Few Americans express confidence in those at the helm of major institutions, with the deepest animosity reserved for those in the U.S. Congress, according to a new poll released today by The Associated Press and the National Constitution Center. In addition, Americans remain skeptical of government intervention in the realm of health care, and ratings of the government's performance in living up to the goals set by the U.S. Constitution are shifting negative.It's not surprising that congress comes in at the bottom, at least to anyone who is paying attention. What is sad and disturbing is that less than half the people polled say "they are extremely or very confident " in the military.
The military tops the list of 18 different institutions in this year's poll, holding the confidence of 43% of Americans, followed by small and local business (39%), the scientific community (30%), organized religion (18%) and the U.S. Supreme Court (16%). The federal government (10%) and the U.S. Congress (7%) fared worse, about on par with major companies (7%) and banks and other major institutions (6%). About one-quarter (26%) said they had no confidence at all in Congress, the highest no-confidence read of any institution tested.
...approximately three-quarters agree that the U.S. Constitution is "an enduring document that remains relevant today," and nearly as many say laws should be followed even if public safety might be at risk. Most also back the rights of the individual over the whims of the majority (62%), and say even offensive speech should be a constitutional right (70%).There's more good news:
"At a time that seems characterized by deepening political polarization, most Americans remain in strong agreement on our highest democratic values," said National Constitution Center President and CEO David Eisner. "Across party lines, our poll found that the majority of Americans believe in upholding the rule of law and protecting individual rights. On this Constitution Day we can celebrate that, even as partisan debates rage around hot-button issues, Americans still share together a vision of a more perfect Union formed under the framework of our nation's most cherished document."
On some of the central political issues of the day, the poll shows that Americans are highly skeptical of government intervention. Approximately three-quarters say they would oppose shifting more power to the president even if it would help improve the economy, and more than eight in 10 say the federal government should not have the power to require all Americans to buy health insurance and pay a fine if they do not.And in an ironic note, "Just 10 percent of Democrats voiced strong trust in Congress, even though their party controls it."
The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified in the past week, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration. The recent actions of the Tea Party are prompting an exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they'll soon be required to hunt, pray, and to agree with Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck.The story above has been floating around on the internet since at least 2008. It's attributed to Clive Runnels at the Manitoba Herald. However, the Manitoba Herald's last published issue was August 2, 1877. I haven't been able to track this one to its source, but it really doesn't matter. It's funny and delivers a message at the same time.
Canadian border farmers say it's not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors, animal-rights activists and Unitarians crossing their fields at night.
"I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn," said Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota . The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry. He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn't have any, he left before I even got a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?"
In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. He then installed loudspeakers that blared Rush Limbaugh across the fields. "Not real effective," he said. "The liberals still got through and Rush annoyed the cows so much that they wouldn't give any milk."
Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into Volvo station wagons and drive them across the border where they are simply left to fend for themselves.
"A lot of these people are not prepared for our rugged conditions," an Ontario border patrolman said. "I found one carload without a single bottle of imported drinking water. They did have a nice little Napa Valley Cabernet, though."
When liberals are caught, they're sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about plans being made to build re-education camps where liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer and watch NASCAR races.
In recent days, liberals have turned to ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have been disguised as senior citizens taking a bus trip to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half-dozen young vegans in powdered wig disguises, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior-citizens about Perry Como and Rosemary Clooney to prove that they were alive in the '50s. "If they can't identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we become very suspicious about their age," an official said.
Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating an organic-broccoli shortage and are renting all the Michael Moore movies. "I really feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can't support them," an Ottawa resident said. "How many art-history majors does one country need?"
In an effort to ease tensions between the United States and Canada , Vice President Biden met with the Canadian ambassador and pledged that the administration would take steps to reassure liberals. A source close to President Obama said, "We're going to have some Paul McCartney and Peter, Paul & Mary concerts. And we might even put some endangered species on postage stamps. The President is determined to reach out," he said.
