News the Stars Bring Today

Hat Tip Pamela Geller

Do we have something to worry about? The UN passed an Anti-Blasphemy Resolution. so far it is not binding on all the member nations, but will come up for a vote in the spring. It was initially proposed by the Arab block of nations and, although it is not specifically, targeted against those who would criticize Islam, it does definitely go against the First Amendment.

Now, in Europe, Muslims have been targeting those who might point out the anti-feminism of Islam, or the jihadism inherent in the Qu’ran. For example, when Theo Van Gogh made a movie showing the violence of Islam, he was assassinated by Muslims. When Geert Wilders, a Dutch Parliamentarian, saw that in the Netherlands, Muslims were coming, not to integrate, but to dominate the culture, he made a movie, called “Fitna.” He is now being prosecuted in the Netherlands for “hate speech.” When Geert was invited to England to show his film to Parliament, he was not allowed into the country. Another example is a teacher in England who named a Teddy Bear Muhammed. That teacher was jailed for 15 days.

So, I worry a little, that with a President who has already signaled that he is pro-Muslim, that we Americans might find the First Amendment challenged. Some people were shocked the other day when Hillary blasted Israel over Gaza, according to Gateway Pundit. Of course, when she was a New York senator, she would pander to the Jewish community. Also, Obama’s Ambassador to the UN, Dr.Susan Rice, may not be too reliable either.

Today, according to Yid with Lid, Obama appointed Chas Freeman Jr. as Chairman of the National Intelligence Council, whose MEPC political action group teaches public school children that Muslims discovered the New World.

Then, there is the Durbin amendment which will curb conservative broadcasters, by “To encourage and promote diversity in communication media ownership, and to ensure that the public airwaves are used in the public interest.” This is a more cloaked “fairness doctrine”, in that it will still create difficulties for conservative broadcasters, by “dismantling local syndication.”

So, these are challenging times to our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Hat Tip Pat Dollard
Well, I think most people will agree that the staff at the Wall Street Journal are moderately well-versed in mathematics and economics. So, when they call Obama’s speech Tuesday night the “2% illusion“, I think people will listen. In other words, Obama is proposing to raise the taxes on the 2% of America’s wealthiest. However, according to The Wall Street Journal, even if they took everything these people had, they still wouldn’t be able to pay for all of Obama’s wild spending. Pat Dollard explains that this Keynesian stimulus spending during a recession was also tried during the “lost decade of Japan.”

Moreover, the cap and trade regulations that he is suggesting may cost America another 4 million jobs, and encourage companies to go to abroad, where there is no cap and trade on “pretend green house gases.” Of course, we all know that Obama is a “snake oil salesman” and very good at it. Great rhetoric that leaves his supporters swooning.

And you know that he has promised that he will not increase the taxes of anyone earning under $250,000, “by a dime”, but then we know that he has basically broken so many of his campaign promises, so how can we trust him now? In fact, according to Steve Elliott of Grassfire, there are 1.6 trillion dollars more in taxes in the budget.

J.Christophe Amberger says “He, too, will find out the hard way: No country has ever achieved prosperity by raising taxes and punishing success. Then again, this may be the point! To establish and maintain a welfare state, permanent crisis is a political necessity.” Amberger knows first hand about socialism, having spent his earlier years in East Berlin.

Amberger says that the 400 million in the “stimulus”, allocated for geothermal energy could possibly account for 1% of the electricity by 2012! Not too much! Also these teutonic plates creating the geo-thermal energy are found are only in 4 states: Hawaii, California, Nevada and Utah.

For those of you who may be familiar with solar energy, you know that there are some major obstacles at this point, like the cost of installation. Switzerland is now working on a new technology, called solar tiles, that may make installation much more cost effective. However, according to Amberger, solar stocks are plummeting, possibly because no one can afford the changeover to “green energy.”

Andrew Snyder says that thinking that solar energy will come even close to providing the energy that coal, nuclear, or hydro-powered plants is simply “a pipe dream.” But, he is suggesting for Americans to buy stocks in Chinese solar-cell manufacturers like LDK Solar (NYSE:LDK), since it is dirt-cheap right now. Energy prices are now being de-regulated right now, so that is another reason why your electric bill may be going through the roof. Think this is Un-American for suggesting that you buy Chinese? Well socialism is Un-American too.

Minta Garcia, a school bus driver and her husband, Luis Guillermo Flores, are, most likely, “unlicensed” real estate investors (”flippers”) who buy and sell properties. The last few years however, have not been good to them, due to the down turn in the real estate market in Washington. They were just on CNN, hoping that Washington will “bail them out” of their foreclosure.

