Boehner Blinks

House GOP Agrees to Extend Payroll-Tax Cut for 2 Months

It’s a matter of debate whether we could have actually won this debate. Gingrich was the best Republican Speaker in a generation and when he pounded the spending cuts issue in the 90s, he was savaged. I think it was Time mag that had him on the cover with the title “The Gingrich that Stole Christmas”, unfair or not, it’s a description that has stick to this day. That said, he was able to lead the House, passed important legislation and Clinton signed it.

Republicans are the “Daddy Party”, so it’s pretty easy to portray them as cruel an heartless – particularly just before Christmas. Newt had the temperament to persevere through that crap, clearly, Boehner does not.

Is a Bad Hair Day a "Medical Condition"?

Citing medical condition, Edwards seeks delay in trial

2012, The Year of Living Vacuously

Our problem, dear friends, is that the unserious are becoming a major force in the formation of policy and they’re fortified by unserious minions, such as OWS, who act as combination sounding boards and think tanks. The unserious press in the form of the infotainment cabal that includes everyone from Brian Williams to Jon Stewart to the shrews on shows such as “the View”, dutifully keep the information flowing – always on cue and always exquisitely coordinated. They don’t need talking points memos or real organization; with twitter and Facebook, it’s the embodiment of the Borg and the best part is that they’re all doing it quite voluntarily, even joyfully. They’re told precisely what they want to hear and regurgitate on cue.

As a country, as a society, we stink of decay and weakness. No insult is to great for us to absorb in the interest of “diversity”. We bow down to 14th Century barbarians as though they were majestic, even adopting their customs and religion thus breaking centuries-old customs handed down by our forefathers. In the interest of understanding, we’ve re-written our own history and beat our breasts in regret for the monumental achievements of our forbears.

I look about and wish I were 88 instead of 58, for I would prefer not seeing what I believe will be the demise of “the last, best hop for mankind”. I my minds eye, I see a malevolent darkness that will descend upon mankind and the true meaning of “The Four Horsemen” painfully crystallizes in my mind.

No, war is not the worst fate that can befall mankind; the loss of the past on which we build our future is. There’s been an unbroken chain, centuries old, well predating the United States, we call Western civilization. That chain is in ill repair and is under attack.

For all of his foibles, Newt Gingrich said, in one of his lectures, that an entire civilization can be lost in one generation and it vanishes with remarkable quickness and irretrievably. I see the beginnings of that loss on a daily basis and it gives me nothing but dread about the future.

2012 is not a year i’ll welcome, it’ll be one that i’ll approach cautiously, and with a jaded eye.

Happy New Year, indeed. It will not be pretty, nor happy.

"Virtual" War Criminals?

The International Red Cross has officially descended into farce.

Video games and IHL: how should the Movement take action?

While the Movement works vigorously to promote international humanitarian law (IHL) worldwide, there is also an audience of approximately 600 million gamers who may be virtually violating IHL. Exactly how video games influence individuals is a hotly debated topic, but for the first time, Movement partners discussed our role and responsibility to take action against violations of IHL in video games. In a side event, participants were asked: “what should we do, and what is the most effective method?” While National Societies shared their experiences and opinions, there is clearly no simple answer.

Should we laugh or cry?