No Deal On Fiscal Cliff: Republicans Cave, Obama Pulling Rug From Beneath Them

No Deal On Fiscal Cliff: Republicans Cave, Obama Pulling Rug From Beneath Them

Obama Scuttles ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Deal? – Patriot Update

Obama Scuttles ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Deal? – Patriot Update

The Shooting The Liberal Media Won’t Tell You About

The Shooting The Liberal Media Won’t Tell You About 

 by Frank Camp

I had in mind something to write about today. I was going to write about Obama and the “rich;” about how his desired upper-income tax hike amounts to nothing more than Obama positioning himself as a Robin Hood figure in the eyes of the less fortunate, while simultaneously taxing them to death. But then a news story caught my attention. Something very important happened just two days after the disturbing shooting in Connecticut: another shooting. Why is it so important? Because the national media didn’t cover it. On December 16th, at a movie theatre in Bexar County, Texas, a gunman opened fire in the crowded theatre. Allegedly, the shooter was a disgruntled employee of a nearby restaurant. He entered the restaurant with the intent of killing his ex-girlfriend, then proceeded to the theatre to shoot more people. The details of the motive are unimportant. What is important is how he was stopped. When the gunman opened fire at the movie theatre, an off-duty Bexar county Sheriff officer, carrying a gun, shot the suspect, putting an end to the mayhem. Louis Antu, spokesman for the Sheriff’s office, said this: “She took all appropriate action to keep everyone safe in the movie theater.” The interesting twist of this story is that the national media didn’t cover it; it was only covered by local media. The reason this was not covered was because it didn’t fit within the liberal framework of gun control. Every time a mass shooting occurs, the Left jumps on the gun control bandwagon. They simply refuse to believe that guns are not the problem. It was an armed citizen that stopped the Texas gunman from taking lives; using her gun, she saved the lives of numerous people. Concealed carry laws help reduce crime, period. By allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons, criminals are less apt to commit a crime; and if a crime is being committed, armed citizens can stop it. More extreme gun control is not the answer.

Woman Testifies on Gun Control

The Politics of Poverty

The Politics of Poverty

By Bill McAdory

Why, when the MSM discusses the poor, those in need of medical assistance and those simply in need only talk about people of color?  It's all about the politics of the poor.  That is, if I can victimize you by convincing you you are in the class of "poor" and "needy" then I can manipulate you!  Further, I can also convince better off  "white" people to feel guilty for allowing or participating in the plight of the "poor".  However, the numbers in the demographics of "poor" do not support the stories and images portrayed by the MSM.

Let's look at the latest full year numbers (Kaiser Family Foundation) of those in poverty poor:

White:           25,865,700

Black:           12,876,400

Hispanic:       17,134,700

Other:           5,442,400

Surprised?  You should not be and yes, those numbers are in Millions..  You should take the responsibility to know the facts when talking heads and politicians are pandering their social policies and confiscating your money for a particular group of people.  You should especially be suspect and wary when you are being made a victim or made to feel guilty for political purposes.  Further portraying people of color in the images and discussions promotes "class warfare" that again is pure politics of the left that intentionally divides our country

If my motive as a politician is to keep you on the government plantation or guilt white folks into funding (through public policy) and to keep the country divided, then I must be clever with the "…politics of poverty…".  If I only move up to the 139% level of poverty I'm now victimizing 86,370,800 people!  That is a huge voting bloc. This is a voting bloc the Democrats (progressives) have become adept at trading your money for their votes.

Further, you must have noticed how "the children" have become such a cry from the MSM and politicians.  Again, we see images of people of color while lamenting the plight of the poor.  Here are a few facts the annihilates that political rhetoric:

White:           41,547,300

Black:           10,806,800

Hispanic:       18,577,700

Other:           7,447,300

Surprised again?  That is the intent of the MSM and politicians.  Whites comprising the largest segment of the poor and having the most children in poverty does not allow the exploitation politics of "victimization" and "guilt" and class warfare!

One last set of numbers worth examining.  Remember the elderly poor?  Those 64 and under make up 86% of those in poverty while 65 and older make up only 14%.  Again, creating a separate class of "victims".

As we slip over the cliff (and we will; in a small or grand way), take stock of what you hear as to why we cannot "touch" the third rail of entitlements.  Why?  It is the life blood for the Left otherwise known as Democrats.  It is pure politics and designed to remain in power and to garner even more.  Don't be a fool, educate yourself and tell others what you have found out.  The information is there for those that care enough to look!

