{"id":339889,"date":"2010-02-19T13:38:31","date_gmt":"2010-02-19T18:38:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/?p=31484"},"modified":"2010-02-19T13:38:31","modified_gmt":"2010-02-19T18:38:31","slug":"global-weirding-and-weirdos-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/339889","title":{"rendered":"Global Weirding and Weirdos + More"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_31486\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"width: 310px\"><a href=\"http:\/\/papundits.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/02\/3monkeys_2010-02-19.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-31486 \" style=\"margin-left:5px;margin-right:5px;\" title=\"3Monkeys_2010-02-19\" src=\"http:\/\/papundits.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/02\/3monkeys_2010-02-19.jpg?w=300&#038;h=212\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"212\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Glacier? What glacier?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><a rel=\"tag\" href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/\" >The Patriot Post<\/a> Digest<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>The Foundation<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our  inclination, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the  state of facts and evidence.&#8221; &#8211;John Adams<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"1\"><\/a><strong>Government &amp; Politics<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Report Nothing<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;Avoid the term &#8216;global warming,&#8217;&#8221; advises New York Times columnist <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2010\/02\/17\/opinion\/17friedman.html\" >Thomas  Friedman<\/a>. &#8220;I prefer the term &#8216;global weirding,&#8217; because that is  what actually happens as global temperatures rise and the climate  changes.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Friedman, who proves that anyone can be a climatologist, goes on to  explain that with global warming, &#8220;The weather gets weird. The hots are  expected to get hotter, the wets wetter, the dries drier and the most  violent storms more numerous.\u00a0\u00a0 &#8230;\u00a0\u00a0 <span id=\"more-31484\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The fact that it has snowed like crazy in  Washington &#8212; while it has rained at the Winter Olympics in Canada,  while Australia is having a record 13-year drought &#8212; is right in line  with what every major study on climate change predicts: The weather will  get weird; some areas will get more precipitation than ever; others  will become drier than ever.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>No matter what happens, blame global warming.<\/p>\n<p>But as Friedman and other dogmatists peddle their propaganda, the  case for man-made global warming is collapsing like a weak roof in a  Beltway blizzard. In fact, we might call it &#8220;man made-up&#8221; climate  change.<\/p>\n<p>Phil Jones, the former director of the University of East Anglia&#8217;s  Climatic Research Unit and a central figure in the <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/edition\/2009\/12\/04\/digest\/\" >ClimateGate<\/a> scandal, now admits that for the past 15 years, there has been no  &#8220;statistically significant&#8221; warming. Furthermore, he says the warming  trend that began in 1975 is not unlike two previous periods since 1850,  and the Medieval Warm Period could have been a global phenomenon similar  to the latter three. Yet Jones, who said he has had trouble &#8220;keeping  track&#8221; of information supporting the infamous hockey stick graph, is  still a believer in man-made global warming and he calls the last 15  years a blip in a long-term trend.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, John Christy, professor of atmospheric science at the  University of Alabama in Huntsville and a former lead author on the  International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is also questioning the  faith. &#8220;The temperature records cannot be relied on as indicators of  global change,&#8221; he said. Christy&#8217;s doubts, like those of other  researchers, stem from problems with thousands of weather stations used  to collect temperature data. Urbanization and changes in land use,  equipment relocation and other factors have compromised the data. &#8220;The  popular data sets show a lot of warming,&#8221; he said, &#8220;but the apparent  temperature rise was actually caused by local factors affecting the  weather stations, such as land development.