Coach Roy's Reading List for 1/2/2012

New Year, more of the same, and I'm sure we'll have much more later this week as the Hawkeye Caucii get finished up.

Meanwhile, my Purple Weekend didn't go as planned. Had to listen to the Purple Wildcat NU team lose to A&M, but got home to watch the Ravens (Ray Rice and Terrell Suggs) dismantle Cincinnati. Oh yes, the NU Roundballers beat State Penn too.

[As usual my comments are in bold type surrounded by square brackets].

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Politics as usual Department:

‘Fast and Furious’ Linked to Immunity Deal Between U.S. and Sinaloa Cartel, Trafficking Defendant Alleges in Court Papers

(CNSNews.com) – An alleged Mexican drug trafficker awaiting trial in a Chicago federal court claims that the notorious Sinaloa cartel received weapons from “Operation Fast and Furious” under an alleged immunity agreement that the U.S. government made with cartel leaders, in exchange for information on rival gangs.

Memo to Conservatives: A defense of House GOP

Mark Tapscott, Washington Examiner: With the Christmas break come assessments by the talking heads in the cable wars like yours truly and other alleged experts concerning who won and lost politically in the year just ended.

KNIGHT: Voter ID terrifies Democrats

By Robert Knight - The Washington Times The most consequential election in our lifetime is still 10 months away, but it’s clear from the Obama administration’s order halting South Carolina’s new photo ID law that the Democrats already have brought a gun to a knife fight

O'Malley Repeats Budget Cuts Fiction

(Red Maryland) Speaking to reporters yesterday Governor O'Malley repeated the lie that he has cut the state budget.

O'Malley told the Annapolis press corps, "Ever since this recession hit we've been relying almost exclusively, with some exceptions, but almost exclusively on the cuts. That's why we've racked up $6.8 billion in cuts."
[and O'Malley is one of the Demos "future stars..."]

How P.C. Redefines and Distorts the Definition of Child Abuse

by Theodore Dalrymple(PJ Media) Child abuse started out as fractured legs and broken skulls, and has ended up as assaults on self-esteem.

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Presidential Election Department:

Obama’s Signing Statement on NDAA: I have the power to detain Americans… but I won’t

(Prison Planet) As Americans look upon the treacherous legislation passed under NDAA 2012, it it should first be remembered that the very bill President Obama threatened to veto was controversial due to the language the Obama White House itself pressured Congress to add to the bill, according to Sen. Carl Levin.

KUHNER: Will Obama steal the 2012 election?

By Jeffrey T. Kuhner - The Washington Times Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. claims Jim Crow is returning. In a recent speech, Mr. Holder said that attempts by states to pass voter identification laws will disenfranchise minorities, rolling back the clock to the evil days of segregation. He said that a growing number of minorities fear that “the same disparities, divisions and problems” now afflict America as they did in 1965 prior to the Voting Rights Act. According to the Obama administration, our democracy is being threatened by racist Republicans. Hence, the Justice Department must prevent laws requiring a photo ID to vote from being enacted.
[Uhhh, is the Pope Catholic? These guys are from Chicago, they don't know anything about "legal" elections.]

Holder's Race-Baiting Ruse Is About Obama’s Reelection, Not Voting Rights

By: Ken Blackwell  January 1, 2012 Eric Holder’s Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched an all-out war on voter-ID laws and other measures to safeguard the electoral process. Here's the real reason why.

Obama's primary concerns

(Politico) Most Democrats don’t even know that Barack Obama is on the ballot in Iowa and New Hampshire.

But Obama’s campaign staff most definitely does — and though the outcome is assured, his operatives are eager to maximize the organizing, messaging and mobilization opportunities in two states short on electoral votes (11 in all) but long on symbolic, historic and logistical importance.

Mitt Romney Compares President Obama’s Promises To Kim Kardashian’s Wedding Vows

(MediaIte.com) During a campaign stop in Council Bluffs on Sunday evening, Mitt Romney slammed President Obama‘s promises that he made in Iowa during his last campaign, likening them to reality television star/socialite Kim Kardashian‘s broken wedding vows.
[Good Zinger Mitt]

Barone: Steady in Ia., Romney counts on NH, Fla.

Michael Barone - Wash Examiner - Election year has finally arrived, well after the beginning of a turbulent and unpredictable elections season, and voting begins two days from now in the Iowa Republicans caucuses.

