Crushing on Bobby Darin

Back when performers had talent...

Spring Break Officially Begins!

And not a moment too soon!  It's a balmy 82 degrees here today and I'm ready to begin a long week of R & R!  Lest you think SIGIS will be sitting around doing nothing all week, think again.  We've got a little day trip scheduled for tomorrow, I have Mom duties Monday and Tuesday, carpets to steam clean, flower beds to clean and plant, a yard to mow, dogs to bathe and Friday we're headed to the Barksdale AFB 2nd Annual Crawfish Boil.  Stay tuned to see if I master the Electric Slide this year.  I'm notoriously uncoordinated so don't count on it.  And next Saturday we'll be headed to Minden to see what Milly Rose has acquired in her shop since our last visit in February! 

But for now, a Noble Pils and the sunshine is calling me. 

DOJ is FUBAR

In case you needed further proof that Obama's Department of Justice is FUBAR, consider the decision by Eric Holder and company to sue the Berkley school district on behalf of a 29 year old teacher who was refused a three week leave of absence (in December!) so she could perform the hajj.

Mona Charen reports that this teacher had only been on the job for nine months when she made her request.  In Berkley, as in most school districts, they like their teachers in the classroom, especially when preparing for high stakes testing.  Safoorah Khan, the teacher requesting leave, is a math teacher.

In the end, she quit her job so she could perform her religious duty and filed a complaint to the EEOC, got a lawyer, and now the DOJ has taken up the case.  The rationale for the DOJ is to combat “a real headwind of intolerance against Muslim communities.”

Seriously?

As Charen points out, this district just wanted a teacher in the classroom.  They didn't refuse this request because of her religion; they refused it because they also have a job to perform which is educating the children of the district.  They didn't tell Miss Khan that she'd be fired for performing the hajj on her own time.  The refused to give her three weeks off during the school year.

I wonder if the Berkley school district allows for sabbatical leave?  Couldn't she do her time, file for sabbatical and then go, if this fell during a school year?  Or, as Charen suggests, wait until such a time that she could do this during her summer vacation?

Ridiculous.  Even more ridiculous is that DOJ would look twice at this considering they refused to prosecute the New Black Panther Party for blatant voter intimidation caught on tape.

FUBAR.

Why Would I Think That?

Just walked into the room and caught a FOX News Alert coming up - a statement on the NATO agreement on action in Libya.  I thought, "Finally!  Obama is going to speak to the American people, while actually IN America, about Libya!"

Silly me.  Why would I think that?

Obama, Brazil, and Gulf Oil Exploration.

Is Obama just plain trying to ruin America's energy industry?

Apparently Obama would rather buy oil from foreign sources while he tilts at windmills and looks to the future of "green energy." 

Since the BP oil spill last spring, the Obama administration has issued five new deep water permits.  Five.  Bloomberg reports today that Chevron received the fifth permit for exploration in the gulf. 

While Chevron is the fifth company permitted to resume work in the area following the last year’s Deepwater Horizon rig explosion, it’s the first to be allowed to tap a reservoir that has never produced, according to the regulator. 

Thirty-nine shallow permits have been issued to date with 13 still pending.  Why the hold on shallow water permits when the BP spill was deepwater?  The Bureau of Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement has 8 permits pending for wells in depths greater than 500 feet. 

We have vast oil reserves in the Gulf of Mexico, yet Obama would rather buy oil from Brazil or the Middle East.  Victor Davis Hanson calls this a "man made energy crisis," which is something akin to a "man made disaster," I'm afraid.

Consider the logic of the president’s Orwellian declaration: The United States in the last two years has restricted oil exploration of the sort Brazil is now rushing to embrace. We have run up more than $4 trillion in consecutive budget deficits during the Obama administration and are near federal insolvency. Therefore, the United States should be happy to borrow more money to purchase the sort of “new stable sources of energy” from Brazil’s offshore wells that we most certainly will not develop off our own coasts. 

Does this make any sense at all?  It does if what you want to do is ruin the energy industry in America. In Brazil, Obama said:

“With the new oil finds off Brazil, President [Dilma] Rousseff has said that Brazil wants to be a major supplier of new stable sources of energy, and I’ve told her that the United States wants to be a major customer, which would be a win-win for both our countries.”

Just makes you want to slap your head, doesn't it?  It's not exactly a "win-win," buddy.  Why buy oil from Brazil when we have our own?  Of course, Brazil gets to drill in the Gulf of Mexico. Is Brazil going to drill for our oil and sell itback to us?  THAT makes a lot of sense.  Earlier this month Petrobras received permission to pull oil out of the Gulf, conveniently gaining approval right before Obama's Fabulous Brazilian Adventure.