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>These are truly stunning admissions, coming as they do from &#8220;the  consensus,&#8221; and cast grave doubt on what we have long been told is  &#8220;settled science.&#8221; For their part, U.S. media outlets have reported  exhaustively on these developments&#8230; scratch that. No, they haven&#8217;t. As  <a href=\"http:\/\/newsbusters.org\/blogs\/noel-sheppard\/2010\/02\/16\/climategater-jones-stunning-global-warming-revelations-ignored\" >Noel  Sheppard of NewsBusters<\/a> notes, &#8220;Despite the seriousness of these  revelations, much as what happened when the ClimateGate scandal first  broke, with the exception of Fox News &#8212; and a lone report by CNN &#8212;  America&#8217;s media have almost totally boycotted this amazing story.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.americanthinker.com\/2010\/01\/climategate_cru_was_but_the_ti.html\" >Similar  revelations<\/a> regarding data manipulation by the National Oceanic and  Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the NASA Goddard Institute for  Space Studies (GISS) have surfaced with little or no fanfare.<\/p>\n<p>Many of these same media outlets, however, found plenty of time to  cover the &#8220;news&#8221; that Tiger Woods has broken his silence, or the fact  that Hollywood director Kevin Smith was kicked off a plane for being too  fat. As of Tuesday, CNN had reported it 14 times. Light on substance  and, er, heavy on fragrance.<\/p>\n<h3>This Week&#8217;s &#8216;Braying Jenny&#8217; Award<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;[I]t is inappropriate to look at any particular short period of time  to discern the long-term trend.&#8221; &#8211;NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco,  when asked whether she agreed with Phil Jones&#8217; assertion that there has  been no statistically significant global warming since 1995<\/p>\n<p>File this one under &#8220;Keen Sense of the Obvious.&#8221; Using short-term  observations to make long-term predictions is exactly what the &#8220;global  warming consensus&#8221; crew has been doing for the last 15 years.<\/p>\n<h3>Casualties of the Changing Climate<\/h3>\n<p>As the case for man-made global warming goes up in smoke, there were  more defections from the movement this week. United Nations climate  chief Yvo de Boer announced his unexpected resignation, effective July  1. True, he took quite a bit of heat for the abject failure of the  Copenhagen summit in December, but he probably just wants to spend more  time with his family.<\/p>\n<p>Also, <a href=\"http:\/\/online.wsj.com\/article\/SB10001424052748704804204575069440096420212.html\" >The  Wall Street Journal<\/a> reports, &#8220;Oil giants BP PLC and ConocoPhillips  and heavy-equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. said Tuesday they won&#8217;t renew  their membership in the three-year-old U.S. Climate Action Partnership,  a broad business-environmental coalition that had been instrumental in  building support in Washington for capping emissions of greenhouse  gases. The move comes as debate over climate change intensifies and  concerns mount about the cost of capping greenhouse-gas emissions.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Businesses aren&#8217;t the only ones running away from cap-n-tax  regulations. Arizona announced that it, too, will suspend its  participation in the Western Regional Climate Action Initiative, which  aims to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions starting in 2012. The  initiative is spearheaded by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, but  Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer says she won&#8217;t bind her state with any  emission-control plan that would raise costs for businesses and  consumers.<\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"http:\/\/network.nationalpost.com\/np\/blogs\/fullcomment\/archive\/2010\/02\/17\/terence-corcoran-cap-and-fade.aspx\" >Terence  Corcoran<\/a> of Canada&#8217;s National Post notes, &#8220;It&#8217;s hard to tell right  now which part of global warming policy is in the fastest free fall &#8212;  the economics, the politics or the science.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Hope &#8216;n&#8217; Change: Lawyers Still Have Outsized Influence<\/h3>\n<p>Battle lines are being drawn for the upcoming health care summit that  Barack Obama is orchestrating to save his signature legislative agenda  item. The vocal and powerful trial lawyer lobby has made clear that they  don&#8217;t want tort reform on the table when Obama and the Democrats meet  with key Republicans on Feb. 25. The American Association for Justice  and other trial lawyer groups practically own the Democrat Party, and  their power has been felt twice in recent years when the livelihood of  these ambulance chasers has been threatened. They killed medical  liability reform under George W. Bush, and they have thus far kept  meaningful tort reform out of pending legislation.