New GOP, old ideas?

After the beating the GOP took in November, PJ media offered some advice for the party leadership.

Here are two of their ideas and my comment on them:

4) Investigate the possibility of reducing American forces in Germany: While NATO served an honorable and crucial role in winning the Cold War, the chances of another war in Central Europe are currently very low. Drawing down American troops to a “trip-wire” force could save up to $20 billion [3].

5) Consolidate and eliminate departments: There is also precedent for this. In the 1950s and the 1990s, programs that were duplicative were combined to save money (both decades saw balanced budgets). One possible department to consolidate would be the Department of Energy (whose budget was $27 billion last year [4]). Many of this department’s functions can be handled by other cabinet agencies. For example, regulation of oil and gas drilling can be done by the Environmental Protection Agency. Grants in the alternative energy field can be processed by the Commerce Department. Drilling permits can be handled by the Department of the Interior. And so on.
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8) Make sure your members speak the language of the national interest: The 2012 CNN exit poll showed that Democrats were 38% of the voters, Republicans 32%, and independents 29%. So, any policy that comes across as appealing only to the Republican base isn’t likely to rally the nation as a whole. The good thing about “reform” themes is that they cross party lines, and especially appeal to independents.

9) National Guard/FEMA upgrade: The nation has repeatedly been hit by natural (hurricanes, earthquakes, etc.) and man-made (9/11) disasters over the last generation. More extensive training for the National Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency would seem to be a wise investment.

Why are US forces still in Europe? And don’t say it’s because of the middle east. Pull our forces out of Europe and leave a skeleton force to keep bases in Germany maintained. PATRIOT missiles, tankers and support units could be left in Germany. Navy ships, an infantry brigade and other units could rotate out on an as needed basis. Move the dependents home would save a vast amount of money. Make Germany a one year unaccompanied tour for most service members. Consolidate all the commands into one Joint Service Command and retire all the field grades who just sit in an office and drink coffee.

The National Guard needs to stop being the red-headed stepchild of the DoD. Upgrade their equipment and training. As the Active Duty force draws down, offer incentives to servicemembers to join the Guard. Newer vehicles and aircraft would help the Guard because they have a state mission AND are the strategic reserve of the DoD. No Rachel Maddow, they are not the unit at sit in the armory until a disaster strikes. If we’re going to use them, treat them well.

The education department should go back under Health and Human Services.  The Department of Homeland Security should either go away or be reformed after a long hard look at how it does business.  The silly “firewall” between departments could get the once over.  The FBI and CIA should share data on terrorists.

The Democrats have set themselves up as the party of “free stuff”.  We need to point out that under all their horseshit there is no pony.  Hold the “reality based” community to reality.  Point out that California and Detroit are disasters.

We need to show off the GOP governors and the states they are running. Show that our glasses are clean before we point out the turds in the liberals punchbowl.

What I’ve always suspected

“We have surveyed how well prepared in terms of disciplinary course work teachers at various levels felt for teaching various mathematics topics in what is a fairly representative sample of 60 districts. In general, we would summarize the findings by stating that many teachers felt ill prepared to teach mathematics topics that are in state standards and in the new Common Core State Standards for mathematics. Why did these teachers feel so ill prepared?

There is perhaps a simple answer for the elementary and middle school teachers: They felt ill prepared because if we examine the coursework they studied during their teacher preparation, they were ill prepared. The new TEDS study results suggested this to be the case more generally, which clearly does not bode well for equality of learning experiences for students in these districts.”
–“Why Math Teachers Feel Poorly Prepared“: Anna Kuchment, scientificamerican.com, via insty

My adviser in college talked about a rival school’s education program. Or lack thereof. Students designing classes (for credit) and getting friends to take them. A one semester class on the felt board. Liberal arts majors should not talk about science.

The horrible truth is that most college courses are fluff designed to occupy the students time or they are attempts to teach what the public education system failed the first time. So the people teaching your kids are barely able to understand math and science. But hey they got to read Twilight and watch anime for credit. Teacher tenure meant that these idiots could stay teaching. That may change.

In the meantime, the left will bitch and wine about standardized testing. Most lefties hate math and science because they have hard answers. Soft fluff courses are open to interpretation. It’s all about politics to them. And your kids education suffers.

RESIGN HOLDER

Eric Holder, resign your office, it’s the right thing to do:

Via insty and Hotair.com

Many dead Mexican citizens, a cover up, a dead American hero.

