Well, It is Friday...

I could have used this as a kid when I used to try and read magazines while simultaneously trying to go to the bathroom. Inevitably, the magazine wound up wet.

This thing would have held mt attention, of course it would have led to competitive pissing...is that bad?



Thanks Gizmodo!

PSA: Fish Tank for Sale

This may be a little tacky but I figured since it's there, I might as well let people know in as many ways as possible. I'm selling a real nice plexiglass fish tank over at eBay. If anyone is in the market, check it out.


Now forget that I am such a shill and thanks for your time.

Once Again, the Laffer Curve is Working

Larry Kudlow over at RCP. It's really fantastic commentary.

have long believed that stock indexes reflect the health, wealth, and security of individual nations. That explains why stock markets are standing tough in the face of al Qaeda’s latest attack. Worldwide investors are telling the enemy they have long-term confidence that the war on terror will be won, just as they believe in the resiliency and flexibility of free-market economies and the outlook for pro-growth policies, which are in action across nations.

Ben Bernanke, the former Fed governor and new chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, told a Washington group that “We are in the midst of a healthy and sustainable economic expansion.” He’s got that dead right. Besides rising share prices, appreciating real estate and declining unemployment are boosting family wealth and incomes, allowing consumers to withstand higher energy prices. Meanwhile, sales at stores open at least a year are surging at better than 5 percent; corporate profits, which are the lifeblood of business expansion and investor class wealth, have soared to record shares of gross domestic product; and recent surveys by the Institute for Supply Management show both the manufacturing and service economies to be strong.

Though President Bush’s critics will never admit it, his supply-side tax reforms of two years ago are working brilliantly. With new incentives to work and invest, the economy is expanding, the income base is widening, and businesses and individuals are producing an unprecedented surge of tax collections. All this is occurring at lower marginal tax rates. Once again, the Laffer curve is working.

The budget deficit is shrinking to roughly 2.5 percent of GDP in line with the average of the past four decades. As for the claim that trade deficits are bad for U.S. workers, consider this thought from Café Hayek blogger Russell Roberts, a professor at George Mason University: “The U.S. has run a merchandise trade deficit for every year since 1976, trillions of dollars of deficits. And since 1976, the U.S. economy has created over 50 million jobs.”

Round of Applause: Greg Oberdorf

Pertaining to the proposed smoking ban in Milwaukee, the problem I see is: How are the police going to enforce this law? As it is, they can't handle the current laws. How many more murders will Milwaukee have this year? What about illegal guns and gangs?

The police can't control the smoking of crack, use of other drugs, crime, prostitution, murder, robbery, rape. Or the simple things like litter, jaywalking, unlicensed dogs, street bums panhandling, unsafe and unlicensed vehicles, domestic problems.

Now the police could be using that time going into bars and giving tickets to law-abiding citizens doing nothing wrong but enjoying a cold drink and a cigarette after a hard day's work so they can pay their taxes.

Greg Oberdorf
Milwaukee

The Urinal Exposes the Tactics of a Nanny State

The Urinal editorial board has exposed the tactics that it hopes to employ in order to dominate our everyday choices.

From a practical standpoint, that's the problem. Davis has the right idea, but he's trying to do too much too fast, especially when it comes to banning smoking in taverns in a city in which neighborhood bars have long been a part of the social fabric.

A more incremental approach, banning smoking in restaurants to begin with and later expanding it to other public places, such as bars, would give Milwaukee bar owners and those who smoke more time to adjust to a total ban.

More important, it would also have a far better chance of being approved.

What is the next step after banning smoking in public? Banning smoking around family? Outlawing smoking? Incrementalism is the key. They accepted banning smoking in bars? shit, lets expand it. They accepted banning smoking in all public places? Shit, lets keep pushing...

Then what, once smoking is abolished, what is next? Cheeseburgers? After all, we allowed them to dictate our personal choices on "health reasons" in regards to smoking. Overindulgence in cheeseburgers can be bad. Are we going to give vouchers for burger purchases, so we can regulate how many a person can eat in a week? How about some sort of bracelet that tracks calories so the government can stop us from overeating?

Based on the health of not just yourself, but of others around you, I think it is imperative we next ban cell phone use in public. After all, there are one or two studies that show cell phones cause cancer. Is it possible they cause second-hand cancer by walking near a cell phone user? I don't know, but I'm sure Rob Reiner can pay a scientist to whip up a "study" proving it.

