Obots in the Media Gettin' Desperate

The same water-carrier at TIME who tried to label all conservatives nihilists is back with another ridiculous defense of this horrendous Obama administration, which still continues the cult of personality one year after the election. Here's what Joe Klein offers up:

The most obvious pattern, however, is the media's tendency to get overwrought about almost anything. Why, for example, is the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall demolition so crucial that it requires a President's presence?

So that's sort of the level of cognitive dissonance we're at in the media and how far they are willing to revise history: Berlin wall coming down - not a big deal, but the President pardoning a turkey - that's huge!

Great News: Two Yahoos Break Into the White House

Can't imagine why two derelicts breaking into an event with the President of the free world and the Prime Minister of the world's largest democracy would be such a big whoop. From NY Times:

In fact, the couple — Michaele Salahi and her husband, Tareq — are Virginians who have been auditioning for a possible role in a different housewives TV franchise: “The Real Housewives of Washington.”

They swept past the camera crews and followed the trail of other bigwigs attending the dinner.

But neither Mr. nor Mrs. Salahi, best known in the Washington area for promoting wine and polo in Virginia, were on the guest list for the event, a fact first reported Wednesday morning on the Washington Post Web site.

A White House official confirmed Wednesday that the Salahis had not been invited nor seated for dinner.

It was not clear Wednesday night how close the Salahis got to Mr. Obama and his wife, Michelle, or to the guests of honor, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, and his wife, Gursharan Kaur.

This type of nonsense might be common in LA, but in DC these theatrics threaten national security and cost the taxpayers money. It goes to show that DC is becoming the new home of the glamorous and self-indulgent as they mooch off the wealth of the rest of the country. What a shame.

Achtung! Nice Guys Finish Last

Ouch! You know your foreign policy strategy is in dire straits when the Europeans accuse you of being too much of wimp. First it was the French President Sarkozy saying Obama was being soft on Iran, now the Germans are saying Obama is Jimmy Carter II. From Der Spiegel:

The mood in Obama's foreign policy team is tense following an extended Asia trip that produced no palpable results. The "first Pacific president," as Obama called himself, came as a friend and returned as a stranger. The Asians smiled but made no concessions.

No word yet on whether or not MSNBC is going to condescendingly criticize our German allies like they usually do for Obama's detractors. But, in defense of President Obama, there's really not much he could do to influence the Chinese on anything, since they are effectively financing our over-consumption and we the people will not elect politicians who will get our fiscal house in order. Perhaps Der Spiegel is just saying welcome to the club of nation-states that are burdened with a massive entitlement complex and a geezerly population. At least we'll ride out the Decline of Western Civilization in solidarity.

One Acceptable Reason for the Obama Bow

Someone needs to contact Gibbs about the whole bow to the Japanese Emperor row. Because in the Hot Air comments, someone has come up with an excellent excuse that any guy can sympathize with. If Obama was sporting a major boner, then it would be acceptable to hunch over at that ridiculous an angle.

In Defense of Populism

Generally, Christopher Hitchens has some pretty interesting things to say, but I thought this dull criticism of Sarah Palin was a bit routine with the same tired attempts to summarize the "teabaggers" as imbeciles who can't think for themselves. And I'm not Pro-Palin either. From Newsweek:

The United States has to stand or fall by being the preeminent nation of science, modernity, technology, and higher education. Some of these needful phenomena, for historical reasons, will just happen to concentrate in big cities and in secular institutions and even—yes—on the dreaded East Coast. Modernity can be wrenching, as indeed can capitalism, and there will always be "out" groups who feel themselves disrespected or left behind. The task and duty of a serious politician, as Edmund Burke emphasized so well, is to reason with such people and not to act as their megaphone or ventriloquist.

It's not a bad thing that there are well-educated people on the East Coast. What's a bad thing is the same boneheads that fucked up the economy are the ones trying to establish new policies that will benefit a group of our "betters" in Wall Street and Washington. That and a dollar falling into post-Soviet Union ruble status is enough to create a large group of pissed-off Americans.

President Obama told a group of Chinese students that the free-flow of information is an important way to hold the government accountable. It's certainly allowed a lot of ordinary people to realize how awful everything is in Washington and Wall Street.

