Obama ...: we gave him EVERYTHING!

It's not just you.

Obama: Trying On A New Hat

The President has found himself in a quagmire, so he's pulling himself out by someone else's bootstraps.

Mine ... and yours, if you are a Second Amendment Advocate.


Obama: U.S. Gun Law 'Has Made...Homegrown Extremists' Strategy More Attractive to Them':
By Susan Jones | August 5, 2016 | 5:05 AM EDT

(CNSNews.com) - "In terms of the threat that ISIL poses to the homeland, I think it is serious," President Obama told a news conference on Thursday. "We take it seriously." The president pointed to a New York Times report on ISIS' radicalization efforts to suggest that U.S. gun laws may encourage lone-wolf attacks here.

You can't blame him for the stunning turnaround by the group of desert hobos which he initially described as the "Junior Varsity".   He figures the events have embarassed himself, so he's 'reconstructing the dialogue'.

He has found a way to use pirated dialogue to blame anyone but him:

"But the fact that we have what he referred to as 'open gun laws' meant that anybody, as long as they didn't have a criminal record that could bar them from purchase, could go in and buy weapons. That has made the sort of homegrown extremists' strategy more attractive to them. And those are the hardest to stop because by definition, if somebody doesn't have a record, if it's not triggering something, it means that anticipating their actions becomes that much more difficult.

Translation: (and I'm extrapolating here; he didn't really say any of this, but this is the impression I got from the statement) ---

If those Crackers didn't cling so firmly to their guns and their God, we would by God put some teeth into Gun Control and nobody could own a gun unless we say they could!

So it's not his fault (he is perfect) and it's not the fault of ISIS because they found a crack in our ass; it's the fault of American Gun Owners who insist that the Second Amendment is a Constitutional Right ... which is flawed logic.

If he had his way, nobody would own a gun unless he said we could ... and we would either be a policeman, or a soldier!

Transform America!

His recovery reminds me of one of my favorite comic strips, "Rick O'Shay".   In one episode, Rick goes looking for a new hat because his old one is worn out.  He buys a hat, looks at it and it just looks ... wrong.   So he jumps on his new hat until it looks the way he thinks a hat SHOULD look!

I am probably lacking in the moral correctness which suggests that I should give up my individual constitutional rights for the good of the many, but I have always believed that the rights of the individual are more important than the rights of the group.  People who are much smarter than I am refer to this as "Individual vs Collective Rights".

Being (as I am) a "Cracker", and a stubborn one at that, I'm probably not going to change my opinion just because My President thinks I should.

My President can change his hats as frequently as he talks to another diplomat, and beat it onto whatever shape  best suits him.

For me, my Old Hat works just fine.  I'm not an intellectual, and I didn't grow up in Chicago, so there is probably something that I don't understand about The New America.

The one thing that I do understand is, I have kind of got use to The Old America, and I've learned to love it.

I don't want some Obama-come-lately to be "re-imaging" my country.   My "old hat" may be tawdry in the eyes of a Comsmopolitan, but it fits me just fine.

Oh, and if another "Reshaper Of America" should enter office next year?

Same thing.

FOAD

Dear Mister President

What ... not ransom?

Never mind.

I guess I was wrong about you,

all this time.

Obama's Parthian Shot: Draconian Edict Against Gunsmiths

BREAKING: Obama Signs New Gun Control Executive Order. Puts Gunsmiths Out of Business:

For local readers who have not yet heard this:

President Obama has just signed a new executive order that will essentially put a majority of small gunsmiths and niche gun parts makers out of business. Essentially, the new regulations mean that small gunsmiths who fabricate or modify parts of any kind could be labeled as manufacturers under current ITAR regulations.

(H/T: Controversial Times)

Gunsmiths (licensed) who violate this 'executive order' are (apparently, I'm just guessing at this point)  subject to fines rather than imprisonment, because this is an "Executive Order" rather than a "LAW"... but the information is not immediately available.

