Code Red

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WyBlog, the best thing about New Jersey since the invention of the 24 hour diner.

Chris Wysocki
Caldwell, NJ

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Tuesday, 30 September 2014

The FCC just sacked the sports blackout rule

It's good news for sure, but with an asterisk.

Federal regulators have ended a longstanding rule that prevents certain sports games from being shown on TV.

In a bipartisan vote Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission unanimously agreed to do away with the sports blackout rule, a much-criticized 40-year-old ban on local broadcasts designed to force sports fans to their local stadiums rather than allowing them to watch poorly attended games from home.

Under the blackout rule, games that failed to sell out could not be shown on free, over-the-air television. For decades, it also meant that cable companies and satellite TV providers were effectively forbidden from showing those games in the same market, as well.

Now the FCC has signaled that it will no longer be backing the blackout rule, which the commission says mainly benefits team owners and sports leagues, such as the NFL, by driving ticket sales.

"For 40 years, these teams have hidden behind a rule of the FCC," said FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. "No more. Everyone needs to be aware who allows blackouts to exist, and it is not the Federal Communications Commission."

And there's the asterisk, the leagues themselves can still impose blackout rules via their TV contracts. But they can't pretend it's the government that's forcing them to do it.

Personally, I don't think the NFL much cares what we think. They're gonna do things their way no matter what. And blackouts are dying off anyway due to better team marketing and seat license sales. Fewer than 1% of NFL games are now blacked out.

The rule that really gets my goat is the "local market" rule. With NFL Sunday Ticket I can stream any Sunday afternoon game except a game that's being broadcast by a local New York TV station. Those I have to watch on a physical TV. Why? So I won't miss the fabulous local commercials. You know, the ones for Route 22 Nissan and the New York Lottery, that I'd obviously never see if I wasn't watching the Jets.

Don't count on the FCC ditching that rule any time soon. The NFL is "powerful," but the broadcast networks are the 800 lb gorilla, and the FCC isn't about to take them on. Just look at what they did to Aereo and you'll immediately conclude that it was the networks driving the FCC to rescind the blackout rule; they want the ad revenue from every sporting event. Reruns of Gilligans Island don't get anywhere near the ratings of a football or baseball game. So a game that's not on TV is one that isn't making money for them.

Protectionism sucks. But it's here to stay.

Posted at 14:24 by Chris Wysocki [/tech] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: FCC NFL MLB NBA NHL sports TV blackout | Tweet

"Phoning it in" is now the default mode of attendance in the NJ state Assembly

Being a member of our state Assembly is already a part-time job. Now it's a no-show job too.

A resolution (AR166) that was hastily introduced and immediately passed by a vote of 72-0 on Monday will allow members to use phones, email and possibly other devices to give their consent to be marked as present in order to form a quorum — or a majority of members — so they can conduct routine businessT like introducing bills or laying constitutional amendment resolutions on members' desks.

Prior to this innovation, legislators' aides were surreptitiously sneaking onto the floor of the Assembly to push the "present" button on their boss's desk, usually at the behest of a Party Boss who wanted something done now.

And of course, now that they've been caught red-handed, the "solution" is to formalize that process.

The Assembly has changed its attendance rules, a few months after several lawmakers found out from The Star-Ledger that they were marked as present at the Statehouse on a Friday evening in July when they were nowhere near it.

They're on the beach, enjoying a pina colada, and they're still working hard for you! Honest!

Because expecting our legislature to actually show up is "an anachronism."

"When you have a citizen Legislature and need to do routine things like introduce bills so committees can hear them and debate them, it just seems like an anachronism to bring everybody down there and have a quorum," [Assemblyman Jay] Webber [R-Morris] said. "Let's all just consent, either in person or by telephone, and they can go about their routine business."

Amending our State Constitution is "routine business?" Wow.

The quorum was necessary to get the clock ticking on a constitutionally-mandated 20-day waiting period for a proposed constitutional amendment to allow judges to deny bail to some defendants.

I wonder if the folks affected by this amendment can "phone it in" too?

Tele-legislating. It's like telecommuting, with fundraising. Because what our government needs is less accountability to the people.

Posted at 11:52 by Chris Wysocki [/nj_politics] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: NJ-Politics Assembly Vincent-Prieto attendance | Tweet

Monday, 29 September 2014

Workplace violence? Old and busted: Going Postal, New Hotness: Going Muslim

Back in the 80's when a coworker "snapped," we called it Going Postal.

Well, since beheadings are the Hot New Thing with the disgruntled employee set, I say we should start referring to what our betters in the media insist on calling "workplace violence" as Going Muslim.

Because I'm sure it's just a coincidence that recent converts to the Islamic faith feel the need to reach out and touch someone, anyone, with knives and guns, right?

Despite what your president won't tell you, they're just so amped up on The Religion Of Peace™ they can't help but want to spread the joy of jihad far and wide. And if a random infidel isn't mad for Mohammed? Off with her head!

So the next time Bob from Accounting seems a little peckish and snippy, you'll know to ask, in a cheery kind of way of course, "hey Bob, you're not about to 'go Muslim' on us, are you old boy?"

And then be prepared to duck, OK?

Because if Bob shouts "Allahu Akbar," it means run for your life.

Posted at 13:05 by Chris Wysocki [/islam] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Islam workplace-violence beheading Moore-OK Alton-Nolan FBI jihad | Tweet

Saturday, 27 September 2014

70% of families from Obama's illegal alien surge never showed up for their appointments

Remember all those kids and families who came streaming across the border thanks to Obama's lax enforcement policies and promises of amnesty? Remember how DHS swore they'd keep track of them while processing their paperwork?

Yeah, it didn't work out like that.

Tens of thousands of young families caught crossing the border illegally earlier this year subsequently failed to meet with federal immigration agents, as they were instructed, the Homeland Security Department has acknowledged privately.

