it's whatI'm saying NOW that matters.

In late July VP Biden, in a NYT Op-Ed (remember all of those Dick Cheny NYT Op-Eds durig the Bush Administration?) said "

… the [stimulus] act was intended to provide steady support for our economy over an extended period – not a jolt that would last only a few months.

That’s an unfortunate word choice.  Here is dictionary.com’s definition:

jolt:  to jar, shake, or cause or move by or as if by a sudden rough thrust; shake up roughly

And yet here’s the President last November 24th:

… we need a big stimulus package that will jolt the economy back into shape …

… we have to make sure that the stimulus is significant enough that it really gives a jolt to the economy …

… And so we are going to do what’s required to jolt this — this economy back — back into shape.

And again on February 9th in a press conference:

But at this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life.

Here’s the Vice President, on March 28th in Chile:

The Recovery Act, as we call it, provides a necessary jolt to our economy to implement what we refer as “shovel-ready” projects…

And again on June 2nd in a stimulus roundtable:

And, of course, we also came forward with what we’re going to talk about today, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, an initial big jolt to give the economy a real head start.

(hat tip to Don Stewart)

I learned a long time ago in college as a Poli Sci major .... but every once in a swhile it slips away ... and when it comes jarring back I'm always saddened that 98% of the population NEVER gets it:

George Mason University law professor (and Reason contributor) Ilya Somin patiently explains how the political world actually works:

A politician willing to do anything to take and hold on to power will have a crucial edge over an opponent who imperils his chances of getting elected in order to advance the public interest. The former type is likely to prevail over the latter far more often than not. This is especially true in a political environment where most voters are often ignorant and irrational about government and public policy. Candidates have strong incentives to pander to this ignorance and exploit it in order to win elections. Those unwilling to exploit public ignorance because they place the public interest above political success are likely to be at a serious disadvantage relative to their less scrupulous opponents. Thus, those who value power above other objectives are more likely to succeed politically. As economist Frank Knight wrote back in the 1930s, "[t]he probability of the people in power being individuals who would dislike the possession and exercise of power is on a level with the probability that an extremely tender-hearted person would get the job of whipping master in a slave plantation."

Ever checked that box on your drivers license renewal to donate to some worthy cause? 

When Ohio motorists renew licenses, they're asked if they'd like to donate to groups like the Save Our Sight Fund, which works to prevent blindness in children; and the Second Chance Trust Fund, which promotes organ donations. Big-hearted Ohioans recently kicked in more than $2 million to the charities.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that the givers were played for suckers.

State government took from funds to prevent blindness and promote organ donations... to help close a $1.9 billion shortfall in the two-year budget.

Did the politicians tell the givers that they were “reassigning” their gifts? No. Donors were:

....blindsided by a June 9 raid on $2.7 million they had voluntarily paid to thwart blindness in children and help solve the critical shortage of organ donations...

Aren't the taxes we pay enough? Government has to raid charities too?

After they were caught, Gov. Ted Strickland promised that the money would be returned.

The most interesting part of the story is this: One of the three groups eligible to get voluntary contributions did not have its funds pilfered by the state. That group:

....provides about $100,000 annually for the operating accounts of the Ohio Republican and Democratic parties. No money was taken from the political parties' funds.

Like Captain Renault in Casablanca, I'm shocked, shocked.

can, I'm sure, explain this

In 1930 average life expectancy for Americans at age 60 was 74.5 years. (Infant mortality pulls down average life expectancy, hence the measure "at age 60.") In 1960 -- five years before Medicare began -- the average jumped 2.6 years, to 77.1. By 1990 -- 25 years after Medicare began -- it had jumped to 79.7 -- again 2.6 years.

Medicare did not make the upward-sloping life-expectancy curve any steeper!

For historical context, from 1900 to 1960, overall life-expectancy increased 22.4 years, from 47. 3 to 69.7.

I hasten to add that the medical system may be the least important factor in life expectancy, and one must never judge a country's health care by that measure. (Too many other factors -- lifestyle, genetics, culture -- play more important roles.) Nevertheless, it is interesting to know that Medicare did not improve the rate of progress in life expectancy that was occurring before the program started.

As Richman notes, this point is not dispositive about the value of health care systems, or even of health (and be careful not to conflate the two). But if anyone does believe that surely having the state pick up the tab for health care is going to lead to longer lives, in the aggregate doesn't seem to be much effect.

