Democrats Upset McConnell Allowed Votes On Their Amendments

By William Teach January 24, 2015 – 8:02 am

It just goes to show you, Democrats are never satisfied. It also goes to show that they always want more, like a kid given a cookie who demands more cookies

(Daily Caller)  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already allowed more votes on amendments to the Keystone XL pipeline bill than former leader Harry Reid allowed in all of 2014 — but Democrats complained when McConnell tried to wrap up the process late Thursday.

“McConnell has just slammed the door on ‘open’ process — killing six D amendments w/o debate,” Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley tweeted.

Sen. Dick Durbin, who had praised McConnell earlier that same day for leading an open debate, said the move was not “in the best interest” of the Senate. Under Harry Reid’s leadership in 2014, Durbin won votes on just two amendments, compared to four in just a few weeks of McConnell’s Senate.

After holding votes on 10 amendments to the bill Thursday — five from Democrats and five from Republicans – McConnell wanted to hold a series of votes on additional amendments Thursday night. But Democrats did not want to vote on their amendments, saying they wanted more time to consider them before voting.

At that point, McConnell shut down the votes, and offered to allow votes on Friday. Dems whined, and now McConnell has moved the votes to Monday.

“They were sort of up in arms that they were allowed to have votes on their amendments,” Heritage Action spokesman Dan Holler told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “It was just a bizarre thing to watch.”

Again, McConnell has allowed in just a few days more amendment votes than Harry Reid (D) allowed in all of 2014. Harry Reid was not impressed with this, of course.

His spokesperson told TheDCNF the votes are nothing to be proud of. ”McConnell has reached this number by forcing senators to vote on amendments they haven’t been given time to read and research, and by shutting down debate on the Senate floor,” Jentleson said.

Hey, remember all that time we had to read the Stimulus and Obamacare bills? Many of the amendments are very short, and, they are getting votes. Democrats, though, are like teenagers in perpetual outrage.

The final vote on Keystone XL will occur next week.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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Bummer: The Earth Is Totally Going To Take Revenge For Hotcoldwetdry

By William Teach January 23, 2015 – 7:00 pm

Question: do you think this headline came from a supermarket tabloid or a real newspaper?

The U.S. has caused more global warming than any other country. Here’s how the Earth will get its revenge.

There was a time not too long ago when schlock like that would appear in places like the National Enquirer and Weekly World News. Since most of those unhinged papers are no longer published for viewing while waiting to check out at the supermarket, the bat guano insanity had to move to normal papers, such as the Washington Post, in an article written by the similarly unhinged Chris Mooney.

Last year, we learned what is probably the worst global warming news yet— that we may have irrevocably destabilized the massive ice sheet of West Antarctica, which contains the equivalent of nearly 11 feet of sea level rise. The rate of West Antarctic ice loss has been ominously increasing, and there are fears that if too much goes, the slow and long-term process of ice sheet disintegration could accelerate.

Humans have a hard time conceiving of the incredible scale of an ice sheet, so the consequences of such a change can be lost upon us. But in a new paper in the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers — Forensic Engineering, researchers Ted Scambos of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo., and John Abraham of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. – summarize what we now know about West Antarctica. That includes a finding that may serve as a wake-up call for Americans in particular.

Namely: If West Antarctica collapses entirely — a process that would likely play out over centuries, but that could substantially begin in this one – the expected 11 feet of sea level rise won’t just spread out evenly across the ocean. The United States will actually get a lot more sea level rise than many other parts of the world — possibly over 14 feet. Call it geophysical karma — we’re the nation most responsible for global warming and, at least in this particular case, we’ll get more of the consequences.

Interesting. Because, as Steven Goddard notes, Warmists were whining about the same thing in 1922. Of course, in reality, when Warmists starting yammering about West Antarctica, many predicted that it was due to vulcanism, and, lo and behold, people doing actual science rather than making doomy prognostications and looking at garbage in garbage out computer models have noticed all those pesky real world volcanoes beneath West Antarctica.

