The Debt Deal 2011

Majority Leader Reid has turned into Dark Helmet from Spaceballs.

Notice the similarities:

Spaceballs, Now



Thanks to Senator McConnell and Speaker Boehner for going around Senator Reid's intransigence, a deal was made.   Ask yourself this, what does Senator Reid get for holding up the deals?

The House passed three (THREE!) Bills to move the debt Debate forward -- all majority leader Reid had to do was go to Conference Committee and work out the differences.  It is done on Bills all the time between the House and the Senate.  All the time.

Now, let's see what Speaker Boehner is said is within the Debt Deal (all Power Point is from the Speaker's website):



I hope you read the link before you go on........




Now this whole Debt Ceiling debate could have been avoided if the Democrats when they held the majority from 06 - 10 (and currently in the Senate from 06 - present) would be to PASS THE EFFIN APPROPRIATION BILLS!!!!!  

Apparently, if you vote for Democrats, they refuse to do the basic job of passing a budget.  Keep that in mind next Election Day.  If Democrats cannot pass a budget, what are they doing in Congress? Figuring out String Theory? 

I'm happy that the 14th Amendment Ruse did not occur (to be discussed on another Blog post); I'm even happier that Congress created a Joint Committee to discuss budget cutting -- it falls under their jurisdiction.   But, why, why why, has Majority Leader Reid refused to pass a budget in the Senate for 1,000 days?  

Maybe Senator Reid is truly, Dark Helmet.

Spaceballs, Dark Helmet Enters


My question: Why don't Democrats pass Appropriation Bills anymore?

Doctor Who -- The Ribos Operation

It's Saturday night and it's all right!  Time for another Doctor Who night.

While the debt ceiling debate in on hold (even though Speaker Boehner passed 3 bills, Senator Reid refuses to go to Conference Committee -- guess what: It ain't the GOP's fault if Reid won't go to Conference.  More on this on Sunday or Monday), I'm going Gothing tonight at Resurrection.  Fitting title.

After the debt debate is over, I will return to the Long GOP Majority series.  Here's a hint: the old paradigm  from 1930 -1994 is long gone.

On Wednesday, I thought I would have no way to work at the California Republican Party; On Thursday, another door opened.  I will give more details as it gets closer. And finally, this week, I shall finish up the Malibu Fundraiser idea.

Now, let's join the Doctor and the Ribos Operation.  This is a first in a six part series as the Doctor (and Time Lord Romana) search for the Key to Time.

Confused? Don't be!

Watch the Ribos Operation and enjoy!  (Also note how Garron is like Harry Mudd of Star Trek)

Powered by Dailymotion

You're Doing It Wrong! 1: Capitol Hill

This is a series of posts that will pop up through the Valley.

Sometimes the answer is the simplest thing.

For instance, Conservatives, Republicans and tea partiers are arguing "No new taxes," for anyone.

I say, "You're doing it wrong!"

The power lies within the House Ways and Means Committee and following the basic rule of Politics, as quoted by the original Conan:




Conan: To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women!

I endorse two thirds of that quote, stopping at "and to..."

Now the workable parts of that quote go back to the House Ways and Means Committee and the Republican majority.  

Without sites like "Big Hollywood,"  or Media Research Center, we who tally in the American Polity under the Conservative, Republican or tea party banner would not know the hate that comes from the Industries (TV, Movies and Music) in my hometown of the City of Angels.

Here's how to do it Right:

It seem the TV and Movie Industry always attacks the GOP, candidates or President on TV and the Movies a lot.  

It seems that whenever a GOP candidate wants to play a song, multi-million dollar musicians always make a fuss.  

Democrats and their allies in Hollywood want higher taxes?

Give it to them! 

Bur also offer a series of tax breaks for millionaires within the industry.  However, it will either go to TV/Movies or Music.  And the only folks who can lobby for those tax breaks are the artists themselves.  

The winners will receive multi-year tax breaks within their industry (TV/movies or Music) while the loser will be taxed triple (or more).   However, this tax hike is for established multi-million dollar artists only.  All up and comers and below the lines all keep their tax breaks.

If the US becomes less of a tax haven for artist types, maybe they will re-think their opposition to one half of the political population.

To win, tax our foes not our friends. 

My question: How would you do it?

The American Polity and Technological Singularity 2: Uploaded Minds

This is part two of a three part series of how American Politics can work with the Technological Singularity.

Part One was about AI's or Artificial Intelligences

This part is what happens to all the Uploaded minds.

And what is the Technological Singularity?

"The Singularity is the technological creation of smarter-than-human intelligence. There are several technologies that are often mentioned as heading in this direction. The most commonly mentioned is probably Artificial Intelligence, but there are others: direct brain-computer interfaces, biological augmentation of the brain, genetic engineering, ultra-high-resolution scans of the brain followed by computer emulation. Some of these technologies seem likely to arrive much earlier than the others, but there are nonetheless several independent technologies all heading in the direction of the Singularity – several different technologies which, if they reached a threshold level of sophistication, would enable the creation of smarter-than-human intelligence.
....