They owned a small condo at 6001 Arlington #721, Falls Church, VA (current worth $191,500 2 bedrooms 1 bath) since 1999, and sold it on Nov. 24, 2008 for 160K. They purchased 3438 Charles Street, Falls Church, VA (6 bdr, 2 1/2 ba) on 1/05/05 for $510,000 and sold it on 6/10/08 for $429,000. Their current home - 1920 N. Dinwiddie Street, Arlington, Va (5 bedr 3 1/2 ba 3503 sq. ft) -was purchased with her husband (Luis Guillermo Flores) on 11/16/06 for $800,000. Possibly they made a profit of the small condo, but they obviously didn’t apply that towards their other purchases in 2005 and 2006, totaling almost 1.3 million dollars.

Now, I used to be a mortgage loan officer for a while, but I began right at the beginning of the real estate down turn 2 or 3 years ago. Now, it seems to me that a school bus driver probably makes in the vicinity of $450/week. Her husband is disabled.

Now, as a loan officer, I heard a lot of sad stories, and since I had been a social worker in the early 70’s, I also had a lot of sympathy for people too. However, in looking at the property that is supposedly $800,000, I can’t really agree that it is worth that. Possibly the location is good. However, it basically looks like an older home that has been remodeled. However, upon checking trulia, I found that it was built in 2006, but it is a little like a tenement house, with no yard. The comparable properties on Dinwiddie St. are presently estimated at 1.113 million. So, when Minta said it was worth 620K, I think she may have been misleading, because she obviously spends a lot of time in real estate. She probably doesn’t want to lose it now that it is in foreclosure.

Archangel estimated that the mortgage payment would be between $4,000 and 5,500/mo, depending on the type of mortgage and rate. It obviously made no sense whatsoever for a mortgage company to approve this purchase, since they owned two properties that they just sold in 2008. They were all “flips.” Now, I don’t have anything against  entrepreneurs, who go in and buy a property for $60 or 70k and make renovations and turn around and sell for 200K.

That’s what America is all about. But what Minta and her husband were doing was stupidity that was being condoned by the mortgage industry. But let’s not continue the lie by saying that she was a school bus driver. She and her husband are “flippers”, who came into the market too late.

Most likely, the mortgage company that approved the mortgage should not be left off the hook either. Most loan officers who participate in some kind of fraud also have to face heavy penalties. Not good business. My friendly advice to her is find someone who will buy the house at a “Short sale.”

Obviously, she has just been on CNN and received national advertisement, so it will be up to her to negotiate with the bank for a short sale, and hope that she doesn’t get prosecuted for fraud. The short sale is the only way they can save their credit score.

Michelle Malkin reports that White House Press secretary Robert Gibbs, has predicted that Obama’s address tonight will be “Reaganesque.” Apparently, he has become tired of the Lincoln role model. Gibbs says that, in spite of all the secrecy surrounding the contents of the “Porkulus” bill and now Obama’s demand that the Department of Defense personnel sign a “secrecy pact,” that Obama promises to be “honest” with the American People. First FDR, then Lincoln, now Reagan.

Michell Malkin has had a chance to review the next omnibus “stimulus package” of 410 billion dollars. As Obama has promised during his “fiscal responsibility” convention, there won’t be a single earmark. No, there will be 9,000 of them, unless he has his team thoroughly review the earmarks that amount to almost 5 billion taxpayer dollars.

A fellow on Twitter has tried to list most of them. Just for a taste: Harry Reid’s Nevada will makes Nevada eligible for Pacific Salmon Recovery  ($200 M); 5.8 M for Ted Kennedy Endowment Center;  Tatoo removal for gangs; 1.5 million for Alaska Seal Life Center.

Of course, why should anyone expect Congress or the Senate to read the bill? Is it really necessary? Governor Jay Nixon of Missouri doesn’t seem to feel that it is much of a problem at all to pass on this debt to our children and grandchildren. Maybe he doesn’t have any.

And Obama promises to cut the deficit in half by 2013. We know that he will be implementing his philosophy on “wealth redistribution”, by increasing the taxes on the 5% of the population who now pay approximately 60% of the taxes. Of course, when that starts happening, this class of people has the resources to hide their earnings, find loopholes, go offshore, or simply move their industry to another country. The end result will be that the cutoff of $250K will be decreased continuously, until everyone is simply a proletariat.