<\/p>\n<p>Obama has signaled a willingness to discuss malpractice reform,  though he remains against caps on lawsuits. His supposedly open-minded  view on tort reform is light on details, however, and that makes  Republicans skeptical about how much he is willing to give on the issue.  DNC Chair Howard Dean spoke an inconvenient truth when he said that  Democrats &#8220;did not want to take on the trial lawyers.&#8221; If Obama&#8217;s past  performance is any guide, the trial lawyers will be able to keep him  right where they want him &#8212; their hip pocket.<\/p>\n<h3>From the Left: Bayh, Bayh Evan<\/h3>\n<p>Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) shocked Washington this week by announcing that  he would not seek re-election in 2010. His announcement seemed  particularly unsettling for Democrats because, of all the high-profile  Democrats that have stepped aside in recent weeks, Bayh was probably the  one most likely to be re-elected. He was polling ahead of recent  Republican entrant and frontrunner, former Sen. Dan Coats, and he has a  $13 million war chest.<\/p>\n<p>Lest you think that this was for the good of Hoosiers, two-term Bayh  strategically announced his retirement less than 24 hours before the  Indiana filing deadline for nominating petitions, thus affording  potential Democrat substitutes no time to obtain the thousands of  signatures required to be placed on the primary ballot. Now, the state  Democrat Party has until June 30 to pick who challenges the Republican  in November. Instead of allowing Democrat voters to pick their own  candidate on the issues important to them, party leaders in smoke-filled  back rooms will sift through potential names and find the one that best  measures up to polls, focus groups and the May Republican primary  winner.<\/p>\n<p>Bayh, a former secretary of state and governor of Indiana, was also  on Obama&#8217;s short list for VP. The media has labeled him a moderate, but  with an American Conservative Union lifetime rating of 20, it&#8217;s hard to  see where his political moderation actually came into play. Bayh has no  immediate career plans, stating that he may go into business, teach, or  do charity work. He did make a point of saying, &#8220;I do not love  Congress,&#8221; a negative sentiment echoed by many congressional retirees  this term. They often cite the bitter partisanship that has evolved in  Washington for which they really have no one to blame but themselves.<\/p>\n<p>The rapid and continued centralization of power in Washington in  recent years has done much to drive the partisanship that now cripples  the political process. The more power Congress takes, the harder they  fight to keep it, and the less willing they are to compromise or back  down. Bayh&#8217;s message was lost on his Demo colleagues, though. They were  too worried about what will happen to all that money in his war chest.<\/p>\n<h3>New &amp; Notable Legislation<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;The ink is barely dry on the pay-as-you-go law, and Democrats are  seeking to bypass it to enact parts of their job-creation agenda,&#8221;  reports <a href=\"http:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/senate\/81405-pay-go-gets-passed-then-it-gets-bypassed\" >The  Hill<\/a>. We&#8217;re shocked &#8212; <em>shocked!<\/em> Democrats are working to  classify unemployment insurance and COBRA health benefits as emergency  spending that isn&#8217;t subject to the &#8220;paygo&#8221; rules. Paygo, which Obama  signed into law on Feb. 12, requires that some new spending (the  exemption list is long) be offset by spending cuts elsewhere or tax  increases.<\/p>\n<p>After devising a $787 billion &#8220;stimulus&#8221; plan that didn&#8217;t curb  unemployment and &#8212; according to a New York Times\/CBS poll &#8212; didn&#8217;t  convince the public that it &#8220;created or saved&#8221; jobs, it goes without  saying that Democrats are keen on lowering expectations on the new $154  billion &#8220;jobs&#8221; bill which passed the House. The Senate has a smaller  measure which spends &#8220;only&#8221; $15 billion.<\/p>\n<p>The House bill promises job creation through such measures as  providing aid to the states, extending unemployment benefits, and  infrastructure improvements. Yet the original stimulus included many of  these same programs and bailouts, leading to the logical question: Why  try something again when it didn&#8217;t work the first time? Well, that&#8217;s why  this is called a jobs bill, not a stimulus. Clearly, congressional  Democrats hope the jobs this bill saves will be their own in November.