Free kibbles

TAX AND SPEND:

Tony Blair used complicated web of companies to shelter money from taxes. This is a good reminder that laws and taxes are for serfs, not the ruling class.

GLOBAL WARMING:

According to the geological record, a new ice age could begin any time. Now some guy claims that AGW could keep it from starting.

Solar cycle 24 still signals a significant global cooling trend.

POLICE STATE:

Leaked memos show tech companies gave Indian government backdoor access to their devices. You can bet they've done the same for the US government.

Like a cancer, the police state is rapidly metasticizing.

POLITICS:

Here's an important example of why our political system is the way it is.

"A week or so after Newt Gingrich said that the Palestinians are an invented people, his Super PAC has received $5 million from Sheldon Adelson, whose central cause is Israel."

Politicians work to improve their standard of living like everybody else. The difference is they get to use government's power of coercion to advance their own interests at everybody else's expense, and they do.

Ron Paul pulls within 15 percent of Romney in New Hampshire.

I've heard Ron Paul called many things, but never a master of rhetoric. I've often criticized him for his lack of clarity when he speaks.

"I hear the criticism that Ron Paul is not a polished speaker. This criticism is correct. But he is a nevertheless a master of rhetoric.How can both positions be true? Because rhetoric is all about persuasion. Great oratory is not necessary."

Both positions can certainly be true, but that's not the issue. Paul fails for lack of clarity, not lack of speech writers. For example, I have never heard him explain how cutting government spending will stimulate the economy. In another example, he failed to explain why he wouldn't immediately put an end to taxpayer funded student loans. These are failures of communication, and therefore he cannot be called a master of rhetoric. Paul has his moments, but that doesn't make him a master of rhetoric either.

"The mark of mastery of rhetoric is this: the speaker persuades a crowd to accept something that it had previously opposed. A supreme master is a person who has not only changes their minds but persuades the listeners to take action. This is so rare as to be unheard of."

By North's own standard, Paul fails. I doubt he's convinced any libertarian to support taxpayer funded student loans. I certainly am not aware of any. But North's premise is flawed to begin with. Reagan persuaded people because he spoke about libertarian principles. Paul also speaks about libertarian principles. Those principles persuade. Paul understands this just as he understand's he's no master of rhetoric like Reagan.

Pat Buchanan inadvertently makes the case for supporting Obama in 2012.

"As of today, Obama is running even with Mitt Romney. He has lost much of the enthusiasm of the young and the minorities that he had in 2008. College-educated whites who had hopes for him seem disillusioned.
Assuredly, he may still win. But should Obama win, how, after a campaign like the one he intends to conduct, does he unite the country?How does he work with a Republican Party that will likely still hold the House and will have made gains in the Senate, after he has spent a year castigating that party?"

We could hope for that legendary gridlock that has never before happened in Washington despite what we've been told. Even Buchanan recognizes this.

"And what happen to the nation if we have five more years of political gridlock?"

It means government will grow at a far slower rate than usual. If somebody other than Ron Paul is elected president, that's the best we can hope for. If Republicans control the presidency with somebody other than Ron Paul along with both houses of Congress, they will expand government nearly as fast as Obama did. There will be no cuts.

The critical factor in whether or not the US as we know it survives is if our economy can grow faster than government. Since our economy cannot grow, that means we must stop the growth of government if not reduce it. If a Republican other than Ron Paul wins the presidency, and Republicans win both houses of Congress, there's no way this will happen. If the Republicans nominate somebody other than Ron Paul, the only way to limit the damage from the collapse of the US economy under the burden of government is to insure divided government. On a personal note, I will never support Obama nor any Republican other than Ron Paul. Anybody who thinks this election is about anybody but Obama is helping to destroy our country. I will vote only for reducing government, never expanding it.

Newt Gingrich reminds Americans that he hates capitalism as much as President Obama.

Because Santorum is another big government, New England establishment candidate, he'll collapse just like all the pretenders before him. In the end, it will be Ron Paul versus Romney.

Apparently New Hampshire polls are all over the place with at least one placing Santorum second and another placing Huntsman second.

LOCAL:

We get more lane closures on the never-ending I-75 death trap construction project.

Only government would starve people on charity to death. Private charities would never allow this.

MISC:

Airbus says cracks in Airbus wings are harmless. Note to self: don't fly Airbus.

Visio to introduce all in one PCs at significantly lower prices. Let's hope this is true.