This is typical of Liberals Obama, having no need for either the Legislative branch (you know, the folks who are expected to make laws) or even the Judicial branch (those who try violators of laws and impose sentences).

The Death Of A Thousand Cuts (90%)

Will President Obama Regulate Guns Out Of Existence? | Stock News & Stock Market Analysis - IBD:

President Obama wants to put gun dealers out of business. When he was a state senator in Illinois, he supported a ban on the sale of handguns and all semi-automatic guns as well as a ban on selling guns within five miles of a school or a park.  While the president obviously can’t just ban them, he can use regulations to make their lives more difficult. For some dealers it may be a slow death of a thousand regulatory cuts ...

The increasing "cost of doing business" for firearms retailers has caused a lot of problems in 'the business' for the past several years.

In my small town, I've seen the number of firearms dealers go from three, to one, to none in the past 15 years.  It's not just Obama'; it's the increasingly more critical climate of firearms ownership.
Which has been championed by  (you saw this coming, didn't you?) The Democratic Party.

Never was there a party with less joy (except for the hosts) in this College Town.

This is a Democratic State.  Every elected official, from the Mayor through the County Commissioners to the Senators and the Governor are Democrats.  And they're all just fine with the current trend.

There use to be a republican here and there, but ... no, I don't want to talk about it.
It's too painful, and I don't want to frighten the children.

The electorate is quite happy with the current state of political influence.  Well, we have three or four main population centers, and these 'big cities' have a lot of people on Welfare and other versions of the Political Dole, so one might say that the party has bought the electorate.

Not the People; just the Electorate.

Surprisingly, 90% of the people outside of the few 'big cities' .... and we're talking about people who control 90% of the land ... are more conservative.

If my poor state is any indication, then ... yes, Obama HAS the support to regulate guns out of existance.

The Hoi Polloi will not object.  They will still receive their monthly stipend (provided by the small percent who actually pay taxes, bolstered by Corporations who provide the bulk of tax income to The State).

I may have exagerated; it may not be 90% who are on the dole; a significant percentage of the working populace are employed by governmental agencies (as I was for 30 years), but the labor unions have ways of dealing with malcontents.

Still ... I can find a gun dealer within an hour's drive from my home, but he only has a very limited stock.  (He's something of a 'special order" shop.)
I can't find a gunsmith nearby unless I go to the jack-leg guy who isn't really professionally trained, but he can install a sight or a new barrel and probably even detail-strip a 1911 and put it back together 'right'.

Why can't I find gun guys?
I'm not blaming Obama.  The truth is, the demand for firearms support industries has diminished to the point where folks would rather just do without a broken gun than try to find someone to fix it for them.

That's not universally true, but it's true enough to be significant.  There isn't enough business in gun maintenance here to support anyone in a 'full time job'.   New shooters are few and far between.  They are out there, and I meet a lot of them teaching my "Introduction to USPSA" class.  But when their guns go south (as they will),  I have no evidence that they are willing to get them fixed.  Nobody has asked me for a reference to a "gunsmith" for 15 years.

Whatever Obama is doing, he's good at that part, at least. I wish he was as presidential as he is obstructionist.

Democrats: "Our History"

Democrats.org:

For more than 200 years, our party has led the fight for civil rights, health care, Social Security, workers' rights, and women's rights. We are the party of Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, FDR, and the countless everyday Americans who work each day to build a more perfect union. Take a look at some of our accomplishments, and you'll see why we're proud to be Democrats.

Yeah, right.

In the 1930s, Americans turned to Democrats and elected President Franklin D. Roosevelt to end the Great Depression. President Roosevelt offered Americans a New Deal that put people back to work, stabilized farm prices, and brought electricity to rural homes and communities. Under President Roosevelt, Social Security established a promise that lasts to this day: growing old would never again mean growing poor.