<\/p>\n<h3>Count on Government Waste<\/h3>\n<p>If you thought spending upwards of $2.5 million on advertising during  the Super Bowl to promote the upcoming census was a waste of money,  that&#8217;s just the tip of the iceberg. An audit of last fall&#8217;s address  canvassing portion of the census, in which workers fixed the GPS  coordinates of households in preparation for this spring&#8217;s count, found  that it cost almost 25 percent more than the original estimate of $356  million. The extra $88 million in expenses found during the audit are an  obvious concern since the bulk of the work is yet to be done. Among the  excuses given were workers who were paid for the training but quit  before the work actually began and others who fudged their mileage  reimbursements to pad their paychecks.<\/p>\n<p>The census is mandated by the Constitution to determine proportional  representation through an accurate count of the populace, but in more  recent times states have pushed hard for the largest possible compliance  rate in order to ensure they receive &#8220;their share&#8221; from the federal  trough. Consequently, the census questions become quite a bit more  intrusive than &#8220;How many people live at this residence?&#8221; According to  the Census Bureau, the count determines the fate of over $400 billion in  federal funding. That&#8217;s where the <em>real<\/em> fraud will begin.<\/p>\n<p><!-- [ADV|TeaPartyCategory] --><\/p>\n<h3>Conservative Leaders Sign &#8216;Mount Vernon Statement&#8217;<\/h3>\n<p>Dozens of conservative leaders on Wednesday signed &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.themountvernonstatement.com\/\" >The Mount Vernon  Statement<\/a>,&#8221; a declaration that reaffirms first principles and  constitutional Rule of Law, much as <cite>The Patriot Post<\/cite> has  sought to do for the last 14 years, most recently through our <a href=\"http:\/\/essentialliberty.us\/\" >Essential Liberty Project<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Read more and tell us what you think <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/perspective\/2010\/02\/19\/conservative-leaders-sign-mount-vernon-statement\/\" >here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>National Security<\/h2>\n<h3>Warfront With Jihadistan: Second Thoughts on KSM<\/h3>\n<p>Of the many judgments that history will make to describe Barack  Hussein Obama&#8217;s regime, incompetence will be near the top. As prime  evidence, look no further than the badly botched handling of the trial  of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM), mastermind of the 9\/11 attacks.<\/p>\n<p>Attorney General Eric Holder decided soon after BHO was sworn in that  KSM and his murderous cohorts did not commit acts of war to be tried  before military commissions, but rather ordinary, run-of-the-mill  criminal acts that could be prosecuted in a New York City federal court.  Quite naturally, this led to a firestorm of criticism aimed at the  administration. Obama tried to douse the flames early, essentially  saying, &#8220;Hey, we&#8217;ll give KSM a fair trial, and then we&#8217;ll execute him.&#8221;  Way to poison the jury pool, Mr. President. Way to show the world how  &#8220;fair&#8221; our justice system is.<\/p>\n<p>With that tack not fooling the American people, with a looming Senate  vote that could stop civilian trials for terror suspects, and with cost  estimates for a NYC trial going through the roof, Obama began  fast-tracking his backtracking. When asked about the administration&#8217;s  options for KSM, neither Holder nor White House Press Secretary Robert  Gibbs would rule out a military trial, a stunning retreat from Obama&#8217;s  previous position. Additionally, Obama says he is now planning to insert  himself into the debate about where to try KSM, which raises the  obvious question: Where has he been all this time?<\/p>\n<p>Add to this debacle the administration&#8217;s handling of the Christmas  Day undi-bomber, and the release this week of two new documents that lay  out Obama&#8217;s defense and homeland security strategy for the next four  years &#8212; documents that assiduously avoid using the words Islam,  Islamic, or Islamist &#8212; and the picture that emerges is one of a grossly  and recklessly incompetent administration. If the subject weren&#8217;t  national survival, this might be a fine comedy. But no one is laughing.