Baseline Games

Team Obama gets nice budget-reduction headlines from the NY Times and the WaPo by promising not to re-invade Iraq:

Obama Plan to Cut Deficit Will Trim Spending by $3 Trillion

and

Obama’s debt-reduction plan: $3 trillion in savings, half from new tax revenue

And the Times description:

WASHINGTON — President Obama will unveil a deficit-reduction plan on Monday that uses entitlement cuts, tax increases and war savings to reduce government spending by more than $3 trillion over the next 10 years, administration officials said.

...

Mr. Obama will call for $1.5 trillion in tax increases, primarily on the wealthy, through a combination of closing loopholes and limiting the amount that high earners can deduct. The proposal also includes $580 billion in adjustments to health and entitlement programs, including $248 billion to Medicare and $72 billion to Medicaid. Administration officials said that the Medicare cuts would not come from an increase in the Medicare eligibility age.

Senior administration officials who briefed reporters on some of the details of Mr. Obama’s proposal said that the plan also counts a savings of $1.1 trillion from the ending of the American combat mission in Iraq and the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan.

Well, unless I am completely misunderstanding this, the $1.1 trillion of savings from winding down those two wars has already been factored into the Joint Select Committee deficit reduction baseline. Put another way, if the select committee could deliver $1.1 trillion of their original $1.5 trillion target simply by citing wind-downs in Iraq and Afghanistan, the process would hardly be fraught with suspense.

That being so, an honest news report would be that Obama seeks roughly $2 trillion of "new" deficit reduction, achieved by way of $1.5 trillion in tax hikes and $500 billion in Medicare/Medicaid cuts.  That $2 trillion would meet the original $1.5 trillion goal of the deficit reduction committee and tack on Obama's supplemental goal of another $500 billion (roughly) to pay for his latest jobs bill (which he laughably described as "paid for").

Instead, the Big Media chose to embrace the White House spin and present Obama's plan as half tax hikes and half spending cuts.  Go figure.

NOW WHO IS CONFUSED, BESIDES ME?  Let me regroup - per Keith Hennesey, under the current law baseline the Bush tax cuts are already set to expire, so the select committee cannot claim credit for that towards their $1.5 trillion target.  However, nothing can stop Obama from playing games.  From the Times:

Under Mr. Obama’s proposal, $800 billion of the $1.5 trillion in tax increases would come from allowing the Bush-era tax cuts to expire. The other $700 billion, aides said, would come from a combination of closing loopholes and limiting deductions among individuals making more than $200,000 a year and families making more than $250,000.

So really, Obama's $3 trillion plan includes $1.1 trillion of military savings and $800 billion of expiring Bush tax cuts already included in the Congessional baseline.  In other words, the $3 trillion plan is a $1 trillion plan.  Bold leadership!

Comments

[Dave (in MA)]

Almost an hour late for his latest Speech That Will Save The World.

[Neo]

This pretty much guarantees that the "Obama tax cuts" (extension of Bush tax cuts) will end for everybody.

[MarkO]

I'm thinking of a certain scene in "Blazing Saddles.

[Mahon]

"$3 trillion in savings, half from new tax revenue"

How does new tax revenue constitute savings? It may reduce the deficit, but "savings" means less spending not more income. Either no one edits the Washington Post any more, or they just don't care what words mean as long as they serve their purposes.

[BB Key]

That is how JEF does policy...schedules a speech...leaks to media...tells speech writers to recycle...shows up late ...a rude empty suit

[narciso]

It's like the Marx Bros or Cantinflas;

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/09/obama-jobs-speech-right-now-dick-durbin.html

[Extraneus]

"Spending reductions in the tax code" = tax increases, Mahon. It's newspeak.

[Ignatz]

--Tht being so, an honest news report would be that Obama seeks roughly $2 trillion of "new" deficit reduction, achieved by way of $1.5 trillion in tax hikes and $500 billion in Medicare/Medicaid cuts.--

Medicare and especially Medicaid, because they are government boondoggles, already do not fully compensate doctors and hospitals.
Medicaid services are already disastrously sub par.
Any more cuts will simply force docs to refuse participation and undermine and balloon private health insurance even more as compensation for the below market returns of Medicare/caid, or the cuts simply won't happen.
Dr. Barry is proposing a tonsillectomy for a patient with a sucking chest wound.

