News Blog for social, fiscal & national security conservatives who believe in God, family & the USA. Upholding the rights granted by God & guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, traditional family values, "republican" principles / ideals, transparent & limited "smaller" government, free markets, lower taxes, due process of law, liberty & individual freedom. Content approval rests with the ARRA News Service Editor. Opinions are those of the authors. While varied positions are reported, beliefs & principles remain fixed. No revenue is generated for or by this "Blog" - no paid ads - no payments for articles.Fair Use Doctrine is posted & used. Blogger/Editor/Founder: Bill Smith, Ph.D. [aka: OzarkGuru & 2010 AFP National Blogger of the Year] Contact: editor@arranewsservice.com (Pub. Since July, 2006)Home PageFollow @arra
One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics
is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. -- Plato
(429-347 BC)
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Apparently America Doesn't Understand Detroit
by Dan Calabrese, Real Clear Markets: Apparently the rest of America just doesn’t understand. So says the Detroit News, the Detroit Free Press, Detroit-area talk show hosts and business and political leaders of all shapes and sizes. Mean old America. Criticizing the Big Three automakers without having our facts straight or understanding the car business. The car business is indeed difficult to understand from outside the Detroit bubble. It is difficult to understand hundreds of billions of dollars thrown at people and things that contribute nothing to the generation of revenue. It is difficult to understand how a company can believe it deserves to survive, in spite of the consumer market’s mass rejection of its products . . .
To survive in business, you have to make a profit. Period. Nothing else matters. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler don’t do that, so they deserve to die. But if you want to understand why they don’t make a profit, all you need to do is look at two schemes concocted along with the United Auto Workers – the Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) and the UAW Jobs Bank. The two entities work in different ways, but they have one devastating fact in common. Both require the automakers to pay billions to people who don’t do any work for them.
. . . No, Detroit. It’s you who doesn’t understand. Not because people haven’t been trying to warn you for decades that you were marching headlong into economic suicide, but because you didn’t want to hear it. And now your automotive bubble is about to explode and destroy you with it. Congress would be insane to help sustain the way this industry does business. It is utter madness. . . . [Full Story:Apparently America Doesn't Understand Detroit] Tags:auto industry, bailout, labor unions, UAW, US CongressTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by John Hawkins, Townhall: After a GOP beating, there is always a debate between the people who want the party to become more principled and those who want to turn the GOP into a poll-driven pile of mush that they believe will be more appealing to centrists. The problem with this whole discussion is that the "we need to be more moderate" crowd tends to simply ignore a number of inconvenient facts that make their position completely untenable.
We've already gone the moderate route -- and lost. . . . You say that the GOP can't win as a small government party. Well, we've already tried being a big government party for the last 8 years and it failed. . . .
A "moderate" GOP can't generate the volunteers or money needed to win. Yes, the GOP needs both moderate and conservative voters to win elections. Additionally, in certain districts and states, moderate Republicans are more electable than conservatives. That being said, the rightward leaning media, fundraising, and campaign workers are dominated by conservatives. So, if the right side of the party is depressed, there's not enough money or campaign workers to go around and there isn't a strong pushback against the lies put out by Democrats. . . .
There can be no fiscal conservatism in D.C. without social conservatism. There are some people who think the GOP needs to kick social conservatives to the curb and focus entirely on fiscal conservatism in order to help our election prospects, but they're missing three very important points.
#1) For the most part, fiscal conservatives are socially conservative and vice-versa. Yes, there are socially conservative Republicans who aren't fiscal conservatives (See George Bush for example), but they're not typical.
#2) In Congress, although there are exceptions, the overwhelming majority of Republicans who aren't socially conservative, aren't fiscally conservative either. Show me a Republican in Congress who's pro-abortion at least 75% of the time, I will show you a Republican who's a big spender, too.
#3) People who are most concerned about traditional values make up such a large block of voters that the GOP would be lucky to hold 100 seats in the House and 30 seats in the Senate without their help. So, if the social conservatives are sidelined, the fiscal conservatives will be sidelined by default, too, because they won't have the votes to get elected.
The GOP's drop amongst Hispanics hasn't been caused by opposition to illegal immigration. This myth, propagated by proponents of amnesty and open borders, doesn't bear up under scrutiny. . . . In 2006, the GOP pulled 30% of the Hispanic vote and McCain captured about 31% of the Hispanic vote in 2008. First off, the fact that McCain only pulled 31% of the Hispanic vote should prove once and for all that the amnesty issue doesn't move Hispanic votes over to the GOP. If it did, certainly McCain, who has been the biggest advocate of amnesty in the entire Republican Party would have been the candidate to do it. . . .
The GOP cannot win without the conservative media. You may like talk radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, and Sean Hannity or you may not, but the reality is that the GOP absolutely cannot win elections when they're telling everyone who'll listen that the Republican Party is mediocre. There are two reasons for that.
#1) Those radio hosts are popular in the first place largely because the conservatives who make up the GOP's base agree with them. If the talk show hosts are not happy with something, their listeners probably aren't happy with it either -- and making your core supporters happy is the first lesson of Politics 101.
