Dave's Droppings

The interesting thing that struck me with this AP story was the fourth paragraph.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,346049,00.html

“Humans are widely believed to have arrived in North America from Asia over a land-bridge between Alaska and Siberia during a warmer period. A variety of dates has been proposed and some are in dispute.”

This poop is only 14,000 years old which is a mere blip in the geologic record of the Earth.

Therefore I would love to hear the global warming alarmist address a couple points.

It is believed this poop was deposited in that Oregon cave by a Human that crossed a land bridge between Asia and North America and that this land bridge existed during a “warmer period”

That leads me to wonder did Humans 14,000 years ago have SUVs, Factories or huge herds of cow’s farting to create the “greenhouse” gasses to cause this warming and if it was a “warmer period” shouldn’t the polar ice melt have caused the sea levels to rise so that a land bridge would not have existed?

Jon Stewart may find that his invitations to Hollywood parties are going to dry up if he keeps poking this kind of fun at Code Pink.

[MEDIA=3]

From last nights SOTU address

I have to say that looking at this picture I see the following based on body language.

1. Obama and Teddy look like two high school punks plotting to tease Hillary with the way that are looking at her.  You certainly know who the object of their attention is.

2. Claire McCaskill (the lady in the cream jacket, freshman Senator from Missouri) certainly seems to have a smirk on her face. Looks like the expression that one would see on the wallflower when the homecoming queen trips on her dress.

3. Hillary, chin up greeting people with a game face on as if trying to ignore the fact the she knows everyone is looking at her.

Are the long knifes out for Hillary in a form of “moral superiority” and comeuppance?

This picture should be up for the Pulitzer

An Interesting post from Crosstabs.org on the Exit polls out of Nevada.

“…Now onto the Mormon vote in Nevada. Most media outlets seemed to delight in repeating that Romney got 94% of the LDS vote in Nevada. It was repeated time and again as I watched the coverage live and many pundits said/inferred that this factor accounted for Romney’s win. Actually, if you subtracted out every single Mormon vote for Romney he still would have won by a double digit margin and had nearly double the votes of either of his next two competitors.

But others seemed to express dismay that one religious group would be so absolutely monolithic in it’s support. However, they fail to recognize that Dems NV Exit polling shows that 3% of those participating in the Democratic caucus were Mormons. I’m guessing NONE of them voted for Romney (sarcasm intended).With voting totals around 115,000 in the Dem race (I saw that number on Fox News) that would come out to approximately 3500 LDS voters NOT voting for Romney in the Dem caucus.

By contrast, 25% of the GOP caucus in NV that were Mormon with nearly 45,000 total GOP voters — therefore around 11250 LDS voters and 94% of them were for Romney . . . but that means nearly 500 were not.

So, 4000 LDS in Nevada voted “Not for Romney” and 10,750 voted for Romney. That breaks down to 73% LDS for Romney and 27% LDS that were not for Romney. Not quite the absolutely robotic block-voting groups that many media outlets are trying to play up, but, still, a solid base for Romney in the western/mountain states.

An interesting counter-argument about such huge LDS support for Mitt is that LDS have absolutely NO reservations about or aversion to Romney based on his religion, and can therefore view him outside of that context (while most non-LDS cannot) and therefore judge him solely on his record, experience, and issue stances. Romney surely hasn’t “pandered” to the LDS base like Huckabee has to his Evangelical base. Historically speaking, there was no huge LDS groundswell of support for Orrin Hatch in 2000, or Mo Udall back in the 70s. Similarly, Harry Reid is a guy that only a tiny fraction of LDS would ever consider voting for based on co-religiosity. In Romney most LDS are able to see, outside of the context of him having a “weird religion,” that he is an incredibly competent, faithful, successful, and articulate leader with a record of conservative governance and broad-based executive experience…”

Over on Townhall.com the place seems to be filled with Trolls making anti-Mormon comments to any post where Romney’s name shows up either in the actual Post or somewhere in the comments.   In actuality the Trolls are few (maybe 4-5) but loud and persistant.  Decided to call one out last night, on a post by Hugh Hewitt about MCain, the “Gang of 14” and the future of Court nominees, and toy with him like a Cat with a mouse.  My nom de plume on Townhall is TR-Racer.

Continue reading →

Another interesting Candidate Calculator.  I took it and it showed me with:

“Top Match”
Sam Brownback @ 81.58%

– Brownback!  Not sure how that got there.  Talk about a long shot fringe candidate.

