County News Online Blogs

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Mail Magazine 24... Court Upholds Greenhouse Gas Rule; Congress Needs to Step Up, by Nicolas Loris
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia unanimously upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) finding that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions are a threat to public health and the environment. Although not a surprising decision, the ruling is a disappointing one. Unless Congress prohibits the EPA’s regulatory assault on fossil fuels, Americans will suffer from dramatically higher energy costs and a slower economy-all for no noticeable change... read more

Investors.com… The Supreme Court’s Ruling Is As Damaging As It Is Historic
By Tom Stemberg - June 28 - This week the Supreme Court delivered one of the most consequential and highly anticipated rulings in history — it upheld President Obama’s health care law. In doing so, the court — and this administration — dealt a critical blow to free enterprise and ensured that taxes will go up for middle class working families and small businesses everywhere. This dims prospects for... read more

Townhall Finance... The Cinnamon Bun Solution, by Bob Goldman
If you’re wondering why your workdays are so miserable, I have the answer. The problem is not what happens when you get into work. The problem is what happens when you get up in the morning. Or, to be more specific, what doesn’t happen. If you’re the sort of person who drags themselves out of bed, praying that an injection of the magic elixir called caffeine will bring you to life, you are not using your mornings productively. I realize that this is a difficult concept to embrace -- especially if you... read more

Redstate... The Arizona Decision and What It Means, Posted by davenj1
Monday, June 25th - Today, the United States Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision (with Justice Kagan recusing herself), mainly gutted Arizona’s SB 1070, the state’s immigration law. Make no mistake, although prevailing on the most publicized aspect of the case, Arizona lost. What is somewhat surprising is the legal rationale used and if you are a conservative proponent of state laws that address the problem of... read more

Redstate... I’m Not Down on John Roberts, by Erick Erickson
Thursday, June 28th - Having gone through the opinion, I am not going to beat up on John Roberts. I am disappointed, but I want to make a few points. John Roberts is playing at a different game than the rest of us. We’re on poker. He’s on chess. First, I get the strong sense from a few anecdotal stories about Roberts over the past few months and the way he has written this opinion that he very, very much was... read more

Redstate... Tax Cuts for the Rich – Bad; Subsidies – Good, by Daniel Horowitz
Barack Obama and the Democrats have promised to make this election a turning point in the fight to make the rich “pay their fair share” of taxes. They are using biblical innuendo to suggest that it is immoral for the top 1% of earners (who happen to make 17% of nation AGI) to only pay 36.7% of the federal income taxes. This is their hill to die on. Accordingly, one would expect Democrats to be the first ones to issue garrulous protestations against farm handouts for the rich. At present, more than... read more

Verities & Balderdash… The dog-eat-dog world of corporate life, Edited by Bob Robinson
There isn’t much to say about this one… the photos pretty much speak for themselves. I got this from a reader a while back and finally had time to format the photos. I’ve spent more time than I would like to admit working with people who come to mind with every picture in this set… from the CEO to the administrative assistant to the courier. I even had to help out a CEO after a company event. Didn’t get... read more

Monumental Mistake: Eisenhower Memorial, By Audrey Hudson
6/19/2012 - It has been described as sentimental kitsch, a “McMonument” flanked by Soviet-style iron curtains with towering columns that are reminiscent of missile silos. The proposed monument to honor Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th U.S. president and supreme commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during WWII, has also been labeled as sterile and beneath the great man’s dignity. Critics say the concrete and limestone tribute will clash with the classical designs of other noble monuments along.... read more

Townhall Finance... Job Openings drop 8 Percent; Private Sector Shoulders nearly all of the Pain
The CNBC headline says it all: “Job Openings Report Show Market is…Really, Really Bad” - not the stuff of which re-election campaigns are made. It is all about the newest JOLTS (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey) report from the Labor Department that new job openings declined by 325,000 in April; an 8% drop in just one month. New hires also declined in April by 160,000. Nearly 9-out-of-10 of the decline in job openings was in the private.... read more

