June 17, 2009
— Purple Avenger ...Trevor Loy, a NVCA board member called the lack of IPOs an "absolute crisis," when we sat down to talk with him. Loy, who's also a managing partner at Flywheel Ventures...
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— DrewM This is so insulting and clueless only a 'diplomat' could have said it.
The State Department strongly rejected claims that the U.S. was interfering in the disputed June 12 election, pointing out that diplomats from other countries had also been summoned."I suspect we are in good company. As the president has said, we are not interfering in the debate that Iranians are having about their election and its aftermath," said State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley. "This is not about the United States."
Hey jackass...a government that is in the process of killing its own citizens is not engaging in debate. It's called murderous repression you feckless crapweasel*.
I don't think the US government should take sides in the next Oxford Debating Society event but that's not what's happening here. People are being gunned down and arrested for having the temerity to stand up to their government. If you or you bosses can't see the difference between that and what happens on a daily basis on Capital Hill Mr. Crowlewy, perhaps you need a refresher course in basic government and maybe even human decency.
Debate? Look at the Youtube pages jackass and then tell me about the debate.
Too bad the Iranians didn't try this last year. They wouldn't have gotten much more material support but they surely would have gotten a kind word or two and certainly not had their murders referred to as 'debate'.
*As always, thanks to Jonah Goldberg for coining the term. I was in such a rage when I wrote this I forgot to acknowledge him.
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10:12 AM
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— Ace Anti-Harkonen Freedom Fighter Geoff found all this.
Step One: Overpromise.
The move, which begins to mirror the policy of many large corporations, will have an immediate effect for many workers, but it is a deeply reactive response to a core Democratic group whose concerns have been festering for six months. The presidential memorandum -- scheduled for signing tomorrow at 5:45 p.m., may in the short term, give Joe Biden something positive to say at a June 25 fundraiser that has seen prominent guests drop out, a host sharply attack the administration, and which is expected to be marked by protests.
...
"President Obama will be signing a presidential memorandum tomorrow to provide benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees," an administration official said.
Step Two: Get the lapdog media to report it. This from AP, in their first whack at the promise:
The move would give partners of federal employees access to health care and financial benefits such as relocation fees for moves.
That's Fox News' headline, by the way. The story is AP, but the outfit running the story gets to run their own headline and make other editorial changes. Whether the headline was originally AP's, I don't know. But Obama's announcement of "benefits" for gay couples seems to have been intended to suggest, without actually committing to, health benefits. That's how the story was interpreted.
Step Three: Underdeliver. People get wise to what is actually being promised, and what is not. From the first-linked article by Ben Smith: Turns out health benefits are not in the offing at all.
The order is one of several lower-profile moves the administration had promised gay groups this month, but appears to have been announced this evening to stem rising protest.
Step Four: the compliant media re-writes the story. He's the same AP story, appearing on Yahoo news, now disclaiming any White House promise of health care benefits.
Note the bolded portion, which is apparently new language inserted into the story to limit the promise.
It looks like Obama was desperate to assuage frustrated gay and lesbian Hope and Change True Believers, and so his White House put out the word they'd be giving them health benefits. Or at least made statements strongly suggesting that. And the media, eager to report that Obama is on the side of the Angles in America, ran with it without doing much checking or asking follow-ups. And only later is it pointed out how limited this move is.
And of course now they cover up for him and themselves through stealth-corrections to the record.
AP seems to have been spun. And rather than reacting badly to that, as the media usually does with a non-deity president, they seem to welcome it, pushing Obama's spin and then later softly, softly correcting it without noting the original spin at all.
Posted by: Ace at
10:04 AM
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Reacting to a rising tide of anger from gay and lesbian supporters at a series of slights and deferred promises, President Obama will tomorrow extend some benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees.Obama to Extend Health Care, Benefits to Gay Partners of Federal Employees
WASHINGTON -- President Obama, under growing criticism for not seeking to end the ban on openly gay men and women in the military, is extending benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees.However, the Defense of Marriage Act prohibits the federal government from extending health and retirement benefits to same-sex couples, so the benefits are more likely to be marginal -- like relocation assistance.
President Barack Obama, whose gay and lesbian supporters have grown frustrated with his slow movement on their priorities, is extending benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees but stopping short of a guarantee of full health insurance, a White House official said.
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— Uncle Jimbo President Obama has shown his true colors and the back of his hand to the Iranian people. He believes his cult of personality is capable of winning over the Mullahs and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and damn these pesky protesters mucking up his plans. There is a sadly accurate piece by Robert Kagan that shows how Obama's embrace of realism has him abandoning millions of people clamoring for freedom.