My other “Top Matches”
Fred Thompson @ 76.32%
Duncan Hunter @ 73.68%
Mitt Romney @ 71.05%

– Thompson. I did like him but his lack of energy and playing coy concerned me from the get go and I never got behind him.  His saving grace was he was in the Senate for just a short time and did not get totally impressed with himself.
– Hunter.  Kinda liked him too but he is a one issue guy and I don’t like single issue candidates for ANYTHING
– Romney.  He’s ok and I like him on most items.  I just wish he had/would run on his record and not try to be all things to all people.  Recognize your strengths and play to those.

Middle of the Pack Matches
Tom Tancrado @ 71.05%
John Cox @ 68.42%
Rudy Guiliani @ 65.79%
Mike Huckabee @ 65.79%
John McCain @ 63.16%
Ron Paul @ 63.16%
Bill Richardson @ 42.11%
Joe Biden @ 39.47%
Barack Obama @ 34.21%
Hillary Clinton @ 31.58%

– Tancrado.  Another single issue guy and too far off the chart on that issue
– John Cox. ???
– Rudy. I could have voted for Rudy without any problem.  I was turned off in December when it became obvious that he was going to basically skip the early States.  I want the candidates bloodied, tested and vetted during the process.  Rudy was acting like he was the Sportswriters preseason title favorite and expected a bye for the season so that he could go into the Playoffs (Super Tuesday) with no injuries, while the rest of the field would be walking wounded, and then sail to the Championship game.
– Huckabee.  Not a chance with his unFairTax and his holier-then-thou I’m a better Christian then you and let’s ban fast food schtick.
– McCain.  Yep.  That’s where I’d place him. One rung up from the lunatic Paul.   If it came down to voting for McCain or Paul Johnny would get my very reluctant vote.  He’s been TOO long in the insulated Senate and has become way too impressed with himself
– Paul.  He’d only beat out only Kuninich or Gravel for my vote.  Actually, for him I would stay home and paint the House and listen to Country Music (I HATE country music)
– Richardson.  Should be higher on this list and probably the best qualified Dem for the job.  I’d take him over Huckabee, McCain or Paul any day of the week.
– Biden.  Think he would steal old Reagan speeches?  What a hack.  Another self impressed Senator
– Obama.  Delivers a great soaring speech.  Too bad only empty drafts of air are supporting that rhetoric.  He was born to be a Senator.  He has not done anything and he’s already written 2 autobiographies!  Yep.  He’s impressed with himself
– Hillary.  No need to say anything.  Plus, another Senator.

Bottom of the Barrel
Chris Dodd @ 26.32%
John Edwards @ 26.32%
Dennis Kucinich @ 18.42%
Mike Gravel @ 15.79%

– Dodd, Edwards.  What is it with all these Senators.  Not impressed
– Kucinich.  Shirley McLaine supports him and he like Assad in Syria.  Need I say more
– Gravel. ???.  What’s the point.

No skeletons in his Closet?  You must be smoking some of that funny weed that Ron Paul wants to legalize.  Have you educated yourself as to the writings in his newsletters that he published from 1976 to 1999?

Ron Paul will soon enough be the answer to a Trivia Question.  “”What Racists Bigoted unknown Politician was able to fleece $20 million dollars from a scared and cowed tiny fraction of the US Electorate in 2007”

I predicted and said as much on my own Blog over the past couple of months.  Nice to see the Media starting to pickup on it too.

http://pajamasmedia.com/2008/01/ron_paul.php

http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=e2f15397-a3c7-4720-ac15-4532a7da84ca

“…Most voters had never heard of Paul before he launched his quixotic bid for the Republican nomination.

But the Texan has been active in politics for decades. And, long before he was the darling of antiwar activists on the left and right, Paul was in the newsletter business. In the age before blogs, newsletters occupied a prominent place in right-wing political discourse…”

The article provides quotes and analysis of Ron Paul’s newsletters from 1978 to 1999.

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Before the the FairTax goons swam over this and tell me that I’m wrong that the tax rate is 23% and not 30% – I DON’T CARE.  The FairTax hides the tax just the same way that the current payroll tax does.  Yes, it is printed on the store receipt but then so are your payroll taxes printed on your pay stub.  As I see the purpose of a National Sales tax it is to awaken the sleeping masses to the real cost of government.  Well leave the price of goods alone and have the merchant add the tax on exclusive like is done now.  To do it inclusive like the FairTaxers want will soon become  unseen and unfelt.  Just like the frog in the pan of water.

