"Obama has cut the remembering-what-we-don't-like-about-Democrats stage of this process down from two to four years to about 10 months. Folks, I'm convinced that if we all work really hard, we can get it down to three months." - Ann Coulter, from "That Old Obama Magic Is Back" 1-20-2010 - Image Credit: Organizing For America
Barack Obama's second year begins - More 153 & 411 moments
This morning, Don Imus mentioned that Barack Obama has given about 153 interviews and issued or delivered 411 comments and speeches on health care reform since he has taken office.
Obama’s failure to communicate on health care By Jon Ward - The Daily Caller 01/20/10 at 9:14 pm
President Obama on Wednesday said the reason his health-care reform is on life support because Congress took too long to debating it and he didn’t talk enough to citizens about its benefits for them. ---- “One of the things that I have learned in Washington is you have to repeat yourself a lot because because unfortunately it doesn’t penetrate,” he said.
The president, making his first public comments after a Republican candidate on Tuesday won the special election to fill Sen. Ted Kennedy’s Massachusetts Senate seat, said he understands that some Americans view his administration as a bunch of “technocrats up here … making decisions.”
But he said the main reason for this was not his policies but rather his communications strategy.
“What I haven’t always been successful at doing is breaking through the noise and speaking directly to the American people in a way that during the campaign you could do,” he said. ---- He also admitted he has failed to “change the tone here in Washington.” Reference Here>>
With the context of this being the first day of the second year of this 44th Presidency, why don't we just recognize what we can see is the obvious delusional mind of Barack Obama ... it isn't that He has failed to change the tone in Washington, just the TONE DEAFNESS.
Also, He fails to hear the American people when they speak through Tea Party gatherings, Town Hall questions, and now votes in Virginia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts ... even though he believes that the American people have NOT been listening and hearing what he has said over the 153 interviews and 411 comments and speeches.
We American people have heard what has been said ... when will the Obama Administration resolve to begin to listen to the American people, in this, the first day of year two, of the destructive path of this 44th Presidency?
Obama carried Massachusetts by 26 points in November 2008. (His approval among registered voters there also appeared to be about +24 as of November 2009). So, if Democrats suffered from the same turnout gap in Massachusetts that they had in Virginia (which was billed as catastrophic at the time), Obama would be at a +17 or so. Instead, you have several pollsters showing him at a +1 or a +5 -- which would imply a turnout gap of 20 or 25 points, more than twice as bad as the one Democrats suffered from in VA. Image Credit: forum.prisonplanet.com
High turnout may actually be the undoing of the Barack Obama agenda in Massachusetts
With the nation focused on the events of the special election held to formally replace Senator Edward Kennedy (deceased) in the United States Senate, it is hard to imagine, sitting out here on the West Coast, what dynamics are at play that would have a Republican candidate win this election.
As it turns out, in a state that has one-million more registered Democrats than Republicans ... the citizens in Massachusetts apperar to want a change that runs deeper than the Hope and Change that our current President, Barack Obama, campainged on just a little over one year ago.
Three pollsters -- Suffolk, MRG and PPP -- all place Obama's approval between a net +1 and a net +5, and each have the raw approve number under 50 percent. These polling results are basically identical to how Obama is polling nationally at the moment ... and this is Massachusetts.
What this will translate to ... is that Scott Brown will be voted into office based upon an overall approval of Barack Obama of under 50% and a strong voter turnout will only magnify this effect. Further, add this to the fact that people see that they have a chance to change their own liberal political dynamic for the first time in decades.
The Boston Globe calls election for Marth Coakley ... EIGHT HOURS before the polls in Massachusetts actually close. Mmmmmm! they must be clairvoyant. Now, if the final numbers end up matching these on this screen shot chart, the Republicans may really have reason to question the integrity of the process... [ctrl-click image to view larger image] Image Credit: The Boston Phoenix
... and what does Barack Obama say about the prospect of a Scott Brown victory over Martha Coakley?
This excerpted and edited from the Washington Examiner -
Obama: Coakley victorious if Brown gets less than 60 percent By: Scott Ott - Examiner Columnist - January 19, 2010
As voters in Massachusetts go to the polls today to decide who will complete the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's unexpired term, President Obama declared that "anything less than a 20-point win by Scott Brown represents a resounding endorsement of my entire domestic and foreign policy agenda."
"If Brown ends up with less than 60 percent, there's gonna be a lot of sullen Republicans, moping around, hanging their heads," said the president to a crowd of supporters that greeted him upon his return from stumping for Democrat Martha Coakley. "Such a thin margin against such a historically weak opponent would be tantamount to a crushing loss for Scott, and would signal a clear rejection of the GOP platform in general."
A spokesman for the Coakley campaign agreed that "the only real question now is, how embarrassing will Scott Brown's win be?" Reference Here>>
TeaPAC logo - Taken from the Pasadena Patriots political networking website. Image Credit: Pasadena Patriots
TeaPAC 2010 - Pasadena Patriots begin the year
Last night, a tea party organization that spawned from last year's reaction to the incredible spending legislation, marked by the Stimulus and Omnibus bills passed by the Democrat Political Party led Congress, held its 2010 kick off organization meeting to take back the 29th Congressional district. More importantly, the meeting was the first of many to help people of all political strips who wish to maintain their freedoms in the face of an unparalleled expansion of centralized governmental power.
Much has been made about the Tea Party movement ever since it showed itself as a real and growing, grass roots political phenomenon starting first on tax day, April 15, 2009, when nearly two million people gathered in front of city halls and federal buildings around the country. Even though little was reported about the impromptu gatherings in the Main Stream Media (MSM), the New Media web portals like Examiner, NowPublic, Pajamas Media, and a host of nationally recognized blog sites posted expose's on the events around the country.
