Latest Analysis, Commentary and Opinion*
(The title of each article is linked to the complete article)

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Get government out of the market
   Economics piece by Offsite (7/3/10)

The Washington leadership never misses an opportunity to blame the eight years of Bush policies for the economic problems that have befallen the nation. CNN news touts a poll that says 53 percent of the people blame Republican policies for the mess. Both are wrong. Republicans certainly contributed over the years, but the cause of the economic problems must be laid squarely at the doorstep of the Democrats.

And another underground business is born
   Taxes piece by Offsite (7/3/10)

My husband came in from his shop recently and announced, “Well, another underground business is born.“

Court: Regulation of free speech stops here!
   Information Police piece by Offsite (7/3/10)

A federal court has ruled unconstitutional an attempt by New Mexico politicians to regulate the political free speech of activists working to hold their elected officials accountable to the people.

Panel’s report on Skip Gates’ arrest flawed
   Progressivism piece by Offsite (7/3/10)

It came as no surprise when a Cambridge Review Committee concluded Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., whose combative behavior and mouthiness led to his arrest last summer, was provoked by an overly aggressive and culturally insensitive cop.

No turning back from change in the GOP
   Republicrats piece by Offsite (7/3/10)

What’s going on in the Republican Party across the country isn’t a civil war as much as it’s a tale of two paradigms.

Modern Farming Best for the Planet
   Food piece by Dennis T. Avery (7/3/10)

Churchville, VA - Stanford University recently startled the world with its conclusion that conventional high-yield farming is far better for the planet than low-yield farming. And this includes the First World’s current icon, organic farming. We know that high-yield farms need less land to produce the same amount of food, protecting the huge amounts of soil carbon that would be gassed off if we plowed more land for low-yield crops. However, the Stanford study says that high-yield farming may have saved 600 billion tons of CO2 emissions. That’s equal to one-third of the greenhouses gasses emitted from the whole industrial revolution since 1850!

Friday, July 2, 2010

Burning Drudge, burning Weigel: A fiery view from the Washington Post
   MSM piece by Guest: Paul A. Ibbetson (7/2/10)

The forced resignation of David Weigel by the Washington Post will probably be forgotten by tomorrow, nothing more than a little blip on the radar of those submersed in the world of the Washington Post. Weigel’s online communications were nabbed and made public to expose the writer as a liberal who thinks Matt Drudge should set himself on fire and that conservatives are inherently doing evil. If you are a conservative you might shake your head, grit your teeth, or even laugh at some of Weigel’s private meanderings about the opposition. What you would not be is surprised. The Washington Post wants you to think that they are awe-struck and amazed, as if their writer were suddenly part of an E-True Hollywood story in which never-before-seen hidden details are suddenly being illuminated. Please.

On the Lookout for Trouble Brewing
   Progressivism piece by Guest: Michael R. Shannon (7/2/10)

The authorities securing the G–20 meeting in Toronto appear to have been caught off guard when peaceful social activists, community organizers and assorted leftists set fire to police cruisers, smashed windows and attacked the hotel where the meeting was held.

Real Unemployment Hovers Between 16.5 and 21.6 Percent While Reported at 9.5
   Employment/Jobs piece by Malcolm T. Hedges (7/2/10)

The much fudged and tweaked U3 Unemployment Rate purposefully ignores underemployed and work force dropouts.

What Goes Around Comes Around
   Socialism piece by Steve Farrell (7/2/10)

There’s a maxim everyone’s heard, personally mouthed, and undoubtedly believes: “What goes around comes around.“ Or, “the boomerang effect.“

Largest Tax Hikes in History to Swamp Americans in January 2011!
   Taxes piece by J. D. Longstreet (7/2/10)

Some weeks ago we warned there was an avalanche of taxes headed our way. Now come a breakdown of what American families will be facing on January 1st, of 2011 courtesy of Americans for Tax Reform(1)

The 17th Amendment Revisited
   Senate piece by Thomas E. Brewton (7/2/10)

Original provisions of the Constitution intended to prevent Congress from enacting “dumb” laws were vitiated by ratification of the 17th Amendment.