Once he made the decision to support the totalitarian government in Iran he threw the populace under the bus. I remember the days when the left was always the voice of the oppressed. Now the most liberal President in history can't even find the time to ask his new buddy the Supreme Leader to stop slaughtering innocents in the streets. Obama has staked his claim on the fatally-flawed idea that his personality and background actually matter to tyrants and despots and that if he pisses on everything America has done before he ascended to his throne they will change their evil ways and love him us. Well all that sweetness and light and milk of human kindness shit doesn't seem to be doing much to stop the Basij from beating and shooting the nascent revolutionaries.
Say what you will about W, but his second inauguration speech laid out a vision of an America that believed in freedom for all. Like it or not we are the only country that can serve as World Police. Obama has replaced the global 911, with a voice mail message saying "This is the White House, we are unable to assist you as we are busy bankrupting our country and turning it into a socialist hellhole."
Posted by: Uncle Jimbo at
10:00 AM
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— Ace The new claim? That the IG is "disoriented" based on a single stray remark.
Claire McCaskill said she wanted a better explanation. I imagine this will satisfy that minor requirement.
It doesn't satisfy Gerald Walpin, though.
The government watchdog President Obama canned for allegedly being "confused" and "disoriented" fired back sharply Wednesday, saying the White House explanation for removing him was "insufficient," "baseless" and "absolutely wild."Gerald Walpin, who until last week was the inspector general for the Corporation for National and Community Service, told FOXNews.com that part of Obama's explanation was a "total lie" and that he feels he's got a target on his back for political reasons.
"I am now the target of the most powerful man in this country, with an army of aides whose major responsibility today seems to be to attack me and get rid of me," Walpin said.
Facing bipartisan criticism for the firing, Obama sought to allay congressional concerns with a letter to Senate leaders Tuesday evening explaining his decision. In the letter, White House Special Counsel Norman Eisen wrote that Walpin was "confused" and "disoriented" at a May board meeting, was "unduly disruptive," and exhibited a "lack of candor" in providing information to decision makers.
"That's a total lie," Walpin said of the latter charge. And he said the accusation that he was dazed and confused at one meeting out of many was not only false, but poor rationale for his ouster.
"It appears to suggest that I was removed because I was disabled -- based on one occasion out of hundreds," he said.
"I would never say President Obama doesn't have the capacity to continue to serve because of his (statement) that there are 56 states," Walpin said, adding that the same holds for Vice President Biden and his "many express confusions that have been highlighted by the media." Obama mistakenly said once on the campaign trail that he had traveled to 57 states.
A useful recap of the situation at Moe Lane.
Posted by: Ace at
09:33 AM
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— DrewM But, but Obama said he didn't care! He'd be happy with either guy, just as long as someone with a nifty Iranian accent would talk to him!
Iran accused the United States on Wednesday of "intolerable" meddling in its internal affairs, alleging for the first time that Washington has fueled a bitter postelection dispute. Opposition supporters marched in Tehran's streets for a third straight day to protest the outcome of the balloting.The Iranian government summoned the Swiss ambassador, who represents U.S. interests in Iran, to complain about American interference, state-run Press TV reported.
The English-language channel quoted the government as calling Western interference "intolerable."
Gee, who couldn't have seen that coming? Now that Obama's new BFFs in Iran aren't impressed with his world class temperament and his "kill however many you have to to wrap this up so we can start talking" plan, can we now have the President of the US go on record in favor of the people who are fighting and dying?
Some how I doubt it.
Elsewhere in Iranian news...
Amid the ongoing protests there are reports of Hammas thugs being imported to attack Iranian civilians.
And Mousavi calls for more protests and a day of mourning tomorrow.
And it looks like the Iranian government has invested in the Farsi language version of Photoshop to make their crowds look, well, like crowds. Fail.
Below the fold an unphotoshoped (except for my cropping a bit for size) photo of an anti-government protest from Change_for_Iran.
more...
Posted by: DrewM at
09:16 AM
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— DrewM Done.
Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) has resigned as the chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee, quitting his leadership post the day after he announced he had an extramarital affair.“He’s accepted responsibility for his actions and apologized to his family and constituents,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a statement provided to POLITICO. “He offered, and I accepted, his resignation as chairman of the Policy Committee.”
The swift movement by Republicans – with Ensign’s consent – to clear him out of Senate leadership is a sign that the party wants nothing to do with another sex scandal as it tries to slow down the massive Obama agenda and focus on health care, energy and other pressing issues. Ensign has said he will remain focused on his Senate duties representing Nevada, but his days as a rising star in GOP politics are clearly done.
Too bad he didn't have the sense to not mess around with a married staffer be a Democrat.
Personally, I don't think what Ensign did is that big of a deal but there are two standards and Republicans are held to and hold themselves to the higher one. We need to start finding ways to hold the Democrats to the same one. We also need to find Skittles shitting unicorns.