The Right Lane 12.31.12

In pursuit of Constitutionally grounded governance, free markets and individual liberty

"There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily." --George Washington

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rep. Labrador: Democrats Acting Like ‘Bank Robbers’ on Fiscal Cliff  By: Sandy Fitzgerald

Idaho Republican Rep. Raul Labrador said on Sunday that he’s “not really sure” Democrats want to avoid going over the fiscal cliff, and that they’re like “bank robbers” who want to raise taxes on everyone. Labrador, appearing on ABC News’ “This Week,” also believes President Barack Obama has successfully provoked a civil war among Republicans, which has been the Democrats’ goal from the beginning. “They have tried to get us to fight against each other on taxes when — I’m not really sure that they don’t want to go over the fiscal cliff,” said Labrador.  Meanwhile, Labrador was one of the House Republicans who opposed a plan by House Speaker John Boehner to raise taxes only on people making more than $1 million. But he said if Democrats really wanted to avoid the fiscal cliff they could have voted for the bill.  “There were only about 50 of us in the House who said that we were not going to vote for John Boehner's deal last week,” he said. “All they needed was 50 Democrats to vote for the deal, and it would have passed last week.”

But, Labrador said, the Democrats have been trying to divide Republicans “from day one.” “They have tried to get us to fight against each other on taxes when — I'm not really sure that they don't want to go over the fiscal cliff,” he said. “They want to expand the growth of government. They need more revenues. You know, Democrats are like bank robbers. You don't have the money in the 2 percent — the money is in the 100 percent. They want to raise taxes on everyone.” Labrador also said history will repeat if leaders talk about raising taxes. “What happens in Washington is that we talk about raising taxes today and then we talk about cuts 10 years from now,” Labrador said. “It happened under Reagan, it happened under Bush, and it's what's going to happen to us once again.”

~~~~~~

Greedy Lawyer: $100M sought in Newtown school shooting

A lawyer who’s asking to sue Connecticut for $100 million on behalf of a 6-year-old Newtown school shooting survivor who heard violence over the school’s intercom system says the potential claim is about improving school security, not money. “It’s about living in a world that’s safe,” New Haven attorney Irving Pinsky told The Associated Press on Saturday. “The answer is about protecting the kids.”

Pinsky asked this week to sue the state, which has immunity against most lawsuits unless it gives a party permission to go forward with a claim. Connecticut’s claims commissioner couldn’t be reached for comment Saturday. So the serpent says!

~~~~~~

Obama Commits Treason By Arming Egypt’s Anti-American Dictatorship by Dave Jolly

Why would a US president continue to push to give billions of dollars in aid and to supply arms to a nation whose regime has declared that America and its ally Israel are mortal enemies that should be destroyed?  And why would that same president who wants to arm our enemies want to disarm American citizens? Obama helped the Muslim Brotherhood, a known militant and radical Islamic group, to overthrow the government of Egypt.  He supported the election of Morsi as Egypt’s new president, even when Morsi talked about establishing a new Muslim Caliphate with him as the ultimate head. Morsi also publicly began an attack on all non-Muslim religions within his country.  His military and police joined in the persecution of Christians who were beaten, raped, robbed and killed.  Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said nothing and did nothing but continue to support Morsi and his radical government. In the past few months, Morsi has also been very vocal about his desire to see the nation of Israel disappear from the face of the earth.  I’m not the only one to see the danger in Obama’s actions. Rep. Ted Poe, (R-TX), a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary, says that Obama’s actions are irresponsible for supplying Morsi with 20 F-16 fighter jets.  Poe told WND:

“It is reckless and unwise for the U.S. to give F-16s to Egypt and its new president/dictator, controlled by the Muslim Brotherhood.  This extremist group is notoriously anti-American and anti-Israel. The United States should not be arming a country ruled by a group that has the destruction of Israel in its charter.” “In my opinion, continuing to support them financially through foreign aid is criminal. I say that to emphasize how I feel about providing any type of weapon system to them. We have an out-of-control government right now, and this will cost this nation greatly in the long run,”

Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX), Vice Chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services and a member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, joined Poe is expressing his concern with arming Morsi.

~~~~~~

U.S. Taxpayers Will Continue to Pay More Than One-Fifth of U.N. Budget By Patrick Goodenough

Joseph Torsella, deputy ambassador for U.N. management and reform, speaks at U.N. headquarters in New York City in this September 2011 file photo. In one of its last actions of the year, the United Nations General Assembly on Christmas Eve agreed to extend for another three years the formula that has U.S. taxpayers contributing more than one-fifth of the world body’s regular budget. No member-state called for a recorded vote, and the resolution confirming the contributions that each country will make for the 2013-2015 period was summarily adopted. The assembly also approved a two-year U.N. budget of $5.4 billion. The U.S. has accounted for 22 percent of the total regular budget every year since 2000, and will now continue to do so for the next three years. The U.S. representative for U.N. management and reform, Joseph Torsella, expressed satisfaction that the U.S. contribution had not been raised above that level. World government through the United Nations is a serious threat to the freedom of all Americans. Imagine being held prisoner in a foreign land and tried in an international court with judges from such countries as Afghanistan, China, or Iraq. The United Nations (financed by American taxpayers!) has long been a safe harbor for terrorist and oppressive regimes which target America as the enemy. Even more alarming, the United Nations is beginning to take aim at the God-given rights enjoyed by Americans since our great nation was founded. The right to self defense, use your own property, or even the right to have children may all be trampled if the United Nations is allowed to have the power it seeks.

~~~~~~

The Family: God's Weapon for Victory by Robert Andrews
Psalm 127 says that God gives us children as a reward, not just because He loves us and we want them for ourselves, but because He is equipping us to do what He has called us to do as His warriors: build and guard. Build the house of God and guard the city that has foundations in the very midst of His enemies. This psalm tells us, so beautifully, how that will happen: by filling the earth with offspring children who have been brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and who themselves have caught the vision to reestablish the righteous rule of God on the earth. They will in turn produce offspring who have the vision as well, and on and on until the knowledge of the glory of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). The picture the psalmist uses is that children are like arrows in the hand of a warrior. What does this mean? It means that our children are the primary weapons God has given us to do what He has asked us to do to build and to guard. But they obviously are not ready for that task when they come out of the womb. In other words, if we are to build and guard successfully in the world, we must first build and guard in the lives of our children! Hence the task of parenting; we are preparing our weapons of war for battle! We have been given 20 or so years to accomplish the task of extending our influence for the kingdom of God into the next generation.  So, successful parenting is ultimately not to make us, as parents, look good to the other families in our church, to make life easier for us, or even to prepare our children to grow up and be successful. No, children are ultimately for God and His purpose of extending his righteous rule over the whole earth as His Son Jesus Christ becomes in experience what He is in fact King of all kings and Lord of all lords. 

~~~~~~

Obama Threatens Boehner: I’ll Use Inaugural Address And State Of The Union Speech To Bash Republicans…

Mr. Obama repeatedly lost patience with the speaker as negotiations faltered. In an Oval Office meeting last week, he told Mr. Boehner that if the sides didn’t reach agreement, he would use his inaugural address and his State of the Union speech to tell the country the Republicans were at fault. At one point, according to notes taken by a participant, Mr. Boehner told the president, “I put $800 billion [in tax revenue] on the table. What do I get for that?” “You get nothing,” the president said. “I get that for free.” So the serpent says!

~~~~~~

The Shocking Truth of How Government Unions Elected Obama by Gary DeMar

Handwringing after the November election concentrated on racial and ethnic groups. We saw that 95 percent of blacks voted for Obama. In some Philadelphia wards, not accounting for the possibility of fraud, 100% of voters voted for Obama. Well, we’ve been duped. Obama’s election was only partly due to a heavy turnout of Hispanics and blacks. The real reason is found in public sector unions. While private sector unions make up about 6% of all unions, it’s public sector unions — government unions — where money and power are concentrated. Mallory Factor’s Shadowbosses pulls back the curtain and exposes how John F. Kennedy set into motion a way of creating a perpetual support base for the Democrat Party. Lyndon Johnson did a similar thing when he pushed through his “Great Society” legislation. Conservatives have been hit with a double whammy of support. The unions collect billions of dollars every year in forced dues. The public sector unions spent $500 million dollars to get Obama re-elected. In addition, thousands of union members were called on to “volunteer” to campaign for the president. Some union workers were even paid for their efforts from the dues that they were forced to pay. The Republicans have no way to compete with government protected and subsidized unions. Congress won’t do anything since Democrats are the ones who benefit from a mass of union support. Do you remember how quickly the employees of the TSA were quickly unionized? Did you notice how President Obama paid back public union support by giving government employees a pay raise? “A new executive order has been issued providing for a new pay schedule beginning ‘on the first day of the first applicable pay period beginning after March 27, 2013,’ reports FedSmith.com. ‘The pay raise will generally be about 1/2 of 1%.’” If we’re going to beat the Democrats, we’ve got to find a way to curtail the power of public (government) unions. Why not post some rational, reasonable, and realistic ideas in the comment section. Try to be helpful.

~~~~~~~~

Guns Save Lives    Watch Here

Not only do liberals lie… they always come to the wrong conclusion, and usually come up with the wrong solution, in response to every crisis.