"Human intelligence is the foundation of human technology; all technology is ultimately the product of intelligence. If technology can turn around and enhance intelligence, this closes the loop, creating a positive feedback effect. Smarter minds will be more effective at building still smarter minds. This loop appears most clearly in the example of an Artificial Intelligence improving its own source code, but it would also arise, albeit initially on a slower timescale, from humans with direct brain-computer interfaces creating the next generation of brain-computer interfaces, or biologically augmented humans working on an Artificial Intelligence project.

"Some of the stronger Singularity technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence and brain-computer interfaces, offer the possibility of faster intelligence as well as smarter intelligence. Ultimately, speeding up intelligence is probably comparatively unimportant next to creating better intelligence; nonetheless the potential differences in speed are worth mentioning because they are so huge. Human neurons operate by sending electrochemical signals that propagate at a top speed of 150 meters per second along the fastest neurons. By comparison, the speed of light is 300,000,000 meters per second, two million times greater. Similarly, most human neurons can spike a maximum of 200 times per second; even this may overstate the information-processing capability of neurons, since most modern theories of neural information-processing call for information to be carried by the frequency of the spike train rather than individual signals. By comparison, speeds in modern computer chips are currently at around 2GHz – a ten millionfold difference – and still increasing exponentially. At the very least it should be physically possible to achieve a million-to-one speedup in thinking, at which rate a subjective year would pass in 31 physical seconds. At this rate the entire subjective timespan from Socrates in ancient Greece to modern-day humanity would pass in under twenty-two hours."  

After the AI's are created comes the Uploaded minds.  But who Governs those minds? And where does the American Polity fit in such a Brave New World?

The best movie examples of Uploaded minds comes from a few places.

Let's start with the most well known; A small independent picture called The Matrix:


The Matrix "Desert of the Real,"


eXistenZ, "Victory of the Real,"



The 13th Floor, Trailer



In the movies, it seems the protagonist must fight to figure out what is real? and what is not real? 

In the Charles Stross book, Accelerando, the minds uploaded are real while the flesh bodies go the way of the Dodo.  Throughout the book (and its sequel, Glasshouse), each place where the minds are uploaded have its own type of rulers.

Before the creation of the Polities of the Mind, first the AI's must be birthed.

However, how can someone bring the US Constitution and American Government where realities very existence can be questioned?

Simple. 

Going in a Polity of the Mind should be like buying a car.  Kick the tires, see if the world that exists has some basic Bill of Rights for Humanity and Uber-Humanity; Voting Rights, Census counts and Representation in the Real world and the "real," world. 

Can you imagine Uploading your mind into a Dictatorship? That would be a virtual hell.  (Hence, why this writer supports Wilsonianism in the Real world).  If there are laws governing the Polities (before they are created), then the AI's will interact with humans content to exist beyond the flesh.

However, the laws must be created as the technology advances.  Because, without it, we will all remain slaves to the slave drives.  

And what do Conservative, Republicans and tea partiers believe in? That the individual can exist within the (American) polity to grow and thrive.  If the Polity of the Real goes under the jurisdiction of Democrats, then those minds in the machine will be slaves to the State.  

The final part will be in August.  That piece will show how the American polity slouches slowly towards the Singularity.

My question: Could you imagine living within a Polity of the Mind? How do you imagine its Governance?

It's not 11 Dimensional Chess -- It's Fizzbin!

First let's hear both speeches.

This is President Obama (transcript):



And now, Speaker Boehner (Transcript):



Now, what does this mean?

It is all about Republican House is cleaning up the mess of the previous Democratic Congress'.

To forestall a debt ceiling debate, the Congress needed to pass Appropriations Bills, not Continuing Resolutions 
FY2007 (Dem Congress)
FY2008  (Dem  Congress)
FY2009  (Dem Congress + White House)
FY2010 (Dem Congress + White House)
FY2011 (Dem Congress + White House)
FY2012 (Rep House + Dem Senate + White House) 

And here is what Senator Obama (D-IL) said about raising the debt limit in March 2006:

"Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I rise today to talk about America's debt problem. 

"The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. Government can't pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government's reckless fiscal policies.

"Over the past 5 years, our federal debt has increased by $3.5 trillion to $8.6 trillion. That is ``trillion'' with a ``T.'' That is money that we have borrowed from the Social Security trust fund, borrowed from China and Japan, borrowed from American taxpayers. And over the next 5 years, between now and 2011, the President's budget will increase the debt by almost another $3.5 trillion.

"Numbers that large are sometimes hard to understand. Some people may wonder why they matter. Here is why: This year, the Federal Government will spend $220 billion on interest. That is more money to pay interest on our national debt than we'll spend on Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. 

"That is more money to pay interest on our debt this year than we will spend on education, homeland security, transportation, and veterans benefits combined. It is more money in one year than we are likely to spend to rebuild the devastated gulf coast in a way that honors the best of America.

"And the cost of our debt is one of the fastest growing expenses in the Federal budget. This rising debt is a hidden domestic enemy, robbing our cities and States of critical investments in infrastructure like bridges, ports, and levees; robbing our families and our children of critical investments in education and health care reform; robbing our seniors of the retirement and health security they have counted on.