[NK]

BB Key s exactly right describing how the Obamaniac operates. "Rude empty suit" absolutely. I personally go with "effin' muppet."

[Jane]

Hey the Federal Court just threw out Jose Padilla's sentence of 17 years. They said it wasn't long enough.

[Rob Crawford]

I'm thinking of a certain scene in "Blazing Saddles.

Either the campfire or "somebody has go back and get a sh!tload of nickels!"

[Appalled]

Can we withdraw from Iraq twice? That will really help the bottom line. And hey, how about the saving from failing to invade Iran, Georgia, Iceland, or Peru. (Or, in honor of narcisco, we could fail to invade Fredonia. Hail Fredonia!)

[MarkO]

While there are so many great scenes in the movie, what the tax increase proposal called to mind was the scene where a certain sheriff takes himself hostage.

[Extraneus]

I think it's the one where Obama holds a gun to his own head and threatens the Democrats.

[Extraneus]

Winner!

[Appalled]

OK, it's bad when an administration brings to mind BOTH Blazing Saddles and Duck Soup. (And, I think there are elements of Young Frankenstein and the collected works of Evelyn Waugh too....)

[GMAX]

Well I have certainly noticed that while "unexpectedly" is an adverb that the media has been become enthralled with, not so much so though with "laughably". But nearly any pronouncement of this administration lately by Carney or Zero himself, should rightly get that modifier. And laughing is better than crying I guess...

[narciso]

There's also vintage Woody Allen, from 'Take the Money and Run" when he tries to rob the bank, but the tellers are confused about the
note, he wrote.

[MarkO]

narc, was Woody ever funny again?

[Janet]

I'm thinking of a certain scene in "Blazing Saddles.

Makes me think of a self-report sent to AttackWatch (I can't remember where I saw it).
He reported himself for having just eaten an unhealthy meal of beans & tortilla chips, & in about an hour he was gonna be producing CO2. LOL!! A double rule breaker!

[GMAX]

That would be methane, another greenhouse gas but not carbon dioxide. But remember to self report if you spew spittle while laughing. Cuz water vapor is the biggest greenhouse gas of all amazing what settled science has decided is an American evil.

[MarkO]

I just reviewed the scene and it is unexpectedly accurate.

[Benjamin Franklin]

"Games" Well, there's games, then there's......games.

Russian Roulette is a game. Who fears the 'trigger'?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line

"What I think is really driving all of this is that Obama doesn’t fear the supercommittee trigger — and he suspects that the GOP might.

This is a real contrast with the spring showdown over appropriations and the threat of a government shutdown, and with the confrontation over the debt limit last month. In those cases, it’s likely that Obama simply was not prepared to accept a failure to reach a deal, because the consequences for the economy would be so dire. With the economy so fragile, Democrats had to be worried that any new shock could lead to a downward spiral. And a new recession would almost certainly cost the Democrats at the ballot box, no matter who was responsible. That gave Republicans some serious leverage in negotiations, since they had an electoral incentive to just blow everything up.

This time, the consequences of failure are very different ..."

[Rick Ballard]

President Bart would add "Don't call my bluff."

[Jack is Back!]

Forget Blazing Saddles and Duck Soup, this is too amateurish to be considered even good slapstick. Its almost like watching a whole political universe acting out a script written by some cosmic practical joker. The same people who gave us Rocky Horror Show - where we get to dress up as characters and parrot their lines since we have memorized them over the 100's of times we have watched the same damn thing unfold.

Now that he has got that out of the way he can get back to the serious task at hand - can he finally reach that 1st par 5 at Andrews in 2 shots today?

[Rob Crawford]

GMAX -- flatus contains methane, CO2, *AND* water vapor.

[narciso]

That word you are using John, doesn't mean what you think it does, wasn't it enough to
be pwned on 'Game Change'

http://nymag.com/print/?/news/politics/israel-2011-9/

[Benjamin Franklin]

"That word you are using John, doesn't mean what you think it does"

But he does ask an interesting question.......

"How, exactly, did Obama come to be portrayed, and perceived by many American Jews, as the most ardently anti-Israel president since Jimmy Carter?"

[Thomas Collins]

With the inflation factor, the budget savings from the failure to restart the War of 1812 alleviates the need for any real spending decreases (although of course in DemWorld tax hikes on the "rich" are always in order).