#2) Because the mainstream media is so heavily biased towards the Democratic Party, most independent voters take what they say about Republicans with a grain of salt. However, independents perceive conservative talk radio hosts and their listeners to be on the "GOP's side." So, if they hear criticism of the Republican Party from those people, they tend to think it must be true. . . . [Five Hard Truths For RINOS] Tags:Arkansas Republican Party, conservatives, fiscal conservatives, GOP, illegal immigration, rebuilding the party, Republicans, RINO, social conservatives, Townhall, traditional valuesTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
ARRA News Service & Editor In Top 200 People To Follow
Dr. Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: According to the Duane Lester at The All American Blogger, Dr. Bill Smith and the ARRA News Service is on the list of “200 ‘People’ people should be following.”
It is an exception post about "Why Conservatives Should Be Using Twitter And 200 "People" You Should Be Following." It explains the use of Twitter in easy terms and shares how Twitter is a great way to build online communities. For example, when the Republicans staged a protest last summer and refused to leave for summer recess whena few Twitter users were sending updates using the hashtag “#dontgo.” That hashtag allowed people to see the news relating to the dontgo movement as it was happening and morphed from a Twitter stream to a "new gathering place for conservative activism.”
The list of 200 “People” to follow included News Services, Journalists, Columnists, Politicians, Government Agencies, Conservative organizations and Bloggers. I would be remiss not to mention to first, check out the Full Story to learn more about Twitter, Twits and many free support programs. If you get stuck or need more advice, post a comment with your email and I will reply. Since comments are moderated, we can delete your email if you wish. Then be sure to check out and follow Duane Lester Twitter and visit the All American Blogger.
ARRA News Service and Dr. Smith were listed with the following bloggers on the list of 200 People to follow:
Tags:ARRA News Service, Bill Smith, blogger, Duane Lester, twitterTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by William Warren, NetRight Daily Tags:Related Tags: Bailouts, Big Government, taxpayers, Corporate turkeys, unions, Political Cartoons, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Cartoons, The Horn of Plenty, William WarrenTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Another Perspective: Detroit Needs a Selloff, Not a Bailout
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: Robert W. Crandall and Clifford Winston are senior fellows at the Brookings Institution. In The Wall Street Opinion Journal, they have offered a different perspective to either a bailout or bankruptcy for the auto industry. Since it is unlikely that Congress can come up with a solution and the management of the auto industry has failed to prepare contingency plans, it seem we should consider these type of real world alternatives. Although not prepared to endorse the following plan, I admit that it has more merit than the other two alternatives offered to date with the bailout being the worst option.
by Robert W. Crandall and Clifford Winston: Congress was decidedly unimpressed by the three domestic auto makers' plea for a bailout last week and responded by asking them to do the impossible: conjure up plans by Dec. 2 detailing how a bailout would revive them. After more than three decades of denial about their long-term decline, Detroit's car companies must now face the facts. A bailout will not revive them. Moreover, the leading alternative that has been proposed by others -- bankruptcy -- will not re-energize these companies sufficiently to reverse their decline.
In our judgment, based on experience elsewhere in American industry, the most constructive role the government can play at this point is to provide a short-term infusion of capital with strict repayment rules that will essentially require the auto makers to sell off their assets to other, successful companies. Why is such a dramatic step necessary? For the unavoidable reality that the fundamental problem the auto makers face is not their pension, health-care or other legacy costs. It is that they are not making cars and trucks that enough Americans want to buy. And this has been true to some degree since the first energy shock hit the U.S. in the early 1970s.
In 1970, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler made about 90% of the new cars sold in the U.S. Today their share is closer to 40%. Their market share of light trucks has also declined, but less precipitously thanks to a 25% tariff on many imported light trucks. . . . The gaps between U.S. and foreign competitors simply have become too large to make up by reducing labor costs or rationalizing capacity. Even if the overall economy rebounds and gives Detroit auto makers some breathing room to emerge from bankruptcy, they will likely face similar -- if not more severe -- problems in the next recession.
In the end, the capital and labor of these companies need to be reallocated into better hands. To this end, we suggest that assistance of some form -- short-term financing or government purchase of equity -- be granted under the condition that the Detroit Three restructure their labor relations so as to be able to sell some or all of their major assets. There are a number of potential buyers for these assets. Toyota's market cap is $100 billion and Volkswagen's market cap is $110 billion. Either could bid for these assets. Honda, Nissan and even U.S. companies in related sectors, such as Caterpillar or John Deere, are possible buyers. . . .
By establishing firm mileposts for asset divestitures from which the companies could repay government funds, taxpayers could be reasonably assured that their money is well spent. But if Congress enacts a bailout without our conditions, the U.S. taxpayer will likely be on the line not only for additional support in the next recession, but likely on a regular basis for the foreseeable future. We do not generally support government assistance to failing companies. But we think that our proposal will cost taxpayers less and, in the long run, be more beneficial to labor and the overall economy than either a straight bailout or bankruptcy.