An official with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement revealed that about 70 percent of immigrant families the Obama administration had released into the U.S. never showed up weeks later for follow up appointments.

The government did not specify the total number of families released into the U.S. since October. Since only a few hundred families have already been returned to their home countries and limited U.S. detention facilities can house only about 1,200 family members, the 70 percent figure suggests the government released roughly 41,000 members of immigrant families who subsequently failed to appear at federal immigration offices.

C'mon, you're shocked, right?

I suspect this was the plan all along. Obama's minions knew they couldn't house or track these people, and the consequences of releasing them into the general population were entirely predictable.

Meanwhile, DHS is johnny-on-the-spot when it comes to some other classes of immigrants — Turtles, for instance. Illegal alien turtles are deported immediately.

A Canadian man has been charged after border agents at the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel found more than 50 turtles strapped to his body and hidden between his legs.

Priorities. The Obama Administration has 'em. They're just not the priorities you or I would want them to have. But if your goal was to undermine American values and foment class warfare while sowing racial strife, increasing the population of disgruntled unassimilated low-skilled illiterate mendicants is just the way to do it.

Posted at 11:24 by Chris Wysocki [/immigration] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: immigration Obama illegal-alien border | Tweet

Friday, 26 September 2014

The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Thom Tillis for U.S. Senate

Week Four of a Nine Week Mission, to Seek Out new life for the Senate, to Boldly Throw Out clueless Harry Reid!!

Focusing on the Senate races is it worth ten bucks a week to you (2 12 packs of Dr. Pepper?) to eliminate Reid's control and give the Senate responsible leadership again?

With that in mind, this week we look to the open Senate seat in NC. Can you contribute just $10 to Senate candidate Thom Tillis?

Real Clear Politics has Tillis up 1.0 points on the average, and rates the state as a toss up.

You can contribute to Thom Tillis here. Good luck and Godspeed, Thom!

(If you mark your contribution as "Ten Buck Friday", they'll see if the blogosphere can give them a little bump.)

Be sure to visit our fellow Ten Buck Friday bloggers:

Adrienne's Corner · Diogenes' Middle Finger · Fishersville Mike · For God, Family, and Country · Laughing Conservative · Left Coast Rebel · Mind Numbed Robot · Polination · Political Clown Parade · Proof Positive · Texas Conservative News · Theo Spark · WyBlog

----------
Previously:
The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Tom Cotton for U.S. Senate
The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Joni Ernst for U.S. Senate
The Return of Ten Buck Friday (David Perdue)

Posted at 09:04 by Proof [/gop] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Ten-Buck-Friday GOP Tom-Cotton Senate Arkansas | Tweet

Thursday, 25 September 2014

Anti-gun NJ prosecutor relents, single mom Shaneen Allen is (almost) free

The Philadelphia single mother who ran afoul of New Jersey's draconian gun laws won't be going to prison after all. Atlantic County prosecutor and anti-gun zealot James McClain has finally relented and admitted Shaneen Allen into pretrial intervention.

Shaneen Allen, the 27 year old Philadelphia single mother facing a New Jersey State Prison term for bringing a Pennsylvania licensed handgun into New Jersey has been offered entry into the Pre-Trial Intervention Program, according to a report on NBC10. (H/T Save Jersey)

Atlantic County Prosecutor James McCain issued a statement which said that, upon review, his rejection of Allen's application to the PTI program was contrary to a 2008 "Graves Act" directive, according to NBC10.

According to the clarification a defendant may "avoid conviction for a Graves Act crime by being admitted to the PTI program." The clarification also states that under New Jersey law prosecutors are "not permitted to reject categorically a defendant's application for PTI on the grounds that he or she is charged with a crime that is subject to the presumption of imprisonment or a mandatory minimum sentence."

Upon reviewing the clarification, McClain allowed Allen to enter the PTI program.

"I determined that the defendant in this case should be offered the opportunity to be admitted into the Atlantic County PTI Program and I have communicated that determination to the Court and to defense counsel," McClain wrote in a released statement. "In the next few weeks I will review similar cases that are pending within our jurisdiction and make appropriate decisions following the application of the factors sent out in the clarification."

McClain undoubtedly also "determined" he didn't have a leg to stand on once it came out that he'd admitted Ray Rice into the same PTI program he denied to Shaneen Allen. Because to the anti-gun nuts, beating your wife is less of a problem than legally owning a gun in a neighboring state.

Why do I say that? Because even though I asked some of them, my local chapter of Moms Demand Action wouldn't stand up for Ms. Allen. In fact they refused to comment on her situation at all.

And I'm sure they don't care that her life has been effectively ruined anyway.

While Allen's admission into the program is a very favorable result, she and her young sons have suffered greatly due to McClain's error in not admitting her to the PTI program when she first was first arrested last October.

MMM spoke to Allen this afternoon prior to her being informed that McClain had changed his position on PTI.

Allen spent 40 days in Atlantic County prior to making bail. Fortunately, she was able to retain her job upon making bail. Yet when he case became publicized in July, she lost her job. Allen told MMM that her rent is five months past due and that her electric had been turned off last week. Her sons have been staying with their father and she has been staying with friends.

Pathetic. Inexcusable. Un-American. That's not justice, it's thuggery.

At least there's a silver lining.

New Jersey's attorney general has agreed to clarify the PTI rules, thereby making it clear that the program should be available to those in Allen's position. This is a considerable triumph of commonsense over zealotry, and a step forward for New Jersey, which has some of the worst firearms laws in the country. Nobody should have his or her life ruined for a simple mistake — especially while exercising a basic constitutional right.

Fourteen simple words — The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed — whose meaning could not be more obvious. Unless you're a liberal.

Molon Labe!