[Extraneus]

Barack Obama’s top ten insults against Israel

[MarkO]

"Toast, toast."

[Chubby]

((Tht [sic :)] being so, an honest news report would...))

An honest and balanced news report would honestly and objectively report on the alternative proposals that the Republicans have already put forth, and let the people decide who has the better ideas.

Helene Cooper's report reeks with dishonesty.

((That veto threat will put the president on a direct collision course with the House speaker, John A. Boehner, who said last week that he would not support any legislation that included revenue increases in the form of higher taxes.))

does she report on what the Republicans have proposed as better alternatives to raising taxes? no

and

((Representative Paul D. Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee and a leading proponent of cutting spending on benefit programs like Medicare, said the proposal would weigh heavily on a stagnating economy.))

does she explain even a little bit about Ryan's plan? no, she makes it sound like he wants to slash and burn Medicare, which is a huge lie

So readers of this propaganda/WH press release aren't give a choice to decide. The only choice Helene Cooper gives her readers is to decide whether the Republicans are evil and greedy or evil and racist.

[Benjamin Franklin]

"It was Netanyahu’s coalition partners that provoked the great contretemps of 2010 with the U.S.: the cold-cocking of Joe Biden. Arguably the administration’s staunchest Zionist and a longtime friend of Netanyahu’s—a signed photo of Biden from his Senate days sits on Bibi’s desk—the vice-president arrived in Israel that March to promote the “proximity” peace talks that the sides had just agreed to undertake. There he was ambushed with a surprise announcement by the Interior Ministry, which is controlled by the fundamentalist Shas Party, of the building of new settlement blocs in contested East Jerusalem. Netanyahu was apparently as blindsided as Biden was.

The Obamans were livid at Biden’s flagrant ill-treatment. Hillary Clinton administered a now-famous 43-minute telephonic blistering to Netanyahu, and, according to Jeffrey Goldberg on Bloomberg.com, Bob Gates “told several people that if he had been Biden, he would have returned to Washington immediately and told the prime minister to call Obama when he was serious about negotiations.”

Thirteen days later, Netanyahu traveled to Washington and met with Obama at the White House. The president expressed his anger about the Biden incident. Within days, media outlets around the world were filled with Israeli-sourced stories about Obama’s rudeness to Netanyahu: that there had been no photo op, no joint statement, and that 44 had walked out of their meeting and left Bibi stewing in a West Wing meeting room while the president had dinner with his family. Were the stories true? Obama’s people dispute the details. But the damage to his reputation with many American Jews had already been done; the “snub” to Netanyahu took its place atop the growing list of administration affronts to Israel.

It’s often said that Netanyahu has an exquisitely calibrated feel for American politics and great savvy in working its press corps. Both are true and both have helped him enormously in resisting the pressure brought to bear by Team Obama. But the administration has also sabotaged itself, in particular by frequently failing to speak with one voice to Israel.

Through much of 2009 and 2010, Obama’s people were divided over just how hard to lean on Netanyahu when it came to negotiating with the Palestinians. On one side were many central figures who favored the tough-love approach: Obama, Clinton, Mitchell, Emanuel. On the other were Dennis Ross, the president’s special assistant on the Middle East, and Tom Donilon, his national-security adviser. “The underlying argument of Dennis and Tom was that you’ll never get the Israelis to do anything by pushing them,” says one official. “The contrary argument is, there’s no evidence you’ll ever get them to do anything without pushing them.”

[MayBee]

Other spin words in the piece: "wealthy" and "tax loopholes". Regurgitated dutifully as if that makes them true.

[Benjamin Franklin]

Exodus 33

[Thomas Collins]

Ah, BFF, you're here. I wanted to ask a follow up question on a post you wrote awhile ago on human nature. You posited:

"Human nature has not changed since Plato. We still eat, drink, defecate and engage in coitus. Everything else is window dressing."

So, let me make sure I have this correct. When my oldest child suffered a traumatic brain injury in a skiing accident over 12 years ago (she has made a remarkable recovery) and my family and I were taking her to the rehab hospital and consulting with the medical folks and doing the rest of the things one does with a family member who has suffered a serious injury, that was all window dressing. But when I (and the rest of my family) would have a snack at the rehab hospital's snack bar and then take a crap in the hospital restroom, that reflected our true human nature and was not window dressing. Correct?