Today, Social Security is broken; funding is not protected and old people living on their Social Security are poor.  Trust me on this; I've been trying to live on SS for the last few years.   My saving account nest-egg has been severely depleted.

And after President Kennedy's assassination, Americans looked to President Lyndon Johnson, who offered a new vision of a Great Society and signed into law the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act.

Now Americans who have spend their entire careers paying for Social Security are still being taxed to support people who have never found a reason to hold down a job as long as the government will pay them for not working.

President Johnson's enactment of Medicare was a watershed moment in America's history that redefined our country's commitment to our seniors—offering a new promise that all Americans have the right to a healthy retirement.

Medicare pays for ... some things.  Need an ambulance?  Costs more.  (Thousands more!)  Need pharmaceuticals?  Costs more.  A LOT more!  So Johnson created enough "social programs" to undermine the economy, but never managed to back up his "Great Society" with a renewable source of income.   The end result is a medical support program with more holes than Swiss Cheese, but with the aroma of Limburger.

Plus that whole Viet Nam thing..
 (oh, BTW; thanks for the all-expenses paid tour of South East Asia, JFK and Lyndon; I had a couple of friends who got the Red Carpet Casket tour package on the way home .. in front of their survivors).

In 1992, after 12 years of Republican presidents, record budget deficits, and high unemployment, Americans turned to Democrats once again and elected Bill Clinton to get America moving again. President Clinton balanced the budget, helped the economy add 23 million new jobs, and oversaw the longest period of peacetime economic expansion in history.

And he did NOT have sex with 'that woman'.  Everything else in that statement is puffery.  His greatest accomplishment is NAFTA.  For what that's worth.

And in 2008, Americans turned to Democrats and elected President Obama to reverse our country's slide into the largest economic downturn since the Great Depression and undo eight years of policies that favored the few over the many.

uh .. yeah.  And he instituted the largest raid in American history on the country's economy, with a budget of multiple TRILLIONS of dollars, with no plan to pay the bills.  Guess who is going to pay the bill?  That's right ... the 50% of Americans who are still working ... and paying higher taxes than ever.  But of course, it would be a Base Canard to call Our President a "Socialist".

Oh, and the next Fiscally Responsible (read: "Republican", but I repeat myself) President, who will HAVE to pay the bills.  In the meantime potential workers are being economically encouraged NOT to work, or to save; so, look forward to another Economic Depression, folks.

Under President Obama's direction and congressional Democrats' leadership, we've reformed a health care system that was broken and extended health insurance to 32 million Americans.

No, it's still "broken", but  it's "Borrowing" from Peter to pay Paul, and it has been stretched to the breaking point.

Our only hope as a 'prosperous nation' is to elect a president who has a realistic understanding of the word "Prosperity".  Which means, among other things, not to tax those few Americans who still work for a living to support the huge numbers who are comfortable with living on the dole.

Do I think Obama is the greatest living president?

I put him somewhere below George Walker Bush and George Herbert Walker Bush.   Even though the father (read my lips; no new taxes) was a total failure as a leader.

(Are there any other living Republican Presidents?  Did I miss someone?)

Obama's Parthian Shot at America: HIV

Obama Opens the Border to More STDs | Center for Immigration Studies:

In his first year in office, President Obama lifted an entry ban on foreigners with HIV. In his final year in office he will lift the entry ban on three more sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The president's own Health and Human Services department says this guarantees more infections in the United States, proving once again that immigration is the defining issue for politicians like Obama. Increased immigration trumps all other concerns.

I've left this post to lie fallow for a few days, because (a) I'm just mad as hell, and (b) I'm not sure what I can contribute to the story.

The answer is (c) there's nothing that I can add.  Y'all just gonna have to figure out for yourselves how you feel about this.

Certainly I was not aware that Obama was allowing foreigners with such pernicious infectious diseases to infest our country.