Posted at 11:24 by Chris Wysocki [/news] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Shaneen-Allen Second-Amendment gun-control Atlantic-County James-McClain | Tweet

Wednesday, 24 September 2014

Journalism in the Age of Obama: All the news The White House lets them print

To be fair, the First Amendment enjoins Congress from restricting freedom of the press. I just never expected to see our legions of wannabe Woodwards and Bernsteins acquiesce so easily to White House censorship.

White House press-pool reports are supposed to be the news media's eyes and ears on the president, an independent chronicle of his public activities. They are written by reporters for other reporters, who incorporate them into news articles about President Obama almost every day.

Sometimes, however, the White House plays an unseen role in shaping the story.

Journalists who cover the White House say Obama's press aides have demanded — and received — changes in press-pool reports before the reports have been disseminated to other journalists. They say the White House has used its unusual role as the distributor of the reports as leverage to steer coverage in a more favorable direction.

The system is set up to incorporate censorship. Reporters send their stories to the White House Press Office, and the White House sends them on to the national and international media.

After careful vetting by the Ministry of Propaganda, of course.

So when Instapundit calls reporters "Democratic Party operatives with bylines" he's hitting pretty close to the mark. The media goes along because everybody is on the same team.

And it's easy to understand why CBS ditched Sharyl Attkisson, because she didn't toe the Obama Administration line on Benghazi. CBS News President David Rhodes has a brother named Ben. Ben Rhodes is Obama's Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication, ie, Director of the Ministry of Propaganda.

Did you know that it was Ben Rhodes who rewrote the Benghazi "talking points" given to Susan Rice, deleting all references to al Qaeda and to the security warnings in Benghazi prior to the attack?

Gee, I wonder why you never read about that in the papers.

Posted at 11:59 by Chris Wysocki [/media] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: media Obama press censorship First-Amendment | Tweet

Monday, 22 September 2014

Obama's Secret Service unveils a plan to turn the White House into The Forbidden City

If the Secret Service gets their way, us peasants won't be able to even look at the White House anymore. All because some guy jumped the fence on Friday, and caught them with their pants down.

Remember when the White House was The People's House? Now it'll be more like The Forbidden City.

The Secret Service is considering a number of proposals designed to prevent intruders from breaching the security perimeter around the White House, according to published reports.

The Associated Press reported that agency officials have had preliminary discussions about setting up checkpoints in public areas around the executive mansion. A law enforcement official told the AP that such a measure has previously been discussed. However, the issue has taken on added urgency after a Texas man carrying a knife jumped the perimeter fence Friday evening and made it inside the North Portico doors before he was apprehended.

The Washington Post reported that security checkpoints could be implemented as far as a block away from the White House entrance. The paper also reported that the Secret Service is also considering keeping people off the sidewalks around the perimeter fence and creating additional barriers.

If only your president would take the security of our Southern border so seriously.

But no, the riff-raff cannot be allowed to get within a mile of His Imperial Majesty. White House tours are still "suspended," supposedly due to the Sequester. (Remember that? It was repealed like 2 years ago.) Schoolkids have to content themselves with watching a movie from the confines of the White House Visitor's Center, located far, far away from the actual thing.

And now we won't be able to even walk down the street in front of Mr. Obama's Executive Fortress. For our own good, of course. He's better than us. His wife is better than your wife. His kids are better than your kids. And his house is off-limits. Avert your eyes, lest you catch a glimpse of the Emperor, for which the penalty is … death.

Posted at 10:02 by Chris Wysocki [/obama_watch] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Obama White-House Secret-Service security | Tweet

Friday, 19 September 2014

Bridgegate: After 9 months of digging, Feds find no link to Chris Christie

Oops, the Big Guy wasn't in the loop after all.

The U.S. Justice Department investigation into Gov. Chris Christie's role in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal has thus far uncovered no evidence indicating that he either knew in advance or directed the closure of traffic lanes on the span, federal officials tell NBC 4 New York.

The September 2013 closures -- where several entrance lanes to the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee were shut down, causing a traffic nightmare for commuters -- has been the subject of several federal and state investigations.

Federal officials caution that the investigation that began nine months ago is ongoing and that no final determination has been made, but say that authorities haven't uncovered anything that indicates that Christie knew in advance or ordered the closure of traffic lanes.

According to one former federal prosecutor who had no involvement in any of the probes into the lane closures investigations of this kind will often turn up a solid connection early in the inquiry.

"My experience with federal law enforcement is that once you reach critical mass if you don't have it within nine months or so, you're not likely to ever get it," former federal prosecutor Robert W. Ray said.

Will Assemblyman John Wisniewski and the Democrats give up now and put this nonsense to rest?

Don't hold your breath.

"This is not a Chris Christie investigation," he said in a statement. "It's an investigation as to why this happened and who authorized it. As a consequence, this does not change our position."

It's not clear when federal authorities will conclude their investigation or if criminal charges will be handed down to Christie's aides. There are still other angles to the investigation, including how Port Authority funds were used. It is unclear where that part of the investigation might be going.

I'll tell you where it's going. Nowhere. There's no "there" there, no matter how much Wisniewski's band of Hillary surrogates might wish for a smoking gun to magically appear.

But, they're gonna keep slinging this mud for all it's worth until their girl is firmly ensconced in the White House, or Christie drops out of contention for 2016, whichever comes first. That's been the point of this phony scandal since Day 1. And if the taxpayers have to shell out millions more for lawyers and investigators and hearings, well so be it. It's merely the price we pay for electing an ostensibly Repubican governor in a deep blue state. Just ask Scott Walker.

Posted at 11:49 by Chris Wysocki [/nj_politics] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Chris-Christie Bridgegate NJ-Politics | Tweet

The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Tom Cotton for U.S. Senate

Week Three of a Nine Week Mission, to Seek Out new life for the Senate, to Boldly Go where our nation needs to be!

Focusing on the Senate races (Republicans need just six seats to oust the Dimbulb from Searchlight, Harry Reid as majority leader, ten to show Obama what the country really thinks of him!), is it worth ten bucks a week (1½ lbs. of bacon?) to eliminate Reid's control and give the Senate responsible leadership again?