<\/p>\n<p>In related news, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/story\/0,2933,586721,00.html\" >Fox News<\/a> reports, &#8220;The U.S. Army is investigating allegations that soldiers were  attempting to poison the food supply at Fort Jackson in South Carolina.&#8221;  It appears that the Fort Jackson Five are part of the &#8220;09 Lima&#8221; Arabic  translation program and are Muslim.<\/p>\n<p><!-- [ADV|Documents2] --><\/p>\n<h3>Left Blames Tea Parties for Austin Plane Crash<\/h3>\n<p>On Thursday, a deranged man supposedly angry at the IRS flew a plane  into one of their offices in Austin, Texas. Joseph Andrew Stack, the  pilot, was killed in the crash, and several people were injured. Stack  also apparently set his house on fire before leaving on his mission; his  wife and daughter escaped. The attack is being considered criminal, not  terrorist.<\/p>\n<p>Columnist <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/opinion\/michelle-malkin\/2010\/02\/19\/its-all-the-tea-partys-fault\/\" >Michelle  Malkin<\/a> writes, &#8220;Investigators found a Web posting, identified as  Stack&#8217;s &#8217;suicide manifesto,&#8217; in which he railed against tax laws,  inequity, government and crony capitalism. He also targeted &#8216;puppet&#8217;  George W. Bush, murderous health care insurers and the pharmaceutical  industry.&#8221; His angry tirade concluded, &#8220;The communist creed: From each  according to his ability, to each according to his need. The capitalist  creed: From each according to his gullibility, to each according to his  greed.&#8221; Not exactly the words of a supporter of capitalism.<\/p>\n<p>Clearly, Stack was trying to get back at what he called &#8220;Big Brother  IRS man,&#8221; but his politics are rather muddy. That didn&#8217;t stop Leftists  from blaming the Tea Party movement. We saw it coming.<\/p>\n<p>Time magazine, The Washington Post, New York Magazine and  talkingheads at the cable networks immediately jumped on the anti-IRS  theme, while ignoring Stack&#8217;s slam of capitalism. Jonathan Capehart of  The Washington Post&#8217;s Post Partisan blog, wrote, &#8220;[A]fter reading his  34-paragraph screed, I am struck by how his alienation is similar to  that we&#8217;re hearing from the extreme elements of the Tea Party movement.&#8221;  New York Magazine said that &#8220;a lot of his rhetoric could have been  taken directly from a handwritten sign at a tea party rally.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>One blogger at the popular Daily Kos Web site railed, &#8220;After months  of threats on the United States government, and government institutions,  the Anti-Government forces known as the teabaggers have struck with  their first 911 [sic] inspired terrorist attack.&#8221; Numerous comments on  the Huffington Post blog likewise threw blame in the wrong direction.<\/p>\n<p>Tea Partiers do <em>not<\/em> support communism, and they <em>do<\/em> support the Rule of Law. Stack&#8217;s words and actions are the antithesis of  the Tea Party movement&#8217;s goals. The Left, however, never lets facts get  in the way of a good story.<\/p>\n<h2>Business &amp; Economy<\/h2>\n<h3>Income Redistribution: The Deficit Commission<\/h3>\n<p>While Democrats on the Hill are working to circumvent paygo to  increase the federal deficit on &#8220;emergency items,&#8221; Barack Obama signed  an executive order Thursday creating a bipartisan fiscal commission  tasked with addressing the nation&#8217;s $12.3 trillion debt. &#8220;It keeps me  awake at night, looking at all that red ink,&#8221; the president said, just  before again lamenting that he &#8220;inherited&#8221; the mess. The poor dear.<\/p>\n<p>To head the commission, Obama chose Alan Simpson, a former RINO  Senate whip, and Erskine Bowles, Bill Clinton&#8217;s former chief of staff.  The commission will have 18 members, six chosen by the president, six by  congressional Democrats and six by congressional Republicans. GOP  leaders haven&#8217;t yet decided whether to participate.<\/p>\n<p>This year&#8217;s deficit is projected to hit $1.6 trillion, or almost 11  percent of GDP. The administration forecasts the deficit to remain above  $1 trillion for three consecutive years. The commission&#8217;s mandate is to  make recommendations by December for reducing that deficit to 3 percent  of GDP. Given that Obama also called Thursday for another $50 to $100  billion stimulus plan, however, this commission is laughable.<\/p>\n<p>Also amusing is its &#8220;bipartisan&#8221; nature. CNBC&#8217;s Larry Kudlow said,  &#8220;Simpson&#8217;s to the left of Erskine Bowles,&#8221; adding, &#8220;It&#8217;s an excuse to  raise taxes &#8212; when we need to be <em>cutting<\/em> tax rates.