Last summer, the tea party movement began to pick up steam, literally, when people from political points of view and affiliation ranging from conservative, to moderate, to independent, to Democrat, to Libertarian, to Republican wanted to have a voice in the workings of our Government when, at Town Hall meetings with their direct representatives ... began to ask questions. They found out that they did not like what they were hearing and/or how their point of view was being represented by their elected official. Many elected officials did not hold summer break town hall meetings because they did not want to hear what the people, who they were elected to represent, had to say about their governance.
Last night, the Pasadena Patriots placed their standard into the ground seeking to reclaim the right to ... as the Constitution states - "To form a more perfect union".
This excerpted and edited from the TeaPAC website -
TeaPAC is dedicated to providing funds and resources to Tea Party groups and grassroots candidates across America. Financial support of the Tea Party movement is both urgent and necessary. When you support TeaPAC you are also supporting the Patriot News Network and Neighborhood Tea Parties from coast-to-coast. While contributions aren't yet tax deductible, donors will receive a patriotic TeaPAC bumper sticker. We hope you'll partner with us in the battle to restore limited Constitutional government. Reference Here>>
Constitutionality IS what this is all about. To maintain the ability to be treated as equal in a country of equals in terms of opportunity.
Yesterday, a prime example of how far the leadership of our country is working against the Constitution in the governance of our country happened when the Obama Administration saw fit to EXEMPT labor unions from the proposed 40% tax to be levied on Health Care Insurance plans that cover a broader range of health care procedures than the level of care that this Government is planning to set as the standard of ALL care offered in this country ... in the name of Health Care Reform.
Many believe that this exemption exceptional, along with the Government's intention to levy fines and jail time for all citizens who do not purchase the authorized Health Care Insurance plans that become available for sale once the health care reform legislation becomes law.
Corruption in the processes of Government is at the root of this TeaPAC movement ... it is time to STOP THE SLIDE!
John P. Colbert for Congress 2010 - Candidate for US Representative, CA-29. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)
In the 29th District, candidate John P. Colbert has committed himself to stop the slide of government corruption and he described, to those gathered at the TeaPAC Pasadena Patriots kickoff meeting, what aspects of his background experience has prepared him for this moment in time to help take America back. A CEO of a successful computer security and forensics software company combined with 13 years as an investigator in the LA County Sheriff's Department has John keenly aware of recognizing threats and how to dispose of them. If elected, John Colbert is committed to joining and/or forming a committee to address and prosecute corruption in Congress and government processes. He believes that this is the beginning of a war to take our country back to a limited and Constitutional central governance.
On the back of John P. Colbert For Congress 2010 business card is the following quote:
"...America must win this war. I will work, I will save, I will sacrifice, I will endure, I will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone" - Quote found in the diary recovered from the body of a World War One American solider, Martin Treptow.
This quote was first used by Ronald Reagan in a speech that helped to communicate to the citizens of the United States on his level of commitment to a Constitutional government.
Take the materials found at the TeaPAC website and organize community "Tea Parties" with people you know who wish to maintain their freedoms laid out in the Constitution and help to support candidates who pledge to stop the corruption that has taken hold of our governmental processes.
Democrat Political Party Leadership - President Barack Obama is flanked by (L-R) Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in the Roosevelt Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on December 15, 2009 in Washington, D.C. President Obama met with members of the Senate Democratic Caucus to discuss health care reform legislation. Image Credit: AFP/White House Pool
The case to retain Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid
Over the last couple of days, quotes in the forthcoming book "Game Change" about President Obama's ethnicity attributed to Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid revealed that Harry Reid is as racist as the political party he represents. The Democrat Party is the most tolerant of people who hold power over, and make judgments on people from a racial perspective.
Reid praised Obama's electability as a "light-skinned" African American"with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one" insults all human beings and debases all voters in the United States as making voting judgments on the basis of human race first as opposed to political philosophy.
To the voter who is not from African decent, Reid comment asserts that they are softer on disapproval if someone spoke English in a clear diction and their skin color was not deep into the brown spectrum. To the voter who happened to be born from an African race decent, Harry Reid is stating that education and accomplishment are not as important as one's appearance and speaking ability.
Now if Harry Reid were just some person who sold soap to car wash operations around Nevada, he might be able to make a living and get by with attitudes of closure to humans he meets along the way ... but this is a man who is a lawmaker and has become the leader of all lawmakers in the most powerful Government lawmaking body in the United States, and these attitudes are not consistent with what is expected in a position of leadership and power over all human beings regardless of race.
We, at MAXINE, say keep Harry Reid. Why set the example of intolerance to racist attitudes that the Republican Political Party set? ... when then incoming Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott made a comment in jest at a party honoring a former segregationist and Senate colleague, Strom Thurmond.
Thurmond ran as the presidential nominee of the breakaway Dixiecrat Party in the 1948 presidential race against Democrat Harry Truman and Republican Thomas Dewey. He carried Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and his home state of South Carolina, of which he was governor at the time.
During the campaign, he said, "All the laws of Washington and all the bayonets of the Army cannot force the Negro into our homes, our schools, our churches."
Thurmond's party ran under a platform that declared in part, "We stand for the segregation of the races and the racial integrity of each race."
The comment that then incoming Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott made suggested the United States would have avoided "all these [race] problems" if then-segregationist Strom Thurmond had been elected president in 1948.
Trent Lott was removed in short order after he issued an apology on Monday, December 9, 2002, stating "A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that I embraced the discarded policies of the past," Lott said. "Nothing could be further from the truth, and I apologize to anyone who was offended by my statement."
