A government big enough to give you everything you want, as it turns out, is also so massively inefficient and convoluted that it gives you a whole bunch of crap you don't want. Two or three times over, even:

A review of the [Economic Development Administration]'s grants makes clear that, just like the stimulus, this program too often has used federal dollars to fund pet projects that have little relation to the national interest. In April, the bureau reported that it gave a $2 million grant to build a "culinary amphitheater," wine tasting room, and gift shop at the Port of Benton and the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center in Richland, Wash. The same month, it gave $1.5 million to promote tourism in the Northern Mariana Islands. In January, it spent $1 million on an "innovation conference center" in Arkansas to promote "cultural enrichment."

Ok, so that was probably old spending already in the system, but the message of fiscal responsibility we sent last November surely will fix this going forward, right? Well meet the new boss. Same as the old boss:

... the Senate is currently seeking to increase EDA funding to $500 million a year from $300 million. Worse, this bill passed out of a Senate authorization committee with unanimous, bipartisan support.

Continuing this kind of bullshit in the first place is one thing, but a 67% increase? Really?

Ben Franklin once said, "beware of little expenses; even a small leak will sink a great ship." It's hard to think of half a billion dollars as a little expense, but in the context of debt and deficit measured in trillions, I guess it is. And against Franklin's sage warning, we have a budget filled with thousands upon thousands of such little expenses, and the U.S.S. United States is leaking like a sieve.

The left continues to call for increased taxes as some sort of balance to budget cuts. Until frivolous make-work programs like the EDA are not merely suspended but completely eliminated, we shouldn't even entertain the discussion.

The biggest budget problem we have isn't debt service, unfunded pension obligations or entitlements. It's that we continue to be represented by (save for a handful) fundamentally unserious legislators who are not up to the task of addressing the fiscal problems we face.

Posted by: andy at 07:00 AM | Comments (51)
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"Weiner's out? Weiner's out?"

Well, he wouldn't be if he left it in and didn't take pictures of it.

Representative Anthony D. Weiner has told friends that he plans to resign his seat after coming under growing pressure from his Democratic colleagues to leave the House in the wake of revelations of his lewd online exchanges with women, said a person told of Mr. WeinerÂ’s plans.

The news comes as Democratic leaders prepared to hold a meeting on Thursday to discuss whether to strip the 46-year-old Congressman of his committee assignments, a blow which would severely damage his effectiveness.

Mr. Weiner, a Democrat, came to the conclusion that he could no longer serve after having long discussions with his wife, Huma Abedin, when she returned home on Tuesday after traveling abroad with her boss, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Bigger news...Weiner has friends?

Well, that's one less lying Democrat in Congress. Only about 200 more to go.

I don't know about you but I miss the days when thee words "Anthony Weiner's penis" never crossed my mind. Unfortunately, you can't unthink things.

Posted by: DrewM at 05:46 AM | Comments (376)
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Have a plan to kill everybody you meet.

Posted by: Gabriel Malor at 02:59 AM | Comments (214)
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How Times Change

And note that AoSHQ plays a central role in most/all of these activities.

Me? I'm just waiting for the neural implants.

Posted by: Maetenloch at 05:40 PM | Comments (721)
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Kit-ent Warning. more...

Posted by: Ace at 05:04 PM | Comments (69)
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8 eastern on NBC.

The old saying in any sport is no playoff series begins until the road team wins a game. Apparently this series has yet to begin. Each team has won the 3 games on their home ice. Boston blew out the Canucks 3 times in Boston, while the Canucks have held on to win 3 1 goal games in Vancouver.

As with any 7 game series there are multiple story lines but for me the biggest has been the enigmatic play of Roberto Luongo. In the 3 games he's won he's been very good to brilliant. In his 3 losses (he's been pulled in 2 of them), you'd think he'd never been on skates and was holding his stick in the wrong hand.

The key for Boston tonight is to get a quick goal on Luongo (preferably a soft one). Luongo reflects the psyche of the Canucks...when things are going well, they go really well. When it starts to go bad...neither Luongo nor the Canaucks have the internal grit, heart, whatever you want to call to stem the tide when things go bad.

The key for the Bruins will be do what they've been doing all along, win or lose...take the body at every opportunity, roll their lines and get great goaltending from Tim Thomas (who, win or lose, is going to be the Conn Smythe winner)

I started off this series simply disliking the Canucks. After watching the way they rolled over like heartless dogs 3 times in Boston, they disgust me. All the talent in the world but no heart whatsoever.

As a Ranger fan it's pained me to root for the Bruins but I really hope they win tonight.

Posted by: DrewM at 03:55 PM | Comments (534)
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The first half is the jokes, and they're pretty good. But in the last half, starting around 15:15, he gets to a more serious, heartfelt message.

He's just talking about his own worst failure -- losing the Tonight show -- and while that may be pretty trivial as far as losses go, it was a big deal to him. So he uses that opportunity to talk generally about risk, and recovery from failure, and dreams, and losing your dream, and finding a new dream as you muddle on through.

Takeaway: Quoting himself from 17 months ago, his NBC signoff was "Work hard, be kind, and amazing things will happen." He sums up: "I have never been more convinced that is true."
more...

Posted by: Ace at 02:43 PM | Comments (90)
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Because, why not.

Added [rdbrewer]: The latest Japanese and American robots under the fold. more...

Posted by: Ace at 02:11 PM | Comments (198)
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First speech.

Vice Presidential?

Posted by: Ace at 01:14 PM | Comments (150)
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At Verum Serum, with commentary, and also below, because it's sweet like sugar.

Also below, a similarly-themed ad pulled from Hot Air, featuring Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, who's like my perfect woman: dumb as a chicken, but not very attractive, because I don't need that hard-to-get "self respect" jazz, either.

more...

Posted by: Ace at 11:29 AM | Comments (291)
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