As a matter of fact, we should all be assigned out own personal watchdog, paid for by the state of course, to make sure that we aren't doing anything to endanger ourselves or those around us.

Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the world of the future. The only things you may ingest are dry salad and filtered water. Driving and bike riding are illegal, as is walking without the proper body armor. We will all ride ultra armored public transportation to and from low-stress, government approved jobs. A permission slip from the State is required for sexual intercourse, and is only approved for reasons of reproduction, which labs hope to eliminate the need for altogether soon. We will sleep strapped to our beds in padded rooms surrounded by rounded and padded furniture so as to not stub a toe or bang a shin. Glass, stoves, microwaves, and knives have been outlawed.

Enjoy your day, but not too much since it might lead to adrenaline, which can lead to stress, which may lead to heart failure.

We won't live longer, we won't be happy, but shit, at least the overprotective asshole left-coasters won't have anything left to bitch about.

WSOP Day 5

For those who care, the $10,000 no-limit hold 'em championship (the Big One) is going on day 5 today.There are 185 players left, and it is probable that today will be the last day befre the final table.

Greg Raymer, the much maligned winner of last years tournament, is currently the chip leader with 1,064,000 chips and is playing well it seems. Some other notable include Phil Ivey in 7th, Howard Lederer in 31st, Mike Matusow in 39th, John Juanda in 59th, JC Tran in 93rd, Dutch Boyd in 165th, and Paul Darden in 179th.

Over at Tao of Poker he is running fantastic updates live. Check it out if you care.

TheWisconsinSportsBar

I have a new place to post my anger and jubilation about the one and only Crew. GBfan has set up a new blog to discuss Wisconsin sports. I am hoping to post my thoughts after every game, especially ones I got to.

Should be fun, stop by and check it out.

(By the way, by blogrolling thing isn't working, hence the dearth of updated links to the left. Hopefully I will get this kinked out soon)

WHACK (McCain)

via Drudge

Who is this man, and when did he become a Republican?

Sen. John McCain [R-AZ] Strong Words On Surpeme Court Nomination At Dallas Fundraiser: 'During the campaign, President Bush said he will appoint judges who will strictly interpret the constitution...thinking anything else is either amnesia or ignorance...elections have consequences....whomever he nominates deserves an up or down vote and no filibuster....and an up or down vote is what we will have'...

Damn right John, better round up that motley crew of 14 and whip em into shape.

Laurie David is hyperventilating

If we do not sign the Kyoto Treaty we will be udner constant threat of "Non-stop flooding, killer heat waves, energy and food shortages." What's more "millions of people [will be] displaced from coastal cities..."

She goes on to make an extraordinary link.

Munich Re, the worlds largest reinsurer, recently said that the frequency of weather disasters has tripled since the 1960s and insured losses have risen ten-fold. WeÂ’re talking hundreds of billions of dollars -- soon to be trillions of dollars -- and thatÂ’s a bill that gets handed right back to the American people in the form of higher premiums. In other words, weÂ’re already paying the price for global warming.

Without any proof or attempt at forming a logical and provable link, Laurie David says conclusively that every weather disaster since 1960 is caused by global warming.

How did a guy like Larry David get mixed up with a nutter like this?

Redstate.org: REHNQUIST TO RETIRE TODAY

At 4:50 (i assume 3:50 our time), when the President lands, Chief Justice Rehnquist will, supposedly, hand in his walking papers.

The interesting thing is that this is getting some conservatives wound up, because they think it will make it harder to "pack the courts." I don't know, seems to me President Bush hasn't exactly been the great compromiser. I expect great things from these nominees in the way on constructionists. Whether or not they are willing to overturn Roe, well, that isn't high on my list right now of "litmus tests."

A source close to the White House tells me that the White House is operating under the assumption, based on presumed knowledge of Novak's source, that this will, in fact, happen. Yes, keep in mind that I am not being told that the White House is confirming this, but that the White House has a good idea it should trust Novak's source.

Interestingly, it seems the same sources are saying Justice Stevens will also retire at the end of this year. If Rehnquist indeed hangs up the robes this afternoon, this source may be on to something.