The Republican Political Party knew all human beings were offended, regardless of race, leadership, and power considerations.
Democrats ... please retain Harry Reid as Senate Majority Leader of the United States Senate. It will give all voters an example of support for institutionalized racists attitudes and show them exactly what the attitudes about race of the Democrat Political Party are ... and what level of institutionalized racism they are willing to tolerate.
Acting CIA Director, Leon Panetta, has directed the CIA to share data collection assets, time, and classified information with about 60 select scientists. The National Reconnaissance Office, which operates the nation’s fleet of spy satellites, is providing much of the data.
Former Vice President Al Gore is credited with helping restart the collaboration by urging Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, to convince the CIA and others it was time to bring Medea (Measurements of Earth Data for Environmental Analysis - a Clinton Administration program that operated from 1992 to 2001) back to life.
This excerpted and edited from The National Center for Public Policy Research -
Experts with The National Center for Public Policy Research are decrying this practice as a distraction from important counter-terrorism duties. They further question if it a possible avenue to renew climate change subterfuge already plaguing some of these scientists.
"This is another example of President Obama not taking terrorism seriously," said Deneen Borelli, a fellow with the National Center's Project 21 black leadership network. "Our enemies must be laughing at the Obama Administration's incompetence." ---- "Given the very real threat posed by terrorists, it is ridiculous and downright dangerous to divert any intelligence resources to monitoring polar ice," added Project 21's Deneen Borelli. "Its said this won't hinder regular intelligence-gathering, but it's also clear that agencies can't yet share data and track a terrorism suspect who was identified by his own father. It's unwise to further distract our intelligence network by forcing it to consult with scientists about icebergs, polar bears and sea lions. The Obama Administration appears to be putting a left-wing political agenda before the safety and security of our nation."
Speaking on the involvement of Al Gore, Tom Borelli, Ph.D., director of the National Center's Free Enterprise Project, noted: "If anything, Al Gore is the real national security threat. Gore's climate change fear mongering, which lines his own pockets with cash has stoked a war against the fossil fuels so vital to our nation's economic prosperity and national security. His self-serving agenda is stymieing domestic energy exploration and production efforts. Now, he successfully lobbied to resurrect this diversion of our intelligence assets after the Bush Administration wisely ended it."
The claims of some scientists are already suspect after the Climategate scandal. Tom Borelli pointed out: "We've already seen climate scientists discussing the idea of destroying raw data to preserve climate change models that may be seriously flawed, and then it turns out that very same sort of data was allegedly 'lost.' How can we trust them to not behave similarly with CIA data - such as denying the proper peer review under the guise that the data is secret? The real question is: who's going to be watching the scientists?" Reference Here>>
Additional Question:
Will the Obama Administration vet these scientists as it relates to their involvement with "Climategate" tactics ... or will they just be vetted as other Czars and advisors to the Obama Administration have been in the last 11 months (Van Jones, Mark Lloyd, Timothy Geithner, Harold Koh, John Holdren, Cass Sunstein and others)?
Problem:
Scientific Method is the search for Truth ... Climate Change data collection is the gathering of information in search for data that supports an AGW Ideology!
This process of diverting classified CIA assets and time takes away from their real job ... to gather information about real threats and assaults on the sovereignty of the United States.
Eric Odom, a conservative online organizer who played a key role in sparking the original Tea Party movement this spring, is unveiling Liberty First PAC. The goal, said Odom in an interview with TPMmuckraker, is to raise $1 million to defeat incumbents who supported health-care reform -- which he called "very dangerous to the fabric of this country" -- and to elect a new crop of lawmakers committed to small-government principles in 2010. Image Credit: TPM
The TeaPac Toll: Add Dorgan, Dodd, and Ritter - Ten for '10
Starting on Tax Day 2009, the Tea Party Movement showed its first signs of growing when over one-million people showed up halls and Federal Buildings throughout the country to protest the process and spending the Stimulus and Omnibus spending bills passed by Congress and signed into law by Barack Obama.
Over the summer, Tea Party rallies and town hall meetings were attended by millions of upset citizens wanting to have their representatives answer to them for their actions as opposed to voting in lock-step with the political party leadership ... especially if their representative did not read the legislation they were voting on to pass.
Democrats not wanting to face the music of their actions are now abandoning their political careers by dropping out of the next election cycle.Four top Democrats-including veteran Sens. Chris Dodd and Byron Dorgan - all prepared to pull the plug on their campaigns in a 24-hour period that began Tuesday, and in the process, offered an unnerving glimpse at the perilous election year ahead. With Dorgan's stunning retirement announcement Tuesday evening, Democrats are now facing their bleakest election outlook in years - and the very real possibility the party will lose its 60-40 Senate supermajority after the November elections.
On the House side, the prospect of heavy 20-30 seat losses is already looking as an increasing possibility. Dorgan's announcement was accompanied Tuesday by Michigan Democratic Lt. Gov. John Cherry's decision to end his floundering bid for governor, and by the revelation that both Dodd and Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter would announce today that they would not seek reelection.
The retirement announcements of two senior Democratic senators, and the suddenly altered landscapes in Michigan and Colorado, continue a wave of Democrat Political Party bail outs that began with a burst of retirements by veteran House Democrats representing competitive districts, followed by the stunning late December party switch by freshman Alabama Rep. Parker Griffith. ... Suddenly, the sad sack GOP is looking to have its best shot at being the party of change and representing the people's wishes in three election cycles and of making serious gains in November.'