Tags:auto industry, bailout, bankrupt, US CongressTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Tags:big government, government, problems, solutionsTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Phyllis Schlafly: Conservatives face a major political challenge, but they can tackle and overcome it as they have done three times before. Three prior examples demonstrate the right way and the wrong ways to put America back on track and bounce back from a disappointing election. . . . After Republicans lost in 1976, Ronald Reagan spent four years working the grassroots, speaking at dinners, answering audience questions, traveling the country by car and train (he refused to fly), making radio broadcasts, and learning from average Americans. By 1980, Reagan had sharpened his conservative philosophy in sync with what Americans want from their leaders.
In the period from 1976 to 1980, grassroots conservatives and Ronald Reagan learned from each other. That's the model conservatives should follow now and educate new leaders. When the economy and foreign policy fell apart under the liberal presidency of Jimmy Carter, conservatives were positioned to defeat him in 1980. Candidates, consultants and activists today should move outside of Washington, DC and discover what the remaining 99 percent of the country wants. . . . Republicans should follow Ronald Reagan's example and focus on the grassroots with a campaign that will be a learning process for both the voters and potential candidates. [Full Article: Time to Follow Reagan's Example] Tags:grassroots, Phyllis Schlafly, Republican Party, Ronald ReaganTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
The documents below clearly show the meaning of Thanksgiving as intended by the nation's Founders. Today in most public schools God is not mentioned and Thanksgiving becomes a historical event rather than a Christian celebration of thanks to God. Please pass the document links on to others or print them out for distribution.
Tags:Abraham Lincoln, First Thanksgiving, George Washington, Thanksgiving Proclamation, ThanksgivingTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Through history our leaders have led
the celebration of Thanksgiving.
Tags:presidents, proclamation, thankful, ThanksgivingTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Gary Varvel Tags:Gary Varvel, pardon, President, Thanksgiving, turkeys, US GovernmentTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Ken Blackwell: A reenergized GOP must make Republican principles appealing both to its base and also to the changing face of America. If the party of Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan wants to return to power, it must become the party of the 21st century. . . . America is a center-right country, both economically and socially. The majority of Americans support domestic energy development, low taxes, and allowing people choice in their retirement planning and their children's education. The majority of Americans also support marriage between a man and woman, restrictions on abortion, protecting common religious expressions such as "one nation under God," and Second Amendment freedoms.
On these and many other issues, the Republican Party embraces what the majority of Americans believe, and the Democratic Party opposes those same positions. These policies naturally flow from the basic Republican principles of limited government, economic opportunity and personal responsibility. Such policies represent the three legs of the Reagan Coalition: economic conservatives, social conservatives, and national-security conservatives.
Unfortunately, Republicans have not been true to Republican principles. Federal spending has been at utterly disgraceful levels for years. The past eight years have seen a massive expanse of federal power into areas formerly left to the states or to individuals. The plain truth is that some of the things that President Bush and the Republican majority did gave conservatives a bad name, and so the GOP lost the voters' trust. These repeated and constant failures sapped the energy out of the GOP base. It led to some voters staying home or not contributing their time and money. Some even jumped ship in protest.
Republicans have failed to communicate new and innovative ideas to persuade new voting blocs that GOP principles are something they should support. Hispanics, working women and Reagan Democrats can all be persuaded to vote for the GOP. Republicans must have solutions that reach these voters where they are. And there are solutions that represent Republican principles that can win their support. . . . Republicans must excite, energize and mobilize their base, while reuniting old coalitions and forming new ones. They must provide bold and innovative leadership to recapture that sense of optimism and opportunity. In 1994, the party refocused and found its way back. It will do so again. Tags:Core Beliefs, founding principles, GOP, Ken Blackwell, Republican PartyTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Michael Quinn Sullivan: The Plymouth Colony was established as a communal society -- an experiment in socialism. No one had an incentive to work, so disease and famine forced the pilgrims to adopt liberty and capitalism. The result? Much for which to be thankful! The following video tells the story of the real cause of the problems at the Plymouth Colony: socialism. It was liberty and property rights that saved them. Their wisdom in rejecting the flawed "communal life" is something for which we can be thankful.
Conn Carroll: Giving Thanks for the Free Market: There is much talk these days of how conservatives need “new ideas” in these troubled economic times. And as we look at our nation’s troubled landscape, there is much work that needs to be done if we are going to return economic prosperity to the country. But as we sit down to celebrate Thanksgiving with our friends and family, recalling the true story of the Pilgrims should remind us all that the core principles that have made this nation great are unchanging, and that we risk ruin if we abandon them.
Most children learn that the Pilgrims’ salvation at Plymouth Colony stemmed from the generosity of local Indians. And while there is no doubt that the American natives did help the immigrants through some early tough times, it was not until the Pilgrims rediscovered the importance of private property that the colony began to thrive and was able to give thanks for their own blessings. When the Pilgrims first arrived, they attempted a form of, in Gov. William Bradford’s words, “community” or “commonwealth.” In other words, they attempted to “spread the wealth around” by destroying private property and replacing it with a communally owned property system.
The result was disastrous. According to Bradford, this system bred “confusion and discontent” and “retarded much employment that would have been to [the settlers’] benefit and comfort.” Unable to produce their own food, some settlers “became servants to the Indians,” cutting wood and fetching water in exchange for “a capful of corn.” It was not until the colony changed course and allowed the private ownership of farmland that prosperity returned. Bradford reported, “This had very good success for it made all hands very industrious. … [M]uch more corn was planted than otherwise would have been. … Women went willingly into the field, and took their little ones with them to set corn.”
