poll finds concerns about big government near all-time high." What's interesting is that there was a bump around 2008 when Americans said "big business" was more of a threat, but that's been largely forgotten.
Related fun - The Corner: "When Government grows, the economy shrinks."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-38959057416647040012011-12-13T23:00:00.001-05:002011-12-13T23:00:19.565-05:00The Jerry Maguire mission statement - I'm a bit of a Disney nut so I got a kick out of this post over at Hit & Run: "How 20-year-old Katzenburg memo changed Disney." It's a long stream-of-consciousness type piece about how Disney should focus on stories and ideas instead of looking for the latest blockbuster.
The one thing I remember from the memo: Katzenburg really didn't like "Dick Tracy."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-34388400530533771082011-12-12T19:10:00.001-05:002011-12-12T19:10:49.364-05:00Messin' with Social Security
Charles Blahous has a good article over at E21 titled "Why continuing the payroll tax cut could eventually end Social Security as we know it." Essentially, he poses that by intermingling Social Security with the general revenue fund, the traditional idea of the program as a trust fund for future retirees is broken:
The ongoing effort to partially convert Social Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-33259426938410739012011-12-11T16:39:00.001-05:002011-12-11T21:12:56.829-05:00Chance the Gardener made more sense - In a preview to tonight's 60 Minutes interview, CBS released this excerpt where Steve Kroft asks President Obama if he's trying to redistribute wealth. Obama responds by repeating the problem, not by answering the question. I guess we'll find out tonight if Kroft follows up with: "Is that a yes?" In fact, I don't know where CBS invented the title "Not Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-25589901975769161412011-12-10T10:40:00.001-05:002011-12-10T10:41:00.988-05:00I suggest we move on to the next one - Fox News: "Obama says it may take more than one President to turn economy around."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-28244548024639158452011-12-10T07:41:00.001-05:002011-12-10T07:42:32.829-05:00Tis the season - Patterico: "Handicapping Politifact's 2011 lie of the year."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-17382532408716969582011-12-09T19:15:00.001-05:002011-12-09T22:05:52.831-05:00The leadership portion of this Presidency is now complete
Obama revealed more than he realized in his Kansas speech this past week, full of florid language, ping-pong teleprompter scanning, and class warfare. I think a lot of Americans are going to realize that it's all politics and demagoguery from here on out and there won't be a single decision from this White House that doesn't focus on theErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-38920648655287874922011-12-07T21:30:00.001-05:002011-12-07T21:37:43.444-05:00Politics makes strange bedfellows
Well, I should have searched around before I posted below. Here's Bernie Sanders (Socialist-VT) joining hands with the Tea Party:
Bipartisan concerns that extending the payroll-tax cut would weaken Social Security are spilling into the open, complicating the effort to allow the tax break for workers to continue into 2012.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), a Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-79923942118762030912011-12-07T21:16:00.001-05:002011-12-07T21:23:59.152-05:00The great Social Security funding shift - This line jumped out at me in the Powerline post "What does the payroll tax have to do with the pipeline?"
So the Democrats’ opportunistic drive to cut FICA taxes is most likely a death knell for Social Security, as many liberal commentators have noted. How Republicans should react depends mostly on how one views the Social Security program.
Really? Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-80071615888352801572011-12-06T19:02:00.001-05:002011-12-06T19:14:22.418-05:00I'm gonna be lined up to watch this like Ralph and Randy at Higbee's department store
Finally - finally - they made a musical of "A Christmas Story" which is guaranteed to win a major award. NY Times: "That wish for a BB gun, set to song and dance"
Based on the 1966 book “In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash” by the humorist Jean Shepherd, “A Christmas Story” has been embraced by fans for its Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-27825672670824661182011-12-05T22:34:00.001-05:002011-12-05T22:43:02.038-05:00Doesn't play well with others - Roll Call: "Snowe, who is up for re-election next year, said the Obama White House has the worst relationship with Congress of any of the six presidents with whom she's served."
It's not just Congressional Republicans that Mr. Hope & Change is ignoring. He didn't consult with members of his own party before pushing forward with his phony-baloney Stimulus Jr. bill.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-9829007610473629912011-12-05T19:30:00.001-05:002011-12-05T19:31:25.743-05:00Welcome to the club - UK Telegraph: "All 17 Eurozone countries face losing AAA credit status."Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-45198678239246682432011-12-05T19:14:00.001-05:002011-12-05T19:26:27.025-05:00The American debt trap
Robert Samuelson looks at Europe and notes it could happen here: "The welfare state's reckoning"
The numbers -- to those who don't know them -- are astonishing. In 1870, all government spending was 7.3 percent of national income in the United States, 9.4 percent in Britain, 10 percent in Germany and 12.6 percent in France. By 2007, the figures were 36.6 percent for the Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-63739303298745564132011-12-04T21:46:00.001-05:002011-12-04T21:52:03.521-05:00Entangling alliances with none - That Thomas Jefferson had the right idea, especially when one looks across the pond to the mess that is Europe. CNN: "Europe goes back to the drawing board." Good luck this time.
Extra - Doug Ross: "Euro-bomb!"Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4053585.post-1927523601153130592011-12-04T21:23:00.001-05:002011-12-04T21:28:34.322-05:00You got moxie, kid! Now let's crush it - George Will tells a cautionary tale of government regulation run amok in "Choking on Obamacare." He tells the story of restaurant mogul Carl Karcher who started out with a hot dog cart and ended up with the Carl Jr. franchise. What I took away from the article is that Karcher could never survive, much less thrive, in today's regulatory environment. By Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15911276942829790135noreply@blogger.com1