TeaPac, the Tea Party Political Action Committees, may be our country's best beacon at finding candidates who wish to represent and protect citizens who want a country that listens to, and votes as the citizens they represent want them to vote. Less Government is better Government.
This excerpted and edited from California Tea Party Political Action Committee - Just as the original Boston Tea Party was fueled by excess taxes imposed upon American Colonists, the 2009 Tea Party Tax Revolt is inspired by unfair taxes imposed by the United States and California Government. American Citizens are fed up with the excessive taxation and spending proposed by the Obama Administration. Additionally, the residents of California are now subjected to the highest tax burden in the United States with the recent $16 billion dollars imposed by the California Legislature and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Mission:The California Tea Party PAC, a California Political Action Committee, is a non-partisan organization that works to channel the energy of the grassroot anti-tax political movement and apply it to current California legislation and create real government change. All proceeds collected by the California Tea Party PAC are used to support the return to a reasonable rate of tax for all California citizens and fiscal responsibility in California Government regardless of political affiliation. Reference Here>>
Back candidates that support Ten for '10 - a backbone of principles from which American governance can flourish.
This excerpted and edited from Laura Ingraham's website - 1) Taxpayers' Bill of Rights (TABOR). Limit federal spending growth to the percentage in population growth plus the rate of inflation; provide taxpayers the option of filing a post-card sized return using a low, flat tax rate of 15%
2) End Tax-funded abortions. Stop federal payments to Planned Parenthood and prohibit any taxpayer-subsidized health insurance plan from covering abortion
3) Defend American Borders. Complete America's border-protection initiatives using remaining funds from the so-called stimulus bill
4) King Dollar. Preserve a strong dollar so that Americans' savings aren't wiped out by inflation and the U.S. dollar remains the world's reserve currency
5) Empower American Business. Immediately slash corporate tax rates to 15% and scrap the capital-gains tax altogether
6) Defend America. Strengthen America to defend our homeland and fully fund an operational, layered missile-defense system
7) Statism Exit Plan. De-fund czars; immediately cease bailout payments to failed companies; ban future bailouts
8) End Generational Theft. As few believe America's entitlement programs will be able to pay benefits to future generations, provide younger workers the choice of diverting payroll/Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts
9) Restore America's System of Justice. Introduce penalties for frivolous lawsuits, where those who launch unsuccessful lawsuits are liable for the defendants' legal bills
10) American Energy Independence. All-of-the-Above strategy that embraces alternatives, expands and accelerates exploration and production of oil and natural gas, and jumpstarts dramatic increases in nuclear power Reference Here>>
JournalisN'T ... Photo taken at a Tea Party Patriots gathering - Organized by the Pasadena Patriots, Tea Party Patriots from all over Southern California on Tuesday afternoon December 29th, celebrated an incredibly successful 2009 and gathered to get ready for the exciting 2010 year ahead. We gathered at Riley's Farm in Oak Glen at 3p for fireside fellowship, hot cider, and Holiday cheer. The fireside gathering featured chili and fixins and we were all treated to a performance of "Take Our Country Back" - written and performed by Chris Cassone. Chris also took this occasion to announce a 125 city tour that will begin in March 2010 ... and end on election day, November 2010 in Las Vegas ... Senate leader Harry Reid's district. From the apple orchards to the fishin' hole, there was a lot to do at Riley's Farm in a gathering of like minded folks! Caption & Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)
Media Watch: Welcome to 2010 ... NOT the beginning of a new decade
Welcome to January 1, 2010 and the 10th anniversary of the bogus Y2K scare and the end of the ninth year of this millennium.
To watch the formal and recognized media outlets note this day is an act of definitive frustration ... it is like hearing someone call Valentines Day, "Valen-TIMES" day.
If one were to believe what the reporters are actually saying one would write the beginning of this posting ... Good Friday morning, 1/1/10. Happy New Year, and new decade, by popular acclaim ... just as they had ten years ago on January 1, 2000.
James (Jim) Riley, owner of Riley's Farm, a working apple orchard and living history farm featuring pick-your-own fruit, living American history education, dinner theater, group banquet facilities and extended, historically-themed overnight stays. He is pictured here next to the farm's flintlock rifle display and "Live Free Or Die" flag while reviewing video taken of the Tea Party Patriot gathering at the farm on the afternoon of Dec. 29, 2009. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)
This edited and excerpted from Politico - The N.Y. Times went with a large, classy, centered italic banner, '1/1/00,' and noted, 'Computers Prevail in First Hours of '00.' (earlier edition) The L.A. Times was slightly less poetic: 'Yeltsin Steps Down.' Others: 'Y2K A-OK,' 'Hooray 2K,' 'Green Bay cheers 2000,' 'Fears to cheers,' and the witty, 'Looks like we made it!'
[Today] In Honolulu, the WashPost's Anne E. Kornblut filed 'pool report #8' at 11:50 p.m. ET: 'It is my pleasure to push the button on this, the final White House pool report of the decade. Ten years ago tonight, we were all awaiting the Y2K meltdown, the 2000 presidential recount was still a year away – and Barack Obama was a 38-year-old state senator running a losing campaign for Congress. Ten years from now, on New Year's Eve in 2019, Obama will be an ex-president. And hopefully someone else will be sitting pool van outside the vacation home of the president. For now, however, what we know is this: Obama, after leaving the golf course at 6:33 p.m. local time, is back at his family vacation home in Kailua (they got back at about 6:40 p.m.). The president played more than five hours of golf with friends Greg Orme, Bobby Titcomb and Mike Ramos – and although he missed the final putt on the 18th hole, got a big cheer from the bystanders on the road next to the Mid-Pacific Country Club. The Obamas are now in for the night, and we have a full lid.'