Meet the KFC "double down." Although no mention of it is made on KFC.com and we have never seen an ad for it ourselves, we are being lead to believe that it is real by Foodgeekery.com. They have crappy cell phone camera footage of a commercial (from Omaha, apparently) for the mysterious beast, as well as photographic evidence of it in the wild.

The sandwich consists of two fried chicken fillets wrapped around bacon, cheese and Colonel's sauce. It apparently tastes like you think it would. An early-adopter explains:

That's it? That is the sandwich? That's not worth five dollars. Oh… oh my God. That is the best thing ever. I don't know what "Colonel's Sauce" is, but it is like a party in my mouth. This is completely worth the five dollars. Unfortunately I'm going to end up weighing 700 lbs after this, but it is simply amazing.

Have you eaten it?

A History of Violence

The long, sordid tale of anti-black brutality on the American left

Damon W. Root | August 20, 2009

I have a friend who is an odd sort of Democrat.  He's a bigoted, homophobic, Capitolist  Democrat.  And what does he hate as much as blacks and gay?  Why "Christers" of course.  Must have been tough on you to pull the lever for the Donk "Christer" who currently resides in Ohio's Gov Mansion.  And now appears that prexy Donk vote was pretty tough too, heh George, Ol buddy.  A BLACK Christer!!!!!

from Cassandra:

Woe be unto you, Blasphemers and Idolotors! Filthy deniers of the public option: know that The Obamessiah shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew. And He shall pursue thee until thou perishishest...umm...eth...err...perishethest!

Verily do I call heaven and earth to witness against thee! The caterpillar shall munch upon thy many gardens and vineyards, devour thy fig and olive trees, masticate upon thy 401K accounts and preferred provider plans. For Lo! The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish rich and the tyranny of the evil monger. Blessed is He, who in the name of social justice and income equality, guards the Stupid from the lies of the Iniquitous, for He is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children.

And I shall strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger. And thou shalt know My name when I do lay My Vengeance upon thee:

In a conference call with liberal and progressive religious leaders Wednesday afternoon, President Obama railed against those who were “bearing false witness” in the debate over health care reform.

“I know there’s been a lot of misinformation in this debate, and there are some folks out there who are, frankly, bearing false witness, but I want everyone to know what health insurance reform is all about,” the president said.

“Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor,” is, of course, one of the Ten Commandments. (It’s the 9th Commandment in all religions except for the Catholic and Lutheran traditions, in which it’s the 8th.)”

Whoa. For a moment I thought we were watching The Shrub try to force religion on us again.

My bad.

The Blogfather chimces in: BUT AT LEAST HE’S NOT A “CHRISTIANIST:” Obama would like you to see government as religion. “Bearing false witness? Breaking the 9th Commandment? So his opponents are sinners. I’m trying to imagine the separation-of-church-and-state freakout if George Bush had taken this approach to arguing for one of his policies.”

From David Harsanyi: 

What would Jesus Obama do? “For with thee is the fountain of life: and in thy light we shall see the public option.”

UPDATE: A reader emails: “Most commenters are focusing on Obama’s words about being his brothers’s keeper and his sister’s keeper, but the most egregious statement he made was that , ‘we are partners with God…’. Really? As a long time student of the Bible, I can’t recall God ever saying he needed a partner or wanted one.”

Yes, like his promise to create a Heaven here on Earth, this is kind of blasphemous, if you take it seriously. Or maybe he’s just a big Belinda Carlisle fan.

ANOTHER UPDATE: “As Jesus often said, ‘Let’s get the government to do something about it!’”

but the least part of the week I was hearig a LOT of BS on the subject, and think this post goes a short way to crrecting a few "misrememberings."  From NewsBusters.org - Exposing Liberal Media Bias
 Title: Media Didn't Care About Protest Signs Threatening Bush

In recent weeks, the media have focused a lot of attention on anti-Obama signs showing up at town hall meetings and Tea Parties from coast to coast.

Without a doubt, some of them cross the line of decency.

However, the press's outrage is quite different than what happened when protesters carried offensive signs threatening former President George W. Bush.

To refresh the memory of the conveniently amnesiac news media, Zombietime dug up a number of posters from demonstrations past which didn't garner the press's ire like those harped on in recent weeks (readers are warned to proceed with caution, h/t Walt Gilbert):

A protester with a sign saying “Kill Bush” and advocating that the White House be bombed, at the March 18, 2007 anti-war rally in San Francisco.
(Source: zombietime.)