It's not just oil.  How could we forget Obama's promise to bankrupt the coal industry?  To his credit, he didn't shut down the coal mining industry after the last mine disaster as he did with the oil industry and the BP spill.  Union pressure, maybe.

Cap and trade?  One shudders to think what that monstrosity would have done to energy prices. 

Hanson makes the case that Obama's vision is to turn America into something European with high speed rail and high gas prices:

At a time of trillion-dollar deficits, the administration is borrowing billions to promote high-speed rail, and is heavily invested in the federally subsidized $42,000 Government Motors Chevy Volt. Apparently the common denominator here is a deductive view that high energy prices will force Americans to emulate European centrally planned and state-run transportation.

That would be the key term - "state run."  State run transportation, state run health care, even massive expansion of entitlement programs all fit into Obama's vision of America.

I've got new for you.  That's not my vision of America AT ALL.  What in the world is wrong with drilling our own oil and supporting the current energy industry in our country rather than bankrupting it?  Why not drill in the gulf and why not open ANWR?  What a naive puppet this man is.  How clueless.

Truly.  Every act he commits reveals pure naivete. 

You want to develop "green energy," fine.  But don't run us out on a limb and then saw it off with your solar powered chain saw.


(Graphic from EOEarth)

Spring Break is Coming

I haven't updated this week; we've been testing at school and we've also got research papers due this week.  I'm drowning.

Spring Break is next week and I'm hoping to get some blogging done, get this poor blog off life support, and find a way to balance it all once again.  A little yard work and rest would be nice, too.

If you're still here, thanks for sticking around.

Bailey Gets a Treat

A little video of my grand-puppy. He's about six pounds, maybe.  We've returned safely from Dallas and the I-20 speedway.  The beer security system worked just fine (and to anyone concerned and prepared to call the child welfare people on me, it was just a joke, really.  Calm down.)

We had a great time even though the Stars lost.  We saw a great game that went into overtime.  Can you believe they charge $6.50 at the American Airlines Center for one Samuel Adams Boston Lager?  One bottle?  I have no brains.  I had three of 'em. 

Going to unpack and decompress a bit. 

Buford

This wonderful dog belongs to my daughter's in-laws. He's got lots of personality and is a big (BIG!) baby!

Shootout Coming Up

Stars!

My Grand-Puppy

Beer Security System

We're on the road today, headed to Dallas for the Stars/Flyers game tonight.  I'm leaving my 19 year old in charge on the home front.  Do you think this security system will work?

Hope so.

Fallout

Check out this interactive map at NYT on the path of the radiation plume.  But don't worry.  Obama says it's okay.  No worries.

Green Beer Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day, otherwise known as Green Beer day here at SIGIS. 

The Fork You Say!

Those dastardly, insidious Republicans on Capitol Hill are doing everything they can to undermine the Democrats, right down to taking away their compostable cups and utensils at the three House cafeterias.

Viva the return of plastic cups and forks!  Foam containers!

Under the tenure of Nancy Pelosi, the House food vendors began using "green" eating utensils and cups, but the Republicans complained that these biodegradable items didn't hold up, saying "the spoons would often dissolve in hot liquids, and forks and knives bent and snapped"  According to reports from Capitol Hill, the forks couldn't even penetrate lettuce.  Shocking!

And so, the Republicans have brought back the foam.  The plastic!

“Contrary to the objective of the program,” said Salley Wood, the spokeswoman for Representative Dan Lungren of California, chairman of the House Administration Committee, who moved to end the program, composting “failed to produce significant savings in carbon emissions.” On that score, she said, the total savings were equal to taking one car off the road per year. 

Yet again, proof that "green energy" is more expensive?   Miss Wood says the program was more expensive than the foam 'n plastic program:

The program took $475,000 each year from the fees that the House collected from the food vendor, Restaurant Associates, between the materials, labor and costs of hauling refuse out.

Pelosi's office is not pleased.

Advice to enviro-conscious libs in Congress?  Bring a baloney sandwich in a brown paper bag. 

Obamacare Must Go NOW

Michael Tanner at NRO is less than impressed with the Republican effort to repeal Obamacare:

In fact, one wonders what the Republican leadership is doing to stop Obamacare. Sure, they took a vote to repeal it. But since there was no chance that a repeal bill could get through the Senate and past a presidential veto, the vote was mostly symbolic. Since then, what have Republicans done? There was another vote calling for various committees to propose an alternative health-care reform. Where is it? Where are the votes on proposals to kill some of the more unpopular aspects of the health-care law? What about the individual mandate? The employer mandate? The new taxes? What about CLASS Act, the long-term care program? Even Secretary Sebelius says that it won’t work as currently structured. Why has there been no vote to repeal that?