On Chicago Tribune p. 1, a New Year's kiss: 'On to the next decade: Zachary Dixon, 17, and Melinda Craddock, 18, of Galesburg welcome 2010 ... during the 8:15 p.m. New Year's Eve fireworks over Navy Pier in Chicago. ... Chicago area temperatures expected to reach a low of 2 and high of 17 on Friday.'
*First rant of the year – Dr. Larry J. Sabato e-mails: 'I realize the world is nuts in major ways, and this is just a minor slice of fruitcake. But truly, is there any chance the media will stop declaring Thursday the end of the decade? The first decade of the 21st century ends a year from Thursday. Did the first decade A.D. end with the year 9? Of course not! There was no year zero, so Decade One ended on the last day of the year in 10 A.D. Ergo, we've got another whole year in which to name the decade. Maybe something will happen that will help us make sense out of the past ten years.' Good luck with that! Reference Here>>
We just have to ignore logic and fact in this era of proclaimed "Transparency", "Hope", "Change", "Reform", and "Recovery" in the face of double-digit unemployment and looming inflation ... while we see votes being taken in Congress on 2,000 plus pages of proposed laws that takeover 1/6th of our economy, exert unconstitutional control over all and kill incentive to serve citizens in the name of healthcare reform ... as this Government chooses to impose new Multi-Trillion Dollar debts that will bankrupt economic opportunity and freedom of this and future generations - "The end of a decade".
Good-bye to 2009 and Happy New Year to 2010 ... a year that we still have the freedom to make choices and can resolve to take this country back.
Illustrators’ Visions of Santa Claus - Over the years, great illustrators have created and shaped the popular vision of Santa Claus. Clockwise from top, left: Thomas Nast, who gave Santa Claus a form almost like the modern idea in the mid-1800’s, with his clay pipe and arm full of toys (including a sword). You can see some of his visions of Santa here. /// J. C. Leyendecker, who really created the modern vision of Santa, and painted a number of memorable Saturday Evening Post covers featuring the jolly elf over the years. You can find them in the SEP cover archive. /// Norman Rockwell, along with Leyendecker, provided numerous SEP covers with images of Santa, often with clever takes on the vision of his traditional role. The SEP cover archive has a section devoted to Rockwell Christmas covers. /// Haddon Sundblom was an American illustrator who became noted for his yearly portrayals of Santa Claus for the Coca-Cola company. There is a section on the Coca-Cola site, and an album of Sundblom Santas here. Image Credit: Charley Parker
Christmas is a time we come together to celebrate forces that are beyond our own experience.
On December 25, the birth of the son of God is the source of the excuse for additional forces we know are beyond our own experience to come to life.
The one force that creates the most wonder and awe is the force of Santa Claus and his amazing journey around the world as he drives his Reindeer powered Sleigh. The Sleigh, loaded with gifts, stops at every home throughout the world where Santa knows people believe in giving and the amazing grace of God and his power.
Santa is even known to stop and leave a gift where some people are not even aware they actually believe in him and/or God’s power because he knows what resides deep in all people who wish for a better world but have not found a conscious way to its understanding.
Technology and the internet were made for times like these.
On Christmas Eve, millions of children around the world will settle uneasily into bed, hardly able to contain themselves. What vision could possibly dance through their heads, turning them into twitchy, restless insomniacs for just one night? Is it the Sugar Plum Fairy from Tchaikovsky's ballet "The Nutcracker" or the sugarplums from Clement Clarke Moore's poem "The Night Before Christmas"? Can sugarplums really do such a thing?
Chances are the children are thinking about toys, Santa Claus and his team of reindeer -- if the children have been nice this year, jolly old St. Nick should be landing his sleigh on their roofs sometime late in the night.
Everyone has their own traditional image of Santa's sleigh, but could there be more to it than just a sled and a team of reindeer? Although no one may ever know for sure just how Santa operates, we at HowStuffWorks have what we think are the most logical explanations for how the big guy accomplishes all that he does: science and technology.
Sure, demystifying Santa's modus operandi puts us at risk of getting nothing but coal in our stockings this year, but it's all for the noble pursuit of yuletide knowledge. After all, have you ever wondered how Santa's sleigh flies? What about the reindeer? And how does Santa fit all of those presents into one bag? In the next section, we'll look at the possible technology behind Santa's sleigh.
Rustic on the outside and state-of-the-art on the inside, Santa's sleigh would have to be a marvel in engineering. These are the main parts of the sleigh that would be needed to get Santa across the world in one night.
The Sleigh's Interior
The front of the sleigh's dashboard would be dominated by Santa's own GPS navigator -- the elves would map out millions of destinations before Christmas Eve, just to make sure Santa doesn't miss anyone. The device would also have a built-in Naughty-or-Nice sensor that keeps Santa updated on children's activities. This is important, as even the most minor of naughty deeds committed within the last few hours of Dec. 24 can determine whether or not a child receives a shiny lump of coal.
A speedometer on the far left of the dashboard would allow Santa to monitor his flying speeds. On the far right would be a radio communicator -- Mrs. Claus sends broadcasts, and the elves update Santa with weather reports and toy inventory.
For in-flight entertainment, we'd like to the think that the elves would have installed an iPod dock -- perhaps even a red-and-green iPod, which would come with enough memory to play Christmas songs for the entire year through. There would also be a hot cocoa dispenser in the middle of the console, and fuel for the reindeer (in the form of carrots) in a compartment located on the left side of the sleigh.