~~~~~~

Blind to Benghazi By Allan Erickson

It has been 108 days since four Americans working for our government to secure our freedom were murdered in Benghazi.  It took something like three weeks for the FBI to get to the locations involved. By then, the crime scenes were contaminated, in part, by CNN reporters who beat the FBI to the punch. And here we are today, knowing little more than was revealed early on. The CIA/SEALS who gave their lives to save 30 other Americans that night (as Hillary and Barry sat on their hands and bit their tongues) do not rest in peace. This administration did not honor them in life by fulfilling their repeated requests for enhanced security.  The President and the Sec. of State did nothing to save them while they were being slaughtered after a seven-hour battle against 40 times their number. They have not been honored by this administration in death, an administration staffed by people responsible for their deaths, including this so-called President. Hillary Clinton is AWOL.  She is apparently terrified to appear to testify. Obviously the administration is covering up and concealing information that will show its incompetence and worse, its complicity. Eventually we will learn what our ambassador in Libya was doing with weaponry that eventually fell into the hands of our enemies. No doubt this thing is saturated with corruption and illegality. Why else would these posers go to such lengths to stall and sequester survivors? And the American media? Just as AWOL as Hillary, and just as complicit.  Nothing more than Obama lapdogs. The entire thing is a national disgrace.  Our collective shame is compounded by the lack of rage that should rightfully be expressed daily until we get the truth, and nothing but the truth.

~~~~~~

$1 Trillion Obamacare Tax Hike Hitting on Jan. 1

On January 1, regardless of the outcome of fiscal cliff negotiations, Americans will be hit with a $1 trillion Obamacare tax hike. Obamacare contains twenty new or higher taxes. Five of the taxes hit for the first time on January 1. In total, Americans face a net $1 trillion tax hike for the years 2013-2022, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The five major Obamacare taxes taking effect on January 1 are as follows: The Obamacare Medical Device Tax: Medical device manufacturers employ 409,000 people in 12,000 plants across the country. Obamacare imposes a new 2.3 percent excise tax on gross sales – even if the company does not earn a profit in a given year. In addition to killing small business jobs and impacting research and development budgets, this will increase the cost of your health care – making everything from pacemakers to artificial hips more expensive.

~~~~~~

From Russia’s Pravda: "Americans, Never Give Up Your Guns!"

These days, there are few things to admire about the socialist, bankrupt and culturally degenerating USA, but at least so far, one thing remains: the right to bare arms and use deadly force to defend one’s self and possessions. This will probably come as a total shock to most of my Western readers, but at one point, Russia was one of the most heavily armed societies on earth. This was, of course, when we were free under the Tsar. Weapons, from swords and spears to pistols, rifles and shotguns were everywhere, common items. People carried them concealed, they carried them holstered. Fighting knives were a prominent part of many traditional attires and those little tubes crisscrossing on the costumes of Cossacks and various Caucasian peoples? Well those are bullet holders for rifles. Various armies, such as the Poles, during the Смута (Times of Troubles), or Napoleon, or the Germans even as the Tsarist state collapsed under the weight of WW1 and Wall Street monies, found that holding Russian lands was much harder than taking them and taking was no easy walk in the park but a blood bath all its own. In holding, one faced an extremely well armed and aggressive population Hell bent on exterminating or driving out the aggressor. 