RESIGN ERIC HOLDER

Bizzaro

We elect politicians, presidents, congress, governors and state legislators on down to city councils. They in turn pass budgets and set policy, under the watchful eye of the judicial branch. Every graduate of the American Public educational system should know this. The Secretary of Defense is a civilian, the Commander in Chief of all armed forces is the President. Generals and Admirals (all the way down to Majors and Lieutenant Commanders) have to be confirmed by the senate. Civilian control. Civilians plan and sign off on military ops. Period.

In the left’s version of reality, somehow corporations and the military really run things. All the time we hear about the “military industrial complex.” They bitch about the influence of corporations and how the (Bush) Whitehouse is somehow making endless war. All planned for and lining the pockets of the Fortune 500 no doubt.

“MSNBC’s Chris Hayes proclaimed on Memorial Day that he was uncomfortable labeling fallen troops as heroes as he felt the term is used as an excuse to engage in “Unjust Wars”.
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But those who died, those who literally gave everything, who will never see their families, who will never hold their children, who will never again know their partner’s embrace – these people are heroes.

They paid a price Mr. Hayes would never be willing to pay for this country. I’m sure he’d have a dozen great-sounding reasons why he wouldn’t serve as well: he doesn’t trust the leadership, he’s more valuable somewhere else, he won’t engage in unjust wars, blah, blah, blah. And he will surely have an army of followers supporting him, as they are all over the blogosphere right now, agreeing with his statements. As we speak, they are writing comments citing “facts” that are patently false about our intelligence, our income levels, and our education. They are developing arguments for why Hayes is right, why we are wrong, why anyone who serves isn’t worthwhile or has no other options. If you don’t believe me, please go look at the comments section under any Hayes article regarding this topic on a non-military blog.”
—
Douche of the Week: Chris “The Real Hero” Hayes from MSNBC Nick at Rinoden.rangerup.com

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“Tuesday night, watching the election returns from Wisconsin was an object lesson in a few areas. On both CNN and MSNBC, the pundits and hosts proved they cannot divide. Flashed on their screens were comparisons of total spending on the governor’s race that showed $45 million in total for Scott Walker, and but $9 million for the poor beleaguered forces of Tom Barrett, the candidate of “the people” (the unions). Of course, the unions’ direct or in-kind spending throughout the recall effort, variously estimated at $20 million on the governor’s race alone, was excluded from the comparison. In any case, the geniuses of the left, Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, and Ed Schultz among them, all bemoaned this 7-to-1 or 8-to-1 spending disparity, all a result of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. One would think that 45 divided by 9 is not a tough calculation.
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The left is unwilling to accept that a majority of American voters might not be with them, and that ordinary Americans (not just the ultra-rich) might contribute to Republicans. The start of the general election cycle is providing evidence that 2012 will not be a replay of 2008.”
—Citizens United Becomes the Left’s All-Purpose Excuse: Richard A. Baehr, American Thinker

The left’s culture, their ‘Weltanschauung’ (world view) is one where they are somehow privy to the truth[tm]. A terrible world where evil Megacorporations control everything, the government is out to get them and only they can save us! The truth is that they are as power hungry as the corporations they despise. The “Military–industrial complex“? Ike was trying to warn the country about Kennedy. JFK was the best friend the Pentagon ever had. His Vice President, LBJ gave us Vietnam along with the “Great Society” welfare state we still have today.

It’s not corporations, it’s not the military. JFK expanded the Pentagon because he vowed to get tough on the USSR. He sent advisers to Vietnam. Congress votes to spend money on DoD programs because they produce jobs in their districts and some actually care about America’s security. It’s politicians that control everything and voters in turn control them. Young people join the military for jobs, college money and patriotism. During the war recruiting numbers fell. They shot up when the economy turned sour. To the left it’s a “poverty draft”. In realty people like jobs and have money, especially those with families. Oh and health care too. The military provides those, along with good olde fashioned patriotism and values. People vote for politicians based on issues or the economy. No slick corporate ad campaign and save your ass when the voters are out of work or wages are stagnant.