Transdimensional Present Compartment (The Bag)
Ever wonder how Santa fits all of those presents into one bag? Think of a transdimensional present compartment in the form of a traditional gift sack, which would act as a portal between the sleigh and the North Pole. However, we'd also like to think that Santa may have harnessed the power of nanotechnology and found a way to miniaturize millions of presents into one large bag. But this information remains unconfirmed.
The Stardust Antimatter Propulsion Unit
What is antimatter? Is it some kind of magical substance Santa uses to power his sleigh?
Antimatter is the opposite of regular matter -- the mirror image of normal particles that make up everything we can see or touch. The big draw to antimatter is the amount of energy it helps create. When antimatter and matter come into contact, they annihilate each other -- breaking apart into tons of smaller particles -- and 100 percent of their masses convert into energy.
Although antimatter propulsion rockets are mainly used in science-fiction shows to allow spaceships to travel at warp speed, the possibility of designing one is very real -- NASA is currently developing one that would get us to Mars within a matter of weeks. [source: NASA]
Santa's would have to be way ahead of the game, however, and we'd like to imagine that he has his own custom Stardust Antimatter Rocket. It would be small enough to install in the back of his sleigh and fast enough to deliver every present to all good children across the globe. Of course, if the rocket ever malfunctions, the reindeer would be there to back Santa up. References Here>>
Track Santa Claus across the globe as he performs his amazing task and journey -
Santa maintains a huge list of children who have been good throughout the year. The list even includes addresses, ZIP codes and postal codes. The list, of course, gets bigger each year by virtue of the world's increasing population. This year's population right now is 6,634,570,959!
Santa has had to adapt over the years to having less and less time to deliver his toys. If one were to assume he works in the realm of standard time, as we know it, clearly he would have perhaps two to three ten-thousandths of a second to deliver his toys to each child's home he visits!
The fact that Santa Claus is more than 15 centuries old and does not appear to age is our biggest clue that he does not work within time, as we know it. His Christmas Eve trip may seem to take around 24 hours, but to Santa it could be that it lasts days, weeks or months in standard time. Santa would not want to rush the important job of bringing Christmas happiness to a child, so the only logical conclusion is that Santa somehow functions on a different time and space continuum.
We believe, based on historical data and more than 50 years of NORAD tracking information, that Santa Claus is alive and well in the hearts of children throughout the world.
Santa Claus is known by many names, but his first recorded name was Saint Nicholas. Historians claim that the history of Santa starts with the tradition of Saint Nicholas, a 4th Century Christian priest who lived in the Middle East in an area of present day Turkey.
Saint Nicholas became famous throughout the world for his kindness in giving gifts to others who were less fortunate. Typically, he placed gifts of gold down people's chimneys - sometimes into stockings. It may be that the Santa we know and love emerged from the legacy of Saint Nicholas. Clearly, Santa's basic approach to gift giving is strikingly similar to that of Saint Nicholas. What we know from history is that the tradition of Santa Claus and Saint Nicholas merged.
Could they be the same person? Only Santa Claus can tell us for sure.
Long before the Wright brothers flew the first airplane or the Montgolfier brothers flew the first hot air balloon, Santa knew he had to find a way to travel quickly from house to house at great speed. We know from our Santa Cam images that Santa's choice for quick transportation was a herd of flying reindeer. Of course, to this day, detailed information on these reindeer remains a mystery. We do know, however, that Santa somehow found a way to get the reindeer to help him with his worldwide mission of gift giving. A veil of sweet mystery hides the rest.
Virginia's letter, written in December 1897, is the most famous example of a child wanting to know about Santa.
Sunspots and the Rise and Fall of Civilizations - There appears to be a correlation between the rise and fall of civilizations with the rise and fall of radiation from the sun. The graph shows a long-term envelope of sunspot activity derived from the center graph of Carbon 14. More carbon 14 is absorbed in the growth rings of trees during the sunspot minima. Sunspot minima also correlates with mini-ice ages and a winter severity index based on a mean for Paris and London - for the period shown. The Maya disappeared during a sunspot minimum. Caption Credit: crystalinks.com /// Image Credit: Maurice Cottrell
The day Democrats killed freedom with health care reform
Shortest day leads to a shorter life in United States ... the day Democrats killed freedom of decision in America!
Early this morning ... 1:00am ET, December 21st, 2009, to be more precise, the Senate voted in a straight Democrat party vs Republican party vote to end debate on their version of "health care reform" which does little to repair a system under siege.
December 21st, 2009 is the Winter Solstice for the year and for those in the northern hemisphere, it is also the shortest day of the year with the longest hours of darkness. In the southern hemisphere it is the longest day of the year with the greatest number of daylight hours.
December 21st, 2009 is the official start of winter in the northern hemisphere.
Today marks the first day each and every American's freedom to choose how healthy they would like to be ... ends. The Democrats, through this bill on health care, authorizes the Government to make major decisions about the level of medical care citizens are allowed to have.
The Democrats, through this bill on health care, authorizes the Government to make major decisions about profits and the level of pay executives from a private market economy business enterprise can be allowed to have. This is fascism when the Government essentially manages the efforts of a private business.
The Democrats, through this bill on health care, authorizes the Government to make major decisions on which States will have the Federal Government pay for Medicaid and which States will not ... Federal favoritism.
The Democrats, through this bill on health care, authorizes the Government to take tax money (about one dollar per month per taxpayer) and spend it on ending the growth and development of future human beings (fetuses) - Abortion.
The Senate version of the Democrat party health care bill would pay for health reform through Medicare cuts, taxing high-cost insurance plans, increases in Medicare taxes for couples earning more than $250,000 a year, and fees on medical device manufacturers, health insurers, and pharmaceutical companies (which get passed through to the price of goods and services and becomes a tax on EVERYONE else).