I'm not particularly surprised ... but this is the kind of thing which one tends to reject because

It Can't Possibly Be True!

but it is,

Lies "Our Father" Told Us

How doth he lie to us? Let us count the ways… – Gun Nuts Media:

So the president has decided that he’s going to take “executive action” on gun control, and naturally he had to give a big self aggrandizing speech to announce his intentions to the world. It’s impossible for this guy to open his mouth on guns without telling some whoppers, so let’s have some fun and count the ridiculous lies he and his administration are pushing today.

Gun Nuts provides us with a plethora of pedantic presidential postulations (aka: "LIES"), which include:

1. You can buy guns right off the internet with no background check (patently untrue)
2. 1 in 30 people looking to buy guns on one website had criminal records (impossible to confirm or refute without details ... but it sounds just like a lie; how did 'they' know, and ignores NCIS vetting of purchases)
3. We need the wide majority of responsible gun owners to join us to demand something better ("All of us need to demand a congress brave enough to stand up to the gun lobby's lies".)   A lie not because Obama's statement of intent is inaccurate, but the statement implies that "responsible gun owners" consider Obama's definition of "Something Better" ... further restrictions on responsible gun ownership ... to be an admirable goal.
4. More than 30,000 Americans die from gun violence every year.  (A lie because it uses statistics selectively and without definition; that number includes defensive use, etc.)
5. [there are more, but gun nuts quit out of exasperation]

Maybe it's time to re-run this 2012 parody:

Obama's "Alice in Wonderland" legislation

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?” 

(Alice, in Alice in Wonderland)

The thing is ... Obama's latest and greatest pitfalls for legal gun owners requires us to be what we are not; and if we are not, then we shouldn't be.    But still, we are, and we should. You see?

Obama's gun control options each have legal pitfalls | Reuters:
January 03, 2016

The Washington Post and Politico reported late last week that one of Obama’s main proposals would require some unlicensed gun dealers to get licenses and conduct background checks on potential buyers. Current law exempts smaller dealers who often operate at gun shows and sell online. Obama, who has been thwarted by the Republican-controlled Congress in his push for tighter gun control legislation, could act through an executive order, which would be immediate and carry the force of law. It would also almost certainly prompt lawsuits by gun advocates claiming the president lacks the authority to change the legal definition of who must obtain a dealer’s license.  (emphasis added)

So, what is "an executive order"?   Can the President impose one arbitrarily, without oversight from the Legislative Branch?

According to the online Legal Dictionary:

Most executive orders are issued under specific statutory authority from Congress and  have the force and effect of law.  Such executive orders usually impose sanctions, determine legal rights, limit agency discretion, and require immediate compliance.   Federal courts consider such orders to be the equivalent of federal statutes.  In addition, regulations that are enacted to carry out these executive orders have the status of law as long as they reasonably relate to the statutory authority.   An administrative action that is carried out under a valid executive order is similar to an agency action that is carried out under a federal statute.  In each case, the agency's authority to enact rules and to issue orders comes from Congress. (emphasis added)

Presidential Executive Orders can NOT be imposed (or "carry the force of law") if Congress does not agree that the context of the Executive order agrees with the content and intent of the  Constitution.

Which is to say that the Presidential Executive Order is NOT LEGAL if it is not "Constitutional".

Now, if Obama's intent is to "... require some unlicensed gun dealers to get licenses and conduct background checks on potential buyers ....", then perhaps he should look at the existing administrative barriers which prevent individuals from qualifying for a 'gun dealer license.
 There are many people who would sell a 'large volume' of firearms, but who would not currently qualify for a dealer license.  Is this a "Catch 22"?

And just what constitutes a "Dealer", anyway?  Is the criteria for definition of a "dealer" the volume of business conducted by an individual?  If so, is it the volume in terms of Number Of Firearms Sold Per Anum, or is it the Cash Value of Firearms Transactions Per Anum?

This is a grey area which has been conveniently allowed to endure for decades, by the government; and we can only guess why they have been reluctant to resolve the issue.

