The Feb jobs report came out today and was pretty much as expected. It does look like we are seeing some jobs growth. My concern is that we are still barely keeping up with 18-22 year olds that are entering the workforce each month. Plus, if you think you are going to see bad economic numbers coming from the Obama camp, you're crazy. It's an election year...
Speaking of things that can happen during an election year, check this out.
Obama Promises Bunker Busters To Israel If Netanyahu Delays Iran Invasion Until After US Elections
Two days ago Obama held a press conference in which he openly prevaricated and disinformed the world about the true nature of his meeting with Israel PM Netanyahu. Today we find what was truly discussed, courtesy of Israel's Maariv newspaper, Spiegel and Reuters, which all tell us that it was a simple case of quid pro quo, namely that Barack Obama would supply Israel with bunker-busters and refueling planes if Bibi promised to delay an Iran attack until after the presidential election. The implication is simple - avoid an oil price shock this summer and delay it until next winter when Obama will be safely in his throne for another 4 years, at which point US citizens can fuel their cars with combustible urine following nights of binging on Everclear in hopes of ending their sorrows with alcohol poisoning, or better yet, all be in possession of the heavily subsidized flaming half ton block of metal known as the Obama Pinto, er, Volt.
Some more details on the latest horse trade from Israel Insider:
The US will supply Israel with bunker-busting bombs and refueling planes in return for delaying a strike against Iran until at least the end of the year, Maariv reported on Thursday. During their meeting earlier this week in Washington, Barack Obama promised Benjamin Netanyahu the latest deep-penetration arms from the US arsenal as well as airborne tankers to refuel strike jets necessary for an Israeli attack on Iran. In return, Israel will agree to not take any action until after the upcoming US presidential elections in November 2012.
Although rumors of the possible supply of new bombs and planes began even while Netanyahu was still in the US, Maariv’s claim, based on Western sources, is that supply of the equipment is conditional on postponing an attack. Obama gave Israel neither a green light for an attack, nor a red light, but rather a “bright yellow light,” sources told Maariv, adding that the yellow light is nearly red. Obama told Netanyahu that an Israeli attack, uncoordinated with the US, will have the most serious implications on regional stability and relations between the two countries. Maariv said that sources close to the recent meetings in Washington reported that it will be “difficult, if not impossible” for Israel to ignore Obama’s warnings.
Central to the difference of opinions is at what stage of the uranium enrichment process it will become necessary to use military force. According to intelligence reports, Iran has succeeded in enriching 120 kilogram (265 lbs.) of uranium to 20 percent purity. To make a bomb the Iranians require 250 kg (550 lbs) of 90% pure uranium. However, enriching from 20% to 90% is a relatively fast process, meaning Israel may see its window for action closing. According to Maariv, the US is prepared to wait until Iran has 250 kg of 20% rich uranium, but Israel considers the current developments beyond its own red line for action.
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There is a decent group of us who have been saying that the mainstream media is just another puppet for the government agenda. Here is video proof. I love Conan.
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Gotta love socialism, right? Where else can you win $1,000,000 and still receive govt assistance.
Amanda Clayton, a 24-year-old from Lincoln Park, Michigan, won $1 million from the Michigan state lottery… But she's still collecting $200 a month in food stamps… "I thought that they would cut me off, but since they didn't, I thought maybe it was OK because I'm not working," Clayton said. She did, however, find money to buy a new house and car…
When a local TV interviewer in Detroit asked Clayton if she thought she had a right to the public assistance, she responded, "I feel that it's OK because, I mean, I have no income and I have bills to pay… I have two houses."
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Four members of the Swiss parliament recently launched a new "Gold Initiative" to keep Switzerland's gold in Switzerland. The four sponsors of the initiative say the Swiss should be able to vote on three things: 1) Physically storing Switzerland's gold in the country, 2) Forbidding the Swiss National Bank (SNB) from selling its gold reserves, and 3) Mandating the SNB to hold at least 20% of total assets in gold.