Mail Magazine 24... Obama Is in Serious Trouble in Pennsylvania, by Mike Flynn
One of my first jobs in politics--decades ago--was to analyze the “undervote” in uncontested primaries. An undervote happens when a voter fails to register a vote in a particular primary contest when there is only one candidate on the ballot. In essence, the voter simply skips over the race. It happens either because the voter hasn’t heard of that candidate or they have some basic opposition to that candidate. Our general rule of thumb was that a candidate who had more than 10% undervote was in... read more

Dayton Business Journal... Gov. Kasich rolls out reforms
Thursday, June 21, 2012 - An unprecedented, top-to-bottom review of state agency operations and programs, launched by Ohio Gov. John Kasich only months after passage of his historic Jobs Budget in 2011, has produced hundreds of common-sense reforms that reduce the cost of government and revitalize Ohio’s ability to keep and attract jobs. By challenging his cabinet agencies with this review, the governor has broken... read more

Mail Magazine 24… Unreal: EPA Mandates Oil Refiners Use Fuel That Doesn’t Exist, By Duane Lester
Just when you think you have heard the most ridiculous thing you can think of, the EPA goes and proves you wrong: Federal regulations can be maddening, but none more so than a current one that demands oil refiners use millions of gallons of a substance, cellulosic ethanol, that does not exist. “As ludicrous as that sounds, it’s fact,” says Charles Drevna, who represents refiners. “If it weren’t so frustrating and infuriating, it would be comical.” And Tom Pyle of the Institute of Energy Research says... read more

Human Events... TV Watching Dollars at Stake in Complex Policy Battle, By John Hayward
6/20/2012 - Broadcast television stations have a complicated relationship with cable and satellite television providers. A broadcast TV station is beaming its content into space, where it can be freely received and viewed by anyone with a suitable antenna. But the good old days of “rabbit ears,” wired into television consoles that could be used as furniture, are long behind us. Most people get their TV feed from cable or... read more

Akron Beacon Journal... Gone studyin’
June 20, 2012 - The Ohio House Finance Committee spent the spring brushing up on the basics of the school funding system. The House plans several regional hearings on the issue during the summer break. When it comes to funding public education, it is hard to say Ohio legislators have not done due diligence in one aspect: studying the issue. Since the Ohio Supreme Court first ruled the state’s funding system unconstitutional, a succession of governors and legislators have promised earnestly to... read more

Ohio.com... All layered up
June 18, 2012 - The hope of the Kasich administration, which last week released a report on local governments sharing services, is to encourage greater collaboration at the grass roots. To do so holds much potential for reducing expenses and improving services, quite a feat at a time of sharply curtailed state support for cities, counties and schools. “Beyond Boundaries: A Shared Services Action Plan for Ohio Schools and Governments” plows some familiar ground, previous reports establishing... read more

Human Events... Senate kills effort to block EPA regulations on coal-powered plants
By Audrey Hudson - 6/20/2012 - Legislation to defeat an EPA emissions rule that critics say would kill thousands of jobs and raise electricity rates for consumers was killed in the Senate Wednesday. A handful of Republicans sided with Democrats to block the measure on a procedural vote of 46 yeas to 53 nays, including Sens. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Scott Brown... read more

Townhall Finance... The Schizophrenia of the AMA, by Hal Scherz
In the aftermath of the Obama presidential election, healthcare reform became an intensely debated political issue, and the American Medical Association (AMA) had a difficult time deciding their position on the Affordable Care Act (ACA, Obamacare). In 2009, the AMA initially announced that they could not support President Obama’a plan for healthcare reform. One week later, they abruptly reversed course, proclaiming that they were completely behind his plan; support which proved... read more

Townhall... A Change We Can Hope For, by Ken Blackwell
Jun 15, 2012 - Vice President Joe Biden is almost casual about ending marriage. It’s “inevitable,” he says. He thinks it’s not such a big deal. But it is a big deal. Recognizing same-sex couplings as marriages will mean the end of marriage. That’s because saying yes to two men or two women marrying opens the door to polygamy. Those who have delved into the issue know this. George Washington University Law... read more

