Untitled

Jibber Jabber
In comments subtly directed at NATO, Mr. Putin said that military alliances were gaining strength and warned against a unipolar world—shorthand in Moscow for the global influence of the U.S. In another apparent jab at Washington, he said that the principles of international cooperation were being ignored. (Wall Street Journal, 5/9/2015)

Please answer a simple question. How in God's green earth is Hillary Clinton going to run for president and talk about her foreign policy expertise? Like her boss, everything that she touched has turned into a complete mess including the vaunted "Russian reset." Vlad ('the impaler') Putin is holding his breath hoping that he gets Barack Obama's third term with a Clinton win. No doubt he is looking with longing at Poland....


Impressed
In giving Conservatives a new majority, voters rewarded an impressive economic record. Five years of Tory policies, such as a reduction in the corporate tax rate to 20% from 28% and a welfare reform that shifted more people into work have produced record employment participation rates and by far the fastest growth of any large European economy. Keynesian critics in the U.S. and U.K. derided this as “austerity,” but tax cuts and limits on government spending have been vindicated. (Wall Street Journal, 5/8/2015)

Over at the New York Times, Paul Krugman calls this success "The Triumph of the Unthinking." 


The Chronic
It’s sometimes unpopular to point out that people who behave responsibly and are willing to work generally do not end up chronically poor in America. (Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. Wall Street Journal, 5/8/2015)

Tell that to a Liberal. Their explanation for chronic poverty? Republicans.


Endurance
As shocking as they are, these facts make perfect sense in the context of the century-long assault that Baltimore’s blacks have endured at the hands of local, state and federal policy makers, all of whom worked to quarantine black residents in ghettos, making it difficult even for people of means to move into integrated areas that offered better jobs, schools and lives for their children. (New York Times editorial, 5/10/2015)

So given the decades-long Liberal monopolies in cities such as Baltimore, Chicago and Detroit we are guessing that the editors at the New York Times are pointing their fingers at the policies of Democrat political leaders. Or are we being naive?


Dog in the Fight
By 2004, Mr. Braman and his wife had donated $1,000 to Mr. Rubio’s State House campaign, the first of many contributions. Mr. Rubio quickly emerged as a dogged champion of Mr. Braman’s most cherished cause: state funding for a Miami cancer institute that bears the Braman family name. (New York Times, 5/10/2015)

The Times breaks the story that Marco Rubio has a benefactor who is - God forbid - a billionaire! Not only that, but Rubio may have acted on said billionaire's behalf. The apparent crime? Funding for a cancer center!

Now wasn't there something in the news just a couple of days ago about Hillary Clinton possibly trading favors with a Russian billionaire over uranium....

Create Your Own Foreign Policy Reality

Declare Victory 
“This is an attempt to come up with an Obama doctrine that looks at how do we think about the world now that the war against the Taliban and its allies is won,” said Peter L. Bergen, a national security scholar at the New America Foundation and one of several foreign policy specialists invited to lunch with Mr. Obama this week. (New York Times, 5/29/2014)

Someone should get the news to the Islamofacists that they have been defeated. Apparently they do not know and hence, continue to blow things up and kill innocents.


The Veteo-er
And Mr. Brown, a Democrat and gun owner himself, has vetoed gun control legislation in the past, including bills last year that would have done more to limit the sale of semiautomatic rifles and further limited gun ownership. (New York Times, 5/29/2014)

Who would have thought it? Governor Jerry Brown, the original moonbat, is packing heat!


Considerations
Edward J. Snowden said that he still considered himself to be an American patriot even after leaking thousands of classified documents, and that he was frustrated to be “stuck in a place” — Russia — that did so little to protect individual rights when he was trying to help protect American freedoms. (New York Times, 5/28/2014)

Finding Russia to be less the free and open country that he imagined, Snowden longs to return home. Humbly he says “I’m not going to give myself a parade.” So here is a perfect opportunity for Obama to patch up his rift with Vlad "the Impaler" Putin. He should convince Putin to relocate Snowden to Siberia for say, five years, before returning this "American patriot" back to face justice in the country he claims to love. 

