Archive for March, 2010

Around my blogroll Ides of March 2010 edition

Posted: March 15, 2010 by datechguy in internet/free speech, opinion/news
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

We start our trip around my blogroll with a little coffee at Ruby Slippers, a blog I really should be linking to more often. Mary Sue had this to say about the Coffee parties that CNN was so impressed with:

So, just how strong were these coffee party gatherings? One might describe them as intimate. North Carolina had all of five people show up An estimated crowd of 3000 protested today in Minnesota. What’s a couple thousand people though? CNN reports the two groups have much more in common besides their group strength, that is. Do they now?

Well both groups are made up of carbon based life forms that are made in the image of God that depend on the intake of oxygen to survive and are named after breakfast beverages, but beyond that I don’t see much. It is simply a truism that any group of any size that supports a cause that the MSM agrees with is more newsworthy than any group 50,000 times as large that they do not. It’s why the media is slowing starting to resemble a salesman who can only sell his wares to relatives.

Over at Legal Insurrection Bill Jacobson finds that one little word that would have saved Eric Massa his seat:

Timing is everything. Only recently, when it became clear that a single vote in the House may be the difference, was there a whispering campaign and leaks about Massa.

Massa’s departure has made it easier for Nancy Pelosi to get the necessary votes because the vote will be that close. If Obamacare passes later this week, as Pelosi is predicting, the departure of Eric Massa may be the reason.

Eric Massa may be paranoid, but that does not change the truth that people in the Democratic Party who wanted to pass Obamacare really did hate him.

Ask yourself this question: If Eric Massa had announced that he would vote “Yes” on Obamacare, would he still be in Congress?

Does he mean to suggest that Nancy Pelosi and company might actually consider letting someone stay in congress who is undeserving just to gain a vote? Why that’s a shocking suggestion. If you believe that then you’d believe that democrats would allow someone with tax issues to be treasury secretary or allow a person with irregularities to chair an important financial committee.

Finally Big Hollywood notes Megan Mullally’s shock at Jay Leno’s decision to appeal to a segment of the population hitherto ignored by the Hollywood elites:

She recently blasted former Gov. Sarah Palin’s stand-up comedy debut on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” at movieline.com, mocking both Leno’s comedy bits and his attempt to woo conservative audiences.

“Could it be any more bald-faced that he’s going after the red states? It’s insane. It’s just right out there, full on … amazing. And she was wearing jeans [note: said with a drawn out snarl]. ‘I’m gonna wear denim! I’m gonna dress it down!’”

Sounds insane, all right. Why would the host of a popular late night show give a platform to a gorgeous, charismatic politician who appeals to a wide swath of viewers?

Yeah, having a best selling author who commands large audiences wherever she goes makes no sense. Does Jay actually think it will get him to #1 in late-night again? After all appealing to conservatives hasn’t done Fox any good in the ratings has it?

Well this is a sign that healthcare is going to pass…

Posted: March 15, 2010 by datechguy in internet/free speech, opinion/news
Tags: , , ,

Hey it’s always an indication that things are going well when undecided congressmen choose to skip a rally being attended by the president of the United States:

Representative John Boccieri, Democrat of Ohio, whose vote on major health care legislation could be crucial to the outcome, will not be attending President Obama’s health care rally on Monday in Strongsville, Ohio, not far from Mr. Boccieri’s own district, a spokeswoman said.

Sure it’s all about another project nothing to do with healthcare. And like the fully armed nuclear missiles coming from the planet Magrathea toward the ship Heart of gold, the thousands of protesters waiting to greet the president as mentioned by Michelle Malkin in this post are a special courtesy that is extended to every president who is about to successfully persuade members of his own party to pass an unpopular bill through congress at the risk of their seats.

It’s like watching a disaster movie in slow motion.

So much for Bewaring the Ides of March

Posted: March 15, 2010 by datechguy in blogger for hire, internet/free speech
Tags: , ,

As of today (March 15), my total hits this year have surpassed my total hits for the entire previous year.

There are a lot of people to thank for this, most notability Robert Stacy McCain whose support really put me on the map, to Glenn Reynolds who has been kind enough to instalanche me on a monthly basis this year and the various people who have allowed me to interview them over the last two months.

But the greatest debt of gratitude is to you the readers who have given me the pleasure and the privilege of your time (and in some cases your funds).

I don’t know if my blog venture will meet with success or failure but whatever the final result it has been and continues to be a pleasure to have you visit my small part of the blogosphere.

The political numbers don’t lie

Posted: March 15, 2010 by datechguy in employment, opinion/news
Tags: ,

From the Wall Street Journal (hat tip Independent Woman’s voice) we see that political costs of the healthcare bill are not insignificant:

The survey shows astonishing intensity and sharp opposition to reform, far more than national polls reflect. For 82% of those surveyed, the heath-care bill is either the top or one of the top three issues for deciding whom to support for Congress next November. (That number goes to 88% among independent women.) Sixty percent want Congress to start from scratch on a bipartisan health-care reform proposal or stop working on it this year. Majorities say the legislation will make them and their loved ones (53%), the economy (54%) and the U.S. health-care system (55%) worse off—quite the trifecta.

Seven in 10 would vote against a House member who votes for the Senate health-care bill with its special interest provisions. That includes 45% of self-identified Democrats, 72% of independents and 88% of Republicans.

Even more troubling for the White House and the leadership is that the political benefits of changing your mind and opposing the bill, like the benefits of quitting smoking start almost at once:

A congressman can buy himself a little grace if he had previously voted for health-care reform but now votes against it. Forty-nine percent of voters will feel more supportive of that member if he does so, 40% less supportive. More dramatically, 58% of voters say they will be more supportive of their congressman’s re-election if he votes against the bill a second time. However, for those members who voted against it in November and vote yes this time, 61% of voters say they will be less likely to support their re-election.

So much for the Damned if you do damned if you don’t argument.

The administration’s attempt to create a Fait accompli is very foolish. it has the potential to blow up in their faces like the Olympics or the Obama visit to Massachusetts during the Scott Brown election.

Democrats would be well advised to keep this in mind before they join the congressional version of Judean People’s front Crack suicide squad.

That’ll show us conservatives!

Update: The full poll is here.

Older Entries
Newer Entries