The left lives in their own world. One where the people are sheep. Vote for the party of free stuff and socialism. Oh and you college students can stick it to the man![tm]

The truth is that the left goes fucking nuts when things don’t go their way. The whole anti-war movement was really anti-Bush. With a democrat in the Whitehouse the “peace” movement evaporated. But the mask shows through. Some MSNBC douche can’t comprehend that soldiers are not toys or puppets of the government (a popular lefty way of thinking) but real people. They wine and complain about the milbong putting a boot up Chris Hayes ass. I have never seen ANY leftist come to the aid of the troops they said they wanted home. Never seen them offer to help military families pay bills, or offer to help with PTSD. They love stories of “war crimes” but real flesh and blood American soldiers are props.

The people of Wisconsin voted for Gov. Walker because he says he has a plan. Walker has to deliver or he’s out of office. The left’s plan was to raise taxes and keep paying their union buddies. “Union-Political complex”? You bet your ass. With welfare, food stamps and taxes they have been buy votes with our money. And it’s more costly than anything the DoD and it’s contractors could dream up.

The Theory and Practice of California’s Oligarchical Collectivism

The historical review describes how, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, mechanised industrial production raised “the living standards of the average human being very greatly”, and that it became “clear to all thinking people that the need for human drudgery, and therefore to a great extent for human inequality, had disappeared . . . hunger, overwork, dirt, illiteracy and disease could be eliminated within a few generations” — a threat to the Party’s perpetuity, because, “. . . if leisure and security were enjoyed by all alike, the great mass of human beings who are normally stupefied by poverty would learn to think for themselves”, become politically conscious and so depose the ruling oligarchy; therefore, “. . . in the long run, a hierarchical society was only possible on a basis of poverty and ignorance”. Given that large-scale, mechanised production could not be eliminated once invented, the Party arranges the destruction of surplus goods — before that makes “the masses too comfortable, and hence, in the long run, too intelligent”. Hence the perpetual war
— Wikipedia: The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism, the fictional book that underpins Orwell’s 1984

“And things will only get worse in the coming years as Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown and his green cadre implement their “smart growth” plans to cram the proletariat into high-density housing. “What I find reprehensible beyond belief is that the people pushing [high-density housing] themselves live in single-family homes and often drive very fancy cars, but want everyone else to live like my grandmother did in Brownsville in Brooklyn in the 1920s,” Mr. Kotkin declares.”
—
Joel Kotkin: The Great California Exodus, WSJ.com, via Instapundit.

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But that’s just not realistic. If we did things purely by “organic” means and rejected synthetic methods, we could only support a world population of about 4 billion people. And if you think needing an additional 1.5 million cows to replace “pink slime” sounds like a lot, we’d require 1 billion more livestock for just the U.S. to replace synthetic nitrogen (plus 2 billion acres to plant feed crops for these animals).
—A red light on green food rhetoric, By Rick Berman (DailyCaller.Com)

I’ve always suspected that “Green Jobs” or anything “green” was a ploy to drag our economy down. Rush Limbaugh famously observed that many dirty commies became environmentalists after the Cold War ended. For the left, the USA was their last hope. Can’t take over with a coup, but they can vote their wacky policies in.

The government can’t pick winners in industry. Free markets mean growth and freedom. Yet we have a party that feels Americans are “soft”, need more “regulation” and this party has big donors who view Americans as stupid. Oh and a paranoid racist maxist was the White House’s “czar” for green jobs.

Cali has a problem with high speed rail. Californians want to drive their cars. They want to fly. They don’t want to pay for a train to nowhere. During the 70’s and 80’s the American public was told that solar power et al. was the future. Oil would be expensive the greens said. Oil would run out. War in the Middle East. Then it was the Green House Effect. Now Climate Change and saving the Planet. Billions wasted for bullshit. Trillions more if the UN has it’s way.

In 1984, Orwell had a crapsack world where the people were kept down by a police state and government repression AND a perpetual “war”. This war had no possible end. At one point a huge floating fortress is constructed just to soak up manpower and steel. The shortages from this war kept everyone under the thumb of “Big Brother”. The ruling Party lived better off as they controlled the access to resources. Orwell guessed right about Marxism. In the USSR, the Communists had hand built limos and access to better medical care while the average Soviet had lines and shortages (and shitty medical care).
Remember folks, the left (celebs, politicians, activists, journalists) are like you and me only better! They’ll be able to afford houses, cars and other nice things. They can get guns and travel by air without being strip searched by MiniLuv the TSA.