Rare Air

The Bear Growls
Russia signaled for the first time on Friday that it was prepared to annex the Crimea region of Ukraine, significantly intensifying its confrontation with the West over the political crisis in Ukraine and threatening to undermine a system of respect for national boundaries that has helped keep the peace in Europe and elsewhere for decades. (New York Times, 3/8/2014)

And so the effects of the Obama Doctrine are made known. The Obama Doctrine states that the U.S. will not protect its strategic interests in the world, will not curb the advance of totalitarian regimes and will abandon allies if necessary. We wonder how Poland is feeling right about now. They have seen this movie before.

Meanwhile, Obama does what he does best:

He headed to Florida for a speech on education and then a weekend off with his family, but aides promised he would be monitoring the crisis.

No doubt, he will find time for a round of golf.


The Waiting
The February unemployment rate of 6.7 percent, for example, would have been 10 percent if the 5.7 million workers who are waiting on the sidelines for job openings were included in the jobless rate. (New York Times editorial, 3/8/2014)

Too late for the 2012 elections, the New York Times admits what the conservative press reported at the time. Of course, the Times goes on to explain that high unemployment is the fault of Republicans, and not of President Executive Order.  


The Irritant
Ralph Nader is irritated with Bernie Sanders.

Sanders won’t return his calls, won’t combine forces with other progressives, and as a result, he isn’t getting as much done as he could, the frequent independent presidential candidate and consumer advocate says.

Nader detailed his grievances Thursday in a blunt two-page letter to the Vermont independent senator with the heading, “Bernie, we thought we knew ye!” Then Nader called the Burlington Free Press and shared the letter, which accuses Sanders of “speechifying” but getting nowhere, because he is a “Lone Ranger.” (Burlington Free Press, 3/6/2014)

In the world of conservative blogging, this is what is known as a wonderful gift: two moonbats at odds. 

Of course, we would disagree with Nader in his characterization of Sanders as a "Lone Ranger." To us, Sanders is more of a "Tonto" which would make him "the village idiot." 

Clash of Ideas

Fifths
San Jose now spends one-fifth of its $1.1 billion general fund on pensions and retiree health care, and the amount keeps rising. To free up the money, services have been cut, libraries and community centers closed, the number of city workers trimmed, salaries reduced, and new facilities left unused for lack of staff. From potholes to home burglaries, the city’s problems are growing. 
....
“I think it needs to be led by Democrats,” Mr. Reed said. “It can’t become something Republicans are doing to unions.” (San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed-Democrat) (NYT, 9/23/2013)

Reed is correct that only Democrat governors and mayors can forestall the financial Armageddon that will come from public employee benefits. Then again, turnaround is fair play as it was Democrats who created the problem.


Refusnik
House Speaker John Boehner is chiding President Obama for negotiating with Russian President Vladimir Putin while refusing to negotiate with House Republicans. (Marc A. Thiessen, Washington Post, 9/23/2013)

Actually a pretty good line from Boehner.

To which we would add the following: Wasn't it Nobel Prize winner Barack Obama who said "No blue states, no red states?" Whatever happened to that guy?

Time Out

Short Circuit
To recap: California's emissions mandates are so onerous that they require mandates for electric cars that consumers won't buy without subsidies that go mainly to the wealthy and that are now so expensive that they have become another drain on the state budget. Look for the middle class to be hit with a fee or tax increase to make up the difference. (WSJ, 9/17/2013)

From poverty to crime to energy, when Liberals begin social engineering you can bet the result will be a mess.

Can you imagine what will happen if they get a carbon tax?


Unwillingly
I'm talking about the hesitant, timorous America that we have seen—through the incredible sequence in which Secretary of State John Kerry's wise, forceful speech was juxtaposed against Barack Obama's strangely indecisive remarks—taking seriatim and almost simultaneously every conceivable geopolitical position. I'm talking about an America willing itself into weakness. A quiescent America that Mr. Putin, with his astounding lecture on democratic morals published in the New York Times, has allowed himself the luxury of humiliating on her home field. (Bernard-Henri Levy, WSJ, 9/18/2013)

Obama decries the actions of Assad and says that the use of chemical weapons would be a "red line."
Assad uses chemical weapons.
Obama decries the use of chemical weapons.
Kerry makes Obama's case for bombing the Assad regime.
Obama says Congress must approve bombing Assad.
Obama says that he never said "red line."
Putin says: "I can fix this."
Obama agrees.
Putin smiles. Won again.