By the way, by referring to this personal story, I am in no way trying to claim that life has put any special burden on myself or my family. When measured against some of the matters faced by many JOMers, my family and myself have had it pretty easy. I just want to see how BFF would apply his general theory to a specific situation.

By the way, BFF, if that is your real assessment of human nature, I applaud you. Although I have a somewhat different view of human nature (my view is that it is the essence of humans to struggle to use opinion as the mediating factor between the attempt to live a life in conformity with Divine Law and Divine Justice and the "physical facts on the ground" that tend to lead humans astray), I think your view of human nature is superior to the conceit of modern social science that we can somehow understand the higher by applying survey research data and other nonsense to the lower. For you, it appears, the lower is all that is. As I said, not my view, but if you are serious, you at least have avoided in your life a conceit of many of your colleagues in the political science profession.

[Jack is Back!]

Nile forgot to include the fact that BHO has never bowed to Benji when shaking his hand. Actions speak louder than words. And if you are an Orthodox Jew, especially one in New York City, then you know in your hearts of hearts, when someone is screwing Israel. You just know.

The Israeli's all saw this coming back in 2007 when during the debates Obama said he would be willing to engage one on one with tyrants such as Iamsuchanidiot of Iran. It didn't take much of that kind of naive diplomacy to send a shudder through the Knesset and Israel. The other indicator is Abbas. He sees this "laizze faire" approach to Israel by the Obama regime as his best chance yet to get UN sanctioned statehood. He is calling Obama's bluff and if no one else (Great Britain?) veto's the resolution and we stand alone then it makes it appear we are a weak veto.

Oh, I'd say, if I was a Jew, I would be nervous as hell for Israel with this man-child in the WH.

[Chubby]

The article by Ed Koch linked to by RCP this morning is a wee bit depressing in parts. In short, he still loves Obama, except for Obama's Israel policies. It is my hope that once that constituency gets the true picture of what conservatism is really all about, as so many former liberals already have, it will realize that it is poltical home, and never be able go back.

[MarkO]

How, exactly, is the sacrifice shared? Is it that the rich give the poor money? Not much of a sacrifice on the part of the poor. The "fair share" chant has the same problems. I think it means, "it's fair to share your money with my supporters."

Obama's words are simply meaningless slogans of statist (take that Ben-Dana) policies. None of this has any chance of passing and he must think that by proposing it he can keep his base. If that is his strategy, we can look forward to ever further leftist proposals from that pragmatic genius.

[Dave (in MA)]

TC, he even defecates online.

[Thomas Collins]

I have to give him slack for that, Dave(in MA). If I started posting about the Red Sox, no telling WHAT I would be doing online!

[Captain Hate]

Arguably the administration’s staunchest Zionist

World's Scranton's tallest midget

[Tom Maguire]

And laughing is better than crying I guess...

It's the healing power of laughter as applied to the economy. Might work!

Or by next spring, Barry might opt for the healing power of song and start belting out "The Sun'll Come Out... Tomorrow". There are lots of ideas Team Obama hasn't run with yet.

[Appalled]

Ben:

I see your citation on Mr. Sergent's reflections on Obama's new assertiveness and how he thinks he's going to get the GOP in a corner this time. And wonder...

When do we get to stop thinking he's all that smart? I mean, really, if you read this blog in the dark days after Katrina, you'd read a lot of commentary that reads like the stuff you quoted here.

[Jack is Back!]

One final point for Bammy to consider: The Jews Won. Not once, like you but 3 separate times. You get to call the plays and you get to run roughshod over the constitution, our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness and you get to decide I need solar power. So, then the Jews get to decide what and where to build in the territory they Won. Right?

[DebinNC]

BO (and MO) are off for 3 days in NYC, ostensibly for UN meet and greets, but also:

wpix: "President Obama is expected to attend a fundraiser on the Upper East Side Monday, one in midtown at Gotham Hall Tuesday, and a gala at the New York Public Library on Wednesday."

I wish someone would get a list of attendees and report on their tax shelters.

[narciso]

I must have missed that, Appalled:

http://justoneminute.typepad.com/main/2005/09/hurricane_relie.html

[Honor the intrepid warriors in their belching Suburban Assault Vehicles as they charge through the lines in the Carbon Liberation Wars.]