Our President seems to require those of us who would sell even a minimal number of firearms (not defined in federal law) to register as "Dealers", but he/they will not define the term for our edification.

Mister President! Mister President ... one question, please?

CNN to host Obama town hall on guns in America - CNNPolitics.com:

Obama will sit down with Cooper at 8 p.m. ET for the event, titled "Guns in America." The event's timing coincides with the fifth anniversary, next Friday, of the shooting of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Arizona, in a rampage that left six dead and 13 others wounded. In addition to discussing gun issues with Cooper, Obama will also take questions from the audience on the issue.'

(emphasis added)

I hope that somebody asks this one question of the President:

Mister President, what do you understand is the meaning of the expression:

"... Shall Not Be Infringed" ?

Rule by Edict

This Lame Duck President, who flaunts his "pen and a cell phone", will impose his personal agenda upon the law-abiding citizens of this country before the end of his term in office.

And it will be unconstitutional.

And because the American public are as sickened by continued armed assaults on the innocent, we will let him get away with it ... even though nothing he can say or do will stop public massacres.

We have watched him apologize before the American People for his inability to stop public assaults on us all, and I understand his frustration.

He is tired.   He sincerely wants to stop the murders and the killings.

I don't blame him a bit.  Yet.

My fear is that he will impose upon us, by Presidential Findings  (call them 'decrees' or 'edicts'), some draconian laws fiat which will undermine our constitutional rights, but will have absolutely no effect on the continued depredations on the innocent by people who are consumed by their own evil intentions.

He is running out of time.  And he is running out of options.
To preserve his place in history, President Obama MUST do "something".

His choices are limited ... he has no GOOD choices, and so he will choose the 'least bad' of the BAD choices available to him.  In his desperation, he will do more harm than good on the honest people of America.

That's the problem with career politicians: they choose to pass laws to correct societal ills for which there are no good solutions.  In the end, he will  compromise our Civil Rights for the sake of an attempt to provide security to a nation at war (however 'undeclared' this war may be).

It will not have the effect he hopes; instead, it will finally tear this nation apart.

Well, we've weathered the storm of presidents who didn't share our particular political views before, and it appears that we will do so again.   Like it or not ... DEMOCRACY!  WHAT A CONCEPT!

God bless you, Mister President.  I don't love your politics, but hey! This is America!
We'll maybe do better with the next President (although I doubt it; I haven't voted for a presidential candidate who actually won for quite a while).

Last words:

This is not going to look good on your resume.

We Are So Screwed!

Fox News - Breaking News Updates | Latest News Headlines | Photos & News Videos:

THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION is under pressure to help calm the growing violence in Israel that has some warning of a third intifada, as Israel's military steps up its response to deadly Palestinian attacks by deploying hundreds of troops while Secretary of State John Kerry prepares to visit the region. 

Oh dear!

Anytime we are reliant on John Kerry and  Obama to save our respective Arses ....
we can expect nothing better than a political reaming!

Oregonians died today. And it's my fault. And yours.

Oregon shooting: Gunman dead at Umpqua Community College - CNN.com:

Is anyone surprised that this happened in a "Gun Free Zone"?    Anyone?

U.S. President Barack Obama was briefed on the situation and will continue to receive updates throughout the day. He pushed for a change in gun laws when he spoke to reporters about the shooting Thursday. "Our thoughts and prayers are not enough. It's not enough. It does not capture the heartache and grief and anger that we should feel, and it does nothing to prevent this carnage from being inflicted someplace else in America -- next week, or a couple months from now," he said.

(Presidential statement here)

__________________________________________________________________
at about 2:17 on the statement video, The President says:

It cannot be this easy for anyone who wants to inflict harm on another person to get his or her hands on a gun!

Easy?