With that in mind, this week we look to the open Senate seat in AR. Can you contribute just $10 to Senate candidate Tom Cotton?

Real Clear Politics has Cotton up 1.7 points on the average, and rates the state as a toss up.

You can contribute to Tom Cotton here. Good luck and Godspeed, Tom!

(If you mark your contribution as "Ten Buck Friday", they'll see if the blogosphere can give them a little bump.)

(Aside from Wy — last week before Ten Buck Friday Joni Ernst was up by 2 points; after Ten Buck Friday she's now up by 6! Behold the power of the blogosphere!)

Be sure to visit our growing list of fellow Ten Buck Friday bloggers:

Adrienne's Corner

Diogenes' Middle Finger

Fishersville Mike

For God, Family, and Country

Laughing Conservative

Left Coast Rebel

Mind Numbed Robot

Polination

Political Clown Parade

Proof Positive

Texas Conservative News

Theo Spark

WyBlog

----------
Previously:
The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Joni Ernst for U.S. Senate
The Return of Ten Buck Friday (David Perdue)

Posted at 09:14 by Proof [/gop] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Ten-Buck-Friday GOP Tom-Cotton Senate Arkansas | Tweet

Wednesday, 17 September 2014

Scratch a Democrat and an anti-Semite comes out, the Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, and Elizabeth Warren edition

VP Joe Biden colorfully slandered Jews yesterday with an offensive medieval stereotype.

"My son as attorney general, the year in Iraq, came back and that's one of the things that he finds is, was most in need, when he was over there in Iraq for a year, people would come to him and talk about what was happening at home, in terms of foreclosures, in terms of bad loans that were being, I mean these Shylocks who took advantage of these women and men while overseas."

The reference is from Shakespeare's play "The Merchant of Venice," where the evil Jewish moneylender literally required a pound of flesh from someone who didn't repay their loan. It has long been considered a vile and offensive term.

Then it was Bill Clinton's turn, bashing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Iowa.

Bill Clinton was recorded bashing Bibi Netanyahu, agreeing that the prime minister was "not the man" to make peace with Palestinians — a position at odds with his wife's pro-Israel stance, a new report said Monday.

Bubba thought he wasn't being recorded. So, um, then this is what he really thinks, right?

Good to know.

At least Hillary won't have to worry about Elizabeth Warren trampling on her purported pro-Israel turf. Fauxcahontas told a Holocaust survivor that it's "fair" to compare Israel's actions to a Nazi atrocity.

"Eva Moseley, I'm not a student, I'm not an alumnae, but was in faculty life. I was also a Holocaust refugee and I'm extremely concerned that Jews don't do to another people what was done to them," said the activist.

"I think that's fair," Senator Warren responded.

Yes, because protecting your citizens from bombs and rockets is exactly like rounding up Jews and shoving them into ovens, or something.

The attitudes of these top Democrats is sickening.

The casual bigotry on display here is endemic of a wider problem. Because if lots of people, including many in the media, didn't share these reprehensible beliefs, Democrats wouldn't be so quick to toss them around. Obviously they presume they're among friends, fellow travelers who nod approvingly at rampant anti-Semitism.

And their odious prejudice is contagious.

This fall NYC's Metropolitan Opera will present "The Death of Klinghoffer," a play that is filled with ugly, anti-Semitic propaganda lies that romanticize the Palestinian cause. The fact that an innocent, disabled Jewish man was thrown to his death from a cruise ship? Who cares, he was probably a Shylock anyway.

UPDATE 17 Sep 2014 14:23:
Biden, Clinton, and Warren have nothing on Democrat WV Rep Nick Rahall.

You know @RepNickRahall loves CAIR, but did you know he also staffs anti-Semites/terrorist supporters? #wvpol #wv03 pic.twitter.com/YB7pWnxSp6
— Holly Fisher (@HollyRFisher) September 16, 2014

Rahall employs one Collin Peterson, whose Facebook page features a picture of him posing in terrorist garb holding an AK-47.

Peterson is also a Field Organizer for the West Virginia Democratic Party.

Draw your own conclusions.

Posted at 12:30 by Chris Wysocki [/democrats] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Israel Jews anti-Semitism Joe-Biden Bill-Clinton Elizabeth-Warren Democrats | Tweet

Tuesday, 16 September 2014

Another Obamacare success story: Businesses cutting jobs ahead of the Employer Mandate

On the plus side, you'll have (allegedly) cheap health insurance, and more time to play golf.

Because, thanks to Obamacare, your job just went poof!

Businesses are cutting jobs due to ObamaCare, according to surveys by several regional Federal Reserve Banks.

Health economist John Goodman noted that "three Federal Reserve Banks in Philadelphia, New York and Atlanta have surveyed the folks in their area and roughly one fifth of the employers are saying they cut back on employment."

"Roughly one fifth are saying they're moving from full time to part time," Goodman added. "More than one in ten are saying they're doing more outsourcing - all this because of the new health care reform."

Doug Holtz-Eakin, former Director of the Congressional Budget Office, said for the smaller employers -- those that have between 20 and 49 employees -- you get a negative impact on jobs, you get a negative impact on wages in those jobs. What this means for small business as a whole is over $22 billion of earnings gone for their workers and 350,000 jobs."

The president repeatedly has delayed the mandate requiring businesses with more than 50 employees to provide insurance. But businesses know it's coming, so many avoid hiring to keep their worker rolls below 50.

Also, the mandate applies only to those who work more than 30 hours a week -- an incentive for employers to reduce hours.

Fewer jobs. And the jobs that remain are part-time.

Yay Obamacare!

But wait, there's more bad news.

Prices are rising, and incomes are shrinking.

More than a third of manufacturing firms in the NY Fed survey said they're raising prices to cover the costs of health care, and about half the businesses surveyed by the Dallas Fed said ObamaCare is raising insurance costs for their employees.