A profoundly religious man, Bradford saw the hand of God in the Pilgrims’ economic recovery. Their success, he observed, “may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato’s and other ancients and applauded by some of later times … that the taking away of property … would make [men] happy and flourishing; as if they were wiser than God.” Bradford surmised, “God in his wisdom saw another course fitter for them.” Amen to that. Tags:capitalism, commonwealth, First Thanksgiving, fiscal responsibility, free market, Heritage Foundation, liberty, Pilgrims, Plymouth, private property, socialism, William BradfordTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
The Nutty Russian - Sees America Destroyed & Alaska Back in Russia
A top Russian political analyst predicted that the United States is heading for collapse and will divide into six separate parts. Canada, Mexico and the U.S. will adopt the Amero currency, and China and Russia will regulate world markets. After reading Panarin's predictions, you may agree with Albert Einstein who had ways of appropriately giving his opinion on issues. [see photo].
by Barbara Sowell - According to RIA Novosti (Russian News and Information Agency), Professor Igor Panarin was interviewed by Izvestia and the interview was published on Monday. If and when the U.S. breakup comes about, Panarin says that "we” (Russia) “could claim Alaska - it was only granted on lease, after all."
Panarian said that because the U.S. dollar “is not secured by anything,” and because America’s debt has “grown like an avalanche” at more than $11 trillion, this “is a pyramid that can only collapse.” Panarin has been making this prediction since 1998. RIA Novosti reported that Panarin made these dire predictions at an international conference in Australia 10 years ago when the U.S. economy appeared to be strong. Panarin hedged when it came to pinpointing the exact time of the "expected” U.S. economic collapse . . .
He predicted that the U.S. will break up into six parts - the Pacific coast, with its growing Chinese population; the South, with its Hispanics; Texas, where independence movements are on the rise; the Atlantic coast, with its distinct and separate mentality; five of the poorer central states with their large Native American populations; and the northern states, where the influence from Canada is strong. . .
According to RIA Novosti, Panarin claimed that a secret (North American Union) agreement in 2006 was reached between Canada, Mexico and the U.S. making the Amero currency the new monetary unit. This Amero will replace the dollar under the pretext that “terrorists are forging them and they need to be checked." . . . [Top Russian Analyst Predicts U.S. Breakup and New North American Currency]
Turn about is fair play. Check out Russia and the Global Economic Crisis by Stephen Sestanovich published by the Council on Foreign Relations which addresses Russia’s failing economy. As Barbara Sowell appropriately summarised, "Apparently Russia’s economy isn’t doing all that well. Export earnings from energy and metals are sharply declining, corporate balance sheets are over-leveraged, there is a “chorus of bailout appeals,” bank failures, credit crunches, failing real-estate and mortgage defaults . . . and the list goes on." Tags:Alaska, amero, Barbara Sowell, Canada, economy, Human Society of United States, Mexico, RussiaTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Update on "Will Senators Mark Pryor & Blanche Lincoln Sell Out Workers?"
Bill Smith, Editorial Update (Tues., Nov. 25, 2008; 1:34 pm): My prior reported concerns that Senators Lincoln and Pryor may be willing to sell out workers and Arkansas values are now confirmed as being closer to the truth than even suspected. Today, an Arkansas Demorcat-Gazette story provides confirmation of my concerns. It appears that Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln are so rooted in Washington D.C. politics that they may indeed sellout Arkansas workers and Arkansas values. I first postulated the issue as a question. However, it is now time to forget questioning and their "politicianspeak." It is time to insist that both Lincoln and Pryor support Arkansas values and workers by voting against this deceitfully-named “Employee Free Choice Act” (aka: Card Check) which deprives workers of the right to a secret ballot and subjects them to threats and intimidation by thugs supporting the union. Contact both of Lincoln and Pryor now!
Doing the light fantastic - Our senators and the secret ballot: HERE IS Blanche Lincoln's latest non-stand on whether American workers should retain their right to a secret ballot when it comes to unionizing their plants: "I know it's a big concern among the business community," she told Little Rock's chamber of commerce the other day, "and I know it's a big concern among the labor community. I hope what we don't do is to allow that discussion to become a distraction to the very critical issues that are facing this country right now."
What could be a more critical issue than preserving Americans' right to the secret ballot, Senator Lincoln didn't specify. She was too busy ducking and covering. Somebody who didn't know better might suspect, perish the thought, that our senior and ever-politic U. S. senator was just wheeling out some preparatory excuse for not doing the right thing. . . .
This isn't leadership, and it's certainly not a stand for principle. It's just waffling. Here's hoping that Senator Lincoln will finally summon the courage, or just the sense of responsibility, to come out against the union bosses' latest attempt to deprive American workers of their right to a secret ballot. And if she can't do that, to at least tell her constituents here in Arkansas where the heck she stands.
