Jettiness – ok, its an electric jet. But way cool!

“Lifting off from an airfield in Germany, Lilium Aviation’s Jet Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL), zero-emission, electric Eagle prototype has completed its maiden flight. Being controlled from the ground, the unmanned two-seater was subjected to a series of tests, including a mid-air transition from hovering to horizontal flight. The company is aiming for a manned … Read more

Edu-payroll creep? Do what I did!

All it takes is one question over and over and over again.  And then the guts to act when they either act stupid or won’t answer:

Cal State Can’t Explain Why It Needs So Many Bureaucrats.

The California State University system has increased its hiring of managers at a steeper rate than its hiring of other employees over the past 10 years, according to a new state audit…in a report on the audit released on Thursday, the state auditor, Elaine M. Howle, wrote that the system could not sufficiently explain why it needed all the new managers, including deans, head coaches, and vice presidents, among other positions.

…The audit also found that the system’s 23 campuses did not have policies for periodically comparing their spending levels or reviewing their budget limits.

The Question: 

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Remember what I said about Educational “indirect to direct labor costs?”

SHOT: In Manchester public schools, 22 topped $100K in 2016 CHASER: In Gilford public schools, 12 topped $100K in 2016 Here’s the deal: difference in student enrollment: Manchester: 13,387 Gilford: 1,164 So, where is the problem? Manchester has twice the number of $100K+ employees but 11.5 times the enrollment. So, who is getting the shaft here? … Read more

Notable Quote – Hugh Hewitt

“My analysis is that most faith based systems depend upon an absolute moral order. The declaration of things as absolutely evil or absolutely good, as sin or virtue, puts liberalism into a horrible position because it’s founded on no judgment on anything. As a result, any faith that is seriously practiced or understood is a … Read more

Quick Thought – Fed Shutdown in a week? So what?

White House ‘confident’ government shutdown can be avoided but still tells agencies to prepare for it

It’s not like this deadline, the Feds running out of money because, once AGAIN, our overpaid and over-ego’d CongressCritters have failed to do their jobs – pass a series of appropriation bills for each area of the government in time to have them signed by the President.  This time, we can blame Republicans for not doing their jobs and the Democrats for doing their very best to be the next Ted Cruz’s (how’s that in making the Dems become of their most hated Republicans?).

As I’ve said before,

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Palate Cleanser: Ski-jumping tires. Why not?

Caution – no tires were hurt in the filming of this exercise.  Nor has any attempt been made to translate it from its native Japanese.  Who cares – what commentary is needed about tires going down a hill? I did gaffaw at the last tire as it left the ramp…. (H/T: RedState)

I have the perfect solution for these folks

Trump Admin Reassigns Obama Holdover Iran Deal Architect Who Snuck into Senior Position

Sahar Nowrouzzadeh, a senior career service employee at the State Department and a hold-over from the Obama and Bush administrations, has been removed from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s policy planning team, according to a report by Politico.
Nowrouzzadeh was an integral member of the team that drafted the much-maligned 2015 deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran over that theocratic dictatorship’s nuclear program. During the negotiations leading up to that deal, Breitbart News reported that Nowrouzzadeh previously had worked for the National-Iranian American Council, a lobbying group with connections to Iran’s Islamic fundamentalist leadership.

According to Politico, Nowrouzzadeh has been reassigned to the State Department’s Office of Iranian Affairs. As a career service employee, Nowrouzzadeh is protected from outright dismissal over political leanings.

This does NOT solve the problem, it only shifts it to somewhere else.  I’m no expert on Civil Service rules (although I’ve been moving to a position to go BACK to the time when elections mattered and the spoils went to the winner given what I’ve been reading about the burrowing in” by Obama spawns) but re-assignment seems to be acceptable.  I have a great idea on WHERE to re-assign these kinds of folks that are all willing to fight against the policies of the Trump Administration.

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Democrat Party – well, DO they hate unborn babies or not?