Veterans Day

Maybe if our society understood that going to war is a shared responsibility among the nation, we wouldn't be treated to such nonsense in our Op-Ed pages on Veterans Day. Today's turd is from David Ignatius, who, having an apparent change of heart from his Harvard days, once referred to the "needle-popping" Army in an article about why Mao would make a decent President:

Through all its own difficulties, the military has kept its stride. That sense of balance comes partly from the fact that soldiers are anchored to the American bedrock. This includes the stereotypical small towns in the South and Midwest that have military service in their DNA. But it also counts plenty of hardworking, upwardly mobile Hispanic and African-American families in urban America who produce some of the best soldiers I know.

Great. All the military folks David Ignatius "knows" are probably the people he called the cops on when they drove by his country club. As long as the nation's elite continue to see military service as something only poor, desperate rubes would take part in, we're going to have a pretty fucked up republic.

So this Motorhead tune is for all the vets out there, because it seems appropriate. I don't really think it's anti-war or anti-religion necessarily, but it's kind of a harsh criticism about the leaders of the world making everyone else doing all the sacrificing:



Nobody gives a damn about anybody else,
Think everyone should feel the way they feel themselves,
Rich men think that happiness is a million dollar bills,
So how come half of them O.D. on sleeping pills,
Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, you all know what I mean,
What's the use of a cry for help, if no one hears the screams,
No one hears the scream,

No voices in the sky, confusion blinds the eye,
Can't take it with you when you die,
No voices in the sky,

The ones who dedicate the flags to make you brave,
They also consecrate the headstone on your grave,
Ritual remembrance when no one knows your name,
Don't help a single widow learn to fight the pain,

Politicians kissing babies for good luck,
T.V. preachers sell salvation for a buck,
You don't need no golden cross, to tell you wrong from right,
The world's worst murderers were those who saw the light.

Wall Street Descends into Cartoonish Super Villainy

The CEO of Goldman Sachs

Not long ago, Godman Sachs was famously called the Great Vampire Squid Wrapped Around the Face of Humanity. Well that squid certainly has some good connections with the CDC to get this many H1N1 vaccines when health care workers and the military are up in arms about the shortage. From Guardian:

New York's health department confirmed that vaccines had been shipped to banks - Citigroup, which asked for 7,200 doses, received 1,200 while Goldman Sachs, which applied for 5,400, was given 200. A spokeswoman said distributing vaccines in workplaces would "alleviate stress and pressure from community healthcare settings and hospitals"

The NYC health commissioner tries to defend this egregious blunder by saying the boobs on Wall Street are going to distribute it to at-risk employees. After the events of the last few years, I would place Wall Street execs that took bailout money somewhere in line between the surviving cast of Three's Company and the Fluffers' Union on the scale of national priorities. Not even Robert Gibbs would defend this ridiculous policy.

Fort Hood Massacre

Not much to say. It's all very sad. And I think that sadness is captured pretty well in this image that was part of an MSNBC slideshow.
People in the military are accustomed to mentally preparing for danger and carnage abroad, but you just never really expect it on the homefront. I'm not going to speculate here, since the facts are still coming in, but Noah Shachtman has some eye-popping statements that the shooter made previously. And I'm a bit surprised that David Neiwert is criticizing "wingnuts" for being so judgmental, because I'm sure if it was a white guy, he would've talked about how Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin made him do it, which Crooks and Liars has been known to do.

The guys at This Ain't Hell got a hold of his Officer Record if you are interested.

Say What? Sex Change Operations in Obamacare

This is one of the Miss Tiffany contestants from 2009 in Thailand, and it's probably one of the hottest babes that's actually a dude you've ever seen. Thailand is world-renown for its Katoeys (transgender/transvestite peoples), and they often work in the bars of Bangkok, Pattaya, and Phuket to save up for that expensive surgery, which Thailand is also well-known for. But, according to some culture warrior types, the new Obamacare plan may allow for taxpayer dollars to pay for these types of operations in the States. From Politico:

A senior aide to a Republican senator said that a public insurance plan could easily end up covering sex-change procedures if that’s not specifically banned in the bill.

