President Demagogue's Speech Worthy of Holloween!

Ne'eman expresses his fear why a war of distraction is on the horizon and explains the basis for same. (See 1 below.)
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A satiric article explaining how The New York Times would have reported why Jews leaving Pharoh's Egypt are to blame for all the disgusting plagues and should accept slavery. (See 2 below.)
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Obama stiffed the Republicans and the nation again in today's speech. The president has become religious when it comes to addressing the deficit which he created and which he wants the 'wealthy' to pay for - if all the income of every American earning over $1/2 million went to the government there would still be a deficit. President demagogue rose to an unserious occasion again and trotted out all the ghosts in his typical populist style. His was a timed campaign speech and showed Obama at his petty, pissy fanny lying best. Instead of picking a beautiful April day Obama should have chosen to make his talk on Halloween.(See 3, 3a, 3b and 3c below.)
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Illegal immigrants block Atlanta traffic while federal government ICE agents chill out! (See 4 below.)
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Dick
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) Israel's Deceptive Calm By Yisrael Ne'eman There is a general feeling in Israel that Middle Eastern instability will bypass the Jewish State. But while Israel is not a state repressing basic freedoms, has a democratic elective system and has no expectation of an uprising by the Facebook and Twitter generation short term future events on its doorstep may very well lead to conflict. Here we need to consider events in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and among the Palestinians. Although less friendly than before, it seems unlikely that Egypt will become directly involved in conflict with Israel, even if Hamas is now welcomed in Cairo. It is not clear whether the Egyptians will allow for a much greater amount of rockets, weapons and ammunition to enter the Gaza Strip. Previously attempts at halting contraband were partially successful. In the meantime medium range missiles capable of hitting the Tel Aviv outskirts are reportedly in the Hamas arsenals. On the other hand instability in Syria, despite the media blackout, is increasing in scope. Should Assad and his Alawite minority begin to lose their grip on power, logic determines a two step approach for regime survival - a violent internal crackdown possibly of the 1982 Hama variety (10,000s killed) and the search for an outside enemy in an effort to reunite a diverse Syrian state comprising many minorities and a majority Sunni population polarized between religious Muslim Brotherhood and secular Ba'ath supporters. Using state controlled media, Damascus only needs the correct timing to identify the external threat – Israel. Lebanon is sitting on a powder keg of ethnic/religious tensions between Sunnis, Shiites, Druze, Maronites and the Greek Orthodox. The Shiite Hezbollah militia is far more powerful than the Lebanese Army which itself has undergone a certain Shia-fication. One only need recall the Shiite army officer whose troops opened fire on Israel and killed a reserve colonel last summer. Tensions will come to a head when the UN finally issues its report exposing the culprits responsible for the assassination of former Sunni PM Saad Hariri's father Rafik Hariri in 2005 who himself was a leading political and economic figure having also served as PM. It is widely believed Hezbollah and quite possibly Syria will be blamed for the assassination. Shiite Iran, a close ally of both, will continence no such accusations preferring to deflect Lebanese and world attention to an outside enemy, namely Israel. Here too, timing will be significant, although unlike the Syrian front, Hezbollah has already promised that if it is "falsely accused" of the assassination they blame Israel, the organization/militia will reserve the right of response. Next there is Jordan where there is an almost total voluntary Western news blackout, but events are reported in Israel. King Abdullah II is under increasing pressure not only from Palestinian elements which comprise some two-thirds of the monarchy's population, but increasingly radical elements of the Muslim Brotherhood are making inroads, not only among Palestinians but even in certain Bedouin tribes considered loyal to the king himself. Calls for canceling the peace accords of 1994 coupled with demands for Israel's destruction are being heard with increasing frequency. Abdullah's grip on power may be slipping. And then there are the Palestinians – split between Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Fatah Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. The latest round of rocket attacks into the northwestern Negev originating from Gaza ended a