I do appreciate the humor in say that this living force known as the Earth will magically send more sea rise to the US than anywhere else. Probably preceded by surfboard riding unicorns. Then we get this

This analysis from the World Resources Institute shows that from 1850 to the year 2011, the United States, a single country, produced 27 percent of the total carbon dioxide emissions of the world. No other single country was close — indeed, the U.S. even outdistanced all the nations of the European Union combined:

This is followed by a graph showing the breakdown of CO2 emissions.

Do you know what I see? Modernization. The growth of the works of Mankind, with the United State leading the way. I see a country that went from just a small player to one which won two world wars, developed the atom bomb, sent men to the moon several times, created the space shuttle, was a leader in heavy industry, makes more cars and vehicles than anyone else, invented the airplane and modern aviation, developed television, the personal computer, and the Internet, has some of the tallest skyscrapers in the world, and was considered to be the guardian of the world. Warmists would like to do away with all that, at least for Other People, since Warmists are taking advantage of all the benefits of living in a 1st World Nation to be able to whine about “carbon pollution”.

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If All You See…

By William Teach January 23, 2015 – 1:00 pm

…is a white privilege sport which will disappear because Someone Else refuses to stop their fossil fueled travel, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is A View From The Beach, with a post on emotional science.

Seriously, did you think I could possibly ignore the awesomeness of Ms. Canada?

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Warmist Jonathan Chait Wants To Disqualify Skeptics From Holding Office

By William Teach January 23, 2015 – 11:28 am

Because tolerance for other opinions, you know

Why Climate-Science Denialism Should Disqualify Anyone From Holding Office

….

The media’s instinct is to dismiss votes like those from last night as mere gestures in empty symbolism. Yet, while the vote did not change any policy outcomes, it ought to carry far more weight than a simple message vote. Or, rather, the message is of the highest importance. The Republican Party confidently and forthrightly rejects the firm conclusions of science on a major public-policy question. Isn’t that a completely disqualifying position? If a candidate for a managerial job at your office insists that two plus three equals seven, it wouldn’t matter how well-qualified this candidate may be at any other aspect of the job. Even if you agreed with everything else the Republicans stood for, how could a party so obviously unhinged be entrusted with power?

I may not like Obama’s policy views, but it does not disqualify him from holding office. Same with most Democrats. Cynthia McKinney was a raving nutjob. So are Sheila Jackson Lee, Hank “Guam is going to tip over” Johnson, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Lee, and Wendy Davis, among others. Joe Biden seems to like saying really dumb things, and touching women who do not want to be touched. Obama consistently denies the state of the economy, and that most citizens do not want Obamacare.

Regardless, none of that matters. People are entitled to opinions, but we should be in no way surprised that the Progressives (nice fascists) who mostly make up the Warmist cult want to restrict free speech, free expression, and free opinion. What’s next, limiting the franchise to only people who believe in the fake consensus issue of “climate change”?

If Warmists want to go down this road, I suggest that no believer in anthropogenic global warming/climate change is allowed to assume office unless they practice what they preach. Sound fair, Warmists?

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Eugene Robinson: What Is GOP Thinking With Abortion Bill?

By William Teach January 23, 2015 – 8:29 am

It’s actually rather rare, probably to the tune of “Never”, that I agree with the Washington Post’s Eugene Robinson. Perhaps not necessarily on the deep substance, but the idea

What is the GOP thinking?

There they go again. Given control of Congress and the chance to frame an economic agenda for the middle class, the first thing Republicans do is tie themselves in knots over . . . abortion and rape.

I’m not kidding. In a week when President Obama used his State of the Union address to issue a progressive manifesto of bread-and-butter policy proposals, GOP leaders responded by taking up the “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act” — a bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. But a vote on the legislation had to be canceled after female GOP House members reportedly balked over the way an exception for pregnancies resulting from rape was limited.

The whole thing was, in sum, your basic 360-degree fiasco.

At least there are some in the party who recognize how much trouble Republicans make for themselves by breaking the armistice in the culture wars and launching battles that cannot be won. It looks as if the nation will have to stand by until GOP realists and ideologues reach some sort of understanding, which may take some time.

