If All You See…

By William Teach January 10, 2014 – 1:00 pm

…is horrible CO2 infused beer, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is The Lonely Conservative, with a post noting that if you don’t want to see Lena Dunham naked, you’re a misogynist or something. Something.

Read: If All You See… »

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Humana: Yeah, The Enrollment Mix Is Worse Than Though

By William Teach January 10, 2014 – 12:01 pm

Surprise!

(Reuters)  Health insurer Humana Inc said on Thursday that it projected its enrollment mix in private plans through the exchanges created by President Barack Obama’s healthcare law will be, “more adverse than previously expected.”

Humana attributed the enrollment trend to regulatory changes allowing people to remain in previously existing plans not sold on the exchanges. Obama proposed allowing insurers to keep selling plans that did not comply with the Affordable Care Act after political fallout that he was not keeping his promise that people can keep insurance plans if they like them.

In other words, people weren’t forced to give up the plans they liked (remember, this is only for one year), as Obama promised ad nauseum, and forced into the more expensive Exchange plans. Which is certainly only one of the reasons why there is a poor mix of healthies to sicks. Ezra Klein interviews Robert Laszewski, president of Health Policy and Strategy Associates

The other challenge now is getting people to pay for coverage. I was surprised today calling around to people to find only about 50 percent have paid. That’s not a reason to panic yet. The due dates for payment have been sliding all around, so people can be confused. But it can be a mess. Some insurers are doing autocalls like politicians do the night before the election asking people to pay.

We can speculate on the reasons for low payment rates, but, suffice to say, that’s a big number. On the mix of healthies and sicks

RL: It’s not positive. I don’t want to say people have given up on the notion they’ll get a good mix. They know the administration will make a big push. The insurance companies will spend big on advertising and outreach. So no one has given up. But it doesn’t look good right now.

There’s a big misconception that this is about young people. That’s baloney. It’s about healthy people. A healthy 20-year-old might only pay a $100 premium. You want healthy 40 and 50-year-olds. The big problem right now is really total enrollment. We only have about 10 percent of the uninsured in here. Insurers think you need more like 70 percent of a pool of people to sign up.

Good point. It’s not just the young, but all healthies. Without a good mix, death spiral.

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San Fransciso Warmists Want Warming Labels On Gas Pumps

By William Teach January 10, 2014 – 9:43 am

Yes, I did intentionally type “warming”, not “warning”

(San Fran Chronicle) Buy a pack of cigarettes, and a printed warning from the surgeon general will remind you that smoking causes cancer.

Obviously, you’ve chosen to smoke anyway. But perhaps one day you’ll look at that message, printed on the pack, and resolve to change your ways.

Now, apply that idea to global warming.

A group of Bay Area environmentalists wants to slap warning stickers on gasoline pumps, telling drivers that the fuel they’re buying is cooking the planet. The stickers would constantly remind consumers of the link between driving and climate change.

“Human beings are not really wired for seeing the cause and effect of climate change,” said Jamie Brooks, with the Bay Area chapter of 350.org. “The cause is burning fossil fuels, but we’re not going to feel the effects until well into the future. There’s no immediate signal to a consumer of gasoline to show their effects on climate.”

This is supposedly being pushed by the Bay Area chapter of the unhinged 350.org, without input or guidance from the international wackadoodles.

The global warming stickers, Brooks said, could be a relatively easy way to prod drivers to use less gasoline, perhaps by buying a car that uses fuel more efficiently or runs on electricity.

“The goal isn’t to take transportation away from people and say, ‘You’re a bad person,’” Brooks said. “The goal is to create a signal saying, ‘You need to change your behavior.’”

Wait, wait, they’re saying fossil fuels are evil and causing the climate to boil (and freeze, rain, snow, ice, drought, you name it) but aren’t recommending that people stop using them? Seems rather hypocritical, wouldn’t you say?

My favorite comment from the story by normkat

Well, duhhhhh.. just slap a warning sticker on a baby’s behind at birth too, why don’tcha?

they exhale CO2, yaknow.. maybe that’s why so many libs support abortion, to prevent climate change.

