PEACE PRIZE PRESIDENT POUNDS ISIS! Today Obama began the third Iraq war, which of course was completely avoidable had he not failed to keep a deterrent force in place. We were no longer losing soldiers there on a regular basis, the peace was holding, the government was bad, but not as bad as Hussein, it was a nascent democracy that was free to elect new leaders, and it was costing us very little to be there and deter radicals like ISIS. But no, Obama had a campaign promise to keep so we pulled out completely and left a vacuum. In the last week alone, ISIS murdered some 3000 civilians in Iraq. That's in one week.
So now we are bombing from 30,000 feet, which of course is the preferred method for Peace Prize enthusiasts. I'm sure Obama will use the Israeli system of dropping leaflets, making phone calls, and knocking first before bombing. Hey, that's what he did in Libya, right?
In light of this, it's time to revisit the whole series of "Obama is Awesome!" cartoon videos. Here they are in order:
"In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." (Pls note: This is a comedy site and I am a comedian, so don't take anything here seriously. It's all in jest, haha. For entertainment purposes only!)
Friday, August 8, 2014
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
An Open Letter from Benjamin Netanyahu to The American People
Dear America,
I too share your desire for peace. Like you, I am tired of the seemingly endless cycle of
violence. It gets to the point
where no one can even tell you where it all began. And certainly each side has its own version of history!
I have a unique proposal that will once and for all put and
end to this conflict. Of course,
some hard choices will have to be made.
I know I can trust the American people to hear me out, and give this
some careful thought. If we agree
that peace is the desired outcome, and that neither side has been able to
secure it yet, what choice do we have but to try something new? Doing the same thing and expecting a
different result is the very definition of insanity, right?
Let’s look at some of the elements we can all agree on
before getting into the specifics:
- Both sides believe their positions are justified and worth fighting for.
- One side has the military might, and the other suffers disproportionate casualties.
- Both sides would like to exist and govern themselves in a manner to their liking.
- The international community has put its faith in “land for peace” as an appropriate solution.
In light of the above, I do recommend swapping land to allow
the nation-less to establish their own self-governed nation. The new nation would be free to pursue
all the freedoms enjoyed by nations everywhere: they will be able to arm and defend themselves, they will be
free to trade with other nations, they can make and produce all the things they currently produce and disseminate. They would be free to establish Sharia Law if they
please. We may not agree with the
things they produce, what they disseminate, or how they treat others, but it
would be their country, ruled by them, sovereign, free, and independent.
There are already examples of Muslims living peacefully with
non-Muslims all over the world.
Several such examples are already right in your own country. Dearborn, Michigan is sometimes
referred to as “Dearbornistan” owing to its majority Muslim population. There are similar examples throughout
the US in numerous states.
Perhaps the best example is Illinois, which has more Muslims per capita
than any other state, and no one thinks of Illinois as a terror
state!
Once established, this new state would be a beacon for
like-minded people to immigrate to and live in peace, free of the oppression
they currently experience thanks to the endless conflict. Bombings, raids, drone attacks,
captures, prisons, -war itself - will no longer be an imperative! I know this will not be easy, but it
must be done and it must be done now!
Therefore, I believe Illinois would be the perfect place to
establish the new state of “al Qaedastan”, or if you prefer, “ISIS” (Islamic
State of Illinois and Syria”), a two-state solution, which will
once-and-for-all end the violence.
Finally, America and al Qaeda, living side-by-side in peace. Join me America, and stop this madness
now!
Sincerely,
Benjamin Netanyahu
Prime Minister, Israel
P.S. A majority of The UN has already endorsed this
proposal. This must be done at
once if the US hopes to remain among the community of nations.
P.P.S. I also believe that Khalid Sheik Muhammad, the
political prisoner currently in your custody, should be freed like Nelson
Mandela, and would likely rise to lead the new nation of al Qaedastan. Furthermore, I have taken the liberty
to nominate KSM to the Nobel Committee for consideration for the
peace prize. As expected, they are
onboard 100%!
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
USA vs. Europe
I find myself in a bit of a conundrum. Having just gotten back from a trip to
Europe, my seventh in about a dozen years, I continue to be amazed by the visible
and tangible evidence that Europe is kicking our butts in a number of economic
areas. Sure, I’m aware of the
things we like to focus on when we poopoo Europe’s economic performance: structural unemployment, highly
socialized economies, bloated governments, frightening demography, etc. Nevertheless, their stuff is just
better than our stuff. Just about
everything that is manmade is of a higher quality, better maintained, and more
functional in Europe than in the US.
