Where we're going... we don't need electricity...

... but we will need plenty of gas.

Car and Driver recently tested and reviewed the production version of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt (the much-heralded electric car Obama will pay you to own).  And, although they had lots of good things to say about it, the kind folks at Investors Business Daily couldn't help but notice some incongruity between the hype and the reality. 

Here are some of the highlights from their article entitled Volt Fraud at Government Motors:

Volt engineers are now admitting that when the vehicle's lithium-ion battery pack runs down and at speeds near or above 70 mph, the Volt's gasoline engine will directly drive the front wheels along with the electric motors. That's not charging the battery — that's driving the car.

I guess when your "all-electric" car requires a gasoline engine to power the wheels, you shouldn't be surprised when you're called a fraud.

We heard GM's then-CEO Fritz Henderson claim the Volt would get 230 miles per gallon in city conditions. Popular Mechanics found the Volt to get about 37.5 mpg in city driving

And 26 mpg on the highway-- I'm sure that was an honest mistake.

This is what happens when government picks winners and losers in the marketplace and tries to run a business. We are not told that we will be dependent on foreign sources like Bolivia for the lithium to be used in these batteries. Nor are we told about the possible dangers to rescuers and occupants in an accident scenario.

A Picture is Worth 1000 Words

Riding a bicycle is never cool. If you don't believe me, just look at the hero of the bike-riding world: an ambiguously gay corporate shill with only one testicle.

That fact aside, one of the U.S. Presidents pictured above looks decidedly more capable on his two-wheeler than the other one.  I'll let you decide which.

(Post-Script: Yes, I do think wrecking your bicycle face-first earns you extra man points.  Because, I'm the judge of such things.)

Kicking Off Ramadaan In Style

On August 3rd, 2010, White House Press Secretary (for now) Robert Gibbs was asked about the Obama Administration's stance on the controversial mosque being proposed within rifle-range of Ground Zero.  At that time, Gibbs said

" I’m not from here going to get involved in local decision-making like that."

Aside from being comically ironic, considering the President has involved himself in local decision-making plenty of times so far (like this time... and this time) with astounding effect, it seemed obvious that the White House was going to try to duck-and-cover on this sensitive issue.

That is, it seemed that way until Friday night.

According to the President, people are sensitive to this because they are traumatized by 9/11 (no shit).  But, his implication is that the trauma involved somehow makes the opposition to the location of the mosque unwarranted.

His words, before a group of hungry Muslims, went on to shed light on his reasoning behind this stance.  Well, his reasons beyond that he is an Islamic sympathizer, of course.

"Let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country".

I don't think anybody disagrees there.  Please continue, Mr. President.

"That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances".

And this is where--after much personal careful deliberation-- I do disagree.  Careful deliberation and the United States Constitution.  This amazing document pretty well covers all the important stuff, and it is very clear on this:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."

You see, because New York City has already 100 mosques throughout the city, there is no impediment on Islamic worship.  In fact, nobody is saying that can't build a giant mosque, just that they cannot build a giant mosque THERE.

It's not a complaint as much as an observation...

2000-2008

2008-2010

It isn't asking too much when you are simply asking for more than just Fred Armisen, is it?

Kagan Exercise

The confirmation hearings for Elena Kagan began today.  The Democrats have enough votes to confirm her to the Supreme Court, but the hearings will go on as a formality.

Last April, I pointed out that President Barack Obama voted against both of President Bush's Supreme Court nominations as a Senator (Alito and Roberts... who were both confirmed, of course).

As Rush Limbaugh lovingly reminded his audience today, Barack Obama in 2008 also said he would've voted against confirming Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court.  Based on what?-- lack of experience, of course:



So, I thought a quick comparison of 2 resumes would prove informative...

Let's make that jobless number fifteen million... and ONE.

Last Monday, General Stanley McChrystal, the commander of all U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, called up Joe Biden and apologized.  He was apologizing for comments his men made in the presence of a Rolling Stones skunk journalist that would be appearing later in the week.  At that time, the Vice President had no clue what Gen. McChrystal was apologizing for... but, today, the General was fired.

Well, if a Rolling Stone article can get the a General fired, it must have had some pretty damning stuff in it, right?
As the Wall Street Journal puts it, General McChrystal and his men "casually mocked the vice president as a nobody, National Security Adviser James Jones as a 'clown' and the president himself as uncomfortable with military leaders and initially unengaged on defense policy."

If you read the article, you'll be surprised by 2 things.  First, almost none of the most salacious quotes are from McChrystal himself, but from men around him.  And, second, the most salacious stuff  reads like this:

"Biden?" suggests a top adviser. "Did you say: Bite Me?"

 According to sources familiar with the meeting, McChrystal thought Obama looked "uncomfortable and intimidated" by the roomful of military brass.

The quotes from the General himself go more like this:

Observing his team. "All these men," he tells me. "I'd die for them. And they'd die for me."

You should really read the article yourself.  I'm sure the writer was disgusted by how men talk, and expected he was exposing something.  But, to service men and women, this will all seem very tame.  Hell, from anybody who spent time in a little league dugout, this will seem pretty tame.  But, I digress...