The Nation... This Week in Poverty: Disposable Families in Ohio, by Greg Kaufmann
June 15, 2012 - Since January 2011, Ohio has thrown nearly 70,000 people—including 40,000 children—off of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance program, called Ohio Works First (OWF). That’s nearly 25 percent of the state’s TANF caseload. The reason? The state faces up to $130 million in federal penalties if 50 percent of the adults receiving assistance don’t meet the federal work participation requirement by September 30. “Seventy thousand people is... read more

Townhall Finance... Influence Peddling with a Shade of Green, by Bob Beauprez
Everybody has heard about Solyndra and the many other failures of the DOE green energy grant and loan program replete with scandalous political paybacks to Obama supporters. Now there’s another one. It involves the largest single loan guarantee of the entire $16 billion program, a current Cabinet Secretary and a former Chief-of-Staff to Vice-President Joe Biden. BrightSource Energy spent two years and half... read more

Verities & Balderdash... Life is Not Fair, Edited by Bob Robinson
This has often been attributed to Bill Gates. I have not verified that, but I’ve seen it in a few college classrooms. Bill Gates could have said it; Steve Jobs could have said it as just about any other self-made millionaire could have said it. It is intended for students... I say it is something that we ALL need to understand. If you want to succeed in life, don’t look to government or charity. Make up your minds that there’s a lot of hard work involved and, as they say... read more

Townhall... A Global Recession?, by Larry Kudlow
Is it possible that we are already in a global recession but just don’t know it yet? And is the U.S. itself -- still the epicenter of the world economy -- standing on the front edge of another recession? I sincerely hope I’m wrong. But warning signs are everywhere. The eurozone economy is flat on its back. Greece may be headed for a political crackup and an exit from the euro and European Union. Deposit runs in Greece and elsewhere are.... read more

Redstate... The White House Is Not Enough, by Erick Erickson
Monday, June 18th - Consider this Wall Street Journal editorial your must read of the day. It highlights why adding conservatives to the United States Senate is so important. This past week, Republican in the Senate, including Mitch McConnell’s leadership picks, sat idly by saying nothing while the Senate Democrats pushed forward the nomination of Andrew Hurwitz, who helped formulate the reasoning behind Roe v. Wade while a law clerk. Hurwitz is quite fond of that bit of his legacy. Andrew.... read more

Townhall Finance... Assuming the Future, by Bill Tatro
We all know what happens when we assume. We laugh at the break-up of the word and vow it will never happen to us. However, in the U.S., the word “assume” has a much broader meaning which is to “take for granted.” Think about it, every single hour of every single day we take many things for granted. For example, just by getting into our car, several assumptions are made. We believe the vehicle has been aptly assembled so that it doesn’t fall apart. It’s presumed the ignition system will fire and... read more

Townhall... Obama’s Ludicrous Self- Portrait as a Budget Hawk, by David Limbaugh
Jun 15, 2012 - I saw it with my own eyes on a video clip that Sean Hannity played. At a speech in Baltimore, President Obama laughingly dismissed the notion that he is responsible for our nation’s current spending orgy. Seriously. Sporting a wide grin, Obama said, “I love listening to these guys give us lectures about debt and deficits.” He must think this subject is a real knee-slapper. He continued: “I inherited a... read more

Christian Science Monitor... What Obama and Romney aren’t talking about: America’s class divide
By John J. Pitney Jr. - June 13, 2012 - CLAREMONT, CALIF. I am the proud son of a hardworking milkman. I also have a PhD from Yale. Such a combination is a bit unusual, and a new book suggests that it will become even rarer. Therein lies a story of class mobility, an issue that is crucial for our country’s future and that ought to be part of the presidential campaign. In “Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010,” political scientist Charles Murray amasses a large amount... read more