Posted by: DrewM at
08:16 AM
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— DrewM As Slu put it in the sidebar, this is from the "Are you fucking kidding me department" (I didn't use the $#@$ like Slu, it's just how I roll).
Here's what the largest stockholder in 2 of America's 3 auto manufacturers, many of it's largest banks the guy who just appointed a 'compensation czar' and is proposing to take over about 1/5 of the US economy through health care 'reform' has to say about his preferred style.
"I think the irony Â… is that I actually would like to see a relatively light touch when it comes to the government," he said Tuesday in a White House interview...."You set up some rules of the road, ensure transparency and openness, guard against huge systemic risk that will lead...government potentially having to step in to avoid a depression, and then let entrepreneurs and individual businesses compete and do what they do.
"And so it's puzzling to me sometimes to hear the standard conservative critique of what we're doing, when essentially every step we're taking involves cleaning up the mess that we found when we arrived here at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue."
He'd prefer a light touch by government much like Paris Hilton would really rather just be doing charity work in Africa out of the public spotlight or Bill Clinton would rather just spend a cozy night spooning with Hillary. Unfortunately, life doesn't always let us do what we want.
In that case we must do what we have to, which in Obama's case is regulate the hell out of the private sector.
The Obama administration last night detailed a series of proposals to involve the government more deeply in private markets, from helping to steer borrowers into affordable mortgage loans to imposing new limits on the largest financial companies, in a sweeping effort to curb the kinds of reckless risk-taking that sparked the economic crisis....It also asks Congress to authorize the government for the first time to dismantle large firms that fall into trouble, avoiding a chaotic collapse that could disrupt the economy.
Federal oversight would be extended to dark corners of the financial markets, imposing new rules on trading in complex derivatives and securities built from mortgage loans.
The government would create a new agency to protect consumers of mortgages, credit cards and other financial products.
And the administration would increase its coordination with other nations to prevent businesses from migrating to less regulated venues.
Ah yes, the mark of a light touch by government...ensuring no one can escape its grasp.
Poor Obama, forced to enact all of these statist policies by that mean George W. Bush. Why can't the man just finish his waffles while reading Adam Smith?
Posted by: DrewM at
06:00 AM
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— Gabriel Malor
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04:09 AM
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June 16, 2009
— Open Blog Item #1: Is there anything the intermesh canÂ’t do? Apparently not as CNN introduces us to a new site called Hunch.com which claims it can make decisions for you. Well, sort of.
”(CNN) -- Stumped on a tough decision? New Web sites are there to help. Hunch, a site that launches for the public Monday, will consider your quandary by getting to know you, asking you a series of questions and then spitting out three decisions. Another site, Let Simon Decide, makes a similar attempt. Caterina Fake, co-founder of the photo-sharing community Flickr, says she created Hunch not because people need help with emotional decisions but because it's too tough to find smart information online. You often have to replicate someone else's research, which is a waste, she said.”
ThereÂ’s some caveats and qualifiers so YMMV. Click through the article or the direct link to Hunch is here.
Item #2: IÂ’m not really sure what to make of this next one. ItÂ’s an article from Parenting.com via CNN titled Dad Feels Cheated on FatherÂ’s Day.
”Parenting.com -- One Mother's Day, I bought my wife what she had wanted for years -- a weeping cherry tree -- and I threw in a bird bath, so that when the tree matures, our feathered friends can happily splash and drink under its loving protection. For Father's Day, my wife gave me some boxer shorts and a tiny reading light, so I can flip through a book in bed without disturbing her. My wife is the first to admit it: For her, and for many people, Father's Day is an afterthought, a holiday just a few steps above the one that celebrates the groundhog and that other one that promotes trees. If Mom's Day and Dad's Day were in a prize fight, we all know which holiday would wind up lying in the corner of the ring, knocked-out teeth on the mat, dazed head stuck in a bucket.
Draw your own conclusions from the rest of the article about whether this guy is serious or making a joke. IÂ’m just gonnaÂ’ toss this little stink bomb of a story through the ONT door, lock it securely and run like hell. I suspect that when I check back on the thread later IÂ’m going to walk in on a scene of pure horror and utter carnage, with blood and guts decorating the walls and dismembered body parts everywhere. And the only people left standing will be the female commenters who have had kids, drinking chardonnay from the skulls of the male commenters and discussing shoes or something. ItÂ’s just a hunch (as Hunch.com might say!)
Item #3: Since the overnight thread sponsorship has been pretty erratic lately, maybe this’ll make up for it a little bit. From “Environmental Graffiti” we have a list of Vegetables that Look Suspiciously Animal. So they can collectively be the sponsor of tonight’s thread. You just know that half of these are going to show up on plates soon at the most insufferably hip and trendy restaurants across the country.
more...
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06:17 PM
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