“Save Mother Earth, Kill Bush” says this sign from a November 20, 2003 protest.
(Source: Innovative Minds.)

“Bush is the disease, Death is the cure,” says this protester at an anti-war rally in San Francisco.
(Source: People’s Cube.)

“I’m here to kill Bush (shoot me)” reads this protest sign (location unknown).
(Source: I found this image several years ago in an online report about an anti-war protest, but I unfortunately failed to note down where or when the protest happened, and the Web site that originally hosted the report is now defunct.)

Remember the guy in our first picture? Here he is again, with another explicit death threat against the president, this time calling for “Death to…Bush” at the October 27, 2007 anti-war rally in San Francisco.
(Source: zombietime.)

Bush being beheaded by a guillotine, at an Obama campaign rally, Denver, October 26, 2008.
(Source: Looking at the Left.)

An effigy of Bush being killed, at the April 10, 2004 anti-war rally in San Francisco.
(Source: zombietime.)

Bush being burned in effigy, at a November 3, 2004 post-election anti-Bush rally in San Francisco.
(Source: zombietime.)

Bush being lynched by an American flag at a rally in New York on September 19, 2006.
(Source: Fred Askew Photography.)

a roundup of recent reminders:

body {font-family:Verdana,Sans-serif; font-size:10pt; margin:0; padding:0; background:#fff; color:#000} td,form {font-family:Verdana,Sans-serif; font-size:10pt;} A {color:#66c; text-decoration: none;} A.black {color:#000; text-decoration: none;} A:hover, A:active {text-decoration: underline;}

BYRON YORK: For the Left, War Without Bush is Not War At All. “Remember the anti-war movement? Not too long ago, the Democratic party’s most loyal voters passionately opposed the war in Iraq. Democratic presidential candidates argued over who would withdraw American troops the quickest. Netroots activists regularly denounced President George W. Bush, and sometimes the U.S. military (”General Betray Us”). Cindy Sheehan, the woman whose soldier son was killed in Iraq, became a heroine when she led protests at Bush’s Texas ranch. That was then. Now, even though the United States still has roughly 130,000 troops in Iraq, and is quickly escalating the war in Afghanistan — 68,000 troops there by the end of this year, and possibly more in 2010 — anti-war voices on the Left have fallen silent. . . . For many liberal activists, opposing the war was really about opposing George W. Bush. When Bush disappeared, so did their anti-war passion.” So much for all that fierce moral urgency. I guess what was really urgent was regaining political power.

 From Noel Shepard:

When George W. Bush was President, ABC and Charles Gibson, like most media members, couldn't get enough of anti-war protester Cindy Sheehan.

Now that Barack Obama is in the White House, the host of "World News Tonight" is no longer interested in Sheehan, even telling WLS radio in Chicago, "Enough already."

I guess she served her purpose as reported by the Washington Examiner's Byron York Thursday:

In an appearance August 18 on WLS radio in Chicago, ABC News anchor Charles Gibson was asked about anti-war protester Cindy Sheehan's plans to travel to Martha's Vineyard next week, where she will protest the Iraq and Afghanistan wars while President Obama is vacationing there. Gibson, whose newscast and network featured Sheehan when she led anti-war protests outside President Bush's Texas ranch in 2005, answered, "Enough already."

Here's the partial transcript (audio available here):

It's such a sad story. Martha Raddatz [of ABC News] wrote a terrific book about one battle that took place in Iraq, and it was the battle in which Cindy's son was killed. And you look at somebody like that and you think here's somebody who's just trying to find some meaning in her son's death. And you have to be sympathetic to her. Anybody who has given a son to this country has made an enormous sacrifice, and you have to be sympathetic. But enough already.

Yeah, enough already, Cindy. Thanks for helping us get Obama in the White House. Now shut up.

And from the Blogfather:

body {font-family:Verdana,Sans-serif; font-size:10pt; margin:0; padding:0; background:#fff; color:#000} td,form {font-family:Verdana,Sans-serif; font-size:10pt;} A {color:#66c; text-decoration: none;} A.black {color:#000; text-decoration: none;} A:hover, A:active {text-decoration: underline;}

OUCH: ABC’s Charles Gibson to Cindy Sheehan: Thanks for your sacrifice. Now get lost. Hey, when the useful idiots aren’t useful anymore, they’re just, well, you know . . . .