This is on top of the news yesterday that German lawmakers are auditing how the Bundesbank (Germany's central bank) has managed the country's 3,400 tons of gold bullion (nearly 74% of the country's foreign exchange reserves). According to German newspaper Bild, the parliament's Budget Committee wants to know how much and where the gold is stored.
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I don't think Larry the Cable Guy is very funny. However, this is pretty good.
"Even after the Super Bowl victory of the New Orleans Saints,
I have noticed a large number of people implying, with bad jokes,
that Cajuns aren't smart. I would like to state for the record that I
disagree with that assessment. Anybody that would build a city
5 feet below sea level in a hurricane zone and fill it with
Democrats who can't swim is a genius."
Everyone concentrates on the problems we're having in Our Country lately: Illegal immigration, hurricane recovery, alligators attacking people in Florida . .. .. . Not me -- I concentrate on solutions for the problems -- it's a win-win situation.
* Dig a moat the length of the Mexican border.
* Send the dirt to New Orleans to raise the level of the levees.
* Put the Florida alligators in the moat along the Mexican border.
Any other problems you would like for me to solve today?
Think about this:
1. Cows
2. The Constitution
3. The Ten Commandments
COWS
Is it just me, or does anyone else find it amazing that during the mad cow epidemic our government could track a single cow, born in Canada almost three years ago, right to the stall where she slept in the state of Washington? And, they tracked her calves to their stalls. But they are unable to locate 11 million illegal aliens wandering around our country. Maybe we should give each of them a cow.
THE CONSTITUTION
They keep talking about drafting a Constitution for Iraq ....
why don't we just give them ours?
It was written by a lot of really smart guys,
it has worked for over 200 years,
and we're not using it anymore.
THE 10 COMMANDMENTS
The real reason that we can't have the Ten Commandments posted in a courthouse is this --
you cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal'
'Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery' and
'Thou Shall Not Lie'
in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians,
it creates a hostile work environment.
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More on the Internet Censorship debate.
Civil libertarians slam McCain cybersecurity bill
Reuters – Tue, Mar 6, 2012 3:26 PM EST
Senator John McCain speaks during a news conference in Tripoli February 22, 2012. REUTERS/Anis
By Joseph Menn
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A cybersecurity bill introduced by Republican Senator John McCain could dramatically expand the domestic reach of U.S. intelligence agencies and potentially give them massive troves of emails, civil liberties advocates said.
"This is a privacy nightmare that will eventually result in the military substantially monitoring the domestic, civilian Internet," said Michelle Richardson of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Unlike the Democratic-led alternative supported by Majority Leader Harry Reid, the McCain bill stresses voluntary information sharing instead of regulation of critical industries by the Department of Homeland Security. McCain's bill was introduced last week.
But the types of information that could be shared are broad, and the data would go to "cybersecurity centers" that specifically include the National Security Agency's Threat Operations Center and the U.S. Cyber Command Joint Operations Center.
McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said such concerns were both overblown and premature.
"Senator McCain's priority in crafting this bill has been to make sure it strengthens our security while continuing to safeguard the privacy of consumers," Rogers said. "He remains open to addressing legitimate concerns as this process moves forward."
The bill says private companies such as Internet service providers could send the defense agencies evidence such as "network activity or protocols known to be associated with a malicious cyber actor or that may signify malicious intent."
Neither "network activity" nor "malicious intent" are defined in the bill, and they could theoretically encompass ordinary emails containing legal protest speech, the ACLU's Richardson said.
"It does appear it includes a hole through which the NSA may be able to drive a freight train," blogged Jerry Britto, a senior research fellow at George Mason University's Mercatus Center and an adjunct law professor at the university.
A staffer working on the bill who spoke on condition he not be named said nothing in the legislation would allow sharing of emails that did not pertain to attacks on information security systems and that acts of civil disobedience would be off-limits.