This just goes to show that the left is good at fighting, not good at running things. They need a “forever” war. The oikophobia led to an embrace of Communism (as it was murdering millions), appeasement of radical Islam (ditto) and green wackos (give’em time). They want us to believe that Mother Earth[tm] is in GRAVE DANGER!

The title refers to both 1984 and the sad, sad state California is in. Cali was once the “Golden State”. From the Gold Rush of the 19th Century to the era of Silicon Valley in the late 20th, it was opportunity. Then left of course smelled money. From hippies, to cults, to political radical to nude encounter groups, everything weird and leftist flocked to Cali. The “Blue State” (high taxes and lots of redtape) model was born there . And there was born the lie that our would be Commie overlords want to help us.

Bullshit. They just want us to be proles and go back to the USSR.

I give you Hans Rosling as the antidote to the Green & Blue lies, there is hope for the future:

Of Housewives and Presidents

“But he doesn’t connect on that issue either. What you have is Mitt Romney running around the country saying, ‘Well, you know my wife tells me that what women really care about are economic issues and when I listen to my wife that’s what I’m hearing.’ Guess what? His wife has actually never worked a day in her life. She’s never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing in terms of how do we feed our kids, how do we send them to school and why do we worry about their future. […] He just seems so old-fashioned when it comes to women and I think that comes across and I think that that’s going to hurt him over the long term. He just doesn’t really see us as equal.”
—Hilary Rosen opens mouth and inserts foot.

It’s the new tone! Call a woman a “‘cunt,’ ‘bitch,’ ‘whore’” if she’s a conservative. Attack an MS & cancer survivor who raised five children without nannies. And offer a back-handed “apology” too.

Hmm..women who stay at home while a husband works? Conservative, like guns, no nannies, traditional values…

Not "real women" according to left.

The left hates people. Average Americans are just cattle for the elites to whip. Of course cows get slaughtered. Abortion, taxes, political correctness, environmental wackiness. It’s just one set of wannabe elites bitching that they can’t have you shot for thoughtcrimes.

The spouse of a police officer, doctor, firefighter, lawyer or any profession with long hours and major commitment has a tough job. Often they sacrifice earning power so they can be with children.
That don’t matter to the feminazis who declare that any stay at home mom is not a real woman.
The honor of being real women goes to the libertines who abort the results of their drunken hook-ups. Welfare teen moms, political hacks and rich lefties who say the right things. People who don’t work for a living but expect the rest of us to pay for them.

“We are proud to provide pro-bono support to Sandra Fluke, an incredibly courageous young woman who is standing up for the rights of women everywhere in the face of sustained, personal attacks. This week, we began helping Sandra, a full-time law student, manage the enormous volume of incoming media requests …
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I am proud of our staff for donating their time and energy to work with Sandra during this important and difficult time.” – Hilary Rosen, Managing Partner, SKDKnickerbocker
(Washington Post quoted in:legalinsurrection.com )

Unlike a rich bitch going to law school on her parent’s dime (and expecting the tax payers to pay for her good times), a non-working spouse has to balance a budget. A man or woman staying home with kids has to make sure they get to school, go to the doctor and make sure the younglings are fed. That’s a real job folks. Kids are expensive and time consuming until they turn 18. They can’t raise taxes or get a government bailout. Nor are they able to get free PR flacks. Or nannies.

Ann Romney could have had nannies raise the kids while she worked in some office job. She chose to be a part of their lives. The left either views kids as a burden (or worse) or they pawn them off on nannies (Ask Judge Kimba Wood).

If we think of the household as a household, Ann Romney’s decision to stay at home makes perfect economic sense: Her decision to be a full-time mother enormously improved the quality of life for Mr. Romney, for the couple’s five sons, and — let’s not overlook this critical factor — for Mrs. Romney herself.
—The Economics of Ann Romney
, Kevin D. Williamson, http://www.nationalreview.com

Of course the left doesn’t understand families. Evil can’t comprehend good.
(but someone in the Whitehouse makes sure they stay away from Rosen’s stink, behold the gusty call!)

Immaturity

The idea of being a teen, adolescence, that time between being an adult and being a child is a recent invention. In the past (ask the WWII generation) you went from school straight to work.