Redstate... Liberal and Incompetent, Posted by Gov. Bobby Jindal
Thursday, June 14th - A few weeks back I found myself at the scene of the crime… campaigning in Wisconsin with Governor Walker. One thing was abundantly clear, and if you spent any time helping out Governor Walker in his campaign, you can attest to this — The radical left has taken over the Democrat Party. Last Tuesday in Wisconsin, the silent majority was very loud. Call it the... read more

Mail Magazine 24... The Trap of Minority Studies Programs, By John Ellis
When Naomi Schaefer Riley was fired by the Chronicle of Higher Education for her trenchant remarks on Black Studies programs, most of those who criticized the firing saw in it a display of the campus left’s intolerance. Fair enough, but this episode also has a much broader meaning. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, large populations of poor immigrants arrived in the U.S.--Irish, Italians, and Jews from Russia and Poland. Their extreme poverty placed them at the bottom of... read more

Verities & Balderdash... The Older Crowd, Edited by Bob Robinson
A distraught senior citizen phoned her doctor’s office. “Is it true,” she wanted to know, “that the medication you prescribed has to be taken for the rest of my life?” “’Yes, I’m afraid so,”’ the doctor told her. There was a moment of silence before the senior lady replied, “I’m wondering, then, just how serious is my condition because this prescription is marked ‘NO REFILLS’.” An older gentleman was on the... read more

Heritage Foundation... Auto Bailout Was Really Just a UAW Bailout
President Obama told the United Auto Workers (UAW) in February not to listen to critics of the auto bailout who said union members “made out like bandits—that saving the auto industry was just about paying back the unions.” “Really?” Obama said. “I mean, even by the standards of this town [Washington], that’s a load of you-know-what.” New research from Heritage labor economist James Sherk proves that it was, in fact, a load of truth. The Treasury Department estimates that taxpayers will lose... read more

More Evidence the GOP is Not Serious About Spending, Posted by Erick Erickson
Thursday, June 14th - I have repeatedly bemoaned the Republicans (and Democrats) for not doing enough to cut spending. Sixteen trillion dollars in debt and rising. Trillion dollar deficits. Billions of dollars spent every day. Well, the incredibly resourceful Club for Growth is out with another look at the GOP and Democrats’ commitment to cutting spending this morning, and it isn’t pretty. The Club has compiled a mini-scorecard... read more

Heritage Foundation... Postal Pension “Refund” Is a Disguised Taxpayer Bailout, By David John
June 12, 2012 - Abstract: Calls to refund “overpayments” by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to the retirement of postal workers are misguided. The estimates of overpayments are inflated by overly optimistic assumptions, as recent years have demonstrated. A refund would leave taxpayers on the hook for future shortfalls in USPS retirement funding. The better choice is to follow the private-sector practice of using the current surplus—whatever it is—to defray future retirement payments... read more

Human Events... Obama’s Public Sector Full Employment Plan, By Ann Coulter
6/13/2012 - Last week, President Obama said “the private sector is doing fine.” This was not reassuring to those of us who suspect the Democrats haven’t the first idea what “private sector” means. He did not help matters by becoming lachrymose over the suffering of public sector employees: “Where we’re seeing weaknesses in our economy have to do with state and local government. ... And so... read more

The Washington Times... GAFFNEY: Hold Obama accountable, By Frank J. Gaffney Jr.
America can’t afford malpractice in the Oval Office - Monday, June 11, 2012 - Suddenly, congressional leaders of both parties are demanding investigations into serial disclosures of national security secrets on President Obama’s watch. The truth of the matter is that we already know what we need to about those leaks. The question is: Will anybody do anything about them? Of course, the leaks are already out there - prominently featured, for example, on the front pages of the New York Times... read more

Townhall... Our Republic Depends on the Revival of Honor, by Gina Loudon
An excerpt from Ladies and Gentlemen: Why the Survival of Our Republic Depends on the Revival of Honor, by Dr. Gina Loudon and Dr. Dathan Paterno. Lady and gentleman are somewhat familiar terms, for sure. We hear them from magicians and carnival emcees. Billboard advertising manipulates those words into a twisted description of strip clubs. We sometimes view examples of them on quaint Hallmark... read more