&#8221; The Wall  Street Journal&#8217;s Stephen Moore agreed, writing, &#8220;Don&#8217;t expect any tax  cuts from the Obama deficit reduction panel. This is looking with each  passing day like a political ploy to make a tax increase seem imperative  and unavoidable. If that&#8217;s what Mr. Obama wants, that&#8217;s what he&#8217;s  likely to get with Alan Simpson helping to run the show.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As the supply of U.S. debt <a href=\"http:\/\/www.investors.com\/NewsAndAnalysis\/Article.aspx?id=521294\" >begins  to outstrip demand for it<\/a>, the federal budget is absolutely a major  concern. The trouble is, Obama&#8217;s policies are taking us in the wrong  direction.<\/p>\n<div><a href=\"http:\/\/papundits.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/02\/obamaspendingupinsmoke_2010-02-19-cartoon.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-31487\" title=\"ObamaSpendingUpInSmoke_2010-02-19-cartoon\" src=\"http:\/\/papundits.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/02\/obamaspendingupinsmoke_2010-02-19-cartoon.jpg?w=475&#038;h=305\" alt=\"Obama Spending Up In Smoke\" width=\"475\" height=\"305\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<h3>The BIG Lie<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;Our work is far from over but we have rescued this economy from the  worst of this crisis.&#8221; &#8211;Barack Obama<\/p>\n<p>Read more on the administration&#8217;s celebration of the stimulus  anniversary <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/perspective\/2010\/02\/17\/the-redistribution-of-your-income-stimulus-anniversary\/\" >here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Obama Extends Loan for Nuclear Plant<\/h3>\n<p>A 50 percent loan default rate would be enough to make most lenders  say, &#8220;thanks but no thanks&#8221; &#8212; but not the federal government. Despite  Congressional Budget Office and Government Accountability Office reports  estimating that the risk of default for new nuclear reactors could  climb to 50 percent, President Obama announced an $8.33 billion federal  loan guarantee to construct two nuclear reactors in Georgia. And in case  this isn&#8217;t enough, the president&#8217;s 2011 budget would bring to $54.5  billion the government subsidies for nuclear energy projects &#8212; projects  which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has basically regulated out of  the financial reach of private enterprise.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/stories\/0210\/33037.html\" >Politico<\/a> gave the move the ironic title of &#8220;nuclear olive branch&#8221; to the GOP,  but as the <a href=\"http:\/\/blog.heritage.org\/2010\/02\/17\/morning-bell-washington-subsidies-cant-save-nuclear-power\/\" >Heritage  Foundation<\/a> noted, &#8220;President Obama&#8217;s nuclear loan guarantee  announcement is really nothing more than a transparently cynical attempt  to revive his moribund cap-and-trade\/energy tax proposals currently  languishing in the Senate.&#8221; The White House has made clear that it  expects Republican cooperation on other administration priorities in  return.<\/p>\n<p>While we support energy independence, no single approach is a  panacea. Yet in its quest for political points, Obama has found yet one  more thing at which to fling taxpayer finances.<\/p>\n<h2>Culture &amp; Policy<\/h2>\n<h3>Faith and Family: Eight of &#8216;Baptist 10&#8242; Released<\/h3>\n<p>On Wednesday, a Haitian judge ordered the release of eight of the 10  Baptist missionaries who had been arrested there in January on charges  of child trafficking. The eight landed in Miami Thursday. Last week, <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/edition\/2010\/02\/12\/digest\/\" >we noted<\/a> the  missionaries&#8217; claim that they were taking 33 Haitian orphans to the  Dominican Republic for proper care after the earthquake that devastated  the Caribbean nation on Jan. 12. But it appears we gave the group&#8217;s  leaders too much benefit of the doubt.<\/p>\n<p>Laura Silsby, the group leader, and her former nanny, Charisa  Coulter, remain in a Haitian jail. The two had been to Haiti previously,  and knew what they were doing was illegal. In fact, many of the  children were not orphans at all, but had parents still in Haiti, though  the parents testified that they had voluntarily given their children to  the group. The group&#8217;s attorney blamed Silsby, saying the rest were  simply &#8220;na\u00efve.&#8221; We criticized the injustice of the Haitian government as  being harmful to those suffering hardship, and though this is often  true, sometimes the helpers are the ones hurting the cause.