The Herald will be interested to see if Obama can actually raise Mary from the dead in time for the concert!
...To say that voters are angry is an understatement. They are furious, disgusted and resentful. They are fed up of being told by besuited party honchos and professional politicians whom they should vote for, and what they should think.Amen, brother. Spit, hoist, and slit away!!!
On Tuesday, Carl Paladino scored another big Tea Party victory in New York, winning the Republican nomination for governor. He quoted, as have many others, the anguished cry of Howard Beale in the 1976 film Network – "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this any more!" If anything, it understates the strength of anti-establishment feeling. The mood is closer to H L Mencken's observation, prominent on the Ace of Spades conservative blog, that "every normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin to slit throats".
So the reaction of (Republican) establishment figures ... was as predictable as it was misguided. ... But (their) response showed an arrogance that will fuel the outrage Republicans should be trying to harness.Typical repubs. They've been dealt a winning hand and they have no idea how to play it.
Democrats are even more out of touch ... their tactic of portraying the Tea Party as racist loons is likely to be disastrous. Mocking populist sentiment in this atmosphere will see Democrats punished at the polls far more severely than Republicans.We can only hope...
There are certainly some eccentric characters at Tea Party events, but the vast majority are small-government conservatives who think Washington is corrupt, complacent and working for itself rather than the people. Those feelings have only been exacerbated by President Obama's policies: elected on a wave of anti-Bush feeling, he interpreted the desire for something different as a mandate for a vast expansion of government, piling trillions on to the already swollen national debt. In Florida the other day, I saw a home-made sign tied to the front gate of a modest home in a black neighbourhood. "No more big plans with my money," it declared. That's the essence of the Tea Party message – and it has huge resonance.
Ironically, a strong Tea Party presence in Congress is likely to lead to further legislative gridlock, especially if there is no rapprochement with the Republican establishment. In 2012, Obama could win re-election with no real mandate at all. That would only fuel the outrage of the Tea Partiers and reinforce their darkest suspicions. In such circumstances, a major realignment of American politics would be inevitable.
"The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing a panic. [...] The question in every case is whether the words used are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent."
The quote is used as an example of speech which serves no conceivable useful purpose and is extremely and imminently dangerous so that resort to the courts or administrative procedures is not practical and expresses the permissible limitations on free speech consistent with the terms of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.Which brings us to such a vile and disgusting abuse of free speech that it boggles the mind.
Manual on How to Molest Children is LegalNothing against Detective Graves, but I just can't believe that this is legal. I can understand that a book advocating child molestation might be considered legal, distasteful though it might be, but a how-to manual?!?! If that isn't a "clear and present danger" that will bring about "substantive evils" then I can't imagine what is. Maybe the Orange Country Sheriff's Department should get a second opinion.
A 170-page manual explaining step by step how to molest children which police in Orange County, Fla., believe has been circulating there for months, is not illegal.
"I've never seen anything like it. It was pretty amazing when I first saw it just because how detailed it was," Orange County Sheriff's Office Det. Philip Graves told ABC News Orlando, Fla., affiliate WFTV.
The manual, which was apparently written by someone who calls himself "the mule," is a how-to of child molestation, even explaining where and how to find potential victims, the station reported.
Among the many disturbing topics covered in the book is how to convince a victimized child not to tell his or her parents.
Graves told WFTV that it is not a crime in Orange County to send the manual by e-mail or to possess it
The scribes at Men's Health magazine just released a list of America's hottest and most-active cities — we're not talking temperatures here — and Texas locales captured seven of the top 15 spots.Austin at #1 is no surprise. I lived in Austin for almost 10 years, many of them single, and I still smile when I think about it.
In a racy press release trumpeting "America's hotbeds of sex," Austin came in No. 1 and was dubbed the "capital of copulation."
