Burritos? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Burritos!

In China, Those Who Mock Japan Bashers Go to Labor Camp

Reminding us yet again that political correctness and totalitarianism go together like a horse and carriage:

A Chinese woman has been sentenced to a year in a labor camp for retweeting a Twitter post that mocked Chinese protesters who smashed Japanese products during a recent demonstration, her fiance said Thursday.

CNN.com has the story at this link.

R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. Hasn't Gotten It For Years

That whole freedom thing kind of glazed over years ago when he picked up his ball and left the midwest for the beltway.

Here he defends the scanners and the groping, and joins the sheeple:

The other day, a CBS News poll found that 81 percent of Americans approve of the use of the high-tech machines at airports, but that means nothing to Drudge. How many more Americans would welcome a soothing pat-down midst the hurly-burly of travel at our nation's stress-filled airports I do not know, but count me in -- especially if the patter-downer is a cute little number on the order of, say, Sarah Palin.

Yes, and the majority of Americans were loyalists and against independence in 1776, too.

Count me in, er, out. Well, you know what I mean. 

Unemployment Tab to Date is $319 Billion

The cost of unemployment benefits already paid over the last three years has soared to $319 billion, according to this story from CNNMoney.com, $109 billion of which has been federally funded borrowed, and $41 billion of which to date the states have had to borrow from the feds.

Employers face $26 billion in new taxes by 2015 to replenish and pay back the depleted and borrowed funds, which represents an increase of 68% from the $38 billion businesses paid in 2009.

Another reason jobs are in short supply.

Strict Control on Internal Travel The Hallmark of a Police State

It starts under the appearance of protecting the public, until the public becomes the enemy and the protection becomes tyranny.

From The Washington Times editorial page:

Once freedom at airports is "locked down," it's inevitable that TSA will next target buses, trains and the Metro. After all, al Qaeda has attacked each of these modes of transportation in other parts of the world. Strict controls on internal travel is the hallmark of a police state.

Read the rest at this link.

Uncalled House Races Update: Republican Wins in IL-8

CNN.com reports here that the incumbent Democrat Melissa Bean has conceded to the Republican challenger Walsh in the IL-8 House district race.

It appears that Walsh won by fewer than 500 votes in the race where a third party Green candidate siphoned-off 3% of the vote on the Democrat's left.

That would give the Republicans a net gain of 62 seats in the US House, with four races still to be decided: CA-11, CA-20, NY-25 and NY-1.

Real Clear Politics also shows IL-8 a Republican pick-up overnight. 

Federal Workers Owed $3.3 Billion in Delinquent Taxes in 2009

US Postal Service employees were $283 million plus in arrears.

Department of Veterans Affairs workers were behind $156 million plus.

Retired military personnel were delinquent by more than $1.5 billion.

Executive office workers from The White House owed more than $831,000 in back taxes.

CNBC.com has the story here.

Scanners and Gropes are Beneath You, America

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

-- Benjamin Franklin, 1755

TSA Thugs Think Airports Are No Longer Part Of America

The constitution no longer applies in the airport, according to the TSA, and also apparently according to the courts, so if you just plan to buy a ticket to fly like John "if you touch my junk" Tyner,  that simple commercial transaction now means you are relinquishing your rights under the constitution:

Tyner was told by a TSA supervisor on tape, “By buying your ticket you gave up a lot of rights.” ...

According to [Michael J.] Aguilar, [TSA Chief, San Diego], Tyner is under investigation for leaving the security area without permission. That’s prohibited, among other reasons, to prevent potential terrorists from entering security, gaining information, and leaving. ...

Aguilar said that once a passenger enters the security area, there is a legal obligation to follow through with the process.

So by buying a plane ticket and entering the airport, you become the TSA's slave, in their view.

The complete story from The San Diego Union Tribune is here.

The Golden Fact of the Day

From James Grant in The New York Times:

From 1900 to 2009, at much lower nominal gold prices than those prevailing today, the worldwide stock of gold grew at 1.5 percent a year, according to the United States Geological Survey and the World Gold Council.

Fascinating reading, here.

Refuse the Backscatter Scanner, Get Felt Up

As reported here:

“They’re feeling up old ladies and children and they’re calling it security, but it’s not security,” said Babb, 

of wewontfly.com.

Bank Failure Update: FDIC's Deposit Insurance Fund Balance is Minus $19.8 Billion

The insolvent banks are being bailed out by an insolvent FDIC.

From Richard Suttmeier for Minyanville, here:

The FDIC Deposit Insurance fund has now been drained by $2.2 billion in the fourth quarter to date, which brings the DIF Deficit to an estimated $19.8 billion. The FDIC has already burned through the assessments for 2010. The assessments for 2011 and 2012 have been pre-paid at $15.33 billion per year. ...

The three failed banks last Friday had extreme overexposures to C&D and CRE loans. C&D exposures for the three overexposed were between 143.7% and 654.7% versus the 100% regulatory guideline. The CRE exposures were between 896% and 1397% versus the 300% of risk-based capital regulatory guideline. The CRE loan pipelines were between 96% and 99% funded versus a healthy pipeline of 60%.