Then the 60’s came, with the flower children’s obsession with childhood. The only reason the 60’s were anti-war was because white middle class kids were being sent to Vietnam. The only reason college is viewed as some kind of entitlement is because a generation went to college on the GI Bill after WWII. Those colleges would turn around and spit in the face of the military. Even today they hate the military. Sure the reasons change, but the childish behavior stays the same.

We have public sector unions bitterly clinging to sweetheart deals unsupportable in this economy.

Despite the calls for “civility” all the left gives us is childish wordgames and babel.

The media sells the idea of being a child forever. Don’t worry someone else will pick up the tab. And if they refuse? Why we’ll huff and puff and strike and get angry and demand they pay for you to be a 20 year old child.

Freud put forth the theory that if you catered to every single need of a baby from birth to the age of 21. Every single need. You’d get a 21 year old infant. After seeing the mess in Wisconsin, I agree.

The real left

“The truth is Greenpeace and I had divergent evolutions. I became a sensible environmentalist; Greenpeace became increasingly senseless as it adopted an agenda that is anti-science, anti-business, and downright anti-human. This is the story of our transformations. ”
–Patrick Moore, founding member of Greenpeace, Confessions of a Greenpeace founder, Vancouver Sun

“PAUL KRUGMAN: I think the model is something like Clinton who, in fact, mostly was just riding on a successful economy that was successful mostly for reasons that had nothing much to do with him.”
Paul Krugman: ABC’s “This Week” Sunday, via Newsbusters

I had a professor who claimed that capitalism always has socialism to save it. The truth is that socialism is a parasite that feeds off our freedom and our success.

After the 90’s, Communism faded into the background with Nazism and other fascist ideologies. Rush Limbaugh (for all his faults) had it correct. The left needed to dress up their message, repackage and re-frame it. Hiding behind weasel words and good intentions, they use old guerrilla warfare tactics.

But the mask has slipped lately. Under the facade is the ugly hate filled fascism of the 19th and 20th century. Despite heaping praise on them, diligent bloggers have uncovered the “terrorist left.” No matter how they spin it, many leftist “scholars” are stuck in the 1960’s. They want riots and revolution no matter who gets hurt. They lie and smear anyone and anything.

That’s why we need to keep up the pressure. Speaking truth to power is not a slogan, it’s actually holding the people in power accountable for what they want from us, not just what they are doing.

Like Glenn Reynolds says, I’ll believe there’s a crisis when the people who tell me there is one start acting like it. But as long as the Al Gores and Tom Friedmans of the world continue to fly around in private jets and live in huge mansions … and alleged climate scientists like Michael Mann stubbornly refuse to hand over their tea leaves and chicken entrails for inspection by experts, I’ll keep driving my SUV, thank you very much.
—State of Fear, 2011 [Andy] (Ace of spades)

Only the little people (the rest of us) make sacrifices eh?

The left is made up of people who want to do good. Really. World peace, save the planet, etc.
The movement is run by lunatics who want to destroy everything. No really. From industry, to business to our way of life. All while saying it’s for the planet/children/future/etc.

That’s why the conservative’s role is to stand in front of history and yell “stop!”.

Someone has to.

Chew on this: The year isn’t even over yet.

Tasty links and a power to the people.

1. Lefties may not stop after the President tells them to clam down.
2. Gee thanks, Emergency Services to Suffer Under ObamaCare
3. When you make a hero,make sure your “hero” is sane.
4. Really lefties,really?
5. Hey CNN, this ain’t the garden of Eden, this ain’t thesummer of love.
6. Michelle Malkin, you are right again.
7. Can the Air Force avoid the1990’s
8. Don Surber is right on targetand Glenn Reynolds puts out firedoglake.

Chew on this: Halloween edition

Some spooky goblins and demons for you this election eve. Oh yeah, some stuff on Halloween as well.

• Barbra Boxer invents an Indian tribe. (Doug Ross Journal)
• While Government Motors’s Volt is an eletric Edsel, Volvo sets the standard. (Instapundit)
• Two MSM reports get caught with their hands in the bias jar.(Ace) and They aren’t the only ones(newsbusters)
• Seems the bloom is off the “Hope and Change” Rose. (Michelle Malkin)
• “Rally to Restore Sanity” vacuous is as vacuous does…(powerline, newsbusters)
• Looney crashes press conference, leaves when questioned. (Jawa)
• Radical who incites violence sings for a political rally in the mall! (Hotair)
• What the left calls history and what actually happened are two different things (powerline).