"Yes we are going to see increased cost to employers who are trying to provide health care for their employees, but employers don't just take that lying down," said Tevi Troy of the American Health Policy Institute.

Goodman added, "Even among full-time workers, their take home pay is going to go down because one thing that almost all the employers are doing in response to ObamaCare is raising the deductibles, raising the co-payments and making the employee pay more of the premium."

Oops. Scratch that "cheap health insurance" baloney. I can tell you from first-hand experience that the decrease in disposable income is all too real.

But smug liberals get to feel good about themselves for "helping" the uninsured, so there's that.

Meanwhile out here in The Real World, Obamacare is a train wreck. And that light at the end of the tunnel? Yeah, it's another oncoming train.

Posted at 10:07 by Chris Wysocki [/obamacare] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Obamacare jobs unemployment employer-mandate | Tweet

Monday, 15 September 2014

The U.S. has the highest corporate income tax rate in the industrialized world

The next time some Obamabot tries to tell you American corporations aren't paying their "fair share" in taxes, show her this chart.

See that bottom red line? The one that says "United States?"

Yeah, Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Hillary Clinton, and pretty much all Democrats believe a corporate tax rate of 39.1% is not high enough.

Sane people might disagree.

Any day now the White House and Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.) will attempt to raise taxes on business, while making the U.S. tax code even more complex. The Obama and Schumer plans to punish businesses for moving their legal domicile overseas will arrive even as a new international ranking shows that the U.S. tax burden on business is close to the worst in the industrialized world. Way to go, Washington.

Can you see why Burger King wants to pay taxes in Canada? They'll save 13% overnight!

The index takes into account more than 40 tax policy variables. And the inaugural ranking puts the U.S. at 32nd out of 34 industrialized countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

"With the developed world's highest corporate tax rate at over 39% including state levies, plus a rare demand that money earned overseas should be taxed as if it were earned domestically, the U.S. is almost in a class by itself. It ranks just behind Spain and Italy, of all economic humiliations. America did beat Portugal and France, which is currently run by an avowed socialist.

Well, to be fair, America is currently being run by an avowed socialist too.

And when I say "run," I mean Into The Ground. Barack Obama is running America into the ground. He seems to be enjoying it, too.

Posted at 14:57 by Chris Wysocki [/economy] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: taxes corporate-taxes reversion Obama | Tweet

Sunday, 14 September 2014

Obamanomics in action: 38% of NJ households struggle to meet basic needs

What Recovery? While Obama golfs, the people who voted for him are struggling just to make ends meet.

Every day, Kim Ticehurst walks a financial tightrope.

A single mother in Montclair, Ticehurst lost her job in the construction industry in January. At 50, she has decades of experience in project management, planning, organization and design, but the scores of resumes she has submitted have been met with no response.

"It's a horrible feeling," she said last week. "You definitely confront times when you're like 'how do I get through this day?'"

She has pieced together employment, working part-time in childcare while she tries to get her new home-organization business off the ground. For the first time in months, she's feeling optimistic.

But she knows the littlest of things, from a toothache to a car accident, could turn her life upside-down.

A new study conducted by the United Way of Northern New Jersey shows an alarming number of New Jersey residents are in Ticehurst's position. Data compiled by the group show that 38 percent of New Jersey households are struggling to meet basic needs. These households are just scraping by, one lost job or medical emergency away from potential fiscal ruin.

The report, called ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed), paints a stark picture of how widespread financial hardship like Ticehurst's is in New Jersey.

While 11 percent of state residents fall below the Federal Poverty Line, which stands at an annual income of $22,811 for a family of four, the report found that when adjusted for cost of living the same family needs nearly triple that — $61,200 — just to meet a basic survival budget.

In one of the wealthiest states in the country, 1.2 million households fall below this threshold. And while the state's economy has shown signs of recovery in the wake of the Great Recession, the number of households struggling by the United Way measure increased by about 24 percent from 2007 to 2012, the most recent data available.

Hmm, back in 2007, who was running for president and promising he'd help people like Kim Ticehurst? Yeah, too bad she (and everyone else in Montclair) voted for that Obama guy.

What? She expected him to draw on his decades of experience?

Welcome to Obama's New Normal. Where average Americans struggle just to get by while he and his rich Wall Street friends keep telling us it's all somebody else's fault.

ALICE households exist in every age bracket in New Jersey, but the largest segment of the group is those who are typically in their income earning prime. Households headed by those aged 25-64 represent 75 percent of those beneath the ALICE threshold.

The average budget needed to provide basic needs, both for the individual and the family household in New Jersey, increased by 19 percent from 2007 to 2012.

High paying jobs are scarce. Jobs paying less than $40,000 a year now comprise 53 percent of all jobs in New Jersey, and these jobs are projected to be the primary source of labor growth in the coming years.

Obamanomics — lower paying jobs, higher costs for life's necessities.

What's not to like about that?

"For people in poverty, their attempt to escape from poverty has been more difficult because of the large number of people with more education than them competing for available jobs," Van Horn said. "And in our own research here, we found that more than half of Americans who were able to get another job, their next job was either lower-paying or paid the same."

"So people are either staying where they were or they're downwardly mobile."

Trickle-up poverty. Because Obama so loved the poor that he made millions more of them.

Posted at 15:20 by Chris Wysocki [/economy] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: economy Obama recession New-Jersey poverty ALICE | Tweet

Friday, 12 September 2014

The return of Ten Buck Friday, support Joni Ernst for U.S. Senate

Week Two of a Nine Week Mission, to Seek Out new life for the Senate, to Boldly Go where our nation has been before!

Once again focusing on the Senate races (Republicans need just six seats to oust the Dimbulb from Searchlight, Harry Reid as majority leader), is it worth ten bucks a week (30 pkgs. of Ramen?) to eliminate Reid's control and give the Senate responsible leadership again?