few days ago. Little damage was done as Israel's "Iron Dome" defensive anti-missile system proved effective. However there are only two operational batteries and the earliest date for deploying any other is at least half a year away. This will not deter Hamas - owners of rockets capable of hitting the southern suburbs of Tel Aviv. Israel needs to add several more Iron Dome systems in the south and begin deploying on the Lebanese border across from Hezbollah in the north where there are none. All this will take several years. Hamas is getting poised for the next round with Israel despite their recent calls for calm. Anarchy is seeping into Gaza life, the more radical Islamic Jihad is restless and it appears al-Qaeda has operatives stirring up troubles. Only a battle with the "Zionist entity" the ultimate outside enemy, can help unify the population, if only temporarily. The Fatah/PA controlled West Bank on the face of it is making progress towards independence. Such a declaration with overwhelming UN support can be expected in September. PA PM Salam Fayyad has convinced the latest UN mission (this week), World Bank and International Monetary Fund of Palestinian abilities to administer their own independent state. Not only has much civil and economic progress been made but the West Bank is very calm recently, not only due to the efforts of the Palestinian security forces but also with Israel's help. The above constellation of events is very unsettling. Several flash points are discernable. A Syrian meltdown/explosion, a UN report accusing Hezbollah/Syria and possibly Iran in the Hariri assassination, a Hamas need for unity or a Jordanian civil war where Palestinian/Muslim Brotherhood opposition elements overthrow the regime are all possible sparks for conflict with Israel, most likely on more than one front. Even an internal threat to the Iranian regime (for sure a long shot) could be the trigger for hostilities against the Jewish State. Better yet, the moment a Palestinian State is declared and/or recognized, the legality of Israel's presence in the West Bank becomes more precarious and the "settlement" issue more explosive. Any armed force acting in the name of "liberation" such as the Muslim Brotherhood/Hamas or a state entity such as Iran, Syria or anyone else will see itself as automatically receiving international support in its confrontation with Israel. What better cover for a war against Israel could possibly exist, especially when these regimes are facing overwhelming opposition, fractionalization and unremitting cross religious/ethnic violence threatening to topple their regimes at home? By then whatever democracy revolution emerged on the Arab world scene in the winter of 2011 may be long forgotten.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2)If the Passover Story Were Reported by The New York Times The cycle of violence between the Jews and the Egyptians continues with no end in sight in Egypt. After eight previous plagues that have destroyed the Egyptian infrastructure and disrupted the lives of ordinary Egyptian citizens, the Jews launched a new offensive this week in the form of the plague of darkness. Western journalists were particularly enraged by this plague. "It is simply impossible to report when you can't see an inch in front of you,"complained a frustrated Andrea Koppel of CNN. "I have heard from my reliable Egyptian contacts that in the midst of the blanket of blackness,the Jews were annihilating thousands of Egyptians. Their word is solid enough evidence for me." While the Jews contend that the plagues are justified given the harsh slavery imposed upon them by the Egyptians, Pharaoh, the Egyptian leader,rebuts this claim. "If only the plagues would let up, there would be noslavery. We just want to live plague-free. It is the right of every society." Saeb Erekat, an Egyptian spokesperson, complains that slavery is justifiable given the Jews' superior weaponry supplied to them by the superpower God. The Europeans are particularly enraged by the latest Jewish offensive."The Jewish aggression must cease if there is to be peace in the region.The Jews should go back to slavery for the good of the rest of the world,"stated an angry French President Jacques Chirac. Even several Jews agree. Adam Shapiro, a Jew, has barricaded himself within Pharaoh's chambers to protect Pharaoh from what is feared will be the next plague, the death of the first born. Mr. Shapiro claims that whiles lavery is not necessarily a good thing, it is the product of the plagues and when the plagues end, so will the slavery. "The Jews have gone too far with plagues such as locusts and epidemic which have virtually destroyed the Egyptian economy," Mr. Shapiro laments."The Egyptians are really a very nice people and Pharaoh is kind of huggable once you get to know him," gushes Shapiro. The United States is demanding that Moses and Aaron, the Jewish leaders,continue to negotiate with Pharaoh. While Moses points out that Pharaoh had made promise after promise to free the Jewish people only to immediately break them and thereafter impose harsher and harsher slavery,Richard Boucher of the State Department assails the latest offensive. "Pharaoh is not in complete control of the taskmasters," Mr. Boucher states. "The Jews must return to the negotiating table and will accomplish nothing through these plagues." The latest round of violence comes in the face of a bold new Saudi peace overture. If only the Jews will give up their language, change their names to Egyptian names and cease having male children, the Arab nations will incline toward peace with them, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah declared.