Wednesday, June 15, 2011

President Obama Keeps Another Campaign Promise!

Washington DC, Jun 15, 2011. President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya,  has kept another campaign promise!

This will mark the third time since taking office that the President has actually accomplished something he said he would do.

On January 17, 2008, then candidate Barack Obama  told the San Francisco Chronicle during an interview that he was willing to see the coal industry go bankrupt.

"So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can. It's just that it will bankrupt them."
A little over 3 years later President Obama has kept that campaign promise, as more coal plants are shutting down due to their inability to meet the stringent emissions standards set by the Obama's Democrat Congress in his first two years in office.

American Electric Power announced it plans to shut down several coal-fired power plants, convert or retrofit others, and cut as many as 600 jobs in the next few years to comply with regulations proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

When Barack Hussein Obama was campaigning three years ago he made literally hundreds of promises. Among those, he promised us:

"3 out of 300 isn't that bad!"
Create millions of shovel ready jobs
A tax cut for 95% of you
Open and transparent government
No jobs for lobbyists
Repeal the Patriot Act
An end to earmarks
Close Guantanamo Bay
End Warrantless Wiretaps
Bring the troops home in 16 months

And while he ignored most of his campaign promises, he actually has delivered on three of them:

Socialized Medicine
Gays in the Military
Bankrupt the Coal Industry

The latest campaign promise kept is significant because it means that consumers might see their electricity bills jump an estimated 40 to 60 percent in the next few years.

Pending environmental regulations will make coal-fired generating plants, which produce about half the nation's electricity, more expensive to operate. Many are expected to be shuttered

The increases are expected to begin to appear in 2014, and policymakers already are scrambling to find cheap and reliable alternative power sources. If they are unsuccessful, consumers can expect further increases as more expensive forms of generation take on a greater share of the electricity load.

American Electric Power, one of the country's largest coal-burning electricity generators, said Thursday it will retire nearly a quarter of its coal-fueled generating capacity and that it will spend up to $8 billion to retrofit remaining units to meet regulations that start taking effect in 2014. Those moves will have an impact.

"The sudden increase in electricity rates and impacts on state economies will be significant at a time when people and states are still struggling,'' AEP Chairman and CEO Michael G. Morris said.

Coal-fired plants historically have been one of the cheapest ways to generate electricity.

However, operating costs are expected to increase significantly because of upgrades needed on older plants to meet new environmental regulations.

The Illinois Power Agency estimates that by 2017 the energy portion of bills could jump 65 percent from today's rates.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Today is Flag Day; Fly your Flag with pride

The Spin Cycle has joined a group of conservative bloggers who have formed The Right Blogfest. On some special occasions we will all write a post on the same topic, with each one of us providing our own unique viewpoint. 

We are proud to join Two Sisters From The Right, Raised On Hoecakes , Steve Bussey.com and Patriot's Corner in this project. 

We invite you to visit the other blogs for their own perspective on the topic at hand.  

Today, June 14, 2011 is Flag Day.

It commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States, which happened on that date by resolution of the Second Continental Congress in 1777.

The United States flag is an important and powerful symbol.

It is literally the symbol of our freedom and many sacrifices that brave young men and women had to make in order to guarantee it.

This was the same flag that we planted atop Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima in 1945, and the flag that astronaut Neil Armstrong put on the moon in 1969.

This was the flag that symbolized the United States when the US Third Army 808th Tank Destroyer Battalion liberated the concentration camp at Gotha Germany in 1945.

The guards and the officials of the concentration camp, desperate not to be caught, fled at our approaching attack and did not have time to kill the rest of the emancipated prisoners. These prisoners, at our approach, rushed out of the gates waving their arms ecstatically at us as our vehicles entered the open gates of the camp.

This was the very same flag that Michael Jordan, of the 1992 U.S. Olympic "Dream Team"  draped around himself as he accepted the gold medal.

This is the flag that drapes the coffins of our brave fallen warriors. The ones who sacraficed all, so that others could live free and enjoy the liberty that God gave them as a natural right.

In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation that officially established June 14 as Flag Day. Later, in August 1949, National Flag Day was established by an Act of Congress.