Revolutions
Washington’s health care revolving door is spinning fast as the new online health insurance marketplaces, a central provision of President Obama’s health care law, are set to open Oct. 1. Those who had a hand in the law’s passage are now finding lucrative work in the private sector, as businesses try to understand the complex measure, reshape it by pressing for regulatory changes — or profit from it. (NYT, 9/17/2013)

Frankly, RedStateVT has little or no problem with this. But shouldn't Obama find this appalling? Isn't he the one who railed endlessly against just this thing? Like so many things about this administration, we are supposed to just ignore it.


Level Setting
Time and again, Mr. Alexis’s behavior fell below a level that would have brought a serious response, like a less-than-honorable discharge from the military or involuntary commitment to a mental institution, experts and officials said. (NYT, 9/17/2013)

Another tragic reminder of the failure of Liberal policy; namely the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill. And - what do you think - maybe we should reset that level?

Ghost of a Chance

Personalities
Andrei A. Piontovsky, a political analyst, said the cancellation underscored a visceral personal enmity between the two leaders. “Putin openly despises your president, forgive my bluntness,” he said.

He added that Russia sensed weakness in Mr. Obama that could lead to more dangerous confrontations. (NYT, 8/7/2013)

Liberals were forever bemoaning the way Republican presidents like Reagan and Bush (41/43) conducted foreign policy. Cowboys, they were said to be and not in any good way. Well cowboys or not, at least they were respected and even feared a bit by America's enemies and rivals. And that is much better (and safer) for America then to be perceived as weak.


Granted
Colonel Lind reduced the maximum sentence facing Private Manning to 90 years from 136 years on Tuesday, granting part of a request from the defense team and acknowledging the similarities between some of Private Manning’s charges. (NYT, 8/8/2013)

More proof that the military has gone soft.


Thought Process
"No, I don't think Mr. Snowden was a patriot," Obama said. (Huffington Post, 8/9/2013)

Well thank God for that. The bigger tragedy, of course, is that any American would ever even consider Snowden anything other than a traitor. 


Hard Rein
Warning of the fiscal danger if New York City fails to rein in its spiraling pension and health care costs, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg on Tuesday challenged his would-be successors to take a tough line in negotiations with the city’s unions, while worrying aloud that whoever is elected will be too beholden to labor. 
....
Over the course of Mr. Bloomberg’s three terms in office, the city’s annual pension costs have increased from $1.4 billion to more than $8 billion as a result of raises, pension sweeteners and a growing number of retirees, while health care spending has swelled to $6.3 billion. The city also has $85 billion in unfunded liabilities for future retiree health care benefits. (NYT, 8/6/2013)

On the way out the door, Bloomberg cautions about New York City becoming the next Detroit. Which begs the question why he was not more effective during his three terms. Prediction: NYC's next mayor will cave to the unions. 

Reprise

Expectations
America’s employers added 162,000 jobs in July, less than expected, as the unemployment rate ticked down to 7.4 percent. (NYT, 8/2/2013)

Unemployment falls to 7.4%. Previously it was 7.4%. More proof that Obama's economic plan is working.


Granted
President Obama is even less likely to go through with a visit to Moscow this fall after Russia’s decision on Thursday to grant Edward J. Snowden temporary asylum. For Mr. Obama, though, the Snowden affair is only one of myriad reasons to beg off the scheduled meeting with President Vladimir V. Putin. (NYT, 8/1/2013)

Putin gives asylum to Snowden. More proof that Obama's "reset" strategy with Russia is working.


Lapped
The overlapping lines that characterize the Clinton world set off questions, at times, about whose interests are being represented: For example, Ms. Abedin was permitted, while working at the State Department, to also work as a private consultant for a company linked to former President Clinton, for Mrs. Clinton in a privately paid role, and for the family’s foundation. (NYT, 8/1/2013)

So Danger Bird Weiner's wife - a federal government employee - also moonlighted at (if we have counted correctly) three other jobs. Nothing to see here folks....