Third party sources are now telling me that the John Paul Stevens rumor is true and that the White House is now planning for a third vacancy, but not until the end of the year. Third party sources, who I treat as credible, say that Stevens has begun taking actions in his personal life to make arrangements for personal affairs. It is presumed that Stevens is taking steps to retire.

World Series of Poker Started Today

More specifically, the "main event," the $10,000 no-limit hold 'em tourney started today. It's gonna go something like a week, with 5661 entrants/

If anyone cares, this guy is liveblogging it. Gotta be bustin his hump.

And it seems this guy is taking the ballcap and shades thing a touch far.

"Unfortunately, the Europeans' devastating urge to do good can no longer be countered with reason."

A rising star in the world of economics (at least in my eyes after this interview) James Shikwati explains why aid to Africa is, literally, killing Africa. Read the interview, it is both incredibly insightful (where else are you going to hear the truth, that handouts are what is killing these people, not apathy) and funny. The interviewer has no freaking idea what to say when Mr. Shikwati shoots down every notion this guy holds true.

SPIEGEL: Even in a country like Kenya, people are starving to death each year. Someone has got to help them.

Shikwati: But it has to be the Kenyans themselves who help these people. When there's a drought in a region of Kenya, our corrupt politicians reflexively cry out for more help. This call then reaches the United Nations World Food Program -- which is a massive agency of apparatchiks who are in the absurd situation of, on the one hand, being dedicated to the fight against hunger while, on the other hand, being faced with unemployment were hunger actually eliminated. It's only natural that they willingly accept the plea for more help. And it's not uncommon that they demand a little more money than the respective African government originally requested. They then forward that request to their headquarters, and before long, several thousands tons of corn are shipped to Africa ...

SPIEGEL: ... corn that predominantly comes from highly-subsidized European and American farmers ...

Shikwati: ... and at some point, this corn ends up in the harbor of Mombasa. A portion of the corn often goes directly into the hands of unsrupulous politicians who then pass it on to their own tribe to boost their next election campaign. Another portion of the shipment ends up on the black market where the corn is dumped at extremely low prices. Local farmers may as well put down their hoes right away; no one can compete with the UN's World Food Program. And because the farmers go under in the face of this pressure, Kenya would have no reserves to draw on if there actually were a famine next year. It's a simple but fatal cycle.

SPIEGEL: If the World Food Program didn't do anything, the people would starve.

Shikwati: I don't think so. In such a case, the Kenyans, for a change, would be forced to initiate trade relations with Uganda or Tanzania, and buy their food there. This type of trade is vital for Africa. It would force us to improve our own infrastructure, while making national borders -- drawn by the Europeans by the way -- more permeable. It would also force us to establish laws favoring market economy.

What comes next is the most ridiculously condescending question I have read in a loooong time. Well, since the previous, "if we didn't help the people would starve" question.

SPIEGEL: Would Africa actually be able to solve these problems on its own?

Wow. So this knucklehead thinks that Africans can't figure out how to trade. Moron.

The discussion then turns to AIDS, and Mr. Shikwati is actually able to have an intelligent discussion with a total idiot. Of course the discussion is one sided.

Shikwati: If one were to believe all the horrorifying reports, then all Kenyans should actually be dead by now. But now, tests are being carried out everywhere, and it turns out that the figures were vastly exaggerated. It's not three million Kenyans that are infected. All of the sudden, it's only about one million. Malaria is just as much of a problem, but people rarely talk about that.

SPIEGEL: And why's that?

Shikwati: AIDS is big business, maybe Africa's biggest business. There's nothing else that can generate as much aid money as shocking figures on AIDS. AIDS is a political disease here, and we should be very skeptical.

SPIEGEL: The Americans and Europeans have frozen funds previously pledged to Kenya. The country is too corrupt, they say.

Shikwati: I am afraid, though, that the money will still be transfered before long. After all, it has to go somewhere. Unfortunately, the Europeans' devastating urge to do good can no longer be countered with reason.

And that, as they say, is the money shot.

Unfortunately, the Europeans' devastating urge to do good can no longer be countered with reason.

via Will over at Vodkapundit

DU Post of the Day (for amusement purposes only)

Titled: The ultimate revelation is still 9/11

Gangsters in government. Media covers for them. That is the problem.

The only solution is 50 million of you out in the streets shutting it all down until they topple. People Power. Like Moscow '91, like Venezuela '02.

