Category: Politics
FDA Cracking Down on Cigars
One big problem I have with the Obama Administration, and really the Bush Administration before it, was that the bureaucrats have just gotten out of control. Anyone know if Obama still sneaks out of the oval office for smoke breaks? The dangers of tobacco at this point are well known. This is just bureaucrats trying to expand their little fiefdoms. Conservatives and libertarians often rag on the commerce clause as where we really went off the rails. I disagree. I think the non-delegation doctrine being loosely interpreted has caused far more problems. If we want warning labels, or other ridiculous requirements for cigars, Congress should pass a law. As it is, the Courts have let Congress delegate a substantial, too substantial in my opinion, portion of its lawmaking power to the Executive Branch. I think this is far more dangerous than the expansion of the commerce power, and it’s anti-democratic to boot.
Why I Only Tepidly Support PA Republicans
Booze privatization is an measure an overwhelming majority of Pennsylvanians support, and Republicans are supposed to be all about free markets and free enterprise, if you believe that kind of thing. So you think there’d be no way in hell, with the House, Senate and Governor’s mansion in GOP hands, the GOP could possibly foul up the privatization of the state liquor system, but you’d be wrong.
Bloomberg’s Nanny State Continues
They want to go after more than just soda, including milk shakes, movie theater popcorn, and other milk beverages. This is why Tam’s latest effort is more important than ever.
Fast and Furious About to Blow Wide Open?
Apparently there’s a new whistleblower from DOJ. John Richardson speculates this could mean Holder is gone sooner rather than later.
Scott Walker’s New Political Opponents
Sure, he survived a tough recall election with better numbers than 2010, but Scott Walker has a new political opponent that’s so tough and determined, they once got a federal Constitutional amendment passed. They are now speaking out against his actions, and I’m sure he’s cowering in fear. It’s the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. No, I’m not kidding.
The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, which successfully lobbied for Prohibition in the 1920s and whose 5,000 members continue to spread its antidrinking message nationwide, criticized the serving of alcohol at the event.
“I don’t think it’s cool at all,” said Rita Wert, president of the group. “It sets a very poor example.”
Actually, the really sad news isn’t the fact that there are still a group of 5,000 women pushing for prohibition again. It’s the fact that Gov. Walker hosted a bi-partisan beer and brats event to promote the idea that lawmakers can, in fact, have a civil discussion about issues, even if they disagree. The event drew protesters who won’t settle for anything less than having their political opponents (Walker & the GOP) indicted.
A Ginned Up Controversy
Tam laments the firestorm created by two olympic swimmers posing with guns on a trip to California, and the ridiculousness peddled in the media as a result. Apparently they are being punished for this by being forced to return early, and even other shooters don’t really want to stand up for them:
“They all used them [the guns] responsibly and I think that’s where the line in the sand is here, that these guys allowed stupid photographs to be taken of them, one depicting criminal activity, and second of all unsafe activity with a firearm,” he said.
How about a nice “Have you people in the media all lost your bloody minds?” But then again, I suppose no one wants to risk the powers that be coming down on them. I don’t for a minute believe that the majority of Aussies have collectively lost their marbles. I’m sure if you polled people on this controversy before the media parade, the reaction would have been somewhere between “Meh,” and “So What?” This is a media and establishment generated outrage if I ever saw one. This is the establishment telling the little people how they need to think. So maybe the establishment needs to be taken to the woodshed and roughed up a bit.
One thing I’ve noticed is that the shaking of the bowcaster is a bit of an American thing. You don’t really see horizontal interpretive communities popping up, at least not that I can see, in other countries. I’m not speaking here of guns specifically, but where is the Aussie, British or Canadian equivalents of the Dan Rather takedown? I’d note that it was an American that took down the Canadian Government. Perhaps it is because we’re a culture that was born from revolution, or perhaps it’s that this country has exceptionally strong speech protections by world standards (defamation and libel suits are next to impossible to win here, whereas in other English speaking countries, that is not the case). Perhaps there is a whole community of bloggers, forums, tweeters and the like, forming all manner of interpretive communities that I’m missing, but if there is, I don’t notice it. If that’s the case, I’d say it’s time to start taking down some media figures that peddle this kind of nonsense.
Ingratitude
You’d think with Obama stocking the federal courts with people who will redact the Second Amendment clean out of the Constitution, and running the numbers up for guns going to Mexico to create a pretext for a new Assault Weapons Ban, our opponents would show more gratitude than this:
Whether they want to believe it or not, Obama is their last great hope, in that, if he wins re-election, they have some. There’s a good chance they can reverse or severely limit Heller and McDonald in that instance. You’d think with that on the table, they’d just play along with the charade.
Bad News For Municipalities?
There is a very easy solution to the problem of municipalities and gun regulations: don’t break the law. Why is this such a leap or so radical? Because, as our Supreme Court has said, firearm regulation is a matter of statewide concern, it is a matter that is the exclusive prerogative of the state legislature.
Lancaster Mayor Rick Gray, who backed the local initiative, said the bill would invite frivolous lawsuits.
Mayor Gray apparently doesn’t appreciate the idea that he will not be able to break the law with impunity. There is an alternative I can propose for the Mayor: if he is so concerned with taxpayer dollars going to waste, we can easily run a bill that will hold him and his council personally responsible for the lawbreaking, like they do in Florida. How’s that sound?
Fudging Hiding the Philly Homicide Numbers
One has to wonder if there was a little tomfoolery going on at Philadelphia Police Department this morning and afternoon. Wyatt noticed something amiss this morning in the numbers the city was claiming for homicide rates.
The official homicide count in #Philly is 161. Now why would the PPD website claim it is only 153? Fuzzy math, Mayor Nutter?
— Darth Wyatt (@DarthWyatt) June 11, 2012
Huh. Isn’t that interesting? When I went to the city’s reporting website several hours later, the daily reporting numbers of murders were removed completely and the only 2012 data was in PDF form for the week prior. Commence minor Twitter conversation about the city hiding their numbers after they have been on a streak of averaging a murder a day.
Shortly thereafter, the data reappeared; this time it was correct. In all likelihood it was a glitch. It happens on the web. However, given that the separate descriptive text for graphic also disappeared, it seems a little odd. Mix it in with the fact that Chief Charles Ramsey has insisted upon using fuzzy math to avoid acknowledging the rising murder rate during the last three years, it seems the timing of it is a tad too convenient. It’s a city with leaders who say that it’s not fair to actually count all homicides in the final tallies, nor is it reasonable to question their failed campaign promises of fewer dead bodies.
It’s amazing how the city is running at 163 murders in 163 days (there was one this morning not counted in Philly stats yet) with 29 more murders than this time last year still has the nerve to try and convince their residents that homicides are down by nearly 10%.