“It's not that hard to imagine that a new federal health plan crafted and implemented by this administration would cover sex-change surgeries. Anything not explicitly prohibited in the bill is effectively on the table. Most Americans probably would prefer that their tax dollars not pay for or subsidize transgender surgery,” the aide said.

The obvious libertarian take on this issue is that people can live their life however they want, just don't expect me to pay for it. But as government increasingly gets mixed up in every facet of human existence, it puts the libertarian in an ethical dilemma where you are forced to side with either progressives (who want to spend everybody's money, as they see fit) or social conservatives (who want to tell everybody how to live, as they see fit). There isn't really a viable position one can take in this case, and a true libertarian alternative isn't going to come around in this lifetime or the next the way things are going.

Kumar in Trouble

When Kal Pen (aka Kumar of the great movie, Harold & Kumar go to White Castle) left the beautiful people of Hollywood to spend time with the bottom-feeding parasites in DC, he received some praise for serving his country or something. But now a FOIA request has revealed that he was mixed up in the recent NEA scandal which forced its Communications Director into resignation. From Washington Examiner (h/t Jammie):

Former actor and present White House associate director of public engagement Kalpen Modi was directly involved in planning the controversial conference call hosted by a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) flack to encourage tax-supported artists to create propaganda for President Obama, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Uhoh, making trouble for Hollywood's messiah, that'll probably get you blacklisted. Which is unfortunate, because I thought Kal Pen was a great actor. Well, he'll always have the ability to write crummy HuffPo articles alongside all the other has-been celebrities.

Our Longstanding Corrupt Practices

USA Today had a well-researched article about all the political appointees in the Obama administration who just happened to have fundraised over $100,000 for the campaign. But, for some reason, the story generated less interest in the blogosphere than the 25th anniversary of Ice Pirates. I don't know if it's because the article was in the Mikky-D's press, or because the practice is so common amongst both parties that none of the partisan operatives dare criticize, or because there was other corruption allegations that stole the limelight. But it seems like we just brush it aside as "business as usual" in Washington and wonder why the government is being run by incompetent boobs whose only purpose in life is to make speeches and false promises.

UN Continues to Make a Mockery of Itself

NYC: Downgraded to Totalitarian Backwater

Not that there's anything wrong with the UN Millennium Development Goals, I mean, who doesn't support ending poverty and world hunger? It's just a bit odd about how the entire organization takes its approach. After the UN Human Rights Council recognized "exceptions" to freedom of speech to appease Islamic dictators, and thinking that letting a thug like Ahmadinejad have the podium would be a swell idea, they now have their sights set on that miserable, hellhole of humanity...New York City. From NY Times:

The United Nations Human Rights Council appoints a rapporteur, or independent experts, to investigate human rights conditions around the world. In the case of Ms. Rolnik, a professor of urban planning at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, her “mission” is to tour New York City and six other places in the United States and to report back to the United Nations General Assembly about housing rights violations and advances.

After that, “We send off letters to governments to ask, ‘Is this true? What’s going on?’ and to please intervene,” she said.

This is a great use of my tax dollars. Yes, NYC is expensive, as any American could tell you. Maybe they can ask why I had to pay $20 for a wireless connection at a hotel in Manhattan that was already $250 a night for a wedding I went to last year. They could even appoint Muammar Qaddafi to preside over the investigation instead of looking into human rights abuses like child soldiers, refugees being brutally killed, and other minor issues.

Honky-Land

There's an interesting article at New Geography that has angered progressives which challenges the assumptions on America's liberal bastions (Portland, Denver, Seattle, etc.). The author cites facts and figures which concludes that all the cities hipsters love to champion have more crackers than a Jack Johnson concert:

This may explain why most of the smaller cities of the Midwest and South have not proven amenable to replicating the policies of Portland. Most Midwest advocates of, for example, rail transit, have tried to simply transplant the Portland solution to their city without thinking about the local context in terms of system goals and design, and how to sell it. Civic leaders in city after city duly make their pilgrimage to Denver or Portland to check out shiny new transit systems, but the resulting videos of smiling yuppies and happy hipsters are not likely to impress anyone over at the local NAACP or in the barrios.