"Every dollar we pay in interest is a dollar that is not going to investment in America's priorities. Instead, interest payments are a significant tax on all Americans--a debt tax that Washington doesn't want to talk about. If Washington were serious about honest tax relief in this country, we would see an effort to reduce our national debt by returning to responsible fiscal policies.

"But we are not doing that. Despite repeated efforts by Senators CONRAD and FEINGOLD, the Senate continues to reject a return to the commonsense Pay-go rules that used to apply. Previously, Pay-go rules applied both to increases in mandatory spending and to tax cuts. The Senate had to abide by the commonsense budgeting principle of balancing expenses and revenues. Unfortunately, the principle was abandoned, and now the demands of budget discipline apply only to spending.

"As a result, tax breaks have not been paid for by reductions in Federal spending, and thus the only way to pay for them has been to increase our deficit to historically high levels and borrow more and more money. Now we have to pay for those tax breaks plus the cost of borrowing for them. Instead of reducing the deficit, as some people claimed, the fiscal policies of this administration and its allies in Congress will add more than $600 million in debt for each of the next 5 years. That is why I will once again cosponsor the Pay-go amendment and continue to hope that my colleagues will return to a smart rule that has worked in the past and can work again.

"Our debt also matters internationally. My friend, the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, likes to remind us that it took 42 Presidents 224 years to run up only $1 trillion of foreign-held debt . This administration did more than that in just 5 years. Now, there is nothing wrong with borrowing from foreign countries. But we must remember that the more we depend on foreign nations to lend us money, the more our economic security is tied to the whims of foreign leaders whose interests might not be aligned with ours.

"Increasing America's debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that ``the buck stops here.'' Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better.

  

"I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt limit ".  

-- Senator Obama (D-IL, March 16, 2006, FY2007)

So, was he lying then or is he lying now?

From many President Obama boosters, I keep hearing how he is playing "11 Dimensional Chess," which is a drugged out version of 3 Dimensional chess played on the USS Enterprise by Captain Kirk and Mr Spock:

Kirk and Spock playing Three (3) Dimensional Chess

Wrong!

Speaker Boehner and the tea party have already laid their cards upon the table.  The Republicans want lower taxes and less debt.  The tea party groups all wanted less Government intervention.  Just like Senator Obama in 2006!

It seems while the Republicans are playing (one level) Chess, President Obama is playing Fizzbin.

Fizzbin?  What is Fizzbin?!

In the episode where the Enterprise crew is on Sigma Iota II [on an episode called "A Piece of the Action,"], a world based on Chicago mobsters (my, my, they did predict the future), Kirk tried to fool his captors with a made up card game.  Here is Kirk:



The House passed "Cut Cap and Balance," as a way of fixing the debt crisis.  The Senate has yet to go to Conference with the House bill.  Instead of asking Speaker Boehner, President Obama should ask where Senate Leader Reid has been!

If President Obama supports higher taxes and more spending, tell the public exact places this should be.  He doesn't have to ask anything of the GOP or tea partiers, he needs to find his missing Senate Majority Leader. 

Senator Reid is probably playing Fizzbin too, somewhere in the Capitol.

And as far as 11 dimensional chess? If the public was behind President Obama, he would not be raising funds for 2012 NOW. The public supports a leader, President Obama is not leading.

My question: Where is Senator Reid (D-NV)? And what taxes and spending does President Obama want?

Doctor Who -- The Invasion of Time

Now that I am resetting myself for the fall (and the 2012 elections), it's time for a weekend shot of Doctor Who!

This episode is called the Invasion of Time.  It mixes Time Lords, Politics and Sontarans.  

In other news, I am back to writing.  The words are flowing.

For now, I just have to email some people.  When I work on my laptop this week, I shall be setting up the Malibu Fundraiser.  More news as we get closer.

Until then, enjoy Invasion of Time!

Powered by Dailymotion

Politicizing the Newly Dead -- Stop it!

I will discuss the Oslo massacre after Monday. This post is about a dark trend that should end.

Time: Tomorrow or any day until 2012.

The Setting: An attack on innocents by a crazy person.

Do you know what comes next?

Usually an immediate attack on the Right by the Left drooling over a way to prove another form of the "Tarkin Doctrine,"  Michelle Malkin has seen the script and knows it, just like I do. And now, Ms Malkin:


"In the muddled liberal mind, there is no difference between how Democrats behaved during and after the Arizona/Giffords shooting (and umpteenth other cases to be noted in a moment) versus how bloggers covered breaking news of the Norway massacre.

"Let me patiently explain.

"In the Giffords shooting, the Binghamton NY immigration cemter shooting, the Kentucky Census worker death/insurance hoax, Amy Bishop campus shooting spree, and Rep. Russ Carnahan bombing, and Faisal Shahzad Times Square bombing attempt (Follow this LINK), among others liberal politicians and activists specifically libeled individual talk show hosts, Fox News, bloggers, and Tea Party activists as murderers. They went after the peaceful political free speech of their enemies and criminalized their policy positions without an iota of proof that such speech had any influence or impact on the real perpetrators of the crime. Even after the suspects were shown to have psychiatric problems, undecipherable political views, or views anathema to the conservative public officials and public figures bearing undue blame, leftist exploiters clung to their tar brushes.