ORP Chairman Bennett ... Obama: “The private sector is doing just fine.”
COLUMBUS - In a Friday morning press conference, President Obama said, “the private sector is doing fine.” In response Chairman Bennett issued the following statement: “President Obama has made it abundantly clear to the people of Ohio that he has no clue about the day-to-day challenges families face in this struggling economy. In Ohio more than 431,000 people are unemployed, and nationwide 23 million Americans are struggling to find work. "President Obama clearly can’t see what is.... read more

Townhall... The Real ‘War on Women’, by Thomas Sowell
Among the people who are disappointed with President Obama, none has more reason to be disappointed than those who thought he was going to be “a uniter, rather than a divider” and that he would “bring us all together.” It was a noble hope, but one with no factual foundation. Barack Obama had been a divider all his adult life, especially as a community organizer, and he had repeatedly sought out and allied himself with other dividers, the most.... read more

Redstate... If Only They Don’t Go Wobbly, Posted by Erick Erickson
Thursday, June 7th - Our Republican Leadership in Washington, D.C. is extremely risk adverse. It is very clear the leadership has convinced itself, despite historic truth, that Newt Gingrich lost his job because of the government shutdown way back when. They do not want to have protracted fights. They want to appear reasonable. They crave the press’s adoration of “grown ups” and “reasonable men.” I expect Barack Obama to capitalize on this Republican lack of self-esteem before October... read more

Townhall... The Four Lies About the Economy That Obama Needs Voters to Believe
by Larry Elder - Jun 07, 2012 - President Barack Obama’s re-election turns on his ability to convince voters that 1) Obama inherited a “Great Recession,” 2) every “independent” economist supported the “stimulus,” 3) “bipartisan” economists agree that Obama’s stimulus worked, and 4) as actor Morgan Freeman puts it, racist Republicans say, “Screw the country ... we’re going to do whatever we can to get this black... read more

Townhall… Three Cheers for Our National Anthem, by Jeff Crouere
Before athletic contests and major events, audiences across America are treated to the National Anthem, the song known as the Star Spangled Banner. The inspiring lyrics were written by Francis Scott Key in 1814 while observing the Battle of Fort McHenry. Eventually, it was set to music and became our country’s National Anthem in 1916. Sadly, this week, the Star Spangled Banner was attacked by liberal talk show host Bill Press, who claimed the song was “stupid.” Press is typical of... read more

Mail Magazine 24... The Other Union Takedown, by Arnold Ahlert
While most of the mainstream media focused their attention on Wisconsin and Scott Walker’s victory Tuesday night, an equally, if not more significant vote occurred in two California cities. Voters in San Diego and San Jose overwhelmingly approved cuts to retirement benefits for city workers. San Diego voters approved “Proposition B” by a 66-34 margin. It was even worse for government unions... read more

Townhall Finance... Democrats and Algebraic Death, by Mark Baisley
Something remarkable is happening in America; something that gives me hope for our economic and innovative future. Stodgy establishments are being superannuated. That’s right, superannuated. The Oxford Dictionary defines superannuated as “cause to become obsolete through age or new technological or intellectual developments.” As a personal example, I recently broke off my 23 year devotion to the local phone company in favor of a VOIP technology solution; more functionality at... read more

The Cost of Education is More than Just Dollars, by Michael Becker
Full disclosure, I have an undergraduate degree in engineering, went to a business graduate school and I’m currently working on a second technical bachelors degree. I’ve spent a lot of time hanging around higher education. And over my lifetime I’ve watched the value of “college” drop in direct proportion to the increases in the cost of college. The Washington Post’s Robert Samuelson more or less... read more