And yet, I have always thought that big-government Europe could never
compete with the US with its emphasis on individual liberty and limited
government. How can these bloated
bureaucracies be kicking our butts when it comes to making and maintaining high
quality stuff? Apparently I
need to rethink my premises.
First, some observations from my most recent trip. The eye popping differences began with
the flights. As it happened, we
flew Lufthansa over and United back.
No surprise: Lufthansa won hands down. The Lufthansa Airbus A340-600 was new, staff was courteous
(and gorgeous), food good, even in coach the silverware was metal, and alcohol,
including good wine, was available without additional charge. The United return was an aging Boeing
767 in bad need of an overhaul (as was the staff), alcohol was extra, and halfway
through the flight the bathroom was out of toilet paper and remained so the
rest of the flight.
We flew into Munich where the escalators all worked, the
luggage carousels purred, and the rental cars were all BMWs, Mercedes, Audis,
and VWs in excellent condition.
When we landed back in Newark, somewhat depressed by the return flight
experience, the first escalator we encountered was, appropriately, not
working.
Of course, tourists usually see the best of what a locale
has to offer. But the same can be
said of where I live in the US. I
spend nearly all my time in areas that cater to tourists and are analogous to
the areas I’ve visited in Europe.
( I know, pinch me!) That
said, I am blown away by the level of construction and the quality of the
properties in Europe. You cannot
even compare high-end construction in the US with the same level in
Europe. What we call the finest
door or window in the US wouldn’t even qualify for a shed in prosperous parts
of Europe. The same can be said
for just about every detail in high-end construction. Europeans build for the long run. In the US, most of what we build is disposable and reflects
that.
Infrastructure in Europe also wins hands-down over the
US. Trains throughout Europe are
superior, even in the indebted countries like Italy and Spain. They run on schedule, go fast, and can
take you (and your bike and dog) just about anywhere. Roads, funiculars, cog railways, and even hiking trails have
been built and are maintained to an amazing degree in the most inhospitable of
places. Autobahns are plenty
smooth at even 100mph. You can
hike for hours up just about any mountain in the Alps, and chance upon ancient
Inns that are only accessible by foot (or now helicopter), and get a beer, a
delicious meal, a hot cappuccino, and often a room.
On the technology front, again a mismatch. I’m proud that much technology
originated in the US, but Europe has adopted it as well as anywhere. Smart phones, computers, and broadband
internet are ubiquitous. Some
things however haven’t made it the other way across the pond. Anyone who’s stayed in a European hotel
knows that the key card must be inserted before the power goes on. How many coal fired plants could we do
without if we adopted this simple idea?
European waitstaff enter orders digitally and remotely, accept credit
cards remotely, and hence can serve more tables more efficiently than we can
with our centralized and more manual systems. I believe this is a consequence of the European custom where
the waitstaff works for the restaurant and is paid a salary, versus the US
custom where the waitstaff largely works for the diner via tips (a system I
prefer as a diner, btw). Seems to
me better efficiency would benefit restaurants and diners, but this technology
has not been adopted in the US.
Back when I first visited Europe in 1974, the rap on the old
world was that you couldn’t find decent toilet paper and the commode would
likely be a hole in the floor. No
more. On this trip I encountered a
public bathroom halfway up a mountain, in Italy no less, that practically wiped
your bum for you. Electronic
toilets, electric doors, faucets that both washed and dried your hands, and
door handles that changed color to indicate occupancy. It was a level of technology and
excellent design in a public restroom I’ve never seen anywhere in the US.
So, how is Europe able to have bigger government, more
redistribution, more regulation, hence less economic freedom, and at the same
time produce tangible things that are superior to ours? The answer is that they do not
necessarily have less economic freedom.
Despite the best intentions of our founders, in many ways Europeans
today are the economically freer people!
For twenty years now The Heritage Foundation has published a ranking of countries based on economic freedom. At current standing the US is #12. Switzerland is #4.
Overall, four European countries beat the US: Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark, and Estonia. Of the top twenty, ten are
European. And yet, I believe
Heritage understates Europe’s economic freedom and overstates ours.
Wherever you go in Europe you see things you would never see
in the US. Swimming pools have
diving boards, hotels have trampolines, and in the Alps, parapenters (hang
gliders) and squirrel suit flyers are everywhere. Sometimes people die or are injured doing these things, but
Europeans are free to take these risks, and businesses are free to offer these
experiences. A tort system that
supports litigious actions effectively limits our freedom in the US without
specific laws banning behavior. I
once tried to rent a mountain bike in NJ but was told insurance rates due to
litigation made that impossible.