Cutting off funding for Obamacare now is all the more important because the administration is pushing full speed ahead on implementation. And the sad fact is that Obama is all too often being aided by Republicans.

It does, in fact seem as if little is being done beyond simple symbolic measures. 

The number of waivers has climbed to over 1,000, the mandate has been declared unconstitutional, it's already been proven that Obamacare won't lower costs or the deficit and in fact Sebelius admitted to the double counting fiasco.

I'm with Mr. Tanner on this one: it's time to get rid of Obamacare before it's too late.

Today's "WTF Moment" Comes Via Politico

Via Politico, a real WTF moment:

Texas Sen. John Cornyn, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, helped elect Rubio, and like many Republicans, is putting a lot of pressure on him to live up to expectations.

Hunh?  Isn't Cornyn the guy who endorsed Crist right out of the gate?  What am I missing here?

(Cross posted at Not One Red Cent!)

Are You More Worried About Obama's NCAA Brackets Than You Are Japan?

It's been a while since I posted one of these but somehow it just fits right now:

Obama's detachment while "Rome burns" is beyond belief.  Long ago I concluded that nothing this putz did would shock me and he consistently proves me wrong.

As yet another CR is passed with no real resolution to the budget issues, (you'll remember, it was the Dems that kicked that can down the road last year...), as Libya continues to disintegrate, as the news from Japan gets worse and worse with each passing hour, what is Fearless Leader doing?  Well, his NCAA brackets, of course!  Not only that, he's taping a spot with ESPN about his picks.  Does anybody really CARE? 

I'm rather worried about the kind of person who cares more about who Obama has picked in his brackets that what happens to Japan, Libya or the United States. 

And lest we sound repetitious at SIGIS, I must ask once again, can you just imagine if GWB had diddled like this? 

We watched helplessly as Obama golfed his way through the Iranian protests last year.  In fact, during those protests for freedom, Obama planned a luau, grilled with Bobby Flay, and invited the Iranian ambassadors over for hot dogs.  We sat by as he made little or no comment on Egypt.  He's ignored one world crisis after another while concentrating primarily on his golf game under the pretense of not wanting to interfere with the business of other nations.  And it a "let them eat cake" moment, he jokes about this at the Gridiron Dinner. 

Yet now, with Japan, when Obama has an opportunity in his Saturday address to plea for funds, for donations, for aid, what does he do?  He votes "present."  He runs a pre-taped spot on Women's History Month.  Hunh?  It's as if he didn't even know the world was in a meltdown.  With Libya, he has now, now, directed his staff "to fully engage in the discussions" with NATO and the UN.  Were we not "fully engaged" before?

I'm sorry, but I have less respect for this jerk as each day goes by.  I don't respect him as a leader, much less as a man.  My goldfish has bigger gonads than this putz.

Please.

Sunday Afternoon Browser Tabs

I spent most of the day grading papers and updating grades for the end of the nine weeks reporting period.  It has been a gorgeous day and, believe it or not, I really wanted to be outside raking leaves but it just didn't happen.  (My neighbor has a wicked oak tree that sheds vigorously this time of year.)

There are a couple of quick links to pass along - as Jimmy Bise would say, "clearing the browser tabs:"

The news from Japan is worse every time I look at the news, but this video is simply incredible.  No special effects master from Hollywood could adequately replicate this video of the tsunami coming ashore.   Via Memeorandum.

Pundette rounds up a world in crisis and notes that Obama hit the links today.  Priorities.  Appearances matter.

Via Arts and Letters Daily, I found this essay fascinating.  You never know who is sitting in your classroom.  And sometimes, you do.  I've never had this exact situation, but close, and I know exactly what she's talking about.

If you live in the Houma, La. area, keep an eye out for Haze.

Michelle Malkin's family is still searching for Marizela.  Continue to spread the word, please.

Bride of Rove plays the Q&A game!

I'm going offline for the night; I'm still engrossed in my studies of the Pacific war.  I have six or seven memoirs standing by.  Yeah.  I hit Amazon pretty hard last week. 

Perspective

Incredible.  From CNN:

The powerful earthquake that unleashed a devastating tsunami Friday appears to have moved the main island of Japan by 8 feet (2.4 meters) and shifted the Earth on its axis.