Mail Magazine 24… Businessman Faces Backlash After Appearing on Obama’s Enemies List
by Rob Bluey and Brandon Stewart - Frank VanderSloot grew up a poor kid in rural Idaho. His father made $300 a month. His clothes came from the Salvation Army. Yet through determination and hard work-and with the help of America’s free-enterprise system-today he’s the successful CEO of a global supplier of wellness products. VanderSloot’s rags-to-riches story is not unlike other American tales of individuals who have benefited from the free market. In VanderSloot’s case, however... read more

Catholics! Fight! Fight! Fight!, by Katie Kieffer
Jun 04, 2012 - If you love freedom, cheer up. For, Catholics are marching into the game, fighting the fight for you! Catholic leaders like the University of Notre Dame are battling an unconstitutional health care mandate. Rah! Rah! Rah! Fighting Obamacare is a hard job but somebody’s got to do it. Today, Catholics are doing it. Their lawsuits will help protect the First Amendment rights of all Americans. So, even... read more

The Foundry... Morning Bell: A Historic Win for Reform in Wisconsin, by Mike Brownfield
June 6, 2012 - The state of Wisconsin has once again lived up to its billing as a Midwestern incubator of Big Ideas. In yesterday’s case, when voters resoundingly defeated a liberal effort to recall Governor Scott Walker (R), the Big Idea was that reformers who come armed with the strength of their convictions can carry the day–even against mobs, labor unions, Hollywood, the media, academia and everything else the left throws up these days. All reformers need to do is lead. In Walker’s... read more

Townhall... A Grim Jobs Report for America, By Larry Kudlow
You would think $1 trillion in spending stimulus and $2.5 trillion of Fed pump-priming would produce an economy a whole lot stronger than 1.9 percent GDP, which was the revised first-quarter number. And you’d think all that government spending would deliver a whole lot more jobs than 69,000 in May. But it hasn’t happened. The Keynesian government-spending model has proven a complete failure. It’s the Obama... read more

Columbus Dispatch... Obama had help in creating spending mess
Here’s a simple suggestion for Mitt Romney: Admit that the Democrats have a point. Right before the Memorial Day weekend, Washington was consumed by a debate over how much Barack Obama has spent as president, and it looks like it’s picking up again. Romney says that he’ll “lead us out of this debt-and-spending inferno” ignited by Obama. The president’s defenders say, in effect, “What inferno?” White House Press Secretary Jay Carney scolded reporters last week not to “buy into... read more

Redstate... The Whupping in Wisconsin: Seven Key Conclusions, by Erick Erickson
Hey, we should do this again — one more recall in Wisconsin. Fourth time’s the charm. Right? Right? - Wednesday, June 6th - “Now I know what MSNBC means by lean forward. I leaned forward as I was viewing, watching for signs of possible coronaries live on TV.” Last night in Wisconsin, Democracy died because Republicans spent a bunch of money and Wisconsin saw record voter turnout levels across... read more

Akron Beacon Journal... Proficient learners
In 2001, education reformers on Capitol Hill and the White House set a high goal for the nation’s public schools: The No Child Left Behind Act would ensure that every child was proficient in math and reading by 2013-14. States would set proficiency targets and measure districts and schools on Adequate Yearly Progress. Progressively stern interventions awaited districts and schools that failed persistently to make the required progress. As an aspiration, the goal of 100 percent proficiency is ... read more

Investors.com... The Lowlights Of Obamanomics
The Obama Record: May’s weak jobs report further confirms the president’s policies are failing to help the economy. This is, indeed, the worst recovery since the Depression. Negative superlatives associated with this presidency keep piling up. The toll so far: • The share of Americans who’ve been out of work a long time — now at 42% of the unemployed — is the highest since the Great Depression.... read more

Townhall Finance... Does Anyone Still Like Obama? by John Ransom
In another blow to Obama’s reelection bid, consumer confidence, which has been low throughout Obama’s presidency, stumbled badly last month after economists initially predicted confidence would go up. The number indicates that the onslaught of people and politicians abandoning the S.S. Obama continues unabated. In recent weeks, allies of Obama have defected from his campaign message if not from his person. Forget about polls numbers for a moment. Consumer confidence is the number... read more