SHOT: Nancy Pelosi: There Is Room In The Party For Pro-Life Democrats “Of course” you can be a pro-life Democrat, Pelosi said. “I’ve served in the House with many members who did not share my very positive, aggressive position on promoting a woman’s right to choose.”…”Why don’t you interview Tom Perez, and not me!” she … Read more

Guest post by JD Rucker: Why Life is at the Forefront for the Federalist Party

The Declaration of Independence conspicuously listed life as an unalienable right. It’s impossible to know for certain how the founders would weigh in on the modern abortion debate, but the Federalist Party holds to the idea that protecting life at all stages is a self-evident truth.

The opportunities to write about this to the nation as well as directly to the people of New Hampshire that GraniteGrok serves are greatly appreciated. As such, we chose life as one of three core issues to discuss specifically because we feel New Hampshire is a microcosm of America. There are strongly polarized groups on both sides present in the “Live Free or Die” state just as there are diverse perspectives at every level in between. Since abortion is as much a cultural issue as it is a political one, we see it bridging the gap between pro-lifers on both sides of the political spectrum. The key is making sure the messaging is aligned with the Constitution in order to stay true to our other core beliefs of reining in the federal government and defending our freedoms.

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“Who wouldn’t want to be a Progressive?”

If you really think hard about Classical Western Liberalism, have an affinity for Liberty / Freedom in the everyday choices of your life, and hate the idea that government should make all the “hard” decisions and decide what your behavior should be, you’re not a progressive. This guy used to be – and then thought … Read more

Notable Quote – Nathan Oman

Exchange thus requires a kind of other-regardingness. To be sure, it is not altruism. Our concern with the advantages of the butcher, the brewer, and the baker is not the love of our neighbors. Exchange does not require such love. Commerce, however, is impossible when I am indifferent to the concerns of my trading partner. In a more aristocratic age, tradespeople were an object of scorn precisely because of the servility that the market imposed on them. Gentlemen possessed the luxury of satisfying their needs while maintaining indifference to others. The tradesman, in contrast, could not afford hauteur because he was dependent on the satisfaction of others’ interests for the gratification of his own needs.

-Nathan Oman ( The Dignity of Commerce)

Progressives / Socialists are like the old aristocrats of old like Oman describes – they look

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GrokTV: Live blogging from the RCRC’s Annual Freedom Founders Dinner

Grokster Mike will be there to livestream the event starting at around 7pm tonite.  Speakers include NH Gov. Chris Sununu and former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and MC is Jeff Chidester.  I’m quite sure that Mike will also try to get a few words with as many folks as he can outside of the … Read more

Notable Quote – Ann Alhouse

I get really tired of Democratic partisan emotion. I’m someone who sometimes votes for Democrats, and I’ve voted for a lot more Democratic candidates than Republicans over the years, but I have nothing but a negative reaction to all this anger at losing. If they’d won, they’d be exulting and gloating, with no empathy for … Read more

Blogline of the Day – no, I am not responsible for your guilt.

Social Justice is another name for collective guilt and punishment, which means it’s actual injustice.  Individuals can only be praised or punished for that which they have done.  Beyond that lies madness. And Social Justice (such a nebulous term!) isn’t just for spreading guilt – it’s real purpose is to gather Power from you to … Read more

Taliban: using that old “I killed my parents so have mercy on me, an orphan” schtick

MOABWell, can’t say that I blame them – a large part of war is the propaganda effort.  Hey, it worked well for Ho Chi Minh to win the Viet Nam war, right?  So the Taliban is copying them, I suppose, in the aftermath of losing a whole bunch of insurgent fighters, lots of material, and a honeycomb base of mountain tunnels after the US Military dropped the “Mother of All Bombs” (e.g., GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast, packed with 11 tons of TNT) on their heads. So the BEST they can do is THIS (reformatted, emphasis mine) whining?

…”The use and experimentation of such destructive weapons by foreign occupiers on our war-weary people and in every corner of our war-ravaged country is inexcusable,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said. “The Islamic Emirate condemns such barbarity in the strongest of terms and considers its perpetrators as war criminals. Such over-proportionate use of destruction poses long-term detriments for the environment and the development of our nation.”

He added that ISIS in Afghanistan is an internal Afghan matter and “if Americans fear for their security they should foil such plots at their own borders.”

Funny, 

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