I would humbly suggest removing barriers and red tape to small businesses for urban revitalization, which seems to have been doing a good job in facilitating newly-arrived Americans to overcome poverty ever since Jamestown was founded in 1607. But, I don't have a Masters in Urban Planning, and I'm sure all those Green Jobs and more bike lanes that progressives love to champion will help the Latino immigrant community achieve middle-class prosperity.

Richard Nixon Would Be Proud

Politico:

Obama aides are using their powerful White House platform, combined with techniques honed in the 2008 campaign, to cast some of the most powerful adversaries as out of the mainstream and their criticism as unworthy of serious discussion.

Here's to our tax dollars being put to good use. Cheers!

Our National Boneheadedness

An article in Reuters points out something that absolutely no politician in America wants to say (unless of course it's a boring Ron Paul monologue), America's entitlement spending is sending it into collapse. This article is in reference to the $250 checks for old people to keep them from making trouble:

Two examples — one ridiculously expensive, one just ridiculous. But both reveal a nation completely unwilling to deal with current trillion-dollar deficits or long-term shortfalls many multiples of that number.

What confidence should dollar investors have that America will really cut entitlement spending? Very little. Instead, we are more likely to see huge tax increases that could cripple productivity, or further dollar neglect, or a central bank that turns dovish on inflation. Or perhaps all three.

If Washington doesn’t care to support the dollar, why should investors?

But who cares about the long-term economic stability when you can demonize Fox news for another news-cycle to distract the public. Politicians could care less about long-term viability and only seem to give two shits about pleasing their pet interests so they have campaign cash for the next go-around. But sooner or later, we have to blame ourselves for continuously electing these yahoos.

Press Releases on Anita Dunn Make For Boring Journalism

Here's a real schnoozer of an article on Anita Dunn, the White House Communications Director, that has more hot air than the Balloon Boy odyssey. From a lengthy piece in the Washington Post:

With her CNN appearance on Sunday attacking Fox News as "a wing of the Republican Party," the White House dispatched its communications director to make one of its most aggressive salvos, in part because she alone in the communications department can withstand the blowback.

"She's tough, she knows how to handle herself in the national media, she's not intimidated by it and she enjoys the fray," said David Gergen, a former White House communications director. "It surprised me to see Anita Dunn out there, but if you are going to do it, go with your pro, and she's your pro."

Yawn. Nothing in the article about her husband's attempt to silence free speech during the Obama campaign, and nothing about the criticism Beck has brought up by citing quotes from mass murderers. Just a lame puff piece about how awesome she is and how it's justifiable for government officials to shut down Fox News like some Hugo Chavez public affairs strategy.

Dow 10,000: Let's Party Like It's 1999

Crank up the Hanson, buy some more shares in Pets.com, and pop the champagne, because it's 1999 all over again. Similar to March 1999, the Dow has gone above the 10,000 mark (again), and you can watch this retro CNBC video if you don't believe me. But, Peter Schiff drops a big turd in the party punchbowl by saying that the Dow is up because the dollar is in the crapper, and there's no real recovery in sight.

Eh, well.

Politics Makes for Strange Bedfellows (sometimes Gay)

Gay Patriot has an article in Pajamas Media about how gay liberals are perpetually disappointed by the politicians they help elect. This is in reference to how much ass-dragging is happening with the Obama administration on Don't Ask Don't Tell:

And Americans have become increasingly aware that the gay community does not speak with one voice. Nor does it march it lockstep to the tune of the Democratic Party.

Military.com notes that, contrary to conventional wisdom, it would actually require an act of Congress instead of just an order from the White House. But, it still seems as though Obama is waffling on a campaign promise that he could easily fulfill.

It's correct when Gay Patriot notes that gay issues aren't exclusively the realm of the democratic party. Some fellow reich-wingers have publicly stated that DADT has got to go including Ed Morrissey, CDR Salamander, and even the Sniper (no shit, the Sniper). I for one am for the repeal of the DADT, simply for the sake of no more awkward powerpoints for our troops during GMT sessions.