Moscow fell, for example, not from a lack of weapons to defend it, but from the lying guile of the Reds. Ten thousand Reds took Moscow and were opposed only by some few hundreds of officer cadets and their instructors. Even then the battle was fierce and losses high. However, in the city alone, at that time, lived over 30,000 military officers (both active and retired), all with their own issued weapons and ammunition, plus tens of thousands of other citizens who were armed. The Soviets promised to leave them all alone if they did not intervene. They did not and for that were asked afterwards to come register themselves and their weapons: where they were promptly shot.   Citizens cannot trust in government, only themselves.

~~~~~~~~

"[T]he people are not to be disarmed of their weapons. They are left in full possession of them."

--Zacharia Johnson, speech in the Virginia Ratifying Convention, 1788

Choosing The Right Lane

In pursuit of Constitutionally grounded governance, free markets and individual liberty

"There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily." --George Washington

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Charity Begins With Wealth Creation  By John Stossel
Charity — helping people who have trouble helping themselves — is a good thing two times over. It's good for the beneficiary and good for the donor, too. Stephen Post's fine book, "The Hidden Gifts of Helping," reveals that 76 percent of Americans say that helping others is what makes them most happy. Giving money makes us feel good, and helping face-to-face is even better. People say it makes them feel physically healthier. They sleep better. Private charity is unquestioningly better than government efforts to help people. Government squanders money. Charities sometime squander money, too, but they usually don't.  Proof of the superiority of private over government efforts is everywhere. Catholic charities do a better job educating children than government — for much less money. New York City's government left Central Park a dangerous mess. Then a private charity rescued it. But while charity is important, let's not overlook something more important: Before we can help anyone, we first need something to give. Production precedes donation. Advocates of big government forget this.  We can't give unless we (or someone) first creates. Yet wealth creators are encouraged to feel guilt. "Bill Gates, or any billionaire, for that matter," Yaron Brook, author of "Free Market Revolution" and president of the Ayn Rand Institute, said on my TV show, "how did they become a billionaire? By creating a product or great service that benefits everybody. And we know it benefits us because we pay for it. We pay less than what it's worth to us. That's why we trade — we get more value than what we give up. So, our lives are better off. Bill Gates improved hundreds of millions of lives around the world. That's how he became a billionaire."  What especially offends Brook, and me, too, is stigmatizing wealth creators. The rich are made to feel guilty about making money. I sometimes attend "lifetime achievement award" ceremonies meant to honor a businessman. Inevitably, his charity work is celebrated much more enthusiastically than his business creation. Sometimes the businessman says he wants to "give back."  Says Brook, "It's wrong for businessmen to feel like they need to 'give back' as if they took something away from anybody."  He's right. They didn't.    If we value benevolence, we must value creation.  

~~~~~~~

"The virtues of men are of more consequence to society than their abilities; and for this reason, the heart should be cultivated with more assiduity than the head."

--Noah Webster, On the Education of Youth in America, 1788

~~~~~~

America has brand-new Benedict Arnold

He single-handedly delivered the swing vote to approve Obamacare and perhaps even crushed the American health system that has been the envy of the world. WND has selected U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. for its first-ever Benedict Arnold Award. “There are lots of bad guys out there who would qualify as ‘Villain of the Year,’ but precious few candidates for the ‘Benedict Arnold Award,’” explained WND Vice President and Managing Editor David Kupelian. “Benedict Arnold, after all, was a good guy; he was an American general in the Revolutionary War who fought valiantly on behalf of the Continental Army – that is, until, for reasons yet unknown, he defected to the British side and betrayed the cause he had formerly served.”

~~~~~~

Obama Orders Pay Raises for Congress, Federal Workers while America suffers!