"In the Norway massacre, I illuminated explicit death threats and plots by specific jihadi individuals and organizations. It is the Left’s position that these explicitly homicidal signs and realities should be ignored in the immediate aftermath of a terror spree, but that every bullseye image and innocuous reference to “sticking to your guns” is an incitement to murder.


"As always, moments like these are truly clarifying." 
 
I deal with Mental health issues daily (and have even lived through State Government indifference to it -- so much for that meme) and there are different levels of madness in the world.  When an individual picks up a weapon to shoot a modern political figure, there is no rhyme or reason behind it. 

NONE.  

When President Bush fils was dealing with Iraq and Afghanistan, there was a contingent of the Left (Some of whom reside at both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue) that never gave the former Presidenr any support.  Either 9/11 never really happened (Hello KPFK!) or "The War on Terror," was not real (Hello war protesters!) or Bush fils was taking away everyones rights so support the attacks on him rather then support Wilsonianism overseas (Hello Glenn Greenwald!).

Anger is like a demon called up; Even after the Left won a large majority in Congress and the White House, they were still angry, still ready to find an Emmanuel Goldstein. 

I say, "Enough," 

Heck, I'm still waiting for those who chastised Bush fils for something to hold President Obama to the same measure.  Not happening, so I tend not believe almost any Democratic partisan.

Here is my rule for us Bloggers, politicos and Partisans:

When any crazy person shoots up a political crowd, everyone waits until the bodies are in the ground before making accusations.  Period.  

Certain levels of crazy cannot be debated, talked to or converted.  (And the left perfecting the meme that the Right is "acting," crazy is not helping Political discourse or anyone dealing with REAL Mental health issues. Thank you Steve Benen.)  How about we make sure Politicians and partisans are protected whatever views they espouse? 

I can live with that, can you?

Death of a Chanteuse

I woke up this morning to find that Amy Winehouse had died. 

Her music harkened back to the Blues and jazz of an earlier era. 

But her most famous song, Rehab, dealt with her own demons.

Amy Winehouse, Rehab



It's sad that musicians who can bring back the blues have their own demons. 

When Guns N'Roses did Patience, I thought they could have lasted forever as a Blues band.  It was not to be.

G-dspeed Amy Winehouse. 

And if you (or your friend) are dealing with someone who is abusing drugs, have them (or yourself) connect with a local Drug Rehab. 

Fixing Modern Journalism in a Few Easy Steps

First off: I will damn Rupert Murdoch if those in the press will damn the New York Times for the multiple attacks of leaks on the last American Administration, 

I expect to hear crickets. 

Now, Modern Journalism (Print and broadcast) seems to be an issue from The Economist to Columbia Journalism Review.  

Stop the presses! Stop the presses! 

I have the answer.  I studied Journalism back in school and also a little at UCLA, and as a Blogger and representative from the new media, I can help.  (And as an active partisan, I can see the flaws)

Rule #1:  Fox News viewers feel disrespected by other major newspapers and Broadcast Stations; partisans are always well read on current events -- if you don't make them feel at home on your platform, they will remain with talk radio and Fox News.

Rule #2:  Every reporter should acknowledge their partisanship and stick with their own political tribe.  I literally gag when I read GQ and Esquire magazines -- they know nothing of Conservatives and Republicans.  They should own up to it (and the New York Times should acknowledge it is the in-house paper for Democrats. No endorsing of any Republican since 1956 -- Someone should investigate that). And every magazine and newspaper that wants to interview partisans? Hire Bloggers that know the territory.

Rule #3: If everyone in the Sprawl is thinking and writing the same thing (XXXX Republican is Crazy/Evil is the usual story); Be brave and publish the contrary.  This will never happen, that requires speaking Truth to Power even when Democrats are in the Oval Office.

Rule #4: No matter how much a partisan you and your platform are, be wary of those in power feeding you stories.  Unless of course, every platform acknowledges its Partisanship and allows it for one and all.  I have not seen truth to Power by the press in the Obama Administration. Bo-ring!

Rule #5: CJR should fire Victor Navasky for fundraisng  on Nation Magazine cruises.  And no reporter who is an undeclared partisan should fund raise for any candidate or party.  If a reporter acknowledges their biases, then go ahead. Transparency or nothing.

Rule #6:  Every Republican candidate should be wary of the Modern press.  To them, every democratic nominee is Senator John F. Kennedy and every Republican is Richard Nixon (during Watergate).  Either the media changes or we on the Right must treat the media as another group of Lobbyists. 

And finally,

Rule #7: Members of the Press do not represent the public, their elected officials do.  The media is the Fourth Estate; Respect the public and work with them.  Be Provincial before acting national.  The reporter who treats local Politicos and candidates well will be remembered in the climb up. 