Shut Up and Drink the Kool Aid!

You really have to feel sorry for our intellectual betters sometimes. After suffering through an awkward adolescence of getting pantsed and watching the quarterback pull all the tail in high school, they can't even get any respect in their adult lives. With the information age well upon us, any slack-jawed rube with a 'puter can tear down their policies they seek to enact over the rest of the country.

That's just one possible explanation for this no-good, terrible Op-Ed where Neal Gabler, last spotted calling everyone not on Team Obama McCarthyites, simply resorts to calling Americans a generally stupid lot for not trusting their government all the time. Not to overuse the "elitist" meme, but this is pretty up there. From Boston.com:

There is something bizarre about a country whose leaders have constantly to toady to their constituents and in which any criticism is tantamount to a lack of patriotism, but that describes America today. Every politician feels compelled to ape Jimmy Carter’s old words to the point where our alleged greatness has also become our national mantra.

Like it would be better if politicians didn't bother listening to their constituents and we had power-hungry madmen making all the decisions for us. That alternative had devastating consequences for much of the world's citizens during the 20th century, and I would suggest that a good deal skepticism towards the government is necessary for a nation's survival.

This editorial is clearly a response to the fevered populist piss-offedness that has gripped our country and prevented the sychophants of the Obama administration from getting everything they wanted. However, it wasn't Bubba Joe at the assembly plant that fucked up the economy, but eggheads like this guy. Why don't they engage in some self-assessment of their own policies before denouncing the frustration of our society at the moment.

New Liberal Agenda: Let the Dollar Collapse, All Hail Inflation

It's a bit of a concern when the top blogger from the influential Center for American Progress advocates that a weakened dollar would be a good thing for the country. From Yglesias:

Meanwhile, the interests of American tourists aside, a falling dollar is exactly what the American economy needs. It’s a way of, in effect, driving wage levels down to a level at which increasing employment is economical and getting us out of current sky-high unemployment. Of course for the same reason foreign central banks will want to bolster the value of the dollar in order to prevent unemployment from rising in Europe and Asia. I think the real risk here, however, is that foreigners will go to far in terms of trying to sustain an unsustainable situation and ultimately prompt a bigger breakdown.

I understand that Keynesian economics focuses on massive spending programs to get the country through tough times, but how is turning the dollar into monopoly money going to do anything but lower the standard of living and piss off the Chinese. True, it's a natural market correction that the dollar is dropping into the crapper, but doesn't that have to do with the federal government printing too much money? Maybe, the President and Congress should, you know, stop pissing away the taxpayer's money like the world was going to end.

I don't pretend to understand this crap, but I do know that I made the decision to convert all the surplus dollars I had into Thai Baht, and a lot of other people are buying gold like it was nude pictures of Megan Fox. Yes, I chose a country's currency where a coup could break out at any minute over Uncle Sam's money. Yes, that means I am allied with the Taliban and Hamas, and I'm sorry for that, but I've got to live off this money. Ever since we nixed the gold standard in the 70s, money has been backed by the credibility of the US government, and that credibility isn't looking too promising at the moment.

Must Have Been a Slow Year in the Peace Business

Uh, aren't you supposed to actually do something to win the Nobel Peace Prize (see the 2006 Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, who actually accomplished quite a bit besides running a presidential campaign). Shit, at least Al Gore made a half-ass documentary. Politico cites the reason:

"Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said. "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population."

But what major foreign policy breakthroughs has he accomplished, not just promised to accomplish? If these are the standards for winning the award, then Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas" should've won it every year. And, yes, this post obviously means I hate America.

I Bet They Didn't Think He Was a Milblogger!

It's difficult to explain what it's like to be a vet these days. Flat-out bigotry is rare. But, veterans seem to be like this politically-correct class of society that many folks seem to pity and avoid acknowledging because of some guilt complex...which is unfortunate. A disturbing disconnect from the warrior class and society at large can mean big trouble down the road, and at the very least leads to awkward situations like this. From CJ at A Soldier's Perspective:

Since I know that you spineless bastards in the school system are reading this, be prepared for a lawsuit! You were way out of line in bringing my personal life and my struggles with PTSD into a dispute with the school on the uniform policy. UNIFORM POLICY, FOLKS!! Where do you get off contacting the military about a private citizen matter? If I worked for Wal-Mart, would you have called the management there? If I were a REAL threat to anyone at that meeting, you should have called the police, not the military.