Gamers modeled a ten year old problem in viral structure in three weeks. Maybe they can model the climate.
===============

[Jack is Back!]

CH,

Did you see this "apologia" for Dan Snyder? LUN

I often wondered who out there would attempt to pull the band and see how far it would stretch.

[Jack is Back!]

Kim's reference above

[Benjamin Franklin]

"but if you are serious, you at least have avoided in your life a conceit of many of your colleagues in the political science profession."

TC;

First, let me say, in spite of the gravitas some commentators here seem to possess, they have it because others give it for mysterious reasons. I have no profession even remotely related to Politics.

I have spoken to groups as large as 100, but they were not students, and I, not the Professor. I have never even been on the Campus of Pitzer or Claremont. I am not a tenured, or associate
professor, and never have been. Is that clear? Do not listen to the
fulminations of the demented who seem rhapsodic at repeating their falsehoods with impunity. I say impunity, because on those rare occasions when one or two say a word in my defense, they are hacked and dismembered like a squirrel for the stew. They are like hecklers at a stand-up venue; drunk and disorderly.

I am glad your child is recovering. My point as to human nature is that we, although sentient, are still organisms who seek to fulfill
primary and secondary needs. Self-interest, in general, is paramount. You can go into altruism as a subset, but your child's health and well-being is a different category. They are extensions of oneself. Therefore, it is not altruism to care for, protect and empathize with same. It is self-interest. If that sounds cold, I apologize. The Platonic human-nature comment was not meant to
be applied to the specifics of life, rather, a general rule of thumb about human behavior and it's glacially slow evolution.

[Melinda Romanoff]

kim-

I thought that group solution to be sooo cool.

[Benjamin Franklin]

"When do we get to stop thinking he's all that smart?"

Fielders Choice. I say he is smart as a whip. But arrogance doth make teh stupid mistakes.

[Clarice]

Althouse reports Tommy Thompson has filed his papers to run for the Senate.

[sbw]

FoldIt is fun. I have it on my laptop. Protein folding is ... um ... where it's at.

[Thomas Collins]

"Self-interest, in general, is paramount. You can go into altruism as a subset, but your child's health and well-being is a different category. They are extensions of oneself. Therefore, it is not altruism to care for, protect and empathize with same. It is self-interest."

BFF, no matter what your profession is, I'm acting as if you are a poly sci. professor, because much of what you write reminds me of poly sci. professors who have been greatly influenced by the historicist school and the application of quantitative methods to the study of human behavior. So you can be whatever you are. I am writing "as if".

In any event, I appreciate your taking the time to respond to my inquiry about your thoughts in a specific context. I have to point out that you are using slippery rhetoric in that portion of your remarks I have quoted. I didn't claim to be altruistic. I summarized a personal situation in the context of asking you a question on your formulation of human nature. I now realize, from the end of your response to my question, that you view the factors you mentioned in your initial post as operating over thousands and tens of thousands of years, not in the span of one human life. I appreciate your clarifying that.

[MayBee]

sbw- I didn't get a chance to mention how excited I was for you about your fun cadet/football news. Yay!

[maryrose]

Capt. H:
Connie Shultz has quit the Plain Dealer! She is the wife of Sherrod Brown our dim senator. She illegally taped a Tea Party rally where Josh Mandel a possible challenger to Brown was speaking. Good riddance to bad rubbish, both her and her so-called column.

[Captain Hate]

Did you see this "apologia" for Dan Snyder?

Some Daily Caller admitted non-fan regurgitating stuff that was stale 5 years ago? zzzzzzzz. We're the only undefeated team in the NFC East during a rebuilding year, bitchezz.

Unlike DoT, I think Danny has learned his lessons. Whether he has or not, we probably had the best draft that I can remember and our best choice is out for the season and it's still been a glowing success. LOL @ everyone that called HOF Kerrigan a "reach pick"; he and Orakpo form the two-headed beast of our D line. And we have 2 new very good running backs and a very good new tight end.

Bring on the Pukes.

[MayBee]

So Obama plans to cut spending on Medicare--- in the form of benefit cuts to the "most fortunate" seniors.
He also plans to raise tax rates on top earners. And limit deductions on top earners. And seek a higher Medicare premium on top earners. Top earners are already paying more into Medicare.