My question: What other rules should the Modern media follow?

The Lonliness of the Long Seeing Politico Goth

[This is a personal post, if you want to know the thinking behind the Blogger, keep reading.  However, this deals with some internal Soul and Heart issues.  Curious? Read on! If you are not interested, read the next post. Thank you for enjoying the Valley -- JSF]

Neil Gaiman's Sandman -- Dream (L) and Death (R) 

If you read the Valley consistently, I'm sure you figured out that I'm a Goth, a Politico and a writer (Topped off with a bit of the genius/madness gene) -- so internal drama is my life.


Lately, in this Summer of Ra (as I jokingly call it), I told my friends that I will be taking a small break from the Goth scene for a month or so.  This post fleshes out that reason.

It has nothing to do with the music or the prices, just some "Internal Drama,"

At my last trip to Ruin, it seemed as if there was a reverse musical chairs that had stopped.  Most people (especially some of the Muses whom I liked) had settled in with partners for the summer.  Others are married or engaged, and as a BIG believer in Karma, I will never break those bonds -- my own honor system forbids it.  As the music ended, I felt on the outs.

This year, I was infatuated with someone I'd call a Chasing Amy situation.  (Think of the Kevin Smith movie.) She has all the qualities I like in a Muse, smart, beautiful and pragmatic about politics.  I don't care about her day job (suffice to say, NSFW here), because I respect her.  I'm a Social Libertarian, as long as everyone is adult and consenting, I don't care (nor should Government).

As long as I'm couch surfing throughout the basin (and waiting to start work at the CRP), it's hard to build anything lasting.  In this Summer of Ra, I cannot go around the basin and interview people for my book until the brakes and a/c are fixed (Hit the Tip jar if you can).  I've already decorated my future apartment, I just need to get the finances for one.  Since I'm somewhat Old fashioned (Goth and Blogger, not so much Old School), I believe in having the job and apartment first before I have the wife and child.  

But I can still look for a short (very short) term relationship or longer, whatever happens.  Life without a Muse makes it hard to write.

As a writer, I believe in putting the words out into the Universe of what I want, and maybe it will come to pass.  Trust me, the work I did on the Southland Fundraiser opened many doors, same rule applies here.

So, what does JSF look for in a Girlfriend and/or Wife?

1)  Smarts -- I cannot date someone who I cannot have a conversation with.

2)  Loves to smile -- Life is a happy journey, we all have our ups and downs, but whereas I remain a cynic, I need a Yin to my Yang.

3) Pragmatic when it comes to Politics and Policy -- Think James Carville and Mary Matalin; They understand how to get votes in the Country (or in my case: Los Angeles and California) and on Capitol Hill.  Idealists scare me.  One issue idealists scare me even more.  A pragmatist would understand "The Great Game," (as I call it) and understand the professionalism behind it.

4) An independent life -- I believe women can do anything or everything (Hence my support of Palin); And I can't stand clinging.  So, if she has her own business' or interests, more power to her!

5) Worldly -- A Muse who understands the world; One can be a Provincial and worldly at the same time.  Think of Return of the Native in Los Angeles (without the sad ending).

6)  An Artist and Lover of Art  -- In the Land of Creatives (and as a Creative myself), I hope to meet someone who can do some type of Art.  Paint, draw, write, sculpt, whatever -- Artists are awesome.  And I enjoy going to museums (and looking for the Eugene Delacroix paintings); It's cooler to have someone to enjoy it with.

7)  A Politico Girl who can Go Goth or a Goth Girl who Be Political -- As the ONLY Californian Conservative Republican, Social Libertarian, Appropriations Policy Understanding, Jewish, Goth Activist (TM), yeah someone who can dance in the dark is a plus.

And the way to a good marriage is to have a good friendship (my parents were married for a long time, I saw the whys and hows they succeeded).

OK, I'm feeling better -- back to the Political world. 

And now some lyrics to one of the songs I dance to, ever looking for a Muse:

I thought that I knew it all
I'd seen all the signs before.
I thought that you were the one
In darkness my heart was won.

You build me up then you knock me down.
You play the fool while I play the clown.
We keep time to the beat of an old slave drum.

You raise my hopes then you raise the odds
You tell me that I dream too much
Now I'm serving time in a domestic graveyard.
I don't believe you anymore ... I don't believe you.

Never let it be said I was untrue
I never found a home inside of you.
Never let it be said I was untrue
I gave you all my time.

Enjoy the song!

Dead can Dance, The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove  

My question: What makes a good relationship?

The Rise of Atlantis, the Closing of the American Frontier

Early 19th Century Los Angeles (i.e. The Western Frontier)

 
Scratch any sci-fi geek and find a person in love with the frontier of Space.

Star Trek Introduction (1966)



Scratch an American and find a person willing to do the unexpected.

Or read this quote by Bismarck:

"There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.”

Last week, the Last Space Shuttle Flight lifted off:

Space Shuttle Atlantis Final take off


After Space Shuttle Atlantis leaves the International Space Station [ISS], there are no plans for America to return. Or go farther out into the black.  

