Aug 26 2009
Cash for Clunkers in focus
Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota has explained the “cash for clunkers” program this way.
we borrow money from the Chinese to pay money to ourselves under the banner of cash for clunkers, so we can feel better about buying cars from ourselves and companies we own, General Motors, so someday, we might be able to pay ourselves back.
Is this robbing Peter to pay Peter? The problem is the Paul had his hand in the cashbox after the robbery… so there isn’t enough left to pay Peter back for what we just stole from him.
Our problems are only getting started.
Aug 26 2009
Ignoring Iran at our peril
In a report that pulls no punches, published in the Christian Science Monitor, a former spy for the CIA tells us that the West cannot ignore Iran any longer, and just hope for the best.
Today the West must make one of the most important decisions of our era. Will we defend what remains of democracy and freedom in Iran, or will we succumb to Tehran’s murderous government?
It’s a question that goes to the heart of our own security. Iran is a thugocracy of Islamic mullahs, and it will soon have nuclear arms. Any misconception about the intentions of fanatics with nuclear bombs will have grave consequences.
I know because I spent years alongside them as a CIA spy working under cover in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards starting in the 1980s.
The Guards Corps was set up as a check on the regular Army and to serve and secure the Islamic revolution. Thirty years of Western appeasement hasn’t stopped them from terrorizing the West, or Iranians. Today, with Tehran’s leaders caught in a power struggle over the June 12 election and the legitimacy of the regime, the Guards, led by zealots, are calling the shots.
The Guards, and the hardliner clerics they protect, are vulnerable, however. This summer’s grass-roots uprising has put them on the defensive. A strong Western hand now could tip the balance.
We don’t have a moment to lose. If we can’t upend the Guards now, how can we do so once they have nuclear bombs?
The story he tells is not flattering to Europe or the US in past dealings with the mullahs. It lays bare the selfish acquiesence the West has sometimes practiced regarding Iran, and says the bill is coming due now. It’s a very powerful piece, and I hope you read it all.
Aug 26 2009
Who is uninsured, and how many? The facts.
MYTHS AND MISUNDERSTANDINGS ABOUT THE UNINSURED
President Obama misstates one of the key facts in the health care debate by repeatedly claiming “46 million of our fellow citizens are uninsured.” Actually, his own Census Bureau reports only 36 million citizens are uninsured, with 10 million foreign nationals in that category, most of them illegal immigrants. Meanwhile, 14 million uninsured citizens are already eligible for Medicaid but they don’t spend even the minimal amount to join that program. Why not? They prefer to wait until they’re seriously ill and really need the program, since federal law says they must be accepted regardless of condition at no extra cost. Like the more than 25% of uninsured households that earn more than $75,000 a year, these Medicaid dropouts are uninsured by choice. It’s simply not true that the majority of those without insurance are unable to get it.
Aug 26 2009
Rest In Peace, Mary Jo.
The man responsible for your death is gone.
I pray his passing will help to ease the pain your family and friends have suffered for so long.
His legacy will forever be connected with the name “Chappaquiddick”… as it should be.
In the coming days I hope the words of tribute to him will be tempered by the memory of your terrible and untimely death.