<\/p>\n<h3>Village Academic Curriculum: Bible Placement is a &#8216;Hate Crime&#8217;<\/h3>\n<p>An eighth grade teacher in North Carolina has been suspended while  investigators review recent events surrounding her, her class, a Bible  and Facebook. Melissa Hussain is Muslim, and when her students left a  Bible on her desk, she posted pointed criticisms on Facebook, including  one calling the incident a &#8220;hate crime.&#8221; She posted, &#8220;I can&#8217;t believe  the cruelty and ignorance of people sometimes,&#8221; vowed that she wouldn&#8217;t  let the matter &#8220;go unpunished,&#8221; and bragged that she &#8220;was able to shame  her kids.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s possible that the students <em>were<\/em> taunting the teacher &#8212;  they had previously put a picture of Jesus on her desk, wore T-shirts  with his picture on the front and sang &#8220;Jesus Loves Me&#8221; in her  classroom. It&#8217;s no secret that junior high kids can behave immaturely,  but Hussain shouldn&#8217;t stoop to their level. Hussain lives in a free  country, but if this had occurred in a Muslim nation, the Christian  students would certainly not &#8220;go unpunished.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>From the &#8216;Non Compos Mentis&#8217; File<\/h3>\n<p>The National Museum of African American History and Culture at the  Smithsonian will soon have a new exhibit. Henry Louis Gates, the Harvard  professor who was <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/alexander\/2009\/07\/27\/bad-boys-bad-boys-watcha-gonna-do\/\" >arrested  last summer by Cambridge police<\/a>, is donating the handcuffs from  that infamous incident to the museum. Perhaps the most appropriate name  for this monument would be &#8220;Acting Stupidly,&#8221; to borrow a phrase from  Barack Obama&#8217;s ill-advised remarks after the arrest. No word on whether  an empty bottle from the ensuing beer summit will be added to the  display.<\/p>\n<h3>Left-Wing Prof Shoots 6 in Alabama<\/h3>\n<p>Naturally, when a left-winger goes on a shooting rampage, it doesn&#8217;t  fit the template. But there&#8217;s more to the story of an Alabama professor  who killed three colleagues. Read about it <a href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/perspective\/2010\/02\/19\/left-wing-prof-shoots-6-in-alabama\/\" >here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>To Keep and Bear Arms<\/h3>\n<p>According to Fulton County police, a man in Atlanta, Georgia, called  in two electricians to an empty home with the intention of robbing them.  When the first electrician entered the home, he was immediately robbed  and then shot in the leg. Shortly after, the second electrician, unaware  that the first electrician was in a predicament, was also shot in the  leg. However, he pulled out his own gun and shot the perpetrator in the  head. The perp was taken to a hospital where he is in critical  condition. Police believe that a second suspect may have been involved  and may also have a gunshot wound.<\/p>\n<p>May Youmans, a witness to the scene, praised the second electrician,  saying, &#8220;I&#8217;m just glad that the electrician had a weapon. He retaliated  against [the robber] so they wouldn&#8217;t think about doing it again to no  one else.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In other Second Amendment news, Monday, Feb. 22, will mark the end of  the 94-year-old ban on carrying loaded firearms in national parks and  wildlife refuges. Congress passed a law last May lifting the ban by  revoking the National Park Service&#8217;s ability to set its own gun policy.  State law now governs each park. Somehow it&#8217;s fitting that this  recognition of gun (and state) rights will occur on George Washington&#8217;s  birthday. We think the man who led an army of citizen soldiers in the  fight for our independence would approve.<\/p>\n<p><!-- [ADV|2AHoodie] --><\/p>\n<h3>And Last&#8230;<\/h3>\n<p>First, let us say that we support conservation, a word that shares  the same root as &#8220;conservative.&#8221; But the latest recommendations from the  Catholic Coalition on Climate Change leave us wondering when Al Gore  joined the Church. During Lent, which began Wednesday and lasts for 40  days, Catholics traditionally give up something in observance. According  to the latest Public Policy Insights newsletter, &#8220;the Archdiocese of  Washington&#8217;s Environmental Outreach Committee has created a particularly  useful new tool: a <a href=\"http:\/\/catholicclimatecovenant.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/Lenten-Carbon-Fast-Calendar-2010.pdf\" >calendar<\/a> that lists 40 carbon-fasting measures individuals can take to reduce  their carbon footprint.