And SETI (Search for Extraterrestial Intelligence)  is shutting down their search as well.

Americans are a forgiving and optimistic bunch, even during the worst of times.  And American leaders are given many archetypes -- the Cowboy (Bush fils, Reagan); the Diplomat (Bush pere, Nixon), and the Intellectual (Obama, Wilson). 

No matter what archetype is in the White House, the dream of the American Frontier must be kept alive or they are voted out of office.  

President Obama was hired to move America to a post-racial place and to fix the economy that fell in 08.  Neither came true; And now the Frontier, the basis for America, is closed. 

Please thank President Obama for shutting that door. 

Space is the final frontier.  So are the oceans.

And the reason why Palin looks good as POTUS is because she came from the American Frontier up north. 

Let's hear what Fredrick Jackson Turner said about the American Frontier at the end of the 19th Century:

"From the time the mountains rose between the pioneer and the seaboard, a new order of Americanism arose. The West and the East began to get out of touch of each other. The settlements from the sea to the mountains kept connection with the rear and had a certain solidarity. But the over-mountain men grew more and more independent. The East took a narrow view of American advance, and nearly lost these men. Kentucky and Tennessee history bears abundant witness to the truth of this statement. The East began to try to hedge and limit westward expansion. Though Webster could declare that there were no Alleghanies in his politics, yet in politics in general they were a very solid factor. 

"The exploitation of the beasts took hunter and trader to the west, the exploitation of the grasses took the rancher west, and the exploitation of the virgin soil of the river valleys and prairies attracted the farmer. Good soils have been the most continuous attraction to the farmer's frontier. The land hunger of the Virginians drew them down the rivers into Carolina, in early colonial days; the search for soils took the Massachusetts men to Pennsylvania and to New York. As the eastern lands were taken up migration flowed across them to the west. Daniel Boone, the great backwoodsman, who combined the occupations of hunter, trader, cattle-raiser, farmer, and surveyor-learning, probably from the traders, of the fertility of the lands of the upper Yadkin, where the traders were wont to rest as they took their way to the Indians, left his Pennsylvania home with his father, and passed down the Great Valley road to that stream. Learning from a trader of the game and rich pastures of Kentucky, he pioneered the way for the farmers to that region. Thence he passed to the frontier of Missouri, where his settlement was long a landmark on the frontier. Here again he helped to open the way for civilization, finding salt licks, and trails, and land. His son was among the earliest trappers in the passes of the Rocky Mountains, and his party are said to have been the first to camp on the present site of Denver. His grandson, Col. A. J. Boone, of Colorado, was a power among the Indians of the Rocky Mountains, and was appointed an agent by the government. Kit Carson's mother was a Boone.35 Thus this family epitomizes the backwoodsman's advance across the continent,"

In the American Frontier, even the lowliest family can rise to strength (Look at Los Angeles, the very edge of the American frontier -- that is why the GOP can win here).  With the closing of the Frontier, only those who had good families who went to good schools will succeed.  

This is not America.

America is the Frontier; Obama closed it, the next American President (probably of the "Cowboy" type) will re-open it again.

My questions: How far does the next American Frontier extend? And who will open it again?

President Obama -- Not a Leader. House Leader Eric Cantor -- A Statesman

There is a saying in Washington, DC:

"The boys and girls in this town want to be something; The Men and Women want to do something,"

President Obama is the former, and House Leader Cantor (and Senate Minority leader McConnell) is the latter.

Look at these debt negotiation in DC (Which even has its own soundtrack)....

A few days ago, President Obama said he would stop funding Social security if the Debt Ceiling was not raised. 

And on the other side of the table, the Congressional Republicans (and Tea Partiers on the Hill and the Hinterlands) will not subscibe to any tax raises.

Why?

Simple history folks.  The last Republican President who reneged on his tax pledge was voted out quickly.  That was President George H.W. Bush.  No Elected Republican wants to go through that again.  We remember.  

(And don't give me that false cry of "You need Moderate Republicans to win," HW and Senator McCain were and the New York Times did not endorse either man.  Thus, that cry is not to be listened to anymore.  Hence, bye-bye Governors Romney and Huntsman).

And now President Obama walked out.

This would not have been a problem if the Democratic Congress' had  actually  passed some Appropriation bills when they ran the place, but nope.

As I asked many times before, what does President Obama stand for? What would he sacrifice his Political capital on?   What would Democrats?  To this day, I still don't know. 

If President Obama was President Reagan, he would call every House and Senate member and see what carrot and sticks could work, but that takes work.

I'm sure President Palin will do the job in 2013.

My question: What does President Obama and the modern Democrats stand for? What would they spend their Political capital on?   

Who to Blame for "Carmageddon," on the 405

The City of Angels is connected by streets and Freeways.

If you want to head into the Valley, take the 101 (or Pasadena, the 134); If you want to head west to east (or vice versa), take the 10. 

And cutting Los Angeles is the 405.  Next to the 405 is Sepulveda Boulevard. 

But next weekend, it doesn't matter what road you take because............................