So how did Claire McCaskill, Ben Nelson, Chris Dodd and others come around and feel good about saddling the American public with this effort of expanded Government CONTROL over every aspect of our lives based on health care? This excerpted and edited from Michelle Malkin -
Cash for Cloture: Demcare bribe list, Pt. II By Michhelle Malkin • December 21, 2009 02:48 AM
1. Sen. Ben Nelson’s “Cornhusker Kickback.” The CBO says the Nebraska Democrat sellout’s special Medicaid expansion subsidy will initially cost an estimated $100 million. The Hill reports that while Nelson credited Nebraska’s governor for giving him the idea to lobby for the government preference, Nebraska’s governor assailed the payoff: “Nebraskans did not ask for a special deal, only a fair deal,” Heineman said in a statement Sunday. In response, Nelson fired off a letter Sunday to Heineman saying he’s prepared to ask that the provision covering Nebraska’s Medicaid share “be removed from the amendment in conference, if it is your desire.”
2. New England’s Special Syrup. Vermont and Massachusetts will get similar (though less generous) special treatment by the feds in covering Medicaid expansion costs. Combined with Nebraska’s tab, the exclusive clique’s payoffs will cost taxpayers $1.2 billion over 10 years. At least.
3. Corruptocrat Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd’s Christmas wish: Hospital helper. He’s plunging in the polls and in need of a little bacon to bring home. A $100 million item for construction of a university hospital was inserted in the Senate health care bill at the request of Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., who faces a difficult re-election campaign, his office said Sunday night. The legislation leaves it up to the Health and Human Services Department to decide where the money should be spent, although spokesman Bryan DeAngelis said Dodd hopes to claim it for the University of Connecticut.
4. “Some insurers are more equal than others” tax exemption. The WSJ reports that nonprofit insurance companies will be exempt from a new, nearly $7 billion tax to pay for Demcare. Democrat Sens. Ben “Blank Check” Nelson and Carl Levin of Michigan pushed hard for the tax exemption, which will exempt insurers in their states.
5. The Frontier freebie. Several lucky states will see an increase in Medicare payments to hospitals and doctors, the NYT reports, — “where at least 50 percent of the counties are ‘frontier counties,’ defined as those having a population density less than six people per square mile. And which are the lucky states? The bill gives no clue. But the Congressional Budget Office has determined that Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming meet the criteria.”
6. More Democrat hospital bennies. Also via NYT: “Another provision of the bill would increase Medicare payments to certain “low-volume hospitals” treating limited numbers of Medicare patients. Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa and chairman of the Senate health committee, said this ‘important fix’ would help midsize Iowa hospitals in Grinnell, Keokuk and Spirit Lake. Another item in Mr. Reid’s package specifies the data that Medicare officials should use in adjusting payments to hospitals to reflect local wage levels. The officials can use certain new data only if it produces a higher index and therefore higher Medicare payments for these hospitals. Senate Democrats said this provision would benefit hospitals in Connecticut and Michigan.” 7. Bernie Sanders’ socialized medicine soap. He wanted a public option. Instead, he got socialized medicine satellite clinics funded to the tune of at least $10 billion. In his remarks early this morning before the cloture vote, he gloated about the funding as a crucial step toward universal care. Via the Burlington Free Press: Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., scored a big victory, too, with the inclusion in the amendment package of $10 billion to expand community health centers across the country — including at least two more in Vermont. /// Vermont has 8 community health centers and 40 satellite offices. “New funding would make it likely centers could be opened in Addison and Bennington counties,” Sanders’ home state paper reports.
8. Fla.-Pa.-NY Protectionism. Via Politico: “Three states – Pennsylvania, New York and Florida – all won protections for their Medicare Advantage beneficiaries at a time when the program is facing cuts nationwide.”
And you know there are many more untold payoffs — paid by stealing your money — yet to be stuffed into this bureaucratic monstrosity. Reference Here>>
Sunspots may not be the only way great civilizations come to an end ... it may be possible to end them just with an over-reaching lust for control over human activity and increased political power.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has been named Time magazine's "Person of the Year" for 2009. Last year's winner was then-President-elect Barack Obama. The 2007 winner was Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Other previous winners have included Bono, President George W. Bush, and Amazon.com CEO and founder Jeff Bezos. Image Credit: urbandigs.com
'Tis the season to be jolly, a Christmas season song lyric cajoles, yet all the American public can see is a political system and an economy in complete disarray.
We are treated to an endless menu of Christmas specials on television and, of course, Oprah Winfrey has to weigh in with a fluff piece of an interview that starts off with a contrived impromptu drop by visit with the President and first lady for a chat. In the interview, Barack Obama could not resist the temptation to answer a question about the "grade" he would deserve for the performance of the first eleven months of his time as President of the United States. Most good politicians would beg off answering the question ... but not this Oscar and Nobel awarded political radical. Nope, he had to give himself a B+ ... and went on to say that if he is able to sign a bill (any bill) that addresses health care, he would figure that an A- would be the better and appropriate grade.
Today, the Federal Reserve chairman, Ben Bernanke was tapped to be on the cover of TIME Magazine as the "Person Of The Year" stating that the economy would be much, much worse if the Fed had not taken such extreme measures to stop the panic. There's a vast difference between 10% and 25% unemployment, between anemic and negative growth.
This begs the question, however, on ... what happens when the leadership of the Federal Government passes legislation (TARP, two Omnibus, and one Stimulus bill totaling about $4 Trillion plus dollars) that open up the spending of future generations of uncollected tax revenues and places this money into an economy that is not producing goods or services to back up or justify the value of these extra dollar bills in circulation?