President Barack Obama issued an executive order to end the pay freeze on federal employees, in effect giving some federal workers a raise. One federal worker now to receive a pay increase is Vice President Joe Biden. According to disclosure forms, Biden made a cool $225,521 last year. After the pay increase, he’ll now make $231,900 per year. Members of Congress, from the House and Senate, also will receive a little bump, as their annual salary will go from $174,000 to 174,900. Leadership in Congress, including the speaker of the House, will likewise get an increase.

~~~~~~~

Obama Pushing U.S. Over ‘Cliff,’ but GOP is Real Target by Tad Cronn                                                                                                        

President Obama on Friday said “the hour for immediate action is here” to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff” that will increase everybody’s taxes by letting President Bush’s tax policies die. For most people, the time for immediate action has come and gone, but that wasn’t the real purpose of the Roadblock in Chief’s press conference late Friday. Obama has always been OK with letting the Bush tax policies expire. Despite all his blather about support for the middle class, Obama loves the thought of raising taxes on everybody. In opposing the Bush policies previously, Obama blamed them for the country’s deficits and characterized them as an unwarranted sop to “rich” people, all as part of his class warfare strategy of winning Democrat votes. The orchestrated “fiscal cliff” debate is about the imminent expiration of those cuts, which for years have helped keep down everybody’s tax rates and have probably done more long-term stimulating of the economy than anything Obama has ever proposed. The late-Friday press conference — time chosen to discourage any possible response from the GOP and to dominate the weekend TV news shows — was designed to set up the narrative of a responsible Obama making reasonable requests of the irresponsible, upper-class-coddling Republicans. He emphasized repeatedly that Sens. Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell were working on a compromise to be voted on by Congress this weekend, but should that fail — here’s the key — then Obama had ordered Reid to bring forward a “bare minimum” bill to “cut” taxes on the middle class and extend unemployment benefits. In other words, Obama has not given an inch and is setting up a situation where he is daring the GOP to vote against his plan to raise taxes on small businesses and anybody else making $250,ooo or more per year. Once that happens, Obama will have Reid bring up essentially the same plan again for a “straight yes or no” vote, as the president characterized it. In other words, Reid will ram the plan through the Senate one way or another. The “Bush tax cuts” that were so evil, according to Obama and the Democrats, will then become the “Obama tax cuts” for the middle class, with the top end lopped off. This will put the House Republicans in the no-win position of either rejecting a deliberately last-minute, “bare minimum” plan to “help the middle class” or giving in to Obama’s scheme to raise taxes on small businesses in an ongoing recession. Either way, the GOP loses and the Imperial President wins.

~~~~~~

Sen. Graham: Obama's Cliff Meeting 'Political Theater' By: REUTERS

President Barack Obama and congressional leaders were to meet on Friday for the first time since November with no sign of progress in resolving their differences over the federal budget and low expectations for a fiscal cliff deal before Jan. 1.  Instead, members of Congress are increasingly looking at the period immediately after the Dec. 31 deadline to come up with a retroactive fix to avoid the steep tax hikes and sharp spending cuts that economists have said could plunge the country into another recession. "It's feeling very much to me like an optical meeting than a substantive meeting," said Republican Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, noting that it was not a sign of urgency to set a meeting for mid-afternoon with a deadline just days away.

"Any time you announce a meeting publicly in Washington, it's usually for political theater purposes," Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, said on Thursday on Fox News.

"When the president calls congressional leaders to the White House, it's all political theater or they've got a deal. My bet is all political theater," said Graham, adding that he did not believe an agreement could be reached before the deadline.

~~~~~~

The Fiscal Cliff Diversion

The US economy is already over the fiscal cliff and falling at an increasing rate.  Today’s economic questions should be focused on its rate of descent; will the rate increase or can it be arrested before the rocks below are reached.  After the election the economy has continued to implode, yet its downward plunge has been largely ignored by the mainstream media (MSM).  Apparently the MSM’s economic orthodoxy is now only centered on fiscal cliff narratives.  The MSM’s focus on the cliff gives Obama, their hero, economic cover since the cliff story is the economic story and not the terrible economic results occurring weekly and monthly. Currently it is difficult to find economic data related to the past two months (or past three years)which is positive; whether it is meaningful growth in employment, an increase in the labor participation rate, a consistent uptick in GDP, a reduction in the workforce dropout rate, a reduction in government spending or a reduction in the deficit et. al. Many fiscal cliff narratives have incessantly talked about tax increases/decreases, spending, debt, deficits and the intransigence of the President or the Republicans (mainly Republicans) to compromise.  With compromise a deal to move the country forward on important economic issues can be attained.  Certainly future economic performance will be significantly affected by many of the outcomes related to the cliff negotiations.  Yet the narratives seldom mention the Obama administration’s past or current record on economic issues…a dismal report card that demonstrates no sustainable success on any level over the past four years.

~~~~~~

Hey Lefties! Here’s An Example Of The Need For “Assault Rifles” by Tim Brown

OK, I used the term “assault rifles” in the title to get your attention. Now let me explain that I do not believe they are assault rifles. They are merely rifles capable firing many rounds quickly. The Left gun control crowd has been saying that there is no need for these kinds of weapons, but my friends nothing could be further from the truth and I want to share with you just one instance that everyone should be able to understand just how needy these weapons are. The year was 1992, twenty years ago, when following a jury trial, four Los Angeles Police Department officers were acquitted, in April, after being accused in the video recorded beating of a black American named Rodney King. As a result, people throughout the Los Angeles metropolitan area rioted over six days because of the verdict. They engaged in idespread looting, assault, arson, and even murder. The damage these criminals caused was well over $1 billion! The rioting finally came to a halt after the California National Guard, along with U.S. Marines from Camp Pendleton were called in to help stop them. During the riots, more than 60 people were killed and over 4,000 were injured. On April 30, the second day of the riots, Korean-Americans saw the police fall back from Koreatown, leaving them to defend themselves in the midst of heavy looting and fires. A store owner at the time, Jay Rhee, told the Los Angeles Times, “we have lost faith in the police.” The Times reported in May of 1992:

In the shadow of a flaming mini-mall near the corner of 5th and Western, behind a barricade of luxury sedans and battered grocery trucks, they built Firebase Koreatown.