The other senator from Arkansas, Mark Pryor, isn't quite as smooth. He doesn't dance around this issue so much as slouch around it: he describes this power grab of a bill as "not perfect, and while I have been supportive in the past, I will consider amendments to make it better if and when it is considered by the Senate." What's that supposed to mean, exactly ? That he's hoping the issue will go away before he has to cast his vote fir or agin? The senator's last great service to hardpressed workers in this state—when he was still Arkansas' attorney general—was to allow payday lenders, a nice term for loan sharks, to charge hard-pressed borrowers usurious rates on small loans.
If and when our two U. S. senators make up their mind on this issue—perhaps they have and just don't dare tell the rest of us — it would be nice to get a straight answer out of them. Should they decide that Americans should be denied a secret ballot at their workplace, their votes would not be without irony. Having just participated in the Democratic caucus in the Senate, which allows senators to cast their ballots in secret for their leaders, they would have tried to deny the same right to American workers.
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor (Sunday, Nov. 23, 2008; 3:34 pm): A deceitfully-named “Employee Free Choice Act” (aka: Card Check) is pending in Congress. A Townhall article relates:
Basically, the act states that if a union can collect signed cards from more than half of a company’s workers, the shop can be automatically unionized with no secret-ballot -- and no chance for employees to hear from their employer and learn about the pros and cons of the union before making a final decision (for example, employees might want to know about union corruption, that they would lose the right to negotiate pay raises and promotions based on merit, that they might be forced to strike, etc).
The proponents of the bill point out it doesn't not eliminate the option for a secret ballot -- and technically speaking, they are correct. However, the truth is that there’s almost no way that procedure will ever be used if the easier card-collection mechanism is legalized. In essence, this act wouldn't just eliminate the secret ballot, it would actually eliminate the ballot. ... So yes, this effectively would eliminate the secret ballot by rendering it a moot point. Once the cards are collected, there is no need for an election -- businesses are mandated to begin negotiating only with the union representative.
While unions strangled the auto industry in Detroit and other industries across the nation, union membership has decreased. In the Southern Right to Work States the auto industry and other industries are flourishing. The union's leadership are none too happy and have supported Democrats in hopes of gaining more influence with special emphasis on getting "Card Check" passed. Even tough 30-40 percent of union members are Republicans, the vast majority of union money goes to Democrats. As such, many union members are forced to contribute financially to causes they abhor. While research has not been able to identify the estimated percentage of conservative democrats in unions, they also oppose many causes supported by the unions.
Arkansas has been a strong Right to Work state. However, even in Arkansas, employees are able to unionized with the present secret employee voting process. Arkansas offers many enticements for business to locate in Arkansas. Currently, Arkansans and the Arkansas state legislature would likely oppose passage of the deceitfully named “Employee Free Choice Act.” However, Arkansas State Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln will be key players and critical in supporting the values of Arkansas by supporting the right of employees to continue to have their secret vote on their choice whether to unionize. It is disappointing that union leadership has sought to take away worker's secret voting rights thus substituting harassment to expand their power and influence.
When I want to know what is going in South America, Central America or the Caribbean, I rely on Fausta. Below is an important update on Latin America. by Fausta: There are four countries in Latin America with nuclear power plants: Cuba, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, but here’s what’s in the news regarding recent nuclear agreements in Latin America. Wednesday last week, the Guardian reported, . . .
Russia’s deepening strategic partnership with Venezuela took a dramatic step forward yesterday when it emerged that Moscow has agreed to build Venezuela’s first ever nuclear reactor.
President Dmitry Medvedev is expected to sign a nuclear cooperation agreement with his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chávez, during a visit to Latin America next week, part of a determined Russian push into the region.
The reactor is to be named after Humberto Fernandez Moran, a late Venezuelan research scientist and former science minister, Chávez has announced. It is one of many accords he hopes to sign while hosting Medvedev in Caracas next week.
The prospect of a nuclear deal between Moscow and Caracas, following a surge in Russian economic, military, political and intelligence activity in Latin America, is likely to alarm the US and present an early challenge to the Obama administration.
This should not come as a surprise to Latin America watchers, since Chavez has been hinting for quite a while, and France and Venezuela have been working on a nuclear energy deal, too.
Cuba’s nuclear plants may present a threat to the US, but for a different reason: Cuba’s crumbling infrastructure: As this 1992 Heritage Foundation report explains, the two Soviet-designed VVER-440 nuclear reactors in Juragua, near Cienfuegos, just 250 miles from Miami, are mired in faulty design, shipshod construction, and the support structure of the plants contains numerous faulty seals and structural defects.
A Libyan official says Argentina’s visiting president has offered her country’s help in developing nuclear energy in the North African nation.
Libyan Cabinet official Mohammed al-Mesmari says the Argentine leader also signed areements in trade, agriculture and science during her meeting with Moammar Gadhafi.
Argentine President Cristina Fernandez’s six-day tour of North Africa also included stops in Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. The trip was meant in part to help ensure developing countries aren’t forgotten in efforts to solve the financial crisis.
Argentina has also helped build atomic reactors in Algeria and Egypt.