That last paragraph I’m somewhat squishy on, but, I do have to wonder what the GOP was thinking in trotting out the legislation so soon in the legislative term. Mr. Robinson writes that the only reason it was pushed was to “create an event”, what with the pro-life march in D.C. upcoming (it was held yesterday, the 22nd) (many outlets described the march as “thousands” attending. Others say “tens of thousands”. It was more like hundreds of thousands, and, unshockingly, very few media outlets have done stories on the march). He could be right.

Regardless, I think it was a Bad Idea to push this legislation so soon in the term. For the first time since 2006 the GOP controls the House and the Senate. They have a chance to push big, bold ideas to help the economy of the country, to make things happen, to create conditions that stimulate businesses to hire. To hire full time. To increase wages because the business environment dictates that. To put the US on the road to a true recovery. To block Obama’s job killing, energy killing, amnesty giving, etc., ways. Get energy bills passed. Pass foreign trade bills, ones that Obama has said he agrees with, because this is one area where the GOP and Obama agree. Save the social policy bills for later, once things have been accomplished. Heck, pass bills to pick a fight with Obama. Don’t do things like this now.

People, we are in an economic recovery whose fruits are not reaching the middle class. We have a crucial need to address U.S. infrastructure and competitiveness. We face myriad challenges abroad, including Islamic terrorism and global warming.

If a renewal of the culture wars is your answer, Republicans, you totally misheard the question.

Except for the “global warming” idiocy, I agree. Obama misheard the results of the 2014 election. Republicans shouldn’t miss-hear, because much of the results were about citizens voting against Obama and Democrats, and saying “let’s give Republicans a chance”. Don’t blow it. That’s just my two cents.

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Should Bakers Be Forced To Put Anti-Gay Messages On Cakes?

By William Teach January 23, 2015 – 8:06 am

Frosting for thought

Colorado baker faces complaint for refusing anti-gay message on cake

A dispute over a cake in Colorado raises a new question about gay rights and religious freedom: If bakers can be fined for refusing to serve married gay couples, can they also be punished for declining to make a cake with anti-gay statements?

A baker in suburban Denver who refused to make a cake for a same-sex wedding is fighting a legal order requiring him to serve gay couples even though he argued that would violate his religious beliefs.

But now a separate case puts a twist in the debate over discrimination in public businesses, and it underscores the tensions that can arise when religious freedom intersects with a growing acceptance of gay couples.

Marjorie Silva, owner of Denver’s Azucar Bakery, is facing a complaint from a customer alleging she discriminated against his religious beliefs.

According to Silva, the man who visited last year wanted a Bible-shaped cake, which she agreed to make. Just as they were getting ready to complete the order, Silva said the man showed her a piece of paper with hateful words about gays that he wanted written on the cake. He also wanted the cake to have two men holding hands and an X on top of them, Silva said.

She refused to put the “hateful words” on the cake, and nowhere within the Associated Press article are those words laid out. She offered the man, Bill Jack of Castle Rock, icing to do it himself. He was upset, so he has filed suit with Colorado’s Civil Rights Division. The Washington Post reports that one of the phrases he wanted was “God Hates Gays”. The Christian Science Monitor notes Mr. Jack wanted “anti-gay passages he said were from the Bible.”

But gay rights advocates say there is a significant difference in the cases. Silva refused to put specific words on a cake while Jack Phillips, the baker who turned away the gay couple, refused to make any wedding cake for them in principle.

“There’s no law that says that a cake-maker has to write obscenities in the cake just because the customer wants it,” said Mark Silverstein, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Colorado.

Perhaps the ACLU of Colorado can tell us exactly what the obscenities are? Because I haven’t seen any as of yet. But, of course, the ACLU, along with all those who are “defending” the bakery, will find all sorts of excuses to find a way to make sure that discrimination a one way affair. What if a Christian, Muslim, Jewish, etc baker feels that a cake with a pro-gay message is “obscene”?

