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GraniteGrok

Are you in the Bubble? The Elite one, that is….

Certainly, those at Davos are the world Elite, globe-trotting to Switzerland to talk about the ills of the world and what they can do about it (or transform it) without truly understanding the root cause of the problem.  And if you want to know what I believe an Elite to be, well, here you go.  So, are you an Elite?  Is your life experience set you up to be one (regardless of your actual socioeconomic standing)?  I bumped into this post:

What the heck am I talking about?  I’m talking about my score on the 20-question “How Thick Is Your Bubble?” quiz.  (Try it: it only takes about 60 seconds.)

Still puzzled?  The quiz is connected with the appearance of Charles Murray’s new book, Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010, which will be published next Tuesday.  The book lays out Murray’s thesis that much of America’s upper middle class and upper class—a “cognitive elite”—exist in a bubble from the rest of the middle and working class.  A long excerpt appeared over the weekend in the Wall Street Journal:

For most of our nation’s history, whatever the inequality in wealth between the richest and poorest citizens, we maintained a cultural equality known nowhere else in the world—for whites, anyway. . .  Americans love to see themselves this way. But there’s a problem: It’s not true anymore, and it has been progressively less true since the 1960s. . .

Over the past 50 years, that common civic culture has unraveled. We have developed a new upper class with advanced educations, often obtained at elite schools, sharing tastes and preferences that set them apart from mainstream America. At the same time, we have developed a new lower class, characterized not by poverty but by withdrawal from America’s core cultural institutions.

Take the quiz; my results after the jump.

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GrokTV Event-NH Senate hearing: Voter ID / SB318 – Skip Murphy

OK, I’m touting my own horn here.  Sure, I am in favor of a Voter ID bill that requires a picture ID.  Given the two bills, I think I would favor SB289 over SB318.  Yes, the latter tries to cover more areas but I think that SB289 is more tightly focused on the major issue … Read more

Guess who is leading the media parade? Yeah, he lives in that White House…

I am just going to keep saying this, and saying this, and saying this while the Presidential campaign is ongoing: Will the Press be willing to do that investigative homework?  Or, will this still hold true: After all, at the Washington Press Corp Dinner where Obama let this loose: “Most of you all covered me… … Read more

GrokTV Event-NH Senate hearing: Voter ID / SB289 – Testimony by NH Deputy Sec. of State David Scanlan and President Patricia of the City and Town Clerks Association, and others!

This post has all of the other testimony, pro and con, on SB289 relative to having to present a valid picture ID in order to vote in NH elections.   This first one is NH Deputy Sec. of State David Scanlan bringing the news that his department is supporting this bill and its amendment by Senator Prescott

In addition, President Patricia Piecuch of the City and Town Clerks Association was also testifying in favor of the bill (after the jump).

Also testifying were the following:

  • Doug McNutt (AARP) – in opposition
  • Skip Murphy (why, that’s ME!) – in favor
  • Melissa Madden (America Votes) – in opposition
  • Sam Langley – in opposition
  • Charles Balban (NH Alliance for Retired Americans) – in opposition
  • Ryan Donnelly (Granite State Independent Living) – in opposition
  • Michael Skibbie  (Disability Rights Center) – in opposition
  • Claire Ebel (NH Civil Liberties Union) – in opposition
  • Karen Ashwell (?) (League of Women Voters) – in opposition
  • Caitlan Rollo (Granite State Progress) – in opposition

Please note that the loud typing clacking came from the committee aide, Debra Martone, and especially from Kevin Landrigan (Nashua Telegraph); nothing I can do about it…

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Notable Quote – Gov. Mitch Daniels

“The President’s grand experiment in trickle-down government has held back rather than sped economic recovery. He seems to sincerely believe we can build a middle class out of government jobs paid for with borrowed dollars. In fact, it works the other way: a government as big and bossy as this one is maintained on the … Read more

OK, here is my definition of what an “Elite” is

I love these meaningless labels you people employ to scare people. “Elite” why not “effete” why not “European minded”? Does an “elite” have lots of money, or is an “elite” just overeducated? Can you be a capitalist and an “elite” or are they mutually exclusive? Do you have to have travelled abroad to be an “elite” or can you be house bound and be elite as well? Please, go ahead and define an elite for me. Is Warren Buffet an “elite”? The Koch brothers support the NYC Ballet and Opera. That sounds pretty elite to me. Are they the “elite”?

-jklml

I normally just let these things stay in the comment area, but I’ve decided to break my informal guideline.  The above is the comment left on my post here pontificating that the Davos Elitist founder wants to scrap capitalism.  He demanded I give him a definition, so I have:

For the most part, we use “Elite” in two different ways.  When talking about people that just exude excellence in what they do (e.g., Navy Seals, top rated artists, pundits like Krauthammer and Steyn), they are at the elite levels of what they do.

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So, Obama knew that the financial meltdown was NOT just Wall Street’s fault???

