Coach Roy's Reading List for 1/9/2012

Now that we've survived The Simpsons parody of Glenn Beck (and their host network, Fox) we can get back to serious stuff....

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

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Politics (as usual) Department:

Rep. Allen West: House and Senate GOP Leaders ‘Sold us Down the Road’ on Payroll Tax Cut

(CNSNews.com) – Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.), a Tea Party favorite, talking about the deal to extend payroll tax cut brokered by House leadership and the White House, said that the GOP House leadership had caved in to Senate GOP leaders, who “sold us down the road” for “pathetic politics” in the form of a two-month extension.

“I was very upset about what happened with this payroll tax cut extension,” West told WMAL radio station in Baltimore, Friday morning.

The Maryland Model (part two)

(Monoblog) As you should recall, I distilled the idea behind the Colorado Model liberal Democrats used to take over that state into four simpler M words: money, message, media, and mobilization. In this part I assess the overall shape conservatives here in Maryland exist in regarding these four issues – and we definitely need to do some work!

The Maryland Model (part three)

In truth, though, this part won’t be based strictly on the Maryland Model. It’s actually going to be a critique of a presentation I ran across, one which is presumably some sort of PowerPoint presentation translated to Scribed for the purposes of disseminating. Called Become a Force Multiplier: 5 Simple Tasks for American Activists, it addresses many of the issues we will face in 2012 with a particular focus on Big Labor’s aspect.

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Presidential Election Department:

Really?': Chris Christie Slams Protesters Chanting 'Christie Kills Jobs'

(MediaIte) During a Sunday evening rally in Exeter, New Hampshire for Mitt Romney, New Jersey governor Chris Christie was interrupted by demonstrators chanting “Christie Kills Jobs.”

O'Conner: Axelrod-Style ‘October Surprise’ Comes Early: Newt’s SuperPAC Attacks Romney From Left

(Big Government) With the New Hampshire Primary just three days away, a Super PAC affiliated with Newt Gingrich has released a devastating film attacking Mitt Romney’s days at Bain Capital labeling him “more ruthless than Wall Street.” The film, called “When Mitt Romney Came To Town,” features multiple men and women who had lost their jobs and in some cases their homes, due to the corporate decisions of Romney’s investment firm.

White House threw secret 'ALICE IN WONDERLAND' bash...

(NY Post) A White House “Alice in Wonderland” costume ball — put on by Johnny Depp and Hollywood director Tim Burton — proved to be a Mad-as-a-Hatter idea that was never made public for fear of a political backlash during hard economic times, according to a new tell-all.

[Barack in Wonderland....spending our money]

Barone: Thoughts on the Meet the Press/NBC/Facebook debate

(Michael Barone - Wash Examiner) We got more tussle, as my Examiner colleague Philip Klein points out, and a whole bunch of dumb questions in the Meet the Press/NBC/Facebook/Union Leader/Channel 7 debate (are these things improved by having more sponsors? No) this morning.

Where's the tea party?

(Vogel - Politico) New Hampshire might seem like ground zero for a tea party offensive.

Promises, Obamises.

(Chics on the Right) Video of BHO's signing statements....

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Law of Unintended Consequences:

FEDS GROUND 'BIRD PLANE' WHOOPING CRANES THINK IS THEIR MOTHER...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ten young whooping cranes and the bird-like plane they think is their mother had flown more than halfway to their winter home in Florida when federal regulators stepped in.

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The Media

Klavan: How The Media Makes Us Stupid

(PJ Media) There are times these days watching the news when I feel I know less when I am finished than when I began. The people who ask the questions seem consistently to ask the wrong questions or to ask them in such a twisted and tendentious way that no possible answer could lead a viewer or reader any closer to the facts of the matter.

The land of make-believe

(Politico) But the contest isn’t: Mitt Romney is holding onto his apparently huge lead over rivals in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, and is looking so strong going into South Carolina’s primary two weeks from now that his advisers privately talk up hopes for a 3-0 sweep of the opening contests - and a quick kill to win.

Olbermann Announces He Will Be ‘Running’ Current’s Election Coverage After NH

(MediaIte) The enigmatic feud between Countdown host Keith Olbermann and his network, Current TV, has ended, not with a bang, but with a Sunday announcement that the fiery liberal provocateur has agreed to anchor the network’s election coverage following Tuesday’s New Hampshire Primary, which isn’t quite the network’s preferred outcome, but close enough.

[But nobody will watch anyway....]

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World View

Generals' early handover to Islamists wrecks hopes for New Egypt

(DEBKA File) Washington and Jerusalem were dismayed to discover last week that Egypt's transitional military rulers (SCAF) were preparing to drop the reins of government and hand them over - lock, stock and barrel, including the armed forces - to civilian rule, i.e., the Muslim Brotherhood, at the earliest opportunity

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Global What?

[& The Environmental Wackos]

MICHAELS: A sustainable depression

(Patrick Michaels - Wash Times) If the Dow fell 85 percent, most folks would call that a depression. So why doesn’t that apply to the “sustainable” energy business - mainly solar and wind power - where shares have fallen an average of 85 percent to 90 percent, even excluding the bankrupt Solyndras, Evergreens and Solons? This depression is global, hitting Chinese Suntech, the world’s largest producer of solar panels, as well. Suntech has seen its shares plunge 88 percent.

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Popular Culture, etc.:

Catholics Beware: ‘The ‘Devil Inside’ Trashes the Catholic Church

(John Nolte - Big Hollywood) The new “found footage” horror entry, “The Devil Inside,” has plenty of problems as a stand alone film. My colleague Christian Toto points out many of them here. Reportedly, Paramount purchased the exorcist story for somewhere around a million dollars, which means that even after the costs associated with advertising, profits will be pouring in after only one weekend. Good for them; the marketing was better than the film. What’s new?

Cell Phone Execs Sorry About Giving 11-Year-Old Girl A Phone Number Last Used By Escort Service

(Jane Dolugh) After your phone dies, do you ever wonder where the number goes? I mean, sure someone else gets use of it, but usually the overlap between previous owner and new owner isn’t horrendously awkward or anything. You would think. And yet, sometimes, those two customers are the last two people on earth who should share digits.

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Business

Clown Cars: The Disastrous Results of Lawyers, Not Gearheads, Running the Auto Industry

(Big Government.com) For years, the lawyers have not been able to resist instructing the auto industry. Since Ralph Nader began tinkering in the sixties, cars have gone from iconic to ridiculous. We have seen great cars like the Impala turned into a tiny little go-cart filled with airbags and other safety equipment. While I do not begrudge those of us who like safety equipment (after all, that’s why God created Volvos), I long for some of the breathtaking muscle cars of my youth–the proud beasts of an era gone by.

Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against eBay Because Of The Way Its Auctions Work

(Techdirt.com) It seems you can find people to file a class action lawsuit against just about any crazy thing these days. The latest, as pointed out by Eric Goldman (with the complaint embedded below), is someone filing a class action lawsuit against eBay claiming all sorts of violations for the way eBay's auction system has always worked. Here's the basic issue. eBay developed a rather clever system back when it launched to handle bidding. You don't just put in your next bid — you put in what's supposed to be the maximum you're willing to bid on an item. But the auction system itself always goes for the highest bidder's lowest increment above the second highest bidder. If that sounds confusing, let's take the language from eBay's own site
[Huh?]

DIAMOND: Gun control kills jobs

(Richard Diamond - Wash Times) Ever since Barack Obama was sworn in as president, the economy has misfired. Jobs remain scarce and the market has yet to recover the value it had prior to the 2007 crash. Though Mr. Obama’s policies have unintentionally given a major boost to an industry he hates - firearms - even this one bright spot hasn’t necessarily translated into new employment.

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Military Stuff

By 2016, Defense Will Increase by $50 Billion and Other Spending by $7 Trillion

(Big Peace) It looks like the nation’s national security may soon take it in the shorts, a repeat of the 1990s but worse. Then, defense spending declined in real terms by a cumulative $300 billion from 1993-2000. At the same time, the major procurement accounts were under-funded by fully 40% according to a senior defense department official in a speech from December of 2000.

Cargo drone makes debut in Afghanistan

(Stars & Stripes) The U.S. military is testing a revolutionary new drone for its arsenal, a pilotless helicopter intended to fly cargo missions to remote outposts where frequent roadside bombs threaten access by road convoys.

A shrinking military budget may take neighbors with it

(Stars & Stripes) WASHINGTON — Military spending has transformed the faded farmlands of northern Virginia into a land of glass-block office parks, oversize homes and sleek cars. Average household incomes there are among the highest in the United States.

Defense cuts unlikely to hurt Calif. economy

[It cant get much worse]

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And the rest of the stuff:

The Weather in Lower Slower Delaware

U.S. Retail Gasoline Prices

Politico's Morning Score Election Cheat Sheet [Remember this is Politico]

Latest NewsBusted

Links may become inactive after time...my comments still hold