With that in mind, this week we look to the open Senate seat in IA. Can you contribute just $10 to Senate candidate Joni Ernst?

Real Clear Politics has Ernst up 2 points on the average, and rates the state as a toss up.

You can contribute to Joni Ernst here. Good luck and Godspeed, Joni!

(If you mark your contribution as "Ten Buck Friday", they'll see if the blogosphere can give them a little bump.)

Be sure to visit our fellow Ten Buck Friday bloggers:

Adrienne's Corner

Diogenes' Middle Finger

Fishersville Mike

For God, Family, and Country

Laughing Conservative

Left Coast Rebel

Mind Numbed Robot

Polination

Political Clown Parade

Proof Positive

Texas Conservative News

Theo Spark

WyBlog

----------
Previously:
The Return of Ten Buck Friday (David Perdue)

Posted at 08:40 by Proof [/gop] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Ten-Buck-Friday GOP Joni-Ernst Senate Iowa | Tweet

Thursday, 11 September 2014

#ISIS "is not Islamic", because Obama knows better than the guys with "Islamic" in their name

He can't help himself. His bubris mandates his intellectual superiority must be displayed. And thus Barack Obama started his latest speech with a cringe-worthy apology to Muslims.

Obama: #ISIS is not Islamic.' Full transcript: http://t.co/wPGvt6fmkA #ObamaSpeech pic.twitter.com/5S5Cin40Ny
— CNN International (@cnni) September 11, 2014

Because he knows Islam better than anyone else. (Just like with Obamacare; he knows Catholicism better than the Pope does.) He took a class. He discussed it with Smart People. And his opinion is obviously more reasonable than any practical considerations arising out of, you know, the actions and beliefs of actual Muslims.

Obama: "ISIL is not Islamic". So what does he think the acronym stands for?
— Bart Simmons (@SimmonsBart) September 11, 2014

Let him be clear: ISIL in not Islamic. Except that they call themselves the Islamic State. And they kill in the name of Islam. #ObamaSpeech
— Nadine Elhindi (@NadineElhindi) September 11, 2014

Ignoring reality is The Progressive Way. They truly believe they're our moral and intellectual superiors. And when the world doesn't meet their utopian fantasies, it's not them who has failed. It's the world. The world has not lived up its potential, because it did not follow The Progressive Way.

And so Obama redoubles his efforts to remake the world into his vision of what it should be. He won't be deterred, no matter how many times he's proven wrong.

Posted at 11:17 by Chris Wysocki [/obama_watch] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: ISIS ISIL Obama Islam Islamic religion | Tweet

Wednesday, 10 September 2014

Only 42% of NJ voters are sold on re-electing Obamabot U.S. Senator Cory Booker

With the election only 2 months away a new poll puts Cory Booker's support at only 42%, albeit 13 points higher than GOP challenger Jeff Bell.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Cory Booker leads Republican opponent Jeff Bell by 13 points, according to a poll released this morning.

The Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind survey of 721 registered voters shows Booker with 42 percent support to Bell's 29 percent.

More than a quarter of voters — 27 percent — are undecided.

More than a quarter of NJ is still undecided? Wow.

One potential drag for Democrats is President Obama, who the poll shows with a 36 percent approval rating, compared to 49 percent of voters who disapprove.

Senator Booker is 100% behind his president.

Post by Rich Pezzullo.

"I believe Barack Obama has the right ideas to move this nation forward."
— U.S. Senator Cory Booker

Really Senator? What ideas?

His uber-excellent foreign policy?

Obamacare? With the moveable mandates, missing doctors, and burgeoning costs?

Executive orders on illegal immigration, that demand "immediate" action, right after this election?

Or perhaps you're in favor of his weaponized IRS? Yeah, you probably are 110% behind that one.

Maybe you mean his economic ideas? You know, the ones which have put more Americans out of work than any other president? The ones that raised the unemployment rate in majority-Black cities like Newark to the highest in history?

How about his poverty-inducing energy policies, where electricity rates have "necessarily" skyrocketed?

Those ideas?

You can have 'em. And the capital "F" Failure they represent.

Because you, and Obama's progressive policies, have indeed failed America.

It's time for new leadership. One without slogans and platitudes masquerading as strategy.

Jeff Bell for United States Senate. He's no Obamabot. And that's a good thing.

Posted at 09:59 by Chris Wysocki [/nj_politics] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: NJ-Politics US-Senate Cory-Booker Jeff-Bell Obama Democrats | Tweet

Tuesday, 09 September 2014

So why did you morons vote for him: Majority of Americans say Obama is a "failure"

Hindsight is 20/20.

And really, I told you so.

But no, you morons voted for him. Twice.

Now it's too late, even if the lightbulb finally came on.

A majority of Americans and even many Democrats consider President Obama's tenure to be a "failure," according to a new poll from the Washington Post and ABC News.

The poll shows Americans say 52-42 that Obama has been more of a failure than a success. Among registered voters, the gap is even bigger -- at 55-39 -- with four in 10 (41 percent) saying they "strongly" believe Obama has been a failure.

Those saying Obama has been a failure include one in four Democrats (25 percent), nearly three in 10 liberals (29 percent) and the vast, vast majority of conservative Republicans (92 percent). Nearly one in five liberals (18 percent) say they feel "strongly" that Obama has been a failure.

I believe the canonical phrase is "Stuttering Clusterfuck of a Miserable Failure," but hey, welcome to the party anyway kids.

Then again, those liberals labeling him a "failure," when reached in Mom's basement, probably said he hasn't taken us far enough to the left.

There's no pleasing some folks.

But the rest of us? We'll be applauding the Mitt Romney Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk World Tour.

And really, let this be a lesson to you. Because if you idiots turn around and vote for Hillary in 2016? Yeah, congratulations, you destroyed America, on purpose.