My sister emailed me the other day asking my opinion on the FairTax

Hey!
What are your thoughts on this FairTax thing.  I know I’d love to see a complete overhaul and simplification of the current mess but I don’t know if this is the answer – if there is an answer that would satisfy everyone.

While I like the idea that a National Sales tax will make people aware of the real cost of government as opposed to it being hidden in employment taxes, etc…  The “FairTax” is anything but “Fair. Consider just a few items”¦

They claim that it will do away with the IRS and get rid of tax loopholes.  Sure the IRS will go away because you won’t be sending in a 1040.  However every business in the US will now become Uncle Sam’s “unpaid” tax collector and we have to collect, report and send that money somewhere and if we don’t the newly renamed IRS will come after the business that doesn’t send in the Sales Tax,

Now as to the Sales Tax.  The proponents keep saying that it is 23%  But when you find out that the tax on a $100 purchase will be $29.XX that says that the sales tax is really almost 30%.  (Again I DO NOT WANT TO HEAR about inclusive rather than exclusive and the embedded taxes not being there.)  The price on the good “should” be the cost of the item.  The Sales tax “should” be added to the item when it is purchased and not before.

FairTaxers should actually want the tax to be exclusive.  They kep saying the the cost of goods will go down so that the end result wil be that neutral.  Well, if true, keeping the tax exclusive could mean that the cost of  gallon of milk will drop from the curent advertised price of $3.00 to say $2.34.  Then when the tax is added back on at check out it would again be $3.00 and the consumer would what the cost of government was for that transaction.

Of course the proponents point out that the “poor” and “middle-class” will get a monthly pre-bate check to cover the sales tax that would be spent on things like butter, milk, eggs and #2 school pencils (etc).  but since there is no IRS to determine who is poor or middle-class that means that every household in the US will be getting these monthly “checks” from the government.  Instead of just welfare recipients waiting by their mailboxes for their monthly government check we will have most of America on the “dole”.  Talk about making a new dependency class!  There are 301 millions people in the US (give or take) according to the latest Census estimate.  Now these checks will go to every “Household”, so you have to report somehow if you are single, married, how many kids, etc”¦ so that the Government knows how big of a check to send you each month to cover the tax on the staples of life as determined by some Civil Servant.

You’re not filling out a 1040 but you are filling out forms.  And you have to mail those forms in and somebody has to process them.

So, who is going to receive all that mail and send out 200 million checks every month (the postal service and the paper companies will be happy)?  A renamed IRS that’s who.  Talk about rearranging the deck chairs.  Maybe the new entity could be named SRI (for Screwing Residents Individually).  Plus out of those 200 million checks that will get mailed out the US Postal Service is bound to lose at least a few each month.  So now you have to call the Federal Government to put in a request to replace your missing pre-bate check.  How long will that take?  Certainly longer then the tim before your next trip to the Grocery Store or the Gas Station.  Just what I want to do call up an entity like Motor Vehicle and expect prompt customer Service.

They also claim that it will do away with the death tax and taxes on investments.  I like the doing away with the death tax.  If I make the money and I paid taxes on it while earning it why should the government tax it again when I die.  They have already been taxing it when it was earning interest.  How many times did each of my dollars get taxed by the time I die?

But I am in favor of taxing investments.  Not onerously else there is not an incentive to save.   But if I work I get taxed and if my money is working for me earning more money I think it should be taxed too.  Let’s pick on Paris Hilton.  She inherits her money from Grandpa (although it sounds like Grandpa is tring to buy his way into Heaven by giving most of his away to Charity rather then let Paris get her hands on it) or Dad.  No tax.  The money she inherited is now sitting in various investments.  No tax on investments means she lives for free (yeah, she pays a sales tax when she buys a fendi purse or a bottle of booze) and enjoys the benefits of Society.  Nope that does not work for me.  Not as a matter of class envy but just as a matter of common sense.

Now let’s look at a typical trip to the Grocery Store.  I’m sure when you are there now you see the person in front of you in line that can stretch their dollar with coupons and smart shopping to not buy the “junk” and the person behind you will be loading the cart up with chips and pop, etc”¦  Given that the “Government” will be making up the rules  on what is the monthly pre-bate” think the dollar number will be geared to the frugal shopper or the spendthrift?

How soon until we see news reports of a family unable to afford the cost of groceries due to the high tax and the pre-bate not covering their spending.  Then the calls to increase the pre-bate which is know an entitlement.

