Jane of Armies of Liberation guest blogs at the Jawa Report, mostly about Yemen.
So Obama helped kill al Quaeda in Yemen. Yay! Right?

Maybe not. Jane is pretty sure the answer is "Definitely not".

Yemen's been busy bombing people, but not necessarily al Quaeda types. There's a strong anti-dictatorship group (claiming to be democrats, I hope so), so maybe we just helped the dictator of Yemen, Saleh, kill some inconvenient people.
Check out Jane's page and just scroll, it's interesting reading. She knows Yemen, enough for the gov't to officially hate her.

So it looks as if Obama just made the US look like a tool of dictators.
Again.

We are so screwed.

Posted by: Veeshir at 08:53 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Greetings from the snowpocalypse. I am currently under about 15 inches of snow. Fun times. What's more fun? Having a HUGE snowball fight because your entire city is shut down.

But, as the old saying goes, it's all fun and games until someone brings a gun to a snowball fight.

Posted by: It's Vintage, Duh at 07:57 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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In case the idea of having your electric bill jacked way up and losing thousands of jobs in an all ready strapped economy wasn't quite enough to convince you that cap-and-trade is a terrible idea that just leads to more taxes, we have this delightful story from Europe:

In a statement released last week, the Europol police agency said Europe's cap-and-trade system has been the victim of organized crime during the past 18 months, resulting in losses of roughly $7.4 billion. The agency, headquartered in the Netherlands, estimated that in some countries up to 90 percent of the entire market volume was caused by fraudulent activities.

"These criminal activities endanger the credibility of the European Union Emission Trading System and lead to the loss of significant tax revenue for governments," Rob Wainwright, Europol's director, said in a statement.

Launched in 2005, the Emission Trading System seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions -- which many scientists believe contribute to global warming -- by allocating carbon pollution allowances to member states to fulfill its obligations under the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol. Companies that emit less than their allowance can sell the difference on the trading market to firms that exceed their established limits.

But, according to a diagram of these scheme provided by Europol officials, the accused traders would open an account in a national carbon registry and then purchased emission allowances without value added taxes from other companies in other countries. Those allowances were then transferred to the country where they were registered before the accused trader moves them to an unregulated broker, selling the allowances on a trading exchange, often through various buffer companies. Finally, the accused trader charges the value added tax on the transaction but does not submit that money to authorities.

Is it just me, or is this the equivilent of money-laundering?  Way to fail, as usual, EU.

Posted by: Ember at 07:02 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Saturn's most famous moon, Titan, may be getting a visit from earth in the semi-near future.  In case you're unaware, Titan is cool because it has a lot of things that earth has - liquid lakes and seas, a weather system complete with rain and wind.  Of all the places in our solar system, Titan is the most similar to earth in many respects.  Now, of course, since Titan is orbiting Saturn, it is far from being in the Goldilocks zone, and is very, very cold, so it doesn't rain water and its seas aren't made of water. 

We could still learn all kinds of cool things from Titan.  If, for example, we learn that weather patterns behave similarily on Titan, we can use that data here on earth.  The group proposing this most recent trip would also use the trip to test a new type of power that is supposedly more efficient than the power they currently use on space exploration.

The other great thing about this trip?  By NASA standards, it would be dirt cheap.

Scientists got a few brief hours worth of data back from Titan's land surface in 2005 when the Huygens probe touched down in an equatorial region of the moon.

Now a number of those same researchers are desperate to go back for a longer-lived stay, but to investigate this time the huge pools that contain methane, ethane, propane and probably many other types of hydrocarbon (carbon-rich) compounds.

The Titan Mare Explorer (TiME) has already been under study for about two years. It is envisaged as a relatively low-cost endeavour - in the low $400m range.

It could launch in January 2016, and make some flybys of Earth and Jupiter to pick up the gravitational energy it would need to head straight at the Saturnian moon for a splash down in June 2023.

Of course, Big O's administration hasn't appeared to be very friendly to NASA, and, as I noted a while ago, the new NASA budget doesn't allow for any programs to be created without approval from the Congress, so this may be short-lived.  But damn, if it wouldn't be fucking cool.

Posted by: Ember at 05:51 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Hahahahaaaaa, this is awesome. 

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 11:19 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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So I'm going to the Giants/Foreskins game on Monday (Yay!).
It's going to be in the 20s.
So my question:
What's a good hot drink?
I usually have hot chocolate and Crown (don't tell my father I mix my whiskey with something besides water), but that's too sweet to have more than one or two.

Right now I'm leaning toward hot tea with Hennessy and Bailey's, leading to tea with Hennessy leading to Hennessy.

Do any of you know any better hot, alcoholic drink? I can't think of one.

Posted by: Veeshir at 10:26 AM | Comments (26) | Add Comment
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Maybe.

Fuuuuuuuuuucccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: eddiebear at 01:01 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I absolutely understand how someone could find this offensive.

And yet, I can't stop giggling.

A California neighborhood reportedly is up in arms after a resident decorated his lawn with a depiction of Jesus shooting Santa Claus.

The controversial Christmas display shows Jesus pointing a double-barrel shotgun at Santa's dead body as Rudolph lays sprawled across the hood of a pickup truck nearby, WNCT reported.

Neighbors in Nipomo, Calif., called for the display to be removed, but its maker Ron Lake called it a work of art — in which Santa represents the commercialization of Christmas, the station reported.

"It's an expression of my repressed creativity," Lake told WNCT.

Police said that because Lake built the display on private property they cannot force him to take it down. Some residents plan to start a petition, the station reported.

Posted by: Ember at 10:37 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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No creased pants for you, buddy.

And yet, instead of certainty, Brooksie still quivers and trembles in fear and indecisiveness that Patton, Grant, Petraeus, or Washington never showed.

So what’s my verdict? I have to confess, I flip-flop week to week and day to day. It’s a guess. Does this put us on a path toward the real reform, or does it head us down a valley in which real reform will be less likely?

If I were a senator forced to vote today, I’d vote no. If you pass a health care bill without systemic incentives reform, you set up a political vortex in which the few good parts of the bill will get stripped out and the expensive and wasteful parts will be entrenched.

While I am glad to see Brooks side with the "no" votes (does that mean Frum, Noonan, Parker, and Gergen will soon follow?), this sheer limp wristed equivocation is why we need to tell the moderates to stay away from leadership and follow us or get the fuck out of the way.

Posted by: eddiebear at 03:01 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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I mean, really?

From the TPM memo:

Their strategy: GOP just wants to rewind the clock to Bush era.

"The Republican party in Washington today is no different than the Republican party that ran the Congress before," {true. The GOP still ignores its base-ed} Van Hollen said.

It's a message they will push especially in districts where there are repeat Republican candidates

Democrats think the economy will actually work to their advantage - if there is an uptick, they can say they stepped in to save it from a deeper dive and say Republicans voted 'No' on every piece of legislation that helped to turn it around.

"The big question will be who was on your side during this very difficult period of time," {if fucking the country with nice smelling lube is your idea of "on my side", I'll take the dry run instead-ed}he said.

But if it doesn't get better?

Then there's real danger, Democrats say privately.

But to give a sense of how much more difficult the landscape is this time around, Van Hollen detailed that 42 members are in their "Frontline" program of toughest battlegrounds {almost the same number of seats the GOP needs to regain the House.-ed}, a number that has increased as they scooped up GOP seats over the last few years.

"We are living with the results of our own successes, {!}" he said.

That gives them a smaller playing field to go on offense.

As we have reported, Van Hollen said the Democratic message next year will be deficit reduction, from President Obama's State of the Union address on down to the rank-and-file.

Van Hollen was pressed on whether a frustrated base of liberal Democrats would stay home from the polls next year, and he said that while many have forgotten about children's health care, the fair pay act and education reform, they are "all measures we could not get passed" under then-President George W. Bush.

Van Hollen said members who benefited from record turnout in 2008 "will have to be very clear that the future success of the Obama agenda is at stake and even though president is not on the ballot {but they seem determined to put a FORMER President on the ballot?-ed}that everyone who supported the president in the last election has to get out and support candidates [to boost] the president's agenda."

My take?

Posted by: eddiebear at 11:09 AM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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When the government steps in to help us poor, pathetic mortals out, things like this happen:

It's no mistake. This credit card's interest rate is 79.9 percent.

 The bloated APR is how First Premier Bank, a subprime credit card issuer, is skirting new regulations intended to curb abusive practices in the industry. It's a strategy other subprime card issuers could start adopting to get around the new rules.

 Typically, the First Premier card comes with a minimum of $256 in fees in the first year for a credit line of $250. Starting in February, however, a new law will cap such fees at 25 percent of a card's credit line.

In a recent mailing for a preapproved card, First Premier lowers fees to just that limit — $75 in the first year for a credit line of $300. But the new law doesn't set a cap on interest rates. Hence the 79.9 APR, up from the previous 9.9 percent.

So, in stepping in to save us all from the big, bad, evil credit card companies, at least one of those companies is jacking interest rates from nearly 10% to nearly 80%?  We're talking about a card that lends to sub-prime customers, meaning customers who are much higher risk.  As a result, these sub-prime customers default on their loans more often than not, and the company has to do something to be able to keep loaning that credit. 

All this can do is open the way for more regulation to keep interest rates low.  And, of course, that will drive credit lenders out of business.  Then, there will be no credit for anybody and the economy will suffer even further.  It's brilliant liberal policy at work, ladies and gentlemen. 