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3)The Corner: Cometh the Hour, Punteth the Man By Mark Steyn There’s something sad about a man so carelessly revealing himself as entirely inadequate to the moment. Government spending is an existential threat to the United States. Whether or not anyone at the White House knows this, the viziers decided to shove the sultan out on stage with a pitifully unserious speech retreating to all his lamest tropes – the usual whiny, petty and unpresidential partisan snippiness, and the ponderous demolition of straw men even he barely bothered to pretend he believed in: Politicians are often eager to feed the impression that solving the problem is just a matter of eliminating waste and abuse –that tackling the deficit issue won’t require tough choices. Yeah, right. Why don’t we start by eliminating whatever dope got paid to write that sentence? This speech failed Rich’s “What’s yours?” test. In fact, it more or less declared to the world that this Administration has no plan, and has no plan to plan on getting a plan anytime soon. But America is not Greece. There is no Germany to bail us out. Only we can do it. And the President just signaled to the world that that’s not going to happen. Here’s one example of his and his speechwriters’ hideous laziness: If there are bright young Americans who have the drive and the will but not the money to go to college, we can’t afford to send them… South Korean children are outpacing our kids in math and science. That last bit is true – but it’s nothing to do with money. According to the most recent OECD figures (2007), the Koreans spent $5,437 per primary-school pupil; we spent $10,229. For education as a whole, the Koreans spent $7,325 per pupil; we spent $14,269. They not only “outpace our kids in math and science”; they do it by only spending half as much. That’s the problem, and whichever hack speechwriter put those ridiculous words in the President’s mouth surely knew it. As did the President. We spend more than anyone but the Swiss on education, and by any rational measure at least half of it is entirely wasted: That model is why this country is dying, and the President just went on TV and bragged to the world he has no plans to change it. The whole speech was like that, a litany of brain-dead slapdash rhetorical questions that for sentient beings are no longer rhetorical: My fellow Americans, do we want an America where our most lethargic and mediocre youth are denied a leisurely half-decade acquiring a fraudulent six-figure credential in some worthless pseudo-discipline simply because we can’t afford it? Well, it’d be a start.

3a)The President's Budget Address and the Reality of Taxing the 'Rich'
By Steve McCann

The President is going to address the nation yet again. He apparently intends to unveil another revised plan to fool the American people into believing he is sincere about reducing the deficit and reining in spending after the unserious budget he presented in February was soundly rejected by the country. While his hand has been forced by the twin factors of the Republicans in the House (buoyed the effectiveness of the Tea Party movement) and the upcoming Presidential election, he will nonetheless bring up increasing taxes on the so-called wealthy and corporations as one of the primary means of solving the debt and deficit problem. Unfortunately this approach plays well among the less enlightened and Obama's left-wing base who are in the thrall of class warfare and the capability of that argument to enflame passions and potential violence. This argument is solely being utilized to keep the Democrats and their allies in power. The reality is raising taxes and demonizing the wealthy will not solve but will instead exacerbate the current economic woes the country is experiencing.There are stubborn things called facts that refuse to go away. Normally the left and the media dismiss any argument coming from those on the conservative side of the spectrum as being unreliable and subject to right-wing bias. One of the favored agencies of the liberals is the IRS (except when they are being audited), so let us focus entirely on the statistics they have published. The wealth of Americans is an obsession with the left. The last time the IRS published any