The man is putting the "spreading the wealth around" plan into action.

[Captain Hate]

Connie Shultz has quit the Plain Dealer!

Woot! Connie the tard is no more? What will all "the little people" do without that fatass big-boned individual to champion their cause against the eeeeeeeevil fat cats who hire them? Oh the humanity.

This is a great day for honest journalism. Blow the whistle and ring the bell.

[Danube of Thought]

Same here, sbw. I was delighted to see Army beat a Big Ten team. I hope they're on the way back.

[Rob Crawford]

Connie Shultz has quit the Plain Dealer!

... to run for Senate.

(I kid.)

[Benjamin Franklin]

"It's the healing power of laughter as applied to the economy. Might work!"

Maguire, the Romantic version.

Laughter; as therapy.........

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Cousins

[narciso]

You know I didn't know that about the Seahawks since I saw they didn't score a point, yesterday, the Eagles did good though:

http://dailycaller.com/2011/09/19/scarborough-obama-is-lebron-james-hes-disappeared-in-critical-times/

[sbw]

Glad you appreciated the West Point visit. I forgot to mention that after the parade on the Plain, the paratroopers' helicopter swooped in, stopping dead center, five feet off the ground, and hovered at "attention", motionless, facing the grandstand, and then flew off. Impressive.

[Danube of Thought]

Adam Yoshida in AT on the Buffett Tax:

"The sort of tax-avoiding behavior that these measures would incentivize are just about the worst thing that could happen to a fragile economy.  Investors and other millionaires would defer income whenever possible, leaving money in already swollen corporate coffers and keeping it out of general circulation.  We often underestimate the distorting effects that high taxes have on the economy and society as a whole.  To pick just a single example, the strange state of American health care and the unique American reliance on private health insurance is a quirk that came to be as a result of extremely high taxes during the Second World War, when employers sought to hire away workers by offering tax-deductible health insurance to potential employees in lieu of other forms of compensation. 
'The suspension of one man's dividends,' Calvin Coolidge once reminded us, 'means the suspension of another man's pay envelope.'  It is hard to think of anything that the government could do to better illustrate that essential truth than making it less attractive for the wealthy to dynamically invest their money."

[Danube of Thought]

Those with incomes over $1 million comprise 0.2% of all filers. They pay 20% of all federal income tax. What, exactly, would be their "fair" share?

[It releases endorphins, honey. ::grin::]

I knew a fella, Dana, who wasn't as funny as Robin, but was way funnier and a better doctor than his model.

I once spent Saturday evenings or so reviewing Norman before he started laughing.
===========

[Please, observe the earth. See it turn?]

I've seen another article, seemingly just a longer one, that explores that last concept of exploring the use of human intuition and computer processing to work on other stuff. U Dub is on this.
=========

[Dave (in MA)]

Schultz "filmed" the rally "in contrast to the request of event organizers", says the CPD Person of Ombuds. This happened a couple of weeks back. I guess it took a while to get the film back from the developer.

[Kevin B]

Thought you might enjoy Deller's take on the rogue trader story.

[Benjamin Franklin]

"I've seen another article, seemingly just a longer one, that explores that last concept of exploring the use of human intuition and computer processing to work on other stuff"

Dr. John Lilly

http://deoxy.org/h_lilly.htm

[MayBee]

DoT- for the purposes of this conversation, we are pretending "the wealthy" are not currently "kicking in", let alone paying their "fair share". It simply cannot be that the middle class pays more taxes than the wealthy. So we talk as if the baseline is that "the wealthy" pay nothing now. Obama is going to put an end to that, and you don't need to pipe up and ask silly questions.

[Captain Hate]

LOL @ Sergeant "I know no ethics" Schultz in this: http://biggovernment.com/bytor/2011/09/12/liberal-senator-sherrod-browns-wife-caught-in-political-activity-while-on-duty-for-newspaper/#more-328960

Breitbart gets another scalp. Nice picture of Connie the T; I knew that photographs can add weight but had no idea of the sheer tonnage.

[daddy]

Claire Berlinski is on Dennis Prager's Show this instant and she is trying to explain this Turkeu guy you all have been talking about this weekend. She has lived in Turkey the last 6 years. She is trying to analyze Erdogan. She says he may turn out being the most dangerous guy in the world but she isn';t at that stage yet from trying to see what he is actually trying to do.