Warmists want the warning stickers to spread awareness, but they won’t push for ending the use of fossil fuels, because they themselves mostly refuse to dive them up.

Read: San Fransciso Warmists Want Warming Labels On Gas Pumps »

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Is The Washington Post Suggesting Christie’s Firing Of Key Advisors Was A Bad Thing?

By William Teach January 10, 2014 – 9:21 am

Here’s the headline of the article

Firing of Stepien deprives Christie of a key counselor

Like many of you, I’ve watched and been involved in politics for a long time. I’ve watched the media let their biases loose. It’s hard to pinpoint the exact time. Some say it was when Walter Cronkite declared the Vietnam War “unwinnable”. Some say during the Reagan years. There was definitely a huge turn during the Clinton/Lewinsky affair, which carried through the Bush years, and has continued to get worse during the Obama years, as most in the media are simply lapdogs. In the headline and the story, it almost appears as if the WP writers, Matea Gold and Robert Costa, are making a case that firing top aides and people in an administration is a Bad Idea, because …..drum roll…. Obama has not fired anyone over his scandals, which are considerably worse than “Bridgegate”.

The removal of Stepien, in particular, stunned some New Jersey political insiders, who said the strategist has provided important counsel to Christie on both politics and policy. (snip)

“Bill Stepien was more than just another adviser,” Kean said. “He was the key person who carried out what the governor wanted. He spoke with Christie’s authority, and anyone who has dealt with him knows that.”

There’s certainly some writing that adds context to the firings and Christie’s mental makeup, and might slightly contradict my theory that the article is meant to protect Obama

Christie’s abrupt dismissal of top aides was praised Wednesday by some Republicans, who said his decisiveness stood in contrast to President Obama’s handling of controversies such as the botched rollout of his health-care Web site and the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of nonprofit groups for extra scrutiny.

“This will be, at the end of the day, a political benefit to Chris Christie,” said GOP strategist Steve Schmidt. “This sends a very clear signal: If you screw up, you violate the public trust, there’s not going to be an exercise in wagon-circling — there’s going to be an exercise in accountability.”

Noticed these quotes are from Republicans, not Democrats. The Democrats quoted in the article talk about Christie as being vindictive and a bully, and creating an atmosphere of the same, where there is also a fear of retaliation.

Later in the article we are treated to the notion that Stepien was really, really knowledgeable of national politics, was an insider, had lots of experience, had connections, so this was a Big Loss. I still maintain this is more about protecting Obama and how no one has been fired, and not even really punished in any way, over all his scandals. Let’s look at those scandals (White House Dossier has a nice list and explanation)

  • IRS targets Obama enemies/Conservative groups
  • Benghazi, which is actually 3 scandals in 1
  • Spying on the Associated Press
  • Spying on James Rosen, his family, then simply dropping the charges
  • Eric Holder perjury to Congress at least twice
  • Fast and Furious – let’s not forget, at least 2 US federal agents have been killed, along with hundreds of Mexican citizens, plus the Mexicans wounded
  • Sebelius violates the Hatch Act
  • Holder’s refusal to prosecute the New Black Panthers
  • Possible violations of the Constitution

The list goes on and on. Until the media gives a damn about these issues, which go beyond the typical dirty tricks in politics, which is what “Bridgegate” was (remember, this was New Jersey), I don’t care what happened.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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Liberals Upset Over Virginia Bill Which Would Teach Alternatives To Climate Change And Evolution

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 4:10 pm

Really upset

(Think Progress) A new bill, up for consideration this year in the Virginia General Assembly, would give Virginia’s public school teachers permission to teach about the “scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses” of “scientific theories” like evolution and global climate change. The bill is part of a national trend of legislative proposals, led by creationist organizations like the Discovery Institute and climate-change deniers such as the Heartland Institute.

Virginia State Delegate Richard “Dickie” Bell (R) pre-filed House Bill 207 over the holidays for consideration by the House of Delegates when it reconvenes this week. His proposal would require Virginia elementary and secondary schools to teach about “scientific controversies” in science classes. It would require:

The Board [of Education] and each local school board, division superintendent, and school board employee shall create an environment in public elementary and secondary schools that encourages students to explore scientific questions, learn about scientific evidence, develop critical thinking skills, and respond appropriately and respectfully to differences of opinion about scientific controversies in science classes..