The U.S. flag is also known as the Stars and Stripes, Old Glory and The Star-Spangled Banner. It stands for the United States of America as a government, a nation, a people, and even as the American values of freedom and liberty.

But the flag itself is just a symbol. A symbol that features thirteen horizontal stripes that alternate between dark red and white. These represent the 13 original colonies.

In the top left corner are fifty white stars against a navy blue background. These stars represent the fifty states that currently make up the USA.

According to Charles Thompson, Secretary of the Continental Congress, the chosen colors have specific meaning as well. "White signifies purity and innocence," he said. "Red, hardiness and valor, and blue, the color of the chief, signifies vigilance, perseverance and justice."

Americans often fly the flag as an expression of patriotism, and it is featured in official government ceremonies such as military funerals and political inaugurations. The flag holds tremendous weight around the world as a recognizable symbol of the United States of America.

However, while the flag hasn't changed much in over 220 years (just more stars added, as more states joined the union), the attitude towards the flag has changed a lot for some people.

Unfortunately, in some places, our flag is no longer prominently displayed in our public schools, and the daily ritual of saying The Pledge of Allegience has been abolished. In one recent case, a California school teacher decided that the flag was offensive, and told students they couldn't draw flags for their art class.

Those freedoms symbolized by the flag are so comprehensive, that they even give you the right to burn an American flag as an expression of protest This is...  provided you own it, and don't violate any laws against setting fires in public places.

But for most citizens, the flag is still something respected and revered.

Today is flag day, so show your respect and appreciation for our nation by flying our flag!

Monday, June 13, 2011

Quiz: Five short questions to test your knowledge

And now for a change of pace from The Spin Cycle. Our first quiz, designed to challenge you and to test your memory.
 
Let's see how well you know your political quotes. 

Listed below are five direct quotes. You have to guess which American politician said it.

 
Your four choices are:
Former VP Dan Quayle
Former President George W. Bush
Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin
President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya

 
Ready? Here we go!

1) "Let me be absolutely clear. Israel is a strong friend of Israel’s."
A. Barack Obama
B. Dan Quayle
C. Sarah Palin
D. George W. Bush

2) "I've now been in 57 states I think one left to go."
A. Barack Obama
B. Dan Quayle
C. Sarah Palin
D. George W. Bush

3) "On this Memorial Day, as our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes, and I see many of them in the audience here today."
A. Barack Obama
B. Dan Quayle
C. Sarah Palin
D. George W. Bush

4) "The reforms we seek would bring greater competition, choice, savings and inefficiencies to our health care system."
A. Barack Obama
B. Dan Quayle
C. Sarah Palin
D. George W. Bush

5) "I bowled a 129. It's like - it was like the Special Olympics, or something."
A. Barack Obama
B. Dan Quayle
C. Sarah Palin
D. George W. Bush
 
OK, you probably figured out by now that this was a trick quiz. All of the correct answers are the same person. Each of these quotes are directly from President Barack Obama, D-Kenya

So now you know why he brings his teleprompter with him everywhere he goes ...even when talking to a 6th grade class. 
 
And most of the mainstream media continues to insist he is "The smartest man ever elected to the Presidency." Right. Sure he is....

Sunday, June 12, 2011

President Announces New GM Fuel Efficiency Champ

Riding in style in the new GM Scamp!
Washington DC, Jun 12, 2011. President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya, today announced the latest fuel miser in the Government Motors lineup.

The Chevrolet Scamp will be the perfect urban solution for drivers concerned about the high price of gasoline.

This exciting new vehicle is a snap to park in tight spaces.  You can even get it into an elevator and bring it up to your apartment or condo.

The Scamp is so small, that you can actually carry one inside the trunk of a 2011 Chevy Impala, making it an ideal emergency vehicle or back up car.

This revolutionary three wheeled minicar from General Motors gets an incredible 189 mpg on a standard blend of unleaded gas plus ethanol.  Even when using E85 (85% ethanol) it still will yield an impressive 121 mpg.  This makes the Chevy Volt, the previous high mileage champ, look like a gas guzzler by comparison.