&#8221; In other words, the faithful are being asked to  give up carbon for Lent.<\/p>\n<p>Now, you too can &#8220;Show reverence for life and for the Earth&#8221; by doing  various &#8220;green&#8221; things, all for the annual Catholic Climate Covenant.  For example, you might give up &#8220;one light bulb from your home,&#8221; or &#8220;Turn  down your thermostat by at least one degree.&#8221; And don&#8217;t forget to  &#8220;Check the tire pressure of your car&#8221; or to &#8220;Learn about mountaintop  removal mining.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Jesus said, &#8220;Let your light shine before others.&#8221; This calendar,  however, is apparently referring to 3 Gore-inthians: &#8220;Don&#8217;t let your  light shine &#8212; turn it off to save energy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>\ufeffRead more excellent articles at <a rel=\"tag\" href=\"http:\/\/patriotpost.us\/\" >The Patriot Post<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Filed under: <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/111th-congress\/'>111th Congress<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/democrats\/barry-soetoro-aka-barack-hussein-obama\/'>Barry Soetoro (aka Barack Hussein Obama)<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/environment\/climate-alarmists\/'>Climate Alarmists<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/environment\/climate-change-environment\/'>Climate Change<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/conniving-politicians\/'>Conniving Politicians<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/democrats\/demo-gogues-democrats-politics\/'>Demo-gogues<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/democrats\/'>Democrats<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/environment\/global-warming\/'>Global Warming<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/liberals\/'>Liberals<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/marxists\/'>Marxists<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/news-and-views\/'>News and Views<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/democrats\/barry-soetoro-aka-barack-hussein-obama\/obama-legal-minions\/'>Obama Legal Minions<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/political-prostitutes\/'>Political Prostitutes<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/category\/politics\/politicians-for-the-destruction-of-america\/'>Politicians for the Destruction of America<\/a> Tagged: <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/tag\/annie\/'>Annie<\/a>, <a href='http:\/\/papundits.wordpress.com\/tag\/the-patriot-post\/'>The Patriot Post<\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/gocomments\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/comments\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\" \/><\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/godelicious\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/delicious\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\" \/><\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/gostumble\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/stumble\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\" \/><\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/godigg\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/digg\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\" \/><\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/goreddit\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/reddit\/papundits.wordpress.com\/31484\/\" \/><\/a> <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/stats.wordpress.com\/b.gif?host=papundits.wordpress.com&#038;blog=174708&#038;post=31484&#038;subd=papundits&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Glacier? What glacier? The Patriot Post Digest The Foundation &#8220;Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclination, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.&#8221; &#8211;John Adams Government &amp; Politics See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Report Nothing &#8220;Avoid the term &#8216;global warming,&#8217;&#8221; advises New York [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4200,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-339889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4200"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=339889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339889\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=339889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=339889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=339889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}