‘Whatever Happened To “Yes We Can”?‘
   National Security piece by Thomas D. Segel (7/2/10)

Harlingen, Texas, July 1, 2010:  I just finished listening to the “Yes We Can” president spend an entire immigration speech saying, “No We Can’t”.  According to Barack Obama it is next to impossible for anyone to do anything to repair our broken borders. He also seems to believe that breaking our law by violating the border is acceptable and can be resolved by the criminal alien paying a small fine and learning English.

Happy Birthday, America
   The Republic piece by Guest: Nathan Tabor (7/2/10)

Two-Hundred and Thirty-Four years ago, our Founding Fathers pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor—putting literally their lives, their wealth, and their reputations on the line—- to guarantee freedom for future generations. Because of their sacrifices, America is still the longest on-going constitutional republic in the history of the world. This is a blessing that we too often take for granted, states historian David Barton of Wall Builders.(1)

The President Is Not Due ‘His Due’
   Supreme Court piece by Guest: Frank Salvato (7/2/10)

Over the course of the past several administrations we have heard from senators, political activists and media pundits that when a vacancy opens on the United States Supreme Court the Senate Judiciary Committee, and then the Senate as a whole, should allow the sitting president to have his nominee confirmed and seated to the bench. Many say that presidents “are due” the confirmation of their nominees. Truth be told, this is as far from what our Framers intended as can be fathomed.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Freedom Carries Responsibilities
   Freedom piece by Offsite (7/1/10)

My children, who are 8 and 10, are five weeks into their 12 weeks of summer vacation. With the advent of summer comes an increase in their freedom. They do not have to walk out of the house to go to school at 7:30 in the morning. This means that they can stay up after 8 p.m. and sleep past 6:30 a.m.

America’s real war
   Progressivism piece by Offsite (7/1/10)

Gen. McChrystal was wasting his time in Afghanistan. The real war is going on here, in America. It’s the war the ism-infatuated intellectuals and East Coast elitist thieves have been waging against America since the days of the 16th and 17th amendments to the Constitution.

‘Is the Web making us stupid?‘
   Internet piece by Offsite (7/1/10)

I am, among other things, a technical writer. In the course of my career writing documentation for industrial machinery and network appliances, a disturbing trend became clear: Nobody reads the manual. What I discovered in working closely with the customer service departments of several firms – and what the customer service representatives already knew – was that nobody reads the manual. More to the point, people frequently called customer service rather than check the documentation to see if the answer was already there. This was not because the answer was hard to find; it was because it was simply easier to call and ask a human being who already knew it.

Reconsidering the War On Drugs
   Drugs piece by Ann "Babe" Huggett (7/1/10)

On Sunday, June 27 on the BlogTalk Radio show, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Conservatism(1), my co-host, Warner Todd Huston and I interviewed James Gierach, representing the organization known as Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP).(2)  Now James is a Democrat so he was far better at repeating talking points than answering probing questions.  His mantra was that our current War on Drugs is a failure, leads to political corruption, ruined lives for casual users, arbitrarily enforced laws, greater demand by deliberately keeping supplies restricted, gang turf warfare, penitentiaries awash in drugs, entire minority communities blighted and families destroyed all because the Al Capone style of prohibition, which didn’t work for alcohol, was switched over to drugs mid 20th Century.

New Immigration Enforcement Chief Opposes Immigration Enforcement
   National Security piece by Jim Kouri (7/1/10)

The Obama Administration recently appointed a police chief—who believes in illegal alien sanctuary city policies—to command an immigration enforcement program that entails federal agents working with local police departments on cases involving illegal aliens.

Spare Us The Kagan Confirmation Charade
   The Republic piece by Christopher Adamo (7/1/10)

Perhaps it is again time for a history refresher regarding the origins of the United States of America. The Constitution is far more than just a venerated piece of parchment containing soaring words and phrases, that sits behind a thick piece of glass in the National Archives. It was, and is, the original and foundational “Contract With America,“ the national charter by which the states mutually agreed to establish a federal government for the purpose of arbitrating between them and collectively representing them among foreign powers.