R for Funny
“2 Guns” is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). Violence throughout, including a disturbing scene involving live chickens that’s both played for laughs and comes with a sharp, ethical jab. (NYT, 8/1/2013)

From the New York Times movie review of the hilarious new buddy movie "2 Guns." Those wacky Hollywood moviemakers are at it again! Of course, none of this will have an impact on society....

(RedStateVT note: Jared Loughner was 22; James Holmes are 24; Adam Lanza was 20.)

Rain Delay

Misused
On Thursday, federal regulators sued Mr. Corzine in connection with the collapse of the brokerage firm MF Global and apparent misuse of customer money during its final days. Mr. Corzine, a former United States senator and New Jersey governor, ran the firm until its bankruptcy in October 2011. (NYT, 6/27/2013)

After extensive investigation RedStateVT can report that former MF Global CEO, US senator and New Jersey governor Jon Corzine is, in fact, a Democrat. Undoubtedly the New York Times had not been able to determine that fact when this story went to press. In fact, Corzine is a Democrat and a 1%er.


Suppression
The number of homicides on record in New York City has dropped significantly during the first half of the year — to 154 from 202 in the same period last year — surprising even police officials who have long been accustomed to trumpeting declining crime rates in the city.
.....
Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly attributed much of the drop to a new antigang strategy meant to suppress retaliatory violence among neighborhood gangs. Police officials also credited their efforts at identifying and monitoring abusive husbands whose behavior seemed poised to turn lethal. (NYT, 6/28/2013)

So by "identifying and monitoring" individuals who are likely to commit crimes, criminal activity can be lessened.

Geez, if only there were a way to apply that same strategy to terrorists....... Oh wait, there is, it's called "profiling" and law enforcement is not allowed to do it. That is why Granny gets strip-searched at the airport and Mohammad gets waved through. 


Chances Are
Though President Vladimir V. Putin said this week that “the sooner he chooses his final destination, the better for us and for him,” Mr. Snowden shows no sign of leaving.

The chance that Russia will turn him in has all but vanished, as evidenced by Thursday’s television programs, which were almost certainly produced under Kremlin orders and have a powerful effect on public opinion. Officials here have signaled an openness to granting him political asylum, and each passing day would seem to narrow Mr. Snowden’s options, giving the United States time to negotiate with Ecuador and Venezuela, other countries that may grant him asylum. (NYT, 6/28/2013)

Why is it that those who advocate for open government always end up in Russia, Cuba and Venezuela? All bastions of repression. 

The Truth of the Sentiment

What If
President Obama goes to the G8 summit and three times calls British chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne, Jeffrey Osborne. Had George Bush done the same thing, here is what would have happened:

David Letterman would have told a joke implying that Bush was stupid.
Bill Maher would have devoted an entire show to the error.
Jon Stewart would have devoted two entire shows to the error.
MSNBC would have devoted an entire week to the error. 

Instead, we get the Legitimate Media sounds of silence. 


Ruling Party
Putin Rules Out Extradition for Leak Suspect in Russia Airport (NYT, 6/25/2013)

Well of course he did. Putin is a cold war warrior. And he is ex-KGB to boot. Who did President Naive think he was negotiating with?

In return for betraying the Polish people by denying them a promised defensive missile shield system (on the September 1st anniversary of Hitler's 1939 invasion of Poland, no less) and for promising to reduce U.S. nuclear arms, Obama gets exactly NOTHING from Putin.

Putin will wait until Obama offers more concessions. Why wouldn't he?


Practical
The Supreme Court struck down a central portion of the Voting Rights Act on Tuesday, effectively ending the practice in which some states with a history of racial discrimination must receive clearance from the federal government before changing voting laws.

The vote was 5 to 4, with the five conservative-leaning justices in the majority and the four liberal-leaning justices in the minority. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote the decision. (NYT, 6/25/2013)

Apparently the four "liberal-leaning" justices (along with MSNBC) have not heard that a black president has been elected....twice. 


First in Line
Vermont's first medical marijuana dispensaries are now open for business. (WCAX.com, 6/25/2013)

Legal dope, a $0.05 gasoline tax hike, drivers licenses for illegals, a property tax hike. 

This is Vermont.