Conventional wisdom / street knowledge is that Wall Street and their crazy and risky financial instruments was not solely to blame for the financial crash from which we are still picking our way out of (even as Obama keeps erecting more and more obstacles in that pathway).  Over at The EnterpriseBlog, James Pethokoukis (a highly respected economics journalist) plucks 11 “stunning revelations” from a formerly secret document that Larry Summers (former head of Obama’s economic advisors, and was advising him during the campaign).  The 11th was what caught my eye (James takeaway followed by an actual quote from the Summer’s document):

11. The financial crisis wasn’t just Wall Street’s fault.

A significant cause of the current crisis lies in the failure of regulators to exercise vigorously the authority they already have.

Not to take away any shame or malfeasance by Wall Street, this is a stunning admission from someone who became “the Obama Administration’s economic insider”.  This statement can also be placed not only on the Wall Street regulators but also the two GSEs (Government Sponsored Entities) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Obama’s main thrust has been to advocate and regulate more rules by government over the financial sector.  Yet, little has been admitted by the Obama Administration (and other Democrats like Barney Frank) in terms of Government malfeasance.  But then again, to do so would undermine Obama’s own philosophy and core belief – how could the Progressive State be allowed to “guide” and regulate the lives of all of us if it itself cannot regulate itself?  What is the sense of adding more and more regulations if the State (e.g., the Feds) could not even credibly enforce what was already on the books?  If that last question holds true, Obama and the rest of his pathetic pack of Progressives have only a chasm of platitudes instead of a valid political philosophy.  If true, on what basis can they credibly state:

“trade your individual freedom for our equality enforced upon all – after all, we know better!”

Quick Summaries after the jump:

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Again,Elites are trying to get rid of Capitalism – but we can see it is not an economics system problem but a problem of morality

Every year, the Elites of the political, economic, and cultural worlds gather in Davos, Switzerland to talk about global ‘stuff’ – what’s trending, what’s wrong, and their global ways of fixing them what they believe is wrong – for the betterment of us all.  Hate to keep sounding like a broken record but even with the caveat that I will never be as successful as they have been, sometimes things to have to be pointed out.  Here’s what Davos founder Klaus Schwab said:

“We have a general morality gap, we are over-leveraged, we have neglected to invest in the future, we have undermined social coherence, and we are in danger of completely losing the confidence of future generations,” said Klaus Schwab, host and founder of the annual World Economic Forum.

“Solving problems in the context of outdated and crumbling models will only dig us deeper into the hole.

“We are in an era of profound change that urgently requires new ways of thinking instead of more business-as-usual,” the 73-year-old said, adding that “capitalism in its current form, has no place in the world around us.”

I am oft criticized by those that don’t like that I keep things black and white; I rather think that I’m bringing things down to basic principles.  In this case, it’s necessary.

Let’s pull it apart (and who’s this “we” bit, kimosabe?):

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“THAT WAS NOT A COUNTDOWN!” – Marine screams like a little girl

I laughed the whole time even though I would never watch this at work with my speakers turned up (some language NSFW).  Yeah, I’m going to hear from Tim, as I am always trying to keep him “kid friendly” when he lovingly tries to “push my button”.

In essence,you have the Marine on the right getting his terrified buddy onto a Slingshot ride and it takes off before the buddy is ready.  The facial reaction is worth putting up with the language – just turn the sound down.  The video is after the jump (to keep the temptation down):

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Part II – Where Diane Lacy, President of NH SEA / SEIU can’t even get simple facts right – and tips hand on the upcoming NH election cycle.

Unions - Proud Owners Of The Democrat Party
Unions - Proud Owners Of The Democrat Party

 

A bit of advice for Diane Lacy:

It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt.

Too bad it is after the fact.  When I fisked Diane Lacy’s, Prez of SEIU local 1984, appearance on WMUR’s “Closeup” yesterday, I forgot to comment on this doozy:

There are local businesses that stand that stand to be deeply damaged by these bills if they are passed.   I mean some of the bills on dues deductions.  That will impact e-commerce here in NH.  That will impact bankers, insurance companies, lawyers, a number of services, vendors, manufacturers.  And these legislators have no clue as to what they are going to do to businesses on this so we will have the conversation.

THIS is a wallapalooza of a claim concerning e-commerce – and wrong!  And it a lame attempt to prevent a defanging of one of the Unions most potent weapons, their financial oxygen: automatic union dues deduction.

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Where Diane Lacy, President of NH SEA / SEIU can’t even get simple facts right – and tips hand on the upcoming NH election cycle.