The law as written limits the “Prebates” to legal residents.  How soon after it is enacted would we hear the cry that it is not fair to the “illegals” living in the shadows and demand that they be included since they are “contributing” too.

Again like I said above the pre-bates are really a method for creating a whole new dependancy class.  Rather then the current lower income welfare reciepts waiting at the mailbox for their monthly check we will have all of middle-class America standing out curbside waiting for the check too.

Then of course the pre-bates will become political.  The Whores in Washington will use them to buy off whole segments of society.  Let’s raise the pre-bate because it’s not fair that the tax on a new plasma TV, computer, etc… is to high and only the wealthy can afford them.

One of the FairTaxers arguments is that the Sales tax will bring untaxed money into the taxed realm since people like Drug Dealers don’t pay an income tax in the first place.  The Sales tax is actually a benefit for the Drug Dealer.

Under the current system the Drug Dealer has to hide his income so that the IRS does not come after him.  Why did Al Capone go to jail?  Murder?  Robbery?  Nope.  Tax Evasion.

Without the Income Tax reporting the Drug Dealer does not have to hide his money.  He can spend it how he wants.  If he makes $5 mil what is he going to care about paying a sales tax when he does not have to worry about the conspicuous consumption raising flags based on his reported income.

Paying a Sales Tax is a lower cost of doing business then facing the IRS.

Plus doesn’t this argument about Taxing Drug Dealers violate the concept of Reagan Supply Side economics?  The Drug Dealer is hiding his money by not reporting it.  So?  He is still going to spend the money. He needs the Hummer with the 22″ rims, etc…  So he is spending the money anyway (it’s not like he is living a lifestyle that lends itself to saving for old age retirement) which puts that money into the economy buying goods and services which generate jobs and production in the honest segments of society.

Then there is the issue of the retired or nearly retired.  They worked their whole life, earned their money and paid income taxes on what they and their investments earned.  Now the FairTaxers are going to hit these same people again (now living on fixed incomes) by taxing their money when they want to spend the money they arned over a lifetime?  Are they kidding?  How is that fair?

I could go on and on about how stupid and populist (but I repeat myself) the FairTax is.  The “concept” is good but the discussed implementation is flawed and full of unintended consequences which in the end will not reduce the size of governemnt nor it’s appetite for it’s citizens money.

The IRS needs to be overhauled to get rid of loopholes and complexity.  But that said the current system is far more “fair” then will be a regressive sales tax.  Plus, unless we repealed the 16th Amendment and replaced it with a new Amendment that tighten up the language in Constitution to prohibit an income based tax the Politicians in their lust for every more money they would figure a way to tap that too at some point.

The real issue is not how “we” collect money from ourselves to pay for our government, rather the issue is how and what we spend the money that we do collect, regardless of mechanism.  Do we “really” need to pay for many of the items that we give ourselves?

83% John McCain
75% Mitt Romney
73% Mike Huckabee
72% Rudy Giuliani
69% Fred Thompson
68% Tom Tancredo
55% Hillary Clinton
51% Bill Richardson
50% John Edwards
49% Barack Obama
47% Chris Dodd
45% Joe Biden
45% Ron Paul
31% Mike Gravel
24% Dennis Kucinich

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

Interesting.  Right know with the field presented I could vote for either Rudy or Mitt.  It would be real hard and I would have to be extremely pragmatic (looking to Supreme Court appointments) to vote for either Huck (I can’t stand the “Fair Tax” or his spewing I’m a better Christian than anyone else crap) or McCain (McCain-Feingold, McCain-Kennedy, Gang of 14, etc, etc… ad nauseum).  Fred doesn’t do anything for me as he just seems to be going through the motions.  As for Ron Paul.  PUHLEASE…

On the other side of the aisle.  Hillary.  Not even worth a thought.  Edwards?  Can’t stand the class warfare and the rest of his rhetoric.  Obama.  Look up the definition of an empty suit.  Kucinich is the same as Ron Paul.  Nutcase.

How Lori faired with her selections:

84% John McCain
77% Mitt Romney
76% Mike Huckabee
74% Fred Thompson
68% Rudy Giuliani
67% Tom Tancredo
47% Hillary Clinton
46% John Edwards
44% Joe Biden
44% Barack Obama
44% Ron Paul
42% Bill Richardson
37% Chris Dodd
27% Mike Gravel
19% Dennis Kucinich

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz