Blogger Asma Mahfuz has been arrested by Egypt’s military for defaming the military council on the Internet. It is a part of an expanding trend of governments cracking down on first speech by using defamation and blasphemy laws.
Continue reading “Blogger Detained in Egypt For Defamation Of Military”
While Congress is rolling back on scientific and environmental programs, it is continuing to spend $200 million in subsidies to pay for people to fly in nearly empty planes from remote airfields under the Essential Air Service program. Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are planning to kill the 200-year-old page system to save $5 million, but they supported this continuing program costing almost a quarter of a billion dollars. In some cases, a coach ticket cost the taxpayers over $4000 in subsidies.
Continue reading “Air America: Federal Government Spending $200 Million in Subsidies For “Essential Air Service””
By Mike Appleton (Guest Blogger)
When Byron York asked Michelle Bachmann last week whether, if elected President, she would be “submissive” to her husband, the audience reacted with a collective gasp, followed by scattered boos. After a brief pause, Rep. Bachmann calmly replied that her relationship with her husband is one of mutual love and respect. Continue reading “Michele Bachman, Christian Reconstructionism and the Law”
Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty-Guest Blogger
With the recent news of an appeals court decision that struck down the individual mandate portion of the Health Care Reform act, the problems with our Health Care system is on the front page again. While we hear politicians claim that the market place should decide all health care cost and access issues, millions are without coverage and the costs Americans pay for health insurance is staggering. Continue reading “An Example of Why We Need Health Care Reform”
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
With the end of summer comes the beginning of the fall ritual that is college football. You know, where men of strength and character mold the minds and bodies of our youth into men of strength and character. There are plenty of good examples and one particularly curious one. Oklahoma State FB coach Mike Gundy is a world-wide phenom for his 2007 YouTube meltdown in which he attempted to deflect criticism from a OSU football player with his famous, “I’m a Man. I’m 40!” tirade against the local newspaper reporter, Jenni Carlson, for printing, well, the truth. You can re-live that moment here.
Continue reading “Boys of Fall: Coach Orders Carpenter Off Job For Wearing Wrong Tee Shirt”
We have seen the gradual dependence of the United States on China, which holds a huge amount of our debt. The result has been foreign policies designed to appease the Chinese government, including near silence on human rights abuses by that country. Now, academia has its own scandal of kowtowing to the Chinese, which have become equally dominant in research and education. Schools like Georgetown and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have said virtually nothing after their faculty were barred from entering China or flying on Chinese airlines due to objections to their writings. They are called the “Xinjiang 13” and their virtual abandonment by leading universities shows how academic freedom values have been sacrificed to maintain our dependence on Chinese funding.
Texas Governor Rick Perry appears to be out doing his opponents who have made the curtailment or actual elimination of the EPA a major part of the Republican presidential election (here and here). While Newt Gingrich wants to disband the EPA, Perry has brought in the big guns and announced that he actually prays to God to seek divine intervention in curtailing pollution laws.
Continue reading “Perry Prays For Pollution? Perry Tells CBN That He Asks God To Intervene With The EPA”
Call me a skeptic. For years, the world has been fed a constant stream of images of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin engaged in what may be the longest running mid-life crisis in history. Putin has been shown as a race car driver, great white hunter, jet pilot, oceanologist, martial artist and other action hero outfits. Each appearance has been accompanied by some fawning account of his aides on how he is superhuman. Now, Putin’s macho action series has turned to scuba diving. While only having dived three times, Putin was shown at an ancient Greek Black sea site and . . . you guessed it . . . he “discovered” two sixth century urns under the water. What is really amazing is that the urn were less than seven feet from the surface, together, and just lying exposed for thousands of years waiting for Putin. It was almost like someone put them there and directed Putin who was only in the water for a brief time when he added world-class archeologist to this action hero box.
Continue reading “Now Putin The Archeologist: Russian Strongman “Discovers” Ancient Jars At Ancient Site”
There is an interesting story in Kentucky about a series of generous tax breaks given to a Bible-themed amusement park, Ark Encounter. The creationist museum is evolving into a heavily subsidized endeavor despite the absence of any independent study to support its projected profits and employment figures.
Now this could make for an interesting challenge. Brian Pollard was arrested for DUI in an accident that led to the death of Peggy Williamson. He received only four days in jail after pleading guilty. When the family cried foul, District Judge Rebecca Phelps and prosecutors insisted that they had no idea someone died. They are now moving to charge him again — after he was sentenced on the crime for DUI.
Continue reading “Kentucky Man Kills Woman in DUI — and Receives Four Days In Jail”
Here is today’s column in the Los Angeles Times on the announcement that the House Page Program would be shutdown. After almost 200 years of loyal service, the pages deserve better and many former pages are asking the leadership to meet with us to consider alternatives.
In our effort to be full service, I am posting a new governmental position for any of our contributions looking for gainful (baneful?) employment. I saw an interesting item on Reddit for a position with the Department of Transportation of “Associate Administrator for Administration” at the Department of Transportation. Now that is a bureaucrats dream — administering the administrators.
Continue reading “DOT Seeks An “Associate Administrator For Administration””
Honestly, what would we do on this blog without those hilarious guys in Iran. In their latest standup routine, the Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast issued a statement to the British government to show greater restraint in dealing with protesters in London and other cities. That’s right, the government that has killed, beaten, and raped protesters is publicly calling out England on its efforts to stop the rioting and looting in London.
Continue reading “Iran Calls For Investigation of England’s Treatment of Protesters and Calls For Dialogue With Rioters”
It appears that if they just stayed put Texans would be living seal steak and penguin chili. Just 1.1 billion years ago, rocks show that Texas was part of a remote part of the Antarctic continent south of the Atlantic Ocean basin.
A group of Buddhists announced recently that they were going to purchase 534 lobsters to return them to the sea. A group of lobstermen from Gloucester reportedly read about the designated site of the ceremony and followed the Buddhists — laying traps and capturing the lobsters and bringing them to market. This was viewed as really funny by the captain of the fishing vessel Degelyse — according to published reports. However, in an update below, Joe Ciaramitaro insists it is satire and not meant to be disrespectful.