statistics on that matter was in 2004, when the economy was doing far better than it is today. At that time there were 2.7 million adults in the United States with a net worth (total value of all assets less debts and liabilities) in excess of $1.5 million for a total of $10.2 Trillion. The IRS reference can be found here; Data Table: All top wealth holders by size of net worth. If the government were to decide that no one should have a net worth above $1.5 million and would confiscate all wealth above that level, then there would be a one-time windfall of $6.1 Trillion to the Treasury. As the total national debt is nearly $14.5 Trillion, this action would result in the reduction of the debt to $8.4 Trillion. However this tactic presents a major problem; how is the government going to realize the value of the seized assets? For example within the net worth of the now confiscated assets are upwards of $2+ Trillion in real estate, but who is going to buy that at market value as no one will have the leverage or cash to do so? Or, who will buy the stocks, both publicly traded and closely held, where there are nearly $3 Trillion in present value, without collapsing the markets entirely? The same is true of state and local bond issues or corporate bonds, U.S. Treasury Bonds, mutual funds etc. etc. The government, if it could at all, might realize a quarter of the value of the seized assets (if China were really interested) which had been previously used to underwrite the national economy. The long term devastation to the economy would be unfathomable, as who would create jobs and wealth if they knew their assets would be seized above a certain point? If the left were to be convinced that this tactic would be counterproductive, then their argument turns to having the wealthy pay more income taxes every year as a major means of reducing the annual deficit and minimizing the amount of spending cuts necessary to balance the budget. As a starting point lets us stipulate that the projected budget deficit for the current fiscal year is $1,665.0 Billion. Per the Obama Budget it will be $1,100.0 Billion next year. The IRS data for the following exercise is found as follows: Section: Tax Generated; subsection, Tax and size of Adjusted Gross Income (2008): Table 3.5 The tax year of 2008 was the last to date that the IRS has done this kind of analysis. In 2008 the highest marginal tax rate of 35% was applied to all AGI above $357,700.00. In that year the total amount of AGI subject to the highest rate was $662.8 Billion. The government collected in taxes $218.0 Billion (35%). Assuming no change in behavior and a general eagerness to pay more, and if Obama and the left convince the Congress to raise taxes on the so-called rich, then the potential increase in revenue would be as follows. If the highest rate of 35% were raised by a factor of 29% to 42%, the additional revenue would be $43.5 Billion, not much of a dent in the $1,665 Billion deficit. If the rate was raised by a factor of 50% to 52.5%, the additional revenue would be $108.9 Billion. Still nowhere near enough, so let's just tax it at a rate of 100% thus bringing in an additional $404.8 Billion. Unfortunately, the country is still $1,260.0 Billion in the hole for the year. The top 1% of all income earners now pay nearly 40% of all income taxes collected by the government. There is a point at which the so-called rich would cease to have any incentive to earn above the highest tax threshold, particularly as the above exercise does not take into account state and local income taxes, Medicare, as well as a myriad of other "revenue enhancers." From 1958 to 2008 the total tax revenue to the Federal Government has averaged between 16% and 20% of GDP. (The highest level in history was in 1944 when it hit 20.9 %.) This despite the fact that the top marginal rate has varied between 90 and 35% over that period. The historical lesson: there is simply no way the government will change the way the people, particularly the wealthy, pay their taxes short of outright confiscation and permanent damage to the economy.The left will argue that the wealthy should pay more even if it only makes a slight impact on the deficit. Why, other than out of spite? The only way to increase revenues to the Treasury, as has been proven by history, is to grow the economy, and to do that, the government cannot destroy the incentive of the producer class to do so. That requires dramatically reducing spending, regulations and the size of government at all levels. When Obama and the Democrats, in league with the unions and the radical left, continue their mantra of the need to tax the rich and berating the so-called wealthy, it is not because their diatribes offer a viable solution to the country's fiscal woes or that they genuinely care about the citizenry, but because it serves their purpose to divide the people against each other and maintain their power base, as does their refusal to cut spending in order to buy votes.