The President's Auto Czar Ron Bloom is predicting that GM will sell over 4 million Scamps in 2012, and estimates that within ten years the Scamp will cut our dependence on imported oil by a whopping 6%!  The Auto Czar added, "There are some additional side benefits to this car. The highway fatality rate will be so high that we will save billions in Social Security and Medicare costs."
It is your patriotic duty to buy a GM Scamp!

The sporty one seat convertible (pictured above without the optional $14,000 canvas top) weighs just under 300 pounds, and comes with a very reliable 6 horsepower Briggs and Stratton engine.

This new gas miser will be available for sale in January 2012 at all Chevrolet dealerships, and will have a MSRP of $68,000.

But fortunately, the Scamp will be offered with a $15,000 taxpayer funded rebate for new buyers. This will bring the cost down to a very modest $53,000.

At today's gas prices, this car will virtually pay for itself over the first 35 years of ownership!

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Opinion: The Day America Died

No, it really wasn't the day we allowed Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid to take control of our congress back in January 2007.

It wasn't that day in November 2008, when we elected a man in an empty suit to be our president.

And it wasn't even that time period after 1968 when we allowed the radical left to capture our culture by controlling the schools, the media, the arts and the entertainment industry.

It happened long before these damaging events.You have to go back much further than that to find the time when we began our national decline.

Our nation entered it's fiscal and cultural death spiral the day politicians in both parties discovered to their delight that they could use the Federal Treasury to buy votes for themselves.

Plutarch, the ancient Greek historian warned that,
"The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits." 
Sen. Robert Byrd
In all of history, democracies have ended in bankruptcy or hyperinflation whenever the public learns to vote itself benefits. This is exactly what has happened in the United States. We are now bankrupt, because we elected people who promised to spend money we don't have.

Once the professional politicians discovered this fact, the entire game changed. No one could ever win an election by promising voters "less"... they had to promise more.

Almost every public building, highway and bridge in West Virgina is named for now deceased Senator Robert S. Byrd. As if he paid for them out of his own pocket. But the truth is, our children will have to pay for them someday.

So, now we have a deeply entrenched two party system, where one party will promise you the moon, and the other will promise you "something slightly less than the moon" and no matter who wins the taxpayers will lose by being saddled with more and more public debt.

And the "promise you the moon party" (henceforth referred to by their real name... the Democrats) will call the other free spending party ("The Republicans") heartless, greedy bastards for simply promising to spend a little bit less than they will.

But the truth is, both parties will spend money we don't have, and will place this burden of debt on our future generations. Because they don't look farther ahead then their own personal retirement benefits which are guaranteed the day they get elected to office.

Essentially, a Congressman who serves one two year term is entitled to lifetime benefits, including a generous pension. That's it. Two years and they are set for life. Don't you wish you could get a deal like this?

And both parties have colluded to streamline the process and make it easier for them to enrich themselves at the expense of America's future. In fact, they even changed the way they give themselves raises. In the past, they couldn't risk giving themselves generous raises during an election year. And this happens "every other year."

So, in 1989 they invented a system for "automatic raises." They don't have to go on record asking for more money. It now happens automatically. They only need to vote if they want to prevent their salary hikes, and logic tells you that that will never happen.

And these are the same people who froze Social Security cost of living increases for the past two years. While collecting two big fat raises for themselves.

Every spending bill is demagogued. Those who want to spend more are portrayed as people who "care about the little guy." Anyone who who wants to spend one cent less is said to "want little children and old people to die." These are the heartless bastards I referred to earlier.

And it works like a charm.

The voters eat it up, and vote for whoever promises them the most. No doubt, this is only possible because the schools have been dumbed down, and the media is working hard to keep the crooks in office. But the root cause of the problem is that we allow politicians to buy votes with our money.

Any politician who wants to restore fiscal sanity is promptly marginalized and demonized by the press. It doesn't matter if they are on the right or the left. If a politician wants a shot at winning an election, then he or she must promise to spend more money than their opponent is promising to spend.