Carmaggedon is coming! 
Carmaggedon is coming! 
Carmaggedon is Coming! 

And the 10 to Ventura Boulevard will be shut down.

Who can we blame for shutting down the 405?

1)  Los Angeles Mayor and City Council -- They don't care about the general public or local business' -- so if they have to shut off the beaches from the general public (and all the tourists who are based all over town), THEY DON'T CARE.

2) Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce -- They have never stood up to the City Council or Mayor over decisions such as this.

And finally, the true villain of the piece:

Judge Doom, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?


Here is an old map of the Red Line (which I saw at Iliad Bookstore in North Hollywood):

Red Line trolley in Early Los Angeles

I am staying off the roads (and the Westside) next weekend. 

My question: What is the worst LA Traffic have you been in?

Post 800 -- Goth Cheesecake and Tip Jar love

800 posts and Five years ago, I started the Valley.  

In that time I have written a lot of posts and deleted only TWO.  I write what I believe and stand by each word (again, only TWO posts have ever been deleted). 

Since the last Goth Cheesecake + Tip jar post netted a donation or two, here is some more of the same (well almost). Remember folks, I'm trying to get to $300 for this month. 

Please donate here.

And now, the next Gothic Muse, Dita Von Teese!

Dita Von Teese in Inked Magazine

Dita Von Teese in Burlesque

 

Once again, please donate!  

Thank you and keep reading the Valley!

To Craig Huey and the rest of the CA-36 Crew: Don't forget what Han Solo said!

This past weekend, I finally met Craig Huey and I was very impressed with him.   He will make a good Congressman for the South Bay region.

Now, while there is great news that Councilwoman Hahn (sister to losing Mayor James Hahn) has a lack of funds and is caught with giving funds to Gang leaders, let's not forget a few things:





1) RPLAC has arranged a walk and call for this weekend for Mr. Huey, show up and be counted.

2)  Just because Councilwoman Hahn is down, remember the words from Han Solo:




Kudos to Film Ladd and the Other McCain for following up on this.

One more weekend to go!

And on a side note, I will be giving a speech to the Westside Republicans (and possibly the SFVRC) this fall.  The Huey race will help determine my speech. 

The Punk Meets The G-dfather (Debt Limit Edition)

If you ever heard the full album of Quadraphenia (album, not CD or iTunes), then you heard classic songs from a great band. I grew up hearing the scratches on the album.

And given the negotiation tactics of President Obama over the Debt Limit (set to expire on August 2), this song will do both justice.

First, here is the tune - enjoy it!





Now, who plays who?

The Punk: Speaker Boehner, Tea Party Caucus
The G-dfather: President Obama

Ready?

The Punk Meets the Godfather


PUNK:
You declared you would be three inches taller
You only became what the media told you.
Thought you were chasing a destiny calling
You only spent us into oblivion, didn't you?.
You partied and golfed as our people were starving,
Now you know that we blame you.
You tried to destroy the America that was hurting,
Now you know that we warned you.


G.F.:
I'm the guy in the sky
Flying high Flashing eyes
No surprise I told lies
I'm the guy with the Prompter
I'm the new President
But I grew and I spent
Don't you know? don't it show?
I'm the punk with the prompter.

Twooooo --- Thousaaaand  ---Twelve
Twoooo-- Thousand -Twelve! 


PUNK:
We tried to speak between lines of oration
You could only repeat what Andrew Sullivan told you.
Your policies belongs to the Ivy League nation,
They don't know that the public lost you.
You're watching news from 2008 trying to find the feelers,
You only see what you choose
We see the nakedness of the phony leaders
See the Elections we have won over you.


G.F.:
I'm the guy in the sky
Flying high Flashing eyes
No surprise I told lies
I'm the punk in the gutter
I'm the President
But I grew and I spent
Don't you know? don't it show?
I'm the punk with the prompter
G.F.
I always have to preach
I can't pretend that I can reach,
And yet I've lived your future out
By spending wages like a clown.
And on the dance floor broken glass,
The bloody faces slowly pass,
The protesters who create the rows,
It all belongs to me you know.



I hope you enjoyed the tune. 

My question: If you agree, write as a chorus from any Who song -- if you disagree, explain it as a chorus from any Quadropehnia song.

KPFK to Israel: Drop Dead!

As someone who is involved in the battle of ideas, listening to Pacifica radio is like reading the American Prospect: It is a very deranged mirror. 

Earlier this year, I listened to Alan Minsky's (KPFK's Program Director) Building a Powerful Left.

Ironically, his own station undermines his thesis.

Let's start with some of the morning radio program that Minsky promotes:

First, there is Democracy Now! (which doesn't support Democracies overseas). 

How many times do they err on the side of Palestinians attacking Israel?

Then comes Connect the Dots and Sojourner Truth:

Again, defeating Minsky's thesis by attacking Israel every Monday. And for the rest of the week, Margaret Prescod supports left Wing Dictators and hating on Israel.

And before the morning's out, Sonali Kolhatkher attacks Israel's right to exist daily on her show. 

Politics is about building coalitions  -- How many Jews live in the Los Angeles basin? 