Despite the big game that CJ talks at his blog, I have met him personally and he is an extremely nice fellow. So it is a bit surprising that a dispute over his child's wardrobe at school would warrant a phone call from officials to his chain of command. A lot of veterans have PTSD, and it doesn't mean they are going to go run around the school screaming about Charlie coming over the wire like some Oliver Stone movie. But it is indicative of the growing divide in our American society.

The Great Paulson Puke Saga of 2008

Reason notes that the criticism from Andrew Sorkin of the Masters of the Universe on Wall Street that ruined our country is subtle, but it pretty much shows that the cronyism between Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and the feds was worse than a Skull and Bones meeting. The piece is very informative, although somewhat dry. However, he does throw in this little tidbit to make people without MBAs happy:

Paulson, who had been living on barely three hours of sleep a night for a week, was beginning to feel nauseated. Watching the financial industry crumble in front of his eyes—the world he had inhabited his entire career—was getting to him. For a moment, he felt light-headed.

From outside his office, his staff could hear him vomit.

At least there is a little justice in this world.

The Case of the Uppity General

A lot of hand-wringing has taken place regarding General McChrystal's controversial comments regarding policy in Afghanistan. I'll take the uncontroversial view that being governed by a military junta might not be a good thing as Eugene Robinson explains:

How to proceed in Afghanistan will be among the most difficult and fateful decisions that President Obama ever makes. But he's the one who has to decide, not his generals. The men with the stars on their shoulders -- and I say this with enormous respect for their patriotism and service -- need to shut up and salute.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, is entitled to his opinion about the best way forward. But he has no business conducting a public campaign to build support for his preferred option, which is to send tens of thousands more troops into a country once called the "graveyard of empires."

Some folks on the left say that the top general in Afghanistan only sees things through his "own narrow experience", which probably means another General Betrayus type ad from Moveon.org is coming soon to a newspaper near you. But taking the position that elected leaders should be responsible over the military does not categorically place you with the Code Pink crowd. However, in any chain-of-command, you hope and pray that those appointed over you are competent, have their priorities straight, and have your interests at heart. And, the President devoting his time and political capital to the 2016 Olympics, command-and-control economics, and not to the rapidly worsening Afghanistan situation doesn't inspire a lot of confidence.

Not Having the Olympic Fever Cause for Treason?

Strange Sports Always Won by Europeans Not Coming to Chicago

If calling Obama's plea at Copenhagen a gigantic waste of time is tantamount to Hanoi Jane, the concept of patriotism and nationalism sort of loses all meaning. Because, not supporting Obama's cronies in Chicago from feasting on an overburdened taxpayer to construct shoddy facilities for the Olympics is hardly grounds for being a moran, IMHO. Jonn has the last word on this:

You know who really lost today? Those folks we’ve sent to Afghanistan. Out of the 15 hours the President spent in Denmark, General McCrystal got 25 minutes with him. Imagine that; all of the time he spent on getting the Olympics brought to Chicago - seven years from now (apparently three years after Obama will be out office if he keeps acting like this) - he spent twenty five minutes with the guy fighting his war for him.

Oh well, highly important priorities like Ballroom Dancing will have to be done somewhere else.

Radicalism and Punditry

You can't visit the NY Times opinion page without someone opposing Obama (a good chunk of Americans) being called a racist (a very serious accusation), and they're dropping in credibility faster than the SPLC. Reason examines this phenomenon in American history in a very interesting piece:

A similar dynamic is at work in 2009. When pundits weave a small number of unrelated incidents into a "pattern" of crime, then link it to the rhetoric of Obama's opponents, it becomes easier to marginalize nonviolent, noncriminal critics on the right, just as a red scare makes it easier to marginalize nonviolent, noncriminal figures on the left.

Admittedly, there been an uptick in crazy lately. After all, shoddy economies and Americans coming home in body bags tend to produce a more extreme politics, and right now America has both. But, the lame attempts to discredit Obama critics as being a pack of racist, barnyard yokels is pretty transparent partisan politics.