Dallas — Dallas? — came in No. 2.; Arlington was No. 7; Houston, No. 10; Lubbock, No. 11; Fort Worth, No. 12; and San Antonio, No. 15.
Those who can, do.I'm here to testify that there's a lot of truth in that.
Those who can't teach.
Those who can do neither, administrate.
Between 1993 and 2007, student enrollment at America's leading universities rose by 14.5 percent.(source: here )
Meantime, the number of employees engaged in teaching, research or service climbed 17.6 percent.
Over those same years, the number of full-time administrators climbed more than 39 percent.
During that same period, inflation-adjusted instructional spending per student rose by 39 percent, while spending on administration per student increased by nearly 66 percent.
In short, universities are suffering from administrative bloat, expanding their bureaucracies significantly faster than their numbers of students, instructors, and researchers.
Jackson County prosecutors today charged a student wearing a bullet-resistant vest with slashing the throat of a dean at the Metropolitan Community College-Penn Valley.The slasher is obviously a nutjob, but I know more than a few faculty members who could fit that description. Fortunately, the dean's injuries are not life-threatening.
The suspect — dressed all in black — appeared to be under the influence of drugs, police said.
Other students described him as having demonic tattoos and said he had written symbols on a wall poster before the incident began. Brezik reportedly has a tattoo on his hand of an “A” with a circle around it — an anarchist symbol.
Brezik’s Facebook page paints a portrait of an angry man. He had 26 friends and bragged in June about being the first person arrested at the G-20 Summit.
Stephen A. Carr worked aggressively, but patiently, to try to slow down the cars that flew past his house in the Burke area of Fairfax County. Most of his neighbors applauded his help, and earlier this year a speed hump was installed in front of his house.I obviously don't condone either throat-slashing or tie-up-and-shoot (well, except in a few special cases, like child molesters, rapists, and terrorists), but I can understand the frustration that underlies them. Maybe the solution is to make speed humps out of college administrators...
But David A. Patton evidently was not a fan. In June, court and police records show, Patton angrily confronted Carr about the speed hump outside Carr's house. Patton was charged with misdemeanor assault. His trial was set for Thursday.
On Sunday night, police say, Patton went further. Witnesses told police he burst into Carr's house, tied up Carr and his girlfriend and, when Carr struggled, fatally shot him in the head, court records allege.
Across the U.S., a wave of public anger is expected to drive large numbers of voters to the polls who are ready to vote Democratic incumbents out of office.What an apt metaphor. The repubs have the "best players" but the dems can still win. Substitute "elections" for "bases" and you have the democraps game plan...
But incumbency carries advantages that Democrats believe will help protect their endangered lawmakers. In many races, those include a Democratic edge in fund-raising and a longstanding get-out-the-vote machine.
Despite low approval ratings in Nevada and nationally, (Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid) brings both advantages to his race against (GOP challenger Sharon) Angle
Mr. Reid showed up to rally the troops, telling them their job was similar to that of a baseball team that might not have the best players, but could win with the best execution.
"You steal bases," he said.
The blaring horns of classic cars and dune buggies greeted children standing along Main Street, waving American flags and carrying plastic bags for storing candy during Saturday morning's Kendall County Fair parade.
The Boerne High School marching band, the Kendall County royalty court, clowns and a float playing the “Boot Scootin' Boogie” entertained the estimated 3,500 who took in the hourlong parade.
Red, white and blue popped up everywhere in the crowd, from hats and T-shirts to chairs and umbrellas. Army veteran Don Rudy said the parade was an excellent educational opportunity for children.
“It is little steps like this that get them believing in our country,” he said, pointing to his grandchildren Jenna and Jacob Deed.
The battered and fried blend of chili, cheese and Fritos won the Best Taste award Monday at the sixth annual Big Tex Choice Awards.I like Frito Pie. I also like beer, margaritas, and fried food. But there are some things that just shouldn't be fried. I'll hold off on condemning the fried frito pie, at least until after I try it, but beer or margaritas should not be mixed with hot grease.