The case comes as Republicans in Colorado’s Legislature talk about changing the state law requiring that businesses serve gays in the wake of a series of incidents where religious business owners rejected orders to celebrate gay weddings. Republican Sen. Kevin Lundberg said the new case shows a “clash of values” and argued Colorado’s public accommodation law is not working.

“The state shouldn’t come in and say to the individual businessman, ‘You must violate your religious — and I’ll say religious-slash-moral convictions. This baker (Silva), thought that was a violation of their moral convictions. The other baker, which we all know very well because of all the stories, clearly that was a violation of their religious convictions,” Lundberg said.

I will fully admit, I have to wonder if this was a setup. However, regardless, I think the baker has the best idea. The baker makes the cake, and gives the purchaser some icing to write their own message. If they don’t like it, they can take their business elsewhere. If I don’t like the way someone does business, I don’t bother doing business with them. There is a nationwide chain at Crabtree Valley Mall that, as of the last time I was there a few years ago, only took credit, not debit. They never asked for ID nor looked at my checkcard with my face on it, hence, I do not trust them. I walked out of a car dealership recently because I didn’t like the way a sales manager berated sales associates on the sale floor in view of other employees and customers. I could mention lots more, and I bet you could, too.

What if someone wanted to put a pro-NAMBLA (North American Man Boy Love Association) message on a cake? Or, say, went into a baker who obviously was pro-Obama, and wanted an anti-Obama message? Should they be forced to make the cakes?

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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Surprise: NHL Teams Like To Run Defense Like The Devils

By William Teach January 22, 2015 – 4:29 pm

For 20+ years, hockey fans of teams other than the NJ Devils have complained about the Devils stifling defense, complaining that it was “boring”. Well, yeah, when the Devils are routinely shutting down your team and limiting their offense, I can understand. TS. Anyhow

The decline of the shot-blocking, crease-clearing defenseman

There is perhaps no skill in hockey that is more misunderstood than shot-blocking.

It is often times seen as a key foundation to great defensive play, while players and teams that rack up large numbers of them are praised for their commitment to defense, toughness, and willigness to sacrifice for the good of the team. That is all party true. It is at times a necessary part of defensive zone play. But the teams that win the most games often find themselves blocking the fewest shots overall, an observation that often times gets misrepresented as “shot blocking doesn’t matter.” And that is not at all true.

What matters is consistently putting yourself in a position where you don’t have to block shots. If your team is constantly having to defend its own zone and consistently step in front of shots then it is probably doing a lot of other things wrong that are eventually going to hurt you, and that leads us to one of hockey’s great mythical beasts, and a role that is continuing to have less and less importance in the NHL.

This is exactly what the Devils have been doing since their rise in the early 1990’s. In all fairness, the neutral zone trap was developed by the Montreal Canadians, and exported to the Devils through all the links to those great Canadians teams. What this mean was stop the team in the neutral zone, keep them from getting deep into the offensive zone. Bottle them up. Why do you want to give teams a crack at your goal? Make them work for it. Keep things on the perimeter. Funny how so many teams now are doing the same things the Devils have been doing, eh?

Well, if you put a couple of defensemen out there whose only real skill is to collapse around the net to try and move people out or stand in front of shots, that is just one (or two) more bodies that your goalie has to try to see through. I think a lot of times goalies would prefer that unless the defensemen on the ice is going to definitely prevent the shot from getting through that they just get out of the way and allow them to do their jobs instead of creating even more traffic in front of the net.

Again, a big thing with the Devils. Marty Brodeur always preferred that the D get out of the way. Leave the shot lanes open. Funny how so many teams are emulating those oh-so-boring Devils, eh?

Of course, based on the play of the Devils over the past 6-7 years, I’d prefer the Devils emulate the Devils.

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If All You See…

By William Teach January 22, 2015 – 1:00 pm

…is a horrible resource sucking dog, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is The Daley Gator, with a post on an interesting SOTU fact.