Oh yes, let Junior's little segment of the Bush mob be brought down by Plame or some such, but remember: on Watergate followed Reagan, just six years later, and it all continues through Bush, Clinton and Bush.

Nothing will have been won unless the whole ball of wax is exposed -

9/11 as the inside job it so obviously was, an arranged Reichstag fire event to seize the Zeitgeist and brainwash all of you into submission.

Vote fraud 2000 and 2004.

Drug-dealing, money laundering and plunder by the thousand tentacles of the Bush Family Evil Eempire.

Inexcusable war of aggression on the people of Iraq, nuclear threats to the whole world, a history of genocide in Central America...

Only if these become common knowledge and the perpetrators are actually pursued for criminal prosecution. Only then might we see an end to the real problem:

- the centralization of power in the hands of a few thousand owner-emperors, the protection of their "interests" through "national security" institutions that operate above the law and in secrecy;

The self-appointed powers who remain "in government" no matter who plays president, who pick the president and lay the ground for the next war, the next crime.

For a start, if the whole Bush crime family has not been acknowledged as the morally cross of the Corleones with the Hitlers on a global scale... if this just ends up being the scapegoating of a few figures for their personal mistakes and petty crimes (Rove? Who the fuck cares about Rove?!) we will never get out of this nightmare.

The next Bush (under whatever name) will be brought in just a few years hence.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is what we are dealing with. These people live amongst us, we probably buy coffee from them in the morning, get cab rides from them, and tip them for delivering our pizza. They are normal folks...on the surface. I have yet to meet an open DUer here in Milwaukee, but I have no doubt they exist. Of course, it could just be Michael Moore and Howard Dean having elaborate third, fourth, and fifth person conversations with each other...

Joseph Duncan's chilling, disgusting weblog

Chilling...the aformentioned beast who kidnapped the two Idaho children and brutally murdered their family has a web log. Truely disturbing stuff.

My intent is to harm society as much as I can, then die...was in prison for over 18 years, since the age of 17. As an adult all I knew was the oppression of incarceration. All those years I dreamed of getting out...And getting even. Instead, I got out and I got even, but did not get caught. So, I got even again, and again did not get caught.

What a disgusting shame. Anyone have a spare island where we can send these disgusting, unforgivable pederasts to rot and die? Not in my back yard is damn right.

Props to Jawa Report

Barbara Bush...Volunteering in Africa?

I often hear and read complaints about those "spolied" Bush daughters. A fun rallying cry for leftists nutters is "why aren't the Bush twins in Iraq?" (funny, they never mention Chelsea, after all Hillary did/does support the war). Well, it seems that Barbara Bush is doing her part, and a lot more than most of us.

It is here, say some doctors and nurses, that Barbara Bush, one of President Bush's twin daughters, has been working in near anonymity as a volunteer.

While no one disputes that she has been in Cape Town for the last six weeks, nearly everything about her stay is shrouded in mystery. Hospital officials yesterday refused to confirm her presence, and many hospital workers ducked questions about Barbara Bush's role at one of the premier health facilities in Africa for children with AIDS and other ailments.

A White House official, Peter Watkins, confirmed yesterday that her mother, Laura Bush, will visit Barbara in South Africa later this week, after the Group of Eight summit in Scotland where President Bush and other leaders of the industrialized world will consider how they can help ease poverty in Africa. The official said Laura Bush and her other daughter, Jenna, will spend five days with Barbara and then will travel to other African countries to speak about AIDS relief and education initiatives.

Bravo.

Convictions can carry the death penalty (Idaho Kidnapping)

Honestly, that was the only reason I wanted to read the story. I wanted to know that this sick prick would be killed. Not spending a life in jail where he can get his kicks with other sicko sex offenders, but put to death.

The intent of the crimes, the documents say, was to rape, seriously injure or commit a lewd and lascivious act on a child under 16 years old. Convictions can carry the death penalty or life in prison.

Duncan, who was raised in Tacoma, Wash., had spent more than a decade in prison for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy at gunpoint and was a fugitive at the time of his arrest for allegedly molesting a 6-year-old boy in Minnesota. Wayman on Tuesday ordered him held on $2 million bail on the fugitive charge.

Preemptive strike against SCOTUS nominee

Yeah, I am guessing that this will be a nice quiet confirmation process, well, until a name gets named. PFAW is already circulating a fundraiser to block any Bush nominee, and they don't have the slightest clue who it will be.