Argentina has three power stations: two in Atucha and one in Embalse, and back in 2006 pledged more funds tocatch up with Brazil’s nuclear program. Brazil and Argentina have had, at times, their own nuclear weapons race. According to thisGlobal Security.org report, . . . [Nuclear Latin America] Tags:Argentina, Brazil, Caribbean, Cuba, Hugo Chavez, Latin America, Mexico, nuclear plants, nuclear weapon, Russia, Venezuela To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Struggling Banks Paid President Clinton $2.1 million for ‘Speeches’
(CNSNews.com) - Four major banks, including one that collapsed, two that received federal bailout money and one that filed for bankruptcy this past September, paid former President Clinton $2.1 million for 13 speeches he delivered on their behalf between 2004-2007, according to Senate financial disclosure statements filed by Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.). Citigroup paid Bill Clinton $700,000; Goldman Sachs paid $950,000; Lehman Brothers paid $300,000 and Merrill Lynch paid $175,000 to the former president for speeches during that time period. Sen. Clinton’s 2008 financial disclosure reports are not yet available. Though some of the investment banks were able to entertain the former president more than once, each was eventually affected by the credit crunch. . . . [Full Story] Tags:bailout, banks, Bill Clinton, investment companies, lender bailout, speechesTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Alan Colmes will relinquish his role as co-host of Hannity & Colmes at the end of the year. In announcing his decision, Colmes said, “I approached Bill Shine (FNC’s Senior Vice President of Programming) earlier this year about wanting to move on after 12 years to develop new and challenging ways to contribute to the growth of the network. Although it’s bittersweet to leave one of the longest marriages on cable news, I’m proud that both Sean (Hannity) and I remained unharmed after sitting side by side, night after night for so many years.”
Colmes will continue to have a presence on FNC as he will serve as a liberal commentator on a variety of FOX News programming, including FoxNnews.com’s The Strategy Room and continue hosting his radio program, The Alan Colmes Show on FOX Talk, a division of FOX News Radio. He will also begin developing a weekend program. ARRA Editor: Strange that Colmes is quitting after the Democrats have won the White House and control of Congress. Tags:Alan Colmes, Fox News, Sean HannityTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
You can help stop the EPA dead in its tracks right now. As part of the regulatory process, the EPA must take comments from the public before issuing its final ruling. The EPA is not forced to listen forever. The agency will stop taking comments this Friday.GO TO StopEPA.com and let the EPA know what you think. IT IS EASY, WE JUST DID IT! Tags:action alert, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, jobs, lost jobs, public commentTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Conn Carroll, The Morning Bell, The Heritage Foundation: Failure is a part of U.S. business culture. That is why Americans feel extremely comfortable buying tickets from bankrupt airlines, electronics from bankrupt retailers, and apartments from bankrupt builders. To paraphrase a popular bumper sticker: bankruptcy happens. Bankruptcy does not have to be the end for any business. Instead bankruptcy, under Chapter 11, offers court-supervised protection from creditors so that a business can reorganize itself into a new successful form. The larger and more complicated a company is, however, the more preparation it must do before it can enter Chapter 11. In fact the executives of businesses facing tough economic times have a fiduciary duty to their shareholders and creditors to develop a bankruptcy plan. Only the most irresponsible executives would shirk this duty, and only the most conniving would do so knowingly as part of an effort to blackmail the American taxpayer. Enter General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner.
Testifying before Congress. . ., Wagoner admitted that GM has “put virtually all effort into avoiding” bankruptcy and has not worked out a detailed contingency plan. By contrast, Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli said his company has “looked at all aspects” of a potential bankruptcy filing and has “gone through advisers to help us think this through.” The Wall Street Journal reports: "Because of its refusal to make plans for a bankruptcy, GM is “courting a Lehman-like situation,”. . . ." In other words, by willfully failing to plan, Wagoner is trying to maximize the pain a GM bankruptcy would cause so that Congress is forced to act. Giving in to Wagoner’s cynical game of chicken would be a disaster for the economy. . . . If Congress, or the Obama Administration, grants GM its bailout, they will have created a perpetual bailout machine, one that prompts every troubled industry in the country to abandon its fiduciary duty to plan for the worst and, instead, come to Washington demanding a handout. . . . [Source and comments]See also:Romney Advises "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt" Tags:auto industry, bailout, bankrupt, Chapter 11, Heritage Foundation, Morning BellTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Democrats Upped The Ante Again! Washington D.C. - Nov 24, 2008
The Congress is in recess but could return for a lame duck session beginning December 8th. However, Democrats, over the weekend, upped the ante again on a potential stimulus package. In October, the Democrat-controlled House passed a $61 billion spending package, but over the course of a month there were calls to increase that number to between $150 and $300 billion.
The Washington Post reports, “President-elect Barack Obama and other Democrats are rapidly ratcheting up plans for a massive fiscal stimulus program that could total as much as $700 billion over the next two years. . . . New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D), an Obama adviser, and Harvard economist Lawrence H. Summers, whom Obama has chosen to lead his White House economic team, both raised the possibility of $700 billion in new spending. Yesterday, Obama adviser and former Clinton administration Labor secretary Robert Reich and Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) also called for spending in the range of $500 billion to $700 billion.”
The Post also notes some concerns with such a huge spending proposal: “There are downsides to such a dramatic increase in government spending, especially at a time when the annual federal budget deficit already is spiraling toward $1 trillion -- about 7 percent of the gross domestic product -- a level not seen since the end of World War II. Increasing the deficit means increasing the national debt, which eventually will have to be repaid, with interest, to largely foreign creditors. It also means the nation will be even less prepared to cover the skyrocketing costs of Medicare and Social Security as the baby boomer generation retires.”