My goodness, how awful to expose children to alternate points of view to make them think, to provide them with knowledge rather than indoctrination. If “climate change” and evolution are true, then they should be able to stand on their own.

More significantly, it creates a right for teachers to teach kids to be skeptical of “scientific theories” — even when overwhelming scientific consensus exists:

My goodness, isn’t that what science is all about, being skeptical? It’s surely not about consensus, which is not science.

Read: Liberals Upset Over Virginia Bill Which Would Teach Alternatives To Climate Change And Evolution »

Posted in Collapsing Science, Global Warming | 19 Comments | Trackback URL

If All You See…

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 1:00 pm

…is Bad Weather that occurred unexpectedly (and horrible duck lips), you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is Victory Girls Blog, with a post stating that Joe Biden is not a statesman.

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Now White House Blames Polar Vortex On Climate Change

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 12:00 pm

(Fox News) The Obama administration is pushing back against skeptics who claim this week’s “polar vortex” of cold weather is proof global warming is a myth, saying weather patterns such as these are actually a result of climate change.

In a post on the official White House blog Wednesday, the administration starts by saying no single weather event proves or disproves climate change.

“If you’ve been hearing that extreme cold spells, like the one we’re having in the United States now, disproves global warming, don’t believe it,” Dr. John Holdren, President Obama’s science adviser, says in a video included in the blog post.

However, the White House says extreme cold spells can actually be attributed to global warming, and that such weather patterns will likely appear with more frequency as climate change continues.

“…This week’s cold spell is of a type there’s reason to believe may become more frequent in a world that’s getting warmer, on average, because of greenhouse-gas pollution,” the blog states.

This is the same Holdren who was a disciple of Paul Ehrlich and his “population bomb” idiocy, and still wants population control.

Then there’s this guy, who takes lots of fossil fueled flights across the country

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) delivered a fiery speech Wednesday urging action to combat global warming and blasting Republicans for their climate change denial.

DeFazio accused Republicans and conservative media figures of mistaking the polar vortex currently chilling much of America for proof that global warming is not occurring.

Here’s a fun thing to do: ask Warmists what conditions disprove their little hypothesis of man-induced global warming/climate change. What weather events are not consistent with their hypothesis. Because, really, they have created a non-falsifiable hypothesis. Everything proves “climate change”, therefore it is not science, but politics.

The only people who are idiots are those blaming massive cold snaps on greenhouse gases.

Oh, and ask them when they’ll give up their own fossil fuels usage.

Read: Now White House Blames Polar Vortex On Climate Change »

Posted in AGW Idiocy, Democrats, Global Warming, New Climate Deniers, Unhinged Tools | 4 Comments | Trackback URL

Happy 3,000th Day Since The Last Major Hurricane!

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 8:03 am

It’s party time! A big milestone has been hit, it has been 3000 days, including today, since the last major hurricane made landfall on the United States! We go all the way back to October 24, 2005, when Hurricane Wilma made landfall in Cape Romero, Florida as a category 3 hurricane, with wind speeds of 120mph.

We haven’t quite hit the longest period on record, which stretched 3,316 days, from August 11, 1860 to September 8, 1869. But we’re closing in! Set your calendar for November 22nd, 2014. Till, then, let’s dance!

Read: Happy 3,000th Day Since The Last Major Hurricane! »

Posted in Collapsing Science, Global Warming | 8 Comments | Trackback URL

Conservative Group Tells Obama Comprehensive Immigration Bill Is An “Awful Idea”

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 7:07 am

The schizophrenic president, who bounces from subject to subject as of The Utmost Importance daily, is making a push to get the Senate’s comprehensive immigration reform, ie, a giant bill which most haven’t read and don’t understand and will make all sorts of unexpected changes, passed

(Fox News) A group of House Republicans is rejecting President Obama’s call for members to pass comprehensive immigration reform.