EASY

Firearms are the most restricted, legislated-against, controlled commercial product in American history.  And yet Obama bemoans that it's to EASY?
Well, for someone who has no history of mental disease, or felonious actions, it's easy.  That's in keeping with the Second Amendment.  But the issue isn't about guns, it's about people.  As soon as we get technology which allows us to predict how people can act in unpredictable ways, we can stop this unpredictable activity. (re: Minority Report)

_____________________________________________________________

(Local sheriff statement here ... the sheriff refused to name the shooter, and rightly so)

(This current piece in REASON has a few things to say which  I wish I had said first):

What's important in regards to the politics of Obama's speech right now is that neither you nor I nor Obama knows anything about what sort of weapon was used and how it was obtained or the shooter's background. I don't even know his name as I type. 

Thus, he is undoubtedly overreaching beyond the facts when he speaks over and over about how apparently easy and simple gun-safety laws would have prevented this, or future tragedies like this

The arrogance of our current president surpasses understanding.

I read the news about the massacre at Umpqua Community College (which by the way is pronounced "UMP" as in "Umpire" and "QUA" as in "QUALITY"), and I'm appalled once again by the societal influences which bring a person to the decision that they only way he can be made whole is to cause the slaughter of innocents.

Usually, this sort of tragedy is ended when the shooter commits suicide, and I wonder:   "why the HELL didn't he just shoot himself first?"

UPDATE:  May have posted his intentions on Social Media

Today, the police in Roseburg, Oregon (nice town, I've been there many times, it's only 120 miles away from my home) were both pro-active and timely.  They responded to the calls quickly,  found-and-fixed their target, and resolved the situation as expediently as possible.   But they were too late to stop that asshole before too many people were slaughtered like lambs.

Unfortunate that there were no CHL (Concealed Handgun License) holders on the scene; they could have minimized the death toll, which was far too many innocents.  I often wonder why America is so plentifully staffed with innocent lambs, and so understaffed with the sheep-dogs that a proper flock requires.   We need to pay more attention to the needs of our sheep-dogs local police departments.

And we need to revisit the collegiate rules which mandate no CHL on campus in Oregon.  The state laws allow CHL, but (as I've said so many times before) the colleges can make their own rules about no guns on campus, and enforce them by firing an employee who violates them, or by terminating a student who legally has the temerity to carry a firearm on campus.

... and this most recent tragedy is my fault because I am vehemently against Gun Free Zones, because that's the Happy Hunting Ground for mad men.

The Naked President

Obama warns Republicans to avoid 'unforced error' of government shutdown | TheHill:
(September 07, 2015)

President Obama accused Republicans Monday of playing games with the federal budget, warning them that threatening a government shutdown over funding for Planned Parenthood or ObamaCare would be “completely irresponsible.”

"Completely Irresponsible" is a good description of ObamaCare ... which would be entirely funded by 'the next generation' ... under threat of government sanctions of those who refuse to sign onto Obamacare because they have nothing to gain from it.
_____________________________________________________________________

 Speaking at a Labor Day event in Boston, Obama said Congress should work to approve federal spending bills that end across-the-board funding cuts rather than wage policy battles over healthcare that could risk a shutdown at the end of the month. “So far, at least, instead of hearing about how we can move together, what we’re hearing from [Republicans] is threats that they might shut down the government over things that don’t have anything to do with the budget,” he said. “Try to stop the budget in order to force us to do something that would restrict women’s healthcare, for example. That’s not a good idea.”

Not a good idea?

Trying to force one generation to pay for their grandparents' health-care expenses sounds fiscally irresponsible to me.  And I'm the Generation who is hoping that my grandkids can pay for my lung cancer treatments, after I've been smoking since before their parents were born.

Isn't my cancer MY problem?

______________________________________________________________________

 When Congress returns this week, Republicans are expected to launch an assault on federal funding for Planned Parenthood in light of undercover videos accusing it of illegal activity. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said last week that the Senate will vote on defunding the group when lawmakers return, though he acknowledged Obama is likely to veto such a bill if it were to pass. Democrats have said Republicans risk another government shutdown if they push the issue too far. 