It appears that Democrats are taking Obama’s advice when he said on 60 Minutes recently, “And (consensus is) that we shouldn’t worry about the deficit next year or even the year after . . . .” At some point, though, Democrats and the Obama team are going to need to consider our financial situation when calling for massive spending programs.
Friday, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell held a press conference and warned Senate Democrats that Republicans expect to be allowed to amend legislation and will stand together to protect their rights to do so. According to Roll Call, “McConnell released a letter signed by the entire GOP Conference to Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) calling on him to use a more open process for advancing legislation in the 111th, a clear warning to Reid that Republicans will be looking to stand together over the next two years. . . . The 42 Republican Senators represent 157 million Americans. Their voices are entitled to be heard, and the way to be heard in the Senate is an open amendment process,’ a clearly rejuvenated McConnell told reporters.” Sen. McConnell also noted, “After the ‘04 election, one Democratic senator said, and I quote, ‘What gets in the way of an American dictator is the funny thing we call the Constitution. And the Senate is set up so that the minority has tremendous power, and we want to work with the president.’ That Democrat was Harry Reid.”Tags:Democrats, economic stimulus, Harry Reid, Mitch McConnell, Republican, US Congress, Washington D.C.To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
With the current ongoing development of a transformation about to occur in January in Washington D.C., "Jay L", a reader, suggested confirmation the discovery of this element. So we assigned this job to the Ozark Guru. by Ozark Guru: In the last couple years, word has leaked via the Internet that research has led to the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science. Although the new element has been confirmed by professionals and amateurs, it appears that scientist have not wanted to replace radioactive Ununoctium (118) on the periodic table. The radioactive ununoctium atom is very unstable, and since 2002, only three atoms of the isotope Uuo have been detected. Scientists fear that once "Uuo" is replaced at the end of the period table by the heaviest element, this annotation will lead to limited funding to chase after after creating, "finding." a forth "Uuo" atom. These scientist having nothing to fear but should readily support updating the period table because their opportunities for more funding can be expected to increase not decrease.
The discovery of the newest element is not actually new! Its discovery, although affecting everyone, seems to been kept "officially" secret by government bureaucrats for some time. Note that on Aug 11, 2001, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger visited the Lawrence Livermore National Labatory's National Ignition Facility. Schwarzenegger has been constantly plagued by California financial crisis and it was rumored that he want to find something new to "pump up" the California "girly-man" economy as the newest element was a drag on his administration..
In addition, some confusion occurred previously when an amateur working for the Democrat Underground Latent Laboratory (DULL) tried to calculate calculating the weight of an expectant newly found element and excitedly called the new element Bushcronium. However, the amateur also worked for the government as a moron. The moron miscalculated the atomic mass (weight) and also failed to note that over different time period the neutrons may exchange form.
A review of published, limited data, showed that a major research institution (MRI) has confirmed the discovery of the heaviest chemical element yet known to science. While some alleged that California's M&M Univ. was the MRI, this claim has been debunked. President Pea Nut of M&M relayed that their M&M lab (in the M&M Discovery College's M&M Science Dept) using a research grant had discovered a new non-radioactive but addictive element that may add more gaiety to food coloring. They hope to market the element to their sole unnamed financial contributor.
MRI has identified the new element as
"Governmentium" (Gv), Gv has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312. However, neutrons may exchange form during different time periods. These 312 particles are held together by forces called "morons," which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called "peons." Since "Governmentium" has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every action with which it comes into contact.
A minute amount of "Governmentium" can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second, to take from four days to four years to complete. "Governmentium" has a normal half-life of 2-6 years; it does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, "Governmentium's" mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming "isodopes." This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that "Governmentium" is formed whenever morons reach a critical mass concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass.
When catalyzed with money, "Governmentium" becomes "Administratium," an element that radiates even less energy but has double the mass of "Governmentium," since it has half as many "peons" but twice as many "morons."
In available research footnotes, the following notations were found:
- some are concerned that the element may actually have an expanding life expectancy and may find a way to expand it sown atomic weight to 535.
- the DULL moron who miscalculated the element weight did noted correctly one of the a property of Gv; the element may can spontaneously transmute itself in to other forms like Pandemonium (Pm). Others are Earmarks (Eaks), Bailouts (BOs), Pandering (PG), Taxation (Tax), . . . Others with info or opinions about this new element, should leave your comments at the link below! Tags:Arnold Schwarzenegger, bureaucrats, government, humor, political satire, truthTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Tags:auto industry, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Card Check, cartoons, change, humor, IAW, no change, political humor, unionsTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Update on "Will Senators Mark Pryor & Blanche Lincoln Sell Out Workers?"