Too many dollars chasing the once stable prices on goods and services creates a situation where it takes two dollars to match the value of something that was once valued at one dollar when a stable and consistent money supply dictated this as the cost of the good, service and a living profit. Increase the money supply and prices have to be reset to reflect this simple dynamic.
Welcome to the age of Carter's Second Term ... welcome to the age of INFLATION!
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke may be running out of room to pump money into the financial markets and cut interest rates to rescue the economy. Image Credit: urbandigs.com
This excerpted and edited from the New York Post -
Economy bubbles up with wholesale inflation By PAUL THARP, New York Post - Last Updated: 8:52 AM, December 16, 2009
So much for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke telling the country not to worry that zero percent interest rates might spark inflation.
Economists' worst fears were realized yesterday when the Labor Department said wholesale prices climbed a surprising 1.8 percent last month -- double what economists had predicted and the second-biggest November jump in a decade, following the stunning 2.7 percent surge two years ago at the start of the housing collapse.
The government report said factories are saddled with sharply rising energy and materials costs, among other growing expenses. The higher costs could be passed on to factory customers and consumers, analysts said.
The Labor Department also said core inflation, which excludes the major consumer purchases of food and energy, posted its sharpest increase in more than a year at 0.5 percent.
The surprise jump means analysts will pay even closer attention to today's government report on consumer prices, which could help determine whether inflation has spiked enough to undermine the economy's slow recovery. ---- Bernanke, meanwhile, told lawmakers the US economy is still too sluggish with lots of "slack" in factory capacity to support any lasting or serious price hikes.
"The bulk of the evidence indicates that resource slack is now substantial," Bernanke said in a written response to a lawmaker's questions. "I continue to expect slack resources, together with the stability of inflation expectations, to contribute to the maintenance of low inflation in the period ahead." ---- Some economists believe the Fed will ignore the inflationary red flags.
"The 1.8 percent jump in wholesale prices is a red herring," said economist Paul Dales at Capital Economics. "The Fed is not going to see this as any indication that their actions are triggering higher inflation." Reference Here>>
We can expect an economy that will end up worse than any experienced during the "progressive-minded" rule of Jimmy Carter.
When emergencies occur… awareness is the key to your safety! The CodeRED system allows safety officials to send recorded messages to the entire community, or a specific area within moments. These messages will inform residents of the situation and give instructions for action. Caption & Image Credit: brunswick.oh.us
Get up, stand up - "Code Red" rally Dec. 15, 1:00PM ET
United we stand ... for the Constitution. The 2,000 plus page Healthcare reform bill is about to become law which will create an entitlement program that will effectively turn our country into a Totalitarian regime.
This Government and its leadership would want every citizen who voted for TRANSPARENCY, equity, low unemployment, mortgage stabilization, and spending control to believe that what they are proposing in the Senate on behalf of healthcare reform is inevitable.
It is time for every Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian, and Undeclared voting citizen to show this country's leadership that their vote is not inevitable and the direction they are headed with the potential approval of a 2,000 plus page monstrosity of a public takeover in the decisions that are critical to our lives is the wrong direction. It is time for every voting citizen that wishes to stop the erosion of our country's Constitution to converge on the mall in Washington DC.
CODE RED RALLY - stop congress now! - The Capitol Building and Mall in Washington DC - December 15, 2009 - 1:00PM ET (speakers to address rally at 1:30PM ET - many Senators, Congressmen, and freedom fighters are scheduled to talk)
This excerpted and edited from Laura Ingraham's website, "Laura Unleashed" -
Code Red Rally Tuesday 1pm Dec 15th US Capitol By Laura Ingraham - December 8, 2009, Posted 11:00PM ET
It's time we all stop pretending that what is happening with this Obamacare debate is about "helping the uninsured" or "fixing the healthcare system" or "giving the people what they want." It's about none of those things. Its about amassing as much power in a central government as humanly possible. Its about wealth redistribution. It's social engineering at its absolute worst.
The American people must take this political system back from those who have hijacked it in one of the most abhorrent power grabs that we the voters have ever seen. It's the holiday season so the Democrats are counting on you to be otherwise occupied and too busy to stand against their massive expansion of government.
Let them underestimate us again just as they did last summer. Let these unrepresentative politicians proceed with their legislative chicanery and self-righteous grandstanding. We can expose them and confront them in the classic American spirit--a public gathering on their doorstep.
On December 15th at 1 pm, we will remind Pelosi, Reid, Schumer et al. that they work for us and not the other way around. We will demand that they follow the will of the people, not dismiss and degrade it by putting future generations into a deficit dungeon. We will put every politician who supports this travesty on notice: enjoy your remaining time in the U.S. Capitol because we're coming for your seat.
The American people will not forget those who turned their backs on us and voted for a bill that they hadn't read and which will do nothing but ensure that one of the best healthcare systems in the world is compromised. Reference Here>>
Many voters in the last election cycle stuffed their brains into a "hate" bucket and voted with their minds and freedoms closed putting both at risk of being totally controlled by a Government that has an Us against Them agenda based on an end result of totalitarian country ... stripped of its freedoms and sovereignty (Copenhagen).
It is time to stop this run-away spending spree, TARP slush-fund using Government and show these leaders why they are wrong when they suggest that what this leadership attempts to do is inevitable ... there is NO CONSENSUS - show up at the Capitol December 15, 2009 at 1:00PM ET and show these folks who's the boss! Affirm American exceptional-ism.