Now, I don't have Eddie's gift with the word fuck, much as I wish I did.  So I guess I'll have to settle for a simple, "Fuck you."

Posted by: Ember at 11:48 PM | Comments (15) | Add Comment
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A place for Alextopia.

Sure, sure, Japan claims it's all weeds and rock, but, c'mon.  We all know that Gojira is around there somewhere.

Plus it's Japan.  There's bound to be Mothra babes and some schoolgirls as well.

Posted by: alexthechick at 10:21 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Apparently, Santa needs a makeover.  All sorts of things in the Santa-mythos could be damaging to the children, and, well, when it comes to the children, there's nothing we won't do.  You see, Santa's fat, which may encourage obesity.  Santa also climbs around on rooftops and breaks into houses, which may encourage lawless behavior.  Some people leave cookies and brandy for Santa, which means that Santa drives his sleigh drunk.  (How does Rudolph's nose glow quite so bright, you wonder?  Booze.)  And this is not the image we should be promoting to the children.

With his portly belly and a fondness for a brandy-fuelled spin on the sleigh, Santa Claus is hardly the picture of health or safety.

Now his wild ways are catching up with him, with calls for a radical overhaul of his bad boy image. A study by Monash University public health expert Dr Nathan Grills found Santa could be promoting obesity, speeding and drink-driving, and damaging millions of lives.

The childhood legend should be used to promote a healthy lifestyle, the study, published in the British Medical Journal, found.

It suggested Santa slim down by ditching the cookies, mince pies and milk, and instead snacking on his reindeers' carrots and celery sticks. Santa also should trade in the sleigh for a bike or throw his sack over his shoulder and hit the global road on foot.

And the brandy should definitely be banished, because of its pound-piling potential.

It could also put Santa at risk of drink-driving, given that he visits billions of houses and takes a tipple at each.

His reckless behaviour could also encourage extreme sports such as roof surfing and chimney jumping - not to mention speeding.

At the very least he should buckle up or don a helmet, the study says.

Seriously, people?  This is definitely in the top 50 dumbest fucking things I have ever heard.  Stupid drunk-driving Santa, eating cookies and climbing through chimneys.  Obviously, this kind of reckless behavior cannot be condoned, and should be immediately stopped.  Furthermore, I've decided that it is evident that Santa Claus must be a pedophile.  After all, he sneaks into houses to give presents to young children.  Aren't people always telling their kids not to accept things from strangers?

As such, I motion that we ban Santa Claus permanently.  Anyone showing his likeness, referring to, or behaving in any manner reminiscent of Santa Claus (e.g., giving gifts to children, eating cookies, wearing red, using the word "ho" in a sentence) should be immediately executed for being a bad role-model to the children.

After all, we can't have anyone corrupting the children with a message of good cheer, charity, and kindness, during this - or any other - time of the year.

Posted by: Ember at 06:53 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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Posted by: plebian at 05:15 PM | Comments (26) | Add Comment
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Fuck you with radioactive taconite. Fuck you for "Little House On The Prairie". Fuck you for the Twins beating the Cardinal in 1987, while I was in 8th Grade. Fuck you for that 1999 NFC Title Game, where I lost money in Vegas. And double plus fuck you with fuckity sauce fresh from the funnel of fuckitude for putting retards like Jesse The Body Ventura and Al Fucking Franken in serious office.

 Oh, and fuck you with Bud Grant's four Super Bowl losses for making me have to show some respect to John McCain.

Posted by: eddiebear at 04:58 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Sweet, they're turning on each other.  They're gonna collapse in 2010 and 2012, and we need to try and begin working to take advantage of the chaos, both in the GOP and Democrat parties.  The Democrat base is not gonna fund these guys if they can't bring them Marxist medicine, or at least a Trojan Horse that they'd find acceptable.  This was probably the best shot these guys had at Marxist medicine, and I think they've blown it.  Doesn't mean they can't cause a lot of destruction with some "compromise", but I think we'll avoid a Worst Case Scenario^TM.

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 01:43 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Four year old grabs himself a beer, breaks into his neighbors house and tries to steal their Christmas presents.

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 01:13 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Type in "why are" into Google and you get some pretty hilarious results in the top ten. 

My personal favorite is "why are there school." 

BWA HA HA HA HA!!!

Oh, Google, you really DON'T know what I'm thinking.  How comforting.

Posted by: Moron Pundit at 10:11 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I'm one of those people who still loves "A Christmas Story" in spite of the way that it's become the equivalent of my generation's "It's a Wonderful Life," airing nearly nonstop this time of year.

That said, there's porn.

There's always porn, apparently.

Posted by: Sean M. at 05:54 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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After DPUD's post yesterday on the folks at the NRSC lying about staying out of primaries, and this piece today, I have this to say to the shitheads who run the RNC/NRSC/RNCC:
more...

Posted by: eddiebear at 01:34 AM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
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