Some people actually think that Planned Parenthood is a conspiracy to deprive Negroes (there, I said it) of their reproductive rights.  Whatever the hell that is.  Oh, and also that Planned Parenthood is a bunch of con artists who actually do more harm than job ... which (if they are right), the anti-P.P. folks are performing a public service by identifying a charade.

But Obama is trying so hard to be a leader that he's ignoring the back-issues.  Yes, he is black and so is his family.  Which suggests that he's not trying to find the best solution for the nation, but for his political position.
_____________________________________________________________________

Obama also needled Republicans for forcing votes to undo ObamaCare, a failed effort that lead to the 2013 government shutdown. “Everybody says it’s working,” Obama said. “It’s working better than even I expected, and costing less, and they’re still talking about repealing.” Obama plugged the state of the U.S. economy, saying it’s performing better than in other parts of the world and warning that a shutdown could threaten that status.

I don't think that "everybody" says it's working.  Everybody says it's a piece of shit,and nobody wants to sign up for it because the P.O.S. factor is so high that we just can't afford it.

Oh, and there's also that "... if you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan" thingie which moves the bullshit-o-meter from "do you really think we would believe this?" all the way to the "lying sack of ..... " peg.

Plus the economy, "Performing better than in other parts of the world"?  Could you please be more specific?  Your Vice President, Joe Biden, thinks that "Something Is Wrong With the Economy".

____________________________________________________________________

 He compared a potential shutdown to an “unforced error,” and made reference to the infamous Bill Buckner error that helped cost the Boston Red Sox the World Series in 1986. “It’d be like a ground ball slipping through somebody’s legs,” Obama said, cheekily, to groans from the Boston crowd. “You guys have won a couple since then, so I can make that joke,” he said. “If you hadn’t had so many World Series, I wouldn’t make that joke.”

You're wrong, Mister President.  WE made the joke when we elected you. Twice.

Even new housing sales, which have been robust for a while, are beginning to slide;  price cuts are becoming more common.


Would a shut-down of the government really be such a bad thing for Americans?  At the least, it would take away your pen and your phone for a while.

And that's a "The Emperor Has No Clothes" moment.

Revolving Door in California

Police chiefs, sheriffs blast ICE over policy they say frees violent illegal immigrants | Fox News:

A California toddler fighting for her life Thursday after a brutal beating at the hands of an illegal immigrant with a long criminal record is the latest case to rile California sheriffs and police against a U.S. immigration policy they say is forcing them to release dangerous criminals out on the street.

Who is responsible for this travesty of justice?

I don't know.  Must be somebody far above my pay grade.

Rock 'n Roll ... Aging America

Get ready to rock ‘n’ roll old age .:

President Obama proclaimed May as Older Americans Month, continuing a 52-year tradition since this month of recognition was first established by President John F. Kennedy in 1963.

(NO ACTIVE LINKS BELOW THIS POINT!)

The original article went on to talk about ... 1963.

Screw that; the folks that wrote it don't know about `63.

Beatles
Vietnam
Riots (racially motivated)
Marches on Washington
Presidential assasination (I remember where I was when Kennedy was shot ... do you?)

I also remember where I was when the California Earthquake scared the crap out of my neice ... who was in Oakland at the time.
I remember where I was when the Twin Towers fell.
I remember where I was when the Oklahoma Bomber blew up the federal building ... and
      (I remember that there were little children in that building.  Do you remember that?)
I remember where I was when the feds were shooting citizens in Waco, and Ruby Ridge..

I remember where I was when ... oh hell, you can list as many incidents as I can.  The bad thing is, that I remember more than I would choose to, had I been given a choice. Amd yes, I do realize that Obama was not in office during ANY of these "incidents".

It's not HIS fault.