Unreasonable Search: You're Guilty Until Proven Innocent By The TSA

The San Diego Union Tribune details the story of John Tyner, who told the incompetent and authoritarian TSA, "You touch my junk and I'm going to have you arrested":

Tyner points out that every terrorist act on an airplane has been halted by passengers. "It's time to stop treating passengers like criminals and start treating them as assets," he said.

Uncalled House Races Update: Republican Challenger in KY-6 Concedes

As reported here, the Democrat Chandler holds on to his seat, winning by less than 700 votes.

The Republican net gain continues at 61 seats, with 5 uncalled races: CA-11, CA-20, IL-8, NY-25, and NY-1.

Massive Social Security Hearings Backlog: Millions Waiting, Many More Than Two Years

Sure that Obamacare thing will be different. You won't have to wait that long. Maybe only half as much! You can live with that hernia for a year, right?

As reported here:

A Senate subcommittee is expected to hear testimony on Monday at a field hearing in Akron, Ohio, about the rising number of threats, as well as the status of the massive backlog in applications for disability benefits, which are available to people who can't work because of medical problems.

Nearly 2 million people are waiting to find out if they qualify for benefits, with many having to wait more than two years to see their first payment.

This Is The Way We Check You Out, Check You Out, Check You Out

Boycott the Airlines Until the Scanners and the Gropers Come Out

From Steve Chapman for The Chicago Tribune, here:

The good news is that last year, the House of Representatives voted to bar the use of whole-body scanners for routine screening. But only a sustained public outcry will force a change.

We will soon find out if there is a limit to the sacrifices of personal freedom that Americans will endure in the name of fighting terrorism. If we don't say no when they want to inspect and handle our private parts, when will we?

S&P 500 Fair Value is 900

So says Jeremy Grantham, here.

Defining Middle Class

Maureen Callahan for The New York Post takes a look at the big squeeze of the middle class in "Class Dismissed: Why Middle Income Jobs Are Not Coming Back."

Here's an excerpt:

‘I don’t know if I’m middle class anymore,” says Mark Lieber, 54. “From what I read, if you’re earning over $150,000, you’re in the top 5% of earners.” He echoes Francese: “In New York, that’s not rich.”

Here's how you know you're solidly middle class:


You retired last year at age 65 and your last salary was $107,000. You own your 3 bedroom house and one car outright, you're still married to your first wife who never earned a paycheck but raised your four kids, for whose college educations and the weddings of two who were girls you paid (mostly), and you have no debt and about $391,000 socked away in cash.


That's the territory between the third and fourth income quintiles from 1980, adjusted for inflation.


Know anyone like that?

The Time to Get Serious About Coastal Defense is Long Past

In the summer of 2009, after Russian nuclear submarines were detected only 200 miles off our East coast, one commentator on the subsequent news story which bragged about our ability to detect  two  boats thought saying nothing about it would have been smarter in the absence of an official recommendation that the US actually beef up its coastal defenses with conventional defensive submarines. The reason? They're might have been three Russian subs.

The US military's response to the California mystery missile incident 35 miles off the coast of Los Angeles on Monday hardly inspired more confidence. We should have said nothing at all. Instead we said we didn't know what it was. Piling on to the airplane contrail theory a day later only made that worse, giving the impression the military was grasping at straws.

Unfortunately, from the commander in chief on down our government and military give the impression of being run by un-serious people. From the delay measured in days in responding to the Christmas Day underwear bomber to telegraphing our disengagement schedules in Iraq and Afghanistan, it's as if matters of war and peace are at best distractions from the really important matters like Obamacare, repealing DADT and defending the Ground Zero Mosque.

We could learn something about coastal defense from the Chinese, who understand the realities of American forward air, surface and submarine operations off their waters all too well. They have embarked on an ambitious naval modernization to counter our activities, which includes a commitment to robust coastal defense and power projection with submarines of varying designs. One such submarine, a Song, punked the USS Kitty Hawk in October 2006 over there, and it may be that Monday's incident over here was the work of a lately launched submarine of more recent design:

As other nations continue to develop naval capabilities we need to recognize that the operation of submarines off the US coast is going to become more common, not less. Indeed, what is the first thing China will do when tensions at sea rise over Taiwan or some other matter? Most likely, the deployment of submarines off the coast of Guam, Sasebo, Pearl Harbor, and if the PLA Navy has any strategic thinking at all, San Diego. ...

But this is what the US Navy needs to think about... the submarines off Guam, Sasebo, and Pearl Harbor can be Yuan class, because Yuans appear to have much better endurance for submerged operations than Song class submarines do, but for west coast operations it will be nuclear submarines.

Whether or not a missile was fired off the California coast this week to send such a message to America, we'd better get busy and start preparing for defensive submarine operations ourselves. Because sooner or later, Chinese boomers will come calling on the west coast just like the Russians do on the east.

 But we'll have to get serious first.