Turkey observers may want to turn on Prager quick as she continues I think till the end of the hour.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Is this another half-trillion out of medicare, or is he trying to take double credit for the half-trillion in the Obamacare bill?

[Captain Hate]

Regarding Josh Mandel, isn't he a bit inexperienced to be running for the Senate? Granted I'd vote for him against Sherrod Brown; but I'd vote for a dust bunny if it was running against the mistake from five years ago. I'm just a bit surprised that the Ohio branch of Duke & Duke doesn't have somebody like another Rob Portman available.

[MayBee]

Dave(in MA)- that "in contrast to" is genius.

[Boatbuilder]

Do the contractors on all those "infrastructure" projects that Obama and the Dems are pushing take depreciation on their equipment? Does Obama think that it is wrong for them do do so? If not, why is it a "loophole" when an oil company does it and an investment when a construction contractor does it? And don't oil companies hire people? Aren't you going to increase unemployment by taking away deprectiation and business expense deductions? (rhetorical questions--which maybe somebody in the MSM could ask him).

[narciso]

DEnial is a river, yadda, yadda:

http://jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com/2011/09/obamas-solyndra-debacle-so-far-he-and.html

[Jim Miller]

What fascinates me is that there are still serious people who think that Obama won't be judged a much worse president than Carter on Israel -- and on almost everything else.

Two examples where Carter did something good that I wouldn't expect Obama to do: (1) He signed on to several transportation deregulation measures. (2) He admitted he had been wrong about the Soviet Union, after their invasion of Afghanistan, and began our military build-up.

(The Obama policies toward the Middle East have, in several ways, made wars there more likely. And I doubt that many in his administration know that.)

[Mark Folkestad]

In the comments following John Hinderaker's piece on the non-correlation between carbon dioxide and temperature over history at Power Line, a Minneapolis woman quotes Porchlight's great summary of the Greenie inconsistency about the influence of the sun. A link to the JOM thread is included. Way to go, Porchlight!

[Neo]

Apparently, in the mold of JFK, Obama today is claiming that there is a "gap." Oh, not a "missile gap" like JFK, but rather a "solar subsidy gap."

Seems the Chinese government has invested $30 billion in solar panel technology, while poor Obama was ony able to scratch together $40 billion (plus another $17 billion already in the pipeline) for solar panel technology from people like Solyndra. Even thought the Chinese also have a built in amount of graft from party officials, it seems that US politicians require a larger portion of subsidies to go to official political and private sector graft.

[narciso]

As predictable as 'night follows day':

http://www.businessinsider.com/former-bachmann-campaign-manager-shes-done-after-iowa-2011-9#ixzz1YQDu5Cop

[Rob Crawford]

Turkey observers may want to turn on Prager quick as she continues I think till the end of the hour.

Last weekend I observed a dozen turkeys in rural Kentucky.

And I've *had* roast turkey *in* Turkey. Which was odd and disappointing.

[Benjamin Franklin]

"Apparently, in the mold of JFK, Obama today is claiming that there is a "gap." Oh, not a "missile gap" like JFK, but rather a "solar subsidy gap.""

re-posted...

http://1bog.org/blog/what-if-solar-power-had-fossil-fuel-like-subsidies-infographic-b/

[jimmyk]

Those with incomes over $1 million comprise 0.2% of all filers. They pay 20% of all federal income tax. What, exactly, would be their "fair" share?

"Fair" share is a nuanced concept, don't you see. The best definition is "more than whatever it is now." If the share were to increase, "fair" would still mean "more than whatever it is." The tax system has gotten steadily more and more progressive, yet somehow "fairness" is never any closer.

[Dave (in MA)]

DEnial is a river, yadda, yadda

Solyndra Green is People!!!

(swiped from one of the Hotairs)

[Porchlight]

Hey, thanks Mark F for the heads up. I have to credit our Ben Franklin - his vaguely religious capitalization of "Solar" on that one thread made me think of it.

[Jack is Back!]