Posted at 20:08 by Chris Wysocki [/obama_watch] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Obama WaPo #fail | Tweet

Monday, 08 September 2014

To "save" Atlantic City, Chris Christie green-lights sports betting in New Jersey

There's a law against wagering on professional sports. Chris Christie just told everyone in New Jersey to ignore it.

After a more than four-year battle to legalize sports betting, the Christie administration today cleared the way for wagering at the state's casinos and racetracks by telling them they will not be held civilly or criminally liable by state law enforcement agencies.

Seizing on a loophole in a federal ban on sports betting, acting state Attorney General John Hoffman issued a directive to law enforcement telling them that casinos and racetracks continued to be exempt from prosecution under the 2012 law authorizing such wagering.

The move sent a clear message to those facilities that they can begin offering wagering without fear of state reprisal, so long as no betting occurs on college sports or athletic events in New Jersey, or on any of the state's college teams, regardless of where they play.

The legal maneuver would allow betting to begin without specific, state-sanctioned regulations, licensing or authorization, which are banned under the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act and a federal court injunction issued against the state.

Along with the law enforcement directive, the state Attorney General's Office also filed a motion with U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp to make clear that the state's action is in line with his injunction, issued last year, as well as a subsequent federal appellate court ruling.

Both actions come as Gov. Chris Christie holds a closed-door summit in struggling Atlantic City, which stands to benefit the most should sports betting begin later this year.

So the casinos can take the bets, on the qt, and the state won't stop them.

But Christie'll still go after the guy in the corner deli who's offering better odds.

I think that's what we call "eliminating the competition."

And there's no guarantee Eric Holder won't take a sudden interest in what NJ's casinos are doing. Especially since the state won't be regulating the action.

This looks like a Hail Mary pass to keep Atlantic City afloat on the backs of the mathematically challenged. If it works, great. If it gets torpedoed by the feds, hey, Christie can blame them for killing AC. Politically it's brilliant.

But I have my doubts as to whether or not it's a sound revitilization strategy. Online poker was supposed to "save" Atlantic City. And the racetracks too. Except, it hasn't. There's a lot less money coming in than the so-called experts predicted. Who's to say sports betting will be the panacea they're claiming it'll be?

Posted at 17:51 by Chris Wysocki [/nj_politics] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Chris-Christie Atlantic-City casino sports wager betting law | Tweet

Saturday, 06 September 2014

New York Jets fans don't get no Facebook respect

Sigh.

A new color-coded map shows just how much reach your favorite NFL team has across the United States. Basically, the odds are good that you're surrounded by like-minded football fanatics — unless your team happens to be the New York Jets.

The map shows which counties various football fans live based on which NFL team they "Like" on Facebook. Based on the data, the New York Jets are only NFL team that failed to win over a single county.

I am a Jets fan!

And I'm proud to be a Jets fan!

So there!

My daughter is a Jets fan too!

I even have a friend who's a Jets fan! Really!

Then there's this guy:

And not for nothing, but the Jets are sold out. Every game.

Unlike say, the Bills.

So c'mon Jets fans. Get those Facebook "Likes" in gear. Show that other team how Met Life Stadium is our stadium too. No matter what some silly map says.

Now, repeat after me:

J - E - T - S, Jets! Jets! Jets!

Posted at 09:10 by Chris Wysocki [/jets] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: New-York-Jets NFL Facebook | Tweet

Friday, 05 September 2014

Income Inequality? So far, Obamanomics has only helped the rich

If Dear Leader really hates the wealthy as much as he says he does, why has he made them richer while keeping everybody else down and out?

Under President Obama, the richest 10 percent were the only income group of Americans to see their median incomes rise, according to a survey released this week by the Federal Reserve.

The Fed data covered the years 2010-2013, during which period Mr. Obama constantly campaigned against income inequality and won re-election by painting his Republican rival as a tool of Wall Street plutocrats.

"Data from the 2013 [Survey of Consumer Finances] confirm that the shares of income and wealth held by affluent families are at modern historically high levels," the report said in noting that the median income fell for every 10-percent grouping except the most affluent 10 percent.

When Obama says he's helping the middle class, it's a lie.

And when he talks about caring for the poor, that's a lie too.

But making fat cats get fatter? Yeah, he's real good at doing that. Everything he's done has accelerated "income inequality." Almost like he planned it that way.

This past weekend I had an Obamabot smirk at me, "he saved this country!"

To which I replied, "from what, prosperity?"

Riddle me this, Batman. If we only added 142,000 new jobs last month, how did Obama manage to fudge the unemployment rate down to 6.1%?

Can you say "labor force participation rate?"

Sure, I knew you could.

[Not] only did the headline data disappoint, the labor force participation rate dropped once again to 62.8% from 62.9%, matching the lowest since 1978, as a result of the people not in labor force rising once again, and hitting a new all time high record of 92,269,000, up 268,000 from the prior month. In fact, in August the number of people not in the labor force increased by nearly double the number of people who found jobs, which as we reported previously, was only 142K.

Putting it another way, since the start of the depression in December 2007, the number of people not in the labor force has increased by 13.0 million. The number of jobs added: 768,000.

Think about that for a minute.

Obama has now sent thirteen million Americans over the abyss, into employment oblivion. No job. No unemployment benefits. No hope.

When he promised "change you can believe in," I'm pretty sure that isn't what most of us had in mind.

So, tell me again why you guys voted for him?

Posted at 15:00 by Chris Wysocki [/economy] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Obama economy income-inequality Federal-Reserve unemployment | Tweet

The return of Ten Buck Friday

Back in halcyon years of old (2010), some conservative bloggers put forth a plan where, a poll would be taken of conservative candidates around the country and the winner would be the recipient of a ten dollar contribution to their campaign from each of the participants. Forgive me for not taking a poll, but there are only nine Fridays between now and the midterm elections. Our country has not had a budget passed in the Senate since 2009, forcing a series of continuing resolutions which keep the nation at the brink of a shut down and masks the obscene amounts of money that the President and Congress want to spend. Hundreds of bills passed in the House are not even brought up for a vote in Harry Reid's Senate.