“How do you tell a communist? Well, it’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin.” (Ronald Reagan) Obama’s comparison of himself to Reagan again shows his lack of understanding American History. Reagan said that big government was the problem; Obama says it is the solution. Right along with his thinking that there were 57 states and that Pearl Harbor was when they dropped the atom bomb; that the Americans liberated Asuchwitz. The similarity is that the “Gipper” was an actor; but Obama is still one.

Hat tip Anti-Mullah Blogspot

On Resistnet.com, today, there was a very chilling tale of a person who was grilled by Homeland security because they put a sign in their front yard (Spokane Wa.) saying “Obama is a traitor-make a citizens arrest now.” Homeland Security came and searched the person’s home and grilled them. Now, that person has been summoned to court under charges of “inciting an uprising against the President.”

This is not the only time this has happened. Last week, Chip Henderson in Oklahoma City had a bumper sticker that said “Abort Obama, Not Babies”. The Secret Service trailed him and then searched his home also, saying that he was threatening the President’s life, according to NewsOk. Mr. Henderson is a Christian who opposes abortion.

Now, mind you when the same signs were about Bush, no one made any objection.
It was okay to bash Bush. Looks to me like Obama can’t stand criticism. Suppression of
dissent is not conducive to democracy. I had mentioned this early in 2008, when I said that Obama had the signs and symptoms of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Of course, one of those traits is an inability to deal with opposition.
Even Senator Jim DeMint, from South Carolina has called for Americans to take to the streets, for “peaceful demonstrations”, according to The Augusta Chronicle. And, of course, we can’t leave the post without Rick Santelli the original “tea party rant”. When Larry Kudlow interviewed Rick Santelli, he said the response by Gibbs/Obama to his rant was an “assault on the Press,” worse that anything he had seen before. Looks like the Honeymoon with the Media is coming to a screeching halt.

Georgia (in Europe) has entered a controversial song into the 2009 Eurovision competition, which will be held in Moscow this year, according to FinancialTimes. It’s called “We Don’t wanna Put-in”.

But Dmitri Peskov, a spokesman for Prime Minister Putin has responded by calling the group a bunch of “hooligans.” You can see that it is a rather spoofy group, with a classic Motown group, “3G” and a kind of a goofy lead singer, Stephane.

The group contends that it is apolitical, but, in light of this summer’s skirmishes between Georgia and Russia,it stretches Putin’s tolerance. Of course, behind the border skirmishes was the Kremlin’s perfectly planned invasion of Georgia, (which coincided with the opening of the summer Olympics in Beijing) as it is now very concerned about its own economic well-being, in light of the pipeline through Georgia. Some analysts, like J.Christophe Amberger have predicted that because Russia is experiencing and economic setback,that it would again try to recover the lost territory of the Ukraine and Georgia, and toss the World into another “cold war.”

Hat Tip fox News
According to Sentinel Radio, the Texas State Legislature was trying to get some help from Washington with what is beginning to shape up as some kind of a drug war with Mexico. On Wednesday, demonstrators representing the Drug Cartel were causing a lot of violence along the border and even ten deaths, including 5 children.

This has been going on for some time, as President Calderon of Mexico has been cracking down on the criminal activity of the drug lords, according to Fox News. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has not responded with a plan yet, and one wonders why she was picked for that position in the first place, since her own state, Arizona, was overrun with illegal immigrants while she was Governor.

So, because of the incipient civil War in Mexico, there is a very real “refugee” problem  happening and “Team Obama” just doesn’t seem to be paying attention to securing our borders. Even the Department of Defense has identified Mexico as a potential “destabilization zone,” that would create huge ramifications for the United states. You might also remember that some Al-Queda also entered the U.S. through our Southern Border.

So, because there was no response from Washington, as defense seems to be low on the agenda, next to the spending spree, the Texas National Guard is on a High Alert at the command of Texas Governor Rick Perry and the Texas Legislature. Of course, Governor Perry has expressed his differences with Barack Obama in his letter to Obama, in which he stated that Texas sends more money to Washington than vs. vs, and that 80% of the jobs created in the U.S. were made in Texas, in the private sector.

Hope Obama doesn’t hold a grudge. Texas could probably secede from the Union, without too much grief.

Hat Tip NY Times

More Good News for the Economy! Lisa Jackson, EPA director has announced that she may be using the Clean Air Act to regulate the amount of Carbon Dioxide in the air. She is a Chemical engineer and will be assessing , hopefully, scientifically, the impact of Carbon Dioxide on Greenhouse Emissions. Of course, you have to be a member of the Global Warming Church, in the first place.