Fortunate Son, that he never had to deal with a REAL National Crisis.

This is all reminiscent of the 19450's and '60's/  Lots of Hope, but no real Change!

Except that Obama is no Eisenhower.

White House correspondents’ dinner

Complete coverage of the 2015 White House correspondents’ dinner - The Washington Post:

The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner gets criticized yearly for being a big party where Washington bigwigs, Hollywood stars and journalists rub shoulders and celebrate themselves.

I watched the video of President Obama's Gig last night.  He was fun to watch for the first 10 minutes ... he had good writers and he is a personable speaker (why he was elected).

The last 10 minutes?  Not so much.  When he brought his Alter Ego on ... the guy with the obnoxiously loud "comedy schtick" ... I eventually tuned out.  "LOUD" and "FUNNY" aren't the same thing.

I don't mind when the Prez lambasts the Loyal Opposition.  That's his job, he's a party guy.  Bushes do it, Clintons do it, The humor there is sometimes rueful, but wry and to the point.

Video available at the link at the top of the page.

The Golden Rule

Fort Hood shooting victim denied benefits, despite Purple Heart decision | Fox News:

 The Obama administration has finally acknowledged that those hurt and killed in the 2009 Fort Hood shootings were victims of terrorism -- and not “workplace violence,” as it was previously described. But while formal recognition of that is set for Friday, when victims will receive the Purple Heart, it may only be symbolic.

I find it bizarre that a government denies it's military (who defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic) compensation for injuries while serving ... which as a matter of policy refuses to allow servicemen on duty to carry a weapon ... can deny full benefits for victims of wounds and other injuries.

Surely, some of those injured were not activly "on duty" at the time; but others were.   What's the difference between those who were actively "on duty" (an MP?) and those who were 'on base'?

 When I was in the army, when I was in a military base I was always assumed to be "on duty" even if I was not carrying a firearm at the time.

This was obviously a cost-cutting decision, made with no consideration of how the professional service men and women (the person who cut down the murderer was an MP ... but she couldn't be EVERYWHERE!) would react to this patent lack of faith.

The lesson I learned in the military is that loyalty must not only go up the chain of command, but down.  I guess Obama has no understanding of the concepts of loyalty, duty, honor and country.

We're not talking about "Stand Your Ground" civilians here; we're talking about people who were targeted specifically because they were members of the military!

BUT:

The Golden Rule applies here!

Cover-up

Bracken: Stonewalled In Obama’s Garden Of Beasts | Western Rifle Shooters Association:
(November 23, 2014)

It is truly a great pity that in stark contrast to the Nixon Watergate era, today’s American Pravda reporters are not interested in uncovering the truth, but instead, they are an integral part of the cover-up. Today’s Woodwards and Bernsteins are secretly taking their marching orders from Obama’s White House. Welcome to the USSA, comrades.

If you don't regularly read David Codrea's "The War On Guns", you might want to check out this article which he recommended.

It's very long, quite 'imaginative', tells a complicated story, and unfortunately makes President Obama's administration look like a proper Dog's Breakfast.

You might even consider reading either or both of the books cited there.

UPDATE: For background,  Susan Rice's infamous Benghazi interview on YouTube

President Obama to Replace Attorney General Eric Holder With Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch - The Atlantic

President Obama to Replace Attorney General Eric Holder With Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch - The Atlantic:

President Obama has settled on the chief federal prosecutor in Brooklyn, Loretta Lynch, as the nation's next attorney general. The White House said late Friday that Lynch was the president's pick to replace the departing Eric Holder, confirming a selection that CNN first reported earlier in the day. By choosing Lynch, Obama is bypassing a pair of candidates with more senior roles in his administration in favor of a prosecutor who could, potentially, be more easily confirmed by a Senate that Republicans will soon control.

Attorney General .. old

Attorney General ... new

Giving Obama his choice is like giving a kid his choice between recess and vacation,