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Phew: Pharrell Williams Is Super Concerned Over Hotcoldwetdry, Happy About Gore’s Planned Concerts

By William Teach January 22, 2015 – 10:47 am

Thank goodness Happy singer Pharrell Williams decided to stay home and make his presentation via the Internet…oh, wait

Pharrell Williams wants everyone to pay attention to climate change

Global warming, with its slow pace of destruction, arcane scientific explanations, and complex policymaking, isn’t the sexiest subject for pop culture to take on. Pharrell Williams, who brought us the catchiest, and possibly most overplayed song of this generation—Happy—wants to change that.

Speaking from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Williams, along with former vice-president-turned-environmental-activist Al Gore, unveiled plans to stage Live Earth, a huge, global event to raise awareness about the devastating effects of climate change. The concert, which the duo hope will be the biggest of its kind in history, will be held on six continents on June 18 and feature 100 artists. They say it will reach an audience of 2 billion via 193 broadcasters.

I wonder if he flew commercial, or was one of those who took a fossil fueled private jet?

As for Gore’s Live Earth, remember when he last tried that, and was blasted, even by some performers, for the hypocrisy of the massive energy sucking performances, which also required vast amounts of fossil fuels to get the performers to the concerts, as well as the attendees? Of course, and as usual, Warmists say we should ignore the hypocrisy and focus on the message. And what is the message? That Everyone Else should should cut down on their fossil fuels usage, their energy usage, and their carbon footprint. Weird, eh?

I know the theme of hypocrisy can get tedious, as is mentioning yet again that the Warmists are still pushing “spreading awareness” after over 25 years, but, these are important issues that can not be stressed enough to understand the idiocy of the “climate change” movement.

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Justice Dept. Expected To File No Charges Against Police Officer Darren Wilson

By William Teach January 22, 2015 – 8:34 am

Nor should they

(NY Times) Justice Department lawyers will recommend that no civil rights charges be brought against the police officer who fatally shot an unarmed teenager in Ferguson, Mo., after an F.B.I. investigation found no evidence to support charges, law enforcement officials said Wednesday.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. and his civil rights chief, Vanita Gupta, will have the final say on whether the Justice Department will close the case against the officer, Darren Wilson. But it would be unusual for them to overrule the prosecutors on the case, who are still working on a legal memo explaining their recommendation.

I love the way the Associate Press puts this

(WRAL) Wilson, who shot Brown after a scuffle in the middle of a street, told the St. Louis County grand jury that spent months reviewing the case that he feared for his life during the confrontation and that Brown struck him in the face and reached for his gun. Some witnesses have said Brown had his hands up when Wilson shot him.

A “scuffle”? There was no scuffle. It’s a strange way to term what they go on to write, namely that Michael Brown was a violent criminal, who had just strong arm stolen cigars, attacked a police officer in his car, attempted to take his service weapon, ran away when the weapon was discharged, then turned around, taunted the officer, failed to follow the officer’s directions, then charged him, and was shot dead.

Anyhow, back to the NY Times

But a broader Justice Department civil rights investigation into allegations of discriminatory traffic stops and excessive force by the Ferguson Police Department remains open. That investigation could lead to significant changes at the department, which is overwhelmingly white despite serving a city that is mostly black.

It’s strange that an area that is full of Democrat voters who vote almost solely for Democrats (St. Louis city went almost 83% for Obama in 2012 and voted for Democrat Lacy Clay 73% in 2014) has so many violence and civil rights issues, eh? Of course, this is forgotten by Liberal nuts, such as ultra white Melissa McEwan at Shakesville

Black lives matter. Black lives have to matter to people in positions of power, to people empowered with making decisions about which lives matter under the law.

Of course, there are pesky laws about not stealing, don’t walk in the middle of the street, do not attack police officers in their cars and try and take their weapons, follow commands, and don’t charge them.

The commenters at Daily Kos are going full force barking moonbat. Yet, interestingly, few, if any, of them would willingly live in a place like Ferguson, a rathole of liberal creation. An will all be Very Upset if they are the victim of a crime and a police officer doesn’t appear within seconds of calling.

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