As troubling to civil libertarians as the scope of the data are the destination agencies and the lack of recourse. Companies that tip off federal officials would be protected from lawsuits and criminal charges over what they pass along.
"It is absolutely critical that if the government wants to collect information, it go through a civilian agency," said the ACLU's Richardson.
A Senate aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Senate is unlikely to pass either the McCain bill or the Democratic version and that talks on a possible compromise could begin in the coming weeks.
President Obama's proposed legislation, like the omnibus bill Reid wants, would leave DHS in charge of cybersecurity. DHS could ask for help from the NSA, but would be subject to closer oversight than actions led by the NSA and other parts of the Defense Department.
McCain last month said he wanted the NSA to be more involved, and the agency is seen as having greater defensive and offensive capability. Under his bill, which was co-authored by seven other Republicans, the cybersecurity centers could use the information they get to investigate crime and for "a national security purpose."
A national security purpose "is about as broad as you could be," said Jim Dempsey, vice president of the nonprofit Center for Democracy & Technology, who also faulted other terms in the bill.
"We thought this was an issue that was close to consensus and close to a positive resolution, but seeing the direction this Senate bill went in, I'm more pessimistic now. It runs a real risk of dragging down the whole concept of information sharing."
The NSA has powerful eavesdropping tools and is ordinarily barred from turning them on U.S. persons not suspected of working for foreign powers. A law that gave the major U.S. telephone carriers immunity for past cooperation with the agency permits greater surveillance with approval of a court that meets in secret.
Richard Clarke, a former top counter-terrorism and cybersecurity official in previous administrations, said that putting the NSA in charge was nonsensical.
"NSA or Cyber Command can't be the face of the government effort," Clarke said. "Why are we having this controversy?" Former NSA and CIA director Michael Hayden also said the NSA could use its capability under DHS leadership.
Though Reid has said he wants to bring the other bill to floor for a debate and vote as soon as this month, he may not be able to muster 60 votes to force the issue.
McCain's alternative is seen as a prelude to talks to see if a consensus is possible.
"It is going to take some negotiation in the coming weeks, but people are working around the clock," Richardson said.
A number of cybersecurity bills, generally with a narrower focus, are also pending in the House of Representatives.
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Spanx Creator Becomes Youngest Self-Made Billionaire
Spanx is word that most women are familiar with. It's a type of shapewear that helps to smooth away lumps and bumps and also leaves no trace of a panty line.
The creator of this product, Sara Blakely has been inducted to this year's Forbes billionaires list, which was released yesterday.
Spanx, an international undergarment company, is worth an estimated $1 billion. Here are a couple of interesting facts about her from a Forbes feature:
She learned how to write her own patent from reading a Barnes and Nobles book and she saved $3,000 in legal costs.
She worked at Disney World for three months and spent eight-hour days buckling customers into a ride.
She's the youngest self-made female billionaire in the world.
She has never spent money on advertising.
She owns 100 percent of the company.
She went from just having $5,000 in savings when she was 29 to owning a billion dollar company at the age of 41 today.
She has her eccentric moments, and her husband describes her as "50 percent Lucille Ball, 50 percent Einstein." Some of her goofiest moments include wearing a boot on one foot and a Christian Louboutin heel on the other in Bloomingdale's, and wearing stretchable candy necklaces and bracelets (bought from a nearby candy store) to the Screen Actors Guild Awards because she left her jewelry at the hotel.
She witnessed a car run over her best friend when she was only 16, and facing mortality at such a young age has driven her. “I think that when you witness death at age 16, there’s a sense of urgency about life,” Blakely says. “The thought of my mortality — I think about it a lot. I find it motivating. It can be any time that your number’s up.”
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I know many of you have seen this, but it is a story worth watching. It's a shame that people have to live like this. It's another reason why I own guns.
And here is Hitler reacting to it.
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