In the US, LA is the second biggest population of Jews (Fourth largest in the world). 

All a Conservative Republican activist has to do is continue to show the daily attacks on Israel by a local Left Wing station, how soon will the vote swing in this city?

Hello Los Angeles! 

My question: What is the basis of Left Wing hate against the ONLY Jewish State in the world?

July 4, 2011 -- Happy Birthday America!

Every year around this time, I do a reading of A.J. Langguth's  Patriots It is a very concise telling of the American Revolution from the Writs of Assistance to the Battle of Yorktown.  

If you can, buy this book. 

And I quote:

"When members of the Continental Congress came to Jefferson's stirring conclusion, a majority thought it should include one last appeal to the power even greater then George III....They did not meddle with Jefferson's last oath, more solemn than anything they might devise:

"And for support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortune and our sacred honor'"

"On July 4, 1776, independence was declared in language worthy of it."
-- Patriots, AJ Langguth, pg.362

And here is the Declaration of Independence:

And I quote:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government,"

Enjoy the barbecues and fireworks tonight!  

July 2011 Tip Jar (With Rule 5 Goth Goodness!)

It's that time again, I need to raise $300 on my Tip Jar.  Any support would be most helpful. 

Please donate here. 

For you non-Bloggers, what is Rule 5?

It is shameless plugging of cheesecake on the Blog post to get hits.  (Coined by RS McCain). So, if Little Miss Attila can do it, so can I.....

And since I'm the ONLY Californian Conservative Republican, Social Libertarian, Jewish, Goth Blogger (TM), I will show you some muses from the Goth world because I can. 

Don't forget, HIT THE TIP JAR.

Now, the muses of the dark:

Kat Von D in Inked magazine

Tonight we start off with Kat Von D.  If you have not seen LA Ink, watch her show.  She is truly worthy of being a muse.

And one more picture:

 

I hoped you enjoyed my first venture into Rule 5 territory, now don't forget:

HIT THE TIP JAR!!!!

Not Figuring Out the Lesson from Roger Ailes and Fox News

When Democrats and their allies need an Emmanuel Goldstein, they choose Fox News.

But the same media Moguls who wonder why Fox's rating are continually high:

Are the same people who spend their time (and millions) angering a potential audience.

Let me explain:

Gawker (and mediagazer  thread) has an article out showing how Roger Ailes, Fox News Chair, came up with the idea during the Nixon Administration.

Let me quote

"The memo—called, simply enough, "A Plan For Putting the GOP on TV News"— is included in a 318-page cache of documents detailing Ailes' work for both the Nixon and George H.W. Bush administrations that we obtained from the Nixon and Bush presidential libraries. Through his firms REA Productions and Ailes Communications, Inc., Ailes served as paid consultant to both presidents in the 1970s and 1990s, offering detailed and shrewd advice ranging from what ties to wear to how to keep the pressure up on Saddam Hussein in the run-up to the first Gulf War.

"The documents—drawn mostly from the papers of Nixon chief of staff and felon H.R. Haldeman and Bush chief of staff John Sununu—reveal Ailes to be a tireless television producer and joyful propagandist. He was a forceful advocate for the power of television to shape the political narrative, and he reveled in the minutiae constructing political spectacles—stage-managing, for instance, the lighting of the White House Christmas tree with painstaking care. He frequently floated ideas for creating staged events and strategies for manipulating the mainstream media into favorable coverage, and used his contacts at the networks to sniff out the emergence of threatening narratives and offer advice on how to snuff them out—warning Bush, for example, to lay off the golf as war in the Middle East approached because journalists were starting to talk..."

Or simply put: How dare the GOP use tactics that Democrats have been using since the Kennedy Administration?!"

And the reason why GQ, Esquire and Vanity Fair all fail in political Journalism, they never speak truth to power when a Democrat is in office.

All the reporters (including Newsweek and Time) want a replay of Camelot with a Zombie Jack Kennedy instead of treating politicians as human beings, they set liberals "above the G-ds,"  (yes, the Hitchhiker guide to the Galaxy link is relevant).

And the many voters and activists who vote against the Democrats? Where can their views be heard? 

Last year, I tested 60 Minutes, a staple in news reporting on how well the play the middle of the field.  They didn't, they erred Left. 

What Mr. Ailes did was market to a news audience who was not catered to whatsoever. 

And now the rest of the Media is screaming at Fox News.  Rather then scream, why haven't the tried to steal their audience away? That requires work on understanding the audience.  Not going to happen. 

It's why Ian Masters at KPFK is always confused whatever Republicans do things, he is not a reporter but a partisan. A reporter would work to understand how and why people vote and believe the way they do without demonizing them.  Ian Masters is an idiot for not trying.  Well, that's why he is at KPFK and not making money on TV.

So if you're spending multi-millions on consultants trying to figure out how Fox News gets their ratings, I'll save you some funds:

Appeal to the news audience that does not vote for Democrats or the Left.

That is all.  But for news organisations other then Fox, understanding other Americans is soooooo confusing!

My question: Why do you think Fox news is successful?