Poll: Paul showing signs of fading in Iowa

by Philip Klein Senior Editorial Writer - Rep. Ron Paul, R-Tex., seen as the frontrunner in Iowa just weeks ago, is showing signs of fading as we approach tomorrow's caucuses, according to a new poll, though he's still locked in what's essentially a three-way tie with a surging Rick Santorum and steady Mitt Romney.

How Ron Paul became a contender in Iowa

DES MOINES, Iowa – To his passionate fan base, it’s no surprise that Rep. Ron Paul, R-Tex., is within striking distance of winning the Iowa caucuses, with just three days to go. But for many Republicans who consider him to be a wacky libertarian with troubling foreign policy views, it’s a bit of a mystery how that has a chance of winning – and this sense of puzzlement extends to Iowans who are supporting other candidates. But after several days of speaking to voters and attending several Paul campaign events, I’ve found a number of reasons why he’s been able to move beyond being a fringe candidate to actually being a threat to win the state.
[All the Independent Democrats realized they'd have to be in a room with those stupid Republicans....]

Ron Paul Forcefully Denies Ever Supporting 9/11 Conspiracy Theories

Exclusive: Trump Supporters File Papers Paving Way for 3rd-Party Candidacy in TX — Trump Acknowledges

(The Blaze) Donald Trump supporters have met an official ballot deadline in Texas, paving the way for the business mogul to become a third-party candidate there, a source close to Trump tells The Blaze. Trump himself acknowledged the filing in a statement.
[Just what we need - another Egocentric Narcissist in the race.}

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World View

The Tyrant in His Trap

by Michael J. Totten Assad’s totalitarian stranglehold over his citizens has completely evaporated.

Iraqi PM celebrates U.S. withdrawal as new dawn

(AP) BAGHDAD — Iraq’s prime minister hailed the end of the American military presence in Iraq as a new dawn for his country and urged Iraqis to preserve the unity of a nation still under attack by insurgents and beset by sectarian divisions.

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Global What?

Does the death of the ethanol tax credit matter?

by Timothy P. Carney Senior Political Columnist - (The Examiner) COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA — Some enemies of ethanol subsidies celebrated as the ball dropped New Year's Eve, because one of the most venerable corporate welfare policies in the U.S. expired — the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC).
[Now that you are REQUIRED to use this crap, they don't need to bribe business to put it in our gas.]

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Popular Culture, etc.:

Is Brigham Young University's Football Team Ethical?

Richard E. Vatz - Here is the set-up: Brigham Young University's Cougars, the football team of America's biggest religious university, won a football game against Tulsa (as described by the Associated Press) by "[hurrying] to the line with a call to spike the ball and stop the clock. Instead, [quarterback Riley] Nelson faked the spike and then threw his third touchdown pass...with 11 seconds left to give the Cougars a 24-21 victory over Tulsa in the Armed Forces Bowl..."
[Rick - you are carrying the "fairness issue" too far. Faking a handoff, pass, or even kick is more than legal, its part of football. And you are usually so smart....]

Nah. Universities Aren't Liberal Mind-Warping Camps At All. Nope.

(Chicks on the Right) Daisy - If you believe that universities generally don’t lean WAAAAAAAY to the left, I have some Indiana tidal wave insurance to sell you.

The Graduate: Why Should Everyone Else Pay for Other People's Dumb (and Hedonistic) Career Choices

(PJ Media) Barry Rubin - I’ve recently made the acquaintance of a young man who has a problem. He is 28 years old; smart, of good moral character, and willing to work hard at part-time jobs. He does not expect anyone else, including the government, to support him.  Yet he is puzzled and increasingly bitter that he cannot make a good living.

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Business

EEOC: High school diploma requirement might violate Americans with Disabilities Act

(Washington Times) Employers are facing more uncertainty in the wake of a letter from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission warning them that requiring a high school diploma from a job applicant might violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.

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Military Stuff

Veteran’s claims of awards, service do not withstand scrutiny

(Stars & Stripes) When David Stump died last year, the south suburban Chicago man left his family a sheaf of yellowing documents and a troubling question: Did the U.S. Army veteran earn the Bronze Star and the three Purple Hearts the records suggested, or were the military documents falsified? The question of Stump’s legacy was more than an idle curiosity.

Families fight ERB with petition, Facebook

(Navy Times) Call it #OccupyERB. Sailors and their spouses, infuriated by the service's decision to boot 2,947 sailors via two enlisted retention boards, have launched a campaign for a review of the cuts, with a larger goal of overturning them altogether.

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And the rest of the stuff:

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