Richard Rhee, owner of the supermarket on the corner, had watched as roving bands of looters ransacked and burned Korean-owned businesses on virtually every block.

But here, it would be different. “Burn this down after 33 years?” asked Rhee, a survivor of the Korean War, the Watts riots and three decades of business in Los Angeles.

“They don’t know how hard I’ve worked. This is my market and I’m going to protect it.”

From the rooftop of his supermarket, a group of Koreans armed with shotguns and automatic weapons peered onto the smoky streets. Scores of others, carrying steel pipes, pistols and automatic rifles, paced through the darkened parking lot in anticipation of an assault by looters. “It’s just like war,” Rhee said, surveying his makeshift command. “I’ll shoot and worry about the law later.” From tiny liquor stores in South-Central Los Angeles to the upscale boutiques in Mid-Wilshire, Korean store owners have turned their pastel-colored mini-malls into fortresses against the looter’s tide. For many store owners, the riots have become a watershed in the struggle for the survival of their community. The store owners shot off at least 500 rounds into the sky and ground to break up masses of people that were looting. They could have only accomplished that with the types of weapons they were using.

~~~~~~

Feinstein Assault Weapons Ban Covers Rifles, Pistols and Shotguns

The New Year is just around the corner and although the Senate still hasn’t made a fiscal cliff deal, Senator Diane Feinstein already has parts of new gun control legislation ready to go. Two Sunday’s ago on NBC’s Meet the Press, Feinstein talked about giving President Obama a bill he can “lead on” and used the term assault weapon loosely. Feinstein has posted a summary of what the legislation will cover, which includes a ban on semi-automatic handguns and shotguns in addition to rifles. The legislation also requires registration of previously purchased guns. If passed, ATF would be in charge of enforcement which should be a huge concern to gun owners.

~~~~~~

Krauthammer: Obama Using Cliff to Start GOP 'Civil War' By: Dan Weil

President Barack Obama has been winning the public relations battle so far in his dispute with Republicans over the fiscal cliff, but the GOP will come out on top if there’s a cliff dive, says syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer. Perhaps the biggest area of disagreement between the two sides is over raising taxes on the wealthy. House Speaker John Boehner was willing to accept such an agreement, as insisted upon by Obama. But the Republican House conference rebelled against that idea last week. As for the president, “he’s been using this, with ruthless skill to fracture and basically shatter the Republican opposition,” Krauthammer told Fox News on Thursday. “His objective from the very beginning was to break the will of the Republicans in the House and to create an internal civil war. He’s done that.” But Republicans should realize they’re playing from a position of strength Krauthammer says. "I think the Republicans will surely have a much stronger hand [if] we go over the cliff, assuming Obama stays very hard line and offers only humiliating conditions,” he said. Obama’s need for congressional approval to raise the debt ceiling and thus avoid default early next year gives Republicans leverage, Krauthammer says. “With bravado, he [the president] says 'Oh, that's a game I won't play.' He has to play, he's the president." Both parties have something to gain from a jump off the cliff, according to Politico. Republican congressmen can tout their opposition to tax increases and avoid primary threats from the right. And Democrats can say they fought tax reductions for the rich and entitlement cuts.

~~~~~~

64% Believe in God of the Bible

Bottom of Form

Two-out-of-three Americans (64%) believe in the God of the Bible. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey also finds that 12% do not believe in God at all. Eleven percent (11%) believe in some form or essence of God, five percent (5%) in some other form of God, and eight percent (8%) are not sure.  Those who do not believe in God are evenly divided as to whether or not believers are foolish: 42% say they are, but 42% disagree. Among those under 40, just 53% believe in the God of the Bible. That figure is 70% for those aged 40-64 and 73% for senior citizens. Women (68%) are a bit more likely to believe in the Biblical God than men (60%).