"At this point, we know that one GPS station moved (8 feet), and we have seen a map from GSI (Geospatial Information Authority) in Japan showing the pattern of shift over a large area is consistent with about that much shift of the land mass," said Kenneth Hudnut, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

Reports from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Italy estimated the 8.9-magnitude quake shifted the planet on its axis by nearly 4 inches (10 centimeters).

 It's hard to get my head around that.  I hope I remember that when I start bitchin' about what a bad day I had at work or some other insignificant gripe.  It puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

Spring is Here!

Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: Spring Forward Edition

The FMJRA returns today with spring in the air and my calendar still so chock full I can barely catch a breath.  We have a slower day today, however, and I plan to make the best of it.  Our run started several weeks ago with the start of Mardi Gras; parades and events have consumed the last three weekends.  This evening we have a surprise party to attend, next weekend a trip to Dallas and a Stars game, and then maybe we can squeeze in a trip the weekend after that to Minden and see what new treasures Milly has in store.

My list of Things to Do is overwhelming and I don't know where to even start.  But I have some basic domestic issues to attend to here at the SIGIS home base and would like to get some yard things done, too.  Fingers crossed.

I love spring.  Baseball is coming.  St. Patrick's Day (and green beer at Hangar 2!) is this week, there are 9 more weeks until summer, and I love the warm, lazy days ahead!   Don't forget to spring forward tonight and set your clocks for Daylight Savings Time.

On another note, all the news from Japan continues to be horrible.  Let's round up some links and see what's going on in the blogs:

Legal Insurrection exposes (again) the bias of PolitiFact.

Pirate's Cove reminds us why Jesse Jackson is irrelevant.

Doug Ross has some stunning images from Japan.  The power of nature, indeed.

The Other McCain takes a look at Obama's press conference yesterday.  If that's what you want to call it.

American Power finds yet another example of civility from the left.

For your musical interlude, Reaganite Republican remembers Three Dog Night.

Ed Driscoll notes that Peggy Noonan continues to alienate conservative readers.

Fenway Nation has been posting excellent coverage of the disaster in Japan.

No Sheeples Here made me snicker - Harry Reid, cowboys, and Brokeback?  OMG.

WyBlog has had enough of Lisa Murkowski, not to mention the RNC NRSC and NRCC.  (Hope you're staying dry up there, man!)

Pundette was linked by Mark Steyn, and with good reason; this is a spot on post.

Mind Numbed Robot has a mind numbingly huge roundup but worth every link!  Good stuff!

Critical Narrative points out that gas prices have risen 67% under Obama. 

Pecan Corner links to a new blog about Paris; it's on my list to check out.

Please do NOT ask Bride of Rove for a restaurant recommendation in the Keys.  Bwahahahahaa!  She cracks me up.

I've got to get moving.  I have to plant some Hollyhocks, shampoo carpets and finish grading To Kill a Mockingbird finals so I can enter report card grades.

Have a great Saturday!

Earthquake in Japan

This is an AP video about the earthquake this morning in Japan:



The images coming across the news this morning are incredible.  It's difficult, sometimes, to fathom the power of nature.

Another video:



Incredible.

The Search for Marizela

Michelle Malkin's cousin is still missing.  Please continue to spread the word and keep the search alive.  I can't imagine the torment the family must be going through.  Visit Michelle's site for updates and here is the pertinent information once again:

MISSING PERSON

Name: Marizela Perez

Date Missing: Saturday March 5, 2011

Last Seen: 1-2 P.M. at the Safeway in University District
(4732 Brooklyn Ave NE Seattle, WA 98105) (this is CONFIRMED)

Possible Routes: Sound Link Light Rail stations, downtown/Chinatown areas, UW Seattle campus, U-district

Description – Asian female, 5’5” tall, 110 lbs, skinny build, asymmetrical bob with short bangs and brown/red highlights hairstyle, tattoo on left inner arm with the words ‘lahat ay magiging maayos’ (Tagalog, meaning ‘all will be well’), last seen wearing a dark hooded jacket, denim jeans, light brown suede laced boots, possibly wearing green eye contacts, possibly carrying a denim drawstring bag with rainbow butterfly screenprint (not the plaid backpack that was before mentioned) with a Macbook Pro laptop, taking medication for depression
Please contact if you have any information regarding this person:

Edgar: 609 – 646 – 0905
Jasmin: 609 – 742 – 2360
Mel: 206 – 760 – 1822
Joy: 609 – 742 – 2336

Wisconsin

Wisconsin has been giving the entire country a huge civics lesson.  And as insane as things got last night, I'm pretty sure it's not finished.