A Walking Contradicteration

As President Barack Obama geared up for his first full press conference in 304 days, I wondered if he'd give long rambling answers in order to minimize the number of questions. I wondered if he'd... uhh... ummm... use lots of fillers when off-script. And, I wondered if he'd continue to blame George W. Bush for all his recent troubles.

Lucky for me, BHO never disappoints.

Other highlights from today's rare question-and-answer with the media:

• The President isn't "contradictering" himself (skip to the 9:05 mark of the video).
• The President offered his solution for failed bureaucracy: different bureaucracy.  Slightly contradicterive, I'd say.
• Like his Press Secretary, the President wants nothing to do with answering questions about the Sestak Situation.  Contradictering his vow for "the most transparent White House ever".
• The President claims "the federal government is fully engaged," in the BP oil spill. "I am fully engaged."
  But, in the same conference, he also claims, he doesn't know "the circumstances" of  the dismissal of the head of the Mineral Management Service. 
  
  That, too, sounds like he is contradictering himself.

Supreme Donor

President Barack Obama has nominated Elena Kagan as the next Justice of the United States Supreme Court.  She hasn't been a judge before, which isn't a bad thing.  Her resume' includes a nice stint as the Dean of Harvard Law School.

(Her most remarkable moment there, in the eyes of the national media, was when she attempted to disallow military recruiting on her campus because of the "moral injustice" of the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy.  President Bush appealed to the Supreme Court, and Harvard and other law schools lost the decision 8-0.)

I digress.  A continued look at Kagan's resume' reveals her last "job" before being appointed by President Obama as Solicitor General was as member of the Research Advisory Council of the Goldman Sachs Global Markets Institute.

Hmmm... it seems there was some other place I saw both Harvard and Goldman Sachs listed... where was that list again...

Oops!... He did it again.

"If America shows weakness and uncertainty, the world will drift toward tragedy."

George W. Bush

Gnome Enthusiast Update:

I wonder where he learned it?

I Say Stop Settling.....Take It All!

For a long time Israel has been what most would consider a friendly country to the United States.  With the current administration's policies though, it may be a friend no longer.

The issue at hand is Israel's building of new settlements in Jerusalem.  The Palestinians do not like it, and apparently, neither does Obama, Hillary, or the crew over at the State Department.  They have been putting pressure on the Israelis to stop what they are doing.  Israel is not real happy about that, and has publicly bashed the Obama administration for their stance while continuing to build their settlements.

Now you may wonder why Israel needs to build settlements.  After all, that has been the major issue for decades right?  That is what you always hear on the news....

"Israel is building a new settlement and stealing land from the Palestinians, the Obama administration condemns this inhumane act that is demolishing the international peace process."

Maybe it will clear things up if I reword the news that you hear into the news that you should hear:

"Israel is building a new subdivision in their capitol city.  Illegal immigrants and the Obama administration are angry about it."

Puts it in perspective doesn't it?  If I were Israel, I would have blueprints in one hand while flipping the bird with the other.  Our government is not only overstepping their bounds locally, but they are trying to tell people what to do half way across the world.  Maybe Israel should be the one telling us to stop building in Washington D.C., since three times as many people are murdered per capita there than in Israel.

(UPDATE 3/26: Netanyahu left D.C. "disgraced, isolated and altogether weaker" because of President Barack Obama.)

In his own words...

"This is what change looks like" -President Barack Obama

Ever since the 2008 Presidential election, I was wondering what change would look like.  I didn't imagine it would look like a comically oversized gavel and men holding hands.

I liked you better way back when.

COMPARE, and

CONTRAST.

The Mouse That Roared

President Barack Obama wants you to be the loudest 23% you can be! And it seems sharing personal stories about how health reform affects you and your family is a great way to show the importance and urgency of health reform.

Q: Son esos pantalones de espacio?

Judging by his piece in the Wall Street Journal, I don't think I'm going out on a limb when I say that John Yoo has juevos grande, aka fat nuts. (That about sums up my entire Spanish vocabulary and it is probably incorrect).

Let me share the first paragraph:

"Barack Obama may not realize it, but I may have just helped save his presidency. How? By winning a drawn-out fight to protect his powers as commander in chief to wage war and keep Americans safe."

Recently, on a Friday night news dump, the White House "announced" that the DoJ would not prosecute John Yoo, and those in similar situations, for helping America fight terrorism.

Yoo was working in the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel during the Global War on Terrorism under President G. W. Bush. The Left hates John Yoo because his determinations included the obvious: the Geneva Conventions do not apply when handling terrorists, it is not torture to cause sleep deprivation, etc.

Of course the Geneva Conventions wouldn't apply. The Geneva Conventions didn't apply when a terrorist shot and killed that abortion doctor, ol' whats-his-face, last year in Kansas. Why would they be followed by terrorists who are not fighting for their respective nations, let alone signatory nations.

By no stretch of my imagination would I consider an example of torture to be keeping a terrorist up past his bedtime.

The MSM cries more over the treatment of the Guantanamo detainees than do the Guantanamo detainees.

To summarize: John Yoo stomped the President's yard. Follow the link for the whole thing here.

A: Porque tu asno es afuera de este mundo!