CH,

Me too - very impressed with the Skin's rookies and Fred Davis. This gives Cooley time to heal and we will need that experience since I still say he is the best H back in the league under pressure. Helu is a stud - surprised they didn't use him more in the red zone. Now all Kyle has to do is make sure he doesn't put Rex in situations where the only out he has is to make a mistake. The bookend DE's will get their best test next game against the Boys. Woot. Woot.

[daddy]

Megan doing a decent interview with the LightAquared CEO Falcone.

He says that all this is much ado about nothing. He says that this will absolutely not cause any problem with GPS or ATC or anything else. He says that General Shelton when he says this will interfere with military GPS is "complete misinformation".

Falcone says this is all simply his competitors trying to stop him from getting a leg up in the competition. Falcone says General Shelton is wrong about virtually everything he says. He says they never tried to do any pressure or politics or anything. Falcone says he has never met the President and he never ever tried to give any monetary donations to the Dem's or Obama etc.

Falcone is obviously an Angel and the General is stupid and everything else is the fault of competitors. So there.

[matt]

daddy;

Prager spoke on Saturday to the California Republican Convention. Interesting, because he had just come from his synagogue, and he made it a point to say so, as his observations were to him, that important.

He is right about Erdogan. I have been writing about him for some time. He has dismantled the secular state to the cheers of the EuroLeft and has advanced Islamism to the front by using democratic means.

The Turkish military, the guarantors of the secular state, has been gutted. @ 250 senior officers are in jail for a purported coup attempt, but have yet to be tried after several years. The entire General Staff resigned a few weeks ago in protest, allowing Erdogan's supporters to take their places.

In the interim, Turkey's relationship with Syria is in tatters and the Kurds are acting up again. What better time to lay claim as the new leader of the Muslim world?

The UN vote this week on Palestinian statehood is going to blow up in Obama's face like a joke store cigar. He helped precipitate the crisis with his foolish 1967 borders statement, and now the yahoos are going to try to ram through a quasi-legal farce that will allow the Palestinians to claim the kitchen sink without any obligations on their side.

regarding Blazing Saddles, the analogy with Sheriff Bart is just plain wrong. He was the smart one. The real Obama analogy is Governor William J. Le Ptomaine.

To close, to paraphrase the lyrics of the hymn sung by the congregation:

"Now is a time of great decision/Are we to stay or up and quit?/There's no avoiding this conclusion/Our country's turning into shit."

[Dave (in MA)]

The Canadian campaign bus is unsafe at any speed. Note to self: buy popcorn.

[JM Hanes]

daddy:

Claire Berlinski posts on Turkey regularly over at Ricochet, although at the moment she's seriously, if not really terminally, discouraged about how little substantive interest there is in the subject.

[NK]

Matt-- I agree no way BarryO is Sheriff Bart-- no way. Bart was shrewd and wise. Obama is a moron. I'll buy BarryO as Le Petomaine. But who's Hed LEY Lamar, and who's Taggart?

[BB Key]

Dave(in MA) A group of strawmen(from labor,greenies & academia) to advance the illusion that Obama is being challenged from the left....How dumb do they think we are ?

[daddy]

This seems promising and way way way OT.

Gamers succeed where scientists fail

"Gamers have solved the structure of a retrovirus enzyme whose configuration had stumped scientists for more than a decade. The gamers achieved their discovery by playing Foldit, an online game that allows players to collaborate and compete in predicting the structure of protein molecules...The scientists challenged the gamers to produce an accurate model of the enzyme. They did it in only three weeks."

Reminds me of the current problem in Brian Greene's books on String Theory. Greene says String Theory researchers have been involved in a decades long fruitless task trying to determine what precise Kalabi-Yao shapes the postulated 11 or 12 or 26 extra dimensions of our Universe have. Heck, simply turn the problem into a new version of PacMan and let the long haired, pimply faced, geek-nerd-goth's in the Mini-Mart Pin Ball section figure out the Universe:)

[Frau Steingehirn]

It seems the Beverly Hills Tea Party I attended yesterday did *not* occur. AFAIK the event, and appearance of Thad McCotter, was only mentioned in the LA Times in token conservative blogger Andrew Malcom's column.

[JM Hanes]

JiB:

"Oh, I'd say, if I was a Jew, I would be nervous as hell for Israel with this man-child in the WH."

I'd say you don't need to be a Jew to worry about Obama's dealings with Israel. He's a one man foreign policy wrecking ball.