But the joke is on the voters, because your elected officials are only promising to give you some of your own money back. Or worse yet, they are promising to borrow money to give you new benefits... and this is money your grandchildren will somehow have to pay back.

The real solution for this isn't in electing a different president, or a new congress. Because they all buy into this culture of perpetually spending money we don't have. The real solution is to fundamentally reform and overhaul our system, to prevent this sort of abuse.

We need to reinvent our system from the ground up. A few minor reforms won't do the trick. It is too badly broken now.

We probably need a Second American Revolution, and a New Constitutional Convention to drive all the corruption out of the system.

This might mean real campaign finance reform, real term limits, and perhaps even limiting voting rights to taxpayers or at least people who can prove who they are, and prove they can read and write.

We may also need to reform our financial system, and eliminate the FED, and their currency manipulations. We do not benefit by the constant devaluation of the dollar.

I know this sounds radical... but what are the real alternatives?
More of the same just won't work.

The irony of all this is that President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya, was actually right. We do need "Real Change."

But he never delivered on that promise. We just changed which party was mismanaging our nation.

Friday, June 10, 2011

GM CEO Wants $1 per gallon Gas Tax Hike

The joke will be on you!
Detroit MI, Jun 10, 2011. Government Motors CEO Dan Akerson wants the federal gas tax boosted as much as $1 a gallon to move consumers toward more fuel-efficient cars.

Akerson was installed as GM's CEO by U.S. President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya, in late 2010, after Obama fired the previous CEO  Edward Whitacre.

Obama hand picked Akerson from one of his Corporate Sponsors, The Carlyle Group, to run GM in an environmentally friendly way.

Akerson, a firm believer in Obama's plan for higher taxes, says he would like to see the government step up to the challenge by setting a much  higher gas tax, as part of a comprehensive energy policy. But he opposes forcing GM to build more fuel efficient cars.

A government-imposed tax hike, Akerson believes, will prompt more people to buy small cars and do more good for the environment than forcing automakers to comply with higher gas-mileage standards.

"There ought to be a discussion on the cost versus the benefits," he said. "What we are going to do is tax production here, and that will cost us jobs."

For the years 2017-25, federal officials are considering 3 percent to 6 percent annual fuel efficiency increases, or 47 mpg to 62 mpg. That could boost the cost of vehicles by up to $3,500.

"You know what I'd rather have them do — this will make my Republican friends puke — as gas is going to go down here now, we ought to just slap a 50-cent or a dollar tax on a gallon of gas," Akerson said. 

"That's my boy!"
"People will start buying more Cruzes and they will start buying less Suburbans."

Both Akerson and Obama are opposed to allowing any new oil drilling in US territory that could reduce the cost of gas by increasing supply.

Any increase in oil supplies could have a negative impact on prices and reduce profits for big oil companies and Islamic nations in the middle east.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Obama Stimulus Fails. Unemployment Claims Up Again

Washington DC, Jun 9, 2011. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly creeped higher last week, stoking fears of a promised but failed economic recovery.

To make matters worse, our trade gap with China jumped up 20% higher.

Initial claims for state jobless benefits increased 1,000 to 427,000, the Labor Department said. This was despite forecasts that it would drop to 415,000 from a previously reported count of 422,000.

The rise kept first-time claims above the 400,000 mark for the 9th week in a row. 

"It's the same dismal trend continuing. It's not getting worse, but it's not getting better either," said Keith Hembre, chief economist at Nuveen Asset Management in Minneapolis.

Fueling concerns about job creation, the U.S. government said on Friday the U.S. unemployment rate ticked up to 9.1 percent in May while nonfarm employers added a paltry 54,000 workers to their payrolls.

Hembre said the unemployment rate could rise to 9.2 percent in the June report. That would add to President Barack Hussein Obama's, D-Kenya, political woes heading into the 2012 race for the White House.

The closely watched U.S. trade deficit with China jumped nearly 20 percent in April to $21.6 billion. It continues at a pace to exceed last year's record of about $273 billion.

Despite rising unemployment, soaring deficits, and the growing trade gap with China, President Obama is planning to spend $160 billion in taxpayer money to bail out the economy of Greece!