You heard that right folks. Not Carbon Monoxide, Carbon Dioxide. You know, the stuff we exhale, the stuff that makes Coke bubble, the stuff that is used to make Dry Ice, the stuff that is used in photosynthesis. In fact Carbon dioxide is actually vital for health, in maintaining the blood ph. Others contend that the Clean Air Act was designed to be used for toxic chemicals, like sulphur dioxide, for example, and had nothing to do with Global Warming, which wasn’t even postulated until recently.  The Supreme Court had ordered the EPA in April 2007 to make a scientific finding about whether Carbon Dioxide, a “greenhouse warmer” should be classified as a pollutant.

According to Jammie Wearing Fool, if found to be so, this will totally change the transportation, energy, manufacturing industry. In other words, cripple them and make the consumer pay through the nose for anything “increasing the greenhouse effect.” Pretty ambiguous, right? Doesn’t seem to matter that 30,000 scientists, including Ph.D’s and Nobel Laureates are suing Al Gore for fraud. Or that scientific experts are predicting that we are entering a new Ice Age. One thing we know about a cultist is that they don’t let facts get in the way of their beliefs.

Just as Obama promised in that leaked conversation from San Francisco, when Obama promised that he would cripple the coal industry, because they would tax it to death and add costs to the Greenhouse effect of their industry. Remember? And Ohio went ahead and voted for him anyway. So energy costs will skyrocket in an already bleak economy.

Bad choice.

Duffy, at age 24, has a very unusually high profile in the entertainment world: she just won three awards on the Brit Awards a few days ago (2/18/09); additionally, she won a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album, Rockferry 2008.
She also has a rather unusual background. She was basically from a working class Welsh family and her parents divorced when she was young (10). Her father remarried and, apparently, her step mother put a “hit” on her father, when Duffy was 13. The Police got wind of this and had to put Duffy in a safe-house for her own protection. This is when she developed some street-smarts and perhaps a little of her songwriting ability, although she had been writing lyrics since she was six.

You will see that numerologically, she has a “Master number” 33/6 which indicates someone who is willing to sacrifice for others.This is revealed in her autobiographical song “Stepping Stone.”

I didn’t have her birth time, so I rectified it to 9:30 PM, which makes the
Ascendant Sagitarrius (vedic); the Moon was transiting that day from Pisces to Aries, and I felt that her strong stamina and leadership were more indicative of Aries. Therefore,her Moon is in the Nakshatra of Aswini. She has strong Saturn conjunct Mars aspecting Jupiter in the Ascendant and this very often leads to psychic awareness.

Additionally, she has a twin sister, and therefore, Mercury is in her 7th house, aspecting the Ascendant along with conjunct Venus and the Sun. (Mercury should either be in the Ascendant or the 7th house for a twin.) There is an amazing inter-connectedness between the planets, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Mercury, Venus and Mercury. This, of course, gives her a multi-dimensional personality and international fame, due to Saturn aspecting the Ascendant.

Duffy is classified as a mezzo-soprano, Pop and Soul vocalist and songwriter. Here she is singing “Cry to Me” (Bert Russell a/k/a Bert Berns) “Dirty Dancing”

Hat Tip Looking At the Left
After spending days claiming that there was “no time to read” the 1100 page “porkulus” package, Obama waited a leisurely 3 days taking a vacation before he went off for an op-ed in Denver to sign the “pork package.”

At the same time there was a protest in Denver, including Michelle Malkin and others who were protesting this “Generational Theft Act.” It is calculated that each American citizen will be indebted $30K for this “pork”. According to Looking at the Left , Simon Maierhofer of finance.Yahoo.com states that the stimulus is like putting a bandage on a punctured balloon. Another point is that the provision, called E-verify, which would check to make sure the job applicant is an American citizen, was dropped from the final bill. So, essentially, the bill is creating jobs, but for whom? illegal immigrants?

Basically, Simon says, valuations in a bear market follow a pattern.
The day after he signed the bill, the Dow dropped 300 points, because of lack of confidence that the stimulus would do anything. Even Vladimir Putin, speaking in Davros, Switzerland, warned “in the 20th century, the Soviet Union made the state’s role absolute. In the long run, this made the Soviet economy totally uncompetitive. This lesson cost us dearly. I am sure nobody wants to see it repeated.” So, if even a former KGB can see the foolhardiness of the “porkulus”, he most likely has hit the nail on the head. It is very humbling to hear that Putin gave some “friendly” advice to Obama.

As we know, the 789 billion dollar stimulus will cost 3.7 trillion with interest. However, only one billion will be used in 2009. So, if Obama is found to ineligible to be POTUSA, by the National Grand Jury, then the bill will be overturned.

That would be the good news.