Focusing on the Senate races (Republicans need just six seats to oust the bottleneck, hyper partisan Harry Reid as majority leader), is it worth ten bucks a week (two lattes?) to eliminate Reid's control and give the Senate responsible leadership again?

With that in mind, this week we look to the open Senate seat in GA. Can you contribute just $10 to Senate candidate David Perdue?

Real Clear Politics has Perdue up 3.8 points on the average, but rates the state as a toss up.

You can contribute to David Perdue here. Good luck and Godspeed, David!

(If you mark your contribution as "Ten Buck Friday", they'll see if the blogosphere can give them a little bump.)

Be sure to visit our fellow Ten Buck Friday bloggers:

Adrienne's Corner

Diogenes' Middle Finger

Fishersville Mike

Laughing Conservative

Left Coast Rebel

Mind Numbed Robot

Political Clown Parade

Proof Positive

Texas Conservative News

Theo Spark

WyBlog

Posted at 09:03 by Proof [/gop] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Ten-Buck-Friday GOP David-Perdue Senate Georgia | Tweet

Thursday, 04 September 2014

This guy spends 14 years in a dead-end job and he complains he still makes minimum wage?

The nation's fast food workers are out protesting again, agitating on behalf of the SEIU for a $15 an hour "living wage." It's the same old song, pay us more money for unskilled, easily automated work. Because Class Warfare! Or, something.

The thing is, they don't do themselves any favors when they send out guys like this:

Protester Prospero Sanchez, who was at the rally near Times Square, said the $11.50 per hour he earns making pizzas at a Domino's Pizza restaurant is not enough to support him, his wife and two kids. He started working at the same restaurant 14 years ago, when he made $5 an hour.

Dude, get a new job.

I mean, really, 14 years doing the same thing, and you expect what exactly, a medal? Why didn't you try to move up, maybe to assistant manager? Let me guess, because then you'd have to work harder, right?

He has asked his bosses for more money. "They said no," Sanchez, 32, said.

What did you offer them? That you'll keep making pizzas just like you do now?

And they said, "no?"

Wanna see my shocked face?

Listen up Chief, get your ass into night school. Stop complaining and do something to help yourself. Look up the word "ambition." Memorize the definition.

Then we'll see your shocked face, when McDowell's offers you more than $15 an hour. Because you've got skills to offer them.

Maurice: "Oh yeah, I started out mopping the floor just like you guys. Then I moved up to washing lettuces. Now, I'm working the fat fryer. Pretty soon I'll make assistant manager, and that's when the big bucks start rolling in."

America. It's the land of Opportunity. We open the door. But you have to walk through it.

Posted at 15:57 by Chris Wysocki [/economy] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: jobs minimum-wage economy fast-food | Tweet

Wednesday, 03 September 2014

Reagan vs Obama, from "we win, they lose" to "shrink them to a manageable problem"

How did we go from this

to this?

"We know that if we are joined by the international community, we can continue to shrink ISIL's sphere of influence, its effectiveness, its financing, its military capabilities to the point where it is a manageable problem."
— Barack Hussein Obama

I wonder, how many beheadings a month are "manageable?"

Maybe Obama can ask the international community to come up with a consensus on that. You know, just so we don't offend anyone.

Because it sure seems like the only time this president wants to win is when he's playing golf.

Meanwhile, reality TV star Phil Robertson takes up Reagan's mantle:

"Either convert them or kill them."

And before you go all liberal on me and get the vapors over such straight talk, remember this. It's the same choice ISIL gives Christians.

Let's see 'em try to complain about that.

Posted at 12:28 by Chris Wysocki [/terrorism] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: ISIS ISIL Obama terrorism war Islam Ronald-Reagan | Tweet

Tuesday, 02 September 2014

The cost to educate Obama's wave of illegal alien kids this year? $760 million

Hey America, got an extra $760 million in your school budgets? Because that's how much we're gonna need to educate the massive influx of illegal alien kids Obama dumped into our communities this year.

A new report puts the price of educating the thousands of illegal immigrant children who recently crossed into the U.S. at a whopping $761 million this school year -- as some school systems push for the feds to pick up the tab.

The estimate comes from the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which issued a report on the 37,000 "unaccompanied minors" — who mainly are from Central America — after analyzing data from the Department of Health and Human Services and education funding formulas in all 50 states.

The numbers underscore the concerns critics have raised for months about the burden the surge is putting on local school systems and governments.

"We're not doing American students any favors by dumping in tens of thousands of additional illegal alien children," FAIR's Bob Dane told Fox News.

The report breaks down the costs by state. The biggest impact reportedly will be seen in California, Texas, Florida and New York. The Empire State leads the list with a bill of more than $147 million.

Will the feds pick up the tab?

Nope. Local taxpayers are on the hook for the whole enchilada.

That is, if we can find enough teachers.

PATERSON — With classes about to start, city school officials are scrambling to fill scores of vacant teaching positions, many of them for special education and students who are learning English.

As of last Wednesday, the district had 131 openings at its schools, most of them teaching jobs, said deputy superintendent Eileen Shafer. That included 38 special education jobs, 29 for English Language Learner classes, seven for math and six for science.

I don't suppose La Raza would volunteer to send a few teachers our way.

So the kids who belong here will get shortchanged, as if they aren't disadvantaged already, while Obama keeps the border wide open so he can appease foreign governments and their lobbyist lackeys. Meanwhile, you and I get to pay for it all.

Hey, while we're at it, maybe we should teach these kids how to play golf. If nothing else, Obama ought to be willing to cough up a few bucks for that.

Posted at 16:35 by Chris Wysocki [/immigration] Comments | Perm Link |
Technorati Tags: Obama immigration illegal-alien education taxes | Tweet


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