The result is a loss of freedom and economic freedom. Heritage does not account for the
effects of our tort system and our lawsuit culture on economic freedom.
Also, remember how we were supposed to be the country
specifically designed to have limited government and unprecedented
liberty? Remember how that was the
thing that made us “exceptional”?
Well, according to my calculations, six European countries have more
limited government than we do, and some of them are prosperity
powerhouses: Switzerland,
Slovakia, Estonia, Poland, Ireland, and Norway (which is tied with the
US). Moreover, three more
are within the margin of error:
Luxembourg, Czech Republic, and the industrial powerhouse of Europe,
Germany.
(*This is a larger list than the one Heritage arrives
at. See note at the end for a full
explanation of the method I use versus the one Heritage uses.)
Sure, not everything in Europe is awesome. There are slums in Europe just as there
are in the US. Having fast trains,
nice buildings, great cars, and amazing infrastructure doesn’t create a
classless society. To do that you have
to go full Socialist, or full Communist, and then you end up with none of the
above, except of course the slums and a few grand palaces.
Here’s the upshot:
Europe is highly decentralized, being made-up of sovereign
nations, often with semi-autonomous regions within those nations. The US is now highly centralized with
states that have fewer rights than ever in our history. Decentralized systems are inherently
more resilient. Europe is a place
where you can find limited government, reasonable regulation, democracy, human
rights, personal accountability, prosperity, freedom, rule-of-law, etc. all in
one place, though certainly not everywhere. The US is a place where you cannot find all those things to
that degree in a single place thanks to centralization. Advantage Europe.
Europe now does its redistribution in the right place thanks
to the Euro - away from the political entity that prints most currency (The
ECB). The US redistributes at the
federal level where it also prints it’s currency setting up a fatal conflict of
interests. National debt per capita is currently $30,504 in the Euro countries. It is $55,228 in the US. Advantage Europe.
Europe is a place where citizens can drive as fast as they
please, but they are accountable.
The US is a place where the federal government dictates driving
speeds. Europe is a place where
public swimming pools have diving boards, hotels have trampolines, and citizens
are accountable to use them responsibly.
The US is a place where its
citizens are denied many freedoms due to a litigious tort system and centralized federal power. Advantage Europe.
The US has the highest corporate tax rate in the industrialized world along with a tax system that seeks to tax foreign earnings as well as domestic. European countries only tax earnings in their own country, hence many US companies are doing"inversions" where they merge with smaller European companies and move their headquarters there. Advantage Europe.
The US has the highest corporate tax rate in the industrialized world along with a tax system that seeks to tax foreign earnings as well as domestic. European countries only tax earnings in their own country, hence many US companies are doing"inversions" where they merge with smaller European companies and move their headquarters there. Advantage Europe.
Europe produces better stuff, and in many ways, a better
standard of living. They just
do. Much of this is cultural, but
the result is undeniable. Advantage Europe.
I used to maintain that the US was a place with unmatched adherence to the rule of law, a constitution that protected our rights, limited government, economic freedom, and a future second to none. Now I admire Europe. (With a caveat for demography, although ours isn’t looking too good either!)
(Update - Certainly one reason Europe produces better stuff is due to history; Europe, and especially Germany, have a highly evolved Guild System in place, which has been churning out the world's best tradesmen and craftsmen since before Columbus sailed to the New World! But that does not diminish the role of economic freedom in determining the quality of goods in a nation. All one need do is look at the examples of East and West Germany, or North and South Korea where similar cultures resulted in radically different outcomes due to freedom, both political and economic.
Also, whenever discussing economic history, particularly when comparing the US and Europe, the role of WWII must be acknowledged. A major reason for US economic power in the post WWII world was due to the fact that we emerged the largest intact industrialized nation by far. Europe and Japan were smoldering ruins, and China was still in loincloths. Those days are long gone, yet we are still enjoying the fruits of that post WWII world with our dollar being the world's reserve currency. Imagine how our $18 trillion debt will look if the dollar loses that status?)
I used to maintain that the US was a place with unmatched adherence to the rule of law, a constitution that protected our rights, limited government, economic freedom, and a future second to none. Now I admire Europe. (With a caveat for demography, although ours isn’t looking too good either!)
(Update - Certainly one reason Europe produces better stuff is due to history; Europe, and especially Germany, have a highly evolved Guild System in place, which has been churning out the world's best tradesmen and craftsmen since before Columbus sailed to the New World! But that does not diminish the role of economic freedom in determining the quality of goods in a nation. All one need do is look at the examples of East and West Germany, or North and South Korea where similar cultures resulted in radically different outcomes due to freedom, both political and economic.