In a letter to the White House, the group calls the legislation, already passed by the Senate, an “awful deal” for American workers and questions how Obama could champion higher wages for them while backing a law that allows millions of low-skilled workers into the U.S. labor force.

“We write to you today on behalf of the 21 million Americans who can’t find a full-time job,” writes Alabama GOP Rep. Mo Brooks and 15 other largely conservative House members. “Comprehensive immigration reform may be a good deal for big businesses that want to reduce labor costs. And it may be a good deal for progressive labor unions seeking new workers from abroad. But it’s an awful deal for U.S. workers.”

There does need to be immigration reform, there is no doubt about that. It needs to start with reform the legal immigration system, in part finding ways to make sure that people do not end up as illegals. Approximately 35-40% of the illegals in the US are people who came to the US legally and overstayed their visas. Then we can provide carrots and sticks, mostly sticks, for all illegals. We should not be rewarding them for Bad Behavior. Otherwise, let’s just throw the rule of law out the window and we can make the system about feelings.

The letter to Obama argues “the White House has entertained a parade of high-powered business executives to discuss immigration policy, all while shutting out the concerns of everyday wage-earners who overwhelmingly oppose these measures.”

“Job number one for Congress should be to reduce the unemployment rolls, get families and communities out of poverty and government dependency, rebuild our deteriorating communities and collapsing middle class, and increase wages for American citizens,” the letter concludes. “Your immigration proposals do the exact opposite on every count.”

But the immigration reform is more about politics, and getting Hispanics to vote Democrat, and, yes, legalizing the illegals on a fast track and getting them the ability to vote. Along with some other notions, like firing up the unhinged liberal base and getting more people on the federal dole.

Read: Conservative Group Tells Obama Comprehensive Immigration Bill Is An “Awful Idea” »

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Unshockingly, Democrats Blame Big Business For Obamacare Rollout

By William Teach January 9, 2014 – 6:50 am

I’d like to say this is a 100% idiotic attempt to deflect blame, but there are enough business haters out there for it to partly work

(Politico) Democrats taking heat back home for Obamacare’s rocky online rollout say don’t blame them — blame Big Business.

Facing an onslaught of constituent frustration over problems with online exchanges, several Democrats have started pointing fingers at the companies and senior executives in their home states that have contracts to get the health care websites up and running.

Democrats have made a version of the argument in Washington in recent months, defending the health care law not only from Republican attacks that it’s a failure — but from the line that government itself can’t do big things.

Now that rhetoric — blame the contractors — is hitting local events.

One of the instances mentioned is Sen. Jeff Merkley blaming Oracle for the Cover Oregon debacle, and even went as far as singling out Oracles president Safra Catz (hey, that sounds a bit like a war on women /sic).

In North Carolina, Hagan, who faces one of the Senate’s toughest reelection races, has asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate the HealthCare.gov rollout, with several pointed questions for the contractors’ roles.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said Wednesday that she is considering suing CGI over its work on the state’s exchange. Gov. Deval Patrick wouldn’t say whether he wants to sue but made it clear that he’s upset with the company.

There’s no doubt many of the contractors did a piss poor job, especially CGI. Let’s not forget, though, that many were picked in no-bid contracts, including CGI, and CGI already had a history of poor results, and that’s being charitable.

However, who was responsible for making sure the work was done? There’s a saying in business “inspect what you expect”. This doesn’t mean micromanage, it means check in now and then to make sure the work is proceeding. If you assign a task to your underling and never bother to make sure it’s being done, and done correctly, and it’s a mess, who gets blamed? You do. Your boss will hold you responsible. In the same way, it is still the fault of the government, particularly HHS, HHS head Kathleen Sebelius, and President Obama. And every Democrat who supports this law, especially those who voted for the mess.

PS: On that note, I could care less about the Chris Christie “lane closure” issue. Until Team Obama is held responsible for all their messes, such as IRS targeting, Benghazi, Fast and Furious, Obamacare, and so much more, I don’t care. I do predict, and it is an easy prediction, that the media will go all Abu Ghraid on Christie, breathless reports daily, unlike with Obama, or had Christie been a Democrat.

Crossed at Right Wing News.

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