Human Events... Obama campaign may be fooling itself, by Michael Barone
May 31, 2012 - “Axelrod is endeavoring not to panic.” So reads a sentence in John Heilemann’s exhaustive article on Barack Obama’s campaign in this week’s New York magazine. Heilemann is a fine reporter and was co-author with Time’s Mark Halperin of a best-selling book on the 2008 presidential campaign. While his sympathies are undoubtedly with Obama, he does a fine job of summarizing the arguments and tactics... read more

Mail Magazine 24... Top Five Ways Obamacare Crushes the Middle Class, by Alyene Senger
President Obama has repeatedly claimed that he is “going to keep on fighting for what matters to middle class families.” Well, in this “fight,” the President seems to be his own worst enemy. His health care law does far more damage than good to the American middle class. Here are the five most prevalent and harmful burdens the middle class will be forced to bear under Obamacare: More taxes. Obamacare imposes $502 billion of new or increased taxes and fees. Heritage expert Curtis Dubay... read more

Redstate... Study Reveals the Gulf of Mexico Permitting Mess, Posted by Steve Maley
Thursday, May 31 - In a rational world, the Federal government would act as a motivated lease owner who was interested in promoting the safe and environmentally responsible development of his mineral resource, consistent with sound conservation practice. That’s why there’s a permit process in the first place. Since Macondo, that’s backwards. Operating practices must conform to the permitting... read more

Townhall... America and the Pursuit of Greatness, by Bill Tatro
“Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness,” seven words indelibly written to stand the test of time. When those words were originally written, it was with the idea that people from all over the world would have a safe place to live while escaping the oppression of their everyday life. Whether it was a government, a religion, or a political party that was dominating their existence, these foreigners understood that in a new world things would be different. America represented a place where... read more

Bush Was Right (in 2000), by Katie Kieffer
May 28, 2012 - Let’s make foreign policy like it’s 2000. I think we will support our troops and vets by revisiting the foreign policy that former President Bush expressed in 2000. Otherwise, we will send brave hearts into vain battles. In October, 2000, George W. Bush debated Al Gore on C-SPAN. He said: “I think one way for us to end up being viewed as the ugly American is for us to go around the world saying: ‘We do it this... read more

Townhall Finance... Outsourcing Our President, by John Ransom
Ok; I’ll admit that shipping Obama off to be president of Europe isn’t a very original idea. But still it bears repeating at this critical time because: 1) I don’t like Old Europe very much; 2) Under socialists it just got older; 3) Obama’s work is done here and the Mothership looks like it ran out of “green” fuel on 2008; and 4) Europe’s response to their reckless spending problem happens to be…BEGGING for more reckless spending. And I can’t think of anyone I’d rather see steward Europe’s... read more

Townhall... Improving Life for Workers, by John Stossel
May 30, 2012 - It seems intuitive that a free market would lead to a “race to the bottom.” In a global marketplace, profit-chasing employers will cut costs by paying workers less and less, and shipping jobs to China. It’s a reason that progressives say government must step in. So America now has thousands of rules that outlaw wages below $7.25 an hour, restrict unpaid internships and compel people... read more

Redstate... Sex Selection Abortion in America, Posted by Breeanne Howe
Tuesday, May 29th - In the wake of Chen Guangcheng arriving safely in the United States, after years of persecution in China for his anti-abortion activism, The House of Representatives will vote tomorrow on H.R. 3541 (also known as the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act – PRENDA), a bill to ban sex-selection abortions in the United States. Although the US has strongly condemned China for their sex-selection abortion practices, only four states (AZ, OK, PA and IL) currently... read more

Investors.com... The Notion Of “Meaningful Work” Is A Disservice To Society
By Thomas Sowell - ‘Education” is a word that covers a lot of very different things, from vital, life-saving medical skills to frivolous courses to absolutely counterproductive courses that fill people with a sense of grievance and entitlement, without giving them either the skills to earn a living or a realistic understanding of the world required for a citizen in a free society. The lack of realism among many highly... read more

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