SEIU
SEIU

On WMUR “Closeup” this morning, replacement host James Pindell interviewed Diane Lacy, President of the NH State Employee Association and NH Rep. Will Infantine (R-Manchester) during his first segment).  Well, during the interview, Ms. Lacy shows that either she has no grasp of real facts or is just what many people believe: that the SEIU is just another name for “Progressive Democrats” in that they just make up facts and say them as truth. And keep repeating them, just like NH Progressive Press Sec. Harrell Kirstein and Uber-Progressive Chair Ray “Buckles” Buckley  And are in the tank for Obama, as the national SEIU spent over $70 million, by their own admission, trying to get Obama elected. Lacy concentrated on three things:

  • Unions = Middle Class
  • Republican supported budget hurts union workers (with an assisted jab question from James Pindell)
  • Speaker Bill O’Brien is a Free Stater
  • In fact, NH is overrun by Free Staters (and she has no clue who or how many)!
  • She is making the wedge appeal to the RINOs for support with “hey, THOSE Republicans are not like you – support us!”
  • But she’ll replace those RINOS with union members who will be running for election.
  • And kinda mumbled something that without automatic union due deductions from union member paychecks, e-commerce in NH is dead.

Like this first statement by Diane Lacy:

“Middle Class is under attack here in NH and the way to get to the Middle Class is by taking away their rights.”

This is getting to be old, but let’s walk through this, shall we?

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Data Point – Once again, “who pays the taxes”? Where’s the Press on this?

Wall Street Journal - Who pays Federal taxes - income and other
Wall Street Journal - Who pays Federal taxes?

From the Wall Street Journal:

“This all-too-conveniently confuses the incidence of a tax with the burden of a tax. The marginal tax rate on every additional dollar of capital gains and dividend income from corporate profits can reach as high as 44.75% at the federal level (assuming a company pays the 35% top corporate rate), not 15%.

The Congressional Budget Office recently examined the distribution of federal taxes on various income groups. The report was ballyhooed by liberals as proof of rising income inequality, but that argument is for another day. What everyone has ignored is what CBO found about the relative taxes paid by different groups. And, lo, the rich pay more, which is probably why the press didn’t report it.”

Indeed” “why the press didn’t report it.”  All we have heard from the Left is the inequality, a la Warren Buffet, is the inequality of who pays what for taxes.  What they seldom report to the public, and what Warren Buffet absolutely doesn’t mention, is exactly the important info laid out above: double taxation.  The money that Buffet receives has already been taxed once at the corporate rate (35% before legal deductions) and as an owner of the corporation (as that’s what shareholders are – owners) he gets taxed a second time on that income – referred to as dividends.

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With Obama canceling the Keystone pipeline, I guess Obama’s economy is running out of gas…

Obamanomics Running Out Of GasYup!  Running the car out of the ditch but into that renewable tree is going to do LOVELY things for Obama’s economy.  Our economy runs on oil, and only God knows why Obama thinks that the Keystone oil pipeline from Canada is not in “the nation’s interest”.  His, maybe.  Environmentalists, maybe.  And Warren Buffet’s?  Certainly seems to be (from Instapundit):

MORE OF THIS ADMINISTRATION’S LOUSY ENERGY POLICY: North Dakota Stuck Using More-Costly Railroads to Move Oil. “Right now, about 25% of North Dakota’s oil travels by rail. According to the CBS News report that ‘will increase exponentially with increased oil production and the shortage of pipelines.’”

UPDATE: Reader Jack Lillywhite emails:

 And who has a big stake in Burlington Northern? A guy in Omaha named Buffett.

And by having TransCanada tie its Keystone XI to the border crossing approval you can’t get a segmented line from Montana to Port Arthur, TX that the Bakken field could tie into. That is the concept. A collector system named the BakkenLink runs down to Montana from ND and ties into Keystone XI (known as MarketLink). A twofer you might say.

So, in a way it is a Win-Win for Obama – He wins his Green base and his Crony Capitalism base. Pretty clever, eh?

They win, we lose. As usual.

Crony Capitalism.

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I DID talk to Annmarie Timmins at the Concord Monitor about RINOs, Julie Brown, and the Internet

A loyal reader alerted me to this in the Concord Monitor this morning – Annmarie Timmins runs a column similar to Distao’s (Union Leader) – concerning the RINO of the Week / Year series that Rick runs (heh!).  She had called me about the bumper stickers and more specifically, about the license plate.  What she wrote (I have added pertinent links):

“Republican vs. “Republican“

Rep. David Kidder of New London is letting bygones be bygones.

Despite recently losing GraniteGrok.com’s coveted 2011 RINO (Republican In Name Only) of the Year award to Rep. Julie Brown of Rochester, the two were chatting happily at a legislative hearing last week.

Kidder, a Realtor serving his fourth term, was in the running along with 15 other representatives who don’t always vote along party lines.

“It was, well, disappointing,” Kidder said Thursday. But Kidder knew he had no chance once the conservatives in his party got a look at the bumper stickers on Brown’s car.

“Tea Parties are for Little Girls and Their Imaginary Friends,” says one. The other pictures a dog with the words, “I want free health care too.” GraniteGrok.com posted a snapshot of Brown’s bumper, legislative license plate included, on its website.

You bet I did!

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