3b)Obama Sinks to the Occasion
By FRED BARNES

President Obama always lets you down. Just when you think he’s ready to deliver a lofty speech chocked with specifics on handling the spending and debt emergency, he offers up a hyper-partisan attack on the leading Republican proposal, gives practically no details of his own plan, and then sanctimoniously puts himself on the side of preserving “the American dream for future generations.” Obama didn’t rise to the occasion. He actually sank, as he did two months ago when he released a 2012 budget that would increase spending by $40 billion and double the national debt over the next decade. Let me list the lowlights of the president’s speech this afternoon at George Washington University: ♦ The problem is George W. Bush’s fault. This is a hardy perennial of Obama’s. “America’s finances were in great shape by the year 2000,” he said. Then spending skyrocketed due to two wars and a prescription drug program and “we didn’t pay for any of this new spending.” The fiscal problem was made worse “with trillions of dollars in unpaid for tax cuts.” He didn’t mention that discretionary spending soared on his watch by 11 percent in 2009 and 14 percent in 2010, up from 6 percent in 2008, the last Bush year. Nor did he concede that Democrats wanted a bigger, more expensive Medicare drug program. ♦ The president distorted the Republican budget for 2012 drafted by Representative Paul Ryan and approved by the House Budget Committee. Ryan’s vision “says if our roads crumble and our bridges collapse, we can’t afford to fix them…[and] says America can’t afford to keep the promise we’ve made to care for our seniors,” Obama declared. And, oh, yes, there are the kids with disabilities or autism or Down syndrome who would have to “fend for themselves” if the Ryan budget passes. ♦ Obama resorts to class warfare – again. Ryan would “reduce the deficit by spending a trillion dollars on tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires.” Please, tax cuts aren’t the same as spending. They lead to private investment, which creates jobs. In fact, Obama said, the rich would be happy to pay higher taxes. “Washington just hasn’t asked them to.” That’s the root of the deficit? ♦ Obama takes credit for already having cut $1 trillion in health care as a result of Obamacare. He uses this figure frequently, but does anyone really believe it? Not many. In a supposedly serious speech, it’s out of place. And guess who would make sure cuts in medical care actually occur? One of the most controversial and feared aspects of Obamacare: the Independent Payment Advisory Board, which was purposely put out of the reach of congressional supervision. It may not be a death panel, but it’s headed in that direction. ♦ For all his vagueness, the president did set a goal of reducing the deficit by $4 trillion over 12 years. He offered no specifics, only broad categories. But it’s specifics that matter. Goals for cutting spending are easy to set. They’re a Washington specialty. They’re just never met. The president ended on a (false) high note. His plan embraces “a sense of responsibility” that Americans have for each other. “It’s patriotism.” Imagine the reaction if President Bush had said that. It wouldn’t have been pretty. But Obama will probably get away with it.

3c) Drawing a Cartoon of His Critics
By Peter Wehner
President Obama’s speech today was both outrageous and insulting, a practically perfect combination of demagoguery and shallowness. It was not a serious substantive speech; it was a political missile whose intention is was to destroy, through libel, the House Republican’s 2012 budget. It was not an effort to engage in a serious discussion; it was an effort to create a cartoon image of Obama’s critics. But precisely because the president’s speech was so intellectually weak and transparently brutish, I rather doubt it will be effective. If anyone had any doubts what we’re dealing with when it comes to Obama, those have been allayed. He is a deeply irresponsible and arrogant man whose thirst for political power is overriding virtually every good and decent instinct he might have.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4)Illegal immigrant protesters won't face deportation By Jeremy Redmon Asked whether her agency planned to deport the protesters, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released a statement saying ICE was not taking any “enforcement actions against the student demonstrators.” The activists blocked traffic on downtown Atlanta's Courtland Street for about an hour last week as they demonstrated against a ban on illegal immigrants attending some Georgia colleges. Earlier that day, the protesters had declared they were illegally in the country and decried restrictions illegal immigrant students face in the United States. Some spoke in favor of the DREAM Act, a congressional measure that would have given young illegal immigrants a path to legal status if they enrolled in college or joined the military. That measure failed in Congress last year. The Associated Press reported the seven activists were instructed to perform community service after police charged them with obstructing traffic and prohibited conduct during assembly. Another ICE official referred The Atlanta Journal-Constitution to a speech Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano made this month in Washington. In response to a question from someone in the audience, Napolitano indicated people who would qualify for the DREAM Act are not an enforcement priority for ICE. ICE officials have repeatedly said they are focusing first on deporting violent illegal immigrants. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------