Concoction creator Michael Thomas says he and his partners spent six months experimenting with different batters, chilis and chips.
Fried Beer won the Most Creative award. It will be served this year along with the Deep Fried Frozen Margarita.
He's the first vice president to have an L.A. school named after him ... Fittingly, the campus will be devoted to environmental themes. But there's a catch.Not to mention all the carbon footprints left behind by replacing dirty dirt with clean dirt...
Critics say the campus' location poses a long-term health risk to students and staff.
Construction crews were working at the campus up to the Labor Day weekend, replacing toxic soil with clean fill. All told, workers removed dirt from two 3,800-square-foot plots to a depth of 45 feet, space enough to hold a four-story building. The soil had contained more than a dozen underground storage tanks serving light industrial businesses.
Groundwater about 45 feet below the surface remains contaminated...
President Obama's new presidential rug seemed beyond reproach, with quotations from Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. woven along its curved edge.Except the quote attributed to King is actually from Theodore Parker, a mid-19th century abolitionist and thinker. (It should be noted that King used the quote often, but always gave credit to Parker. The error, not surprisingly, lies fully with obama's people.)
As Democrats brace for a November wave that threatens their control of the House, party leaders are preparing a brutal triage of their own members in hopes of saving enough seats to keep a slim grip on the majority.Does anyone seriously wonder why?
In the next two weeks, Democratic leaders will review new polls and other data that show whether vulnerable incumbents have a path to victory. If not, the party is poised to redirect money to concentrate on trying to protect up to two dozen lawmakers who appear to be in the strongest position to fend off their challengers.
“In 2008, there was this sense of hope and this sense of being able to change the world,” said Representative Zack Space, Democrat of Ohio. “A lot of that enthusiasm doesn’t exist now...
Those following President Obama's prepared remarks during a speech in Milwaukee, Wisconsin Monday were thrown a bit of a curveball when it came to a description of his critics:Bad president! Bad! No vote for you! Not until you quit making messes in the House. And the Senate. And overseas. And...
"Some powerful interests who had been dominating the agenda in Washington for a very long time and they're not always happy with me. They talk about me like a dog..."
A little-noticed provision in the mammoth Dodd-Frank financial reform act will force companies to disclose regularly the ratio of the median annual pay of all their employees to that of their chief executive.A solution in search of a problem. I'm all in favor of transparency and disclosure, but for publicly held firms their executive compensation, number of employees, and overall salary expense is a matter of public record. What else is needed?
The provision was inserted into the Dodd-Frank bill “at the last minute, with no discussion and not based on any particular problem”, says Charles Elson, a corporate governance professor at the University of Delaware. He categorised the pay ratio as a “thrill disclosure” that would generate headlines without offering meaningful comparisons.
“This is a political disclosure, as opposed to an economic disclosure, and that’s the problem,” Prof Elson adds.Oh, that explains it. It's political (insert surprised/shocked expression here).
Lawyers caution that the formula mandated by the act has some seemingly perverse consequences, in terms of factors that will produce a low ratio – an apparent but potentially misleading sign of a company without excessive executive remuneration.
“It will favour companies that outsource and use independent contractors, and those that use franchised rather than company-owned stores, since these relatively low paid jobs will not count towards the median tally,” says Richard Susko, a partner at law firm Cleary Gottlieb.Unintended consequences. Just what the economy needs - another driver that encourages firms to shed jobs.
Many of the crucial factors affecting the ratio have been left to the discretion of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has to draw up the regulations to implement the new rule…Ah yes. Pass it first, then figure out how to implement it.
But whatever the SEC decides, the regulation is expected to create a potentially significant administrative burden. George Paulin, chairman and chief executive of the pay consultancy Frederick W. Cook & Co, predicts that the “procedure will be so complex that you will have to hire someone whose sole job will be to manage the preparation of the CEO pay ratio”.Ah ha!!! It's a job creation bill...