We hope President Bush will select a consensus nominee after consulting Senators from both political parties, but given his track record, the odds are good that he will nominate someone who threatens our rights and liberties — in which case you and PFAW will have to mount a tireless campaign this summer to keep that nominee from being confirmed by the US Senate.

So, PFAW opposes anyone Bush nominates. How does anyone donate to this group? Isn't this a "preemptive strike" against a potential nominee? I thought leftists hated preemptive strikes?

It Starts! O'Connor to Retire

And you thought last nights Summerfest fireworks were good. Wait til next week!!

Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court and a key swing vote on issues such as abortion and the death penalty, said Friday she is retiring.

O'Connor, 75, said she expects to leave before the start of the court's next term in October, or whenever the Senate confirms her successor. There was no immediate word from the White House on who might be nominated to replace O'Connor.

It's been 11 years since the last opening on the court, one of the longest uninterrupted stretches in history. O'Connor's decision gives Bush his first opportunity to appoint a justice.

"This is to inform you of my decision to retire from my position as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, effective upon the nomination and confirmation of my successor. It has been a great privilege indeed to have served as a member of the court for 24 terms. I will leave it with enormous respect for the integrity of the court and its role under our constitutional structure."

The White House has refused to comment on any possible nominees, or whether Bush would name a woman to succeed O'Connor. Her departure leaves Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as the only other woman among the current justices.

Possible replacements include Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and federal courts of appeals judges J. Michael Luttig, John Roberts, Samuel A. Alito Jr., Michael McConnell, Emilio Garza and James Harvie Wilkinson III. Others mentioned are former Solicitor General Theodore Olson, lawyer Miguel Estrada and former deputy attorney general Larry Thompson, but Bush's pick could be a surprise choice not well known in legal circles.

Another prospective candidate is Edith Hollan Jones, a judge on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals who was also considered for a Supreme Court vacancy by President Bush's father.

The interesting thing here is that it changes the makeup of the court if a decent person is appointed, instead of one of those Godless liberals.

Also this means that President Bush will more than likely get two nominations.

Funding Religion

Anne Coulter's column over at Townhall.com got me thinking. Why isn't the ACLU suing the Army? After all, the taxpayers are definitely promoting a specific religion down at Gitmo. Shouldn't we be distributing books about science and self-help books by Dr. Phil instead of the Quran? After all, the Guran mentions God! The horror! Sounds like promoting religion to me. I plan on writing ACLU-WI to file a suit on my behalf. I'll let you know if I get a response.

State Office
ACLU of Wisconsin
207 E. Buffalo Street, Suite 325
Milwaukee, WI 53202-5774
Phone: 414.272.4032
Fax: 414.272.0182
Email: liberty@aclu-wi.org

Legal Department
ACLU of Wisconsin
207 E. Buffalo Street, Suite 325
Milwaukee, WI 53202-5774
Phone: 414.272.4032 ext.16
Fax: 414.272.0182
Email: inquiries@aclu-wi.org

Madison Office
ACLU of Wisconsin
122 State Street, Suite 507
Madison, WI 53703
Phone: 608.469.5540
Fax: 608.255.2688
Email: DRiley@aclu-wi.org

It's Called A Bunt!!

For two years I have been harping about Yost and his seeming inability to call for a sac bunt. Finally, he has started calling for it. Sadly, the Brewers players are totally unable to come through.

I finally get why he was so hesitant to move runners over, no one on the team can bunt!

Square around, face the pitcher, direct your bat to the left or the right and deaden the ball 20 or 30 feet away from the plate. That's what we call a bunt...For some reason, that basic skill has eluded the Milwaukee Brewers too often this season, and it played a role in another close defeat Wednesday to the Chicago Cubs. Todd Hollandsworth decided the issue with a one-out, run-scoring single in the bottom of the ninth to give the Cubs a 3-2 victory at Wrigley Field.

"You have to get bunts down and you have to get big hits," manager Ned Yost said after his club its third consecutive game. "We didn't do it."

Brewers pitcher Ben Sheets failed to get down a sacrifice bunt in the third inning against Kerry Wood, rendering Clark's two-out single meaningless. The one that really hurt came in the ninth, when Geoff Jenkins led off with a walk, only to have rookie J.J. Hardy foul off three consecutive bunt attempts against reliever Roberto Novoa.