Also, whenever discussing economic history, particularly when comparing the US and Europe, the role of WWII must be acknowledged. A major reason for US economic power in the post WWII world was due to the fact that we emerged the largest intact industrialized nation by far. Europe and Japan were smoldering ruins, and China was still in loincloths. Those days are long gone, yet we are still enjoying the fruits of that post WWII world with our dollar being the world's reserve currency. Imagine how our $18 trillion debt will look if the dollar loses that status?)
*Note on government spending: My ranking of government spending differs from Heritage’s in
two ways: I compare government
spending (all federal, state, and local) to just the private sector portion of GDP
for all countries. Heritage uses
both the public and private part of GDP in the denominator, which is problematic especially in
measuring the US, which has been on a money printing, borrowing, and stimulus
binge. To correct for this, I
consider only the private portion of GDP (GDP less Government Spending) for all countries. The Heritage formula is, Total Government Spending divided by GDP, and mine is Total Government Spending divided by (GDP less Government Spending).
Also, Quantitative Easing is not specifically accounted for
in Heritage’s government spending numbers. I do include it because it is government spending.
For a full explanation of my method see “The True Tax Rate is 70%!”
All numbers come from the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) data.
(not all European countries participate in the OECD)
Friday, June 27, 2014
The Immaculate Recession
Two days ago, on June 25th 2014, the third update to GDP numbers was released for the first quarter of the year, and the latest numbers show a GDP change of -2.9%.
This is pretty amazing since the consensus opinion going into the quarter was for +2.5%,
the advanced estimate in April was for +0.1%, the first revision in May was for -1%, and now the second revision in June is a whopping -2.9%!
Even in a business like economic forecasting and reporting,
which is known for being particularly dodgy, this discrepancy is unusual. But there may be a simple, though not
comforting, explanation for this wild swing.
Consider that the official definition of a recession is two
consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. Therefore, the lower the first quarter, the easier it will
be to avoid the “R” word when the second quarter is reported. For example: if the first quarter had actually been
-1.5% and the second quarter comes in again at -1.5%, that would ring the
recession bell and the overall 2014 GDP would be -1.5%. But if the GDP really is -1.5% after
two quarters, and the first quarter is reported as -2.9%, then the second
quarter can be reported as +1.4%, and no recession will have officially
occurred! Call it the immaculate
recession.
Now you might be saying, “that’s ridiculous , the Bureau of
Economic Analysis (BEA) is a highly respected non-partisan government agency
which would never manipulate official numbers to benefit incumbents during an
election year!” Yeah, tell that to
the victims of the IRS, FDA, FBI, INS, DOJ, NLRB, NTSB, Fish and Wildlife, etc,
etc, etc.
Update: Oh, and remember this? Census "faked" election 2012 jobs report.
Update: Oh, and remember this? Census "faked" election 2012 jobs report.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Oops, the IRS lost the email, sorry!
Having some fun in the face of tyranny...
Here's the raw photo. Feel free to download and make your own meme!
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
I spent $1.5T & 640 days, and all I got was this lousy terrorist!
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Friday, June 6, 2014
Myth: Hey, this prisoner swap is the same thing Israel does!
One of the lies
Obama likes to invoke is, "Hey, I'm not doing anything unusual here; everyone does it!" Thus,
when the Bergdahl fiasco blew-up in his face he invoked history saying,
"Hey, this is what happens at the end of wars!" Which of course
is interesting because he skipped the signing of the treaty. As far as I
know there is still a violent jihad being waged against us by the very people Obama just released. That makes this different from any such prisoner
exchange in history.
Another lie we hear
is, "Hey, the Israelis do this all the time, and they really know how to
fight terrorists!" What we have done has no relationship to what the
Israelis do. If you want some insight into what the Israelis are up to
when they release prisoners, watch the movie "The
Green Prince". The eponymous prince in the movie is Mosab Hassan Yousef, son of Hassan Yousef, one of the
founders of Hamas. (The flag of Hamas is green, hence "Green Prince".) Mosab Hassan Yousef was
imprisoned by Israel for terrorist activity, but subsequently was released
after being secretly flipped by a sophisticated and successful effort to infiltrate
Hamas. Israel knows what they are doing. They are playing a long
game in an endless struggle for survival.
One may
speculate that perhaps we have a similar program and one of these five Taliban
generals has been flipped. Really? Does anyone reading this believe
Barack Obama knows what he is doing and is operating a successful operation to
flip Gitmo detainees and infiltrate the Taliban? Remember, this president
has taken virtually no prisoners and sought no new intelligence since taking office.
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