Oh Yeah...You Mean THAT "Secret, Underground Nuclear Fuel Facility"

President Obama, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and President Sarkozy are dropping a bombshell (pun intended!) at the G20 summit today...well not really that surprising considering Iran's track record. From the NY Times:

President Obama and the leaders of Britain and France will accuse Iran Friday of building a secret underground plant to manufacture nuclear fuel, saying it has hidden the covert operation from international weapons inspectors for years, according to senior administration officials.

The revelation, which the three leaders will make before the opening of the Group of 20 economic summit here, appears bound to add urgency to the diplomatic confrontation with Iran over its suspected ambitions to build a nuclear weapons capability. Mr. Obama, along with Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain and President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, will demand that the country allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to conduct an immediate inspection of the facility, which is said to be 100 miles southwest of Tehran.

That's certainly one way to approach diplomacy, and a much more effective one that inviting Iranian officials over for hot dogs.

SECDEF The Wolf

Interesting profile of SECDEF Gates in the NY Times today. Due to his nature of being capable of cleaning up the proverbial bag of dicks that is our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, NY Times likens him to this Pulp Fiction character:

Mr. Gates’s shifting role can be summed up in terms familiar to the defense secretary, an avid film buff who routinely brings piles of DVDs on long trips and cites favorite movies in conversation to make a point.

In his new memoir, Matt Latimer, a Pentagon speechwriter under Mr. Gates’s predecessor, Donald H. Rumsfeld, compares Mr. Gates to the Harvey Keitel character in “Pulp Fiction” — the one who shows up after the grisly killing to wipe away all traces of blood.

A good analogy, however I disagree with this strawman:

For Republicans, Mr. Gates poses a quandary in assessing Mr. Obama’s national security decisions:do they look at him as a turncoat for dismantling some of Mr. Bush’s policies or as the best hope for moderating changes brought by a Democratic administration?

A turncoat...hardly. It's not like the guy is Arlen Specter or something. It was a logical choice by an incoming administration that faced a wartime transition for the first time in over 35 years. And, as you recall, the rare bit of opposition to SECDEF Gates being re-appointed was from lefties upset because this move would signal that Democrats were weak on national security. The guy could be registered with the Bull Moose party for all I care, as long as he gets the job done, which I believe he is.

Pre-Emptive NEA Goes Under the Bus Post

After the devastating muckraking done on ACORN this month, Breitbart promises some more against the NEA. Although, Big Hollywood has already revealed some pretty serious dirt regarding financing the creative arts in exchange for health care reform support:

But, there is even a larger issue that hasn’t yet received much attention in the press. Among the Obama Administration officials on the call were Buffy Wicks, Office of Public Engagement and the lead White House official on the President’s Serve.Gov initiative to promote national service. Also on the call was Nell Abernathy, Director of Outreach for Serve.Gov. One of their main goals on the call, it seems, was to encourage artists to produce works that would reinforce the President’s call for service; specifically through the Serve.Gov web-portal.

Andrew Breitbart is amongst the Hollywood creative arts crowd, so I can see why they would want to go after the NEA. But, really, how much are these people ripping off the US taxpayer for to fund annoying Obama-art? I hope that Breitbart's next target is to go after the bozos on Wall Street who fleeced us for billions while the rest of us are scrounging for breadcrumbs. The media seems to have fallen down on the job with the new administration, and I think Breitbart has proven himself quite capable of sticking it to the man during a liberal administation.

Big Trouble in (Little) Tourist Thailand

The title alone is a reference to the John Carpenter classic, so you know the documentary has got to be good. It takes a look at the seedy side of Thailand and how if you're a tourist here, you're going to either end up getting fleeced by the locals or in Thai prison for a 10-year stretch. Not exactly everyone's experience, but who doesn't love a little bit of sensationalism!

However, if you act like a rowdy and drunken boob, you can probably get in trouble in any country. And as for sheisty locals ripping off the throngs of rubes on holiday, remember the rule of thumb that the better English they speak, the more sketchy they are.