Bill Smith, Editorial Update (Tues., Nov. 25, 2008; 1:34 pm): My prior reported concerns that Senators Lincoln and Pryor may be willing to sell out workers and Arkansas values are now confirmed as being closer to the truth than even suspected. Today, an Arkansas Demorcat-Gazette story provides confirmation of my concerns. It appears that Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln are so rooted in Washington D.C. politics that they may indeed sellout Arkansas workers and Arkansas values. I first postulated the issue as a question. However, it is now time to forget questioning and their "politicianspeak." It is time to insist that both Lincoln and Pryor support Arkansas values and workers by voting against this deceitfully-named “Employee Free Choice Act” (aka: Card Check) which deprives workers of the right to a secret ballot and subjects them to threats and intimidation by thugs supporting the union. Contact both of Lincoln and Pryor now!
Doing the light fantastic - Our senators and the secret ballot: HERE IS Blanche Lincoln's latest non-stand on whether American workers should retain their right to a secret ballot when it comes to unionizing their plants: "I know it's a big concern among the business community," she told Little Rock's chamber of commerce the other day, "and I know it's a big concern among the labor community. I hope what we don't do is to allow that discussion to become a distraction to the very critical issues that are facing this country right now."
What could be a more critical issue than preserving Americans' right to the secret ballot, Senator Lincoln didn't specify. She was too busy ducking and covering. Somebody who didn't know better might suspect, perish the thought, that our senior and ever-politic U. S. senator was just wheeling out some preparatory excuse for not doing the right thing. . . .
This isn't leadership, and it's certainly not a stand for principle. It's just waffling. Here's hoping that Senator Lincoln will finally summon the courage, or just the sense of responsibility, to come out against the union bosses' latest attempt to deprive American workers of their right to a secret ballot. And if she can't do that, to at least tell her constituents here in Arkansas where the heck she stands.
The other senator from Arkansas, Mark Pryor, isn't quite as smooth. He doesn't dance around this issue so much as slouch around it: he describes this power grab of a bill as "not perfect, and while I have been supportive in the past, I will consider amendments to make it better if and when it is considered by the Senate." What's that supposed to mean, exactly ? That he's hoping the issue will go away before he has to cast his vote fir or agin? The senator's last great service to hardpressed workers in this state—when he was still Arkansas' attorney general—was to allow payday lenders, a nice term for loan sharks, to charge hard-pressed borrowers usurious rates on small loans.
If and when our two U. S. senators make up their mind on this issue—perhaps they have and just don't dare tell the rest of us — it would be nice to get a straight answer out of them. Should they decide that Americans should be denied a secret ballot at their workplace, their votes would not be without irony. Having just participated in the Democratic caucus in the Senate, which allows senators to cast their ballots in secret for their leaders, they would have tried to deny the same right to American workers.
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor (Sunday, Nov. 23, 2008; 3:34 pm): A deceitfully-named “Employee Free Choice Act” (aka: Card Check) is pending in Congress. A Townhall article relates:
Basically, the act states that if a union can collect signed cards from more than half of a company’s workers, the shop can be automatically unionized with no secret-ballot -- and no chance for employees to hear from their employer and learn about the pros and cons of the union before making a final decision (for example, employees might want to know about union corruption, that they would lose the right to negotiate pay raises and promotions based on merit, that they might be forced to strike, etc).
The proponents of the bill point out it doesn't not eliminate the option for a secret ballot -- and technically speaking, they are correct. However, the truth is that there’s almost no way that procedure will ever be used if the easier card-collection mechanism is legalized. In essence, this act wouldn't just eliminate the secret ballot, it would actually eliminate the ballot. ... So yes, this effectively would eliminate the secret ballot by rendering it a moot point. Once the cards are collected, there is no need for an election -- businesses are mandated to begin negotiating only with the union representative.
While unions strangled the auto industry in Detroit and other industries across the nation, union membership has decreased. In the Southern Right to Work States the auto industry and other industries are flourishing. The union's leadership are none too happy and have supported Democrats in hopes of gaining more influence with special emphasis on getting "Card Check" passed. Even tough 30-40 percent of union members are Republicans, the vast majority of union money goes to Democrats. As such, many union members are forced to contribute financially to causes they abhor. While research has not been able to identify the estimated percentage of conservative democrats in unions, they also oppose many causes supported by the unions.
Arkansas has been a strong Right to Work state. However, even in Arkansas, employees are able to unionized with the present secret employee voting process. Arkansas offers many enticements for business to locate in Arkansas. Currently, Arkansans and the Arkansas state legislature would likely oppose passage of the deceitfully named “Employee Free Choice Act.” However, Arkansas State Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln will be key players and critical in supporting the values of Arkansas by supporting the right of employees to continue to have their secret vote on their choice whether to unionize. It is disappointing that union leadership has sought to take away worker's secret voting rights thus substituting harassment to expand their power and influence.
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by Dan Calabrese, Real Clear Markets: Apparently the rest of America just doesn’t understand. So says the Detroit News, the Detroit Free Press, Detroit-area talk show hosts and business and political leaders of all shapes and sizes. Mean old America. Criticizing the Big Three automakers without having our facts straight or understanding the car business. The car business is indeed difficult to understand from outside the Detroit bubble. It is difficult to understand hundreds of billions of dollars thrown at people and things that contribute nothing to the generation of revenue. It is difficult to understand how a company can believe it deserves to survive, in spite of the consumer market’s mass rejection of its products . . .
